#commentary with chlo

[crazychlo08]

Missing them (about a historical figure I’ve never met)

[amtrak12]

Fanfic Meta: First Draft vs Final Draft w/ Examples (2/2)

Part 2 of my meta post on first draft vs final draft using Chapter 10 of my Lucifer fic “Can We Keep Her” as an example. Part 1 can be found here.

Scene is below the cut. Bolded text is a part I wanted to specifically reference in my commentary at the end. The text was not bolded in the published version.

Despite her repeated reassurances this morning, Chloe was late returning for lunch. Thankfully, Rory didn’t notice. Her stomach had declared lunch two hours earlier, and so, full and happy, she played with Trixie’s old toys, unconcerned with who was and wasn’t there. When Chloe did finally arrive, she rushed off the elevator looking stressed and tossing out a dozen apologies for each step she took.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, we had a last minute interview that, of course, could only be scheduled over the guy’s lunch break, never mind my own.”

Lucifer felt a pang of jealousy that she’d interviewed another suspect without him, a pang that deepened when the Detective’s gaze skirted right past him to search for the infant.

“Rory? I’m back — whoa….” Chloe spotted the large blanket fort that had taken over his living room. “You two have been busy.”

“The infant doesn’t have an off switch,” Lucifer dryly replied. His sarcasm was upstaged by said infant crawling out of the fort and squealing at Chloe.

“Mommy!”

Chloe grinned. “Monkey!” She dropped to her knees as Rory sprinted over to tackle her in a big hug. “Ohhh, I’ve missed you so much!” She squeezed Rory tightly. “Have you been having fun with Daddy?”

“With Lucifer,” he instantly corrected her. “Get her to say my name.”

“Right, sorry.” The Detective glanced up at him with more of an eye roll than an apology.

Rory giggled. “He’s silly.”

“Oh, just so silly,” Chloe agreed in that tooth-achingly sugary voice.

Lucifer wanted to argue. Better yet, he wanted to rage and vent. Between the two of them, couldn’t Chloe tell he was the one in distress? Certainly not the pampered infant. But before he could even utter an indignant ‘excuse me’, he realized how fruitless it would be. The Detective’s attention was focused exclusively on Rory. In fact, she looked relieved to see the girl which made matters so much worse.

Had he been too quick to believe her when she’d said she’d still trusted him? Was she not stressed over work but over the infant’s safety after leaving the girl in his care? But there was no interrogation, no pointed questions, no checking the infant over for injury. Chloe and the girl simply chatted the way Chloe would chat with her daughter after a school day. Nothing more, nothing less.

The revelation hit him like the reluctant understanding of the damned. Chloe really had missed the infant this morning. That’s why she was so relieved to see her now. She wasn’t patronizing the girl. She’d truly, honestly missed her.

As baffling as that was (Lucifer was quite sure he would never, ever miss the girl and wished she would disappear from the face of the earth right now), a second, more unsettling, thought slithered into his mind right behind it. Someone else should be missing Rory, too. If — as impossible as it was — his father hadn’t made the girl after all… if Rory was actually his daughter… then somewhere out there she had a mother. Someone who had taken care of Rory before the girl was dropped on his doorstep, someone who must have loved her very much given how healthy and spoiled the girl was. Was she worrying about Rory at this very minute?

Lucifer tried to shove the thought away, but it clung to him as tightly as the infant’s sticky, pinching hands.

“Oh, guess what?” Rory announced. “I got a new car seat.”

“You did?” Chloe said.

“Yeah, it’s almost as good as ours,” the girl said. “But it’s orange so it’s also better.”

“You got an orange car seat?”

“It has orange straps,” Lucifer clarified. “But she still had to play Goldilocks with the dozen other models at the store before she decided the orange one was the best.”

Chloe grinned like the infant’s fussiness was a delightful discovery.

“You’re picky, aren’t you?” she teased the girl.

Rory giggled at the tone and, far too proudly, replied, “Thank you!”

The Detective laughed and stood up with the girl in her arms. “Have you eaten lunch yet? Are you hungry?”

All smiles evaporated as Rory fell into a serious pout. “No, I haven’t eaten at all.”

“Liar!” Lucifer said with a scowl. He told Chloe, “She ate a peanut butter and banana sandwich the second we got home. She insisted on it.”

“Well, maybe she’s still hungry,” Chloe said.

“Well, maybe she shouldn’t have her thrown her plate of snacks on the floor,” Lucifer countered.

Chloe frowned, but, infuriatingly, it was his actions she questioned, not the three year old’s. “How many snacks did you give her?”

“One of each just like the Urchin suggested,” Lucifer said. “She declared fudge-striped cookies was the winner before she’d even sampled half of them. Then, when I wouldn’t hand over the rest of the package like she requested, she got pissy with me and flipped her plate right off the table.”

Chloe bit back a smirk. “Wow, that is so much funnier when it’s not my kid.” She turned to the infant and said, “Rory, we don’t throw things to get our way. That’s not how it works, okay?”

The manipulative infant curled sadly into Chloe’s shoulder. “But I cleaned it up.”

“After I made you! And I still had to go back over it myself,” Lucifer said. To Chloe, he added, “She’s terrible with a broom.”

For some frustrating reason, Chloe’s smirk grew. “Wow, look at you doling out sandwiches and punishments.”

“Because I’m the Devil.”

“So, you make peanut butter and banana sandwiches?” Chloe teased.

“So, I punish people!” Lucifer finally snapped. “That’s my job! I’m not a bloody father!”

The teasing slipped off the Detective’s face, but it did nothing to appease his anger. Then, the damn infant opened her mouth to make a fool of him once again.

“I think Daddy needs a nap.”

The corner of Chloe’s lips twitched upwards again, and Lucifer slammed his hands down on the bar.

“That’s it, I’ve changed my mind.” He glared at Rory. “Feel free to go out on the balcony any time you like, infant — in fact, please, let’s head out there now. Maybe you’ll tumble over the railing and I won’t have to see you anymore.

He marched off to the balcony. For the first time in days, he unlocked the doors and stepped outside. A blast of dry wind hit him and grabbed him by the chest. It felt like he hadn’t been outside — truly outside — in days either. Stepping out to run errands with the infant didn’t count. Lucifer needed space to breathe, space to be free. The penthouse wasn’t safe anymore, not with the infant around. It didn’t belong to him. Nothing belonged to him lately. Not his relationship with the Detective, not his home, not even his own bloody body now that his wings were back. It was all Dad’s, Dad’s, Dad’s.

He glared up into the cloudless sky. “You’re probably laughing it up right now, aren’t you, Dad?” The urge to throw or punch swept over him, but there was nothing around to hit. “Fuck!”

Chloe walked out onto the balcony, and Lucifer cursed again.

“Oh, perfect. What’s the lecture this time, Detective? Don’t curse in front of the infant? Don’t raise your voice?”

“I’m just checking on you,” Chloe said calmly.

“Right,” Lucifer scoffed. “You left the infant alone, you know.”

“She’s picking up her toys so we can eat lunch in the blanket fort.”

The damn brat really was picking up. Lucifer could see her through the window. He didn’t know why he was surprised by that. Of course, she would be cleaning up; the infant always listened to what Chloe said. In fact, Chloe should just take the girl to live with her since they got along so well. She could have two daughters, and he could go back to having none. It would suit him just fine.

He shook his head and stared out over the balcony railing.

