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wiypt-writes · 3 years

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Captain America: The First Avenger 10th Anniversary Challenge Masterlist

Masterlist to submissions for the CATFA 10th Anniversary Challenge

All original works belong to the authors/creators not me.

PLEASE HEED THE WARNINGS! Your media consumption is your own responsibility- if you don’t like the sound of something, don’t read or view it.

This Is Still Marvel, Right? Written by @sweater-daddiesdumbdork. (Platonic Reader x Sam/Bucky/Deadpool)

Deadpool the character from the comics is sitting across from the table from you, real right in front of your eyes. Not only is time travel a thing, but dimension travel is as well, and he is here for a very serious reason.

Warnings- Language!!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My Timid Hello, My Clumsy Goodbye Written by @anika-ann (Reader x Steve Rogers)

You’re spending the evening and the night before your wedding with the two most important men of your life. When the sun rises again, you’ll say your ‘I do’ in a close circle of friends and family. It’s not a goodbye to your old life and it’s not a hello to some enormous change; but you will no longer be a Barton. You will be a Rogers. Why not reminisce a bit?

Warnings- Mention of an abandoned baby, blood and injuries, alcohol, implied possibly rougher sex (nothing graphic)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Star-Spangled Man written by @secretswiftymarvelfan (Reader x Steve Rogers).

You and Cap really don’t get along. Like give each other migraines don’t get along. But when a mission goes south and the both of you are literally trapped together, will true feelings be revealed?

Warnings- Swearing, tad of violence

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Honey written by @autumnrose40 (Alpha Steve Rogers x Omega Reader)

A smutty, little one shot taking you back to when you first met Steve and some domestic feels thrown in.

Warnings- Language and smut (NSFW, 18+)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Safe Landing written by @before-we-get-started ( Platonic Steve Rogers & Ransom Drysdale x Reader (plus a surprise special appearance!)

You’re facing the most difficult time of your life and you’re doing it without the person that means the most to you. Will your seatmates on an important flight help you make it through?

Warnings- Bad language, light smut, angst

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Movie Theatre Alleyway- Fan Art Edit by @thorfanficwriter

A clever little Fan Art a edit cleverly incorporating the prompt 😍

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Becoming Family Again written by @just-one-ordinary-fangirl (Steve Rogers x Reader)

Steve promised he would retire being a soldier when he gave up the shield, but what happens when he breaks that promise?

Warnings-Angst, maybe some swears.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Plan written by @captainapple (Steve Rogers x Reader)

Steve has been in a mission, and you’ve missed him dearly...

Warnings- None, just fluff

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Del, I Have A Feeling We’re Not In Preston Anymore: Part 1 written by @icanfeelastormbrewing (a whole heap of Marvel x ME!!)

Katie finds herself in the mysterious world of New Asgard and encounters a whole heap of even more mysterious people. Can she find her way home?

Warnings- None, maybe some language.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Nomad’s Mission written by @sweater-daddiesdumbdork (Nomad Steve Rogers x Reader)

You might all be wanted by the Government and considered enemies of the state, but that isn’t going to stop you all from doing what has to be done

Warnings- Violence

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Crazy, Stupid, Loki written by @stuckonjbbarnes (Loki x OFC)

Loki shows his love for knives...

Warnings- Stabbing.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Your Captain written by @onlyjamesbarnes (husband!steve rogers x reader, boss!dark!bucky barnes x reader)

A perfect anniversary night gets interrupted by his best friend, who happens to be your boss.

Warnings: (18+) non-con/dub-con, fluff, angst, language, abuse of power, manipulation, fingering, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it ppl), infidelity, jealousy, sir kink/sergeant kink, pet names, general roughness, conversations about having children, breeding kink, possibly more that i didn't mention. bucky is a real asshole in this.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finding Elysium written by @queen-kass-the-writer (Steve Rogers x OFC)

Ever since the fall of Eprana to Empress Amazonia, the world crumbled at her feet and caved in to her demands for a feeble lie of peace. As a sacrifice, every year sees fourteen innocents selected by lottery and offered in tribute. Tired of endless sacrifice with little gain, the remaining kingdoms band together and rig the lottery process to smuggle in their secret weapon: a group of six superpowered individuals known as the Avengers...

FULL SERIES WHICH IS COMPLETE

Warnings: Graphic descriptions of blood/violence, implied mentions of depression/anxiety/PTSD

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Timeless Love written by @angrybirdcr (Bucky Barnes x Reader)

Bucky is back home and a celebration is due, what could possibly go wrong? What if you had a very important task for him to accomplish?

Warnings: 1940s AU. CATFA Canon-divergent. Steve didn’t go into the ice, Bucky didn’t fall of the train, but was still captured by HYDRA and turned into a Super Soldier. Brief mentions of PTSD nightmares.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Fate Is A Fickle Thing written by @hufflepuffvs (Steve Rogers x Reader)

As the Angel of Hope, your job is to give faith to those who are in desperate need of it. You were doing your job when the Angel of Death, aka a pain in your ass, has other plans.

Warnings: Mentions of Death

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

At His Alter written by @gotnofucks ( Priest!Steve x Reader)

You fell in love with a man already belonging to someone else.

Warnings: Priest Steve ( no offense is meant to the religion), the reader is non-religious, angsty. No smut but still 18+

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Paint The Sky written by @constantwriter85 (Steve x Bucky)

Steve has a lot of birthdays under his belt, but to his surprise, some things remain the same.

Warnings: **18+**Angst, Light Smut, and Fluff, Bottom!Bucky

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Just Desserts written by @stargazingfangirl18 (Steve Rogers x Reader)

You knew you shouldn’t have lied to Steve, but never in a million years did you think that this would be the consequence.

Warnings: Explicit sexual content. Explicit language. Oral sex (f and m receiving). Face riding. Vaginal fingering. Soft!dom Steve. “Captain” kink. “Good girl/bad girl” kink. AU. 18+ only!

#CATFA 10th anniversary challenge #marvel #marvel fanfic #captain america #wiybupt writing challenge

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cotncandyboifics · 3 years

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1989 [High School AU]: Chapter 8

AO3 Link

Masterpost

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ Chapter 7 ~ Chapter 9 ~

Pairings: slight Logince, eventual Prinxiety & Logicality

Word count: 2,407

Story summary: Roman Prince is your stereotypical Jock, with everyone swooning after him. Every day a crowd of people follow him around, only to disperse at his personal whim. In reality, he's lucky to have such good acting skills that help him cover up the disdain he has for his life. He only wishes he could use his skills properly.

Patton Whitelock's always there to lend a helping hand, no matter who you are. If you need a favor or just need someone to talk to, go to him. In reality, he's been taught from a young age that kindness should be held above all else. No one suspects that he took it the wrong way.

Logan Montgomery is the smartest boy in the Senior class. He's stern, and most people are too intimidated to speak to him. In reality, he despises most all of his fellow students. He sticks to his studies and doesn't stray, for fear of being stuck in his father's shadow his whole life.

Virgil Black is the most emo kid in school, let alone 12th grade; everyone knows to leave him be. In reality, he's very fortunate. He has two parents who love him dearly. But everything beyond his life, everything within his mind, is utter chaos and turmoil.

what will happen when they're assigned a biology project together?

General CW: food, swearing, implied s-lf h-rm, non-graphic descriptions of s-lf h-rm scars, graphic and non-graphic descriptions of anxiety attacks and panic attacks, drug abuse, minor character intoxicated on heroin, non-graphic drug overdose description, sickness/description of sickness, blood, non-graphic descriptions of needles, (will be added to as I write more)

Chapter CW: food, (let me know if i missed anything please!)

Author notes: alternate title: Virgil's very subtle epiphany. also Patton has a gay panic moment lol

...

Slam.

Monday morning. Mr. Berry was slapping a small poster on each student's desk like a stamp, one-by-one and painfully slowly.

"This," he began, "Is the official welcome to the schoolyear; audition posters for the Fall Talent Show." His bloated belly hardly fit between the desk rows, and students made futile attempts to scoot away from him before they were bombarded by his tyrannical tummy. "As a retired thespian and a life long supporter of theatre and the arts," he continued, bringing his pile of posters to his chest in his passion, "I highly recommend you at least consider looking into auditions. Everyone has a passion, or at least a hobby, and the talent show is a perfect freelance opportunity to show off your skills."

Roman rolled his eyes too dramatically. This was upsetting him more than he thought it would, and his eyes shot daggers up at his large superior as he slammed the next poster onto Roman's desk.

"Auditions will be held next week, on the specified dates. The show itself will be two weeks later, I believe on Friday night. Be there, and I will award you some extra credit points. All you must do is present me with your ticket, which must have your name on it," he eyed a few mischievous students in the room, "With a stamp on it from the Talent Show admissions booth, on the following Monday." As soon as Mr. Berry had given a poster to Virgil and moved on, Virgil quietly crumpled it and shoved it into a random part of his backpack, proceeding to fold his arms on his desk and put his head down. This caught Roman's attention, and his subconscious latched onto formulating a teasing remark for after class as a distraction from his own feelings about the Talent Show.

After class, the usual place where Roman and Virgil were shortly alone and had a short interaction - most often consisting of some insufferable tease from Roman or occasionally a debate spurred by Virgil making a witty side comment - the two met once again. After their first class of the day was usually the only time they were both at their lockers at the same time, as it happened, and Virgil was always thankful that it was the only time. Since their assignment to the Biology project, however, Roman had taken to walking with Virgil from their English class to their lockers and beginning his bouts of banter prematurely.

"Not a fan of the infamous talent show, are we?" Roman paced quickly over to Virgil, who had just made it outside the classroom door as they'd been dismissed. Virgil huffed in defeat as his attempt to escape before Roman could catch him had been fruitless.

"It's ridiculous," Virgil didn't slow his pace for Roman, and began essentially speedwalking down the hall. Roman was slightly taller than him and was able to keep up, but still got a little out of breath doing it. "Hey everyone, come and show everyone in the school something you really enjoy so they can all collectively judge you and make you self conscious about your interests and - oh no! you don't wanna do it anymore because you feel horribly inadequate? shoooot. Sorry man, no one could have seen that coming. Oh well, better luck next year when you'll just ruin a different passion for yourself!" Virgil flailed his hands at the end of his mini-rant.

"How can you stay that sarcastic for that long consecutively? I'm honestly impressed," Roman said, huffing as they arrived at their lockers. Virgil's permanent frown seemed to somehow deepen. "Though, I guess I really can't argue, Count Woe-laf. I see your point. The pressures of an impromptu performance are... undeniable." Roman focused his attention on the padlock hanging from the latch of his locker, while Virgil looked to him with widened eyes.

"Really?" He didn't look away from Roman until he would look back.

"What?" Roman defended.

"It's just..." Virgil focused on his own padlock now, "You never agree with what I say. It always becomes a debate," he pulled his locker open lazily, pulling his backpack off his shoulders and putting it on backwards so that he could more easily exchange things. When Roman didn't reply, he continued, "like... I don't know. Why is it any different now?"

Roman was exchanging things as well, and didn't have an immediate answer. Well, he knew the answer (or in this case, answers), but it wasn't one he was even ready to admit to himself, let alone anyone else, and especially let alone Virgil. He just eventually shrugged.

This reaction only further alarmed Virgil. He opened his mouth to continue his flabbergasted interrogation, but the bell rang right at that moment. Roman slammed his locker shut suddenly.

"Well, that's our queue I suppose. See you tonight, Incredible Sulk." Roman elbowed Virgil in the shoulder a bit awkwardly and began skipping down the hall to his next class. That left a dumbfounded and nearly-panicking Virgil standing in front of his open locker in an almost completely empty hall.

He wished Roman would stop leaving him like that.

...

Roman had texted the Biology Project group chat that weekend, saying he had an important football practice on Monday that went until 5. they'd have to have their meet-up at Roman's a bit later in the evening. Logan simply waited it out by heading to the school library to get his other homework done, while Patton and Virgil shot the breeze, walking down random hallways of the school.

The two of them were grabbing a snack from a vending machine when Virgil checked his phone. It was 4:50. They got their respective snacks - Patton got a strawberry Pop tart and Virgil got a Sunny D - and made their way to the designated meeting place. It was a concrete bench at the front of the school. They expected to find Logan there, but he wasn't. The two of them simply sat on the cold bench and exchanged bits of each other's snacks, and continued talking until Virgil noticed someone approaching.

He figured it would be Logan, but this person was shorter and more filled out than Logan. He trained his eyes better and realized that it was Roman. Roman, who happened to have a towel around his neck and sopping-wet crimson curly hair unabashedly on display. A drip of water rolled down his cheek and along his jawline, and Virgil realized he was staring. Roman finally got within conversation distance.

"Like what you see, Charlie Frown?" He teased. Patton looked to Virgil, noticing his awe, and giggled.

"Hah, in your dreams, Meta Knight," Virgil deflected half-heartedly, still finding it hard to pull his eyes away from Roman's unfortunate perfection. It was only worse that Roman knew just how attractive he was.

"Why's your hair all wet, silly?" Patton asked, standing energetically to greet him.

"We rinse off after practice. I considered leaving my shirt off so i could just get a clean one when i got home, but i knew that might be a bit too much to handle for some of us," Roman elbow-nudged Patton, who just giggled again and pushed his glasses up. Virgil knew that was extremely forced, especially after their conversation on Friday.

"Well," Roman checked his wristwatch, "Where would my nerdy Wolverine happen to be? It's ten past, and if there's anything Logan certainly is, it's punctual."

"Quite right you are," a stern voice came from behind them, to reveal Logan's lengthy form approaching casually. "My apologies for my tardiness. I got quite engaged in a particular Physics problem." Roman turned to him smiling, and pecked him on the cheek. Virgil didn't need to look at Patton to feel his friend's heart sink through the floor.

"Shall we then?" Roman turned to lead the way on the five-block journey to his house.

...

"hmm, that reminds me," Roman said from his sprawled position on his bed, "what are all your sexualities?"

That sure caught everyone's attention. The clock beside Roman's bed read 6:28 PM. Logan was studying their plants and taking notes, Patton had been cooing quietly to Roman's pet turtle, and Virgil was sitting in Roman's spinning desk chair scrolling on his phone. They all looked at Roman at once, and then at each other.

"Heh," Roman sat up, "My apologies for blurting such an intrusive question, I was just looking up at my-" he gestured toward his ceiling- "glorious flag, and it made me wonder. No man must answer that which he does not desire to." Roman was blatantly referring to the Bisexual flag that was pinned to the ceiling above his bed. They all looked at it, and back at him. "I suppose it's obvious now, but yes, I am undeniably bisexual," He faux bowed.

The silence wasn't doing anyone good, so Patton broke it before it got too much more awkward. "I, I'm gay," he said sheepishly, continuing to observe the turtle. Virgil gave him a soft smile, and decided to offer himself up next.

"I'm pan," he seemed to recoil further into his hoodie, if that were even possible. Logan turned to the other three, adjusting his necktie.

"I'm not usually one to admit this to many people, but since you have all been so transparent and calm about such personal information," He started, "I am comfortable telling you that I am Asexual."

No one regarded this with much surprise, except for Roman. "Oh really?" He said, seemingly surprised and embarrassed. Virgil scoff-laughed at him.

"What, upset you can't make your sexual fantasies a reality?" Virgil teased. Roman gasped, bringing a hand to his chest in an offended gesture.

"Excuse me!" He exclaimed, a look of disgust contorting his face.

Before a classic Roman-Virgil debate could ensue, Patton decided to share his thoughts.

"Well, I, I mean, I'm not ace but I, I guess sex isn't really so important to me," he was fiddling with his ring yet again.

"W-well, it should never be the centerpiece of any relationship!" Roman declared. They all looked at him skeptically. "what? I mean, personally, I prefer grand gestures." As he spoke, he stood and walked to Logan. "In my opinion," he produced a pristine bouquet of deep red roses that none of the others had noticed anywhere in the room before, "they are the key to any person's heart."

Logan seemed tame, Patton thought. As if he were performing. If he were being his normal self, he would have been very confused by where Roman had hidden the bouquet, and how it looked so perfect after being concealed. Instead, he just took it with a very gentle sweet smile, and thanked him quietly. Instead of Logan, Patton was now the one confused.

Virgil's face was red, and his neck a blotchy pink; thankfully he was mostly hidden under his purple bangs and hood. He huffed and excused himself to use the restroom. Patton noticed this time, and grabbed his arm before he made it out of the room.

"You okay?" he whispered gently to Virgil. Virgil just looked at him, mustered a small smile and a nod. Patton knew exactly what that meant. Virgil was okay, he just needed a moment. He returned the smile, and released his gentle paternal grip on Virgil's arm, allowing him to leave.

There was the sound of someone calling Roman's name from another part of the house, and Roman excused himself, rushing off to find its source.

Logan slipped his phone into the pocket of his navy slacks. "Well, I must be going now," He began. Instead of reaching to gather his things, he trained his acute attention directly on Patton, who was startled by the sudden focus on him. "Patton, do you have a ride home today?"

"I, uh, well," He tried blurting out an excuse but none came to his mind. "No, not exactly..."

Logan was slowly approaching, and Patton tried to back up but hit the terrarium containing Roman's turtle after just one small step. "Would you like a ride? My parents would be more than happy to assist in your safe transport home."

"Well, well I really don't want to intrude, or-" He stopped dead when Logan placed a slender hand gently on his shoulder.

