#shadows and a Touch of Magic

[samwellwinchesterthebrave]

Are you looking for a spooky read? Do you like urban fantasy or monster stories? Do you like stories about queer ladies dealing with monsters and getting into (and out of) shenanigans? Check out Shadows and a Touch of Magic.

From shadows that can be savior or destroyer to the creation of the first mermaids, Shadows and a Touch of Magic is a collection of monster stories and urban legends featuring women who love women full of fear, of love, of the strange, and of the whimsical.

Read on for a snippet from each short story 💜

"As she moved to the center of the room, trying to imagine her furniture here and herself living here, a cold breeze ghosted across the back of her neck. It raised the small hairs on the back of her neck and goosebumps down her arms." - Widow's Walk

"They were there again. The shadows that seemed to dip, sway and follow after her. Nijah Khoury glanced back as the edge of one shadow seemed to reach out towards her." - Shadowdancers

"“So, you want to be healed,” Amrita said after another sip of the wine. “What will you offer in return?”

“Anything,” Machi begged. “Anything I have. Please.”

“I heal you, you give me your first child. Fair’s fair, right?”" - Promises, Promises

"Thrilled that she was still alive, Cecily twisted in the water to study herself. Her tail was longer than her legs had been. She could feel power coiled in the muscles and ached to stretch her new body out." - To Become The Sea

"It called to her, stretched out lovely fingers and tempted her in. A small smile tugged at Haley’s lips as she listened. It sounded like the melody was coming from the opposite way of the lake again." - Feast of Sorrowed Breath

"She could clearly remember the last time she’d been swimming, the sun shining down on the blue water like it was today. That was years ago, however. No matter how many times she came to this pier, she never dared the water." - Trapped

"Have you ever heard of the smile maidens? I’d never heard of them before my travels and, at the beginning, I’d scoffed at the idea of them. It seemed such a silly name for a supernatural force that killed people or stole their souls." - The Smile Maidens

#lgbtq #paranormal fantasy #queer characters #monster stories #urban legends #shadows and a touch of magic

[whumpypepsigal]

Shadow and Bone s02e08: “He's putting up a good fight… Like something's holding him on the other side.”

#whumpedit #whump #shadowandboneedit #sabedit #shadow and bone #malina #malyen oretsev #alina starkov #archie renaux #jessie mei li #dark magic #face touching #resurrected #waking up #confused #hugging #back from the dead #comfort #you are okay #my gifs #shadow and bone spoilers

[drowningkeyborad]

Working on my old Bianca Di Angelo pjo fanfic and accidentally made her & Alabaster the perfect couple??

#bianca di angelo #alabaster torrington #pjo fanfic #think about it #a daughter of hades and a son of Hecate #alabaster wants to learn shadow magic and Bianca is just like “yeah bro that comes as naturally as breathing to me #Bianca wants to learn cool magic spells—bcuz she’s just as big a nerd as Nico was. #Bianca being the ONLY one Alabaster will let touch his spellbook

[antaripirate]

spent a lot of time climbing paleo-glaciers today but i also made this :)

#holland and lila have such an iconic dynamic #i love holland but the way lila was like NO. first barron and now kell. don’t you dare fucking touch the people i love slskskmas #im a hoe for protective lila #ANYWAYS #this is dumb but enjoy x #a conjuring of light #adsom #kell maresh #a darker shade of magic #a gathering of shadows #alucard emery #delilah bard #holland vosijk #kellila #lila bard #rhy maresh #v e schwab #rhylucard #shades of magic #antari

[hasmashdoneanythingwrong]

If bond points remaining consistent between summoned instances of a Servant are a case of Gameplay and Story Segregation, explain this.

#fate #fate grand order #fgo #but seriously I love that Guda’s love and friendship with the servants is treated as almost a magic of sorts #Guda’s willingness and commitment to treating these self professed shadows of people as equals and friends when they can #touches them so deeply that even when their other summoned incarnations shouldn’t know them #their friendship resonates eternal within their spirit core

[author-main]

Twi can be a little messed up and hungry for dark magic... as a treat

#it's like he sees Midna's helmet and is tempted by the magic in it #he wants to touch it but pulls his hand away because he knows that the infused shadows will fuck him up #but that magic calls to him

[blujayonthewing]

Gimmiiiieee secret for one of those funky gnomes?

secret: What's one secret your OC never wants anyone to know about them?

