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dcmeterwrites · 4 years

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who is that walking on the quad ? that’s CYNTHIA WINCHESTER, of course. she may look like elizabeth debicki but the twenty eight year old is actually a doctoral student studying management. on game days, she’s judicious and honest ; during finals week, she’s strict and prideful. if you catch her at a party, she’s probably dancing to orpheus under the influence by the buttertones.

— RUNDOWN.

full name: cynthia irene winchester

name meaning: the goddess artemis, peace

 date of birth: november 27th

place of birth: chelsea, united kingdom

 age: twenty-eight

 star sign:  sagittarius

year: first

 department: business

clubs: none

alignment: true neutral

mbti: isfp

spoken languages: english ( native speaker ), french ( fluent ), german ( proficient ), russian ( intermediate ), mandarin ( intermediate )

mother’s name: isla winchester née mcclare

father’s name: conrad winchester

siblings, if any: cordelia, casper, cressida, and charles winchester

birth order: oldest, older twin

height: 6′3″

hair colour: blonde

eye colour: blue

— BACKSTORY.

as the eldest of five winchester heirs, a great deal of pressure was placed on cynthia from a very early age. sit up straight, learn your forks and spoons and knives, laugh a certain way, wave without moving the elbow. it was hammered into her.

in order to survive in that world, she convinced herself of one thing — that life was a matter of complete self-restraint. she attended her flute lessons and loved them, but not too much. loved studying literature, but not too much. loved playing with her siblings, rowing in the summers, having picnics, sunday roasts, winter evenings by the fireplace — but not too much.

it pained her deeply to see her siblings miss the fundamental principle of not too much. where cressida went one route, steeling herself into something artificially robotic and serious and never once allowing herself a laugh, the other sister delia went the other way entirely. threw herself with nothing but mirth into everything she did. casper too erred on the side of caution, living life to its reckless fullest.

she never wanted to cut their fun short. some part of it brought joy into her life, when she didn’t allow herself to have it directly. but as her parents breathed down her neck, she cared less and less about protecting them, coddling them really. it only led to scoldings.

cynthia was a good student, though not exceptional. if she had any skill in abundance, it was an uncanny intuition to see people for who they were, which did her favours in predicting reactions and decisions.

after finishing up her a-levels, she headed right to st. andrew’s for a bachelor’s degree in economics. her twin charles took a similar route, though she purposefully chose a different institution than him — mostly to avoid him.

for better or for worse, he had always been an uncomfortable shadow on her side. while he was slightly worse than her in his behaviour, in his manner, in his academic and extra curricular achievements, their parents thought he could do no wrong.

nevertheless, after her mba degree at the london business school were over with, it was pretty clear what she were meant to do next. her endgame was likely to own a considerable share in the hotel business, own a few, operate a big one in new york or paris or london. it was laid out before her like a carpet.

so she worked in public relations for the winchester family of hotels, nothing she wasn’t expecting. you had to start somewhere, and she was well-suited to be a fresh, likeable face for the company, speaking to investors, to the public and even to officials from the tourism department. all good.

she made her life her work. when it came to the matter of romance, the principle of not too much returned in full swing. she’d go on dates, but none of them interested her very deeply, and left suitors with dashed expectations. perhaps she didn’t let herself be interested by them at all.

all the while, deep cracks emerged in the family. cora was simply not suited to the business, and before they could process it, she was across the pond, at some strange university that cynthia had never heard of. she couldn’t lie — it hurt. but by that point, she was resolute that cora had to grow up like the rest of them, and give up her silly dreams and wishes.

at least she was doing well for herself. soon the winchester hotels were the talk of every major city in the world, the perfect option for any kind of customer. perhaps now, she’d finally get a chance at her management tasks, actually handling staff and making changes to the way things worked.

fat fucking chance. she was invited to a fancy gala with the family, mum, dad, cress, charles, even casper had been wrangled out of whatever european hamlet he hid away in — for what was apparently a grand announcement. she’d never been giddier in her life to hear those magical words.

i am pleased to leave the management of our family hotels to charlie.

well, shit. that was one decision she could not predict.

to say she was confused was a bit of an understatement. she hadn’t just been on equal terms with charlie in terms of performance, she’d exceeded him. he was lazing about on the board of directors while their dad pulled the weight, and while she increased the reputation of their brand tenfold.

for the first time in her life really, she allowed herself a little too much. she demanded an explanation from her parents, and was met only with “ well, we didn’t think you’d care for the job. ”

right. because she never did show she cared.

losing out on that opportunity was a rough wake up call, that she’d expected too many things to go her way based on her achievements alone, rather than any passion. worse yet, the announcement wasn’t exactly the sort of thing you could reverse on a whim.

working at the hotels any longer drained her completely, knowing it was for nothing. and at least she had the decency to quit when she knew she wasn’t doing a good job. quitting meant disapproval and losing rights to certain family assets, but it was what it was.

years of repressed passions bubbled to the surface. suddenly she felt violent, wanting to do nothing more than to throw every last inch of her life away and start new, start different. but how the hell could she do that — where would she go ?

it struck her then. somewhere that the people around her hadn’t heard of. somewhere like riverbank. going back to school wasn’t exactly on her bucket list, but she was a bit desperate for a change of scene — and what a scene it was, wide open skies and suburbia and youth. besides, she hadn’t spoken much to cora beyond a few emails in her sister’s freshman year. she did miss her, even if missing was mixed up with disapproval and envy.

so cynthia cut her hair, got a new look, less elegant colours and skirts and dresses, more pantsuits and dress shirts. applied for a doctoral degree in management science — she could wrangle up something based on her experience. and then she set out, selling off the remnants of her london life, and deleting far too many contacts off her phone on impulse.

her financial situation was thrown for a bit of a loop, however. her source of steady income was gone, her claims to property were distant, and her doctoral degree was fucking expensive. her bank account is slowly wearing down, but it’s still good enough to keep her in a nice apartment by herself.

well, there’s the question of meeting with cora at some point, but she’s mustering up courage for that. such a thing needed planning.

everything’s a bit too much. so it’ll take some getting used to.

#there is no reason for this to be this fucking long #and say What #i might revise in the morning anyw #* introduction / cynthia winchester.#* introduction.#* i'm the queen of broken hearts ; when did i become so dark ? / cynthia winchester.

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lady-plantagenet · 4 years

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Unsolicited Book Reviews (n4): The Daisy and the Bear

Rating:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Even before I had an account, I tended to go to tumblr to see people’s opinions before buying a histfic. Certain books are either severely underrepresented, where I feel like there needs to be something on them, whereas others, though talked about enough, something more can still be said about them. So for my quarantine fun, I have decided to start a series where I review every medieval historical fiction novel I read. Hopefully, it will either start interesting discussions or at least be some help for those browsing its tag when considering purchasing it.

TL;DR: Just like ‘Death Be Pardoner To Me’, I really don’t know how to rate a book that isn’t a ‘novel’ in the traditional sense of the word. So I take each book and measure it against what it promises to deliver. This spoof of the Wars of the Roses did just that perfectly! I found myself laughing out loud at least every three pages (a feat for me). I decided to buy this book because I was a long-time reader of the author’s blog: A Nevill Feast, and despite it being a super informative and enlightening blog (she is also a published historian), I always found her humour extremely amusing. The ‘brow height’ of the jokes in this spoof, are of all levels, but almost always smart.

Plot: Alright, who doesn’t love a good crackship? Well be prepared for a crackship so heightening it’s almost cocaine: Margaret of Anjou and Richard Neville 16th Earl of Warwick. This is not even the only thing you will find in the chaotic but short (153 page) spread of this ‘novel’. You will get witchy ‘Elizabeth Woodville Grey Witch Plantagenet Queen’ ‘s love at first sight with Edward ‘The Rose of Ruin’ IV, who (naturally) cannot be mentioned without the words ‘blonde, tall and womanising’ being thrown in; You will also get a random stand-up comedy routine thrown by the Nevilles called ‘A Very Nevill Christmas’, Edgecote Moor, Edward’s capture, the Welles uprising and the Nevilles’ and Clarence’s escape to France summarised in text messages and a whole two-page chapter written in a northern accent! This is frankly what everyone needs in those gloomy times!

It essentially sticks to what actually happens except for the whole Margaret/Warwick thing, which ends up in Edward of Westminster being Warwick’s secret son. This doesn’t really change anything of course, but the part where he and Anne Neville find out and end up playing a prank on the parents is one of the hilights of this book! Is that too spoilery? Oh well. Before moving to characterisation, there is also this absolutely hilarious OC called Dakota FitzPercy which is the ultimate parody of all OCs in historical fiction: all men are overcome with lust just by looking at her even though she’s dressed in men’s garb half of the time (and for no reason!), as Warwick’s spy she knows martial arts as she was ooobviouslyy trained in Cathay and she has an unnecessarily tragic backstory! Of course like most OCs she adds NOTHING to the story and is therefore the perfect parody.

Characterisation: What really really elevates this book in my eyes and rating is that it is so obviously a parody of historical fiction and not the figures themselves. A goodreads reviewer (who I have a lot of respect for btw) has said that this book often crosses the line into ‘defaming the dead’. With all due respect, I have to disagree as it is some of the portrayals in ‘serious’ historical fiction novels about these characters, which are the true offenders. This is what is being lampooned here and, as such, the book defends their reputations by drawing attention to how silly and sometimes downright offensive some authors’ takes on people like Warwick, Margaret of Anjou and Elizabeth Woodville are.

I can’t tell you how much I laughed at ‘Frail and Angelic © Dickon or Richard’ being so frail and angelic and good, Isabel Neville constantly being reffered to as a ‘prawn’ on her father’s ‘cheeseboard’ (obviously at the hackneyed use of the phrase ‘pawns on a chessboard’, which is incessantly repeated with regards to female characters). Among others: Clarence constantly knocking over his wine when he’s not drinking it, Anne Beauchamp constantly being reffered to as ‘pale and insipid’ (no other reason just because she’s a woman ergo...), Edward IV constantly sleeping with everyone around him, Cecily ‘the Rose of Rabies’ being beautiful, proud and pious (her only three personality traits). Don’t even get me started on Margaret of Anjou’s obnoxious French accent (rofl- it turns into a German one by the end) and nonesensical sluttiness. Another fav part must be the one with Elizabeth Woodville offering to call up a fog at Barnet and Edward being something like ‘well you know, it’s true that they won’t see anything but neither will we. I don’t think you understand how important vision is in a battle’ (like damn straight why has no one even bothered to mention this). Overall, humorous characterisation is done best by someone so well-versed in the history as the author (K L Clark), because she really does a good job teasing out some jokes which only seasoned conoisseurs of this period would know e.g. the Countess of Salisbury’s attainder.

Prose: Probably the crowning virtue of this book. The author does not only aptly parody the portrayal of these figures in popular histfic, but she EVEN PARODIES THE PROSE. I couldn’t stop laughing whenever we got the ridiculously gratuitous smut extract - you know the ones where the author describes the act in such a ridiculous and metaphorical manner that you don’t even understand what’s happening. She also parodies the repetitive and long-winded tell-don’t-show prose with such mastery it gave me great satisfaction.

An example: “This all made Richard of Dickson sad because he loved his brothers, though he loved Edward more than he loved George. He also loved his cousin, Richard Lord Neville of Warwick. He loved him more than George but less than Edward. He also loved the Earl of Warwick’s daughter, Anne. A lot. He wished his brother had let him marry Anne against his wishes at the same time that George married Anne’s sister Isobel (also the Earl of Warwick’s daughter), though he handn’t let him marry her either, against his wishes or not. It was all making his heart ache so very much”

Not to mention the over-written prose: ‘A bag drips with the blood, hangs from the saddle of a horse whose animal innocence shields it from the horrors of its burden. Black hearted Clifford chortles as he rides, his prize, his gift, his paeon, his song to his mistress oozing, dripping calaminous blood’

I’ll stop now before I get accused of copyright (not sure how it works but oh well).

One last thing I will say is that each chapter varies in type of prose, sometimes it’s written as a play, a soliloquy, first person and sometimes even text messages and letters hahaha.

Overall, A massively chaotic but enjoyably written and quite intelligent hodgepodge. I may have revealed a lot in this review, but this does not even scratch the surface of the multitude of other gags you will find inside! Highly recommend for anyone already familiar with this period and with a sense of humour! Now excuse me while I go back and read something serious lmao

#lady-plantagenet’s book reviews #also highly recommend it to anyone considering writing histfic #just to be aware of some tropes you might want to avoid #also got a weird version of gisabel - I’m content #The Daisy and the Bear #historical fiction #margaret of anjou #richard neville earl of warwick #warwick the kingmaker #KL Clark #spoof #wars of the roses

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regalloki · 4 years

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Memories

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: It’s the last night before Bucky’s departure to go fight in the war, so you visit the Stark Expo together along with Steve. It’s your last date, so you make some memories to look back to while he’s away.

