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pumpkinpaix · 3 years

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Hello! Feel free not to answer this question if it is in any way too much, but I've been wondering about something concerning the "western" mdzs fandom. Lately, i have seen multiple pieces of fanart that use what is clearly Christian symbolism and sometimes downright iconography in depicting the characters. I'm a european fan, but it still makes me vaguely uneasy. I know that these things are rarely easy to judge. I'm definitely not qualified to do so and was wondering if you have an opinion

Hi there! thank you for your patience and for the interesting question! I’ve been thinking about this since i received this ask because it?? idk, it’s difficult to answer, but it also touches on a a few things that I find really interesting.

the short answer: it’s complicated, and I also don’t know what I feel!

the longer answer:

i think that this question is particularly difficult to answer because of how deeply christianity is tied to the western art and literary canon. so much of what is considered great european art is christian art! If you just take a quick glance at wiki’s page on european art, you can see how inextricable christianity is, and how integral christian iconography has been in the history of european art. If you study western art history, you must study christian imagery and christian canon because it’s just impossible to engage with a lot of the work in a meaningful way without it. that’s just the reality of it.

Christianity, of course, also has a strong presence in european colonial and imperialist history and has been used as a tool of oppression against many peoples and nations, including China. I would be lying if I said I had a good relationship with Christianity--I have always faced it with a deep suspicion because I think it did some very, very real damage, not just to chinese people, but to many cultures and peoples around the world, and that’s not a trauma that can be easily brushed aside or reconciled with.

here is what is also true: my maternal grandmother was devoutly christian. my aunt is devoutly christian. my uncle’s family is devoutly christian. my favorite cousin is devoutly christian. when I attended my cousin’s wedding, he had both a traditional chinese ceremony (tea-serving, bride-fetching, ABSURDLY long reception), and also a christian ceremony in a church. christianity is a really important part of his life, just as it’s important to my uncle’s family, and as it was important to my grandmother. I don’t think it’s my right or place to label them as simply victims of a colonialist past--they’re real people with real agency and choice and beliefs. I think it would be disrespectful to act otherwise.

that doesn’t negate the harm that christianity has done--but it does complicate things. is it inherently a bad thing that they’re christian, due to the political history of the religion and their heritage? that’s... not a question I’m really interested in debating. the fact remains that they are christian, that they are chinese, and that they chose their religion.

so! now here we are with mdzs, a chinese piece of media that is clearly Not christian, but is quickly gaining popularity in euroamerican spaces. people are making fanart! people are making A LOT of fanart! and art is, by nature, intertextual. a lot of the most interesting art (imo) makes deliberate use of that! for example (cyan art nerdery time let’s go), Nikolai Ge’s What is Truth?

I love this painting! it’s notable for its unusual depiction of christ: shabby, unkempt, slouched, in shadow. if you look for other paintings of this scene, christ is usually dignified, elegant, beautiful, melancholy -- there’s something very humanizing and humbling about this depiction, specifically because of the way it contrasts the standard. it’s powerful because we as the audience are expected to be familiar with the iconography of this scene, the story behind it, and its place in the christian canon.

you can make similar comments about Gentileschi’s Judith vs Caravaggio’s, or Manet’s Olympia vs Ingres’ Grande Odalisque -- all of these paintings exist in relation to one another and also to the larger canon (i’m simplifying: you can’t just compare one to another directly in isolation etc etc.) Gauguin’s Jacob Wrestling the Angel is also especially interesting because of how its portrayal of its content contrasts to its predecessors!

or! because i’m really In It now, one of my favorite paintings in the world, Joan of Arc by Bastien-Lepage:

I just!!! gosh, idk, what’s most interesting to me in this painting is the way it seems to hover between movements: the hyperrealistic, neoclassical-esque take on the figure, but the impressionistic brushstrokes of the background AAA gosh i love it so much. it’s really beautiful if you ever get a chance to see it in person at the Met. i’m putting this here both because i personally just really like it and also as an example of how intertextuality isn’t just about content, but also about visual elements.

anyways, sorry most of this is 19thc, that was what i studied the most lol.

(a final note: if you want to read about a really interesting painting that sits in the midst of just a Lot of different works, check out the wiki page on Géricault’s Raft of the Medusa, specifically under “Interpretation and Legacy”)

this is all a really long-winded way of getting to this point: if you want to make allusory fanart of mdzs with regards to western art canon, you kind of have to go out of your way to avoid christian imagery/iconography, especially when that’s the lens through which a lot of really intensely emotional art was created. many of my favorite paintings are christian: Vrubel’s Demon, Seated, Perov’s Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, Ge’s Conscience, Judas, Bastien-Lepage’s Joan of Arc, as shown above. that’s not to say there ISN’T plenty of non-christian art -- but christian art is very prominent and impossible to ignore.

so here are a few pieces of fanwork that I’ve seen that are very clearly making allusions to christian imagery:

1. this beautiful pietà nielan by tinynarwhals on twitter

2. a lovely jiang yanli as our lady of tears by @satuwilhelmiina

3. my second gif in this set here, which I will also show below:

i’m only going to talk about mine in depth because well, i know exactly what i was thinking when I put this gif together while I can’t speak for anyone else.

first: the two lines of the song that I wanted to use for lan xichen were “baby, I’m a fighter//in the robes of a saint” because i felt that they fit him very well. of course, just the word “saint” evokes catholicism, even if it’s become so entwined in the english language that it’s taken on a secular meaning as well.

second: when I saw this scene, my immediate thought was just “PIETÀ!!” because LOOK at that composition! lan xichen’s lap! nie mingjue lying perpendicular to it! the light blue/white/silver of lan xichen in contrast to the darker robes of both nie mingjue and meng yao! not just that, but the very cool triangular structure of the image is intensely striking, and Yes, i Do love that it simultaneously ALSO evokes deposition of christ vibes. (baxia as the cross.... god..... is that not the Tightest Shit) does this make meng yao joseph of arimathea? does it make him john the evangelist? both options are equally interesting, I think when viewed in relation to his roles in the story: as a spy in qishan and as nmj’s deputy. maybe he’s both.

anyways, did I do this intentionally? yes, though a lot of it is happy accident/discovered after the fact since I’m relying on CQL to have provided the image. i wanted to draw attention to all of that by superimposing that line over that image! (to be clear: I didn’t expect it to all come through because like. that’s ridiculous. the layers you’d have to go through to get from “pretty lxc gifset” --> “if we cast nie mingjue as a christ figure, what is the interesting commentary we could do on meng yao by casting him as either joseph of arimathea or john the evangelist” are like. ok ur gonna need to work a little harder than slapping a song lyric over an image to achieve an effect like that.)

the point of this is: yes, it’s intentionally christian, yes I did this, yes I am casting these very much non-christian characters into christian roles for this specific visual work -- is this okay?

I obviously thought it was because I made it. but would I feel the same about a work that was written doing something similar? probably not. I think that would make me quite uncomfortable in most situations. but there’s something about visual art that makes it slightly different that I have trouble articulating -- something about how the visual often seeks to illustrate parallels or ideas, whereas writing characters as a different religion can fundamentally change who those characters are, the world they inhabit, etc. in a more... invasive?? way. that’s still not quite right, but I genuinely am not sure how to explain what i mean! I hope the general idea comes across. ><

something else to think about is like, what are pieces I find acceptable and why?

what makes the pieces above that reference christian imagery different than this stunning nieyao piece by @cyandemise after klimt’s kiss? (warnings for like, dead bodies and vague body horror) like i ADORE this piece (PLEASE click for fullview it’s worth it for the quality). it’s incredibly beautiful and evocative and very obviously references a piece of european art. I have no problem with it. why? because it isn’t explicitly christian? it’s still deeply entrenched in western canon. klimt certainly made other pieces that were explicit christian references.

another piece I’d like to invite you all to consider is this incredible naruto fanart of sakura and ino beheading sasuke after caravaggio’s judith. (warnings for beheading, blood, etc. you know.) i also adore this piece! i think it’s very good both technically and conceptually. the reference that it makes has a real power when viewed in relation to the roles of the characters in their original story -- seeing the women that sasuke fucked over and treated so disrespectfully collaborating in his demise Says Something. this is also!! an explicitly christian reference made with non-christian japanese characters. is this okay? does it evoke the same discomfort as seeing mdzs characters being drawn with christian iconography? why or why not?

the point is, I don’t think there’s a neat answer, but I do think there are a lot of interesting issues surrounding cultural erasure/hegemony that are raised by this question. i don’t think there are easy resolutions to any of them either, but I think that it’s a good opportunity to reexamine our own discomfort and try and see where it comes from. all emotions are valid but not all are justified etc. so I try to ask, is it fair? do i apply my criticisms and standards equally? why or why not? does it do real harm, or do i just not like it? what makes one work okay and another not?

i’ve felt that there’s a real danger with the kind of like, deep moral scrutiny of recent years in quashing interesting work in the name of fear. this morality tends to be expressed in black and white, good and bad dichotomies that i really do think stymies meaningful conversation and progress. you’ll often see angry takes that boil down to things like, “POC good, queer people good, white people bad, christianity bad” etc. without a serious critical examination of the actual issues at hand. I feel that these are extraordinarily harmful simplifications that can lead to an increased insularity that isn’t necessarily good for anyone. there’s a fine line between asking people to stay in their lane and cultural gatekeeping sometimes, and I think that it’s something we should be mindful of when we’re engaging in conversations about cultural erasure, appropriation etc.

PERHAPS IT IS OBVIOUS that I have no idea where that line falls LMAO since after all that rambling I have given you basically nothing. but! I hope that you found it interesting at least, and that it gives you a bit more material to think on while you figure out where you stand ahaha.

was this just an excuse to show off cool (fan)art i like? maybe ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

(ko-fi)

#Anonymous #asks and replies #art #fanart #art history #christianity #mdzs #mdzs meta #meta #mine #mymeta #cyan gets too deep in the weeds #lmfao this post is a mess ive been staring at it for like a week and at this point im just gonna post it to the wall and keep moving asldfj #hope you enjoyed

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docholligay · 3 years

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Please rant/rave (well, we already know which one it will be here) about Harry Potter!

GEE I HOPE THIS WAS WORTH WAITING FOR

OH MY GOD. The level of hatred I have for Harry Fucking Goddamn Potter, the culture around Harry Fucking Potter, extending its poisonous tentacles even to the concept of young adult fiction, fantasy, and the United Kingdom as a country and people.

When you being on this, you may think, “Oh, Doc will explain that Harry Potter sucks because JKR hates trans women” and I will say, oh no, dear reader, that is a fantastic reason to hate the author, and I really suggest we all continue to hate her, and perhaps not purchase the QUEEN’S TONNES of officially licensed merchandise and movies and theme parks that give her stupid little fucking hands all that cash, but no, that is not why I hate the work. There are a number of great works done by terrible people, and the further out the lens of history gets the truer this is.

I hate Harry Potter because it fucking sucks, and mentally stifled an entire fucking generation.

“Well, Doc, Harry Potter was really there for me when--” Oh my god I could not fucking care LESS about your personal emotion connection to “orphan wizard boy turns out to be a rich aristocrat yet somehow less woke than Cinderella though” I have personally emotional connections to hot fucking garbage pails of media properties, and if someone came barreling through talking about the myriad ways in which they were horrible, I would be like, “Oh, you aren’t fucking wrong, pal”

Harry Potter gained wild ass popularity in part due to its magnificent sorting system of Smart, Brave, Evil, and Other, because there’s nothing liberals like more than being able to put everyone’s personality into an easily labeled box, which is why astrology is so popular, or for the intellectuals, Myers-Briggs, which is just as fake but with the veneer of science. This allowed people to give into the tribalism they so desperately liked to pretend they did not possess, and also allow them to write thinkpieces about “The misunderstood Hufflepuff” or “Slytherins aren’t all bad!” or really anything that allows them to write a very real piece about their very imagined oppression for being a part of a totally fake house in a children’s book. Excellent use of your sociology degree, Kai, I thought the addition of phrases like, ‘Content of socialization” and “axes of oppression” really spoke to the struggles you face when wearing a green and silver scarf.

The other reason it became popular is that it’s essentially wallpaper paste formed into characters. I have read all of the books, and I could not tell you even remotely what Harry’s defining personality traits are other than “protagonist”. In American, at least, a large part of it was the fascination with all things British, with the idea of boarding school and prefects and uniforms that aren’t inexplicably chinos and polo shirts for nine year olds. It allowed children to project onto something so bland that it could be anything. And for children, THAT’S FINE. There is a great deal of bland media made for children, but what I’m speaking to is the fandom, which is largely well over the age of 18.

Because if we look at the books, are they...actually good? Was it good, or did I experience it as a child? I mean, honestly, on a literary level, are they, or was it just like we all watched Friends, we did it because everyone else was doing it, because I have a distinct memory of a series that involves such greats as “magical geegaws with poorly defined rules that are quickly forgotten despite being able to solve later problems quickly” or “Everyone loves Harry or is a bad guy, or secretly loved Harry all along”

Oh, speaking of, man, if this was an actual well-written book, wouldn’t it have been wild to have Snape’s whole thing be to teach us that sometimes people do good things for the wrong reasons? Instead of naming your fucking child after the guy who ‘protected you’ because he still wanted to bone your mom? “After all this time” “Always.”

While all this could have been explained, we have Quidditch added into the mix instead because 20 pages of the goddamn Puppy Bowl is exactly what I was looking for while I was waiting for JK to move the goddamn ball on literally any of these actual magical concepts.

Harry Potter is a fucking trust fund baby, star quarterback, who grows up to be a cop and marries his high school sweetheart. (Speaking of, why were we shocked that JKR turned out to be a piece of shit when this was and always has been the conclusion of Harry Potter? Why are liberals so fucking into this series that upholds structures like it ain’t no one’s business? It’s a series that opines that those beneath us “Muggles” should be kept in the dark from us) Literally, he finds out he is a wizard and has a dragon-guarded fucking VAULT OF CASH. At 11. It’s such a series for little tyrants, you are special from birth and need do nothing to prove it, here is a letter certifying as such. Oh, not only are you rich and the greatest seeker and have excellent quips, but also your parents were not only rebels, but the best of rebels, and so deeply involved that your parents were killed by the big bad personally, again, because you are so special. His mother’s love literally saves his ass over and over again, because he was SO SPECIAL. He fought Voldemort FROM THE BEGINNING, and WON. It’s literally the most privilege baby fantasy in the world.

“But Doooooooooooc, it’s for chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiildren”

A) Yeah, and you’re 32, you’re making my fucking point about Harry Potter setting an entire generation up for intellectual failure to launch.

B) Okay, and? I can think of a bunch of kids’ books off the top of my head that in no way require specialness to be given by birth so as to roll out the red carpet for master protagonist. The Hunger Games. Watership Down. A Series of Unfortunate Events. The Chronicles of FUCKING NARNIA, about which I have only a small handful of particularly kind things to say. I’ve never read Percy Jackson, but it’s my understanding that despite his being a literal demigod, the attitudes of the supporting cast are allowed to fall between the extremes of “Appreciates Percy” and “naughty or will learn” Harry does nothing to improve himself even after knowing that he is HUNTED BY THE BIG BAD! “I won’t do this because I don’t like Snape”. So There” which, again, if this series were written with the slightest bit of care or know-how, could be a humbling fucking plot point! BUT NO THAT WOULD BE NAUGHTY.

But the real reason I hate Harry Potter so much has everything to do with the fandom surrounding it, and how it intellectually stunted a generation of adults. The promise of Harry Potter was that it was supposed to make a new generation of readers, and so the popularity of them was pushed, and so there was discussion of teaching them in schools, but I tell you fucking what, I know a whole lot more folks who grew up reading Harry Potter that never advanced beyond reading YA, or even just rereading the entire series every year and that’s pretty much them done and dusted.

In the attempt to recapture whatever it was about Harry Potter that attracted children (A lot of it was your peers doing it. I read them all as they came out, and it was literally the equivalent of watching the game so you could talk at the water cooler. That was never going to be recaptured) people, who by this time were likely in their teens, kept getting recommended stuff at the same and same level. No one ever felt pushed to read things that are challenging, to read things that have some of the concepts or themes of Harry Potter but maybe complicate. I know FAR more adults who read adult books that aren’t into Harry Potter, even if they were as children, than the reverse.

