#WordWeavers 2026.05.18 — If your antagonist had to arrange a contest they knew they could win, what would it be?

Rainy Days is the main series antagonist who appears in most stories. She would find it pointless to arrange a contest she knew she could win. Unless she were fighting an actual enemy and winning would be the point, her philosophy being you always win wars unless losing better suits your goals; such a contest wouldn't be friendly as this question implies. Rainy Days arranges contests most often to teach one or more of her many (often unwilling) students, occasionally to test and learn something about them. She'd be overjoyed were one to beat her, ecstatic to find someone she could eventually rely on, maybe one day replace her. Most often, however, she's sparring with her pretorians, whom she inevitably beats. (There are scenes with them injured after training). She does not spar with them in expectation that they might grow able to best her. She does this so they are familiar with what she can do and thus can best protect her blind spots and vulnerabilities. They are her bodyguard, after all.

Encountering the devil-girl in the current WIP, the Rainy Days'' contest would emphasize thaumaturgy. She wants the devil-girl to succeed her. She wants her as a student as the devil-girl demonstrates a talent for the arcane that might actually exceed Rainy Days.

The devil-girl will think she's going to die.

[Author retains copyright (c)2026 R.S.]

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#PennedPossibilities 1016 — MC POV: Tell us about a time that you found a “skeleton in the closet,” but it doesn’t matter whose it was. It didn’t need to be yours.

[Bolt, woman day angel MC:] Only the devil-girl, when she unaccountably started acting drunk, let on about events and acquaintances that might be considered a "skeleton in the closet," but she was trying (successfully I might add) to get me (as you people would say it) "into bed," so I don't remember too many details. They didn't come off as boasts, or made up "true" stories, simply details that ought to worry Boss Mead about having hired her as an enforcer. The dets would interest the coppers, but how could they prove any of it? Kind of a dare, perhaps, for anyone to bring her history up so she could have an excuse for mayhem.

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#WordWeavers 2026.05.12 — What role does romantic love play in your story?

Part of my aim writing the Reluctance Series of stories is to address what-if human social structures totally different to ours, societies with no history of being male-centric. As a result, I approach the concept of romantic love from a totally foreign point of view, deconstructing what romance means when human biological imperatives are accepted as typically human and as normal as eating and sleeping, never regulated to control half of humanity or build a social hierarchy to oppresses both genders. Romance exists, but it's more applicable to friendship and long term relationships, regardless of gender, than to a woman stereotypically finding a man to whom she's not related to depend upon, possibly to raise a family. Even in a society stripped of the concept of blood inheritance, I think it's possible for humans to find soulmates, to experience love, and feel comfortable attachment. For this reason, none of my stories can really escape a romance angle; most include romance subplots.

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#WordWeavers 2026.05.11 — Antagonist POV: Tell us about a fun time you recently had.

While flying, I found a new praetorian of mine and a day angel woman I'd been told about by an advisor having fun in the sky, flying tandem. She went by the name Lightning Bolt and was the one who taught Arrow Flies True precision flying that allowed him to become part of my guard—for selfish reasons I could see! Very athletic, those two.They were having so much fun. I soared in to join them.

Most people either fright, flee, or fawn when I show up, this time flying circles around her, them, but she took the challenge and flew flack, stunt for stunt I tried, countering me sparrow versus hawk driving her away from the man, despite my being faster and more agile, able to augment my acceleration [by magic]. We ended with us on either side of my handsome new praetorian wingtip to wingtip, having gotten me to sweat at least.

The fellow looked adorably confused and worried, but kept formation despite being fought over.

It wasn't anger Bolt showed me. It was more like annoyance, having her needed playtime interrupted perhaps after a previous bad day? I knew that feeling. It was a fragility masked with a hard shell. A good talent.

I liked her. I hadn't had such fun in awhile. I mentally noted to make her a student. Lots of potential to match my ability given the right training.

Author note: As an absolute ruler, you don't want to interest Rainy Days. She seems pleasant and normal, but her students quickly find she's an unrelenting and demanding teacher.

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