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haveyouseenthisskeleton · 7 months ago

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Horrorfell Sans & Papyrus character sheets (Updated version)

COPPER (Horrorfell Sans)

Backstory: Knowing that Asgore would kill Frisk as soon as they reached the throne room, Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Flowey and Toriel allied to kill the King, so the child could reach the Surface. They managed to take Asgore's down, which allowed Frisk to take his soul to cross the Barrier and go find help. Except… Frisk never came back.

After a brief period of peace, Undyne's and Toriel's relationship became tense, as both women had very opposite views of how to lead Monsterkind now that Asgore is gone. Toriel wanted to bring back the old days, before Asgore's kill or be killed decision, but Undyne accused her of wanting to re-do Asgore's work by doing so. Undyne wanted a modern kingdom, that would never accept a reign of terror once again. Eventually, a fight broke out between them and Toriel ended up badly injured and banned back into the Ruins as Undyne took over. Eventually, their fight caused a civil war in the Underground, which ended tragically with Toriel's partisans making the CORE explode.

Copper and Chief quickly understood it was in their best interest to stay out of this mess. Copper… Copper didn't live this well. After his brother forces the town to stay neutral, he finds himself stuck between his loyalty to Snowdin and his friendship with the Queen, making him a target not only for Undyne but for Toriel's rebels as well, considering he was not invested enough in their battle. With the food lacking added to that, Copper quickly had to learn to keep a low profile, too weak to fight against big LV monsters. He eventually decided he was a burden to his brother and went to live in the Ruins with Toriel, so his brother wouldn't have to worry too much about his survival. Toriel had enough resources to feed and protect both of them, while outside, they resigned to hunting rats and small cavern animals to live another day.

After seven years of living out of town, having only a few contacts with his brother through the door, a human fell down. Aliza was Frisk's friend and heard about monsterkind when Frisk died, through their notes. They never make it to the human city. Copper had a hard time accepting that, but Toriel even more, as she had to grieve yet another child. Unfortunately, it was too much for Toriel. They found her dust in the morning, having no idea what happened. Maybe she fell down out of despair, maybe she took her own life, one mystery Copper would never know.

The initial plan of Copper was to get the teenager out of this hell as Copper thought monsterkind didn't deserve to be saved anymore, but Aliza convinced him. With the help of his brother, and the not-so-many monsters who survived the famine in Snowdin, they challenged Undyne, hoping they would be enough to take her down. That worked, but at the cost of almost all of Snowdin's survivors, his brother's legs and his arm. Chief didn't want to kill Undyne, but Undyne refused to give up, letting them not choice. After that, with seven souls and the Queen's soul, Aliza broke the Barrier.

The brothers are now trying to recover, closer than ever after being apart for so long. They missed each other a lot, and they hope they can finally let the past behind for a better future.

Personality: Adventurous - Charismatic - Cooperative - Curious - Dramatic - Fair - Honest - Loyal to death - Observant - Protective - Prudent - Self-critical - Shrewd - Uncomplaining - Competitive - Quiet - Sarcastic - Calculating - Cowardly - Disobedient - Easily discouraged - Fatalistic - Irritable - Lazy - Moody - Opportunistic - Provocative - Sedentary - Slow.

Job : Farmer, sort of.

Hobbies: Taking care of the animals, bitching on the neighbors, watching TV, inventing small things he will never use, messing with the house equipment to piss off his brother and his S/O.

Loves: Cars, big tractors, big trucks, motorcycles, inventing new things, pranking his brother, testing the limits, annoying his S/O, messing with children by popping off his arm prosthesis when they shake his hand, plaid burritos, talking and arguing with his animals, finding random excuses to enter people's house, steal something and wait for them to notice weeks later, good food, playing piano, Halloween, horror stories, free coupons, weird looking animals.

Hates: People staring at his arm for too long, people who attack his brother on his disability, people trying to scam him, people pointing at him because he's a monster, very loud noises, crowded places, elevators, deep water, the smell of blood, thunder, people too curious about the Underground, not having food in his pockets, cleaning the house.

The S/O of his dream: Someone who has the same dark humor he has, or at least doesn't get offended by it. Someone patient enough to tell him when he's too much of an asshole. Someone who will not push him to talk about his past and understand he wants to move on. Someone who doesn't care about his disability and treats him normally.

Dealbreaker: Doing things for him and saying he can't do them because of his missing arm, disrespecting his brother. Mocking his panic fear of loud noises. Pushing him to talk about his past.

Contacts :

Family: Chief.

Adopted family: Oak, Willow, Nugget, Pumpkin.

Best friend: Red.

Close friends: Edge, UF Grillby, UF Toriel, Coffee, Rumba, Sam, Ben, Fang, Killer, Delta.

Friends: UT Toriel, UT Grillby, Blue, Honey, Nox, Rus, Demon, Error, Dune.

OK/Neutral: Sans, Papyrus, UT Asgore, UT Mettaton, UT Burgerpants, UT Gerson, Ink.

Would better avoid: UT Undyne, UT Alphys, UT Frisk, UT Chara, UT Gaster, UT Muffet, UT Asriel/Flowey, UF Alphys, Moon, Sun, Rambo, Salsa, Tango, Creeper, Torpedo.

Absolutely hates: UF Undyne, Wine.

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CHIEF (Horrorfell Papyrus)

Backstory: After Undyne took control of the Underground, tired of this pointless civil war, Chief took over Snowdin's authority, forcing the town to be neutral in the war, while Waterfall and the Hotlands became a battlefield. With the explosion of the CORE though, they had no choice but to learn how to survive, as Undyne, feeling betrayed by Chief's refusal to follow her lead, refused him and all of Snowdin access to what little food there was left. So Chief taught the town how to haunt small animals, hoping it would gain enough time for Frisk to come back and free them from this hell.

Constantly making sure his brother would survive, Chief forgets himself, pushing his body to limits he probably never should have crossed. That's probably one of Copper's motivations to find shelter in the Ruins, to stop worry him. It kinda worked. And it kinda not. Even if he played it cool when he could talk with him through the Ruins door, Chief had a very hard time trying to keep everyone in town alive and healthy.

He didn't tell his brother he almost died three times, two because he refused to eat for too long, one because Undyne took advantage of his weakness to try and kill him for good. Yet he survived. For his brother. He knew that as soon he would die, Undyne would find a way to hurt his brother somehow. And he refused.

He survived seven very long years, doing his best to survive and keep the others alive. Until he met with his brother again, and a child. He didn't think they would really free them, as Chief lost hope a long time ago, but he didn't feel like breaking his brother's hope, so he played along. Quite honestly, he thought they would all die as soon as they met Undyne, and he was ready for this.

So when he realized Undyne was as weak at him and that he actually had a chance to take her down, he was shocked. And maybe he let his enthusiasm talk too much. He underestimated her and made a terrible mistake. He didn't expect her to suddenly attack his brother, and without thinking, he threw himself in the way. His spine took most of the hit and injured him to the point of paralyzing him completely. But by sacrificing himself, it gave enough time to his brother to finish her, so he thought it was justified.

The truth is that he didn't expect to survive this injury. He couldn't live like that, it couldn't happen to him. And yet, he's still there. A lot of therapy helped him to accept his disability better, but it's still a subject he will avoid. He doesn't like his broken body. He hates that everyone are moving on but he can't because his legs will forever remind him of what happened. But he can't give up on his brother. So he continues.

He's slowly healing, but the scars will never really leave.

Personality: Clever - Disciplined - Dutiful - Empathetic - Forthright - Hardworking - Incorruptible - Intuitive - Leaderly - Loyal - Painstaking - Prudent - Reliable - Responsible - Preoccupied - Stubborn - Anxious - Cautious - Cold at first - Critical - Depressed - Desperate - Difficult - Fatalistic - Impulsive - Moody - Negativistic - Obsessive - Paranoid - Resentful - Terrified of failure - Still acts like he's Underground

Job: Farmer, Animal shelter employee

Hobbies: Taking care of Doomfanger, writing, crocheting, cooking.

Loves: Doomfanger, all the abandoned cats of the shelter, taking care of the food stock, finding new recipes to try, his brother, the snow on the Surface, criticizing the news, the neighborhood children, when his legs are moving even just a few inches, that his brother never gave up on him despite everything, puzzles.

Hates: People staring at him too much, his body, people saying they're impressed his cat is so old, his body, therapists who are not honest with him, that nothing is accessible with his wheelchair, people trying to help him in the street when he didn't ask help, people abandoning animals at the shelter, finding kittens in the bins in front of the shelter, when his brother is hurting, when he's hurting.

The S/O of his dream: Someone who can prove to him he's more than a broken body and that he still is himself. Someone who never judges him and supports his progress instead of focusing on the failures.

Dealbreaker: Using his disability against him, hurting his brother, asking to get rid of Doomfanger, and not letting him be independent.

Contacts:

Family: Copper, Doomfanger.

Adoptive family: Oak, Willow, Nugget, Pumpkin.

