#and i actually finished it which is a major score for me!

[oriato]

A great scene from A Marvelous Light ✨

#this took ages but im nothing if not a procrastinator! #a marvelous light #the last binding #i want to read the rest but i dont have the books yet 😭😭😭 #edwin courcey #robin blyth #this painting was fun though #and i actually finished it which is a major score for me! #i only sketch and let paintings rot in my files these days loll #chalk it up to gamedeving and fanfic writing sapping my strength

[shroomthedecayedfox]

So, I know a majority of you guys follow me for my art, but I also kinda wanna post some rambles about my interests and the like (a majority being about FE3H). This is me wanting to be a little unhinged on my dash. I'm still gonna be posting art (got stuff already cooking), but if you want to watch me go insane over Byleth's heartbeat, keep reading.

So, as someone who has been listening to the FE3H soundtrack for the past few months there's this really subtle narrative moment that's happening in the music during the scene where Byleth’s heart starts to beat for the first time.

What I mean by this is when you go back and you listen to the soundtrack or the music of the game, you're going to start to notice the heartbeat motif. 

The music of FE3H has a lot of distinct leitmotifs throughout the score. Most of them are tied to just locations or themes throughout the game, but then there’s the characters. Now, I don’t know if Dimitri or Claude have leitmotifs themselves (Although, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong), but I’m fairly certain their routes do. However, none of it comes close to how distinct and prolific Rhea and Edelgard’s leitmotifs are.

Rhea’s leitmotif can be understood as the “Song of the Nabateans”; the lullaby she sings during the winter ball when you encounter her wandering the entrance hall. That progression of chords acts as a musical shorthand or stand-in for Rhea within the soundtrack of the game. It is tied to Rhea/Seiros or the nabateans in general. You hear it again during “Funeral of Flowers”. It’s distinct and recognizable, but then there’s Edelgard’s.

Which is just EVERYWHERE. The progression of chords that follows “Reach for my hand…” in “Edge of Dawn '' makes its way into a LOT- and I mean a LOT- of the music. From the more obvious tracks of “The Apex of the World” and “Three Houses Main Theme”, to subtler ones like, “Unfulfilled” and “Life at Garreg Mach Monastery”.  The motif is everywhere and employed at every possible moment. Like once you hear it, it becomes impossible to not notice its presence. 

But then there’s Byleth.

Now, Byleth doesn’t have a leitmotif in the traditional sense. They don’t really have a distinct progression of chords symbolizing them within the music, but they do have a distinct sound: the heartbeat. The heartbeat acts as a kind of throughline for them within the composition of the music. It’s almost like a solo instrument. Wherein, instead of a progression of chords symbolizing the whole of a character, it’s the musical sound and presence of one distinct instrument. 

It’s kinda acting like the percussion section of an orchestra, but is only included within the composition in regards to Byleth. And it’s similar in nature to Edelgard’s, where once you start noticing, you realize it’s everywhere. But it’s hard to catch because it’s often buried so low in the mix. In the moments it’s not though, it’s very difficult to ignore.

So it's pretty buck wild that the scene where Byleth’s heart actually starts to beat, the song that plays doesn't contain the heartbeat motif. 

“A World for Humanity” is the song that plays during that final cutscene of Crimson Flower and the heartbeat motif is nowhere to be seen. Which is pretty interesting because the player would have literally just heard it not two minutes ago in the context of the game. The heartbeat motif shows up in “The Apex of the World”, CF’s final boss theme. The player would have been listening to it as they were finishing the final chapter of the game. So musically, “A World for Humanity” follows “The Apex of the World”. Something happens where the percussion of the heartbeat motif vanishes between the two tracks. And after this moment, the rest of CF’s music doesn’t contain the heartbeat motif.

In-text, we know what caused that vanishing: Byleth’s heart actually starts to beat where it hadn’t for the entirety of their lives, but the narrative implications of that transition just fits so well with the overarching theme of CF. 

Now, there’s a lot to be said about the individual themes connected to each of the different routes within the game and for the most part, I’ve seen a lot of different takes regarding CF’s major theme as “the cost of one’s ideals”. Which, I’m not saying it isn’t a part of that route. It very much is, but what I am saying is that that theme is not distinctly tied to just CF. I’d argue it’s present throughout the entirety of the game and its four routes. It exists, across the board, within the stories the game is trying to tell.

For me, CF feels far more invested in the ideas of autonomy, freewill, humanity, and choice. That the overarching theme is aligned with the freedom to be your own individual and the right to make your own choices based on that freedom. The ethos of Edelgard’s final speech is the right for humanity to choose its own path. (I can explain all of this in another text post: trust me I want to talk about Edelgard’s final speech.)

But, this is how I largely interpret CF: it’s that strong emphasis of humanity’s freedom and it’s no surprise how Byleth’s heartbeat ties into that.

As far as I’m aware, Byleth’s heartbeat situation isn’t addressed in the other three routes. It’s set up in White Clouds and promptly abandoned. (which is a staple of the game; that’s just how it rolls. You’re not going to get everything on your first time through.) It’s loosely alluded to, but there’s no real pay-off outside of CF. You can outright tell Dorothea Byleth’s heart doesn’t beat, but she won’t believe you. When it comes to Claude or Rhea, you learn more about the nature of Byleth’s birth rather than address the nature of their heart. Given how strongly it is emphasized in Jeralt’s journal, the game wants you to pay attention to it.

For CF, the heartbeat becomes a symbol of Byleth’s humanity. At the very beginning of the game, they’re considered a demon by the people around them and the mercenaries within Jeralt’s company. In the eyes of the church, they’re seen as a figurehead or the second-coming of Seiros/Sothis. (Read that section in the Book of Seiros and tell me that’s not what the devs were trying to do). They rarely get to just be Byleth outside of whatever house you pick. A lot of Byleth’s interactions and relationships with other characters centers on the internal conflict of Byleth being understood as themselves. With CF it’s double because of all of the narrative implications Edelgard brings. All of those details and traits that characterize Byleth often get buried or go unnoticed.

So, what does this mean in the context of the music? “A World for Humanity” is musically reflecting the journey Byleth would’ve undergone during the course of CF. The heartbeat motif is no longer buried within the composition of the music, it’s free to be its own distinct sound. Which brings me to a detail I’ve been neglecting to mention up until this point: Edelgard is the first person to HEAR Byleth’s heartbeat.

During this scene, the heartbeat motif shifts from a non diegetic percussion to an in-universe diegetic sound. It breaks free from the composition of the music and becomes real. It’s no longer just symbolic of Byleth, it very much is Byleth. And what is the immediate reaction to that in-universe shift? 

Edelgard starts crying for the first time in who knows how many years out of joy. Byleth comes-to listening to her basically be the happiest she’s ever been because Byleth is alive. Their hair shifts back to its original color and they open their eyes to show they’re once again blue. The end card further adds to this transition, explaining that Byleth has lost their connection with the progenitor god’s powers. They’re just human and the music, alongside the characters, celebrates that humanity. 

And I find that to be really neat.

#fe3h #edelgard #byleth #shroom rambles

[loaksky]

hello! would you consider writing modern avatar stuff? if ur cool w that can i request modern human neteyam relationship headcanons?

wait hold the phone yes i would actually ! wanted to hold off on posting this to include headcanons about what modern!neteyam would be like in a relationship, but i’m so eager to come back ! instead here’s some background about him & reader leading up to the relationship (part 2 pending if you guys want it) ! headcanons under the cut & for all intents + purposes, i picture college-neteyam ! additionally, in my brain, it’s canon that teyam as a human would be poc, hence the reference pictures i included below ! <3

so i definitely see neteyam having a very soft aesthetic, he’s such a sweetheart tbh

fs think that the two of you would have a meetcute in university & then end up being college sweethearts

his major is something specific like environmental engineering or child psychology ? he’s definitely really smart and excels in all of his classes !

which brings me to how the two of you would meet ? perhaps he’s taking an elective course in pottery and your major is in art with a concentration in three dimensional composition

the class is considered a lab, so the professor emails out the syllabus and students come and go as they please during class hours to work on their compositions.

halfway thru the sem, you and teyam stumble upon each other in the storage room between two classrooms, fetching different pieces that need to be glazed + fired.

“sorry, you can—”

“nah, you first—”

you laugh and neteyam’s smiling because WOW you’re really cute + had he known that someone as lovely as you was in the same section as him, he’d probably hang around the classroom more.

from that moment on, neteyam’s always lingering during the class’ meeting time, even if he’s already finished with his projects for the week because he wants to get to know you SO bad, but he’s way too shy.

(probably still canon that he’s phenomenal at literally everything, but i think it’d be so cute if he had 0 legitimate rizz bc he’s so used to kinda just bein’ him and pulling bc he’s a jack of all trades type of guy)

“what are you making?” you ask him one day and he snatches his airpod out of his ear so quickly even though he’s not listening to anything.

“ashtray” he answers quietly, a lil self-conscious because he’s come to find out that you’re absolutely amazing at sculpting and while you do this for your future, he does it is as a pastime / elective to graduate. “but like i don’t smoke or anything yknow, i just thought that i’d be a good thing to–”

you’re staring at him with the corner of your mouth quirked and he shuts up quickly, scratching the back of his neck nervously as he slumps on his stool.

“you should score using a crosshatch,” you tell him simply. “makes the pieces stick together better.”

he looks down at where he’d been scratching the damp clay laterally and your hands hover over his, head tilting to the side.

“can i?”

oh yeah, yeah! sure,” he splutters, leaning back a little to watch you work your magic.

can’t help but watch the way your fingers work over the clay, knuckles smudged with glaze and dust coating the silver of your rings.

he watches your hands, but soon he’s watching your face because you’re concentrated so hard on making sure you’re using your best technique for the little ashtray.

lo and behold, the pieces stick together so perfectly and smoothly, ready to be fired in the kiln, and neteyam’s grateful.

