Comments archived from the old Forum thread, since the Please note that I do not have time to post every single comment here, so I will be limiting it to the story-relevant comments and my most story-relevant replies. Thank you to everyone who commented on the forum < 3
I am not responsible for what other people say in their comments.
SPOILER WARNING: Spoilers up until Act 4: Chapter 12. Some of the chapter headers are wrong, but I very vaguely wrote chapter updates on the forum and I don't remember exactly which chapters they refer to so might be off a bit. I would say don't read any of this until you've read the whole act.
There will also be spoilers for the older stories, The Sun and her Fire, Untamed, and Vitriol.
Act One
Act One Prologue - Part 2
LHenley: Wow, poor Áine having to see that witch-burning happen. That’s bound to have an effect on her as she grows up.
I’m guessing you may know this already, but the name Saoirse means
freedom, which is what all witches want; the freedom to be themselves
without judgment or fear from others.
GSnow: Ooo. Fascinating start to the story. I'm worried for Aine and her mother now. I'm hooked.
My reply to both: Ohh no I didn't know that actually! I just picked the name Saoirse
because it sounded nice : P but that gives it an extra unintended level
of meaning which is great!
Hsims : I finally managed to read chapters 2 and 3! Áine for sure had a very
difficult childhood, and I have a strong feeling that her situation
won't improve anytime soon... I'm a bit sorry for her, but also very
curious in seeing what happens next!
The graphical aspect is really impressive too, both for the posing and picture editing side!
Act 1 Chapter 1
Hsims: I like Reynold as a character a lot, and also the Peterans as a monastic order. They really look very moderate and free to live their own lives outside the monastery compared with the contemporary friars and nuns I'm used to, to levels that here would almost be seen as scandalous... And I'm liking it a lot!
GSnow: The addition of Reynold's POV makes me hope that he will be a continuing character in the story. I like him, and find his thoughts on his beliefs and the people he interacts with intriguing.
My reply to both: I'm glad you like them < 3 I am making some changes to the Peteran
and eventually Jacoban orders from the original Sims Medieval lore,
since some of it is a little too close to my liking to existing beliefs.
You're right on the money there, the Peterans are a fairly free-living
bunch for the most part. There isn't much in the way of rules other than
'be kind to others', 'help those in need' and 'try not to slap anyone
no matter how tempted you may become to do so.' XD
Oh yeah don't worry! I'm glad you like him < 3 He'll be one of the
main characters, definitely. He's pretty different to most of my
characters, who are mouthy and chaotic so he's fun to write but
sometimes challenging since it's outside of the box for me : P
Act 1 Chapter 2 and 3
GSnow: I'm very curious about the new introductions (Katlego and Susana).
Reynold sure seemed uncomfortable when Susana showed up, so I'm
wondering who she is to him. I really liked the way your did the love scene for Aine and Reynold. The
buildup with the festival was lovely. Alternating between their two
points of views as things progressed really worked well. And your
screenshots are artistic and beautiful. Well done!
Katlego seems cool. And funny. I liked her "try to come up with a good ship name" notes. 
HSims: I admit I was already shipping them since the end of the previous chapter, so the end of this new one was definitively an unexpected happy ending!
My reply: I can reveal that since it's not a spoiler and (so far) since Susana is a
minor character: Although all the main Peteran lot are fairly humorous,
Susana is one of the more cheeky ones, and Reynold was hoping nobody
from the church caught him on a 'date' with Áine, which is why he freaks
out when he sees her there : P To be in a relationship as a leader of
the monastery is a pretty big deviation from what every other leader has
done, so he's pretty nervous about it still. Also he knows she'll
probably make joke about him falling in love to mess about with him. In
jest, of course, but still! : P
As for Kat, she's going to hopefully be a comical character, and one
whose general attitude might be oddly out of place for this period in
history. More of her next chapter, if I keep my notes in the right
place! I look forward to introducing her properly. I'm really glad you
liked that scene cuz I worried I made it too cheesy or, you know, too
uhh...much? XD I really love flicking between PoVs during these sorts of
scenes. I worry it comes across as jarring, but I like seeing two
characters' simultaneous thoughts on each other in the same moment.
Thank you < 3 Ahh yeah especially in the ending of the chapter. I had
to go REALLY careful how I shot those scenes and had to discard about 3
screenshots for being too much XD
I'm glad you were! I accidentally spoiled it to _sims_yimi entirely, I thought I'd already told her about it... X_X Ah yes the unexpected happy ending. Some of my chapters do have happy endings...Honest! : P Some of them...a few of them...
Msprite: Okay I have some boat names to suggest to you 
(Dunno if you want to go with pretty, jokey, ROM references, or full-on Iain Banks here)
The Golden Star
The Wave Carver
The Bright Zephyr
The Transportalate
The Now You See Me, Now You Don't
The Lack of Foresight
The Arrrrrchipelago
Also, about Reynold-- To what extent would his Peteran faith and interest in witchcraft be in conflict with each other, or not?
My reply: ‘The Lack of Foresight’ is more or less any character I’ve ever written XD
Hmmm I don’t know if I can answer that without being potentially
spoilery, I’ll see if I can: i’m not actually sure if any previous Abbot
or Abbess was ever a witch, so it’s hard to nail down. Peterans
generally practice acceptance of all, so for a Peteran to be anti-witch
wouldn’t be particularly by the book, but then not everyone follows
guidelines and some can easily make exceptions for acceptance- so we’ll
see what happens later down the line maybe. I haven’t fully thought
those bits out yet but you’ve made me realise I do need to soon : p
Act 1 Chapter 4
GSnow: I really like Katlego as a character. She seems feisty and smart. My kind of woman. 
I'm very curious to see what happens with Gideon. I enjoy well-developed
antagonists, and it feels like you are off to a good start with him. I
love how exasperated he was with the nobleman who kept just giving him
the vaguest reasons for why he thinks those women are witches.
My reply: I really do love Kat. She’s feisty and unapologetic and in the best way.
And probably the only smiling face for miles because the reality of how
witches are treated hasn’t fully hit her yet : p
As for Gideon, I’m glad you said that because that’s what I’m going for
with this story. A lot of the antagonists in my other stories are
generally more obviously ‘evil’ for lack of a better word, since
sometimes people are just plain awful but this time I’m going for
something different and a bit more complex. Whilst a lot of my other
antagonists know they’re doing wrong but don’t seem to care, In this
universe almost everyone does what they do because in their minds, they
are doing the righteous thing. They’ve been told witches are evil,
people fear for themselves and their families and so the best thing they
can do in their minds is to put a stop to them.
HSims: Katlego is a quite funny character to read, but definitively not (censored 4 letter word, not sure what). She got stuck in a very bad place for someone like her, I'm curious to see how her story will develop now...
My reply: Yeah, she's pretty smart for the most part. I feel really bad for her
already. I think being stranded in an unfamiliar place is a very
upsetting thing in a story because I know I'd cry forever if it happened
to me. Except it's worse for Kat, 1. because of the witch-hunts and 2.
even worse, she's stuck in an analog of England.
LHenley: Now I want to know more about Kat. And hopefully she finds a food dish she likes
My reply: Haha, maybe not in Henford. If only the Greggs bakery chain existed in this universe, then maybe she would XD
GSnow: I am liking Katlego more and more with every encounter. 
"I diagnose you with denial" Great line.
My reply: Thank you so much to you both! Also thank you to EA_Mari for featuring this on the 29/07 Friday Highlights ;-;
LHenley: OMG, Kat is awesome! I can’t believe Gideon was so gullible as to drink pee
HSims: This chapter had a very good balance of seriousness and funny dialogues, but you're also always ending the chapter when the suspense is so high!
My reply: Thank you so much! It's sometimes hard balancing funny and serious in a way that one doesn't cancel the other one out X_X I did love writing those bits XD Since my characters' usual ways of dealing with things involve getting mad and sometimes violent, it's fun to have a character who's basically just a massive troll XD Hmm, we'll have to see about her. We probably won't see much of Clementia for a while, but she's an interesting one.
Act 1 Chapter 6
HSims: I really like that Aine and Kat are teaming up, and I also have very high expectations about what they could be able to do together! Aine and Reynold instead seem in a quite difficult spot at the moment, but I really hope that at least with a baby on the way they will be spared from the next disaster happening in the story for a while...
My reply: Aine and Kat teaming up is going to be chaos all around, isn't it?
Yeah, things are going to be tough for many different reasons, some we
don't know just quite yet, but with a bit of luck (and fire!) they'll
pull through! Or so we hope...At least the baby is a bit of good news in
this story. A little teeny tiny bit of good news. 
GSnow: Interesting developments all around... I was wondering if Gideon was going to find out he'd been tricked. Good
suspense you've created with what's going to happen next.
Excited to see Katlego and Aine teaming up. 
I love how interconnected everything is getting.
And Reynold... intriguing comments about his "blood". Mother Joyce sure seems worried.
My reply: Thank you as always for your thoughts < 3 Indeed. seems even Mother Joyce is concerned for the potential new witch-baby. Aine is starting to see why Bradach thought the way he did when she was born, I think. Haha yeah he found out, but will Kat have to pay the price somehow? I feel like Kat and Aine teaming up is either going to be hilarious or dangerous. We’ll have to see how it goes : p
Act 1 Chapter 7 (might be 6 actually)
GSnow: The scene that introduces the conflict between Reynold and Julian is
really well written. I liked seeing it from Julian's perspective to get a
clear idea of how he thinks.
Also... Reynold's a witch! I was wondering about that... (unless you mentioned it before and I just missed it ) He seemed pretty sympathetic to them and there was Mother Joyce's concern about him having a kid.
I'm wondering who the werewolf is now...
My reply: Thank you for your comment as always < 3 Oooh good question. Who is this werewolf? Someone we already know or
someone we’ve yet to meet? : O I absolutely love that werewolf costume
and that whole scene.
The discussion between Julian and Reynold wasn’t meant to get as heated as it did originally
Julian may seem pretty cruel, but in his eyes (for the most part) he’s
absolutely doing the right thing. As far as he’s concerned, the witches
are dangerous and the Watcher will bring horrible things to people if
they don’t join the Jacoban cathedral.
Yeah he is! There hasn’t been a lot of mention of it, but Aine sensed
magic from him earlier and they had a slight discussion about it, though
Reynold seems more reluctant to talk about magic than Aine or Kat do.
GSnow's reply: That scene between Julian and Reynold getting so heated was exactly what I loved about it. So I'm glad you just went with it. They both have very strong convictions, and values they don't seem to want to question, and the clash between them was fun to read. I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with them as this story unfolds.
Msprite: I like that Julian's motivation for working against the witches is that he's concerned about the welfare of the peasants. That makes it less black and white, hero vs. villain than religious conflicts in fantasy stories can often be.
Lucy_Henley: Interesting too that Julian refers to the Watcher with gender-neutral pronouns. One might’ve thought that a conservative church from centuries ago would be all patriarchal and use He/His, but then Clementia is going to be the High Shepherdess in the future, and many Christian denominations won’t recognise female priests/pastors etc today, in the 21st Century).
HSims: And to draw, that art is wonderful!
I agree with the previous comments, a lot is happening here. For now, I
would be scared of those werewolves too! On the other hand though, I'm
also curious to know more about them when not transforming/raging, there
are many possible scenarios for that... And, then, who actually is that
werewolf, another character we know already or that we will meet at
some point? I'm so curious now!
And then the argument between Reynold and Julian, that definitively
looks like a setup for something big coming next... And even more so was
what Clementia* revealed at the end, Reynold having magic in him
definitively sounds like something which will have consequences!
*very ironic name for a Jacobian follower with good swordsmanship skills, btw XD
My reply to msprite: I appreciate you picking up on that because that's one of my issues with a lot of religious conflicts in fiction as well, there's always obvious bad and obvious good (I felt this way as I was playing Sims Medieval) and I didn't want that, especially because I don't want parallells being drawn to any existing faith either. All Julian wants to do is ensure people a comfortable afterlife, spare them from the wrath of the Watcher and protect who he sees as his people. His methods might seem cruel but in his eyes what he's doing is the only way to save everyone including himself from whatever the Watcher plans to do with them.
My reply to LHenley: Oh yeah, Julian is surprisingly progressive for a Jacoban. I imagine he wouldn't take to any sort of prejudice (outside of anti-witchcraft anyway XD) under the cathedral roof, especially now that Clementia is eventually going to be in charge. Both Peteran and Jacoban consider the Watcher to be an androgynous figure of sorts, I figured it'd make sense for a deity figure who's considered shrouded in mystery for the most part.
Reply to Hsims: Ohh I'm not sure what you're referring to in the name? I looked at a list of historical names and picked one out that I liked. You might have to explain the reference further cuz I'm intrigued! I'm glad you like the art ;-; Ahh yes, we're getting to the bit I'm REALLY excited for and that's the mystery of the werewolf. Oh yeah, Reynold doesn't use his magic much, but maybe that will change soon...
Reply to that from Hsims: Clementia is a name borrowed from Latin, originally it was the name of a
goddess which was practically the personification of mercy, forgiveness
and similar concepts (ref).
I tend to notice this stuff a lot because my first language is Italian,
and a lot of words a similar enough to Latin to ring a bell. For
example, one word for saying "mercy" in my language is clemenza, it's very easy to spot to us
Also the whole "Peteran and Jacoban consider the Watcher to be an androgynous figure of sorts"
part is very interesting and refreshing to me, being from a catholic
country it sounds like a very interesting change of paradigm to be
explored. And the same applies to their freedom to have romantic
relationships of any kind, a priest falling in love is still a source of
a huge scandal even nowadays here...
My reply to Hsims's reply to me: Ohhh that's really interesting! Yeah it's still pretty taboo in this story for someone in charge of either church to have a partner of any kind. Though not much else about it has been mentioned I still think the surrounding town + other Peteran folks are still pretty shocked about it, but not in a bad way, just an unexpected surprise way.
LHenley's additional comment: That makes sense about the androgynous deity. After all, the Sims world
isn’t exactly the same as the real world. How I wish job hunting IRL was
like it is in the Sims - search online, find an interesting position,
click apply and get the job immediately No long-winded application form, no interview, no CV… ahh, if only!
Act 1, either chapter 8 or 9
Hsims: I'm a bit sorry that Kat and Aine are planning to not work together
anymore, but I see their point. The magic teaching idea seemed very
interesting, but also risky of course... Either case, I have the feeling
that Aine really needs some good luck to find a job suiting her
situation, I really hope for the best for her but I also suspect that
the situation could take more complex turns instead...
Gideon's nightmares are very interesting too, is some witch worsening
them with magic or is it purely a sense of guilt? Whatever the reason
is, seeing him empathizing a bit with the witches he persecutes
definitively made me understand more about the character, as well as his
conversation with Reynold at the end of the chapter about what made him
choose that career. However, even if he could have become a bit more
relatable as a character, I'm still supporting the witches' side :P
My reply: It may not necessarily be the end of the Kat and Aine team-up though! That's an interesting theory about the nightmares... Oh yeah definitely, I'm with you on that one. Like Reynold said, he can't expect anyone to forgive him- he has to do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing.
GSnow: Oooo... This story just gets better and better! Is Gideon about to turn over a new leaf? 
I wonder what will happen with that? Reynold didn't seem to lose his temper too badly, just raising his voice
mostly. His sister's reaction suggests, though, that he has lost it
much worse in the past. I'm wondering how she got that scar on her
face... Feeling some concern for Aine being involved with him now. 
His advice to Gideon was good though. I am enjoying the complexity of your characters! All have some good and bad aspects to them. They seem very real.
My reply: Oooh, maybe, just maybe he will! Or maybe he'll go back to his old ways...I'm glad you think so. I'm trying to make things a lot more grey morally in this one compared to my past stories. At the moment, it's hard to know how to feel about pretty much everyone except for Katlego morally speaking : P As for Reynold and Clem, I think it’ll be a while before we get to know a lot more about them both.
Hsims: Brádach, what the... Really, how could he?
GSnow: Wow. There is a lot more to this chapter than "exposition". That's quite the confession coming from Bradach! I actually had forgotten Aine's father's name, and I am super-bad at
recognizing faces, so it caught me doubly off-guard. I was like, "Oh!
This is Aine's dad!" and then "OOOH! He did WHAT!?" I am really liking Gideon at this point. What an interesting character. Also, excellent addition to Clementia's side of things. I am enjoying this story so much. Keep it up!
My reply: Indeed. He felt threatened I think by Gideon's honesty, and when someone comes out with a kind of admission like Gideon's it makes you wonder why you can't do the same with what you're hiding. Gideon is a moral mess, but I am having fun writing his character. Haha yeah I was glad nobody noticed him until now because it made it more of a surprise : P I really can't wait to build on things between Reynold and Clem. Siblings are always fun to write.
Act 1, either Chapter 10 or 11
GSnow: S. Annorin plotting against Katlego, and Eduardo taking matters into his own hands... Good place to leave us hanging for a bit, while you figure out the next part!
My reply: Thank you so much as always! I figured it was a good place to leave this chapter since I need to spend some time working out exactly what’s going to happen next after those things happening. Trouble is pacing is difficult sometimes since I can’t go too fast or slow considering how long this story’s timeline is going to go on for X_X Also trying to make certain reveals surprising and making sure it isn’t too early or too late to do so… : p
HSims: Gideon and Kat interaction was quite interesting... Yet, I really hope
she can find a way to return back to her home, she doesn't seem to be
enjoying her time at the moment...
Reynold and Aine were very cute this chapter instead, too bad they are planning to move apart in the near future...
My reply: Hmm indeed. Kat is too angry at Annorin to be angry at Gideon, so it's
led to an interesting situation. Yeah, it really will be sad that they
won't be together for a very long time from now on ;-;
Msprite: I love that happy picture of Joyce at the pulpit, looking at peace with her decision 
I hope Reynold can step up into his new role! Being an honest, authentic person is important for a religious leader.
Yimi: Chapter 1:10 - Oh my. Annorin is such a snake, turning the town against her with
something that he orchestrated himself, just so he could make a little
more money. Sounds awful familiar to many modern situations. I’m glad
Gideon is there to at lea- WAIT A MINUTE let the beast do its work?! Is
that werewolf Katlego? 😮 Is Katlego the werewolf?! It did seem to have
shown up recently, oh my, that puts a whole different spin on things if
she is.
And they all believe Annorin because he’s influential. That’s the real
tragedy here, isn’t it? I feel so bad for Katlego. Lost her boat, lost
her things, now lost her credibility. And she’s just trying to do good.
I’m glad that at least Gideon was there to offer his friendship, and she
wasn’t entirely alone.
Reynold is such a romantic. It’s a real shame that they can’t live
together – he obviously wants to be a dad and she obviously wants to be
with him. Maybe he’ll change his mind at some point in the future. In
the meantime, those screenshots under the moon are gorg- waaaiiiiiiit is
Reynold one too? Is that how Clem got that scar on her face? Is that
why he’s so worried about his blood passing to his child? 😮
Chapter 1:11 - Oh dear gods Fancy hair is just going after random women left and right,
isn’t he? I hope he ends up meeting that werewolf too. Cordelia
definitely won’t miss his attentions *snort*
Haha, that actually is a pretty short summary, Clara. Lol. Good thing
those women were around to find Katlego when they did but how on earth
did she end up unconscious in the woods to begin with? I mean, I have a
theory now, but I want to see if I’m correct or not, so don’t tell me 😆
Poor Katlego, it’s getting harder and harder for her to trust anyone,
even her own people. Hopefully her time in Glimmerbrook will be more
peaceful than what happened in Henford.
Hmm. Susana confessing her secret and Reynold confessing his – those are
not equal in weight at all. I hope that Reynold doesn’t end up
regretting that. Haha, she sure accepted that quickly, immediately
jumping to dragons 😂 good question, though. Does Reynold know any
dragons?
Oh, Reynold. He’s so not ready for the role of Priest and he’s so scared
to lose Joyce. Being shoved into something, no matter how gently, that
you didn’t choose yourself will end up gnawing at you sooner or later. I
wonder how the next few years will look for him. Will he accept his
role? Will he try to find someone else to do it instead? Will he be at
peace with either option?
My reply to Msprite: That pic is one of my favourites. It's rare that a pose ever comes out as nice in game as it does in Blender but I'm glad it did. < 3 Oh it's going to be very difficult for him, especially because you mentioned 'honesty' there. I wonder if he's been honest about everything so far...
My reply to Yimi: Ohhh I see, so you have two predictions on who the werewolf is...I
wonder if either of them are correct? Maybe she's talking metaphorically
about an inner beast, and maybe lunar magic and lycanthropy are
separate...Hmm...Who knows? I know but I'm not telling unless I
accidentally spoil you again XD I do love those screenshots under the
moon. They were inspired by a scene from one of the Final Fantasy
games. Yeah, Annorin isn't much different from real-life people similar
to himself and they all of course buy his bull-droppings because he's
influential. Also sounds familiar!
Yeah, Kat has had a rough time so hopefully the girls will look after
her well! Telling Susana was probably the best bet since he gets along
with her the best out of all of them, the others moreso keep to
themselves. Sadly no, all of the dragons died out about a thousand years
ago in this universe. Sad times ;-; I know, this whole thing is going
to become a beautiful mess and I am here for it : P
GSnow: I'm definitely wondering about Kat's deeper backstory. Seems to be
dropping hints about some powers or form we haven't seen her use yet... Wow, that Annorin is slimy! 
Great villain!
HSims: I was so sorry for Kat in this chapter... I mean, she could have surely have had a worse time if she hadn't met those other witches in the woods, yet she has so many things to worry about, she seems to be watching her back from anyone else at the moment... And maybe I'm in the mood for being sorry for everyone, because also Reynold really seemed to need a hug too this chapter...
Act 1, Chapter 12
HSims: Thinking now about the last chapters I feel like there were probably a
few hints already, but when Joyce's flashback started I was quite
shocked!
This explains a lot about Reynold, it is such a difficult situation...
Realising to be dangerous (under some circumstances) to all others
around, and fearing that if people knew about it they could not see
anything else than the beast in him, it's all very hard to accept. It
seems that Joyce helped him a lot in coping with it in the last couple
of years, her being on the verge of passing away seems even more unfair
now... I still think that Reynold would need a hug, but probably this time I would wait for the full moon to be over before...
My reply: Oh yeah I left a bunch of hints, that would be fun to reveal those
actually - the ones I remember are (Other readers, DON'T READ THIS
unless you've read 1:12!) :
-Reynold's reveal as a lunar witch. I played on the fact that I knew
people would think due to the complexity (mess) of the lore that
werewolfiness and lunar witchcraft were likely different things
- There's also a red herring thrown in with one other character who mentioned their beastly side, but more on that later ; )
- When Reynold admits he's a witch to Susana he stutters on the 'w'
because he was about to tell her much more than that, and then held
back.
- Clem calling Reynold out for not controlling his emotions in an early
chapter, when he promised he would. Also her freezing and more or less
collapsing to the ground when he yells at her one time.
- Reynold being taken by surprise when the (almost) first thing Julian discusses with him is about the recent werewolf problem
And to respond to your thoughts:
First off, this is the only time I will say to only hug it when it's LESS fluffy
Yeah, there's enough eating at Reynold already but that's always in the
back of his mind, worrying that he will repeat what happened to Clem to
someone else he loves. Which he really should tell Aine about it, but...
who knows when (or if) that'll come up? That's his other thing,
although he's mostly a decent person he doesn't want everyone to see him
as a monster, but also people do have to know eventually for their
safety. Mother Joyce has done a lot for him, and it's thanks to her that
(for a lunar witch) he has it under some level of control.
GSnow: Reynold!
And I even noticed how hairy he is in that lake scene in the other
chapter. And still I fell for your other red herring. Well played. I love the screenshots of him praying, by the way. They're beautiful and make me feel sad for him. He looks so small and lost.
My reply: Good spotting! I'm so glad the reveal wasn't TOO obvious I worried it would be : P Funnily enough the body hair wasn't a hint on my part, I just realised none of my Sims ever have body hair. And I realise why, because the EA body hair looks awful so I'm gonna hunt down some better CC stuff for that I think... I'm glad you like the reveal! And I'm glad you like the prayer poses too, they were hard to make to get the emotion right (even if I stole the EA kneeling pose and just edited it : P ). You're right actually I didn't notice that. It really does show how insignificant he is compared to something like the Watcher.
GSnow's reply: Cool! I love knowing what goes into making scenes in other writers'
stories. You did a great job with it all even if it was semi-unconscious
choices. I, also, use modified clips from EA animations to make some of
my poses along with poses I make entirely from scratch. And sometimes I
use the "pose by name" function on the pose player to just run a loop
and grab a more spontaneous moment within the animation.
Really enjoying the story. Keep it up!
Yimi: I wonder how many witnesses/blackmailed people like Henry it would take
for the rest of the village to finally see Annoying for the horrible man
that he is? 🤔 Gideon is very much a man on a mission and I doubt he’d
give up until he brings him down properly. He keeps reminding me of
Ethren, too. Maybe it’s the way he looks. It would be such a huge change
to have the former witchfinder’s son or grandson or nephew or the like
end up as a practical magic sage.
Woops, I’m rambling. Back to the chapter!
