#in for a penny in for a pound etc i HAD to do this scene ok!

[irvingcoded]

God sees you, Mr. Hickey. Here more than anywhere. Reform your behavior and you’ll have His forgiveness, as well as mine. Continue on this path and you will find more than eternal happiness closed to you.

[bhaalble]

While I'm on my script doctor shit: I want to talk about Karlach.

Karlach's not dealing with the same level of narrative neglect/hasty rewrite fingerprints that Wyll is. As a standalone entity, her arc works. I Am Not Immune To Weeping at the Post-Gortash Fight Scene etc etc. But it does feel oddly discordant with the other companion quests. Karlach doesn't really experience any moral evolution or make meaningful decisions. When we meet her she's a kindhearted friendly hero, and she will be that regardless of whether she dies in Faerun or goes back to Avernus. She's incredibly likeable while she does that, and I also don't want to come across like I think her writing is shallow. But in a game where all the companion quests follow a pretty intentional pattern regarding the cycle of abuse, it sticks out like a sore thumb to me that the resolution of the Gortash plot doesn't really impact her character arc one way or the other.

As always I feel compelled to point out that this isn't me going "actually she's secretly a bad person and the game won't admit it". This is more me attempting to mine some more in-depth conflict, using the existing arc as a template. With that in mind, these are the changes I would make:

-Make the use of Soul Coins MUCH MORE of a character point. With how much attention is drawn to acquiring these things for the first time and a special dialogue choice for whether or not you'll have her use them, it feels very much like a dropped thread that it doesn't really go anywhere storywise. Leveraged correctly I think this could've been the chance to show a crack in Karlach's persona. She's your big loveable attack dog who's been having the worst decade, yeah. But she's also a survivor, who's not only been deployed into an endless conflict but who also hasn't had a single person she can trust other than herself. I think you could make more of a thing about how the conditions she lived in in Avernus forced her to make her peace with occasionally stepping on other people, even some innocents, so she could live to fight another day. There's shades of this in some of her conversations with the tiefling refugees already, she mentions to Dammon that she felt like she couldn't really do anything for Elturel. Push into that guilt, and with it, that denial. Have ten years spent with devils maybe just maybe given her a slightly more removed view of the value of a life that isn't her own?

-Whether the player feeds her Soul Coins or not I think it should be specified by Dammon that her routine use of them during her time in Avernus has sped up her engine breakdown by putting it into almost permanent overdrive. Its a damnation of Zariel (who probably knew what the coins were doing, but didn't care) and a startling moment for Karlach, that there are consequences for being cavalier with the souls of others. High Approval Karlach either asks to stop taking them (if the player has been giving them) or thanks the player for encouraging her to hold off. Low Approval Karlach will ask to keep taking them on the grounds of "in for a penny in for a pound", arguing that they can't afford to lose the advantages the player has seen it gives them (if they have been giving them) or becoming frustrated that the player is judging her and what she's had to do to survive (if they haven't).

-Make the reveal that the Steel Watch run off infernal iron MUCH MORE emotional for Karlach, as she realizes she was an experimental run for Gortash to do this. Double down on this when the player discovers that they have corpses inside them (also, put this reveal before the Steel Watch foundry quest can be completed). Its both horrifying on a gut level to find out the stupid evil reason for all her suffering...but also she can't help but feel culpable for LIVING. If she hadn't been strong enough to survive it the experiment might've ended there. Its not true but it is one of the worst thoughts you can have when you've just found out you're going to die anyways.

-I would make the relationship between Karlach and Gortash much more mutual and much more (initially) positive relationship. Have him be genuinely glad to see her, genuinely impressed that she survived the hells. Its what he always liked about her, her grit, her ability to face down impossible odds and come out the victor. Compliments that would've made her happy back in the day and now feel like a punch to the gut. Its all build-up, though, to the Choice which will define Karlach's route.

-By virtue of his experiments Gortash has gotten very good at working with Infernal Iron. And he believes he can fix Karlach's heart, in exchange for her basically taking up a more elevated version of her old job. He could use a bodyguard powered by hellfire and with a strong understanding of devils. Its also, just good optics for his man of the people image to have his right hand be some outer city kid elevated to greatness. He makes a lot of promises in that moment: she won't die. She'll get a chance to have a LIFE back, but now a life with all the power and security she could ask for. More than that, they could change things in this city. Give its residents better lives, improve things for all the little Karlachs out there. And after that...who knows? The Hells might be ripe for some conquest back. Gods know they've both got old scores to settle

-She takes time to think about it, and talk with the player. In addition to all the other hang-ups she might have this is where the Steel Watch comes up again, with her feeling like she's poisoned by that knowledge. A player trying to persuade her into taking the deal can point out, in the end its not so different from soul coins. Why draw the line now. If this Persuasion check is passed she can note that at least they could afford to be choosier with their victims, putting the worst baddies to use for the protection of everyone. That wouldn't be so bad....would it?

-You meet Gortash for a final time. If persuaded by the player to not take the deal (or if left to choose for herself with High Approval) Karlach will kill him where he stands. His soul rises in the form of Bane's Chosen and you have a proper boss fight. If persuaded to take it (or left to her own devices on Low Approval) Karlach will take the deal. This will mean losing Karlach from the party (with the exception of the House of Hope mission where she will appear Jaheira style) as she will be busy protecting Gortash. The player gains custom armor from Gortash and an assembly of Steel Watchers they can summon in the Final Battle.

-If she doesn't take the deal her endings play out pretty similarly to how they do in canon, either dying or returning to Avernus. This time, however, its with a new lease on life (or death). She's gotten to choose to be better than the things that dropped her here. She's still scared, still angry. But she's also proven something to herself. That Zariel and Gortash and them were wrong about her, and that she is much more than the mindless weapon they wanted to turn her into.

-If she takes the deal it unlocks a new ending for Gortash. Rather than come to the Elder Brain himself he will instead give you his Netherstone as a show of good faith, trusting you to take the chance to subdue the Elder Brain for your mutual rule.

-If the Player subdues the Elder Brain you and Gortash move it back underground, pretending to have defeated it and using the fear created by the mind flayer outbreak to rule the populace. Karlach in the Epilogue talks to you about how the two of you are making massive moves in the city. She seems to be trying very hard to convince herself at least most of the changes are positive....from a certain point of view.

-If the Player destroys the Elder Brain, Gortash skips town and takes Karlach with him rather than face his disgrace. In the Epilogue Karlach says he's starting to rebuild in another city state, "not tellin you where, though. Don't really think I want to have to fight you if you decide to come smash this one too....even though I'd definitely win." She seems extremely worn down in this ending and trying to cover it up. Gortash lost a LOT of favor with Bane having his plans blow up in his face like that and its made him. Snippy. Still, "its a living. And it probably wouldn't even be that if it weren't for him." The player can hint that it may be time for her to start moving on to a better environment, and she says only if she can find someone to do a more permanent fix for Ol' Rusty. Gortash still has to do check-ups almost monthly to keep her stable.

-She still keeps in touch with Dammon, though....who knows. He might have some new thoughts after seeing all the blueprints Gortash has drawn up....

[ajokeformur-ray]

✨ Unfiltered Joker thoughts ✨

I watched Joker with a bunch of lovely clowns on my Discord and while they werewolf’d in the chat, I typed out my thoughts here as they came to me. These are unedited, unfiltered, and exactly as they were in my head. I don’t know who’d be interested in this but 🤷‍♀️ who doesn’t love unfiltered thoughts about our man? NSFW ahead in places, lmao and some self-ship elements because it’s always on my mind.

There are Controversial Things within, I’m sure - be nice about it if you wanna comment, or unfollow/block etc. if it bothers you I won’t take it personally. I will take it personally if I’m sent a rude message, though. Fair warning. You curate your own online experience so scroll past silently if you gotta!🥰🥰🥰🥰

Tagging @arthurflecc @jokerownsmysoul @daincrediblegg @sweet-nothings04 bc they were in the chat and missed me there!! 

 Word count: 4, 597.

OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG JOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJO -

*Presses play*

OMG THERE HE IS BABYYYYYYYY ~ 

Ugh that white shirt... 🥵

“paint me like one of your french girls” 👀

oh, honey, no. 

Don’t force yourself to smile, my love, it’s okay. you can be hurting.

sweet angel who can do no wrong asdfghjkl

wanna kiss that tear away...

CARNIVALCARNIVAL CARNIVAL *STARTS SWAYING IN MY SEAT*

jaunty piano to juxtapose his shitty mood

you spin me right round, baby, right round...

ohhh, baby 🥺🥺🥺

someone’s honky lmaoooooo ~ 

that cello

Ohhhh, darling man.... i’m so sorry. I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry

WOOPS CRYINGGGG ~

sweet angel love still tryna be funy with the flower squirting...

what else will squirt tonight???👀

ohhh, darling. deep breaths baby. it’s okay. you’re okay.

CRYINGGGGG

ohhhh baby boyyyy....

legit just cooed aloud

oh angel <3 

“is it just me or is it getting crazier out there?”

it is my love... it is. 

let me sit on your lap and still the shaking of your legs

ohhhh my love. you’re okay. just breathe.

Dr. Kane was doing her best but you’re beyond what she can handle

you deserve better, sweetheart.

my love, my life.

I JUMPED WHEN HE HIT HIS HEAD IN ARKHAM

“who knows?”

yeah me too, my love. me too. 

“i just dont wanna feel so bad anymore”

oh baby.

i know, my love. i wish i could hold your hand and stroke your hair and kiss your cheeks 🥺🥺🥺

had a shitty day but wants to comfort a child on the bus. thats my manssss ~ <3 <3 <3 

okay but his peekaboo makes me giggle please do that to me when im sad

“‘cuse you bitch?”

the greasepaint still on his face is endearing omg 

GIVE HIM BACK HIS CARD OR IMMA RIOTTTT

CRYINGGGGG 

ohhhh baby. no. deep breaths. i’m here, my love. not going anywhere

those fucking steps

me too, darling. i feel your exhaustion like it’s my own and i long to take it from you without changing a single thing about you.

my love, my life

the weariness of an unchanged routine is a paralysing one

wanna rub cream on your bruises

“yeah, mum” so soft im cry

“eat. you need to eat” i hear you in my head when i wanna skip meals and it helps me.

“oh yeah? who do you talk to?” YES SASS HER

“yay murray” ohhhhh angel you’re so cute I’m cry 🥺

murray you wankstain - old and crusty 🤮🤢🤮🤢

arthur’s laugh in his daydream 🥺🥺

“i love you murray” // “you’re awful murray” baby noooooo

“theres something special about you arthur” the only real thing murrat ever fuckin said AND IT WASNT EVEN A REAL THING IT WAS IN HIS HEAD

“I TAKE GOOD CARE OF MY MOTHER” YEEEES BABY YOU DO! SO PROUD OF YOU!!!

just wantin recognition in your daydreams bc you dont get it in your real life

YOU SWEET THING

HIS SWEET SMILE AND THE CELLO OH BABY 🥺😭

YOUR BACK 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

shoes are too tight so you gotta stretch em 

can you stretch me too???👀🥵💦🔥

“chuckletown” RANDALLS LEGACY AND WE TURNED IT INTO SMTHN LOVING AND NOT SARKY LIKE HE INTENDED LMAO FUCK YOU RANDALL YOU PIECE OF SHIIIIIIIIT

arthur’s hair in the sun omg like a halo

randall fuck off fucking fuck off go aWAY LEAVE MY ARTHUR ALONE

you asswipe

arthurs shy and nervous lil giggle omg baby say no give the gun back its not well intended 

“my boy”  AHA LMAO HE DOES PAY YOU BACK BUT NOT HOW YOU EXPECT LMAOOOO YOU GET WHAT YOU DESERVE

THOSE CURLS

arthur’s sweet little lilting voice in front of his boss omggggg ~ 

HOYYYYYYT 

his logic makes no sense wtffffff ~ 

RETAIL SMILE LMAO THATS A MOOD 

brewing insanity..... 

POUND ME LIKE THOSE TRASH BAGS

RUIN ME AND THEN REBUILD ME IN YOUR IMAGE 

those mf stairs again

it’s the same old team since 1916... in your head, in your head...

never in my LIFE have i been aroused by a FOOT

lmao only Arthur istg that man is the exception to my every rule

Gigi is so CUTE 🥺

THAT SMIRK SIR CAN YOU NOT

“hey” omggg look at you tryna connect ugh so proud of youuu ~ 

the moon is a silver dollar... 

THOSE CURLS

THOSE BARE FEET

THAT SOFT VOICE

ARTHURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR 

frances conroy is a goddess omg i love herrrr ~ 

espesh on ahs she’s a queen

but i digress lmao wrong fandom

“dont you have to be funny to be a comedian”

FUCK OFF PENNY 

FUCK RIGHT OFF THEN FUCK OFF SOME MORE PLEASE

slap that bass.... 

FINGERSSS ON THE GUN ASDFGHJ PUT THEM ON ME INSTEADDDD

zoom zoom the world is in a mess

LMAO YEP

“psh” omg you sweet angel asdfghjk

THAT EYEBROW RAISE ASDFGHJK SASSY KINGGGGG

GET ITTTTTT

UGH THAT BODY WANNA COVER IT IN MARKS OF LOVE TO REPLACE THE VIOLENT MARKS

ARTHUR @ HIMSELF “YOURE A GOOD DANCER // I KNOW”

omggggg sweet clumsy babyyyy

lmaooo “old war movie” do you tell penny that when we get caught having sex on the sofa????

arthur honey following sophie isn’t.... the best way to get her attention asdfghjk 

someone needs to teach you social interactions... 

