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bisexualvalve · 2 years

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The Women Making Conspiracy Theories Beautiful

A blush-colored square filled with the all-caps advice SHOW UP EVERY DAY FOR SOMETHING YOU BELIEVE IN belongs to one of the least remarkable categories of Instagram content: visually unchallenging, impossible to disagree with, pink. Even if people do not exactly know how to show up every day for something they believe in—particularly during a pandemic—the basic spirit of the message is blandly uplifting for a millisecond during a bleary-eyed morning scroll through the feed: Today, I will, in some way, demonstrate that I believe in something, somehow! Hardly anything about it would dissuade the casual follower from double-tapping her appreciation before moving on.

But this particular image, posted in March by the Utah-based fashion, beauty, and parenting influencer Jalynn Schroeder to more than 50,000 followers, is accompanied by a series of hashtags that includes the initialism WWG1WGA—“Where we go one, we go all”—a motto used by adherents of the QAnon conspiracy theory. QAnon is flexible and convoluted, but generally posits that President Donald Trump is locked in a battle with the “deep state,” and is attempting to bring down a ring of pedophiles and child traffickers that counts various high-profile politicians and celebrities as co-conspirators. Most famously, it’s the evolution of Pizzagate, the conspiracy theory that motivated a man to storm into a Washington, D.C., pizza restaurant with an AR-15 in December 2016, bent on exposing a supposed pedophilia ring in its basement, which did not exist.

When Schroeder’s feed nods to Q, it does so subtly, mostly in her stories and captions. On the grid, she posts photos of her manicures, her graphic tees, her favorite gummy vitamins, and the mommy-and-me sundresses she and her young daughter wear. She is also candid about mental health and the effects that giving birth can have on the body; recently, her followers have watched her prepare for and undergo surgery to correct an abdominal separation.

Schroeder initially responded to a request for an interview, but did not respond to further emails about scheduling it. I learned about her conversion to the QAnon cause via a 14-minute video she posted in March. It begins with the Maya Angelou quote “We are only as blind as we want to be,” written in funky orange and teal fonts. Wearing her curly purple hair in a cheetah-print headband, eyes made wider with electric-blue makeup, she then recounts watching an Instagram video sent to her by a friend, which she initially dismissed as “crazy”—but something was bothering her, and as the weeks went on, she decided to start her own research into QAnon and the global child-trafficking ring it seeks to expose. “I’m a mama of two, I have a lot of mamas following me, and this stuff has been very, very, very hard for me to digest,” she says. But she’s grateful she’s been led to the truth. “I’ve never felt more peace.”

The comments on this video are strikingly similar to those that appear on her regular posts: “So true,” with three heart emoji; “Proud of you for using your platform,” with three sets of clapping hands. In the caption, she links to a tutorial for mimicking her makeup.

In June, my colleague Adrienne LaFrance published a cover story on the rise of QAnon, writing that it had “made its way onto every major social and commercial platform and any number of fringe sites.” Instagram, famous for aspiration and tranquil luxury, has become a home for paranoid thinking just like everywhere else online: Influencers are mixing virulent distrust of the media and religious gratitude toward QAnon with sponsored posts for cool-girl clothing brands and beauty products. Many seem to be drawn in at first by concerns about child trafficking—a real and fairly noncontroversial problem that looks much different in practice than in the Q imagination, which has weaponized it. In July, a wild claim—that the furniture-retail site Wayfair was serving as a middleman for the child-trafficking ring that captivates QAnon devotees—took off, in particular among Instagram influencers whose accounts trade in the domestic and in the joys of consumer culture.

The anonymous Instagram account @little.miss.patriot shared its first post on June 29—about the supposed references to QAnon in the music video for Justin Bieber’s song “Yummy”—and went from 50,000 followers in early July to 266,000 by the time of this writing. Each of the posts from the self-proclaimed “truth seeker” and “digital soldier” uses a pastel-and-mustard color palette drawn from the past five years of Millennial-oriented direct-to-consumer beauty-brand marketing, sometimes accented with glitter or watercolor flourishes. The text on these backgrounds unfurls complicated conspiracy theories about Chrissy Teigen, Tom Hanks, Taylor Swift, and John F. Kennedy. “The deep state is evil and Satanic,” read white letters on soft pink and teal. “They are the ones controlling the media. it involves celebrities, too. the deep state is responsible for the trafficking of children & putting them into sex slavery. they torture these children & use their blood for a drug they all feast on, called adrenochrome. LOOK IT UP IF YOU DON’T KNOW.” In the comments, an influencer who designs children’s birthday parties shouts, “AMEN SIS.” Her grid is full of peach-tinted family photos and remodeled bedrooms, and Story Highlights are labeled “pregnancy,” “play,” “design,” “playroom,” and then “woke”—pink slides dotted with stars, detailing the way the media have ignored a “global elite pedophile ring” in favor of covering the pandemic.

Instagram has long been a place where what you see might be smoke and mirrors—a home for the best and most beautiful version of everyday life, put on display for consumption and then expensive imitation. What is startling about QAnon’s new presence there is the way it slips in: easily, and with little visible pushback from the influencers’ communities or from the platform that hosts them. We’re used to conspiracy theories appearing on the internet’s strange and ugly spaces, laid out with blurry photos and eyesore annotations. But those visual cues are missing this time. There’s no warning—just a warm, glamorous facade, and then the rabbit hole.

In the course of reporting this story, I contacted a dozen of the women posting about QAnon or related conspiracy theories on their accounts, as well as more than 60 of the women who had commented on their posts in support (with hearts, prayer hands, or emphatic thank-yous), many of whom had followings of their own in the tens of thousands. Very few responded, and most of those who did were hostile, stating that the use of their name or photos in a story was grounds for a lawsuit, or expressing a deep disdain for and distrust of the media—a core tenet of the QAnon belief system, as well as a somewhat common feeling among internet personalities who have successfully created their own large platforms.

Those who did agree to answer questions were concerned about child trafficking, but didn’t have extensive knowledge of QAnon, or seemed unaware that the people they were following were its proponents. Lana Michele, a Florida-based fashion and parenting influencer with 84,000 followers, agreed to speak briefly with me. Michele doesn’t post about QAnon, but she’d commented in support of a post about child trafficking that was shared by a woman who has a QAnon hashtag in her Instagram bio. “We are all just ‘waking up,’” Michele told me, adding that she’s been following conversations about child trafficking on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. “It is literally everywhere right now … and everyone needs to be aware, in my opinion.” She isn’t worried about the involvement of QAnon followers in the conversation. Any help in spreading the message is good help. “I find it useful,” she said.

Claire Thibault, an aspiring lifestyle blogger from North Carolina, had commented on the same post. “I’ve read and seen things about child trafficking only recently, and it’s disturbed me enough that I believe it should be mentioned more in the media,” she told me, saying that she first heard about the issue via fashion and lifestyle influencers. She cited as her primary information sources three Instagram accounts, one of which shares conspiracy theories almost exclusively and posts regularly about QAnon and Pizzagate. When I asked how she felt about those subjects, she said, “I honestly don’t know anything about either of those.”

Two others told me that even though they themselves don’t believe in Q, they believe in the right to express oneself online. Ashley Houston, a mom from California who gained most of her 23,000 followers after she started making elegant pastel infographics about child trafficking, has never commented on QAnon or any other conspiracy theories—she prefers primary sources and clear, verifiable facts. Still, she’s friendly with some women who do post about those topics. “It’s okay for their focus to be on what they think is important,” she said. Michelle Merenda, a New Jersey–based parenting and mental-health blogger with 11,000 followers, told me she finds most of her information about child trafficking through hashtags. She listed several mainstream tags, including #saveourchildren, then added, “I do go to #QAnon, also #pedogate, #Pizzagate. And I know a lot of those things are conspiracy theories, but … there’s a lot of [questions posted there] that I would consider something that I would ask, and would kind of want to look into.”

Though Facebook, which owns Instagram, removed some QAnon-related content in May, conspiracism is still flourishing on the platform, largely untouched—especially in private QAnon groups, whose total membership is reportedly in the millions—despite more substantial recent actions from other social-media giants such as Twitter and TikTok. (Reddit is further ahead than all of them, having implemented a blanket ban against QAnon nearly two years ago.)

Instagram offers two main pathways for discovering QAnon, and neither has been slowed down in any way. The first is the hashtag search, which makes millions of posts about QAnon incredibly easy to access in one convenient feed. The second is the recommendations algorithm, which pushes followers from one account to the next, linking accounts that post similar content and have similar sets of followers. Reached for comment, an Instagram spokesperson said, “We are constantly reviewing our policies to ensure they reflect the latest in online behaviors, and to make sure we are keeping people safe on Instagram.”

However Facebook decides to do that, it’s clear that QAnon isn’t just hovering on the edges of Instagram—it’s increasingly part of the platform’s mainstream culture. Its supporters are so enthusiastic, and so active online, that their participation levels resemble stan Twitter more than they do any typical political movement. QAnon has its own merch, its own microcelebrities, and a spirit of digital evangelism that requires constant posting. One QAnon Instagram account I followed for this article gained 20,000 followers over three days in July. Nearly 2 million Instagram posts include the hashtag #WWG1WGA, and more than 800,000 are accompanied by the related tag #TheGreatAwakening. A recent post from the influencer Maddie Thompson uses the latter, along with the QAnon tag #painiscoming. The comments are full of hearts, kissy-face emoji, and gushing compliments: “Love that pure heart of yours!!” QAnon’s digital community represents something like a “social-media cheat code” for up-and-coming influencers, says Travis View, who has been documenting the rise of QAnon for the past two years on his podcast, QAnon Anonymous. “There is a large population of QAnon followers who will adore basically anyone who will acknowledge them or cater to their views in any way.”

Doing so is also less risky than it might have been a few years ago. Though Instagram influencers in the lifestyle and parenting spaces used to steer clear of politics and contentious social issues, appealing instead to the broadest audience possible, trends have shifted in the past few years toward more “authentic” content—open discussion about the challenges of motherhood, the strangeness of existing in a body, the right to speak one’s mind. For the many influencers who have spent years building intimate relationships with their audience, all this candor has served to make these bonds only tighter. And if followers can trust these women on domestic matters of interior design and party planning and postpartum depression and family emergency, maybe they can trust them on darker, more political issues as well.

When I showed some of these Instagram accounts to Sophie Bishop, a lecturer in digital humanities at King’s College London, she identified in all of them a “very recognizable,” feminine-coded aesthetic. “It’s aspirational, and then it’s also authentic enough to allow for relatability,” she told me. All kinds of influencers strive to make that sort of impression, but it can also help launder disinformation and dangerous ideas: “The original function of influencers was to be more relatable than mainstream media,” Bishop said. “They’re supposed to be presenting something that’s more authentic or more trustworthy or more embedded in reality.”

Taylor Lorenz wrote for The Atlantic early last year that Instagram is “likely where the next great battle against misinformation will be fought, and yet it has largely escaped scrutiny.” One of the most obvious explanations for that lapse is that Instagram—more than any other major social platform—shows each of its users exactly what they want to see. It’s a habitual, ritualistic space where people (like me) go for examples of how to be happy and well liked; it’s also where we take the chaos of our daily existence and push it into a simple, pleasing form we think other people will appreciate.

Time spent there is reciprocal, a never-ending exchange of sweet words and the heart icons that are the only possible way to instantly respond to a piece of content on the platform. Instagram is women’s work, as it demands skills they’ve historically been compelled to excel at: presenting as lovely, presenting as desirable, presenting as good, safe, nonthreatening. All of which, of course, are valuable appearances for a dangerous conspiracy theory to have. Ironically, following many of the QAnon hobbyists will lead to a suggestion from Instagram that you follow Chrissy Teigen, one of QAnon’s designated villains, who also happens to have created a brand based on a desirable domestic life. The platform itself is operating on its interpretation of beautiful surfaces, and far less so on what the people producing them are saying.

“It’s a huge misconception that disinformation and conspiracy theorizing happens only in fringe spaces, or dark corners of the internet,” Becca Lewis, a Stanford doctoral student specializing in online political subcultures, told me. “We say you ‘fall down a rabbit hole.’ But it’s not how the ecosystem actually works. So much of this content is being disseminated by super popular accounts with absolutely mainstream aesthetics.”

Previously, Lewis had studied white-supremacist internet personalities who use similar tactics. She found that they would make Instagram accounts completely free of extremist rhetoric, and dedicated instead to dreamy engagement photos and romantic vacations. Then they’d draw followers over to YouTube, where they would tell personal stories—particularly difficult to fact-check, always prefaced with a polite “Do your own research”—about how they’d come to believe in various white-nationalist, far-right causes, and conspiracy theories. She thinks what’s happening on Instagram looks similar.

“If you’re able to make this covetable, beautiful aesthetic and then attach these conspiracy theories to it, that normalizes the conspiracy theories in a very specific way that Instagram is particularly good for,” Lewis said. Of course, she added, it’s hard to say what’s orchestrated and what’s genuine on Instagram. But the effect is the same, whether or not it’s deliberate.

One account I followed in the course of reporting this story startled me more than the others. It looked like something I would stumble across and follow organically on any ordinary day, lost in the never-ending rush of images of the enviable lives of other people. @indyblue_ has an affiliate link to Rihanna’s lingerie line in her bio and seems to spend her days on the edges of mountain lakes or biking through the desert with her bleach-blonde husband, eating berries, wearing clothes she designed herself that read I LOVE YOU SAY IT BACK.

In her Instagram stories, she writes about the media “gaslighting” women by referring to conspiracy theories as what they are. When I messaged her for this story, she responded, asking, “Do you think I’m dumb[,] stupid[,] or dumb.”

If anything, I felt like an idiot. An aesthetic that appeals to me personally was being used to mask something that it’s my job to pluck out and pin to the wall: It made me shiver. My years using Instagram as a guide for how to look and how to live have trained me to see cool clothes and well-constructed personal brands as signifiers of something intrinsically good. I’ve curated my feed by hand; the thousands of images I look at each day are ones I have in some way chosen. They’re as much of who I am as any bulleted list of my dreams or desires would be. Why wouldn’t I trust them?

#white femininity #conspiracy theories #q anon #america #social media

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fantastica-daily · 4 years

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Richard Elfman on his new bizarro comedy - Aliens, Clowns & Geeks

By Staci Layne Wilson

When it comes to cult science fiction movies, Forbidden Zone stands tall. Richard Elfman's 1980 Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo vehicle was a one-of-a-kind film zooming down on a one-way street to a whacky conclusion that’s stayed in the minds of schlock cinema fans ever since. His latest film, Aliens, Clowns & Geeks is an equally wild and expressionistic indie featuring Austin Powers' Verne Troyer in his last role, promising that Aliens, Clowns & Geeks is the antidote to mainstream and a breakneck cure for the run-of-the-mill.

“I was fortunate to have my dream cast on this one, including Verne Troyer (Mini-Me) as my demonic clown emperor–his final film role,” says Elfman. “Our ninety-minute film has seventy-five minutes of driving music by my brother Danny (Elfman) and acclaimed animation composer, Ego Plum Guerrero. Along with Danny’s to-die-for clown and alien music, Ego added a Latin element with the band we play with, Mambo Demonico.” The score was composed by Danny Elfman, who wrote the theme song to The Simpsons, the music to The Nightmare Before Christmas and did the singing voice of Jack Skellington, and won six Saturn awards.

"Eddy Pine (Bodhi Elfman) is a jaded actor dealing with the cancellation of his series," reads the official synopsis. "To complicate matters, he wakes up with the key to the universe stuck up his ass. Apparently an alien Clown Emperor (Verne Troyer) is in hot pursuit of this, as are his rivals, the Green Aliens. Professor von Scheisenberg (French Stewart) and his comely Swedish assistants, the Svenson sisters (Rebecca Forsythe as Helga, Angeline-Rose Troy as Inga), come to Eddy’s aid. If only Eddy hadn’t fallen for Helga, and then the aliens manipulate his mind to confuse her with Inga! And when the mad little Clown Captain (Martin Klebba) steps on the gas and shifts his spaceship into fourth gear, all hell breaks loose.”

We had the opportunity to sit down with Richard to ask him about his movie.

Q. To what do you attribute your enduring interest in clowns? And why do you think they’re so fascinating to people in general?

As I’ve always said: “To be born a male redhead is to be born into a clown suit.” Hence my carrot-topped brother Danny and I have always had a fascination with clowns. Coupled with our wicked sense of humor and a love of the horror genre, it was an easy morph into thoughts of creepy clowns. Just like dolls and puppets—yes, I’m speaking Anabelle—clowns can have something “surreal” about them. Bill Skarsgard’s Pennywise really nails it. And I laughed my head off at Killer Klowns From Outer Space. (And we have honk-honking shit-load of killer clowns in my new film).

Q. How did the idea for Aliens, Clowns & Geeks come about? Is it similar to The Forbidden Zone?

Joined-at-the-hip. Yes. And no. Forbidden Zone is basically a surrealistic “human-cartoon” set to musical numbers. So I was working on Forbidden Zone 2, a thematic extension of FZ but on a much grander scale. I did a successful crowd-funder to develop the project, then, with the help of my producers, raised about half the budget. They asked me if we could do something quick (and cheaper) in the interim to keep the momentum going.