Best friend: Pumpkin.

Close friends: Red, Edge, Nox, Rus, Coffee, Rumba, Sam, Ben, Killer.

Friends : UT Mettaton, UT Grillby, UT Asriel/Flowey, UF Grillby, Blue, Honey, Moon, Tango, Fang, Delta.

OK/Neutral : Sans, Papyrus, UT Toriel, UT Asgore, UT Muffet, UT Burgerpants, UT Gerson, Sun, Rambo, Salsa, Demon, Creeper, Dune.

Would better avoid : UT Undyne, UT Alphys, UT Frisk, UT Chara, Ink, Error.

Absolutely hates : UT Gaster, UF Undyne, UF Alphys, Wine, Torpedo.

#horrorfell #sans #papyrus #character sheet #undertale ask blog #undertale imagines #undertale headcanons

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sad-scarred-sassy · 6 months ago

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i love love love your feylin writings

i don’t ship them at all really and i don’t want them to have an infidelity situation going on but i love them having these conversations!! i was never feyre’s number one fan because of sjm’s writing but she was unrecognisable by the end of the series and i love how you’ve acknowledged that but also made her .. three dimensional. it’s amazing what good writing can do for the most flat of characters like resident girlboss miss archeron

you know what else i love?? tamlin apologising and acknowledging how his actions could’ve affected her negatively. and without going into his tragic backstory?? unreal. i personally don’t think he’s a monster but i fully get why feyre thinks that and i have so much respect for his understanding why that is even if it’s misconstrued and/or upsetting to him (i think his well meaning actions had unintentional negative consequences and feyre has every right to feel hurt even if he hadn’t meant to, and i’ve always wished that feyre would see that she had perhaps unfairly villainised him - after she healed and had more time, of course - but again to accept that you are the - however unwitting - villain in someone else’s story and not immediately trying to change their mind or tell them how they’re wrong or whatever takes growth and therapy lol

i hope they can have more deep chats though hopefully that will help them both heal and go on their SEPARATE paths

love seeing the sisters mending their relationship a little - they should all move to spring and spend their time frolicking as they should’ve been able to do as kids

i do want tamlin to kind of be like “i don’t want to be someone/something you regret again” should they have another .. heated moment

like we love a pathetic wet rat of a man but don’t do this to yourself king you deserve better

Hello!! ❤️ I woke up to this message and it made me smile so bright! Thank you for reading and analyzing my writing, I feel so soo honored and grateful.

You speak so true about both of them deserving to heal and free themselves of the burdens of their current lives, and I think that they’re very very far from healing, even if headed in the right direction. I never set out this story to be about an infidelity arc, but I get why it appears to go that way. Feyre stepping into Spring alone could be viewed as an infidelity to Rhysand on itself, so in part it is.

I have a vague idea of how I see their story progressing, can’t say if I want them together or not yet, even if I love a depressing story I think I owe them the peace of a life they actually chose.

Also, I LOVED your take on Tamlin telling Feyre he doesn’t want to be something she regrets again, oh damn it really got the demons inside me sizzling, I might just add this sentiment in the next chapter. We all do love the pathetic aura he is displaying, but my man also needs to set boundaries if he wants to heal, even if it hurts him to do so!

I’m so touched you took your time to write this to me, and I’m so glad you could resonate with these deeply DEEPLY flawed characters. It’s honestly the biggest compliment I’ve received.

#feylin #feylin fanfiction #feylin one shot #feylin mini series #pro tamlin

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eyesthecolorofarson · 2 years ago

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The world that harmed us

If you’d told him two weeks ago that he would be seriously discussing leaving the dimension with four used-to-be-strangers in a Kings Dominion he would have slowly backed up and thought you a drug addict.

But here he was, sitting at a picnic table in the shade away from the hustle and bustle of the amusement park, staring at the poke ball on the table as if it could change his life.

For years he tried to gain his father’s approval, to earn a place in his heart. And for years he failed, always compared to his siblings. Never the first like Dick, never the most loved like Jason, never the smartest like Tim, never never never.

He can’t remember when he gave up. Maybe it was after his birthday was forgotten the fifth time. Maybe when he was ignored for days at a time. Or maybe it was the first, and last, time Bruce told him he hated him.

Regardless of when, it didn’t take much for him to pack a bag and leave. It was hilariously easy, actually. You’d think someone would have noticed, but that just showed how little he meant to them. And a part of him was grateful.

In two days time he was out of New Jersey and halfway through Michigan. It was there that he met a rag tag group of metas his age also trying to leave the country.

Danny Fenton, Dove Elopeman, Noel Lok and Lydia Lippet had each been traveling–running away–alone before stumbling into each other and deciding to stick together. The four hoped Canada would be kinder to them as Dove was from Italy, Lydia Ireland, Noel California and Danny Illinois. Damian was then told of their “tragic backstory’s” as Lydia called it, and then had to share his own.

Dove was an orphan street rat who discovered she could control peoples minds after accidentally taking control of a soup kitchen. A few restaurants and a Kardashian later she was blacklisted by the Justice League who thought she was an up-and-coming supervillain and she’s been on the run ever since. Damian could tell she was hiding something, but it wasn’t his business so he said nothing.

Lydia was born with a very odd power—aspects of her life could be controlled like a game of DnD, all that was needed was a twenty-sided dice. If she rolled a twenty on intelligence, she would suddenly know enough about quantum physics to teach a college lecture. If she rolled a one she would forgot what colors were what. She also had a character sheet which affected rolls, and classed herself as a Bard.

She called the reason she ran away “The Crush™ Grape Soda Incident” and no one wanted to know what that meant.

Noel, also an orphan, used to be Californias weightlifting state champion before she was given an experimental steroid by her coach without her knowing. She didn’t realize she was a meta until she lifted her coaches beach house on, what was at the time, a funny joke. Her coach was arrested and the Justice League wanted to recruit her. Noel told them no, and when they kept trying she packed what she had and ran.

Danny’s parents were scientists who were desperate to prove ghosts were real. When their portal into the ‘Ghost Zone’ kept failing, they came to believe that the problem was they didn’t have a strong enough tie to this world to keep the portal open and stable. They decided to use Danny as that tie. This led to them turning on the portal with Danny inside, which led to Danny becoming ‘half’ ghost. When his parents tried to capture and experiment on him, he used his new ability’s and ran away.

All of that led to them putting their various abilities and life skills together to cross the Canadian border, meeting Damian a few days before they reached the border. After telling their stories and hearing his–and a high-speed boat-chase across Lake Michigan with the local police that he knows they’ll never let him live down–they continue their journey with odd but little interruptions.

When they finally crossed into Ontario it was close to three in the morning. They were all tense, each of them expecting someone they knew to jump out and drag them back. But no one did. And when they finally, finally, drove all they way through, they stopped in a forest and sat there in silence.

It was Noel who started laughing first. Him and Dove shared glances and wondered if she was ok mentally when Danny started laughing too. Then Lydia, Dove and he joined in. There was something freeing, something joyous in the air. They were out. They made it.

They fell asleep in a pile, and when they woke up they started driving again. (Lydia kept fighting him for ‘her turn’ to drive even though she admitted she didn’t know how to, as if Danny’s driving wasn’t bad enough)

They all agreed Ontario probably wasn’t safe enough so they kept going until they reached Nunavut. And then they celebrated their newfound freedom with a trip to an amusement park, a place neither of them have been before.

Damian won seven toss games and twelve stuffed animals bigger than him, Noel broke four test your strength games and won about ten thousand tickets, they used said tickets to but about fifty small toys and trinkets, Danny dragged all of them to every roller coaster and ride there was, Dove and Lydia got into a dance battle on a DDR that resulted in an all-out musical war(Lydia won) and they finished their day by buying half the candy store.

They’re food and prizes sat in the middle of the table for them to share as they giggled and joked in ways only sugar-high teens could. Danny and Lydia were in a thumb-war while Noel was messing with a puzzle. Dove was teaching him the pocky game and doing a really bad job at explaining, which was making him incredibly flustered.

However, in the middle of her explanation she fell silent. She looked at him as if she were seeing his soul, and then turned and looked at the others. Lydia cheered as she won and began tickling Danny, but shrieked as Noel began tickling her from behind. She watched before smiling and pulling something out of her bag and setting it in the middle of the pile.

It was…. a Poké ball?

It didn’t look like the other real-life poke balls he’d seen though. While those were bright plastic and bigger that his hand this one was metal and shiny, and was about the size of a tennis ball. The middle button also seemed to be slightly glowing.

“This is a portal to another dimension where Pokémon are real.” Dove said quickly, and everyone went quiet. “I know I sound insane, and I know you probably don’t believe me, but I know for a fact because I’ve been. I’ve seen it. In the world this takes you to Pokémon are real. And I think I know a way for the Justice League, the police, are parents too never find us again.”

They all stared at her for a minute, absorbing what she said. “Are you shitting us?” Lydia asked first, “Are you absolutely, one-hundred percent serious?” Dove nodded softly, biting her lip.