But Doc, why is reading only books meant for 14 year olds a problem??? I mean I suppose I can’t convince you that comfort is not the job of literature or of life, it is the job of an easy chair, because Americans especially are decadent as fuck about being comfy cozy all the time and if anything causes them distress or pain it should be immediately avoided. But Maybe I can convince you that you’re fucking up these books for actual ass children who deserve to have their own writing section without adults bringing their fucking asses into it. They deserve their own spaces. There’s a number of YA editors who have talked about the difficult space YA now occupies because since Potter’s blowup, it’s no longer a niche category, but basically “adult easy reads” and so they have been buying books that are more about the tastes of adult buyers than of literal 14 year olds.

Is that not...sad? To anyone else? Honestly, and this is not part of the essay because it’s a broader reaching problem, but CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS NOT FOR US. CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS NOT FOR US. CHILDREN’S MEDIA IS FOR FUCKING CHILDREN. The fucking 40-23 set really needs to get their shit together and grow up a little bit and engage in some fucking adult media, and maybe, if we support what we’re actually looking for FOR ADULTS, it will come to us. No one is saying you can’t read Harry Potter or watch some Cartoon Network show, but like, search your heart and come the fuck on. Engage in something more complex. If not for yourselves, for the kids getting shoved into simplified adult stories. It should not be about us.

ANYWAY, my larger point is that it was Harry Potter, a badly written series about a magical boy who was chosen and magic and also rich and also a favorite of the headmaster and also more clever than most adults and also spoke the same magical snake language as the big bad and was also star quarterback, but at least there was a system in which you could buy a scarf in block colors and feel like you belonged to a team.

(But not a sports team! lol handegg! I’m cool I don’t get into sports! Except Quidditch.)

#TO say nothing of the fact that I haven't been able to wear gold and burgundy together without some dumbass comment for years #despite being a favored color combination #Anonymous #Eight Days 2020 #Holligay Rants and Raves #I didn't even GET to every point I had but it's been over an hour #GOD I HATE THIS FUCKING SERIES SO MUCH #Doc do you hate me for liking it?#oh sweet thing allow me to reassure you: Yes. Absolutely.#also the prose is god-awful #I've taught teenagers with better rpose

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cruelfeline · 4 years

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One of the aspects of Hordak that strikes me so significantly when compared to other characters is the unexpected, terrifying escalation of his situation.

We don’t really see this happen with anyone else: generally speaking, our other characters are very much a case of “what you see is what you get.” Adora is perhaps a bit of an exception, seeing as her status as “First Ones gun trigger” is used as a plot twist in season four, but her general background and the overall nature of her situation remain fairly consistent throughout the show.

Same with Catra. Same with Glimmer and Bow. Mermista, Perfuma, Scorpia, Frosta... everyone else receives a backstory and, barring minute elaborations, stays true to our first impressions of them. Our understanding of who they are and what they are about doesn’t really change.

Hordak is not this way.

Hordak starts off as a pretty standard, one-dimensional evil warlord character. Season one finds him very much delegated to the background, supposedly pulling the strings behind the scenes as other characters have their dramas play out center stage. He is well-designed and frightening, an imposing individual with a stoic personality and a sense of reason and logic that marks him as an effective commander.

We get no backstory at this point, and the initial impression of the character (at least for me) is “capable evil leader, little to no depth beyond what is absolutely necessary.” And that’s fine. At this point in the story, there’s no suggestion that Hordak will have any sort of role save for serving as an ultimate antagonist for our heroes, so a backstory is largely unnecessary. He appears properly built to provide powerful opposition, and that’s all we need.

This is Hordak’s starting point. It is a serviceable starting point. It is also stunningly different from his end point, and at this stage in the series, there is zero indication that there is going to be any alteration, let alone such a dramatic one.

Seasons two and three see Hordak gaining actual development. Significant development. Development that provides him with a painful, sympathetic reason for waging his war. Suddenly, Hordak is not an all-powerful, untouchable warlord. Suddenly, he is a vulnerable individual with significant physical ailments and resulting emotional trauma.

His situation has escalated.

We see now that his body is falling apart, that he is sickly and weak and dependent upon armor and bravado to maintain control over his subordinates. We see that he is not the stoic, omnipotent man presented to us in season one.

Instead, we learn that he is a manufactured clone with deep emotional wounds linked to past rejection and trauma, that he comes from a society where his illness is scorned enough to earn him rejection and what amounts to a death sentence. We come to understand that he views himself very poorly, and that a significant number of his negative character traits are rooted in shame and fear and a desperate need for validation.

we also learn that he has cute lil ears that can wiggle and droop when he’s sad

To these significant developments we add his budding friendship with Entrapta, and we find that Hordak is very much capable of desiring, forming, and maintaining a positive, affectionate relationship with someone. His character thus becomes even more complex.

Now, something to keep in mind at this point: thanks to revelations provided by his backstory, we can view Hordak as a more vulnerable individual with legitimate feelings and insecurities. That said, there is still a certain dangerous edge to him. At this point in the series, we have been told, by Hordak himself, that he was a top general in a much larger version of the Horde.

This supposed fact somewhat tempers his vulnerability. We get the sense that, while he is suffering from the shame and subsequent rejection brought on by his disability, his ultimate goal of rejoining his brother still involves a certain level of power. There is this idea that, though he wants validation and acceptance, he is also seeking to regain a position that, theoretically, grants him greater power and authority than the one he holds now. Hence why he doesn’t just settle for conquering and ruling Etheria: being lord of Etheria does not hold a candle to the power granted him by regaining his rank as Horde Prime’s top general.

One can look back at the fandom during late 2019 to fully appreciate this: fanfiction from this time period often features headcanons of particularly accomplished clones holding respected positions in Prime’s empire. High ranking clones have names and titles. They have ships. They have their own planets and their own armies. Even though they serve Prime and are, sadly, purpose-bred clones, they have power and status that provide them with a certain level of agency.

Essentially, there was the idea that a traditional Horde military structure exists, and Hordak held privilege within it.

So, while Hordak’s situation has escalated in emotional poignancy from “evil warlord wanting to rule the world” to “defective clone seeking validation,” there remains an unsympathetic aspect to it. There is still some degree of potential power-hunger that one can attribute to him.

This changes, very suddenly and traumatically, in seasons four and five. And this, friends and neighbors, is where I begin to become very emotional.

Our first indication that things are about to wildly change comes during the season four finale. We meet Horde Prime. We see how submissive and terrified Hordak is in his presence. We witness Prime’s distaste not only for the state of him and his failed conquest, but for Hordak daring to take a name.

It is Hordak’s name being a problem that plants the seeds for an upheaval of our preconceived notions regarding a clone’s function in the Galactic Horde. Those seeds germinate abruptly and violently in the next few moments as Prime lifts Hordak by the throat, declares him an abomination, and viciously violates and erases his mind.

And oh, friends and neighbors, now we know that something is wrong.

We don’t quite know the specifics yet, but we know that there is some sort of discrepancy between what Hordak told us and the truth he has lived. At no point in the narrative did Hordak say anything about names being inappropriate. At no point did he say anything that might have prepared us for the suspiciously religiously-coded language Prime is using. At no point did he say anything to suggest that there was anything wrong with what he was doing beyond trying to compensate for a physical disability.

And then, alongside all of these dark little surprises, there are the hauntingly blank stares of the clones standing besides Prime’s throne.

All of these factors instill a sense of dread that culminates in the chilling reveal of the Galactic Horde’s true nature come season five.

It is a cult. An honest-to-the-gods, played-absolutely-straight religious cult.

The Galactic Horde isn’t a traditional army, or an aggressive nation, or even a standard imperialist empire. It is a cult, with Horde Prime as its god and countless clone acolytes acting as its horrifically willing members.

We never see a top general, or any generals at all. We never see any sort of military hierarchy. We never see clones leading armies, or owning ships, or holding ranks, or commanding anyone or anything.

What we see instead is clones blindly worshiping their Brother. We see them doting on him, sacrificing their own life force to maintain his form. We see them forfeiting control of their bodies to him whenever he feels like using another’s form. We see them chanting the virtue of suffering to achieve purity. We see them blank and emotionless save for religious zealotry, a purpose-bred cohort of completely brainwashed followers. We see that there is no apparent escape from this life, for Prime sees their minds and controls every aspect of their existence, and we see that there is no desire for escape among them, so utterly indoctrinated are they.

We see Hordak reduced to one of these cowl-wearing acolytes: nameless, powerless, ready and willing to endure physical agony in order to forget his shame and relinquish his self to his Brother in the hopes of... well, certainly not of regaining some exalted military rank, or of reclaiming some previously-held status. These things do not exist. Not in this actual religious cult.

Hordak’s true situation is now fully apparent, and it is so far removed from our views of him back in previous seasons: rather than being a calculating warlord, or even a defective clone seeking to regain military glory, Hordak is a manufactured soldier-slave who was born into a religious cult, so indoctrinated and bound to his Brother that he risks his own life in order to win Prime’s love and approval.

Because that’s what this final realization confirms: Hordak was never after any sort of power or prestigious military status. They never existed. Hordak was, in the end, an abused slave trying desperately to win love from his loveless master. He truly was just after validation and affection and a feeling of secure belonging. All things that he was deprived of because he was born a slave-acolyte in a godsforsaken cult.

And that’s... that’s such a vastly different state of affairs than the one we accepted in season one. It completely rewrites our understanding of Hordak’s power, of his vulnerability, of his true wants and needs and desires. Said understanding shifts from a purely villainous one to one steeped in self-loathing and control and lifelong victimization. It is absolutely shocking to see a character’s circumstances completely transform the way Hordak’s do between the show’s beginning and its finale. It is utterly bewildering to witness this intensity of change.

As I stated at the start: this doesn’t happen to anyone else. Oh, other characters develop and grow and undergo their arcs, sure, but by and large, Catra remains a scrappy catgirl. Adora remains an orphaned heroine. Swift Wind remains a revolutionary winged steed.

Only Hordak undergoes a transformation as dramatic as shifting from “all-powerful conquering warlord” to “defective clone seeking validation... but maybe also galactic power” before finally settling, tearfully and painfully, on “shamed, love-starved cult victim.” Only his situation, his true identity and our understanding of it, escalate so shockingly and to such terrifying levels.

I’m still not over it. I still cry about it. I still feel light-headed sometimes, knowing that Hordak's circumstances revolve around being born into and abused and thrown away by an actual cult. Even though we're over two months out from SPoP's finale, it's still that emotionally powerful to me, and the shock of the difference between seasons one and five only make it more so.

#hordak #horde prime #she ra

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theonceoverthinker · 4 years

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Why Clover Isn’t Going to be a Traitor

So, @fairgame-is-endgame made a great post this last night debunking some of the more ludicrous pieces of evidence as to why Clover’s is not a traitor. It’s an awesome post and if you’re a Clover or Fair Game fan, you’re gonna want to check it out.

This is a continuation of sorts because as opposed to taking down the minute details being honed in on as evidence of why Clover might be a traitor, I want to compile the evidence presented by the show and secondary material (Ex. Amity Arena) that show strong signs that whatever Clover’s character direction will ultimately be, it won’t be as a traitor to the larger group fighting against Salem (And possibly not even against Ironwood).

So, what is my goal here? To reassure my fellow Fair Game friends that we’re not headed straight for a pitfall? To give the haters a piece of my mind? To speak into the bottomless chasm that is the Internet as a means of dealing with my fandom-based RWBY loneliness? ...A little bit of all of that, if I’m being honest. In any event, I don’t post a ton of analysis pieces, but this is something I feel strongly enough about to give voice to, so let’s see how it goes!

Everything’s under the cut because this is fairly long!

1. The Clover/Robyn scene from 7X5

If Clover was ever going to be set up as a surprise antagonist, it was going to start to show itself in this scene -- a scene that pits Clover against a character he views in an antagonistic light that didn’t end up being a misunderstanding -- more than any place else.

And it did the exact opposite.

I mean...it did a little, even with the context of Clover and Ironwood’s true goals. Clover is pretty cold to her under his veneer of carefreeness and stops Ruby as she even tries to relate to Robyn (Perhaps that’s out of a fear of Ruby telling her too much, or perhaps it’s just a sense of distrust, but that will probably be revealed soon enough). I’ll walk with you that far and admit to some slight shadiness. But I’m going to argue that that only goes to a certain point, and a small point at that by highlighting the biggest takeaways of that scene.

The scene between Clover and Robyn tells us a few things.

-Clover and Robyn’s opening dialogue, tone, and animation make it very clear that they’ve met before, but are not on good terms with each other. This is further communicated by Clover’s adamant refusal to disclose information to Robyn about the supplies. Now, I’m going to argue that in Clover’s defense, it just makes sense that when faced with a frenemy (That’s being kind) who is looking for information he has no desire or order to give to her (As we’ll learn later, Clover is a by-the-book guy), that he be in no hurry to tell her what’s going on. Additionally, while he lies to her face about his intentions, he’s very clearly speaking in a way that communicates that something IS going on that he cant speak of (His vocal inflections show that he clearly doesn’t expect Robyn to believe that the tower is getting a checkup, but hopes that it will be enough to shut her down for a bit), giving her that much information to work with at least until she gets elected.

-Clover’s not especially excited about the prospect of Robyn being elected onto the council, but he still wishes Robyn good luck in the election. Not only that, but the facial expressions he gives her, the tone in which his words are said, and the fact that he delayed his return to the van just to do so heavily imply that it’s a genuine wish. Granted, we later learn that this may only be for reasons amounting to the fact that she’s not Jacques Schnee, but still, he knows she wants to help, and while they don’t get along, he’s receptive to that desire.

-Robyn trusts Clover enough that she reasons that asking for him to disclose information is a worthy pursuit (She does so twice) before attempting to attack the group. Otherwise, she’d have gone after them the moment they stepped out of the van. Since Robyn’s a character we’re supposed to end the scene having trust in, the fact that she does have lingering trust in Clover leaves the impression that we should as well.

All in all, while we don’t know a lot of tangible information pertaining to what they are to each other at this point in the story, we do get a surprisingly large emotional understanding here of their complicated dynamic. We know Robyn is correct in how the people of Mantle deserve to be informed of these goings on, but also why Clover is right to keep his mouth shut until the time comes to reveal all, and I think the attention to this dynamic paid here shows that both of these characters have their hearts in the right place.

2. Amity Arena Card (And Its Follow Up Twitter Post/Introductory Loot Drop)

There are two things I want to point out about this description that I want to touch upon here.

First, “there’s nothing subtle about what the Ace Ops leader Clover is about.” Now, that’s not to say he has no hidden depths to his character (It would really suck if there wasn’t any more to him), but I feel like these few words communicate a lack of secrecy as to his values, personality, and alignments. Can having all three of these things be positive still amount to a villain? Sure -- you can kind of say that makes him like Hazel in that regard -- but I think my next point will solidify that’s not the case.

Second, I’m gonna make this one short and sweet. There is no way to basically say that ‘this new character (Clover) is going to kick a beloved protagonist’s butt (Qrow’s butt) and that will be a good thing for said protagonist,’ and then have that new character end up being a baddie. While my knowledge of the game is a limited since I don’t actually play it, I did do some research today, looking at various cards for both protagonists and antagonists, and they overwhelmingly geared the framing of these card descriptions towards a more hero-focused outlook on the characters. Basically, this game is not about to cheer for a hero like Qrow to be defeated by someone who will turn out to be a villain, if for no other reason than it’s a poor choice for the game’s long term posterity.

But just in case that card’s second-to-last line left anyone with lingering doubts about its intentions, the RWBY Amity Arena Twitter page was kind enough to elaborate on it!

I feel like that wink emoji should be doing my work for me here. If there was ever a doubt as to the intention of the wording, this tweet should clear it up. Clover is so clearly being shown by the Amity Arena card as a positive influence on Qrow’s life, and in a way that implies that that’s not about to change anytime soon.

