#This guide is heavily underappreciated

[supahstarrr]

Tier List ☆ DRA edition! WARNING, long reasons below + borderline analysis of characters; and these are just my opinions! If you'd like to talk to me about these opinions, discuss stuff, and/or how I interpret a character (positive or negative ways) then going to my askbox is an option.

Rei Mekaru (Favorite) ― I was shocked she managed to be extremely likeable despite her heavy inspiration being my least favorite DR antagonist (*ahem* Byakuya). One of the noticeable and favorite things about her is how she is such a clever example of the "uptight smart supportive character who doesn't tell you answers right away" because it works so well with her ultimate title! She's an ultimate professor—commonly professors & teachers purposely guide you towards the answers as you'll be more able to comprehend it when you take the steps towards understanding the answer, it's a teaching method. On the surface it's more of a small yet clever detail, although it really helps you understand one of the big parts of her character, give weight to her actions, and keep her grounded to some extend.. which is why I'm so damn infatuated with this detail. To get deeper with it, her background also explains why she is attracted to teaching as a profession and her guidance; for a big section of her life as a child, she had to guide herself, which helped her understand the need and how to guide others.

Her obsession with competence is interesting in this case. While Byakuya's stemmed heavily from privilege, hers doesn't. It is particularly based off of her the skills that she had to develop on her own, which is her version of "competence." She analyze her background, thought her family didn't have the skills she developed on her own, and almost completely discredited them as an actual family. It's interesting and tragic to me; her obsession with competence is such a huge habit stemming from her looking at her background with child-like eyes. She appear obsessive and stuck because I mean, she's attached to this "competence" concept she built up from the lack of skills needed to comprehend a situation (since she was a child) and trauma, and used as a tool for survival (to shield her mental state, to be more clear) and as her power. It's just a really huge reminder that she's just, you know, young and lack some experience.

Everything just make so sense with her, she is so good written goddammit!!! Also, an underappreciated skill of hers is her creative skills! I mean this is an underappreciated skill when it comes to a variety of The Smart characters, but anyways— her intelligence also connects to creative skills, which is what she uses in the trials! It's a typical thing for creativity to interconnect with analytical skills, adding onto how smart a character is. A huge example of this creativity of her (or as what people describe, "thinking out of the box") is when she guessed the casts' memories were altered quite early! I love her analytical skills in general, though I love it even more when it connects to creativity :).

Although she's my favorite, I can't deny that sometimes I did want to smack her, and I do believe the way she spoke to others is something to dislike or criticize (even if "that's the point"). What particularly should be criticized is she spoke to Kizuna was... odd to say and was leaning to very internalized misogyny territory. The slut shaming when it came to Kizuna was just so wrong. I'm alright with "bitch" being said sometimes, but it feels more wrong when it's paired up with slut shaming. I definitely doubt that most fangan developers have misogyny in mind when it comes to developing how women in their art view the world, although it would make sense if misogyny also contributed to her obsession with competence! Which is something I find quite interesting.

Too many paragraphs I'm sorry, but I'll say this one thing. I also like how she appears more grounded than Byakuya. I have to say... although I'm saying this more loosely since I haven't watched DR1 in a while... I DEFINITELY prefer Rei over Byakuya...

Kanata Inori (Favorite) ― Not every character I like or my favorites has to be very good written. Love her lots, although I admit that she doesn't have that much depth & traits to her and that's alright honestly! She has a background which is fine with me, and it's just. What I love about her is how she suffered through a tragic event, someone in her life expressed kindness, and now she just has genuine love for caring about others. It's simple really, and I think that it's an admirable thing when it comes to characters and people in general. The quirks is what really make her more likeable to me; sometimes she's appears cryptic (especially in FTEs) and and it's quite amusing— it's interesting how far she's overly obsessed with germs to the point of walking around with socks and slippers. She's a character that sure can give comfort in a world where many doctors & surgeons mainly care more about money more than other people's safety

Teruya Otori (Like) ― Let me say, I didn't expect there to be two "Funny coward" characters and I expected this one to die the MOST.

I regret what I said... am so sorry Teru... Although, I am definitely fine with him not dying!!! He is kind of an interesting eccentric, weird, kind of funny guy with some charm to him. It's interesting that he's The Funny one while also being the realist at the same time, plus him becoming more hypocritical and selfish the more the game goes on it makes him appear more grounded. I do like that he has the guts to display his interest in fashion even if the fashion is "questionable." Though I feel like this desire to express himself knowing it's "questionable" and unique is used to his advantage to stand out. So if anything, it almost appears as if he has this constant need to stand out more than it being an example of confidence. Why to do this— why do he prioritize standing out? Most likely because he's conditioned to most of his life revolving about selling something— he travels for something to be sold, his father (a figure he's dependent on) sells, and he's been taught for something to sell you need to stand out (his father even suggested the hairstyle, because he claims standing out leads to more money). In fact, most of his memory involve something to be sold (he want to be memorized to sell goods, and he mainly memorize when goods are involved).

It's interesting too since most of his identity is dependent on him standing out because his identity is dependent on selling something and being useful. It's kind of sadder when I think about it more- he reduces himself to being a "resource" and something useful to an extent, rejecting his humanity to an extent. Other than being in a life or death situation, him not being useful and a "resource" would heavily to tie him breaking, because of his identity literally depending on those things. This ties to what I like about how he's portrayed in the game; which is how even when he wants to be remembered to sell something, to be useful, and to be a resource, it's not what he's remembered by. He's remembered by his personality, all what makes him charming and all the flaws to him. I think for his character it's... good for him to have his dumb moments and not always be useful, because it's good that he's allowed to have his identity to not be dependent on something he's conditioned by, which is a harmful thing.

Other than that, what's one of the most odd thing to me is his relationship with his father. I mean like, this guy sleeps in bed with his father, typically unusual for a teen/young adult who values privacy (which is very important at that age range), it's definitely not just a "close relationship with his father" as what some people frame it as, its more like dependence. His mother's fate is unknown, but it could be a good assumption that he's dependent on his father because he doesn't want to lose him too? This could also connect to why he ties himself to goods and further support his identity revolving around things being sold since while losing something, you gain something. As a bonus thing, he won't have to worry about goods (objects) being sold, because he'll have less of an attachment to losing them since he's conditioned to it just being business after all.

He's been caught in the capitalism beams.

Akane Taira (Like) ― Right off the bat, I can say didn't expect her to be more expressive with her concerns and disagreements, more blunt, more expressive with her negative emotions, more open with interrupting the trials, and more open with the idea of smacking people. Those are interesting traits of her that you wouldn't really expect in a maid, but when you know the extra lore of the game and that she's surrounded by others who will allow her to express herself more, it makes sense. Although stuck in a passive role, she's actually pretty good at bringing guidance to others, which is probably one of the best traits of hers. She's such a warm character that turns out to be tragic, obsessive, more stoic, colder, and numb as a defense from all she's been through. I'd say this behavior is more presented when we get flashbacks of her, and it's only not too presented in the main game because of some memories she's lost.

The twist of her being an ultimate despair was wayyy more unexpecting than Yuki being one. Yet it's a twist that is completely understandable- with this despair, she attempts to romanticize the role of being a dehumanized specimen than being human, in order to cope with hiding the many parts of her, the horrid treatment she goes through, being used, and with life in general. Almost, she twists dehumanization as her "freedom" because she "reclaims" it as her own. This despair fails at giving her true happiness in the end, as her being dehumanized contributes to her trauma and she still needs to hide parts of her self to navigate the despair world; and the attempts at feeling more "alive" through putting others in danger and/or mimicking others (to an extent; like mimicking Junko & Monokuma's mannerisms + energy) doesn't help the issue of not being able to reclaim her own livelihood and happiness.

Mikako Kurokawa (Slightly Like) ― Though we didn't see too much of her traits and her full extent of self expression because it's canonically limited (which is well, okay I guess...), she is shown to be empathetic and analytical—which is one of my favorite parts about her character. Her determination is admirable, even when she feels so much pain she has shown that she is willing to go out to help others, act as a contributor, and tries to tell more about the lore of the game. She's a fighter at heart, and I feel like it's an underappreciated part of her. I do like how her talent is more of a metaphor than a profession itself, as she analyzes the truth of people's character or their "inner demons" (as the wiki puts it). Her talkative side was very revealing of her and give you more insight to her other than that she's talkative. With her background full of trauma and abandonment, yet full of characters who adopt her into a family, we can see this influencing her friendly & talkative behavior in the flashbacks. It's a beautiful thing that she was influenced so positively and decided to give that positivity to others :)

Kinji Uehara (Slightly Like) ― I was really pleased that there's a religious character that doesn't force their beliefs onto others, and is more open-minded about other people's religions or the lack of beliefs. He faced abandonment as a child then was adopted, most definitely influencing his love for giving to others (especially children) and that's such a great part of him. It's genuinely such a difficult thing that he felt like he had no other options to kill just to free children who were probably dead. It's an interesting thing, with him acting out in interest of freeing others while also with some selfishness as well, although he has kind intentions he's definitely not the most innocent (although yeah, I can understand his selfishness since he felt like he hardly had any other choice). He's a reserved, king of awkward guy and that's something quite endearing to me and at times funny. It seems as if he's always been put into adult-like roles throughout his life, by constantly watching and caring for the children. Other than appearing "more mature" than most of the cast, he does seem to have more experience comparing to the most of the cast, as he travels and tend to many personalities (because he cares for many children. Which means he is open to more experience and lessons than the rest of the cast, and can also explain why he's open-minded. Yeah, I think he's pretty decent.

Kizuna Tomori (Almost Neutral) ― She's an interesting character, not only she's very self aware of all her wrongdoings, but she observes what the world value about women & girls to use it to her advantage. She gains power and attempts to fulfill her psychological needs by "reclaiming" the perspectives forced onto her—the perspectives that only value and acknowledge her conventional attractiveness over intelligence. Now, as much as its portrayed as if she's irredeemable and to an extent "faking" her loneliness, the FTEs shows her loneliness. I do think she has the potential to redeem herself, it's just that the killing game wasn't a good place for her to do that.

Ayame Hatano (Almost Neutral) ― I gotta be honest, she was one of those almost-forgettable characters to me. Though I really do love that there was an emotional connection so impactful to her, that it heavily influenced the her killing someone- and to mention, some selfishness also influenced her. She's definitely not a saint. She's also more stoic, awkward and blunt at times, yet in the end of the day, she does have some kind intentions and those are all the things cool about her.

Satsuki Iranami (Almost Neutral) ― Her appearing so detached about the killing game was one of the worst and best traits of her, though yeah I get it, her funny detachment moments was a coping mechanism and an attempt at making others cope with the situation all at once. Although not the most remarkable character to me (and is more closer to being mediocre) she's another who is considerate of others. She's one of the characters with the most purest intentions out of anyone else. I also do enjoy her unpredictability, and I have to say, I do wish that she was more expanded on. She had her wise moment in Chapter 4, yet this "wisdom" trait is never expanded on, like ever, and it appears that it's intentionally said by her in order for her death to have more impact... so it feels more "random" than a trait of her, which is a little disappointing to me.

Kakeru Yamaguchi (Almost Neutral) ― Good god his character is just so disappointing, and it's all thanks to the developer limiting themself because he thought 4 "smart supportive characters" would be too much... despite the fact being a lawyer can be many things. I do like that he shows his confidence in the trials (even in a way that's more obnoxious), because lawyers depend on how they appear and say stuff than actually depending on the truth, which is what some people just don't get. Wolfgang is a better executed example of a lawyer not being stuck in the "smart supportive character" role. Although he's nice, willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of others, and that's sweet.

Kiyoka Maki (Almost Neutral) ― I'm sorry man but like she's one of the top characters that were very forgettable to me. She's sweet, supportive, wishes to be a normal girl, and that's really all say that I can say about her. I like that she's the more sweet & sociable type, and I have to say it's interesting that she attempts at getting others to cope with the situation they're in while also appearing ignorant of the situation in the process.

Yuki Maeda/Utsuro (Almost Neutral) ― He's okay I guess. I do like that the game shows him slowly and slowly building up the constant despair he's feeling to the point he chooses the "despair route" in canon, which was almost an expecting choice while managing to be impactful in a bitter way. He's (for the most part) an average guy and other than his whole lore—which I guess you can argue its Utsuro's lore since Yuki and Utsuro are considered seperate identities—Yuki is kind of good when it comes to supporting other's emotions, which isn't the most "average guy" thing ever. Even when Yuki chooses despair, Yuki also chooses hope, which is an interesting thing showing how strong-willed he can be. Also, him considering Mitch a "friend" was pretty annoying of him, even knowing what Mitch did... *eye roll*.

I find Utsuro interesting and his background neat. The way he was dehumanized in life also lead him to the person he is now. Despite all the selfishness and cruelty and dehumanizing others, he does slightly care about others. I like that the "bigger" mastermind ended up with some depth to him, and he wasn't painted as completely evil. I do want to say that prefer the "luck" thing being more ambiguous than an actual thing that exists in canon.

Yamato Kisaragi (Neutral) ― Good god this man is so fucking plain. He was the important character I guess. Which I mean, I'd prefer Mikako having more importance over him, but it's cool I guess. I wish his character would've been... expanded more. He doesn't give as much impact as the story wants me to.

Haruhiko Kobashikawa (Dislike) ― Him invading a space for women solely to sexualize them and then bringing up a DEAD woman's name when talking about peeking on the girls having a bath together killed him for me. People like to downplay this stuff, but I really don't think people should be desensitized to that kind of stuff. He appears aware that he shouldn't really be doing this shit, which makes it worse to me. Other than that, I did find him funny at times. It also was almost ridiculous how he was so quick to decide that Satsuki was his lover and stuff, I'm just going to think that he had a small crush on her and them the memories made it even bigger, I guess. Mans risked it all and that's okay I guess. Also, the way he wanted to suggest doing some creep type shit while he had a girlfriend in the flashbacks. while you had a GIRLFRIEND??? Good god...

