#he’s so much more mature with his movement quality and musicality

[keeperofthebox]

🎶😇🖕 for Cole plz :)

I have been watching Dragons Rising and I was so annoyed I had to wait so long to see Cole so thanks for giving me an opportunity to rant about him <3

🎶 Music - The movie gave him that DJ trait which was cool but I dont necessarily see Cole as the type to make music. Especially considering his relationship to the arts. I do see him as the one with the most varied and quality taste of all the ninja though. In my minds eye he has a CD wall in his room. I think he would listen to pretty much anything and genuinely enjoy himself but rock has to be his favorite. Pun lightly intended. I mean look at him that boy is made to go vibe out at a metal show.

He'd seriously like everything though. I see him liking whatever the Ninjago equivalents of ska and reggae are especially. Since music is so political - especially those two movements in particular - it's hard to say it'd be exactly the same in Ninjago world. but that type of thing would be up his alley.

I think he's the type to know a lot about music but not necessarily feel the need to mansplain it to people. With prompting though he'd say something super knowledgeable and nuanced about music production or something and whoever he's talking to would be like wtf. Where'd that come from. HAHA

😇 Religion - He's in a situation where any religious belief he would have would basically be reality. Like "yeah I believe this realm was settled for humans by a magical mixed species oni-dragon ninja from another dimension a zillion years ago and eventually he will have a successor in the form of a chosen one with the power of all 4 elements from his original dimension combined". Sounds crazy but that literally happened and he watched it happen. LMAO.

Cole is a chill type so I imagine he'd be open to others beliefs unless he felt they were immoral or unjust in some way. That's just being a hero and a ninja though. I'd have to go rewatch his reaction to finding out the Writers of Destiny are full of shit to have a more solid opinion about it.

🖕 Anger - Cole is more likely to get annoyed than angry especially after he's matured this much. He's the rock of the group so he's pretty emotionally stable. He gets irritable all the time with the others being idiots or with things not going his way but for actual deep anger I think it takes a lot for him to feel that way. It would probably be something like betrayal that would push him to that point.

If he was mad I figure he would fight his heart out about it. That's the thing with all the ninja like they're martial artist heroes so they have this shared trait of "I will fight to save others and maintain justice". For Cole especially anger is just fuel to attain that goal.

[tutuandscoot]

CD: Argentine Tango- World’s 2008, Göteborg Sweden

So what I personally love in a good tango is a quality I would describe as the man wanting to eat the woman alive and her looking as though she’s really into it. Like just this look of utter desire and the man being in complete control and the woman not fighting against that. It’s a very careful balance because the man can’t look angry or mean or volatile, and the woman has to balance not fighting against that will for the man to control her- she has to be on board with it but also can’t appear weak or too easy to take advantage of. This is not the ideal quality for every tango but I find it very appropriate for this Argentine style which is known for being an extremely passionate tango. If this all sounds bizarre and messed up I get you and if you’re finding that quality hard to picture then please look no further than VM’s Argentine Tango CD because this is exactly how I would describe their quality in this dance as is why I love it so much.

Below I’m going to break down all my favourite choreographic moments and highlight where I find this quality and how they use it to add incredible passion and intimacy to a dance there are 20 some odd couples performing on this same day and manage to appear as far more mature then their tender ages of just 18 and 20.

Firstly, just a comment on costumes. Unsurprisingly, I love them (there are in fact costumes of theirs that I don’t like which I’ll get to eventually). T’s dress is stunning. This certainly adds to the maturity of their dancing. It’s so very appropriate. It’s not sleezy, it doesn’t distract or get in the way of the choreography, it excentuates body lines. Some argue Scott was often underdressed, but I would and have argued in the past it is on purpose the way he dresses so as not to distract from the choreography, not distract from Tessa, feel comfortable and have an ease of movement. Almost all the time his simple costumes were so well fitted and showed off his exquisite movement. What I also like about their take on costumes is I don’t think of them as wearing costumes, like the costumes aren’t this whole other thing, it feels more natural, it grounds them which I think with skaters and the environment in which they perform- there aren’t stage lights, backdrop, sets. They are just in an arena with people and branding on all sides, so it doesn’t look like they’ve been pulled off some extravagant stage set and plonked on an ice rink- it feels appropriate for the setting they are in. I don’t think I explained that very well but the point of it all is i’m a big fan of the simplicity. It’s more like they came out of a movie where two characters have just happened to be dancing a tango as part of the story. This of course varies and some programs do require more ‘costumy’ costumes.

Ok. Let’s get into it.

1. The opening

It’s another common thread of their’s to not have overly excessive openings and closings to their CD’s. This part isn’t being judged, there’s no bonus points for lifts or spins, it’s to set the tone and make it a full finished product. Immediately even before the music starts you get that passion and desire, that closeness straight away then that push and pull with T holding her own but she’s also really into him pulling her back to him. That downward gaze they both but especially he has. Also just in this intro their beautiful upper body form: such beautiful posture where there is no tension, shoulders are relaxed but there is strength in the way he holds her and such lightness from her- pressing into his hand while lightly resting her other on his shoulder. Such a hard thing to perfect and while many teams do it ‘well’ VM do it brilliantly.

2. Their beautiful, powerful gliding skating

As always, I don’t know enough to make an educated analysis of their skating. They were obviously very strong, gaining speed quickly (as in development compared to last season- getting stronger and faster in a short amount of time). I just assume their technique is great and this is what good skating should look like considering the amount of other knowledgeable people who have said so and their top world class rankings being just their second year in senior. Having said all that, obviously there was something not quite right about it considering this was the initial issue with Tessa’s legs- the pain started with this compulsory dance where she says there was intense pain and cramping and through training around this time it was specifically on compulsory dances that the pain occurred. I’m in no place to diagnose but having had similar injuries myself i’d say it was on some level the Russian style skating technique along with her body mechanics- just the way her muscles defaulted to working in that style. (I do not personally know the specific differences between Russian and British style skating, I just mean it as the style they were being taught having Russian coaches there must’ve just been something about that technique that bothered her legs through heavy duty- repetitive training like that for compulsory dances). Regardless of that, the way they move together, even doing the most simple of movements is just magical. For all the times I firmly refer to them as dancers, their skating and the quality with which they skate is just not something you would get with them dancing on the floor. Even with the simplest of steps, the rise and fall of their knees together, the sustains and the pauses, it seems so organic and just natural that their bodies know how to move in time with each other’s. Yes it took years and endless practice to get there but other teams work hard yet the seamlessness of TS you just don’t see in anyone else.

3. The start of the set pattern.

I’ve watched all of this CD competition from World’s 08 and I don’t believe any other team (at least any team of note) took that beautiful long, sustained pause that TS do. I’m talking about the ‘kiss moment’ - most other teams did a sharp look towards each other and kinda stood up straighter, more of a ‘stomp’ step with their free foot and just looked towards each other quite statically. It was very staccato and on the beat, where as TS in this moment and others times throughout, flirt with the timing to stretch out and indulge in certain moments, while still staying on the music and fulfilling the strict musical requirements. This is one of the prime examples of the initial quality I mentioned at the top of this. It’s one of the early examples of that thing they would do so often in many programs to come (and manage to accurately suit it to the tone of the program) of that down ward, sometimes closed eye gaze and the dropped jaw to open their mouth’s that just immediately gives this ultimate desire and passion. It wasn’t a constant thing like you see know with these lyrical, hyper emotional skating programs where they just look dismayed the whole time and mouths open like they are catching flies- TS use it as emphasis and like an acting tool to moderate their emotions throughout and because they both do it it feels more natural- their equal ability to emote. In this specific moment I will confidently say they don’t quite kiss, but they have never been afraid of the intention of that and being able to portray it one step away from literally, actually going through with it. They way this moment plays with the music- it can’t be given it’s justice in gif form so please go watch it, but that sustained rise then fall of the knee on the proceeding steps is beautiful. You feel that their cores are so connected and they are so focused. They attack the movement with so much energy, but it’s controlled and rather then channeled unevenly, they channel it into each other. It’s really so ironic that they only started ‘The Hug’ a couple of years after this because I feel like the purpose of that and what it did- ensure them that they were connected and in time with each other- they were rising and falling to the same rhythm they set themselves. It was a quality already displayed in so much of their skating, whether that was just their talent and training and supreme musicality maybe, but knowing there was a time before and a time after The Hug, I still see some of what that did for them in earlier performances. Maybe it was always there and The Hug became a matter of fact for them that they knew it was there.

4. EDGES

I’m really not gonna say much here because I think their edges speak for themselves and there is already plenty of commentary from those who know far more then me, but isn’t it just so satisfying to watch!? Not that I watch that much ice dancing from recently but there’s really no need to even film slow-mo and close ups of edges because they just don’t exist anymore - there being no compulsories or attention to detail in other program formats, at least none like this. As much as I love VM’s dance quality this is just as satisfying to watch. They are so far over on their edges and the clean slicing of the ice. They manage to appear both so grounded and weightless at the same time. No unnecessary tension in their upper bodies while doing all that impeccable skating- just as much as the style requires of them. That change from inside to outside with their right as the free leg as well as that port de bra.. ugh it’s just beautiful- and again so much better with the music so go watch it when you’re done here please 🙏🙏

5. Tango highlights

Obviously this is a tango, based on music and costume, but little accented moments like this where they are facing towards each other and Scott picks up T’s foot with his. Lifting so high while remaining so close and just the most exquisite hold of position with their arms as they lean into that edge starting the circle. It’s here and then throughout the rest of the pattern where you really get that incredibly close tango hold where he is really coming over the top of her to lead the dance. He takes her with him into all these turns staying close while their feet stay so neat and on such beautiful edges.

6. Deep circle and edge appreciation

That’s all.

7. LINES

There is no debate on this. They have the most beautiful lines in ice dance. There are several reasonings for this: 1. It is just some truly messed up fate shit that they have matching bodies. You see it when they were wee little kiddos first paired up- they are perfect for each other.. then there were some sketchy times in the middle through puberty where there was a worry T would grow too tall, but by this point here they were matching perfectly. When they skate their height difference works so in their favour in that T looks shorter than him when she needs to or it’s necessary for partnering, then other times appears as his physical equal and this gives the illusion they skate as one (as well as their connection). This physical match is part of what makes their lines so good, as well as athletic ability, aesthetic understanding (straight and pulled up knees, fully pointed toes, matching heights). Also here you will notice their gorgeous epaulement, or in layman’s terms, shoulder and head positions. The way they twist their upper bodies while remaining square in the hips, as well as turning their heads at the right angle to portray the tango style. The moment after the twizzle with T’s stunning arabesque and Scott’s matching devant position is another one of those drawn out moments like the ‘kiss’ at the start. As far as the skating steps go they remain perfectly on the music but through they upper bodies and further extension of their free legs they stretch it out to create light and shade in an otherwise strict set pattern. The arch in her back which concaves into his body position leaning into her [this kinda shape: ((. The first bracket being S the second T] the slow caress of his face while she looks slightly up at him while he gazes down at her.

8. Expression and quality:

There’s really 4 moments that I point to as obvious examples of the quality I love in a tango that I mentioned at the start; the ‘kiss’ at the beginning, the foot pick up, this elongated arabesque moment above, and this moment below. That lift of the arms where they sustain that glide leaning to the back of the rink with their fingers separating and palms pressing together as they lower. Then the crossovers onto outside edges where in he steps so far over her you almost can’t see her from this angle. The commentary in these CD from back in the day always talked about how close the skaters should be - that there should be minimal distance between the hips- especially when side by side (in Killian hold, to and extent tango hold but it’s a bit harder). Here with the nature of the step it’s not so much their hips together but more so their upper bodies are so incredibly close. The way she looks at him as he’s forcing back but he just glances downwards and past her- yet that mental connection is still so there.. Complete control over her but with this quality that she’s really into it. It’s passion. That’s really what it is, but they have that in everything they do so it’s how they control that and work it together to portray this dance so honesty with so much maturity. It has to come through in their expression, upper body/ artistry and in their skating technique.. it’s just insane to think they were this good so young.

9. The ending

Ok, I lied, 5 moments. But given this isn’t part of the the set chore it’s up to them to finish it and how they want that quality to follow through from the beginning to the end, and this really is just the icing on the cake. Also just such a sweet and wholesome parallel to the eventual MR ending- both being tangos in similar-looking costumes but totally different emotion in the ending. If you were struggling to get my jist with the whole ‘eaten alive’ quality I like I hope this ending is what seals it. (I don’t want my craving for that quality to sound demented or anything- it’s not like in a hanibal Lecter way) - it’s passion and drama and sensual desire.. the tango is a dance of love and passion so you don’t want one person to be really into it and the other disinterested.. but at the same time I also find it sexier this way, the way VM do it as opposed to the female being over the top and appearing to initiate it. I love this ending, T’s big fan kick, Scott’s wide yet stable stance, T’s face as she goes back- actually both their faces.. and it’s like they go into slow mo mode again. His hand on the back of her neck as always supporting her. That tension in his hand on her back so as he doesn’t have full contact with her.. yet that secure, cuddly contact getting her up and on balance again (a constant through every ending pose like this) even the way they stay there for a moment, him breathing into her neck and her gazing down at him as though she’s waiting for him to finish but doesn’t at all want him to rush… (sorry the gif cuts it off a bit here)

It’s extraordinary the detail and emotion that went into just this CD, with two full and very different (OD + FD) programs still to come. This is high up on my list of fave skates of there’s, really the paso from the following year and TR all are coz it’s like satisfaction porn… for people who like perfect (or as perfect as possible) things to just drool over. The skating is mind boggling, the musicality is perfect, the expression of all of these CD’s is exquisite. All of them being male dominate styles I think worked so well for them coz Tessa had this beautiful way of letting him lead her and not having to over do her expression from an outward perspective, instead she found that by playing off him (I don’t know it that was their process but that’s how I make sense of it) coz so often with almost every other team you would get either weakness in expression from both skaters- either a lack of performance skills or just coming off dis honestly (which is really just a form of lack of performance skills) or (this more often from the older/top teams) over the top expression especially from the female and more this sense of both skaters performing outwards rather then in relation to each other- which is so important (at least to me) in a dance that is just the man and the woman- there has to be that connection and communication there.

[irrieia]

Some Honest GP Espoo Thoughts

Women:

Mana was the star of the event for me. not sold on the sp (the stsq was great), but the free was stunning! It really showed her maturity in performance and her commitment to the music. And her skating skills!! imo she has the best edge quality of the women’s event. The coaching change seems to be paying off. She looks happier and I think she will continue to develop artistically with Mihoko. 

Mai’s sp was great. the fs… not so much. One glaring issue I noticed was the amount of “hunching down” movements in the stsq. Mai doesn’t have the best upper body control so it just looks… bad. I blame David Wilson for this cuz how to you choreograph both programs and have such different results

Ice dance:

Did I tear up watching Piper and Paul’s Evita? Yes. Please dont judge. I have so many things to say about these two but the tldr is I am happy they are still competing and showing us they have more to offer. I really love the circular step with little touches reminiscent of the Ravensburger Waltz. And a mini lift during the step that doesn’t feel forced and matches the music! love the little changes they made since SCI, but I wish they do something with the straight line lift, right now it doesn’t match the crescendo of the music as well as it should. The RoLi is wonderful tho. 

Kaitlin and Jean-Luc’s Oft are exquisite as always. Perhaps it’s my nitpick, but I felt like they’ve gone with stylistically similar fd for a long time now. And I prefer last season’s Chopin over this.

Juulia and Matthias had my favorite combo lift of the event. That RoLi is absolutely beautiful. So many intricate changes of position, each on the accent of the music. They are another team that is stylistically limited, but Schubert is a great choice.

Natalie and Filip my loves!! Their sheer power and speed are SO impressive I am in awe. This climate change fd has grown on me. I think they made the right decision reducing the number of voiceovers. Some very innovative and intricate movements. Still need some polishing but gosh I love watching them skate. (@benoit richaud, this is how you do a climate change themed program)

Men 

My only thought on the mens is that I like both the Selevko brothers but neither of them have been performing well and now there’s a third candidate fighting for that one spot and I am concerned. 

