#i will vanish into the aether and go back to actually just writing for myself

[shivunin]

Have decided that nothing is about me forever, especially vagueblogging

[biblioflyer]

How Picard should end.

The very probable end of The Next Generation is coming and with it the beginning of the end of the first phase of the revival of Star Trek that began with Discovery. Here's what I'm thinking about.

As I write this, the final episodes of Season Three, the series, and perhaps even this sub-franchise are coming into view. I refer to it as a sub-franchise because I think that Picard as a series has a storytelling approach and a set of themes that it has explored that overlap with Discovery but also has its own identity.

Because of the age of many of the principal characters, there has been a strong theme of having to adjust with grace and empathy to a world radically changed from what was normal and comfortable to you, having to acknowledge your complicity in the faults you find in this world, and of repairing relationships that have been harmed. 

Immersing myself in where Picard has been as a series, even just the first four episodes to date, has given me a strong sense of what it is that Picard is about and thus some strong, but not pugnaciously held opinions on how it should end. The failure to do any of the following will not “ruin” the series for me, although the alternatives better be really well done.

For the first time of the CBS era, I actually really feel strongly that my own aesthetics could be defied and I will still really enjoy the outcome. For example I despise the trope that Jack Crusher represents but the trope has been so superbly executed that I’m almost annoyed at how completely I’m in his corner.

Speaking of Jack Crusher….

I would strongly prefer he not be written off as a space god or killed. For one, this is just Wesley’s arc duplicated. For two, while “NuTrek” is doing a great job at moderating the setting’s default posture that transhumanism is bad, it feels too cliche and even cheap in a way for him to vanish into the aether. Let him live, as a mortal, trying to do right by all of the people who fought and died for him not because he was a space god, but because it was right. 

We’ve had three seasons of intense focus on the deeds of mortal and fallible individuals struggling to know what is right in a morally complicated universe, taking huge risks, and even sacrificing stability, family, love, peace, sobriety, and even their own lives: don’t end this with space magic. Don’t do another “space magic makes it all better so nobody really ever had skin in the game” ending.

Speaking of Wesley, having the two meet would provide a nice bit of closure for Beverly. It would bookend nicely with her line about already having lost one son to the same stars that call Jean luc.

Seven of Nine & Raffi

On again or off again, just pick a lane and make them handle it like adults.

As I’ve said before, I see two equally valid paths for Seven assuming it's handled properly. Seven can remain in Starfleet, her acceptance earned and her merits recognized by all but especially by Shaw. Ideally were this to be the case, I think I would like to see her take up Picard’s mantle of mentor to misfits.

There isn’t a character who is better positioned narratively in this series to become the person who sees something in people that others don’t and can find ways to take the round hole that is Starfleet and make it a square hole for the people who need it.

Or she can walk away and reclaim her full autonomy. Go back to the Fenris Rangers or go into Starfleet Intelligence.

As for Raffi, the past two seasons have intensely focused on the work the character was doing to first recover from addiction and then reclaim her mental health and with that the ability to have relationships without either her need to chase mysteries or the desire for control alienating those around her. It's time for Raffi’s work to be seen by others and to be supported. 

In the first season it was entirely fair for her son to refuse contact: she was too much a creature of her substance abuse and her obsessiveness. Now? Cut her some slack and let her show that she’s mastered the thing that makes her the hero no one is prepared to recognize that they need until it's too late but also makes her the villain in her own life.

I would merrily support a Worf & Raffi spy action buddy cop series. Seven, Jack, Laris, and anyone else unaccounted for who is not really a good fit for traditional ship service can come too if they want. A Star Trek answer to Firefly or The Expanse would be incredibly fascinating with good writing. Given the way Star Trek Picard has been critiquing the limits of institutional power in dealing with the unknown or morally complicated situations, I think the time is right. 

Perhaps this could be the Section 31 series instead of a 23rd century era one. Just have the Guardian of Forever send Georgiou to where she’s needed rather than where she belongs. She’d be a great foil for Zen Worf and the morally flexible but not that morally flexible Raffi.

Section 31 are bad guys, full stop.

Speaking of Section 31, either confirm that Section 31 has been disbanded and formally disavowed or that it had its Church Committee hearings and been folded back into Starfleet Intelligence with strong oversight and strong guard rails. Putting Worf and Raffi front and center in it would afford an opportunity to show that it is possible to address existential threats to the Federation without genocide or the intervention of space gods. 

It's really only been after seeing Discovery recycle the same deus ex ending, only worse, that I have come to realize that the way Deep Space Nine finished the Dominion War arc really, really rubs me the wrong way. My list of things that I think are completely antithetical to the core assumptions of Star Trek is not long, but the Federation being saved not once, but twice by attempted genocide is definitely on that list. 

Don’t get me wrong, Deep Space Nine is probably the most overall well executed series from the point of view of nearly every aspect of the show being consistently competent, but falling back on Section 31 to save the Federation? Not a fan of that.

Romance

I am not on the Bev/JL train. It had its time. For all the ways that Star Trek Picard has been in conversation with critiques of TNG’s very 1990s “end of history” worldview, one thing that was superbly managed was the idea that Beverly and Jean luc could try out a romance, realize it doesn’t work, and then be content with a strong bond that doesn’t need to express itself romantically. It was incredibly, shockingly mature for a 1990s drama.

This show did not kill off Zhabon and an ancestor of Laris for Laris to be killed off or to politely step aside.

Maybe Bev is happy being unpartnered. How about them apples? Maybe a senior woman is perfectly self actualized on her own and can take or leave romance.

This is probably one of the looming plot resolutions I am the most likely to be actually angered by if it doesn’t go the way I would prefer and it isn’t handled extremely well.

Once again, do not fridge Laris to make room for Beverly. 

That would easily make my list of the top five most appalling creative decisions of this show and this is coming from someone who has invested quite a bit of effort into defending and rationalizing its other controversial decisions. Having her step aside with her life and dignity is less distasteful but still frustrating.

The Federation and Shaw

Follow through with the overall theme from season one that institutions solve big problems but rules are not there to follow mindlessly. Conscience matters as does doing the right thing even when you are fearful. 

It may not be fair to ask 500 people to risk their lives for four people who have deliberately chosen to put themselves in harm’s way on a fool’s errand, but then when does it become fair? Does it have to be 501 lives on the line to be worth 500? How morally virtuous do the victims need to be? 

Smaller, more nimble actors don’t have to make these trades. The Mugato in the room is the Maquis. They could easily have provoked war but they did also provide a means by which Federation citizens who wanted their autonomy could contest Cardassian oppression without exposing the Federation to the specter of war  if the Federation failed to ensure their well being.

Also when and if a bad call is made out of anger, fear, or incomplete knowledge of the situation, how the consequences of that decision are addressed matter.

The Federation abandoned the Romulans. As did Picard himself. Picard accepted responsibility in Season One. The Federation extended its protection over Maddox & Soong’s Synth colony but there’s no mention of any peacekeeping or humanitarian efforts for Romulans who have rejected “the old ways.”

Finally, Shaw has his reasons and this series has been nothing if not incredibly nuanced in how it invokes trauma and uses it in a way to explain but not justify the behavior of characters. A theme I have thought about a lot in the context of Captain Marvel is the way that coping mechanisms for trauma often encourage self reliance and aloofness to the extreme. In Shaw’s own words “at some point asshole became a substitute for charm.” I would argue that the final stage of healing would be to become a team player who is capable of forging authentic relationships built on mutual trust and respect.

Now I do think this is coming in the form of a sincere working relationship with Seven but I would prefer it be extended beyond Seven. For Shaw to accept Seven as Seven is a good start but everyone is capable of accepting “one of the good ones.” Some sort of broader recognition that it's on him to swallow his terror and rage, it's not on every single XB to prove they’re not going to assimilate him.

Other characters / elements

BBEG: (Big Bad Evil Guy) I don’t know that I’m necessarily hoping for anything or anyone in particular. Armus would be cool. He’s one of the last entities on the board with an axe to grind who could conceivably be a credible menace to Changelings and shares some of their mercurial nature. 

The alien parasites would be neat as well. That that has long gone unresolved is a longstanding gripe but I feel like the time may have passed. Thematically the Changelings have more or less eaten their lunch when it comes to replacing people and intricate conspiracies. At this point, I think it would be just as well to retcon the infiltrators as having been an early effort by the Changelings to infiltrate other societies without exposing themselves to danger. The Founders certainly have the genetic engineering acumen to design a parasite species.

Elnor: at least mention him as existing, if not give the character some proper closure. Show him thriving in Starfleet and having a good relationship with Picard and Raffi as mentors and surrogate parents, explicitly connect Picard’s experiences with Elnor as a child and his effort to repair his relationship with Elnor as having been a practice run for Jack and the recognition that Jean luc would not have been his father as a parent.

Or show him choosing to leave Starfleet for the Rangers or even just to lead a quiet life of study and meditation. That’s cool too.

Jiurati: if the big bad is the Borg or related to them somehow, it would be cool to see Jiurati’s faction sweep in to help defeat them. Otherwise maybe one more reference would be nice.

The Admiral Janeway cameo is long overdue.

It would be nice for Worf to mention Alexander and Jadzia. Perhaps in the context of giving advice to Raffi on love, life, pursuing rapprochement after being an absentee parent, and living with the knowledge that your life choices place partners in existential danger. It would be a great way to cement their dualistic role this season rather than having Raffi be Worf’s sidekick.

Don’t fridge Tuvok. Find him safely.

Oh yeah, there's also JL himself.

