#i got real tired of the process hence why not all characters are present

[disastress-i-guess]

The sillies.

[altocat]

so i'm trying to get back into the swing of things after almost a decade of being out of ffvii fandom and ever crisis has rekindled a very powerful desire to write and write until my fingers fall off. so i'd like to ask, since you're in the tags and seem quite knowledgeable: what is your opinion of genesis's writing in crisis core?

i've always been of the opinion he was woefully mishandled, and i'm currently trying to reconcile what we were given with what i assume they were going for. got about 2k of a fic with a slightly difficult to explain premise written so far, but sephiroth is pre-nibelheim in post-advent children time (no dirge of cerberus) where genesis is about a decade older than him now. and they're navigating the fallout of the last time they saw each other.

i'm using a lot of what we're learning about sephiroth to color their relationship, too -- my boyfriend skillfully pointed out that it feels like genesis may have developed a parasocial attachment to the version of sephiroth that shinra fed him through propaganda, and when he met the real thing he was let down and became resentful.

so i'm wondering, how do i handle it without making it into a personal vendetta against how horribly i felt genesis was written? heh

The writing on Genesis in CC is....yeesh.

I'd chalk that up to many things--general mishandling, the fact that Genesis is only limited to appearing when Zack is present, and some translation issues from the Japanese language over to English. Lots of his arc as a character doesn't really feel earned, or they don't take enough time to establish his good qualities to make the player care about him.

It's important to note that, despite the fact that the game failed to shed proper light on this, Genesis DOES have many good qualities. He's kind to the lower ranking soldiers, whom he reads to. He and Sephiroth, for all their rivalry, seemed to be close at one point. He was presumably a good friend to Angeal. And even Gackt himself has said that Genesis has a "sweet" streak hidden beneath all that bluster.

It's equally important to note that the Genesis we see in CC is desperate, dying, and under the influence of the Degradation Process. Angeal himself points out that the process seems to dull the mind, clouding it. Sephiroth may or may not have some variation of this as well once his Jenova cells are activated in Nibelheim. So Genesis is really not "himself", warped and twisted, trying to preserve his life, angry and bitter at what Shinra did to him. He's at his lowest point emotionally and psychologically, hence why he does what he does. The writing....just doesn't convey it well.

As for his relationship with Sephiroth, I feel like Sephiroth was closest to him out of all his friends, and Genesis' previous idolization of Sephiroth is the primary reason why he WANTS to be the best. He wants to beat Seph to prove that he's WORTHY of being around Seph. As a boy, Seph was his hero. He HAS to surpass him or become his equal to prove that he can stand toe to toe with the person he feels is a real hero. The dilemma is that Sephiroth never wanted to be a hero and would have always valued Genesis just as he is. Genesis already had what he was looking for...he just didn't realize it until it was too late. They're a complicated pair, with lots of miscommunication, unresolved tension, and poor decision making shared between them. I think they needed to talk to each other more than anything else. Because there was something genuine there. They could have kept it, they could have shared the apples just like Genesis always wanted.

Post-CC, I see Genesis carrying a lot of guilt. Both his friends are "dead" and he basically kicked off the events that led to it. He's been pardoned by Minerva and will now act as the planet's hero and protector, but at the cost of the people he loved. There's no real room for arrogance anymore. He's a hero not out of pride, but shame and remorse. He's tired, lonely, and now fully recognizes the pain of what heroism truly is. He's "grown up" in a sense, become a different person. Crisis Core is a coming of age story in many ways, not just for Zack but for Genesis as well. It's too bad they kinda bungled the delivery.

Hope all of that helps! Genesis is actually a really interesting character when you dissect him. He's sorta become one of my top faves over time, even if I fully recognize him as a complete trashlord. But I think there's more to him deep, deeeeep down.

[ahundredtimesover]

Friday Nights and Take-Out Drabble (3)

It’s not how I wanted to tell you but doesn’t mean I don’t mean it any less. 

Pairing: Jungkook x (f.) Reader

Genre/Tags: strangers to friends to lovers, popstar/idol!jk, fluff, angst, future smut; this is a dialogue-heavy series so read if you’re into that!

Warnings: foul language 

Word count: 1,500 sorry

Series summary: You meet pop star/idol Jeon Jungkook at the cafe, you get close, and as Hyejin says, you’re like friends with benefits without the sex. But you’re bad at feelings and so is he.

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A/N: Fast forward to several months later with these two idiots-turned-lovebirds!

#

“Rock-paper-scissors! Winner decides if they want to choose the movie or the dinner tonight,” Jungkook says, right hand ready, bunny smile flashing through your phone screen.

You roll your eyes as you sit up from your upside-down position on the couch. “What are you, a child? Your game doesn’t even make sense.”

“Yes, your man-child boyfriend. And yes, it does. Now come on!” He urges you.

“Fine, only because you recognize yourself as such.” 

He rolls his eyes this time. 

He was late on the first try, making it not count. You usually go scissors after rock, which Jungkook knows - hence, why you often lose - but he didn’t this time. 

“I win!” You say, surprised. “A bit rusty now, are we?” A smug look on your face. “We’re going with Winter Soldier tonight, babe,” you continue, his hopeful face turning into a disappointed one. 

“But we watched Iron Man 2 the last time, shouldn’t we watch Iron Man 3 tonight?” He tries, towel wiping his sweaty face, their Friday night rehearsal having just ended. Months after the end of the tour, they’re still plenty busy and the month of February isn’t any different than the others. 

Still, you’re happy with your arrangement. Regardless of how late they end on a Friday, Jungkook makes sure to come see you, with take-outs now a staple in your relationship. Until you both think you’re ready to go public, your little home is your little world for now.

“We’re not following any order, Kook. I win so I get to decide the movie. At least you get to choose dinner! I’m not particularly picky today. I just want me some Bucky,” you tease. He gives you a displeased look. 

Something you’ve come to learn is that your jealous and competitive boyfriend will always try to one-up any person who gets your attention, regardless if they’re a fictional character or a real-life individual, regardless of gender too. He thinks he’s being subtle about it, which is the funny part, but Jungkook is anything but subtle. You’d mentioned one time how you liked Evan Rachel Wood’s undercut and he showed up 2 days later with his own undercut, in a bun. Do you like it? He’d asked later that night, lips all pouty. Safe to say it took all of you not to pounce on him the moment you saw him enter the bar. 

“I just don’t like him because he did my man dirty,” he reasons. You respond with a laugh, “yeah, I hear you babe. It totally has nothing to do with me having a crush on him ”

“Baby, don’t tease me tonight, please. I’m tired and I miss you and I want to cuddle you in peace while we watch the definitely-not-best Marvel movie,” he pouts.

“Okay fine, we shall cuddle in peace, then if that’s what you want to do,” you give in, hearing the tiredness in his voice, and then bidding him goodbye. 

If you didn’t miss him, you probably would’ve continued teasing him, but you do and you want nothing more than to have him next to you. It’s been two weeks since you’ve spent time together, after all. 

Four months since you both got your head out of your asses and finally admitted your feelings to each other - and three since you told his agency, which was fortunately supportive - you and Jungkook have found your rhythm. 

He’s still as busy, but nothing that video calls can’t solve, and still falls asleep on you over the phone after a long day at work, but you both always make time. He insists on spoiling you, despite knowing that a Chanel bracelet has got nothing on a whole strawberry shortcake, especially after a long day at work. You spoil him too in your own ways - buying him novelty items that remind you of him, stocking your pantry with his favorites, and of course, through kisses.

You didn’t think you could be this affectionate but you’ve long surprised yourself when it came to Jungkook. It seems as if every time you see him, you just want to shower his pretty little face with all the kisses you can possibly give. He enjoys this, partly for the fact that he likes seeing you be the needy one for a change and partly because, well it’s you and anything you give is more than enough for him. Except for an ‘I love you,’ though; somehow that isn’t part of the rhythm yet.

A little over an hour later, you hear the incessant knocking on your door and you jump from the couch. You open the door and take in how your boyfriend looks enveloped in his oversized black hoodie - hair damp, tired smile, but eyes still sparkling like the night sky. A shower of kisses later, you find yourselves on the floor, take-out food all but unwrapped. 

He surprises you with your own favorites - ribeye steak and truffle pasta cooked by one of their chef friends who runs a restaurant that you definitely can’t afford, which also doesn’t do take-outs, to preserve food quality or something. But Jungkook, you’ve also learned, lives off of making you happy, and this is one of the ways that he, as he says, puts his stardom to “good use.”

You stare at him, eyes wide. “Babe, they gave us plates,” you say, confused and amused at the same time. “Food presentation or something, Chef Choi said,” he shrugs, but unable to help the smile on his face as your eyes scour the presentation on the table.

“We’ve been wanting to eat at his restaurant,” is all you say, still unable to process what he had done, not missing the extras included - cheese and artichoke dip and tomato soup. “These seem basic, are they even on the menu?” 

He laughs. “Too basic to be on their menu, definitely, which is why he was able to whip them up,” he says proudly. “I just wanted to surprise you with something special.”

The twinkle in your eyes and the smile reaching them let him know he succeeded. 

One bite into the steak and you feel like heaven. It has marbled well and tastes so scrumptious and tender, as if you’re having an orgasm in your mouth. It tastes expensive, too. You close your eyes and savor the flavor, juices spilling out with every movement of your mouth against the meat. You’ve never had steak this good, it actually makes you feel emotional.

“Fuck babe, this is so good I love you so much.”

Silence.

You open your eyes to see your boyfriend, mouth half parted, orbs even darker and rounder than you remember.

“Did you just tell me you love me… while eating steak?”

You cower on your side of the table, nervous at how he will take it. The words just slipped out of your mouth before you got to the next bite. It’s not that you don’t mean it; it’s because you do and want to at least tell him in a more romantic way than this. He’d survived practice until 10PM, made arrangements to get you a delectable dinner, and you tell him you love him like this - unfocused and unaware, prompted by food, of all things.

“Is that how much you love steak or how much you love me?” he asks, a smile slowly creeping up his face. “I was thinking maybe you’d say it while cuddling in bed or watching Crazy, Stupid, Love or even like, in the middle of sex or something but this… this is so unmistakbly you that I don’t think I can be more in love with you than I am this moment.” Now it’s his turn to look nervous.

You mirror his expression from earlier, senses suddenly heightened at what he’d just said.

“I…” he starts, unsure what to say next.

“I love you,” you repeat, unable to help the smile gracing your face. “It’s not how I wanted to tell you but doesn’t mean I mean it any less. But I do, for a while now,” you continue, hands playing with each other, teeth biting your lower lip. 

“I love you,” he responds, suddenly calming your nerves. “I feel like I say it in my head too much that I’m scared you might just hear it,” he chuckles, eyes finding yours.

“Well, I’d like to hear it, everyday if possible,” you shyly smile. You becoming such a sap like this is a side-effect of dating Jungkook that you definitely don’t mind.

He easily pulls you by your waist and sandwiches you in between his legs, wrapping them around you and peppering your cheeks with kisses. He hugs you tightly and lays his chin on your shoulder. Nothing is better than this. He’s starting to think this is what he wants to come home to everyday. He lets the thought sink in; that’s a talk for another time.

“Anything for you, Y/N.”    

##

part 4 || completed

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[monsoonblooms12]

Detectives By Chance: Ch-6 Unforeseen

A/N: Hi, how is everyone doing? I took a nice break to get a grip on myself and it really worked wonders. So sorry for taking such a long time to get this out. I hope this will be worth the wait!💛

Series Summary: It was supposed to be a usual weekend for the four. Coffee, fun, friends and love. But an unexpected case changed their lives in a way they had never imagined. A mystery - a murder - many secrets… Will Ethan, Pooja, Alexandra and Mark, be able to survive? Or will the circumstances twist and break their lives forever?

Pairing: Ethan × f!MC (Dr. Pooja Sharma)

Disclaimer: PB owns most of the characters. I only own the OCs and my MC.

Word count: 1890

Triggers: Mentions of murder

Rating: General

I am participating in this week’s @wackydrabbles​. The prompt for this week is “I meant every word.” and it will appear in bold.

CATCH UP HERE!

Sometimes Destiny, has a strange sense of humour,

When we think it is the end, it is usually just the beginning.

The four had just fallen asleep when sudden banging of the door woke them up. 

Ethan woke up abruptly. He saw how peacefully Pooja was sleeping. 

Ethan didn't want to wake her up. 

He got out of the bed and took a look at the clock. 

7 in the morning. 

It was pretty late as compared to his usual waking time. But after everything they did last night, they were tired as hell and hence it felt like they had slept not 4 hrs but 40 minutes. 

Yawning, he got to the door and was very, very, taken aback.

Standing by the door, was the Police.

"Officers, How may I help you?" Ethan inquired in a very professional tone.

"Dr Ramsey. Sorry to disturb you at such an early hour. We wanted some information." The police officer standing at the front informed.

Ethan let out a heavy sigh but knew better than to argue with them. So he acknowledged, "Please come in. People around will be concerned if they see the Police standing at my doorstep." He stepped aside to let them in. 

By the time, Mark, Alex and Pooja had also waken up due to the sounds and came out of their rooms. All three were surprised to see the Police.

The officers too, stopped short on seeing them. Their gazes stopped on Mark and Alex.

"Look who we have here." One of the officers implied to the other, pointing at Mark and Alex.

"Seems like our work here has become a lot easier."

"Excuse me, Officer, what exactly are you talking about? You stated you wanted information." Ethan said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, we wanted information about the whereabouts of Dr Danvers and Dr Walton." The way the Officer emphasized whereabouts was enough for them to know that something was wrong.

"Officers, we are here. Tell us what you wanna know." Mark spoke before Ethan could say anything.

"Sure, Dr. Danvers. You have an awful amount of confidence for a criminal." The Officer scoffed.

This time it was Pooja who spoke. "Wait! What? No, No what? CRIMINALS?"

"Of course, Dr Sharma. Not just mere criminals, these two are Cold Blooded Murderers." The police officer grumbled.

"Officer, I am sure there has been some misunderstanding. They both were with us all the time. Lex, er, Dr Walton and me, we discovered the body together." Pooja tried to intervene.

"Oh yes, Dr. Sharma? Then how on Earth did the original key of the patient's room get into the office of MARK DANVERS?" The man shouted the last words.

"WHAT! How is that even possible? I didn't even know the real key of the room was missing until the body was discovered!" Mark replied in his defence.

"Save it, Dr. Danvers, Save it. Tell all you want to tell in the court. Besides, that is not the only proof we have. We have asked your neighbours about your whereabouts on the night of the murder. Some of them say you two returning late at night, and as per their description, that is just after the time of the murder.” 

“Also, while scanning Mr Davis's room, your fingerprints and a piece of paper with both of your names was found. When we questioned his colleagues, it was revealed to be his handwriting. He wrote in that way in a hurry. So, I guess that enough proof for us to arrest you two." The Police laid all the information in front of them.

"All this is BULLSHIT. We did not do anything like that. All this is a lie." Alex was on the verge of a breakdown. 

She made a motion to grab one of the officers' collar when Pooja grabbed her and stopped her from doing anything that would make matters worse.

"No Lex, you won't. Don't make matters worse, I beg you." Hearing Pooja's plea, Alex calmed down.

"Dr Mark Danvers, Dr Alexandra Walton, you both are under arrest. Kindly follow us." The police officer said in an almost ruthless voice. 

Alex was about to intervene, but Mark grabbed her hand. 

Ethan laid a hand on Mark's shoulder and assured, "We promise we will get you both out before they can present you before the court. We promise." 

Mark turned around, gave him and Pooja a one-armed hug. Alex too, hugged the both of them, and then the two went away, holding hands all the time.

After the Police had left, Ethan and Pooja sat down on the couch. Never had they imagined that this would be the beginning of their morning.

"How the freaking hell did this happen? They are innocent, we know they didn't do anything." Pooja was breaking down again.