Bonus of me dragging Benoit richaud for the 20395135th time

You can really tell when a program is choreographed by Benoit because it’s just so awkward and straight up ugly at times. He really forces a skater to adapt to his choreography. I think Shae-lynn has the same problem sometimes, but her clients are often times good performers already so it isn’t noticeable. But Benoit choreographs for many young skaters still trying to find their footing artistically and does nothing but accentuate their flaws. Sometimes it feels like he’s more concerned with being perceived as “edgy” and “woke” than making enjoyable programs. (I still can’t get over his insistence on continuity between the short and the free like ????? Why.) 

[guzmagang]

Hello! I found your page due to the Guzma head canons. He's become my hyperfixation as of late, as such I was wondering if you had any other headcanons you wanted to share?

Yeah, sure, I need to get back into writing. Also i need a distraction for my own mental wellbeing ahahhahahahah help. 

Guzma strikes me as the partner who will willingly listen to any music you’re into and with you and not make any comments about it but is secretly judging and half-way psychoanalyzing. 

He’s pretty handsy and unabashed; if you have any family who makes underhanded comments about you around him, he becomes much more crass and possessive. He will make sure it’s known that 1- you are his, so fuck off with that shit and 2- you chose him. You did not choose them. They’re stuck with both of you and he will make it hell for them for his entertainment. 

Guzma 100% eats like the Single Straight Man™ stereotype whether or not he is or is not straight; his breakfast is a weirdly toasted piece of bread and dinner is a frozen pizza topped with random shit he threw on. 

ON that note, if you cook for him/order higher quality food/ literally anything else, he’s so far gone; this man is chest deep into this relationship and he just fell for you. 

[ I just had a thought as I am writing this of Guzma hearing literally any song from “The Normal Album” and being legitimately wildly concerned. ]

Can and will fight any shitty person who is now removed from your life; ex, ex friend, shitty family, he will undo all of his therapy. 

Guzma is wildy crass at times, but when it comes to you, he’ll ask you rather intimate things with such maturity; asking you about your past relationships, if anything bad happened, why it didn’t work out and such, and will handle it with a lot of mercy and maturity. 

Give him some sort of gentle thing to stimulate him; let him pet a soft pokemon, comb a pokemon, brush your hair, attempt to braid your hair- just give him something soft and it’ll soothe him a lot if he’s feeling restless or trapped. 

If he didn’t live in a naturally humid and salty environment, his hair would not be nearly as floofy. Fluffy, yes, but not a swablu. Fucker got italian hair fr fr 

Guzma is obviously not particularly an academic, but he also doesn’t like to be seen as a stupid fuck-up; if you went to college or any sort of higher education, he’ll ask you to show him any of your notes from that and explain the concepts to him. He’s not the greatest at it, but now he understands how a pathogen works! 

He isn’t particularly entranced with reading, but he’ll definitely do it as a non-violent non-traumatizing form of entertainment. 

Has no fuvkin clue how a fountain pen works. None. 

If you have a hyperfixation/special interest to talk about, he will absolutely listen to you talk about it and such; no, he has no idea what you’re talking about. Yes, please keep on talking. 

Embroidery is the same fountain pen conundrum. 

Will grasp onto very random academic concepts; he knows there was an industrial revolution which led to the mass production of art equipment and technologies that revolutionized the art world and how artists worked, sparking the first movement away from the French academy of art. No he doesn’t know what impressionism is. Yes they are the same thing. 

[haechanniesunflowers]

NCT Dream being jealous

TMI: I have a really bad throat ache, it feels scratchy I might temporarily lose my voice if this keeps up

I love all NCT members so much but Dream is my favorite unit. I love their chemistry and don't even get me started on their discography.

Mark

He's pretty chill about it most of the time because he knows you ain't going anywhere. Sees Haechan trying to mess with him by getting cosy next to you but you don't spare him a glace, making Mark laugh at his best friend's failed attempts. Phew.

However he can't stop feeling jealous when he sees you and Jeno discussing a movie he has no idea about. Mark knows you always wanted to watch that movie with him but he just didn't have the time to spare. And the fact that Jeno could talk about it with you but he couldn't was bothering him. Don't get him wrong he knows Jeno's intentions and has no fear but he's upset because he wants to be Jeno right now.

"y/n will you watch the movie again?... with me?" he asks, scratching his head.

"yes of course Mark" you say happily, seeing this as a chance to finally spend some quality time with him.

Renjun

He's sitting with his members at the table, seeing you perform your dance stage at an award show. He's mesmerised by how perfectly you execute the dance moves. Jaemin has to tell him to close his mouth because his jaw is hung open and if the camera catches his reaction, it will raise suspicion.

You look hot and confident and he's loving every second of it, until the music changes to a sexy one and... is that Kim Yunho? the guy from your company who openly said he had a crush on you??

He's starting to feel uncomfortable, insecure maybe? He's muscular than Renjun, a better dancer and on top of that, fans ship you two. He looks away and just claps and pretends to talk to Haechan during the rest of the performance.

You two meet a week after it and you can tell that something is bothering him. You turn him to face you but he resists.

"why didn't you tell me you had a performance with Yunho?" he asks

"we were very busy Renjun, I didn't think it was necessary to call you and say 'hey guess what? I'm gonna dance with Yunho'" you reply.

He's getting annoyed.

"he's my rival"

"no you think he's your rival. I'm not into him at all Jun, I only love you baby" you coo.

Jeno

You called him to tell him that you've been asked to be the special MC for a music show. He's very happy for you because he's promoting his new album with NCT Dream and they will appear on music shows so you and him will get to see each other a lot.

"which show though? I want to wear our couple rings" he says

"inkigayo!" you cheer

His smile drops, but he doesn't make it obvious.

"yayyy" he says and you two talk for a bit then end the phone call.

"Inkigayo huh? That means she'll be standing next to Hwang Daehyun. That lucky jerk" he says to himself.

Jeno found him intimidating even though he had nothing to fear from him. It's just that he had heard some nasty rumours about him and he didn't want you to even breathe the same air as him, let alone MC with him.

"uhh... who are you talking to?" Jaemin asks, seeing that Jeno is sitting alone.

"myself, get out" he says.

He conceals his jealousy and fear for you and makes sure he's around you most of the time when Daehyun is with you.

Haechan

Haechan with not hide his jealousy at all. He will make it obvious that he doesn't like it.

The boys tease him a lot, especially with you. They always say that Haechan is a simp for you and that you have him wrapped around your fingers. It was okay and he didn't mind.

He sees you in the kitchen, cooking with Jaemin and immediately walks over to you with heart eyes. Jaemin sees him and decides to mess with him. He pretends to brush something off your face and Haechan whines and hits Jaemin's arm, causing everyone to laugh.

"Na Jaemin stay away!" he yells, playfully of course.

Jaemin

He is such a flirt and is very romantic. Your relationship is strong and you both tease each other a lot.

You're good friends with 00 line and you guys planned a movie night. You're all cuddled up in blankets. You and Jaemin in one, Haechan, Jeno and Shotaro in another and Renjun and YangYang in another (yes the detail was important because I love my babies).

Half way through the movie you start dozing off and you snuggle your head on Haechan's shoulder. Haechan became flustered at first but quietly decided to make use of the opportunity to tease Jaemin. He noticed Jaemin looking at you and winked at him causing him to pull you away from Haechan and onto his own shoulder. You wake up from the sudden movement.

"who's there" you ask, alarmed.

Jaemin shushes you and pulls you into his chest where you fall asleep again.

He sticks his tongue out at Haechan (man I love 00 line)

Chenle

I feel like he never really talks about his feelings. I read somewhere that he only once told Jisung about the time he was sad and he really trusts him.

Chenle would hide his feelings very well. He'd see Sungchan telling you about the time he went bungee jumping and you were really in the conversation because you're scared of heights and wanted to know what happened next. Chenle saw the way your eyes gleamed and the curiosity on your face. You looked so adorable that he wanted to hug you and kiss your head but you were too immersed in the conversation with Sungchan. It made Chenle a little jealous but he would never tell you about it and let you have fun the way you wanted.

He's very understanding.

Jisung

He wouldn't know what to do because he doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. He has a lingering fear that he is new to relationships and you will leave him for a more mature and experienced man.

So when he saw that you have been hanging out with Jaehyun more and more whenever the boys got together and panicked every time. What if his worst fear came true? He didn't want to make you uncomfortable or question his trust but he also wanted to tell you that he felt unsafe because of your friendship with Jaehyun.

In a state of dilemma he would talk to the hyung he trusts the most, Mark. After listening to his concerns Mark would advise him to tel you about it rather than staying silent and suffering.

He'd think about it a lot and tell you. You didn't realize it was making him uncomfortable so you would be careful about his feelings next time.

[closer-stars]

Dance With Me

Member: Wooyoung Genre: Fluff Word Count: ~3000 Requested: No Content: just dancing with wooyoung. also both of you have feelings for each other but neither of you want to say ANYTHING about it. Also ended up making a playlist for this. Might link it if anyone wants it lol. Note: got inspired when i found out he likes dancing to slow songs. this is also just a bit of a break for me from all the requests I’ve been writing. Go easy on me on this ig, it’s been quite a while since I wrote anything that wasn’t a request and just practically winged this.  Tag list: @prodbyteez @barsformars @yeotlny @frankenstein852 @miniyeo @shinyddeonghwa @wlbrzst Net: @ateezlovenet

It’s night time. Ten o’ clock to be exact. Today is supposed to be your rest day, just at home, maybe playing video games, drinking some wine, just being able to take it easy. Alas, here you are in the studio with Wooyoung. His reason? None of the members wanted to stay in the studio; even the ever hardworking San wanted to stay at home and play League or melt into the massage chair. You can’t even get yourself to agree with Wooyoung when it came to staying at home. A good quality massage chair does wonders. You also can’t turn down an offer to dance with Wooyoung. It’s been far too long since you’ve danced with him after all. 

So here you are, just vibing along to the music he’s been playing at one side of the room, while he’s trying to get into the vibe but never quite being able to. You have fun with the music changes. Truthfully his music taste has matured over the years, some of the songs were unfamiliar to you. It’s a challenge for you to explore your own abilities and body. On the other hand, his own challenge was getting into the music. He vibes for a few counts but never quite gets into it like you. He watches you for a few moments through the mirror, a little envious of how you’re able to ease yourself into it. Yet, here he is, someone who works constantly through singing and dancing but can’t get himself to dance wholeheartedly. Freely. 

Maybe that’s why he dragged you here. 

“Hey, can I change the music?” You ask. You have a bit of an idea but it depends if he was willing for a bit of a change. 

“Go for it.” He says, a little thankful that he can turn off his thoughts to songs he’s not familiar with. Truthfully, he’s been a little nervous since it’s been so long since he’s spent time with you like this. He wants to show how much he has improved over the years he couldn’t meet up with you. Unfortunately, his own feelings got him feeling like he has two left feet or at the very least, forgetting how to dance. This time, he lets you take the lead. 

The music changes. Somehow, this genre was so you that it makes his lips curve upwards. You’ve matured and changed over the years, but hearing this kind of vibe was something he would have expected from you. It’s a small reassurance for him. Once you’re satisfied, you walk over to him and there’s something in your eyes that he catches. There’s a plan brewing in your head. He doesn’t quite remember how successful your impromptu plans are. 

“Do you remember when we were trainees, when we would dance around each other? Just freestyling and improv?” You ask. The two of you were trainees under the same company at one point. Eventually, you decided to venture into a path different from his. When you had left, he only had Yeosang left. He couldn’t lose the people he held so dear to his heart. 

At the mention of those memories, he laughs, “Of course.”. How young were the two of you then, so much hope and ambition. The two of you loved dancing with each other and he hopes that the love is still there. “Why?” He asks. 

He shouldn’t have asked because by the time the question came out of his mouth, you were dancing. Your feet gliding across the floor and around him. You’ve always been graceful, even when you’re just bouncing to the beat, it just looked so effortless on you. He remembers how the two of you look so awkward dancing in these styles. Now, it seems that you’ve grown into your genre. You never lost your love for dancing even after life had led you down a different path. Just like his feelings for his dream and you. He watches you dance around him, either with his own eyes or through the mirror. He catches a few moves influenced by other dance styles and he wonders just what have you been up to all this time. Some of the moves you do, he knows where you got those: trainee years. He even catches a move that he had personally taught you. These references don’t go past him unnoticed, in fact he giggles and laughs wholeheartedly at each reference.  

The fleeting touches you give him aren’t going unnoticed either. There’s still a hint of shyness in them, only balanced by how confident you move and how the song eggs you on. You’ve always been the type to like upbeat music. The confidence boost the steady instrumental gives you was refreshing to see. You always preferred to keep your feelings and thoughts to yourself, ever so private you are. But when music plays, you come out of that shell, doing things he didn’t think you could do. This includes making his heart race. Since he doesn’t have to dance for now, he takes the time to fully appreciate you. To have your undivided attention while you dance, it felt too good to be true. 

Once the song reaches the end, you slowly stop as well, letting your energy fade into the next song. Your chest rising and falling quickly as you catch your breath. There’s a thin sheet of sweat on your forehead: it’s been a while since you’ve danced like that. The music still plays and Wooyoung stands there. It’s when you stop dancing that he spots how your bashful mannerisms return; the shy smile where your eyes scrunch close as you catch your breath. You look cute, he thinks. A little prideful of himself too, to see a side of you that not a lot of people see. 

He’s not sure of what to say, how to properly praise you after what you’ve done. The hesitance is thrown out the window and he lets the words fly out instead. “You’ve improved.” He starts. It’s hard to hide the prideful grin on his features. He praises you for your skills and patience to improve in these styles despite your already hectic schedule. After such words, you bow in thanks to his words. Truthfully, you haven’t seen how you’ve improved but if Wooyoung says you have then you’ll take his words for it. Now, you gesture for him to take over the dance floor. 

“Your turn, pretty boy.” You say simply. The praise momentarily causes his brain to buffer. This doesn’t slip by you that you smirk, proceeding to call him that name again. “I said what I said, pretty boy.” You taunt him playfully. 

The song playing now is a different one. It’s up Wooyoung’s alley this time. He decides to impress you with his skills this time. You didn’t expect anything different from him. As far as you could remember, he loved showing off his lines at the start. It didn’t matter if he does them sharp and quickly or careful and slowly, if it makes the audience breathless then he’s doing well. He takes his time dancing with the music this time. Compared to earlier, he looks a lot more relaxed. There’s just something about dancing with friends for no reason that his job as an idol can’t quite beat. The need to impress you eventually ebs away, making room for him to just be. Of course even if he just lets be, he can’t help but be a little flirty with you. Mouthing the lyrics while shooting you a wink here and there, all of which are rebuffed by you rolling your eyes. 

Both of you know better. The refusal of such flirtings really meant nothing. Neither of you speak about it though, instead just having fun to see who would cave first.

Though he loosens up now, he doesn’t miss on the chance to throw a few moves that he knows are your thing. And was it really Wooyoung, if there wasn’t any attitude in his movement? Of course he’d go as far as do the same moves you did in reference to him, all while correcting you on how to do it. Just typical Wooyoung things. Besides his dance lines, now more prominent, you can’t help but be impressed with how controlled his core is. Maybe you’ll ask for his training regime after tonight. His performance lights up a small competitive flame in you. You keep it under wraps though, you want to see what other tricks he has up his sleeve. 

It’s not tricks but you do see that he’s been able to explore just how much his body can do. He’s often on the floor, sometimes on his knees as he dances, rising up for a few counts before being on the floor once more. A small part of you wonders how he’d do when it comes to other styles of hip hop with how grounded he’s become. Just then, you catch him losing his focus, struggling a little to execute certain moves.

He can’t help it, hell, he doesn’t know why it made him lose focus. For some reason, his head decided to emphasize the mere fact, he’s dancing for you. Just the two of you. He was so used to dancing with you and other trainees that then turned into dancing with his members. Now, it’s the two of you only. Flustered feelings overpower his focus, and it shows in a small misstep, a small miss in timing. Even if he’s in the zone, he wants to be worthy of your pride. 