We don't need to have Picard die on screen (again.) As far as I'm concerned Logan is all I'll ever need for Patrick Stewart death scenes. Its just too hard to contemplate. I consider the character of Picard to be a father figure and I'd kind of just prefer that he gets to be happy. I'd like for him to get good with Elnor and Jack.

"I tried so very hard to belong to this place."

Maybe pass the vineyard on as a national park that is Picard in name only. We all know his real home is in the stars. Putting him to work leading a Romulan humanitarian NGO that relies on his Starfleet contacts and credibility is I think the perfect bookend to how the series began with his despair over the Federation's failure and the ongoing interrogation of whether Starfleet is the only legitimate or appropriate entity for solving problems in the universe.

[the-dragons-knight]

FFXIV Write 2021

Prompt #15 - Conquering The Storm

Thunderous - ‘relating to or giving warning of thunder’

————————————————————

The heavy feeling of charged energy made Katsum’s fur stand on end as the light falling rain pounded against her armor plating. The thunderous rumbling through the air around them excited her, and she held tightly to Raihogg’s scaled back as his wings fluttered to push them higher into the air, his glowing blue and yellow eyes locked on the storm clouds above them. He told her many times how he and Bridgette would fly into thunderstorms together, weaving through the strikes of lightning and bathing in the rain, and how he had adored those flights. The more he spoke of it, the more fascinated she became until finally, she asked to fly with him through one such storm.

He had hesitated for a moment and confessed, “Forgive my hesitation. I only fear I cannot keep you as safe as I could Bridgette as I am no longer living and breathing in my own body. For without the aether I draw from you and the necklace, you would be falling through the sky alone…”

Katsum had honestly been a little surprised by this answer, but she understood his meaning and it warmed her heart that he worried so. Still, she smiled at him and said, “Then let’s try a smaller storm first and go from there. You’ve gotten me so fascinated with the idea of flying through a storm I can scarcely forget about it so I would still like to try it one day if you’ll allow it.”

The great red dragon had thought for a moment before he nodded with a chuckle, “Ever as Bridgette was, haha. Very well, we shall soar through the thunder and conquer the storms together.”

And today was the day they would conquer the largest storm so far.

The skywatchers had spoken of a very large mass of thunder clouds hanging over the Black Shroud that was moving northward towards Dravania, a strange phenomenon as normally the storms moved away from the mountains, not towards them. This caught Katsum’s curiosity, and when she spoke of it to Raihogg, they both agreed that this would be the storm.

Thunder rolled in the distance as the sky grew darker as the clouds grew thicker, sparks of light flashing ahead of them. Katsum leaned close to the red dragon and shouted over the wind, “Are you ready for this, Rai?!”

The dragon glanced back at her with a small chuckle, “Am I ready? Art thou prepared is the better question. ‘Tis your aether after all.”

She rolled her eyes with a bright smile, her eyes wide with excitement as she looked at the cloud, “I am!!”

The dragon’s wings sliced through the air as he pushed them up into the air to gain a bit of speed, flying a bit higher than the clouds and out into the clear night sky above. Katsum shook the rain from her face and looked down at the flashing cloud below them, the rumbling thunder echoing without ceasing around them. Raihogg hummed and took a deep breath, “Hold fast to me and lean close. I’ll not have you become a lightning rod.”

Katsum lay down on his back, tightening her grip on his scales, yet she patted him softly as well, “You can do this, Raihogg. I believe in you.”

The great dragon chuckled again and smiled at her, “Thank you, Katsum.” She nodded and they turned their eyes to the cloud as Raihogg pushed his wings down and then folded them close as they began their dive into the heart of the storm, “Now let us fly!”

Katsum’s fingers tightened on his scales as the black clouds grew nearer and the heavy electricity in the air grew thicker. The miqo’te pressed herself lower against him as they breached the cloud, surrounded by nothing but blackness for a moment, yet when they broke through the other side, Katsum’s jaw dropped in wonder.

The hollowed insides of the storm cloud were filled with infinite lightning strikes, the streams of electricity striking every inch of the cloud and moving through it like living, breathing creatures swarming within their hive. Raihogg unfolded his wings to soar on the charged winds, his eyes following each strike closely as he dodged them. The knightess watched a charge of lightning flutter over them and hit the wall of the cloud, a stream of bright energy striking afterward and filling the trail the charge had left behind, “This is amazing!”

“Careful now, remember to stay—” Suddenly a charge shot down towards Katsum, and Raihogg shifted quickly to dodge it. Yet the charge would not be so easily shaken and struck the horns of his tail. Raihogg roared as the lightning streamed and Katsum braced for the pain she knew she would feel…yet it never came. Raihogg too seemed surprised as they both glanced back to see the horns of his tail now glowing red with energy, small sparks of lightning popping off of them. As if remembering some lost forgotten memory, Raihogg’s voice rumbled excitedly, “Ah yes….how could I forget. Hold fast to me, my queen. I shall show you how we shall conquer this storm!”

With a roar, Raihogg turned to charge as a bolt of lightning, slicing his wing through the energy so the charge struck the talons on the edge of his winged arm. The lightning flashed as the charge was absorbed into his horns and they too began to glow. He did the same with his other wing and with the horns on his head. His eyes glowed red he slowed and hovered in the middle of the cloud and sucked in a deep breath. Suddenly all the charges of the cloud changed course and shot towards them and Katsum ducked again as they struck his glowing horns. The sky grew dim as the electricity was drawn out of it and into Raihogg’s body until there were no more strikes of lightning and the only source of light inside the dark cloud was Raihogg himself. His red glow made the cloud look rather eerie, yet slowly the cloud began to dissipate, the storm itself no longer able to hold itself together without the charges of thunder and lightning. They hovered there as the cloud broke apart and Raihogg breathed slowly, waiting and he held fast to the sparking energy on its leash, waiting for just the right moment. As the moon and stars came into view again, Raihogg sucked in a large breath and all the glowing light shifted, flowing through his veins and scales to his jaws where it gathered into a great ball of sparking lightning. With one push of his wings, the red dragon turned his head to the sky and shot the ball of lightning into the heavens above them where it flew straight up and then burst into a million streams of lightning, both red and blue, as she spread across the empty starlit sky and vanished.

Katsum sat up and laughed in amazement, “Raihogg! That was amazing!”

The tired dragon fluttered his wings nervously for a moment, breathing heavily as he very carefully started to descend, “A moment if you please.”

He fluttered down to a tall spire of rock that gave him just enough room to land on and dropped heavily onto the stone as he breathed heavily with Katsum. Her heart was racing with excitement as she smiled the biggest smile and patted him, “You did it! You actually did it! That was…that was more amazing than I could have ever imagined!!”

Raihogg chuckled amidst his gasps for breath, but he nodded, “I did not think myself capable of such powers anymore, yet I seemed to have doubted myself far more than I should have.”

Katsum shrugged, “Don’t I know all about that kind of thing myself. Still, don’t push yourself now. Let us rest here for a while until you can breathe normally again before we head home, yes?” She excitedly swished her tail as her ears wiggled happily, “I cannot wait to tell Aymeric about this!”

“You may not want to, for I am quite sure he will go mad with worry for the next flight.”

“….You do have a point there.”

[thebookkeeperslibrary]

Lost Time: Chapter 1

Fandom: Time Warp Trio

Author: The_Bookkeeper_96

Rating: T

Summary: Another summer at Horae Manor begins, but before Joe and Tessa get the chance to train, they are sent out on a mission to explore the magic capital of the universe, Mancika. Rumors of illegal magic conversion spread throughout the city, and Joe and Tessa need to locate those responsible. But after the events of last summer, Joe isn't eager to work with his Aether partner, and the two are struggling more with each other than with their enemies.

A/N: It’s finally here! And I even got it up before the end of the year like I said I would. Enjoy!

I’m trying out a slightly different writing style this time around, so please let me know what you think!

Read on AO3

-----

Preview:

"It is said that all the Greats are connected. Some even believe they are one soul inhabiting nine bodies that is reincarnated every generation. I, however, in studying the history of the most closely connected Greats, those that control Aether and Time, believe that they are not one soul. Rather, they are inimitable individuals who are highly bonded to one another through the magics that unite us all. However, there is evidence to suggest that the Greats possess the ability to communicate with the Greats of the past."  Excerpt from A History of the Horae Greats, Introduction by Petra Abell

Last night I dreamt I was a king again. At least, I assume I was a king. I suppose I could have been an emperor or a lord or something, but I'm going to go with king for now.

As always, the dream starts like any other dream, a bunch of nonsensical scenes that somehow make sense while you're asleep, but when you wake up, you realize how crazy it all was. This time, I only got to enjoy a few bites of delicious marshmallow pizza with Babe Ruth before I was pulled away into the throne room.

The room looks the same as it always does. I sit up high on a marble throne painted green. There are nine other thrones spread out on either side of me all painted different colours. On the floor beneath me, an intricately carved flower is engraved into the tile.

I have no idea what kind of flower it's supposed to be. A lotus, maybe? I don't pay enough attention in biology class to know all my plants. And it's not like knowing that kind of stuff is going to help me out in life anyway. Sam would disagree and argue that everything we learn in school is important, why else would they teach it to us?

I am not alone in the throne room, and unfortunately, it's not Babe Ruth with the rest of our pizza. Instead, I gaze forward and see a long line of people each holding a random object. One man is holding a golden trophy. A woman farther down the line is leaning on a grandfather clock. The first person in line is holding an hourglass, the sand slowing slipping into the bottom. That's the only thing that changes with these dreams. The hourglass seems fuller and fuller every night. For a time traveller, that might be a bad omen. For the future Warp Wizard, it's definitely a bad omen.

