Send me a 📽 and I’ll tell you about an animatic I’ll never make
I'm pretty sure I haven't talked about this one yet (aside from vague mentions in the THCC back in 2019).
Opening chords - Jim is fighting against Camelot knights and losing. He's human, wearing the daylight armor.
Fiyero! - scene transition from Jim to Claire. Claire is in Morgana's cave from the end of season 2, screaming as she pulls out a grimoire from a bookshelf and flips through the pages.
The next four lines of chanting would have Claire reading/chanting overlaid on top of even more of the Jim fight scene. And then after that is body horror that is being placed under a cut.
Let his flesh not be torn - Claire fully fades out of view as Jim's skin begins to turn blue
Let his blood leave no stain - Jim's wounds begin to knit themselves back together.
Though they beat him / Let him feel no pain - Jim is shocked at the transformation but continues to fight back against the knights.
Let his bones never break - A mildly gruesome scene of Jim's hands changing shape
And however they try - Each knight hits Jim in the head, and from those wounds horns grow.
They try to destroy him - Jim grows in height to his half-troll height
Let him never die, - The sun comes out, and the knights look relieved.
Let him never die! - The knights' relief turns to fear as they realize that Jim isn't dying in the sunlight.
Eleka nahmen nahme - Jim's transformation completes with his hair and tusks
Ah tum ah tum eleka nahmen / Eleka nahmen nahmen / Ah tum ah tum eleka... eleka... - Cut back to Claire pacing around Morgana's cave, with multiple shots of the scenery and Claire growing increasingly frustrated.
Ugh! What good is this chanting? - Claire looks up from the book
I don't even know what I'm reading - Claire throws the book to the ground
I don't even know what trick I ought to try - Furious at herself, Claire kneels next to the book
Fiyero, where are you? / Already dead or bleeding? - Claire picks the book up once more, hugging it to her chest before opening it back up to read.
One more disaster I can add to my generous supply? - Claire looks around the room.
The chorus portrays Claire and Jim's relationship up until this point, albeit in an AU version where despite it being the modern era, the knights of Camelot still rule, and Claire has been looking into the occult as a way to fight both Gunmar and the Pendragon dynasty.
Nessa - Enrique and NotEnrique can be seen on-screen
Doctor Dillamond - Claire's friends can be seen
Fiyero / Fiyero! - Claire smiles softly to herself, but tears form in her eyes, and she ends up screaming to the sky.
One question haunts and hurts - Close-up on the shadow staff
Too much, too much to mention - The shadow staff glows and we watch it travel to Claire's hand
Was I really seeking good - Claire sitting at a table with Jim, Toby, Blinky, and AAARRGGHH!!!
Or just seeking attention? - Claire is in the same pose, but now she's at her family's dining table
Is that all good deeds are - In the present, the shadow Claire casts has Morgana's silhouette
When looked at with an ice-cold eye? - Claire blinks, and when she opens her eyes they are the same purple they were in the ultimate portal scene.
If that's all good deeds are - The hand holding the shadow staff gains cracks
Maybe that's the reason why - The other hand makes a beckoning gesture, cracks appearing on it as it does.
No good deed goes unpunished - Claire steps over the grimoire, and as she does so she begins to levitate.
All helpful urges should be circumvented - Claire's armor forms around her, not unlike Jim's magical girl armor transformation.
No good deed goes unpunished - All the armor rushes to meet Claire. Do note that she is not wearing a helmet.
Sure, I meant well - Claire flips her hair. As she does so, a cape appears and unfurls from her shoulders
Well, look at what well-meant did - Close-up on Claire's face as cracks form.
All right, enough / So be it, so be it then - A crown forms in the air, and Claire catches it in her hand. The crown resembles a combination of Claire and Morgana's helmets, at least if you squint. When Claire puts it on her head, it turns her hair fully white.
Let all Oz be agreed / I'm wicked through and through A few shots of Claire walking through the cave. No longer does she look panicked or stressed. She looks regal, now.
