#this is yet another friendly reminder to READ SEEKERS

[poppliolover1]

Hey, remember that one of my goals for this month was making Seekers related content, weeeeelll, gues who just drew her favorite boy!!

Eiji really has no right being as relatable and funny as he is, god I love him so much I cannot even describe it in words. Keep being yourself dude, we all love you for it.

[soranihimawari]

And there was You

A royalty!au where our leads find themselves in the trials of young love & knighthood

Word count: tbd

Pairing: knight commander! miya osamu x royal!reader

Warnings: sword fighting; unwanted arranged marriages; first loves never go as predicted...

Reader armored // Armored! Miya Osamu

it's not everyday the knight commander is in charge of the heir to the throne. it is also not everyday both of them are seen giving each other grief over life within the palace walls. however, here within the kingdom, the nobles aren't shy to deal with the merchants and walk amongst the people. the only royal brave enough was yn, royal heir extraordinaire. apparently the rumours of them wearing a half mask from the players was to hide such a hideous face. no one has seen the crowned heir's total face and if rumours from the fisherman's ports rang true, you'd either be blessed or cursed.

ah, but you see? that was not the case at all. upon their birth, the royal adviser to the emperor and empress consort had scheduled a fortune teller to arrive. the thing was, the person was a trickster in it for just 1 golden coin. fortunes and cards were read before an audience of select inner court peoples. one in attendance would be the lady in waiting to the empress consort, now heavily pregnant and waiting the birth of the first sun of the empire. the conman convinced the emperor and empress the babe in the woman's womb would be hideously disfigured before the child would be one year old. years later, the mask of the child had been painted and repurposed and even as name day celebrations carried on, the mask collection grew. the heir back then was known as the child of 1000 faces.

all this was relayed to the empresses' inner court of ladies in waiting. one who too was awaiting the birth of their first son. however, that woman was blessed with two: one with hair the shade of spun wheat and the other? the other, the younger of the twins, had hair the sparkled like the dullest graphite. both of which grew alongside the masked heir, playing as children do, and right before the cusp of their debut, we find the friendly trio on the squire training grounds. they were receiving their final day of squire training. when asked why the heir wanted to learn the blade, all you said at the time was, "i wish to be with those who will not judge me for my hideous face when we go to war."

meanwhile, while this last session is in practice, your parents hold an audience with another prospective representative from a more urban neighboring kingdom to the south. since no one has ever seen your whole and true face, marriage seekers far and wide send their paige boys to see if the fox-ran kingdom rumours were true. many were emptyhanded when they had returned and life had gone on. however, with knighting ceremonies commencing tomorrow at dusk, you evading marriage talks for the last nineteen or so odd years of your life had been eluded. this was the subject of many arguments with your family, especially since your mother had put pressure on you to birth the next heir, which you absolutely will not do. you hit her with the physician's accounts of births to death ratios one night and she relents. your father, on the other hand, reminds you that though you had arrived late in their and life as well as their fifteenth year of marriage, you were the only child who had survived past age two in the royal records. you thank your father for the reminder, but also his encouragement of honoring the tradition of waiting until your debut to the court at age twenty. yet time moves ever forward, and as your childhood friends, now young men can be the bane of your existence, are seen walking shirtless and down to their bare minimum in the squire changes, you cannot help but stare for a moment before another knight in training from a merchant family, suna rin, makes the following comment loud enough for you to hear:

"which one do you prefer because if you keep oogling at their biceps, i am definitely going--"

"i'm going to stop you right there," you hiss. "atsumu is for the public women's eye, a brat whom i'll always admire as an older sibling."

"so, osamu then? to match your radiance, your exellency," suna teasingly pokes your side, making you bark a laugh.

the twins finish changing and although your gender remains neutral and a secret even to the outside world, your two friends, well three now that you count suna into the mix, ask you what you are planning on doing for this evening's pre-ball ball in their quarters. they offer you darts, meat and wine, and even cheeses. you sadly decline with a dejected look as the twins' mother comes around the corner, ready to scold her sons for hiding the 'future sun of the empire' again. for the third time this week. suna hears her round the corner and tries to soothe the mother's anger who also yells that he is just as guilty as keeping the heir for longer than expected on the squire grounds.

"but madam! they were only my sparring partners for a few hours," you try to defend them. keyword there is try. you learned the miya woman had a strict way of bringing up her boys, but she had the explicit permission to have her sons be your first and for a long time, only friends your age at the palace. regardless, she sighs, a few graying locks frame her face as she scolds her sons even further. yet, she turns to you again, softly smiling after sending the three lads on their way.

"yn, your excellency, you're late for your civics lessons along with reviewing the guest list for the squire graduation ceremony. i'm sure lord kita and sir aran would be delighted to know you'd be attending, not as the sun of the empire they serve, but you'd be nominated to lead the western riders with my osamu as the operating commanding officer. atsumu, though, i heard, shines brightly with the spears and blades, so i wouldn't be surprised if your father requests him for your personal guard when visitors arrive or long diplomatic trips are thrusted upon you."

you snicker and laugh a bit, amused by her confidence, when she escorts you to the bathing pools.

"roses and lavendar, like you requested," she bows and lets you bathe in peace.

late into the evening, after you had your fill of spare treats from the bakers in the kitchen, you bump into osamu, chest first, and your mask falls. he apologizes profusely, bows even lower as a sign of respect, yet as he is about to give you your mask, his eyes flit to your face. he pauses before giving you the mask and he, boldly, touches your typically masked side. his fingers are light and calloused, but you don't say a word. too scared to even breathe with him that close, he asks you if you had dropped the mask, a term of endearment falls out from his lips right after.

"you are stunning," he whispers so deftly you strained to hear.

"thank you," swats his hand away and grabs the mask from his hand and refastens it around my head. "it's not everyday i hear that coming from you, lord osamu."

osamu bows and he can't look you in the eye as he lets you take your leave. the compliment and his cheeks burn in the night air just as brightly as the torches.

a few hours before dawn breaks, you struggle to sleep. all you could think about was the exchange at the quiet halls.

"he called me stunning, a half-faced demon," you turn and wipe the stray tear away. "i wonder if he was sincere."

come dawn, the ceremony preparations were underway. you're in the waiting room as your attendants make sure your royal robes were pressed and not a crease in sight. your mask for celebratory ceremonies hangs with the others while you tie the last bit of ribbon to the back of your clothing. you are about to swap the masks out (the one on your face to the ceremonious one) when a knock is heard at your quarters. dismissing the ladies in charge of your clothing, you beckon the knocker come once the last woman leaves.

to your abject surprise, it is the familiar person from last night's impromptu rendezvous.

"lord osamu, this is a surprise," you say when he shuts the door behind you, locking it as quietly as he can. "is something the matter? you locked my door."

"i don't want to alarm you into running away, yn," he is gentle in tone. there is a serious side to this,you feel it in your bones. "but about last night..."

"were you sincere?"

you try to help him guide the conversation into a more positive light.

"of course i was! how can you ask me that, me who has known you as long as my brother has," he has this incredulous look on his face like you had just told him his favorite stray cat died. osamu paces in his formal attire as well and you stop him with a hand to his shoulder.

"you're not afraid of my true face?"

you're relief and comfort astounds osamu. he turns around and he sees that infernal mask and before you can blink, he slides it off with a tilt of your face with his fingers--he tilts it ever so high to just analyze the face that was hidden from the world. curious eyes, filled with shame and understanding we reflect his of warmth and steadiness; you were always told to stay hidden, hideous scarring rumors spread rampant, yet no one told you how beautiful you really are. osamu breathes you in like the moon begging to be blessed by the sun even during the day. he steps forward, a soft gentle smile on his face. you must be so scared, he thinks. i will prove to you how gorgeous i think you are, his subconscious continues.

"i was right. you are stunning, your excellency," he smiles when your lips quiver a bit when his thumb grazes past the corner of your mouth.

you glance away, briefly and he thinks he may have over-stepped.

“osamu, it’s just us here in my dressing room, drop the formalities.”

you stand on your toes and when he doesn’t stop you from grazing your lips over his, he holds you steady by your waist. he chuckles when you come back to the ground, realizing that you really kissed him.

“don’t,” he hushes you by pressing his fingertips against your lips. he can clearly see how apologetic you seem about robbing him of his first kiss. “i’d rather have my first kiss be with the person i know better than myself.”

hours later, the ceremony and knighthood names are also called out with surname titles, we find ourselves in a corner, speaking with the other knights who congregated in a corner. osamu eventually walked away to the balcony where after you receive praises, you follow him.

the remainder of the party is blur, especially now you’re on him; his hands carry you to an abandoned bed elsewhere through a secret passage. he knows what you seek and for you, you let him lose himself to his star.

one night of passion turns into two, three until the months go by and it becomes a regular thing. atsumu and suna are the first to catch on, they can practically smell you on each other: you started to smell more like the forgery and earthy forestry and osamu? osamu smelled of finer bathing waters like lavender and rose. your friends and who he considered his family sit far away in some abandoned part of the woods where you always fled to when you had disagreements with the council’s orders even if your father was for or against the laws being voted on.

“what are you going to do?” suna sits on the blanket glancing at you with a cat like tilt of his head. “you can’t casually tell your folks you don’t want to go to war because you fear you might be—”

“oh hush! whether the physician says it’s true or not, we’ve been careful ever since. these are dangerous times suna, you know this.”

atsumu and osamu were off finding wild blueberries to snack on when you sit down next to your brother in arms.

“if you say so, your excellency,” he nods as his bow when he rises of the ground to chase his tuto class friends. “but i will care for the child of a friend if you or osamu ever find yourself in that corner. regardless of drinking potions before and after, you know humans like us are pretty stubborn when we take root in our mother’s stomach.”

you chuckle, your mask vibrates. atsumu stays out in the field while osamu brings back a handful of what he had picked. you breathe deeply and sigh as he explains why suna came out to keep atsumu company in the field. so, you tell him, you tell him about how the last time you laid with him, you tell him about the stress you’re under in terms of assisting your father with running the council meetings while feeling a little ill—he asks you if you’d taken the potions the apothecary had prescribed you both, to which you nod.

“have you?” you ask.

osamu nods. “we can’t have anyone find out…if this really is the case, should we run?”

his smile is infectious when you tackle him and he laughs the blueberries rolling away slightly.

it only takes a scare to set the record straight a week later. by that time, nature takes it course proving to the physician though you are sexually not a ‘virgin’, you definitely are not with an heir. the report is given to your mother as you are away for a reconnaissance mission in a neighboring village. you return under kita’s direct orders along with your escort, osamu. this time, your mother and osamu’s wait for you both in your solarium. you’re laughing ceases when you come face to face with the two women who brought you into this world.

“are you mad child?” your mother is furious. “do you know what your foolishness would have caused of the results were the opposite?!”

she hands you the physician’s private findings. you’re not expecting which was a good thing; your ladies in waiting were questioned about your monthlies as they had been dubbed by most common-folk. thankfully the stress to run this place and upkeep appearances to the public were to blame for your monthly to be considered tardy as all hell.

your mother berates you, shames osamu, but you can’t get a word in to fight for him. his mother though tuts saying he had flown to close to the sun this time.

“whatever this is,” mama miya is worse off than livid. “end it now before your father, the sun of this empire, finds out.”

they are about to exit, but you find your voice. it is shaky and defiant.

you shield osamu behind you and he holds your waist with a gloved hand when you sternly say, “no.”

“you dare—?”

slap! your hand collides with the empress consort’s face. osamu’s mother gasps.

“i dare because how can you listen to the words of the conman who managed to fool everyone at court telling them i’d grow to be hideous when the first person to see me without this damned mask is him?”

you slide the mask off, frustrated and angry. “he praises my beauty, one that was hidden because you and father believed the less of a faux fortune teller. so excuse us for wanting to rattle the stars. you both had a love born from humble beginnings, so why is it so hard for you to understand?”

you do not permit them leave until nightfall. the women kneel with their arms outstretched fit hours on end and though this punishment may be cruel to some, you ask osamu if you want him to permit his mother’s leave.

“not yet,” he whispers. “mother, true or false: when father died in battle, did you wish it was me?”

you raise your brow and let the interrogation of the second son go forward. mama miya, strong and proud like a peacock, succumbs to her child’s rebellious questions and she nods. he circles back to take his stance on the truth you had shared hours ago.

“do i love the sun? of course i do, you said so yourself mother…perhaps i may be an icarus with my head in the clouds, but i will never dictate to my children who they can and cannot see in this infernal century.”

you dismiss his mother first after she caves understanding just how brazen love can make anyone.

your mother though? she laughs behind her eyes.

“your father will never let you have him,” she chuckles. “did you think you were going to have forever with him?”

osamu looks at you worriedly.

“guards! arrest him,” she barks. unfortunately for her, she forgets who actually has watch over this area at this time of night.

atsumu and suna walk in, smiling at you and osamu.

“oh, we heard everything through the door, your grace,” suna bows to you. completely walking up toward his friend who holds your hand. “was she spouting her nonsense about you two not being together?”

“my brother has an odd taste for people he loves,” atsumu chuckles. “we too love your child empress, just more in a familial sense. we protect our kind. beauty is skin deep, but our anger is palatable.”

“don’t maim her,” you say stepping back into the light. “she’ll be a good little bitch and tell the captain of the guards bandits came and took me and ‘samu away. suna and you, atsumu, are to chase our imaginary outlaw friends until this empire becomes a republic.”

your mother raises her arms to strike you, but instead she yields when three different swords are pointed at her direction.

“you heard the heir, empress,” suna mirthfully laughs.

“go escort her majesty out of these quarters,” atsumu directs. “i need a word with my brother.”

suna obeys as does a defeated queen. her crown askew, she bitterly bit her tongue saying the brat wasn’t supposed to love that long abiding to the actual predictions.

“still buying that charleston’s lies?”

suna’s dagger is jabbed through the hanging tongue of the empress. he tells her to keep her mouth shut as he ties a rag round her mouth to staunch the bleeding.

“ah, silence at last,” he says when he delivers the queen to her men. “assailants took her tongue, sir. atsumu is in pursuit to the heir’s room as we speak.”

meanwhile, the twins have their exchange with you.

“you had to fall in love with the heir,” atsumu laughs. “here.”

atsumu hands him a pouch filled with some coins. brass, silver, and gold.

“take care of him, of each other, ok?”

the ash blonde kisses your forehead and hugs his brother close.

“send a falcon to me when you cross the border north. there is a friend who wears robes of emerald and gold. itachimiya’s territory beyond the iron wall of date city, that’s your destination. follow the night stars on your palms. the love line psychics use is the pathway.”

you hear the commotion outside your doors.

“atsumu?” you walk up to him and kiss his cheek. “be well and thank you.”

“go,” he tosses his head to the window where osamu has scaled the wall there too many times to count.

like a thief in the night, seven horses are let loose from the stables minutes later, only two of them split off from the group carrying nothing else but the riders on their backs.

suna and atsumu are eventually bright in for questioning in the months that pass. atsumu’s mother mourns the loss of her youngest who is presumed dead because of the raucous that night and the king, your father, at first was beside himself with grief as well. however, upon hearing the story suna and atsumu told the courts, even if it was just a way to answer the public’s cry for answers, the emperor’s eyes watched them.

“summoned again?”

“to his private study this time sir atsumu,” a young squire says. “it says to bring suna.”

on that night, right before the lantern festivals, the emperor hears the story of how a conman fooled a royal family and how a commonly born nobleman feel for a shooting star. the night was clear and a falcon was on its way with an invitation to attend a ceremony in the spring.

[lunnamars]

strange connection - chap 1

And here I go again on my journey of learning to write with yet another zotash story. :)

An important note is that I quote about the den den mushi that Tashigi gave to Zoro in the DLC The Void Mirror Prototype of the game One Piece: World Seeker. By the way, if you haven't seen the interactions of these two in this DLC, please go. It is basically a fanfic! There is a video on youtube that brings together all their scenes.

A reminder that english is not my primary language, so please, forgive me for any mistakes. I'm currently searching for a beta-reader though, so have some patience with me, hahaha.

Once again: everything happens after Punk Hazard, but unrelated to any canonical arc.

And our daily disclaimer: obviously, I don't own anything in One Piece because if it were, Luffy and Nami would already be together, as well as Zoro and Tashigi. So, that's it.

