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emotionallychargedtowel · 1 year

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re-evaluating pursuing & distancing in Utsukushii Kare season 1

I promised an analysis of Utsukushii Kare season 2 overall a while back. I ended up rewatching the whole series to try to get everything fresh and accurate in my mind, which was helpful, but it also gave me, well, too many ideas for one post. So now the plan is to address these thoughts in chunks that will hopefully add up to something useful.

I started my examination of pursuer-distancer dynamics in Utsukushii Kare with a pretty strong assumption that while their ways of fulfilling their roles were sometimes unusual, Hira was definitely the pursuer in the relationship and Kiyoi was the distancer. As I watched season 2, I increasingly saw Kiyoi as pursuing Hira. But now that I’ve gone back and rewatched the whole series, I think I failed to recognize the ways in which Kiyoi was always pursuing Hira. I think this shift in my thinking really sheds some light on other aspects of their relationship and the story more broadly, and it shows more continuity between seasons 1 and 2 than I had previously noticed.

I’ve mentioned this before, but there’s a real difference between the kind of pursuit where you are seeking to establish a relationship with someone and the kind where you are seeking intimacy with someone you’re already in a relationship with. And these differences often map onto role differences and relational styles, including gendered ones. Think about how things go in a stereotypical, heteronormative relationship. Before a relationship is established, men are supposed to make the first move (women, on the other hand, can face negative consequences if they try this). But once a relationship is under way, we’re more likely to see women pursuing and men distancing when it comes to intimacy. (A frequent exception is pursuing physical intimacy, which can often be an area in which roles are flipped, with pursuers becoming distancers and vice versa.) At the same time, intimacy-seeking can happen outside of a fully formed romantic relationship. In other words, the kind of pursuing that happens within a relationship can also happen before a relationship has fully gotten off of the ground.

I’m going to try to maintain distinctions between the following types of pursuit:

Pursuing contact; making an effort to spend time with the other person. (This type can happen within an effort to form a relationship or within an existing one and these contexts can cause big differences.)

Pursuing emotional intimacy, including showing vulnerability, self-disclosing, and processing/resolving problems in the relationship. (This type is most crucial after a relationship has started but not only can it occur before that, it really needs to in order for the relationship to start on a meaningful basis.)

Pursuing physical intimacy; this doesn’t necessarily have to mean sexual contact only, but some non-sexual types of physical intimacy could be primarily/entirely about emotional intimacy and then they’d be a better fit with that category than this one.

(By the way, these aren’t from any sort of existing typology I found or anything like that. They’re just categories that came up and seemed significant as I was looking at examples here.)

Next, I’m going to to through a timeline of Hira and Kiyoi’s relationship in season 1 with an eye toward who is engaged in some kind of pursuit of contact and/or intimacy. This is a close read and rather lengthy but for folks who are engaged enough with this show to want to dig into the story deeply I hope it’ll be interesting.

This is also the kind of thing that I would expect folks to be able to legitimately disagree about. A lot of our perceptions of these things will be affected by our own frames of reference and the roles we tend to take up in relationships.

I want to note that I think there’s a real difference between pursuing vs. distancing and the seme/uke trope. Actually, looking closely at Utsukushii Kare has really informed how I see this. I’m still working out what I think about it at this point, but for now I’ll just say that despite seeming like they’d overlap a lot, pursuer/distancer and seme/uke roles don’t map onto one other very readily. Actually, I’m increasingly finding that it’s often ukes who do more pursuing with regard to emotional intimacy than semes, which seems important. Anyway, I’ll circle back to that eventually.

One final note before I get started: I keep forgetting to credit @lollipopsub for their excellent subtitles, which I’m referring to in almost every case here and in my other posts, so I’m circling back with an edit to add a tag for them here. I highly recommend checking out their stuff. They pay a lot of attention to important details, give well-placed translator’s notes, and have really helped with my understanding of the show.

On to the season 1 timeline!

Kiyoi “saves” Hira on their first day by walking into class late when he’s struggling with introducing himself to the class. Not really an interaction, per se. They do make strong impressions on each other that set them up for what happens later. Hira says Kiyoi “grabbed hold of me like a tidal wave” from that first time he saw him. Kiyoi sees Hira as a “useless loser” but he’s so struck by “the look in his eyes as if I were the only thing in the world” that he becomes curious about him.

Who’s pursuing here? No one, really. Except that Hira’s way of looking at Kiyoi is so intense and conspicuous that it could really be considered a kind of pursuit (a theme that continues as the story progresses).

(screenshot via Foreigner on MDL )

Hira walks up to Kiyoi as he’s laying down (seemingly asleep) on a bank of lockers in an otherwise uninhabited classroom. Kiyoi is actually pretending to be asleep. “I didn’t care about him,” he says later, “I just wanted to see what he’d do–this guy who was always staring at me. That was all.” When Hira looks at him pretending to sleep and whispers “so beautiful” to himself, Kiyoi says it’s “the first time I’d received a compliment so earnest,” and that he “wanted those eyes on me again.” In retrospect, he realizes there was “a desire in me” that he “didn’t yet know how to name”--that he was starting to have feelings for Hira. Hira also thanks Kiyoi for what happened on “introduction day” and Kiyoi responds by saying, “What the hell. You’re gross.”

Who’s pursuing here? Kiyoi set up the interaction in a way, but it’s also partly a matter of chance. Hira isn’t pursuing Kiyoi when he calls him beautiful as he doesn’t think he’s awake. Kiyoi’s rude comments could be seen as distancing (though they may appeal to Hira).

(screenshot via amigo_love on MDL)

Hira and Kiyoi get assigned to cleaning duty together and stuff ensues. At first, Hira is distressed by this. “A king and a commoner like me aren’t supposed to mingle,” he thinks. Kiyoi uses the cleanup duty assignment to rope Hira into doing things for him and the whole Shirota crew. This is one of the few times that Kiyoi actively chooses something that leads to Hira being bullied or dominated, and it’s a decisive choice. He’s not thinking about it that way, of course. “It started out just as a whim. I had to know what he wanted from me. I had to know the emotions hiding behind those eyes.” But once Hira waits for a table at the diner for the group, his “gofer” role is pretty much established.

Who’s pursuing here? Kiyoi. Neither of them chose the cleaning duty assignment, but once it happens, Kiyoi wrangles Hira into being a “gofer” in order to find out more about him.

Hira follows Kiyoi after seeing him on the street and learns he takes dance classes; they have a conversation in which Kiyoi asks him to keep this a secret from the others at school. Hira isn’t trying to interact with Kiyoi here. He just wants to watch him. Kiyoi’s wise to ask Hira not to talk about the dance classes. Later events show that if their peers had learned about them he may well have been targeted for bullying. The interaction about the secret is important. Kiyoi is left wondering if Hira is “different from the rest” and finds his heart racing during their conversation, and Hira thinks, “it’s the first time I ever looked this directly at someone.”

Who’s pursuing here? Neither of them. They get to know each other better and end up sharing a secret, but neither intentionally created the situation or took advantage of it much. (

(screenshot via Vanessa Ferey on MDL)

Kiyoi suggests having the summer break get-together at Hira’s house and he chooses to come with Hira to get ice cream when he could easily have avoided it. The fact that Hira lives alone is a handy excuse to meet with the others there. We never get any detail on Kiyoi’s perspective on this interaction, but it would stand to reason if he had remained intrigued by Hira. After the girls protest when Kiyoi draws the short straw that would make him accompany Hira to the store, Hira offers to go on his own. But Kiyoi leaves soon after and catches up with him. It’s completely his decision. This leads to Kiyoi riding on the back of Hira’s bike and the two of them getting in trouble. Hira, of course, comes up with other reasons in his mind for Kiyoi’s decisions, such as wanting to make sure Hira was really keeping his secret.

Who’s pursuing here? Kiyoi. He creates the situation by initiating the hangout, then makes a point of going with Hira on his errand.

Hira and Kiyoi speak alone after Kiyoi loses the contest. Hira plays a more active role in creating this situation. He follows Kiyoi backstage and sees him cry and punch a wall in response to not performing as well in the contest as he’d hoped. Then, when Kiyoi leaves the diner, he follows him to, well, whatever that place is with the circular bench and the fairy lights. I’d actually forgotten something important about this scene. Hira follows Kiyoi, but Kiyoi does something surprising once he sees him. Well, first he calls him “stalker.” But then, pretty much out of the blue, he tells Hira, “As a kid, I dreamed of getting inside the TV,” and goes on to confide in him about his childhood dreams of becoming a performer. This is very out of the ordinary for him and involves seriously vulnerable stuff. This is probably one of the reasons he turns on Hira so quickly afterward–he seems to feel overexposed. At that point, he pushes Hira away more strongly than at any other point in season 1, responding to his declaration that he likes him “like crazy” by saying, “I hate you like crazy! You’re fucking disgusting.”

Who’s pursuing here? Hira is literally pursuing Kiyoi by following him around at two different points. But it’s notable that Kiyoi pursues Hira emotionally by opening up to him in such an unguarded way (even if he does become guarded again super quickly).

Shirota dumps tomato juice on Kiyoi, Hira defends him, and they talk in an empty classroom afterward, leading to the famous hand kiss. Neither Kiyoi nor Hira initiates the event that brings them together–it’s obviously not either’s idea for Shirota to bully Kiyoi in this way. Hira responds with a degree of loyalty (and violence) that makes a huge impression on Kiyoi. Hira also goes and sits with Kiyoi afterward of his own accord. Their subsequent conversation is a turning point in their relationship. Kiyoi guides the conversation into very personal subject matter, asking if Hira “likes men.” Hira, of course, completely misses the subtext that this would be something he’d have in common with Kiyoi. He responds by telling Kiyoi that he is the only person he is now, or has ever been, attracted to. Then Kiyoi asks Hira if he wants to kiss him and offers him his hand. He fakes him out at first, pulling his hand away at the last moment. But he still presents it again and lets Hira kiss it.

Who’s pursuing here? Hira does take some initiative, both by defending Kiyoi and going to sit with him. But it’s Kiyoi who controls the conversation and steers it toward personal topics and subject matter related to their relationship, and it’s Kiyoi who offers to let Hira kiss his hand.

Hira and Kiyoi start hanging out together regularly. After the juice incident, they start spending time together pretty often. Hira doesn’t seem to invest any meaning in the timing of this, but it’s obvious that between the way he defended him and the significance of their interaction afterward, there’s been a shift in how Kiyoi sees their relationship. Kiyoi actually hinted at their spending more time together even before this, like after their water-fight when he tells Hira that he needs to stay stocked up on ginger ale at home (and then good ol’ oblivious Hira thinks, “Why would he say that?”). But the day of the juice incident clinched it for Kiyoi. He still has his doubts about Hira in some ways, but his loyalty and protectiveness at a time when others abandoned him was a big deal. As Kiyoi puts it, “he sacrifices everything for my sake.”

Who’s pursuing here? We don’t see anyone initiating hanging out, but let’s get real. It was Kiyoi. Hira would never.

And then we come to the final moment of their time in high school: the graduation day kiss. This is almost entirely Kiyoi’s doing. He goes off by himself to a secluded place after making sure that Hira hears him announcing he’s leaving. It’s up to Hira to follow him, which he does. Kiyoi desperately wants Hira to make some kind of declaration of love or put the moves on him somehow, but as usual Hira is way too oblivious to pick up on any hint of that. So Kiyoi has to take action himself. He kisses Hira, freaks out, and runs off. To most people, kissing someone is interpreted as a sign that you might be interested in them romantically and/or sexually. Naturally, Hira interprets it as “a kiss given out of pity,” Kiyoi’s way of “telling me to stop chasing him.” It’s pretty frustrating to hear Hira go on from there to say that “every word that passes Kiyoi’s lips never leaves my mind….I embrace everything that Kiyoi gives me,” when he’s actually rejecting what Kiyoi is offering him and putting words in his mouth. I guess he’s just working overtime to convince himself. And then, of course, he changes his phone number for no actual reason.

Who’s pursuing here? It’s Kiyoi again. Hira followed him to the back of the school, as he was intended to. That’s his contribution. Kiyoi orchestrated the whole thing and when it was clear Hira wasn’t going to do anything, he planted one on him. And then Hira pulled a massive distancing move. He misinterpreted Kiyoi to an extent that seems almost willful, stopped trying to see him, and changed his phone number, making it impossible for Kiyoi to reach him.

Aaaaaand then after more than a year apart, Hira and Kiyoi meet up again when Koyama takes Hira to the play Kiyoi is in. Kiyoi hears about someone named Hira from the older Koyama, one thing leads to another, and he arranges for Hira to be invited to the play. He’s not exactly friendly when they do see each other, but for Hira, being called “stalker” is a form of flirting. Hira provides his trademark stare which, to be fair, seems to be a big part of what Kiyoi was hoping for. But he doesn’t stay for the afterparty or do anything to maintain contact with Kiyoi.

Who’s pursuing here? Kiyoi pulled all the strings and all Hira did was do his trademark stare. Though maybe I shouldn’t downplay that since it’s actually a pretty big deal to Kiyoi.

(screenshot via Ginger Ale on MDL)

Hira goes to the play a second time in a terrible disguise, attends the afterparty, and hangs out with Kiyoi in the park, after which Kiyoi asks him if he’s dating Koyama. Did Hira actually make a move this time? Maybe. He went to see Kiyoi’s play again, without Koyama this time, while wearing a really obvious disguise that made him stand out even more than his usual appearance. Kiyoi invited him to the afterparty again and he went. Those two weirdos spent the whole party obsessing over each other from across the room, drank too much because they were too worked up, and ended up sobering up in the park. They have a pretty decent conversation where Kiyoi dropped lots of hints and Hira got none of them, culminating in Kiyoi asking him at the train station if he’s dating Koyama and an oblivious Hira being like, “why do you ask?”

Who’s pursuing here? Well, Hira does come to the play of his own volition, which is something, but his disguise implies he wasn’t actually trying to interact with Kiyoi, just watch him from afar…unless a part of him knows it sucks? Kiyoi makes a good effort with the hints and making cute lil faces at Hira. It’s all for nought but at least he’s trying.

Kiyoi calls Hira (while pretending it was a wrong number), uses it as an excuse to ask if he can rehearse at his house, then shows up and finds Koyama clinging to him. Kiyoi plays off the phone call like it was an accident, which is somewhat shitty. But at least he reached out. Hira says yes to the rehearsing thing. It’s not his fault Koyama tackles him just as Kiyoi is walking in (on purpose?). Kiyoi pulls his usual “I don’t give a shit” thing in response.