"Yes, we know. And now we have to prove it. We need to find evidence that can free Mark and Alex up. Something which can prove their innocence. We need to check Miles Danvers's private clinic. That is our only hope." Ethan answered.

 The two of them hurriedly got dressed and set off to the second address. 

The address they had never checked.

It took a good 35 minutes took 3147, Rainy Day Drive. The day was cloudy and grey, and the street looked gloomy but less terrifying as compared to last night.

 Ethan let out a dry laugh and said, "One rainy day brings us to Rainy day drive." They looked around to locate the clinic. But where they arrived appeared so broken and messy that it was obvious that it had been through a lot.

Taking a look at the status of the place, and thought of Pooja's condition.

"Rookie," Ethan said.

"Hmm?"

"I am going in there."

"Of course. I am going in too. Wasn't that why we came here?" Pooja questioned, surprised why Ethan was stating the obvious.

"No, I said I am going in, not we, Poo."

"What the hell do you mean by that? You are trying to say that you are going to that place alone? Is this really the time to play jokes, E?" Pooja charged, angry and worried.

"I am not kidding, Poo. I meant every word."

He cupped her cheeks. 

"Rookie, please try to understand, okay? My priority is and will always be you. I can't let you get hurt in any way. I will go there first and check if everything is alright. If all is clear, I will send you a text. Then you can come in." Ethan tried to explain.

"And if everything is not clear?"

"Then I will search alone and keep you updated if I find anything."

"You mean that I should leave you alone in the fire?"

"Poo, I am just going to check. This place is so old, I don't think there will be any trouble in there. But I promised that I would protect you at any cost. See it just as me keeping my promise."

"But what if-"

"No, what-ifs. I am going. I will check and update you soon. Promise me you won't go in until I tell you too."

"But Et-"

"Promise?"

"Ethan, List-"

"Promise?"

"Fine, Promise. But in case you see any trouble, text me at that moment. I will come running."

"Promise, Rookie, Promise."

Before Pooja could say anything else, Ethan had already walked into the dilapidated building. So she had nothing else to do other than wait.

While waiting, Pooja tried to arrange all the information they had in her mind. She started surfing the web to know more about Mr Davis and the 2011 scam he had supposedly conducted. About 100 people had lost tons of money in that scam, and it was pointed out that since 2011, Mr Davis started living a rich life. He said it was from his inheritance of his dead uncle and a promotion, but now, it was obvious that it was all the money from the scam.

What a criminal! Only if he had got caught, maybe then all the hassle, worries and pain that entered their life without as much as a precaution, could have been avoided, Pooja grunted. Her heart grieved on remembering Mark and Alex. "They don't deserve this.", she thought.

She checked her phone and, Oh dear! Thirty minutes had passed by, but there was neither any text nor any sign of Ethan. She was worried sick. But she had promised, and Pooja had been known for keeping her promises. When she promised something, she always fulfilled it, no matter what. 

Suddenly her phone lighted up with a 'Ping!' making her aware of a new notification. She saw Ethan's name light up on her screen, and without even glancing at the text he had sent, she rushed into the ruptured clinic.

Once inside, she looked around. The place was dark, had a look of a horror house and smelt sickening. Pooja turned on the flashlight of her phone and began to look around. She sensed something was eerie. She presumed that the moment she would walk in, she would see Ethan.

But the place was soundless. Her heart thumped with panic.

"Ethan! Ethan! Ethan, can you hear me? Ethan, please reply I-I am scared. ETHAN!" Pooja screeched but met with silence. Dismay and agony made her feel weak. She sat down on her knees and began weeping.

"Now is not the time to breakdown." Pooja thought to herself and urged her body to stand up. 

"Keep calm, Keep calm for Ethan." She reiterated the words in her mind like a prayer holding her up.

Suddenly, she recollected that she never checked the text Ethan sent. She opened Ethan's text, but it did not read "All clear".

It read, "MiD To."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? MiD, MiD, MiD..." Pooja thought harder and harder, overlooking everything, only focusing on the letters M.i.D.

"MiD, MiD... Oh, hell!" It struck her like lightning. "MiD is M-Miles Danvers. Oh my god!"

Suddenly, the sound of her phone ringing jolted her out of her thought process and spread an alarm through her body. She hoped, desperately for it to be Ethan.

But she saw that it was an unknown number. Her first thought was to ignore it, but then she wondered, "What if, what if it is Ethan? Trying to reach her and tell her where he was?"

She acknowledged the call. "Hello?"

"Ahh!!" A hoarse voice uttered from the other end. "Dr Sharma, is it?"

"Who the hell are you? I don't have time for any of your shit." Pooja fumed.

"But you surely have time for Dr Ramsey, don't you?" The man implied with cruel amusement in his voice.

"What the-? How the hell-? Wait, are- are you Miles Danvers?"

The man let out a menacing chortle, more like a crackle of a witch. "Oh, yes! I am. And don't worry! Your dearest boyfriend is here, in my utmost care, and under my most watchful eye."

The humour in his voice went away, and a nerve chilling sinister voice revealed, "If you want to save him and your dearest best friends, come to the address I am sending you as soon as possible. Don't you dare ignore this call. Well, unless you want them to rot and die. Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha."

PS: If you enjoyed the story, please like, leave a comment or reblog. Your feedback keeps me going💕. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have a great day ahead!

Tags (Please let me know if you like to be added or removed) :@bbrandy2002 @whimsicallywayward15 @ohramsey  @nervoussaladsludgeopera @trrfanaddict @hopelessromanticmonie @imonlybibecauseofethanramsey @lovablegranny @bellcat2010 @gkittylove99 @starrystarrytrouble @3riche @chetachisblog @zoehanji @withbeautyandrage  @drariellevalentine @mvalentine ​ @aestheticartsx ​@angela8754​ @schnitzelbutterfingers ​ @ao719 ​ @choicesstan1 @arnikki-2406 ​ @neotericthemis ​ @anotherbeingsworld @maurine07 @sophxwithers @twinkleallnight

[d-p-f-m]

Obey me: Asmodeus x fem!MC | Imagine

Genre: Fluff, (slight) Angst

Trigger warning: mentions of minor character death/suicide

Word count: 1820

Author's note:

I don't even write for Obey me or anything otome related at the moment, but I just had to get this idea out of my system so I can sleep peacefully and thought I'd share it here, because there's not nearly enough Asmo content out there and some of my fellow Asmodeus stans might appreciate it. This man deserves more love!

Anyway, hope you enjoy!💞

♠️♥️♣️♦️♠️♥️♣️♦️♠️♥️♣️♦️

▪Imagine a universe where it's canon that every brother owns a ring with their sin's symbol engraved in it, but Asmo's ring has been missing for a very long time without anyone knowing what happened with it because he never gives a straight answer when confronted about it

▪when MC first arrives in devildom for the exchange program, she wears the ring on a necklace around her neck, seeing as it was passed down from mother to daughter as her family's heirloom through generations

▪with six of the brothers owning a similar ring to hers, it doesn't take her very long to put two and two together. Although, once she finds out it's in fact Asmo's ring, she doesn't tell him right away, because he's not particulary responsive as she subtly questions him about the whereabouts of his ring and she's scared of the real reason why it could be in her possession

▪Maybe one of her ancestors stole it from him? Maybe it's a sign to signal that her bloodline is indepted to the avatar of lust due to some deal someone made with him eons ago? Honestly, it could have so many reasons and a lot of them make her worry that it would have negative consequences for her, if anyone found out

▪Asmo simply tells her, that he lost the ring to a woman who died before he could take it back from her and for some reason, his words make her think of the recurring nightmare that would often cause her to startle awake growing up. Anxiously, MC asks him if the woman drowned before she can think better of it

▪eyeing her warily, he confirms her suspicion, asking her how she could have randomly guessed it right. Although, unable to grasp the weird feeling that overcame her while talking about the long deceased woman, she just brushes it off as a strange coincidence

▪she starts to wear the ring less while she's around Asmo, to hide it from him until she knows she can fully trust the demon brothers

▪one time, as she stays over at his room for a sleep-over, he almost gets a glimpse at it when it slips out from the collar of her loose pajama shirt and she doesn't want to risk him seeing it again. Because for all she knows, he could get mad at her for having it. Even though she can't really understand why she has it herself

▪over time, MC and Asmo gradually grow closer

▪they don't have any kind of sexual relationship, because MC wants to genuinely love and be loved by someone before giving all of herself to them

▪while Asmo respects her decision, it obviously doesn't stop him from playfully flirting with her and due to both their affectionate natures, they develop a close friendship that involves constant casual touches and cuddling

▪every time Asmo does try to initiate anything sexual between them out of habit -since it's the only outcome people usually seek from interactions with the avatar of lust and he's not used to someone actually enjoying his company for just his company alone- MC stops him gently and tells him she'd much rather just cuddle or spend time with him in general

▪Asmo appreciates and looks forward to their shared quality time a lot and he slowly starts to accept the fact that, yes, MC's not out there to use him in any way but instead actually cares for him and his feelings

▪it shows in little, almost insignificant gestures. Like her going out of her way to do favors for him, or how she always asks if he's comfortable with the smallest of things, or even how she makes sure to get his opinion on matters where people would usually just assume they know what he thinks, according to his sin and self-imposed image

▪from time to time he even prioritizes MC's innocent, loving touches over the pleasure his usual hook-ups could bring, staying in and spending his nights cuddled up to her instead of going out to party more often than not as the months pass by

▪without neither of them really acknowledging it, they both develop deeper, romantic feelings for each other over the course of the exchange period

▪one day, as MC cleans her room, (that Mammon wrecked while searching for something to sell lol), she realizes the small casket with Asmo's ring is missing from where she had put it and she immediately rushes after the second-born, who had just left her bedroom before she came in, in case he took it. As it turns out, he did

▪when Mammon realizes how important the casket is to her, he remorsefully gives it back and she returns to her room to hide it again but just as she's about to put it away, Asmo comes strolling in

▪seeing the fancy box, he grabs it from her to take a look inside out of curiosity and when he recognizes his ring, he freezes

▪feeling guilty about keeping the ring a secret for so long, MC calmly asks Asmo to let her explain

▪she tells him that her mother gave it to her once she had turned sixteen, but she hadn't been able to teach MC anything about its origins besides that it had been passed down between family members for centuries

▪after listening to her, Asmodeus grows quiet for a while, before finally opening up a little about how he lost the ring

▪a few millennia prior to the present events with MC, while Diavolo's father was still actively ruling and it was allowed for higher-ranking demons to freely roam between the human realm and devildom, Asmo would often times visit the humans to play with people's hearts and desires

▪one day, as he was passing through a small village, he met a young woman who didn't succumb to his charms

▪she was nice and courteous towards him while they interacted, but his powers never had any actual effect and determined to defile her someday, he payed the village more visits any chance he got

▪seeing as it was one of the rare times during the day where he would get her alone, he would often join her as she spent her evenings sitting at her favorite place on the edge of a cliff, located just outside the village

▪while he tried to find a way to get the frustratingly untainted woman to give in to her deepest desires, they would talk about anything that came to their minds and over time, Asmodeus had to admit he quite enjoyed her presence

▪slowly but surely, he came to care for her once he realized that she genuinely cared for him and even though he never admitted it out loud, her friendship was something he secretly cherished

▪as they were sitting side by side one night, like many times before, the woman suddenly admitted to him that she always feared he would stop visiting her someday. That he would find someone who was willing to indulge in him in more ways than she could allow herself to and that he would eventually get tired of her company

▪while she didn't know about his true demonic nature, she had always been aware that he wasn't exactly human per se and it was only natural for her to believe that he was simply playing with her to fight the boredom that overcame him occasionally. Which, initially, had been true

▪that's when he decided to give her his ring.

▪uncharacteristically keen to reassure her he would keep visiting, unless she told him to stop, he slid the ring from his finger and onto hers instead, telling her to guard it until he'd demand it back one day

▪from this day on, she would often times invite him into her home to talk in the comfort of her bedroom instead of at the cliff and Asmodeus would rest his head in her lap while she went on about a new topic every time, gently caressing his hair or playing with the fabric of his clothes in the process

▪when she told him one night, that her father was in desperate need for money and therefore planned to marry her off to a wealthy merchant with a reputation to be cruel and violent towards women, Asmo felt a strange and long forgotten urge to protect her

▪the last person that had made him feel this way was Lilith and without really thinking it through, he offered to take her away with him

▪although, she declined his offer with a mournful smile, explaining how, even though she cared for Asmodeus deeply and wanted nothing more than to stay with him, she could never live with herself if she left her family behind for her own benefit and that she still had time to convince her father to drop his idea, before the merchant would come to take her with him

▪Asmo didn't want to upset her, by ignoring her wishes and taking her away by force, so he reluctantly accepted her decision, thinking he still had time to convince her to run away, but when he came by to check on her a few days later, she was nowhere to be found

▪it turned out she had committed suicide by jumping off the cliff and drowning herself, the morning after Asmodeus had last visited her

▪he always thought that his ring had been buried with her (let's just pretend she had a proper burial, even though at that time, suicide was probably considered a sin and not excepted by society. Maybe her family buried her in secret) and that's why he never found it, when in reality, her brother had taken it, to later give it to his own daughter in memory of his lost sister

▪after Asmo finishes with the story behind his ring's disappearance, MC quickly realizes that she has to be a descendant of the woman's bloodline (which is also Lilith's human bloodline, hence why both of them are immune to Asmo's powers)

▪she attempts to give the ring back to him, because, surely, that's what both the woman and Asmo would want. But he stops her and puts the necklace the ring is attached to around her neck, before explaining that he wants her to keep it, since his promise to someday return to claim it back still stands and he doesn't plan on leaving MC's side any time soon, anyway

▪if anything, MC finding her way to him after so many centuries just means their encounter was predetermined all along and he made the right choice by entrusting his ring to her ancestor all those years ago

▪(maybe he even thinks that him finding genuine love for the first time with MC was fate as well, but he'll have a lot of time to entertain this line thought in the future.)

🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂🦂

Additional note:

Damn, I want to see a full version of this, but with life butting in every 5 seconds, I don't really have the time or energy for it. So, if there's a talented writer out there who loves this idea as much as I do and wants to turn it into an endlessly ongoing, multi-chaptered slow burn, pls (PLS!!!) do and mention me in your post, so I can read it!! I could really need this story right now.

Alright, Imma go to sleep now. Bye guys🔥

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

[rocknvaughn]

New Colin Morgan Interview with Edge Media Network about Benjamin - UPDATED

I am reblogging this because, after the author was made aware of an error in the posting of his article (if anyone clicked through to read it on the site, there was a whole question and answer that was repeated), the error was corrected and another three questions and answers were added! I am correcting it here, but they were very interesting, so I suggest you read the full article again!

I shall post the link at the bottom, but I wanted to type it out so that non-English speakers could more easily translate it. (This article was listed in their “Gay News” section of the site, hence the focus on the gay roles.)

British Actor Colin Morgan: How the Queerly Idiosyncratic ‘Benjamin’ Spoke to Him

by Frank J. Avelia

In writer-director Simon Amstell’s sweet, idiosyncratic, semi-autobiographical comedy, “Benjamin,” Colin Morgan plays the titular character, an insecure filmmaker trying to resuscitate his waning career (at least it’s waning in his mind) after one major cine-indie success. Benjamin is also doing his best to navigate a new relationship with a young French musician (Phenix Brossard of “Departures”).

Thanks to the truly endearing, multifaceted talents of Morgan, Benjamin feels like an authentic creation--one that most audiences can empathize with. Sure, he’s peculiar, has a legion of self-esteem issues and an almost exasperating need for acceptance as well as an inconvenient talent to self-sabotage the good in his life. But who can’t relate to some or all of that?

“Benjamin” is one of the better queer-themed films to come out in recent years, in large part because it eschews emphasis on the queer nature of the story. Instead, the film is a fascinating character study with Morgan slowly revealing layers and unpacking Benjamin’s emotional baggage.

