Original Fic Fest

My WIP Blackborn is first and foremost an action-packed fantasy novel, and I didn’t intend for any romance… But when writing my characters Kaya and Taron, they made it obvious to me that I was wrong. They had been not only friends, but lovers before, and at the start of the story they are not over each other.

For @originalficfest s day 2, I decided to jump back in time an give you their first kiss, 9 years ago - Kaya is about 16, Taron 18.

Even though he knew what to watch out for, Taron only caught the shortest glimpse of a slender gray figure landing on the pavement behind the guards and swiftly vanishing around the corner of the next street.

„All right, fine.“ He lifted his palms toward the guards in front of him appeasingly. “If your young master does not want to receive me, will you at least give him a message from me?”

The taller guard exchanged a helpless look with his colleague and started anew. „Monsire, please, just leave this matter alone. We do not know, who you are.”

Taron flung the flamboyant yellow cape over his shoulder. “Of course he keeps me a secret. I should have known. Well, tell Lazar that I he shall drown in -”

“Monsire,” the guard insisted. “You must be mistaken. This is the mansion of Councilwoman Beylina Ashari. You must have come to the wrong house.”

“This treacherous -” Taron stopped in the middle of the sentence. “Oh no. Oh by Royana, divine guardian of love and chaos, please, please tell me that you are joking with me.”

The guard’s relief was almost palpable. “No, monsire. There is no Lazar here.”

“You might want to try the other side of Tismur Boulevard. I believe there might be a young gentleman of that name living in the corner house”, the other guard added.

“Thank you so much. I… Well, I shall go there.” Taron had to bite back a grin. He knew the place the guard had referred to. Councilman Basrial’s estate. No Lazar to be found there. The rivalry of these politicians obviously had influenced their guards as well.

Taron spun around on his heel, not bothering with any words of goodbye. He felt the ridiculous cape fluttering around his body, dramatically underlining his retreat as he marched around the corner leading to Tismur Boulevard.

Behind him, he heard a faint chuckle from the guards. Only then he allowed himself his own small grin.

#

“Divine guardian of love and chaos, you’re a natural”, an amused voice said, right by his shoulder. Taron flinched aside, cursing.

“You’re despicable, Kay. I pulled this freaking drama to cover for your exit, and you, you still are cheap enough to jump me from the side.”

Kaya laughed to herself, as she fell in along his steps. She had changed her dark gray garb for a plain green dress with a matching headscarf, somehow even enhancing the mischievous sparkle in her amber eyes. “It’ll never grow old. Besides, I need some fun. Being the only one here actually working for her share, while you are just talking and flashing that fancy yellow cape around.

Taron shrugged off the cape and handed it to her. “Let’s hope they only remember my style in clothing and not my charming smile.” He retrieved a white southern-style scarf from his bag and arranged it around his head and shoulders artfully. “How do I look now? Different enough?”

Kaya turned in front of him, forcing him to stop in his steps, while she looked up at his face.

“Handsome”, she said.

Taron raised an eyebrow. “That’s… not what I meant.”

“It is what I meant.” Kaya didn’t move aside.

Taron blinked. “Kaya, this… this isn’t funny. We’re not children any more.”

“Indeed, we’re not.” Kaya held his gaze. “I have seen you looking at me, when you think no one is noticing. And I have seen you looking at the guys I … spend time with. I’m not your little sister any longer.”

Taron shook his head. “You never were”, he said quietly.

“Well, in that case…” The corners of Kaya’s mouth twitched into a tiny smile and she slowly lifted her hand towards his cheek.

Taron caught her wrist. “Kay, don’t. Don’t let your excitement guide you into some folly you’ll regret once you wake up tomorrow morning. I… We…”

“Not ‘some folly’,” Kaya cut him off. “Trust me, Taron, this is something I’ve been wanting for quite some time.”

She flicked her wrist free. “Or do you fear you’ll be the one regretting it?” Despite her teasing tone, there was a touch of nervousness to her voice, a vulnerability Taron had never seen in her before. Shit. Kaya was serious. Gods be damned.