Tsurugi Kinjo (Dislike) ― As much as he's a decent antagonist... his character in general... he just seems normal? Which isn't a bad thing that he reflects what's "normal", but I kind of get annoyed with people comparing him to Nagito, because he's kind of a normal cop. Dragging and adding to his words to feel important while expressing that he don't want to improve the system and he'll use his authority to make no actual good progress... manipulating people by using his authority (his "duty to protect everyone", his judgement as a cop) to cause more division while also causing distrust in the process because he claims "if you don't believe in him you're a criminal.........." Then he use people's need to to not be divided as an advantage to trap people in his clutches even if the people technically don't fully believe him. Cop stuff. Of course he'd fall into his mindset at the end because he was never fully out of it in the first place and he's been conditioned at a young age... and I mean, let's be honest, a lot of people in real life will tolerate the things he does as a cop (ex: manipulation) and his mindset. Thus it'll encourage him to continue... being him. I don't hate him but I sure do like to tease him. Decent written character though, I'll say that. I just don't like his character that much.

Mitsuhiro Higa (Dislike) ― There's not much to him. I mean he's a cocky ass and I'm definitely sure that he feels supported by the power he has due to fame to act terrible. He had his nice moments in the flashbacks but I mean. Terrible people can still be nice sometimes. I don't hate him though, and even I dislike him while not giving much that much thought.

THATS IT. I'M FINALLY FUCKING DONE!!! goddamn this took long.

[46ten]

John Adams and Hamilton, briefly

A closer examination of Adams’s use of eighteenth-century moral philosophy, especially Smith’s The Theory of Moral Sentiments, reveals a striking and underappreciated originality in Adams’s political thought. As Luke Mayville has powerfully demonstrated, Adams’s preoccupation with aristocracy - and its malignant twin, oligarchy - in the Defense and Discourses reveals not a fondness for, but rather a grave fear of, oligarchic power in American society. While democratic republican reformers like Jefferson believed that America would weed out the roots of ancient and corrupt oligarchic institutions and cultivate the seeds of a truly meritocratic and virtuous elite, Adams was doubtful. According to Adams, the deep, social psychological roots of authority would give rise to a “natural aristocracy” not of the wise, talented, and virtuous, but rather of the beautiful, well-born, and wealthy. What is more, this national aristocracy would not only survive, but thrive if left unchanged, all to the detriment of the republic. Adams approached moral philosophy as more than an academic guide to the human psyche. He made it a crucial link between the “phenomena of social life and the problems of political power” that enabled him to advance a unique conception of oligarchy. 

Adam Smith’s America: How a Scottish Philosopher became an Icon of American Capitalism by Glory M. Liu (2021).

[I may add to this post later, as I have been wanting to do a longer post summarizing/explaining why the Hamilton/Adams relationship was the way it was.] 

To understand the differences between Adams and Hamilton, one first has to start with an understanding of the differences between the New England colonies, the Middle/Mid-Atlantic colonies, and the Southern colonies. (American schools start teaching about the differences between the colonies in elementary/middle school - so I’m not sure if the very crude summary that follows is even necessary - and there are entire books on this topic). These were separate societies. (Leaving out the Southern colonies) we have the Germans, Dutch, and English in PA/NY/NJ/DE vs the Puritan descendant Massachusetts colonists. The founders of these colonies were different groups of people: they differed economically, in religious beliefs, in the structure of society, in attitudes on a range of subjects, etc. A ‘tolerant’ society focused on profit - the Dutch traded weapons to the Native Americans that they in turn used to raid NE towns - vs the fiercely independent and religious communities of NE. A people who saw themselves in America seeking freedom (NE) vs disparate peoples in America seeking profit (Middle). NE did not have farmland that could support large agricultural operations - family farms were most common. In contrast, NY/NJ was governed by a slave-owning, Dutch and English aristocracy, heavily involved in trade of wheat (the breadbasket of N. America), fur and lumber for West Indian sugar. William Duer, who marries into the Livingston family, spent part of his early adulthood running his family estate in the West Indies; an entire branch of the prestigious Cruger family were NY-West Indian merchants. This latter group pushed Hamilton to the forefront of national politics. 

The anger NEnglanders held against the Middle colonists for their interactions with Native Americans (the French and Indian War played no small part in hatred) and their bias based on moral deficits lasts straight through the AmRev - Albany was considered practically a den of sin by NE soldiers, who also, of course, were horrified to be under the charge of Philip Schuyler. One of the reasons for Schuyler’s removal as commander of the Northern Dept was exactly this political concern. When we read several accounts of Schuyler as aristocratic, this is NE bias at work, too, against a ‘Dutch’ large landowner, wealthy slave holder, and prominent trader of West Indian goods. 

And then Hamilton enters the picture. Adams may have disliked him because he’s an upstart - someone who rose very quickly in the early national political scene through his support from and for the Dutch slave-owning aristocracy, while Adams labored for decades supporting the nascent country with a political philosophy he found far more principled - but there were also real differences in interests and philosophy. And AH did very little to reduce any suspicion. Hamilton seemed to have decided fairly early on that Adams was not of sufficient skill or integrity - and just plain did not share the same profit-loving beliefs - to play a major role in new government, so he undermined Adams, even when wholly unnecessary. (Not to say that Adams was particularly adept in his roles as V. President and President, either.)  Adams regarded Hamilton’s economic plans as harmful to the poor (they were) and designed to further enrich the wealthy (they did). Adams absolutely recognized Hamilton for the warmonger he was.

Hamilton meddles almost immediately against Adams - ensuring that he’d get few electoral votes in 1789, when the election of Washington wasn’t even in question. He wanted Adams to lose the election of 1796, throwing his support behind Pinckney instead. With an aim of not disrupting the continuity the new nation experienced under Washington, Adams kept most of the same cabinet members, only to have AH use those members to run the gov’t behind Adams’s back. Let’s not even get into AH’s machinations during the Quasi-War. In a long list of ways, Hamilton was duplicitous towards Adams before outright challenging him. And then Hamilton had the nerve to claim a superior moral character to Adams in 1800 in his pamphlet shared with other members of the Federalist party. There was a lot of underhandedness going on from AH. This again is an example of Hamilton’s invincible belief in his own rightness. 

That said, Adams had no extraordinary interest in Hamilton’s personal life beyond the fairly common staunch Calvinist point-of-view that a deficient family background brought about a deficient moral character, void of virtue and reason, and therefore unfit to lead. Nor was Adams singular in his concern about the talent, reason, and virtues - the character - of major political players - these concerns take up a lot of ink in this period of time because of the prevalent moral and political philosophies. Who should be leaders? Who should vote? To the extent that Adams shared the common Federalist belief that a natural aristocracy was composed of men reliant on reason and virtue, Hamilton, by way of his illegitimate birth in the West Indies, was never going to fit the ideal. And Hamilton certainly lived up (or down?) to that negative reputation of being primarily interested in benefiting the wealthy and the well-born, and then a confirmed adulterer. But Adams could be fairly publicly moderate with men with whom he held private disagreements (Franklin!). He even seems to have had a good opinion of Philip Schuyler, as I recall one of the things Adams wanted to do was to name Philip Schuyler and others holding the rank of General at the time of the end of the AmRev to positions of formal leadership in 1798-99, and was baffled at Hamilton elevating himself and all his cronies. 

Once Hamilton was dead, Adams (who turned 70 in 1805) seemed to enjoy making up additional gossip about him - we have no record, for example, of anyone else stating that Hamilton was an opium addict. We also have no record of anyone else stating that Hamilton was having affairs with all his sisters-in-law. But Adams also wasn’t publicly publishing this stuff - it’s in his correspondence to select others. 

All that said, Adams really should be more popular than Hamilton - Adams really was an anti-slavery Founding Father; though he was not an abolitionist, he offered them his support. He was closer to a political moderate (in modern parlance) than Hamilton. And he rightly identified the oligarchic plan that underlay the High Federalists’ vision, although he certainly wasn’t a populist, either. 

There’s a lot more historical context than just personality differences between personages. And there’s a lot more understanding of political and moral philosophies of the time that is needed before speculating about the whats and whys of Adams’s behavior (or speculation about Washington’s reactions to additional speculation). Warning, lecture here: Folks have dedicated their professional lives to understanding some of these topics, and we need to show greater interest in what they have found and reframe our opinions accordingly. 

This is horribly brief and reductive and I can already see the simplifications that will lead to errors, and I may expand on it later, but it gets some general thoughts down. 

[silverdelirium]

dracos first orgasm omggg xx

this is lowkey bad im sorry 😟

warnings: oral (male receiving) titty fucking

———

“i need you to relax for me baby” you told your boyfriend as you massaged his tense thigs.

draco rapidly nodded and took a deep breath, releasing all tension when he exhaled. he involuntarily bucked his hips up when you tugged down his sweatpants, upper half already bare.

you watched in amazement when his tall cock popped out, making your mouth water and draco shiver when the cold air hit him, but you didn’t touch it yet instead, you stood up.

draco’s head snapped up at you “wha- y/n?” but he got cut off by his breath hitching in his throat when you removed your hoodie, lingerie on display for him. he gulped when he saw your breasts lightly pushed up by the bra. your shorts followed, matching panties now also feeding his hungry eyes.

he started breathing heavily, the girl of his dreams getting on her knees in front of him. “what a pity this sweet cock has never gotten its release, has it sweetie?” you teased, fake pouting as you wrapped your hand around his thick grith. your fingers not even meeting together.

he shook his head no, watching with a foggy mind and lustful eyes as you kissed from the base all the way to the tip, never breaking eye contact. draco gave a loud whine when you kissed his sensitive tip, lightly sucking.

you let go of his dick, making draco whimper but quickly shut up as you reached behind your back and unclasped your bra, letting your tits flow out, draco gave a groan at the mere view.

you giggled at his reaction and wrapped your hand around him once again, sticking your tongue out and kitten licking the tip. draco already moaning and closing his eyes.

“you’re so big my love, can’t wait to have you inside me” you murmured against his cock, making it twitch.

deciding to end your torture you licked from the base all the way up to the tip, then welcoming him into your mouth at once.

“ah! g-god yes” moaned draco loudly, a whiny tone to his voice. you hummed in pleasure and started bobbing your head up and down, slightly gagging everytime his tip hit the back of your throat, to add on, you grabbed your breasts and guided them so his cock was in between them, your mouth still sucking on the tip while your breasts massaged his cock.

draco kept releasing strangled moans, bucking his hips every once in a while and twisting the sheets underneath him due to his tight grip on them.

you squeezed your breasts tighter. draco almost screaming your name at this point.

“it feels tingly and- and weird” whined draco, thighs quivering as he rubbed his lower stomach.

if he would’ve been any other guy you would’ve teased them over how fast they wanted to cum, but it was draco’s first time ever even having an orgasm. “let it go baby, cum for me” you soothed, disconnecting your mouth for a bit before diving back in, your pink muscle swirling around the tip once again.

draco gave a loud moan as he came in your mouth, rope after rope of cum flooding it, some falling on your tits. and you swallowed all of it, humming at the taste and finishing him by hollowing your cheeks, pulling out with a pop.

you stood up with a smirk on your face, bringing your finger to the corner of your mouth and wiping it clean from the cum that accidentally slipped out, then popping it in your mouth. watching as draco turned pink and gulped shakily at your antics.

“you did so good baby boy” you whispered in his ear as you settled in his lap, his hands gripping your breasts already, beaming at the feeling and sight of them.

you smiled sweetly at him as he stared up at you, eyes full of love. bending down to kiss his forehead.

———

🏷: @spencervera @methblinds @marrymetheonott @adrianscumslut @wh0re4blaise @turn-to-page-394-please @fredshufflepuff @malfoysbiitch @saggyb1lls @helleli @metaraxia @daddybutmakeitagirl @dracomalfoys-wh0re @dlmmdl @fleursbabe @riddleswh0r3crux @lolooo22 @darlingmalfoy @littlemissnoname13 @i-love-scott-mccall @underappreciated-spoon-321 @steveharringtonswhore @dracosafety @dracoscum @riddleswh0rekrux @harrystellastyles

[whetstonefires]

For the ask meme tell me about my blorbos-in-law: FFVII

This is really the ideal kind of fandom for an askgame like this, I feel--25 years old, active but not vigorous, a little sprawling and ungainly but not hopelessly vast. XD Because they are your in-laws I will explain more than usual so I'm not just blorbing at you.

blorbo (favorite character, character I think about the most) I...honestly don't know the answer to this. I have gone through assorted character-centric phases where there was a clear answer to this, and I am not in one now. I've been working on the next chapter of Top Guide this week which is heavily into being a Tifa pov fic, so I guess on a technicality the answer is presently a firm Tifa.

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is So Shaped) I'm...okay, breaking it down, the thing is I think this is probably Cloud for me but I'm very uncomfortable with this because I'm a passionate enemy of the fandom trend toward infantilizing Cloud whenever he isn't actively being built up as The Kickass Protag. I hate that. Cloud was canonically already a rude asshole when he was 8. How do you people make 'shy twink' this dehumanizing and could you stop forever please, it's not even accurate. I might just go for Baby Sephiroth to sidestep the whole issue. I cannot resist small Sephiroth ever. I want to dress him up in little outfits.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave) Lol Angeal Hewley. He's a major emotional lynchpin of the tragic prequel game but the Crisis Core writers just. Did not make time in their process to figure out what he was thinking or doing any time he was not actually onscreen. This despite the fact that he went through most of the epic emotional breakdown that takes him from 'Reliable Mentor Figure' to 'Forces You To Assist His Suicide With Your Sword' while offscreen. But they just. They didn't make an effort! He just pingpongs from one appearance to the next having a plot-driving mental health collapse with no psychological continuity whatsoever! His narcissist of a best friend who drives both the plot and the mental breakdown with his own crazed schemes gets his motives dug into in the course of investigating his ongoing crimes, and talks at grandiose emotional length about what he's doing and why, making him easy to relate to despite the vast gulf between 'what he's upset about' (being a genetic experiment misled by the corporate government and now dying of congenital problems) and 'what he's doing as a result' (mass murder) but Angeal is like. Conspicuously a narrative prop. He's like those dogs they put in movies just to kill them off cheap, except he also talks and has a Legacy and emotional torment and shit. It's hilarious. He is my boy. ...Tifa also in a different way, tho. But I already did jyl in that mode.