Morgan is a major talent who has been appearing across mediums in Britain for many years. His London theatre debut was in DBC Pierre’s satire, “Vernon God Little” (2007), followed by the stage adaptation of Pedro Almodovar’s “All About My Mother” (2007), opposite Diana Rigg. Numerous and eclectic stage work followed (right up until the Corona shutdown) including Pedro Miguel Rozo’s “Our Private Life” (2011), where he played a bipolar gay, Jez Butterworth’s dark comedy, “Mojo” (2013), Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons” opposite Sally Field (2019), and Caryl Churchill’s “A Number” (2020), to name a few.

His TV work includes, “Merlin” (playing the wizard himself), “Humans” and most recently, in a very memorable episode of “The Crown”. Onscreen he can be seen in “Testament of Youth”, “Legend” with Tom Hardy, “Snow White and the Huntsman” and Rupert Everett’s take on Oscar Wilde, “The Happy Prince.”

He’s played a host of gay roles in the past on stage, screen and TV.

EDGE recently interviewed the star of “Benjamin” about the new film and his career.

Why Benjamin?

EDGE: What drew you to this project and were you part of its development?

Colin Morgan: It’s always the strength of the script for me on any project and Simon’s script was just so well observed, he managed to combine humor and poignancy in delicate measure and when I first read it I found myself being both tickled and touched. Then reading it again and from “the actor” POV... I knew it would be a real challenge and uncharted territory for me to explore. I auditioned for Simon and we tried it in different ways and then when I was lucky enough for Simon to want me on board, we began to work through the script together, because it was clear that this was going to be a very close working relationship... it was important for the level of trust to be high.

EDGE: I appreciated that this was a queer love story where the character’s queerness wasn’t the main focus. Was that also part of the allure of the project?

CM: I think Benjamin’s sexuality is just quite naturally who he is and therefore that’s a given, we’re on his journey to find meaning and love and there’s certainly a freshness to what Simon has written in not making sexuality the main focus.

Great chemistry

EDGE: Can you speak a but about the process involved in working with Amstell on the character and his journey?

CM: Simon and me worked very closely over a period of weeks, at that time prior to shooting I was doing a theatre project not far from where he lived so I would go to him and rehearse and discuss through the whole script all afternoon before going to do the show that night, so that worked out well. It’s so personal to Simon, and to have had him as my guide and source throughout was fantastic because I could ask him all the questions and he could be the best barometer for the truth of the character; a rare opportunity for an actor and one that was so essential for building Benjamin. But ultimately Simon wanted Benjamin to emerge from somewhere inside me and he gave me so much freedom to do that also.

EDGE: You had great chemistry with Phenix Brossard. Did you get to rehearse?

CM: Phenix is fantastic, Simon and me did chemistry reads with a few different actors who were all very good but Phenix just had an extra something we felt Benjamin would be drawn to. We did a little bit of rehearsal together but because it was a relationship that was trying to find itself there was a lot of room for spontaneity and uncertainty between us, which is what the allure of a new relationship is all about, the excitement and fear.

Liberating process

EDGE: Did your process meld with Amstell’s?

CM: I’ve said this a lot before and it’s true, Simon is one of the best directors I’ve worked with. Everything he created before shooting and then maintained on set was special. We always did improvised versions of most scenes and always the scripted version too. It was such a creative and liberating process. That is exactly the way I love to work. And for a director to maintain that level of bravery, trust and experimental play throughout the whole shoot stands as one of the most rewarding shooting experiences I’ve had.

EDGE: When I spoke with Rupert Everett about “The Happy Prince,” he very proudly boasted about his ensemble. Can you speak about working with Rupert as he balanced wearing a number of creative hats?

CM: Again, this was an extremely rewarding project to work on and quite a similar relationship as with Simon in the respect that Rupert was the writer/director and Oscar Wilde is so personal to him. And then we also had many scenes together in front of the camera, so Rupert and me had a real 3D experience together. It was a long time in the making. I was on board, I think, two years before we actually got shooting so I had a lot of time to work with Rupert and rehearse. He really inspired me, watching him wear all the different creative hats, such a challenging and difficult job/jobs to achieve and he really excelled--plus we just got on very well.

Playing queer roles

EDGE: You haven’t shied away from playing queer roles. Do you think we’re moving closer to a time when a person’s sexual orientation is of little consequence to the stories being told, or should it always matter? Or perhaps we need to continue to evolve as a culture for it to matter less or not at all...

CM: That’s a hard question to answer, I think certainly the shift in people’s attitudes has changed considerably for the better compared to 40 years ago, but there will always be resistance to change and acceptance from individuals and groups whether it be sexuality, religion, race, gender--we’re seeing it every day.

Evolution is, of course, inevitable, but if we can learn from the past as we evolve that would be the ideal. Unfortunately, we rarely do learn, and history repeats itself.

EDGE: You were featured prominently in one of my favorite episodes of the “The Crown” (”Bubbikins”) as the fictional journo John Armstrong. Can you speak a bit about working on the show and with the great Jane Lapotaire?

CM: I had an exceptionally good time working on “The Crown.” Director Benjamin Caron, especially, was so prepared and creative, and made the whole experience so welcoming and inclusive. It was an incredibly happy set, with extremely talented people in every department, and I admired the ethos of the whole production and have no doubt that’s a huge ingredient to its success, along with Peter Morgan’s incredible writing.

I was also a fan of the show, and it was an honor to be part of the third season. And I can’t say enough amazing things about Jane Lapotaire. We talked a lot in between filming, and I relished every moment of that.

EDGE: You’ve done a ton of stage work. Do you have a favorite role you’ve played onstage?

CM: I’ve been so lucky with the theatre work I’ve done, to work with such special directors and work in wonderful theatres in London. I’ve worked at the Old Vic and The Young Vic twice each, and they’re always special to me. Ian Rickson is a liberating director, who I love. It’s hard to pick a favorite, because the roles have all been so different and presented different challenges, but, most recently, doing “A Number,” playing three different characters alongside Roger Allam and directed by Polly Findlay, was a really treasured experience, and I never tired of doing that show, every performance was challenging as it was.

Miss the rehearsal room

EDGE: You were doing “A Number” earlier this year. Did you finish your run before the lockdown/shutdown?

CM: Just about! We had our final performance, and then lockdown happened days later. I feel very sorry for the productions that didn’t get the sense of completion of finishing a run. I mean, finishing a full run leaves you in a kind of post-show void anyway, even though you know it’s coming, so to not know it’s coming and have it severed must be even more of a void.

Memories of performing just months ago seem like such an unattainable thing in this COVID world right now. I can’t tell you how much I’m hoping we get back to some semblance of live performance.

EDGE: What was it like to appear onstage opposite Dame Diana Rigg in “All About My Mother?”

CM: Well, I think “iconic” is an apt word for both the experience of working with Diana and the lady herself. In between scenes backstage we used to talk a lot and we got told off for talking too loudly, so Diana began to teach me sign language and we would spell out words to each other, maybe only getting a couple of sentences to each other before she was due on stage and I had to get into position for my next entrance-- we did a radio play together two years ago and she remembered, she said, “Do you remember A-E-I-O-U?” signing out the letters with her hands.

EDGE: None of us knows the future in terms of the pandemic and when we might return to making theatre. I’m a playwright myself and find it all supremely frustrating but I’m trying to remain hopeful! Where are you right now in terms of the standstill we are in and what the future might hold?

CM: Yes, I’m so worried for theatre. It’s a devastating blow. I’m sure as a playwright, you know that the creative spirit in individuals hasn’t been diminished by this virus. People are creating important art in this crisis but we need the platforms to present it and bring people to some light again out of this really scary period, but it needs to be safe and it’s a worrying time. The virtual theatre approach must be looked at I think. We need to experiment and find new paths at least for the time being. I’m involved in developing some things right now and how we can work on things in both an isolated and collaborative way. It’s entirely counterintuitive to what the family-feel and close bond of a group in a rehearsal room is like-- I miss the rehearsal room so much!-- but we can’t sit still, we must create and we must act.

What’s in a role?

EDGE: Looking back on the great success of “Merlin,” what are your takeaways from that experience?

CM: Some of the most treasured memories of my life will forever be connected to “Merlin,” the cast, crew, production, everyone! The invaluable training of being in front of a camera every day! The chance to inhabit a character and live with him for five seasons! There’s too much to list and words probably won’t do justice anyway, but I’m truly grateful for everything the show gave me.

EDGE: How do you select the roles you play?

CM: I guess they select me in a way. I can’t play a role unless it speaks to me and provokes me in some way, but ultimately it’s the characters that I have a fear about playing, not knowing how I’m going to enter into the process of living them, when I don’t have all the answers it’s a good indicator of a character I must play. If I have all the answers, there’s less scope for exploration and discovery which isn’t as interesting for me.

Link here

[themelodicenigma]

I was talking to someone on in light of my recent post about shipping mindsets (non-blood related sibling shippers), and we got into an interesting conversation about sibling relationships. Basically, what does it REALLY mean to be siblings, outside of the literal, genetic definition.

The way I see it, it’s all about “recognition” and “functionality”, which creates the commentary on how this relationship is presented and identifiable in fiction, not to mention between real life people. “Recognition”, in a sense, happens on the individual level, but can either be funneled through what otherwise is already established in society—this being what makes it something to BE identified by the individual—and/or, it can be gained and tailored by personal experience by said individual.

In other words, “What it means to be a sibling” is going to be dependent upon what can be understood through an established concept and/or an individual’s recognition of this concept’s functionality. 

What? Expecting me to say: “Oh, it’s people who do this and this and this and this together...”? Yeah well, whatever I’d list down, it’d more than likely just be a component of what the “true” answer is, which is going to be interchangeable depending on who you ask and what they essentially recognize as a sibling relationship. It makes you wonder then, is there really a definitive answer? I don’t know if I can truly say yes in a way beyond the literal (especially in having a relationship as opposed to only just being siblings by fact), but what can be observed and compared are the commonalities between people’s recognition of this functionality. Somewhere between that is where a general answer can be noted.

You’ll find this common for most things, whether about romance, siblings, family, personality traits, themes, etc.—how many times have you heard: “well I wouldn’t do that” or “this is totally this” or just simply, “I see it this way”. Be a part of any Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Supernatural, etc.—ANY fandom, really and for more than just shipping. You’ll see this eventually.

Recognition of functionality. If it’s congruent with how someone can recognize it, then that’s what they’ll see it as. “I calls it like I sees it”, and all that.

This can go in a way of even symbolism or subtext that requires “pre-knowledge” outside of the text. These things are used a certain way because people decided it to...well, be understood a certain way. I mean, the color white being a symbol for this or that didn’t just happen out of thin air—this patterned usage and understanding was passed down as a way to be recognized and further utilized a particular way. More simple than that, like for adult jokes—these are purposely written in a way for an adult to understand because they’re expected to have the knowledge available to do so, where a child otherwise normally wouldn’t.

If we’re thinking about how do we get there—recognition—I tend to think about how the world essentially establishes these things as concepts to be understood.

“What it means to be [blank]”

Some societies differ on these things, of course, but even through the knowledge that different parts of the world might have, what you’d say, an “alternate criteria” to define these things—it’s evident to the idea of how our views on things are part of a wider establishment to be understood and recognized in a particular manner.

To break it down, the most basic understanding of what a sibling is comes from the literal—your brother or sister, whether by genetic means or lawful. Beyond that, there lies a function of which this typically happens—you’re reared together as a family, foundationally under platonic connections. Of course these two things don’t always coexist for some people seeing as people can have biological siblings that they weren’t raised with or have an adopted sibling that they’re raised with. But, when these two factors do coexist, then we easily go into what can be experienced within the function of being raised as siblings. The sibling function can even include the mentioned adopted siblings, where they hold the title officially and are reared despite the lack of genetic connection.

That’s where most of if not all the common tropes people think of originate.

But why do you even think of these as “tropes”?

This can either come from personal experience, or that of what you’ve, essentially, been taught through external means, such as media or other people’s experience—this is where establishment happens.

We grow up forming this palette of ideas that we use as a means to recognize the established concept here—which I believe media/fiction is a major influence in how the concept is widely spread to those on a very basic level. In a way, it might even determine the outcome of how people THINK they should act if in accordance to the concept.

“I grew up understanding this is what [blank] means, so therefore not only will it be how I recognize it, but it’ll also be the way in which I believe it should be expressed.”

Most people don’t think about this so intentionally, but if you start to wonder about the reasons as to WHY you think the way you do, this thought will eventually arise in some form or fashion. It’s almost kind of a “chicken or egg” scenario—is the way society thinks about sibling relationships based on the individuals thinking it first, or is it based on what’s represented as a collective and THEN given to the individual to essentially learn?

Ehh, kind of both, really.

For instance, in real life, why would someone get to the point of calling a friend a brother or sister? What would give them the idea to even do this?

One could point to personal experience: what an individual recognizes in association of “family” can be placed on other people, and if that individual has the thought process that has a “criteria” for what it means to be a sibling, they’ll thus place this where they see fit if they can recognize the criteria being met with that friend. It could even be more straight forward through their already existing sibling—if the relationship is similar, then it just naturally falls into place to call this friend of yours a sibling too.

For the second point, media/fiction is well known for painting the picture here:

“Got a friend who you’re really close to and have platonic feelings for [function]? Then they’re like a sibling to you!” 

It isn’t advertised this way of course, but when you see this essentially represented in the information that you consume, an individual will then have that become a part of their palette to be recognized in their own or other people’s relationships. This definitely happens with romance A LOT.

You could have best friend you’re really close to, and maybe they’re like a sibling to you, but that doesn’t seem to stop this annoying kid from pointing out how you “look like a couple” or should “hook up already”. Through either or both of these points, a person can gain the idea to recognize these concepts for themselves, even if by the fact they may be wrong in what exactly is happening.

In fictional material, I believe judging this is typically much easier than it would be in real life. This is mostly due to the fact it’s just so much more...deliberate, whether it’s explicit or subtle, for how a writer does their thing. A writer is just another individual who has their own palette that they’ll express through their work—it either lines up with your own or it doesn’t. What tends to interfere with recognition is context (wooo!), where there lies a flexibility to manipulate the things that otherwise would be identified a different way—symbolism can be a great example, like through the use of motifs that are unique to a story. I never get tired of saying “context is key”, or better yet, “let context be your guiding key”, for my fellow Kingdom Hearts fans.

True love’s kiss? Romantic at it’s core, right? But then Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) comes and uses Maleficent’s true love for Aurora to represent this platonically instead. Frozen does this with with Elsa and Anna for their “Act of True Love”. Hell, I’ve even actually seen the “Jian Bird” representation used to convey the close, existential bond between sisters in a manhwa called “The Gamer”. The key thing is that the concepts here go beyond the connotation it might be widely known for, and thus allows the context to manipulate it for another recognizable meaning. Sometimes this isn’t even really a deviation of meaning—people just sometimes don’t understand how flexible some elements always were in general for how they can be recognized and utilized in fiction or real life.

“Oooh they hugged!! Romance is in the air! OH. MY. GOD. They smiled at each other toooo?!?! It has officially sailed guys.”

....uh, you DO know hugs aren’t limited to that, right? Right?.....Please say right.

Oh boy.

What we know and recognize might not always line up with the context of which the meaning resides, hence why you might have some people shipping characters with a sibling or other platonic relationship—the individuals doing so have found something represented between the characters to be congruent with their personal recognition of romance, even if the actual context is different for the character’s relationship. Sora and Riku, Aqua and Ven, Fang and Vanille, Yuna and Rikku, Noctis and Prompto, Fina and Dark Fina, Tanjirou and Nezuko, Sam and Dean, Ponyboy and Sodapop, Steve and Bucky, Elsa and Anna, Rapunzel and Cassandra—boy, I’ve seen it all and can go on forever. All are examples of relationships that have expressions where a fan might say “hey, I see it this way”, but if what they recognize for themselves is meant to be recognized in a different way via the context....

Conflict breeds catastrophe (Thanks Vision).