So I basically locked myself in my roof-top writing garret with a box of cigars and many bottles of whiskey and banged out my Geeks script over the next three weeks.

Geeks is utterly zany and music-driven, but it’s not a “singing musical” so to speak like FZ. It has surrealistic elements, thanks to my insane special effects department--and a little help from Hieronymus Bosch—but I would describe Geeks having cartoony elements rather than being a total “human cartoon” as FZ was…if that makes any sense. (And please don’t try!)

Q. Tell us about the multiple roles played by your family – and do you have role as well? What was it like working with your family – any funny stories?

My son Bodhi Elfman—a serious dramatic actor with 100s of credits--did a great comic turn as Eddy, the lead; a bitter out of work actor who wakes up with the key to the universe stuck up his ass. He also played the ass-kissing clown (literally) on the space ship plus the green alien network executive who orders the destruction of Earth. My wife Anastasia played multiple roles, everything from a nun to a carny slut. She also danced and choreographed the cabaret burlesque numbers as well as played a clown…until she got sick from the chemicals inside the clown mask and had to throw up—after we got the shot, of course--committed trouper that she is. When I met Anastasia she was a ballet dancer with a “day job” at a horror fx shop. She can dance with a broken toe but seems to have developed a sensitivity to certain shop chemicals.

I played a clown as well and almost threw up from laughing. I must say Geeks was a fun show to work on (my greatest joy is creating a sense of fun) and the actors and crew had serious trouble keeping from laughing as I directed in insane clown attire. What a fucking visual!

And brother Danny—what can I say? As an independent (hence lower budget) film maker it helps when your little brother in Mozart.

Q. Tell us how you ran away and joined the circus.

Actually, The Grande Magic Circus--a French musical theatre company. 1971, I was twenty-one, visiting the Festival of New Theatre in Montreal. I ran into a scruffy Parisian street troupe. They had something though, a charisma, an élan, whatever-- it attracted me. Director Jérôme Savary needed a percussionist—et voila, that was me! I persuaded them to give me several minutes onstage at the festival doing my comedy/horror piece set to an Eric Satie’s Gnossienne. When I “killed” the pianist in a pool of blood the audience was shocked. And they loved it!

Then, back in California, I went to see Marcel Carne’s masterpiece Les Enfant de Paradise , a three hour film set in the Paris theatre scene of the 1830’s. I exited the theatre, stopped, turned around and went back in and saw it again.

A few months later I received a letter from Jerome. Peter Brook, famed director of London’s Royal Shakespeare Company was backing the Magic Circus in a large Paris theatre. Would I like to join them? Bloody hell!! Hence, I ran away and joined the “circus.”

Q. Tell us something about your time with the Magic Circus, how it influenced you and also how your brother Danny Elfman joined the show.

I might say that working with Jérôme Savary was perhaps my single greatest influence. The troupe had classically trained actors from the Comedie Francais as well as more Avant guard performers. Jerome was a genius, his material had a sense of Absurdism that really struck me. I would later develop this absurdism in my own fashion. Certainly with my own troupe, the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo (later Oingo Boingo). By the way, my film Forbidden Zone was essentially our Mystic Knights stage show set to film.

Danny—several days out of high school--showed up at my 5ème, Rue Descartes doorstep with his electric violin. The company violinist was from the Paris Opera. Jerome liked to improvise. The opera guy couldn’t deviate one note from the written score. I believe my brother is Mozart reincarnated. He could follow any improvisation and got the job and toured with us for the summer throughout France. He and I opened the show with him on violin, me on percussion—the first music Danny Elfman ever wrote.

Q. Any other interesting experiences that you and Danny had there?

We were in a Basque town near the Spanish border. If I may digress, I am four years Danny’s senior. I went to a high school in Crenshaw (Boyz in the Hood), Danny ended up at a school with no guns. I was a tough boxer. Danny might be described as a bespectacled science nerd. So it’s Friday night, the audience was really rowdy and restless. My “street sense” knew it was just a matter of time before the fights broke out. We had an Argentine fellow in the troupe, “Katshurro,” nicest fellow. Drunks in the audience picked up on his accent and shouted terrible Spanish insults about his mother. Katshurro stopped mid-performance, his eyes bugging out of head, and he dove right into the audience swinging away. All hell broke loose. Everyone was fighting, sets crashing down. Danny’s glasses got knocked off. Well, and not for the first time, I managed to get Danny out of trouble with both his glasses and violin intact.

Q. Tell us about the cast you assembled – which includes Verne Troyer in his final screen performance. What was he like? Who does he play in the film?

I really had my dream cast. Along with my son Bodhi we had lovely kung-fu kicking Rebecca Forsythe, versatile Angeline-Rose Troy who not only played Rebecca’s sexy Swedish sister, but donned prosthetics to play poor Eddy’s junkie/whore “Mom from Hell.”

Professor von Scheisenberg was played impeccable veteran French Stewart (Third Rock From the Sun). Another great vet was George Wendt (Cheers) as Father Mahoney. Six foot six comic Steve Agee (Sarah Silverman Show, Guardians of the Galaxy) played both a tough cross-dressing bar owner and a stuttering dufis in a chicken suit. Nic Novicki (Boardwalk Empire) played his nasty little-person boss. I was really blessed with a great ensemble to work with.

And, of course, Verne Troyer, our megalomaniac Clown Emperor. What a wonderful talent to work with! He was funny on set, insisted on doing things in spite of physical limitations and he gave us hilarious comic improvisations. Little body. Big spirit. I will certainly miss him.

Q. The music is by Danny and you also have great animation… please give us some details what it’s like to create worlds through music and manufactured imagery.

Danny, along with my band mate--award winning animation composer Ego Plum (Guerrero)—really gave it to us. Seventy-five minutes of music in a ninety-minute film. ♪ ♫ La, tee-da and a boom boom boom! ♪ ♫ Music is essential to everything I do—especially setting the tone of my films. I even play music before I start writing.

As soon as Danny saw our surrealistic Bosch dream sequence and goofy clown rocket ships he agreed to do the score…after he stopped laughing. I play percussion in a quirky Latin band, Mambo Demonico, led by Hollywood’s top tv animation composer, Ego Plum. He and Danny work with the same people, including Oingo Boingo lead guitarist Steve Bartek, who subsequently has done every one of Danny’s film arrangements. Steve and the original Oingo Boingo members all played on our sound track. I must brag that we do have great fucking music!

You know, Danny was a bespectacled science nerd growing up, basically stayed out of trouble. That was my department. Oddly, he wasn’t really into music. No bands, no concerts, no big music collection. Life is funny how things turned out. I showed him a rough cut of Geeks, he laughed his ass off and offered to do it. Yes, I’m very lucky to have “Mozart” as my little brother!

Q. Who is Aliens, Clowns & Geeks for? Do you think movies like this are more likely to find a mainstream audience?

Forbidden Zone may be a “cult” movie but it still plays all over the world--after forty years. Just this past month FZ played festivals in France and South Korea. Geeks is certainly not for everyone—no one falls in love then dies of cancer. But it will find an audience I am sure. Anyone who had fun with Killer Klowns From Outer Space, liked Rocky Horror, even What We Do in the Shadows in terms of a quirky, wicked sense of humor. I also think it will play well in mental asylums…it certainly shall send people there in any case.

Geeks doesn’t fit into the scheme of “modern films.” Actually, the shooting style and underlying three-act story structure harkens back to classic comedies (says the son of a former English teacher turned novelist). The trappings though, are insane and off-the-wall. You might say it’s just my own, goony creation. Love it or hate it, the humor is balls-out outrageous, definitely not for everyone--no one dies of cancer. Geeks is simply meant to be fun for essentially the genre audience.

Q. What’s your proudest moment associated with making the film?

Proudest moment? Maybe finally paying the actors. People say I’ve embraced the indie spirit. I don’t know how much I “embrace” it, so much as am fucked by it, having to work on such a modest budget. Although I’ve been a “hired gun” and directed scripts written by others, Geeks is really the first time since my 1980 Forbidden Zone that I’ve really done purely my own vision. Per John Waters, well, I’d hope he’d have something strong to drink and/or smoke and then laugh his ass off watching it! That’s what it was like creating the film: Drinking scotch and smoking cigars in my rooftop writing garret, laughing my ass off! The green aliens have a totally high-tech ship, except for the automotive steering wheel and four-on-the-floor to shift gears. For the clowns we went for an absurdly updated version of Flash Gordon. And when our tiny clown emperor takes possession of an earth body, he has little dummy of the earthling sitting in his lap, their heads connected by electrical wires. Absurd and ridiculous, and that’s my middle name.

Want to see a double feature of The Forbidden Zone and Aliens, Clowns & Geeks? You can! They will play at The Regency in L.A. as part of The Valley Film Festival on 1/30/21. Get tickets here.

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Look for our review of Aliens, Clowns & Geeks here soon!

#Richard Elfman #forbidden zone #aliens clowns geeks #bizarro #cult films

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akitokihojo · 5 years

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In Between: Chapter 9

Here we gooooooooooo! Chapter 10, the final chapter, is in the works. So, hold on to your butts, shit’s getting real y’all!

Previous chapters can be found in my fic masterlist, as well as on AO3 and ff.net.

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Kagome grimaced, leaning over the counter to get a closer look at the bruise on her face in the mirror. Her cheek and part of her under eye were painted scarlet and purple, the intense darkness of the wound saved for the very side of her cheekbone where he'd hit her hardest, shaded navy and shadowed slightly with swelling. Swiveling her head, she pulled her damp hair away from her face, analyzing the cut just outsider her hairline. It was angry and tender, especially whenever she made any sort of facial expression, but it was easy to hide beneath her waves so long as she left them untamed. The marks on her neck, though, were an entirely different story. The splotchy bruising marred a portion of the center and the sides of her throat. She was grateful the marks weren't as dark as the one making up her left cheek; he was hitting her over and over in that spot, whereas on her neck he was controlling his strength so as not to choke her completely. The mauve and rouge colors blended and lined where his fingers had squeezed, hardly sensitive and serving as nothing more than a reminder that he'd had her pinned.

"You okay?" Inuyasha asked from the open doorway to the restroom.

"Why does it look so much worse today?" She moaned, lightly poking her cheek to test the soreness of it. She winced, instantly regretting her stupid action.

"It's usually worse the day after. Here." He held out a cloth-wrapped bag of frozen peas.

"Thanks." Kagome smiled, happily planting the icy vegetables on the side of her face.

"Come on, I need to get a bandaid on your cut before you start oozing all over my clean floors."

"It's not bleeding, I can do it." She grimaced again.

"Shut up and sit." He pointed behind him to the couch, watching as she rolled her eyes but followed his order. Pulling open the cabinet beneath the bathroom sink, he fished out the small first aid kit and followed her out, sitting on her right and setting the box in front of him on the coffee table.

Kagome dropped the bag of peas on her lap to pull her hair over her shoulder, using her right hand to keep it held back just behind her temple. There was no need to clean the wound since she'd taken a shower less than an hour ago - her third shower since they'd finished cleaning the apartment, and second since they'd woken up this morning. While she was handling the situation well enough, it was understandable that she'd want to try and "wash" the violation from her skin. Carefully, Inuyasha applied some ointment to the cut with a q-tip, spreading it out evenly before grabbing a small butterfly bandage from the box.

"I'm surprised you have those. It's not the most common type of bandaid to see in someone's house."

"Pfft," Inuyasha scoffed, applying the bandage securely and ignoring her little wince. "I'm a cop. I'm a reckless cop. And I've got just enough demon blood to avoid the constant visits to the hospital for a scratch that'll disappear in twelve hours. Put the peas back on your face. How's your head?"

"It's okay." She shrugged, leaning fully back into the cushions of the couch as she did as he said. "I'm more concerned about my face."

"Is it sensitive? I've got some Ibuprofen."

"No, the way it looks!"

"It's not that bad." He tried to comfort

"Are you kidding? I can't go to work like this, I work with children!" Kagome flailed her free hand in the air in exasperation, giving Inuyasha a look like her ailments were common sense.

"Well, it was stupid of you to still plan on working in the first place! You need to take time off!" The half demon argued.

"I can't just take time off, Inuyasha!"

"You literally never take vacations, you've probably got P.T.O. up the yin yang!"

"It's not about how much time I have accrued, it's about the lack of notice I'm giving! I'm a teacher!"

"With a teaching assistant!"

"She can't make teaching plans!"

"It's a preschool, Kagome, have her recite the ABC's and give the kids some coloring books!" He rolled his eyes so hard his head lolled to the side. Kagome scoffed.

"These are vital learning years in a child's life, I'll have you know!"

"Fine, go to work." He shrugged, leveling his expression, a hint of arrogance in the cock of his brow.

"Hello! Have you been listening? I can't go to work!"

"Then it sounds like you need to take some damn time off, you idiot! Two weeks, just for cushion!"

"Two weeks!?"

"God, you just keep arguing." He drawled.

She threw the peas at him. "And tell them what? "Hi, I can't come into work because I've caught the fourteen day flu."" Kagome mocked, holding her finger-phone to her ear.

"How about, and bare with me because this is pretty out there, a family emergency." Inuyasha spread his hands out like he was drawing a rainbow in the air above his head.

"What?"

Inuyasha chuckled hopelessly, shaking his head as he picked up the wrapped-up peas and gently held them to her cheek. "Man, this knock to the head really isn't helping you think straight, is it? A family emergency." He reiterated. "Say you have to fly out because your grandpa's in the hospital and you'll keep them posted, call again in a week and let them know things are worse than you expected. Boom, two weeks covered and no doctor's note needed."

"That's-" Kagome looked slightly stunned, blinking as the tension in her brow faded. "That's actually a good idea."

"Imagine that." Inuyasha nodded.

"God, you're so full of yourself." She snagged the frozen vegetables and pushed the half demon away, ignoring his cocky laugh as she rolled off the couch to grab her phone from across the room. Before she could open her email to prep her excuse, Inuyasha's phone rang right next to her, Koga's name illuminating the screen. She tossed it over to him, unable to hear what the normally-boisterous wolf was saying on the other end, only able to gather that it must have been semi-good information being fed through the line from the way Inuyasha didn't ignite in curse words but only nodded and responded with a simple "okay."

Hanging up his phone, he looked over at Kagome from his spot on the couch, sighing out before speaking. "So, they may have caught your attacker from last night."

Kagome sealed her lips, trying to swallow the nerves that suddenly began to inflate.

"They need you to pick him out of a lineup."

"Right now?"

"Right now."

She hadn't imagined having to see that man again so soon, and the thought was intimidating. She figured it would be through a two-way mirror, just like the interrogation room she sat in last night, and he wouldn't be able to see her, but what if he picked up her scent? What if he gave her that thin-lipped smile like he'd already done so many times?

"Will you be there?" Kagome asked.

"I can't for this one." He hesitantly admitted, looking half-ashamed. "I saw his profile in the system last night. I know what he looks like. They haven’t specifically told me I can't yet, but I already know Kagura won't let me ten feet near that room. This is just so no one can say I influenced your answer."

"Got it." She breathed with a nod, completely understanding the logistics behind it. "Then, alright. We've gotta do what we've gotta do."

"Come on," Inuyasha stood, walking around the room to gather his necessary belongings. "Let's get this over with."

SVU Precinct

Sango sipped her piping hot mug of coffee, ignoring the sting on her tongue so she could get the caffeine rolling through her system. It had been a long night and she'd only been able to doze off for a quick power nap in the cot room before her busy mind and restless legs demanded she move. It was hard to be still when they had a criminal detained, even more so when he was playing smug and abiding by his right to remain silent. Not once had he asked for a lawyer since they sat him in the interrogation room, though. As fishy as it seemed, it could potentially end up working out in their favor. No lawyer means they had room to play a little dirty.

She looked up from her half-drunk cup as Inuyasha's silver hair caught her peripherals. He walked in at a leisurely pace, dressed down in a thin, maroon hoody with a plain, white tee underneath, loose jeans making up the lower portion. The guy practically lived at the station with how busy he liked to keep himself, so seeing him dressed in his civilian wear was on the odd side of things for her. What was even more odd was how soft his features appeared as he shifted his body to let the woman behind him step in front, his hand not touching, but hovering at the small of her back to keep her near.

It was a suitable change for him, and one she hoped he got to permanently adopt this time around.

Sango rose from her seat, hoping the coffee would hit her sooner rather than later, her muscles feeling heavy and sluggish. Inuyasha's ember eyes landed on her instantly, and he led Kagome down the hall of desks to meet her.

