Breaking In Louise (ZnT Discussion) Pt 3

Only one image can capture my joy:

Louise: Wait, he's my Familiar, and the Phoenix is his Familiar. My Familiar has a Familiar?!

Yukari: God dammit Louise, that's my shtick!

There is reason why Yukari as familiar is deliciously funny. Though belongs to that other thread...

I heard you like familiars. So I put a familiar in your familiar so you can tsun while you dere.

I think its okay here for comparison's sake.
Also I just remembered that ZnT mages can't teleport. Dumbledore has three methods available to him.

Well, teleportation and opening gates to far away are different things, but you are right.

Voids mages need to have a clear line of sight of the place they are going to land, no? That's why Louise went rabbit hopping back to Saito when she learned teleport

Previous parts are listed here.

^ ^ ^ ^ ^

It had been nearly half an hour since Louise Francoise le Blanc de la Valliere and Nimble Rabbit had been left in the room. Aside from the entry and exit of a servant bringing a tray of drinks, it had been more or less silent save for the shuffling of feet and awkward coughs.

Louise was struggling with what, if anything, to tell this man. By all rights, she should be able to just tell him that he was a commoner, she was a noble, and that he would be her familiar. She might not have particularly wanted him as a familiar, but due to a lack of alternatives it was the way things would be. If he didn’t like it, then too bad.

However… he was just… not. Not a commoner, strictly speaking, if he had the blood of a spirit in him. Even if that hadn’t been the case, he wasn’t just an average commoner either. A doctor, especially for a remote village, would be an important if not vital figure. Wounds, broken bones, sickness… yes, she knew how necessary the presence of a doctor could be for sickness, even without being a Water Mage.

And there was the fact that he was man, walking, talking, and everything! Oh, it sounded plain, but she had expected some beast, mundane or otherwise. If she did make him her familiar, where would he stay? In her room? If what he had said earlier was the truth he was more than a dozen years her elder, possibly more. He was properly respectful when not upset, if a little coarse in his speech, but still!

But if she did take him as a familiar… he was more than just a bird or cat or lizard. They were all useful, no doubt, but he could actually do things. Like… um… cleaning, which there were already the school’s servants. Gathering ingredients… which normal familiars could do. He was a doctor… which the school already had. He was part-spirit… and she had no idea what that let him do.

Well, Old Osmond had said they should discuss things. That would do as an opening topic as well as anything.

“So… Mr. Rabbit,” she began. “I… oh Founder I can’t do this.”

“What?” He looked up from the window where he had been standing.

“Aaagh! ’Mr. Rabbit.’ It sounds like something from a child’s storybook! Is your whole family named like that? ‘Nimble Rabbit,’ ‘Fuzzy Rabbit,’ ‘Brown Rabbit’?”

Almost immediately Louise considered casting another spell, any spell, on herself. It would be less embarrassing at this point. He had already said that he had been abandoned as a baby, and even just bringing up his adopted family would remind him of his home and the low chance of returning.

She didn’t notice at first, but a low sound had started. It quickly grew in volume, and Louise looked up to see that Nimble Rabbit was… laughing.

“Heh heh ha… ha! As if you’re one to talk; how many breaths does it take to get through your own name?” he asked, smirking.

“And just what’s wrong with my name?” she demanded. “The Valliere name is that of an ancient and proud house that has existed for centuries!”

“I’ve heard recitations of lineages that were shorter,” Rabbit said, still snickering.

“Oh, you… you… whatever you are! How does being half-spirit or god or elemental work, anyway? I’ve never heard of anything so ridiculous!”

“If I have to tell you the how, I have to wonder if you really are sixteen. I might get in trouble for corrupting young ears.” Rabbit almost started a new bout of laughter as he said that, nearly losing it as Louise’s face turned red.

“Ah! Don’t you dare say anything of the sort! How vulgar!”

“Ha ha ha!”

Louise fumed as he continued to laugh. Pouring herself some water, she gulped the entirety of the cup down in one gulp. Really, she should have known that a commoner would be so crude and insulting!

“Ah… heh. Oh, I needed that,” Rabbit said. “Heh… Is it alright if I have a cup as well, miss?”

“Do whatever you want! I’m rapidly coming to believe I should have nothing to do with you!”

“I’m sorry, miss,” Rabbit said as he poured himself some water. He sipped at it, grinning. “It’s just… got to laugh or go mad, right? I mean… what else can I do? I mean, I don’t even know what went wrong with everything, let alone how to try and go fix it.”

Louise held for a moment, before sighing. “Yes… yes. Don’t even know why things went wrong. That’s how it always has been. Louise the Zero, messing up once again.”