After her friend and mentor, the circus' escape artist, died in a suspicious water escape accident, Idri's had an intense fear of deep water and of drowning. She doesn't want anyone to know about it partly because she finds it embarrassing, and partly just because it's connected to something painful that she's trying to 'cope with' by just simply Never Thinking About It Ever. She ALSO, more recently, has a more serious but less personal secret, which is that it turns out said mentor was not actually killed in that incident, but that his death was faked by a friend who knew he was being targeted for murder, and secretly took his place... he still has enemies, and fears that if word gets out that he's not actually dead, it might put more of his friends and colleagues in danger. Idri takes his trusting her with this information very seriously, and is determined to never tell a soul.

Melliwyk honestly fucking hates secrets at this point in the adventure, lmao. No more secrets! No fucking secrets forever!! They only ever cause problems she's so sick of things being kept secret for ~good reasons~ that always just make everything worse for no reason!! I mean she probably has some personal things that are private or embarrassing that she wouldn't want people to know about, obviously, who doesn't, but even a lot of those things are either widely known even if not necessarily by her friends (the incident with her former roommate), or things she's told them by now (the fact that her 'hood' is a novelty nightcap enchanted to give the wearer pleasant dreams, and she wears it all the time because she's nightmare-prone, especially when she unexpectedly falls asleep)

Felix went missing for awhile. He has no idea what happened during most of that time, but the last thing he remembers was witnessing a caravan camped just off the road being attacked by.... something. Huge, looming humanoid shapes of pure darkness, seemingly draining the life essence of the people in the caravan. He was spotted before he had a chance to do anything, and a creature grabbed his arm, but a voice called for it to leave him alone... After he woke up, he found his skin had turned completely grey where the creature touched him; it doesn't hurt or feel different in any way, and the mark hasn't spread, although the hand was so big that its print takes up most of his arm. He's been trying to learn literally anything about what he saw and what happened to him, but he hasn't told anybody, and he keeps his arm covered at all times.

Indigo would hate if the truth got out about what happened to their eye, where they now have an obviously false golden one. It's not, like, actually a big deal, but they give a different answer every time anyone asks, so if people knew the truth it would ruin the bit. Indigo lies recreationally so there are a lot of things about their personal life and backstory that they keep dead secret for no other particular reason than that it's fun for them. The only thing cooler than having been mentored by an ancient dragon is casually never ever mentioning it, you know?

ask about my characters! :3c

#FOUR funky gnomes >:D #thank you!! :3 #also yes I do actually know why indigo is missing an eye but I agree that it's better if nobody else does #an octopus ate it. traded it to a witch for magic powers. tripped while carrying dinner and landed on his fork eyeball-first. take your pic #felix really doesn't like to talk about himself anyway but his motivations are usually more private than secretive #the backstory mystery thing is... on one hand he doesn't want his sister to worry about him #on the other hand he's been able to find NO information on ANY aspect of what happened and it makes him really nervous #who interceded on his behalf and why? what does it mean that the touch marked his skin that way? he needs more information #in his one-on-one prequel session he fought a shadow which was both terrifying and incredibly exciting for him after nothing but dead ends- #but it DIDN'T leave a mark despite landing a hit! so now he's even MORE confused! the shadow was SIMILAR but not quite the same thing #my OCs #idri #melliwyk #felix #indigo #ask thing

[katierosefun]

ugh i love you stories about people who aren’t entirely sure whether something is real or not i love you stories about people who slip through the cracks and aren’t entirely sure how they got there ugh i love you stories about people who think that they’re pretty normal outside of that one interesting quirk they have and then they realize that they’re all abuzz in this strange new world where nothing makes sense but everything suddenly makes sense i love you stories that are about magic but also about real life i love you stories about the creepy-crawly things that tell you not to turn around for some reason, you know that feeling you get when you’re told you shouldn’t turn around, close the closet door, don’t open your bedroom door, don’t you dare turn around you know that feeling you get when you feel as though you’ve been somewhere before you know that feeling you get when you aren’t sure if you’re sleepwalking or not but your head feels detached from the rest of your body i love you stories that try to explain that specific feeling i love you stories about how the world is so much crazier and scarier and more beautiful than you could ever imagine but also more horrifying than you could ever imagine i love you stories where the ultimate conclusion is that the world is horrific and beautiful and you belong right into its disastrous, nonsensical fold

#caroline talks #this is just me talking about stories that have been taking up my mind lately #i love you doctor who i love you the ocean at the end of the lane i love you coraline i love you spirited away #i love you alice in wonderland i love you the lovely bones i love you the sound of magic #i love you stories where you cannot tell if something is actually a touch magical or if there is something horrific actually happening #underneath all the fairies and the witches and the ghosts and the spirits #i love you stories where it feels as though you were dreaming and yet when you look at your pillow you swear you still see #a bit of fairy dust and you swear you still see peter pan's shadow flying across the moon

[a-world-in-grey]

Do you think that, hypothetically, it would be possible for the oracle line to do similar to the the LC where they share their magic? Or do you think it is something that is specifically just an LC thing because of the different things the LC magic can do?

