#christine's greatest strength's her compassion

[rosewaterbaptism]

I think a lot of us (myself included) take for granted how rare and beautiful it is to have a character like Christine Daae, whose greatest strength is her compassion, and who remains loving despite her hardships ❤️ I wish to embody her strength and empathy in my life

[corseque]

What do you think is the appeal of Christine as a protagonist? She resonates with so many people, and she's such an appealing protagonist, but I can never put by finger on why. She has a very delicate balance of fraility and strength.

It’s been a few years since I’ve read the novel, so I’m just talking about the musical here, but man, Christine Daaé is such an archetypal character that she matches the Phantom as a walking symbol. She manages to navigate the plot as an ingénue protagonist that never frustrates an audience. She’s also a very fun wish-fulfillment character who eventually wins all prizes at the end of the story through boundless compassion.

I think part of why she’s so likable is her grief for her father (wishing you were somehow here again), which hits home to pretty much everyone and which is coincidentally her Achilles heel (‘Angel or father? Friend or phantom? Who is it there, staring…?’). We cry for her love for her father, but her love for her father is why she lets her guard down and gets kidnapped twice. So we can’t be frustrated.

(I think this is why Rey is so good, too — her searching for her parents everywhere is called out as her ‘greatest weakness’ but that’s why we became attached to her in the first place)

And then when Christine sees the whole situation plainly at last, she becomes enraged (‘angel of music, you deceived me!’) which is lovely. and I respect her a whole lot when her peaceful actions that defuse the standoff in the pit, and it is her wishes that turn the world at the end. That scene is peak wish-fulfillment, and life-fulfillment.

From a female gaze POV, it’s wish-fulfillment to have a love triangle with a hot rich guy childhood sweetheart and a dark and deadly tortured renaissance man genius, both obsessed with you enough that they would die for you. It’s also wish-fulfillment to have your private practice be recognized and rewarded so publicly, by becoming lead soprano from dancing girl. Fictional kidnapping and other risqué situations are wish-fulfillment in the same sort of way, being introduced to sensuality in the dark belly of the opera house by a mysterious masked man with black gloves and an angel’s voice, and to be the muse of a genius.

So imo: it’s fun to vicariously experience such wish-fulfillment through her, her weakness is understandable, and she shows great courage and compassion. She gets to have her cake and eat it too. She’s the best, I love her.

[holly-myers-blog]

TASK #1

Basic Information:

Full name? Holly Jane Myers

Nickname(s)? None

Age? 33

Hometown? London, England

Current residence?  Las Vegas, Nevada

Nationality? British 

Occupation? Singer/Stage actress. Currently Christine Daae in Phantom of the Opera

Parent(s)? Caroline & Richard Myers

Sibling(s)? Vivian & Jenna Myers

Spouse/Partner? None

Children? None

Roommate(s)? None

Economic class? Wealthy-ish

Education level? Bachelor’s degree in classical music vocal performance.

Physical Characteristics:

Hair color? Dark brown (dyed blonde)

Eye Color? Blue

Height? 5′3″

Weight? 105 lbs

Heritage? British, Irish

Glasses/Contacts? Both. 

Build? Petite

Health status? Healthy. As a performer, her heath is very important to her. 

Disabilities? None

Tattoos/Piercings? One tattoo of birds on her ribcage. 

Distinguishing features? Huge blue eyes, freckles, tiny waist. 

Style? Preppy, but mostly casual. 

Personality/Psychological

Strengths? Holly is very determined & never gives up. She loves proving people wrong. Her compassion for others is also a huge strength of hers.

Weaknesses? She can be insecure and impatient. Sometimes she can be very indecisive too. 

Greatest Flaw: She definitely cares too much and wears her heart on her sleeve. 

Best Quality: Easy going & positive attitude. 

Hobbies? Running, yoga, DIY crafts.

Talents/Special skills? Singing, piano, guitar, dance, 

Habits?(smoking,drinking etc) Holly doesn’t smoke, but she does have the occasional drink. 

Optimistic or pessimistic? Optimistic.

Introverted or extroverted? Extroverted. 

Mental/physical illnesses? None. 

