#and its also cool to see more shows branch out in terms of genre. like hfjone! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

juyeoniemyhoney · 3 years

Text

green tea & honey

After being shackled to your respective houses for most of the year, when your government finally allows normal commuting, you and Seokjin decide to go on a movie date. Seokjin picks a horrible movie and instead of watching, you decide to reflect on how you and Seokjin have lasted for four years.

-pairing: kim seokjin x reader

-genre: lowkey comedy, fluff, really small mentions of CEO!seokjin

-warnings: cursing, oc lowkey has anger management issues

-word count: 1628 words

-A/N: a short seokjin fic for his birthday^^ hope you guys like it.

--------

There are times when you wonder whether your life could get any better, times when you think that you have everything you have ever wanted in the world and that nothing can take that away from you. However, there are also times when you think that you have not shown enough love, hence why the the people surrounding you start to act up. And this is one of those times.

Seokjin is your boyfriend. He has been for a long four years, ever since he played a horrid prank on you that consisted of cement, a cup of coffee, and your unknowing, naive self. Basically, you had drank cement, well, it went into your mouth and you immediately spat it out. You don’t know how or why that ended in a relationship with the goofiest, most insane man you have ever met, but you’re not that normal either, so you just kind of went with it. If you’d have to guess, you’d just been attracted to the way he’d always managed to make you laugh, even in serious situations. That was just Seokjin, funny and loud and outgoing, sometimes a pain in the ass but nevertheless, someone you have come to love whole heartedly.

But right now, you are not so sure if you love for him can even surpass the fifty percent mark, but you’re absolutely positive that you are a hundred percent pissed at him.

The two of you have been spending a lot of time apart from each other, with the global pandemic and what not, forcing you two to stay in your respective flats. But now that your country has allowed the public to commute normally, provided a mask is worn at all times, the two of you had decided to go on a movie date. Seokjin had been having a stressful time with his work pretty much the whole year, having had to close down multiple branches of his business due to insufficient funds, so, you being the amazing girlfriend you are, decided to allow him to choose the movie.

Big mistake.

Seokjin had chosen a horror movie. It still baffles you why Seokjin insists on watching horror movies when he knows very well that he is, to put it extremely bluntly, a pussy. That man gets scared of everything, from creepy-crawlies to ghosts. You’d be lying if you weren’t scared of those things too so, you really don’t know why he has to fucking put the both of you through hell. Seriously, Seokjin is another species.

“Seokjin, stop squeezing my hand. It hurts,” you whisper to him, lightly jostling your intertwined hands when he doesn’t look away from the screen. Seokjin merely grunts and releases your hand, moving his vice grip to the poor armrest, gripping it so tightly that you are sure once he releases it, you could see that the fabric is torn through.

Sometimes, you wonder if Seokjin is properly in love with you or not. It is not that he doesn’t tell you that he loves you, he tells you that he loves you plenty, always remembering to tell you before he sleeps and tells you first thing when he wakes up. It’s just sometimes, his actions don’t exactly show that he loves you. It may just be your way of loving and Seokjin’s way are different, but he is just, not romantic. But you suppose that you and him have been in a long-term relationship for a reason so you have never really brought it up.

“Seokjin,” you whisper, lifting one of your hands to gently tug on the sleeve of his sweater to get his attention, “give me your jacket.”

Seokjin turns to you and levels you with a frown, thick brows knitting together, looking more confused than that time when he saw a bird just chilling in his flat. “Why?” is his fucking reply, and at that, you properly turn to him, ignoring the horrifying movie playing before the two of you to level him with a frown of your own.

“Did you just ask me why?” you ask, giving him an incredulous look, before looking down pointedly at your shivering hands. Seokjin sees your point and only frowns more, as if you had just asked him to turn into a unicorn or something.

“Why the fuck are you looking at me like that,” you ask rather loudly, causing Seokjin to shush you before looking around to the other movie-goers to see if they had been disturbed. He turns back to you, frown still knitting those pretty eyebrows together, “Why,” he asks again. For a successful businessman, Seokjin sure is stupid sometimes.

“Because I’m cold?” you offer dryly, hand tugging harder on his sleeve. Seokjin’s brows lift, as the realisation finally dawns on him and though you can’t see it through his mask, opens his mouth to say something, closes it in thought for a while, before muttering, “But I’m cold too?”

Your frustration doubles, triples, quadruples and you swear, you have never wanted to hit someone so badly in your life. You love Seokjin to death, but sometimes he can be unbelievably insufferable and so unromantic, people have mistaken you two for brother and sister before, which is just petrifying.

“Okay, then share it with me,” you decide, taking slow and deep breaths in, practicing the calming techniques your guidance counsellor had taught you. You are rather proud that you haven’t completely lost all your cool. When you had first started dating Seokjin, you would be screaming at him almost everyday, telling him not to do this and that, like some control freak. Seokjin had tolerated it at first, but one fateful day, he couldn’t take it anymore and just screamed back at you. That’s when you realised that you have a horrible anger problem, and decided to go and get that checked out. Of course, you had apologised to Seokjin and he apologised to you, and your relationship had strengthened because of that ordeal, not to mention the fact that you are also a little less crazy now.

Seokjin stays silent, contemplating whether he should share it with you or not. After all, he did remind you to bring a jacket since you are always cold. You had already left your house when he sent that text and were too lazy to head back home to retrieve it so you’d thought that you would just suffer through it. But then, Seokjin sees the way that you are trembling and finally notices the small hand that is tugging on his sleeve and then, he is sighing in defeat and shrugging his jacket off of his broad shoulders and draping it on you.

If there’s one thing that you’ve realised in your four years with Seokjin, it is that, despite all of his wisecracks and all of the pranks that he plays, despite all of the dad jokes and his happy-go-lucky way of living, Seokjin is sincere and loving and kind. He is also brazen and says whatever in on his mind so as to avoid misunderstandings and conflict, which helps out your relationship a ton, since you tend to do the exact opposite and keep your troubles to yourselves. Seokjin doesn’t tend to connect with you emotionally, and usually uses logic to solve your situations and problems, but you can always sense that he is trying and that alone, makes you want to try hard for him too.

After Seokjin drapes the jacket over you, the two of you stay silent and watch the movie. It is downright horrifying and most of the time you are burrowing into Seokjin’s ridiculously large jacket, or using the box of popcorn to shield your eyes from the screen. As the movie drags on, Seokjin’s hand finds yours again and you start to shift as close to him as the seats allow.

Eventually, you stop watching the movie altogether and just bask in Seokjin’s presence, decidedly leaning your head on his shoulder. At the same time, our free hand comes up to his arm and wraps around it in a loose hug. You can feel Seokjin melt into your touch, his head leaning on top of yours and his free hand coming up to pat your cheek. Seokjin feels warm and safe and even though you aren’t watching the movie, you’d like to think that if you were, you wouldn’t be afraid.

“I love you,” you whisper to Seokjin, as you snuggle into his side. With his cheek pressed to your ear, you can feel it when he smiles, letting out an endearing chuckle before lifting his head from yours to plant a small kiss to your head, muttering, “I love you more,” into your hair.

Your heart warms, skips a beat, and stops functioning simultaneously and even though you’ve told him this countless times in the last four years, it never hurts to remind him. “I’m so glad that you didn’t give Yoongi that cup of cement and accidentally gave it to me instead.”

At this Seokjin barks out a laugh, earning him a few angry shushes. His eyes widen before they are shrinking back to its normal size and he is saying, “Do you wanna leave now? This movie has already traumatised me enough.”.

Your small smile widens and you are nodding in agreement to Seokjin’s proposal. Then, he is grinning at you, standing up, and leading you out of the cinema.

Your relationship with Seokjin is more of a comedy than a rom-com. Your love comes in rough edges and infuriating pranks and stupid fights. Sometimes, you hate it and you want Seokjin to be more romantic and to stop being so brazen with his words. But most of the time, you wouldn’t have it any other way.

30 notes · View notes

pixelgrotto · 3 years

Photo

Night City, I barely remember ya

I beat Cyberpunk 2077 last month, and honestly, I haven’t thought about Cyberpunk 2077 that much since.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. CD Projekt Red’s follow-up to The Witcher 3 was meant to be the sort of game that would stick in your mind after completion. It was promoted over eight years of hype stemming from its initial 2013 reveal as a example of CD Projekt’s infamous “vodka and Slavic magic” - a behemoth destined to change open world RPGs forever. But in the roughly 12 weeks since its release, the stuff that’s happened to Cyberpunk 2077, including its delisting from the Playstation store for being chock full of bugs and the theft of its source code by hackers, has been more cyberpunk than the actual game.

I was one of those people super hyped for this game when it was first announced. I mean, the Witcher franchise left an indelible impression on me; how could I not be psyched to see its devs tackle one of my favorite sci-fi genres? But my hype deflated over the years, largely due to tales of terrible crunch emerging from CD Projekt’s studios and social media marketing that was ill-advised at best and transphobic at worst. Everything seemed to slowly hint that the game’s vision of “cyberpunk” - a genre that can tell incredible futuristic tales of social upheaval and marginalized peoples - would be mostly style with not so much substance.

Despite me keeping my fingers crossed, the end product is pretty much what I feared - and I guess I should’ve known, since the official sourcebook for Cyberpunk 2020, the tabletop RPG that CD Projekt Red used as inspiration, actually lists “style over substance” as one of its rules.

Cyberpunk 2077’s main story revolves around a merc who dreams of big time heists in Night City named V. After a heist goes south, V ends up absorbing a biochip made by big bad corporation Arasaka that features the captured personality of rockstar-turned-terrorist Johnny Silverhand, played by Keanu Reeves - who, to be fair, does a good job with the material he’s given. Cue a bunch of quests that revolve around V and Johnny coming to terms with each other, taking down Arasaka and figuring out how to separate the chip from V’s brain.

In theory, this sounds like a cool way to explore the very cyberpunk themes of identity and what it means to have a corrupt company preserve a human soul beyond its organic shell. In reality, though, the story’s a surface level examination of these concepts, and Johnny Silverhand remains a massive dick throughout most of the game, only becoming relatable if players give him the benefit of the doubt - which they’re expected to do because he’s played by Keanu Reeves.

Johnny’s animosity towards Arasaka is also never completely outlined. He - and most other characters in Night City - keep telling V that corporations are awful because they disregard human rights and destroy the environment, but we never get many chances to see for ourselves how Arasaka and similar companies, like Militech or Kang Tao, actually do this. Arasaka does kidnap Johnny’s ex-girlfriend and is behind the tech that transfers his soul to a biochip, yes, but Johnny also threatens to destroy them at all of his shows and eventually sets off a bomb in their headquarters. Not that I’m siding with the corporation, but for much of the game we’re expected to treat them as the number one enemy simply because other characters say so, which is very much a “show, don’t tell” missed opportunity. If anything, Arasaka’s portrayal feels more like a vestige of the cyberpunk genre’s unfortunate maturation during the 1980s, where the fear of Japanese conglomerates taking over the world was common and a future where Asian companies were all-powerful instead of Western ones seemed like a dystopia.

Cyberpunk 2077 is very much caught in that yesteryear mold, featuring elements that might have been progressive in the 1980s but seem passé now. For a game that relied on questionable representation of trans people in its marketing, there were no notable trans NPCs that I came across, and even though there’s a robust character creation system where you actually can make a trans person, the game makes the troubling decision to only offer binary pronouns tied to V’s voice. Despite the fact that many of the best modern cyperbunk works deal with body augmentation and the line between man and machine, most of the physical modifications you can pay for at Night City’s “ripperdoc” facilities are niche features that only offer minimal stat boosts, with only two major ones that I know of - the mantis blades and gorilla arms - actually causing extensive changes to V’s looks. And finally, while there are tons of characters of color in the game, ranging from the Haitian Voodoo Boys gang to V’s “friendly ethnic friend™” Jackie Welles, most of them are varying degrees of stereotypical. For instance, Goro Takemura, an ex-Arasaka employee, sends you text messages reminiscent of haiku at one point because he’s Japanese and has to talk like a formal, honorable samurai or something.

If you’re able to look past these issues - along with the myriad of bugs that Cyberpunk 2077 shipped with - there’s still the niggling feeling that this game could have been so much more. The signs of a troubled development process are numerous, and there are Reddit threads packed with still-visible remnants - like useless combat skill perks and an entire metro system - that were part of gameplay elements gutted at some point in order for those overworked CD Projekt Red programmers to make a long-delayed release date. Even mainstay stuff in the open world genre - like the police chases common in the Grand Theft Autos - are absent, and Cyberpunk 2077’s 2018 demo, chock full of promised features that never made it into the final product, has to be one of the most notorious bits of smoke ‘n mirrors “gameplay” in recent memory.

Perhaps most bothersome is the feeling that a lot of your choices don’t seem to matter all that much in Cyberpunk 2077, which once touted itself as “a full-fledged RPG, not a shooter with RPG elements,” but ends up feeling more like the latter than the former. The game’s three different lifepaths - nomad, streetkid and corpo - only amount to about thirty minutes of unique playtime at the start and a few different dialogue options. The vehicle combat sequences that punctuate key missions are largely scripted, looking cool but offering little consequences depending on what V aims at. The side quests I encountered had minimal branching paths, and the only time the main story opened up to offer some real choice was in the game’s final chapter. Considering that CD Projekt once developed The Witcher 2 - a 2011 game that branches dramatically at its halfway mark to the point where a lot of folks insist that you need to play it twice in order to feel satisfied - Cyberpunk 2077 feels like a step back.

And yet, despite all of these criticisms, I still put nearly 80 hours into the game over the course of December, January and February. You don’t do that for something that’s patently unfun, so let me be clear - there is an entertaining experience buried beneath an avalanche of unfulfilled potential here. Driving on my Akira-esque bike through Night City’s slums as the game’s best song bumped on the radio, taking out legions of baddies with my mantis blades and relishing in the game’s extensive photo mode (as you can probably tell by my screenshots above) was a good time. In spite of his assholery, I did feel something akin to attachment for that bastard Johnny Silverhand by the finale, and there were a few key moments - like when I was scuba diving in the ocean with my girlfriend Judy, looking at the remains of a town destroyed by the land seizing machinations of corporations - that felt like this game had something to say beyond “bang bang gunplay and neon aesthetic.”

But at the end of the day, while I do feel moderately interested in someday checking out Cyberpunk Red (the newest iteration of this franchise’s tabletop RPG), CD Projekt’s seven-year-hyped-up behemoth has largely faded from my brain one month after beating it. On Twitter, I’ve seen Cyberpunk 2077 described as something akin to a flashy Netflix series with lots of fanfare and flair but not much else - and I can’t really argue with that statement.

Night City was supposed to be the stuff of a long-term relationship. Instead, it feels more like a fling.

#pixel grotto #now playing #cyberpunk 2077 #cyberpunk #cd projekt red

9 notes · View notes

wordsnstuff · 5 years

Text

Guide To Political World Building

This is also available on wordsnstuffblog.com!

– This is a subject that I see brought up a lot in book reviews by readers, but not very often when it comes to the writing community. I decided to search the internet and my own experience for as many tips and as much advice as I could find to put in one place for you all. I also addressed a lot questions (in fact, more than usual because I know this is a weak point for most fiction authors) in the common struggles section. I hope this is useful to those of you who have a lot of trouble finding help on this. It should help me as well because I’m in the middle of tackling it for my own series. Happy writing!

Patreon || Ko-Fi || Masterlists || Work In Progress || Studyblr || Studygram

Know What Details Are Important

Not all aspects of a political system in a fictional universe are important to the story-telling, especially when the story is more character or plot driven, rather than driven by the world building. It’s important to deliver relevant information to your reader in pieces, and at a pace that enhances their understanding of events and meaning rather than their knowledge of trivial details.

Know Your Demographic & Your Genre

For certain genres and age-demographics, your world building in the area of political systems and implications should be matured or simplified. The majority of your readership should be able to understand what’s going on, and the way you makes sure of that is know who you’re writing the story for. Certain genres also require a lot less complicated detail in political world building. For instance, YA romance should have less political world building than, say, adult fantasy. Sure, maybe in the case of writing a YA romance, there could require some, but definitely not as in-depth as that of the latter.

Choose A Model to Alter

If you’re going to do it, especially as a beginner, you need to pick some form of inspiration or something similar to what you’re going for. There are so many governmental systems out there that already exist, and if you should research plenty of them and them mix and match, add and subtract, and twist until you have something that serves your story.

Think of The Implications of Details

Every detail that you make prominent in the reader’s mind should be thought out in terms of the implications. Ask yourself how this affects different groups of people, how it’s evolved over time, what it means for the system as a whole, etc. This will make your story more three-dimensional in the reader’s mind.

Find Issues in Power Distribution

Most government tension (throughout history, at least) has come from inequality in the distribution of power. Whether it be between races, classes, branches of government, figures in politics, or groups of people with different opinions, or all of the above combined, most issues stem from the struggle for power, control, and influence over others. Explore this and find new ways to think of how this could be interpreted from your story.

Think of Culture’s Impact on Politics

Culture has a major hand in how politics works. A society’s values, religious majorities and minorities, gender roles, environment, what an average citizen looks like, how citizens are expected to look, act, use their time, etc. These things all impact political situation and how it changes over time with culture, so explore this heavily.

Common Struggles

-- The common struggles section of my “guide to__” posts are general questions sent in by readers on the topic at hand. If you have a question that has not been addressed thus far, you’ll probably find the answer in this section. As always, you’re welcome to send other questions to my inbox if you don’t find the answer in this post. --

~ How do I illustrate the evolution of a society’s politics?... I would choose a few major events and make the causation behind them more prominent than the actual events themselves. History repeats itself, and that’s very important in political foreshadowing and often how a society deals with political situations.

~ How do I write conversations about my world’s politics?... It depends on the tone of these conversations. The way casual conversations about politics are written can tell the reader a lot about your world’s political climate, and can be a very useful device. Heated conversations can be useful in showing different passionate sides of a political issue in your world. I would say, write them carefully and with intention.

~ How do I make the reader invested/interested in the world’s politics?... Show the reader why they should care, make them relate to it, and then make them relate your story to their reality. You have to use literary devices as well. Show, don’t tell works really well here. Don’t show the main character reflecting that the conflicts at the war front are bad. Show the war front. Show the severity. Make them feel the heavy emotions of the people. Show them the real stakes of the political decisions being dealt with in the story.

~ How do I create believable racial tensions?... Again, just mirror reality. Understand why racial tensions exist and mirror that in your story’s context. Racial tension is majorly caused by fear, prejudice, and response to the “other side”. It’s often a long, ongoing battle because it’s rooted in the way people are raised and the constant environment around them. Racism is taught, so show it’s bigger, more outstanding moments, as well as its less prominent ones. No political issue arises exclusively from large, explosive moments. It’s made up of a few big ones, notable ones, and then the many, millions of little contributing moments and factors.

~ How do I write reasonable opposition groups?... You’re the author, so you have the unique opportunity of setting the reader up to see the reasoning behind both or all sides. You can show the evidence and logic behind each one, and make the reader understand why each side believes what they believe, and the personal engagement that leads each side to fight so hard.