One by one, the people in line vanish into nothing starting at the back of the line. They all fade until it's just me and the hourglass holder. I open my mouth to ask them all of my questions, but no sound comes out.

Sometimes, we stare at each other for what feels like hours. Other times, only a few minutes. But the dream always ends the same way.

The room darkens, shrinking down on us. The darkness creeps closer and closer until it's suffocating me, and I wake with a scream.

---

My body lurches up, my hand flying to my chest to make sure my heart is still inside. I take several steadying breaths as I glance around my room. Everything is exactly the way I left it the night before. Clothes in a messy pile by the door, backpack flung under my desk, and The Book sits on my nightstand, unopened.

Sighing in relief, I fall back onto my pillow. How many people wake up each day and are glad to stop dreaming?

I blindly fumble around for my phone and eventually find it on the floor. Before I even turn the screen on, I know exactly what time it is: eight thirty-six. If I really concentrate I can feel the seconds tick by. My phone screen blares to life and confirms what I already know.

After a whole year of being "magically awakened", all I have to show for it is always knowing the time and having disturbingly bright green eyes that practically glow in the dark.

My eyes wander back to The Book, landing on two small slips of paper sticking out of the top. Without thinking about it, I pull them out and read the words that I've seen a hundred times before.

Dear Joe,

Sorry to leave in mid-warp. I had some urgent business to attend to.

~ Uncle Joe

P.S. Congratulations on graduating to the next level! You are now a time page.

The edges of the letter are worn thin and torn. The pocket watch that came with my promotion rests next to The Book. Uncle Joe's been missing for over a year, and despite my best efforts, I can't find any clues as to where he is. It's becoming harder to believe he's okay and still alive.

I grind my teeth together. I know he's alive. My uncle is too clever and good at magic to be dead. He's just busy on some magic mission or something. Maybe even fighting off my other uncle, Mad Jack, who's also been MIA the past year.

I unfold the other piece of paper I keep stored in The Book. The gold script on the invitation is just as dazzling as it was when I first opened it last summer. I don't look at this one as often, other than a few random attempts to warp back to Horae Manor, it pretty much stays in my book.

Dear Mr. Joseph Arthur,

We would like to formally invite you and your closest friends to Horae Manor. A place for the magically inclined and gifted. Where people like you can learn to hone your craft.

We request that you join us at your earliest convenience. Time is of the essence.

Sincerely, 

WW

Now that normal school is officially done for the year, I'm going back to Horae Manor soon. Soon as in today, and I have no idea how I'm supposed to get there. Hopefully, the letter will do its thing again, and Fred, Sam, and I will just be warped there. But something told me that wasn't going to work this time. Rowena and Cassius probably expected me to warp myself there, maybe like some kind of test? To see if I'd been practising my time magic while I was away or reading any of the books Cassius lent me.

Had I been practising my magic? Yes, not that I'd had any real progress. Had I read any of the books Cas told me to? Yes. Well… not exactly. To be fair, I did skim through them, but there was a lot to read and take in. My normal school teachers wouldn't really understand if I skipped out on their assigned homework to do magic homework instead. Not that I could ask them to find out. I really hope my summer at Horae doesn't start with a pop quiz.

Maybe I could do a little last-minute cramming before it was time to go. I have a lot to learn if I want to catch up with Tessa.

The thought of my Aether partner makes me frown. She had gotten to Horae first because my letter had been sent to the wrong person. She also seemed to be just naturally gifted with magic. She could already tear herself pretty much anywhere she wanted and could manipulate space to create mazes to confuse and trap people. People like me.

I think back on everything that had happened last summer. Had I overreacted with Tessa? Maybe a little, but she had proven herself to be untrustworthy and selfish. We went from friends to enemies pretty quickly after that. Part of me wishes I could change out partners. I really don't want to be stuck with Tessa for the rest of my life. 

I collapse back on my bed with a heavy sigh. This summer hasn't even started yet, and I'm already done with it.

---

Time passes by quicker than I want it to. Maybe Cas can show me how to change that. Before I know it, it's after four in the afternoon and Fred and Sam are knocking on my door. Like always, Fred saunters into the room without waiting for a reply.

I shut the book that I've been staring at all day, the words still swimming before my eyes. I'd barely made a dent in it. Cas had given me five thick books packed with magical knowledge. There was a whole other world out there filled with magic users, literally. It was called Mancika. And there are more kinds of magic than just space and time. There are ten in total. Or was it nine? All the details were blurred together in my mind. I somehow had even more questions than I did before I started learning about magic and reading about its history.

I slipped the book into my backpack along with all the others I didn't read. My Warp Wizard mentor will not be happy with me.

I turn around to greet my friends, but Fred beats me to it. "Hey, dude. How excited are you right now? I am so ready to get back to Horae Manor. Man, I bet Cassius and Rowena have some amazing magic kung-fu skills they're going to show us this year. I mean, you guys saw how well Arwen fought off that drake last summer. I can't wait to kick some magic monster butt."

I shake my head at him. "You just can't stand that a Red Sox fan is stronger and cooler than you."

His cheeks flush. "She is not!"

"Sure."

Fred crashes on to my bed, mumbling something to himself that I can't fully hear. But I'm sure it's something about how much the Red Sox suck, and why anyone would be a fan of them over the Yankees is insane.

I nod to Sam, who smiles at me in greeting. "I'm actually pretty excited to head back too. Did you know Horae Manor has a library? I can't wait to learn about all the science of magic and history of it all."

"The science of magic?" I raise an eyebrow at him. "I don't think there is any science. It's magic. Kinda the opposite."

"Of course there's science. Nothing can break the rules of physics. Not even magic."

I roll my eyes, deciding not to argue. With Sam, you can't really convince him that he's wrong.

I grab the letter off my desk, hoping for something to happen. Of course, nothing does. Time to face the other problem I've been avoiding: how to get back to Horae Manor.

"You don't know how to get us there, do you?" Sam asks, guessing my thoughts.

I blush. "I totally do. I just need a second to, uh, figure out how to do it."

"We're never going to get back there, are we?" Fred turns to Sam, who nods in response.

"Hey! I can do this. I am the future Warp Wizard after all. Just give me a moment."

"And what I great Warp Wizard you'll be," Sam sighs.

"Oh, I don't know, I think with a little training Joe could be a great Warp Wiz. Of course, with me by his side, we'd be a swell pair," a new voice says.

We all jump. I slam my knee against the bottom of my desk, hissing in pain, and gingerly try to massage it away. My eyes narrow at the intruder. A mix of emotions fight it out in my chest. Anger ultimately wins out.

Tessa giggles from where she's perched on my window. "Missed you too, bunny."

"How did you get here?" Fred asks.

"The same way I get around everywhere. Magic. Duh." She flips her auburn hair over her shoulder and slides into my room. Her eyes roam around, inspecting everything, and land on my Houdini poster. "Cute," is all she says. Whatever, it's not like I care what she thinks. 

"Thanks," I say dryly. "Why are you here?"

She spreads her arms out wide, ever the showwoman. Her signature red leather jacket is like a cape on her. "Isn't it obvious? I'm your ride to Horae Manor. Seeing as you and Cas haven't started any real training yet, you can't exactly warp yourself there."

I press my lips together and decide to keep quiet. This summer, I'm going to start my magic training, and by the end of it, I'll be just as good as her. No, better than her. I had so many questions for Cas, and I'll finally be practising magic. Real magic. Tricks that I can use to find Uncle Joe.

"So, are you ready to go? Cas is kind of a bluenose when it comes to being on time. As if he can't just make more of it." Tessa rolls her eyes.

I sling my backpack over my shoulder and stand up. "Yeah, I guess." truthfully, I'm just as excited as Fred and Sam are to return, but I'm not planning on letting my guard down around Tessa. I square my shoulders and stare at my Aether partner. We're supposed to be partners for life, but neither of us signed up for this. We can be civil with each other, but until I know I can trust her, I have no desire to be her friend.

She stares back, frowning. I almost feel bad for her. Almost. "Are you going to be like this all summer?" she asks, guessing my thoughts. "You know we're stuck with this for the rest of our lives, right?" She gestures between the two of us, referring to our Great Wizard commitment. "And I did apologize."

Fred wraps his arm around my shoulders, pushing me over with his sudden weight. "Joe will be fine. He's just a little butt-hurt over everything that happened last time. He'll get over it."

I shove his arm off of me. "We should get going. It's already four thirty-six."

"What? No exact second this time?" Sam teases me, drawing attention to my weird ability.

I look down at the ground and can feel my face heat up. So far, none of my new abilities had proven useful for anything other than being teased by my supposed friends.

Tessa tilts her head, her purple eyes never leaving my green ones. "Would you like to know our exact latitude and longitude coordinates right now? Or how about our exact position within the infinite space-time continuum?" She shrugs. "Knowing what time it is seems better than that. At least you'll never be late to anything."

"And yet, he was still tardy to math class almost every day this semester."

I shoot a glare at Sam, mainly to distract myself from Tessa. Coming to my defence now means nothing. "Can we just go already?"

Tessa pulls out her sabre, the Focus she uses whenever she tears. "Fine by me. I'm starving, and they'll be serving dinner soon enough."

I can practically see Fred's mouth watering. He remembers the feast from last summer just as well as I do. To be fair, I don't think I've ever had more delicious food in my life.

Encouraged by the growls in our stomachs, Sam, Fred, and I stand next to Tessa, ready to be pulled into our next adventure.