"I insist. It's no intrusion or burden to them. They appreciate being able to help others when they can, especially people whose company I enjoy." Logan didn't feel as though he was figuratively lying through his teeth, but he knew that his parents didn't exactly feel that way. The nature of the situation was more that they took kindly to those that Logan worked well with on academically related subjects, such as people from his study group or the like.

Patton caught himself before letting the thought "you enjoy my company?" escape his lips. He just smiled. He knew there was no way he could get himself to deny Logan's offer when his heart was taking the reins.

"I would.. really appreciate, a ride home, yeah," He said quietly. Logan was just looking into his eyes with a tenderness Patton hadn't seen before. He pushed away any thoughts that Logan may have looked at Roman the exact same way during their date. He hoped he hadn't, and cursed himself for hoping it.

"Wonderful," Logan pulled himself out of their shared momentary trance. "I will let them know. I'm sure they will find it a pleasure to become acquainted with you. They should be here in less than five minutes, so I suggest gathering your belongings." Logan's thumbs padded across is illuminated phone screen as he spoke, until he once again slid it into his pocket and began collecting his things along with Patton.

Virgil entered once again, hood off and face slightly red and wet. it was clear that he hadn't been crying due to the sporadic nature of the droplets of water across his face; it looked more like he'd just haphazardly washed his face in the sink and hadn't bothered to wipe the remnants away. Patton smiled at him brightly.

"Ah, Virgil," Logan addressed as he slung his bag over his shoulder, "It was pleasant to see you again. We are on our way out now. Are you ready, Patton?" He looked to Patton, who also slung his bag over his shoulder.

"Yep! Logan's giving me a ride," Patton blatantly could barely contain his excitement in his ever-growing grin, so Virgil only returned it with a small thumbs up.

"Alright, ill see you guys in class tomorrow," He hugged Patton tightly, and half-heartedly saluted to Logan without making eye contact. Logan simply nodded to him, and the two left shortly, leaving Virgil alone in Roman's room.

#ts virgil #virgil sanders #ts roman #roman sanders #ts patton #patton sanders #ts logan #logan sanders #prinxiety #logicality #logan x patton #roman x virgil #slow burn #high school au #sanders sides fanfiction #sanders sides #thomas sanders

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copper-dust · 3 years

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yet another writing meme

20 Questions: Writer's Edition!

Tagged by @pebblysand , who probably already knows the answers to these questions about me!

How many works do you have on AO3?

What’s your total AO3 word count?

235,661—but keep in mind that those words have been written over the course of seven years, so I’m really not all that prolific. I write slowly.

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Just 2 (Harry Potter and Rent.) I used to write for a few more fandoms, all in musical theatre, but that was before Ao3 existed, and those works are very immature. I started writing fan fiction in middle school, so I’m not exactly itching to post that stuff on my current account.

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

The Seam Between, Snow Globe, In Search of Mythical Kings, March Hare and All Your Seasick Sailors.

What’s interesting is that with the exception of ISOMK, all of those are stories I began writing no earlier than May of 2020. It may be that the pandemic allowed me more time to practice writing and build my audience, or simply that I’ve improved as a writer in that period. I’m inclined to believe that my audience has grown mainly because I’ve been more active in the writing community since the pandemic started and so people are more likely to check out my work. Honestly, I believe my work started growing in popularity mainly because @floreatcastellumposts liked The Seam Between and mentioned it on her Tumblr, and that had more of an effect that any change in the quality of my work.

I still dearly love my completely neglected fic The Atoners.

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

It depends. I used to never respond to comments because I felt that any engagement with readers outside of the writing would kind of disrupt the world of the story and remove them from the text. For that reason, I also didn’t post author’s notes. I was very strict with myself.

I no longer believe that, and I now see that great friendships and connections are forged in the comments section. There are a few comments I won’t respond to—mainly, people that ask a question about the resolution of the plot when I’m posting a middle chapter. Obviously, I’m not going to give away the ending just because you asked for it! I also don’t tend to respond to comments on FFnet, though they’re rarely valuable comments anyways.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I don’t know, all of them? I will say that the story that most moved me while I was writing the ending would be The Seam Between. I really had tears in my eyes during the last 2 paragraphs.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

Hmmm...not sure. Maybe it would be A Network of Spittle, one of my earliest-ever Harry Potter fics, about the night that Harry was born and how the message of his birth travelled through the secret networks of the Order of the Phoenix and the Death Eaters. That piece was written back when I was more interested in the children’s lit aspect of the series, and trying more seriously to imitate JKR’s tone and style, rather than developing my own.

Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written?

I haven’t, but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of potentially doing it if I found two fandoms with just the right kind of synchronicity.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes and no. I have received comments that were rude or worded in a way that didn’t show respect, but I don’t think the people who wrote those comments necessarily intended to be hateful. For example, I received some pretty out-there comments on The Atoners from an intense Snape fan who would lash out as if addressing James Potter or Dumbledore (rather than me.) I also received some pretty rude comments on March Hare, but they turned out to be from a minor on the autism spectrum who has difficulties with communication. I don’t think she understood how her behaviour came across, and I almost immediately recognized that she might be on the spectrum (I have special ed training.)

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I have never written smut, but I have written sex scenes when I felt they were necessary to the plot. They were pretty abstract and lacking in explicit detail, though. I’m not saying I would never write smut, but I haven’t yet and if I did, I probably wouldn’t share it online.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No, but it would be the highest compliment.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but I would love to, so if anyone’s willing...

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I haven’t—but it’s something I would consider, if I really liked the other person’s style.

What’s your all time favorite ship?

Okay, here me out: I love the relationship between adolescence and trauma. I love pairing the interior growth you experience as you transition from childhood to adulthood with some kind of exterior drama that reshapes your psychic landscape just as your body as undergoing so much change. That’s my favourite ship.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

It really hurts to admit this, but I think I’ll sporadically update but never actually complete In Search of Mythical Kings.

What are your writing strengths?

Oh, god. This question. It feels impolite to even answer. I suppose I do a lot of research to get my settings right, and to make my stories feel authentic to a time and place. I’ve put lots of work into learning the British dialect too.

What are your writing weaknesses?

I have a generally narrow range of interests with regard to themes and emotional valence. I could write the same story over and over, with minor variations, because I get emotionally fixated on one topic. I also struggle with transitioning from one scene to another, and indicating the passage of time in a way that feels authentic and organic. Oh, and I also write Really. Damn. Slowly.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I wouldn’t attempt it unless I had a person who fluently spoke the appropriate dialect to help me. But you also have to consider your audience—are you writing loads of dialect that your readers won’t understand?

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Harry Potter, but that was back when I was 11ish and none of the documents were ever posted online, nor did they survive various computer crashes.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

I’m not sure. They’re each so intricately connected to some personal emotional phenomenon I was going through at the time. It’s also affected me to see how popular or unpopular some fics have become. I really didn’t think The Seam Between would get much of an audience, and then it sort of broke away and became my most popular story. I really appreciated the audience engagement I got on that one. Like I said before, I’m still quite attached to the work I did on The Atoners, which is sort of a missed-connection story about teenage Snape meeting middle-aged Lyall Lupin on the night of the Prank.

Tagging @sybill-the-seer @floreatcastellumposts and anyone else who’d like to participate, but hasn’t been tagged!

#writing meme #meme #about me #fanfiction #harry potter #fic: the seam between #fic: the atoners #fic: march hare #fic: snow globe #fic: in search of mythical kings

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testingthesimulation · 3 years

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Mun, Muses, and Rules!

General Rules:

-NSFW must be discussed in advance

-I will not under any circumstance write smut with a minor

-Replies are not regular

-Any length responses are acceptable

-Themes such as dubious consent/no consent, pregnancy, suicide, self harm, drug abuse, gore, character death, etc must be discussed in advance. This is not up for negotiation.

-Hate is not tolerated

-Views of the characters DO NOT reflect views of the writer.

-Pre established relationships are a-okay!

-Multimuse, multiship, multiverse, oc, canon, and au friendly!

-I am willing to age characters up as needed!

Luka:

Hey hi hello! As you can see I am the host behind the blog! I am 19 years old and love writing! My replies may not be very active please have patience >~<

I’m pretty new to the roleplay world so take it easy on me? An acquaintance (a friend of a friend of a friend who better rp with me since this was his idea T-T) actually got me into rp so here i am

As stated in my Bio I use they/them pronouns and identify as nonbinary! I will on occasion roleplay nsfw themes, however not frequently and not in detail as it makes me pretty uncomfy sometimes. Feel free to ask me things anytime you want! I don’t mind making new friends, but if you just wanna be strictly rp partners that’s cool too! Replies are a bit iffy for a variety of reasons!

1. I am a full time college student 2. I work a job outside of school and my hour are all over the place 3. as stated in my bio I prefer browser to mobile and don’t often have my laptop with me!

I live in the eastern standard time zone and am most active during afternoons and late nights and I am not active everyday. I understand this may make it difficult for those looking for a regular rp buddy and that’s a-okay. On top of roleplay I also plan to make this account into a drabble account for the few muses I do have in order to develop them outside of any roleplay universes!

As of right now I only have three characters so here is their introductions! (I don’t think that grammar is correct)

Clementine Valet:

Age: 17

Pronouns: He/him (Cisgender)

Sexuality: Pansexual

Clementine, or Clem for short is a shy individual. He Isn’t opposed to making friends, however he finds the concept rather difficult. In most instances the boy must be approached by someone first. He will appear timid and shy in the beginning and only start to open up once he has struck common ground with somebody. He enjoys robots and video games as well as music. He likes to find the beauty in small things. One of his biggest pet peeves is being a pushover. Despite his quiet behaviors he will not allow others to walk all over him and will, at the bare minimum, try to stand up for himself. He often does not succeed as he is very small, only 5′2 ft (157.48 cm) and lacks muscle for a proper fight. As a result he tends to rely out dodging in physical altercations and would prefer to keep it to verbal arguments he can talk his way out of.

Image:

Alek Hall:

Age: 18

Pronouns: they/them (nonebinary)

Sexuality: Biromantic Asexual

Alek is stable and caring of their friends. They can however come off as rude to start. They don’t intend to come off as rude or intimidating and will often work to amend this as soon as possible. They’re affectionate, protective, warm, and have a habit of being early. They’re a hard worker and take pride in this fact. They like math, quiet, and late night outdoors. They collect candles for the aesthetic. They are 5′7 ft (170.18 cm) and have a bit of muscle, however not very much. They can hold their own but are not likely to win in hand to hand fights. They like to avoid fights as much as possible however and can be classified as a friendly wallflower.

image:

Arena Hawkins:

Age: 17

Pronouns: she/her (Transgender mtf)

Sexuality: Straight

Arena is creative, friendly, pessimistic, and a bit disorganized. Many classify her as being a handful. She has a lot of energy and loves to meet new people. Despite her upbeat demeanor she is prone to having a negative outlook on life. She’s an average student even when putting in her all and she’s okay with that. She comes from a strict yet loving and accepting household that cares for her dearly. Her outlook stems from past school experiences as well as current events surrounding her. She likes theatre, binge-watching t.v shows and animes, upcycling her clothing/hand-me-downs from her siblings, and writing. She is 5′4 ft (164.592 cm) .

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*all images made using picrew avatar makers!!*

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soft-citrus-central · 3 years

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Share F/O hcs maybe? owo

Oooo Okay okay I'm bad at writing stuff for myself so lets see what I can come up with here~

I have a lot of F/os who are very work-focused, and tend to be very busy. So one of my favorite things to just think about is to just, Imagine being in the same space with them as they work, whether I’m helping them or just doing my own thing. I just think it's really nice to just exist in each other's presence at the very least.

This also works with those who aren't as busy, It’s just nice to think about in my opinion.

A more specific thing, in Obey Me Lucifer is shown to be very into theatre and as an ex-theatre kid that makes me very excited as that means we could go on theatre dates and I get to watch him recite scenes like the nerd he is. Not to mention I just love the Arts as a whole and he’s been shown to also be interested in that kind of stuff in the game. (more notably music, but still) So this can also just lead to museum dates, which would be a nice quiet change for him.

There's a moment in the game, where MC assumably lies about wanting to see the paints of the castle and Lucifer gives them a list, But god I would have been genuine and I would hope he’d have time to actually show and tell me about them.

Ah and then there's Hinawa, the very strict and scary looking man who I love dearly. With him I tend to imagine moments where one of us is cooking or something, and the other just comes up from behind and wraps their arms around them. Again just another case of wanting to spend time with him when I can. I’m very much a simple person and a fan of smaller affections, so like forehead kisses and hugs before the other leaves for something. I love that, and those are things I usually associate with Hinawa.

Last, The newest bastard on the block, Jigen, another one of my lovely Gunman. He is a new variation of my type, in the sense that he is a lot more likely to tease me about things, and deal out a lot more attitude. He’s got so much fight to him, and I love a man who’s ready to throw down. That being said, There's not many people or F/os I can get away with roughhousing and play-fighting with and I feel like with Jigen, he’d at least be a lot more willing to do that. Which is just a fun change for me and I'm glad to finally have someone who will playfully throw hands with me. and then complain about his old man bones, even though he isn’t that old.

These aren't really headcanons but more general thoughts, but either way thank you for the ask!!

#amanda rambles #Lucifer x Amanda #Slow Burn: Hinawa x Amanda #Last Shot #Jigen x Amanda #Thank you again for the ask!!

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wolfpawn · 5 years

Text

Once Bitten Twice Shy, Chapter 15

Previous Chapter

Chapter Summary - Tom and Paige go to a book awards where Paige is presenting an award which leads to some very important discussions.

Tag, @wolfsmom1 @sweetkingdomstarlight-blog @nonsensicalobsessions @damalseer @standing-onthe-edge @hiddlesbitch1

anyone else who wishes to be added to the tags, just ask :)

Paige did as she was required and smiled as she and Tom walked around the room.

It was a writer's awards show, where she would be presenting one to a fellow writer and she knew she needed to be somewhat jovial, but she couldn’t find it in her to give it her everything.

Over the past two weeks, she and Tom began talking daily again, neither able to go without the companionship of the other as they did for that week. They spoke about everything that came to mind, meeting several times in that time also including for lunch with his father and even Tom assisting her in looking after Alannah for the evening.

Now they were arm in arm at the awards show and it had not escaped people’s notice. She could feel others looking at them curiously as they spoke with one another as well as conversed with many other people who were there.

It felt right, yet incredibly wrong too. Being around Tom always felt right but feeling as she did about him felt wrong as it was one-sided and very much felt as though it was wrong to not have him know how she felt. But she also knew that the moment she confessed her feelings, he would leave. Also, throughout everything, she never forgot how it felt when she came home to Derek in bed with another woman. She never looked at Nicola in anger, but she did recall the event in such a manner. She felt so embarrassed and hurt by his actions, being made a fool of by someone she thought cared for her left her uncertain and wary of the same happening again. Part of her mind told her Tom was not Derek so not to hold him to Derek’s actions, another part of it told her that Tom was in a profession with incredibly attractive women that would very much be inclined to be interested in him. She was not sure if she could take the risk. When he squeezed her hand slightly, she looked at him. “Sorry?”

“Are you alright?” Tom asked again, concerned by Paige’s distant behaviour.

“Yes, I am just thinking. Are you okay?” “Perfectly fine, yes.” He took her hand in his. “Whatever ails you, you can speak to me about it, don’t think you have to remain silent, alright? I am always here for you, Paige, no matter what.” “You’re very sweet, Tom.” She smiled. “I am still trying to figure out how you got to this age single. Most every woman would love a man like you.” “Sadly, I fear you are mistaken, as you can see, I don’t even have such an issue.”

“You have hoards of screaming fans.” Paige pointed out.

“Who are, for the most part, the most incredible fans in the world, they truly are but they don’t want me, they want their image of me or my characters. Tom, the guy who sits at home reading books and dealing with his dog is not who most of them want.” “I never asked, though I am curious to know, what do you want in life, in general?” In all their time together, Paige was curious about Tom’s life goals but she did not think to ask. It was not the usual place to ask such things, but as they were being all but ignored in their position against a wall in a room full of people, she thought to ask it.

“Well, more theatre, as you know. I also have a few projects I am obligated to be involved in, as per my contracts, but overall…” “No, not that. I know your work goals, you told me them, which are great goals, don’t think I am dismissing that, but overall?” Tom paused for a moment. No one had ever asked in that, well not in the past fifteen years at least. As a youth, people seem to think it is imperative you have your whole life planned out in front of you. When you get to a certain age, they stop asking. He didn’t know why, but he felt embarrassed by the question in some respects, as though fearful she would scoff at him. Apprehensively, he looked at her.

“You don’t have to tell me. I don’t have a right to know, I am just curious.”

“I want a family. A home, wife, two, maybe three kids, Bobby trying to run off with a child’s teddy. Sitting in the chaos of my own making, watching The Jungle Book even though there’s a thousand chores to do, emails to be done, just time with my family, in the madness of life.” He forced himself to say it and in doing so, he felt almost as though he had let go of some huge secret.

“To love and be loved,” Paige smiled as she spoke. “Life’s greatest want.”

“You?” “The reason I worked so hard on my books, one after another was so when Derek got finished with college, when he got a job, I would have our nest egg ready, the money for the mortgage, the money to keep us while he worked up the rungs while I had a baby or so.” She confessed. Tom looking at her as she spoke. He was certain she had mentioned that back the first night they spoke. “I wanted to have a family too. I hadn’t thought of a dog, obviously, but after meeting Bobby, I may have to reconsider and steal him.” Tom chuckled. “You’re not stealing my dog.” “Shared custody then, my best offer.”