Since I can not succeed / Fiyero, saving you - Jim dusts himself off to show the irony of the lyric. He looks at a picture of himself and Claire, and then he gazes into the distance.
I promise no good deed / Will I attempt to do again / Ever again - A throne forms on top of the skull, and Claire sits in it. The scene zooms out, and we can see purple and golden lights twinkling around her as her shadow looms larger and larger.
No good deed will I do again! - Outside of the cave, a storm begins to form. It resembles the Eternal Night.
Hurt/comfort: Amce does take Carmen prisoner at the end of the Stockholm episode instead of letting her go with Ivy and Zack, and Julia tried to take care of her while she’s being held/treated in the hospital
I know you sent in another ask like this and thank you so much for your patience. I loved this prompt and i’ve kept the other one in my inbox in the hope that I would have the spoons and inspiration to complete it. But now I did this one! I hope you like it!
“Agent Argent, Carmen Sandiego is not our guest. As soon as she recovers we will be taking her into custody.” Chief’s voice was hard as iron but in this regard Julia was going to be just as stubborn.
“Chief. I had Ms. Sandiego in a position where she would be comfortable talking to me. Possibly even working with me. And all that hard work, all of the connections I had made with her are destroyed because you didn’t trust me. If there is to be any hope of repairing that relationship I need to talk to her.”
Chief frowned. It could not be more clear that just like Inspector Devenoux, Chief just wanted to believe the worst of Ms. Sandiego. However she was also smart. She had chosen Julia, she had seen her potential and respected her opinions.
“You really believe she isn’t working with VILE?” Chief said softly.
“I really think the only way to find out for sure is to ask her. And I don’t think she’s going to answer honestly if she doesn’t trust us.”
“Very well.” Chief sighed and hung her head for a moment. “Stockholm was not a clean operation. You will be allowed to speak to her. And as a sign of good faith we will even turn off the audio recording equipment. Though if she makes any move against you…”
Chief let the threat hang in the air. Julia nodded and turned away. Privately she wasn’t to worried about Ms. Sandiego hurting her. The Crimson Thief could barely sit up after her ordeal in the snow outside of Stockholm, much less throw a punch. Regardless she was happy for the chance to talk to her, maybe she could fix...whatever this was.
Julia walked quickly through the halls of the ACME medical center, passing other agents on the way. When she reached Ms. Sandiego’s room she paused outside the door for just a moment. Recovery from the injuries and hypothermia she suffered would be a long road for the brilliant thief. Yet despite the ordeal she sent through Julia couldn't help but observe that Carmen was still beautiful, her red hair standing out against her unusually pale skin.
She gave her head a little shake. Now wasn't the time for thoughts like that. She nodded to the two agents in the observation room and waited until they turned off the audio recording equipment before she entered.
Ms. Sandiego was staring at the wall opposite the door when she entered. Julia's heart broke when she saw the wide cuffs that held her to the bed.
"Ms. Sandiego, I-"
"Hello Jules." Carmen's voice held none of its usual warmth. Julia flinched at the tone but decided to carry on regardless.
"I have asked them to turn off the audio recording for this conversation. We can talk privately."
"The last time we tried to have a private conversation, I ended up here."
Carmen turned her head slowly to face her. Julia’s heart broke for the second time in as many minutes. She looked… tired. Beyond even the physical exhaustion of her recovery. And there was an edge about her, a hint of fear at the corner of her eyes. Julia swallowed and stepped up to her side.
"I wanted to apologize on behalf of the ACME organization for how our last conversation went. I was hoping we could work to rebuild our trust."
Carmen turned away to look at the far wall again. She also lifted her wrist as much as the wide cuffs would allow.
"Well I'm not going anywhere. So you can talk as much as you like."
"Carmen I'm so sorry. I-"
Julia cut herself off. Her eyes flicked between the cuffs and the camera in the room. She knew the Chief could still see exactly what was happening in the room even if she had kept her word and the audio equipment off. She took a deep breath. Time to put her money where her mouth is.