“’Zero’?” Rabbit asked, frowning.

She glared at him for a moment, but it lost heat quickly enough. “Louise the Zero. Embarrassment of the Valliere family, who can’t cast one simple spell right. All I do is blow things up, no matter what I try. Bringing you here is the closest I’ve had to a successful spell, and you can see how that has turned out.”

“How long have you been at it? The whole spell thing in general?”

“Years. Private tutors quit, experts in magical examinations throw up their hands in frustration, the other students either taunt me constantly or avoid me completely. I’m lucky I haven’t been tossed out the front gate yet.”

“Hm…”

“’Hm’? Is that all you have to say?” she accused him.

“Well, it’s not like I can claim to even know how things like that work,” he replied, shrugging helplessly. “Whatever it is you all do, they’re no Charms even putting aside that you’re mortals. I’ve never seen a Dragon-blood need to wave around a stick to pull something off.”

“’Dragon-blood…’ What is that? You’ve said it several times now.”

“Well, in Creation,” Rabbit said, idly picking up the map he had drawn, “there are the gods, the Dragons, Exalts, demons, and mortals… and in-betweens like me. Exalts, ‘Dragon-blooded,’ are people with the essence of the five Elemental Dragons running through their veins, giving them the power to protect Creation after saving it from the Anathema ages ago, and their divine mandate to rule.” He snorted suddenly. “At least that’s how Immaculates will tell it, and I can’t say I’ve ever heard of anything or one that could do in their stead.”

“They’re not mages?” Louise asked.

“Well, some of them learn Sorcery, but I’m thinking it’s not the same thing from what you and Colbert did before. They have powers that come from their own Essence, and allow them to work the elements: Air, earth, fire, water, wood.”

“’Wood’? Wood isn’t the fifth element, it’s ‘Void’!”

“Void? Sounds like a ghost thing to me,” Rabbit said.

“The Void is the Holy Element of the Founder Brimir,” Louise said. “Granted to him by God, he used it to create the other elements of magic and granted them to those who became the nobility of the world. The nations of Tristain, Albion, Gallia, and Romalia were founded by the successors of his will.”

“Well, I use Wood, practically am on the spirit side of things, so don’t tell me it doesn’t exist.”

Louise opened her mouth to begin disputing this… but shut it after a moment’s thought. He was right, in a way. Or at least as far as he was concerned. She’d never heard of someone using wood spells… Perhaps a mixing of earth and water?

“What does Wood let you do? Or being part elemental?” she asked.

“Wood is the Element of growth and life. I’m tougher than a normal mortal, and a bit quicker too. I heal faster, age slower. If I’m in the forest, I don’t get tired.”

“What do you mean you don’t get tired?”

“Just that. Surrounded by trees and plants, no matter how long I run, no matter how burdened, I’m no more winded than you would be walking from one end of a hallway to another.”

Louise nodded. “Well, that’s useful. I mean, overall. Not very impressive, though.”

“What, you want vines wrapping around people like snakes, volleys of thorns like arrows, trees walking?” he scoffed. “Ha! Even if I could, Flower would have my head if I tried any of that. I’m mostly human, you know. Or roughly so. Besides, I pick up some things from spirits. A few tricks. Some info here and there. Where the good herbs and stuff are for my mixes and salves.”

“Oh? What sorts of mixes?”

“Basic stuff. Blood-stoppers for bandages for bad cuts and scrapes. Cures for some of the basic poison animals or plants you’re likely to run across. Medical teas and soaps. That kind of thing. I’ve heard of more powerful things, but not how to put them together.”

That was actually quite useful. Animal familiars sent to retrieve reagents and spell ingredients usually needed a sample of what they were looking for, or to have enough familiarity with the substances, but if Rabbit knew a fair amount of them already, and could likely learn more easily as well as help in the preparation process…

Louise would much rather be an accomplished mage with real spells, but an alchemist was still a noble profession, and she potentially could still do it even if she wasn’t a Water Mage, like the Flood. Maybe some of the things he knew of could even help Cattleya. Who knew what kind of spirit-herb-plant stuff he might know about?

Ok. Good. She’d just convinced herself that she could deal with having him as a familiar. He’d need to have some of that sense of humor drummed out of him, but that would be easy enough. And it wasn’t like it was as bad as Zerbst’s taunts.

Now she just had to convince him to go along with it, and leave all his former friends and responsibilities behind.

…

Damnit…

^ ^ ^ ^ ^



Probably not going to be getting another snippet/chapter out until at least sometime mid-next week... have a memorial service to be at on Sunday.

