And yes, plotwise Camio didn't amount to shit. Shame. As annoying as he was, it would have been interesting to see him actually pertinent to the plot.
Cause in Julian’s route it ALMOST looked like he'd be important with some of the words he mimicked.
I theorize that he was supposed to be Lucio’s familiar rather than Melchior and Mercedes. Why go to such great lengths to design this bird when more other animals, including the purple beast in Asra’s route, don't usually get sprites?
The last half of the questions. Here is the original post. I enjoyed these a lot. I might not get a lot of responses, but I am doing this for me and whoever decides they like it is just a bonus.
OC asks that reveal more than you think.
16. If money wasn’t a limit, what would they wear?
Again, money isn’t a limit for her. She likes comfy clothes she can move around in when at home, but she will wear nearly anything her loved ones want to put her in. Her only rules are ‘no pastels’, ‘limit the golds’, and ’not predominately white’. She likes bright and dark colors most. Black, orange, and greys are among her top favorites to dress in.
17. Do they like children?
“They probably taste fine with some hot sauce.” She’ll tease, but she does like kids. They don’t care if you are weird as long as you prove you know how to play. And she’s always helping out at the local orphanage so the kids there just see her as this small adult that gives them treats and toys and checks to make sure they are all doing well and ‘hey wanna learn how to read? No, I’m not going to pull out the chemistry book again. I learned my lesson. IT’S BIOLOGY THIS TIME! Hey! Why you guys leaving?! It was a joke! A joke!! It has pictures…?’
For the most part, the kids at the orphanage are sweet, but she doesn’t have much of a bond with them (though she does like them), but at the warren (what her people call their little commune in the city) there are a few children there she is close with. Lianna is one such child. She’s about ten and she’s bright, curious, adventurous, mischievous, intuitive, and quick on her toes. She’s often the only child brave enough to follow Old Glory around when she’s there and asks her earnest questions.
18. Kissing: tongue or no tongue?
She’s down for both. It’s mostly just what is the current mood of the room and is there time to get carried away?
19. Do they study before tests? Practice before job interviews?
She loves spicy hot food. Like to intolerable levels. Yes, she likes sweets- especially the gentle flavored sweets like pumpkin bread and sweet potatoes and mochi. But she loves loves loves spicy food. She’ll sometimes just munch on red habanero peppers like they were candy. Even Asra baulks at her ability to eat hot spicy things (and this is also how he knows she’s still the same person because even before her amnesia she did this).
Odelia is the rare hardworking genius. She doesn’t have tests she has to take (and she’s never had to do a job interview), but she holds herself to a high standard and studies and practices a verity of different skillsets- from medicine to sewing to metalwork to magic and much more. She may not be the master of any one trade, but she can do a huge menagerie of things at a high skill level. Her personal motto is the old saying ‘A jack of all trades and a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one’.
20. What do they like that nobody else does?
21. What would it take for them to break up with someone? What would be the last straw?
It’s doing one of her no’s and then proceeding to get mad when she reacts. She has a few ‘do not’ rules that have been broken by guys on usually the first or second date. She’s only ever dated usually because she is curious about relationships and about what the big noise is about sex. However, she’s never quite gotten there before Julian because all the guys usually end up breaking her ’do not’ rules.
Do not pin her in. Do not startle her with touch- must let her know he is at least in the room. Do not continue when she is obviously in need of them to back off. She has a few more but those are the big ones. Mostly it’s until she’s use to them, since they all loom over her.
All the guys usually think it a joke. And eventually pin her against a wall or between their arms and against a counter or table and her body reacts immediately. Then they all had the nerve to get mad at her for her instinctive defense mechanisms. She’s understanding of a mistake- people space these things in the heat of it all- but to treat it as if they hadn’t been warned at all in the very beginning- it pisses her off.
That first time she was making out with Julian though and, without even knowing her rules, flops them onto a surface and has her situated on top of him rather than under him- oh she knew she had found a keeper.
22. Do they like being called pet names? Do they call other people pet names? What’s their go-to?
Oh she loves pet names- especially the ones that Julian comes up with. But she finds it all endearing- even ones given to her by her other love ones. She definitely gives people pet names. Julian has the most though- Juli, Juju, Darling, Love, Hunny, Dear, Dearest. She likes coming up with cute ones that make him flounder and blush in happiness.
23. Stability or novelty?
Novelty. What’s life without something new to look forward to?
24. Honesty or charity?
Charity. Honesty is nice... but she’d rather help others than be a hundred percent honest.
25. Safety or possibility?
Possibility. Without risk, there is no reward. Even venturing outside.
26. Talent or effort?
Effort. Talent’s nice, but wasted without effort. Effort can make up the difference most times.
27. Forgiveness or vengeance (or…)?
Forgiveness. She’d rather forgive and forget than hold on to all that pain and hold a grudge or be vengeful. Though... she is kinda impulsive and reacts first... so... uh... it’s usually her that, um, needs forgiveness.
28. Would they date a fixer-upper?
Out of all the LIs, Odelia loves Julian. So yes, technically people would say she’d date a fixer-upper. However, she’s not out to ‘fix’ who he is (because fundamentally he is sweet, affectionate, altruistic, funny, smart, thoughtful, delightfully dramatic, charismatic, and loyal), but she does try to promote good mental health decisions and tries to good care of him (because he is also anxious, so touch-starved he gets scared and tries to flee when he thinks things are too good to be true, self-loathing, self-deprecating, sometimes depressed, and drinks too much when he gets trapped in his own head). She loves him for who he is and merely helps encourage him to make wise choices when he’s having a bad day, like not drinking himself stupid or that its more than okay to ask for help rather than shoulder the whole burden himself or even that he doesn’t have to earn love. That her love isn’t something that’s going to fade away (though she isn’t perfect and will sometimes get frustrated with him and not always rightfully so because she has bad days too) and will weather the bad days (hers and his) just fine. She knows everyone has negative traits (she has plenty herself) and that’s not something that can necessarily be ‘fixed’, but good choices can be made in regards to them.