“Let’s go, Wooyoung.” You say, trying to put him back into the groove. You didn’t really think about holding back. You were sure that his members have seen how frustrated he can get when he loses his groove in something he’s been working on. “Let’s go.” You say, bouncing a little in the same spot. 

Without another thought, you decide to dance with him. The imagery of a puppeteer with his little puppet as you maneuver around him. There’s something that looks like surprise in Wooyoung’s eyes when he realizes you’re dancing with him now.The visuals the two of you make was refreshing. It felt right, seems like two puzzle pieces fitting right in after looking for their match for so long. Though, for you, you don’t put too much effort into dancing, doing this just to make sure Wooyoung doesn’t lose his focus. He notices what you’re doing and he feels a little strengthened to continue dancing even for a few more counts. For now, he’ll follow your lead until he’s able to drop into the music. 

The two of you drop to the floor once the song ends. Both of you heaving from the physical exertion. Just a few feet away, the sound system continues to play music that neither of you plan to stop. You look over at the male who’s spread eagle on the floor, strands of hair clinging to his skin as he catches his breath. Maybe it would’ve been nice to stand on the same stage as him but would you have been able to handle the pressure? You shake the thoughts of your head as you pull yourself up. 

“Hey, do you remember the choreo to this?” His voice cuts through the thoughts that still cling to your consciousness. The question registers into your mind and you take a moment to focus on the song. Oh. This is rather old. A song the two of you danced to for a monthly evaluation if you remember correctly. One of the rare times you danced with him at such close proximity. 

You reason with yourself that the hot feeling on your cheeks is your body’s heat from dancing for longer than you were used to. “Yeah a bit, why?” You return the question to him while you stretch your legs from the exhaustion. 

“Wanna do it?”

Your eyes look at him with disbelief. “I thought you forget choreos easily.” It’s not that you doubt him-- okay maybe just a bit, but the amount of times he has said that he forgets choreographies to you and to the camera was quite high. 

Your question clearly goes through one ear and out the other. Typical. “Let’s just give it a shot.” He says, pushing himself up with what you can only assume was something he picked up from breaking. Always the flashy guy he was, wanting to flex whenever possible. He walks over to you, offering his hand to pull you up to your feet. 

Who are you to say no? 

When you hold onto his hand, he pulls you up and against his chest. The prideful smirk already on his lips. The voice in your head berates you for falling for such a classic trick from him. As if you’d complain though. But you don’t show how affected you are by such actions, and instead, you lightly whack his chest, thus giving you the chance to get away. 

Did that matter? Not quite because eventually, the two of you would have to dance together.

With that, the dancing begins again. The two of you twist against each other, switching positions that showcases each other’s skills. At certain segments, one of you would forget what comes next-- the things that says this would be either a panicked yelp from you, or an awkward questioning sound from Wooyoung. When one forgets what’s next, the other manages to remember and lead them. It’s all smooth sailing until the two of you forget what comes next. 

The two of you are just looking at your reflections, frozen in the same pose. Either of you hoping the other remembers and puts the two of you back on track. “Freestyle?” He proposes.

“Call. Face me.” 

The two of you are now looking at each other, dancing with each other in your own respective colors. It’s interesting to see how the two of you are dancing to the same song yet catching different beats. This goes on for a few counts, until Wooyoung snaps back into focus. Looks like he remembers the next step. 

“Let’s dance like this.” 

You follow his lead but it came with a bit of a price; to put it simply, it was a little flustering. It felt like you were looking at a mirror but not quite. It’s not surprising that you’d stumble at the confusing visuals that didn’t quite match with the vague memories in your head. Your flustered state isn’t missed by Wooyoung who eyes you with soft glee. Fortunately for you, you catch your pace again and dance confidently to him. 

He dances with just as much confidence to you. A privy smile creeping upon his features as he approaches you through the music. He knows you won’t move away so he takes his time. Any step back the two of you do were part of the choreography. From here onwards, the two of you know the choreography by heart. How can you not? 

The choreography ends with the two of you looking at each other. Wooyoung bending a little lower always, as you always look downwards at the end. He won’t miss out on an opportunity to see that cute shy look on your face when you realize how close he is to you. 

You can’t berate yourself either for liking how close he is. That cheeky smile he has that only you get to see does things to your stomach. The last four counts have the two of you just doing simple two steps grooving out the rest of the song out. 

After that session, your playlist ends right on time. But when the songs end, that’s when Wooyoung’s noise starts. The male lets out a relieved groan as he drops to his butt onto the floor, catching his breath. You let out the breath you’ve been holding since he got so close to you as you get your phone. After unplugging your phone from the system, you return your attention to the man who has evidently stripped his pullover off to cool his body down. 

“Walk around. Lying down after dancing isn’t going to help.” You chide him. Old habits really die hard with that guy. 

For once, he listens immediately. He pulls himself up and picks up his things. “Let’s go grab something to eat?” The look of incredulity on your face makes him raise his shoulders, unfazed by how sharp you look right now. “What? You said walk around, so let’s get out of here and grab something to eat, I’m hungry.” In other words: I don’t want this night with you to end just yet. 

Moments of silence pass over you. You were going to regret the less than usual hours of sleep you’ll get tonight but you’d regret not spending time with him more. “Let me grab my stuff, you switch off the stuff here cause I don’t want any property damage on my hands.”  He grins widely, victorious at his persuasion. “Besides, you owe me a lot of stories.” You add as you grab all your belongings. 

He does as he’s told and then hooks his arm right over your shoulders. “For starters, give me your new number. That way, you don’t miss me too much.” The two of you leave the studio all while Wooyoung recounts his stories to you. 

“Excuse me! You’re the one who dragged me here. You’re the one who misses me.” 

He wonders if you can feel how fast his heart races to have you in his arms like this. He can always excuse with from all the dancing no matter how stupid it can sound. 

He likes what he has with you right now, no rush. It’s obvious how you got feelings for each other but there’s no pressure in confessing. The night will forever be young as long as he’s with you.

[into-the-afterlife]

Why I Ship Johnny/Female V: Part 2

[Part 1] [Part 2]

This is Part 2 of my essay series on why I ship Johnny and female V. Back in part 1, I covered why I ship female V specifically with Johnny and not male V, as well as some thoughts on Johnny’s sexuality. This time, I’m looking at Johnny himself. (Content warning: there is some discussion of rape and how rape is handled in fiction.)

Johnny, ambiguity and age-old romantic tropes

Look, I’m just going to come out and say this: part of my interest in this ship is thirsting over Johnny. And when I’m interested in something, whether it’s an intellectual, creative or sexual interest, I like to do what I always do – analyse it to death. So what is it about the actor, the performance and the character that makes Johnny as attractive as he is?

Keanu Reeves himself, obviously, can’t be ignored here. He has a gorgeous face and voice, but crucially, he’s distinctively beautiful. Obviously, everyone has the right to be into what they’re into, and I don’t want to shame anyone for their tastes. But I do not understand people who are into the blandly beautiful. Sure, there’s nothing wrong about, let’s say, Chris Evans. But what’s right about him? Where are the snags that catch your attention and hold it? Where’s the life?

Reeves, meanwhile, is attractive because he’s unusual. He has long, dark hair, but he’s regularly photographed at public events with it mussed-up. He has a chiselled face, but his cheekbones are high enough that he looks alien. He has all the charisma of any Hollywood actor, but, whether this is him as he is or an especially well-calculated image choice, it comes off as genuine. When watching interviews with him, you feel less in the presence of a star and more an especially fascinating stranger at a party, one who, despite bursting with witticisms and stories, somehow wants to talk to you most of all.  

There’s also an element of age ambiguity here. Reeves is in his fifties, and while age suits his looks better than youth did, it shows. Meanwhile, Johnny the character is in his thirties when he dies, and to match this, the animators smooth out Reeves’ face and darken his beard. They also give Johnny the (unrealistic but glorious) organic arms of a dedicated bodybuilder. So what Johnny ends up with is the presence, confidence and charisma of an older guy, combined with the physicality of someone younger. It’s potent, to say the least. It also adds to Johnny’s uncanniness as a character. He’s caught between maturity and youth, life and death, humanity and machine; he’s hard to pinpoint no matter where you look. And whether you express this academia-style, as, ‘the gothic associates uncanniness with sexuality’, or internet-style,  as, ‘I’m a monster/robotfucker’, this is, as the kids say, pretty damn hot.

This uncanniness, as well as Reeves’ looks and performance, also offset some of the more unlikeable aspects of Johnny’s personality. This is best illustrated by the concept art created for Johnny before Reeves was brought on board. (Found courtesy of the lovely folks at r/LowSodiumCyberpunk.)

As you can see, they had a lot of Johnny’s look already nailed down. But this makes the differences all the more startling. This Johnny looks like he’s been dragged through the wringer. His hair is messier, and he seems to be getting premature wrinkles and balding. He’s strung-out, with a genuinely hopeless cast to his face. His look is also a lot more dated. While our Johnny has elements of the old rocker, the jean jacket, bandana, V-necked black jumper and aviators clipped to the tank top root this Johnny inescapably in 1980s music and fashion.

Why is all this relevant to shipping Johnny with V? Partially because I’m shallow, I’m not going to lie. But it’s also because making Johnny look like this would have made him much more obviously an intrusion. A guy dressed like this next to 2077’s booty shorts and space buns is like a ghost in a ballgown next to a woman in jeans. He’s not just out of time; he’s been irrevocably left behind. Johnny’s face here also has much less in the way of possibility. Where our Johnny says, ‘maybe your life would be better if you listened to me’, this Johnny screams, ‘my way is hopeless, but you can’t ignore it’. It’s leaning much more into the tragic aspects of Johnny’s character and of the genre of cyberpunk. And don’t get me wrong – I love that artwork, and think that angle would be an interesting artistic choice.

But making Johnny a tragic intrusion like this removes the element of seduction, so to speak, from his character. What makes Johnny attractive, ideologically, sexually and romantically, is a balance of certainty and uncertainty. On the surface, he’s passionately, blazingly certain of his politics, his music and himself. If you’re taking a leap of faith, whether that’s fighting against the corpos that rule your life or hopping into bed with an engram, what draws you to it is the kind of confidence that makes you doubt your own certainties. Yet too much of that can be off-putting. Nobody wants a partner who’s so cocksure (pardon the pun) that they don’t listen to what you want, and nobody wants a political ally who’s gone so far into their own rhetoric that they can’t convince those outside it.

Therefore, the common factor across all the ways Reeves’ looks impact our perception of Johnny is the balancing of two seemingly opposing things. Keep that in mind, because it only gets more relevant the deeper into this ship, and Johnny’s attractiveness, we go.

Of course, Reeves’ looks are far from the only thing he brings to the table. His acting, across body language, facial expressions and voice acting, is incredible. I want to take a look at his voice acting, as well as his voice generally, first.

I’m not familiar enough with the subtleties of American accents to pinpoint why, but Reeves’ accent sounds slightly different to the more generic accents of other famous actors. Perhaps it’s because he’s Canadian. Either way, his consonants are less harsh on the ear than other A-list actors, his vowels less elongated. He speaks slowly, sounding as if he just woke up. His voice is mellow and soothing; it’s the sort of sound you could take a bath in.

(For reference purposes, I’m listening to this Cyberpunk trailer as I write this, as well as, um, this video that I’ve watched far too many times. XD)

Obviously, to play Johnny he has to modify that laid-back aspect of his voice. But it’s interesting how his natural voice and his ‘Johnny’ voice bounce off each other. Reeves is able to pull off a much more belligerent Johnny than many actors could, precisely because of that laid-back quality his natural voice has. Think of that ‘impressive cock’ line. It’s made as funny as it is because of the total lack of shame in how Reeves delivers it. But in the mouth of an actor like, let’s say, Robert Downey Jr, that level of shamelessness would just come off as annoying. Reeves uses his natural voice to amp up Johnny’s, for lack of a better word, Chad-ness, far beyond the place another actor could manage. Because he has that base of softness, he can go hard on Johnny’s arrogance.

Why is this relevant to Johnny’s attractiveness as a character, as well as why Johnny/F!V are a fascinating ship? To develop a character well, you have to have an extremely solid base to start on – and that base is where a lot of writing and acting falls down. The audience has to know intimately what a character is usually like, or who they seem to be, before burrowing into the character further is made effective. That equal hard/soft approach means that when Johnny does soften later in the game, it seems both unexpected and inevitable. Even as the harsh tone and words were conveying one thing, that softness underneath was always conveying another. But the fact that Reeves can go hard on the arrogance makes that change much more impactful than it would be in another character. Once again, we’re seeing an equal balance of two seemingly opposing qualities, not openly leaning towards one or the other.

There’s also some aspects of the body language Reeves and the animators give to Johnny I’d like to focus in on. While I’m not an actor, nor am I a psychologist, and therefore am likely to have missed things, there were a few things I noticed when going through footage of Johnny in pivotal scenes. (If you spot something I haven’t talked about, please reply or reblog! I’d love to get a back-and-forth discussion going.)

Over and over again, Johnny’s body language has two layers. There’s what I’m calling the ‘douchebag’ layer, which is where Johnny seems insultingly relaxed. The scene when V and Johnny first meet, as well as the scene at the diner, have two great examples of this. Johnny gets into V’s space, but it’s slow, catlike. There’s no urgency when he leans in, nor when he stands over V.

Similarly, at the diner, he tells V he doesn’t want to kill her anymore – something pivotally important for their relationship and the plot - while putting his arms behind his head and his feet up on the table. It communicates, at least on the surface, a real sense of disrespect. ‘I don’t give a shit’, says his posture, ‘whether you hate and fear me or not’. His threatening slowness when they first meet, meanwhile, communicates that he doesn’t think V is a competent opponent. Why should he hurry if he can get her any time?

At least, that’s what it looks like. Take a look from 9:40 onwards here. Sure, he swings his legs up on the table – but not before hurrying into the diner booth and tapping his fingers rapidly on the table. Even when he gets into that relaxed posture, he’s bouncing his leg the entire time. Those catlike movements I talked about when they first meet? If you look from 5:42 here, they’re there. But they’re also interspersed with banging his head incessantly against the wall, pacing back and forth and glitching unpredictably all around the room.

This is where the second layer of Johnny’s body language comes in. Underneath all that casual condescension, he communicates constant, frenetic energy, even anxiety. Even in his default, idle animations, it’s extremely rarely that Johnny communicates real coolness and calm. He covers constantly racing thoughts and feelings with a slick persona.

What this does is very like the hard/soft balance of the voice acting I talked about earlier. Because the ‘douchebag’ layer of body language is the most obvious one, you pick up on that first. But the other layer is there throughout Johnny’s entire arc, and it goes into your brain on a much more subconscious level. Then, when Johnny’s guard does come down, it seems like a natural development of his character while still being a surprise. Once again, there’s that knife-edge balance between two disparate qualities. And for me, attraction always lies in the space between.

There’s also something highly sexual about the way he gets into V’s space when they first meet, the way he stands over her. When first playing the scene where they first meet, it felt like watching the moments before an act of rape. You see him first as he leans over you while you’re still in bed. He beats you to the ground, smashes your head into the window, and towers over you while you’re collapsed on the floor. Given the context of him taking over your body, the overtones are unmistakeable.

But again, crucially, that frantic body language and his lines are the complete opposite of how someone behaves when making the kind of power play that rape is. The pacing, the panicked words and the fact that he’s caught off guard all communicate disempowerment. While it’s still a violent, frightening scene, it’s not a monstrous one.

Why is that relevant to discussing Johnny’s attractiveness, and Johnny/V? Because rape fantasies and male domination are some of the oldest tropes in the book for M/F romantic arcs. Done properly, they play on desires of sexual submission without explicitly acknowledging the kink, depict the eroticism of that liminal space between humanity and monstrosity I talked about earlier and allow you to fantasise about being deeply wanted. Of course, that last bit isn’t a factual depiction of rape in real life. But in the fantasy, the story, the idea of being ravished is partially about being special, being so uniquely attractive that the guy loses all control of himself. If you have a more conservative or repressed view of your sexuality, the ravishment/rape fantasy also allows you to fantasise about sex without seeing yourself as a slut. (This post is a great look at that last idea as applied to the movie Labyrinth, if you want to find out more.)

