Assorted Random Writings

This forum is for picking apart tricky issues facing any authors in the community. Word choice, action scenes, dialoguing, or plot development. If something isn't working for you, put it up here and see what your fellow community members can make of it. Try to keep examples short and to the point as much as possible.

Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » February 28th, 2010, 3:43 am

Ano, I just got this idea that randomly popped into my head and...
Spoiler: show
Three After Three

There are three of them, all very different.
The loudmouth who wants to be acknowledged. The girl who wants to be useful. The antisocial seeker of power.
There are three of them, all different, all the same.

He was the loser, dead-last in school, but he learns fast, and he is getting stronger.
One was always brilliant, and that one gets stronger as well, but what no one notices is that he wants that strength for all the wrong reasons.
She was clever, but she is falling behind, and she fears that, she does not want to be the weakest.
There are six of them, three and three, all different, all the same.

He works hard, always trying, just wanting someone to admit that he did well.
She learns to be a medic, studying hard, wanting to be useful, refusing to be the weakest, certain that this at least she can do well.
One never really tries, everything comes easily --too easily, for this one is too arrogant, too certain of himself, and he stands too far apart from the others, wanting only to be stronger.
There are nine of them, three threes, all so very different, all too much the same.

They are never a team, only three people.
Three of them, too different, too similar.
Three and three, three of three.
Once. And again.

The past is forgotten, and so it comes once more. What once was is again, past becoming present, present becoming past.
As the students echo their teachers, as the students become their teachers.
There are six of them, three and three, different and the same.

They are never a team, only three people.
One energetic, one medic, one distant.
Three and three, three of three, all different, all the same.
There are three of them -- six of them -- nine of them -- all different, and all the same.

The bell test.
The loudmouth tied to the stump.

That day. The genius betrays them.

And who are they? Which?
The loudmouthed boy tied to the stump, is his hair white or yellow? The girl who teases him about being an idiot, is her hair blonde or pink? The quiet one who stands apart, is his dark hair long or short?

That cheerful boy whose smile hides sorrow, are his eyes blue or black? The medic-girl who likes the quiet one, is her hair pink or brown? The other one, ignoring both his teammates, is his hair black or silver?

Students echoing teachers, students becoming teachers.
There are three of them.
There are six of them.
All different.
All the same.
...well... it just kind of came out of nowhere.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Tempest Kitsune » February 28th, 2010, 3:49 am

That's some nice work right there.
"Doesn't matter what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — "No, you move."
— Captain America

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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Random_fan » February 28th, 2010, 4:08 am

I found that really good.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby shoootme » February 28th, 2010, 7:45 pm

that was very well done at times i could not tell which team you were meaning as it could apply to all three. another interpretation is that all three teams are being represented in one line for example,
He was the loser(1), dead-last in school(2), but he learns fast(3), and he is getting stronger.

(1) jirya
(2)obito
(3)naruto
yeah butchered the names but you get the point
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » February 28th, 2010, 8:28 pm

Aww, thank you so much. :aww:


This one came about when I was reading "Childhood". The whole Raitou-and-Danzo incident made me think of all the fanfics where the Council does something stupid involving Naruto, and... this appeared:
Spoiler: show
Breaking

Messing it up, you are messing it up. They can only take so much and you are pushing it, pushing it, breaking the barrier, crossing the line-
This is not the time for internal strife-
-there is no good time for internal strife-
Ruining everything, all the years of hard work, cracking, breaking-
In spite of everything -all the training, all the damage mental and physical, all the everything-
-they still have souls. They still have hearts.
And you are breaking them.
They will not forgive you for breaking their hearts.
And the fighting will be terrible.
Stop- stop-
Crossing the line that they drew for themselves, to keep themselves whole, to keep themselves sane-
-well, relatively sane, as sane as they can be-
-to keep out the nightmares, some of them at least-
-you are crossing that line, and they cannot bear that.
Breaking barriers -breaking hearts-
Breaking the bonds that tied you to them, that kept you safe, kept you from their wrath.
-stop!-
Fools.
You will die.
They will die.
Everyone and everything, gone.
All because you messed it up.
(EDIT)
Well, I wrote this... where it came from, I truly do not know. But I kind of like it.
Spoiler: show
Moment of Defeat

Hyuuga Neji knows exactly when he first lost in the Chuunin Exams.
It was not when Naruto burst out of the ground. No, that was merely when his defeat became obvious to everyone. He was already defeated then.
It was not when Naruto burst open the tenketsu Neji had closed. That was when Neji first lost to Naruto.
But Neji had already been defeated once before.
The first time Neji was defeated in the Chuunin Exams, it was at the hands of his cousin Hinata.
Technically, Neji won the match. But he knows now that in reality, he was defeated.
Neji won the match, but Hinata defeated him.
Hinata won the moment she got up even though she could barely stand, the moment she refused to admit she was defeated, the moment she chose not to believe in fate, and instead took responsibility for herself. Neji had decided that outcomes could not be changed and had simply gone along with what he saw as the predetermined path, not admitting that any of his failures might be his own fault, might have been avoidable.
Hinata won the moment she smiled at Neji and said that she knew he hurt more than she did and called him ‘Neji-nii-san’. Neji had thought no one could understand and had been bitter at the world.
Hinata won the moment she forgave Neji for everything he had done. Neji had lashed out at her for things she had not done at all.
Neji defeated Hinata in the Chuunin Exam preliminaries.
But Hinata defeated Neji in the contest of spirit.
In the true battle between them, the battle of philosophies, she was victorious, because she proved that her way was greater than he had thought it, and that she was better than he had thought her, and that was all she needed, because it proved that whether or not she was right, he was wrong. It was possible to fight fate.
And Neji knows now that Hinata is stronger than he is, has always been stronger than he could ever be.
Because Hinata was the first to defeat Neji at the Chuunin Exams.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » March 10th, 2010, 8:12 pm

Rrr. I really like the idea of this one, but something about it just seems off.
It is kind of in the vein of "Three After Three" in the sense of comparing things without actually naming them, trying to make it clear from context.
Spoiler: show
Sunlight And Fans

Black inverts to white.
White inverts to black.
Their eyes see more clearly than any others’, yet they are blind to their own flaws.
They can see through illusions, but cannot see what is festering within them, poised to kill them all.
It seems their eyes can see through any illusion save their own.