Warnings: a whole ton of fluff

Author’s note: Bucky’s backstory is based on the TFA tie-in comic and the Captain America and Bucky comics cause we see very little of his life pre-TFA (the mcu has done us wrong tbh). Also the reader can be read as gender neutral!

Word count: 2196

18 March, 1943

It was the day before he’d leave. He had just received his orders, being appointed sergeant of the 107th. Admittedly, you were a tad bit bitter. You weren’t worried for him, per se. Bucky was capable in hand-to-hand combat and an excellent marksman as well and could very well hold his own against men stronger than him. He was a natural, after all, having a knack for that sort of stuff. He was the three-time YMCA welterweight boxing champion, so, surely, he knew how to put up one hell of a good fight. During training in Wisconsin, he quickly and steadily rose up the hierarchy and the ranks to earn the title of sergeant. He would indubitably be a valuable asset to his regiment. However, watching him go was, for you, nothing short of tormenting.

You caught sight of Bucky heading towards you, charming as ever, sporting that beguiling cheeky grin that made your knees buckle. He looked positively stunning and you caught yourself unabashedly checking him out. His confident strut, cocky posture and calm nature added to the undaunted and self-assured allure, but the gleam in his entrancing baby blues, the slight tip of his head and the lovesick subconscious smile he didn’t manage to conceal after quickly catching a glimpse of you were a dead giveaway of his feigned composure.

Beneath that cool, tough and charming veneer, Bucky was an utter sweetheart. He wouldn’t be caught dead admitting it, but he was more silly and sentimental than he came across as. A huge sop, Bucky had a thing for being close to you. He liked falling asleep on you, listening to your heart beat or the low, soothing vibrations of your chest whenever you’d softly hum some made-up tune to lull him into a peaceful slumber. His hand had practically molded against your own. He was by all means a sucker for hand holding, but he’d rather not be seen. He had a reputation to withhold, after all. However, he managed to sneak his calloused hand in yours here and there, under a table or during those long cuddle sessions he liked after a particularly hard day when you were both alone at last. Bucky also had a weak spot for kisses. He tried his utmost to be stealthy and clandestine in public, but he oftentimes yielded to his desire and would slyly steal a few. If there’s one thing Bucky relished more than kissing you, it was being kissed by you. When you two were alone during the scarce downtime you’d get, all types of kisses were in order. Cheek kisses, mouth kisses, forehead kisses, neck kisses. They made Bucky feel enveloped by a welcoming surge of warmth and tenderness. He savored those moments, for they made him feel loved and cherished. It was safe to say he was absolutely smitten.

You took great joy in calling him out for how sensitive he is. His cheeks would immediately blush a gentle shade of tomato red and he would hang his head low in a desperate attempt to hide his toothy, broad smile he spectacularly failed to hold back and collect himself. But he knew it was absolute nonsense and all in good fun. He was aware of how fond you were of his clinginess and how cute you thought his gimmicks are.

“Hi, darling”, he greeted you, the low trill of his voice alone enough to make your heart skip a beat. He hugged you, briefly and slyly grazing his lips against your cheek.

He looked quite dapper in his uniform. Undoubtedly, he cleaned up nicely, you had to give him that. You were had been accustomed to a considerably ruggier look. His hair tended to be a messy halo around his head and strands would pop up here and there to frame and accentuate his handsome features. He sometimes even boasted a few bruises or marks, tell-tale signs of some recent tussle. He was never the one to shy out of a fight, although Steve was usually the one to get himself caught up in one and Bucky would be the one to defend his friend- and get a few good licks in before drawing Steve away.

You handed them their tickets to the Stark Expo. Bucky was ecstatic to find out he would be around in Brooklyn long enough to be able to go. You decided to get tickets for the two of you and Steve, something like a parting gift for Bucky. You smiled at the memory of when you told him you could all go together. His eyes went wide and he seemed so thrilled. You’ve lost count of how many times he thanked you.

The two of you started walking side by side, stealing glances and smiles. Further down the road, you met with Steve. The three of you started catching up. Bucky told you all about Becca’s baking disaster and Steve’s latest misadventure in the back of an alley that morning. You giggled at Bucky’s frustration and at Steve’s endeavor to justify his shenanigans.

“Buck- Bucky! Hear me out! That jerk was being disrespectful and he made that woman cry! What was I supposed to do-”

“Try not to get into a fight, that’s what! It’s been, what, the third time I’ve found you getting beat up in an alley or behind some diner just this month! I’m worried for you, Steve! I won’t be here to bail you out!”

“But-”

“Can’t you for once just do as your told? You know what? You may be my best friend but you also make for one hell of a pain in my ass, Rogers.”

You stifled a giggle at the two friends bickering. Before you knew it, the three of you arrived at the Expo. It was jaw-dropping and imposing. The lights, the inventions, the fireworks. Howard Stark sure knew how to put on a sensational show.

The inventions displayed at the Expo were astonishing and unprecedented. Flying cars, synthetic bodies, futuristic engines. You watched as Bucky marveled at the expeditions. He looked like a kid in a candy store, eyes wide and gleaming with excitement and mouth agape in wonder. The childlike enthusiasm and amazement in his eyes made you smile uncontrollably. You loved seeing him happy.

After a while, Steve left and Bucky went after him, concerned for him. Steve seemed in a bit of a haze, as if something was troubling him. He decided to not join you for the rest of the night.

“You know, he tried to enlist again this mornin’. God knows how many times he’s tried. He’s dead set on joining the army.”, Bucky explained.

“It kind of reminds me of someone”, you retorted.

“I’m just scared he’s way in over his head. War’s more brutal than some backalley. And if he keeps lying on enlistment forms they’ll either catch him or, God forbid, take him. It really gets on my nerves how thick-headed he is.”, Bucky said, looking down on his shoes.

“You know how Steve is. He has always had a fight in him. So have you. Steve wants to fight for what he believes is right. That’s his calling.”

“I’m worried sick he’ll get hurt and I won’t be there for him. He’s pretty keen on doing stupid things.”

“You’re a good friend, Buck.”

The two of you strolled around the Expo. Bucky, all giddy and excited, ran around telling you all about the fascinating inventions. He surely loved showing off to you. After a while, the conversation drifted elsewhere.

“Aren’t you scared? I mean, you said it yourself, war is brutal.”, you asked.

“I am. I couldn’t possibly not be.”, he chuckled almost nervously. “But it’s my duty to fight, the way it was my father’s before me. That’s one of the reasons I enlisted, you know. I wanted to finally make him proud. I had caused enough problems for him, especially after Ma died.”

“I don’t think that’s true. George loved you”

“I always got into trouble. After she passed away, I had to pretend everything is fine for Becca’s sake. But deep down I was scared and angry. Angry at everyone and everything. I would constantly get into fights, not unlike Steve. Maybe that’s why I’m so protective of him. I don’t want him to make the mistakes I did.”, he continued, head hanging down low. “Dad made a point of telling me how let down he was in me when I would come home wounded and bruised, but I don’t blame him. It’s just… His last words to me, before the accident, still ring in my head. ‘I’m disappointed in you, Bucky. You’ve really let me down here.’”, he muttered.

“You were a kid, Buck. You were processing so much grief and anger. You needed a way to unleash it. Sure, it wasn’t the best one. But you learned and grew from all this pain.”, you encouraged him.

“You’re pretty great, you know that?”, he chuckled, seemingly less on edge now. “I’ll miss you”

“You’re not too bad yourself, Barnes.”

“I’ll miss home, you know. You, Steve, Becca. But, at least, the thought of returning home will keep me going. God, I’ll miss you”

The two of you walked and talked for what seemed like hours, having a sincere heart to heart. After some time, you came across a photobooth. You both wanted to commemorate that night, so Bucky suggested taking a few pictures and you happily agreed.

You sat in the small, crammed space side by side. You placed your hand on his thigh, somewhat cheekily and he laid his head on your shoulder. You started taking pictures. While you were preoccupied with making silly faces for the camera, Bucky was busy keeping his eyes on you. You could feel his gaze on you, and, before you knew it, he laid a loving kiss on your cheek. He caught you by surprise, and the gentle touch of his lips on your cheek resulted in a toothy, ear-to-ear grin spreading across yours. You turned to him, seeing him beam at you adoringly.

You could never get over how utterly and ridiculously impeccable and downright perfect he looked. His features were flawless. His piercing eyes were a breathtaking bright, steely blue. They glimmered in moments like these, when he was serene and content. The affectionate looks he gave you made your heart skip several beats. His rosy lips were soft and his kisses were tender and so sweet, you thought he could give you toothaches by merely kissing you. His nose was cute as a button and it took genuine effort on your part to not gently peck it with every chance you get. His hair was a velvety and silky mess with a few curls here and there framing his face and you wanted to gently card your hair through it and mess it up even more. His jaw strong jaw and cute little buttchin were the cherry on top. Bucky called to mind those Hollywood actors audiences swooned at. He was truly a sight for sore eyes.

You ogled at him long enough that a faint blush rose on his cheeks. He looked ravishing and irresistible so, without delay, you fondly grasped his neck and drove him into a passionate kiss on the lips. It wasn’t rushed or heated, but delicate and mellow. He leaned into your touch, craving it, and lowly hummed in content and satisfaction, as he cupped and caressed your cheek.

He pulled away with a delighted smile on his face. Both your hearts were bursting at their seams with pure, sheer love and affection for each other. That love transcended anything superficial, like looks or charm. Bucky had a heart of gold and sometimes it was too heavy for his own good. He cared so much for others that it took a toll on himself. But he was sincerely kind hearted and caring. You genuinely admired and appreciated him for that. He’s extremely loyal and devoted. He never gave up on anyone, not Steve nor his sister nor you. He was thrice as strong emotionally as he was physically, having to go through all that pain and despair and still be his sister’s rock. Bucky was an angel and he deserved the purest and sweetest love there is. And you wanted nothing more than to give him that.

Bucky grabbed the photos with a small smile on his features.

“You look nice”, he complemented.

“Not nearly as nice as you”, you replied, the words escaping your mouth before you knew it.

The grin disappeared from his lips in realization. The night was drawing to a close and he’d never get to share one with you for the foreseeable future. He started holding onto those photos a little harder now.

“There you go.”, he said. moving his hand to give them to you.

“Keep them”, you retorted. “To remember me while you’re away.”

“To be frank, sweetheart, I don’t think I’d be able to forget you. In fact, I think I’d struggle to think of something else.”, he chuckled. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Buck.”

#bucky barnes #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes x reader #winter soldier #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes fluff #bucky barnes oneshot #fanfiction #fluff #bucky fluff #bucky fanfic

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tyrantofthefirmament · 4 years

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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE: MUN & MUSE

fill out & repost ♥ this meme definitely favors canons more, but i hope oc’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. multimuses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.

tagged by Stolen from: @warlordratchet tagging: everyone!

MY MUSE IS. canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless

is your character popular in the fandom? YES / NO.

is your character considered hot™ in the fandom? YES / NO / IDK.

is your character considered strong in the fandom? YES / NO / IDK.

are they underrated? YES / NO.

were they relevant to the main story? YES / NO.

were they relevant to the main character? YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG.

are they widely known in their world? YES / NO.

how’s their reputation? GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL.

HOW STRICTLY DO YOU FOLLOW CANON?

I consider everything presented in the aligned canon as my Starscream’s canon backstory, but his current story diverges after the end of TFP and does not follow RiD. I made up stuff to fill in the gaps and tried to make it fit in well. Where there are contradictions in the Aligned canon (as happens frequently), I consider the novels Exodus and Exiles to be the most canon, followed by TFP, followed by the comics and video games. The Covenant of Primus or any other materials published after the beginning of season 3 of TFP are a secondary canon that I only pick and choose from, because they retconned and threw out the original story bible and setup, an action I didn’t care for.

SELL YOUR MUSE! (aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutual.)

Starscream is a walking roller coaster of emotions. His contradictions make him unpredictable, as he tries to navigate a world which would prefer to write him off as at best a cautionary tale, but whose future he still believes he has a right to shape. He craves relevance and recognition, but he’ll settle for infamy if pushed away too much. He misses the mech he was before he was broken, but seldom admits it to himself, and doesn’t want anyone else to know he’s struggling. Even though he’s trying to be on his best behavior, he still believes scheming and murder are perfectly viable solutions to most problems.

NOW THE OPPOSITE! (list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?)

Starscream is a paranoid and self-centered individual, so it can be hard to find reasons he’d engage with other muses. He’s a stubborn old butthead, is what I’m saying.

The fandom (and show writers) often reduce him to a one-note, weak character who needs others to step in for him, or whose motivations are simply power grabs. I don’t think he’s like that at all. His power grabs are intricate and his relationship with the idea of power (and powerlessness) is as tragic as it is fascinating.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO RP YOUR MUSE?