"Hey, thanks for coming." She greeted. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, I'm okay. Don't worry about me." Kagome responded with a pleasant shake of her head. The thick bruise on her cheek crinkled slightly with her controlled grin, the smile appearing crooked so as not to anger the blue and purple mass. Her black, wavy hair was brought to the front of her shoulders, curving and covering most of the marks around her throat, and the only evidence of the nearly-shielded cut on her temple that would catch one's eye was the redness just outside of the swelling that traveled towards the outer tip of her eyebrow. She was wearing a charcoal pullover hoody with the brand name stitched across her chest, the bottom hem hugging the hips of her dark blue jeans.

"I'm glad to hear it, though." There was a brief pause before she continued. "So, I'm sure Inuyasha told you, but we have to have you pick the perp out of a lineup. Think you remember his face well enough to do that?"

"There's no way I could forget it." Kagome said earnestly. "Shouldn't be a problem at all."

Kagome was confident, but Sango couldn't help the pang of guilt she felt that a man's face was so unwillingly etched into her mind. She wondered if she was troubled with nightmares of his brutality as she slept last night, or watched him leap at her whenever she blinked. The way she held herself seemed calm and nicely put-together; there was no evidence of fear or lingering anxiety written in her body language, and Sango couldn't help but think this woman was fantastic at putting up a front in response. But that wasn't it. If Kagome was hiding behind a facade, Inuyasha's protective demeanor would give it away. She'd worked with the half demon for long enough to understand that he feeds off of the reactions of those around him; those he's closest to. Especially victims. If they wanted to shy back, he'd give them shelter behind his broad shoulders. If they were nervous, he'd compensate with his surety. Kagome was temporarily living with him, so it would be entirely too exhausting to keep up a lie all hours of the day until this mess was put to rest. And Inuyasha was undoubtedly synced with the woman at his side, standing close but not smothering, there for assistance if necessary but allowing her to stand tall without a crutch. If she was even slightly nervous, he'd pick up on that emotion like it was broadcasted clearly on a billboard. Sango watched him stiffen a smidge as Kagome took another step forward, a silent indication that she was ready. He was the nervous one.

Sango took Kagome's arm to guide her towards the back, letting Inuyasha know they'd return shortly as he plopped down in his own desk chair to wait. They walked through a small curve in the halls, coming up on an open room, greeted by Hojo and Kagura as they entered through, simple pleasantries exchanged as Hojo did his part to make sure Kagome was as comfortable as manageable. They stood before a two-way, illuminated from the opposite side, the room they watched completely empty aside from Koga standing next to a door on an adjacent wall.

"Koga's going to let them in through that doorway. Everyone will be holding a number, so if you see the man that attacked you, I want you to tell me which number he's holding, okay?" Kagura instructed. Kagome nodded, a note of hesitation finally crumbling her stature.

"He can't see me, right?" She asked, walking up to the window, placing her fingertips on the metal frame at the bottom of it.

"No, he won't be able to see you at all." Hojo steadily affirmed. Again, she nodded. They all stood there silently, giving Kagome a moment of composure. Her brown eyes didn't shift from the brightly-lit room they looked in on, and as she took in a deep breath, there was no more sag to her body, even her chin raising a hair. Hojo gave two deliberate knocks to the glass, and Koga turned to push open his door, ordering the row of men to enter without bark to his tone.

As each man passed through, Kagome quickly studied their faces, all looking slightly similar to the next. She immediately disqualified numbers two and three as they appeared for their five o'clock shadow. The man she'd been attacked by had such feminine features, she didn't think it'd be possible for him to grow facial hair. Number four walked through, shortly followed by number five. Neither were him. As soon as number six walked in, Kagome tensed considerably, her fingers gripping the frame.

"Number six." She announced, watching the man saunter to his spot, the number held just in front of his navel. His nose was slightly crooked, the bridge an off shade of magenta, green and yellow outlining and expanding to the inner corners and beneath his eyes. There was a cut on the side of his head that she swore was twice the size when she'd given it to him, little, angry nicks decorating the skin around the wound. That was her doing. That was the memento she was glad he was stuck with, even if his demon blood hastened his recovery. It didn't matter. She wasn't the only one currently standing marked.

"Give it one more moment." Kagura said, lightly placing her hand on Kagome's shoulder. As soon as all ten of the men were in the room - some detainees, some cops in disguise - and Koga had closed the door, she spoke. "Take a look at all of them. Are you sure?"

"Number six." Kagome stated again, more fervency in her tone. "That's him. He was the man at the coffee shop and he was the man that broke into Inuyasha's home."

Hojo gave six steady knocks against the window with the knuckle of his middle finger, and they watched as Koga emptied the room, the smile on the accused criminal's face growing wide and thin as he was personally led out by the wolf demon.

"You did great, thank you so much for your help." Kagura smiled.

"What happens now?" Kagome asked, turning around to face the lot of them.

"We interview him. Now's the time where we press him for any information he can give. He's our link to Naraku, so we're a step closer to tracking him down, and we're going to make sure this guy works with us." Sango replied assertively.

"Once we catch Naraku and trials begin, he'll be present. You'll have to testify against both of them." Kagura added.

"I'll do whatever you need."

"Good." Hojo grinned, watching Kagura walk off and in the opposite direction of the main office, lightly patting Kagome's upper back to lead her out the door. "Let's get you out of here."

"Wait," Kagome stopped in the center of the hall just outside the room, staring intently into the detective's blue eyes. Her determination took him back a bit as his fingers flinched away from her spine. "What's his name? I deserve to put a name to the face."

"It's Byakuya." He answered after a small moment of hesitation. "His name's Byakuya."

She swallowed the information, biting her bottom lip as she glanced to the floor, then darted her brown-eyed gaze back to him. "Thank you."

They walked out into the main office where Inuyasha sat, tapping his claws impatiently against the lining of his desk, his leg bobbing like a wind up toy bound tight. He jumped up at the sight of Kagome, quickly crossing the distance to meet her more than half way as she greeted him with a smile, her fingers loosely gripping the cloth of the arm of his sweater.

"Was he in there?"

"Yeah." She nodded curtly.

"Good, time for the interrogation?" He asked the detectives behind her.

"You know it." Sango replied.

"Let me see that fucker."

"Woah, woah, woah!" Hojo stepped in front of him, halting his path.

"Come on, I just want to look. I'm not gonna do anything." Inuyasha drawled.

"Why do you want to see him so bad all of a sudden?"

"Well, I had plenty of time to think out here and I've decided I'd get some nice closure if I got to see this man, too.” The half demon feigned innocence, the smile curving his lips only serving to disturb the detectives before him.

"No." Sango crossed her arms, planting her weight on one hip. "No way. You're gonna punch him."

"Just once!"

"Get out of here!"

"I can break him faster than you guys!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure you can!"

"I just have a few words for him!"

"Well, write him a letter and we'll make sure he gets it!"

"Let me through!"

"Go home!"

"I should be part of the interview process! It's a good tactic to bring it down to a personal level, and he could potentially start talking faster!"

"You know damn well you can't do that! You aren't on the case, Inuyasha!"

"So!"

"You'd compromise everything!"

"No, I wou-"

Kagome reached up, gently flicking Inuyasha on the tip of his white ear, watching the appendage jerk to the side in response as his entire body froze and his voice completely hitched in his throat. He didn't look at her, his eyes stunned while facing his coworkers. "Come on," She spoke, her tone simple and level. "It's time to go, Inuyasha. You're in the way." She spun around on her heel, traveling to the door, only stopping to wait for her companion.

Sango blinked, covering her mouth to block the amusement she knew was written so clearly on it. She sniffed and cleared her throat, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible as she noticed her partner struggling to do the same, his lips pressed into a tight line. Inuyasha straightened, his body language no longer radiating defensive but slightly awkward and put off, scratching his temple as was his particular ism, and fixing the sweater over his shoulders to line up neatly.

"So, I'm gonna go." He raised his brows, pressing his own lips together. A small popping sound came as he released them and continued. "But it's only because I don't want to hear shit from you two. Got it?"

"Yup, sure, got it." Hojo nodded, a smug expression foiling his casualty. The half demon squinted his ember eyes in a meager challenge, spinning around and allowing his silver ponytail to fly behind him, following after Kagome and promptly exiting the office.

—

Sango unbuttoned the ends of her dress shirt sleeves, rolling her left up above the crook of her elbow, then swapping sides to roll up the right. She looked in on the man beyond the two-way, his pasty forehead dampened with sweat, the fine, ungroomed hairs of his bangs sticking to his skin. It was an effective tactic of theirs to spike the thermostat in the room. It was one thing to make them mentally uncomfortable with loaded questions, it was another to increase their physical discomfort - all around aiding in their quicker crumbling. On top of that, Koga had gone through and removed some of the bulbs in the overhead lamps before throwing Byakuya to sit alone in the room over an hour ago, the setting dingy and humid and uninviting.

Perfect.

Hojo approached, his button up and tie entirely removed as he prepared for their routine in his black tee shirt. He faced his partner, the back of his right forearm held out to her. "Good cop."

"Bad cop." She winked, tapping the edge of her right elbow to his.

"How long do you think it'll take to crack him, doc?" Totosai asked from the sidelines. Miroku observed the perp before them. Byakuya was tapping his foot against the flooring at a steady pace, his lips curved down in disapproval, his chest raising as he heaved a heavy, throaty sigh.

"Hard to say until he starts talking. He hasn't said a word since he's been apprehended. My guess is he's testy. He's secure, but he's guarded. He hides behind his rooted confidence. Find his weak spot and he'll give. Or potentially snap."

Sango spared Miroku a brief side glance, smiling softly when she noticed their chief wasn't looking. His face was serious, violet eyes captivating her gaze as he discretely mouthed the words, "Be careful."

Hojo stepped through the entry first, expression straight, holding the door open with one hand and a notepad in the other as Sango followed through. It was incredible, she'd been told, how fast her demeanor could change; how she could step into any roll necessary for the part. Next to Inuyasha, who'd rightfully earned his place at the top as lead detective in the precinct - despite his unorthodox practices - she fell just below him for her strong abilities to make perps fold. She was versatile in her tactics, adaptable in the room, and justifiably a force to be reckoned with.

Byakuya tilted his head upward to face the two detectives, his skin glowing beneath the yellow light from the slimy-looking film of sweat on his cheeks. Without the slightest hint as to what anyone should have expected, Sango crossed the room, curved around the corner of the table and demanded the criminal to stand. He did nothing but stare at her, thin brows pinching together audaciously. Again, she told him to stand. There was no degree of malice in her tone, no aggression, no attitude. The order she spoke was with the sincerity of a ship's captain. What she said would be heeded no matter what, and as he chose to ignore her once more, wrists bound close together in his lap with metal cuffs, she flicked her foot around a leg of the chair and kicked it from beneath his seat.

He fell to the ground, clambering up to his feet with dangerous chuckles mixed with growls brushing past his thin lips. Sango made sure the chair was out of reach from him, turning to push the wooden table to the far wall and out of the way. Hojo stood back, leaning against the wall at the very edge of the mirror, his face unchanged.

"You don't want to talk, you don't get to sit."

He scoffed and rolled his eyes, leaning against the wall in back of him.

"You're not looking too good there, woman beater. You tired?" She baited, closing some of the distance between them, stopping with just a couple feet to spare.

Byakuya ground his jaw forward, the muscles at the joint flexing as he brought his teeth back where they belonged.

"Had a long night?"

His upper lip twitched.

"Hitting girls take a lot out of you?"

His head shifted slightly as Sango took two small steps forward, damn near in his face now, eyes slanted dangerously as she spoke again.

"Or was it the pounding she gave you that wore you out?"

Again, he scoffed, this time hard enough for spittle to fly from his mouth as he dramatically rolled his dark eyes. "I'd hardly call this a pounding."

"Really?" She feigned curiosity.

"Have you seen her face? I'm sure the marks I left have set in nicely."

"Sure, she's looked better. But there's one small detail you're neglecting. She's human. She, like most of us, get bruises from bumping the corner of a table.”

"What of it?"

"Well, you're a full-blooded demon. Your kind is difficult to harm and heals at a ridiculously fast rate, and yet..." Sango took an obvious glance at his wounded face and gashed head. "You're looking pretty worse for wear."

Another eye roll, this time swiveling his head to the side to face the neighboring wall instead of her.

"What's even better is once we lock you in a cell, you'll be labeled a woman beater. A lot of men in there don't take kindly to that."

"What, because a bruised septum and a cut on my head is clear indication of my crimes?" Byakuya chuckled. "How the hell would anyone know?"

"Oh, I'll make sure of it." Sango grinned, cocking a brow. "You think I don't have pull beyond these walls? You think one slip of the lip to the right guard wont spread your little secret of assault like wild fire? You'll have an awful rep before you're even indicted. The moment men see you walk through those doors, you'll be targeted. Your prissy, feminine looks will be scarred and bruised, and your ego will rightfully be smeared in the dirt. Your broken nose will stay this way, because everyone in there will want you to hold onto the little trophy Kagome gave you. Out here, you think you're something big, don't you? You think you're invincible because you hurt an unsuspecting girl, right? You're nothing. Not out here and definitely not in prison, and you'll have plenty of reminders coming your way for years to come."

"You're not allowed to threaten me! I know my rights!" He hissed.

"Who's threatening? I'm only trying to be informative. Hojo, did you hear me threaten Byakuya?" She asked with a smile, irreproachably. Hojo shrugged and shook his head, grimacing as he pretended he didn't hear a thing.

"You guys out there, knock twice if you heard me threaten him." Sango called to her coworkers watching in. Nothing. She turned back to the perp before her, raising a shoulder as she dismissed his accusation.

"You're all corrupt!"

"What, are you mad now? Are you mad because a woman's in charge? A woman's in your face and you can't do anything about it?" She badgered, finally beginning to raise her voice.

"You don't know shit!"

"Don't I? Enlighten me, then!"

Byakuya stared at her, violet eyes flickering over every inch of her face, studying as his chest rose with an unsteady inhale. As he dropped his breath, he let out an incredulous chuckle, shifting his sights to the side.

"Or, is the only way you know how to teach a lesson-"

"God, woman beater, woman beater!" He drawled, unamused, bobbing his head from side-to-side. Byakuya stood up straight from the wall, leveling her challenge. "Is that all the material you've got? Look, if you think this has anything to do with the "reputation" you're giving me, you're sorely mistaken." He'd made quotation marks with the index and middle fingers of both chained hands, lifting them between their bodies so she'd see.

"Is that so? So, what did it have to do with?"

"Is that a loaded question?" He smirked.

"No, a loaded question would be me asking how much Naraku paid you to attack her." She watched his conceit fade. "I was fishing for you to admit it yourself."

His discomfort notably increased as his Adam's apple bobbed with the thick swallow. He moved to step away from Sango, to create some space, but she clutched the front of his shirt and yanked him back, slamming him against the wall.

"Did I say you could move?"

"Sango-" Hojo calmly warned, dropping his pad of paper on the discarded table as he apprehensibly stepped up beside her. "Ease up a bit."

"What? No." She smiled, shaking her head, the collar of his tee still balled in her fist. "He's obviously the type of guy that likes being told what to do. All I gotta do is smack him around a little to show him who his new boss is, and he'll break."

"This isn't the way to do it. He's talking now, let's just keep the conversation going." He held up his hands, trying to break the two apart. Sango brought her other hand up to grab Byakuya securely, bringing his body forward only to crush him back against the wall, his head colliding with the cement.

"Here's what's gonna happen, princess,” She spoke low, leaning closer to hover inches from his face. "You're gonna tell us everything we want to know, or I'm gonna give you a glimpse of what you have to look forward to in prison! Got it?"

"Sango!"

"Get the fuck off of me!" Byakuya growled.

"Or what? What are you gonna do?"

"It's not even ground-breaking that you know who he is, don't act like you have the upper hand!"

"But don't we? We have his lackey in custody, and he's seconds away from giving us what we need." She patronized.

"Like hell!"

Sango stepped back, the hint of an arrogant grin pushing the corners of her lips up as she crossed the floor and grabbed the discarded chair, dropping it down in the center of the heated room. Hojo created his own space, backing away to the table's new home, his fingers landing on the notepad but not picking it up. She silently commanded their perp to sit with the shift of her eyes that dragged from his body down to the seat. His expression was clearly ambivalent as he stayed put, thin lips twitching, eyes untrusting, sweat crawling down the side of his face.

Finally, he moved, squatting into the uncomfortable chair that only worked to further unease him, eyes inside and out of the immediate area focused on him as one of the remaining working lamp lights flickered in and out three times before going back to burning yellow.

"So," Sango began again, pacing around the room to stand before Byakuya. "How much did he pay you?"

He rolled his violet eyes, cocking his jaw out and in, a small popping sound heard from the grinding motion.

"Alright, we'll make this easy. We'll come up with scenarios and you can just confirm or deny. Ready?"

No response.

"You're having trouble paying your bills. Or, better yet, you're an addict - that explains the sweats you've got right now. Jonesing. Craving. Your blood must be boiling, poor thing. You met Naraku by pure coincidence, and he offered you money in exchange for your assistance. You had no idea what you were getting yourself into. Money means drugs, so you took the bait."

"No." He plainly refuted.