Tom laughed again. “No, if you want Bobby, you’re stuck with me too.” His smile became fearful as he put out such a comment. "We're a package."

Paige seemed to be eyeing him for a moment before a woman came over to talk to her regarding the award she was presenting. “I better deal with this.” She gave an apologetic smile as she took her bag from him which he so graciously held for a time. “Oh, and with regards Bobby and you being a package, that’s not much of a deterrent. It’s a pretty damn good deal.”

Tom felt his innard clench at her comment and the smile with it. He wanted so badly to brave telling her but if it were to go wrong, it would blow up spectacularly and in a place where there would be a lot of spectators to such, he was even less inclined to say anything.

He watched as she addressed those gathered. The manner in which she spoke, how she smiled and looked at different parts of the room as she did so. She looked incredible, so elegant and beautiful. She was not obsessed with diets or the latest fashion trends. She didn’t care if she was not the expected appearance for many women, especially in the eyes of those who called themselves his fans. She brushed off the comments immediately and it was clear she genuinely didn’t care. But he thought of the stresses of his work. Having to go, as he would for the autumn to another part of the world. It was a lot to ask of anyone to ask them to endure just the occasional visit in that time, to not be home for months on end. He also recalled the manner in which he and his past experiences came to an end. The humiliation, the ridicule. He was uncertain he could do that again.

He thought of Paige’s comment with regards to a family. She wanted the same as him, a family. But he gathered that already from something her father said on one of the Sundays he had gone to lunch at her family home. How women these days were less embarrassed to admit a family was not for them, but how it was unfair for those, like Paige, who wanted such but had their plans removed by idiots wasting their time. He felt the same. He didn’t think at close to forty that he would still be looking for someone to love, much less have a family with. He feared time was running out for him to have what he so dearly wanted. But he needed the woman to be someone that could endure his work, his need to travel and him himself when they got older when life became somewhat slower and more mundane. He wanted that, but no one seemed interested in that with him. The only one that ever really fit that bill was standing on the stage in front of him, her eyes meeting his for a moment before she smiled brightly and continued speaking.

“Did I do okay?” Paige looked at him anxiously as she walked back to him.

Tom smiled as he looked at her. “You did great.” He assured her before taking her hand and kissing it, looking into her eyes as he did.

“You know, sometimes I feel you are overselling this,” Paige stated uietly as she stood beside him.

“What?” “The kisses, the touches, the looks, it all seems too much.” “Perhaps that is part of my problem then, perhaps I am too much,” Tom commented sadly.

Paige eyed him carefully. “Would you act this way in a relationship too?” “Yes.”

“Really?” Tom swallowed and nodded. “You are a rare breed, Tom Hiddleston.”

“Is it too much?”

“Well, you said you always were this open with your affections, so no. I thought you were just trying to sell this.” Paige stated. “I…I hurt your feelings.” She looked at him, seeing Tom school his face into not showing it but his eyes clearly did. “Tom, I’m sorry. I am so sorry. I just...my last or indeed most experiences in a relationship with any man over the age of twenty was not half as affectionate as you are on your worst day.” She looked him in the eye as she spoke. “You are so incredible, so amazing. I’m sorry.” “So am I.” Paige frowned. “I am sorry that you never had someone lavish you with the attention you deserve.” He gave a weak smile before kissing her hand.

Paige was unsure why she did it, half out of trying to show they were the couple that people thought they were, partly because she felt that it felt right, but she leant up and kissed Tom, intentionally on the lips. Tom immediately pressed his to hers too. They kissed for a moment before Paige force them to pull apart. She did not draw back, instead, her nose was just barely touching Tom’s and she eyed him cautiously. “Sorry.” “Don’t be, please.” He whispered.

“Tom...I need to tell you...I…” “Well now, look who we have here.” Bellowed a voice beside them, causing them to pull apart.

“Oscar.” Paige’s tone was somewhat clipped. “Always with the impeccable timing.”

#Once Bitten Twice Shy #tom hiddleston #tom hiddleston fic #chapter 15

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csong-blog · 5 years

Text

hello, i’m mina and i’m too excited to roleplay with you all ! i’ve only recently started getting back into groups and this one really caught my eye. the roleplay is just amazing and all of your muses are absolutely wonderful. from what i can see, everyone is a great writer, intimidating, but that makes it more exciting for me. my face claim is my absolute queen soyou - feel free to add my discord - queen soyou#1226 for plotting purposes.

( kang jihyun, twenty eight, cisfemale ) by chance have you met CLAUDIA SONG yet? i hear SHE has lived in COLUMBIA CITY for TWO MONTHS and works as a HIGH SCHOOL GUIDANCE COUNSELOR. i’m surprised you haven’t met them yet but for when you do, i hear they can be quite EMOTIONAL but also COMPASSIONATE. for whatever reason they remind me of DENIM OVERSIZED JACKETS, LACED BODY SUITS and DISORGANISED NOTES. ( mina, 20, she/her, gmt )

under the cut will be a little about claudia ; please proceed with caution as there is mention of codependency tw, domestic abuse tw, emotional manipulation tw under the cut.

one would say that claudia had a little too much personality in her early life. she had always been full of energy and passion, a girl wanting to show off her creations and talents to all, especially her parents that had moved from south korea shortly before she came along. they did enjoy her company; a vibrant, polite young lady? there was nothing to dislike. she was the type to help with the washing of the dishes but then accidentally break one - her intentions were there, they just weren’t executed correctly.

ever since she could remember, claudia loved to sing and dance. she was a theatre kid growing up and her parents greatly encouraged her to take part in productions even though it took time away from her school work. she found herself taking a natural lead and even helping some of the other students with learning lines on top of home work. she always liked to lend a helping hand and that was never going to change.

as she grew older, she did take a more nurturing role with her friends. she was always the one that they came to for advice and that became her responsibility. the girl didn’t feel like she could have any negative feelings of her own so tried to make sure that she appeared happy and supportive at all times - she wanted the best for those around her, she didn’t see anything wrong with it.

however, she was sensitive and their struggles quickly became her’s. a natural empath, she found herself struggling to deal with the horrible things they were going through. her home life was stable, she had a family that loved her, teased her for her broken hangul, but they loved her and would always protect her in the way that they knew how - she was mature enough to understand that not everyone had that privilege.

it was only natural that she fell into the realm of pyschology. claudia wanted to help people, she really did, even stuck at college despite hating the whole set up of it. she was somewhat a loner, someone who kept to herself and talked to strangers who she would never see again. she missed her friends from high school but realised that the dynamic had changed and they weren’t together anymore. it hurt her, a lot, more than it probably should have done. no one seemed to need her here... she didn’t realise, but she was incredibly codependent and that’s when the pattern started.

matthew williams wasn’t the first male to give her attention in her second year but he was certainly one to make her feel safe. he was in her psychology class, a mature student that was taking it to enrich his resumé and she was taken by him. he listened to her, asked for help, gave her life advice - it seemed like the perfect match.

while he continued down the path of business after completing his bachelor course, claudia decided to stay on and get her master’s in school counseling. she didn’t want to be at a practice, she wanted to be where it really mattered and also where she had experience. if only there had been a counselor at my school i may not have felt so much pressure. however, the woman didn’t realise that she needed it.

she moved in with matthew as she believed it was the best thing for her in that moment. it was true; he was kind, loving, supportive, everything she could have hoped for and she was hardly going to throw that away. she married him when she was twenty four and he had just turned thirty one. she was convinced it was love but it turned out he was manipulating her the entire time. claudia doesn’t like to think that her entire marriage was a lie, that hurts her too much and she would rather hold on to the fond memories she has of that time in her life, even if they were few and far between...

the manipulation wasn’t noticeable to her at first, it was more about controlling where she was and what she was doing. claudia had a few friends at the school she got a job at and she enjoyed spending time with them. they had made her feel so welcome when she had first started and their personalities seemed to mesh together. after school they would go to a bar, occasionally catch a student with a fake id and have a fun time with it and would also go for meals out. it all made matthew feel invisible. he made it his mission to know where she was, what she was doing and her next plans so that he could clash with them. claudia was loyal, she would choose him over them any time.

at first, she didn’t feel like anything was wrong. they had both made sacrifices and a marriage was supposed to be work - she wasn’t about to have a disagreement with him over things so petty. however, as time went on, he became more and more angered, aggressive with her. the woman was small but she also had too much respect for him to try and fight back. at times, she felt like she had said the wrong thing and deserved it.

as it got really bad, claudia became more and more tearful at work - they even put her on a warning for walking out on a student because she was in tears. she would get up at 4 every morning to make sure the house was spotless, so he would have nothing to hate her for and she would spend the rest of her day worrying about the most mundane of things. he could always find fault with her and it would always end badly for her...

she used the school production as a great way to get away for a while, to help the drama department put on a show and that’s what kept her going. the kids did need some encouragement but she was there to give it every time and even help them with their technique. it reminded her how much she loved it to begin with and realised that she should have kept doing it.

claudia felt it difficult to ask for help as she had always being the one giving it. how could she help the students if she couldn’t even help herself? broken ribs and a collapsed lung, he was actually the one to call 911 for her. the doctors and police knew what was happening, especialy when she claimed that she slipped... the ‘split’ wasn’t easy for her. the woman felt useless wihtout him, moreso than she had done with him.

AFTER:

one of her friends at the school took her in to recover and she actually ended up moving with her to seattle before she got her own place. the other woman was kind and let her take as much time as she needed off. claudia used this time to get involved with community stage productions and it definitely lifted her spirits. being cared for while slowly becoming used to freedom did wonders for her.

she has recently got a job at a local high school and plans to move out of her friend’s house after she has had a few paycheques. she does love living with her friend and her family but now she feels ready to get her own space to truly start building herself up once again.

claudia is a very nurturing individual but also quite sensitive. if she’s uncomfortable about something, she is one to cry.

she sings in public while she has her earphones because it brings her joy.

although she finds her job challenging at times, she’s glad to be in an environment where she doesn’t feel threatened.

she wears glasses but hates wearing them.

she’s very big on oversized jackets and lace body suits. if she’s feeling adventurous, she’ll add a heel into the mix. steve jobs is also her style icon as she has so many bodysuits and sweaters that have a turtle neck - she jokes about this daily.

she’s actually taking part in the community production and she’s loving every minute of it.

claudia drops her phone at least once a week but it still doesn’t have a crack in it... she’s well and truly mastered the art.

she tends to use humour as a way to cope with her emotions. she can be the joker but when it comes to someone else, she will make sure to listen and advise.

claudia still puts others before herself so catch her trying to sort out other people’s problems and not even touching her own...

her friend knows her for taking in people in need and she has got told off for this as there are children living there and she doesn’t even know them that well - she just wants to help but doesn’t think about repercussions of her actions.

she’s really enjoying living in seattle with so many things to see and do - she’s just fallen in love with it and she’s so glad shegot away from her old life and was able to start some place new!

generally, her room is an absolute tip. she has little passion for organisation but can find things with ease if people don’t tamper with her system.

she’s a fan of a regular latte, nothing more adventurous than a salted caramel latte at christmas for her !

she calls her parents three times every week to check in with them to make sure that they’re not worrying about her. she loves them dearly and is so grateful that they’re more present in her life now !

#206.intro #codependency tw #domestic abuse tw #abuse tw #manipulation tw

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strechanadi · 5 years

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Swan Lake - no longer a fairy tale

Right, so... Nobody asked me to, but something so marginal cannot stop me, clearly, so I went and translated the longest, the trickiest, the most profound review I have ever written. (And that includes POB Giselle, Swan Lake and Onegin! OK. Maybe not Onegin. But since I’ve done this one I can almost make myself believe I could give translating Onegin a go as well.) (She said and then promptly kill herself before she could made another clearly, completely and utterly deranged decision.)

Half of the things don’t make sense, I’m sure. And I can only hope they made sense in the original. (Which they probably didn’t, let’s be real, but since when this matters to me anyway?) (God, I literally cannot stop babbling, somebody strangle me or something. Or at least take the keyboard from my grabby and apparently very high fingers, that decided to simply vomit words after words for no real reason and with no brain to mouth/fingers filter whatsoever!)

It’s in times like this I truly wish to be able to write in an actual English language. Or for my mother language to be a world language, not some beautiful, hot mess, but a mess nonetheless, from the middle of nowhere. A mess I despite of everything love dearly and even live in this illusion of me being really pretty good in using (or more like playing with) it.

What is also clear - I, for a reason not known to humans, love to write absurdly, ridiculously long sentences. Be it just up to me, I’d write a whole review in one obscure linguistic construction I call a perfectly normal sentence. I was told however, that English doesn’t really do or like such things, so I tried to shorten them. Or some of them. Was really unbelievably succesfull doing so...

No reason to prolong this now, I guess?

So just, please be patient. Or benevolent. Or try to laugh in private at least! Look, I tried and I know it’s actually rather pathetic to be so spectacularly bad in English grammar, that I supposedly learnt from the age of 5 (but then spent more than 15 years actively hating the whole language, which... doesn’t make sense, I admit, but maybe explain some things), but... I mean, it would be better than google translate, if anything else. It HAS TO be!

As always - I appologize for anything and everything I did to the poor English language. It doesn’t deserve such a poor treatment.

Were there anybody who would feel personally attacked by my sheer ignorance of the basics of language of Shakespeare, Byron or Shelley and would want to make this thing better, let me know! (Even though I am afraid there are so many mistakes, your eyes will be bleeding around the end of 2nd paragraph...)

Last one - I have no idea how in/definite articles work!

(Good thing I don’t write fiction of any sort, ANs would be longer than the actual thing.)

Swan Lake, no longer a fairy tale

Whenever the two words – Swan Lake – were mentioned, everybody had some universally shared idea of the final picture. Nothing has drastically changed with John Neumeier (1976, Illusionen – wie Schwanensee), who mixed the original fairy story with events from prince Ludwig II of Bavaria’s life, nor with Mats Ek (1987), whose prince was torn between imaginary princess Odette and real life Odile, nor with Jean-Christophe Maillot (2011, Le Lac) and new relations between his main characters, not even with Alexander Ekman (2014, A Swan Lake), who came back in time and took a look at the first premiere of said ballet in 1877 and tried to make a rather poetic story about what from certain point was started to be called a fiasco. As if the later Petipa/Ivanov version needs any more boost…

The unshakable certitude was irretrievably broken in 1995 by Matthew Bourne. His Swan Lake was new, daring, bold, with unexpected twists and one could not left theatre feeling indifferent after seeing it. Part of the ballet world turned its back to such profanity of beloved classic. The other part fell for its captivating charm, and since in 2018 Bourne’s Swan Lake came back to his New Adventure’s repertoire for umpteenth time, after hundreds of successful shows, many tours across the globe, adorned with every possible theatre and dance awards, it seems clear who were right then, 24 years ago.

The most common characteristic of Bourne’s Swan Lake is „the male one“. Prince is in the centre of attention, black swan Odile is changed into unknown Stranger, and most obviously – all the swans became purely men’s business. Which opens completely new perspective for male dancers and saying that this ballet has a major influence to whole generations of artists is hardly an overstatement.

Bourne follows the original structure and basic frame of Swan Lake. There are still four acts, act one follows the Prince, his character, the environment he’s living in, relations he has, act two is for the swans, act three still represents the ball, and in act four, where traditionally the Prince is coming back to the lake, here the swans appear in prince’s room. Many times even the formal structure is intact – the prince’s solo at the end of act one, pas de quatre of both little and big swans, or Bourne’s take on character dances in act three. Even the entrée of swans in second act follows the same space structure of the Ivanov’s original /aka swans are coming one after the other and crossing the stage from left to right (dancers‘ perspective)/.

Oedipal Complex, repressed sexuality, low self-esteem

Bourne’s Prince, his personality, is more than ever influenced by his upbringing, by the estrangement of aristocratic background, his world constantly controlled, constricted by rules and rituals, with no spaces for affection, understanding, empathy, every emotion being replaced by duty. Bond between son and mother the Queen (ice cold, distant Katrina Lyndon for whom one cannot feel an ounce of sympathy, or more emotional, but still dismissive Nicole Cabera) is minute, almost non-existent, which has such a strong impact on the introverted, socially inept, insecure Prince, who is on top of all that haunted by strange dreams about swans. The feeling of lacking something gets even worse when he clearly sees his mother is more than capable of showing emotions, particularly towards another young men.

During yet another military parade or boat christening or exhibition opening, the heir to the throne is met with a bit silly, ill-mannered and completely unsuitable girl for his royal life (incomparable Carrie Willis, whose interpretation makes her character pretty sweet with candid, open-hearted warmth), who shortly after became his girlfriend and went with the family to the opera house to watch a ballet performance. Staging theatre scenes within the actual production /we call it theatre on theatre, which probably doesn’t make sense in any other language then ours, sorry/ is always very rewarding. Bourne is on top of that master of choreographic punchline and this scene (to pas de trois from Act I music) combines all clichés from romantic sylphs, awaken Floras, forest beasts to well-built male heroes one could think of and is a joy to watch for its grotesqueness as well as for the subtle details in gestures, ballet quirky manner or choreographic pattern for those, who know where to look for them.

The prince is trying to find his freedom in a night club, but to no avail. He’s met there unexpectedly with his frolicking girlfriend, then he got himself into a fight with one of her suitors (or maybe rather clients) and at the end his soul is beaten for good, when he has to watch the royal secretary paying some money to the one girl, whose affections he believed were genuine. (And it kind of doesn’t matter they most probably truly were.)