She grabbed the closest cuff and unlatched it freeing Carmen’s hand. Carmen’s head whipped around to look at her as soon as she touched the cuff. And her head followed as she walked around the bed undoing the ankle cuffs and the other wrist cuff.
When she was free of her restraints Carmen released a deep breath, like she had been holding since she had been captured. She gently massaged her wrists then adjusted her position on the bed so she was more comfortable. Julia could only guess that this was one of the few times Le Femme Rouge had been successfully captured. Some of the fear left her eyes now that she was no longer bound. Julia sat down next to her and grabbed one of her hands with both of her own.
“I’m so sorry that our last conversation fell apart the way it did. I’m sorry you got hurt because of me. I’m sorry for...I never wanted all of this to happen to you.”
Julia kept her head down, hoping the cameras in the room wouldn’t see the tears that pricked at the edge of her eyes. Carmen shook her hair out, so it fell in a curtain in front of her face. Julia realized after a moment that her hair perfectly hid her face from the ACME cameras so they wouldn’t be able to read her lips, yet the two of them could still talk unhindered.
Slowly they talked. About Stockholm, about stealing, about mistakes, about art and music and anything else Julia could think of to discuss. She knew no matter how much she talked it wouldn’t make everything perfect, but it would help. Help to repair the professional relationship between Agent and Thief, but also help repair the relationship between the two women as well.
When it came time for Julia to leave for the day, she was happy to see that the recording equipment had remained off. Their conversation had remained between the two of them. And when she left she left the cuffs off. Julia hesitated on the other side of the observation, just watching Carmen as she fell into a restful sleep for the first time since her rescue.
Several days later Julia struggled to pretend to be surprised to hear that Carmen Sandiego had escaped with the help of several of her associates. Chief was angry, but Julia was relieved. Carmen didn’t belong in a cage. She let herself smile a little, as she thought about holding her hand, the way the rough fingers had rubbed across her knuckles. She wasn’t sure if Carmen was even aware she was doing it.
The memory stayed with her as she boarded a flight, there was another sighting of the famous thief. ACME still had a job to do, to track down and destroy VILE. And Julia would do whatever it took to destroy the criminal organization, so long as a certain red haired thief stayed free.
Three roses, three sentences, coming right up!
From the next bit of Don’t Listen to Kafka (whose working title is Apoptosis and I am seriously running out of time to change it before it sticks permanently in my brain):
“Miss Nunez, while I… appreciate you wanting to reinterpret the character in your own way, ‘put your own spin’ on it, as it were - and certainly, there have been many very successful modern reimaginings of the Bard’s plays, with more feminist sensibilities… I thought you were on board to do a straightforward, traditionalist interpretation of Romeo and Juliet.”
From the same:
So while all her knowledge of pressure points and arm locks wouldn’t do a thing against someone with stone skin or arms to spare, what she knew of escaping grabs, controlling distance, and staying on her feet could be applied in a fight against a troll.
From a one-shot for the I Was A Teenage Troll AU:
She gave him a flat stare. “You’re going to memorize a dramatic monologue by tomorrow? Why the sudden, spur-of-the-moment interest in performing arts?”
I love what you're picking up on in the trailers, just your attention to detail is.. it's good inco (also one thing made me laugh already, but I'm not saying what it is cause I want to see your reaction to that specific thing in the show)
Sup, Ed! And haha, thanks, I’m fond of overanalysis when I’m up for it.
And this is about Yang being a lesbian isn’t it. Yang’s a lesbian. SUN LESBIAN. SUN LESBIAN!!!
How about 5 with Toby and Jim as kids for the Halloween Prompts?
“Come on, Jimbo! Let’s go!” Toby shouted. He bounced up and down excitedly, standing by the front door. Jim came out of his room, shaking his head.
“Aren’t we a little too old to go trick-or-treating?” He chuckled.
“You’re never too old to go trick-or-treating!” Toby exclaimed. “Besides, I know the neighborhood by heart, which also means I know which houses give out the king size candy bars!” He ran over to Jim, the cardboard horns on his head slipping to the side.
