Cool Af - Blog Posts
Story Preview: Magic/Dark Academia AU in which skating, linguistics, and time travel intersect
Professor Baranovskaya loudly cleared her throat and placed a hand on Yuuri’s trembling shoulder.
“Everyone, please take a moment to welcome your newest classmate,” she airily announced, to a rather stilted round of clapping. “If you didn’t get a chance to meet him at the Prospective Students Banquet last December– ” (to Viktor’s chagrin, even louder giggling erupted, making him want to throttle Isabella Yang) “ – or over the last few weeks, allow me to introduce first year student Katsuki Yuuri, hailing from the town of Hasetsu, Japan. I’m told by Professor Cialdini that Yuuri’s grasp of Reverberatory Theory could rival a faculty member’s, so I’m sure you’ll find him to be a valuable resource.”
Curious whispers filled the room at this last sentence. Aside from Viktor and just two other students – 4th years Sasha Samokhina and Kostya Kozhennikov – no one else had actually managed to grasp the intricacies of Reverberation, particularly when it came to its grammatical rules.
“That being said, do try not to resent his prowess too much,” Professor Baranovskaya firmly finished.
Their eyes met and Viktor felt a bit insulted by her lingering gaze. Resent Yuuri?
Him?!?
Once again, Viktor reflected on how misunderstood he was at Pax. If he tried to befriend promising students like Sasha or his fellow dual major classmate Nao Yasutani, it was automatically regarded with skepticism, as if the Institute's top Reverberator couldn’t possibly want companionship without having ulterior motives.
It made him want to scream.
Had Professor Baranovskaya forgotten how he’d begged Drs. Piseev and Leroy to accompany them on the scouting trip to Japan, back in April? Had she conveniently forgotten that it was Viktor who had so zealously insisted on Yuuri’s recruitment to Pax in the first place, well before that wondrous video had been uploaded to the internet?
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The above excerpt is a preview of a new 'Alternate First Meeting' Yuri!!! on Ice WIP/series I'm working on: a friends-to-lovers, magical dark academia AU that I was inspired to write after finishing the books Vita Nostra (by Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko), and Babel (by RF Kuang). Both are so gripping and imaginative, and I couldn't stop thinking about how my favorite characters might intersect with the rich settings/magic systems in either.
Below is a tentative summary; if this sounds interesting, I hope you'll give me a follow!
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The first known instance of Reverberation – the phenomenon in which a skater produces language and energy with their body, universally felt and understood by all in proximity – occurred in 1952, when Dick Button performed the first triple jump. Over 50 years later, Viktor Nikiforov is skating’s most prolific Reverberator and star student at the University of Chicago’s Pax Institute: the world’s premier research center dedicated to the training of Reverberators for global diplomacy.
When Katsuki Yuuri finds himself being aggressively recruited by his idol to enroll at Pax, he has no idea that the two of them will eventually become best friends. Or, that they will one day co-lead a student uprising once they uncover the true, sinister aim of their education: to master the art of stationary Reverberation that transfers language onto blank pages and creates enough energy to rip through time
"Aint ever gonna be a frog sicker than me!" - 🐸 Hitting that summer vibe strong! This is Ace, and skatin' is in their blood
@c3lsthe @starswampy !!1!!1!
I would eat ur art i think yall cool asf!!!1!1!1
Also lots of love to my mutuals!!1!2!1!1!!1!1!
my friends r so talented. rb if ur friends are talented
slugclothes the full series + The Wayfarer (aka Nomads Jones)
worldbuilding shenaniganery under the cut
outer expanse is mostly light, breathable woven cloth and some metal accents and such. the hat keeps the sun out of the eyes and the sash that holds the ensemble together also usually holds up carrying drums carried across the back. loose cloth is usually draped across one hip and can be used as a bag. the metal bracers and cloth hand covers protect the hands and wrists from thorns, sap, etc.
chimney canopy/sky islands is mostly warm leathers and hides meant to keep them warm. the eyewear protects from the direct sunlight and the prongs are meant to resemble a vulture mask to ward off wild lizards. the leather wraps on the hands, feet, and tail are meant to protect extremities from the cold, from blisters/abrasions while climbing, and from lizard bites (as they have a close symbiotic relationship with climbing and leaping lizards that help them navigate in exchange for food and shelter.) the king vulture harpoon slung across the back is a javelin with wire or rope attached, which is usually used for hunting or for creating a climbable line in a pinch (as it usually has a smaller stake on the other end to secure to the ground or can simply be tied in a slip knot around a secure fixture)
farm arrays slugs are heavily influenced by ancient culture and what nomads and monks coming from subterranean bring back as well as the large population of scavengers they share their home with. Their clothes do a lot to shield them from the sun while moving around in the long, flat plains, and the broad shields they wear on their backs and tails detach to allow them to escape from predators and are often decorated with icons of local mythical figures that are believed to ward off predators from the air when turned skyward
Shoreline slugs wear pretty little clothing to keep themselves light while swimming and navigating narrow underwater passages. They carry similar drums to outer expanse slugs, scavenged from moon bits. They revere lttm as a deity, coming from their oral history of when she was still standing and their colonies lived in her shadow, and often wear red or blue gemstones/pearls on their foreheads to show their dedication. The oldest members of the colonies there have the mark of communication, a remnant of when moon was still well enough to give it
Garbage wastes slugs (I call them scrapcats) live in an area that is dangerous from all angles, be it disease, conflict, or predators and their clothing is designed with these threats in mind at all times. The metal spikes fashioned onto tough leathers deter predators and would-be opponents both. They carry small cloth packs and saddlebags to carry things they find to use in their craftsmanship (which they’re well-known for) and pearls and trinkets to offer to the local scavengers to keep their terse peace. The cloth around the mouth, nose, and gills is to protect them from contaminated water and airborne rot spores and is usually light and breathable but prevents most larger contaminants from getting into their fragile insides
Nomads are a mixed bag of whatever they can trade for. Nomads often lead scarce lives with very few belongings- most can fit their entire lives into a cloth bag and a small metal hip drum. They tend to prefer warm leathers and practical items like back shields, hats, bags/drums, weapons, and knives over aesthetics like masks, necklaces, or embroidery. Most nomads are sparsely decorated and carry food and clean water everywhere they go, as to not disturb the local colony wherever they’re living- the most valuable things most nomads carry are a few blank pearls they use to pay tolls