Damian surprised himself with his words. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s get out of here.” Dove stared at him wide-eyed before Noel nodded. “Yeah, it’s not like I’ve got anything left here. Anyone got a reason they want to stay in boring-land and not become Pokémon trainers?”

Danny and Dove thought for a second while Lydia began listing all the Pokémon she wanted. They came up empty, and Dove began laughing. Damian asked if she was ok and she smiled at him. “I just thought you guys wouldn’t want to leave. I’ve been thinking about it the moment I found it.”

They discussed it a little more–names, Pokémon, money–before packing all their stuff and getting ready to leave the dimension.

“Hey, do you guys wanna be cheesy?” Danny asked, and put his hand on the poke ball. Noel snorted and put her hand over his. Lydia gasped and said “We could be even CHEESIER!” and put a peace sign over their hands.

He didn’t get it, but the others did. Danny and Noel made peace signs next to hers and he groaned. He got it, and Dove did too, giggling and putting her peace sign. Damian looked at their grinning faces, thought of his father—if he was missing him, if he regretted not loving him, if he even noticed that he was gone.

Fuck him, he thought, and finished the star. His friends cheered, Dove used her thumb to click the button—

and the poke ball opened, and they were sucked in.

When he came too he saw they were still making a star, but they were standing in a clearing a little ways away from a forest. They began looking around, and were dazzled by their surroundings.

Small little fairy’s with flowers–“Floettes!” Lydia cried–were everywhere, some were bigger with bigger flowers and in the distance there were about three giant ones that looked to have flowers for their heads. Small little orange hexagon-shaped bees buzzed around, and giant butterflies with big, magenta eyes flew about above them.