“Lucifer, what happened?” Chloe asked. “Has Rory been acting out? Did she cause trouble during your therapy appointment?”

“Oh, she certainly did that,” he said. “The little worm broke Linda and made her completely useless to me again. And then she accused me of not listening!”

Chloe frowned. “Rory or Linda?”

“Rory,” Lucifer snapped. “Who do you think has been driving me up the wall all day? It’s all Rory, Rory, Rory!”

In a neutral tone, Chloe said, “Yeah, three year olds are a lot of work.”

“Work I’m not supposed to be doing, because she’s not supposed to be here!” Lucifer said. “Dr. Linda couldn’t wrap her head around it. Kept asking me how a baby angel happened, like I have all the answers. Well, guess what, Detective? I don’t! I don’t have any bloody idea how or why there’s a baby angel walking around on Earth. You know who probably does? My Father!” He turned and shouted up at the sky. “But of course, you won’t share that answer with us, will you, Dad? Because when do you ever do that?”

“Lucifer—“

“You’ll just sit up there, watching from on high, judging us as we all fuck up whatever plans you made.” He gave a wild laugh. “Or worse, we’re all playing right into your hands again. Is that what this? Another game?”

“Lucifer!”

The heat of Chloe’s hand on his arm froze the breath in his throat. He looked back at her, still shaking with too much rage.

“Stop,” Chloe said. “There’s no point in yelling at your Father. He’s not here right now.”

“Exactly why I’m yelling at Him!” Lucifer said. “He’s screwing with my head again, and I’m bloody sick of it!”

“Rory is the one who’s here right now.”

“But she isn’t supposed to be!” Lucifer argued. “Baby angels don’t exist. Fact. End of story.”

“And yet she does! And she’s inside, right now“

“She’s a mutant,” Lucifer said. “Or an experiment or a mistake that my Father—“

“Stop it!” Chloe cut in. “Stop trying to explain it when we don’t have an explanation.”

Lucifer threw his hands up in the air. “News flash, Detective, that’s exactly what everyone is doing! Every single person including you keep insisting that she’s my daughter. Well, what makes that explanation any more true than mine?”

The frustration slipped from Chloe’s face. The argument halted.

“You’re right.”

“What?”

“We are all jumping to conclusions,” Chloe said. “None of us actually know what’s true.”

Was she really agreeing with him? That was… disorienting.

“So… Rory’s not my daughter now?” he asked. “We’re going to stop assuming she is?”

“We’re going to stop assuming anything,” Chloe said, “and instead treat this like one of our cases.”

Lucifer’s confusion deepened. “The infant hasn’t murdered anyone. She’s just annoying.”

Chloe replied, “No, not treating it like a murder. I mean just in general. If this was a case, then we would need to back up and start gathering evidence with an open mind instead of only looking for the evidence that fits our theory.”

“Your theory is impossible!”

“Every theory for Rory’s existence sounds impossible,” Chloe argued back. “God creating a toddler angel for the first time in all of history? That sounds ridiculous.”

Petulantly, Lucifer said, “It could’ve been my mother.”

“Which is as equally impossible as an angel having a child, by the sounds of it,” Chloe said. “So, we should stop looking for what is or isn’t possible and instead focus on figuring out what explanation best fits the evidence.”

Oh, he did not like where she was going with this. The only evidence they had right now was Rory’s white wings and the DNA results.

“But that just brings us back to me being her father.”

Chloe nodded. “So, we pursue the lead.”

“That’s not a lead. It’s slander,” Lucifer said, but the Detective ignored him.

“If you’re really Rory’s father, then that means she has a mother,” Chloe said. “A human mother right here on Earth that we can track down.”

“If there is a mother to track down.”

“I know, but we have try.” Chloe asked him, “You don’t happen to have a little black book somewhere listing everyone you slept with about 4 years ago, do you?”

He didn’t. But he could easily make one. Lucifer didn’t forget a face, but in this moment, he wished he could.

“It’s a long list,” he warned, on the needle-thin chance the Detective would balk at pursuing this line of investigation.

But even that needle-thin chance was destroyed when Chloe simply shrugged. “Yeah, I remember how long your list of sexual partners was for eight weeks. I can estimate what a whole year is going to look like.” She turned thoughtful. “But we might not even need the full year if Rory knows what her birthday is. Have you tried asking her?”

“Even if she did, there’s no telling we can believe….” He trailed off as he glimpsed Rory through the balcony window. The girl had her face pressed up against the glass, mouth spread open, as she made distorted faces at them.

“Rory!” he barked. “Knock that off! You’re smudging the glass.”

The infant jumped back from the window. She tensed when Chloe looked over as well and clasped her hands behind her back to feign innocence.

But Chloe didn’t scold the girl. Instead, she wrinkled her nose with a conspiratorial smile and beckoned the girl outside. Rory brightened into a grin and ran for the door.

“Don’t actually let her out here!” Lucifer complained. “I didn’t mean what I said earlier.” But he was ignored. Rory excitedly ran onto the balcony, and Chloe picked her up to carry her on her hip.

“Hi, monkey. Did you finish cleaning up?”

The infant pointed at the city skyline behind Chloe’s shoulder and cooed, “Pretty.”

“Yeah, it is pretty,” Chloe said. “Lucifer has a really nice view, doesn’t he?”

“Yeah.” Then, Rory’s face fell into a perfect mimicry of pitiful sadness. “Daddy, I broke a blanket.”

Lucifer had already grown accustomed to not understanding seventy-five percent of what the girl said, but this wasn’t fantastical imaginings or potential fortune telling. It was just run-of-the-mill infant nonsense.

“You broke a blanket,” he repeated. Nope, it didn’t make any more sense when he said it.

“Yeah, it fell down.”

He rolled his eyes. “So, you broke the blanket fort.”

“Aw, well we can fix that for you,” Chloe said. She kissed the girl’s cheek which earned her another grin. “Are you ready for your second lunch now?”

“Yeah! I’m so hungry.”

“Oh, you’re so hungry. You poor thing,” the Detective baby-talked to the girl.

Joy once again radiated from Chloe as she carried Rory inside. Lucifer’s mood, though, darkened. He understood why Chloe was so determined to find the girl’s mother, and it wasn’t to gather more evidence to explain the girl’s existence. No, Chloe saw a lost and helpless child who’d been abandoned, and she wanted to get justice for the girl.

But Lucifer wasn’t convinced it was the girl’s mother who should be punished.

------------

My Thoughts:

Okay, we see the difference here, right? The scene is certainly longer, yes. (2525 vs 1936 words) And while some of that is just the difference between how I write first drafts vs final drafts (again, *points to self* underwriter) — the main reason, the final draft is longer is simply because Lucifer has more to contribute to the story at this point in time. His version is meatier. There’s more going on. There’s more conflict -- which I did not expect, honestly. Like yes, he’s more conflicted about Rory at this point in time, but I didn’t realize he was going to snap in the middle there even though it fits into the larger picture of this chapter.

These things always seem obvious in retrospect, but my initial thought process was:

Ugh, my brain is tired from rewriting Linda’s scene for the fifth time. I have no idea what this last Chloe scene needs :/

Wait… should I maybe write this from Lucifer’s POV? Would that help me?