“thanks,” he sighs almost dreamily.

“yeah, of course. glad to help,” you tell him.

when you return to your own project, you slam back the rest of your melting drink and neteyam’s eyes are squinting the get a read on what it is you order.

you’re pleasantly surprised when you turn up to pottery the next session to work on a new project, and neteyam’s there with two coffees, one next to his wheel, another near yours.

“what’s this?” you hum, tying your apron with a messy bow.

“a thank you,” he says shyly. “for helping me last time.”

your eyes widen when you see your favorite; a chai with almondmilk, vanilla, and a shot of espresso.

“how’d you…”

“it’s what you were drinking…” he responds. “last week. i think.

“oh…” you trail off, cheeks hot because he noticed ???

“you don’t have to—”

“NO!” you yelp, a tad loud. some of the other students working on a few last minute projects peer at the two of you and teyam’s grinning like an idiot when he sees the way you tuck your hair behind your ear and reach for the drink. “this is good! it’s great. thank you so much. i actually missed my run this morning.”

“yeah, of course,” he sighs, rolling his lips together as the two of you kinda get off to a clunky start.

the silence between the two of you is a lil awkward, but you decide to break the ice since teyam’s technically played his hand and the ball’s in your court.

“are you an art major ?” you ask.

“uh, nah,” he'd say, rubbing his sweaty palms on the thighs of his baggy jeans because HE SHOWED UP TO CLASS 15 MINUTES EARLY and the agony of not knowing if you’d show up made him so nervous. “environmental engineering.”

your eyebrows raise ever so slightly, lips forming an ‘o’ bc wow that must mean he’s super smart.

“wow, that’s insane,” you say quietly. “what made you take pottery ?”

“only elective that didn’t make me wanna claw my eyes out,” he laughs nervously. “what about you ? what’s your major ?”

you seem to mull over your thoughts for a moment, obviously a little hesitant to answer.

“3d art...nothing special...” you trail off.

neteyam begins working with the slab of clay waiting for him in the center of the wheel, cheeks going hot because the words leave him before he can stop them.

“no, no. i think that’s really cool. art is a really challenging passion to have & i admire people willing to dive in full stop.”

the comment makes you smile, fingers pliant over the wet clay.

neteyam wants to DIE because he can’t read whether or not your smile is genuine or if you’re grimacing because he’s the biggest idiot ever.

he supposes it’s the former when you two are parting ways, signing the attendance log and you decide to bite the bullet and write your instagram handle on the bottom corner of the page and tear it off to hand to him.

he’s barely able to get a ‘thank you’ out before you’re racing out the door with your gifted coffee in hand.

you’re so giddy when you run out of the building and your phone pings in the front pocket of your satchel and you see that teyam.sully has followed you.

after that day, you two become really friendly !

neteyam frequently dms you about class, but eventually, he starts sending you vids and memes, saying that they made him think of you.

it becomes so obvious to both of your friend groups that you’re crushing on each other, but both of you are too painfully shy to say anything despite every green flag.

soon, looking forward to seeing each other during class turns into neteyam subtly asking you to hang out.

you make a comment about one of his hoodies and he mentions that he thrifted it.

“wait really??” you’re pausing your work to look at him. “i love thrifting!”

he smiles wide, word vomiting before he can stop himself.

“yeah? i know a couple of good places if you’re down.”

you say yes, DUH !

looking back at it, maybe that’s your first date because he picks you up from your dorm & bc you guys live in a fairly walkable city, you commute to the thrift and you’re SO giddy because the backs of your hands keep brushing every time some impatient pedestrian pushes by you guys on the narrow sidewalks.

you guys end up spending HOURS and teyam’s internally screaming because you find a shirt that has a peeling heart with the phrase ‘if lost return to wife’ and he happens upon the match to it a couple aisles down that says ‘i'm the wife’.

when you’re not looking, teyam buys the shirts and stuffs them in his canvas bag.

DUDE IS WHIPPED.

he wants you SO bad.

after the thrift, you guys get pizza, and after that, ice cream, and JESUS he doesn’t want the day to end because being with you is so easy.

over the course of the rest of the semester, the two of you make it a routine to hang out at least once a week and you’re always looking forward to it.

dates excursions include; trips to the museum to see recent exhibits, weekly pizza parlor dinners, study sessions at the 24 hr cafe a block from the school (in which he always walks you home after), park days where he reads books on environmental sustainability and you secretly draw portraits of him.

in these times, he learns that you want to become an art teacher, your favorite cereal is froot loops with the marshmallows, your all time show is amazing world of gumball.

almost cries laughing when he finds out that you have a secret pet turtle you hide in your dorm named franklin.

acknowledges that he’s falling, but falls even harder when the florist who owns the flower shop you two always pass hands you the prettiest little bundle of flowers and you spend the entire trek to the park, handing out individual stems to couples, children, and the elderly, telling them to have a beautiful day.

it all comes to a head near the end of the semester when he realizes that he can’t keep dancing around his feelings for you and the feelings he’s almost certain you have for him.

tells you to clear your schedule for the upcoming friday night and dresses a little nicer than usual when he picks you up.

brings you two to the planetarium in the city and, instead of watching the exhibit, he spends the entire time watching how you light up.

he knows in his gut that you could be it for him.

he’s loved getting to know you and spending so much time with you.

he’s so immersed in this feeling throughout the entire night.

probably wipes his sweaty palms over the thighs of his pants before shakily taking your hand as the diagram of the constellations shift.

can’t help but smile when your fingers squeeze his and you seem to shift closer to him as the narrator starts the presentation.

and he’s especially quiet after the exhibit, fingers still twined with yours as the two of you walk down the bustling sidewalks of the city center.

two of you probably stop by a dessert cafe and sit outside on a bench in the spring air, enjoying the buskers as you share a little cake.

you’re talking about home and how you’re excited to see your family again and he can’t help but imagine bringing you home to meet all his siblings and his parents because he knows that they’d absolutely love you and—

you’ve paused your speaking, thumb brushing the corner of his mouth and he’s SHORT CIRCUITING.

“shit, that was weird i’m so—”

his palm cups your jaw, thumb on your cheek, pad of his pinky and ring finger soft against your neck.

“can i?” he whispers.

TRIANGLE METHOD !!

he glances at one eye, gaze dropping to your lips before glancing at the other.

you already know what he’s referring to, could feel the romantic tension between the two of you since the beginning, but only become sure of it in the recent weeks.

”can you what?” you swallow.

he breathes a short laugh because the knowing smile that quirks your lips is a dead give away.

“can i kiss you?” he asks softly, absently setting your abandoned dessert somewhere behind him on the bench.

“yeah,” you’d nod, leaning into him. “please.”

before the two of you go your separate ways for summer holiday, he shows you the shirts he bought at the thrift store the first time around, but insists on keeping the shirt that says ‘i'm the wife’.

neng © 2023

#avatar nuggets ˘³˘ #neteyam x reader #neteyam headcanons #neteyam fluff #neteyam #neteyam sully #avatar the way of water #atwow #avatar the movie

[snugglebug-92]

Mark Estapa x Reader

SMUT

NSFW 18+

It was the first day of freshman year when Y/N and Mark first met. They had the same first 3 periods and the teachers sat them right next to each other. They didn’t talk much but they always competed in their classes. You wanted good grades so you could get into a good college. You wanted to go to UMich. Mark wanted good grades to play hockey. This caused the two to always compete for a better grade. At first, it was fun and games the two would study together and they were decent friends. 

Once sophomore year started the hung out more. You would wear his jersey to his games and they had their first kiss. They were together all the time. It was perfect. You had good grades and a cute boy to hang out with. Everything was great.

But once junior year hit it was like a switch was flipped. Mark had to do everything better than Y/N. He stopped talking to her other than to brag about his test scores. He did everything he could to make her life miserable and the two hated each other. He would always rent out the study room You used and would always come into the dinner with his friend right before closing and order the food that took the longest to make.

When senior year rolled around things only got worse. When Mark got an academic scholarship you were the first to know. He rubbed it in your face knowing you had got waitlisted the day before. Their friendship fell apart and you were crying almost every night. How could someone who was once so nice be so mean? You didn’t have too much time to think about it because soon you were getting a call saying that you actually got in and they sent you the wrong information. From that day forward you told yourself you would never fall for the likes of Mark Estapa again.

But that was a short lived promise. While they didn’t see each other over the summer he had no problem sitting down right next to her in their business 101 class. You looked over to see the boy sitting next to you. You slowly got up and moved a few rows back while he was busy trying to connect his laptop to the wifi. It was at that moment Mark realized he really fucked up. 

You go to the rest of your classes and switch to a different business class hoping to never have to see Mark again. But you aren’t so lucky. Not only is your roommate’s brother on the hockey team but so is her boyfriend so she drags you to every game. You try your hardest to come up with excuses but you have such a hard time saying no to her. That’s how you find yourself at a hockey game wearing a spare jersey for your roommate's brother picking at the maize fuzz of the Beecher jersey.

“So what do you think so far?” she asks, smiling.

“It’s hockey,” you shrug.

“You really don’t like hockey huh?” she laughs.

“No I just don’t like Estapa,” you say, turning your attention to the loose thread. 

“I hope you know when we get back to the dorm you’re telling me everything,” she says, turning her attention back to the ice. And when you get to your dorm you do. You grab the bottle of vodka you had and crack it open taking a long drink before you start. By the time you finish the story the tears are flowing and the bottle was taken away.

“I’m sorry,” she frowns, not knowing what to say. To her marks were nothing but sweet. Obviously she believes you but there has to be something missing. She pulls you into her side as you wipe your tears. 

“It’s okay,” you shrug.

