((Note: This is more of an AU/original works than a rewrite! So MANY and I mean MANY creative liberties were taken here! And it is still updating! I am not sure how many chapters it will have...))
ETA: as of 2025 KOTS is set to become an original work in it's own universe!
((Synopsis: After her father's untimely death, 17-year-old astronomer/apprentice Asha has never wanted anything to do with magic or wishes again. So while trying to get time off for her grandfather's hundredth birthday, Asha unfortunately finds herself in the last place she wanted to be; at the heart of a magical conspiracy that could spell ruin for Rosas. Desperate to take action, Asha unknowingly calls upon a powerful force, which leads to far more trouble and adventure than she could have ever dreamed of.))
((Huge thanks to @wings-of-sapphire for giving me this idea))
The Prologue
Chapter 1: The Regrets
Chapter 2: The Market
Chapter 3: The Meeting
Chapter 4: The Proposition
Chapter 5: The Blackbird
Chapter 6: The Well
Chapter 7: The Star
Chapter 8: The Key
Chapter 9: The Prince
Chapter 10: The Starling
Chapter 11: The Dream
Chapter 12: The Return
Chapter 13: The Worry
Chapter 14: The Plan
Chapter 15: The Antecedent
Chapter 16: The Problem
Chapter 17: The Disaster
Chapter 18: The Solution
Chapter 19: The Reunion
Chapter 20: The Accommodation
Chapter 21: The King
Chapter 22: The Reception
Chapter 23: The Library
Chapter 24: The Clock
Chapter 25: The Spark
Chapter 26: The Scroll Part 1
Chapter 27: The Scroll Part 2
Chapter 28: The Scroll Part 3
Chapter 29: The Tree
Chapter 30: The Date
Chapter 31: The Date pt 2
Chapter 32: The Gathering
Chapter 33: The Favor
Chapter 34: The Game
Chapter 35: The Bakery
Chapter 36: The Breaking Point
Chapter 37; The AfterShock
Chapter 38: The Asterius pt 1
Chapter 39: The Asterius pt 2
Chapter 40: The Festival
Chapter 41: Paint the town red
A03:
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Character Design/Visuals: ((Bear with me because these updates will be SLOW))
Asha
I'll release character notes and stuff after
CELESTIAL COURTS/Star Mythos:
Alpha Stars:
The Celestial Courts:
PSA:
Since I’m pretty much making it an original work in its own universe now I am going to introduce the concept of
HARVESTERS
Special humans who have the ability to harness the energy (aether) of the world around them in order to achieve incredible feats! They have different levels of ‘potential’ that allow them to tap into various levels of energy.
Most people are born with some level of potentials! (It’s very rare to see someone who has zero level of it) and the higher levels are often denoted by strange eye colors (yellow, silver, pink, etc) and was also the way the king found his apprentices.
Being a harvester is also genetic too.
TLDR: KOTS is more alchemy/supernatural based and doesn’t really operate on the level/concept of magic.
Sooo… while I was looking through the Wish art book, I came across this in the section talking about the architecture they referenced for the castle:
Except there was nothing indicating that this is a piece of artwork they took inspiration from and instead is concept art for the movie and I just- did you know? About this? The looming, shadowy figure in the window with tiny, glowing pinpricks for eyes? Because this is making me think of the assassins and if you didn’t know about this then that is one HELL of a coincidence. 😨
Legit I didn’t - I’ve never read or seen the art book in completion 😭😭😭 (is that some type of astrolabe in the left corner???)
I don’t know how to explain this or what to make of it tbh Peep but this pretty cool to see!
It’s kind of funny that for all the times you guys and the story have hyped up the crimson stars as overly violent/angry @yurikalonesome got swan lake (a very melancholic/emotional) vibes from the dream scene
It was a combination of all the feathered folk, the looming uncertainty, and the ‘picking the real one you’re looking for’ type of feeling that for some reason just has me associating them with Swan Lake now. Maybe it’s because girls are cursed into birds in the ballet and I wouldn’t be surprised if they would curse someone into an animal? Or the fact that in some iterations of the ballet, Rothbart is in love with Odette and curses her? Or the whole ‘who is the real one?’ question and it’s life or death for Odette if Odile tricks Siegfried? Except in this case, it’s a whole lot scarier ‘cause it’s a bunch of red stars? No clue. I just got the vibes.
