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phenixa · 4 months ago

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A FloRid Analysis using science (but only at the beginning)

I would like to preface that post by saying that I am not a biology -or scientific- expert at all. I am a humanities major -more specifically a foreign languages one- who just happen to have developped a huge hyperfixation on Twisted Wonderland, its story and characters. And it so happen that FloRid is my OTP. So, brainrot happened.

The hyperfixation and brainrot went so far that I started to hoard facts about octopodes and eels here and there, reading scientific papers written by biologist when the last time I had a science class was like... In first year of high school (en 2nde, pour mes amis francophones)

Okay, so. FloRid. Floyd and Riddle. One of the most appreciated ships in the twst community, being the 4th ship with the most fanfics on Ao3 (with 727 fanfics when I’m writing these words), just behind KaliJami, MalleYuu and RookVil (in this order). I saw a lot of people discussing these two with varying degrees of media literacy (I see you, who claims that this ship is “problematic” because it is a bully x victim ship.). And while I really like to read all of those takes (except the bully x victim one. You’re missing the point sweetie by saying that) and I wanted to add my two cents on that matter.

A while ago, back in September 2024, I stumbled on a twitter thread on FloRid. I can’t find it again, too far back, sorry for that. Basically, what the thread was about, was that Floyd’s interest in Riddle spawned in the fact that Riddle is red, and red doesn’t exist underwater.(see photos below)

It isn’t really that red doesn’t "exist" in aquatic environments, moreso that the wavelength for that colour is absorbed by the environment not that deep (around 6 metres underwater for those (like me) who use the metric system). Oh, by the way, if someone has an explanation of why the hot pink is still as vibrant that deep, I would love to hear that !

So basically, red starts to "disappear" around 6 metres deep, and is completely black around 24 metres deep. It is, let’s be honest, not that deep, especially when we compare to the depths of the ocean.

In fact, red "disappears" in what is called the epipelagic zone - or sunlight zone - the first level of the ocean (see photo below). Which is interesting since, in our world, all species of moray eels live in that zone. And, as it is well known, the Tweels are based on moray eels (possibly Green Moray Eels if we follow the colour scheme of their characters), so, in our world, they would live not that deep below the surface (at depths down to 40 metres (130ft)). Which isn’t true in the game, as it is mentioned multiple times that the Coral Sea is deep below the surface.

As we can see on the picture, the Sun won’t go deeper than 1,000 metres (3280ft) below the surface, and the Octatrio mentions once or twice that there’s no sunlight where they come from. On the wiki, we can read :

"It is said to be very dark and cold and has a smaller population than countries primarily inhabited by humans"

Twisted Wonderland wiki, World, Locations, Coral Sea

So, where am I heading with that ? Well, did you know that Moray eels can’t see colours ? Indeed, in a research done in 2011 by researchers of the Tawain Ocean Research Institute as well as the Sensory Biology Laboratory of the Academia Sinica in Taiwan, simply named "A comparative study on the visual adaptations of four species of moray eels" , the researchers have proven that the four species of moray eels studies are colourblind. They, in fact, can only perceive green and its shades/tints, meaning that, even if it was possible to perceive the colour red underwater, Floyd, in his eel form, wouldn’t be able to see it.

There is a technical side, one that shows that moray eels only have one type cone cells (cells present in our eyes to process colours) in their eyes, to explain this colour blindness (in comparison, human beings typically have three types of cone cells : red, green and blue). The only type of cone cells moray eels possess, as I mentioned earlier, is the green one. The closest example we, as humans, can have regarding this sort of colour blindness is the red-green colour blindness (here, "protanopia"), or the complete bolour blindness ("monochromatism")

(if you can’t see the difference at some point, I have some news for you...)

Basically, in the aquatic world, everyone has protanopia since red isn’t perceived, but moray eels are monochromastics since their eyes can only process greens. (Can I add that the colour palette for tritanopia is really pretty ?)

In the game, it is mentioned multiple times that Floyd couldn’t perceive red at all before coming on land. And the best example is the Stitch event (aka the FloRid event. There’s so much content on these two inside) where Floyd explicitly says that red looks black underwater.

"Colours look a lot different underwater. It only sticks out ‘cuz it’s on land. A red like this would look black in the deep sea where we’re from. You’d barely be able to tell it apart from a rock."

Twisted Wonderland, Stitch’s Tropical Turbulence chapter 3-2-3 "Sparkling in the Sand"

Here, Floyd only presents the fact that the wavelength for red is absorbed by its environment. He says nothing on the fact that he and Jade are supposedly completely colour blind (and just. Basically blind since moray eels are famously known for their shitty vision) before taking their potions. And we have seen time and time again that both twin’s vision and perception of colours on land is pretty good. Just the fact that Floyd can note how red Riddle is, as well as how he was able to see him in a crowd during their orientation (or just how he is able to see small details here and there), is a good indicator of that change between their life in the sea and their life on land. Would it have been funny, and really interesting to make the Tweels colourblind on land ? Yes. Yes it would have been amazing. But alas, I love my two chaos junkies the way they are and wouldn’t have it any other way.

Where did I want to go with that ? Well, if it wasn’t obvious already, I think that Floyd’s interest in Riddle spawns from the fact that Riddle represents something inherently new for Floyd.

When you think of the colour red in regards of twst, you would think of Riddle at some point. I mean, the guy is in the red dorm, his hair is red, he gets red from rage really easily (and the colour usually associated with rage is red), he’s based on the Queen of Hearts, the red queen... Oh and his element in his dorm Uniform card is fire. Red (even if we can completely debate over the fact that fire IRL tends to be more orange than red). That’s a lot of red for a 160cm tall guy, don’t you think ?

Oh, and Riddle was the first person to send Floyd flying, as highlited in Floyd’s Beans Camo vignette.

"Y’know, back at my orientation, a guy way tinier than me used magic to blast me through the air. All I did was razz him a little, and he just SNAPPED. His face was so red, it was almost like he was on fire"

"There weren’t many guys stronger than me under the sea. But here ? This school is crawling with people like that."

Twisted Wonderland, Floyd Beens Camo Vignette,"Nowhere Near the Best" Part.3

If it isn’t said outwradly that the "guy way tinier" than Floyd is Riddle, is it easily understandable from the whole Beanfest event, with Vil telling Epel that Riddle and Floyd had been at each other’s throat ever since their orientation (while adding that every orientation he lived had something disrupting it. What happened during your orientation Vil ? I want to know !), we can also undertsand that the guy was Riddle with Epel’s reaction, stating that "Vil wasn’t kidding about what he said before", referencing Vil’s words.

Oh, and, wan we talk just a second about the groovy of that card ?

In the vignette, this scene happens between the two quotes I used (the tiny guy sending Floyd flying and the fact that Floyd’s pretty strong). Let’s be true five seconds, trying to not look with a shipping lense through that.

WHO LOOKS LIKE THAT WHILE TELLING THAT KIND OF STORY ???

I mean, even while taking Floyd’s persona and character as a whole into account, that’s just the face someone makes when sharing a good memory with a loved one, or someone they’re proud of (my own twin makes that face when they talk about their -adopted- children).

And I even went to ask friends of mine about that face, without telling them the context just "okay, what do you think is happening right now ?" and (without taking into account that one friend who made a lousy joke) the majority of them just answered "he’s ogling his crush". And I mean. Yeah... Yeah that’s definetly the face someone would make when watching their crush. (after telling the whole context, the first answer I got was "Yeah no, he’s masochistic" and I can’t really go against that...). Most of those convo where in French and in between is littered more private convo so I won’t give you any screenshot of that, just know that my friends -some of which aren’t even in fandom spaces- are just as unanimous than I am. That eel is down bad.

On my first draft for that document, I spent a whole 10 paragraphs on their orientation, going as far as trying to explain that Floyd’s interest in Riddle wasn’t firstly based on his hair colour, nor really on his size, but on his strength. I won’t go as deeply into details as in my first draft, but let’s just be clear on that point.

It is said multiple times -as well as shown- that students are expected to wear their hoods during orientation. We see that during the prologue as well as during most Ceremonial Robes vignettes that takes place during (or diretcly after) orientation. For example in Epel’s vignette, we see him and Vil wearing their hoods up, and it is mentioned once or twice by the Savanaclaw guys that they have to keep their hoods up during orientation (which brings them a lot of problems, seeing that the hoods aren’t made for their ears). So, in no world would have Floyd seen Riddle’s hair colour before his altercation with Riddle. His interest first spawned because of Riddle’s magical strength. And the fact that our little guy became housewarden only one week after orientation cemented that interest. I mean, someone that strong ought to be interesting, no ?

Oh and, I won’t go into details here, since it’s not on NA server already, but during Floyd’s dream section, and from what I understand from a reddit post explaining the Octatrio dreams, Floyd starts to remember reality after Silver mentions what really happened during their orientation, with Riddle sending him flying. Ooooh I can’t wait to see that part on the eng server ! More info pleaaaase.

Another point of interest of mine is Floyd’s nicknames. They are based on people’s characteristics, whatever that characteristic may be. For that, Vil is Betta since betta fish are renowed for being beautiful, Ruggie is sharksucker since he’s (literally) sucking off of Leona. And Riddle is Goldfish(ie) (in the sense that officially Floyd calls Riddle "Goldfish" but everyone in the fandom ended up calling him "Goldfishie").

Some points on Goldfish here. First of all, despite their name in English, Goldfish in the modern world tend to be more red than gold-coloured (in French they are called "poisson rouge", literally "red fish" for that fact), but they also are an invasive species once released into the wild. Oh and they are mostly kept as pets by humans.

And, who was kept as a "pet" most of his life by someone, is famously red, and once he was "released" into the world acted somewhat invasive in the life of other people ?

At the time of giving Riddle his nickname, Floyd wouldn’t have known what was going on behind closed doors (or maybe he knew, with Jade fetching information on anyone and everyone for Azul, it’s a possibility) but I find that really funny that Riddle’s nickname suits him on more points than him being small and red (I’m putting once again the screenshot of Floyd saying that, but it’s the exact same one as the one I put at the very beginning of the analysis)

(to think that I took this screenshot a when I first started playing...)

I’d like to point out that this is the first -and only if I’m not mistaken- instance of Floyd explaining the reasoning behind one of his nicknames. While I saw him name other characters here and there (with this specific card, he names professor Trein at one point in his Home Taps) he never goes to length to explain the reasoning behind a nickname. And to be honest, the reason behind this screenshot was to go scream at my friends that he’s completely unpromted. Riddle just spawns in the conversation out of the blue. And, I mean, when you’re interested in someone/something, you usually find a way to include them/it into the conversation. Especially when you’re neurodivergent.

And we come to my next point : Floyd’s neurodivergence.

The boy has ADHD. Is it canon ? Well, it’s not said clearly but it is shown in some points. ShoujoISM made a really good video on that matter some time ago, and that video explains my own point of view on the subject really well, so I won’t go into that many details here. But, if you’re not really interested in watching a 52 minutes long video essay (which, let’s be honest, with the attention span of our generation, would be completely fair), I’ll try to summarise as fast as possiblie with just that sentence : Floyd checks most of the points of diagnosis for ADHD in the DSM-V-TR.

As a fellow ADHD-er with a huge hyperfixation on mental illnesses, I tend to have fun seeing if some characters check the boxes for some diagnosis I headcannon them to have. And, after watching that video, I opened my version of the DSM-V-TR (yes. I have a pdf of that book.) and checked myself every criteria for ADHD and... yeah, no, he fits into the boxes so well. And with the prevalence of neurodivergence in the cast (especially depressive characters), it wouldn’t be extrapolation to say that when Yana created Floyd, she had ADHD in mind.

One of the main points of ADHD is hyperfixation (aka, what is driving me to write fanfic and analyses of those characters) and hyperfocus. And Floyd is shown having periods of hyperfocus. Like that time he hyperfocused on learning how to dunk for 2 days straight. Azul even makes note of that in Floyd’s Tropical Wear vignette.

"My word... When you put your mind to something you want to do, your focus is incredible. I wish you could maintain that attidute when you’re on the clock"

Twisted Wonderland, Floyd Tropical Wear vignette, "Flying Jellyfish", Part.1

Usually, a period of hyperfocus can be a relatively "short" period of time, but it so happens that in people with ADHD, who usually struggle with this exact perception of time, hyperfocus periods can be counted as pretty long for neurotypicals, or neurodivergent people that don’t experience them. As someone who has lived through hyperfocus periods, time seems to just. Not exist, so for Floyd to spend two whole days trying to master a dunk just because it looked fun ; it doesn’t seem that long for me (as a personnal experience, I was once so engrossed and hyperfocused on a paper for uni that I spend more or less a whole week on that paper, skipping classes and everything else...)