Never in the history of fiction has a great character been so screwed over and tossed aside as TFP Starscream. The end of Predacons Rising left wounds for me that fanfic couldn’t heal, so I decided to give him a future worthy of such an interesting character. I wanted to keep him around, basically, and see where he could go if given a chance.

WHAT KEEPS YOUR INSPIRATION GOING?

I have a ton of ideas for him and endless “what if” scenarios to explore. He’s so much fun and never grows boring. I like that he can be serious or silly, sympathetic or a total asshole. He has boundless potential but he’s his own worst enemy. It kind of makes him hard to write at times, but there’s never any lack of ideas. Usually there’s too many and I take forever to settle on what he should do.

SOME MORE PERSONAL QUESTIONS FOR THE MUN.

do you think you give your character justice? YES / NO.

do you frequently write headcanons? YES / NO.

do you sometimes write drabbles? YES / NO.

do you think a lot about your muse during the day? YES / NO.

are you confident in your portrayal? YES / NO.

are you confident in your writing? YES / NO.

are you a sensitive person? YES / NO / DEPENDS

DO YOU ACCEPT CRITICISM WELL ABOUT YOUR PORTRAYAL?

Yes but I prefer it to be relevant to my specific portrayal. Like there are times I know I’ve made him bend out of character to make a thread move along, so that would be something I’d take criticism on, so I could figure out ways to do that more smoothly. I don’t take criticism like “you’d get more interaction if you RPed ships”, which I thankfully haven’t seen in ages. People seem to have accepted my aro-ace birb and his eternal bachelorhood.

DO YOU LIKE QUESTIONS, WHICH HELP YOU EXPLORE YOUR CHARACTER?

I crave them with every fiber of my being.

IF SOMEONE DISAGREES TO A HEADCANON OF YOURS, DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY?

Not really. Everyone has different headcanons, so I’d be shocked if we all agreed. That’s kinda the point of headcanons. That being said, it is sometimes fun to discuss and debate different ones.

IF SOMEONE DISAGREES WITH YOUR PORTRAYAL, HOW WOULD YOU TAKE IT?

Like a champ. I don’t mind if someone disagrees, though I would wonder why they felt a need to bring it up. There’s a bunch of Starscream blogs out there, so hopefully they’d be able to find one that suits their fancy.

IF SOMEONE REALLY HATES YOUR CHARACTER, HOW DO YOU TAKE IT?

It’s funny, but I actually take hate of me and my writing waaaayyyy less personally than I take hate toward actual canon TFP Starscream. I hate the way people talk about him and dismiss him and tear him down. Like. It genuinely upsets me. Leave my bird son alone! When people direct hate towards me I kinda drink anon tears tbh. I don’t mind it, usually, and I can be as snarky as my muse.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PEOPLE POINTING OUT YOUR GRAMMATICAL ERRORS?

I’d be fine with that. I’m good at grammar but not so good at typing, so if my brain goes faster than my fingers and I screw up, please let me know so I can fix it! In fact as I typed this very answer I skipped no fewer than three entire words, and it’s not that long of an answer!

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE EASY GOING AS A MUN?

Most of the time. I know it probably doesn’t seem like it if you read my rather lengthy and specific rules, but I do give people the benefit of a doubt and I’m pretty friendly (but shy and terrible at remembering to return messages)

#mun stuff #rp stuff #writing stuff #ooc

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citialiin · 4 years

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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.

fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm. tagged by: @forseenclade thank you ! man i am so bad at doing memes. tagging: @blossomingbeelzebug @zhrets @lupichorous @dansiere yayayayayayayaya

My muse is: canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless / complicated [ z/iggy stardust is DEFINITELY not my original character, but 683 is, and every single part of how i rp ziggy from his backstory to his personality was made up by me. that being said, ziggy is still a character that exists in media. ]

Is your character popular in the fandom? YES / NO. [ im pretty sure ziggy is tied with the thin white duke as one of b*wie’s most famous fictional personas? ]

Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom? YES ? / NO / IDK.

Is your character considered strong in the fandom? YES / NO / IDK.

Are they underrated? YES / NO / IDK. [ maybe a little overrated ]

Were they relevant for the main story? YES / NO.

Were they relevant for the main character? YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG.

Are they widely known in their world? YES / NO.

How’s their reputation? GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL. [ celebrity rock god of limitless talent vs inevitable overrated washup. most celebrities are polarizing anyways ]

How strictly do you follow canon? — there isnt much canon to go off of i think? the album barely even states if ziggy is an alien and b*wie himself got really wishy washy about it (sometimes saying z is a human who was contacted by aliens, he was an alien himself, etc). i dont think we know anything about him besides what he looks like (red hair / weird eyes / pale / “well hung” lmao) and he has a band called the spiders from mars, he plays the guitar left handed, he’s bisexual + androgynous, and he’s charming and popular with the teens but inevitably is a victim of his own ego. and he dies. that too. but that’s literally it! we know Nothing else about him. so i filled in all the gaps because my brain has worms. theres a little bit of the story that verges on fantasy (that he’s some sort of messiah messenger for “the infinites,” whatever the fuck THAT means, david) so i nix that because i prefer hard scifi. and theres one BIG part that i just ... deleted out of his canon, in that the world is ending in 5 years in his timeline, and he’s like ... aware of this ? but that’s dumb and confusing. i legit dont care anymore. my OC now.

SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals. — im so embarrassed i know i could be genuine and actually try but i have brain blockajjolajlakala33lak33klak333ak3jka3akjj323j3 i guess it’s like ... ziggy is truly the ultimate expression OF humanity because he reveals everything both wrong and right about the human condition, he literally embodies the best of humanity and the worst at the same time, he’s a really interesting critique on the idea of genuineness/earnestness vs commercalism in art, the perils of fame, and also how humans are so inherently corrupting? a lot of thematic stuff i like exploring is like what is innate to humans vs what is learned behavior, what are things that humans do naturally that ziggy mimics out of his desire to be like us? i think he has a really good story arc -- he went from being a literal nameless CLONE in a society full of pragmatic forward thinking science-oriented people to a sell out rockstar celebrity in a society of people that value individualism and self expression and art, but in the process completely lost his mind and himself and gave into the worst that humanity has to offer like rampant selfishness, drug abuse, self destructive tendencies, etc. characters changing is always interesting and ziggy truly changes for the worse -- but he is never just black and white, he was never good and then suddenly evil, he just was always the same person putting on different facades and trying to be himself by constructing an identity that maybe was who he wanted to be versus who he actually is. i dont know what im talking about. hes just an alien trying to be too hard to be human in all the wrong ways. i just like how “gray” ziggy is. he isnt good or bad, he can be very nice and he can be very mean, he’s overtly showboating confident but at the same time deeply afflicted with self-consciousness (why tf else would anyone be So obsessed with how they present themselves?). hes an icon of individualism but also commercialism. he’s freakishly alien but is almost more human than humans themselves. he struggles as lot in his head -- which makes for interesting writing, i guess !! Im so emabrrased im not going to go back and read what i wrote so if i typoed dont look at me

Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?). — i think ziggy comes across as really mean and nothing else. his horrible bitchy rudeness comes across as hee hee hoo hoo sassy isnt he a rascal when it’s supposed to be more like ... he’s so far gone into the celebrity delusion he’s conflated aggressive rudeness with charmingness because no one told him otherwise and everyone worships him to the point where he’s just given into the delusion that he can do no wrong. i think theres the general simplification problem that happens with a lot of fictional characters, it’s easy to see him as just a whacky sassy glittery quirky rockstar when i guess it avoids the inherent tragedy of like ... everything else about him. his totally fake and false sense of identity built up from superficial things like fame and labels and stardom. maybe my version of ziggy is just too weirdly depressing and sad when i know his original iteration wasn’t quite so ... grim. im not very sure tbh.

What inspired you to rp your muse? — hmmm ... a lot of things! i just really got into b*wie stuff in early 2019, i’ve ALWAYS loved aliens and sci-fi, and i was really shocked that db sets up such great visual storytelling potential but does it through music. i just really liked ziggys “story” and i like any chance to think about aliens so i just got invested into piecing together a little backstory for him using, like, the cumulative knowledge of literally every other piece of science fiction ive ever consumed in my life. this was summer 2019 when i was making initial pitches for my thesis film, and so i just randomly decided to pitch “animated version of ziggy stardust” as one of the potential ideas. shockingly everyone liked it a lot and so did my professor who thought it was really cool, and then i just ended up sticking with the character and working on him for an entire year. ziggy became my hobby but also my homework. he was such a fun character because everything about him was interesting to me and i had just enough source material to have a starting point but so much room to take him in any direction i wanted to.

What keeps your inspiration going? — honestly, yooooou guyssssss. i have some really amazing fwends that ive met thru here .... and some of our dumb stupid stories have literally become NOVEL length. it just self generates inspiration because you realize the limitless amount of stories you could tell with this one single character when your character enters his story or he enters their story and etc. etc. ive drawn endless amounts of comics and stuff for him ... ziggy is just so endlessly interesting ... cringe be cringed bro but recently (i know this sounds dumb bear with me or die.) ive kind of realized a lot of how i rp z comes as some metaphor for the experience of being an asian immigrant/being asian in the US -- his home “culture” is a lot stricter than the rampant selfish individualism of the usa (he only lives in the uk and usa, so he thinks the whole planet is like this), he’s dissuaded from standing out from his community and his selfishness becomes a community burden rather than a personal flaw, and when he does come to earth, he goes through such awful culture shock, literally nothing makes sense to him and everything is Different. and while some things are different in a Nice way, something things are different in an Awful way, and he’s given the option between losing his true personal identity as an atominan and giving it up to be a human. the allure of being a human is a little too much but losing yourself like this is traumatic, in a way. obvs like ... a little silly and definitely not something that i actively intended to put into his story arc, its just something that fell into place cuz i guess i worked so closely with my own personal experiences and feelings of “alienation” (pun intended) to try to understand how he would feel being a literal alien an shid. its cathartic to write about him. but he also has a lot of my own personal interests just thrown in -- 70s fashion, scifi, science, tryhard implications about human nature, art history, whatever dumb nonsense i get into

Some more personal questions for the mun.

Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.

Do you think you give your character justice? YES / NO / SOMETIMES?

Do you frequently write headcanons? YES / NO [ i would prefer information to spring up organically in the story but cuz threads always get dropped i end up just telling people outright. i didnt want anyone to know his home planet/his old name but barely anyone writes enough with ziggy to get to that point to reveal it (i legit managed to do it organically Once) so i just had to write it in a post lmao orz ]

Do you sometimes write drabbles? YES / NO [ wrote a ton of drabbles ! drew a ton of comics! ]

Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day? YES / NO

Are you confident in your portrayal? YES / NO / I DUNNO?

Are you confident in your writing? YES / HAHA NO.

Are you a sensitive person? YES / NO. / IDK ?

Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal? — definitely! like i said ... my version of ziggy ended up being the protag of my thesis film and for 1 yr straight his characterization, backstory, design, and even how i wanted to animate his fucking movements (ziggy stardust timing charts.) were beaten to death in a classroom environment, torn apart and rebuilt into something better. had i stayed with what i originally wanted to go with, ziggy would be so different than how i write him 2day. amazingly my pre production professor is a literal two time emmy award winning storyboard artist and animator so he definitely helped me design him (my version of ziggy is meant for ... a cartoon, obviously, not real life) and give him a better backstory? and my post production professor is a retired disney animator who worked on hercules and a bunch of old disney channel shows? had i gone wah wah wah i dont want to hear ur critiques i wouldnt have made him better. if you ever think ziggy seems inconsistent or poorly written ... tell me !! i literally major in ... animation. cartoons. entertainment. my job is to entertain you. if you are not entertained, there is a problem. ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED ????

Do you like questions, which help you explore your character? — I LOVE QUESTIONS? i love ... answering questions ... if you ask me something ill come kiss you.

If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why? — sure! i dont know why that would happen, though, because i mean ... he’s an OC. but i gues someone could be like “i feel like this is incongruous to things you’ve previously established in his character” or somethin

If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it? — i feel like a lot of b*wie stans would find my version of ziggy weird but i mean thats fine! i guess my goal is to have a well written character, not necessarily an accurate version of ziggy

If someone really hates your character, how do you take it? — if you hate MY version of ziggy thats fine but if u hate ziggy stardust in general (like the bowie concept) then u need some taste what the fuck is cooler than a egomaniac genderless bisexual rockstar alien with red hair? nothing. go back to watching your CW shows you dirty filthy normie

Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors? — yes! dm me though. dont clown me on the dash like that. i usually write your replies 12 AM - 4 AM so it’s expected.