Their arrogance will kill them one day, directly or indirectly.
Perhaps someone will attack them after one insult too many.
Perhaps they will be overconfident and attempt what they should not.
Perhaps they will simply go insane and kill each other.
Or perhaps all that they have done will finally catch up with them.
One day they will be gone, victims of themselves.

Sometimes it is wondered if there is a correlation between social rank and evil.
After all, the kindest boy in the world is the village pariah.
And the highest-ranked clans eat their children.
Does that not seem strange?
Who would honor one who gained power by killing their closest friend?
Who would honor one who would place a death seal upon their own children?
But they hide behind secrets, and they die slowly from within.
One day their problems will explode.
Some will weep for the tragedy, but some will only laugh.

Look at him, they say. The genius. The prodigy. So talented, he is.
Fools. See the sorrow. See the tears.
Do not look. See.
See the death that haunts them still.
See how they strike out at the world, unable to reach the one they truly wish to attack.
See the danger. See the damage.
Do not look.
See.

Their eyes see more clearly than any others’, yet they are blind to their own flaws.
They cannot see the danger their arrogance poses.
One day they will all die, victims of problems they created themselves.
Sunlight and fans dance among leaves, slowly drawing nearer to the fire of their destruction...

Black inverts to white.
White inverts to black.
Last edited by Aldraia Dragonsong on March 30th, 2010, 4:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Tempest Kitsune » March 10th, 2010, 8:39 pm

Wow, that last one was pretty powerful.
"Doesn't matter what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — "No, you move."
— Captain America

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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » April 8th, 2010, 10:47 pm

So, I was thinking.
My knowledge of Naruto canon is highly sporadic, consisting of having occasionally read Shonen Jump when I was younger. However, through the miracle that is diffusion of knowledge, I have obtained even-more-sporadic bits of more recent knowledge.
The point I am attempting to reach is that one of the things I know from canon is the flashback to the night of the massacre.
And I was having a difficult time reconciling that with the image of Itachi as not evil.
So I did the only logical thing: wrote out my confusion.
And I think I figured it out.
Hence, this.
Spoiler: show
Shadows On The Blood-Red Moon

“Run away...”
...because I do not want you to see this, I do not want you to know, because you at least should be spared...
“...like the coward you are...”
...because if this is bravery, then I want you to be a coward; because if this is loyalty perhaps you should be a traitor...
“...hate me...”
...because I hate myself...
“...and live...”
...because I want you, at least, to live...
“...clinging to life...”
...because you are the last, and I cannot bear it if you die too...
“...without honor!”
...because there is no honor left.
There is no honor left for us, not in me, and none for you, because after this there can be no honor, because if this is honor you should be without it.
Because I want you to live and am too weak to see you die.
See their deaths, and know the truth: this is what I am, what I became, what you could be, what you could become.
Do not let that happen.
Run away, because I do not want you to see this.
Like the coward you are, because if this is bravery then you should be a coward.
Hate me, because I hate myself.
And live, because I cannot bear to see you die.
Clinging to life, because all that is left is survival.
Without honor, because there is no honor left.

There is no light in the weasel’s eyes, only cold calculation.
There is no warmth in the weasel’s presence, only silent stillness.
There is no tone in the weasel’s voice, only whispered words.
There is no life in the weasel, only death and darkness.
The weasel has no dream, for all his dreams were shattered.
Shards of dreams are reflected in mirror-wheel eyes, like shadows on a blood-red moon.
...The only explanation I could come up with is that Itachi was not ordered to massacre his entire clan, only the ones planning treason. However, Itachi had never been quite right in the head, and being given that order drove him over the edge. He went crazy, thought the order was to kill them all, and started snapping out of it just as Sasuke came back from shuriken practice.
Still partially in the grip of madness, but also guilt-ridden as he begins to realize just what he has done, he attacks Sasuke with Tsukuyomi, trying to warn him against becoming what Itachi is.
That is the most logical/sensible explanation I could come up with. It probably has flaws, but it made the whole thing sit better with me, at least.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » April 17th, 2010, 9:31 am

This is...
This... is...
...I have no idea.
I was thinking about sealing and wondered why the Shinigami would bind anything in return for someone's soul. Mostly I was wondering why it would even want souls. And the crazy (as always) explanation I came up with was that the Shinigami has an honor code. It will grant power to be used however you want, but you have to give it the same amount of power back.
What does that have to do with wanting souls? Simple... the Shinigami gains power from human suffering. If it owns your soul, it can do anything it wants to you...