"You're right, that doesn't make sense. How would Naraku have even a dime to his name right now? It's not like an asylum-escapee could hold down a normal retail job. Unless he's selling-"

"No."

"What about blackmail?" Hojo asked, his tone kind and approachable. "You don't seem the kind of person that's capable of concocting something this dangerous just for the hell of it. I can see there's more to you, and if he's holding something over your head, now's the time to tell us. We can work with you, Byakuya."

"You don't know shit about me." He dismissed with a sneer. "I'm not in this for money, I'm not into hard drugs, if anything I'd be the blackmailer in this scheme considering the way this man's twisted mind works, and I have the sweats because you assholes turned the heat up to eighty-five fucking degrees!"

"Doesn't feel hot in here to me." Sango shrugged.

"So, you're saying he asked you to do his bidding and you agreed? Just like that?" Hojo inquired.

"Basically."

"Did you aid him in the murder of-"

"Oh, here we go again!" Byakuya rolled his head back and around dramatically, landing on his bony-looking shoulder as he laughed. "History's repeating itself, and you're about to chalk up the whole story of how Naraku's some sort of serial killer, aren't you? Don't bother!"

"What do you mean?" Hojo and Sango glanced at each other from the side.

"He didn't kill anyone!" He shouted, fervency in his beliefs, eyes glowing in his defensive hunch. "You guys had nothing, nothing, and you were only able nail him down by planting incriminating evidence that didn't exist!"

"You don't believe he's a criminal?"

"That's not what I said. He's broken some laws here and there, he's built a record. He's just not the criminal your system has painted him out to be."

"A murderer." Sango stated, crossing her arms where she stood.

"Exactly."

"How do you know anything about Naraku? What makes you so sure?" Hojo pulled up a chair, opting now to sit across from Byakuya, sparing five feet's distance between them.

"Let's just say we have history." The demon shrugged, sitting back in his seat.

"That's not the answer we were looking for." Sango declared.

"Well, that's the only answer you're gonna get, sweetie."

"Try again."

"Go fuck yourself."

She grabbed a chair for herself, swinging it around to straddle beside Byakuya who leaned away as she neared. "Big talk for a guy in your position. See, here's the thing, considering you aren't cooperating but have confessed to your affiliation with Naraku, you could be pinned for everything he's done, and the potential is strong here."

"Aside from the assault, you don't have a thing on me."

"How about aiding an escapee?"

"Alright, you've got one thing." He smiled. "I'll do my time."

"How about stalking on two accounts?"

"So he took a few photos. Big deal."

"How about the murder of Abi Phoenix and her unsuspecting mother?" She delivered with more vehemency.

"Now that's where I have to stop you, because he hasn't-"

"He shot her mother in the head and tortured Abi all night until she bled out, you piece of shit! And before you defend his innocence again, he personally left his DNA on Abi by biting her thigh! We have the strongest evidence necessary to prove it was him!"

"Do you have an eye witness?"

"We have his saliva!"

"DID SOMEBODY SEE HIM!?"

"Yes! You! Apparently, you're the only person since his escape that has had any personal contact with him! You seem to know his every move, so you must have known he murdered the two women! Maybe you even helped him! You think the men in prison will be hard on you for brutally attacking a woman, wait until they find out-”

"You're making shit up!"

"We have to work with what we've got, don't we!? This is what you could be indicted for! This is the fire you're playing with, Byakuya!"

"He didn't kill anybody!"

"Sure, he did! He did, and so did you! How strong do your roots run, huh? Did you help him back in the day, too!"

"You mean the crimes you incorrectly pinned on a mentally unhealthy man!?"

"I mean the murders he committed on women and children! He killed a little boy! He kidnapped and murdered him in the backyard of his family's cabin!"

"Our family hadn't been to that damn cabin in three years, and Naraku hated that fucking place!"

Sango's mouth hung agape as she straightened her back, allowing this new information to bleed through. His cheeks went a sickly pale, neck tensing as he stared at her, the hollow of his throat emphasized with his discomfort.

"Our family?" Hojo spoke, leaning in slightly with an air of caution. Their perp was breaking, sweat dripping from his jaw line and soaking through his dirty, white shirt. He was nervous, a noticeable pulse pumping at the side of his neck, breathing elevated and heavy.

"So, you're related. That's how you know so much about him." Sango said.

"So fucking what!?" He spat defensively.

"That doesn't make sense, though. We have both yours and Naraku's DNA in the system and neither were matched to one another." Hojo said, brows furrowed as he reached for an explanation.

"Use your fucking brain, dumbass." Byakuya responded, his confidence raising as he embraced the now-exposed truth. "We aren't biologically related. Naraku was adopted."

"You're his younger brother."

"Ding, ding, ding! My parents thought themselves sterile since they were two clashing breeds of demons. They tried and tried and tried to get pregnant until a professional diagnosed that their contrasting biologics were too unstable an environment for a fetus. Hell, for semen. My mother's uterus was a war zone, you see. So, they adopted. They got my brother before he could even talk and it was a nice few years before I came around. I was deemed the "miracle child," and my brother was officially in the shadows from that day forward. He didn't take it to heart, though. He was... indifferent, I'd say. Indifferent to almost everything, really, but if there was one thing he hated, it was being still. If the house was too quiet or he ran out of things to do, he'd grow irrationally angry; he always had to be doing something stimulating. My brother's mentality began to slip when he was around, I don't know, ten or eleven. I was young, only seven, but I still remember the depthless look in his eyes when he first hurt an animal. Sure, I thought it was terrifying. How could a person do that to a cute, little bunny, right? It didn't take me long to realize Naraku wasn't a normal person, though. He never showed a hint of remorse when he did something wrong, was the biggest pathological liar you'd ever meet, either lacked or neglected control over his behavior, but still managed to be the most suave motherfucker around. That guy could manipulate the pants straight off of someone, but he was so charming not a single person batted an eye. Not even me. He was arrested several times over his teen years for animal cruelty; not the best hobby he could have picked up, even I can admit that. But not once did he ever target people for his twisted gimmicks. Not to mention, the last few times my family went up to that stupid cabin in the woods, Naraku lost his absolute shit! And I wish I was exaggerating! He'd break things, and scream, and curse, and kick, and punch holes in the walls, and demand to go home the entire fucking time. He wouldn't sleep while we were there, and he'd wander off into the woods and disappear for hours on end, which clearly wasn't a good thing considering what he was notorious for. So, we stopped going. Simple as that. Who knows why the hell he hated the place so much; probably because there's hardly anything to do in a secluded area. All I know is, it doesn't make sense that he'd ever willingly go back."

"He was arrested in the woods near the cabin."

"Fake."

"The little boy's body was dug up in the backyard."

"That doesn't mean he did it." Byakuya shook his head. "Hell, my father was more likely to kill a kid before Naraku ever would! He and my mother treated him like he was nothing, even after paying good fucking money for the adoption! I didn't want the limelight! I didn't want my brother to be treated as he was just because I was the one sperm that survived her fallopian tubes' ruthless defenses! For all I care, they caused his mental instability or whatever personality disorder he was diagnosed with! They threw him out on the street when he was seventeen! They kicked him out and moved so he wouldn't be able to find his way back! I was the only one that thought he deserved a little leeway! He wasn't right in the head and wasn't getting any sort of therapeutic help! How was he supposed to cope!? He was accused of all these murders, and it drove me crazy how that ugly, half-breed cop pinned all this false evidence on him like all psychopaths are bad! They aren't! There's this stupid stigma placed on psychopaths, that they're all murderers, but they're not! My brother may lack empathy, but he's not stone cold! He has a heart! He's never done a single bad thing to me! Not once! He lied about a lot of shit he did as a kid, but never once placed the blame on me! He was a good older brother!”

"No, not all psychopaths are killers." Sango spoke. "Not all killers are psychopaths. You're right. But you're brother-"

"YOU SHUT YOUR WHORE MOUTH!" Byakuya heatedly rose from his seat, cutting her off as he kicked his chair away and raised his cuffed hands to strike. She jumped back, but Hojo was on him before anything could happen, spinning Byakuya around and pinning him against the cement wall. He was gasping for air, struggling to escape the hand Hojo gripped his untidy, black hair with, body weight applied to his core so he was effectively restrained.

Sango held up her hand to the two-way mirror, knowing someone was probably preparing to break up the scene in case things were about to get messy, which she wanted to prevent. That couldn't happen yet. He was finally talking, and if they ended the interview now, the next time around would be twice as difficult. So long as Hojo could calm the detained demon, they could continue.

"There's no need to get angry, alright? Take a deep breath. That's it. One more. Good." Hojo soothed, backing off of Byakuya as his temper diminished. He took the liberty of grabbing the thrown chair and placing it where it was before, allowing the demon to sit and wind down as the tension in the room dwindled.

"He didn't kill anybody." He stated again, staring at the floor. "Abi's just a casualty in your half-demon's twisted game. He wants Naraku back in that hell hole so bad, it's pathetic."

"And how do you suppose he got the saliva sample?"

"Oh, please. Like that's even real. All you guys have to do is say you got it, and the system would take your word for it."

"What if we showed you the proof?"

"Then I'd insist you attained the DNA from his stay at the asylum and planted it.”

“Why would they have his DNA?”

“Who knows, but it’s a possibility.”

"You're very adamant in your opinion. You're incredibly loyal to your brother. It's understandable that you'd fight for him now that he's free; even going as far as running his errands." Hojo leaned in from his seat again, playing up the empathy.

"He's been through enough. I don't blame him for wanting payback." Byakuya's knee started bobbing up and down, growing faster as he tried applying more weight into it to get it to stop. "He justifiably hates Inuyasha, and I'm on board with anything he has planned for him."

"So where does Kagome land in all of this?" Sango asked, her tone notably softer than any other time she'd spoken before.

"Just like Abi, she's a casualty." He smirked. "My brother can be... obsessive. He started following her to spike the half-breed's anxiety and paranoia, but then it evolved into something more. He had a reputation given to him by Inuyasha, kind of like how you tried to pin one on me, so he's decided to live up to it. Polaroids. Polaroids, everywhere. Quite frankly, it was annoying, but who am I to tell him how to get his revenge? In all honesty, though, Kagome deserves the backlash she's getting if she's choosing to stay with the guy."

"I thought he's never targeted people before." Hojo posed.

Byakuya shifted uncomfortably, handcuffs jingling as he brought his sweating palms closer together. "Well, yeah. Before now."

"That's a pretty big leap. And you were ready to kill for him?"

He half-scoffed, half-chuckled. "I was actually under strict orders not to kill the girl. He wanted her maimed, really. He wanted Inuyasha to see the damage he was inflicting."

Sango sunk into her chair a little lower. It made sense. Kagome had mentioned he wasn't cutting off her air supply when he choked her. He was only trying to leave his mark.

"And you still believe he didn't hurt a single living being, human or demon, before this?" Sango tried.

"God, are you not listening!? Your corrupt officer framed him!"

"But why?" Hojo asked. "For what reason would Inuyasha have an innocent man put in prison?"

"Probably because these crimes were really taking place, but you guys arrested the wrong man. Inuyasha seems prideful. Like the kind of guy that doesn't like to admit when he's made a mistake. He couldn't take the embarrassment since this was such a high-profile case, so he made sure all signs pointed to Naraku."

"Don't you think that's a little too coincidental? I mean, Hakudoshi's body was pulled from your family's backyard. If Naraku was falsely accused-"

"Planted. He was planted. Keep up."

"How could Inuyasha have had the time to plant Hakudoshi's body? We have tapes, plenty of eye-witness proof, that proves Inuyasha was here, at the precinct, interrogating Naraku the entire time most of the searches for evidence was happening. The only time he went on the field was when we drove up to the cabin and unburied Hakudoshi."

"Then he had a buddy working with him. All of you have partners, who's his?"

"I understand your stance on this, I do. You want to believe your brother. You probably feel like you even have to because of everything he's been through. There's guilt gluing you to Naraku's side." Hojo said, allowing Sango to pick up where he stopped, instinctively knowing they were riding the same wave.

"But you're looking at this all wrong. Believe us when we say we want to help you. We are not against you here. You need to think of us as deforesters, not landscapers. We're in the business of uprooting every fine piece of grooly evidence, not planting it. Inuyasha was here, and we can show you. Abi wasn’t just some casualty, she was the link that pointed to your brother's arrest. Hakudoshi was innocently slain. He was a little boy. You think your brother doesn't deserve this treatment, but what about Hakudoshi? What about all the other innocent people killed by Naraku? What about them?”

Byakuya’s deep eyes pierced the ground at his feet, face contorted and wet, stray hairs sticking to his cheeks and neck, breathing unsettled as he clasped his hands together but couldn’t seem to hold them steady. He began shaking his head, the rhythm small and barely noticeable, allowing his mouth to part, a drop of sweat flowing over his upper lip and meshing into the line where it met the bottom.

“Show me.” He whispered. “I want to see every piece of damning evidence you have.”

—

The room was sitting at a more comfortable temperature now, the thermostat adjusted accordingly and a water bottle delivered for Byakuya as he sat in the room alone once more. The table was put back in the center, his arms resting against the wood as he stared down at it, waiting.

Sango and Hojo reentered with manilla folders in their hands, choosing their seats opposite Byakuya and placing their items on the tabletop.

"Sorry it took so long." Hojo said.

"Just show it to me." He mumbled.

Sango opened the folder she held, dragging out a glossy, black and white, overhead photo of Inuyasha questioning Naraku almost exactly nine years ago, six days from the date, the timestamp printed clearly in the bottom, left corner. She placed that in front of Byakuya, turning it around so it was right-side up for him. The next was a photocopy of an incident report where evidence was found at Naraku's apartment, dated and timed only eighteen minutes apart.

"In the video, Inuyasha is trying to get Naraku to admit to Hakudoshi's disappearance. No one knew he was dead yet. He was consistently pressing him to get him to reveal his location. He was trying to save the boy. At the same time, Naraku had given just enough information to get a warrant to search his home. Detectives found polaroids on the walls of women and children he'd stalked, women and children that had active missing reports out for their safe return."

"That doesn't mean anything. The time on Inuyasha's picture could have been photoshopped in." He argued.

"You can believe that all you want, Byakuya. You can bathe in your denial for all I care, but this is it. This is the proof you asked for. Inuyasha was in this station, locked in a room with your brother for hours, all while other investigators searched his place. How could he have planted anything?" Sango asked, her frustration slowly hiking.

"Well, where was he before the interrogation began?"

"Arresting Naraku."

"And before that?"

"Oh my god." She could tell it was a never-ending cycle, the huff from her nose heated like a dragon's.

"Look at this!" Hojo instructed, his tone striking critical for the first time. He opened his own folder, slapping down image-after-image of the scene they'd walked in on at Abi Phoenix's residence. Pictures of her mother's lifeless body, of Abi sprawled on the floor, slightly decayed, closeups of her brutally-inflicted wounds, the contusions on her neck, the bite just above her knee, her dark hair matted in dried blood. "See that mark on her leg? That's where Naraku bit Abi! That's where he left behind his DNA! She was murdered by your brother!"

"Bullshit! What reason did he have to get revenge on Abi? They had no affiliation with one another, they-"

"She was his girlfriend nine years ago! She was the reason he was arrested!" Sango interjected.

"That doesn't make sense!"

"When she was questioned by the police, she told them the last time she'd spoken to Naraku, he'd said he was heading to his family's cabin with his nephew!" Hojo yelled.

"No, that's not right! Naraku didn't have a girlfriend, and he doesn't have a nephew!"

"Think about it!"

"I'm telling the truth!" Byakuya shouted, slamming his fists against the table. "He's never been able to hold down a relationship in his life! Hell, he even told me he finds the opposite sex repugnant and never felt any desire to be with them - sexually or what have you!"

Hojo sat back in his seat, the heat fading from his expression, though his lips pressed into a flat line as he allowed Byakuya's words to settle, to cool. He nodded, shrugging his brows as he spoke again, this time more levelly. "Think about it."

"E-even if he did have a girlfriend, we don't have a nephew - he doesn't have a nephew." He shakily said, eyes widened with unclarity. Hojo pulled another photo from his folder, placing it on top of the others in the center of the table. The little boy stood with a bright smile on his face, white hair falling over his shoulders as he held a large basketball between his hands.

"This is Hakudoshi. He was eight years old and his body was discovered in the backyard of your parents' cabin."

"Inuyasha worked for hours to make Naraku slip, and a warrant was finally issued for us to search the premises. He was young, and terrified, and alone when he was killed. You want justice for your brother, but what about him?" Sango added, watching Byakuya's shoulders tremble from the applied guilt.

"You honestly didn't know?" Hojo inquired.

"No, o-of course not. I always believed him when he said he was set up, I-I thought I knew him better than anyone." He replied, the breath heavy against his lungs.

"I find that hard to believe."

Byakuya's violet gaze instantly redirected away from Hakudoshi's image, colliding with Hojo's skeptical, blue eyes.

"You mean to tell me you had no idea what pictures were inside the envelope you handed Kagome?"

"H-he didn't let me see them. The envelope was sealed when he gave it to me, I figured they were the same old thing." He hastily opposed.