I did get all Five parts right? Or is this part six? I hadn't payed attention to this one today. Everyone send me a pm or visitor message if you want your snips listed

That was part five. you have them all listed.

I really have to come up with a name for this. Later.

I'd like to see a crossover with this.

"Pulling a Rabbit Out of the Hat" and "Unlucky Fool" are the first two things that spring to my mind for a name. Hmm, avoid names like "Void" and whatnot. We've had too many of those as it is.

I agree that while Dumbledore may have been for 'Wizard Rule' in his youth, by the end of his life he was almost certainly for the much more moderate 'Separation' standard. It'll be interesting to see his thoughts on a world with an alternate history where 'Wizard Rule' did take place. In other words:

- The bunch of, mostly, asshole nobles running around. Arrogantly lording over the magic-less commoners just as badly, if not worse, than the Pure Blood families over the Mud Bloods.

- If he casts a spell to get the current date, finds out it's the same as his world and sees how badly mages have retarded muggle technological progress. None of those fun inventions.

- Why exactly Siesta was afraid of him in the hall (I imagine a young attractive female commoner attracting the eye of a male mage generally ends badly for her. Severe, unchecked abuse of power).

- etc...


PS: Sorry if I'm addressing this subject a little late, was out of contact for a while... }p

Currently doing an Iji snippet while my mother is in the hospital. Any suggestions? Some ideas are very nice.

And now, for something rather different.
____________

Hex eyed the little girl standing across from her.

"So, do you understand then, Familiar?"

"Yes."

The girl's face took on a rather proud look. Like she had accomplished something, rather then say something rather idiotic. Hex? Familiar to some childish mageling?

"Good, then you'll-"

"I refuse." The girl's face immediately took on a rather glassy look. Like something was breaking. It was almost amusing. "I'm fairly certain I introduced myself earlier, but I'll do it again. My name is Hex. I am a Dark Witch. A acclaimed succesor to the Dark King. I owe allegience to very few. You aren't one of them." It'd been awhile since she'd dug out this particular persona. She'd almost forgotten how fun it'd been to see people start to realize that they weren't dealing with just any magic user, but one who had little problem using Darkness as an element.

The terror that came with realizing she was creative with it too, was an excellent thing to see. That desperation. That potent will to survive against a foe that they suddenly knew without a doubt they were up against someone that was much more powerful than they!

Even if, most of the time, it was just a manufactured image of power she'd rigged up to terrify everyone into leaving her the hell alone, it certainly renewed her faith in humanity.

A 'game' here, some meaningless 'ritual' there, and they were perfectly willing to leave her territory alone. Sure, it attracted 'heroes' on occasion, but some clever body doubling usually sent them up down the road soon enough. After much more malevolent 'Witches' than herself, too. The kind that really wanted the world to end.

Send a crazy person, to stop a crazy person. Now, there was a good solution.

But, back to the matter at hand.

"I'll be going now." She had experiments back at her Atelier to attend to, and the Castle may keep itself clean, but it didn't restock her pantry. A quick snap of the fingers opened up a Corridor, the other end leading straight to her front door.

"Goodbye."

"Wait Familiar-" A gasp. Well, a Corridor was a spell that most never actually got a chance to look at. Some called it a Portal, some a Gate, but the end result was the same. A drastic shortening of the distance between two points.

She stepped through, her feet tapping onto the brick road. Her Castle, a black and purple thing that had no less than five towers sprouting out from the main 'citadel', stood menacingly before her. Home sweet home.

Which was right when the same annoying voice came back.

"Fam-fam-familiar!" Hex froze. What. The. Hell. She walked through Corridor. She closed it behind her. Unless one was an absolute genius with magic, there was no way she could have followed her here.

Hex was going to turn around, and there wasn't going to be an idiotic little pink haired mage looking all lost and forlorn on the road to her Castle. There wouldn't be. That would be impossible.

The impossible stuttering continued, demanding to know what had happened.

Damn it.
______________________________

Hex is an OC, partly based on an RP character of mine. Most certainly not a nice person, but there's environmental reasons for that. Imagine you're a normal human. Now, imagine you are suddenly cast into another world, and you have to resort to rather dark methods to survive. Magic and a whole lot of desperate will to live mixed together to make Hex out of a rather different girl.

Evil isn't the right word for Hex. She'll leave you alone, if you leave her alone. If you decide that you're going to do something crazy, like blow up the world, destroy all humans, burn down forests, basically anything that affects her negatively, even peripherally (ie: killiing people she trades for food with) she'll come down on you like a sack of bricks that attained terminal velocity using portals.

She's used that trick too. Except with a two ton boulder.