Then the first two lines of this popped into my head, I wrote them down, and before I knew it I had some kind of poem with a constantly-changing rhyme scheme that may or may not make sense to anyone but me.
Spoiler: show
They Say That Four Is Death

The sacrifice for them was made.
A debt must always be repaid.
Power was granted for the seal,
now it must be returned.
No other soul is quite as pure.
No other’s choice would be as sure.
The broken heart one day will heal,
when all the truth is learned.
The Shinigami is not cruel,
The Shinigami is not kind.
The soul was traded for the power
To form a seal to bind.
The god of death is always fair
The sacrifice that called it there
One day will all the debt have paid
And on that day be freed.
The Shinigami did not ask
For the power or for the task
But for a purpose it was made,
And follows its own creed.
Darkness seems to suffocate
Drowning in the crushing weight
Glares of anger and of hate
Cold eyes that turn away.
Only the sorrow and the fright
Not allowed to see the light
Not knowing it will be all right
This pain the debt will pay.
Power from others’ suffering
From terror and despair
The sacrifice is always
To endure their worst nightmare.

The sacrifice for them was made.
The debt at last has been repaid.
Power was granted for the seal,
now it has been returned.
No other soul is quite as pure.
No other’s choice would be as sure.
Perhaps the broken heart will heal,
as all the truth is learned.
Please tell me what you think.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby QuoteMyFoot » April 17th, 2010, 10:46 am

Wow, that's really impressive. Kinda sinister, but subtly so. Nice job. (I don't know if it's what you were going for, but I interpreted it as Naruto being the one who paid back the debt, through all those years he was ignored... which is in itself a bit heart-rending and creepy.)
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » April 17th, 2010, 12:44 pm

Well... sort of. The idea was that the best way to torture the Yondaime was to show him how Naruto suffered, but I have this theory that Naruto's suffering was also powering the seal, and the reason why the seal started slipping/cracking/leaking was because Naruto was becoming happier and thus his suffering was no longer reinforcing the seal.
Which, now that I think about it more, is a really scary thought. Sort of Omelas-esque, a child's suffering keeping everyone else safe...
Also, I thank you for the compliments. ^^
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » June 10th, 2010, 2:01 am

For once, I know exactly what this is!
To elaborate, it is Princess Tutu-based. The idea is that everyone in the story had a wish of some sort, and Drosselmeyer's story granted those wishes as a set-up for a tragedy.
Or to interpret it another way, Drosselmeyer's power only worked properly if used on those who, on some level, in some way, wanted the changes he wrought.
Spoiler: show
Once There Was A Wish
(or simply Once There Was)

Once there was a cat who wished to be a teacher.
Once there was a light that wished to be remembered.
Once there was a librarian who wished to write a story.
Once there was a puppet who wished to be free.
Once there was a girl who wished she could feel sympathy.
Once there was another who wished she had a friend.
Once there was an echo in a river that wished for answers to its riddles.
Once there was a boy who wished that no other would be hurt by him.
Once there was a chef who wished someone would like her cooking.
Once there was a gardener who wished only to tend her flowers.
Once there were two dancers who loved each other dearly, and wished to be each with the other, dancing on forever.
But they did not understand that some things cannot be, and one of those is “always” and another one is “never”.
Once there was a prince who wished to save his kingdom, and so his heart was shattered and he could wish no more.
Once there was a knight, ever loyal to the prince, who did not know exactly what it was that he wished for.
Once there was a duck who wished to be a girl.
Once there was a girl who wished to be a raven.
Once there was a raven who wished to have a heart.
And once there was a writer who wished for tragedy, and who took the threads of all these wishes and spun them into a story.

Once there was a town that wished to be a story.
Once there was a story that made it wish no more.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » July 15th, 2010, 9:10 pm

This is intended to be the prologue to a time-travel story. It seems excessively confusing and obfuscated to me, though, and I was wondering if anyone could suggest a way to improve it?
Spoiler: show
Leaves That Fall Astray

nothing
I wish...
nothing can bring back the dead
I wish there was something...
nothing can turn back time
...something I could do...
what would you do
...some way to fix this.
if you could go back in time
I...
saw his eyes/am dying
was wrong/am sorry
am weak/have always been weak

I...
have to get up/cannot give up
betrayed them/destroyed it all
walk in a haze of refusing to perceive

I would...
believe: with unshakable faith, and make that belief into reality
realize: it means nothing/vengeance is cold and hollow
heal: those I can, mourn those I cannot heal

Are you ready?
there is no ready
friends instead of mere teammates
these walls we built around ourselves

Are you willing?
what is important
stand as one
must come crashing down

Tell you a secret
the roots are rotten
were but children
a foolish child who listened too closely

Please keep it well
they must be cut out
who knew too little and came too late
and did not think enough

The impossible is possible, if you have the will.
there is a darkness
are all insane
is not the monster

But no one will assume that the impossible has occurred.
can feel it
the wind has no shadow
the monster is

So what will they think of the leaves that fell astray?
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Satori » July 18th, 2010, 7:17 pm

This is intended to be the prologue to a time-travel story. It seems excessively confusing and obfuscated to me, though, and I was wondering if anyone could suggest a way to improve it?
Spoiler: show
Leaves That Fall Astray

nothing
I wish...
nothing can bring back the dead
I wish there was something...
nothing can turn back time
...something I could do...
what would you do
...some way to fix this.
if you could go back in time
I...
saw his eyes/am dying
was wrong/am sorry
am weak/have always been weak

I...
have to get up/cannot give up
betrayed them/destroyed it all
walk in a haze of refusing to perceive

I would...
believe: with unshakable faith, and make that belief into reality
realize: it means nothing/vengeance is cold and hollow
heal: those I can, mourn those I cannot heal

Are you ready?
there is no ready
friends instead of mere teammates
these walls we built around ourselves

Are you willing?
what is important
stand as one
must come crashing down

Tell you a secret
the roots are rotten
were but children
a foolish child who listened too closely