Poor Reynold. It helps tons that Joyce is at peace with her future
passing but saying goodbye is always heartbreaking, even in the best of
circumstances. And she's leaving him with such a huge responsibility,
too. Here's to hoping he really is up to the task.
So it really was Reynold who injured Clem so horribly, and his outbursts
really were the reason for her extreme reaction to him back then. Oof.
And he’d already healed her a fair amount by the point they reached
mother Joyce, too. Which means that she was probably a hair’s breath
away from death before that. At the hands of her own brother. Doesn’t
bear thinking about. 😶
The best thing to do for a dark heart is to guide it towards the light. I like that phrase.
Ooooh! That plot twist! I thought something was up with him being a moon
caster – so moon casters and werewolves are the same thing? Or is it a
very specific ability that only a few of them have, I wonder. Hm. Does
that mean there are two werewolves? Is Katlego’s “beast” something else
altogether? So many questions and I have no idea, lol. Poor Reynold.
Pushed into the role of Shepherd, knowing he’s one horrible outburst
away from turning into the monster that kills all the sheep. Maybe he
just needs to learn control. Good luck finding someone to teach him,
though…
My reply: I’ll be honest I have not thought through the Annorin thing as much as I
should have XD Ah yes IDK if I told you that Gideon is a ancestor of
Ethren, and that the idea came from a throwaway line in Vitriol. The
whole Joyce and Reynold thing is depressing, and even more so with Clem
and Reynold. He had no control over it but it also doesn’t change what
happened for Clem, and also on top of that he is the reason she almost
died and the reason she survived at all. What a mess. Oh for me that
line sounded ‘perfectly Peteran’, in other words, cornily lawful good
sounding : p Yup, everyone in this story is having the worst life of
their life.
As for your question about the werewolves, I have no idea yet actually.
Maybe there’s a small chance that a mooncaster can’t turn into a wolf
for some reason, but I don’t really know actually. I’ll bang on about it
some more when I have time!
Act 1, Chapter 13
GSnow: Wow. Things getting tense. I love how you do parts of the story using letters between characters. I feel bad for Reynold and Clem. It seems like it will be hard for them
to deal with Mother Joyce's passing in more ways than just grief.
Worried about how this will affect them both. That guy attacking Abigail was scary! Cool to see Aine in action though! The kids' questions about pregnancy made me laugh.
My reply: Thank you for your comment as always < 3 I always liked the idea of
doing a 'scrapbook story' partially told in various documents as well as
just the narrative. Oh yeah, I had to have the kids ask appropriately kid-like questions
about the baby. I was going to simply have her tell a story to them, but
I knew they'd be more interested in the baby XD Yeah, it's going to hit
them both hard and also force them to both have horrific memories of
the day they both met her. In a way, it has slightly brought them
together, and so far this is the most positive interaction the two of
them have had, awfully enough in Mother Joyce's death. And now Reynold's
got the eventual ordination to worry about on top of everything else.
These two are a wonderful disaster, aren't they? : P
I had a blast doing that scene. I've been waiting so long to have Aine blast somebody and finally got her to do it : P
HSims: The Reynold-Clem section was very sad, understandably this is a difficult moment for them both. Seeing Áine teaching was interesting and funny, but then that ending! I admit that I was worried for a second, before remembering that she's good with untamed magics and everything. Now it remains to be seen if that guy will return back or not... He could definitively be an issue.
My reply: Yeah, for so many different reasons it's difficult for them both to lose Mother Joyce. Good old Áine kicking witchfinder butt. I'm glad you picked up on that since a big but not-spoken part of this chapter is the fact that at least one person that isn't witch-friendly knows she's a witch now...
Yimi: Ha! Someone to knock Shepherd Julian down a peg, though I don’t actually
agree with what she’s saying. Them stubbornly not wanting to call the
other by their title made me laugh. Julian surprised me with how willing
he was to let Clem go tend to her brother, even before he heard that
Mother Joyce had passed away. In a way he’s the enemy, but he doesn’t
even try to convince Clem to do her sermon instead. He stands up to her
against Juniper without a thought, too. I like how he’s absolutely not
black-and-white, but a complex person on his own.
Oh, Reynold. Clem is right, he’s so not ready to protect anyone if he
doesn’t even know how to keep himself in check. He can’t exactly take a
sabbatical and go figure out his bloodline, though. Or can he? I can’t
remember – were their parents still alive?
Ha! Stork. 😂 Whoa, that was close. Good thing Áine was there to save
Abigail... though now that they let the witchfinder go with his life,
they’ll no longer be safe there. She’ll have to pack up and move again,
or face more and more of them 😥
My reply: Julian is far from a good guy as you say, but he does genuinely care
about his people and for Clem and wants the best for her, and even
though he knows they don’t get along, he knows that Reynold does mean a
lot to her deep down. He doesn't want her to put her duty before her
family. I think like Mother Joyce, he too probably has regrets of
putting his duty as leader of the church before all else in his life. If
he knew that not all witchcraft was dangerous and evil, I think he
would change his tune about the witches. But it's a case of what if
anything will make him realise that. As for Reynold's parents, who
knows? Even I don't know actually XD Not likely still alive though.
I've been waiting patiently to see Áine batter her first witchfinder XD
but you're right. Now at least someone knows the truth of her power, and
it likely isn't safe to stay there.
Act 1 - Halloween Special, All the Time in the World
HSims: The Halloween special was very interesting to read, and... it also seems to be anticipating a lot of interesting stuff,
introducing Oskar and Violeta, vampires, and also a time jump at some
point, maybe?
So many questions... However, as a self-standing chapter, it was a very nice read. I felt
quite sorry for Oskar when he asked to be turned, but around the end...
he was admittedly quite scary. Which is very fitting for Halloween :P
My reply: I already have lots of fun ideas for Oskar and Violeta down the line. I absolutely love his vampire form so much. Yeah same this chapter was SO PAINFUL to write, and for so many reasons... He can be pretty scary these days, but he's fairly nice when you've taken a wrong turn and need to stop off for a bite to eat...unless you're a witchfinder, in which case, you are the bite to eat. XD
Yimi: “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Oscar, oh and I’ll destroy you if you look
at me funny” 😆 oh, that made me laugh. It’s incredibly sad that her
experiences led to her acting that way around men but poor Oscar must be
completely baffled, lol. He just likes to talk. Bless. He seems like
such a sweet soul, not worrying about the pressure of society and just
making his own way in life without shame. More people should be like
Oscar. Kindred spirit, that one is. 😄 Violeta strangely reminds of both Áines mum and Yvette from Untamed, though I don’t know why.
Oh dear. That can’t be good. Oh no, Oscar 😧 Oof, and now Violeta faces
an impossible choice. Condemn her only friend to the life she hates, not
knowing if it’ll break him, or let him die without ever realising any
of his dreams. Sounds like Violeta was right – Oscar seems like a completely changed
man now that he’s a vampire. Way more bloodthirsty, though not entirely
merciless, maybe. I wonder when we’ll start seeing these two during
Divided. It seems like a bit of a time jump, before then, maybe? I can’t
say for sure 🤔
My reply: Oh yeah Oskar had no idea why he'd gotten that reaction at first, but
soon picked up there was a reason for it. Yeah the whole thing is
entirely depressing but I love how Oskar is such a free spirit, makes a
difference compared to more or less any other character other than Kat.
Oh yeah he's not entirely merciless, only if you're a witchfinder or one
of the Strong family : P The plan is they'll appear somewhere in Act
Two, though I'm not sure how far away that is at the moment.
Oh, so I think Violeta has Yvette's same hairstyle. She's actually an
edited Esmeralda Viridis, since I imagined the two looking similar! Only
even Violeta is more pleasant than Esmeralda...
Act 1, Chapter 14: So many great developments here! Awesome to see Aine teaching Abigail to
defend herself. And that second screenshot of them practicing wild
magic together is a work of art! 
Ooo... I really like Cordelia. Her point of view is so entertaining. Eduardo does not deserve her. Interesting developments with Kat... I'd like to know more about Ellie.
Gideon's response to Bradach's letter made me laugh. He certainly has changed his tune. I like him. I felt so bad for Reynold, crumpled by the door after giving his sermon.
He has so much he feels he needs to hide. I think, of all the
characters, I'm becoming the most attached to him. This story is just getting better and better!
My reply: I'm so glad you like the screenshots! Now Abigail can hopefully deal
with any potential witch-hunters that may come their way as a result of
what happened last time... Yeah, Cordelia isn't a big character but I
like the idea that she's a sheltered rich woman who's never really cared
because Lord Volpe told her witches are evil and as long as she's not
the one on the end of the sword, who cares? But now she realises that
she too could easily become a victim, and that Volpe isn't worth the
time. I say go on a lifelong cruise with your pirate polycule. XD
I haven't done much development with Ellie yet, all I knew is that Kat
would end up falling for her at some point : P Haha yeah, Gideon's
definitely changed a lot even if Kat is still keeping a level of
distance with him just in case. Yeah I feel you on that one, Reynold and
Clem are an interesting pair. So much to keep down, and no idea when
either of them are going to open their mouths about anything...
HSims: Actually I'm not a very hugs person, but I'm glad to see that in this chapter a lot of characters received very deserved hugs. They still seem to have a lot to tell to the people consoling them, but I'm sure there will be time for that at some point...
My reply: Yup, I found so many cute hug pose packs and now I'm making the most of them. I too want to hug most characters. Ah yeah this is the hard part, timing reveals and when people should reveal what they're hiding...Though I will reveal that someone will make a very big reveal next chapter. Something they've hidden from someone for many years...
Act 1, Chapter 15
GSnow: Woah. That was a creepy and cool end to act one. Wild development with Aine and her father. And then having to run. I'm wondering how/when Reynold will find out. Ooo! Excited to see Oskar and Violeta join the story. Violeta's dark form is so creepy! I thought she was a zombie at first! Definitely excited for Act Two!
My reply: Oh yeah, Reynold finding out about all this is going to be the fun art. Aine lost control and did great harm to a family member? Very relatable for him… haha yeah those teeth are perfect and I made the eyes. The eyes look better in CAS though. thank you so much! I’m excited to start Act Two, not sure when though. My main pitfall is Not worked out how Annorin will get dealt with yet XD
Yimi: “One of those again” sounds perfect for right before Samhain, no? 😗
Seems like Clem has fallen victim to the grass-is-greener syndrome when
it comes to Áine. Yeah, she’s confident and kind at the same time, but
that hasn’t come from a happy place. LOL you can look like a male
relative without looking like a man, Clem. That made me laugh. This
conversation with Áine made her look so young. Julian gets points for coming to pay respect the mother Joyce, and extra
points for not coming in his Jacoban outfit and genuinely mourning her.
He’s a complex guy. At first the guy gave me Agravaine-vibes, but he’s
more complicated than that.
Hooo boy.Brádach found Áine. Oh dear. Here we go. Yes, she’s survived
all this time. Yes, she’s never stopped using magic. Which means that
you taking off and MURDERING HER MUM has been completely pointless,
Brádach, and only made her miserable. Doesn’t quite seem to realise that
though, does he? The mouldy potato (been a while since someone’s
classified for that name! woo!) Yikes. And he still thinks he’s in the right, too. Oh, gods. Oh dear.
I’ve seen that black mist before. Technically will see it in the future,
but details. That won’t end well. Gaaaaaah and he’s all white and grey
and rotten now o.o why do I get the feeling that spell didn’t actually
kill him?
Whoa. Violeta like that looks absolutely terrifying. I wonder what
happened between the Halloween Special and this moment in time to make
her this… feral? To the point where Oskar won’t even let her into his
house. Speaking of which, Oskar! Woo! We officially have witches,
werewolves and vampires now 😁
My reply: It’s interesting to see that sort of childlike admiration from Clem, and
also her reaction to being told she looked like her brother was because
I had the all in one animation on taking those screenshots and that
face was too hilarious not to share, so I threw it in XD
I did that in purpose, because I think everyone would have expected
Reynold to be the first to come forward and try to sort of…not sure what
the word is. No-one would have expected Julian to do such a thing, but
he did genuinely respect Mother Joyce even if he thought she was
misguided like every other Peteran. As well as the closest thing to a
pep talk that he could ever give Reynold. I think even he was somehow
pleasantly surprised but he’d never admit it.
Haha yes, the bit we were both waiting for. That scene hurt to write
though, her having to flee after as well as leave her paid work…I don’t
think she expected to be on the run again so soon.
Ohh that, I do have an explanation for that which should get revealed
later if I stick with it but yeah, Violeta is terrifying and Oskar won’t
let her in his house if he has guests in for their own safety. I love
Oskar so much, he’s just so weird. He almost feeds oddly similar to
Morgyn in the trilogy in ways.
Indeed, sometimes it’s good to just not think for a while…and I honestly
think for a few reasons that’s why Oskar does this, and why he has so
many hobbies as well. A constant distraction from other, darker things,
as well as from the inevitable taste for the red stuff…
LHenley: Dark form Violeta is going to haunt my nightmares!
I’ve not really played Vampires much, I only recently bought it, but the
one family I do have are quite human-looking in their dark form, just
with glowing eyes, plus they’ve only had plasma fruit/plasma packs so
far. Maybe I should experiment with “nastier” vampires.
HSims: This was, again, quite an unexpected chapter! I definitively didn't expect Aine father to show up and admit what he did to her mother, and from there on the situation escalated so quickly... And I wasn't expecting to see Oskar and Violeta again so early either, it sounds like a lot has happened since the special chapter we read some time ago. There are a lot of open points in the story right now, Act II sounds very promising already!!
My reply: Ohhh yeah that escalation was tough to write, but fun to pose : P Yeah honestly neither did I! I planned for them to be mid Act Two, but then this happened : P I'm glad you're excited for it because I have no idea what I'm doing and only have one scene planned XD
Act Two
Act 2 Chapter 1
GSnow: What a great start to the second act! I love the interaction between
Oskar and Reynold. Oskar seems like someone who could probably help
Reynold a lot... if Reynold can trust him. I like Oskar a lot as a character. He seems complex, tough but with a
good sense of his own morals underlying his actions. Interesting that he
seemed pleased (at least somewhat) to see a werewolf. I get the sense
that he has respect or appreciation for them on some level.
Very excited to see how things develop in Act Two!
My reply: I already love Oskar and Violeta to bits, I think I might have new
favourites XD I'm glad you said that actually and noticed that. Oskar
isn't much like the other characters- one, he doesn't care if people
notice he's a vampire and two, he mostly has his bloodlust in control,
so completely different from the other witches as well as Reynold who
feels like he's losing the control he spent two years trying to work on.
Yeah he's definitely a complicated character, maybe like Julian in the
sense that he's far from perfect but not as bad as he may seem to some.
I'll reveal that in the past vampires and werewolves had an alliance,
which is the Bloodmoon pact he's referring to. I noticed most fantasy as
them as enemies so I made them allies. He's overjoyed to see a werewolf
again, but it also brings up the question of who he sees a resemblance
with, with Reynold...
GSnow Additional Comments: It's interesting that you bring up Julian in comparison to Oskar. Julian
is another character that I am really enjoying. I guess I just
particularly like complex characters who have flaws but also principles.
Julian is sort of played as a "bad guy" in the story, because of the
point of view of the main characters, but he actually seems like a
pretty caring person. His beliefs about what is right are different from
Reynolds, but his motives seem very pure to me. At least so far.
I love how complicated this story is getting. You've put a lot of thought into your characters and world, and it shows.
My reply: I really appreciate you saying that, thank you < 3 In one of my last
stories it was obvious who the villain was, so I'm trying to make things
a lot more morally dubious this time around. Shepherd Julian isn't
really a bad guy, he's been caught up in the witchfinder brainwashing
like everyone else. As far as he's concerned being anti-witch is what
the Watcher would want from him. I'm interested to build on things with
Julian and Reynold but I'm not sure when I'll get around to that stuff.
Oh believe me it is getting complicated, I'm trying to keep track of all
the subplots and still need to work in the whole thing with Annorin as
well as Volpe XD ;-; And now the vampires as well...
HSims: Ah, the suspense! I didn't expect to see Reynold travel all the way to Oskar's place this soon, but the interactions definitively didn't disappoint. But ending the chapter like that I can't avoid wondering how Reynold's confession will end... I can't wait to read more now!
My reply: Haha neither did I, until I realised him charging off like would leave
one of the Peterans suspicious as to why he would choose to go that far
on foot…luckily being a werewolf helps XD
Same I loved Oskar and Reynold’s interaction so much. I’m so excited to do the next chapter!
Msprite: I loved it! I can't wait for the follow-up scene to that last bit of dialogue... that's part of love, isn't it, knowing the worst that your partner can be...Some great dialogue in here too. Elias's sarcasm is wonderful. And the "clean up after dinner" line. good heavens
My reply: I already love Oskar so darn much, I still love that line, he's so corny XD
Elias hasn't appeared much, but he's one of the more cynical members of
the Peteran church. Nice enough, but a bit on the grumpy side, and I
also think that deep down he's not entirely sure if Reynold is ready to
run the church or not. I like to think he'd make a decent leader, but I
highly doubt that's a position he'd want in the long term.
That's a really good way to put it actually. Sometimes part of it really
is knowing the worst the person you care about could possibly do, in a
dark way.
Yimi: Oskar is very convinced that Áine is not dangerous despite… not really
knowing anything about her? Violeta is too extreme in wanting her dead
just because she’s a spellcaster, though. Hopefully Oskar can make her
see that. He seems naively idealistic, where she’s too set in her own
grudges. Add those two together and you have a perfect blank opinion
slate, ha.
Hm? You have a sentence that seems like it ends halfway 🤔 [We were told never to speak back, but ] that one.
Well, that’s one heck of a first meeting between Oskar and Reynold! Good
thing neither of them ended up killing the other, and things cleared up
very quickly. Oskar is very right to call him out on hiding his true
self from Áine. He’s been keeping it from her for entirely too long. She
deserves to know what she’s getting into with her child. Bloodmoon
pact, huh? I bet we'll end up hearing more about that in the future.
Ouch. Oh, Áine. Being overcome by rage and acting in the moment is not
the same as deliberately plotting to kill your own spouse and orphan
your own child. Oof, they both have very big revelations to share with
the other. I wonder how that conversation is going to go…
My reply:
Ohh yeah I just knew at that point these two would have to meet in their 'other' forms, and then it would get darkly funny from there XD Yeah, as much as we all love Reynold he's made a massive error in not telling HIS OWN GIRLFRIEND THAT HE'S A WEREWOLF WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU MAN!!! I actually think sometimes Reynold falls victim to not checking himself as much as he should, because he's usually the one telling other people how to live their lives when they call upon him for counsel. Yeah, soon-ish there'll be more details on the Bloodmoon pact. It's a past thing in the story. Yeah, they both have some fun things to share with each other! Let's see how it goes! : P
Act 2 Chapter 2
HSims: .. that was a tough read. I'm on Aine side of the argument about this, keeping such important secrets for so long is rarely a good idea. But Reynold is quite relatable as well, he's clearly not in good terms with his secret either. Hopefully being apart for a while will really help them to calm down and better understand what to do next...
My reply: OHHH yeah. It was not meant to be that heated at all, and then it just happened, similar to what happened when I wrote Julian and Reynold's meeting. XD Yeah me too. He definitely should have told her, and I get that yeah he's used to not telling people because as a witch you can't trust anyone really...but that's no excuse for leaving her in the dark, especially when he planned to tell her at Lunvik that he was a werewolf and that their child likely was one as well. It's gonna take a good break apart to fix this definitely. But I'm Oskar will happily step in with his unsolicited advice as always!
GSnow: I am really finding myself more and more drawn to both Clem and Oskar. They both have such interesting views on things.
I don't think you should apologize for letting things escalate in your
characters' arguments. Those scenes are what make the story so good. I
understand that feeling though. I have had a long battle with my own
self in writing, frequently undermining my own stories' tension by
defusing conflicts or dialing back the intensity of the bad stuff. It's a
struggle. I don't know, of course, what you're really thinking. But it
seemed like maybe you experience a similar thing. Keep writing the way
you write, and let the conflicts get out of hand. This story is
excellent because of all its complexity.
So... Aine and Reynold... hmm...
I'm going to be a tiny bit contrary to what is probably going to be the
prevailing opinion. To me, what they both did seems very much the same.
Each of them has a power that can do great harm to others if not
controlled. Each of them, in a moment of great anger, lost control and
used that power to violently attack another person. To me the question
of whether or not that person "deserved" it is a hard one to answer. We
never got to fully see Bradach's point of view, to learn what pressures
he was dealing with, what emotions and values drove his decisions, nor
was he given any real chance to gain the empathy of the audience. Since
we really only see Aine's side, it's easy to assume her father was just a
terrible person, but without the full story how can we be sure?
Instead, I just weigh the responses. The emotion driven loss of control
and acts of violence by Aine and Reynold, and I find them more or less
the same.
So what I take away from this scene is... Reynold is willing to forgive
the wrongs committed by others, and Aine is not. This is interesting.
Eh... probably more analysis than you wanted. But, it's only inspired because this story is really, really good.
MSprite's reply to GSnow: there's something in there about spirituality, that Reynold has a spiritual path that values forgiveness, and Aine has a spiritual path that values will. (I'm not saying one is better than the other, merely that perhaps they function differently.)
LHenley: I like Oskar’s section, where he’s dishing out wise advice and then goes
“swirling the glass does too make a difference to how wine tastes!”
I don’t have much else to add. Everyone else has said it much better than I could!
GSnow's reply to MSprite: Even without necessarily being a spiritual path, different people can obviously value different things.
I also think that Aine is partly just scared here, since she's about to
become the mother of a probable werewolf, and has no experience with
this and no idea what to expect or do. I can definitely understand her
being frustrated that her partner was apparently planning to leave her
in the dark.
On the other hand, I totally get why Reynold has a hard time telling
people. Not only is it hard to talk about, but (especially in this world
with all the violence toward "others" ) he really does need to be sure
he can trust the person he's telling.
My reply: It's so cute to see everyone discussing the story with each on here. My lil heart ;-; and never apologise for posting long analysis! I love reading it < 3 It's nice to see everyone so engaged with the story.
Glacier: I get exactly what you mean by what you said about the 'don't worry about the escalation.' I'm glad you get it and appreciate your words < 3 My chapters almost never turn out as planned, but sometimes I think that's part of the fun : P
- I too really like Clem and Oskar. In every other SimLit I've read,
every character like Clem (wayward imperfect woman who doesn't take any
trash from people) has been more or less demonised by most of their
readerbase, so I'm so glad people like her because I do too. And Oskar
is definitely an interesting one, and is fun to write.
It's sometimes difficult though, writing from the perspective of someone
with so much life experience but also sometimes easier. Oskar has had
years and years to work out ways of getting around different situations,
so he's mostly of some help. That, and his very dampened emotions also
give him that necessary 'distance' to approach other people's issues
from a point of reason and logic and less from a point of emotion which,
right now, won't help anyone. He doesn't deep down care
emotionally-speaking because he doesn't have that gut feeling anymore,
but contextually, he knows what he has to do or say to show kindness to
good people and that's as close as he can get. He knows who deserves his
respect and who doesn't. (I admit that's inspired from personal
experience, because I get really tired of every lack-of/low-empathy
character in fiction always being portrayed as entirely careless and
cruel to others 24/7.) He knows the distance between the two of them
will make them unhappy, but he also knows it's necessary if they're to
heal from what's happened, especially for the sake of their child, who
he knows they both want the best for.
Clem, like Reynold, doesn't entirely agree with how her church is run,
or their outlooks, and wants to do her bit to change it eventually.
Reynold doesn't think Peterism is about throwing all joy in life away to
focus entirely on burning yourself out for your people or your faith,
and Clem wants to bring Jacobism back to its original roots of fear of
retribution driving good behaviour, instead of complete subservience.
It's easier for Reynold since every Peteran monastery is independently
run, but it'll be difficult for Clem since the Jacoban cathedral is run
by a central authority. So that'll be fun!
Bradach: This likely won't get explored in-story about Bradach, since no-one
else really knew him well enough to bring anything up about him- so I'm
going to talk about it here, but you've just dived into something I
hoped someone would pick on that I left between the lines- and that's
who truly is at fault for what happened there. It was absolutely
terrible what he did, basically becoming a 'pick-me' type and ditching
his own magic mostly to save himself. What he did to Saoirse,
however...it's really something I left in the air and up to reader
interpretation because I didn't know either actually. Did he really do
it in the hopes that Aine wouldn't get caught as a witch if she was
never anwhere near one? Or was it just part of his
not-wanting-to-get-caught-by-association?
He did genuinely love Aine, but like many fathers, had a VERY
questionable way of showing it. But then a darker and much less
morally-correct aspect of it all is, if the witchfinders didn't kill
witches in the first place, Bradach wouldn't have felt the need to do
any of that. Doesn't excuse what he's done, but the complexity of who's
at fault for various things is something that I plan to explore a bit in
the story- that blame isn't always easily placed solely on one person
or party's shoulders, as uncomfortable as that revelation might be
sometimes.
Áine and Reynold: - I think you're right, Glacier, in that what they did was both
more-or-less the same and I'm glad you picked up on that. It's why I cut
the Clem flashback pics in, because as she's saying like 'I couldn't
control it I don't know what I did I just came to and my dad was dead'
he's reliving the exact same with Clem, coming to from an unexpected
transformation and then seeing what he did to his sister. Whether
Reynold wants to admit it or not, it both stemmed from the same thing.