When Jim had proclaimed he would skip the costume that year and go as his troll self, Toby had quickly jumped on board, insisting they all go as trolls. Toby had chosen to have his costume resembled ARRRGH!!!, painting his face a stony gray and wearing a plastic hawiaan skirt around his neck to resemble a mane. To top it off, he glued four painted toilet paper rolls to one of Claire’s old headbands as horns. Claire had told them she was going as a troll from Nomura’s tribe, but they had yet to see her costume.
Toby grabbed Jim’s arm and pulled him towards the door. “Let’s go pick up Claire and get going before all the candy’s gone!” He urged. Jim pulled his arm from Toby’s grip.
“Hold on.” Jim said. Toby stopped halfway out the door and turned back, raising an eyebrow.
“Your horns are lopsided.” Jim laughed. Toby laughed with him, fiddling with his horns. When he couldn’t seem to get it straight, Jim swatted Toby’s hands away, straightening them himself.
“Thanks.” Toby said, grabbing Jim’s arm again. “Now let’s go get us some candy!”
Jim let Toby pull him out of the house and the pair laughed as they ran off down the street, ready to start their hunt for candy.
So this wasn’t as long as i’d wanted it to be, but it was still really fun! Thanks for the ask!
I have no clue how to link the halloween prompts thing, but I will take any halloween related prompts all october :)
13: What music did you listen to, if any, to get in the mood for writing this story? Or if you didn’t listen to anything, what do you think readers should listen to to accompany us while reading?
So! I actually have a whole playlist called “ToA Wizards Inspiration” that’s I’ve been using! It contains like 75% of audiomachine’s album Worlds of Wonder, like four songs by James Dooley, and then a collection of scene-specific songs:
“Elegy” by Brand X Music - the funeral
“Heroes Are Not Born Out of Happiness” by Mitchell Broom - a later death scene
“The Story Begins” by Paul Reeves - first half of epilogue
“Humanity Defined” by audiomachine - second half of epilogue and “end credits” so to speak
And of course, my favourite song to write to is also included: “Children of the Sun” by Thomas Bergersen. So yeah! Lots of music!
so, about Lost Souls, anything you feel like sharing/hinting at about how Barbara started to serve Morgana (cause I'm very curious about that)? Where're the Domzalskis in all this, do they have a role? Anything else you just really need to get off your chest and talk about in regards to the story? (feel free to pick and choose if you don't feel like answering all of this ask)
Actually the next chapter will be Barbara’s first interaction with Morgana!
As for how she ended up serving her... It was a gradual process with Barbara helping Morgana out in exchange for information and training in magic and other things that would be useful in getting Jim back and getting revenge on Merlin (Morgana really drew on their mutual hatred for Merlin), until she found out about the changelings. She had known Morgana was bad news and that she was manipulating her but she had been willfully ignoring it. This was a line she wasn’t willing to cross. She tried to back out but it was too late. Once she realized that there is no going back she had to choose between being a willing servant or a slave, so she made her choice hoping that she could at least minimize the damages.
I’m still figuring out the Domzalskis’ roles. So I’ll have to come back to that one once I’ve nailed them down.
Have this fun fact instead: Barbara was the one to kill Kanjigar in this.
The Lost and Faded Melodies of the Stars (for the title thing)
TITLE: The Lost and Faded Melodies of the StarsSHIP: Morando/Fialkov/CorandaTYPE: OneshotRATING: Probably T or MSETTING: Pre-canon. Takes place before the coup, but after Fialkov and Coranda have Bonded.
SUMMARY: General Morando and the king and queen of Akiridion-5 share a peaceful evening together in the palace. In the quiet lull of the night, Fialkov tells his bondmate and their lover stories of the celestials and the sounds of the universe that they carried within them long ago, stories of love and war and compromise. The general finds the stories foolish, but there is something soothing about the sound of Fialkov’s voice carrying through the room - something almost melodic.