This, he thought, this is far better than being Robin. And as he ran with his new friends through the clearing, heading towards the city about the tree line, he knew he would never think about Gotham ever again.

~~~~~

this is just something I’ve had rolling around in my head on tumble dry for the past few days, and it’s not as useless as I thought it would be! It actually helped me flesh out backstory’s for the three original girls here. Descriptions under! Thanks for reading, and tell me what you think! And if–on the very unlikely chance–anyone who writes wants to write a story like this, please be my guest! Take it! You can do it, I believe in you!

Dove—Italian with honey skin and black curly hair that reaches below her shoulders. Her eyes are purple and glow a little when using her powers. A pastel goth, usually wearing skirts and knee high socks and heels-usually always thrifted or handmade

Lydia—African American with an Irish accent. Golden eyes and bright blue hair styled in a side-parted curly bob. Tomboyish with ripped jeans and a jean jacket, worn boots and shirt with memes on it

Noel—Native American with long and wild bright pink hair. Bright blue eyes and MEGA muscles. Usually wears dark jeans and her weightlifting varsity jacket-white sleeves, purple body, and teal accents on the cuffs and bottom and running shoes

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softer-ua · 4 years ago

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I love it!!!! 💞💞💞💞

🥺🥺🥺

You really capture the pinning vibes, makes my heart just *squeeze* 💗

i remember nothing about The Nutcracker but i know that "Ballet" is just code for "mutual pining"...

click for clarity bec tumblr said fuck u to picture quality you get 7 pixels ONLY

Lol I'm done with exactly half of my written exams and i finally have a two day break ;_; so I decided to doodle some bkdk nutcracker ballet AU inspired by a post I saw by- @softer-ua and @scar-queen-owl I hope u two like it ✨💕

#the nutcracker is my favorite ballet so lemme just info dump real quick #there’s so many adaptations but this is the usual plot line #a young girl is given a nutcracker doll by an eccentric family member #and everyone makes fun of the doll for being so plain and ugly #then someone breaks the nutcracker and the girls heart breaks with it #she or someone else mends the doll and she stays up late talking to it #then at midnight the doll fights the rat king and his soliders the girl tries to save #and gets shrunken down to their size for her troubles and they have to find the sugar plum fairy to turn her back #along the way the meet candy kingdom civs and the girl learns the nutcrackers tragic backstory #he saved a Princess but got turned into a nutcracker in the process and she turned him down saying he was too ugly to love now #the girl says she would never stoop loving her brave little nutcracker and poof he’s a prince #and what she’s the lost sugarplum fair Princess they’ve been looking for??? CRAZY!!!#then they rule the candy kingdom forever in love ❤️

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cosmictulips · 3 years ago

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PAC:: Poor Unfortunate Souls.

the third installment of this fun series lmao. we have... the Disney Villains! Now, someone brought this up to me as an idea and I was like, hell yeeeee. Okay, I can't find who gave me this idea but I think it was @tsundoku-reads

if you want to see the first two installments, here you go :: Sailor Moon, Disney Messages.

Anyway! if you wish to tip your reader, you get an intuitive reading =)

CAUTION ::

this is realllyy and I mean REALLY into shadow selves. if you are not tuned into your darker side, you may not resonate with any of these. if you are NOT aware of what you do to others intentionally and unintentionally, you may not see these qualities. this is a REALLY good pac for recognizing and beginning to do shadow work.

Choose between the photos! and I'll tell you which villianary suits you best.

Pile 1!

The World, The Sun, The Moon, 03 of Pentacles, Ace of Cups, 02 of Wands, Ace of Wands, 02 of Cups, 08 of Cups, Knight of Swords

omfg. you'd be the kind that works from passion. from love and bitter endings. you'd seek to ruin those who have taken everything from you. some of you have the most tragic backstories. You're down for manipulating people if you need to. you know how to get what you want. I would also like to say that this could be the pile of egos. playing the victim and always begging for forgiveness if only to turn around and do it again if they've hurt you. emotional manipulation could be a big thing here from other people or from yourself.

Selfish emotionally. you like to show off and perhaps even enjoy the spotlight if it's given to you. one way or another you'll get what you want. some of you literally operate from one distinct emotion. whether that is pain, sadness, euphoria. you chase a high.

the world treated you cruelly, and why should you be any different? I do feel like this pile really holds back because they know how emotionally manipulative they can be. how cold and uncaring. But you're also not the type to hold back for very long if you think someone or something is getting in the way from your light.

People literally may not like you because they get such strong emotions for you. whether you even say anything or not, people just want to fight you. for no reason. because you make them feel something. egotistical they may say. or you're so full of yourself. or like you're so dramatic and cruel. blah blah blah.

let me give you a list ::

Davy Jones -- pirate of the Caribbean

Gaston --- beauty and the beast

Hans--- Frozen

Claude Frollo --- The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Mother gothel --- Tangled

Pile 2

The Emperor, Queen of Swords, 08 of Swords, King of Wands, 09 of Wands, 07 of Cups, 10 of Cups, 07 of swords

Hollyyyy fuck you are the person who can command a room by sheer force of will. the type to have an intimidating voice or stare. you show no mercy to those you deem as weak. You worked hard to get where you're at and you're not going to let some rat get in the way of you worked for.

You guys are the pile that are boss ass bitches. no exception. pile one is more like the dark romantic, you guys are the group to sacrifice everything just for what you want. You don't care how long you have to keep going, or who you have to step on. You want that crown, you hold that crown, and you'll kill if it means you get to keep it.

Selfish. but only because you want the finer things in life. when the world doesn't play fair you hold on tighter to what you want. You RULE this world bby. and you know it. you would prefer it to be with a gentle hug, but if you need to use your iron fist, you won't care too much either. Either way, it's a win-win for you.

Maybe bossy. You are the type to always have a plan. you see where the weaknesses are in other people and you know how to exploit them. I feel like you guys are the pile that will just keep asking for more and more and more from a person.

Like "can you do this for me?" and "oh but I would prefer it if you bought me this". and "well it doesn't matter what you think, I already have this one. so I want that."

Very cunning. very smart. sharp tongued as well. I feel like the biggest difference between this pile and pile 1 is that you guys don't hide it lol. you are blunt, you are secretive. you are the leader. you KNOW this. it's why you may not like working with other people. because there's just a small part of you that doesn't understand. why. they. can't. fucking. see. it. the . way. you . do.

why they can't just shut up and go along with what you're planning. you don't like to be questioned haha. ooh darling if someone catches you on a bad day, you let them have it.

People may even say you're just scary to talk to when there's something going on. People may be envious of the power that you hold and are terrified for how you may end up using it.

A list for youuu ::

Maleficent --- Sleeping Beauty

The Evil Queen -- Snow White

Jafar ---- Aladdin

Professor Ratigan -- The Great Mouse Detective

Shan Yu --- Mulan

Pile 3!

King of Pentacles, 09 of Cups, the Devil, Ace of Swords, the High Priestess, Strength, 09 of Swords, the Star

You are someone who exploits peoples weaknesses. you have a sharp eye and even sharper tongue. some of you are very intuitive. and most importantly, you're not afraid to get down and dirty if you need to. very similar to pile one except you don't coat it. Like Hans from pile one who will manipulate, you guys are just a powerhouse. and that's the difference between these two piles.

Y'all don't need a motive other than "I like what I like" and that's it lmao. the first pile is more emotional, the second pile doesn't really care for emotions, and this pile, has them both together. you can most likely manifest anything. if someone does you wrong, I promise you, they regret it instantly.

you may not even have to do anything! a simple look gets this person to starve. you are the type that just takes things from people. you ruin their day with a single phrase. You HAUNT their nightmares. if you want someone out of your life or workforce, all you have to do is bat your eyes, and they're gone.

You have a LOT of power and I don't think some of you realize it. you literally make people nervous when you're angry. you make people anxious and scared. talk about silent and deadily lol.

I feel like this is also my more.... adaptive pile. you guys feel the most awake when it comes to your shadow side. so you know how to balance this shadow with your higher self.

I also just got the message that yall know how to lead people on lmao. people want to impress you because they fear what would happen if they let you down.

You aren't as loud as the second pile. but you are like... the silent force. the stage master for the performance. you let people see and feel what they want to. and you take what you need and go.

Hades --- Hercules

Dr. facilier --- Princess and the Frog

Ursula --- Little Mermaid

Scar --- The Lion King

Ursula --- the Little Mermaid

Oogie Boogie --- the Nightmare before Christmas.

#pac #pick a card #pick a pile #shadow workkk #heavy themes here guys be careful #tarot #free tarot readings #tarot readings #free tarot reading

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anxiouspotatorants · 3 years ago

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It is time. It is finally time for the new Suicide Squad rant (and spoilers will be plentiful):

As someone who was into DC Comics and comics in the mid to late 2010s and had so much hype for the first Suicide Squad movie only to be let down, I was so nervous for this one. I knew it was going to be a roller coaster, but whether I would come out happy or disappointed was up in the air. Having just seen it I will say this: I have no idea if this was a good movie-movie. It was insane. The comedy. The violence. The high emotion. I’m still trying to take it all in. But one thing I do know is that this is an amazing Suicide Squad movie. Gunn and co took the best parts of the comic concept and went batshit with it and that is how this property should be handled (in my opinion). Screw edgelordisms, we need full on insanity free of aiming for shock-value or sexy brutality we want chaos baby.

Starting the whole movie as they did, with Savant as the POV for a mission (or part of the mission) that just goes to hell immediately and kills off so many before the title arrives is the perfect way to start this movie. Like the second I realized this was how they were doing it I was just smiling from ear to ear, this is the spirit of the property.

Part of me wishes we got more Amanda Waller, but what we had was impeccable. Then again, this is Viola Davis we’re talking about, and if she was born to play any character in a superhero story, it is Amanda Waller.

And points to her tech team, introducing them with the death bets was just a lovely way to show how regular this is and how awful everyone is in this movie.

I’m not going to pretend like Deadshot and Bloodsport didn’t have the exact same character- and plot premises… but I will say that Bloodsport felt better executed.