I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTTTTTE

that student/teacher roleplay comedian at pogos makes no sense to me???? i dont get his jokes at all

lmao bad comediannnnnn

arthur’s cute lil mistimed giggles ksksksksk 

wanna kiss your cheeks every timmmme 

you’re working so hard to achieve your goals im so so proud of you

ambidextroussss ~ (just like me omg we’re perfect for each otherrrrr)

“people expect you to behave as if you dont” YOU INTELLIGENT LIL SHIT OMG I LOVE YOU AND YOUR MIND

you know its a daydream if arthurs wearing a shirt at home 

his shy “yeah” omggggg ~ angelllll 

“i have a gun i can come by tomorrow” LMAOOOOOOOO 

“youre so funny arthur” YES HE IS DREAM!SOPHIE

CARNIVAL CARNIVAL CARNIVAL

I ACTUALLY STOMP MY FEET HERE BC IM HAPPY FOR THE TIME HES ON SCREEN SWEET CLOWN 

THE ONLY ONE IM NOT AFRAID OF

HES SO SO HAPPY OMGGG

BABY BOYYYY IN HIS ELEMENT

SAD THO BC KIDS ARE TERMINALLY ILL 

bestest party clownnnn 

“I love this job” oh baby 🥺🥺

aaaaaaaaand now the betrayal from randall lmao fuck that dude

NO BB YOUR FOREHEAD NO SMASHY GLASSY

LMAO THE FUCK ERIKA???

dudes 35 not a kid 

throwing greasy chips into a girl’s hair isn’t how to flirt my dude lmao you’re gross??? 

ew

EW EW EW WIGGLE YOUR CHIPS ELSEWHERE

ohhhh arthur, honey no omg breathe it’s okay

you wanna help but you dont know how

you sweet thing 

send in the clowwwwwwwwwwwwwwns ~ 

IM CRYINGGGGG

“they couldnt carry a tune to save their lives”

JOEKR ITS NOT YOUR TIME YET GO AWAYYYY

lmao jokes stay you know im lost without you 

HOW CAN YOUR HAIR LOOK SO GOOD AFTER BEING UNDER A WIG ALL DAY ?????

carnival with arthur’s hair is just 👌👌👌👌

WHERES HIS CARDDDDD 

nooooooo omg baby no omg i wish i could take all those punches for you

i’d take it all in a heartbeat to save you

gritting his teeth not taking in anymore

YES BABY GET EEEEEEM

YES YES YES YES STAND UP FOR YOURSELF SO PROUD OF YOU

first 2 self defence, 3rd one unsure lmao but fuck it 

no PUT THE GUN AWAY FROM YOUR FACE BABY ITS OKAY DONT FORGET YOUR BAG OR YOUR WIG ITS EVIDENCE

KILL THE 3RD COVER YOUR TRACKS

GOOD BOYYYYYY

carnival with blood on face = killing your insecurities

8 bullets from a 6 chamber????? mm-hm lmao i know @daincrediblegg wrote a thing on this once lmao bestest Egg is smart and i love her muchly 🥰🥰🥰🥰

run baby run, dont ever look backkk... (check yes juliet)

BATHROOM SCENE BATHROOM SCENE BATHROOM SCENE

fuck me against that dirty counter

joker’s waking uuuuuuuup....

that cello though unffff 👌

got me clenchinnnnn you fluidddd ~ 

and in his eyes, all the sadness of the world. those pleading eyes that both threaten and adore (phantom of the opera)

my brain is 90% song lyrics 

hes so graceful and ethereal so full of pain and of love and of adventure and worth and need and yearning

my sweet boy

my wonderful angel

my fallen angel

T POSEEEEE

DAYDREAM KISSSSS

ugh push me against the wall and shove your hand down my panties and take whats yours 

please and thanks

so confident

so smooth

so sure

unf

take me angel im all yours 

and my name is carnival

SASSY BOYYYYY

I SAY BOY BUT YOURE A MAN LMAO 

YESSSSSS TELL THEMMMMMMMM 

LMAOOOOOO RANDALL SEEMS LEGIT CONFUSED PFFFT

TOUGH SHIIIIIIIT

LMAOOO PUNCH OUT

BUSTING A LUNNGGGGG

HE DOESNT KNOW HIS OWN STRENGTH

OR HIS OWN LIMITS

“DONT SMILE”

MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD

nothin worse than being told to smile when you really wanna bare your teeth and let rip

aka me every fuckin minute of my life 

SHUSH ME SHUSH ME SHUSH ME

ILL CRY BUT DO IT

LMAOOOOO CHOKE ME WITH THOSE BICEPS 

ILL GO OUT DOIN WHAT I LOVE

YOUUUUUUU 

“gotham’s lost its way” ok trump

“thats not funny” SHUT UP PENNY YES IT IS

STOP SMOTHERING ARTHUR LET HIM BE FREE

“nobody ever saw me. even i didnt know if i really existed”

and

“you dont listen do you”

BOTH ARE MOODS

i feel them so hard

hes so sure of himself in this session

so angry and done and weary

“people are starting to notice” ALMOST A YEAR OF YOU BEING NOTICED

that green jumper omggg 

good luck getting me out of it pfffft 

“erika have you seen my - oh, there it is. never mind.”

want it back???? payment is kissessss

EW SEXIST COMEDIAN

arthur honey stop primping youre perfect <3 <3 <3 

im so so proud of youuuuu

COLLARBONEEEEEES

OMG HE STUMBLES UP THE STEPS DARLINGGG

I wish i could hold your hand while youre on stage and comfort you while you deliver your jokes

just breathe, darling. it’s okay. i’m here, i promise. <3 

every time you gag on your laughter my heart clenches

CRYINGGGGG

oh, my love, it’s okay. just breathe. dont fight it. dont fight yourself 

you’re so good at imitating your ma pfffft 

lmaoooo you’re so funny arthur 

WOO BOI DONT FLASH YOUR PORN PAGES AT THE AUDIENCE 

givin me ideas.... 

SMILE THOUGH YOUR HEART IS ACHING

SMILE EVEN THOUGH IT’S BREAKING 

WHEN THERE ARE CLOUDS IN THE SKY

YOU’LL GET BY

SMILE THROUGH YOUR FEAR AND SORROW

SMILE

AND MAYBE TOMORROW

YOULL SEE THE SUN COME SHINING THROUGH

arthur is my sunshine

EXCUSE ME HEART EYES OMGGGG

ME AND ARTHUR HEART EYESING AT EACH OTHER PFFFFFT 

gonna put people off their food doin that 

thats life

arthur’s imitations and those soft curls and the dancing and the - 

erika.exe has stopped working 

“come on dance with me”

👀👀👀👀👀👀👀

i prefer the horizontal dance myself...

“big date”

“deliver the letter”

NARCISSISM 

ARTHUR YOU DESERVE BETTERRRRRRRRRR

IS IT BAD HIS EYEBROWS TURN ME ON?? SO THICK AND DARK AND STRONG I - 

and those eyes

ugh fuck meeee ~ 

yes thats an invitation

penny “needs care” but her handwriting is that neat???? yeah fuck off 

sorry i dont buy it

she was grooming him i think into some kinda husband role and its fucking gross as fuck she was abusing him and he just wanted her gone 

CUTE LIL NOSTRIL FLARES BC SAD AND ANGRY

OMG

his quiet anger scares me but i admire how he calmed down so fast

angry penguinnnnn

HE CARRIES HIS CLOWN NOSE AROUND IN HIS POCKET

CUUUUUUUTE

the similar clothing colours of arthur and bruce is v def intentional 

in another life, arthur....

i’m so sorry darling you deserved and deserve so much better

legit one small change in anything coulda prevented 80% of this film

your magic tricks are gorgeous ~ 

you’re so funny and soothing and comforting and so good with kids

you are the best party clown

I GASPED AT THE FLOWERS

like my server nameee ~ 

“hi” that soft noise 🥺

arthur’s hands on those bars omg 🥵🥵🥵

okay i’ll admit i still dont get the whole arthur/thomas thing lmao is he his dad???? ive seen this film 10000000 x and i still can’t decide.

i wanna say he is but like ??? idk ??

it’s tragic either way omg arthur’s wasted in gotham

ruuuun arthur run run runnnnnnnn 

the bg music isss 👌👌👌👌

arthur accidentally caused penny’s stroke bc med w/drawal but all that abuse, like ????? i get why he kept her sedated lmao i’d want her knocked out or smthn too

7 meds between the two of them, probably.... that might be why he wanted an increase???

you gotta lie, angel.

you’re in way over your head but lie

yeeees good boy!!

“a clown thing?“ lmaoooo tell them!!!

NO ITS EXIT ONLY

KINDA LIKE MY ASS LMAO NO ANAL FOR YOU 

he just wants love and comfort and for someone to stay omg you sweet thing 

you deserve the world and all the forehead kisses 

TURN THE TV OFF

TURN IT OFF

TURN IT - 

OH TOO LATE

arthurrrrr ~ 

its like a car crash lmao you know its coming but you cant stop looking

fuck off murrat

FUCK OFF SOME MORE

oooooooh thats a danger face....

lowkey want it between my thighs lmao use me to work out your frustrations i can take it 

“kill the rich” lmao relatable 

this film revealed to me that i have a flexible morality ksksksk im all for it though 

sleepy bb ~ 

“we are all clowns” ALSO RELATABLE

🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡

arthurs thriving in the crowd omg yes baby looks so happy

flashes of joker comin throughhh... 

sneaky baby...

quick on his feet, light on his sense... 

tread lightly on my ground, (abba; andante)

THE RED THEATRE SUIT OMG FORESHADOWWWW

he looks good in red

he looks good out of red too 👀👀

that is the smile of the world’s most precious angel omg babyyyy ~ 

he makes me smile omg hes my sunshine

my love my life 

you saved my soul do you know that??? do you feel me and how much i love you? do you see me and these tears? 

do you feel me like i feel you?

ohhhhh boy here we go asdfdgfhgjhk arthur going to meet his dad, only asking for love and instead he gets punched in the face

i mean i get it bc of what arthur did to bruce with the whole hands in the mouth thing but bruce is barely mentioned, like an afterthought?

thomas has a nasty temper i wouldnt want him for a dad

thomas legit only mentions bruce after he’s punched arthur its like his only thought is really protecting himself and his rep with the whole penny thing

his son comes after; legit as he’s walking away he mentions bruce so hes obvs not that concerned????

shitty dad award lmao

not that what arthur did is okay im not excusing his admittedly misguided and lowkey creepy actions but like ????

lmao prob gonna get hate for this ^^ like i did last time i mentioned it but i dont care im allowed an opinion

too tired to care rn anyways pfffft its storming so bad outside and my wifi has dipped idk if this’ll save

c’mon wifi, for me... 

yes

arthur didnt have an attack til he got called crazy, its a trigger word for him 😭

oh baby its okay, deep breaths.

dont fight your laughter, that’ll make it worse 

the way he bounces back from that punch though - you know how to take it, dont you, my love?

you sweet thing.

i wish i could get you out of that fridge omg baby those old ones lock - how did you get out ????

meds are wearing off now.....

darling say no to the show lmao you dont wanna go

*facepalm*

every time i watch this i hope it turns out different

it never does

arthur honey dont ask questions you dont want the answers to

that clerk was protecting you not letting you see the file

that clerk and gary were the only ones nice to you

but it wasnt enough

you needed love and support and help and guidance 

and instead you got literal and metaphorical punches and no break

the hand puppet omgggg ~ 

i want him to play peekaboo with me when im sad/upset/make a hand puppet over my shoulder aszdxfcghvjbkn

ohhhhhh darling stop reading stop reading stop reading

put it down. 

this entire scene is confusing and heartbreaking

ive seen this film 10000000 x and im still not sure i fully understand

his laughing is so much like sobbing here

omg moonshine its okay you can cry. let it all out. 

newspaper clips in a real file???? mmmm - unprofessional or arthur’s manifestation of news??

🤔

we love pathetic fallacy in this house

i wanna get you in the shower and wash you down and feed you and wrap you in my warm embrace “i had a bad day”

my dark angel, it’s okay. i’m here. i love you and im staying with you no matter what

sophie was his last hope, his last chance to reconnect

again im not excusing it lmao but im saying i understand him

hes touching everything to experience it for the first time

he knows shes a daydream

hes self-aware but he needs his coping mechanisms

we all do it

not the breaking in, i mean the daydreaming 

“i had a bad day” shatters my black, shrivelled heart 💔💔💔💔💔💔

ohhh, darling.

istg you’re the only person i ever fucking coo at 

finger-guns = reconnecting = remember me see me

but i guess to sophie it came across as ominous/creepy??

poor arthur trying so hard to reconnect to people and he just cant do it he doesnt have the social know-how bc no one bothered to ever teach him

again im not saying its okay im just saying

lmao i hate how i always feel like i have to justify myself even before thats called into question pffft the internet is cruel and prev times ive voiced myself ive been sent rude messages and once bitten twice shy

the sword forgets but the tree remembers

hes sobbign and laughing and its gut-wrenching

that neighbour yelling “shut up” better catch these hands imma square up

have some compassion dickwad

you never know what someones going through so be kind

always always be kind

^^^ film takeaway right there

if looks could kill penny would be 6 feet under

OH WAIT LMAOOOO 😂😂😂😂😂😂

in killing her he sets himself free. but the trauma and the damage done to him leaves him open to more of the same bc hes so vulnerable

that heart-rate monitor went quiet so quickly did he tune it out????

OMG THE WAY HE REHEARSES FOR THE SHOW YOU SWEET MAN OMG YOU DESERVE THE WORLD

sir thats my seat lmao my throne of red

“yeah? all of you? okay” 🤡🤡🤡

us lining up to fuck him into next week 😂

THATS LIFEEEEE ~ 

the fuck kinda hair dye you usin’???

CHOKE ME W THOSE BICEPS

DANCIN TOGETHER IN THE BATHROOM

THOSE HIPS DONT LIEEEEE 👀👀

scissors = pre-med murder but triggered by “my boy” - term used by abusers. 

poor angel’s triggered by lots of things, i think. theres no telling what triggers his violence and thats what makes him dangerous

could be anything and theres also no telling what his “you wronged me” scale is so ??? 

he’s like a kicked dog... lashes out when hes had so much and wont/cant take anymore

“COMING” yeaaaaah i bet....👀

“i stopped taking my medication and i feel a lot better now” GET OUT GET OUT THATS A RED FLAG OUUUUUUUUUUT YOU GO

OOOOOH JOKER’S LAUGH IS OUT - HES MOCKING YOUUUU AND YOU DONT EVEN KNOW IT BOY’S SMARTICLES

this is why arthurs so dangerous. he looks lithe and weak and fragile but he takes down a man twice his size with scissors in one hit

do not underestimate him it’ll be the last thing you ever do

I WANNA LICK THE BLOOD OFF HIS FACE

BRITISH ACCENT ON POINT 

LMAO he’d so mock me for mine 😂

“you were the only one who was ever really nice to me” a moral codeeee; flexible morality like meeee ~ 

okay but he so made gary jump bc he knew gary was too scared to move otherwise

loooooving the gallows humour with the door lock PFFFT

gotham slept on arthur dude’s hilarious

OH OMH OMG OMGOMOMGOMGOMGOMGOKMG JOKER JOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKER

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MY LOVE MY LIFE MY CLOWN MY HUSBAND OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG

IM CRYINGGGGGGGG

JOKERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

JOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKERJOKER

I CANT BREATHE FUCK OMFFFFF LOOK AT HIIIIIIM

LOOOOOOOOOK LOOK LOOK ASZDXFCGVHJBKLKJHGFDSZDXFGHJHKJLKJHGFD

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

MY LOVE MY LIFE MY JOOOOOOOOOOOOOOKER

JOKERJOKERJOKER

LMAO HE’D BE GIGGLING AT ME RIGHT NOW OMGGGG

lmao let randall rot there fuck hiiiiiiim (and not in the fun way)

i want Joker to touch my clit like he did the lift button 👀

ohhhhh look at you having fun on the stairrrs

happy babyyyy ~ 

dancing  towards what you believe to be your death

so glad you changed your punchline at the last minute you didnt deserve to die

SWEET FLAWLESS ANGEL I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU

his “oh” when the cops come lmaooooo ~ 

he does that when you grind down hard on him...👀

so used to pain he gets up from being hit by a car and carries on 😔

run baby run...

hes so agile and so quick on his feet

thinks fast too

arthur for fuck’s sake dont you dare stop

you’re almost there, my love.

im so so proud of you

SASSY DANCING ANGELLLL

i love that smug smirk he has and that chuckle omg lmaooooo ~ 

i’d do anything to see you look at me with such pride

ooof you look so angry in the subway but i’d happily cup your face in my hands and smother you in kisses

your eyes red rimmed with tears. youve been sweating and crying ohhhh ~ 

my love omg you didnt want this, you didnt want the riots and you dont know how it spun so outta control and you didnt choose this

i so desperately want to be with you right now

“i dont believe in anything” THATS OKAY I DIDNT NEED MY HEART ANYWAY

I MEAN ITS ALREADY YOURS BUT YOURE STANDING ON IT OUCH

💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔

“mm-hm” i love that little noise

“i love dr sally” BITCH YOU HAVE A WIFE AT HOMEEEE

“THATS WHAT YOU CALLED ME ON THE SHOW. A JOKER. DO YOU REMEMBER?” THATS SUCH A DANGEROUS LOOK ON HIS PERFECT FACE LMAO MURRAY HAD ONE CHANCE TO CHANGE HIS MIND AND APOLOGISE AND HE DIDNT EVEN KNOW IT LMAO

fuck ‘em, Joker.

