Tropers / Pyxis

i need to put an image here i don't like it when links show kestra as the preview image for the whole page

hi i'm just using this page for character tropes for my own fantasy romance novel that is still in the early stages. things will probably shift around a lot as i keep working on it. all art is my own. hope you enjoy

note: if a trope name in the story tropes folder is spoiled out, and not just the entry, that means it's nsfw. does not apply to the character tropes folder

Lightning on the Skin - Main Characters

Kestra Iomhara

A spy and common foot soldier who finds himself tangled up in aristocratic drama that has nothing to do with him... or does it?

---

• Achey Scars: The usually painless markings from the plague he survived as a child begin to act up as he is being magically experimented on without his knowledge.
• Adorkable: he's gap moe
• Adrenaline Makeover: Switches to a sleeveless outfit in the third act, exposing his scars.
• Almighty Janitor: He's of the most common rank in the army, but becomes a major player in a national intrigue.
• Ambiguous Disorder: His PTSD is explicit in the text. Less explicit is his depression, manifesting in a lack of hobbies, goals or any real drive in life (at least at the start of the story).
  • He also displays occasional traits of autism or ADHD, like stimming and being disgusted by certain textures, and of course the whole social isolation thing. This is more me projecting than anything else though.
• Anti-Hero: Pragmatic type (formerly Type III). His morals are in the right place, but his methods and personality less so.
• Archer Archetype: Fits just about everything on the page to a T.
• Badass Normal: Is able to hold his own in drama among The Magocracy despite not being a magic user himself.
  • Empowered Badass Normal: As Temiun's experiments take their toll, he becomes able to do magic himself, although it causes him great physical pain.
• Bi The Way
• Clothing-Concealed Injury: For most of the story, he wears clothes that cover everything except his head and hands, which is the extent of his scars.
• Cold Sniper: Has shades of this, being an archer.
  • Friendly Sniper: Once you get past his emotional defenses and he starts to loosen up.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Dark blue.
• Combat Pragmatist
• Creator's Favorite: i would die for him. i would kill and die for him. kestra iomhara i would take a bullet for you
• Dangerous Deserter: After certain plot events go down.
• Deadpan Snarker: On occasion, although he usually keeps to himself too much to bother.
• Defrosting Ice King: As his relationship with Lillian progresses.
• Establishing Character Moment: The first thing he does in the plot is calmly stop an assassination by killing a man in cold blood after deciding that it would probably be most convenient towards his own situation to do so.
• Farm Boy: Used to be one years ago, before his tragic backstory struck.
• Friendless Background: The loner and trauma subtypes.
• Hitman with a Heart: In fact, he quit being a hitman after being ordered to kill a child.
• I Just Want to Have Friends: Not as intensely as Lillian, but Kestra does sometimes express envy over his sister having a social life.
• Insecure Love Interest: He's the protagonist, but still spends a while wondering what Lillian sees in him.
• I Work Alone: Downplayed. He'll work with others if it's what he's told to do, but prefers solo missions.
• Master of the Mixed Message: Unintentionally, but came off that way towards Lillian for a while, due to struggling between his own romantic feelings and Temiun's injunction to separate himself from Lillian for Lillian's own safety.
• The Napoleon: He's only a little on the short side, but certainly comes off that way next to Lillian.
• Only Has Same-Sex Admirers: Kestra is bisexual, but since he didn't start to come out of his shell until he joined the military, his past flings were all with men.
• Phlebotinum Rebel: After years of secretly trying to shape him into a prototype supersoldier, Temiun accomplishes his goal - only for Kestra to turn all that power back on him.
• Power Incontinence
  • Emotional Powers
  • Pent-Up Power Peril
• Pragmatic Hero: One of his defining traits. Most of what he does is done with his own self-interest at heart, although he doesn't go out of his way to be an asshole. He also isn't afraid to fight dirty, and doesn't really hold with high-minded notions of honor and chivalry.
• Punch-Clock Hero / Punch-Clock Villain: Depending on the mission.
• Transgender: why is this a trope. trans people are a narrative device now i guess. but yes he is
• Trauma Conga Line: His backstory already left him with PTSD, then he gets captured and experimented on over the course of several days - and that's only the plot points I've already figured out.
• *Twang* Hello: What is the point of having an archer character if you don't get to do this?
• Scars Are Forever: He and Selene both have full-body scars◊ from the plague they survived as children. Unlike normal scars, these can't be healed even through magic.
• Sleeves Are for Wimps: His post-makeover outfit.
• Sole Survivor: Said plague also killed everyone in their hometown except for Kestra and Selene.
• The Stoic
  • Not So Stoic: Around good food or people he trusts.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: He's a lot more laid-back around those close to him (which currently is all of two people).
• Sweet Tooth
• Unwitting Pawn: Of Temiun.
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Was a cheerful farm boy before his backstory happened.
• When He Smiles: He has a lovely smile, but it doesn't appear often.
• Working-Class Hero: In contrast to the nobility who make up most of the conflict.
• Wouldn't Hurt a Child: Risked execution over it.

Lillian Dolphei

A captain in the army, skilled, kindhearted, and perhaps a touch too naive.

