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manias-wordcount · 1 year

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Can I request Caitlyn from Arcane x Female S/O who's from the undercity but Raised in piltover...and always get's in trouble when the S/o tries going back to the undercity to see VI, Powder, Mylo, and Vander.

So S/O parents made their daughter to meet caitlyn and be friends but the female S/O is cold to any piltover citizen with how they treat the undercity differently...

But in the end when cailtyn and the Female S/o is older they developed a crush throughout the yearsyears confessed to each other.

So when cailtyn was blasted by the fire/explosion on progress day created by jinx, the s/o confessed nonchalantly but generally worried for caitlyn :)

If not that's okay..

Worried S/o from Zaun HCs (Caitlyn Kiramman)

𝗔/𝗡: 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗮 𝗯𝗲 𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟬𝟬% 𝗶 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗺𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁! 𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝘆, 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗵𝗲𝗵𝗲

𝙒𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚? ⇒ 𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩

𝙟𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙧?

𝙗𝙪𝙮 𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙚?

Meeting with Caitlyn

It’s not every day someone gets rich enough to leave Zaun and join Piltover

In fact, it was pretty much unheard of until your parents came along

Naturally, your parents would get the respect of their colleagues in front of everyone

But only you knew how everyone looked at and spoke about your family behind closed doors

So, you lashed out at everyone who was from Piltover and you ran back to Zaun every chance you could, only to get caught before you could make it too far

But you had to try- it was the only way to protect yourself and what you lost by moving away from where you belonged

Eventually, your parents got tired of your behavior (it was starting to reflect badly on your family, after all) and decided to connect you with another girl your age- Caitlyn Kiramman

She was the daughter of your parent’s closest confidants, after all, so it would win-win if it all worked out!

Of course, you thought she was stuck up and like the rest of Piltover. And she thought you were rude and brash and crude and all sorts of things

But your first meeting finally ended with the two of you reluctantly shaking hands and your parents cheerfully scheduling another playdate much to both of your displeasure. At first…

Hanging around Caitlyn

Somehow, the two of you warmed up to each other pretty quickly

In some ways, you were still a social outcast but hanging around Caitlyn throughout the years made you feel a lot less lonely (and a lot less like feral Undercity rat lol)

The truth was that the two of you needed a friend when you were both younger so you sought comfort in each other’s presence

Playdates became more frequent to the point where it wasn’t uncommon for you two to slip up and call each other’s parents mom or dad

And as you grew older, those playdates turned into hanging out after school or whenever you had time (and sometimes, when neither of you truly did have time)

It wasn’t that surprising when you finally realized you had a crush on Caitlyin

About a decade around a girl you always begrudgingly thought was beautiful will do that to you

But in those moments together, you two found ways to become even closer. No longer school friends or secret little pawns for your parents

But two awkward girls trying to figure out the world, themselves, and each other <3

That’s why it was so incredibly hard for you to hear that Caitlyn had been injured in an attack that felt a little too familiar to your true home for your comfort

Waiting for Caitlyn

The second you were allowed to, you were waiting by her side to see when she would wake up

Luckily, she wasn’t too hurt so you didn’t have to wait long

But that didn’t make you any less worried, even if you tried not to show it

She offered you a small smile when she woke up, and you still conflicted with all that you know and realized about her attack and attacker, couldn’t offer her one back

In fact, you couldn’t even look at her when you told her that you were happy to see she was alright

You didn’t want her to see the tears that were starting to fall anyways

But of course, she knew you too well

So all it took was her reaching out and grabbing your hand for the dam to break

You’re still the same kid from Zaun, but you’re different now. And it’s because of her. It’s all because of her. And that’s why you had to say. That’s why you had to let her know…

“I’m…really glad you’re alright Cait. I don’t know what I would do if I lost you…”

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callme6olet · 1 year

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What makes Arcane great: S1E2

Scroll on down for my Ep 1 post. As with that one, this is more a commentary than a blow-by-blow, a zoom-in on the specific things that, in my opinion, make Arcane awesome--beyond the obvious facts of a brilliant story, brilliant characters, and jaw-dropping animation.

Standouts from Episode 2, "Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved:" the development and escalation of the story, and the mirror progress between Piltover and Zaun.

Jayce's intro

Arcane doesn't waste details. We are first introduced to Jayce on the other side of the door we saw in Ep 1, trying to get in while his study is burglarized. Caitlyin is with him. This conservation of detail allows the writers to effortlessly weave together these two disparate storylines and make a powerful statement about empathy. We are seeing firsthand what Vi willfully ignores: the fear and loss that her actions caused. There is a sense of unity in the storytelling, both in terms of chronology and in terms of theme. We are willing to follow this digression into Jayce's life because we can trust right from the start that his story will tie into Vi and Powder's.

