Line #91 Fanfic/ShadowsAndLight


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sal_epic_long_fanart_6_9.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:[[http://fanartdrawer.tumblr.com/post/65175304026/i-tribute-to-a-fanfiction-that-helped-me-to-learn This is the quality of fanart that this series inspires.]]]]
3
4	-> ''"...there is [[TheFairFolk far more]] in this world than just my darkness.''"
5	->-- '''Pitch Black'''
6
7	''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/642848 From The Darkness We Rise]]'' and its sequel, ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/766729 Into Shadows We Fall]]'', can be summarised as [[{{Lemon}} explicit]] ''WesternAnimation/RiseOfTheGuardians'' {{Slash Fic}}s about [[TheHero Jack Frost]] and [[BigBad Pitch Black]].
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9	This would, however, be an entirely inadequate summary.
10
11	''Twenty two years have passed since the defeat of Pitch, and Jack lives alone, touch-starved, with only the company of a solitary Nightmare. One evening the Man in the Moon sets him on a path that will lead him to unexpected relationships, draw the attention of the Guardians to a new coalition of villains, and challenge Jack's every notion of what it is to be good, evil, and what it is to live in the shadows.''
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13	This is the author's summary, which is much better.
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15	The ''Shadows And Light'' duology is much more than PornWithPlot; a combination of elements from the movie and the [[Literature/TheGuardiansOfChildhood original books]], as well as drawing inspiration from mythology, ''SAL'' is an epic adventure story set in a [[{{Worldbuilding}} well-detailed]] [[FanVerse verse]], an exploration of relationships, and a nuanced presentation of emotional and psychological issues.
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17	Many of the original supporting characters have gotten a SpinOff series of their own, [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/FaeTales Fae Tales]].
18	----
19	!! Tropes featured in ''Shadows And Light'' include:
20	* AncientEvil / TimeAbyss: All but stated by the Nain Rouge about what she is, calling the other fae 'young things' and saying that she can't die, but wil simply bide her time, waiting for a chance to rise again.
21	* ArchEnemy: The Nain Rouge is this for Jack throughout the story, despite not actually being the BigBad.
22	* TheAssimilator: The Nain Rouge doesn't just drain the LifeEnergy of her prey, she absorbs their powers for her own use.
23	* AxCrazy: The Nain Rouge is kind of insane. Augus too, especially in his first introduction.
24	* BatmanGambit: [[spoiler:The plan by which Augus is lured out and trapped.]]
25	* {{BFG}}: [[spoiler:Toothiana has a cannon, and nearly shatters one of Augus's protective shields with a single cannonball.]]
26	* {{BFS}}: Pitch owns a two-handed long-sword.
27	* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:Mora]]. The author originally intended for the character to be KilledOffForReal.
28	* BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind: [[spoiler:Pitch successfully fights one against the living shadows with the help of Jack, Gwyn, and light-amplifying weapons made by North]]. [[spoiler:He also tells Jack about how he fought to keep his sword despite the shadows definitely not wanting a weapon which could hurt them to be kept around]].
29	* BigBad: Augus Each Uisge. [[spoiler:At least until the Nightmare King returns at the ending of the first story, making him the true BigBad of the story, making Augus TheDragon.]]
30	** TheDragon: The Nain Rouge, although she is more of a DragonWithAnAgenda in this story, making her seem more threatening than Augus.
31	* BigBrotherInstinct: [[spoiler:Augus toward Ash]].
32	* BrokenAce: Pitch. [[spoiler:It's implied that Gwyn is one as well, and this is explored much further in later works.]]
33	* BerserkButton: Pitch does not react well to Jack finding a certain locket among his belongings.
34	* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Fae in general, though more obvious among the Unseelie.
35	* BreakThemByTalking: The Nightmare King tries this on Jack [[spoiler:through a dream. Jack manages to respond with a ShutUpHannibal]]. [[spoiler:This is also Pitch's contribution to the trap the group sets for Augus.]]
36	* TheChainsOfCommanding: Being the King of the Seelie Court is a thankless job in which he has to confront threats so dire the previous King stepped down rather than face them, keep vigil as fae sundered from their homes die painful deaths before him, and work together with difficult allies. But as a fae whose current heartsong is justice, Gwyn can't not try his best to fulfil his responsibilities, or not feel bad when things don't go well.
37	* CompellingVoice: Predatory waterhorses have this.
38	* CoolSword: Made of a rare metal [[ThunderboltIron mined from meteorites]], Pitch's sword can repel the living shadows.
39	* DarkIsNotEvil: Jack’s Nightmare companion, Mora. Pitch gradually becomes this. [[spoiler:Unseelie allies such as Gulvi and Ash count as well, for varying definitions of ‘not evil’.]]
40	* {{Determinator}}: Jack, [[spoiler:especially when his center is resolve]].
41	* DidWeJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu: Most people find [[spoiler:Makara]] terrifying. Jack is not one of them, to general consternation.
42	* DistractedByTheSexy: Pitch gets distracted by Jack's proximity and attendant fears, to the point of nearly making out with him, at a very inappropriate time. Namely, [[spoiler:while in the Nain Rouge's lair, spying on her]].