Please keep it well
they must be cut out
who knew too little and came too late
and did not think enough

The impossible is possible, if you have the will.
there is a darkness
are all insane
is not the monster

But no one will assume that the impossible has occurred.
can feel it
the wind has no shadow
the monster is

So what will they think of the leaves that fell astray?
I find myself wondering how many voices are speaking/thinking/emoting. Instead of the 1 line plain then 3 lines of refrain bolded, you could give each of the 3 refrain lines a different symbol-header. Or not, if all three are meant to be from the same source.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » July 19th, 2010, 6:23 pm

I find myself wondering how many voices are speaking/thinking/emoting. Instead of the 1 line plain then 3 lines of refrain bolded, you could give each of the 3 refrain lines a different symbol-header. Or not, if all three are meant to be from the same source.
Hmm, that does sound like a good idea... so like this, perhaps?
Spoiler: show
Leaves That Fall Astray

nothing
I wish...
nothing can bring back the dead
I wish there was something...
nothing can turn back time
...something I could do...
what would you do
...some way to fix this.
if you could go back in time
I...
@saw his eyes/am dying
!was wrong/am sorry
*am weak/have always been weak

I...
@have to get up/cannot give up
!betrayed them/destroyed it all
*walk in a haze of refusing to perceive

I would...
@believe: with unshakable faith, and make that belief into reality
!realize: it means nothing/vengeance is cold and hollow
*heal: those I can, mourn those I cannot heal

Are you ready?
#there is no ready
^friends instead of mere teammates
&these walls we built around ourselves

Are you willing?
#what is important
^stand as one
&must come crashing down

Tell you a secret
?the roots are rotten
/were but children
~a foolish child who listened too closely

Please keep it well
?they must be cut out
/who knew too little and came too late
~and did not think enough

The impossible is possible, if you have the will.
:there is a darkness
<are all insane
>is not the monster

But no one will assume that the impossible has occurred.
:can feel it
<the wind has no shadow
>the monster is

So what will they think of the leaves that fell astray?
If you like, I can explain where the bold lines came from. I realize that they sound weird and almost nonsensical out of context.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » July 30th, 2010, 9:30 am

This is a Mabinogi-based snippet.
...Does anyone here actually play Mabinogi besides me?
WARNING: Spoilers for the ending of Generation Two.
Spoiler: show
"You both," Esras says, "are much slower than I thought."
"Esras!" yells Redire. "Where's the lord? What did you do to him!"
"'The lord'...?" Esras muses. "Oh... Are you talking about Rian? I don't know if you are qualified to ask me about the well-being of 'the lord'."
"Answer my question! Where's my lord?"
"Hahahaha.... Since you seem desperate to find out, here, I'll give you an answer.
…You are looking at the new Lord of Emain Macha. I've been the Lord of Emain Macha for quite some time now.
And soon... the lord of Erinn..."
You suspected this. When you stood in the throne room and it was Esras, not Rian, who answered your questions, even though it was the lord you addressed... that was when you began to suspect. That was when you started to think that Rian was lord in name only.
But Redire seems surprised.
"What?" he asks. "You must be out of your mind..."
"You sound confident as usual, Redire..." says Esras. "However…that only holds true if you have power to back it up. Let me show you an example of what that means."
You are not familiar with Esras's arts, but you can feel the power in the air, the mana that gathers around Esras.
You start to move forward -striking a spellcaster ends the spell, right?
Then the golem appears.
Gold? A golem made of gold...?
You have heard of this! There was a legend...
"…This Golem..." whispers Redire. "No…no way... Is it Tabhartas....?"
"No wonder you were the leader of Paladins," Esras answers. "You instantly recognized this Golem… Yes. This is Tabhartas. The gatekeeper of the Ancient Wisdom... and now, a loyal servant of mine."
"The whole body is covered in Gold..." murmurs Redire. "I didn't know you'd resort to this…"
"Well…" Esras adds, "this is all thanks to the Paladin trainees. As you might already know, Tabhartas is the prototype for all Golems... It took me a while to control him myself.
So please… have some respect for him. He's not just another ordinary Golem."
...This explains a few things. Those miners... they were harmless. The medicine they spoke of, it was real, not some trick they played...
You have no time for guilt. You put it aside for now.
"Do not leave my side!" Redire calls to you.
"Tabhartas..." Esras intones, "I will now give you an order. Show your loyalty by crushing those invaders!"
You ready your weapons and prepare for battle.
Redire collapses.
"My leg..." he mutters, "It's broken... I can't believe this..."
"Even a so-called Paladin like you is rendered useless in front of a monster like Tabhartas," laughs Esras.
"Do not say the name Paladin with your serpent tongue!" cries Redire. "A real Paladin... The Knight of Light… shall be invincible!"
"So…" Esras drawls, "this proves that you are not a true Paladin. Then where is this true Paladin that should come riiight about now… to save you?"
"Tabhartas," she orders, "finish him!"
The golem slowly raises one foot to crush Redire.
No!
You sheath your weapons and move.
You are between Tabhartas and Redire now, holding up the golem's foot.
It is quite heavy.
"Oh..." says Esras, "that was either very brave… or very very unnecessary. Most humans don't even stand a chance against a regular Golem..."
"…Move over!" Redire yells. "Save yourself! We do not need to create more casualties!"
You will not let him die. You cannot let him die. It is against all you have learned about teamwork... about friends.
What hero saves his life at the cost of another's?
Not one you want to be.
You stay where you are, straining against Tabhartas.
There was an old song that you learned when you were a child, in the world beyond the Soul Stream. It echoes through your mind now.
'If you hear the cry of the poor'
A Milletian and a beggar at the edge of Emain Macha square.

