#my biggest fear is that i am Very Terribly Wrong at interpreting songs and someone is gonna find this post and laugh at me

[im-smart-i-swear]

♪ for Buddy

oh you hit the jackpot with this one, buddy has the most songs i associate them with out of all my guys.........

(also some of these also apply to kuron too cause i kinda lump these two together(since technically theyre the same character. technically..)

'The Moon Will Sing' by the crane wives - ........ i dont have to explain anything here, you already know<3333

'Joe' by AJR - okay i feel like i need to explain a little here- this song is about trying to move on from your past and insisting that you dont care about your old friends/colleagues' ' approval anymore except surprise!! you do. a lot. so this is a song i feel like encapsulates buddys relationship with team voltron pretty well! buddy tries very hard to convince themself that they dont care about their old friends (and that they never did in the first place) as a coping mechanism, but deep down they still care.

'Saint Bernard 2' by Lincoln - this is buddy reminiscing about all of their past actions and mistakes years after the fact and making peace with themself about it. they hurt people and suffered and made stupid decisions, and they propably will again- but thats okay. theyre not the black paladin anymore. that time of their life is over. they will always carry a piece of that time with them though, and thats okay

(The last two are more Kuron-coded than anything but i'm putting them here anyway)

'Burn Him Down' by Kitsch Club - this song makes me think about how kuron is seen as disposable to haggar (and his friends) and was something to get rid of once he stopped serving his purpose?? idk if this makes sense but. yeah..

'Zamki na piasku' - Lady Pank - this song is in polish so im gonna explain- the plot is about a famous celebrity who snaps and becomes a terrorist i think??? it has motives of being a cog on the machine and how people percieve fame and i think that suits Kuron/buddy a lot

Thanks for asking bestie<333

[lord-lunatic]

Valeria Mortos.

It took some time to get here (6 months), but I hope you guys are ready for some theories on the one and only, our favorite tiefling disaster @curly-haired-wizard s Val.

I’d like to say that at the pint I wrote most of these theories I didn’t really know anything about Val. So most of this is just based on my imagination, some quotes and lyrics. I am aware most of this is gonna be wrong and to be hones I don’t even believe all of the theories anymore. I put them here anyway for the sake of fun c:

I’m going to organize the theories by analyzing the songs one by one. I put them in an order that i think makes sense chronologically.

Come little children:

Whatever happened before the beast came into Val’s life but it wasn’t good. 

I have 2 theories as to how the beast came into her life:

Both of these theories presume that Val’s parents weren’t really a big part of her childhood. She either got taken from them, was abandoned,... This is also based on Val mentioning that a woman looked after her when she was younger, who she doesn’t refer to as her mother.

1. Experiments

At the point of posting I don’t think this theory has been proven wrong but I liked it so enjoy 

Okay this is very specific but it was too good of a theory not to include it here.

Theory numero uno is that Val was taken, or followed willingly to a place where she was experimented on. In some place these experiments involved the beast and if it was planned or not her bonding with it. 

From how I interpret it Val must have seen the beast in a physical form standing in front of her, before it became more of just a voice in her head, as she does know what it looks like and even described it at one point e.g. she knows it’s a wolf. So the experiments could have included her being confronted with it.

Come little children I'll take thee away, into a land Of enchantment Come little children The time's come to play Here in my garden Of shadows

The place where these experiments took place were probably presented to her as beautiful, I don’t think she wanted to run away from there, at least not in the beginning. She was tricked into believing that this was her playground. 

If we are to believe that even before Val was somehow bonded to the beast, her life wasn’t that wonderful to say the least, this place might have even seemed better in comparison.

There must have been at least one person that she trusted and from who believed they loved her, when really they were manipulating and using her.

Follow sweet children I'll show thee the way Through all the pain and The sorrow Weep not poor children For life is this way Murdering beauty and Passions

As I was saying, Val was manipulated. She was told that all the pain she had to to go through, that all that was just how life was. It was normal. 

After all the people who put her through this pain were also the ones helping her when the experiment was over. I don’t think Val connected the dots at this point.

To take the theory even further: The person manipulating Val might have been this ‘her’ that she said cared for her when she was younger. (She talked about this when she told the rest of TAVRN about the beast.) 