~ How do I connect a caste system to political tension?... Political tension within caste systems are commonly caused by people’s natural desire for power and control, which leads to dissatisfaction in cases of being on the less fortunate side of inequality. Caste systems are also typically a pyramid, which means there’s more of the underdogs. These things combine to create political storms because on one side you have few people and lots of power that add up to just a bit more than a lot of people with less power individually, but more when pooled.

~ How to I create a corrupt government without too many clichés?... The most cliché thing about typical corrupt governments is the one-dimensional evil figures that lead to corruption. Very few authors explore what leads a human who’s only job is to protect the people to turn against them. Explore their motivations and their personal struggle and justifications and you’ll have a more interesting and impactful corrupt government.

~ How do I illustrate a positive government that doesn’t come off as suspicious?... Work hard on perfecting tone, be very careful with what could be interpreted as foreshadowing, and show genuine goodness in not only the government’s words and actions, but actual results. Show your government talking the talk, and then walking the walk.

~ How do I set up the climax of a political issue?... Show the slow burn, and then the inciting events that set off the inevitable explosion. You need to establish to the reader that something is going to happen no matter what, but make the actual consequence and its place in time a surprise.

~ How do I develop a governmental system from the ground up for the sake of the plot itself?... As I said in a previous point, use a model or several to take inspiration from. In the case of world building being the centre of your story, build your world and your plot together so they complement one another.

Other Resources From My Blog That Help With This:

How To Write A Good Plot Twist

How To Foreshadow

Commentary On Social Issues In Writing

Tackling Subplots

How To Perfect The Tone In A Piece Of Writing

Tips On Writing About Mental Illness

A Guide To Tension & Suspense In Your Writing

Writing Good Villains

Tips On Writing Intense Scenes

Finding & Fixing Plot Holes

Resources For Crime, Mystery, & Thriller Writers

Resources For Writing Science Fiction

Resources For Writing Dystopian/Apocalypse

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: High Middle Ages & Renaissance

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1600s

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1700s

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1800s

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1900-1939

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1940-1969

Resources For Writing Period Pieces: 1970-1999

Useful Writing Resources

Useful Writing Resources II

Resources For Writing Sketchy Topics

Resources For Worldbuilding

Resources For Plot Development

Resources For Creating Characters

Mimicking Diversity In Science Fiction/Fantasy

Writing About Another Era

On Making Scenes/Characters Unpredictable

Info-dumping

Writing About Uncomfortable Topics

Support Wordsnstuff!

FIND MORE ON WORDSNSTUFFBLOG.COM

If you enjoy my blog and wish for it to continue being updated frequently and for me to continue putting my energy toward answering your questions, please consider Buying Me A Coffee, or pledging your support on Patreon.

Request Resources, Tips, Playlists, or Prompt Lists

Instagram // Twitter //Facebook //#wordsnstuff

FAQ //monthly writing challenges // Masterlist

MY CURRENT WORK IN PROGRESS (Check it out, it’s pretty cool. At least I think it is.)

Studyblr || Studygram

Check out my YouTube Channel!

4K notes · View notes

deadly-cipher · 4 years

Text

Dear Alternative Community Gatekeepers, Stop

Alternative is not a label which you can give to one 'group' of people. alternatives are non conformists who have no social group. you cant recognise an alternative person by what they wear or look like, so dont try to. they dont all wear the same clothes (like moshers, chavs, goths, indies or any other group of people who try to be individual but all seem to like the same stuff, wear the same clothes and only listen to music which their friends like). alternative people enjoy listening to whatever the hell they like, because they dont just like one type of music, they may just enjoy music on a whole, or it may just depend what kind of a mood they are in to what kind of music they listen too at that time. although this term is based around mysic it also applys to clothes as i said above many groups try to all wear the same stuff in order to fit in, alternatives wear whatever they like, if its designer, and they like it, they will wear it. if its got the name of a band on, and they like it, they will wear it. if there is a song which is by slipnot, and they like it, they will listen to it. if there is a song, which is by eminem, they will listen too it. Punk is not about a certain hair colour, style, or music, although music does take a large part in most punks lives. Punk is about liking what you like, being yourself, saying what you think and FUCK ALL THE REST. You don't need a two foot high red mohawk to be a punk, although that is wicked cool. You don't need sleeves, a backpiece, or any tattoos at all to be punk. You don't need a Misfits, Casualties, Sex Pistols or any band like that jacket to be punk. You don't need anything to be punk except for awareness, self respect, respect for others and an open mind. A Goth is someone who sees beauty in the dark side of life. Today's society is focused on negating darkness because it is associated with evil. Think about it - in almost every fairy tale, who is the antagonist? The brunette. Who is the protagonist? The blonde. Dark is evil, evil is bad, and therefore we should wipe all trace of it from our lives. Unfortunately, that's simply not possible. No matter how hard society tries, people still die. Day turns into night. Love becomes loss. It's a fact of life. So while everyone else is denying an entire half of life, the Goths embrace ALL of life, good and bad. Goths understand that the best and most lasting joy is tinged with a little sadness, and that all love is bittersweet. Goths understand that not everybody has to be happy 24/7, and that the way to succeed is not by pretending you are. Sunlit skies are beautiful, yes, but so are dark cloudy ones. What is white without black? What is a rose without thorns? Thus, by embracing the shadows as well as the sun, Goths are, in many cases, actually more emotionally healthy than those in mainstream society. Emo is an emotional person. They are not depressed all the time and some are acually very happy at times. They do smile, they don't sit in a corner crying all day. Some are actually quite popular and laugh and joke around lots. NB: Emo does not mean the person cuts themselves, they might but that is not why they're emo. The word "scene" coves a large spectrum throughout recent history, but its most modern definition is used to describe certian subcultures and movements. The most notoriously famous and targeted is the alternative music scene, or more specifically, branches of the alternative music scene such as hardcore, indie, fashoionxcore, etc. A breed of scenesters (people on the scene) has begun to come to the forefront. These scenesters are usually very music-savvy and loyal to a few specific genres (typically hardcore, metal, indie, retro, 80's new wave, classic rock, etc. to name a few), of which they dress to exemplify. It is hard to pin down a style for a scene male or female, considering the trends amongst them vary from coast to coast, and certian fads come in and out within their ranks. Typically, though, many scene kids will have facial piercings, tattoos, and longer hair. It is not unusual to see teased hair with long bangs on males, or short fauxhawks (a mohawk without the sides shaved, a fashion-friendly version) on females. It is almost a throwback to the revolution of Britian's glam era, very androgynous and fresh. Scenesters take a lot of pride in their overall image, and often they appreciate shock value. Oftentimes they are thrifty, employing their abilities as bargian-hunters and do-it-yourself gurus to do something unique with their style. Large vintage sunglasses, retro patterns, tight jeans, classic metal/band tees, plastic jewelry, and heavy eye makeup are just some of the incorperations into scene style for either sex. This style and showmanship is at its height during shows (concerts), where often scene kids will meet their friends and size up strangers who visit their turf. There indeed is competition among scenesters...sometimes friendly, sometimes not. Shows are in fact not just concerts, but often a means of socialization for those on the scene. Those people who partake in scene lifestyle often choose to date/socialize only with those like them, which can cause bitterness or rejection to outsiders. The music scene is often associated with other areas that scenesters are interested in, which is liekely, art, photography, creative writing, poetry, tattoos & piercings, civil rights, animal rights, etc. Many scene kids have strong beliefs about these things and consider those who do not to be "posers." They feel that their scene style is not only a fashion statement, but an all-encompassing lifestyle. Many scene kids incorperate their future plans into their lifestyle, going into careers such as journalism, photography, artistry, piercing, tattooing, working for magazines, being musicians, hairstylists, running venues and/or coffee shops, etc. This tends to cause scene kids to congregate, visit, or even move to big cities to find opportunities to meet other scenesters, find jobs that suit them, or to live where they have a plethora of activities that they enjoy readily at their disposal. Recently internet revolutions like myspace.com have provided a new means for the ideas of scene culture to be spead, for scenesters to find new friends, bands, and activities. Scensters design stylish and graphic profile pages to both draw attention to themselves and to find others like them, and many people have joined up with the scene fad due to internet advertising. The downside of many scene atmospheres is that some scene kids tend to develop a superior mentality. Some who are especially popular and affluent can make it harder for the younger, yet-aspiring scenesters to join in with the subculture. This is not always the case, however. Different areas breed different demographics of scene kids. Perhaps part of their attitude comes from the problem that scenesters have begun to feel threatened about their culture being jeopardized because of a sort of trickle down effect. The internet is permitting easy access for anyone who would want to don scene-esque style and jump right in to a culture that scenesters feel they have built from the ground up and developed into a complex lifestyle. However, this lends many to get caught up in popularity contests in local areas as well as on the world wide web. Unfortunately, this can also lead to rifts in scenes. Groups of hardcore scenesters start "crews," often characterized by fierce brotherhood to the point of violence against others who are unlike them or who are in other crews. The scene is dividing amongst itself, due to purists who feel the scene is about music only, and those who have taken the scene fashion to be almost, if not equally, as important as the music itself. Some of the fashionable scenesters stick to their musical roots, but often due to the aforementioned trickle-down effect, there are people joining the scene who are not interested in the music, but are only in it for the attention. Thus, the scene will continue to divide. Whether they will admit it or not, kids interested in this lifestyle of excitement, concerts, body modification, fashion, and overall alluringly unusual aesthetics will continually be labeled as "scene." They chose an alternative path because they wanted to find acceptance elsewhere. Now, they face a community just like any other: one of all different types of people, who have different opinions and standards. It has its pros and cons, ups and downs, just like any lifestyle does. A metalhead is somebody who loves heavy metal. Don't always have the "look". And it's not even necessary to listen to just the classic metal bands, you can listen to the subgenres. You just have to appreciate the genre as a whole. The term: Short for independent rock. In terms of music it would be independent of major labels/mainstream stuff. History: grew out from 60s garage, 70s punk, and 80s post punk it started in the mid 80s as alternative/college radio music. Once nirvana hit big the alternative genre split: the popular side was just alternative(Smashing Pumpkins, Hole, No Doubt, etc.) and the other half that wasn't mainstream(by choice or not) became indie rock(Pavement, Sebadoh, Built To Spill, etc). Some bands have signed to major labels but are still considered indie(Modest Mouse, etc.). Go figure. Sound: In the begining indie sounded like alternative(because it was) but it grew more experimental and weird. In Britain indie has more of a typical sound like Radiohead, Muse, etc. rather than a definition based on 'the scene.' The scene: if you really think all indie kids do is try to be cooler than other people then... well.. you're mostly right.

#alt #alternative #alternative community #gatekeeping #gatekeeper #alternative community gatekeepers #alt gatekeeping #alt gatekeeper #punk #goth #emo #scene #indie #metalhead #stop gatekeeping

15 notes · View notes

fmdxyoungjoo · 4 years

Text

Interview 1 : Our Songs

Premise: the first interview that joo does in our songs word count: 951 words a/n: joo being shocked and confused and highly muddled over some pple appearing because..of things. Mentions of ash/taeyong, suji

saying that she was shocked from the moment she stepped into the studio was perhaps not one of the biggest understatements of the century when it came to youngjoo coming to participate in our songs. she’s still stunned at the appearance of ash in the studio, carrying with her that vaguely dumbstruck aura with her as she’s guided away for her first interview for the show.

What are your opinions of all of the other competitors? What did you think of what you got to see of their audition cover videos?

it takes more than just a little time for her to recover from her surprise, though years of experience have given her more than enough energy and wise ideas on playing it off as simply thoughtful thinking rather than just completely spacing out after a question is asked.

“ah..my opinions?” she wonders if others had anything good to fractionally say about her, since there was pretty much nothing special in that whole cover video that she did that stood out in particular to her own eyes when she watched her cover alongside others. “there’s so many cool and good singers around.” her voice is soft and quiet as she lowers its timbre, a little abashed at the useless and yet apparent answer that she had given. everyone in the show were idols so how could they not sing well? wasn’t that just a useless answer she had given? not being on variety for a bit too long made her mother than just a little nervous, her brows practically knitting together in worry as she blinked. “i actually love in particular the cover video that suji made of knight’s love shot.” the thought of the younger song writer made her lips curve up ever so slightly as she mentioned the cover of the idol boy group song that the other girl had made. “i think it was pretty different from the way that you’d mostly hear or even think what most people would select as a cover song. the other one is as--” she nearly speaks his name aloud, swallowing back her words as she reverts clamps up for a moment, trying to revert to the unfamiliarity that she was supposed to have with the other artists around her. “taeyong.” she offers up a natural smile as she brushes back her hair from her face. “for taeyong--i kinda expect him to have sung something akin or similar to what he actually covered. because it was so close to all the songs that he’d produced before, even if it was a remix, hence it wasn’t much of a surprise as compared to suji’s different interpretation of a poppy boy group song.”

Now that you’ve met your competitors, who are you most afraid to compete against?

“me?” she blinks rather in surprise at the suggestion at being afraid to compete against a particular individual that she had to single out. “if its production and lyricism, i think it would be taeyong. he’s had the most experience with regards to sentimentality when it comes to the lyrics of his songs, or even the production and composition that he does for his albums. that experience itself might even be the biggest hurtle for me as a competitor to overcome, just as it might be a beneficial one, since I’ve had considerably lesser experience in writing lyrics and composing songs for other artists.” she laughed a little shyly. “i think mostly out of everyone in the group, i’ve had the least experience in composing, production and lyrics. even to some of my juniors like suji, they’ve written much more songs and had much more experiences than i’ve ever had.” she paused for a moment, laughing at the thought. “so i guess you could say that i’m expecting myself to literally not be on anyone’s list at the moment as someone that’s worthy of being a competitor? but yes, i’m honestly terrified of competing against them all, since they’ve got so much more experience gathered as a whole compared to my own.”

What strength do you have that will make you stand out from your competitors?

“ah..i think that would be composition?” she raises the end of her sentence with what seemed like a question mark. “because i’ve been writing a lot of compositions for a long while running, so while i may lose out to others in terms of lyrics and production, i think composition is definitely something that might make me stand out? especially when it comes to the genre of slower songs or ballad songs. my musical style is very acoustic, and so like wise that tends to bleed into my compositions and songs as well, though i’ve been trying to branch out in different ways as well.”

What are your immediate thoughts on how you plan to approach your first task?

“i simply plan to enjoy myself.” embarrassed laughter falls from her lips as soon as she mentions what her attitude is on approaching the first task. “because i’m not good at all as compared to the other competitors on the whole show, i think this is a good place for me to really delve into my own artistic and music form, as well as learn to experiment and gather experience from the other artists around me that have learned more than i have through physical experience of writing these songs. a competitive space might also spur me to do better in my compositions and writings, since this is a place where its absolutely necessary for me to do well and put in at least a 150% of my effort, rather than just letting things drift by and be rather blase about it.”

#fmdos1 #||CAREER**❆ shining like diamonds in the skies #((wc: 951 words ))#((+1 point))

8 notes · View notes

theanimeview · 4 years

Text

My Interpretation of Blackbird by Junji Ito

By: Casea Mhtar | @madamekrow

Mature Content Warning: This post contains content that we at The Anime View do not think is suitable for everyone. The genre of the work being reviewed is Horror. Possible triggers or subjects could include severe mental illness and suicide. By clicking "Keep Reading," you understand that you may encounter such content. Viewer/reader discretion is advised.

Do you feel the cool winds as they blow through the trees? Do you hear the fallen leaves rolling down the street, scraping against the sidewalk as you pass by? Do you notice the air of gloom hovering over you even on a bright and sunny day? We are now in the throws of Autumn, as we creep closer and closer to Halloween. I hope you’re as excited as I am, because for today’s post I will be delving into a story by Junji Ito, who is also known as Japan’s Master of Horror. I feel he needs no more introduction than that, since one google search will immediately prove why he has such an honorable title.

The one I will be discussing is from Fragments of Horror, a manga of short stories. He created this manga after an 8 year hiatus and it certainly appears that he was rusty in terms of storytelling. Generally, this manga has been received as being rather subpar in comparison with his other works. Which is why I chose this story from Fragments of Horror, the only one that stuck with me even years after I had finished reading the book. It often gets overlooked, making it all the more enticing to shine a light on it.

Blackbird

Kume is out birdwatching, the first time he’s done so in a long while, when he hears someone calling out to him. It’s a stranger lying on the ground, pleading for help. This man gets carried away to the hospital on a stretcher as Kume follows behind. When speaking with the doctor we learn that this man, Shiro Moriguchi, had a terrible fall resulting in both of his legs being broken. Not only that, but he also doesn’t have any family or friends to call, and is unemployed. They all wonder how he survived that long and with a stutter, he explains that he rationed whatever food he had in his backpack.

Later, he begs Kume to stay the night with him and he agrees with mild concern. Moriguchi continues to open up about not having anyone in his life. In fact he never knew his family, expressing that he grew up in an orphanage. Kume replies, “You can talk to me about your troubles. We have a connection now.” before turning over and the two going to sleep for the night.

Kume is awakened by a strange noise, immediately disturbed by the sight of a woman shrouded in shadow on top of Moriguchi, kissing him. She slips off of Shiro, walks to Kume and smiles directly in his face, then proceeds to calmly walk out of the hospital room. Moriguchi spits out a lump of raw meat and begins to panic that she has come back. Kume asks for more information and Moriguchi confesses to him what really happened during those four weeks of being injured and destitute, how he was truly able to survive. Seven days after his fall, he was running low on food when that woman appeared with her cheeks full, chewing and chewing. She kissed him, pushing raw meat into his mouth as it sizzled on his starving tongue. Leaving without a word, only to return the next day. This time, her kiss produced warm blood to quench his thirst. She is the one that kept him alive during that time, but he no longer needs her help. In fact, the meat lost its delicious taste, and he is left feeling as though he shouldn’t be eating it at all. Moriguchi was terrified, so Kume decided to stay with him another night in the hospital.

Once again, Kume was awakened by the woman feeding Shiro in the middle of the night. Immediately, Moriguchi spits out an eyeball from his mouth while the mysterious woman chuckles and leaves. Kume decides to follow her through the halls and out of the hospital. But right as he touches her shoulder, she turns into a large, black bird and flies off into the darkness.

The following morning they choose to alert the authorities, though they leave out the details of her flying into the night. Without the authorities present, Shiro panics about her being some kind of bird monster. Confessing that when he was an infant, he was abandoned in the corner of a park, alone for about a week or so. It’s a miracle that he survived, making him wonder if she was feeding him then as well, as though he is her chick.

Detectives show up the following day, revealing that the eyeball and meat are both of human origin and from the same person. Shiro and Kume are questioned, but can only answer what they know. This leaves the detectives without much to go on and with no way of knowing who the flesh and eyeball came from. But the woman hadn’t returned since Kume saw her fly away.

At a train station, Kume congratulates Shiro on his full recovery. He asks if Shiro has plans to find a job in Tokyo, expressing that it’s a shame he doesn’t stay since he could introduce him to people he knows. Moriguchi is thankful for the offer but declines, saying that he feels he needs to start anew someplace else in order to escape the shadow of that woman. Though, when Shiro’s train leaves the station, Kume sees a large black bird following behind it. He eventually receives a postcard from Shiro, not hearing anything about the bird woman, in fact he seems to be doing just fine! This allows Kume to brush off what he saw as being a kite or an eagle.