The only logical solution for the prince is a suicide. But before he’s able to throw himself into waters of a small park lake, majestic Swan appears and everything is changed at once. Traditional swans‘ corps de ballet danced by women is often associated with delicate elegance, crystalline beauty, dreamy atmosphere and aesthetics of homogeneously moving bodies. Swan is becoming a pure ideal almost as if from ancient Greece. Bourne’s swans are first and foremost animals, he’s not denying their grace, but is showing their slight awkwardness and ridiculousness in some movements at the same time. His swans are wild, independent, fetterless. Looking sinister when lining up to attack the prince, their physical, natural power strengthened by additional slapping arms, stamping feet, hissing and dangerously sharp, audible breathing. The Swan alone is very wary of the prince, uncompromisingly harsh, defensive, with sharp edges of aggressiveness that serves as self-defence of this imposing, powerful creature from anybody who would think of causing any harm. The almost imperceptible gestures calling the prince towards him are even more meaningful then, the moment when he nuzzles prince’s chest indescribably intimate.

Next evening there’s a ball at the palace. And even though it may seem the main reason of it is prince’s engagement thanks to all the ladies present, it’s the queen in her bright crimson dress amongst all black gowns who is in the spotlight. While her son doesn’t even know, what he should be doing with all said ladies. Break from routine comes with mysterious Stranger, whose raw, animalistic charisma draws every female’s attention to him, which he welcomes with great satisfaction. At the same time it also affects, quite unintentionally, the utterly unprepared prince, because Stranger’s arrogant dominance has something from Swan’s animalistic fierce. /Dear English language, you have many words. More than my mother language. But you have exactly nothing that would or could match prchlivost. Or at least I am unable to find it./ As Odile in original libretto, the Stranger dances his way through character dances (the Neapolitan one stands out with its light-hearted fun it makes of cliché Italian relationships) and finds his dancing peak in duet with the queen (music of so called Black Swan Pas de Deux). It is when prince’s psyche breaks and he, in his imagination, is thrown in arms of unknown to be faced with intimacy, sensuality, sexual tension and even the most basic physical contact, everything so strong even person of sound mind would probably find it difficult to cope. Therefore, when the Stranger kisses the queen, prince is there with gun in his hands and complete madness in his eyes. In chaotic situation gunshot is heard (although not by prince’s pistol), prince’s girlfriend falls dead and terrified young man is drawn away.

The tragedy is inevitable. To padded cell, where the prince is held, come doctor with the queen followed by group of nurses with queen’s face, whose hairstyle and white uniform may resemble the demonic nurse Ratched from the Miloš Forman’s film Flew over the cuckoo’s nest. After certain medical procedure (just shy from lobotomy) the prince is taken to his room, where the miserable, wounded Swan emerges from his bed. Shortly after he is followed by irritated flock of other swans, that throw themselves unbridled on the young man and then even on their supposed leader, doing so with brutality growing with every Swan’s desperate attempt to save his prince. The Swan dies at the end after their fatal, almost fanatical attack. And with him die prince’s illusions, dreams, hopes and then he himself. So when the Queen comes in the morning, all she finds is her son’s dead body, the sight of the Swan embracing his prince behind the bed the only, yet bittersweet comfort for the audience.

As many other versions of this famous ballet, this too strengthens psychological aspect of the story and deepens characters‘ personalities. Here, more than ever, the contours of main characters are pretty blurry. The prince and the Swan are blending into one, they are reflected in the other, full of opposites they are complementing each other, one would say they are like two sides of the same coin. /Ha!/ Bourne on top of that let his characters to blend with different original ones. Where in traditional Swan Lakes it’s Odette weeping at the beginning of the last scene, here it’s the Prince, who is going through mental breakdown in striking resemblance to Giselle’s mad scene. The role of Rothbart, the sorcerer, is played by the royal secretary as well as prince’s own mother, who at the same time plays a part of original Siegfried during the act 3 ball, when being seduced by Stranger, who is Odile. What may seem as confusing chaos at first sight, makes perfect sense in the end and strengthens the unquestionably dark tones of Bourne’s choreographic vision.

Artistic approaches or One man’s meat is another man’s poison…

As it always is with story ballets, individual artistic interpretation is something that has the power to change the final image of said piece. In case of Bourne’s Swan Lake and its current stars, the outcome may be completely different with each cast.

Where Liam Mower was bored, annoyed, slightly defiant teenage Prince, Dominic North’s hero was more tired, depressed young man with no illusions, very well aware of all his flaws and inability to fulfil all expectations of his social role, while James Lovell, who seemed most out of touch with reality, emphasized prince’s childishly pure, honest naivety. If the suicide attempt of Mower’s prince was more than anything a dramatic gesture, North was simply resigned to its inevitability, and Lovell threw himself into the waters with absolute, desperate abandon, his mind not able to see any other solution. Each and every prince is then influenced by his Swan and Stranger (and every Swan and Stranger by his prince).

Matthew Ball, the newest principal of the Royal Ballet, can rely on his first-class technique as well as on his unquestionable elegant stage presence. His pliable body felt the music to its very last molecule, every movement full of regal charm and classical beauty, which in a way brought Ball closer to traditional, delicately soft, feminine portrayal of Odette. His Swan was untouchable in his impeccable perfection, icily confident, aware of every gesture he made, of every prince’s fascinated glance. Max Westwell, former soloist of English National Ballet, concentrated more on the raw temperament, natural animal distrust, physical power and ferocity combined with enigmatic magnificence. Dynamics of his movements escalated at all times, was full of unexpected turns and transitions from strong, energetic endings, to exhalation captured in casual, seemingly ordinary movement of hanging wrist.

As the Stranger Ball looked like smug dandy enjoying himself and all the attention, all too well aware of his own youth and beauty, that make everybody fall for him. Personally though I couldn’t help thinking he wasn’t as in charge as it might look at the first sight. He was mocking his prince, showing off ostentatiously. Weswell on the other hand was the embodiment of pure, uncompromising charisma. Interactions between him and Mower’s prince, who was impressed by Stranger’s unconventional, rough manners at first, was quickly becoming a tense fight for power, the prince trying to prove himself worthy of Stranger’s attention, to prove he’s his equal. With Lovell’s prince the seducing, open flirting, blatant sexuality was much more evident, which combined with this prince’s ingenuous innocence made the final picture unpleasantly sinister.

Regardless of different casts, ending of the ballet became a real emotional roller-coaster. With Matthew Ball and Dominic North equal in their complete despair when being sure of the inevitable death of their partner. Ball’s total resignation the more palpable, the more he was stubbornly, despite his injuries trying to stay or at least look unaffected on the outside. Change of Westwell’s Swan, in act 2 so independent and powerful, was shocking. Now he was utterly, hopelessly, painfully broken. He was defending both his princes against furious swans with rabid determination, with no self-preservation whatsoever, with perfect, devoted abandon. Bond between him and James Lovell’s prince was then strengthened by certain feel of responsibility, by tenderness that felt almost motherly. He was not only trying to protect, but to sooth, to give some comfort to his prince as well with physical contact, with touches stronger, more frequent, more expressive, more meaningful. That was why prince’s positively hysterical, agonizing grief hurt almost physically then.

Bourne managed something extraordinary. His Swan Lake with costumes by Lez Brotherson is as iconic, as legendary as the original ballet. His vision as strong as let’s say Ek’s Giselle. What’s more, Bourne’s ballet doesn’t age, it hasn’t lost any of its impact – thanks to slight costume, dramaturgic and choreographic changes, that only strengthen its drive. Prince’s hinted homosexuality won‘t shock anyone anymore as well as men swans won’t provoke such controversy, true. But thanks to these examples it is evident, that Bourne’s ballet is so much more than just a gay version of one famous story…

For everybody who actually reach the end of this madness - congratulations. And I am sorry.

#ballet #review #swan lake #matthew bourne's swan lake #selfpromo

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namixart · 5 years

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To start off 2019 with some positivity, I'm going to make a list of things that I absolutely love and make me happy in my favourite shows, movies, books, games etc. Small things, big things, no particular rhyme or reason. It was surprisingly therapeutic. Feel free to reblog and add your own!

Link being left-handed now let him use sign language Nintendo please

The entire Sector 6 Market section in Final Fantasy VII and the Honeybee Inn in particular

Zuko's character arc

The Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack

Final Fantasy X's worldbuilding

Everything about Disney's Mary Poppins it put me in a good mood for three days straight

How Percy absolutely adores his mum and is supportive of her relationship with Paul (after a while)

Edward Elric

(Yes. Just Edward Elric as a character, person, concept, actions...)

Major character design kink: boys with long (ish) blonde hair (see Edward, Link, Zidane, Howl)

Final Fantasy IX's soundtrack

Aerith and Tifa being close friends despite both being in love with Cloud

The Gentleman Bastard Sequence's worldbuilding

The fact that one of the characters in Zootopia speaks with my city's accent in the Italian dub (you never see it in any movie)

Final Fantasy IV's world being just vague enough that it tickles my creative bone to expand on it

Kingdom Hearts I using original storylines for the Disney Worlds

How Yato's eyes are very a very clear indication that he's a supernatural being in Noragami, being unnaturally light and bright

That one panel in the Kingdom Hearts II manga where an almost-naked Pete carries Maleficent bridal style out of the collapsing tower

Sleeping Beauty's art style and instrumental soundtrack

The fact that two super popular shonen manga/anime have leads who are super smart instead of being dumb muscle or the stock happy-go-lucky-not-very-bright protagonist (Fullmetal Alchemist and My Hero Academia)

How some of the Olympians like Hermes and Poseidon are so casual when interacting with mortals

The scene where the Spaceport is revealed in Treasure Planet and the look of the film in general

The first few chapters of the Yu-Gi-Oh! manga before card games took over the plot

People in the Gentleman Bastard Sequence being emotionally honest despite being literal con artists

The theatre motif in The Republic of Thieves

Cloud, Aerith and Tifa threatening Don Corneo, but especially Aerith saying that "she'll rip it off" if he doesn't cooperate

Locke and Jean becoming pirates in Red Seas Under Red Skies

The Hunger Games movies being the most accurate film adaptations I have seen in my life

The Kingdom Hearts soundtrack, especially the vocal tracks, Dearly Beloved and The Other Promise

Final Fantasy VI shoving you in what usually is the backstory of a videogame and literally destroying the world

Edward defending Mustang when he had his sight taken from him despite them having spent 90% of their screentime together bickering

Tony Stark and Peter Parker's relationship in the MCU

Sophie throwing a tantrum after she realises she's in love with Howl and creating deadly weedkiller to express those feelings

Darcy being a goddamn social Disaster in every incarnation of Pride and Prejudice

The relationship between Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye

The Once Upon a December sequence from Anastasia

The mere existence of Zamira Drakasha and Ezri Delmastro and everything they represent

Sokka's role as both the strategist and the goofball in the Gaang

Peter Parker sharing a hot dog with Loki when he could have asked for anything because Loki owed him a favour

How the plot of Kingdom Hearts is so ridiculous we don't even question it anymore

Enormous muscly men I can still categorise as "super adorable and sweet" (Major Armstrong, All Might)

Howl being the biggest drama queen in the book

My Hero Academia's fantasy AU ending

Spider-Man (PS4) nailing the Friendly Neighbourhood Spidey aspect of the character and letting him interact with civilians

That moment when I was sure Bakugou was going to join the League of Villains but then he didn't and I've never been happier about being wrong my entire life

Zuko practising before asking the Gaang to join them

SNAP SNAP SPARK SPARK

Harry's wonder at every new thing in the Wizarding World

The fact that Spider-Man's backstory could just as easily be that of a villain but instead he's a hero and he has the biggest heart

Jake and Amy being in an Adult and Communicative relationship while still being themselves and each other's best friend

Winry being just as much of a prodigy as Ed and Al and building Ed's automail at 11 years old

Percy Jackson starting out as a standard straight white kids' series and Riordan adding ALL THE DIVERSITY as soon as it got popular enough that Disney couldn't say no

Charlie Weasley just outright trespassing into Hogwarts to smuggle an illegal dragon out

The soul and essence of Pride and Prejudice being passive-aggressiveness and sarcasm

Apollo's haikus in Trials of Apollo

Every scene using Deep Canvas in Tarzan

Winry and Edward's diametrically opposed reactions to the realisation they're in love ("Oh I guess I've fallen for him alright moving on" vs "Fuckfuckfuckfuck oh shit no why oh god aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh")

Lilo & Stitch's watercolour backgrounds

The fact that Roy Mustang's womanising persona is a facade to hide the fact that he's a) a huge nerd, b) going to overthrow the government and c) in love with his lieutenant

The "makings of greatness" speech in Treasure Planet

Spider-Man (PS4)'s swelling score as you start web swinging

The Battle of 1000 Heartless in Kingdom Hearts II

Sophie proudly describing Howl to Abdullah, him assuming she was listing flaws and her getting angry about it

Edward and Alphonse being atheists despite having literally met their version of God

The fact that Amajiki is one of the top three hero students despite his crippling anxiety

Rubicante recognising Edge as a warrior and apologising for Lugae's horribleness

Edge unlocking new powers out of sheer rage

Sora throwing a tea party at the end of Dream Drop Distance while his best friend was still asleep

The backstory in Skyward Sword about Hylia and the first Link

The "immoral manga" omake in Fullmetal Alchemist

The School Festival arc in My Hero Academia, Eri finally smiling and Deku and Mirio being the best big brothers I've ever seen

Kingdom Hearts III finally coming out this month

McGonagall's cat form resembling her human form

Edward finally breaking down at the end of Fullmetal Alchemist god I love this boy so much he has such a big heart

The Enlarged Suit Scene from Howl's Moving Castle

Most of Howl’s Moving Castle is a delight to be honest

Kairi's reaction at the news that she would be training with Axel in A Fragmentary Passage

The bonfire scene in Cosmo Canyon from Final Fantasy VII

Uraraka deciding not to focus on her crush on Deku in order to grow as a hero

Rydia summoning Titan and raising a mountain at the ripe age of seven in Final Fantasy IV

The friendship between Percy, Annabeth and Grover

Kairi and Lea looking like they're going to be a team in Kingdom Hearts III

Greed (at least the second one) claiming that his goal in life is to have everything when in fact he only ever really wanted friends

The Main Theme of Final Fantasy playing during the scene where the characters not in the final battle pray for the party in Final Fantasy IV

The Overture from Phantom of the Opera

Locke Lamora from the Gentleman Bastard Sequence being named after Locke Cole from Final Fantasy VI

Luna Lovegood never having to change who she is and remaining weird and happy

Terra Branford becoming more human by feeling not romantic love but maternal love for a bunch of orphaned children

The "You're not alone" scene from Final Fantasy IX

Darcy respecting Elizabeth's refusal of his first proposal and working to become a better person after she points out his many flaws

Neku learning to open up to people in The World Ends With You and literally saving Shibuya through character development

Bakugou's slow development into a better person

The sketchy animation during Disney's Dark Age

The official character artwork for Skyward Sword

Harry and Sirius's relationship

Spider-Man being a street-level hero and being super humble even though he can literally lift Thor's hammer

That little high-five between Sora and Remy in the 30 seconds trailer for Kingdom Hearts III

Rosa and Rydia immediately ignoring the boys' order to not come to the Moon and stowing away on the Lunar Whale

Plus Edge's adorable "Y-you're here too!?" in the DS remake

Cloud not being allergic to smiling and joking around in the original Final Fantasy VII ("Let's mosey!")

Thor and Loki starting to mend their relationship in Ragnarok

Into The Spider Verse has a scene where Miles uses Spider-Man comic books to figure out how to use his powers and it's the best and I love it

You know what, Into The Spider Verse as a whole because I saw it a while back and I'm still gushing

#i feel so good about the world #long post

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ask-shakespearehigh · 5 years

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Q&A post with the Mods!!!!