In this theory ‘Come little children’ would be from the perspective of the manipulators singing to Val.

Bonus to this theory: Val was held in a cage with the beast which would explain her getting triggered in some way by the cages in the ‘ animal smuggler’ base.

2. The beast itself

The other theory is a bit less specific than the first one but still here we go.

Val talks of ‘her’ who cared for her when she was younger. In this theory I’m assuming that this person was just someone who loved Val and took it upon her to care for her, assuming again her parents were not part of the picture.

Here is where the beast comes into play, I think it was the one who took this woman away from Val.

Val must have seen the beast in a physical form standing in front of her at least once, before it became more of just a voice in her head, as she does know what it looks like and even described it at one point (“He’s big, he’s got these big red fiery eyes, looks like a wolf.”)

The beast gets triggered by blood, high aggression and general gory situations, so I’m assuming that the original scene that bonded Val with the beast, also included a good amount of gore and blood. The beast, in it’s wolf form might have killed ‘her’ and bonded with Val.

In this case the song ‘Come little children’ would take place after the beast bonded with Val and is from the beasts perspective talking to Val.

Bonus to this theory: Val uses a small blanket to calm herself down every time she gets scared or the beast is coming closer to the surface. A small blanket. This might be something that she has back from the time when the beast wasn’t a part of her, maybe even something she got from the person that was the closest to a parental figure she knew. She also has this star necklace, that she always wears, which also comes from a loved one.

Control:

Probably the biggest theme I thought about when thinking about Val was control. It just feels like her life is just her losing and regaining and losing and regaining control over herself and her life over and over again.

I’m gonna split the theories again:

1. Experiments

Again I had already typed this, before I found the quote that proved me wrong again.

Back to the same first specific theory.

The house was awake With shadows and monsters The hallways they echoed and groaned

And I sat alone, in bed till the morning And crying "they're coming for me"

Although I think that Val tried to please the people who were manipulating it, there is no denying that she was probably in a terrible and scary place.

The picture that keeps coming back into my head is tiny Val sitting in a cage, crying, screaming, absolutely terrified and not understanding what is happening with her.

The process of being bonded with the beast was probably scary enough (in what way ever it did happen), but suddenly having it with yo at all times must be terrifying, especially if you don’t understand it.

I'm bigger than my body I'm colder than this home I'm meaner than my demons I'm bigger than these bones

Suddenly Val is powerful, strong and dangerous... It’s terrifying.

Val was also really young when the beast became a part of her, so I don’t think she had a lot of control over it.

2. Fear makes you dangerous

The house was awake With shadows and monsters The hallways they echoed and groaned

And I sat alone, in bed till the morning And crying "they're coming for me"

If the beast took ‘her’ away from Val, the time after this event must have been terrifying. She was alone, hearing the beasts voice and probably lost her consciousness every once in a while when the beast took over.

No matter how the beast came to Val, her control over it was probably not as good as it is now and she was terrified of it.

And all the kids cried out "Please, stop, you're scaring me"

It seems to be a given that Val did not have any real friends like ever. Part of this was probably because she scared others with how she looked (after all she’s a tiefling with, already at this age, probably a lot of scars) with how she looked and also her outbursts. I think she hurt a couple of kids before she learned to isolate herself.

I can't help this awful energy Goddamn right, you should be scared of me Who is in control?

Val doesn’t know who is in control either, everything is new and scary and although she is terrified she knows she is dangerous.

Apparently when Val loses control she also loses her consciousness of what happens during that time, which becomes clear due to the questions Val asks when she comes back. This means that Val only ever ‘wakes up’ to what the beast did... Just gonna leave that there.

And I couldn't stand the person inside me I turned all the mirrors around

To say the least Val doesn’t like what is happening, what the beast made of her, the scars she got through it, the loss she had to suffer.

I put a spell on you:

To be perfectly honest this song has done nothing but confuse me.

From what I think it might be about a more specific event that we don’t know. Everything that I could think of otherwise kind of overthrew all of my other theories.

And Val specifically said some time ago that the beast was not a curse which again make this song in that context real weird.

I don’t know.