“You don’t have to go to any more games if you don’t want to. I’ll find someone else or go with the other girlfriends. I shouldn’t have forced you.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t know,” you wipe away the remaining tears. The next semester is a little better. You have more business classes which is nice. You almost forget about Mark until you see him at a party. You can’t help but want to punch him for being so perfect. You leave not long after.

Soon it’s sophomore year and Mark is practically unavoidable. You both have the same major so most of your classes are together. You don’t have to deal with him until a teacher assigns you together for a partner project. It ends in a screaming match and 2 separate projects being turned in. After that you never get partnered up again. 

Before long it’s the second semester and with that comes spring break. Since you’re from Michigan you let your roommate drag you to a game to watch her boyfriend play. They win and you guys all go to a small party to celebrate. You end up leaving halfway through the party.

Everything is fine until you hear everyone talking about it or him. Mark fucking Estapa. He had an article published about him and how cool he is or some bullshit. You almost throw your phone when it appears on your Instagram feed. You can’t believe how much of a stuck up asshole the boys become. You roll your eyes before heading to the gym to blow off some steam.

That Saturday you find yourself at a party celebrating the hockey team's big win. You’re just there for the free alcohol. You’re standing in a corner watching everything happen when he walks up beside you.

“Fancy seeing you here,” Mark smirks.

“Shut up Woodruff,” you growl at the boy.

“Hey white flag, put the claws away,” he laughs.

“What do you want?”

“To talk?”

“Oh now you want to talk. Mr. High and Mighty want to talk to me. Wow boy do I feel special.”

“Let’s go up stairs,” he grabs your hand leading you up to his room. 

“What do you want to talk about?” you grumble at the boy.

“I’m sorry. Look I know I fucked up. I’m sorry.”

“Well you’re about 3 years too late,” you say leaving. Your hand grabs the handle and you twist it about to exit. That's when Mark does the only rational thing in his mind. He grabs you and kisses you. You let go of the handle and move your hands to his hair. His hands rest on your lower waist and he pulls you flush against him. His hands move to your thighs as he carries you to his bed. He takes his sweatshirt off before placing his lips back against yours. You fist his t-shirt as he continues to kiss you. You pull away and realize the position you are in. Straddling the hips of the man you hate the most. You take off your shirt before tugging at the edge of Marks hoping he gets the hint. He takes his t-shirt off and starts to kiss down your jaw line.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he questions.

“Yeah. But I haven’t,” you whisper.

“Really?” 

“Yeah.” He flips over so he’s on top and kisses down your jaw to your neck.

“Can I take this off?” he asks when he gets to your bra. You nod and he unclasps it. He tosses it aside and latches his mouth to your right nipple while his hand attends to your other one. You moan having never felt such a sensation before. Mark kisses down your stomach to the waistband of your jeans.

“These to babies?” he questions.

“Please,” you whine. He unbuttons your jeans, pulling them down leaving you in your panties. 

“Can I touch you?”

“Yes.” He slowly drags a finger over your clothed core causing you to jolt up at the contact.

“Can I take these off?”

“Please Mark,” you moan out. You lift your hips so he can pull your panties off. He runs a finger through your folds before slowly circling your clit causing you to let out a loud moan.

“Can I have a tasty baby? Please I wanna be your first,” Mark asks.

“Yes,” you say, bucking your hips. Mark licks a stripe through your folds before giving your clit plenty of attention. He switches between sucking the nub and grazing it with his teeth.

“Baby I’m gonna put my fingers in you okay?”

“Okay,” you moan, having never felt such pleasure. You feel one of Mark’s fingers prod your entrance before he inserts it. He thrusts it in a few times before adding a second finger causing you to moan again.

“Mark that feels good,” you moan.

“Yeah baby,” he says against you. You’re cumming within a few seconds and you’ve never felt such an immense pleasure in your life.

“How was that baby?”

“Good. Was so good Markie,” you moan as he pulls his fingers out. 

“Got another round in you? Think you can take my dick?” he questions cupping your face.

“I wanna try.”

“Good girl,” he says standing up to take off his jeans and boxers. He kicked them off before rolling a condom on.

“It’s gonna hurt baby,” he says, positioning himself at your entrance. He rubs himself in your slick before grabbing your hand. He slides in and he feels you squeeze his hand.

“You okay baby?”

“Yeah I’m okay. I think you can move now,” you say. He slowly pulls out before thrusting out causing you to moan. He slowly starts to thrust in and out of you before he sets a pace. He moves to kiss you and you dig your nails into his biceps to help ground yourself. Your moans get louder as you start to get closer to your high again. He moves a hand to your clit circling the nub.

“You’re doing so good baby,” he says, causing you to moan. 

“Fuck Mark,” you moan as he leaves a hickey on your neck. He picks up his pace which causes the both of you to reach your highs.

“I’m going to pull out now baby,” he says pulling out. He discards the condom before looking at you.

“Baby you gotta go to the bathroom now and then we can do whatever you want,” he smiles cupping your face. He helps you into one of his shirts and to the bathroom. Once you get back to his room you both cuddle into each other. You’ll deal with the consequences tomorrow. 

#mark estapa x reader #mark estapa smut

[riahlynn101]

could you keep doing fluffy schmelly fanfics?? i’m in in love with those 🥹

Of course :D!! I'm thinking of making these a series.

Have these two goofballs being overly competitive!

--

Vanessa beats Mike to the pizzeria. Not by much, as he pulls in right after her, but Vanessa takes her victories where she can. She pretends not to notice how his face seemingly lights up when they both get out of their respective cars. 

“Slow night?” He asks, sounding exhausted as always. She stands next to him, watching as he struggles to unlock the front door. 

“Not slow enough.”

They make their way into the lobby. The animatronics are still on stage, which makes sense given that it’s only ten. 

“So, you’re here early,” she says, taking off her jacket. The inside, for once, isn’t freezing cold. Maybe the owner finally realized that there’s actual people inside? 

“The babysitter got to my house earlier than expected,” Mike explains, starting his routine check of making sure everything is still in place. He peeks through the curtains, using a flashlight to check on each of the animatronics. “And Abby was already in bed.”

“....And you didn’t want to hang out any longer than you had to.” It’s not a question, but Mike answers anyway. 

“No, if I have to sit through one more minute of Max scrutinizing every little thing about how I parent Abby, I’ll scream. More and more, she reminds me of my Aunt Jane.” 

“What’s wrong with your Aunt Jane?”

Mike finishes up looking behind the curtain, and gives her an annoyed look. 

“Come on, she can’t be that bad. Right?”

“She’s actively trying to get Abby taken away from me. That woman has had it out for me since I was a kid.”

Vanessa hums. “Well, at least she isn’t here.”

“Small mercies,” Mike says in a monotone voice.

“Exactly.”

He groans, sweeping his flashlight across the various arcade machines. 

Vanessa shrugs. She looks over all the different games. “I used to love playing these games,” she murmurs. “I had the highest score on a majority of the cabinets.”

“Really?” Mike asks, sounding genuinely impressed. “Which one did you have the highest score on?”

“Pac-Man.”

“Pac-Man?”

“Pac-Man,” Vanessa repeats. “What about it?”

“I just….that happens to be a game I also got the highest score on. Not here, obviously, but I think it’s kind of cool that we….” Mike trails off, returning to his nightly task of making sure nothing’s broken. 

“Heh, bet my score was higher.”

“Was not,” Mike shoots back. Realizing how childish he must sound, Mike composes himself. “I guess we’ll never know.”

They both look longingly at the arcade cabinet. It’s powered off and covered in a layer of dust, likely due to not being used for years on end. 

They exchange a glance at one another. 

“I’m going to turn the power on for the arcade!” Mike shouts, sprinting towards the office. 

In the same breath, Vanessa shouts back, “I’ll start cleaning the machine off!”

-x-x-x-

“Wow,” Mike says, watching Vanessa play over her shoulder. “You are pretty good.”

She scoffs playfully. “Just pretty good?”

“Eh…goodish,” he teases. To which Vanessa takes her hand off the joystick to smack his shoulder. 

Her attention wavers for just a second, but in that second, Pac-man dies. “Noooo,” she groans. “Thanks a lot.”

Vanessa sees him smirk out of her peripheral vision. This only fuels her insistent need for competition. The last time she felt this strongly about beating someone was before her brother died. 

She grits her teeth and focuses even more on the game. 

“....You know-”

“Shut up,” Vanessa mutters, refusing to allow anyone to distract her. 

“But-”

“No.”

“But I-”

“Shush.” She waves a dismissive hand in his direction. 

“Hmpf.” Mike crosses his arms, looking almost like a petulant child. If she weren’t so set on getting the best high score, Vanessa would laugh. 

Eventually, though, she makes a mistake, and she has to move aside to let Mike play. Although, seeing her score (albeit briefly) makes the ten minutes of constant stress well worth it. Vanessa doesn’t want to think less of Mike, but there’s no way he can beat her score. 

“Soooo,” she starts, in the same conversational tone that Mike did, “you come here often?”

Instead of shushing her, Mike just side-eyes her. “Unfortunately. You?”

“Same,” Vanessa sighs, dramatically.

Mike snorts. “Well, you don’t have to. You know that right? Unlike me, you don’t get paid for being here.”

Vanessa gives an even more dramatic sigh, whirling around so she’s facing towards the lobby. “I can leave if you want.”

“What?” Mike asks, sounding actually terrified at the prospect of her leaving. “Wait, Vanessa, I didn’t mean-”

The arcade game goes into a game over screen. 

Vanessa grins, turning back to face Mike. “Ha!”

He rolls his eyes, trying and failing to keep the grin off his face. “Whatever. It was bound to happen anyway.”

“Uh, huh, sure.”

They glance over their scores, taking the time to appreciate them. Vanessa’s last score from over a decade ago is nowhere near their scores from today. 