And for me, Floyd has a sort of hyperfocus on Riddle. Not really in the sens that he can spend days thinking of him and do nothing else, but more on the sense that he can find the other in a crowd easily, and is just looking for Riddle really often. In Floyd’s School Uniform vignette, it is implied that Floyd looking for Riddle in the library is a common occurence, and it is shown multiple times in the game (in the main story as well as in events) that when confronted to a crowd, Floyd will find Riddle first. For example, in the scene at the beginning of Book 4 where everyone is in the Mirror Chamber, the whole Heartshackle gang is discussing, surrounded by literally the whole school, Floyd makes a beeline towards our group and the first person he talks to is Riddle. Same at the beginning of the Stitch event, when Floyd comes into the library and comes across our group, the first person he talks to is Riddle. Keyhole vision, this is what I call this.

And hyperfixation. You would mostly know what this is is you’re chronically online or in the mental illness side of social medias (especially tiktok). From what I experienced and what I saw with my ADHD friends, sometimes, hyperfocus is caused by a hyperfixation. And in the case of Floyd and his "I really want to learn how to dunk" mindset at that time, we can quite easily conclude that that state of hyperfocus was born from his hyperfixation at the time on basketball.

It is mentioned at some point in the game that Floyd’s interest is fleeting, meanning that even his hyperfixations don’t last that long (once again, from a neurotypical point of view). He kinda abandonned basketball at some point, still going to his club activities when he deems them to be interesting. But do you know what kind of activity he has deemed interesting for quite a while now ? Bothering Riddle. It has been a whole year (at the beginning of the game) since their first meeting, and this dopamine addicted eel is still looking for his Goldfishie. Because Goldfishie is interesting. Riddle keeps on being interesting to Floyd, the same way that Azul is. And, I mean, from what we can see when we see Azul and Riddle’s interactions with Floyd, they don’t seem to go out of their ways to entertain him, and act mostly "in character" for them (Azul being overly calculating and mumbling about the problems that Floyd causes and Riddle being quick to enrage). Yet, Floyd keeps finding things interesting with them. I mean, outside of Jade, Floyd stuck himself to Azul (and Riddle to some extent) the longest. So they must have something in them that makes them so interesting to him (I have a whole lot of rambling on Riddle and Azul since they’re my fav characters (along with the Tweels) so I get you Floyd. They’re really interesting).

And, in a way, Floyd seems to care on a deeper level only to the people he deems intereting (aka. Jade, Azul and Riddle). We can see his care for his brother in multiple ways, his care for Azul in Book 3 before Azul Overblots (really well depicted in the manga btw) and his care for Riddle is littered here and there.

First of all, begining of Book 4. Floyd (and the rest of the Octatrio) comes to meet us in the Mirror Chamber and... Proposes to Riddle to stay with him over the winter holiday ? My boy you’re really down bad you know that ?

Seriously, we can easily understand that Floyd realised that Riddle was hesitant to go back to his mother for the break, and his first reaction is not "well, you can always count on your friends, and go to them" (Trey even proposed !). No. His first reaction was like, welp, you can always stay with me. The way the chapters are made, Book 4 chapter 3 ends with Floyd’s interjection.

"What’sa matter Goldfishie ? Don’t wanna go home ? Then, there’s an idea : don’t. We’re not. C’mon, you can join us in the stay-at-school club. Heh heh !"

Twisted Wonderland, Book 4 "Schemer of the Scalding Sands", Chapter 4 "A Sendoff from Morays"

It’s literally the first two dialogues of the chapter. I didn’t go further, but Riddle gets irked by Floyd sticking his nose in his business and Jade chimes in to temperate things between the two. Floyd then retorts something quite interesting for me :

"Aw, c’mon Jade. It’s boring spending every new year with the same old suspects. Besides, Goldfishie’s so teeny, I’m sure Azul would love to keep him as a pet !"

Twisted Wonderland, Book 4 "Schemer of the Scalding Sands", Chapter 4 "A Sendoff from Morays"

Riddle answers by becoming all red from rage and is really close to trying to collar Floyd. The rage is defused by Trey and the rest of Heartslabyul, but I’d like to point something quite interesting. In the end of chapter 3 (after having discussed with the Savanaclaw trio), Riddle is shown to be out of the loop, Ace and Grim making remarks on that note :

"Huh, he’s soundin’ kinda defeated."

"Oh, right. The housewarden’s got an extreme case of helicopter parenting waiting for him at home. No wonder he’s not enthused about heading back."

Twisted Wonderland, Book 4 "Schemer of the Scalding Sands", Chapter 3 "Leaving for the Holidays"

We can more or less see the Heartshackle gang trying to cheer up their friend, but nothing seems to work. Until Floyd appears, makes a beeline for the redhead and angers him. And I mean, a reaction, even as "bad" as that one is still a better outcome than whatever he was feeling before. Even Trey notices it.

"Good grief. Well, at least he’s got his moxie back."

Twisted Wonderland, Book 4 "Schemer of the Scalding Sands", Chapter 4 "A Sendoff from Morays"

It is quite easy to see, with minimum media literacy at play, that what Floyd was doing was trying to ellicit a reaction -any reaction- from Riddle, in a convoluted way of, not cheering him up per say, but making him concentrate on something else, something that is not what hell would be waiting for him at his house. And he succeded. Any punishment he would have possibly faced hadn’t Riddle been stopped by Trey and Cater would have been fair game in his book (and he would have defused the spell either way).

I’m probably over analysing that but I can’t remember a moment in the whole game (in the parts I played at least) where Floyd is shown caring that much for someone. I mean, his words are the literal reason why Azul overblotted (I’m pretty sure that if Floyd hadn’t say what he said to Azul at that time, the overblot would have happened, yes, but a bit later if not at all). Floyd is the exact definition of not really caring outwardly for people ! But here, he is shown caring -in some convoluted ways once again- for Riddle who is clearly distressed about going back to his mother. And I found that the jab of keeping Riddle as a pet is somewhat sarcasticly funny. I mean, Riddle’s mother is treating her son like a doll, or a pet to train and show off. It shows, in some ways, that Floyd is aware of what happens in Riddle home life at that point in the story. Was it through rumors after his overblot, or did he piece the puzzle himself after havig seen Riddle’s reaction to going back to his mother’s during their first year ? We will probably never know.

What I also want to say by that, is that Floyd is deeply intelligent. Not just academically, but emotionally too. He’s probably the most emotionally intelligent guy in the whole cast, contrary to what he lets on (reminds me of Perceval in Kaamelott in some ways). He also possesses a really good sense of ebservation. Once again, in his Beans Camo vignette, he realises that if he lets Epel grow freely, the little guy might become a worthy opponent.

"I was gonna let him get a little roughed up to remind him who's boss, but hey. If I let Guppy keep swimmin', he might grow into a meal worth eating one day. I'll lay off him for now. After all, it'll be way more fun to crush him when he's strong and all sure of himself. Aha ha."

Twisted Wonderland, Floyd Beens Camo Vignette,"Nowhere Near the Best" Part.3

And I’m not sure if, at the time of the vignette happening, Epel has developped his unique magic. It’s possible, but not of good use since the use of magic is prohibited during Beanfest.

Anyway, his ability of perception (which I find quite funny since eels are famously known for having shitty vision) is also highlighted in my previous point. He realised, on his own, that Riddle wasn’t doing quite alright. No one told him "hey, your favourite ‘victim’ isn’t doing well", he just went to make sure that Riddle as okay on his own volition. And it’s not the first time something like that happens. Indeed, in the first halloween event, at the end of it, we can see Floyd caring for both Jade and Riddle. He forces the first one to stop working and sit down for a while, and he pushes the other to eat more. Here, it’s Floyd’s reaction towards Riddle that interests me, not because that post isn’t on Jade and Floyd, but more because it is prompted before Floyd’s entrance in the scene that Jade has been working a lot, while it’s never mentioned once before that Riddle hasn’t eaten enough.

"Psh. Teapot tyrant, meet kettle. You haven't had more than a couple'a nibbles yourself, Goldfishie. Even a real goldfish eats more than that. Aren't you a growing boy?"

"I'll have you know I consume my recommended caloric intake every day, without any excess or deficiency!"

Twisted Wonderland, "Twisted Halloween : Terror is Trending", chapter 5-7

A bit farther, at the very end of the same chapter, Floyd grabs Riddle and brings him to the buffet, forcing him to eat.

"You got it! C'mon, Goldfishie!"

"I told you, Floyd— Would you stop tugging?! Argh!"

Twisted Wonderland, "Twisted Halloween : Terror is Trending", chapter 5-7

It is easy to understand that Floyd is used to Eating Disorders, especially considering he is friends with Azul, who is the reference in EDs in the cast (I mean, just see his backstory and read through Book 3 and you’ll have the big picture). Riddle’s ED isn’t the same as Azul’s, in the sense that it isn’t self inflicted, but ingrained in him. And for the sceptics, EDs aren’t just anorexia or bulimia. The fact that Riddle counts his calories and takes notes of every intake of food is very much a symptom of an eating disorder (this is another proof of Madam Rosehearts’ abuse on her son btw). And what does Floyd do ? he takes care of bringing Riddle with him to the buffet. Especially after seeing the reaction the boy had when cake was mentioned. Again, no one mentioned Riddle before Floyd intevened, only after that did Ruggie make a comment on that fact. (I also would like to point the change made to the idiom "pot, meet kettle" here. It’s funny as hell and shows a form of intelligence, because, being able to modify an idiom to one’s whims asks for a deep undertsanding of a language and its codes).

It was the last bit of trivia I had to analyse for the time being. At the time when I write these words, we only have 116 chapter of Book 7, so we haven’t encountered the dreams of the Octatrio yet, and even if I keep myself updated on what happens on the jp server I am not aware of everything that happens in details (I can’t read japanese for the life of me so I won’t play on jp server at all).

I realise that I have gone away from my first point of trying to analyse Floyd’s interest in Riddle using only biology and ended up doing a full-on analysis of FloRid moments... Oops...

So, let’s conclude once and for all that lit- *checks the word count* that analysis, shall we ?

While I think that Floyd’s interest in Riddle first spawned during their orientation (and his dream sequence gives us a hint on that matter), I think that Floyd’s continually renewed in Riddle isn’t just some sort of simple interest, but some form of infatuation. I mean. The anthology manga is there for a reason (even if its canonicity is debatable). We can see in various examples that Floyd cares for Riddle to some extent, the same way he cares for Azul (or Jade, but it’s not really the same form of care), and that his neurodivergence makes him hyperfixate on Riddle for some reason or another. I didn’t delve into my "theory" that Floyd might have some form of Bipolar Disorder because it hasn’t as much proof that it is here than the ADHD theory/headcanon, and it’s more a headcanon of mine than a fully fledged theory I have. Either way, it is clear that our moody eel is deeply attached to the teapot tyrant, and I think I was quite clear on that matter.

Now, and before I save this document and post it, I would like to talk about something. The "bully x victim" trope that opposants to the ship see. While I can understand the idea, I think it is not taking into account the numerous events where Floyd and Riddle are together. Sure, in the main story it is easily seen that Floyd has a favourite "victim" to his overly excitable moods, but a bully x victim would imply that Riddle isn’t able of defending himself. And he is. He just lets Floyd act that way because, whatever he will do, nothing would deter the eel. He is literally the guy that sent Floyd flying on their first day, for Samael’s sake ! And, I mean, Beanfest and the Stitch event do tell us a different story than "Riddle is a damsel in distress, victim to the whims of evil evil Floyd". Even in the halloween events we can see that they -at least- tolerate each other. But, I get it, when the game fist came out in english (because I see that discourse more on western fandom spaces (thank you to my friend who acts like a translator for me to scroll through the jp side of the fandom)), people didn’t have any access to the second Beanfest event, even less to the Stitch event, and were only privy to Floyd’s School Uniform vignette and their interaction in Book 2. But right now, with everything we have for us, I think that this argument is just plain media illiteracy. You can say that I’m over analysing Beanfest, sure. But don’t come at me for things that are clearly said in the game (like the Stitch event or Halloween events). And please, by Demon’s law, let people enjoy their silly ships however they like. I’m not coming at you for liking a ship I don’t have a particular affinty to, to come at me and call me deranged for shipping what is just basically a Red and Blue ship.