Three years later, Shiro Moriguchi was found dead in a frozen crater on the summit of Mount Fuji. They also discover that the meat and eyeball from earlier matched his own DNA, meaning that during the time of his horrible fall, Moriguchi was being fed the flesh and blood of his future self. His belongings were found near his corpse, including his journal with the details of what had happened in his last few days of being alive and frightened. She entered his locked apartment and started taking bite after bite of his flesh. He tried to move overseas, but she quickly found him and flew him to the summit of Mount Fuji. Cold, distressed, and alone, he passed away.

It appears to be winter as Kume goes out birdwatching in the forest again, thinking about the findings after Moriguchi’s mysterious death; When he hears something rustling in the tree near by. He turns around, startled by the bird woman, perched on a tree branch above him. Kume steps back, and with no more ground left, he falls down a cliff and breaks his leg. She readily flies down with her cheeks full. She feeds Kume mouth-to-mouth, as he notes its unpleasant taste.

My interpretation

I had an entire post planned out, depicting all sorts of theories I came up with. I investigated the kanji of their names, the meanings, what the backstory could be, even speculating how this bird woman functions based on my findings...

Until I admitted myself into a mental hospital, staying there for seven days and seven nights. It allowed me to look at this story in a different way. I’m sure my interpretation isn’t truly what it’s about, nonetheless this is what it personally means to me.

It appears to me like the Blackbird is the embodiment of Depression as she only comes to Moriguchi when he is most isolated and defenseless. Technically, since Shiro was being fed meat from his future self, he was the one keeping himself alive. Much like depression, there are times where we can get ourselves through completely on our own, but it comes at the cost of our own lifespan. People with severe mental illness, such as Bipolar or Depression, have a life expectancy of 10 to 25 years less than people without mental illness. Yes, that does include suicide, however this premature mortality is mostly cause by physical chronic medical conditions. People with severe mental illness often don’t get the proper care that they need, as their mental health deteriorates their physical health. I believe Shrio Moriguchi partly expresses these facts. He received wonderful care for his injured legs, but he didn’t get the treatment he needed for his Depression. This resulted in his physical debilitation and mental decline.

Then we have Kume, he was finally able to scare off the Blackbird for some time, as he was Shiro’s only support system. However, Moriguchi continued to distance himself, allowing the Depression to creep in once more. Why did the Blackbird target Kume? Well, relying on one person to be there for you, night after night as the lady shrouded in darkness overcomes you. That person being the only one you entrust with your woes and traumas. They are the only one you depend on to help stave off your Depression. Imagine that person, waiting to read your letters or postcards, making sure that you are okay, only to later find out that you did not survive. You have been taken by the Blackbird, your Depression. That can severely impact someone’s mental health. That is why it’s important to have a support system of not only friends and family (of origin or otherwise), but also of medical professionals that you trust. Kume did his best to be there for Moriguchi, even offering to introduce him to more people, which would allow Shiro to build up a support system. However, Moriguchi did what he thought would be best, resulting in him inadvertently isolating himself further and further into the Blackbird’s grasp. Even in his time of desperation he turned to old habits of writing in his journal, pleading for help in those pages without the intention of reaching out as well. Being trapped in an icy cold hollow atop Mount Fuji is the perfect representation of his severe isolation.

I know this all too well, the devastation your loved one feels as they watch you deteriorate. You fall deeper and deeper into dysfunction, while they are helpless to do much more than to hold your hand through the nightly crises. Kume was there for Moriguchi, accepting all of his issues and willing to confront the Blackbird, even keeping it from coming back for some time. He was open and ready to carry some of the crushing weight that Shiro had been burdened with his entire life. Thus, falling victim to the debilitating gravity of Depression that Moriguchi could no longer cope with. Falling prey to the Blackbird chewing away at his future self. Little by little, bite by bite; Depression can take days, even years off your life.

Yes, my interpretation is rather… depressing. But I do believe it is important to recognize your unhealthy patterns, the patterns that detail your decline. In addition to reaching out for help when you feel yourself isolating further into the harsh depths of your inner turmoil. Not only that, but it’s spooky week! What is possibly more terrifying than confronting the realities of your mental illness?

Happy Halloween!

Of course I wouldn’t just leave you hanging like that! Here are some links for more information on not only how to reach out, but also what kind of help you can expect in terms of calling a suicide hotline or hospitalization. As well as what type of therapy might be better for you and what your options are if you can’t afford it:

10 Ways to Reach Out in a Mental Health Crisis

Here's What Happens When You Call Into A Suicide Prevention Hotline

What Happens When You Are Hospitalized For Depression?

4 Differences Between Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavior Therapy and How to Tell Which is Right For You

What To Do If You Can't Afford Therapy, According To An Expert

#Junji Ito #Ito #Fragments of Horror #Horror #Blackbird #Analysis

2 notes · View notes

kpopisthereasonihavenolife · 5 years

Text

Blight | II

BTS

Jeon Jungkook/Reader [F]

Genre: Dragon/Shapeshifter AU, Magic AU, Enemies to Lovers

Words: 7k

@tamedandscripted @syubcandy @cencoroil @kathrynwynterbourne @fireflower90 @bluegreenguppyfish @queen-pharaoh-hatshepsut @mygukandonly

Jungkook wasn’t sure how long he’ been here. Resting alone in silence in his secret place. It wasn’t like some sort of fort of anything, no. Where he was was a beautiful section of flourishing forest.

It was a hidden area, a secluded patch of land. One had to find a cavern entrance that hid behind thick hydrangea bushes to even begin to search for it. Even then, finding the hydrangeas was a feat. The cavern was hundreds of miles underground. It was secluded and any possibility of it ever being discovered by anyone other than Jungkook was a rare chance. Man would never set foot here so help him.

A far off, desolate cliff in the middle of a mountain range untouched by man. A rare feat. A long flight up to the near peak of a mountain. Find the large, wide hydrangea covered rock area and with them behind the vines is an opening.

Going through that opening and traveling through the rocky, vine-covered cavern walls the cavern opens. A giant hole, leading straight down into God knows where. No human would ever try and explore, and if they did, they would for sure lose their life. It was far too deep and far too dark. However, if one ever got down the entire trip that traveled the entire mountain and below the ground, they would come into a clearing. A clearing leading into a vast, almost completely different world.

Enchanting was the only word to explain it. A magical place, a lake an entire ecosystem were thriving inside this mountain. Hydrangeas sprouting in mass with all sorts of wildflowers growing by its side. Trees wept with green, low hanging branches and vines. Water flowed in a strong, brilliant waterfall in the side the of the rocky cavern, most likely from a lake or body of water on the surface. A crystal lake sits beneath, capturing the mirror-like water. This lake had healing properties Jungkook had discovered in one of his many trips here. Just standing in the water could heal any injury. Finally, floating orbs of soft, yellow and blue lights kept the ‘jungle’ lit and navigatable.

This place must have been crafted long ago by magicians: witches and warlocks. There was no other way to explain the flourish so far beneath the ground. As well as the inscriptions on some cavern walls and glyphs that so depict an ancient civilization with ‘God’s Gifted Ones’.

The other piece of evidence was a large rock island in the middle of the lake. It was jagged and uneven but it had arches of rock and covered in vines that bloomed in deep, crimson flowers he couldn’t name. The arches were incomplete, the very tops of them open and staggered like a ray of magic just shot through them. Underneath the open arches was a single throne of rock. Uncomfortable looking though it may be, the carving among it makes it seem like a seat for royalty. He’s never sat there, and something in his blood demands that he never does.

This place was the only thing Spellcasters had his respect for.

Jungkook sat in a small space he liked to call his own as he looked around. He wasn’t the only living thing down here, no not at all. There were small creatures and animals that resided down here in harmony. Almost all herbivores he’s gathered as the only remains he’s ever found were caused by nature and time; not by some sort of predator.

He lay on his back, his hands clasped behind his head and one of his legs propped up on his foot as he looked up at the trees above him. The weeping willow blew in the small constant draft that seemed to circle endlessly around the cavern. It gave a nice, gentle chill. For a hot-blooded, fire breathing, mobile furnace, the breeze cooled him and made him relax.

If he closed his eyes long enough, he would think he heard bells in the distance, but knew it was only his mind adding onto the soft atmosphere this place gave him.

Here, he was free. He was a free man. Not roped into classes and exams to ‘hone his abilities’. He wasn’t stuck in the same boring lecture cycle of Masters and how he would need to valiantly and obediently follow his one day. He wasn’t just some jock who needed to keep his team strong and never lose, lest he gets ridiculed.

He was just himself. He was just Jungkook.

Jungkook had never found a place so calming once he left home. At home, it was his mother that warmed his breast and made him smile. She loved him so, but once she lost her life, the candle she kept within her was snuffed out. Taking all the light and warmth with it. Jungkook was lost for a time. His mother gone, his father always a way for business and no siblings to try and connect with.

Then he met Jimin. Jimin ran into him when accidentally running into one of his living room glass doors that lead out into his yard. He had been so distracted in chasing a shadow cat that he ran smack dab into the glass in his dog form. Jungkook, startled into showing his horns and scales, watched as the dog changed into the form of a small boy not much older than himself.

Somehow, after that, a friendship bloomed and Jungkook almost felt warm again. He and Jimin stuck together and eventually were both able to get into the main academy of Hearst. However, they didn’t plan on being Ranked the same and pinned as classmates both in their first year and now, yet it was a minor chance of luck that Jungkook wouldn’t refuse.

Yet, even with Jimin, the warmth wasn’t the same as it used to be like as his time as a small child. So, he would explore every chance he got. Transforming and flying miles upon miles away just to find something, anything to help the void in his chest. The hole in which his mother’s death forged so long ago. Then, he found it in this place.

He couldn’t remember exactly when or how he found this wonderful world of his own, but he didn’t care. He found it, and it was his and he couldn’t be warmer.

Somewhere along his visit, he drifted off. He didn’t know when but when he woke up, his arms that stayed under his head were nearly numb. He sat up and let the tingling pins and needles of his blood rush back into his arms and hands. He sat looking around. He could never tell the time of day in this place, that’s a given. Yet, he decided it time to go once again.

Working his way out from under trees and into a clearing he lept into the air and took off upwards with his wings that tore from his back. Up the long drop that seemed to get shorter with each visit and out the cavern into the hydrangeas before soring into the sky of outside. It was dusk. The sun setting with each ticking moment below the horizon, kissing the daytime farewell until morning. It was a beautiful view, yet a view that no longer captured Jungkook’s jaded perception.

He moved above the clouds until his nose picked up the scent of the school ground and soon descended onto the rooftop of the main building. It was always much easier making a landing on the roofs than into the fields or courts. Less chance of conflict.

His feet touched the hard roof and breathed a content breath. He made his way down and into his building where he went to his locker to retrieve the shirt he discarded and replaced it on his chest. Now fully dressed, he was lucky not to be caught and stopped by some random person who would definitely scream about some ‘nudist’ on campus. It’s happened before and it was not fun.

He was finishing up grabbing whatever he needed for tomorrow’s academic courses when he heard a group of B Ranks who had just come from the upper floors, ready to leave for the day. Jungkook ignored them as they soon passed and Jungkook slammed his locker shut. They were talking about the Spellcaster Exams happening tomorrow. They were to perform trail tests and magical limits to see if they were qualified for a Familiar.

“Fuckin’ Spellcasters,” he murmured as he too left the building and soon the campus to his own dorm.

XXX

The dorms were not laid out in any sort of system like the school itself. Many students of different species and ranks lived among each other as neighbors or even roommates. Had it not been for Yoongi needing a roommate and purposely waiting for you to enroll, you would’ve probably roomed with a Spirit, given a choice.

Currently, you were sat on the floor, nursing a bag of your newly owned chips - that Yoongi got as promised - completely drowning in worry. The exams were tomorrow, just hours away and you swore you could tear your hair out. You stared at the ceiling as your head was kicked back while your back rested against the foot of your shared couch with Yoongi in the main room.

Said warlock had just leaned over the couch, catching your attention and making you crane your neck further back to an uncomfortable position and also drawing a headache to the surface.

“You really shouldn’t worry. It’s not that difficult of an exam and it’s held twice a year. You have way more than one shot going forward.”

“Easy for you to say, you’ve already passed. You just don’t attend the ceremony to actually get a Familiar.”

“Well, yeah. Why would I do that when I can pick my own partner on my own terms?”

You groaned and rolled your eyes. “Yes, I get it. You’re super advanced, rub it in why don’t you.”

Yoongi just shook his head at your pessimistic attitude. Honestly, if he told the truth, he knew you had nothing to worry about. You had magic storing down to a T and your ability to maintain and manage your magic was outstanding for a C Rank. It was whether or not your execution of said magic would go as planned. You, one might say, were a nervous test taker.

Yoongi rounded the couch, sitting on the cousin behind your head as you had taken to pushing your cheek against his knee. He hovered his fingers above your head as the magic that gently came from them made your hair dance like static. You were always emotional around exams or ceremonies, but he supposed in your situation that you had every right to be.

“Would you feel better if I waited outside the exam hall? Results won’t be posted until the next morning. We can go to that lame, gross ‘asethetic’ diner you like so much.” You rolled your eyes as you contemplated actually biting his knee.

“That ‘lame, gross ‘asethetic’ diner’ makes me warm and fuzzy so shush your mouth you Dark Wizard.” He tapped on your head, a bit reprimanded. You strictly knew wizards were half-breeds between humans and magic users, a rare breed to be sure. “Besides, when exams are over, we still have academic courses.” Yoongi rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, but they aren’t mandatory.”

“I’m not ditching class, Yoongi.” He sighed as you and he got quiet. Sitting in silence he knew the reason you were worried. He just didn’t know how to phrase it without making your mood any worse. Though, it wouldn’t hurt, would it? It was already floating around in your head, drilling into every corner of your thoughts like a nonstop drill with rechargeable batteries.

“Y/n,” he started, voice uncertain, “are you worried about your dad again?” You were silent, still and unresponsive. Perhaps you fell asleep? You’ve don’t so before. However, you soon nodded. “Don’t worry about it,” he thought that might be the case.

Your father wasn’t the most generous man on the face of the planet. A big name for himself in your family history and hardly any people even knew he even had a daughter.

Growing up he was earning awards and making headlines left and right and featured in reports and newspapers frequently. Succeeding in classes of all kinds, magical or not and gaining his Familiar in his first year right off the bat when he entered and enrolled in Heart Academy for the Wicked and Supernatural.

That Familiar ended up being your mother.

Your mother lost her life when you were born. It was normal, well as normal as being born a Spellcaster can be.

Spellcasters almost always end up stealing the life of their mothers upon birth. The magic gathered and stored into their small, infant bodies only obtained their powers from their mother’s life. They took the life energy from their carriers and converted it into magic to store and released that magic when they are born. The only way to slimly avoid death is by C-sections, but it’s risky. There’s always a chance that both parties would lose their life if the doctor is too unskilled.

Once a Spellcaster, witch or warlock or even half-breed wizard, is born the father is either pulled in one direction of the other. They are either completely overprotective and shelter their children until they can’t possibly shelter them any longer. Or, they reject them absolutely.

Your father rejected you. Absolutely.

Yoongi has known you since childhood, and he’s seen the way in which your father completely overlooks you and your presence as a whole. It wasn’t unnatural to guess your father grew up into a wealthy man, so the house was filled with staff that was directly in charge of raising you. You were raised by interchangeable faces and fake gestures all because you were ‘the bosses daughter’. The only plus was Yoongi’s companionship and friendship.

His father was loving to him. Waiting on him hand and foot until middle school when Yoongi was able to sit down and talk with him, telling him to back off and not to treat him like a fragile doll, but a person. LIke his son, and his father listened to him. Maybe it was because he was a boy, or maybe it was because his father accepted him from the beginning, you weren’t quite sure.

That’s why you always tried so hard. Whether it be in class, working on book smarts or building your magical properties. Why you pushed so hard for a Familiar. If you were to gain a Familiar, maybe he would finally notice you and all your potential you could build from now into the future.

Yoongi just pat your head and reached forward into the bag of chips to grab one and force it between your lips. The salt stung slightly as you scowled at him. He just messed up your hair before he stood up, making your body roll to the side and now lay on the ground.

“It’ll be fine. Don’t worry about a 6-foot tall demon when you have me.”

“You’re literally 179 centimeters. You’re a single inch off of 6 foot.”

“That, my dear friend, is what makes me so much better. I’m an inch smaller for travel convenience.” You rolled your eyes as you watched Yoongi trot off into the kitchen, hearing clunking and removal of pots and plates from cabinets thereafter.

The rest of that night, Yoongi made it a top priority to keep your mind off the exam and most importantly your father. Throwing jokes, starting little skirmishes and even dabbled on the idea of getting you drunk so you could just puke and go to bed. However, he took a miss on the alcohol, you did have a test in the morning. Hangovers don’t work out for the brain and magic. You could very well make something blow up if you're too hungover.

It was 11 when you finally crashed. Spending so much energy just dealing with the back to back objects and tasks Yoongi threw at you. Yoongi nodded in satisfaction before maneuvering you to throw you over his shoulder. You know, like real friends do.

Marching to your room with your body folded over his shoulder, utterly unconscious for the night, he moved into your room where he blew his lips and a small puff of light floated around to light the room. There was a chance if he flipped the light switch on, you’d wake up and proceed to yell at him for carrying you like he was, a fact he knew you weren’t fond of. The light, though small, was bright enough to show the path to your bed without running into anything or tripping on the journey from your door.

It was a mystery, how your den and your bedroom had polar opposite vibes. Your den, as he knew, was dark and felt like a cave when one stepped inside. However, your bedroom was like how he could only imagine a child felt walking into a damn Build-A-Build store. It was bright, and resemble your white magic specialization to a T. Pastels from coral, to teal and even a nice shade of grey specked your room in the form of books or knick-knacks.

Though, Yoongi wouldn’t say he disliked it. His room resembled a monochromatic museum, that was just his style. However, he would like to camp in your room with you if he ever needed a spark of color to lift a bad mood he felt on the horizon of his mind.

He carefully rolled you off his shoulder and put you, rather sloppily into bed. Laying you sideways and having your feet hang off the edge of the mattress, but he couldn’t be bothered. You were on the bed with no way of falling off unless you decided to fight in a war in the 6 hours you were going to be asleep. He tossed your comforter over you and stretched his back.

You may be smaller than he is, and he may be a man, but that doesn’t make you any less heavy than the scale you complain about every morning. I mean come on, the average weight for someone like you wasn’t something to get bent out of shape about. Yet, it was often times he’d see you shove down rabbit food in the form of salads and greens before turning around and enjoying those chips you devour each chance you get. Thus, prompting him to poke fun at you.

He turned to look into the mirror you had in your room. It was large and wide as it sat upon your rather magnificent vanity. The same vanity that Yoongi’s father and he helped pick out for you on your 18th birthday. That was probably the first time Yoongi saw you actually cry in joy at something most girls had at the age of 13. He smiled as he recalled the memory before he whistled lowly and the orb of light faded out.