*plays with Lucifer’s POV in my head, considering the ways it shifts the scene until Lucifer gets frustrated and I realize “OH” there’s something here.*

And that’s when I rewrote it from Lucifer’s POV. I like strong emotions. Strong emotions typically mean I’m onto something. Strong emotions that don’t resolve themselves mean I’m missing something, and I definitely couldn’t resolve Lucifer’s frustration initially. I had the bit about Rory and the snacks, Chloe teasing Lucifer, and Lucifer snapping. I had him ranting on the balcony, and I knew it would still resolve with the decision to search for Rory’s birth mother (now decided in the scene and not already decided by Lucifer before the scene). But that transition from rant to resolution wasn’t there. I thought Chloe needed to talk him down somehow, and it just wasn’t working.

And then I found the pivot point which I’ve bolded above. Chloe doesn’t calm him down or make him see reason or convince him of anything. She’s the one who gives in. Lucifer’s making good points. Rory’s impossible, we can’t make assumptions — okay then why does everyone keep assuming she’s his daughter? And I already wanted to make the comparison to how they work their cases. I included that in the original draft. But this version is better. It’s not just suggested this time, it’s a solution to an argument. Lucifer’s conflict isn’t fully resolved still, but it’s not supposed to be at this point in the story. All this scene needed to do was move them to the next step of the plot (searching the wrong year for Rory’s birth mother). Both versions do that, but this one also supports Lucifer’s emotional journey.

It also still shows Chloe’s parental feelings for Rory, and probably shows them better than the first draft. 1) They are strong feelings, and like I said, I do find strong feelings easier to show through an outside perspective. And 2) Lucifer is very observant of Chloe and every little thing she does or says. He may not interpret them correctly, but he sees them. (Unrelated to this example scene, but this is also why I use his POV to show similarities between Rory’s and Chloe’s mannerisms and facial expressions. Chloe wouldn’t notice them because she doesn't see her own facial expressions on a daily basis -- but Lucifer does, and he'll notice when Rory makes some of the same expressions. So, I've had fun slipping those extra time travel/Chloe is Rory's mother clues into his POV.)

The final, big improvement: even more Rory cuteness. I love her making faces against the balcony window. I love the info about her throwing her plate because Lucifer wouldn’t give her more cookies. Saying “I broke a blanket” when she knocked over part of the blanket fort is way more ‘three year old’ than saying “fix it” when the TV show stops playing. And I absolutely adore her exaggerated play-acting to get her way. I’ve demonstrated that trait in previous chapters because it’s a fun clue to Rory’s origins that also doubles as a red herring for the characters. It seems like she inherited Lucifer’s charisma, but it’s actually the acting gene from Chloe’s side shining through. But I don’t just use it for the dramatic irony. A not-insignificant part of the time travel reveal is them realizing how they misinterpreted this specific clue and feeling like they should have realized Chloe was Rory’s mother so much earlier. So, the more chances I have to emphasize Rory’s acting skills, the better.

I think the only thing I lost when switching POVs was the info that Chloe wasn't late for lunch because she was interviewing a suspect (which is what Lucifer assumes). She was late because she was interviewing a family member of the victim (which Chloe knew and could share with the reader when it was in her POV). I wish I had still found a way to convey that info in Lucifer's POV, but it doesn't truly affect the plot. All that information does is confirm Chloe isn't making headway on this case which helps justify Pierce taking it away from her in Chapter 11. But that doesn't exactly need justification. Since this is a canon case, the reader already knows the second victim was never killed so Chloe is missing the connection to Lucifer that she would need to solve the case. And also Pierce doesn't take the case away from Chloe because she's being too slow at solving it. He takes it away from her to prevent her from solving it since murdering people Lucifer did favors for no longer serves his goals.

Final note, I believe there are still improvements I can make to this scene, however I'm posting this WIP on a set schedule and I just ran out of time. With all the rewrites Chapters 8 and 10 required, Lucifer's version of this final scene didn't get to incubate as long as I would like so I haven't quite worked out why it still feels a little choppy and how to fix it. I think the transition to the balcony needs work. I think there should probably be a more explicit agreement from Lucifer about searching for Rory's birth mother. Little things like that. The content is all there. The scene does it's job. It's just not quite as polished as I like my scenes to be before I publish them.

Still, I hope it demonstrated the difference between a first and final draft. I also hope my insights into why I wrote both versions the way I did were helpful, whether you're reading it the day I post it or years in the future. :)

If I find other examples or topics I want to talk through, I will certainly make posts about them. If you have specific writing meta topics you'd like to explore, feel free to ask me. I may not have proper answers because I'm just a fanfic writer. But also I've been writing/trying to write fanfic for like 20 years, so I do have some experience to pull from ;)

Oh and if you remember that large-ass table of meta links from LiveJournal, please for the love of the old school internet, can you send me the link or the wayback link or anything you might have? There was some good shit there :( Thank you!

[biglisbonnews]

Chris Brown Calls Out People Who 'Still Hate' Him Chris Brown is calling out people for still bringing up the time he beat Rihanna up 14 years ago. Proving that it never forgets, the internet is resurfacing the brutal domestic assault amidst recent news that Brown will be collaborating with Chloé Bailey, one part of the Grammy-nominated duo Chloe x Halle, on her new single, "How Does It Feel." After Bailey announced the news, she was beset with criticism from those who felt she was helping rehabilitate Brown's image. \u201c2ND PIECE. HOW DOES IT FEEL @chrisbrown. 2/24 \ud83e\udec0\u201d — Chlo\u0308e (@Chlo\u0308e) 1676567018 As social media users voiced their disapproval, Brown angrily took to Instagram Stories on Friday to hit back, saying, "'If yall still hate me for a mistake I made as a 17year old please kiss my whole entire ass! I'm f*ckin g 33! I'm so tired of yall running wit this narrative." Related | Chris Brown Sued For Allegedly Drugging, Raping Woman On YachtThe 33-year-old took aim in particular at former 3LW and Cheetah Girls member Kiely Williams, who had tweeted critically of him, saying, "Let him come out with his own record—so genius, so captivating that it makes us all forget HE BEATS WOMEN. He can’t so he wont. So what does he do? He slowly creeps back into the mainstream by getting small nods for features on Black Women’s merit." \u201cLet him come out with his own record\u2014so genius, so captivating that it makes us all forget HE BEATS WOMEN. He can\u2019t so he wont. So what does he do? \n\nHe slowly creeps back into the mainstream by getting small nods for features on Black Women\u2019s merit. Black women who are more\u2026\u201d — Kiely Williams (@Kiely Williams) 1676598858 "Black women who are more talented, more worthy, but give him the okay," Williams added. In response, Brown posted a meme of Williams' face suggesting that she had a lisp. After coming for Williams, Brown went on to call out a long list of mostly male, white celebrities — including Sean Penn, Ozzy Osbourne, Mel Gibson, Slash, Charlie Sheen, and Emma Roberts — who have been accused of domestic violence. "Where are the cancel culture with these white artist that date underage women, beat the f*ck out their wives, giving b*tches AIDS," he wrote alongside the images. It's worth noting that while Brown makes a point about a double standard for white celebrities, that does not negate the fact that after assaulting Rihanna in 2009, he went on to face allegations of abuse from his next girlfriend, Karrueche Tran, who in 2017 secured a restraining order after Brown threatened to "kill her." And as recently as last year, he was sued for drugging and raping a woman on a yacht in 2022. Plus, despite Brown's cries about "cancel culture," he kicked off his Instagram rant by posting a number of videos of fans and crowd at his shows, suggesting that he continues to sell out stadiums and draw audiences. As Williams noted in her tweet, Bailey is not the first female artist to face backlash for associating with Brown. Kelly Rowland recently drew criticism for shushing Brown's critics at the AMA's, while Lizzo raised eyebrows when she said he was her "favorite person."Artists who have worked with Brown have found themselves in even hotter water — including Ella Mai, Tinashe, Summer Walker, and H.E.R., who have all featured him on songs, as well as Normani, who made a cameo in the video of his 2022 song "We (We Embrace)." And that's not to mention the long list of male artists — from Drake to Future and Kendrick Lamar — who have likewise collaborated with him. See what Twitter users had to say about the whole ordeal below, with commentary divided among those criticizing Bailey, those pointing out the long list of artists Brown has collaborated with, and those saying they plan to listen to the song either way. \u201cThe Chris Brown backlash Chloe is getting isn\u2019t even just about Rihanna? He literally mocked Kehlani after her 2016 suicide attempt?\u201d — Ira (@Ira) 1676569134 \u201cChloe tweeting the Chris Brown collab:\u201d — Ignore me. (@Ignore me.) 1676577254 \u201cMe watching y\u2019all outage over Chris Brown and Chloe but he just did a tour and it sold out. Somebody lying on twitter but go off\u201d — FASH (@FASH) 1676570422 \u201challe in twitter beef with rubi rose and now chloe doing a song with chris brown i\u2019m so tired of fighting this fight\u201d — bae joon-hoe (@bae joon-hoe) 1676567811 Photo via Getty Images / Scott Dudelson https://www.papermag.com/chris-brown-chloe-bailey-cancelled-2659436320.html