They both had the split-second thought of wanting the other gone, and
then that intent was what drove both the werewolf transformation and
Áine's magic, and a dark spell she's never heard of before.
Glacier, you're definitely right about Reynold not telling her at the
same time. He had to be absolutely positively sure, and being sure of
who you can trust is nearly impossible for any witch. Not to mention
even if Aine has magic, there's always the chance she wouldn't have
accepted him being a werewolf at all.
- 'So what I take away from this scene is... Reynold is willing to
forgive the wrongs committed by others, and Aine is not. This is
interesting.'
This is a REALLY good thing you picked up on, and mightysprite's points
and thoughts are really good as well. What mostly plays into this more
than anything I believe is faith so Mightysprite is completely correct
to guess spirituality plays a part. Mostly because of being Peteran,
Reynold is quicker to either forgive, try to understand the best he can
before making judgmenet, or give someone else a second chance, like he
did with Gideon knowing he was a witchfinder.
One of the paraphrased lines in the Book of Peter mentioned by Mother
Joyce in 1:12 is that the best you can do with a dark heart is guide it
towards the light, which is a big part of why she takes him in. Reynold
tries to embody this as much as he can, even if he doesn't forgive
someone. He sees it as more of a thing to try to reform than punish.
Admittedly, not everyone can be reformed, and there are always going to
be people beyond any kind of redemption, but where he can, Reynold will
try to understand others before making judgement.
- Some of what Áine said I don't think she genuinely meant, mainly when
she accused him of trying to kill his sister. I think the shock and the
stress of all that's happened (the witchfinder, Violeta etc) has made
her question her trust even with someone who would never hurt her. That
and she could have had the chance of having a child and then having no
idea how to care for her, since the full moon will probably cause her to
act up even if the transformations don't happen until adulthood. When
she said that it did genuinely make him angry, but that's because in
part he too has wondered for the past two years if he really did
genuinely mean to do it, and he'll likely never figure that out.
There are plenty of people beyond Áine's forgiveness, and I don't think ,
had Gideon had got to her when he planned to tell her what Bradach had
done (bit late now Gideon : P) , I think she wouldn't have listened to
him. She wouldn't have forgiven him for what he said he'd do to Kat. I
think a lot of women or by extension folks assigned female at birth know
that our denial of a second chance isn't necessarily out of spite, but
the lengths we have to go to, to keep ourselves safe. The chances are
we've all given at least one person a second chance and they've blown
it, so it's not worth doing it again. Add on being a witch and the
trauma to that and Áine has even less of a reason to trust someone if
they break it once before because she's in constant survival mode.
Yimi: Áine is very quick in drawing connections between Reynold’s lycanthropy
and Clem’s scar there – quicker than I would have been, that’s for sure.
Reynold’s first reaction (anger) over her calling him out on his killing
intent is very interesting. To me, so far, he reads like he’s using his
lack of control as a crutch. As justification, or something to point
fingers at instead of himself, for his mistakes. The wolf is the anger.
The wolf makes him lose control. It’s a part of him, yet very often he
refers to his Wolfy side as if it’s separate from him. As if it’s
something that acts on its own and he has to keep a handle on it. I
understand why. But often the first step to REALLY getting a handle on
something is simply accepting that it’s a part of you. Áine is forcing
him to do a bit of introspection there, calling him out on that habit,
and he doesn’t like it.
Oof. That was a bad blow to their relationship. I’m definitely with Áine
on this one though. Reynold is so frustrated over never being taught
control and even that he was a werewolf, but by keeping it from his own
partner for so long, he’s risked doing the exact same to his own child.
If Reynold would have died before telling her, then his child would have
grown up the exact same way. With no way of knowing until they turned,
and probably killed someone.
Clem’s opinions sound quite familiar. I agree with most of them, but you already know that 🤭
Does it count as day-drinking if you’re usually up at night? I’d say
drinking after regular hours is perfectly acceptable, Reynold 😆
I wonder what happened to Ilse. If she simply grew up and moved out, or
if something else happened to her, the way Oskar reminisces about her.
My reply: Back when Aine met Clem she was curious about her scar, since it didn’t
seem linear like she’d accidentally done it swordfighting. She knew she
and Reynold did not get along, so she was concerned about that but
didn’t want to say anything back then because it seemed like a big
accusation, though she quite happily jumps to the accusation here : p
definitely with Aine here. She’s right to be furious.
Yup, Reynold had a habit of realising his problems but doing little
about them. I think his guilt complex at this point is the worst out of
any of them, because as you say he keeps talking about the wolf as if
it’s separate. I do plan for a certain character or two to delve into
that later. I think because he’s usually the one dishing out the advice
deep down Reynold hates being the one called out and I think part of
that actually stems from his upbringing and the obvious favouritism of
him over Clem. On top of that I think what Oskar says plays a part in it
too, in that being Peteran has subconsciously convinced him that he’s
doing everything right.
It just wouldn’t be an Evilbnuuy SimLit without at least one character
going on a long ‘the people at the top don’t care about you at all’
speech! Nothing is subtle anymore : p
Act 2 Chapter 3
LHenley: Enjoyed the chapter! The image of Nia with the snow on her head really made me laugh
Oskar is right when he says people say stuff they don’t mean when they’re in shock. He seems pretty wise.
I can totally empathise with Reynold about being made the abbot. So much responsibility!
My reply: Haha same XD I have to go into Sims 4 Studio and make it so my decor animals don’t gather snow I think. Yeah Oskar probably isn’t as wise as he makes out, but he’s got plenty of life experience, so for the younger ones he’s usually got something useful to say. Yeah, it’s all gonna go downhill from here I think Reynold. He doesn’t know it yet but even I don’t know how he’ll balance duty and family XD
MSprite: You have a really good perspective on religious leadership and what it
entails for the private lives and the private spiritual lives of those
who are entrusted with it. That part where Reynold is preaching to the
people the message he really needs to hear for himself, that's so true,
and so lovely. Katlego's tattoos are beautiful So are her stripes!
My reply: Me too! As soon as I saw that tiger CC I was like 'yep that's it, Kat's gonna be a tiger' and this was back when I was still jotting up her character XD I'm really glad you think so. It's hard trying to get into the mindset of a spiritual type since I have so little in the way of metaphysical beliefs, but it's fun to write. I'm glad you picked up on that last bit as well < 3
GSnow: Switching back and forth between Aine and Reynold's conversations was
interesting. They both seem to be feeling and thinking a lot of the same
things. Love Kat's tiger form! And the awesome humorous "Okay, but don't eat me now" conversation. I'm curious about Violeta. She seems so broken and lost. Reynold's ceremony, such a beautiful scene. So easy to feel his earnest
desire to do right by the role he's entrusted with and his fear that he
won't be able to.
My reply: Yeah, that's the only part of my story so far where there was no
'specific' POV and it was fun tying the conversations together. Same, as
soon as I saw that tiger CC before I started on Divided I was like YES!
I NEED A TIGER! I laughed so much at that bit, just Iris as the deer
like '...oh well now I feel a bit silly' XD Honestly so am I. The only
bit I've actually got worked out about Violeta is that she killed her
abusive husband (mentioned in the Halloween Special you read so don't
worry it's not a spoiler!) but she's been alive for longer than Oskar,
so I'm not entirely sure what she's been up to all that time other than
getting rid of witchfinders (and occasionally witches...)
I'm so glad you liked that scene, I really enjoyed writing it and I
still love the pic with him with the Angel's Talon across his chest.
Yeah it's gonna be a very rough ride, let's see how it goes : P#
HSims: When I read that the chapter took place 2-3 months after the previous
one I was afraid the story skipped to after the birth of the child, but
then it was quickly evident that Aine is still very pregnant and doing
quite well too... At this point the pregnancy should really be close to
its end though, isn't it?
The troubles of both Aine and Reynold were very touching too, probably
they have waited for long enough and could be ready to have an actual
conversation quite soon... And also Oskar and Violeta gave us more
questions than answers up to now, I'm really curious to learn more about
them.
Seeing Kat again was very interesting too, and even more so to see that
her animal form is a tiger! Now I really get why she was always so
confident about her last resort in case of a fight XD
My reply: Yeah don't worry! Not far off now from the lil baby!
Indeed, the time apart has done them both some good, and soon they
might be ready to see each other. As for Oskar and Violeta, they both
have a fairly colourful history (Oskar moreso than Violeta, given that
attitudes towards women were much worse than they are 'now' in the time
period they're in at the moment, and it's bad enough in the story's
present!) but Oskar has nothing to hide from her. He doesn't really care
if people find out he's a vampire (most of the time) and given what
Reynold hid from her, he doesn't want her to feel like he'd do the same.
Yes, Gideon and Kat's is a lot harder since dealing with Annorin is
going to take some time, not to mention that they've got their own lives
to be living as well. Kat is trying to come to terms with the fact that
her direction in life has complerely changed, and Gideon with the fact
that he needs to find a new one for the sake of himself and his
children.
Yimi: Whoa, haven’t spoken for months? Literal months? Last time we saw her
Áine already looked ready to pop – has she already had the baby? 😮 Oh,
wait, doesn’t seem like it. Oooh I like how we’re seeing two sides of
the same conversation happening at the same time. It’s a neat
storytelling trick 😁
Oskar knows Reynold’s dad? That came as a surprise. Oooh dear and she
called him her dad, too. I bet that’s hormones talking as well as the
insecurity from what happened with Reynold, that’s making her act like
that. Good guy Oskar filling the role she needs from him without a
second thought. I wonder what happened to his daughter. If she’s happy
somewhere, miserable somewhere, died of old age, or died of much more
tragic causes.
Ah, yes, the ancient game of blame-everyone-but-themselves, or, in this
case, them listening to Annoying. Yes, Gideon, focus on your kids,
especially the sick one. I highly doubt he’d be able to live with
himself if one or both of his kids died during winter 😕
Heh. Body heat, eh, Kat? 😆 hey, if it works, it works. Iris has a good
point. Too many people never see past the image of what “success” looks
like, aka, what’s fed to them by their surroundings, to see the beauty
that can lie in. Well. Literally anything else.
Whoa! A tiger! Talk about powerful 😮 Haha, the contrast with Iris’s
dear really is staggering there. Iris asking Kat if she thought she
looked tasty made me laugh.
Violeta is a complicated person, and the trauma from days past never
really goes away. I don’t blame her for letting what she’s been molded
by take over. In her mind, back then, Áine was a threat. It’s hard to
let go of a survival instinct like that. But she’s also lived long
enough that she should see the difference between then and now. She
needs to learn to grow past her own traumas. If she won't do that, that
is when I’d truly blame her.
Ah, so it does seem like Ilse simply passed of old age. Oskar is great
at introspection to realise about himself what makes him feel right. To
have someone to look after. Also raises a ton of questions about why he
can’t be with just himself but let’s park that thought there for now.
Julian’s top hat 😂 I don’t know why it makes me laugh so much but it does.
Act 2 Chapter 4
Msprite: the bit about accepting oneself as a whole, instead of thinking, "the monster made me do it," is wonderful.
GSnow: Every scene with Oskar is a pure delight!
I just love that guy. His advice to Reynold was actually pretty good,
considering the... uh... influences he appeared to be under at the
moment. I love that he goes all out decorating for the holidays even
though he's lived through so many centuries. The reconciliation of Reynold and Aine was beautifully done. I'm glad Reynold made it back in time for the birth. Your screenshots still amaze me. You must put a lot of work into them. So artistic!
LHenley: Awww, baby Róisín! I feel kind of sad knowing what happens to her much
later on, though. I shouldn’t have read the Untamed trilogy first
Oskar seems pretty nice and friendly. I’ve probably got that wrong though But he’s a pretty decent person to let a stranger stay in his house, let alone someone who was pregnant.
Reply to Yimi: Think my timing might be off slightly, but I don't know at this point XD
Yeah he does, he recalled him a little when he first met Reynold as
well. I've yet to properly think about that though, so I'll have to do
that. Yeah it is partially just the hormones making her like that and as
you said what happened with Reynold as well. I love Kat way too much XD
and yeah, Violeta is probably the most complicated out of the lot or at
least one of them. Unlike the others, she can't even feign empathy, and
more or less doesn't care about anyone that isn't Oskar (for now).
Oskar is mostly emotionless, but occasionally has this moments. Violeta
99% of the time feels nothing at all. She does need to get past it
though, the same way that Oskar and Reynold are doing their fair share
of overcoming things.
'Also raises a ton of questions about why he can’t be with just himself
but let’s park that thought there for now' Oh you picked up on
this...Good, good.... -u- Yeah, Oskar's had a lot of time to
self-reflect, though working out what you truly want is difficult when
you're immortal...at least you got plenty of time to achieve it all : P
Same Julian's top hat is hilarious. It's like he's trying to look richer
than he probably is XD
Reply to Msprite: Haha I'm sure anyone's cooking is better than Oskar's is, but at least he tries XD Oh no I'm now picturing Oskar running around Windenburg dressed as Krampus. He'd totally do that XD Yeah he didn't wanna be like 'Reynold GET IT TOGETHER!' but he more or less politely said exactly that : P
Reply to GSnow: I had to be SO CAREFUL with those photos, making sure not to show anything that would not be allowed on the forum it was so hard, so thank you! Same I love Oskar way too much, especially his conversation with Violeta XD Same, I'm glad they had space away from each other to reconcile, and now they have a lil baby too ;-;
Reply to LHenley: Ohhhh yeah, anyone who's read that trilogy is gonna have fun with this one XD I will probably change what she looks like now that I actually know what her father looks like. Oskar is probably one of the most morally-messy characters out of all of them. He tries to do right by good people, but there's an underlying feeling that no-one would want to get on his bad side.
HSims: And here is Róisín! Despite all that happened until now, the fact that the mother is a
witch persecuted by witchfinders, the father a werewolf and they are
hosted by two quite peculiar vampires, they look like such a cute new
family right now!
The talk between Oskar and Reynold was quite deep as well, and also
well-needed. Oskar surely had much more time to accept his
"monster-side" as a part of himself, good to see he's trying to pass the
concept to Reynold as well.
My reply: Yeahhhh....The folks who read the Vitriol trilogy first know how it is ;-; Haha yeah, nothing says 'found family < 3' like one unhinged vampire, another eccentric one, a werewolf and a witch XD I'm glad you picked up on that with Oskar. He's had plenty of time to work all of this out, and Reynold doesn't have anything close, but he also doesn't have a choice in the matter, especially now he's both Peteran abbot and a father.
Yimi: Oooh! It’s time! It’s TIME! It’s time, isn’t it 😮
Haha, Oskar goes all-in for Winterfest and I adore him for it. Nothing
tops winter decorations! Elias seems to be plenty suspicious of Reynold.
Hopefully nothing bad will come of it. Fingers crossed…
LOL I agree with Reynold there: if it’s taken Oskar over a century to
experiment with a dish, and it’s still not good, I don’t want to taste
it either. Then again, maybe Oskar is just a really big perfectionist
and his stollen is the closest thing to Ambrosia as we’re going to get?
Oskar is having entirely too much fun messing with Reynold while
teaching him to accept his wolf side, lol. That picture of him jumping
onto the armchair with Reynold being all 😧 made me laugh. He’s voicing
what has been bothering my thoughts for quite a while now, though.
Reynold was entirely too eager to blame the “wolf that he couldn’t
control” for the things he did. I’m glad that someone is at least trying
to hold up a mirror. Look into it, Reynold! Lookie! Look and see your
fluffy ears!
Yeah, Violeta, impossible is just another kind of possible 🤣 well ,
he’s half-right. It has become possible. In our time. And just for
women, not men. But, eh. Details.
Aw, I’m glad they made up. Sort of. There’s more important things to
worry about than their secrets and misdeeds – the imminent arrival of
new life and all. Oh? Reynold is now confident that he wouldn’t hurt
Áine? During a full moon? That he’d just be irritable? Well that’s a
giant step forward isn’t it!
Welcome to the world, little Róisín
My reply: It's baby time!! : D Haha yeah even after all these years, still manages
to put the effort in. Oskar is plenty of things, but not a cook. He can
still eat normal food, but it probably doesn't taste the same as it
used to. Might explain why his cooking is so horrendous to other people
XD Maybe somewhere in there is a top-notch chef, possibly. If we're
talking like...blood ice-cream or something.
Yup, took a verbal slap across the face from both his partner and her
'father' for Reynold to get it. Oskar's been there plenty of times
himself, and just has to make it comical somehow, probably to lighten
the blow of his 'pull it together, pup' speech XD and maybe to lighten
the blow of those memories on himself as well. Maybe Oskar is in the
wrong universe! If he were in the Aliens universe he could live the
dream of having his own (purple) child! XD
I think Oskar's 'pull it together' speech got him to realise that they
really could live together; it would just take a lot of communication
and respecting boundaries. Werewolves still recognise the people they
care about and family, probably subconscious from human form and then on
top of that familiar scent or something- so it's incredibly unlikely a
werewolf would do harm to loved one. They might be a bit grumpy or
protective sometimes, but they'd never hurt a loved one. What happened
with Reynold and Clem is something of an 'isolated incident' since that
was the very first time. Now he has much more control over it, and so
it's very unlikely that any harm would come to the wrong person because
of it.
Little teeny tiny baby ;-;
Act 2, Chapter 5
MSprite: Violeta's comments made me wonder, maybe immortality can become repetitive and even boring? Aine's curvy post-pregnancy build is lovely
My reply: I think Oskar gets bored easily quite often which is why he has so many
hobbies, but for Violeta the repetitiveness of her day to day life is
comforting after a lifetime of dealing with terrible people. She knows
what to expect from doing her painting, from Nebelstadt and from Oskar,
so there’s less to be on-edge about.
YES! I’m glad both you and Yimi noticed Aine’s post pregnancy chonkiness
instead of magically being skinny again. I love her so much < 3
HSims: I wasn't expecting them to leave so soon, but both Aine and Soarise seem to be doing relatively well and also the full moon passed, so there isn't really a reason to remain anymore. I'm going to miss Oskar and Violeta though, I hope to see them again soon!
My reply: Don’t worry, the vampire favouritism is still there and we’ll definitely be seeing plenty more of them!
GSnow: I love the screenshot of Aine and Reynold looking at each other through the bars (the one where she is on the left side of the picture, sitting with her arms around herself). The way Aine is sitting there, watching him, seems almost childlike. She looks vulnerable, curious, and growing strong all at the same time. The composition is beautiful. It almost feels like a painting.
My reply: I'm so glad you like that shot and that you saw everything I tried to convey with those scenes. There's a combined vulnerability and strength in seeing the werewolf for the first time, and for approaching him so closely. The person she knows all too well (mostly) but in a form she knows absolutely nothing about.
Act 2, Chapter 6
Hsims: I'm very happy to see that the three of them are living together now, I
hope that at least the 3 years of time skip could be mostly made of
normal family life for them...
And it was also nice to see both Aine and Reynold having serious talks with Clem and clarifying a few points, good for them!
My reply: I really do love Clem so so so so so much. She's similar to Aine, vulnerable on the inside but puts on a tough front.
GSnow: Baby Rosin is so cute! This was a sweet reconciliation between brother and sister, even if still a bit tense. Very curious to see what is happening three years from now...
My reply: IKR? I love her so so much ;-; Yeah, at long last the two managed to sort of work it out with Aine's help at least. Honestly so am I. Timeskips are rough XD but I do have everyone's timeskip makeover done at least!
Yimi: Chapter title: Safe with Us. Aw, Lovely!
Chapter picture: Cutesy, Christmasy, snow-covered cottage. Aww!
Chapter’s first sentence: trauma, family issues, mention of death threats.
Ah, yes, it’s a Evilbun chapter all right 😂
Baby Raisin is absolutely adorable. Way better than the
pink-or-blue-covered worms that the base game gave us. Ah, how things
have improved over time *cough* mods *cough* whoa, that is quite the
feast! And a lot of familiar CC objects 😁
Ouch, Áine. That’s quite the sudden gut-punch to surprise Clem with on
an otherwise happy Winterfest celebration. Oh gods and her reaction is
just heartbreaking. Thinking that Áine would hate her for being mauled
by Reynold. Yes, those things she said were terrible, but you can never
take what’s said in the heat of an argument at face value, and it
doesn’t excuse what happened. Poor Clem. She sounds so young in this
conversation.
.. .. ..
Say, does Clementine know that Áine is a witch, too? She does, right?
I’m used to people’s unsolicited advice LOL. That was a dig at Oskar,
wasn’t it? Reynold really doesn’t like having the roles get reversed
there, does he? Oh come on, man, that was sound advice. Stop treating
every bit of advice that isn’t given by you as subpar 😂 I know that’s
not what he does, but this time his quick dismissal got to me, lol.
Aww, they finally made up. Some harsh words there but it ends on a good
note. They’re finally ready to build up their relationship again, and
make it better than what it was before. Her casual “I have a sword,
brother” comment made me laugh 😆
My reply: Baby Raisin is adorable ;-; Thank goodness for CC, so I can resize a
toddler instead of taking the same shot of the same object baby over and
over! Yeah I wasn’t sure Aine’s timing was perfect but she just wanted
Clem to know someone was there for her. I honestly feel so horrible for
her, a part of her still keeps blaming herself for that whole thing and
it’s just awful. Even when you try to break away from these things you
still end up blaming yourself in the back of your mind.
Oh yeah, I think Reynold is still a bit annoyed by Oskar and his
unsolicited advice, but really Reynold, maybe the guy who’s been alive
for 100+ years might ACTUALLY have something to teach you. Haha yeah I
laughed at the sword thing XD and finally they can start properly
reconciling! Woop!
Act 2, Chapter 7
GSnow: Looks like some interesting changes have taken place and we've got some
new characters and events about to come on stage. Excited for the next
act! And, wow. Oskar's new apprentice sure looks... "friendly". Takes after his father, does he?
My reply: I'm not sure if much (or at all) how much Evadne and Isidora will actually come into the story, it was more to just establish lore from the other stories of the Charm and Viridis bloodlines still being there, and the way the bloodlines seem to be shying away from the witch-hunts a little. Hmm, we'll have to see about Elijah : P He looks pretty vacant in that pic!
LHenley: Aww, Róisín is a cutie! Genetics can be weird. Both my mother and my
brother were blonde when they were little, but now have very dark brown
hair. Both my parents have dark hair yet I’m a redhead.
I love that first photo of Áine and Róisín, Áine just looks so done with toddler antics
My reply: Yeah definitely. I had to keep it in line with a past portrayal of her in another story, way before I designed Reynold, otherwise I'd have given her black hair. Same, she's just like 'Darn, this really is busier than I thought' XD
Act 2, Chapter 8
HSims: It's Oskar! And Aine even called him 'adoptive' father! That's so cute,
for sure he seems to enjoy the role of adoptive-grandpa too.
His meeting with Dinah was quite surreal, but also a funny
misunderstanding-kind of situation. Who knows if we'll see her again...
Violeta trying to maintain her usual attitude also now that she has
someone to talk about art with was quite amusing as well, overall she
seems to be doing quite well too.
My reply: Yes indeedy, the vampires are once again taking over the plot! Oh he loves it. Oskar will gladly be the weird granddad : P Found family is fun especially when it involves witches werewolves AND vampires! Haha yeah, the meeting with Dinah was supposed to be wholly comedic, then I decided to make that be the part to show the intrusive thoughts he gets when around humans. I might have to maybe roll a dice or flip a coin in future scenes to see how he handles things, to prevent 'plot convenience'. Violeta not liking feeling good things was also supposed to be a fully comedic scene, but it's also sad because in reality she just doesn't want to ever be even slightly vulnerable ever again.
GSnow: I love Oskar and Violeta so much!
Good to see they've moved close enough to stay involved. There's such
an interesting contrast between them, but still a bond. And each
attempts to understand and support the other. I love watching how they
deal with things.
That outfit of Violeta's is gorgeous. And it really suits her. She
seemed so much calmer and more confident while teaching the class, and
even a little (dare we say it)... happy.
Little Rosin with her new kitty is so cute! I like how she just immediately took to Oskar. Seems a very friendly toddler.
The misunderstanding between Oskar and his... uh.. evening acquaintance made me laugh.
I like how you portrayed his struggle to control himself.
MSprite: For Oskar's thing with counting, were you inspired by the legend that
you can protect yourself against a vampire by scattering rice on the
floor, because the vampire will be compelled to count all the grains of
rice before it can do anything else?
I don't remember where that legend is from, but it stuck in my mind from somewhere....
My reply to MSprite:
Then I was like oh, so compulsiveness is a big part of the vampire mythos which a lot of popular vampire portrayals don’t seem to show and I thought it was an interesting part of the lore.
So I decided to go with it, and realising the similarity between it and obsessive-compulsive disorder, decided to do some research into it and make it not something for laughs, but something that’s actually very hard for him to control, in a time where knowledge on such things as slim- but without any minor spoiling, during this rough time period IRL there was a bit of knowledge surrounding it.
He suggests counting wolves to Reynold back in the chapter when they’re talking about control, because with the knowledge he has at that point it could probably work (slightly) for Reynold since he’d be able to eventually easily stop himself once he calms down.