29. What recurring dreams do they have?
Odelia doesn’t necessarily have reoccurring dreams. If she is stuck on a project, her mind will try to find a solution while she sleeps, so sometimes, on more tricky problems, she will have dreams about how to solve said conundrum. Though there are most reoccurring themes in her dreams. Most are in a scape with an abundance of foliage and overstuffed bookshelves. Turns out there is a lot of overgrowth of vegetation (and bookshelves with tons of books) in her own personal gate.
30. What would they do if they knew it would be forgiven?
Push Valdemar down a flight of stairs. On fire. Maybe over the banister- no they need to hit every stair on the way down. NO! Better!! Shove Valdemar down The Tower’s unending flight of stairs. On fire. With a perpetual motion spell so they never quit tumbling down the space looped staircase.
Okay! These are not the next ones I had, but I crunched through this ask list faster. Here is the original post. I will be cutting off my post a bit because I will only be doing half here and half in another post.
Thank you to those that are reading this and enjoying it. If you ever want to chat, I love talking.
OC asks that reveal more than you think.
1. Do they sleep with a stuffed animal? If they have multiple, who’s the favorite?
She has a few. She made a lot of stuffed animals when she was regaining a lot of her motor skills as a way to practice stitching and pattern making, though most she donated to the local orphanage for the children there and a few have been given to her pets. She likes making stylized bunnies, dogs, cats, birds, and teddy bears. Asra had to hide most of her old ones she had from their childhood- even the ones she had made him when he was ten.
Her most prized one is actually one that she found that Asra didn’t hide very well. A black bunny with mismatched button eyes. She calls it Pumpkin (Yes, she had just bitten into some of Sesali’s pumpkin bread when she named the thing). It’s not well put together and the type of stitching that was used is the wrong choice- like a surgeon had sewn it together like they would a laceration- and messy, but the thing is worn and obviously well loved. She felt attached to it from the first moment she discovered it.
She use to chew on its ears a lot when she was first recovering from her amnesia as a from of comfort. She’s stopped since then, but she takes the best care of it since its the only part of her past that she seems to be able to hold on to without headaches.
2. Can they take care of a plant? What about a pet? What about a child?
Yes to all three! Though she is a bit of a scatterbrain when she’s in the middle of a big thought or job, she’s actually very good at taking care of things. Plants are easy enough, just water them and make sure they are maintained and make sure they get the right amount of sunlight. Boom. Done.
Pets, she has a multitude and some of them are exotic, so she has a few rescues scattered around Vesuvia to keep them properly cared for and has actually hired other Vopels to keep them for her. But she has at least five at home that are hers to care for and she takes very good care of them. Her dog is almost always by her side, her cat is intelligent enough to find her when he wants her company, and her familiar is a bird, so he comes and goes but she always has bones ready for him if he doesn’t want to have to scavenge.
3. Ask them to describe their love interest.
Big dumb, leggy bird of a man.
Okay, she knows he’s not dumb. He’s honestly one of the smartest men she knows- but he does dumb things when left unsupervised! So when she’s trying to describe him in a way that doesn’t give away the fact that he’s Julian Devorak- the wanted ‘murderer’ of the Count- she calls him that.
But if she’s asked to describe her love the right way? He’s a handsome man with the prettiest wild russet red curls of hair, strong nose, and a charismatic energy that will just pull you in. He wears mostly dark colors with at least one flashy bright one for dramatic flair and stands above the rest of the crowd with his height. He may be wearing his eye patch- no he doesn’t need it, its for the aesthetics, thankyouverymuch. He’s brilliant and kind and despite his towering, threatening looking frame, would rather cling tightly to her hand and draw courage from her presence. But he’s brave with or without her. He’s tender and altruistic and plays the part of being confident, but can get nervous and anxious if left alone in his head too long.
4. Do they look good in red?
She thinks she looks good in anything that isn’t predominately white or pastel. So red? Throw in some black or dark greys and yeah, she could work it.
She’d prefer orange though…
5. Speech! Speech! Speech! Speech! Will they give one, and what about?
Yes, she’d give you one. No, you don’t want her too. Hers are a bit complicated and unending and always to the wrong audience. One minute she’s giving some normal speech about whatever the occasion is and next, she’s trying to teach a bunch of drunks the nonlinear properties of the magic realms and how to navigate their way through time lapses, its like the folds of fabric with how they intermingle and touch from one time to another, and the different realms can be tricky based on their patterns and-hey Juli put me down! I’m trying to give a speech about- why are we leaving?!
6. Who will they take advice from, no matter what it is? Who won’t they take advice from, no matter what it is?
Old Glory, surprisingly. She’ll take most advice from other Vopel women and even Asra, but she’ll toss out a lot of their sillier ones- like don’t date Ilya (Asra’s). But anything Glory tells her tends to be very good advice (she’s never given her bum advice) and she’s far better with reading people than Odelia and so she’ll just default listen to her on a lot of topics.