You deserve better

GET

THAT

FUCKING

GUN

AWAY

FROM

YOUR 

FACE

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

all that pain in his eyes....

oh, darling. how did no one see you????

his backstage dancing got me 💦💦💦

hes so ethereal and mysterious, so free yet so constrained, so beautiful and so himself

i love him i love him i love him i love him

smile playing as he comes out on stage lmao even now hes being told what to do and how to act

hes never free

spinny baby

you spin me right round...

he suits the stage so well

lmao woop sexual assault (kissing dr sally without consent) isnt a good move Joker but damn what a first kiss...

never thought i’d be jealous of an elderly woman but here we are 🤡

he looks so good under the lights omg so crisp....

wanna mess and smear it uuuuup

~

you’re all being mocked and none of you fucking know it lmao get wrecked

memory problems bcof the notebook + “get it right” - he really cares

ohhhhhh baby come on change your punchline, come on....

okay but that drunk driver joke does make me giggle lmao it’s so out there and honestly my sense of humour is just as dark as his is

i just sHIVERED 🥵

“arthur” HE SAID CALL HIM JOKER DONT BE RUDE

ohhhhh i’m cryingggg 😭😭😭😭😭😭

i cant watch this without crying ohhhh all that pain, all that suffering and all that anger, confusion and betrayal. a mental breakdown on nat tv and no one sees him. how the fuck are you all so blind?????

“mur-rray” LMAO YOU FUCK MY NAME I FUCK YOURS

SAY IT JOKER IM SO SO PROUD OF YOUUU

hes speaking facts

“they couldnt carry a tune to save their lives” and that eye roll and groan yes we stan a dramatic CLOWN

this is fucking heartbreaking omg “i dont care about anything” but then he rants in the next minute - so unpredictable and dangerous and untamed but so so pretty in his pain so beautiful and so free

but hes not free... not really

“werewolf” as a verb omg only you could make that work

im so fucking proud of you

“youre awful murray” ooooooooh....

LMAO JOKER’S JOKE BLEW MURRAT’S MIND

hes crying and shaking and no one ??? sees him ???? how????

i legit dont understand how people just dont see him? people see what they wanna see but it’s right there???

he seems almost surprised by the fact he killed him

YES GRAB MY FACE LIKE YOU DID THE CAMERA PLEASE

IN THE WHITE ROOOOOOOOOM

UGH I LOVE THIS SONG SO FUCKING MUCH ITS SUCH A FEEL GOOD SONG

GOTHAM IS SO PRETTY WHEN ITS ON FIRE OMG ITS SO ALIVE

I LOVE THE ENERGY THIS SCENE GIVES OFF

ITS LIKE HOW JOKER HIMSELF MAKES ME FEEL

ALIVE

his little “hi” like they can hear him 🥺🥺🥺🥺

his laughter omggg sweet angelllllll ~ 

“i know. isn’t it beautiful?” YES IT IIIIIS

AND SO ARE YOU

OH NO OMG NO NO NOPEEEE

this scene always scares me even though i know hes okay pffffft 

the birth of joker lmao

be careful with him please hes precious cargo

omggg i wanna sit on that car and wipe his blood away and help him to get home so i can patch him up

lmao im a scaredy cat til my loved ones are threatened then i scare up this fawn bites

i wanna help Joker to get help and support

i wanna love him through it all, the good and the bad

his slow dancing always gets me omg it’s arthur, still there, still suffering, still unseen and unloved

hes crying and hes in pain

blood smile - my inside is on the outside now and it still hurts

he didnt want any of this. he chose his name ubt not what came with it

my poor clown...... 

CRYINGGGGGG AGAIN

HIS GENUINE LAUGHTER SENDS ME OMG ITS SO PRETTY

i wanna make him laugh like that

it always makes me smile omg those cute lil hiccups 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

THATS LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFE

i love the audio muted during the scene he sings it omgg it’s so prettyyyy ~ i like to pretend hes singing to me sometimes asdfghjk

metaphorical or literal blood???

hes accepted who he is now.

hes free

dancing in the white light like an angel

i love him i love him i love him i love him i love him i love him i love him i love hiiiiiiiiiim ~ 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

~ THE END ~

[formerlyrunephoenix6769]

RWBY VOL 7 / VOL 8 - HEAD CANON TRAJECTORY/TIMELINE.

Heya Folks, so I’ve been enjoying the weather and bashing around ideas that would make for an epic fic,or even just my theories of how V7/8 could possibly play out. 

(Its in no way a prediction or do I have any expectancy of this any of this happening, just a lil bit of fun  and by no means a demand made of CRWBY or a claim that I know what they have planned or that I can write it better, anyone who claims any of the above and that they can are dipshits in my eyes.) 

I don’t have time to dedicate to writing it so I thought I’d get it down on bullet points, but If I do make it into a fic with will be called “Birds of a Feather.”

As we are going into Vol 7 and the Atlas arc, here are some thoughts. 

 * Picking up immediately from the end of VOL 6

 TEAM RWBY/ORNJ/Q&M

 Arriving in Atlas, our trusty heroes touch down and are detained by the Atlas Military. Though they plead for an audience with General Ironwood and explain why they are in possession of a military Airship from the Argus base, (The ‘lengthy’ report from Caroline Cordovin having yet still to be written and submitted.) their pleas fall on deaf ears at first.

 Weiss makes an adamant plea that her sister, Specialist Winter Schnee be contacted, rather than her father, as they have top secret information detrimental to the tide of the coming war which needs to be delivered immediately.

 They are still detained whilst the personnel in question are awaiting confirmation of information provided. 

Whilst detained, Blake is split from the group, much to Yang and Weiss protests, but Blake tells them that its ok, and is taken to the Faunus allocated holding cells, I shall be referring to as The Pound/Kennels

 (Divergent, Yang refuses to be split from Blake and so is held with her.)

 Whilst split from the group, Blake (&Yang?) sees how the Faunus ‘prisoners’ are treated, realizing that there is still very much to be done with regards to Atlas and its prejudices towards the Faunus community

 (It would also be a great way to show and not tell, even if there are snippets of info about the disparity between Mantle and Atlas parted to the two women.)

 Maybe Blake tells the Faunus of what occurred in Haven, that the WF is now back under the leadership of Ghira, returning to the previous peaceful ways, working with the humans rather than against.

That Adam Taurus and Sienna Khan are dead. (This could also segue-way into a brief moment of showing just how much killing Adam has affected both women)  The news is met with mixed reactions from the Faunus.

 * Specialist Winter Schnee arrives to the holding place of our main cast. After a heartwarming reunion between the Schnee sisters (as heartwarming as Winter can be) information is relayed minus a few omissions bout stealing an airship and vicariously causing the subsequent Grimm attack back in Argus, the Relic and Ozpin being in Oscar’s head, a request to see Ironwood is made.

(Extra points of some Winter/Qrow friction… The pair are cynically sassed by Maria.)  

 Weiss also makes it known that Blake (&Yang?) have been detained elsewhere and demands their return. The heroes are delivered to Ironwood and they are reunited with Blake (&Yang?). Apologies are made to Miss Belladonna for her treatment. 

Discussion of the Relic, Salem’s plans, Cinder as the Fall Maiden, etc occur, finally bringing Winter into the fold and Ironwood up to speed.

 (Yang still does not admit that she is aware that Raven is the Spring Maiden)

 Ozpin finally makes an appearance, much to the groups surprise, Winter’s shock and Ironwood’s expectation. (Maybe a tiny bit of unmentioned but shown discord from Winter towards Ironwood at being kept in the dark?)

 Qrow questions Jimmy about the Relic of Creation/ where abouts of the Winter Maiden and the importance that Salem and her faction do not get their hands on the two Relics. Ozpin presses the issue to be met with Ironwood cryptically parting that the Relic of Creation is ‘safe.’ Much to Ozpin’s and Qrow’s frustration.

 Mention of new clothing needed, Maria’s goggles, Yang’s arm and Gambol Shroud needing to be fixed. Lodgings are offered at Atlas Academy

 Our heroes make moves to go to lodgings leaving behind Qrow, (maybe Oscar/Oz and therefore vicariously Ruby) with Ironwood and Winter so that they can strategize. 

*Weiss begins showing the group round Atlas, (perfect opportunity to show us the aesthetic of Atlas much like we got to see Argus. The tech, architecture, culture etc.)

 Blake is ‘cat’ called so to speak, (Get your pet back on its leash) thereby showing the audience and the group just exactly what Faunus face on day to day basis.Everyone comes to Blake’s defense, esp Weiss and Yang.

 If Blake does not come under fire then at least in the background the group witness Faunus treatment, via difference in clothing, service jobs etc. 

It could even play out that when trying to enter an establishment that Blake is either denied entry or forced to enter through a Faunus door, akin to Apartheid or at the minimum, disgusted looks.

 Weiss is rather vocal. (What’s that supposed to mean?) and outright refusing to enter an establishment that treats Faunus that way…. The proprietor would end up grovelling and snivelling…. 

“I’m willing to make an exception for an illustrious Schnee!” OR ”So the news ‘is’ true… You have lost your mind!”   (As a call back to Jacques threat in Vol 4)  

 Nora offers to go in there and smash the place to bits.

 Blake begins to voice concerns that maybe she ought to put back on her bow, much to the group’s dismay.  (Maybe some sage advice parted from Maria)

 Henry Marigold is in the background having witnessed the altercation before slinking off????

 Our group meets Flynt and Neon, who offers to take them to the Academy and get settled. Brief happy reunion occurs. 

Neon walks through the streets of Atlas bold as brass, seemingly unaffected by the looks they are garnering, but also calling out to a few vendors she knows who jovially return her greeting, giving the sense that she is much liked (and as a direct contrast to the previous altercation) much to Blake’s surprise  

 New outfits are acquired. A few weaponsmiths admit that maybe Yang’s arm Atlas Tech is beyond their skill.

 Maria says that an ‘old friend’ will most certainly have the skill to repair her arm, and Blake’s weapon.

 *Maria goes to visit her ‘old friend’, with Blake and Yang(Ruby if she has returned from strategy meeting, or if she never attended it) in tow.

 They are brought to a workshop/lab. As Maria and the old man catch up, and he is looking at the goggles/weapons that need to be fixed. the girls have a look around.

 Ruby is fangirling over weapons. (They come across either the schematics for Penny, half built androids, ie inner framework etc ) OR a previous model, who is working as the old man’s assistant. 

Ruby is taken aback, when she meets the Penny 2.0, who does not recognize her and Ruby realizes that she has none of Penny’s memories. Ruby is visibly upset OR The audience sees schematics for Penny’s design, or an arm on a workbench in the processes of being rebuilt, or very distinctive feet poking out from under a cover. (this would save Ruby from yet another heartbreaking moment)  The old man in question is Professor Polendina. Once they find out that this professor Polendiina, he and Ruby have a heartfelt discussion about Penny and he is pleased to hear that penny had become what she always wanted which is a real girl and that she had made friends, who remember her fondly and will never be forgotten.  Prof Polendina fixes the goggles and begins preparing to fix Yang’s arm telling the group that it will take time and they can return at a later date.

 The group leave.  

(DIVERGENT NEON BRINGS BLAKE TO MANTLE TO SEEK OUT A FAUNUS WEAPONSMITH TO REBUILD GAMBOL SHROUD WITH SOME NEW ADJUSTMENTS, THEREBY SHOWING THE AUDIENCE THE AESTHETIC OF MANTLE, OLDER TECH, LIVING SPACE AND CULTURE THEREFORE FURTHER CEMENTING THE DISPARITY BETWEEN THE TWO PARTS OF THE CITY)  

 *Meanwhile. Cinder and Neo arrive in Atlas/Mantle, immediately going about finding a Spider’s Den for information on TEAM RWBY.

 Tyrian is stirring up trouble amongst the Faunus in Mantle, claiming that siding with his ‘Queen’ will grant them the tools to overthrow the Atlesian Elite whilst Watt’s pays a visit to Jacques and other people in positions of power, fear mongering and telling them what exactly is coming to Atlas, that they don’t stand a chance and the only way to ensure their survival is by siding with his employer.

 This begins to sow the seeds of dissonance, and doubt in Ironwood’s leadership.  

x-x-x-x 

THIS IS ONLY AS FAR AS I HAVE GOTTEN WITH PAINSTAKING DETAIL, THE REST BELOW IS BRIEF OVERVIEW.

I have have a loads more written that I am corralling together but its something I’ll keep working on keep you posted.. If I do ever write a fic .. It will be called Birds of a Feather cause a good chunk of it is tied to the return of Raven and a desperate last stand with the Branwen twins back to back, trying to give Tai much needed time to get the kids out of the city. 

 There's a huge flash in the sky, behind the kids as they are escaping and all we hear from Yang is a very soft '"Oh' or a gasp. .. 

 (She is the only one who knows her mother has died as she felt the power entering her.  She keeps this to herself as nobody knows Raven is the Spring Maiden other than Cinder.

 It’s not meant to be some overly dramatic scene, just a soft realisation that Raven was indeed thinking of her in her last moments and did care.