---

• Adorkable
• Badass Bookworm: He didn't do much other than read and train at swordfighting for all his teen years.
• Badass Gay
• Big Brother Worship: Towards Temiun. Oops.
• Break the Cutie: His idealistic worldview gets shattered hard. He's able to piece it back together (with more wisdom and common sense involved this time), but not before going through some serious trauma.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Tries to see the best in everyone, but woe betide you if you're past redemption in his eyes.
• The Captain
• Celibate Hero: Was this until he met Kestra, having resigned himself to never finding love due to his orientation.
  • Deconfirmed Bachelor
• Chronic Hero Syndrome: It gets him in trouble sometimes.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Light green.
• Covert Pervert: Bubbly and innocent, but it becomes clear his enormous crush on Kestra has a healthy sexual component as well.
• Crush Filter: Chapters from his POV are very complimentary of Kestra's appearance.
• Defector from Decadence
• Deuteragonist: He gets almost as much focus in the plot as Kestra does, and not just as his love interest.
• Gayngst: Not as heavy-handed as most examples (written by straight people), but it's clear the homophobia in his family has taken something of a toll. See Celibate Hero and Oblivious to Love.
• Gender-Blender Name: i didn't even know lillian was a real-life name when i came up with him sorry lol
• Gray Eyes: The innocent archetype.
• Honor Before Reason
• Horrible Judge of Character: Trusts far too easily.
• I Just Want to Have Friends: Big time. His eagerness to get to know Kestra can be put down to this before the crush starts to set in.
• I Kiss Your Hand: Likes doing this to Kestra, especially before they've gotten together and he can pass it off as a gesture of politeness.
• The Ingenue
• Insists on Paying
• Lonely Rich Kid: More justified than other examples, as his parents deliberately encouraged his isolation since he was seen as a problem child.
• Love Interest: To Kestra.
• Morality Chain: To Temiun, although it's not so much out of affection or loyalty on Temiun's end so much as the fact that he doesn't want to deal with the political fallout of Lillian trying to stop him. Also, this only applies to actions Lillian might find out about - when it comes to dealings under the table, what Lillian doesn't know won't hurt him...
• Military Mage
  • Magic Knight
• Martial Pacifist: A fighter to be reckoned with, but tries to avoid violence when he can.
• Nice Guy: One of the nicest characters in the series.
• Noble Fugitive: After he publicly sides with Kestra, by now a wanted man.
• Oblivious to Love: Is so used to the notion that he is alone in his gayness that it takes him a long time to recognize the obvious signs that his feelings for Kestra are mutual.
• Officer and a Gentleman
• Real Men Wear Pink: Has a pastel color theme and pink accessories, and also writes poetry. He also can and will kick your ass if you cross certain moral lines.
• Sheltered Aristocrat: Has very little idea of the injustices that go on in the world. This is because his family judged him too headstrong and compassionate (and gay) for politics and so deliberately kept him from that kind of knowledge.
• Skilled, but Naive
• Spoiled Sweet
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: He and his brother are noted to be unusually tall.
• Trauma Conga Line: I haven't worked out the details yet, but he's gonna get it bad.
• Warrior Poet: He writes poetry in his spare time.
• Wide-Eyed Idealist: The crux of many a plot event including why so many people want him dead.

Lightning on the Skin - Commoners

Selene Iomhara

Kestra's twin sister. A priestess and magic user.

• Badass Gay
• Badass Preacher: Of the Fantasy Pantheon variety.
• Barrier Maiden: Her religion's magic focuses on protection.
  • Barrier Warrior
• The Coats Are Off: Usually wears a long robe over her priestess attire, but takes it off when it's time to get serious.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Red.
• Does Not Like Men
• The First Cut Is the Deepest: Still has issues from her breakup with Yamela.
• Good Is Not Nice: Dedicating her life to helping others hasn't changed her abrasive personality.
• Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: She and her brother invert this.
• Martial Pacifist
• My Brother Is Off Limits: Is wary of Lillian's obvious interest in Kestra, considering her (justified) distrust of aristocrats.
• Scars Are Forever: See Kestra's entry.
• Secret-Keeper: Found evidence of the Dolphei family's involvement in hugely unethical magic experiments decades ago, and has been keeping it a secret for years.
• Simple Staff: It's a tool for magic, but also an effective bludgeon.
• Sole Survivor: Along with her brother.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: Like her brother.
• Thou Shalt Not Kill
• Warrior Monk

Moss

A ghost who died by drowning.

• Barred from the Afterlife: Since no one was around to perform the funeral rites, they can't pass on.
• Dull Eyes of Unhappiness
• Fog Feet: A variation - since they can't leave the water, their feet are never visible.
• Fearless Undead
• Friendly Ghost: Once you get past the gloomy and creepy exterior.
• Ghost Amnesia: Doesn't remember much of their previous life.
• Making a Splash: Has limited water powers from having died by drowning.
• Name Amnesia: Kestra gives them a new one.
  • Line-of-Sight Name: He's also not very creative.
• Portal Pool: Has this ability.
• Sole Survivor: Well, technically. They're dead, but no one else in their village even managed to become a ghost.
• Tagalong Kid: They're in the 17-19 range, contrasting with the rest of the cast who are well into their 20s, or older.
• Vengeful Ghost: Once they learn their death was a result of one of Temiun's experiments.