Oh, and, last point before I close that document. At one point, Jade says something that stuck with me.

"Heh... As long as you’re enjoying yourself, Floyd."

Twisted Wonderland, Floyd Halloween Vignette, "A Big Fan of Pirates"

And we see Floyd having fun in most of his vignettes. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what this is. (Yes, it has nothing to do with FloRid, but I wanted to put this here since I love the Tweels and their bond.)

Welp. This is the end of that analysis. Thank you for reading all of that, it’s more than 5k words, and I did most of that at work. I have a lot of things to say about the Octatrio and Riddle (as people who follow me on my private instagram has been victims to. I literally yapped about twst for 3h30...) as well as on other characters.

If you’re interested in reading what I write, here is my Ao3 link : https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phenixa. At the time I’m writing these words there is only two twst fanfics (being FloRid) and a small dozen of Kingdom Hearts fanfics, but more twst is coming in the future. I’m currently working on a college!AU if you’re interested ^^

I finished vomiting my analysis, it is time to say bye !

#twst #twisted wonderland #floyd leech #riddle rosehearts #twst floyd #twst riddle #analysis #twisted wonderland analysis #twst analysis #floyd leech / riddle rosehearts #FloRid #floyd/riddle #i'm an avid florid shipper #i can talk about them for hours on end #i kinda did that on insta tho #i mean. my top 4 twst character is like n1 : Riddle. n2 : AzulFloydJade #if anyone has tidbits to give feel free i'd love to hear (well read) them

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airsoftaction · 7 months ago

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maggiecheungs · 3 years ago

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i am the anon from before and i would absolutely love to read ur paragraph of reasons for why u chose which films u did.

really? 🥺👉👈 lmao i'm so used to people running in the other direction when i try to talk about cinema or books (which, now that i’ve written eight paragraphs in response to this ask, i understand 😳). but you asked, so….

crouching tiger, hidden dragon (2000) - THIS FILM IS SO GOOD. i really love wuxia films and cdramas but this one is a particular favourite beacuse it just feels so.... perfectly balanced? the cast is absolutely amazing, the cinematography is stunning, the relationships are so fraught, the fight sequences are absolutely incredible, the atmosphere is intoxicating. objectively it’s probably not completely flawless (few things are!) but to me it pretty much feels like a perfect film

the tale of princess kaguya (2013) - this is one of studio ghibli's less famous films: an adaptation of the 9th century fairytale the tale of the bamboo cutter made with exceedingly simple animation. the story is about a bamboo cutter who discovers a little moon princess in the forest one day, adopts her as his daughter, and takes her to the capital city where she is courted by many suitors (all of whom she rejects) before she is finally summoned back to the moon. this film is so deceptively simple on the surface, but ultimately that’s what makes it all the more profound and heartbreaking

mary is happy, mary is happy (2013) - i only watched this film this year but i'm absolutely obsessed with it. it’s a quirky coming-of-age film by one of my favourite directors, ter nawapol, based on 410 consecutive tweets from a real-life teenager, which nawapol manages to thread together into an often surreal, darkly comic and startlingly profound story about a teenage girl approaching graduation

your name engraved herein (2020) - this one, about two young men falling in love in 1980s taiwan, is one of my absolute favourite queer coming of age films. it’s absolutely excellent on all counts--cinematography, acting, characterisation--but what really stays with me is the sheer amount of emotion it contains. if i tried to hold that much emotion in me i would probably explode

the philadelphia story (1940) - this film was my childhood favourite--i grew up watching a LOT of old hollywood films, but this is my fave. it's a screwball romantic comedy/satire of upper-class 1930s Philadelphia, about a socialite who’s trying to get married to her second husband (but her first husband and a pair of reporters turn up and make everything a lot more complicated). PLUS it stars katharine hepburn and cary grant, both of whom i adore <3

malila: the farewell flower (2017) - malila is about two men (former lovers) who reunite in the thai countryside years after they went their separate ways; one of them is terminally ill, and the other one is about to become a monk. i don’t really know how to describe it beyond that--it’s just an incredibly quiet and slow and intimate film about the way grief can eat away at a person; about love not as a grand gesture but as absolute familiarity and trust; about how love and grief go hand in hand

sherekilebi/the eccentrics (1973) - another film from my childhood <3 this is one of the masterpieces of georgian cinema so obviously, being half georgian, i grew up watching it. it’s a soviet satire film about a young man from the provinces who gets thrown in prison and ends up building a flying machine with his mad genius cellmate and i just adore it to pieces <3

the adolescence of utena (1999) - this film is an absolute mindfuck directed by kunihiko ikuhara (another of my absolute favourite directors, you either love him or hate him). it's a retelling of/sequel/companion to the 39 episode anime revolutionary girl utena, but it can stand alone. apart from that, i LITERALLY don’t know how to describe it. uhhh... the main character turns into a racing car at one point and that’s not even the strangest thing that happens

#sorry for rambling 😅#i just really love talking about my favourite films!!#thank u for indulging me <3 #ask response #anonymous #film anon #movie tag #ellistxt

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thistransient · 4 years ago

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Dunno if this happens to anyone else, but tumblr likes to refresh and delete my posts-in-progress if I adjust the size of the browser window.

I had started writing about all of my anxieties surrounding getting the ESL job in Thailand I told myself I would pursue if conditions did not improve by October (they were legion). I had concluded that perhaps I should just buy some time by applying for another student visa instead, seeing as Covid restrictions are relaxing tomorrow, thus sparing me the fulfillment of that previous promise. Then I realized I would still have to renew my passport at some point to do this. I started googling about Thai visa policy and reading impressively long comment threads. I learned there’s a difference between formal (university) and informal (language school) education visa policy. “Perhaps if I just go to university here I will never have to leave” I mused, completely forgetting about my goals for Taiwan.

I started looking up English-language programs, worrying about admissions procedures, and reading articles about linguistics trying to discern if the thing I would hypothetically research had been researched already. Suddenly it appeared to be 17:00. I had still not made the tumblr post, which was supposed to be something to ease myself into writing on the emails on today’s to-do list, on top of items from yesterday’s neglected to-do list. I went back to the tumblr post. Of course it was gone, due to the aforementioned phenomenon. The mystery, however, of how I seem to get exceedingly little done daily appeared to be solved.

#it could be this is normal but sometimes i wonder if i have ADD

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route22ny · 5 years ago

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Two minute read about the author’s experience visiting Taiwan where the response and disciplines concerning Covid19 have been vastly different than the plague-crippled US and other suffering nations:

***

A note from abroad:

Realizing now that I've been 5 days out of US that many folks back home don't realize how other countries might be living with the 'Rona. Here is what it was like to come to Taiwan. I think we could maybe learn a coupla things... /1

Upon our plane touching down in TPE, we were immediately placed in two lines: one for folks with a working intl cell phone, one for the rest of us (to buy a very affordable local SIM card.) The government is then able to track us while we are in the country /2

Once through immigration and baggage, we are required to take govt-approved covid-safe cars to our quarantine hotels. (If you are a local, you can self-isolate at home.) No leaving your room (or home) for 15 days. Not for walks- nothing. /3

At the hotel: meals are left outside your door three times a day. There is no contact with anyone. Every day, you get a call from the health department asking if you have any symptoms. If so, they will immediately rush you to the hospital for care. /4

As a sidebar, I have discovered that I am weirdly okay having all my daily living decisions made for me. Have not yet gone crazy confined within four walls. Perhaps I would have made a good housepet. /5

Never mind about domesticity, after 15 days, you are free to go. For 7 more days, you are required to check your temperature every morning (they actually gift you a thermometer) and someone calls every day to make sure you're okay. /6

Because most local citizens have voluntarily signed up for contact tracing (and all of us foreigners are required to opt-in) should a case break out, anyone who was in significant contact would be notified, then required to self-isolate for a number of days. /7

At any point, if you break quarantine - which they can tell by the movements of your phone - you could be fined 10-30k. They are quite serious on this point. Then again, they haven't had a case in 200 days. And everyone has been living their lives freely since February./8

A note on contact tracing: I'm no expert, and historically a proponent of privacy, but if you have a credit card, or downloaded any number of apps, it seems "they" already have your info. So in a gosh-darn pandemic: sign up for contact tracing! /9

Again, not an expert. But again: EVERYONE IN TAIWAN HAS BEEN LIVING THEIR LIVES FREELY SINCE FEBRUARY! I mean yes, people voluntarily wear masks in public places, but otherwise, restaurants, subways, etc are packed. So.... /10

I guess this could have been our lives too? Food for thought... /end

***

Alice Wu: Filmmaker. Improviser. Order Muppet. #SavingFace (Sony Classics, 2005) #TheHalfOfIt (Netflix, 2020) Instagram: subwayalice @thatalicewu (Source: https://threader.app/thread/1330287079708893184)

(Source: https://threader.app/thread/1330287079708893184)

#covid-19 #coronavirus #contact tracing #taiwan #alice wu #trump knew and did nothing

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natsunoomoi · 4 years ago

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Holy crap. So like with the previous post I was thinking about Fushigi Yuugi again and kind of checking up on what was up with Byakko Senki cuz I haven’t checked on it in awhile and it looks like it’s on hiatus right now and she’s working more on Arata Kangatari, which is cool cuz I thought she finished that, but I guess not and she just took a break to like finish Genbu and do Byakko or something.

But also I was scrolling through her Twitter to find that she is really into this Chinese movie “Legend of Luo Xiaohei” and so I was checking that out cuz so ironic that Japanese mangaka that got her big break writing manga about an ancient China setting is interested in a Chinese movie. So just looking through her Twitter thread and apparently she found out about Luo Xiaohei from watching a CM while watching Modao Zushi. LMAO It’s amazing, but this situation just feels like an ouroboros eating itself because I have a high suspicion that her work on Fushigi Yuugi imported into China back in the 90s was probably a huge influence on Chinese creators and artists to write their own stories about their culture and helped to popularize the xianxia and wuxia novel movements in more modern times. On top of that MXTX said she was inspired by a D. Gray-man fanfic and while she mentioned that title specifically, I think in the periphery Fushigi Yuugi itself and more recently Arata were probably an influence too. Growing up a number of my Chinese friends also said they got into anime overall because of Fushigi Yuugi because it was an anime and work from Japan about their culture and arguably done pretty damn well.

In terms of the danmei movement as well, I’m pretty sure Fushigi Yuugi was included in what started the movement as the movement was influenced by Japanese BL that came in via Taiwan, and the beginning of Fushigi Yuugi had the whole thing between Nuriko and Hotohori even though that kind of went nowhere, Nuriko dies to everyone’s depression (I have several friends who refuse to watch the rest of the series after Nuriko dies because it’s not the same), and that whole ship goes off a weird deep end with Hotohori marrying a woman that looks like Nuriko. Also, the exact reasons for Nuriko being in the harem and all that. There was a whole lot of shipping in the 90s from Fushigi Yuugi and it was one of the first series that had a male cast that was almost entirely ikemen and I think the actual first reverse harem. A number of shows probably simultaneously popularized the female gaze in mainstream anime, but Fushigi Yuugi was definitely one of them. Like literally one or two years before there was a lot of manly men and guy’s guys kind of anime characters, but beautiful ikemen, no, not really. In 2021, there are some things about the series that are a bit problematic, but it’s influence on the world is pretty significant. It was one of the first shows I’d seen that had any kind of reference to homosexuality or transgender in it and although it’s not necessarily portrayed well, the fact that it was there and that Nuriko was such a beloved character it started a conversation and helped us to get to a time where the topics she represents can be more discussed. I’m actually not even sure what pronouns would be appropriate for Nuriko because of her reasons for what she did and in Japanese the pronoun problem is actually really easy to get around because you just don’t have a subject or speaking in 3rd person is totally normal. But still, without her the minds of thousands or even millions of fans around the world would not have been opened as early to LGBT topics. Her existence, even problematic as it might be, allowed people to consider and love a character of a different sexual orientation or gender identity than their own and just open their minds to just not being a homophobic, biphobic (cuz relationship with Miaka?), or transphobic piece of shit.