She has a long list of who she won’t take advice from, but, to no one’s surprise, she’ll instantly tune out Valdemar’s advice. They rub her wrong and even if the advice is solid, she’ll ignore it because why would she ever want or take their advice?
7. Describe them in three words. Now let them describe themself in three words.
Smol chaotic neutral.
Controlled, chaotic exuberance.
8. Do complex puzzles intrigue or frustrate them?
The more complicated the puzzle, the more interested Odelia is. She has a deep love for whodunit novels because she loves a good mystery to piece together. Her mind loves puzzles of any sort. Magic and science both have the allure of being a puzzle, especially when she’s working on projects that require them to work in tandem (hence her unique brand of magical artificery). Asra use to bring her little puzzles to fidget with as she reclaimed the dexterity of her fingers and she’d just sit there playing with them- before she could even properly speak again- and figure out how solve them by herself.
9. Do they empathize with non-sentient things (dolls, plants, books…)?
She talks to them. A lot. Her plants are her babies and she’ll baby talk them. Her dolls have ‘personalities’ based on weird things they’ve done (like refused to stay in a particular spot so its persnickety about where its to sit or has fragile stitching so it’s an old lady stuffed toy). And books- she’ll talk to them about their condition or if they fall and land funny. A ‘there you are you sneaky thing’ to books that had eluded her.
But Odelia is a talker and it does help her focus on the here and now (rather than get lost in her thoughts) by talking out loud- even to inanimate objects.
10. What age do they most want to be right now?
The age she is now? She’s not one to daydream about her age or whatnot. She’s in her very early thirties and the world is her oyster. She’s fit and capable and her age is just an unimportant number to her. (especially since she doesn’t remember the previous years before ‘waking up’ anyhow.)
11. They’ve won the lottery. Spend, or save?
Haha, she’s already well off, so hurray more money? She’ll just invest the money responsibly as she did the money she had prior to that.
12. Do they like romance in the books they read (or in the book they’re in)?
Oh she’s a sucker for a good romance. If she likes the two characters, she’s in their corner rooting for them. She likes the wittier ones that banter more than anything. But she does get annoyed by impractical drama. Excitement! Danger! Ah YES! ‘Oh no who do I pick? I’m stuck between two choices!’ Grow up and outright pick. Let the one you don’t choose have a chance to get over you and move on with their life and find happiness (or pick both of them if that is a possibility! Just pick!). Because nothing is worse to her than pulling on the heartstrings of someone you aren’t going to pick.
13. Name one thing their parents taught them.
She doesn’t remember her birthparents. They were never a part of her life. Her birthmother briefly, but, when her magic’s rare classification came to light, she was taken into the care of another to raise and train her in the ways of their magic style. But she has had parents in her life. The most current ‘parent figure’ she has (one she remembers) is Old Glory (a nickname she gave the older woman and uses regardless of if the woman is present or not. A bad habit.).
She taught her through her actions that kindness isn’t reflected out outer beauty. Though most think she looks scary, as gnarled and scarred as she is (has a very mean resting bitch face), her heart is kind and compassionate. She tends to children with the utmost of patience, though tolerates no blatant disrespect. She remembers the names of everyone she’s been introduced to and what was last told to her about their day or life. Volunteers her free time to visiting the less fortunate and charging them no fee for her services. Hard shell, ooey, gooey insides.
14. Would they agree with the term ‘guilty pleasure’? Do they have any?
Oh she has guilty pleasures. A lot of the sweets she buys at Sesali’s bakery are guilty pleasures of her because she buys them by the dozens. Also mystery novels. She will re-read mystery novels she’s already read because she still likes the narrative and the build up to the big reveal. And theater. It’s fun, no matter how obvious the plot is sometimes.
15. What would they consider a waste of time– other than school or work?
Oddly enough, she finds sitting down to do her hair or having to apply make up or even more complicated outfits a waste of time. She’s very utilitarian in that regard. A ponytail will keep her hair out of her face so why spend hours learning how to do complicated braids simply because they look pretty?
Don’t be mistaken though. If Portia or Nadia or Julian want to do her hair or make up or dress her up- the time is no longer wasted. They enjoy doing those sorts of things and letting them enjoy themselves, despite how much she doesn’t understand why its enjoyable to them, means the time is well spent.
On her own though, nah. She’d rather do anything else- just throw on some clothes, toss her hair into a pony tail, and get going.
Summary: Julian’s not yet ready to get up and wants his wife to join him.
Characters: Julian Devorak X Odelia
Word Count: 685
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It had been a long while now, waking up like this, but he still wasn’t use to it. He still had trouble sleeping at times, but there were more days like this where he slept peaceably and easily.
He woke to the gentle warmth of the morning sun on his face and lovingly tucked into several layers of bedding. While he recognized the lump behind him not to be his wife, he didn’t fret. He could locate her without even opening his eyes. The upstairs apartment wasn’t very large and the bed was adjacent to the small kitchenette, where his darling wife worked on making breakfast. She hummed gently as she worked. Songs she had heard or strange melodies that she made up as she went along- all to the beat of her own thoughts.
The smell of coffee and bacon predominate in the air. The gentle sizzle from the cast iron pan as the bacon’s fat cooked and the gentle whistle of the kettle as it began to boil. His wife tugged it off the stove so it grew no louder and it petered out to nothing.
While she cooked, the dogs had all opted to curl around him in bed, tucked against him in a humble dog pile- even her dog companion, Lady. They had no mind to follow at her heels and beg for scraps. And instead wrapped around him in the lazy morning sun.