Arsonist’s lullaby:

It seems that all the beast wants and needs is to destroy and hurt and Val is everything keeping it from doing that. Although we haven’t seen an awful lot of what it does, as Val until now is doing a pretty good job of keeping him in, this is what the message I got.

Now it is interesting that Ren and Val both have this song in their playlist, but the meaning behind it might be different for them individually.

When I was a child, I heard voices Some would sing and some would scream

Val obviously has the voice of he beast in her head, she’s the only one hearing it when he talks.

When I was a child, I'd sit for hours Staring into open flame Something in it had a power Could barely tear my eyes away

Another theory is that when she was younger she obviously didn’t understand as much of the beast. She didn’t know why it was there, why she went in and out of consciousness when he took over etc.

Anyway she probably had some kind of fascination with destruction, which miraculously follows her anywhere she goes. 

I could imagine that only through trying to repress it, it actually became such a separate part of her, that they were more “one” when she was younger. 

Don't you ever tame your demons But always keep them on a leash

Val cannot tame the beast, so keeping it on a leash seems about the best she can do, figuratively speaking. 

But my peace has always depended On all the ashes in my wake

The beast has a hunger and I feel like the longer Val keeps it in, the harder it gets for her when he comes back. So her peace depends on it getting what it wants.

Nightmare:

Oh this song.

I’m not really sure what it’s about but I’ll try to put something together:

It could be about the relationship between Val and the beast.

No matter in what way I am pretty sure that in some way Val was in a reaally bad place and she hurt a lot of people (if it was by giving control to the beast or in some other way) and at some point she had to face this.

You should have known The price of evil And it hurts to know That you belong here, yeah

Can't wake up in a sweat 'Cause it ain't over yet Still dancing with your demons Victim of your own creation

Val created her own hell. She’s living her own nightmare.

This song also sparked some other weird idea in me which is that the beast found it’s way to Val because she wanted it to. Something terrible happened and she wanted back what she had before and in order to get it back she accepted to having the beast. (Sort of how Percy wanted revenge on his family but then kinda accidentally got more than he wanted, Orthax included) 

Except she was very young and really couldn’t have known the consequences to her actions.

I dunno. I’m probably wrong.

Te song is pretty much about living in your own nightmare but it being your own fault, your own creation. Which does sound vaguely like Val.

But I would need to know more about her to flesh out any more theories about this song

Just one yesterday:

If heaven's grief brings hell's rain Then I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday ...

Another song I am super confused by although the title seemed so obvious. Val would have probably done just about anything to get back what she once had before the beast was there.

I want to teach you a lesson in the worst kind of way

She wants to proof those wrong that treated her badly?! Idk mate

Letting people down is my thing baby Find yourself a new gig This town ain't big enough for two of us I don't have the right name Or the right looks But I have twice the heart

This just felt weirdly accurate for a younger Val somehow

If I spilled my guts The world would never look at you the same way And I'm here to give you all of my love So I can watch your face as I take it all away

Is this the beast talking? Is this Val hurting people? Who knows? I for sure don’t.

I love the song but I sure as hell don’t understand it

Can’t go back:

This song will appear later in the theories again, but I will analyse it in the basically opposite direction of what I’m doing now. 

Death came too quickly Knee-deep in your memory Guess you're really gone

If Val only had one person left to take care of her or that she cared for in any way and this person got lost or disappeared (Val asked Ren if this family also took people from where she came from, because she lost someone) she might have gone a bit insane.

It won't stop for anything We keep pushing on

Rise up and fight fate

If the beast already existed at this point, Val must have been pretty isolated from the worls. A lot was taken from her, she didn’t get remotely the same chances that others at her age might have gotten. 

Now without anyone left. She might be angry.

And, no, you can't go back and save the dead Or let the ashes build up in your head If you wanna fight, don't let those who died die for nothing

Well, they won't get the best of me This is where it starts We are scarred, but not dying They've burnt every part of me

From the ashes, rise

I feel like the Val we see today in the games is a very different one to the one she was in the past. 

If she was always rejected maybe even hurt by the people that were around her, maybe she wanted revenge? 

And when she didn’t have anything left she came back stronger but also angry and took revenge on those who wronged her? The beast helping her?

And we'll rest when we're dead But we'll take these demons with us

And if she’s gone she’ll take the beast with her. What does it matter anyway? Who is left that cares for her?

