#azusaprogress

[azusawrites]

Kore blinked. Her lungs seemed to suddenly stop working, all the air leaving her body, as she inhaled sharply. This was not the first time that he stood this close to her, but she still couldn’t let go of the strange emotions it brought on. The memory of his face after they won the battle and he twirled her in happiness flashed through her mind. How red his face was – almost as red as his eyes, and perhaps even redder than her own must have been. 

“Kore.”

The word slipped from her lips without her even meaning for it to happen. Her face probably mirrored the same surprise that painted Ace’s. Loosening his grip on her shoulders, he stood up straighter, cocking his head to the side.

“What?” he asked.

“Kore,” she repeated, licking her lips. “My name is actually Kore. Kore Hightower. That’s… uh, my whole name.”

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 6851

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #aaaaaaand with this we're done #prologue draft is finally finished #and it ends with a bang #getting a little name confession from kore #and a bit of a bronzetower moment #to establish our hearts chapter #it's honestly such a weird feeling to see this finished after all this time #but #new beginning new joys #so october we'll start fresh with episode one and all the drama that entails!

[girl-in-the-tower]

His parents were ecstatic to hear they had another mage in the family, and their elation grew when Anise showed them the roses she froze for them as a present.

What luck they had, his mother remarked. Two mages in a group of five. They really couldn’t ask for more than that.

(He found Cala playing with peonies one day in the garden, five months after Anise’s roses. She held them in her palm and whispered to them, and when he asked her what she was doing there all alone, she dropped them and ran towards the fountain, with its peacock statue. Later he asked her again, and she denied ever being in the garden, to begin with.)

WIP: you gave me a lily, but now it's a field

Writing: 56%

Editing: 0%

Kalim Al-Asim/Kore Hightower, married Goldtower fluff

#azusaprogress #poor cala #she really wants to do magic to be the same as her siblings #but genetics decided to have a field day with her instead #she's the sort of kid who'll try to copy her siblings too #and become disheartened when she realizes that no matter what she does things won't change #first bahri then anise #but never her #even as asif and sari and lina all get their magic #of course the asim parents are over the moon because that means more mages in their family #and subtle lines are drawn between them and the others

[azusawrites]

The air was filled with an electrifying feeling and even she couldn’t deny how relieved and happy she felt. Not only from the adrenaline of escaping death so closely but from the look in their eyes as well, that buoyancy that overwhelmed their senses and suddenly all their animosity from before, their bickering, their thinly veiled mistrust of each other, all of it was just gone. Disappeared off to somewhere far away. Even she was giddy, full of hope and enthusiasm, letting Grim wrap his arms around her head in a hug, which she returned by patting his back before she felt herself swept off her feet and spun around. She screamed, Grim suddenly gone, and then just as quickly her feet were once again touching the ground as she was suddenly facing Ace. His eyes looked brilliant up close, full of mirth and relief, and something she couldn’t quite put her finger on, but it sent her heart racing all the same when she realized just how little space was left between them.

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 7967

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #aaahhhh nothing like the fear of imminent death to bring you closer to your classmates #these four are the luckiest idiots in the whole world lolol #facing a phantom and actually surviving #then getting so happy that they kinda act without thinking #hence ace kinda putting the moves on kore without realzing #and getting her a little doki doki #but their moment doesn't last long before other stuff happens #so rip ace lol #also the ending of this chapter will introduce a very special character hehe #so stay tuned!

[azusawrites]

Theo had been right. Taking off in the middle of the night with some stranger had been a recipe for disaster. It had been a death sentence almost. And yet, as if the last year had not been spent in bed, nursing her wounds, and wanting for her ribs to heal, for breathing to become easier, for Theo to stop looking at her as if he would never be able to trust her again, here she was, repeating a mistake which she wasn’t sure she could survive this time. Those two weren’t Theo. They weren’t prepared. Seven – they couldn’t even get along now, of all times, when it was critical to have an ally of sorts, instead of an enemy ready to sell you out. Perhaps that’s why her own disappointment seemed so potent. She was hoping for some sort of approval from people who would always see her as lesser than them. 

