Outline for the rest of Dragons at Dawn
Feb. 3rd, 2018 12:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
I got slightly stumped with what to do with the next scene and I don't want to stall now when I have a blueprint for the whole fic, so I'm going to quickly jot down everything else that needs to happen in Dragons at Dawn. More scenes could end up being added, but as of now, these are the necessities:
- Yugi, Tristan, and Tea speak with Bakura and Yami Bakura about their duel with Joey. Tristan may accuse Yami Bakura of making Bakura use the Neo-Orichalcos, to which Bakura would sob that he made the choice of his own free will and Yami Bakura tried to warn him the thing would destroy him.
- If Joey encounters Duke tonight, Duke and Serenity must split up first. Serenity does not witness that duel, because if she did, she would probably be able to get Joey to stop, and I want it to play out just as in the blurb.
- The group learns where to try going to find the source of the Neo-Orichalcos. It's determined to travel in aircraft supplied by either Dartz or Seto, and to take Valon, Raphael, and Ishizu with them. Their loved ones don't trust the idea of leaving them at the company building. Plus, they want to be close at hand when the suspended animation is broken at last.
- Alister flashes back to when he and Valon had a conversation about darkness. Alister was always fighting against and denying his, while Valon had accepted his long ago. That was why Valon's personality never changed under the Orichalcos. Alister thinks, however, that Valon believed himself to be worse than he was. He also thinks that he is still denying his own darkness.
- Joey and Duke duel and Duke loses. I keep being sure that Tristan and David had a confrontation over Duke's body, but I can find no trace of it. Was it a role-play version of the events, or am I pipedreaming?
- Yugi and Serenity find Joey and are able to get through to him when no one else could. Should this be before they get on the plane, or should Joey sneak aboard hoping to stop them from destroying the Neo-Orichalcos and the confrontation happens on the plane?
- Should there be another scene of Bakura struggling with having fallen to the darkness? Maybe he think he shouldn't be along to destroy it, that he can't be trusted, and Yami Bakura and the others have to encourage him.
- They reach the location of the source and everyone pitches in to destroy it. Alister delivers the final blow just as the poison takes him and he drops down dead. Everyone revives from the suspended animation and is stunned and horrified by what has been happening. Shadi shows up to straighten everything out and Valon, Raphael, and Yugi plead for Alister's life, which is granted. Alister wonders if Valon and Raphael will ever forgive him. Valon yells at him for being an idiot and using the Neo-Orichalcos, but then he and Raphael assure him that he is forgiven. Squee reunions happen.
- Leonhard wakes up and he and Siegfried have a sweet, short scene.
- Cute epilogue stuff with everyone! Also, the gnome may make another silly appearance. LOL.
In the morning I looked over Life After the Tears. I was so proud of that thing when I wrote it, but my gosh, it's so freaking depressing. It's dark all the way through, no real light spots, and the ending is a downer too. Poor Duke was mind-controlled by the Orichalcos and ends up supposedly killed in a building collapse. He does come back in the unfinished sequel, though. And it was also depressing how I handled Yami Bakura being gone, with Oreo the cat missing him and looking for him. Gah. It was my first time trying to write a canon-ending compliant fic without the Yamis. I didn't figure out how I could bring Yami Bakura back until about four years later. The Pendulum Swings, I think, became the debut of my new, still-current timeline. I've also decided that Lead Me Through the Fire and Close Your Eyes, Clear Your Heart are in the main timeline, contrary to what I'd decided first. Dragons at Dawn takes place before them.
On the upside, I think Life After the Tears was the first time I tried writing for a Marik who wasn't so much like Namu. I crushed on him so hard I wanted to think that when repented he would act similar to his Namu persona, but I think in reality he would have more fire and spunk. Namu is very similar to Bakura. Although it threw some long-term readers for a loop when I debuted a much more frustrated and cynical Marik! But given the circumstances of that fic, it was understandable. Also, I forgot his sarcastic catchphrase "Oh joy." LOL. I will have to bring that back. I think Marik as I started writing for him around 2009 was somewhere in between the two characterizations I wrote, and I hope to continue in that vein.