[pricemarshfield]

i dig you

A fluff & angst Amberprice fic. Chapter 1/2. Read on AO3 here.

Chloe still seems shocked every time Rachel sits next to her at lunch. She hides it well, snarks at anyone who questions them, teases Rachel about the plays she still brings to read and reread again and again.

But Rachel's pretty insightful, and she notices when Chloe's eyes widen, when she shifts like she's not quite sure what to do, when her smile dims a little when Victoria loudly questions why Rachel's still hanging around the soon-to-be-dropout.

She's not sure what to do about it. If she just tells her no, Chloe, I do want to be here still, she's sure Chloe'd find a way to take it the wrong way, question why she needed to bring it up, deny she ever doubted it in the first place. One or all of those things. She loves her, but her abandonment issues run deep. Rachel could punch Victoria, but she'd definitely get kicked out for that, and she doesn't want to risk law school.

So she makes an effort to include Chloe in everything. Chloe sits in on rehearsals, ignoring Mr. Keaton's increasingly desperate attempts to get her to join or at least take the intro elective class. They get high in the junkyard, find a little room and make it their own with graffiti (with actual spray paint, thank you, not a Sharpie). Rachel watches Chloe's weird movies, Chloe watches Rachel's Broadway bootlegs, they listen to punk and drive around in the truck, fabric of the seat replaced so they can't see the deep, dark red stain from when she got stabbed.

It doesn't change anything. Chloe still looks at her like it'll be the last time they hang out every time they have some minor disagreement, texts a hundred times in a row begging her not to leave her every time she gets drunk without Rachel there to reassure her in person. It's...a little exhausting, if she's being honest. She loves Chloe, she wants to help her! But it's...sometimes she's just trying to have fun with some other group, and it's been three parties of that in a row.

"You texting your girlfriend?" asks some well-meaning newbie to the Vortex Club. Rachel opens her mouth to deny it, already dreading having to make herself heard over Victoria's snide commentary and Nathan's barely-veiled homophobia, but then her phone goes off again, and again, and one more time for good measure.

"I do have to take this," she says, and pretends she can't hear the conversation that kicks up before the door's fully shut behind her.

The cool, fresh air outside is refreshing, and she takes a couple deep breaths before calling Chloe.

"Rachel," Chloe says, voice slurring enough that Rachel's heart immediately kicks into a higher gear.

"Hey, Chlo," Rachel says, a nickname she has not used once in her life. "What's up?"

"Wher're you?" Chloe asks instead. Rachel doesn't hear the sound of the train, so probably not in the junkyard? But it could just not be passing.

"At Blackwell," Rachel says, which isn't, technically, a lie. She's on school grounds, and she says it casually enough that Chloe doesn't immediately push. "Do you want to come over? We could put on a movie, light some incense."

Chloe laughs, and the sound is light and easy before it cuts out abruptly. She can't hear anything on the other end.

"Chloe? Are you okay?"

"I'm fucking fine," Chloe says, and she keeps her voice quiet, so that means she's at her house. Rachel's tipsiness from earlier in the night has long since faded, she's probably good to drive, and she really, really doesn't want to leave Chloe alone. There's an edge to her voice that Rachel doesn't trust, reminds her of the fragility in her mom's voice the last time she visited before apparently disappearing off the face of the earth.

Rachel hopes she's in rehab. But she thinks Rose would tell her if that was the case.

"Okay," Rachel says. "I'd still like to hang out, if you're free."

"'Course I'm free," Chloe says. "i don't have any fuckin' friends, do I." It's not said like a question.

"You have me."

"Right," Chloe says. "Just the best of friends."

Rachel's already in the parking lot, trying to remember where the hell she'd parked the car. (Her dad's: knowing how much evidence they have on him working with Damon, he's been inclined to give her everything she wants, especially now that she's already met her mom. Rose still tries, too.) "Yeah. We're best friends, Chloe. You're the person I care about most in this shithole town."

"Yeah," Chloe says. "Yeah, when are we leaving, again? Thought you wanted to leave more than anything?"

"I did!" Rachel says, then corrects, "I do. I had to heal up after getting stabbed, remember?"

It's shitty and manipulative, but it works; Chloe's irritation switches to concern. "Yeah. I remember."

"But I am feeling better now," Rachel says. "I'm ready to go when you are."

"Now?"

"Sure," Rachel says. "Tell me where you are."

"Step-dick's house," Chloe says, quieter now. "Do you mean it?"

"Of course I mean it," Rachel says. "Do you still have all the clothes I packed you?"

"Yeah," Chloe says, voice hitching a little like she's about to cry. "I do."

"Awesome," Rachel says, excited despite herself. "Then I'll see you soon."

---

Rachel wants to be ready for the grand adventure with her friend at her side, but Chloe's house is more than a couple minutes' drive from Blackwell, which gives the logical parts of her plenty of time to ask her what the fuck she thinks she's doing.

They have no money. Rachel's barely gotten her first credit card, and it has, like, 1500 dollars on it. Which is a lot of money, but she's already spent some of it on alcohol, on their half-decent fakes, on Venmoing Frank for their weed or the other things she's tentatively tried. So they have about a thousand, which will cover gas to LA, at least, and probably food, and do they really need hotel rooms?

But of course they need hotel rooms, they can't just park by the side of the road in the middle-of-nowhere freeways. Those are like...fifty bucks? A hundred bucks? They can share a bed, that should make it cheaper.

So. A thousand will get them to LA. Then they'll...get jobs, Rachel guesses.

She's got this idea of herself working at a diner, wearing some cute outfit with pops of red, serving coffee and making small talk with the chefs while she waits for her big break. But that's only good for the modelling; she wants to go into law one day, too.

Maybe she can transfer to a school there? Showing she's independent enough to live on her own (with Chloe, of course, but without her parents there) has to look good on an application?