I love that they kept some of the past members and not just Harley. Rick Flag got to have a full personality and interactions with his team members and to be a true leader and it made me so happy for someone who initially did not give a single shit about his character. The Harley friendship? The Dubois friendship? The friendship with that guerilla leader? Amazing. The one American soldier in fictional media I genuinely like. You go Mr Flag.

The new members were… they were insane in the best way. Gone are the shitty stereotypes and present are some of the wackiest creations to ever grace the mainstream movie-sphere (aka the slightly less normal comic creations): A man who has to shoot out polka dots two times a day so as not to die from a space virus. A giant child murdering weasel. A guy who detaches his limbs and slaps people with said detached limbs. King Shark. The second person to command rats with a fancy gadget. They are all crazy and all weird and all more or less morally repulsive people and I love them.

The amount of times I did a double take over the soundtrack I swear. Jessie Reyez? The Pixies? It was so much fun to pick up on once I did.

Was the depiction of a vague Latin American country stereotypical? Yes. Was the secret American involvement predictable and felt mildly patronizing from a non-American, part Latina point of view? Yep. But damn it if I didn’t have a good time with those stereotypes and laugh my ass off at how well executed some were. I don’t know if it was meant as parody, but that one secretary has me thinking so — and if so I am pleased.

Speaking of Latino dictators Harley’s one day romance with one of the villains was something I never knew I needed. Like it was so perfect for Harley that when it happened I almost hit myself for not realizing that this kind of plot should be a normal thing for Harley. And the end of it? Perfect not only in this standalone movie, but also in conjunction with the first and with BoP.

The Taika Waititi cameo??? Oh my god??? I did not expect that and I love it?? Sir, What We Do in the Shadows is impeccable.

Rick Flag’s death actually surprised me. It shouldn’t as this is Suicide Squad, but I kind of expected him to be on Harley’s level of unkillable (because let’s face it, no one kills Harley). What I will say is that his death was good and his final words and actions made me love him all the more. I hope this spawns more Rick Flag content, or at least inspires me to look at what already exists, if he already is as this movie made him (it’s been ages since I read one of the Suicide Squad reboot comics okay).

Starro. How can a villain be so wacky and so terrifying at the same time? I did not expect a literal alien starfish to have more terrifying powers and a more tragic plot execution than Enchantress. But here we are. And that damn star just wanted to be floating in space, and instead it was stuck getting revenge by killing and puppeteering human corpses. Wow that thing was creepier the more you think about it.

I don’t know what I think about Polka Dot Man. I loved watching him on screen but also damn those mommy-issues were on a new level. Not just in his backstory but how he literally sees her in every person around him that was insane. Very funny but like also the kind that makes you laugh just because you’re uncomfortable and don’t know how else to releive the tension.

When Waller got knocked out by a staff member I immediately thought «oh my god Amanda Waller is going to kill half the staff for this», so I’m mildly surprised and disappointed that I didn’t get to see that happen. But also I should maybe expect something like this in a potential future Suicide Squad movie. We can’t have everything in a movie as packed as this.

Peacemaker was very horrible and worked really well. Don’t really have much to say about him, not because I didn’t enjoy him but because I already feel like the film itself has said it for me. But the planting and payoff for his death? Chef’s. Kiss.

Harley’s wardrobe was beautiful. Ratcatcher 2’s combat outfit felt like a steampunk plague dream. Bloodsport’s mask was supercool. Rick Flag’s t-shirt was amazing. But the best little outfit was the Mafalda-keychain and her red dress, hands down. Oh and King Shark’s fake moustache finger moment.

King Shark is shaped like a friend I don’t care how many people he ate alive on screen he looks so huggable. It feels like wanting to pet a bear. You know it will kill you but damn it look at those paws and those cute eyes!

I really need to give it to not just James Gunn but the entire production team for this movie. The aesthetic was perfect. The story was the right blend of whimsical and violent. The finished product was a literal rollercoaster and I mean that in a good way. If superhero movies have to be like amusement parks, I hope they’re more like this one and BoP.

I’ll finish on the note that while I think this movie was great and hopefully a step in the right direction for the DCU/DCEU (as in stop trying to play Marvel’s game and just do your own thing/ let your creative teams run wild and free), it is not the first step. Cathy Yan, Birds of Prey and the production team for it took a step first, and they deserve due credit and attention. If you loved this Suicide Squad movie and haven’t watched BoP yet, do so. Because they really are in the same ballpark while doing things in slightly different ways. And any good DCEU movie deserves more attention so the studios know that creativity and risks should be rewarded. I want more DC movies like this, not necessarily in genre but in creative risks. I want a Black Canary rock movie. I want Alfred in a reverse heist movie alone in the batcave against Gotham villains. I want Gotham Academy on screen play by play from the comics. I want a fully animated psychedelic-like Khalid Nassour as Dr. Fate movie. I want elevated horror movie Constantine. I want weird ass Lois Lane journalist movies with a heavy side of Superman. And I want DC movies I didn’t even know I wanted.

Support creativity in mainstream comic movies. Help me become a DC fan and happy about it again.

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howlingday · 2 years ago

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tragic backstory (tm) au) while in the village a grimm swarm comes out of nowhere atlas is on the way but jaune and team must fight a desperate rearguard action to keep the fleeing villagers safe until the battleship can arrive. rwby is used as scouts picking off small groups of grimm and letting jaune know where the main group is before jaune rallies the men of the village and his own team to hammer and anvil strike the main body. the villagers might not have aura but the weight of several hundred knights in full plate with couched lances are more than enough to kill the grimm so long as they don't get bogged down that is. but while the brave heroes fight, something stirs within the forgotten dungeon of the keep the abandoned

Knight and Slay

See, when I think of the best two...

Jaune: Luna Tribe? (Groans) Don't tell you believe that rumor, too!

Path: No, I can't say I do. But then again, I was not in charge of keeping track of slaves.

Jaune: So what do you want?

Path: You are in grave danger, and you must rally your troops together.

Jaune: Danger? Troops? I- What are you talking about?!

Path: (Shushes, Cups ear) They are listening. If they learn of your awareness, they will strike first. (Points to a corner) There.

Jaune: (Looks, Squints) A rat hole? Why would I care about a-? (Looks to window, Finds a note)

"Your oldest foe will use her oldest weapon."

Jaune: Oldest foe? What? (Door slams open) GAH!

Ruby: (Panting) GRIMM! (Runs away)

Jaune: So much for sleep. (Runs after)

---------------------------------------------------

Goodwitch: Team CFVY, you're up.

Coco: (Yawns) Of course we are. Not like beauty sleep isn't a thing. (Goodwitch glare) I'm kidding!

Goodwitch: There's a Grimm attack at Mallet. So far, it's only Beowolves, but that could easily change. You will provide ground support in the south.

Coco: Got it. (Walks away)

Goodwitch: Team CRDL. Step forward.

Cardin: (Walks near Velvet, Blushes)

Velvet: (Blushes)

Yatsuhashi: (Rolls his eyes)

Goodwitch: There's a Grimm attack at Mallet. and we've spotted more moving close to Beacon. You will provide ground support for Professor Port on the north side.

Cardin: Yes, ma'am. (Walks away, Scroll buzzes) Hm? (Rounds the corner, Checks his scroll)

Velvet: (Scroll message) Please, be safe.

Russel: Ooh! What's that, Cardin?

Cardin: None of your business. (Flares his nostrils)

Russel: Hey, no need to get so hopping mad! (Laughs)

Cardin: (Tightly balls his fist, Sighs) You're not even worth it.

Russel: Huh?

---------------------------------------------------

Jaune: So, uh, that's the plan. Ruby and Pyrrha will provide fire support from above on the church tower, where the villagers are taking shelter.

Ruby: Got it!

Pyrrha: We'll protect them at all costs.

Jaune: Blake and Ren, you thin out their numbers from the roof top. If anything Grimm gets past the tree line, we're all counting on you to put an end to it. Don't let them reach the alleys.

Ren: Understood.

Blake: (Nods) Roger.

Jaune: Everyone else is on the ground with me. We have two objectives. First is to protect the townspeople. Second is to kill all the Grimm. Everyone ready? (They nod) Let's protect the town! (They all leave) How was that?

Ozpin: You were shaky at first, but you grew more confident. In time, you'll be able to give orders with great confidence.

Jaune: Really? Thanks, Professor Ozpin!

Ozpin: But next time, try to save the panic attack after the Grimm are dead, not before giving the brief.

Jaune: Y-Yes, Professor.

---------------------------------------------------

Path: Thank you for humoring me.

Raven: As if I have a choice with you freaks.

Path: You could always choose to walk away. That is what you are best at.

Raven: What? Do you? Want?

Path: I simply ask that you guide the king on the right path.

Raven: I'll tell you the same thing I told Oz. This is your mess, you clean it.

Path: Ah, yes, the old man. Are you aware he is with the king as we speak?

Raven: All the more reason for me to walk away. Find someone else to play mentor in your game of chess. I'm not getting involved in this.

Path: (Sighs) Such a shame, but then again. (Decapitates an Ursa behind him) Cowardly fools seldom fight their own battles.

---------------------------------------------------

Jaune: Weiss, Beowolves on the east!

Weiss: On it!

Jaune: Yang, Ursa to the west!

Yang: You got it, boss man!

Jaune: Nora-

Nora: Way ahead of you, Jaune-Jaune!

Jaune: Okay, that just leaves the south. Emerald, Mercury, and Cinder are in the town hall with Professor Ozpin and the villagers. (Looks up) Pyrrha and Ruby are providing cover fire. (Looks around) Blake and Ren are providing cover on the perimeter. That just leaves me here in the courtyard. Alone. As the last line before the doors.

Ruby: (Via mic) Wrong~!

Jaune: Huh?

Pyrrha: Your mic was on. We heard everything, and we think you're doing a wonderful job as our leader.

Jaune: Thanks, Pyrrha.

Ruby: Professor Ozpin chose you for a reason, Jaune.

Jaune: And that reason is...?

Nora: You're the king!

Jaune: (Groans) Anything on the south side, Ruby?

Ruby: No, nothing yet.

Jaune: That's weird. (Looks at the map) The south is the least guarded perimeter of the town, but there aren't any Grimm? Hm... I'm gonna go check it out.

Pyrrha: Be careful, Jaune. It could be a trap.

Jaune: Maybe. (Approaches the south, Sees a crack in the ground) Huh? Hey, guys, I found something weird.

Yang: What'd you find?

Jaune: A crack.

Yang: Pretty sure that's your butt. ...Oh, don't get mad! Still, a crack isn't something to worry about is it?

Jaune: Maybe, but it just doesn't feel right. Not when there are no- WHOA!

Yang: You okay, Jaune?

Jaune: Yeah, I tripped. And... Holy crap.

Yang: What's up?

Jaune: I can see a set of stairs through the crack. I think there's an underground passageway.

Yang: To where?

Jaune: I don't know. But I'm going to find out.

Yang: Alright, be same Vomit Boy. Wouldn't want my brother to kick it on his first mission in charge.