"I take it," Esras muses, "that you can take some more pounding. That's a lot longer than I expected. However, you are only human, which means the end is near.
…Your destiny has been decided... Death by Tabhartas. It was your call, not mine."
"No..." Redire whispers. "Forget about me… just run!"
'if you feed the hungry'
"Do you have any food? It's an emergency!"
"Just some steamed corn I made..."
"That's perfect! "
"What happened, anyway?"
"I drank from the fountain and it made me starving!"
"...Here."

'if you loosen the bonds of oppression...'

You will not leave Redire.
You will protect.
You will not fail!
You feel something growing in you.
It feels warm. It feels like light.
It feels like power.
'Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your wounds be healed...'
Light shines out, centered on you. You can feel yourself growing, as if you are becoming an adult all at once. The light seems to gather around you and grow solid.
Armor. The armor you forged from mythril, the armor Aer blessed, the armor that took you to the white wolf in Ciar. You wondered where it went.
It seems it was inside you.
"What is that!" Esras yelps.
"This…cannot be..." Redire whispers. "The Knight of Light… The true power of the Knight of Light…?"
"This is not happening!" Esras insists. "A kid like you cannot and should not be a true Paladin!
....Ahhhh...
…Tabhartas, I am giving you an order. Annihilate the kid so the kid will never see the light again!"
All right, so you are technically a child, but you are older than you look. Does she really have to emphasize your apparent youth?
You are rather annoyed now. You have just received a rather large power boost. And you have a giant golem threatening to kill you.
Your course of action seems obvious.
Kill Tabhartas.

"I can't believe this..." Esras mumbles. "T... Tabhartas... gone… just like that… You…must…be... the... Knight of Light...?"
"No…" She shakes her head. "It's just an urban legend. No…"
A dark-armored man enters the room. He looks familiar somehow.
"Paladin...?" he murmurs, seeming to speak more to himself than anyone else. "…And Tabhartas?
…So it is you... who caused all that chaos in the dungeon..."
He walks over to examine the slain Tabhartas.
"It looks like one of those ancient Golems…
…Wait a minute… then this must be controlled by the kind of magic that isn't proper by any means…"
You have no idea what the dark knight is talking about, though you note that he is attacking Tabhartas's inert body with a sword.
You nearly forget about the dark knight when Rian appears from within the golem.
"I knew it," says the dark knight. "So it would use a human sacrifice to control this Golem..."
Human... sacrifice...?
No. No...
Rian is...

Ruairi appears from the same direction as the dark knight.
Ruairi...? And a dark knight...?
That dream you had!
"Rian...?" he calls. "Rian? Rian! Rian!"
...Rian is Ruairi's younger brother... you had forgotten that.
Irrelevantly, you wonder why Rian was the lord if Ruairi is the elder brother.
"Who did this to Rian?" Ruairi demands. "Tell me! Who was it?"
"Don't look at me!" Esras cries, pointing to you. "It was that Paladin!"
"No!" you yell. "Ruairi! Do not listen to her!"
Or you try to. But your voice locks in your throat, and you cannot speak as Esras lies.
You feel the power that infused you fading.
You return to your former size, the armor that encased you vanishing.
You are no longer a Paladin, but only yourself once more.
Ruairi looks at you.
"You're... that paladin...!"
And your heart seems to stop as you realize he remembers you, and the memory is not a pleasant one.
You remember that day as well as he must. The day you were sent to raid Math Dungeon.
The day you stopped training under Craig.
They told you there were doppelgangers. But you had strange dreams, and you wondered if they might be wrong.
So you were cautious. You hung back, knowing that if this was the true Ruairi, you could not win and would not want to.
Then one of the other trainees with you attacked that girl.
Triona. That was her name.
Ruairi looks at you, and that gaze is painful to see.
Because Ruairi, one you honored as a hero, looks at you with hatred.

You stand in the lobby of Barri for a long time. The voices of your guildmates swirl around you, speaking of quests and crafting, but you ignore them for now.
You became a paladin. You slew Tabhartas. Esras attacked you, and her you slew as well.
But it means nothing.
Because Ruairi, one you honored, hates you.
Because the quiet young lord you had come to like, if only a little, was never truly there at all -was dead before you met him.
Because you know that Emain Macha is corrupted.
Because Ruairi has seen evil in people who claim to serve the Goddess, and so he has come to believe that the Goddess is evil.
You look at the statue of the Goddess. You place one hand on the cold stone, and you pray.
Morrighan... why must it come to this? Why must those you call suffer so in that calling?
Morrighan... I do not fear. I am not of this world, and so I cannot truly die.
But what of the ones who belong in Erinn? They die once and then are gone, never to return.
Goddess Morrighan, am I ever doomed to failure? I saved you, but each Milletian must save the Goddess for themselves. You were trapped into an endless cycle of being sealed and being saved, calling another to aid you each time. I tried to save Lord Rian, but before I ever came to Erinn, he was already beyond saving.
Morrighan... I have slain in your name. I have fought, and died, and stood up from death. I have lived when I should have died, through nothing more than will. Goddess, hear my prayer. Goddess, answer me. What have I done? What am I doing? What should I do now?

Morrighan gives you no answer. But then, she has already spoken to you, there in the dungeon once Esras was slain. This image of her you stand before is no more than a statue, a stone idol before an altar, path and portal many-branched.
You killed the miners, you went to Math, all in the quest to become a paladin. What is it when one unknowingly does evil in seeking to do good?
You remember a story you heard long ago, beyond the Soul Stream.
'He who does good in Tash's name in truth honors Aslan; and he who does evil in Aslan's name in truth honors Tash.'
...Morrighan... In seeking to serve you, have I served Cichol?