Like, if they wanted to convey ambiguity as to Clover’s moral alignment, they could’ve just said something along the lines of “Who knows,” or “Guess you’ll just have to wait and see.” In the world of Remnant, ambiguity is a force more powerful than the Light and Dark Gods combined, and one that knows no shortage of uses! But no, they literally spelled out that line’s intended meaning, with inflections and a winky face to boot!

I’m not going to try to go into detail about all of the little intricacies of this reward card, because someone already did it for me! I direct you to this AMAZING analysis by @scathing-eyes where she highlights both what this single message has to say about Clover and Fair Game at large.

3. Introductory Card on Twitter

Thank you so much to @homokinetic for linking me to this card!

If you’re trying to depict a shady character or even one who you have twisted intentions for, this is not the description you use for them. Here, we’re not given soft and vague allusions to Clover’s allegiances that could imply sinister motives. We’re told flat out that Clover acts in the best interests of Atlas and does things by the book. I mean honestly, that second point should de-trigger any alarm bells because Salem...doesn’t really have a book. I mean, she has goals, but as to how they get done? She doesn’t care! But Clover and Ironwood care about doing things by the book because they feel like those rules, for as flawed as they are, are what will keep the world from succumbing to chaos (Whether they’re right or wrong...look, I love these two, but they are flawed -- not evil, but flawed). Salem, on the other hand, worships the idea of chaos since it makes her goals that much easier to fulfill.

I think the line “tries to bring out the best in people” is also important. Salem’s forces gain strength by exploiting the worst qualities in people, and Clover stands in stark contrast to that philosophy by focusing on nurturing their best qualities. This is well communicated in the series with his actions towards Qrow and the introduction to the routines and options that the new Huntsmen now have access to. Not only that, but those means of nurturing come down to themes of unity and order (Showing Qrow the benefits of working with others and taking pride in his accomplishments, showing the new Huntsmen the positive ways they can impact Atlas, encouraging them to take a night to refresh their spirits), literally the very outlooks on life that Salem seeks to obliterate in order to ensure that humanity will be destroyed again. Just in terms of philosophies, Salem’s team and Clover are so fundamentally different in ways that just aren’t compatible. It’s not like Clover and Qrow where their differences complement each other and can mutually benefit the other. There is no way that Salem can benefit from posing a figure that inspires the endurance of the better qualities of the human spirit in a position of power.

4. The Overall Lack of Narrative Sense in Making Clover a Baddie

Clover is a character meant to foil and relate to Qrow. That’s not even an opinion. Everything from their contrasting semblances to their scenes together cement that as an absolute fact, and whether you ship it or not, their connection just can’t be ignored.

All that said, while Clover is an important part of this duo (Duh), it’s Qrow who is the focal point. Qrow is the character we’ve spent four seasons with and watched him struggle and develop through his journeys. So it’s fair to say that the impact of Clover and Fair Game on his character (Again, whether romantic or platonic) will be something that will significantly impact the direction of Qrow’s character going forward.

The next logical question, of course, is as follows: What’s the narrative point of Clover being a baddie for Qrow’s character? @skybird13 wrote a fantastic post about the overwhelming benefits of a genuine Clover as opposed to the redundancy of a Hans-esque traitor Clover storyline. You should absolutely read this post, but I’m going to quote the segment that spoke to me the most.

“I think the most surprising thing RT could do with Clover’s character at this point is to let him be exactly who he seems to be. Should he have his backstory and his secrets and his own demons to deal with? Absolutely. I would love to see that. But when it comes to Qrow’s trust in others, I think that has been pulverized enough throughout the series. Putting him through it again serves no narrative purpose except to send him right back into the tailspin that he’s currently digging himself out of which, in all honesty, isn’t great writing.“

And yeah, I have to ask: What point would another stab at Qrow’s trust do? If Qrow was meant to be a character who would face a tragic end, then why didn’t he back in Volume 6, when it would’ve been infinitely more appropriate? He literally lost faith in the person he dedicated his very life to. Why show Qrow recovering from his low point and building him up in Volume 7 just to tear him down? Unlike a character like Ruby, someone young and idealistic who watches the conventions of trust and goodness in her life crumble before her eyes over and over again and grows from it as she discovers new things about herself and others, Qrow has already had a lifetime’s worth of those ideals crashing and burning, and we’ve already seen the results of that growth, both on the high and low ends of his viewpoints on life, but especially the low points. What is the point of returning him there that couldn’t have been more naturally done but one volume earlier?

The Conclusion

...I’m bad at ending things. But I know I’ve made my case, and I’ve made it about as well as a case like this can be made.

Rooster Teeth, through both its primary and secondary means of storytelling, have made a strong case for a Clover who will remain loyal to the betterment of Remnant, regardless of the path he personally chooses to get there (Joining Robyn vs. Staying with Ironwood). For them to change gears after all this setup and make Clover an ally of Salem would be frankly nonsensical after all of this careful buildup.

Could it turn out that I’m wrong? Of course, but despite the suspense in my heart, I can’t help but trust RT here. Maybe that’t the result of that bop of an intro. Maybe it’s the prospect of my new ship becoming canon. But I don’t think that trust -- while based in emotion -- is baseless, and if RWBY has a theme, isn’t it to have a perspective like that?

So here’s hoping the Clover is just another instance of the payoff of trusting love!

#clover ebi #rwby #fair game #qrow branwen #fair game hcs

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theimpossiblescheme · 4 years

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A Very Palpable Hit

That long thread with @nonchalantdanger about Roxanne’s skill with a sword and where it could possibly come from finally made me decide to dip my pen (or my keyboard, rather) back into the tiny, but dedicated fandom of Cyrano de Bergerac. Writing these characters is still quite a challenge, but quite a fun challenge, I think, and this was a fun kinda-sorta prompt to do. I hope I did them justice, and I hope everyone enjoys this little piece!

Roxanne was pacing frantically to and fro in front of the fireplace in her villa, casting a long pink shadow across the red flames as she turned across the carpet so vigorously she might strikes flames behind her own feet and wear a hole in it. Cyrano had grown restless just looking at her and was now standing behind the chair he’d been previously sitting in, arms folded over the back and chin propped pensively on his hands as he watched. All of the Robin family maids, including her Duenna, had been sent away for the evening—it was only the two of them. And the anxiety in the air could have been cut with a knife.

“I mean, I know it’s considered some sort of—of romantic custom for a man to fight for the honor of his lady love, but we are hardly living in the dark ages anymore, are we?” Roxanne was saying on her fourth lap back and forth, wringing her twisted hands demonstratively as she spoke. “And besides, I would hardly call it romantic. No, I would call it barbaric—I mean, at what point does it become less about the lady in question and more about some—some pompous popinjay proving his ego is larger than his opponent’s? It seems ridiculous that the other preciuses allow themselves as prizes to be one in such a monstrous game, and I refuse to be the reason some poor feckless idiot gets skewered like a prize goose or a bunch of innocent bystanders are slashed to ribbons… I know it’s hardly ladylike, but I say it’s hardly manly to act so childishly on a lady’s behalf…”

“What exactly are you proposing?” Cyrano cut in as gently as he could. The poor girl was working herself into a sweat, and she hadn’t even come to her point yet.

Stopping in her tracks, Roxanne turned to face him, fully silhouetted in front of the fire… beautiful and terrible, like a vision of Beatrice in the Inferno. “I propose… no, I demand that you teach me everything you know about swordplay. I do not wish to debut into society a defenseless woman.”

Cyrano was taken aback… and it occurred to him in the same moment that maybe he shouldn’t be. The girl who had been Roxanne—Madeleine, actually, once upon a time—had always been spirited, proud, and independent. But she was also fearful, hiding behind him at the first sight of bullies. Timid and shy at the idea of anything beyond those wide, empty Gascony fields. Now here she was in the city. Now here she was… unafraid. Bold. Determined to make her way with grace and, dare he say it, panache.

Now she was a woman. He’d known that before, he supposed, and not been nearly so surprised. But not until now had his heart fluttered so in his chest at the thought.

But he quickly hid it under a smile—not a mocking one, but an understanding one—as he straightened. “So this is your solution. Not content with the role of Guinevere, you instead intend to fashion yourself as Joan of Arc, a one-woman divine army against these… boastful infidels.” Painting the image in the air before him with his hands, he wandered forward closer to Roxanne. “Does that not seem a bit extreme, though?”

“Well, you’ve said so yourself, there are things one does well to carry to extremes! Besides… you…” She rushed forward and seemed less divine, but more human as she squeezed his hands pleadingly. “You have made yourself a hero. The finest swordsman in your regiment, everyone says so. And even before then… you were the hero of my childhood. My knight of the riverbanks. If I were to ask anyone, it would be you and only you.” She gave his hands another tight squeeze. “Will you?”

The words dried in his mouth for a moment, but he managed to find them again. “How could I possibly refuse?” Cyrano gave her hands a gentle squeeze in return and was relieved to find his own still dry. “My princess turned page of the corn-silk hair.” He said it with a joking air, but there was a tender sincerity lingering underneath.

And Roxanne’s face lit up with a smile of her own. “Oh, thank you!” She leaned up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. “You won’t regret it I promise… oh, I shall need a sword.”

“Here, take mine.” Cyrano unsheathed his rapier and handed it to her before laying his scabbard on a nearby table and reaching for one of the Duenna’s walking sticks from a small rack beside the front door. “This is a bit heavier, but it shall suffice. But let us take this outside—no use in skewering any innocent inanimate bystanders.” The maids might collectively pin him to the wall like a butterfly if they damaged any of the family’s valuables. Opening the door, he bowed her outside before following into the front yard. Fortunately for them, there was a gorgeous full moon out tonight, and there was still enough light from the nearby streetlamps to see in case of sudden clouds. He hung his cloak on the rose trellis and tested the walking stick a bit, weighing it in his hand as he tried a few lunges and basic maneuvers. Not exactly the finest Italian steel, but it would work just fine. This wasn’t exactly going to be the sort of rigorous training the cadets went through—with any luck, the worst Roxanne would have to do was smack away an errant hand.

A little ways behind him, Roxanne was doing the same thing, twirling the rapier over in her hand and swishing the blade back and forth like a machete in the jungle. “It’s much lighter than I thought it would be.”

“It needs to be—it’s a weapon of grace and agility, not necessarily of brute force. Keep that in mind as you wield it. And now…” Cyrano lowered into a crouch, makeshift blade at the ready in front of him.

Roxanne’s eyebrows shot up. “You intend to throw me into the deep end so quickly?”

“A fish learns to swim by the same principle. Advance, mermaid of Orleans, and let us see how much you already know.” Swinging the stick up in a salute then down to his side, he waited for Roxanne to copy his movements before waiting… waiting for her to strike first.

Eventually she did, dramatically lunging forward toward his shoulder, but Cyrano deftly blocked her. Roxanne backed away to try again with the other shoulder, but met the same result. “You’ve learned to thrust, to disengage, and to re-engage well enough, I see… let us see how you deal with this.” Swinging his stick around again, he feinted toward her free arm, then raised up to land a hit on her opposite shoulder. The whole time, Roxanne followed his hand with her eyes, her sword bobbing vaguely in that general direction, but not raising it quick enough to fend him off. As she stumbled back, startled, Cyrano lowered his stick again. “That was called a feint—a maneuver designed to mislead. You anticipated the feint so much that you missed the hit.”

“But how am I to keep up?” she asked, holding her shoulder even though Cyrano had barely tapped her. “You move so fast, I can hardly see.”

“For a start, try not to watch my hand. The hand can deceive, as you’ve just seen… look here instead.” He tapped his chest. “Then let your eyes unfocus a bit—it will allow you to see your opponent as a whole, not just the nearest moving parts. Now… shall we begin again?”

Roxanne nodded, sinking into her best crouch to mirror Cyrano, her body leaned forward instead of back. “Do not try to go easy on me.”

“Oh, perish the thought, my dear.” And this time he moved first, moving toward her shoulder and then to her arm in a reverse of his last maneuver. This time she caught on, catching his stick on her blade and trying to push him back, but he was quick with a riposte, pulling back just far enough to tap the side of her hand. Unfazed, she pressed forward again—a breach of the rules of engagement, but he’d allow it for now—trying in vain to land just the slightest touch on him each time he parried. At one point, Cyrano dropped his stance the slightest bit lower and thrust toward her shoulder. When Roxanne lifted her guard up to parry in turn, he dropped his posture even lower to level his stick just at her collarbone.

Falling back a step, the sword almost dropped from Roxanne’s hand as she stared tremulously down at the hit he’d scored. “Well, I… I did tell you not to go easy on me,” she said with an uneasily flickering smile.

It was all he could do to keep firm, not to dissolve instantly in the face of her fear. He’d regretted the hit as soon as it landed, and yet… “That may be a worse case scenario. God willing, you will never meet a man with such cruel intentions. But make it a lesson as well.” Taking her hand and tightening it around the pommel of her sword, he raised it up again at the level of her chest. “Keep your guard level for as long as you can. Too high or too low, and you may end up with a terrible cut to show for it.” Straightening to his full height again, Cyrano gave what he hoped was an encouraging look. “Shall we try again?”

Nodding resolutely—more to reassure herself than him, he suspected—Roxanne took her stance once more. Cyrano struck first again in a quick lunge, but she caught it flat and spun it away in a bit of a flourish. A grin flashed across her face before she was back to business once more and they fell into their slow, but steady routine of thrust-parry-riposte, thrust-parry-riposte, with an occasional respite of some new maneuver that he would patiently guide her through. Roxanne was sent retreating more often than not, but every so often she would gain some ground. If she got too cocky, however, and started bouncing back and forth like an excited puppy, Cyrano quickly put a stop to that, flicking his stick down to her waist in a light hit. “Your footwork is merely a steady tempo, not meant to ornament the passage. Keep yourself even and upright—small steps, but never so many in a row.” His own form didn’t stick so strictly to those guidelines, heaven knew, but it was very good advice for a beginner. Instantly chastened, Roxanne nodded, and they started again.

This time, Cyrano squared his chest toward her, hoping she would take the bait. As she went for the attack, he stepped to the side and almost caught her square on the inside of one shoulder… but to his amazement, she saw the feint and dropped her arm in that spare split second, blocking his blade within inches of her sleeve. Pushing him back a few steps, their routine continued—thrust-parry-riposte, thrust-parry-riposte, thrust-parry-disengage this time-parry-riposte. Thrust-parry-disengage… Roxanne swung her sword forward in a broad cut, Cyrano waited for the right moment to press his attack… and she stepped to the side and fairly jabbed at his shoulder in a triumphant shove.

“Ha!” She lifted her sword over her head like a gladiator expecting cheers from the Coliseum. “Victory at last! I hope that was… oh—oh, no…”

Cyrano tried to smile even as he muffled the newly bleeding cut under his hand. “Yes… true blades tend to elicit this sort of reaction. It’s very shallow, you needn’t worry—”

“But I am worried! Oh, Cyrano…” Dropping the sword in the grass, Roxanne rushed forward and urged him to sit down next to her. “I ask you to teach me to fight, and I thank you by stabbing you… let me see it, please…”

“It’s barely a scratch, Roxanne, not worth so much fuss… call it well-deserved revenge for my earlier hit, I suppose.” But Cyrano obliged, loosening his doublet just enough to lower the shoulder of the shirt underneath. It was indeed a relatively shallow cut, but long and already deep red, like the nick of a shaving blade. Roxanne immediately pulled out her handkerchief to try and staunch the blood, and Cyrano could only hope and pray she couldn’t feel how warm his skin had suddenly grown there under her touch. He almost made a comment to lighten the mood about her old fits of motherly sternness, where she would scold him for earning cuts and scrapes like these in fights against the big boys… but the words dried in his mouth again. They didn’t feel right. Not now. This… felt different.

“I am so sorry,” Roxanne was saying, alternating between keeping pressure on the cut and wiping away the blood. “You told me to be so careful, and I’ve been such a reckless oaf, and you’ve been so patient… can you forgive me?”

“There is nothing to forgive.” Catching her hand, he lowered the handkerchief away before quickly letting go. “This… unforgivable sin in your mind is merely an accident in mine. And this accident may be taken as a sign of improvement. It was, after all, the first hit you landed upon me.” No, not the first… but he didn’t dare say that out loud.