 I'm a firm believer that Raven made out to Cinder's faction she didn’t give a shit about Qrow or Yang as an added layer of protection, that when she finally did double cross Cinder that Salem's faction wouldn’t come after them in retaliation, esp given Raven's semblance and her still being able to make a portal suggesting that she is still very much attached to her brother and daughter)

TO DO WITH THAT.

Yang spends the rest series not using her semblance, her father and friends believing it is to do with what she has learned in the last 3 volumes, rather than something else, which Blake does pick up on.

If Yang does use her semblance it will be sparingly and the others just think that is has evolved.But Blake defo knows otherwise and presses the issue.

 Maybe someone returns with Qrow's weapon signifying he is dead and that there was no sign of Raven, who everyone assumes ran and left him to die. Maybe a negative comment is made by Tai to that effect causing Yang to lash out an tell him Raven's died protecting them..

 When asked how she could possibly know, she tells the others that she is the Spring maiden. 

On the Weiss /Blake/Faunus issue. The Fall of Atlas causes the Atlesian elite to flee to Mantle where they are met with mixed reception. Some Faunus are adamant that they don't help. Others rush to help them.. 

 The Atlas Elite come to realise the kindness that these people are offering even after they have been treated as lesser.. (extra brownie points if the douchebag who told weiss to get her faunus on its leash is actually the background accepting help) 

 Whilst the group are hiding amongst the locals, attempting to regroup and Winter tries to coral what is left of the Atlesian Military, taking over command after the death of General Ironwood

.Weiss comes to see just how bad the conditions really are in the factories, esp SDC factories and truly sees how the other half lives. She is aghast to see other human beings running around with her Grandfather's legacy branded into their skin.

 When she points this out to Winter, she finds out that her older sister was aware of it,  but only due to her military duties. 

Weiss is of course appalled that Winter would keep this from her, who in turn tells her it was out of protection, that there was never a right time.

 Weiss vows that when all this is done she is taking back the SDC from her Father/Whitley no matter the cost.

 Some faunus are not at all happy that the Schnee's are down amongst them and it is Blake that comes to her defence explaining the new focus of the WF, what happened at Haven and that Weiss will stay true to her word. The faunus from the detention centre back at the start, back this up. 

The group find that they are being hunted for and make the ultimate desicion to leave and make a bid to escape.

A call is made for all Atlesian Military personal to return to their posts as the a new council has been formed , with Jacques Schnee at its head, (with Salem obv pulling the strings cause Jacques is a now a puppet.) having taken the place of Ironwood.

All Atlas students are also called to go back to the academy. Team FNKI refuse.    And Winter goes freaking rogue, gathering soldiers and personnel loyal to Ironwood.  Team FNKI join her, as do other students and Faunus from Mantle  vowing to protect what it is left and not let it fall until the very last man/women

(maybe the Branwen’s Last Stand happens here??? ).

Our heroes abscond with the Relic of Knowledge but without the Relic of Creation which is now in Salem's possession.  Spotted by Emerald, and it is suggested by a short clip that she follows them at close quarters. 

Our heroes are battered, injured and moral at an all time lows, (similar to vol 3 , as in all fairness they need a huge loss to balance things out and remind us of the stakes and NO ONE is protected by plot armour, extra points if Ruby loses an eye)

At the end of volume 8 , our heroes are in a non disclosed location, licking their wounds and wondering if they can truly carry on.  

A flash to Atlas devastated, surrounded by flying Beringals etc in the sky circling.

 TO DO WITH THE VILLAINS , 

This plays out concurrently over the two volumes. 

As Salem and her hoard of flying monkeys descend on Atlas and tear it asunder. Emerald and Mercury come across Cinder and Neo.

As Emerald rushes to apologise profusely that they didn't know  she was alive. Cinder brushes her aside. 

 Over time, Emerald comes to witness the difference with the way that Cinder treats Neo and becomes increasingly envious, Mercury points out what he did in V6E9 that Cinder doesn't give two shits about her, to which she replies,

 "You don’t know that!". 

The tension between Neo and Cinder build, mainly from Emerald's side, as Neo literally sassily  shrugs it off. Maybe at some point there is a 1v1 fight

 (mainly cause I really wanna fricking see a battle of the semblances... Hallucinations v's Illusions. 

Creating something from nothing, that only one person can see,  ie, Emerald's multiple copies of Mercury surrounding Yang back in Haven..... 

V'S twisting the real to look different, as I noticed Neo can only manipulate matter, as a disguise rather than create something from nothing.Neo needs something to work with. So Neo manipulates matter and Emerald manipulates the mind) 

 We know that Neo would win in a 1v1 with just fighting skills,  though we are also aware that Emerald is fully capable of taking on a number of Grimm by herself.  I think the semblance aspect would really make fight between the pair anyone's guess.

 Ultimately, either Neo throws the fight in order to stay close to Cinder and her original goal which is stabbing that bitch in the back, or Emerald wins.

OR 

 Emerald is defeated, exhausted and hurt. Surrounded by Grimm, Cinder leaves her to die.  

(Extra points for Emerald on the ground reaching out with hand as the city burns around them , eyes brimming with tears, as Cinder gives her a look , before turning her back and walking off. Cause I’m a sucka for heartbreak)

 Emerald's fate is unknown, until we see her at the end of the volume, spotting our Heroes leaving , there by kick starting her road to redemption, of sorts.

 (It always struck me as odd that in V6E9 why her and Mercury were present and told a very strategic piece of info.

 "The only thing that can stop Salem's plans for Atlas, is Vacuo coming to their aid, that Vacuo must be kept out of it at all costs!"

Esp when CRWBY are known for keeping things very close to the chest and making every cent of their budget count.. Which leads me to believe that it is important esp with concern to Emerald and Merc, which again makes me think that Emerald will eventually leave with that information and deliver that info to Vacuo, either out of genuine guilt and wish to make rights, or as a way to avoid being imprisoned. 

 We know that Vacuo have a very laxed view on criminals etc.. so it’s the perfect place for Emerald to flee to,  whether Mercury goes with her remains to be seen.)

 That’s as far as I’ve gotten with concerns to that. 

TO DO WITH THE BRANWEN’S LAST STAND.

This could happen anywhere long the narrative, maybe towards the end of v7 or v8 I see this pair standing back to back surrounded by enemies. Anything to stall and allow Tai to lead the kids out of danger. Cuts to scene in the aftermath of an epic battle with their slain enemies, Both sat on the ground, leaning back to back, both exhausted, maybe Qrow injured,  Qrow takes out his hip flask, giving it a shake, he takes a sip. He hands it to Raven, who takes a small sip before handing it back, Enemies approach a second time surrounding them, Cinder or maybe even Salem. they are severely outnumbered. The Branwen’s struggle to their feet supporting each other. 

“I never thought it would end like this!”

“We came into this world together, we go out of this world together!”

“Ah come on, that’s not like you, who says it’s over?”

(either line is interchangeable for either character)

They exchange a look, both knowing that this is the end, before turning with weapons raised and running into the fray. 

Cut to where the kids are, who witness sanse huge flash in the background, Yang’s soft ‘Oh’ and then cut back to Qrow’s hip flask on the ground, dented and scorched. 

Yes! I know , I am  a monster!

[myfriendpokey]

subterranean modern

1. Modernism as a concern with being modern.

Which on the face of it is a weird and trivial thing to be concerned about. Who cares? Is the modern good, bad, does it have any specific qualities or objectives whatsoever? If it does, then why not address yourself to those goals directly, rather than having to fret about the merely temporal? The neoclassical and romantic don't strictly speaking have to worry about being modern, they  could always be justified on the basis of the eternal human verities, like such-and-such, or the other thing. The postmodern doesn't need to worry about being modern as "modernity" is something which has already happened, and which is inescapable, which is why we can safely afford to engage in pastiche. So what was the moment in between - when art could neither justify itself as something safely outside of history nor as something already contained within one which had already occured? A period of art trying to deal directly with historicism itself?

To be anxious to be modern is to see your life, beliefs, status and role in the context of a history where any of these things could abruptly or violently be changed by forces out of your control - it involves a sharp awareness of how poorly "history" will treat or has always treated those deemed to have been left behind. And it's an anxiety with no necessarily fixed political expression, which helps to explain why modernism itself could be so various (and sometimes dubious) in this regard. The Martian attack in War Of The Worlds is famously an extrapolation of the West's own colonial history,  turned back on itself: now we are the victims of genocidal, technologically accomplished marauders. But if this is a critique of the colonial mind it's also a kind of paranoid extension of it, imagining faceless alien hordes just waiting to swamp europe if we ever get lax or fall behind in the arms race: the common cold which eventually undermines and destroys the space invaders also mirrors western anxieties about foreign contamination (as syphilis had historically been viewed), or miscegenation. The awareness that a change in "history" could mean death or diaspora might just lead to trying to punch first and most brutally in the name of preserving some advantage, or trying to hold on to your spoils another few generations – but it could also mean trying to find another way of thinking, acting, writing which would break out of the cycle itself.

Literary modernism drew on and tried to position itself within a range of competing historicisms (Marx, Freud, Spengler, Carlyle, Darwin, etc) and in the process tried creating new ones. The results are in general not inspiring: Yeats’s gyres and cycles; Shaw’s mysterious “life force”; Joyce’s Vico-inspired circular history; Ezra Pound’s doggedly stupid efforts to construct a new theory of fascist political economy by crossing John Adams with dynastic China. But I think we also have to see these as scaffolding, to some extent, around a larger project: which is the idea of art as an intervention in history, an apparition of the future (or the uncanny past) which would burst in on the present with a set of new demands for everyday life. We currently live in an economic system in which the blood of the present is continuously drained to artificially prolong a possible, impossible future: one which attempts to pre-emptively shut any political act which would infringe on the right of rentiers to generate constantly increasing returns on their investments until the heat death of the universe. The avant-garde is the reverse – something which would take its energy from the future in order to extend the range of action in the present. When the neoclassical emphasis on the merely aesthetic (or the merely moral, the improving) palls into kitsch, when the postmodern emphasis on “challenging narratives” becomes a purely ritual form of defusing tensions so that business can go on as usual, the concept of the modern as an unsettled question still has capacity to startle.

2. Are videogames modern?

Emilie Reed has already explored this question from the perspective of visual modernism. But i think if we ask it using the definition that I started out with earlier in this post, the answer has to be: no, absolutely not. Videogames aren't anxious about modernity, not because they're so formally advanced (the whole videogame industry is largely an anachronism) but because they never had a sense of history to begin with. History in videogames is at most the history of the stylistic signifiers of videogames themselves - from 8bit to 16bit and so forth - but even then, there's no real sense of that transition being historical in nature, in being linked to some specific change in how people lived or worked or thought about their lives.

To some extent this is because videogames emerged and were propogated across a strangely uniform historical moment – the moment of neoliberalism, from the mid-70s to present, of a supposedly vindicated free market capitalism re-emerging throughout globalized economies worldwide. Videogames are up there with the IMF in terms of historical signs that you're living in this state of affairs: luxury commodities, consumer-grade electronic toys which take advantage of a busy tech sector, cheap manufacturing and shipping, and of course a progressive slackening of regulations around marketing to children. Videogames mean leisure as well as novelty - every videogame is an excess, a kind of portent of the easy abundance and constant progress that the market had to offer. They emerged without anybody much ever wanting them to, part and parcel of the range of spontaneously occuring new conveniences and devices that accompany consumer society.Twenty years too late, they nevertheless would have fit right into the famous “kitchen debates” of the 1950s, in which a model house filled with brand new appliances and recreational devices acted as showcase for a way of life that “anyone in America could afford” (start saving those pennies!!)

[The history of Atari is an interesting time capsule of videogames as aimless luxury doohickey rather than anything as essentialist as a “medium”. Atari’s other products from this time included a sort of proto-winamp skin, a music visualizer that plugged into a tv to display a limited range of soothing animations. It cost $170, which i believe would be over $600 in 2019 dollars – shades of the Oculus Rift, but also an interesting indication of the kind of commodity Atari thought they were making in general]

Videogames are “futuristic” but it’s in a sort of vague, unwilled way – nobody asked for these things to be invented. People behind the scenes were certainly struggling to produce and advance on them but the public representation is, as the Housers say, that videogames are made by elves. The famous “end of history” was still a few years off, but the sort of passive, ambient futuricity of videogames were part of the pitch, part of the idea that if history hadn’t yet ENDED it could at least be something that happened far enough away that you never felt the tremors.

3.

Why is videogame culture so hospitable to the far right?

Postmodernism is haunted by the notion of conspiracy, the idea that history lingers on in some subterranean way, continuing to exert a baleful influence upon the present; officially denied, but still working behind the scenes, a secret society of postal workers here, an albino papist assassin there... so perhaps it’s not surprising that something of the same paranoia would hang around videogames, or some of the specific targets it would end up revolving around. One weird thing is that the people paranoid about keeping politics out of the format never seem to be all that vocal when it’s, say, the US military working with these companies for explicit propaganda purposes, or weapon manufacturers looking for free advertising, or large companies involved with weird shady review practices, etc.... but it also makes sense when we consider that these things, the military, industry, big tech, are what have always supported the supposedly ahistorical  bubble that videogames exist within. If the US army does it, it can’t be political – because that army is exactly why we’ve been able to keep a certain form of “politics” at arm’s length.

If fascists find a home within these circles it’s partly because fascism is itself anti-political, or at least anti- the discursive and constructed nature of the political, anti-having to be political. It addresses itself instead to the inchoate realm of pre-existing essences and “natural”, i.e. historically unexamined, identities, posited as seperate from and superior to the ebb and flow of any given discourse. Which in fact is not dissimilar to how videogames have also presented themselves, and the affluent 1970s american middle class leisure patterns that they continue to preserve in  aspic through their design assumptions although they’ve dissolved nearly everywhere else.  To talk about the specific political meanings implied by such-and-such mechanics is not wrong per se but i think it does miss a broader picture: these things were sold, not as an artform or a medium of communication to begin with, but as the simple birthright of those lucky enough to have been included in the winner’s circle of 20th century globalization. And insofar as the gruesome escalating culture war around these objects is not really about them but about that birthright, about the right to not have to think about these things or what they cost or how they’re made or what they even really do, they will retain some character of the horrible idiot Boy’s Adventure rhetoric of fascist thought – traitors within, invaders without, take back what’s ours etc.

4.