I really don’t know about this song. I feel like it’s about something very specific.

Control:

And all the kids cried out, "Please stop, you're scaring me" I can't help this awful energy God damn right, you should be scared of me Who is in control?

I think Val lost a lot early on her life. She felt so much pain, she was so alone, that it all became meaningless. 

And she gave in to the beast. 

I'm well acquainted with villains that live in my head

She willingly stopped trying to control it because somehow it was also the only thing that she had left. No one understood her, no one wanted to be around her, everyone was scared of her and as much as she was scared of the beast herself it was the only thing staying with her, which might in a very weird way even be comforting. At least she wasn’t alone.

The beast also seems to be very manipulative and she fell for it.

She became viscous, feral and destructive, did what the beast told her to do.

She gave all the control she had over to the beast. 

Furthermore if it seems like now she does lose consciousness when he takes over, if this was always the case, feeling numb or nothing at all probably seems better than hurting all the time.

You’re dead:

I think this is about something more specific than I’m gonna put here, but we didn’t get a lot of Val’s backstory yet so I gotta work with what I got. 

You'll never get a second chance plan all your moves in advance

Run fast don't stand in the sun there's too much work to be done

If Val actually led the beast do what it wants, it also meant that she probably couldn’t stay where she was and was constantly on the run, living on the streets.

When you smile and it tears your face it's time for the inhuman race

Now your hope and compassion is gone you've sold out your dream to the world

Val is the beast and she’S slowly losing grip on all the dreams or hopes she had in order survive.

(Bonus what if her surviving is actually only because the beast has a more feral instinct of surviving that Val does and due to her losing control over what she does most of the time he has her staying alive)

Black sheep:

My life is collapsing right before my very eyes I am sick but I'm healthy I am dead but still alive 

Basically what I said before, Val has no real constants in her life except for the beast and the feeling of loss.

I don't want to feel better No I don't want to feel a thing

Feeling numb or nothing at all is better than feeling pain.

This is Black Sheep Boy signing out I've given up on this world, there's nothing left for me now

Val is an outsider to everything. She’s so isolated even if she tried to be part of a normal community again she’s probably missing social cues and doesn’t really understand what’s going on. 

It feels like anyone she loves at some point will leave her.

At this point she has given up. She doesn’t really care anymore.

In my skin I feel restless, just remind myself to breathe I am brave but I'm useless I am lost but I believe Close my eyes for a moment well aware I'm still in drive

I mean it kinda speaks for itself. She’s not herself anymore.

This is not what I've chosen This is not my kind of life

Somehow bad things keep happening to her.

Gasoline:

Are you insane like me? Been in pain like me?

Val is very different from anyone else. Talking to a monster that only she can hear. 

Feeling so much pain over and over and over again definitely left its mark on her.

Do you tear yourself apart to entertain like me?

Kinda sounds like the beast in some way.

You can't wake up, this is not a dream You're part of a machine, you are not a human being

I bet she sometimes just wants to wake up from all this, have it all just be a dream. It’s interesting because if Val doesn’t remember what happens when the beast takes over, it probably feels like waking up to a nightmare anytime she gets her control back.

I think there’s a flaw in my code These voices won’t leave me alone

Nope the beast is not leaving.

Are you deranged like me? Are you strange like me? Lighting matches just to swallow up the flame like me? Do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me? Pointing fingers cause you'll never take the blame like me?

Val is becoming reckless.

Blood:

I an so confused by this song.

Is about the beast?

I can't control myself because I don't know how, And they love me for it honestly, I'll be here for a while 

So give them blood, blood, gallons of the stuff Give them all that they can drink and it will never be enough

The beasts hunger is not stopping anytime soon.

They can fix me proper with a bit of luck

It could also be about someone studying her? 

Honestly I have no idea what this song means

I'm the kind of human wreckage that you love

That you are, Val.

Love bites:

Honestly I didn’t really know what to make of this song. At all.

With nowhere to go, nothing to believe I'm counting on beauty to kill off the beast

Can’t go back:

I’m still not sure where in Val’s life this song fits the best.

Rise up and fight fate

For me it sounds like she’s either starting to fight the beast for the first time or starts to reel him back again after letting him take over for a while (or something similar). She doesn’t want to hurt people anymore.