Do you think you are easy going as a mun? — hmmm ... maybe! i do like to talk to people and i am VERY nice, trust me, if youre ever sad ill do everything i can to make you feel better. but im quiet! i dont really reach out to people and i tend to just keep to myself. im not very social or extroverted at all haha i barely can make ooc posts without feeling like god’s coming to beat my head in with a brick. im sitting here at 5:30 AM with this meme feeling like if i post it i will die (BUT I MUST)

#a lot of it is under the readmore because these always get so long and mine is long long long long long long long long long long long #ooc #KEEP YOUR 'LECTRIC EYE ON ME ; queue #and thakn you for tagging me ! i like to mkae Words

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ellynneversweet · 5 years

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How did you decide on the daemons you did for the Bennet sisters?

Oh that’s something that takes some answering, thank you :D. I tend to pick and choose between religious and heraldic symbolism, cultural associations, puns, but I’ve got a bunch of loose ground rules that narrow things down based on age, social standing, gender, etc — it depends on the character. Starting with broad strokes:

Aristocrats and their families really pride themselves on big-cat daemons, which neatly ties up: Darcy and his cheetah daemon; Lord Asriel and Stelmaria; and the long and storied history of British monarchs representing themselves /the state with lion symbolism.

Following from that, the more important you (think) you are, the larger and more baroque your daemon tends to be. In Mr Bennet’s case, his bear daemon is so large as to be practically disabling, since the accomodations necessarily required to manage his lifestyle are barely within budget (story of Mr Bennet’s life), but he’s also someone who has social power and doesn’t use it.

The enlightenment arguments about concepts of the self as an individual distinct from the society it springs from, and the interest in the scientific community in exploration in classification that were happening at about this time should clash in the public imagination with more old-fashioned heraldic concepts of what it means to have your inner self on display. And, while I had a lot of issues with The Secret Commonwealth, I did think it was interesting that Pullman suggested people mostly knew what animal their daemon looked like, and that’s something take into account at a time when your average person would not be expected to be widely informed on the fauna outside their own home region. So some people are very traditional and conformist (the Fitzwilliams), some people try to game the system on their or their children’s behalf (Jane, to an extent), some would prefer to see the whole thing stripped of artifice or otherwise romanticise the idea of more instinctive and naturalistic (Darcy very much, Elizabeth slightly less so), some don’t think too much about it and just go with the flow (Charlotte).

Witches and magicians (almost) always have bird daemons, per HDM and also because of the consistent association of birds with magic in JS&MN, particularly ravens. So Jonathan Strange has a blue jay daemon, because blue jays are corvids but they don’t look it, and Strange is a very good magician but tends not to look it on on introduction.On the other end of the size scale, Mrs Bennet’s dalmatian pelican daemon is springs from catholic imagery in which pelicans are symbolic of self-sacrificing motherhood, based on a medieval belief that pelicans pecked their chests bloody to feed their chicks with their own blood. Since this is absolutely not true of pelican behaviour, and since pelicans in life (enormous, smelly, loud) are much less romantic and attractive than that imagery suggests , I figure it works both with what Mrs Bennet would like to believe about herself and how she actually is.

Which necessarily leads to the Bennet girls all having bird daemons, conveniently narrowing the field of possibilities.

For Jane, whose daemon is a hyacinth macaw, I wanted a tension between outward conformity to the role of perfect daughter and gentlewoman, and someone who has hidden depths. Bright bird daemons are very much in vogue for ladies — think parrots and birds of paradise — so she fits that mould, with an elegant and beautiful daemon; but on the other hand hyacinth macaws are much bigger, cleverer and more powerful than your average parrot, they’re less immediately eye-catching and surprisingly good at camouflaging themselves. They’re also (by parrot standards) relatively patient, even-tempered and shy, and they pair-bond quite strongly in addition to being generally social, but they can be destructive when they’re unhappy, and Jane, I think, quietly excels at self-destruction. The backstory that may or may not make it into the fic itself was that Jane spent a lot of time in her mid-teens being dragged around town to every menagerie and museum Mrs Bennet could manage to get tickets to, mostly without Elizabeth, feeling miserably shy and self-conscious because people kept staring at her. She saw a very lonely macaw (via a Portuguese trader Uncle Gardiner knew) trying unsuccessfully to hide from massive crowds in a showy display, and felt a sort of immediate empathy with it which, erm, stuck.

For Elizabeth, whose daemon is a gyrfalcon and, unlike Jane, a complete accident, I riffed a bit off Darcy. So, something fast (and, importantly, faster than a cheetah), independent and aggressive, but also beautiful, playful and charming — archness and sweetness, you know? Gyrfalcons are beautiful and quite acrobatic, and (pun incoming) their scientific name (falco rusticolus) means countryside dweller. They’re endemic to both England and the arctic areas that the witches are associated with, suiting Elizabeth and her interest in her foreign grandmother. They’ve also got a long association with the uppermost echelons of society, being the valued possession of kings and generally a mark of high honour to associate with in any capacity. (Darcy, whose family still regard themselves basically as vassals of the Raven King, absolutely knows what a gyrfalcon looks like and what it implies, but unfortunately rushed to judgement too soon. He’s in for a hard time sorrynotsorry)

For Mary, (short-eared owl), an owl was the obvious choice, given the association with seeking wisdom, if not necessarily finding it — I admit to a bit of petty amusement at the way owls are not, in fact, particularly bright birds, despite their reputations. Barn owls and snowy owls, while lovely, are just super over-done, and for Mary I wanted something little bit silly, too big and too drab in his colouring to be fashionable, but not fierce enough to command admiration. I figured by this point in their parenting career Mr&Mrs Bennet had moved on from dragging the girls around town, and what encouragement they got to consider the wonders of the natural world consisted of being pointed at the door and told not to come inside until dinner, maybe a new book of illustrated plates if Mr Bennet thought it was interesting enough to buy. Short-eared owls are pretty commonplace in huge parts of the world, including the UK, so it’s quite likely that Mary would have come across them even with limited resources.

For Kitty, I admit that I don’t have a sub-species quite nailed — he’s a pink hummingbird, but that’s colouration rather than a specific type (possibly a bronze-tailed comet or a red-tailed comet). He’s pretty, tiny, silly and annoying, (‘for heaven’s sake stop buzzing about at breakfast! My poor nerves, etc etc’), which seemed a natural fit for Kitty. However, hummingbirds are also associated with the souls of dead warriors in Aztec mythology (although admittedly my knowledge in that field is woefully thin), and as Kitty has a fair bit of fight in her and absolutely no ability to pick her battles, her daemon would naturally be the sort of animal that starts fights they have absolutely no ability to win.

As for Lydia, well — she’s still working it out, in her own special way.

#my fic blather #certain arts and allurements #amarguerite #asks #daemons

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lee-jinkis-ponytail · 4 years

Text

Haunts & Hellhounds: A Player’s Handbook

Hi, Writeblr. :) If you’re joining me on this spooky, whacky adventure that is Haunts & Hellhounds over on Wattpad, here’s a more detailed (albeit very rough) glimpse into the ancient and irreverent “Player’s Handbook” that the characters flip through in Chapter 1! The “game” is basically just a very watered-down version of D&D with horror elements. I may add to this as time goes on if I’ve overlooked anything that pops up as I write the story. If you have any questions or think I’m missing anything important, let me know! I’m very new to tabletop gaming and am still learning the ropes. This whole project is basically just a way for me to combine my love of writing horror stories with D&D practice (as both the GM and the player).

Just a content warning--the fictional creator of H&H was a huge, racist, sexist douchebag who leaned heavily into some very problematic horror tropes when writing the rules of this game, so there are some descriptions of the characters that may be offensive. H&H is intended for mature audiences, 18+! It’s a horror story. There is violence, gore, and murder.

Anyway, I’m using this unpolished “handbook” to guide every single action and reaction in every single scene of the story.

Who will die? Who will survive? Even I don’t know! It’s all in the hands of the dice gods...

Welcome to Haunts & Hellhounds, Survivors...

Instead of classes, H&H players choose their role from a list of 7 classic horror movie tropes, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.

The Nerd: Proficiences: With an inclination towards knowledge, the LVL 1 Nerd will be proficient in ALL knowledge-related skills (EXCEPT FOR INSIGHT, because Nerds may like to read books, but they aren’t usually good at reading the room), and their attribute specializations are knowledge and dexterity. These scrawny losers tend to be weak and clumsy, however, and will always roll attack, athletic, and acrobatic checks at a disadvantage. Unlike the other tropes, Nerds can never take the average Hit Points of their hit die upon leveling up; they must roll a d6 (plus their constitution modifier), and whatever the result, they must always subtract 2 from the total (yes--that means, depending on their constitution modifier, it is possible to roll at a loss, because Nerds are just unable to endure these horrific scenarios for very long). If you’re a Nerd, you’re likely to die in a moment of lapsed judgment, foolish enough to believe that if you’re just brave enough you might defeat the evil once and for all and get the girl. Silly Nerd; good guys never win.

The Jock: Proficiencies: Meat-head jerks like the Jock specialize in strength, dexterity, charisma, and constitution, with skills in athletics, acrobatics, and an additional dexterity- or charisma-related skill for a total of 3; additionally, they can choose proficiency in the weapon of their choice, either ranged or melee. They are often too dumb to string a coherent sentence together, and thus roll knowledge checks at a disadvantage. A Jock’s starting defense points are the base 15 plus their constitution modifier, and if they are wearing sports gear, they add 2 more points per piece of gear to their total defense. Their beginning HP is 18 plus their constitution modifier. If you’re a Jock, you’re stupidly confident, you’ll probably get all the girls, but you’re going to charge into battle knowing that you’ll die a heroic, sacrificial death. Thing is, you care more for glory than logic or organized progress. Ah, well. You served your purpose.

The Party Animal: Everybody likes the party animal. Proficiencies: Charisma is this character’s number one attribute, and thanks to the dulling effects of whatever illegal substances they’ve pumped into their body, they have a surprisingly high endurance and are thus proficient in constitution as well; as far as skills go, they are proficient in deception and persuasion, and may choose one other skill for a total of 3, as long as it is not a dexterity-related skill. Why, you ask? Well, that’s because when the Party Animal rolls dexterity-saving throws, they always roll at a disadvantage, as they are likely too drunk or high to walk in a straight line. And so they cannot be proficient in any dexterity-related skills. As the Party Animal, you might make it close to the end through sheer, dumb luck. But that luck will run out and you will die eventually. It’s inevitable. Lucky for you, you’re probably too wasted to care.

The Harlot: The Harlot has a reputation too, but not for anything good. Proficiencies: Like the Party Animal, the Harlot’s number one attribute is charisma, and since she’s usually tiny, she is proficient in dexterity as well; also like the Party Animal, her skills include deception and persuasion, and she may choose one other skill for a total of 3, so long as it is not related to knowledge. You guessed it--that’s because there isn’t much going on in that pretty little head of hers. She’s dumb. Even dumber than the Jock. Vapid. Shallow. All of her knowledge checks are rolled at a disadvantage. So you picked the Harlot. The only thing standing between you and the killer is a Token Minority. Hope the premarital sex was worth it.

The Token Minority: Why did you even bother creating this character? The Token Minority is basically cannon fodder and will likely be the first to die. There may be only one Token Minority per group of survivors. Proficiencies: Pick whatever two attributes, and one skill you want for this character. Who cares? The only rule is that whatever d6 results you get rolling for your attributes, the lowest goes to constitution, and all constitution saving throws are made at a disadvantage. You won’t be playing very long as the Token Minority, so why waste time creating a whole backstory? Have fun being the first to die.

The Recluse: The Recluse is basically a stronger Nerd. All that time spent on the outside of the social jungle has allowed this character to become well-versed in all things weird and macabre. Proficiencies: He or she will have a knack for dexterity, knowledge, and serenity; able to keep calm in the most horrific situations and plan ahead because they know the horror genre inside and out, the Recluse is always proficient in arcana/witchcraft and sanity; at LVL 1 they may also choose an additional 2 skills that fall under the dexterity or knowledge branches. Like the Token Minority, there may be only one Recluse per group of survivors. As the Recluse, you’re likely to become BFFs with the Final Girl and tragically die just before the story’s end. Pity. If you were just more milquetoast like the Final Girl, you might have made it to the end, but alas, the audience couldn’t stomach your obnoxious need to "stand out from the herd.”

The Final Girl: The star of our show. The well-rounded goody-two-shoes. Like the Token Minority and the Recluse, there may only be one Final Girl per group of survivors. In fact, there MUST be a Final Girl in every game. At LVL1, her HP begins at 18 plus her dexterity modifier. When she rolls her 4d6 to determine her base stats at LVL1, she should discard any result lower than a 10 and roll again. Proficiencies: She is proficient in all attributes and all weapon types and can choose any 10 skills from the list of 19. All of her attack rolls, checks, and death saving throws are rolled at an advantage. If you’re playing the Final Girl, you’re nearly as immortal as the unkillable slasher. You’re guaranteed to survive... almost... every time. So long as you follow the rules of the genre.