[iamanartichoke]

Response to Anons, @sparklegemstone, and @foundlingmother. 

ENDGAME SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT. 

That’s a good point, I hadn’t thought of that! Although I guess Odin could pull some “dark magic” to bring him back, in the way that he sent Thor to Earth in the first place. It still leaves Asgard without a Bifrost, though. Honestly this whole aspect is such a glorious opportunity for fic, I do have to appreciate that (and possibly write some fic). 

I agree! After having watched it, I really feel like the movie intended to repair the timeline by Steve going back and returning the stones, and that Loki’s arc continues the way it would have, and we still have TDW. Unfortunately, that leaves Loki still dead, but ... I do like that there’s this potential alternate universe there. They’d be really stupid not to use this as the premise of the TV show, because you’re right, the character development could really go in a lot of ways and even though it wouldn’t be the same, as far as TDW and Loki’s sacrifices/redemption, we could get an alternate version which explores his time in the Void, with Thanos, and kind of redeeming himself through his own exploration without having to sacrifice his life for Thor. A blessing in disguise, indeed. If not, there’s always fic. (I have to keep reminding myself of that.) 

Ah, thank you for telling me this! I totally missed that, I could hear that she was speaking to the staff but I couldn’t understand what she was saying. So that makes me feel a little bit better, that at least Frigga was consistent in taking care of Loki while he was in prison. But yes, overall, it’s very frustrating to not be part of the “general audience” that only cares about the cool parts and how it all looks on screen. 

I hope that you don’t mind me answering this publicly, but I think it’ll be a long response, heh. Thank you so much about The Air Between Two Stars! I’m really glad that people are reading it and hopefully it helps people feel better about all of this (myself included, ngl). 

I honestly don’t remember why Thor was in the dungeons. I think he and Rocket were taking a shortcut to Jane’s room, although I suppose that doesn’t really make sense, since Jane’s room was nowhere near the dungeons. I don’t know if they said why they went that way and I missed it, or if it was just tossed in there as fan service despite not making sense. 

That said, I’m happy to share more details about Thor’s time in the past. I left a lot out of my summary bc it was getting too long already. 

Thor and Rocket arrive in Asgard. Rocket is telling Thor that their plan is for Thor to go in and “charm” Jane to distract her while Rocket gets the Aether out of her. He had some kind of tool or device that would do it, I imagine. 

Thor says he’s going to go the other way, because he knows where his father keeps the ale/mead. Rocket is like, are you fucking kidding me right now, but then he and Thor have to hide behind a column because Frigga comes in with her staff. Thor stares at her and Rocket asks who she is. Thor says, “My mother. She dies today.” 

Thor starts to freak out a little. He’s wringing his hands and breathing hard. He tells Rocket, “I can’t do this. I think I’m having a panic attack,” and continues panicking for a few seconds. Rocket slaps him in the face, which seems to bring Thor back to reality. 

Rocket then gives Thor a “come to Jesus” talk. He says (I’m paraphrasing from what I could understand/remember), “I know you miss your mom, I get it, but I lost my whole family. We have a job to do, so if you could take a deep breath, wipe the crumbs out of your beard, and get it together so I can get my family back, I’d appreciate it.” 

Thor nods and takes a deep breath and says, “Okay. Okay, I can do this.” 

Rocket says, “Okay, good.” He turns around and I guess they’re near Jane’s room bc he says, “Okay, she’s alone, now’s our chance.” Meanwhile, Thor has actually turn and run in the other direction, leaving Rocket to get the Aether alone. 

Thor literally bumps into Frigga and they both jump and yell, startled. At first, Frigga is like, “Wtf are you doing?” and Thor is trying to play it off like he’s just wandering around, but Frigga sees through him pretty quickly. Frigga says she knows he’s from another time and mentions she was raised by witches. Thor admits that he’s from the future. They talk (and again, I missed a lot of the dialogue because I couldn’t hear it) but the general gist is that he tells her what’s happened and how he feels like he failed. She tells Thor that yes, he failed, but he can still make it right. She tells him to be who he is, not who he thinks he has to be. 

They talk a little more and then Rocket comes running out, chased by the Einherjar. Rocket says they have to go, Thor introduces him to Frigga. Then Thor tries to warn Frigga about what’s going to happen to her, but she won’t let him tell her anything. She tells Thor to take care of himself and to eat a salad once in awhile (the “fat Thor” jokes are really blatant). He says, “I love you, Mom,” and she says, “I love you, too.” They hug, and then just before Thor and Rocket leave, he calls for Mjolnir. When Mjolnir comes, Thor grins and says, “I’m still worthy!” And then he and Rocket vanish. 

That’s probably a lot more detail than you needed, sorry. I’m still salty that they didn’t mention Loki to one another, and Thor didn’t even look at Loki or say anything about him in general, and that Rocket didn’t say, “You miss your family,” instead of just, “you miss your mom.” That all said, this does leave a good opening for fix-it fic, so there’s that. 

I hope this helped and I can’t wait to read your fic! 

[chibipika]

Chapter 36 Retrospective

“The Lugia Chapter” is a chapter that’s been in LC almost since the beginning.  In the original, it was because Lugia had appeared to Jade several times throughout the course of the story, and it was her destiny to catch it or whatever.  Then sometime in 2003, I changed all the Legendary captures into humans being chosen by them instead.  Again, still destiny, and also Lugia was an entirely different character back then.  I might post that version someday, just know that it looks nothing at all like the current version.

Then, somehow, in 2006, I came up with Jade and Lugia’s current dynamic, with their first meeting resulting in capture/torture, and Lugia’s personality becoming sharp-tongued and irritable.  I’m not really sure how I came up with it—it seems to have sprung fully formed from the aether.  It might have been because that was around the time I was trying to think of ways to deconstruct the usual Chosen One tropes, (as the chapter itself bears a lot of hallmarks of that.)  I’m not sure if I wrote the Lugia chapter before or after I wrote the attack on Viridian in that version of the fic.  If it was after, that would technically make this the 2007 version of the Lugia chapter? Well, either way, the ideas came together in 2006.  That would make this part of Revision 9.

This version is strikingly similar to the final version that was eventually rewritten for NaNo 2015, (and published in 2019).  The writing is primitive, and several plot elements are outdated, but the general feel of it is spot-on, and a lot of dialogue actually made it into the final version.

[Oh yeah, should go without saying, but SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 36.]

<I’m afraid you’re not going down to the stadium,> a voice within my mind said.

I stopped suddenly upon hearing those words, wondering if I had just imagined them. Searching for the source, I turned to see a small, pale rose feline hovering in the middle of my room, her long tail swirling around in the air.

“Mew,” I gasped, both surprised and relieved.  “What are you doing here?  And what did you mean by that?”

<You’re not going down to the stadium,> she repeated solemnly.  <At least, not right now...>

A shiver ran down my spine when I heard her say that.  She kept staring downward, refusing to look me in the eye.  What was going on?

“Mew...?” I said cautiously, feeling both puzzled and apprehensive.

Finally the cat-like creature lifted her head and gazed long and hard at me with her large, bright sapphire eyes.  She looked concerned, with a shadow of guilt mixed into her expression.

“What is it, is there something going on with the Legendaries?  Why’d you come to me and not Ajia?” I asked, my heart beating faster from growing anxiety.  Why was she acting like this?

<Your test...> Mew spoke so faintly that I could barely make it out.

“My...test...?” I uttered blankly.

Since this chapter was sort of written out of thin air, without any of the preceding chapters leading up to it, the intro to this scene is, as expected, pretty random and abrupt.  I was fully expecting to change all of this once I had a better idea of the lead-up events.  Note is that Jade is still at Indigo, and the Moltres attack hasn’t happened yet.

<The time has come,> she concluded, raising a paw and glowing with a blue aura.  Suddenly, my entire body was enveloped within the same color of light.

“Mew!” I exclaimed as I was lifted off the floor psychically.  A flash of light suddenly filled the room, blocking out my vision, and before I could say anything, she was gone.

“MEW!!!” I shouted, but it was too late.  The glow vanished and I fell to the floor.

It took me a few seconds to realize that I had fallen not onto the carpeted floor of my room, but onto a hard rock surface.  At first I couldn’t see anything, but that was only because there wasn’t much to see.  It looked like I was inside a cave of some sort, enclosed on all sides by jagged rock walls and partially filled with water on one end.  I rubbed my arms as my senses returned and I felt how incredibly cold it was in the chamber.

“Mew teleported me…” I whispered to myself.  “…but where to?”  I stood to my feet and glanced around, seeing no possible exit.  The cavern was dimly lit, but the light didn’t seem to be coming from any visible source.  It occurred to me that the water probably flowed in here from the outside, but I had no idea how deep it went, and I didn’t have any Pokémon that could swim long distances.

“I’m trapped,” I muttered in disbelief.  “She’s trapped me here alone with no way out...”

And then a voice resounded in reply, <I wouldn’t say that you’re alone.>

It felt as though my entire body went numb, but not from the cold.  The voice was telepathic, but I could easily tell that it most definitely was not from Mew.  It was chillingly bitter, with a domineering edge to it that stuck within my head.  It was the voice that haunted all my nightmares since that day—one that I had hoped to never hear again.

In the darkest corner of the cave, two eyes, radiating blue, peered out of the shadows with an icy stare that seemed to bore right through me.  The glow slightly illuminated the creature’s face, revealing a sleek avian head with a mouth curled into a smirk.