This is going to be a long one oh boy

How strict is the delineation of creative control vis-a-vis characters/plays between the mods? (@pedanticlecturer)

We generally have the plays split up along lines of “what we know”— we have a list at the very beginning of the blog. Sometimes we’ll draw the others’ characters (mostly me drawing some of Star’s…) but even then the final say on characterization is up to the “main” mod for that play — mod aster

what aster said -- mod star

What is your favorite play? What is your favorite character in terms of how they were written in the source material? (@pedanticlecturer)

I think my favorite play overall is Macbeth, just because I like the vibes (and the fact that I too could kill Macbeth), the fact that you don’t say it’s name in theatres, and the fact that it’s a play I did a full read through and analysis of in class. Favorite character? Puck from Midsummer. — mod aster

uhhhh,, hmm. ive always had a soft spot for midsummer since i saw it with aster esp bc of how fun the costumes were. of the comedies it has the largest potential to be the most visually pleasing bc of the concept of fairies,,,and im gay and dramatic so i love that. id die if i got to costume design for midsummer,,,or be in it,,,yeah. fav character. hmm. probably mercutio?? i recently saw a version of romeo and juliet where mercutio was played by a woman and oh my god it was amazing!!! not to mention mercutio’s portrayal in baz luhrmann's INCREDIBLE version of r n j!!! (I based my mercutio design on him) he just spends the entire time making dick jokes. love that. -- mod star

How do you answer asks so fast? I mean it's great but I'm impressed 😂 (Anon)

Personally, it’s a mix of: notifications on, quick drawing speed, and using the blog to avoid my class work — mod aster

aster is fast and (as you can see from all of my answers) im lazey -- mod star

Are there any elements/characters of the plays you're covering that you would have liked to work into this blog's plot, but couldn't due to the constraints of the setting or the synthetic nature of the blog? (@pedanticlecturer)

I wanted to make everyone gay but unfortunately due to plot constraints we have to have some hets but that wont stop me from making it lgbt as possible. -- mod star

I did want to make The Tempest more of a central play, but it just didn’t translate well. Similarly, other supernatural elements like the witches in Macbeth. This isn’t so much a constraint mentioned, but my own time/energy means that I want to show the Macbeth backstory, in a specific format, but I can’t right now— mod aster

Is there a hierarchy of import when it comes to each play's individualized impact on shakespeare high's general arc? If so, what plays are crucial to the foundation of the story? Which ones did you do mostly for shits and giggles? (@pedanticlecturer)

This is phrased like an ACT question and i might not answer it right so sorry in advance but: mod aster and i only selected a few plays for each of us to do given we dont know all of shakespeare’s works, but we tend to put more emphasis on the the more well known. But it also comes down to 1. How much we have plotted out for each play and 2. What the followers ask about most. Our two most popular are hamlet and macbeth bc people are familiar w those but around march caesar always becomes relevant again. I didnt even have designs for some of the characters until someone asked about them. -- mod star

I would say the same as star— it generally comes down to what people ask about. I will say that the overall plot is sort of separated into “has happened” and “is happening”. Like, the human potion of Midsummer, Julius Caesar, and Macbeth are all in the “aftermath” portion, while Twelfth Night, Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet, among others, are happening. We’re trying to incorporate as much as we can, and I don’t think any of them were really put in without some thought.— mod aster

What personal significance does shakespeare hold in ur guys' lives? (@pedanticlecturer)

I go to a theater school rn and so ive dealt w shakespeare (although not all of them) it also helps that i was in loves labours lost last year as moth and that i read hamlet and r n j. Theres also a theater in my state that always does One Big Shakespeare per season and they always do them super well!!! My love for shakespeare probably started w seeing midsummer at that theater w mod aster!!! So. Theater kid rights!! -- mod star

To be honest, I got back into Shakespeare Because of the blog. I’ve been friends with some people that got really Pretentious about Shakespeare, and it kinda put me off of it. I did have a book of abridged plays (the plays’ plots written out in prose, basically) that I read as a kid, which is what got me into not only the plots of a lot of the plays, but also the idea of having them illustrated. And, same as star, the theater in state does the One Big Shakespeare— and they tend to do some really cool things with the costumes, setting them in diff time periods. I haven’t been able to see any lately since I’ve moved, but they still slap. — mod aster

🥰😘💙🥰🥰💜💟🥰I 😍💗💚😍😍LOVE🖤🖤 YALL ♥️♥️🧡💛💚💝❣️💕💘💖💗💓💞💝❤️💛💜 okay now i have a question i swear— how long have the two of you been doing art??? and what were your first shakespeare plays??? (@hellaghosts)

Uhh i started drawing when i was like idk 12 and i have the giant boxes of sketchbooks to prove it!!! I moved to digital art at abt 14-15 but mostly stayed traditional until this yr when i got a Neat New Tablet so some of my sketchbooks are sitting abandoned rip. My first shakespeare was either romeo and juliet or midsummer nights dream and i love both of them v much!!! I have a very old piece of art that i did for r n j for my freshman class assignment on it and it hasnt aged well alsdjfjafd circa 2016 i think??? -- mod star

Oh man. I started drawing when I was about 10, but it was Bad. I don’t think I got much into drawing again until I was about 14? Sometime around the end of middle school/beginning of high school. I would say I started getting into drawing as more than doodling/coloring edits sometime around 2015-16? I would draw on my iPad with my finger, then I got a tablet for my computer, and now I pretty much stick to my iPad with an Apple Pencil. My first Shakespeare play was….. uh…… probably Midsummer???? I have No idea. We would go to plays when I was little, so I honestly don’t remember if I saw others before. It may have been Romeo and Juliet— I had that book where it was the original and the “modernized” with the little dog that explained things— which, if you know it makes sense, but if you don’t is probably a bonkers answer. — mod aster

Do you think this blog has like? An overarching thesis (be it b/c intentionally or simply b/c ur own take on the world has bled thru to the point where u believe it’s central to the piece at this point)? (@pedanticlecturer)

Not gonna lie, I had to read that like three times AND dm you to figure out what you were asking from us and all I have is “be gay, respect women, write your own happy endings”. — mod aster

This blog started with an ides of march shitpost and you think we have enough brain energy to write a whole thesis? I projected feelings of found family onto my half of the blog but idk if that counts. Be gay do crime 420 69 -- mod star

What’s the nature/rough dynamic of ur relationship? How do y’all know each other? (@pedanticlecturer)

Met mod aster when i was like 4 and even tho we didnt live close we became like, best friends although the Best part didnt start until we were like 13-ish and eventually we talked like non stop (about anime and homestuck. Yknow. 13 year old kid things) and we didnt see each other a lot bc of Distance and now its even worse bc aster is in colleg.,e but we consider each other siblings regardless of family bc we’re adopted into our own respective families so that bled over into our friendship and it would feel weird calling him anything other than my brother now. We’ve seen each other at our best and worst and if you really want a good insight on what we’re like as siblings watch griffin and justin mcelroy’s overview video of catlateral damage wherein i am griffin and he is the long suffering justin. -- mod star

Star is basically my long distance sibling and functionally the only cousin I recognize bc like their parents are basically an aunt and uncle and like our dads look enough alike that we’ve both accidentally gotten the wrong dad for a hug or similar so like. Anyways yeah Star is the Griffin to my Justin, complete with our absent middle brother who we love dearly— mod aster

Dubiously relevant q but what kind of music do y’all listen to when u do art (if that is indeed a habit either of u partake in) (@pedanticlecturer)

It can depend on the piece? I was working on some (unrelated) oc prints that were song-focused, and for those I just listened to said song on loop. Sometimes I have playlists. Sometimes I’ll just be in a Mood and throw a song on loop. But a lot of time for the blog, I’ll listen to The Adventure Zone for the billionth time, because I have Too Much Attention. I’ve also, on request from Star, linked the most recent “loop song”.— mod aster

I tend to obsess over the same like 3 songs every few weeks so those get listened to on repeat but it also depends on the tone of what im drawing or who im drawing i might genre switch bc of that. If im drawing ophelia i stick to lana del rey and if im drawing hamlet its the neighborhood, horatio is sufjan stevens etc. i have categorized,. Most of the characters i draw into different songs/genres/energies of music but not like i ever follow that. Sometimes i just pull up a really long nonsense video and forget to draw. Essentially: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ -- mod star

How’d y’all come up with ur pseudonyms? (@pedanticlecturer)

I love space so much and my main blog is starryeydsailor space gay rights!! Im also tiny and full of energy and bright so basically i;m star -- mod star

Uhhhh i was like “hey i want to do uhhhhhh flower?” And then I google searched flower names until I found one I liked —- mod aster

How did you end up deciding the rough timeline of events in canon? (@pedanticlecturer)

It’s mostly determined by like. How we choose per story? If that makes sense. Like, we just take story by story, and decide “is it happening, has it happened, and when?” And then we fit them together in relation to each other just by dint of. All existing at once. Like, I knew I wanted Macbeth to be in aftermath, because like, even though there’s no murder, the way I’ve translated it to the AU is still kinda heavy, and it’s something that I don’t know that I could do properly if it were happening right now. Also, it’s more interesting IMO to have them at different times. Tl;dr we wing it per story and slot them together— mod aster (mod star agrees I just can word better, in theory)

If you could tell the story of shakespeare high in a different format than an ask blog, would you? Obviously y'all are making very good use of the format, but would you want to write this as a animated series or like? a comic book? or is the form inseparable from the story? (@pedanticlecturer)

I kinda wanted to do a webcomic or maybe to plot develop through like, animatics but the element of surprise comes from the asks we get and really makes us think so the blog is a good start. We didnt think we’d get this far -- mod star

Pretty much what Star said— there are certain elements where it’d be neat to do as a comic or as an animatic. Like, the fantasy dream is like, an anthology webcomic of each story, where you can like, see other characters in the background and stuff. But to be honest, we develop a lot by what we’re asked— there was a post about developing worldbuilding by being asked questions and then pretending you’ve thought about the answer, and it’s not far off. Personally, it’s hard to just lay out a story, because I have a whole WORLD and what’s relevant? What are people interested in? It’s by getting questions that I can then focus in on an area to develop. And yeah, we Super didn’t think we’d get this far lmao — mod aster

Any headcanons about your characters that you don't think will ever come up on the blog through asks or plot posts? (@pedanticlecturer)

I could make a whole separate post for this!!!!! Mostly its voice headcanons (and by mostly i mean like 1 or 2) or relationship hcs!!!! -- mod star

Honestly same. I don’t think I have voice headcanons for mine, though I bet I could find some. I’ve got a bunch of miscellaneous headcanons that just kinda float around, but like they’re scattered, too numerous for this post, and also not always things I’m sure are canon yet.— mod aster

#mod post #mod aster #mod star #q and a #birthday #we cant seem to read more AND tag so like brb gonna go kill god

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yukiwrites · 6 years

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Their Clumsy Dance

Thank you so much for commissioning me again, @arod7293! This got so big, but I hope you like it either way ;D

Summary: Years after the war, the rebuilding was finally over. Valla, Nohr and Hoshido decide to hold a festival in commemoration to that and, of course, Azura is the main performer. But her partner isn’t Felicia. Takes place between Clumsy Family Time and A Clumsily Perfect Wife.

Commission info HERE and HERE!

Felicia had started to get used to work again -- mostly by courtesy of her loving wife, who always welcomed her back with open arms and a warm kiss. It seemed that being away from work for almost one year made her a bit rusty in some areas, but nothing that a good scolding from Jakob and a kind embrace from her wife couldn't cure.

Soon, a month passed, though not less eventful.

The war between Hoshido and Nohr, as well as Valla, had been over for years, and their rulers could finally focus their attention away from rebuilding. All three kingdoms could barely remember the scars of war, and that called for a celebration between all of them.

Queen Corrin of Valla, King Xander of Nohr and King Ryoma of Hoshido busied themselves with meetings and peace accords so as to hold an international event, composed with their combined cultures and strengths.

The event would take place nowhere other than in Cyrkensia, the capital of the Grand Duchy that had been destroyed during the war. The event would serve not only as a grand opening of the renovated theatre (its reconstruction funded by all three kingdoms) but as a multi-cultural festival.

Representatives of each kingdom would perform a wide variety of spectacles over the course of three days: dance numbers, singing contests, food stalls, folk tales and dancing among others would be showcased throughout the city.

The first day would be Hoshido's, with the presence of its royal family at the end for a musical performance. Nohr would take the second day, and each nohrian royal would make a speech regarding this or that cultural trait, ending with an ode for their late possessed King.

Valla would close the event with the third day, and no one other than Azura could perform the closing ceremony dance, though, of course, Corrin, Xander and Ryoma left the decision for herself only to take.

"Will you not perform with me, sweet Felicia? I would be thrilled to dance our choreography with you to the world!" The princess asked as they rehearsed their personal steps, the same ones Azura taught Felicia long before they married.

Surprised, the maid missed her step, blushing furiously. "I-Wha? Me, Azura? I can't, no way! I don't think I can perform in front of everyone..." She fell on her wife's arms, quickly pulling away to hide her face in embarrassment. In truth, she still didn't feel compatible with her perfect wife, and to shame her in public by tripping? The horror! "B-besides, I'll be working during the event anyway, s-so..."

Azura smiled softly, lifting her wife's chin with one hand, slowly pulling down Felicia's with the other. "I thought you'd say that, and I'll respect your decision, my love." She pressed their foreheads together. "Although, I'll still think it'll be a shame."

"I-I'm sorry..."

"Oh, Felicia, don't be!" Azura cupped her wife's cheeks with both hands. "I simply want to scream, nay, dance to the world about our love! But I understand that the stage is not where you like to be."

Felicia bit her lower lip, her heart in a conflict of feelings -- it felt so very much loved, but so ashamed for not being able to stand proudly beside her wife. "T-thank you, dear. I'll do my best in everything else, though!" She puffed her chest, stealing a giggle out of her wife.

"Haha, truly? Every little thing?" She raised one eyebrow, kissing the maid's cheeks, trailing down so their lips could meet.

Surprised, Felicia widened her eyes and blushed deeply, her body receiving the lustful signals Azura was sending. "Mmph... I... I mean e-everything..." She said between kisses, her hands inadvertently gripping her wife's waist.

"Oh, Felicia... You are so adorable." Azura said before once again diving into her wife's lips, deeply kissing her.

Nothing could stand between them.

Nothing!

Over the course of the days, as the meetings got busier and busier, Felicia actually saw more of Azura during her own work, though that also meant that they had to leave the twins under the care of the royal wet nurse.

Both of them would come back with exhausted smiles, though simply looking at their little bundles of sunshine took away all their worries.

However, Azura and Felicia's time together was about to be cut short.

After most arrangements were finished, it was decided that Azura would perform a Pas de Deux with a male dancer from Cyrkensia.

The princess didn't think too much to it -- after all, it wasn't uncommon for dancers and singers to perform in duos or even in groups. And Azura had been getting a lot of one-on-one practice due to her usual dances with her wife, after all.

It was still a bummer that her partner wasn't going to be her wife, but she was looking forward to the rehearsals nevertheless.

Once Felicia heard about the arrangement, she felt mixed feelings once again.

"I'm happy they picked the best dancer for you! You two will look great onstage, dear!" The maid smiled, feeling bad about the ugly feelings she locked inside.

She wanted to dance with Azura, she wanted to step on that stage and tell everyone to get away from her wife! Azura had chosen her and her alone!

But... being possessive was such an ugly thing. What if Azura discovered the dark thoughts festering inside Felicia's mind and decided to leave her? What if she started thinking that Felicia was a creep for wanting to gaze upon her wife only? To not let anyone else touch her lean waist or to breathe close to her ear?

Dancing involved all of that! She was so very jealous already!

An unknown man would touch her wife, lean his body against hers and even... rub himself on her! Oh gods, that made Felicia feel so awful it was a surprise she could still smile as Azura commented on the steps she was thinking for the performance.

Felicia tried her best to listen, to share her wife's excitement, but... all she could think of were the hours that random man would spend touching her wife and that made her skin crawl.

She wanted to ask to be introduced to him as Azura's rightful wife and mother of her children, but she was afraid that even mentioning it could tip Azura off. The princess has always been much more attentive and observant than Felicia, after all.

A warm brush of Azura's fingers on her wife's made Felicia snap out of it, suddenly opening her eyes. "Are you feeling unwell, my love? You've been squeezing your eyes really hard for a few moments..."

Panicking, Felicia turned around, burying herself under the bed sheets. "I-uh, I think I'm more tired than usual today, haha... Jakob was strict with me as always..."

Not buying it, Azura narrowed her eyes to the large bump her wife made herself into. She then touched Felicia's shoulder. "Would you like to come with me to the dancing room tomorrow? I will be introduced to Ka'lik and I would dearly love you to be there with me."

Felicia squeezed her eyes even more. Were her thoughts THAT transparent?! "C-can I really?" She slowly lowered the cover from her face, pouting slightly.

Azura had to place one hand over her cheeks to contemplate her wife's adorableness before clearing her throat. "Of course you can, silly! You will be gone just for a moment, so I'm sure Corrin won't mind."

Embarrassed with herself, Felicia once again turned her back to Azura, almost hugging her knees. "Thank you, Azura..." She bit her lower lip. "G-good night."

Azura sighed and kissed the general area her wife's head was. "Good night, sweet wife."

The following morning, the princess was much more touchy-feely than usual, making Felicia's ugly feelings slowly melt away before they left their room.

They held hands as they walked through the corridors, a silly sense of pride filling the maid's chest. She knew that it was a petty feeling -- to raise her chin high to a random stranger and show him that SHE was Azura's chosen one, but she couldn't help it. She was already insecure as it was, let alone when confronted with the reality that her wife was someone so wonderful and desirable by many people. People better than Felicia.

The maid slightly squeezed her wife's hand, her thoughts once again turning dark.

Noticing that, Azura opened her mouth to speak, but someone at the end of the corridor spotted them.

"Ah, Lady Azura! Well met!" Jakob bowed beside the open door he waited by. "And Felicia? Aren't you supposed to be by Lady Corrin? Surely our master needs her aide."

"Please, Jakob. I simply wanted to bring my wife to meet my new dancing partner." Azura lifted a peaceful hand to aplacate the butler's mood. "Is he inside?" She peeked through the open door.

"Indeed he is. And eager to meet the distinguished dancing princess, as he so painfully told me over and over." The butler groaned, taking a step back so the couple could enter.

The man they found inside was nothing like the soldiers they were used to, though his body was no less impressive.

Shirtless, he was practicing a few rotating jumps, his well toned body responding perfectly to all the bold movements he tried. He wore a light blue pair of pants -- the color of Azura's hair to boot! -- which matched quite well with his bright blonde hair and soft blue eyes.

Felicia scrutinized the man the very moment she went inside, pressing her lips into a thin line.

"Oh!" He noticed the duo through the mirror and turned around with a bright smile. "Lady Azura! I've longed to meet you!" He ran to them, droplets of sweat already visible through his face and body. How long had he been training? It was barely after dawn!

Azura was taken aback with the young man's skill in dancing, her inner performer eager to test their compatibility. "Ka'lik, I've been told?" She took a step forward, her hand slipping out of Felicia's.

Immediately did the maid retract her hand to her own chest, wanting to keep her wife's warmth with her for as long as she could.