Attributes: Much like D&D5e, there are 6 attributes in H&H. If a character is proficient in specific attributes, they roll saving throws of those attributes at advantage. The attributes are:

Strength, measuring physical fitness

Dexterity, measuring agility

Constitution, measuring health and endurance

Knowledge, measuring booksmarts, street smarts, and common sense

Serenity, measuring calmness and sanity

Charisma, measuring popularity, confidence, and charm

To determine the character’s numeric value of these attributes, roll 4d6, drop the lowest result, and add the remaining 3 together. Do this 6 times (1 for each attribute), and assign numbers where you feel they would be best. It is recommended you assign the highest numbers to the attributes your character is proficient in.

Skills: There are 19 Skills in H&H, each related to a specific attribute. Similar to attributes, if a character is proficient in a skill, they roll checks of those skills at advantage. Please see your trope’s description to see how many skills you may choose:

Acrobatics (Dex)

Alchemy & Chemistry (Kno)

Animal Handling (Cha)

Arcana & Witchcraft (Ser)

Athletics (Str)

Crafting (Dex)

Deception (Cha)

History & Lore (Kno)

Insight (Kno)

Intimidation & Distraction (Cha)

Investigation (Kno)

Perception (Ser)

Persuasion (Cha)

Religion & Occultism (Kno)

Sanity (Ser)

Sleight of Hand (Dex)

Stealth (Dex)

Survival (Kno)

Technology (Kno)

Proficiency Bonuses: All LVL1 characters start with a +2 proficiency bonus, meaning if they roll a check of an attribute or skill they are proficient in, they add 2 to their total roll. Proficiency bonus for all characters increases by 1 point every odd level--so at LVL3 it will be +3, at LVL5 it will be +4, etc. NOTE: Unlike other tabletop games, H&H only uses proficiency bonuses in skill rolls, NOT in attacks/hits; for example, if a character is making a dexterity saving throw and they are proficient in dexterity, they will add their proficiency bonus to that roll, but even if they are proficient in firearms, they will NOT add their proficiency bonus to attack or hit rolls in combat with a firearm. Combat proficiencies simply allow the character to roll attacks with those weapons at an advantage.

Attribute Modifiers: Your character’s attribute modifiers are used to give them a boost during attack rolls, saving throws, and checks. To determine your character’s H&H attribute modifier, subtract 10 from that attribute’s total, divide by 2, and round down. For example, if a character has 15 constitution, subtract 10 (5), divide by 2 (2.5), and round down (2)--which means, when rolling a constitution saving throw, the character would add +2 to whatever they roll.

Skill Modifiers: Skills also have modifiers. If a character is NOT proficient in a certain skill, their modifier is equal to the attribute modifier that skill falls under. For example, a Jock is not proficient in insight, a skill that falls under knowledge. So if the Jock’s knowledge modifier is +1, so is his insight modifier. If a character IS proficient in a skill, add their proficiency bonus plus the modifier of the attribute the skill falls under. So, for example, Jocks are proficient in the athletics skill. At LVL1 with a +2 proficiency bonus and a +3 strength modifier, the Jock would have a total of +5 for his athletics modifier.

Hit Points & Hit Die: Your LVL1 character’s maximum HP is always 18, except for Jocks and the Final Girl, who add their constitution and dexterity modifiers respectively. For every level after that, additional HP will be determined by a roll of the character’s highest unarmed hit die. Jocks and the Final Girl will roll a d10 as their hit (unarmed) die. Recluses, Token Minorities, Harlots, and Party Animals use d8, and Nerds use d6. The Nerd must ALWAYS roll their hit die to determine their new HP upon leveling up, and then must subtract 2 from the total. Every other character can opt not to roll the die, but to take the average roll of their die instead (d10=5, d8=4). Every EVEN level, the character adds a hit die (so LVL2=2d10 for a Jock, LVL4=2d10, and so on). In battle, ranged weapons such as firearms are rolled with a d10 plus the character’s dexterity modifier; melee weapons such as bats are rolled with a d10 plus the character’s strength modifier. *Note: Jocks, the Final Girl, and any character with a proficiency in weapons roll a d12 as their hit die if they are armed.* Upon a short rest, half HP is restored. Upon a long rest, full HP is restored. Characters may also eat food, drink water, bandage and tend wounds, or use a health potion to speed up the healing process if they have the necessary supplies in their pockets or backpack. If used during battle, consumption of these healing items count as a bonus action.

Defense Stat: If we were playing another tabletop RPG, this would be your character’s “Armor Class.” All characters except for the Jock, the Final Girl, and the Recluse start with a base defense of 15. The Jock and the Final Girl begin with the base 15 and add their constitution modifier, while the Recluse adds their dexterity modifier. Upon leveling up, the defense stat DOES NOT increase. (The exception is for the Recluse, Final Girl, and Jock, who CAN increase their defense stat if they increase their respective modifiers upon leveling up.) Defense stats can be increased at any time in one of 3 ways: (1) if a character dons armor (i.e. helmets, sports gear, even duct tape to defend against zombie bites, etc.--+1 defense per piece of armor [helmet, torso guard, arm guards, leg guards, gloves, boots] for every character except the Jock, who gets +2 per piece of armor), (2) if a character crouches behind cover (+2 defense), or (3) if a character takes up a shield (+2 defense). There are also some magical artifacts that can increase a character’s defense stat, both temporarily and permanently.

Sanity Points: In addition to traditional HP, H&H characters have sanity points. Everyone begins with a base of 20 Sanity Points, except for the Recluse and the Final Girl, who begin with 23. At the end of every hellish battle, all playable characters involved must make a sanity saving throw with a d20 plus their serenity modifier. If they roll 10-19, they are safe and do not lose or gain any SP. If they roll a natural 20, they permanently gain 4SP, even if they go above their original maximum. If they roll 2-9 or lower, they must roll a d4 to determine how many SP they lose. If they roll a natural 1, they automatically lose 4SP. If a character’s sanity falls to 0, they must roll a sanity d20+serenity modifier check along with every attack roll against an enemy. If they roll a sanity check below a 5, there is a chance of friendly fire and/or self harm that turn. The player rolls a d20 against all characters within 5 feet of them, including themselves; if they roll greater than the target’s defense stat, the insane character lashes out in blind fear and must roll a hit die against their nearby allies and/or themselves as if attacking an enemy. Sanity points cannot be regained during rests. Anxiety medications and certain potions may provide relief, if you can find them.

Death Saving Throws: Like other tabletop RPGs, H&H uses the 3-strike strategy. Upon reaching 0HP, you become unconscious and must make 3 attempts to cling to life. Roll a d20 with NO modifiers. Rolling a 10 or more is a success; anything below 10 is a failure. If you roll 3 successes, your character remains unconscious but alive, and it is up to your companions to get you back up on your feet by offering you a nourishing sip of water (+1HP), or tending your wounds (+3HP), or giving you a health potion (+5HP), or using a healing spell (regained HP varies depending on spell); if you roll 3 failures, you die a permanent death. If you roll a natural 20, your character reawakens with 1HP. If you roll a natural 1, you take 2 failure strikes. BEWARE: Some enemies have the ability to “double tap” and make sure you are really, truly dead on their next turn. It is in everyone’s best interest to work as a team and distract the enemy once a friend is down...

Rolling at Advantage and Disadvantage: When a character is asked to roll checks or attacks at “advantage” or “disadvantage,” they roll 2d20 and take either the higher of the 2 rolls (advantage) or the lower (disadvantage).

Extra Proficiencies: Aside from the skills and attributes above, your characters may have other specialties depending on their role and backstory. For example, Jocks are proficient in firearms, and the Final Girl, known for being quick on her feet and good at improvising, is proficient in all weapons. Your characters’ backstory may lead them to have certain training in useful foreign languages or subjects. For example: -Latin -Folklore and Mythology -Engineering -Driving -Herbology -And more The possibilities are endless. Choose whatever you think might help your characters get out of sticky situations. However, to prevent your character from becoming too much of an overpowered know-it-all, limit these additional proficiencies to a total of 5. As there are no hard and fast rules to these extra proficiencies, the GM and the player must often collaborate to determine how this additional feature will benefit the player. For example, perhaps the GM and the player decide that being an Art Student grants the character a +1 bonus to crafting tools and weapons.

Magic: Depending on the dungeon you play, magic may factor into your story. Characters with a proficiency in arcana & witchcraft are able to learn spells, curses, and hexes in books they may find from vendors or when they loot enemies’ bodies. When a character unlocks magical abilities, they receive a spell attack stat to be used in magical attack rolls; the spell attack is their proficiency bonus plus their serenity modifier (so a LVL1 character with a +2 proficiency bonus and a +3 serenity modifier would have a total of +5 spell attack power). When using magic in battle, roll a d20 plus the character’s strength modifier to determine if the spell strikes its target. If the strike is successful, the spell’s damage is determined by rolling a d10 plus the character’s spell attack bonus. Healing spells do NOT require the player to roll a d20 to check if their spell reaches its target. Each healing spell has unique requirements, such as being a certain distance from your companion, or rolling a specific die to determine how much HP is restored, but it will always be successful. There are many different kinds of spells, from mind control to healing magic, but the character using the spell does not need to choose a specialization. As long as they have a proficiency in arcana & witchcraft, they may use any spell they stumble upon if they think it will help. However, magically-inclined characters do have a limited supply of magical points, or MP. Each spell costs a certain number of MP, and when that MP runs out, the character must resort to physical attacks against an enemy. Half MP is restored upon a short rest, and full MP after a long rest. MP potions may also be purchased from vendors or looted from enemies. MP increases like HP; upon unlocking magic, the character begins with 15MP, and upon leveling up, they must roll their hit die to determine how much their MP will increase. Oh, and the magically-inclined may want to seek out an animal familiar. Having a little friend along for the ride will double your MP total.

Experience Points: After every battle, survivors will gain experience points along with anything else they loot off the enemy’s body. Players reach LVL2 at 200EXP, and levels rise exponentially after that every time the character’s total EXP is doubled. For example: LVL2 - 200 points LVL3 - 400 points LVL4 - 800 points LVL5 - 1600 points ...and so on. Upon leveling up, a character may opt to either choose 1 new ability (see below) or add 2 points to their attributes. The latter is especially useful if a character’s beginning attributes are below 10.

Abilities: Each character starts at LVL1 with 2 abilities unique to them. These are special attacks, bonus attacks, spells, and battle maneuvers that have notable conditions that set them apart from regular attacks, such as the ability to knock an enemy prone. Every time the character levels up, they gain 1 more ability. See the appendix for a full list. The GM may also add abilities specific to individual players as he sees fit. (For example, a character who plays a sport that is not listed under the Jock abilities may be given an ability unique to that sport.)

Inventory: Characters can carry either: (1) one or two small weapons, (2) one medium weapon and a shield (one per hand), or (3) one large two-handed weapon. Additionally, they may carry as much loot as they have pockets. If they have 0 pockets, they may carry 0 additional small objects, if they have 2 pockets, they may carry 2 small objects, etc. (Cargo shorts, though hideous, do come in pretty handy here!) Characters may also find backpacks to increase their inventory size. Backpacks have a carry capacity of 5 small objects and 3 medium to large objects. Holsters, sheaths, and belt loops can also be used to store additional weapons if the character finds any.

The Safe Room: Every dungeon must have at least one safe room where the characters can rest, heal, interact with vendors (if there are any), and plan their next moves. Enemies are not allowed to enter these rooms. (The GM can decide why this is the case in a way that best fits the dungeon's lore. For example, perhaps the room is protected by a powerful spell, blessed by a priest, or simply locked and barricaded.)

Act Wisely...: Certain actions will act like echo-location for enemies. If your character opts to do any of the following during roleplay, the nearest enemy--whether they are a mere minion or a boss--will suddenly appear. (If the act occurs in a safe room, don't be surprised to find an enemy waiting just outside the door for you.) Do NOT: (1) drink alcohol or do drugs (2) have sex or undress (3) steal, vandalize, or otherwise break the law (4) let your cell phone ring or vibrate You’ve been warned...

Have fun--while you still can.

#writeblr #worldbuilding #wip #haunts and hellhounds #player's handbook

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exaltatuss · 4 years

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General Info:

Name; ████ Nickname; Ma-Chan Occupation; Scientist Age; ██ Race; Human Gender: Female Height; 172 cm Morality Alignment; Chaotic Neutral Eye Color; Hazel Hair color; Brown Misc; White Streaks on her hair

Personality;

For the most part, Ma-Chan is known as a textbook introvert. Prefers staying indoors, is mostly quiet outdoors, and is so much more expressive towards those she is comfortable with. She’s also the ‘brilliant, but lazy’ type, preferring to either sleep or play video games during her leisure time, to the point others actually question how she got into her profession, in the first place. At least, until they hear her input on things. Still, when she’s feeling it, or during the times where she’s focused, she actually can get things done, getting really into what she had set her sights on, to the point that she ruins her own sleep schedule just to focus on what she’s currently focusing on.