<Welcome, human.  Are you ready to face the consequences of that day so long ago? >

Man, though, despite being written in 2006/07 this is pretty-spot on.  I can see why I didn’t change much.

My breathing was shallow and my heart was pounding.  I couldn’t move; it was like I was frozen on the spot, barely even able to think.

Lugia called me here to kill me.

There was no other explanation.  But why now? Why after so long?  This couldn’t be happening, there was no way.

I clenched my fists, swallowing hard.  It was just like last time.  This wasn’t like the Rocket conflicts, with a struggle for survival.  There was nothing I could do; I might as well have already been dead.  But…Mew…why…?

Man, you can just tell I was having so much fun dunking on Chosen One clichés. Summoned by a Legendary?  Grand, awe-inspiring, and important?  Nope!  Friggin’ terrifying!

Lugia raised an eyebrow.  <No response?  You’re quite pitiful, always letting fear control you.>

I bristled.  Had to do something, anything.  I clutched at a Poké Ball and held it up, my arm shaking.  I’d battle.  Yeah, that was it.  I’d battle, and I’d win, and then we’d find some way out.  Any way out.  We had to. I was only vaguely aware of how unrealistic that plan was, but still threw the ball forward, releasing Chibi in a flash of black.

<A battle.  You want to battle.  That’s…amusing.>

I glared at the Legendary.  Chibi turned toward me with a stunned and disbelieving expression.

“*Jade, what’s going on?  Where the hell are we, and,”—he glanced at Lugia—“why is…don’t tell me you’re…*”

“It doesn’t matter, just use Thunderbolt, hurry!”  My voice felt dry and hollow.

“*What?*” he asked, clearly confused.  All of the old Rocket situations had gotten him used to having to react immediately, even when released in odd situations, but this was too much.

“I said, use Thunderbolt,” I demanded.

He gave me an incredulous glare.  “*No.  Tell—me—what—is—going—on.*”

Lugia smirked tauntingly.  <Even the half-legend won’t obey you.  Is he tired of keeping you alive?>

Chibi whirled around to face her, strings of lightning leaping off his fur involuntarily.  Some of his electricity hit Lugia, who recoiled slightly, eyes narrowed. <Oh…touchy, are we?>

The scene breaks here, as I couldn’t really figure out where I was going with the whole Chibi bit, so I just skipped to writing the next part.  I do like the idea of Jade instinctively going for a battle (which is why I kept it for the final one), but actually sitting down to write the battle always bored me to tears (a pretty sure sign that it needed to be cut).

“Well, what is it?” I demanded brashly, angered at how she was toying with me. “You had Mew call me down here in order to get revenge, right?  Are you gonna taunt me some more or just kill me outright since it didn’t work last time?”

For a while, she gave no sign that she had heard me, and I kept waiting for her to say something and break the unnerving silence that filled the chamber.

<Are you under the impression,> Lugia began slowly and menacingly, <that I tried and yet failed to kill you on that day?>

You’ll notice that Lugia is female in this version. All the Legendaries had genders. It wasn’t until 2015 that I finally made them properly genderless.  At the time, I was sure I was never going to get used to it, and I accidentally used the wrong pronouns constantly.  But now? It’s finally the other way around. Going back and seeing female pronouns for Lugia is like, “wat, ew, stop.”  Then again, that’s kinda how these things go irl, isn’t it?

But yes, please don’t let this impact your view of Lugia now, as Revision 12 Lugia is quite thoroughly “wtf is a gender.”

I wasn’t sure how to respond, as she had sounded almost offended by my words. Had Ajia been right?  Had Lugia really spared me?

“I…I didn’t think—” I started.

<That much is evident, because if you had even given it a second thought, it would seem obvious, even to you, that had I really wanted to, it would have been all too easy.>

“I know that!” I exclaimed, frustrated at how she flaunted that fact.  It was like talking to someone who had a knife to your throat.  “And after today, what does it matter?!”  I was trembling despite trying to seem unmoved by my complete lack of control over the situation.

With a very reserved tone of voice, the dragon-bird replied, <If you must know, I had Mew call you here today because I wished to speak with you in private.>

I relaxed slightly upon hearing that, but still had to wonder why Mew had looked so regretful about sending me here.

<Still, I can’t help but notice...you speak of that day as though it would have been my fault.  As if to make me feel guilty for the situation.  Do you see what I did as unjustified?>

Unjustified?  Had I deserved it? My immediate thought

Another bit where I got stuck, went “uhhh, I don’t know where this is going,” and then skipped ahead to the next part.

<Now is not the time to dwell on the past, however.  I have watched humans for a long time, often regarding your species with a wary and rather disdainful view.  Were it not for events already set into motion, the Legendaries would just as soon be the slaves of humankind.>

“What events?” I asked.

The dragon-bird raised an eyebrow, as though surprised at my ignorance.  <I was told you had read the words inscribed upon the shrine of Midnight Island.  Or did they slip your mind?>

“What, you mean that thing with the Legendaries allying themselves with eight humans?  What’s that got to do with this?”

Oh right, there were eight chosen before Revision 12.  I actually made this mistake a couple times in the current Serebii thread until I finally got used to the idea that there were only seven.

With eyes slightly narrowed, Lugia replied, <Ignorance, human.  You don’t realize the magnitude of what will happen in mere months.  This is beyond prophecies now…we have seen it with our eyes, the actions of the so-called Team Rocket.  Their strides toward power have paved the way for things to come.  Even now, it is apparent…  The eight would cause themselves to be linked with the legends by connecting themselves with those fulfilling them.  And so at the same time, linked with each other.>

I really, really loved making Lugia say “ignorance, human” in the 2007 version.  Although it is important to note that modern day Lugia still doesn’t ever refer to Jade by name.  This is intentional.

It took me several seconds to understand what she was implying.  Team Rocket’s Legendary captures were fulfilling the legends…which meant that none of the eight Chosen were predestined.  It had seemed like that from the way Ajia described how she had become Mew’s Chosen, but I always figured that the legends had to involve some complex destiny.

But why was she telling me this?

Unless…

I stared long and hard at her, unwilling to believe it…it couldn’t be possible.  It couldn’t be…

“So…so you’re saying…” I swallowed hard and continued, “that…I’m Chosen? Even after what I did?”

<Perhaps more so because of what you did, and other things among that. You have connected yourself with the Legendaries as few others of that rebellion have,> the dragon-bird answered.

I really like this bit, which is why it made it into the rewrite almost unscathed. I love that the big chosen reveal is treated as something horrifying and terrible rather than “aww yeah, I was ~Chosen by a Legendary.~”

“Because of it?  Why in the…how—” I struggled, overwhelmed at the significance of what I had just been told.

Lugia closed her eyes in frustration and said, <Let me explain this as simply as I can.  I understand that you have read the Midnight Island legend.>

“Yeah, and the Dark Crystal legend,” I added.

She paused slightly when I said that, but then overlooked it.  <Then you know that the Midnight legend tells of the Eight Guardians and the Crystal legend is just that—about the trio of crystals. You are an interloper.  You have no inherent significance in the legends whatsoever, yet your interference in the matters concerning the balance of power between human and Legendary as well as the fact that you know about the legends has forced you to become a part of them.  Fate is nothing; action is everything.  The Eight Guardians of the Order of Legends are obligated to seek out those interlopers deemed to have the strongest connection to the legends and the conflict at hand.

I can’t believe the “Fate is nothing; action is everything” dates back to this.  What started out as just a fun way to dunk on Chosen One clichés turned into one of the core themes of the entire fic.

<The one thousand year anniversary of the war shall dawn at summer’s end—the rebirth of the age of legends.  That was the only foretold event.  Everything else has merely fallen into place, both from the imbalance of power and from the intervention of those who would make sure that the legends come true.>

I didn’t have to be told who that was referring to.

oh no spoilers (…not really, pretty much everyone has guessed that’s what he’s going for.)

<No one truly knows what the new age shall bring, or how this conflict shall be resolved.  One thing is for certain—once the alliance has served its purpose, it shall be as though it never was, and the turmoil of the Revolution and the legacy of the Crystals shall reign supreme,> Lugia concluded solemnly.

“Wait, wait…you’re saying this alliance doesn’t even matter that much?” I asked incredulously.  “All it’ll do is just bide time in this stupid Team Rocket conflict until the real trouble begins?”

I should point out here that while this is still true, it has not come up in the current version.  (Notice that Lugia didn’t mention the Orb or any the writings around it at all in the current version.)

<As the legend says: ‘For though none may prevail, what is set into motion shall be much greater indeed.’>

“Do you Legendaries, like, spend all your time memorizing the legends and then interpreting them?” I asked, my tone slightly annoyed and slightly sarcastic.

I really loved this quip of Jade’s back when I wrote it. :V

Lugia was unimpressed with my insolent remark, and I could tell immediately that I had crossed the line.  <Let me tell you something, human.  The words of your little half-legend were not what swayed my decision that day.  Grabbed my attention, yes, but you are alive right now because you fit this role.  It is an honor.  Were it not for our constant ‘interpretation’ of the legends…> here she paused, unsure of how to continue.  Finally she sighed and glanced down.  I thought I’d never see a Legendary show any sign of weakness, at least not before a human.

<That so-called “resistance” would fall without Legendary protection.  If it falls, then the Legendaries will fall as well. We must protect you, so that you can protect us.  Then we all can get through these next few months alive.>

Wait, what? At first, I couldn’t figure out what she meant, but then I realized it. Neither side could survive without the other.  Then a rather stupid grin crossed my face as I said, “You Legendaries need help? From humans?”