It can also be read on FFNET and AO3.

Chapter 1 - den den mushi

プルルル purururu

"What do you want, four-eyes?"

Roronoa Zoro answered with a not so friendly voice. He didn't seem to be asleep, so she must not have hindered him. Perhaps he didn't want to talk to her? Well, the odds were high. The swordsman always seemed to despise her, but, in a similar way, she never made an effort to show her best side.

I don't know. I guess I just wanted to talk to someone, she thought.

"Why did you decide to become a pirate?"

Tashigi was able to notice a little hesitation in his sudden silence. First of all, she was sure he wasn't expecting a call in the middle of the night; second of all, he didn't expect it to be a call from her and lastly, wasn't expecting this question at all. But after the nasty day she had, she just didn't care.

And it's not like he cares either.

Since she gave Zoro the den den mushi when they were investigating KAGERO, the girl has been desperately trying to get it back and maybe, find where the crew was hiding. So these somewhat unexpected calls became a routine between them for the past few months.

Smoker had no idea she had given this communication snail and Tashigi hoped it stayed that way. It had been two months since this happened and so far all of her attempts have been unsuccessful - the Strawhats refused to return it and always managed to flee from her sight.

But the only thing she didn't expect was that the snail would be in possession of the swordsman Roronoa Zoro.

Tashigi believes that this could only have been Nami's idea. Zoro didn't look like a person who would like to have a den den mushi near him, much less look like someone who would like to talk to her. Nami always likes to upset Roronoa and there would have no better way, she thought. The last time they met, for some reason, Nami and Nico Robin arranged for the pirate to stay close to her all night during a celebration that reminded her very much of what happened at Punk Hazard.

The situation was almost the same again.

Pirates saving the day. The Navy always a step behind. The Strawhat pirates victorious once again. And Tashigi didn't know what else to do with them. Deep down, she knew that even Smoker had no idea what to do.

Monkey D. Luffy messed up with the whole concept that the world (and she too) had about pirates and their villainy. And consequently, Roronoa Zoro messed up with the whole concept she had about justice and freedom.

So, today I just wanted to chat as Tashigi and Roronoa.

Tashigi spent the whole evening avoiding that thought at all costs and tried to convince herself that he was the only person who might be available because... it just had been a very bad day and quite frankly, Tashigi didn't have many people to call a friend.

So what harm would it do to be selfish just for today?

"For Luffy." He answered after a while in silence. The answer was short and firm, leaving no room for any kind of inquiry. But inquiring is what she did.

"Mugiwara?"

"Yes. Look, Captain Four-Eyes, I don't have that crazy sense of justice and all that prejudice like you have. Things are not always black and white for me, woman. Luffy saved my life and gave me a chance to achieve my goal. In return, I would join him. Simple as that."

Crazy sense of justice and all that prejudice, you say...

"But you used to hunt pirates…" 

"Yes. But Luffy is not just any pirate. I know you know that. Even Smokey knows it. The Navy likes to hunt us and I understand why, but you need to get it out of your head that everyone is the same. I'm sure we did a lot more for people in one year than the Navy did in five."

Tashigi wanted to yell at him. She wanted to rage and spit in his face how wrong he was, how unfair and prejudiced he was being, but no sound came out.

Because he is right.

Because she lived all her life seeing black and white. And Vergo's betrayal simply stained the paper that was her conscience.

Except… what the hell is she doing? How weak is she still to the point of having to depend on a group of misfits to effectively solve problems that the Navy has been trying to solve for years? How much more would this bunch still rub in her face that she was not being able to do her job properly?

She really wanted to yell at him. She wanted to yell at everyone. She wanted to shout at admirals, vice admirals, marines and the like. She wanted to yell at herself and ask why are you so weak why are you so weak why are you so weak.

"The weak don't get to choose how they die."

Trafalgar Law's words still hurt her to this day. They hurt a lot. It hurt the truth that she was no match for him. It hurt the truth that she was no match for Zoro. It hurt the truth that if it were necessary to battle against either to save some innocent life, she would be defeated and that life could be lost. It hurt the truth that she was weak.

But that pain never stopped Tashigi from moving forward and always pushing herself to exhaustion. Nobody knew how much she trained, how much she studied, how much time she devoted to her own improvement. Just as no one knew how much she cried every time she was unable to win.

How much she cried every time she crossed blades with Roronoa Zoro and lost.

Always losing.

"I know. You guys are… different. I… have always known. Since Alabasta."

"Anyway. Did you just call to ask that, woman? If not, I'm already warning you we're not returning the snail. The witch said it was good to keep it since we don't have one".

"That's not why I called. I just… needed to talk to someone."

"Haa? And that person had to be me? You didn't have anyone else?"

Of course… how silly of me. No one wants to hear you, Tashigi.

"I see. I'm sorry, Roronoa. I didn't want to bother." The girl gave an empty laugh and continued. "I'll call another time to convince you all to return it to me! See you!

"O-oe…"

"Good night." She didn't wait for his answer and just hung up. Zoro didn't return the call either which confirmed her suspicions - she had really bothered him.

I just wanted to talk a bit...

Another day on a field mission and yet another failure for the captain's collection. Another confrontation with pirates that resulted in tragedy and another shitty day for her. The feeling of helplessness is one of the worst, especially if it tends to be your fault.

Tashigi knows that she will always get on her feet every time she falls, but there are times when she finds it incredibly difficult. And at those times, she wished she could have someone to turn to, but ... that's not the case. Or maybe she went to the wrong person.

Why resort to Roronoa Zoro of all people?

She didn't call again for two months.

[himluv]

Discoveries

Another Solavellan oneshot! This one takes place a few days after Drowning. Also, just a reminder that, if you’d like to binge all of these stories (there’s WAY more of them than I anticipated), there’s a collection on AO3!

When Riallan asked Solas to come with her to investigate an ancient ruin the Inquisition had discovered, he’d imagined a few crumbling walls, maybe a dank room or two, with barely anything to explore.

He had not imagined she had unearthed Dirthamen’s temple. Like most of the pantheon, Dirthamen had many such places, but this had been his favorite, the jewel in his midnight crown.

Solas had always hated it.

Walking the halls again, though now overgrown and flooded, filled him with an intense dread, the memories of his youth flashing in his mind, relentless.

His trepidation was matched only by Riallan’s excitement. This was her preferred deity after all. In the halls of Dirthamen her usual curiosity transformed into something sharp and unyielding. She paused at every mural, eyes roving the paintings, consuming every detail, desperate to discern the meaning behind each symbol. She was the First of her clan, their destined Keeper of knowledge and lore. It was her passion and it showed.

Even in the dank, dripping, dark of the temple, in a place he hadn’t walked in millennia, Solas was helpless against her charm.

She found the first glyph on the wolf statue, which he’d been surprised to see still stood. He imagined the priests would have defiled it or tore it down after he raised the veil. He was the reason Dirthamen abandoned them, after all.

Riallan held her veilfire torch closer to get a good look and froze.

Solas reached for her, but stopped short of touching her shoulder. He could feel the power, ancient and viscous, slow and slick like oil spilled from a lamp. “Inquisitor?”

She blinked rapidly, her eyes unfocused and wild, then she found him and returned to herself. “I… I understood that. How…?”

He pursed his lips, fighting the frown that tugged at his mouth. “The secrets of this temple have remained unspoken for too long. They wish to be known.” He ignored the crawling terror in his guts. “What did it say?”

Her brow furrowed. “It was a poem, about truths and secrets.” She looked around the room, but it was dark and there was nothing here but trees and sky and water. “There must be more further into the Temple.”

And so they went, exploring every corner of the dilapidated temple. Cassandra commented only when they found the dead explorers.

“I do not like this place,” she said. “It feels malevolent.”

“Whispers wanting, wasting, waiting for the Keeper of Secrets to come once more,” Cole said. He’d been especially quiet as they moved through the temple, and Solas worried that the veil might be too thin here. That the spirit might be vulnerable to the insidious magics that yet lingered.

Dirthamen had never been straightforward, nor one to forgive the merest slight. If there was anyone left in Thedas the elvhen would want to hurt, it would be Solas.

Cassandra sighed. “And now it is even creepier. Thank you, Cole.”

“You’re welcome.”

Riallan had no time for their banter. Torch in hand, she read another glyph, then turned wide eyes on him. “They went mad. Without Dirthamen, the secrets ate at them and they became paranoid. Convinced that their High Priest had betrayed them.” She shook her head. “They dismembered him and cursed his spirit to an eternity in this temple.”

Solas closed his eyes at the words. There had been a time when he’d known Dirthamen’s High Priest. They had never been friendly, since his relationship with Dirthamen had been tense even at the best of times, but knowing the man’s fate after he’d sealed his god away hurt him nonetheless.

She ran a hand through her wet hair, anger replacing confusion on her face. “Dirthamen was supposed to be the God of Secrets, the Keeper of Knowledge. Of learning!” Her eyes shone in the moonlight, “but this wasn’t a library or a school. It was a crypt, where knowledge came to die. They hoarded it to gain power, leverage. They were nothing more than spies!”

Her anger would have surprised him only months ago, but now he understood her a little better. She had chosen her vallaslin because of her love of elvhen lore, because she took her future as Clan Lavellan’s Keeper seriously. She would learn everything the world could teach her, and spread it to her people.

Like so many other things about Elvhenan, the Dalish had misinterpreted the truth. And now her faith was in crisis.

“Every society has great need of spies, lethallan,” he said, trying to soften the blow. There had been a time, when the Evanuris were of one mind, when Dirthamen had been a respected leader of Elvhenan. He helped build education centers, like the Vir Dirthara. Once, too many millennia ago to really count, he had been the God she believed him to be. Before greed and fear corrupted him, just like it did all the others.

She met his gaze, her eyes wondering and so disappointed. This place was not what she had hoped for. He would have told her as much, if he could tell her the truth at all.

“Let’s raise this priest and get it over with,” she said, turning away from him. “I want to put this place behind me.”

She marched ahead, down the grand staircase and into the knee-deep water that had filled Dirthamen’s sanctum. He thought it fitting that Dirthamen’s legacy would drown under the weight of all he’d hoarded.

“Will you tell me why the Inquisitor is so upset?” Cassandra asked once Riallan was far enough ahead of them.

For a moment he had forgotten the Seeker was even there. Of course that conversation would mean little to her. What the Dalish remembered was a vast library of knowledge compared to what the humans knew of the Elvhen.

He tilted his head toward her as they walked in tandem down the stairs. “The vallaslin, her face tattoos, the Dalish bear them to honor their gods. Each Creator has a design, each Dalish must pick a Creator to devote their life to.”

“Ah.” Cassandra frowned. “She has pledged herself to this Dirthamen?” The elvhen name rattled off her tongue, foreign and stilted.

He nodded. “Imagine learning that Andraste had not led a rebellion, but instead helped quash it.”

“That would be…”

“Faith-shattering?”

“Possibly,” she admitted. “I would require time.”

“Yes, and in that time you would be able to read the Chant, speak to your priests, and pray to your god.” He sighed. “Your doctrine was never forgotten, shattered into fragments for you to piece back together. Riallan has only her legends, her Keeper, and herself.”

“I- I think I understand.” She gave him a tiny, flickering smile. “Thank you, Solas.”

“If you’re finished talking about me,” Riallan called from the ritual platform, “I’d like to summon an ancient dead priest now.”

Her anger seeped into her every move. Her voice, her eyes flashing in the magic aura around the Priest’s body parts, the clench of her jaw. He wondered if she wanted to conjure him just so she could take her aggression out on something. Someone, who had once mattered to Dirthamen.

While he did not believe summoning the cursed spirit of the priest was a wise decision, he would not keep her from her vengeance. Especially not one so small as this.

They could handle whatever the High One had become.

He should have expected the Despair Demon. The entire temple reeked of it, and its presence had no doubt aided in its deterioration. As fights went, it was not the most difficult they had encountered, and in the end they perhaps did a service to the priest. He was free of his curse now, his spirit’s energy returned to the Fade.

They made camp a few miles beyond the temple, the fresh air and night sky a sweet relief to the dank and damp they’d spent hours in. Across the fire, Riallan was restless. She sat cross-legged, tearing blades of grass from the dirt with furious fingers.

“Dirth ma, lethallan,” he called. He spoke elvhen in an endeavor to give her privacy from the others, though he knew her grasp of the language was incomplete.

And Cole would understand regardless.

She didn’t look at him. “Tel’nuvena dirth, Solas.”

“Ir abelas, Riallan. Mala dhru’danem. Tel’dan’latha, mala sulevin tel’himem.” In fact, her desire to find the truth of the elvhen people had led her here. The temple was a great discovery, one she would celebrate if it weren’t for her damaged beliefs.

She shook her head. “Banal’dirtha. Elvhen tel’dhrua’em.”

“Ah,” he said. It seemed her crisis of faith had passed. Now she worried that the Dalish would not accept her findings. “Dhru tel’dya himana vindhru.”

She smiled at that, just a little. She had said the same to him when he’d told her it didn’t matter if she wasn’t truly the Herald of Andraste. Belief should not outweigh the truth.

Her anger at the knowledge in Dirthamen’s temple had burned hot and fast, leaving behind not even grudging acceptance. Her god was not what she had come to believe. She couldn’t change that, but that didn’t mean she would stop honoring who she thought he was. She would keep the ideals that had shaped her.

It made him wonder if she would handle all unpleasant revelations with such grace. A dangerous thought indeed.

“You’re right, Solas,” she said. She looked at him, and some of the tension had left her neck and shoulders. “Ma serannas.”

“Sathem, Riallan.”

Watching her in the fading firelight, after walking by her side as she discovered ancient secrets and battled heart-shattering truths, Solas came to a decision. Really, there had never been a doubt, no matter how he knew it must end.

Once they returned to Skyhold, he would take what happiness he could find.

Elvhen translations, based on Project Elvhen:

Dirth ma, lethallan - Talk to me, kin

Tel’nuvena dirth - I don’t want to talk

Ir abelas - I’m sorry

Mala dhru’danem - Your faith is shattered

Tel’dan’latha, mala sulvein tel’himem - Do not weep/mourn, your purpose has not changed

Banal’dirtha - I’ll never speak (of this)

Elvhen tel’dhrua’em - The People will not believe me

Dhru tel’dya himana vindhru - Belief shall not drown the truth (reference to Perseverance)

Ma serannas - My thanks/thank you

Sathem - You’re welcome (informal)

[comicteaparty]

July 25th-July 31st, 2020 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from July 25th, 2020 to July 31st, 2020.  The chat focused on the following question:

Where can your comic be read, what is it about, and why should people read it?

carcarchu

last one

mariah (rainy day dreams)

You can read Rainy Day Dreams on it's homesite: http://rainydaydreams.mariahcurrey.com/ Book 1 of RDD is also currently in pre-orders for both physical and digital books. This volume collects the newly redrawn and remastered first five charters. Currently not all of those pages are online so book buyers will get to see them first https://gumroad.com/mariahcurrey Rainy Day Dreams is a manga influenced, character driven supernatural story with dreamlike pacing. It follows the lives Tristin, an excitable and friendly human who becomes trapped in the Nameless World after a treasure hunt gone wrong, Mara, a reclusive retired knight belonging to an ancient lineage of psychics, and Michael, a sad vampire torn between his vampire instincts and being the soft boy he is deep down. Come for the compelling characters, interpersonal drama, and found family, stay for the underlying slow build of the cosmic machinations of the Nameless World's gods and a villain from the past bent on undoing the very fabric of reality. Reasons you should read it beyond the above pitch: - I've been told by frequently people find it's relaxing to read. We all need a little relaxation - Has a female driven narrative - I take every chance I get to put my characters in ball gowns or party dresses - Monsters! Cute monsters, scary monsters! Monsters that want to eat you, monsters that want to smooch you! - I make this comic traditionally with ink wash so enjoy all the beautiful ink blooms! - Chapter 18 starts this week