Then also Genbu Kaiden and Uruki’s powers. Yeah.... I mean, also kind of with the earlier discussion, the idea of dual cultivation I don’t recall even being brought up much before in most media, but such ideas were also banned and repressed in China at a certain point. Documentation shows it was more of an ancient practice that suddenly became known about again. The book I was talking about that has it more explicitly written is banned in China has its only original surviving copy in the Japanese National Library as it was one of the books brought to Japan by scholars escaping persecution in China and bringing with them books to escape one of the many episodes of mass book burning. According to my Chinese lit professor who had us read an English translation of that book as a part of our curriculum anyway. Supposedly the translator of said book had to go to Japan to read the original in order to write the translation. There’s apparently a number of ancient Chinese texts like that because book burnings were a thing at different points in Chinese history, so if you are a scholar of Chinese lit if you want a complete picture of your field for some texts you do actually have to come to Japan to do your research. But yeah, that power mentioned in that very book Watase-sensei gave to Soi, and also the story of Fushigi Yuugi takes place in that very library that contains that ancient copy of a banned and would have been lost to the world book. If you’re asking why a “dirty” book would be something a scholar would grab to save, ancient lit scholars do regard it as a rather well-written piece of literature even though the content of it is basically taboo.

But also the Fushigi Yuugi Suzaku Ibun game is a hot mess when it comes to this same issue because if you romance Nuriko you can save her from death and my friend Hikari said she wasn’t sure if she was happy about fucking with the universe like that. (I’m not either.) Nuriko’s death was such a huge impact on the story and everything. Also, notably, most of the Suzaku Shichiseishi died, but Nuriko had the LONGEST tribute. Like Chiriko and Mitsukake’s was like a tag on of a few minutes. Hotohori’s was too even, but it was addressed more in the later manga chapters the publisher pressured her to write and in the OVA series afterward.

Also, like Fushigi Yuugi other than the Neverending Story was one of the original sucked into a book holy shit how do I survive stories. Idk if SVSSS is influenced by it in that way, but it’s fair to draw the parallels because of the similar theme. It’s just canonically Taiitsu Shinjin is not behind the the system in the book and in a number of ways Shen Yuan is more competent than Miaka. Miaka gets a lot of shit though and when I re-watched FY a second time I actually found the gripes people generally have about it make up only a small part of the series. People just talk it up so much that it seems like a huge thing when it’s not. Plus the technical canon is only the original TV series because that’s where Watase wanted to end the story and that is an emotional rollercoaster that makes you cry so good. But like there’s some other kinds of parallels as well like how toward the end and like the last two episodes you hate Nakago up until the exact moment you find out why he’s an absolute asshole, and characters straight up criticizing him about how he’s an asshole the whole damn series just gives the same kind of feels that SY gave criticizing the original throughout SVSSS. Can’t say for sure, but Fushigi Yuugi has a lot of clout in a general sense.

But yeah, Watase-sensei said that she was really surprised by the animation quality of Chinese animation these days and she thought Japanese anime was going down in comparison. Same, yo. Same. But still, her work was probably a huge contributor to the movement that allowed MDZS to exist because her art is damn beautiful, Chinese influenced, and she had one of the first works in Asia to like bring the subject of LGBT issues into the mainstream after years of oppression from mostly Western influence because in pre-modern Asia no one gave a shit before and there’s a significant amount of classical novels that address some form of LGBT issues at least in Japanese lit and like even academic documentation that notes Confucius saying that doing it with a guy was better than with a woman. And the author of the work that probably was very influential to BL back in the 90s watches MDZS. She noted that there wasn’t any in the actual anime, which is true, but I think she helped that series to exist and she watches the anime so it’s kind of exciting.

I hope it influences her to go finish Byakko, but OMG I want her to finish Arata too because I like Arata. I should try to find time to read more of it because the anime is too short and the wiki descriptions of what’s happening are so damn confusing and incomplete.

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potteresque-ire · 6 years ago

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On the Hong Kong Protests

2019-08-17

I rarely talk about myself here, but I’m a Hong Konger, born and raised. I moved to the US a long time ago, but the city will always be my home.

I’ve been following the news there closely these two months. I haven’t slept well. I’m perpetually stressed. I’m both sad and happy, both frightful and hopeful.

Sad and frightful because of what the protests have come to. The violence, the sheer rage and animosity burning on the streets. Watching where tear gas and rubber bullets land every week is a strange way to revisit childhood memories, but here I am.

Happy and hopeful because Hong Kongers are finally standing up to what believe in. Hong Kongers, in my mind, have always been somewhat apathetic when it comes to politics, perhaps because they’ve never had much say in their fate. They've been mostly quiet--until now.

They roar.

I’m with the protestors. They are fighting for self-determination, for the freedoms they were promised in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration (which led to the return of the former British crown colony to China in 1997), for the transparency and true social order--one that was borne out of respect for the rule of law and not of oppression, state-sponsored violence or white terror--that had made the city such a beautiful, phenomenal place to live.

I’m posting this because the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has turned on its propaganda machine in full force, and I feel obliged to say something about what I know.

What a turbo-charged CCP propaganda machine means is this: many of you will be faced with what Hong Kong and Taiwan see every day--a massive influx of social media posters who are on CCP’s payroll, whose task is to push a script written by the CCP. A script that is mostly fictional, filled with half-truths and lies. The script on Hong Kong has evolved into this: the Hong Kong protestors are violent rioters who lack popular support and above all, are terrorists and separatists. These terms are chosen to make the Western world withdraw their sympathy. They’re also designed to further fan the hatred between mainland Chinese and Hong Kongers, to ensure that the former would see what’s going on in Hong Kong as something nefarious, rather than an outcry against the ills of their common rule. To fuel the nationalist sentiment that has been propping up the mainland regime as its economy deteriorates.

Tactics of these paid social media posters include: dumping multiple posts in a thread, often repeated messages that make little sense beyond swear words and nationalistic battle cries, which quell any reasonable discussions; making death- and doxxing- threats, especially if the target is a Chinese speaker; claiming freedom of speech as they spread lies and attack their opponents, knowing that Westerners treasure their freedom of speech and are wary of trampling upon it especially when it comes to the voice of foreigners, so they get to be the loudest and drown out rival opinions. (Australians may know that this tactic has moved beyond social media: pro-Beijing supporters have physically attacked peaceful rallies in support of the Hong Kong protests, to the praise of the Chinese embassy). The meeker ones would insist that Westerners lack understanding of the situation; who are you to know what’s going on in Asia? The internal affairs of the vast People’s Republic of China? They claim that they, who’re Chinese like the Hong Kongers and Taiwanese possessed by their government, have first dibs on the truth.

Please remember this: the truth is the one thing these posters don’t have. News in the People’s Republic of China is completely censored, to a degree perhaps unimaginable for most in the West. Media outlets in China have not reported at all about the anti-extradition bill movement that had started the Hong Kong protests, about the massive but peaceful demonstrations that had only gone unheard, about the many lies the government has told before and since (the extradition bill hasn’t been withdrawn; “being dead” is not a legal term), and above all, the unprecedented police brutality that have caused the young protestors, angry and terrified, to retaliate as a means to defend themselves, knowing that the local police is now part of the CCP political machine (the Hong Kong government is officially no more than a puppet) and is working with the mafia, both local and from China, to hunt and beat protestors down (Note: Hong Kongers do not carry firearms).

Western reporters at the scene have called the situation chaotic, a mayhem, but I’d like to emphasize this: the protestors have, so far, not looted one shop; their targets have remained singly focused on the locations and people that they saw as symbolic of those responsible for the betrayal of Hong Kong, as snitches working on CCP’s orders. The chambers of the Legislative Council (equivalent to the Congress / Parliament; they didn’t even touch the library). The HK police and its headquarters. The “ghosts”, as locals call them: police / soldiers sent from the mainland dressed in Hong Kong police’s uniform (such that CCP can deflect accusations of interference); fake reporters who’ve mingled among the protestors to take photos for later identification and arrests. This laser-focus may not hold for long: police officers have increasingly been spotted donning the attire of protestors to stir up emotions and excess violence, even plant evidence in the protestors’ belongings (caught on live feeds). The “reporter” from the mainland who was beaten up at the airport last week, who has since been hailed as a hero in Chinese state media and Chinese social media cycles, is very likely such an example of CCP's attempt to destroy the protests from within. Mr Fu drew the ire of the protestors because he possessed the same blue “I love HK” t-shirt worn by a group of thugs who’d beaten up protestors several nights before, thugs who appeared to be of the same crop as those who’d attacked subway passengers indiscriminately on July 21st with the implicit blessing by the police and several prominent pro-Beijing figures. Global Times, the state propaganda tabloid, later claimed the man works for them--hence his “reporter” status--but the man didn’t own a press pass. Many have since suspected, from his unusual behavior leading to his “detainment” and beating by the protestors (he wore the fluorescent vest worn by reporters, then claimed to be a tourist, then tried to run away), that his presence was planned with the intention of making the protestors fall into CCP’s script of acting like violent rioters in front of the international press--and it worked. The incident was widely reported.

The beating was wrong, and the protestors had willingly chosen to fall into the trap. But were their suspicion, their rage and fears completely unfounded? The clip has gone viral with the push from Chinese-sponsored social media posters as evidence of the protestors’ brutality. What about the context?

Related to this, please consider: a powerful weapon that CCP has, that Hong Kong and most countries do not, is the sheer number of people at its disposal. People it can coerce, bribe, brainwash, and unleash onto Facebook and Twitter etc, derail conversations and force opinions their way. Social media is, by definition, run by the masses. CCP has the masses.

So, please, please don’t be led by the mass when reading news surrounding the CCP, and now, Hong Kong. Please doubt the things you hear on social media, even if the voice seems the loudest, even if it seems to be the majority. Even if its English is perfect. Even if it claims to originate from Hong Kong--Westerners are not trained to detect the subtle difference in language use between the two places, but speaking as an observing Hong Konger, pro-CCP posters playing Hong Kongers in social media threads are very common occurrences. Go through the facts. Watch videos longer than a few seconds that capture the context. Think. Do not trust anyone. Do not trust me.

Please choose a reliable news source. New York Times (US) and The Guardian (UK) have been following Hong Kong’s protests closely from the start. TIME magazine has also done some in-depth coverage: its latest Asia edition presents a decent summary of the root causes of the protests. Also of note: the majority of Hong Kong’s local press, such as the English-speaking South China Morning Post (SCMP), have been bought out by capitalists affiliated with the CCP (SCMP is owned by Alibaba). Outlets from Taiwan and South East Asia (Singapore, Malaysia etc.) are often CCP-friendly as well for similar reasons. These outlets aren’t as outwardly pro-CCP as the Chinese state-run People’s Daily or Global Times, but they can be very skewed, if not lying, when the actions of CCP itself come to focus.

For those who’d like to watch the happenings live, relatively free from the filters by news agencies and their political agenda, here’s a link. Videos will appear whenever events and live feeds take place:

https://ncehk2019.github.io/nce-live/

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you’ll consider following the news of Hong Kong, listen to what the people are fighting for and judge for yourself where you stand. Yes, it’ll look ugly at times. Yes, you’ll see the protestors act rashly, out of anger and fear and despair. You’ll see them make mistakes, do things that make you frown, think they’ve gone too far. And if you’re planning to travel there, their actions may cause major inconveniences. I hope you’ll still choose to stand with them--do you know they've actually gone out and apologized for their behavior in the airport? Visited the subway station where the police had fired tear gas and cleaned up the toxic residue? Would rioters or terrorists do that?

The protestors are up against one of the most brutal and inhumane regimes in modern history, and they have no leaders, no precedence, no army, no funds, no backing of any kind other than popular support, other than a pure and simple faith that their actions will defend their homes and future. This isn’t a regime they can vote out in the next election. This isn’t even a regime with which they can have a conversation or make humble demands (the Five Demands of the protestors are almost laughably simple). The path the protestors have taken these two months has been made one step at a time; they’re learning, feeling their way out of the dark as they go. Because the movement is largely driven by social media, people like myself with a command of the local language can sometimes catch a glimpse of how the decisions unfold; it’s messy and loud and fascinating. It’s an experiment on direct democracy.

Do I agree with the protestors’ every action? No. But they’re the ones fighting the fight; they're the ones showing the strength, the courage that my generation, and the generations before me, didn’t have. They’re fighting because older generations like my own saw every warning sign of CCP’s encroachment but didn’t do enough, say enough. For me, one of the most heartbreaking photos of the protests was shot on July 1st, of a graffiti on a pillar in the trashed Legislative Council: it’s you (the government) who taught me that peaceful demonstrations are useless. This was a lesson they learned; this is a lesson many Hong Kongers have learned this summer. And most of these protestors have to face this knowledge so young; 700+ have been arrested so far, most in their late teens and 20s (youngest: 13). Rioting carries a sentence of 10 years; now that their “crimes” have been escalated to terrorism and treason, one can only imagine how horrific their sentences will be, the treatment those arrested are facing, even now, in detention before the trial. This is the price they’re willing to pay, for the right to self-determine, for the freedoms that should’ve been theirs all along. And the only way they can “win”, if their victory is only that the last cry of Hong Kong can be heard before CCP clenches its throat (which it will undoubtedly do), is if the West pays attention to what’s happening.