It’s not like modernism proper was lacking in antisemites, misogynists, imperialists, fascists of every stripe. Although the real connection between the two has tended to be overemphasised: it doesn’t include, say, the painters exhibited as “degenerate art” under the nazis, or murdered jewish artists like Bruno Schulz, or the feminists, socialists, anarchists, homosexuals, etc etc (and even the most ignominous cases like that of the futurists don’t feel quite conclusive, unless you think Mussolini really was keen on abstract sound poems as the new and vigorous art of the future). But maybe the gruesomeness of that list is the point: everything bad about modernism is already here. We have the weird cultish adoration of a strictly pro forma version of “difficulty”, we have the idiot jingoism and “provocative” chauvinism, we have lots of dumb schlock about saving western civilisation and masculinity and etc. Like the scrapmetal cars in Mad Max all-new unified theories of history are or have already been constructed from the flotsam, junk science and vague prejudice of the previous century. At a point where gamer cults are watching youtube explainers of Carl Jung while drinking brain-enhancing nutrient paste i think we have officially lost the right to make fun of W.B. Yeats for hanging out with Rosicrucians and injecting ape glands into his scrotum to restore male vigour. It was good while it lasted.

But given that we’re here already, is there anything worth taking from modernism the first go round? I can think of a few different things. The internationalist qualities of the artist’s magazine and manifesto, both cheap and portable forms which could easily be adopted or changed, which served as hubs for local action and also as ways to exchange findings and ideas with other groups doing the same. Compare this to videogames where “local scenes” surely do exist but for the most part do so as ancillaries to a generic industry pipeline, making games for the same carefully featureless, anglocentric audience that this entails. Relatedly, how central translation was to modernism, not just as a way to introduce more works to the existing market but as a form of creative estrangement and of getting out of a limited market-based parochialism – a way to engage not just with singular decontextualised works but also with criticism, theory, arguments. Given how much more capitalised even alternative videogames still seem to be than alt comics, literature, etc, it’d be nice if we could achieve at least parity with those forms.

I could also point towards the modernist interest in material and the new working methods this opened up – the interest in what mass production could mean and what new relations to art it could entail – attempts to create new forms of audience, of public and public speech, and to imagine forms of popular art which didn’t necessarily abide by the gloopy poptimist ethos of the popular always equalling the profitable always equalling the ubiquitous (there were many false starts, but i believe poptimism finally died forever with the advent of the funko pop). And I could also point at the interest in combining the critical and the aesthetic – in the argument that style is itself a combination of the critical and the aesthetic, is also a way of thinking about history, rather than just being what gets swapped in over the programmer art when it’s time to show a build, or treated as the meaningless expression of some changeless pre-existing taste. Is taste changeless? Or to what extent? What does this mean for forms of public speech, like art, which themselves exist within the constraints of taste? Unfortunately, we will probably not be helped in our thinking on these questions if we only ever write about Red Dead Redemption 2.

***

Part of the reason videogames have tried pointing themselves away from the modern is to try to establish their own lasting importance; instead of a provisional tangle of different incongruous traditions and materials designed to fit a peculiar historical or economic context, these things are a medium, which is imagined as a sort of mysterious Stargate portal onto the realms of Systems or Empathy or Play or whatever other Panglossian catch-all helps get you some of that californian venture capital, or possibly a book deal. But part of the consequence has been a stunted dogshit format where art is downgraded for being anything other than an advertisement for itself and which acts as a haven for fascists looking to also naturalise their tiny bubble of seigneurial rights away from any consequence or critique. Videogames might not be modern but by now they’re part of our image of what modernity looks like, and as that modernity continues revealing itself to be frayed, collapsing, incoherent or wildly unsustainable these things will like it or not become another part of that stock heap of broken images pulled from at random to build the futures that you may or may not ever want to live in. We can start thinking about the past as a way to find alternatives within it; or we can outselves become that past, and have our bones incorporated into the deathmobiles of the new age. History is back baby! it’s still a sewer!! awooo!!! Get ready to die historicist, on the fury road!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Leax63ullPE

[images: Modernism(1995), World History Quiz, My First Amazing History Explorer, Smart Mouse for Sega Megadrive]

[hq-cuties-pls]

Admin Emma’s Smut Guide or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Word ‘Cock.’

Hi there! Admin Emma here! Sorry I haven’t been posting a lot lately; life has been a little crazy and I’ve been working on this super long project that I am tantalizingly close to finishing and I don’t want to lose momentum, so I’ve been hyperfocused on it. It’s not Haikyuu, but I will still probably post a link here so anyone interested can still read it.

Anyway, I am sort of aware that smut is sort of my forte… it’s weird to have that legacy, but I do know that it’s tricky for a lot of writers. And you know what? That’s ok! So today, at the request of a few of my writer friends, I am going to pass along some knowledge!

Full disclosure: I have had sex before. I have a tiny human sleeping in the other room as proof that I have had sex before. But this is not entirely necessary to writing good smut, even though it helps. Knowing your own body and reactions is a good way to bring authenticity to a scene, but it’s not required. Also, please keep in mind that I will mostly be talking about penises and vaginas together today, considering that is the majority that I write.  

So, to start, here are my Rules for Smut Writing:

1. Don’t just think about the What, but the Who, Where, How and Why

- One of the biggest mistakes that writers new to smut make is thinking that the act of sex will speak for itself and just… write sex. The ‘he put his penis into her vagina and it felt good’ stuff. This is a good start, but it can sort of read like an Ikea manual--insert part a into slot 2 to achieve orgasm. Character and relationship development is a big part of good smut. Why should I, the reader, care that these two people are having sex? What does it mean to feel good? Who are they to each other?

2. Language Matters

- I tend to find words like ‘penis’ and ‘vagina’ in smut writing to be a bit… clinical. It’s not absolutely wrong to use them, per se, but a big part of writing smut is setting a mood, and they can rip you out of the mood very easily. I tend to stick to the ‘Just Use ‘Cock’’ rule when it comes to describing genitalia, and it works wonders, but sometimes it’s not right for your scene. ‘Cock’ is a little abrasive for softer sex scenes, so you might have to find something else that fits the mood. Just remember that your word choices will affect the mood. “He grabbed her tits” vs “He touched her breasts” have totally different moods and belong in totally different scenes. (See below)

3. Take Your Time

- Most writers are so excited to get to the actual intercourse they tend to sacrifice the pacing of the scene in an effort to get penises into vaginas as quickly as possible. And that’s just… not good. The pacing and timing of the scene is so important. Unless your goal is to drop your reader right into the middle of the actual sex--which can be effective--you have to build it up a little bit. I have found myself thinking ‘dear fucking lord, this smut scene is quickly becoming a smut novel’ but when have you, as a reader, ever been reading a piece thinking ‘this is great, but I wish there was LESS of it.’ Fucking never, is my guess. Let your scene build; let those long, lingering touches be long and lingering; let them make-out for three straight paragraphs. If it gets flabby, you can cut some in the editing process but during the writing process, the more time between the the first smooches and The Big O, the better.

4. Write What You’re Into

- Smut writing is about honesty and vulnerability. Not just between characters, but for the writer as well. A person’s writing is a little window in how their mind works, what they find funny, what they like in partners and friends, and yes, what they find sexy. I run a request blog, sure, but my smut writing is still pretty catered to what I am into, and in my opinion, that is a huge part of what makes it enjoyable for others. You have to be honest when you’re writing smut, because your readers will absolutely sense if you aren’t into what you’re writing. If you’re trying to sell something as sexy, then you have to think it’s sexy first. I’ve read a few romance novels in my time, and I can always tell when the writer is very clearly not into what is happening on the page. Conversely, I can always tell when a writer is into something just by their writing alone. So if you’re not into bondage, a/b/o dynamics, or razor-wire suspension, then don’t write about it.

These are absolutely not hard and fast rules, and they may or may not work for you, but most of the really good smut I’ve read in my time have followed these rules.

Some of the best advice I’ve ever gotten when it comes to writing smut is to remember your Five Senses. Not only does it keep things from getting too repetitive (because let’s be real, there are only so many descriptors that sound sexy) but it really helps put the reader into the moment. Here, an example for you (featuring Daichi, because I’m trash):

Daichi ran his hand over your leg, pressing your thighs apart with his. He growled, tasting your wetness with his fingers, before he rolled his cock into you, bottoming out in a single thrust. He took it slow at first, letting you get acclimated, before he picked up his pace. He fell forward, moulding his body to yours, before he pounded into you.

I mean… that’s ok. Not great, but ok. A good start. However:

Daichi brushed his fingertips down your leg, sending shivers down your spine. In his deep voice, his hum of approval sounded more like a growl; the primal sound made heat boil in your core. His thick thighs pressed yours apart, exposing you to the cool air. His rough fingers gathered your wetness, and the slick pop of him tasting you was explosively loud in the quiet room. The hands that pried you apart shivered, like he was as affected by all this as you were. You wanted his cock; you needed that unbearable heat. The smell of his sweat and sex overwhelmed you, and when you looked over your shoulder at him, he stared at you like you were the only person in the entire world. Affection bloomed in your chest when his lips turned into a wobbly smile, and his eyes filled with such warmth and love that ease settled into your chest.

That’s better. And the sex hasn’t even happened yet. But even if you, personally, have never had that happen to you before, you can really feel it, right? That’s because I’m evoking your five senses. Even if you’ve never had sex, you can relate with a lot of the language because the sounds, the smells, and the sensations are familiar and relatable. Also as a side note, even though the POV is limited, by giving hints that the partner--in this case, Daichi--is into it can often add to the scene. It also implies an intimacy and familiarity that adds to the emotion of the scene.

So… about that sexy language…

I stick to one hard and fast rule: just use ‘cock.’ Granted, there is a time and place when cock isn’t appropriate--like softer scenes or the character is a little shyer. I find words like “length” and, sometimes, “hardness” can be effective, but for the most part? Just use cock. Dick can also work, and it’s somewhere between “cock” and “penis” on the sexy scale, but words I find never work are things like “member” (it makes it sound like a period drama) “rod” or “shaft” (are we fellating auto parts?) or anything ridiculous like “noodle” or “staff.” (You laugh but I swear to Christ I have seen both of these before). {Admin Alyx’s addition: Shaft can work but usually only if you’re referring to a specific part of the penis and not as a euphemism for penis. Staff is only acceptable if both characters are mages and they’re making terrible puns.}

Vaginas get a little trickier. I really like ‘cunt’ because it’s just sexy to me. I prefer it to pussy. But some people don’t like either of those things. Sometimes it can help if you compartmentalize parts: clit, labia, vagina etc. Words like “opening” and “entrance” can work. “Wetness” is good for softer scenes (I tend to avoid using “wetness” and “hardness” excessively, though, as too many euphemisms and you start to sound very squicked out by sex itself and I refer you to Rule 4)

And those are Admin Emma’s Rules and Guidelines for Writing Smut! Once again, these are not hard and fast rules. Just what I’ve picked up from reading good smut and lots and lots of practice. I do recommend reading good stuff--not just fanfic. Published stuff too. Here are some recomendations:

The Boss series (a not-shitty take on the 50SoG concept of BDSM+Billionaire but, you know, not abusive garbage), as well as Penny and Ian’s stories (side story from the same universe as The Boss) by Abigail Barnette (also follow @jennytrout on here, I crib so many notes from her, she is my hero and my inspiration)

Fit by Rebekah Witherspoon (POC and chubby protagonist, which I am very very into)

Hot as Hades by Alisha Rai (Hysterical and very sexy take on the Persephone myth)

Asking For It/Begging for It by Lilah Pace (This is a great series, but full disclosure: it does deal with rape in a big way. The protagonist and the main love interest engage in (consensual) rape fantasy and it can get a little bit vivid, so if you’re triggered by that/can’t handle it at all, I don’t recommend this one. But if you can handle it, I think it’s great and the mains have great chemistry, and nothing nonconsensual actually happens on the page)

Sadly, these are all fairly heteronormative (The Boss series deals with both characters’ bisexuality in a big way, but the main couple is still a cis man and a cis woman) as I haven’t read a lot of great queer published erotica.

I’ll leave you with a list of For Your Information TMI Factoids:

The penis is not a magic missile that finds Prostates and G-Spots alike.

Most people with vaginas have trouble achieving orgasm through penetration alone; some can’t at all. Foreplay is key to pussy satisfaction!!

Remember the clitoris, people. The clitoris is your friend, but she’s sensitive, so treat her gently.

Penises don’t drip pre like a goddamn fountain. Some penises produce more than others, but it’s not going to gush all over the place

Lube and condoms are great. Consent is sexy. Never worry about ruining the mood with safety. Trust me--there is nothing sexier than a confident man asking me if he can kiss me.

Vajay doesn’t taste sweet… just trust me on this one. It does not taste sweet.

When in doubt remember the BDSM Creed: Safe, Sane, and Consensual

[onewomancitadel]

I have a fic idea that has formulated but I think it would be embarrassing to tag a third fic on my account ‘Possessive Sex’. Sigh

I mean dude you've already got 3 stories where Cinder gets eaten out (and one where she fantasies about it)

What's one more? 😆

Don't pretend like a sex fic with Cinder Fall doesn't have "Cunnilingus" as a necessary mandate I've read your stories I know what's up haha

Also btw new chapter was excellent 👌

Don't have time to gush about it at the moment but despite being the same chapter from a different perspective (well mostly anyway) the number of new scenes add a lot and it was really good dude

I'll make a post when I can, promise lol

but do you perfer a review on AO3 or a post on Tumbler like this one ? Or is either or fine?

Like I'm still stuck on my phone so Tumblr would be easier (formatting and all that) but if you'd perfer it to be on AO3 I can do that as well.

Ok true

In for a penny, in for a pound etc. Kind of damning reading 'cunnilingus' in bold if I am totally honest with you.

And on a more sober front: no worries, always happy to hear from you! Honestly AO3 is easier especially for hoarding the comments I go back and reread when I need to get started on the next chapter cuz I can just open my inbox and then I'm not subjected to my own commentary on Tumblr.

I hoard comments like dragons do gold basically.

But yeah if AO3 is a pain in the bum to use on mobile that's fine, whatever is easiest for you, comments/feedback is so much fun so yeah. But you don't need to worry about fancy formatting in the comments, if you're commenting in your usual style (which is very sweet!) you could just use an arrow key to indicate quoted text.

e.g.

>Like this

as opposed to italics/using limited HTML.

Glad you enjoyed the chapter! And honestly I just wanted more of them together, for her to turn back around (repeating myself here) and I thought Cinder’s perspective was quite necessary to understand how we got where we did. XD XD Plus I am a meanie.

Anyway, hope things are going well for you! And hope your laptop gets fixed! I had a BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) today because I was testing fate playing a game (Sudeki) on a really hot day without elevating my laptop. Oops! Don't worry, I backed up all of my fic straight after. XD

[maewestside]

LIVE! SHOTS! FIRED! Or Each Day I Wake Up Drownin (Ten Ways to Combat the #Bot45 Blues)… by heidi siegmund cuda, aka @maewestside

I once asked a tv reporter in a local market how she handled the sturm und drang of the nightly gore. She said, “Beats being the guy with the machete in his head.”