Lightning on the Skin - Nobles

Temiun Dolphei (walking spoiler)

Lillian's older brother, and Kestra's commander.

• The Ace
• Aloof Big Brother
• Aristocrats Are Evil
• Bad Samaritan: To Kestra, once upon a time.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Spends most of the story playing the earnest, reasonable good guy role before dropping the facade.
• The Chessmaster
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Dark green.
• Commanding Coolness: Is Lord Commander of his family's army.
• The Dragon: To Ambroi.
  • Dragon-in-Chief: He's also considerably more dangerous.
  • Dragon Ascendant: Kills Ambroi two thirds of the way through the story to take over the role of the main villain.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He's committed to ensuring Lillian's death, but has a much harder time bringing himself to do it with his own hands.
• Faux Affably Evil
• Gray Eyes: The steely, strong-willed archetype.
• Last-Name Basis -> First-Name Basis: As Kestra becomes more used to having Lillian around, the narration changes to reflect the fact that he knows more than one Dolphei.
• Married to the Job: He's uninterested in romance.
• Manipulative Bastard: Pulls everyone in his vicinity around like puppets.
• Mentor Archetype: To Kestra, albeit a distant variety. For his own purposes, of course.
• Military Mage
  • Magic Knight
• Moral Event Horizon: His morals were already sketchy due to the politics he was raised in, but the real point of no return was orchestrating his parents' death.
• Officer and a Gentleman
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Seems to be this at first.
• Self-Made Orphan: Engineered the poisoning of both his parents to have a chance at the crown.
• Shipping Torpedo: Expresses distaste for Kestra and Lillian's relationship, and tries to keep them apart to make Kestra more isolated and therefore easier to prey on.
• A Sinister Clue: He's left-handed and secretly evil.
• The Starscream: To Ambroi. He still resents Ambroi for seizing the throne that was meant to be his and plans to kill him as soon as their alliance has outlived its purpose.
• The Stoic: It's mentioned that Lillian is easily able to see through Kestra's cool demeanor to his positive qualities underneath because his bond with his brother works the same way.
• Straight Edge Evil: He doesn't drink and is opposed to premarital sex.
• Stringing the Hopeless Suitor Along: Is aware of Maurin's feelings for him, and deliberately fuels them just enough to keep him extra loyal.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: With Ambroi.
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: :(
• Walking Spoiler: I tried to spoiler tag his entry like I've been doing for everyone else and just gave up. Sorry
• Wicked Cultured
• Xanatos Speed Chess: Is constantly adjusting his plans to fit new plot developments.

Yamela Laventri

The current matriarch of the Laventri family.

• Alpha Bitch
• Anti-Villain -> Anti-Hero
• Aristocrats Are Evil
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Selene.
• Break the Haughty
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Purple.
• Defecting for Love: Eventually rebels against the aristocracy along with Selene.
• Dual Wielding: Wields two long knives.
• Heel–Face Turn
• Lady of War
• Lipstick Lesbian
• Silk Hiding Steel
• The Woman Wearing The Queenly Mask

Ravel Laventri

bastard

• Bastard Boyfriend
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing
• Handsome Lech
• Incompatible Orientation: Married a lesbian. Not that he cares.
• Nobility Marries Money: The Laventri family is far from poor, but otherwise this trope applies.
• Trophy Husband: Yamela rushed into the marriage in a bid for status.
• Unwanted Spouse

Marcellus Ambroi

The king, unfortunately.

• Aristocrats Are Evil
• Beware the Silly Ones: He's an immature manchild, but underestimate him at your peril.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Orange.
• Devil in Plain Sight
• Fiery Redhead
• The Fighting Narcissist
• Hair-Trigger Temper
• Last-Name Basis
• The Man Behind the Man: To Temiun. Or is Temiun this to him? It's complicated.
• Out-Gambitted: By Temiun, frequently.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: He's homophobic lol
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Delivers one to Lillian, and then to Temiun.
• Royal Brat: Petty, immature, and entitled.
• Smug Snake
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: With Temiun.
• The Usurper: Stole the crown from Temiun.

Syrilla Maurin

A magic scientist working under Temiun.

• All of the Other Reindeer: Was bullied for being born out of wedlock throughout his entire life.
• Aristocrats Are Evil
• Bad Boss
• Bastard Bastard: Illegitimately descended from one of the noble families, thus has lived in the shadow his whole life.
• Because You Were Nice to Me: Fell in love with Temiun pretty much as soon as the latter showed him some respect.
• Cold-Blooded Torture: His human experimentation tendencies double as this.
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Teal (for now).
• Dirty Coward: Unlike most examples, he's actually competent.
• Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette
• Faking the Dead: Somewhat. After he disappeared from the public eye, a lot of people assumed he died, and isn't about to correct them.
• Horny Scientist: *sighs* *gestures in Temiun's general direction*
• Ignored Enamored Underling: To Temiun, who may or may not be deliberately stringing him along to better ensure his loyalty.
• Karmic Death: He was in charge of carrying out the experiment that killed Moss and their entire village. Moss finally pulls him into the water and drowns him, much like they themself drowned years ago.
• Last-Name Basis
• Mad Scientist
• Peek A Bangs
• Playing with Syringes: Does extensive experiments on Kestra once he gets his hands on him, none of it remotely ethical.
• Recruited from the Gutter: Temiun saved him from a life of obscurity and indignity.
• Sanity Slippage: Moss haunts him while waiting for their powers to grow strong enough to attack him directly, sending him into a slow nervous breakdown.
• Servile Snarker: Alternates between nervous subservience and barbed comments.
• Sufficiently Analyzed Magic: His job.
• Undying Loyalty: To Temiun, to the point where he refuses to work for anyone else. It ends up being a plot point.