Mike stares at the screen in disbelief. “We-” 

“Tied,” she finishes. 

“How?”

Which is a very good question, and one that Vanessa can not possibly answer. By all accounts they should not have tied. And not because she’s a sore loser or anything, but because Vanessa’s fairly certain they were both on different levels when they lost. Not that there’s any way to prove that.

“We need to break the tie,” Mike says, a finality in his tone. 

She nods. 

They look around the arcade. There’s five or six different arcade cabinets, a few (probably rigged) claw machines, and….

They look at each other. 

“Skee ball,” they say in unison.

-x-x-x-

In the corner, unseen, two boys watch over their respective, overly-competitive siblings. 

“She’s always been like this,” Cassidy mutters. “Used to sock me in the arm when she lost.” He rubs his arm. “Hurt like a-”

“Mikey has always been competitive too. Though, he didn’t hit me when he lost.” Garrett watches the display with interest. “I’m just glad he’s having fun. I haven’t seen him smile since…”

“Her either. It’s…kind of nice. I’ve missed seeing her smile.”

Watching is the best they can do (well, that and occasionally messing with the arcade machines), but for now, that’s all they have to do. For once, their siblings aren’t in pain or danger. 

And for now….

….that is more than they can hope for.

#fnaf fanfic #schmelly #cross posted on ao3 #fnaf vanessa #vanessa shelly #mike x vanessa #mike schmidt #fluff

[cadybear420]

Cadybear's Reviews Brief Thoughts- Laws of Attraction

Welcome to the thirty-first official Cadybear's Reviews Brief Thoughts! Today I'll be talking about Laws of Attracton, which I have ranked on the "Bronze Tier" at 5 stars out of a possible 10. My last and only playthrough of this was during September-December 2022 (and I finished it around July 2023).

Man, I have very mixed feelings on this series. 

I really wanted to like this one. But the first time I played Book 1, it actually bored the hell out of me. I could not follow the story, it felt like they were jumping from case to case far too quickly. And all the lawyer jargon made me tune the fuck out. Gabe and Aislinn were nice LIs tho, and I love all the electricity memes that people made of Gabe. 

The second time I played Book 1, I was slightly better at keeping up with the plot? But a lot of the earlier problems still held true. There was always a new case every chapter, only a few of which I felt they actually completed. 

Book 2 did start to take things in a slightly more interesting route with MC and friends starting their own law firm. The plot felt a lot more grounded and better-paced here, though it was still hard to follow the lawyer jargon. 

And holy fuck that finale was awful. I personally consider HSS:CA and LOA to have the worst series finales of all of Choices. Utterly inconclusive bullcrap. 

That all being said, I’d really like to give this series a second chance. I do like we have a flexible, proactive, and headstrong MC, where you can build up what kind of persona and motivations they have as a lawyer. Any story where the MC’s character is versatile like that and you have choices that matter always score major points with me.  

Also, anyone else originally thought this title was for a physics lab romance story? And… anyone else still think it should be that? And a better name for a lawyer romance story would be “Courting”?

#choices stories you play #choices #choices game #choices stories we play fandom #choices stories we play #laws of attraction #choices laws of attraction #loa #choices loa #cadybear's brief thoughts

[pencil-peach]

G Witch Onscreen Text: Episode 11

This is part TWELVE!!! Of my attempt to transcribe and discuss all the onscreen text in G Witch (and also just to talk about things I think are cool.) We have reached Episode 11: The Witches from Earth.

<<Click here to go back to Episode 10!

I have to hide..! (Under the cut)

So before we start, I had forgotten to mention something rather important in the last episode, that being that in the final scene with Prospera and Delling, we get a look at Quiet Zero (Or perhaps, the components that were being stored at Plant Quetta.)

We can see that the progress of this component is at 89%, almost completely finished. Bel comments later when she confronts Prospera that Aerial wouldn't need a permet score of 8 to complete Delling's original plans for Quiet Zero, and we can see that here, considering the machine is almost done.

Prospera also just outright gives Delling Aerial's Permet Score 6 data, telling him that with it, Quiet Zero can proceed to its final stage. I think it's really important to remember that the attack on Plant Quetta was not something Prospera had expected, especially with it having been done with Lfrith models. Her original plan was probably just to have Aerial reach Permet 8 and then just like. Kill Delling and take over Quiet Zero. (Maybe torture him a little. For fun.)

But the existence of the Lfrith models threw a wrench in that plan. A majority of her actions in season 2 were done in order to locate and destroy the source of the Lfriths, because the existence of an army of Gundams was a threat to Quiet Zero.

Anyway, speaking of the Lfriths, did you know that the show's OP changes slightly depending on what's happening in the story?

At the start of the show, this scene has Delling appear, and he fades out into Prospera.

But starting with episode 7's OP, shadowy images of Ur and Thorn appear behind Delling, and then disappear before Prospera fades in.

And in Episode 11 - 12, the scene is completely different, showing clearer images of Ur and Thorn, with Sophie and Norea appearing in front of them, turning to the camera.

Also, did you notice that the Ur and Thorn are color coded to Sophie and Norea, but backwards? Ur is colored like Norea, but is piloted by Sophie. Thorn is colored like Sophie, but piloted by Norea.

You'll have to excuse me, I'll probably be spending a lot of time talking about non text stuff as this episode is actually incredibly light on text...

In the opening scenes where the Earth House kids have just reached Plant Quetta, you can see Miorine silently moving away from everybody in both of these shots. Since our perspective is with Suletta for a majority of their conflict, we don't get to see a lot of Miorine's side, but I think it shows in these little moments. She doesn't understand why Suletta is acting so strange and it's frustrating her, so she's just avoiding her and hoping she sorts herself out.

A lot of their behavior in this episode is reminiscent of what they were like before they'd met each other.

Norea is sketching Thorn's face. Damn she's really good...I tried to draw Aerial one time and I got so mad I had to go bed early.

It's an understated thing but it's truly sad to me that Guel is nearly killed trying to defend the honor of his father's company in this scene, not knowing that his father was the one who provided them to the Dawn of Fold.

TEXT: T.S. - TO - D.O.F SYNC MAIN CONTROL SYSTEM MIGRATION: COMPLETED

This is the display shown on the monitor of the DOF member who hacks into its systems.

My best guesses as to the meaning of the acronym are: TERMINAL SYSTEM TO DAWN OF FOLD SYNC TRANSPORT SHIP TO DAWN OF FOLD SYNC TS might also stand for the name of the ship, which we don't know.

We get a look at the Earth House Space Ship's Map Data here, aptly titled EARTH HOUSE SPACE SHIP It's got everything. Two Cargo Unloading hatches, one at the Fore and Aft of the ship, 8 Mobile Suit Hatches across the middle, an Airlock, a Cieling Hatch, and a Bridge..! So cool...

I really love this scene where Nika and Miorine are talking about Suletta. I love how Miorine is just mostly confused the whole time. Cause she really just doesn't understand.

When Miorine says she'll send Suletta a video about Aerial, Nika asks why she can't tell her herself. And she replies, "Why?" Like, "Why would I do that? There's something bugging her, and she doesn't want to talk, so I'll just send her a video about it instead."

And when Nika asks her what happened between her and Suletta, she says "Don't say it like I did wrong." Like she probably didn't even assume there was a problem between them to begin with. In her mind she didn't DO anything, so what issue could there possibly be if nothing happened?

"Not everyone can be like you, Miorine." Nika concludes, and Miorine just says, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Miorine's never really met anybody like Suletta before. When she has a problem, she'll make it clear when she does. She's completely confident, and not afraid to stand up for herself, but Suletta isn't like that. At her worst, she can be frustratingly timid and scared, and won't say if she has a problem so as to not make any trouble for people. There are 5 days between the end of Episode 10 and the start of episode 11, and that whole time Suletta was probably acting really weird and avoidant, and Miorine probably just assumed if she needed something, she'd tell her. So she just left her alone.

That's why their eventual collision is so nice. They're communicating their needs.

I think it's really nice how Kenanji gained weight because it's been 20 years since Vanadis and it's treated as completely fine. Like yeah people tease him for it or are surprised when they see him but it's not presented by the story itself as like, a fall from grace or him letting himself go. He's still a strong and capable pilot, and he's still fully confident in himself. He just got fat. It happens !

(Also the delivery of the workers on "CAPTAIN KENANJI?!!?!" is another one of my favorite comedic line deliveries in the show.)

We also see in this scene where Jeturk's plant patrol fleet (Wormblood) are during the incident. They're heading towards the moon.

The completely emotionless way Prospera delivers this line haunts my fucking dreams. What's she thinking here? What is it about Suletta and the rest of GUND-ARM finally bringing to fruition Cardo Nabo's dream that fills her with such apathy? Such disdain? Is she bitter that it's the daughter of her family's killer that's bringing that dream to reality? Is it a constant reminder of the path she didn't, couldn't take? Is it the fact that the technology that could have saved her daughter's life wasn't allowed to be pursued until it was far too late?

Is she having to reckon with the infinitesimally small doubt remaining in her mind that maybe, just maybe, she did the wrong thing?

When Suletta calls Prospera on the phone, she tells her where they are, and that Suletta should come to see them. When Suletta starts running away from Miorine, she runs in the direction of C Block, towards her mother. (We know this because the rest of the Earth House students, which is where she started, aren't in C block when it gets disconnected from the rest of the plant.)

You should rewatch this scene and see how many times Miorine eats shit on a wall. Also this is one of my all time favorite Miorine frames. She is a kind of creature here.

TEXT: (Monitor) ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM CAMOFLAUGE SYSTEM OPERATIONAL

(Notebook)BIOINFO: IDENTIFIED PMET LINK: CONNECTED DESULTOR

Here we see the cloaking program Olcott, Bessie, and Gristan used to get close to Plant Quetta.