She’s also one who really enjoys memes, and silly things, sometimes laughing on the most stupid of things, too, and would most certainly get out of her way to spend a good majority of the time on looking for ‘spicy memes’, as she call them. Some can say that her sense of humor is somewhat dark, too, depending on the situation.

However, she does tend to bottle up her emotions, to the point that she doesn’t speak out whenever people did ostracize or berate her if said occasions do happen. This then would sometimes lead to emotionally explosive scenarios when she does reach her breaking point. Hence, she simply does her best to ignore most things that would stress her, and simply do the things that actually help with alleviating her stress.

Backstory;

Born to, or rather, adopted into an above-than-average middle-class lifestyle, Ma-Chan had it easier than others. What with her being well fed, well educated, and taught to be a good person, in general. However, the expectations for her were high, considering that it was found during her early age that she was more intelligent than her other peers, and thus, had to make sure said expectations were met, keeping a good reputation on her earlier school years as much as she could, all while trying to balance out leisure activity, as well.

However, she did experienced her fair share of misfortunes. To start things off on said misfortunes that really left an impact on her, the supposed ‘aunt’ that should supposedly take care of her during her younger years while her mother had to work abroad, didn’t really do good on that department, and did the opposite. In other words, she wasn’t treated well. At least, until such problem was finally found out by other relatives, and got said aunt away from her before things had gotten worse.

Additionally, her choice of peers were, to be fair, while they were fun, not really the absolute best. On one point, they’d be good with her, on another point, she’d be made fun of. Didn’t help that at times, a few of them pressured her on to do some things due to the fact that she found difficulty on turning them down or simply say no, either by shouldering some of their expenses, or outright giving some of her possessions to them, regardless of the fact that she knew that she won’t be able to get a new one to replace the one she had just given away again. Really, guilt tripping her that she’s “more well in life than them” anyway didn’t help.

All these were a good recipe on why she had inner problems to deal with up to this day. She didn’t opened up to anyone, she didn’t see any therapist, at all, hence why there would indeed be problems she had to deal with as it festered on within her, that can sometimes be seen even to this day.

Yet, despite all this, it was, as funny as it sounded, video games that had helped her cope with things, as well as reading stories and all, and listening to music. These are what kept her together.

Come her university life, and she did think that things would be okay now. A new chapter, so to speak. Everything did turned out initially well. New peers, good memories, and the like. But a few years onward, it only really took an a drinking session with said peers that the following few days, almost everyone of those peers were turning on against her, due to one of them accusing her of something she didn’t even do. The only friend that believed she didn’t do what they were accusing her can’t even help her, due to the fact that they’re outnumbered and all that. This then caused her to shut herself off from others completely, just minding her own business, not bothering on actually trying to socialize much, which also took a heavy toll on her academics.

Upon learning that her adoptive mother died eventually did also added to her distraught more, motivation leaving her and all. She did inherit a good amount of money, and land, and other properties to her name, but from where she’s from, even family relatives, if one were unlucky to be part of such a family, do tend to be enemies, or even go so much as to plot the death of another member, all for the inheritance, so that got her worried as well, considering that its only really her mother that’s holding the others back when she was alive.

She did her best to have her academics on a stable route again, with very much of a struggle due to her being so down in the dumps, but she did found her motivation again, however, and eventually slowly built that up, until she had finally gotten things sorted out a bit, as well as finish her studies.

She had to keep forward, after all. If there’s one thing she had learned from her family that she was adopted to, then it was tenacity. She built herself up, slowly, surely, and was able to finally, at the very least, get herself together enough that she wouldn’t be as self-destructive as she was back then.

Additionally, as well, after meeting Ojou-Sama, it actually helped her piece herself back together more and more, until she’s finally able to get back up to her feet properly this time, without slipping and tripping back down, unlike before.

Life may be cruel at times, or would have a very nasty sense of humor, but she had to continue on, after all. Enjoy what she’s doing in her life, ignore most of the things that can potentially drag her down, make sure she stays alive and not resort to the self-destructive tendencies she had been doing. Sure, she still have to deal with her inner problems, but she’s making sure to make a steady progress.

Be All Smiles.

Facts;

-Whenever she introduces herself by name, there would always be interruptions, or loud noises that would mute that out. Really, a funny coincidence that happens all the damn time, hence she resorted to just give out her nickname. ‘Ma-Chan’. It was, of course, taken from one of the games she had been playing on her smartphone, which in turn, is also a nickname given by one of the characters in-game, considering the main character there is only referred to as ‘Master’ and all.

-The white streaks on Ma-Chan’s hair is natural. Or rather, it was brought upon by constant stress. At times, she also jokes that she’s getting old really early, too.

-As shown on the image above, she was given a really wondrous body that people would kill for. She does get teased or get called out on, due to her eye-catching features, but pays no heed to them, really.

-Since she did also inherit a renting business, she does make sure to keep the rent per month on an affordable level, knowing how hard things can be on the country she came from. At times, when she does make sure that the renter can’t pay up for the month, due to any serious reason, she’d give that month free of charge. Sure, its bad business practice, but its better that way, too. Its either lose a portion of income, or see that person have troubles on thinking where they can find a place to stay in again.

-She did also eventually set up her own research facility, too, that helps with the further development of the world for the foreseeable future. While she did reach some scientific milestones, she really doesn’t brag about it, as there’s no real reason to. She’d already proven herself. That’s enough, and no real need to rub it on other people’s faces.

-See, outside of the science stuff, she applies her intelligence over to playing video games, too, what with doing near perfect runs, or outright perfect runs, at her very first attempt of the game, single player-wise. Multiplayer-wise, she does tend to outsmart and outplay others. This wasn’t really a closed secret, anymore, too. Rather, Ma-Chan didn’t care anymore, when people ask her of such, she simply replies with “Maturity doesn’t mean you have to give up what you enjoy. That’s something we all fail to understand, at times.”

-She only has very few peers at this point, seeing that this is outright better than to make peers with as much people as she could, which she did back during her younger years. And out of the very few peers she can count by hand, its Ojou-Sama that she trusts the most.

-And as stated, the reason why she also had very few peers now is that she has this strong inability to say “no”, hence why she keeps her number of peers very limited, as said inability to say “no” would just lead to a wide array of abuse.

-She’s a fan of several shows, anime, and games, that at times, she’d start making references out of them, from out of the blue. Its funny and silly when she does it. But she doesn’t really mind, anymore.

-She’s an avid fan of the works of HP Lovecraft, or cosmic horror, in general, that she can rattle and talk about things related such for hours on end. Well, such knowledge of such did helped, especially when she and Ojou-Sama, are one of the very select few that get to know of the existence of Vacosians, or simply put, Outer Gods, which then made her realize that these weren’t just the works of a man. This was a very concise, depiction and recollection of very real beings, which were projected into his works. Not only that, but she also found out that other worlds with sentient life, as well as straight up universes, exist too, which also proves the Multiverse Theory, as well. Thus, this all happened due to the Noodle Incident involving her, Ojou-Sama, and █████. Hence, they never really talk about it, or refrain from talking about it. Thus, Ma-Chan keeps a tight lip of their existence. Her only dismay is that horror games wouldn’t be as scary anymore, though.

#I've Got The Winning Formula! (Ma-Chan)#ic #long post #bio #about #cyverse

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cathygeha · 5 years

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REVIEW

How to Love A Duke in Ten Days by Kerrigan Byrnne

Devil You Know #1

Excellent book ~ Once I picked it up I could not put it down!

Kerrigan Byrnne is an author I eagerly await books from. Every time I have read one of her stories I am moved. The characters are strong, complex and people I can relate to. The romances are rich. The descriptions make me feel I am there. I get swept into the story and hate leaving the characters behind even though I am eager to pick up the next book in the series as soon as it is available.

Three young girls at boarding school form a club. They are young and silly and adventurous and very very intelligent. They would do anything for one another. The headmaster of the school is someone the students are leery of as they know he enjoys handing out punishments and relishes the pain he delivers. In the prologue we find out just how evil he is and how he impacts the heroine of this story.

We pick up the tale ten years later and Alexandra, Francesca and Cecelia are still best friends and single as they are nearing thirty. When Francesca requests Alexandra’s assistance she heads immediately to help her friend and finds that Francesca is betrothed to a man she doesn’t want to marry. An alternative might be available if all parties are willing.

Piers Gedrick Atherton, Duke of Redmayne is a man among men. He is everything one looks for in the hero of a story. He is strong, intelligent, capable, protective, generous and scarred. When he meets Alexandra there is instant chemistry but with the backstories they both have their journey to a HEA will not be easy.

What I liked:

* The three female friends – what a wonder it would be to have such strong friends forever

* Alexandra – he willingness to do what she needs to to help her friends and family. She is also a person I would love to have had as a friend.

* Piers – oh my! I can’t think of anything I did NOT like about him!

* The flow of the writing that swept me in

* The introduction to people that may show up in later books in the series

* Everything...I mean...I am rating it five stars and really really enjoyed it!

What I did not like:

* The people I was meant not to like...and there were more than one or two.

* The pain that Alexandra and Piers suffered

This is a story that is to be savored. The romance is exquisite and the relationship between Alexandra and Piers so very well crafted. The evil people were truly evil and to be despised and I did so with relish. I can’t wait to find out happens in book two of this series...I believe it will be Cecilia’s story and do look forward to reading it.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Paperbacks for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43263565-how-to-love-a-duke-in-ten-days

BLURB

These men are dark, bold, and brave. And there is only one woman who can bring them to their knees... Famed and brilliant, Lady Alexandra Lane has always known how to look out for to herself. But nobody would ever expect that she has darkness in her past—one that she pays a blackmailer to keep buried. Now, with her family nearing bankruptcy, Alexandra strikes upon a solution: Get married to one of the empire’s most wealthy eligible bachelors. Even if he does have the reputation of a devil. LOVE TAKES NO PRISONERS Piers Gedrick Atherton, the Duke of Redmayne, is seeking revenge and the first step is securing a bride. Winning a lady’s hand is not so easy, however, for a man known as the Terror of Torcliff. Then, Alexandra enters his life like a bolt of lightning. When she proposes marriage, Piers knows that, like him, trouble haunts her footsteps. But her gentleness, sharp wit, independent nature, and incredible beauty awakens every fierce desire within him. He will do whatever it takes to keep her safe in his arms.

#Kerrigan Byrnne #NetGalley #St. Martin's Paperbacks #Historical Romance #Devil You Know 1 #Rape

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samayla · 6 years

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Another NaNoWriMo Hack

Write down what your characters don’t do.

When you’re stuck, write down the first wild thing that pops into your head, silly as it may be.

Maybe the first thing that you know is that your characters don’t steal a motorcycle. Start with that.

Write down why they don’t do the thing. Is it impractical? Is it out of character? Is it overdone in this genre?

Then write down another thing they don’t do. Why don’t they do it?

You’d be shocked at how much your brain already has figured out when you do this. For example,

My characters don’t steal a motorcycle. Character A doesn’t know how to drive a motorcycle, while Character B does, but he would NEVER drive one without a helmet - not since his best friend’s fatal accident back in high school.

That’s backstory and character depth right there. I may not have a spot to use that in my story yet, but I know it about my characters. A is maybe a little sheltered, and B has seen a bit too much of the real world.

My characters don’t damage any of the artworks in the museum. Art thieves who damage the artworks would not be hired for many jobs.

More backstory, as well as some hints of how my characters are perceived by others. How they fit into the story world. My characters have a reputation. Also probably a respect for art, maybe some professional pride, and some practice at the skills needed to keep from damaging these delicate objects. They’ve been in this line of work for a while.

Keep going with these statements as long as you need to. Eventually, there will be a statement that makes you stop and go Yeah, but what if?

My characters don’t hide out in a sewer. Sewers are gross, and also hard to get into without bolt cutters, or pry bars, which would be impractical to carry with their evening wear.

But what if they did?

They’d probably have to have gear stashed somewhere to make this happen. They have a reputation, which means experience enough to plan ahead, so this is plausible. Also, grossing out over the sewers would make my characters more human. Good chance for a little tension reduction after the high-stakes heist as well. Character A knows B can drive a motorcycle, A wants to avoid the sewers (gross!) at all costs, and tries to convince B to drive a motorcycle parked nearby. When they discover the one they want to steal only has one helmet, there’s a big argument, which makes B...

And suddenly you’re unstuck.