I do love Violeta getting a shot at fleeting happiness. Oskar is right in that she’ll have to let herself be a little bit vulnerable when it comes to emotions, even though she doesn’t like to feel that way. In his mind it’s a case of ‘let yourself be vulnerable because you can easily kill anyone who tries to take advantage’ XD The misunderstanding between Oskar and Dinah is hilarious, but yeah writing the scene with the intrusive thoughts was pretty rough. Gonna have to work out down the way when and when it won’t overcome him, maybe a coin flip or something so I don’t fall into plot convenience or a bad portrayal.
Without spoiling too much, I'll reveal that (at the moment, if I go with my notes, that is, and don't change or get rid of my current plans) there will be a self-discovery that certain people in this historical story might not be ready for, and also a death that may put someone's decision in major jeopardy...
Oskar and Eli make a quite uncommon dynamics, but it is also very funny to read. I also have the impression that Eli could have a better time being Oskar's apprentice than back home (even if now the amount of work involved could seem scary to him).
The last part instead... Clem really gained a lot of points there, she really demonstrated to be strong and showed where her morals stand. I'm also quite worried for her now though, I'm not really sure about what to expect from Shepherd Julian now...
At any rate, I'm definitely curious to see where this goes.Clem's section was awesome. I've been waiting for her to really take a firm stand on the issues of this world and hold her ground, and she does not disappoint. When push comes to shove, she protects the people she believes need protecting, even at her own risk, and she doesn't back down. I love what she says to Shepard Julian at the end of the chapter.
I think Clem is really interesting because, of all the characters in the story, she honestly feels like the one who has the most potential to truly act heroically in a traditional "champion of the innocent" selfless kind of way, but her own internal pain may drag her down instead. This makes her a very intriguing character to watch, because you've written her in such a way that I actually have no idea which way it will go, hero's journey or tragic flaw. Out of the whole cast, I feel like she has the most to gain and the most to lose.
I'm definitely rooting for her the most now. But then, I always do love the underdogs.
PS- I love the screenshots during the sword fight. They're so vivid and tense. Well done.
It's more obvious with other characters than it is with Clem; People who read the Vitriol trilogy know what Áine eventually does, Oskar and Violeta's history and actions so far have already shown their darker sides. On top of that, Reynold is constantly at war with himself for his actions in the past and what he may have to do to protect his family as well as his monastery, whereas Clem was practically ready to do whatever she had to, forcing herself into that mindset in the early days.
Wow, they are beautiful! I especially love the shots in the scene with
the conversation between Julian and the high priest. The colors! The
lighting! The compositions! I kept scrolling back up and looking at
them.This chapter is an interesting (potential?) turning point for Julian. Up until now, he has seemed kind of wavering back and forth before between the faith he was taught and his personal beliefs. Seems he finally really took a stand. It will be very interesting to see how things develop between him and Reynold. As well as what the ramifications of his choices are.
Him being attacked and almost killed was quite shocking as well, and even more so it was seeing Reynold both healing him and showing his magic to him. At first I thought that Reynold could have run away after healing most of Julian's wounds and before he woke up, but this was also quite an important chance to show that magic isn't only a threat to people. Also, if Julian had woken up almost completely healed after being attacked, he would have had all the right to suspect even more about Clem or Alice being witches (which would have been a problem anyway).
Julian being familiar with Lunvinchenaîné magic to the point to be able to associate it with lycanthropy sounds like a very possible source of trouble in the next chapters.
What I like a lot about this story is that most characters (at some point) show not to have a purely black-or-white morality, but to stand somewhere in between. It makes them much more relatable, and this is not something easy to achieve when writing a story.
I came up with the idea of Shepherd Julian getting attacked because I thought it'd be a good way for Reynold to reveal his secret that way and then attempt something of an allyship with Shepherd Julian. Of course, how said allyship will go down between both Jacobans and Peterans is yet to be seen... Yeah you're spot-on, that's why Reynold stays- to show Shepherd Julian that a) not all magic is bad and b) that he is the witch and not Clem. Shepherd Julian had mild suspicions that it was Reynold, but not as much as he initially suspected Clem.
Ah yes! I didn't think of this until near the end of the chapter, remembering Julian is from Champs les Sims, and the mooncaster languag being based on French, he would have had at least some knowledge of them...and now I think Julian is almost terrified of Reynold even if his werewolf thing is mostly under control now.
I'm glad you like it < 3 Almost everyone in this story is in the grey area, and the good/bad divide is less clear than it is in my older stuff. A lot of it lends to it being historical, and differing attitudes and such. Some of it is because I was consciously trying to make most characters morally ambiguous in some way. Shepherd Julian probably being one of the most ambiguous.
It's interesting to me that he now struggles with fantasies (of completely draining people) that appear to really upset him. A past in which that was something he actually did and enjoyed doing suggests that something else happened to make him start to regret that. A lot to ponder...
Your screenshots are pretty.
I like that werewolf with the white fur.Also, beautiful pictures! All those poses and reshade for the night scenes don't seem easy to achieve at all!
He also makes a good point about Peterism and pacifism. Pacifism is good in some respects, but sometimes you have to defend yourself. And not everyone in a particular sect is going to believe the exact same thing.
We’re seeing glimpses into darker sides of Oskar’s personality too. I’m glad? that past-him only had a fascination with schadenfreude instead of just taking delight in others’ pain.
I’m not sure how I feel about Oskar’s confidence. Even monkeys fall from trees. I hope he remains vigilant.
These screenshots are cool (as well as unsettling and terrifying).
I'm not sure how worried I should be about her becoming overcharged? or ill from spellcasting. I feel like it's something to worry about--bleeding from your eyes can't be good and what if she needs to cast a powerful spell in the future. It's not something that should just be brushed off.
How does Oskar's wealth compare to Annorin's? They're both wealthy enough, but is Annorin much more so? 'There's the inn, I suppose- they may have rooms free for you both.' This made me laugh because I think of Ellie and Kat as a pair (or a trio with Nia) that comes as a package deal. Rooms? I imagine they'll stay together in one room, but I get that their relationship isn't obvious to strangers even strangers who recognize Katlego.
As for Annorin, Annorin could probably solve every social issue in Henford and still have plenty left, and the reason he charges so much for his cures (as well as good old fashioned capitalism) is because he gets a lot of custom from as far away as San Myshuno, because his cures are cheaper than any they can get in their home city. It's mostly only the elites that can afford any of his cures. So in his mind, if it's no loss to his custom to charge such a hefty amount why should he, even if plenty of poorer people die as a result. He's a pretty good and knowledgeable healer, but that knowledge is wasted when he only cares about being rich more than anything else.
In one of the somewhat recent chapters, even back when Oskar's parents were alive, their most expensive piece they ever sold wasn't as much as what Annorin charges for his various cures. Oh yeah, you know how bad overcharge can get. Passing out and a little blood is thankfully the lighter end of the spectrum of overcharge symptoms, but she'd best be careful in the future.
Yeah that's something I didn't think about actually. Maybe something will come up about the room situation, I'm not sure yet. Yeah you're definitely right on the money with the event in a past story that you're referring to. Given how willing the other characters are to take a life if needed, that's likely to cause some sort of conflict. And I agree, it's fun to see all the mains coming together. That was the main reason I wrote that scene to be honest, to show Kat's comparative pacifism and get her back to Henford. I think she enjoyed her time at the little coven type place, but also it's not really a place for someone like Kat who's not entirely willing to kill a man.
Another interesting thing (to me) about Katlego's pacifism is how it compares to Clem's killing of a witch hunter. It seems like Katlego has more options because she can use magic to do various things, whereas Clem could probably come up with something creative if she had time, but often the only option she may have is to fight to the death in self-defense without any neat way of cleaning up the situation afterwards (she can't erase memories).
Exactly that- Clem doesn't have any magic to fall back on, so her only way to defend herself and Alice was to just kill the guy. In a way, I think she's thankful that she doesn't have magic though, especially seeing what Reynold's constantly dealing with.
As a side note, the fight's pictures were so pretty, with all the spells glows in the night, the shield, and even the motion blur, it looks like a lot of work!
And then of course Oskar was the only person they could meet during a full moon night with an ongoing "werewolf alert on"... Considering how much both he and Kat hate Annorin, an alliance between them could be very interesting to read!
Pleased that Ellie came along with her though.This was an interesting chapter to come so soon after Clem's confrontation with a witchfinder. The encounters both start out similar, but go very differently because of abilities and values. A cleverly done contrast. I like it.
I expect there will probably be consequences for that decision. From one direction or another.
Oskar knowing who Kat was kind of surprised me (I don't recall them meeting before) but I suppose in that small town word gets around...
Your note at the end about why Kat couldn't just go talk to Reynald right now made me laugh. Hard to keep track of everything sometimes. This happens to me too.
I figured that either a) word has spread about Kat because more people hate Annorin now, b) Reynold had told him about it, or possibly c) that Eli had told him about it because I'm sure Oskar probably asked him more in-detail about why everyone hates his dad and I know Eli would be glad to complain about his dad all day long XD Also I feel like a double team of Oskar and Kat would be the simultaneous best and worst. : P
Oskar - ENTP-A (Debater)
Reynold - ENFJ-A (Protagonist)
Kat - ESTP-A (Entrepeneur)
Aine - ESFP-T (Entertainer)
Clem - INTJ-T (Architect)
I like how Eli is trying to comfort and understand Oskar, even though he is the apprentice and younger person, so it kind of feels like the advice should flow the other way. Eli seems like a kindhearted kid.
Poor Oskar is really struggling. Good thing he's able to talk with Violeta about what is going on.
Heh. Heh. Watch out Annorin. Kat is BACK. The people have realized she's better than you, and she's got the support of the new Peteran priest. This should be interesting.
Looking forward to whatever happens next!
Yeah, it's definitely a fun reversal. Maybe Oskar can learn from Eli as well as vice-versa. Thing is although Reynold is (mostly) docile, both Peteran and Jacoban hold a fair bit of power, so the opinions of both the High Shepherd and the abbot would hold some weight. Would be fun to see how Annorin and Reynold/Julian would go in a conversation XD
The screenshots are just gorgeous. I have a bad understanding on how to use re-shading programs and how to edit pictures and so I probably also struggle to understand how many steps are required to obtain those results, but they are really impressive anyway!
As for the chapter instead, reading Oskar's POV is always entertaining. Even in a chapter like this one, where he's in struggle and his more sarcastic side doesn't emerge as much. Hopefully he will find a solution to his bloodlust before losing control (again)...
And it's also very nice to see Kat walking confidently in town again. I can't wait to see her meeting Aine again!
My reply: I'm so glad you like the screenshots < 3 3 Yeah Oskar is hard to write when he's struggling because I get so used to him being cheeky or chirpy and it just hurts to write ;-; And every time I flip the coin to see if he ends up struggling with bloodlust in the chapter, it always lands on yes, poor guy. YES! I am so happy to have Kat back! Let the mischief commence!
I also like Kat and Ellie as a couple and I'm glad they were able to have couple time in the inn. I’m irrationally worried that something will happen to split them up.
Your vampire lore intrigues me. I suppose that Oskar hasn't been lucky lately with hunting. Do they eventually ever get to the point where they actually need human blood?
One more thing, this chapter (despite not being great for Oskar) has such cozy found family vibes. There’s the almost trio of Oskar, Eli, and Violeta, where Oskar and Eli are working together in a way that resembles a parent-child relationship and Violeta also has a sort of parental vibe with Oskar too. If everyone in your signature image were to team up, it would be amazing.
As for the vampire lore- So technically, they can survive off of animal blood, but it's not as satisfying for their bloodlust as human blood is. So they can live off of animal blood, but human blood is the best since it's the most 'nourishing' and also probably tastes better than animal blood as well. It does weaken them as well to some extent in the same way being normally hungry wears you down, and so eventually a vampire will need a decent energy boost that they can't get from a wild animal.
He is! Oskar is a TERRIBLE cook, but at least he's hospitable. Oskar unlike Violeta can still eat 'regular' food, though it doesn't provide much in the way of nourishment and it's just for pleasure even though, the trouble is, it doesn't taste the same. It's kind of like...when you have a bad flu and you eat something and you can barely taste it. Trouble is, he can barely taste his own awful cooking, and then poor Eli has to eat it : P
One thing that is across all of my stories a lot because I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT SO MUCH is found family, and it just gets more weird and wonderful in this story especially with the sire / progeny relationship between Oskar and Violeta that is hard to define and makes not much sense to mortals. For those two, it's a weird blend between being best friends and almost like a mother and son at the same time. And as expected Oskar is becoming a surrogate father to someone else as well now XD So that's now currently Áine and Eli , and whoever else may need a replacement daddy in the future XD
I'm not sure if this story will head in this direction yet, but I am slowly trying to get everyone together in a way, but we'll have to see how it goes. Thank you so much for this comment, it made my day < 3
That's a brave move on Julian's part. I wonder how his flock will respond.
The hug Áine gives Kat in greeting made me smile. I love their reunion and that they are planning to work together again.
The non-witches (Gideon and Clem) are also non-pacifists. Interesting. You've discussed this before in light of their limited options, but I like how it comes up again.
I worry about Julian too. I like what he's doing. It's the right thing, but I worry that it's too much, too quickly. I don't think that most people will be able to understand his 180 degree change, especially since he cannot fully explain what happened to cause this change. He sounds like too much like "I told you this one thing for ages, but let's now do the opposite just because of [flimsy, obvious reason]."
Anyway, I'm loving all the encounters between your characters. Violeta meets Clem, and encourages her, and she seems to want to encourage others too.
I love the light coming through the windows beside her! I also love all
the pictures of Julian giving his sermon. And since I seem to be just
listing random things I love about this chapter, I will add one more: I
also love all the reflections on sexism and what it means to be a woman
that appear throughout the chapter.I'm glad you like that scene! I've been wanting Violeta and Clem to meet for a while. I'm so glad you enjoyed this chapter < 3 3 I'd like to do one chapter dedicated to the girls and one to the guys at some point, that'd be fun. There's also the generational gap between Violeta and Clem, and Violeta is suprised in a good way to see that younger women in this time know better what they truly deserve. Whilst she would have kept quiet about things when she was Clem's age, she's glad Clem's doing what she's doing.
Yet the bravest action in the chapter was probably Julian's public sermon, will it have consequences? Most likely yes, and I'm a bit worried now (and I started to like him as a character just recently!)
I think my favorite part, just from a "wow, this is good writing" standpoint is Volpe's letter. You did such a great job of putting his slimy voice into it as he reminds us all again just what a complete [can't print this on the forum] he is.
The way he insults Gideon all the way through the letter and then is
like "So won't you come work for me? Oh and by the way, I can take away
your children." is just... wow. I love Gideon's response.Also that adorable greeting between Aine and Kat!
I hope they do work together again. They've both grown so much. It could be a formidable team.It's gonna be like that spring energy for a while, I want to actually get to the good more action-y stuff but it's gonna take a while ;-; The fact Volpe is so desperate he's calling on Gideon and then threatening to recruit his kids if he doesn't...He's just... UGH. I'm glad you like that part < 3 I feel like Aine and Kat are a terrible influence on each other...and I love it XD
She already doesn't fit in because she's doing something that women
typically don't do and she's already killed a witch hunter. It's not
hard to imagine people saying that she obtained her position through
witchcraft and has bewitched Julian into changing his stance on witches.
I wish he'd thought a bit more about his sermon and how to effectively
transition his flock into being less anti-witch. Julian and Clem look so
suspicious now.But it seems like we'll have happy times in Divided for a while, so that's good.
Oskar and Dinah really had a quite peculiar interaction here. I didn't expect her to have feelings for Oskar, and he appeared quite confused as well, but at least he managed to finally eat something and regain some energy. Also, Dinah really seemed knocked out at the end of the encounter, I hope it won't take too long to recover after this...
Eli understanding on his own that Oskar is indeed a vampire was also quite interesting, he seems more perceptive of details than I expected before this chapter. Him asking Violeta for more details was also quite... brave. I mean, I know she's nice, but her expression most of the time is quite scary. Good to see that both ber and Oskar seem to really care about Eli as an apprentice.
I like to think most of Eli’s perceptiveness of behaviour and such comes from trauma from his father, always having to be quick to analyse behaviour to avoid getting yelled at and such. Yeah he was definitely frightened, but she was nicer to him than he expected and she was the only other person he had to ask. They are great together as a student / mentor pair!
I enjoyed the interaction between Reynold and Rosin.
Reynold: "You can hurt people with magic."
Rosin: "Wow!"
The fact that this made me laugh probably tells you more about me than I really should admit.
Seriously, though, it feels like some stuff is being foreshadowed here. Little Rosin is very eager and kind of aggressive.
Your screenshots through the scene with Oskar and Dinah have a silk-like quality that is really beautiful.
I liked how Oskar is all working up to telling Eli that he's a vampire and Eli is all like "Yeah. I figured that out ages ago."
And the more I see of Violeta, the more I like her.
Haha that scene with Roìsìn and Reynold was so fun to write XD I’m not actually sure what sort of personality she’ll grow into yet, but she’s certainly a handful even for a toddler XD
I've not played in the English world at all, but I want to every time I see screenshots.Congrats to Róisín on her first spell. It seems like a bittersweet milestone. I can imagine Áine (and Reynold) having traumatic childhood memories involving magic.
I'm so happy to see Dinah appear again. Actually, all of your characters are such fun that when any of them appear after an absence, my reaction is always "Oh!
". I'm even excited for the more villainous ones to appear.Anyway, Dinah's interaction with Oskar was touching. I feel for her.
Also, Áine has a wolf form? Did she get it from being pregnant with Róisín? I'm sorry I somehow missed this before.
This is old news, but I voted for Julian because he's unique, and I thought others wouldn't vote for him. I want him to keep appearing, perhaps more than most others, because I find his character captivating, and others like Kat and Oskar are already popular.
Pretty much. Oskar didn't want to drink from Dinah, but he trusted her to not want to spear him for being a vampire, and he figured it'd be easier to ask a friend than risk hurting an innocent person. Yeah the timing wasn't awful since he didn't want to terrify the poor boy, and Eli wasn't mad at him for not telling him. He just felt like 'Oh, does he not trust me enough for me to know? Is he like everyone else deep down- not trusting me because of my father?' I love Eli, he's a sweet kid.
As for Julian, well I'm sure he's glad to have at least ONE person in his fan club! He's definitely different from the other characters. Similar to Gideon in a sense, has a lot to learn and his path is one of attempted redemption.
I am enjoying these talking chapters and their more light-hearted
atmosphere, so I'm in no rush for any villains to mess things up, but
when they do appear, I will sort of welcome them.Also, I downloaded the lighting mod and will test it in some worlds. Thanks for the link. I'm still too lazy to move over to GShade, though.
His encounter with Annorin was quite full of elements as well, and Annorin is very easy to hate at this point... Most likely we are all with Oskar and whatever plan he has in mind for the party at this point.
As for the questioning gender warning at the beginning instead, I actually didn't expect it to be referred to Oskar, yet it makes a lot of sense with what I remember from the previous chapters (and probably also with the hints I didn't notice and now I can't remember). Given the historical period when the story is set this sounds like a particularly challenging situation, I wouldn't know where to start from... And, thus, I'm very curious to see what you plan to do with this plotline.
There was a hint to it in Chapter 2:14 during the part where Oskar drinks Dinah's blood, but other than that there's not been much hinting to it. It's a hard thing to pick up on oneself, and unfortunately for Oskar it isn't something anyone really talks about at all so he's more or less on his own with his thoughts. Admittedly it won't be a huge part of the story, but I thought it was fun to show that it doesn't matter how old you are, self discovery is ongoing and can surprise you, and also it's been interesting reading about various gender nonconforming people throughout history. In the start of the story when I designed Oskar I thought to myself 'there's no way he's cis, I can feel it' XD so I rolled with it.
Oh Annorin. So delightfully slimy.
I'll admit, even though in real life I tend to agree with Kat,
narratively it would be so much more satisfying to let Oskar do things
his way.I definitely picked up on Oskar's feelings about gender in the earlier chapter, so his more overt contemplation of it here felt like a very natural extension of those thoughts. It will be interesting to see if/how that develops.
Yes indeedy, I will have fun writing those out and it will be interesting to see how he explores it in a time where no one seems to talk about it. I feel bad for Oskar since he’s on his own with so many experiences that no one else around him can truly understand.
I liked it a lot and was delighted to read it (even though its tone
doesn't seem delightful - it's more serious with lovely humorous bits
here and there). Anyway, I love how Katlego and her owl are always
together. It seems like they comfort each other. I also love the image
of Katlego near the fire while she talks to Oskar.It would have been interesting (horrifying?) if Oskar had been casually drinking blood while debating the necessity of violence with Kat.
Bloodfruit almost gets us there. I don't think either is wrong (or
right). Oskar's approach strikes me as more practical, but it's not
ideal. I like that Kat wants to avoid it. The problem is that it's hard
to tell how much violence is required until it's too late. 
Based on the rest of the chapter, I wonder if Annorin can get turned
over to the witchfinders. That would be poetic justice. Oskar senses the
magic in Annorin's blood, and Annorin is so confident that he confesses
to being a descendant of witches. I liked the humor in the kitchen scene, with Oskar sitting rudely on Annorin's counter and Annorin calling him out. Also, the comments about the mugs. Were the mugs purposely placed there?
I can't blame him too much for his initial comments about inviting Kat because no one wants to invite enemies to hang out, but he worked hard to scam people so he deserves his money?
Haha yeah Kat would have probably passed out XD Yeah this is the best part of Divided for me, is the 'when is violence okay?' debate that's constant throughout the whole thing. Does retribution automatically make you as bad as your attacker, or is it a rightful act to protect oneself and their people from further harm? That's interesting that you bought that possibility up with a possible way to deal with Annorin, that's all I'll say.
It's funny you mention the mugs since the reason Oskar's comments are there was because I laughed when I saw them. Annorin's house is an edited house from the Gallery and I just laughed when I saw the heartbreak mug in a historical story inside of a billionaire's mansion, and Oskar being particularly observant of all the tackiness I added to the house (I didn't add the cup rack though) he would have definitely thought of something snarky to say in the narration about it XD It just looked so out of place in Annorin's home and I found it funny.
Yup, most of Annorin's 'hard work' is most likely his father's money anyway that he's just added to. He's a talented alchemist, sure, but also a major grifter and most of his money is from the grift moreso than it is his actual medicinal knowledge. But in his mind, it's all his hard work and everyone else in Henford just needs to work harder if they want to afford to do such luxurious things as...not die of preventable illness.
I love the scene with Reynold showing up as a werewolf to defend his sister. And the touching moment where he lets her close. They're both showing a lot of trust to be near each other here.
Your screenshots are beautiful and moody.
). The confrontation between Juniper and Clem is interesting. It seems
like Juniper is helping, just a little bit, maybe. It seems like Juniper
had a rough time because she was even more of a trailblazer when it
came to women in the church than Clem is. Unfortunately, she has to
insist on being called her title. I'm not sure how I feel about Clem
ignoring it.Despite the gruesomeness of the scene overall (beautiful opening sequence of images, btw
- somehow you always manage to pull off beautiful and scary screenshots
well), Reynold's exchange with Clem is sweet. Clem is so brave. I
wouldn't fault her if seeing her brother in his wolf form terrified her,
but I'm glad she's able to face/interact with him like this and that
she's able to create relatively good memories with him in this form. I'm glad the screenshots atmospheres work ;-; Indeed, it was a really sweet to do the poses for and set up. It will still take a lot of time for Clem to overcome the trauma, but at least knowing Reynold will never hurt her again will help her heal. Also now I want to hug a werewolf too. ;-;
So that I don't like her, it's also difficult for me to believe what she's saying. It sounds like a lot of stuff was evolving in the background among the Jacobian's high clergy, and now I struggle to imagine what her true intentions could be...
The second scene was quite scary instead. It was easy to predict that Julian would have protected his sister, but I was pretty worried he wouldn't have managed to maintain control afterwards. This definitively felt like an important moment for both siblings.
I loved that scene so much < 3 It was a nice bonding moment, especially considering Wolf!Reynold hasn’t let anyone that close so far.
I'm not familiar with the stoic woman trope in fiction. Unfortunately, I do find it to be a problem IRL, though. My personal pet peeve is a "pick me", so that sort of person will probably never show up in my legacy because I hate it so much. Anyway, I'm curious as to where Kat would fit into the "maiden, mother, crone" thing. Maybe as the maiden because she has supernatural powers and an optimistic outlook? Ironically, Clem seems more hardened by life experiences than Kat.
You also definitely make us reflect on how we write women (and others) in our own stories, which is good.
I'm glad you think so. I think a lot of the time when diversity comes into discussion, age is something often left out of such discussions concerning fictional characters and I wanted there to be some focus on the older characters as well like Joyce and Julian (who were/are in their seventies) and also Violeta as well. Speaking of wrinkles, the vanilla wrinkles are awful, I use CC ones to get age details more accurate. Oskar is actually a YA with some CC wrinkle detail, since the Adult lifestage looked too old but the YA looked too young.
The reason I had Oskar and Violeta be turned at 36 and 48 respectively is because it's not quite old, not quite young. Though what I'm about to say hasn't come up in-story, I can imagine that being frozen in time at such an 'interim' period was actually something that was hard to bear for a while. They couldn't enjoy a youth they didn't have, but couldn't enjoy the fact that at least they'd lived their lives and had gotten old before it all happened. They're both used to it now but I can imagine it was difficult.