Most shipping tension in fandom then comes from whether or not a recognition of something is based on the individual or is based on the material conveying it on its own to be recognized as such. That’s about when terms like “canon” starts being thrown around willy-nilly. What we recognize and what the context is are two things that either line up, or they don’t, and thus we have the pool of interpretations that have a go at each other, some being fierce, meaningless fights and some being pretty great discussions that can often show the flexibility of a context’s meaning. This does line up with something I mentioned before in another post about subtext, and this is certainly related. A big question would be that, if what is in the context is meant to be recognized a certain way, was it REALLY presented in a way to, well, be recognized as what it claims to represent?

That breeds a larger conversation towards the establishment and meaning of all the individual things in question and how either context determines its meaning or if the subject inherently retains a specific meaning. e.g. holding hands or hugging doesn’t mean romance in every context, but confessing you “like like” (lol) someone will “always” have an association with romance or sexual nature...

You know, until someone has the interesting idea to have two people “like like” each other platonically because, you know....recognition? 

There are maybe some things you can count on to mean certain things because, a real life person had to have written it and more than likely has at least some similar recognition patterns shared with their primary audience. Chances are, they wouldn’t be an individual who grew up in a place where their understanding of reduplication is opposite to, well, everyone else. But you never know, I guess. Again, there lies that point about subtext (here is the post, in case anyone is wondering) where you might be able to argue that, pretty much, a writer can make a mistake in their writing and mess up the whole process of recognizing elements within a context unintentionally, where it wouldn’t really BE subtext anymore. 

Other than that, most people’s issues with recognition is interlaced with their ability to identify what these elements are. Between context and what can be understood as “established meaning”, usually the answer can be discerned if the writer is truly creating something to be understood by other people. That’s where authorial intent and THEIR recognition starts to be considered the most by the audience.

Buuuuut I’m gonna stop there.

I’m probably more rambling at this point, but it is an interesting and WIDE subject, so it is to be expected. It’s fun stuff.

[bladekindeyewear]

HS^2 bloggin’ mainline 2020-08-23

More homestuuuuuck

I’m a little tired today so I don’t expect much intelligent analysis out of myself, but if anything classpecty happens I doubt I’ll be able to help myself regardless.

oh, always

(EDITS: added note on horn colors, link to ask on potential Blood powers reference)

> CHAPTER 12. Really Convoluted Metaphorical Horseshit

cuuute

In the bowels of a different ship, at a moment in time that is not pinpointable in either direction from the previous interaction, another Dave raps quietly to himself.

another dave raps quietly to himself.  i am glad that phrase exists it brings me joy

(LATER EDIT: A friend on Discord pointed out that throughout this entire update, Karkat's horns are #FF0000 red. They were normal candy-corn colors in previous glimpses at the ship crew, though they used a dark single-color shortcut typical of old Homestuck at one point... but THIS time it stays STARK red even when we zoom in close later. Is this just artistic liberty? Did Karkat color his horns for fashion? Does this happen to red-bloods like the Sufferer after a certain age? Just how much time has actually passed, here? We might have to wait for the commentary for this one.)

KARKAT: I WAS SAYING I THOUGHT WE MIGHT GO, I DUNNO, ANYWHERE ELSE ON THE ENTIRE SHIP WHILE THE CLOTHES WERE WASHING. KARKAT: SEEING AS THIS DECREPIT MACHINE WE WERE SO BLESSEDLY PROVIDED WITH MAKES A WHIRRING SOUND SO PANCHAFINGLY ARHYTHMIC THAT IT THREATENS TO ERADICATE THE ENTIRE CONCEPT OF TEMPO FROM THE UNIVERSE.

Karkat really has chilled out hasnt he?  like this is surprisingly level for him, and that fact is hilarious.

KARKAT: AND YET SOMEHOW BASICALLY ALL THAT HAS HAPPENED SINCE WE STARTED THE LOAD IS THAT YOU’VE BEEN USING IT AS A FUCKED UP BEAT TO WHISPER TO YOURSELF ABOUT FLOWERS TO.

oh gosh that’s why he’s rapping

> ==>

DAVE: kanaya was telling me this kids story the other day about this dude who didnt cherish a flower enough until it peaced out to do flower stuff idk its not pertinent to the story DAVE: except the flower was a person DAVE: because it was a metaphor

Oh right, coming back to the Little Prince stuff I was too lazy to metaphor-deep-dive into, and literally asking the same questions we were asking about who the Little Prince’s story applies to mapped here if anyone at all, like Dirk and such, or what biases were in the retelling of it and the way Kanaya phrased it.  So now we’re practically mocking it by deep diving it here, hence the last page’s “DAVE: i was just thinking through some really convoluted metaphorical horseshit”, which means we’re both about to further explore AND shit all over the existence of this story metaphor until it doesn’t mean anything and most of the meaning we drew from it earlier is made a joke~

well, not “we”, cause I was too lazy, so... y’all

DAVE: anyway what goes down in the story is that once the flower lady is out of the picture DAVE: the main character goes around making all these connections between her and everything else in the universe until every damn thing feels like a symbol for how much he fucked up and how much he will never see her again KARKAT: THIS SEEMS PRETTY FUCKING INTENSE FOR A KID'S STORY DAVE: yea thats pretty much what i said

Oh holy shit.  That’s yet another way to put it.  Are we doing a whole moral takedown of the Light aspect today?  cause it sounds like we’re taking a dump on the Light aspect and RoboRose getting too obsessed and immersed in it, which would be excellent

DAVE: but i guess its not so much what the story was technically textually about but more like the version of it kanaya internalized and then told me when we were talkin about how she misses rose

exactly

DAVE: so like now im taking the story she told me she was projecting her feelings onto and projecting my feelings on top of that

yes absolutely, you just rephrased it a different way with that exact same bias

DAVE: this is just one big game of emotional projection telephone so feel free to go paraphrase it to roxy later and make it about whatever fuckin thing youre currently missing

perfect. i need an emoji for that Italian thing for when you pinch your thumb and forefinger together and kiss it

ah this’ll do:

its like the expression “choice” but in nonverbal form

[...] whatever fuckin thing youre currently missing KARKAT: YOUR ABILITY TO GET TO THE POINT DAVE: gotem DAVE: anyway you’re not gonna have to miss that skill of mine for long DAVE: get ready for this shit because i am about to slap you with the point so hard youll fall ass first into the washer DAVE: just scrambling around in there getting all sudsy DAVE: but your brain is gonna be so blasted from the mindfreak of a point im about to make that there wont be anything left to clean

Anytime dave is told to get to the point he is contractually obligated to spend at least 20 seconds talking about how he’ll get to the point in a way that is not getting to the point

DAVE: so its genuinely cool that kanaya can go around creating meaning that may or may not be actually present in every little thing DAVE: connecting every feeling she has to the idea of her wife existing out there DAVE: so i told her she should keep that shit up DAVE: but im having the opposite issue where im struggling to find anything to be that kind of tether because every single thing i could possibly consider about what it is were doing just reminds me of yet another thing to be afraid about

Great examples of Light being good and bad!  Attaching strands of connective meaning to everything.  --though, in Dave’s case AND Kanaya’s case you could argue it’s both bad in terms of effects.  That it’s great for Kanaya to care, but that she should be able to divest herself and live on her own terms without idealizing Rose literally everywhere she looks, personal growth which would be useful in helping bring Rose back to her in the first place.  The struggle they’re looking forward to is largely philosophical, not just physical, and until Rosebot acknowledges that she was wrong it’s not over.

DAVE: everything fuckin sucks huge cosmic donkey sack and im terrified KARKAT: OK, SO I FEEL LIKE YOU SKIPPED A COUPLE NECESSARY STEPS IN YOUR POINT CLARIFICATION PROCESS.

Pretty sure Dave was on the same page as most Epilogue and start-of-HS2 readers.  This situation is pretty bleak to dump our heroes into, no matter how much we believe will be resolved in the long run.

DAVE: ok but were you going with sweet or savory please give me that much at least KARKAT: YEAH IT WAS GOING TO BE SUNDAE-BASED. DAVE: nice KARKAT: YEAH. KARKAT: DO YOU WANNA WATCH MORE GBBO AFTER THIS? DAVE: absolutely

--ah, Great British Bake-Off, can’t say I’ve indulged

do they still have that?? did they save it from old Earth?  or did they go where unflooded Britain used to be and say hey, new show reboot

KARKAT: GREAT. ANYWAY, LIKE I WAS SAYING, FOR THE LOVE OF SWEET HUMAN CHRIST, PLEASE BACK UP TO WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU’RE ACTUALLY SCARED OF. KARKAT: ALSO COME HERE, IDIOT.

That last line is like, exactly as fucking sweet and awesome as we imagined their relationship to be.  :)

> ==>

OH MY GOD THAT’S ADORABLE

DAVE: ok yeah this is a better position to unleash all my inner fears n anxieties from

indisputably.

DAVE: those times its like my mouth was saying words about the situation wherein our friends are AWOL and maybe dead but my brain wasnt fully letting me experience the emotion that goes along with them DAVE: man its like i cant even start genuinely thinking about how afraid i actually am for rose and john without my brain flippin its wad and whiting out DAVE: like haha fuck i hope theyre ok DAVE: now i better make a fuckin joke before i succumb to the gaping mouth of despair waiting for me to fall in it as soon as i look down and acknowledge that its there ogling how juicy my ass looks as it trembles with terror

I really hope that the writers of HS2 know full well that this feeling? the one Dave is describing here? is what many of us who got way overinvested in the well-being of Homestuck’s surviving characters felt reading the Epilogues and Homestuck^2.  So I really hope they’re working through it in a way that will result in a preponderance of GOOD THINGS happening and hope-filled situations.  Cause that “can’t even think about X” feeling is too familiar, and if they understand it as well as it LOOKS like they’re getting to, I’d really like them to give us a helping hand healing.

I think that’s what they’re going for?  Seems hopeful for me to think so, but they HAVE been doing better as HS2 has been going forward, from an emotional standpoint anyway; definitely better than the Epilogues.  And I’ve worked through some of that stuff with the help of that, because it’s MUCH easier nowadays to think about Homestuck without my gut clenching.

DAVE: i guess im just fucked up about how to worry about dirk and be angry at him at the same time DAVE: because if i get as unholy pissed at him as i sometimes wanna be i also gotta admit to myself that maybe i coulda done something different there

Mhmm, Karkat’s potentially a pretty good person to speak with here since he’s done so much work trying not to feel responsible for everything that’s ever gone wrong.

DAVE: also like DAVE: and this by the way adds a whole other layer of guilt on there that i dont really know how to fuckin reckon with but DAVE: even with all the shit hes pulled and the fact that we are more or less heading toward having to take him down DAVE: whatever that is gonna mean and whether or not he planned it like that DAVE: i just DAVE: me and him had come so far with each other and it was really cool for a while to have him and i DAVE: ugh DAVE: i dont WANT to hate him

Yeah, Dirk and Jane’s heel-turns were really shitty for anyone who was a fan of them in the fanbase, as well.

KARKAT: WELL THEN QUIT FUCKING PICKING AT THE SEAM ON MY SHORTS AND SPIT IT OUT. THEY'RE BARELY HANGING ON TO THE DEFINITION OF "SHORTS" AS IT IS.

That is an adorably real boyfriend-laying-in-boyfriend’s-lap thing to do

DAVE: the part i mentioned before about how we really have no goddamn clue how long this trip is even gonna take DAVE: i cant help but feel like its barely getting revved up DAVE: and for me and roxy and jade and callie and kan thats normal shit at best and boring at worst but we all have our immortality to thank for that DAVE: we can just dick around in space for near-eternity waiting to catch up to our friends who may or may not be our enemies now and itll be fine DAVE: i mean no itll be categorically miserable DAVE: but well survive it KARKAT: HOLD THE FUCK ON. DAVE: but you KARKAT: DAVE. DAVE: no lemme say this

Oh god damnit.  Karkat’s limited lifespan.  As if we hadn’t ALREADY covered a nauseatingly extensive gamut of disheartening topics of conversation.  We really have to confront every shred of misery in their past, present and future one after the other after the other in the Epilogues and HS2, don’t we?  >:(

I guess it had to be discussed, though.

DAVE: we dont talk about it much and i got shit to say about it DAVE: its not like i never thought about how youre mortal before but i just thought wed be able to figure it out before it mattered DAVE: come up with some kind of plan DAVE: i was just distracted being happy with you i fucking guess and so i didnt think up a way to fix it DAVE: and now thanks to dirk we have to work it out right the fuck now DAVE: because i cant spend this trip just sitting around watching you get old and die

Jesus.  I mean, WE know(?) that it’s not gonna be THAT many years, but THEY don’t know that.

Unless it really IS going to be that many years and HS2 is going to shamelessly take a fucking sledgehammer to our feelings for no goddamn good reason.  Which it won’t!  Right???  >:T

> ==>

Dishwasher ding

> Dave: Grapple with the clean, soggy consequences of the passage of time.

Hey, don’t make it a metaphor here. --though, fuck.  I suppose we are dealing with everyones dirty laundry.  God damnit.  SURE, deal with it all story but then GET IT OUT OF THE WAY AND PUT SOME SERIOUS FUN AND LAUGHS IN HERE so we don’t feel like we’re wading through an entire garbage dump!!!  *click*

Karkat’s eyebrows-only mouthless frown is really cute.

> ==>

okay Karkat explain the nope you’re lodging

> ==>

*put*

> ==>

*foot*

> ==>

DAVE: ok go on

I mean I at least appreciate the time investment in adorable boyfriends.  That’s definitely something of SOME good value they’re giving us in exchange for this misery

> ==>

That Karkat image makes me wanna do that red-shaky-gif-thing with it

KARKAT: IT'S NOT LIKE I'M NEW TO THE PARTICULAR MOOBEAST WRANGLING EVENT OF SOMEONE I PREVIOUSLY LOVED BRUTALLY TURNING ON ME AND LEAVING ME TO TRY AND CRAM MY FEELINGS ABOUT THE SITUATION BACK TOGETHER ALL ON MY OWN.

True

KARKAT: HE DID THAT ON HIS OWN. AND WE MADE THE CHOICE TO GO AFTER HIM ON OUR OWN.

Yes, and you’ll possibly convince him more of that over time, though not in this short conversation

KARKAT: I WAS FOLLOWING YOUR LITTLE TRAIL OF COOKIE CRUMB FEARS UNTIL IT LEAD TO THE BIG SNACK FINALE OF WORRY ABOUT MY FRAGILE MORTAL MEATSACK. KARKAT: IF I HAVE SOMEHOW NOT BEEN CLEAR ABOUT THIS WITH YOU YET, LET ME GO AHEAD AND RECTIFY THE SITUATION RIGHT THE FUCK NOW. KARKAT: HANGING OUT WITH YOU ON THIS LONG TRIP TO WHO THE SHITTING FUCK KNOWS WHERE IS QUITE LITERALLY THE HAPPIEST I HAVE EVER BEEN IN MY ENTIRE MEAGER EXISTENCE. KARKAT: I'M SO ABSOLUTELY BLISSED THE FUCK OUT OF MY MIND TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT YOUR STUPID IMMORTALLY SMOOTH HUMAN FACE SKIN EVERY DAY AND NOT HAVE A COMPLEX ABOUT IT.

D’AWWW

And with that darkly angry expression too, that’s PERFECT

I mean it’s true.  What exactly would they be doing DIFFERENTLY on Earth C other than enjoying each other like this?  It’s pretty fucking great.

...hm.  Isn’t this journey-not-the-destination stuff pretty Breathy?  Karkat’s proving more balanced by the moment.

KARKAT: AND I'LL BE STRAIGHT WITH YOU. IT'S NOT LIKE I HAVEN'T BEEN EXPERIENCING SOME COMPLICATED GUILT, MYSELF. KARKAT: THE FACT THAT I'M HAVING THE TIME OF MY LIFE JUST FUCKING CHILLAXING AND BEING IN LOVE IN SPACE IS A CLEARLY INCONGRUOUS WITH THE REASON I'M ACTUALLY HERE CHILLAXING TO BEGIN WITH, AND I'M NOT LETTING MYSELF FORGET THAT, EITHER.