The idea of sexualised monstrosity is also everywhere in the tropes used to characterise Johnny. He’s a troubled rockstar, an angst-ridden artist who died tragically young, a violent political rebel, part human and part supernatural creature, a charismatic, cocky, seemingly heartless guy, who just might have a heart if you look deep enough. What all these tropes have in common is the promise of both reassuring humanity and fascinating, exciting monstrosity.

Reeves’ and Johnny’s looks combine strangeness and humanity. Reeves’ voice acting moves between soaring arrogance and languid softness. Johnny’s body language combines fear and overconfidence. And the use of age-old romantic tropes in an unexpected context, as well as the use of these specific romantic tropes, knit all the effects of the other things together to create that balance between the human and the strange. He’s unusual enough to be interesting, human enough to seem real and associated with all our cultural symbolism of an attractive man. With all that going on, how could you not find him hot as hell?

But the thing about these tropes is, they’re also so common they’re clichéd. Not just in fandom, but all across Western media and art. So what lifts Johnny and Johnny/V out of being something generic? What makes them so fascinating that I’ve written thousands of words about them? What, in short, makes them different?

That’s what I’ll go into next time.

[Part 1] [Part 2]

[elliottalksalot]

Hiii could I please get a romantic matchup with a male from bnha? I am 5’4, an ambivert and Latina. I have pale skin, mid-length brown wavy hair with bangs, and hazel eyes. I am described as someone who comes off as cold or aloof when I’m around people I don’t know. After getting to know me, I am the complete opposite. I’m just a bit shy at first lol. My friends have told me that I give good advice but like to joke about my stubbornness. I like to make people laugh and try to make the best of any situation. However I have a hard time expressing my emotions. I’m also described as easy going and fun to be around. I love animals especially dogs. I am a hip hop dancer and love to perform. Enjoy reading and playing video games. I love music especially hip hop, rap, & reggaeton. I also love to write music/poetry. I really like drawing and painting. I can be playful and love to tease my friends. I also really like to eat and travel. I enjoy having deep conversations, like a lot lol. I can’t stand people who bully others and people who are fake. I like to be honest and helpful in any way I can. My style is usually anything comfy/casual and I don’t really like wearing skirts or dresses. I speak English and Spanish (learning Japanese & Portuguese). I enjoy watching crime investigations. I don’t really any fears, just not being able to accomplish my goals/dreams. I would say my love languages are words of affirmation and quality time. What I look for in a partner is someone that is selfless, mature and has depth to them. Also if they are really accepting because I’ve never had that growing up. I’m more attracted to introverts. For me anywhere is fine for a date, I am a bit low energy so not something super athletic lol. Thank you so much!! 💘💘💘

Hello! Thank you for the request . I literally didn’t have any doubt on who I was gonna pair you with based on your whole personality and last sentences! Anyway I match you with ...

TENYA IIDA

Hear me out! You stated you liked introverted people and Iida immediately cam to mind! Also you not likening bullying or rule breaking pointed me to him. With that said , we’re heading straight to the HEADCANONS!

ROMANTIC HEADCANONS/SCENARIO:

You had met through rather unfortunate circumstances-

He was at the hospital for his brother like a week after the Hosu City Incident and you had sprained your ankle while dancing

It took a while before he was able to warm up to you but he did eventually

You didn’t go to U.A he realized. You went to any other high school which was close to Hosu and had heard about the incident

You two had been hanging out for almost 3 months when he realized that he liked you more then he thought.

He went to his brother for help and confessed with flowers all while blushing .

Y’all had a park date where you just chilled while Iida did work.

It was a comfortable silence

you played 20 questions after to get to know each other better and learned you had a lot in common

After a few days of ‘ courting ‘ you, he had asked you to be his girlfriend

On your 1-month anniversary he got you a promise ring

(He later did replace with the real deal like 6 years later)

“ (Name)? Can you help with this?” Turning around you saw your boyfriend of 3 years struggling with his tie. “ Really? You used to be so good with this “ You teased going to help him regardless. “ It’s been a while! “ he defended. “ of course “ finishing up, you flatten your suit for creases. Your now fiancé had a School Reunion and you were invited as his partner. “ (NAME!) Are you ready to go? “ You heard yelled out. “ COMING! “

Songs That Remind Me Of Your Relationship!:

Riptide - Vance Joy

Candy - Robin Williams

Absolutely Smitten - dodie

Would You Be So Kind - dodie

Darling - Christian Leave

DYNAMIC!:

Smart Ass x Lovable Idiot, what can I say?

✨HEADCANONS ✨

Iida was the first married, a surprise to literally no one

You had tried to teach Iida to dance before but his movements were too choppy

Izuku, Shoto, and his brother were his best men

The flower girl was Eri

Kota was the ring bearer

And Kaminari thought it would be funny to become a minister just for this

Y’all all had a grand time

THATS A WRAP! If you have any more requests make sure to send them in, I do scenario requests as well

[kabrainy]

Thirteen (2003)

It’s happening so fast. 

“He was crippled, but only his body was cracked. It's not simple, nor is it an easy matter to explain. "Let's just leave it at that," she says and closes the holy book of lies. She covers her eyes, denying to herself what she thought happened.”

This film is what Euphoria aims to be. Thirteen is an incredibly raw and very strong portrayal of peer pressure and difficult family from a thirteen year old’s perspective with very mature themes and imagery. The quality is definitely a product of its time, the shaky handheld camera, the screaming dialogue and the early 2000s rock music throughout. However, all this this works very well to tell this incredible story that creates a surprisingly good film.

Every single main actresses performance was amazing, especially considering some more heavy and disturbing scenes and considering the two main actresses where around thirteen themselves. The characters are all well written and they all have flaws, but the way in which they interact with each other, and care about each other feels so organic and is portrayed in an organic way. 

Evie and Tracy are two manipulative, and selfish pricks from start to finish but it doesn't feel flat in any way; It makes sense because they're thirteen rebellious, naive, and clearly full of angst as a result of their respective familiar situations. The big betrayal at the end when Evie doesn't get her way, is very effective and incredibly telling of her character. The supporting characters also impact the story in a great way without needing too much screen time. Brady’s character comes across clearly through both Tracy’s dialogue of his past and that short glimpse of a flashback. Having Mason go from sexualizing Evie to absolutely hating her was solid development. 

Catherine Hardwicke’s directorial debut shows immense talent that honestly surprised us. The color grading works really well here, having everything look muted with blue and grey hues, and then having it switch to more color towards the end is great. The cinematography and camera movement was a bit jarring at the start, it’s very fast paced and packed with zooms and other movement, but once you get used to the style it’s interesting. There’s one shot where the camera tilts into a dutch angle as a character attacks and it’s great. 

The sexualizing of young teens made us very uncomfortable at times, especially the scene with the lifeguard . However, after finding out Nikki Reed, who was thirteen at the time, co-wrote and starred in it, it did put us more at ease. The raw nature of the film definitely works in its favour, showing the teen-angst and what some kids are subjected to. 

The one negative that we took away was the overall portrayal of black people in the film. We don't know if this a contoniuos issue with the director as in her later Twilight film there are barely any black people. Almost every grown man the girls get with are black, so most of the black characters are pedophiles or seen as gang members and overall there is no positive portrayal of a black person. 

The film does an excellent job at putting the audience in the mind of Tracy, someone who is just figuring things out and just wants to be cool and have friends but goes the wrong way about it. Just like this thirteen year old girl, you think all her current problems will be the end of the world. It’s an effective movie in everything it protrays.

K - 8/10          B - 7/10

[kpopfanfictrash]

Hi Shanna! I really liked how detailed and technical ur dance ranking of twice was--as someone who has no formal dance experience, it was enlightening. Would u mind doing one for bts? Only if u want to of course :)

Hello! I have a few of these in my inbox, so yes! I will do this one for bts (but then I must stop before this becomes my blog LOL). I’ll give the same caveats I gave for Twice, though. 1) Dance is always somewhat subjective because it’s an art form. I can talk about technique, but at a certain point my favorite dancer might not be someone else’s favorite dancer because of performance quality, and 2) ALL OF BTS ARE GREAT DANCERS! You don’t become a professional performance artist without already being head and shoulders above the rest. At the end of the day, all are fantastic. 

NOTE: Please don’t use my words on any other platform/to respond to the boys. I’m posting only to give some insight to their skills, not to try and critique BTS. They have dance coaches, trainers and choreographers for that. They absolutely do not need some random person on the internet telling them what they should be doing.

With that in mind, here are my personal thoughts/loose ranking of bts at dancers:

1. Jimin. Not that I’m biased. LOL but seriously, part of the reason I’m drawn to Jimin is because he’s such a fantastic performer. With dance, a lot of people think it’s just body type which can make or break a dancer. To some extent, this is true. If you aren’t born with amazing arches, turnout or flexibility, there’s only so much you can do to improve. That said, there’s a certain intrinsic performance quality which also can’t be taught. You either have it, or you don’t and Jimin has it. It’s mesmerizing to watch him on stage. He has such fantastic control when he dances; his execution of choreography is flawless, but he also puts his own spin on things without standing out too much (a bad thing, when you’re dancing as part of a group!) Jimin does have a background in contemporary/ballet,  which is different from Hobi. One of the places this is visible is in how grounded Jimin is with his transitions/how he finishes his movements. This is SUPER dorky of me lmao, but one of my favorite moves I’ve ever seen him do is this roll up from the ground at 2:05. The absolute CONTROL Jimin has; his heels don’t move an inch, which is so hard to do. Another impressive move to me was the jump Jimin did in the Dynamite dance break (1:09). Neil Haskell did this freaking move all the time on SYTYCD lmao, and it was a staple “trick” on the dance circuit for years, because it’s hard and requires a gymnast/martial arts background. LOTS of control and complicated timing. I could honestly go on for pages about Jimin’s performance quality, but I’ll stop and say one other thing. I occasionally see people praising Jimin as an amazing contemporary dancer (on par with professional contemporary dancers), and I do think it’s important to clarify Jimin diverged from that path nearly ten years ago to become an Idol dancer. Those are two very different styles of dance and although Jimin is FANTASTIC, it’s okay for him not to be the best at every single dance style! lol he’s the first one to say (because he has, while watching the black swan orchestral video) he couldn’t do some of the things professional contemporary dancers can do. (I will add though, yoongi is also right in that I have full faith Jimin COULD have done those things, had he chosen to pursue that path). ANYWAYS. I’ve rambled enough about how much I love Jimin. ONWARD!

2. Hoseok. Surprise, surprise! LOL okay, so let me start by saying out of all BTS, Hoseok is what I consider the smartest dancer. What I mean by that is, the man never burns out. He knows when to conserve his energy and when to go all out. Hoseok is the master of rise and fall in intensity, and there’s a reason he’s highly regarded by all dancers in the industry. Hoseok also seems to have a choreographer’s mind, whereas you don’t see this as much with Jimin. To clarify, being a dancer and being a choreographer are two separate things. It’s like being a soccer player versus being a coach. Being a choreographer requires a big-picture mentality not all dancers have. Hoseok has this though, and you can see this in the natural leadership role he takes whenever they’re rehearsing on their own. He sees mistakes, fixes transitions, etc. (it’s hot, but I digress). Hoseok has a background in various styles of hip-hop, which is really clear when he freestyles. He’s demonstrated popping, tutting, locking and more, which you really only learn through rigorous hip-hop training. His MMA 2019 solo is WILD because he showcases like, five different styles all within a minute. They’re all sub-genres of a genre (hip-hop), if that makes sense. He doesn’t have the same contemporary background as Jimin, which is somewhat apparent whenever BTS leans into more contemporary styles (spring day, black swan, etc). Hobi is good, don’t get me wrong, but his spot isn’t as natural, he’s not as flexible and sometimes you see him overthinking movements. But anyways, Hoseok fancams are the BEST. Go watch one today.

3. Jungkook. Jungkook has improved SO. MUCH. Y’ALL. I can’t stress this enough! A lot of BTS fans probably remember Big Hit sent Jungkook to LA for a few months prior to debut to get him to loosen up in his dancing/improve his performance quality, and boy did he ever. Overall, I think Jungkook’s biggest strengths are his 1) endless stamina (wtf lol) and 2) lately, performance quality. When I’m talking about stamina, I mean Jungkook always goes full-fucking-out in performances and it catches the audience’s eye. One example which comes to mind was during MMA 2019 Dionysus. If you start at like, 2:10, BTS does this really exhausting floor part and then you see everyone around him conserving their energy as they move into the next chorus. It’s supposed to be a breather in the choreo lmao but Jungkook is FULL OUT. It’s his intensity and strength which really makes him stand out as a dancer. If I had written this a year ago, I would’ve said Jungkook’s biggest weakness is contemporary dance. The flip side of the coin to being strong is it can be difficult to slow things down and display the same intensity with slower music. Then, he went and did Black Swan. Like... just watch this spring day performance and contrast it with this black swan one for jungkook. He has gotten SO MUCH BETTER at staying grounded, moving through his transitions, instead of rushing past them to get to the next step. I’m just really proud of him. I still think hobi + jimin have a leg up on him, but Jungkook is a close third.

4. Taehyung. When you get to Taehyung + Yoongi, things start to get blurry. But since this is a list of my personal preferences, I’m going to put Taehyung first because for me, performance is everything. In my opinion, Taehyung’s performance quality is second only to Jimin. More immature dancers will often refer to performance as “making faces.” I.e., purse your lips on count five, smile on count 8 and frown on count 1. A mature dancer though, knows dancing is really an extension of acting. You need to embody the emotions of the song and convey them to your audience, and not just through your facial expressions! I think Tae does a really great job of this, and I’ll often watch his fancams, even though his dance technique isn’t as strong as say, Jimin or Hobi. That’s Taehyung’s main weakness, in my opinion. If he’d started dancing at an earlier age, or taken ballet/contemporary.... lord, idk LOL. help us all.  

5. Yoongi. THIS MAN! Used to be a b-boy and the background is crystal clear if you’ve ever watched a Yoongi fancam (and if you haven’t, what are you doing with your life?) There’s an effortless quality to his movement and, when he wants to, his strength + performance quality rival Jungkook or Taehyung. That said, I think the main reason I’m not ranking Yoongi above them is consistency. Yoongi, simply put, isn’t a dancer. He’s a rapper/producer who likes to dance and enjoys dancing as part of BTS. I’m not saying he doesn’t like it, but it’s not his main passion, unlike some of the others. His intensity can vary depending on his visibility, which again, isn’t a bad thing. When Yoongi does turn it on, he turns it ON. He’s also very comfortable onstage, which is important. Yoongi doesn’t hesitate in his improv (esp. in his solos or rap line performances), which gives his stage quality a more natural ease.  

6/7. Namjoon + Seokjin. I honestly don’t know who I would put as seventh; it’s hard to pick. And again, I don’t consider either of them to be bad dancers. It’s just when you have a group of people and some have prior dance experience/a strong passion for dance, and some don’t... it is what it is! I will say I think both Seokjin and Namjoon have grown tremendously over the past years. They’ve become so much more comfortable onstage, and it really shows in their performance quality. Sometimes, being confident you won’t look stupid is half the battle LOL. The other thing I’ll say is their execution of choreography is always down pat. You’ll rarely see either one messing up the steps, which means they practice a LOT. Sure, there are areas where their technique could be improved. Quality of transitions, staying grounded through difficult moves, always using their spot on turns... but I think it’s amazing that, despite their lack of formal dance training, they both keep up with some of the above dancers. Like... fuck it up, guys. 

and that’s all! thank you for reading if you made it this far LOL WOO, BTS!

[dinosaurtsukki]

haikyuu!! music idol au (seijoh and shiratorizawa vers.)

hello hello! now for the groups with seijoh and shiratorizawa! if you like this why not check out music idol au karasuno vers.