Please do. Please help.

香港加油。天佑香港。

God bless Hong Kong.

#pie speaks for hong kong

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warninggraphiccontent · 6 years ago

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29 November 2019

Manifesto destiny

What do this year's manifestos have to say about data, digital, open government and technology?

While we wouldn't expect them to get into the finer points of digital government and better uses of data in government - not in themselves the most doorstep-friendly of issues - there's a fair amount in there. Online harms, cybersecurity, citizens' digital rights, using data to better understand barriers to diversity (very Race Disparity Audit) and general references to technology across various sectors all make an appearance. There's not that much on open data or open government (beyond an eye-catching Lib Dem promise on a citizens' assembly on algorithms), or much detail on the Conservative promise to improve the use of data, data science and evidence in government (#classicdom). We've got a summary here, the Ada Lovelace Institute have one here, and Peter Wells has a thread on each here.

It's interesting to compare with the 2017 versions. The Conservatives apparently promised some new bodies on the use and ethics of data, and geospatial data - whatever happened to those? - while Labour promised to keep the Land Registry and all its data under public control (repeated this time around) and extend freedom of information to private providers of public services (ditto). No mention of Freedom of Information in the Lib Dem manifesto for the first time in a while.

There'll be some more on manifestos on this week's Inside Briefing podcast. We looked at, or rather listened to, prime ministerial tenure last week.

And in brief:

It was a real pleasure to chair Will from Full Fact, Liz from Digital Action, my old boss Martin from King's and the chair of the Electoral Commission, Sir John Holmes, on whether we can trust our electoral system in an age of rapidly evolving technology. All killer, no filler, as the kids say - well worth a watch or listen.

And if you liked that, you may like some of our other #IFGElection2019 events, including one next week on other aspects of our electoral system.

Another important event: on starting a career in public policy. Thinking about a career in public policy? Never thought about a career in public policy? Want to get started in thinktanks, or still wondering what a thinktank is? Come and have your questions answered on Monday 9 December.

To the Argentine Embassy for the launch of the Bennett Institute's new report on digital government in Argentina since 2015. Excellent discussion, excellent report, excellent empanadas.

No Data Bites next week - we're hoping to get started again in February. But as well as watching all the previous ones back, you can join us for some drinks on Wednesday - get in touch via Twitter if you'd like to join.

RIP Clive James.

It's easy to forget in the midst of the election campaign but it is nearly Christmas. Come and celebrate with my choir, the New Tottenham Singers, on Saturday 14 December.

Have a great weekend

Gavin

Today's links:

Graphic content

Let's talk about MRP

The key findings from our MRP (YouGov)

Election Centre (YouGov)

MRP election poll: Boris Johnson heads for big majority* (The Times)

Poll forecasts Commons majority for Boris Johnson* (FT)

How do pollsters predict UK general election results? (FT)

Manifestos

Where does the climate emergency first get mention in the party manifestos? (Tortoise)

A chart based analysis of the text in the Conservative and Labour manifestos (Daniel Tomlinson)

Manifesto word count (me for IfG)

#GE2019, etc

Top target seats in the 2019 general election – interactive (The Guardian)

Meet Parliament’s class of 2019* (The Economist, via Tom)

What happens if a prime minister loses their seat in a general election? (IfG)

A New Class Of Angry Partisan Facebook Pages Are Dominating The Online War In The British General Election (BuzzFeed)

Trust in civil servants/politicians (me for IfG)

Veracity Index (Ipsos MORI)

We're now three weeks without a Secretary of State for Wales (me for IfG)

Long term trend shows decreasing concern over economy, unemployment, rise of Brexit (Ipsos MORI)

Women in parliament (Alice for IfG)

Tax and spend

This is how marginal taxes work (Mona Chalabi)

Explaining progressive income tax (Matthew Armstrong)

Divided and connected: Regional inequalities in the North, the UK and the developed world – State of the North 2019 (IPPR)

Elections elsewhere

Hong Kong election results mapped* (New York Times)

A Staggering Number of Candidates Are Running for U.S. President* (Bloomberg)

Who is ahead in the Democratic primary race?* (The Economist)

Everything else

How Do You Find Good NFL Defenders? By Measuring What’s Not There. (FiveThirtyEight)

A kaleidoscope of river pollution (The ENDS Report)

Die letzten Mieter (Zeit Online)

Pope Francis, globe-trotting at an age when other popes have eased up, is trying to transform the church through his travels* (Washington Post)

Data and #dataviz

Survey of public sector information management 2018/19 (data.gov.nz)

Make your own UK General Election maps (Flourish)

Lowering the bar (Full Fact)

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soundofseventeen · 6 years ago

Text

Anywhere But Here (Boo Seungkwan)

I hope the Joshua one wasn’t too terrible! Unto Seungkwan! (I own nothing except the words.) -Bee

Masterlist

Seungkwan remembered when he was a teenager, he read a book by some American author about a guy who was looking for a girl, but he didn’t actually know who she was or where she lived, but he found her by chance and he remembered thinking how that was the stupidest thing a person could ever do. But it wasn’t how it conveniently played out that made him think that. It was the fact that the guy walked the whole way to her. Granted, if his curiosity wasn’t as great as it was, he’d be on his couch back in Jeju and not walking in the forest in the middle of the night following the red string that was visible only to him. (He did however, vow not to critique any other fictional character since he now knew their struggles.)

This endeavor might have been his most challenging feat by far. He could recall being younger and following the string coming out of his pinkie to see where it’d lead him but he would make it to the end of the block before one of his family members would come out and take him back inside. Of course as he grew up, he ventured a little more just to see where it ended, often growing frustrated because the end never arrived. (On one occasion he ended up somewhere in Taiwan, and another between the North and South Korean border when he was supposed to be on vacation.)

Many times he found himself holding a pair of scissors ready to cut the accursed thing, only to be scolded by his mom not to be doing that because it was dangerous. However, the one time he did manage to do it, he ended up breaking the scissors and he didn’t even know why that happened. His dreams plagued him on what was on the other end from finding the lost city of Atlantis to picking up the lottery ticket off the floor that could earn him millions and once he even found the famous Michelle Obama at a comic convention. The final straw for him was when the end led him to a spaceship that took him to a different planet and the people there made him their king. He tried to ignore it, but when that left him restless, he sold his safe house (probably not his best idea if he was being honest) and with that money, hit the road with nothing but his backpack with necessities and the skin on his back. He supposed he could’ve used that money to drive to the destination, but he figured that would’ve been anticlimactic and what could he say to friends back home if he didn’t go above and beyond? Well, if he had friends that’s what he’d tell him, at least.

By day, he roamed where the red string led him, sometimes through the woods, other times through a suburban neighborhood, and by night, found a hotel that would meet his standards so he could shower and wash his clothes. In one instance, he rented his own boat to cross the water that led him to a dock that led to nowhere where he walked and walked until he ended up in Busan. Sometimes he felt like giving up and when he wanted to turn around, he’d feel a light tug as if pulling him closer to where he needed to be. He backtracked maybe once or twice but pursued nonetheless. He ran out of cash a lot sooner than he expected and instead of withdrawing from his bank account, he resorted to busking in the streets and relying on his voice to keep him going. Nature was his constant companion and he didn’t know how he ended up enjoying the quiet, but he realized that once he did, he couldn’t get enough of it. He eventually bought a blanket to carry around with him when the days were cooler but even then he came down with a cold, which made him stay indoors a lot longer than he liked, like now. At one point, it got so bad, he was bedridden for a couple days, and right before his fever broke, he felt like something was pulling towards him, but because of his lack of strength, he couldn’t do anything except moan and groan that he couldn’t. He could feel the physical force of the something pulling at the thread and if he wasn’t so weak, he would’ve gone up and searched for the culprit. By the time he recovered a bit, all he could see was the string he was supposed to follow.

“Thanks for the help DK!” You exclaimed, stepping back to admire your newest painting that had been delivered. You might’ve been fond of art, but when it came down to the flowers and trees and everything that Mother Nature created, there was only one person who could capture its beauty and that was Chinese painter The8. You’d had your eye on one of his works that would continuously sell out but had finally been able to snag it albeit you had to go through different cities all over South Korea (and sometimes leaving it!) to find it. You handed him his paycheck once you were back at one of the counters before he clocked out for the evening and he gave you the day’s sales from his deliveries plus loose change and tips despite the fact that he was alone for a few days. He chatted away of the day’s events, filling you in on the events from how one of the people at the retirement homes was looking more and more like the undead and how one of his friends at the thrift shop was consuming an unhealthy amount of coffee and the neighbor’s dog Aji chewed on his welcome mat while he was on lunch break.

“Aren’t you pissed about that?” You asked him. “If that was me, I would’ve...never mind, I wouldn’t.”

“Nah, she was just hungry. Usually I leave her snacks since Mingyu is okay with it, but how you left early and I had to open, I didn’t have time, so I guess there’s that.” He glanced up at your painting. “I still can’t believe you went all the way to Jeju for that. Where’d you sleep anyways?”

“At a hotel somewhere in Busan…”

“That’s...quite a tourist move.”

You didn’t tell Seokmin about your time in Busan. It’s not like he wouldn’t have understood, but there was something there that kept you from leaving. Your curiosity had gotten the best of you and used part of your free time to see how you far you could get following the string around your finger. It led you to a hotel on the other side of town and that’s where the fear set in, mentally using the excuse of being needed for orders at Smile Flower and keeping things in order even if you were short handed. (You hated to admit that you went up to the door and deliberated whether or not to knock, and opting to pull the string.) You scratched your pinkie finger, digging your thumb nail into the soft material of the red thread that wouldn’t be seen by the boy you were conversing with and opted for a shrug. “A change is good sometimes.” A fake yawn. “Well, I think we should we head out now. I have a long list of orders for this weekend and please remind me to put up a help wanted sign in case we stop being able to handle it. Good night.”

At precisely 4:47 the next afternoon, you delivered the bundles of flowers to Adequate Eternity, the coffee place next door with the help of Dino, one of their workers. He was a colorblind boy who often asked you about the colors you picked and you were always happy to answer. The reason was because of the eccentric old lady who owned the place. You figured Yoon Jihye must’ve been alive during the Great Depression (maybe longer!) but she had the youth of a child. She liked telling tall tales of soulmates and how some people were born with one (like you, she once said but you’d laughed nervously at that.) She was also one of the few people who could see your red string even without the help of the full moon so you trusted her judgment, even if she sounded a bit far fetched at times. She claimed she had a gift and that wasn’t a doubt you had for a second.

Auntie Jihye usually had Jeonghan, her great (you weren’t sure how many greats he was if you were being honest) grandson and caretaker call in an order weekly to place on the tables so the guests could have something good to smell and different types to see. You bid a good day to Wonwoo who was sans Jihoon (probably in class or something. Wonwoo himself didn’t go to university until dark from what he’s told you when you bumped into him out in the streets) but working quietly on an assignment. Seungcheol had your check ready along with the small order Seokmin had placed beforehand.

“Lovely day isn’t it?” Seungcheol commented, using his permanent marker to draw a happy face on your coworker's cup of chocolate milk. “It feels like Christmas is upon us.” He stopped long enough to assess your reaction, knowing that you had no rest.

You plucked a chrysanthemum from the bouquet and handed it to him. “I love it but not that I’m not ready for overtime.”

“Ahh my young soul. Your impatience is that of a toddler. Yah, Chan! I told you to open it now!”

“Oh, I’m impatient?” You had to snicker. “I just don’t wanna feel like I’m wasting my life away to make sure everyone’s arrangements are perfect.”

“Why not make a post on FaceTwit or however you youngsters get your news out nowadays?” He looked out the window a little too dramatically. “In my days, why, I think we had only a newspaper.”

“Seungcheol? I’m pretty sure we’re about the same age.”

“Don’t mind him; full moons make him nervous,” Jihye interrupted the conversation. She had a bright smile on her face, arms wide open, expecting you to give her a hug, which you did because who wouldn’t wanna hug an elderly woman that loves you to bits? “Look at you, looking prettier everyday.”

“Good day Auntie. Where are you headed at this hour?” You waved at Jeonghan who had just appeared behind her. He smiled at you politely, busy chewing on his granola bar to answer. Your eyes widened. “Oh! Is it Saturday already?”