CoppertheCarutor

Oh wow, I missed out on A LOT! Dang! Well, here it goes I guess. To start off, please read with discretion, this project is rated R/17+ and for now contains: Abuse, discussion of suicide, blood, violence, queerphobia, trauma, mental illness, self-harm, mild body horror, substance abuse, profanity and full-frontal nudity. You can read my comic, The Guide to a Healthy Relationship, on it's main site: http://tgtahr.spiderforest.com/ I also have it posted on Tapas, Webtoons (nudity censored), Comicfury, FlowFo and Itch.io. The Guide to a Healthy Relationship is a slowburn character driven psychological drama about an emotionally immature alcoholic trying to make amends, and fix his friendship with his ex-childhood friend upon discovering they're not dead. Unfortunately the situation is much more complicated and serious than he can comprehend. Why you should check it out: - Possibly interesting if you enjoy non-fantastical character studies and/or Psychology. - May be cathartic if you like consuming heavy content in a controlled environment. - Has some light horror elements. - Contains an extremely flawed LGBT+ cast. - No romance. - This comic is drawn traditionally with pens and color pencils. - The story is a little over halfway finished. - Contains/will contain beaches if you like the beach. - Lots of sky shots.(edited)

Krispy §[Ghost Junk Sickness]§

(Ahhh this was hard to write out, i'll really miss this server) Ghost Junk Sickness is a free to read LGBTQ+ sci-fi that tackles themes of found family, accountability, and acceptance. It rated T for it's course language and violence, and can be read on it's official website, < https://www.ghostjunksickness.com/ > . Books 1-3 are available on the store (link on site) and we're currently on our way to wrap up and print vol 4! Ghost Junk Sickness is about two bounty hunters with an unstable dynamic who are pushed to pursue the elusive and deadly bounty dubbed The Ghost. It updates mondays and fridays, features an extensive cast with queer rep, topics about dealing with trauma, responsibility, and taking control. GJS has: -Space ships! -Lived in worlds/ extensive world building through illustrative backgrounds and characters - Slow burn character growth, expanding relationships, and new love -Drawn traditionally and worked on by a team of two! -Long run story that reached the halfway point, GJS has a huge buffer of over 800 pages now, so it's a time sinker! - hot lizard lady (best part)

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

holy shit 800 page buffr

OH wait by buffer you mean archive omg

Krispy §[Ghost Junk Sickness]§

(oh YE we only have 70 page buffer now woohopps lol)

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

holy shit 70 page buffer

that's like 10 months

eliushi [Keyspace]

KEYSPACE: A Winged Tale is a story about kids with wings for hair, and can be found at https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/keyspace-a-winged-tale/list?title_no=322364 https://tapas.io/series/KEYSPACE-A-Winged-Tale/ TW: Body Horror (comes with having wings sprouting from the head and more) Keyspace is my passion project about a world between portals that is dying. A Winged Tale is the first story of this series and touches upon the deeper magic that unites the work. It’s about a wingless girl trying to find her missing scientist mother in a laboratory beneath a forest, winged children discovering their origins and Machines that once ravaged the world, now lost. It’s a story for those who grew up with Studio Ghibli stories but want a little more complications and lore but still retain hope for the future. TL;DR: Come for winged hair, sad robots, possibly dragons, lots of science. The comic returns August 1

CoppertheCarutor

AH! Thank you for reminding about a couple content warnings I forgot to add.

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

Phantomarine is a story about a haunted ocean, a ghostly princess, and her journey to save her soul from a death god known as the Red Tide King. http://www.phantomarine.com/ TW: death, body horror, limb loss Princess Phaedra's untimely and mysterious death casts her out into the dark waters of the Candlelight Sea, forcing her to wander the world as an ethereal seaghost. Her journey toward resurrection quickly evolves into a grand maritime adventure on her ship, the Mantaluna, along with a crew of similarly-cursed friends and familiars. But Phaedra's mission has a dark undercurrent to it - a divine mystery that, when solved, will force her to question everything about her life, her death, and her world's long-dead past. If you like:

-THE COLOR BLUE (or just the ocean) -general spookiness that never gets too dark or gory -flamboyant villains of various kinds -swashbuckling pirate-y stories -fancy boats and pretty islands -big elemental animal gods fighting -friends and family fighting for each other -lots of hero-vs-villain salt and sass -DOGS

then heck yeah, this is your comic (edited)

Miranda (Into the Swell)

Into the Swell is about a Pirate with nothing left to lose but his life and a Wizard who wants more than a life of entertaining royals with party tricks being thrown together on the treasure hunt of their lives. The official blurb is: Ocean swells are remnants of storms hundreds of miles away. So do past actions cause swells of destiny on the shores of the present. Fate will always find a way. Given the choice between a one way trip to the gallows or a return to high sea adventure, imprisoned pirate Fletcher makes the obvious choice. With Court appointed wizard Kelwyn watching his every move, the two set off to reclaim a stolen treasure for King and Country. The ocean journey leads the duo through uncharted waters that hide dangers and secrets that could unravel the very fabric of their lives. Could this treasure hunt prove more adventure than they bargained for? TW: deaths? You can find it on https://tapas.io/series/into-the-swell or Webtoons It’s just starting out so there’s not much yet but you gotta start somewhere!

Cronaj ~{Whispers of the Past}~

Heyo! For all you who don't yet know me, I work on Whispers of the Past, a fantasy comic about a farm girl and an amnesiac elf man going on a journey to learn who they really are. https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/whispers-of-the-past/list?title_no=191366 Age Rating: PG-13 or T+ TW: death and corpses, blood and violence, bladed weapons, profanity, depictions of racial discrimination, alcohol, miscarriage, suicide, suggestive content Magical powers can only come from the other side... When Aniya discovers a foreigner with amnesia, she sets out to help him find the answers to his nightmares. Along with their growing feelings for one another, they will uncover an identity riddled with magic, bloodlines, and betrayal. What WotP has to offer: - a unique painterly art style - in-depth world-building (including a conlang) - hurt/comfort themes - hella family drama - MAGIC - ace, bi, and POC representation - cute romance - If you like high fantasy like ATLA, this might be right up your alley

Nutty (Court of Roses)

I wanna say first of all that thank you for this server. Even if I couldn't participate often, it was a lovely place, love you all!! Court of Roses is in several places, but its main site on Spiderforest is a page ahead! Best place to read it is here: http://courtofroses.spiderforest.com/ As summer comes to an end in the kingdom of Prismal, the Bardic Festival is in full swing, bringing together musicians and minstrels from all over. But amidst the celebration, a sinister plot of murder unfolds... Follow a ragtag group of bards as they band together and travel the realm of Prismal; Merlow the Rose, half-elf, charismatic leader, bagpiper, and perpetual drunk; Diana the Fleetfoot Fletcher, human tidinit player with a heart of gold; Nocturne, brooding but classy Infernal and violinist; Sven Rockscreamer, goliath drummer and seeker of justice; and Feliks Halfdance, curious gnome who plays accordion and magically conjures their entire backup. And who knows! Mayhaps they'll solve a murder mystery together! The comic is greatly LGBTQ-friendly, and takes inspiration from both classic fantasy themes (Dungeons and Dragons, Lord of the Rings, The Elder Scrolls, etc.) as well as music across all genres. Specific pages and scenes might even include their own suggested theme songs in the author notes. Contains Fantasy Violence and Alcohol Use(edited)

AntiBunny

You can as always read my comic at http://AntiBunny.net/ and is a film noir inspired story about anthropomorphic rabbits and the difficulty with coexisting with humanity. Crime and conspiracies move the plot along, but in film noir there's rarely a clear black and white. Why should you read it? Do you like stories about crime and conspiracies? Do you like bunnies? Do you want to see a contrast of cute and grim, and see relatable characters who deal with mental health issues, and fight a struggle for acceptance? Do you ask yourself the question what is identity? Well then this is for you.

You can find my other comic at http://nailbat.AntiBunny.net/. Nailbat is part of the AntiBunny universe, and deals with many of the same issues, but using a more straightforward and action packed superhero story. If you love superheroes and action you'll enjoy it, and maybe along the way get into the deeper lore of the AntiBunny world.

Holmeaa - working on WAYFINDERS

Thanks everyone who I have chattet with in here, it has been a delight <3 Wayfinders: Off Course Can be read on Tapas or Webtoons (I prefer tapas ) https://linktr.ee/snackbagstudios Whats it about? You may ask. In a world where magic is as natural as breathing, and the gods are known to actually answer some prayers, a ship is sent to keep the fragile peace between 2 countries that has been at war for 60 years. But guess what? The ship crashes almost immediately. Now the 3 only survivors, a runaway monk, with unexplained powers, the noble son and peace advocate, and a chaos child with an affinity for magic washes ashore on an unknown island and is forced together by a magical compass. With navigation, and magic being broken, it is not an easy task to cross the ocean. If only they knew of the chaos which is unravelling outside their comfortable lives. If they thought this adventure was going to be uneventful, they are in for a surprise. Why should you read it? It is a mix between the Road to Eldorado, and Avatar the Last Airbender, and if that short pitch is not enough, I don't know how else to sell it. It has fun colors, anime reference, and a lot of ocean and sinister magics Thanks to all the admins for putting in so much work in this server

Feather J. Fern

Okay, I have like three comics, and the fourth one coming soon so.....Lets get the easy ones out of the way. On Webtoons, you can read Teasday or Don't you hate it when...(DYHIW) https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/dont-you-hate-it-when/list?title_no=486501 https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/teasday/list?title_no=169870&page=1 DYHIW is a gag comic, so if you want a little laugh to brighten your week, feel free to check it out. Teasday is a tea informative comic, but it's on a bit of a hiatus and ending soon. My current project is Gravitational Pull, a story about a depressed magical girl trying to save the world while also trying to get the energy to leave her bed that day. Read it if you like magical girls, space and representation of anxiety, depression, inferiority complex and learning to take each day slowly. http://gravitationalpull.featheryterrarium.com/ And when it comes out, Go Figure is my comedy action webtoon about someone who wants to use a powerful wish to cure their asthma and allergies over anything else.

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

JOE IS DEAD A band of pirates are visiting an island and they discover the dead body of their astronomer JOSEPH CINNABAR. He leaves behind a will with mysterious instructions that none of the pirates really feel like following. The crew decide to send the least-liked and least responsible pirate of them all on a solo mission to carry out Joe's final wishes. If you like: - Alternate historical timelines where the United States doesn't exist - Gay, lesbian, and transgender pirates - Morbid humor, death, dying - Biblical allusion - Warm colors - Alliteration - My handwriting - Birds or anything else, you will love to read JOE IS DEAD, a webcomic worked on entirely by me that will be at 150 pages within a week or so. My background is in marine biology and satirical writing, so I promise you this comic is funny and scientifically accurate. Rated PG 13, mild violence and swearing Where can I read it Read it on http://joeisdead.com/ (the main hosting website with some functional html) or on Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/JoeIsDead It's also on Webtoons but it's a couple chapters behind on there You can follow me on Twitter for information about updates https://twitter.com/sssfrs_

boogeymadam

Sink Your Hookteeth An LGBT+ Cosmic Horror/Love story about eldritch merfolk that fall for a pair of humans who are studying mermaids to cure a supernatural illness. CW: bodyhorror, gore, upperbody nudity, sickness, drowning, tryophobia, eye trauma, If you like:

-sea monsters

-big teeth

-painted comics

-nonbinary and binary transgender, lesbian, bisexual, and pansexual protagonists

-neurodivergent protagonists

-goofy friendship dynamics

-nasty and imperfect wlw couples

-enemies to lovers trope

-childhood friends to lovers trope

then this is a comic you might enjoy :D! It finished chapter 1 a few months ago with 195 pages, takes maybe an hour or two to read, and is currently on hiatus while I am building chapter 2's buffer. You can read it on Its own site https://hookteethcomic.com/ Webtoons https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/hookteeth/list?title_no=300709 Tapas https://tapas.io/series/Hookteeth/info

also i need to read more of these but joe is dead, wayfinders, keyspace: a winged tale, phantomarine, ghost junk sickness, the guide to a healthy relationship, and court of roses are all absolutely amazing and -chefs kiss- please give them all read if you aren't yet!

varethane

Comics!! Chirault A young half-demon named Teeko has been forced from her home, and to make matters worse, is now the size of a squirrel thanks to a wayward magic spell. Her only protection is the demon-hunter Kiran, who is a demon himself and lacks patience for children. Together, they must seek the help of a mage to reverse the spell on Teeko, but the journey is far from straightforward.. My first webcomic-- it's complete, it's a high fantasy adventure comic about finding family, fighting monsters, and also making friends with monsters (both outside and... inside). Check it out if you enjoy any of those things! http://chirault.sevensmith.net/ Wychwood Tiara is a delinquent who has been using a mysterious power to goof around for years without realizing the kind of attention it could attract. When a powerful organization finally tracks her down and attempts to recruit her, she has to decide what she really stands for. This is my new/current webcomic! It's a sci-fantasy genre-blender, with bits of post-apocalypse and urban fantasy thrown in as a treat just for fun. If you enjoy stories involving evil organizations, fire-flinging delinquents, and angsty supersoldiers, give it a look :U (Chapter 4 has just gotten started!) http://wychwood.sevensmith.net/

TaliePlume

Feather Cleanse (French: Nettoyage des plumes, Haitian Creole: Plim Geri) is a supernatural, sci-fi and military Shonen manga. Set in the year 2034 in the Haitian kingdom, Vérité Kindgom, the story follows 14 year old Soleil Andirans, her two older brothers and their cousin who joins their kingdom's military program to help Soleil find a wanted criminal and stopping a mad scientist from taking over the kingdom. This is a personal project that is very dear to me and I can't wait to share with you all hopefully around June of 2023. Why should you read it: -A positive Haitian representation -Strong female protagonist -Learning about a new culture - Family Bonds -Mad Scientists and experimentations - Criminal MasterMinds - Servant and Master relationships -Kings and Queens/Royalties -Dynamic and Impactful Fights Then, this is the comic for you.

shadowhood {SunnyxRain}

Alrighty cracks knuckles SunnyxRain, a webcomic about monsters surviving college.....BY THE POWER OF FANFICTION. Follow Sunny Dupont, a gluttony demon as she navigates college life and fanfic writing with the help of her housemates Liam (a qilin she roped in as her beta/editor) and Aron (an ocean naga as a fan). A story of trauma recovery and learning lessons about life and love. If you like: -housemate shenanigans -fanfic/fandom culture exploration -kickass but seriously flawed protagonists recovering from trauma - VOID CAT -LGBTQ+ cast because I can -coffee gremlin cryptid dudes -sweet slow burn romance -lesser known mythological creature representation Then this webcomic is for you to read, and y'all can come read it here! https://tapas.io/series/SunnyxRain/info and HERE https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/sunnyxrain/list?title_no=409335(edited)

Deo101 [Millennium]

Well, Here we go ^^ I have 2 comics right now, so: Millennium: A sci fi adventure featuring two best friends as they seek to help anyone and everyone they can, where we put together a bit of a misfit crew who are all intent on bettering themselves and the world around them. It's a lighthearted, LGBT+ Slowburn The sci fi is soft and so are the characters It's got found family, hurt/comfort, and gentle handling of heavier themes. It's easy to read and shouldn't make you think too much, it's just an hour or two of simple adventure between friends! It can be read a lot of places! My personal site: https://millennium.spiderforest.com/ Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/millennium/list?title_no=110866&page=1 Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/Millennium Comic Fury: http://millennium.thecomicseries.com/ and Tumblr!: https://millennium-comic.tumblr.com/ Time and Time Again: A noir mystery about time traveling vampires! We follow Adam, a vampire, and his subject of study, Steve, the first werewolf/vampire. The two of them are trapped in the 20's, looking to solve the mystery of a missing relic. It's a limited palette, scroll style comic if you're looking for a bit more action and higher stakes, and a more serious tone, then this one might be a better fit for you than Millennium ^^ I'm planning on finishing it up relatively soon, so get in on it now! (It's currently on a short hiatus while school is doing me in) It can only be read on tapas! https://tapas.io/series/Time-and-Time-again

kayotics

Ingress Adventuring Company You can read Ingress Adventuring Company at https://www.ingress-comic.com/ TW: some gore, blood, violence Saving the world is a pretty big deal, but what do you do once you’re done with that and no one needs you anymore? Do you become a magic professor? Do you study a convoluted thesis that no one understands? Maybe you relive the glory days by starting up a one-man adventuring party to gather mystical artifacts for people who may or may not pay you. Or, if you’re Toivo Kissa, you do all of those things. Reasons to check it out! - You like D&D or other stories inspired by it - It’s got bittersweet comedy - Very fun villains - Expressive art - Elves. Just a lot of elves. - Sad Dads and old men - LGBTQ+ cast

maxwestart

Poison Ivy Gulch is hosted on its own WordPress site: http://www.poisonivygulch.com/ Poison Ivy Gulch is a funny Western set in a frontier town in the 1870s. The protagonists are Lotta Doler, a gambler, and her kid sidekick Ace. Other characters include a marshal, an undertaker, a prospector and many extras. Poison Ivy Gulch is a spiritual successor to Tumbleweeds. If you like Blazing Saddles, you'll love this!

sagaholmgaard

Ahh dang, thanks for the heads up!! Here it is: https://tapas.io/series/_Reclaim_ My comic, Reclaim, is about a prince that has to deal with the aftermath of a successful coup. His father is imprisoned and sentenced to death, and he's in hiding with his dear bodyguard. Now he has to save his dad and reclaim the throne from the power-hungry witch warrior Irene, but how can the two of them hope to stand a chance against the entire force of the empire? And what was the real reason for the coup in the first place? This is for people who want a heartfelt fantasy story, with inspiration from Steven Universe and themes around being a better person than you were yesterday, and sticking together through hardships!