We also see what the Info on an unregistered Mobile Suit looks like, only displaying the status of the pilot and the MS.

Here we get a look at the control room for the plant. It's got a cool hologram...

The Desultors also launch COMP-JAM-PODS, which disables all normal comms within a wide area, and is why the DOF switch to a hopping transmission after launching them.

Here we see in the hallways that there are STRICTLY ENFORCED SPEED LIMITS (of 15b) within the hallways of Plant Quetta. (At least in C block.)

But when the Emergency Starts, all the signs change to EMERGENCY B1, with a reminder to PLEASE CHECK YOUR REGISTERED DEVICES, presumably for the B1 emergency procedures.

TEXT: EMERGENCY PLEASE EVACUATE EMERGENCY B1 OUT OF SERVICE COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK UNAVAILABLE TARGET AREA: Throughout PLANT QUETTA ACTION REQUESTED: Please put on suit and take shelter immediately. EVACUATION GUIDANCE: Please refer to faculty map below for locations of emergency evacuation suits and designated shelters for each block. C BLOCK MAP PLANT QUETTA Safety Control Center

The emergency alert sent out by the safety control center to everyone in the plant.

When Sophie and Norea prepare to disconnect C Block from the rest of the plant, the command prompt that appears on the monitor is C-BLOCK PLANT QUETTA PURGE.

Also, it goes without saying, but the Monitor UI and cockpit layout of Ur and Thorn are nearly identical to that of the base Lfrith models, complete with the real time Monitoring System updates on the lefthand side of the screen.

That's all for now! Wow...next episode will be the end of the first season...we've really come a long way haven't we..?

I...I'm glad we made this journey together....it means a lot to me that you've stuck with me for so long....(blushing a little)

Unfortunately I have reached the dreaded image limit...so I have no gift to share...forgive me....

Click here to go to Episode 12...if you want..>>

O--Or you could..go to the Masterpost...!

#g witch #gundam the witch from mercury

[softlighter]

Pass Through Fire

rewatching The Legend of Vox Machina season 2, episode 5, "Pass Through Fire," and having some Thoughts.

Every time I rewatch this episode, start to finish, I can't help but pay attention. I rewatch tlovm quite frequently, but this episode is goddamn gift and a spectacular feat of animation, script, everything. From the start, with the meta-theme of the voice of Korra the Avatar as Keyleth's mom's voice actor, and the setting of the episode theme and how it's not just about power, it's about her mom, this episode just starts and it doesn't stop. It might honestly be my favorite episode of the whole series, for so many reasons, but to specifically analyze in regards to Kiki, it's a goddamn gift.

So, let's talk about it! Let's talk about the score and the motifs repeating from during her last conversation with her mother into Keyleth then hearing the wind and then transforming into a fire elemental. I'm not qualified to discuss musical score as a factor, I really am musically illiterate, but you can hear the repeated notes and sections throughout the episode, which makes the final "Pass Through Fire" score all the more powerful. You hear it in "Wind" on the soundtrack as well, which is what plays during her goodbye with her mother, and which is beautiful but ends with this emptiness, this solemnity. You hear the motif on the wind, calling her to Pyrah, but the final "Pass Through Fire" is triumphant and powerful, above all else. It's not this just major triumph in battle as a victory, it is a personal triumph, it's Keyleth recalling her mother's last lesson to her and being able to finally actively internalize it. It's self-actualization and self-acceptance after so much self doubt. It's empowerment, not just power. It is her mother, it is the memory of her mother, and it is Kiki herself.

And, on every rewatch, this effect only becomes more pronounced because you notice the repeated motif, even if only unconsciously, and it's staggering. This past rewatch, the scene of Keyleth transforming and passing through fire genuinely brought me to tears, which I do not say lightly! Even before this, I always got chills when watching this episode, and so much of that, for me at least, is from the thematic impact of the score.

But enough about music which, again, I am not qualified to talk about, let's talk about character analysis!

Keyleth as a young child, an Air Ashari. Her mother's final lesson to her is that it only hurts if you let it, and let's examine that. Fire needs air to live, pain needs us in order to be felt by us, but it only hurts if you let it. Her mother is saying, you are not wood or timber, you were not meant to be consumed by pain, you were made to continue through it, to persevere. And then when we look at Keyleth at the end of campaign one, in the smallest nods we see in campaign two, in the published books from CR, and now in campaign three, I think we can definitively say she is someone who perseveres. She goes on, however painful it is. Keyleth is endurance, Keyleth is inner strength.

Throughout the episode, we see her fighting. Not just physically, but fighting internally, finding the strength. She's fighting to follow the wind, fighting to go to Pyrah and help, fighting to tell her father that her mastery is not where she thinks it should be, but she ends the episode having completed the fire trial. What does this say, what does this tell us? Keyleth is a surviver. She's a fighter, and she's a qualified one. Marisha has said she was inspired by Avatar The Last Airbender, and I especially see allusions to the Book One, episode fourteen, "The Fortuneteller," in this episode and its effect, specifically as to when Sokka says he forgets what a powerful bender Aang is.

Keyleth, mechanically, is a prime choice for considering who is the most powerful member of Vox Machina, and I'm not saying she is or isn't, what I'm saying is this episode was a reminder to her and to us the audience how powerful she is. She carries the heaviest burden out of Vox Machina by the end, save perhaps for Vax, in that she has to lead for the thousands of years that she will live, and she will see everyone she loves die as she barely ages. She is powerful, she perseveres, she continues onward.

This episode brings to tears to my eyes because Keyleth is strong. Her strength is not her druidic might, although that is one path for its expression. She's strong because she perseveres, because she passes through fire, because she has the inner will to continue on.

#critical role #keyleth #cr1 #the legend of vox machina #tlovm #keyleth of the air ashari #cr meta #character analysis #my writing

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Nick Anderson

* * * *

SOTU DEBRIEF - DARK BRANDON BRINGS IT!

TCINLA

MAR 8, 2024

The Party of Class and Integrity celebrates another ass whipping - look at all those around the Dumbest Congressional Bimbo Ever as they realize how bad they got their asses kicked

Last night’s State of the Union was a punch in the face not only of the heckling MAGAT Morons, but the Otherwise-Unemployables of the DC Press Corpse. As well, the Democrat’s Professional Pearl Clutcher’s Caucus can join the others in officially retiring “He’s too old” once and for damn all. The Press Corpse stands today beside their MAGAt buddies, trying not to admit to the exact nature of the material covering their faces.

Over.

Done.

Finished.

The official Democratic response to this collection of clucks from now to November is, “You saw that State of the Union speech. Joe Biden is sharper than Donald Trump will ever be and is ready for the fight.”

You can tell November’s Losers saw their coming loss clearly when their majority criticism of President Biden was “He was too mean and talked too fast!” You know he left a mark. That was the most perfectly tuned-in SOTU speech I have ever seen, delivered with fire and energy by a man as far from the Press Corpse’s concept of a doddering old man, diminished in drive and energy as possible. The New York Times Opinion Section got hit in the face by a freight train of ideas and energy.

Joe was Old Man Strong. Dark Brandon. Killer Joe.

Biden delivered.

It was the best center-left populist presidential speech ever. Less technocratic than Obama; less curated than Clinton - a solid knock-it-over-the-outfield-fence.

As many Republicans feared, Biden was more than able to “spar with the disruptors,” as one observer reported, using their jeers to make his own policy points. (“Sparring with MAGAts” is also known as “shooting fish in a barrel”). It’s hard to believe the GOP could be so stupid with their heckling that they walked straight in to a second SOTU trap, that went off when Biden maneuvered them perfectly into taking their proposed $2 trillion dollar tax cut off the table. But then again, they are Republicans, and it’s well-known you have to score an IQ lower than ambient room temperature to get your party card there nowadays.

Biden’s speech was combative and sharp, the solid punch in MAGA’s face they’ve been asking for every day for so long. The “senile” narrative went flying into the dumpster fire. Once again, Republicans set the bar too low, and got knocked on their collective fat ass.

Joe argued forcefully from the strong side about America’s destiny, security, and purpose, laying down a fierce bright line against Putin and the forces of autocracy.

He more than made it through the SOTU address. That moment his supporters always fear never came. Politico, demonstrating that most real political knowledge is 20/20 hindsight, called the speech the “turn-the-tables SOTU.” They go on to report that the Biden campaign had their best two hours of fundraising so far in this cycle from 9 to 11 p.m. last night. A CNN flash poll finds that 62 percent of viewers thought the policies Biden laid out would move the country in the right direction.

The New Republic’s Osita Nwanevu wrote: “That overall impression—of a vigorous president, strong enough to take the fight to his detractors —will linger more deeply in the minds of most who watched than the substance of anything he said.”

But what was really interesting to me was watching the political midget behind Biden’s left shoulder. Mike Johnson’s histrionic facial expressions demonstrated everything wrong, idiotic, dangerous and treasonous about MAGA Republicans.

Johnson was both ridiculous and politically smaller than he actually is. He did applaud Biden’s call for aid to Ukraine early in the speech, which he does seem to support personally, even though doing so demonstrated how he’s too afraid of his crazy caucus to allow a straight-up vote. He is likely to go down in history as the one person who more than any other handed Ukraine to Vladimir Putin.

His mugging for the camera was more obviously overdone than what passed for “emoting” in silent movies. He nodded that solemn “more in anger than in sorrow” nod. He rolled his eyes more than a teenage girl listening to her elders.

What was really sad was noting what he rolled his eyes at! The most important was January 6 (of which he is a noted participant in the attempted coup). When Biden said: “We must be honest. The threat to democracy must be defended. My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about Jan. 6. I will not do that.” MAGAMike gave his most sustained eye roll. Close runner-ups were his responses to abortion rights and freedom, and the border bill that he killed when told to by Dear Leader. And he did that last one while Senator James Lankford - the chief GOP negotiator on the bill - listened to Biden lay out its provisions and nodded on camera, clearly mouthing “That’s true.” Mikey even shook his head at “buy American”!