Feeling a gentle and familiar tapping, Kore looked down into Grim’s eyes. He seemed just as apprehensive as she was, glancing in Ace and Deuce’s direction occasionally and it suddenly dawned on her that she had once again missed the main point. She wasn’t doing this for herself. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 3602

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #i cannot stress enough how important kore's love for her dumb tiny cat is #cause ace and deuce rn don't matter to her #they're just some strangers who keep causing her trouble #but grim is her baby #even when they fight and he acts bratty #and kore is willing to do anything to make him happy #he's her first real friend #and she's terrified of losing him #and it's this love for him that pushes her to do better #because kore is the sort of person that wants to change for the better out of love #she can be very kind #but cynicism has its claws in her #and she still needs time to let go of it #but with love being her motivation she starts making baby steps and improving her life #much like her romantic relationships her platonic ones function as a way to start healing herself #because she can't yet do it for herself #so she does it for others

[azusawrites]

Beautiful did not begin to describe it – letters and runes, some the size of her palm, some almost as large as her, were dancing onto the waves of light that continued to pour in. There was no music playing, but that did not matter to them, their lines and squiggles not missing a single imaginary beat as they twirled and dipped and leapt over their heads and through their bodies and all throughout the room. Like clockwork, they moved in patterns which she felt compelled to wonder at even as her eyes began to sting and her heart began to thud in her ribcage. She blinked a few times, trying to steady her vision, the blurring making it harder to follow the show though even so, she wouldn’t allow herself to look away. 

Even feral and wild and untamed as it was right now, this was still magic. Even though she hated it and it made her frightened and her knees weak she still wanted to savour it. Even if it made no sense for her to, she still loved it. Because it frightened her and she was just the sort of girl who would love things even if they frightened her. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 5264

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #i like magic to be grander than life in general #like this feeling that it could envelop you so fully it could annihilate you #like it's alien but still beautiful and scary and sublime #and all those things together #and just leaving you breathless for a moment #and kore feels just this wave of contradicting feelings whenever she looks at it #because it's always so overwhelming #but it also always reminds her how utterly defenseless she always is #and it's hard to come to grips with it

[azusawrites]

His voice was firm as he spoke, but she could hear it wavering at the edges. “We have to look otherwise the whole trip would have been for nothing. And if we go back now empty-handed after disappearing like that the Headmaster will not hesitate to expel us, that’s for certain!” He paused, casting his eyes around for the gem they had to find. “Besides, if Hightower says that the gem is here, it must be here.”

Kore was stunned. In the dark, it was hard to make out Deuce’s face so she wasn’t sure if he was mocking her not. The tone of his voice suggested the latter, but this would not have been the first time that she’d been wrong about things like that. Reading others’ emotions had never been her strong suit. 

Ace snorted. “You sure are putting a lot of stock into what this boar woman is saying. Trying to get on her good side?”

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 6970

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #today it's just a cute friendship scene between deuce and kore #with a side of snarky ace #deuce seems to respect smart people #and kore is definitely a nerd #so if she says there's a gem here #there's a gem here he's sure of it #the smart people have spoken #it's this sort of trust that will mark the beginning of their friendship tbh #and kore is genuinely surprised #cause she's used to being always dismissed #but now someone is showing faith in her? #boar girl is slightly confused by all this

[azusawrites]

“Crap,” Deuce said, still rubbing the spot on his head. “This place is really cramped and the ceiling is so low…”

“Not to mention the chairs,” Ace added. With a wide gesture, he pointed to the furniture which reached barely up to her waist, and which seemed made of the same heavy wood that could be found all over the place. Everything in here was a miniature. “There’s… One, two… Seven! Seven of them in total. Isn’t that a lot for a house this size?”

“Dwarves usually like clustered dwellings like this,” she noted. “And seven isn’t all that big a number for them either. Generally, they follow this model of a multigenerational household where grandparents, parents and grandchildren would share the same space of living in order to save money and make use of a support system. The mine workers that were employed during the excavation of gems probably followed the same model out of reflex…”

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 4042

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #i am back again with more made up lore #this is mostly based on the fact that the dwarves we do see in twst come from the same place where Epel lives #which was confirmed to be a place where multigenerational household are a thing #and well the disney dwarves all lived together for a reason too #and it adds a bit of a magical feeling to it all #moreover these sorts of camps are pretty common with seasonal workers who go abroad for their work #so i'm adding a sort of parallel to the dwarves' situation here as well #giving into their fantasy portrayal of miners #but with a little modern twist much like the game does #kore knows all this because she's a nerd #and ace makes fun of her for it too the jerk lol

[azusawrites]

The force of the wind sucked in the flames almost immediately, and Kore gasped as she felt the heat wave crashing against her. The tornado of fire had completely engulfed the creature, which was now screaming out so loudly her eardrums felt like they would soon explode. For a moment, the screams reminded her of the howls of the mountains back home. There was something so primal about it that it made her shudder. There was something so human about it that it made her want to weep. Hiding behind the tree now, so that the flames no longer threatened to lick her skin, she called out for the final piece of their plan. Deuce reacted before she even finished saying his name. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 5891