He felt so comfortable, so relaxed as he listened to the sounds of Odelia cooking and humming that he closed his eyes again and dozed off.
When he stirred again, it was to a gentle, warm hand on his shoulder and the whispered calling of his name. The sounds of cooking had stopped and now his wife was at his side to rouse him.
“Julian, breakfast is ready.” She whispered as she gave him a few love pats. His eyes opened blearily and she gave him a bright smile. “Good morning sleepyhead.”
He closed his eyes and buried his face into his pillow with a grunt. He didn’t yet want to rouse. He didn’t want yet to get up from the peaceful moment. He wanted to savor it a while longer. “Five more minutes.” As if that was the most perfect solution.
His darling Odelia let out a gentle laugh as she stooped down so she was closer to his eye level. “Juli, sweetheart, you told me you had to get up this morning.”
“Five more minutes won’t hurt.” He begged.
“Alright. Five more minutes.” She conceded and mussed his hair up with a playful hand.
He reached out and tugged at her robe. “Join me?” He pleaded, peeking an eye open bashfully. He wasn’t use to being allowed to ask such things, but Odelia kept telling him he could.
“Sounds like someone just wants to snuggle.” Her lips twisted into a teasing smile, a look of endearment in her tangerine colored eyes.
“Just for five minutes.” He begged her, tugging at her clothes to draw her closer.
“It’s never just for five minutes, Juli.”
“Please, Zaika?”
She heaved a small sigh as she leaned forward. “You do realize you’ll have to be the big spoon this morning then.”
He nodded, pulling up the blankets so she could slide in. She laughed a bit and pushed at one of the dogs, “Scooch over Mel,” disrobed, and slid in to press into him. Tangling her real leg between his and throwing her false one over his waist with a fold of blankets to buffer its cold iron from his sensitive skin. He buried his face into her silky white hair and breathed in. She always chose such soothing scents to bath with.
“You’re lucky, my dear, that I asked the stove salamander to keep our breakfast warm.”
“I’m so lucky.” He agreed in a mumble, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to him. She was so warm and fit perfectly into his arms.
Her arms curled around his chest and the two of them laid there, relishing the moment.
Here is more for the 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. Yatta! We have made it to the end of these asks! I enjoyed writing it all and thinking about my OC. I think I will have a better time writing her in the future. Thanks for all your support and patience- now, on to the next Q & A~!
XXI.) Where do you see your MC and their LI in 10 years?
They are still in Vesuvia, though they’ve dialed back their responsibilities in Vesuvia by a lot. They actually live in Volgura’s old mansion (which in Nadia’s route was shown to be somewhere past the forest Muriel lives in) and, while Julian teaches youngsters medicine, he has mostly quit his practice due to mental health reasons. His first apprentice took over his old clinic and she does a fine job so he’s not worried and he teaches so well that most of his students are even better doctors than he is. Teaching is a joy to him, so he doesn’t mind the change. Odelia still does her work, but she does it at the mansion and makes day trips into Vesuvia to deliver her work or check up on a business and do their books while Julian is teaching.
They do have children (and a majority of them are adopted), but not for a long while. Julian had to work on taking care of himself first and Odelia wasn’t ready to share him more than she already felt she did. But by ten years in, they have their first two babies and a handful of children they’ve adopted.
XXII.) Will your MC and their LI ever get married? Who is in the wedding party?
Yes! They got married! They were drunk so its a bit of a blur, but they have a marriage certificate and had been married years before anyone found out and then forced them to ‘renew their vows’ and have a wedding party. Portia was the maid of honor and Nadia was the best woman. Asra was also a bridesmaid and a few of Julian’s colleges were his groomsmen (Muriel refused to come, but he sent them a chicken). The whole thing was overdone and outrageous and not in Odelia and Julian’s style- Portia and Nadia had taken over the planning because Portia was angry they never told any of them and they had been waiting years for this just to find out that they had a quick marriage while drunk and just rolled with it.
XXIII.) What is your MC’s theme song?
I’m Me by Us The Duo
She’s a weirdo and she knows it, but she OWNS it and celebrates it.
XXIV.) What is your MC and their LI’s romance theme song?
Share Your Address by Ben Platt.
It fits them. To a 'T'. It was basically the thoughts that ran through Odelia’s head when she realized how perfect he was for her.
XXV.) Freebie. What’s one piece of lore about your MC that you’d like to tell the world about?
She has a magical prosthetic left leg. She made it. It runs mid thigh to where her stump is. She’s always had this handicap since before she can remember (since she was about fifteen years old). While Asra told her that before her amnesia, she never took to a wooden prothetic and used a cane instead. However, Odelia found that rather dumb. She actually got into making prosthetics when she carved herself a wood one and realized how difficult it was and began to design herself one that utilized magic to move (she had heard that the belated count had a magical, metal prosthetic so that means it had to be doable) and that’s how she started learning and creating the magic style she calls artificery.
It was only after she made hers that she head Count Lucio had made it illegal to have a limb like his, so she hid it under long pants and skirts or thigh high heels and only began making other people ones like hers after Nadia redacted the law shortly after waking up from her coma as a boon for Odelia in becoming her Court Magician.
Here is more for the 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. Almost to the end. Thanks for sticking with me on these asks!
XVII.) What Tarot Card do you think best represents your MC?
I originally designed her to be a lot like The Fool of whom she took the body from, but she’s also a lot like The Chariot
Upright card (keywords): A journey, Ambition, Confidence, Drive, Overcoming obstacles, Will power
Reversed card (keywords): Lack of direction, Scattered energy, Self doubt
XVIII.) What is your MC up to in the ‘present’ time of your canon? Do they have goals they’re trying to achieve?