Her response was a very strained, guilty smile. “I suppose so… I only wish I hadn’t been so rough.” She raised her eyes to meet his, and her smile became a little more genuine. “Thank you… if for nothing else, for being so patient with me. I know I shall never be as good as you.”

“In a single evening? Impossible. But good enough to defend yourself against the common ruffians of Paris and prevent a glorified cockfight on your behalf?” He offered a new smile of his own, something finally approaching those lightning flashes of audacity that often struck him. “Undoubtedly.” Offering Roxanne a hand, he climbed back to his feet and picked his makeshift blade back up. “And while we still have moonlight to spend, we might as well make the most of it… shall we continue?”

“Are you sure?” she inquired, picking up her sword again. “With your shoulder?”

“My shoulder has withstood much crueler and more purposeful assaults—I shall survive.” Sweeping the stick up in a new salute, Cyrano angled his body toward Roxanne’s once more as he sank into his stance. “Lay on, good saint, and show me God’s wrath within your woman’s fury.”

With a salute of her own, erect and self-assured, Roxanne pressed on.

#I spent a cumulative hour and a half looking at Wikipedia pages and YouTube videos to make it sound like I know anything about fencing. XD #I only hope it even halfway paid off...#cyrano de bergerac #my fanfic #Roxane madeleine robin #I also rewatched the Kevin Kline production for the third time... I remain Very Much Not Okay.#And you know as much as Jennifer Garner is the weakest link in the cast (I agree that she plays Roxanne far too broad)#I *adore* the chemistry she and Kline have together.#I can absolutely buy them as childhood friends--there's a sweet and easy affection between them every time they're onstage together.#She's always *touching him*--holding his hand and hugging him and putting her hands on his face all the while blissfully ignorant...#And he always looks so *proud* of her especially when she's explaining how she snuck into the Cadets' camp at Arras to see Christian.#It's both adorable and maddening because it would take *so little* to shove them together and say NOW KISS *and yet...*#Okay I'm done--I'm standing back now. XD

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Celebrating Black Voices in Anime with Funimation

https://ift.tt/2Zl6eQ9

This virtual panel is presented in partnership with Funimation.

The anime industry only continues to grow larger and more mainstream with each passing year. It’s remarkable to see the growth, whether it’s through the wider prevalence and variety of dubbed content or the number of anime-based streaming services. Anime has alway been on the fringe of pop culture’s interests, but part of what makes it such an exciting form of art is that it doesn’t just entertain audiences in unpredictable ways, but it often excels with its inclusion of underrepresented groups. This has helped anime become such a universal product that doesn’t just speak to everyone, but specifically highlights those that may get overlooked elsewhere.

Dani Chambers (The Ancient Magus Bride, Ace Attorney, My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising) and Lee George (Appare-Ranman!, Listeners, Smile Down the Runway) are two talented voice actors from Funimation who have taken some time to discuss and spotlight Blackrepresentation in the anime industry, the connection that they’ve had with anime throughout their lives, and the power that anime has to empower certain communities.

You can watch the full panel below or read on for the Q&A transcript!

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DEN OF GEEK: Lee, Dani, thank you both for your time today to talk about this and to begin with, did you have any kind of relationship with anime before working in it? Were you two fans before you were a part of the industry?

DANI CHAMBERS: Yeah, I grew up on anime, like Sailor Moon, Tenchi Muyo!, you know, all kinds of anime that I feel like everybody was into, but I just loved it. It was always a part of me and growing up, I loved doing theater and acting. So it was like one day I knew that I wanted to do that, but I never knew what it was. Iit’s always been a part of my life and it’s amazing that I can be a part of it like this now.

LEE GEORGE: And likewise, you could always find me on the playground, charging up a Kamehameha hot blast, or trying to instant transmit somewhere. And it was definitely a big part of my social circle growing up, which was nice to find that kind of camaraderie.

Those are definitely the shows that I gravitated to as well when I was growing up. And what do you think the initial allure was about those programs? Was it fulfilling something that wasn’t getting satisfied in other kinds of shows?

DANI CHAMBERS: I think that’s possible, yeah. When I first watched Sailor Moon, for example, I was like, “Dude, they’re cute anime girls who can kick butt with hearts and rainbows and stuff. What?” Growing up it was always seen that that kind of stuff was too girly, but it’s like now they were kicking butt with it. They destroy these weird, scary looking aliens, but with the power of love and friendship. So that was very cool to me and it helped me appreciate friendship–well I always appreciate friendship–but it made me appreciate camaraderie a bit more with my friends that I shared this with. I loved it and it allowed me to just be comfortable in it without having to be feared or judged by other people about it.

LEE GEORGE: Yeah, I think there was, too. There’s a rawness to anime that you don’t find in more traditional cartoons. Characters feel so strongly about something that they’ll explode, or power up, or release tension in some kind of emotionally powerful way. The depth of a lot of what you see in anime is very mirrored in real life, even though it’s a little extreme. So I think that was really cool to have at your fingertips as a young adult.

Absolutely. It’s such an exaggerated form of media, regardless of whether it’s the action, or the comedy, or the friendship. And there is a real sense of unity, not even in the programs themselves, but like the fandom around them. Fandom itself, I think has grown into a very huge thing. But in anime, in particular, there’s a very intense kind of fandom. Have you had much experience with anime fandom, whether it’s been at conventions or on social media?

LEE GEORGE: I’ve never done a convention before. I mean, I’ve gotten to do Funimation’s virtual con that they did in the middle of last year, which was incredible, but I’ve never been to an in-person convention. However, I think a cool thing that’s come out of doing voice acting is I’ve gotten a lot of messages on Instagram and Twitter from young aspiring voice actors and young anime fans, whether they be Black or what have you, just appreciating the art form, which is really cool. And it’s something I’m still not used to, but it’s incredible to see and experience.

DANI CHAMBERS: So I’ve done like two conventions at most, but I’ve had one person come up to me, which really resonated with me. They loved my performance of a character and they didn’t say that it necessarily changed their life, but it kind of like helped evaluate the situation that they were going through at the time. That’s what I want to do. I want to help. Like Lee, I’ve also had messages sent to me from, you know, other POC aspiring voice actors who want to do this. And they’re like, “Thank you for helping and inspiring me to go do this.” And that’s why I wanted to be doing this. Just to see others go after their dreams and actually do the thing that they said they wanted to do is so heartwarming. So seeing that in the community just fills my heart up with so much joy and I’m glad it’s happening.

That’s amazing. I think it’s so important when children see themselves represented in something and it must be so validating to be a part of that and to give those kids that experience, especially when you’ve gone through that same thing yourselves.

LEE GEORGE: Absolutely. Recently I was talking to a friend about this and how there’s a difference between wishing for something and hoping for something. So when you don’t see yourself in the things that you enjoy and doing them later in life, it feels more like a wish than a hope. You hope for attainable things, but you wish for, you know, the ability to fly or to do a Kamehameha one day. So being a part of that transformation of turning voice acting as a wish into a hope just brings a smile to my face all the time.

I think anime has the ability to tell some very creative stories that couldn’t be done anywhere else, but it also examines such a wide spectrum of characters that aren’t necessarily human, or can even feel beyond race at times. Has that made a difference at all when it comes to representation and casting or the variety of characters that you’re able to play in anime versus other mediums?

LEE GEORGE: Yes, that’s definitely true that anime is full of the wildest creations. I don’t know that I’ve played many non-human characters, but we’re talking about a medium where they don’t necessarily have our same racial context that we kind of place on ourselves and the world around us. So being able to voice a character who is fair-skinned, but has naturally blue hair and can summon a soul sword feels as different as voicing a dragon creature. It’s easier to detach my self-identity as a Black man to who this character is even though I’m the one voicing it.

DANI CHAMBERS: Lee pretty much took the words right out of my mouth. I come from a theater background where you kind of have to fit the mold of what the play calls for. So jumping from where my options are limited to a medium where I can pretty much be anything was a huge realization. I can be a depressed anime girl with red hair and magic powers. That’s amazing. It was truly like a shock jumping into this industry, but it made me aware that I shouldn’t have to be limited in this industry. It was just a very important wake up call for me.

It’s interesting to see how anime has also gained such a presence in the rap and hip hop community. Why do you think there’s been that response or that synergy between those particular markets?

LEE GEORGE: It’s easy to reduce an anime plot into something that mirrors the Black experience. My Hero Academia for example, is about an unpowered youth in a world, surrounded by people with powers and privileges. Midoriya’s perception in that world is that he wishes for the opportunity and finally gets the chance to show that he deserves that same respect and ability. And that he can do great things with that kind of power. So I think that since rap is all about expression and breaking through molds that we or the world put ourselves into. They kind of go hand-in-hand, in a way.

Anime For Beginners: Best Genres and Series to Watch

By Daniel Kurland

How to Watch Anime Online: The Best Legal Anime Streaming Options

By Daniel Kurland

DANI CHAMBERS: Yeah, I definitely agree with that. It breaks the mold of what people expect us to be in. Everybody has their own box of what they think people should be looking like or sounding like. Anime kind of broke that and just went in a way where it doesn’t have to follow what the world deems and it can be whatever it wants. Being in this culture kind of opened their eyes and realized that, “Oh my God, these stories are like ours!” And they are stories that can help us change, not only ourselves, but our communities around us. And I think that helps inspire other people to make change, too.

The people who are influenced by it in that culture and have influence over their communities can help spread that same message of what the anime was saying. It helps people to change their behaviors and negative mindsets, which is helpful to all cultures and communities. When there are influential people who take up a stand like that and explain why they think that it’s cool then it can read to really positive change.

There have also been changes going on in the voice acting industry over the past year to kind of show effort towards better representation being reflected. There was the recasting of roles in Big Mouth and Central Park. Do you think actions like that are helping move the industry in a more positive direction and getting things in what’s perhaps a better place?

DANI CHAMBERS: For me, with people stepping down from those roles, I personally don’t think they really needed to do that. I think that what we’re trying to get at is the opportunity to audition and to be a part of it, not just a pity cast because we need this person. We don’t want to get cast just because we’re the only POC people available for this role. We want every opportunity to audition for whatever role there is. Not just because we fit this mold of what they want. Obviously there’s a difference with things like historical pieces that require it. But when it comes to anything that’s fantasy it should go beyond being limited to play just the minority characters. We should have access to everything just like how everybody else does. So it’s a matter of opportunity rather than requirement, if that makes sense.

LEE GEORGE: I 100% agree with that. However, to also play devil’s advocate because I think it’s worth it with this discussion, I also come from a theater background and as an actor you’re expected to play outside of yourself. That’s a main argument for why I shouldn’t have to be confined to my own racial identity when it comes to acting in any form or medium. I think in certain arenas, as they are right now, the majority have a large claim on a lot of opportunities as Dani was pointing out, and opportunities are a thing that we want.

If the argument is that you should be able to act outside of yourself so that you can play these roles that are written as people of color, then what’s happening is that there’s a disregard that a marginalized group is saying that we’re having a hard time even playing ourselves in these roles. Some people are worried about expanding beyond their range and we’re just trying to get the representation that’s written for us in certain media. So, absolutely, it’s all about opportunity and we have to reach a point where there is enough intake of people of color roles so it even moves beyond opportunity and it’s not about racial casting or stereotyping when it comes to those roles.

Dani, I suppose the inverse of that can be seen with how you voice Ironheart in Marvel Avenger Academy. It must be exciting to see these new versions of these iconic characters happening now that would have seemed impossible not that long ago.

DANI CHAMBERS: Yeah, it’s really cool. When I got that audition I was excited, but then when I booked it I just freaked out. It’s an incredible opportunity for something like that where it’s a Black superhero who is also female. You want to cast somebody–a Black female–for that role because of representation, but to have the opportunity to do that was amazing. It was just a few lines for a mobile game, but it’s still had a huge impact on me. A lot of people have been like, “Oh my God, I loved your Ironheart in Marvel Avenger Academy. You inspired me. I wanted to go voice anything too.” That’s so important to help people realize that they can voice anybody that they want. It was really a dream come true.

Amazing. Both of you have played very diverse characters that have gone all over the spectrum. But are there any kinds of roles that you haven’t gotten to tackle yet that you’d like to be able to explore at some point?

LEE GEORGE: I’d love to play someone that’s just really eccentric and out there. I have the tonal variety of a robot, so it’s often sullen characters and maybe emotionally unavailable individuals, which I totally understand. But I’d love a chance to just really get weird. I don’t know why. The actor in me is like, “Oh that’d be fun. That’d be really cool.”

DANI CHAMBERS: I think for me it’s kind of the opposite. I play a lot of eccentric characters, like little girls or the childhood best friend who’s just always happy. Like my first role was a very monotone, very depressed character. So that was fun, but I think I’d want to try maybe like a hero or somebody who is very committed to their mission. A very mission-centered person who wants to accomplish whatever they need to, but then gets betrayed in the end and just kind of Hulks out. I’d love to do that.

With all of this talk on representation, are there any anime series that have made you feel especially seen or a program that excels in that area?

DANI CHAMBERS: Well I’m not in it, but Lee is. Appare-Ranman! Is a good one. It has a whole cast of fun characters with different accents and there’s a lot of diversity, even with the voice actors. It’s so good and it’s just a lot of fun to watch. It’s a big race and you just get to enjoy the characters. They all have culture-specific problems and it’s so interesting how everything collides together, yet they can still work together through the chaos.

LEE GEORGE: That’s too sweet. Well I’ll also say to look out for Horimiya, which is new and looks incredible. The cast is just all heavy hitters and very diverse. I’ve been told that it’s a hidden rom-com in the making. So if that’s your cup of tea then definitely check out Horimiya.

Great picks, and Dani, what you said about Appare-Ranman! and its dubbing is so true. Other series like JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure will also experiment with regional dialects in dubs and I think it allows the dubs to get even better than the original version in some cases. It’s fun to see that come together.

DANI CHAMBERS: It’s great. Actually, Appare-Ranman! and Horimiya are both directed by Caitlin Glass and she cares a lot about casting diversity and making sure that everyone gets an opportunity. She’s a phenomenal director and it’s great that she’s a big part of this. I’m grateful to her so much.

LEE GEORGE: Likewise.

The post Celebrating Black Voices in Anime with Funimation appeared first on Den of Geek.

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fanpom-imagines · 5 years

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Imagine telling Jon about your people’s past and why they’re known as dragon slayers before the Battle of Winterfell. (Part 3)

Masterlist [Part 1] [Part 2] (Part 3) [Part 4]

Fandom: Game of Thrones

Words: 2372

Warnings: SPOILERS FOR SEASON 8!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gifs aren’t mine.

If you want to be tagged in my taglist send me a message

(Female Reader)

I heard a knock coming from the door to the room I had been given. Thinking it was the Queen I sat up and stood tall, putting the book I had been reading down, but I hear one of my guards, Robert Vadin announcing Jon Snow’s arrival. I sighed in relief at not having to face her and sat back down in my seat and told the guard that Jon could enter. As I see the door open I see Robert give a cold glare to Jon while he walks in to enter, and his gaze did not leave the Northerner till he closed the door behind him.

We looked at each other for a moment before Jon started off, “He doesn’t seem to like me much, does he?”

“Ser Vadin is like that. He, just like you Northerners, do not take so kindly to outsiders, but if you show to him you can be trusted and that your heart is in the right place he may not glare at you so much.” A slight smile came to my lips as my words earned a slight huff of laughter from him.

“Why do you call us Northerners? Aren’t your people northerners as well?” Jon asked curiously. I motioned for him to sit down upon the seat in front of the one I was sitting on which he gladly accepted.

“This may take a while to explain,” I told Jon in a warning like tone.

“Well, the White Walkers may be arriving shortly at our doorsteps so might as well tell me a story because it may be our last day,” he told me as he leaned slightly backward in his seat to get comfortable as his eyes glowed in wonder at what I had to day.

As I was not sure where to start with my explanation; so I started at the beginning.“It is true that just like most Northerners my people were also descendants of the First Men and we lived in the North along with your folk in the northeast part of the North before the time of the Andals and Aegon the Conqueror. We had sailed the seas up far north even past Skagos, which is where it is rumored that they have unicorns and the island that is closest to the one nearest to where we were exiled, as you know.