"Well, it was; you're not wrong there." Hojo smiled incredulously. One of the remaining items in his folder was the very same envelope, slightly wrinkled, pointed corners of polaroids poking out from the opening. He dumped the contents on the table, tossing the empty envelope down beside it all. "Same old thing, same old Naraku! These are old photos he managed to keep of past victims! Look at them, Byakuya! Take a look at all the people he's stalked throughout the years!"

He did so, spreading them out, confused, taken aback, not knowing what to say anymore, studying, looking through and stopping as he spotted the silver-haired little girl he remembered from third street. Bile was rising into his throat as his stomach twisted and lurched in his abdomen. The temperature was normalized in the room, but his cheeks felt clammy. She'd gone missing when he was nine. Naraku used to babysit her for a little cash. He remembered the sirens blaring as they raced around the bend to her house, he remembered the police coming to their door to question his parents and then moving on, he remembered the incessant rumors about her dad spreading throughout the neighborhood community, the pain he would see on her mother's face when she watched little children walk by, the hint of envy as they went to elementary school - something her daughter would never do. And he remembered them eventually moving away.

"What-" His breath hitched as his nerves began getting the better of him, fingers shaking against one another. "What do you want to know?"

"Is there anyone else working with you two?" Sango asked without hesitation.

"No."

"How did you get Inuyasha's spare key?"

"I have a detachable eye, it's disgusting but one of the quirks of being a mixed race of demons. Stole a uniform from one of your cops and my scent was masked enough to blend with the mess of detainees you have in this building. Set up the eye, saw his combo, came back and got it. I got lucky finding the key in the locker; I was beginning to think he didn't have one."

"And Kagome's?"

"Her landlord is a dumbass with multiple masters in an unlocked office in the basement."

"Your parents, we never located them." Hojo stated, waiting for Byakuya to fill in the gap.

"They live upstate on a ranch. They're fine."

"And your brother," Sango leaned inward, maintaining a careful tone. "Where is he?"

He hesitated, eyes slowly shifting back and forth between the two detectives. His throat clenched, and he didn't know what to do. Naraku was still his brother. How could he turn his back on him after everything - no, that was all a lie. Naraku was the one inflicting pain, not the other way around. He was a serial killer.

The thought felt acidic on his brain.

Still, as he opened his mouth to speak, his throat clenched and held his voice captive. He tried again, to tell the truth, to give up the headache-inducing charade, but his abdomen tightened like a shockwave had coursed through the surrounding muscles.

What was he supposed to do? What was he supposed to say? What was right? What was wrong? He was going to be doing time in prison anyway, maybe if he willingly took the fall for his brother, Naraku could start anew.

That wasn't the way it worked though, was it? His brother had grown obsessed with Inuyasha, obsessed with his revenge. He was going to kill again whether Byakuya took the fall or not. His brother was sick.

He deserved a chance.

But he was going to kill.

"I," Byakuya's bottom lip trembled as he hung his head, staring at the wood between his forearms. "I want a lawyer."

Two hard knocks against the mirror behind them rang heavily throughout the dense room, effectively ending the interview.

Inuyasha’s Residence

Inuyasha stomped around the apartment, huffing and puffing as he made sure the windows were secure for the fifth time and counting, rushing out of view for his next task. Kagome sat on the kitchen counter, watching him travel through with his ever-prominent scowl, propped with one hand just behind her butt while the other held the strawberry she nibbled. She knew it would be irrelevant to point out how repetitive he was being. She knew how this time of the month spiked his blood pressure, and with Naraku still on the loose and his teammates hardly communicating anything with him, there was very little comfort in tonight's new moon.

She could hardly blame him. She'd tried calming him down a few hours ago, but he had every right to be high strung. If Naraku has been stalking the two of them for months now, there was a huge probability that he knew of Inuyasha's human night. Not that it would provide an inkling of consolation for the irritable half demon, Kagome couldn't help but hope Naraku had spent his time being more focused on her. He could rob her of every secret she hid from the world, just so long as he didn't take this one from Inuyasha.

He walked into the kitchen, stopping close by, ember eyes dulled with anxiety, staring at her legging-clad legs that dangled from the marble counter. Even though he wasn't looking at her face, she gave him a congenial smile, one she hoped would express her empathy for the situation at hand. With a tense sigh, he turned around and she knew he was about the repeat the entire process all over again.

"Hey," She extended a leg out, barely skimming his thigh with a toe but serving to halt his path nonetheless. "You've got it all, Inuyasha. Everything's locked up tight. We're gonna be perfectly safe."

"One more time." He grunted, still not looking at her.

"No more times." Kagome scooted her bottom closer to the edge of the counter, reaching her foot out to nudge him in her direction. He was reluctant. Rigid. Strained. She nudged him again and he finally gave, glancing at her with an unamused expression as he stepped his left foot back to open his front to her. Using the leverage she was granted, she pinned his hips between both ankles and pulled until he gave her what she wanted and came to stand between her knees.

"What?" He grumbled.

She grabbed his hands and gently placed them to rest on the tops of her thighs.

"Kagome."

She shushed him, the sound quick and gentle, tenderly raking her nails up and down his bare forearms. He huffed again, the sound clenched in his throat, but he didn't try to pull away. Kagome dragged her fingers up to the crook of his elbow, tickling slightly from the way he twitched, secretly enjoying how sensitive his skin became when he was on the brink of transforming, traveling up to his biceps and going inside the hem of his tee so she could skim the faded edge of the tattoo on his arm. He was beginning to ease, beginning to soften, his thumbs rubbing back and forth over the material of her leggings. Kagome leaned in, placing a small and playful kiss on his chin.

"I don't have time for this." He said. It was gruff, but wasn't the least bit convincing. He never moved away. In fact, his hands had moved up to her hips, thumbs now meshing between her pelvis and the softness of her thighs.

"You can check the locks as many times as you want, but it won't stop the sun from setting and I know that's what you're really trying to do."

"Don't get all philosophical on me."

"Then relax. Everything's gonna be fine."

"Not if he tries anything."

"Who says he will? Nothing has happened in the previous months on this night, right? Maybe he doesn't even know."

"I can't take that chance, Kagome. You know I can't take that chance." Inuyasha rebutted, shifting his head to the side, glaring at the drawn curtains of the closest window. "If anything happens tonight, I won't be able to protect you as well as any other night."

"I'm not worried."

"Well, you should be." He said earnestly.

"Well, I'm not! Look - hey, look at me!" Golden eyes shifted, landing on the bruise that had settled into her cheek. The last she'd seen it, which wasn't all that long ago, it was a nasty mixture of green and yellow, outlined with sprinkles of purple. It was healing, but he still stared at it as if it were freshly-inflicted and the bane of the Earth. "I trust you. Nothing will stop me from trusting you, not even the moon. Get that through your thick skull, Inuyasha, because I'm really not worried. And if it makes you feel any better, I'll double check everything for you so you can stop second guessing yourself. Alright?"

He rolled his eyes, giving her a small shake of his head as he ground his jaw outward.

"Alright?" Kagome tried again, this time with a little more fervency, moving her hands to grip the slant in his shoulder muscles, giving a warning squeeze so he'd take her seriously.

"Alright, alright. Whatever. It's your funeral."

"Make sure The Black Parade plays at it." She teased.

"That's not fucking funny." Inuyasha groaned, leaning down to bury his face in the curve of her neck. She wrapped her arms around the nape of his, welcoming him, allowing him to clutch her tighter than normal as he hissed a curse and shuddered. Through the curtains, Kagome could see the night resting in, the orange and pink hues of the sunset vanishing completely.

His hearing dulled incredibly, making him feel stuffed up, his equilibrium swaying slightly as he gathered himself against her. Tucking inward even more, he felt a swarm of gooseflesh travel over his body like tiny electric shocks thieving away his supernatural gifts. Everything was bland suddenly. Plain. Limited. He hated it. It was unsettling to be this vulnerable.

He felt the tips of her fingers caressing over the bumps of his spine at the base of his neck, and he finally blinked open his eyes. Her inner thighs were relaxed alongside his hips, her mouth pressed to the shirt on his shoulders, the hot exhales leaving her nose seeping through the cloth and gracing the skin beneath. She was being so patient, tender, as if the transformation was something painful for him. Of course it wasn't, and he was sure she was well aware. It wasn't the first new moon they'd spent together in all the years they've known one another. Still, that never stopped her from waiting him out, never saying a word until she was sure he was adjusted.

Inuyasha sighed defeatedly, stepping back and standing tall, unable to hide the way he avoided looking at Kagome. Maybe he was sloppy, or maybe it was because he was human for the next twelve hours or so - truth be told, probably the former; he couldn't blame everything on the night of the new moon, no matter how overwhelming his emotions became. - but his shame was evident, as was his lack of confidence the darkness had graciously provided. He believed her when she said she trusted him, he had no reason not to, but that didn't stop him from thinking she was stupid. So fucking stupid. He had a horrible feeling pooling in the pit of his gut, bubbling, churning wildly, heating his core like his demon blood used to, and it put him on edge.

It had been six days since Kagome was attacked; six days since he initially failed to provide her the protection he promised. If something happened tonight while they were under the same roof and he failed again, he didn't think he could live with himself. But that was selfish, wasn't it? He was only thinking about the way he felt. She wasn't worried, wasn't scared, wasn't even bothered by the diminishing marks on her face. Yeah, she was stupid and he would argue that until the day he died, but she was also way more intuitive than he was. If her gut wasn't telling her to tread carefully, then maybe it was just his human emotions and the effervescent need to protect that was fooling him into thinking something may go wrong.

Kagome pulled Inuyasha's ponytail to the front of his shoulder, combing the stark black ends she'd always expressed she loved so much with her nails. He still hadn't looked at her but, god, did he want to. The sooner he looked, he realized, the sooner she'd stop her ministrations. Selfish, yes, but that's a degree of greed he could accept within himself. She shifted her head, he could see in his peripherals, and her hands slid up his neck, fingers gently massaging the lobes of his ears, the feeling foreign and slightly weird. He didn't stop her. Instead, he subconsciously leaned into it, effectively blowing his cover. There was mirth in her brown eyes as he caught her gaze, her smile scrunching her nose, and her fingers fumbled to the tops of his ears, still rubbing, still foiling his act.

"Move," She said, a giggle on her breath. "I've gotta check the house since you clearly didn't do a good enough job."

"Punk ass." He grunted, stepping out of her way. Kagome grabbed a strawberry from the bowl beside her and put it in his eagerly-accepting mouth before hopping down from the counter and working her way from window-to-window. She pushed up on the borders, making sure they were all stuck securely by the locks, readjusting the curtains she'd pushed aside and moving onto the next. Lastly, she checked the the door, unlocking and re-locking so Inuyasha had the satisfaction of the bolt clicking into place.

"Everything looks good to me. What about your gun?"

"Loaded and on me."

"You can't sleep while wearing it." She grimaced.

"Makes sense since I'm not sleeping." He shrugged, discarding the top of the strawberry in the trash.

"Oh, that's right. It's the all-nighter. I'll stay up with you.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“There’s no need.”

“Four eyes are better than two.”

“You can’t stay up. You’re practically an old lady with how early you usually fall asleep.”

“Just because you have the unhealthy habit of doing it all the time, doesn’t mean I don’t have it in me!”

“I don’t need to sleep as much as humans!”

“And I’ve been reserving my energy just for tonight!”

“Bullshit! Ten bucks says you don't make it past two am."

"Twenty says you're the one that falls asleep first." Kagome challenged, laughing as he chucked a strawberry at her.

Her eyes were heavy as she watched one of the lesser-rated episodes of The Twilight Zone, making sure the volume to the chilling opening theme was low enough that it wouldn't disturb the sleeping man at the other end of the couch. It was surprising that he'd given in to the fatigue, despite how much she'd hoped for it from the beginning. All it took was some simple caressing and he was a puddle on the sofa, melting and dozing off until he couldn't fight it anymore, and she silently thanked his human night for making the guy substantially more sensitive than he’d ever willingly admit to being. Even under the illumination of the television, the black and white contrast bouncing off of his even skin, he looked peaceful. His scowl wasn't dominant, his brows were relaxed, and his lips were slightly parted as he steadily breathed in contentment. For his added comfort, she'd happily stay up all night. Plus, it would be fun to rub it in when he woke up that he owed her some money since it was hitting four-forty in the morning and she was still conscious.

She leaned forward, minding that the motion was controlled to not alert Inuyasha, going for her glass for a sip of flat soda, fully relying on the small intake of caffeine to perk her up for the few remaining hours she had. As she reached, her phone vibrated against the coffee table, claiming her undivided attention as her hand snagged the device instead. It was the god-awful hours of the morning, who in the world could have been texting her?

The number was unfamiliar, though the area code was the same as her own. She opened the message, a chill rushing down her spine as she read the text three times over.

Kagome, is this still your number? This is Kikyo. I need your help...

The last time Inuyasha had spoken to her about his ex was when he was standing in her living room, telling her the truth she had been resistant to hear for so long. He was naturally worried about Kikyo's wellbeing, considering she'd disappeared from his place without a trace while fighting her addiction, and though he seemed to be masking it all well - maybe for Kagome's own sake - it must have been eating away at him. But why would she message her and not Inuyasha? What could she possibly do for Kikyo that Inuyasha couldn't?

Her phone buzzed again in her palm.

I'm sorry for texting at this hour. I don't know what else to do...

She needed help. That's what she'd said, she needed help. She was last seen in an unhealthy state, what if she never fully got better? What if she relapsed?

Even worse, what if Naraku knew about her too?

It's okay, I'm up. What's wrong?

It was only a small moment before Kikyo replied. Kagome couldn't help the sturdy beat of her heart thumping against her ribcage as she waited.

I got into some trouble, I can explain later. I think I'm by your apartment, will you pls meet me?

Yes! Where, exactly? Are you okay?

It made sense that she didn't know Kagome was currently staying with Inuyasha.

Near the old cafe and pancake house. Idk if you're still in contact, but I don't want Inuyasha knowing. Don't tell him.

She swallowed thickly, glancing over to his sleeping form. A guilt instantly washed over her. How could she not tell him? He's probably been so worried, so afraid. If there was anyone that deserved to know, it was him. Why wouldn't Kikyo want Inuyasha knowing? He would do anything to make sure she was safe.

Nonetheless, it was her choice. She needed to respect that, didn't she? Maybe if she met with Kikyo, she could convince her to come back to Inuyasha's. Then it would be right on all accounts. Wouldn’t it?

The thought of the two of them together made it feel like a large, dense rock was dropped into her stomach, causing it to sink. It wasn't important, though. Her feelings weren't important right now. Kikyo was in trouble. Choosing not to help to spare her from the sting of jealousy was the worst thing she could ever consider. There was more than just herself involved in this. On top of it all, Kagome desperately needed to get to Kikyo before Naraku targeted her too.

Stay there.

She hit send. Stared at the virtual keypad beneath her hovering thumbs. Then began typing once more.

I’ll be there in ten.

As carefully as possible, she unfolded her legs from beside her, glad she was too comfortable to change from her leggings when they sat down to watch T.V. hours ago. As her bare feet met with the throw rug, she slowly rose, freezing as Inuyasha readjusted his position. Kagome stood in a semi-squat, her quads burning from the power pose as she waited him out, letting him settle, holding it until he gave that heavy sigh of deep sleep she’d been impatient to hear, then fully extended her legs in relief. She took every step with the intention of silence, clutching the notches of her shoes in her hands and deciding it’d be safer to slip them on in the hall. His car keys, thankfully, weren’t attached to an obnoxiously large set of keychains and rings like hers were, so folding her fingers around the three keys attached by a belt clip was easy to do while preventing a loud jingle that would no doubt wake Inuyasha. At a time like this, she legitimately didn’t know how to express how grateful she was that he kept his work set separate, as well.

Unlocking the door, though slow, was simple. The small scrape the chain gave hardly disturbed him, and the bolt was slid open right as a commercial flickered on the tv, so it masked the sound. Kagome twisted the knob, cracked the door enough for her to slide out, and pulled the door shut. She wouldn’t be gone for long - thirty minutes at the most. He’d, of course, be pissed when she got back, but seeing who she was with would hopefully provide some cushion. She had a legitimate reason for leaving.

As she got downstairs, Kagome dropped her canvas shoes to the ground without worry, sliding her feet in and adjusting the heels and tongues as necessary as she stumbled outside and to Inuyasha’s car. The vehicle came to life as soon as she twisted the key in the ignition, and she slid the seat forward and adjusted the mirrors as quickly as she could. She glanced at her cellphone one last time before driving off, checking to see if she had any other texts from Kikyo. Nothing. It wasn’t anything too abnormal for the woman, she was never very good at responding. Nonetheless, at a time like this, an “okay” or a “thank you” would have been nice.

The roads were dark as she stepped out of the car, sunlight still a couple of hours away. The street lamps were few and far between near her apartment, the neighborhoods slightly sketchy. She’d parked behind the coffee shop she used to frequent, venturing around the corner and to the front. The pancake house Kikyo mentioned was most likely the mom and pop shop a half a block down, but as she made her way closer, she realized there wasn’t a single sign of life around.