I always appreciate your insight < 3
Kat's choice was quite interesting as well, even if in her case the choice was mosty driven by the desire to annoy the house owner, it still brings to an interesting reversal between her and Oskar in this party. The fact that she didn't recognize him (*can I still use he/him for Oskar?*) sounds like the set-up for some other revelation in the next chapter as well...
Poor Eli instead, his father is really being awful with him. It's very understandable why he's seeing Oskar as more of a father figure than Annorin, but it's also sad that the latter doesn't seem to agree at all. But then we are back at the party... The more time passes, the more I think that this party risks to end in a very different way than Annorin planned.
Indeed, who knows what the nobility think of such things... I'm glad you recognised that she wasn't pretending to not recognise him, like Oskar thought, and she genuinely did not recognise that it was him XD It's a fun little swap, the woman dressing in something deemed uncommon for women, and vice-versa. Yeah I wasn't sure about writing that in, but honestly Eli means nothing to Annorin. Oh indeed. It probably won't end the way Kat hopes it to end either...
(Oskar getting ready for the ball and choosing to wear what he really wants to wear).
(The exchange between Eli and his father).
(Eli's face when he gets back).
(Oskar hugging Eli). (How gorgeous Kat and Oskar look at the ball).You do a great job of pulling the emotions in opposite directions here. (And grrrrrr... Annorin is a terrible parent. Though I guess we already knew that, didn't we?) I love how the drama and tensions are building up. I am on the edge of my seat for whatever comes next.
I loved the emphasis on dialogue in this one. It worked really well. And your screenshots are beautiful as always.
Yeah I know. I felt so bad for Eli after that scene, and ugh Annorin is honestly the worst. Especially that scene of Oskar's face as he's hugging Eli like 'I'm going to murder Annorin.'! I love the whole thing of Violeta doing his makeup as well ;-; I'm glad it worked for you even without the actual writing parts. < 3
Anyway, Oskar and Kat's attitude at the party is quite "cathartically destructive", considering how easy it is to hate Annorin & friends seeing them collapsing for the blood loss or being turned into green monsters is indeed quite funny. I see some familiar surnames around as well...
The poison scene was particularly funny, but now Annorin has even more reasons to suspect them. What Owen will do is another bit question mark, he seems to be at the party as well...
Of course, as usual, your screenshots are stunning. This chapter is a visual feast.
Speaking of feasting....
"So who had too much to drink, Oskar? Was it this man, or was it you?" cracked me up. Such a good line.I actually enjoyed seeing Oskar be a bit less restrained. I think he needed that drink. That guy was awful. I can see why he's buddies with Annorin. I also loved the snooping around in Annorin's personal stuff part. I had kind of forgotten that Kat's ship got stolen, but now, heh heh, the plot thickens. I wonder why Annorin would take it, though. Just to sell it? Or use it? To find something he thought was on board it? Because keeping Kat there on purpose seems like it would be an odd motive for him.
Owen is interesting. I'm curious to see if anything comes of that conversation that he and Eli had.
Very worried about Oskar now. Drinking the poisoned tea right in front of Annorin has tipped him off that Oskar isn't human. Though thinking he's fae is a cool twist.
All in all, I think this is actually one of my favorite chapters so far.
So Annorin didn't know it was Kat's boat since I think she was staying in the inn when she had it 'parked' there, but Annorin probably noticed some of the crystals and such lying around on it and decided to just take the whole boat and use all of those crystals and other alchemical / magical components for his own potions to sell. He didn't care who it belonged to, he just saw an opportunity to save a Simoleon (and probably help thwart any potential competition in the process.)
Oh indeed, Annorin's suspicions have been sealed in that moment. The other thing about him thinking Oskar is either a fae or a changeling is that similar was thought about neurodivergent folk IRL historically speaking. Annorin touches a bit on that next chapter in a horrible way.
I just noticed at the end that Oskar has horns in his true vampire form. I was going to check if he had those at other times he shows himself like that, but can't remember which chapters his vampire form appears in, and poking around randomly didn't land me on the right ones.
But at any rate, I liked that detail. Nice touch.It was kind of surprising how quickly Annorin's guests turned on him/ridiculed him/abandoned him. Sort of suggests he doesn't have any real friends at all, not even in his own social circle.
Owen's contribution to the situation is intriguing. I can't tell what his motive is at this point. But as a character (not necessarily as a person) I am inclined to like him. Very curious to see if he becomes a bigger part of the story or not.
This story is awesome. I'm thoroughly enjoying it. You are talented at writing this kind of drama.
One behind the scenes question: Do you happen to remember where you got the various masks that guests are wearing in these last few chapters for the ball? I've been looking for some like that. I especially love Kat's mask with the rose, and the winged mask that the guy in the red tunic is wearing in this chapter.
I stayed up until 5 am last night to finish off this chapter
I'm glad it paid off. The pictures were fun to do, I love messing about
with GShade presets. Oh yeah they're new! Originally Oskar only had
really short claws, but I added wings, longer claws, horns, and creepier
eyes. I don't think this has come up in the story yet, but the vampire
lore is that, the more they give in to their bloodlust, the more
'monstrous' their vampire form becomes in the process. IDK whether it's
permanent or something they have to keep up though. I guess it's
probably permanent, we all know how creepy Violeta's is : P The black
feather wings are inspired by the ff7 character Oskar's design is
inspired by.I'm not sure what will come of Owen to be honest. I always planned for Eli to have a brother who was the apple of his father's eye, and who doesn't seem like he cares about Eli but he does. I will be really honest, everyone turning on Annorin so quickly was a bit unrealistic but some arcs just need to be resolved and I figured I'd go along with it. Though the other elites just think he's embarassing as opposed to terrible, and they're just glad it's him who's getting flamed over the terrible things he's done and not them. I'm so glad you like the story and I really appreciate all of your comments and insight < 3
Sure I'll send a PM with the masks!
I also remain of the idea of seeing so much violence against a hateable character like Annorin is very cathartic, now I mostly wonder about which could be the consequences of letting all those witnesses alive...
But now the gap between 2:19 and 2:20 may feel shorter. I'm generally surprised by what happens in these newer chapters, which is fun.
Eli, Owen, and Samuel -- I'm intrigued by their family dynamics. I honestly did not expect Owen to care about their father hitting Eli because Eli is extremely rude, and … his father supports them. I thought most people would think Eli deserves it, but that seems not to be the case. I was even more surprised by Owen's behavior later - he admits that his father wrote the letter, etc! Maybe I'm wrong, but I still don't trust Owen. He seems overly nice?!? He mentions that the gryphon is tenacious and ruthless, so I imagine that he's ruthlessly getting rid of family competition, no matter who.
Oskar is going off the rails a bit? He looks cool with wings (reminds me of Sephiroth tbh - but I'm only familiar with that character's name and looks (not lore) so sorry if the comparison is off), but … he's giving off villain vibes with that speech. I think he should have consulted Eli before torturing his father. I also think that he has too literal an interpretation of what Kat meant by not killing people--I don't think she means that everything as long as it's not killing is fair play. Then again, maybe the creepy red lighting, the shadows, and the dark atmosphere are making him look worse than he is. Also, I realized that I was just casually brushing over how Annorin steals Kat's boat and also tries to kill her so maybe Oskar is more justified in his behavior than I originally thought…
I expect Annorin to try to strike back later if he recovers. I'm excited to see what happens.
The family dynamics are pretty screwed up. Annorin always favoured Owen over Eli, and even then he still got slapped about in his youth. Yeah, it's hard to judge exactly where Owen will go from here. He's incredibly let down by his father's actions, but moreso because he considers him an embarassment than anything else, though he is genuinely angry at him for attacking Eli. Owen's more about beating the legitimate competition, as opposed to going for the comparitive 'small fry' like Kat's cunningwoman stuff.
Oh yeah, Oskar's defo gone off the rails a bit here. It's a stark reminder that, although we've seen the nice, mostly reformed Oskar for the most part, he's still a vampire at heart. That was exactly what Kat meant, but in part due to Oskar's neurodivergence, he took it literally as 'I don't care what you do so long as you don't kill anyone', so there's been some miscommunication. I think it's the lighting that helps enhance the villain vibe, you're right there. Yeah, Annorin's done enough to Kat. It's a wonder how she's still sticking to her mostly-pacifist ideas at this point.
Ah. Just mocking and making a laughing stock of him. That might be enough for Kat, but I doubt Oskar is going to leave it there. Oh dear. Yup, he’s going after them. Gah, those images edited all dark and red are haunting.
Ah yes, tell the guy that’s turning into a living nightmare that he should have been killed or put in an asylum. Real good survival tactics right there. Oooh, the wings and horns were a surprise. I don’t fault him for thinking of a Fae, but my first thought there was angel of death. I have to agree with Haneul here - Oskar is giving off real bad vibes there, even though he's justified in his reasoning. I guess it's the old revenge vs becoming the evil you hate thing. Oskar isn't snakelike like Annorin but in that moment, tormenting three people just because he can, they both look like monsters. I wonder if Kat will have the same thoughts if she finds out?
Now… how big is the chance that Annoying was actually scared straight, and won’t try to do the same thing to Oskar that he did to Katlego? Hmm…
Even when he's seconds away from potential death Annorin still thinks he's untouchable. Angel of death is a good idea actually, Annorin probably could've come to that conclusion as well. Yeah this is it really, you only end up with a dark form like that by indulging in bloodlust, and that's never a good thing... He could've stopped once he'd gotten his point across, but proceeded to toy with them anyway like a cat toying with their half killed prey that they're not even going to eat. I think Oskar has the complete wrong end of the stick thinking Kat left because she didn't care what become of Annorin after finding out what he'd done, and that he was the reason she was stuck there.
Indeed, indeed...It'll take time for Annorin to somehow recover from this. Maybe he never will. And if he does, well, who knows what tricks he's got up his sleeve...
Kat instead keeps having the opposite approach than him instead, talking to Owen and still arguing with Oskar for having injured Annorin. Her point of view is quite understandable on an idealistic level, but Oskar's more practical way of solving problems with brute force seemed quite effective (at least for now).
And then there is Eli, he really had a hard time in this chapter. Thinking about biological vs acquired families, and about what violence can solve and what not, it's not easy at all (in particular at that age...)
At least the end was sort on a lighter tone with Oskar's birthday, Aine and Reynold were quite cute this time! And Eli's present was impressive, he really has a talent for the job!
As for the recap posts in preparation instead, I fully understand it can take a lot of time to summarise so much in so few words! Whatever you decide to include I'm sure it will be useful for us anyway, I'm actually curious to see what you plan to include.
And I'm even more curious to see what happens after the new time skip in part 3, so much suspense!
Everyone's new looks are great! Thanks for sharing those.
However long it takes you to get the next part ready... I'm here for it.
Not sure how I missed it before lol.
Act Three
Their house looks amazing with all the new woodworks and improvements! And dang, Eli sure grew out of awkward puberty, didn’t he? I believe him being popular with both sides of the fence.
That screenshot with Raisin in the sun makes it look like she’s radiating light herself. That vision of his is very concerning. I wonder who it was about – I wonder if my suspicions regarding who that was about are correct. Either way, it seems like something dark is looming on the horizon and it’s not Reynold’s shedded fur. Even kat seems to be getting bad omens. Oh dear.
Speaking of growing up well, Gideon’s sons are looking good too! I like how they’re pretty much polar opposites but still seem to get along well regardless. Awww poor Violeta, she had a whole art studio and now it’s gone 😆
[Who at once point was the main character… and is still meant to be…] bwahaha 😂 don’t worry Aine, you’ll get your chance. Everyone else is just really interesting in the meantime. There’s nothing wrong with taking a backseat and focusing on Raisin’ Raisin Right. With all the challenges that brings with it.
Haha I love all the comments on Eli growing out of his awkwardness XD The moment I made those pictures I was like 'This man is DEFINITELY BISEXUAL' so I rolled with it XD I'm sure Annorin would be 'excited' to know this... (sarcastic) Haha yeah I had fun looking for hairs for Daniel and Josiah. Yeah I like the idea of them getting along well but being complete opposites XD I'm glad you like their revamped house! Haha she'll get there eventually...She will...Become main character a- oh, sorry, one minute, : P
The ominous premonitions of Kat and Reynold have me wondering what is going to happen in this act. Especially since Oskar and Violeta seem to be keeping the witchfinders at bay at the moment. I like how Oskar is able to be himself in this town now and many people seem accepting of it, or at least curious and not hostile. The inclusion of gender non-conforming people in both of the religious traditions in an interesting development in the story's lore. I like it.
In general it sounds like a lot of the main characters are doing fairly well right now. But the overall subtle ominous tone of this chapter make me wonder how long the peace will last...
Indeed, it really makes you wonder what those premonitions are about...All seems well right now, but you've read my story for long enough to know nothing is ever well for very long. XD Indeed, things are going well for Oskar. Thankfully Finchwick and Henford are both fairly down to Earth and it's only the very rich that would have an issue with it. If anything most people find it fascinating, and I bet more than a few men have thought him attractive in a dress but are too afraid to say it. XD
OH! So the including GNC folk in the religious history is actually based on a tidbit I found out about IRL trans history and a particular religion that, in Medieval times, was actually apparently more open to such thing and to be GNC was considered a closeness to the main deity, as opposed to something to be shunned and something evil. Writing this historical story, and learning about history, it's...amazing (not in a good way) how in some ways we've actually gone backwards. It's worded nicely on Wikipedia as ' interpreted as expressions of the god's plan, rather than deviations from it.'
I love how Eduardo is positioned against the wallpaper design when he's talking with Annorin. It makes him look like he has wings. But the wings aren't real. It suits his puffed up righteous impression of himself.
The distinction Eduardo makes between witches and magic bloodlines is interesting. I am curious about this bit of lore.
Maybe it's too early, but I'm already loving the friendship/possible love interest between Daniel and Ely. The interaction between them is wonderful and feels like, even in just that short scene, that they have chemistry as a pair of characters. I hope to see more.
Aaaand... Now the bad stuff is starting to happen.
Eduardo is scary! I am seriously worried about Daniel and his family
now. And how this is going to affect Daniel's relationship with Ely
(because of Ely's connection to Oskar).A sweet moment between Reynold and Aine. Why does it feel so foreboding, I wonder?
"Don't worry, everything is going to be fine..." I am expecting disaster any moment.I'm glad you felt that way cuz that's why I did the Annorin section the way I did, to make you almost feel sorry for him until his double-whammy of -phobia against his own son and against Oskar, as if him directly telling Oskar his parents should've killed him because of his neurodivergence wasn't bad enough, it's another reason to hate him. XD The wallpaper positioning actually wasn't intentional, but fun that you picked that up! Oh yes, Dan and Eli... : P That'll be interesting. XD
Nothing is ever fine in Divided, Reynold! YOU OF ALL PEOPLE, REYNOLD, SHOULD KNOW THIS! Yup, there's a lot of drama that could come out of what's going to happen with Daniel.
Bloodline casters tend to hide their magic publicly and don't speak out against the anti-witch rhetoric going on. They don't often lend a hand in their oppression, but they are careless to it, and they hide their magic to fit in with 'acceptable' human society. They are more or less the 'pick-me's of the magic world, who don't want to be lumped in with the oppressed group so they act like they're better. In a dark way, it's understandable why they might do this because they don't want to be burned with their families at the stake. (As in, you can see why they would it, not as in it's excusable.) In another way, it's absolutely horrible because they're throwing their ancestors under the bus and they'd rather please those without magic than help those WITH magic. Some are like this to protect their own families but there are plenty more who are like this just because they do not care.
Anyone who reads this who's marginalised has probably heard of the 'one of the good ones' bull. I used to get told this because I never spoke about being a lesbian and because I didn't 'pretend to be a man', in their words. I wasn't the big mean scary kind of lesbian apparently! That's practically the same as how Volpe feels about Annorin. So long as he's willing to not use his magic in a way that he deems wrong and as long as he doesn't show it publicly, he'll let it slide. So long as Annorin obeys, he won't try to put an end to him. Sound familiar?
All of this is a partial reason why a fair amount of witches hate bloodline families. Also some witches hate bloodline families for being 'impure' or 'weak', which is just plain awful. One thing I am also exploring in this story is how downtrodden people can and will trod on their own people sometimes. Also that infighting solves nothing, but that's not something explored much yet.
is important o. The Daniel-Eli pairing makes me curious about potential
interactions between Oskar and Gideon. It's hard to imagine how they
would get on. They seem very different.Volpe! Daniel should tell his family or at least tell someone immediately, IMO. He shouldn't suffer in silence, try to solve everything himself, or create communication problems. Just tell! Volpe cannot be trusted.
.I hope Oskar hasn't eaten the "cure". I think he needs to learn a little bit of caution and control before it's too late.
I wait in anticipation to see what will happen with Volpe and what will happen with Oskar and... there's more than I can list to look forward to.
Yeah, the historical context with that it makes more sense, but it seems a bit cold from a modern perspective to think 'but what if our kid dies and we don't have any more?' Hmm I wonder,if that witchfinder was the one Volpe specifically sent after him or not...
Sorry for such a short reply...a lot I have to keep hush on because of spoilers!
For the rest of the chapter, my funniest reaction was probably around Eli and Dani's sections, as I spent quite a while being like: "wait, Dani reminds me of someone... Is he one of Gideon's sons? Let me check the previous chapter summary again..." (and yes, I'm very bad at connecting names and faces :P ) I agree that this chapter makes it very easy to ship the two of them together as well, and also that the following encounter with Eduardo hit even harder because of this...
Yes, let Eli enjoy his time off! It seems Oskar has forgotten that everyone besides him and Violeta has a finite amount of time. Let Eli spend it how he wants to spend it – it’s not like they don’t have enough money to go around at this point.
Awwww, he doesn’t realise that he has a crush. That’s adorable. Interesting how Eli is over-emotional compared to Oskar and Violeta’s near-lack of them. Aw I really like those two together, and how much they’re gravitating towards each other despite their circumstances. Sleeping on the couch together n’awwww.
And then we have a lovely chat between Daniel and Volpe that involves blackmail and threats, of course! Poor kid. He hasn’t got the experience that his dad has in dealing with these types and he’s in completely over his head. And Volpe knows that. Gah, where are my exploding potatoes when I need them?
Aine being desperate for another kid because she’s scared of losing Raisin… really doesn’t sit well with me. Another baby will never be a replacement. Raisin is unique and Aine already thinking about what to do when they lose her is a bit disturbing 😅
Hmmm. Let’s hope that witchfinder Oskar killed was not the one they pumped full of anti-vampire. And if it was, that it didn’t work…
That wasn't actually something I thought about until haneul mentioned it, it was meant to be more of a generational difference but I realise Oskar being immortal definitely plays into that. Oh indeed, Oskar's so used to being 'unstoppable' in his words he might not be prepared to be a squishy human again. Not to mention he won't be able to keep up with his insane workload either. Let Eli have fun!
Eli is adorable, he's a ray of sunshine in a world full of understandably-depressed characters. XD And kind of like Kat, quite hopelessly romantic. XD Eli feels almost everything, he's a complete opposite to Oskar even if some of the mannerisms are the same. That sofa nap scene is so 🐸🐸🐸🐸 cute. ;-; Yup, Chapter 2 and Dan's already in deep doo-doo. Thanks Volpe! Hmm yes, let's hope it was just a random witchfinder...Who knows? Oskar certainly seems to think he's completely unstoppable.
HSims: Oskar is really reverting back to his pre-vampiric state! 😱 If he really returns back to the exact state he originally was before turning, will he be sick of that illness again? Also, he seems very annoyed (or unprepared) at the idea of returning back to a normal "human metabolism", the only thing he seemed to sort-of enjoy was the mirror reflection (and, maybe, the idea of being able to be out in the sun). I really don't know what to expect from the evolution of this situation...
Reynold got a lot of tricky visitors this time instead, the tough life of church people I guess. The conversation with Eli was particularly funny to read XD Good to see Eli and Dani "enjoying each other company" as well, even if that is another storyline I don't really know what to expect (and which makes me worry quite a bit...)
OH the drama. THE DRAMA. Oskar meeting Gideon, Daniel trying to hide what he's gotten himself into from Eli, Dan trying to get himself out of it...So much DRAMA! And more to come because I'm mean to my pixel babies. : P I just had to have Eli ask about the Beltane situation. I feel like despite all people now know about Reynold, the 'So you did THAT in the grass?' is still what comes to mind immediately every time. XD
I'm mostly concerned for Oskar. Like I am wondering what the state of his health will be if he turns fully human again. It kind of feels like he's expecting to die. Is the final candle he lights before leaving for himself?
I like how you depict the transformation, not happening all at once, but in stages. That's a really interesting way to do it. Oskar initially not recognizing himself in the mirror was a great detail. He wouldn't, would he? The last time he saw himself, he looked a lot younger.
I’m glad you like the gradual change. He does look odd without his white hair and light eyes. Oh yeah it would probs be such a weird experience to see your own face after a hundred plus years…but there was also definitely a Johnny Bravo-esque ‘man I’m pretty!’ in that thought process somewhere. XD
Interesting how the feebleness from turning back immediately causes Oskar to change his mind on his stance on work/time. He was mighty annoyed at Eli not pouring all his time into woodworking just last chapter. Then again, I suppose imminent death is known to cause drastic changes. 😶
Reynold and Katlego both having bad visions for the future continues to fill me with dread. So does this: [You're the only sensible person left in Henford. You don't solve all of your problems by murdering people]. Something big is going to happen soon, and Katlego is going to be on one side of it. I wonder where Reynold will end up.
Oh, Eli. Thinking about what could have been with his mother because he’s scared of now losing his father, too. I agree with Reynold’s words, but they were a bit harsh, too. It’s normal to miss someone and wonder what could have been.
Naww. They kissed
yes, Eli, you push that voice in your head right back out! Enjoy who you like without guilt.That’s quite a leap for Reynold, to immediately think of a cure and then of Annoying. I mean, he’s right, but dang that’s some good intuition there 😮 Ooooh and we're about to see his father, are we? I wonder who that last candle Oskar lit was for. Himself? Reynold's dad, in case he did pass on? Hmm...
HSims: Julian and Clem being removed from their church because they wanted to return closer to the original meaning of their religion gives me strong incoming schism vibes. The Champs-les-Sims-style protests also strongly remind me or some other place famous for their epic protests and strikes... I'm really curious to see where this is going.
Oskar's plotline really advanced a lot instead. I was wondering whether Violeta could turn him again or not, but it makes sense it may be too risky. I see Oskar seems very upset by all those changes, but at least he doesn't seem affected by his old illness again (yet).
Daniel is really in a very bad situation instead, threatening his family is a very coward way to blackmail him into helping Volpe and the whitchfinders... I really hope nothing too bad happens to him.
The biggest surprise, anyway, was from the ending. So the guy in the Season 3 banner was Alistair, not a fancy Reynold! I also missed he believed his children to be dead (and I wasn't completely sure Alistair himself was still alive), I guess that this could lead to a reunion quite soon... That's definitively another scene I really look forwards to, Reynold and Clem could have so many different reactions!
Alistair did legitimately think that Reynold and Clem had both been killed. He'd searched for them for years and found nothing, and in his mind they would have came back to him if they'd genuinely gone missing, but deep down he knew he could've been a better father. And of course Oskar being Oskar made sure to chew him out about it.The Act 3 drama is going to be so real. Especially if Alistair meets Clem again...
Those last images of Violeta...
She seems to be taking Oskar's transformation even harder than he is. Those last lines in her scene. Yeah. Annorin is toast.The conversation between Daniel and Volpe is really well written. I love the tension and the way Daniel is trying to passive-aggressively insult Volpe while still cooperating so his family doesn't get harmed. "Oh. I get it. So your family gets killed by the witches, and so you'll kill my family if I don't kill the witches?" is an awesome line.
Okay, I don't care if Micah is a witchfinder, I am digging his look.
Those glasses with that mustache. I am smitten.Oo... Reynold and Clem's father is still alive. And he looks so much like Reynold. I'll admit, I also fell for your banner trick. Well done. I'm expecting this will lead to some major family drama. He seems to take the news that his kids are alive rather more in stride than I think they probably will (about him being alive). They're carrying around a lot more emotional baggage than he is.
Oskar experiencing the sun is a beautiful scene.
My reply: Haha neither did I actually, but we'll have to see where that goes. I will admit I haven't properly thought that stuff through that. I'm glad you like the world building ;-; OH I KNOW. The Violeta scene hurt to write because she's gotten so used to having him around that even though another 20-30 years is a long time, she really did hope she'd have Oskar around for eternity ;-; OH yeah Annorin is going to regret every single thing he's done, definitely XD Oh yeah, I was gonna make Daniel more nervous but I figured he'd be just as mouthy as his father XD I haven't thought too in-depth about Micah yet, but depending on how long he's going to be showing Dan the ropes we might see more of him yet. He's way too cheery for a witchfinder that's for sure. XD Haha yes, the banner trick worked then! Yeah I think Reynold and Clem's reactions are going to be slightly different than his own. Clem especially. I don't even want to imagine Clem's reaction. XD YES that ending scene was so heartwarming to write ahhhh ;-;
Poor Dani with his "witchfinder job", for sure seeing Micah "doing the job" can't have been easy to witness... But then we got to see a bit more about his family dynamics, and Josiah was particularly interesting to hear. He definitively seems shyer than his brother, but also quite good overall.
