who can see spirits?
Saturday, 1 March 2014 20:46![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mastercatLet's put this in an easier method to determine things... putting 'normal' or non-spiritually sensitive people on a scale of one to five. If you're unsure where your character falls, you can say they're either in the 1-5 range or not and we will discuss where on the scale their interactions would be. Not all characters would fall on a solid number, even! Most would linger somewhere between numbers: getting traits from both two and three, for example.
THIS DOES NOT ALWAYS FIT! Descriptors will be for as close as I can get to this canon, as supernatural beings from other canons would be drastically different. For those, let's talk!
Also remember: this is in no way canon. This is merely my own speculations about things, and it does not indicate a character's power. This is just closely connected a character is with the spiritual world. Your character can be a 1 and a god-character of some sort who can't sense spirits (*cough*Bhunivelze*cough*).
ONE means that your character has never had any supernatural circumstances happen to them -- no hauntings, no bad feelings when they enter certain rooms, no connections to anything extremely unusual. This means that they won't hear a voice when Nyanko-sensei speaks, only the normal meows of a cat. They are the people who, even when everyone else in a group is convinced of a ghost by the window, will only see curtains in the wind. (They're actually pretty unusual!)
TWO tends to be people who have no spiritual talent at all, but are touched with a residual gift so that if a spell were to be cast on them, they may be able to interact with the supernatural. (In canon, akin to Taki's spiritual circles that allow the majority to see the spirits within the circle.) These people would hear Nyanko-sensei's voice, but not understand where it comes from (because who would believe a cat can speak?). The majority of people would be in this category. Perhaps not role-played characters, but safe to say, the majority of the world would fall under two.
THREE indicates that there's... something there; a lingering, perhaps genetic, potential from several generations ago. This generally includes young children as they can be more sensitive to the supernatural. It means that while these people have never encountered ghosts and will probably never do so in their lifetime, they can still hear this cat's voice when he's talking. These people tend to get bad feelings in certain places, feel cold when a spirit passes through them, and will generally have been touched unknowingly by the supernatural at least once in their lifetimes. And in a typical group, three would be the person who feels a haunted house shouldn't be tampered with, who knows unconsciously what to stay away from, and may be able to feel the malice from an angry spirit. (In movies, they'd also be the person most likely to be possessed by a spirit.) Anyone who generally messes with spirits would also most likely be in this category.
FOUR are the uncommon ones. The spiritually sensitive. Those who feel physically ill when entering a location with a high concentration of spirits. Generally not strong enough for spirits to bother with them, but they may be able to see outlines of things that 'don't exist' if they squint hard and look from the right angle. Shadows that aren't supposed to be there. These are the people who understand on an instinctual level that spirits exist no matter what anyone else might try to tell them, because they can feel it somehow. Feel when something is wrong, when there are more people in a room than what they can count. They can still pass through a normal life without any strong encounters.
FIVE would be those who may consider themselves -- irrevocably touched by the supernatural. These people don't just see 'shadows' at certain times, they see monstrous forms in mirrors and glass reflections. While they might be able to see spirits everywhere, they might be able to hear them. These people will be the ones with mirrors covered in houses, and generally educated enough about the supernatural to have survived this long. They are the people who are in danger from the supernatural, who can not only see spirits but see them well enough that the spirits will stare back. They are just strong enough to be in danger, because spirits do not like humans who can see them. These are the people who are tied to the supernatural and won't be able to back up into a normal life. They're very likely to have been cursed a few times in their lifetimes. These people will see Nyanko-sensei's spirit form in reflective glass.
Wait -- is your character from a series all about spirits? Were they borne from a long lineage of spiritually sensitive people? Do they interact with spirits all the time? Are they part spirit? There's a further chart for you! Above five would be the people whose lives have been ruined by spirits, or have decided to make spirits their career. But if your character has a canon of being spiritually strong and/or having their lives twined with spirits, then skip the above five.