His eye roll over “The very idea of America is that we are all created equal, deserve to be treated equally throughout our lives. We’ve never fully lived up to that idea, but we’ve never walked away from it either,” was the real demonstration of just how dangerous he really is.

The MAGA Republican Party doesn’t believe we’re all equal. MAGA, and MAGA Mike, knows that if you’re not a right-wing Christian, you are not a good American.

Of course, there was also Marjorie Traitor Goon, whose ridiculous getup and MAGA hat elicited a “WTF?” look from Biden when he first saw her - and which was in apparent violation of House rules (but then, she IS a violation of House rules). Lindsey Graham’s pasted-on embarrassed smile at least demonstrates he has more self-awareness than his fellow MAGA cockroaches, as he considers how far he has fallen. Watching the MAGA screamer in the gallery get arrested was nice. It came down to just how dumbstruck the Republicans were as this man who - according to the Volkischer Beobachter, er, I mean Faux Snooze - can’t remember his own middle name or string two sentences together, zingered them repeatedly as he publicly exposed their un-American extremism.

Overall, Biden’s speech showed how he can win, and how MAGA, being on the wrong side of history, will lose.

And then, savoing the speech, just when I had forgotten there was going to be an Official Response, there was “America’s Mom,” sitting on a stool in her kitchen, there in East Buttfuck, Alabam-bam. Katie Britt had the most scenery-chewing response to a SOTU speech I’ve ever seen, and given that her competition was the ever-thirsty Marco Rubio and the ever-hapless Bobby Jindal, that was quite a win. Just another example of The Rising Young GOP Star, Cursed Forever by the SOTU Response.

The kitchen setting was the perfect metaphor for what MAGA intends for women: put them back in their place - “Kinder Kirche Kuche,” as their wonderboy Adolf put it.

I’ve spent enough time in Hollywood to be completely conversant with serious failure in public, and Britt’s performance didn’t even rise to the local-dinner-theater overacting you see from those who never had talent to begin with. With a Republican candidate for governor in her state of Alabambam campaigning on revoking women’s right to vote, and all the other MAGA moves to make the Handmaid’s Tale a documentary, delivering her speech in a kitchen was…

A choice. One of those tiny moments that completely illuminate the larger reality.

And then…

Appropos of nothing other than I love it when a Real Asshole gets punched really hard in the face, the news this morning that Doctor Feelgood Ronny Jackson has “Gotten His” brings a smile to my face that might last the weekend:

After the Defense Department Inspector General report on the White House Medical Unit found “Doctor Feelgood” had engaged in “inappropriate conduct” when he was the top White House physician for Presidents Obama and Trump, the Navy removed him from the Rear Admiral list last June. Yes, Jackson, who was a rear admiral when he retired in 2019, is now listed as a captain.

A spokesperson for the Navy stated that the “substantiated allegations in the DoDIG investigation of Rear Adm Ronny Jackson are not in keeping with the standards the Navy requires of its leaders and, as such, the Secretary of the Navy took administrative action in July 2022.”

Hurrah!

The losers just keep on losing. It’s what losers do.

#Dark Brandon #SOTU #TCinLA #words and writing #Nick Anderson

[thehumantrampoline]

Vertigo actually sucked so bad I gotta make a vent post about it. If you love Vertigo and wanna get mad please don't hate read this, but if you love Vertigo and wanna discuss it in earnest I'm not gonna flame you lmao.

Like after I finished it I immediately looked up critical reviews about why it's a classic because I was so baffled I wanted someone to explain it to me. People talked about the cinematography (fair) the score (true) and the acting (deserved) and then the tiny little juicy nugget of the big twist, which I think is one of those mind benders that sticks in your brain and that's 100% understandable.

But the film didn't earn the twist!!! It was clunkily delivered and I can't see any foreshadowing in retrospect. There was about a third of a good movie in the last act but I wasn't any richer for watching the first two thirds.

Because it wasn't Scottie's story!!! He's not interesting, he's not dynamic, he's an observer, and an absolute shit one. It was Judy's story, Judy was always the most interesting character, and yet the majority of the movie is this echoing boring hollow where his inner life is supposed to go. And it doesn't feel intentional, it feels like I'm supposed to be compelled by his search for meaning and I'm fucking not. I'm compelled by Judy and the narrative is fucking not.

I think Hitchcock wrote complex women by accident by writing complex plots and putting women in them. I don't think there's any intentional motive written into Judy except suddenly and inexplicably falling in love with this non-person, but holy shit the feminist narrative buried in Judy written and written over by men until there's nothing left, of Madeleine wherever she was and what led to her end, of Midge and her art and her stupid pointless torch and unceremonious exit from the story, even of long dead Carlotta, a toy put away in a toy box for a man to play with when he wanted until he got tired of her. Like it's all THERE but it's almost entirely unexplored while I'm supposed to worry about this Fuckin Cop.

As a pissy little side note did you really name the movie after a plot point that didn't seem to have any clear thematic resonance

#script was bad. disjointed and felt made up as it went along #it was a whole movie to get to a twist. first Hitchcock movie to ever disappoint me so thats something I guess #original posts

[itsactuallylina]

ε=ε=i wish i knew you wanted me !

now playing - bad habits by steve lacy.

kazuha x reader!, college!au

gn!reader

genre: angst, no fluff , no happy ending.

warning: lots of tears that you’re gonna spill, crying, bad mental health(reader), rivalry, miscommunication, trauma dump, snapping, jealousy, cursing, written at 2am, not proofread

word count: 862

tag: @rrinsluvr

‘ugh’

is all you can think of while looking at the guy, who’s knows as Kaedehara Kazuha. you don’t hate him, the opposite actually. but you would never dare to tell anyone. who would want a couple of the perfect guy and a rebel of the campus.

ε=ε=ε=

‘Thank you so much!’

another voice of some stupid student around, from what you know about her, she’s a journaling major and she’s asking others about their life for her assignment. you hate journaling.

‘Hello! could you pl-‘

‘fuck off’

she couldn’t even finish her sentence and you already flipped the girl off. there’s no way you’re getting your reputation fixed. glancing the other way, your eyes meet the vivid red ones. he chuckles, oh how you want to punch and kiss that face at the same time. but you just scuffed and walked away. as always.

ε=ε=ε=

today is the day you finally can know the score of your latest assignment. wow! a 97%, that’s pretty nice if you remember how many sleepless nights you spend on redoing the same assignment.

‘HUH? a 100%?! Kazuha, you’re incredibly talented!’

‘heh, i don’t think it was that good.’

Of course, he was the perfect one. you weren’t even sure if you liked him, maybe it was just jealousy of his skills for poem writing. and you wanted to be him, not to be with him.

‘[name] what did you get?’

his soothing voice brought you back to the reality and you finally realize that you were staring at him the whole time.

‘oh, um. 97%.’

‘woooow!! great job!! you did such an amazing work!’ is that sarcasm? or he’s just teasing you? but he just his stupidly sweet smile.

ε=ε=ε=

‘[name]? do you have a minute?’

‘what do you want kaedehara?’ you clearly don’t want to talk to him.

‘you looked sad recently in class, is everything okay?’

‘i’m fine. is that all?’

‘no, actually, do you think you could help me?’

‘with what?’ how can you help him when he’s perfect in every aspect?

‘with the new assignment, i didn’t quite understand it. and you’re really intelligent, so i thought-’ what?

‘stop it.’

‘huh? what do you mean?’ he looked lost.

‘i said, STOP IT.’ you raised your voice, not expecting this emotion.

‘[name], i don’t understand what you mean-’

‘stop pretending you’re stupid! why would you, of all people, want help from someone like me? you’re one of the best students in the whole university! screw it, maybe you ARE the best! can you stop acting so innocent? stop making fun of me, if you want to laugh at me, then just do! just , don’t bother me anymore.’

‘[name], wait!’

‘i said , stop bothering me!’ you just stormed off. tears forming in your eyes, which can drop at anytime, but you didn’t want to cry in public.

ε=ε=ε=

in your apartment, that your share with your parents, because you luckily lived near the university.

‘[name], are you ready?’

‘dad, it’s literally 9 hours before the flight.’ are all dads like that?

‘doesn’t matter. we leave in an hour’

‘okay, okay.’ the university you were attending, decided to send you to another country to continue the education. you were really happy, you could finally forget about everything tat happened in recent years.

ε=ε=ε=

kazuha couldn’t sleep in peace. all he was thinking about you. did you really hated him that much? do you not share the feelings?

in the morning , he couldn’t find you, even tho you were one of the first who showed up in the campus.

‘kazuha! how are you doing?’ oh no, it’s his girlfriend. why would he be such an asshole and date someone in order to get rid of feeling for another person.

‘____, i’m good, do you know where [name] is?’

‘oh, their flight is in a few hours , so probably in the airport.’

‘airport? what flight? where are they going?’

‘kazuha, you didn’t know? she leaves for an exchange program’

‘huh? uh, okay, um, thanks’ i’ll see you soon!’

‘what do you mean? where are you going?’

he couldn’t hear anyone right now, he had to go to the airport right now. luckily, there was an uber near the university.

ε=ε=ε=

‘i wanna eat..’ you said, you have been waiting for some food since you arrived here.

‘we will get something after the control, okay?’ mother replied.

‘yea’

you didn’t know what should you start with in another country. what are you supposed to do? hm, no idea.

‘okay! lets go now. make sure you put all metal things in the basket’ your dad said with such an enthusiasm, he was excited for the new start.