But that does not make sense, does it. Cichol is god of Fomors; to slay a Fomor opposes him... right?
<I became a paladin,> you tell your guildmates.
<Congratulations!>
<Welcome to the ranks.>
<Are you going to switch over?>
<I have some extra rainbow trout, if you want it.>
<How do you do that, anyway?>
Their voices swirl around you, expressing congratulations, offering assistance with the next quest, the newer members asking questions.
It feels... hollow, somehow. As though you are being congratulated for success when you have failed.
Because even though you slew Tabhartas, you were too late to save Rian.
Because Ruairi has betrayed the goddess to seek vengeance.
That thought brings you pause. Morrighan is goddess of war and vengeance. So would seeking vengeance be honoring her?
An odd sort of irony, to seek vengeance against the goddess of vengeance.
Then you begin to wonder. You serve Morrighan, goddess of war and vengeance. Does that oblige you to make war and seek vengeance?
You shake your head. You serve Morrighan, but you do not serve war or vengeance. You have nothing to avenge.
You want to stop this cycle of revenge.
But you do not know if you can stop it.

You think of Tarlach, cursed to become a bear by day because as a human he is allergic to the herbs he needs to live. Bound in Sidhe Sneachta, but not by any spell. Bound to the druid's altar by a guilt stronger than any magic, that guilt a heavier burden upon him than any you have borne.
You think of Mari, and of what she became.
You think of Ruairi, and of what he chose.
What happened? What happened to the young warrior who dreamed of a goddess and set out to save her?
Ruairi, Mari, and Tarlach sit around a campfire. Tarlach is helping Mari bandage her wounds.
"Sorry," says Ruairi. "I'd help, but I don't have any bandages."
"What kind of warrior goes into a dungeon and doesn't bring any bandages?!" demands Mari.
"...I'm a reckless warrior?" Ruairi suggests weakly.
"You're certainly reckless," Mari huffs.

What happened to that?
You know, of course. You saw.
Betrayal happened. Treachery happened. Death and gods and necromancy, and a dark knight's daughter.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » September 7th, 2010, 7:27 am

This feels like it needs work somehow. It was a passing little idea that came to me when reading -of all things- a Fruits Basket fanfiction. Something in that story reminded me of a line from some other story: "a spirit slowly grinding down into nothing".
...And so I wrote this with that line as the... prompt, I suppose? This could, in a very loose and general sense, be called Naruto fanfiction. I quite like the idea behind it, but it feels like some of the lines need more work, especially in the second paragraph.
Spoiler: show
Flicker

Focus. There is nothing but the mission. Kill the target, protect the client, find the lost, retrieve the scroll.
Focus. There is nothing but this task. Strike, block, form the hand seals, set the trap.
Focus. There is nothing but what must be done. Become the actions that must be performed and let all else fade from awareness. Only the mission is important. Only the task at hand needs attention.
All other concerns are secondary or irrelevant, to be considered later.

Drift. Air is everywhere; it is needed for life. Without breath a human dies quickly.
Drift. Air is everywhere; but not always good to breathe. It is important to know when and where.
Drift. Air is everywhere; so what better way to travel? Become something that can float upon the breeze, or become the wind itself. Move swiftly and invisibly, as the wind does.
To fly is surely glorious, but haste hinders pleasure.

Fade. To hide in shadows is the way of the ninja. Humans fear the dark, for to them it is the unknown.
Fade. To hide in shadows is an important skill. Fear is a valuable tool for a ninja.
Fade. To hide in shadows is easier than it might seem. Humans fear the unknown, but ninjas thrive on secrets. What is not known is as important as what is known.
Ninjas do not fear the darkness, for they are one with shadows.

Flicker. Out of sight, out of mind. Unseen is as not there.
Flicker. Out of danger. Save for ninja, who know better than to rely solely on their eyes.
Flicker. Out of existence. Leave behind danger... leave behind self. A true ninja is not a true person, but only a tool that chooses its wielder.
Slowly lose all that makes up self. Become perfection. In focusing, forget other matters and leave them behind. Scatter pieces into the wind and watch them drift away. Fade out and come back a little less solid.
Flicker into wind. Flicker into shadow. Flicker into nothingness.
Flicker into a wraith. There and not there.
This is a ninja.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » September 26th, 2010, 9:39 pm

This time, we have a Case Closed(Detective Conan)/Magic Kaito abstract-comparison one-shot.
Spoiler: show
Dancing With Death

They dance along the edge of death, neither knowing the other’s true goal. Neither aware that their goals are the same, only approached in different ways and for different reasons.
Magic and logic that wear the same face, that bear the same eyes, the eyes that seek justice. Magic and logic seek justice for death, seek justice for the dead.
Magic and logic fight against them.
One seeking what they seek, hoping to draw them out, hoping to avenge those who have been lost.
One searching for the truth, hoping to find them, hoping to prevent any more from being lost.
One hiding what he became when he learned the secret, one hiding what he ceased to be because he learned that secret.
One vowing that no one will be hurt. One tracking down those who have hurt others.
One risking and defying death, one following death and being followed by it.
One for chaos. One for order.
Magic and logic the same secrets keep, one what he is, one what he was.
Two dancing with death in a shape neither can see, two hiding from death while trying to find it.
Two smiling at those who express concern with assurances that all is well.
Two who know that all is not well.
One weaves a web that the other unravels; one leaves a trail the other one follows.
Each telling lies until they become truth. Each wearing masks that become their real faces.
One seeking that which is said to stop death; one seeking those who have caused death.
Logic and magic dancing with death, logic and magic seeking the truth.
Er... I am having difficulty thinking of a polite way to say this... When I post these, it is because I am hoping to be told how I can improve them... so I suppose the message is, do not be afraid to criticize! Tell me which things worked well and which ones did not. Please.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » October 16th, 2010, 10:25 pm