Point. Well. Taken.

Bleading meant leading, til that one fateful day, the sales guys who’d taken over the front office determined vapidity sold better in the 18 to 49 demo$ than even the quadruple axe murder bits, and by then, new$ had already lost its way. Truth wasn’t factored into the rating$.

LIVE. SHOTS. FIRED.

A famed erstwhile entertainment reporter said she knew there was trouble afoot when each night, she had the lead story in a local hourlong newscast. During sweeps.

As live shots at death scenes and backlots became normcore, and the procession of vapidity, with occasional interludes of gore, is what passed for news, brains suffer dry rot.

So here we are.

MEAN STREETS

While admiring the dewy mug of a very young Harvey Keitel in “Mean Streets,” his enlightened thuggy character Charlie utters these words: “You don’t f**k around with the infinite.”

Do you hear that Scamalot? That’s the thunderous gallop of karma approaching, catching up to each and every player that figgered he could game the system with impunity, while the Great Unwashed was none the wiser. Chaaa.

With the outing of each pervy anchorhack, a Very Vichy MSM, and digital CEO$ who bent over to the pick up the rubles from enemie$ both foreign and domestic while profiting off the mining of our data, things are looking clearer.

Not.

Time keeps on slipping… slipping… slipping… Kochdrip… drip… drip… drip. The Un-Mercer-ful bot and weaponized our data… Churchy Stinklair is buying more local tv new$. Our media is owned by churchy billionaire misanthrope$ and run by corporations.

REAL FAKE NEW$

But let’s make no mistake about it: when Scamalot cries “Fake”… that’s on a whole notha level.

Fringe Media still flatters the Real Fake President because it’s owned and operated by those who installed him as a pukey puppet #burpfarthurl. Fux und Blackbart profited bigly off the ascent of Dummkopf45, but alas, so did the rest of the media which is why it’s swi$hy. Sometimes excellent, but mostly shit. Money vs Truth… a conumdrum.

EACH DAY I WAKE UP DROWNIN’

Having spent the holiday weekend mining the brains of intellectuals, activists and good cooks to combat the blues of our country’s Current State of Fuckery, I’ve comprised a list of Ten Things that may help those who wake up to this shite each day and feel like they’re drowning, i.e., sensitive to the crushing enormity of the labor of Democracy as real fake new$ pounds our shores, while Really Bad Men (and a Few Ponzi Women) disrupt all that is good about our country to line their own pocket$ and the pocket$ of those who put them in power #sad pffft.

TEN THINGS TO PONDER AS YOU BATTLE THE KLEPTOCRACY IDIOCRACY:

1. BACK TO THE FUTURE How to End the Oil + War Economy Now and Clean Up Our Air in About 100 Years: Use Fossil Fuel exclusively for commercial air travel. We’ve known how crushing greenhouse gases are on our environment for decades but we’ve allowed penny loafered lobbyists paid for by Big Oil a seat at the science table. Enough.

2. ELECTRIC AVENUE In two decades, electric cars will be normcore. Start now. Working from home and/or giving up your wheels best thing you can do for the environment; monitoring your own carbon footprint, big step.

3. SEEK REAL NEWS Until the Fourth Estate is Truly Unshackled to Do Good Work Always, Rather Than Just Spotty Sometimes, learn who owns your news outlets. For example, the Guardian is an excellent source for American news (it’s run by a trust and doesn’t need to run truth past the sales dept) and follow our twitter crew at @foxycuda and @tahoesquaw1… while Tahoe curates the critical news from around the world and finds the truth within Vichym MSM, I try to explain its import in verbiage suitable for a postmod CyberRevo. (Thus the comparisons to Charles Dickens and Hunter S. Thompson, for which I am grateful, but also blame Anita Loos, Dorothy Parker and Lenny Bruce for illiciting my pen-to-jugular style.) We are at war for truth and that requires wit in the form of better catchphrases i.e. #treasonsgreetings

4. WE ARE THE SANE MAJORITY We, the Sane Majority, are constantly told our countrymen and women are devolving into apey, when in fact, the Sane Majority is kind, and da small base comprised of the greedy, the churchy, and those who haven’t gotten off their block of un-opportunity. Those numbers are shrinky dinking as truth grows from the concrete street art. But you wouldn’t know cuz it Vichy MSM is still writing puffpieces on Not-Zees and the various Thug$ of Scamalot, while terrifying us with continual closeups of dictators, including our own. Move along. Or just join the Fringe Apey and watch the reboot of “Jersey Shore” as your Democracy burns and more journos die globally whilst trying to warn us of fascism #sad pffft… a better idea: flip the House in 2018 and #nullify45.

5. MAFIA STATE OF MIND Thank you to Tahoesquaw1, who wouldn’t rest until she knew I watched all three Zembla docs on the Fuckery of Dummkopf45 (“The Dangerous Friends of Donald Trump”), and a new doc on the radiation poisoning of UK citizen Alexander Litvinenko (”Hunting the KGB Killers”), whose dying image serves as a reminder that radiation sandwiches are coming if we don’t speak truth to power collectively. I feel compelled to be among the twactivists that remind the kindly people who are being brainwashed by Fux und Blackbart und Churchy Stincklair, that dictator$ and anchorhack$ aren’t our friends. We are combatting evil in the form of well-OIL-ed infotainment amplified by Bots preprogrammed by enemies both foreign and domestic, and it’s leading to a major identity crisis of the churchy, who give pederasts a pass if it serves their tax bracket or real fake narrative. Peel it back and seek the truth. Eyes wide open. 

6. SING TOGETHER Who among you doesn’t have a brazen friend with a guitar? I joined Artivists LA and activist Samuel Curtis for some Resistance Caroling on Black Friday in Santa Monica, and the song we sang “We Shall Not Be Moved,” is still on heavy rotation in my mind, soothing me hourly as I recall revolutions of my youth sparked by peaceful music. Resistance Caroling is good for the soul. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gX7OW2MJRO0&t=10s

7. BE HAPPY Although many of us haven’t felt joy due to the deranged Pageant Owner in the White House and his sub par toadie$, it’s our duty to manage self care during this time, and that means doing things that bring you some semblance of happiness. I interviewed Dr. David Reiss, one of the 27 mental health experts who authored “The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump,” and he said it’s imperative we manage self-care during these dark days and to never lose site of truth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5XGeJ5Y8UI&t=26s

8. BREATHE Please be patient with humanity and remember everybody hurts, sometimes. As battle fatigue sets in for those who can’t believe a Pageant Owner Mobster is still our Real Fake President, despite how much factual information on the corruption from within we spit daily, it takes its toll on fractured nerves. If we divide troops now, we lose. We are the Sane Majority, and we will only win if we invite everyone to the party and keep them there. Even the glory hunters. Practice humility daily and realize those who don’t get it now, will eventually.

9. MOTHER EARTH Give us the keys. Y’all fukcin shit up. Imperative, we mandate the Nosferatu Cabinet of Scamalot to wear branding patches on their sleeves: #bigoil #bigtobacco #bigprison #nra #churchyfuckery #botbymercer #botbykoch #rupertscurvy etc. We can’t allow denier creeper$ to ruin our fragile environmental protections and continue to embarrass us on an international level. We already fought for these protections. GOP becoming the official doosh party poopers of the environment ramped up recently, as billionaires bot lobbyists to run interference on truth using God’s name so they could get one last $wig off the Oil + War economies. (See number one.) Use the system to get Scott Pruitt out of our EPA where he does not belong. And further, use the system to oust all the Real Fake President’s cozyboy$, aka war mongering pals thirsting for arms deal$. Old paradigm dies hard but it’s time.

10. BE DISGUSTED I was horrified to learn by a gal whose grandfather was stiffed by Trump, that many of her peers just think the Meinshit Show is funny. Ya, it’s a “Pussy” riot. Our Real Fake President cozie$ up to his dictator pal$ who kill, incarcerate, poison, torture or have people killed because they can. Go ahead, please remain comfortably numb while waiting for the door knock. Me? I’m gonna remain disgusted so I can continue fighting. Even for those who don’t get it. Especially them.

(Below, the author in Laguna Beach Nov. 2, 2016; last photo before the election. She wants her happiness back.)

[breziarchive]

The Black Butterfly Crimes

Miraculous Ladybug crime scene AU

[NEXT - Ladybug and the Heart of Stone (chapter 1.1)]

i posted this as just an idea like an hour ago and here we are...

Detective Ladybug and Chat Noir, P.I. are on the case, well, they will be...