Or reckless and irresponsible, like her dad keeps calling Chloe.

All-in-all, Rachel's doubting everything in her entire life as she pulls up to Chloe's house. Chloe isn't outside, and she's about to throw some pebbles at her window when the front door opens with barely a creak.

"Did you oil the hinges?" Rachel asks, trying to keep the tone light. "Handy."

Chloe beams at her, wearing Rachel's old tarot shirt. Fuck, her tarot decks, she wants to bring those. All her things. At least some clothes. Probably some food, too?

"Do you have all the stuff you wanna bring?" Rachel asks. "We might need to stop by my place."

"That's what you said last time," Chloe says, but looks at Rachel, wearing her party outfit--only a tank top and some high shorts, which are cute but not great for the only outfit to have in a big life change--and shrugs.

Rachel breathes a sigh of relief. "Plus, they'll get mad if we steal the car. And gas is gonna be expensive enough."

"Don't care," Chloe says. "I'll take the truck."

Chloe, who is visibly swaying on her feet, is absolutely not good to drive. Rachel thinks for a second--if she drives her dad's car back, Chloe can be in the passenger seat, but then they'll have to walk with all her bags back to the truck. If they take the truck, Rachel can leave the keys and a note explaining where it is. They'll be mad, but whatever.

"Can I drive your truck, actually?" Rachel asks, and Chloe shrugs again. It won't be the first time behind the wheel of the truck, but it will be the first time on actual roads, not the paths they'd cleared in the junkyard. "Thanks, Chloe."

"Sure," Chloe says, tossing her the keys and yanking at the handle on her side. Rachel opens her door, reaches over to unlock the passenger side so Chloe can climb in. "What are we getting?"

"Clothes," Rachel says. "Maybe my tarot decks."

A couple of the plays she has physical copies of. Any and all drugs left in her room. Her flashlight that Chloe made for her. The important things.

"Okay," Chloe says. "You mean it? We're gonna leave?"

"I do," Rachel says, and she should kiss her. She should. She has before. She wants to. But she looks at Chloe, eyes still wide with disbelief that Rachel will follow her, will help lead the way out. If she pushes this, and she's wrong...

Rachel grabs her hand instead, smiles at her. Chloe squeezes it, and they keep holding hands the whole way to the Amber house. Rachel hopes she won't ever let go.

[beca-mitchell]

Do you ever wish the producers would have used the real life a Capella groups in Mickey Rapkin's book, Pitch Perfect? I just bought a used copy of the book last month and was shocked that it was a nonfiction sports commentary on intercollegiate a Capella. It covered at least 3 groups, one being Divisi who the Bellas parodied. Oh and found out that there was a guy from some Uni that failed 3 times so that he could keep singing with his group😅. Guess it was Kay's inspo for keeping Chlo a student.

omg that would’ve been fun. i do like the detachment from the real world in that respect though. it’s funny as hell. it might have worked in a mockumentary style situation. i love how crazy intense acapella can get.

also i think they did use some real life acapella groups in the movies!

[prettypleasedontcallmealex]

Scissor Sisters

Three days of detention and a note home was the punishment Alex received for being caught up on the roof with a weed cigarette in her pocket. It was a light sentence considering the involvement of an illegal drug, but at the same time, the Hufflepuff had never been known to be a trouble maker to begin with. Sure, she was occasionally tardy for class and things like that, but on the whole, Alexandria was what one might consider a well behaved student for the most part. The fact that she had been on the roof in the first place was surprising and then the contraband in the pocket of her sweatshirt was quickly questioned. The splif was hers though, she said, gotten off a mate back home and forgotten in her hoodie by mistake. No mention was made of the other four sixth years who had been on the roof with her and by the time she was released from the Headmistress’s office, it had already been well past dinner time. She’d returned to her dorm where her mates had attacked her with questions as to her whereabouts and was it true she’d been caught shooting up on on the Astronomy tower. Alex had laughed that off and shaken her head, telling them that whomever had started that rumor was exaggerating a great deal. She’d lost the weed, taken from her and thrown into the fireplace, but she’d been allowed to keep her lollipops. She’d spent part of the next day painstakingly repairing the hole in her jeans, the spool of red thread she had not quite full enough to finish the job properly, thus leaving her having to bunch up the fabric together and giving her a wonky looking knee instead of an almost straight seam. The needle she had, as well, was dull and starting to bend from pushing through the denim despite numerous sharpening spells placed upon it over the years. The Hufflepuff punctured her fingers repeatedly before she had managed to tie it off with a sigh. They had been her good jeans too, but oh well, such was life.

The next week passed, professors giving the sixth years more homework than it seemed possible to handle. Vega kept up a solid commentary of complaints about the insane length of the essay they were required to get done for Transfiguration by next Wednesday and Chloe excitedly chattered on about how a fit Gryffindor from the Quidditch team had asked her to go to Hogsmeade with him on the next village day. Alex walked through the halls between them, the shortest of the three, her ears open as she tried to keep from stumbling over the overly long hem on her robes that she would have chopped if not for the hope of maybe growing a bit taller. They were patchy and as worn as the rest of her clothes, more charcoal gray than the black her best mates boasted, probably new that year or the last. Every now and then though, her eyes would turn, thinking she saw just a bit of red hair going around a corner or having passed by. She did have several classes with Rose and her mates as was common among sixth years, but it was only a few times a week and they’d never sat near one another before. Alex wasn’t particularly sure what she would have said to the Gryffindor anyway. Thanks for spending time with me after you broke up with your boyfriend and sharing your cousin’s weed? Alexandria had told Chloe and Vega a bit about what had happened up on the roof and they had been interested enough to ask questions along the lines of if the group had been nice to her and did they need to go beat anyone up. Alex had laughed at that, shaking her head and assuring them that definitely wasn’t the case. It had been her choice to be left behind after all, not wanting all of them to get caught just because she couldn’t walk straight half the time.

Saturday morning found the three Hufflepuff sitting side by side on a bench at their table in the Great Hall. Vega was still griping about the essay as she leaned into her boyfriend, a short black boy named Jay that she’d been dating since the previous year. Chloe’s face was firmly planted against the table, not a morning person, her own straight black hair cut short in a bob as she pondered over why she’d allowed herself to be dragged from the comfort of her bed before noon. Alexandria sat beside her, a gap between them big enough for maybe half a person as she chewed down a piece of bacon, once again wearing her favorite sweatshirt with a pair of plaid pajama bottoms that clashed terribly with the green.

“A full meter!” Vega groaned, slamming her goblet of pumpkin juice down on the table hard enough to jar Chloe into picking up her head. The shorter girl placed her fingers to her temples and glared up at the blonde before kicking her under the table. “Sorry Chlo, just… how on earth can she expect us to get it done in less than a week? We’ve better things to do over the weekend than homework! Alex, you’ve started it already, yeah? How’s it going?”

“B-badly.” Alexandria admitted with a sigh, not too keen on the essay herself. “But Alec said he’d h-help me out with it tomorrow so...”

“Ah yes, the god of Transfig. Can he help me too? Maybe we could have a study group?”

“Sure.” Alex nodded in agreement, reaching out to grab up slice of butter toast. “I’ll tell him to meet us in the l-library.”

“Not til the afternoon please.” Chloe pleaded as she let her head fall back down with a gentle thud, sending her empty plate sliding forward on the table.