Who’s pursuing here? Kiyoi initiates contact, albeit in a fairly cowardly way. Hira is receptive but doesn’t do much. But it’s not his fault Koyama cockblocked him.

Hira fills in for the lighting person at Kiyoi’s play, stuff happens, yada yada, he licks the blood off of Kiyoi’s hurt finger, almost kisses him but doesn’t, then tells Kiyoi he can’t date him because he’s a king and he’s just his servant, after which he totally ignores Kiyoi telling him he likes him back. This is all after Koyama tells Kiyoi what Hira told him about the one beautiful person he’d taken photos of and how he loved them beyond reason and arranges for Hira to pick up that lighting shift so they’ll have a reason to see each other. Kiyoi kicks a table leg out of frustration and they end up getting knocked down by a bunch of junk and Kiyoi’s finger gets hurt, which leads to the licking situation, and almost-kiss, and Hira full-on rejecting Kiyoi whether he realizes it or not.

Who’s pursuing here? Well, honestly, Koyama’s doing more to help than either of these two goofballs. Kiyoi’s fed up from the start and I can’t blame him. Hira’s inability to process information that doesn’t match up with his personal mythology is on clear display here. There’s a reason this is their lowest point during season 1.

Hira tells Kiyoi over voicemail that he’s going to the place he first “saved” him (their high school) to “dedicate the night” to his love for him, after which he’ll forget him (sure you will, buddy). Kiyoi shows up, there’s a chase and a scuffle, and they finally have it out, then get together. Hira does something decisive here for once. He says he’s serious about putting their relationship behind him, but he’s clearly disappointed when he thinks Kiyoi won’t come. It’s extremely on-brand for Hira to reach out to someone not by explicitly seeking connection but by expressing his (supposed) resignation and hoping they’ll swoop in. Kiyoi tells himself he won’t come, then does, then runs away as soon as Hira sees him. When they do start to talk, Hira says a lot of the usual Hira things. Talking about how much he loves him, begging him not to go. But he offers little else until Kiyoi shifts things by opening up big time, including telling him yet again that he returns his feelings (in a really angry way–I’m pretty sure it’s the only confession I’ve seen in a drama that involves someone yelling “baka!” at the object of their affections–but it’s understandable). Kiyoi goes through their history and points out example after example of how Hira expressed through words and actions that he loved Kiyoi but failed to follow through, even though at times he was pretty clear about reciprocating his feelings (especially when he kissed him). We know from season 2 that Hira doesn’t really internalize the part about not viewing Kiyoi as a “king,” but at least in this moment, he seems to at least sort of get that Kiyoi likes him back and that he needs for him to see that and respond instead of talking himself into an imaginary rejection. Hira does put himself out there in one really notable way: he asks if he can touch Kiyoi, hugs him, and then lays him down on a danged desk and makes out with him. It’s honestly a red letter day for Hira showing some guts.

Who’s pursuing here? Although it’s in a backhanded way, Hira initiates this interaction. And in a way, he shows vulnerability and genuinely tries to engage Kiyoi. But things only start to change, start to open up the possibility of a real relationship, when Kiyoi opens up about his feelings for Hira and how Hira’s behavior has affected him. That said, Hira makes a big contribution too by literally reaching out to Kiyoi and initiating making out with him like he’s an “ordinary” human being.

That’s the timeline. Now, a few big themes and tendencies to note:

Most opportunities for contact were created or facilitated by Kiyoi.

When someone showed vulnerability or made the first move to connect emotionally, it was almost always Kiyoi (though both characters are still very guarded at this point).

Hira’s declarations of love and frequent compliments are tricky to categorize here. There can be an element of vulnerability in expressing these feelings, but it’s not the same as the kind of self-disclosure Kiyoi engages in, and sometimes Hira’s idealization of Kiyoi is itself a form of distancing (e.g. not being able to date “the king”).

Hira’s way of looking at Kiyoi–like, literally, the staring, meaningful looks, eye-fucking, whatever you want to call it–does seem to function as a kind of pursuit at least some of the time. It often impacts Kiyoi in that way. But it’s not exactly a straightforward move.

Both characters seek physical intimacy in different ways/at different times. Kiyoi proposes the hand kiss and kisses Hira on graduation day, while Hira does the hand thing (!) and initiates touching, hugging, and eventually the whole classroom table makeout situation.

There are also some obvious contextual factors that should be kept in mind here. The big ones that come to mind for me are:

Their power differential–Kiyoi has a great deal more social status and related power than Hira, particularly in high school.

The fact that they first got to know one another in this hierarchical context is bound to set them up for certain habits and expectations. Hira literally acted as a kind of servant for Kiyoi and the rest of the Shirota crew at first!

Both characters are deeply affected by their past experiences with peers. For Hira, this mostly involves a history of bullying, being ignored, and being excluded (in part due to ableism). For Kiyoi, his past experiences looked favorable on the surface but were seriously lacking when it came to authenticity or real intimacy.

We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that Hira’s stuttering is a disability. The negative peer experiences I just mentioned had at least some basis in ableism and really, it might account for all or nearly all of them. The wear and tear on his psyche of dealing with pervasive ableism and the bullying and aggression that comes with it can’t be overstated. This also helps with understanding some of his maladaptive coping strategies (which it seems were actually pretty adaptive in the past).

I’ll return to the pursuer/distancer thing in another post about season 2 and I have some additional thoughts about how to put it in context with BL/yaoi tropes as well as some other relevant ideas.

#pursuer distancer dynamic #psychology of BL #utsukushii kare #utsukare #utsukushii kare season 2 #hira x kiyoi #hira kazunari #kiyoi sou

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dystopicjumpsuit · 7 months

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@healingskywalker here!

For the Bad Batch Ask Game: 1, 14, 28!

Hi Ash! Thanks for the ask! I answered number one here - as a Wrecker girlie (gn), I would marry Echo if Wrecker were off the table.

14. When you first entered the fandom, who did you think was gonna be your main man? (and were you correct?)

I fell in love with Wrecker as soon as he charged off the Marauder in TCW S7, and he's still my main man! What was a surprise to me was how much my opinion of Crosshair changed over the series - which is, I think, the point. I really didn't care for him in TCW, and of course he was set up as the primary antagonist of TBB S1. But "The Solitary Clone" episode made me re-evaluate. Also I have a pathological need to take care of people, and my love language is feeding people, so the minute Rampart interrupted his lunch, I was all aboard the "Give Crosshair a Nap and a Snack" train.

Season 2 spoilers/Season 3 speculation below the cut, just in case anyone reading hasn't finished it yet.

28. Tell me a random headcanon you have about Wrecker

I think at this point it's pretty well accepted in the fandom that Wrecker is smart AF (man literally built a cannon out of scraps while being shot at), but I have a very specific headcanon about why he acts less intelligent than he is, and it's based on my own sibling interactions. We've seen how important it is to Tech to be seen as The Smart One™, and Wrecker, being the emotionally intelligent king that he is, is happy to take a back seat in that area to let his brother shine. It frees Wrecker up to focus on his own thing, which includes just being chill and having a good time, and it makes Tech happy.

If Tech is indeed dead (and I waffle on whether I think he is truly gone or not), I think this is going to present an opportunity for some really interesting character development for Wrecker in Season 3. We saw at the beginning of Season 2 how much Hunter struggled without Tech when he and Wrecker were trying to escape Castle Serenno, and that was just one mission. The Batch really lean on each other's strengths, and when someone is missing (like Echo post-S2 E8), they feel that loss keenly; not just in an emotional sense, but also in their effectiveness as a team. Wrecker is going to have to step up in a major way without Tech there to do the braining.

I do feel like Wrecker's character development has been subtle and mostly in the background up to this point, and I'm really hoping that he'll get his moment to shine in the final season - though given what the show did to Tech, I would be kriffing terrified if he started getting a lot of character development out of nowhere.

Send me a Bad Batch ask!

#ask game #the bad batch #sw tbb #bad batch

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longbobmckenzie · 1 year

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Tips for writing a villa fic

If you pay attention to Love Island the Game fanfiction at all, you've probably read a villa fic or two, or a hundred. They can be a lot of fun, and the nature of the game lends itself really well to the concept. Which is why so many people have started writing villa fics of their own... and yet, so few finish them, or even come close.

Well, I’ve written more than my fair share of villa fics, ranging from a 3k word oneshot (yes, really) to a 230k word start-to-finish Season 2 Bobby fic, and I’ve read a whole lot more, so I've learned a thing or two about the genre.

So, I figured I’d share some of my tips, and ask some of my writer friends for their input (thanks @queen-of-boops, @rebelrayne, and @thoracic-orchid), and here we are!

Buckle in, because this gets long (much like my fics!)

Tip #1: Recognize that it’s a lot of work

It takes a long, long time to write a full villa fic, especially if it’s Season 2 and you’re starting on Day 1 and going right up to the final (and beyond?). We’re talking months of work, maybe even years depending on how much time you have to dedicate to it. My first fic (230k words) took me 9-10 months to write, and that was during COVID lockdown when I didn’t really have much else to do.

This isn’t meant to discourage you at all, but I’ve seen so, so many villa fics get published and never get past the first few chapters. Sometimes they even get 20-30 chapters in before the author loses interest or just plain runs out of free time. It’s a commitment, but it can definitely be done!

This especially applies to “All Star” villa fics or season crossovers. Kudos to those who attempt it and especially those who finish (I know of only one person who’s managed this off the top of my head), but trust me, it’s hard enough writing a villa fic, writing a crossover is putting it on evil mode.

Also consider if you’re writing from a male character’s POV (the LI, perhaps, or a male MC) that you’ll probably need to write more “boys only” scenes, so a little extra creativity is required (I could never, honestly).

Tip #2: Have a plan

I cannot stress this enough. Easy for me to say since I’m an outliner at heart anyway, but I’m in the middle of writing a villa fic and even with an outline, I’m still going back and tweaking early chapters (tip within a tip: write a few chapters before publishing anything!) when my plan changes slightly.

But having a clear direction of where you want to take the fic and planning out plot points, recouplings, dumpings, etc. is extremely important. Especially when you start going off-canon (more on that in a bit) or when you get to days where literally nothing happens in the villa.

The nice thing about villa fics is that you’ve already got a structure to work with, you just have to plan how you want your characters’ relationship(s) to develop and how to drive the plot.

Tip #3: You don’t always have to stick to the plan

That said, characters sometimes do things you didn’t plan for. And that’s okay! Sometimes. There are times you need to assert your will, but other times, things will change and you just need to re-evaluate your outline. And that’s okay… within reason.

For example, in Whiskey & Scotch, my plan was always for Bobby to be the endgame LI. Somewhere along the line, I fell in love with Henrik, and people really liked him and my OC together (mild spoiler: they were coupled up for a time). I was extremely tempted to blow up my outline to make it work for them, but the groundwork was laid for Bobby to be endgame, and I had scenes planned that had been living in my head for months by that point that I was excited for. It just didn’t make sense to make Henrik the LI (which is why I’m now working on a rewrite/alternate ending, because I still love them together even years later).

On the other side, at the post-Casa Amor dumping, Noah was single and I’d planned for him to save Hope. She was already a bit of a villain, they had history, it just made sense. But when I was writing the scene, I was completely stuck on his speech. I got a crazy/evil idea and had him save someone else instead. It changed a lot and I had to rework my outline a bit, but it worked out so well that I can’t imagine doing it the way I’d intended.

Tip #4: Watch the show

This is optional (technically, they all are), but it really is helpful on so many levels. It can give you an idea of the villa layout (Seasons 3-5 and 7 of the show all use the same villa), give you ideas for challenges, dialogue, plot ideas, etc. The show uses a host instead of the opening scene and some of the dumpings being done through text, generally it’s the boys picking the girls on day 1 instead of the girls, etc.

There are also more rules on the show that don’t make it into the game. Again, totally optional, but to make it a bit more realistic you could limit the islanders’ alcohol consumption (or let them get completely shit-faced if that works for your plot), take away all clocks, refer to their microphones occasionally, etc.

Also, like… I’ve never seen anyone on the show have sex on the terrace, but it happens in the game. You want your characters getting it on out in the open like that? By all means. But if you prefer a bit more realism, stick to the bedroom and hideaway. The bathroom is communal, but hey, the shower works too.

If you want to add challenges to your fic, I like to use this website for ideas. It lists most of the challenges from season 3 onwards, including results and video. It’s a great resource.

Tip #5: Kiss canon goodbye

There are definitely readers out there who prefer fics that follow canon, and to each their own. Personally, I’ve played the game over and over, read a whole bunch of fics, and written a bunch of fics, so I’m kinda sick of canon. Plus, sometimes canon just sucks or doesn’t make sense. So don’t be afraid to stray from canon, toss it into a ball and throw it out the window, or stomp all over it.

First, the dialogue. We’ve all read it over and over, got it practically memorized. Feel free to change it! In fact, please do! You can keep some lines and change the responses to completely alter a conversation, or make slight adjustments, or just… not include it at all, if you want. You can take out canon scenes and replace them with your own. Or keep them and just change who-did-what. Etc, etc. Make it your own!

Second, individual scenes. It’s okay to cut them. We don’t need to see Noah singing Toto on the daybed with Hope and Rocco walking by singing Wonderwall. Cutting it will not negatively impact your fic in any way.

What about challenges? Well… they can be cut too. Ask yourself, do they drive the plot? Is it necessary? For example, the day 4 slime challenge. Priya grinds on Noah despite not needing his colour, Lottie gets mad, blah blah blah. We know. The reader most likely knows. But unless you’re making MC’s drama the primary focus, you can cut it and just write a paragraph of narration telling us why the girls are fighting. The reader will understand and most likely appreciate that they didn’t have to skim through it.

Hell, you can skip recouplings, dumpings, even whole days. Trust me, I’ve done it. If you’re primarily sticking to a timeline that generally follows canon and not really messing with what’s going on with the other islanders, you can absolutely skip over that stuff and keep the focus solely on your MC and their LI. You can even still make slight changes to canon and just narrate what happened.

Basically, what you keep depends on what you’re trying to do with your fic. If you want to do the whole villa experience thing, keep as much as you want. If you just want to write a love story between two people who happen to be in the villa, you can cut out anything and everything that doesn’t in some way develop their relationship.

Also, you don’t have to start on day 1. Or if you do, you don’t have to start with the MC arriving at the villa. Be creative! And along the same veins, you don’t have to end it with the final. Heck, your characters don’t have to even make the final!

Tip #6: Read other fics

Again, you don’t have to do this. Plenty of villa fic writers don’t read other people’s villa fics. But I do think it’s a good idea, especially if you want to write a Bobby or Lucas fic (picking on the most popular characters because they have the most fics written for them).