Death came too quickly Knee-deep in your memory Guess you're really gone

Again Val lost a lot of people, she also hurt a lot of them and I am not too sure if she (or Val under the control of the beast) might have been responsible for someone’s death.

If she actually killed someone she loved. Even if it was in beast form, I think like she’d feel guilty. And if we assume that she actually let the beast full control over her body, she’d probably make herself fully responsible for them getting hurt or even killed.

That might have been enough to make her fight it again.

You can't go back You can't kill the past And, no, you can't go back and save the dead

She can’t bring anyone back, but she can try to do better.

We are scarred, but not dying They've burnt every part of me

From the ashes, rise

Life’ hasn’t been fair on Val but maybe she can try to make it better.

And we'll rest when we're dead But we'll take these demons with us

She will only stop fighting when she dies. And if that day comes nobody will have to get hurt by the beast again. Hopefully.

--

I know I’m a wolf:

I feel like this song could either go before or after the next three songs.

So I feel like at this point it is save to say that a fair amount of people were scared of Val and that she or the beast have hurt some folks.

Hurt:

I hurt myself today To see if I still feel I focus on the pain The only thing that's real

The needle tears a hole The old familiar sting Try to kill it all away But I remember everything

What have I become My sweetest friend Everyone I know Goes away in the end 

Val hit rock bottom. She was alone, with no one to trust and not trusting herself with anyone. Her self esteem was probably as low as ever and given the state that the rest of the gang found Val in, it is save to say that she really had nothing left at one point.

Hurt pretty obviously talks about self harm and being numb. 

Val doesn’t really seem to have anything left-

And you could have it all My empire of dirt I will let you down I will make you hurt

I wear this crown of thorns Upon my liars chair Full of broken thoughts I cannot repair

I feel like Val became really cautious when it comes to interaction with other people. She automatically assumes that they are not gonna stay long term and I’m just gonna guess that TAVRN are the first people to stay in spite of the beast.

She assumes that she’s gonna hurt people and she doesn’t want that so she keeps to herself.

Migraine:

Am I the only one I know Waging my wars behind my face and above my throat Shadows will scream that I'm alone

She’s very lonely and desperate.

And my pain will range from up, down, and sideways Thank God it's Friday cause Fridays will always be better than Sundays 'Cause Sundays are my suicide days

It will not let me sleep I guess I'll sleep when I'm dead And sometimes death seems better than the migraine in my head

‘Hurt’, ‘Migraine’ and ‘Neon Gravestones’ all mention the topics of suicide and self harm. So yeah I think Val was real bad before she met the gang.

I am not as fine as I seem Pardon, me for yelling and telling you green gardens Are not what's growing in my psyche, it's a different me A difficult beast feasting on burnt down trees

Behind my eyelids are islands of violence My mind ship-wrecked this is the only land my mind could find I did not know it was such a violent island 

'Cause sometimes to stay alive you gotta kill your mind 

First of all Val, as of how we can see her now, is always pretty sure which is a bit off putting because it either means that she has already seen much worse than this and is used to this or that she is just really good at hiding her feelings. Either way I don’t like it,

But I can also see Val being very conflicted because she probably wants the beast to stop doing bad things and stop thinking terrible things. Just have a normal life, have people close to you. But it seems the only way to get the beast to leave is to end her life with it.

And I will say that we should take a day to break away From all the pain our brain has made, the game is not played alone And I will say that we should take a moment and hold it And keep it frozen and know that life has a hopeful undertone

But I know, we've made it this far, kid

But maybe there is hope.

Neon Gravestones:

Promise me this If I lose to myself You won't mourn a day And you'll move onto someone else

I feel like this really sums up how Val sees herself, she doesn’t want people o mourn over her or maybe can’t even imagine people doing that. (It also kinda reminded me of the scene were she talked to Ren about what to do when she gets out of control)

I don’t really know. It’s another song about suicide but it’s rather different from Migraine.

The song could also fit somewhere earlier in the order but I am not really sure. Again we don’t know enough about Val yet and this song might also be about something more specific.

Alone together:

I don't know where you're going, But do you got room for one more troubled soul I don't know where I'm going, But I don't think I'm coming home

Oh T.A.V.R.N.