“Let’s say after lunch then.” Vega sat up at last, reaching out to nip a bite out of the sausage Jay was currently bringing to his mouth. He smiled at her, not seeming to mind it before popping the last bit into his mouth and leaning to plant a kiss on her cheek.

“Practice, love. I’ll see you later. No.” Jay shook his head as Vega opened her mouth, placing a finger over her lips. “You know what the captain said last time you came to practice.”

“It was one comment and you only got a little distracted!”

“It was a cat call about my ass and I got a concussion when I hit the goal posts! Hang out with the girls. I love you, I’ll see you at lunch.”

[chloevara]

Name: Chloe Vara

Nicknames: Cee, CeeVee, Chlo, etc. She’s chill with most things

Age: 26

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/her

Orientation: Lesbian

Godly Parent: Hestia

Nationality: English

Faceclaim: Naomi Scott

HEADCANON/BACKSTORY TIME (*jazz hands*)

So here’s how I think the whole virgin goddess thing works out... Chloe’s dad Daniel had a close friendship with Hestia, but it was never anything romantic or sexual. She just showed up randomly sometimes and they talked for ages at his home in front of the fireplace- crocheting, or eating good food, or providing live commentary for tv dramas. He never suspected that his dear friend was a goddess until one day Hestia just shows up with some baby he has never met before... his baby.  Daniel’s gay, and didn’t exactly expect to become a dad. But Chloe was a really easy baby, and he had good dad instincts. He told everyone that he has a busy but caring coparent.

Chloe is also gay. It was a really gay house growing up. Lots of friends, family, and found family were always stopping in. She loves her dad so much, and it’s physically painful sometimes to be so far from home.

For now, Chloe tries to keep busy as an event planner. She’s pretty crafty, and hands-on so she can just straight up make stuff too. It’s not a perfect replacement for what she misses back in England, but she’s trying, okay?

She’s an aggressive peacekeeper, and will (verbally) throw hands with anyone who threatens the delicate balance of friendship.

I imagine she isn’t especially dangerous, because her abilities would function well in conjunction with her daily routine.

Simultaneously lowkey and bubbly, she’s a good friend to have. If you’re looking for a dedicated friend or an interesting conflict, Chloe’s a fair option!

[anerbananers]

on kagami

some of y’all really are giving this writing way too much credit and are putting your brilliant in-depth grown af perspective on this basic af kids show and I promise you it’s not doing what you think it’s doing. what you hoped. I’m sorry it’s the truth. I wanted better too so I’m salty but now I realize I was a fool for expecting anything less. 

I wanted Kagami to be a great example of how girls come in all types and she was that cool, go-getter type and I respect that. I’m competitive, I’m ambitious and I say what I mean. I can be intimidating, so I can relate. 

BUT 

If I like someone, I do my own thing and go after them (or don’t, depends). But I keep it in my own lane. Getting in another girl’s face about it or deciding who “deserves” the guy I like is not a part of that personality type, it’s just mean girls shit. People loving this because they’re saying Kagami is just blunt etc. and trying to shame others for reacting negatively to her behavior are missing the point. 

That being: The writing WANTS you to dislike Kagami and she’s here to push the love square plot and create drama. Not asking you to hate HER, and who knows, maybe she and Mari will be friends at the end of all of this, but just know that right now it’s not a good look. And don’t sugarcoat her behavior in a positive light cuz honestly there’s being a badass bitch and just being a bitch and young kids watching this are not going to differentiate. Mari is insecure and Kagami hit where it hurts. What child is going to read into this as a positive interaction? I’m an adult and you won’t see me thanking any of my bullies for secretly knocking sense into me via sharp commentary. So you should be concerned about this portrayal of her, not applauding it. No positive girl friendships OR positive girl COMPETITIVENESS rep here. You want to subvert tropes so bad but it hardly matters if the writing is clinging to them for dear life. Kagami was put there as a love rival. That’s literally it. I think she deserves better and if you want different kinds of personalities not to be villainized in female characters you better talk to the writers and not to the fans that are reacting pretty reasonably based on how things went down in Frozer. Kagami as the go-getter girl could’ve been done WAY better than this.  She went from cool-as-a-cucumber with a sassy snark to kicking another girl while she’s down over a boy and Riposte Kagami would never do something so class-less I’m sorry. Not my Kagami! 

(also most fans, myself included had different hopes for Kagami and came to love her for her potential and are trying to salvage this situation and spin it, and I understand boo boo but realize you got played. no les wingwoman icon here. Just another catty showdown over a boy like we constantly stated we DID NOT WANT when this character was announced. I’m not happy about it either but i’m telling you this isn’t pos rep, the writing just let you down sis) 

 Also it’s bullshit asking Mari to get her shit together via a girl saying mean-spirited competitive quips to them about not making moves. IF Kagami is misunderstanding and thinks Marinette is the one hurting Adrien, she should focus less on showing up Mari and more on making sure her date is having a good time. Adrien is also the one kinda acting like a dick here (and as Chat) because he’s painting himself a victim when LB made it SUPER clear where they stood. Kagami doesn’t have this info ofc but we do, so we need to also be like Adrien...wtf. He’s also creating this tension with his shit communication skills and then ends up not having to even deal with the consequences. This is of course going with some fans’ claims she’s mad because she thinks Marinette is stringing Adrien along and breaking his heart. Either way it’s a mess and Kagami didn’t necessarily do or say anything majorly Chlo-level mean, but her intentions aren’t like deeply rooted in anything pleasant either. 

Kagami is not giving Mari “tough love advice”. She isn’t her friend. Her actions don’t have positive intentions so you can’t act like Mari should be thankful because Kagami isn’t trying to help her.  She doesn’t like her and she’s going out of her way to whisper smug comments because Mari gets on her nerves. I understand her motives and her feelings here but that doesn’t change it from being mean-spirited. Kagami likes Adrien, but can see Adrien being super focused on Mari because he’s an oblivious ding dong, and is annoyed. She SHOULD be annoyed at Adrien who is being a less-than-stellar date, but instead she’s taking out her frustration on Marinette instead, which is strike 3 for me. Cuz that’s the same shit I’ve been seeing for over a decade, it’s not new so don’t act like Kagami’s character archetype is innovative.  It would be if they didn’t portray it like this. You can have a “love rival” that’s still a bomb ass bitch and is confident in herself and doesn’t need to sabotage anyone.  It’s now confirmed Kagami thinks Marinette isn’t worthy of Adrien. So that also shot down the wingwoman Kagami theories we were nurturing since the end of Riposte. 

My main complaint? You don’t have to put other girls down to affirm yourself. You shouldn’t. So girls/women watching and not liking Kagami is absolutely a valid reaction. Esp while the boys are left to do their emotional growing without this catty nonsense in the mix. 

[jacadenaakash]

Download (PDF)F*ck Your Diet: And Other Things My Thighs Tell Me - Chlo? Hilliard

PDF, EPub, Mobi, Kindle online. Free book F*ck Your Diet: And Other Things My Thighs Tell Me by Nigel Raby.

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 Get book F*ck Your Diet: And Other Things My Thighs Tell Me by Nigel Raby . Full supports all version of your device, includes PDF, ePub and Kindle version. All books format are mobile-friendly. Read and download online as many books as you like for personal use.