He followed the light from the hall that leaked in through the doorway to work his way out, one against without stumbling and took one final look back at you. He smiled as he lifted his hand and created a small symbol. It resembled a pair of doors opening inwards, hardly noticeable and small enough to hide in his palm. He blew it out of his hand as it flitted over to you were it stuck your cheek.

Then, he quietly closed your bedroom door. He walked around the dorm and shut off all the lights and the TV before he retired to his own room. He was still going to go to the stupid diner with you, even if he didn’t exactly like the taste of anything in there. Min Yoongi was many things, but he wasn’t a liar. He promised to go with you, so he would.

You woke up the next morning to the sound of your alarm. Annoyed you swatted your wrist at it, some force flinging from your fingertips to knock the clock off your bedside nightstand and against the wall. Hearing the cracking of the cheap plastic, you lifted your head with squinted eyes before pushing your face back into the pillow. Now you’d have to buy a new one, knowing Yoongi would refuse to fix another alarm clock from you. This is the 7th alarm clock you’ve broken in the last 2 months alone after all.

Yet, none of that mattered as all you could think about is you had to get up. You had an exam today.

XXX

The morning trudged on as sparingly as you knew it would. Getting dressed was the only fast part of your morning, racing against time on getting ready in your exam gowns. It was a fundamental rule that when important eams rolled around, you were to where your school provided gowns. They were simple, the female design much different than the male.

The top was a black, almost violet undertone, fabric that ruffled and ran horizontally along your chest and hung below your shoulders around your bicep. A hood and low hanging scarf were attached loosely to the back of the ruffled patch behind you that you looped around your neck and sat among your breasts. The gown clung to your torso and the skirt divided at your thigh. A centerpiece almost resembled a thick, old fashioned loincloth, covered your front (although just barely) while the rest of your skirt was cut off and fluttered behind you at your ankles.

It was flattering and charming sure, and even you were quite taken with how it looked from a mundane standpoint, but it was so exposing. Walking around with it on, even if no one was around, made you feel too open. And, of course, you ran into Jungkook.

Yoongi was at your hip, glaring at any filthy minded warlock who tried to even think about peeping beneath your shoulders or down your legs. It was actually Jimin, who stood at Jungkook’s side (as per usual) that flagged you both down. It was a routine by now, one that Jungkook could frankly do without.

As you approached, clutching your spellbook to your front and keeping your eyes downcast, any other guy would probably see you as cute. Cheeks red at the unwanted attention and quiet disgusting cat-calls threw your way. You were quite the sight, much to Yoongi’s dismay. It was like people were hitting on his sister to his face.

“Wow! Your exam robes look really good on you Y/n! You look so pretty!” You rubbed your bare shoulder with a free hand as you only managed to keep eye contact with the friendly Hellhound for a moment before staring back at his shoes. Your own footwear was a pair of small, 3-inch, thick heels. Also a stupid requirement of this damn gown.

Jimin sensed your unease. Sure, you were embarrassed by your gowns, you usually were, but you always tried to play it out with being extremely boisterous or over the top. Overdramatic, so to speak. Today, though, you were different. You were quiet, clammed up and he could practically smell the anxiousness pouring out of you with his heightened senses.

He looked at Jungkook’s back; he had only glanced at you before he went back to swapping book in his locker to his bag. Maybe an unexpected compliment would cheer you up?

Jimin grabbed the back of Jungkook’s shirt, twisting him around and slammed his locker shut.

“What are you doing you-?!”

“Don’t you think Y/n looks nice?” He questioned. You ducked your head. You knew that Jimin only wanted to help cheer you up, the hound was always in tune with emotion. No doubt he could tell your overly dramatic depressed mood. Though, turning to Jungkook wasn’t the best option. You were absolutely certain that the insult that was bound to roll off the stupid dragon’s tongue would push you to tears.

You were too emotional this morning. Fuck hormones.

“Well?” Jimin pushed a Jungkook remained silent. He looked at you, but to him, you looked the same. So what if you were wearing different clothes? You were still you, the insufferable brat he’s put up with since he enrolled. But, even he could feel the dread coming from you. Jungkook wasn’t heartless.

“Jimin,” Yoongi starts, trying to avert a possible scene to keep you together, “It’s alright. We’ll just-”

“Yeah,” Jungkook interrupts. Yoongi looked at him, almost insulted he was interrupted. Jungkook just slung his bag over his shoulder as it rested on his back now. He stuffed his hands into his pockets as he slouched to a leg. The bangs that were separated off his forehead shook in the bounce he took to look at your smaller than usual form. “You look nice.”

Jimin and Yoongi for shocked, to say the least. Sure, Jimin wanted him to compliment you, but he didn’t actually think he would! Jimin broke into a smile and turned to you. He quickly grabbed your hand that still rubbed your naked shoulder. You snapped your head to him, cheeks still flushed as they seemed to lose their redness at Jimin’s over-enthusiastic form.

“See! Now, good luck on the tests! You’ll do great! The best B Rank witch ever!”

“That’s what I told her too!” Yoongi quips up to help lighten the mood. And before you knew it, you busted into laughter. You don’t know why you were laughing, you were still dreading the exam and you were still so nervous walking was a chore, but you felt better.

You turned to Yoongi after you pulled your hand from Jimin. “I’m ready to go now. Better rip the bandaid off, right?” He nodded as he slung his arm around your shoulder.

“That’s the spirit!”

You quickly turned to Jungkook, looking at him as he watched all of this happened in silence. He could’ve left, maybe he was hanging around waiting for Jimin. He did every other time. “Thanks,” you quietly say before Yoongi is dragging you off until you both are out of sight.

“You’re welcome,” he muttered completely to himself. Jimin looked at him.

“Did you say something?”

“I called her stupid.”

Jimin opened his mouth in astonishment. “Come on! You were just nice to her!”

“Yeah? Well, there’s a first for everything. I still don’t like her. Salem will still be on my ‘hate’ list, no matter what fancy garbs she puts on.” He spun on his heel, working his way to his first class. “Come on, we’ll be late.” Jimin ran behind him, catching up.

“We’ve been late before! Hold on!” Jungkook only sped up, leaving his best friend to run in a chase. Though Jimin easily caught up, he was a hound after all.

XXX

Yoongi sat in his class, watching the clock tick down second by second with a bouncing, impatiently knee. He sat slumped with his elbow on his desk as his palm supported his chin. Fingers tapping his cheek. He wasn’t even paying attention, frankly, he hadn’t been ever since he sat down. Once this class ended, you’d be out of your exams and he’d get to find out if you passed for the third attempt since your first year or not.

It was 14 minutes later when his class was dismissed and Yoongi literally just phased into a shadow. Hiding his body and zipping through the halls along the walls and ceilings. Traveling by shadows is the fastest, most efficient form of travel; at least for a dark warlock like himself who knows how to actually control it and now get stuck in the shadows like many have done before.

The tactic was much more complex than you would think. If not performed correctly, one could even suffocate within the shadows of something as small as a puppy.

He was down the halls, scaling stairs and zooming along the corridors of the outside courts before he quite literally flew out of a wall right next to the door of your classroom. Your class had already started filing out, the hoods of robes being flung down and some stupid, over appreciated jocks even flexing the pride that is their passing grade.

He waited at the doors until he peeked inside, still not seeing you exit. Perhaps he came just a split second too late? He leaned in the doorway to see you, standing in front of the professor as he spoke to you, waving his hands about. You nodded, talking back with him as Yoongi stepped inside. He was familiar with this professor anyways.

“Ah, Min Yoongi, what a pleasure,” the professor spoke. You turned around, flipping down the hood of your gown as he moved briskly to your side. Yoongi nodded to the teacher.

“Tihex,” he said. He had long dropped any title from instructors names. No Mr. Ms., or Professors for him. Just using their names. Some found it endearing, others not so much. Tihex didn’t really care though, he was a young professor and rather open-minded. Wanting to connect with each student of his in one way or another. Yoongi looked at you as he opened his mouth. “How’d you do?”

You blinked up at him as you then looked to Tihex. He smiled as he motioned to Yoongi basically telling you to tell Yoongi your scores. The way that scoring works is that throughout the exam, your given a slip of paper for your professor to mark points on. Whether to deduct or add on points. Another is the class ranking. On the wrist of each participant that passed the exams with high enough remarks and points were given a name stamped on their forearm. That number places what magical standpoint they are in their class. The Spellcaster with the number 1 on their forearm being the most excelling student as of the current standpoint.

You opened off your spellbook and handed Yoongi your point slip as he looked over the numbers. High marks all around. He smiled as you tilted your head in pride.

“These numbers are awesome!” He cheered, even stomping a little jig in excitement. “What rank did you get in class?” He was eager to know. Y, u however, didn’t even know that yet.

“I don’t know. I was about to be stamped when you came in.” The two of you looked to Tihex who was busy playing with his magic stamp. Customized with stickers and even a little bow, of course, the stamp wasn’t originally his and he did have to pay the school board a hefty price once he started slapping stickers on it.

He stuck out his hand to you. “May I finally place you in the ranks now, Miss L/n?” You nodded as you rolled up your sleeve and showed him your bare, blank forearm. Yoongi looked over your shoulder, forgetting the idea of seeing your face before he knew your number.

Professor Tihex took the back of your hand before he placed the stamp on you and with a small push, a puff of pink smoke and a few coughing fits later, he pulled the stamp away from you. There on your forearm was a pink, scripted 1.

Yoongi crashed into your back as he picked you up and flung you around, almost violently. This is all he wanted, you to succeed. He stopped shaking you around, yet he still held you off the floor, toes just brushing the tile as Tihex laughed.

“You two are like a pair of siblings.” Yoongi laughed as he felt you try to touch the ground, to which he lifted you higher. You had half a mind to place a weight spell on your body, but you knew he could counteract it with a relieving spell, so it would just be a waste of magic and time.

“We have a diner to go to!” He cheered. You grabbed his arms, panicking slightly as you raise your knees.

“Yoongi! No!” You felt him start to shift his body to travel in the shadows again, only this time, he’s taking you with him. “I’m still in my gowns!” Then, he sunk into the floor, taking you with him and zooming out, leaving Tihex wondering if he’d bring you back to finish your classes for the rest of the school day.

The ceremony for passing Spellcasters was 3 days later. Letters and messenger falcons (old school yes, but some folk refuses to conform to technology) were sent out to every parent of the successful students. Many showed to see their children come back with signs of a Familiar. Some whose child wasn’t shy even got to meet their child’s new Familiar’s first hand.

The robes for the ceremony were all the same style. As opposed to exam gowns that differ between the sexes, ceremonial gowns were all the same. A completely black get up for dark magic users and completely white for white magic users. Though there are some who dabble in both, they always lean more towards one than the other. Yours, of course, were pure white.

Long sleeves wide and rather comfortable. Fabric layered overcrossing over the chest and waist in diagonal cuts. Top piece cut into a square around the neck, and uncommon yet flattering attention to detail. The bottom was cut into pant sleeves, yet most certainly aren’t pants. They were large, fluttering and spacious. Though divided, they moved around your legs and feet like the skirt of a dress. Your hair was up, pushed into two thick hair ties, the handy work done by Yoongi himself. Finally, each student wore a numbered necklace of their rank. Yours was a golden 1 that rested on your chest.

You were gathered in a room with your fellow classmates, family and friends outside in the courts yards out front, holding small conversations here and there as well as taking congratulatory remarks for being top. The feeling still hadn’t sunk in yet that you passed. Now, here you were about to get your Familiar that has been chosen by fate.

Soon, a bell was chimed and each student went to their numbered chair. Chairs were lined in rows in the main building as the Spellcaster head professor stood on a small stage in front of a door leading to a private back room. The ceremony of Familiar and Master is entirely private, not even the professor may know unless the Master so chooses.

Interestingly enough, the order in which the students are called up to cast their spell and summon their familiar is from the bottom student to the top. So, you would be the final student to summon. Time ticked by, students going in and coming out with a neutral expression, some with mixed feelings and others practically dancing.

“Spellcaster 1,” the professor speaks and you stand, making your way to the stage door, white gown flicking your leather sandal covered feet. You stood in front of the door and took a shaky breath. “Good luck,” the professor spoke without even looking at you as you pushed the knob into the room down and stepped inside. You heard the door lock behind you as you looked around.

A summoning circle was in the middle of the room with a spellbook on an altar in the center. Open and bookmarked on the page in which the spell you needed was open and ready for reading. The room was flicking with floating, uneven orbs of light and it was dark. Black cloth hung from the ceiling covering the tiles from view as you stepped forward. You stopped in front of the altar and looked at the spell.

You knew this spell well, you had read and re-read it over and over again in hopes of one day finally being able to use it. Now was that time. You closed your eyes and took a breath, right before you opened your mouth and began to softly speak the incantation.

XXX

Jungkook was sat in his room in his dorm which he somehow got all to himself. He was a late student to apply for a dorm room, so he was stuck with the last option, a one-person dorm with a single room, bathroom and kitchen. He didn’t mind though, being on his own in his own space was actually preferred. He sat at his desk, typing up an essay he had due for a class when he was dozing off.

He was jerked awake and startled when he thought he heard someone mumbling behind him. Spinning around in his twisting-rolly chair, he nearly flung himself out of it. No one was there, there couldn’t be. Wouldn’t be. He lived in this dorm alone and even if someone got inside, he could hear them. Turning back to his computer he left with a long line of ‘kkkkkkk’ after he dosed with his finger on the key, he backspaced and jerked when he felt a jolt of electricity shoot through him.

Jungkook kicked up, pushing his chair behind him as he stepped away from his computer and looked around. His body felt light and heavy, stuck in an uncomfortable balance. It was like he was on the verge of getting drunk, yet still not there and haven’t taken any shots.

Another jolt of shock made him shout in annoyance as he felt himself phase between consciousness. He rubbed his eyes, blinking once then twice before his wrist began to burn.

Shrieking, he wasn’t used to the idea of burning, given he wasn’t supposed to feel heat. It stung as he looked at to what he could have possibly done or what to see what was happening. A small burn was etching into the skin of his wrist. Circling his wrist like a bracelet in red, angry, raised skin. The pain made his body shift.

Breaking into a mid-shift form, his wings tore through the fabric of his shirt and stayed folded against his back. His horns twisted from the crown of his head as the scales on his neck and cheeks felt chilled. His fangs bit into his lip as his golden eyes glowed and his slit pupils dilated.

The burn soon finished etching it’s tribal pattern and ignited. Jungkook shouted as he slapped at it, waving to put the random flames out. Oddly enough, the fire engulfed his hand, yet it was only his wrist that continued burn. Soon, the fire snuffed itself out and all that was left was a black, tribal tattoo around his wrist.

“What the hell?” He whispered, out of breath and confused. Voice shaking and looking around, he wondered if he was somehow hexed.

His eyes burned and watered as he rubbed at them. Blinking once and then twice, he looked up to find himself somewhere that was most definitely not his dorm room. He stumbled backward. “What the fuck is happening?!” He was in a room with black cloth and stupid lights of what? Gas?

“Jungkook?” He whipped around, more than ready for any explanation as to what in the everloving hell was going on only to have his face fall when he saw you. Dressed in nothing but pure white garbs, you stared back into his half shifted form.

“What in the hell are you doing here? �� No, wait, where the hell is here? Where am I?!” He whipped his arms around as the short sleeves of his torn shirt showed his arms and wrist, to which you looked your eyes onto. Jungkook saw you looking wide-eyed at his wrist. He brought it up and pointed it at with his opposite hand. “Did you do this to me!?”

“I-” you started, looking around with a fallen face. He seethed as he stomped towards you, grabbing the rectangular collar of your gown and pulled you to your toes. “Jungkook, stop it!”

“What did you do, Salem!!”

“Release me!” You demanded as his hand immediately opened, dropping you and he took two prompt steps backward. As if he had lost his free will for a moment. He shook his head as he looked at his hand then to you.

“What did- did you just control me?” You didn’t answer, only pulled up the sleeve of your gown to show him the same burned on tattooed on your wrist he had on his. He looked at his wrist then to yours. “What?” He was so confused as the turn of events blew right over his head in terms of what was happening. You sighed as you pointed behind him to the spellbook on the altar.

He turned as he looked at the title of the incantation.

“Summoning and Binding of a… Familiar?” His voice shook as he read the title aloud. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” He spoke with a breath of disbelief. “I got bound?” He turned around. “To you?” He spoke with wide eyes and a wrinkled forehead from his raised brows. He pushed his hair back, his claws scraping his skin as he remembered he was still partially shifted.

He took a few calming breaths before tucking his wings back into his back and hiding his scales. His teeth shortened and his eyes reverted back to their wide pupils and whites. He cleared his throat as you stood there.

“What just happened was absolute subjugation. I gave you an order unquestionably and you were forced to obey it.” You rolled your sleeve back down to lay against your fingertips. “It’s a power that a Master holds over their Familiar,” you muttered. Jungkook cursed as he looked at his two sides.

One door was to his right, outside it was a small murmur of chatting. The Spellcasters must be outside that door. To his left was another door with the light from outside slipping through the cracks. He clicked his tongue as he stomped over to the outside door and opened it. Seeing the courts behind the school.

“You are not my Master, Y/n,” he spits as he stepped outside and slammed the door shut behind him. Leaving you the Master of a Familiar who never wanted you. Your one true wish crumbling at your feet. All good things, you feared, must always come to an end.

-TBC-

365 notes · View notes

lupizora · 5 years

Text

Forgive Me (Not)

I started this fic to sort out my feelings for the Traitor!Uraraka theory and it spiraled from there. Can’t say if this is strictly platonic or not so I put it down as both. The M rating for this fic is just to be safe! I tried to portray some strong negative emotions and didn’t want to catch anyone unprepared for what’s to come. ^^”

Genre: Heavy Angst / Hurt/Comfort

Pairing: Kacchako/Gen

Rating: M

Word Count: 4821

Summary: They were two broken people standing at the edge of the unknown together.

When Bakugou emerged into consciousness, the knocking wasn’t what first got his attention. The soft shuffle of the curtains did. He hated this new oversensitivity. If only for a moment, his mind would return to the League’s gloomy bar; restrains digging at his shoulders; the faint smell of smoke and spilled alcohol assaulting his lungs with each breath. Three months later and it would always destroy his mood. After seeing the time was twelve minutes past four in the morning, a wave of anger washed over him too.

Who the fuck? He thought, throwing the covers aside.

The silhouette outside his window was too short to be his redhead neighbor. Bakugou tugged the sliding door open. Cold air rushed in the room with an evening fury befitting the beginning of winter, and the curtains parted to reveal Uraraka.

She took a step back, her eyes wide. “I… um… I’m really sorry, Bakugou! It was a mistake. I… I-I’ll leave now!” Turning around, she tried to walk away with the elegance of a robot.

“Take responsibility first, you moron.” He sighed, following her out on the balcony. “What are ya doing here?”

The freezing tiles nipped at his bare feet and he winced. Nothing he couldn't endure as long as it led to the bottom of this awakening. However, Uraraka made no attempt to face him as seconds came and passed. His toes were half-numb by that point, so Bakugou focused on her back instead. She wore their gym uniform and had her hair tied into a messy ponytail. This get-up was usually reserved for joining his combat training, and she hadn't been sporting it earlier.