In this short sequence, the show establishes Jayce and Cait as characters; it establishes their connection to each other; it shows that there are consequences to Vi and Co's theft; and it sets up the complicated dynamic between Piltover and Zaun. Jayce remains largely faceless through this scene, his head either out of shot or out of focus until the crystal blows hard enough to blast us into a flashback. This is, I think, largely to cement the importance of the flashback, to trick us into seeing Jayce's formative childhood moment as his true introduction. While he is in a position of power--physical, mental, and social--we are instead made to focus on his weakness, his trauma. We see him knocked down, and then we see him and his mother freezing to death in some far-off place. It's small stuff, but I genuinely believe that Jayce would not be a relatable character if he were introduced differently. If our first impression were of someone who is tall, handsome, muscular, intelligent, and wealthy, it would be difficult to summon compassion for him. Instead, we get to see the vulnerable side of his personality, and we are shown his motivation for the research he's carrying out. He and his mother were both on the verge of death, and he was powerless to stop it. Controlling the arcane means undoing that powerlessness, that moment of childhood trauma.

Then we see magic, and we get this frame--which, c'mon. Not only beautiful, but such an incredible way of communicating both the physical mechanic of what's happening and the raw power involved in harnessing the arcane.

Heimerdinger's intro

This is an ode to the show's worldbuilding, a spot where it benefits from being an adaptation--from having a decade's worth of content to draw from. Because, seriously? Heimerdinger? This little fluffball? He should make us laugh out loud, throw our hands up, and turn off the show. His design is shockingly out of place in the steampunk/grimdark tone we've seen so far, and yet it's handled with a perfect mixture of matter-of-factness and humor. It's difficult to match the way Tolkien, for example, can simply introduce different folk into a world: to say, "There are Hobbits," and have us buy into it. Most often, because we're not experts in language and folklore, this sort of thing comes across like a twelve-year-old showing you their notebook scribblings of dragons and elvish runes. Here, the show steers into an almost sci-fi style of worldbuilding, dropping in different species without regard for their connection to our world's preconceptions and folklore, but with a deep tie to the secondary world's history and lore.

Also, the way the camera does a little shake and pan down? Brilliant. Because--again--there's no damn camera. It feels like a documentary, though, where the cameraman was surprised, had to readjust. It's a simple trick to make the story feel real, feel recorded.

In his dialogue with Jayce, Heimderdinger sets himself up as both wise and flawed. He is the ideal of conservation, preservation, and peace.

The arcade

We get to see that Powder really is competent--just, she's poor, doesn't have a gun. She's great with technology, which, because of where she was born, is not much of a strong point. Plus, we get to see this face.

Which, come on. I love her. She's my favorite. Not because of the emotion she's feeling, but because of the intensity with which it is being conveyed. Hard to even sum it up in a still frame. I've never seen a show where the animation alone makes me like the characters more purely because it's so damn human.

Then we get a chase scene with some cool blacklights, some incredible kinetic camerawork, and some teamwork with Ekko. Escalates the stakes, reinforces the ticking clock the kids are facing.

Mel's intro

Mel is immediately likeable--and intimidating. She's shown to be bold, intelligent, and powerful. Unlike Jayce, we see Mel in a position of power. Arcane is, at its core, a commentary on privilege and power; I would argue that Mel's introduction is in conversation with this commentary. Because our society is fucked up, we see undeserved suffering in the mere fact of who she is: a Black woman. We are proud and excited to see her in power. Compare this to Jayce, who our lizard brain associates with wealth and privilege. The contrast in these introductions, in my view, encourages empathy for both characters. It's not Jayce's fault that he has certain social advantages, nor is privilege by itself a bad thing, and it certainly doesn't make him any less human. On the other hand, Mel is immediately implied to be shrewd, proud, strong, and competent by virtue of where she stands in society--the power she has attained, despite the systemic challenges that we assume she has faced (regardless of our relative lack of information about racism in this secondary world).

We hear Mel before we see her, hear her talking over a still of a golden star in her window. An icon of progress, of prosperity. She says, "Steady is stagnant." She is the yang to Heimerdinger's yin: a force for change. An active force. We have seen the conflict between Piltover and the Lanes; now, we are seeing conflict within Piltover, with Mel at its head. When we finally see her face, she is saying, "And yet I remain the poorest Madarda." She has pride in what she's done, but she is always looking forward. There is an implication of pain, of struggle, and a very common intra-family conflict. High standards.

The Last Drop

We see Vander holding court in The Last Drop. Like Heimerdinger, he is a force of peace, preservation, and passivity. Unlike Heimerdinger, everyone around him is not. Yin, within yang. A moment later, this will be mirrored when Piltover holds court at the trial: Heimderdinger for preservation, Jayce for progress.