With Eli instead the situation proceeded very quickly! Good for them, they had a lot of worries already but this really seems to have "cheered them up a bit". Seeing everyone's different reactions to their relationship was quite interesting, as well.
But seeing Oskar back with brown hair and eyes was quite shocking instead! But he was quite cute in the role of protective father as well.
As for the final two parts, Owen and Eli look so much alike in this part of the story! But that's only in their looks, their attitudes toward Annorin Sr in particular seem quite different. And then the surprise silent true ending, who are the two werewolves this time? Ah, the suspense!
Good to know anyway, thanks for the clarification!
Okay, I'm going to start with the end, because I immediately thought "That's Reynold and his dad!" and it derailed everything else I was thinking. I couldn't tell if they recognized each other or not. I absolutely love the seventh screenshot in that sequence (the close-up view of the white-eyed werewolf attacking the blue-eyed werewolf. That shot feels like it belongs on a movie poster.
Earlier in the chapter... I like how this chapter focuses on Daniel and Eli. I've definitely become very invested in those two.
I like the point of view switching through the scenes.Chapter 3.6
Oooo! Family drama time! It's interesting and very telling that Reynold's longest rant at his father is mainly saying "You didn't stop me from doing something terrible." And Clem... Oooo, I love the first shots of Clem entering the scene. The way she is gripping that sword. The stance. The look on her face. The cropping of the images. The lighting. Totally awesome.
She reacts exactly as I expected too. Lol. This reunion is not going quite as Alistair hoped. Reynold trying to calm things down, as he would. Clem not having any of it. Alistair alternating between guilt and anger. This scene is superbly written.
Alistair's explanation of his choice seems pretty naive. Or dishonest, at least, about his own cowardice. Did he honestly think that if he didn't tell Reynold about being a werewolf that Reynold would somehow not become one? "I didn't tell you anything about this thing you obviously were becoming because I didn't want you to be burdened by knowing what was happening". Good one, Alistair.
Way to hide your head in that sand. I love
how you made his character. I can see why his children are so angry at
him. I'm very interested to see where this family reunion goes.Oh! Annorin knows about Oskar's illness and turned him human with the expectation that it would kill him?
No-one outside of the family would think Alistair is far from an ideal father...except Oskar, who sees through almost everything. XD And to him it was just perfectly acceptable to treat Clem as inferior, and even if that was mainly because it was Reynold who had mooncaster blood, he'd also only planned for a son, so it's like the tossed-away free gift to him. Good luck convincing her you 'really do love her' Alistair! I'm glad you like the drama and the werewolf fight scene was so fun to do!
Yeah, it's slightly different here from the early Act Two since here he's fully acknowledging his own accountability at least here unlike back then, but he's always going to be irritated about the fact it could have been prevented if his father just taught him how to control it. Alistair's line of thinking is absolutely backwards and makes no sense to anyone except for Alistair. But it's okay because it's his 'inferior' daughter having to pick up the pieces and not him.
YES Daniel and Eli's dynamic is so fun, but it's also at the risk of possibly falling to pieces for a few reasons, the main reason being Daniel's being forced into witchfinding. I really love writing about them. This family reunion will be a lot of fun, I'm sure... or will it? : P I love Clem so much. She's precious.
You're spot on there, I forgot if it came up in the story but back when Annorin more or less beat information about Oskar out of Eli, that's when he found out about Oskar's previous illness. That was why he made the cure, in the hopes that Oskar would die horribly the way Annorin almost did. So far though, Oskar seems to be pretty healthy and dealing with his humanity well (ish) thanks to friends and family. So Annorin may actually have not succeeded at all, and wasted four years of his life. XD
After the last few chapters instead I sort of expected a very heated meeting with Alister quite soon, but again I was surprised by Clem showing up pointing her sword and with most of her scars in sight. The siblings were sort of getting in better terms recently, I hope this won't move them apart again... I don't have much empathy for Alistair at the moment instead.
The ending instead it's quite worrisome... The possibility that Oskar could have to reface his old illness soon was brought up as a hypothesis a few times already here in the comments, but having the confirmation that this is exactly Annorin's plan it's quite scary... I really hope that this won't go according to his plans, that would really be a sad ending for Oskar ;(
The ending is not cool at all, instead. Suddenly experiencing the same symptoms as when he was deadly ill before being turned, that's not cool at all...
I keep my finger crossed though, there are so many magic folks around him that someone will find a solution... Right?
The friendship between Oskar and Dinah is heartwarming. It feels like they both found someone they can be themselves with.
The relationship between Oskar and Alistair is also very interesting. You can tell they've been through a lot together in the past.
I'm having much the same reaction too. Oskar seems to be settling into being human again, and all is well... until... the return of his old symptoms does not bode well.
Ah, maybe it's just him still getting used to his humanity! It might just be Oskar's paranoia of that whole thing happening all those years ago, you never know! He may be wrong. After all, he seems mostly okay so far...
HSims: I have to admit that a part of my head was wondering "How's Oskar?" all along the chapter, ah, the suspense! At least I interpret Eli's comments as him being more or less as bad as where we left him after the last chapter, so I keep my finger crossed.
Apart from that, Róisín POV is always very interesting. Too bad she has so many worries already as a little child, but at least Eli seemed to have managed to cheer her up quite well with the toy horse, and even more so with the full-sized one! I'm a bit worried about what could happen during the next full Moon after that last scene, though...
Seeing Julian again was quite a surprise too, I have to admit that I took a while to recognize him without the Jacobian clothes on! And it also looks like Clem is very honest with him now, I had the impression that it was good for her to have someone to vent out a bit.
At the end of the chapter I really have the feeling that some big event (or even more than one) is about to happen, and knowing how the story was before I'm both eager to read it and worried for the characters
I will say that my plan for next chapter, while not action-packed in any way, will definitely be a ' : O ' one. I hope anyway!
Yeah, there is still one thing that hangs in the air with Julian and Clem that I have to find out whether to even make it happen or not concerning a concern of his for Clem... Oskar is not feeling his best right now so he's resting, but he's mostly tired and achy as opposed to feeling sick in any way. It may be a good outcome! Reynold didn't attack Clem, so he probably knows his daughter just as well as a wolf. The trouble is her full moon tantrums might get in the way XD Yeah the longer hairstyle on Julian takes a lot to get used to, and him not being constantly in his robes XD
I was pleased to see Julian at the Peteran feast, even though it might have been unexpected to some to see him there. He's changing "sides" (so much that it got him kicked out of his old church) and I am really interested to see where he ends up. I liked the conversation between him and Clem. It's good that they can talk so openly.
I feel bad for Eli, trying to take on all the work (and dealing with impatient customers), and very worried for Oskar. I'm afraid his health must be getting very bad.
Clementia hasn't had much of a chance to determine her own path yet, she's just been reacting to what's happened to her so far. But clearly she's a very strong, capable and caring person and is still very young.
Hopefully she will have that chance in the future!
So am I, but I'm not sure entirely yet since I actually forgot he's meant to be in his late seventies, even if he doesn't look it. But what better (or worse) than an old man who's good with a sword and has nothing to lose? Yeah, there's no shortage of surrogate fathers in this story but one that isn't really touched on as such is the way Julian tried to 'raise' Clem. Whether or not it became that way solely because of his position within the church, or in part because of losing his own daughter, I'm actually not entirely sure.
CLIENTS ARE THE WORST! I know this from the small bits of art commission work I've done in the past and for Eli and Oskar it's twelve hundred times worse than people sending me poor reference images and not reading my terms of service...
It reminds me of this xkcd strip: https://xkcd.com/1601/That was partially just an excuse for a cool swordfight. XD Yeah, at first Gideon was going to hit the roof, but then I rewrote it because he can't be mad at Daniel considering Dan hasn't killed anyone and he's killed plenty of witches in his time as a witchfinder. Plus he did it by choice. Yup, he didn't really want to, but he remembered that Eli mentioned his father potentially curing the illness, plus the only other ones previously who are the closest things to a medical profession are Henry, who's a dead herbalist, and Kat, who's a herbalist who'd have little knowledge on this matter.
It's due to limitations of the day, which I partially got around for this scene by having the Annorin family use alchemy and to some extent, magic, in helping aid science in some ways, and part of why they are somewhat advanced and so highly respected (at one point) and though this hasn't been mentioned yet it's also a point of why Annorin hides some of his findings, because he doesn't want to admit to magic. In the end of the chapter, he does discover that what from what he can actually analyse of it, it seems the blood sample is abnormal, and does match with what's written in Owen's notes that he copied from his father....so not good news, perhaps.
Gsnow: Owen is becoming a more and more interesting character. He feels like someone truly driven to help people with his medicine, unlike his father. I love the blue lighting in those shots where he is really losing it. The images there are reminiscent of the "obsessed mad-scientist" trying to defy death completely. And his pain when he's thinking about what he has to tell Oskar is so evident in the last screenshot of his section. I like him.
Oskar's emotions through his section of the chapter are so vivid and heartbreaking. Hope, losing hope, anger, sadness...
I think the exchange between them toward the end is really interesting. Oskar just wants to live, and doesn't want false hope, while Owen wants to salvage as much knowledge as he can from Oskar's condition in order to potentially save others even if he can't save Oskar. I like how you put that aspect of their different points of view in there and how it makes Oskar angry, even though Owen is trying to help him. Feels very real.
That scene and his paragraph was inspired by a post on Tumblr which spoke about how we all think death was just 'meh' in the past because it was so much more common, when you can tell by all the things people did for the dead and to honour them that that's far from the truth. It's even worse with Oskar, because his father is the reason that this is happening, so he feels a sort of secondhand guilt.
I'm really glad Oskar's emotions come through well here because I'm trying to make this feel real and powerful, without going over-the-top about it, and without it turning it into a yet another soppy story about someone with a terminal illness solely to make people feel better about themselves and about life. I do really like this interaction as well because Owen is trying to think of the bigger picture, whereas this experience has just narrowed Oskar's view of the bigger picture because what's the point of thinking about the bigger picture when you have no idea how much time you have left (from his perspective)?
Anyway, I wasn't expecting Dan to tell everything to his father, but (for now) to me sounds like the right thing to do in that situation. If in the previous part of the story everything pointed at something very bad happening to Annorin, but in this case Lord Volpe sounds like a good candidate. (Unrelated comment, but to me the surname "Volpe" always reminds of a quite wit person, because the word in my language means "fox" and foxes are quite wit animals in general. I'm not really sure Lord Volpe can be an example of a particularly wit person, anyway.
I found the fight scene very cool as well, beautiful settings and pictures!
And the fight/conversation with Alistair also convinced Oskar to seek a doctor, this is interesting. I didn't expect him to choose Owen, but it makes quite a lot of sense actually, he's one of the closest characters to the modern approach to medicine (which, hopefully, also means more reliable).
In the latest chapter instead Owen's contrast with his father is extremely evident, on the one hand seeing him lose control and throwing around electricity looks quite scary (mostly for the "losing control" part), but the fact that the target was annoying Annorin explains everything. His choice to keep helping Oskar is quite admirable as well, his attitude is really different from his father's.
Yup, he didn't particularly want to go to Owen, but the only trouble is it's either him or Kat, and Kat probably has no knowledge of terminal illness. On top of that, Eli mentioned to Oskar about his father apparently making a prototype cure for his illness many years ago, and then gatekept it from everyone essentially. Which is the other reason that Oskar decides to just give in and go to Owen Annorin. YES the fight scene was fun to do! I figured if anyone could convince Oskar somehow it'd be Alistair.
Oh yeah, Owen is the last character anyone would expect to go feral and it happened anyway. That bit was fun to write. I think after all Samuel has done to him, Eli, Oskar, and the entirety of Henford, I think deep down Owen doesn't really care what happens to Samuel or what Samuel thinks anymore.
Hsims: I didn't expect a fathers' day special today for the simple reason we celebrate it in March, but it was an interesting read anyway!
In your story there are a lot of different father figures, a few quite awful ones and many others showing that there are many positive ways to cover the role. The variety of situations depicted is probably what impressed me the most, the description of families is one of those aspects in which I find it very easy to fall into a few established stereotypes instead.
HSims: Lots of exposition about the Lunvinchenaînés, interesting...
The team Reynold-Alistair-Roisin is a very peculiar one, good to see them motivated to get along with each other, and also Alistair actually teaching something to the others. The pictures of the Moon shield are beautiful too! I just hope the trip can continue on this tone, their magic seems to be based a lot on finding an equilibrium between blind anger vs control and I suspect that when things go wrong, they go very wrong...
I also wonder about Aine, deciding to stay alone for a while and go out a bit to find her way sounds like a good premise for whatever possible future event (either good or bad). I don't know what to expect, but I'm keeping an eye on her too...
And, of course, all those gorgeous snowy landscape shots.
And a wolf puppy!
My heart melted.Can we send Ida the dog to Annorin's place, just as a reminder of how bad what he did was?
All the wolves section of the chapter was just wow instead! The dream, helping the wolf with the trap, meeting the pack and helping them hunting, it all seemed like a strong acceptance of his wolf-nature for Reynold. Any witchfinder trying to hunt for Lunvinchenaînes in Lunvik sounds quite naive on their side (they didn't study enough!), but I admit to have been worried for them for about one picture (just before Alistair started throwing Moon magic full power at them, and Reynold arrived with a whole pack of wolves).
And this was also the first time Roisin saw her father in his "fluffy form", she actually seemed to have enjoyed the meeting quite a bit (as well as the puppies!) I'm not sure that Aine will be happy when hearing what happened during this trip, but the little one clearly learnt a lot about her nature during this journey.
The witchfinders I imagine often rely on incorrect or inaccurate information to learn about supernatural sources, and their bravado makes them believe that they can take on anything, which doesn't help. It's not covered in the chapter but they were laying down traps for the regular wolves as well, thinking them to also be transformed werewolves.
Roisin is comically curious and she wasn't scared of Reynold as a werewolf. If anything it was more of a 'Wow I'm going to be one of these when I'm an adult? Awesome!' Even though they didn't get a chance to teach her basic magic control she at least learned about, as you said, her nature and her history so there's at least a step forward. Oh yeah I've been thinking about that too, Aine won't be too chuffed... I don't think anyway.
The look on her face. She seems like she could totally team up with
some of the other ladies in this story... Kind of hoping we'll see her
again.Reynold's scene with the wolves was gripping, and gorgeous. I love the part where Roisin finally sees him as a werewolf.
HSims: There was a lot going on in this chapter!
Of course Reynold and Alistair had a bit to unpack after the last chapter, and of course Alister would have talked about it to his good old friend Oskar as well.
The second part of the chapter though definitely stuck more in my head. I didn't expect at all Gideon to try follow Daniel as a follow-up to his discovery of the son's involvement with the witchfinders, and even less I was expecting him to find out about Eli (and recognise him as Annorin's son). That was quite an rough meeting for them all, Eli definitively didn't deserve being lumped with Annorin, Gideon seemed very upset for not being really able to help his son, and for Dani it just seemed like a quite bad day. And it ended even worse, Oskar what have you done? 🙀
Gideon's overprotective fatheryness is kicking in, but the trouble is that, unlike headstrong Oskar who would have just dived in and gone straight for Volpe, Gideon realises that if he charges in and tries to get rid of Volpe, they'll not only kill him, but probably his sons as well. I'm not sure what Gideon's going to do about it all just yet, or what anyone is going to do about Volpe. But that'll probably be a next-act thing, possibly, if anything can be done about him at all.
Good to know your thoughts on the situation between Gideon and Eli. It's a bit of a controversial debate (but what's Divided if not slightly controversial? : P) - the prickly debate of: how responsible would someone like Eli be, someone who's nothing like his father but part of that lineage? Is he already responsible for benefitting from his father's wealth for some time and therefore benefitting from money raised on the death of the poor people of Henford? Or should such things be blamed on the people in said lineages that perpetuate such awfulness in these lineages instead of those who manage to get out as early as possible or don't perpetuate it? How far back, and how far forward, do you trace blame in a lineage like Eli's for someone's wrongdoings? It probably sounds more like a heated Twitter thread than a historical talking point, but the reason I include moreso modern talking points in a historical story is because every point in history has its people who have ideas that might be deemed out of place in their time.
It also shows that Gideon's outlook on Eli is fairly shallow in the sense that Eli is nothing like his father and never has been even as a teenager, and that since his teens all the money he's earned has been his own (well, partially Oskar's I guess since they share the commission. : P )
HSims: Oskar and Dan fighting with pointy swords, that doesn't look not good at all... I see why Oskar would not trust anyone remotely resembling a witchfinder at this point, but we all grew to like Dan by now, we know it was not his fault! Dan managing to run away though... Was Oskar feeling weaker because of his illness?
Aine and Roisin were very cute instead. Teaching Roisin that the world won't be kind to those like her can't be easy, but seeing her managing in some magic resembling more Aine's was also so nice!
As for the ending instead, Owen definitely needs some help if he wants to go on with that rhythm, that's for sure. Also somehow Oskar is trying (again) to drive one of Annorin's sons away from him... That doesn't sound bad at all, actually!
I left it ambiguous as to whether it was Oskar's illness weakening him, his humanity weakening him and making him slower than he would have been if he were a vampire, or whether he was holding back because it was Eli's partner and he didn't want to kill him. I think a mix of all three, actually. For Oskar to hold back is a rare thing, so Dan got pretty lucky there for the most part.
It was cute! Reynold can teach her all the technical aspects of lunar magic, but Aine can still teach her the basics like learning to control her magic. And Aine always gets excited teaching magic to others and was excited to finally get an opportunity to start teaching her daughter now that she's old enough.
Owen is a much more complex character than I initially intended him to be, and it's interesting to see his outlook on medicine compared to his father's. He can't do everything, though, and especially if he's going to try and get the ball rolling with his plan for some kind of free / discounted healthcare for poorer people in Henford, then he's going to need some help- but it also involves trying to find anyone who isn't terrified of the Annorin name wanting to work alongside him. It seems even Owen is getting wrapped up in Oskar's charismatic speeches. XD
Very worried now how Daniel is going to survive in his situation of
being forced to be a witchfinder without Micah to protect him.Skipping on chapter 3:15. That fight between Oskar and Daniel was intense. I wonder how Eli will react if he finds out about all this.
I love the scene with Aine and Roisin. As if just trying to raise a kid to be a well-balanced adult wasn't hard enough... needing to also teach them how to control massive magic forces. Yikes! Roisin is so cute though, all proud of her ball of magic.
Okay. It's official. I really like Owen. The amount of effort he's putting into trying to find a cure for Oskar, and then not charging for whatever aid he is able to give him. He may be just trying to undo the horrors done by his father, but he also seems like a genuinely kindhearted person. Plus, he's ridiculously handsome. Maybe I'm biased.
I've very much been enjoying getting to know this character though.I figured we needed a positive somewhere and little Raisin needed a break, so she gets to be happy and learn magic! Yay!
And time for ramble on Owen Annorin : P
Oh yeah, he wasn't intended to be such a complex character at first, but he's really starting to develop now and not even with intention but I can see him becoming a more major character in a future act or later on this act even. It's rough because he does genuinely see the error of his father's ways and wants to turn it around, but also understands (but is still annoyed by) the public' distrust of him. Though they don't distrust him nearly as much as his father, at least. He does genuinely feel bad for Oskar for what happened, and though it's not mentioned I think another big part of why Owen is so mad at his father is because Owen swore an oath to his father that he would never kill anyone (even if he did admittedly try to with that lightning bolt. XD) In a similar vein to the whole 'do no harm' medical thing, and I imagine Samuel did the same at one point unbelievably. So to him it's even worse because Samuel is a physician and an alchemist, he should be healing people, not harming people, that's how he sees it. Haha I'm glad you like his design. Seems he and Eli are quite popular with the readers XD I think this is the other fun part of Divided, almost every single major character is considered eye candy to at least one reader I know : P and I torture myself with all of these pretty women fokgklfklfklflg ;-;
He is genuinely trying to make it up to everyone- Henford in general, Kat, and to Oskar, and although he was blinded by his father's ways, he has always had his profession close to his heart. Nothing means more to him than furthering knowledge about medicine and such, but the only way he can try and build that legacy back up again is attracting practicioners and people interesting in getting into the field back to Henford- impossible whilst Samuel is around because he likely chased them all out.
The big part that does hurt him however, is how big a part magic plays in helping to heal others, and yet he can't share it or he risks his life being on the line. and I think that really weighs down on him. But I think that resonates with a lot of people, having something you wish you could be open about but can't in fear of being shunned or even hurt in some way. Even though he's in a major place of privilege over everyone else, there's still that one way which he isn't- he's got magic in his blood, hardly a privilege when you'll be burned if you're found out. And that's the interesting part of writing this story is the complexities in such things that tend to be considered easy and simple to break down.
HSims: It really was one of those chapters in which characters received a lot of bad news in sequence. Lord Volpe wanting Daniel to beat Oskar, Gideon being ready to step in to save his son, Oskar finding out about Gideon being Daniel's father (and apparently preparing to fight what he remembers as a witchfinders family), Oskar and Eli exchanging the last details about the bad events in the last few chapters, end then even Eli facing Owen and Annorin... Also, Annorin destroying the notes about the cure for Oskar? Seriously?
The only (minimal) positive aspect is that this sentence implies that a cure is possible, and that it is accessible with the technology of that period...
Right now I'm mostly wondering who among Gideon and Oskar will start a fight first, and how/if either Daniel and/or Eli will manage to find a way to modify the course of events before it happens...
Indeed, let's hope that Dan and Eli can sort this out before Oskar and Gideon find each other...
HSims: I had to wait even less than expected for the big fight, I really didn't know what to expect as the outcome! I was almost relieved they switched from swords to words quite quickly and just after slicing a leg a bit, they were both there just to protect their sons anyway.
I really didn't expect to see Julian to show up again, nor to read about another meeting with Reynold. For once they have really been honest with each other, it was refreshing to see a conversation not ending in complete catastrophe...
The final chat between Oskar and Reynold planning that big meeting sounded like a calmer end to the chapter, but the, AH! After this chapter, and considering Oskar recent weakness, I start to think that Gideon really is one of the few who could put him down, and now he also seems to have a pretty good motive to do so. I mean, with most other characters I would think they may be tricking Volpe to get what they want, but Gideon worked as a witchfinder already for ages to earn enough for his sons, and so a single job to save them from a life threat sounds like something he could very seriously consider doing for real, oh my...
I was afraid of Oskar illness for most of the last 10 chapters or so, but now I'm starting to fear an even more premature end!
Haha don't worry I promise I haven't forgotten about Julian and Clem. Indeed, at least ONE conversation in this chapter didn't end in disaster. It was a necessary bit of closure, and originally that was going to play out VERY differently but Julian was given a second chance, Reynold has evidently worked on things since then, and so Julian forgives him.
HSims: Ouch, what a bad situation for Reynold. This Juniper is quickly climbing the ranks among my most disliked characters in this story. I mean, she could be acting against witches & co because she doesn't know better and genuinely believes they are purely a danger for others, but she's really annoying with all the characters we like and this is enough to put her in the disliked characters.
This really puts Reynold in a very bad situation, and Juniper is smarter than I would have imagined. She didn't just interpret the past events understanding (or at least suspecting) that Reynold is the werewolf, but she also came up with a quite good plan to prove her theory.
Now I wonder which solution Reynold and the Peterans could find to reduce the damage to the minimum, whatever Reynold decides he has to sacrifice something (either his secrecy, his or others' safety, and so on).
And the end of this part of the story is also approaching, I'm really expecting an explosive (figuratively?) ending to this part at this point.
I'm not rewriting the whole chapter as it was, so I'm going to do a shorter version in a different style. It's an important chapter, and I don't want to risk making it weaker...but I really am in no mood to re-write that whole chapter.
GSnow: I am teasing you of course.
These last several chapters are exceptionally excellent. The character
interactions, the threats, the fights, the drama boiling over, and the
heartbreaking farewells of Oskar with his friends... You really put
everyone (characters and readers) through the wringer.Chapter 3.19 was phenomenal. The pictures speak with so much emotion, and each way that Oskar and his loved ones connect and comfort each other is perfect for who they are. I love how the narrative text is fairly brief allowing the images and letters to each other to take center stage. This chapter was very emotional for me.
Anyway, I think that this diary/letters format was very fitting to this chapter, there are so many people around Oskar who are elaborating the bad news in different ways and it was a cute way to show all their different voices. Above all, I'm happy to see how Oskar managed to surround himself with so many people who genuinely care for him.
But then, that ending? Also remembering that the end of this season is approaching, I'm very worried about the scale of whatever may be going on outside right where you left O.o
HSims: So the ending of the last chapter was the beginning of a witchfinder's large scale, a ton of them...
There is too much going on to comment on everything, but once again an Act ends with the characters scattered around and running away, severely wounded or, even worse....
poor Oskar! In this chapter you really brought away from us any possible hope of him surviving, he could have passed away in so many ways that would have made complete sense in this chapter alone... But then it makes complete sense it was Violeta at the end, as well as her choice to seek revenge right away. She was particularly scary this time, but very relatable too.