But Felicia felt cold, very, very cold. It was as though a dark cloud was hovering over her. She raised her gaze to the two of them and felt her chin tremble.

Look at how well they matched! Her blue hair went well with his eyes, as did his golden hair with her eyes. Their dancer bodies had complementing muscles toned -- his arms were strong enough to keep her strong legs off of the ground for a long time during a performance... And her slender body fit perfectly on his.

"Indeed, my princess. Ka'lik is my name." He took Azura's hand and placed a kiss on it -- the very same hand Felicia held not a heartbeat ago! How could he?

"A pleasure, Ka'lik." The princess nodded in response, taking her hand from his and gesturing to the woman behind her. "As you already know, I am Azura. And this is my wife, Felicia."

"Hah, a maid? Truly you jest, my lady." He snorted, looking down on Felicia.

"I will thank you to never refer to my wife in such manner again, Ka'lik." Azura immediately cut him off, but the deed was done.

Felicia didn't hear anything after what Ka'lik had said.

A maid.

A maid and a princess.

Truly the biggest mismatch in the entire world.

And yet, how could he even talk down on her like that? What sort of awful person judges someone by their profession?!

Felicia had so many words trapped inside her throat it getting hard to breathe.

Ka'lik coughed at Azura's cold response, but immediately regained his composure, smiling disdainfully at Felicia. "Forgive my manners, er... Flitza, was it?"

"It's FELICIA," the maid said with difficulty, her voice barely getting out. Her bangs covering her face, she had to press her lips into a thin line lest she screamed. "It's Felicia... Ka'lik." She managed to lift her gaze to him, picking the unspoken letter of challenge he was throwing at her.

Narrowing her eyes at how poorly the man treated someone with a status lower than his, Azura simply turned her head away from him, towards her wife.

But Felicia turned back. "Lady Corrin is waiting for me, so, um... See you later, Azura..." She said, almost running away from the room, leaving a princess with a helpless extended hand behind.

"I'll treat this as an unfortunate slip of your part, Ka'lik." Azura said, looking at the now empty doorway. "Do not act that way towards my wife ever again, understand?"

Ka'lik gasped, placing one hand over his chest. "F-forgive me, lady Azura! I meant no disrespect, I swear it. I was simply surprised! After all, a fair lady such as yourself could have anyone in the world."

"Indeed. And I have just who I wanted." She turned to him, sending chills under his spine.

"Once again, I beg you find it in your heart to forgive me..." He smiled shyly, scratching the back of his head.

Sighing, the princess tied her hair into a tall ponytail. "We should first check our compatibility, yes?"

"Ohh yeah!" He smirked.

Meanwhile, Felicia couldn't shake away the feeling of disgust directed towards not only Ka'lik, but herself. He judged her for choosing a profession that served people? And Felicia was supposed to let her wife get physically close to him like that?!

"Felicia... you're freezing my tea... and my hand with it." Rhajat cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry." The maid said curtly, not entirely realizing where she was or what she was doing.

"You are still freezing my hand..."

"F-Felicia, snap out of it!" Corrin waved her hands in front of the maid, worried about her wife getting frostbite.

"I-I'm sorry, Lady Corrin, I'll be... over there if you need me." Felicia let go of the cup and left the room, heading to the pantry.

Blinking, both Queens looked from the open door to Rhajat's frozen hand. "A-are you gonna be okay? Do you want me to help?"

"It's fine." Rhajat simply blew her hand and the ice evaporated, heating the cup in the process. "Now, where were we?"

Smiling, Corrin sat back at the tea table, but soon she frowned again. "I wonder what got into Felicia? She never acted that way before..."

I suppose I understand, Rhajat thought to herself, gazing upon her wife's beauty. Feeling unworthy of someone so lovable and bright is part of my daily life, after all. She'll have to learn how to cope with it on her own.

The ugly thoughts spiralled out of control throughout the day, making Felicia feel so awful with herself she didn't realize she was actually doing her job quite well, apart from freezing this or that object.

Once dusk approached, she started to feel even more uneasy: she was to meet her wife again soon and she... was not yet ready. She wouldn't be able to stand looking at her wife and smell that rude man on her. That rude and perfectly matched man for her wife.

Felicia wondered about taking a bit more work to delay her arrival, but she missed her babies terribly, so she decided against it. Squeezing her eyes, she quickly opened the door with a bang, surprising the twins and the wet nurse taking care of them.

"O-oh, Felicia! That gave me a scare." The woman got up. "Do you want me to stay with them while you get changed or can I go?"

Blinking, the maid looked around. "Azura?"

"Nope."

Felicia exhaled deeply, almost crumpling to the ground. "Thank the gods..." She whispered. "It's okay, Nanna, you can go if you want. I'll take care of them."

"Okay, then. Good night and see you tomorrow." Nanna smiled, gathering her things. "Nighty, cuties." She winked to the babies and left.

A not-so-empty room to come back to. The fruit of their love waited for her, and yet she was feeling so awful about everything.

"Aguh..." Linnea cooed uncomfortably, feeling her mother's upsetting thoughts. Shigure kicked his feet.

"Awawa!" Felicia triped to the crib. "Mommy's okay now, see? Haha!" She smiled foolishly, stealing a few laughs from the twins. "It's gonna be okay! Yep!"

Just seeing her children put her mind back at ease.

It was going to be fine.

After a week of constant rehearsing, Azura scarcely came back to their room at the same time as Felicia. They missed each other during the mornings since Felicia worked early, and during the evenings since Azura stayed up until very late.

There was also the matter of the measurements -- Forrest and Oboro joined forces to sew the costumes of the main attractions for all three kingdoms. For some reason Felicia couldn't understand, they also took her measurements, but her wife's absence soon made her forget about it.

The few moments they could be together, Azura spoke about how wonderful their dance was going to be and how many tiny details she had to work with the court mages and orchestra.

Felicia stayed silent most of the time, afraid she would spout hurtful words to someone who was simply having a good time... Her ugly feelings were hers only to deal with.

And yet, the more Azura spoke of Ka'lik, the less important Felicia felt in her wife's life.

It had been over a month since they shared a meal! They barely basked in one another's warmth!

All because Azura was too busy befriending such a shady guy like Ka'lik.

As the grand day approached, Felicia's anxiety skyrocketed.

The hoshidan day had been so very busy, she barely had time to sleep. Her legs and arms hurt from all the walking and heavy lifting; even her head hurt due to her usage of her icy powers (they asked her to use them as a theatrical effect here and there).

The nohrian day was even busier -- being a nohrian herself, she was more aware of where things should be and how they should go. There was also an entire hour dedicated to the Ice Tribe, and although neither her nor Flora were active part of it, they still had to use their powers for demonstration.

Felicia was at her limit.

After finally doing her last chore for the night, she passed by the rehearsing room and saw how swimmingly well Azura and Ka'lik were getting along. He spiralled her over his head, then had her slip through his body towards the floor as they exchanged heated glances and smiled.

A sudden chilly wind covered the both of them, the source none other than Felicia.

"My love? What's the matter? Are you unwell?" Azura quickly let go of Ka'lik and ran to the door. To her threadbare wife, who had a messy hair, messy clothes and was dirty all over.

It was such a busy day.

She was so tired.

She just wanted to be with her beloved, but even that was being taken away from her.

"Felicia?" Azura approached tentatively, slightly touching her wife's shoulder.

But it was immediately slapped away. The maid lifted her angry and teary gaze towards her wife, the male dancer watching everything in the background.

And then she ran.

"Felicia?!" Azura quickly ran after her wife. "My love, what's happened?"

"Don't touch me with that hand that was all over Ka'lik all day! Why are you even running after me? Go back and be with him! He's a much better match for you!" She yelled atop of her lungs, sobbing her frustrations away.

Azura stopped on her tracks, offended. "What was that? Are you letting your jealousy cloud your words, my love? Truly you do not mean that."

Felicia also stopped a few meters away, drying her face as more tears fell. "Of course I mean it! Go back to be with him! You two match so well, anyway."

The princess lifted her chin. "Ka'lik and I are simply coworkers, Felicia. Do not offend me in saying that I feel anything towards him! This is your last chance to take that back."

The maid sniffled, her heart beating as fast as her mind spiralled. "Why should I take back the truth? You should be with someone like him, anyway." After saying that, she kept walking back to her room, the tears streaming down her face.

Azura felt her eyes burn with unshed tears, but lifted her eyes so as not to let them fall. "I see. So that's the kind of woman you thought of me all this time." She turned around, intent on going to sleep in the guest room.

No!

No, no, no! It wasn't!

Oh, how could Felicia be SO dumb like that?!

She just wanted her wife to be with her, to love her! Was that too much to ask? Why did her sullied heart had to say all these hurtful things?!

Sobbing, Felicia went back to running, quickly entering her room.

The twins were crying their lungs out.

"Felicia!" Nanna stuttered, holding Shigure while patting Linnea's belly by the crib. "I don't know what happened, but these two started crying out of sudden! Do you think they have- Felicia?"

The maid sobbed by the door, sliding down to the floor. "It's over, oh gods, it's over now..."

Shigure cried even louder, sobbing so much his little body reddened.

They could feel their mothers' bond wavering and it hurt them almost physically.

Felicia knew that, and it made her cry even more. Were the babies sensing hers and Azura's bond severing? Would they end everything like that? Oh, gods...

Azura barely slept a wink, her heart in a turmoil. Still, she was a professional.

She would perform with a smile on her face.

"Are you alright? I... don't know what happened after you ran after your wife, but it seemed pretty bad..." Ka'lik mentioned as they waited for Oboro and Forrest at the dressing room.

Azura knew that her dress was a dark blue and golden variation of her white vallite dancing dress, which matched with Ka'lik's loose pants and bolero.

"Oh, Ka'lik... She was consumed by jealousy! How could she even think of me as a base woman like that? I never felt anything towards you!"

"Ouch," he joked, placing one hand over his heart, taking a step towards his princess.

"Hah, no offense intended. Forgive me." She shook her head, the lack of sleep and stress taking a toll on her.

"None taken," he looked down at the frail and vulnerable woman before him.

He had held himself back for over a month, but surely now was the best time to strike. Imagine! Ka'lik and Princess Azura, the most successful married dancing couple in all continent!

He had to make her his. "So, are things finished between the two of you, then? If she has such shallow confidence in you, maybe you can look somewhere else for a partner..." He placed one hand over her shoulder, which ignited the first alarm inside Azura's chest.

"Never! I will not allow things to end like this." She took his hand out of her shoulder, turning her back to him. "I suppose I did neglect her all this time... Perhaps I should apologize first. I cannot stand this sour air between us..."

"Nonsense! She's the one who called you a cheater." Once again he touched her shoulder and once again she slipped away from him.

"She does need to apologize, of course. However, so do I. Perhaps, if we had talked it over, this would have never happened..."

"And who guarantees it won't happen again? She's been hostile towards me ever since our first meeting! Isn't she way too possessive for someone who married a dancer?" He took very light steps towards Azura, making her turn away from him at every turn, going towards a table without realizing.

The princess placed one hand over her pounding heart. "Isn't she lovely? I keep telling her she's all I need, and she can't stop putting herself down. I must go see her!" She turned around with conviction, but ran right into Ka'lik's chest instead. "Forgive me, but could you-"

As she tried to walk past him, he blocked her way with one leg, trapping her between him and the table. "Hm? But you're free right now, aren't you? Why don't we have some fun as your wife thinks we do?" He lowered himself to her, and her last alarm ringed inside her chest.

She screamed loudly inside her mind, her entire body rejecting the very idea of being close to that man. He slid one hand over her waist, pulling her towards him.

"Let me go this instant, Ka'lik!" She tried to push his chest away, but his arms were much stronger than her. "Let me go!"

He smiled derisively. "Why now? We're just doing what your wife said we are! Nothing but truth here," he slightly pulled her hair from her back, making her lift her chin.

She could feel his warm breath on hers and felt her stomach turn.

"I told you to let me GO!" She breathed in before quickly and strongly hitting his nose with the carpal bone of her wrist.

"Grh- ouch, that hurt! You broke my nose!" He stumbled backwards, his face swelling as blood flowed through his nostrils. "I was being nice before, but now you made me angry!" He meant to throw himself over her, but as she was about to scream her wife's name, a blast of ice hit him dead in the chest.

"STOP RIGHT THERE, YOU CREEP!" Felicia panted, quickly making another ice blast, making him fly across the room and break a few tables. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY WIFE? I WON'T LET YOU LIVE THIS DOWN!" Possessed by the soldier inside her, Felicia was out for blood.

She stomped inside the room, making another ice blast with her closed fists, but Azura threw herself on Felicia's arms. "Felicia, oh, Felicia!"

"Azura! Are you okay? What did he do to you?!" She quickly held her wife as people started to gather due to the commotion.

"Nothing... Nothing, he didn't DO anything, b-but..." She trembled.

Azura was a trained dancer, a trained soldier, a hardened royal.

But the dark thoughts that creeped inside her mind as Ka'lik touched her waist... Azura for the first time felt the fear of being a woman.

"Oh, Felicia...!" She sobbed in her wife's arms, digging her face into the familiar chest.

The maid squeezed her wife with everything she had, slowly walking backwards to hide behind the countless costumes hanged around the room.

Flora and Kaze had heard almost everything and were the first ones to the scene after Felicia.

"How dare you harm my sister's wife!" Flora roared, freezing Ka'lik's hands behind his back, not wanting to cuff him the usual way.

Kaze followed closely behind, more to Ka'lik's own safety than Flora's.

Hearing the familiar voices all around made Azura calm down, the sobs turning to sniffles.

"Are you okay? He really didn't touch you, right?" Felicia dried her wife's tears with both thumbs.

"Oh, my sweet Felicia! Forgive me for not being more open with you during all this time! If only we had spoken about your feelings towards him, perhaps all of this could have been avoided!"

Felicia immediately felt her eyes itch with tears. "P-please don't apologize, Azura! I'm the one who wants to say I'm sorry! Please don't leave me, please stay with me forever! I was just so jealous and angry and tired and stressed, I took it out on you! And I shouldn't because I- I just love you so much..." She sniffled.

"Oh, Felicia... I love you so very much as well. Thank you for saving me." Azura caressed her wife's face, noticing how unkempt she was. "Did you run here, my love? I-"

Before she could finish the sentence, both of them started hearing faint crying getting closer and closer.

"I recognize these voices..." They said in unison, quickly leaving the room.

"Felicia! How could you run and leave me alone with them? They were crying so much, nothing I did calmed them!" Nanna brought the twins over.

They were restless because of the strong signal Azura inadvertently sent earlier -- Felicia felt dread seep through her bones and quickly ran towards her wife's direction, leaving the twins to feel everything through their bond and cry.

"I-I'm sorry, I had to run-"

"There, there, Mother's here now, darling." Azura picked Linnea up as Nanna handed Shigure to Felicia, both twins' tears immediately stopping.

"How do you two even do that? I spent almost half hour trying to make them stop." Nanna crossed her arms as the wives shared a bashful glance and cooed to their babies.

"What are you gonna do now, Azura? The performance... can't happen now, right?" Felicia nudged Shigure's chubby cheeks, glancing at her wife, who did the same with Linnea.

"I actually have a wonderful idea regarding that."

Back at the changing room, Forrest and Oboro waited for Azura’s arrival. “Actually, the ones who have wonderful ideas about this are us!” They said in unison, each taking a wife’s hand towards opposing corners of the room, hidden behind the hanging clothes.

“Oh?” Azura giggled as she was being led by Forrest. “I was about to suggest-”

“Oh, darling, we know!” The young man winked. “Let’s get you in that dress, hm?”

At the other side of the room, Felicia tripped over her heels. “Awawa, why am I the one getting a dress? I’m just going to watch-”

“Oh, shush, you.” Oboro turned Felicia around and undid her zipper. “Let’s just get on with this, yeah?”

“O-okay?”

“Sweet Felicia? Is Oboro bullying you?” Azura asked through the room, and although they couldn’t see each other, the acoustic was wonderful in there.

“I-I’m fine!” The maid said, being stripped by Oboro and quickly being turned around to be dressed again.

Giggling, Azura felt giddy.

It was as though that awful experience never happened.

She was preparing a surprise for her beloved wife and was having so much fun by simply listening to her being bashful around Oboro. So cute! She couldn’t wait to go back to her wife’s arms already!

Forrest helped her inside her dress as well as fixed her hair and make-up. He then placed a dark blue veil covering her face, complementing the mysterious air around the princess. “Perfect! Honestly, you’re already so pretty, Lady Azura. I was barely necessary.”

“You flatter me, Forrest. But do tell… why was Felicia taken away as well? I didn’t get to say my idea yet…”

The young prince winked once again. “Why don’t you see for yourself?” He opened the way back to the center of the room.

In there Felicia stood: she wore a dress of similar design to Azura’s, but with a dark purple glow, matching perfectly with her pink hair. Even though she also wore a veil, Azura could see the blush covering Felicia’s entire cheek and nose.

How wonderfully lucky Azura was to have married such a stunning woman. “Felicia…”

“A-Azura…” Felicia stuttered, inadvertently licking her lips. “You’re so beautiful…”

“You are wonderful as well, my love.” Azura walked towards her beloved, taking her hands. “Will you dance with me, my sweet Felicia? Our dance? Let us show the world the power of our bond.”

Trembling, Felicia so very much wanted to yell to the world that Azura was her wife, that they loved each other! “I-I…” She sniffled.

“Hey, no crying! You’re gonna ruin your makeup.” Oboro patted Felicia’s back, making the maid choke and smile.