And she was right, he was afraid. If they went down this road, everything in their lives would change. Turn fragile. Be at risk.

But then again, risk was something they both were thriving for.

Taron felt a smile playing around his lips, as he reached for her hand.

“Here’s to love and chaos”, he said, and drew her towards him.

——

Tagging (even though tumblr will probably eat it…):

I had to borrow a friend’s computer to finish this cause mine’s dead, but it was worth it!

A late entry for @originalficfest - once again merging days 5 and 6, Music and Pictures. I’ve translated the lyrics myself, and before I tell you what song they are from, I’d like you to guess :) And if you do I’ll love you forever

intro | day 1 

@originalficfest

These Bitter ends doesn’t feature many romantic relationships at all. The only one that I’ve really developed, and thought about it that of Hagen and Edwige.

Hagan and Edwige’s love has been anything but typical.

They married young, far younger than anybody expected. They married for love, something unusual in Viadellen. They unexpectedly became the reigning King and Queen.

When they first met, Edwige was the daughter of a low level, country Lord. Hagan was waging a war for the throne, under his brother’s leadership. Edwige was destined to marry some lord of some cornfield somewhere. Hagan was destined to marry some foreign dignitary. Neither marriage would have been for love, but for financial, political gain.

They married as soon as they were legally able to, the day after Edwige’s twentieth birthday. Against both families’ wishes and advice, they married. Everybody expected their marriage to be an unhappy one. They were so different. A country girl and the brother of the new King? Sure that couldn’t last.

It was their differences that made them strong. They lived in House Thradel’s ancestral home. A castle on the river. Deep enough in the countryside for Edwige, with enough luxury for Hagan. Their was a happy one. An easy one. Soon into their marriage they welcomed their first child. A son Hagen, named for his father. They enjoyed their peaceful happy family life. 

intro | day 1 | day 2

@originalficfest

Undeniably the most important relationship in These Bitter Ends is between Dabria and Aldwin. It is their friendship and trust for one another that upsets the balance of the Kingdom.

This is their first meeting:

She had been munching on a cake when a servant burst into the kitchen, saying that he couldn’t find the princess. Dabria didn’t recognise him, so she assumed he must be one of the new servants. He was talking to Georg, gesticulating wildly. She put down her book and left her spot by the window. Tapping him on the shoulder, she smiled.

“Do you know where Princess Dabria is?” he exclaimed, flecks of his spit landing on her face.

Aldwin is the first one to treat Dabria like his equal. People are either superior or inferior, but with Aldwin, they are exactly the same. With him, she can relax. She doesn’t have to worry about upholding the refinery of a princess. They can joke together, and talk about nothing for hours. 

They can also trust one another with everything. She knows all of the sordid details of his past. Things that should get him imprisoned, at best and killed at worst. She knows what he has done, and yet he still has that spark.  The sheer passion for life that she seems to be lacking. 

intro | day 1 | day 2 | day 3

@originalficfest

I don’t really have any massively quotable lines yet, being halfway through my first draft. But this small excerpt seems to encapsulate the tone of These Bitter Ends fairly concisely, without being plot specific.

“Do you remember that story you used to tell me? The one about the deer and her fawn?”

“I do, yes,” replied Edwige.

“I’ve been thinking. We’re very much like them. You’ve always tried to protect me, but you’ll never really be able to.” said Dabria.

Hurt, Edwige said, “What do you mean by that?”.

For the free day of @originalficfest I have decided to talk about some world building stuff.

The Continent of Nerelle consists of 6 kingdoms each ruled by a different species but all overseen by the Unicorn Kings of the Ice Kingdom. Every Kingdom worships The Mighty Light but depending on which elemental power they are given they worship a different diety or life force created by The Mighty Light.