“I messed up is all,” she finally said. “Thought it was Deku’s.”

“Deku’s room isn’t on this floor,” he said. “You know that already from following the nerd like a lost puppy all the time. So do me a favor and cut the crap.”

Maybe someone else would have had the patience to hear her out. It had been the day of Sir Nighteye’s funeral, after all. To brighten up the mood, the class had declared a movie night. They were all laughing by the time Bakugou returned to his room with Uraraka being her usual bubbly self. Even if it had been an act, she wouldn’t come to him for emotional support. He wasn’t her friend.

“It was an honest mistake. I’m sorry if I bothered you,” she said. Her tone wasn’t apologetic at all.

Dread dropped like a stone in Bakugou’s stomach. He suspected foul play but the League was on the run. They wouldn’t dare to infiltrate the school. His mind reminded him of a different scenario; one he had been contemplating over for the past few months.

On the third morning of his house arrest, after his big fight with Deku, Bakugou had been prepping for his chores when he heard voices coming from Aizawa’s room. Overcome by curiosity, he pressed his back against the wall and glanced inside. The laptop’s monitor illuminated two figures, leaving the rest of the room shrouded in darkness. Finding his homeroom teacher still awake wasn’t as surprising as Present Mic being there. He never visited this early.

“There is nothing unusual so far,” Aizawa said.

Present Mic yawned, stretching his back against the chair. “Everything is too quiet for my taste. Think they got scared, Eraser?”

“Or maybe they are laying low like the rest of the League.” He dragged a hand across his face with a groan. “I don’t want to suspect my students, Mic. They are all promising kids.”

“They also love getting into trouble. Picking a fight right under your nose, who would have thought! Must have been quite the show.”

“This isn’t a laughing matter. We don’t have room for slip-ups like that anymore. Everyone’s eyes are on us and we haven’t made any progress in locating the traitor. It was your idea so concentrate.”

Traitor.

The word caught Bakugou’s attention hook, line, and sinker. The teachers were suspecting one of them to be leaking information to the Villains. He edged closer to the door so he wouldn’t miss a thing.

“Yes, sir! Anyway, the problem children and the other four are not on the list.” Present Mic mumbled a couple of names, scratching them off the file in his lap. “Come to think of it, most of your girls have stealthy Quirks. Hagakure is invisible. Asui can climb walls. Jirou can hear through walls.”

“The conference hall is sound-proof and an invisible person would be too obvious for a mastermind like All for One.”

“Just because it’s obvious, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t consider it. Although, if we absolutely have to think outside the box…” His pen stopped mid-air. “I’d say Uraraka.”

“Why?” Aizawa asked with a perplexed tone.

“It wouldn’t cross your mind, right? She looks innocent enough. But you know how the saying goes: Don’t judge a book by its cover. Of all the kids, she’s the only one with a clear motive.”

“Lots of Pros are doing it for the money, and as far as I know, we already have a decent arrangement with her parents over the tuition.”

“Relax, it was only a guess.” Present Mic raised his hands in an appeasing gesture. “You are right though. Having to suspect every one of these little listeners sucks!”

Bakugou decided he had heard enough. Without a sound, he returned to sorting the cleaning supplies and feigned ignorance when Present Mic left for class. An unpleasant feeling spread inside his chest; the same thought circling at the back of his mind.

Was it really possible?

All this time, Bakugou hadn’t had the chance to voice his concerns. Major events had followed one another in an endless cycle of trouble and danger—everyone too busy to catch a breath, more so worry about inside affairs. Currently, this night was proving to be an unprecedented opportunity. One he wasn’t willing to miss. If Uraraka wouldn’t give him some straight answers, he would force them out by any means necessary.

“You know. Something has been bothering me for a while.” Keeping his hands leisurely in his pockets, Bakugou approached Uraraka. “During Kamino, you said to Kirishima and the other idiots that I’d feel disgraced if they came to help me.”

“I did.”

“How did you know that?”

Her shoulders tensed but she chuckled. “You aren’t very subtle about your dislikes.”

“You also said I’m scared of Deku after the end of the term.” Her words back then had cut straight through his walls of denial to the core of his issue with the nerd. No one—not even himself—had been really aware of it. “That was awfully perceptive of you.”

“You were on such bad terms when you’re supposed to be childhood friends. Can you blame my curiosity?”

“It felt more than simple curiosity. It’s like you were dissecting me to find what makes me tick.”

Uraraka turned around just as he stopped two steps away. “Deku does it too. Haven’t seen you confront him about it.”

Grabbing the veranda’s railing, Bakugou trapped her between his arms. “Deku has been studying me for years—a lost cause really. But you had no reason to do that.”

“Why?”

“It doesn’t suit your personality.”

“That's ridiculous!” She said, flustered. “C’ mon, you were so cool in our fight, Bakugou. Like a completely different person! I’d be blind if I didn’t wanna learn what sort of hero you want to be.”

“And what’s the final call?” he asked.

“You’re so arrogant that you’d look to satisfy your needs before anyone else’s.”

“Like you then? You’re in the money, aren’t you?”

“To help my parents.” Her brow furrowed in worry as if someone had presented her with a truth she didn’t want to hear. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Facepalm also said we are the same. Shackled by society’s expectations so we can’t do what we want. I wonder how he figured it out from a photo of the award ceremony.”

“What are you getting at?”

He leaned closer, leveling his gaze with hers. “You’re the mole, right?”

Lowering her head, Uraraka covered her face. Snuffles escaped from behind her hands. It caught him off guard, and Bakugou let go of the railing. For once he wanted to be wrong in his deduction. Learning about All Might’s secret had been enough of a blow. If the traitor turned out to be one of them, the class’ morale would plummet. He hated nothing more than to be responsible for it again.

But his half-baked apology died in his throat when it became apparent that Uraraka wasn’t bawling her eyes out.

She was laughing.

“I didn’t think it’d be that easy.” Uraraka climbed on the railing. Keeping her balance atop the metal bar, she shot him an icy glare. “Yes, it is me. What’re you gonna do about it?” She declared and dropped into the void below.

Bakugou jumped after her. His mind was blank, feeling nothing but the wild beating of his heart. The wind rushed past him. Aided by gravity, his body seemed eager to meet the ground. The fourth floor wasn’t such a great distance to cross. He propelled himself forward anyway and collided with Uraraka, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Their entangled bodies touched the ground without any rattling of bones or pain. Before Bakugou could get past the disorientating sensation of gravity returning, Uraraka elbowed him in the neck. Pain erupted in his gut from the follow-up knee. He tried to pin her down, but she slipped away like an eel.

“Come back here!” he growled.

Her laugh echoed all around them as she provoked him to follow. Uraraka dashed into the surrounding trees with Bakugou in tow. Leaves and branches crunched beneath his feet, splinters digging into his bare soles. Bakugou ignored the pain and kept running. Despite the cold, he was already drenched in sweat.

Uraraka maneuvered around the trees with ease; her back always a couple of steps ahead—taunting him. Oh, how much Bakugou wanted to grab her by the shirt and smash her face onto the ground. He could reach her; his hands had warmed up sufficiently from all the running. But he didn’t want a drone to alert the teachers like in his fight with Deku. So they continued their little chase, getting further and further away from the dorms. The white clouds escaping Bakugou’s mouth got more frequent as he strained himself to keep a good pace. By the looks of it, Uraraka also had trouble doing the same. Her ragged breath was the only sound resonating in the forest.

This pocket of darkness and silence didn’t last for long. Uraraka broke through the vegetation into an open area covered with concrete. Streetlamps illuminated the place as if it was some kind of boxing ring. Bakugou could faintly see the shape of a large wall up ahead. According to his calculations, they were close to either mock city A or mock city B. Drones were bound to be lurking there for sure.

This needs to end here.

Igniting his Quirk just enough to not arouse suspicion, Bakugou leaped over Uraraka. She didn’t stop, her eyes following his trajectory.

The moment his bare feet skidded on the concrete in front of her, Uraraka threw a left hook. Bakugou blocked it. He redirected the right one coming his way too. She had such an intense look on her face. Part of him, the rational one always working in the background during fights, noticed her flawless technique. Months of work paying off at the worst possible scenario.

There was something odd though. Sure, Uraraka aimed for his knees or his stomach—spots that would give her the advantage—but made no attempt to use her Quirk. It was as if this was a deliberate physical brawl and for one, Bakugou didn’t mind not using his Quirk. It would keep unwanted attention away.

“Why so cautious, Bakugou?” she asked. “Don’t you want to revenge? Come at me with all you got!”

Bakugou smacked an open palm on her collarbone. Instead of backpedaling out of breath, Uraraka pounced with a war cry. Wrapping her legs around his arm and shoulder, she dragged him to the ground. His back felt most of the impact. Bakugou didn’t let that stop him. Releasing his hand with an explosion, he elbowed Uraraka in the ribs. She had enough spark left to kick him. Bakugou allowed the leg to strike, using it to pull Uraraka under him.

His hands closed around her throat. The muscles in his forearms strained as Bakugou tightened his hold. Her pulse was beating wildly under his fingers, struggling to bring blood to her brain. Uraraka clawed at his hands. The choking sounds were replaced by a piercing whine. Bakugou barely felt her body contorting under him. He could blow her head to bits. Splatter blood all over the pavement. A single explosion was all he needed. That’s how frail human bodies were, even for a girl of her tenacity.

No.

Bakugou wouldn’t give Uraraka the benefit of a quick death. He’d watch as her walnut doe eyes grow unfocused and empty, life slipping out of them. He’d listen for the final breath when it escaped her cherry lips. He’d feel her heartbeat stopping while her rosy cheeks lose their color. Already Uraraka’s movements had gotten slower. She didn’t apply the same force as before. Disheveled hair fanned behind her head like a broken halo. And, to Bakugou’s surprise, Uraraka caressed his cheek; finger pads scraping roughly against his skin.

“Do it,” she mouthed.

A cold weight dropped in his chest as if someone had sucker-punched him there.

“Why did I have to be the reason for All Might’s end?”

Bakugou had screamed that at the top of his lungs while the stench of smoke and nitroglycerin still lingered in the air. His voice was echoing when Deku had lowered his fists, shocked. Bakugou couldn’t bear that expression and had continued to shout his frustration at the road beneath his feet.

Why am I remembering this now?

And then it hit him.

Oh.

His fingers relaxed their hold.

Uraraka coughed violently. Confusion flashed across her eyes as she watched him stand. Bakugou didn’t make it to ten steps before he heard the shuffling of her clothes.

“What…” Her voice cracked on the first word, volume lowering while she struggled to continue. “Are you… doing?”

“I can’t give you what you want.”

“Why?” She shouted—raw and strained like a raging tiger.

“I’m not a judge, nor an executioner. And definitely not your damn emotional punching bag!”

“So Deku wasn’t yours?”

Bakugou clenched his fists so tight he might as well had stopped his blood circulation. Releasing his fingers, he let a couple of small explosions sparkle in his palms like firecrackers. “I don’t try to repeat my mistakes,” he said.

“That’s rich!” Uraraka sneered. “You can sort your problems through violence and I can’t? Is this some kinda privilege only the brightest of our class have?”

“What’s happening right now and that situation are nothing alike!”

“Because it wasn’t your fault?” Uraraka whispered. “I didn’t want any of this, Bakugou. But my parents’ lives were in danger.”

It puzzled him because of a conversation he had happened to overhear a while ago. “Your parents don’t live here,” he said.

“They came to Tokyo once. To congratulate me after the Sports Festival and reassure me that I did my best in my fight against you and that they are oh so proud of me.”

Her laugh was hollow and emotionless, chilling Bakugou to the bone. He never thought Uraraka was even able to sound like that when she competed with Kirishima for the title of 1-A’s Sunshine.

He turned around to find her kneeling on the ground.

“But it was exactly that fight that caught Sensei’s eye,” she said with a sad smile, not meeting his gaze. “My parents had left for the station, and I had barely closed the front door when Mr. Kurogiri appeared behind me. The hallway was pitch black as if light couldn’t reach past his Warping. Had a rough idea where was his body from USJ but before I could do anything, he transported me to Sensei’s headquarters. He...” Uraraka rubbed her thumbs over the rest of her finger pads, struggling to find the right words to describe All For One.

“It’s okay,” Bakugou huffed and took a seat in front of her. “He has that effect on people.”

The bastard was a hundred years old and had survived against an All Might in his prime. If anything, All for One’s aura alone could bring grown-ass Heroes to their knees. Someone losing his words at his presence would be the least he could do.

“He congratulated me for my strategy and bravery. Said we could both gain from each other if I worked for him. I refused and Sensei… he… he smiled.” Her words came out strained as she seemed to relieve the memory. “Before I knew it, I was inside the Central train station. My parents stood at the platform, laughing about something I couldn’t hear from the noise of the crowd.” She sniffed. “A warp gate opened over their heads. It was a blind spot. The cameras would never see the gun that appeared through the gate. I tried to shout, warn my parents but instead, I started puking some sort of stinky mud and returned to Sensei.”

She didn’t have to say anything else. It was plain as day what was her answer to his proposal the second time around.

“What did he ask you to do?” he asked.

“The first part of the deal was gathering intel about U.A. and their plans. I couldn’t get inside the conference room no matter how much I tried. Thought it’d be easier to remember the layout of the teachers’ lounge and sneak in when they weren’t there.”

“That’s why you asked Present Mic to help you with your English homework so much.” It had been her go-to excuse whenever she was late for practice.

Uraraka nodded. “Lots of important documents were in their desks. If anyone saw me, I’d say I forgot something. I had timed-out every route to the office perfectly so it happened only a bunch of times.”

Bakugou shifted his position. This cold and calculating Uraraka didn’t sit right with him. “And what was the other part of the deal?”

“I had to keep an eye on you—the League’s most fitting candidate. Sensei said it shouldn’t be hard. Our fight had made me interesting in your eyes.”

Part of Bakugou wanted to deny this statement, but deep down even he could see a slimmer of truth. Uraraka had entered his life like a storm after the Festival. His failed internship with Best Jeanist was still fresh on his mind, so her approach had left him hesitant at first. She was Deku’s friend so why couldn’t she ask him to be her sparring partner? Having overheard Uraraka's reason to learn martial arts though, Bakugou had given her the benefit of the doubt. He also couldn’t wait to see how much she could grow. Their sparring sessions had been challenging and exciting since Uraraka always had a new trick up her sleeve. Over time, this change of pace had maybe lowered his defenses. It hadn’t brought them any closer though or so he told himself again and again and again. But Bakugou couldn’t prevent the sting of betrayal from piercing his heart anyway.

“You stuck to me like glue for the whole damn semester because of some psycho’s sick pet project. Great. Just fucking great.” Bakugou smiled, despite the disgust and horror tingling in his chest. “And when I was ready, you called the dogs to come and fetch me!”

“The only thing I knew was that someone would come and get you off the Camp. But they kidnapped Ms. Pixie Bob too.” Uraraka fisted the fabric of her pants to stop her hands from shaking. “And I couldn’t do anything about it! Just watch and hope no one dies! Yes, you were my mission, Bakugou. But somewhere along the line, I found more people to care about along with my parents. More people to lose, including you. That’s why said that to Kirishima. I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt!”

“There are Villains, Uraraka. Hurting people is what they do best.”

“Mr.Nighteye thought so too,” she said. “He became conscious as I was taking him to safety. He couldn’t control his Quirk and saw my future. He warned me that I won’t be able to save anyone if I continue down this path. For a moment, I thought about dropping him. He wouldn’t expose me if he was dead. I would just weep and blame myself for not being quick enough to the other Heroes. Easy peasy.” She sniffled, tears shining in her eyes. “Guess he didn’t remember a thing in the end. And I… I was relieved for a while. But today, when I saw his face again, everything flooded back and I couldn’t take it anymore...”

“So you came to me. The one guy ready to beat you bloody for what you’ve done.”

She chuckled softly. “I thought you’ll understand. What I didn’t expect was the great Bakugou Katsuki going easy on me.”

“That’s what you call this?” Bakugou scoffed. “Hate to break it to you, Round Face, but I didn’t wanna get in trouble for your sorry ass.”

Her posture seemed to shrink. “Then what I’m supposed to do?”

Bakugou placed his hands on her shoulders.

The trembling stopped as Uraraka lifted her head. She clenched her hands into fists, anticipating his next move. For what Bakugou had in mind to work, she needed to stand still. So he cupped her infuriating round face.

Uraraka stared back with wide eyes, seemingly out of breath.

Bakugou head-butted her.

Rivulets of pain ran along his forehead from the point of impact. Uraraka’s skin was warm against his own as if she had a fever. White spots were dancing across her face like a myriad of stars. When the image cleared up, he noticed how a few golden specks adorned her hazel eyes.

“What’s wrong with you?” Uraraka shoved him and folded in two, holding her forehead.

Bakugou mouthed the question and anger flared in his chest. ”What’s wrong with you? Weren’t you the one who refused to back down in our fight no matter what?” For once, he managed to keep his tone down and still sound angry enough to consider it shouting. “Didn’t you go through all this shit to keep your parents safe? You wanna be a Hero, right? Then face your problems head-on!”

“You are one to talk,” she said. “Mr. I-can't-understand-emotions.”

“You woke me up in the middle of the night for this shit. Don’t sass me, okay?” he said. “Look, all I’m saying is that every fucking idiot in this class is gonna support you. They are persistent like that.”

“Why would they? I hurt them! Put everyone in danger! And you got kidnapped because-“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence.”

“But-“

“The info you gave them would be useless if I didn’t act that way in the first place!” Admitting this shocked him, but he didn't stop. “I realized it during the press conference. Those leeches used my behavior to bring U.A. down. Facepalm tried to use that as a way to convince me too. I was never going to join their stupid clique. Our goals were different. But it made me think.” Bakugou stared at his hands. “All my life everyone told me that my Quirk is a Hero’s one. I never doubted that fact even when I all I could do was destroying. But the Quirk itself isn’t what makes someone a Hero. It’s how and for what purpose you use it. I wouldn’t have learned that if things had stayed the same.”

Uraraka grabbed his wrists, forcing his attention on her. “You would! There are other ways to learn that without almost dying!” Her hold got weaker. “I can’t… forgive myself for doing this to you.”

Bakugou stared back. Tears dropped on their joined hands like the beginning of a summer storm. “I can’t forgive you, Uraraka,” he said.

Her head shot up as if he had slapped her, the soft edges of her face twisting into a sorrowful expression. “I understand,” she said.

“No, you don’t,” he grumbled. “You’re my rival, dammit! You shouldn’t let those weirdos that call themselves Villains give you value. That asshole sure talks big for with a hand on his face!”

“Technically, I was under Sensei’s orders.”

“All the more reason to not give a shit now! He is behind bars, leaving Facepalm in charge.”

It wasn’t as simple as he was making it sound. Shigaraki was dangerous with or without his teacher around. For one, he was still on the loose even after attacking an armored convoy and two, his twisted drive to take down All Might still haunted Bakugou’s nightmares.

Uraraka closed her eyes. “It’s not that easy.”