This line too. :P

It really was quite obvious that they did, seeing as many more of them would have been captured were it not for The Rebellion—yet another fact that made Stalker’s plans rather paradoxical.  Lugia scowled, more insulted by the way I had said it than by the fact that it was true. I let the moment of immaturity drop and said, “Look, I’m honored, I really am, but…”—I sighed—“I told myself that I wouldn’t have anything more to do with Team Rocket.  I’m not even on the Resistance…why not choose someone who is?”

Lugia didn’t answer, but rather shifted her wings and gazed at me peculiarly.  I continued, “I’m tired of risking both my life and the lives of my friends.”

<Either way, you do realize of course that you’re connected to the Team Rocket matter whether you like it or not.  This is simply to determine whether you shall be a part of the deeper legendary matter at hand,> Lugia explained simply.

I really didn’t want to reply, seeing as the whole point of my training for the past year had been as a sort of escape from the Rocket mess…while the members of the Resistance continued to keep the team in check.  I leaned against the rough cave wall and stared downward, unsure of what to do.

I really was sure that the Resistance was out and about doing important things, despite having no idea how.  The decision to have the Resistance be disbanded in the current version was a pretty spur-of-the-moment one fueled by the realization that I really just didn’t know what I was doing with them.  The fic’s a lot better off for it.

<As I said before, it is not fate that has intertwined you with the legends. However…if you wish it, your significance shall go further.  It is a heavy burden, and a dangerous one, but you shall be bound only if you say so.>

I glanced over my shoulder and looked the seabird in the eye for quite a while, reflecting upon everything she had told me.  I felt as though pure guilt would end up winning me over—guilt that I was hiding from a struggle over the control of the planet, one that many of my friends had an active role in.  The last thought to occur to me, however, was what had gone through my mind that day when I had used the Master Ball cannon on Lugia: the bizarre fascination with Legendaries combined with the urge to wield that incredible power.

This is such a weird sentiment.  It really doesn’t fit Jade’s current characterization at all.

Yeah, that was it…

“I’ll do it,” I said slowly after quite a while, my voice shaking.

Lugia nodded slowly with an odd relief in her eyes, looking genuinely glad that I had agreed.  She motioned to me to step forward, and I did.  Outstretching a wing, the avian dragon touched a feather to my palm and closed her eyes in concentration.  An aura began to glow around her wing, slowly brightening and focusing itself around my hand.

Suddenly, a sharp jolt of pain shot through my arm.  I recoiled back and gripped my wrist, not expecting that.  I could see that my hand was still glowing, however, and slowly, the light formed into a symbol—an outline of Lugia’s head surrounded by rolling waves.  I stared at the inscription, transfixed with awe.

I always was unsatisfied with how understated this was.  This was supposed to be a major turning point for the fic, and it was over in two sentences with a tiny jolt of pain.  NaNo 2015 was when I got the idea to expand this to be the culmination of all the pain and trauma that Jade has endured so far.

<You are marked,> Lugia said.  <With you bearing my seal, the two of us, Legend and human, are linked. With this privilege comes much responsibility.  You will find that we can communicate now, regardless of distance.  Likewise, if you are in grave danger, you may summon me to aid you, if and only if you have done everything in your power to ensure that doing so will not expose us.  But you must never call me somewhere simply for the sake of it…the consequences of such will be severe,> she added, narrowing her eyes.

I’m not sure why that last bit was necessary. I would think that if you’re trusting a human enough to be your partner, it would go without saying that they’re not going to summon you for a random battle or whatever.

Notice I said “summon.”  In old LC canon, the chosen were able to summon their patrons to their side.  This is outdated.  While Mew can teleport to Ajia’s side, even if it’s somewhere she hasn’t been previously, that’s just because she could already teleport anyway.

I winced slightly, remembering the Psychic attack that I had endured before.  Still, I nodded understandingly just as I had for her other rules.

<Most importantly of all, however…you cannot tell anyone about this.  The Order’s rules are yours to follow as well.  Do not betray the pact,> Lugia reinforced threateningly.

Unable to come up with any other manner of response, I nodded again.  But then something occurred to me and I suddenly asked, “What about Ajia?  Can I tell her?”

Lugia paused long and hard, as though unsure of what to say.  After contemplating her answer, she finally replied, <I…suppose…  The Chosen are supposed to remain a secret, even from the others, until the time is right, but…as you already know she is Chosen, it couldn’t hurt…>

This is silly.  Why should the chosen be a secret from each other.  Aren’t they supposed to help each other? And what does “the time is right” even mean.

I brightened up slightly upon hearing that—at least I wouldn’t have to keep it all to myself.  “So then the fact that I knew about her and Mew had to have played a part in why you picked me, right?”

Lugia glanced away slightly, as though she had been hoping I wouldn’t say that.  <Yes, yes it did…  When Mew told me that you not only knew her Chosen, but also knew everything about the legends concerning them, I knew that there was no going back.>

“No…going back?” I echoed.  “Why?”

She didn’t make eye contact and simply said, <Anyone with that much knowledge would be a threat.  You would either have to join us of your own will, or die.  If you had decided against becoming Chosen, I would have had to kill you.>

I wasn’t entirely sure how to respond to that.  But finally I knew why Mew had looked so worried when she had sent me here. She couldn’t say anything about it without my decision becoming forced.

Another detail that is surprisingly on point with the current version.  The chosen pact requiring hard consent, where any guilting or pressuring would render that consent void, was pretty important, even back then.

Lugia nodded, knowing what I was thinking.  <Mew was afraid that you would decline, given your past refusal to further involve yourself in the Team Rocket conflict.>  She then turned toward the ceiling and let out a high-pitched cry in Pokéspeech.  “*Mew! It is finished!*”

I knew that the Legendary communication had a very long range, and sure enough, there was an immediate flash of light as Mew teleported into the cavern.  The cat-like Pokémon glanced around frantically, her eyes falling on me.

<She has agreed?> Mew questioned, looking both surprised and relieved.

<The pact is complete...she is marked with my seal,> Lugia answered with a reserved tone.  But then the slightest trace of a grin crossed her face—similar to Mewtwo’s in that it looked forced, and yet oddly fitting just the same.

Mew let out a great sigh of relief.  <I honestly wasn’t sure if sending you here would be condemning you to death, but…we really had no choice.>

That didn’t really make me feel better about the whole situation, but as the danger had passed, I didn’t care.  I only nodded understandingly.  She was right…I hadn’t wanted to agree, but hadn’t known that my life rested on that decision, so it was still of my own will.

All because of that capture…  What had I gotten myself into?

Mew motioned to me and said, <I’ll take you back to your room now.>

“Oh, right…thanks…” I said, walking over.  I took one last glance around the cavern before asking Lugia, “Where is this, anyway?”

<Underneath the Whirl Islands in Johto,> Lugia replied.  <I suppose it could be considered my home.>

Mew raised a paw and the two of us glowed blue.  The last thing I saw was everything dissolving, and then a bright flash of light.  Suddenly, we were back in the stadium hotel room.  The catlike Legendary nodded to me and then disappeared once more.

Aaaand, that’s it!  The chapter went on a bit after that, but it gets into stuff that’ll come up in Chapter 37, so I’ll cut it here.

[autumnslance]

For the fan-fic ask thing, number 3 in "Walk In the Wilds."

Walk in the Wilds

3: What’s your favorite line of narration?

My first longer fic in years, and the first real multi-chapter narrative I posted to Ao3. It helped work back up a lot of the writing-brain-muscles. Also seemed to  give people the impression I can write Thancred half-decently.

I feel like going chapter by chapter on this one; there’s a lot I still like. Since that makes this one pretty long, under a cut it shall go:

Chapter 1: Life - I spent a lot of time on this before nervously posting, knowing I was committing myself to at least try and complete the fic, which I had a general outline for, helped by having a lot of it told to us secondhand in game and lore references.

Where was it even safe to go? If the Crystal Braves had turned on them, Revenant’s Toll was out of the question. He dismissed Coerthas immediately; he was cold enough already, and did not want to entirely freeze—or worse, have his extremities become instantly frostbitten and fall off—upon arriving at Lord Haurchefant’s doorstep. Thancred could not imagine the Elder Seedseer agreeing with this insanity, though the thought of appearing before the child-like padjali—even if some were far older than himself—in this state made him wince. Never mind that Kan-E-Senna had been his attendant healer after Operation Archon and had probably seen everything anyway; she was the Elder Seedseer, for gods’ sake.

Limsa, then. Hells, on most days, no one would notice an underdressed—or undressed—man on the docks. Pirates were not exactly known for shyness. The Sisters would take him in, he knew; put stabbers back in his fambles and put their wattles to the ground and sniff out the truth in the darkmans. Yes, his old hometown was the best place to go, and while some may think to look for him there, they would not find him among the other shadows—or they would regret it if they did.

Special Mention goes to the interpretation of Thancred’s perception of the Lifestream.

Chapter 2: Water

He was almost surprised that losing his magic bothered him less than the thought of losing his marks did. Magic was helpful, but never his primary craft—not like Papalymo, Y’shtola, or Urianger, all experts at the weaving of spells and creating their own. Thancred had ever relied upon his own wits and practiced skills to get by, and thank the gods for that now. No, what bothered him was the thought of the Lifestream wiping away such an intrinsic piece of his identity as a Sharlayan Archon, not when he had fought so damned hard to be accepted by the scholars and earn that rank among their number.

All because Master Louisoix had believed in a scrawny dock rat that had tried to lift his purse.