PiraPiranha

DEPARTURE is a story about dead brothers, hot guys and competent women! Lights! Camera! Action! The flaws of our predecessors are the burdens that we carry today! As galactic governance has been passed down from generation to generation of divine beings, the wars and insecurities of the previous pantheons are weighing down on our world. Whether it’s vanquishing your greatest enemies, or buying tomorrow’s cereal, keeping this flaming shipwreck of a universe together is going to require a little elbow grease, and a lot of flashy super powers! Follow Kovit, a space fighter turned part-time cook and his friends Casey (Cool, has a nice jacket) and Vermillion (Dumb, has stupid hair) as he tries to help the most powerful beings in the universe keep it together (Ostensibly by beating them up). Check it out here! http://departurecomic.cfw.me/(edited)

seetherabbit

Vulperra is an anthology comic featuring superheros, cowboys and regular common folk in the fantasy world of Vulperra. Most of the stories are about the hero Flash Gauntlet, who travels from place to place to solve problems with his magical gauntlets which were bestowed to him by the goddess of the land. https://vulperra.com/

NAAN

Legendary Beings Ara & Celi is about a young girl, Miyara, who is chosen to be the successor to a specific line of Angels – headed by none other than Ara–and with it, duties that extend beyond the physical world. Only one problem: Miyara has no desire to do the job! What will happen then, especially with Celi, Ara’s counterpart, is intent on causing chaos in her life?! You can read Ara & Celi at its main site: http://ac.jadinerhinestudios.com/ Here is the Webtoons mirror: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/legendary-beings-ara-celi/list?title_no=59422 Doesn't have any trigger warnings (maybe that (1) page in chapter 2 is too creepy-crawly for anyone?), and it's currently on hiatus because I'm working on chapter 4, will update again when I have completed it! So enjoy the 3 chapters so far! If you like: • MAGICAL GOILS • an old school b&w shoujo manga style (according to some people, and I don't even do it on purpose ) • on that note, since the 3rd chapter, the comic is drawn traditionally! (all covers are in color and traditional) • expressive comedy • language jokes and notes • angels and demons, yes, it's one of those but is anybody really the bad guy here • a lion and a jinn walk into a bar-- • slow worldbuilding and character development • heck if I know what else, you should just check it out and tell me what you think later like in the good ol' days

L Hornsby

Heyo, I haven't been very active. I'm not used to Discord. If anybody would like some silly comics about puppies that live in the clouds and enjoy parties (and also happen to be princesses) my comic Princess Pups has you covered. It's all ages friendly so if you have younger kids you want to get into comics, it's a swell read according to my 3 years old :) https://tapas.io/series/Princess-Pups/info

carcarchu

@L Hornsby oh i didn't know you were in this server! i actually read your comic because our comics have really similar names ahaha

L Hornsby

Oh wow hey there! :)

I usually lurk on Instagram and Twitter these days and have been crocheting more than comics lately

mathtans

What the heck, been on hiatus more than a year but there's an archive and it's not like there's any dangling plot points. I personify mathematics! Because equations are people too. The hairstyles are the graphs, and there are puns.

Main site: http://mathtans.ca/

Tapas mirror: https://tapas.io/series/Any-Q

It's called "Any ~Qs" because notQ is the symbol for irrational numbers. So anything irrational, in a sense. Very G rated - maybe PG, some discussion of biological sex and tangential politics. Enjoy, possibly.(edited)

Spring-heeled Jack

Hey all! My comic is a horror comic that features some LGBTQA+ characters in the main cast. Today is also my monthly update on public sites. I do four pages at the end of the month on Tapas, Webtoons, and my website. (Patreon gets weekly updates.) It is a story of a picturesque town with a dark secret and what will be done to keep that secret. I follow a few characters through the the twisting plot and show how the darker side of this town affects them. I think this would be PG13 mostly because there will be some blood, but there are no sexual situations. Currently Tapas has the most recent free pages as I will have to do Webtoon and the website manually later today. Happy reading and please do let me know what you think! <3 Website: https://www.iamfilledwithstatic.com/crocus Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/crocusheights Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-secret-of-crocus-heights/list?title_no=405820 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/iamfilledwithstatic

DanielHookerArt

I have a series of self published graphic novels. When all copies of the first volume sold out I posted it on Webtoon. It's sort of a Isekai Mystery Adventure, inspired by the 1980's movie Labyrinth.

https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/line-of-ruin/list?title_no=232705

StickFreeks

Hi I'm Christy! I make the webcomic / graphic novel series EXTRA! It's about Extras in the backgrounds of a movie world escaping their fates of getting killed off... by going to go ask the Producer to stop killing them off. (Sort of like The Truman Show, but everyone is in on it.) You can read it at https://extra-comic.com/ I'm always looking to make new comic buddies! (edited)

Annausagi2

Hello! I joined right at the announcement of the channel shutting down, so bad timing. :,O I've been working on my webcomic Helix since 2012: Read from the start here: http://helixcomic.com/ Description/warnings: A street rat is given a second chance when he is dragged from the gutter and into a new life. Will he accept his position at the side of royalty, or fight every step of the way? -Rated M for sex (M/M, consensual), violence, nudity, language, and dark themes.- Warnings: -References to child abuse and sexual abuse.- If you can handle these subjects, I hope you'll enjoy the comic. :) Thanks for reading! UPDATES EVERY WEDNESDAY! ~ Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Annausagi2 ~ Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Annausagi2

Kalli

I joined right when things were shutting down too :( Just my luck Anyway! I'm Kalli and I have a fully traditionally drawn webcomic, called World of Ruan! https://www.worldofruan.com/ It's a post apocalyptic, sci fi adventure type story, following Cait, a mutant mouse/human hybrid and Roxy, her robot companion! I update every Saturday~ And I'm always down for meeting new comic friends!

Cap’n Lee (Flowerlark Studios)

I make Children of Shadow: Ashes and Dark Wings: Eryl. Ashes is an urban fantasy / horror about teens with supernatural powers who have to team up with woodland critters to save the world from twisted monsters. It’s rated PG-13 and has mild language, graphic violence, and intense scenes. Eryl is a dark high fantasy about a fallen angel, a woman on a journey to find a dragon, and a wyvern who has been kidnapped. It’s rated 16+ and contains strong language, nonsexual nudity, and graphic violence. https://twitter.com/kickyourwrasse/status/1277315129793826816?s=21

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

Only In Your Dreams! is a rom-com Drama comic featuring shoujo and future LGBT+ elements. Also a mainly BIPOC cast! Rated: PG16+ There are some suggestive language & content, and partial nudity. “Cara Luong is tired of her failed dating attempts and settles for Richie, her imaginary lover every night in her sleep. When given a chance to meet him in person for the first time, she suddenly forgets their long-term romance! Now it’s up to Cara to decide if Richie can live as a real boyfriend. That is, if she wants him to exist in the first place!” What it contains: - Dumbassery moments between a dreamer and a dream boi - Expressions that you can feel it in your soul - Main romantic interest participating in healthy masculinity and embracing femmine traits - horror elements in a romance comic? huh-- - Himbo appreciation - A mixed-Black Vietnamese protag for this romantic rollercoaster lol If you're looking something self indulgent, read it why don't you? I release pages early on patreon! https://www.patreon.com/tuyetnhip Otherwise you can check out the site! It updates once bi-weekly on Wednesdays usually! http://oiydcomic.com/ Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/Only-In-Your-Dreams Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/only-in-your-dreams/list?title_no=115046 Other links: https://linktr.ee/oiydcomic

alizarin

I joined near the end of the server but I can't wait to participate in the reboot! So many interesting comics in here * _ * I make a comic called Patent the Sun, it basically reads like a big puzzle. It's about two characters who wake up without any memory, but slowly we learn about their whole universe and what happened to them. Oh and there's also magic, aliens, murder, and crossdressing https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/patent-the-sun/list?title_no=123560 https://tapas.io/series/Patent-the-Sun(edited)

Las Pinter

It is a pity that I was not so active here. I create the Tales From Somewhere comics, currently there are two of them: The Legend and The Secret. Both of them are high fantasy stories taking place in a fantasy world. The Legend is about three adventurers trying to survive in their realm. They are aware of being DnD like characters in a cruel world, where the DM wants to kill them as fast as he can... without luck so far. It has some comedy, action, horror and weird elements. This comic is ongoing since a long time, so expect to have big changes in the style and writing. The Secret is about an elf, who begins his journey from the world's end after an apocalyptic event. Accidentally meets a human thief girl, and now they are travelling together and figuring out what is happening to their world. This comic is currently being revamped and the story is continued parallelly. I would rate them R/17+ since they have some blood, violence, profanity and nudity. Website: https://www.talesfromsomewhere.com/ Tapas: - The Legend: https://tapas.io/series/Tales-From-Somewhere-The-Legend - The Secret: https://tapas.io/series/Tales-From-Somewhere-The-Secret Webtoons: - The Legend: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/tales-from-somewhere-the-legend/list?title_no=77159 - The Secret: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/tales-from-somewhere-the-secret/list?title_no=78355 And I'm on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thelaspinter

quietsnooze

Radio Silence is an award winning queer coming of age webcomic about a British rock band’s rise to fame. Hitting the road on a journey of self discovery and acceptance, this coming-of-age tale gives a backstage look at friendships and the plights of fame as experienced by a modern British rock band. On the fast track toward fame, the five members of the fictional British rock band, Radio Silence, enter into an exciting new life on the road with their best friends. As they tour across the United Kingdom, they excitedly embrace this new lifestyle and all the resulting challenges, including living in close quarters with each other with little privacy, and the overwhelming reaction of the public to their new-found success. Main site: http://radiosilencecomic.com/ Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/radio-silence/list?title_no=35242 Twitter: http://twitter.com/quietsnooze

Tired Programmer

This is mine. There will be update tomorrow (in 10 hours). https://tapas.io/series/The-story-of-how-humanity-has-thrown-itself-into-the-scrapyard Civilization, technologically advanced in the past, is now in decline. Killer and hacker are trying to survive and find the answers to their questions among the ruins. What will they meet in this crazy and cruel world of misused technologies? WARNING: strong language, violence and nudity. Only for adults.

JUNK

If any creators or readers are looking for another webcomic server to hang out in, you can check out this one: https://discord.gg/qjWJt7

I'll post it in the general channel too. :3

sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead)

I wish we could have had a bit more time, but thanks everyone for creating such a great space for webcomic creators!! I make HANS VOGEL IS DEAD: an antifascist fairy tale with elements of historical fantasy. A German fighter pilot is shot down and killed during the Battle of Britain. When he wakes up in a fairytale afterlife, he learns what the evil he served has destroyed, and must undo the damage of fascism to become a better person. The end of Volume 1 is coming in the next two weeks, and September will be the fifth anniversary! You can read it on Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/hans-vogel-is-dead/list?title_no=62633 and find me on twitter! https://twitter.com/chjorniy_voron

Haruh2 (Colony Life)

This was such a great discord, hopefully we can keep in touch and still chat about comics and such my twitter is : https://twitter.com/Haruh2 Here is my comic Colony Life, ive been working on this for abit and will always love making this comic no matter what https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/colony-life/list?title_no=193784

boniae

I regret that I wasn't more active in here besides occasional lurking, but I always think back fondly to the CTP chat that my comic was discussed in, it was the first time I ever got to see so much in depth feedback and analysis on my comic and I will forever appreciate this server Four Corners is set in 1995, Yokohama, as the story follows Kazuhiro Tsuchiya who now leads his deceased brother's legendary gang, the Four Corners. Kazuhiro is approached by Hideki Yuhara, a schoolmate who claims to have vital information that Kazuhiro should be wary of. The two unlikely delinquents pair up to figure out the reason as to why gangs in the city are being brutally eliminated...though the unraveling of the mystery is darker than it appears. How far will Kazuhiro and Hideki go to rest their case? If you're looking for a slow burn lgbt romance, 90s manga nostalgia, drama, mystery, and a story with a general theme of: misfits who come together against dangerous odds to protect others, especially the ones they love—come check it out! https://tapas.io/series/four-corners/ http://fourcornerscomic.com/ https://twitter.com/boniaeart

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

I'll really miss having a new comic to read every week! My comic is called Super Galaxy Knights Deluxe R. It's a story of a small woman from a small town who goes on adventures across a strange kingdom. Action, comedy, and very, very slow burn romance... http://sgkdr.thecomicseries.com/ https://tapas.io/series/sgkdr https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/super-galaxy-knights-deluxe-r/list?title_no=41795

LeahVillart

I haven't done much work or anything in general these past months because they've been utter shit for me. This year had stuff breaking in my home, my grandma died from covid, family issues, found out my 9yo dog has lymphoma (blood cancer) and I got to a break point and I'm trying to recover from all the shit. Now it's late and I'm tired so I'm gonna make a super sleepy pitching~ I make Teach Me To Kill a horror-comedy webcomic about a school of villains and killers where a new seemingly innocent teacher arrives to help the worst class become the horror legends they are "destined" to become. [IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH] If you like contradicting/opposite genres or themes you'll find it here, violence, blood, kills, but all done with a cute colorful style where nothing is as it seems. With a cast made of crazy humans, detectives, monstergirls and guys like -our sexy looking hybrid vampire Daki who didn't ask for any of the cards she's been dealt and only wants to find true love and not something attracted by her vampiric aura. - Our lil raven kid Nayla who is a sugar bomb ready to explode, but can break a mountain in two. - Kyllian, a boy who's managed to make a personality out of each of his expressions, which sometimes is helpful and others a horrible mistake. - Q.Bee, an innocent looking girl who radiates sensuality in some weird way luring her victims into her trap. You never know what she's thinking or could do at any moment. the cast and world is really huge and don't want to spoil more, but it's filled with slice of life, mystery, action, dark humor, romance, fantasy, paranormal stuff. A total mix. If you give it a read, thanks for doing so and hope you like it! <3 http://teachmetokill.com/(edited)

Comic Tea Party

This concludes our final #creator_babble chat. Thank you so much to all the wonderful creators who have participated in this chat over its existence. It has been great to see your enthusiasm for the craft of webcomics, as well as learn your unique stories of how you pursue it. We are positive these conversations have helped many other creators out, so we appreciate you having them. For this conversation, and all past #creator_babble chats, you’ll be able to find them archived here: https://comicteaparty.com/creatorbabble

[alindakb]

Letters to my Parents - Thursday 26 September 1991 - by Alinda

Thursday 26 September 1991

Dear mom and dad,

I hate Malfoy. I really hate him. I never believed I would meet someone I would hate more than Dudley, but I was so wrong. He tries to sit next to me in every class and keeps hitting my right arm when he makes notes. He says it’s the only way he can write properly and that I should stay out of his way, but how am I supposed to do that? He keeps pushing me to the left side of the tables and taking the seat next to me so our arms keep bumping into each other.

And he keeps talking about how good he is in Quidditch and flying, ever since the notice for our flying lessons was posted on the notice board. He complains all the time that it’s unfair that he’s not allowed his own broom and that he’s not allowed to try out for the Quidditch house team. And don’t get me started about all the stories of how he narrowly escapes helicopters. And after every story he has to remind everyone that I don’t have my own broom and how I’m going to make a fool of myself in front of the Gryffindor’s, shaming the Slytherin house even more.