You’ll be able to get some ideas of how other people did it – how much canon they kept in, how much they cut, how they made the story their own – but you’ll also get a good idea of what’s been done before. MC and Bobby are immediately attracted to each other right from the start? Great… but how are you going to make yours different from the other hundred fics that do that? Lucas switches to Blake? Okay yes, that’s canon – but are you going to keep it? What motivations are you going to give him? Maybe MC switches too?

And this isn’t to say that if someone else has an idea for something, you can’t do the same thing. Especially for people who watch the show, there have been a number of situations where people will have the same ideas. I’ve had it where I’ve had scenes planned or written only to read someone else’s fic and seen almost the exact same thing. It happens! Obviously don’t plagiarize, but it’s okay to have the same idea. And if anyone accuses you of stealing ideas, have them send their hate mail to me (don’t actually do that).

Tip #7: Write what you want to read

The reason I got into fanfiction and wrote my first villa fic in the first place was because I had an idea that I thought would be really interesting to read. I didn’t think anyone else was gonna come up with the same idea, though, so I wrote it myself.

I don’t know what sort of motivations other writers have when they start writing their fics, but if you have an idea, you just might be the best candidate to write it.

Tip #8: Don’t do it alone

Find a beta reader if you can (note: it’s not always easy, especially since villa fics are a huge commitment), but even if you can’t get someone to edit for you, getting someone who can give constructive criticism is extremely helpful – if you’re open to listening. They can help you figure out what works, what doesn’t, and what to work on.

Most importantly, though, find someone you can bounce ideas off of. If you’re struggling writing a scene, or need some ideas to help with a character’s motivation or dialogue, or you have a crazy idea and need some validation or advice… having someone you can go to is the best. All of my fics are better thanks to the people who helped, whether it was in big ways or little.

Tip #9: Develop your main character

Okay this is the tip that I don’t actually listen to myself 🤣 I’m a storyteller, so my fics tend to be more about the plot than the character arc, but having more well-rounded, developed characters is something I wish I were better at. If you know who your character is – their voice, their habits, their likes and dislikes, their family and relationship histories – it’ll be easier to write them. And the same goes for the canon characters as well! Give them more of a backstory! Give them siblings and heartbreaks! Especially with a villa fic where, unless they’re doing a challenge, they do nothing but sit around all day and have chats, you need stuff for them to talk about. This goes for group conversations, too – sometimes you just need to have some ideas of things they can talk about.

Now, I will say that I don’t think every MC needs to have heartbreak in their past (maybe they’re the heartbreaker?) or some sort of sob story. Those are common tropes in your regular run-of-the-mill romance story, and there’s nothing wrong with it, but it all goes hand-in-hand with your character’s motivations and how you want their relationship with the LI to develop. You can go that direction, but don’t feel you have to. If the story you have planned doesn’t need a character with a tragic past, then just have them be an average Joe.

Also, just a minor pet peeve of mine… your MC doesn’t have to be this super perceptive person who gets everyone’s answers right in Two Truths and a Lie. It’s day 2, c’mon. And they don't need to be the girl that all the guys in the villa are falling all over themselves to be with – is it more interesting for 4-5 guys to be into MC or for MC to be interested in someone only to be turned down? Just food for thought.

Tip #10: Choose the right POV

There’s no right or wrong POV, so choose whatever’s comfortable for you and your fic. But just note that readers do have their preferences (some people are strongly opposed to 1st and/or 2nd POV, for example). For a chaptered villa fic, it doesn’t really make sense to use 2nd person POV (“you” pronouns) because you’re telling the story of a main character who isn’t really generic. For oneshots/series where you’re writing snapshots of the villa, that might be what works for you, though.

As for 1st and 3rd, there are pros and cons to both. I chose to write my first villa fic in 1st because I really wanted the focus to be on my MC and seeing the villa through her eyes. Basically, if she didn’t see it or hear about it, I wasn’t going to include it. Other than that fic, though, I’ve primarily written in 3rd and it’s made me a better writer.

If you want to alternate POV between your MC and the LI (and maybe some of the side characters as well, as there are some people who do that), I recommend sticking to 3rd POV, because it can be a little confusing for the reader to remember whose POV they’re reading when it’s in 1st.

And there you have it! Ten tips to think about before (or during) embarking on your own villa fic. Good luck!

#litg #litg ff #litg fanfic #litg fanfiction #writing

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raayllum · 2 years

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Updated Season Four Predictions

AKA the clips of 4x01 have given us a lot to talk about and re-evaluate, so let’s talk about it! Full spoilers down below including a twitter summary of 4x01 “ReBirthday” from SDCC 2022, so if you don’t want to see all the spoilers we’ve gotten so far, please move past the read more! For everyone else, strap in! It’s gonna be a doozy.

Driving Narrative force for S4 / S4-S6

So the driving force for S4 and beyond is clearly Claudia’s resurrection and the ticking timeline Aaravos has given her: one month to free Aaravos from his prison or else Viren will die and stay dead, this time. This indicates that Claudia resurrected Viren with some of Aaravos’ help in terms of magic, and not just the spell (or ingredients) it would take to bring him back.

There are two routes this journey could take: either it’s the actual travel time to wherever they have to be in order to free Aaravos from his prison (possibly the ruined Star Nexus, whose location is unknown). Or it could mean getting a powerful relic and/or ingredient from each of the six primal sources. They already have a corrupted Sun staff, so the Sun primal is covered, but it leaves Claudia with a mission to collect the rest. Powerful objects being stolen or going missing would be enough to alert Callum and Ezran in Katolis that something weird is going on, and Callum is currently the human with the best understanding of primal magic, so that could be a plot element. As well, it could be that one of each kind of Primal Source is needed alongside Aaravos’ cube is needed to be in a certain spot to free him, a kind of carefully constructed cosmic checkmate, if you will.

The month timeline is particularly interesting because a shot from 4x01 of Callum and his mage wings (when he falsely thinks Ez is in danger on his 17th birthday, and Viren’s re-birthday) is a waxing gibbous. So rather than moving towards a full moon, it’s heading towards a New Moon.

The New Moon is commonly known as a time to initiate beginnings. Something to also be mindful of is that when the new Moon occurs, it not only begins a new cycle, but also ends the phase that came before (1). This would perfectly fit with Aaravos’ return / breaking out of the mirror ending the previous world of peace and kicking off the era the characters currently live in, which is canonically known as the Return of Aaravos (SDCC 2019).

The real question is whether Claudia’s month timeline will cover one season, or like how S1-S3 was a month, it will cover the entire Arc 2 timeline. I lean towards a just one or two season timeline for a few reasons, by which I mean: her deadline is completed by the end of S4 or the end of S5. The deadline feels vaguely reminiscent of Rayla’s binding, established in S1 and concluded by the end of the season, for example, especially since S1-S3 never had any such timeline (we comparatively didn’t learn Zubeia was dying until 3x04, for example). So this one is the most likely to me.

Additionally, I could see it stretching out to S5, but I feel that Aaravos must be out of the mirror by the end of S5, so that S6 can have the trio and co. work together to try to bring him down and fail spectacularly. They can’t win the first time they try, so I think it’d be difficult to have them lose say halfway through the final season, and then have them try again very shortly afterwards and succeed. This would also mean that S6 ends in typical three act structure with the second act ending horribly to set up a triumph for the third (as opposed to a tragic structure, where the hero wins the second battle for loses the finale).

The other driving forces seem to be 1) Callum’s interest in the mirror, perhaps to fulfil Harrow’s letter and/or take his mind off Rayla, which will subsequently aid in our understanding of Aaravos as we go along and learn his history with Callum as an audience conduit / detective 2) Xadian and pentarchy politics. This fulfils both Ezran’s side of things (not all humans will want peace, King Ahling might still resent the death of his son, etc) and Janai. Her engagement to Amaya may be the final straw for her more traditional brother, or other Sunfire elves of the Six Horns. This could lead to a rift between Sunfire elves and a short conflict of the throne furthered by Sol Regem, although I do think Janai and Karim’s relationship will be repaired and have a happy ending (with some nice setup / parallels for Soren and Claudia’s getting there someday, too).

Unexpected Angles

Claudia and Terry’s relationship was the last thing I expected, but I’m already won over and curious about where their relationship will go. Judging by his first clip, how he meets Viren, and that he’s there when she does the resurrection spell, Terry is totally okay with dark magic even though he’s an elf. That’s a perspective we haven’t seen before from anyone but Aaravos, so I’m excited to see where Terry fits in morally even amid his adorable, charming personality.

However, this also means Claudia has three relationships to ponder: her and her Dad, her and Aaravos, and her and Terry. It’s already been heavily implied / basically confirmed that she’ll be under Aaravos’ greater tutelage for a bit. Now, this is more of a headcanon than anything, but I always figured Claudia would have a very hard time breaking off or dealing with the end of a romantic relationship of any kind, as it would remind her of her parents’ divorce. If Terry does begin to see dark magic in a worse light, and Claudia does not, how will she handle (or rather, not handle) that kind of distance happening again in another relationship? Just food for thought.

The Season Breakdown and Callum’s Path

As we know, every season of TDP is roughly broken down into three sets of three arcs per season, most plainly seen in season one. 1x01-1x03 is the castle arc, 2x07-2x09 is a continuous journey for ex, etc. This is a little harder in season three since there’s so much going on, but it can be down by following Callum and Rayla’s journey trajectory: 3x01-3x03 is pre-Silvergrove, 3x04-3x06 is romance and reckoning with the past, 3x07-3x09 all take place at the Spire, etc.

Therefore, I think a rough season breakdown for S4 could have similar stuff. 4x01-4x03 might be a lot of political set up, with something perhaps inspiring Callum to leave Katolis, whether it’s on his brother’s business or chasing his own desires. As people have noted, Callum isn’t wearing his scarf while he’s serving as High Mage in the first clip of S4, but he does have it in the “Aaravos as Puppetmaster” promo art, tethered to string the same way Claudia and Viren are.

Perhaps the donning of the scarf around 4x03 signifies a choice or decision that will impact him for the rest of the season (and arc by extension). This would be a nice parallel to 1x03 with the Zym mission, and how much 1x01 and 4x01 parallel each other. 4x01 ends up with Callum being upset/possibly angry over thinking Ez was in danger, and ends with him being quite upset over the anniversary of Rayla leaving, dejected and ashamed, similar to how he blew up at Ezran in 1x01 over his fear of losing Harrow, and then slumped to the ground disappointed.

The arc set up could also fit nicely, as Claudia has an Earth arcanum with her (Terry could at least hold the cube, if that’s enough) and Sun staff. Rayla may end up being the Moon arcanum if she does run into the trio, and they’re a lot more powerful than expected even without Aaravos (who’s something else on his own). That leaves Ocean and Sky and possibly Star, fitting nicely into one every three episodes, or something along those lines.

Cube Hostage Exchange Theory

Although modified, now that Callum hasn’t gone after Rayla (possibly just not yet), I still think my Cube Hostage Exchange Theory continues to hold merit as well, a theory. (Extended tag here for any who are interested.) Basically: Rayla is captured by Viren, Claudia, and Aaravos. Possibly just as a hostage, possibly as bait, or even — if we harken back to “Claudia needs ingredients, particually the Moon as Aaravos has been lowkey Ghosted x1000” — as the intended ingredient for the Moon arcanum.

Then, according to the theory, Callum (and possibly others) will show up to save her / trade something Valuable for her. It could be Callum, if he’s connected to the Moon arcanum, but I lean more towards the Cube. It already holds weight as a present from Harrow, but would be very full circle: Rayla risking her life in 1x04 to get it for him and being taken hostage by Amaya, only for him to now sacrifice the cube (and put the world at risk too) to save her from a hostage situation.

I could see Ezran and Callum (and possibly Soren by extension) coming to save her, I could see it being Callum, with them and Rayla escaping, and/or him and Rayla are both taken hostage in the end and S5 is them trying to escape. Either way gives time for Claudia to confront her old friend and her old enemy, and time for Rayla to unlock the secret of what Viren’s coins hold.

Aaravos: “Those who fail tests of love are simple animals. They deserve to be motivated by fear.”

Other Misc Thoughts

I wouldn’t be surprised if 4x02 is a flashback heavy ep in terms of giving the audience context for when/why Rayla left, as 4x01 confirms that she’s gone but doesn’t seem to say why or for what. I think it could be really cool to see some Janaya flashbacks here as well as maybe an interspersed Claudia narrative, as Rayla and Claudia have quite a strong foils relationship. Then perhaps another flashback heavy episode (as TDP always tends to have 2ish per season) that focuses more on Aaravos’ history, so we can know more about why he’s bad news before he gets out of the mirror if it is by the end of S4.

I think perhaps Claudia will send Terry to distract / lead Callum astray, but the two dorky, seemingly similar-ish boys will bond instead, and Terry’s persepctive will perhaps change. I’m also very excited to see what Soren thinks of Terry once he realizes this is Claudia’s new boyfriend and all the emotions that brings: happiness someone is looking after his sister, fear and resentment at what she’s become, reservations that she has some ‘random’ boyfriend, etc.

And I think that’s it, Conclusion wise? More theories and such may trickle as we go along, and I have some non distinct thoughts marinating (Soren and Viren’s relationship, possible Ezran-Callum Harrow-Viren parallels being pushed further esp in early S4, etc) that I may post as I go along, but for now, these are the big ones!

So now let me hear from you: agree, disagree, want to take a theory and run with it? Let me know in the replies, reblogs, and/or in my inbox, I’d love to hear ‘em!

#tdp #the dragon prince #tdp theory #tdp spoilers #s4 #s4 spoilers #prediction #analysis series #analysis #cube hostage exchange theory #arc 2 #tdp callum #tdp claudia #predictions

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firespirited · 1 year

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About yesterday's cry for connection, several things happened at once, as they do. On top of the seasonal despresh hitting it's lows and teasing brief moments of clarity.

Small on the richter scale: The gmail app once again failed to block dad's email which was a seemingly anodyne "happy birthday did you get my ecard (i did and promptly put my emails on their 'do not send' list) , did you do anything special with your friends for the big 4.0?" 1- He's acting like we're buddies, I haven't spoken to him in a decade 2- He's either forgotten or in denial about his complete failure at being a decent human being in November which led to sis finally giving up on him. 3- One of his fave digs was my lack of solid friends (he moved us every three years so that's partly on him) and inability to do milestone stuff like an 18th or 21st birthday bash. It's very on brand to be able to break me in two nice sentences. But it's not so much him per se but the friends who turned out to be anti vaxx or anti mask so I expressed sadness and haven't tried to rebuild. I'm not sure there is any thing to rebuild when folks are explicit their beliefs exclude you.