future chapters will be named as corny as a nancy drew novel i swa’am to ja’am

prologue

rating: PG-13/R content warnings: homicide victims, grisly situations, blood, gore, etc about/summary: a little fantastical but otherwise straightforward: a crime scene au involving Marinette as a famous homicide detective and Chat Noir as an annoying “i’m your sidekick now!” private investigator in the start of a string of murders committed by people who should have had no way of committing murder as well as little to no motive. each crime scene has one thing in common though: a singular butterfly, spray-painted black... disclaimer: i’m sorry about the fedora

~~~

At one time, Marinette had wanted to be a fashion designer.

She had always found solace in sewing and making new things, but (embarrassingly so) she pin-pointed the idea of fashion designer to a boy in her high school class. Adrien Agreste, top teen model and son of famous designer Gabriel Agreste. A sweet and gorgeous boy who always seemed a little too quiet for his status—humble and genuine. Drawn in by him she began to design clothes with great fervor, hoping, wishing one day she would see him wear them down the catwalk. Wear them all the way to where she was waiting, then bend down and kiss her on the cheek.

Or lips, she wouldn't complain about a kiss on the lips.

It felt so strange how all of that was in the past. She still found that sewing and creating calmed her down after particularly harsh days and some deep jubilant part of her still screamed that fashion design was her true passion. Part of her agreed, but there was a higher calling she was answering first. First. Such a strange word to use, because most days there seemed no end to her career. Other than the voice, Marinette did not much think about things outside of bringing justice to Paris' homicide victims.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, daughter of two bakers, grew up atop said bakery, hobby seamstress: the homicide detective.

She could still see the split-second look of shock and concern on her parents' faces when she told them what she had decided to be, quickly replaced with gentle support as they pulled her in for a tight hug. Marinette wondered if they knew that'd be the last hug they'd ever receive from their daughter before she grew up.

Around the office she gained the title of Ladybug, first out of spite and disgust. Her talent at solving cases must have been due to sheer luck, not that she spent late nights pouring over tossed files or that she attacked problems with creativity and cleverness that should've been found in life-or-death situations, not gripping a cheap paper cup full of office coffee hunched over her undersized desk. The more time she spent there, the more time she ignored being passed over, the more cases she solved, the more her friend Alya egged her on to speak up and take credit for her work, the more the nickname Ladybug became sincere instead of spiteful. Ladybug is here, luck is on our side. Call up Detective Dupain-Cheng, we could use Ladybug to help us. Give this to Ladybug, she'll know what to do. So she climbed the ladder.

And here she was now.

The base of the Eiffel Tower had been roped off; hundreds if not thousands of tourists were ushered away while the whole strip was closed down. Police scattered over the place like ants, desperately searching for clues before the heavy rain pushed them all into the gutter. Marinette stared down at the body, thrown from the top of the Tower after several rocks ranging from the size of her head to the size of her torso were strapped to the poor girl. Rain had washed away much of the splatter, and she overheard that forensics would have to rely on civilian photographs of the scene in order to do blood spatter analysis. Marinette considered that more of a formality, looking at the crushed body, but anything to help the case.

Anything.

“Detective Dupain-Cheng?” an officer popped into her peripherals. In his hand was an open umbrella. Marinette took it without looking, although she thanked the officer. Her voice was sweet, her expression was concentrated. The patter of rain above her head became all she could hear.

How barbaric. It looked like the perpetrator had shoved her from the top after already tying rocks to her. How the rocks had gotten to the top of the Tower, how strong the perpetrator must have been in order to even push the girl—maybe he rolled her off the edge? But that couldn't be possible. Marinette tipped the umbrella upwards to turn her gaze to the top of the Tower. The lights were on in the dusk, aiding officers investigating the top. Occasional flashes from cameras blinded her for short moments as forensics photographed the scene as it laid. Marinette narrowed her eyes to compensate.

“Detective Dupain-Cheng?” the same officer called behind her. Marinette blinked, getting the impression that he had been trying to get her attention for some time. She shook her head.

“I already had coffee—,”

“Ah, no,” the officer corrected, coughing slightly, “There's uh, someone here to see you, but he won't give his name, says to call him uh...,”

At the officer's hesitation Marinette turned and gave him a quizzical look. The officer was frowning, looking to her as if she could help him in any way shape or form. Finally he sighed.

“He calls himself Chat Noir?”

Marinette scrunched her face up. Chat Noir? What kind of theatrical joke was that? Her eyes flicked to the body. Almost as uselessly theatrical as this murder. Was it a prank, or a link to the killer? Before Marinette could open her mouth to parse out what to do, a tall dark man shoved a line of officers aside and sauntered forward. He wore all black—a black fedora, straight from the 1920's, with a band that was shaped to cast a dramatic shadow over his face. One side was turned upwards, and a small triangular piece of felt was tucked between the brim and the dome. A cat ear, she presumed it was supposed to resemble. The rest of his get-up was just as ridiculously over-the-top. A long, leather trench coat, perfectly tailored, smooth black waistcoat, black suit, leather shoes and gloves, and a neatly tucked black silken scarf at the base of his neck? In a fashion show or in a movie this man would be top billed, in real life Marinette could only look down on him, even though he was substantially taller. All of his costume definitely cost him a pretty penny. She had to stop from sneering as he raised a hand to tip the hat at her.

“Chat Noir, at your service.”

Marinette opened her mouth to tell what was clearly a civillian to leave, but as he raised the brim of his hat she suddenly realized why his face seemed darker than usual even in the dusk, rainy light.

He was wearing a mask.

A mask!

Her mouth hung open without making a sound, dumbfounded.

“Private detective, privately hired—don't worry, m'lady, I won't impede on your investigation, I am here to help.”

“H...H...,” Marinette stuttered before immediately going on the defensive, “Help? I've never heard of you in the private circuit. Who hired you?”

“Oh,” Chat Noir's smile trimmed down to dainty pursed lips, “I cannot tell you that, all I know is that he's of high status and has personal interest into this case,”

“High status,” Marinette echoed, “I suppose you used his down payment to purchase that ridiculous getup?”

“You don't find it fashionable?” Chat Noir expertly twisted a heel upwards, showing off the heavy weight of his trench coat as raindrops danced off of the leather, “I happen to think it's purrfect.”

For the love of...

Marinette felt her face grow hot, and she knew at once that her skin was betraying her once again. Always going red at the drop of a hat, no matter the situation. Embarassed? Red. Angry? Red. Surprised? Red. Scared? Red. Incredulous to the point of barely being able to believe what was standing right in front of her was real? RED.

“Well, alright then, Mr. Chat Noir—you may have a look at the case, after the police are done cleaning up this area. Go to your office and I'll contact you there, shoo!”

“But m'lady!” Chat Noir gasped, “You don't even have my contact information!”

Marinette shot a look to the poor officer bearing witness to this catastrophe—cat-astrophe, and pushed out her lower lip, “Give it to this officer—Officer Pendrell, is it? And I'll be sure you'll be contacted.”

Chat Noir shook his head despite the fact that Marinette had turned on her heel and had already bent down to investigate the remains, pulling out gloves so she could gingerly touch what was left now that forensics had finished up photographing the initial scene.

“I don't think you want to brush me off so quickly, Detective,” Chat Noir appraised, spreading his arms wide, “You haven't yet seen how I could be of use to you.”

Marinette let the rain drown him out as she began turned over rocks, going over an invisible list. Rocks will have to be turned in for mineral analysis; where they came from and if they have any significance. Moving the body was going to be harrowing, she'd have to make sure they got every last piece into the bag which was going to be hard with the fading sun and the pounding rain. Et cetera, et cetera—wait...

“I'll have you know, I've been investigating for a grand portion of my life,” Chat Noir continued, “And I have a vast network of knowledge. For example,”

Marinette turned the palm-sized piece from the larger boulder around in her gloved hand. Crushed onto the rock was once a delicate insect, a butterfly, mangled beyond any recognition. No colors from its smashed wings shone in the beam of her small flashlight—just thick, caked on black paint. Marinette frowned.

“Did you know that the killer's name is Ivan Bruel?”

Marinette turned to look over her shoulder at Chat Noir, dead butterfly falling apart in the rain.

[thegregorybruce]

August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

New subscriber? Welcome to AsktheBuilderland. You can put away your passport now and relax.

Current AsktheBuilderland resident? Please share with the new arrivals, when you bump into them, that I'm not crazy.

Today's newsletter might be one of those where you scratch your head. I say this because it has some indirect tips that might really help you in a bunch of ways. HANG IN THERE with this issue, believe me.

Staircase Survey - Short & Sweet

I can use your input with respect to staircases and handrails. Would you be kind enough to answer just three questions for me?

You can click the photo below or CLICK HERE. What you see in the photo is an over-the-post handrail I installed in the last house I built for my family. Look closely at the painted wood balusters too. See the difference?

Marriage Counseling - Tim Carter Style

Did you know one of my sideline businesses is marriage counseling?

I saved Brett's marriage earlier this week!!!

It's all in episode 19 of my On-Demand Radio Show. Better known as Podcast 19.

CLICK HERE and READ Brett's email first - scroll down - THEN listen to the podcast. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!

Mike's Printer Ink Disaster

A few days ago Mike reached out to me asking if my Stain Solver certified organic oxygen bleach would remove a printer ink stain from the carpet in his home.

I told him, "Maybe".

I also told him trying Stain Solver is the CHEAPEST alternative he has at this point. His other two alternatives should the stain not come out are:

hire a real carpet pro that can cut out the stain and patch the carpet

install all new carpeting

Here's what the stain looked like the day he reached out. Realize he had NOT YET tried my Stain Solver: You may wonder what the ring around the stain is all about.

That's why I'm sharing this story. It's not about you buying Stain Solver, but if you want to buy some, that's great.

As soon as Mike saw what happened he reacted. He told me he went to his kitchen cabinet and grabbed a few cleaners and got to work.

While that may seem like a great idea, it's not what I would have done.

First and foremost, it's ALWAYS EASY to Monday-morning quarterback. But I've dealt with so many good-intentioned homeowners over the years, I've discovered that it's NOT A GOOD IDEA TO TRY YOUR HAND AT AMATEUR CHEMISTRY.

Mike decided at that moment to mix different chemicals - the ink has its own and who knows what's in the liquids Mike started to apply to the stain.

They can react and make things WORSE.

I would have reached for some paper towels or an old clean white rag and put it on the ink and poured WATER on the rag or paper towels to keep the ink WET.

Most liquids that are staining things have water in them. When the water evaporates it can be darn tough, or impossible, to remove the stain. Think about water-based paint. When wet, you can get rid of it. Once the paint dries, it's almost impossible to reverse the chemistry without using a harsh chemical.

The SECOND thing I would have done would be to go to the ink manufacturer's website to see if, by chance, they had any tips on stain removal.

You may want to do this now BEFORE you get into a damage-control situation. If you have liquids around the house that could stain carpet, upholstered furniture, clothes, etc. go to the manufacturer's website NOW and see if they have advice on removing stains caused by their product.

Or, just buy a 4.5-pound container of Stain Solver to have on hand for emergencies.

My Friend David

I want to tell you a story and how it relates to my good friend David Lawrence. He's the only celebrity I know and am friends with. You can't believe how nice a guy he is. He'd give you the shirt off his back.

My newsletter is all about home improvement, but this story is all about how you can tap into your hidden talents to improve and achieve things you never thought possible.

You may recognize David. He's a super talented Hollywood actor that's been in all sorts of shows. Perhaps he's best known for the three seasons he was in the hit series HEROES.

Watch a few of his best takes. CLICK HERE to watch a 90-second compilation.

Here's the full scene from HEROES. I'm pretty certain this is his first appearance in HEROES. CLICK HERE to watch David in the moment. He's darn good.

This short story is about how David and I got where we are and how you can do the same thing.

When I do meet-ups in different cities when I travel to hang out with subscribers like you, I'm often asked, "Tim, how in the world did Ask the Builder get to where it is today?"

It's easy. I reached inside myself and followed a voice that was screaming at me to change careers and do something different.

A few years before I started Ask the Builder, I had the worst experience of my life as a builder. I ended up working for the most loathsome Customer from Hell. She almost sent me over the edge.

I knew that the only way to ensure I'd never go through it again was to NEVER step inside a paying customer's home.

Yes, some of these hellish customers are wolves in sheep's clothing and they don't reveal their true inner self until you're into the job.

Once presented with the Ask the Builder opportunity, I made the most important decision of my life, aside from marrying Kathy.

I took FAILURE off the table.

I reached down deep within myself and decided that I would do everything possible to make Ask the Builder a success so I'd NEVER EVER have to face a customer from Hell again.

It worked for me and it can work for YOU!

Is there something you want to do but you need something or someone to flip the switch inside of you?

David might be the person. In just ten days, he's starting the most remarkable low-cost coaching experience I think I've ever seen.

It could be LIFE-CHANGING for you.

You need to understand I do NOT get one penny from David if you sign up for this coaching. You're not going to believe how low-cost it is.

It's all online, you can participate LIVE or watch his recordings later on your own schedule. It's going to be POWERFUL.

Do yourself a favor. Go watch this short video of David in his own studio. LISTEN to his story and see what you and David have in common. I'll bet you have more than you might realize.

Let me know what you think AFTER you watch David.

CLICK HERE.

That's enough for a Tuesday. Seriously, click that link above and watch David in his studio. Watch the entire video. You'll not regret it.

If you sign up for David's coaching, please let me know. I'll be keenly interested in how you like it.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com Ink-Removal Man - www.StainSolver.com Happiness Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

The post August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from Home https://www.askthebuilder.com/august-21-2018-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[williamccreynolds]

August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

New subscriber? Welcome to AsktheBuilderland. You can put away your passport now and relax.

Current AsktheBuilderland resident? Please share with the new arrivals, when you bump into them, that I'm not crazy.

Today's newsletter might be one of those where you scratch your head. I say this because it has some indirect tips that might really help you in a bunch of ways. HANG IN THERE with this issue, believe me.

Staircase Survey - Short & Sweet

I can use your input with respect to staircases and handrails. Would you be kind enough to answer just three questions for me?

You can click the photo below or CLICK HERE. What you see in the photo is an over-the-post handrail I installed in the last house I built for my family. Look closely at the painted wood balusters too. See the difference?

Marriage Counseling - Tim Carter Style

Did you know one of my sideline businesses is marriage counseling?

I saved Brett's marriage earlier this week!!!

It's all in episode 19 of my On-Demand Radio Show. Better known as Podcast 19.

CLICK HERE and READ Brett's email first - scroll down - THEN listen to the podcast. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!

Mike's Printer Ink Disaster

A few days ago Mike reached out to me asking if my Stain Solver certified organic oxygen bleach would remove a printer ink stain from the carpet in his home.

I told him, "Maybe".

I also told him trying Stain Solver is the CHEAPEST alternative he has at this point. His other two alternatives should the stain not come out are:

hire a real carpet pro that can cut out the stain and patch the carpet

install all new carpeting

Here's what the stain looked like the day he reached out. Realize he had NOT YET tried my Stain Solver: You may wonder what the ring around the stain is all about.

That's why I'm sharing this story. It's not about you buying Stain Solver, but if you want to buy some, that's great.

As soon as Mike saw what happened he reacted. He told me he went to his kitchen cabinet and grabbed a few cleaners and got to work.

While that may seem like a great idea, it's not what I would have done.

First and foremost, it's ALWAYS EASY to Monday-morning quarterback. But I've dealt with so many good-intentioned homeowners over the years, I've discovered that it's NOT A GOOD IDEA TO TRY YOUR HAND AT AMATEUR CHEMISTRY.

Mike decided at that moment to mix different chemicals - the ink has its own and who knows what's in the liquids Mike started to apply to the stain.

They can react and make things WORSE.

I would have reached for some paper towels or an old clean white rag and put it on the ink and poured WATER on the rag or paper towels to keep the ink WET.

Most liquids that are staining things have water in them. When the water evaporates it can be darn tough, or impossible, to remove the stain. Think about water-based paint. When wet, you can get rid of it. Once the paint dries, it's almost impossible to reverse the chemistry without using a harsh chemical.

The SECOND thing I would have done would be to go to the ink manufacturer's website to see if, by chance, they had any tips on stain removal.

You may want to do this now BEFORE you get into a damage-control situation. If you have liquids around the house that could stain carpet, upholstered furniture, clothes, etc. go to the manufacturer's website NOW and see if they have advice on removing stains caused by their product.

Or, just buy a 4.5-pound container of Stain Solver to have on hand for emergencies.

My Friend David

I want to tell you a story and how it relates to my good friend David Lawrence. He's the only celebrity I know and am friends with. You can't believe how nice a guy he is. He'd give you the shirt off his back.

My newsletter is all about home improvement, but this story is all about how you can tap into your hidden talents to improve and achieve things you never thought possible.

You may recognize David. He's a super talented Hollywood actor that's been in all sorts of shows. Perhaps he's best known for the three seasons he was in the hit series HEROES.

Watch a few of his best takes. CLICK HERE to watch a 90-second compilation.

Here's the full scene from HEROES. I'm pretty certain this is his first appearance in HEROES. CLICK HERE to watch David in the moment. He's darn good.

This short story is about how David and I got where we are and how you can do the same thing.

When I do meet-ups in different cities when I travel to hang out with subscribers like you, I'm often asked, "Tim, how in the world did Ask the Builder get to where it is today?"

It's easy. I reached inside myself and followed a voice that was screaming at me to change careers and do something different.

A few years before I started Ask the Builder, I had the worst experience of my life as a builder. I ended up working for the most loathsome Customer from Hell. She almost sent me over the edge.

I knew that the only way to ensure I'd never go through it again was to NEVER step inside a paying customer's home.

Yes, some of these hellish customers are wolves in sheep's clothing and they don't reveal their true inner self until you're into the job.

Once presented with the Ask the Builder opportunity, I made the most important decision of my life, aside from marrying Kathy.

I took FAILURE off the table.

I reached down deep within myself and decided that I would do everything possible to make Ask the Builder a success so I'd NEVER EVER have to face a customer from Hell again.