[eyeofahurricaneart]

I watched The Phantom of the Opera 25th anniversary movie for the first time in ages last night, and I had to draw Christine in her Hannibal gown! I've always loved the musical since I first saw the film, but when I read the book for the first time, I really saw how incredible Christine is: She is so courageous and selfless and talented, but her greatest strength is her compassion. She is complex and emotional and quite possibly my favourite female character from a book. I'm really happy with this drawing of her, I think it captures how much I adore her. 😊💜🌹🎭

[theweepingvulcan91]

Title: Dancing in the Memories of a Child of Two Worlds Rating: Mild self harm (striking one’s self) Pairing: Leonard McCoy/ T’lussek Word Count: 1854 Warnings: Minor Self Harm. Lots of mind freaks.  

“Leonard…”

T’lussek bolted from her bed in sickbay. What she had no idea was that she had been in that bed for three days. The Enterprise was sent to Andoria Prime where they were meant to deal with rouge Aenar. They were said to have been wiped out and yet the Andorians had been having issues with beings of great telepathic strength. These beings had been known to manipulate the minds of those weak enough. Hoping to utilize her telepathic and ambassadorial abilities Jim insisted that she go with them on the planet. It should've been a simple conversation on the icy planet that was until she was kidnapped. Somehow she was able to make it back to the captain before passing out. Groaning in pain her body was sore as if she had just been in a fight. From head to toe she felt as if she beaten. What she didn't realize was the fact that this Aenar inside of her was doing everything in its power to take control of her mind.

“T’lussek…doesn’t move. You’re still hooked up to the machines.”

Leonard helped her to sit up. He had been monitoring her for the three days she had been under. Watching her closely he needed to make sure that she was going to win this fight. The mechanism she was hooked too monitored all of her brainwaves passive and active. Through her conversations in her unconscious state he had gathered that one of the Aenar had taken control of her mind trying to take over her body. It needed a host with telepathic abilities in order to repopulate its race. He was obsessed with making sure that T'lussek was the one that won the battle.

“What….what happened?”

T’lussek jumped as she saw the flash of a sinister pale blue face. It hooked it slender fingers around her throat trying to snuff her life out. Letting out a piercing scream she grasped at her throat. Physically fighting off something that wasn't seen to anything but her the machines that were hooked to her head began to buzz as her brain activity was going off the charts. She began to shake as she felt Leonard take hold of her hands. He pulled her hands down to her lap as he tried to send a calming thought their bond.

“Focus on my voice. I’m right here T’lussek. I haven’t left you in the three days you've been unconscious. You’re safe T'lussek. You’re still fighting the Aenar out of your mind. I need you to squeeze my hands dear. We need to give you something to focus on.”

Leonard's voice was slow and calm as he began to stroke the back of her hands with his thumbs. A wave of a chill consumed her body as he touched her as it always did when she was uneasy.

One

Two

Three

Four

T'lussek took deep breaths with each passing count. For once she needed to find focus again. Though she may have been human there were times of great unrest for her mind that resulted in her need logic. After a few moments of deep breathing she opened her eyes and looked at Leonard. Those were eyes that cared for me not only as a patient but as a love. She thought to herself as she could feel his worry wash over her as she continued to take deep breaths. She hadn’t felt panic like this in some time.

“You’re awake…”

If T'lussek didn’t know better there was a hint of worry in her brother’s voice. Then again her brain felt like a scrambled egg. Seeing him past Leonard she smiled weakly. There was something to be said about the worry of her brother. Not only was there Spock but also Jim standing in the front of Sickbay.

“Yeah…guess I was strong enough…for now…”

T’lussek forced a chuckle. She knew Spock didn’t approve of her dark humor like this. And seeing the worry in Jim’s eyes didn’t help. She hated the fact that she knew Jim. Knew that even though she was okay and fighting through this he was thinking it was it was his fault she was in this condition. Flashes of his worried face as he called for the transporter room filled her mind. Closing her eyes she shook her head trying to push away the thoughts.

“I would like to try something with your permission T’lussek.”

Spock said closing the gap between them. Reaching out T’lussek brushed her hand against her brother’s wrist. It was nice to hear a voice that was real. No matter what she was grateful for the close bond she shared with her brother. Though they may have been raised in opposite ways their closeness was something that transcended all.

“Thank Surak you do. How on earth are you going to get this blue bastard out of my head?”

A burst chuckle escaped her lips. This was how she could always tell that she had been around Leonard too long. She always picked up his phrases when she spent too much time with him. Never using such words she knew it had to be him floating around in her mind. That was happening a lot. Moments of randomness appearing in her head with each passing minute. Some the past…some the present…and some not even hers. It was all she could do not to scream in the swirling void of memories.