Bigger on the richter scale: I've injured my pectorals several times in march doing abdominal building exercises and having to catch myself when my hip give out from pain. It's very painful and sets me right back. I need to work on all the muscles around the hips before I can start work on my atrophied lower back. It's at least 3 more months added to the rehabilitation process. Realistically I don't think I'll be rerooting or doing any handicrafts over 40 minutes long per week until 2024. And then it won't be commissions.

It's been 3 full months of rehab work, there is real visible progress but it's very slow and disappointingly small.

I also have to whittle down the project dolls I've kept and get it all out of the house even at a loss (oof) along with a serious re-evaluation of what I buy (double oof). Project dolls are only fun if you can actually *do* the project not just know the exact steps you *would* do. That means other types of treats and finding other things to do when I've got some free time and am itching to make something. The ones that will stay need hairstyles, maybe quick decoden hair and wigs so I won't be reminded until I'm ready, plastic is patient but I am not! (That'll actually be fun to do)

In good news, the anemia has improved and my eyebrows are growing back brown (4mm of brown, 6 of white lol) , I'm on a more solid treatment for GI candida and hope to heal my sore half taste-broken tongue.

I've resolved to purchase anti-mosquito summer clothes for walks if needed as a necessary health expense. Ties into the money insecurities mentioned before with a mental 'fix'.

Tiny on the richter scale but these things add up :

The whiplash of seeing dolltwt acting like they're the nice place for nice people or "it's only funny when it's us, it's malicious if you're someone who can't sit with us". Can't believe I got sucked into that nonsense. Stupid rabbithole to go down.

A youtuber getting too parasocially needy and setting off all my alarm bells.

Way more youtubers who *were* interesting and educational on certain subjects but lately have got lost in navel gazing about whether they're making the mind changing art/activism they dreamed of. It's part film grad, part evangelical need to have convert notches on your belt instead seeing the value in rebuilding broken things, paying someone's bills, prevention not miracles.

You could be educating for education's sake (teacher isn't a lesser job) and doing art for art's sake. I can handle a certain amount of self indulgence and there is always a place for self congratulation on a hard job but the performative is winning out over the active work and I just don't have much grace left to spare right now. I'd rather hear a well made liberal journalistic podcast on a subject than watch a radical leftist who'll derail the point with the implication that it's a sacrifice to be talking about this subject instead of being a 'proper' film maker.

Doesn’t sound like much but when you've carved out your hour of listening and that's not happening because it's become messy then there's a hole and it's really hard to find the right balance of interesting but no cliffhangers or nihilism, no toxic positivity no false promises. With my current desperation for routines and extreme pickyness: You see the problem right?

So, in a nutshell I need to find new treats, new entertainment, more courage to get rid of items I'm attached to, find rerooters in the EU so I can just refer all queries without having to explain that my back is rekt and the rest of me is rekt so healing will be stupid long, set a goal of acceptable hip pain while exercising and a goal of how much hip pain to aim for that won't mess with ab and dorsal work. Wait til enough emotional balance to donate recycle clothes that look rough. Dare to open up and make new friends knowing that heartbreak is inevitable. Cool cool cool. We'll start small.

❤️❤️❤️

#saf #Ramblings

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al-n-cartoons · 1 year

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Let's talk about season three of The Owl House, shall we?

Hi, I’m Wakerrife, and I have thoughts about season three of The Owl House. Here I shall discuss how episode three could have been so much better.

There are a lot of issues with the writing this season, and I mean that in a very particular way: the serious events is good, but the focus on characters (thus the emotions) rather sucks. It’s clear that, given the shortened run time, the show has increasingly been cramping its story tighter and tighter so as to cover as much as it can and that’s a problem. The character beats ring hollow.

For the Future just bounces from different plots for different characters the entire time, each person being some degree of miserable, the tone is saturated (more on that later). With the time restrictions in mind, the show’s priorities should have been re-evaluated and subsequently dealt with.

Take Hunter for example. What happens to him at the end of Thanks to Them is atrocious and it’s barely story relevant. He certainly acts the part for what’s happened to him (being restless, irritable, and teary) but it’s peripheral at best. Honestly, I would have preferred Thanks to Them be the last episode he plays a pivotal role in because (1) you do not kill someone’s closest loved one and then have that not be central focus and (2) in spite being many people’s favourite character (myself included), he was introduced to the show far later than the others, thus his story should be allowed to wrap up before the show ends so as to allow focus to be given to the characters built into the show (Luz, Willow, Gus, King, and Eda).

There are inklings in For the Future of an amazing story idea for Hunter where him having Flapjack’s magic is a show that one’s loved ones will always be with them, but because it’s barely a part of the story we get, it should have been cut.

Keep the fight scene in Thanks to Them, keep Hunter being paranoid and lashing out, keep the possession, keep Belos going after Flapjack– all of that could work and was great to see), but have Flapjack be injured or have Hunter fight off Belos the moment Flapjack gets put in harm's way.

Actually, heck, move the fight scene to be earlier in the episode, maybe about midway through. Why would we do that, you might ask? Simple, make the fight and Flapjack getting hurt not be the climax but the catalyst. What’s the point of this episode? It’s titled “Thanks to Them”. Really think of it for a second: Thanks. To. Them. Willow has things to be thankful for regarding the Boiling Isles, as do Gus, Luz, and Amity. Hunter has only pain, isolation, scorn, and fear to associate with the Isles (save for maybe near the very end when Willow and Gus adopt this sassy stray). The human world thus far has been a place of peace for him, take the scene in which Hunter talks about sewing and wolves. Take Gus’ response of being disheartened to what he has lost (his father and home). There is a split in priorities, use it.

In the human realm, Hunter seems to have settled into a far more domestic role. He enjoys passive activities (sewing) that keep him productive and allow for him to relax. Make then the threat of combat horrifying; a source of anxiety and a trigger for his trauma. He just escaped that life, would he really want to go back to it? Would his friends really want him to? Luz says that she needs to keep Hunter safe in that one (amazing and sweet) scene, could that not build into the idea that the best thing for Hunter is to remain in the human realm if that is what he so chooses? He’d act like he wants to go back and help them all return to their families, and they’d certainly want him to come along, but could he go?

This is why the events with Belos should remain. Hunter has found a respite in the human realm, Belos threatens that, and panic begins to claw its way through once things have settled. If Flapjack is hurt, Hunter takes to attending him. Let’s say that Belos escaped and that they’re all still looking for the last bit that allows them to return to the isles. Hunter begins to creep out of the story’s focus, his plot giving way to that of the other characters who are still looking for the door. Have Hunter be with Vee, who might know how to treat wounds caused by having magic drained from you given what she is and her history.

Contrasts are very important for any medium. As aforesaid, the tone is saturated; muddled. This is why Hunter’s story should be sidelined in the second half of the episode; the audience needs a chance to breathe. Luz should not have been written to mope given that she is who carries the show’s tone. Have Amity or Gus be the moping one, or have all of the friends (homesick and missing their families) be the ones struggling emotionally. Luz has mounted her father’s death, managed her neurodiversity, and always responded to trauma proactively. Keep her missing Eda and King but have her be more… optimistic? Reminiscing? Have her still be making drawings of them and of glyphs, but make sure that her energy is always positive (angry at Belos and/or the Collector rather than sad and resentful of her actions).

If the moping and sadness is omnipresent or near constant, it loses weight. That is why a whimsical or cozy tone makes the emotional beats that much better; the contrast. Seeing a very sad person cry is a continuation of previous behavior; having a peppy or outgoing person cry is an escalation.

So Luz, Gus, Amity, and Willow are all running around on the search, the tone gradually getting more and more jovial as this lead turning into a genuine hope; they are going home. They can rejoin their families. Of course, Luz still has school and it might take a while to get there, so the search goes on over the course of a few days. Include some scenes of Hunter, Vee, and Flapjack together (with Flapjack recovering)-- maybe have a scene in which they all run around town exploring (that one zoo scene). Make it clear that Hunter loves this new home and that the others are making the best of it, everyone besides Hunter running off for the search once Luz gets off from school.

Then they find the portal. How, you might ask? Well, probably from spotting Belos who has also been on the hunt. Maybe have someone message Camila, Hunter, and Vee (those who had not been on the hunt) telling them to come fast (just before anyone spots Belos). Have this be after the possession attack, have it be that everyone else arrives just as Luz and co. chase down Belos. Have Hunter just manage to see Belos and panic. Camila and Vee try to get him out of his panic attack, meanwhile Willow, Gus, Luz, and Amity are on the move, attacking. Belos manages to open the portal and leaves, whomever has the most to reclaim bounds after the portal (probably Willow), and is stopped by someone else (maybe Gus), made to realize that Hunter is on the ground… He can’t slow down his breathing and Camila has gotten him to put his head between his knees. Hunter, unable to control himself, admits to them all that he can’t go back and that Flapjack might get hurt again. This is the climax, this is when the title “Thanks to Them” best applies. Thanks to his previous life, Hunter is scarred. He wants to be there for his friends, but– Willow assures him that they’ll be fine and that they all love him, they all get a moment, and Hunter and Vee stay behind in the human world. Boom, a careful use of one’s time and resources that tells a good story (and still gets the plot to where the writers want it; with Luz and co. going through the portal).

Okay, great, but I did pretense this with my discussion being about the newest episode. How does any of this affect it? Well, it makes the message more positive, acts as a conclusive story to one of the characters so that more time and focus can be spent more economically, and would allow for the main, main, main characters to play out their stories.

Let’s keep For the Future about Luz and Willow, and let’s keep both of their plotlines/themes: Willow’s trying to be brave and supportive (and is slowly drowning in her own anguish), Luz is stressing about her palismen and the decision to never return to the Boiling Isles once they’re done. Good? Good. Camila, Gus, and Amity (love me some cute romance and sapphic adorableness) are all on point, so keep them as they are. Let’s go.

Remember, we want to keep the tone fairly whimsical or else the heavier moments ring hollow. They’re good scenes to watch clips of, but not great when put into a story, at least not nearly as good as it can be and that’s my problem.

How do we keep the theme but maintain a good tone? Well, first off, either make Luz’s plan on never returning either a niggling voice in the back of her head (not a literal voice, but make it clear that she’s considering it) or make the decision one that creeps in as the Collector’s effects on the land and people become more apparent. The Collector is playing a game as the role of Luz (sort of), use that as a sort of guilt. “King wouldn’t have sacrificed himself if he hadn’t needed to protect me”, that sort of thing.

As for Willow’s story, it's mostly fine as is. Since Hunter is no longer around (I’m too maternal for this, hiss) the role of snapping Willow out of her distress goes to someone else. An important line to keep in the story is the bit where Willow is told to never call herself “half a witch” again, but Gus is used to her self-deprecating and used to her calling herself that, so he’s out. He’s still being comforted by Willow and follows after her when she goes to repress her emotions, but the line goes to someone else (Put a pin in that). Instead, have Gus say or do something that conveys the message “you’ve always been my shoulder to lean on, but you need shoulders, too”. Obviously Gus-afy it, but that’s besides the point.

Let’s have these two plotlines merge, shall we? Luz isn’t as used to Willow calling herself “half a witch” and would be much more unlikely to be okay with it. Let’s have Luz reiterate what Camila tells her about mistakes being a part of life (thus Luz accidentally tricking herself into internalizing the message) and have Gus join in (with the shoulders thing). Have Gus and Luz be cheering Willow on as she goes off, venting and crying about everything she’s lost (like she does in the show) (I think Amity is off doing the side plot still?).

Prior to this, with Luz, Luz has been mulling over what Amity tells her regarding how she managed to bond with Ghost via discovering what drives her. Luz concludes that (1) she needs a staff so as to better help make things better (as carrying around and tending to an egg is more of a liability) and (2) if she wants this egg to hatch, she needs to figure out what drives her. Luz goes on to repeatedly verbalize the different things she thinks drives her (diegetically allowing for the thought of her own guilt and the possibility of staying in the human realm to slip out). It would help with the tone, too, per how naturally silly it is for someone to run around in the apocalypse shouting affirmations at everyone. I’m just imagining Luz shouting that she wants to reunite with Eda and King, to which those littler kids to shout back the bit where tey long to feed on the blood of their enemies.

Willow having her vent (and maybe Gus and Luz joining in, talking about what all they miss and wish they had) could be how Luz comes to say the whole “I wish to be understood and accepted” thing. Maybe precede it with Willow wishing that Hunter had come with them and Gus wishing that Hunter had told them about being a grimwalker. Use their acceptance of Hunter as he is and of his decisions bleed into acceptance of Luz (being not a witch) and her decisions/actions. They might not have said that acceptance because why would they think there to be a need? They’ve always accepted Luz; their unconditional acceptance of Hunter is simply a catalyst for Luz to internalize their acceptance of her. Also, Willow and Gus love her, sure, but wasn’t Willow technically keeping them out by refusing to be vulnerable with them? Wouldn’t them all having this talk be a new level of acceptance?

Also, tone down the reveal for String Bean. the slowly cracking, massive glowing thing didn’t really do it for me, probably because Luz’s self discovery was practically breeze through in this episode? There was technically set up for it, but also it kind of just… happened? It felt less like a character beat and more like “Achievement Reached” popping up on a screen. Showing us the cracking and glowing kind of distracts from the message and emotional impact. Have the sound of cracking included, but make it unintrusive. Let there be a comfortable lull in the friend’s venting and screaming (Luz’s admission of wanting to be accepted and realizing that she is being a more subdued, more heartwarming. In the quiet, the light shifts and the reveal of String Bean comes to compliment the scene rather than supersede it. The group cheers, Luz cries, they all hug, and the tone begins to shift into something near comedic as String Bean runs about shapeshifting and being precious. The group wipes their tears, grins at each other, and returns to the fight. Let them be epic and ready for what is to come, as they are in the scene.

Side note: Is the stuff with the Collector really… necessary? Might be better to focus on King and have his scenes be about him when the Collector isn’t around. I do think we should keep the reading scene…. Hm….. Less Collector lets Eda actually play a role and could have them actually do something (like planning what to do, trying to test the potion for Eda, or try to figure out how to free the doll people. Just saying.

This got loooong. I need you to know that I paused at one point to go eat ice cream, and I want you to try and find the point at which I ventured off. Happy hunting [Runs away].