SIX would be your weaker exorcists. People who don't need reflective surfaces to see spirits, who may have weak grasps on spells, and with training can learn to seal away the weaker supernatural. There is, however, a high chance of the sealed supernatural eventually coming back for revenge because the seals just aren't that strong. Not in as much danger as people labelled five, since they at least have enough power to defend themselves. This is where you can see his spirit form, but Nyanko-sensei would still generally consider those people too weak to bother with.
SEVEN are the mid-level to more powerful exorcists, and the general level of those praised to have spiritual power. This is where spirits generally start backing down from the fight before it even starts, mostly because they don't want the trouble, and sometimes because they may generally think the human can win. With training, these people can get quite powerful. (Compare with Natori Shuuichi.)
EIGHT means you're starting to unnerve spirits by your very existence. The spiritually strong, who can walk down the streets and have the supernatural shrink away from you instead of the other way around. Generally with a long and powerful heritage. You may be the main character here, as this is where spirits stop getting peeved that you can see them, and start stepping lightly. You are a danger to them. (Compare with Matoba Seiji.)
NINE is a category not seen in the Book of Friends canon, but I'll put it here because I figure it would be higher than eight: the people who were suddenly born with powers that can't be explained. People with destinies involving the supernatural, or a fate that gives them an unexplained power that might have to do with either saving or condemning the world. Involving spirits. Somehow.
TEN and you are a spirit, or somehow indistinguishable from them. Not only that, but you are a strong spirit. This is where spirits look just as real as anyone else walking down the street, and it may be near impossible to try and differentiate the two, the spiritual power is so strong. This is where spirits may not even be scared of you anymore because they just think you're one of them. Or likewise, they'd try to get your power for their own. (Compare with Natsume Reiko and Natsume Takashi.)
A fun factiod! In the Natsume's Book of Friends canon, there is a story of exorcists rating power using a certain kimono at the top of a tree. People without spiritual power wouldn't even see that there's a kimono there (let's say 1-3, while 4-5 would know there's something there and maybe if they squint can see an outline of clothing), while if you have enough spiritual power to see the supernatural, then you would see a white kimono blowing in the breeze.
The more powerful you are, the deeper the colour gets. A powerful 7 would see a deep red, for example, almost like blood. 8 and you wouldn't just see the colour, but patterns on the fabric. We haven't seen what anyone more powerful than Matoba sees on the kimono.
THIS DOES NOT ALWAYS FIT! Descriptors will be for as close as I can get to this canon, as supernatural beings from other canons would be drastically different. For those, let's talk!
Also remember: this is in no way canon. This is merely my own speculations about things, and it does not indicate a character's power. This is just closely connected a character is with the spiritual world. Your character can be a 1 and a god-character of some sort who can't sense spirits (*cough*Bhunivelze*cough*).
ONE means that your character has never had any supernatural circumstances happen to them -- no hauntings, no bad feelings when they enter certain rooms, no connections to anything extremely unusual. This means that they won't hear a voice when Nyanko-sensei speaks, only the normal meows of a cat. They are the people who, even when everyone else in a group is convinced of a ghost by the window, will only see curtains in the wind. (They're actually pretty unusual!)
TWO tends to be people who have no spiritual talent at all, but are touched with a residual gift so that if a spell were to be cast on them, they may be able to interact with the supernatural. (In canon, akin to Taki's spiritual circles that allow the majority to see the spirits within the circle.) These people would hear Nyanko-sensei's voice, but not understand where it comes from (because who would believe a cat can speak?). The majority of people would be in this category. Perhaps not role-played characters, but safe to say, the majority of the world would fall under two.
THREE indicates that there's... something there; a lingering, perhaps genetic, potential from several generations ago. This generally includes young children as they can be more sensitive to the supernatural. It means that while these people have never encountered ghosts and will probably never do so in their lifetime, they can still hear this cat's voice when he's talking. These people tend to get bad feelings in certain places, feel cold when a spirit passes through them, and will generally have been touched unknowingly by the supernatural at least once in their lifetimes. And in a typical group, three would be the person who feels a haunted house shouldn't be tampered with, who knows unconsciously what to stay away from, and may be able to feel the malice from an angry spirit. (In movies, they'd also be the person most likely to be possessed by a spirit.) Anyone who generally messes with spirits would also most likely be in this category.