CROWN ENTERTAINMENT

okay so basically this is now the entertainment company for the groups FALCON and KING

HAHAHS THE NAMES I REALLY CAN'T GUYS I'M SORRY THE NEXT POST ABOUT NEKOMA AND FUKURODANI ARE GONNA BE MUCH WORSE

okay but yes

they're one of the biggest names in the country and their groups have been around for quite some time

washijo is CEO

they're known to be very hard to get into because all of their idols are trained to be polished at whatever they do

but all of their releases are top quality

so lets get into the groups !!

KING - seijoh

okay so KING has 8 members and most of their comeback concepts are pretty bubblegum pop and boy-next-door

our leader for this group is oikawa of course

he's also wanted to be an idol for so long and trained really hard for it

• he managed to pass the auditions but his trainee years were hard on him because of all the expectations and work

luckily he befriended iwa who was also a struggling trainee

they spent years helping each other out and leaning on each other for support until their debut came

oikawa's the all-around vocalist, visual, and dancer so he's almost always in the center

the kind who nails all the notes while busting out the hardest dance moves

he's also multilingual because he wants to talk to a variety of his fans

everything he does seems so natural but in reality he practices so hard that iwa has to drag him to bed

iwa's our main rapper and main dancer of the group

his audition tape of him dancing was a bit embarassing because he was wearing a godzilla sweater and his hair was gelled up

everyone likes to bring it out from time to time

his fans also like sending him anything godzilla

his rapping is pOWERFUL and he can also beatbox really well

he also leads the dance breaks in performances

everyone thought he was scary until oikawa accidentally called him iwa-chan in a radio show and now everyone calls him iwa-chan

while oikawa is the leader, iwa is the one who manages everyone and makes sure no one gets lost when they go to awards shows

matsukawa and hanamaki were trainees that came in later and they became friends because they were roommates

hanamaki saw matsukawa taping printed out pictures of memes on the wall beside his bed and immediately knew they would be friends for life

and they were

they're notorious for sneaking food into their dorms and also picking on oikawa

they're kind of like an inseparable duo especially since hanamaki is on vocals and matsukawa is on rap

they have a lot of onstage moments and fans love how playful they are

they kind of improvise a bit sometimes when it comes to dance moves which makes washijo want to pull his hair out but fans like it so :/

they're the oldest members but they still call iwa and oikawa 'mom and dad'

they like doing weird shit to hanamaki's hair and taking videos of it 

the ‘what’s a contract? never heard of it’ duo basically 

yahaba's like the resident beautiful guy apart from oikawa

his voice is really melodious and he's often the one harmonizing with the high part

also sUCH a fLIRT

camera: *is directed at him*

yahaba: *blows a kiss*

matsuhana try to get him into their pranks on oikawa but he's too much of a goody two shoes

likes to film his skincare routine for the fans

secretly oikawa’s favorite junior

kyoutani auditioned for CROWN because he thought they were forming a hip-hop group or something edgy but no he was put into KING and he has to be around softies

he was desperate to get kicked out at first until iwa convinced him that he could still keep his look

they gave up on making him smile or look bright on cameras and said that if he's going to glare at least make it sexy

only listens to iwa and always stands next to iwa during award shows 

kindaichi and kunimi are their most treasured juniors and they'll do anything to protect them

both of them are vocalists and even though they don't often sing the melodies or hit the high notes, they're great harmonizing

actually knew of kageyama back in their auditioning days and were lowkey jealous of him

kindaichi is the sweetest junior he's always the one giving the members water and making sure they're alright

kunimi just silently observes the entire time and barely says anything but he'll often approach iwa for pointers when it comes to dancing

they were super young when they debuted and attended high school together in between practice

their seniors surprised them by coming to their graduation and even performing at the ceremony

both of them aren't as good as their fellow members yet but kindaichi works hard to be able to earn a few more lines in their songs

kunimi doesn't show much effort but he secretly likes to learn songwriting and music production because his dream is for KING to perform one of his songs

FALCON - shiratorizawa

another group that debuted about a year or two before KING

it is a POWERHOUSE of talent

also pretty much the OG group for most fans that inspired other upcoming groups

a lot of their concepts are centered around a mature gentleman image

idk what im saying but i'd compare them to super junior pretty much

they also do a lot of edgy concepts

ushijima's the leader of the group plus main rapper

he was actually inspired to become a rapper after watching another idol's performance

tbh he never expected to debut with a group but he had grown attached to some of his fellow trainees

he's also really talented at writing and producing songs

super stoic, even in front of the camera, but fans love his attempts at humor

tendou's like their main dancer and rapper

when he was younger people said his dancing looked weird because tendou could do those really cool, almost jerky movements

when washijo saw his audition tape he was like 'hmm we could use that'

thats because FALCON is super big on choreography, especially the ones that look like all the members are creating this huge other thing just by using movement

tendou pretty much leads the dance breaks all the time and he looks super serious and intense

he likes saying the most random, funny things during interviews

sometimes you'll catch him dancing by himself when they’re just waiting for results in award shows

so many conspiracy videos as to whether or not tendou has joints

now we have our shirabu kenjiro

this boy is like a prodigy he was destined to be recruited by CROWN and to end up in FALCON

the more i spell out these names the more i see how absurd they all look i'm sorry

tendou likes to call him his 'beloved junior'

he's as serious as ushiwaka is but with sASS

is known for sassing out interviewers and show hosts when he can tell that they're making up bullshit and now everyone's scared of him

he's main vocals and visuals

his voice is like a really nice baritone and he's very powerful with his singing that people don't question whether or not he lipsyncs

actually gets the most lines in their group

he likes to challenge the limits of his contract and even cut his own bangs and that's why they're Like That

he ended up getting chewed out by washijo for it

ya boi semisemi is out here being a dAncE gOD

he can learn choreography really quickly and in variety shows the hosts always challenge him to learn another group's choreo by looking at it once

so far he has not lost

everyone in his team cheers him on

also basically the group's main choreographer. he'll lowkey get mad at someone who forgot the choreo but teach them anyway

interacting with fans makes him so happy and soft he treasures every letter he receives and likes giving out gifts during fanmeets

he keeps his room really neat and likes to display the presents he receives from fans

also main vocalist in the group but just gets a line or two

his real skill though are opening dance performances during music award shows

he, tendou, and goshiki slay every opening performance and its amazing

reon is the last main rapper of the group and basically The Mom of the group

he's the one calming everyone down and checking up with people before they perform

his rapping sounds really smooth and very close to how he speaks normally so he shines most in the b-side tracks of their album

he had a lot of struggles passing auditions because most companies would discriminate because of appearance but washijo saw a lot of potential in him

he likes to speak out about the discrimination in terms of appearance in the music industry

everyone in FALCON supports him

lastly we have goshiki the precious little maknae of the group

everyone dotes on him because he was a skinny child when he debuted with the group

goshiki's like the legendary maknae who could do pretty much anything

he's main vocalist, dancer, and visuals

when he started out he was always super active and full of initative as a trainee

he trained super hard just to debut with FALCON because he looks up to ushijima

like shirabu, he gets a ton of lines and sings a lot during the chorus

when he graduated everyone from FALCON attended and he treated them all too lunch

after every comeback tendou's jus like 'our little baby goshiki is growing up'

i basically wrote him as jungkook from bts didn't i?

additional hc’s for funsies

oikawa was actually supposed to debut much earlier with FALCON but he had grown attached to his fellow trainees (iwa and matsuhana) and wanted to be in a group with them

FALCON and KING have a small rivalry ongoing to see who can get the most views in one day during every comeback video that the members do all these crazy things to get their fans to stream their comebacks

one of them was matsuhana promising to release a rare picture of kyoutani smiling 

FALCON has Boardgame Fridays where they just play boardgames all night and it’s super fun and precious because goshiki gets super competitive

also all of his seniors tried to get him drunk after his graduation and goshiki did in fact get drunk and ended up spilling some secrets about how shirabu cuts his bangs on instagram live

FALCON and KING love having dance-off sessions with each other and the music they always choose is ‘Crazy in Love’ from the White Chicks movie

the reon and semi have a mukbang series on instagram live and sometimes yahaba and kindaichi join in

ushijima allegedly wrote and produced a song about the joy of farming but washijo rejected it from appearing on the album because it was weird but thanks to tendou spilling about it, fans demanded to hear the song and ushijima performed it in one of their concerts

kunimi also wrote a song about that was supposedly about a loving a bad boy despite being a nice girl and when people asked what his inspiration was he just said ‘kyouhaba’ 

haikyuu!! music idol au series: karasuno vers., seijoh and shiratorizawa vers., nekoma and fukurodani vers.

[ladyzayinwonderland]

Hiya Zay! So I noticed you posted about a Hadestown crossover and I wanted to ask you what you love about the musical! Favorite song? Favorite quality? What about the story/songs/costumes/characters/choreography/atmosphere/etc evokes Feelings? What is/are the primary mood(s) it inspires in you? Favorite headcanon or tender moment? Favorite line/lyric? (FYI I know you're not on here regularly and I RESPECT that, so if you want to answer, feel utterly free to take your time)... ❤️ Poly

Okay this has been a long time coming (I just didn’t realize how long it would take) but I finally have an answer! Thank you for your patience, dear Poly, and thank you for the super ask! I’m always willing to gush about Hadestown and it was so fun to have the opportunity ^_^

It is, however, a very long answer... it kinda got away from me in the process, hehe.

Favorite song: I feel like it might be cliché to say Wait for Me, but… all the versions of the song are gorgeous in different ways. If I had to be more original, then I would have to say We Raise Our Cups. I tear up every time I listen to it.

Favorite Quality: In the words of Hermes, “it’s a love song.” Orpheus loves Eurydice enough to go to hell to get her. Eurydice loves Orpheus enough to follow him out, though the way is hard. Hades loves Persephone, though he doesn’t know how to show it and is afraid to lose her. Persephone loves Hades enough to keep coming back to him to “try again”. I know that some of those loves are flawed, but they’re human. The beacon of that love and what it represents is important.

Story: I adore the inevitability of Hadestown. We know from the very beginning how this is going to end and yet we still hope that maybe it might just be different this time. We can’t help but hope. I think it speaks to the quality of the musical that it can still pull you in every time. Very cathartic.

Songs: My favorite thing about the songs is having been able to witness their growth and maturity from album to album! Themes, lyrics, and melodies have so many subtle changes that only seem to ring more true with time. It’s also so cool to see how it needed 10+ years to ruminate into the musical we have now. (But this might also be subjective to me because I found out about Hadestown when there was only a concept album, then kept up with each new development until my husband and I were able to see it on Broadway just after its premier.) And I’m very excited to see how the national tour turns out!!

Costumes: I love the tattered/steampunk/industrial look of the OBC show. But I also love what I’ve seen of the off-broadway show, the whimsical costumes of Nabiyah’s Eurydice and early Persephone’s dresses and boldness of Damon’s red jacket (bring! it! back!). The costumes definitely change the vibes of the show though, which is just fascinating to me. Mostly in Eurydice’s character, so…….

Characters: Eurydice. Has. Character. She is three-dimensional, rounded out, and can stand on her own. (this was always something I wished had been different with the myth) It’s interesting to note how her character is portrayed slightly differently depending on the show though? I can’t speak so much to Nabiyah’s portrayal because I didn’t see it, but the music makes me think that she’s harsher and angrier than Eva’s softer and more hopeful version. Orpheus too experiences subtle shifts between Damon and Reeve, specifically bolder to more naïve, which… I don’t hate, but I miss Damon’s Oprheus. I also love that all the main players experience change/growth! They all have agency!

Choreography: I love the transition between carefree in the world above to stark and sharp down below. Tbh Livin�� It Up On Top is not my ~fav~ choreography-wise, however, I recognize it’s a chance for the cast to let loose and have a good time, and it’s important to show just how different things are between the two settings. But the moment we are down below? Stellar. Sharp, synchronized movements that immediately remind you of the cogs of a machine. And I do love how the movements become more human by the time we get to If It’s True and Wait for Me II.

Bonus—the lamp choreo in Wait for Me. I sobbed when I saw them swinging and being used to light an otherwise dark space, leading Orpheus deeper underground.

Atmosphere: slight steampunk vibes my beloved. The off-broadway and Canadian productions’ Tree is something I wish had stayed for the OBC production. In addition to being gorgeous, it adds an element of nature to juxtapose to Hades’ cold, harshly lit, industrial underground. The OBC loses that little bit of earth by taking place in a train station bar. That said, I do enjoy the bar setting in parallel to Persephone’s dismal speakeasy down below. The presence of the band on stage, motley but involved in the story beyond just the music.

Inspired moods: I like angst, for better or for worse. I’ve always been drawn to Orpheus and Eurydice because of how tragic it is. I think it’s very Romantic™. Therefore, any incarnation or representation of the story is automatically my jam. I like that, regardless of how many times I have listened to the album, I still hold on to the hope that it might turn out differently. Just once. That hope is something so precious, something that still deserves to be passed on even if it’s been dashed to pieces. It’s never in vain, you can always try again.

(And, this probably isn’t as relevant, but I think there’s something to be said from a Christian perspective on the show as well. Orpheus is just a man and prone to doubt, as the show illustrates. He fails. We all fail. But there is hope found in One who literally can’t fail in bringing the lost back to Him, and that is an encouraging thought.)

Headcanon: I hold to this one interpretation of the tale that Orpheus looking back was a sign of love (though I don’t discount it being an act of doubt or weakness). I like to think that he was just wanted to see her again, wanted to make sure she made it too, but he was just a fraction of a moment too soon. It almost makes her “death” more tragic.

Tender Moment: my favorite tender moments from the show are 1) when Orpheus runs to the stage through the audience to reach Eurydice again in the second act. Mostly because I didn’t expect it. I was focused on her when a white and red blur with a guitar ran down the aisle to peek his head above the edge of the stage with a joyful “come home with me?” My Heart. 2) when Orpheus finishes Epic III and Hermes says “and you know what they did? They danced.” There is a twenty second bit of acoustic guitar and violin while Hades and Persephone dance for the first time together in ages. It wasn’t a grand or sweeping moment—it was just an old man stumbling through a rusty dance with his wife, and it felt genuine.

Favorite Line/Lyric: starting off strong with the first words of the show. There’s no introduction to Hadestown, no warning it’s about to start. Just Hermes sauntering onstage, looking you straight in the eye, and saying “Alright?” Then the band starts playing and the show begins. Incredible. Unprecedented. But also I weep for all of the Epics. Such solid poetry. So soft.

So anyway, those are my thoughts! They may be a little repetitive, but hopefully I conveyed myself decently enough. Thank you again, lovely!! <3

[fluffypeachwriting]

Welcome to the first installment of my Hypmic Burlesque AU (definitely inspired by the 2010 film)! This is only an introductory chapter but it won’t be the last so I hope people stick around for more installments! It won’t be like a full fic with a coherent plot, just little snippets of the AU, so updates won’t be as regular or in chronological order.

Edit: I’ve uploaded it to Ao3 (in case anyone prefers reading there) with the title Show Me How You Burlesque! I’ll include links in future updates too!

The song sequence Ramuda performs, Guy What Takes His Time, is this one, and Tough Lover, mentioned near the end is here!

Rating: Mature/No Warnings Apply

Words: 1740

A guy what takes his time, I'll go for any time I'm a fast movin' gal who likes them slow Got no use for fancy drivin', want to see a guy arrivin' in low. I'd be satisfied, electrified to know a guy what takes his time

Backup dancers let Ramuda take the spotlight as it turned on, and he revelled in it, puffing out his chest with the swell of music. This was by far not his first performance of this particular song but the first chords of the song resonated in him like he had never heard them before. The pink feather fans parted to reveal him perched on the piano, like a clam opening to reveal the treasure inside. It was planned to be this way, with the pearl costume and its subdued colours bringing out the natural beauty that was contained within.

Natural, though nothing close to pure.