Another character who is different between timelines is Dartz. Both timelines have him be sarcastic, of course. But man, when he's free of the corruption, one would think he could be a little nicer to the bikers and Alexander! Especially since he was supposed to have been a just king before the Orichalcos got him. Instead, he initially thinks that Alexander isn't worth his time and he's awfully nasty to the bikers when they meet up again. Naturally it would be an awkward meeting, but ugh, it totally could have been handled better. I have him and Alister meet in Dragons at Dawn and I think I handled his behavior much better for the circumstances. He's not syrupy sweet and cuddly or anything like that (that would just be scary), but he does show his remorse to Alister and expresses a genuine desire for him to be happy now.
I wonder a bit if I will ever get the inspiration to continue Der Engel des Todes. One reader still longs for that! I did like the stuff with Siegfried and Valkyries, and I remember Siegfried was going to be the big hero in that one, but overall I don't know that it will ever be continued, especially since it's definitely in a defunct timeline that I'm not crazy about revisiting. I would love to write a fic for the new timeline where Siegfried gets to be the big hero, though! Maybe I should write a blurb of something like that, just for fun. Or maybe I already did years ago; maybe I'll check later. I do remember he was the hero in Escape. I still like Siegfried and probably will even more whenever I get to see his episodes again. At the same time, I recognize that he is a jerk. Even as a kid. Fooling around with the computers at the KaibaCorp party where he's a guest ... WTH. I still remember Seto's appalled and disgusted and angry look in that flashback. But I like to think he was going to be better after the end of his arc. And I'm a sucker for squee sibling relationships!
Anyway, another problem with continuing that old fic is Alexander. I still love and adore him, but I'm no longer sure I like the idea of him being part of Alister's heart. Although I mostly abandoned that years ago by having him determining he was really his own person. And his interaction with Dartz is so cute! But since Alexander is slated to be part of my novel if it ever gets off the ground, I don't know that I should write any more for him in fanfiction.
One fic I'm toying with continuing is Until You Find the Answers, another one a reader keeps hoping for. I was upset to see I'd referenced Death-T in it. I remember back then I felt there was no way around Death-T having happened. Now I'm thinking, "WTH was I thinking?" Death-T did not happen in the Duel Monsters anime, nor can I picture that Seto ever doing such a thing. All Setos are messed-up, but at least the Duel Monsters anime Seto wasn't that messed-up. I'm going to edit that fic and replace Siegfried's mention of Death-T with him instead bringing up the takeover fiasco and Seto blaming Mokuba for Gozaburo finding out. Which was also awful, and I wish the dub had kept Seto's explanation for why he did that.
- Yugi, Tristan, and Tea speak with Bakura and Yami Bakura about their duel with Joey. Tristan may accuse Yami Bakura of making Bakura use the Neo-Orichalcos, to which Bakura would sob that he made the choice of his own free will and Yami Bakura tried to warn him the thing would destroy him.
- If Joey encounters Duke tonight, Duke and Serenity must split up first. Serenity does not witness that duel, because if she did, she would probably be able to get Joey to stop, and I want it to play out just as in the blurb.
- The group learns where to try going to find the source of the Neo-Orichalcos. It's determined to travel in aircraft supplied by either Dartz or Seto, and to take Valon, Raphael, and Ishizu with them. Their loved ones don't trust the idea of leaving them at the company building. Plus, they want to be close at hand when the suspended animation is broken at last.
- Alister flashes back to when he and Valon had a conversation about darkness. Alister was always fighting against and denying his, while Valon had accepted his long ago. That was why Valon's personality never changed under the Orichalcos. Alister thinks, however, that Valon believed himself to be worse than he was. He also thinks that he is still denying his own darkness.
- Joey and Duke duel and Duke loses. I keep being sure that Tristan and David had a confrontation over Duke's body, but I can find no trace of it. Was it a role-play version of the events, or am I pipedreaming?
- Yugi and Serenity find Joey and are able to get through to him when no one else could. Should this be before they get on the plane, or should Joey sneak aboard hoping to stop them from destroying the Neo-Orichalcos and the confrontation happens on the plane?
- Should there be another scene of Bakura struggling with having fallen to the darkness? Maybe he think he shouldn't be along to destroy it, that he can't be trusted, and Yami Bakura and the others have to encourage him.
- They reach the location of the source and everyone pitches in to destroy it. Alister delivers the final blow just as the poison takes him and he drops down dead. Everyone revives from the suspended animation and is stunned and horrified by what has been happening. Shadi shows up to straighten everything out and Valon, Raphael, and Yugi plead for Alister's life, which is granted. Alister wonders if Valon and Raphael will ever forgive him. Valon yells at him for being an idiot and using the Neo-Orichalcos, but then he and Raphael assure him that he is forgiven. Squee reunions happen.