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and I won’t shut up about it for a week) Okay so because of the format of this series anyone who appears in more than one installment is a fan favorite, either because squeenix only brought them back due to their popularity or because everyone got so excited to see them again. So I'm gonna be like...people who probably won't be in the Remake but I wish. Let's see. There's these two brown young women with ponytails in the Corelian refugee camp who have the same sprite model and live in different shanties, one of them with a little child and old man who don't look related, and in my head they're sisters and I made up a lot of vibes about their family situations. I want them to recognizably turn up and actually be sisters. Not going to happen lol. More attainably, I like those kids in Kalm who talk about the ongoing ecological collapse and their conflicted feelings on it more straightforwardly than any of the adults in the game manage, I hope we hear from them again. Such a great reality check those kids. Wait no! Chekhov the Pagoda Guardian! A named absolute nobody I will be delighted to see again. Bring her and her paralysis ability back. Fucking love that the. Pagoda ninjas. Have Russian names for no reason. OH SHIT WAIT. I HAVE REMEMBERED. MY MAXIMAL GLUP SHITTO. So in the Temple of the Ancients Sephiroth tells you to behold the murals and I thought it was a hint about hints to the upcoming puzzles so I did, very carefully, but actually he was just being dramatic for no reason. Also there are no puzzles that was a lie. But anyway they're a narrative triptych showing the (egyptian-styled) Ancients using the Black Materia to summon a meteor in an explanation for why you should not do this, and there's a dude I think is meant to be a greedy king it's getting summoned onto, and then a lot of people on fire, and I have thoughts about that and Shinra and Midgar and the whole terrorism part of the narrative and how Sephiroth frees the main cast from the moral bind of being unable to break the chains of capitalism through violence without inflicting massive civilian casualties by crushing the capital city of capitalism with a huge space rock BUT ANYWAY the summoning is done by a trio, in the first panel, or possibly by one person with two dudes for moral support, and I'm so interested in the implied historical figure of Woman Holding Superweapon. What's her story?? Why did she do it? Was she prepared for the results? Did she die in the fallout? Was she sorry??? Mural lady from thousands of years ago who are you? Which weird geological feature did your ill-advised meteor-summoning create? Was it the bottomless lagoon? (I think it was the bottomless lagoon that forever swallows the ocean in a physics-obliterating massive waterfall and nobody cares.)

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave) Okay this is a meowmeow infested fandom lol. Angeal might count on grounds of pathetic and unpopular but that's not really how I vibe with him? I'm very invested in Sephiroth's mental damage and in the idea of how you could have constructed a Sephiroth who was less Like That, but this is something the games actively encourage in the player, and which over half the fanbase concurs with me on. There is no true controversy here. The conflict tends to arise around how to correctly interpret Sephiroth's...deal. The controversial meowmeows are all guys who piss me off to hell, because they are all smug bastards who clearly know exactly what they are doing to other people and just feel this is okay, actually, because. They and their desires are more important. Than other people's entire existences. Sephiroth sometimes acts like this but only after he loses his mind, which is the point of intrigue. He's an unreliable narrator to say the least and we know both a lot and nothing about his biography. How exactly did you break, my man? That's meowmeow material right there.

horse plinko (character I would torment for fun, for whatever reason) Rufus fucking Shinra. How do you introduce yourself with a smug monologue about how you're going to show you're better than your father by replacing his crypto-fascism with unapologetic naked fascism because you think that's cheaper and more badass, and then become popular? How does nobody care that you put Tifa in a gas chamber on live television as a publicity stunt in the attempt to maintain your political power in the face of the apocalypse? Just because you have a white longcoat and dramatic poses like Seto Kaiba and are apparently incapable of fear, why do people like you. Fuck you. You should have stayed blown up by that giant laser return-fire. The kaiju who killed you could sense your murder vibes a hundred miles away. What is that. Die. The wheelchair moment in the movie was fucking epic tho. I'll give you that.

eeby deeby (character I would send to superhell) I'm very predictable on these! There's so many villains tho. Gonna send...gonna send Hojo to eeby-deeby superhell because they brought him back as a computer ghost for DoC and that's just not on. Forbidden. You were super dead, man. You turned yourself into a science monster and then we shot you so many times. I feel like there are as many main cast who have been tortured by Hojo personally as have not, although this is technically an exaggeration. Also he manages to achieve the rank of Worst Dad against some stiff competition. Superhell for Hojo for 1000 years.

[utilitycaster]

Oh man I need all of your DWJ takes YESTERDAY. She’s such an under appreciated master. Have you ever read The Homeward Bounders? It’s one of her best and I feel like I never meet people who’ve read it. What are your favorites of her work?

I have read The Homeward Bounders but at least 15 years ago, so I don't remember it well (I've read...the vast majority of her books although i couldn't get into the Dalemark Quartet). If I recall my feelings at the time were that I was kind of frustrated that the main character didn't get to find his way home, because I was young and didn't handle books without clear closure very well. My mother also read it and I remember she liked it but thought it was sad. I should revisit it!

As for my favorites:

The Chrestomanci series. I do prefer the ones that heavily feature Christopher, either as a child or adult, because my dream job remains "be immensely powerful and sarcastic while wearing elaborate dressing gowns"

Howl's Moving Castle, natch (I have actually never seen the Miyazaki adaptation)

Dark Lord of Derkholm, Year of the Griffin (I preferred the latter as a kid, but now I prefer the original because Derk has become more relatable as an adult), and, relatedly, the Tough Guide to Fantasyland.

Deep Secret, which was one of my favorites because it was a love letter to fandom but like...of a time that I never experienced as cons started getting huge in the mid-2000s which is when I would have started going. I was going to say that I would go to cons if they were put on purely by fans in weird hotels in relatively small cities but unfortunately I think that's basically what Dashcon was. Also in case it's not abundantly clear I LOVE multiple universes/time travel in fantasy that like...isn't weirdly grimdark or overly philosophical about it? I mean I enjoy some darkness and philosophy but sometimes you just want someone to say "hey, what if multiple universes? wouldn't that be wild and neat?"

A Tale of Time City, which I think is the one that's my "this one is underappreciated and it SLAPS"

[leviathiane]

Fic Writer Wrapped - 2021 Edition

Tagged by my lovely bogger, @chromiwrites 🦐 🦐 ♥️

How many stories did you complete?

9 SFW, 5 Not SFW,,, a whole, total 14 fics,,,,,,,, (Completed, at least)

What is your total word count for the year?

A decent 111,636 total! 90% of it being SFW 

What fandoms did you write in this year?

Avatar the last airbender, Haikyuu, Hollow Knight, BOTW, Age of calamity, and LOZ in general, Omori, Undertale, Deltarune, Danganronpa, and One piece :) She may be busy but she has the RANGE

Did you write more, less, or roughly about what you expected?

LESS. MUCH LESS. Being trapped in my home has reduced my motivation by leagues. I had been heavily dependent on my campus library to be productive,,,, and now I Cannot Have Her.......

What’s your favorite story of the year?

Deeply Whelved, with An Exercise in Grief as close seconds. Deeply Whelved has been the most fun for me, but An Exercise in Grief was basically the culmination of all my feelings from Age of Calamity in one fic. I cherish that fic. I Cradle it. I would kiss her if i could. maybe I will. maybe ill print it out and put on some nice lipstick and--

What is your most underappreciated story of the year?

ALSO an exercise in grief. and beholden to. those two fics are some of my most emotionally charged fics I have, but because they are slower paced and methodical rather than fast-paced panic they dont preform very well. even though I LOVE THEM I LOVE THEM DEARLY 200 hits WHO i am all of those 200 skjdhbads

Biggest fanfic-related disappointment of 2021?

My general inability to follow through on my promises for updates,,, especially for pyriform. I got a lot of commenters on that one asking for updates... one reached out semi-recently to check if i was ALIVE. which, granted, if extremely funny, bc i had just updated another fic like a week before but STILL the guilt is real

Biggest fanfic-related surprise of 2021?

Uhh probably my return to the Undertale fandom, tbh. It wasn't too outlandish, I suppose, since Deltarune is so closely linked to it that the chapter two update would naturally lead me back to undertale again... but goddamn, the intensity of which I rocketed back into that fandom is that which I haven't had since the game CAME OUT in 2015. It doesn't help that there have been a great many incredible fics made since 2015,,,, particularly all of nilchance's stuff. I went absolutely insane over their shit and still reread it all the time,,, I drool over that series. 500k+ literally does not make me falter at all when it comes to that hoe, I've reread it front to back at least 4 times in one month i--

Oh, not to forget all the new people I inevitably met while fandom hopping! I've met a lot of really cool people within the hollow knight community, to a surprising degree. I'm very picky with who I bother to be social with, especially long term, so it's very nice to meet more folks 🕷

Something you look forward to working on in 2022?

UPDATING MY EXISTING LONGER FICS. particularly got my eyes on Guiding instinct and deeply whelved. Updating pyriform would also be nice lol, but we'll see.

I'm also excited to do more original stuff! I don't post any of it just yet, but the past year really raised my confidence for being published. I don't think I'll be able to share anything of mine that gets officially published here, as I don't really want to link my fic stuff to more professional serious stuff, but I'm very excited to expand a lil further >:3c

Tagging @whirlybirdwhat, @oriigami, and @ruthlesslistener!

[bellatrixobsessed1]

The Dragon Egg (Part 1)

This is my (sort of late) entry for the @secrettunnelatla event.

Summary:  Azula’s metal music career put in jeopardy when a careless afterparty leaves her unexpectedly pregnant with Chan’s baby. Meanwhile, Zuko struggles to overcome his addiction as he works to get his own band off the ground.

Content Warnings: Language, Teen Pregnancy, Drug Abuse, Alcohol Abuse, Suicidal Thoughts, and Child Abuse.

It smells heavily of leather, disinfectant, and hand soap. Azula supposes that, that is a good thing. She tries not to twitch too much, but the discomfort is rather intense. More than intense, really. It is a mild, yet white hot pain. She tries to ignore the buzz of the needle and its attempts to remind her of its bite. 

“First time?” Seicho asks. 

Azula nods. 

“You’re telling me that you can get a pair of snake bites, a brow piercing, and stretch your earlobes, but this is too much?”

Azula resists another flinch. “Piercings are quicker. The needle goes in…” she winces, “and then it comes out and it’s over.”

Seicho withdraws the tattoo gun for a shrug, “there’s no art to piercings.”

“Tell that to Mai.” 

“She’s your bandmate, right?”

Azula shakes her head. “My brother’s girlfriend. She’s in his band.”

“Aren’t you?”

“I have my own band. We have a better sound and better lyrics.” She grips the edge edge of her chair. This time speaking ill of Zuko’s band isn’t a distraction enough. She isn’t sure why this is so hard for her. Chan and Ruon had gotten their ink without a hitch, and Ruon is a crybaby on a good day. 

“Do you need a break?” The artist asks, withdrawing her tattoo gun. The hideous red, plastic cup that she wears as a necklace charm, bobs with the motion. Azula grits her teeth and shakes her head. If Ruon could get it done in one go then she can manage as well. By the end of it she will have a blue and gold scaled dragon curling around her arm and outlined with blue flame and lightning. And if she can manage it, twin dragonflies will shimmer on both of her shoulder blades. 

The buzzing resumes and the pricking returns. Sometimes it doesn’t hurt so much as it does sting. And sometimes the stinging subsides for something more like a painful pressure. “Try to relax, it hurts more if you’re tense.” Seicho says. 

“This isn’t exactly relaxing.” Azula frowns. The woman has finally finished the outline of the dragon. “And this chair isn’t comfortable either.” She may as well add that she is thirsty and hungry for good measure. 

Seicho laughs, “I’ve had criers and fainters and a few boasting badasses, but I’ve never had a complainer.” 

Azula frowns. 

“If you want you can move to the bed.” She gestures to what looks like a dentist’s chair. “It has more padding and it’ll give your back a rest.”

“Alright.” While she is up she steals a drink from her water bottle. She tries to make herself as comfortable as possible on the bed. She hears the buzz of another tattoo gun on the other side of the parlor before Seicho’s comes to join it. Azula braces herself for more stinging. 

“So what kind of music do you play?”

“Disco pop.” She answers flatly. Sehicho has to draw back and wait for her laughter to pass. “We play metalcore. But Chan and Ruon want to experiment with…” it takes all of her soul not to shudder, “surfer rock.” Granted she can respect it as a genre, it isn’t terrible and it would suit the two of them well. But she can’t see herself providing vocals for surf rock and she doesn’t quite fit the aesthetic. At least she has Zirin to back her up on that, and so the band is perfectly divided like that. 

“That could be interesting.” Seicho comments. 

“Does anything about me indicate that surf rock is a good fit for my talents?”

.oOo.

Seicho looks her client up and down. Azula is an attractive girl, that’s for sure, it is more than a pleasure sitting in her chair--the girl has a reputation for being very particular and picky. 