Hahahaha, she’s everywhere. She has a ‘client’ that no one has ever met and she runs all the various businesses owned by her client. She does the books for a lot of places and decides their financial expenditures. A few places that she runs like that are The Rowdy Raven, Sesali’s Bakery, the Orphanage, and multiple other bars and apartments. She owns a few animal rescues and random workshops in different districts of the city. But she also takes commissions and does her special brand of alchemy and artificery. She’s super careful though, she doesn’t want to upset the economy, so she usually does near impossible jobs.
The biggest goal she is trying to achieve is to restore the economy of Vesuvia. After the Red Plague, shops were shutting down, some businesses where all but bankrupt, or the owners were dead. There was a lot of available real-estate because of all the death and more orphans than ever. And Odelia was always good at business- even as she was just barely recovering- and there was all this money tucked away in their home and Asra was terrible with money (and knew nothing about this horde of money being there) so she deduced it was hers and proceeded to use it to better the city. She's still working on it, but the economy has picked up because of her financial decisions.
XIX.) Does your MC have a familiar? How did they meet? How do they communicate?
Yes she does! Grima~! They met when Odelia was down in the Red Market, looking for animals to rescue (and keeping track of the businesses she needed to later cause to plummet) and that’s when she met him. He was scared and people treated him poorly because of his natural coloring. His species of bird- the Bearded Vulture- have red sclera naturally, but in Vesuvia it’s treated like a bad omen. But Odelia loves her big bird! He’s super sweet and thoughtful and oh so gentle. He’s just a big old softie.
She communicates with him mostly verbally, but she can understand him telepathically. She can actually understand all familiars- not just him- so she often strikes up conversations with other familiars. She has, actually, adopted a different familiar who’s human partner died, Sebastian the one-eyed, dark tortoiseshell cat. She figured out how to create a connection so he could draw from her magic and not fade away now that his partner is gone (a trait available only because of The Fool’s body unbeknownst to her at the time). However, her bond with Grima is special and stronger than any other bond she can forge. She can call to him when he’s far away and she always knows where he is and what he’s feeling.
XX.) What is your MC’s love language? What does their LI do that makes them feel loved? How do they reciprocate that with their LI’s love language?
Her receiving love language is Quality time and Physical touch. Her giving love language is Gift giving and Physical touch- but she’s also learned to give people words of affirmation due to a lot of her friends needing that.
Julian’s receiving love language is physical touch and words of affirmation while his giving love language is quality time and acts of service.
They both are quite good at giving each other what they need, especially since Julian is touch starved and craves skin contact. He loves spending time with Odelia, which is a big thing for her since she hates feeling alone, and he happily helps her with all the chores and he loves to dress her up and braid her hair. He’s let her walk all over him if he thought it’d make her happy.
Here is more for the 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. I always knew some of these answers, but some made me think.
XII.) What is your MC’s favorite type of weather? Why?
She likes storms. They can be loud and exciting and the perfect weather to tuck into the safety of her home and to watch from inside with a hot drink and cozy blanket. Or they can be calming and miserable (there is a type of ‘miserable’ that is acceptable and that is rainstorms) looking. She’ll usually close up her shop on the real nasty ones and build pillow forts and burrow in. The sound of the rain is something she can drowse to.
Julian doesn’t like them much though, which bums her out a bit, so she tones down her excitement about them. However, she has to admit she doesn’t mind how clingy he gets. She’ll use any excuse to spend time with him and baby him- though she does feel bad for him when he gets really anxious during the more nasty ones.
XIII.) If your MC was feeling down, what’s one meal that would lift their spirits? What about it brings them positive vibes?
Red curry and peanut sauce with tofu, carrots, broccoli, and jasmine rice. She loves spicy food, but when she’s feeling down she wants something a little cozier and the nutty flavors of the peanut sauce mix so well with the spice of red curry and it dials back to spicy hot flavor. And tofu. Nom. It mixes so well with the whole dish, soft and easy to chew with a simple flavor that compliments the curry.
XIV.) Does your MC hog the sheets? Does their LI? Is it a battle for sheet dominance?
Odelia runs hot while Julian runs cold. So he will pile them up with blankets and cuddle up close and when he falls asleep, she shoves them off of her and onto him. However, when he wakes up, he likes to wrap her up in them again with him. So it’s really the opposite thing going on with them.
XV.) What does your MC do to get ready for the day? Do they have a routine?
Yes, she has a routine. Asra found out pretty fast that if she doesn’t have a routine, she doesn’t function right. There are the occasional circumstances where she changes it a bit, but if she’s left without one, she loses track of time and never gets anything she’s suppose to done.
She has a few routines based on who is with her. Nadia and Portia are vastly different than her routine with Julian or Asra. Asra left her to her own devices, so she’d wake up, toss on her choice of clothes for the day, steep her tea, tie up her hair as she waited, milk and sugar her tea and sip it as she cut a piece of pumpkin bread for breakfast, and feed her pets before heading down to work.
With Julian, things are a little different. Once she decides its time to get up, she starts with cooking breakfast and coffee and tea. Once breakfast is ready (and being kept warm by the stove salamander who she trusts not to burn it, she’ll coerce Julian from the blankets and ‘no we can’t snuggle this morning’ (they snuggle for five minutes at the very least). He never complains if the food is slightly burnt because they took too long. He’ll wash dishes and she’ll take care of her pets. He drags her way when its time and dresses her and does her hair. She then helps him get dressed for the day. A few kisses and friendly petting, and Julian reluctantly goes to his clinic.