 Book Details :

Author : Chloé Hilliard

Pages : 336 pages

Publisher : Gallery Books

Language :

ISBN-10 : 1982108614

ISBN-13 : 9781982108618

Formats: PDF, EPub, Kindle, Audiobook

  Download PDF

 Book Synopsis :

*A Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist *Named Best Comedy Book by the African American Literary Awards Show Fans of Issa Rae and Phoebe Robinson will love this collection of laugh-out-loud funny and insightful essays that explore race, feminism, pop culture, and how society reinforces the message that we are nothing without the perfect body. By the time Chlo? Hilliard was 12, she wore a size 12?both shoe and dress?and stood over six feet tall. Fitting in was never an option. That didn?t stop her from trying. Cursed with a ?slow metabolism,? ?baby weight,? and ?big bones,??the fat trilogy?Chloe turned to fad diets, starvation, pills, and workouts, all of which failed. Realizing that everything?from government policies to corporate capitalism?directly impacts our relationship with food and our waistlines, Chlo? changed her outlook on herself and hopes others will do the same for themselves. The perfect mix of cultural commentary, conspiracies, and confessions, F*ck Your Diet pokes fun at

[crazychlo08]

give me seth numrich in a period drama or give me death. 

[tagurselfimwaywardflower]

pinkberry with prompt8 if you're still accepting them?

ahHHH of course!! :D

prompt: things you said when you were crying

~

“I- I just want them to be happy,” Brooke says, and breaks down.

~

Brooke and Chloe finally do some talking, after a movie marathon that ends up more emotional than expected.

pairing: pinkberry (Chloe Valentine/Brooke Lohst)

rating: T for swearing

words: 904

It’s been a long night of binge-watching Kim Possible episodes when it happens. Chloe’s spent most of winter break in Hawaii, stressing over tan lines and the cute surfers she meets every night by sneaking out of her hotel room, and worrying about running into them during the day and her parents finding out. It’s nice to return to the simpler things, to sit on Brooke’s bed and snicker as Kim sorts out her crush on Josh and climbs a skyscraper with a hairdryer or provide snarky commentary as Ron flails, in general.

Brooke snorts and giggles, crunching down obnoxiously loud on her tortilla chips just to annoy Chloe. Flicking her hair, Chloe retaliates by stealing them. She does not think about her stomach jumping at Brooke’s cute little nose scrunch when she laughs. She does not think about how long it’s been since they’ve done this.

Finally, they’ve made it to the season four finale, Kim Possible Movie: So the Drama. Chloe lets herself scoot closer and closer until their shoulders are pressed together. Nobody can see her now, so she even allows herself to steal a glance at her best friend.

Brooke’s so absorbed she doesn’t notice her staring. She glows in the dim blue light of the TV screen, and Chloe is breathless.

Why does it keep surprising her? Brooke’s never not been this pretty. That doesn’t stop the fluttery sigh in her chest at Brooke’s warm brown eyes gleaming in the night.

Then Brooke curls into her side, and Chloe’s heart stops. She curls her hands into fists, bites her lip, and hopes to heaven above that the girl beside her can’t feel the electricity buzzing across her skin. It’s been so long. Chloe had forgotten how much she missed being with Brooke like this.

In the weeks after the Squip, it’s been an uphill battle to win Brooke’s trust back. Brooke’s silences have been sharp, deadly even, but they’ve been edging back toward an equilibrium. It’s not the same as before. But they’ve been getting better. Tonight is the first time they’ve been able to just hang out, without–

Brooke sniffles.

Chloe snaps back to reality, looking at the TV–but there’s nothing sad happening. Ron Stoppable is onscreen.

“Something’s different now. There’s something between us. Who am I kidding? That’s not different. Something’s been here a long time. I think there’s something there. Does she?” Ron whines.

Another sniffle. She turns to stare at her best friend, who meets her with tearful eyes.

Oh, shit. Chloe pauses the movie.

“Brooke?” Said girl tries to wipe her eyes with the sleeve of her oversized sweatshirt. “Brookie? What’s wrong?”

“I- I just want them to be happy,” Brooke says, and breaks down.

“What?” She balks. “Brooke, you know this movie has a happy ending, we’ve watched this a million times! They get together!”

This… This isn’t even a sad part. This isn’t a sad movie. Chloe doesn’t understand.

“But why does it have to hurt?” the other girl whispers.

“What are you talking about?” she snaps back, then winces. Oops.

Brooke points at Chloe. “That! I’m talking about that! I- we-“ She speaks in gasps rather than sentences, threading her fingers through her hair.  “You never talk about anything, not the Squip, or liking girls, or your f-feelings, and you’re always snapping and now everything’s so different between us but I can’t even do anything about it because you–“

“Wait, since when is this about me?” Chloe bites, just as Brooke wails.

“I just want us to be happy together!”

Stunned, they both sit back.

“I… I just want us to be happy together,” she repeats, looking lost. “I want you to be happy, Chlo. But I’m still so mad at you, and it hurts that I care so much about you when sometimes, it feels like you would rather be anywhere else.”

“Oh,” she says softly. “Oh.”

Silence.

“Brooke, I’m not good at talking. About feelings.”

She snorts. “Yeah, no shit.”

“I’m…” Here it comes, Valentine, this is it. “I’m sorry.”

Brooke looks up. “You mean it?”

Confused, and nodding slowly, Chloe starts again. “I… I am sorry. I… I should never have let my j-jelaousy get in the way of your feelings. You deserve better than that.” And there it is, that ugly word. Maybe it’s fitting that Chloe was born with green eyes. She certainly has been a monster.

Her best friend’s mouth is open, expression soft and open and still, she’s crying. Brooke is shaken and crying, and it’s still the most beautiful thing she’s ever seen.

Chloe closes her eyes. She’s done fighting this feeling, done denying and shoving everything, including her best friend down. It’s true, dammit. Brooke needs to know. Chloe closes her eyes, and whispers something she’s known since the day they met. “You deserve the world, Brookie. I would give it to you, if I could.”

There’s a choked cry, and then Brooke is kissing her. Chloe tastes salt and strawberry and sunlight, breathes in the warm feeling and lets it wrap around her as she pulls Brooke closer. There’s that electricity again, that crackles between them and fizzles out into warmth and light and love.

Later, they lie side by side, and Chloe wipes another tear away from Brooke’s face.

“Chloe,” Brooke murmurs sleepily. “The only world I want is you.”

[claws-n-salt]

ML Fluff Month Day 7 || 4 a.m.

Sometimes, Chloe would call Adrien on nights when she couldn't sleep and they'd watch movies together. This was one of those nights.

Rated G || 970 Words

Cross posted on Ao3 || FF

More of a Movie Morning

Chlo: Why doesn’t Tarzan have a beard?

Adrien pressed the call button in the corner of the text screen. He only got to the first ring before the call was picked up and a female voice was ranting on the other end. “I mean, it just doesn’t make sense. He’s lived with the gorillas all his life so he wouldn’t have the tools to shave. Plus, even if he did make a sort of makeshift razor, he doesn’t have the same societal pressures as men do here, AND he would be wanting to be as hairy as possible to fit in with the gorillas in the first place!”

It took a moment for Adrien to calm his laughter before he was able to answer. “Very good points Chlo. I have to ask though, why are you watching Disney movies at 4 a.m.? Is your insomnia acting up again?”

“Yup.” Chloe popped the p at the end. It was a mannerism that had survived from their childhood, the sound made Adrien smile. “I’m about to start Tangled, want to watch with me?”