She  studies her for a moment longer; small and slender  with the slightest muscle definition. Her eyes glitter with thick black eyeliner, shot with a line of neon blue. It’s elegantly dramatic against a soft helping of black eyeshadow. Her piercings glint silver in the light when she turns to watch Seicho work. She notices a septum ring as well. Her hair is styled with a neat undercut, someone has artfully worked fiery patterns into the shaved part. 

“That’s fair.” Seicho comments at last. She isn’t sure that she should make any other comments on the girl’s appearance, lest she makes a blabbering fool of herself. She supposes that she has a weak spot for piercings and sideshaves. “I don’t think that I caught your band’s name.” 

“Blue Talon.” She gestures to the outline of her dragon. She had specifically instructed Seicho to put emphasis on it’s inky talon. 

“I’ll have to listen to some of your music.”

Azula nods. “Give yourself a taste of culture.” 

She fixes her gaze on the screen of her phone. Seicho catches the name ‘Chan’ at the top of the screen and the words, ‘still up for tonight?’ Seicho brings  her focus back to the tattoo and resumes her work. 

It is an underappreciated art, she thinks. A misunderstood one. She doesn’t think that people understand just how brave one needs to be to decorate a person’s body.  Doesn’t think that they see the value in what she does. 

Her art has a weight to it, one that her canvases will carry with them forever. Her art comes with a story and her parchment is flesh. Some tales are as simple as a reminder of one impulse decision (perhaps good, perhaps bad) at the end of a wild night, the story of reckless youth and a fun time. While other stories are so deeply personal that even she doesn’t know the meaning behind the picture she has brought to life on the flesh. 

The elegance of dragging needles over skin in careful curves and sturdy lines is an art in itself. It takes a steady and loving hand to guide the needle in exactly the right ways. Calligraphy is renowned and loved, it is classy. Seicho doesn’t think that her job is much different than than. 

They say that it is a rough and reckless job. They can’t seem to grasp what tedious work it is. The special sort of carefulness that goes into laying ink onto skin. She supposes that they have taken and ran with stories of shady, cheap shops with unsterilized needles and infected basement tattoos done by best friends.  

She draws back for a moment to dab some excess ink from Azula’s skin.  “How are you feeling?” She checks in. Her client gives her a simple thumbs up. With it, Seicho continues. The tattoo begins to come to life now, with an enticing shade of deep blue. She takes care to keep it from marring the golden outline of the scales. 

As she carefully fills the scales with blue, she finds herself pondering how lovely it would be to have her artwork on the art of someone who has made it big. She hopes that Blue Talon will go far.

Occupied by her phone, Azula seems to be content for the time being. It would seem that the girl isn’t particularly interested in anymore conversation and she doesn’t try to force her into one. They don’t speak again until the final dragonfly has been inked on to the girl’s shoulder. Seicho flicks the tattoo gun off and sets it aside. “I can take a few pictures of the dragonflies for you so you can see them.” 

Azula nods, paying only half attention as she inspects the dragon that now curls around her bicep. “It’s good work.” She says at last. 

“Thank you.” Seicho smiles. She holds up her phone and the girl glances over it. “Hey!” She shouts as she snatches the phone from her hand. She watches Azula pull up her contacts list and add herself to it. 

“We will be in touch.” She presses the phone back into Seicho’s palm. 

She never would have thought that it would be so easy to get a rockstar’s phone number. Albeit, this particular rockstar seems to lack either impulse control or social graces. She is inclined to go with the latter.

“Feel free to give me a call if you think that the ink might be infected. Just follow the instructions,” she gestures to the aftercare package, “and that shouldn’t be an issue.” 

“Don’t wait by the phone.” Azula inspects her nails. “I have impeccable hygiene.” 

Seicho damn near laughs. She has only exchanged a few words with the girl and she has already left quite an impression. Aesthetic aside and phone incident, she is strangely well-mannered, prim and proper. She isn’t exactly the sort Seicho is used to having in her chair. 

She gives  her hair a flick, revealing a golden ring bearing the Kasai family emblem. Were it not for that, Seicho would have never guessed that she was the daughter of Fire Lord Ozai. Thee Fire Lord Ozai, vocalist and guitarist of Fire’s Reign. 

She doesn’t get the chance to request an autograph or a chance to meet her idol. She hears the shop bell rattle as the rock legend’s daughter shuts the door behind her and makes her way back to her car.  

Seicho hopes that her hard work will serve the girl well. 

[lemon-writings]

Hamish Update Pt. III

Genre: Literary fiction // Word count: 77,037

Here we are! Chapters VII-IX! I’ve written these chapters really recently, so I can go a little more in-depth with the process. The second half of this book (and specifically this particular trio of chapters, for some reason) is definitely the part I’m most proud of. Writing everything coming to fruition is just so satisfying. Is this what people who write books with actual plot feel like? Because it makes me consider writing books with real plot.

But in all honesty, I really enjoy writing this part of Hamish. I’m super happy with how everything’s turning out. One problem I do have with the latter half is that it is super depressing to write all the time, especially with the amount of rain we’ve been getting in Ohio right now (we love depression), so it is taking me a little longer to write than normal, since I keep sidetracking with random projects to try taking my mind off the deeper things. But when I am working on it, the words just flow. It’s beautiful.

Chapter VII

Epitaph: “I’m a strange new kind of inbetween thing aren’t I? Not at home with the dead nor with the living.”-Anne Carson, Antigone

Here is what’s been building this entire time: the funeral. That, and everything funerals entail, with the Celebration of Life and whatnot. The first time I wrote this, I read the funeral scene to my mom in full detail, and she started crying, because it reminded her of her father’s funeral. I, personally, loathe funerals, for what boils down to the fact that I am greatly horrified by being in the same room as someone who I once knew to be alive. That, and the crippling fear of death most people experience at least once in their lives.

There’s also a lot of Horacio’s... fantasies. There’s something deeply personal about the way I write him, sometimes, that makes rereading certain parts difficult. Horacio, in his darkest moments, feels he deserves bad things happening to him, nearly craves them, and he hates himself for it. The amount of self-loathing in this work is high.

Excerpts: 

Horacio, as always, is concerned about Hamish’s state of being alive, because that man always looks halfway dead, and at times, he’s more ghost than living person

The question of if you were dead or alive laid on my tongue, begging to be asked. Maybe I should’ve asked you. Maybe I should’ve checked your pulse. Maybe I should’ve laid my head on your chest and listened to your heartbeat. Maybe I should’ve left with you then and there and avoided the trap Leon kept guiding us to.

Hot take from a Farm Child: broken machinery is one of the most haunting things you can ever see. I could probably wax poetic about how terrible their beauty is, but I really don’t think anyone wants to hear about farm machines for three hours. (On a completely serious note, my uncle’s coat got tangled in a grain auger yesterday, and he could have died. Be safe around farm machinery. Please. It can be really dangerous, even if you’ve been around it for 60+ years.)

Leon’s descriptions are always some variant of men thinking being tall is intimidating. 

Leon bared his teeth once more, the animalistic beauty of it all making me wonder where Leon ended and his rage began. Primal is often used as a way to pull down others, to say you are not advanced the way I am, but Leon’s rage seemed like an advancement of humanity, a way of saying I have advanced my own humanity through my anger. He was gorgeous in the same way broken tractors on the side of the road are, monolithic kings taken over by the passage of time, their steel teeth rusty and eternal.

Did I reference “Father” by Warsan Shire? Yes. Yes, I did. Hamish is a huge Warsan Shire fan, because, like, it has his vibes. 

You recited a poem about fathers, about death, about life, speaking it as if it were scripture. When you finished, you began again. Or perhaps you never ended, speaking this poem forwards, then backwards, then repeating cyclically.

Yeet.

Chapter VIII

Epitaph: “I could be a wolf for you. I could put my teeth on your throat. I could growl. I could eat you whole. I could wait for you in the dark. I could howl against your hair.”-Catherynne M. Valente, “The Red Girl”, The Bread We Eat in Dreams

There’s a lot of plot stuff that happens in this chapter, so unfortunately, I do have to be a little shorter when it comes to this summary, but let it be said that I am not meant to be a thriller/action author. Do I enjoy watching Indiana Jones and Star Wars? Yes, I do. Should I be writing anything close to that? Absolutely not. It takes a lot of effort to do, and even with that, I would say that any sort of action scene I write is... not exactly “half-baked”, but most certainly not up to par with the rest of my writing. I’ll need to edit this chapter heavily the next time I go through Hamish.

That being said, there are moments in this chapter that I am proud of. Horacio and Ofelia’s interactions in this chapter are some of my favorites, just because they’re some of the only characters in this book who don’t violently hate/distrust each other.

Excerpts: 

When I mentioned kudzu to my mother, she mentioned it was an invasive species she’d seen a lot of during her time in the south, which just confirmed that it was a great metaphor to use. That’s always a sign, right?

I looked down at the flowers, then at her, wiser than anyone I’d ever met, the freedom ripping open her seams like something terrible and sharp, the parts of her that were so carefully cultivated spilling out of her like kudzu.

Horacio feels like he’s the only real person in a world of ghosts. The disconnect between Horacio and the people around him is heavily based upon the first time I disassociated. We watched the Blue Man Group in Chicago on a music/Spanish department trip, and the second I walked out of the building, I thought I was a freaking ghost. I had my first panic attack at 14 because I didn’t know if I was actually experiencing life. It was a wild experience.

Next to Ofelia, I looked out of place. Ofelia was hazy and magical in her presence, looking more like a dreamy memory than a real person, as if I touched her, my hand would touch only air. I was the solid type of real, unfortunately. Tall and unnaturally skinny, with a gritty, starving look to myself, the two of us next to each other were like a pastel-covered, out-of-focus impressionist painting next to a photograph of childhood labor in Industrial Revolution-era factories.

There’s also a confrontation with Leon that has some, um, spoilery moments. Leon is an asshole. I kind of love him.

Chapter IX

Epitaph: “[Grief is pain internalized, abscess of the soul. Anger is pain as energy, sudden explosion.]”-Lauren Groff, Fates and Furies

Again, there’s a lot going on in this chapter. A lot. Marcus the bodyguard makes another appearance (underappreciated character of the book) and acts as a guardian angel. Bless Marcus. Seriously.

This chapter is more introspective than the last, so I enjoyed writing it a bit more. Or... a lot more, actually. I was not created to write action scenes, and I accept my fate. Horacio’s musings on fate are long-winded and beautiful and what I’m meant to write. It’s just a chapter of him reflecting, pining, and wishing he was in a different situation. Which. Fair.

Moments like this make me realize I am a cruel god who treats her characters terribly.

Excerpts: 

Starting this chapter strong with the true weighted blanket: death.

Death cloaked me like your blanket.

As I said before, Marcus? Underutilized character. I use him as much as I can, but the plot makes it difficult to use him as much as I wish. He’s the man we deserve.

Marcus was smart, was good at playing the game we all played without making it apparent that he was playing it. He knew what he was doing. “I want the best for Hamish,” Marcus said. He looked into my eyes. “You do, too.”

Horacio takes a moment to think awful, rage-colored thoughts about the people around him, which are, of course, one of my favorite things to wax poetic about. He’s a salty man, and he has all rights to be, because this entire work is just “things to be salty about, the novel”. Poor Horace. He just wants to live in a gay daydream, but he’s stuck in a nightmare. 

(Not to sound too Midwestern, but OPE, the shade.)

These people played their sick, twisted games like gods, forcing everyone to play along for their survival while they watched and knew exactly what they were doing to the rest of us mortals around them. In that moment, I was filled with the type of righteous anger that made me understand why people were drawn to religion. I wanted a higher power to strike them down, to make an example of them all, to say don’t do this, or you’ll end up like them.

I sounded like my parents, like all the religious nuts I’d ever met, the ones who said that those who didn’t fall their doctrine were inferior, were going to die, and suffer for being different. Is that how it begins? Is anger the true root of all cruelty?

That last line, is anger the true root of all cruelty? was probably my favorite line when I first wrote Hamish. It’s sort of become a thesis statement for Horacio’s past and the way he sees the world. 

Lastly, of course, we have

The Jams

We have a fine selection of songs here, a lot from my Lucy playlist (Lucy has one of my favorite playlists I’d ever made).

Oh No!!! - grandson

Temple Priest (feat. Paul Wall & Kota the Friend) - MISSIO

Destroy Me - grandson

BTSTU - Jai Paul

Seven Devils - Florence + The Machine

Pretty Little Head - Eliza Rickman

That’s the tea, y’all. If you’re interested in this and hearing writing updates for Hamish, then ask to be added to the tags list!

[mbti-notes]

I have some questions for you about the Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon typing. If you don't feel like answering bc it (probably) demands rewatching, it's okay! 1) What evidence of INTJ and ESTP is there in Jade Fox and Dark Cloud? The latter is most certainly a P, but that was all I could guess. 2) I'd typed Shu Lien as an ISFJ because of her quiet presence, reliability (competent as the head of her private security company)...

I won’t remember as many details as you, so you can correct me if I get anything wrong. I’ve watched the movie more than once because of wanting to overcome the language barrier, so I think I have a good enough grasp of the plot to respond to the points you made. 

I don’t know your ethnic background but, since this is a Chinese film, it is relevant to talk about Chinese culture. China has a long history because the Chinese have valued and upheld their cultural traditions relatively well, and they’ve been a consistently collectivist-minded society, so the conflict between social obligation and personal desire is a frequent theme in their storytelling. As far as I know, in ancient times, when you entered the “martial arts world”, you basically renounced your old life (even your biological family) and adopted a new family of various people who were voluntarily bound through oaths or brotherhood associations. A lot of people would romanticize this lifestyle because it seemed to exist completely outside the strict expectations of conventional Chinese society, but the reality was more like living in the wild west with no reliable rule of law - basically, a life for the lost souls. The relationship between master and pupil was the de facto replacement for the parent-child relationship.