Lightning on the Skin - Story Tropes

• After-Action Patch-Up: Happens a lot.
• Altar Diplomacy: Yamela's marriage was this.
• Aristocrats Are Evil: If the character listings didn't make it clear enough, the upper classes in this world are teeming with corruption.
• Assassination Attempt: The story begins with Kestra foiling an attempt on Lillian's life.
• A World Half Full: The main philosophy of the story.
• Badass Gay: Half the main cast lol
• Battle Couple: Kestra and Lillian.
• Beta Couple: Selene and Yamela, although unusually for the trope they're a lot more dysfunctional than the main pairing.
• Beware the Honest Ones: Why Temiun decides to have Lillian killed.
• Bickering Couple, Peaceful Couple: Selene and Yamela for the first one, Kestra and Lillian for the second one.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: Temiun and Ambroi.
• Big, Screwed-Up Family: All the noble clans, but especially the Dolpheis.
• Black-and-Gray Morality: Kestra is an Anti-Hero, but the bad guys are irredeemable.
• Bodyguard Crush: Kestra and Lillian first begin to develop feelings for each other while Kestra is taking a job as Lillian's bodyguard.
• Break Up Demand: Temiun orders Kestra to distance himself from Lillian for Lillian's own safety.
• Broken Pedestal: Lillian does not take the news of Temiun's villainy well.
• Cast Full of Gay: hell yeah
• The Clan: All the noble families are this.
• Costume Porn: The nobles. This is why they'll never be drawn consistently I can't keep track of all the details -.-
• Crying After Sex: Lillian cries from happiness during sex with Kestra.
• Deadly Decadent Court: The noble families all taken together count as this.
• Due to the Dead: Mandatory in this setting - otherwise you get ghosts.
• Earn Your Happy Ending: All the good guys get a Happy Ever After, but not before going through some serious shit.
• Emotional Powers: The uncontrollable magic Kestra gains from being experimented on functions this way.
• Everyone Can See It: Kestra and Lillian.
• Feuding Families
• Foil: Kestra and Lillian. See Opposites Attract.
  • Kestra and Selene as well. See Not So Similar.
• Forgotten First Meeting: Kestra and Lillian met once after Temiun found Kestra and Selene in their deserted hometown. This had a profound effect on both of them, although neither of them recognizes the other in the present day.
• Good Cop/Bad Cop: Temiun and Ambroi have this rapport, with Ambroi's Obviously Evil tendencies allowing Temiun to slip under the radar by comparison.
• Good People Have Good Sex: Good enough that Kestra's newfound Emotional Powers briefly warp reality in Lillian's bedroom.
• Great Offscreen War: The 18th Succession War, which took place six years before the current plot and set the scene for much of the current political drama.
• Half-Identical Twins: Kestra and Selene. Justified in that Kestra is trans.
• Happy Marriage Charade: Yamela and Ravel.
• Identical Twin Mistake: The Dolpheis thought it was Kestra who made off with one of their most closely guarded secrets as a child, but it was actually Selene.
• Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Lillian, courtesy of Ambroi. He gets better.
• Important Haircut: Since Rapunzel Hair is a sign of status and wealth, Lillian turning his back on his family involves one of these.
• The Immodest Orgasm: Kestra, to his own embarrassment.
• Incompatible Orientation: Maurin's long-standing crush on Temiun, who is straight and low-key homophobic. Ravel marrying Yamela for wealth and power despite her being a lesbian also counts.
• Inevitable Mutual Betrayal: Temiun and Ambroi.
• I Owe You My Life: Lillian to Kestra in the beginning, although Kestra rebuffs him since he doesn't believe in life debts. Doesn't stop Lillian from attempting to repay him much later.
• It's Personal with the Dragon: Kestra and Lillian both have far more history with Temiun than with Ambroi. Subverted when Ambroi is killed and Temiun takes over.
• Kill the Poor: Temiun and his lackeys turn out to be using entire working-class communities as guinea pigs, often - as in the case of Kestra's and Moss' hometowns - with lethal results.
• King on His Deathbed: The setup for the 18th Succession War.
• Language of Magic: How the magic system works.
• Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Every single male character so far. Yes I have a type shut up.
• Low Fantasy
• The Magocracy: Magic is a science that anyone can study, but the knowledge is kept from the lower classes, leading to this trope. This becomes a major factor of the political drama.
• The Maiden Name Debate: Ravel took his wife's last name as a symbol of him marrying into her family and thus having access to its power.
• Mystical Plague: The sickness Kestra and Selene survived as children? That wasn't a natural one.
• Not So Different: Kestra and Lillian have very different backgrounds, personalities and worldviews, but they're both lonely, isolated, repressed individuals, and are both willing to disobey any order to do what's right.
• Not So Similar: Kestra and Selene are not only twins with a shared backstory, but are both reserved, sharp-tongued and pragmatic with a Sugar-and-Ice Personality, leading them to appear very similar. However, Kestra is a loner, works in his own interest, and has no real goals in life, while Selene works closely with others in an organization dedicated to doing good in the world. This ends up being the defining difference between them, as it significantly impacts their outlooks and worldview.
• Now or Never Kiss: Kestra and Lillian get one when Kestra is about to be dragged towards likely execution. Kestra cuts it short.
• Opposites Attract: Kestra is stoic, reserved and pragmatic, and from common stock; Lillian is effusive, idealistic and romantic, and a noble. They end up married.
• The Power of Love: Kestra is protected from the pain of the torture he undergoes by a talisman from Lillian with a love poem written on it.
• Rapunzel Hair: All the nobles, regardless of gender.
• Redemption in the Rain: Yamela gets one.
• Religion is Magic
• Rescue Romance: Kestra and Lillian technically fall into this given the opening events of the story, although shooting the assassin gunning for the guy a hundred feet away from both of you and then walking away isn't exactly a Meet Cute.
  • Lillian had another when when he was younger, with a boy who found him after he fell down a ravine.
• Sex for Solace: Between Lillian and Kestra while Lillian is still emotionally devastated by his brother's betrayal.
• Sexy Discretion Shot: Kestra and Lillian get it on several times in the narrative after their Relationship Upgrade, but it's never depicted in detail.
• Short Range Guy, Long Range Guy: Lillian (swordsman) and Kestra (archer) respectively.
• Sibling Murder: Attempted by Temiun at the beginning, succeeded by Lillian at the end.
• Sickeningly Sweethearts: Kestra and Lillian for a while after their Relationship Upgrade.
  • Make-Out Kids: That, too.
• Soldier vs. Warrior: Kestra as the soldier, Lillian as the warrior (albeit a Martial Pacifist version). This causes some friction between them initially.
• Subordinate Excuse: When both their units are deployed, Lillian uses Kestra being his bodyguard as an excuse to take him everywhere with him despite them being in different regiments. He's not subtle.
• Succession Crisis: The cause of the 18th Succession War.
• Sufficiently Analyzed Magic: Magic in this world is treated like a science, with new applications and techniques being researched for and discovered all the time.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Temiun and Ambroi. Temiun must carry out all his projects under direction of the royal court, or face execution; meanwhile Ambroi has to keep Temiun on board because Maurin, who is indispensable to the project, won't answer to anyone else. The end result is them working together, although neither is happy about it.
• Til Murder Do Us Part: Ravel gets got by Yamela. It's very satisfying.
• Traumatic Superpower Awakening: After Kestra is experimented on by Maurin, he gains magic powers he is unable to control.
• Unrequited Love Switcheroo: More like "unreciprocated flirting switcheroo", but Kestra begins pulling away from Lillian and rebuffing his advances after Temiun's injunction to distance himself from him to keep Lillian from facing the same consequences as Kestra. Later, when Lillian is himself a wanted man and the issue is moot, Kestra once more feels comfortable being physically affectionate with Lillian, but Lillian has by now convinced himself he was just imagining the feelings were mutual and doesn't reciprocate Kestra's advances so as not to weird him out.
• Vow Of Chastity: Most religious practitioners take one, including all the women at the Alhomera temple; however, in the latter case at least, the vow consists specifically of forswearing the touch of the opposite gender. One can imagine the result.
• Will They or Won't They?: Kestra and Lillian. slowburn babey
• World of Badass: It's a dangerous world and knowing how to fight is pretty essential for survival. Even peaceful monks like Selene are compelled to learn to defend themselves when traveling.