The scene ends with Ekko telling Vi about Vander's deal with Grayson, and Vi asking, "What deal?" Not revolutionary, but it's a cool bit of cinematic grammar. If the scene were to continue, she would've said, "With the enforcers?" or "He--what? How do you know?" But by ending on this question, the writers communicate the fact that Vi and Co are about to learn everything about this deal without having to show the conversation (and that the focus is on the facts, not the feeling of betrayal).

Also, we get to see Vi's suspicious face.

Which, come on. I love her. She's my favorite.

Caitlyn and Jayce in the rain

Again, the show kills it here. Shows Jayce's descent into depression succinctly and in a very human way. He is outcast by the family that supported him because of this one mistake, and now, everything he's staked his life on is gone. Moreover, as Caitlyn and Jayce both admit, he is not capable of joining the Toloss hamer business. He has too much to offer the world, will never be content with manual labor.

Throughout the scene, Jayce's face is framed by the metal bars of the Kirammans' gate. He is more imprisoned here, now, than he was in jail. He is labeled a misfit; and Caitlyn, she's "a misfit, too, I suppose." It's great development for both characters: the feeling of being outcast within an environment of privilege. The pain of feeling a certain way, even though you know you shouldn't.

In my opinion, this is--for both of them--the pain of being queer. Cait is pretty clearly lesbian or bi; with Jayce, there's more uncertainty, but I think the inference to the best explanation is that he's a closeted bisexual man. Which--more on that in a bit.

Powder almost falls

Marcus, following a tip from Silco, searches The Last Drop. Powder holds on for dear life, almost falls, barely manages to hold it. I can't not bring this up: the tension, so expertly communicated, when her hands start to slip. The fact that none of it is hard to believe, that it doesn't feel as though it's set up for dramatic effect. The fact that she doesn't fall--that, once again, she proves herself competent, even though we're constantly being told she's not (as is she). And then, Vi uses this as a catalyst to confront Vander. That is what makes this more than cheap jump-scare, false drama bullshit. Powder doesn't fall, doesn't advance the conflict that way. But she does force Vi to see how real, how personal, this conflict is getting. Each time the enforcers show up, the tension is escalating. They are getting closer and closer to catching the kids. This enhances the sense of urgency and reinforces the need for action.

Jayce on the ledge

His world is falling apart and no one understands him. Except this other outcast of a man: Viktor, at the right place, at the right time. Who promises progress.

This is a moment, to me, of queer crisis. Not just because of the chemistry between Jayce and Viktor, but because of what's really eating at Jayce: "I've seen with my own eyes what magic can do. The lives it could save. You have no idea how beautiful it is."

He has seen a beauty in the world that nobody else believes is there. He has the most indubitable evidence for it: his own experience. And yet, even his own mother doesn't believe it to be really real. To her, it is a closed question, a mystery happily left unsolved. He has been gaslit his entire life over this obsession, has never once had anyone truly buy into what he's saying, what he knows to be true. That is, until now. Until Viktor. Who tells him: "If you're going to change the world, don't ask for permission." Meaning: trust yourself. It's a beautiful line that highlights the need for recklessness in innovation, the need for people who are unwilling to listen to the word no.

Vi's decision

Check this out.

Her eyes are blue. Faint blue, greyish blue, but still blue. One of the few times in the entire show when they take on this color, rather than the usual grey. For Vi, grey eyes are trauma. Blue eyes are a connection with her inner self. (A similar but more obvious theme pops up with Jinx/Powder and her purple eyes.) She understands: she has to do something, can't risk the people she loves. The important lesson to learn from Vi, I think, is that, while her selflessness becomes a weakness--codependence--it is, at its core, a positive trait. Right now, she's not sacrificing herself for her friends. She's protecting them. She is saying a last goodbye, then turning herself in.

And what a goodbye. As at the end of Ep 1, Powder spends the whole scene bathed in light and looking anywhere but at it. Vi is in the shadows, but she is facing the light. Facing her light: Powder. The person she loves most in the world.

More importantly: "What makes you different makes you strong," she tells Powder.

Which. That one can speak for itself.

The Ending

A back-and-forth with Vander and Powder, a heartaching montage over upbeat music. It's great. I have nothing more to add.

This episode--indeed, the rest of the season--is a story of opposites. Topside, Jayce is captured, persecuted, let off, and saved by Viktor's kindness. In the undercity, Vi and Powder are pursued, escape, and face the reality of an escalating conflict, one that will not let them go with a slap on the wrist. Vi must turn herself in to save her friends. The struggles are similar, the outcomes vastly different. The bungled robbery of Jayce's study is turning into a pivotal moment for both crews. Topside, disaster becomes the linchpin for opportunity and success. In Zaun, the crew's greatest triumph turns into a failure that will doom them all. Privilege is a good thing; everyone ought to have it. When it is lacking, we face choices like Vi's.

#arcane #jinx arcane #vi arcane #league of legends

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