One of the main themes of the movie is generational divide. You have the elder generation who is portrayed as experienced and wise, tireless protectors of legacies. However, despite the fact that YSL and LMB live very unconventional lives in the martial arts world, they are still quite constrained by broader social obligations. You have the younger generation who is portrayed as energetic and impetuous, overeager to grow up and forge their own path. However, despite their more modern sensibilities, they haven’t yet achieved the wisdom to see past the appearances of the people they wish to emulate or rebel against. You have Jade Fox, the outsider, whose actions bring these opposing forces into conflict. This theme already provides clues that the movie is likely to heavily involve Si (tradition) vs Ne (modernity), Ni (truth) vs Se (appearance), Fe (public) vs Fi (private), so this would inform me to pay attention to how these ideas play out through the character motivations.

I’d typed Shu Lien as an ISFJ because of her quiet presence, reliability (competent as the head of her private security company) and the fact that she’s duty-driven to the point of passivity (doesn’t act upon her feelings for Mu Bai because he used to be her late fiancé’s friend, implying Si-Fe’s adherence to external/collective obligations). What made you conclude that Fe is higher than Si?

YSL is not a particularly gregarious person, it’s true, which puts E into doubt. Keep in mind that she is older and has had plenty of time for her personality to “settle”, which for an extravert would involve more fully embracing their introverted side. One must also keep in mind that measures of the E/I dichotomy are sensitive to cultural factors because not all cultures are the same in what is defined as “normal” extraverted behavior and/or the amount of leeway given to individuals to express their extraversion fully. Having had a very long tradition of strict social hierarchy, Chinese people are often heavily pressured into and rewarded for conforming with social expectations. Because of this, they tend to be less expressive and less willing to be themselves openly because the social punishments can be quite harsh when one accidentally steps out of line. Don’t forget that FJs(Fe), particularly female ones, would be more likely to unconsciously conform to unspoken norms than other types.

One might focus on how “dutiful” and “passive” YSL is as she consistently puts aside her own feelings to fulfill her social obligations, however, viewing her through a modern (Western) lens might lead one to severely underappreciate just how unconventional a person she is for her time and place. Very few women could’ve lived the life that she lived successfully, let alone be so well-respected in a man’s occupation. IIRC, she took over the company from her father, however, this was not the most natural path for her to take, it could arguably be the least natural path. In Chinese tradition, daughters were ultimately not considered a true member of the family because their “job” was to get married and become a member of their husband’s family and caretaker of his parents. As a result, many parents were less invested in their daughters (than their sons) because they “belonged to someone else”.

YSL must’ve made a conscious decision to buck tradition and become a businesswoman because there undoubtedly would’ve been many opportunities to get married as well as much pressure to retire into domestic life upon her father’s passing. Also, in ancient Chinese society, business people were generally looked down upon. IIRC, although she was sad about her fiance’s death the way in which one is naturally sad about death, she didn’t seem particularly keen about getting married and my impression was that she was only doing it because she was getting older and finally starting to acknowledge her reality. The fact that she managed to resist the pressure for so long, and even seized upon an opportunity to live a drastically different sort of life that would bring her many obstacles and challenges from society, makes me believe that her Ne is higher than inferior. If she were really as passive as you suggest, she wouldn’t have been able to sustain the business.

This leads me to the second point, which is that she was largely able to be successful because she excelled at quickly earning people’s trust and keeping their respect over time (a must for a woman in her job), which requires a lot of social energy, social grace, and ability to assess and respect the needs of her clientele. One might argue that she could be “a well-trained ISFJ” insofar as her father helped her accumulate the experience necessary to do the job well and gave her the chance to earn the trust of clients. However, once her father was gone, she’d have to make new business contacts in order to keep the company thriving, which meant that the period of riding her father’s coattails would be very short-lived (especially if there were already senior males around in the company who could’ve easily taken over). There would’ve been plenty of skepticism and doubting of her qualifications from many directions. I argue that a competent ESFJ would handle such challenges better than an ISFJ because higher Ne tends to allow ESFJs to be optimistic and hopeful for a lot longer than ISFJs, not to mention that extraverts generally have more energy for uphill battles.

Another piece of evidence that Fe is off-the-charts was her expert handling of Jen Yu. She saw right through Jen pretty quickly, and what did she do? Instead of retaliating for the deception, she genuinely empathized, she made every possible effort to bring Jen back into the light despite the fact that she would receive no substantial personal benefit from this effort. She was the diplomat and peacemaker. She took Jen under her wing and tried to be a motherly figure for her. Given her own struggles of being an unconventional woman, she was able to think of alternative possibilities for how Jen could live the life she wanted without having to become a lost cause (good Ne use, less Si restriction). Perhaps there is a better way of saying this but, compared to ESFJs, ISFJs tend to be more petty because higher Si-Ti and lower Fe-Ne often means that they are more critical and less understanding of transgressions/deceptions from people they have already branded and remember as “bad” (though they might not act on their feelings due to be being introverted). Higher Fe and lower Si tends to grant ESFJs a more easygoing and forgiving attitude.

When you describe someone as “passive”, that’s fine, but in typing correctly, you have to be precise in giving a good explanation of which function the behavior comes from. If you mean passive in the “action” sense, such as not taking action quickly in response to things, then you are referring to E/I. Introverts tend to be more passive because they need more time to reflect and they can sit on discontent a lot longer. If you mean passive in the sense of not acting on one’s desires/feelings because of putting others first, then you are referring specifically to Fe. In other words, these are two different issues. 

She was not passive in the E/I sense because she was mostly on top of events whenever she could be, quick to respond to unexpected change, quick to think of ideas to solve people problems, and most importantly she had plenty of energy to work with and around people’s foibles. She showed no significant signs of inferior Ne but lots of inferior Ti in not thinking to advocate sufficiently for herself and her own needs. She was indeed passive in the sense that she devalued her own feelings for the sake of others, however, this tends to be true of all the FJs, therefore, this piece of evidence is not enough to prove ISFJ specifically, but only high Fe. In other words, you’ve convinced me that Fe is present but you’ve not convinced me of its exact stack position because the evidence you pick out lacks nuance and precision.

I’d thought Jen Yu was an ISTP. So at least we agree on SP. I’m going to make my case based on your guides, but I can definitely see her as an ESFP in a Se-Te loop and, as you always say, I’m happy to learn more.Jen Yu is the protagonist of the movie in all but top billing. She’s the one who moves the plot along by stealing the Green Destiny, she’s the one who gets flashbacks fleshing out her life and motivations, she’s the one who gets to appear in all the fight sequences, she’s the one who has her relationships with her mentor and her lover depicted onscreen (as opposed to Mu Bai), she’s the one whose characterization is better established and defined.

(As to lack of top billing, the Chinese movie industry is such that more revered and elder actors tend to be given top billing in advertising regardless of the actual size of the role they have in the story.)

You are quite correct that she is “the mover” in this story, which is basically what defines an extravert, not to mention that, of the extraverts, it is Se doms who are the constant movers and shakers. Introverts are less assertive and more reactive, they usually need to be prodded into action, they tend to be moved by the plot rather than the ones who move the plot. The fact that we independently agree on Se but disagree about the rest means that Se is probably the most obvious characteristic of her personality, which should make it a very strong candidate as the dominant/defining characteristic (Occam’s Razor). The evidence you’ve given actually argues against her being introverted and convinces me she’s extraverted.

She defies social structures, seeks to reinforce her independence, resists committing to relationships for the sake of a goal, is greedy, enjoys sensory stimulation, is good at mastering complex physical skills, wants to gather knowledge and experiences without restriction, is distrustful and temperamental, is called out for being reckless and arrogant, all of which is consistent with high Ti and Se.She’s more goal-driven/focused than adventure-seeking/sociable (Ti higher than Se) and more careless about other people’s feelings (lone wolf) than about the ramifications of her actions (Ni higher than Fe), so she’s an ISTP overindulging Se.  

She defies social structures? Agreed. High Fi/Ti tends to value individuality. You’ve convinced me that she is P, that’s it. She seeks to reinforce her independence? Agreed. High Se/Ne tends to value the freedom to live on one’s own terms. You’ve convinced me that she is P, that’s it. She resists committing to relationships for the sake of a goal? Agreed. Ps value personal freedom and as a consequence often put themselves first whenever freedom must be secured. You’ve convinced me that she is P, that’s it. She is greedy and enjoys sensory stimulation? Agreed. Signs of Se. You’ve convinced me she’s SP, that’s it.

She is good at mastering complex physical skills? Disagree. SPs tend to have natural talent in learning physical skills, it’s true, but this is not the same as “mastering complex physical skills”. Learning vs mastering are two different things. Different types display different learning patterns (i.e. the learning curve), and some types are much more likely to reach mastery than others. ESxPs tend to learn the fastest, only at the onset, because they are good at observing, imitating, and correcting beginner errors; however, their lack of patience means that they quickly plateau and hit a wall in their learning, prone to losing interest long before reaching mastery. ISTPs, however, are called “craftsmen” for a reason. Dominant Ti means they learn very slowly at the onset because 1) they must be self-directed in learning and make sense of the info in their own way, and 2) they value precision and accuracy so that mastery is built directly into their learning process. When an ISTP devotes themselves to learning something, it is assumed that mastery will be achieved (Ti-Ni). Their learning curve is slow and steady but accelerates dramatically later on. A very different looking pattern than ESxPs which looks good at first only to taper and drop off.

I argue that Jen was not a master nor does she even possess the mindset necessary for eventual mastery, and nowhere was that more evident than in her showdown with LMB as he bested her without any effort at all - he, the true master to be compared to, quickly revealed her shoddiness and fraudulence. Fs tend to learn more slowly and less effectively than Ts because they often suffer self-esteem issues that hold them back. They might compare themselves down against people who are worse than them in order to feel good (and avoiding comparing up in order to avoid feeling bad), and they are less willing to acknowledge the truth of their mistakes and flaws because it hurts them to do so - these tendencies mean that Fs have more trouble developing a realistic conception of their technical abilities. The nature of dominant Ti learning requires a person to frankly acknowledge errors and mistakes in order to learn effectively and this gives ISTPs a much more realistic conception of their technical abilities, so it’s not very easy for them to deceive themselves into believing that they’re better than everyone when there is obvious evidence to the contrary.

She wants to gather knowledge and experiences without restriction? Disagree. I agree that she wants experiences without restriction because that’s what Se wants, but I disagree that she wants knowledge. Knowledge and experience are two different things. Again, ISTPs are called “craftsmen” for a reason. When they devote themselves to learning something, they respect the craft because Ti-Ni learning requires one to have a deep appreciation of the true worth of the craft. Jen shows no such love and appreciation of the craft, rather, she only learned it because she saw it as an escape/meal ticket, not because she took pride in being a skilled master. This is a very strong sign that she thinks in the highly efficient and instrumental way of Te rather than the slow and appreciative nature of Ti. In other words, she only cares about martial arts for the practical benefits it brings her, and that’s another reason why she’s not a master. If she truly wanted knowledge and possessed the mindset required for mastery, then she should’ve jumped at the chance to let either YSL or LMB mentor her let alone the both of them, but she stupidly rejected both of them. ISTPs tend to listen to reason, they are not as irrational as she is.

She is distrustful and temperamental? Agreed. Distrustful is a sign of unhealthy Ni. Temperamental is a sign of emotional instability, and ISTPs are rarely accused of being emotionally unstable unless they are very angry about a very specific thing that remains unresolved. Her rebellion is quite understandable given that her life is basically about to end with the arranged marriage. I don’t blame her for overreacting when her family conspired to control her every move, but what’s her excuse for being so emotionally unstable once she’s free and on her own? Shouldn’t she be completely at ease once her goal was met? Doesn’t add up. She is reckless and arrogant? Agreed. Reckless is a sign of unhealthy Se, arrogant is a sign of unhealthy T. An ISTP can be arrogant it’s true, but they wouldn’t be arrogant with someone who is proven better than them. They take pride in their skill set and they cannot help but acknowledge when someone does something better, and they would want to learn from, not refuse such a person’s willingness to teach them. Her arrogance does not come from possessing true confidence in being self-sufficiently skilled (Ti) but from the false belief that she’s better than everyone else (low Te+Ni that compensates for Fi’s low self-esteem). ISTPs are not so irrational.

She’s more goal-driven/focused than adventure-seeking/sociable? Agreed. People frequently mistype ESFPs as ISTP because 1) they expect ESFPs to act like ESFJs because many ESFJs are mistyped as ESFPs, 2) ESFPs are not a well-understood type and people rely on stereotypes, and 3) Fi can make ESFPs stoic and Te can make them quite cold and aggressive when threatened. Fs with a tertiary T function often get mistaken as Ts by onlookers because they can have a very icy quality, as they use T to hide their F vulnerabilities. Your evidence actually convinces me that she’s not ISTP because they are generally not very ambitious or driven people, at least not in any conventional sense of these words. Jen is not going to look like a healthy ESFP because her life circumstances were extremely oppressive and she was forced to suppress the best aspects of her personality, which is going to twist her mindset and produce more frequent Te loop and Ni grip behavior.

She’s careless about other people’s feelings (lone wolf)? Agreed. When a person values freedom to live life on their own terms, they will find it difficult to care about other people’s feelings as long as they continue to feel restricted, i.e., obtaining freedom is the prime directive and they won’t be able to focus well on anything else until freedom is secured -> this supports dominant Se. 

I disagree with her being a lone wolf because I don’t think she really wants to be alone. Remember when she first met YSL, she was actually in awe because she romanticized the “martial arts world lifestyle”, so she wanted to make friends and step foot into that world, happy to have someone finally understand her deepest desires. However, there’s a difference between wanting to be alone because you have everyone breathing down your neck vs wanting to be alone because you are a true lone wolf. When she finally left her family and started roaming the reality of that martial arts lifestyle, I got the impression that she quickly felt lost and lonely, didn’t know what to do with herself, which wouldn’t bother an ISTP because it is natural for dominant Ti to be only responsible to oneself. However, when a Te type tries to live life with zero external structure, they do not cope well and you will likely see their worst qualities come through, which is what happened with Jen. 