Revenant

My other project. Less developed for now and with a lot fewer characters, so it all goes in one folder. Wheee

Revenant

• Attractive Zombie: After his resurrection.
• Back from the Dead: Gets resurrected. That's kind of the driving force of the plot.
• Barbarian Longhair: Many male characters in this setting have long hair, but Rev's is unkempt and wild, showcasing his... wild-ness.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Koray.
• Big Friendly Dog: His wolf form can be enthusiastically friendly... if he likes you.
• Blood Knight: Gets scarily enthusiastic about fighting.
• Cute Little Fangs
• Fiery Redhead
• Foregone Conclusion: It's understood that he's going to die for good this time as his body that isn't meant to be alive slowly breaks down.
• Fur Against Fang: His rivalry with Koray.
• Good Old Fisticuffs: Fights bare-handed and with no formal style, although Voluntary Shapeshifting makes him a lot more of a threat than many examples of this trope.
• I Meant to Do That: His resurrection wasn't his own choice at all, but he's not going to let the House of Night know.
• Peek A Bangs
• Meaningful Name: Lol
• Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: The world's first zombie werewolf!
• Only Known by Their Nickname: Everyone just calls him Rev.
• Savage Wolf: In combat.
• Stepford Smiler: Acts playful and smug while masking the physical pain in his body and his lack of control over the situation.
• Supernatural Gold Eyes
• Unwitting Pawn: To a degree - he knows he's being used, but doesn't know by who or what for.
• Voluntary Shapeshifting: As a werewolf.
• Voluntary Vampire Victim: Eggs Koray on to drink his blood, first out of necessity, then as foreplay.