#the owl house #toh #toh spoilers #Thanks to Them #For the Future #Toh Willow #Toh Luz #Toh Bus #toh Vee #toh Camila #Wakerrife Rambles #the scenes are fun to watch out of context #Also- none of my underlined italicized and boldened text came through and I don’t feel like redoing it.#long post

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thelonesgroup · 7 months

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What Should You Give Your Clients This Holiday

A card? An event? A gift? Your expertise?

I have been getting this question a lot over the last few weeks as agents are trying to determine their plans for the last few weeks of the year.

Why are so many agents waiting until the last minute to plan? This year has difficult on homebuyers, homesellers, agents, lenders, the entire industry. Interest rates and inventory issues have dug in and look like they are going to be sticking around for a while. This has left a lot of agents scratching their heads and uncertain what the future holds - or - too busy scrambling for business to take a moment to re-evaluate and make a plan.

But I am going to let you in on a secret. While some agents have decided to hang it up for the rest of the year, there are many agents that are absolutely killing it right now. The difference between the two? Mindset.

There are two mindset types I see right now:

Agent 1: "I haven't had a deal in months. The momentum is gone! I am never going to sell anything again!"

Agent 2:"I haven't had a deal in months but I took this opportunity to connect with my past clients and provide updated market values for them."

Agent 1:"I just had another homebuyer say they want to wait to buy until interest rates come down."

Agent 2:"I just had another homebuyer say they wanted to wait to buy until interest rates come down, but I educated them on the pros and cons of waiting. Since house prices are still on the rise, waiting to buy may not be the most financially-smart move. They are mulling over their options."

Agent 1:"I am done trying. I am giving up until January."

Agent 2:"I am focusing on continuing to take the action I need, but I am also going to work on polishing some of my systems and processes right now. Business will come as long as I focus on taking meaningful action."

The rest of this article is for the Agent #2 mindset - the ones who are ready to take the action needed to create a strong 2024. Connecting with your database and past clients is the BEST thing you can do between now and year-end.

Psst! If you feel like you are more like Agent #1, I definitely encourage you to do one of the below activities - even if you aren't feeling it now. Your 2024 will thank you!

Holiday Cards

Holiday cards can be one of the most hands-off ways to connect this holiday season. But if you think you will have impact by sending a generic card with a pre-printed signature inside or send customized cards in bulk, that is NOT the direction I recommend.

Instead, choose a great card with space to write on the inside and get some pens that you enjoy writing with - think gel pens or different colors. Get some stickers or a stamp - some way to leave a little flourish. Then sit down and create about 2-3 custom sentences per card.

Take it a step further: Include a photo of their home decked out for the holidays if you have one. It shows that you are paying attention to their home and connects them back to you.

Event

Events can be a great way to connect with a lot of clients and people over a short window of time. Many of my clients report that an event yields several transactions. There is still time to pull together an event for the holidays, but the clock is ticking!

Events really allow you to look at your community resources and determine the best fit for you. Some of my clients do a pie giveaway that has evolved from simply dropping off or picking up a pie to pie + coffee + concert while others do a pancake Breakfast with Santa or even pet photos with Santa. Some do an event like a wine or whisky tasting while others opt for movie screening or a play.

No matter what the event, you will need to determine a few components:

How will you invite people?

How will they register?

How will you follow up with people who haven't registered?

How will you connect with people at the event?

How will you follow up with people after the event?

Of course, you will need to determine the event specifics as well, but don't get so caught up in those details that you forget about the main reason you are having this event - to connect!

Gift

Like events, gifts can be a great way to find a custom match for your business and your clients. Some agents gift items such as event tickets, holiday welcome mats, holiday ornaments, frames custom home sketches, baked goods, and even local artistic items. Of course, coffee gift cards also make their way into the mix.

Gifts can easily become unwieldly on the budget, so I encourage you to first determine if the gift-giving itself is worth the expense or if there is another way you could leave a lasting impression if you are concerned about the budget.

For example, if I have 100 past clients and I decide to give them each a box of special holiday cookies from the local bakery at $18 a pop, I would ask myself these questions:

Is spending $1800 on my clients for cookies part of my business plan?

Will these gifts leave a lasting impression and help connect me with my clients?

Or, should I instead put together a local 4- or 8- page report on the local real estate market that includes statistics, sold properties, and a personal message? I can outsource that and between the development and the mailing it might cost me $1100.

We will get more into this in the Expertise section next, but it is important to ask oneself these questions before filling one's shopping cart with thousands of pairs of socks.

However, if you can strike the balance between a memorable gift and one that is friendly to your pocketbook, great!

Expertise

In my opinion, there is no greater gift than that of your expertise. This isn't something that can be bought in a store or found online. Your expertise includes your time - all of your experiences up to this point, your transactions, and problems solved.

The challenge with giving a gift of your expertise is usually the time it will take to put it together. It may not cost that much to develop and put on a class or put together a newsletter or a report, but especially if you don't have the skillset to create a newsletter then you will need to pay someone else to do it. If you want to send out a custom property report to a client, it may take 45 minutes to an hour per report to do the research and create it (and then the time to send it out).

However, in my experience, if you can find the time or the budget to give your expertise, this is where the greatest reward for your effort can be found.

If I had 100 people in my database and past clients and wanted to add to my pipeline for 2024, here is how I would approach my plan for the next 60 days:

Create a personalized property report for my clients. I would focus on either completing 10 per week for the next 10 weeks OR I would just plow through them and get them done depending on my personality.

I would reach out to those clients and offer to set up a meeting with them to go over the report. This could be a meeting over coffee or even on Zoom as your client prefers.

Got people who are unable to meet? Go ahead and mail (yes - snail mail in a large envelope) their reports and indicate you are available if they have questions. The follow up with a phone call or email a few weeks after sending.

Will this take time? Absolutely, but it is the highest-impact thing you can do for not much money. For each of these action items, time or money is the way you will have to pay to play.

If you are reflecting on 2023 and realizing that you connected very little with your database and past clients and want to change that moving forward in 2024, our LeadMagnet program may be just the thing your business needs to cultivate that highly-coveted past client and referral business. Give the gift of your expertise all year long!

Take a look at the info here and if you are intrigued, schedule a consultation with us.

By Denise Lones CSP, CMP, M.I.R.M. The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, over nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.

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mrs-cameron · 3 years

Text

in my business (part 6)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7

Mastelist | “Mainland’s episode”

pairings: slowburn rafe cameron x reader

word count: 2.6k

warnings: swearing

summary: Even though you’re out of town, you still manage to be the talk of both pogues and kooks. Meanwhile on the mainland, you enjoy the offline company of an old friend… as well as the online company of another friend.

no spoilers for season 2!

When Rafe woke up, Topper already made breakfast from what he could find in the fridge, which was not a lot… but hey, Topper is a sportsman, he needed his first meal of the day and he was determined to make one.

The apartment felt hot and stuffy, something you forgot to instruct Rafe on: no air conditioning, of course. Should’ve told him to open windows in the evening to prevent the stale air in the morning, very unfortunate.

Kelce sat by the kitchen counters with his face in his phone, scrolling thoughtlessly through social media.

The sun came out of clouds, shining right at Rafe as he grumbled and buried his face in the blanket. “Close the curtains, bro,” he complained as his voice cracked.

Topper sighed, getting up to do what Rafe just asked.

“Appreciate,” Rafe’s face reappeared, sleep marks all over his cheek.

Topper came closer to Rafe and started pulling the blanket from him. “I made three servings, get up now so it’s still warm.”

Rafe pushed couch pillows on himself as a substitute to a stolen cover, turning away from Topper. “Wake Y/n up and let her have it.”

“Mission impossible, she left,” Kelce replied.

Rafe quickly got up, head still dizzy from yesterday. He looked around and went to the bedroom to double-check.

“I’d sure lie about that, huh?”

He grinned, coming back to the guys. “Why didn’t she wake us up?”

“Oh, she did. Her alarm went off at six,” Kelce explained, “trip to the mainland, she had to leave.”

Rafe yawned, sitting next to Kelce and reaching for his plate with one hand and grabbing his shirt with the other, pulling the fabric side to side to cool himself a bit. Topper finished his meal, washing the dishes right after.

“Can’t believe she knew Sarah was lying to me the whole time, you know? You think you know someone and they blow your mind like that,” he complained. “It’s the pogues. The got to her, I’m telling you.”

“No one’s got to her,” Kelce objected. “You’ve seen it all yesterday.”

You haven’t seen it all yesterday, Rafe thought. He, on the other hand, did see something. Rafe saw you, once again, saving his ass from another disaster which he swore felt like they were scheduled by unexplainable higher powers. And each of your sacrifices got bigger every single time.

“Rafe? Are you listening?” Topper brought him back from his thoughts.

“I don’t. Was still thinking you were stupid for not waking me up when she was still here,” he replied, poking his breakfast with a fork.

Kelce and Topper caught each other’s looks, both puzzled from whatever got into Rafe this morning. “Getting off on the wrong foot today. What is going on, bro?”

“Something weird happened this night with me and Y/n,” Rafe confessed. “Like, next level weird.”

Kelce chuckled. “What, you guys made out or something?”

Topper smiled at his guess, putting clean plates back on the shelf. Rafe looked at both of them, re-evaluating whether or not he should answer.

“That happened too, not this time though,” Kelce and Topper frowned at him, definitely not expecting him to confirm Kelce’s unserious assumption.

To say they were surprised was an understatement. Topper sat next to Rafe.

“Just tell us what’s up, man?”

After contemplating for a bit, Rafe did just that. He told about what happened at Sarah’s party, though he missed the part where you hooked up with JJ Maybank and he eavesdropped about it. No need to speak it into existence more than once… it’s old news anyway.

Rafe then told about blackmailing Carter. Topper, even though he stayed on a neutral side of their newfound rivalry, was still proud of Rafe for pulling that trick.

Outlining weird coincidences of this year’s Midsummers, check. Even though he wouldn’t mind letting JJ Maybank know his place, you were right: the bruises on JJ’s face could be Rafe’s handiwork. Which showed him in a bad light, once again.

Quite frankly, he was thankful the dirty job was done by someone else. He would never tell you that, though.

He told about coming to your house in the middle of the night asking for forgiveness for his hurtful words, even… that part in particular sounded much more vulnerable out loud than in his head, huh?

Rafe, you really did that.

Topper finally put two plus two, replaying party at the Tanneyhill in his head. “That’s what you were doing? I really caught the very beginning of this rollercoaster, did I,” he shook his head in disbelief. “Sorry for the hampering.”

Finally, he told about what you did when Barry came unexpectedly yesterday. Even Kelce and Topper were taken aback by it, still not being able to wrap around the happenings between you and Rafe over the last couple of weeks.

Right under their noses, but still. It was you and Rafe. You’ve known each other for years, so it seemed like if you were to catch feelings for one another, there couldn’t be more random time for it than now.

“I guess here’s the final question. Are you crushing on Y/n?” Topper concluded.

Rafe sighed, voicing his thoughts about you for the first time felt both relieving and terrifying. “I don’t know,” he folded his arms, crossing his legs on the tall bar stool he sat on.

Enough opening up for today?

“We’re definitely good friends,” Kelce and Topper laughed at Rafe a little too loud, making him blush a little. He scratched the back of his head, “Shut the fuck up.”

“No, you sure are. All friends just make out and let you live in their place, and pay off each other’s debts,” Topper said.

“Hell yeah, that’s how pogues operate. She learned from them,” Kelce picked up. “P for L, Rafe,” Topper and Kelce busted out laughing.

“Very helpful, guys,” Rafe commented, nodding and pursing his lips.

“I’m still processing it, but…” Kelce stopped laughing and turned to him. “I’m on your team. But before you say anything to her, you gotta make your mind up first. Is it that you really like her, or is she just keeps solving your problems like no one else did before?”

“Food for thought,” Topper commented. “It’s not a touron to hang out for a day with. It’s Y/n we’re talking about.”

“I mean… What she did for you was awesome, have you done something for her?”

Keeping tabs on all your business is what he had done, something you wouldn’t be so appreciative of.

“Now you’re too helpful,” Rafe replied. “I’ll just… see how it goes, I guess.” He went back to the couch to find his phone. After flipping all the pillows and a blanket, he finally got a hold of it.

“Nothing screams like a good friend more than wishing her a good trip, right?”

1 new message from Rafe

rafe: good mo gm, have a safe trip 😊🙂

Speak of the devil, you thought, looking at Rafe’s text in a car rented by your mom.

Parked near a gas station and a small shopping mall, the vehicle heated so fast you wished for this road trip to be finally over. You barely had a rest since yesterday, falling asleep an hour before your alarm, Kelce waking you up because you couldn’t hear it.

While your mom went out to get some shopping done and buy some food for the rest of the ride, you were on the phone with your best friend, talking to her with your headphones on.

Subject of the talk was a given.

“You just surprise me more and more every day,” Sarah said.

“I haven’t even thought this through, you know, when you’re in the moment. What else was I supposed to do?”

“Think about yourself,” she suggested.

“It felt right when I stood between Barry and Rafe,” you started to explain. “But right now, I just feel stupid. Rafe said…” You faltered. “He said it’s an old debt. How old can it be if Barry literally knew his new address?”

Sarah rested her head on your hand. “What a liar. Dad doesn’t want to hear about him coming back,” she added, and you weren’t surprised by this outcome. “And what are you going to do when your parents find out how much money in your bank account is gone?”

“They won’t find out,” you reassured Sarah, looking out of the window to check if you’re mom’s coming. “Topper’s fine too, by the way,” Sarah’s smile dropped at the mention of her ex’s name. “We had to get him to the emergency room, but it seemed to be a false alarm. Our boy is just too dramatic.”

“He better be fine,” she sighed. “This is not how I wanted things to go.”

You raised your eyebrows. “And it could be prevented, if only…”

She interrupted. “If only your best friend,” she stressed the last words so you’d be softer to her, “weren’t so stupid, Y/n. Take it or leave it.”

“I wouldn’t have you the other way,” you laughed. “That’s why you’ll tell me if the guys and Kie are mad at me?”

Sarah’s voice cracked. “What? No.”

“Yes?” JJ exclaimed at his friends, walking circles. “She straight up dumped us for the kooks who only came to beat us up in the first place!”

“Well, if you put it that way…” Pope replied calmly.

“There is no other way to put it, Pope.”

The friend group hung out at the Chateau’s porch, Sarah just joining them.

“Guys,” Sarah intervened. “Topper needed to go to the emergency room, who else was supposed to drive? They were so high and drunk.”

"They got to us, somehow."

“Yeah, sounds like a they problem.”

“Kooks survive like cockroaches,” the three boys talked over each other.