“There is a ritual…”

“But is it the same as a Katra transfer?”

“It is not the same daughter.”

T’lussek turned to see the familiar face of her father. He was the last person she was expecting to see. Did he know about their trip to Andoria Prime? She thought to herself as she looked around to see if anyone else was around. It seems like everyone is going down to this party. She let out a soft giggle.

“Then how on earth shall you…”

“T’lussek!”

Amanda Grayson’s voice filled the air as she pushed her way past her husband and the other men to her daughter’s bedside. Letting out a sigh of relief she was glad...no ecstatic to see her mother. Flashes of her reading Alice in Wonderland was the thing that kept her focused. Amanda always held a strong focus in her activities whatever they were.

“Why is the raven…like a writing desk?”

T’lussek reached up and brushed her mother’s cheek with her fingers. Her sunken cheeks pulled back into a smile as she tried to calm down her mother. There was something to be said about the worry in her mother's voice. Having not heard much of it as a child it was wonderful to hear it now.

“I’m fine Mother. I just have an extra piece to my puzzle.”

As T’lussek giggled she could feel the glare of her family and friends around her. She knew that they didn’t like her making such jokes especially at her own expense. It was something she had learned to do very early on as to make sure people were comfortable with her.

“It was her simple attempt at humor my wife; an illogical coping mechanism.”

“You’re the one being illogical Father. Coming here and not speaking about a solution to this problem”

She normally loved seeing the compassion that her parents had provided one another, but now was different. Now she was sitting here waiting for him to fix her brain. She had hopped the slight annoyance in her tone was not that noticeable.

“T’lussek! There is no need for this. They are only making light of your dark humor.”

The stern tone of Leonard McCoy filled her ears. Looking to her lover’s eyes she was shocked at his response. A bit of shame filled her mind. She knew that there was no reason for her to have snapped at her father. She smiled seeing Leonard raise his standard two fingers at her.

Thank Surak he remembered the Ozh’esta.

Normally they were not so reserved with their affections. That was the greatest part about being half human; she could kiss her love amongst other things whenever she wanted to. Now was different. Now she stood in front of not only her brother but her father as well. Normally she enjoyed messing with Spock but she would not disrespect her father any more than she already had.

“It is essentially a meld technique in which your brother, Dr. McCoy, and I will enter your mind and dissolve the link between you and the foreign entity.”

“How can Leonard participate Father? He is not a telepath.”

T’lussek asked with a sharp tone. Not that rituals couldn’t be held using non telepaths, but it seemed quite odd to her. Normally her father even now was the first to keep things amongst the family private.

“No he is not, but he does have a bond with you T’lussek. And that bond you share will help us separate you from that entity.”

Sarek’s tone his regular coolness as he walked closer to his daughter. Looking into his eyes she couldn’t help but let a soft smile grace her features. She knew that her father cared. It was just different to see such emotions in his features. Her eyes winded as she saw Christine looking at her in the corner. She couldn’t believe that everyone was here. Both chosen and biological family was here trying to find a way to help.

“I am here to help get the boys into trance.”

Amanda said softly as she reached up and cupped her daughter’s cheek. Having learned all of the skills needed to head the house of Surak Amanda was more than capable to do these rituals. T’lussek used Amanda as a focal point in her own logic. If her mother could function in the Vulcan hierarchy then so could she.

“Is it necessary? They are after all some of the greatest telepaths on Vulcan…”

Though T’lussek didn’t know a lot about the rituals of her home world it seemed odd that they would need help inducing a trance. Maybe it is because of Leonard? She thought to herself as she looked at the people in the room. Seeing all of the worried faces began to shift into the whitish blue of the Aenar T’lussek began to panic. Her breath ragged as she pulled her hands away from her mother and began smacking the sides of her head.

“GET IT OUT!!”

T’lussek screamed as she continued to hit her head. Leonard looked at Christine as she bolted to gather a hypo for the doctor. Feeling all of the hands of Spock and Jim trying to hold her she tried her best to fight back. What they didn’t know was that she wasn’t seeing her family; she was seeing the Aenar reaching for her. Christine handed Leonard the hypo and he quickly injected T’lussek with a tranquilizer.

“Don’t let them get me…”

T’lussek said trying to fight off the last bit of fear before hitting the biobed hard. Spock looked to his father with a deep worry in his gaze.

“We need to get her planet side now!”