Koray Eskarne

• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Rev.
• Blade On A Stick: Wields a spear, symbolizing his desire to keep a distance between himself and anything messy or complicated.
• The Comically Serious: Falls into this sometimes.
• Emotions vs. Stoicism: Part of the contrast between him and Rev, but also his own internal conflict as to which impulse to obey.
• Fur Against Fang: His rivalry with Rev.
• I Hate You, Vampire Dad: Spent most of his life not knowing who turned him, but it turns out to be the main antagonist.
• Kill the Ones You Love: Was the one to kill Rev the first time around.
• Kiss of the Vampire: Ends up using Rev as a food source; it's framed as romantic.
• The Magocracy: Is part of it.
• Mysterious Past: See Undead Child. No one knows who turned him, and people distrust him because of it.
• Lonely at the Top: The higher he climbs, the more afraid he is that his status could come undone.
• Rags to Riches: Was found wandering the streets as a child and taken in by the House of Night as a servant; ended up becoming one of its most high-ranking mages.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: Comes with the vampire territory.
• Rules Lawyer: Adheres zealously to the rules of the House of Night out of deep anxiety at the consequences.
• Sellout: Rev accuses him of being one.
• Slave to PR: His fundamental character conflict; he's on shaky ground within the House of Night and has to toe the line at all times to avoid losing it all.
• Short Hair With Tail
• The Stoic: Not as much as Kestra, but he does try to keep his emotions under wraps. He also lacks the Defrosting Ice King qualities of the former; he gets a lot of character development, but it doesn't make him any more friendly.
• Supporting Protagonist: Rev is the driving motor of the plot, but Koray is the one who observes and reacts.
• To Be Lawful or Good: When Rev suggests his rebellion.
• Uptight Loves Wild: Rule-abiding and falls in love with the rebellious Rev.
• Undead Child: Became a vampire in his childhood, in stark contrast to House vampires who are usually formally turned during their coming of age. He had to be regularly dosed with a potion that would compel his body to continue to grow normally, leading to some other vampires seeing him as "unnatural" or "wrong".

Manon Dechambeau

Koray's superior in the House of Night.

• Bifauxnen: Not always/entirely a woman, but this is their general aesthetic.
• Deadpan Snarker
• The Fair Folk
• Reasonable Authority Figure: Played with. They're distrustful of Koray and sometimes stand in the heroes' way, but their intentions are good and they prove a valuable ally in the end.
• Royal Rapier: As fitting of their sophisticated image.
• Rules Lawyer: Even more than Koray. Comes with the territory of being fae.

Story Tropes

• Anachronic Order: The story divides its telling between after and before Rev's resurrection. Yes I know I know shut up.
• Big Fancy Castle: The House of Night's central quarters are this.
• Cast Full of Gay
• Color-Coded for Your Convenience: Mages in the House of Night all wear the same general uniform (with some modifications based on rank), but the sash color changes based on species: red for vampires, blue for fae, green for dryads. Werewolves and demons get brown and black respectively, but there have historically been very few of those involved with the House.
• Council of Vampires: The House of Night is partly this, although there are multiple species involved.
• Extranormal Institute: The House of Night functions as a political alliance between species, to keep conflicts to a minimum.
• Friendly Neighborhood Vampire: The vampires in this story aren't all friendly, but they are three-dimensional people with the same moral code as most humans.
• Grim Up North: The setting is vague and probably not anywhere in this world, but nights are long and it's winter more often than not. The werewolf clans also borrow some classic Scandinavian aesthetics, only without the seafaring.
• Hemo Erotic: It's an adult romance novel with a vampire protagonist, you do the math.
• I Love You, Vampire Son: Under the laws of the House of Night, the creation of new vampires is strictly regulated, highly ritualized, and involves taking the new vampires into the fold for training and guidance.
• Kiss of the Vampire: Well... yeah.
• Lesbian Vampire: The whole cast is LGBT, the main two are shaping up to be the only male characters, and a good chunk of the population in this story is a vampire. One of them is bound to turn up eventually ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
• Man Bites Man: Rev's willingness to use biting as a fighting technique is seen as extremely crass and unsophisticated compared to the cultured House of Night, as well as being a symptom of his werewolf nature. When Koray does the same, it's a sign of his past as an orphan on the streets rather than his present as a trained House mage. Him being a vampire, it also bears the connotations of any imagery associated with improper feeding, even if feeding is not the goal in this instance.
• Vegetarian Vampire: Vampires affiliated with the House of Night take their blood from willing donors, which is then purified before drinking to remove any corrupting influence of the donor's soul. When Koray drinks straight from Rev's vein, it is breaking a major taboo.

misc

characters from vague concepts i'm just developing, or from old concepts i abandoned. assume anyone in this section is a lesbian unless otherwise stated btw

Dafna

• Friend to All Living Things
• A God I Am Not
• Knight in Sour Armor
• Magical Eye
• Mystical White Hair
• Who Wants to Live Forever?