“When the Andals came they never came up north because the First Men and the Children of the Forest had kept them from there and as you know that is the reason for why there are still weirwood trees in the North. Just like you my people stick to the beliefs of the Old Gods rather than adapting the Gods of Old Valyria that Aegon the Conqueror and his people brought over.”

“How did your quarrels with the Targaryens came to be? How did your people even slay dragons?” Jon asked curiously and I could see his eyes becoming more clouded with curiosity as I went on.

“Well there was a family from Old Valyria before Aegon’s time who had also been exiled from their home and needed a place to stay and they had ended up on our shores. My people ruled the lands above Karhold and around the Bay of Seals reaching all the way up to the East Watch. These people who ended up on our shores were of two houses, or what was equivalent to a house in Old Valyria, called Suvion, which in High Valyrian means ice, and Perzys, which means fire. Our people welcomed them as we took pity upon them and then later on our people married into each other’s bloodlines, which is why I know Valyrian as well. So then during the rule of Ronnen the V of House Daishar, which as you know is my house, had heard a rumor of ice dragons up north past the Wall. So in search of these mighty beasts he went. He had sailed off leaving his wife, Vaehra Suvion, and three children at home with the promise of returning with a dragon’s scale, and though Vaehra believed in dragons since Old Valyria at the time was still thriving with dragons; yet she did not believe that a dragon such as the ones in the tales are true. She begged him not to go, but the Daishar are known to be stubborn and he ended up going nonetheless and left her to rule over the land till he returned. So then after a year around the moments of where not just Vaehra, but also the people started to lose hope in the return on their lord yet that’s when they heard the large booming sounds coming from the skies and the Valyrian’s knew those sounds all too well. There were four young dragons all white with blue eyes. They were the sizes of hound dogs and Ronnen V had walked off his boat with the fifth dragon on his shoulder. Yet, sadly only one ship out of the seven that had sailed off had returned. Some say the gains of the battle against the Ice Dragon outweigh the losses others on the other hand disagree.

“When Ronnen V returned with his dragons he gave one to each of his children, Brann, Seiera, Laegor, and gave one to his wife and the one that laid atop his shoulder was his own, and from then on my people had dragons. Then during the reign of Aegon the Conqueror where our people revolted against them. We had many battles with the Targaryen’s lasting till the The Dance of Dragons, but they were the rulers of a vast kingdom and had endless supply as well as their dragons were larger and bred for battle while ours were raised to be more gentle even though the nature of ice dragons are more ferocious than those of the Targaryens were s they have never had contact with humans, well that we know of, till my people came across them, while the dragons from Valyria have been living amongst and bred by those people for centuries.”

“So they had banished your people after killing your dragons?”

“They did not only kill our dragons they also killed many of our people, about two-thirds, and exiled us to the island a little ways from Skagos and past teh Bay of Seals. When we had gotten there it was only wilderness and we had to start from the beginning, and the ones who got our lands were the other houses of the North, like the Karstarks and such, who were too scared to fight the dragons which is understandable because there seems to be nothing more terrifying than dragons it seems.”

“You Grace I’ve seen the dragons Daenerys has and I’ve been across the Wall to what we know as the End of the World and a White Walker will always cause more fear in me than a dragon.” Jon said looking solemnly out the window. The poor man has probably been through more than most would have in five life times.

“I cannot argue with that. I still have not caught a glimpse of them yet. I think they’re the only things I looked forward to when coming here.” I said giving him a reassuring smile.

After a long moment of silence I started to contemplate why I he was so curious about my people, but it does make sense we are not well known to the people on the mainland and probably are only remembered in song and by books in the Citadel and Winterfell, and tomorrow may be our last day.

“The dragons are a magnificent sight,” Jon sighed out in remembrance.

I tilted my head at him curiously, “Have you ridden on one?” Jon replied as he gave me a Humble nod in reply. My eyes widened in astonishment, “What? You must tell me how it was like.”

“Yes, I have and it was quite exhilarating yet fascinating at the same time” he once again smiled at the memory, but it turned into a frown as he seemed to zone out.

“What is bothering you, Your Grace?” I asked him, using his kingly title, which had definitely got his attention and caught him off guard as his head whipped to me.

“What do you mean?” Jon asked perplexed. Surprisingly, he didn’t correct me when I called him that yet while I traveled with him he had insisted on me calling him ‘Lord Jon’. What has changed?

“Something seems to be on your mind that is bothering you. What is it?”

Jon let out a sigh, “It is true that something has been on my mind as of late, yet I cannot tell you. I am sorry, Your Grace.”

“No need to apologize, I understand, but you may want to get it off your chest before the White Walkers storm through the gates because it may be your last chance. Maybe not to me, but I’m pretty sure you have many people here who are willing to listen.”

Jon didn’t reply and just looked thoughtfully at his hands.

“Why do you refer to me as a king? I have bent the knee to Daenerys yet you still refer to me as King, why is that?” Jon asked as he swerved the direction of the conversation..

“Why do you refer to me as Your Grace if you already see Daenerys as your queen?” I asked him, but yet I still answered him nonetheless with a sigh, “I refer to you as a king because even though you may not have the name and you may be a bastard I see you as a king, even though I have only known you for about a week, I see you as a man who is worthy to be a king maybe not by name or by blood, but by heart and soul.”

At my reply Jon stared at me wide eyed, but then nodded as he contemplated my words.

“But it’s also to see the irritated look on the Queen’s face.”

That got Jon to let out a bubble of laughter.

The two of us sat in silence for a couple of more moments before Jon stood up ready to take his leave.

“I shall take my leave now, Your Grace,” Jon said as he bowed to me and I did so inreturn.

“Where to, or whom to?” I asked curiously.

“To get something off my chest,” He smiled at me sadly and made his way out the door.

I watched him leave and almost burst out laughing at his awkwardness as he tried to avoid the eyes of Ser Vadin when he passed by said man, but it is understandable as Robert Vadin was a large man who stood at a height of six feet and six inches with bright red hair and dark brown eyes that just seem to stare through your eyes and straight into your soul. Though a terrifying man, Robert was only cold and terrifying to ones who he does not know of or understand. Poor man has been through a lot through his life yet still remains one of my closest allies and friends besides the man who I had deemed as my Hand, Robin Darath, who has not just served my House loyally, but has also been a close friend to my late father whom had passed away from an unknown illness leaving me by myself to rule since my mother had passed away in my early years of childhood leaving me to be the last of the Daishar bloodline.

Robin Darath came in with a wine bottle just as my mind started to slip into deeper thoughts.

“Your Grace this may be our last day here on this earth and I do not think anyone should spend it alone.” Robin said as he placed down the two goblets on the table next to my seat. He filled them up to the brim and handed one to me and then sat down.

“By the powers of Ice and Fire,” Robin and I said in unison. I chugged down my wine as did Robin and then proceeded to refill our goblets once more. It was tradition for my people to chug down the first filled glass or goblet that they’re offered as to not seem rude and to show that they appreciate the hospitality and that they trust the honesty of the alcohol giver in drinking it as fast as possible instead of suspiciously staring and contemplating if it is poisoned or not.

I looked out upon the night sky and without even thinking voiced my thoughts, “Summer brings fire and winter brings ice, the time of winter is upon us, and it seems like this time it will stay.”

“Wise words, Your Grace.” Robin nodded to me as he poured me another glass.

After taking another drink I turned to him once more, “You know after my father passed you have been the only person I could call family, and I appreciate that Lord Darath.”

“No need to thank me (Y/N), I see you as a niece and sometimes as if you were the daughter I never had so you’ve already given me your thanks by allowing me to be your Hand.” He stated simply after once again taking another large gulp.

I just smiled slightly, but it quickly faded as I heard shouts coming from outside.

“Well it seems the time has come,” I said as both him and I stood up. I took up my sword and fastened its sheath around my waist.

“So it would seem,” Robin said as the two of us made our way through the halls with Ser Vadin in tow.

“Ser Vadin, gather our men and make sure everyone is at their stations.” I commanded as Robert went off to find them.

“Are you sure you are ready to fight, Your Grace, we may die?” Robin said as he looked down on me and I looked out towards the dark night to see for the first time in my life, the White Walkers.

“At least I will not die alone, but rather side by side. Together.”

Talglist:

@bee-wrecker @boogiebunnies @precious-bands-love @supernaturaltrashy @immortal-imagination @mikariell95 @saoirsewhittle @jinx-is-fire

#jon snow x reader #jon snow #got #got x reader #got imagine #game of thrones #game of thrones imagine #game of thrones x reader #sansa stark #sansa stark x reader #sansa stark imagine #daenerys targaryen #daenerys targaryen x reader #daenerys targaryen imagine

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strangeocquestions · 5 years

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Hi, I hope you dont mind me asking this. How popular is your webcomic? I want to start one myself but Im worried it wont gain any traction and I'll lose motivation :(

I currently have a few hundred active/mostly active readers, 200-ish of which actively follow the webcomic’s blogs and an estimated 100 or so more who read it without following. I only know of these readers’ existence because I know there are several dozens of people who I, friends of mine or followers of mine shared the comic with and who read it actively though they don’t have Tumblr accounts.

I don’t get much fanart or fanworks yet and new creators shouldn’t expect much of that either, fanbases are a difficult thing to build. Then again, my comic is only in Chapter 1 so there’s not much for fans to work with anyway.

I’ve been hosting my webcomic for about a year, though only around 6 or so months ago did I actually start regularly posting new pages. I haven’t advertised it outside of Tumblr, a little bit on Discord and at school because I’m waiting to move the webcomic to its own website rather than just keep it on Tumblr.

You should keep in mind that I had several big advantages right off the bat, those being having big groups of friends who got invested in my webcomic and shared it with other people, running several blogs with large followings that helped me boost the comic and running a very active Discord server where sometimes I’ll find people interested in webcomics. Without these things it would have been significantly harder for my project to get any traction.

—

Your comic isn’t going to get any traction on its own unless you advertise it to hell and back. Create popular content that will help your accounts grow so that you will have a larger viewer base seeing your promos, get into groupchats, talk about it on several different social medias, etc. It’s frankly the only way to go about it.

More detailed tips to follow:

-Create memes for big fandoms. From my experience, memes get you more followers than fanart ever will. My most popular fanart only has 2k notes, meanwhile my most popular fandom meme has 100k notes (decapitated Dumbledore, anyone remember that? haha…………… 😔👊). It’s pretty sad but it’s a reality we artists face.

-Create art memes! That way you can share your art WHILE being funny. I must say though… These are always a hit or miss. One post you may get 10 notes and another you may get thousands. My biggest hit of this genre was this (at 40k notes):

-TAG THE SHIT OUT OF YOUR POSTS PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD IT’S THE ONLY WAY PEOPLE WILL SEE YOUR STUFF PLEASE SPAM THOSE TAGS PLEASE PLEASE PLEA

-Find forums, groupchats, communities, etc where it would be relevant to share your projects at. Reddit, Deviantart and Discord are quite useful.

-Promote your content by doing exchanges. For example, draw something for every new follower you get or something along those lines.

-Join other artists’ contests and competitions. Maybe even an organization’s contest. The prize doesn’t really matter for the discussion here, but winning will help you get exposure. I am currently participating in a videogame development tournament in my country. If I win, not only will I get a full scholarship, I’ll give my skills and projects exposure.

-You can also just create your own contests and competitions, though you’ll be the one giving away prizes then. Running a contest will definitely get you several followers though, so there’s that.

-If any of your friends shows interest in your project, ask them if they could share it with other people. Don’t put too much pressure on them, like, that’s a shitty thing to do, but asking doesn’t harm anyone.

-Additionally, get out there, meet new people. You never know when you’ll come cross someone who may be interested in helping you spread your project around.

-Don’t stress out. No matter how much time you spend promoting your creation, it’s still going to take ages to build a viewer base.

—

BY THE WAY (this is in this blog’s FAQ but I doubt anyone reads that anyway) this blog is open to promote other creators’content. Just DM me, send me a link, I’ll check it out and see if it’s appropriate and if everything’s fine I’ll post about it here. It will probably be a small boost but it’s a boost nevertheless. I am more than happy to help any creator in need.

#long post

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ffwriteradvisor · 4 years

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Rewriting Old Stories

Rewrites are harder than people give them credit for. You can’t just go back and correct the grammatical errors and misspellings and call it a ‘rewrite’ - at best, it’s a second-draft.

Speaking as someone who’s tried to rewrite my most popular fic on three to four separate occasions to varying degrees of failure (I’m working on a fifth now with higher hopes), a rewrite is a lot more involved than that.

The thing to remember when you start a rewrite is that you’re simultaneously working with a story you’re more than likely both embarrassed about and nostalgic for on some level. Yes, it might be showing its age or your inexperience at the time of writing it, but you can also remember how fun it was to write and share it back in the day. Part of you knows you can do better now - if not on a creative level, a technical one at least - but another part wants to leave it as is, either because you want to move onto new things or because you don’t know if you can ‘fix’ it and don’t want to risk messing around on your own ‘sacred ground’.

So that’s the first thing that you need to ask yourself before setting out on a Rewrite - do you actually want to rewrite this story?

If the answer to that question is ‘yes’, then keep reading.

There are a couple different ways to approach the Rewrite.

1) ‘Oh god, burn it and pull something salvageable out of the wreckage’ is probably the wrong way to do it. That’s not to say you can’t pull good ideas from your earlier fics and use them somewhere else, but you should go into it with an open mind rather than treating your old story as an enemy to be defeated and looted of their valuables.

2) A better way to approach it is as a tune-up. This can run from ignoring the bulk of the content and focusing on tightening up the gears (though this is pretty much a second-draft rather than a proper rewrite unless there’s a lot of tightening up to do) to dismantling the whole thing so you can eliminate the plot holes, improve the character arcs and interactions, and get rid of anything that just didn’t work the first time around.

Or if you’re feeling particularly ambitious...

3) You can approach it as an opportunity to make your story a ‘wider universe’. This is a combination of points 1 and 2 - not only are you dismantling the original, you’re throwing in a lot of loose parts from other stories you’ve abandoned along the way, meaning that the end product is going to be even bigger and more complicated than anything would be on its lonesome.

I’ve been working with option 3 recently, trying to construct a gestalt story out of my large collection of One Piece OCs and the half-dozen started and abandoned fic ideas I’ve had for that fandom over the years. I can speak from my personal experience that this is very difficult. You’re snipping and twisting plot threads together and trying to find natural feeling connection points between what started as completely unrelated projects.

Once you settle on how extensive you intend for this project to be, then you can move onto the next set of questions.

First - what do you want from this story?

Do you want to fix the problems you didn’t see occurring as the result of your OCs butterflying away the canon plot the first time around? Do you want to make an AU of your original story that goes in a different story direction at Chapter 10 compared to where you went the first time around? Do you want to aim for a different vibe entirely than what ended up on the page the first time around?

You can answer yes to any or all of those questions. You can even ask completely different ones. All that matters is that you figure out what you’re aiming for here.

Second - are you ready to re-read it?

Because you’re going to have to. Maybe even multiple times, so get ready to smother your initial cringe reaction to the writing of 2013!you. It might be ‘sacred ground’ on some level, but you are also crawling into the Wayback Machine just for the explicit purpose of looking at a period in your life you moved past for a reason.

There's going to be weird figures of speech, bad grammar that even your initial proof-reading attempts might have missed, questionable takes, and a lot of things that got knocked out of your system as you gained more experience as both a writer, fandom participant, and all around person. Skip over the superficial stuff for now - you will have to go back later and see if there's any more specific stuff that you can and should work with - and just stick with the meat and bones of what happened in the story.

Third - Take notes. For the love of god, take notes.

Make sure those notes are extensive - they should cover every change you made to the canon, every major (and most of the minor) plot points involved in your story, every gimmick that showed up (ghosts, dramatic reveals, surprise developments), and then some. Anything that sticks out to you as something even mildly important, you should make note of.

This will save you the trouble of constantly re-reading the original after your first few goes through.

Then, take those notes and boil them down. Was this thing that was brought up a thread that wove into the greater tapestry of the story or was 2013!you throwing shit at the wall just to see if it would stick, only to forget all about it by the time the next chapter rolled around? Does that other choice work with what you know of the universe now and, if not, do you want to change the thing to work with the setting, the setting to work with the thing, or just do away with the thing altogether? Do these relatively small things that were thrown out at random have enough common ground for you to string them together into an overarching theme?