“Yeah. But if there is hope for a bastard like me, there is hope for you too.” He stood up, dragging her along. “C’ mon, we gotta tell the teachers.”

“No, we can’t!” She shook her head, vigorously. “What if Sensei has more moles inside U.A.?”

Bakugou rolled his eyes. “Aizawa would rather die than work for scum like All for One and you know it. If he can defend the most-fitting-to-be-a-Villain on national TV, he can listen to what you have to say.”

Uraraka rubbed her neck; blue imprints from his fingers had already formed against her pale skin. “What about you, Bakugou? Why help someone that hurt you?”

Sure, saving people without any rewards was more of Deku’s style. Bakugou had never considered another person’s feelings until he had to go through All Might’s retirement. Still, he wasn’t angry at her anymore. He was angry at those fuckers for their underhanded methods and having the nerve to use her family like this, but not at Uraraka.

“The number Hero wins and rescues,” he said. “Can’t be slacking here if that’s my goal, right?”

Color returned to her cheeks and Uraraka hummed in agreement.

They used the road to return in the dorms.

By the time Bakugou could see 1-A's Height Alliance building, his body was showing signs of their fight. Pain pooled around his ankles and forearms in constant subdued drumming. Resisting the urge to wince whenever gravels dug into the bare soles of his feet, Bakugou kept Uraraka in his line of vision. Just to make sure she won’t disappear. He was definitely not paying attention to how she clenched and unclenched her hands in front of her.

The cold marble steps of the entrance and the relief they offered didn’t last long. Bakugou and Uraraka crossed the lounge in silence. Up ahead, a blue light glowed from underneath the closed door of Aizawa’s room—signaling their teacher was still awake.

Bakugou raised his hand to knock.

“Wait,” Uraraka said.

A bruise had started taking shape on her forehead. It diverted Bakugou’s attention, making him wonder for a moment if they should put ice on it. Then he caught her uncertain stare.

“Told you there is nothing to worry,” he said. “Don't run on me.”

“That's not it.” Her voice remained steady for the first time that night. “Can you come with me?”

“Why?”

“I don't know if I can do this again." She looked down. "Would you mind lending me some of your strength?”

The universe sure liked laughing at his face in the most ironic ways. She had held onto this secret for so long and after so many hardships while he was still trying to fill in the gaps of his shattered pride and arrogance with more meaningful things. Bakugou wished to have a word with the one responsible for his fate and blast their face to smithereens.

“Fine,” he said. “But only because I wanna see this to the end.”

Uraraka smiled, brightening the room as if the sun had decided to rise early. “Can I hold your hand?”

“If you ask me another damn thing, I'm throwing you inside without a word.”

Bakugou clasped her hand and allowed her to lace their fingers. The contact made him hyper-aware of her slight trembling but he didn’t comment on it.

Uraraka took a deep breath, restoring her game-on face. Yeah, it pissed him off at how lightly she believed in her own strength.

He knocked, letting the chips fall where they may.

They were two broken people standing at the edge of the unknown together, and damn if they wouldn’t try their hardest to set this right.

#bakugou katsuki #uraraka ochako #bnha fic #bnha fanfiction #bnha #boku no hero academia #fanfiction #fanfic #wolfswriting #kacchako #angst #hurt/comfort #traitor uraraka #traitor au #wolfsstuff

25 notes · View notes

elenathehun · 6 years

Text

The Hyuuga Clan: what not to do

So I promised a separate post on the Hyuuga Clan plotline after I wrapped up the Chuunin Exam arc, and as promised, here it is. It’s been a long time coming, so let’s get started, shall we?

To recap the Hyuuga Clan plotline, the whole thing starts when Neji and Hinata, previously introduced separately earlier in the Chuunin exam arc, face each other in the preliminaries. It’s an unpleasant, vitriolic match: Neji brutalizes his cousin in the course of their fight, and comes damn close to killing her. The only reason Hinata doesn’t die right then and there is due to the intervention of the Leaf jounin-instructors. Fandom often attributes this to Naruto’s support, but I would argue that’s unfair to Hinata; in one of the few self-motivated acts she does, she tells Neji he’s wrong about her, about the world, and most importantly, himself—which enrages him to the point of going for a killing blow.

Anyway, Neji is thoroughly unlikeable, and Naruto swears he’ll cut the other kid down to size during his match with other boy. Blah blah blah, take a month-long break, time to fight. As becomes usual for Naruto’s villain face-offs, they fight and Neji monologues: he explains why he’s so angry at Hinata (and the Main House) even though they’re family. Essentially, the Branch house of the Hyuuga all have a seal on their forehead that destroys their eyes upon death, ensuring their valuable bloodline limit can't be stolen. That actually sounds really cool except for one thing: it's also used as a method of brutal control by the Main House, who have the ability and knowledge to manipulate the seal's destructive capacity to inflict agonizing pain on those who bear it. Moreover, Hinata and Neji aren't just people from the same clan—they're actually first cousins—and considering their respective fathers are identical twins, you could make a very strong case for them being closer to half-siblings than anything else.

Neji is angry for two reasons, one abstract and one personal. The abstract reason is this: Neji is a gifted prodigy in his clan's techniques, but because he's part of the Branch House, he's unable to get the training and, yes, recognition he deserves as a Gentle Fist prodigy. Hinata is only average in the abilities the Hyuuga value—namely having advanced control over her bloodline and the combat skills to go with it—and if Neji's father had been born first instead of her own, their lives would be unimaginably different. The personal reason is that ten years ago, Neji's father was sacrificed to appease some politically powerful bloodline thieves, who attempted to kidnap Hinata, presumably because she was young, had a good pedigree, and also had a womb. Long story short, Naruto beats Neji up and tells him to "cheer up emo kid!". The story doesn't end until Neji reaches some kind of catharsis with his uncle, Hinata's father, and decides he too will live free like a bird, blah blah blah. Yay! Story concluded, right?

Fandom didn't think so, and rightly so! Konoha is revealed to have a large, politically powerful clan that is essentially enslaving a least half (and perhaps more) of their own population, and using it for unspeakable reasons. Leaving aside Neji's sort of weaksauce resolution, Hinata, meek and unmartial, has a younger sister who is strong in all the ways she isn't; Just like with her father and his brother, will she have to brand her younger sister to maintain the right of absolute primogeniture?

And make no mistake, that is the real issue at the heart of the Hyuuga clan. Everything else is just window dressing. Even ignoring the stupidity of the Hyuuga sacrifice—Really, Sarutobi? Really?! —the Hyuuga story always had more holes in it than good swiss cheese. As I mentioned in my re-read summary post for volumes 11-13, the combination of "sealing most of the family" and also "preventing the sealed kin from learning the full extent of the Gentle Fist" only makes sense if the Hyuuga were alone in the wilderness, but in a village setting where the vast majority of sealed Hyuuga are supporting village operations, it sounds like a bad deal for the Leaf, since they're only getting half-trained soldiers in return for allowing the Hyuuga to live within their walls. The entire purpose of Neji's story is just a clumsy way to highlight the injustice of absolute primogeniture as a method of both advancement, inheritance, and simple justice in traditional society.

I don't think it's an exaggeration that the "Clan Hyuuga eats its children" genre of stories was one of the more popular family-centered tropes in fanfiction in the pre-Shippuden era. The sand sibs and Uchiha brothers might have had more written about them, but not by much. How Hinata, Neji, and Naruto would grapple with the Hyuuga Clan's outdated social norms was the focus of a lot of stories and there was a lot of expectation about how Kishimoto was going to resolve this issue in part 2. Now that Naruto has come to an end, we can all throw up a little in our mouths, because it's clear Kishimoto thought he already had.

Any of Hinata's character growth in part two comes from her relationship to Naruto; Neji dies sacrificing himself for her and Naruto, which seems damn empty given that we never see the cousins reconcile or really interact all that much. Hanabi is a non-entity. The Hyuuga Clan, as of Chapter 700, is still presumably sealing and oppressing the majority of its members. The only way to understand this extremely unsatisfactory turn of events is to see it as an intersection of two unpleasant trends in Naruto: women are always secondary to men in terms of character development and plot importance, and villainous motivations are tailor-made to whatever the hell sort of lesson Naruto is supposed to impart to them as the hero of this story.

Women, in Naruto, are almost always secondary to the men they are related and associated with. Mito only shows up in context of her husband, never mind that she was apparently a master in her own right; like Sakura's relationship to Naruto and Sasuke, even the relationship between a man and his wife is secondary to the strong bond between her husband and Madara, his "best friend". Kushina, again, was another cool character who could have been very interesting...except that she was immediately subordinated to her husband's plot, and then later her son's. Kurenai's griefs and plots are centered around Asuma and Shikamaru; Sakura had the glimmerings of her own story, but it was always shoved aside for the Naruto and Sasuke thing. Rin is probably the worst example; she literally only exists to traumatize Obito and Kakashi with her death. Hinata is just another character in that tradition.

For the sake of argument, separate Hyuuga Hinata, clan heir from Hinata, Naruto's love interest. Just pretend there are two girls with that given name in Naruto—actually, let's make it even easier. Hinata the girl is Naruto's love interest; Hinata the clan heir is a boy. Hinata the boy isn't a bad person, but he's shy, meek, unassuming, and not very good at combat. He is a constant disappointment to his father, who wanted a child much like Hinata's cousin, who is everything Hinata isn't: strong, capable, and ruthless. In a different world, his cousin Neji would be clan heir—except their family practices absolute primogeniture as a method of inheritance. Neji's father is younger than Hinata's father and was thus forced into the lesser branch family and blocked from ever inheriting. Hinata has a younger brother, as well, who is also better than Hinata in all the ways that matter to their family, and one day, Hinata will have to brand his younger brother and cast him aside, all to uphold their tradition. Hinata is despised by his cousin (and maybe his brother) because they both know they are better than him, but because of their family's stupid rules, they are forever subordinate to the lesser. But Hinata has his own skills: in a family with eyes that see nearly everything, save for one specific blind spot, Hinata has the gift of seeing just what they lack. Can Hinata find a way to prove that might does not make one right? Can he show that it's not strength of arms that makes a good leader? Can he find a way to unite his broken family, and right the injustice they have perpetuated among themselves?

That's an interesting story, isn't it? But Kishimoto wasn't really interested in writing a story about why absolute primogeniture is stupid; he wasn't interested in writing a story about what makes a good leader and how to grow up to be a just one, either. Hyuuga Hinata, clan heir, was extraneous; that whole facet of her character could have been a separate one-shot character who just showed up in Neji's villain arc like so many others, given her importance as clan heir after this point.

Now that Naruto's over, it's obvious the whole horrible Hyuuga clan background was just another tragic villainous past for Naruto to defeat in a stupid fight. It's infuriating because it's literally is a schoolyard fight—it's not exactly a demon trapped in a little boy, or the survivors of a brutal foreign war finding the only way to protect themselves is destroying everyone who opposes them. Kishimoto didn't have to write a caged bird seal plotline; he didn't have to make the Hyuuga so brutal to their own kin. Neji didn't even need to try and murder his cousin, just beating the shit out of her would have been enough. The whole thing could have been written as a simple family drama about the unfairness of absolute primogeniture, no seal needed, just the weight of "we've always done it this way". Kishimoto wrote it for the explicit purpose of first making Neji horrible and cruel, then revealing, like all the rest of Naruto's villains, why he is deserving of pity for his "terrible" deeds.

Ultimately, Kishimoto wrote the Hyuuga the way he did because he's almost incapable of writing a character who does bad things without having a sad past; and he's incapable of that because he's a lazy writer who doesn't want to go through the work of actually writing interesting characters. The entire Hyuuga family plotline is the sort of manipulative asspull I hate in both professional and amateur writers, the sort of crutch a weakling uses to pass over another character’s flaws. Hinata, in this story, only exists to show how fucked up Neji is because of her father's actions. She certainly never gets any resolution to her father treating her poorly, or the fact that her cousin tried very hard to kill her in public view. The central tension in the Hyuuga clan is between Neji and Hiashi, which is why the arc closes with Hiashi apologizing to Neji, and then Neji deciding to make his own way in life despite the seal, like his father did.

And Hinata, who is despised for weakness by her father; who is nearly killed for having the temerity to point out Neji's own blind spot; who is physically weak, but has the glimmers of a character stronger than both her cousin and father combined, if only Kishimoto had been interested?

Like Mito, and Kushina, and Rin, and Kurenai, and Sakura, and Anko, and yes, Karin, and every other goddamn woman in this manga - like them, she's only a prop in someone else's story. And in turn, that other person's story is just a prop for Naruto to defeat on his way to becoming a hero.

#critical reading #reading is emotional #fuck you kishimoto

392 notes · View notes

purkkaklubi-blog · 6 years

Text

Shoegaze

a Bit background to one of the most underappreciated genres of the 90s, how the revival of the scene has brought a whole new generation of youth to redefine the genre and what impact the woozy, spinning, swirling, distorted guitar sounds has on me.

I heard about shoegazing first time in 2015. I was listening to quite a lot of Sonic Youth at the time which I guess was the reason on how I found My Bloody Valentine through Spotify algorithm. First thoughts were okay this is nice but doesn’t really evoke any special feelings in me. I just thought it was less poppy and more ’indie’ spin on the 90s alternative rock and grunge scene. Surely now I know I will always go through a small fact and background check on artists, genres, labels and albums before I make any further assumptions on how artistically remarkable something is. Back then I was a bit ignorant on popular-cultures music history. I knew the basics, Elvis and The Beatles, how white men made Disco cool for the white audience, Punk Rock scene breaking out in UK and across the sea beginning of the Rap and DJ scene, synth sounds in your every favorite 80’s aerobic videos, Kurt Cobain’s sudden death shaking the whole rock world, shiny pop stars rising and falling.

I thought back then that good music is good music. Music being boxed into a certain genre didn’t bring any new artistic meaning into it and putting on labels was only limiting and blurring our minds from the actual sounds. Now it seems like the only way I know how to wrap my head around new music is to put labels on them. Maybe i’m not a free soul anymore finding only pleasures in sounds that elaborate with my every unspoken thought and emotion in the comfort of my own bedroom and in the warmness of my bed. Maybe i’ve become and seem to some of you like a boring music square who is ready to start battling you with my non-existing musical knowledge while being blissfully drunk at the que outside the entrance of a club. Maybe I’m overthinking and actually me taking interests in the backgrounds of different music scenes show that i’m passionate and appreciative towards this beautiful art form that has been given to us. In this world where I can’t see sense and find reason behind anything I find it calming that I can analyze and make clear distinctions between different musical styles. That sounds more like this and this sounds more like that. i’m not an absolutist but obviously through history people have always tried to find answers to their questions. We feel anxiety and nervousness when we’re on a mind puzzle we cannot solve. It being possible that music can be pinned down and defined brings me tranquility.

Well, Shoegaze is a bit different for me. I can’t completely pin down what it is cause it feels and sounds that it has gotten influence from so many genres and the origins of where it all began is very blurry.

Shoegaze began to rise somewhere middle of the 80s. In my last post I mentioned about this Scottish ethereal gothic band called Cocteau Twins. Robin Guthrie the guitarist of this certain band began to use the effect pedals in his guitar work. Back in the day he stated that the idea of using pedals came from the lack of sound and texture in electric guitars but later on admitted that it was actually the lack of his own technical skills that made him start to use the effect pedals. Whatever the reason behind it was I’m grateful that he began to use them. Pedals enabled the possibility to create guitar sounds that were atmospheric and otherworldly. Using effects like delay, reverb, distortion, fuzz etc created these layered textures called wall of sounds that combined many genres at the same time. Noise, Drone, Psychedelic, Progressive, Lo-fi even Ambient. Maybe that’s why I’m so fascinated about it. It’s one specific genre but same time you also hear the inspiration coming from the 60s psychedelic bands, Gothic Rock, Noise Rock etc. You get lost because you think it’s a genre on its own balance but then you start to put the pieces together and find out that it has combined all these things together to make it as one. Then again you know it has its own definite style and not just any kind of music made with pedals can be defined as Shoegaze. You need that woozy, head spinning, swirling guitar that takes you on a musical trip. I feel like shoegazers are the ultimate music fans and their process of making something new was looking back at the bands and the music that they loved.

But besides Cocteau Twins or Jesus and the Mary Chain and their noise pop sound it was the defining moment of 1988 debut album Isn’t Anything by My Bloody Valentine and the single You Made Me Realise that a genre was born. From My Bloody Valentine bands like Slowdive, Ride, Chapterhouse, Swervedriver etc got inspiration for their work that on.

So, why is it called Shoegaze? The term was invented by music media, actually specifically by one NME journalist who referred the artists as shoegazers because of their way of performing on stage. They lacked of presence and connection with the audience due the heavy use of guitar effect pedals which led them to stare at their feet all the time so they could switch their pedals right. Often times they were kind of like step dancing through the sets because of the amount of effect shifting. Shoegazer was a slur word in that time and was only used in an offensive way. There wasn't really a lot of appreciation and understanding shown towards the scene. Grunge and Brit pop scenes were hitting hard on that time and music media was praising enormously acts like Nirvana and Oasis. Anything that was considered Shoegaze or related to it was doomed to get bad reviews when it was released. In the end supporters and gigs got smaller and smaller and labels like Creation had to let their Shoegaze artists go.

The history with how Shoegaze was perceived saddens me. To me the music sounds and feels that it was a way ahead of it’s time. Electronica and the so called ’indie pop’ music we have now wouldn’t be if it wasn’t for Shoegaze. Music medias harshness made it hard to be taken seriously and made the scene look like wimpy angsty teens mocking rock music with their amateurish noise playing. Luckily the change of that has come.

Through the whole 00s Shoegaze and Dream pop stayed as an underground scene but in 2010s it began to come back on surface. In 2013 My Bloody Valentine released their 3rd album called MBV, 20 years later when Loveless the 2nd album was released. I think the most significant moment of how Shoegaze is being known again pin points to the digital era we’re living now and social media. Internet and the possibility to access information nowadays is easier and travels faster. You don’t have to go into a record store anymore and spend 8 hours of searching and listening to different albums you have probably picked because of the cover or the name of the artist or band or on what ever genre section it’s in. There is of course nice and authentic feeling into it but all i’m saying is that it takes time and what we have now you can be minutes away from your favorite music. Problem in the 90s was that they didn't have enough promotion and a proper platform to be shown on. Now people can make more decisions based on their own mind and not on what the industry and critics are promoting us. Of course you have to be willing to go searching different informative platforms because the music is not handed to you. Music that is handed has the most radio playing and pop on your recommended page on Youtube, Spotify etc. That music has the most skilled promotion and advertising which means the industry is placing more of their finances in them. It’s strictly business. On Spotify I’m not talking about the recommended artist page which can appear if I listen to a certain artist. That’s based on the algorithm of what other listeners who listen to that specific artist also listen to. I’m talking about the browse page where the first playlists you see are probably something like ”Hits right now!” or ”Top 50 Viral” which are promoted playlists including promoted artists.