Sarah glanced at John B, curving her eyebrows at him to say something. “Well, I think we haven’t heard her side to judge.”

JJ shook his head at John B’s words. “She’s a kook after all,” he reached with his hand in Sarah’s direction, “no offence, it’s just that they would always come before us. Even though,” he raised his voice, “they were the ones to start a fight, second time in the row.”

“Y’all are so stupid for kicking each other’s balls in rotation. Men,” Kie commented.

“The thing about Topper…” you noticed your mom coming back to the car. “Um, I think we’re driving again. I’ll call you in the evening and tell you something, okay?”

After you said bye to Sarah and told your mom hi from her, you finally continued on your way, putting your music on. You opened your messages and answered Rafe.

you: thank you! i’m dying it’s ridiculously hot

rafe: honestly same your apartment is a hothouse

rafe: or is it just me, be honest

What a dummy.

————

It was safe to say your week had been eventful so far. As you were getting more comfortable in your new place for the next four years, you had fewer fears about moving out of your home. A lot of going out and visiting new people and places. A lot of texting with Rafe Cameron. A lot of new acquaintances from the college you were enrolling in.

Sophomores, of course. It was Carter Menzies who introduced you to his friends. The highlight of your trip, truly: you knew no one and were ready to spend the whole time with your mom (which you were content with). Suddenly, you got a call from him saying he couldn’t help but notice that you’re in his town, thanks to your updates on social media. When he invited you to hang out, you were hesitant at first.

“Come on, give me a chance to redeem myself after Midsummers.”

And you did. Not one time did you regret your decision, enjoying every minute of getting to know Carter’s company, except the times you excused yourself to go answer Rafe’s texts. Max, Josie and Nate made you feel included from the jump, something you were very grateful for.

On the fourth day of your stay, you met with Carter for dinner once again. The restaurant was probably the coziest place you’ve ever been. Breezy outdoor setting with gorgeous views, good company and delicious food.

“I got a proposition for you.”

You looked at him, curious. “Yeah?”

Even though you put your phone on silent, your screen lit up with messages from Rafe quite often, bringing both yours and Carter’s attention to it before you decided to flip it.

“Let me take out of town to show where we spend most of our weekends, it’s not too long of a ride,” he pointed his index finger at you. “Before you say something, it’s just for one day. If you don’t want to stay overnight, we won’t.”

You sighed, shaking your head slightly. “I don’t think this is a good idea. Don’t get me wrong, it sounds good… it’s just that I’ve spent most of my allowance.”

To think about how you’ve spent it...

“You’re not serious right now,” Carter squinted at you. “It’s on me, Y/n. I’ll show you the place we like to go to unwind a bit. You’ll love it.”

You took a moment to consider it, noticing your screen lighting up again. On the second thought… where else would you have spent that crazy amount of money if not a getaway out of town with Carter?

“I just don’t know if I’ll be convenient for you.”

“You’re hurting me. I got this.”

You smiled, being taken care of felt delightful. “Fine, fine.”

“Now that’s what I love to hear!”

While he went to the bathroom, you checked your phone. Group chat with pogues? Dry. As always, some texts from Sarah, two from Wheezie about the new show she started watching and can’t convince her older sister to do the same, and finally… texts from Rafe.

You’ve been texting on and off since the very beginning of your trip, and even though you felt very conflicted about him, you couldn’t bring to ignore his messages. Very funny ones, too. Funny enough to make you smile while staring at the screen.

rafe: topper is stupid and wants to go talk to sarah again, he’s also very drunk

rafe: we’re parked outside of tanneyhill send help

rafe: i see ward through the window and he still wants to go in

you: ballsy! updates?

rafe: nevermind, he chickened out. that one braincell in his head is fighting for its life rn

You once again caught yourself giggling at Rafe’s texts, distracted by the waiter asking you if you need anything else. You asked him to come a bit later, waiting for Carter to come back.

As fun as it was to get out of OBX for a moment, there are only so many days in a week.

You did end up going on a small getaway with Carter, which took you by a surprise too. He rented a boat on this small lake, took you out for a festival even. Needless to say, everyone who follows you on social media knew you had fun.

Leaving didn’t make you feel sad; quite the opposite, you felt excited to go back to the mainland in fall. Your and Sarah’s separation anxiety also kicked in already, so it felt like the right time to come back.

Here comes the feeling of coming back to your room after making a mess while getting ready in the morning.

1 new message from Rafe

rafe: welcome home landlord, i’ve been on my best behaviour

————

a/n: heyyy there 💛 this chapter is all like this and so hope it wasn’t too much 🤪 I appreciate your support, likes, reblogs, comments and coming to my inbox with your impressions, IT MEANS SO MUCH!

tag list: @mentalpolaroids @pogueslandia @iixbella @taylathornton @imjustanothernerd @hopebaker @littlementalpolaroids @ilovejjmaybank @mildkleptomaniac @stilynskii @obxlife101 @thatshithurted8 @classygirlything21 @futur3milf @bibliophilewednesday @tinawhynot @rafeseggplant @dalmanara01 @blondiekook @lemur46 @spiderlaufeyson @john-benderr @poulterfilms @glors3 @exenestea @darlingisntit @loveylangdon @28cnn @riot-race @starkey-babie @hockeybabe87 (please cyberbully me if i forgot to tag you)

Part 7

#fanon rafe cameron #outer banks #obx #rafe cameron x y/n #rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron imagine #rafe x reader #rafe x y/n #rafe cameron fanfiction

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meruz · 3 years

Text

once again i am answering asks in a big compilation post. included is... gotham, patrick stump, tips about drawing backgrounds, tips about drawing in general, links to my faq, and infinity train

like.... the tv series? No... I’ve drawn dc comics fanart before, though. But it’s been years since I’ve been really into it. I like jumped ship like 10 years ago when the New 52 happened LOL.

AFJHDSLKGH I’m sorry I (probably) won’t do it again??

Actually full disclosure I have a truly cringe amount of p stump drawings/photo studies in my sketchbook right now LOL. He’s just fun to draw... hats, glasses, guitar, a good shape... but I don’t think I’ll rly post those until I can hide them in another big sketchbook pdf.. probably Jan 2022. Stay tuned........ (ominous)

(ominous preview)

These are all sort of related to backgrounds/painting so I grouped them together even though they’re pretty much entirely separate questions.... ANYWAYS

a) How is it working as a BG artist? Is it hard? What show are you drawing for?

I think you’re the first person to ever ask me about my job! Being a background artist is great. It’s definitely labor intensive but I think that could describe pretty much any art job (If something were rote or easy to automate, you wouldn’t hire an artist to do it) and I hesitate to say whether its harder or easier than any other role in the animation pipeline. Plus, so much of what truly makes a job difficult varies from one production to the next, schedule, working environment, co-workers etc. But I will say that I think while BGs are generally a lot of work on the upfront, I think they’re subject to less scrutiny/revisions than something like character/props/effects design and you don’t have to pitch them to a room like boards. So I guess it’s good if you don’t like to talk to people? LOL

A lot of my previous projects + the show I’ve worked on the longest aren’t public yet so I can’t talk about em (but I assure you if/when the news does break I won’t shut up about it). But I’m currently working on Archer Season 12 LOL. I’m like 90% sure I’m allowed to say that.

b) ~~~THANK YOU!! ~~~

c) What exactly do you like to draw most [in a background]?

@kaitomiury Lots of stuff! I really like to draw clutter! Because it’s a great opportunity for environmental storytelling and also you can be kind of messy with it because the sheer mass will supersede any details LOL.

I like to draw clouds... I like to draw grass but not trees lol,,, I like to draw anything that sells perspective really easily like tiled floors and ceilings, shelves, lamp posts on a street etc.

d) Do you have any tips on how to paint (observational)?

god there’s so much to say. painting is really a whole ass discipline like someone can paint their whole life and still discover new things about it. I guess if you’re really just starting out my best advice is that habit is more important than product. especially with traditional plein air painting, I find that the procedure of going outside and setting up your paints is almost harder than the actual painting. There’s a lot of artists who say “I want to do plein air sometime!!” and then never actually get around to doing it. A lot of people just end up working from google streetview or photos on their computer.

But going outside to paint is a really good challenge because it forces you to make and commit to lighting and composition decisions really quickly. And to work through your mistakes instead of against them via undo button.

My last tip is to check out James Gurney’s youtube channel because hes probably the best and most consistent resource on observational painting out there rn. There’s lots other artists doing the same thing (off the top of my head I know a lot of the Warrior Painters group has people regularly posting plein air stuff and lightbox expo had a Jesse Schmidt lecture abt it last year) but Gurney’s probably the most prolific poster and one of the best at explaining the more technical stuff - his books are great too.

e) Do you have tips for drawing cleanly on heavypaint?

@marigoldfool UMM LOL I LIKE ONLY USE THE FILL TOOL so maybe use the fill tool? Fill and rectangle are good for edge control as opposed to the rest of the heavy paint tools which can get sort of muddles. And also I use a stylus so maybe if you’re using your finger, find a stylus that works with your device instead. That’s all I’ve got, frankly I don’t think my drawings are particularly clean lol.

f) Tips on improving backgrounds/scenes making them more dynamic practicing etc?

Ive given some tips about backgrounds/scenes before so I’m not gonna re-tread those but here’s another thing that might be helpful...

I think a good way to approach backgrounds is to think of the specific story or even mood you want to convey with the background first. Thinking “I just need to put something behind this character” is going to lead you to drawing like... a green screen tourist photo backdrop. But if you think “I need this bg to make the characters feel small” or “I need this bg to make the world feel colorful” then it gives you requirements and cues to work off of.

If I know a character needs to feel overwhelmed and small, then I know I need to create environment elements that will cage them in and corner them. If a character needs to feel triumphant/on top of the world then I know I need to let the environment open up around them. etc. If I know my focal point/ where I want to draw attention, I can build the background around that.

Also, backgrounds like figure compositions will have focal points of their own and you can draw attention to it/ the relationship the characters have with the bg element via scale or directionality or color, any number of cues. I think of it almost as a second/third character in a scene.

Not every composition is gonna have something so obvious like this but it helps me to think about these because then the characters feel connected and integrated with the environment.

Some more general art questions

a) Do you have any process/tips to start drawing character/bodies/heads?

I tried to kind of draw something to answer this but honestly this is difficult for me to answer because I don’t think I’m that great at drawing characters LOL. Ok, I think I have two tips.

1) flip your canvas often. A lot about what makes human bodies look correct and believable is symmetry and balance. Even if someone has asymmetrical features, the body will often pull and push in a way to counterbalance it. we often have inherent biases to one side or another like dominant hands dominant eyes etc. you know how right-handed artists will often favor drawing characters facing 45 degrees facing (the artist’s) left? that’s part of it. so viewing your drawing flipped even just to evaluate it helps compensate for that bias and makes you more aware of balance.

2) draw the whole figure often. I feel like a lot of beginner artists (myself included for a long time) defer to just drawing headshots or busts because it’s easier, you dont have to think about posing limbs etc. But drawing a full body allows you to better gauge proportion, perspective, body language, everything that makes a character look believable and grounded.

Like if you (me) have that issue where you draw the head too big and then have to resize it to fit the proportions of the rest of the body, it’s probably because you (I) drew the head first and are treating the body as an afterthought/attachment. Sketching out the whole figure first or even just quick drawing guides for it will help you think of it more holistically. I learned this figure drawing in charcoal at art school LOL.

oh. third mini tip - try to draw people from life often! its the best study. if you can get into a figure drawing/nude drawing class EVEN BETTER and if you have a local college/art space/museum that hosts those for free TREASURE IT AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT, that’s a huge boon that a lot of artists (me again) wish they had. though if youre not so lucky and youre sitting in a park trying to creeper draw people and they keep moving.. don’t let that stop you! that’s good practice because it’s forcing you to work fast to get the important stuff down LOL. its a challenge!

b) I’ve been pretty out of energy and have had no inspiration to draw but I have the desire to. Any advice?

Dude, take a walk or something.... Or a nap? Low energy is going to effect everything else so you gotta hit that problem at its source.

If you’re looking for inspiration though, I’d recommend stuff like watching a movie, reading a book, playing video games etc. Fill up your idea bank with content and then give yourself time/space to gestate it into new concepts. Sometimes looking at other art works but sometimes it can work against you because it’s too close.

Also something that helps me is remembering that art doesn’t always have to be groundbreaking... like it’s okay to make something shitty and stupid that you don’t post online and only show to your friend. That’s all part of the process imo. If you want to hit a home run you gotta warm up first, right? Sports.

I should probably compile everytime i give tips on stuff like this but that’s getting dangerously close to being a social media artist who makes stupid boiled down art tutorials for clout which is the last thing i want to be... the thing I want to stress is that art is a whole visual language and there are widely agreed upon rules and customs but they exist in large part to be broken. Like there's an infinite number of ways to reach an infinite number of solutions and that’s actually what makes it really cool and personal for both the artist and the viewer. So when you make work you like or you find someone else’s work you like, take a step back and ask yourself what about it speaks for you, what about it works for you, what makes it effective, how to recreate that effect and how to break that effect completely, etc. And have a good time with it or else what’s the point.

for the first 2, I direct you to my FAQ

For the last one, I don’t actually believe I’ve ever addressed artwork as insp for stories/rp but I’ll say here and now yeah go ahead! As long as you’re not making profit or taking credit for my work then I’m normally ok with it. Especially anything thats private and purely recreational, that’s generally 100% green light go. I only ask that if you post it anywhere public that you please credit me.

(and I reserve the right to ask you to take it down if I see it and don’t approve of it’s use but I think that case is pretty rare.)

a) @lemuelzero101 Thank you!!! I haven’t played Life is Strange but actually that series’ vis dev artist Edouard Caplain is one of my bigger art inspirations lately so that’s a really high compliment lol. And yeah I hope we get 5-8 too...!

b) Thank you for sticking around! I’ve been thinking about Digimon and Infinity Train in tandem lately, actually. They’re a little similar? Enter a dangerous alternate world and have wacky adventures with monsters/inanimate objects that have weird powers... there’s like weird engineers and mechanisms behind the scenes... also frontier literally starts with them getting on a train. Anyways if anyone else followed me for digimon... maybe you’d like Infinity Train? LOL

c) @king-wens-king I’M GLAD MY ART JUST HAS PINOY VIBES LOL I hope you are having a good day too :^)

a, b, c, d) yessss my Watch Infinity Train agenda is working....

e) aw thank you!! i think you should watch infinity train :)

#ask #trying this new thing where i tag people in the body of the post instead

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shoichee · 3 years

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teiko manager anon back ~ my juicy part 2 will disappoint bc guess what: we're skipping two years into the future. akashi never found out what happened, and by third year the gom were the epitome of cruelty. so reader picks a fight with them after meiko game, only to collapse out of stress after. they graduate, she follows kuroko to seirin and they train to defeat gom. but why is she so insecure and easily sad when gom is mentioned? they get their answer when they catch her overworking

oh teiko anon, so so bold.... really out here stirring the pot of chaos with this part 2 huh KEK alright folks BUCKLE IN YOUR SEATBELTS IT”S TIME FOR PART 2 and part 1 is right here ! part 3 will be here ! update: part 4 is here !