His nickname would suggest that. His fans called him the ‘lamb’ of the burlesque stage. It wasn’t just a small play on his name, as he was frequently seen adorned with his favourite fluffy white coat when he wasn’t dancing, usually holding onto the arm of a rich hotshot that took his fancy at a party that night. But he was anything but a weak animal, as he was just as deceptive as he was cute. His dainty little body was seen at every big party and club in town, buttering up everyone who caught his eye, never seen hanging around alone. He lived fast and hard.

He wasn’t past stepping on the spines of his rivals in stiletto heels to reach for the crown.

Ooh. Maybe I should make a king themed costume. Yeah, something super lavish and shiny.

A real wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Not only that; the manager had threatened to ‘cook and serve him with mint garnish’ when he got on her nerves, along with other more colourful insults. He knew she loved the club really, so pushing her buttons from time to time wouldn’t do too much harm.

In his heart Ramuda loved the club as well, and everyone else too. The other dancers and their strange banter was kind of endearing to him, the band was reliable as always, the bar and tech staff taking care of the behind the scenes stuff, and… he did love the manager too. In an odd way. There was nothing remotely intimate about their relationship (save for a very drunken night soon after Ramuda’s employment but bringing that up would have him incinerated on the spot) as they spat all kinds of insults at each other daily while knowing that if worst came to the worst, they would have each other’s backs.

I really do mean, the worst.

And they would be together to see it, like a weird package deal. They went back too far for him to get fired on the spot, if ever. Though that wasn’t to say that he never caused any trouble in the club. Always teetering on the line, laughing whatever predicament he caused off while applying his make-up while the other dancers dealt with the fallout. They had no idea why the manager put up with him for so long at first, until they saw him dance. She had scooped up his talent and put him to work early on as the club’s first full-time dancer. And he was showing no signs of stopping soon.

You could speculate that he was built for doing this, even from one glance at him. It was almost uncanny. His hips swerved through the air as smooth as whipped cream and his shoulders shook with laser precision, every movement constructed to entice the viewer and pry more money out them night after night after night.

Lustful intensity oozed from his body language while he mimed as if he was singing; he’d asked the manager if he could sing during the performance, pouting when he was met with a firm ‘not yet’. Ramuda was known behind the scenes for being notoriously bratty when he wanted to get his way, and with the amount of money he brought into the establishment it wouldn’t be a surprise if the costume was actually composed of real pearls.

As if anyone could ever refuse his demands in the first place.

His look was finished off with dramatic pin-up style make-up and pearl jewellery to match the costume. He was undoubtedly radiant. Every inch of flawless skin was shimmering with the powder puff he’d meticulously applied just a few minutes ago before rushing onto stage and claiming it as his.

This was his speciality, commanding every head in the room with a sultry but oh so deliciously unattainable aura. It was the fact that he was always out of reach that made him such a tempting treat for the eyes.

As he gracefully lounged upon the piano the audience was being scoured by his all-seeing gaze, and you wouldn’t be able to tell if he was just acting or if he was searching for someone. It was a total cinch for him, maintaining a watchful eye over everyone while executing a perfect performance. Either way, he was the predator and they were the prey, being devoured by the small man. When he flashed his teeth in-between lines, there was a glint of malice that sparkled with a twisted form of integrity.

He sold undeniable perfection without letting it slip out of his possession.

Right now his mouth was curved into a cheeky smile as he mimed singing. He couldn’t be more content with the crowd wrapped tight around his finger, like how one hand was wrapped around the neck of the champagne bottle and tap tap tapping in time to the song. You could say that they were in a strong chokehold, but he wouldn’t be that mean.

Usually.

He tipped his head back just as he tipped the bottle towards the glass, spilling the alcohol everywhere except the glass (intentionally) and setting it down with a satisfied smile. The words he mimed were asking for a slow lover, not a tidy one.

Ramuda himself had yet to find a lover that suited his needs and wants. For now he was happy with a life of self-indulgence and luxury, holding onto the arms off all kinds of people. The kinds that had lots of money to throw around.

That led his mind to wander and remember another man who wished to dance at the establishment, a man who didn’t look a day over 20, who’d seen Ramuda perform a few times and stopped him to ask for his advice. The young man was in for a rude awakening when Ramuda told him the harsh, bitchy truth of the job. That was a few weeks ago now, but he could remember him and the young man standing in the cold rain just outside the building like it was yesterday. The man didn’t look completely deterred after that, despite the rain soaking through to his skin.

Perhaps he would be coming back soon, Ramuda hoped. He would be a fun one to mess with.

He hopped off the piano giggling to himself, then ran one hand up his neck and through his hair, relishing in the small moment before the next section of the song.

His strikingly icy blue eyes blew wide open in fake shock as the upper half of his costume was tugged off by a string, flying off-stage. He snatched one of the giant feather fans from a backup dancer and held it close to his chest (as if he wouldn’t be happy to bare it all, but burlesque was all about the foreplay and nothing more, and Ramuda was a tease at heart) and continued to strut his stuff.

His hair, pin-curled just for today, bounced around his face as he tottered around the band members, the pearls on his lower half shimmying over his soft skin with each perky little step. The stage lights were close to being unbearably warm but he walked with a cool aura that would send a hot chill down your spine if you approached the stage. It was a wonder how anyone kept up with him.

The two other dancers accompanying him tonight were considerably bigger in stature and build than him yet they were completely outshone. This specific fact was something Ramuda thought was hilarious. A duet had recently been choreographed to Tough Lover for them after being in such high demand from the audience, some even mentioning it directly to the manager, but they had yet to agree to it. Ramuda knew they would crack soon enough, it was only matter of neither man wanting to say yes first at the risk of their bad-boy exteriors wearing off. The two men were so alike in dignity and enthusiasm yet they fought in a typical cat-and-dog fashion at every opportunity. This, Ramuda thought, could be the reason they clashed so often. Whenever Ramuda (as cute as he thought they were) silenced them because they got too annoying, they were practically at his knees without question or thought.

He didn’t know exactly why. Maybe it was because Ramuda had had others fired before for less.

This certainly wasn’t an admired quality. On the few occasions during the songs that he made eye contact with either of them Ramuda could sense their envy of being the man to rake in the most money and attention.

What Ramuda couldn’t sense, surprisingly, was the man sitting in the shadows near the back of the hall. A past dancer of the club who was let go a few months back.

He was sitting there out of envy.

Staring Ramuda down with a deep-seated contempt that he hadn’t felt quite to this degree before.

Hate watching, you might call it.

Ramuda settled into the finishing pose of the song, his costume pulled completely off now with some miscellaneous musical equipment covering the goods. A quick wink earned him a long whistle. Each hoot and holler from the crowd was fuel to the fire.

Hate watching?

No… he was studying.

The lamb disappeared from view as the lights dimmed and the other man left the building just as fast. He didn’t want to think of it as cowering, but he did nonetheless.

He was a real sheep in wolf’s clothing.

Things were about to get interesting around here.

[for-a-muse-of-fire]

be still my foolish heart

the wench and the witcher

“be still my foolish heart”

Fandom: The Witcher (2019)

Paring: Geralt of Rivia x Fem!POC Reader.

Summary: More moments, a gift, and a soft goodbye.

Warnings: Mature/18+ - brief mention of sex/heavy petting. Still a pair of foul-mouthed little darlings. Somehow also fluffier and sweeter than yesterday’s bit (sorry/not sorry @owillofthewisps​).

A/N: Y’all seemed to be down with the smash-up fic, so here, have another! Given that leaving the house is pretty much impossible right now, I’m going to see how much stuff I can churn out until this quarantine is lifted. You’re welcome. Title and lyrics below the cut snatched from “Almost (Sweet Music)” by Hozier.

@coconutxraikage - @kingniazx - @onyour-right - @ly–canthrope - @kianya-loves - @c-s-stars - @gczanetti1 - @pantrashtic - @alwaysnatz​ - @agniavateira​

I came in from the outside, burned out from a joy ride She likes to roll here in my ashes anyway

Beady, black eyes stare at you. Frozen in place, you hardly dare to breathe, bar rag clutched in a pale-knuckled grip. Slow, carefully, you stand from your crouch behind the bar and begin twisting the rag around itself into a makeshift weapon. 

“Don’t move,” you mutter to your foe. “Don’t you dare, you little  – “

 The brown spider sprints at you.

 You shriek.

 Over the piercing echo of your abject terror, you hear Geralt shout your name. A door upstairs slams. The Witcher finds you seated on the bar top with a look on your face like you’ve seen an alghoul. “What the fuck – “

 “Kill it,” you hiss and point in the general direction of the fiend. “Ger’, please kill it or I’m burning this fucking place to the ground.”

 Stunned silence, and then a long sigh. “Where’d it go?”

 “Behind that cask of red.” Your voice edges towards a childish whine as you thrust the bar rag towards him, “Geralt, please.”

 Geralt muscles himself over the bar with ease. Muttering to himself, the white-haired mutant moves the cask of wine out of his way to dispatch your mortal enemy with a sharp smack of his palm. You make your way back to the floor and try to get your pulse to slow. Geralt wipes smashed spider from his hand with your rag and you breathe a sigh until he tries to hand the bug-rag back to you; you recoil as if the eight-legged beastie were sitting on his hand.

 “Nope,” you insist. “In the bin. Or the fire – don’t care, not touching it.”

 Geralt snorts. “Sweetheart, what do you do when I’m not here?”

 “Make someone else kill them.”

 “I have seen you face down drunks twice your size.”

 “They don’t have eight legs and fangs, asshole.”

 “… The proper response is ‘thank you’, sweetheart.”

 “Thank you. Asshole.”

 Geralt arches a brow and sucks his teeth. You smirk back until he lunges at you – the sudden movement startles a yelp out of you. You’re pinned to the bar top before you can curse him. Deft fingers prod at your ribs and underarms while you howl with laughter and try to unsuccessfully wriggle free. There are tears streaming down your face by the time he manages to torment you into apologizing.

 _-_-_-_-_

 The note reads:

 ‘Get rid of that shit whetstone in the kitchen already.

Keep your damned knives honed, or you’ll cut off a finger.

I’ll be back in a few weeks. – G ‘

 Bossy prick.

 You’re a little surprised by Geralt’s penmanship – he writes well, letters small and even. You grin as you tuck the note into your apron and open the box you’d found on your desk. The whetstones inside are high quality, better than the one you have now. One is a large, solid block, nearly as long as your forearm; it means you can finally get rid of that overpriced river rock that sits on your counter.

 The other stone is smaller. You reckon it would sit comfortably in the palm of your hand and do well with the blade that is currently sheathed in your boot. Wrapped around the small stone is a soft cloth – it keeps a small bottle of honing oil tucked against the whetstone. Smiling fondly, you pull your dirk from its place and unwrap the smaller of the two whetstones. Geralt’s instruction is fresh in your mind and you go through each motion with a novice’s care.

 By some miracle, you don’t even nick a knuckle.

 _-_-_-_-_

 Geralt kisses like a tidal wave – insistent, unrelenting, and eager to pull you under. It would be a good death, you think, as the hot swipe of his tongue against yours pulls a shiver up your spine. You sigh into his mouth and feel him grin against yours.

 “I thought you were leaving,” you gasp.

 “Was,” he grunts. “Am. Soon.”

 You snicker. He smothers the sound with his lips, but you feel him huff out a laugh of his own. You nip at him, worry the softness of his bottom lip with your teeth, and are rewarded with a rumbling growl. The Witcher tightens his grip on your waist and begins to shuffle you away from the stable door. There’s a brief jostle when he sits on a nearby hay bale, then a tug that has you stumbling into his lap with a squeak and a laugh.

 He lets you ease back, panting for breath, only to dart in and press his face against your throat. Blunt teeth catch along your pulse; Geralt chuckles when you moan into his hair.

 “This is not leaving,” you groan. “What, you wanted to literally roll me in the hay before you skip town?”

 Geralt trails his smiling mouth up the line of your throat. His teeth nip at your earlobe. “Maybe,” he mumbles, then hmms when you rock your hips into him. “Yes. Definitely.”

 With a low growl, the Witcher sets himself on the soft bit of skin below your ear. Nibbling and biting, he brings blood to the surface in a deep red bruise until you swear and yank him in for another kiss. He sprawls onto his back in the hay and then rolls until you’re curled under him with your skirts around your hips. Your fingers tear open the buttons on his trousers.

 His slip between your legs. The teasing pressure pulls a rough gasp from behind your tongue.

 “Hurry,” you whisper on a breathless laugh. “Before someone wanders in.”

 He has to press his hand over your mouth to keep you quiet.

 After, he helps you stand on your shaky legs and plucks the hay out of your hair. It would be almost gentlemanly, if it weren’t for the smirk on his handsome face. You meet his sly gaze and feel your cheeks go hot. “Don’t look so smug,” you mutter.

 “Never.”

 You shove at his shoulder. The Witcher rumbles a warning and pulls you into his chest. He kisses you once more – hungry, and hot, and so damned sweet that it makes your toes curl in your boots. You’re both panting and desperate again in no time.

 “Gods be damned – no, stop it,” you groan – when you shove again Geralt lets you, chuckling when he stumbles back a step. “Come on, you need to move. Go on. Get out of here before I change my mind.”

 Golden eyes spark back at you, all cocky mischief as you blush and laugh. You follow Geralt to Roach’s stall, watch him make the final preparations to the mare’s saddle – attaching the bed roll and the pack of provisions you’ve wrapped for him. He digs through one of the saddle bags for a moment, then goes still.

 “I ah… I have something for you,” he mutters.

 You arch a brow at him when he turns to crowd your space again with something clutched in his hand. He clears his throat roughly, and his bright gaze drops to the toes of his boots as he holds up his gift. Your breathe steals out on a soft ‘oh’ - in his palm lays a necklace boasting a slim, curved fang. It’s been buffed to a matte ivory sheen and hangs on a simple leather chord. Polished cherrywood beads frame either side of the small bit of bone.

 “What kind of tooth is it?” you murmur.

 “It’s, uh. It’s a wolf’s.”

 Oh.

 You try to swallow, but there’s a thickness in the back of your throat that makes it difficult. Geralt lets you take the necklace from his hand, and you run your thumb over the smooth trinket. When you glance up, the Witcher now seems to be studying the hem of your skirt with a single-minded intensity, and the twitch of his jaw tells you he’s biting his tongue. 

“Geralt,” you whisper.

 He glances up. You smile as you meet his gaze and tie the leather chord around your neck. The fang sits just bellow the hollow of your throat, cool at first, but slowly warming to the temperature of your skin. Geralt stares at the necklace for a moment. He presses his lips together, but not before you see the corner of his soft mouth twitch upward. With a shameless grin of your own, you step into him and wind your arms around his waist, balancing on tip-toe to brush the tip of your nose over his. The Witcher lets out a low, satisfied murmur of an exhale – the pad of his thumb sweeps gently up the apple of your cheek.

 “Go on, darling,” you tell him softly. “I’ll be here when you get home.”

[doomonfilm]

Ranking : Martin Scorsese (1942-present)

Of all the places in the world that seem to be hubs for creative energy, New York stands high on my personal list of favorites, and when it comes to iconic New York filmmakers, there aren’t many that can hold a candle to the prolific career of Martin Scorsese.  His appreciation for films, art and music blasts off the screen with the same energy as his kinetic cinematography and vibrant editing.  Once he established himself as a mainstay in the industry, his list of collaborators evolved into a who’s who of acting legends, both old and new.  His career spans just over 50 years, and even his latest film (his 25th in his catalog) went head to head with other contenders for the top awards of the year.

To put it bluntly, there is Martin Scorsese, and then there is a long list of imitators and those influenced by his genius.  To rank his films is a true test of logic, patience and decision making, but after a few weeks of catching the 7 or so films I had yet to see, I think I can stand behind this list as my definitive ranking (from least to most favorite) of a director I hold in the highest regard. 

25. Gangs of New York (2002) An honest attempt at an epic flick, but at the heart of the matter, I simply don’t care about either side in the battle Scorsese presents us.  Set in New York City in the mid 19th Century during the Civil War, we are thrown into a generational battle where the two key figures have different goals... Bill the Butcher stands as antagonist in his fight to maintain power and control, while Amsterdam is our protagonist charged with a mission of revenge.  In the end, neither side ends up mattering, very much like my personal experience with this all flourish, no foundation exercise in style.