Pff.  He feels guilty for ENJOYING IT so much.  <3

KARKAT: BUT I RESENT THE IMPLICATION THAT MY HAPPINESS IS REGISTERING FOR YOU AS YOU HAVING TO JUST "SIT AROUND AND WATCH ME GET OLD," BECAUSE I KNOW YOU KNOW IT'S MORE THAN THAT.

I’m glad Karkat knows that DAVE knows somewhere in him that it’s more than that, because yeah, if Karkat thought he DIDN’T know that at some level that’d be a reason to take MUCH MORE SERIOUS offense.

KARKAT: LIKE, JESUS, DAVE. YOU KNOW I'M AFRAID FOR YOU, TOO, RIGHT? KARKAT: OR DID YOU FORGET THE WHOLE HEROIC DEATH THING? KARKAT: I WORRY ABOUT LOSING YOU FAIRLY FUCKING REGULARLY.

Hah!!!  Point taken.  Karkat must view Dave as practically more fragile than HIM.

KARKAT: ONE: WE'VE BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH HELLACIOUS PANWARPING TRAUMA THAT I REFUSE TO NOT ENJOY THIS SHIT WHEN I FINALLY FUCKING GET IT, NO MATTER HOW LONG IT MAY OR MAY NOT LAST. KARKAT: TWO: IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE DOING NOTHING. WE’RE MOVING. WE’RE WORKING. WE’RE HEADED SPECIFICALLY TO A PLACE WHERE WE WILL UNDOUBTLEDLY ENDURE YET MORE FUCKING HELLACIOUS PANWARPING TRAUMA. KARKAT: AND THREE: WE'RE DOING THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE FRIENDS WHO WE CARE ABOUT THAT NEED US. THAT IS OUR FOCUS, HERE. NOT OUR FEAR. IT'S ABOUT THE PEOPLE WE HAVE TO SAVE. KARKAT: SO DON'T FUCKING WORRY ABOUT ME, DAVE. I'M FINE.

Okay, this is great and wholesome.  I am now retroactively GLAD that this topic got brought up.  :)

> ==>

Dave is still afraid. There is a part of him that will always be, he thinks. He has accepted this about himself. There is another feeling coursing through him too, though. It’s something he's felt before, though never quite so intensely. He looks up at Karkat and understands, viscerally, the simple power his words have. They pump through Dave’s own body, alive and warm and true.

He wonders if Karkat realizes it, or if he’s just, as always, saying what he feels as he feels it. Dave doesn’t attempt to dissect it further. There will be time for that later.

Every really loving moment like this is sort of undercut by the fact that it’s also, in some senses, part of alt!Calliope’s narration and, by extension, her fanfiction.

EDIT 2: There's also either a hint to potential Blood powers or even an explicit Blood power use here that I didn't recognize. I'm leaning towards it's-laying-the-groundwork-for-future-use-of-Blood-powers-but-isnt-magical-in-this-case.

> ==>

Smooooch!

That was nice.  Still gonna wait on doing any commentary til next time or a Bonus update or two, cause I’m beat.  See y’all next time!

[averagesmw]

DC Girls x Reader- Christmas time! (1/3)

DC Comics (Comics, not the movies)

A/N: This is a small one-shot collection, with the theme being the holidays!

I don’t own any of the images, they’re just so you can identify the characters easier

CHARACTERS:

- WONDER WOMAN/ DIANA PRINCE

- GREEN LANTERN/ JESSICA CRUZ

- BLACK CANARY/ DINAH LANCE

This is without a doubt, the most wholesome thing I've ever written. I hope you enjoy it and please let me know what you think! -----------------------------------------------------------------------

Diana Prince/ Wonder Woman

When it came to telling the truth, there was no one like Diana. She literally had a lasso to make others unable to say otherwise

But this day, in particular, she couldn't be more cryptic

It was December 21st, the Amazon had pretty much sent you the coordinates that led you to a snowy forest at a very specific time. The only part that was not a bunch of numbers was the message itself that read:

"It is important to me that you make it here, I will explain everything"

Fortunately, the place itself wasn't so far away, so you took a truck to get there. It didn't take long to find her seeing as she was the only one there, not wearing her armor, but a winter coat.

Next to her was a big pile of branches carefully placed and surrounded by rocks. She has definitely piqued your attention and when she laid eyes on you coming out of your vehicle, she smiled

"You made it"

She hugged you once you were close enough. For someone so strong, her hugs were so soft and kind

When the embrace was over, you looked at the makeshift fire she had built

"Of course, now mind telling me what's this?"

"This is why I asked you here. I want to celebrate with you"

She saw the puzzled expression on your face and with that same warmth, she chose to explain herself, as she had promised

"You see, Y/N, in Themyscira we don't have Christmas, but there is the winter solstice. Hence why I called you a couple days earlier"

"Right, and this is how you celebrate"

A torch had been finished while you talked, and Diana picked it up

"Without the wine and song, but yes"

She finished the torch by igniting it with a match, the fire quickly grew

"Unfortunately, I can't go home and celebrate with my sisters, so I chose you"

She handed you the torch and together, you ignited the fire. It was ironic, all your life you had been fighting fire, but this time, you started one

As you did so, she began to chant something with her eyes closed. It was not something you had heard before, but you remained silent to respect her tradition

From inviting the forces of nature and various spirits to join you to dancing and chanting, her ritual celebration was much more than igniting a fire. It truly felt like something from a land past your era, but that also gave it a sense of mystery and, unironically, wonder

Diana herself guided you through the whole thing, holding your hand (although you weren't sure if that was out of kindness or love) and even if you weren't used to it, you were able to adapt with some surprising ease

The perks of having such a dynamic job, perhaps

But when it concluded, she sat on a log near the fire and tapped a spot next to her, asking you to come over. And now, you were watching the fire together, also getting to rest from everything you had performed with her guidance

She was the first to break the silence after a couple of minutes of staring at the fire

"Impressive work, Y/N. It was quite gratifying celebrating with you"

"It was something, alright"

You said between breaths, a bit more tired than she was, but chosing not to make the gap between words that big

"But...it was nice, certainly something new to try"

"And for good reason. This festivity is a sign of rebirth, new light, and renewal"

Even now that the ceremony was over she continued to illustrate you on the meaning behind, well, everything

"Huh, well that explains a lot... I just got one question, though"

She looked away from the fire and into your eyes, intrigued

"Why me? I mean, I'm really grateful that you invited me, but I'm sure there's a bigger reason behind it"

This caused Diana to giggle, soon realizing that while she might have explained the activities, she was so into it that never actually explained the purpose of the whole thing

"As I said, this is a welcome to the new light that appears around this time of the year"

Then, she gently placed her hand on top of yours while the explanation continued

"But for people like us, who have a more intimate relationship with darkness, we stand guard against our own darkness..."

Her fingers soon found yours and in a swift, almost natural motion, she intertwined them with yours, making you look at her only to be met with the warm smile and bright eyes that only she could give

"As this reminds us that the light always comes back eventually"

So many things to say, ways to reply to that but...none came through, just her words echoing throughout your mind. Even if told last what was the ritual about, there was no denying that helping the flame burn, and fighting to maintain the light, it felt right

Perhaps your line of work isn't the same as hers, but the dangers that you face were still threats, and it would be so easy to simply stop answering the call, but if you were to answer just one emergency at the time, just one day at the time...it suddenly didn't felt all that bad

And who better to remind you of that, than Diana herself

You leaned closer to her and gave her a peck on the lips before being pulled by her for a sideways hug, resting your head on her shoulder soon enough

"I-I don't know what to say other than...thank you, Diana"

You felt her head softly touch with yours, chuckling. For a moment, not a word was spoken, the strongest source or noise were the fire burning strongly, and the wind blowing upon you

...Or at least until something else came to mind

"So...you mentioned earlier that you didn't have the wine or the dance to go along with this event"

The Amazon separated from you with one of her eyebrows raised

"Yes, what of it?"

A mischievous smile appeared on your face, being asked just the right thing

"Well...I might have brought some wine for you"

Diana stopped for a moment only to laugh at this incredible coincidence

"You just make everything better, don't you?"

Jessica Cruz/ Green Lantern

This year had proven to be quite an eventful time to be a lantern. Ending a war between two races, repelling a massive attack from the reds, curing a plague and even bringing down a maniacal dictator

And all that without mentioning the missions for the Justice league

Jessica found this to be overwhelming at worst, but she always had a certain someone to help her cope through everything and give her a boost... sometimes literally

However, it was during times like this where she really needed her partner, she needed you

But you were assigned to teach the new members of your core while she...well, laid down on the couch

It was weird, the JL had actually invited her to assist to a party in the watchtower but for reasons she couldn't explain, she turned them down

Maybe she felt like she wasn't as big of a hero as the other attendees...or maybe she just wanted to be away from the whole superhero life, at least for the day

The girl looked to her left to find the empty dining table, a sigh left her lips as the memory of her past emerged

Before becoming a Green Lantern, Jessica used to hang out with a group of people she proudly called her friends with whom she might have spent this holiday as well. But it all changed one faithful night

The same night their trip to the woods was highjacked by the wrong people, claiming not only the lives of her friends but also Jessica's very own

A grim moment that will forever be considered as life-changing and horrifying, but now, it served as a reminder

A reminder that she was alone, maybe by choice this time, but as she sulks in her own apartment

Jessica's previous life might be gone forever, but this new one that took its place also had its benefits, and one of them had just made it home

...with the sound of jingle bells

Not only did this strange sound stopped her previous train of thought, it sounded quite close to her, so close in fact, that it might as well have landed just outside her apartment

Intrigued to find the source of the noises, Jessica put on a leather jacket and opened the door to leave her place

What she saw, however, was both the weirdest thing she'd ever seen and the greatest:

She saw you on a blue energy construct resembling a sleigh with a small bag of presents on the back. Pulling it, were a bunch of reindeers so lively it was easy to forget they weren't real

Oh, and a Santa hat that wasn't a construct

She was about to ask the reason behind this unusual entry when you just winked at her before getting off the "vehicle" while saying:

"Jessica Cruz of Earth, you have been chosen..."

The tone used for this announcement was meant to parody the speech of the rings you worked with

From the sleigh, you pulled out the only other object that was real: a small box, wrapped like a gift and gave it to her

"...to have a merry Christmas"

Jessica was baffled by this, everything you did spoke volumes to her. It was almost enough to make her cry

But she didn't, instead, she immediately wrapped her arms around you for a tight hug. One that you gladly returned

"You came, you actually came"

Her voice riddled with joy and surprise as she buried herself closer to you

"I wouldn't miss it for the universe... literally"

She giggled at this, enjoying the embrace for a few seconds before taking a step back to look at you

"Thank you, Y/N, really"

It would take a while for the girl to process the rush of emotions you just caused her, but she was surprised the most by the smile on your face, the one that told her you were up to something

"And it's just the beginning"

You took her hand and guided her back to her own apartment, continuing to talk without looking back

"Come on, I've been aching to butcher the lyrics of a song with you"

Only after this did she realize that even if she had lost people before, she had gained someone who made her entire new life worth it. Someone who, even if busy on the other side of the universe, will still make some time for her and would even make her excited for what could tomorrow bring to the table

She was still afraid, there was no denying that, but if there's something that can overcome fear, is willpower, and if there's something that can fuel it

...is hope

Dinah Lance/ Black Canary

Differences are okay, they were what helped maintain individuality amongst the people, but the problem was when they wouldn't tolerate each other because of it

It was true, folks didn't come together as much as they used to. Yes, they would agree in some things but would never actually unite unless a catastrophe took place

Fortunately, there was another thing that would make them put their differences aside just for the sake of enjoyment. Such special times, were the holidays

This cheerful ambience more than compensated staying the whole day at the bar as you were asked to do

You were currently serving orders along the other bartender, pouring drinks left and right

Even the manager helped deliver them

"Nothing quite like a full house, eh?"

"You said it, sir"

"I don't know if I should punch or kiss you, Y/N"

Your coworker joked while she finished a drink, of course, catching you off-guard

"What? Why me?"

She wrapped her arm around your shoulders, stopping only to make you look around

"C'mon, a good part of these folks came to see you"

You got a view of the customers, chatting and drinking, giving you all sorts of smiles when they spotted you

You had a good relationship with them, going as far as letting them take the stage when they wanted to try something. As wonderful as it was, it wasn't all you

Yes, there was someone else who helped spark this harmony, and if you were to be complimented, it only felt right that your partner did too

"If that's the case, then it's not just me, y'know? They'd also be here for-"

"Dinah!"

The customers cheered in unison at the blonde entering the bar, visibly tired, but moved by this welcome

"Talk about the devil"

You shared a laugh before going back to your jobs, though it didn't take long for Dinah herself to join you by taking a seat as if she were a customer on the counter

"Hey, Dinah, busy day?"

"Not as busy as yours, it seems" She remarked with a chuckle

A couple signs of exhaustion didn't stop the girl from being herself around you, jokes included

Half an hour later, you were done and were finally able to get a drink, serving the last two drinks for Dinah and yourself as you took a seat next to her

"I don't know how do you do it"

"Do what?"

"This, pouring drinks non-stop for hours and still have that smile across your face like nothing happened, especially today"

She took a sip from her drink before looking at you

"Really, how do you?"

"Well, just look at them"

With this new breath of fresh air, she looked at the crowd, this time in more detail with your guidance

The regular crowd shuffled in, but it wasn't only them, a lot of new faces were present in the establishment and in some cases, even some celebrities

Regardless, they were all here, under the same roof, getting to forget about life for a while along both friends and strangers alike

People starting relationships, romances and even getting to know each other for the first time, and the best of it all: not single frowning face

Then, you paused to drink and concluded

"I do it just to see them all getting along. I don't know how bad is it for them, but watching them shake it off and have a good time makes it worth it"

There was no answer to that, You just saw Dinah stare at you with worried eyes and eventually, a smile

"Come here" She ordered softly

So you leaned close to her and she quickly held you closer to make your lips touch. Seeing as words failed at the moment, you felt her opinion about it when she intensified the act briefly

Dinah broke the kiss shortly after, still staring at you and smiling upon regaining her breath

"This world doesn't deserve you, Y/N L/N"

Before anything else happened, you heard one of the customers yelling from across the room

"Come on, Dinah, sing us a song!"

You chuckled together, being reminded of where you were

"Looks like you're needed"

You told her with a smirk, but then another voice chimed in

"You too, help the lady!"

This time Dinah was smirking, you were even now

"Looks like I'm not the only one"

She stood up and offered you a hand

"Now let's give them the show they deserve"

Nodding, you took her hand and together you got on the stage, much to the crowd's joy

"Let's start with one that you all know, better sing along with me!"

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 231: hey wHAT THE FUCK

Previously on BnHA: Horikoshi was all “lol what if the guy who can clone himself but is too afraid gets over his fears and makes like 200,000 of him,” and then he chuckled and did it. Re-Destro was all, “(. ❛ ᴗ ❛.) ...hey, Skeptic.” Skeptic was all, “!!!” and quickly faded himself out of existence like that kid in that one meme. The Legion of Twices rolled across the city leaving chaos in their wake, and helping Compress out of a jam in the process. Meanwhile King Cone continued to harass Dabi, who’s apparently starting to cook himself from the inside out, which I think we can all agree is probably not good. Then, over in the Ol’ Villain Laboratory, Ujiko abruptly decided to throw the LoV a bone and wake up Machia, because I guess Horikoshi was all “so anyway we should do that climax now I guess.” So on to the climax we go?