Akashi x Reader

Part 2

[Teiko!manager Headcanons]

remember how I said in part 1 how Akashi would find out sooner or later? this would normally be the case, but in this exception…

you came back to school pretty quickly and restored, only to be in shock when Akashi himself confronts you about where you’ve been… like hello? YOUR CRUSH?? is? talking? to you? about your wellbeing?

here’s the thing, Akashi can easily detect lies through body language because he has an extraordinary sense of kinetic vision and critical thinking, but he’s still a human, not to mention… a middle schooler, and he’s not a true mind reader as some teammates would wholeheartedly believe

still, after some easy sleuthing he easily drew out confessions from some teammates who badmouthed you, although every single one were some type of half-truths and inconsistent testimonies that didn’t really make sense in painting a big picture

instead of incorrectly assuming things, he wanted to hear what’s been going on from your own mouth (keep in mind, this is still Oreshi, the guy who’s still cordial and wants to confirm this with you out of respect)

when he asks you some questions, he doesn’t detect any physical signs of lying from you, which only makes him believe that there wasn’t anything wrong to begin with other than you being under the weather and the other teammates saying utter nonsense either out of fear in his presence or using you as a scapegoat to cover up other delinquencies that he may have yet to discover

“(l/n)-san, I take it that you’ve been resting well? I heard from Kuroko that you were absent due to the seasonal flu.”

“Ah, y-yes! I’ve actually gotten plenty of rest and proper meals, so I’m back on my feet quicker than expected.”

“I actually also wanted to ask you something, if you don’t mind?”

“What is it?”

“Has anything odd happening to you lately? Anyone who has given you trouble or has been uncooperative with you as head manager as of late?”

at the question, you only frown in genuine confusion before you answer no; you genuinely believed that these teammates weren’t in the wrong for “speaking their mind” and if anything, you felt like you were the problem in not being capable enough in managing your own job and your health in the process (despite being knowledgeable in health yourself)

because Akashi saw that you weren’t lying, he dropped it completely out of respect and asked you that if there was anything troubling you that you could reach out to him

oh how he was so, so close to finding out the truth

this wouldn’t be brought up ever again because you and Akashi only continued to grow busier and busier with your own duties; eventually, your fears came true when the Generation of Miracles had in fact “left” you behind when their talents blossomed too fast and left unchecked

honestly, you developed a horrible habit of overworking despite Kuroko’s and Kise’s constant checks on you

what do you know? of course the coaches and faculty members would ignore your opposition against putting the GoMs in every game; after all some of them had been quite dismissive of you already

it’s kind of ironic because if Bokukashi was the one interrogating you back then, he would’ve either easily (correctly) assume based off of the teammates’ testimonies alone, or he’d be a lot more insistent in discerning the truth of the situation and nipping it right in the bud to stop the “nonsense”

but at the same time, Bokukashi has a lot more pressing priorities than a few poor-attitude teammates when he has the entire reputation of Tekio’s legacy on his shoulders; anything pertaining to you never crossed his mind ever since his domineering side emerged

you were really excited for Kuroko since he was gushing about playing against his old friend, since his friend couldn’t make it to finals the first time // needless to say, you were also Kuroko’s mental support when he felt really down at that time

after Kuroko sustained an injury in the game before Meiko, you immediately accompanied him to the infirmary

there, Kuroko requests you to go watch the game and you only reluctantly agree because you wanted to see the game just to relay back to Kuroko just in case if he couldn’t make it, and you were still a manager with a job to fulfill; you’d figure leaving Momoi to watch over was sufficient enough

when you walk out the door though… you bump into Akashi, which is the first time in a while where you two were face-to-face like this; your heart sank when you realize that you had to accept the fact that he’s changed and allowed the distance to grow between you two

but a small part of denial makes you quickly turn and flee out the hallway, but you really begin to evaluate your crush on him as you scurry away; Akashi just stares at you for a moment before he enters into the infirmary where Kuroko is

you’ve distanced yourself from other people (GoMs in particular) in basketball out of denial of the fact you were really left behind (plus, you already dread attending to their games because it’s always a cruel reminder that you’re not working hard enough to achieve results of the same level), which is why reality slapped you in the face after the aftermath of the Meiko game… when you witnessed the full extent of their cruelty on the court

you were really hurt—in fact, you looked more distraught than the Meiko teammates themselves

especially, since the fact that Kise himself, who you thought of him as someone you can trust in, partook in this as well (this is actually your first time in seeing his cruel side in action, since he’s always been very sweet and helpful to you because he respects you)

you first confronted Kise when he was alone for a bit, sounding absolutely heartbroken and on the verge of tears; you shocked him out of his cold side and he immediately becomes a mother hen and asking if you needed water or a seat to calm down before you overexert yourself

after telling him your feelings about the game and your growing distance in the friendship, he sincerely apologizes for making you feel in such an awful way and tells you to let him know next time before a game, so that he wouldn’t suggest this type of entertainment for the game again.

you were in complete disbelief… the fact that your best friend suggested this himself? You dumbly asked for his reason, and he only says that you wouldn’t understand it because no one ever gives the GoM a proper challenge

even though he didn’t intend anything bad when he said this, it just made you feel worse, but you still accepted the apology to get it over with

the other GoMs come and you immediately become angry again and tension just skyrockets; Midorima simply looks away and says nothing, and Murasakibara and Aomine do most of the talking back/arguing… and Akashi only impassively stares at you

later, when Kuroko himself confronts them while everyone was walking in the hallway, you completely lagged behind on the group, tearfully staring at the backs of the GoMs and how you felt really alienated and unmotivated to continue being a manager for a team you don’t even recognize anymore

you grew dizzy again, and you knew your body was dealing with too much at once but you willed your body to at least last the trip

at least you gave a warning when you assumed that you were away from the GoMs at Teiko before you went unconscious; Kise happens to catch you before he brings you to the school infirmary

he does stay with you the entire time, knowing the reason for your collapse was all the extreme emotional and mental toll accumulated in such a short time; he feels absolutely guilty, and when you were about to stir awake, he simply leaves a lighthearted note and a cutely shaped bread before he leaves, knowing that you’d be stressed again if you saw him (around this time is when Kuroko confronts Akashi to quit the team, which is why he was nowhere near you at the time of your collapse/rest)

you felt better that at least Kise still sees you as a close friend when you see what he left behind

you still feel awful, to say the least

it felt wrong of you to quit mid-season, since you felt that you were simply giving up and further perpetuating the fact that you weren’t doing the most that you could

but you didn’t feel like staying for the rest of the season, so you decided to overwork yourself again to get the rest of the paperwork and training plans out of the way for the remainder of the games; you even left detailed instructions to Momoi in how to relieve certain pressure points and muscles for instant relief in case someone hurts themselves

a little timeskip where you decided to tag along Kuroko in attending Seirin High, but you were more reluctant in joining basketball again because you didn’t want to re-experience the stress and burdens in Teiko

well, until you made friends with Riko, and her story in how she was skeptical about basketball at first too inspires you to give it a try again

Kuroko feels really happy that you’re at ease again for the first time, but he definitely notices how you grow gloomy when the Seirin teammates praise the GoMs

you slowly relapse into the habit of overworking to “compensate” for your lack of contributions to Seirin’s team, but this time, every member DROPKICKS you to stop working and relax sometimes (Riko and Hyuuga are the main culprits)

even though you never tell them the reason for your poor habits, the Seirin team members just SENSE and KNOW what to say to make you feel like you’re doing more than enough to support the team in their own unique ways (Mitobe giving really cute shoulder pats and thumbs-ups… Koganei giving you slaps on the back and high-fives… Riko bluntly telling you to relax and giving you encouraging winks… Hyuuga being a roundabout in his praises… Teppei openly praising you… and Kagami telling you that you were doing too much LOL)

Kuroko gives you the SOFTEST SMILES (everyone freaks out every time he does that, it’s hilarious)

however, wounds slowly reopen more once again every time Seirin goes against schools that the respective GoM plays for

after every win Seirin achieves against the GoM’s respective school, each GoM would eventually learn a little tidbits here and there about your tendency to overwork and collapse and possible speculations of why, but you never confirm anything with them

even though you easily forgive Kise after the Seirin vs. Kaijo match (seeing how he interacted with Kagami and Kuroko in the park), for the others… you weren’t so ready to confront…

… particularly with Akashi

#knb #knb x reader #knb headcanon #knb headcanons #teiko #knb teiko #akashi x reader #akashi seijuro #akashi seijuro x reader #kuroko tetsuya #kise ryota #kise ryouta #aomine daiki #midorima shintarou #midorima shintaro #murasakibara atsushi #teiko middle school

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elminx · 3 years

Text

Happy August!

August is a 4 Universal month (8 (August) + 5 (2021) = 13 = 1 + 3 = 4) in a 5 universal year. With both Venus and Mars currently transiting Virgo, the energy is strong this month to get organized and/or get yourself back on track for your 2021 goals.

The setup: Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus are still square to one another and will be through December and into 2022. Pluto in Capricorn, Jupiter in Aquarius, and Neptune in Pisces are lined up ~30 degrees apart from each other. We have four plants plus an asteroid retrograde throughout August: Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto, and Chiron. This signifies a more "yin" energy signature that is out of alignment with the forceful fire energy of Leo season.

The TL:DR: As the Sun and Mercury transit Leo, they are going to relight up our fixed t-square involving Saturn and Uranus early in the month. You may be able to break through the big blocks in your life during this time but only if you can step away from your ego. This month is full of mixed messages and misunderstandings - we are all trying to figure out our new lives right now, give yourself and your others a metric fuckton of space. The work you put into your life is what you will get back out of it - go slow and keep putting one foot in front of the other. Expecting expedited results is a recipe for disaster.

There's a lot going on in the cosmos this month - there's rarely a day that is aspect-free and they are, for the most part, challenging. This has to do with our lineup of outer planets - see the details for more information.

The Nitty Gritty:

As we enter August, our Sun-Mercury conjunction is lighting up our long-term square between Saturn in Aquarius and Uranus in Taurus. This is our unstoppable force (Uranus) meets immovable object (Saturn) energy. Something has got to give to make way for the After. Much of how August plays out for you will likely be dictated by how you have been working with and processing this long-term aspect.

If 2020's motto was "Change Before You Have To", this Saturn-Uranus square is the "Have To". Uranus is the lightning on the Tower card - the change that is unavoidable. All you can control is how you react to the change.

Yeah, that's probably a terrifying concept. I get it. But I also firmly believe that when you stand aware in the middle of the maelstrom, that's where the true magic happens. In the moment of liminality, anything is possible.

August is the maelstrom. This shouldn't really come as a surprise but I guess that some people have their heads really far inside the sands. The storm never ended, we just got a brief reprieve. I hope that you all took good advantage of it - I know that I did.

For the rest of the month, all of our personal planets will be making complicated aspects to our outer planets - this is because of the angles. It's definitely echoing the roller coaster vibe of 2021's "5" energy - you'll see that continue next month as September is a 5 month in a 5 year.

Expect epic highs and abysmal lows. Probably to have your stomach drop out from under you at least once. There's a lot going on, try to harness Mars in Virgo's ability to roll with it and worry about figuring out the details later. Mars in Virgo is very in line with August's 4 energy: make a list but keep it open-ended, show up and do the work. Amanda of Wise Skies Advice called this month "Focus Pocus" and I'm in agreement there - what you focus on grows.

There's a lot of magic to be found in August, but you need to keep your focus. If you get wrapped up in your emotions, or worse, the rising collective fear, it will be easy to lose your way. Don't feed the monster. This is especially true for empaths and other highly sensitive persons.

Dates to Pay Attention To

8/1: Sun conjunct Mercury in Leo, Mercury opposed Saturn - thoughts will be very close to the surface and potentially heavy. Watch out for the stories you tell yourself, especially about Saturnian topics: government, contracts, money, marriage - this will be in effect all through the first week of August and through the new moon

8/2: Sun opposed Saturn, Moon square Mars - this is likely to be a frustrating day. Where do you need to slow down? Where have you been pushing in a direction that is only resistance?

8/3: Venus trine Uranus, Moon square Venus - the anecdote to this malaise is to try something new

8/6: Sun square Uranus - watch out. Lie low. Stay away with explosives - observe that physically as well as metaphorically. Where is your ego getting in the way of what you need?

8/8: New Moon at 16 Leo conjunct Mercury - Depending on how comfortable you are with Mercury energy, this moon may feel enlightening or anxiety-making. Practice good self-care - soothe your system with calming crystals or nervine tea if you need to.

8/9: Venus opposed Neptune retrograde: that lie may come due today - watch out for dishonesty, especially with yourself

8/10: Mercury opposed Jupiter retrograde: What is your inner truth? What do you believe? Does it align with what you know now? What needs to be re-evaluated? Again, how you perceive this will likely have a lot to do with your relationship with Mercury.

8/11: Mercury enters Virgo, Venus trine Pluto retrograde - Mercury is at home in Virgo - expect communication to become more orderly and precise over the next three weeks. The Divine Feminine may be experiencing a rebirth at this time.

8/14: Moon in Scorpio square Saturn retrograde in Aquarius - this lights up that Saturn-Uranus square...again. Watch out, friction is likely to be high.

8/16: Venus enters Libra, Moon square Mercury, Moon square Mars - Venus is at home in the sign of Libra, expect some of our focus to be on our relationships (of all kinds) during this transit. The energy of the day will likely be volatile and moody. Both your words and your actions may be misunderstood at this time - exercise caution.

8/17 Sun in Leo trine Moon in Sag, Moon square Neptune retrograde - a lovely fire trine but watch out for illusions - all that glitters may not be gold

8/18: Mercury conjunct Mars in Virgo - work for it. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Slow and steady wins this race.

8/19: Sun opposed Jupiter retrograde, Uranus retrograde at 14 Taurus, Moon conjunct Pluto - The energy is likely to feel at once larger than life and impossibly deep. Whether you enjoy this will have a lot to do with your personality and comfort levels. It's always wise to go slow when a major planet like Uranus retrograde but Sun opposed Jupiter may not let us do that.