I feel like this song is about Val meeting the gang. She didn’t really have anything an especially not anyone to call her friend and suddenly she has 4 of them.

And I said, I'll check in tomorrow if I don't wake up dead This is the road to ruin and we're starting at the end

It doesn’t really matter what happens now. I mean with everything that already happened until now, they were definitely on to a hot start, they’ll manage somehow... won’t they?

---

Bad moon rising:

The only reason this song is at the very end is that I didn’t know where to put it in the order. I feel like it more describes a general mood with the beast or one specific event in the past.

I hope you got your things together I hope you are quite prepared to die Look's like we're in for nasty weather One eye is taken for an eye

I am really worried and interested as to what this is about. 

I don’t think Val’s beast problem has anything to do with lycanthropy still it is very interesting how the wolf is a reoccurring theme and now the moon? 

What does this meeeeeaan?!

---

Summary:

Someone needs to stop me, @d20error give me the Val LORE so I can stop writing so much nonsense.

Val was really alone, has suffered a lot and probably has friends for the first time in her life right now. Someone give her the hugs she deserves.

I’m gonna tag @knotthebrave here because you also know Vals backstory and might enjoy reading this

[redscullyrevival]

The Beekeeper’s Apprentice: Mary Russell Rundown

Oh boy oh boy I do love a good bump and dig into Holmes canon - especially if it has the potential to ruffle male fans! @sonnetscrewdriver knows me so well.

Plot/Setting/Narrative

So what’s the live or die, sink or swim, aspect of a non-Conan Doyle Sherlock-like tale?

Surly its not Sherlock’s characterization.

A child can get Sherlock right.

Is it the mystery? Is it the logical detective steps or flights of barely believable deductive ability key to the kingdom? 

Nah. 

While the ride is important and a big draw most every Sherlock versed individual typically learns not to put their eggs in that widely inconsistent basket. 

How about the narrative expression explaining and driving the Sherlock-like things in the story? 

You friggin’ bet ya! That’s the important stuff.

And Laurie King can certainly write a Sherlock-like narrative!

Holy hell.

King is as close to emulating a Doyle style narrative I’ve ever personally read but injects it with a wonderfully feminine perspective. 

And not overtly flowery and romantic lyrical male-writing-feminine but feminine in the ways important to a Sherlock-like story; in the detail observations our Mary Russell is often to share.

 The cases I feel could be a bit tighter other than the Kidnapping of Jessica which was surprisingly moving and really when I started to connect to Mary. 

Mary Russell

The elephant in the room, “is Mary Russell a Mary Sue?”

I don’t really care but very brief digging has resulted in learning many people do. 

Personally I think the best and most important thing to know about Mary Russell and by extension her creator is that on the official website there is a downloadable PDF titled “Information for the Writer of Mary Russell Fan Fiction” and is 17 pages of free organized information for fic writers and fans.

That’s simply beautiful. 

Seems to me Laurie King knows what shes fuckin’ about and what she owes in debt. 

And I don’t care if Mary Russell is viewed as some sad woman power fantasy by a wider Sherlock fanbase - but I won’t necessarily argue that she isn’t that either. 

Mary Russell most certainly is a Mary Sue as viewed by some people and the argument is easily kindled. 

And that’s not inherently bad is it? A little frustrating as its pretty obvious female characters get labeled Mary Sue disproportionately to male ones, to the point where there is no doubt in my mind that if Mary Russell were simply Russell hardly anyone would question or doubt his ability or companionship with Sherlock. 

To get to the point: 

I think Mary Russell is many things and like Sherlock as a character is adaptable to many reader views and interpretations - and ultimately its the controversy and wider discussion of her that makes Russell “valuable”.

I also think a big clue into the author’s intent with the character has to do with how her gender is discussed and made pronounced in text.

If Mary Russell never questioned her abilities or strength or worth as tied to her being a female in a very (very) male narrative space both within the one presenting her as well as the history of the character(s) she is tied to then the “Mary Sue” argument would have a lot more ground to claim, but as it is I am of the opinion that Mary Russell is meant to be a bit much and slightly antagonistic to what readers understand and unquestioningly accept regarding Sherlock and Sherlock canon. 