24. Bringing Out the Dead (1999) Nicolas Cage was gearing up for the run that most people know him for now during the release of Bringing Out the Dead : he was coming off of Golden Globe and Academy Award wins for Leaving Las Vegas, but was quickly leaning towards films of a more exploitation-based style.  This film marked a refinement of his wild-man persona, while simultaneously being one of the last high-level actor/director combinations he would be involved in before his mad dash to accept every film and avoid bankruptcy.  New York is captured in a mid-transition point between the darkness of the 1970s and 1980s versus the Disney aesthetic of the new millennium, and while heavy on the entertainment factor (as well as visually striking), there is ultimately not enough on this plate to push it higher up the list.

23. The Color of Money (1986) If you had to do a quick gander at the Scorsese list and pick the film that, on paper, screams Hollywood, it’d be hard to argue against The Color of Money taking that top spot.  A soft sequel to The Hustler, Scorsese picks up the Fast Eddie story in the 1980s (an era that oozes out of each and every frame of this film), and yet, despite this legendary move, the film is ultimately the Tom Cruise show.  Scorsese’s trademark dollying and trucking camera shots work beautifully in the context of this film, but in a story that shines bright, the star of Cruise ultimately outshines all that remains.

22. Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) After a few exploitation-based projects, it seemed that Martin Scorsese wanted to provide a slightly different change in perspective, albeit one that still dwells in the darker corners of life.  Rather than deal with the streets of New York or crime, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore is a study on broken homes, single parenthood and domestic violence that oscillates between the view of the titular Alice and her young son.  Harvey Keitel gives another strong performance as a Scorsese regular, while Ellen Burstyn shines in a transitional role towards more mature performances.  Seeing Scorsese camera movements coopted into a more down to Earth story was refreshing.

21. The Departed (2006) Many people would have assumed that The Departed would be higher on a list of Scorsese films based solely on the cast... pairing Leonardo DiCaprio opposite Matt Damon in a tension-filled triangle with Jack Nicholson is a bold combination in its own right, but surrounding this nucleus with Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, Kevin Corrigan, Anthony Anderson and supporting actors of that ilk creates a rich showcase of talent.  Stylistically, everything you need is there too, as Scorsese proved time and again that films of this nature were his wheelhouse.  That being said, the story itself, an adaptation of the 2002 Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs, takes a few liberties in its adaptation that ultimately are to the detriment of the narrative.  Kudos to Scorsese for putting this one together, and too bad for him that the choices of William Monahan knocked what could have been a mega-classic way down the list.

20. New York, New York (1977) New York, New York is one of the most unique offerings from the Scorsese canon for a number of reasons.  Of all his films, this one is probably the one that can be considered a “style exercise” more than the rest, as it oscillates between obvious sets and real locations before blurring the lines between the two.  Long gaps of time are given to fully executed musical numbers (a must when a talent like Liza Minnelli is involved), and traditional methods of songwriting and performance are given their due respect.  The exercise portion, however, comes in the newer acting styles that are infused into the old school structure... improvisation and aggressive physicality are used to put a deeper, disturbing red tint on an era often presented through a rose-colored lens.  While interesting at times, the nearly three hour run time of the film begins to wear on the limits of the style, which ultimate leaves the film feeling more like a personal indulgence than a statement on changing times.  For the iconic title track alone (and the buildup to its release), this film is worth seeing, but in terms of its placement in the realm of other Scorsese films, it may have to grow on me a while to find a higher placement on the list.

19. Boxcar Bertha (1972) Originally, this film was much lower on the list, largely due to its chronological placement between Who’s That Knocking at My Door and Mean Streets seeming odd to me.  Upon revisitation, however, it stands clear and present that this film served as an exercise in the process of directing and organizing a shoot.  With its period-specific placement, ensemble cast and action sequences, it was bound to be compared to (and ultimately overshadowed by) the formidable Bonnie and Clyde, but Boxcar Bertha has a few key moments in it (including a stellar final action sequence) that places it near the middle of the Scorsese canon, even with it being his second film.

18. Who's That Knocking at My Door? (1967) For all of the refinement that Scorsese found in his second film, his debut film, the stunning Who’s That Knocking at My Door?, stands as testament to the fact that Scorsese brought his many gifts to the table from day one.  What started as a student graduate film grew into a speculative project, only to find 25th hour funding that allowed it a festival run and a proper release.  The film took many years to complete and release, to the point that keen viewers will notice Harvey Keitel’s boyish, soft good looks morph into the sharper, edgier intense profile we came to recognize in Mean Streets and the films that followed.  The energetic cinematography, respect of film as a medium, stellar music choices, defiance of youth, toxic masculinity and realistic look at relationships are all here, making this debut a hidden gem in the Scorsese canon.

17. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) Seeing Scorsese retread old stylistic ground (as opposed to infusing his style into newer projects) is an interesting take, and for what my opinion is worth, The Wolf of Wall Street feels like Goodfellas for white collar criminals.  In theory (and, in some aspects of the film, in reality), the experiment does work, but ultimately, this film finds its placement in the middle realms simply because we are given infinite sizzle off of what amounts to a very thin steak.  Goodfellas works because it is carried by the weight of omerta, but The Wolf of Wall Street focuses on a culture where status comes from self-appointed importance, which ultimately makes for an attempted redemption story for despicable people.  

16. The Irishman (2019) Seeing actors the stature of Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci and Al Pacino combine forces for a film is always a major event, but until 2019, those combinations have been limited to duos.  When Netflix announced its intention to release The Irishman in 2019, people were not only intrigued on Scorsese’s take on the Jimmy Hoffa story, but seeing De Niro, Pesci and Pacino in the same film for the first time.  For what it was worth, the trio lived up to all expectations, with the only bittersweet criticism being wishes that the three could have found a way to work together prior to the twilight of their careers.  The historical drama is high quality, with Hoffa’s larger than life persona captured perfectly by Pacino, and bolstered by the dramatic chops brought to the table by De Niro and Pesci.  The film is a tad on the long side, and the de-aging process tips into the realm of the uncanny valley due to the older actors’ physicality, but for a 25th film 52 years into an illustrious career, The Irishman must be recognized for the triumph that it is.

15. The Aviator (2004) Much like The Wolf of Wall Street, I avoided The Aviator for years simply because I have no interest or fascination with Howard Hughes.  I was very much aware of his financial stature, his innovations as an aviator, his rocky love life and his personal demons that plagued him, but for my money’s worth, I was fine without seeing it presented on the big screen.  In an effort to cover all the bases for a director I hold in high esteem, however, I made the decision to finally check out The Aviator, and for every element of the film I previously had no interest in, an element was presented that won me over.  Cate Blanchett and Adam Dunn put on two of the strongest performances in the entire realm of Scorsese films, and the XF-11 crash sequence is possibly one of the grandest and well executed in any Scorsese film.  Leave it to Martin Scorsese to make a powerful film about an individual I care nothing about and nearly crack the top ten with that effort.

14. Hugo (2011)  Up to the point of watching Hugo, I knew nothing about it.  About halfway through Hugo, I had to stop and look up how the film was received, as it was simply stunning, and sure enough, it was a monster in terms of award nominations and wins.  I never would have pegged Scorsese as the type to direct a kid’s film, but in all honesty, that ‘kid’s film’ title is used as a façade for a love letter to film in general, and the groundbreaking work of Georges Méliès specifically.  The look of the film is otherworldly, the energy is light, kinetic and infectious, and even a mostly slapstick performance by Sacha Baron Cohen yields surprising emotional depth when given the opportunity to do so.  While just missing the top ten, Hugo easily stands as the number one surprise on this list in terms of pre-viewing expectations (of which there where none) versus post-viewing thoughts (of which there are many).  Knowing that Hugo exists lets me know that one day, if I have children, and they want to know why I love film so much, I will have a film on the level of Cinema Paradiso to share with them and (hopefully) help foster a love of film they can call their own.

13. Casino (1995) For a time, this film stood as the last work containing the vibrant combination of Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, a trio of high energy creatives known for putting their all into their projects.  Casino felt like a spiritual successor to Goodfellas, focusing on a lavish but secretive lifestyle with high stakes and even higher consequences.  An instantly iconic movie,  Casino felt like the end of an era in regards to gangster fare for Scorsese, opting instead for more challenging projects, adaptations of other books and films, or personal passion projects.  It would be nearly 25 years later before Scorsese would touch similar subject matter or work with these actors again, but had Casino been the last of Scorsese’s so-called “gangster” films, I believe the world would have been happy with that.

12. Kundun (1997) To make one religious-based film in a career is a bold move to some, but I am hard-pressed to think of any director that made films on two different religions who didn’t explicitly make religious films.  With that in mind, it is incredibly impressive that Martin Scorsese was able to make a film as moving and objective as Kundun after making such a bold take on religion as The Last Temptation of Christ.  The film centers around the discovery, growth and eventual escape to India in light of growing aggression from China.  In all honesty, I had my doubts as to whether or not the Scorsese style would work for this story, especially in light of the lack of cooperation from Tibet and China, but somehow, Scorsese’s amazing signature camerawork captures the unique spirit and essence surrounding the Dalai Lama.  I’d heard of this film for years, but never got around to it until it was time to make this list, but I will almost certainly try to find a copy to own in the near future. 

11. The King of Comedy (1982) What an odd left turn in regards of career trajectory for both Scorsese and De Niro.  With three collaborations already under their belt (not to mention The Godfather II already being a well-established classic), it would have been easy to imagine the duo putting another notch on the gangster film genre belt.  What we are given, however, is the yang to the yin of Taxi Driver : our protagonist is a statement on personal conviction and the trappings of instant stardom, our antagonist is a statement on star fascination and the high costs of celebrity, and our satellite characters directly reflect the toxicity certain fandoms can be capable of.  Scorsese sets aside his normal flourish and camera moves for a mixing of film and video mediums, as well as a completely new sense of freedom in regards to the highly improvised nature of the film.  Its influence on recent successful films like Joker is undeniable, but I’d argue that Joker lacks the heart, sincerity and realistic bite present in The King of Comedy.

10. After Hours (1985) Of all the “new to me” Scorsese flicks I finally viewed while preparing this list, After Hours stands as my favorite discovery of the bunch.  I was marginally familiar with the film, both from my younger days in video stores and from friend recommendations, but for some reason, when Scorsese time arrived, After Hours seemed to never be on the docket.  That oversight, however, will now be a thing of the past.  This film feels like a personal challenge to Woody Allen in regards to how one should make a New York-based romantic comedy, and I’d be hard pressed to share any shortcomings or failures present in this comedic masterpiece.  One of the few films that can be both a product of its era and a timeless classic, and one that should be much more recognized in the Scorsese canon.

9. Shutter Island (2010) Me hesitating or not getting around to Scorsese films seems to be a bit of a common theme here, but there was literally no excuse for me to take this long to get around to Shutter Island.  Despite knowing the premise of the story (and even having the ending somewhat spoiled for me), I still found the impact of the final moments just as powerful as I imagine I would have going into this film blind.  Some people will likely argue this statement, but in my opinion, this was the best Leonardo DiCaprio performance captured by Martin Scorsese.  The asylum setting is wonderfully bleak, and the psychological horrors it infers create a vibrant playground for some of the most stunning visual symbolism that Scorsese has ever committed to film.  Don’t be like me if you’ve not gotten around to Shutter Island yet, because it’s a thrill ride more than worth the price of admission, and a rewarding repeat viewer. 

8. Mean Streets (1973) Mean Streets may have been Martin Scorsese’s third film, but for many fans, it was the first true indicator of the brilliance that was to come.  A true New York film through and through, it not only presented fans with a stronger Harvey Keitel performance than Who’s That Knocking at My Door?, but it introduced the world to the palatable tandem of Scorsese and De Niro that would go on to lead to years and years of iconic performances.  The use of altering aspect ratios is something that I wish Scorsese would have continued to use more often, but in all honesty, Mean Streets has style to spare.  This the film that I love to recommend when people start ranting and raving about Goodfellas, and more often than not, it impresses those unfamiliar with it just as much.

7. The Age of Innocence (1993) Martin Scorsese’s love of film is widely known and well documented, but The Age of Innocence goes an additional step further by displaying Scorsese’s love of art.  The film also is one of the most touching displays of unrequited love that Scorsese has committed to film, a slight alteration from his normal infusion of love stories trying to sustain in the surrounding chaos of gangs, crime, religion and so on.  Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder all give standout performances in this masterfully directed film.  If Gangs of New York was meant to be the definitive old school New York film in the Scorsese canon, then The Age of Innocence is the unintended definitive New York film from Scorsese, with some European touches thrown in for good measure.

6. Cape Fear (1991) Of the many, many iconic performances that Robert De Niro has given Martin Scorsese, I’d be hard pressed not to put his characterization of Max Cady at the top by a clear margin.  Cape Fear was already a classic film adaptation of The Executioners when it was first released in 1957, but De Niro pulled two fast ones with his update : in terms of casting, especially with the aforementioned De Niro, Scorsese brought the harrowing story into a much darker, recent world, therefore increasing the tension by upping the ante for violent retribution, while at the same time, paying direct homage to the original by having Elmer Bernstein adapt the original Bernard Herrmann score.  Juliette Lewis also provided a breakout performance in this modern day classic, and possibly the film that provided the most tense debate in terms of placement, as we will get into with the next film.

5. Silence (2016) Despite being one of the most recent Martin Scorsese films, this one’s limited release meant that I missed it during its initial run, and the lack of streaming service placement essentially erased it from my memory.  I was certainly intrigued about watching it for this list, and it ended up being the last film viewed.  Going into it, it felt like a sort of religious take on Saving Private Ryan, but it didn’t take long for the film to start dealing out much heavier cards in terms of faith, belief systems and cross-cultural contamination.  The Last Temptation of Christ showed that Scorsese could find nuance and secular drama from a holy tale, and Kundun showed that he could make a religious icon a relatable human figure struggling to grasp his divine appointment.  Silence is the work of a wise, steady hand, however, like some sort of cinematic parable or testament to faith in the face of crippling doubt and danger.  Scorsese is certainly still moved by the idea of faith, and he uses Andrew Garfield to display this in some of the most powerful moments that he has ever created or captured for his films.  For those who have not seem the film, this placement may feel a bit high, but I would not be surprised if, given time and proper amounts of reflection, it makes its way higher.

4. Raging Bull (1980) The placement of Raging Bull and Cape Fear was the biggest hurdle I was forced to overcome in the creation of this list.  Robert De Niro is powerfully captivating in both films, though I would personally give his performance as Max Cady the nod over his embodiment of Jake LaMotta, but when it comes down to the brass tacks of it all, Raging Bull is ultimately the better of the two films.  The raw, black and white look of LaMotta’s life already provides a gritty, unflattering portrait of a savage and uncouth man looking for beauty in the world, but that beauty he searches for appears in the boxing sequences with no apologies.  The airy look, mainly caught by dynamic slow motion photography, works in tandem with the abrasive first-person views of the combatants, not to mention the direct nature of the combat itself as the viewer is often placed directly in the line of fire.  The involvement of the real LaMotta within the film provides a nice button to the superb acting put on display by De Niro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty and the numerous actors used to portray the opponents of LaMotta.  

3. The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) Call it a trope if you like, but it feels like every great (or aspiring) director has a film in them that is driven by religion in some capacity.  The Last Temptation of Christ is unique in this sense because it takes the story of the accusations, betrayal, trial and eventual crucifixion of Jesus and turns it into a deeply faith-based suspense thriller.  Many of the familiar beats we know from the Bible are re-contextualized as visions, mystic tests of faith, carnal desires driven by lust, and nihilistic views infringing upon deep indoctrination.  Willem Dafoe plays a Jesus that is bitter in his acceptance of his fate, Harvey Keitel plays a wonderfully opportunistic Judas, and Barbara Hershey plays a very modernized version of a woman forced to use her body for survival that is suddenly trapped between necessity and passion.  The film hinges on the verge of becoming a soap opera without falling into the trappings that come with such high drama, and the walkup to the film’s amazing final sequence puts you in the emotional passenger's seat while Jesus takes the wheel and steers directly into his fate.  A dramatically powerful yet brutally sincere take on an iconic, revered and sensitive subject matter.