#nanowrimo #preptober #writing #seems a little obvious #but sometimes i'm scared to write a thing i know ISNT what happens #like it's a fail of some sort #but it's not #it's brainstorming #but in a more structured way i guess #And it feels so much better than just sitting there #staring at a blank page

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shireness-says · 6 years

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Playing the Part ch. 2: Getting to Know You

Summary: As a stage manager who's clawed her way up from bottom, Emma Swan can handle just about anything thrown her way. But does that include handsome lead actor Killian Jones? A CS Broadway AU. Rated T. Also on AO3. Prologue Ch. 1

A/N: We’re back, with my favorite Jones Brothers conversation I’ve written so far and a great Captain Swan bonding moment! Chapter title from “The King and I”.

Thanks, as always, to @snidgetsafan, my phenomenal beta. She’s the absolute best.

A disclaimer: This chapter addresses Belle's backstory, which is... less than pleasant. Nothing so bad that there need to be archive warnings, but power dynamics were definitely taken advantage of. I want to make it clear that I'm not condoning what's happened to her, and I've tried to express that in the actual writing, but I just want to reiterate it here. Just because it happened, doesn't mean I'm ok with it, or that you have to be either.

That being said, I hope you enjoy the chapter anyway!

Tags: @kmomof4, @winterbaby89, @thejollyroger-writer, @mythologicalmango, @onceuponaprincessworld, @idristardis, @teamhook, @courtorderedcake, @aerica13, @revanmeetra87, @snowbellewells, @searchingwardrobes

“... but not handsome enough to tempt me.”

God, he hates that line. Yes, it’s from the source material, and yes, it is crucial to the plot, but he always feels like an absolute dick saying it. Belle is an absolutely lovely woman, inside and out, and doesn’t deserve to hear those words directed her way, even in character.

He’s actually apologized for the way he’s acted before in character, had felt like he had to. Belle, bless her heart, laughed and waved off his apologies.

“For the record, I can tell the difference between you and your character, Killian,” she had said. “Please don’t worry about it.”

But he worries anyways. Part of it is just his nature, Killian supposes - he’s a man with a heart built for concern and mild anxiety, it seems. But Belle really does seem rather isolated, and he hates to reinforce that even in character.

He’s heard the rumors, of course - the industry is smaller than they’d like to pretend, and when word made it around that Belle French had been cast in the iconic role of Elizabeth Bennet, old gossip about the woman had made the rounds again too. It’s a horrible story, predictable in all the worst ways: young, up-and-coming actress embarks on a relationship with an older producer. Actress decides that the relationship has run its course. Actress is suddenly, mysteriously branded as “difficult to work with” and struggles to land roles.

Meeting Belle in person, it’s particularly absurd. She’s ridiculously talented and probably one of the nicest and least difficult people he knows and really, it’s not fair. There’s been an increase in accountability in this industry lately, something that’s desperately needed, but the lawyers are still focused on the things they can prosecute - obvious cases of assault and manipulation. Belle’s circumstances don’t clearly fit either of those criteria, having willingly engaged in the relationship, one she thought was based on mutual respect and affection. It doesn’t help that Gold is a major player in this game, able to affect people’s opinions for better or worse with his word alone. For the past several years, Belle’s just been left to flounder on her own with her professional reputation wrongly in tatters. For the moment, no one cares. It’s all so disgustingly unfair.

Personally, Killian thinks Belle deserves the world. He hopes this show is a massive success for a variety of reasons - selfish ones obviously included - but not the least of them is the hope that it’ll reshape the current narrative around Belle, show that she’s talented and kind and an absolute delight. She needs that. She deserves that.

Belle tells him about it herself one day over a cup of tea during one of the rehearsal breaks. He didn’t ask, not explicitly, but she must sense the confusion in his eyes and in his mind about how someone with so much sheer raw talent has been cast aside by the industry.

“He was such a gentleman at first, you know? Yeah, I was getting roles, and probably part of that was because I was seeing him, but I genuinely loved him, and him me. I knew he had a reputation for being tough and focused on success above everything else, but he always encouraged me, and was so happy when I landed roles and was doing well. So when I felt the relationship had come to a natural end, I just figured…” She pauses in her recounting, hurriedly wiping at the tears forming in her eyes. Killian tries to comfort her as best he can, digging one-handed through his pockets for a tissue as he tries to rub her back soothingly with the other. He feels so useless, so male in this situation, but he’s still determined to help and comfort her in any way he can.

“I feel so stupid some days,” Belle continues, gratefully accepting the single kleenex he was able to locate in an inner jacket pocket (and God, he hopes it wasn’t used). “I just… I should have known right away he was insane.”

Killian likes to think he’s a good friend, and a good man, but he’s also a kid who grew up in theaters and around theatre kids, and as he does his best to reassure his scene partner that she’s in no way responsible for the actions of that bastard, he has to forcibly remind himself not to smile at such a bad time at her unintentional quoting.

The stage manager, Emma, is walking past at just that moment, though, and he’s pretty sure he hears her mutter the next words under her breath, so he’s comforted by the knowledge that he’s not the only one with terrible timing and a bad sense of humor.

But again, it’s not the time to ask about it. Killian is 100% focused and committed to being a supportive friend to Belle in this moment - he’ll have to ask later. Preferably out of earshot, before they both get a reputation for being horrible human beings who laugh at unfortunate times.

But there’s never really a chance to ask later - their short break is up before he knows it, and then it’s straight back into choreography. Their choreographer, a vibrant redhead named Ariel, may have a sweet demeanor, but there’s a spine of steel underneath that smile, and Killian knows better than to dawdle. He’ll catch Emma later, he thinks, some time when he’s not needed. But even in those moments when Killian doesn’t strictly need to be doing anything but hang around and watch, waiting for his next instructions and ideally reviewing the script (it’s never too soon to be off book, after all), Swan is invariably still busy.

So Killian waits. The opportunity will present itself, he’s sure.

------

It’s been a good day, Emma is pleased to note. The sheer potential of this show is truly shaping up into something that, with plenty of polishing, just might be magnificent. There’s always going to be issues - after working so many shows, Emma has learned that off-stage drama is an inevitability - but for the most part, even the cast is obliging her by staying professional and getting along. Which is literally all she asks for. Zelena has a definite penchant to complain about anything and everything, but it’s not yet at a point that they can’t handle or that needs addressing.

Still, even a good day is exhausting in it’s own way. Emma is ready to make whatever calls are necessary (just Robin and the props guy today, she thinks), and get home. Yeah, the apartment will be quiet with Henry at Neal’s for Labor Day weekend, but she could probably use a little quiet - a chance to recharge, if you will.

However, that chance disintegrates at the sight of Mary Margaret approaching with a smile full of intent. For all her sweetness, Emma’s learned that her friend can be stubborn and determined, nigh on unmovable when she wants to be, and all the signs are suggesting this will be one of those times.

“Emma!” the petite brunette practically chirps. “It’s been so long since we’ve had a Girl’s Night, hasn’t it?”

It’s not a subtle opening at all, and Emma spots where Mary Margaret is going with this from a mile away. “Oh, I don’t know,” she tries to deflect, hoping against hope that maybe she can still wheedle herself out of these plans. “Seems like we all did something only a few weeks ago —”

“Don’t be silly,” Mary Margaret interrupts, flippantly waving a hand as if to literally shoo Emma’s protests away. “You’re thinking of that brunch date we had, the one Henry came to. It’s been ages since we had a proper Girls’ Night. And since Henry’s gone this weekend, really, there’s no better time!”

“I don’t know,” Emma tries to protest. “I’ve really got a lot that still needs doing, I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it.” It’s not true in the least. The best part about a good day is that even when she is left with things on her to-do list, they’re quick little housekeeping bits, not major crises she needs to untangle. Unfortunately, after a decade of friendship, Mary Margaret knows that too, and fixes her with an unimpressed look.

“Uh uh,” she responds, shaking her head with finality. “No excuses. I’m going to find Ruby, and we are going out. I won’t let you sit at home all lonely with Henry gone. You’re not getting out of this, Emma Swan.”

Much as Emma hates to admit it - hates to admit defeat in general, really - she’s well aware that she really isn’t going to be able to weasel her way out of this. When Mary Margaret gets that look in her eye and that tone in her voice, nothing can sway her from whatever evil plan she’s devised. For better or worse, Emma will be going out tonight. She only hopes it won’t be too miserable an outing. “Fine,” she concedes, holding up a hand to silence Mary Margaret’s happy squeal. “But I am not lonely. And only for a little bit.”

“Oh Emma, we’re going to have so much fun!” her friend gushes, seemingly ignoring the end of Emma’s sentence. “I’ll call Ruby right now, have her meet us at the Grey Lady. Oh! I wonder if Belle would want to go!”

Emma groans as her dreams of a quiet evening in drift further and further away with every expansion of Mary Margaret’s plans. The likelihood of fun seems pretty small right now; Emma settles for just hoping she’ll make it out of this alive and sans hangover.

------

It’s been a long day, but a rewarding one. His script is filled with new notes, he finally isn’t tripping over the rhythms of the proposal scene song, and his feet are tired from practicing ballroom steps over and over again. It’s a pattern he’s getting used to, day by day, but the fact still remains; it’s exhausting.

Killian is just planning to finally go talk to their fearless stage manager, see if she said what he’s 87.9% certain he heard and hopefully trudge home when Nolan practically corners him, effectively ending that plan.

“You’ve got to come out tonight,” David whispers frantically, hunched over in a way that he must think looks surreptitious, but in reality just looks awkward and uncomfortable.

“Ok…” Killian whispers back. “Why?”

“Because I just heard that Mary Margaret is going to be at the Grey Lady tonight with a group of friends!”

“...okay, and?”

“And I like her!” David hisses, seemingly insulted for no apparent reason.

“Calm down, mate, jeez. What, you need an excuse to go, rather than just showing up?”

“Yes!”

“Do I have to whisper the entire night?”

This is apparently the last of David’s patience, as he rolls his eyes and snaps out a response. “For God’s sakes, no. Now will you come with me, or not?”

It’d really be mean at this point, after all the teasing, to tell him no. Killian doesn’t really have plans anyways; he’d tentatively scheduled a call with Liam, but they can always talk later and text throughout the night.

“Alright, Dave, I’ll go with you. Where’s this place at?”

“... About that…”

Excellent.

------

Only for a little bit, she had told Mary Margaret. And she had meant it; despite all her friend’s wheedling about how she’d be lonely at home with Henry at Neal’s, Emma had been looking forward to a quiet evening. Of course, that’s all wishful thinking.

Belle had been interested in joining the outing, as had Elsa, as had their Lydia and three of the chorus girls since it seemed like Mary Margaret had invited every female member of the cast. The Grey Lady has been reduced to a cacophony of female laughter and conversation as Emma desperately tries to either escape or ignore the chaos, both efforts to no avail. For the moment, Emma’s perched at the end of the bar with Elsa trying to cheer her up, purple drink in hand (a Grateful Dead, because “you can’t just get whiskey, Emma, this is Girls’ Night, you have to get something fun.” Ugh.).

“I know you don’t want to be here in the least,” Elsa tries to cajole, “but hey, as long as you’re here, you might as well make the most of it. We can play a game of darts or something if you want, that’d at least get you out of the major crush here at the bar.”

She means so well, trying to coax Emma out of the corner and out of her funk, but honestly, Emma’s quite determined to stay exactly as she is. “It’s really fine, Elsa,” she replies. “Honestly, I’m just hoping that if I sit here and don’t move for long enough, Mary Margaret will forget that I’m here and maybe I can just slip out.”

Elsa snorts at that, which is really enough of a response on its own. “Yeah, good luck with that.” Her face still turns concerned and serious when the humor wears off as she does her best to fuss over Emma. “Are you sure? I’m happy to stay with you if you want, but if you don’t…” Elsa trails off tellingly. Emma honestly feels a little bit bad. For all her introversion, Elsa really does enjoy evenings out like this when she sets her mind to it, and Emma is effectively holding her back from having fun by insisting on being a sad sack at the bar.

“Really, Elsa, I’m fine. Go have fun! It looks like they��re starting some kind of drinking game up over there, that’ll certainly be entertaining if nothing else.”

Elsa’s eyes dart back towards the other ladies longingly, but her voice and body language is still hesitant. “If you’re sure…”

“Yes! I’ll be fine. Don’t let my attitude ruin the night, I’m happy enough with my stupid purple drink. You know I like watching drinking games more than playing anyways. Go!”

“Alright, but you’ll let me know if you change your mind and want company, right?” Elsa fusses as she grabs her drink and stands to leave. It’s a small progress. Emma nods impatiently, all but ready to push Elsa towards the other women. It must be obvious on her face though, as Elsa laughs before dropping an affectionate kiss on the side of Emma’s head. “Ok, ok, I’m gone. Do try to have fun, Emma, just find someone to talk to for ten minutes. And don’t drink too much, because I’m going to need you to lead me back home!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Emma mutters in response. She makes no promises, especially on the socializing front.