Today on BnHA: Machia awakens and starts zooming toward where the action is. We then cut to Osaka, where Hawks is apparently waiting for Dabi to show up (he’s late, wonder why that is) because he has a delivery for him. No idea what said delivery is, none whatsoever. Oh hey there, flashback of Best Jeanist -- OH NO. FLASHBACK OF BEST JEANIST, HAWKS IS COMING. OH MY GOD HE HAS AIRPODS ON HE CAN’T HEAR US ffffff. Anyway so we’re just going to ignore all of that, and back in the present Twice catches up with Spinner and Tomura who are both happy to see him and very pleased with his recent character development. The group of them have almost made it to Re-Destro’s tower, although both Spinner and Twice appear to be concerned about Tomura’s current exhausted state. The chapter ends with Twice (well, one of the Twices) arriving in the tower to rescue Princess Giran from Re-Destro’s clutches, which, fuck yeah.

(All comments are my 99% unspoiled reactions from my initial readthrough of the chapter. I did a quick edit for grammar and clarity immediately afterward, and added a couple of ETAs in the process, but aside from that there are no changes.)

so if anyone tried to send me an ask in the last 24 hours or so, you may have noticed that my inbox was temporarily closed (I’ve reopened it now). this was due to a very polite anon ask I received yesterday morning which was nonetheless ominous as fuck

like, holy shit, lol. so of course my brain immediately panicked and came up with a whole list of things that this could possibly be referring to

Giran dies

someone else dies

Horikoshi kills another dog

Kacchan’s provisional license is revealed but his thumb is conveniently blocking out his hero name because Horikoshi is, in fact, evil

Re-Destro transforms into a big ugly spider-crab creature like Overhaul

RD transforms into something even worse, like a mushroom, or a centipede

worst-case scenario: “My Hero Academia will be on break next week.” or for two weeks. or, god forbid, an entire month. can you even fucking imagine holy shit

so anyway, as previously mentioned I immediately closed my asks so as to protect myself from any potential spoilers, and then I settled in to wait. and now I am finally reading the chapter, so I guess I should brace myself for whatever terrible things are about to unfold

and we’re opening with... what the fuck...

I guess it’s a nose lol

lmao oh my god

are you telling me he is going to track down Tomura by scent. Tomura just how rank are you after six weeks of nonstop battling in the woods. no wonder Machia hates you so much. was it really so simple this whole time

anyway, so now this is happening

I’m not even the one he’s hunting down and even I’m terrified. say a quick prayer for the Liberation Army of Assholes, everyone. they were, as the name implies, assholes, but I’m not sure anyone deserves what’s about to go down. Geneva Convention about to be violated something fierce

ASKDFJLWIREFJOAIJDLKLSDKFJSLDAKF

WELL IF IT ISN’T THE BIRB TRYING TO GET IN TOUCH WITH HIS BOYFRIEND, WHO UNBEKNOWNST TO HIM IS CURRENTLY FIGHTING GOOD HUMOR WHILE TRYING TO COPE WITH HIS ORGANS BEING ON FIRE. HELLO THERE, HANDSOME

8. new worst-case scenario: Hawks fucking dies. oh my god. I’m about to go put this whole fucking chapter down right now and go take a walk while trying not to panic

so Hawks is crouching on that rooftop with a big ol’ bag. whatcha got there Hawks

(ETA: (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻)

and he’s being smart and stuff

okay correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure that Various Bits Of Giran ominously turning up at all of the League’s Greatest Hits locations ought to count as an incident related to the League. eh?? sounds to me like the Hero Network has been slacking

-- NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

9. NEW NEW WORST-CASE SCENARIO BEST JEANIST FUCKING DIES WHAT THE FUCK

(ETA: and I also missed the part about the sidekicks the first time around! what the fuck!!)

BITCH I REALLY AM ABOUT TO GO OUT ON THAT WALK!?!? WHAT’S HORIKOSHI’S EMAIL I WANT TO WRITE HIM A VERY STRONGLY WORDED LETTER

shit. well look. if I just stop right here and don’t finish the chapter then it can’t hurt me. but on the other hand, if I quit BnHA right now and delete my tumblr then I’ll never find out Kacchan’s hero name. so anyway this is a really big dilemma for me as you can see guys, but I guess I’m just gonna have to suck it up and read on anyway because I apparently hate myself

ohhhhh shit

who’s he talking to?? that doesn’t sound like Dabi. and Tomura doesn’t know that Hawks exists. I’m thinking this must be Ujiko, then

lol he’s apparently out in public while taking this call, and his adoring fans are all “OMG WHO’S HE TALKING TO IS IT HIS GIRLFRIEND.” first of all, I think we all know Hawks doesn’t swing that way. and second of all, haha nope

anyway so now he’s flying off to go get some fucking privacy

okay now I’m absolutely positive this isn’t Dabi lol

because if that is Dabi being all “SPICY!!!” then I must say I’ve really failed to get the correct read on Dabi’s character up to this point. like, I could not have gotten that more wrong if I tried

wow Hawks is really going all in on his whole “secretly disgruntled traitor” act. if I didn’t know better I sure would be convinced

I love the juxtaposition between what he’s saying and what he’s actually thinking here. he’s so fucking smart, it’s ridiculous. constantly playing this dangerous game of chess in his head and judging what to say and how to act to best gain their trust

wow who is this?? maybe it really is Dabi

either that or someone new?? is the plot thickening?? jesus christ I was not prepared for any of this, I thought it was just gonna be a chapter of Gigantomachia fucking shit up. not all of this Intrigue

yep it is Dabi. wow Dabi. I’m gonna call you Spicy from now on you little freak

-- HOLD THE FUCKING PHONE

BACK THE FUCK UP. IS THIS IMPLYING THAT FUCKING HAWKS IS RESPONSIBLE FOR KIDNAPPING OR FUCKING MURDERING MOTHERFUCKING ULTIMATE FINEST JEANIST, BECAUSE I’M ABOUT TO LOSE MY SHIT OVER HERE WHAT THE FUCK

AND NOW WE’RE CUTTING TO ANOTHER BUILDING SOMEWHERE, STILL IN FLASHBACK MODE, AND IMMA KEEP THE CAPSLOCK ON JUST IN CASE BECAUSE I HAVE A FEELING THAT WE MAY JUST BE IN NEED OF IT

I CAN’T BELIEVE HORIKOSHI WENT FROM “HAHA LOOK AT ALL THESE TWICES” TO “HAWKS FUCKING MURDERS BEST JEANIST!!!” IN THE SPAN OF A SINGLE CHAPTER OH GOD

OH GOD!!!

BUT CAN YOU LIVE WITHOUT TWO LUNGS, BEST DEAD MAN WALKING???

FUCKKKKKKKKKKKFLSDKJ

MAYBE I DON’T REALLY NEED TO KNOW KACCHAN’S HERO NAME AFTER ALL SOB IT’S BEEN A GREAT MANGA EVERYONE, WONDERFUL GETTING TO KNOW YOU ALL BUT I CAN’T

... [CLICKS TO NEXT PAGE WHILE SOBBING!!!]

HEY WHAT THE FUCK WHAT IS THIS! WHERE DID THE FLASHBACK GO!!

HEY GUYS. OKAY LISTEN. IF BEST JEANIST’S HEAD IS IN THAT BAG, I’M ABOUT TO RAGE QUIT THIS WHOLE SCENE THOUGH

aaaaaaand now we’re cutting back to King Joffrey* VS Choco Taco. great

*this is a reference to Game of Thrones you guys. “bring me his head!” it’s not the best joke because I immediately realized it would probably require an explanation, hence me explaining it right now. but I’m not gonna go back and delete it though because, well. if the shoe fits, Spicy Boi

maybe it’s not Best Jeanist’s head. maybe I’m having an extreme overreaction to this whole thing. maybe the bag is filled with flowers. or letters to Santa that he’s delivering. or something else really good and wholesome and not-terrible

maybe they found someone with a cloning quirk like Twice’s, and they made a fake Jeanist and decapitated him? Hawks isn’t a fucking murderer though, like surely he wouldn’t go that far to gain the League’s trust even if it would save a lot of lives in the long run. right?? someone please reassure me here I feel like I’m on a boat slowly drifting out to sea with no way back sob help

oh hey look who finally decided to show up again!

and Spinner too! somehow I straight up forgot about him. maybe he’ll finally show us his quirk and we can forget all this Sopranos bullshit

wow, despite being completely fucking tanked from sleep deprivation Tomura is actually having a very reasonable conversation with Spinner and I’m fucking impressed actually

it’s really starting to seem that the lack of sleep is actually making him saner, which is extremely intriguing. it’s like whatever brainwashing/mental manipulation that Ujiko and AFO did is slowly losing its effect because of how tired he is. first the flashbacks, then the power upgrade, and now this uncanny single-minded focus that he’s developed. idk, just my theory, but I think we’re seeing a bit of his real personality starting to shine through here

anyway so I guess all these fuckers are about to die

place your bets everyone. will it be Tomura continuing on his rampage? Spinner finally revealing his quirk? Machia making his grand entrance? or a surprise entrance from Hawks wondering why his boyfriend didn’t show in Osaka like they agreed to retrieve his head in a bag sobbbbb

and maybe I should take back what I previously said about Tomura becoming saner, though. ...

though I mean, even if he’s saner in general he is still kooky from the no-sleep though

also it looks like the Twices have finally arrived! I didn’t even include them as an option to bet on. I’m really losing my touch here. it’s almost as if I’m distracted by something!!

okay, and now Twice is tackling Tomura to the ground for some reason while screaming “HIYAAAAH!” not how I was expecting you to deal with the situation Jin but okay

okay but not only is Tomura accepting this with more grace than some football quarterbacks, but he’s genuinely starting to remind me of Deku now holy shit. I take back my take-back. jesus christ when did he get so mellow?!

“I have no idea why you just fucking shoved me into the pavement for no reason but wow, you’ve really gotten stronger bro!” okay, things I was not expecting to happen in this chapter: Hawks going Full Evil while Tomura inches ever closer toward being a straight up nice dude

Twice is all “yeah!!” and says he hopes he can finally be useful to Tomura now. aww

meanwhile the Army of Dipshits is charging in again since they all want to die, apparently. I keep waiting for a few of them to have an epiphany in the background and be all “you know what, maybe I should get the fuck out of here and to hell with Re-Destro though.” but nope, they’re all idiots. it’s really something

Tomura is so fucking nice. his niceness is the balm I needed to soothe my anxiety over Best Deadest Jeanist

... [headpats]

he remembers from before that RD and Giran are supposedly up in the tower, and he’s more than ready to kill the former. quote unquote, “kill him reeeealll good.” that’s what I like to hear, Tomura

oh my god

motherfucking League of Softies right here. well except for Todoroki “Queen of Hearts” Touya. there, I worked in a more accessible chopped-off-heads reference for you guys. anyways he has issues, but the rest of the League of Angels is very sweet though

so Twice is shouting “just leave it to mes! hang on Giran, I’m coming for ya!” and I suddenly got scared all over again for Giran oh my god. please don’t hurt him, I was prepared for it before but now Best Jeanist is dead probably and I’m a fragile, vulnerable mess who’s trying to cope with humor and failing sob please

oh my GOD

SHIGARAKI TOMURA I KEEP JOKING ABOUT HOW NICE YOU ARE AND YOU KEEP ESCALATING YOUR LEVEL OF NICENESS TO MATCH MY FUCKING EXAGGERATIONS THOUGH, WHAT THE FUCK. “I WON’T FORGIVE YOU FOR TOYING WITH PEOPLE’S HEARTS LIKE THAT.” FOR REAL?!?! WHO EVEN ARE YOU

oh it’s this guy again

so did I honestly

you deserve to die a quick and brutal “Indiana Jones shooting the guy with the big sword” death, buddy. my fingers are crossed for Gigantomachia to just plow right through you as soon as I click to the next page. Horikoshi owes me, so

goddammit

wow this is almost verbatim Syndrome’s speech from the first Incredibles

also these guys just keep on getting more horrible. good job assholes

so Spinner’s thinking to himself that every time Hanabata gives a speech his lackeys get more fired up. and he’s wondering what to do because ‘I can’t let Shigaraki get any more exhausted!’

the love these guys have for each other though, I swear. like it genuinely is the sweetest thing. honestly the only real problem I have with this arc so far is that my disbelief is going to be crazy suspended if and when they go back to kidnapping kids and shit after this arc. there’s just no way I’ll be able to reconcile that in my head with the current League of Darlings here. I feel like it would be more consistent for their next scheme to be them angrily raising money for a charity or something

now what’s happening up in the tower

oh shit

that was fast Jin

and he continues to be hot. now he’s even doing it while still wearing the Deadpool mask! this is outrageous

gotta love that trash talk. “so you’re the asshole that kidnapped our broker and chopped off his hand and beat up my girlfriend! well guess what! YOU’RE BALD YOU BIG JERK”

Giran hotness status: still hot. this one basically goes without saying but it’s still worth a mention

bold fucking move bringing up your dead mouse secretary, Re-Jerko. sob. please don’t kill Giran or Twice. is that the real Twice?? -- no, because the real Twice is still sitting in that backyard with his arms broken, that’s right. but still, I’d prefer if you didn’t kill this one either though but whatever

where is Skeptic. you’d figure he’d have run into him on his way to the top of the tower. that’s unsettling, him still being out there somewhere

lastly, so long as Schrödinger’s Jeanist’s status remains unconfirmed I will go ahead and assume those really are letters to Santa in Hawks’s bag. that’s so sweet of you Hawks. you’ll fit right in with the League of Saints and I’m sure they’ll be pleased to welcome you

what a sweet and wholesome chapter where nothing bad happened and Best Jeanist is probably just off in Tahiti somewhere enjoying life with his one remaining lung well good night everyone

[oumakokichi]

Can I ask why you ship Saiouma? I like the pairing conceptually, but in game, Saihara seems completely cold and indifferent to Ouma. Even before chapter 4 and the real start of Ouma's mastermind ploy, he doesn't seem to care at all about him or interested in figuring him out beyond his lies. He doesn't even care that he got bashed in the head by a floorboard. He does show interest in him after his death, but while he's alive, there's not much there. Did I miss something? What do you see in them?

I’ve had this ask in my inbox for quite a while—partlybecause life has been really, really busy these last few months and I didn’thave any time to write, and partly because I wanted to write a much longerresponse for this question. You aren’t the only person who’s asked me this sortof question, anon! But it’s been such a long time since I really wrote in-depthabout what appeals to me in their dynamic, why I started shipping it, etc.

Ships are always a matter of personal preference, of course,so I can completely understand if saiouma isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I don’tintend for this post to be a way to “convince” anyone or anything like that.This will just be a post detailing my thoughts on Saihara and Ouma’s individualcharacters, their interactions with each other, their potential fordevelopment, and why I personally really, really like what they have to offeras a ship.

I’ll be covering full-game spoilers, of course, so anyonewho wants to avoid them shouldn’t read!

To begin, I wouldn’t say that Saihara seems “cold” or“indifferent” towards Ouma prior to Chapter 4. Instead, I think he’s very muchwary of him—unsure of how much of what he says he can trust, but still definitelyintrigued by his lies. As a detective, Saihara’s role is to seek out and detectthe truth, no matter how difficult or painful it might be. By calling himself aliar at every given opportunity and simultaneously making huge, grandioseclaims (that he’s the leader of a secret evil organization, that saidorganization has 10,000 members, that he controls mafia organizations and theworld itself from the shadows), Ouma invites him to “solve” him, in a way.

Saihara takes on that challenge, too. Up until Chapter 4, inno way does he ever completely cut himself off from Ouma or distance himselffrom him completely. Rather, Ouma is the one keeping him at bay, nevercompletely letting him in or giving him a chance to know “the real him.” Nomatter how much Saihara wants to know the truth about Ouma’s lies, no matterhow skeptical he is of him, there’s only so far he’s allowed to come in gettingto know him.