Thanks to the internet as a platform Shoegaze has started spreading again without the help of the industry and critique reviews. New bands have come who are inspired of Shoegaze and are making music influenced by that genre. The musical form of the 90s movement has moved on to being Nu-gaze. Nu-gaze is a term to describe a new wave form of Shoegaze. New bands like Wild Nothing and Deerhunter are infusing the old characteristics with other genres and new producing techniques. Also the original form of the genre is very tied to the period it existed in and is a 90s youth scene more than an actual genre so there’s a reason it’s impossible to be a traditionalist in that sense.

Things are looking up. Literally. Because the media can’t crush these new up-comers with their name-calling or ridiculous criticism of being the ”scene that celebrates itself”.

They’re not consistently gazing at their shoes, they’re gazing at something new.

I’ve made a list of 4 essential albums which includes the so called Holy Trinity of Shoegaze. Imagine of having this family tree where these three bands are the founders and when you go up, the branches are separating into other sections of noisier -, dreamier - and ’indie rockier’ Shoegaze. Then there’s a 6 album list recommended by me which contains traditional Shoegaze and Nu-Gaze. The 4 essentials are a must-know if you want to engage with this scene and understand the stylistic features of the music.

4 essential albums

1. Jesus and the Mary Chain - Psychocandy

Psychocandy isn’t actually a Shoegaze album more like Noise Pop and avantgardist Proto-Punk but I listed it here as an essential because of the impact this album did have on this genre that was about to come. The guitar lead blurred by noisiness in the whole album was one of the main

inspirations for Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine. Distorted Guitar leads are defining sound of Shoegaze and this album gives a wide spectrum of static sounds like the pixel rain in your old tv.

This 1985 debut album by band lead by two brothers Jim and William Reid is a wonder work of teenage I don’t give a fuck how I play, I just play. They didn’t care about the looks and actually about anything. Their style of playing and making music was messy, sloppy and lazy as they wanted it to be, it showed the rebelliousness they had against falling into the same patterns and roles as other musicians, not wanting to be molded as the rockstars with all the booze and women (even though they did get heavily drunk while performing). It doesn’t really contain the real social statements of punk rock but still has that familiar adolescent rebellion. Psychocandy found inspiration from 60s girl groups and was filled with easy poppy 3-chord progressions which were masterfully hid with all the noise.

Favorite tracks: Just Like Honey, Taste of Cindy, My Little Underground, Never Understand

2. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless (Holy Trinity, part of the noisy side)

The 2nd studio album they released in 1991 after the Shoegaze pioneering album Isn’t Anything, My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless makes you think of the bright vibrant intensive colors and hues burning out, melting and mixing together. It has a tense feeling of abstraction. it’s expressed in a way of mind you can’t express it, not with words at least. Kevin Shields work seems to come from some what sub-conscious mind that is trying to tell you emotions he has. Not with words but with sounds. The whole album is strongly based only on guitar leads and in the engineering of them. Which is probably why Kevin was obsessed with getting the effects and mixing into perfection. In one of Kevin’s interviews he stated that the problem was in the recording sessions, it was nearly impossible the get even the smallest frequencies heard. This album approximately cost 250 000 pounds, it took 2 years to record and the band visited 9 studios in total. After it’s release Creation Records went bankrupt and there has been a bit pointing fingers between both parties on who’s to blame for the downfall. What ever side your on Loveless is a well-deserved masterpiece and all the trouble that went along with it had a meaning into it. I’ll always imagine though if hypothetically financial problems wouldn’t be the issue would’ve there been even more different sound layers and textures? Would’ve it taken even more time to be released? 2 years or maybe even 5? Well we can tell that MBV the 3rd album took 20 years to be released so maybe we can count from that.

Favorite tracks: Only Shallow, When you Sleep, Sometimes

3. Slowdive - Souvlaki (Holy Trinity, part of the dreamy side)

Souvlaki is personally my favorite Shoegaze album. Brian Eno the godfather of ambient worked on three songs here and you can hear the ambient touch he gave into it. This 1993 released 2nd studio album by Slowdive is beautifully made timeless classic that stands out with it’s capability to unite heart-breaking melancholy with the optimistic hopefulness of the future. This kind of music can only come out from a teenagers or young adults mind. It brings that authenticity of emotionality that carries through the younger years when you haven’t build a thick skin yet. The way how the dreamy and hazy sounds and vocals have been tied together with Neil Halstead’s sensitive song-writing builds up into this climax of a cry baby music, in a good way. Souvlaki is a breakup album between the two band members Rachel Goswell, the guitarist and vocalist and Neil Halstead, the second guitarist, vocalist, producer and song-writer. It’s like reading their open diary posts. Their love of writing, playing and producing music was bigger than the personal issues they had so they decided to push them aside and stay professional. All that was kept unsaid transformed into poetic song-writing. Both of them showed truly artistic behavior while noticing the circumstances they were working on. Unfortunately media hated it and called it a soulless and outdated piece of work. After the 3rd album Pygmalion they were signed off and left to pay the rest of the US tour on its halfway. At least they’re getting now the credit they deserved and are back on touring. 2017 they released a new Self-titled comeback album Slowdive which is highly recommendable also.

Favorite tracks: Alison, Machine Gun, When the Sun Hits, Dagger (I could pick them all though)

4. Ride - Nowhere (Holy Trinity, part of the 90s more typical alternative side)

Ride’s 1990 released debut album is a dynamic work of guitar distortion that creates a crashing wall of sound. Like the waves moving upwards and downwards while growing into spirally holes which speed up and eventually shatter when they hit the seashore. And in that same scenery the sounds of the rumbling wind that pierce your eardrums. That is the main feeling that Nowhere contains. It’s an album focused on high energy. It has more melodic and rhythmic patterning and simple song-crafting compared to the other Shoegaze essentials. Ride was signed to Creation Records in 1989 when Alan McGee found interest in them after one of their demos Jesus and Mary Chain’s Jim Reid had a hold on. They were the few Shoegazing bands that had the opportunity of experiencing commercial success and Nowhere hit 11. place in the UK charts. Andy Bell and Mark Gardener had artistic differences between what style direction the band should move on. Their childish arguments and battling with it eventually broke the band in 1996 and the members Bell, Gardener, Laurence Colbert and Steve Queralt moved on to different projects. Bell for example became the bassist of the Brit-Pop band Oasis. In 2015 they reunited on touring and released a new Album Weather Diaries in 2017. Like many other Shoegaze bands Ride wasn’t and still isn’t a fan of being categorized as a Shoegaze band stating that it’s a boring tag. They still have a place on being one of the most influencing and essential bands in shoegazing history.

Favorite tracks: In a Different Place, Vapour trail, Dreams Burn Down

6 albums i recommend:

1. Asobi Seksu - Citrus (Nu-Gaze)

This 2nd studio album released 2006 by the Brooklyn based band is lyrically a smooth mix of english and Japanese language together with poppy candy-colored tunes flourished with happiness. Citrus is a refreshing take on Shoegaze. Yuki Chikudate’s adorably pitched and pretty vocals are a candy topping on a pile of upbeat guitar leads that are washed out with loads of effects and drums which are equally noticeable. In total it’s a catchy album with some jingly-jangle Nu-Gaze pop-tunes.

Favorite Tracks: Red Seas, Exotic Animal Paradise, Thursday

2. Loveliescrushing - Bloweyelashwish (Shoegaze)

Recorded with a simple four-track recorder, 1993 released debut album Bloweyelashwish by Loveliescrushing is an innovative work of otherworldly and precisely structured fuzzy sounds with some interesting choices of additional instruments. Often mistaken of using keyboards Scott Cortes the guitarist and second vocalist used forks, knives, vibrators, paint scrapers and so on to find new creative ways to make his guitar work even more stretched out. His extremely reverbed and lushed guitar leads, thanks to the technical additions, builds up a gothic atmosphere into the sound landscape. The noisy sounds are hectic, evolving and moving towards to this chaotic drone that feels like it’s eating up all the space and becoming a massive blackhole of squeaky static sounds that create a sonic boom. Paired up with softly haunting and beautifully ethereal vocals of Melissa Arpin the duo has made an impressive first album that’s an escape to other world where soothing hypnotizing sounds are waves where you can float on and sink into the bottom of deep ambience.

Favorite Tracks: Moinaexquisitewallflower, Sugaredglowing, Crushing, Darkglassdolleyes

3. Pinkshinyultrablast - Everything Else Matters (Nu-Gaze)

St. Petersburg based band called Pinkshinyultrablast which is named after one of Astrobrite’s albums is a band thats inspiration runs deep in the waters of Shoegaze. 2013 released debut album Everything Else Matters is a strong mix of electronica with extremely delayed vocals of the singer Lyubov Soloveva that bounces between the walls until the ever-growing guitar lead comes in-front of it all with adrenaline pumped kiddy sort of energy. Playful melody and thunderous pop styling of the album makes it one of the many Nu-gaze albums that give a solid ground to it’s genre.

Favorite tracks: Wish We Were, Holy Forest, Umi

4. Medicine - Shot Forth Self Living (Shoegaze)

The noise bottom of shoegazing, Shot Forth Self Living the 1992 debut album by American band Medicine is definitely not suitable for everyone but which has such an intensive and massive static explosion that it has to be noted. The screeching textures of guitar feedback seem to claw their way through your skin until it’s scratched into burning and flaming red rash caused by the noise extremeness. Medicine was the first American band that got a record deal from the British independent label Creation Records. It has been praised of being one of the closest american acts to My Bloody Valentine but I like to think that they brought their own unique touch to the noisy shoegazing scene and weren’t just a follow-ups. They dig deeper into the distorted, fuzzed almost intolerable noise sounds. I shall warn you: do not listen to this album with maximum level of volume. Especially with headphones, i’m pretty sure your hearing would get a bit damaged.

Favorite Tracks: Love You Anywhere, To Your Friends, The Powder

5. Lilys - In the Presence of Nothing (Shoegaze)

Lilys is an interesting band considering the stylistic changes it has gone through the years. First album starting of with the My Bloody Valentine inspired Shoegaze where it took its next direction to another spaces of dream pop, then sudden not-expected obscure change to Mod Revival and the latest releases go back to the bands early roots of more psychedelic rock and shoegazing style. Also it consists only one permanent band member Kurt Heasley and ever-changing visiting members. 1992 first studio album In the Presence of Nothing is characteristically clear Shoegaze album. It has that up-front woozy and distorted guitar with vocals hid underneath that are the main basic shoegazing style My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless defined. It might be a wave rider but it has that alternative rock’s charm that stands on it’s own.

Favorite Tracks: There Is No Such Things As Black Orchids, Elizabeth Colour Wheel, Tone Bender

6. M83 - Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts (Nu-Gaze)

Unlike the other Nu-gaze or Shoegaze picks I’ve selected in here 2003 released 2nd studio album Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts by M83 focuses on heavy robotic synthesizer sounds instead of more organic and analogically produced guitar effects. French Electronic Group assembled together by producers Anthony Gonzales, Nicolas Fromageau, Nicolas Barlet and Morgan Daguenet have concentrated producing more of instrumental tracks than ones backed up with vocals. The small amount of vocals this album has are filtered with effects that create an artificial human sound. Signature move of creating heavily breath-taking and majestic chord-progressions which overflow into softly tuned harmonic static until peacefully vanishing away Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts is a standout piece of electronic noise producing. Last song of the album Beauties Can Die floats gently into this complete silence near middle of the song and rises back up from the dark void with evolving synth strings. Something that I haven’t heard more in music producing. Don’t know if it’s just the cheap quality of my speakers that can’t capture all the frequencies of the sound waves or is it just meant to be that way, it brings a fascinating structure to the song anyways.

Favorite Tracks: Run Into Flowers, Be Wild, On a White Lake Near a Green Mountain

Last Words:

In this album listing I tried to focus on recommending albums where you can clearly hear the layered guitars. Especially with the Nu-gaze picks where you can tell it’s definitely influenced by shoegazing. This time there was more experimental albums than albums that could reach a pop success. The focus mainly still was on guitar textures and producing. There’s a bit mixed opinions between what is and what can not be considered Shoegaze. I switched up the albums back and forth from the list cause I wasn’t satisfied with the guitar textures and felt like they were too distant from shoegazing after all which is the reason this post took time to come out. Also back a while ago I found this Tumblr post that was a take on one of Kevin Shields interviews where there is revealed that the actual inspiration for shoegazing was drawn from the american grunge scene. I tried to search how legit it was but couldn’t find a source proper enough in my opinion so I decided to stick with the story that media and all the music enthusiasts support. Went through podcasts, interviews with the artists and old concert footage to find more information. I’m obviously not a skillful writer but I focus on giving accurate information and I hope I managed to get to the bottom of this genre in the most simplest way.

Rey

#shoegaze #noise-pop #dream-pop #neo-psychedelia #psychedelic-rock #drone #ambient #nu-gaze #alternative-rock #jesusandthemarychain #mybloodyvalentine #slowdive #ride #asobiseksu #loveliescrushing #pinkshinyultrablast #medicine #lilys #m83

3 notes · View notes

inkinghubris · 4 years

Text

Ep. 49: Fluff, Filler or Fundamental? Knowing Which Words to Add

Episode 49: Fluff, Filler or Fundamental?

Today we discuss how and when to use fluff words or filler words in your story. Choosing the right method can be the difference between a best selling novel and a book that never gets published. Get the details here! You can listen to the episode right here. The transcription is below the player. Feel free to add your comments using the comment section below.

Episode 49 Transcript

Note: Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition software and humans, as such, it may contain errors. Please, double-check the audio file before quoting anything from this page. Introduction 00:00 I once ran a little test with some students to find out how they would describe a certain portion of a scene. The results were mixed, which I was expecting. What bothered me the most, though, was that the words used weren’t the right words. Today, I want to cover this little test and explain how and when to use the right words when you are filling out your story. Stay tuned, I’ll be right back. 00:34 01:01 Here is what I am going to do. I will recap the scene writing test for those of you that want to play along. I will set up the scene as I did for the students and explain what you need to do. If you want to play along, you can then pause the podcast while you write out your words. If you do not want to play along, then there is no need to pause the podcast. However, you are boring and you will have to bring your own snacks to our future parties. Let Me Set the Scene 01:32 Ready? Okay. The scene takes place in the middle of a suspenseful thriller novel. We are nearing the climax of the main plot, where the protagonist is heading into the antagonist’s hideout for the big confrontation.

Abandoned lots can be cool... or creepy 01:48 This particular scene starts with the main character driving to an old, abandoned shopping mall. It is mid-day but the weather is dreary. In our rough draft, we have the protag driving up, parking in the parking lot and heading inside the mall. This is the part we need to add more words to. 02:13 Your job is to write this part of the scene, from the car entering the area and parking in the parking lot. I want you to describe the parking lot for the reader. 02:26 If you are playing along, go ahead and pause the podcast and get to work. If you are not playing along, I’m still mad at you and giving you a dirty look that you can’t see because this isn’t video. Shall We Evaluate Your Work? 02:41 And we are back. Through the magic of audio, we have just traveled in time to a point where you have the assignment completed. For you it was several minutes, but for me it was a fraction of a second. I am an expert time traveler, so don’t try this at home.

Did you add the stray cat looking for food in your fluff and filler? 02:56 Now, before I tell you that you did this wrong, I am going to make a few guesses. Let’s see. You wrote about the deserted lot with the cracked and uneven pavement. You may have talked about how much grass or weeds are growing up through the asphalt. You might have mentioned the parking lot lights that are not working, maybe flickering, or the lenses are shattered and broken glass covers the ground. 03:28 Maybe you went into detail about the sounds the tires made as the main character drove slowly through the abandoned black top and that they didn’t worry about parking between the lines that are faded with time and exposure to the elements. 03:44 If I had to guess, you have between 200 and 500 words written about this parking lot. Maybe more. Am I close? Did you try extra hard to make this parking lot come to life? Maybe you threw in a few random animals running around or looking for nibbles? You Probably Did it Wrong 04:07 If so, then you did it wrong. Don’t worry. It is a good exercise and if you concentrated on making that mental movie projector in your reader’s mind come on, good job. The problem here, is that you missed the entire point of this scene. 04:30 The scene takes place, if you recall, as we approach the climax. The hero is about to square off against the villain. The reader has been waiting for this confrontation for 200 or so pages, and you want to slow the whole thing down to accurately describe a fucking parking lot? 04:51 Fluff and filler do have their place. There are scenes and situations when we need to be more descriptive and poetic in our words. There are certain scenes when we need to stretch a two-sentence description into a three-page filler. This test, though, is not one of those times. Fluff and Filler can be Too Much 05:15 One of the biggest mistakes I see is that writer’s want to fluff and fill every single page. This is nice in the beginning of the book, where you are bringing the reader into the world. Their entry point needs to be a nice landing (or a very sharp and abrupt one, depending on your mood).

Adding fluff and filler can be good, when done correctly. 05:39 As we ease them into the lives of our characters and they get to know everyone around and the actions these people are taking, our readers cherish fluffy scenes full or poetry and details. 05:54 As the story moves along, though, you need to get your ass in gear. If you have a reader so hooked that they are turning pages fast enough to start a fire, and you throw 300 words at them about a parking lot, you are going to piss off a lot of people. Decide Where to Fluff and Fill 06:12 The first step in knowing which words to use and when to fluff or fill, is knowing what is at stake. The one thing you cannot do is get these massive story wheels rolling downhill and then slam on the breaks. Perhaps the only thing that will close a book faster is writing about shiny vampires. 06:38 Unless you, too, are marketing to 12 year-old girls who still write tiny hearts instead of a dot over their i’s, each scene will dictate what needs fluff and filler and what needs to get the fuck on with it, already. Creating a Fluff and Filler Formula 06:54 Let’s see if we can find some winning formula. Of course, your own writing style, as well as the genre, purpose of your book and the scene you are writing will all dictate what needs to be said, there are some basic guidelines we can use. 07:12 First, let’s grab the old dictionary and define these terms. Fluff is the use of poetry and prose to lengthen or expand a sentence. I refer you to the common “show versus tell” example from Anton Chekhov. “Don’t tell me the moon is shining, show me the glint of light on the broken glass.” 07:42 This is an example of fluff. Filler is using extra words to say the same thing without being flowery. To piggyback from Chekhov, instead of fluff, the sentence with filler would be: Don’t tell me the moon is full, show me the light through a window. 08:08 Neither example is wrong. Neither is right. It is a matter of what you are writing and how important it is to the story. You will hear a lot of old timers telling you to move the story forward. Every word should push the reader to the next one.

Always work to move your story forward. The right speed and cadence is mandatory. 08:28 To an extent, I agree with this. However, there also needs to be a welcoming, comforting feeling to your book. So, we start our books with the proper landing for the reader. You have to remember, our story takes place at a certain point along a timeline. The characters were doing their thing long before page one, and will continue to do their thing long after the end of that story. Think Like a Reader 09:03 As the writer, you decide where the story starts. It should be in a spot along that timeline where the reader can be dropped in safely. You want them to have the time and opportunity to get to know their new surroundings, meet their new friends and understand what is going on (the plot) and why it is happening (the stakes). 09:32 In these chapters fluff is more prevalent that filler. We ease them into our story and writing style. We start giving them questions they need to have answered and this is what propels the story forward. 09:50 By the time our main character pulls into that abandoned parking lot, the stakes are too high, the plot is at its peak and the reader doesn’t need or want your fluffy words. 10:04 You still have to set the scene, of course, but now is when fluff is eliminated and filler is only used on an as-needed basis. Is it important that the parking lot is abandoned? Not at all. We can add a broken down truck to the middle of the lot if we wanted. We can add all the broken glass that cracks under the main characters feet as they rush to the boarded up front doors of the mall. 10:34 We can use these filler words to show the truck and the broken glass, or the weeds, or those branches from last weeks storm. The best way to do it, though, is to have the character notice them. Perhaps she checks the truck for a weapon or to make sure no one is hiding near it. You can put that dilapidated truck in the lot, but it doesn’t need to be poetic or take up 2 pages of the climax. Get on with the story! It's a Roller Coaster!