It’s kind of funny that for all the times you guys and the story have hyped up the crimson stars as overly violent/angry @yurikalonesome got swan lake (a very melancholic/emotional) vibes from the dream scene
i'm actually SO glad they didn't go with any of those insane concept arts for the prototype, and that he ended up looking the way he did. i find it wild that people find his final design "unfitting." unfitting to what exactly? this is a mascot horror game with TOY characters. some insane, grotesque skeleton looking monster would've been the design that feels super out of place.
and people who think the jester theme is "random/meaningless" no it's not, you just don't think about the deeper meaning behind things. him being a jester is actually extremely symbolic of his character/role in the story. if elliot's the king of playtime co, and poppy is his princess, what does that make oliver? the prince? no. if elliot had actually kept his promise about them being a family, it would've been that way. but because elliot used him and cast him aside, that makes him the jester. the fool.
there's also jester symbolism in tarot cards. it represents things like new beginnings (the hour of joy, making a better place, etc.) and infinite potential (he's literally one of the only 2 known truly immortal experiments.) it also represents innocence, which tracks with his real name "oliver" that's associated with peace and olive branches. even though he's fully lost his innocence atp, it doesn't change the fact that he started off as a child victim like the others. it is literally perfect for him.
there's also a saying about jesters that differentiates them from clowns: clowns make a fool out of themselves, but jesters make a fool out of you.
Ngl I always thought his name Oliver was more so a nod to Oliver Twist than anything else
But I knew just from the fact that an actual doctor/pediatritician and young child weren’t weirded out by the prototype’s appearance meant that he wasn’t actually grotesque-looking
Spooky and uncanny? Maybe
Mutant mummy? No.
Plus he has red smoke that he can always use to make himself look worse/scarier (all things considered)
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
Then that’s just sad. Also, even if she gets out of taxes with nachos, that is like the only perk. Whereas if she were in space she’d be beyond happy to learn about everything. And astronomers were somewhat respected so that’s already better than being in the castle with Nachos
I doubt she’ll be able to explore those castles with Cepheus being a peasant, all things considered- I meant to ask this sooner but why do you think he’s royalty?
He’s super secretive about his backstory, but mostly the fact that he’s nearly identical to Sirius, who’s been confirmed royal. Like why does Ceph look exactly like Sirius???? Also, Ceph cares deeply about his appearance and wardrobe—ik star culture is different so “peasant” can look different, but like Ceph has a sort of pretentious and confident personality and I find it a bit hard to believe that someone of low ranking would be that confident in himself
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
Then that’s just sad. Also, even if she gets out of taxes with nachos, that is like the only perk. Whereas if she were in space she’d be beyond happy to learn about everything. And astronomers were somewhat respected so that’s already better than being in the castle with Nachos
I doubt she’ll be able to explore those castles with Cepheus being a peasant, all things considered- I meant to ask this sooner but why do you think he’s royalty?
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
Okay, but say this happens… Nachos would be miserable, Dahlia would be angry, and Nadia would be suffering. And you keep going on about taxes… isn’t Rosas already tax free?! 🤨
Nobody would ever be happy. Remember that exchange between Ceph and Nadia in chapter 35 when she insisted that she would be happy eventually?
“[…] Aren’t you happy?”
“I…I am,” she’d forced her voice to sound firm as she’d straightened herself. “Or at least I will be in due time.”
“Are you sure? Any happiness that is forced, is not one worth having,” Cepheus warned.
Let’s not forget that the biggest obstacle would be Magnifico. Why would he run the risk of ‘dirtying’ his bloodline with someone with no powers?
Magnifico to whoever decides/makes this happen:
(Fair on disliking that trope. It destroys me. 😭 But at least in the case of CephxNadia - assuming she takes the offer - would live far longer than she’s supposed to.)
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
Then that’s just sad. Also, even if she gets out of taxes with nachos, that is like the only perk. Whereas if she were in space she’d be beyond happy to learn about everything. And astronomers were somewhat respected so that’s already better than being in the castle with Nachos
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
I still need to catch up on the most recent chapter, things have been busy, BUT NADYA AND CEPH ALL THE WAY. Nachos only pays attention to Nadya because he knows something fishy is going on, he’s suspicious about her being under the influence of the “evil” (ok wait Ceph kinda is sometimes so I guess that’s a little accurate) Star. Whereas Ceph constantly tries to remind Nadya that she deserves to live a life where she isn’t constantly burning herself out and serving people who repay her by being jerks. On top of that, while Ceph is new to the whole friend thing and keeps hella secrets, he does still care about her and tries to lighten her mood and ease the loads of all her tasks, he’s a pretty decent friend all things considered. And for that, I ship Nayda and Ceph 100x more than nachos bc I love a good friends to lovers trope. But also! Who doesn’t love a good ‘love each other but we can’t be together because one is an immortal being and the other is a human’?
ALSO I FORGOT TO MENTION—I’m still clinging to my theory that Ceph is a star prince/a descendant of one. So you can’t use the whole ‘well Nachos is a prince and Nadya + prince = romance’ because I BELIEVE CEPH IS A PRINCE TOO AND IF IM WRONG WELL HES STILL A COOL AF STAR SOOOOO ♾️x BETTER THAN SOME HUMAN PRINCE