The Flame Kingdom is run by the Dragons, their castle is built into the side of a Volcano. The leaders of the Flame Kingdom are Sovriegn Lieda and their Husband King Ember, they have two children Princess Cinder is the heir to the flame throne, Princess Fiarra is one of the storys main characters. Citizens of the Flame Kingdom worship the Holy Spark a force that flows through each fire user.

The Nature Kingdom is run by the fairies Queen Dhalia and Queen Mirianna. They have four children the heir to the nature throne Prince Yarrow, Prince Hazel and Princess Azalea who were sent to the Ice Kingdom to try and win Pippa’s hand in marriage, and the youngest Princess Honeysuckle. Their castle is really a bunch of fancy tree houses connected by wooden bridges they are all in a giant tree called the elder oak it is believed to be blessed, it is against the law to cut of even the smallest branch of the tree. The people of the Nature Kingdom worship the twin dieties Nia and Fer, they are similar to yin and yang Nia is the goddess of the night, death, poisonous plants, and predator animals her brother Fer is the god of Day, life, flowers and fruits, and prey animals.

The Wind Kingdom is run by the Elves King Devras and Queen Prina they have two sons and a daughter. The sons are twins Noelan and Breeze, they are fighting for the wind throne currently ans their daughter Princess Aella who they sent to the Ice Kingdom to compete for Princess Pippa’s hand. The citizens of the wind kingdom worship The Swift a force that flows through all wind magic users. Their castle is on the edge of the Zephylim Plateau.

The Lightning Kingdom is run by The Gryphon King Raiken who is aromantic, but knowing he needs an heir he adopted a child and leaves the castle open to all orphans essentially fostering them and often suggesting children to nobels who can’t have children based on who would be the best fit, even though many kids live in the castle he does his best to be attentive to them all. Unlike most of the royals he prefers his creature form to his human one often times casually strolling around the castle in Gryphon form. The castle is in the Tempest Jungle. The people of the Lightning Kingdom worship a nonbianary storm diety known as Cherna.

The Ocean Kingdom is ruled by the Mermaid Queen, whose wife died under mysterious circumstances. The Merfolk have been very isolated for a long time not much is known about the royals until Prince Tobian shows up in the Ice Kingdom to compete for Princess Pippa’s hand. The castle is in the Ocean most of it is underwater but a portion is left above water for guests. The merfolk worship a water diety known as Miluna.

Okay I’m a lil behind right now oops. But here I am to catch up. Day 5 of the fabulous @originalficfest is music day! I have compiled a playlist (link to the youtube playlist here) of songs that make me thing about Chaos Corp or specific characters in Chaos Corp. I’ll leave you to guess who ;)

BTW this playlist is like all over the place with genres. From metal and hard rock, to musicals, to Halsey, to NSP, to Eminem. It’s all over there, so yeah.

Okay so inspirational music for my WIPS for @originalficfest Keeping Secrets Songs that directly inspired scenes, or fit into them: The Cell Block Tango - The Chicago Soundtrack All is Full of Love - Death Cab for Cutie Only if for a Night - Florence + the Machine Like Real People Do - Hozier Unsteady - XAmbassadors Life of The Party - Shawn Mendes Hollaback (This shit is Bananas) - Gwen Stefani Worlds Apart - Seven Lions Other Inspirations Wildfire - Seafret Fix You - Coldplay Wild Things - Alessia Cara Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol

———-

Lindi has dragged me to Sing it Again, Sam, a karaoke bar inside Bullfinch  Casino. So far, I’ve been able to avoid going onstage. 

“Well, if you’re not going up, I’m going up,” she says. She pulls a blonde wig out of her bag and heads towards the signup booth. 

Soon, she’s in front of the microphone. She puts on the wig and starts to sing.

“Happy Birthday, To You,

Happy Birthday, To You,

Happy Birthday, Mr. Bertram Babe.”

She blows me a kiss, then continues.

“Happy birthday, Toooo You.”

She comes back to the table and sits on my lap.

“Quite a performance,” I say. 

“Trust me, the home version’s better,” she replies.

“Will you still wear the wig?”

She slaps me in the chest. “You are a walking cliché!”