‘[name]!’

what? who’s voice is that? it sound oddly familiar. you turn your head in the direction you have heard the voice from.

oh no. shit, shit, shit, shit.

why is he here? doesn’t he have classes?

‘dear, do you know that person?’

‘uhh, no. maybe from the university.’

he looked desperate. he couldn’t decide what he should do.

you can’t just tell him about everything. the only thing you offer him is the sad smile.

the miserable smile.

you leave and he cries.

wow.

what an amazing start.

a/n: hi, i’m happy with that 😁

all works belong to itsactuallylina 2022.any editing, translating, reposting is not allowed without permission.

#ε=ε=ε=lina writes #genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin x reader #genshin x gn reader #kazuha #kaedehara kazuha #kazuha x reader #kaedehara kazuha x reader #kazuha angst #genshin angst #LMAOO #i love it #i love making ppl cry #hehe

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

Thanks for the previous answers, take your time me and the questions aren’t going anywhere lol

1: even though mar’i wouldn’t dye her hair, what color would she use if she wants too; the full hair or just a little like the boys?

2: your buddy spider-jaysart drew a character named Meredith, who is she? Is she an oc based on Jake’s wife at the end of Nightwing: the new order?

3: you probably heard the phrase: let’s kick some butt, out of the duo, who’s more likely to literally kick somebody in the booty?

4: have they ever got hit in the crotch before, either on accident or on purpose? Maybe kicking a soccer ball or playing catch with a baseball and aimed too high/low.

6: Kon, Tim, Jon, Chris, Jake, & Damian went bowling, who won between the six of them; either by themselves, supers vs bats, or “super-sons,” super-sons, and starburst, loser(s) buy lunch.

1. Either with full or partial hair dye, I can see Mar’i choose red as her color of choice since it helps her match with her mother and Uncle Ryand’r in her own unique way.

2. She was indeed based on the woman Jake was married to in New Order but since that woman was blank slate, it allowed me the opportunity to forge a character around her, hence Meredith Robinson. She’s one of Jake’s classmates at Bludhaven Academy and either one of the main cheerleaders or even a female player (as I Headcanon the basketball league Bludhaven Academy is attached having unisex teams) for the school team. Her personality is a simple yet easy one to grasp: spunky, energetic, lives for adventure, understanding, considerate and brave in the face of intense danger. For a hobby, besides basketball, Meredith also likes to try out gymnastics and is a major fan of Godzilla films.

3. Oh for sure Jake beyond doubt. After all, being raised in Bludhaven and having Robins for both his Father and his Uncle, it’s kinda bit a given of Jake learning how to fight dirty and literally kicking butt is among the ways of doing so lol.

4. Actually, both Chris and Jake have had unfortunate experiences with nut shots. Primarily during times of battles against equally strong opponents; although there have been some cases during which Chris was wearing a red solar watch at school and after telling off a bully or two to leave his classmates be, the poor kid received a nut shot in retaliation to said telling off. Chris thankfully only had just that and not much worse. Oh and yes, there’s guaranteed of accidental nut shots Jake received during basketball practice if he lets his eyes off the ball for a given amount of seconds

5. Individually, Conner scored first place partially and secretly using his Tactile Telekinesis to steer the ball to score strikes, a practice Jon picked up and call him out on after the game was finished. As for Supers vs Bats, once again the Supers won even without Conner’s TT but only by one or two points and as for the final game, Team YJ came up on top with the Starburst Duo at last by a mere three points. Chris can be no doubt heard grumbling as he fetched out his wallet for his credits cards while Jake was writing down the orders

(Phew) it was a bit @gothicghost2000 but it was so worth it :-D

#chris kent #jake grayson #mari grayson #meredith robinson #connor kent #starburst duo

[la-nom-nom]

Previously

About time I tackle it.

I was an early 2000s kid so Dreamcast-Dark eras is my nostalgia for Sonic. However, to tell you the truth, I don’t really miss those times. There were good things but also things that did damage. Adventure? Eggman gets dethroned as Sonic’s main menace until Colors(from the more criticized Meta era). Adventure 2? Kickstarted the ultimate investment of Shadow the Hedgehog which overstayed its welcome into someone else’s anniversary game. Heroes? Limited interactions between characters, trio gimmick, and speed/flight/power system. I haven’t played 06 but it was the final straw for some. Things I’ve seen of 06 rubs me the wrong way but I’ll still play it.

I’m not a fan of Flynn, Stanley or other western influence, but the thing with the franchise is that writers come and go. The direction will be something for awhile then it shifts.

The update 3 for Frontiers definitely isn’t perfect heck I wouldn’t say I had fun the first time around. The trials were hard af even on easy mode, unable to figure out the cyber levels(didn’t finish a single task) and a good chunk of the challenges were very unrewarding by not uncovering much of the map. I didn’t care for Sage but I didn’t hate her either. This isn’t a complaint but more of a comment, the ending was the same (Sonic and friends reunited/saved, Sage returning to Eggman) the way it was shown made it “look” different.

Don’t have much to say about the dialogue, I was paying more attention to the gameplay. I didn’t even run into the (in)famous line by Amy of stating she’s no longer a damsel in distress. I could see how this was upsetting considering her character but given it’s not a recommendation to trigger it in order to progress in the game, it feels like an overreaction.

The main thing I feel was good was being able to play Tails, Knuckles, and Amy again. The controls such as Knuckles gliding were a bit hard, I did wish the hammer was more used in Amy’s moveset but the magical cards were fine, I actually liked how whimsical she looked. Using different music scores for each character was a nice touch and so were the details like how they parry (Amy using her hammer, Tails using a spring, Knuckles using his fists). Another thing that I felt was good from update 3 is that the finale felt like a climatic finale, unlike the original which was a recycled mini game.

I don’t think Frontiers is any more guilty than other installments of the series. Almost every time I see on the internet of people saying “At least *insert other game* did this right/better unlike Frontiers” I just think: you know that other game you uphold also has some issues too right? I see Frontiers doing what those other games did: trying things out. It’s what Sonic Team has always did and will continue to do so.

Despite my mixed feelings about the update as a whole, that doesn’t change the feelings I had while playing the base game which was the majority of Frontiers. Does it have its issues and missed potential? Yes, but so did the games before it. Sonic Frontiers gave me an experience that I will remember fondly.

#opinion #sonic the hedgehog #sonic frontiers #not reblog #thoughts

[arionwind]

re: BG3 alignment stuff

Alignments always seemed a bit weird to me because it always felt limiting. I preferred systems with reputation instead where it builds as you go, good or bad. Same with something like faction reputations. It was also a good reminder of who hated me or not when coming back to things after a while. lol

Oh my friend. Congratulations and also I am sorry, because this ask has unlocked not one, but two long infodumps from me! Feel free to just skip by the one on reputation systems and/or alignments, but also thank you so much for giving me an excuse to talk about both of them at once, this is an excellent gift!

=On Reputation Systems=

So I have mixed feelings about most reputation systems in most games these days. Generally speaking, for me, if a reputation starts at 0 and only goes up (or back down to 0), it doesn't do much for me. Especially when it is for an individual or a plot-relevant group/organization, it always feels to me like lazily offloading narrative character development to a player for the sake of "making choices matter" or just to boast they have such a system.

Even a lot of systems that have "negative" reps either don't really seem to have substantive consequences for going negative, or make the consequences things that probably should just be the natural narrative result of following that narrative path. Which isn't to say that happens in every game with a system like that, but I find that the majority really don't need reputation systems any more than they need alignment ones.

There are, however, two games (for which spoilers follow) that I consider the goldest of gold standards for reputation systems and that I wish other games would take cues from and implement: Tyranny and Alpha Protocol. Again, spoilers will be following, mostly minor and early ones for Tyranny, but fairly major ones for Alpha Protocol.

So in Tyranny, they have two different sets of two reputations, depending on whether it is with one of your companions or not. For your companions, their opinion is measured in Loyalty and Fear, while organizations and individuals of power/influence are measured in Favor and Wrath. Importantly though, you can build both "sides" of reputation at the same time, and get different benefits - narrative and mechanical - from each.

For example, on the companion side, your very first companion is Verse. She's a skirmisher who can swap between twin melee weapons and archery pretty freely, and getting Loyalty or Fear to a certain break point will unlock special team attacks with her. If she is sufficiently Loyal and trusts you to do your part, you get an AoE bow attack where she steps into your hands and you launch her into the air to fire a volley down. But if she Fears you enough to take whatever orders you give, you can hurl fire magic at her, which she will catch on her swords for a long-lasting melee damage buff.

Likewise, certain actions can build both sides at the same time. My favourite example of this is with Lantry, the scholarly spy/librarian/healer companion, who pretty much as soon as you get him, will take time to teach you the Life Magic rune (if you want to learn it). And he cautions you to take a while to practice it before trying to do actual spellwork with it, because the slightest mistake could spell disaster. But if you have the right character background (War Mage, in my case) you can confidently and immediately fire off a flawless Life spell as soon as he finishes his instruction, ignoring his warning. And doing so makes him Fear you, as he is pretty sure your hubris will backfire one day, but he also gains Loyalty, as he is glad to be working with such an exceptionally skilled and experienced mage.

--

Alpha Protocol goes a different direction, giving you a -10 through +10 opinion score with pretty much every character (and I think organization, it's been a while) that you meet. Just a single axis, but it is explicit from the start and borne out in gameplay that bad reputation is not necessarily a bad thing for your character. (Seriously, as soon as you meet your boss for the first time, he basically says outright "You are a spy. You have specific goals to accomplish and none of them include being liked by everyone. If pissing someone off is the best way to accomplish your goals, do it.")

On the simple levels of basic perks, they have some neat ideas for passive things you get in either direction. My favourite example is the agency tech expert: if he likes you, he massages requisitions and gives you more room or uses of consumable tech for your missions. If he doesn't, you get all the buggiest shit-tech . . . which still works, but zaps your character often enough to grant electricity resistance.