———

The bar is much busier than Killian had expected when he, David, and Booth arrive. Killian isn’t exactly sure how the last man got invited; he certainly didn’t have any part in it. August Booth is a genial enough man, however, a perfect casting for Colonel Fitzwilliam in temperament, so his presence tonight won’t be any true hardship. If Killian had to hazard a guess, David had probably invited him for more credence to his cover story that he just happens to be at the same bar as the lady he’s interested in on some sort of boys’ night outing. It seems that the ladies’ outing may have expanded as well; while Killian had expected to see Mary Margaret and Swan, it appears half the female cast is crowded into the bar as well, Mary Margaret unsurprisingly at the center of everything, playing hostess even though the bar is obviously not her house. It doesn’t take long for her to notice their own little group’s entrance, and she hurries over with a wide smile.

“David! Killian! August! What a pleasant surprise!” she gushes. Killian is amused to see that her cheeks are ever-so-slightly flushed. Perhaps David’s little crush isn’t quite so ridiculous as he seems to think. David himself looks a little struck by his lady’s entrance, so Killian quickly takes the reins of the conversation.

“Aye, it truly is. Thought we’d go out tonight, have a bit of a bonding exercise. You don’t mind that we’re here, do you? We didn’t mean to crash whatever you’ve got going on here.” It’s a blatant lie, but Killian is counting on the brunette being too flustered by their - well, David’s sudden appearance to notice.

It seems to be working, thankfully, as Mary Margaret smiles brightly. “Of course not! We planned this as a little Girls’ Night, but you’re more than welcome to stay and socialize! The more the merrier, right?”

It’s impossible not to like the woman, really. While she’s far too perky for Killian to ever be romantically interested, Mary Margaret is such a deeply kind and pleasant person that only the truly cruel would ever take a dislike to her. “Aye, thank you.”

“Is that some sort of drinking game I see about to start?” August cuts in, likely saving them all from an encounter quickly veering towards the awkward and overly sincere.

“I think it’s more of a contest, knowing Ruby,” their quasi-host laughs, “but yes, they’re about to start. A bit wild for me, so I was about to go get another cosmo. David, Killian? Do either of you want to join me?” The invitation is technically extended to both of them, but Killian sees the way her gaze keeps focusing on David, hears the way her voice pitches up hopefully, and quickly makes his excuses.

“I actually think I might grab a beer and try my hand at the dart board, so I’ll leave you two to it.” It’s probably not the most subtle move, but David’s already shooting him a grateful look, so he supposes that his words have been effective enough.

It’s as he’s walking further down the bar to get his drink that he spots Swan in the corner, where he hadn’t noticed her when he had entered the bar, wearing a sour look on her face and sipping on something in a near fluorescent purple. Somehow, he’s not surprised to see her set apart from the thick of things; their straight-laced stage manager doesn’t seem like she’d be particularly comfortable in a chattering crowd of women. It may be taking his life in his hands considering the look Swan has on her face, but he veers to join her at the end of the bar, more enthusiastic about the prospect of spending his time chatting with her than facing the female crush everywhere else.

The skeptical look Swan shoots him as he saunters over with a charming smile should be his second warning, but Killian’s never had much of a self-preservation instinct anyways. “Fancy meeting you here,” he grins.

Swan snorts in return. “Oh, that’s what you’re going with?”

“I couldn’t possibly know what you mean.” It’s another blatant lie, and unlike Mary Margaret, Killian can see that Swan knows exactly why he’s really doing in this bar, sees right past all his and David’s excuses.

“Oh please,” Swan replies, rolling her eyes and confirming what he had expected about her ability to spot his lies. “Like you guys showing up isn’t a blatant excuse for David to flirt with Mary Margaret. The only reason she doesn’t realize it is she’s so damn smitten herself. It’s a little disgusting.”

“You wound me, Swan. It’s an absolute coincidence that we happen to be at the same bar.” Receiving a final unamused look, he collapses onto a stool, giving up the pretense. “They really are smitten, aren’t they? And absolutely obtuse about the matter.”

“Really, they are,” Swan grumbles in return. “Like, it’s so obvious they’ve got a thing for each other, I’m about ready to start placing bets about how long it will take.”

Killian chuckles. “Well, let me know if you ever do, I’d be happy to contribute to the pot.” There’s silence between them for a few minutes as Killian orders his beer, turning back to his companion once his cold drink is in hand. “I can leave you alone if you’d prefer,” he offers, noting the stormy look still occupying her face. “Conversation with you seemed much less intimidating than with the chattering female masses over there, but if you prefer —”

“It’s fine, really,” she waves him off. “I’m just…” she pauses, as if trying to find the words to explain.

“Really Swan, I don’t need an explanation if you don’t —”

“Did you know I have a son?” she interrupts.

It’s news to him. It does explain why he so often catches her trying to surreptitiously check her phone - probably trying to make sure nothing’s wrong with her boy. As he shakes his head in the negative, Emma continues.

“Well, I do. He’s ten. He’s with his dad this weekend. And I’m glad he’s excited about that, but it always makes me…” She waves at her face and its expression, as if that’s an acceptable substitute for actually finishing her sentence with words. Honestly, she’s not wrong on that front, her irritated expression speaking volumes. “So it’s not you, and it’s not the company, and it’s not this outing or party or whatever.” She pauses. “Ok, maybe the last one, but that’s because I’d much rather be at home angrily drinking by myself than being dragged out on the town. But Mary Margaret and Ruby are convinced that if I’m at home, I’ll be wallowing in loneliness, so they dragged me out here against my will.” Another eye roll clearly illustrates Swan’s own thoughts on the matter, and Killian finds himself inexplicably charmed by the gesture. The more he learns and sees of Emma Swan, the more he’s fascinated by her, and he’s glad she hasn’t just unceremoniously sent him on his way tonight.

“Ah, well, that makes two of us,” Killian replies genially, before immediately backtracking. “Not the son bit, but the not particularly wanting to be here. I’d planned to go home and call my brother tonight, but David practically begged me to help in this little farce and… well, long story short, here I am.”

“Here we both are.” She raises her glass to his in a short salute to the unenthusiastic and unwilling.

After taking a swig of his beer, Killian sets his glass back down and turns to Emma with purpose. “It’s not all bad, really. I’ve been trying to find a moment to speak with you all day.”

“Oh?” Her eyebrows raise in curiosity and confusion as she raises her own glass to take another sip of her purple monstrosity. Based on the way her mouth puckers as the alcohol hits her tongue, he thinks she might feel the same way about her beverage.

“Well, you see, I thought I heard you quoting a certain musical earlier…”

Swan immediately groans, her head dropping as if in resignation or defeat. Killian is confident that the only thing keeping her from banging her head on the counter is her folded arms braced against the worn and stained wood. “I was hoping no one heard that.”

“‘This is my husband, we’re from Maine’? I’m impressed by your Sondheim knowledge, Swan, but your timing needs work.”

“I know, I know. It’s… Henry and I have this game, you see, where we try to slip in lyrics without the other knowing. He actually knows a lot, just by virtue of being my kid and practically being raised in theaters. So when I heard Belle, I wasn’t trying to turn it into a joke or something awful like that, it was just… a reflex, I guess.”

“Second nature,” Killian nods in return. “I’m not holding it against you, love, a man just doesn’t expect to hear Assassins quotes tossed around willy-nilly.”

“Thanks.” Catching the bartender’s attention, she holds up her glass in the universal sign for ‘more, please’. “For the record, I’m impressed you caught that. Assassins is pretty much at the top of my list of shows to see, but not everyone knows about it.”

“You can blame my brother for that,” Killian chuckles. “After I decided to become a theatre actor, he decided I needed a full history of the genre. Except the tosser knows next to nothing about musicals and can’t sing a note, so it was mostly just him telling me a lot of Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber facts. Which means I know a disproportionate amount about Cats and Into the Woods. Assassins was at least a more enjoyable entry in his so-called education.”

The story at least gets her to laugh, displacing that foul look she’s been wearing for a moment. “Your brother sounds like a handful. I mean, it sounds like he means well, but wow.”

“Oh, you have no idea,” Killian grumbles, eliciting another laugh from his companion. He could get used to that sound, given the chance. “But enough about that wanker. What would you say to a game of pool, Swan?”

Her answering grin is acceptance and challenge, all at once. “Oh, you’re on, Jones.”

———

It’s late when Killian finally calls Liam; he’s not rightfully sure how late, a series of beers, and later glasses of rum, blurring his perception of time, but he knows it’s far past a respectable hour. The only saving grace is that his older brother is currently out in Los Angeles, three hours behind Killian’s local time. Perhaps that will do something to make up for the perceived lateness of the hour.

“Hello?” sounds Liam’s voice from the other end of the line, and Killian is relieved to hear that his brother’s voice is the normal kind of tired, not the just-woken-up kind. Killian may be a bit drunk, but he’s not so far gone that he can’t tell the difference.

“Brother!” he practically chirps in response. “I know it’s late, but I promised I’d call, didn’t I?”

The chuckle from the other end of the line is warm, if exhausted. “Aye, that you did. Tell me, Killy, how much have you had to drink? Are you ok to find your way home?”

“Oh, a good bit. I’ll be fine.” Liam definitely can’t see the dismissive wave of Killian’s hand, but that doesn’t stop him in the least, his impulse control and logic severely compromised. “David convinced me to come out. Have I told you about Dave, Liam? Dave’s a good mate.”

“Aye, you have. I might have to have a few words with Dave if this is going to become a regular occurence. It’s after 11, Killian, which is even later for you.”

“Oh, don’t scold Dave. I didn’t even spend most of the night with him, I spent it with Swan! I’ve talked about Swan before, haven’t I, Liam?” Oh, he really ought to have talked about Swan before. It’d be a utter shame if he hadn’t - he just can’t properly remember right now.

“Are you making friends with birds, Killy?” Liam’s voice is amused, but Killian is less so upon hearing his older brother’s response.

“Don’t be daft, Liam,” he all but snaps. “No, Swan is the stage manager. I must have told you about her.”

The voice on the other end of the line hums as if in realization. “Ah, the one you’re so fascinated with?”

Even with his delayed responses, Killian can feel himself blush. “I’m not fascinated, Liam,” he explains in what he thinks is a perfectly level and reasoned tone of voice, slightly slurred words be damned. “She’s just a very nice lady. And talented. And lovely too.” The humming noise comes from the other end of the line again, causing Killian to adopt a defensive tone. “I don’t have a crush on her Liam, stop that.”

“I never said you did,” Liam says with amusement coloring his voice. Killian can just imagine the placating hand he must be raising to calm his younger brother back down.

“She’s just very good at her job,” Killian tries to explain. “I admire her.”

“Of course you do,” Liam replies soothingly. “And I know you don’t have any feelings for her, but just in case, tread carefully, alright? It’s not a particularly good idea to get involved with people you’re working closely with.”

“I will be,” Killian dutifully says, before hastening to add, “But it won’t be necessary, Liam. She’s just a friend.”

“Whatever you say, Killian,” Liam placates. “Call me in the morning when the alcohol wears off, aye? I’ll talk to you later.”

“Aye, brother, tomorrow.” There’s the usual exchange of affections to close out the call, and then Killian’s left to his own thoughts again, and still needing to find his way home.

Liam can say all he wants, but no matter how fascinating Killian finds Emma Swan, it’s nothing more than a platonic interest. Even if she is lovely and interesting and brilliant and absolutely someone he could have romantic feelings for.

———

It’s such a cliche to say that their interactions at the bar are the beginning of a beautiful friendship, but Emma thinks she and Jones - Killian, she could probably call him now - might be on their way there. Killian is easy to talk to, charming, funny, and apparently willing to participate in ridiculous romantic schemes in service of a friend. The professional part of Emma feels victorious that they apparently cast the perfect man to play their Mr. Darcy; the rest of her is left just wondering how he’s real. The man acts like something out of one of Mary Margaret’s awful romantic comedies, and Emma’s not sure what to do about it.

It doesn’t help that he seems especially determined to be a gentleman towards Emma in particular. He already does all the door holding and ‘ladies first’ nonsense, but he’s taken to helping Emma collect all the various and sundry things she lends out from her supply box over the course of a day and bringing her hot chocolate in the mornings. She’s not even sure how he knows about the hot chocolate thing; who knows, maybe she told him herself that night at the bar. Emma does get chatty when she gets tipsy, even if she doesn’t like to admit it. Regardless, he’s even figured out that she likes cinnamon on top, and presents the to-go cups each morning with a smile that is much brighter than Emma is properly prepared to see before noon.

They’re friends now, she supposes. That’s what Emma’s willing to admit to at least. Sure, she can easily see how that friendship could turn into something more if they both let it, but they work together. It would be such a bad idea - if not downright disastrous. Friendship is safe; friendship is something they can both handle. There’s absolutely no attraction and no feelings on either side.

Emma only hopes that if she repeats that mantra enough, the words will actually stay true.

#my writing #Playing the Part #Getting to Know You #cs ff #Broadway AU #actor!Killian #stage manager!Emma

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