Picture your plot line as a roller coaster. 11:10 After the climax, when we are coming down the other side of that story arc, we can once again make the landing a bit softer. Of course you want to be careful here, too. Too much fluff and filler can lead to a bad ending. 11:28 I always like to imagine my story is a roller coaster. At this point the giant loop-de-loop is over and the reader is trying to catch their breath and slow their heart rate. I may throw in a few small turns on the roller coaster track, but nothing too serious. 11:48 Filler works well here, instead of fluff. It is still soft and welcoming, but it's not enveloping. If we go right from the climax where fluff and filler are nearly non-existent, and start using a lot of fluff again, the landing will be too jarring. Ease your reader into that next slow turn before you ramp it up again. Trial and Error and Beta Readers 12:19 Playing with fluff and filler can be difficult. This is where trial and error along with utilizing Beta readers, will come in to play. The best course, though, is to picture yourself as the reader along this journey you are creating. 12:40 Start by giving them the absolute essentials; location, time of day, clothing, vocabulary, a mission. From there, decide how much of that scene needs to be expanded. You want to make each scene inviting and complete, but if it stall the story, then less is more. 13:05 Play around with your descriptions and actions, along with your dialog. If you are still having trouble, stop by the blog and let me know what’s going on and I will help you get it sorted. Just leave a comment and we will get you back on track. 13:22 Until next week kids, have fun; write words. 13:28 #learntowrite #lovewriting #authentic #writersclub #readingabook #writerlife #writersblog #writerssoul #amwriting #amwritingfiction #yalit #amediting #writerproblems #lifeofawriter #stationary #journaling #planning #writerscommunity #typewriter #writerslife #writersblock #screenwriter #typewriterpoetry #writercommunity #literature #ExtraDraft Read the full article

0 notes

greensparty · 5 years

Text

Album Review: L7 and Josephine Wiggs

L7 Scatter the Rats

One of the great bands to emerge out of the 90s Alternative Nation was L7! Their 1992 album Bricks are Heavy is one of the greatest grunge albums of that era. They were also a cautionary tale of an indie label band getting signed to the majors and going back to indie before breaking up in 2001. Around 2015 a Kickstarter campaign was announced for the documentary film L7: Pretend We're Dead as well as the bands reunion tour (read my 2016 concert review and my 2017 documentary review). The band hadn't released a new album since 1999′s Slap-Happy (good album BTW) but that all changes this month with the release of Scatter the Rats released on Joan Jett's Blackheart Records.

Scatter the Rats album cover

We are so lucky to have the ladies of L7 back! They are all fired up, hard-playing and bringing their edge to the here-and-now. People talk about the Me Too movement now, but if you go back and look at L7 in the early 90s, they were breaking the glass ceiling of that time for the old boys club of hard rock. The mainstream music press looked at it as “they’re not bad for a girl band” but they missed the point entirely. L7 were better than most male bands of the early 90s alt-rock era. They didn’t play it safe either: they were a mix of metal, punk and grunge. They were one of the headliners of Lollapalooza 1994, appeared in John Waters’ film Serial Mom, and they founded Rock For Choice, where they garnered strong support from the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

All four original L7 members are now in their 50s and they are playing like nothing changed in the 20 years since their last album. Their discography is quite strong and its hard to listen to this and not compare to classic albums like Bricks are Heavy, but on its own, this is definitely one of the best rock albums of 2019 thus far.

For info on L7: http://l7theband.com/

4 out of 5 stars

Josephine Wiggs We Fall

One of the most underrated musicians of the Alternative Nation was Josephine Wiggs. Hands down! She was one of the founding members of The Breeders, the side project of Kim Deal (The Pixies) and Tanya Donnelly (Throwing Muses) that soon became so much more than a side project. Wiggs was the band’s bassist on their first two albums including 1993′s The Last Splash, which is one of my Desert Island Top 10 Albums Ever. During that time period, The Breeders toured with Nirvana, had a music video for “Cannonball” co-directed by a young Spike Jonze, and headlined Lollapalooza ‘94 (with, of all bands, L7!). The band went on hiatus in 1995 and when they re-grouped in the 00s, Wiggs did not take part. But in 2012 she re-joined the band for some shows and eventually the classic Breeders line-up recorded last year’s phenomenal album All Nerve (read my review here), which I named my #1 Album of 2018.

We Fall album cover

In addition to her work with The Breeders, Wiggs has also worked with several bands and some film scores / soundtrack work (including Brad Anderson’s Happy Accidents). But this month she is releasing her first ever solo album We Fall being released on May 17 on Sounds of Sinners. She composed, recorded and performed the entire album herself (with a few guest musicians).

Wiggs is a multi-instrumentalist but known for the bass

I have to admit, this is not the type of album I normally review. I appreciate and enjoy all types of music genres, but in terms of album reviews I am mostly a rock critic. I say this because this album while it is Wiggs performing, is more of a classical / new age genre or neo-classical as its called. Its not an album you put on and rock out the way that I would a Breeders album, but its a good album as something moody, instrumental and atmospheric. I always respect when a musician spreads their wings and does something completely different than what they’re known for. As much as I hope I don’t have to wait 9 years for the next Breeders album, its cool to see the members branch out.

For info on Josephine Wiggs: http://josephinewiggs.com/

3 out of 5 stars

#l7 #josephine wiggs #The Breeders #album reviews #music nerd

0 notes

aprilpillkington · 5 years

Text

Mehndi is the standard art of henna painting in India and the...

youtube

Mehndi is the standard art of henna painting in India and the Middle East. You might see it composed as mehandi, mehendi, mendhi, henna, al-henna, and a myriad other names and spellings. In current times, United States henna artists have actually come to denote the art with the term “Henna Body Art.” All of these words describe the very same ageless art kind, body painting for festive occasions. However you spell it, mehndi is pronounced meh-hen-di (with a soft, oral d sound like “thee”). I focus on understanding conceptions of henna in India, where it has been utilized since the 12th century. Many historic files detail earlier use; for example, it is the Arabic Muslims who brought henna to India, where it has blossomed into its own distinct art design. In Indian mehndi, a person applies styles generally to a lady’s hands and feet. For especially auspicious celebrations, men apply mehndi as well. The most auspicious occasion necessitating mehndi art work is the Indian wedding, where both bride and bridegroom use henna, along with numerous members of the bridal party. Henna on any occasion signifies fertility. At the wedding, henna artwork additionally symbolizes the love between husband and wife, and the stain’s long-lasting nature signifies the long-lasting nature of their love. Mehndi came into use because of its cooling healing impact in a hot environment, and, in India, it was likewise a way for a couple to be familiar with one another before an arranged marital relationship. A variety of customs underlie the use of mehndi, including wedding games and legends. For example, the groom’s name is normally written somewhere within the bride’s mehndi; if he can not discover his name within the complex design, the bride-to-be is stated to have the control in the marital relationship. Also, a dark mehndi design for both groom and bride represents that the two will have a strong relationship. Within the past couple of years, mehndi has ended up being popularized in the West by musicians and Hollywood characters alike, and is now a quickly increasing trend among females and males in world culture.

Translating the word “henna” actually indicates “to end up being queen.” The Indian name “mehndi” designates the procedure, the dye, and the stain of mehndi. To make the color, henna (mehndi) leaves are dried and finely ground. The powder that results is filtered two or more times through a fine nylon cloth. This process results in removing the coarse fibers from the powder, making what is left finer and much easier to use. The artist then blends this great powder with an oil (such as eucalyptus, nilgiri, or mehndi oil) and other liquids (lemon, water, or tea), making a thick paste. This paste is applied to the user’s hand in various designs, which can range from large, thick patterns to Moroccan geometric patterns to traditional Indian paisleys and lace-like drawings. All relies on the ability of the artist and the style of styles used. An option of lemon juice and sugar is then applied to the drying mehndi to allow it to stay stuck to the skin and to improve the passing away procedure. Mehndi is yet another standard yet exciting pre wedding. In Indian wedding events, a lot of focus is given on customs and rituals and the very same is shown in the Mehndi event prior to marital relationship. Mehendi ceremony has actually become such an essential part of the wedding ceremony that it can not be thought of without it. Furthermore, Mehndi is one of the sixteen accessories of the bride and her appeal is insufficient without it. Mehndi ceremony generally takes place just before marital relationship. According to the routine, the bride does not get out of your house after this event. latest mehndi ceremony is basically arranged by the household of the bride and is generally a personal affair which happens in the presence of good friends, family members and family members. However, the scale of the event depends upon specific choice. Some individuals commemorate it with excellent pomp and show. Mehndi is among the oldest forms of body art conceived by guy. The Hindi and Arabic word Mehendi is originated from a Sanskrit word ‘mendhika’ which referred to the henna plant itself. Recommendation to uses of henna can be traced back to the Bronze ages. In the bible, henna is referred to a Camphire. In and around the Indian subcontinent, henna has actually been utilized as a cosmetic even before Vedic ages. India is thought about as the source from where the body art customs with henna infect different parts of the world like Egypt, Asia Minor and the Middle East. Recommendations of henna throughout the mummification procedure of Pharaohs in addition to anecdotes of the well-known queen Cleopatra using henna to paint her body are widely known in history. Prophet Muhammad is understood to utilize henna paste to color his graying beard and was known to promote use of henna to others too. Use of henna is considered exceptionally auspicious in numerous traditions all over the world, particularly within Hindus, who would consider Mehndi part of the popular 16 adornments or Solah Shringaar. Henna (Botanical name: Lawsonia inermis) is a small shrub-like plant, discovered in tropical climates of Indian sub-continent, Malaysia, Africa, Middle Eastern nations. The leaves and branches produce a red-orange dye known as Lawsone that is responsible for imparting the characteristic color when bound with protein particles of the upper skin layer. The plant is commercially cultivated in Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat and parts of Madhya Pradesh. Traditionally, the Mehndi paste is made from dried powdered henna leaves. The leaves are dried in sun, ground and sieved to obtain a great mossy green powder, which is then integrated with water, lemon juice, drops of eucalyptus oil, and blended till a smooth paste is gotten. The paste is soaked overnight for maximum infusion and after that put inside a plastic cone. Smaller sized cones are preferred as it manages easier application.

The ideas of the cones are cut according to the preferred density of the lines required. The cones are squeezed gently to guarantee smooth, constant flow of Mehndi. Application is usually started from lower arms, gradually moving down the hand, ending in the fingertips. Gone are the days when particular aunties and sis were in need around the neighborhood for their proficiency in Mehndi designs. Now Mehndi event centers around expert Mehendi artist who focuses on the current trends in henna art. Standard Indian designs consist of peacock themes, flower styles, bride/groom reproductions and other components that cover every inch of the hand, forearms, feet and calves. The fingertips are normally covered in thick layers of henna paste. The concept is to decorate the bride’s body in replica of pricey Jewelry. For those who are minimalists, they can choose Arabic designs where the Mehndi concepts are normally applied to one side of the hand and feet and do not extend to lower arms or calves. Floral and paisley themes dominate this design and the styles are generally curvy with lots of focus on vines. Indo-Arabic design of Mehndi fuses these 2 design trends into an elegant, creative genre. Newest trends in bridal henna styles is incorporation of colors in between henna themes, addition of stones and blings, addition of flashes or metal dusts. Geometric patterns and white henna styles are also in vogue today. The henna requires to be continued for a minimum of 4 hours for deep and uniform color. The longer the paste is kept, the deeper will be the color. The color really magnifies depending on one’s body heat, so the henna-painted body parts can be covered in plastic wraps or foils to seal in the body heat. A mixture of lemon juice and sugar should be applied on the styles with a brush or light fabric at 1 hour periods so that the dried Mehndi does not fall off and sits tight making sure much better color. Another method to ensure better color advancement is to dry roast some cloves on a tawa and letting the hands absorb the smoke. The Mehendi must never be gotten rid of by water after it has actually dried and ought to be done by just rubbing the hands together as the dried bits come off easily. The Mehendi Ceremony normally happens the day before the wedding, in the early morning. The bride and the groom’s household observe this routine independently at their own homes. It is generally a females centric event with the men of the household typically not getting involved. The attire preferred for the ceremony are simple, in light colors, nothing too flashy. The venues are decked up with flowers and colorful drapes. The bride-to-be wears a light yellow or light green colored Lehenga or Salwar Kameez with short sleeves ideally and the groom wears Kurta Pajama also in light colors. It is elective for the groom to wear Mehendi, however a bit is used on his hands and feet in simple dots or little designs. The ceremony likewise involves application of oil on the groom’s hair. The henna for the bride’s event needs to show up from the groom’s side together with some other presents like fruits, dry fruits and sweets. Women of the house put together and the Mehndi is either used by among the bride-to-be’s relative or nowadays by professional Mehendi artists. Designs are more elaborate and depending on what the bride-to-be chooses, the henna is applied on the front and back of her palm, lower arm, till above the elbows, and on the feet till below the knee. Senior ladies sing standard Mehendi songs with dholaks and other musical instruments. Ladies family members of the bride also get simple mehndi applied to their hands, although the designs are not as sophisticated as the bridal Mehendi.

The Mehendi ceremony contains within itself a host of conventional beliefs that are handed down the generations. Traditionally, someplace within the intricate bridal Mehendi, the groom’s initial is included. In post marriage ceremonies, the groom needs to look and discover it out. This helps with a nice ice-breaker for the recently wedded couple specifically in case of an organized marital relationship. It is also stated that the darker the color of the Mehendi, the more love the bride will get at her in-laws and particularly from her other half. The durability of the color of Mehendi has special significance also. In older days when set up marital relationships were primary, the bride-to-be maintaining her Mehendi while visiting her parents’ house after the wedding indicated her mom that the in-laws were considerate and caring.

Use of Mehendi in a pre-wedding ritual is not just cosmetic however has deep underlying scientific factors behind it. Henna is understood for its cooling properties and is expected to soothe the bride’s nerves when applied to her hands and feet. Indian wedding events consist of a host of pre and post wedding event rituals that extend the happy event through days before and after the real wedding day. These colorful occasions bring the whole household together, even from far off locations. The immediate and extended families, buddies and neighbors get together to commemorate the union through various reliable routines throughout a span of several days. The Mehendi Ceremony is one such occasion that is an important part of the wedding event events. latest mehndi Event typically refers to application of a henna paste in elaborate detailed designs on the bride’s hands and feet. A profoundly vibrant event, with lots of singing and dance performances involved, the Mehendi event formally begins the wedding festivities in full equipment.

This ritual is not only part of Hindu wedding events in Northern and Eastern India but likewise a part of the wedding rituals among Indian Muslims. The ceremony is observed in nations adjoining India like Pakistan and Nepal, as well as in several Arab countries in the Middle East. Although, the routine was predominantly observed in parts of northern India, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, the pattern has gained appeal all over India. Increasingly more cultures are accepting the idea of Mehendi Event as a pre-wedding routine mainly due to the aesthetics involved. The ceremony has actually become a sign of magnificence, fun and celebrations, and reason for some major pre-wedding girl bonding. Mehndi (or Hina) is the application of henna (Hindustani: हेना- حنا- urdu) as a short-term type of skin decor, most popular in South Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and Somaliland, along with migrant communities from these locations. It is generally used for events and unique events, particularly weddings. Henna designs are usually made use of the hands and feet, where the color will be darkest since the skin includes greater levels of keratin. The leaves of the henna plant consist of a red-orange color particle, lawsone, which has an affinity for bonding with protein, and has been utilized to color skin, hair, fingernails, leather, silk, and wool. Henna leaves are usually dried and ground into a powder, which is mixed into a paste and applied using a range of strategies. The henna pasted is generally left on the skin for eight hours; after it is removed, the pattern continues to darken for approximately 3 days. The word “henna” originates from the Arabic name Hina for Lawsonia inermis. In the Bible’s Tune of Tunes and Tune of Solomon, henna is referred to as Camphire. In the Indian subcontinent, there are lots of alternative words such as Mehndi in North India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. In Arabic-speaking nations in North Africa and the Middle East the Arabic word is “hina.” In Telugu (India, Malaysia, U.S.), it is referred to as “Gorintaaku.” In Tamil (South India, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka) it is called “Marudhaani” and is used as ground fresh leaves rather than as dried powder. It is used in various festivals and celebrations and utilized by ladies and children. It is left on overnight and will last one month or more depending on the plant and how well it was ground and the length of time it is left on. The various words for henna in ancient languages suggest that henna may have had more than one point of origin. It is understood that henna has remained in usage as a cosmetic, along with for its expected healing homes, for a minimum of 5,000 years, but a long history of migration and cultural interaction has actually made it tough to identify with absolute certainty where the custom started. Some scholars claim that the earliest paperworks of henna usage are found in ancient Indian texts and images, indicating that mehndi as an art-form may have come from ancient India. Others declare that the practice of ornamenting the body with henna was taken to India by the Moguls in the twelfth century C.E., centuries after it had been in usage in the Middle East and North Africa. Another theory is that the custom of easy mehndi originated in North Africa and the Middle Eastern nations during ancient times. Henna is likewise understood to have been used in ancient Egypt, to stain the fingers and toes of the Pharaohs prior to mummification. Another possibility is that the similar use of henna for skin decor arose independently and possibly at the same time in these regions.

It is theorized that dots of henna were first applied to the palms of the hands as a means of cooling off the body. Early users of henna started to add lines and other shapes to the single dot on the palm, ultimately developing the fancy styles used today. Henna has actually been used to adorn girls’s bodies as part of social and holiday celebrations because the late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean. The earliest text pointing out henna in the context of marriage and fertility events comes from the Ugaritic legend of Baal and Anath, which has references to ladies marking themselves with henna in preparation to satisfy their spouses, and Anath adorning herself with henna to celebrate a triumph over the opponents of Baal. Wall paintings excavated at Akrotiri (dating prior to the eruption of Thera in 1680 B.C.E.) show females with markings consistent with henna on their nails, palms and soles, in a tableau consistent with the henna bridal description from Ugarit. Many statuettes of young women dating between 1500 and 500 B.C.E. along the Mediterranean shoreline have actually raised hands with markings consistent with henna. This early connection between young, fertile females and henna seems to be the origin of the Night of the Henna, which is now well known global. The Night of the Henna, an event throughout which henna is applied to the hands and feet of a bride, and often to other members of the wedding party, was commemorated by most groups in the areas where henna grew naturally.

Mehndi is the standard art of henna painting in India and the... published first on https://the4th3rd.tumblr.com

1 note · View note