Mysterious Saga
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Mysterious Saga |
| Author(s): | Lazulia/DelphicoracleCat |
| Date(s): | 21 May 2011 - 7 Aug 2019 |
| Length: | 181,693 words |
| Genre(s): | Romance |
| Fandom(s): | Cats |
| Relationship(s): | |
| External Links: | AO3 link |
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Mysterious Saga (also known as the Mysterious Ways Saga) is a popular fic series written by Lazulia, formerly known as DelphioracleCat, and reposted to AO3. The first fic in the series, Mysterious Ways, is the most favorited Cats fic on FF.net[1] and third most kudos'd fic on AO3[2] with the other fics being less popular but still beloved among the fandom.
The series is centered around the Tuggoffelees pairing and contains mpreg resulting in a number of children between the pair, thus making future installments kidfic to a certain extent. It consists of four works, all of which are rated Mature and tagged with No Archive Warnings Apply on AO3.[3]
The Fics
Mysterious Ways
The first chapter in the series was posted May 2011 on FF.net, where it was tagged with the Romance genre and also rated Mature.[1] Mysterious Ways is 27 chapters, but with a differing word count on the two sites it's available on. It's listed as being 90k+ on FF.net despite only being 82,635 words on AO3, which is likely due to the removal of the extensive Author's Notes in the FF.net posting, as is common on that site but not on AO3. The summary for Mysterious Ways as originally posted is:
At the previous year's Jellicle Ball, Rum Tum Tugger and Mistoffelees become mates. This leads to some unexpected and magical consequences. Warnings for slash and mpreg.[1]
This differs significantly from the summary on AO3, which is:
The Jellicle moon can have a strange effect on some cats. After a tryst at the Jellicle Ball, Mistoffelees and Tugger become mates, leading to some unexpected consequences and attracting Macavity's attention.[3]
During the Ball
A few months after Mysterious Ways finished posting, Lazulia started a "sequel of sorts" to it. It was also tagged with the Romance genre and rated Mature, listed as being 23k+ and 12 chapters.[4] The word count once again changes on AO3, being listed as 21001 words, but the smaller discrepancy is due to the fact that Lazulia's author's notes got shorter in this second fic. When originally posted to AO3, the summary for During the Ball was:
Now mated and with seven kittens, Mistoffelees and Rum Tum Tugger attend the Jellicle Ball. A sequel of sorts to "Mysterious Ways". Warnings for slash, mentions of past mpreg, and the occasional bout of naughtiness.[4]
It was modified slightly when reposted to AO3, but mostly to fit in with the tone of works on AO3, rather than the content differing drastically:
Now mated and with seven kittens, Mistoffelees and Rum Tum Tugger attend the Jellicle Ball. Enjoy this as a cheeky "behind-the-scenes" of what was happening during the show's ball.[3]
What You Leave Behind
Set in the same universe as the other fics, What You Leave Behind is the shortest fic in the series at 10k+ words[4] (9,899 on AO3[3]) and 2 chapters. It's by and far the least popular fic in the series, possibly owing to the fact that it heavily deals with the topic of miscarriage which is a sensitive topic for many people they prefer not to read about. The fic is also tagged Drama and Hurt/Comfort rather than romance, which may also contribute to its lower popularity. The original summary on FF.net is:
Follows "Mysterious Ways" and "During the Ball". Mistoffelees is pregnant again and he and Tugger are thrilled to add more kittens to their family... but these things don't always work out the way one plans. Warnings for mpreg and angsty subject matter.[4]
It was mostly unchanged for AO3, with the only edits being to remove the warnings (which were converted into tags) and the confirmation of where it falls in the timeline (because the series is posted as a series on AO3).[3]
Written in Blood
The last fic (currently) in the series is taking the longest to write with the longest gap between installments as well. Prior to this, Lazulia's fics were posted over a period of 4 to 6 months (except What You Leave Behind, which was posted in a little under a month) but the last chapter of Written in Blood was posted in August 2019 with the first being posted September 2016, a period of almost three years,[4] but the story as available on FF.net is not fully complete and neither is the version available on AO3. The last update on AO3 was made in April 2022, but it does not appear to be abandoned, just slow to update. The original summary on FF.net is:
While peace reigns in the junkyard, Macavity's empire grows and his quest for magical kittens is not abandoned. Unfortunately for Mistoffelees, as well as Tugger and their family, Macavity has found a way to get what he wants. Sequel to the "Mysterious Ways" saga. See inside for warnings.[4]
The summary is largely the same on AO3, although the sequel and warning information is instead replaced with the fact that the story features art from Leona Preston.
Selected Comments and Reviews
This article or section needs expansion. |
Mysterious Ways
I...don't know what to say. I normally dislike MPreg, but this was such a good story I couldn't stop reading. Even though I was short on time, I finished it in two days. Umm... it was really great...? (Why am I so awkward at writing reviews? Why is it that I never seem to get better at writing reviews?) Anyways, you're a great author and this is an amazing story.- anon on ff.net [5]
The scotch! Lmao! Oh Skimbleshanks darling, that's why you're my favorite 🤣 And poor Pouncival! Naughty Tugger.😏Deuteronomy was written perfectly btw, warm and wise and so full of quite joy.🥰 The "trick with a cork" connection was brilliant and charming and I can easily see Mistoffelees doing such a thing. Jennyanydots, Jellylorum and your creation Jezebel are wonderful little ol ladies, I'm glad Mistoffelees has them to help out.
And bless you, someone else who not only knows the word "disconcerted" but also uses it properly! I thought I was the only one left.😅- MouseMinionDuckLover on AO3 [6]
I've seen people review it and call it "the most believable m-preg out there" and I agree 100%. For me, this is the ONLY m-preg I've been able to read and I love it. The pregnancy itself has a believable explanation, Mistoffelees and Rum Tum Tugger are completely in-character (Misto doesn't start acting like a weepy girl) and the pregnancy details are so realistic that I wouldn't be surprised if the author has has kids herself. The tiny little details and the way everyone is kept in-character is amazing. The plot starts to thicken when Macavity shows up and unlike most Cats fics, Macavity is portrayed as someone who is truly intelligent and frightening, not just a mindless thug. The last few chapters are edge-of-your-seat tense and the birth scene is, again, completely realistic. The author is supposed to write a sequel, though it hasn't been posted yet. I can't recommend this fic enough!
Holy HELL. This is ,,,this is the best fic I’ve read in a long time. You are such a wonderful writer and this story had me checking for an update every day lmao. It’s really great work, thank you for making this.- InsecureFish on AO3 [8]
References
- ^ a b c Cats Category on FF.net, sorted by Favorites. Accessed 6 Mar 2023. Archive Link.
- ^ Cats - Andrew Lloyd Webber Tag on AO3, sorted by kudos. Accessed 6 Mar 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Mysterious Saga Series. Accessed 6 Mar 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f Delphicoracle-Cat's FF.net Profile. Accessed 7 Mar 2023. Archive Link.
- ^ Archived Reviews Page for Mysterious Ways. Archived 31 Oct 2018. Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
- ^ AO3 Comment Thread. Posted 19 Oct 2019. Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
- ^ Cats Fanfic Recs on TVTropes. Accessed 7 Mar 2023.
- ^ AO3 Comment Thread. Posted 4 Jun 2019. Accessed 7 Mar 2023.