Point is, Hex ain't nice. But, she looks after her interests.

Louise, if I decide to continue this, would probably spend the first chapter or two trying to make her way there, or at least trying to get Hex send her home. Which will fail. Familiar runes (conveniently applied off-screen) keep them both in the same world. Expect much frustration with that to show up.

After that, either an 'apprenticeship', or a return to the Academy to 'serve' as Familiar. A Familiar with lots of benefits.

If I decide to continue. Also, time to practice MEDICINE!

Thank you, that helps. I would've done Pacifist, but with some issues as to what happens when little-sis Louise gets hurt or messed with (Guiche fight ahoy)
However, the feedback helps me get in with what the hive-mind of SB is looking for, so crazy it is.

NinjaEdit: Shade, when you write Hex, I immediately think Discworld... is that a problem?

I mentioned him in the last thread, and someone else has already posted a small snipet, but sadly has not posted anything new for months now. I think Tavi sould be summoned sometime after book three, where there is a two-year timeskip between installments. By that time he has already acquired excellent leadership and tactical skills, as well as being a very good hand to hand combatant and swordsman. He also wouldn't have complete control over his furies, which means he wouldn't be able to curbstomp anybody yet. I'm currently near the end of the fifth book, and if Tavi gets anymore badass, he'll come dangerosly close to canon sue territory. Sometime after book four might also be good, as Tavi has accepted his heritage and the obligations which come attatched to it by that point, and would easily have enough experience and self-confidence to deal with the Tristanian nobles. Plus, the magic systems for both series are very compatible.

Mm... Part of the problem is to figure out which detail to base the title on: Rabbit's name, his profession, his wood-elemental stuff, where he comes from, etc...

Nice so far. I think we had a separate thread somewhere for people to post their RPs, but that seems to have died down.

So Loise summons the evil overlord list?

What Game is the OC from, and can you stat her out?

Machina Cava Part 5

The Fifth Kikaider Snippet. I believe I've established the characters by now.

Snippet 1
Snippet 2
Snippet 3
Snippet 4

---

After Louise's blow up at his supposed indiscretions, Jiro found himself left to his own devices when the girl stomped off the class. Finding nothing else to do, and not wanting to linger around so many people, Jiro left the Alviss Dining Hall to find himself some solitude. Unsurprisingly, the day proved far busier, and finding someplace that wasn't filled with humans or their familiars was next to impossible.

Once breakfast had ended, the students trickled into the halls, chatting sedately amongst themselves as they hurried to their respective classrooms. Jiro ducked along the walls to avoid the tide. Following alongside, or being carried by the humans were their familiars. Most were creatures he recognized from his home world, though apparently with unique evolutions compared to the animals he knew of.

A blonde girl with a golden frog perched on her head walked with regal poise, her face a cherubic smile as a blonde boy, carrying a large mole in his arms, escorted and flirted with her. He spotted Tabitha and her friend, who had a pony sized lizard waddling beside them. A shadow flashing by the window was probably the bluenette's dragon. Dogs, cats, birds of all colors and sizes, and even a six-legged serpent filled out the parade.

He paused and stared at what appeared to be a floating eyeball hovering by. "Hrrrrrm."

'What are you looking at?' He heard someone growl passingly.

"Pardon me?" Jiro murmured reflexively, unsure who had challenged him. Once the crowd had thinned, he decided to try the gardens he had viewed from the roof the previous night. Some open spaces away from the claustrophobic confines of the castle would probably do him some good.

The sun shone upon the yard within the castle wall, casting small shades where familiars too large to comfortably navigate the interior of the academy lingered about. A few of the castle servants were out as well, tending to the gardens or carting supplies between the castle and store houses. All of them, man and beast alike, watched Jiro as he passed. The animals glared at him suspiciously, sensing the unnaturalness of his body. While the humans whispered among themselves, wondering who was the stranger carefreely walking about.

Jiro tried to placate them all, making himself as nonthreatening as he could. While he wasn't too worried about being harmed by the local fauna, he decided to err on the side of caution for now. This world likely lacked the facilities to repair him if the worse happened.

He approached a marble fountain that stood in the center of the main court, it's waters leaping through some unseen apparatus. Probably more magic. Still, the sight was calming as he watched the individual droplets arch through the air, diffusing the light of the sun into dancing rainbows. He smiled appreciatively at the simple beauty, settled himself on a bench next to the fountain, and reached for the guitar strapped to his back.

"Kyuuui~" Jiro paused at the sounds of fluttering wings coming closer, and glanced up to see a familiar dragon descending on him with wings spread. He watched warily as it landed with a small thud, the impact absorbed by the earth beneath it.