He’s paranoid, unsure of who might be the ringleader or apotential killer, and as a result, he refuses to trust anyone but himself. Butthis means that he himself is the biggest obstacle to forming potentialalliances or friendships with others. Rather than opening up or letting peoplein, he keeps them at bay—and even when he does make a very guarded offer inChapter 4, he goes about it completely the wrong way, opting to antagonize,rather than to let his walls down or be entirely honest. It’s just not hisstyle. As Saihara says in Ouma’s final FTE, even if he reaches out his hand toOuma, Ouma won’t take it.

And therein lies the biggest problem with their relationshipin-game. Saihara does want to knowmore about Ouma—he wonders pretty frequently what Ouma’s true intentions are,what he’s up to, and what he’s thinking. But he’s also extremely nervous aroundhim, because of how flippant Ouma acts all the time. As someone with anextremely good eye for detail, he can tell when he’s being pushed away. Healso, as it so happens, doesn’t like feeling like his time is being wasted orhis feelings are being dismissed.

Saihara puts up with a lotfrom his classmates. That much is apparent. He’s pretty much a doormat, rarelysticking up for himself or putting his foot down. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’tget tired or snippy every once in a while. Often, his snippiest and most sarcasticthoughts are directed at others whenever he feels like they’re belittling himor looking down on him. It’s why he seems so bored and uninterested when Momotatries telling him the grandiose tales of his life in his FTEs—because he’sconvinced Momota is lying to him, and therefore wasting his time.

This is pretty much his dilemma with Ouma all the time. Throughoutthe entirety of ndrv3, Ouma almost never admits when he’s being serious orhonest. Despite his fascination with mysteries and clues, Saihara stillultimately prefers when people are honest and sincere with him. The idea of investingtime and effort into reaching out to someone who’s going to continually pushhis hand away is exhausting to him—and rightfully so.

Take, for example, the scene you mentioned in Chapter 3,where Ouma does actually get his head bashed in while searching for clues.Saihara and Maki come across him, and while both of them are surprised to seehim there, there’s not really a lot of concern shown. But this ties back to thewariness and uncertainty that I mentioned. Ouma seems to be hurt pretty badly (and, in fact, he really is)—but Saiharais never sure of how serious Ouma is being. Because it’s Ouma, there’s always apossibility that he could brush everything off in the next minute as a joke ora lie.

As a matter of fact, that’s exactly the reason most of thefandom had such a negative reaction to Ouma’s “death” scene in Chapter 3. Priorto the game’s localization, many people had only seen gifs or still images ofOuma playing dead, and I think many fans assumed he was doing it simply to fuckwith the player and the other characters alike. I saw many people assuming hefaked being injured entirely, much like Yamada and Celes faked being injured indr1 Chapter 3, despite the fact that there was no infirmary to steal bloodpacks from in ndrv3, and that Ouma himself even admits that the injury is real.But as most people didn’t know this, many people had very negative assumptions about his fake death in Chapter 3.

This is the main problem Saihara has with Ouma’s behavior.He’s constantly afraid of reaching out to Ouma, only to be made fun of or takenadvantage of. Saihara is someone with an inherent need to find the truth, as adetective—but he’s also terrified of the truth, having been traumatized badlyby it before. All of the constant layers of uncertainty and mystery around Oumaleave him intrigued, but definitely afraid of having his good intentionstrampled all over. He’s wary and skeptical of Ouma, but without necessarilybeing cold or indifferent to him.

This is notably different from Hinata’s relationship withKomaeda in sdr2—as most people know, it’s completely impossible to finishKomaeda’s FTEs if Hinata failed to spend time with him in Chapter 1. AfterKomaeda’s actions in Chapter 1, Hinata feels far too betrayed and furious withhim to ever risk letting his guard down again. Even if you attempt to spendmore time with him, it all amounts to pretty much nothing, as Hinata isconstantly suspicious and resentful of Komaeda, and Komaeda, as a result, neverhas a proper opportunity to talk or open up about himself.

The urge to get to know Komaeda is never there unless Hinataalready began the process of befriending him early on—in which case, eventhough he’s still undeniably skeptical, he’s willing to at least hear him outwithout constantly expecting the worst. But Hinata’s feelings of personalbetrayal are too strong for him to ever let go of them completely, hence why hesuspects Komaeda is up to no good nearly every time he comes across him in themain story.

I think this sort of dynamic is what many people perceiveSaihara and Ouma having, but the fact is that’s not entirely true. Saihara isnever personally betrayed by Ouma throughout the entire game. Even at hisworst, in Chapter 5, Ouma’s claims of being the ringleader are meant as adeliberate blow against the entire group, in order to catch them all off guardand take away their willingness to try and escape to the outside world, rather than a personal attack on Saihara.

There is no point at which Ouma ever personally wins Saihara’strust and then betrays him, because Ouma invites doubt and skepticism from theothers from the start. Literally starting with his introduction, he callshimself a liar constantly, always casting unnecessary doubt on his own claims—becausehe wants Saihara and the others todoubt him. By putting everything about his own words and behavior into asuspicious light, he not only succeeds at pushing everyone else away, but alsoslowly but surely manages to craft himself up into a devious, larger-than-lifecharacter.

I think this explains most of the distance between the twoof them in-game. It’s an exhausting, never-ending challenge, trying to figureout how much of what Ouma said was a lie or not. Even in his final moments, hetried his best to remain a mystery, going to his death in a literal catbox. Hewas fine with being hated and resented, as long as it meant a shot at trying tostop the killing game and striking back at the ringleader.

The horrible, morally grey lengths Ouma was willing to go toin order to attempt this is largely the reason Saihara becomes considerablycolder to him from Chapter 4 and on. Both because of his role in plotting Gontaand Miu’s deaths, and because of his claims that he was the ringleader and theone behind the religious cult that led the SHSL Hunt, Saihara runs into thesame pitfalls as everyone else, fully buying into Tsumugi’s flashback light andbelieving that Ouma must have been the leader of the Remnants of Despair as aresult.

But, as you mentioned in your ask, Chapter 6 is what largelyprevents Ouma from staying in the catbox forever. Despite Saihara’s lingeringdoubts that Ouma might still have been lying in his final moments, Chapter 6presents one piece of evidence after another proving that he was really andtruly not the villain he pretended to be. Everything, from the childish natureof his research lab, which Saihara notes feels like “someone just pretending tobe a supervillain,” to the constant trail of clues which Ouma himself left forthem all following his death, all help to chip away at those doubts.

The most notable piece of evidence, however, is Ouma’smotive video. Sadly, the impact of this motive video is somewhat diminished inthe NISA localization. As I’ve mentioned before, the translation for it wasbutchered, with the most important reveals actually left out entirely, to the pointwhere it seems like Saihara is literally making stuff up on the spot in thetrial later on. But in the original version of the game, it’s madepainstakingly clear that DICE, with Ouma as its leader, was an organizationfundamentally against murder, with its most important and fundamental rulebeing “don’t kill people.”

These clues and evidence all tie together to paint a verydifferent picture of Ouma, one that I think left Saihara honestly conflictedafter his death. After the stunts Ouma pulled in Chapter 4, it makes completeand perfect sense that he didn’t seek him out or want much of anything to dowith him. Ouma claimed to be the worst sort of person, someone who enjoyed thepain and suffering of others, and Saihara and most of the rest of the groupbelieved him. But seeing so much direct evidence to the contrary, as well asrealizing how hard Ouma was trying to stop the killing game left him thinkingback on the way Ouma had acted and the things he had said.

Many of those things were themselves clues in the grandscheme of things. Seemingly offhanded comments or remarks he makes to Saiharain his FTEs look very different in hindsight—particularly the line in his finalFTE about how “some games can be won without playing them.” This is ultimatelyexactly what Saihara does in the final trial: in order to bring Danganronpa toan end, he and the other survivors refuse to participate in the game anylonger.

And it’s Ouma’s outlook on lies, rather than any other,which is the closest to Saihara’s own by the end of the game. Rather thanthinking of lies or truth in black-or-white terms of “bad” and “good,” Saihararealizes that lies can themselves be elevated to the status of “truth” ifpeople recognize them as such, and fully believes in their potential to changethe world and bring comfort to others.

This is why I find their dynamic so fascinating: theircharacters are directly meant to parallel each other. In a game about truth andlies, both of them represent an opposite side of the spectrum. And yet, both ofthem constantly delve into the other side. Saihara, in his efforts to seek outthe truth and help save everyone as a detective, has to lie. At least once per trial, he has a mandatory perjurywhich cannot be avoided. And Ouma, in order to better mask his true intentions,constantly mixes in bits and pieces of the truth with his lies, in order tomake it all the more difficult to tell how much of what he says can be taken atface value.

Under other circumstances, their relationship could haveturned out drastically different. The bonus mode is a pretty good look intothat. Like all bonus modes, it allows us a glimpse of a scenario in which thereis no killing game, and therefore no need for excessive doubt or paranoia. As aresult, in Ouma’s prison mode ending, he’sactually the one to reach out his hand to Saihara—a direct throwback to hisFTEs.

What I find the most interesting about Ouma’s prison modeending, though, is the fact that it lampshades a very important fact: thatSaihara still doesn’t really know anything about Ouma, but that he wants toknow more. Ouma himself says as much, and in his own internal narration, Saiharaacknowledges that he’s completely right (while blushing, no less). The lies andmystery surrounding Ouma left him wanting to know more, but unsure of how todetermine the truth. And at the very end, Ouma offers to let down his walls andgive Saihara a glimpse of “the real him.”

This potential for two characters constantly growing andgetting to know one another is perhaps one of my favorite tropes in fiction. It’swhat I love in any kind of ship, and definitely the reason I started shippingsaiouma in the first place. It’s very, very true that it’s impossible to ever really know another person (especiallynot in a matter of about 10 days, like in the bonus mode). We can, at most,know different “versions” of someone, the facades that they present to us andto others in their daily life. But getting to know someone is a constant,ongoing process; it literally never stops. I can vouch that I’m still gettingto know things about my significant other even to this day, and we’ve beentogether for years now.

With Saihara and Ouma, there’s this constant feeling ofback-and-forth, the dilemma between trusting and doubting. Saihara wants to know more about Ouma, but istoo afraid of putting his trust in someone so obviously dubious, only to bemade fun of or belittled in the end. Ouma wantsto trust Saihara—it’s why he took the risk of offering an alliance with him inChapter 4 in the first place, even if he went about it the complete wrong way.

He was fascinated by Saihara’s ability to grow and developoutside of the expectations he held for him; he thought he had him completelypegged, but Saihara’s ability to keep pushing forward even in the face of traumaand depression caught him off guard. This is why he becomes so much moreobviously interested in Saihara starting around Chapter 2. As soon as Saiharaputs his hat aside and takes the first, conscious step towards overcoming hisanxiety and feelings of inadequacy, Ouma begins to pay him considerably moreattention, culminating with describing him as “the person I fell in love with”(suki ni natta hito) in Chapter 4 (which is, coincidentally, the exact samewording Maki uses for Momota in Chapter 5).

There’s a constant sense that things could very well havebeen different between them, if only Saihara had continued reaching out hishand, or if Ouma had put aside his arrogance and his paranoia and finally acceptedit. The “what-if”s are countless, and I enjoy considering them.

I also find it extremely interesting how inextricable theircharacter arcs are from one another. Saihara’s arc of growth and development isjust as connected to Ouma as it is to Momota and Kaede; for better or worse,Ouma constantly challenges him to solve the mysteries around them, danglingclues before him, always looking pleased and enthusiastic when Saihara managesto find the right answer. Despite trying to play the role of an antagonist, orat the very least, a conflict-bringer, it’s very telling in my opinion thatOuma always responds with praise and excitement to Saihara in particular—praisewhich Saihara himself is afraid to take at face value, because he’s stillconflicted over whether Ouma might be lying to him or not.

And again, for better or worse, Saihara is the closest thingto someone Ouma “trusts” within a game full of potential enemies andbackstabbers. Saihara’s ability to surprise him and catch him off guard issomething Ouma reveled in, even as it frustrated him to no end. This is why hewrote the phrase “can’t figure him out?” (yudan naranai?) on the whiteboardnext to Saihara’s picture (I believe the localization phrase was “potentialally?” or something of the sort).

Despite knowing he couldn’t afford to let his guard down,and feeling that he couldn’t risk any alliances for fear of being betrayed, hestill very much wanted to get to knowSaihara better. Just as Saihara couldn’t figure Ouma out, Ouma could neverfully figure him out either, and it really shows when you read between thelines. And I think he really did want Saihara to understand him, too—typically,you don’t leave clues for someone if you don’t want them trying to solve themystery. Despite how contradictory he was as a person, and despite howdifficult he made it, I think he really hoped that Saihara might be the onebest-suited to understanding him as a person.

I really love the potential for growth on both sides in their relationship. There’sa real sense that in order to truly get to know one another, they would have tostand on completely even footing—which is what a relationship should always belike, in my experiences. All relationships start first and foremost with thedecision to get to know someone and be friends with them, and that’s exactlythe kind of dynamic I love to see in fiction too.

As far as other reasons I ship them… well, I touched ontheir parallels as the characters that best represent “lies” and “truth,” butit’s also notable that they play the very obvious role of “detective” and “phantomthief” as well. This is lampshaded in Ouma’s love hotel scene, where his “idealromantic partner” is quite literally Saihara himself, and he plays the role of acaptured phantom thief. The phantom thief traits also coincide with what weknow about Ouma in the main story as well: heists and calling cards seem wellwithin the possibilities of the stunts DICE probably pulled, and it’s a notablefact that most phantom thieves adhere to a moral code against killing orharming others.

The detective-phantom thief dynamic is a popular one inshipping, not only for saiouma but for many other pairs from many differentfandoms as well. It’s a tried and true trope of fiction, even a basis for AUsin many cases. The idea of a game of wits, or “catch me if you can” scenariobetween two characters is one that I think appeals to a lot of people. Ipersonally enjoy it quite a lot, especially when the “chase” is framed as twopeople trying to study each other and figure one another out.

All of these parallels and contrasts with one another amountto so many interesting possibilities for what could have been between them. AndI love seeing those possibilities explored in fanart and fanfic alike. Fandomas a whole is generally a place to explore dynamics and potential which weren’tnecessarily used to their fullest in canon, so I think saiouma is a greatexample of just one such dynamic.

I’m sure that not everyone will find saiouma as a ship to beto their personal liking. Which is perfectly fine! Shipping is different foreveryone, and personal preference plays a big role in what we all like or don’tlike. Sometimes something that appeals to one person just won’t appeal at allto someone else, and that’s only to be expected. As long as people are havingfun and not harming anyone else in the process, I think it’s fine to just liveand let live when it comes to shipping.

This got very long, like I knew it would, so I’ll go aheadand stop for now. But I hope I was able to get most of my thoughts across, as asort of big reference post for why I ship saiouma. Thank you for stopping by,anon, I had a lot of fun writing this!

[bethelamor-blog]

15th blog - FINAL PITCHING

Fifty nine percent (59%) of all the parents in the Philippines have corresponding works and have trouble on how to keep their children (ages 2-12 years old) on track in scholastic performance while they are busy with their corresponding works.

Twenty percent (20%) of these parents wanted their children to have private tutor & 30% of these parents wanted to enroll their children in learning centers. All these parents take time in searching for tutors & learning centers physically

80% who knows how to teach in the Philippines wanted to gain extra income & 60% of them have problems in getting tutees & have no standard payment in tutorials.

60% of all the learning centers in the Philippines lack public awareness about their learning center which causes lack of enrollees.

We then interviewed tutors, learning centers, & parents.

According to interviews, twenty-nine (29) out of thirty-two (32) tutors said that some of them have difficulties in searching for their tutees & typically, their tutees are just their friends' children & there is no standard payment for their tutorial since the parent & the tutor are just 'friends'.

Thirteen (13) out of fifteen (15) learning centers said that their learning centers are not well-known & they only distribute flyers during summer as their means of advertisement. They said that some parents aren't aware if where they are located, if they even exist, & what are the trainings they offer.

Forty-eight (48) out of fifty (50) parents said that it really takes time in finding suitable tutor & learning centers where it has special trainings appropriate for their children most especially to those parents who are very busy in their works. Furthermore they said that not all friend referral tutors & learning centers are reliable.