I’m also pretty certain she is meant to be just a good time as well!

Lots of humor and love in this first book and it’s easy to like Mary, it really is, and while she initially comes off a bit pious as her story goes on she becomes more honest and open with her readers.

The first person narrative is uncharacteristically Sherlock and probably what drives a lot of “Mary Sue” arguments I’d imagine (“It reeks of self-insert!”) but works well enough and allows us insights into Mary we need. 

Sherlock Holmes

This is a good Sherlock.

Very much a woman’s Sherlock. 

And I mean that in the nicest way possible and not a comment on the impending romance. 

‘Cause it’s going to happen and I might as well come to terms with it.

I’m actually really upset how okay I am with it to be completely honest.

I’m a romantic turd and I’m a sucker for relationships rooted in trust and belief in the other’s abilities so for me the impending romance (which is more “Mary Sue!” fodder and actually probably the biggest sore spot for anti-Russell folks I bet) is a combination of irritate and excitement. 

Sherlock has always been an attractive figure for a lot of people - the age old “Smart is Sexy” at work. 

I am one such people.

Very much a Spock vibe with Sherlock amirte???

The aloof disengaged approach to viewing relationships and emotional response paired with the logic and brains makes those characters someone you’d reallllly enjoy seeing crack (hence how their common and intense pairing with their closest ((of happen to be male)) confidants is so deeply satisfying). 

The age gaps between Mary and Holmes is intense though innit? 

YIKES.

A part of me wants to wax and wane on how irritating that is but then another part of me is practical and knows I can a.) ignore it b.) can’t help BUT ignore it because Holmes has the permanent visual image of stinkin’ Jeremy Brett in my traitor mind and I’m cool with watching him snog just about anyone! 

So. 

Hard to get up in arms about that really. 

A third part of me also doesn’t give a shit.

Why am I so certain romance will bloom?

Because this is a woman’s Sherlock and I don’t mean that then obviously romance must present its self but what I mean is that this Sherlock isn’t alien and convinced that romantic feelings are unintelligent. 

Kind of hard to explain but know it comes from years and years of reading various Sherlock Holmes fan fiction from various Sherlock Holmes properties and I know a “female holmes” when I see one. 

Eh, I’m not explaining this well I’m loosing steam here but yeah.

*shrugs*

I’m not being negative!

Highlighted Passages 

“As both I and the century approach the beginnings of our ninth decades, I have been forced to admit that age is not always a desirable state. The physical, of course, contributes its own flavour to life, but the most vexing problem I have found is that my past, intensely real to me, has begun to fade into the mists of history in the eyes of those around me.”

So, yes, I freely admit that my Holmes is not the Holmes of Watson. To continue with the analogy, my perspective, my brush technique, my use of colour and shade, are all entirely different from his. The subject is essentially the same; it is the eyes and the hands of the artist that change.

He was, as the writers say but people seldom actually are, openmouthed.

It was none other than the long-suffering Mrs. Hudson, whom I had long considered the most underrated figure in all of Dr. Watson’s stories. Yet another example of the man’s obtuseness, this inability to know a gem unless it be set in gaudy gold.

“Youth does not inspire confidence, in life or in stories, as I found to my annoyance when I set up residence in Baker Street.”

“I suppose you know I was prepared to hate him,” I said finally. “Oh yes.” “I can see why you kept him near you. He’s so…good, somehow. Naïve, yes, and he doesn’t seem terribly bright, but when I think of all the ugliness and evil and pain he’s known… It’s polished him, hasn’t it? Purified him.” “Polished is a good image. Seeing myself reflected in Watson’s eyes was useful when contemplating a case that was giving me problems. He taught me a great deal about how humans function, what drives them. He keeps me humble, does Watson.” He caught my dubious look. “At any rate, as humble as I can be.”

Looking back, I think that the largest barrier to our association was Holmes himself, that inborn part of him that spoke the language of social customs, and particularly that portion of his makeup that saw women as some tribe of foreign and not-entirely-trustworthy exotics.

It was a mad time, and looked at objectively was probably the worst possible situation for me, but somehow the madness around me and the turmoil I carried within myself acted as counterweights, and I survived in the centre.