“Let’s do it! We can do it! Let’s do this!!” She puffed her chest, making Azura laugh.

“I’ll be with you all the time, my love.” The princess whispered, holding her wife’s hand. “Shall we go?”

Felicia gulped. “Y-yes!”

Being onstage really wasn’t what Felicia was used to, but somehow -- somehow being with her wife made all the beseeching eyes fade away. Azura whispered all the steps to Felicia as they went up, but their dance, it ran perfectly, like a river through its course.

Their love overflowed through their steps, the power of their bond so strong it brought tears to the audience’s eyes. Many people who were with their loved ones shared a kiss as the dance ended, feeling such a great atmosphere.

They had a standing ovation as the curtains closed and shared a hug as Felicia jumped around in excitement. “I didn’t mess a single step! We did it!”

“Indeed we did, my love!” Azura smiled, being led back to the dressing room by her beloved.

In there, their friends and family waited -- Nanna stayed back with the twins so they could welcome their mothers right away. And how well they did!

The babies laughed loudly, the strength of their family’s bond so strong they kicked their feets with excitement.

“Thank you so much for looking after them, Nanna.” They said in unison, not realizing how well they synchronized. “We can take them back now.”

They held hands as they pushed the baby carriages, their hearts beating in unison.

Barely were they back at their room, they turned to each other and fell in love all over again. “I love you so much.” They declared, reaching out to one another’s veils.

They exchanged passionate looks before sealing their love with a kiss. They closed eyes to enjoy their wife’s taste and whispered: “Forever.”

#feliciazura #felicia #azura #fire emblem fates #fanfic commissions #my writings

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cinemunch · 6 years

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Movie Review - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

If you were born in one of those Millennial meme-years like me, and you grew up through the early-late 2000s goth subculture fixation, you probably remember this movie and all the unstoppable hybridizations of ebony-darkness-dementia-way’s/theater kids it touched so dearly.

This review will NOT be spoiler-free under the cut. So if that deters you, get with the times gramps.

Just so you know, there’s a lot of blood in this movie (and there are screencaps of it), and also somebody is sexually assaulted (I didn’t screencap that, though). Read this with those things in mind, if this bothers you.

TL;DR at the end.

So the opening rolls and it’s got all that delicious dated CGI (aged like fine wine) and an atmospheric sequence that would seem to imply somebody gets murdered in this movie. Who knew! You’re very soon after met with a shot affixed on a boat headed to London incoming to port, featuring none other than our protagonist and his acquaintance, Manic Bright-Eyed Infatuation Boy (Anthony).

You can tell which is which because Mr. Todd is both the focal point and very understandably suspended in perpetual ass-madding. That’s because he used to look like this 15 years prior, before Judge Asshole pressed false charges against him so he could engage in Horny with his wife. He very much wants to kill Judge Turpin.

I know that you cannot have a big unnecessary rotation in cast to build JUST ENOUGH of the appearance that someone is very much different from now, but I really do wonder how more people in London don’t recognize Sweeney Todd as Benjamin Barker (his previous identity pre-incarceration). If not for just the distinct facial structure, then for the fact that he gets off this ship and resumes his previous occupation, RUNNING IT OUT OF HIS OLD HOME. In specific, I wonder this regarding his primary targets for revenge. But I think that just speaks to how little Judge Turpin actually gave him any concern or recognition as a person because he just saw him as a living obstacle between him and a woman most Fuckable™️. This overall isn’t a very load-bearing complaint.

Mostly because over the entire course of the movie, there are significant points where he doesn’t pass as his new persona, but I suppose I’d really expect Johnny Depp’s face to be exceptional when the streets are populated with the most painfully British men that’ve ever been churned out of the limey factory.

Like, look at these fuckers.

Incredible.

So, anyways Sweenus Weenus heads back into the general direction of his old residence that he had when life was still good, and stumbles into a meat pie shop situated underneath it. It’s run by one droopy and defeatist Mrs. Lovett.The song during this section is one of my favorites in the whole movie, and I appreciate her honesty in the marketing of her shitty little pies. She basically sits him down and forces him to eat one of the aptly named “Worst Pies in London”. She latches onto this dude right away. That’ll be a consistent theme, here.

So, I’m definitely no expert on musicals, seeing as I was vaccinated for Theatre-kid-ism at an early age. BUT I do know that in stage iterations of Sweeney Todd, Mrs. Lovett is presented as a withered old crone of the highest caliber Whomst Putteth The Garbage Into Thyne Pie. Helena Bonham Carter is great, but I feel like a lot of the desperate dynamic here is lost on the fact that Mrs. Lovett is not old and haggard as in with other productions.

I don’t really think it’s a BIG problem, but rather a petty difference in adaptation that kind of dulls the tone a little? It’s not so hard to believe that this version of Mrs. Lovett would be so open and interested in Sweeney despite this, but I don’t know. It’d certainly make it more dramatic, and nobody loses from MORE drama in a Tim Burton goth exploitation murder musical. Guess you can’t have that sort of thing without a HOT TOPIC KWEEN, though. Working those demographics!

So, Mrs. Lovett explains to Sweeney that his wife was...assaulted at a party set up by Judge Turpin and Beadle Bamford while he was in prison. I wouldn’t really even linger on this part considering it’s already given that Sweeney Todd is PISS’T, but if you’re sensitive to this sort of thing I feel like it’s worthwhile to note that you see it unfold post-pie scene (it’s not graphic).

Anyways, Mrs. Lovett figures out who Todd is by his extreme reaction, she tells him his wife committed suicide, and she provides him with his handy little box of ornate silver straight razors. A most fashionable tool of murder, if you ask me. By this time, he is most definitely wanting to use them to murder. But only the Beadle and Turpin.

Then there’s an abrupt cut to a scene that establishes that Sweeney’s daughter Johanna is both alive and regrettably under the care of Judge Turpin. The Bright-Eyed Manic Infatuation Boy lives up to my shitty fabricated nickname by instantly falling in love with her, even though an old beggar woman who conveniently knows the specifics of Johanna’s situation tells him to not meddle in that shit because Judge Asshole will be mad and will do bad things to him and/or have the Beadle beat him about the face and ass with his extendo-cane.

Of course, he doesn’t listen and the latter part of those things happens to him near immediately.

I really won’t go on about Johanna and Anthony too long at this point, just because I think they’re kind of stupid characters. Not because of the way they’re presented, or that they don’t fit into the story, because overall this film has great time efficiency involving characters and good directing...but just because insta-love is so dumb to me. I feel like this situation of wanting to steal a girl you don’t really know to start a new life has the potential to be even sadder than whatever circumstances surround you at the time. But I mean Anthony is a nice kid, and Judge Turpin sucks, SO LET’S JUST HOPE FOR THE BEST AND MOVE ON FOR NOW.

Anyways, remember how Sweeney wanted to kill the Beadle and Judge Turpin in specific with as little bullshit as possible? That kind of goes all fucky when he ends up murdering a snake-oil peddling fake Italian man with a child slave who used to sweep floors for him after humiliating him in a market district, in his barber shop.

He looks like this

The whole bitchfight arose when Mr. Todd was watching Signor Pirelli’s child slave try to hype up what was very much piss in a bottle as miracle elixir. They had a shaving contest for honor right there in the open just so Sweeney could flex his skills in front of Beadle Bamford.

Now, I know that in musicals typically one is not supposed to read the numbers as the characters actually singing, but rather as an tool of expression used to show the characters’ thoughts and experiences as they come to realizations or process conflict. BUT, during the entire shave-off I would fully 100% believe that Signor Pirelli was singing about being hot shit in the middle of Peasant Square because someone called him out for being a creepy opportunist watersports enthusiast. So I feel like the general outline of his character was strong and appropriate.

Anyways so Mrs. Lovett adopts his child slave because that dude dead as shit lmao!!! The kid’s name is Toby. He notably will unaffectedly eat her garbage pies eagerly. Also, between these two events, Anthony shows up at Sweeney’s new little barbershop craphole and begs him to let him stow Johanna there for about an hour when he busts her out of Turpin’s mansion. This works out pretty well for Sweeney in his eyes, seeing as he now just plans to murder LoverBoy over here and steal his daughter back.

That poor fucking girl. Talk about being treated like an object. Seemingly everyone’s planning a heist to steal her like the goddamn declaration of independence, intentions aside.

Since we’re up to our first throat-slitting, can I just say that the fake blood looks so incredibly fake? Practical effects are a special interest of mine, but I really don’t think it takes Rick Baker to notice that every drop of red flowing out of these jugulars look almost exactly like fucking clamato juice. I really don’t know what recipe they were using for that stage blood, it looked rather ass. I guess on one hand, the sort of unconvincing appearance of the blood took the edge off the murder scenes a bit for the standard viewer. But like, I’m pretty sure that wasn’t intentional either way.

Foolish.

As the story progresses, Judge Turpin does some irrelevant evil by sentencing some child to death and then informs his good friend, Beadle Bastard that he wants to marry his adoptive daughter Johanna because he’s a degenerate. He doesn’t understand why she wouldn’t think of this as the most wonderful and blessed arrangement. The Beadle tells him that she’ll definitely let him be her Number One Husbando if he gets cleans himself up a bit with a shave. Of course, having been thoroughly impressed by Sweeney Todd’s quick and concise handiwork, he refers him to his establishment on Fleet street. For a few spare moments, it seems like Sweeney Todd has the Judge cornered.

But of course, because love ruins everything, Anthony busts into the shop and completely spoils their combined intentions with Johanna to Turpin, who then storms out with utmost distaste for the two of them. With both his unpleasant guests gone, Todd then breaks into a brief musical number about how now he’s just going to kill every man he can get into his chair, because I mean, isn’t that what you would do?

Mrs. Lovett is completely unfazed by his dramatic piss-n-moan bullshit and reminds him that they have the corpse of a frilly little man figuratively burning a hole in the bottom of an antique trunk. This is about the time where she figures that unwashed commoners would make for some bomb-ass munchies.

I’m quite sure that her pies can’t not improve anymore so it’s honestly not a stupid conclusion to reach, just mayhaps a crazy one. A little late to think that though. I’d like a meat pie right about now, myself.

The scene shifts again, and we see that because Judge Turpin is now aware that his ward would like to tear ass out of town with a boy she likes, he’s arranged for her to be taken into the local mental asylum as punishment for having dreams. During all this commotion, Sweeney refurbishes his chair into a grand mechanism what which dumps corpses into the pie shop’s basement below. This is an invention that serves him very well, seeing as how following its construction, he puts it to work on a bunch of rubes that nobody will miss. There are many pies to be made. This goes on for a time.

The well-informed beggar woman makes a reappearance, almost as if she were important or something, to holler about the apparent mischief going on over at the pie shop. Upon first thought, I really wouldn’t glean that the smoke rising up from the smokestack of the bakery would be conspicuous at all. It’s noted at least once that it smells pretty fucking bad, but that’s really not something I would think to actually be a thing, considering if a body’s cooking it probably smells just as well like any other kind of meat gettin’ all toasty. I understand that without something like this to go noticed by somebody, the plot really couldn’t progress as it does, so it’s necessary. But Idunno man, is Mrs. Lovett burning all their hair in a big pile for funsies or something? Just seems like nothing would be particularly noticeable about it, at least at this stage. One could argue that the sewer runoff in Lovett’s bakehouse was the primary contributor to the stench, but wouldn’t that have already been a problem around town if she were making pies there before Sweeney were involved? Maybe this wench in particular has latent ESP muddied up by delusions, you decide!

Anyways, so everyone loves Mrs. Lovett’s stinky little pies now because of course.

Toby and his Murder Mom make great business with Mr. Todd’s help. They periodically have to throw out the beggar woman who hovers around the place doomsaying. The fact that none of these customers are offput at all by a raving old woman warning them of the delectable hazards is quite impressive, seeing as how one time there was a weird guy at my local Mcdonalds and I haven’t gone back since. Some people have pies higher on their list of priorities. Can you blame them?

Anyways, that Lovett binch thirsty as hell lol. Sweeney obviously wants nothing to do with her outside of what evidence she can dispose of. Mrs. Lovett was the first true crime fandom mom. Things did not work out for her. What a thought.

I enjoyed the crisp, cool palette for this sequence. Even with the dated effects, it was rather idyllic. The fact that they bothered to choose two different palettes for flashbacks/daydreaming in this film is a rather small factor, but something I appreciated. Otherwise I think everything would’ve melded together, and not in a good way. There’s just enough shift in color and lighting to make this a rather refreshing-feeling little bridge to events, which reflects the overall tone of its compact little happenings quite well.

I will say though, through all these whimsical-ass visions of the future, it makes me happy that she’d so clearly envision Toby as apart of their ideal life together. I feel for that kid. All he wants is some gin and a mom. Reasonable for a boy of his age.

��Moving forward, Anthony takes another visit to the barber shop to tell Sweenus that Turpin forcibly committed Johanna to the mental asylum. Why this boy would still trust this guy after he was seen so visibly getting chummy with the Judge is beyond me...and like, Mr. Todd was very obviously mad that he had ruined his appointment, quite personally. I guess the implication here is just that he has nowhere else to turn, but you think there’d be even a lick of apprehension or fear or something other than the bland-ass love-blinded excitement this boy uniformly expresses. Truly an uninteresting, flimsy character. Don’t know if that much could be done about it, though. Working with the circumstance, Sweeney decidedly sets up reconciliation with Turpin, and for BitchBoy to infiltrate the asylum under the guise of being a wigmaker’s apprentice who is collecting hair, as that’s just what they did back then, because government bad.

Also, Toby has figured out there’s something fucky with the barber man upstairs, so because he’s a sweet kid who deserves better, he swears to protect his new mother from him. The immediate solution is of course to lock him in the bakehouse in the basement so he can be murdered. Toby’s the real victim here. He very soon discovers the gruesome natures of the pies.

And also, Anthony rescues Johanna or something, I guess.

Then Beadle Bamford shows up at the shop to file a formal complaint and inspection on the grounds of Stinky-Ass Chimney. He gets murderalized. Toby isn’t too happy at this point, seeing as it’s raining dead people inside the bakehouse. But it’s okay, because his mom and her fake boyfriend come back to murder him. They can’t find him, though.

Boring #1 and Boring #2 came back to an empty barbershop. Johanna quite understandably thinks this arrangement is a little shitty sounding, but rather because she’s traumatized to hell and back instead of the idea that they’re going to be living in uncertain means in unfamiliar places with very poor understanding of each other as people. Would it really have killed you to add in like one more line? So then BoringLad runs off to get them a ride out of dodge, and Johanna climbs into the trunk in the corner of the room because the beggar woman is quickly approaching, searching for the Beadle. Todd returns and wants absolutely none of this nonsense in his face, so he just straight-up murders the poor old woman, dumping her down the hatch. Her last words are notably her recognizing the crazy bastard from somewhere.

Judge Asshole storms onto the scene. Sweeney butters him up pretty nicely under the pretense that Johanna totally wants to get married to a dirty old man like nobody’s business. But of course he insists on giving him one last shave.

That went about as you’d expect.

Johanna’s found cowering in the corner, but goes unrecognized due to Sweeney Todd’s absolutely photographic memory and unrivaled discerning eye regarding Shitty Disguises. She barely escapes with her life, because he has to go attend to a distressed PieWench down in the cellar. She was alarmed by a writhing corpse, but very obviously wants to dispose of the lot of them post-haste. Well that’s for a good reason.

Because she totally lied about Sweeney’s wife being dead. Even though she insists it was only with her love for him in mind, she still let him just go ahead and murder her.

Her punishment is fire.

With all he had ever worked to love and protect dead or gone, Mr. Todd mourns over the crumpled body of his bled wife. His entire purpose having been reclaiming his family upon his freedom, his revenge is thoroughly unfulfilling as he agonizes at the even deeper loss his brutality cost him.

Toby, having gone forgotten, re-emerges from the sewer grating. He too lost everything, but with absolutely no cruel hand in it. He does the world a favor and puts an end to someone who never considered what cost the end was to others.

This is the final scene.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TL;DR : Overall, I think Sweenus Weenus: The Demab Babbin of Fleef Streef was very well executed, with most of its flaws being mere knicks in its surface and not wildly illogical. The general pacing was very good, shots framed nicely, and kept the action at a rate where I wasn’t questioning even pettier things that potentially didn’t matter. Maybe that’s just because I’m an idiot, but I feel like this story is both thrilling and easy to immerse yourself in, which is rather successful storytelling in my eyes. The dulled color palette was broken up nicely and never lent to a feeling of boredom. The fake blood looked awful, though. Johanna and Anthony were the worst part of the movie. The musical numbers are somber and have a kind of whiny motif, which are honestly catchy as fuck to me. This story definitely has no happy endings from any angle, but I think if you find yourself wanting to mope a bit it can match that atmosphere very well. It makes for a good rainy day movie, and an even better Halloween movie.

7.9/10

#sweeney todd #movie review #musical #tim burton #movie critic #tw: violence #tw: blood #tw: rape #recommended

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montrealimprov · 6 years

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Meet Your Makers: Indie Night’s Alex Brown and Saima Ahmed

Interview by Isobel Cully

Meet the legends that make Indie Night happen EVERY WEEK, Alex Brown and Saima Ahmed.

You know Alex as an improviser, sketch comedian and all around funny person (Lil Strawberry Bitch, Fancy at The Haunt, Camp Wanapoke, etc, etc, etc). You know Saima as the girl behind the camera, taking sick pics of your favourite performers and making you jealous on Instagram. You know both of them as Montreal Improv’s best dressed duo. You can go see them host Indie Night every Saturday night at 9:30 PM, in Theatre B.