But, worry no more! Hassle, no more! And delay, no more!....  because our solution will work for all the parents & instantly finds tutors and learning centers instead of searching for hours, days, or even weeks.

So, what's the solution?

FIND MY TUTOR APP! This mobile app makes it easy to find the appropriate tutor & learning centers for the children. The parents would be able to know where the learning centers are located & may it be as well that the learning centers & tutors are just in the nearby place where the users live. It can be for you, for you, & all for you.

Our mobile app platform focuses on searching for quality learning centers and tutors, enrolling to learning centers, doing meet up tutorials and advertising tutees.

So, how does it work?

If you’re a tutee, Just go to "Find My Tutor App", signup --> scroll and compare --> then click, interested.

If you’re a tutor or learning center, 

Just signup, fill up information like SUBJECTS, TRAININGS OFFER , preferred time and date, wait for admins activation, then connect to tutees. Very easy, right? 

So, this is the estimated market size in the Philippines.

There are 500,000 learning centers that offer kindergarten, preschool, elementary, & other special trainings such as public speaking training, performing arts, children's theatre, and playgroup.

There are 900,000 Professionals/NonProfessionals who want to tutor.

In tutees market size, there are 400,000 families who want to have tutors/enroll their children to learning centers. 

We then validated these to our potential customers & key partners. AND guess what? 94 out of these 97 key partners & customers agree & are beyond willing to invest! 

Aaand, all these testimonials can prove it:

But, how can we advertise our product?

Through EXISTING PLATFORMS in which we posted our video advertisement in facebook and our advertisement reached 802 views, 12 shares, and 29 comments.

Out of these 29 comments, there are eight (8) customers who are interested! Hence, we gained eight (8) customers in just less than a week at no cost! 

In calculating all the revenues and costs projected in 3 years, we could have accumulated revenue of 540,000 at year 1, 881,000 at year 2, & 1,640,000 at year 3.

So, how will we gain money?

This is through subscription fees suggested by our learning centers and tutors. Php300 monthly subscription fee for learning centers. In tutor, Php150 monthly subscription fee if one tutee is interested to her/him. Php500.00 if 2-5 tutees are interested, & Php1000.00 if 6-10 tutees are interested per tutor. In the admin side, we could monitor the interested tutees in tutor’s profile.

Whats our edge?

Only “Find My Tutor” app has PREMIUM, MEET-UP, ADVERTISE TUTEE, & ADVERTISE LEARNING CENTERS that others don’t have.

The project members are: King Kyle Asuncion, the HIPSTER. Patrick Mandang, the HACKER. Bethel Amor Bullecer & Shielou Cabactulan, the HUSTLERS.

What will then cost us to start?

It takes Php800,000 for the payment of App Launching and to survive the startup in two months.

We are the team XYZ, the“FIND MY TUTOR” APP DEVELOPER, providing easy to find learning centers & helps connect learning centers & tutors to tutees.

We then did project demo. After the demo, Engr. Closas ask if how will the parents know about the existence of our app then we answered that it is thru advertisement in the facebook in which it is what we’ve done three weeks ago. This type of traction channel enables us to gain tutees at no cost then we went to them physically & do the app-testing and fortunately, all of them approved. Engr. Closas asked about the process then we answered that first, the key partners (learning centers & tutors) will register. Note that the learning centers & tutors are separate as shown below: 

After registration, our key partner will then be pending -- waiting for our activation, we will then call them & tell them how much will they pay us & we will let them pass certain requirements like for tutors --> PRC license, NBI clearance, & IDs. For learning center, we will conduct background inspection.

Payment is given to us thru remittance (e.g. Palawan Pera Padala), then after we received the payment, background inspection, & requirements fulfilled and passed by the tutor/learning center, we will then activate them in the admin & they will then be displayed in the app.  

Engr. Badek ask us if how about the tutee’s side, will they pay us? We answered, No. Just like the method of ‘Angkas’, it’s not the passengers who will pay but it is the drivers. 

Engr. Badek then asked us if how are we sure that the app will still be used (will not be lost) during the duration of tutorial? We answered that we would monitor the transactions of tutor-tutee & learning center-tutee. In the tutor side, they have different schedules. What if the customer is vacant in this certain time but the tutor isn’t available or his/her shedule changed, then the customer can shift to another tutor. Or in the learning center side, maybe the rate of one learning center decreased & the other one increased, then the customer has the free-will to choose. Again, the learning centers & tutors are independent from each other. So Engr. Badek suggested to us that we should really monitor the transaction between our key partners & customers so we could monitor how much will they pay us & our app will be sustainable. Our key partners said that if they could gain more than one customer in a month, why not will they pay us at a higher cost? In every transaction & in every session, they should really present an update in our app, by that, we would gain commission and will not waste many money in the table and that would help our app to be sustainable.We should communicate continuously because first and foremost when they register to us, their information (contact number, name, gmail, address) will be recorded & displayed in the admin side and we can use that so we & the key partners would contact & negotiate continuously with each other.

Technopreneurship - a subject that is honestly speaking: hard, tiring, & challenging. Lots of challenges, brainstorms, rejections, & discouragements. It was hard. It was. BUT. Later on, it is guts-gaining & character molding. I think this is the most important thing that I learned -- coping up with discouragements & becoming resilient -- resilient enough to face another challenge but braver & bolder this time. I’ll be forever grateful because this subject didn’t only taught us things that will be stuck inside the four corners of our room, rather, it taught us things that are applicable in real-life situations that would last for a lifetime. All the learnings that I’ve got in this subject will serve as a life-long learning for me & my team and I will surely miss this subject. Thank you & God bless Engr. Bronson G. Mabulay! Kodus & well appreciated! :)

[gofridlyckans-blog]

How to Make an Indy Film

So what do you do when you have non-professional actors and no budget? You embrace the docudrama/neo-realist film making philosophy. When you cannot afford special effects and fancy cameras, you don't strain your budget. You make minimalism your special effect and you blur the lines between fiction and reality. For a church film, I would suggest a mission's docudrama in black and white. We've seen the docudrama's success in films (Blair Witch Project), Sit-Coms (The Office) and Reality TV (Jersey Shore). This paper will explore the philosophy behind producing this hybrid genre.

Pre-Production and Neo-Realism

Rossellini, the father of the Italian Neo-Realist movement, had no intentions of creating a movement. He essentially said this all came about from not having enough money to do anything else. This makes pre-production less complicated for independent filmmakers. Behind all the rhetorical tropes, neo-realism amounts to shooting on location, and re-writing the script to fit the real people/ non-commercial actors that are available. In many ways the script is 50% staged and 50% improvisation, this culminates with a very intense sense of reality on the screen.

When Roberto Rossellini released his early film Open City, people were saying how realistic it looked; hence the term Neo-Realism. Andre Bazin, film theorist, was a huge fan of neo-realism and Rossellini in particular. The goal, according to Bazin, is to achieve the totality of life by looking at its simplicity.

Rossellini was able to bring reality back to the entertainment world at a time where the films were getting bigger and more fantastic. Instead of escaping reality, Rossellini made us face it. Instead of flooding us with stunning set designs and special effects, they gave us "fragments of reality" and invited us to take part in piecing the meaning together.

At the time of the war, Rossellini believed there was a desperate desire for truth in film. This is why he attributed a moral position to his filmmaking. No one was reporting what was really happening during the war and he wanted people to know. He used film narrative to expose this truth. There were dramatic stories really happening all around him and he wanted to capture them. It is arguable that The Hurt Locker and Precious could fit within a neo-realist hybrid.

Bazin campaigned for true continuity: deep focus, wide shots and a lack of montage. This would leave the interpretation of a scene to the audience member. The present-day neo-realist does not necessarily uphold to all of these somewhat obsolete standards of objectivity, but the current docudrama approach does strongly encourage a similar interpretation on the behalf of the spectator.

One of the best parts of Richard Linklater's film Waking Life is when the main character is watching a film where filmmaker Caveh Zahedi and poet David Jewell discuss Bazin's theory on realism. They highlight Bazin's Christian belief that every shot is a representation of God manifesting creation. So we are essentially watching a movie within a movie that is talking about film theory. What is even more eye opening is when they employ his aforementioned theories, saying "let's have a Holy Moment." What follows is a very creative quest for an elusive filmic aspiration to capture the truth.

Production - Successful Examples

Some argue that fiction cinema has embraced, more than ever, non-fiction aesthetics. Several filmmakers are simplifying there film language.

Blair Witch Project

Myrick and Sanchez's Blair Witch Project, released in 1999, is one of the most well known hybrid successes. It artificially vacillates between art and life. One of the techniques that I would employ into our film would be using the properties of something like a Hi8 (shaky cam). This technique, like the original neo-realists, creates fragments of reality and invites the audience to peace them together. For example: shaky cam jerks the subjects in and out of the frames, shifts focus in and out, and uses long continuous handheld shots. This style relies heavily on immediacy and intimacy.

In This World

Michael Winterbottom made a film on an immigrant's road trip called In This World (2002). They took one digital camera, using portability and the journey setting. Although half of the film was staged, the street scenes, crowds and marketplaces were not staged. The visual effects of the real helped to draw us into the scripted journey and human drama that was at the heart of the film. It then reverts to documentary mode at the end by using title cards.

Five

Kiarostami, director of Five, takes five long takes to make his film. This film makes use of the long takes that Bazin identified as part of the neo-realist movement. There were several "holy moments" where director Kiarostami captures fifteen minutes or so of the ocean or the moon in a pond. Kiarostami continues to avoid complicated plot structure and unnecessary artifices in the film Ten.

Dogme 95

The Dogme 95 group consists of several people including: Thomas Vinterberg, Lars von Trier, and Kristen Levring. This group sparked neo-realist filmmaking in several impoverished locations. This was a return to the natural feel of filmmaking. The Idiots not only subverts big budget Hollywood filmmaking, but it also calls into question documentary filmmaking. The opening scene draws you into this conflation immediately.

Ford Transit

Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad directed a hybrid film called Ford Transit (2002). Using a 16mm camera, Abu-Assad tells the story of a Palestinian transit driver named Rajai. Rajai must transport locals through military check points in Ford minivan. While keeping the camera mounted on the car for the majority of the film, Abu-Assad also manages to keep the tension at an all time high. In 2003, this film won the Best Documentary Award at the Jerusalem Film Festival.

When Abu - Assad's film was accused of being fraudulent he responded by saying his film is both a documentary and a fiction. Like the film Precious, this film could have happened and did happen. Just because the events we're watching may be acted out does not mean that they are fictitious.

Like Bazin, we can transition into this filmic style easily because neo-realism does not conflict with the Christian message. According to Bazin, it emboldens the Christian message.

Low Budget Marketing - Post Production

Okay, now we have a product that needs some editing but the big question is how in the world do we get this film in the theater? Did we go through all of that for nothing? Should it just go straight to DVD? Even then, how do we get it out there in the book stores and on Netflix? Straight to DVD is definitely an option. I would like to posit editing a short version of the film and using the rest of your budget on one or all three of these options: book formats, networking or film festivals.

Investing In Your Fan Base

One of the more time consuming methods of marketing your film is to first market it as a novel and gain a strong reading fan base. The documented success of the novel will make adapting the novel into a film, for a big company, much easier. I know one may think this process involves just as much funding but if you get published, it costs you nothing. If you self publish, it still cost much less than making a feature and financing the distribution. At least by doing it this way you have the ability to more readily distribute your product and you avoid straining your budget. This also allows the production value of the film to reach a high quality level when it becomes a feature film. Here are a couple of examples:

The Shack

William P. Young worked with Brad Cummings and filmmaker Bobby Downes with the initial purpose of witnessing to others about the glory of God, but ultimately Downes and Wind Blown Media wish to turn this book into feature film. How did they turn this story turn into a best seller? After submitting the book to 20 different publishers and getting 20 rejection letters, they decided to print the book themselves. They marketed their book with a $300 podcast and sold their first million copies out of their garages.

A Time to Kill

Christian author John Grisham had 15 publishers and 30 agents reject his first novel. After getting tired of the process he decided to publish the book himself with Wynwood press in 1989. In 1996 it was made into a crime thriller starring Samuel Jackson, Matthew McConaughey, Kevin Spacey and Sandra Bullock. It took in nearly $110 million at the box office and was nominated for several MTV awards.

Networking

The makers of Facing the Giants admit that they got lucky when they called Sony and asked for the rights to some of their music. Sony pictures eventually endorsed the film and helped with the funding and distribution. There are several stories like this where Christian departments in Hollywood companies try to network with Christian filmmakers in order to garner the Christian audience.

For example, Sony also signed a production deal with Bishop T.D. Jakes after his film Woman Thou Art Loosed, drew theater goers through grass - roots marketing in black churches. Jakes also fits into the "investing in your fan base" category because he initially self-published a book version of this film. Lions - Gate is funding Tyler Perry who wrote several successful feature length films: Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Madea's Family Reunion, Why Did I Get Married 1 and 2. Tyler Perry recently helped to endorse the independent -film Precious. This film was initially headed directly to DVD but has gone on to be nominated for several Academy Awards, including best picture.

Film Festivals

Making a short film and submitting them to film festivals is one good way to get distribution and funding for a full - length version. Several film makers have done this to get their films into the theaters.

Sling Blade

Billy Bob Thornton and director George Hickenlooper have debated about whether this film was originally a short film. But the facts are these: Thornton says Sling Blade was originally a 1986 one-man play called Swine Before Pearls. Hickenlooper has footage of the short film called Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade. It was shot in a very neo-realist fashion. It was even shot in black and white. It is too bad that they had a falling out because Thornton went on to win the Academy Award for best original screenplay. Visit

He was also nominated for Best Actor in a leading role. He has since been in several successful Hollywood films: Armageddon, Astronaut Farmer, The Apostle. Oddly enough Some Folks, was shot in the same Simi Valley hospital where Terminator 2 was shot. More

Napoleon Dynamite

This was originally a short film called Peluca. Writer Jon Heder and director Jared Hess were college students at BYU with less than 500 dollars. They took some black and white 16mm film stock, which they accidentally over exposed, and went to Idaho to shoot a nine minute film. Although they accidentally over exposed the film, it gave their short an artistic look. Peluca became a hit at Slamdance in 2003. A year later Napoleon Dynamite hit Sundance.

This film went on to aggregate a loyal following and win several awards: In 2005, the film won three MTV Movie Awards, for Breakthrough Male Performance, Best Musical Performance, and Best Movie. This film was rated number 14 on Bravo's "100 Funniest Movies". It also won four awards at the Teen Choice Awards: Best Movie Breakout Performance - Female for Haylie Duff, Best Movie Dance Scene, Best Movie Hissy Fit for Jon Heder, and Best Comedy.

Half Nelson

Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden completed their full-length script Half Nelson before they filmed a shorter version of it. They intentionally did this and spent their time at odd jobs getting money to shoot a short that would convince financiers and distributors to endorse their full-length script. They pulled together 800 dollars and asked for help from their friends. The 19-minute short won prizes at Sundance and the Aspen Shortfest in 2004. Two years later the feature film was distributed to theaters and won an Academy Award for best performance by an Actor in a leading role. It won several film festival awards for acting and screenwriting. http://www.kuutamolla.com

Conclusion

With the advent of technology, we have the ability to produce and market films better than ever. Francis Ford Coppola prophesied of cinematic democratization. We hear this at the end of the Hearts of Darkness (1991) video. He saw the future of film in the form of 'some little girl in Ohio,' and imagined a new apparatus that could enable such a girl to get her vision onto the screen: "To me the great hope is that now these little video recorders are around and people who normally wouldn't make movies are going to be making them.

And suddenly, one day, some little girl in Ohio is going to be the new Mozart and make a beautiful film with her father's camcorder and for once, the so-called professionalism about movies will be destroyed, forever, and it will really become an art form" (Heart of Darkness). I would say that day has come.