"Kyuyuui!" 'Are you going to play for Irukukwu, Mister?' The dragon... Irukukwu crooned eagerly in a childish voice, it's massive tail wagging like a puppy. Jiro wondered at the comparison. Was this dragon a baby? He studied Irukukwu curiously, trying to imagine how big she would be as an adult...

Gazing into her sparkling eyes, he decided that Masaru would probably have adopted her on the spot. "Like I told you last night. You're free to listen all you want," he said. Irukukwu perked up even brighter than before.

"Kyiii! Kyuuu!" 'Yay! Thank you!'

Jiro's lips quirked. He shook his head, testing and adjusting the strings to his instrument. Satisfied, he closed his eyes and sank into his center. He would have to play something special for his audience then.

His gloved fingers plucked the strings instinctively, freeing the notes from his subconscious into an upbeat melody. Unbeknownst to him, the runes on his hand reacted to his intent, glowing softly as its magic flowed into and enchanted his guitar. His song swept across the school, the music trickling into the minds of every living being across the campus.

The animals turned their heads towards the main court in a synchronized motion, stirring in place as the instinct to seek out the source of the melody clashed with their loyalty to their masters to stay and wait. The humans who heard stopped momentarily, a feeling of elation manifesting directly in their minds. Even those that couldn't hear the song felt their hearts swell, drowning out their troubled thoughts as they resumed work with renewed vigor.

And Louise, no longer bothered by the self doubt of her familiar's apparent abandonment of her, rose proudly from her seat when Professor Chevreuse called her up for a demonstration of transmutation. The cries of warning from her peers flowed over her, ignored by the confident pinkette.

She was the third daughter of the Vallière. Inheritor of a proud lineage of nobles. She had succeeded in her summonings, no matter how unorthodox the result. Let the naysayers prattle on, she'd show them all!

Even as everyone in the room ducked under their desks, or braced behind their seats, she stood strong and ready. Raising her wand, she closed her eyes and began to chant the ancient tongue. "Grant me the power to control this object and alter form and substance. Earth!" She finished, tapping the tip of her wand to the waiting stone...

An explosion from the highest room of the Earth tower rocked the campus, shattering the magic that had blanketed it. Jiro jolted to a stop, the glow of the runes on his hand fading, and his head snapped towards the source of the explosion.

"Kyuuu!" 'Big Sister!' Irukukwu cried, scrambling upright to take off after her summoner when something blurred past the young dragon, startling her. Jiro's guitar fell to the grass, abandoned and unnoticed behind her.

Jiro's legs tore through the earth as he sprinted full tilt towards the smoking tower, the hydraulics in his legs free of their limiters due to the fear flooding his processor. His electronic mind exploded with activity, calculating the potential reasons for the attack based on his own experiences, and predicting the risks of his next actions.

Who was the target? Was anyone injured in the blast? Worry gnawed at him, and he didn't care that the voice in his head was screaming at him to protect Louise. He would have done that regardless of the voice's shrill commands. Coming to the foot of the tower, he coiled his legs and leapt, triggering his jets to carry him up to the smoking window.

The earth beneath him crumpled from the combined push of his legs with the roar of his two built in air thrusters. The wind roared past his ears, and his eyes narrowed as he calculated the trajectory of his approach. He immediately kicked off the wall, shutting off his jets during the split second of contact when the altered vector caused him to backflip. He gracefully landed half crouched on the window sill, bracing himself on the edge when the stone creaked rebelliously beneath him.

"Is anyone hurt?" He called to the room, his eyes blazing as he scanned for threats. The damage seemed localized to the front of the classroom, debris spreading out from the shattered remains of a wooden desk. To the back, the students were huddled behind overturn desks, dirtied with dust. To the front, an older woman-probably the teacher-lay unconscious.

And sprawled directly at the epicenter was Louise, her uniform in tatters and her body completely covered in dirt and soot.

Strangely, there wasn't the usual panic he had come to expect from an explosion of that magnitude. The damage itself seemed minimal compared to the force of the blast that he had recorded. His expression became confused when the eyes of the students turned on him, and they began to whisper amongst themselves, pointing to him.

He felt his chest tighten at the looks being thrown at him. Confusion. Shock. Fear. Seeing Louise look at him with those same eyes nearly made him turn and flee.

"Familiar..." Louise whispered, then shook her head and corrected herself. "Jiro... How did you get up here?"

AGSITV!Louise: "And Vitriol, don't forget!"

"The Interesting Question Of The Fifth Element"

Seriously? Wood?

Anyways, I can only say more.