XVI.) Who are your MC’s closest friends? How did they meet?
There is Asra- though lately its been very hot and cold with him. They met when they were younger. She’s actually older than him (fifteen at the time), so when she met ten year old Asra living on the streets she took him home to her guardian and he basically became her little brother.
Muriel- Asra and Odelia brought him home and at that point her guardian was resigned to the fact that she was going to have boys in the house (Vopel women don’t like males necessarily, but her guardian had already learned to tolerate them). Her guardian actually favored him the most out of all three of them, growing up.
Then there’s Portia! Her bestie! Her closest companion! Portia had tried to pick pocket Odelia. She had just gotten to Vesuvia, only spoke Trade, and had run out of money and was hungry. Odelia caught her and instead of turning her in, took her out to eat and the friendship has only gotten stronger since then.
Nadia- she met her through Portia- sorta (she met her during the plague a few times and helped her run numbers and other small things but she doesn’t remember due to her amnesia). She broke in a lot to the castle to visit her after she got assigned as Nadia’s handmaiden. One day she planted a kiss on Nadia’s lips as a joke about those old fairy tales where a kiss would wake up the sleeping beauty and iohgaohrhao it worked (it wasn’t the kiss, just perfect timing).
Julian- Post plague pre prologue- She took him somewhere safe after he passed out drunk at the Rowdy Raven and sorta kept him after that. He only struggled a bit (because he’s a ‘terrible man who has done terrible things’ ‘Okay sure sweetie’ ‘I’m a murderer!’ ‘Eh, debatable.’), however, Odelia’s stubbornness outshines his and he finally gave in to what he actually wanted the whole time.
There are others, but those are the main ones she runs in circles with that are not too spoilerish to my writing.
I just feel like I need to say this. What the devs are doing for the story is great but here’s something I feel like would have also been an interesting concept (and possibly more doable Tasya!!).
Minor Spoilers below for newest chapter release.
The fact that Tasya is trying to bring her child back from the dead is just... too much work! That requires a body and a lot of magic at the cost of other people’s lives and all the things Asra had to do to make it work for his apprentice (which was also dangerous and outlandish).
No, it’s already shown that time doesn’t work right in the arcana realms (ie The Tower in Nadia’s route and Lucio’s route where minutes in our world were months to him in the Arcana realm) and folds and blends like fabric instead of flowing linearly like a stream- so honestly all Tasya needed to do is get enough power to pull her child from the moment of time where she would meet her demise! It’d work if her body was never recovered because then it’s practically a self-fulfilling prophecy!
Because by snatching her daughter from that moment a time and taking her to where she is now, the chance of her survival then and there is gone (and her body would never be found)- but she’d still be alive in the future where she was brought. Past Tasya would be emotionally upset and start down this whole process to get her back and when she gets the power to save her daughter. It would hurt because her daughter would probably, as the apprentice said, not appreciate the lengths she took to get her back. But also, by yanking her out of her place in time, the whole thing has come full circle. Tasya would be the reason behind her own misery.
But I also really like the dev’s plot. I am merely spitballing an idea.
Thank you for writing Portia’s route so well and so differently.
Here is more for the 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. Here is the next batch. A few more since I didn’t write nine paragraphs for each answer.
VII.) What is your MC’s favored element to cast with?
Element or style of magic? If it is an element element than FIRE. It’s a great go to attack magic that will often cause people to second guess their intentions towards her. Also it has so many good uses!
But if it is style of magic we are talking about, her strength lies in artificery- transformative and transmutation alchemy mixed with engineering with a strong enchantment sigil programing system to run complex commands with low magic intake. She honestly loves all forms of magic and her magic is highly adaptable (as told to us in Asra’s route), so as long as she practices, she has no limit to what magic she can do.
VIII.) If your MC could take their LI anywhere in the Arcana world, where would they take them and why? What about in the real world?
The first place she’d want to take Julian is back to Nevivion. Zadith next, definitely, and then Prakra. They’ll eventual globe trot around a bit before settling back into Vesuvia. But mostly she wants Julian to be able to go home and see how his remaining Babushki are doing and know that he is loved. Maybe pay respects to Lilinka’s grave and thank her for raising the love of her life. But as long as Julian’s with her, she’ll go about anywhere.
In the real world? Oh boy. Hmmm. They’d probably tour all around Europe and go on some sort of food world tour with a few stops at some very nerd hotspots. Honestly, as long as Julian’s there, she wouldn’t care where they were as long as they were having fun.
IX.) Does your MC ‘borrow’ clothes from their LI or vice versa? If so, what is their favorite garment that they’ve ‘borrowed’ and won’t ever return?
Julian’s way too big for her to borrow much of his clothes, but she does nab his shirt from time to time because she knows it excites him. Honestly though, the thing she borrowed and won’t ever return is his braided leather cord that he tied around his sash at his waist. She liked to use it when she wore his shirts as a way to keep them closed and just never returned it. She made him a new one, but she likes how worn and used his was. It reminds her of him, so she keeps it close when they have to be apart.
X.) Does your character have any holidays that are important to them?
Nope! She is still getting use to birthdays (and anniversaries) because Asra never brought them up because she use to get headaches. Besides that, her culture really doesn’t have a day they celebrate, so she mostly just enjoys the changing of season events and those are her holidays.
XI.) If your MC or their LI was going to whisk the other off on a weekend away from their responsibilities, what would they do?