And what did she do to combat her creeping negative feelings of being in over her head? She beat people up, for no good reason -> Te loop as a superficial way to boost “good” feelings and bury “bad” ones. ISTPs are not so irrational as to beat people up for no reason, in fact, being introverted, it usually takes a lot to bait them into conflict (inferior Fe), especially if they believe that you don’t stand a chance against them, not to mention that they have far less desire to prove themselves to anyone (inferior Fe). A true lone wolf has nothing to prove because they only live for themselves.

She doesn’t care about the ramifications of her actions? Agreed. True of all SPs who have undeveloped Ni. She’s overindulging auxiliary Se? I can only agree that Se is a significant problem but you’ve given no good evidence to prove that it is AUXILIARY Se. An unhealthy ISTP drifts aimlessly through life being completely useless to everyone including themselves (Ni loop). The path to growth for them is to develop Ti-Se, to learn and master a practical skill that allows them to become more useful while finding pride in themselves. The fact that Jen learning a technical skill made her into a decidedly WORSE person is an indication that Se is not the auxiliary function, and it also indicates a low T function because developing T-related skills does not make her into a better person as it should. Her path of growth does not indicate that developing S or T would solve her problems. If she were ISTP, her end game would be to become a “useful person to society” and join LMB and YSL in doing good (Fe), but that is not what happened. 

Perhaps the biggest indication for me that she is not ISTP is that no ISTP in their right mind would make the decision that she made at the end of the film, in fact, they would be more likely to consider such a decision to be completely baffling or ludicrous. However, the decision makes perfect sense for an ESFP if it is Fi and Ni she needs to develop; Fi in finally being true to herself (instead of just constantly reacting to external triggers) and Ni in finally knowing, at the deepest level of her being, what kind of person she really wants to be (after she finally feels the full weight of the destruction she has wrought). Her final decision cements what had been her motivation all along -> naive romanticism of Se-Fi.

Dark Cloud is an accidental, larger than life, laissez-faire, but fair-minded leader. He knows how to manipulate social perception to his advantage and ESTPs do this because they don’t want to do the dirty work of confronting problems directly - they talk a big game but have trouble wielding the sword. He and Jen work well together because they both desire similar things, and they don’t work well together because they exacerbate the extremes in each other’s personalities. He’s in it for love (Fe) but she’s in it for the personal experience (Fi). He’s in it for the thrill of transgressing societal norms (Ti) but she’s in it as a f*ck you to her dreary life (Te). Being Se dom, he is also a significant “catalyst” character who keeps events moving forward.

Jade Fox is revealed as the opposite of Jen because, once Jen finds her freedom, she does exactly what Jade Fox would never do despite all the years of molding and manipulating. Jade is a wounded animal who is trapped in a dark vision of life (cynicism and greed); Jen is propelled forward as she learns about the brighter side of life (love and freedom). Jade hides and hoards knowledge for herself because of an unnatural lust for power, very careful in everything she does because she understands the full implications of the knowledge she possesses and what would happen if people found out she had it; Jen shows her skills to the world because she is one with it, not hiding from it, and cares not who knows what she can do. Jade is calculating, never taking a step without planning the execution, easily stumped when plans don’t go accordingly; Jen is a natural improviser, winging everything and doing whatever she wants whenever she wants because she’s confident she can evade whatever negative things come her way. Jade is deeply vindictive; Jen only wants to move on. Jade plays the super long game, spending years posing as a governess and grooming an unsuspecting child; Jen has no discernible vision for what her future holds other than she wants to get away from what she hates in the moment. 

It also makes sense for Jade to be INTJ as a contrast to LMB the INFJ because the two represent opposing forces that are trying to “win” the wayward Jen to their side, one side representing the martial arts lifestyle as being about dog-eat-dog selfish gain, the other side representing it as a life of honor and oath-keeping. Jen discovers too late for LMB what dishonor/honor means but good for her that she learned it eventually (Fi), however, she was not particularly imaginative about all the many possibilities for how to live an honorable life (inferior Ni).

[imagineyourdreamdaddy]

Why is Brian so underappreciated? This shall not stand! MC having the fluffiest, most pompous cat in the world, and when he starts dating Brian, they have to introduce the cat to the world's sweetest Corgi?

Your cat is a Persian, with his grumpy face and smooshed in snout. He’s the puffiest boy out there and heavily groomed. You and Amanda call him The Duke of Sass. Not does this cat rule the roost, but he even walks like he’s better than everyone. Never have you had to introduce The Duke to a dog before, and Brian was unsure about Maxwell’s reaction to cats. Nervously you both guide Maxwell into the house. The Duke’s fur stands on end immediately, but he doesn’t hiss or claw at Max. Instead he sits as still as he can, letting max sniff him. And with time The Duke begins to calm down. 

From that point on the two are inseparable, and it isn’t uncommon to see the Duke sitting on Maxwell’s back as though the Corgi were his royal noble steed! Maxwell seems unphased by this, happily plodding about as he always has. 

[zeldahijinks]

Headstrong

Part 1 

Characters: Skali/Bala, other characters: King Rhoam, Zelda, Urbosa, more to be added Summary: Respect is a hard thing to come by and especially difficult to earn when always underestimated. Zelda and Skali only wanted a simple trip without an escorts and they ended up with a smug Gerudo for a guide. Now the three must learn to get along and trust each other while the threat of the Yiga Clan possibly threatens their journey. 

[A/N: Here’s something I’ve been working on and off. It was time Bala got her time to shine. lol Enjoy!]

There was not a lot of things that Zelda nor Skali were allowed to do without the permission of their fathers. Zelda, of course, must be protected under all cost and Skali, although she has been training majority of her life trying to be Zelda’s knight, Revali often found it hard to allow his daughter out in the dangerous world. However how strict their fathers were, the two always found away around them and ran off together to create their adventure and further expand their small worlds ever since they were children.

Their attempts usually met with failure and were only able to get so far before the King sent a horde of guards to collect them, whether they came willingly or kicking and screaming. Zelda was often held over the shoulder of a guard and while Skali was able to make her escape. 

It became more of a irritation for the King and the Rito Champion when Skali became older and more proficient in her skills, and would take the defensive and ambush the guards. She wasn’t able to defeat them all, but with handy smoke bombs, Skali and Zelda were able to make their getaways.

But as the Yiga clan was on the rise in the recent years it became increasingly difficult for the two friends to run off. It didn’t matter if their life would be put in jeopardy, the young women were determined to experience their world, but if Revali ever caught wind of this… Oh boy, Skali’s Renren wouldn’t even be able to keep Revali from shooting his feathers off his skin in retaliation.

Zelda had to bribe most of her servants and the King’s trusted General to keep their mouths shut about the two leaving for Gerudo Town. The two believed that they finally had freedom and would be able to make their journey without their overbearing parents.

Now here they are adorned in long flowing gown and veils to protect themselves as they make their way to the royal stables. The outfits themselves were not of the best quality, it was to keep them from being easy to picked out, but it did not stop Zelda from mildly complaining about it.

Skali was far too focus in being aware of their surroundings, and constantly aware her knives patting against her thigh. The sensation was the only thing that tethered her to reality, constantly reminding her Zelda was first and utmost priority in this supposed “relaxed” adventure.

Zelda was in the middle of her sentence when she abruptly paused, and sighed noticing how tune-in Skali was. “If you were any more focused you could feel the compressions of a fault slipping.” But her statement whizzed by Skali’s ear and out the other causing Zelda to lightly shoved Skali’s shoulder.

It was enough to shake her out of her zone and Skali looked at Zelda in a questioning manner, “Why did you do that?”

The poor Princess could only sigh and look upon her friend as if she was a hopeless case. “I very well thought this trip would be different like the others, but you are exactly like your father sometimes.”

“Excuse me?” Skali rose her brow, feeling slightly insulted she was compared to her over zealous father.

Zelda peered at her with scrutinizing eyes. “This is our first trip without any guards breathing down the nape of our necks, and yet, you have taken the role of them! If I had known you would be a replacement I would not have suggested this trip.”

Skali stopped in her pace, watching the Princess carrying on before she turned around to look at the half-breed. “Zelda…” She began to speak, but took a moment to collect her thoughts and spoke in a hush tone,  “The Yiga clan’s sighting has been increasing in the last few weeks alone. I apologize if I am taking the initiative to be aware of your safety.”

Zelda huffed slightly and crossed her arms. “I suppose you are right, but…” She walked back over to Skali and held both of her hands. The Princess gave a small smile, “Just imagine though, we have no one supervising us, we can say and do whatever we please!” The light in the Princess’ eyes glimmered like stars as she pressed Skali’s hands to her chest. “Allow yourself to be at ease, Skali! I know you are capable, but I miss your smile. Besides-” Zelda looked at the looming castle with a cheeky grin. “We have not even left yet, we are safe for the time being.”

Skali bristled for a split moment as her eyes cast to the castle as well. She huffed turning her head away and Zelda had to suppress her laugh as Skali’s cheeks turned red. Zelda began to tug Skali in an excited state afterwards making Skali roll her eyes and laugh while Zelda pulled her along.

The Princess was yacking the poor knight-in-training’s ear off as they finally made their way to the stable. But they both got a shock seeing King Rhoam and a Gerudo standing next to the door’s entrance. The two girls’ blood ran cold as their fast pace calmed to a halt. The color drained from Zelda’s face as she stared upon her father who adorned an eerily calm expression. Instinctively, the Princess grasped Skali’s hand. The knight-trainee gripped it tightly back in return and lowered her veil with her other hand.

King Rhoam looked down on both of the girls with an heavy disappointed grimace. Zelda tried her best to keep eye contact with him, but she feared for the repercussions knowing someone must have ratted her out and she only could assumed what he might say. “Father, I can explain.” She began, but was stopped when her father’s hand rose.

“I have heard quite enough from the maids. The General you so kindly donated to also  informed me you were heading this way. I only wanted to see you off.” His words were not comforting in the least, they dripped heavy with scorn and Zelda could only inwardly shudder.

The Gerudo standing next to him took a step forward with an amused mirth. The two girls had to crane their necks to meet eye contact with the heavily muscular woman while Zelda’s father gestured a hand towards her, “Since you are so adamantly on heading for Gerudo Town I thought you might like company.”

Skali tried her best not to let her frown be seen as she eyed the smirking redhead. There were times where Skali’s respect for the King waned. He had an awful way of belittling Zelda and whenever the trainee witnessed these moments it made her blood slightly boil. It did not help that the tripped the two equally desired to going alone was ruined and they both felt underappreciated in their capability of taking care of themselves.

But he was the King and what he said was law. Neither of the two would ever agree to this willingly, but it seemed he had thought ahead and provided a “guide” that would follow regardless what the two would rebuttal. Zelda took in the Gerudo and felt a slight resentment towards the redhead’s smile. Was she enjoying this, Zelda thought, and glanced toward Skali.

The woman took another step forward making the two more aware of the height difference and the redheaded Gerudo slightly bowed. “I am Bala, Urbosa has spoken much of you two. I look forward to traveling with you, Princess and….” Her eyes peered off the side at the young trainee and Skali tensed seeing the woman look her over.  

Quietly, Skali refused to make eye contact and she replied with her name. The Gerudo, with her hand cupping around her ear,  leaned toward Skali, and said in a teasing tone, “Speak up, Little Vai.” Bala teased, and Skali shoulders tensed. “Your voice should roar like a Lynel!” The trainee felt slightly embarrassed, and refused to repeat herself. Bala’s smile slightly faltered. “Hm? What is wrong?”

“Her name is Skali.” Zelda cut in squeezing Skali’s hand reassuringly.

Bala glanced between the girls before humming amused and stood straight. She turned towards the King as she crossed her thick arms. “It should be no trouble escorting these littles ones.” She glanced back at the girls and Skali couldn’t help feel slightly annoyed at Bala’s easy going smile. To her it felt like Bala was underestimating her just by her appearance alone. Bala seemed more observant than she looked and rose a brow at Skali’s furrowed brows. “What’s wrong, Little Bird? You do not need to worry yourself, you’re in good hands.”

Skali could only give her an incredulous look and kept what she thought of this smug woman to herself. King Rhoam cleared his throat to bring the attention back to him and with a stern stare looked upon the women in front of him.

“See to it they arrive in a timely manner.” He ordered before he passed the two girls. Skali and his eyes briefly caught, “Your Father has been informed of your absence courtesy of myself. He wanted to me to tell you ‘once you’re done playing around come straight home’.” And he stomped away bleeding obnoxious dignity.

Skali’s pride simmered staring straight through the Gerudo. Bala pursed her lips and rubbed the back of her head. “Might as well prep the horses and leave before night.” She shrugged before turning around and leaving the two girls alone.

Zelda’s sigh brought Skali out of her tunnel vision and looked at her best friend. Zelda gave a small lopsided smile. “It’s best to play along.” She glanced back, making sure Bala wasn’t in hearing range, and leaned toward Skali with a mischievous mirth. “When we have the opportunity we can ditch her.”

A laugh burst from Skali making Zelda shush her friend while attempting to quell her own snickers.

[ramajmedia]

FF8 GF Guide: All Locations & Abilities Explained | Screen Rant

FF8 Remastered is introducing a whole new generation of players to GFs (and their locations and abilities), just an example of innovative but misunderstood features in one of the most underappreciated games in franchise history. The GF system is extremely divisive among fans, with opinions ranging wildly between assertions it's one of the best or worst summon mechanics in Final Fantasy. A design that allows players to accidentally miss some of the most powerful summons in the game is sure to invite some less-than-favorable feedback.