Chapter 3: Bear Necessity

Thancred was not exactly a woodworker, so getting enough strips of the proper length was proving more difficult than he had anticipated. Still, only half-listening to one of Beatin’s expositions (before finding a way to excuse oneself and vanishing before the man caught a second wind) had actually come in handy.

He wished he could remember if the timbermaster had said the bark was edible or not. In Thancred’s current state, it was looking far too tempting.

AND:

He could really use some of those shinobi smoke bombs to help him disappear, as the bear lumbered into the open, saw him, and roared while it charged. Not the friendliest creatures, these Dravanian bears.

Chapter 4: Colony - The Vath were difficult, y’all.

Thancred nodded and stepped forward. Except just then the world tilted sharply and smacked him in the face. The beastmen clicked and shouted, and he was surrounded by a few pairs of stick-like legs, then lifted, and then half-carried into the colony.

He heard the nutkin chittering somewhere behind him, and he tried to tell the Vath not to eat his little friend.

Chapter 5: Nightmares - Please give Thancred closure about his possession, SE, kthnx.

I’m still pretty happy with the whole chapter; I was eager to get to it, and spent quite a bit of time with it.

Chapter 6: Unavoidable - About remembering Y'shtola:

He pushed the memory of her away again. She always came with the sensation of rushing winds and of being caught helpless in a rapid river, and they weren’t so much clinging to one another as they were one another, until she suddenly threw him onto the bank while she continued on, and he felt his loneliness even more keenly.

Chapter 7: Reunion - I feel like people–including the devs–often forget Thancred is a Sharlayan educated scholar.

Thancred was oddly annoyed he could no longer sense the aetheric shift. Still, he was a scholar of Sharlayan, and this was an opportunity for study. He pulled his bandana aside to see just what, exactly, the summoning looked like to his altered vision.

He decided quickly he might regret such curiosity later, but for now, observation was necessary, though he longed for his goggles to record the view; his colleagues would delight in such data.

AND I’m still pretty pleased with the descs/Thancred’s perceptions of the Warriors of Darkness, the Scions, and Ravana’s summoning.

Chapter 8: Catch Up - Worst final chapter/epilogue title ever.

He nodded; Alphinaud had been thoroughly detailed in his telling, up through the attempt to follow the Archbishop into the Sea of Clouds, running into the bloody Emperor of bloody Garlemald, and including a skyfishing fight against a primal in the shape of a giant, feathered, flying whale.

Thancred still wasn’t sure he believed that last part.

AND on hearing news of Lahabrea:

The world paused. “What?” Was that his voice? It sounded echoing and far away.

[vorthosjay]

Let’s Talk About Jace, Alone

The R&D Narrative Team drops the first Magic Story of Ixalan block today: Jace, Alone! We won’t be seeing author credits on individual stories anymore, which has its pros and cons, but if I never have to see someone dismiss a story because of the author again it’s good in my book. This is the first episode in ‘The Broken Gatewatch’ story arc that will see every member of the Gatewatch recovering from their defeat at Nicol Bolas’ hands. Today’s story does a great job of breaking down who Jace is as a person, without any of the baggage of his history. Let’s dive in!

Ixalan’s Binding by Chase Stone

He pushed toward the feeling, praying that if more of his body vanished, then more of his mind would return—only to feel himself yanked backward, pulled by some massive force back through whatever metaphysical door he had begun to walk through. Away and away and down and down until he smashed back together on the same beach he tried to depart.

So Jace tries to planeswalk away, but is pulled back by a mysterious force. That sounds familiar, it’s essentially what happened in Jace’s Origins: Absent Minds:

Alhammarret reached out with a tendril of Æther, into the void between worlds (plural!), and pulled the boy back.

Maybe that explains why people can still get IN to Ixalan, because the binding is an aetheric trap instead of a planar barrier.

A shining triangle enclosed by a circle appeared in the air above him, and the man gasped through mended lungs.

@sarpadianempiresvol-viii​ made this better look at the symbol from Ixalan’s Binding. Check out his tweetstorm about it, it’s something we’ve been speculating on for weeks, it’s nice to have confirmation.

Lazlo was a name.

Lazlo IS a name. A hardened criminal on Ravnica.

A scar ran in a perfect line down his right forearm. It was straight as a surgeon's cut; someone had intentionally done this.

The man assessed himself for further clues. He was bruised from recent battle, but he could feel several more of the deep, stick-straight scars running along his back. Were these as old as the scar on his arm? Who had done this to him?

It was Tezzeret, with a Mage Blade, in Agents of Artifice.

Tezzeret wasn’t too kind to underlings who failed, you see, and with the pressure of Bolas closing in, he took it out on young Jace. This is the moment that pushes Jace away from the Infinite Consortium.

The cloak was a bit much—it was not a gaudy thing, per se, but its pattern belied any semblance of subtlety.

Was he that idiotic, to travel so unsafely?

Between this and The Promised End, the best Jace owns are self-owns.

The symbol on the cloak caught his attention.

It was . . . familiar.

Why was it familiar?

That’s probably because it’s Alhammarret’s sigil as well as various other Vryn symbols.

His muscles were flimsy from disuse, and the man wondered again how his prior self had intended to survive here without weapons or tools. 

It’ll be nice to see Jace with a renewed focus on physical fitness. He knew sword fighting, once.

"Why do I know what an albatross is?" he asked aloud.

The albatross didn't respond.

I love this bit of writing.

The flame flickered a brilliant blue—blue?!—then unceremoniously vanished.

But he had seen the smoke! He'd seen the fire consume the kindling below! And yet not once did he feel its heat before the fire's evidence vanished.  

What’s interesting here is that without people around, Jace believes himself to be an Illusion mage and hones that skill.

A woman with snow-white skin and elaborate white hair who would float behind him, taking note of his actions in a journal. A bailiff, stern faced with a blue cape and silver armor. A leonin missing an eye.

In his moments of loneliness, he would sometimes see a woman in violet on the edge of his field of vision. A tug of anxiety gripped his chest whenever she walked by.

It’s interesting that Tamiyo, Lavinia, and Ajani are the people he remembers most clearly. And that anxiety from Liliana, very appropriate, given how she had all of his friends murdered to get him to confront Tezzeret again.

The hallucination sighed. "You and I both know you're not suited to this. Let me handle it, you go philosophize on the other end of the beach."

"I said I can do it myself." The man let his irritation reach his voice.

"No, you can't. I call the shots and execute, you stand to the side. That's how this works."

The man responded by throwing his hook at the hallucination. It went straight through the figure's eye and landed behind him on the sand.

Jace’s feelings of inadequacy when compared to Gideon are very interesting. Probably a huge reason why they didn’t work out a proper organization structure for the Gatewatch. Jace talking to his own illusions about his deepest anxieties is a fabulous way to tackle his characterization.

A woman with dark hair and a cane was staring at him from a few feet away down the beach. She wore a white dress with a sun emblem on its front. A dark cloak hung behind her and grazed the sand, and her expression made it clear that she was on a mission.

Jace is recalling his meeting with Teysa in Family Values. Teysa Karlov takes place before it. It’s part of a long-simmering side plot regarding what is going on behid the scenes on Ravnica, Pride of the Kraul being a more recent entry (with Vraska).

"Of course you don't, boy."

She looked him over. "You didn't know who I was then, and you don't now. Hard to build trust when neither of us trusts each other."

"You weren't who you thought you were, that's for sure. No one else saw through you, but I did. You were never a leader or a detective or a scholar; you were a frightened child playing pretend."

The woman knelt and looked him in the eye with a cold, crocodilian smile

"I'm the best thing that ever happened to you."

How could someone who was close to a person like that be deserving of friends? 

Man, someone on the Narrative Team certainly has experience with abusive relationships. Jace’s longing for but anxiety about Liliana encapsulates some of that perfectly, as does the trust issue and Liliana’s condescension and the self-doubt.

The hallucination isn’t far off the mark about Jace playing pretend, but the fact that Liliana is the one delivering these lines instead of a hallucination of Bolas, or Ugin, or any number of figures is very telling.

The man gripped the sides of his raft and screwed his eyes shut, wishing he had been gifted with power over the seas rather than power over the mind.

Jace’s Ingenuity by Steve Argyle

Counterspell by Jason Chan

Open into Wonder by Tyler Jacobson

SURE JACE. NO POWER OVER WATER. WHATEVER YOU SAY.

It was there, suspended like a silver jewel, a shining light embedded in the well of his mind.

Jace’s spark, which actually resides in his soul. I’ve wondered, based on Ajani’s soul magic, if Jace’s mind magic isn’t just a different kind of soul magic.

That familiar circle-and-triangle sigil appeared over his head, and the man let out a breath when his form condensed once again into flesh.

Okay, so this appears every time someone tries to planeswalk, then? If you checked out Andrew’s tweetstorm you know that’s fairly similar to Ugin’s binding glyph that Nissa is shown using. Whatever prevents planeswalkers from leaving, the binding coalesces around them and forces them back into reality.

A stone statue was unceremoniously strapped to the front of the ship, and written in graceful script on the side of the bow was the epigraph: The Belligerent.

The statue is the former captain, according to the Worldbuilding Panel. I love that Vraska’s ship is named The Belligerent.

In case you need a Vraska referesher: The Shadows of Prahv, Part 1, The Shadows of Prahv, Part 2, The Gorgon and the Guildpact, and Pride of the Kraul. 

He locked eyes with a regal woman he could only assume was the captain of the ship.

She was remarkable.