It worked for me and it can work for YOU!

Is there something you want to do but you need something or someone to flip the switch inside of you?

David might be the person. In just ten days, he's starting the most remarkable low-cost coaching experience I think I've ever seen.

It could be LIFE-CHANGING for you.

You need to understand I do NOT get one penny from David if you sign up for this coaching. You're not going to believe how low-cost it is.

It's all online, you can participate LIVE or watch his recordings later on your own schedule. It's going to be POWERFUL.

Do yourself a favor. Go watch this short video of David in his own studio. LISTEN to his story and see what you and David have in common. I'll bet you have more than you might realize.

Let me know what you think AFTER you watch David.

CLICK HERE.

That's enough for a Tuesday. Seriously, click that link above and watch David in his studio. Watch the entire video. You'll not regret it.

If you sign up for David's coaching, please let me know. I'll be keenly interested in how you like it.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com Ink-Removal Man - www.StainSolver.com Happiness Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

The post August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from Real Estate https://www.askthebuilder.com/august-21-2018-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[allardjeremyballard]

August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

New subscriber? Welcome to AsktheBuilderland. You can put away your passport now and relax.

Current AsktheBuilderland resident? Please share with the new arrivals, when you bump into them, that I'm not crazy.

Today's newsletter might be one of those where you scratch your head. I say this because it has some indirect tips that might really help you in a bunch of ways. HANG IN THERE with this issue, believe me.

Staircase Survey - Short & Sweet

I can use your input with respect to staircases and handrails. Would you be kind enough to answer just three questions for me?

You can click the photo below or CLICK HERE. What you see in the photo is an over-the-post handrail I installed in the last house I built for my family. Look closely at the painted wood balusters too. See the difference?

Marriage Counseling - Tim Carter Style

Did you know one of my sideline businesses is marriage counseling?

I saved Brett's marriage earlier this week!!!

It's all in episode 19 of my On-Demand Radio Show. Better known as Podcast 19.

CLICK HERE and READ Brett's email first - scroll down - THEN listen to the podcast. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!

Mike's Printer Ink Disaster

A few days ago Mike reached out to me asking if my Stain Solver certified organic oxygen bleach would remove a printer ink stain from the carpet in his home.

I told him, "Maybe".

I also told him trying Stain Solver is the CHEAPEST alternative he has at this point. His other two alternatives should the stain not come out are:

hire a real carpet pro that can cut out the stain and patch the carpet

install all new carpeting

Here's what the stain looked like the day he reached out. Realize he had NOT YET tried my Stain Solver: You may wonder what the ring around the stain is all about.

That's why I'm sharing this story. It's not about you buying Stain Solver, but if you want to buy some, that's great.

As soon as Mike saw what happened he reacted. He told me he went to his kitchen cabinet and grabbed a few cleaners and got to work.

While that may seem like a great idea, it's not what I would have done.

First and foremost, it's ALWAYS EASY to Monday-morning quarterback. But I've dealt with so many good-intentioned homeowners over the years, I've discovered that it's NOT A GOOD IDEA TO TRY YOUR HAND AT AMATEUR CHEMISTRY.

Mike decided at that moment to mix different chemicals - the ink has its own and who knows what's in the liquids Mike started to apply to the stain.

They can react and make things WORSE.

I would have reached for some paper towels or an old clean white rag and put it on the ink and poured WATER on the rag or paper towels to keep the ink WET.

Most liquids that are staining things have water in them. When the water evaporates it can be darn tough, or impossible, to remove the stain. Think about water-based paint. When wet, you can get rid of it. Once the paint dries, it's almost impossible to reverse the chemistry without using a harsh chemical.

The SECOND thing I would have done would be to go to the ink manufacturer's website to see if, by chance, they had any tips on stain removal.

You may want to do this now BEFORE you get into a damage-control situation. If you have liquids around the house that could stain carpet, upholstered furniture, clothes, etc. go to the manufacturer's website NOW and see if they have advice on removing stains caused by their product.

Or, just buy a 4.5-pound container of Stain Solver to have on hand for emergencies.

My Friend David

I want to tell you a story and how it relates to my good friend David Lawrence. He's the only celebrity I know and am friends with. You can't believe how nice a guy he is. He'd give you the shirt off his back.

My newsletter is all about home improvement, but this story is all about how you can tap into your hidden talents to improve and achieve things you never thought possible.

You may recognize David. He's a super talented Hollywood actor that's been in all sorts of shows. Perhaps he's best known for the three seasons he was in the hit series HEROES.

Watch a few of his best takes. CLICK HERE to watch a 90-second compilation.

Here's the full scene from HEROES. I'm pretty certain this is his first appearance in HEROES. CLICK HERE to watch David in the moment. He's darn good.

This short story is about how David and I got where we are and how you can do the same thing.

When I do meet-ups in different cities when I travel to hang out with subscribers like you, I'm often asked, "Tim, how in the world did Ask the Builder get to where it is today?"

It's easy. I reached inside myself and followed a voice that was screaming at me to change careers and do something different.

A few years before I started Ask the Builder, I had the worst experience of my life as a builder. I ended up working for the most loathsome Customer from Hell. She almost sent me over the edge.

I knew that the only way to ensure I'd never go through it again was to NEVER step inside a paying customer's home.

Yes, some of these hellish customers are wolves in sheep's clothing and they don't reveal their true inner self until you're into the job.

Once presented with the Ask the Builder opportunity, I made the most important decision of my life, aside from marrying Kathy.

I took FAILURE off the table.

I reached down deep within myself and decided that I would do everything possible to make Ask the Builder a success so I'd NEVER EVER have to face a customer from Hell again.

It worked for me and it can work for YOU!

Is there something you want to do but you need something or someone to flip the switch inside of you?

David might be the person. In just ten days, he's starting the most remarkable low-cost coaching experience I think I've ever seen.

It could be LIFE-CHANGING for you.

You need to understand I do NOT get one penny from David if you sign up for this coaching. You're not going to believe how low-cost it is.

It's all online, you can participate LIVE or watch his recordings later on your own schedule. It's going to be POWERFUL.

Do yourself a favor. Go watch this short video of David in his own studio. LISTEN to his story and see what you and David have in common. I'll bet you have more than you might realize.

Let me know what you think AFTER you watch David.

CLICK HERE.

That's enough for a Tuesday. Seriously, click that link above and watch David in his studio. Watch the entire video. You'll not regret it.

If you sign up for David's coaching, please let me know. I'll be keenly interested in how you like it.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com Ink-Removal Man - www.StainSolver.com Happiness Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

The post August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8247360 https://www.askthebuilder.com/august-21-2018-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[andrewmawby]

August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

New subscriber? Welcome to AsktheBuilderland. You can put away your passport now and relax.

Current AsktheBuilderland resident? Please share with the new arrivals, when you bump into them, that I'm not crazy.

Today's newsletter might be one of those where you scratch your head. I say this because it has some indirect tips that might really help you in a bunch of ways. HANG IN THERE with this issue, believe me.

Staircase Survey - Short & Sweet

I can use your input with respect to staircases and handrails. Would you be kind enough to answer just three questions for me?

You can click the photo below or CLICK HERE. What you see in the photo is an over-the-post handrail I installed in the last house I built for my family. Look closely at the painted wood balusters too. See the difference?

Marriage Counseling - Tim Carter Style

Did you know one of my sideline businesses is marriage counseling?

I saved Brett's marriage earlier this week!!!

It's all in episode 19 of my On-Demand Radio Show. Better known as Podcast 19.

CLICK HERE and READ Brett's email first - scroll down - THEN listen to the podcast. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!

Mike's Printer Ink Disaster

A few days ago Mike reached out to me asking if my Stain Solver certified organic oxygen bleach would remove a printer ink stain from the carpet in his home.

I told him, "Maybe".

I also told him trying Stain Solver is the CHEAPEST alternative he has at this point. His other two alternatives should the stain not come out are:

hire a real carpet pro that can cut out the stain and patch the carpet

install all new carpeting

Here's what the stain looked like the day he reached out. Realize he had NOT YET tried my Stain Solver: You may wonder what the ring around the stain is all about.

That's why I'm sharing this story. It's not about you buying Stain Solver, but if you want to buy some, that's great.

As soon as Mike saw what happened he reacted. He told me he went to his kitchen cabinet and grabbed a few cleaners and got to work.

While that may seem like a great idea, it's not what I would have done.

First and foremost, it's ALWAYS EASY to Monday-morning quarterback. But I've dealt with so many good-intentioned homeowners over the years, I've discovered that it's NOT A GOOD IDEA TO TRY YOUR HAND AT AMATEUR CHEMISTRY.

Mike decided at that moment to mix different chemicals - the ink has its own and who knows what's in the liquids Mike started to apply to the stain.

They can react and make things WORSE.

I would have reached for some paper towels or an old clean white rag and put it on the ink and poured WATER on the rag or paper towels to keep the ink WET.

Most liquids that are staining things have water in them. When the water evaporates it can be darn tough, or impossible, to remove the stain. Think about water-based paint. When wet, you can get rid of it. Once the paint dries, it's almost impossible to reverse the chemistry without using a harsh chemical.

The SECOND thing I would have done would be to go to the ink manufacturer's website to see if, by chance, they had any tips on stain removal.

You may want to do this now BEFORE you get into a damage-control situation. If you have liquids around the house that could stain carpet, upholstered furniture, clothes, etc. go to the manufacturer's website NOW and see if they have advice on removing stains caused by their product.

Or, just buy a 4.5-pound container of Stain Solver to have on hand for emergencies.

My Friend David

I want to tell you a story and how it relates to my good friend David Lawrence. He's the only celebrity I know and am friends with. You can't believe how nice a guy he is. He'd give you the shirt off his back.

My newsletter is all about home improvement, but this story is all about how you can tap into your hidden talents to improve and achieve things you never thought possible.

You may recognize David. He's a super talented Hollywood actor that's been in all sorts of shows. Perhaps he's best known for the three seasons he was in the hit series HEROES.

Watch a few of his best takes. CLICK HERE to watch a 90-second compilation.

Here's the full scene from HEROES. I'm pretty certain this is his first appearance in HEROES. CLICK HERE to watch David in the moment. He's darn good.

This short story is about how David and I got where we are and how you can do the same thing.

When I do meet-ups in different cities when I travel to hang out with subscribers like you, I'm often asked, "Tim, how in the world did Ask the Builder get to where it is today?"

It's easy. I reached inside myself and followed a voice that was screaming at me to change careers and do something different.

A few years before I started Ask the Builder, I had the worst experience of my life as a builder. I ended up working for the most loathsome Customer from Hell. She almost sent me over the edge.

I knew that the only way to ensure I'd never go through it again was to NEVER step inside a paying customer's home.

Yes, some of these hellish customers are wolves in sheep's clothing and they don't reveal their true inner self until you're into the job.

Once presented with the Ask the Builder opportunity, I made the most important decision of my life, aside from marrying Kathy.

I took FAILURE off the table.

I reached down deep within myself and decided that I would do everything possible to make Ask the Builder a success so I'd NEVER EVER have to face a customer from Hell again.

It worked for me and it can work for YOU!

Is there something you want to do but you need something or someone to flip the switch inside of you?

David might be the person. In just ten days, he's starting the most remarkable low-cost coaching experience I think I've ever seen.

It could be LIFE-CHANGING for you.

You need to understand I do NOT get one penny from David if you sign up for this coaching. You're not going to believe how low-cost it is.

It's all online, you can participate LIVE or watch his recordings later on your own schedule. It's going to be POWERFUL.

Do yourself a favor. Go watch this short video of David in his own studio. LISTEN to his story and see what you and David have in common. I'll bet you have more than you might realize.

Let me know what you think AFTER you watch David.

CLICK HERE.

That's enough for a Tuesday. Seriously, click that link above and watch David in his studio. Watch the entire video. You'll not regret it.

If you sign up for David's coaching, please let me know. I'll be keenly interested in how you like it.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com Ink-Removal Man - www.StainSolver.com Happiness Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

The post August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.

from builders feed https://www.askthebuilder.com/august-21-2018-askthebuilder-newsletter/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[emoryjrice71]

August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter

New subscriber? Welcome to AsktheBuilderland. You can put away your passport now and relax.

Current AsktheBuilderland resident? Please share with the new arrivals, when you bump into them, that I'm not crazy.

Today's newsletter might be one of those where you scratch your head. I say this because it has some indirect tips that might really help you in a bunch of ways. HANG IN THERE with this issue, believe me.

Staircase Survey - Short & Sweet

I can use your input with respect to staircases and handrails. Would you be kind enough to answer just three questions for me?

You can click the photo below or CLICK HERE. What you see in the photo is an over-the-post handrail I installed in the last house I built for my family. Look closely at the painted wood balusters too. See the difference?

Marriage Counseling - Tim Carter Style

Did you know one of my sideline businesses is marriage counseling?

I saved Brett's marriage earlier this week!!!

It's all in episode 19 of my On-Demand Radio Show. Better known as Podcast 19.

CLICK HERE and READ Brett's email first - scroll down - THEN listen to the podcast. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA!

Mike's Printer Ink Disaster

A few days ago Mike reached out to me asking if my Stain Solver certified organic oxygen bleach would remove a printer ink stain from the carpet in his home.

I told him, "Maybe".

I also told him trying Stain Solver is the CHEAPEST alternative he has at this point. His other two alternatives should the stain not come out are:

hire a real carpet pro that can cut out the stain and patch the carpet

install all new carpeting

Here's what the stain looked like the day he reached out. Realize he had NOT YET tried my Stain Solver: You may wonder what the ring around the stain is all about.

That's why I'm sharing this story. It's not about you buying Stain Solver, but if you want to buy some, that's great.

As soon as Mike saw what happened he reacted. He told me he went to his kitchen cabinet and grabbed a few cleaners and got to work.

While that may seem like a great idea, it's not what I would have done.

First and foremost, it's ALWAYS EASY to Monday-morning quarterback. But I've dealt with so many good-intentioned homeowners over the years, I've discovered that it's NOT A GOOD IDEA TO TRY YOUR HAND AT AMATEUR CHEMISTRY.

Mike decided at that moment to mix different chemicals - the ink has its own and who knows what's in the liquids Mike started to apply to the stain.

They can react and make things WORSE.

I would have reached for some paper towels or an old clean white rag and put it on the ink and poured WATER on the rag or paper towels to keep the ink WET.

Most liquids that are staining things have water in them. When the water evaporates it can be darn tough, or impossible, to remove the stain. Think about water-based paint. When wet, you can get rid of it. Once the paint dries, it's almost impossible to reverse the chemistry without using a harsh chemical.

The SECOND thing I would have done would be to go to the ink manufacturer's website to see if, by chance, they had any tips on stain removal.

You may want to do this now BEFORE you get into a damage-control situation. If you have liquids around the house that could stain carpet, upholstered furniture, clothes, etc. go to the manufacturer's website NOW and see if they have advice on removing stains caused by their product.

Or, just buy a 4.5-pound container of Stain Solver to have on hand for emergencies.

My Friend David

I want to tell you a story and how it relates to my good friend David Lawrence. He's the only celebrity I know and am friends with. You can't believe how nice a guy he is. He'd give you the shirt off his back.

My newsletter is all about home improvement, but this story is all about how you can tap into your hidden talents to improve and achieve things you never thought possible.

You may recognize David. He's a super talented Hollywood actor that's been in all sorts of shows. Perhaps he's best known for the three seasons he was in the hit series HEROES.

Watch a few of his best takes. CLICK HERE to watch a 90-second compilation.

Here's the full scene from HEROES. I'm pretty certain this is his first appearance in HEROES. CLICK HERE to watch David in the moment. He's darn good.

This short story is about how David and I got where we are and how you can do the same thing.

When I do meet-ups in different cities when I travel to hang out with subscribers like you, I'm often asked, "Tim, how in the world did Ask the Builder get to where it is today?"

It's easy. I reached inside myself and followed a voice that was screaming at me to change careers and do something different.

A few years before I started Ask the Builder, I had the worst experience of my life as a builder. I ended up working for the most loathsome Customer from Hell. She almost sent me over the edge.

I knew that the only way to ensure I'd never go through it again was to NEVER step inside a paying customer's home.

Yes, some of these hellish customers are wolves in sheep's clothing and they don't reveal their true inner self until you're into the job.

Once presented with the Ask the Builder opportunity, I made the most important decision of my life, aside from marrying Kathy.

I took FAILURE off the table.

I reached down deep within myself and decided that I would do everything possible to make Ask the Builder a success so I'd NEVER EVER have to face a customer from Hell again.

It worked for me and it can work for YOU!

Is there something you want to do but you need something or someone to flip the switch inside of you?

David might be the person. In just ten days, he's starting the most remarkable low-cost coaching experience I think I've ever seen.

It could be LIFE-CHANGING for you.

You need to understand I do NOT get one penny from David if you sign up for this coaching. You're not going to believe how low-cost it is.

It's all online, you can participate LIVE or watch his recordings later on your own schedule. It's going to be POWERFUL.

Do yourself a favor. Go watch this short video of David in his own studio. LISTEN to his story and see what you and David have in common. I'll bet you have more than you might realize.

Let me know what you think AFTER you watch David.

CLICK HERE.

That's enough for a Tuesday. Seriously, click that link above and watch David in his studio. Watch the entire video. You'll not regret it.

If you sign up for David's coaching, please let me know. I'll be keenly interested in how you like it.

Tim Carter Founder - www.AsktheBuilder.com Ink-Removal Man - www.StainSolver.com Happiness Waves - www.W3ATB.com

Do It Right, Not Over!

The post August 21, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter appeared first on Ask the Builder.