Kagome pulled up their texts, sending one saying she was here and waiting for a body to pop into her line of sight, but as the seconds ticked away, an uneasy and dreadful sensation made home in the pit of her abdomen. Something was wrong. Something was coming. She could physically feel the undoing taking place. It was getting increasingly difficult to swallow, to stand still, and her eyes were flickering over the streets around her until something told her it was time to go. Now.

Never in her life had she felt more like a sitting duck.

Kagome spun around, speed-walking her way up the street and back to the car, relieved when it was in view. Clicking the second button down on the remote, she unlocked the door so she could slide right in, but as she latched onto the handle and yanked it open, a powerful force slammed it shut, ripping the lever from her grip. The light from within had turned on from the initial open, bringing the face beside her into comprehensible view.

“Long time no see,” Onigumo grinned, the charming glimmer in his ruby eyes as evident as the day she’d first met him. “I’ve missed you so much, Kagome.”

“Shit!” She hissed, instantly running in the opposite direction. She’d made it three steps before a sharp yank to her hair stopped her in her hurried tracks, yelping more from fear than pain. He walked forward, holding her captive with the fist full of locks, pressing his torso flush against her back, curving his calloused, scratchy fingers around her throat, her head firmly tilted back to rest on his shoulder. His breath stank as he chuckled, the sound malevolent all on its own.

Naraku moaned, kissing the bruise on her cheek, his chapped lips lingering in place before the click of their separated moisture rang in the night. Kagome shuddered, gasping with every touch.

“Thanks for coming to my rescue.”

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nickidonnelly · 5 years

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As we are nearly at the end of our charity fundraising week we-me and my daughter @xo_eleanordonnelly_xo have been posting daily images in our @jeans_for_genes tees as super proud ambassadors. We also for Jeansfor genes charity support anti bullying week. It is important as parents to remind our children of how we behave and what we say to another person will mentally affect another for life,Don't be a bully. Please keep donating and help us raise awareness on the importance of being educated on genetic disorders. Both of us have EDS and we will be doung a YouTube educational clip on my channel and my daughters . These tshirts represent being different is powerful. The superheroes are different,both boys and girls can be superheros. We all have a superpower and i have always said me and my daughter are proud our power is our voice to be heard ,to make a difference,to inspire others to be better. It is down to you to use your words for better. Choosing negative words will never get you anywhere but will leave a scar on the person who you have said it to. While we have been raising awareness and my daughter has shared more of her work publically on her page ,my daughter has been bullied and called 'fat' 'ugly ' 'horrible hair because shes mixed race heritage' " and she has been alienated from her friends by this certain girl. It is unacceptable and disgusting. My daughter is a beautiful soul ,she has had to grow up from such a young age and is mature for her age. I am incredibly grateful to my daughter,she is my inspiration to live. She ia a Role Model in her own making and there is nothing wrong with my girl. My daughter said this, "Words have consequences ,use your voice for good " watching #tallgirlnetflix #tallgirl im and @littlemix #jesynelson document made my daughter feel shes not alone and not the words shes been told. #positivelife #motivation #inspiration #positivevibes #influencer #bbloggers #jeansforgenes #longlivethebat #dccomics #batmanxjeansforgenes #wheelchairbeauty #littlemix #bullyingawareness #charityevent #denim #lovelife #bodyconfident #antibullyingpro #bekind #lifestyleblogger #fashionista https://www.instagram.com/p/B2mg6_JlV-q/?igshid=nydeak2i1rok

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houseofvans · 7 years

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ART SCHOOL | Q&A w/ KATIE CAMPBELL | BABES RIDE OUT

VANS is super excited to be heading down to this year’s Babes Ride Out West Coast event. We supplied several talented BRO artists with decks to customize, and we’re excited to chat with artist and designer Katie Campbell whose Labyrinth-inspired board is absolutely out-of-this-world. Based in Long Beach, CA, Katie’s love of music along with her printmaking background led her to a career designing gig posters, album packaging and merchandise graphics. We’re featuring Katie’s work and talk to her about her background, how she came up with her BRO deck, and the meticulous process she used in creating it. ENJOY!

Photographs courtesy of the artist | Interview by Anya Violet

Introduce yourself. I’m a Southern girl, originally from Tallahassee, FL, living, working and eating tacos in Long Beach, CA . I’m a graphic designer and illustrator working in the Entertainment & Music Industry with focus on consumer products and apparel graphics.

How did you end up where you are design and illustrating wise? My passion for music led me to designing gig posters, album packaging and merchandise graphics, all right before the industry transitioned to digital. My roots are in print, shaping my style of the screen-printed, illustrated aesthetic. I eventually built an online presence which allowed me to work with bigger and bigger clients.

Who were some of your early artistic influences? I’d say some of my early artistic influences came from watching tv and movies in the 80s and 90s. I loved “behind the scenes” and “making of” videos for things like “MJ’s Thriller”, Jim Henson creature creations, and the process behind animation. This fascination with art in pop culture continued throughout my life and influenced my creative career path.

What do you think you’d be doing if you weren’t an artist? I can’t imagine not doing anything that didn’t involve art or creativity, but if I weren’t an artist I think I would consider any job that allowed me to travel the world - working with movies, but be more of a coordinator or liaison for the art departments.

How did you first hear or get involved with Babes Ride Out? I first heard of Babes Ride out through my girlfriend, Vivian. She rides and attended her first BRO in 2016. I was living in Florida at the time, so of course I wanted to see all of the photos and videos of the cool things she did and people she met. She told me I had to go to BRO 2017, so packed up my bags and moved to California! Turns out my girlfriend also lives in California, :) I’m super stoked to attend this year- I don’t ride yet, so I’ll be enjoying the view from the backseat, but hope to take some lessons next year.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow in your footsteps? If someone wanted to follow in my footsteps I would first tell them to create something every chance you get, stay aware of old and new trends, whether it’s online, street art, advertisements or art openings. Never doubt yourself or let criticism effect you negatively. Always keep a library of ideas, unused work, textures, inspiration, fonts, etc. Try to keep an online presence and create relationships with other artists from around the world. Don’t let the need for money or success guide you. If you love what you do, it will come eventually and you’ll be a happier person overall. I got to where I am by coming home at night after my day job and taking on freelance work that allowed me to illustrate and have creative freedom. I’m competitive by nature, so I constantly jumped on design competitions and local art contests. This was key to exposure, development of styles, and networking – though the cash/money/hoes was a nice perk. I eventually gained an online following, built a strong portfolio and had bigger and bigger clients ask to work with me.

Best part of what you do? I love what I do! I get to create art that has meaning for fans. Heck, I’ve been collecting concert tees since my first New Kids on the Block show! There are still days that I have to pinch myself and think, “wow, 13-year old me would nerd out knowing I was designing shirts for Madonna.”  Overall, I just want to make art that makes people happy.

How did you come up with the idea for your board? I get my best ideas when I’m driving. I commute from Long Beach to LA for work, so I get a lot of time to think. I was listening to one of my mix CDs (keeping it old school) and Dance Magic Dance, from the Labyrinth soundtrack, came on. I started singing “You remind me of the babe. What babe? The babe with the power?….” and it just clicked! I instantly pictured David Bowie’s character (the Goblin King) on a motorcycle with cool hand lettering of the words “the Babe with the Power”. Majority of my work consists of apparel graphics and screen printed gig posters for the music industry, so naturally I wanted to do a gig poster-like feel with the vertical space of the deck.

What materials did you use? I wanted the wood to show through and keep the colors minimal. I started drawing out the design in Photoshop using my tablet. I printed out the design, taped some charcoal transfer paper to the deck and then tiled the printouts on top. I traced over everything with a stylus, which was very tedious, but allowed me to get everything just right. I used black acrylic paint for larger areas/paint marker for details and gold liquitex paint markers. Then sprayed it with a gloss varnish.

What do you love best about participating in BRO this year? I’m stoked to be working on a Vans skate deck for this years BRO raffle. Art, badass babes and a good cause - It’s a dream job :) 

Follow Katie Campbell Website | www.campkatie.com Instagram | @campkatie

#Art #Vans #Vans art #babes ride out #vans skate #customized skateboard #gig posters #packaging

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element-effect-blog · 5 years

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Marketing with Pride vs. Rainbow Washing: Marketing Lessons from Pride Month 2019

50 years ago today, authorities robbed the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City's Greenwich Town community, and the Stonewall Riots began.

The momentum from the riots launched a huge civil liberties movement and a year later, on June 28th, 1970, thousands went back to march at the previous website of The Stonewall Inn. They marched to drive the improvement of LGBT rights and oppose the laws which caused the police raids and subsequent riots one year prior.

With time, this march changed into the Pride parades and events we have today.

As June comes to a close, I desired to assess the remarkable time I have actually had (and will have-- the Chicago Pride parade is this Sunday, June 30) at Pride events this year.

" width=" 600 "design= "width: 600px; screen: block; margin: 0px auto;" > My friends and me before Chicago Pride Fest 2019 The end of Pride month likewise has me considering all

of the Pride-related marketing campaigns I've come across. All over you look there appears to be a rainbow-clad ad.

From bus stops to billboards, online ads to company logo designs on social profiles, there is no lack of color in business branding this month.

Image through BuzzFeed While I have loved seeing vibrant rainbows just about everywhere I turned recently, I am contrasted knowing lots of organizations aren't doing much beyond just flying the rainbow flag.

Commercialization is Not Support

This "assistance" is typically simply superficial; in an effort to be appropriate.

The thing is, while Pride month is absolutely a celebration, it's not all rainbows and shimmers.

The LGBTQ+ community still faces exemption and experiences discrimination at work, school, and typically in society.

The month of June is as much about commemorating how far we've come as it has to do with continuing the defend acceptance and equality.

Slapping a rainbow over a logo design and calling it a day is simply not doing enough-- and people notice.

In reality, commercializing this important month without backing it with real assistance and action, can turn away clients. They'll find your shallow show of assistance from a mile away.

" We're at a place where consumers and activists are going to hold brands responsible for walking the walk if they talk the talk," stated Jay Porter, president of Edelman, Chicago, in an interview with the Chicago Tribune.

What is Rainbow Washing?

According to Justice Namaste, Social Media Coordinator at WIRED, " Rainbow-washing allows people, governments, and corporations that do not do tangible work to support LGBTQ+ neighborhoods at any other time throughout the year to slap a rainbow on top of something in the month of June and call it allyship."

This lack of concrete support is regrettably present in numerous organizations.

Two in five business with Pride campaigns are contributing no earnings to LGBT [Q] + triggers in 2019, according to research by Reboot Online.

The study even revealed one in 10 LGBT+ people actively avoid purchasing Pride products because they think they are being exploited.

Conversely, some brands are returning 100% of their earnings from Pride-themed sales to companies like The Trevor Job and HRC. Amongst these are American Eagle, ASOS, Ralph Lauren. According to an

=" https://finance.yahoo.com/news/2-in-5-brands-with-pride-campaigns-not-donating-to-lgbt-causes-in-2019-230100499.html" > short article published by Yahoo Financing, while 84% of the LGBT+ neighborhood feels" favorably" about top quality Pride projects, nearly all (95%) individuals surveyed said companies require to do more to help LGBT+ triggers throughout the year, rather than simply during Pride month. How Brands Can" Stroll the Walk" During Pride Month What's

the difference between business who are marketing with pride and those who are merely rainbow cleaning? I recently asked members of our Facebook community, IMPACT Elite, and Anna Empey, Service

Owner and Expert at Business Influenced Solutions, shared her thoughts:" As a gay person, I enjoy when business take some time to examine their policies and practices during this month. Looking at

how they can continue to support the LGBTQ [+] community by seeing if there are things in location that need to be adjusted to make certain those staff members and customers are truly supported. I do my finest to look into the policies and practices in place that assist these communities before I work with any business." Prior to going all in on the rainbows, business need to take active steps to develop inclusive work environments and offer back to the LGBTQ + neighborhood. Clients and prospects

will be taking note of this. Excellent early morning! Pleased June to all brands launching a Pride campaign!! A tip: you will capitalize on our identities/marginalization for business gain!!! It is for that reason worth offering a 2nd thought to your minimal edition rainbow item!! Here, let me assist!!! pic.twitter.com/uNCuGamiBQ-- Fran Tirado( @fransquishco). June 1, 2019 Thankfully, the HRC has =" https://www.hrc.org/resources/lgbt-marketing-and-advertising-best-practices" > some suggestions and best practices for advertising and marketing throughout

pride month and beyond. They consist of doing good market research, being delicate to stereotypes, being consistent and positive, and more. In addition to the HRC's excellent suggestions, here are a few I believe all brands must consider. Be a Singing Ally Make it a point

to talk about supporting the LGBTQ +neighborhood.

Do not place on a Pride

tee shirt if you're not ready to have a discussion about what it implies to use one. Stand up for the queer workers at your organization if they're not around to defend themselves. Have Policies That Create an Inclusive and Safe Working Environment While being helpful is terrific, access to cost effective health care is even much better. Frequently, policies regarding health protection and parental

leave, are not totally inclusive of the queer community's needs. Look beyond your daily workplace life and be familiar with the much deeper difficulties those in the community face and how you can accommodate. Donate to LGBTQ+ Charities and Organizations While assistance and allyship are terrific, what numerous marginalized communities genuinely need is financial backing. If you want to do something for Pride month, put your loan where your mouth is and contribute to LGBTQ

+ companies to support LGBTQ+ youth( The Trevor Project), support the political defend equality( Human Rights Project

), or support regional LGBTQ+ owned businesses. This is especially essential if you're offering products or promoting discounts for Pride month particularly. Don't use the queer neighborhood for your own gain. Take the opportunity to return and support rather.

Note: You do not even have to offer a product to contribute a donation. You might host an internal fundraiser where your business matches what staff members contribute. You might likewise host an occasion inviting your customers or community. Kristin [last name eliminated for personal privacy], from our Facebook group IMPACT Elite, shared what her company does:" We commemorate all month with events, visitor speakers, and informative communications across the agency. Yesterday, we hosted drag queen bingo

for our staff members, with all earnings from bingo cards going to local LGBTQ resource and community centers." Be Inclusive and Representative in Your Marketing

Projects From shaving ads consisting of transgender guys to marketing campaigns that feature same-sex couples, there are lots of steps brand names can take to be more inclusive and representative in their promotional campaigns. Check out this

" > terrific resource for inclusive stock photography we're loving recently. Be Constant and Confident Among the Human Rights Project( HRC )pointers that's the most tough for organizations is being consistent and be confident. In their guide, they note how" customizing or withdrawing ads after unfavorable

criticism from conservative

groups suggests waffling and pushes away LGBTQ customers." Brands that take a position during Pride month ought to expect some reaction and negativeness from a part of their audience.

Be gotten ready forthis and talk about prepare for if/how your group will respond ahead of time. Excellent Examples of Brands Marketing with Pride One example of a brand really nailing their Pride month marketing is shaving brand name Harry's. They consisted of a transgender guy in an industrial with the voiced-over line" You can shave to feel like you." Plus, 100 %of the revenues from their Shave with Pride razor are contributed to The Trevor Job. Stacy Wood, Marketing Manager at Animal Food Experts shared:" We wrote a blog with ideas to celebrate with a downloadable sign for our customers to hang in their pet shops." In the short article, Pet Food Specialists recommends some terrific, actionable ways companies can support the LGBTQ+ neighborhood including: Develop your store as a service that welcomes LGBTQ +neighborhood members by. Contribute to an LGBTQ+ charity. Our good friends at HubSpot made an entire page on their website dedicated to how they're" Growing with Pride." Group members marched in the parade, took part in pride month events, and even developed a video sharing what growing with pride indicates to them. Christina Bockisch, HubSpot staff member and another member of our Elite community, shared a bit more about HubSpot's Pride month strategies:" I don't believe this will come as much of a surprise, however HubSpot truly goes for it to commemorate Pride Month- from the GAYtrium event we had today to over 200 HubSpotters and their loved ones walking in Boston Pride to different programs( like panels, instructional occasions, networking occasions, and so on) They've created a culture that's genuinely impressive. You can actuallyfeel the

love and assistance for the LGBTQ+ neighborhood this month. I suggest, you feel it all year long, but it's been even stronger these last couple of days-- and I do not see it decreasing anytime quickly. I truly like working for a business that commemorates Pride Month however also genuinely celebrates diversity, addition and belonging all year long. "These are simply 2 examples that stuck out to me from our community. There are numerous brand names out there, both B2B and B2C, who are doing a terrific task of marketing with

pride. Pride Month: A Lesson for All Online marketers You'll discover there's no rainbow throughout EFFECT's logo .... I feel totally comfy and totally accepted by my colleagues at EFFECT. I even started Pride month by doing a lunch-and-learn to teach the group some features of gender and sexuality, the history of Pride month, and typically misunderstood terms. However, while we're making huge strides in variety and inclusion, we still have a way to go before I 'd support making our logo design vibrant for the month. While it's exciting to see numerous companies welcoming inclusivity and pride, it

is essential to bear in mind that the rainbow logo itself is insufficient. Business require to really support their LGBTQ+

staff members, produce an inclusive environment, and provide back to the neighborhood. It benefits online marketers to remember that these principles extend beyond supporting the LGBTQ+ neighborhood and beyond just the month of June. When working to enhance variety and addition

at your company, you'll still want to apply much of the HRC's tips, make every effort to be genuine in your marketing products, and take real action to support marginalized communities. Let us understand what your organization is doing or share your preferred example with us in EFFECT Elite!.?.!!