“Yeah, let me grab my laptop.” Adrien set his phone down and padded over to his desk, bringing his computer back to his bed. He propped some pillows against his headboard, settling in for the movie. After loading up Tangled, he pressed the speaker button on his phone. “Alright, all set when you are.” The two teens counted down from three, then pressed play.

As the movie started, Adrien thought back to the last time they’d done this, it had been months. He was glad Chloe had a better handle on her sleeplessness but, he also missed these movie nights that were more early morning than late night. Adrien and Chloe had grown a bit distant since he’d started school, he missed her.

He was brought back to the present by Chloe beginning their usual movie commentary. Rapunzel was in the midst of singing “When Will My Life Begin?” and Chloe was laughing. “Mon Dieu, Adrien, you are totally Rapunzel! Like, for real. You have an evil parent who has locked you up in a tower, blond hair with green eyes, and all you want to do is go out to do things. Literal Disney princess, Adrien Agreste.” Peels of laughter were coming from Adrien’s phone. Chole’s true laugh was always infectious and he found himself laughing along with his friend.

Their laughter puttered out to chuckles, then to silence as they focused their attention back onto the movie. After several minutes of watching Rapunzel interact with Flynn, Adrien spoke up. “I mean, you’re not wrong about me being Rapunzel, but if I’m her then who’s Flynn?

Chloe didn’t even hesitate before answering. “Obviously Marinette.”

The answer shocked Adrien and he sputtered for a moment, feeling his face heat up. “W-what? Marinette? She can barley speak two words to me though? I mean, she’s gotten better over the years but, still.”

“You have got to be kidding me.” Adrien could practically hear Chloe roll her eyes over the phone. “Flynn didn’t really like Rapunzel at first, just like Marinette didn’t like you. Then Rapunzel did some cute things and he totally fell in love with her, just like Marinette fell in love with you. Flynn did a bunch of cute things for Rapunzel; dancing with her at the festival, taking her on the boat, etc. Marinette has done a bunch of cute things for you; making you that scarf for your birthday and letting you think it was from your father, getting everyone, even me, together for that one Christmas that your father was out of town, etc. She’s totally your Flynn.”

Adrien was utterly speechless. He had so many thoughts racing through his mind that he didn’t even know where to start. “I. She, love? What? Scarf?”

He heard Chloe sigh through the phone. “You poor sheltered boy. Marinette has had a huge crush on you since, like, your second day of school. I don’t know what you did but she has it bad. Also, yes, she made that scarf you adore so much. I kind of pushed her out of the way when she was trying to give it to you so I’m assuming she hadn’t put her name on it when she dropped it off at your house. When you said it was from your father, I heard her tell Alya she wasn’t going to make the correction because of how happy you looked.”

A low whine escaped Adrien. “I broke you, didn’t I? Sorry Adrien, I thought you would have at least figured some of this out by now. I forget how clueless you are sometimes.”

The things Chloe was saying logically made sense but it was just so hard to wrap his mind around it all. He’d never thought of Marinette that way. Half of that was because of Ladybug and half was because he’d always thought she’d still hated him. Now, the thought of Marinette was giving him a warm fuzzy feeling. “Thank you for telling me Chloe, I have a lot to think about.”

“Ah, the typical Adrien dreamy voice. I can’t wait to rub it in Alya’s face that I’m the one who made her ship sail. I’m totally going to make her pay for the next date as my reward.” There was a softness to Chloe’s voice that he only heard when she talked about her girlfriend. “Are you going to ask Marinette out then?”

Adrien smiled. “Yeah Chloe, I think I will.”

“Good, I’m glad. You deserve to be happy Adrien.”

“Thanks Chlo. We should have these movie night, morning things more often. I missed them.”

“I think that sounds wonderful. I missed them too.”

The lifelong friends fell into a comfortable silence as they continued their movie.

[ralphmorgan-blog1]

How do you breathe in Hong Kong?

Hong Kong (CNN)Twenty years ago this July, Hong Kong -- a historical anomaly, a tiny territory crammed to the brim -- was transferred from British to Chinese rule, thus ending a century and a half of colonial rule and posing a set of questions that have yet to find satisfactory answers: Who are we? What is the meaning of this land?

In "Breathing Space," a new exhibition held at the Asia Society Hong Kong, 11 local artists' works revolve around the theme of restriction, and what many residents perceive to be both diminishing physical space and political freedoms.

The show, chief curator Dominque Chan tells CNN, comes at an especially pivotal juncture in the story of the city.

"At this moment in time, we cannot avoid all the current affairs, or the space issue, the housing issue in Hong Kong," Chan says. "I think these artists belong to the younger generation that really wants to push for social change."

Breathing Space

In a rare treat for the artists, the show sprawls across the Asia Society's lush, centrally-located hillside campus, a far cry from the cramped warehouse galleries where one usually finds socially conscious artwork in the city.

But indoors in the darkened gallery space, one gets a feel for the claustrophobia often characteristic of Hong Kong living. The opening act: Cheuk Wing Nam's room of whirling mechanical "moths" trapped inside glass bottles, creating a shriek that's part wind chime, part metal grinder.

Read: China's loneliest generation finds solace in art

In another drab, windowless corner buzzes Ko Sin Tung's neon installation reading "spectacular sea view" -- a rueful spin on a real estate catchphrase associated with multimillion dollar apartments.

Others confront Hong Kong-China tensions head-on. In one of the most pointed of works, artist South Ho stands before a sparkling Victoria Harbour while building a phone booth-sized wall around himself, brick by brick. The mixed media installation is a commentary both on shrinking physical space and on local Hong Kongers' anxiety over the influx of mainland Chinese influence, money and people into the former British colony.

Read: The new world of Chinese photography

As curator Chan notes, "There have been lots of voices saying we should keep the mainland Chinese away from Hong Kong, but what if we really do that? By building walls around you, you might have trapped yourself inside too."

Some works are filled with a kind of desperation mixed with longing.

Artist Siu Wai Hang's "Inside Outland" tries to reimagine his father's swim from mainland China to Hong Kong as a refugee in the 1970s. In a silent film, Siu dives into the waves with a camera at night, the grainy footage recording an emotional more than physical landscape.

Still photographs, taken by a small creek in Hong Kong looking across the border to Shenzhen's shining new skyline, seem to reverse the journey.

The show is unique for its outdoor portion, in which local artists are given the special chance to create pieces that dialogue directly with Hong Kong's gargantuan skyscrapers themselves.

A dystopic, Eschersque aluminum sculpture by Vaan Ip evoking Hong Kong's dizzying verticality becomes far more effective when viewed with architect I.M. Pei's Bank of China Building jutting into the sky right behind it.

A sculpture Chlo Cheuk creates a lens out of three crystal balls, capable of being swiveled and rearranged to distort and flip different parts of the city skyline. One can swing the contraption towards the harbor -- or towards Hong Kong's government building itself.

For Chan, the show is the fulfillment of a dream he had since the center opened in 2012. His goal, he tells me, is for the show to speak to local residents -- and show how art can be a vessel for their concerns.

"It's very important if we call ourselves a Hong Kong center that we work with local artists," he says. "These days when you do a show on Hong Kong contemporary art, politics is a subject that you cannot escape."

"We want people to think: what if, in our very crowded space, a piece of art can really change the dynamics of how we feel?"

"Breathing Space: Contemporary Art from Hong Kong" is on view until July 9, 2017 at Asia Society, Hong Kong.

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