“Just some errands; we’re all in for an exciting remainder of the day...things to do and people to meet, words to explain. Not me, of course, but rather to guide them. Full moons mean I have a lot to do,” she mumbled more to herself. “Let’s see candles, wax figures, oh and can you get some roses ready for me too? Any color will do.” She grabbed your hand without warning. “My, my. Is it me or is your string looking...better? Ah yes, you’re in for some changes. I can tell by the look in your eyes.”

“Come on Grandma...let’s leave Y/N alone, shall we? We have a full day ahead of us. Ow!”

“You rapscallion. I wasn’t talking to you, or are you in a hurry to get somewhere?” She waggled her finger at him. “We’ll get there when we get there. But you’re right. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can come back. It’d be rude to keep my guests waiting. And you have plans with the dream boy. What was his name? Joshua. ” She turned her attention back to you. “Now, if you don’t want an angry customer, I’ll expect my roses tonight.”

“Yes Auntie!” You saluted her. You picked up your drinks, bid them a good rest of the day and went straight back to Smile Flower, sighing when you realized the rest of the work ahead of you and then the phone rang an hour or so later. When Seokmin came in a few minutes later, you were rushing out the door, with only a vague explanation of you leaving for an auction in China and finding help for the time being. You heard him laugh at your enthusiasm but promised to keep to the place standing. By the time you turned and waved at him, a handmade help wanted sign already on the front window for passerby to see and you waved to Jeonghan who was coming back from the presumable dinner with his friend. In an instant, there was chaos but you were already running late to see for yourself. You cursed The8 for being an artist with too much talent. The only thing you had caught was Jeonghan kneeling on the floor and struggling to pick something up.

It was a little after dusk when Seungkwan finally set foot in Seoul and he cursed under his breath when he saw that his string was leading him the same way he showed up. He put his foot down though and decided to settle in Seoul for a time because he didn’t leave Jeju just to probably go back. He walked around aimlessly, looking at the department stores, thrift shops, a few malls, a couple of chains that sold international products, recording studios, too many coffee shops to keep track of and even a flower shop sporting a help wanted sign. The door opened not much later and out came a boy carrying a rather large bouquet of flowers in a vase. He set them on the floor and locked up when he noticed Seungkwan. “I’m sorry, did you need something? I’ll be back in like five minutes.” He picked them up. “I just need to take these next door.”

“I uh, couldn’t help but notice you were hiring.” He decided to walk with the boy. There wasn’t harm in asking a few questions.

“Yeah my manager is currently on the way to China and I need someone to deliver while I stay there….HI EVERYONE!” Not being used to having eyes on him (it has been awhile since he had attention) he picked nervously at his string. The barista at the register acknowledged him with a greeting and he deemed it rude to not respond, so he ordered a hot tea and a cake pop, waiting for the boy he was walking with to finish his run so he could discuss the possibility of a job. He sat at a table where no one would question being alone, feeling at home despite the fact that he was an outcast. There was people despite the hour, two boys chatting amongst themselves at their own table near the door, a couple of actors with killer makeup skills that gave them an undead look, and a guy with his grandma, looking expectantly around them. She would say something to him and he’d nod in response. The only other worker was asking about the colors of the flowers and Seungkwan almost snorted at him for not being able to differentiate the red from the purple.

“I was starting to think I wasn’t going to meet you.” The old lady startled his people watching and he stared at her confused. “The red string,” she elaborated. The boy escorting her pulled a seat out for her and she sat across from him while his just jaw dropped. The boy then called for a Hansol who had emerged from another door, while they bugged the zombie looking actors. He only caught the name Joshua, but the other slipped his mind, remembering someone claimed his attention.

“I don’t-” She sighed, took his pinkie and yanked at the thread and his hand involuntarily shot forward. “How’d you know about that?”

“I don’t need a full moon to see it,” she laughed fondly. “And I can tell you we’ve been waiting for sometime to meet you. How rude of me! What’s your name young man?”

“S-Seungkwan.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you mean we, Auntie?”

“Goodness, look at the time! Everyone out. I must get this done by midnight.” She looked at the analog clock on top of the entrance doors. “Anyone who dares contradict me is more than welcome to help me get this ready. I am old and frail after all. Seokmin! Get this boy a job with you! Lord knows you and Y/N need the help. He will be a very good asset to the business.”

“Uhh, yes Auntie!” The boy named Seokmin pulled on Seungkwan’s arm. “Come on, I guess you’re hired. Let’s go get you a form filled out and you can get started tomorrow!”

Seungkwan surprised himself by staying a lot longer than intended in Seoul. He got the hang of making his deliveries in maybe one week. Granted, he had to learn the lay of the land first, but once he did, he realized how different life was here and he wasn’t complaining. He liked the rush of feeling like he was living in the fast lane. Seokmin turned out to be a really great coworker as well as friend. (He hated to admit he was slightly afraid of him though because of the “ghost girl” as he called her that followed him everywhere. DK swore though that she never tried to harm him, but he didn’t like the fact that he couldn’t see what he looked like.) They went to a lot of places together, from the thrift store they regularly delivered to an aquarium on the coast near the outskirts of Seoul. He had a friend who worked there regularly and despite the minor clashes, Seungkwan liked him right away. He also befriended the boy named Hansol, a boy who was literally cold to the touch, only because his roommate started spending more time with a boy she’d met, as he had learned his friends weren’t actors, just heavily sleep deprived.

He became an everyday customer at the Adequate Eternity, learning the names of Wonwoo and Jihoon who both seemed rough on the edges but melted that exterior rather quickly as well as Seungcheol who had a funny way of talking and Chan who he learned couldn’t see colors (and that made him bad for judging the boy when he first saw him. He made it up to him by trying to explain what they looked like though.)

He learned to confide in Jeonghan about his doubts and any worries. Seungkwan knew that he knew about the string (he figured it was Auntie Jihye who told him since they spent so much time together. Jeonghan simply adored her even though she was very sarcastic and tended to hit him playfully. He also learned it was part of the relationship) but he never brought it up in conversation or even hinted if the string even had an endpoint.

He spent many years accepting the fact that it was the mathematical vocabulary word ray; it had a starting point but the string could go on forever. Jeonghan would simply shrug and pull out the pendant he wore around his neck. “It’s like this,” he explained one day when it changed color. “My grandma said it changes according to moods, but it’s not my mood, but rather someone else’s. Some things just don’t have an explanation, and sometimes it’s up to us to find them. That’s why you’re here, right? You didn’t come all this way to get away from home. You want to see where it leads you. I don’t blame you though. I’d be curious too. But regardless, I’m glad it led you here.”

“Hey hyung, what do you think it could be? Why is it us?”

He paused, toying with the object. “Soulmates,” he finally admitted. Some things are much too powerful to be anything else.”

Seungkwan nodded, feeling oddly satisfied with the answer. It was the first time he thought a person could be on the other end and it seemed more probable. He didn’t grow up scorning the idea that someone was out there just for him and he thanked his family for being as open minded as they were about it.

However, he supposed a lot of his nervousness came from the fact that he didn’t know who his manager was, despite the fact said manager phoned in a few times a day. Seokmin often filled her in on the day’s events and assuring her that Seungkwan was being a lot more helpful than he thought, spoiling the fact that he was hired on Auntie’s recommendations. He did speak to Y/N once though and he floored by knowing how friendly she seemed. She shortly explained that she left often because she was a fan of The8’s works and his art popped up all over Asia but she was thankful for him helping out. She was due at the end of the month though and he was excited for that notion.

You were gone a lot longer than you thought and you felt guilty that you hadn’t paid either of your employees but were grateful that they were understanding. You were bummed that you couldn’t get The8′s newest work but it wasn’t a complete loss since you managed to buy one of his books, so it was a small victory. The growling of your stomach made you stop with Yoon Jihye, despite the fact that that it was a little passed closing. Okay it was almost midnight but still. You knocked on the door, and Jeonghan opened the door, giving you your welcome back hug. “Here I was thinking you skipped town and moved to America,” he joked. His pendant was clear that night, but still illuminating the dark place. “Shouldn’t you be home, or on your way there?”

“I was hungry and I needed to check next door first. My priority is to pay whatever damage DK and his friend caused and them too for being good sports. Hi Auntie.”

“Welcome back dearie. We missed you. How was your trip? Unfortunately Seungcheol burned our last batch of zucchini bread so I can’t offer you anything. Poor boy must’ve had a bad day.”

“That’s okay. I guess I can just stop by one of the stores still open. But I guess I’ll see how my business is. Good night.” Luckily for you, Seokmin had started the filing the receipts that needed to be sent out as well as stamping the checks that could be sent out for depositing and you saw several orders with upcoming deadlines as well as rough outlines of how to bunch them together. The place was spic and span, albeit a few stems strewn about. You texted him and told him you’d be closed tomorrow so he could have a couple of days off (which were gonna be paid as a thank you for taking over with no complaints) but you told him to let the new coworker meet you at the coffee place so you could decide if you really wanted him or not. Based on your conversations with Seokmin, he was new to the area but was rather efficient so keeping him definitely seemed likely.

Your growling stomach didn’t let you do much else so before heading home, you did a quick shopping trip just so you could have something in your system because ordering out took too long and it was too late to get pizza delivered. You deliberated with yourself the whole way there. Instant noodles seemed like a really tempting option but you really didn’t want to be hungry again after an hour but a home cooked meal would take too long to prepare and you were sure you’d fall asleep before it finished. You weren’t really a fan of microwaveable food either, so frozen was definitely out of the question as well. So your best option was to have what teenagers ate for lunch: chips and an energy drink. It’d keep you full until morning but you’d switch that for water for the simple reason that you wanted sleep.

You waved to a few of the workers, chatting idly before getting back the mission at hand. You finally found the aisle you were looking for, craving salty and going to the other end of the aisle until you can across the specific brand you were looking for and it seemed like your luck ended there because there wasn’t anymore, or so you thought. You crouched to the bottom row and there was one more left. You didn’t even have to stretch far to get it but you didn’t notice that someone else had their eye on it because they grasped it at the same time you did. “Hey, that’s mine,” you grumbled, ready to fight. You looked at the chips in your hand, and almost dropped them in surprise. The red string on your finger was tied to the other person who was looking just as dumbfounded as you. You stared open mouthed at each other for sometime, the food in question already on the floor. Slowly, painstakingly slowly, extended his hand out in a greeting, which scared you a little but otherwise shook it, disregarding the fact that the custom in South Korea was to bow.

Behind you, a trio of old ladies giggled at the sight which made both of you whip your attention towards them. They said nothing but looking satisfied at how the situation turned out. “Congratulations,” you heard one of them whisper and they disappeared almost as quickly as you noticed them. “Two down.”

“It was you I’ve been looking for,” he murmured in awe. Tentatively, he reached for your hand again, both of you watching the string grow in length when he pulled away and shrinking when he came close.

You broke out into a smile and you were sure you could’ve cried if you weren’t in public. You weren’t weird after all. And then it hit you. Against your better judgment, because hello you just met him, you asked him a single question. “Can you come with me?”

As it turned out, Jeonghan and the old lady were long gone by the time you reached them. Not that it mattered because you had gone back alone because he declined saying he to get ready for work the next day and you respected and admired him for that. He left you his phone number in case he finished early and he suggested Adequate Eternity which was more than convenient for you. You had more than enough time to spare to get to know Seungkwan so you decided to grab him a cup of hot cocoa before you finally met him. Saturday mornings for some reason were busier but that was beyond your control, not that you were in a rush or anything. You took your time starting an order for a grand reopening of an art museum you were so fond of and and giving the place an overall cleaning Since you had finished earlier than planned, you decided to go for the coffee run, locking up just as slowly, well once you were sure someone had your small order ready. The only thing out of the ordinary was quite literally bumping into a girl who seemed more focused on her watch, and before you could open the door for her, she gasped. “My card!” She exclaimed and turned around just as quickly. “I’m sorry!”

Inside, you heard a cry of frustration, followed by the sight of an annoyed Jihoon running out of the bathroom, a bit of toilet paper stuck on his shoe. “Damn it, not again,” he groaned. He resumed his spot next to Wonwoo, and they continued writing down some notes. (At least that’s what it looked like to you.) They argued quietly and it never ceased to make you think they’d end up being those friends who grew old together but instead of spending their days in the park, it’d be here.

Chan waved at you and continued his window cleaning with a newspaper and some kinda drinking alcohol while Seungcheol read his copy out loud. And the people you were looking for were were looking for some keys. “Grandma, where did you leave them?”