FOUR are the uncommon ones. The spiritually sensitive. Those who feel physically ill when entering a location with a high concentration of spirits. Generally not strong enough for spirits to bother with them, but they may be able to see outlines of things that 'don't exist' if they squint hard and look from the right angle. Shadows that aren't supposed to be there. These are the people who understand on an instinctual level that spirits exist no matter what anyone else might try to tell them, because they can feel it somehow. Feel when something is wrong, when there are more people in a room than what they can count. They can still pass through a normal life without any strong encounters.
FIVE would be those who may consider themselves -- irrevocably touched by the supernatural. These people don't just see 'shadows' at certain times, they see monstrous forms in mirrors and glass reflections. While they might be able to see spirits everywhere, they might be able to hear them. These people will be the ones with mirrors covered in houses, and generally educated enough about the supernatural to have survived this long. They are the people who are in danger from the supernatural, who can not only see spirits but see them well enough that the spirits will stare back. They are just strong enough to be in danger, because spirits do not like humans who can see them. These are the people who are tied to the supernatural and won't be able to back up into a normal life. They're very likely to have been cursed a few times in their lifetimes. These people will see Nyanko-sensei's spirit form in reflective glass.
Wait -- is your character from a series all about spirits? Were they borne from a long lineage of spiritually sensitive people? Do they interact with spirits all the time? Are they part spirit? There's a further chart for you! Above five would be the people whose lives have been ruined by spirits, or have decided to make spirits their career. But if your character has a canon of being spiritually strong and/or having their lives twined with spirits, then skip the above five.
SIX would be your weaker exorcists. People who don't need reflective surfaces to see spirits, who may have weak grasps on spells, and with training can learn to seal away the weaker supernatural. There is, however, a high chance of the sealed supernatural eventually coming back for revenge because the seals just aren't that strong. Not in as much danger as people labelled five, since they at least have enough power to defend themselves. This is where you can see his spirit form, but Nyanko-sensei would still generally consider those people too weak to bother with.
SEVEN are the mid-level to more powerful exorcists, and the general level of those praised to have spiritual power. This is where spirits generally start backing down from the fight before it even starts, mostly because they don't want the trouble, and sometimes because they may generally think the human can win. With training, these people can get quite powerful. (Compare with Natori Shuuichi.)
EIGHT means you're starting to unnerve spirits by your very existence. The spiritually strong, who can walk down the streets and have the supernatural shrink away from you instead of the other way around. Generally with a long and powerful heritage. You may be the main character here, as this is where spirits stop getting peeved that you can see them, and start stepping lightly. You are a danger to them. (Compare with Matoba Seiji.)
NINE is a category not seen in the Book of Friends canon, but I'll put it here because I figure it would be higher than eight: the people who were suddenly born with powers that can't be explained. People with destinies involving the supernatural, or a fate that gives them an unexplained power that might have to do with either saving or condemning the world. Involving spirits. Somehow.
TEN and you are a spirit, or somehow indistinguishable from them. Not only that, but you are a strong spirit. This is where spirits look just as real as anyone else walking down the street, and it may be near impossible to try and differentiate the two, the spiritual power is so strong. This is where spirits may not even be scared of you anymore because they just think you're one of them. Or likewise, they'd try to get your power for their own. (Compare with Natsume Reiko and Natsume Takashi.)
A fun factiod! In the Natsume's Book of Friends canon, there is a story of exorcists rating power using a certain kimono at the top of a tree. People without spiritual power wouldn't even see that there's a kimono there (let's say 1-3, while 4-5 would know there's something there and maybe if they squint can see an outline of clothing), while if you have enough spiritual power to see the supernatural, then you would see a white kimono blowing in the breeze.
The more powerful you are, the deeper the colour gets. A powerful 7 would see a deep red, for example, almost like blood. 8 and you wouldn't just see the colour, but patterns on the fabric. We haven't seen what anyone more powerful than Matoba sees on the kimono.