Iona

• Anti-Hero
• Deuteragonist
• The Dreaded
• Heartbroken Badass: Is pining for Dafna a lot more than she lets on.
• Lady in Red
• Living Forever Is Awesome: Although it's becoming more and more of a facade.
• Person of Mass Destruction
• Stepford Smiler
• Who Wants to Live Forever?

unnamed supernatural secret agent

• Badass Normal: Doesn't have any powers, but makes up for it with lots of James Bond skills.
• The Casanova: Lesbian version. Although she has a Freudian Excuse.
• Gender-Blender Name: Her name is either Elijah, Ezra, or Oscar, I haven't decided.
• Tuxedo and Martini
• Ladykiller in Love: With the reporter character mentioned below, eventually.
• Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places: Sleeps with a lot of women...
• The Lost Lenore: ...to try to fill the void from the death of her wife.
• Men In Black: Or something like it. Still not clear on the details.

unnamed reporter

• Intrepid Reporter
• The Load: The secret agent considers her this.
• Manic Pixie Dream Girl

Rinna

A street rat turned assassin, tasked with killing the Queen.

• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Leveth.
• Big Ol' Eyebrows
• Hitman with a Heart
• Lovable Rogue
• Satisfied Street Rat
• Older Than They Look: She's in her 20s, but has a youthful face and build. This helps with scamming people.

Leveth

A royal guard tasked with protecting the Queen.

• Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Rinna.
• Bodyguard Crush: Towards the Queen.
• Cannot Tell a Lie
• Interplay of Sex and Violence: Fighting Rinna helps her realize the kind of mutual (sexual) relationship she actually wants, rather than the unequal one she has with the Queen.
• My Country, Right or Wrong: Initially has a bit of this, but grows out of it as the plot progresses.
• Sleeping with the Boss: The Queen.
• Sugar-and-Ice Personality: Outwardly blunt and stern, but softens in private.
• Undying Loyalty: The Queen, again.

The Queen

Fantasy queen. Not the parasite in chief of England.

• Ambiguous Innocence
• Eyes Always Shut: Not mentioned in text, but I like to draw her this way.
• Light Is Not Good: Wears entirely white and gold, and has white hair.
• Manipulative Bastard
• Mystical White Hair

Wildpath

the main character of my first novel attempt when i was a wee babe in 5th grade.... lol

• Action Girl
• Age Lift: Was originally 15 years old, then became 17 when I got a bit older and 15 no longer seemed so cool and mature to me lol.
• Ambiguously Gay: I tried giving her a male love interest and was like "nah I just can't see it" meanwhile she has a deep Psychic Link with Alani. I didn't even know what gay people were at the time lollll
• Animal Eyes: Slit pupils.
• Benevolent Mage Ruler: Tries/wants to be this.
• Flat Character
• My God, What Have I Done?: The first time she killed someone, it didn't go too great.
• Our Fairies Are Different: The Tolkien elf archetype, but flight-capable.
• Princess Protagonist: Actually the queen, but she's a teenager and only recently crowned, so it fits.
• Winged Humanoid: Can sprout wings when she needs to. The rest of the time they're not visible, though.
• The Woman Wearing The Queenly Mask: Falls into this sometimes, but it never really got fully explored.

Alani

Wildpath's sidekick. A talking leopard.

• Cats Are Snarkers
• Dark Secret: Implied. I never actually got around to figuring out what it was though lol
• Snarky Nonhuman Sidekick
• Wild Magic: Can do her own brand of magic.

Black River

My now-abandoned project from high school (freshman year into about junior-senior year). I never actually wrote more than scattered isolated scenes because it was constantly in the planning stage, with me trying to wrangle the immensely complicated worldbuilding into shape before I actually started on it (and I never did!) The fact that it was in the planning stage for years meant that the characters and plot underwent a LOT of changes from start to finish.

Aderyn

• Creepy Child
• Dark Is Not Evil
• Expy: Of Elva from Eragon, although I kind of forgot this over the several years of working on it.
• My Skull Runneth Over: Since a specific point in her childhood, has been hearing all the world's knowledge running through her head at all times. It's a lot to handle.
• Noble Fugitive
• Princess Protagonist
• Super-Empowering: Has been giving people powers in her sleep without realizing it, by taking bits of the stuff in her head and then slingshotting it elsewhere to ease the pressure. She thought it was just dream symbolism until there was a whole superpowered rebellion on her hands.
• Wise Beyond Their Years

Eyvindir

Aderyn's older sibling.