Ruby: Yang!

Yang: 'Sup, Rubes?

Ruby: Have you seen Jaune?!

Yang: He's at the sound end, checking out some stairs. Why?

Ruby: What?! Why didn't he tell us?!

Yang: What do you mean? He just talked on the common line.

Pyrrha: The last thing we heard was he was going to investigate the south. We can't see him, or the stairs you're talking about.

Yang: Oh no...

---------------------------------------------------

Pyrrha: Do you see him?

Ruby: No, nothing. If he's close to the building, he might be hiding in the shadows.

Pyrrha: Have you ever considered buying a scope?

Ruby: I did, but I just can't find anything for what I need.

Pyrrha: What do you need?

Ruby: Something all-purpose. Nightvision. Infrared. High zoom.

Pyrrha: You could buy one and switch between them.

Ruby: (Sighs) I could, but I barely have enough saved up for just one.

Pyrrha: Hm, well, I could lend you mine until you find what you're looking for.

Ruby: Aw, thanks, Pyrrha! (Into her scroll) This is Rose Tower. Has anyone seen King?

---------------------------------------------------

Ren: This is Lotus Bishop. Negative.

Blake: Seventeen.

Ren: Nineteen.

Blake: Twenty. Something's off.

Ren: What do you mean?

Blake: We're gambling on who can kill the most Grimm.

Ren: You've never done it before?

Blake: Once, when I was bored in the White Fang. But that's my point. The Grimm are so far and few inbetween, it's boring. Sure, there were dozens, maybe even hundred at the start, but only just enough are gathering to warrant our barest attention.

Ren: You think the Grimm are planning something?

Blake: The worst weapon the Grimm possess isn't their teeth and claws, but their tenacity and creativity.

Ren: Professor Port's first rule of Grimm.

Blake: Never underestimate them.

---------------------------------------------------

Nora: Thunder Queen, we haven't seen him, or Yang.

Weiss: It's Dragon Tower.

Nora: What is?

Weiss: Her code- (Scoffs) Dragon Tower, this is Snow Knight. Do you copy?

Yang: (Via mic) What's up, Weissy?

Weiss: Snow Knight! Have you found King yet?

Yang: No, not yet. I'm heading down the stairs now.

Weiss: Please hurry, or else something worse than these rats start showing up.

Yang: Rats? What the worst rats could do?

Weiss: Nothing, I hope, but I've seen fifteen rats in the last two minutes heading into town.

Yang: Into- BLAKE!

Blake: Cat Bishop online.

Yang: How many rats are there?

Blake: Rats? Only a few, but I don't see... Oh no.

---------------------------------------------------

Soldier: I'm here to relieve.

Guard: I'm ready to be relieved.

Soldier: Anything new with the prisoner?

Guard: Nothing yet. He just sits in there, occasionally growls, then falls asleep. Almost never changes his seat.

Soldier: (Yawns) I'm not surprised.

Guard: Are you alright? Can you even stand your watch?

Soldier: I'll be fine. I'll have my coffee.

Guard: If you say so. What's going on out there?

Soldier: Grimm attack in Vale. Looks like it might be a big one. Enough to merit a battleship.

Guard: Yikes, well, (Yawns) good thing we're (Yawns) guard... duty... (Slumps into relief)

Soldier: (Slumps into guard)

Adam: (Looks up) And who the hell are you?

???: (Hooded figure, Tight leather and cloth ensemble) I am your salvation, should you accept my offer.

Adam: And what is your offer, human?

???: Become my shadow, my disciple, and my key to our mutual vengeance.

Adam: Mutual vengeance? Against who?

???: I will reveal all when the time is right. For now, (Grabs guard's hand, Presses it against the palm reader) let us take the first step together, and prove that you are a worthy student. (Door beeps once, Opens)

Adam: (Stands) And what should I call you, my mystery savior?

Wei: I am Wei, Grandmaster of the Luna Tribe Moon Dancers. And I can sense great things coming.

---------------------------------------------------

Blake: They're going for the statue!

Ren: Everyone, converge on them!

Nora: There's Grimm everywhere!

Weiss: Protect the village!

Pyrrha: No, please, no!

Ruby: WHERE'S JAUNE?!

---------------------------------------------------

Jaune: What is this place?

Yang: There you are!

Jaune: Yang? What are you doing here?

Yang: I could ask you the same. I thought you told everyone on the common line.

Jaune: I did! (Checks his scroll) Yeah, see! I haven't touched it since the mission started.

Yang: Then how did- Nevermind! We have to head back up now.

Jaune: Why?

Yang: We got duped by the Grimm! We were too focused on the Beowolves and Ursa, we didn't notice the rats were Grimm, too!

Jaune: Damn! I left my post and this happens. What's everyone doing?

Yang: I don't know. Nobody's contacted me since I got down here.

Jaune: (Hears a large crash from above) What was that?!

Yang: I don't know, but we need to... to... (Pales) Holy shit...

Jaune: (Turns, Sees a fiery red orb three times his size glare down at him, Gut drops, Shivers) ...Oh no. Yang, RUN!

Wyvern: (Screeches to life)

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animebw · 3 years ago

Text

Reading One Piece: Chapters 762-763

-It’s so unnerving seeing the Doflamingo family just sitting around a table and eating dinner like this. They may be monsters, but they actually are a family for each other, and you can tell that even in the smallest moments.

-The story of Flevance is everything I expect from One Piece backstories. A town blinded by riches, they didn’t realize their prized good was poisoning them until it was too late. And the world government was all too happy to keep them ignorant as long as it kept the cash flowing. But once the truth came out, Flevance was cut off from the rest of the world and left to wither and die. So the only option left was war... and the deaths just continued to pile up. From lead poisoning, from battle, each generation cursed to live shorter than the last, abandoned by everyone who was supposed to protect them. I suspect Oda took inspiration from real life asbestos poisoning, maybe even from how terribly 9/11 first responders were treated once they started developing symptoms. The tragedy here is all too real for comfort.

-And, of course, Law was caught right in the thick of it. Cursed to die by poison passed down through generations. Forced to watch his family, his home, everything he cared about, go up in flames. No merciful hand of salvation to protect him from the horrors of human cruelty. No wonder he was so ready to die when he wandered into Doflamingo’s clutches.

-FUCK. And now we know what twisted Doflamingo into the person he is today. Once his family was no longer protected by the title of Celestial Dragon, they became targets for the wrath and vengeance of every ordinary person the Dragons wronged. All the countless sins enacted by this cabal of monsters, the unspeakable things done by those in power... at long last, those who suffered those evils had a chance to return the pain they were dealt.

-You know what the truly tragic thing is, though? I can’t blame these people one bit. They didn’t know that Homing and his family didn’t consider themselves superior to humans. They didn’t know the Don Quixotes left the Dragons because they knew living as oppressors was no way to live. Hell, would you just let former Nazis walk among you, even if they had left their former ways behind? At the very least, you’d be very cautious before trusting them not to be a danger to you again. And when you’ve suffered as much as these people have, that patience and understanding would be nearly impossible to come by.

But it’s Doflamingo who’s the true tragedy of all this. He was just a kid indoctrinated by the Dragons’ propaganda, already poisoned to think himself king of the world. And with the commoners against them from the start, he never got the chance to unlearn those biases. He never got a chance to understand what it meant to live as a normal human. All the outside world gave him was hurt, and hunger, and misery, and all the excuses he needed to turn into a being fueled by hatred. Hatred for his father, for abandoning their “deserved” life. Hatred for the common people who ripped his family to shreds. Hatred for the entire world that let his misery occur. Is it any wonder he felt he had no choice but to return his suffering right back, continuing the cycle of hatred?

Doflamingo could have been the crack in the chain of oppression woven by the Dragons. He could’ve grown up into someone capable of unraveling his biases and standing against the people who were once his kin. But he was never given a chance to banish that poison from his veins. So it could only fester, like the white lead of White City, until he turned out just as monstrous as the Dragons he left behind. And now, all of Dressrosa is paying the price.

-But here’s one last piece of the puzzle: Corazon. Dofy’s brother suffered all the same hardships as him, and yet, he chose a different path. What path exactly, I’m not sure yet. But instead of ratting Law out for stabbing him, he protected Law giving him a second lease on life. Somehow, this Don Quixote didn’t let the world kill his compassion. And I’m fascinated to see what lies behind his quiet facade.

-”Trafalgar D. Water Law.” ...motherfucker of course he’s also got the Will of D thing going on

-OH SHIT. And Corazon knows exactly what the Will of D means. Folks, I think we’re about to get some answers for questions that have been a decade in the making. I am... not ready.

#anime #the anime binge-watcher #tabw #one piece #one piece manga #luffy #monkey d luffy #zoro #zoro roronoa #nami #usopp #sanji #tony tony chopper #chopper #nico robin #franky #brook

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usergreenpixel · 3 years ago

Text

JACOBIN FICTION CONVENTION MEETING 28: THE GLASS-BLOWERS (1963)

1. The Introduction

Hi, Citizens! Welcome back to the Jacobin Fiction Convention!

So, today’s the day we review yet another media piece! Will it be a hidden gem? A shitty Thermidorian-sponsored pile of lies? One of those modern perceptions of Frev that paint the warmongering rats called Girondins as the innocent moderates again? Let’s find out!

(I swear, the Girondins may haunt me after this… but I don’t give a fuck!)

Anyway, I usually don’t trust authors who are anglophone. Not on the topic of Frev, at least, as our community has been burnt on that front far too many times.

However, what interested me about Daphne du Maurier’s novel is the fact that it’s based on the story of her ancestors, the titular glass-blowers from France, so she definitely had much more accurate material to work with than most authors do.

Also the foreword throws a ton of shade at The Scarlet Pimpernel (which is a pleasant bonus in my book) and promises readers a private story - the tale of one specific family - instead of same old, same old sensationalist Frev stuff usually shown in media. So, naturally, I was interested to see if this would be the one time an Anglophone book wouldn’t spout propaganda.

In order to find that out, let’s begin!

P. S. The book is available online in PDF and EPUB formats so it shouldn’t be hard to find the entire thing.

P. P. S. This review is dedicated to @fireortheflood and @edgysaintjust

2. The Summary

The summary comes from Goodreads:

“The world of the glass-blowers has its own traditions, it's own language - and its own rules. 'If you marry into glass' Pierre Labbe warns his daughter, 'you will say goodbye to everything familiar, and enter a closed world'. But crashing into this world comes the violence and terror of the French Revolution, against which the family struggles to survive.

Years later, Sophie Duval reveals to her long-lost nephew the tragic story of a family of master craftsmen in eighteenth-century France. Drawing on her own family's tale of tradition and sorrow, Daphne du Maurier weaves an unforgettable saga of beauty, war, and family.”

Okay, the summary is coming off as having a bit of propaganda, but genuine atrocities did happen during Frev too so let’s not jump to conclusions just yet and unpack this.

3. The Story

First of all, I loved the framing device of one family member (Sophie Duval) writing a letter to another (Louis-Mathurin Busson, her nephew) to help the latter uncover important truth.