As if the plot wasn't enough, this chapter is also really impressive for the graphical part! Both the fire and the Moon magic in particular are crazily good to look at, the artistic-inept me is very impressed (to say the least!)
I'm really happy you like the screenshots < 3 I did a lot of extra effects on them on top of GShade, like trying to paint some glowing light and such.
More chills as Oskar and Alistair bid each other luck and goodbye. I'd been thinking, before this, that Oskar would not die sick in bed. He'd die in battle. And this feels like the end to me.
Owen - I like him more and more every chapter. He's a different kind of hero. But he does what he has to do.
Reynold - The same can be said for him. And the last screenshot in his section is just so cool. I love the backlit glow and the expression on his face.
Things just getting worse and worse. Reynold's down. Oskar's down. That scene between Oskar and Gideon was rough, because I've always liked both of them.
And Violeta. I did not expect Oskar to end quite like this, but it fits and it makes sense for both of them. And at that point in the chapter, I had to stop reading for a bit because my vision... uh... was getting a bit too blurry to see the words properly.
And upon resuming, I have to say...
Violeta's dark form is scary. I love the shot of her lurking up on the
roof above Samuel. And I am wondering, when Owen locked the door, did he
know she was there? Seems Violeta wonders the same thing."When you got rid of one vampire...you forgot to deal with the other." - I love this line.
It would be Violeta that ends him. No other character would have seemed like the right choice. Well done.
Indeed, that bit hurt ;-; Oskar would never have backed down, and didn't want to be just waiting to die. He wanted to go out helping other people, as he lived, and knowing that it wouldn't be long until he died- unlike if he'd done nothing. Also in his mind, letting himself slowly get worse with his illness would have upset his friends and family for much longer than a death on the battlefield would. If he was going to die anyway, he may as well have done it taking out witchfinders, that was what he was thinking.
What makes Owen interesting for me is the fact that he's got no choice to be impartial, even though he doesn't want to be. In Owen's mind, he takes his oath incredibly seriously not just because of his profession, but because he worries about the sort of pipeline effect that might come out of if he refused to heal the witchfinders. If he started doing that because he didn't like someone or what they did, even for reasons that absolutely everyone else would agree was flat-out wrong- does he risk possibly doing the same later to people for much more trivial reasons? That's a part of his line of thinking. However, his impartiality might come in useful- pleasing both sides to keep them off his back might be a lot better than it seems in the long run. Especially when any witchfinder he saves will eventually get bumped off by Violeta, Clem, Julian, Alistair or Reynold anyway- and I think that's actually what he's thinking. Sure, he can try and save the witchfinder's life because it won't be much longer for them anyway. Owen is a very dark character deep down, he just does the 'rich guy' thing of letting everyone else willingly do the dirty work. He can easily abide by 'do no harm' because the vampires and the werewolves will do that bit for him. XD
Owen and Reynold have a lot of similarity in that sense, except that Reynold is willing to go that far if it's absolutely necessary. But they're both very much in a place of being overworked, having a lot of cleaning-up and sorting-out to do, and having to defend themselves as well as everyone else because this corner of Henford risks falling apart without a priest with healing magic and a well-renowned physician who's trying to clean up the corruption his father behind. I'm glad you like the pics with Reynold < 3 those were fun. The overcharge situation is really nasty, but what I will spoil to you to ease you after this horrific chapter, is that level of overcharge isn't entirely severe, so bear that in mind. < 3 He was still able to talk, sort of, and he was still semi-aware of his surroundings.
The Oskar / Gideon thing was a meeting I really needed to happen because of their similarities to each other- both fathers who would do anything to protect their children, and both formidable with a sword. I needed Oskar and Gideon to meet because Oskar's never really been beaten by anyone until Gideon matched him, and Gideon trying to confront the reality of the Bloodmoon war got to Oskar because he doesn't want to think of the potential fact that not everyone who died during the Bloodmoon was guilty. Someone who throughout most of the story who has been portrayed as this unstoppable war hero needed someone who was able to check him in some ways. Originally Gideon was just going to put his sword through him and finish him off, but I thought it'd be a (slightly) nicer scenario if Oskar just told him to take his stuff as 'proof he killed him' because Oskar hates Volpe as much as Gideon does. Plus it wouldn't have made sense to have two people try and finish him off anyway.
HOWEVER...when Gideon tells Volpe he did kill Oskar...what if word gets out that Gideon was the one who killed him?
Oh yeah, This was the plan for his death for a very long time- that he would offer Violeta the last of his blood, and she would mercy-kill her own best friend (and son). It was not fun to write either ;-; I especially felt awful for Violeta. It's unimaginable how much pain she will be in when the reality eventually kicks in for her. She bought him back to life, and then she had to kill him... I love Violeta's ultra-dark form so much. She's terrifying. SAME I love that shot as well, perching on the roof like a gargoyle, it's one of my favourite pics in the entire chapter.
Violeta definitely wonders the same thing as you did- whether it's more orchestrated than it seems, and if he did it because he knew how many people in Henford wanted his father dead...After their discussion when he spoke with a smirk about Violeta eventually coming for his father, who knows?
I was going to do it that she didn't say anything to Samuel, but she wouldn't have wasted the opportunity to mock and terrify him before killing him, and to make him feel as small and as 🐸🐸🐸🐸 as possible on top of everything. I'm glad you liked the ending, and I agree, it had to be her that did it.
Oskar being the one to die was decided all the way back in late Act One / early Act Two. I did a coin flip between Oskar and Violeta to decide which out of the two would not survive the story- and the coin flip landed on him. ;-;
Act Four
Act 4, Chapter 1
GSnow: Looks like Aine and Rosin have made it to relative safety, for the
moment. I wasn't sure if Iris was actually going to let them in, but she
seems to at least accept Rosin. Interested to see where this goes.
Eli finding out that Oskar is dead was a sad scene. He seems so lost and devastated. Violeta shows him a lot of compassion here.
Reynold's near death experience with Lunvin (rather than the Peteran
concept of the Watcher) was interesting considering that it is not the
belief system he has dedicated most of his life to. The fact that
Lunvin's enemies end up in her domain after death, instead of wherever
they believed they would go, suggests that her afterlife is the
only real one. This has interesting implications. I wonder how this
experience will effect Reynold, since it appears he is going to live
through it.
Hsims: This was a tough chapter, but the immediate aftermath of the last one
couldn't be anything different. Violeta and Eli's scenes focusing on
their reaction to Oskar's death were heartbreaking, as scenes about a
family loss always are. Seeing Violeta and Eli promising to help each
other was quite interesting though.
Meanwhile Reynold is lost in between the worlds with a quite enigmatic
Luvnik in front of him, while Aine and Roisin reached a quite precocious
safe place in the woods with other witches (btw, I don't remember much
about Iris, but she seems like a character which will be interesting to
get to know better). The only one who seems to be seeing some positive
sides is Owen, and rationally thinking his POV is also quite
understandable...
Almost everything changed in comparison to a few chapters ago, what
could happen next? I really can't make any prediction this time...
My Reply: Iris knows more about Áine than Áine realises, and what she's learned
about her from another certain someone in the cast, she knows she'll be
an asset to their 'coven'. As for little Róisín, with any luck, she'll
make some friends here. And to address Hermione thinking she'll be an
interesting character to learn more about- indeed, she will. I think
you'll find her pretty interesting since there's more depth to her than
it seems.
Indeed, Violeta and Eli's reactions to Oskar's death were heartbreaking,
especially Violeta's. She's lost the only person she ever cared about,
and the only person who cares about her as well. What's even more
upsetting is the added inspiration behind this scene- I planned for
Violeta to mourn Oskar the way she does, but shortly before planning, a
family friend's husband passed. She'd called my mum over to have a chat
outside to distract her from it all and I went to check on her as well,
she was waiting for a coroner to collect him. And as she kept going back
into the house to get stuff, she kept speaking to him and apologising
for 'waking' him from 'sleep' , speaking to him although he was alive,
and it absolutely broke my heart. And that's what inspired a lot of both
Eli and Violeta talking directly to him, and it's why she asks him
directly if he'd like to buried at Windenburg with his parents. ;-;
You both make good points about the Lunvin scene, especially the one
point you make considering he was seemingly visited by Lunvin instead of
meeting with the Watcher despite him dedicating his life to Peterism.
Which calls into question if this was a genuine near-death experience or
not. What I will say abou the Lunvin scene, is that there's also a
chance that he isn't actually talking to Lunvin at all. More will be
made clear later when you find out exactly what's going on with Reynold
(HermioneSims, you've seen it before in the Magic Trilogy, that's a clue
for you) But there is every chance that this isn't Lunvin at all, and
that Reynold's overcharged mind is in fact just 'playing tricks' on him,
or maybe something similar to that. Time will tell if he did genuinely
get a visit from the Mother of Wolves.
Lunvin's afterlife being nothing but a hunting ground for werewolves is stolen from- erherm, inspired by- Elder Scrolls lore surrounding the god Hircine.
Haha I'm glad you brought that up. As much as Owen seems a better
person, he's still a billionaire, and so as a result he's doing fine
whilst everyone around him is either dead or in danger. He can afford to
focus on his own life and future when he's hiding in a cosy mansion,
with fat pockets and not being targeted by Volpe purely because he's
quiet about his magic. Though he has a more main part, he's still a rich
man at heart letting everyone else do his dirty work.
Act 4, Chapter 2
Hsims: I'm super tired tonight, I don't think I'll manage to write down the usual long comment. The chapter mostly left me relieved anyway, after all the destruction and losses in the last few chapters we see Dan returning free, Reynold being still alive, and Eli and Dan returning to be close when they needed it the most. I'm almost hopeful for them right now (at least for a while...)
GSnow: I don't have much time for a lengthy comment, but I enjoyed this chapter
a lot. I'm happy to see Daniel freed from Vulpe's control (though even
with the written contract, I'm not sure if I totally trust that guy's
word, but we'll see
). I also really liked the ending scene with Daniel and Eli. It's well
written and the love between them is very apparent. I like how Daniel
decides to take it slow even after Eli makes his request. The emotional
state Eli is in makes things kind of foggy, and Daniel seems very aware
of that, but also just wanting to comfort his partner. It's beautiful.
Reynold telling the others he's a werewolf feels like it could have some consequences, especially with Elias' reaction.
My reply: Ohhhh yes Volpe's contract. There's so much I want to say about it, but
so much I can't say about it at all. XD But it'll (if I stick with my
current plan) come to light exactly what it is that's wrong with that
contract. Volpe may keep to his word, he may not.
I'm glad you liked that scene and I like your outlook on the events of
how it played out. You're spot on, Even though Eli was clear in what he
wanted from Dan, Dan didn't want to just jump to it in his grief since
his mind is still clouded so Dan wanted to make sure he was genuinely
comfortable beforehand. Though whenever I write scenes between these
two, I am constantly reminded of how much is being kept from Eli...and
how much of it was entirely out of Dan's control.
Oh, indeed. I'm not sure what will come out of that revelation yet, but
Elias has distrusted Reynold ever since Mother Joyce's speech and ever
since he walked all the way to Nebelstadt, which is pretty far and not
at all walkable from Henford. Whilst Elias has nothing against
witchcraft, he knows nothing of werewolves and he's a very devout
Peteran so the revelation that Reynold has killed people has only
distanced him even further from him. As well as the revelation that he
indeed did kill the witchfinders outside.
Act 4, Chapter 3
GSnow: I am most curious about the new development with Reynold (being able to
see a ghost) right now. I love how it raises all sorts of philosophical
and spiritual questions for him. That reaction seems totally him.
Also wondering if it has come about as a result of his near-death
experience, or if is caused by something else we don't know about yet.
(Or if it's just something cats do sometimes. Wouldn't surprise me at
all. )
My reply: SAME THOUGH! Eli and Owen would make amazing vampires wouldn't they?
They really would. Owen is already a spellcaster so it isn't possible
for him, but it's more than possible for Eli. XD He can be just like his
dad!
Oh it does, doesn't it? I can't reveal anything else about what's going
on with Reynold, but considering how little we see anything of the
afterlife in this story, it does make you wonder, doesn't it? Is it a
result of the overcharge, or is it a result of something else? Just what
does this mean for him? All I can say, is it won't be anything good,
but you've read this story long enough to know that XD
I will tell you my little theory on Whisper - I haven't yet outlined
what ghosts he can see or why. But I like to think Whisper's ghost has
always been there, because she likes spending time with Reynold and
because it's her home. And that she turns green and happy because she
can finally have cuddles with him again. And she can see he's not okay
and wants to comfort him. ;-;
Act 4, Chapter 4
HSims: Owen had a quite busy day, it seems. And he also seems to still be
trying to put together the information about who made it and who didn't
after the witchfinders' attack, interesting.
Seeing people arguing with Volpe is always very satisfying, but I'm also
very worried about what he could decide to do now. He's way to arrogant
to just let it pass, and he's also rich enough to have the means to
cause quite a lot of trouble...
And Reynold probably really started to be concerned, to show up at
Owen's place and admit straight away that his issue is magic-related.
Low body temperature and the ability to see ghosts, those are quite
messed up symptoms for sure...
And Kat is back! I can't wait to see how she'll be involved in the next chapters!
GSnow: Somehow I hadn't realized that Owen didn't yet know for sure what
happened to his father or that Oskar is dead. It's an interesting aspect
of his personality that he processes this information as he learns it
in a manner that outwardly appears less emotional (though he's clearly
wrestling with some emotions internally).
I like how you develop his thought process on magic and science as he's trying to figure out what's going on with Reynold.
Also... "We went through all that so you could tell me I was cold? In winter? After lying on a table wearing almost nothing?"
Yes! This is one of the major reasons I hate going to see a doctor.
Yes, Dr. Genius, I am shivering, I have goosebumps, and my hands are
turning purple, because I am FREEZING! I like Reynold.
Hmm... Looks like Kat and Ellie have a tough decision to make.
My reply: This is what makes the next few chapters so slow and so long- everyone
has very differing knowledge of what has and hasn't happened, and it's a
case of some people having to update other people, and remembering who
does know this and who doesn't know that... Yeah it's quite a lot to
just outright say it involved magic. Even though he knew Owen had magic,
it's still risky since how does he know a rich guy like him isn't going
to rat him out to Volpe? But then the two are both sworn to
confidentiality, and if Reynold didn't tell him the whole story it'd
mean a less accurate diagnosis. Though he didn't tell him the full story
at all, but he will tell Kat next chapter. There was something he
either missed out or only glossed over last chapter.
YES Kat is back and ready for (non) action! She's decided she doesn't
want to run anymore, but that may mean fighting back eventually...Oh
indeed. Sassing Volpe is all well and good, but Owen's playing a
dangerous game. After all, Volpe knows Owen's secret and can out it at
any time, and the public want him dead bad enough as it is.
The scene with Reynold's 'thorough examination' was hilarious I just had to write that XD
Yeah Owen's an interesting one and the polar opposite of his
heart-on-his-sleeve little brother. He's a lot better than the other
characters at covering up feelings (well, other than when he tried to
kill his dad with lightning I guess...) Owen isn't often one for acting
on his emotions, for multiple reasons but mainly trying to maintain an
air of professionality - and you'd have no idea what he was feeling
whether it was boundless joy or burning rage. I realise he often has a
very scientific approach to pretty much everything, and seems to deal
with almost everything as if it's just another interesting discovery to
him. On a side note, one of my friends also said in regards to the way
he seems to receive new information: 'I think Owen is the sort of person
who picks up on little things about people to 'stash away' in his mind
to blackmail people with, even if he has no intention of doing that',
which is an interesting outlook. Owen doesn't properly know he's dead
yet. Violeta's given him her artwork gift, but she's not yet told him
about Samuel Annorin. I have a lot of exposition to cover but eventually
she'll tell him. Yeah, in this situation Owen's realising how much he's
let go of magic, even if he still uses it in healing people, and how he
feels like he's forgotten everything his mother's taught him. I think
he'd like to relearn it, but he fears being killed for it, and Henford
is no good without a physician on his level whether people like him or
not.
Act 4, Chapter 5
Hsims: I'll focus on Reynold, as I don't have much time tonight. I totally
forgot he didn't know about Oskar yet, and the conversation with Violeta
was so sad... But, above all, what stuck with me was Kat's diagnosis
(so to speak). With this story I tend to forget that the magic system is
somehow based to the one introduced in-game with the spellcasters,
which was much more evident in the Morgyn's trilogy. Yet, it makes a lot
of sense! Overcharge followed by a curse, how many times did it happen
to us all while playing? Yet, being stuck in between life and death,
with a severed connection with his own magic, and the fact that not even
Kat knows a spell or a potion to solve this, sound all very
worrisome...
My reply: Remember when I said to you as a clue that what happened was similar to TSAHF? What Reynold is going through is similar to the Curse of the Night Wraith that Morgyn and Helen went through, only not quite as bad.
It’s so awful that Reynold has a severed connection to his own magic, and it’s unclear as of yet how exactly he can be cured of such a thing ;-; All I can say is, maybe the person or people that can help just don’t have the knowledge just yet… Sorry for such a short response. Not much I can say this time because of spoilers : P
GSnow: I really like the first screenshot. The camera angle, the details, the colors, and the mood of it are beautiful.
I'm very curious about Reynold's ghost vision. Can he only see animals, I
wonder, or has he just not encountered a human ghost yet?
The scene between Reynold and Violeta is sad and tense. It's rough, each
character finding out separately about Oskar's death as the news
travels person to person. In our modern age with phone, email, internet
etc. it's easy to forget news used to travel much much slower.
I had actually forgotten about Violeta and Aine. It's good to see that
Violeta has changed her mind about this newer generation of witches.
Ooo... Alistair's grief hits hard. Not sure why his feelings are the
ones that actually bring tears to my eyes, but I think it's that carving
Oskar's name in the memorial stone feels so final. He knew him for such
a long time and through such traumatic events.
On an artistic note, I love that blue lighting on the memorial wall. So eerie and chilling.
Rosin is struggling to cope with it all, but at least she has supportive
adults around her. I like the scene where she talks with Iris at the
cauldron.
Wait... what? Reynold didn't turn into a wolf at the last full moon? Something very strange is going on...
Side note: I love all the artwork and details in Kat's workroom.
So, Reynold possibly is dead-alive cursed from overcharge? Interesting.
This follows well with the in-game magic system, but with its own Divided world twist. I like it! I wonder where this will go...
And WOW! Those gorgeous final shots of him by the river with the clouds in the distance! I just love your dramatic screenshots. You really have a wonderful artistic flair.
My reply: I'm glad you like the screenshots < 3 Kat's cabin is probably my favourite interior in this whole story.
I do have a reason for why he can only see animals, it probably doesn't
make sense, but we'll see. That is what makes this story so much more
long winded actually, that no one can phone or call each other or
whatever and it all waits on visits or letters. It's difficult
remembering who knows what about who. Back when Aine stayed with Oskar
was what changed Violeta's mind about witches. Back then they did make
some level of peace with each other, but I don't know what would happen
if they met now.
I think it's because, although Alistair is one of the most disliked
characters in the whole story, he's the other character besides Violeta
that has known him the longest, and who also knew him well enough
besides Violeta to try to understand and accommodate him properly even
in a world which knows very little about neurodivergence. You're
spot-on, they've known each other through some very rough times, and
it's also the thought that dawns upon him that not only is Alistair
locally (possibly entirely) only one of two werewolves left, he's now
the sole survivor of the Bloodmoon war.
Róisín seems to be settling in nicely and that's at least comforting,
and there are children there though we haven't seen them yet. I designed
them but I forgot to save, oops. Sorry kids XD Yup, the Reynold not
turning was the reason he was able to chill out with his ghost cat, and
also means everything he said to Elias was entirely from the heart... He
didn't tell Owen that bit. He should have done since he was a physician
and should have known the whole thing, but he didn't want to admit to
being a werewolf to him. Owen wouldn't have judged him, but he didn't
know that.
Indeed, Schrodinger's Werewolf XD Curses do exist in this universe both
here and in the modern day, but it's more referring to a mutation of
magic than something someone can do to someone else with intent. What
Reynold has going on is based on the in-game Curse of the Night-Wraith,
just not to the level where he's seeing ghosts that are permanently
screaming at him. That does happen in one of the modern stories though
to 2 particular characters. I'm so happy you like the final screenshots.
It hurts to see Reynold in such a state. There's a ton on his shoulders
and this might just be what drives him to breaking point.
Men's Day Special
HSims: I'm very surprised to see this special, mostly because I didn't know
that men's day was just one week away! I'm just very bad at remembering
XXX days in general I guess...
Anyway, very interesting read. Managing to write so many different yet
interesting and fitting male characters in a historical setting like
this, where it would be even too easy to make the "toxic-masculinity"
point skyrocket through the roof, it's definitively impressive!
GSnow: I love how much thought you put into your characters and how varied they
are. Your male characters are just as diverse and interesting as your
female characters. How complex your characters are is my favorite aspect
of your story. Good work!
Also, as always, your portraits are gorgeous.
My reply: I'm really glad you think so because I sometimes worry that the guys
aren't as fleshed-out as the girls or vice versa. I'm glad you like the
complexity of the characters. Whether reading or writing my focus is on
the characters more than anything, plots are difficult to keep track of
X_X but I love analysing and building on characters. I am also happy
everyone loves my portraits even when they are all in the same exact
style every time : P I am a one trick bunny XD
Don't worry, I can never remember the International X days either. I
didn't know at all when either Men's or Women's us and found out on
social media randomly one day : P Yeah I think it's really easy for
writers even in modern stories to get into the habit of a) portraying
history as comfortably black-and-white when it's anything but and b)
'tar-brushing' certain identity groups as all being or thinking the
same, especially groups they have a problem with. And I see this done
with both men and women. Divided wouldn't have been as interesting if
I'd gone down that route. Even in history, there have alwaus been a
handful of people who have been 'ahead of their time' or defiant of the
time period's prejudices.
And I don’t mean it in a ‘both sides!!!11’way, but ‘on occasion things are a bit more complicated’ way.
Act 4, Chapter 6
GSnow: I enjoyed having an Owen focused chapter!
That guy, Walter Viridis, seems like an interesting side character.
There's something kind of goofy about him even though he's really
annoying Owen at the moment. I think it's his alternately pompous and
alarmed face expressions. "Who, little ol' me? I'm just trying to help!
With my extremely suspicious looking charcoal black elixir."
I really like Lydia already though! And the way Owen breaks down when he
sees her. He's been holding a lot back all this time. They seem
extremely fond of each other.
So, Lydia's a surgeon? Cool!
I love their little "enemies to lovers" back story. It feels right for a guy like Owen.
Ooof. Father Reynold doesn't pull any punches, does he? "Everyone still
hates you. They want to drown you in the river." I do love Lydia's
response though. I like her playful teasing of Owen. A good counterpoint
to his seriousness.
I can see why they'd want to get married quickly at this point, but it
does feel uncomfortable having the wedding right before Oskar's
funereal. Some people are probably not going to take that well.
Volpe's response to reading the invitation is priceless.
Interesting how Owen chooses not to actually mention that his father is dead.
As expected, Eli is not happy with the timing of the wedding. But I
really like this scene between the two of them. How these brothers are
both awkward and caring toward each other as they finally sort of work
it out feels like a strained relationship trying to heal itself.
And, again... Owen doesn't say that Samuel is dead. He reassures Eli
that Samuel won't be at the wedding, but lets him think he's still
alive. I wonder why?
My reply: And complete with a lil gryphon divider too!
Same it was fun to write something from his POV. And it was fun to
actually write him showing an emotion other than ' : l ' . Walter
Viridis won't appear again but the Viridis family lineage is a little
throwback to another story of mine. Same I already love Lydia. And it
was cute for him to be so overcome with joy and whatever else that he
just bawls on her. ;-; Yis! I imagine her being way too into operating
on people though XD
Their backstory is great and I love it so much. It's also quite funny. I
liked the idea of the renowned person in their field denying the
importance / relevance of something and then their life being bettered
by that thing and them being like 'oh, guess you are right after all' : P
think back then he was reluctant to tell Lydia she was right all along.
At least he would have been if he didn't fall for her whilst he was
ill. XD Lydia's response to Reynold made me laugh so much : P
Oh yeah, it's terrible timing and a shame that it's the only time
Reynold has available for a while. Same his response is amazing. I love
seeing Volpe annoyed. I'm glad you like the relationship between Eli and
Owen < 3 I think deep down Eli still is upset about the way Owen
sort of sidelined him growing up and only realised how bad Samuel was
after what happened in Act Two. And at the moment he's grieving, and
it's making him lash out which he wouldn't normally do. But Owen at
least now is always there for him when he needs it.
The reason why Owen doesn't tell Eli is because he doesn't want that
shocking (if not necessarily upsetting) news on top of Oskar's death,
but Eli's reaction was certainly interesting. As for Volpe, it's best he
doesn't know for now, but he'll likely find out eventually...
Act 4, Chapter 6
HSims: Wedding time, wedding time! The ceremony seemed to be a very nice
equilibrium between cosy and expensive, seeing that not even Volpe
really managed to ruin it was definitively a plus. Everyone was very
well dressed, too.
The sadness coming from the following ceremony that will be held in that
church was very clear, in particular from Eli and Violeta, yet Violeta
managed to make me giggle a bit with the comment on the blood cup and
the "benefit to going to the wedding of a surgeon and a physician".