• Ambiguous Gender: Starts out as a cis guy (and started out as one when I began the story) but their life-changing near-death experience halfway through the story brings with it a marked change in presentation and the language used to refer to them.
• Big Brother Instinct
• Characterization Marches On: The version of them when I last abandoned the story is nearly unrecognizable from when I started working on it.
• Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Gets their own sword through the stomach and nearly dies, leading to a change in outlook and a decision to fight against the nobility they were once part of. Yes, I totally reused every aspect of this for Lillian.
• Noble Fugitive
• Royal Brat: Originally, although this trait started to fade with each revision.
• Traumatic Superpower Awakening: A variation - they already had the powers, but getting stabbed brought it to full strength and helped them to stop repressing it.
• You Are What You Hate: Started out trying to fight against the sudden onset of superpower-havers in the kingdom, while watching the powers developing in themself with growing horror. Eventually they embrace their powers and help in the rebellion.

Calla

• Cool Big Sis: Plays this role to the teenage protagonists.
• Fish out of Temporal Water: Came out of a time capsule, from a super-advanced Magitek society to a post-apocalyptic world that has regressed to the medieval era.
• Omnidisciplinary Scientist: Knows a bit of everything.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom

Tropes i like to work with just in general lol

• Action Girl
• Big, Screwed-Up Family
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer
• Cast Full of Gay
• Decadent Court
• Feuding Families
• Long-Haired Pretty Boy
• Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy
• Noble Demon
• Phlebotinum Rebel
• Ridiculously Human Robots
• Speculative Fiction LGBT
• The Starscream
• The Stoic: Protagonists especially.
• Sufficiently Analyzed Magic

transformers

what if i came up with my own tf continuity... haha just kidding.... unless...?

General tropes

• Both Sides Have a Point: The Autobots and Decepticons are not "good guys vs bad guys" so much as just two sides of a war, albeit with one more ruthless than the other.
• Cast Full of Gay: We're getting MTMTE-esque all up in here babey
• Deus Exit Machina: The story starts with Optimus Prime and Megatron both missing, and their respective factions attempting to find him.
• Grey-and-Gray Morality: Both sides have their good points and their bad points.
• Literal Split Personality: Combiners originated as this, having started out as giant Decepticons whose size made their sparks so unstable they needed to be split down into smaller, separate people.
• Mecha-Mooks: They're all mechas, but the Decepticons started out specifically as a disposable military class created to fight against the Quintessons, making them an Invoked Trope.
• Take a Third Option: Rather than defeat of either side, the war ends with the Autobots and Decepticons uniting against a common goal and signing a peace treaty.

Optimus Prime

• Hurting Hero: Feels the effects of the war more visibly than other incarnations.
• Reluctant Hero: Started out as this when the war began. He's long since grown into his role as leader, but this still shows through in how the war weighs on him.

Megatron

• Composite Character: Has his gladiator-turned-revolutionary backstory from Prime and IDW, but since he like the other Decepticons was built for war, he's also had his gun alternate mode from the start.
• Cultured Badass: Has written books on strategy and philosophy.

Hot Rod

Optimus Prime's designated successor. Currently filling in for him as leader while he's missing.

• Leeroy Jenkins: One of the reasons his current stint in leadership isn't working out too well.
• The Starscream: Isn't this at all, but many Autobots suspect him of becoming one now that he stands to gain a leadership position from Optimus' death.
• Unexpected Successor: No one expected him to be chosen by the Matrix.

Starscream

Currently filling in as leader for Megatron while he's missing, and thrilled about it.

• Butt-Monkey: To a degree.
• Can't Kill You, Still Need You: Has been very transparent with his assassination attempts over the years, but Megatron tolerates him nonetheless because his skill is worth it.
• Let's Get Dangerous!: The butt of jokes, but still not to be underestimated.
• The Peter Principle: His combat prowess and short-term tactical smarts make him an excellent second-in-command, but his overemotionality and poor long-term planning skills make him a terrible leader.
• Relationship Revolving Door: With Jetfire, although it's mostly Played for Laughs.
• The Starscream: Duh.

Soundwave

• Anti-Mutiny: Downplayed; he is the voice of resistance when Starscream takes over for Megatron, and chafes under his command.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Is shown to care about his cassettes, albeit in an understated way. And then there's Megatron.
• Noble Demon
• The Starscream: To Starscream himself, in a bizarre turn of events.
• Undying Loyalty: To Megatron. With a hint of Ship Tease thrown in.

Prowl

• Anti-Mutiny: Prepared to enact this on Hot Rod, since like many Autobots he suspects him of having engineered Optimus' disappearance to claim the title of Prime for himself. His worries are unfounded, though.
• The Chosen Wannabe: It's vaguely implied he thinks he should be Optimus' successor rather than Hot Rod.
• Cold Equation: His specialty.
• Dude, Where's My Respect?: Gets fed up with Optimus ignoring his ideas (which, to be fair, are kind of evil).
• Enemy Mine: Gets this with Starscream during his Day in the Limelight, when he goes behind the Autobots' backs to team up with him to take down Megatron.
• Token Evil Teammate: Not as intensely as in IDW, but he's usually the one to suggest less savory courses of action.

Cyclonus

• Hazy-Feel Turn: Eventually goes from villain to True Neutral.
• Hidden Agenda Villain: Until the reveal.
• Noble Demon
• The Reveal: He's from an alternate universe, one ravaged by Unicron.
• Villain: Exit, Stage Left: Has a habit of showing up, wrecking things, and leaving.