Fourth - start plotting.

A lot of the problems I’ve run into writing fic is a lack of forward thinking. I didn’t plan ahead, I didn’t try to analyze the direction of the plot was developing in, I didn’t go into the project with any goals or expectations...

Those are mistakes you should try to avoid making.

Plotting ahead can help a lot with avoiding these and can help you develop new ideas - a character who goes through a series of dramatic events in a short period of time is prime for an angst episode that you might not have written in the first time around, or the gradual revelation of things a character shouldn’t rightly have knowledge of might make a big reveal about them being an outside context problem for the setting a lot more understandable - after all, what’s the point of an answer to a question nobody was asking?

Try to make a rough timeline of events. This doesn’t have to line up with a canon-timeline, but it can be helpful if your story intersects with canon events or characters at any point.

Even stuff that you don’t have a hard date or place in the plot for can be useful here - just keep it floating until you find a place where it slots in well between what the characters need to be capable of and where the rest of the plot is tonally.

You don’t have to adhere strictly to the first plotline you come up with - writing is as much an art of discovery as it is planning - but it’s always good to have on to start with.

My best three pieces of advice for doing a rewrite?

1) Take your time. A lot of the problems with your first story, besides inexperience, can be rooted with being in a rush. A rush to keep the updates coming, a rush to get to 'the good stuff', a rush to fit in writing with the rest of your life schedule. This time, give everything time. Time to research, time to bounce ideas off of friends, time to think about the implications of what a character doing XYZ would actually mean, time to check over your work for any holes you didn't catch while writing it. You're working with fanfiction, a land where deadlines almost never exist unless you set them yourself. Take advantage of that. 2) Never make it a straight retread 'but edgier/meme-ier/whatever-ier this time'. If you want to shift the genre, you have to put effort into changing the nature of the story in a way that feel natural to it. Your audience 'knows' the characters by now and will be thrown off by a new version that barely resembles the old that's somehow still running through the same story you told before. 3) Give your old audience something new to chew on.

This ties back into the second point a bit, but seriously; make sure that something new happens in the story. Had a lull period in your first go because there was a similar time-gap in the original series? Fill it with something - a new enemy, a casual event to unwind and connect your characters better, even a 'what's happening elsewhere' snippet. Had a character with a vague backstory? See if there's a 'natural' place to slot them in with the canon - depending on what fandom you're working with, that could run anywhere from specific locations and scenarios to just fitting with a larger running theme in other character's backstories.

You don't have to make a masterpiece, but there are going to be blank spaces in the canvas of your original telling where there's room to make more. A new audience might not realize there was nothing there the first time around, but your old audience will see the new content and appreciate it. You don't have to do anything big - sometimes changing too much will break the spirit of it being a 'rewrite' entirely - but try to keep it fresh, even if that's just filling in holes that nobody noticed in your original go. Anyway, good luck with your writing, regardless of if that writing is a rewrite or more original stuff.

#rewrites #writing #plotting #fanfic #fanfiction #this is a partial repost from a writing forum I hang out on a lot so there's a small chance that someone might recognize it #and if you do you should know that this was one of the essays that encouraged me to make this blog in the first place

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rufeepeach · 7 years

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Popular Fic

Tagged by @thescholarlystrumpet and @rowofstars!

I’m only doing fics where I’m the sole author because this gets wildly distorted with other authors involved!

What are your five most popular works by kudos? (in descending order)

1) Inheritance - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 515

Five years after leaving town to see the world, a death in the family forces Belle French back to Storybrooke to deal with the estate. Never intending to stay very long, she nevertheless soon finds herself drawn back into old friendships, old dreams, and an old love that’s not as finished as once she had hoped. Belle might be back in her hometown, but after five years away from the wreckage she left behind, is it possible to ever really come home?

I mean, I’d hope this’d be my most popular work - it took a year to write and is the length of a long novel! It’s also easily my most complete and coherent longfic, since it was meticulously planned, written, and edited as a whole before a single chapter got posted. I guess more chapters also just meant more chances for people to find it?

2) If I Didn't Know Better (but damn it, I do) - MCU, Darcy/Loki - Kudos: 503

In which Loki's illusions seem to malfunction when a particular supposedly-powerless brunette happens by, and Darcy is more than willing to use her taser.

I have no idea. Someone prompted TaserTricks and back in the days at the height of Hiddleston-mania this seemed like a good idea. I think MCU is such a big fandom that any moderately-readable work - especially with an Explicit rating - will have a larger audience than for something a little smaller like Rumbelle. I’m pretty pleased with the characterisation though, especially since my interest in the MCU - even back then, before I stopped caring entirely - was fairweather at best.

3) A Hundred Years or More - Maleficent - Kudos: 454

"I promise, no harm shall come to you whilst I live" - Maleficent never kisses Aurora, believing she has already done more harm than good, and instead resigns herself to watching over the sleeping princess for the rest of her days.

I made myself cry with this one. Probably my favourite thing I’ve ever written, it’s everything I hope to someday accomplish with an original work, tracking Maleficent’s eighty-four years watching over a comatose, unageing Aurora, as various characters grow old and die, and the world moves on, and Maleficent finds some peace. It’s very soft and very sad and I love it so much!

4) Harmless - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 333

Belle arrives, bruised and bleeding, on the doorstep of a lame spinner and his son. On the run from the war and its causes, her short stopover becomes something else entirely.

One of my earliest fics for Rumbelle fandom, although it took me years to complete in the end. This one was the first ever winner for best woobie!rumple in 2013′s TEAs! I wish now that I hadn’t rushed the ending so much, but by that point it was three years old and I needed it to be finished. This one’s probably the one I’d most like to go back and heavily edit or remix someday. Still, I reread it recently and it’s not half bad!

5) Stranger - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 289

Belle remembers everything about her old life, and finally gains freedom from her asylum prison. But Rumpelstiltskin is nowhere to be found: in his place is an oblivious pawnbroker who is as cursed as everyone else in Storybrooke.

A long-time favourite of mine among my Rumbelle fics, this one’s a trooper since it received only moderate attention on Tumblr when I posted it, but it seems to have steadily climbed the ranks on AO3? I’m glad this odd little fic is getting some love now :)

What are your five least popular works by kudos? (in ascending order)

(Okay so this is weird, because my AO3 is so unrepresentative of when I posted things? So for these I’m picking and choosing because a lot of my AO3 lowest page is just my old imported Castle, Community, and Glee fics and I’d rather not... drag those up... so I’m only counting fics posted after I left LJ. Also I’m not including bits of series that just got dumped on there when I realised I’d forgotten to cross-post years after the fact. Come at me.)

1) In Trouble - OUAT, Swanfire - Kudos: 18

Emma Swan knows Neal is trouble from the moment she meets him, but he’s also everything she’s been looking for.

This one is surprising because it got such a good reception on Tumblr when I posted it, so I guess this is a result of importing it to AO3 super late, and the lack of SF-shippers? Idk bro. I like this one a lot?

2) Falling In The Space Between - Dragon Age: Inquisition, Hawke/Varric - Kudos: 20

Varric visits Hawke in Skyhold the night after Adamant, and they discuss heroes, stories, and how the world suddenly got so much bigger and more difficult since Kirkwall.

I had feelings while playing DA:I. Sue me. This one’s a short, introspective character piece, and it’s hella sad.

3) Life in Black and White - OUAT, Snowing - Kudos: 21

Snow White was raised to hold onto goodness at all times, no matter the costs. No matter the damage she leaves in her wake.

Snow White character assassination piece, mostly focusing on how black and white morality, and her privileging of her own family above all else, has led to massive destruction in the name of ‘goodness’. I can totally see why no one read this, but again it got a better reception on Tumblr?

4) Seven Beaches - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 23

Seven times Belle and Rumpelstiltskin visited the beach.

Ah, 2012. Back before it was drilled into me that songfic is always wrong and bad. On the other hand this is kinda pretty? On the third hand I was eighteen and it shows, because dear God, varying your sentence length is always right and good. Hundreds of short sentences glued together does not equal poetry. I seem to remember rave reviews at the time but then we had like ten authors back then so who knows.

5) Disassociation - OUAT, Rumbelle - Kudos: 24

The man on the floor is not Belle’s husband.

Another short fic solely written because I had feelings, set immediately after the Town Line scene at the end of 4A. It’s dark, miserable, and very much written in that post-episode rush before things settle. Again, I get why no one would seek this out now.

No idea who’s done this yet, but I’ll tag @mariequitecontrarie, @amuseoffyre, @toseehowthestoryends, @ladybookwormwithteeth, and @worryinglyinnocent

#popular fic meme

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crushing83 · 7 years

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Soooo... @saawek sort of tagged me (I saw my name in the post because I was flipping through my newsfeed at just the right time, but the link didn't work or show up in my activity, so I'm assuming I can do this...), and now I'm listing my works-in-progress. I might tag a few people at the bottom because I, too, am a curious kitten and I love hearing about what other people have on the go.

Writing:

Fanfic side:

Tolkien/Fast & Furious >> Thranduil/Owen Shaw >> Bullets and Blades 10... I actually cracked it open this weekend and started picking at what I'd written last. (Oh, and to anyone who started following me after I unintentionally hiatus-ed this one? Yes, you read that pairing right. Thranduil and Owen Shaw. Yep, yep.)

Tolkien >> Thranduil/Bard >> Spins and Pirouettes 4 was started a long time ago and then it started to get sad and I didn't like that so I focused on B&B instead. I'll eventually get back to it. There were a lot of mistakes in it---writing mistakes---and having a beta point out things in another story made me realise what I was doing in this one, and it's been hard to go back. I'll get there, eventually. Yes.

SPN >> mostly gen >> The Winchester Gospel, where a tricksy archangel (who lives, obviously) makes sure his dad's work is discovered as ancient scrolls. Kind of hops all over my timeline right now, because I'm writing it in bits and pieces and not at all chronologically. Follows some faves, follows descendants of faves. Haven't started posting it yet. >> Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester/Female Reader >> An untitled story that was supposed to be for @mrswhozeewhatsis' April Fools challenge, but got away from me and now I don't know how to end it. The reader's ace!spec, there's some non-sexual kink stuff, Dean and Sam both have squishy feelings for the reader/character (because it's my fantasy), they have a great big hunt in the middle of a werewolf den (it's not what you think)… oh, and Ketch is a scary douche (predictable). >> Team Free Love-ish/Female Reader >> Forging a Bond. There are two chapters left. I will get there. I promise. They just need editing. >> Gabriel/Sam Winchester >> Six Months, one of my vape shop AU fics. I've been chipping away at the next chapter recently. >> Gabriel/Sam Winchester >> An untitled AU story about ace!spec Sam, trying to figure out a way to tell his brother he's ace (or demi). This one's been super hard to write. But, I'm pushing through it. >> Gabriel/Sam Winchester, Dean/Castiel (eventually) >> A "what if Josie was never possessed and Henry never went to the future" fic. I have one chapter written, and it's basically turning into a husband!spy vs wife!spy sort of showdown between Mary and John with the boys in the middle.

SPN/Beyond Belief (TAH) >> Frank Doyle/Sadie Doyle, slight Gabriel/Sam Winchester >> A sequel to When God Comes to Call..., because Gabriel needs to grow up and face the flannel-wearing duo. And because I want Frank and Sadie to meet 'em, too. I'm just... stuck, right now.

SPN/Criminal Minds >> Gabriel/Spencer Reid, maybe Gabriel/Spencer Reid/Sam Winchester >> Falling is the Easy Part, my drop-Spencer-into-season-nine-and-see-what-happens fic. Some of it's been posted. It's going to be long. I'm not 100% sure where it's going yet, though. So, I'm taking my time.

SPN/Marvel Cinematic Universe >> An untitled "what if Justin Hammer somehow found out about the supernatural side of the world and tried to harness it for his own gain" fic. I only have about a hundred words written so far, so I'm really not sure what it's gonna be yet. Mostly it's an excuse to have Sam and Dean interact with the Avengers, if/when I get there.

SPN/Sanctuary >> Helen Magnus/Sam Winchester >> An untitled fic where Helen is tracking down Sam for some MOL information. I only have about 200 words written so far. But I want to see these two be dangerous together and then geek out together.

Dark Angel >> An untitled fic about what could happen after "Freak Nation." Mostly, it's Alec remembering things, doing things to keep his pack or unit together, and trying not to hold a grudge against Max because she doesn't know any better when it comes to having so many of Manticore's soldiers together. I think I started this after getting sick of watching her tear down Alec. Not that he's a saint. But. It made me cranky, watching her put him down all the time.

Personal project side: >> NaNoWriMo 2016 >> This story will never be finished. I hit the word limit. But I need about double that to wrap it up, and I'm really, really stuck. One of the themes is magic is dying. Another theme is the main character's, where she's looking for a place where she (and her ace!spec-ness) fits in. And then it's all mostly set inside a bdsm club. The sequel to the story is already sort of in my head, but I can't get to that point because I'm so stuck and bogged down with the first story.

Illustration (and animation):

Fandom side: Quattro Formaggio >> Four Cheese comics >> I still have two or three waiting to post... and I want to get to an even 12. So I need to write and render a few more. A couple are thumbnailed. >> Jailbreak 2016 >> I cut audio from a few clips of the concert, and I have the animatic done... but animation makes my brain seize up. It's like I'm blocked. So... that's on hold for a while. >> Space Jam Dance >> I really want to animate the cheeses dancing. To a song from Space Jam.

Saturday Night Salad >> The full line-up >> I'm in the process of turning almost everyone into a 3D vegetable---or fruit. I want to make a big poster with everyone in it. Right now, the ones I've done... I think the next one on my list is... celery, but that'll be one of the last almost-regular SNS-ers. So. Those ones are modelled. And then I have to finish the occasionals. And then go through the texturing and rigging process.

Team Free Breakfast (or Brunch) >> The line-up of five >> I'm still rigging Pancake!Cas. Not because it's hard, but because I rig every day at work. And getting psyched up about coming home and doing more rigging? Doesn't happen all that often.

#Blame The Musk >> The product line-up >> For now, I'm just trying to get the products textured. They're all modelled and sort-of rigged (just single controls on everything so I can move 'em around later). Later, I will be making mock advertisements with all the products.

Personal project side: >> Various 3D projects >> I started renovating an old robot project from school, hoping to make it something for a new reel (but it's a mess, because I was a student and scrambling to finish things for project deadlines, so I find the whole thing discouraging). I've also been trying to model a character so I can work on a face rig set-up---but organic modelling is SO NOT MY THING. The only other thing I've been working on is a sort of bdsm dungeon that fits in a shoebox. I haven't looked at it in probably a year. Most of it's modelled, it just needs texturing. The point was to comp it into video footage of an actual shoebox being put on or taken off a shelf. >> Tattoo design >> So. When I was a wide-eyed and innocent frosh, with the taste of freedom from my very demanding (but lovable) parents fresh in my heart, I ran out and got a tattoo. I designed it, which may have been stupid, but whatever. It's an abstract take on a claddagh ring, just the lines, and with spiky sort of wings instead of hands. It's on my lower back. Which was fine for a couple of years. (Then, the term "tramp stamp" became a thing.) I feel like it's important to say I do not regret getting it. It was freedom. Probably the first I felt ever, really, and I will always love it for that. But. I didn't take care of it as well as I should have. And I gained weight (because college) then lost it, gained it and then some, lost it, and gained more, and so on. So the tattoo is a little fuzzy. And I do feel shame about that. I've been trying to turn this little fuzzy thing into a larger back piece that's like a collage of different style and different elements and imagery. I can't do the finer details because I'm not that good at drawing, but I've been trying to rough something out so I can go to an actual artist (someday lol) and give them the sketches and go from there.

But getting all of this stuff done is contingent on my shoulders and arms not being sore enough---or just being numb enough---so I can sit and work on this stuff. (Backstory: my work desk is well on its way to killing me, and there's no alternative; we're in those call-centre almost-cubicles and the desks are about three to five inches too tall for me. Shoulder and arm pain for years. Goes to show how artists rate, huh? Can't even get a desk to fit! /rant+whining) So, I have a bunch of things on the go, and when I feel like I can move without wanting to scream, I tinker on something that matches my mood or snags my interest. Eventually (hopefully), I'll finish something.