It was the same, but I was different, and I wondered for the first time if I was going to be able to carry it off, if I could join these two utterly disparate sides of my life.

“Thank you, Mr. Holmes, I hope—” She looked down. “If my fears are correct, I have married a traitor. If I am wrong, I am myself guilty of traitorous thoughts against my husband. There is no win here, only duty.” Holmes touched her hand and she looked up at him. He smiled with extraordinary kindness into her eyes. “Madam, there is no treachery in the truth. There may be pain, but to face honestly all possible conclusions formed by a set of facts is the noblest route possible for a human being.”

“Are you telling me the butler did it?” “I’m afraid it does happen. Shall we search the woods for the débris?”

“It is, I can even say, a new and occasionally remarkable experience to work with a person who inspires, not by vacuum, but by actual contribution.”

Somehow me Da’ had raised a drunken mob in this tiny place, had summoned thick voices in song, and was driving them down the lane with the goad of his mad fiddle—a magnificent Welsh chorus, singing Christmas carols, in English, in an infinitesimal Welsh village, on a warm August night. Suddenly nothing seemed impossible, and as if the thought had loosed the house from stasis there was movement within.

“Is it always so grey and awful at the end of a case?” He didn’t answer me for a minute, then rose abruptly and stood looking down the road towards the house with the plane trees. When he looked around at me there was a painful smile on his lips. “Not always. Just usually.” “Hence the cocaine.” “Hence, as you say, the cocaine.”

The amazed adoration in her eyes was too much. I pulled her to me so I did not have to look at it. Her hair smelt musky-sweet, like chamomile. I held her, and she began to cry, weeping oddly like a woman rather than a young child, while I rocked us both gently in silence. In a few minutes she drew a shuddering breath and stopped. “Better?” She nodded her head against my chest. I smoothed her hair. “That’s what tears are for, you know, to wash away the fear and cool the hate.” As I suspected, that last word triggered a reaction. She drew back and looked at me, her eyes blazing. “I do hate them. Mama says I don’t, but I do. I hate them. If I had a gun I’d kill them all.” “Do you think you really would?” She thought for a moment, and her shoulders slumped. “Maybe not. But I’d want to.”

“Yes. They are hateful men, who did something horrid to you and hurt your parents. I’m glad you wouldn’t shoot them, because I shouldn’t want you to go to gaol, but you go ahead and hate them. No one should ever do what they did. They stole you and hit you and tied you up like a dog. I hate them too.” Her jaw dropped at so much raw emotion aired. “Yes, I do, and you know what I hate them for most? I hate them for taking away your happiness. You don’t trust people now, do you? Not like you did a few weeks ago. A six-year-old girl oughtn’t to be frightened of people.”

“You were brave, you were intelligent, you were patient. And as you say, it isn’t really over yet, and you’re going to have to be brave and intelligent and patient for a while longer, and wait for the anger and the fear to settle down. They will.” (And the nightmares? my mind whispered.) “Not right away, and they’ll never go away completely, but they’ll fade. Do you believe me?” “Yes. But I’m still very angry.” “Good. Be angry. It’s right to be angry when someone hurts you for no reason. But do you think you can try not to be too afraid?” “To be angry and—happy?” The incongruity obviously appealed to her. She savoured it for a moment and jumped to her feet. “I’m going to be angry and happy.”

No, I refuse to accept gallant stupidity in place of rational necessity.

“I dislike the idea of a murderer employing children,” said Holmes darkly. “It is, I agree, bad for their morals, and interferes with their sleep.”

The more I thought about it, the curiouser it became. What kind of human being would need a refuge capable of sustaining life in a siege?

“Good God, Holmes, where have you been to pick up such a stench? Down on the docks, obviously, and from your feet I should venture to say you’d been in the sewers, but what is that horrid sweet smell?” “Opium, my dear protected child.”

“The admission then caused me some shame. But, that was half a lifetime ago, and since then I have learnt, slowly, and painfully, that time and distance can prove a powerful weapon.”

The thought of telling someone, and having to see their face afterward, had always clamped my mouth down on the words, but now, to my exquisite horror and relief, I heard the words trickle from my mouth.

“I was merely going to say that I hope you realise that guilt is a poor foundation for a life, without other motivations beside it.”