Malfoy also makes fun of me every morning when I don’t receive any mail, reminding me that I don’t have any friends or family that care about me. He receives daily packages from his home with sweets and other treats that he shares with the others, except me of course, because I’ve not earned them.

On Wednesday, the day before our flying lesson I talked about it with Hermione. We still are spending every afternoon together in the library, doing our homework. She’s the only person talking to me. I’ve been afraid to spend more time with most of the Gryffindor’s because I’m afraid Nott will hurt me. I think Ron is disappointed that I’m ignoring him, but I don’t want him to get hurt because of me. And when Nott or Malfoy make fun of me in class, he laughs just like the others. So, I’m also not sure if he would be a good friend to me. Hermione is the only one that won’t laugh. She just looks very angry every time something happens.

Hermione was also afraid of the flying lesson. She had tried to learn all about it by reading a book called Quidditch Through the Ages. She gave me tips that might help, like how to hold the broom and what not to think about when in the air. And never look down when you’re afraid.

The flying lesson is thought by Madam Hooch. She has yellow eyes like a hawk. We had to go stand next to a broom and hold out our hand above the broom and say up. My broom jumped into my hand at once, I and Malfoy were the only ones that managed that. Madam Hooch gave me a friendly smile and I felt proud of myself. Next, we got to mount the brooms and Malfoy got told that he was holding his broom wrong. He complained about that to Nott, saying that Hoochy had no idea what she was talking about.

Before we got a chance to lift off, something happened to Neville. I think he lifted up too soon and he started rising higher and higher above the ground. Neville was as white as a ghost and started to slip off his broom. He fell down and broke his wrist. If Neville continues like this, he’ll be a regular at the hospital wing before the first month of school is over. Madam Hooch took him to the hospital wing and threatened us that we would be expelled if we would fly on our brooms.

As soon as Madam Hooch was out of sight Malfoy and Nott started laughing and making fun of Neville. One of the Gryffindor girls told them to shut up, and that made Parkinson snap at her. I was afraid they were going to fight, but then Malfoy picked up a glass ball from the ground and said it was the stupid thing Longbottom’s gran had sent him. Ron told him to give it to him, but Malfoy refused and said he would leave it in a tree. Ron yelled at him to give it back. And then Malfoy got on his broom and took off. He hovered level with the topmost branches of an oak and called for Ron to come and get it. Ron took his broom and was planning to take off when Hermione pulled on his arm and told him he couldn’t, that he would get them all in trouble. But Ron pushed her to the side and flew into the air after Malfoy. But Malfoy was a better flyer than Ron, so he moved away from him quickly, manoeuvring like a practice flyer. He smiled while moving around, lighting up his whole face. And Ron just became redder and redder while he tried to catch up with Malfoy. After a while, Malfoy threw the glass ball high into the air and streaked back toward the ground. He landed with grace and stepped off his broom like it was nothing. Ron stumbled to the ground next to him, but I wasn’t really looking at him, and Malfoy noticed that my eyes were on him and shouted at me to stop staring with my stupid face. When Madam Hooch came back she cancelled the rest of the lesson and told us we will continue next week. That saddened me because I wanted to try to fly like Malfoy had done. It looks like it’s a lot of fun.

That night Malfoy was bragging in the dormitory about how he was better at flying than the Weasel, that’s what he calls Ron. Nott kept making amazed sounds about how he couldn’t believe how stupid Longbottom was, not even capable of flying a broom as a full-blood was just a decrease. I tried not to listen to them, but it was hard. And then Goyle said that it was worse to see how I couldn’t stop staring at Malfoy, making them all turn on me. Asking me if I liked what I saw, stating I was a poof and should keep my eyes to myself. Malfoy threatened to hex me if he caught me looking at him again. I tried to tell them I’m not like that, that they have nothing to worry about, but they wouldn’t listen.

Last Saturday I wandered around the school by myself, just like the weekend before. I’ve been afraid to join the Gryffindor’s because of what Nott would do. The bruise on my abdomen had only just started fading away. And the Slytherin’s don’t want me to hang out with them, so I’ve been spending the weekends by myself, exploring the castle. I checked out the trophy room last week and found out that you, dad, where a seeker when you went to school. I’ve been reading Quidditch through the Ages and it sounds like an amazing sport. Maybe I’ll learn how to play it one day and maybe I’ll be just as good as you.

But while I was wondering around the castle I ran into Hermione and we decided to wander around together. We got totally lost, having no idea how to get back to the great hall in time for dinner. And then we ran into Nott, Goyle and Crabbe. They made fun of us, saying the mudblood should give up right now, that a poof like me would never be able to satisfy her. Hermione was almost in tears because of their mean words and I told them to shut up. And that felt really good until Goyle grabbed me and pushed me against the wall. He took out his wand and placed it against my face, threatening that he would hex the hell out of me. Hermione was screaming for him to stop and Crabbe and Nott just laughed. As soon as Goyle lowered his wand I ducked and yelled to Hermione to run. We sprinted down the hall, not looking if the boys were following us. I just knew we had to get out of there before they would hurt us. We swung around a doorpost and galloped down a corridor until we ripped through a tapestry and found ourselves in a hidden passageway. We hurtled along it and came out near our Charms classroom.

I thought we lost them until we heard noise coming from the passageway. We sprinted away again to the end of the corridor and slammed into a door that was locked. I thought that was it, I was finally going to get beaten to death, but luckily Hermione is a smart witch and she knew a spell to open the door. It’s really simple, just a whispering Alohomora will open any door. We went inside and I pressed my ear against to door to listen. I could hear Nott and Goyle run by, shouting at each other, wondering where we went. And then the hallway became quiet. Hermione was tugging on my robe by then and I told her it would be okay, that they had passed. What I didn’t know yet was that we were in the forbidden corridor on the third floor and that it was occupied by a monstrous dog with three heads. It was growling thunderous. At that moment I didn’t care that Nott and Goyle were still close, if it was a choice between getting beaten or getting eaten, I’ll go for being beaten. But Nott and Goyle were gone when we came out of the corridor. We ran away from it and only stopped until we reached a portrait of a fat lady on the seventh floor.

For a while Hermione and I just stood there, catching our breaths. I asked her what the hell is wrong with this school, keeping a thing like that locked up in a corridor. But Hermione snapped at me, telling me to use my eyes the next time because that dog had been standing on a trapdoor, that it was obviously guarding something. And that made me remember the package that Hagrid had taken from Gringotts just before the break-in. Maybe the mystery package from vault seven hundred and thirteen is hidden underneath the trapdoor. Just meeting the three-headed dog was already a big adventure and I would love to have another one.

Oh, and this is also when I discovered the location of the Gryffindor common room, the portrait of the fat lady is their entrance. Hermione made me swear not to tell anyone since I’m not supposed to know. And I won’t, she’s my only friend in this school, I would never want to get her into trouble.

It feels good to have a secret together with Hermione that nobody else knows about. It makes me feel a little less alone, it makes all the teasing a little better to bear. I still wish they would stop, all of them. And I’m scared of the looks Nott and Crabbe keep giving me like they are waiting for the perfect opportunity to finish what they started in the hallway next to the Charms classroom this Saturday. Otherwise, this week has been the same as the ones before. Malfoy and Nott make fun of me whenever they can. Crabbe and Goyle trip me multiple times a day. I hide away during lunch and in the library after lessons, doing my homework together with Hermione. And when it’s time for dinner I wait till the Slytherin boys have left before I even start, because they would steal my food if I don’t. And of course, I’m not allowed in the dormitory showers until they are all done in there, because they’ve decided that I’m a poof and cannot be trusted around them. And only because I was fascinated about how much joy Malfoy was experiencing when he was flying his broom. It just made me jealous, nothing else. It wasn’t like I fancy him or anything.

Today we had our second flying lesson and I finally made it into the sky. When I kicked off and was floating in the sky, only a meter from the ground I knew I was going to love this. We aren’t allowed to go any higher yet, but I can’t wait to feel the air rush through my hair when I’m allowed to fly more. I’m sure I’ll be smiling just like Malfoy had when he was racing through the sky. It all feels so natural to be on a broom, to hover above the ground. I don’t think I need to get taught how to fly, it’s easy and wonderful. And maybe I’ll be able to prove myself to the other boy’s when I’m finally good at something. Maybe it will make them treat me as a person worthy of their time.

I love you and miss you terribly,

Harry James Potter

(find the entire story at https://archiveofourown.org/works/15351042/chapters/35620452)

[lsgingasblog]

Of Transfer Student and Fierce Rivalry

This work I ended up combining 3 days. So spoiling Diana, Anniversary and Free day, of which I went unoriginal with Harry Potter AU.

Again sorry for the length on this one and being so late.

To read in AO3:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/15380559/chapters/35694663

Atsuko Kagari, muggle born witch. Gryffindor seeker. Infamous troublemaker. Unconventional duelist. Entertainer extraordinaire. Loyal Friend. Infectious smile and energy. Girlfriend to part veela Ravenclaw seeker Diana Cavendish.

And this particular Ravenclaw seeker felt pretty bad right now to call herself girlfriend to such an amazing individual as Akko.

Both Frank and I were fulfilling an errand for school, promotion for the tri-wizard tournament that was going on.

It would’ve made more sense if Miss O’Neil, one of the competitors where present, but I suppose the headmistress was aware how unruly she could be.  Also O’Neil did crudely blurt out ‘Miss me with the politics, I just wanna beat the other schools’. Miss O’neil once again callously misses the main intent of the tri-wizard tournament, but she’s not the main troublemaker I care to often keep in line if things go too out of control.

I stare at the slumbering brunette in my immediate view and I feel the corners of my lips tugging upwards. Despite my sheer exhaustion, I crouch down to akko, passed out on the biggest couch in the head common room.

She is the epitome of calm and pleasant when like this, although I don’t particularly mind her various facets including her more rambunctious side.

It would seem I really did muck something up here. Glancing around I see streamers, balloons, plastic cups and cake. Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, constanze, jasminke, barbs and Hannah seem to be spread about on head common room floor. Akko wanted to throw me a surprise party no doubt.

I take a gander at Frank for his reaction of our messy shared common room but he seemed to only chuckle and shake his head while heading to his room.

He sends a wave my way mumbled a ‘night’, which I returned and he closed the door behind him. Leaving me with sounds of snoring, breathing and turning around of the various guests.

I can’t blame him. I’m exhausted as well, it’s nearly 4 am after all.

I’m touched by Akko’s efforts though, not only in instances like this but also for the little things she does.

For example how she knows I hate it when it hails, because it reminds me of the weather the day my mom passed away and she always does something silly or brings my favorite dessert to cheer me up. Or even that I only ever drink up to half of the butter beer and she usually ends up being the one to drink the rest. Or even how I always have a hair tie that I play with after something snide or callous gets directed towards me about my part veela heritage or past and she promptly intervenes by either cutting the person off or changing the course of the conversation.

I feel so utterly pampered by this lovely individual, yet she also brings a sort of fire out of me and not just the kind of sexual attraction, no, the kind that keeps me on my toes, makes me feel conflicted because I want to outrival her yet also support her.

A competitive energy not only present in Quidditch or defense against the dark arts or even dueling.

No, we even make each other better in areas we aren’t too confident and we dare to explore various facets of our self because our lives have been so involved with one another the last few years.

I crawl next to Akko on the couch and she instinctively moves over and hugs me while mumbling some incoherent words.  I could go to my room, but there’s no place I’d rather be right now to be honest.

I will properly thank all of them later today, but now I just want to drift back to sleep and thank the lucky stars the day this girl barreled into my life.

Actually it’s been exactly 4 years from today, that Akko and I became friends.

Our initial relationship was definitely more civility than friendliness and more an intense competitive nature above all else, but looking back I don’t think I would change it for the world, after all it’s the initial skepticism of each other that makes the eventual transition to a more friendly rivalry and irreplaceable friend/ individual in each other’s life that much more poignant.

I had transferred in the middle of my 3rd year at Hogwarts.

I was originally at bauxbottons. Due to various circumstances I found myself at Hogwarts instead.

I got sorted into Ravenclaw. The transition period of starting in the middle of the year wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

Strangely enough I felt more at home at Hogwarts the first week even, despite all the conflicting emotions, more so than Baux ever gave me in the years I went there.

The many surprises were the likes of Andrew, Hannah and Barbara being at Hogwarts.

Andrew’s mother and my mother were close and therefore we used to be close friends too in our early childhood, but due to being shipped to boarding schools abroad shortly after our mothers died and just trying to cope with everything around us, we drifted apart and there was a lot of bad air that needed to be cleared up. Besides, last I heard Andrew was attending Durmstung.

Even Hannah and Barbara that went to preparatory baux with me I didn’t seek to contact them after we separated because I assumed the same loss of contact with Andrew would occur again with them and seeing as they didn’t sent any letter my way, I figured I was right.

Making lasting friends or friends in general was never my forte and due to being ¼ veela I’m also weary of people approaching me because they genuinely like me or for my looks or accuse my supposed veela powe to having manipulated them, or worse even because of being connected to Cavendish Medic Association.

Although fat lot of good that will do them, if the association continues the way it is going Cavendish MA will go bankrupt thanks to my aunt’s insistence on lavish living and cutting corners in all the wrong areas.

These past months was busy getting the handle on the school grounds, where the classes were, the library, and the various nook and crannies of the place and I have to admit, Hogwarts is utterly enchanting, not only because of all the incantations done on it, but just everything about it.

I can see why my mother fell in love with it, the year she stayed here for the tri-wizard tournament as a Buax student in her last year.

Coincidentally this is where she met my dad, but I have yet to stumble on any school pictures of my dad. I remember being told he was Gryffindor Quidditch captain, so it’s unusual I have yet to see it.

Perhaps Gryffindor common room? But who can I possibly….? Ooh….of course. I feel a headache come on as soon as those amber eyes and mischievous smile pop up.

Atsuko Kagari. The hyper-active, brazen, incomprehensible muggle born witch.

My complex feelings regarding Kagari were frustrating to say the least.

My first impression of her was that she was juvenile and reckless. Sending paper birds around class and disrupting it. My second impression of her is that she is too fidgety for her own good and lastly she always mettles in places and people that do not directly concern her and its downright infuriating.

Don’t believe me?

Exhibit A.

I knew I had to eventually try to make peace with Andrew, but it’s been over 2 month since that first awkward exchange andrew initiated my first day here with a simple ‘It’s nice to see you again’ passed through means of a note.

I was thoroughly confused because just over 2 years ago at a Christmas function Andrew purposely shut down any conversation I attempted to start with him, worst of all we were sitting at the same table due to my aunt wanting to suck up to Andrew’s dad, possible for more investment capital in Cavendish MA, but with the results of most investment in the last few years not being visible, this whole attempt is rather in vain.

That Christmas dinner solidified my views on the impossibility of anything amicable being had between Andrew and me.

‘It’s nice to see you again’ is definitely not what I was expecting.

However I would quickly find out Atsuko Kagari was the center of this transformation, as she is for most of the eventful occurrences in my life ever since I came to Hogwarts.

Before this I had already gotten declarations from Akko calling me her rival.

This all started in a particular Defense against the dark arts class where it was the monthly dueling class.

Atsuko Kagari is not the most studious alumni, but she’s exceptional in 2 academic disciplines in particular defense against the dark arts and linguistics. Of which despite her more dismal or passable grades for some of the other courses she is top of the class in both of those.

Being used to topping pretty much all classes for as long as I’ve been in school, it was surprising to not be at the top. At first I was annoyed, not because of some arrogance or anything thinking I was owed the spot, because mother told me to never believe the world owes you anything, but rather to work for what you want, no it came from a chilling realization that all I’ve truly had ever since my mother passed away are my academics.

With a family that treats me either like a stranger or a nuisance and my less than stellar track record with making lasting friends I have buried myself in knowledge, because that is something no one can take away from me.

Unlike that dark hailing day my mother was taken from me or the hailing morning 1 week after my Aunt told me ‘Beauxbottons is the alma matar of Cavendish so pack up’. I had to leave the one place I call home in less than 24 hours to boarding school in France. Or even my disappointment when andrew didn’t respond to any of the letter I sent him up to 2 months after he left for Bulgaria.