I guess that the next chapter will be much sadder, or that something
else unexpected will interrupt the funeral, but this was a quite serene
read overall.
My reply: They would have gone more lavish for sure, but the Peteran monastery is quite modest so I imagine that's why it was a fairly modest celebration, bar the expensive outfits. : P Oh my gosh yes that was funny to write, and Lydia saying she'd try not to lose her wedding ring in someone's body whilst operating XD Yeah, the next one will be a lot more sad ;-; Yup, even Volpe didn't interrupt as much as he wanted to. I think part of that is because Owen is Samuel's son, and Volpe doesn't want to be too cruel to him for Samuel's sake. Maybe anyway.
GSnow: There is so much simmering hidden emotion in this chapter. Every
conversation has a tension underlying the words that feels like so much
is not getting said.
My favorite scene is the interaction between Reynold and Owen while they
are in seclusion before the ceremony. Especially the screenshot of
Reynold looking sort of sideways at Owen after he confessed what he did
to his father. It's hard to put a name to it, but the way that shot is
framed and the way Reynold is turned sort of sideways to Owen while the
other man has his head bowed, really echos the way Reynold seems sort of
exhausted and hopeless in his own life but still trying to do his duty
as the spiritual leader he is supposed to be. I love pictures that
almost tell a whole story all on their own. I'd totally take a painting
of that shot and hang it on my wall.
The wedding is charming, though bitter sweet because of all the sadness
many of the guests are feeling. I do love the way Lydia struts in and
how she always manages to tease Owen in a way that catches him off
balance, but that he actually seems to love her for.
A joy to see Daniel and Eli dancing together!
Ooo! Volpe looks very put out that he could not talk Owen out of this marriage.
And in the final scene between Violeta and Reynold... another picture
that really aches my heart. Reynold slumped with his face in his hand,
his piece of cake (that he said he was looking forward to) still
uneaten. You can feel his pain so much here.
But, oh, his "Sweet-Watcher, what kind of wedding is this?" comment when he looks into Violeta's cup made me laugh.
My reply: I think you're spot on, this chapter is as much about what is not being
said as well as what is being said, with everybody. The unspoken nature
of Dan's guilt over what happened with Oskar coupled with how terrified
he must have been to meet Owen, Reynold's growing hopeless which is far
worse than what he's letting on, everyone dreading that tomorrow will be
Oskar's funeral, Volpe's anger at Owen going behind his father's
back... It's very bittersweet. It's good to see happiness, less so that
the only person who's truly gained anything from any of this is Owen and
Lydia and everyone else though happy for them is too busy mourning
their friends, the rest of Henford, and of course Oskar.
I'm glad you like that interaction < 3 I'm glad you picked up on
that, a lot of the poses I'm using for Reynold very much make it look
like there's nothing behind his eyes at the moment. With his partner and
daughter away and being cut off from his magic, he's more or less had a
massive piece of him as a person taken away from him. Despite
everything, he's still trying his best although his best is getting more
and more strained. He and Owen do have a shared trait in that they both
have to stay hopeful for the sake of the people. If one loses hope
people will die, if the other does then people will fall to darker
spokespeople such as Juniper or maybe even Volpe.
I think those pictures look as if Owen feels guilty about what happened,
but I don't imagine he does. Though I do think one thing weighing on
his mind at the moment is the fact that he can't keep up the charade of
Samuel being ill forever, and if Volpe finds out Samuel is dead, he's
going to immediately accuse Owen of doing it either for revenge or for
inheritance reasons or both, and Volpe is one of the only people who
knows his secret of his magic. Despite Volpe's (using this term lightly)
'respect' for Samuel, he also more or less had him on a leash with the
threat of revealing his secret if he dared step out of line or use his
magic openly. Samuel didn't want his magic revealed in fear of being
considered a fraud, whereas Owen knows that if he's killed, the rest of
Henford and the knock on effect globally a lot of people will be
negatively effected without his knowledge.
Owen doesn't care about being found out or considered a 'fake' because
of his use of magic to supplement his work unlike Samuel, so (still
haven't worked this out yet) makes me wonder just how much he will start
to care about being found out eventually. Depends on whether or not
he's got the Annorin 'I'm untouchableness' about him XD
On top of that, I'm not sure when I'll cover this in the story so I'll
just mention it now, Samuel was the one who encouraged Owen to be
careful with his magic whilst his mother Liza taught him what he knows
about it now. So there's all this knowledge and some years of arcane
history in his lineage which he likely knows nothing about, and I think
that disconnect and a want to re-engage with it all can be a bit
disheartening.
Eli and Dan look so cute here! Yup, I actually think Volpe stayed silent
purely out of (loosely again) 'respect' for Samuel's sake. I think
Volpe wanted to speak out and say they should not be married, but
didn't. But also, one thing to consider...Volpe is a noble, but there's
not much else to him than that. The Annorin family aren't nobility, but
they're very well renowned, and that on top of their magic? Is Volpe
going to risk antagonising them, knowing what historically tends to
happen to people who oppose them?
Same, those poses are perfect. Violeta trying to be a decent person, and
Reynold's hopelessness really just feels depressing. Violeta feels
absolutely nothing and doesn't genuinely care emotionally speaking but
still wants to try and be supportive. You know that 'can I offer you an
egg in this trying time' meme, that's Violeta. XD Yup, if Reynold of all
people is turning down something good to eat, something is very wrong
indeed...For me food is very much a love language in so many ways, and
is one of the main 'things that make most people happy' so the image of
someone not eating something nice especially at a celebrative event
really just hurts to see.
Oh my gosh the last bit was so funny. XD There's nothing funnier than a priest just being like 'I'm done with you people.'
Christmas Special
GSnow: Your screenshots are delightful. The outdoor winter shots and the contrast with bright color in Father Winter's house.
I especially like the first couple pictures when Reynold meets Father
Winter. The camera angles make Father Winter look like a giant and
Reynold look small. It's just very cool subtle depiction of the emotions
at that moment.
I like the humor too. Father Winter's personality made me chuckle. Sure,
you can help with the heavy lifting, but my suit is better than yours,
and I get all the cookies.
And, aww.... Owen finally got on the "Nice" list.
I also like how it's sort of "alternate universe", since it appears to
take place after Owen and Lydia got married, but Reynold and his family
are still all in a house together, and in the scene where everyone is
staring up at the sleigh... there's Oskar.
I hope you find something to enjoy in the holidays this year. Thanks for sharing your stories and artwork with us all!
My reply: I'm so glad you like the pics < 3 They look a lot longer to sort out
this time around though especially those reindeer XC I originally was
going to have Reynold straight up faint at the sight of him but I forgot
to put that in. XD Same, I feel like he'd have to be at least a little
self centred after dedicating most of his life to gift giving : P Yup,
Samuel is still DEFINITELY on the naughty list alongside Lord Volpe! And
probably Juniper.
Yes! I wanted something non-canon so I could a) get away with having
everyone around regardless of place in the timeline and b) to exaggerate
things more for the sake of silly humour. We get to see Oskar again
just this once ;-; at least until I take more 'photos' of him for fun XD
I wanted it to be cheery which is why everyone is still together ;-; I
admit I forgot to add Violeta and Clem in the 'looking up at Santa' pics
XC
I hope so too XC Thankfully I have Baldur's Gate 3 keeping me going as
well as unhealthy amounts of chocolate : P Arguably though
post-Christmas is worse than pre-Christmas sometimes (gift card
disputes, refund hell...) I hope you have a good Xmas too < 3 And
thank you for always sharing your thoughts on the story. < 3
Hsims: Bringing modern Xmas in a parallel reality of Divided where the
characters are clearly having a much easier life was very heartwarming!
All over the first half I was expecting Reynold to inadvertently become
more and more like the Father Winter of the situation, seeing him
meeting and helping the real one was a real surprise to me! The whole
special was very funny to read, and the pictures are gorgeous (just as
usual).
So that this year I don't really have a TV, this chapter could have put
me in Xmas mood way more than everything that happened in the last few
weeks, I really can't wait to decorate the tree now!
My reply: Yeah it was actually nice to write an AU where everyone isn't in terrible circumstances. Haha yeah originally I did play with the idea of Father Winter not appearing and Reynold having to fake the whole thing, but I liked the idea of him working alongside him instead. I'm really glad you enjoyed this one < 3
New Year Special
Haneul: I love all the images, but especially the first and last ones. The last one is so joyous!
It’s nice to see couples and much of the cast in pairs. Everyone’s
resolutions and messages were enjoyable to read. They were all great and
thoughtful without being the same. I laughed at “Live, laugh,
love…loathe.” That mantra suits her perfectly.
Act 4, Chapter 7
HSims: Yup, very tough one. Funerals are always difficult situations, and here
there really were a lot of people who needed time to elaborate on this
loss. For sure a lot of people will miss Oskar, and us readers too ;(
If the funeral was largely announced, however, I wasn't really expecting
Daniel and Owen to have such a long conversation. They're sort-of
acquired relatives, at this point, so it makes sense for them to talk.
And what I expected even less was Violeta stealing the show with a
really terrific demon transformation to fly all the way to see Aine!
Even if she's the most involved, Violeta still seems the most rational
about what happened. I don't know if it is more related to the wisdom
she gained over so many decades, or the reduced emotions of vampires,
but she was really impressive in this chapter. Seeing Aine and Roisin
hearing about the news was really a sad hit for me, I guess I may need
some more time to mourn Oskar's character as well...
My reply: Yeah it really brings everyone together to finally say goodbye to a
character they (and we) all loved dearly, and for good... : (
The way I see it, Owen mostly just wants to get to know Eli's new
partner. But in Owen's own sly little way, whether with intention or
not, there's an element of protectiveness to it. He tends to keep it
positive because he doesn't really do confrontation and doesn't want to
jump down the throat of a man who, in his eyes, with his knowledge, has
been nothing but good to his brother. But behind the 'thank you for
looking after Eli's, there's a subtle element of 'you'd better look
after him and not do anything to hurt him'. He's trying to be hospitable
to his brother's partner whilst also gauging his character in more
depth which is why he asks a bit about his family as well. Yup, Violeta
kept her promise and went out to see Aine to tell her! Just a shame that
she can only fly when transformed, and a healthy diet of witchfinder
blood has unfortunately made her resemble a demon, in Iris's eyes... And
even more miraculously than that, she made her peace with Violeta.
She does seem the most rational, and I think your outlooks are spot on
in that it's a combination of an old lady's wisdom and dulled emotions
of vampires, but it's also the element of: I originally planned for her
to be short-tempered and snappy after Oskar's death, but I realised it
wasn't going to do her character development any favours and she would
want to be the way Oskar would want her to be, kind and caring. However,
I have a few plans for the ways that grief will be unkind to her- and,
in turn, that grief might affect others badly as well. We'll see where I
go with that.
Yeah, it hurt to write too, especially with poor Raisin. It's her first
big loss in her life, and right now she probably feels like this sadness
will never pass, bless her.
Yeah, he was really fun to write about and I do miss writing about him a
lot. One of my friends jokes that Owen is taking his place as 'ascended
side character slowly taking over the plot. : P
GSnow: Oskar is a sad loss for me as I really liked him. So I feel with the characters here.
The funeral setting is gorgeous though. And I really liked each character's private thoughts for Oskar.
The conversation between Owen and Daniel was interesting, though awkward
for them. They each don't fully seem to trust each other, but want to
get along for Eli's sake. Owen still hasn't told people that Samuel is
dead. I kind of forgot they don't know that. It's starting to feel a
little weird, like he actually isn't planning to tell people, and will maintain the charade indefinitely.
Iris is very protective, and Violeta does look pretty scary in her dark form, so that confrontation was totally to be expected. I like that Iris backed down as soon as Aine said she knew Violeta.
And I just realized both Iris and Violeta are named after flowers. Random thought. That happens to me sometimes.
Little Rosin's grief is so hard. It's bewildering when you are a kid. Especially the first time you lose someone.
Feels like the main characters are starting to pick up the pieces and
try to figure out how to go on at this point. Makes me wonder what
disaster they don't see coming, or if they will finally find some piece.
My reply: It is a really sad loss for everyone, characters and readers alike ;-; I’m glad you liked their private thoughts < 3
Oh, indeed. It’s hard to tell when Owen is genuinely trying to be
friendly and get to know someone, and when he’s moreso trying to gather
information on them more than anything. Indeed, Eli doesn’t even know
yet. It makes you wonder when he’ll finally break his silence- or
whether or not Violeta will say something first.
Haha yeah, floral names for women is the easy go-to a lot of the time XD
I picked a more or less random name for Iris since it isn’t her real
name, but that’ll get revealed in time.
Oh yeah it was actually surprising the show of mercy is here in general.
Aine, Iris and Violeta, all characters that are more or less ready to
end you on sight, all call off what might have escalated, and of course
Aine and Violeta truly putting the past behind them from now on. I feel
horribly for Roisin, just a child and as you say, this is the first time
she’s lost someone dearly close to her, poor thing. The hug between her
and Violeta is sweet ;-;
Everything is even more fractured than it already was. As to whether or
not they will find peace or not, I want to say ‘we’ll see’ but then you
know exactly what I’m like and cruel I am to these pixel people XD
(Pretty sure my comment and chapter timings have been way off again, whoopsie)
Act 4, Chapter 9
HSims: Probably here on the forum I'm better not going into too much detail in commenting on the specific events this time, but this time-skip year seemed way more difficult than expected for Reynold, who didn't seem to improve at all, and even more so for Owen and Lydia. Even if such occurrences used to be more common in the past centuries, that's still one of the worst possible scenarios for every parent, hesitating about their future choices is definitively very relatable...
My reply: Yeah I wasn't sure if I should go ahead with the idea, the trouble with writing a historical story is how true to make it to the period. I can't make it too ahead of its time, but also I do lighten some things, so it's a difficult decision of what to keep and what to give. Yeah, things have only gotten worse for Reynold as well. He just wants to go to their world and be in peace for as much as the day as he can, until things are better and he can see his partner and daughter again- but Owen has a point. If he keeps doing that, who knows what might happen?
GSnow: Personally, I like it best when the chapter focuses on just one
character's POV. The emotional depth and detail here is so engaging for
me. Switching quickly between characters is good for action and world
building, but for me to really connect deeply with characters I need to
spend longer stretches of time with them. So I really liked this deeper
dive into Owen's mind, and I hope some of the other main characters also
get similar treatment from time to time.
The conversation between Owen and Reynold is very revealing about both
of them and their pain right now. And, yes, they are both telling each
other to get some rest and neither one is likely to do that. Though, I
don't think that's a strictly male behavior. Most of the people I know
behave like that.
I like that you brought the coffee house intellectual culture into the story. The coffee house build is cool too.
I love all the renovation of Owen and Lydia's house! Every room looks amazing.
I keep going back and looking at all the pictures again and again. (I
also have a few cc questions, but I'll put those at the end.)
The screenshot of Owen alone in his study grieving for his daughter is
heart-wrenching. I love how the only light is the little candle on his
desk and the rest of the room is very dark. It fits his emotional state
in a symbolic way as well as being realistic to candle-lit rooms. It
also feels like it represents how his work is the only thing that really
keeps him going right now (light on the desk and nowhere else). Whether
that was intentional or not, it's really cool and well done.
So, news of Samuel's death finally got out (though not the truth). It's
understandable that the villagers don't really believe that Owen cares
about them, considering how his father behaved. But, it's also rough to
see how that attitude is affecting him.
The conversations between Owen and Lydia are so tender and loving, in
addition to being sad. You can feel how they are trying to comfort each
other, but struggling because of their own pain. I love the screenshots
in the bedroom scene as well. The lighting makes the scene look so warm
and intimate, while the subject they're talking about is a difficult
one.
My reply: The guys at the table are deco Sims, so I might not be able to find that
outfit, as for the others I’ll try to find them when I get home for you
~ I’m glad you like the outfits on them! I’m sure Reynold would blush
XD Owen on the other hand would probably give you a smug yet thankful
grin. : p
Yeah I found the coffeehouse culture really interesting especially in
how all classes came together to discuss practically anything. I figured
it’d be somewhere the two of them would go fairly often, at least when
they have time, which neither of them do most of the time : p
Hmm, maybe I’ll consider doing the timeskip intro chapters just one POV
each, or two ‘related’ ones, since I’m considering doing Reynold’s and
Clem’s in the same chapter.
The renovation took forever but it’s worth it! Also it looks a lot more
down to Earth now. Still fancy, but not in a ‘We are way richer than
you! Bow to us!’ Way and in more of just a generally cosy way, and
cooler colours too. I made it blue focused since I decorate most of the
fancy houses in red and needed it to look different. I love the gryphon
pic above the bed so much.
I turned the lights off bar the candle to make it look a bit more moody,
I’m glad that it worked for you- and you’re spot on, through most of
his life his work and research is the only thing that’s really mattered
to him for the most part. He’s a strange character to describe since he
does have selfish tendencies at times, but at his core is a pretty
selfless person who puts most things before his own wellbeing. And for
me the image of just a lamp or candle is kind of like, we all have those
days where we feel so awful we can’t be bothered to put the ‘big light’
on …
Oh definitely that’s the very morally grey part. Of course the regular
folk wouldn’t care at all about a very rich physician who’s from a
family who has recently (in terms of Samuel) not cared about the
everyday folk, and I think they see Owen’s charitable donations as a
bare minimum. In their eyes, the rich wouldn’t care if it happened to
them, so why should they? But then there’s the other hand that if they
want to be mad about it, be annoyed about the actions of the adults
instead of a newborn child who isn’t responsible for any of this. Owen
is less bothered by their attitudes towards him, he just tries to take
it in his stride since he did used to be a lot more like Samuel. but
towards his own child, it’s difficult for him to keep a level head.
That’s what I love about this scene, despite both of them and their
suffering they’re still checking up on the other one, and making sure
that they are both ready to give it another shot. It’s sweet. < 3
Act 4, Chapter 10
HSims: And Clementia is back! She's definitively not in a good position at the
moment, it's very understandable why she has so many thoughts in her
mind right now... Seeing her approaching Violeta was a surprise tough,
the two of them seem a quite dangerous duo. If the thoughts about
******* Juniper seemed quite irrational until the scene before (at least
to me), the moment Clem exposed her intention to Violeta it immediately
turned way more realistic. I was quite surprised too when even Violeta
suggested to calm down instead, and even more so when she proposed to
paint instead! I think I would have been as perplexed as Clem in that
scenario (art was one of the few school subjects my teachers kept saying
I wasn't good at, together with PE), but even if I can't imagine what
could happen now I'm quite intrigued by the idea of those two starting
to spend more time together.
And, still about the first half, poor Julian too...
Reynold instead is worrying me more and more instead. Seeing ghosts both
when awake and when dreaming, and seeing figures in the dream-ghosts
world suspiciously similar to Aine and suggesting him to remain there,
with the ghosts, sounds definitively very very worrisome. How could he
solve this situation, though? With magical stuff, it's always hard to
make predictions...
My reply: Oh yeah, it's definitely a surprise when Violeta, of all people, is
calling for the solution that doesn't involve someone getting hurt. : P I
hated art in school, they had no faith in me whatsoever XC So now it's a
question of whether Clem gains a sense of belonging and worth through
art, or if getting rid of Juniper is a lot more her style- well see!
Indeed, it's an interesting friendship, interesting indeed... Julian at
least is dying of old age, that is the only good thing about it. Just a
shame there was so much regret and so much he learned too late, in his
eyes.
So much I cannot say about these ghosts, and you're right, it's hard to
know how to fix the magical problems. Perhaps someone can figure it
out...
GSnow: I was a little surprised by Violeta's response to Clementia's wises
regarding Juniper. But I like it! Violeta comes across as wiser and more
experienced here, advising Clementia. I am interested in what path
Clementia will chose and what the outcome of that will be.
I will be sad to see Julian go.
Reynold has me worried. The ghosts getting bolder and the dreams
including some being with Aine's appearance urging him to stay in the
Realm of the Dead. I hardly think that's what the real Aine would say,
but he seemed on the verge of believing it for a moment.
It's a beautiful chapter.
My reply: Oh yeah it was a big surprise, for Violeta to actually dissuade her from
going down that route. Trouble is, especially with Jacobism on the
rise, it's absolutely not safe for Clem to do that, as much as she wants
to. I'm glad you like it < 3 I think Violeta has somewhat mellowed
out a bit over the years. She's still ready to do what's necessary, but
she's trying to focus on her artwork and the more 'upsides' of things,
as hard as it's been since losing Oskar. Still been offing the odd
witchfinder, but for now, they are not as big a problem. And I too am
excited for that outcome, because I genuinely do not know yet what will
become of Juniper, whether she will be turned to their side like Julian
was, or not. Trouble is, Julian realised he was wrong and thought he was
right before. Juniper, she's aware that she's not entirely doing the
right thing, so it's a tough one. XC
It will. It's good that he lived for as long as he did and that it's
just simple old age that will take him, but at the same time, he has a
lot of regrets.
Yeah, the ghosts it's hard to tell what their motives are, and I'm not
sure if I will reveal them or leave it up to the readers. At first it
seems like they were trying to comfort him in his strange position in
existence, but now, it makes you wonder if that's not entirely the case.
'Aine' says they want him to be peaceful, but... who knows?
I'm so glad you liked the chapter < 3
Act 4, Chapter 11
HSims: Britechester, snobby Britechester, I feel like I've recently read it
somewhere else... Jokes aside, it's nice to see Josiah find his path as
well.
Back to the bulk of the chapter instead, there were quite a lot of
secrets involved this time. Secrets kept from Eli, in particular. Uhm.
Owen's involvement with Samuel's demise was quite a huge revelation
already, but now hearing voices about Gideon's involvement with the end
of *a certain vampire*, just after seeing Dan stating that he doesn't
want to share the details about that particular episode, this could end
in a quite big argument. And it looks like Violeta could be the next
person Eli may talk to, I don't really know what to expect from her...
Also, I'm actually positively surprised to see that Dan now is working
with Eli, and also that Owen and Lydia actually managed to have a kid. I
wish lil Simon all the best, even if back then life was difficult as
infants already the odds should be in his favour (his parents are the
best doctor and surgeon in town, after all!)
My reply: Britechester being snobby as ever was an idea I had ages ago, when I was
fleshing out Owen's character more, and when I decided that was where
Owen studied I just knew it had to be like that. In the modern day
Britechester isn't an elitist heckhole, at least in the Aliens universe,
but in this story it is. Only the most affluent can afford to study
there, and I can imagine it being a fun collection of the worst high
society has to offer studying under that roof. I'm glad you went with
that in your own story, as someone in the UK I am more than familiar
with such institutions and the reputation they have... I was going to go
with Josiah studying at Foxbury, but since it's the more Americanised
university out of the two from the DU pack I figured it would probably
be nowhere near Henford. Gideon is concerned his kids are going to
become snobs since they're both dealing with the Annorins in different
ways, but that's unlikely.
Oh indeed, this is like Act Three all over again. Eli isn't upset that
Samuel is dead but he's furious that Owen lied to him for so long, and
he's also terrified that Owen is going to become like Samuel and have
anyone that opposes him taken out in a roundabout way. It's another
massive case of people not having all the details. Gideon had reason to
kill Oskar, even though he didn't, and Eli is not only horrified that
his partner's father 'killed his father', but also it means it may not
be long until Eli finds out of Dan's stint as a witchfinder...It's a
huge mess of everyone not having the bigger picture, only reacting to
hearsay. And you're right to worry about what Violeta is going to do
with all of this information.
Yes, Owen and Lydia have their little baby! They are very on edge about
it but are trying to stay positive, and you're right, all of their
medical knowledge is a plus side in this situation definitely.
GSnow: It's nice to see what Josiah is up to these days. We don't tend to get a
lot of details about him. Interesting that he chose to study medicine.
I feel very bad for Eli in this chapter. He's finding out that people he
cares about have been keeping secrets from him. And even if they
thought they had a good reason to do so... this is the problem with
secrets. The longer they're kept, the more explosive they become.
Because the fact that you were lied to becomes as painful as the secret
itself over time. Some people who care about him may end up losing his
trust.
On a brighter note, Owen and Lydia's baby is super cute!
Hopefully, he'll do well and be healthy. Seems like Eli really is
feeling some desire to also be a parent. I wonder how Dan will feel
about this. If they get past the other issue together, that is...
My reply: Yeah we get a glimpse of Josiah! He decided to study medicine because
his father and brother’s involvement in witchfinding and their being
surrounded (and responsible for in Gideon’s case) by death made him
instead want to save lives. I didn’t think of this until now but also
possibly his mother’s death might have motivated him too.
The baby is adorable and the scene of Eli kissing him on the head is
just TOO CUTE! Indeed, Eli seems a little broody doesn’t he? I wonder if
any more terrible things coming to light in the future will change
that…
You’re right- the longer it’s kept the worse it is to hear. It was too
much for Eli to bear on top of Oskar’s death at the time, but if Eli
didn’t ask him about it when would Owen tell him, if ever? It reminds me
of what you said, that it felt like he’d never come clean about it.
And now Eli only has half the truth, and Eli with only half the truth is nowhere near as scary as Violeta with half the truth…
Thanks to everyone who commented on the forum thread < 3