1. Would you like to be famous? In what way?

AB: Yes, I would like to be a famous podcaster and/or filmmaker/performer. I pretty much have the same career ambitions now as I did when I was 6 years old. Except for the podcasting part, if you asked me what podcasting was when I was 6 I would have probably explained it as some kind of net you cast to catch...pods? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

SA: Tbh, I don’t think so! It seems so competitive! I’m more a “behind the scenes” but very much in control gal. I prefer to be recognized and appreciated for my work and connect with people that way. In other words, I still want to dress up and go to the Oscars but as a producer rather than an actor.

2. If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?

AB: Mind for sure. I plan on having a tight bod when I’m 90 and I need my mind to keep up.

SA: Hm tough call. I’m going to agree with Al, an active mind means an active body!

3. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?

AB: My dearly departed yellow lab Winnie and we would share a spaghetti dinner with a side of corn on the cob because those were her faves.

SA: Michelle Obama! To talk about how we can help empower women to run the world over some fish tacos.

4. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be?

AB: The ability to know which ability or quality I would like to gain. So I guess decision making and resolve?

SA: The ability to help create peaceful resolutions between 2 parties. Imagine how useful that would be in 2018!

5. Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?

AB: I thought this said ‘secret lunch’ at first so I’m assuming it’s going to have something to do with my not being able to read instructions properly and things going horribly awry. Conversely if it turned out to be lunch related I wouldn’t be mad.

SA: Haha, I’m a speed reader and I read secret lunch too! Agree 100% with Al on this.

6. When did you last sing to yourself? To someone else?

AB: I wish I had a better answer for this than ‘in an improv show’, but I will have to admit that I serenaded a group of paying audience members this past Friday night with a rousing rendition of ‘I Wanna Be the First Female CEO’ at Friday Night’s Main Event - Fridays at 8:30pm at Montreal Improv ;)

SA: I have been singing “The Kids Are Alright” by Chloe x Halle to myself for a few weeks now. I’m a horrible singer so I avoid singing in public at all cost.

GROUP QUESTIONS

8. Make three true “we” statements.

We both love thrift shopping

We both love a good time

Against our better judgment, we both are close personal friends with Seth Galina

9. Share a personal problem and ask your partner’s advice on how she might handle it.

AB: What can I do to stay focused and/or motivated at my day job?

SA: Before you start, make a list of things you need to do. I find it surprisingly satisfying (even motivating) to cross things off my list. Also take breaks, I find it helps me focus if I know that afterwards I can chill.

AB: I am MC’ing a friend’s backyard wedding this summer, what should I wear?

SA: For the MC, I would say lean towards a bit more of a classic silhouette and add some Alex Brown touches via accessories to keep it hip. I’m a fan of a unique dress or a chic jumpsuit.

SA: I know for a fact that you are a morning person. I have trouble waking up really early, any tips?

AB: Unfortunately there’s no real easy hack for this, I think you’re either a morning person or you’re not. That said I’m sure you could cultivate habits over time to get better at it. I drink a really big glass of water as soon as I wake up and then I go to the gym or try to do a little bit of exercise at home at least. Giving yourself some time for you is super important. My motto for 2018 and beyond is ‘self care, don’t care’!

SA: I’m going to be moving soon but before that, I want to get rid of shit I don’t need. What’s the best method to declutter?

AB: Honestly since I’m a basic binch I pray to the goddess of tidiness, Marie Kondo. Her book actually taught me so much about getting rid of stuff. I can confidently say that the only clothes I own now are ones that ‘spark joy’. You can borrow my copy! Jk I don’t have it anymore, I gave it away.

SHOW QUESTIONS

10. Describe your show, Indie Night.

Indie Night is a weekly improv show that showcases performers of various experience levels from all over the city! We have a bit of everything from solo improv, class fields trips, current and past house teams and some pretty cool out of town acts. We’ve even had some musical acts! Indie Night takes place every Saturday night at 9:30pm and the last Saturday of the month is *Ladies Night*, featuring all female/female-identifying performers.

10. What excites you the most about your show?

We love that we have this amazing platform and get to provide the opportunity to new acts to perform. We are often the origin story show for some troupes that go onto create some pretty funny things. For some players Indie Night is even the very first time they’ve ever performed in front of an audience, which is very exciting!

The show isn’t just for newbies, we have all sorts of acts featuring varying levels of players. The fun thing about Indie Night is that you can see more experienced players perform with newer players and you never know what you’re gonna get on any given Saturday!

11. In 5 words, why should people come to Indie Night?

It is a good time!

FINAL QUESTIONS

12. Where can people find you (twitter, instagram, snapchat, kik, omegle, myspace, etc.)?

SA: You can find Indie Night at Montreal Improv on Facebook. We also have a hashtag across all social media #indienightmtl . You can find me on Instagram @steezsister and Twitter @_SaimaAhmed. You can also find us both Saturday Nights at 9:30 at Indie Night! Did you like that subtle plug?

AB: I’m on Instagram at @djbabybrown but I haven’t posted since October 2017 and I mostly only follow plants and Simpsons merch accounts. :) Seth Galina is @sethgalina on Instagram and Twitter.

13. Is there anything you want the Montreal Improv community to know (about you or in general)?

SA: I think this goes for both of us, we’re always here! Come say hi and talk to us, we don’t bite. Or so we haven’t been told otherwise yet.

AB: I will bite you if you ask nicely. :)

14. Do you want to plug anything else?

INDIE NIGHT. INDIE NIGHT. INDIE NIGHT.

Alex’s sketch comedy troupe, Lil Strawberry Bitch, will be performing at Sketch Republic on Thursday, April 19 at 8:30pm at MIT and then at the Montreal Sketchfest on May 10th at 8pm at Theatre Sainte-Catherine.

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topmixtrends · 6 years

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PATTERSON HOOD has been leading the Drive-By Truckers — a country-rock band with a hip-hop attitude — for more than two decades. Along the way, the Alabama native has become, in song and in prose, one of the sharpest observers of Southern culture and society since C. Vann Woodward, W. J. Cash, and the Southern novelists he read as a kid.

The Truckers’ latest album, 2016’s American Band, was widely hailed as one of the year’s best and as the group’s most directly political: its songs took on the killing of Trayvon Martin, the worship of the Confederate flag, the nation’s madness for handguns, and the role of the band’s native region in the whole mess. Hood, like fellow Trucker Mike Cooley, grew up near Muscle Shoals, Alabama, and his father, David Hood, is the longtime bassist for the R&B studio’s famous rhythm section.

For many years based in Athens, Georgia, Hood moved to Portland, Oregon, in 2015. The Drive-By Truckers have just launched a US tour that brings them to Los Angeles’s El Rey Theatre on February 9.

SCOTT TIMBERG: Let me start at the obvious place. In your writing, you often look at the South, at the complexity of the region’s history. And there’s a whole bunch of writers who’ve done this before: Faulkner, Eudora Welty, Flannery O’Connor. I’m just wondering what, if anything, these people have meant for you?

PATTERSON HOOD: I probably first became aware of that type of thing, as a genre of literature, when I was assigned To Kill a Mockingbird in high school. That was the first book I was forced to read at school that I actually loved and connected with. I fell in love with it, and the character of Atticus Finch reminded me of a very beloved relative of mine, who was kind of like a second father to me — so I really connected hard with that. And then later, in high school or in college, I read Faulkner a bit … I was too young to really get it. But it was a short story, “Barn Burning,” that I first read, and that was a good entry point, because I totally dug it, and got it, although I don’t think I would have been ready to read As I Lay Dying or anything. I love reading. I’m a fanatical reader.

And that goes back to childhood for you?

Maybe off and on. I remember times in childhood when I read a lot. I loved Old Yeller as a child — I really loved that book. And like everyone, I read Charlotte’s Web, although I don’t think I liked it as a kid. I read it to my son, actually, a couple of years ago, and fell in love with it. But I don’t think as a kid I was able to get past the fact that it was romanticizing a fucking spider. I have arachnophobia, so it was a bit of a leap on that one. So yeah, I went through periods of reading and not reading, I guess because it reminded me too much of school, and I hated school and everything about school at that time. I had to get past rebelling against it in order to enjoy it.

Yeah, I think a lot of us, especially boys, go through that phase, even if they become serious readers later. So when you were reading Harper Lee and the Faulkner story, and maybe some other stuff, what did you respond to, what made you want to go back to it, besides the fact that it was about the part of the country you live in? Did you feel it helped you make sense of the South?

Yeah, I probably just responded to the dialect, because that’s the way my people talked. And I responded to some of the manners — you know, the manners that everybody had, even the villains, who were these kind of ignorant, white trash, really terrible people in To Kill a Mockingbird. They still had a certain amount of decorum about them. When they weren’t spitting in Atticus’s face, there was still a certain amount of “Yes, sir” and “No, sir” involved. And that was beat into me as a kid, you know.

So even though terrible things were happening, in a way, you felt like you were home?

Sure, sure. And I had a similar thing with R.E.M., early R.E.M., I fell in love with them really early. About two weeks before Murmur came out, I got turned on to Chronic Town, and in the press in those days, people talked about, “Oh, you can’t understand the lyrics, you can’t decipher what he’s saying.” But these things tended to be colloquialisms, which I could decipher. There’s a song by a side project called The Golden Palominos, and I remember reading a review by someone who couldn’t decipher what Stipe kept saying, like the hook. And it’s “fixin’ to go” — that’s all he’s saying is “fixin’ to go,” he’s fixin’ to go!

Of course, there’s more to being Southern than just a manner of speech. When did you get a sense that a key element of Southern literature was the question of race? How did Southern literature change the way you understood black people or the racial rift in the region?

Yeah, I can’t remember a time that I wasn’t aware of race, and the South’s role in that story. I don’t think there was ever a point in my life that I wasn’t, at some level, aware of it, because of what my dad did. He made his living playing on Aretha Franklin and Wilson Pickett records, when they literally weren’t allowed to go out to dinner with him, and so he brought that home, you know — the anger over that came home with him. And we’d see George Wallace on the television screen and my dad would just start frothing at the mouth. But we have family members who I’m sure voted for Wallace, and whom I love dearly.

So there was always that disconnect. I was also aware of the generation gap, of the ’60s, the cultural revolution that was playing out in my family too. My parents came of age in the ’60s, and my dad smoked pot, and rode a motorcycle, and had a beard and long hair, and my mom wore go-go boots and hot pants … And I spent an enormous amount of time with my grandparents and my great-uncle, who were from the Depression generation. And so I kind of viewed the counter-culture, the culture clash, from a front-row seat as I was growing up, and I think that’s probably part of my attraction to dualities in my writing and the stuff I do.

It sounds like you didn’t need Harper Lee to show you that race was an obsession in the South — you were seeing and living that every day.

Absolutely. And it’s funny, because I haven’t read the other book of hers that came out. I own it, and I plan to — it’s really just a matter of time … I’m aware of its flaws, but I do want to read it, because I’m interested in that. I’ve actually written a piece, a song that kind of deals with that, because when a New York Times critic actually reviewed the book, it was the week after I moved to Portland. I read that piece in The New York Times, and I literally broke down and cried. I got so upset at Atticus Finch. I got really, really mad for a couple of days.

And then I had this epiphany that it’s absolutely right, that it was important. I believe that she was of sound mind in deciding to put that out, because I think it was important — not to disillusion everybody of their hero, or to make everybody that named their kid Atticus wince — but because that’s how it was. That is the truth.

We’re talking about the fact that Atticus, who’d been this hero of racial justice, became sort of a segregationist, a racist …

It made me mad and upset, but once I got past that, it totally rang true to me.

In the ’30s he was defending this man who was wrongly accused. It offended him on a human level that Tom Robinson was accused of a rape he obviously didn’t commit, but that don’t mean Calpurnia could sit at the table with Atticus at dinnertime. That’s a different line. When African Americans were demanding equality, that crossed a different line, and all of a sudden Harper Lee saw her father, her beloved father figure — who to her represented the side of right and justice — all of a sudden she saw him as a hypocrite. And she wrote this thing first, in anger, and then she went back and wrote, from the view of her childhood, the book that everyone knows and loves.

That rang so true to me, and I wrote a song that, at this point, has never been recorded. I’m still hoping to do something with it. It’s called “At a Safe Distance.” When you look a little closer, not at a safe distance, you tend to see things that aren’t so pleasant — you see the cracks. It really rang true to me; I wish it didn’t.

I guess you could say this about all literature, but it seems that, more than any other, Southern literature is based on history. I wonder if you ever went back and read any Southern history, journalism about the South, about the Civil Rights movement, or any of that? You’re kind of born into the middle of the Civil Rights era — ’64, right?

1964, yeah. I was born either at the last moment of the Baby Boom, or at the first moment of Generation X. I’m right on the cusp, as was my mother, who was born the day before the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, which is the official start of the Baby Boom. Her birthday’s August 5, so with the time change, she was probably born about the exact moment that the Baby Boom started.

So yeah, all of that fascinates me. I’m obsessed with the Robert Caro books on Lyndon B. Johnson, which goes back to the duality thing, because he was the ultimate dual president. I mean, he was the best and the worst, and sometimes at the exact same moment. Sometimes he would say the worst thing possible when doing something amazing, and vice versa. He could be surprisingly eloquent as he’s just fucking you. He’s a never-ending source of fascination to me, and the fact that such a gifted writer has literally spent 50 years of his life chronicling this guy — I get off on that too. I’ve read all four books that have appeared so far, and I’m eagerly awaiting the fifth and final one.

Was Johnson a sort of Texas racist who grew up and saw racial reality? Or was he an opportunist?

He was all of the above. Caro’s take on it, I think, is that he is all those things, and more, at the exact same time.

When people say, “Oh, he didn’t really mean that — he just did the Civil Rights thing because he knew it would be good for his historical legacy.” Well, sure, he knew it would be good for his legacy, but he very well knew that it meant the South wouldn’t vote Democrat again for 50 years, which it hasn’t. It was the beginning of the great migration of Southern Democrats to the GOP. And when he did those things, he purposefully fucked over people who had helped him his entire career.

And yet, he was absolutely a Jim Crow guy for most of his career. And all of those things coexisted within him at the same time, and I think all along. He did have some awakenings at a young age, he did know extreme poverty, and he taught at a school that was pretty much all Latino students. And I think he was very moved by their plight, and he took that with him forever. And yet he was willing to put that in a box and not deal with it for many, many years, building a career as the LBJ that the Kennedys hated so much.

Your dad’s music, and the music you play with the Truckers, it’s all grounded in the blues and R&B. And the Truckers were founded, in some ways, as an homage to hip-hop …

Sure, sure. Though none of us would have tried to rap. But we were immersed in it. I really responded to how hip-hop seemed to be telling you the news — what was going on right now. Modern-day country was more about retro things. I wanted to sing about what was happening now, but in a country style.

Did any of this lead you into African-American literature, especially essays, from the South or elsewhere?

I got into it really late, really recently. Through reading Ta-Nehisi Coates I tried to learn more about James Baldwin, and then I Am Not Your Negro came out last year, which was so amazing. There are so many books; I’ve only scratched the surface. I can spend the rest of my life reading every day, and not even read a fraction of the things I’m really interested in.

Anything you’ve gone back to and loved the second time?

I love Mark Twain. I made it a point to reread Huckleberry Finn at a much older age, after loving it as a kid. Reading it in my 40s was great. What a remarkable piece of work. I do like reading the classics. I was turned on to Hemingway really late. I responded to the style — it’s like the opposite of Faulkner, whom I also love. Instead of long sentences, reall short, concise ones. I respond to both forms. Hemingway’s stories are so devastating; there’s no way to improve them. I loved A Farewell to Arms. I stumbled upon it accidentally. I was at my in-laws’ house and may’ve been sick, was cooped up, it was a rainy day. They had the book; I picked it up, read the first chapter, and couldn’t put it down. I read the whole thing in like a day and a half.

Your old bandmate, Jason Isbell, is reputed to be a very literary cat. Did you guys turn each other on to books and writers when you were in the Truckers together?

We probably have more since we quit playing together. When we were playing together, we were in the eye of the storm. That was a crazy time. He turned me onto Peter Matthiessen, a trilogy of books that he rewrote as one book, Shadow Country, set in Florida in the Everglades, post–Civil War, when they were first settling that part of the country. It was kind of the last frontier. All of these outlaws that had been put out of business in the West being ended up down there. It was riveting — and one of Jason’s favorite books. He’s very well read, and a great writer in his own right.

Your last record, American Band, was your most explicitly topical. You wrote about racial violence and social tensions that were exploding around you. Did your reading of essayists, novelists, or anything else help shape that album?

I was reading Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Between the World and Me when I was in the midst of writing that record. I had already written “What It Means,” and I was going through a period of questioning: Did I have a right to write such a thing? Reading his book, I kept asking, “What can I do?” Maybe this is a small part of what I can do. Maybe there does need to be a goofy white dude, in a rock ’n’ roll band, with the following that it has, that can say Black Lives Matter. Maybe that is important. I didn’t write that song from the perspective of a black man being shot by police — I wrote it from the perspective of a goofy white dude, like me. Seeing this happening around me and saying, “This is wrong. Why are we at this place in 2017? Why is this still a thing?” And unfortunately, the song doesn’t have answers, it’s just questions. But at least questioning is a start, a beginning.

Scott Timberg is the editor of The Misread City: New Literary Los Angeles and author of Culture Crash: The Killing of the Creative Class.

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