43	* {{Doorstopper}}: The two stories, taken together, clocks in at over four hundred thousand words; the author has written longer works, but ''[=SaL=]'' still isn't exactly light reading.
44	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: [[spoiler:Augus, even at his most unstable, won't fight his brother Ash.]]
45	* TheFairFolk: Well, yes, they're an integral part of the verse and story.
46	* FateWorseThanDeath: Being possessed by the living shadows is not only excruciatingly painful, it can mean being trapped helpless and disconnected in endless dark - or being forced to bear witness as the shadows commit atrocities with your very hands.
47	* FightingFromTheInside: [[spoiler:Even while possessed by the living shadows, Pitch retains enough presence of mind to help Jack get his stolen power back from the Nain Rouge.]]
48	* {{Glamour}}: Gwyn calls it dra’ocht, and fae can use it to affect the perceptions and emotions of those around them.
49	* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Jack cites concern about this as one of the reasons for his concern about Pitch, as he's got a lot of personal experience.
50	* GoodIsNotNice: Gwyn is a [[ManipulativeBastard ruthless manipulator]] of people when he believes it necessary; Jack isn't happy about finding himself on the receiving end.
51	* GreenThumb: Ash Glashtyn and Augus Each Uisge, who have living waterweed growing in their hair, and can summon more from their wrists to attack and bind foes.
52	* HealingHands: [[spoiler:One of the uses Pitch puts his light to.]]
53	* HeelFaceTurn: Pitch does one gradually.
54	* HorrorHunger: Many Unseelie fae have this, most notably the Nain Rouge and the Each Uisge.
55	** ToServeMan
56	* IcePalace: [[spoiler:Jack’s home, when he finally learns how to make a proper one. Though it’s more of a lighthouse.]]
57	* KilledOffForReal: Jamie, in the very first chapter, [[PlotTriggeringDeath setting off Jack's journey]] in the process.
58	* LightEmUp: [[spoiler:Pitch]] discovers that he still possesses this power, which comes from his past as [[spoiler:a Golden Warrior]]. Gwyn has light powers as well, though of a different kind.
59	** HolyHandGrenade: They put said powers to good use against the living shadows.
60	* LivingLieDetector: Makara is one, and it's best not to lie to him.
61	* MakingASplash: Implied on the parts of Albion and Ondine, Seelie water fae allies, though never seen; they merely constantly drip water or leave wet footprints wherever they go. Augus, for his part, can teleport from place to place through water.
62	* OneToMillionToOne: Gwyn teleports by dissolving into light.
63	* PapaWolf: North fits this trope for Jack, to the point where he stood up for Jack when Gwyn threatened him and it didn't go well. Gwyn is a King, but not "his king".
64	* ThePowerOfLove: [[spoiler:When they confront the Nightmare King, Jack makes a life-size frost figure of Seraphina to draw Pitch's consciousness to the surface and inspire him to fight off the shadows.]]
65	* ProtectiveCharm: Makara can weave scarves enchanted to hide the wearer's fears from a being otherwise able to sense them.
66	* PsychopathicManchild: While the Nain Rouge doesn't ''act'' particularly childishly, the mere fact that she looks like a human child (albeit one with matted, bloodstained hair and wearing rotting furs) certainly creates this effect.
67	* RedEyesTakeWarning: The Nain Rouge.
68	* ReluctantRuler: Gwyn was made King of the Seelie Court against his desires.
69	* ScarsAreForever: Magically induced wounds, [[spoiler:such as the Nain Rouge's aborted attempt to steal Jack's power]], leave this kind of scars.
70	* {{Seers}}: The water fae Ondine can, by simply taking hold of someone's hand, read their future, though it's neither foolproof nor necessarily informative.
71	* SirSwearsalot: The Nain Rouge practically regards profanity as punctuation.
72	* SoWhatDoWeDoNow: This is the premise upon which ''[=FtDWR=]'' begins, as Jack is left to himself again in the wake of the Guardians' victory.
73	* SternTeacher: Pitch and Gwyn can both be like this, to Jack's consternation.
74	* SupernaturalGoldEyes: In the world that Pitch came from, those born with these were destined to become Golden Warriors.
75	* SwansASwimming: Gulvi is a swan maiden fae.
76	* TallDarkAndSnarky: Pitch, naturally. Augus Each Uisge as well.
77	* TeleportationSickness: When Jack is feeling extremely unwell, Pitch's method of teleportation causes him to throw up.
78	* ThereAreNoTherapists: [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], what with the characters belonging to mythology and folklore.
79	* TragicKeepsake: Pitch has two, the locket and [[spoiler:the [[MementoMacguffin sword]]]].
80	* UnholyMatrimony: There are hints that the Nightmare King and Augus could have been this in the past. [[spoiler:They weren't.]]
81	* VaguenessIsComing: The Man in the Moon’s cryptic message to Jack in the first chapter which begins events.
82	* VampiricDraining: What the Nain Rouge does, taking a mix of LifeEnergy and magical ability.

Context Fanfic / ShadowsAndLight