So this answers that one burning question. Jace and Vraska team up! Without his memory, he believes she’s regal and remarkable. And, he locks eyes with her! From the Gorgon and the Guildpact:

"Have you already read me, Jace Beleren?" came a different woman's voice from behind him.

Jace spun around to look, and then he immediately averted his eyes.

Art by Igor Kieryluk

God, this would still be a healthier relationship than Jace and Liliana.

The man realized with equal parts excitement and dread that this woman knew exactly who he was.

"Jace, what the hell happened to you?"

Rather than killing the Guildpact on sight, she’s shocked at what he looks like and jumps in to inspect him.

I don’t know for sure what the future story holds, but I think seeing another side of Vraska will make for an interesting character.

[solarmason-blog]

to find ourselves some truth | mclopez

WHO: Mason McCarthy & Santana Lopez ( @trickstersantana ) WHAT: Santana clues Mason into her plan. WHERE: NYADA Cafeteria. WHEN: Sunday, 1/8, after the Elliott/Santana duel. WARNINGS: Nah.

Not so long ago the fact that she was going to hang out with a slayer, and Mason of all Slayers would had make her laugh of the ridiculous of the idea. But here she was, in parting testing him, in part because her plans are usually the worst and if it's Mason the one who suffer the consequences she wouldn't care much. She went to the cafeteria with Madison's sunglasses in search of the slayer boy. Mason was already there; he'd bypassed the ice cream in favor of cookies and a small bowl of strawberries and sugar. The events of the night before weighed on his mind, but he still smiled when he spotted Santana enter the cafeteria. "San," he called over the noise, waving a hand to catch her attention. Santana nodded at seeing Mason. "Number Two" She said, "You were going to invite me for something, didn't you?" She asked, searching for a table that was far away from everyone. "We have business to talk about" "Alright," Mason said with a shrug. He figured that was probably smart; it took a bit of doing, but they finally found a table well away from the main bustle of the cafeteria. "How're you, Santana?" As much as he hated small-talk, especially when there were more important things to talk about, business was business, and a certain amount of nicety was required. "I hear you've been winning your duels so far." "Awesome" She just answered "I'm invincible and can beat everyone, including you" She ordered a coffee and a coulant. "And you, Number 2, how is life treating you?" She said, in case he has something relevant to say before she started talking about why they really were there.  "Life is treating me fine," he said, chewing the edge of his lip for a moment. "But I did have a question for you. Are you aware of any illusion that can interact with the world? Like, say you illusioned a cup. It wouldn't hold water, right?" He leaned forward in his seat a little, a frown creasing his brow. "That sounds like there are some issues" She just said to Mason while taking off her sunglasses. She was surprised he asked her about illusions. Oh, this was going to be really long. Try not to be a total nerd, Santana "In that case people just make it look like the fake cup holded the water. They could make it look like the water is there, and if they are really skilled, you could touch it and feel the water where it should be." She explained "Why do you ask?" Mason nodded slowly. "Right," he said, frown deepening a bit. "But an illusion couldn't..." He trailed off for a moment, then shook his head. He was so bad at talking around things - subtlety was not a virtue he possessed. "I saw a guy do this thing. He was talking, holding things, definitely like...Taking action that was real." He thought about the message on his phone. It could have come from anywhere - not necessarily the person he was looking at "texting" him. "And then he just disappeared. Like, a puff of smoke." Mason made a poof gesture. "Have you ever heard of anything like that?" She listened to Mason explanation "...And what makes you think that's an illusion person holding things? It would just have more sense a person taking a thing and then making an illusion to appear invisible, or just vanish with smoke. That's freaking easy, actually" Specially if you were a trickster."Did someone stole something from you, Number two?"

Mason shook his head. "No," he said, "they didn't take anything." Unfortunately. Mason ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "That makes more sense, you're right." But it didn't get him anywhere. "What was your thing?"

"That's good then" she just said, wondering what the hell was Mason talking about. "Did you watched a Commons magician shows? I mean, you can do that even without magic, so" She shrug. Now it was her turn "I have a plan to get who was the guy" She whispered. "We know 3 key things of him. He is a guy, he is a witch and he got his nose broken on November 30" She had to guess that one searching on the NYADaily because Elliott didn't fucking answered her. Maybe he didn't answered her because she broke her phone, but the facts remained the same. She paused to drink some of her coffee "And you" She pointed at him "Are the one who is going to find out more about this guy... what do you think, sp...Spyson...Mc...McDetective spio...spiocarthy" She couldn't choose on a nickname so she just said them all. Mason pointed at himself, raising an eyebrow as she gave him about a dozen new nicknames, none of which sounded remotely plausible except maybe Spyson, but that wasn't the point. "Okay," Mason agreed cautiously. "How exactly am I going to do that?" Mason paused. "Or do I get to figure that part out on my own?" His mind drifted to the nurse's office; he'd let Madison do the work of stealing the thing. Maybe it was his turn to be useful.

That was fast, Santana though. Good to see people agreeing to things. "Don't worry, you aren't completelly alone at this." Just a bit. She whispered more "Just... If nurse Penny though you were the guy we are looking for... and you ask her about, well, 'yourself', we could get some information" She explained, taking a cup of coffee "Are you ready to make a deal, Masey, for the greater good?"

He pursed his lips at the nickname - it was one thing when it was Madison, or Puck; Santana was something else entirely, but if he let her know that he'd never hear anything else. He leaned back in his chair and let out a breath, studying her. "A deal," Mason echoed slowly. Everything he'd ever been taught about tricksters ended with 'and never take a deal because they'll use it to kill you'. Admittedly part of him was still worried that this was a trap, something that she had constructed to screw him over in some way he hadn't figured out yet. But it was about Elliott. The quote-unquote greater good. And Mason wanted to get the baddie - he wanted to not feel useless. "Give me all the details." Mason finally said, letting out a sigh. "And all the terms, all the everything." Mason swallowed. "And then...maybe." He watched her; maybe it was her distrust aura or maybe it was his prejudices, but aether something was telling him to run far and run fast.

Santana looked at him, unamazed. "Do you want me to write it on a contract or what?" She always loved to play the mysterious trickster cause she was actually really fucking bad at explaining anything. Too many years living with ambiguous talk and annoying riddles. She keep whispering "We make a deal for Nurse Penny. So she would see you as 'the first guy who came with a broken nose after November 30th'. You go and talk to her and try to make her say 'your name' or whatever information you can get about 'yourself'" She did the quotation marks. "Try to get her alone so people don't suspect much, and try to get any information you can... and if the guy didn't go to the hospital or a lot of people went with a broken nose, then ...well... it's worth a try"

Mason nodded slowly as she spoke, frown still on his face. He wasn't sure what the consequences were for impersonating someone, especially where medical records were concerned, but... "It's worth a try," Mason finally said, letting out a breath. "How does the deal work?" It was no riskier than meeting a stranger surrounded by Commons, he figured - and he wasn't actually angling to look at medical records. There were better people to illusion himself as for that. Which, if this didn't work... "How will you make me look like the guy if you don't know who he is?"

"I don't need to know how he looks, Penny is the only one who need to know how he looks" Making her own ilusions were her creating a world of her own, but deals worked differently. It was the thing that all trickster had in common. She didn't want to give many details of how it worked to Mason though. "You tell me the day you wanna try to met her, we hang out before, we make the deal, and you go and try to get something... you know like 'hey Penny remember me?' or something like that. I'm sure you can invent something" She has 0 faith actually.

Mason rolled his eyes. "I'm not asking for a script, Santana, I'm asking to know what exactly you're going to do to me." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Tried to push past her aura. "I just...This isn't you just being a dick to me for a reason I haven't figured out yet, right? Because--if this goes to hell, it's me on the line, San. I want to help Elliott, I do, you know I do, but..." Mason sighed and dropped his gaze to where he was picking at the edge of the table. "What if he didn't even go to the hospital? What if he just got a friend to heal him or something?"

"Then we will find out if he went or not" She explained. "I'm not doing anything to you. It's Penny the one who is going to see you differently." She took a bite of her food "This is me trying to get information" with a very bad plan. Santana style. "Look, the worse that can happend is you making a fool of yourself. If no one got to the hospital with a broken nose on...let's say 2 days, then the deal won't even work, and I'll notice that." Probably. "You on the line... I though you were used to that." she said, smiling.

 "I am," Mason agreed, then shook his head at himself. "Making a fool of myself isn't exactly unusual either," he allowed, with a little smile. He was still incredibly uneasy, and he didn't believe for even one minute that this was going to be as harmless or as easy as Santana seemed to think it was. "Fine." Mason said flatly. "Fine, I'll do it. How does making the deal work?"

Santana smiled to Mason. "Good, just tell me the day you want to do it, I'll see you, we shake hands and that's it! If it doesn't work then we know he didn't went, and if it works then you go to the hospital and talk to Penny and get the most information you can, though it might be incorrect, but it can also ve accurate!" Mason sighed. That still didn't answer his question - didn't a deal require him to give something up, like an exchange? He rubbed his temple. "Okay. This weekend. We can't let this wait too much longer, it's already been..." Mason shook his head. If they had just solved the problem when it happened, he'd never be dealing with this stupid knife guy. "I really hope this works."

"I agree" She said. "It's worth a try" She finished her food and looked at Mason. "Do you want something more or invite me to more food?"

Mason shook his head, pushing his bowl away. Suddenly, he wasn’t hungry anymore. He paid for their food and ran a hand through his hair. “Nah. I gotta go, actually. Homework.” Really, he just didn’t want to be roped into any more of her crazy schemes...this one had to work, or what was the point of any of this?