Honestly, I have no idea.

My hc is that Bahamut's Blessing is Light, Life, War, and Steel. Unlike the other Astrals, Bahamut split his Blessing into two separate ones. So the LCs predominantly get the War and Steel while the Oracles get the Light and Life. Not that there isn't some crossover - I hc that both lines have armigers, and that the LCs ability to make potions and other curatives are a watered down form of Oracle healing. And in the end, the base for the armiger and warping is all based on Bahamut's domain of Light.

LCs share magic by creating a bond between them and the person they are sharing their magic with. A link between souls, in other words.

That said, Bahamut's domain has nothing to do with souls.

Which begs the question of why Lucis Caelums can share their magic.

The two theories I'm juggling are that a) the Crystal is what enables Lucis Caelums to link their souls, which then begs the question of how the Crystal does that and if enables the ability for all Lucis Caelums or only those that grow up in close enough proximity or some other mechanism, but means that only Lucis Caelums can share their magic, or b) it's magic itself that allows people to create such bonds, and it's only the Lucis Caelums that know how to do it in the current day/have the magic to do so, which would enable the Oracles to share their magic so long as they know how to do so.

@secret-engima any thoughts on this?

#ffxv #Shadow of Heaven's Light #worldbuilding #magic #Lucis Caelums #Nox Fleurets #asks #0hmydekiru asks #I have lots of hcs on what a LC can do with their ability to touch souls #some of it is downright terrifying and Eldritch #and even better there is a basis for it in canon #(only a single line of dialogue but that still counts shhh)

[wildfane]

with your warriors reconstructed map thing, who does each cat represent out of the og ones?? like, i'm pretty sure ashfur has become aiden,,, but who's lucy and della? maybe its really obvious but i have not read or interacted with anything wc related for a loooong time. if you don't mind answering this haha

aiden does represent/is the equivalent to ashfur! and the rest of em:

sadie - squirrelflight

bruno - brambleclaw

della - bristlefrost

lucy - rootspring

the shadow - shadowsight

they have altered personalities (some more than others) and unique backstories. there aren’t “clans” or any cat colonies present, just this core cast. sadie and bruno live on their own with their only daughter, della. i should note that della has some sparkpelt and alderheart in her too but the role she fills is more bristle

#ask #i’m still working through it but i kind of want the shadow to be a mysterious cat wizard being that has been yanked from his dimension lol #as i stated in my post he has healing magic thru touch

[orcelito]

also. what they dont tell you about being a sorcerer (5) bard (1) is that

you get a F U C K ton of spells

#speculation nation #fang #d&d #and ALL!!!! of them are prepared #im used to playing a wizard with many many spells but u can only have a handful prepared at a time #fang can use Any of these at Any time (spell slots permitting) #and he got detect magic (unlimited) from his eldritch invocation (feat). and darkness from a shadow sorcerer feature #fang really is just all *finger wiggles* about his magic. he doesnt understand it. but BOY can he do a lot of it #he described today his fireball as 'if i think Really Hard and Point... i can make Big Things happen' #AGHHHHHH i love him so much tho. he's still so squishy but i love him sooo much #AND!!!!!!!!!! i have healing spells now too. thank god #5 sorcery points on top of all this. AND two bardic inspiration #fang really is just like. absolutely overflowing with magic. but super fucking casual about it #he does not!!! understand what he's doing!!!! he's just like playing the flute and feeling smth different with his magic #& he's just like 'Huh." decides to play around with that. and suddenly he knows 6 more spells #and he can HEAL!!!!!!!!! im so stoked about that lmfao #i did NOT take vicious mockery bc i already have Mind Sliver as a psychic damage cantrip AND chill touch. two damage cantrips #vicious mockery is kinda the iconic bard thing but just. idk minor illusion seemed more useful to me. #probably gonna keep it at 1 bard level at least until i get my shadow wolf. so im taking shadow sorcerer level next level (whever that is) #I WANT MY BIG PUPPYYYYYYYYYYYYY big boy loves to bite. i need him #i would have him if i didnt take bard level... but it's ok.... the versatility is worth it #fang is the most hilariously influential person that exists and everyone just has to deal with it #he walks around changing people's lives & he's just like 'eh dont worry about it' b4 leaving to continue on his way #tunnel vision. very task-focused. unless he gets distracted in which case it is tunnel vision on the distraction #he regularly went on swims in the fuckin ocean alongside the boat bc he's got a fancy cloak that lets him breathe underwater & he loves it #i literally love him so much guys i Cannot describe how much i love him #i wish his charisma was higher lol BUT it's ok. we just need to get to level 9 so i can increase smth (with sorcerer 8) #tho hmmm levels 2 and 3 bard look so good too... hmmmmm #difficult choices lol. ah well