Aaaaaand.

Now. Who do I want to pester today, hmm? *rubs hands together*

@lacqueluster and @thequeervet... am I allowed to ask what you two are working on? Or what you're thinking about working on? And @evansluke, @piyo-13 @little-red-83, and @ofplanet-earth? How about you guys, toooooo?

What have you all been up to creatively lately? Any words? Or art? Video? Photography? Body art? Fanmixes? Metalworking? (I don't know if any of you do that. Just throwing it all out there because there are different ways to be creative. I was following the example format I was given, but there are so many more things that can be done.)

Okay. I am so sorry to anyone seeing this because it got very long. Whoops!

#tagged #progress report #fic wips #art wip

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medicatemedrmccoy · 7 years

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Let the games begin - Ch. 5

Photo created and gifted by the stupendous: @wonders-of-the-enterprise

We’ve finally made it folks, the top of the roller coaster. Please keep all hands and feet inside this ride at all times ;)

Today dear reader, we’re focusing on our star and Jo, trying to do anything and everything to survive.

6,528 word(s) of angsty, violent, hurt, goodness. I told you this would make up for the last two chapters. Be ye warned, all who enter here.

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4

There will be two more chapters, plus a prologue. SO, if you want to be tagged for the rest, yay! Just shoot me a message. If you don’t want to be tagged, then shoot me a message and I will try to keep my tears to a minimum, and go to my room and sit in the corner. Be gentle. I am a delicate flower.

Special thanks to: @outside-the-government for encouraging me to write again, and for being my beta and idea bouncer. Also @imoutofmyvulcanmind for being an idea bouncer, and letting me torture you with snippets, yay!

Tags: @star-trekkin-across-theuniverse @feelmyroarrrr @fandomheadrush @yourtropegirl @darlinleonard @bkwrm523 @trekken81 @trekkimagines201 @arrowsshootyouforwards @captian-hannah-kirk @hellhoundsandunicorns @kaitymccoy123 @starmission @kilismaiden @malindacath @starr-trekkk @the-the-sound-of-the-bees-blog @lurkch @random-fandom-lady @supernaturalgeekygal @captainjimsexypantskirk @devanshade @imagineangryspacegrump @pokemonlover591 @earinafae

You were busy stretching your sore and tight muscles. It didn’t seem to be doing much good, unfortunately.

“Honestly, there’s really not a whole lot that we can plan.” Paul said glumly “You know the only thing we can do to get you and Jo out of here.”

“I was really hoping you’d say that you know of a super secret escape hatch,” You said wistfully with a sigh.

“I wish, lass. I wouldn’t be here if I knew of one.” Paul laughed, shrugging his shoulders.

“Well, there’s nothing for it and we can’t just hide in here.” You said as you started to gather up your bow and arrow, which Paul had brought into the cave earlier with Jo.

“You never told me why you’re helping me.” You said as you slung the bow over your shoulder.

Paul snorted “because screw Ajek, and screw this place. I’m done playing by his rules. Besides, he’s never dragged a kid into this before. That’s low, even for him, offering her up as bait like that.”

Paul walked up beside you and handed you a rock sharpened into an arrow head, tied to a branch with twine. “For the little lass” Paul said quietly.

You took the crude spear from his hands silently. You look to Jo as she’s staring at the last of the fading fire. You have an internal struggle. She’s too young, she shouldn’t have to have any reason to use a spear. On the other hand, there’s no reason that the two of you should be here either. You can’t just leave her completely unprotected. You cursed inwardly.

“Hey, Jo. Come here.” You asked quietly. Jo turned and strode over to you, looking up into your eyes. “Jo, you know what this is?” You asked gently while holding out the spear to her.

“Yeah…” Jo trailed off apprehensively, eyeing the long piece of wood.

“I want you to hold onto this Jo, and keep it close.” You said as Jo got the implied meaning. She really was too smart for her own good.

“You want me to… use this?” Jo looked at the spear like it had just turned into a snake.

“I want to be smart Jo.” You began, phrasing your words carefully “I don’t know what else is out there. I’m going to do my best to protect you, but it’ll make me feel better if you at least have something.”

Jo regarded you and the spear for a few seconds. “You’re right Aunt Y/N.” Jo tightened her grip on the spear.

“Thank you, Jo.” You said relieved as you kissed the top of her head.

As if the universe had just heard what you had just told Jo, you heard a soft snuffling sound coming from the larger cave you came in from. The snuffling noise sounded deeper than what any wolf could make. “Great”, you thought, “just perfect.“

You immediately grabbed Jo to keep her calm and placed your finger on her lips. You looked to Paul, his face steeled but still showing slight lines of worry. You closed your eyes and groaned softly. Here you go again.

You went out of the small cave first, with Jo clinging to your shirt with her good arm, and Paul close behind. You made your way to the front of your little off set room and stole a glance out into the larger room. Well, unfortunately, you were right. It was big, really big. Your eyes went wide. It looked to be a bear, a really, really big bear. It’s giant white face was matted with blood. You hoped it had saved you the trouble and killed one or two rivals.

“Its blocking the entrance.” You whispered to Paul, pointing toward the exit.

“We need to distract it.” Paul said, looking around the room. You looked around the cave floor looking for a rock or anything you can throw. You managed to find a few that you hope will make enough noise and threw them against the other side of the cave. It seemed to work.

The bear began to lumber to the other side of the cave. You slowly made your way out and around the off set door way. You waved your hand to Jo and Paul for them to follow. You made your way to the entrance of the cave slowly.

The bear snuffled and made a low growl, getting frustrated at not finding the source of the sound. You stole a glance to see that the bear was still investigating. That is, until Jo, turning around to see the bear for the first time, made a small gasp.

“Oh Jo...” You cringed inwardly. The bear turned around at the noise and growled loudly.

“RUN!” Paul screamed. His yell snapped you to attention and you’re turning to run before you can even think.

“Come on Jo!” you yelled, grabbing Jo by the arm.

“I’m sorry!” Jo tried to apologize, stumbling along the cave floor.

“Just run!” You ordered, as you took Jo’s good arm and pulled her in front of you, putting yourself between her and the bear.

“What do we do now?” You yelled at Paul “where can we go?”

Paul was quiet for a few moments, which felt like years when there’s a gigantic bear, behind you. A gigantic, fast bear. “Why is everything around here so damn fast?” You curse inwardly. Why couldn’t it be killer turtles, or violent snails?

“Follow the stream!” Paul yelled, pointing at the long stretch of water “it gets bigger down river!”

You pretty much have no choice but to trust him. You kept the steady pace as you guide Jo closer to the stream so you can follow it easier.

You could hear the bear crashing through the trees. It was like a juggernaut. Instead of being slowed down by the trees and foliage, it seemed to just be gaining momentum with every stride.

You weren’t sure which is worse, being torn to shreds by wolves or mauled by a bear.

“We’ve gotta pick up the pace!” Paul yelled “we’re not going to make it if we don’t.” The bear roared loudly behind him, as if to reiterate his point.

“Jo!” was all you managed to say, lungs burning.

Paul picked up on your thoughts and maneuvered his way around you and picked up Jo, who yelped in surprise, and sprinted ahead.

“Damn” was all you could think as you watched Paul sprint almost effortlessly ahead. Then you suddenly realized you were now at the back and promptly quickened your pace. You ran a few hundred more feet until you noticed the stream getting wider and starting to flow faster.

“It’s just up ahead!” Paul yelled. You noticed that he was beginning to tire as he continued to run. Him carrying Jo had helped to put a little bit of distance between you and the bear at least. Not nearly enough though, the bear was relentless.

Soon, you reached the part of the river Paul must have been talking about. It was quickly turning into a roaring river. You didn’t have a good feeling about this at all.

Paul ran further down to an overhang before suddenly screeching to a halt. You ran right into the back of him and almost sent you all toppling over the edge.

“Paul what...?” You breathed out, chest heaving.

“Quick, there’s no time!” Paul said quickly as he handed Jo to you. You took Jo and held her close as she clung to your neck.

“Paul, don’t. Whatever crazy thing you’re thinking, don’t. We need you.” You pleaded as you could see the bear bounding closer in the distance, looking madder than ever. Jo whimpered into your neck quietly.

“You know this has to be done. It’ll just follow you downstream otherwise. Good luck Y/N, now GO!” Paul shouted as he pushed you forcefully, making you lose your footing as you topple over the edge.

You’re quickly enveloped in an icy cascade of water. Somehow in your surprise, you lost your grip on Jo. You kicked frantically as you tried to break the surface. You gasped as you’re finally able to take in a mouthful of air.

“JO!” You screamed out, choking on the water trying to escape your lungs.

You don’t see Jo anywhere. She couldn’t have possibly gotten that far, she was clinging onto you as you fell, wasn’t she?

“JO, where are you?” You cried out once more. You searched around frantically until your eyes land back up at Paul.

“You stupid son of a bitch, Paul!” You screamed up at him, watching him twirl the spear that he took from Jo in his hands.

“I know, lass.” he replied, steeling himself for the oncoming attack.

That was the last you saw of Paul before you were swept down river and around a bend.

You smacked the surface of the water in frustration and said a silent curse for his stupidity. Not wasting anymore time, you resumed your search for Jo.

“Jo!” you screamed desperately “please for the love of god, answer me. JoJo!”

You searched frantically as the river became wider and more swift. You’re having to kick, and strain harder to try to keep your head above the water and go in a semi straight line to avoid rocks and fallen branches.

“Please, Jo. I’m begging you, kid. Answer me! Anything!” You pleaded as your eyes scanned everywhere.

You were close to having a meltdown before you finally saw the hint of pink from Jo’s favorite shirt 50 yards away or so.

“Oh thank god!” you murmured. Your thanks were short lived as you notice she’s face down and not moving in the swift current.

“Shit! JO!” You screamed, trying desperately to get your arms and legs to start working together to try to reach Jo.

You were making good progress as the river started to pick up even more. Worry flitted across your mind of another cliff. You pushed it down and concentrated on swimming. You grimaced every time Jo would bump into a branch or into a rock.

You noticed in your peripherals the river turning fierce. Rapids, and not any gentle ones either. They encased your body and began thrashing you around, head bobbing under and above the water repeatedly.

“Shit!” You exclaimed, coughing up water. You thrash around trying to get your bearings back, trying desperately not to take your eyes off Jo. You should have though. Then you would have seen the jagged rocks sooner.

Your eyes went wide. With the current of the river not only getting faster, if that were even possible, hitting those rocks was going to hurt and Jo seemed to be drifting right to them.

“Dammit Jo!” You cried, as you went into overdrive. Jo was still, maybe, 25 yards away and those rocks weren’t much further out.

You kicked and paddled as hard as you could. You tried to work with the river instead of against it. You pushed off from branches and rocks, clawing at the water, desperate to gain any ground, willing your body to work harder.

Your hard work paid off and you finally made it over to Jo with one last push off a rock. You grabbed Jo by the ankle and pulled her toward you and lifted her head out of the water. Her head lolled back onto your shoulder, she wasn’t breathing and she was beginning to turn blue.

You were so focused on Jo, you had forgotten about the rocks until it was too late. Having no time to swim out of the way, you do the only thing you have time for.

You quickly moved Jo behind you as you slammed into the rock hard, Jos added dead weight, not helping. You gasped and sputtered as pain shot through your ribs, making nothing but white explode in your vision. You tried to take in a few breaths but even that’s excruciating. It’s all you can do to keep your vision focused and keep a hold of Jo.

“Fuck it.” You breathed out, not having much other choice. You launched yourself and Jo from the rock. Your chest exploded with pain, but there’s nothing you can do about it for now. You have to make it to the bank, or you’re both dead.

This time though, you started making your way across the river, towards the bank. Every movement sent pain flaring from your chest, but you grit your teeth and choked it down.

You’re finally able to make it to the bank after what seems like an eternity. Being out of the water and having your ribs feel the full weight of gravity and pressure on them was absolute agony. You had bigger issues to deal with at the moment.

You hauled Jo up on the bank and immediately open and sweep her mouth before beginning CPR. You frantically began humming “another one bites the dust” to match your compressions.

“Damn, why do they pick the most morbid songs?” you thought as you pinched Jo’s nose and gave her small puffs of air.

“Come on Jo, don’t you dare give up on me” you cried as tears streamed down your face. You switched to “Stayin’ alive” as you restarted compressions. Not a lot better, but it helped.

You continued chest compressions and breathing for what seemed like hours, but it had probably been only minutes. Your chest was continuing to protest angrily.

“Jo, come back to me!” You ordered, getting angry “after all we’ve been through Jo, I am not letting you give up! Not now!”

You gave Jo another breath and she started to sputter and tried to cough up the water in her lungs.

“Jo!” You yelled “That’s my girl! Come back to me Jo” you encouraged as you began to tilt Jo on her side as she choked and spit up all the water.

“Atta girl Jo, you’re ok, get all that water out for me.” You said quickly, as you rubbed her back.

Jo choked and sputtered for a few more moments before finally taking a deep breath and gulping in all the air she possibly could, like she had never breathed before.

“You’re ok Jo, you’re alright. Calm even breaths for me Jo” You encouraged, patting her back softly.

“Y/N...” was all Jo could croak out.

“I’m here Jo, I’m here. I got you.” You reassured her. At those words, Jo began to sob.

“Hey now Jo, it’s okay, you’re safe. I’m not going to let anything happen to you, I promised.” You said softly. Jo sat up now and turned to you and went to wrap her arms around you and squeezed you tight. You yelped at the pressure.

Jo immediately withdrew. “Did I hurt you, Y/N? I’m sorry.” she said softly.

“It’s not your fault Jo.” You said as you began to press in on your ribs. You grimace as you hear a slight crunch each time you did. “Yep” you thought “definitely broken”

“Jo, help me take off this shirt.” You asked, thinking quickly.

“What are you doing?” Jo asked, moving to help.

“I have to splint these ribs Jo. This is all I got.” You said as you pull your shirt over your head gingerly, leaving you in a tank top. You folded up your shirt the best you could and lay on top of it.

“Alright Jo, I need you to push in right here for me, okay?” You say as you guide her good hand to your broken ribs.

“Is this going to hurt?” Jo asked, grimacing slightly.

“I sure hope not Jo, but probably. No matter what, don’t let go, okay?” You ordered. Jo just nodded in response as she moved into position.

“Okay push in.” You said. Her little hand felt like a 20lb weight. The pain made you see a few stars. You tried to muffle your cries, but despite your best efforts, a few get through. Jo is a trooper though, and doesn’t let up. You maneuvered your shirt around your chest the best you could and tied it tight.

“Okay Jo, you can let go now.” You said, completely out of breath. You laid there for a few seconds trying to catch your breath and wait for the pain to settle down to a manageable level. You had hoped it would anyway.

“How are you doing Jo? Are you okay?” You breathed out, trying to take your mind off the pain.

“I’m okay Y/N. I just want to go home.” Jo said, as a tear slipped down her cheek. You didn’t blame her one bit, you were ready to cry and get off this damn planet too.

You lifted your hand to wipe Jo’s cheek, “You’ve done so well Jo. You’ve been so brave. I’m so proud of you. I know this has to be hard for you Jo. This is a scary place, but I’m going to get us out of here, I promise.” You said as you gave her a tiny smile.

“I’m trying.” Jo said as she sniffled and gave you a tiny smile back “and I know you will, you’ve gotten us this far”

“You’re damn right, Jo. Now let’s get going. Help me roll over?” You asked. Jo leaned against your the best she could and helped you roll over to your side. You took a short breath and steeled yourself. You slowly got up to your hands and knees.

“Whew, Jo, this sucks.” Tou joked, trying to take your mind off of the pain.

“You move around like daddy after he works out too much.” Jo observed, also trying to help. You gave out a tiny laugh. What you wouldn’t give to see that right now.

You crawled your way to a rock and hoisted yourself up slowly. Jesus, that sucked. If you ended up on your back again, you would be toast if your lives depended on it. You decided to keep that bit of information to yourself.