But then, on the major narrative end, you can also get pretty huge differences in outcomes based on reputation. The Italy area's final boss is a very coldly professional head of a PMC. By default, when you fight him at the end of that region's arc, he fights just long enough to delay you from saving everyone, then has a scripted retreat. But if - and only if - you've managed to get him all the way to -10 opinion by then, the scripted retreat scene starts, he looks at his watch, and he decides fuck it, there's still enough time for him to put an unprofessional shit like you down. And then you can kill him, changing how the final level will play out pretty notably.

Basically, if a game is gonna have any rep or alignment system, I want it to do more than numerically increment progress towards what could just as easily be natural narrative progression down a specific path.

Also, this has gotten fuck-you levels of long already, so I'm gonna just. Publish this half, then will reblog it with the talk on Alignment stuff in a day or two? xD

#essay #original ari #answered asks #snowsisterskiss

[zazzander]

Let’s talk about life in New Rome

To start off, how many people actually live in the town?

In Son of Neptune, the number of people living in New Rome is said to be about three hundred. Now if we add the two hundred in Camp Jupiter, that leaves approximately 500 demigods. I doubt monsters, nymphs, and satyrs are included in that number, so we could probably round that out to 800 or so.

[The number is significantly lessby the end of Tyrant’s Tomb. Many veterans are said to have died. The legion has lost many demigods. ]

With this in mind, we have to assume that New Rome University is very small, likely between 20-50 students. We know from Percy they offer a four-year course, so that means about a dozen students (or less) are admitted to the college every year.

As far as I can tell, all students get into the university on a scholarship and there is no tuition. This is partly because Hazel seems very casual about admissions into the college and because of Percy’s comments in The Hidden Oracle.

“I’ve been guaranteed admission with a full scholarship to New Rome University, but they’re still requiring me to pass all my high school courses and score well on the SAT. Can you believe that? Not to mention I have to pass the DSTOMP.”

From this comment, I suspect Percy has given privileges equivalent of a legionaire who’s finished their ten-years of service. Basically like "you saved the world so that counts".

It’s unknown if they offer any post-graduate degrees, or if students go to Berkeley after that. I suspect with the close ties between the universities, as mentioned by Annabeth, the latter is more likely. However, demigod post-grad students probably do tutor classes at NRU like at other universities.

Looking at actual real-world universities. It’s more than likely NRU offers a liberal arts degree (Bachelor of Arts). One that is able to be modified for the individual student. This is further proven by the fact there is a music and poetry analysis section in the DSTOMP exam.

Percy mentions some classes for freshmen: English, math and history. My understanding is that’s pretty normal at US colleges (even though it seems redundant). So it really doesn’t give us much information.  

It’d say there’s a strong chance all these classes are in Latin (except for the English class, duh) – as we see evidence that Latin is the primary language of New Rome. English would be being just another language in New Rome (unlike Camp Jupiter), as all the signage is in Latin. Also, according to Apollo a dozen languages can be heard while walking through the forum.

So with the assumption that NRU offers an art degree, we know that some of Annabeth’s architecture classes can be studied at the university. But she probably couldn’t graduate with a proper Architecture degree just through NRU – which is why she dual-enrolls into Bekerley.

Considering Roman culture, it’s not surprising their arts course would have architectural leanings. These are the majors/minors/classes I’d say are likely to be offered: Greco-Roman Mythology, Philosophy, Political Science, Law, Mathematics / Engineering / Architecture, Ancient History / Art History (focus on Rome).

Obviously, Percy mentioned possibly studying marine biology or aquaculture. I think it’s important to note that he’s not decided this. It’s possible he hasn’t realised these aren’t options at NRU. But I think he’s smarter than that. So my theory is that he’s planning to transfer at some point but wants to study alongside Annabeth and stay in the safe-haven of New Rome for a while (these seem to be much higher priorities for him!).

The univerity has a big library, a belltower, and very boring dorms (which I think is just tragic because everything else in New Rome is super fancy, why are the dorms boring? Ten years kids live in barracks, they deserve nice dorms...)

Due to the limited number of people at NRU or in town, I suspect much of the university is maintained by the students themselves. As veterans of the legion, they would be perfectly capable of organising much of the operations of the university. Furthermore, I think post-grads might come to the university to teach the occasional class as a guest lecturer. This all allows for the university to offer a wide range of subjects without too many members of staff.

As for getting into NRU, it seems to be pretty damn difficult. Even if you’ve been approved for entry, you still have to score high on the SATs and pass the DSTOMP. Percy mentions that he’s failed to get a high enough SAT score twice, presumably passing on his third try.

So that’s the university, next I'm going to talk about New Rome’s daily life and culture.

One thing that’s very obvious is that New Rome is flush with cash. The entire town is a mini-haven: gold, and marble everywhere. Pristine gardens. You name it – they have it. This makes sense since demigods are often very talented and when you have multiple generations of demigods living in the town, bringing in wealth…

The good news is that the Romans seem to have kept the tradition of the wealthy funding public works: festivals, civil and religious constructions, etc. Examples of this is the colosseum and racing track. This tradition is likely why NRU is able to exist at all. As the wealthy families can spare the extra cash to fund the place – especially with all the students on scholarships.

As far as I can tell, New Rome has very limited technology. According to Hazel this is because demigods tend to make technology go haywire. There are exceptions to this: Reyna, for example, owns a tablet. And we see the legion hire a fleet of SUVs to cross the country. However, daily-life seems to avoid technology. When celebration are on, the Romans decorate their town with multicoloured lanterns (potentially magic-based). Furthermore, there are no cars in the town – only chariots and wagons.

The locals of New Rome eat a mixture of old and new foods. Focaccia bread is mentioned, which is originally a Roman bread that''s still popular in modern times.

They have a thriving coffee culture! With the number of cafes mentioned, I have to assume coffee is very important to them. And it seems to align more closely with Italian coffee-culture rather than the American one.

One thing that is never mentioned is any kind of policing in New Rome. It’s idyllic nature invites the reader to assume there is simply not need – but we know that nepotism and corruption are present in Camp Jupiter. So why not New Rome as well? More than likely, what’s going on is that New Rome uses the same method of policing as Ancient Rome. That being a patron-client relationship (called a “sponsorship” in the books). Basically, wealthy and powerful families act as protection for those who serve them fidelity. So if you mess with a shop that’s own by “Marcus”, Marcus can go to his sponsors, the Lawrences, to get justice.

Anyway, I don’t have any like crazy conclusions or wild theories. Just wanted to put all this stuff into one place.

#camp jupiter #new rome #new rome is a small town #heroes of olympus #pjo hoo toa #new rome university

[dyke-ulaura]

I wanted to share some points from my music theory assignment analysis of I Feel Him Slipping Away because it scored well and I'm proud :3. I bolded the the parts that analyse the meaning if people want to skip the more theory heavy (unbolded) parts.

Written in cut common, simple duple time which changes to 4/4 in the last few bars. Shifts frequently between A major and C#minor.

There are two rhythmic features that I want to talk about here. Here, in the bass clef, a dotted crotchet and crotchet rhythm is copied in the percussion to give a contrasting, uneven 3/4 feel. This is a shift from the relatively straight-foward rhythm of the previous verse. The triplet in the fourth bar here is also interesting as you’d expect it the previous line. In breaking that rhythm, it emphasises the phrase die in my arms which makes it feel more jarring, expressing Trina's anguish

This segment is taken from the first and second chorus. The second chorus vocals, cut off the #g early and echoes what was already being played in the piano line, repeating the word no in triplets. This has a compound duple feel and echoes how a person, out of frustration, may cut themselves off. This is something I've noticed Trina actually does often (both in In Trousers and Falsettos) that other characters don't really do (marvin does it in i've got a family but this is more about denial). She has a much greater tendency to either cut herself off or correct herself, reflecting her insecurities and self doubt.

At this point accidentals are also used to create an ascending c#major scale from c#minor, this creates further contrast and effectively shifts tone from the previous line of remorse to one of anger and vindication. It's further enforced by the fact that all three women are singing now in unison.

The opening has an A major chord in the piano piano which is reflected in the vocal melody: CCCAE. We start off very stable on the tonic. The rest of the chord progression goes Ab augmented, which resolves to Ab major, then F#minor (first inversion, so A is still the bass) back to A major (the return to a major occurs on the words "were fine". A quick return to the tonic to show how "fine" things are) back to Ab augmented again. This constant shift between stable and unstable chords, represents the contrast between the parts of the marriage that were "fine" and the parts that were "not" (echoing the lyrics). In the last two bars the melody of the vocals is mirrored on the piano until the last note where there is a dissonant minor second between a natural on the piano and g# on the vocals. This represents the clash between husband and wife and the "dissonance" of their marriage.

Only one part of this song really feels like a finished cadence. The end of the first two choruses goes from a suspended chord on the fifth note (g#) into the tonic c# minor. It feels like an ending, but she starts singing abruptly partway through the next bar, continuing on the same thought, but also contradicting it going from favourable descriptions to more negative thinking. This is another example of Trina's specific mannerisms that I mentioned earlier and to me is very similar to "I only want to love a man who can love me or like me or hold me or touch me or stand me" ("... or help me" in falsettos)

The last chord is an F# suspended 4th chord rather than the tonic, giving an abrupt, unsatisfying end as the conflict of the character is not resolved, this is further enforced as the song ends not on the chord, but on the noteless exclamation of the word "Liar"

#unfortunatelybecause the target audience was people who hadn't seen in trousers most of the original analysis had to focus on the song alone #i've added a couple bits here about the greater context within the show though. #i have some points for other songs that I might share too #one day I will do this for the entirety of the marvin trilogy >:) #falsettos #in trousers #long post sorry