After the 3rd week at Hogwarts I starting tying for first spot in DADA class alongside Akko and this did not sit well with her. DADA, linguistics and Quiddtich are after all things she feels quite strongly for by how much she talks about each of those topics, mind you this is only from stray conversation from where I sit at the Raven claw table.

Of which she sometimes sits at next to Andrew, but that girl cares little for house separation seeing her group of friends.

This mousy girl Lotte Yanson from Hufflepuff, the robust and kind Jasminka Antonellie and Andrew’s best friend Frank also in Hufflepuf. Then we have her rowdy best friend and fellow Gryffindor Amanda O’Neil that is exasperatingly more of a handful than Kagari. She has Slytherin friend in Sucy Manbavaran as well, at least I think they are. And Ravenclaw with Andrew and this one tiny girl that has a habit of writing what she wants said or having a tiny robot of sorts say it for her, Constanze I believe her name was. For the life of me I can’t seem to remember the rest of her names.

Coincidentally Constanze noticed my sightline one morning while we were both eating breakfast on the Ravenclaw table.

Kagari was surrounded by that big group of friends, she and O’Neil were the loudest of the group and so early in the morning too….

I turn to regard Constanze, this was not my first encounter with her, as I have sat next to her in some classes in the few weeks I’ve been here.

That said she never registered more than fleeting acknowledgment or a nod at best.

She starts writing on the portable board she carries around at times. ‘Akko is special’.

Well yes I was beginning to understand that as well. It’s even more amazing because she only knew of the world famous magician Shiny Chariot, but none of the tradition, basics or anything natural to magic born community and yet she’s so free and doing so well.

I imagine her adaption period must have been stressful, but I admire and respect how utterly her home she has made Hogwarts and building up her unusual, diverse yet sizable group of friends.

Just then Kagari approaches the table and ask Constanze if she wants to join them she merely responds with a nod and walks over to the Gryffindor table where the whole group was bunched up.

Akko walks along but not before shooting me a frown and particular hostile look my way.

And it just makes me annoyed. I did nothing to provoke her and yet she’s behaving like this.

The only words I addressed to her were particular outstanding moments she was disrupting the class for too long and she always sent a glare my way, but I haven’t done so in close to 2 weeks so I fail to understand what warranted that reaction.

Fast-forward to a week later and we have the monthly duel class for DADA.

Kagari challenged me to a duel and in all honesty the less than amicable looks my way were not appreciated, especially since I have no idea what set them off. I admit it was extra irksome because Akko never shows prolonged annoyance to anyone, partly due to her attention span not allowing that, but also she’s been known to get along with everyone, so not only was I miffed but a bit hurt and confused as well why this particular negative attention was directed at me.

I ended up beating her best 2 out of 3, but the various things she throws at you from flying squirrels to jack and marbles was frustrating, especially since I did fall during the marbles one which is why she soundly won one of the rounds, despite my embarrassment I have to admit her reflex and quick-thinking is admirable although she gets too full of herself easy which ended up being her downfall.

I tried commenting this for a point of improvement and she gets angrier and declares she doesn’t want pity from her rival and she will beat me next time. I was left perplexed and annoyed. This girl is incomprehensible.

However this was not all.

Shortly after this, Andrew and I were bizarrely put in situations where we were stuck in various places together for a prolonged amount of time.

I was furious because I know it was her doing after the first two.

However as much as I disliked being misled one of those sessions did end up with Andrew and I both apologizing and starting bit by bit to rebuild a friendship.

The issue with Hannah and Barbara got resolved with almost the same methods, although the relationship with those two is still a bit sore, but it’s making baby steps progress, so that’s the best I can hope for.

Also Barbara seems to have made fast friends with Lotte. I don’t think a Slytherin and Hufflepuf such fast and close friends is something that is seen often. Although I suppose that vapid book series is partially to thank for that. Leave it to akko, even if it was an indirect effect.

Andrew told me to hang out with them, but despite Akko’s many help she still glares or frowns at me, and I do quite understand where I stand with her and part of me feels annoyed to be so indebted to the girl.

She makes tons of messes that I sometimes get asked to clean up due the teacher’s knowing my role as a prefect of sorts in beaux, since they start at an earlier year than Hogwarts.

And yet she cleans up the messes I’ve made that I was either to afraid or incapable of doing so, until she forced me to face them.

Actually another thing that probably made me hesitant to join Andrew and the others was Exhibit B, Quidditch.

While the ravenclaw seeker was already chosen since I came in the middle of the 3rd year, sometime in March the seeker stepped down because of wanting to focus on his NEWTS, since it was his last year.

The backup Ravenclaw seeker had dragon pox and since professor nelson has seen me in a baux quidditch match last year when she came to visit a friend, she knows I play.

And so I got roped in to play my first game as a Ravenclaw seeker against Gryffindor.

At this point I was half tempted to let Akko win, a part of me wanted to join that colorful group of friends without having to feel bad about it, because the one they all appreciate, Akko, isn’t too keen on me.

However Akko got angrier when she called me out on not trying hard enough. I realize after her outburst that I wanted to fight her earnestly as well.

We were neck and neck but at the very last moment I won out and ravenclaw beat Gryffindor that match.

I was half expecting Akko to be angrier but she burst out laughing and then become serious.

“As your rival I swear I’ll beat you next time Diana!” all the while pointing her finger at me and proceeded to storm off.

Well actually I suppose that one wasn’t too bad in hindsight.

Actually I’m just searching for excuses to not get sucked into Akko’s pacing, but everything she does is both heartfelt at times and/or utterly nerve-wrecking and she thrives on a chaos that I am wholly unfamiliar with.

My last point of this, exhibit C if you will, although at this point I’m unsure what I’m even trying to convince myself off any more….

A few days before today Slytherin and Ravenclaw Quidditch teams were getting ready for the match today.

Some slytherins though weren’t happy with me playing, saying my veela powers would be used to distract them and therefore I wasn’t allowed to play, which was absurd, although this is sadly not the first time I heard such asinine excuses or snide remarks being made in regards to my progeny.

The Slytherin that were angry tried ambushing me and I was managing fine on my own but they became 5 against one. Just when I was being pushed to a corner then Andrew and Akko showed up too and fended them off alongside me. They heard wind of this from talks at the common room area. So they decided to come find me.

Akko mentions jokingly she does get the whole “Cavendish is distracting part”. I get annoyed and flustered. I start playing with my hair tie around my hand and decide to dismiss myself after thanking them.

Akko is an enigma. She claims to be my rival and while I enjoy the thrill and excitement of our duels and fighting on the pitch, more than anything I wanted to get closer to her. To be part of her inner circle. That very desire though scares more than anything else.

I came to Hogwarts partially hoping for a transformative change for me, and Akko is about as literal as a personification of one if I ever saw it. And yet part of me was resisting this. Telling myself it’s fleeting or it’s all happening so fast. I was scared what a Diana that actually lets go of parts of herself she has clung on to would even look like.

However right now where I’m at, with a bruised ankle, possibly sprained hiding behind a big tree while having an invisibility and magic cloaking spell in effect. All of my earlier notions of fear of change seems rather silly.

How exactly did I end up here?

Short story some Slytherins weren’t happy I didn’t get replaced or taken out of the game, so they came up with a plan to teach me a lesson.

The morning of the game I looked outside and it was dark and hailing. The one weather I absolutely loathe because of how all my most misfortunate moments happened in that weather.

Akko came to do her usual rival declaration and saying don’t let anyone else but her beat me, I unreasonably snapped at her and for probably the first time I didn’t get an indignant response back but she looked hurt said ‘fine’ and just walked off.

I was starting this game in the worst frame of mind already. It is for that reason that after repeatedly having to dodge the bludgers sent my way by the beaters when someone from the crowd threw something at me when I was nearby when I just swerved to miss the bludger, I caught it.

I noticed too late one of the boys yesterday I was fending off threw me the item. I feel the tug of teleportation and as I crash on the foreign ground I notice the sky even more impossibly dark, even more hail and in the darkness of the sky moving figures. Dementors. It was a portkey.

I’ve been running and fending them off but patronus charm is something I’m no good at, can’t seem to make a strong enough one to create a corporal animal.

Maybe that’s why I’m here right now thinking back to scattered moments in my short 4 months in Hogwarts.

I heard getting your soul sucked out by dementors is immensely painful.

I already feel weak because by pure luck I managed to escape when 5 ambushed me.

I think back to my mom and I can’t imagine she would ever wanted to be reunited with me quite so soon.

Or how I failed to verify the legend of the 7 words of Arcturus she confessed to me a few months before passing is a key to something greater and might not only help Cavendish MA, but both the muggle and magical world.

And yet despite all of this my thoughts come back to Atsuko Kagari.

She, who has managed to change to indifferent Andrew. She, who has managed to make the mean spirited and at times haughty Hannah and Barbs friends or at very least civil towards people in different houses.

They who were stuck with class segregation, sure they are still a bit snooty, but the progress they have made is noticeable.

Akko is utterly vibrant and I can’t deny she has begun to change me too and despite being constantly out of my comfort zone around her I’m not upset, rather she excites me and makes me feel lighter.

Actually, earlier I said pure luck that I escaped the dementors earlier but that isn’t true, it was brief but the moment her face and wide teasing infuriating smile popped into my head I made a corporal patronus. It seemed like a horse, but I didn’t stick around to watch and took the opportunity to make a mad dash to possible safety.

I’m not sure if I can do the same though, because my one regret is that we never stated we were friends.

Sure we were rivals, but I would never admit that to Akko’s face. More than anything I want to be considered among the people she treasures the most, it’s silly given how I tended to react around her, especially at the start.

Additionally I had shot her down before the match today when she just wanted to give the usual rival speech of only her being able to beat me, But given the weather and where my thoughts were going back to I snapped at her and I didn’t apologize because the match was starting.

My power is waning, the invisibility and suppression spells are gone. I close my eyes. I couldn’t ever imagine this would be my end. I don’t want this to be it for me, but I hear something approaching. I decide to fight one last time, at least I will go out having tried my hardest. I open my eyes.

“Diana!” I am onslaught by an exuberant embrace. It’s Akko. She seems to be crying and holds me even tighter.

I am unable to form words. Akko pulls me away to inspect and I already miss the warmth she provided after all the dark clouds and hail provide little as means to keep warm.

“Diana….listen I went ahead but professor Ursula and headmistress Holbrooke should be heading here, we’re going to get out here, promise” Akko gave me a worried look while she was holding both my shoulders.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you akko” my exhaustion is starting to catch up with me.

“What? Ooh don’t worry about that. Come on Diana I’ll help you up and lean on me, one of you ankles seems pretty bruised, I’ll help you walk.”

I accept her help but I’m confused “Why did you come here?”

She sighs and looks at me from our position of having my arm draped over her shoulder.

“What kind of question is that even Diana, you’re my friend so of course I would come for you.”

My throat feels like it has something stuck in it, because I’m overcome with a feeling of relief and gratitude right then. I don’t trust my usual tone, but I respond anyway.

“I thought we were rivals” I croaked out, barely holding back being a crying mess.

Akko sends a beaming smile my way. “So you do admit we’re rivals!”

“No, I’m merely using the words you frequently and enthusiastically direct towards me” I look away from her gaze. I’m unsure why exactly I’m getting flustered at this.

“We can be both!” I glance back at her and she gives me a soft smile.

I chuckle wholeheartedly.

We continue walking a bit more, it’s going slower than I would like, because of my ankle.

We hear rustling again it’s a hoard of dementors, 10 maybe, not at least 20 or 30 even approaching from a distance.

Akko pulls me close by the waist as a response for having held on tighter to her shoulders. We both have our wands at hand.

I’m beyond exhausted, but I refuse to die here. Not after the elation I felt when finding out I’m one of Akko’s treasure people or finally warming up to the idea of accepting change in my life.  

I think I have a moment that might finally be strong enough for a patronus charm.

So I close my eyes and we both yelled out at the same time. “Expecto patronum!”

A majestic bird came out of the tip of akko’s wand and I notice mine wasn’t a horse, but rather a unicorn.

We keep at it for a while and driving away some, but more keep heading towards us.

We keep at this for quite a bit and I have sadly reached my limit. My knees buckle next to akko and I see her crouch down next to me while still holding out her wand hand with the activated patronus charm. My eye lids are growing heavy and the last thing I see are the beads of sweat on her face and the tired look as she finally stops the patronus charm, with a hoard of dementors still storming towards us.

I wake up and I’m staring at a white ceiling. It smells of antiseptic and fresh linen.

I turn around to see akko with her head resting on the side of my bed in a chair.

“Her neck is going to wake up stiff”

I’m startled by the voice that just came from the opposite side of me.

“Andrew” I announce hoarsely. I shift myself to a more upright position and notice how sore I am.

“I’m glad you are awake and looking better Diana” Andrew regarded me with a smile. I return the gesture.

“Miss Kagari is truly an indomitable force, wouldn’t you agree Diana?” as I was about to respond we both turn our attention to stirring.

Akko rubs her eyes and sports a wide smile once she notices I’m awake. “Diana!” and she proceeds to enthusiastically hug me. I inwardly groan from the soreness, but a hug from Akko is totally worth it, even if I’m not used to such affectionate and frequent displays of appreciation and care.

Andrew sends a knowing smile my way almost as if to say ‘See, did we ever stand a chance against her?’

I’m inclined to agree, with such an indomitable force as Akko Kagari it’s near impossible to remain completely unaffected by her mere presence and I can’t say I mind it too much.

I wake up in a wonderful mood. Akko has drooled on my neck again and her leg is completely draped over my legs, with her one hand pressing me lightly against her and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I decide to get up however, because unfortunately Holbrooke asked me to report to her how the tri-wizard event went.

I try to slip away but Akko merely holds on tighter. “Don’t go”

I could remind her of how headmistress is expecting me, but seeing as Frank’s door is still closed, I relented and decide to relax again in the hug.

Akko opens her eyes and lifts her face from my neck to look at me “I missed you”

“I missed you too, sorry about not making it back in time” I respond softly and apologetically back. Akko smiles and shakes her head.

“Don’t worry I had a back-up plan all along. You’ve had the crown for throwing the most extravagant and thoughtful parties for you girlfriend for too long. I will usurp you today!”

I chuckle. It’s ridiculous how we still compete with each other.  Stronger even instead of being less, like one would expect we found new silly, creative, exciting and adventurous ways to find something to challenge each other with. It’s never a dull moment with my lovely girlfriend.

To be fair she already did an amazing job. While I was away on the tri-wizard trip to 2 different place, of which Akko knew some people there and asked for their help.

She managed to do an elaborate scavenger hunt of which she knows I’m weak for and if that wasn’t enough on the trip back home I had people, some I knew some I didn’t hand me various kind of flowers with a lovely note written on each one.

Who knew Akko would be such a romantic, then again we’re both fairly hopeless for each other in all honesty.

“I think you already won love, with the scavenger hunt and the flowers you outdid yourself. Shall I hand the crown now? Or would a later time be preferable?”

Akko grins and buries he head back on the crook of my neck.  Her muffled reply sounds out “Not until after later today”

I’m left curious what else she has in mind, but before I could ask I notice her breathing has changed.

Ooh well. I will give her the win this time she’s more than earned it, but I already started planning her upcoming birthday since last year, so I will get the crown back soon enough.

Its Sunday luckily enough so no classes. On top of that we already had a testing period just now. So nothing urgent at hand.

For now though I let out one more content sigh as I drift into a blissful slumber once again.

[fairladymarian]

I’m Not a Stranger, No I Am Yours || Self

As soon as May slipped inside her house, Lorna appeared, as if she had been waiting for May to be appear. Probably she had. It was later than she normally tried to be home, and the other staff were bound to worry about her. She really should have owled to let them know what was going on. She wasn’t sure exactly why she didn’t.

“Good evening ma’am.” The words were polite, but Lorna didn’t bother to hide the reproach in them. Despite her deep exhaustion, May smiled slightly.

“Good evening Lorna. I’m sorry I missed dinner.”

“Mrs. Reeves has kept a plate warm for you.”

Of course she had. The Marian cook was dependably as the sunrise, and she would never risk anyone in this household going hungry. No matter how picky the guest, no matter the time of day, no matter what calamity befell the rest of the world, Nora  Reeves would see that everyone who entered this house left it full and satisfied. “Has my father eaten already?”