As is often the case, though, the truth about the FF8 GF system is somewhere in between. FF8 Remastered is in an interesting position. A re-release two decades after its initial launch could be disastrous, but it's also a chance at redemption. One of the first things players will notice about FF8 Remastered is that many of its gameplay elements that were targeted as flaws during its time on the PlayStation One have aged miraculously well. In fact, as JRPGs have gotten more complicated and storytelling has gotten more ambitious, it's well worth considering whether or not FF8 Remastered is better suited for 2019 than it ever was for 1999.

Related: Shadowbringers Is Great, But It's Not The Highest-Rated Final Fantasy Game

Controversial opinions aside, FF8 Remastered GF locations and abilities are a fundamental element of the game that isn't necessarily explained well. Squall's turn in the remastered spotlight of FF8 Remastered's improved graphics has been criticized as somewhat obtuse about many of its features, and FF8 GF locations and abilities are unfortunately a very real part of that. Luckily for those who don't want to miss out on a summon or a chance to use them in a really fascinating - or sometimes broken - way, Screen Rant has compiled a guide to help players navigate FF8's choppy summoning waters like an expert JRPG navigator.

This will be player's first GF and, as a result, Quezacotl is unmissable. It's either obtained automatically during the trip to the Fire Cavern for the SeeD Exam mission or any time Squall accesses his study panel before that mission. Quezacotl is the Thunder-based summon in FF8 Remastered and has one of the most important abilities in Card and Card Mod, two useful options that will help players obtain cards outside of Triple Triad and convert them into useful items later.

Important Abilities: Card, Card Mod, Mid Mag RF, MAG +20%/40%

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Irvine

Worst Compatibility: Squall, Selphie

Summon Attack: Thunder Storm (deals Thunder damage to all enemies)

Shiva is also unmissable, and can be obtained early by using Squall's study panel and watching the tutorial on GFs. Otherwise, Quistis will give Squall Shiva before leaving for the Fire Cavern. Shiva is the Ice-based FF8 GF that allows players to unlock Doom as an ability. Otherwise, she offers two key stat bonuses after meeting the requisite AP requirements during battle training.

Important Abilities: VIT +20%/40%, SPR +20%/40%, Doom

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Quistis

Worst Compatibility: Zell

Summon Attack: Diamond Dust (deals Ice damage to all enemies)

We promise that some FF8 GF locations are important to know and can be missed, but Ifrit is yet another that will be simply given to the player for progressing through the game's first real mission at the Fire Cavern. Ifrit is fought as FF8's first boss and will then be added to Squall's roster of GFs once he is defeated. Ifrit has a unique ability in Mad Rush that has been abused by some party builds that focus heavily on physical attack damage to push through difficult enemies.

Important Abilities: Mad Rush, Ammo RF, STR Bonus (grants +1 to STR stat every time a character levels up), STR +20%/40%

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Zell

Worst Compatibility: Quistis, Irvine

Summon Attack: Hellfire (deals Fire damage to all enemies)

Finally, a FF8 GF that can be missed! Siren is actually available very early in the game and is thus one of the most commonly missed GFs in the game, as players are still acclimatizing to the many complex systems in FF8 and might not think to cast Draw on a boss monster. Siren is held by Elvoret, one of the bosses during the Dollet SeeD Exam mission that players fight at the top of the communication tower. Players simply need to Draw Siren from Elvoret before defeating it. If Siren isn't obtained during that fight, it will be available as a Draw from another boss - only during the game's final dungeon, which severely hinders Siren's potential effectiveness over the game.

Important Abilities: Treatment, Move-Find, Tool RF, ST Mag RF, L Mag RF

Best Compatibility: Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Squall

Summon Attack: Silent Voice (deals Non-Elemental damage and inflicts Silence on all enemies)

Diablos is one of the reasons the FF8 GF system is so heavily criticized. The extremely powerful summon resides in a magical lamp that headmaster Cid gives Squall before he leaves Balamb Garden for Timber, warning him not to use it until he's properly prepared and powerful. Using the lamp summons Diablos, who must be beaten before he joins the party as a GF. The issue is that it's significantly better for players to attempt to beat Diablos as soon as he's available rather than waiting until later in the game. FF8 uses a system that sees enemies scale in strength with the player's level, so waiting until late game makes Diablos a much more difficult fight overall.

Diablos can be cheesed early, too. Diablos' best attacks are all physical, and if he's struggling to land them, players can take their time and ensure they're tackling him safely. Diablos has some incredible abilities for players willing to go the extra mile to acquire him as quickly as possible, including massive stat bonuses, the ability to damage enemies while thieving from them with Mug, and Enc-Half and Enc-None, two abilities that reduce the encounters players have with enemies or outright prevents them altogether. It's worth noting that FF8 Remastered has built-in cheats that allow players to disable encounters whenever they like, which does make Diablos a little less appealing but nevertheless useful.

Important Abilities: Mug, Enc-Half, Enc-None, HP +20%/40%/60%/80%, MAG +20%/40%, Ability x3, Darkside, Time Mag RF

Best Compatibility: Squall

Worst Compatibility: Zell

Summon Attack: Dark Messenger (deals Non-Elemental damage that is determined based on how much HP an enemy has)

Brothers is found in the Tomb of the Unknown King, but is buried deep inside the location, much further than players are required to navigate during the FF8 narrative. The tomb first becomes accessible when Squall reaches Deling City for the first time.

Here's a quick breakdown of what to do once inside the tomb: go right, left, right, left, right, straight, and interact with the statute. Battle Sacred until Sacred flees. Then leave the room and go straight, right, left, right, left, right, straight. Pull the lever on the left side of the room, then leave and go straight, right, left, right, left, right, and straight again. This will have players exit the temple. Immediately turn around, go straight repeatedly, and eventually enter a battle with Sacred and Minotaur, collectively known as Brothers. Defeating them earns the Brothers GF - it's actually pretty easy, too. Casting Float on the party renders nearly all of Brothers' Earth damage inept.

Unfortunately, Brothers isn't exactly the best FF8 GF in the game. Earth damage sometimes matters and for completion's sake, it's worth grabbing, especially since many players will have missed it during playthroughs without guides.

Important Abilities: Cover, Move-Find, HP Bonus, HP +20%/40%/80%

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Zell

Worst Compatibility: Irvine

Summon Attack: Brother Love (deals Earth damage to all enemies)

Carbuncle is obtained by using Draw on Iguions, two lizard monsters that are revived from their statue state and attack Squall and company during the Deling City Parade. Carbuncle has some amazing abilities that can make party compositions very flexible, so make sure to grab it. If missed, Carbuncle can be gained from using Draw on Krysta in the final FF8 dungeon.

Important Abilities: Auto Reflect, Counter, VIT Bonus, Recov Med RF, Ability x3

Best Compatibility: Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Squall

Summon Attack: Ruby Light (casts Reflect on all party members)

Leviathan is obtained by using Draw on NORG, a boss during the Civil War event. If missed, Leviathan is also available as a draw from Trauma in the game's final dungeon.

Important Abilities: Auto Potion, Recover, Supt Mag RF

Best Compatibility: Rinoa

Worst Compatibility: Irvine

Summon Attack: Tsunami (deals Water damage to all enemies)

Another Draw FF8 GF that can be easily missed. Pandemona is in Fujin, the blue-garbed friend of Seifer that players will fight in their return to Balamb Garden. If missed, Pandemona is available as a GF Draw from Red Giant, another boss in FF8's final dungeon.

Important Abilities: Initiative, Absorb, Supt Mag RF

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Quistis, Irvine

Summon Attack: Tornado Zone (deals Wind damage to all enemies)

Cerberus is an optional boss in Galbadia Garden. It's found in the Atrium, in the middle of the yellow beam there. Beating Cerberus automatically recruits him as a GF, and he can be obtained as a Draw from the Gargantua boss in the final FF8 dungeon as well. Gargantua has Auto Haste, which is an extremely useful ability that can build out some interesting party compositions.

Important Abilities: Auto Haste, Ability x3, Alert, Initiative, SPD +20%/40%

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Quistis, Zell

Summon Attack: Counter Rockets (casts Double and Triple)

Alexander is available as a Draw from Edea, who is fought in Galbadia Garden as well. If missed, Alexander is available as a draw from Catoblepas in the final FF8 dungeon. Holy damage is a nice complement to party comps and Alexander also offers Revive, which makes it a great GF for the healer of the party.

Important Abilities: Revive, Initiative, Med LV up, High Mag RF, Ability x3

Best Compatibility: Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Irvine

Summon Attack: Holy Judgement (deals Holy damage to all enemies)

Easily in contention for being one of the best Final Fantasy names ever, Doomtrain is a gigantic train possessed by a demon that is summoned by using clues found in the Occult Magazines players can collect while playing. The game doesn't differentiate between those who have collected Occult Magazines and those who have not, though, so following guide requirements without the Occult Magazines is fine. Players will need Solomon's Ring, 6 Malboro Tentacles, 6 Remedy+, and 6 Steel Pipes, and will then need to use the Solomon Ring. This will acquire the powerful GF, which has several unique abilities, and is the only way to get Doomtrain in FF8.

Important Abilities: Absorb, Auto Shell, Junk Shop, Forbid Med RF

Best Compatibility: Rinoa

Worst Compatibility: Irvine

Summon Attack: Runaway Train (Bad Breath, Petrify, Doom & Vit 0 inflicted on all enemies)

Cactuar can only be obtained once players get the Rangarok Airship. Fly to a desert island east of the Centra Ruins. Occassionally, something green will spawn on the island. Coming into contact with it will start a fight with the Jumbo Cactuar, and defeating it obtains the Cactuar GF in FF8. Cactuar has some really nice passives that are worth investing in.

Important Abilities: Auto Potion, Luck +50%, Eva +30%, Kamikaze

Best Compatibility: Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Quistis

Summon Attack: 1000 Needles (deals damage equal to the first digit of Cactuar's level times 100 to all enemies; at level 100, 1000 Needles will always do 10,000 damage)

Bahamut, perhaps the most iconic summon in Final Fantasy history, is in the Deep Sea Research Center. Bahamut is only available once players have acquired the Ragnarok Airship, and then they'll need to fly to the bottom-left corner of the map and land there to access the center. There's a blue light in the middle of the room that players need to access - after engaging in battles throughout - and then answer three questions correctly. Here are the FF8 Deep Sea Research Center answers:

Question 1: It is not our will to fight.

Question 2: Never.

Question 3: There is a "hidden" third option - choose that.

Answering a question will summon an enemy. The final question will summon Bahamut, which will need to be beaten before it is acquired as a GF. Bahamut is, predictably, one of the most powerful GFs in the game and nearly all of its abilities are worth picking up.

Important Abilities: Auto Protect, Ability x4, Rare Item, STR +60%, MAG +60%, Mov HP Up, Mug

Best Compatibility: Rinoa

Worst Compatibility: N/A - after Rinoa, everyone else is pretty well on the same level in terms of Bahamut compatibility

Summon Attack: Mega Flare (deals significant Non-Elemental damage to all enemies)

Eden is only accessible before the final dungeon after acquiring Bahamut. Bahamut's defeat opens up a deeper section in the Deep Sea Research Center that contains Ultima Weapon, which Eden can be Drawn from. Ultima Weapon is an incredibly difficult optional boss, however, and Eden can also be obtained by using Draw on Tiamat in the final dungeon as an alternative method.

Important Abilities: Devour, Mad Rush, Luck +50%

Best Compatibility: Rinoa, Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Irvine

Summon Attack: Eternal Breath (deals Non-Elemental damage to all enemies)

Odin is a rare instance of a non-junctionable GF in FF8. Once Odin joins the party, he will simply appear at random and instantly kill enemies. Odin is found in the Centra Ruins as well, and can be obtained as soon as players go there. Upon entering the ruins, players only have 20 minutes to reach and defeat Odin. This is much easier if the player followed this guide's advice and grabbed Diablos early, because Enc-Half or, ideally, Enc-None make the journey a breeze. There are a few puzzles that require players to place eyes into a statue to open a door, but they're very simple, especially with no encounters. Fighting and defeating Odin recruits him as a GF automatically - although, again, unlike most of the summons outlined in this FF8 GF locations and abilities guide, Odin will not be usable.

Tonberry is also in the Centra Ruins, but it's much easier to acquire once Odin is defeated and the time limit on the ruins is removed. To get Tonberry, players need to beat 20 Tonberry enemies while in the ruins. Tonberry enemies are not the easiest in FF8 by any stretch of the imagination, so come prepared with healing items ready. After the 20th kill, the Tonberry King will appear. Defeating it will have it join the team as a GF and offer up some of the weirdest and unique GF abilities in FF8.

Important Abilities: LV Down + LV Up (manipulates enemy level to change their item pool and spell Draws), Haggle (reduces cost of items in shops by 25%), Sell-High (allows player to sell items for 1.5x sale price), Familiar (allows player to buy rarer items at shops), Call Shop (allows player to visit any shop they have previously visited in the game from the menu screen)

Best Compatibility: Selphie

Worst Compatibility: Zell

Summon Attack: Chef's Knife (deals Non-Elemental damage to a random enemy)

Phoenix a non-junctionable summon that can be summoned randomly by using a Phoenix Pinion item in battle. Once it's summoned for the first time, Phoenix has a random change to appear and prevent a Game Over. Phoenix Pinions are acquired from the 5th Floor Card Player in Prison, the Vase Pieces in Winhill, the Shumi Tribe sidequest, or by refining Mega Phoenix items with Med Lv. Up.

The popular FF5 villain Gilgamesh is also a non-junctionable FF8 GF. To get him, players need Odin before entering Lunatic Pandora and fighting Seifer. Having Odin causes an event and gives another turn after the event to summon Gilgamesh. Like Odin, Gilgamesh can randomly appear during battle, but unlike Odin, Gilgamesh has several different potential attacks upon being summoned - some of which are significantly more useful than others.