That Sloop Julian always dreams of buying? She’d get it for him if it meant they played a bit more of that Captain game they briefly played. Also, anything to get Julian away from normal responsibilities. Nadia probably has a least one tiny private island nearby that they can moor at and utilize. And if there’s no one around? Well, who’s to say that her clothes can’t be optional? (His are not optional. He must wear enough to clothes to prevent sunburn -hat included. He only gets to run around in his skivvies when below deck. Captain’s orders.)
Here is more for the 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. I have actually finished them all and will be releasing them a little at a time. It was such fun to write and I hope other people enjoy learning more about Odelia.
IV.) How did your MC and their LI first profess their feelings for one another? Was it a slow burn? Love at first sight?
There was a definite pull when Odelia (re)met Julian three years after she woke up with amnesia. She might not remember people, but her heart still has ties to people. She knows a friend from her past life when she sees one but with Julian it wasn’t just that friendly endearment or immediate respect and warmth or sibling fondness. It was like a hot fire at the hearth and that feeling of coming home at last after a long day out. The comforts of home and the feeling of belonging. She knew that he was special to her and the more she got to know him, the more her heart was endeared to him, flaws and all.
I’m not entirely sure when its all spelled out exactly- that they have feelings for each other- but its not something she’ll just keep to herself if it will help her get through to him (and she tends to be honest in that regard about how she feels about people). Or even make him understand he can’t do foolish things and think no body will have a problem with it.
V.) What would your MC do for their LI after they come home from a long/bad/hard day? What would their LI do for them?
Odelia’s giving love languages is gift giving and physical touch. So, really, what wouldn’t she do for Julian? If he comes home from a bad day, she’ll start subtle- because she can usually spot a change in his mood quickly if her head’s not up in the clouds on some project she’s working- and start by helping him disrobe his coat and other unneeded outwear now that he is home. Depending on how bad a day, she’ll either progressively baby him more and more as the night goes on or immediately get to coddling him- but she has to read his mood right. Sometimes, if she goes too fast into things, he’ll startle, still very unused to being loved so freely.
Long days are a bit differently because his mood is still good, he’s just emotionally and physically exhausted, but not to the point of breaking. She’ll still coddle him but she’s more willing to be a little rough with him if he outright asks for it.
Other than pampering, she will use sex as a means of helping him unwind from bad or hard days- but she has to gauge that he’s in the right headspace. If he’s not in a good mental space, she’ll outright avoid sex and instead pamper him with honeyed words and reaffirm he’s well treasured and loved.
If Odelia’s the one having a long (or bad) day, what she wants most is attention. Asra use to take off all the time and she was left alone and she hates being alone. It’s why she has so many animals and seeks out her friends for attention. Now that she has Julian it’s a lot easier to get attention when she’s had a bad day. He will often let her vent out her frustrations before pulling her in for some cuddling. Because she’s so much smaller than him, some nights he’ll just heft her up and carry her around with him if she’s being especially clingy. He also knows when its time to go get her some comfort food- like treats from Sesali’s bakery- and will bend over backwards to make her feel better. Hugs, kisses, foot massage, offers to read, needed affirmations, and all the attention she wants.
Still working through the fun questions of 25 Arcana OC and LI Lore Asks. They are very fun and it takes time to think through some of the questions I’ve never really given thought about.
IV.) How did your MC and their LI first profess their feelings for one another? Was it a slow burn? Love at first sight?
There was a definite pull when Odelia (re)met Julian three years after she woke up with amnesia. She might not remember people, but her heart still has ties to people. She instinctively knows a friend from her past life when she sees one, but, with Julian, it wasn’t a feeling of friendly endearment or immediate respect and warmth or sibling fondness. It was like a crackling, hot fire burning in the hearth of a home. That wonderful feeling of coming back to the comforts of home, at last, after a long day out and the feeling of belonging. She knew that he was special to her and the more she got to know him, the more her heart was endeared to him, (constantly overstated) flaws and all.
I’m not entirely sure when its all spelled out exactly- that they have feelings for each other- but its not something she’ll just keep to herself if it will help her get through to him (and she tends to be honest in that regard about how she feels about people). Or even make him understand he can’t do foolish things and think no body will have a problem with it.
V.) What would your MC do for their LI after they come home from a long/bad/hard day? What would their LI do for them?
Odelia’s giving love languages is gift giving and physical touch. So, really, what wouldn’t she do for Julian? If he comes home from a bad day, she’ll start subtle- because she can usually spot a change in his mood quickly if she’s not stuck in her own head over some project she’s working- and start by helping him disrobe his coat and other unneeded outwear now that he is home. Depending on how bad a day, she’ll either progressively baby him more and more as the night goes on or immediately get to coddling him- but she has to read his mood right. Sometimes, if she goes too fast into things, he’ll startle, still very unused to being loved unconditionally.
Long days are a bit different because his mood can be still good, he’s just emotionally and physically exhausted, but not to the point of breaking. She’ll still coddle him but she’s more willing to be a little rough with him if he outright asks for it.
Other than doting on him, she will use sex as a means of helping him unwind from bad or hard days- but she has to gauge that he’s in the right headspace. If he’s not in a good place mentally, she’ll outright avoid sex and instead pamper him with tender touches, honeyed words, and reaffirm he’s well treasured and loved.