“If I knew, I wouldn’t ask you to look for them, right?”

“Good morning Auntie. Hey Jeonghan. Auntie, guess what happened last night?”

“From the light in your eyes, I can assume something good.” She pushed Jeonghan slightly. “Isn’t Y/N glowing?”

“Radiant Grandma. Ow! Hey, that wasn’t sarcasm! I meant that.”

“Oh hush, it’s rude to interrupt when someone is talking. Find the keys. Joshua said Babylon’s shipment is a can’t miss! You were saying, my dear?”

“I think-” you snickered at Jeonghan’s face and composed yourself, “I saw someone on the other end of the strand. What does that mean?”

“That I will explain when Jeonghan and I come back. Poor soul didn’t know where he left my keys. I think he’s the one with bad memory.” She winked at you. “Have you met the young man that’s been helping around?”

“Not yet. I told him to meet me here at noon. Um, this is kinda embarrassing, but do you know what he looks like?”

“He’s already waiting for you.” She pointed in the direction of where Seungkwan was sitting, eyeing the red string connecting you both and smiling smugly to herself when she saw the look of surprise on your face. “By the way, you’re soulmates. Jeonghan, let’s move! I have them right here!”

To say the least, you were nervous as you walked up to him. But then again, actually no, there was no then again. How the hell did something like that happen. Soulmates were extinct, weren’t they? There hasn’t been any evidence of them in years, so why now?

“Some things don’t require explanations though, right?”

“Holy shit, can you read my mind too?”

He smiled at you. “No. I was really surprised too but it makes sense. Hannie hyung helped me to understand that.” He pulled at the string and it brought your hand to his. “I guess what we decide to do with the knowledge is up to us. I know I came a long way to find you so I know I’m staying here for the time being. If you’ll have me as an employee and friend, that is.”

“Seungkwan, it would be a privilege to have you here as long as you’d like.” You returned his smile. “It’s officially nice to finally meet you by the way.”

“The honor is mine Y/N.”

A few days later, he took you out to the aquarium his friend worked, casually linking pinkies as you walked along, seeing the marine life, watching them swim in circles and come up for air. “Hey Hansol-ah!” He waved at someone you recognized, but he looked like he was on a date with a girl you noticed as someone from the museum you frequently visited and you smiled shyly at her. “What brings you here?”

“Enjoying the beach vibes my friend.” He waved excitedly at you like you were good friends and you returned the gesture. Anyone Seungkwan was fond of, you adored, especially him because of how well they got along and how there was no secrets between them. “Are you on a date too?”

“Yeah, this is my soulmate Y/N.”

“Nice to meet you. Well, we better get going but it was great to see you Kwannie.”

“You know, I hope he’s as lucky as I am and has a soulmate too. Do you think it could be her?”

You shrugged. You’d found out from Jeonghan that they came back in this century but only a rather near nonexistent percentage. “I’m not sure. It’d be nice if he did too, but if he doesn’t, well, I hope he ends up with someone that could be like one.” You agreed that not everyone was lucky enough to have an other half though. He threw his arm around you as the wind blew and he kissed your hair, messing it up that much more.

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richincolor · 6 years ago

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Group Discussion: Patron Saints of Nothing

Hey, everyone! The Rich in Color bloggers have gotten together to discuss Randy Ribay’s PATRON SAINTS OF NOTHING. As always, there will likely be spoilers in our conversation. If you haven’t yet read it, we recommend you go get it.

A powerful coming-of-age story about grief, guilt, and the risks a Filipino-American teenager takes to uncover the truth about his cousin’s murder.

Jay Reguero plans to spend the last semester of his senior year playing video games before heading to the University of Michigan in the fall. But when he discovers that his Filipino cousin Jun was murdered as part of President Duterte’s war on drugs, and no one in the family wants to talk about what happened, Jay travels to the Philippines to find out the real story.

Hoping to uncover more about Jun and the events that led to his death, Jay is forced to reckon with the many sides of his cousin before he can face the whole horrible truth — and the part he played in it.

As gripping as it is lyrical, Patron Saints of Nothing is a page-turning portrayal of the struggle to reconcile faith, family, and immigrant identity.

Crystal: Families are complicated. Very complicated. Jay likely knew that on one level, but as he gets re-acquainted with his extended family in the Philippines, this becomes even more obvious. I found it interesting that Jay felt closer to his cousins than his siblings. And even more notable was his relationship with his uncle, but for completely different reasons. I think his changing opinions of his uncle were evidence that he was maturing. He begins to see that not only are family relationships complex, but people are too. We’re not simply good or evil. Individuals have so many facets.

Jessica: As someone who grew up in a different country than my cousins, I definitely connected with Jay’s relationship with Jun — close in some ways, distant in others, and overshadowed by the regret that they’ve drifted apart. The letters the two exchange really brought Jun to life, and his initial introduction — consoling Jay — sets the tone for a central conflict: The ways Jay is connected to his heritage, and the ways his perspective differs, as someone who grew up in America. I’m in awe of how PATRON SAINTS OF NOTHING managed to thread the needle on this conflict, and show the fraught complexities of family, and coming from an immigrant background.

Audrey: I really liked how PATRON SAINTS OF NOTHING tackled complicated family dynamics between and across generations. Whether its Jay and his immediate family, the relationships among the parents’ generation, or his slow-building connection to Grace, there is a lot simmering under the surface. Not only are different people actively keeping secrets from one another, but Jay is also at a significant disadvantage due to language and cultural barriers. (Side note: As someone who can’t communicate much with her own grandmother due to a language barrier, Jay’s interactions with his grandparents were painfully familiar.) I really appreciated the scene with Jun’s service for this reason; even though Jay couldn’t understand most of what his other family members said, it was obvious that Jun had mattered to them all despite the ways they had/had not shown it previously.

K. Imani: I agree with you Audrey about how the novel tackled the dynamics across generations. In my extended family, so many stories are unknown because the elders refuse to speak on it, like Jay’s father about why he left the Philippines. The last years of Jun’s life would have been another untold story had not Jay decided to seek it out and stir up trouble in his family. I could truly empathize with his struggle and his frustration with his family, specifically his uncle. I feel like Jay’s insistence on learning about Jun and his family helped not only himself but the rest of his family.

Crystal: A large part of this story focuses on Jay’s connections to his family and to the Philippines. His father explains that “It’s easy to romanticize a place when it’s far away. Filipino Americans have a tendency to do that.” He goes on to say, “But as many good things as there are, there are many bad things, things not so easy to see from far away. When you are close, though, they are sometimes all you see.” Jay definitely has to square his ideas about the Philippines with the reality he meets.

Jessica: Ack! This was a big deal to me… so naturally, I’ve already discussed it in my earlier answer — but yeah, that line from his father is so important, especially in stories where an American goes back to the motherland. I feel that, as someone who’s always dreaming of Taiwan.

Audrey: Jay marched into his extended family’s lives (and the Philippines) with a lot of ignorance and multiple preconceptions, and by the end of it, he left with a better understanding of them and himself–and a desire to close the distance between them. What elevates this from the painful White Person Goes to a Foreign Country to Find/Better Themselves narrative is that Jay gets called out on his ignorance and assumptions constantly, and he isn’t a savior who sweeps in and fixes everything. There are Filipinos already doing the hard work and who will continue to do that work after he leaves. At the same time, Jay also has claim to his motherland, and his uncle’s gatekeeping and frequent digs at Jay are clearly unhelpful. I think a lot of diaspora folks will find things to relate to in Jay’s story.

Crystal: This book deals with President Duterte’s war on drugs. The abuse of drugs is such a huge social issue. It seems when people declare these wars on drugs, they actually seem to declare war on people. And the people they are warring against are often the ones most negatively impacted by the drug use. Jun’s cousin Grace tells him that Jun thought “that those suffering from addiction needed to be helped, not to be arrested because their addiction was as much genetics as it was a choice. And those pushing need to be employed, not killed, because most of them were only trying to survive.” Beyond that, looking for the corruption that allowed the drugs to get into the country would also be a good place to start. It’s so much easier to demonize the addicts and the pushers than solving many of the problems that lead to the drug use — especially when the people in power actually benefit from looking like they are working on the problem, but still leaving the whole system in place. This story helps share the human side of this war.

Audrey: PATRON SAINTS OF NOTHING did a great job of pointing out the complexity and hypocrisy surrounding this war on drugs and how easy it is for people to start looking at one another as less worthy of life simply because they are visible symptoms of larger social ills. Even Jay doesn’t want to believe that Jun could have been using drugs, and that leads him to erroneous conclusions for much of the novel. It’s simpler for those in power to make an enemy of those who are suffering rather than doing the complicated, expensive work of tackling corruption and the problems that lead to drug use in the first place.

K. Imani: I agree with both of you that this novel does an excellent job of putting a human face on drug abuse, and highlights the issue with Duterte’s drug war, that sadly, many in the US do not know about. It definitely showed that the way to deal with drug abuse is to treat it as a health issue, rather than a criminal issue, because Jun wasn’t a criminal. Jun was a troubled, but giving soul, and if he’d had treatment instead of killed, he would really make an impact in his world. Additionally, I feel like this highlight of Duterte’s drug war also shows how power corrupts and how people can fall so easily into following along to hold onto power. I know that we learned different sides of Uncle Maning, however, his blind faithfulness to Duterte and the drug war disturbed me. The belief to do anything for the “law and order” and the “safety of the people”, when in reality the ones in power are the ones we fear. This hit a little too close to home to me.

Crystal: Many families have secrets or things they really don’t talk about much, but there were many things going on here that Jay was learning for the first time. Some of his family members are working to help girls escape from trafficking situations and he never even knew. It makes me think about how many things people are keeping from each other. And like Jay wonders, why do we not share more and love more when we all have the capacity to love so deeply? We certainly miss out, but it’s protective to stay separate and keep things hidden.

Audrey: Some of the best scenes in the book are when Jay is able to bridge that gap between himself and someone else in his family. It takes courage to speak and the willingness to be vulnerable, and Jay is starting to embrace both by the end of the book. Jun’s letters were excellent examples of this, as was Jay’s final letter back. I was really pleased with how the book ended and how Jay had changed in this regard when he came back to the U.S.

K. Imani: Without giving away the ending, I loved the way Patron Saints ended because Jay and his father’s conversation ended the cycle of keeping secrets. In the beginning of the book, Jay didn’t really have a deep friendship with anyone and I felt sad for him, but clearly it was because he was used to growing up with a closed off family. Clearly, he needed an outlet and I feel like the trip to the Philippines and his brief time with Mia, who became a real friend, helped him express himself for the first time in years. It was also very brave of him to speak out to his family, but it overall lead to a healthy change for Jay and his entire family. I almost wanted an epilogue at the end to see how much his family had changed after Jay’s experience, as I would have loved to see how Jay’s relationship with his father changed for the better.

Crystal: I haven’t seen many books set in the Philippines, but I’ve really enjoyed the ones I’ve read — ANGEL DE LA LUNA AND THE 5TH GLORIOUS MYSTERY (review here) and DURAN DURAN, IMELDA MARCOS, AND ME (adult book with YA appeal). Have you all read many other books set there? Do you have any to recommend?

Jessica: This is a short story and not a YA book, but it’s really good so I’m going to take the chance to plug it anyway: “Asphalt, River, Mother, Child” by Isabel Yap on Strange Horizons. The story tackles the what’s going on in the Philippines right now, and it’s incredible and heartbreaking. (Please check the content warnings before reading.)

Audrey: You know, I think PATRON SAINTS OF NOTHING is the first book I’ve read set in the Philippines! I have read works by Filipino-American writers before, but this was the first one actually set in the Philippines, so far as I remember.

K. Imani: I read ANGEL DE LA LUNA AND THE 5TH GLORIOUS MYSTERY as well and really loved it, so I second Crystal’s recommendation. I don’t think I’ve read any others, but I’m definitely open to reading more in the future.

Extra: Salve Villarosa (@cuckooforbooks) a BookTuber in the Phillipines created two great videos about this book. The first is her review of the book and the second is a Q&A with Randy Ribay during his book launch in Manila.

To add your thoughts, please send out a tweet or comment section on the Rich in Color blog post.

#Patron Saints of Nothing #Randy Ribay #YA book discussion #YALit

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a-lion-roars · 6 years ago

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Two hundred and fifty fan-flipping-tastic followers! Holy moly, that’s a hundred new followers over the course of, what, half a year? You guys are all too much, so here’s a big ol’ thank you to the new followers and, of course, all the lovely mutuals who’ve stuck with me over these bangin’ two years!