These summons are obtained through the Chocobo World mini-game. All of them are non-junctionable.

Boko the Choboco - summoned by using Gyshal Greens during battle

Minimog - obtained using the Mog's Amulet item acquired in Chocobo World; revives and heals all the party's GFs

Moomba - summoned using the Friendship item, obtained via Chocobo World; attacks an opponent to leave them at 1HP, or deals 9,999 damage to an enemy with more HP than that

Next: Don't Expect A New Final Fantasy MMO Soon

source https://screenrant.com/ff8-gf-guide-locations-abilities/

[ktbensondc]

A Pocket Guide to Analyzing Films by Robert Spadoni - CHAPTER 3

MISE-EN-SCÈNE

Mise-en-scène is ‘everything in front of the camera’ and in Spadoni’s opinion, splits into four main categories: setting, costume and makeup, lighting, and staging.

The mise-en-scène transforms the space that is filmed. Before the transformation this space is called profilmic space. Profilmic space is the ‘visual raw material a camera takes in and turns into mise-en-scène’. Spadoni remarks that in the modern day, many, more mainstream, films will not have profilmic space as new spaces are created and even modified on computers.

Moreover, an element in a film can be more or less enhanced through ‘stylization’. This can be understood as the ‘other side of the coin of “realistic”’ although stylization is not completely how a film element differs from ‘”reality”’. Spadoni offers that stylization may push an element in film outside the bounds ‘to which we might expect the element to conform’ (or as the audience understands the element from daily experiences). Therefore, stylization is ‘a matter of perception’ moreso than to objectively measure this element against its real-life counterpart. Spadoni gives the following example:

And yet, while the standards of judgement will be subjective, most would agree that Fred Flintstone’s prehistoric car is more stylized than the Batmobile (pick your version) and that the Batmobile is more stylized than a Toyota Prius.

SETTING

The setting is the ‘physical environment wherein a film’s action takes place’. This can be split into two pairs: Location and Studio Filming, and Stylized and Unstylized settings.

On Location: This is using an existing location somewhere in the world. This can be associated with ‘notions of realism’. It is more common in low budget films unless the location is difficult to get to, thus can be associated with big budget films too.

Studio Filming: This is where the setting is built, either in a studio - ‘wholly or in part’ - or on a computer. 

Stylized and Unstylized: How much a setting is stylized is dependent on the degree to which it ‘meets our expectations based on our sense of such a place in the real world’. Built settings can look ‘indistinguishable’ from found ones, and found settings can ‘appear strange and unusual’ depending on the way it is filmed.

PROPS

A prop is ‘an object that serves some function within the narrative’. Props can also be motifs. 

COSTUME AND MAKEUP

Unstylized costumes would aim to match the real-life counterparts they are based off of as closely as possible. A period drama would typically aim for unstylized costumes. However, Spadoni points out that particular costumes, his example is a uniform, may adapt a quality from an original real-life version that has not been adapted in other films of the same period, therefore making the uniform appear stylized. Stylization is therefore subjective. 

Costumes that have no real life reference are still stylized but the degree to how much is subjective to the viewer. Rather than comparing the costumes the real life counterpart, viewers would instead compare the costumes between films of a similar genre or subject (futuristic films set in space, for example). One costume from one film may be less stylized than another costume from a different film.

Costume and makeup can also play into motif and so, provide ‘clues’ to a character’s ‘nature or psychology’ and may also ‘contribute in striking or subtle ways to a shot’s composition’. Costumes can also act as a disguise, hiding a character’s true intentions and beliefs rather than hinting to the audience who they are.

LIGHTING

Lighting can be diegetic, nondiegetic, or both. Spadoni offers the example of shadows to explain how lighting can be used in the mise-en-scène as shadows can be used for ‘expressive purposes’ such as suggesting the character’s interior state, or foreshadowing events. Bram Stoker’s Dracula uses shadow at the start of the movie to heavily hint to the audience that the Count is not normal, or good, and reinforces a creepy atmosphere.

Two kinds of shadows:

An attached shadow is a ‘shadow cast by something onto itself because it’s not fully illuminated’. For example, noses ‘cast attached shadows’ on faces. This kind of shadow ‘helps to make objects appear more three dimensional’.

A cast shadow ‘results when something is placed between an object and a light source such that a shadow of that something - tree branches, a person - falls on the object’. 

Lighting Quality and Direction

Lighting quality can be understood as ‘hard and even harsh’ with shadows being ‘sharp-edged’ under this ‘intense’ lighting, or lighting can be ‘more diffuse’. This means the shadows are softer and the contrast (’the amount of difference between an image’s darkest and lightest tones’) has decreased.

Lighting direction can be understood by looking at the direction in which the shadow is falling. A ‘less flattering’ angle is bottom lighting otherwise known as underlighting and is typically used in horror films. The light comes from below and can ‘cast grotesque shadows on faces and walls’. Lighting from above is called top lighting.

Backlighting comes from behind and ‘commonly serves two purposes’. The first of which can make figures ‘glow in glamorous fashion’ which can give them a saintly appearance. The second, which Spadoni remarks is more evident, particularly because it is more important, in black and white films, ‘helps separate figures from backgrounds’. This can sometimes be called edge lighting as it helps the audience pick out the figures easier and quicker. Silhouette lighting is when the figure is completely in shadow.

Lighting in Classical Hollywood Cinema

Classical Hollywood Cinema is a film style that ‘characterizes’ modern mainstream narrative films. Backlighting in this style combines with two other kinds known as the three-point lighting system. First is backlight, the second is key light which is ‘a shot’s main lighting source’. This light is ‘usually motivated’ by a diegetic source, even if ‘it’s not the actual source of the lighting we see’. The third is fill light, which ‘softens the shadows’ created by the key light. This will create a ‘generally more flattering look’ for faces.

There are two kinds to the three-pont lighting system. 

High-key lighting is ‘relatively even, tends to be bright, and minimizes shadows’.

Low-key lighting provides ‘little or no fill light, increases contrast, and results in darker and crisper shadows’.

Spadoni states that different genres are associated with different setups. For example, comedies and musicals will use high-key lighting,whereas horrors and thrillers and film noirs will use low-key lighting. However, this is not a fixed rule on film,

Lighting can also ‘exhibit varying degrees’ of stylization. 

STAGING

Staging is ‘what the figures in front of the camera do’. Two ways to understand staging is through acting and performance and how the figures combine with other elements in the mise-en-scène to form patterns on screen.

Acting and Performance

According to Spadoni, acting is difficult to analyse because ‘we lack the terminology’ to describe what exactly particular actors in particular films are doing in comparison to other actors in other genres of film. However, Spadoni assures that through stylization, some sort of understanding can be formed. For example, in a comedy, actions may become over-the-top because ‘no one expects’ it to look ‘real’ since the intention is to be funny. In a drama, the actions may well be toned down and a lot more subtle. In a drama, the acting may be less stylized than in a comedy, but how realistic either are, is up to the individual viewer.

Therefore, Spadoni states, to interpret acting, is to base it on the individual viewer’s ‘common sense’ of what is transpiring on screen.

Shifting Patterns on the Screen

Another part of acting is the actor’s positions and movements in front of the camera, and how a three-dimensional space is directed as though it is two-dimensional. Spadoni remarks that staging is a ‘delicate and underappreciated cinematic art’. A film that ‘relies less heavily on editing will rely more on staging’ to control its ‘narrational flow and aesthetic appearance’. Staging (as well as editing) ‘provides means to guide viewers’.

Deep-space staging is when a setting has significant depth and utilises it. 

Through movement, figures can draw attention to themselves, but they can also draw attention by staying still in an environment that is always moving. The eye can also be drawn to a figure who turns to face the audience or moves closer to the camera. Figures who turn their back to the camera encourage the viewer to look somewhere else, or draw us to them depending on the moment.

Aperture framing is how ‘windows, doors, and other enclosing shapes embedded in the mise-en-scène section off portions of the frame’. Placing or moving a figure into one of these ‘visual pockets’ will ‘draw the eye to it’. This type of framing has other purposes too.

Staging can also be more or less stylized.

[coppolafrancis]

Taking This Fine Jewelry–Making Class Taught Me More Than How to Paint a Diamond Necklace

I’ve never had a steady hand. Whenever I hold a pen, a fork, or a delicate glass cup, I tend to shake a bit. It’s been this way ever since I can remember putting my first crayon to my first coloring book and pushing nervously on the paper. I have always been an anxious person. So, when I found out that the class I would be attending at L’École School of Jewelry Arts would involve creating our own detailed rendering, I was, in a word, shook. I thought I would be playing with emeralds or learning how to lacquer, maybe setting stones, too. Making a painting isn’t exactly the jewelry-crafting lesson I’d signed up for when I heard that the school, which is supported by Van Cleef & Arpels, would have a residency and exhibition on New York’s Upper East Side from October 25 through November 9. In hindsight, though, I learned much more than I anticipated, not only about how fine jewelry is first conceived, but also about the value in putting down my phone, softening my grip, and making something from scratch.

After walking into the school at 9:15 a.m. on Monday (slightly tardy due to early-morning work emails and being rushed, as always), I was ushered upstairs and handed a clean white jeweler’s coat to wear over my clothes. Entering the quiet, intimate classroom, I took my seat at the work table along with five others. They were all women, most of whom worked in the jewelry business with the exception of one aspiring designer. Our teachers, a visual artist and a designer for Van Cleef & Arpels, would be lecturing us about gouache, which is a type of watercolor paint used to create highly intricate renderings of high jewelry for the craftspeople of a jewelry house to work off. Outside of the initial process of choosing gemstones, the gouache is the very first step in the process of creating a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry. It is a craft that has been done since these high jewelry houses were founded, some as long ago as the late 1800s, like Van Cleef & Arpels.

Gouache is still used today, only in the couture jewelry realm, and even as new technologies have been utilized in the workshops, these paintings remain true to their origins. The process begins with a sketch of the brass mock-up from the designer, after which the artist shades in the drawing with a pencil and later, paints a separate sketch, mimicking the lines and shading of the first, with the gouache so that the jewelry appears in an almost 3-D form. It may sound quite simple, but the technique requires training and years of practice to perfect. There is no school for gouache and as such, it’s a profession that often attracts those outside of the jewelry-making realm, like architects and illustrators.

We started our class by studying gouaches of necklaces, rings, and brooches, some that were from Van Cleef & Arpels and others from houses like Cartier and Boucheron. Currently, Van Cleef & Arpels has three in-house artists who specialize in gouache. The teachers asked us to identify the subtle differences in each image. Some were printed on light gray paper as opposed to black or white, both of which were used in the 1940s and ’50s but were later discovered to drown out the color of the stones, whereas the neutral gray lifted everything.

Next, we were prompted to explain where the light was coming from in each picture—the correct answer was the top left corner, which is always the case and is indicated by the small white line detailing on the stone. If there is too much white on the painting, the depth of light cannot be deciphered, and the actual piece won’t be finished with the correct amount of shine. In essence, the beauty of the final necklace, brooch, earring, ring, or bracelet is dependent on this artwork. Also, the table is the main facet of a stone and a jeweler in the workshop will know how to cut it based on the angles and clarity of the one featured in the gouache.

None of these images are altered digitally, save for the copying of gouaches that are now used for marketing purposes. This point the instructors made very clear: Absolutely no computers are used. It takes about a week or more for a gouache artist to sketch and paint a single piece depending on the size and detailing involved. One gouache we observed had an entire forest scene carved into the main diamond pendant, with similar motifs on a few other stones, and probably took close to a month to interpret. Our class was going to make a gouache in a little over an hour, and I, the cynic with the shaky hands, was perplexed as to how.

I took my seat again and we practiced, mixing the correct amount of water and paint (it’s tricky to find the perfect consistency) and with a thin brush, using it to trace minuscule black lines on a page. My straight line was a tad squiggly. I went on to the L-shape and still, not so smooth. I had a tough time at first and one of the instructors could tell. She leaned over my stiff shoulder, which was hunched down almost on top of the table, and whispered: “Remember to breathe.” I laughed, took a second to sigh some out air out of my lungs, and went on to the S-shape. That turned out much better, as did the square, and I realized that in this line of work, patience really is a virtue.

After the tracing, we were given a tiny brass bow, which was placed under our main light source. There was an outline of the bow on our gray paper and we were to shade it in using a pencil. Again, it was about studying exactly where the light was hitting from the top left corner, which dips and curls of that small twisty bow were visible to the light and which weren’t. Then, we went on to paint a smaller outline of the bow just next to the sketch. It required one layer of white watered-down gouache paint first, followed by a mixture of black and white for the shaded edges and later, a stark white for the surface lines. In between each step, the gouache artist must wait for the different layers to dry. We didn’t get into color, but applying the exact pigments of whatever stone or metal is to be used for the final piece would be the final task in the laborious process.

In the end, my bow didn’t look half-bad. A soft bell rang just outside the door and class was over. I was proud of myself for calming my nerves and actually taking three hours to finish something with my hands. Because who has time for that anymore? The art of craft, especially in fashion couture and high jewelry, is about making something pure out of nothing in a world where we depend so heavily on technology to guide us through our overstimulated and overworked lives. I may not ever become a gouache artist for a historic Parisian house, but learning about what goes into this underappreciated art form and how these painters are responsible for the initial concepts of some of the most exquisite pieces of jewelry in the world, I now understand why they do it.

I have never been crafty. I love art and design and fashion, but I’ve never taken up ceramics, knitting, or the like. Maybe it’s because I’m in tune with my shaky nerves, or maybe it’s because I too often refuse to slow down and turn everything else off. The L’École class gave me a chance to use my hands to create something unique, something that didn’t require an iPhone or algorithm or YouTube video. Craft is as prevalent a trend in fashion now as it ever was, and after painting that little bow shape, I realized its value.

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