2. Goodfellas (1990) Is there any original praise left to bestow upon this movie?  To focus on the imperfections of this film is an act of futility, as they are mostly non-existent.  Some of Martin Scorsese’s best examples of his iconic camera movement, editing techniques, still frames, writing gleaned from personal experience, soundtrack use, loose historical connections and dark humor are found within the confines of Goodfellas.  If you’ve seen in actor in any television show or film that had any connection to the mob prior to Goodfellas or since, it is more than likely that that actor was in Goodfellas, even if only briefly.  Using Henry Hill as both an outsider and insider perspective is a brilliant narrative stroke, as he can get close to the top, but can never have it all, making him essentially a fly on the wall bursting with charisma and personality.  They highs are as epic as the lows are tragic, and for most people, it is the first film that comes to mind when the name Martin Scorsese is mentioned.  This could have very easily been the number one film on my list, but anyone who has been visiting this blog with a keen eye for detail probably figured out my favorite Scorsese film the first time they visited the DOOMonFILM blog.  

1. Taxi Driver (1976) Since the day that I started this film blog, there has been one image at the top of the page : Travis Bickle in the porn theater (with his face replaced by my logo) from the iconic Taxi Driver.  There’s not a single element that I can put my finger on for this film, but there are certainly a number of elements that do speak to me : the isolation that Travis faces, the journal-like narration that drives the story forward, the hypnotic nature of both Bernard Herrmann score and the repetitive taxi cab shots and the vivid camera movements are all burnt firmly into my brain.  Everyone that makes up the main cast for this film kills in their performance, and the ending of the film is not only a brutal one, but an ironic one in regards to where Travis lands in the eyes of those who make up the world of the film.  Martin Scorsese has made more amazing films than some directors have made, period (amazing or otherwise), but for my money’s worth, none of them are as powerful or well put together as Taxi Driver. 

[lets-talk-appella]

If you have time can you do the “You’re not mature enough to be a parent.” - “Try me.” prompt.

This is like… more than a year later. But! I feel that we all need some fluff right now, so here you go, with a small modification.

Bounding

Summary: Domestic Bechloe fluff

Word Count: 2.5k

Rating: G for gross amounts of fluff

Ao3 and FFN (posted as a chapter in a series of prompts)

Chloe stares atthe pile of soggy, smelly laundry in the washer in disbelief. She blinks once.Yep. It’s definitely been sitting there. For several hours, judging by thecrumpled state of their clothes.

That’s when theannoyance sets in.

“Beca!” she shouts.

“What?” Becacalls from deeper in the house.

“Did you forgetto move the laundry again?!”

The ringingsilence she gets in return is all the answer she needs

After having beenmarried and living together for two years, it’s safe to say the honeymoon phaseis wearing off.

With a growl,Chloe reaches into the washer and tries to extract the clothes, which cling toeach other and the inside of the machine with stubborn tenacity. A whiff oftheir damp odor wafts into her nose and she cringes; changing her battletactics, she shoves the clothes back into the washer and slams the door closedso hard it makes the machine rattle. Muttering angrily, she wrenches open thelaundry cabinet and, in her haste to find the detergent, knocks over severalbottles of various stain removers and carpet cleaners, some of which crash tothe floor.

She groans outloud and stoops, collecting each item and shoving it back in the cabinet,knowing the lack of organization will annoy her later but not bothering to carenow. She untwists the cap of the detergent and, not paying close enoughattention to her task, pours far too much into the measuring cap and spends thenext few seconds pouring it back into the bottle. Of course, some trickles downthe side of the bottle and leaves a sticky blue mess.

Clicking hertongue in annoyance, Chloe tugs open the machine’s soap drawer, pours thedetergent into the slot, then slams the drawer closed. Her movements sharp andquick, she screws the cap back onto the detergent untidily, causing even moreof the soap to run down the sides of the bottle and onto her hand. With a huff,she wipes the bottle and her hand clean with some tissue and slams thedetergent onto its proper shelf so it knows what it’s done. Kicking the laundrycabinet door closed, she pounds her hand on the washer’s “start” button, whosecheery wash cycle jingle only worsens her temper.

Chloe blows astrand of hair from her eyes.

Is it really thathard to remember to switch clothes over to the dryer in a reasonable amount oftime? Or, is it so hard to do the dishes? Or, heaven forbid, put them away? Achore that Beca had neglected all week. Beca’s been neglecting lots ofhousehold tasks, now that Chloe thinks of it. Vacuuming, bathroom cleaning,studio organizing, meal prep. In fact, Chloe can’t recall a single thing Becaactually has helped with recently.

Chloe clenchesher jaw. They’re supposed to be a team.They’re supposed to work together to maintain house and home. They’re supposedto slow dance while cooking. They’re supposed to throw socks at each other whenfolding laundry. They’re supposed to trade kisses while passing one another inthe hall, one armed with a broom and the other pushing a vacuum.

But no. It’s beenChloe pulling both of their weights around the house, doing all the chores,while Beca sits behind her laptop mixing and doing who-knows-what, a veritableBeca Show while Chloe slaves away.

And she’s hadenough.

Gritting herteeth, Chloe barks out, “Beca! Where are you?”

A briefhesitation, then a small sounding, “Studio,” comes from Beca’s generaldirection.

Chloe snortsderisively. Of course. She stomps toward the study, moving quickly throughtheir kitchen and dining room and into the hall. The door to the studio roomBeca has claimed as her workspace is open a crack already, but Chloe stillflings it open. She holds onto the handle so it doesn’t ricochet off the wall(the last thing she needs right now is a drywall hole to patch) but it stillhas the desired effect; Beca stares at her from her desk, eyes wide andstartled.

“Chl—”

“Beca, what thehell?”

“I—”

“I had to restartthe washer because the clothes you leftin there started to mold.”

Which isn’tstrictly true. They just smelled kind of bad. But still, Beca’s grimacedelivers no small amount of satisfaction.

“I know, Iforgot, and—”

“You’reforgetting a lot!” Chloe cries, throwing her hands into the air. “Dishes,floors, bathrooms, cooking—”

“Chloe—”

“We need to eat, Beca! Do you want us both toabsolutely starve because you forgot to meal prep? I mean Jesus,Beca, I could pass out at work fromhunger if I don’t have lunch!”

Beca’s lipstwitch. Chloe feels some of her anger deflate, but rallies quickly.

“And what aboutthe—the floors? If we don’t vacuum—allergens! Molds! Dust! Everywhere!” Chloelists, regaining momentum. “Dirty carpets lead to heart disease, Beca, I readthat in the—”

“I’m sorry!” Becamanages, hands raised in a peace offering. “Really. I’m sorry. Work has beencrazy lately, and—”

“I work, too!”Chloe declares imperiously, though she knows her regular 9-to-5 hours as amusic teacher are less demanding than Beca’s often-erratic schedule meetingwith rising singers seeking production. “And yet I do everything!” She moves,storming farther into the room to join Beca behind the desk to peer at herlaptop. “What could you possibly beworking on that’s more important than—”

Chloe cutsherself off with a choking noise, unable to believe her eyes. She stares at thelaptop screen for a long moment, then looks back at Beca, who grins sheepishlywhile seeming to shrink into her office chair.

“So, um, I’vebeen thinking—”

“DOGS?” Chloeshouts, pointing an accusing finger at the laptop. “I’ve been breaking my BACKaround OUR house doing YOUR chores because you’re too busy looking at picturesof DOGS?”

“Um.” Beca says.“It’s the Humane site? I’ve just been thinking, you know, it might be nice tohave a dog?”

Chloe sputterswordlessly, despite the tiny part of her that agrees with Beca whole-heartedly.It would be really nice to have a dog. But she’s on a warpath, damn it, and shecan’t stop now. So, she draws herself up to her full height.

Beca’s eyes widenstill further. “They’re so fluffy, Chlo, look.”

“You’re notmature enough to be a dog parent!!” Chloe spits.

Beca’s eyebrowsdraw together and she lifts her chin, defiant. “Oh yeah? Try me!”

The words comeout loud and challenging, and for a second, they glare at each other. A smallmuscle twitches in Beca’s cheek, and Chloe has a fleeting thought towardkissing it.

Just like that,most of her anger drains away. She’s never managed to stay angry at Beca forlong.

“Fine,” she huffs,pinching the bridge of her nose. “Fine. I’ll ‘try you,’” she says, and noteswith satisfaction the sudden uncertainty in Beca’s eyes. “Time to go mattressshopping.”

Beca’s expressionturns to one of mingled horror and devastation. They’ve been talking aboutpurchasing a new mattress since their wedding, having used Chloe’s same oncesince college—which had been purchased secondhand from her cousin before herfreshman year. Which was several years ago. It’s safe to say the mattress hadbeen solidly worn out for a long time, with actual dips in the spots theyusually sleep. It’s just that mattress shopping—spending at least a few hoursin some stuffy mattress store, trying out the hundreds of options and findingsomething they both agree on—is such a chore that they’ve put it off.

Chloe standstriumphant, positive that Beca will drop the dog thing and agree to help morearound the house; basically, anything to delay the mattress shoppingexperience.

However.

To Chloe’ssurprise, Beca’s consternation changes quickly to resolve. She stands from herchair to meet Chloe’s eyes and closes her laptop.

“Fine!” Becasays, wearing that smug, closed lipped smile. “Let me get my keys.”

************

It takes themalmost twenty minutes to actually get in the car, because Beca is too stubbornto admit she lost her keys and wastes fifteen minutes stalling. Chloe finallydigs out her own keys and drives them to the nearest mattress store in silence.

When they arriveat the mattress store, Chloe is relieved to see the parking lot is fairly quietwith few customers. Beca isn’t a huge fan of crowds, and the guilt over makingher mattress shop on a weekend is already starting to set in a little. If therehad been a ton of people there, Chloe would have felt worse about it.

Maybe Beca sensesher guilt; her hand smoothes over Chloe’s lower back as they enter the store.The small gesture tells Chloe she has nothing to feel bad for, and that Beca’sright there with her.

“Good afternoon!”an older, smiling sales associate greets them almost immediately. Chloe’s eyesflick to a nametag: Jerry. His easy-going demeanor and welcoming expressionbring a smile to Chloe’s face.

“Hi!” she greets.“We’re looking for a king-sized, please. Can you help us with that?” As shealways does with new people, she looks for any telltale flicker behind his eyesat the realization that she and Beca are a couple. Thankfully, nothing in hisopen expression changes, and a moment later, Beca’s hand slips comfortably intohers.

“Definitely,”Jerry nods. “Right this way, please.”

He leads them toa side room, where dozens of the king-sized mattresses are aligned perfectly,gathered by brand and further organized by mattress quality and specifications.Maybe seeing their overwhelmed expressions, Jerry begins talking them throughthe advantages and disadvantages of certain brands, as well as the importanceof lumbar support, firmness-to-softness ratio, and customizable comfortsettings. Beca’s eyes glaze over about thirty seconds into his speech, thoughChloe catches her occasionally blinking in effort to pay attention.

It really, trulyisn’t anything against Jerry. It’s simply that mattress shopping is horrible.

It’s a bit of arelief when Jerry finishes the information overload. “I can see that you havemuch to consider,” he says kindly. “I’ll check on some other customers and comeback in a few minutes?”

“That’d be great,thank you,” Beca says, pulling herself out of whatever loop of music Chloe ispositive was running through her mind.

Chloe smiles atJerry as he returns to the main floor, and then turns to Beca. “Fun, right?”

“Super fun,” Becasays. “Very adult. Very mature of us to be here. Purchasing mattresses.”

“Mmm.”

“King-sized,even,” Beca continues. “Upgrade.”

“I thought wecould at least get a nice one.” Chloe walks toward a mattress, sitting on theedge and bouncing a little. “Ooh, Bec, this one is springy!”

“Oh yeah?” Becaasks, wiggling her eyebrows and slowly pacing to Chloe. “That’ll be fun…”

Chloe feels theheat rise in her neck as Beca draws closer.

“…for bouncingon!” Beca finishes her sentence, jumping completely onto the mattress andstanding on it. Before Chloe can stop her, she jumps on it once, making thewhole thing bounce under them both. “See?” Beca asks proudly, looking down ather.

“Get down!” Chloehisses, even while fighting a smile. “Jerry might be back soon!”

Instead, Becaextends her left hand. “Care to join me, m’Lady?”

It’s really thesight of Beca’s wedding band that does it. Chloe gives Beca her own left hand,and Beca helps her to her feet so they’re both standing on the bed.

“Beautiful,” Becasmiles, and it’s the easiest thing in the world for Chloe to lean forward andkiss her quickly.  

“You’re just asbeautiful,” she says.

“Mmm, very true,”Beca agrees with a crooked grin. “We’re both stunning. Now, wanna race to theother side of the room?”

“Oh, it is soon,” Chloe says, and before Beca can so much as blink, she’s jumping from theirmattress to the next, bounding along, aiming for the far wall.

“Cheater!” Becacalls out, and then all Chloe can hear is Beca’s laughter from behind her andthe regular squeaking of bed springs as Beca jumps on the mattresses.

They race, Chloein the lead, bouncing from mattress to mattress, focused on their end goal. Theelation of it fills Chloe, rises in her chest with every jump she takes, andshe feels like a child. Beca draws closer, until she keeps pace with Chloe, andthen they’re not so much racing as they are just keeping near each other. Themattresses are large enough that they can bounce a few times on each beforeleaping to the next, and by the time Chloe gets close to the finish line, herlegs burn with effort.

She arrives onthe final mattress barely an instant before Beca does, and the second Becalands, she wraps her arms around Chloe’s waist and falls, taking her down tothe soft display bed with her.

They’re bothlaughing and out of breath, and Chloe clings to Beca, who pulls her close, eyesdropping to Chloe’s lips, and—

“What on earth do you think you’re doing?”

************

The car ride homeis as silent as the ride to the store had been.

Chloe keeps hereyes resolutely on the road, both hands firmly on the wheel. Beside her, Becastares out the passenger window.

Traffic hasgotten heavier, people going out to dinner or to shows to enjoy the weekend.They get stuck at a red light. It’s the same one that Chloe swears she always gets stuck at; it definitely hasit out for her.

Beca clears herthroat softly. “So… he was kinda grumpy, wasn’t he?”

The dam breaksand laughter bubbles up from Chloe’s chest. Beca starts laughing too, real,rich laughter that only makes Chloe laugh harder. They laugh, and keeplaughing, each one setting off the other, and it doesn’t subside until Chloe’sstomach hurts and her cheeks ache.

“Oh my god,” shemanages weakly, wiping tears from her eyes as the traffic light turns green andthey inch forward with the crowd of cars. “I thought he was going to kill us.”

“Nah, Jerrywouldn’t do that,” Beca says, waving a hand. “He was trying not to laugh thewhole time he was banning us from the store.”

“He still bannedus though!”

“Only because hetotally had to,” Beca argues. “We still ordered a mattress, so at least wedon’t have to do that again for a while.”

“It was more funthan I thought it would be,” Chloe concedes, taking her eyes off the road onlyfor a moment to smile at her wife.

“It was,” Becaagrees. “Though, maybe you were right about me not being mature. I’m sorry,Chlo. I’ll help more around the house and with everything.”

“I’d appreciatethat,” Chloe sighs happily. “And then, you know, we can talk about being dogparents.”

Beca perks upimmediately. “Yeah?”

“Totes,” Chloereplies easily. “And, maybe, eventually… parent-parents?” she glances over,biting her lip.

Beca is lookingat her like she put the stars in the sky. “That would be nice,” she says.

“Then it’s adeal,” Chloe agrees. “Just… no letting the dog on the new bed, okay?”

Beca doesn’tanswer.

“Bec, I mean it!”

“No promises,Chlo.”