8/20: Mercury trine Uranus, Moon trine Venus, Moon conjunct Saturn - you might get flashes of insight at this time but it is unlikely that you will be able to implement them just yet. Hold tight. This day also lights up our Saturn-Uranus square - stay aware and cautious. Avoid arguments.

8/22: Full Moon at 29 Aquarius, Mars trine Uranus, Sun enters Virgo - this is wildcard energy, engage with care. This again activates our Saturn-Uranus square - stay aware and stay cautious.

8/23: Venus trine Saturn retrograde, Moon opposed Mars, Moon conjunct Neptune retrograde- emotions, especially around close relationships, are likely close to the surface. You may not have all of the information or may be lying to yourself.

8/24: Mercury opposed Neptune retrograde: another big reveal - watch the news, listen carefully to what the people in your life are saying

8/25: Moon in Aries opposed Venus in Libra - moooooody. Remember great things happen when you stop being a moody cow. Give your others a break.

8/26: Mercury trine Pluto retrograde, Venus in Libra opposed Chiron retrograde in Aries - the new message is one of independence and accountability, do you hear it yet? What part of you needs to be reborn to get you on track?

8/27: Moon conjunct Uranus, Moon square Saturn: the moon activates our square again today - same old - be cautious - this is happening 4x every month right now, it's not "new news" just something to stay aware of

8/29: Mercury enters Libra: this isn't a great placement for Mercury. The idea of giving two sides equal air time without account for its truthfulness is a failing of Mercury in Libra thinking. Watch out for overthinking and analysis paralysis.

Do you like my work? Please consider supporting my writing by Buying Me A KoFi.

#witchblr #words #mine #energy update #astrology #transits #August 2021 #Leo season #Saturn square Uranus #healing through astrology #numerology

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canonicallysoulmates · 2 years

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Jensen unnecessarily mentioning Jared drinking and making some contributing l contradictory statements about the prequel mess, laughing about calling Jessica Alba a bitch during what we now know was an awful time for her over a small comment... I kinda wish Jensen hadn't done this podcast. And before you say it, this isn't about whether or not J2 are fine. They probably are. But the way Jensen's been handling some things, add that to the fact that apparently they were gonna do the episode 1/2

Let me preface this by saying that you are allowed your feelings about this, if you feel you are losing respect for Jensen my recommendation is you take a step back for a couple of days and then re-evaluate your feelings and whether or not he is someone you wish to continue to support and be a fan off.

That being said I will go ahead and address some of the things that you bring forth.

The first being Jensen mentioning Jared having had a couple of drinks when the prequel mess happened. While I agree that he could have omitted that part out, the way you put it is as if you felt he had done it on purpose, I don’t know if that’s how you actually feel but I do know there are those that feel that way as if he had thrown Jared to the dogs. But all he did was casually mention it when sharing part of the conversation they had, he didn’t put emphasis on it, make it the focus, or say it was to blame. If certain demographics of this fandom take his words and spin them into something different- first of all they were going to do regardless but also he can’t be held responsible every time that happens. And we can’t expect him to monitor himself and make sure nothing he ever says can’t be twisted by certain people of the fandom because if so he would never speak.

Second, the contradictory statements. I have listened to the podcast more than once, I checked what I have of the other times they have addressed what happened and I am unsure as to what contradiction you are referring to because what he said happened matches with what he said in the leaked Denvercon m&g. The closest thing to a contradiction is that in this he said he was running back and forth from set that he had been told Deadline would be releasing something that afternoon and he needed to have something written up while in the m&g he made it sound like he found out about Deadline knowing after the article was already up. I wouldn’t call that a contradiction, I would call it omission.

About Jessica Alba, again the way you’re putting it- he didn’t just laugh at calling her a bitch once to her face, he was sharing an anecdote about a time on set after being asked by Rosenbaum what he meant when he said she would pick on him. He acknowledged the immense pressure and stress she was in at the time; but someone going through a difficult time doesn’t mean they can’t have bitch-y moments and it doesn’t mean that if they take a jab at someone that person has to keep quiet. To you it may seem like a small comment but to him it was disrespectful to call him the network's window dressing for no reason in front of the whole crew. But he also mentioned nice moments they had, including how when his grandfather passed she was there for him. Describing their relationship as that of bickering siblings.

As for the commentary series that thankfully never was, this is the one point where I can understand people being irked and yet I’ll still play devil’s advocate. For starters we don’t know if what was shot as the “Pilot” would have even been used or at what point in the “season”(?) it would have been inserted. It was a test pilot that was done one. because they were bored, and two. because they wanted to pitch the idea. And why not do the test pilot with Jared? My best guess is that this was when he was off camping which is where he spent a good chunk of his quarantine.

Jensen knows more than anyone - and probably more than ever - how much spn means to Jared.

No, they’re not oblivious to certain sides of this fandom but as I said in my first point we can’t expect him to always monitor himself and make sure nothing he ever says can't be spun, and he can’t control how everyone perceives things. For example in this same podcast he says how Jared was the person he was most excited to tell the prequel too and that he’s the one who messed up yet here we are…..

One finale note: this was a quick podcast appearance that he didn't even know when it would air filmed months ago then posted on a random Tuesday in January. I just think that's pertinent.

But as I said anon, you are allowed your feelings and views on the matter these are just my takes on what you mention.

#there's been times when i've side eyed jensen and thought 'you dumb bitch you knew what this would do'#a podcast appearance filmed months ago ain't one #jensen related #j2 related #anon #ask #i don't consider this anti mc but i'm gonna tag it anyways cause i don't wanna hear complaning #misha collins critical #apologies if i'm not very coherent i'm running on zero sleep

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maeviana · 3 years

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Rory Gilmore - everyone I think cringes at least a little on Rory’s character progression on Gilmore Girls after season 4 but here is my take on it.

I think Rory grew up in “other peoples houses” a lot and was expected to be well behaved - you can’t really be climbing the walls at the Inn while your mother is working or when your in the diner or wherever. I think she was also out in public a lot being at the front desk at the inn etc. and so being in the public eye when you are very small of course the towns people watch you grow up and think you’re very polite and very cute and she grew to be used to people admiring and liking her.

I think when Rory became a teen she naturally had some inclinations to rebel - this is really normal and actually should be expected but whenever she did rebel she was told “that she wasn’t acting like herself” or she told herself that “this wasn’t her” this is harmful reaction for two reasons

1. By other people telling her that something she did “is not her” it confuses her sense of self. More specifically her sense of self outside of her relationship with Lorelai.

2. By saying something is “not her” it stops her taking ownership and responsibility for her actions. She doesn’t notice patterns in her behavior or have to take responsibilities for anything she does wrong because she was “not herself” when she did it - and so instead of learning from her mistake she begins to view them as her just acting out of character.

I think that when she was growing up a lot of her personality reflected her mother because that’s who she spent the most time with and whatever her mother was reading or watching or listening to that’s what she was interested in as well. I do think Lorelai (unknowingly) pushed the “Havard Dream” onto her a bit and I think it’s a shame this wasn’t explored more. The show seemed to deny that Lorelai did push Havard on her but at the same time whenever Rory strayed from the Havard path her mother got mad.

I think it’s really disappointing that Rory didn’t flounder more at Yale - when she was away from her mother and that her semester away from Yale was treated as her just avoiding her problems or solely as a reaction to Mitchum. I don’t think that Rory just dropped out of Yale because someone criticized her work I think she dropped out because Mitchum Huntzberger newspaper tycoon told her she didn’t have it. I think it is interesting though that her first decision is to just drop out not re-evaluate or change her major especially as the Summer was coming up and she would have gotten some time then to consider what her next move was going to be. I think this might have been because as Lorelai says in season 7 Rory is used to getting what she wants. Unlike Paris who tries so hard and still fails at things she really really wants (getting with Tristan, getting in to Havard, becoming one of the Puffs) Rory has never had any real struggle. She’s and Paris are examples of failure making us stronger - through her failures Paris has gained an ability to bounce back and to change course something Rory has not become adept at. I think it’s a shame Rory didn’t question her decision to become a journalist - why a journalist? why not a novelist? and that it’s interesting that when Jess tells her he’s surprised that she doesn’t explain why she wants to become a journalist but instead said that it’s what she’s been talking about it forever and personally I can’t help but think that she doesn’t feel that she can change her mind.

Another thing can happens in the show when Rory is shown to have conflict with someone she is proven right or she is vindicated by someone else. I refer you to the Ballerina incident. When Rory writes that review where she fat shames the ballerina she only questions how much she actually knows about ballet after the ballerina confronts her and when she tries to change her article to put the ballet in a more flattering light she is told not to. The moral of the story appears to be that sometimes poeple need to develop thicker skins - which is disappointing because this could have been a chance to review some toxicity within the newspaper business and could have been a jumping off point for the show to explore whether Rory really does want to go into the industry.

Rory is actually really privileged and not just in terms of her grandparents paying for Yale but also the freedom of not having to get a part time job for her own day to day expenses because her mom worked so hard and her boyfriend built her a car which helped facilitate the amount of free time she has to study - I’m not saying she didn’t work hard I’m just saying that not everyone has that much free time. Not only that but Lorelai clearly starts making good money quickly enough because Rory’s CD and book collection would have been extremely expensive and so Rory never actually has to give up any free time for her want of material possessions.

Rory also has the privileged of being someones number one priority and the most important person in someones lives and doesn’t have to compete with siblings or boyfriends, other family members or anything for her mother’s attention if she needs help studying Lorelai will help her, if she needs costumes for a Shakespeare play, Lorelai will make them.

But I think there is a lot of pressure put on Rory. She is the bridge between her grandparents world and her mother - she at once is very privileged and is just from a small town. She is supposed to go to Havard and become a famous journalist and nothing less and this can take years.

I think the pressure of having to be amazingly successful combined with the fact that no one becomes amazingly successful right away and even if you are talented because there are millions of talented all bubbled below the surface and gave us.....revival Rory dun dun DUN

#rory gilmore character analysis #rory gilmore #gilmore girls #gilmore girls meta #character analysis #lorelai gilmore

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organic-guacamole · 3 years

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second chances song (leak) analysis

we already knew the finale was gonna be really sad but this 1 minute long clip really had me bawling ✋

ok let's do this

I see this song as the full circle ending to the core four's storylines. Which is pretty obvious from the clip.

The way it shows where they were at the start of the series to make you realize just how far they've all come from then. We can't really make out much of the lyrics but what we can pull out from it just shows exactly what each character's plot was and maybe still is/will be in (the potential) season 3.

Nini:

"I'm finding who I want to be"

Ever since season 1, Nini's been trying to find her place in the world. Starting with "putting herself out there" after the initial breakup with Ricky, and being inspired to audition for the lead of the musical. She's always wanted to stand out and be someone rather than just someone to someone. After each of her breakups she's eventually gotten stronger in some way, but still she feels lost and sometimes forgotten. Her going to YAC at the beginning of this season and immediately trying to make a name for herself in a place where no one knew her shows us how badly she wants to feel known and loved.

Whatever happens in this episode, whether it be the music producing opportunity from Jamie or not, is giving her a second chance to find herself.

EJ:

"I thought I knew what I wanted"

This one is easy. Since season 1 we saw EJ being extremely sure of himself and confident on his future, everything went his way all the time and he felt he was set for life. Then he learned something, he's not always going to be number 1. Sometimes stepping back and making a re-evaluation of your life and choices is necessary to move forward, he discovers this during the musical, "I'm not the Troy you want" and "Some wonderstudies we are". In season 2 he finally realised that it's ok to not have extreme certainty for his future. For years it's been embedded in his mind that, no matter what, he's going to Duke and he is going to be just as successful as his dad. There was no question about it and he didn't know he could. With some help he found that things can change because people change. Maybe his dad accepted that he's not going to Duke, but is pressuring him to make a new decision immediately.

His second chance could be him finally accepting that it's okay to not know at any given point, and finally break free from his family's expectations and do what he wants to do.

Gina:

"I'm sick of when I'm on the run"

As we know, Gina is accustomed to her mom's job uprooting whatever life they've settled into, to start a new one elsewhere. This line could mean that she's moving again but this time doesn't have a choice to stay. She said at the beginning of the season that her mom is letting her stay with Ashlyn until the end of the semester. I'm not 100% sure how American schools work but I'm pretty sure the semester is ending very soon. East High was the first place Gina was fully accepted. The East High kids saw the best in her, even when she just came in planning on taking over and making her mark before the inevitable move. She's sick of having to move all the time but this one really matters because this is where she's found her home. She doesn't know what's coming in the future but she doubts that she may ever find another place like this.

Her second chance may be deeper than the others, maybe she wishes she had a second chance in another life where her mom doesn't have to move her around. That she can have a new start to her life where she is right now.

Ricky:

I don't think he had any unique lyrics in that clip so I'll just go over what I think the song in general means for him.

We all know that Ricky's been going through a lot. At the start of season 1 he made a big step in auditioning for the musical, except it wasn't for himself, but to show the girl he loved that he's willing to do anything for her. We've consistently seen where Ricky puts others' opinions, feelings, wants and desires ahead of his own because he doesn't think he deserves to to great things on his own. He wants the people around him to be their best, but stay with him. He's always been content to let the people have their thing and just watch from the sidelines. He doesn't see himself worthy of whatever his dreams were, maybe because everytime he's put himself out there, it's backfired on him. He hates change and just when he gets settled into a new rhythm, accepting new people close to him. Someone leaves. When he was finally getting into the musical in season 1, his parents announce their divorce. When he gets into the musical in season 2, he and Nini break up. When he makes a choice to put himself out there, it blows up in his face and pushes him further into himself.

He needs a second chance to get it all right this time. Start over. Learn to understand his self worth but understand that the people he loves can have their own issues, problems and moments that don't concern him. Understand that sometimes, things happen when you aren't expecting it and they may seem bad but at some point, you'll learn from it.

#i might add what the song might mean for the relationships but idk #i literally just got these lyrics that might not even be legit amd rolled with it #watch this entire thing be very off amd i just spent 45 minutes writing this for nothing #i will commit a crime if this doesn't get renewed for season 3 #likely arson #idk haven't decided yet💅🏽#really wish ricky had a line for me to analyse too #they all look so sad in this #its giving me many ideas about what could happen but idkkk #hsmtmts #hsmtmts s2 #hsmtmts season 2 #hsmtmts theory #ej caswell #ricky bowen #gina porter #nini salazar roberts

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