- Leonhard wakes up and he and Siegfried have a sweet, short scene.
- Cute epilogue stuff with everyone! Also, the gnome may make another silly appearance. LOL.
In the morning I looked over Life After the Tears. I was so proud of that thing when I wrote it, but my gosh, it's so freaking depressing. It's dark all the way through, no real light spots, and the ending is a downer too. Poor Duke was mind-controlled by the Orichalcos and ends up supposedly killed in a building collapse. He does come back in the unfinished sequel, though. And it was also depressing how I handled Yami Bakura being gone, with Oreo the cat missing him and looking for him. Gah. It was my first time trying to write a canon-ending compliant fic without the Yamis. I didn't figure out how I could bring Yami Bakura back until about four years later. The Pendulum Swings, I think, became the debut of my new, still-current timeline. I've also decided that Lead Me Through the Fire and Close Your Eyes, Clear Your Heart are in the main timeline, contrary to what I'd decided first. Dragons at Dawn takes place before them.
On the upside, I think Life After the Tears was the first time I tried writing for a Marik who wasn't so much like Namu. I crushed on him so hard I wanted to think that when repented he would act similar to his Namu persona, but I think in reality he would have more fire and spunk. Namu is very similar to Bakura. Although it threw some long-term readers for a loop when I debuted a much more frustrated and cynical Marik! But given the circumstances of that fic, it was understandable. Also, I forgot his sarcastic catchphrase "Oh joy." LOL. I will have to bring that back. I think Marik as I started writing for him around 2009 was somewhere in between the two characterizations I wrote, and I hope to continue in that vein.
Another character who is different between timelines is Dartz. Both timelines have him be sarcastic, of course. But man, when he's free of the corruption, one would think he could be a little nicer to the bikers and Alexander! Especially since he was supposed to have been a just king before the Orichalcos got him. Instead, he initially thinks that Alexander isn't worth his time and he's awfully nasty to the bikers when they meet up again. Naturally it would be an awkward meeting, but ugh, it totally could have been handled better. I have him and Alister meet in Dragons at Dawn and I think I handled his behavior much better for the circumstances. He's not syrupy sweet and cuddly or anything like that (that would just be scary), but he does show his remorse to Alister and expresses a genuine desire for him to be happy now.
I wonder a bit if I will ever get the inspiration to continue Der Engel des Todes. One reader still longs for that! I did like the stuff with Siegfried and Valkyries, and I remember Siegfried was going to be the big hero in that one, but overall I don't know that it will ever be continued, especially since it's definitely in a defunct timeline that I'm not crazy about revisiting. I would love to write a fic for the new timeline where Siegfried gets to be the big hero, though! Maybe I should write a blurb of something like that, just for fun. Or maybe I already did years ago; maybe I'll check later. I do remember he was the hero in Escape. I still like Siegfried and probably will even more whenever I get to see his episodes again. At the same time, I recognize that he is a jerk. Even as a kid. Fooling around with the computers at the KaibaCorp party where he's a guest ... WTH. I still remember Seto's appalled and disgusted and angry look in that flashback. But I like to think he was going to be better after the end of his arc. And I'm a sucker for squee sibling relationships!
Anyway, another problem with continuing that old fic is Alexander. I still love and adore him, but I'm no longer sure I like the idea of him being part of Alister's heart. Although I mostly abandoned that years ago by having him determining he was really his own person. And his interaction with Dartz is so cute! But since Alexander is slated to be part of my novel if it ever gets off the ground, I don't know that I should write any more for him in fanfiction.
One fic I'm toying with continuing is Until You Find the Answers, another one a reader keeps hoping for. I was upset to see I'd referenced Death-T in it. I remember back then I felt there was no way around Death-T having happened. Now I'm thinking, "WTH was I thinking?" Death-T did not happen in the Duel Monsters anime, nor can I picture that Seto ever doing such a thing. All Setos are messed-up, but at least the Duel Monsters anime Seto wasn't that messed-up. I'm going to edit that fic and replace Siegfried's mention of Death-T with him instead bringing up the takeover fiasco and Seto blaming Mokuba for Gozaburo finding out. Which was also awful, and I wish the dub had kept Seto's explanation for why he did that.