This time, a Pokémon Mystery Dungeon oneshot. Spoilers through the Murky Cave mission.
This one still needs a good title.
Spoiler: show
I wanted to forget.
That is what you need to understand. I was willing to jump through a portal I was not even certain would work, aware that it would wipe away almost everything I knew.
They asked me several times if I was certain. Warned me of the danger.
“You will forget everything,” they said, “all that you have done, all that you have been.”
And you know what I said?
“I don’t care.”
And I meant it. I did not care if I forgot everything. I wanted to forget everything. Memory meant nothing to me, less than nothing. It was no precious treasure that I wished to keep close. It was a burden, one I had no wish to bear, one I was all too willing to set down.
They asked me questions, assessing me. I was warned, before the test, to answer honestly or the results would mean nothing.
But I knew what kind of person I was. So instead of answering the questions as the person that I was, I answered them as the person that I wanted to be.
I answered the questions like a person who could trust, even though I was too suspicious to trust anyone. I answered the questions like a person who still believed in something, even though all my faith had long since died away.
And not much later I went through the portal and left my old life behind.
And I opened my eyes and you were there, and all I knew was that I was supposed to be human but had become a Pokémon.
I did not even give you the right name; I gave you a name I had always liked but not the one I was born with. Because I forgot even that.
But I opened my eyes and you were there and do you know what?
I trusted you.
The moment I saw you, I trusted you. It made no sense in light of who I had been, but I was no longer that person. I had forgotten ever being that person, and so I became what I had claimed to be, I became what I wanted to be.
Those first few days, there were quite a few ways I could have gone. I had to reconstruct a personality from nothing.
You were the one who helped me the most with that.
You were the one who showed me how to trust, because no matter what happened you always backed me up, you always believed in me. You were the one who showed me how to care about someone I had never met before that moment.
You were the one who showed me how to love, who showed me what love was.
You taught me through your actions that we should help anyone who asks. You taught me through your words how to live in this strange new world.
You taught me through your actions that there is nothing a Pokémon will not do for their true friends.
You ran away that morning with me, not knowing if we could ever return. You climbed three mountains for my sake, though one was a volcano and the other two were covered in snow.
You went with me into a cavern filled with boiling lava, and then you climbed with me a tower in the sky, for the sake of all the world.
You never once doubted anything I said, no matter how ridiculous it was. It was all true, of course, but some of it was quite difficult to believe.
And I wanted to return the faith you showed in me.
I could not remember the time when I would not have been able to do so. I could not remember that I was far unworthy of all you gave me.
I had only my faith and my conviction that if I believed I could do anything.
Which is funny, because before I came here I had neither of those things.
I stepped through that portal away from my past and every moment since has been far better than any moment prior.
Yes, even that time in Lapis Cave was an improvement. I was still happy even then, and even when we climbed Mount Blaze, and do you know why? Because you were there.
You were with me. You believed in me.
Before I met you, I never had that.
And so when I rose up and remembered, I realized that I had no desire to go back to what I had been.
Because I hated the person I was. And I loved the person I became.
Back there, I could never have done it. If I had not forgotten, I could never have reached this point.
You see, even though I remember, I am still the same one you have known. I have more knowledge now, and perhaps I am just a little less naive, a little quieter. Still, memory only changed me a little, because I did not want to change.
But I still have much to learn.
You taught me something else, only a little while ago. Yes, back there in the Murky Cave. Well, you and Gengar and Gardevoir, but still.
You taught me about forgiveness.
The person I was could never forgive. The person I was could hold a grudge for ten years and keep it as fresh as the day it began.
I cannot do that anymore, not since I came through the portal. And you showed me why that was a good thing.
You and Gengar and Gardevoir showed me that even a selfish person can care about others, and even an evil one can do good deeds.
I learned a very important lesson from you: the dangers of absolutism.
So here I am, and though I have changed, I am still your friend. I just wanted to tell you, now that I remember.
All right?
...
I thought you would say that.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Random_fan » October 17th, 2010, 11:02 pm

I liked it, I wish I could say something more but it was just really good.
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » May 9th, 2012, 7:28 am

Full-Life! *resurrects thread*
Wow, been a looong time since I posted anything here. Time to fix that!

Today I have another Naruto thing; pre-massacre, Mikoto thinking about Itachi.
Spoiler: show
Doll