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #ok so slight spoiler #but i don't have the phantom speaking until a bit later in the encounter #because i want to do a slight dramatic reveal #where the group is shocked to hear that it can speak #as it raises a lot of question and ethical disputes #since they simply thought of the phantom as some rabid beast before #but now it seems to have some sort of intelligence #and that makes them even more freaked out #and i will be going with my theory #of the phantom being a dwarf who ended up trapped due to a cave in #and transformed due to despair #so it's still stuck in that mental state #and its first words will be actually it calling out for its former companions #to come save him despite him being the sole survivor and everybody else dying #because i like making myself sad i guess lol4

[azusawrites]

She wasn’t sure what drove her to learn such a skill, but it had become for a while almost a passion. She’d devoured every book in Theo’s library as it talked about the subject, and before long she’d started to have dreams full of shiny crystals and pickaxes and mining songs which she understood from some of the books, were a favourite of the dwarfs who worked into those places. It was almost too easy to imagine them with their little colourful caps, as they were said to wear back in the day, working tirelessly from dawn to dusk in the mine, with only themselves and their songs as company. It almost seemed merry had it not been for the thought that in many ways, them being forced underground for such long periods of time was more akin to imprisonment than anything. It was definitely reinforced when she found out that the reason the Dwarf’s Mine had closed long ago was because of a cave-in that took the lives of the workers who had the misfortune of being inside at that time. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 1470

next chapter sneak peek

READ THE FIRST CHAPTER HERE

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #yes i am indeed just making up some lore for locations now #mostly because i need it #and because it's imperative to my needs #so #kore is getting interesting skills as well tbh #and actually shaping up to be the nerd of the group #which is gonna be quite fun imo #cause she's also kind of a meathead for magift #so athletic academician? #basically she retains a lot of info from what she's reading but also is a boar woman #ah the duality of a teenage girl lol

[azusawrites]

“Look, servant!” he shouted. “I did it! I’m gonna be a student here and learn magic and become the greatest mage that ever lived!” 

Her heart skipped a beat. There was something strange gathering at the back of her mind, something like pins prickling at her skin, but she ignored it. It did not matter right now. Nothing mattered right now except that everything worked out somehow. Nobody would be expelled. Grim could attend school at last despite being a monster. She could attend school despite being magicless. 

What will Theo say though when he finds out?

She did not want to think of that. She did not want to consider that avenue and the dread it could bring. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 5436

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #kore trying to have like a happy moment #even a small one #but mirror is like 'nah no happiness only mistrust' #things are close to wrapping up for the prologue tho #just a little bit of the dumbass quartet bantering #kore getting a bit of a warning #and we're off to episode 1 baby!

[azusawrites]

“In that case did you see a guy with red hair, sticking all over pass this way?” Grim glanced up at her, a confused expression on his face, and she had to look away to stop herself from turning even redder. “Uh, he has a heart right under his left eye. It’s red. The heart. Actually his eyes too. But not red-red, more like… uh, nevermind. Did you see him?”

The woman stayed silent for a while. Then leaning closer, she poked her head out of the portrait again, grinning. “Why? Is he your boyfriend?”

“What? No!” Kore exclaimed. “Absolutely not! Not in a hundred years! Or a thousand! Or… or more than that!”

Shaking her head, she cleared her mind, until she could focus on the portrait again. It sighed, eyes suddenly turning dull and unfocused as if this conversation could not possibly hold anything else of interest to it any longer and thus was completely useless. Kore tried not to let herself be stung by the dismissal but instead reached out to place her palm against the frame. 

“Please! I really need to find him!”

The woman’s eyes shone again. “Why? Are you planning on confessing to him?”

“No!” she insisted.

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 3333

next chapter sneak peek

READ THE FIRST CHAPTER HERE

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #on her way to catch ace kore encounters some problems #the portrait here is actually rosalia from cater's uniform story #she's bored out of her mind and looking for some entertainment #and kore fell right into her hands #boar girl is very flustered by the talk of boyfriends lol #yes ace is handsome #but she will not let herself be fooled by a pretty face #she's a strong independent boar woman who don't need no man lol

[azusawrites]

The Headmaster continued, blind to the exchange. “But! Because Miss Hightower has no magic to speak of whatsoever, being just your average, run-of-the-mill, boy-crazy, fashion-conscious teenager girl with a great fondness for her Honourary Uncle–” It was impressive how much he could get wrong in just one sentence. He made it seem like an art form. “–thing are different for her! It’s that very ‘ordinary’ quality of hers which makes her stand out! After all, being so acutely paranoid of the outside has made Miss Hightower be very, very observant in a variety of ways! Not to mention quite adept in a variety of fields! Has it not?”