I will get into why Sophie is doing that in the “Characters” section, but I like this “excuse” for telling us this story, as it really feels like the reader is let in on the secret along with the character of the nephew.

Also, I like the fact that the primary focus is on the Busson family and multiple prospectives within it, as this makes the reader more attached to everything that’s going on. Honestly, reminds me of “One Nation, One King”, a movie in which ordinary people are the main characters, not historical figures. Also this approach is refreshing!

The pacing is generally pretty good, and, while at first I felt like Sophie’s decision to start with the story of her parents was a bit unnecessary, it proved to be the opposite. See, that backstory actually sets up a lot of things that will happen later on and, again, make for a more personal story where the reader is actually invested in the lives of the characters, their trade (glass making), etc.

However, be warned that some time skips can be a bit confusing and the pace is not fast, which definitely isn’t for everyone. Also the story isn’t exactly linear - no big goals or high stakes to drive the narrative here, so it’s probably not a book for you if you prefer something more linear and goal-oriented with high stakes.

Finally, I love the touch of pointing out that certain events in the family happen right before/right after the important historical stuff. Only serves to make Frev more personal in the long run, which is nice!

And, while the narrative doesn’t idealize Frev, we’re meant to see it as a good thing, with Royalists and Girondins being the bad guys (yay) and here’s the excerpt that brought me joy specifically because it doesn’t sugarcoat Girondins (they don’t deserve it):

So yeah, when it comes to the story, I haven’t seen any major issues. Moving on.

4. The Characters

(Spoiler alert!)

To be honest, I found Sophie Duval a bit bland at first, but her character grew on me later on. She is initially against Frev and thinks it’s just radical fanaticism because she sees riots personally and fears for her family, but later becomes disillusioned by the old laws and embraces the Revolution.

Of course, with the Revolution come atrocities as well, so she doesn’t view it through rose-tinted glasses in hindsight, but she doesn’t really buy into most of the propaganda. There is a tidbit of Law of 22 Prarial where she thinks that this is going too far, but this is not an unreasonable fear, more like fear of the side effects of this law and not being able to know the full context anyway, since she lives in a more rural area, away from Paris.

In the end, Sophie just looks out for her family and her views change throughout the story. Very realistic, and I love it.

I also love her siblings, two of whom are revolutionaries, and I love the fact that one of the revolutionary siblings is female (her name is Edmé). See, revolutionary women should get more credit and representation, so I’m ecstatic that we got a republican action girl who participates in riots and even kills a Vendean rebel!

She isn’t afraid to take action. Love it!

Pierre, yet another one of Sophie’s siblings, is a secondary character but I love the fact that he does his best to help the poor as a lawyer and also actively tries to change things.

The only one out of the Busson siblings whom I hated is the oldest, Robert. Basically, since he was born when his parents were pretty wealthy (running a glass-house) and his mom was on good terms with the owner of the business (a marquise), Robert naturally visited the château of this marquise a lot as a child because that was his mother’s friend.

Unfortunately, this environment made him dream of high society and become too ambitious and irresponsible for his own good. He bankrupts himself multiple times and one bankruptcy results in the sale of the glass-house where his father was apprenticed, yet Robert doesn’t give a fuck.

He generally doesn’t give a fuck about anyone except himself or the consequences of his actions, to the point that he abandons his kids! Twice!

First time, he loses his first wife and does raise his son for a bit, then Frev comes and he sides with Duke of Orléans. Then he realizes that France isn’t going to be a monarchy and flees with émigrés to London, abandoning his son completely and dumping him onto Madame Busson like a sack of potatoes! Oh, and before leaving he remarries without telling anyone.

Second time, Robert completely deceives his second wife, pretending to be an impoverished aristocrat who was never married and never had kids, knowing she will believe it because she is a young and naïve orphan. Then they flee to London, have a bunch of kids (he never remembers his first son), Robert finds out that French émigrés aren’t welcome and he can’t make it big and be in high society like he hoped. So what does he do? Correct, he fakes his death and returns to France, abandoning his second family too!

Sorry for the rant, Citizens, it’s just that Robert made my blood boil. What a charming fucking guy… It’s really no wonder that, after his return, his first son wants nothing to do with him.

By the way, the nephew to whom Sophie is writing about her family is one of the children Robert had with his second wife, so he grew up believing the lies that his father was an aristocrat whose château was burned down by revolutionaries, so the reason for this letter is Sophie telling him the truth, as she rightfully believes that it’s her duty and that her nephew should know said truth.

I also liked Magdaleine Busson, Sophie’s mother. She is a caring, strict and wise woman who looked after ledgers and workers at the glass-house where her husband was managing things. She takes no bullshit from Robert at all and is absolutely furious the bastard left behind his son. Okay, actually she takes no bullshit from anyone, which is pretty cool.

As for historical figures, most of them are merely namedropped. Duke of Orléans makes a cameo, but others are mentioned in passing (like Marat, Robespierre and Napoleon). Also we have more obscure people being mentioned, like General Kléber or Pierre Choderlos de Laclos (if you know Dangerous Liasons, that should ring a bell). But that’s about it, and I’m okay with it because it’s not a story about them.

5. The Setting

Du Maurier really has a way of bringing the story to life with just the right amount of description and action balanced out. Love her approach to that.

6. The Writing

There is some outdated vocabulary used, but most of the time it’s really easy to understand for those who’re fluent in English and French words have just enough context clues for the audience to figure out what they mean.

The style also doesn’t dive into annoying habits like absurdly long descriptions, which is a big relief after that awful Madame Tussaud book.

Also it’s one of the few times I’ve seen where the first person point of view avoids the trap of the main character becoming the author’s surrogate in the universe or a self-insert.

7. The Conclusion

I’m pleasantly surprised to report that there’s very little (if any) lies here. All in all, this is an excellent read that takes a dive into family history of the author and the events unfolding before the eyes of the characters.

It has well-written characters, a compelling story to tell its audience, a first person POV done right and, for a change, a narrative that focuses on regular people.

I definitely recommend this novel (but trigger warning for child death, still births, death, blood, pregnancy and an ableist word towards the end). If you feel like reading a story offering lower stakes and more personal conflicts, then this is a novel for you.

But, with that out of the way, we must conclude today’s meeting. Stay tuned for future updates and reviews!

Love,

- Citizen Green Pixel

#frev #french revolution #frev art #frev media #jacobin fiction convention #daphne du maurier #the glass blowers #robespierre #marat #duc d'orleans #pierre choderlos de laclos #napoleon bonaparte #jean baptiste kleber #literature review

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jewishdainix · 2 years ago

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Ooo based on the info in the last ask your world seems so interesting!! Are there any side characters (or maybe villians) you wouldn't mind talking about?

of course! (also if you check the tag 'newsky curse' which is this project's tag you'll find more worldbuilding)

so first the more actuall side characters and theeen maybe the other mains who are more side

Amanita (she /her) - you've heard a bit about her from the last post! The second oldest kid in the caster-mushroom family I need to name. She both feels the burden of being the oldest sister to a bunch of siblings that all have different levels of Attachment to the world around them (because they are the only mushroom family in the city where they live and the settlements around it) And the burden of living up to the role that her oldest sister left after she died.

She went on plenty of adventures when she was a teen herself, but now she spends her time at the either at home with her wife, Irene, or staying overnight to helping students at the magic academy she plans to work at. She's 24, disaster of a lesbian, and newly married so she's finally getting the chance to have a break from her many many siblings.

Irene (she/they) - actually I wrote a passage on her back when I made a story focused about her group let's see

Everything about Irene Thyasira sends the message "I will take up space in this room". Sure, her fat body and pale as snow dragonfayer parts make her impossible to miss, but it's also the way she carries herself, the way she talks.

Irene is a kind soul, always willing to listen and help, but being one of many children to one of the most powerful sorcerer families in the kingdom required her to learn not to move for others around her, especially because she was the only girl among her siblings.

"Dragonfayer" is the name of a dragon-like subspecies. For a basic idea of how they look think of Dollightful's dragon dolls. Anyway. Irene has very powerful magic but she's also albino so she doesn't have the iconic Caster Haircolour but like the passage says, people don't ignore her. She was Amanita's girlfriend long before they went on their first adventure and now they are married :D I chose her name to be Irene because it sounds like iron. So it fits her vibe.

Ray's mom (she/her) - fucked around and found out. She's kind of a dick so ray spends his time with the followers of the swan king more than with her, but he occasionally comes to take his siblings to give to Nimerr. Turns out that despite being rats her kids are still the kids of a powerful god. She's a mess, man, her life is kind of tragic.

Kaira (she/her) - Another kid of the swan king. Ray nicknames her "hoopoe" since that's the type of bird she reseambles. She's very snobby and acts like she's better than everyon, and everyone, especially those she deems weird, is beneath her. Ray would have been hurt by the way she acts towards him is not for how funny it was to know that not only he is also a kid of the swan king, but also a different, way more ancient god.

The swan king (she/him) - he is a very interesting god since he is more involved with humans. He likes sleeping around but he actually pays child support, like I said his followers are the reason ray's mom stays afloat. Because of his bird magic, all of his children reseamble birds in some way; one of his kids is a half snake person with wings, she's very cool. He doesn't really mind Ray (despite keeping in touch with some children more than others, he loves them all) but he is kind of afraid of his other dad.

The Keeper (she/her they/them) - no one knows knows much about her, she guards a library our mcs need to get, she only opens to people who tell her a story that has never been told before, doesn't matter if it's true or false. Luckily for our mcs, Ray's hasn't actually told his backstory to anyone, even Nimerr only knew his mother gave birth to rats, but not the other stuff.