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indieversal · 7 years

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Cleveland is home to a large variety of talented, hidden gems and Tee Willis; a gracefully, toned R&B singer who’s ambitious grind matches that of her local Hip Hop counterparts, is next up to display her passion to the world. True to the grind, Tee has accumulated a number of ballads and collaboration tracks from fellow R&B and Hip Hop artists to prove to her city that their support is needed to push her craft from local to nationwide. Within the year, she has already created 2 Albums/Mixtapes, “Black Hummingbird” and “95” with a variety of various singles to make it clear that your focus should be on awaiting her next project. Young and determined, this independent R&B/Soul vocalist has been making moves on her own within the city of Cleveland for years and shows no sign of letting up even if she has to serenade her way through your heart. The majority of music played throughout the airwaves seems to be focused on Hip Hop artists at the current moment… I think it’s about time we shift the tide back to R&B for a awhile.

Recently, I had the pleasure to do a Q&A with the lovely Ohioan, to help viewers determine if she has what it takes to sway them over to follow her along her musical journey and continue to provide support.

(Q1) IndieVersal: So Miss Willis, how long have you been singing?

(A1) Tee Willis: I’ve been singing ever since I could talk basically. I just remember being 3 years old singing Usher’s “Nice & Slow” and my mom being upset about me singing a sexy song at such a young age. Also, I used to sing for and direct choirs growing up, and star lead roles in musicals in high school.

(Q2) IndieVersal: What drives you to follow your passion in the form of singing?

(A2) Tee Willis: Well, I sing and make music literally because it makes me happy and is a major stress reliever. So I would have to say I do music to keep me level-headed when it comes to being stressed with school, work, and life in general. If I did not deal with the things I deal with every day, then I wouldn’t have anything to sing about or write about.

(Q3) IndieVersal: Which local artists, R&B/Hip Hop artists would you wish to collaborate with?

(A3) Tee Willis: Truthfully….. EVERYONE. It is just so hard setting up collaborations since I am in school and when I’m not in school, I am either working on homework or I am at work. Due to my busy schedule, the little free time and money that I do receive dedicated to studio time, does not match up well with other artists, making collaborations difficult at times. With so much on my plate, creating music can be difficult but whenever I can get a break, I am always down to work with anyone who can challenge me as an artist. If I could collaborate with a mainstream artist, I would have to say my first go-to would be Drake. He inspires me a lot as a writer and how I deliver my writing, and just to be on a track with him would just make my entire life!

(Q4) IndieVersal: Who is your idol in life and in the music industry; past or present?

(A4) Tee Willis: My idol in life would have to be my grandmother. She really came from nothing and made something special out of herself, and raised me until I was about seven years old. I just want to be strong and wise like her one day. Regarding the music industry, I don’t “idolize” her but Beyonce is a strong influence of what I wish to be as a woman. She’s just so huge and still remains humble even with all that she has accomplished in life which says a lot about her character.

(Q5) IndieVersal: Which song is your favorite and means the most to you that you have created?

(A5) Tee Willis: This is truly a tough one, because I write every single song from experience and every single thing I sing about means the world to me because 99% of the time it really has happened. If I was forced to pick ONE…. I would have to say the first song I ever did, “Love Thang”. It means so much because I was 16 years old, recording off of my laptop with a cheap microphone my mom bought me using a simple software (Audacity). No auto-tune, no crazy effects, no hard core mixing… just Tee Willis and her microphone. Everyone really loved the song and that is what inspired me into going into studios and getting my name out there. I believe people were really impressed with how I made it all work with such limited resources and to be only 16 years old.

(Q6) IndieVersal: Which song do you feel you had your best collaboration on?

(A6) Tee Willis: I would have to say that my best collaboration was “Attention” with an artist by the name of Ricky Rikardo. Ricky made the beat and produced the entire track sampling Ray-J’s “One Wish” song. I think it’s my best feature because it was one of the first songs where I kind of just “let loose” and allowed my emotions to bleed through the track. I was going through a lot at the time being mentally manipulated by a significant other and that song was my breaking point of not being afraid to be blunt and say exactly how I feel and illustrate my insecurities.

(Q7) IndieVersal: Where do you see yourself in the foreseeable future with your music career?

(A7) Tee Willis: Honestly, I just want to become successful enough to take care of my family, especially my mom so she never has to worry about paying another bill.

(Q8) IndieVersal: Which producer have you always wanted to work with? Local or Mainstream?

(A8) Tee Willis: I’ve actually just started working with a mainstream producers whom which I’ve always wanted to work with which is crazy. I don’t want to say who, but this producer in particular is mixing my vocals for a feature song and has worked with Ciara, Justin Beiber, and Tinashae. I truly wish to work with Missy and Kanye (West) one day. Both have inspired me from day one and I’d probably be speechless if I was ever placed in a studio with either one of them. Local wise, I’m fine with the two producers I work with already, who are Zach (Adi Rei) and Famyne Red.

To learn more about Cleveland’s own, Tee Willis, be sure to follow her through the Social Media outlets. Be sure to show support if you love her music and share with friends.

Twitter: @SweetHoneyTee_

Instagram: Tee Willis

Facebook: Tee Willis

YouTube: Tee Willis

Audiomack: Tee Willis

SoundCloud: Tee Willis

#New #IndieWatch Tee Willis @SweetHoneyTee_ Cleveland is home to a large variety of talented, hidden gems and Tee Willis; a gracefully, toned R&B singer who's ambitious grind matches that of her local Hip Hop counterparts, is next up to display her passion to the world.

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tyleroakley-obsessed · 7 years

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If there’s one thing I know about y’all, it’s that you’re all about supporting locally-owned and homegrown businesses in Memphis. In today’s Shop Local feature, I talk with Alexandra Scharff about her experience starting multiple businesses – including makeup and clothing lines – and opening The Ivory Closet in Memphis in 2012. Alex (who sometimes goes by Alexandra Nicole) didn’t ask me to mention it, but if you’re a fan of fashion, you should check out her lifestyle blog, City Chic Living and give her, The Ivory Closet, and the Bluff City Lights gals a follow on Instagram. The Ivory Closet is at 2095 Madison Avenue in Overton Square and carries women’s apparel, beauty supplies, and accessories including jewelry, bags, shoes, and more. Sometimes boutiques have limited hours, but not Ivory Closet. They’re open everyday at 11 a.m. (and at noon on Sundays). Here are the full hours. You can also shop online. The shop is always full of cute, fashion forward (but totally wearable) clothes and lots of pretty things that I want to buy for everyone (and myself). The other thing about the Ivory Closet is that if you’re totally fashion clueless (aka me) then these people really will walk you through the whole “pick out an outfit” thing that can feel so daunting at times. Here’s my Q&A with Alex. Holly: Alex, are you a native Memphian? What’s your background? Alex: I was born in Memphis but raised in Chicago. I came back in high school so at this point I have lived the majority of my life in Memphis and the Midsouth area. I got my undergrad and graduate degrees at the University of Memphis. I studied International Business abroad at Bournemouth University in Poole England for about a year. Holly: Tell us about The Ivory Closet. Alex: I own a women’s fashion and beauty business. Most would look at my shop – The Ivory Closet – from the outside and call it a boutique. Yes…it is a shop. However, to me, my business is more than just a retail store. I founded a brand of treatment/benefit based cosmetics, Adel Amor Cosmetics. We host makeup parties, teach makeup application, and also apply event and wedding makeup in-store! This is the beauty part of the business. I also founded a brand of slimming tank tops and am working on many other functional fashion pieces to add to my line that will be exclusive to my shop. When customers enter my store, it is important to me that they view it more than just a place to spend money. Our stylists work to understand the clients fashion needs and questions, then work to find an answer. Whether the need is to look slimmer after the holidays, we have slimming jeans, tanks, and bras, or the need is to add a little pizzazz to the wardrobe, our ladies can take your current style and push it comfortably to the next level so that you are properly accentuating your assets. A post shared by The Ivory Closet Boutique (@shoptheivorycloset) on Aug 30, 2017 at 4:58pm PDT Holly: No one can do all this by themselves. Who’s on your team? Alex: Other than myself, we have a team of super awesome trained fashion sales stylists, including Izabella, Josee, Briana, Angel, Michaela. Holly: Where did the idea for your businesses come from? Alex: After frequenting big box stores while working for corporate America, I noticed the lack of service and expertise when it came to fashion. I have always been immersed in the industry as a freelance makeup artist working on fashion shows and commercial work that I knew I had an eye for style. I really wanted to start a business that focuses mainly on customer service and experience. A post shared by Alexandra Nicole (@citychicliving) on Sep 27, 2017 at 6:14am PDT Holly: Who/what has inspired or influenced you? Alex: My makeup line came first and a very successful local boutique owner was so gracious to give me a chance by letting me host some makeup parties in her shop and stocking my product on her shelves. When I decided to open up a shop, year later, she was the first person I called to discuss. She was so super awesome and always willing to collaborate. Her motto is, “there is enough business to go around!” I love business owners like this and have made it a point to follow in her motto by not being competitive and instead promoting other locals in my industry. While it is VERY important to me that my ideas for the boutique concept and brand are different from other local shops, I must give a special thanks to Eryka, owner of Crazy Beautiful, for giving me my first shot at retail with my makeup line. She is very driven and I look up to and respect her girl boss business. Holly: When did the Ivory Closet open? Alex: We opened in November 2012 in Harbor Town and have since moved to Overton Square our forever home! We really love being a part of historical midtown! Holly: How has the response been since you opened? Alex: We have had an overwhelming response from our community. Midtown really supports their local small business as many of the residents here are small business owners themselves. I love to live and operate a business in a community where keeping money circulating in the local community is encouraged. A post shared by The Ivory Closet Boutique (@shoptheivorycloset) on Aug 12, 2017 at 6:24pm PDT Holly: What’s new or coming soon at your business? Alex: We just installed a Chinese Laundry and Chinese Laundry sister brands shoe department. We are super excited to have the second largest shoe offering in Midtown. We also are developing several Memphis and Midtown geared graphic tees and sweaters that are exclusive to The Ivory Closet as well as our extremely popular 901 and MEM hats. We can hardly keep them in and often have them on back order. Holly: What are the greatest challenges you face as entrepreneur? Alex: Sustainable growth. There are so many avenues for growth. Some quick growth and some that requires time. Not all ways are great ways. I have learned that a lot in my first five years of being in business. We plan to focus on serving our neighborhood and the needs of the fabulous ladies that have come to visit Memphis and Overton Square and continue to shop with us via our online store. A post shared by The Ivory Closet Boutique (@shoptheivorycloset) on Jan 20, 2018 at 4:09pm PST Holly: What do you wish you could tell people? Like, if you could sit down with your customers/potential customers and tell them something or correct a misconception, what would you say? Alex: Running a local business is tough work. From the outside it seems ideal and easy, but it isn’t all about the “American Dream”. Being an entrepreneur requires a lot of persistence, determination, rapid flexibility, adaptation, and dedication. I also believe that you have to genuinely love the community and people that you are serving to be successful. I love Midtown, our customers, and the hustle that is entrepreneurism. Memphis is full of successful entrepreneurs and I am proud to be a business owner in a city that supports the dream. Holly: Why did you pick Memphis as the place to be an entrepreneur? Alex: We live here, invest our money here, create memories here, are raising our family here…why not? Go there: The Ivory Closet Overton Square 2095 Madison Avenue Memphis, Tennessee 38104 Instagram Facebook Website Hours: Mon. – Wed. 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. Thu. 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Fri. – Sat. 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. Sun. noon to 6 p.m. Are you a home owner in Memphis, with a broken garage door? Call ASAP garage door today at 901-461-0385 or checkout http://ift.tt/1B5z3Pc

http://ilovememphisblog.com/2018/02/shop-local-the-ivory-closet/

#I Love Memphis

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arthurwebber500-blog · 7 years

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Nikki Erlick

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promomagazine · 7 years

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Quick Q&A with Emily Byrski

By: Kim Lalaurie

Emily Byrski is a micro influencer who’s positive attitude and candy colored blog empirestyleofmind.com is filled with posts from a young woman taking on the world, one adventure at a time. This includes a recent Instagram documented trip around Europe and her “New Girl in the City” discovery of New York City.

Byrski, who is a native of Florida, recently graduated with a degree in Marketing of Sustainable Fashion from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. And it is interesting to watch how her style is starting to evolve from sun kissed preppy to something with a bit more of an urban edge as the Big Apple gives her wardrobe more of a sartorial bite.

Here she opens up about the powerful women in her life who have showed her that having drive and ambition are a good thing, why the designer Pamella Rolland holds a special place in her heart and how traveling the globe for inspiration is her ever evolving happy place.

How did you first get interested in fashion?

I’ve always been a very visual and creative person my whole life and fashion is such a fascinating form of self-expression. One day I could wear ripped jeans and an ironic tee and personify one thing and the next I could wear a silk gown and fur coat and personify something entirely different. There’s something really empowering about that. Though I’d always enjoyed reading fashion magazines and paid attention to them, it wasn’t until high school that I really started to make a concerted effort to define myself through clothing. For awhile I was “scene,” then I was “hipster,” and eventually I decided I liked “preppy” and began wearing all the Ralph Lauren and Lilly Pulitzer I could find. But fashion is one of those things that permeates throughout society. Coco Chanel said, “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.” I think this could not be more true.

What made you finally decide to launch out on your own?

I think with my personality it was always inevitable. I worked 7 different internships in college, all of which were fine and most of which I actually enjoyed, but I was always ready for the next thing and left each having gained both a ton of valuable knowledge and skills and also an absolute certainty that I wouldn’t want to do that for more than the allotted 4-5 months. Around the time I was graduating in May, the very thought of a 9-to-5 cubicled existence sent me into a spiral of depression. I’d applied to dozens of positions, none of which I was really interested in. Yet I had been working more and more seriously on my blog and on my work as a photographer throughout my time in college and I thought, I should really just do what I want to do on my own. It just sort of made sense and fell into place and the stars aligned and here I am.

What was your big break?

I’m not sure I’ve found my “big break” yet and I’m still figuring a lot of things out. But a really exciting moment recently was the feeling of receiving my first personal fashion week invite. I’ve been attending fashion week events almost every season for the past four years, but always in varying capacities—either as a photographer with a press pass, using someone else’s invite when they couldn’t attend, or for work. This was the first season that I received an invite to a show myself. And it was wonderfully full circle as one of the first shows I ever attended, back in the day as a photographer for my school newspaper crouching in the pit, was Pamella Roland. And four years later the first invite I ever got was to none other than Pamella Roland. It just felt like one of those “look at how far I’ve come” moments.

Who inspires you?

My mom is amazing, as is my grandma. They are two of the strongest, most loving, most badass women I know. My mom raised me on her own from the get go and as a single parent still worked a full-time job and went to law school at night to earn her degree. She’s now a successful businesswoman and owns her own practice. My grandma left home at 16 and began working as a caretaker and hustling to make it on her own, then raised three kids on her own after her husband died. My family has a pretty great line of awesome independent women. They have been incredibly supportive of me in every endeavor I ever pursue and I know I can always count on them for anything.

Who living or dead would you love to be able to have dinner with?

Dead, I think Queen Elizabeth I would be fascinating or Catherine de Medici—some really incredible boss woman from the past who didn’t let no man get her way. Alive, the first person that comes to mind is Emma Watson because I think she and I share a lot of the same values and she just seems like a genuinely cool woman.

What is your favorite trip?

I travel a lot… A lot, a lot. So it’s really hard to name just one trip as my favorite. But so far I’d say my top three favorite trips have been to South Africa, Tahiti and Bora Bora (French Polynesia), and to Costa Rica. I also loved Morocco and New Zealand. I also loved the couple of European road trips I’ve done the past couple of summers… But actually, I really like to push myself past my comfort zone and I’m a bit of an adrenaline junkie, so the trips I’ve generally enjoyed the most are those that are the most exotic and adventurous.

When are you happiest?

I am happiest when traveling and exploring new places and learning new things. Travel is constantly stimulating and always worth the experience. On the flip side, I am so content when I’m home in Florida with my dog, relaxing and being lazy. It’s all about balance.

What is the biggest challenge you are currently facing?