“Yes ma’am.”

May wasn’t sure if she should acknowledge the slight relief she felt at that. If he had already eaten, that meant she didn’t feel obliged to share her own meal with him. Of course she ate with him when she was home for meals, but as time got on, it became easier and easier to come up with reasons to stay a little bit longer at the office so she wouldn’t have to. It was hard enough seeing him the way he was these days. Trying to do something as normal as share a meal with him, something that used to be an incredibly special gift, was a little harder than she could handle at the moment.

But she didn’t really want to be alone either. “I guess I’ll have to see if Mrs. Reeves will let me sneak into the kitchen to enjoy it as an apology before going up to see him. How was he today?”

“The same as always.”

The reply was short, but it was all she needed to know. Mrs. McKendrick would have put on a brave face, saying something optimistic about how she saw some improvement. Bunter would have been impassive and said he was doing well, with no qualifiers. Many of the other servants would have made some kind of quiet comment about not seeing him enough to be sure as they had been taking care of their other duties. But wonderful Lorna knew that what May wanted most was the truth. And the truth was that in the months since the trial, nothing had changed. He hadn’t gotten any better. He’d just stayed.

“Very well. Thank you Lorna.”

Lorna nodded slightly and faded back, off to continue her duties and to leave May to hers. Part of May wished she could ask Lorna to stay. To sit with her as she ate, gossip with her, laugh like they had when they’d been children who didn’t have so many expectations layered on them until it was hard to separate who they were from what they were expected to do. But it would have been selfish. Lorna had already put in a long day, and now that May was home, she would have to finish preparing for May to retire. The other woman needed her sleep. At least one of them should get a little. May already knew she wouldn’t.

Down in the kitchens, May did her best to do justice to the shepherd’s pie Nora had made for her. She knew it was the woman’s way of trying to provide as much nutrition and comfort as she could, but May was still only able to eat half of it. It was delicious. But her appetite was still nonexistent. Briefly, she wished that she had some pet, like a dog, that she could feed under the table to hide how much she had left on her plate. Then, as she had so often before, she brushed the thought aside.

May tried to pretend that she didn’t see the concerned disappointment on the cook’s face at her partially full plate as she excused herself. As she did every day, she promised herself that tomorrow she would really finish a full serving of whatever Nora gave her. She was sure to be hungrier tomorrow.

But now, she had to face her father.

As she mounted the stairs, May could feel her stomach beginning to tie itself into knots. It shouldn’t be this way. She loved her father. She loved him more than anyone else in the world. He had taught her everything she knew about flying, broommaking, poker, and the power of a boundless love. Many of her brightest memories were of the days she spent with him as he combined learning and play to remind her that while she was the Marian heir, she was still allowed to be a child. After her mother’s death, he had become almost her entire world, and she had done whatever she could to help him to try and make him proud.

When he’d gone missing, she’d felt like she was drowning every day in the loss and the loneliness. Maybe the not knowing had been the worst. Not knowing meant that hope could grow like a vine, choking out everything else and narrowing her focus to a deep and desperate prayer. She had lied, wept, sacrificed, all in order to preserve the legacy he had left her to protect even as she insisted she was only borrowing it for a little while. It had become hers and yet wasn’t hers at all because she had always assumed it would be a temporary stop gap. It was just supposed to be until he came home.

Now, there was a small treacherous part of her that wondered if their current situation was really any better.

May rapped loudly at the door of the library before slowly easing it open. It had only taken two days for the entire household to realize the wisdom of approaching this man slowly and loudly. Any action that could be construed as an attack would be met with a swift and vicious curse. Wherever he’d been for the last few years, whatever he’d been doing, the one thing that had been trained above all else had been his fighting instinct. She could only be grateful that no one had been killed before they had figured that out.

“Good evening Father. I’m home.” May had pulled together something like her usual smile. Of course, anyone who knew her well would see through it in a minute. Her father should. But the man in front of her didn’t.

He didn’t respond to her statement, merely looking up from the book he was reading at the moment. He wasn’t sitting in his usual chair in the library. Instead, he was sitting in the chair that had always been used by her uncle. It was a little thing. A stupid thing. But it bothered her and gave her heart another painful twist.

“I’m sorry I’m late. I had planned to be home earlier, but at the last minute one of the researchers asked if there was time to meet with me. Do you remember Phil Wallace? You hired him away from Comet because they were paying him peanuts for the genius work he was doing for them? He’s been the researcher most supportive of my idea of brooms specialized for specific aspects of the game, and he’s been working incredibly hard on my idea for a keeper’s broom. The seeker broom has already left research and is going into preliminary production, so soon we’ll be able to start seriously promoting our friendly advertising game.”

She paused, hoping that this time, this time, something she’d said would reach him and she would see the light of recognition in his eyes. But there was nothing.

“I was thinking of having Mulan test the first keeper’s broom. After all, as a B string player on the Harpies, no one can say that we’re giving the team an undue competitive advantage in real matches, and the stability we’re building into the keeper’s broom could also help when she’s acting as a TA or a referee. What do you think?”

Nothing. It was like talking to a brick wall. Just one that had her father’s face.

Desperately, May cast around for another topic. Every day it was the same. She came in here, she tried to speak with him, to tell him stories or talk with him like this was normally. Every day she hoped that something she would say would spark the necessary connection to help him through off the curse that held him captive. Something had to be the key that would cause the light to kindle in his eyes. Something had to make him smile at her in the way he always had before. Something had to help him remember. But for now, all she had was this stranger who wore her father’s face staring back.

“Did you look at the photo albums I left out?” One look at them was enough to be sure that he hadn’t. They were still placed exactly as she’d left them the night before. Now seemed as good a time as any to go through them. Maybe they would be what worked.

She had only tried showing him pictures once before. Those had mostly been recent pictures from the years after she’d gone to Hogwarts. Dinners, poker games, summer fete after summer fete, family Christmas, and Saturdays spent bent over his workbench together as he pointed out some new aspect of broommaking she hadn’t known before. Pictures of him with the servants, pictures with his coworkers, pictures with his friends. Each picture was increasingly bittersweet as the figures in the photos smiled and waved up at the two of them. In those pictures, her father looked more alive than he did sitting right next to her.

But this time, she had reached for the older photo albums. The ones she hadn’t been sure she was strong enough to go through. The last thing she could think to try.

As she opened the album, her breath caught slightly. It was the picture from her parents wedding day. He wore his nicest black suit, and somehow he’d found a vest that perfectly matched her hair. She wore an elegant white wedding gown, a slim column that still managed to subtly sparkle on the page. Her hair was sept up in a series of elaborate curls that looked like the pin was holding onto them entirely through magic. It looked exactly like what it was. The wedding of the rich and powerful. And yet, the couple on the page barely glanced up to see who might be looking at the picture. They never left. They barely took their eyes off each other, because in that moment, they were each other’s whole world. Even the creation of this memory was incidental to the fact that they were now married to each other.

She glanced up at her father, hoping to see some kind of glimmer in his eyes. After all, how could there not be? She had been the light of his life, his love for forever and a day, his inspiration to change, his muse, his everything. That kind of love had to leave a mark deep in your soul. How could he not respond to that?

But she couldn’t even begin to see mild curiosity there. As she turned each page, she tried to narrate what was happening in the picture, waiting, waiting for the curse to break. He had taken this picture of May and her mother as she had accidentally flown into her mother and knocked the woman down. This picture was from Christmas when May was 5, and her father had actually taken time off so the family could go on vacation. This picture was the three of them laying around in the library and reading their individual books. This picture May had taken when her parents weren’t paying attention and it captured the loving looks in their eyes. This picture was May’s first formal gathering as a Marian with them. This was the last picture taken before her mother died.

As she reached the end of the album, she closed it, hoping that maybe she was wrong and it had worked after all. But there was nothing. He looked at her for a moment before dismissing her and picking up the book he had been reading. Almost without realizing it, she glanced over to see what had captured his attention. What did this stranger want to read when given the chance.

It only took her a moment to recognize the poem.

From childhood’s hour I have not been As others were—I have not seen As others saw—I could not bring My passions from a common spring— From the same source I have not taken My sorrow—I could not awaken My heart to joy at the same tone— And all I lov’d—I lov’d alone—

As soon as she made it to that line, she stood and fled the room. All I loved I loved alone. The words echoed in her head as she made her way back to her own room. She had only just made it inside when she collapsed on the floor, curling up into a ball and shuddering violently.

What could she do? Why did nothing work? Why didn’t her father remember her? She had him back in body, but seeing him like this, empty of everything that made him the person she loved and worshipped…how was she supposed to cope?

Why wasn’t the memories of her mother enough? Why wasn’t she enough?

When her father looked at her now, there wasn’t the slightest glimmer of recognition. She wanted to grab him, shake him, scream in his face, STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE I’M SOME STRANGER! I’M YOUR DAUGHTER! I’M YOURS! But she didn’t. Because good, kind, strong, compassionate May Marian who always kept herself together under pressure wouldn’t do that. The daughter he remembered wouldn’t do that. But did it matter? He didn’t remember his daughter. She could be anyone to him. She was no one.

She bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears, but that didn’t work. Hard sobs wracked her body, tears streaming down her face as her heart shattered yet again. She hadn’t thought there had been enough of it left to break. But somehow, there was always more. More disappointment. More hurt. More realization that the person she was was not, and could never be, right for the people she loved.

She loved. But she loved alone.

[t-baba]

How to align things with CSS, and Houdini's advantages

#385 — April 3, 2019

Read on the Web

Frontend Focus

How To Align Things In CSS — There are a few ways to align elements in CSS. In this article, Rachel Andrew explains what they are with some tips to help you remember which to use and why.

Smashing Magazine

CSS Houdini Could Change the Way We Write and Manage CSS — Indeed, that's entirely why Houdini (a group of developers working on a group of cutting edge CSS-related APIs) exists :-) Here's a look at how Houdini will open the door to more modularity & configurability of your CSS.

Yangguang Li

Deploy Only the Parts of Your Application That Have Changed — Unlike most Continuous Integration (CI) solutions, Buddy only re-builds the parts of your application that have changed and deploys your updates in seconds to any cloud. Start building better frontend apps faster with Buddy.

Buddy sponsor

Managing z-index in a Component-Based Web Application — The z-index property, despite all that’s written about it, is still widely misunderstood and mishandled. Stacking issues in a complex single-page web application can become a major pain. Adhering to some principles, however, we can easily avoid these issues.

Pavel Pomerantsev

Firefox's Plan to Reduce Notification Permission Prompt Spam — Permission prompts are a common sight on the web today and while they can be useful in some situations, they are clearly overused. Mozilla are using Firefox Nightly (only) to conduct some experiments in improving the situation.

Mozilla

What Does Dark Mode’s supported-color-schemes Actually Do? — Thomas Steiner shares his understanding of the recently proposed supported-color-schemes meta tag and the corresponding CSS property.

Chromium Dev Channel

💻 Jobs

Frontend Developer at X-Team (Remote) — Join the most energizing community for developers. Work from anywhere with the world's leading brands.

X-Team

Find A Job Through Vettery — Vettery specializes in dev roles and is completely free for job seekers.

Vettery

📘 Articles, Tutorials & Opinion

Stop Using So Many DIVs: An Intro to Semantic HTML — Considering the HTML5 spec reads that “authors are strongly encouraged to view the div element as an element of last resort, for when no other element is suitable”, this article is a handy reminder of the semantic alternatives.

Ken Bellows

Enforcing Accessibility Best Practices with Automatically-Generated IDs — A technique that renders it impossible for users of a design system to omit an important attribute and accidentally create an inaccessible experience.

Brad Frost

▶  React in 7 Minutes — If you’ve been intimidated by React so far, this is a neat, code-driven whirlwind tour showing the creation of an app in just 7 minutes.

John Lindquist

You Probably Don't Need That Hip Web Framework — “The obsession with finding better frameworks is killing ideas before they reach the world.”

Owen Williams opinion

Browser Rendering Optimizations for Frontend Development — Explores the conditions that can enable (and prevent) a web app to run (optimally) at 60 frames per second.

Jordan Irabor

Learn to Build Blockchain Apps in 60 Minutes

Blockstack sponsor

How Web Pages Can Now Detect When Chrome’s Window Is Covered by Another Window — Supported on Chrome OS and macOS, with Windows support in progress.

Web Platform News

Creating a Reusable Pagination Component in Vue.js

Mateusz Rybczonek

🔧 Code and Tools

stepper: Animated Numeric Stepper Component — ..which can be used to increment or decrement a value by clicking arrows. Demo here.

Valery Alikin

yall-js: Yet Another Lazy Loader — An SEO-friendly lazy loader for <img>, <picture>, <video> and <iframe> elements, as well as CSS background images. It works in all modern browsers, including IE 11.

Jeremy Wagner

Input Type Sandbox: Test Different HTML Input Types — A quick tool that lets you dynamically select different types of form input and validation type for testing on your own browser(s).

Aaron Ladage

Typetura: Fluid Typesetting Tool — This tool, still in beta, will help you set up text transitions between breakpoints.

Scott Kellum & Sal Hernandez

Google Webfonts Helper — A ‘hassle-free’ way to self-host Google Fonts.

Mario Ranftl

Accessible Brand Colors — Shows you how ADA compliant your colors are in relation to each other.

Use All Five

React Particles WebGL: A 2D/3D Particle Library Built on Three.js

Tim Ellenberger

   🗓 Upcoming Events

IMAGECON, May 1–2 – San Francisco, CA — A two-day conference with a dozen workshops and seven speakers focused on all things images on the web.

CityJS Conference, May 3 — London, UK — Meet local and international speakers and share your experiences with modern JavaScript development.

Frontend United, May 16-18 — Utrecht, Netherlands — A yearly, non-profit, developer-first, community-focused conference.

CSSCamp 2019, July 17 — Barcelona, Catalunya — A one-day, one-track conference for web designers and developers.

by via Frontend Focus https://ift.tt/2FZ91FX

[savetopnow]

2018-03-22 03 ANDROID now

ANDROID

Android Advices

Sharp Aquos S3 Mini Smartphone Announced with FHD+ display & 6GB RAM

HTC Desire 12+ and Desire 12 Smartphones Announced with HD+ Displays

Sony Xperia L2 and XA2 series starts receiving new updates

LG Zone 4 budget friendly Smartphone now available via Verizon for $115 on prepaid

Oppo R15 Announced with 20MP front camera, 6GB RAM and Android 8.1

Android Authority

It’s now way easier to go live on YouTube

IDC: Smartwatches aren’t dead just yet

Galaxy S9 Plus costs less to manufacture than iPhone X

Messaging app Telegram must give encryption keys to Russia

Want to triple your reading speed?

Android Central

Hublot is launching a Wear OS smartwatch that costs $5,200

How to customize the Galaxy S9's Always On Display

Let these $10 Spigen Bluetooth headphones be your impulse buy of the day

OnePlus 6: News, Rumors, Release Date, Specs, and more!

Smart doorbells are way less invasive than smart cameras in the home

Android Developers

Introduction to Wear OS Application Development

Introducing Google Play Instant

Introduction to Wear OS by Google Development

Android Developer Story: Homage finds success on Google Play with Start on Android

Google Play: Keep building (Stories from successful startup founders)

Android Guys

This $29 lifetime training bundle will get you MCSA-certified

Bluboo S3 coming soon with a massive 8,500 mAh battery, 18:9 display (Promoted)

T-Mobile gifting its subscribers with MLB.TV for a year

Master & Dynamic teams up with Leica again for some exclusive headphones

Eight alternative SMS apps for Android

Android Headlines

Oscar VR Category Only A Question Of When: Hollywood Veteran

Auto-Launching Apps May Arrive With Android P

The Big Debate: Is MWC A Better Event Without Samsung?

Facebook Hit With First Lawsuits Over User Data Controversy

HTC Is Bringing The Vive Focus To More Markets This Year

Android Police

AR Smash Tanks! is a fun way to spend an afternoon smashing tanks into one another

Fleksy's 'fleksycoins' in-app rewards system is out now

Audible app crosses 100 million downloads on the Play Store

Here are 18 temporarily free and 35 on-sale apps for Wednesday

Giveaway: Win one of 20 CHOETECH T511-S 10W charging pads, 20 T511 5W charging pads, or buy now with exclusive coupon [Global]

Droid Life

Verizon CEO Thinks 5G Will Give Your Phone Month-Long Battery Life.

NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet, Tablet K1 Updated With January Security Patch

DEAL: Newest Daydream View VR Headset is 50% Today Only, Just $49.50

The Latest Android Minis Remind Me of Peeps and That Makes Me Hungry

YouTube TV Adds Two New Markets

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Galaxy S9+ vs Pixel 2 vs iPhone X photo comparison

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Google starts Assistant rollout on Android TV

Android P May Add Support for Automatic App Launching

TechCrunch Android

8bitdo’s wireless adapter adds flexibility to Xbox, PlayStation and Switch controllers

Insta360 One gets a massive upgrade with FlowState stabilization

Waze Carpool expands to the entire state of Washington

Rylo’s shoot first, frame later camera is ideal for casual adventure-seekers

Anker’s Nebula Capsule portable projector is a pocket powerhouse

[click2watch]

The $799 Coinmine One Will Look Like an Xbox and Mint Crypto Money

Try as startups might, crypto mining hasn’t yet had an everyman device.

Smart money, however, is betting that will change at the hands of a new company called Coinmine. Announced Wednesday, the startup is revealing its first product, the Coinmine One, a hardware device aimed at crypto enthusiasts who’d like to earn rewards for mining blockchains – without the need to learn a new technical skill set.

Backed by investors including Coinbase Ventures and Arrington Capital, angel investors Balaji Srinivasan (now CTO of Coinbase and a former mining entrepreneur), Morgan Creek partner Anthony Pompliano and Product Hunt co-founder Ryan Hoover also participated in the undisclosed funding.

The Coinmine One will retail for $799 and start shipping in mid-December, though the company declined to give a precise date or name a specific goal for sales. Still, CEO Farbood Nivi told CoinDesk in interview that the company believes its mining product has mass-market appeal.

Nivi explained:

“We think there’s a market for millions, if not tens of millions.”

One investor, Chapter One Ventures, explicitly backed the project because it wants to see more ways for everyday people to get involved in supporting cryptocurrency infrastructure.

“Coinmine will democratize access to becoming a miner in a fun and approachable way that almost feels like playing a video game,” its founder, Jeff Morris, Jr., told CoinDesk.

Digging into the details

For $799, the Coinmine One will sport a miner that can generate any one of the following out of the box: ether (ETH) at 29 Mh/sec, monero (XMR) at 900 h/sec, zcash (ZEC) at 320 h/sec and ether classic. With updates next year, it also expects to be able to run a stake for a Bitcoin Lightning node, Dfinity or Filecoin.

It uses roughly as much power (120 watts) as a PlayStation 3 during game play and runs at 40 decibels (quiet compared to the cacophony created by other mining products). With a profile like the one above, most people probably wouldn’t be horrified about it being visible in a room that a guest might visit.

More importantly, in an effort to make the product as user-friendly as possible, the system will be automatically updated as changes are made on the protocol and as more coins become available. Users will be able to monitor their earnings and manage them using an Android or iOS app (seen below).

If the company is right and consumers love it, don’t look for today’s mining hobbyists to agree. There’s nothing about its specs that compares to other miners sold on the market today that those much more tech savvy users are using. Coinmine One’s hash rate is much lower than those devices, and the price for its hash rate is higher.

But these issues, Nivi argues, miss a larger point.

Even if the current miners cost a third as much, he says they would still be out of reach to normal people: the ones who don’t know how to set them up or lack a place to store and operate hardware heats up quickly and generates a lot of noise. And they won’t know how to update them when protocols change, either.

Nivi and his company are betting, therefore, that there are people who want a way to participate in mining but want a lower path of entry. Another way to think of Coinmine is that it’s building on the market concept proven by what Honeyminer runs on PCs.

The CEO emphasizes the fact that the Coinmine One will remove some of the hardest work from users. He said: “The one thing that’s consistent in crypto is that it’s constantly changing and evolving. Coinmine is the only solution that makes it possible to continually be a part of that.”

Home mining is hard

That said, the business of selling home miners has not gone well historically.

Names like Butterfly Labs, Alpha Technology and GAW Miners comprise just part of a long history of mining product makers that didn’t stand the test of time (or didn’t devolve into outright fraud).

Other companies failed to balance the production-intensive process of making hardware with the demands of retail customers – particularly when the making of that hardware didn’t go according to plan. Even those that played the game by the book were unable to survive for the long-term, especially when contending with the downturn in cryptocurrency prices in 2015.

Case in point: a little piece of home mining history wrapped up this year when Josh Garza was convicted of wire fraud.

Garza’s company, GAWMiners, first made its mark by reselling imported mining equipment, and later expanded its business by hosting miners and then, later, offering so-called “virtual miners” that were later deemed securities.

Ultimately, it was Bitmain – with its economy-of-scale, access to cheap power and operation of mining services on both the hardware and software side – that came out on top, though other companies have emerged with possible competitive edges. And to this day, Bitmain still makes budget miners that could be affordable for a middle-class American consumer who owns a big garage (and a patient family tolerant of noise).

And yet it only takes a glance at any of these products to see an immediate difference from Coinmine One. ASIC miners look like enormous shoe boxes with a fan in a cage stuck to one end, like something that really doesn’t belong anywhere but a garage (unless someone wants to try to use one as a way of providing electric heating, an approach CoinDesk once proposed).

More importantly, the prior generation of miners look like companies took their pro versions and scaled them down a bit in price, noise and voltage, without fundamentally rethinking the design or user experience.

“If you go and buy these crypto devices online they sound like there is a vacuum cleaner running constantly,” Nivi said.

At 40 decibels, the Coinmine One shouldn’t even be noticeable, and, with its low electricity consumption, a user’s utility bills shouldn’t jump aggressively. Which isn’t to say that the business will be any easier, but it does support their case that the devices exist in a new category.

The HODLer Argument

The evolution of miners from home-based enthusiasts to industrial-scale behemoths highlights the fundamental business model of a miner: a kind of arbitrage where profits are made when the cost of energy is lower than the return on the cryptocurrencies mined and sold.

But Nivi argues that the Coinmine One is intended technology enthusiasts rather than profit seekers – as in, people who want to try out different protocols and interact with the communities behind them – while also having some skin in the game. More broadly, it’s for people with a long-time horizon who aren’t focused on making enough cash to keep the lights on and miners humming.

The Coinmine One isn’t single-use hardware, either. That said, it can only run one of a few proof-of-work tokens at a time. With forthcoming updates, it will also be able to run one of several proof-of-stake tokens as well.

This differentiates it from most other miners, built to mine as much as possible of just one coin. Take for example these two ETH miners. They cost twice as much but they also deliver about six times more hash power.

That might make it sound like Coinmine One is a bad deal, but that depends on a person’s situation. Someone living in an urban apartment, for example, could never run one of those miners, even if they could afford it.

The startup appears to be aiming to create a new product category in the mining sector.

“The real magic of the product is the software and hardware compatibility, which reminds me of Nest or Ring,” Morris told CoinDesk, referring to the unicorn startups that built mobile-enabled home thermostat and home security devices. Each were subsequently acquired at unicorn valuations, by Google and Amazon, respectively.

Even still, is the Coinmine One worth it?

One danger some users might foresee is that lots of people will buy it making the tokens it mines less lucrative for each miner. Nivi points out that they will keep adding new tokens, giving users options. Furthermore, though, he also contends that more miners means more value for what miners do earn.

“While more people mining a coin can decrease the amount of coins you earn, it also increases the value of the network,” he said.

Normally, in discussion of mining equipment, users calculate how long it will take them to recoup their capital expenditure in fiat from earnings in crypto. In conversation with CoinDesk, Nivi rejected that short-term analysis.

He said:

“If you’re doing this from home, it’s bad advice to buy and sell. You really should hold. You’re holding and waiting for it to 10X, 100X or 1000X.”

Product image courtesy of Coinmine

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[londontheatre]

War Plays proved to be a variety of the sublime and the ridiculous, the poignant and the hilarious, and always with heightened feelings and sentiments.

Trip by Freddie van der Velde sees Lucy (Poppy Pedder) sweating it out, quite literally, overseas – such is the heat and humidity that every step is, apparently, like walking in heavy mud. Frustrated by her work colleagues and their relatively trivial first world problems, she eventually finds herself unable to maintain a composed professionalism in a corporate office. Her outburst is both hilarious (a bizarre line manager gets his comeuppance) and problematic – she is out of a job. But this provides her with an opportunity to observe details she may not have otherwise have had time for – in particular, an unusual object floating along the canal. She signs up to participate in some sort of insurgency. Stepping on a landmine leads her to question her future once again, or even if she has one, and for Lucy, the grass is always greener on the other side.

First Timers by Gus Glassborow achieves that rarity of being a play set in a war zone and successfully providing the audience with plenty of laughs without making audiences uncomfortable. Gus Glassborow (who also directs), Ben Chandler and Charlie Field are all called Brimstone: the RAF ground attack missile of that name is personified through three characters. The play takes a different slant on the concept of friendly fire. These are missiles capable of independent thought, and each of them, bizarrely, takes off at a time of their own choosing. One Brimstone laughs at another because that other is blissfully unaware that once he is launched, there’s no coming back. Talk about ‘you only live once’.

Are We There Yet? by Jerusha Green is a longer play than the extract presented here. From what I could deduce, Simona Bitmate plays a local in an overseas war zone, and at first does not respond to direct addresses from a soldier (Jack Wilkinson), but eventually, a dialogue ensues. It’s quite a poetic play, in the sense that it’s full of imagery and, performed as well as it is here, there’s as much to be read into what isn’t spoken as what is. The soldier’s struggles continue long after the war is said and done, or at least his role in it, and a slightly overdone scene where he scrubs and scrubs, and scrubs some more, but can’t wash away mental scars, is harrowing.

On Arriving by Ivan Faute – or, to give it its full title, On Arriving At The Refugee Processing Centre, UNHCR, is a thoughtful monologue. Despite the full title, it’s not a rant about the miscellaneous problems experienced by people in such facilities. It’s a personal story, really, talking about a refugee (Sophia Eleni) who, through no fault of her own, must walk away from everything, with a future even more uncertain than ever before. Whether certain standards for the care of refugees and asylum seekers are being properly met is very nearly a completely superfluous question. A strongly performed and emotionally charged piece of theatre.

A challenging evening, and a brisk but thought-provoking set of plays. I suppose there can never be enough reminders of how privileged it is to live in peacetime, and while my own ‘problems’ may not disappear having seen War Plays, they can certainly be put into perspective.

Review by Chris Omaweng

Kicking off Theatre N16’s ‘Aftershock’ season is ‘War Plays’, two nights of four plays centering on the theme of war. The plays, Trip, Are We There Yet?, First Timers, and On Arriving seek to question the morality of modern warfare, as well as probing deeper ideas of identity.

From darkly serious, to moments of laugh-out-loud comedy, these four plays will transport you to the far-flung reaches of the world, and to the edge of your seat! With new writing from Freddie Van Der Velde (Trip), Jerusha Green (Are We There Yet?), and Gus Glassborow (First Timers), and with Sophia Eleni reprising her role as Amena in the very moving monologue On Arriving, War Plays is sure to be a night of great theatre not to be missed! Performance Details

Theatre N16, Balham, Sat 4th – Sun 5th November 2017

http://ift.tt/2h9rRwH London Theatre 1

[waterblight]

i’m gonna compare these 2 bc i’m tired and i don’t want to go to sleep yet

Hatelek wants to go back with her merc group she loves them but she’ll never admit it found happiness in Josie’s arms which made things a little better. got along with most or all of the group? but i thnk that was mostly me trying to be friends with everyone bc that’s what i did with Athven too. although she’s doing it like-- well she doesn’t want to fight or antagonize anyone

Athven wants to go back to clan and he loves them dearly but they’re dead (i fucked up lmao didn’t realize they could die ;o; i don’t like reading carefully in games) didn’t find happiness in anyone’s arms. thought he could be with solas but mmm got along with most of the group either bc he genuinely likes them or grew to like them ooor he’s doing it for power play. otherwise he just kinda ignored them. didn’t really want to antagonize anyone bc that’s not a smart move for someone like him. i mean he fought anyways but still

 Cassandra

Hatelek got along. didn’t mind the religious talk so much bc she’s not religious but it did get on her nerves from time to time. friendly

Athven hated? her? but grew to respect her. i don’t remember if i have it saved in his canon file but he romanced her out of loneliness (didn’t go thru with the romance because it’s not who he is how they portrayed the inquisitor with her?). don’t like the talk so much but respected her strong faith.  appreciates when she admits that things need to change within seeker order

 Varric

hatelek loves him. reminds her of her company

athven begrudgingly liked him at first but didn’t really trust him bc he doesn’t trust anyone. he trusts him more than some but puts him at a distance now

Vivienne

mm not sure bc again hatelek’s playthru was my first playthru and i rushed thru everything and didn’t really pay attention. respected and mostly got along her but didn’t really talk to her. a rather shallow relationship i guess? but i guess youc ould say that for many of the companions relationships with hatelek

athven loves her. still kinda eeeh... on some stuff and not sure if he can completely trust her but he loves her (even tho he kinda hates to admit it bc she’s human). they share some views on the circles. she kinda scare him but they get along. she makes him laugh often

Iron Bull

romanced him but broke it off bc she didn’t like how the relationship was going. really like that there’s another qunari with the group. trusts him. relationship changed a bit when they broke up but bffs. hangs out often and loves the chargers 

still can’t get over his distrust of bull even tho bull has proved that he’s loyal to him. was gonna sacrifice his group because he didn’t care much about bull but thought it would be better to keep them. now will drink and joke around with him but still distant

Sera

they got along but hatelek didn’t take her really seriously. scolded her often (although the choices were crueler than hatelek would say) (again this is mostly bc of rushing and paying more attention to companions i loved immediately)

loves, adores, and trusts her. ride or die for her. hopes that she will grow to love or at least be fine with her “elfiness” she makes him remember what it’s like to have fun again. had a crush on her for awhile bc of several feelings and misunderstood them and tried hard to get over it when she told him that she’s a lesbian. she makes him miss and long for his clan. they’re bffs

Blackwall

they kinda flirted for awhile but (i often forgot he was in the barn!!!) was more sympathetic during his quest

honestly often forgot he was there. felt like he was hiding something (lmao) and didn’t appreciate it when the truth got out. still on the fence about gray wardens

Dorian

bffs often have snark sessions

romanced him but couldn’t get over his views over sla/very. i’m sure dorian would have changed his views later in the series but yeah athven didn’t like them. still kinda charmed by him (”ugh”) but put more distance between them

Solas

was ok with him but then grew to dislike him with his “you’re not like the others” conversation. still kinda respected him just kinda veered away from him. didn’t have trespasser during hatelek’s run and lost her save

happy to see him at the first meeting. thought he was kinda boring although the fade did interest him. ugh at the “i’m not an elf” shit. grew super friendly tho and soon fell for solas. (tbh he dated around bc he couldn’t be with solas)  tries to not bring up any elf talk with him. trusted him with his life even tho there were flags. heartbroken and angry at the end of trespasser. 

Cole

careful around cole but grew to care for him

similar but more distant

i believe they both wanted cole to become more human?

Leliana

ok with her?

appreciates her for many of her views and skills but can’t over mistrust of her. sure that she’s loyal but that nagging feeling...

Cullen Rutherford

no comment really. got along but mostly ignored him

distrusted him bc he’s templar but dang his charms got to athven. flirted but quickly stopped once he realized the other was a templar thru and thru. ignored him soon after

Josephine Montilyet

love of her life respected her diplomacy skills and appreciates her think it’s cute that she gets excited by fashion and the like while hatelek never really cared for them. got to know her once she realized cass wasn’t interested in her

romanced her but broke it off when he realized he didn’t like her that much after all. felt guilty. she made a decent first impression on him which is why he liked her more than many other humans. appreciates her skills and respects her. feels that their relationship changed a bit when they broke up tho

yeah i need to give hatelek another playthru. ok it now it sounds like she has depression and yeah she probably does

i’m sure athven does too with the loss of his clan. honestly vivienne, sera, and solas are the most important relationships he have now? i feel like leliana and josie and cass and bull and varric could be very important too if he just worked thru his trust issues with them