A doll.
That is what he is, Mikoto realizes. A toy for the elders - for Fugaku - to dress up and position and move about to their whims.
A plaything. (A tool.)
A mirror in which their wishes are reflected back to them, precisely replicated.
(Precisely inverted, but the eye is used to reinverting the image, and one stops noticing that a mirror image is not, in fact, a perfect copy.)
A blank slate to write a story upon and watch it play out before them.
A puppet to pull the strings of.
(An impressionable child, easily manipulated, easily swayed.)
Even she, Mikoto, his own mother, can no longer see the child in the shinobi; her son is a stranger to her. Or, perhaps, what matters more is that she is a stranger to him.
Itachi, Mikoto realizes, does not trust her. Does not trust anyone enough to let them see behind the shield he holds eternally in his eyes. (Except, maybe, she hopes, she prays, Shisui.)
She wonders, sometimes, what is behind it.
(Once, she thinks, he raised it only when his eyes spun red; but that is a fancy, a projection upon him of the habit she had once had. Mikoto, too, is Uchiha, and she learned quickly enough to raise that shield even when her eyes were still and black; but she knows, if she allows herself to, that Itachi learned far sooner than she. Before his eyes could spin red at all.)
That shield leaves his eyes just a little empty, lacking some essential spark that a normal person would have. That a ninja must hide sometimes, behind that shield, but even a ninja can let that shield down sometimes, for their closest confidantes.
(Itachi has no confidantes, to her knowledge. He is polite to everyone, but also distant; he uses politeness as a guard against closeness. Except, again, just possibly, with Shisui. She desperately hopes.)
Itachi never lets it down.
(Not even, she is certain, - and she despairs - with Shisui.)
And without that spark, his eyes are blank. Dead.
Like a doll.
Not sure if it works better to make the parenthesized bits stand out more by italicizing them, or if it would be better to leave them the same as the others so the effect is more subtle. Thoughts?
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Tempest Kitsune » May 9th, 2012, 8:15 am

An excellent bit of introspection Aldraia, and the italics make the words in parenthesis stand out, make them seem more like Mikoto's personal thoughts. I like it!
"Doesn't matter what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — "No, you move."
— Captain America

Naruto RP Character - Takuma Itsuki, Special Jounin
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » May 9th, 2012, 8:28 am

Well, the whole thing is supposed to be her personal thoughts; the parenthesized portions are contradictions, exceptions, and more internalized thoughts - the things you never quite put into words.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby Aldraia Dragonsong » August 1st, 2012, 5:12 pm

Been a while since I posted anything here; time to fix that!

First up is a sequel/companion to Doll, from Fugaku's perspective instead of Mikoto's.
Spoiler: show
Puppet

A puppet, like any good tool, is an extension of the puppeteer. But only, of course, when the puppeteer is skilled.
Fugaku fancies himself an excellent puppeteer. After all, he is Uchiha, and excellence is his birthright.
Itachi is his son; that makes him Fugaku’s, to twist and use and manipulate as he sees fit. To cast in whatever image he requires. Properly raised children are extensions of the self just as properly wielded tools are.
A blank slate to be polished into a mirror, into a mirror-wheel eye that copies its elders exactly.
(Mirror is a bit of a misnomer for the Sharingan, for mirrors invert the images they capture, while the eyes create a perfect image.)
And Itachi, so Fugaku thinks, is the perfect puppet.
(Internal flaws are the most easily hidden.)
Fugaku believes himself to hold all of Itachi’s strings.
(After all, he is Uchiha, and arrogance, too, is his birthright.)
The next is a Fruits Basket oneshot. Akito's perspective, spoilers for the end of the manga.
Spoiler: show
Even Eternity

Cry with me.
Akito weeps, and her zodiac weeps with her.
The bond is breaking. Everything – everything is collapsing around them. The zodiac is falling apart. The banquet is ending.
Why? Why now of all times? Why at all?
Cry with me.
Eternity. Permanence. Forever. So many words for the concept of ‘unending’. So many words for ‘always’, and every one a lie.
Cry with me. One last time.
Akito weeps with Momiji - with Hiro - with all of them -
-alone.
Alone in her room, Akito weeps, she who was promised that she would never be alone. Who was promised that she would never be afraid.
She was promised eternity.
But even eternity comes to an end.
And the one piece I have written so far of that Uzumaki Clan fic that I promised one of you (although I have unfortunately forgotten whom... *rubs back of head in embarrassment*)
Spoiler: show
The reason why the Uzumaki were such excellent sealers, and the reason why they were so suitable as containers, were one and the same.
Sheer, bullheaded stubbornness.
Resilience of spirit was as much a trait of the Uzumaki clan as resilience of body, though this was likely a product of their upbringing rather than their blood. But the upbringing came with the blood, and so the two were nearly indistinguishable.
That resilience meant they never gave up. Not in the face of years of hard work, not in the face of ostracization. Not when a seal taunted them with not working for no obvious reason, not when a beast of chakra laughed at their attempts to control its power.
Nothing stopped an Uzumaki forever. They would keep going. They would persevere.
The Uzumaki refused to acknowledge the existence of impossibility. If they failed, it just meant they had to try even harder the next time.
And that was why they were such excellent sealers, because sealing is a discipline of many false starts and tiny tweaks and endless hours of study, and while the Uzumaki were normally impatient, when they really got into a project they could work for however long it took to finish. And because they were as stubborn as boars, they would; and because their bloodline made them long-lived, they had the time.
And it was why they were so suitable as containers, because nothing could keep them down for long. Because their reaction to having a giant chakra monster sealed inside them was the same as anything else: shrug it off and keep going on. And because their bloodline made them sturdy and long-lived, they could survive the physical dangers; so with neither the physical nor the emotional burdens more than they could bear, they could endure better than most.
Random Scholomance Quote of However Long It Takes Me To Get Bored of the Last One:
“Ancell: respecting personal boundaries to the detriment of his friends since 1993.” ~bookworm702
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Re: Assorted Random Writings

Unread postby gman391 » August 1st, 2012, 6:20 pm

Hmm while Fugaku's perspective is good if harsh. I find I prefer Mikoto's far more. Just my opinion.

I can't comment on Fruits Basket as I don't know the manga.

The Uzumaki thing is good exposition but seems to need more...plot I guess?
"My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world."
----Jack Layton
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