I’ve been at a bit of a crossroads in terms of which of my passions I want to pursue more fully than the others. Part of me wants to pour my efforts into my blog and make my brand and content the best it can be and another part of me loves working as a photographer and writer and wants to get more assignments and work on more large projects. And of course I would love to do both, but I think each requires an intense amount of focus that while not negating the other, certainly takes time away that could be spent being the best at one.

What is your secret talent (something you are good at or can do that people might not know)?

It’s kind of a boring answer and maybe not that secret but I love to cook and bake. I have had friends rave about my quinoa tacos. Another thing is that I grew up riding horses and competing. We even owned three horses at one point by accident (that’s a long story). I sadly had to stop riding and sell my horse when I started at NYU because it’s a little hard to coordinate riding in the middle of Manhattan and I never really had time to commute outside the city. I miss it all the time though.

What is your motto or the best piece of advice you ever got?

I often tell people my motto is “I’d rather be better busy than bored” and I think this holds true as I try to fill my time up as much as possible. I get the worst FOMO and I want to be constantly involved in just about everything, so I say yes often. Maybe too often, but hey, better busy than bored!

What emoji do you use the most?

I use the upside down smiley face a lot and the shrugging girl 🤷🏼‍♀️

What is the latest Instagram feed you decided to follow?

A couple of accounts I’ve recently followed are @tourdelust for her gorgeous wanderlust travel feed that makes me wish I were off galavanting around the world too and @yarashahidi because she is doing some incredible things advocating for women right now and I think she’s a great mix of fierce and hilarious!

#fashion week #fashion industry #fashiontech #Fashion Editorial #nyfw #New York #News #interviews #inspiration #Promo Magazine #photographer #public relations #press release

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ricogu-blog · 7 years

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Self-Directed Study 1: Street Casting (teamwork) Spotify Playlist: street style 2017

On 14Oct, Sen, Cherry and I interviewed some people with style in Central London. The criteria of is that they must vary in gender, age, race and nationality.

We drafted six different questions, which is listed as following:

1.why do you choose your outfit for today? (Is there somewhere you're going? Or is it just your everyday style)

2. What do you think are the key pieces for your outfit today?

3. We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

4.what are some fashion icons or designers that you like? AND do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

5. Where do you normally buy your clothes?

6. Is there a culture or background that has influenced the way you dress?

We then interviewed five people, taking some photos and recording a video or an audio (in which case the interviewee didn’t want to show his or her face).

1) LT; Artist

Q: Why do you choose your outfit for today? (Is there somewhere you’re going? or is it just your everyday style?

A: Everyday style, went out last night

Q: What do you think is/are the key items of today?

A: Once you know who you are everything in your closet represents you.” His ties and socks and his bag (accessories ) are his key pieces

Q: We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

A: Based on one piece and sometimes it shows up in my dream

Q: What are some fashion icons or designers that you like? AND do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

A: Don’t have one but consider myself as a brand and inspiration. I also look towards life and society for inspirations. “You find you from living” “I like wearing a tie everyday”

Q: Where do you normally buy your clothes?

Q: culture that inspired you?

A: Color and from my mom. My mom always wear colors. I don’t like black and white as it is boring for me.

Q: Where do you buy your clothes?

A: I don’t shop but I get clothes from designer friends or I’ve been gifted

(2) JIWEN, high school student

Q: What do you think is/are the key items of today?

A: My shoes by Raf Simons and my glasses (accessories)

Q: We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

A: My mood. My friends. How my friends wear my clothes

Q: What are some fashion icons or designers that you like? An do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

A: Streetwear brands and designers

Q: Where do you normally buy your clothes?

A: Streetwear stores

Q: culture that inspired you?

A: Street culture, hiphop culture. “It’s peace, respect and love.” There’s essence in hiphop culture.

3) Mark; businessman

Q: Why do you choose your outfit for today? (Is there somewhere you’re going? or is it just your everyday style?

A: I’m going to a friend’s 30th birthday today which has a dress code for suit

Q: What do you think is/are the key items of today?

A: My ties which I bought it seven years ago

Q: We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

A: What shoes I wear which for me dictates everything else

Q: What are some fashion icons or designers that you like? AND do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

A: David Gandy

Q: Where do you normally buy your clothes?

A: Marks and Spencer where I don’t have to spend a lot

Q: culture that inspired you?

A: Work/Professional culture and British culture

(4) Hannah; law student

Q: Why do you choose your outfit for today? (Is there somewhere you’re going? or is it just your everyday style?

A: Because it was the first thing I saw

Q: What do you think is/are the key items of today?

A: My rings and my bell sleeve shirt

Q: We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

A: Choose around my hijab and my shoes

Q: What are some fashion icons or designers that you like? AND do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

A: Korean pop star G-Dragon, Dean and a youtuber/blogger called Dian Tokyo who does Hijab style

Q: Where do you normally buy your clothes?

A: Most of the time online I don’t have a shop particularly

Q: culture that inspired you?

A: My religion (Muslim) which inspires my style and into baggier clothing

(5) Zahra; Student and a Basketball Player

Q: Why do you choose your outfit for today? (Is there somewhere you’re going? or is it just your everyday style?

A: Just my everyday style and I love white shoes and black clothing.

Q: What do you think is/are the key items of today?

A: My belt purse. I bought it from ASOS.

Q: We all change our outfits regularly, so what do you think about when you choose your outfit?

A: I like to be special I don’t want to look like the other. I normally don’t buy clothing that other people already have.

Q: What are some fashion icons or designers that you like? AND do you think they have some influences on the way you dress today?

A: Furla for bags. Nike for sneakers because I play basketball.

Q: Where do you normally buy your clothes?

A: In person. I don’t buy online bc I don’t know how they look in real life.

Q: culture that inspired you?

A: My mom has inspired me. Her style has def inspired me. Sneaker culture/brands, like Nike and Reebok, have a huge impact.

After transcribed the files, we started to do some research on their style, including the inspiration of their style and the background, history and culture behind it, and how such culture have influenced the current fashion trend.

Following is some of the research results:

1. For the first person LT, his style is mainly based on 1920s’ men’s fashion. Cultural background: Roaring Twenties, some people say “It is the most colorful decade in the history.”

Suits neutral color with pattern, but the accessories popped with vibrant colors. For example, tie and socks. and also the wide suit pants are significant in 20s’ men’s fashion.Unlike today’s two piece suits, men’s 1920s fashion required a three piece suit with matching vest. Newsboy hat is one of the classic hats of 1920s as well.1920s men’s fashion was the start of menswear as we know it today.

Only little changes in menswear have come about since the 1920s. The essential part of a 1920s man’s wardrobe was his suit. For day, evening, office, or parties, a man always wore a suit. The only exceptions were for blue collar workers, sport players or young teen and college men who dressed more casually. But, even they owned suits and wore them with pride.

What sets 1920s men’s suits apart from other decades are the material and fit. The other fun bit of color on a 1920s men’s outfit was the neckwear. Men either wore a bow tie in fun stripes or polka dots, a striped or plaid necktie or a neck scarf tie. And the most iconic shoe of the 1920s is the two tone lace up Oxford.

LT also mentioned that his mother’s dressing aesthetics has influenced him. Jamaica color: As can be seem, Jamaican traditional clothes have always played with color. LT had grown up in his mother’s sense of color playing, so the color matching is his philosophy of dressing himself.

reference: https://vintagedancer.com/1920s/1920s-fashion-men/

https://vintagedancer.com/1920s/1920s-fashion-men/

https://www.leaf.tv/articles/traditional-clothing-in-jamaica/

2. For the second person Jiwen, all of this inspiration of style came from streetwear culture. Streetwear has become an indispensable part of the current fashion industry. Countless of people, especially the younger generation, nowadays are influenced by streetwear culture, dressed up in sneakers and streetwear brands

In addition to that, even fashion iconic brands, such as Balenciaga and Off-White, have borrowed elements from streetwear and incorporated their own idea on the pieces. “When you take a look at the most popular brands right now, especially those that blur the lines between high-fashion and streetwear, it’s important to note that their creators have been heavily influenced by earlier forms of street culture.”

Here are some the earliest labels/founding people of streetwear:

(1) Shawn Stüssy

He created one of the earliest labels in the 80s that catered to the subcultures of surfing, skate and punk.

“Based in California, Stüssy started out as an innovative surfboard company, which then became a clothing line featuring its logos in different designs and colorful motifs.”

(Stüssy campaign shot by Tyrone Lebon)

(2) NIGO

He can be looked at as the person who was able to transcend streetwear across cultures and continents — he started Bape in 1993 in Japan’s Urahara neighborhood, which is considered to be the birthplace of Japanese streetwear.

There is also a close link between streetwear fashion and hip hop culture. Many of the influential rappers, such as Lil Wayne, Pharrell Williams, Dipset … “During the 2000s many of hip-hop’s most high-profile artists such as Lil Wayne, Pharrell Williams, and Kanye West adopted the brand’s flamboyant fashions. Soon after, young style-minded consumers also wanted to dress like their favorite rappers, donning the brand’s signature shark hoodies, purple camouflage tees and multicoloured Bapesta sneakers.”

(Pharrell Williams wearing Bape’s signature camo shirt)

(Juelz Santana wearing Dipset Graphis tee)

reference:

https://hypebeast.com/2016/7/founding-fathers-of-modern-day-streetwear

3. For the third person Mark, as a businessman, his style can be classified as British gentleman style, which featuring suits, shirts, scarves, pants, leather shoes, neck tie, etc. The suits should be absolutely fit and pants length till ankle. then slightly show the popped color of socks. Neck ties have always been the key item of British gentlemen style. Also, Mark had made the point of the importance of choosing shoes.

Working culture: when first got to London, it is easy to tell the special working culture which is different from other countries. Of course people go to work in suits. But people in London put their personality into suit unlike other countries. British office style are good at using colorful accessories to make their suits playful and interesting. And another important part of British working culture is social activities after work. Dinner with friends, drinking by standing outside of bar are common in this town. By the mood has changed, those hard working men switch their accessories to change mood.

It is still a standard norm for men to wear suits and ties to places such as official events, weddings, some job interviews, etc. It’s no exaggeration to say that styled suits are a big part of the fashion world, and definitely one of the oldest form of fashion style to date.

“At the beginning of the 19th century, men’s style in England was basically a costumey nightmare: Well-heeled gents wore coats with tails, silk stockings, knee breeches, and worst of all, powdered wigs. But then Beau Brummell whole lot of fuss, thank Beau Brummell. Brummell was a mover and shaker in early 1800s English court life, and definitely the man who changed the menswear game forever by came along and basically invented the suit we’re all still wearing today.”

“If you appreciate the way a suit consists of two simple pieces that help you get dressed without a rejecting the popular frock coats and powdered wigs of the time in favor of simple jackets and full-length trousers—which would eventually become the suits we know today.”.

Suit Style for men played a huge role in the western movie and entertainment industry in the U.S. and the UK.

For example:

Charlie Chaplin: “America’s first movie star wore an exaggerated version of the everyday suits of the time, namely a skin-tight sportcoat and ballooning pants.” Elvis Presley.

And American iconic singer and performer who rocked the stage and was a cult figure for many followers worldwide.

And nowadays, the list of people who wear suits and blazers also includes women, not to mention that suits also have an impact on recent fashion culture, an example is fashion runway.

reference:

https://www.gq.com/gallery/the-gq-history-of-the-suit-by-decade

4. For the fourth person Hannah, a large part of her dressing inspiration is from her Muslim culture, and hijab plays an important role in her daily style.

“Islam, like most other religions, regulates the behavior of its believers. Like other faiths, its legal code lays down rules regarding the related fields of clothing and sexuality. One goal of these strictures is to prevent the exposure and highlighting of certain parts of the body. Especially those of women.”

“Many modern, non-religious Westerners see Muslim dress as a salient example of the repression of women and denial of their rights.” Alma quotes, ‘Many of these people think that if a women is covered up, it means that she is being oppressed.’ But in reality, “the hijab remains an outward expression of a complex reality”. As it is a rather contentious subject, one theory claims that “the hijab is an empowering display of identity,” there are also people who “reject the hijab and vie it as a means of oppression”…

(fashion industry borrows ideas from the Muslim culture, especially from the hijab)

reference:

Dress and Ideology : Fashioning Identity from Antiquity to the Present, edited by Shoshana-Rose Marzel, and Guy D. Stiebel, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, 2014.

5. For the last person Zahra, her style is mainly based on sports. It signifies comfort and flexibility and is something that you can easily spot on the street, especially on the generation of young people.

T-shirts, hoodies, Sneakers, caps, bomb jackets, leggings are popular sporty items. People use them to do some mix and match with other fashion items like coats, skirts and even highheels.

A NEW TREND: Athleisure

It is a trend in fashion in which clothing designed for workouts and other athletic activities is worn in other settings, such as at the workplace, at school, or at other casual or social occasions. Athleisure outfits are yoga pants, tights and leggings that "look like athletic wear" and are characterized as "fashionable, dressed up sweats and exercise clothing". The idea is that gym clothes are supposedly making their way out of the gym and becoming a larger part of people's everyday wardrobes. It can be considered as a fashion industry movement, enabled by improved textile materials, which allow sportswear to be more versatile, comfortable, and fashionable. It has been identified as being sporty and stylish.

But technically speaking, the sporty style is originated in the U.S.

“Before the mid-20th century, U.S. apparel firms mostly copied French styles for the American market. The war years made communication with Europe difficult, and Americans began to appreciate their homegrown talent. As women started enjoying leisure activities in the early to mid-20th century, American designers developed sportswear to meet their needs...” — Lisa Lockwood on WWD Magazine

With the rising fame of sports associations like NBA and NFL, more and more fans started to appreciate sportswear. And some iconic sportswear brands have also shaped today’s fashion world, like Nike and Adidas.

(British singer Rita Ora dressed in sporty style)

(Iconic Air Jordan shoes endorsed by basketball player Michael Jordan)

What’s more, there is also a trend in current fashion world where many of the notable designers use elements from casual sportswear. Here are a list of collaborations

Fenty Puma

Sacai + Nike

Stella McCartney + Adidas (Adidas relaunch its Stan Smith collection)

references:

http://messmag.com/how-sport-has-influenced-the-world-of-fashion/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athleisure

https://edelscope.com/2015/01/13/fashion-focus-the-history-and-influence-of-sports-in-the-fashion-world/

http://wwd.com/fashion-news/ready-to-wear/sportswear-an-american-invention-6241103/

And after finishing the research part, we started to make the powerpoint. We managed to do it in a creative way, in which we created a playlist in Spotify named “street style 2017″, to showcase each one’s style. So we selected songs according to their style and their cultural background, and used photoshop to design the playlist’s interface, which is similar to the spotify APP.

And I also adjusted the pictures by photoshop, so as to make the image of each person clear. Also, I made a play interface for each person ( but at last it is not showed in slides though)

On the day of presentation, we first play the music we choose for the person, which lasted for about 15 seconds. Then we introduce the person’s style and our research on his/her style cultural background, and the connection with the current fashion world. Fortunately, we presented well on Tuesday and achieved a success.

Also, we have received many constructive advices from our audience, which can be listed as following:

1. We can add some interaction with the audience. For example, we can play the music first, then let the audience guess what kind of fashion style the person represent. This will increase the participation enthusiasm of the others.

2. And while introducing the style and the background of it, we can ask the perspective of the audience.

3. We can also brief the process of our interview, for example, what have we overcome, what did we try, what didn’t work, and how we approached people, etc.

4. Except people’s name, age and occupation, we can add a question of where they come from, which is also an important element for research and analysis.

Besides, we also have learnt a lot from other groups’ presentation. And some feedbacks they received can also apply to our future presentation and research:

1. Try to be more creative and use for media forms to show your work and research process. ie. the moodboard is a good way to display your ideas. But when present, we shoult invite the audience to come around and interact with them.

2. When you present, you should consider visually, for example, the way of shooting, how to show the details of the items, the layout of the slides, etc.

3. References are very important because it shows what comes from where. And your own evaluation of your research is very important.

4. The moving image (video) is also a fresh way to be included in presentation. But the framing and timing should be paid attention to.

In conclusion, I have learnt so much in our first self-directed assignment. Apart from what I listed above, I also know further about my two excellent groupmates: Sen and Cheery. They are so helpful and considerate. We three as a group, each have their strength. For example, Sen is good at research and brainstorming, so I have learnt from her about how to make the mindmap to improve my divergent thinking and critical thinking skills. I have a command of simple graphic design and photoshop, so I was responsible for the image making and transferred our common ideas into visual images. And Cherry is very patient, considerate, good at making powerpoint and lay out thing, so she adjust the slides at last, so that we can show our idea and research through ppt clearly. In addition, both of them are good at communicating with people, which I have little confidence in. So I have learnt from them how to approach people with confidence and express ourselves clearly when doing the interview. I think I need to practice more with my spoken English and social skills.

Last but not the least, I have realized again the importance of teamwork through the whole process of brainstorming, discussing, generating the idea, drafting the question, sharing out the work, and even sharing dinner together in China, etc. I’d like to say I really like and am truly grateful to my groupmates! They have helped me a lot indeed! I hope we three can collaborate again in the future.

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