If Odelia’s the one having a long (or bad) day, what she wants most is attention. Asra use to take off all the time after she was rehabilitated and she was left alone. She hates being alone. It’s why she has so many animals and seeks out her friends for attention. Or buries her head into her work so not to think about how lonely she feels. Now that she has Julian, it’s a lot easier to get attention when she’s had a bad day. He will often let her vent out her frustrations before pulling her in for some cuddling. Because she’s so much smaller than him, some nights he’ll just heft her up into his arms and carry her around with him if she’s being especially clingy (or she’ll piggy back). He also knows when it’s time to go get her some comfort food- like treats from Sesali’s bakery- and will bend over backwards to make her feel better. Hugs, kisses, foot massage, offers to read aloud to her, tell her wild tales, give her needed love affirmations, and all the attention she wants.
VI.) Is your MC combat proficient? Where or whom did they learn from?
Yes! She’s very combat proficient. She’s always had a wonderful sense of balance and is incredible flexible and that’s really helped her. Though she also has physical triggers that cause her to instinctively attack. When her fight or flight is triggered, however innocently it is, she’s prone to attacking first, asking awkward questions later. Odelia’s learned from a multitude of ways- including outright bar brawling alongside Portia. Asra taught her the basics of using magic as a form of defense, though not as a means of offense. She quickly figured out how to utilize different spells offensively with how wide her abilities range.
However, she has become more combat proficient because the (interim) Court Physician- Glory, she nicknamed the grouchy, old Vopel woman- wanted a sparring partner. She taught her Prakran swordplay, archery, marksmanship, and the basics of hand to hand. Odelia has never actually won against Glory at any of it. But Glory keeps demanding her assistance, regardless of if she’s a challenge or not. Odelia suspects the point of the whole affair is, in a backwards manner, to teach her how to defend herself, because Pontifex Volgura has attempted to challenge her and Glory outright sniffed dismissively at their blatant demands.
@vikinglumberjack Thank you so much for the ask! Here are the answers to those questions! I had a wonderful time thinking them out and it made my night.
1. Do they sleep with a stuffed animal? If they have multiple, who’s the favorite?
She has a few. She made a lot of stuffed animals when she was regaining a lot of her motor skills as a way to practice her stitching and pattern making, though most she donated to the local orphanage for the children there and a few have been given to her pets as toys. She likes making stylized bunnies, dogs, cats, birds, and teddy bears. Asra had to hide most of her old ones she had from their childhood- even the ones she had made for him when he was ten or so.
Her most prized one is actually one that she found that Asra didn’t hide very well. A black bunny with mismatched button eyes. She calls it Pumpkin (Yes, she had just bitten into some of Sesali’s pumpkin bread when she named the thing). It’s not well put together and the type of stitching that was used is the wrong choice- like a surgeon had sewn it together like they would a laceration- and messy, but the thing is worn and obviously well loved. She felt attached to it from the first moment she discovered it.
She use to chew on its ears a lot when she was first recovering from her amnesia as a form of comfort. She’s stopped since then, and now she takes the best care of it since its the only part of her past that she seems to be able to hold on to without headaches.
15. What would they consider a waste of time– other than school or work?
Oddly enough, she finds sitting down to do her hair or having to apply make up or even more complicated outfits a waste of time. She’s very utilitarian in that regard. A ponytail will keep her hair out of her face so why spend hours learning how to do complicated braids simply because they look pretty?
Don’t be mistaken though. If Portia or Nadia or Julian want to do her hair or make up or dress her up- the time is no longer wasted. They enjoy doing those sorts of things and letting them enjoy themselves, despite how much she doesn’t understand why its enjoyable to them, means the time is well spent.
On her own though, nah. She’d rather do anything else- just throw on some clothes, toss her hair into a pony tail, and get going.
19. Do they study before tests? Practice before job interviews?
Odelia is the rare hardworking genius. She doesn’t have tests she has to take (and she’s never had to do a job interview), but she holds herself to a high standard and studies and practices a verity of different skillsets- from medicine to sewing to metalwork to magic and much more. She may not be the master of any one trade, but she can do a huge menagerie of things at a high skill level. Her personal motto is the old saying ‘A jack of all trades and a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one’.
28. Would they date a fixer-upper?
Out of all the LIs, Odelia loves Julian. So yes, technically people would say she’d date a fixer-upper. However, she’s not out to ‘fix’ who he is (because fundamentally he is sweet, affectionate, altruistic, funny, smart, thoughtful, delightfully dramatic, charismatic, and loyal), but she does try to promote good mental health decisions and tries to good care of him (because he is also anxious, so touch-starved he gets scared and tries to flee when he thinks things are too good to be true, self-loathing, self-deprecating, sometimes depressed, and drinks too much when he gets trapped in his own head). She loves him for who he is and merely helps encourage him to make wise choices when he’s having a bad day, like not drinking himself stupid or that its more than okay to ask for help rather than shoulder the whole burden himself or even that he doesn’t have to earn love. That her love isn’t something that’s going to fade away (though she isn’t perfect and will sometimes get frustrated with him and not always rightfully so because she has bad days too) and will weather the bad days (hers and his) just fine. She knows everyone has negative traits (she has plenty herself) and that’s not something that can necessarily be ‘fixed’, but good choices can be made in regards to them.
29. What recurring dreams do they have?
Odelia doesn’t necessarily have reoccurring dreams. If she is stuck on a project, her mind will try to find a solution while she sleeps, so sometimes, on more tricky problems, she will have dreams about how to solve said conundrum. Though there are most reoccurring themes in her dreams. Most are in a scape with an abundance of foliage and overstuffed bookshelves. Turns out there is a lot of overgrowth of vegetation (and bookshelves with tons of books) in her own personal gate.