“Where to now, Y/N?” Jo asked, looking around the open landscape.

“I really don’t know, Jo. Were in new territory now.” You admitted defeated, as you made you grab your bow once more, thanking the heavens you didn’t lose it in the river.

“I guess we just pick a direction and go.” Jo said as she took off first, you right on her heels as you made your way through the foliage.

You had been following Jo for what seemed like hours. Every breath and step made your chest flair in agony.

You felt warm, was it warmer outside than what it had been earlier? You lift your hand to your face where you’re greeted with a slight sheen of sweat and felt your forehead. You feel warm. “Fever?” you question. Surely not, you began to go over your symptoms in your head.

“I need to sit down for a minute, Jo.” you said as you plop down on a rock, not waiting for a response.

“Are you okay, Y/N?” Jo asked concerned, giving you the once over.

“Yeah Jo, I just need to rest a minute.” You replied tiredly.

You sat on the rock for a while trying to regain your strength. You began to wonder if this place had a beginning or end. While you were deep in thought, you notice a big flock of birds take off and fly away, accompanied by a soft rumbling noise.

“What the hell?” You ask thoughtfully as the rumbling began to get louder. Your thoughts immediately went to the bear, had it finally caught up with you? What happened to Paul? You put those thoughts aside as you noticed the rumbling sounded like hooves thundering against the ground.

You stand up on your rock and begin to look around. In the distance you noticed a herd of what look like deer. “Huh, finally, something that won’t try to eat us.” Tou thought fleetingly.

Your thoughts then went to, “what might be trying to eat them?” The thought didn’t comfort you one bit.

“Come on Jo, we need to get going.” You said as you went to grab her hand. As you go to reach out for Jo, you heard another type of rumble, not of hooves, nor footfalls. This was a deep earthen rumble that shook down to the very core of where you were standing. The whole landscape began to shake.

“Y/N, what’s going on?” Jo asked beginning to get scared

You begin to panic slightly as the landscape began to shake even more. How the hell do you outrun an earthquake?

“Come on Jo, we have to get out of these trees.” You yelled as you grabbed her hand and headed for the clearing. You ran out of the edge of the forest and to a more rocky terrain. The ground shook violently and you wondered how long this was going to last.

You held Jo tight to you and crouched where you stood, trying not to lose your footing. You looked down at your feet as you noticed tiny cracks starting to dance across the ground.

“This is not good” you think to yourself “shitshitshit”

“Jo, we gotta run!” You screamed as you grabbed her hand and pushed her in front of you. You couldn’t run back to the forest for the falling trees, the only way to go was forward and that didn’t look promising, but you had to try. Taking in a breath and tightening your t-shirt around your ribs, you took off.

The cracks started to move more swiftly through the rock laden earth as you tried to outrun them. It wasn’t helping that the earth’s shaking was throwing you two off balance as you went.

The earth was quickly giving way to the relentless shaking and it started to open all around you, making you have to jump over small fissures. You were looking around trying to figure out where to go, when you started to see a break in the earth unaffected by the shaking.

“Jo, that way!” you yelled as you changed her direction. You two made a beeline for the edge. The earth is breaking up faster than you thought. The crack ran by you swiftly and the earth began to open up before your eyes at an alarming rate.

“Shit Jo, brace yourself!” you screamed as you did your best to pick her up with your chest screaming in utter agony from the running and the shaking. You managed to pick her up enough and toss her across the gap, as the earth opened up even more and swallowed you whole, disappearing from sight.

Jo skidded across the ground from where she fell. “No! Aunt Y/N! Aunt Y/N!” she yelled as she picked herself up and ran back to where you fell. Thankfully the relentless earthquake was starting to calm.

“Aunt Y/N, where are you!?” Jo screamed as she skidded to a stop at the edge and tentatively looked down.

“I’m here, Jo. I’m okay, kinda...” You yelled up as your finger tips were clasped onto a tiny outcrop to cling to and your feet barely finding a tiny ledge to rest on.

“What do I do?” Jo asked as she tried to reach her little hand down to you “I can’t reach you” as tears began to fall down her cheeks “please tell me what to do”.

“I don’t know Jo, let me think a minute.” You replied quietly. You had no idea what you were going to do. Your arms and legs were shaking from the strain of trying to hold yourself up and close to the edge. Your chest was on fire from the running and shaking and now trying to hold yourself up. There was no way you could climb up the side, even without broken ribs, there was nothing to cling onto.

“Aunt Y/N, please..” Jo trailed off choking back a sob “I’m scared”.

“It’s okay Jo, go see if you can find something to lower down to me, vines, stick, anything. But be careful and watch your surroundings.” You yelled up at her. You heard her little footsteps race off into the distance. You hoped she’d be okay off on her own.

You rested your forehead against the cool earth. You sent Jo on a fool’s errand you begin to think. Even if Jo did find something to pull you up with, Jo wasn’t big enough to hold your weight and you didn’t know if there was anything big enough around to tie anything to.

And your ribs? Could they even handle the force and pressure of trying to haul yourself up? Tears slipped down your cheeks, you were exhausted and angry. It couldn’t end here could it? You’d come so far, you had to get out of this somehow, if only for Jo. She didn’t deserve to die here.

You clung to the side of the earth for what seemed like ages. Your arms and legs were beginning to turn to jello. You began to think even if Jo did by some miracle find something, you didn’t know if you’d have the strength to do anything with it.

“JO!” you yelled out, starting to get worried “Jo where are you?” as your feet began to slip off their small crevice. This wasn’t going to last much longer and you had no place to go.

“Aunt Y/N!” You hear Jo yelling faintly in the distance “Aunt Y/N! I found the perfect thing”! Jo’s tiny footfalls fell softly on the earth as she came to a stop at the edge. Jo peeked over the edge down at you and smiles.

“I found the perfect thing!” She said triumphantly, grinning from ear to ear.

“What did you find Jo?” You replied as a hand is shoved roughly in your face.

“What the f…” You said staring at the hand and followed an arm up to the owner’s face.

“PAUL! Oh my god, Paul, you glorious bastard! You have no idea how glad I am to see your ugly mug!” You said as tears now streamed down your face in relief.

“You didn’t count me out that easy now did you, Lass. I have to say I’m a little hurt.” Paul smirked down at you “now let’s get you topside”

“Thank god, but I broke some ribs, I dunno if I can..” You began to explain.

“Shut up lass, I don’t want to hear any excuses from you. We’ve been chased by a bear and you went swimming in those rapids, you can do this. Time to put up and shut up” Paul said sternly “Now take my hand.”

“You’re right” you replied as you grasped his hand, steeling yourself for what’s to come. You link your hand and arm together as Paul slowly started to shimmy his way backwards. The sudden expansion of your chest makes stars explode in your eyes. You bit on your tongue to keep yourself from screaming out and just focused on getting up. You scrambled the toes of your shoes against the side of the earth, trying to get as much traction as possible. You neared the top and stretched out your free hand to grasp the side of the ledge.

“Come on lass, almost there, put your back into it. It’s like I’m doing all the work here.” Paul grunted, trying not to hurt you too much as he pulled you up further.

“Shut your face, Paul.” you wheezed out, utterly spent. Paul just chuckled.

“I got you Y/N.” Jo said as she put her hands under your armpit and tried to heave you up with as much strength as a ten year old could muster. Paul repositioned himself further down your arm and hoisted you up the rest of the way.

You flopped down on your back, so thankful to be on the flat surface once more.

“Solid, flat ground! I will never take the ground under my feet for granted ever again.” you panted out of breath. Jo immediately coming to sit by you and taking your hand into her lap, holding it tightly.

“I’m just glad the little lass found me. I’ve been looking everywhere for you two. I followed the river and saw the indention of where you crawled out on the bank, but there wasn’t much else to go on.” Paul said, panting slightly

“I am too. You did a good job Jo, I’m proud of you.” You said softly as you squeezed Jo’s hand tightly.

“We’ll give you a few minutes to rest, then we better get going.” Paul said as he stood guard.

“Just… just 5 more minutes.” You wheezed as you again check your shirt “help me tie this back Jo”. After your shirt was securely back in place, Paul helped you slowly to your feet.

“You gonna to be okay, lass.” Paul asked, giving you a once over.

“You kidding? I’m alive! I could run a marathon!” You exclaimed and went to take a few steps and winced in pain “Okay maybe a half marathon”

Paul just laughed at you and patted your back softly “Whatever you say lass”. Paul started off in front of you and you and Jo follow closely behind.

You had begun to walk back through the forest. It at least provided some shade from the relentless sun. You had been walking for what felt like ages. You were exhausted, you were hungry and your mouth so very dry.

“Jo, Paul, I gotta stop for a minute.” you said as you sat down on a rock, as a wave of nausea hits, not even waiting on a response.

“Are you ok, Y/N?” Jo asked concerned.

“Yeah, Jo. I’m ok, I just need a rest.” You answered, winded. The nausea got increasingly worse. “Please don’t puke” you plead with yourself, not wanting to imagine what retching would do to your poor ribs.

You closed your eyes and focused on just breathing. Paul came and sat beside you and started rubbing your back with his hand, his gesture oddly comforting. Jo crawled over to your side, rubbing your arm gently.

“I love you, Jo.” you said as you head is between your knees.

“I love you too, Y/N.” Jo replied as she rested her cheek on your back.

The three of you must have dozed off because you didn’t hear the commotion before it was too late.

You heard a twig snap, and voices coming from the trees. Your eyes flew open. You and Paul leapt to your feet, much to your ribs protest, and swallowed down any hint of nausea that might have remained.

You immediately unslung your bow and had an arrow knocked in two seconds flat. Paul had his trusty spear out, covered completely down the hilt with blood.

“Jo stay close.” You whispered. You didn’t have to say anything as Jo was already attached to your leg. You and Paul scanned the forest for the owners of the voices. You didn’t have to look long before you found the source of the noise before four men stepped out from the tree line.

“Son of a..” You thought to yourself.

“Take one more step, and this arrow flies in between your eyes.” You said threateningly, knocking an arrow.

“Aye, we don’t want to have to hurt the lot of ye!” Paul added, equally as menacing. Apparently his accent came out in full force when he was stressed.

Three out of the four hesitate slightly. The fourth just gave you a smug smile and began to advance. Not giving him one more step, you released your arrow. True to your word, the man fell backward with an arrow planted firmly in between his eyes, a look of shock forever strewn across his face.

“Holy hell, lass. Where’d you learn how to do that?” Paul asked, clearly impressed.

You don’t reply. You quickly knock another arrow and are faintly aware of Jo clinging even tighter to you, burying her head in your hip.

“Anyone else want to try?” You ask menacingly, moving your bow from person to person.

“Give us the girl.” The one with the mace said “our beef isn’t with you.”

“If you want her, then your beef is entirely with me. You’re going to have to get through me first.” You warned, pulling your arrow back further.

“Aye, me as well, ya bloody wankers!” Paul said as he twirled his spear around.

“Very well.” The man replied as the remaining three began to spread out “this should be fun”.

You let another arrow fly as they began to advance. They were expecting it now, and quickly dodged out of the way. “Damn” you thought glumly. You reached back into your quiver for another arrow, last one, better make this count.

Since they were expecting head and upper body shots, you decide to take a different approach. You quickly loose the arrow before they could react, hitting your target. You took out the guys knee, who was carrying an axe, with a clean shot. He dropped to the ground in agony, that quickly turned to rage as he broke the arrow in half and pulled it out.

“Shit” you said quietly to yourself.

“Leave him to me, lass.” Paul said as he advanced, tightening his grip on his spear.

“Now what are you going to do sweetheart? You’re all out of arrows.” The man with the mace asked.

“Don’t count me out just yet, asshole.” You muttered as you turned to face him head on. You weren’t quite sure what you were going to do honestly, you were still outmatched and your ribs were still on fire.

That is until you felt Jo, moving beside you. Before you had a chance to see what she was doing, you saw a rock whiz passed your head and hit the man squarely in the nose. “Kids got aim” you thought as she kept throwing rocks, one after the other.

“Cut it out you little runt!” The man growled, focusing his attention on Jo “I’m going to enjoy gutting you.”

You saw nothing but red at his words and you used the temporary distraction to charge the man and tackle him like you did the very first. This time though, your tackle wasn’t quite as efficient thanks to your broken ribs and utter exhaustion.

You did at least manage to knock him off his feet, but he grabbed your pants and brought you down with him, as his mace tumbled out of his hands.

You managed to land on top of him, and got in a few blows first, successfully breaking his nose. This made him angry, he bucked you off and grabbed you by your waist and threw you down hard. You grunted from the pressure and pain flared up through your chest once more.

The man gladly returned the broken nose you gave him. Stars once again danced in your vision as blood poured down your face. You struggled violently until he rendered you immobile by punching you in your ribs. You screamed an ungodly scream as pain seared through your abdomen.

You figured you were done for, as your body shook as pain ripped through every fiber. So many things went through your head, from Jim, to Leonard, to Jo. God, how you completely failed them all by not being able to get you two back safe.

You stole a glance over at Paul, who was busy getting his face beat in, trying to reach his spear. Hot tears began to streak down your face.

“That’s it, cry for me you little bitch. I’m going to have so much fun with this.” the man smiled menacingly as his hand began to play with the top of your pants and started to slip a couple fingers behind the seam.

The man suddenly shrieked in pain as something thudded against his temple.

“Leave my aunt alone!” Jo screamed with all she had as she held the mace in her hands. The man was stunned to say the least, but not for long. He began to recover.

“You little RAT! That’s it, I’m done playing games!” He yelled as he went to grab Jo. Jo wasn’t fast enough and only made it a few feet before he grabbed her and began to choke her.

“I’m going to enjoy this.” He said, tightening his grip. Jo tried to scream but she couldn’t.

“Hey, jackass!” you shouted from behind him. Startled, the man turned quickly, just in time for you to run the other man’s axe across his throat. He immediately released Jo and clutched his throat.

Blood cascaded like a waterfall down his neck and down the front of his shirt.

“If you relax, you might have four minutes to live, less if you panic.” You said coldly “each beat of your heart is just going to push more out.”

You leave him to his slow agonizing suffering and turn toward Jo. She’s just sitting there watching the man, slowly bleed out, rubbing her throat absently. You quickly go to her and turn her around.

“Jo, hey, are you okay?” You asked and she just nodded in reply, as you lifted up her chin gently with your hand as you inspected her throat. Slightly red, but not too bad.

“Can you speak for me, Jo?” You asked quietly, trying to get Jo to focus.

She nodded “yeah, just sore” she replied.

You pulled her in for a quick hug as you survey the scene. One man with an arrow between the eyes, another with Paul’s spear through his chest, with an unconscious Paul laying beside him, and thanks to other man’s axe, one was seconds away from bleeding out in front of you.

You pause for a second. “That’s 3” you muttered “wasn’t there…” you began to think, but were cut off as you look down as you feel a pinch and see a shiny red gleam now protruding from your stomach. “Four?” you finished in you head as the man twisted and yanked the sword back out.

How could you have lost track of how many men there were? How did you not hear him sneaking up behind you?

You were vaguely aware of Jo screaming and yelling your name as you drop to your knees as blood began to pour from your wound and your mouth. You wondered if he punctured your lung as well as your breaths didn’t seem to be doing much good. The man moved in front of you and pushed you onto your back.

“I want you to watch as I kill you.” The man said. You’re not sure you could anyway as your eyes are beginning to lose focus as you lay choking and sputtering as your own blood began to fill your lungs and mouth.

As the man brought up his sword to deliver the final blow, all you could think was of everyone you were leaving behind. The people you loved, who you would never see again. The things you wanted to do but would never be able to now.

You waited for the blow, but it never came. You could make out some commotion and some voices here and there as your hearing and eyesight began to fade.

“Uncle Jim!” you swore you heard Jo yell. Jim? It couldn’t be. Could it? You continued to choke on your blood, slowly losing consciousness from lack of oxygen.

“…choking, Unc- Jim… her over” you heard faintly as you felt pressure on your side. You figured if by some chance you weren’t dead yet, you were fixing to be as you felt your eyes roll back into your head as you began shaking violently and uncontrollably.

“Shit… seizure… Scotty…. us up” was the last thing you heard before darkness consumed you once again.

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