[samwellwinchesterthebrave]

Corvus Quill Press has unfortunately closed. Because of this, I have re-published Shadows and a Touch of Magic myself. It’s available in both ebook and paperback formats. Check it out here 😊💜

amazon . com/dp/B07JMHGQWQ

#shadows and a touch of magic #lgbtq #queer books #queer characters #wlw

[cullens-babe]

I love how Alistair still writes jokes and has a witty tone in his letters on the war table lol.

#dragon age #dragon age origins #dragon age inquisition #dragon age: inquisition #alistair theirin #me playing dragon age inquisition #i did Shadows over Denerim and he’s like #‘WOW! the magic fighting in the kitchen! I love the fireballs and magic. reminds me of good times. i definitely won’t #be eating out of those kitchens for a long time let me tell you that.’ #gosh I love him. Bloom will definitely show Melody his letters snd Melody will just smile…..smile and touch the rose she always keeps in her #hair….

[aesthetic-solar-space]

The Umbra King by Jamie Applegate Hunter, 385pages, published September 20th 2022 - 🌟🌟🌟🌟 This book caused me a solid reading slump after I finished it, I was so invested and wanted nothing more that to read more. I went into the book thinking book one and two were out thanks to Kindle and how it was formatted, so I was even more disappointed when I finished and found out the second one was in fact not ready to read. All of that said I want to make it very clear that I recommend this book a thousand times over and think anyone who needs another morally gray female in their lives should devour this book ASAP (especially seeing as it is available on Kindle Unlimited). Below is some of what you can expect to find if you read this amazing book by @jah.hdj.books -enemies to lovers -dark fantasy -shadow manipulation 😉 -alphahole king with a painful past -touch her and you die -who did this to you? -revenge plot found family -female serial killer -fated lovers/mates -beauty and the beast

With all of that said I can't wait for y'all to read this book so we can both be obsessed with Caius and Aurora (Rory).

#the umbra king #enemies to lovers #dark fantasy #shadow magic #shadow manipulations #alphahole king #painful past #touch her and you die #who did this to you #revenge plot #found family #female serial killer #fated lovers #fated mates #beauty and the beast retellin #retelling #jamie applegate hunter #caius #aurora #rory #reading slumps #morally gray #morally gray female #kindle unlimited #i cant wait for more #cliffhanger #new books #book #book review #books

[groveofsouls]

tag dump six ft. general charas part one !!

#( in the case files | tag dump ) #( beloved spring queen | persephone ) #( a perfect prince | zagreus ) #( by shade and shadow | melinoe ) #( by a touch blessed | macaria ) #( truest of companions | cerberus ) #( heart of the hearth | hestia ) #( in living alabaster | hera ) #( first kindness | rhea ) #( the wise weaver | athena ) #( a wild grace | artemis ) #( prophetic poetic sun | apollo ) #( the best jack of trades | hermes ) #( rose from the foam | aphrodite ) #( raving raver | dionysus ) #( of magic and metal | hephaestus ) #( of the salt of the sea | poseidon ) #( almost always seeing red | ares ) #( precise in the harvest | demeter ) #( lord of the skies | zeus )

[ask-bruno-and-marias-prerot]

*Reaches out to patronizingly and obnoxiously pat the two on the head.*

-Fate Anon

#story posts #ask blog #note from mun: [sorry fate! the eye and it's magic is untangible so you cannot touch them #and even if that wasn't the case it's not like they'd let you touch them. maria would probably rip your hand to shreds lol #also first JD drawing stuff appearence! woo! #ok all asks answered. bye bye i'm going back to the shadow realm for another month or so ✌🏼]