“Just joking. Well, not really.” I take a sip of my drink, then continue. “You know it’s not my birthday.”

“I know, but I also knew you’d be mortified by the attention.”

“Thanks.”

She smiles. “You’re welcome.” She kisses me on the cheek.

Two of the waiters come up to the table. The blonde waiter puts a small chocolate cake on the table. The cake is topped with a single candle. The bald waiter lights the candle. 

The blonde waiter yells, “For the birthday boy!”

The waiters begin to sing.

“Happy, happy, birth-day, Happy, happy, birth-day,

Happy, happy, birth-day, HAAA-py, happy, birthday!”

At the end of the song, they clap.

The bald waiter yells, “Blow out the candle, birthday boy!”

I raise an eyebrow at Lindi, then do as I’m told.

The waiters clap again. “Yay!” Then they hurry away. 

Lindi starts cutting the cake. “See what happens when you hang out with me? Serenades. Free cake.”

She cuts the cake 60:40.

“I’m taking a bigger piece since it was my initiative that got us this reward,” she says. Then she winks at me while licking the frosting from the knife suggestively. 

I break down and start laughing. 

Bald waiter comes back. “We forgot your hat!”

He hands me a cowboy hat covered in silver sequins. On its front, there’s a badge that says, “It’s My Birthday!!” in big black letters. 

Lindi starts laughing. “You have to wear that. Put it on!”

Thanks, @originalficfest! These are fun to write. 

The main only romantic relationship in my book is between my main character, Lori, and a boy she meets on her trek named Rylan. Lori openly distrusts Rylan until he saves her life. Then, of course, it’s all stolen glances and innuendo and desperately fighting your feelings for one another because there are monsters to fight and I can’t be distracted because I want to kiss you!

Suffice to say adrenaline and close quarters definitely pushed these two together, and we all know what happens when the adrenaline wears off. When Lori finds out a secret that Rylan has kept from her, she has to reconsider everything, including whether or not he’s worthy of her trust.

Hi Guys! Now that the Fest is coming to a close, we would love if you could give us some feedback!

This survey aims to help us improve the Fest should it run again and it shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes.

Thank you very much for your help!

(The results of the demographic survey can be found here: https://originalficfest.tumblr.com/post/174493625305/original-fic-fest-survey-results)

Worldbuilding of Aelaris - DRAGONS!  @originalficfest​ — THANK YOU so much for doing this! It was amazing :D (And I’m actually really sad that this is the last day! So much motivation…)

|| Introduction | Day 1 - Characters | Day 2 - Romantic Relationships | Day 3 - Non-Romantic Relationships | Day 4 - Quote Day | Day 5 - Music Day | Day 6 - Pictures Day | Day 7 - Worldbuilding/Dragons ||

First of all, there are several different classifications of dragons, and none of them are originally from Aelaris but from a different world entirely. If you want to read more about them, there’s info below (a lot ahahah). 

Anyways, dragons in the world of Dreams and Shadows! Dragons have existed for the past 500 years — since the Apocalypse. This means that everyone living today has never known a world in which dragons don’t exist. The dragons living in Merreadon, the city in which most of the story takes place, are predominantly very small — there are several different kinds but for the sake of simplicity the ones that are most common there are Featherdragons and mammal-based ones that don’t have a proper name yet but might probably end up being called Fuzzydragons (if you have an idea for a proper name you could send me a message, haha.). There are as many different kinds of featherdragons as there are different kinds of birds and most of them just sit around doing bird things, basically. Some are really intelligent and capable of speech, others not quite, mostly depending on the individual. 

and since this got so long (1888 words to be precise) there’s a lot more below the cut :D

Hi Guys! Now that the Fest is coming to a close, we would love if you could give us some feedback!

This survey aims to help us improve the Fest should it run again and it shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes.

Thank you very much for your help!

(The results of the demographic survey can be found here: https://originalficfest.tumblr.com/post/174493625305/original-fic-fest-survey-results)