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 4435

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #it's the return of proud uncle crowley #kore's biggest enemy #simply because he's delusional and embarrassing #and they're not even related #despite crowley's insistence lol #but this time he comes with a nice message #which she does appreciate #even though for the moment she's just stunned #baby boar is not used to complements the poor sweetie #so she needs time to process them lol

[azusawrites]

She jumped as he suddenly leaned over the desk, sending the fabric flying as he tried to grab her hands in his, but much like Ace was met with Grim’s claws cutting away at his gloves. “Miss Hightower! My eyes don’t lie! You have the talent – no! The calling of a beast tamer!”

What followed was not a shout of celebration, nor a sigh of satisfaction, as he probably intended it to be but instead, a flat, almost emotionless, “What.”

Not even a question. Just a word, falling off her lips and landing dead at their feet. In many ways, it seemed dead. Or near it at least. 

“Miss Hightower!” he repeated, as if she would understand from just that much. “Isn’t that wonderful? Oh, my feathers are simply tingling with excitement at the prospect! You–”

Professor Corvine began to pull onto his coat quite ferociously then. “Headmaster! Please behave yourself in front of the students!” 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 3450

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #mirror marchen #twisted wonderland #listen #crowley and corvine might be dating yes #but first and foremost they're a comedic duo #twst manzai act faculty right here #and you call tell who is who #also crowley dropping some revelations like he's a prophet #he thinks he's picking the chosen one or something lol #and i mean kinda #but not in the way he thinks he is lol #also grim protecc his human from weirdo crow man lol

[azusawrites]

Who would even care about a small, troublesome thing like her? Nobody. No one. Just–

Grim shifted in her lap, his little ears twitched and big eyes glanced back at her for a moment. The memory of his terror when they first came face to face with the monster in the cave flashed through her mind briefly. He had trembled even as they ran away, even when he was safe in her arms, trying still to look tough and unshaken despite knowing that she could hear the wild beating in his chest. Kore blinked. Both on her right side and her left side, Ace and Deuce’s shoulders dug into hers, the three of them crammed in this small space. Together – a sort of hollow echo from a few hours ago, when they risked both their lives to protect hers too. 

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 2453

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #kore: i have feelings #narrator: the feeling was friendship but she never experienced it before #aka my girl's broadening her horizons #and getting some bffs she would die for #you know who inside just throwing a tantrum because how dare she do that #how dare she find other people to care about #but the power of friendship is about to affirm itself within these kids lol

[azusawrites]

Professor Corvine – she’d only learned the name when the Headmaster, catching sight of them coming out of the Dark Mirror dishevelled and pale, let out a surprised shout, scrambling to greet the woman in the lead very hastily and somewhat apprehensively – had not been what she expected a mysterious figure hanging around old caves to look like at all. What they were supposed to look like, she wasn’t certain, but she knew that they were not supposed to be this short, dressed in plaid and long skirts and elegant shoes, stepping over the threshold as if she was floating rather than walking and with pointed ears and little fangs, which only became visible when she opened her mouth to shout instructions at them in a mix of what passed for a common language among Twisted Wonderland and a dialect she had a hard time figuring out the exact origin of.

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 1160

next chapter sneak peek

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #wake up babe new waifu just dropped #corvine literally out there being the one responsible adult in kore's life atm #and their first meeting is her getting mad at the four idiots for running off without telling anybody and almost dying #crowley himself also just being: oh shit better stay out of her way #but it's too late #he's been spotted #and he will get a lecture for not looking after the teens of his school properly lol #woman's maternal instincts are very sharp lol

[azusawrites]

“Shut it,” the redhead spat out. “You weren’t even there so you have no idea that it was this crazy boar woman’s fault that it all happened anyway.”

Boar woman. Kore paused. She’d never heard that one before. Was it meant to be some sort of insult? Some sort of code? Boars were strong and sturdy, she thought, but also rather ugly-looking. Was he trying to call her ugly? Was that it? She grit her teeth as she glared at his side profile. What did her looks even have to do with anything? Sure, she wasn’t what one might call attractive or a looker, but she wouldn’t go as far as to say she was ugly. The more she thought about it, the more realized that a kick to the thigh was too kind of a punishment for him.  

wip: mirror marchen

fandom: twisted wonderland

wc: 7176

next chapter sneak peek

READ THE FIRST CHAPTER HERE

#azusaprogress #twisted wonderland #mirror marchen #thus the appearance of the boar woman nn starts #ace definitely meant it in the pigheaded way #that kore is too stubborn for her own good #but she also definitely took it as a remark about her looks #which she's already sensitive about #so uh #it's gonna be an interesting start to a romance of sorts between them #well mostly ace #but you get the gist