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐃𝐒 The greatest of the great. The people I roleplay with regularly, chat with OOC, and have way too many threads with!

@hadzyuka Tea is a wonderfully positive and funny person! I enjoy talking to her about muse shenanigans and plot bunnies and all sorts of rubbish like that. To top it off, her Belarus is cold, snarky, and brilliant — arguably the best I’ve come across in the Hetalia RPC.

@paralianprince We only just started talking extensively off of Tumblr, but I’ve adored Vanden’s Sealand since the first interaction! Honestly, I’m jealous over the historical accuracy and effort put in, an incredibly well-fleshed-out and characterful muse all around!

@statesiian First off! Katie is an absolutely lovely person to talk to, fucking hilarious, and so easy to plot with! And her muses, especially her Liberty, are top notch and so characterful and fun to interact with — her female America has got to be my favourite, hands down.

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄 Blogs that I greatly enjoy roleplaying with, adore their writing/muse, and/or would highly recommend!

@ainsi-marcherons Their France is a pompous asshole, brilliantly-written! @americanmockingbird Always adored the threads we’ve done, solid America! @apres-moi-ledeluge Great France for quick, snappy, fun interactions! @bedeckedeinenhimmelzeus I will protect Depp’s Germany with my life. @bello--y--descarado Bold, aggressive Spain, doesn’t shy from it, love it! @bloodycrumpets Hans’ England is fantastic, modern, well-written, dynamic! @coltii-romanesti Love our threads, always easy to plot grand adventures! @crimson-sunflower Fantastic (inactive?) Russia. ‘Baby, come back!’ @derhaifischderhattraenen Depp’s Prussia is a dick and I adore him so much. @fiertxcanadienne Ali has an amazing Canada: bitter, angry, and perfect. @gebrochener-adler Put a ton of thought, effort into the history behind muse! @haknam Ward annoys my muse to no end and I love the back-and-forth. >:’) @infinityy-rp Paz’s Austria is spectacular, I’d love to interact with him more! @iolondinium Beautifully-written London by a talented writer, love the aesthetic! @kaltiisms Just started RPing, but super hyped for more! <3 @khoailok Taiwan is absolutely adorable and brings wholesomeness to threads! @lavitaebellax Their Italy is so silly without going too mental and I love her?! @liandao Their Macau is lovely, fun to interact with, would love more threads! @mr-puffinwhisperer Ahh, these two drive each other bonkers and it’s great. @o-rei-da-cocada-preta Can’t get enough of the thread we have going, excited! @preussischekrahen An interesting, fun take on a winged Prussia! @sanglxts Katie’s France is amazing with a fantastic aesthetic going on! @skiass Always has great aesthetic posts, love their take on Austria too! @toberoundistobefree Heike is shy, passive, mun keeps him interesting and fun! @theheroalfredjones Love the banter between my muse and their America!

𝐇𝐎𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 Blogs with muses I greatly enjoy seeing pop up on my dash and reading their threads, despite the fact we have yet to RP proper!

@anavasada Love all the different depictions of different regions of India! @anglo-saxons Fantastic writing style with a well-developed muse!! @coeurepuise HI. I love their France, I’d die for a thread. @crackedxtuliphead We really ... really need to plot, adore your Denmark! @di-filia I love their writing style, very characterful and fits their muse well! @ezusthiid Katie’s Hungary, ‘nuff said. ;) @feniiksburnt Would absolutely adore a thread with their Poland sometime! @generading Always have to stop and read through their threads. @islag Can’t wait to interact with their Iceland, I’m super hyped! @islndhrt New-ish? Northern Cyprus muse looks absolutely adorable! @konigreich Their muses look top-tier, wow! Intimidated by the quality! :’) @konigsbergg Recently-followed, but their headcanon posts are wonderful. @lakesandprairies Mun is easy to talk to and I love the look of their muse! @landforces We’ve been mutuals ages, always lovely seeing you on my dash!! @liachtaschta I have such a soft spot for their muse it’s ridiculous. @mapleiism Love the feel of their Canada — we need to plot/chat!! @onceuponatroll Would love to plot/whip up a thread with their Norway. @radiomayak Always interesting reading their threads and ask responses! @rancorosa Always a joy seeing them on dash, would love to plot sometime. @severnayastolitsa Greatly enjoy reading their threads, muse looks fantastic! @soanlut Yet another wholesome muse I’d adore having a thread with. @toskacut Ahh, Russia looks amazing! Would love a thread sometime!! @tsariniia Another Russia that looks wonderful! Love reading their threads! @unieenliefde Wowie, one of my first mutuals! Love seeing you on the dash! @viralvarsting Like Vanden’s Sealand — a lovely, flesh-out muse, great writing.

#♔ ᴍɪɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ɢᴀᴘ ( announcements ) ♔#♔ ᴡᴇʟʟ‚ ɪ ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ᴠᴏᴛᴇ ғᴏʀ ʏᴏᴜ ( ooc ) ♔#♔ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ʟᴏᴄᴋ ᴀɴᴅ ᴋᴇʏ ( save ) ♔#follow forever #250 followers #a-lion-roars #[ OKAY I FINALLY DID IT I'M DEAD ]#[ YAY !!!! THANK YOU !!!! ]#[ don't let my dead-ness take away from my gratitude ]

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rkchoutzuyu · 6 years ago

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MGA5; Callback

Song: Starry night- mamamoo (0:01-2:01)

It took a bit of time after getting the email for her to actually decide to open it. For some reason she dreaded what it said. Logically, they wouldn’t reach out to her if they thought she was horrible but in the dark corners of her brain there was a question-a doubt. What if she’d been so horribly bad that they needed to inform her to follow another career path? It was silly, of course. However, it was really what was keeping her from reading the email. After an hour of it sitting unread in her inbox, she decided to open it. A few lines in, her heart had been racing. She had gotten a call back and needed to prepare another song to perform. She got to the next step and she would at least appear in the first episode-She wanted to think she’d get more than that, but for just then, she’d keep reality in mind. Very uncharacteristic of her. The MGA process was already making changes in her.

Tzuyu looks at the building they were instructed to go to as she approaches it and realizes not for the first time that she will be part of something big. In fact, it was bigger than the initial auditions. There was already a ton of people there- some had instruments, others had a number of props but Tzuyu didn’t feel unprepared. She’d rehearsed over and over in the days leading up to the call back. She’d even requested time off of work to practice. Her vocal and dance teachers had been happy to work with her as well. Though she was well prepared for the audition part of it, she felt unprepared to deal with having to meet people or greet her friends-even facing judges or talking to the staff felt like it was too much to handle. She takes a deep breath and walks into the building, following the process and giving her name when asked. Mostly she kept her head down until they were taken to the set. Immediately she was overwhelmed by the amount of people in chairs. The obvious table with the empty chairs that would be the judges in front of the stage reminded her of facing the TRC triple thread challenge again and she remembers how confident she’d been then in her creativity.

Everything was fine this time around. Tzuyu didn’t try to be creative this time around. In fact, this time she’d be singing and dancing and rapping. Unintentionally she’d chosen a song that forced her to present all three.

There were a few times while she prepared for the audition where Tzuyu cried. Even though the song’s “rap” was more fast singing or talk singing, she wondered if she was good enough. Was she going to fail once more? By the time she was seated among the other contestants, she was not concerned. She’d rehearsed about a thousand times and she would give it her all this time around. It was all she could do. Even her mother had found time to be around and had given her some advice. She told Tzuyu all she could do was try. She said, she shouldn’t worry about failure until it happened and even then, she should try again. It was the most heartfelt conversation they had had in a few months and it made Tzuyu feel like she’d gotten her mother back- There was the most important person in the world, having her back. She would not fail the MGAs.

The biggest surprised of the day came when the day proceeded, after everyone was seated, when they introduced the judges. It was none other than the CEOs of each company. ALL of them! They were all in the same room as Tzuyu and every contestant. That, of course, made Tzuyu and maybe any other contestant feel nervous all over. If one were to make a bad impression today, how would you even audition to these companies ever again? Tzuyu had already made a fool out of herself in front of Tiger JK but she was too concerned with it as she often has no idea how to gauge the way others perceive her. She thinks she’s nice enough to be generally liked. Which is what she assumes most of the time. The murmurs in the room started as people watched excitedly as the CEOs took their seat at the judges table. The more she thought about it, the happier she got that this was the case. Who else could have the authority to decide whether or not she belonged?

Unaware of what method they were using to call up contestants, Tzuyu watched enraptured as names were called and the other contestants performed their skill on stage. The other contestants might have clapped or cheered but the judges seemed to remain impartial-at least from where she could see them. Finally, her own name was called, and she delayed her response for a moment until she realized she’d been called. She stands up abruptly and heads to the stage. She’d been so entranced with watching other perform, she hadn’t paid attention to who called her name, but it was Katie Lee who asked her name. Tzuyu have a bow and a greeting before saying “I’m Chou Tzuyu. I’m 20 years old. Originally, I am from Taiwan but I have lived in South Korea for many years. Being an idol is my biggest pursuit and my only focus at this moment.” She felt she needed to add the last part given that there were many students auditioning or people mentioning their profession. This was everything to Tzuyu! “Today, I will be mostly showcasing my singing.”

She takes a look around and sees over 100 eyes on her and if she focused on the other contestants, she felt exhilarated. She felt excitement! There was something about performing in front of a group that took her to an alternate reality in her head and cause adrenaline to course through her veins. Tzuyu remembered how rapt she’d been with others and she hoped to make at least one person feel the same about her showcase. Unlike others, she didn’t bring props or an instrument, but she had provided a track and asked that they play it. Tzuyu turns around in preparation for the music and “starry night” starts playing over the speakers. She starts swaying with the choreography for about 15 seconds before turning around and singing the first lyrics of the song.

손끝이시리더니벌써봄이왔네 꿈같은바람이불어곳곳에

어둠의그림자깊은이밤에남겨진 달이달이밝아와 빛을그리고있어

The main reason why she chose the song is because the vocals were nice, smooth and soft. It was a beautiful song with a simple choreography that wouldn’t be taxiing for her to also show off on stage. It wouldn’t interrupt her breathing during the performance but still show some rhythm. The final reason was she chose it is for the inclusion of an easy rap than most songs. She could have chosen a purely vocal song but if there was ever a time to put all the cards on the table and challenge herself, this was it. Tzuyu was going all out and hoping it got her beyond this point.

내몸에서널뺀만큼 욕조에물이미련이되어넘쳐흘러 한숨이가득그공간을채워

새벽이찾아오면 혼자남겨질때면

The three lines of the soft rap of the song came and passed without a problem. Tzuyu did them at a higher pitch than the original given that the original was at a much lower range than she could fit. But by the time the bridge had also passed, she didn’t feel nervous. She’d done as best as she could and it was correct and flowed in time, allowing the song to continue uninterrupted and not pushing the lyrics or timing-which was important, given that she only had 2 minutes allotted for her showcase. The chorus was next:

Starry night 별이빛나는밤 니가휘휘휘불어와 너와나나눈수많은밤 나를취하게만들어 별이빛나는밤 야야야야이야 별이빛나는밤 야야야야야야야 별이빛나는밤

Tzuyu was a bit disappointed that “나를취하게만들어“ would contain the strongest vocal she’d sing in the time allowed for her performance. Still, it fit in with the performance, keeping a smooth and dainty vibe to it as she’d chosen. Even the simple moves in the choreography felt sufficient as she did them on stage during the chorus. Over all she didn’t feel lacking by that point even though she knew her time was running short.

The second verse went as smoothly as the first and the only struggle was the line “Do you want me to leave?No 난그자리그대로까만밤하늘에가려잠시보이지않는거야” Starting off in English added to the fact that she was also trying her hand at rapping and the faster speed wasn’t her forte as a little difficult. However, she had rehearsed it over and over and considered that she did as good as she’d done before. Though, it was a struggle, it had good as well as it was going to until she found someone to formally train her in vocalizing faster. Her style was definitely long, strong notes and she’d at least shown that while also doing decently at the softer rap.

새벽이찾아오면 혼자남겨질때면

It was the last line she song before her track finished and her turn was over. She gave a bow to the judges and walked back to her seat to watch the rest of the performances. In her head, she hoped the judges enjoyed watching her perform as much as she had loved being on that stage. It wasn’t until the day progressed that she came to the realization that there had been cameras on her as well as other people’s eyes. All the more exciting! Tzuyu was made for this.

#rkmga5 #rkmga5callback #rkevent #solo #*starry night #wc: 1662

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