Gandavian of the Mice (He/him they/them) - Ray's other dad! He's old. That's the main thing people know about him. Old murals describe him as the god of the strings that connected all people, whatever that means. People seek him out to help them get revenge, and he always agrees, even when he finds that revenge not justified. As Ray's mom found out, he just gives a more horrifying fate as payment. He's scary.

#Asks #Newsky curse #Oc posting

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popculturebuffet · 4 years ago

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1990 Review: Still Possesses Turtle Power After All These Years

Cowabunga all you happy people! I freaking love the Teenage Ninja Turtles. I grew up with it from Turtles in Time, which was my first video game, to the 2003 cartoon, which I covered the first three episodes of last month, and on to present day as I re-read the idw comics after finally reading the original eastman and laird run of mirage, and impatiently waiting for Shredder’s Revenge to come out after a LONG drout of no good TMNT games. I”m a fan of these heroes four, their dynamic as a family, the endless possiblities that come from it’s long history and ablitlity to go anywhere in any genre, and the wonderful goofy shit that happens when you have a franchise about mutant turtles learning ninjitsu from a rat and fighting a dude covered in knife covered samurai armor.

So with me finally covering the guys after almost a year last month and with a new movie set to debut at some point this year, I had the bright idea to revisit the FIRST TMNT movie after way too many years of not watching it. This movie is anear and dear to my heart: When I first started getting into the boys big as a kid with the 2003 cartoon, I badly wanted more turtles. But back then it wasn’t nearly as easy to glom onto some more of the sewer shock pizza kings: Streaming sites with all the cartoons on them weren’t all that accesable, dvd’s were expensive for the 87 cartoon, Mirage wasn’t reprinting the comics in any meaningful way and my local comic shop didn’t have any at all and I could only play the SNES when my brother had it set up on occasion like at our Grandma’s farm.

As you probably guessed though there was one exception: the original 1990 movie, which I got at Walmart for 5 bucks and haven’t let go of since. It was one of my first dvds and is still one of my most precious. Said film hit the spot just right as like my beloved 2003 series, it was a mildly goofy but still fucking cool adaptation that stuck closer to the mirage comics, even more than the 2003 series would, while taking a few queues from the 87 series. This film is as precious to me as the 2003 series and a with a brand new movie coming up, I figured it was the exact right time to dig into this classic: what makes it still good to this day, what’s fun to point and laugh at, and how the heck Jim Henson got involved in this. So join me under the cut as I take a look at my boys first theatrical outing and why I still love watching a turtle.

No One Wanted To Make This: Before we get into the film itself some background. As usual I struggled a bit, but thankfully found some help in the form of this Hollywood Reporter article. It’s a fascinating read worth your time, providing an oral history of the film from the people who worked on it.

The film was the baby of Gary Propper, a surfer dude and road manager for the prop comic Gallagher, aka that guy who used to smash watermelons but now has instead opted to smash what little’s left of his career by being a homophobic douchenozzle. He found an ally in Showtime producer Kim Dawson who’d produced Gallagher’s special. I don’t think there will be more of an 80′s sentence than “Gallagher’s surfer dude agent wanted to make a teenage mutant ninja turtles movie”. Propper was a huge fan of the comics, and with Dawson’s help convinced Laird and Eastman to let them option it to studios.

It may come as a shock to you but the road agent for a homophobic watermelon man and a producer at a niche cable channel wanting to make a movie based on an underground comic book about masked turtles at a time when the two most recent comic book movies were Superman IV: The Quest for Peace and Howard the Duck, did not go well. Every door in Hollywood got slammed in their face, even Fox> Even the eventual backer of the film, Golden Harvest, a hong kong action film studio, took months to convince to actually back the film.

Things did not get easier from there: The films writer Bobby Herbeck had trouble getting a story agreed on because Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird’s working relationship had deteroiated horribly from the stress so naturally the two could not agree on a damn thing and argued with each other. Peter Laird made a tense siutation even worse by constnatly sniping at Herbeck and feeling he was a “Hollywood outsider infringing on his vision and characters”

Granted the script was apparently not great... but Pete still comes off as a pretnetious ass who views his weird indie comic as THE HIGHEST OF HIGH CALLINGS HOW DARE YOU SOIL IT. And continued to be kind of a prick like this throughout the rest of his time with the property.

Thankfully the film found i’ts voice, vision and director in Steve Barron. Barron was a music video guy who knew the producers and while reluctant, eventually dove into the project rightfully thinking the film would need to be a mix of the mirage comics and 87 cartoon, keeping aprils’ reporter job, the turtles lvoe of pizza and their iconic color coding from the cartoon but adapting several stories from the comics as the backbone of the film. The guys liked barron MUCH better and things ran smoother.

Barron also brought in one of the film’s biggest selling points and it’s most valuable asset: it’s triumphantly awesome Jim Henson costumes. Barron had worked with good old Jim on the music videos for Labyrinth, and while it took some convincing since the comics were violent as hell and that wasn’t Jim’s style, Barron eventually got him on board. This naturally doubled the budget, but given Henson’s costumes STILL hold up today and look better than the cgi used in the platinum dunes films... it was a good call. And this was brand new tech for jim, having to invent tons of new ideas and mechanisms just to make the things work, and said things still were absolute hell on the actors. Jim later ended up not liking the film for being too violent... which I find hilarious given how many muppets got eaten or blowed up real good on his show but regardless, I thank this legendary and wonderful man as without him this film WOULD NOT have worked. The costumes here look great, feel realistic, and you can’t tell the actors were dubbed much less horribly suffering in those suits. Much like Disney Land.

The film would get picked up for distribution by New Line, and despite i’ts weird as hell origins and the long shot it had.. the film was a MASSIVE hit at the box office, owing to a combination of Batman 89 the previous year having proved comic book movies can work for audiences, the cartoon’s runaway sucess, and a massive marketing campaign. The film made it’s mark. So now we know how we got here let’s get into the film itself.

What’s the Story Morning Glory?:

So the story for this one is largely cobbled together from some of the more notable arcs Eastman and Laird did before handing off the book to others full time as the stress of the company and the mounting tension with each other made it near impossible to work together on the book itself.

To Save time i’m just going through what hte movie takes from the comics plot wise now to save me the trouble later:The movie takes elements from the first issue (The Turtles, Splinter and Shredder’s backstories, Shredder being fully human and the main antagonist, Shredder’s design and the final rooftop showdown that results in Shredder’s death), second and third, (April’s apartment over her dad’s old store and the turtles moving in when their home is ransacked and splinter has gone missing), the rapheal micro series (A tounge in cheek way of cashing in on the Mini-Series craze of the 80s, a one shot by modern standards and something that’s tragically been underused as an idea as only TMNT and MLP have used the idea at IDW, Raph meeting casey and their fight with one another), the return of shredder arc (One of the turtles being ambushed and mobbed by the foot and then thrown though a sky light (Leo in the comic and Raph here), the turtles being horribly outnumbered by them, Casey coming ot the rescue and metting the non-raph turtles for the first time, and them being forced to escape when the place goes up in flames), their exile to northampton (April writing in a journal, casey working on a car with one of the guys and one of hte guys looking over hteir injured brother), and finally, their triumphant return which was very loosely adapted as there are no deformed shredder clones and shredder not being dead yet in this version was not brought back by a colony of super science worms.

So as for how this all comes together: Our story takes place in New York: A crimewave is high with muggings mysterious. There are a ton of phantom thefts going around and at most people have been seeing teens responsibile. And the police.. are at about this level of useful:

The only person doing something is April O’Neil, played by Judith Hoag. Hoag is easily the standout of the film, giving us a strong, confident woman with a wonderful sense of humor. She honestly might be my faviorite April O Neil, and given we’ve had some great ones with 2003, 2012 and Rise, that’s not something I say lightly. I honestly wish I’d recognized her in more stuff as she was both on Nashville and the mom in the Halloween Town films, and most recently was on the ScFy show the magicians. She’s a talented lady and i’m glad she’s still goin.

April is a reporter for Channel 3 like the cartoon, though for some weird reason her boss from the cartoon is replaced by Charles Pennigton, played by Jay Patterson, whose currently dealing with his troubled son Danny, played by Micheal Turney. Pennington is horribly useless at both jobs: At work he tries to ease April off calling out Chief Sterns, who refuses to listen to April’s evidence gathered from japanese immigrants that the crimes resemble similar ones in japan in favor of trying to get charles to shut her up. Danny meanwhile is a member of the foot becase his dad thinks shouting out him and talking about him like he’s not there and generally being a dipstick will actually do anything to help him.

I love the concept for the foot here. In addition to being a Ninja Violence Gang as always, they now recruit new members by finding kids without families or with troubled family lives and giving them a sense of family with the foot, and sweeting the bargin with a giant cave filled with arcade machines, a skate ramp and general late 80′s early 90′s kids goodies. Is it rediculous? Yes. Is it also clever as it gives Shredder an easy army of plausably deniable theives that he can pick the best out of to put in his elite that will be tirelessly loyal to him and him alone? Also yes.

So April being public about this stuff gets her attacked, which naturally leads to our heroes coming in, first in the shadows and later directly when April wont’ give up on the case and Shredder sends some ninjas to go shut her up.. which he does weirdly as the guy jsut slaps her and tells her to cut it out like he’s on a domestically abusive episode of Full House. Raph saves her, and we get the turtles origin.. though weirdly they cut it in half. We get the ooze portion but Splinter’s past with Saki, Saki’s murder of his master and his master’s partern Tang Shen is left for later in the film and the fact Shredder’s saki is treated as a big twist despite the fact the biggest audience for the film would be kids... and kids would’ve been familiar with the cartoon where the giant brain monster routinely screeches out saki at the shredder. Maybe Barron just thought he was an alcoholic I don’t know. It just would’ve made more sense to have it all at once and let the audeince put it together.

April becomes good friends with the turtles over a night of frozen pizza and camradrie, but the Splinters return home to find it ransacked, Splinter kidnapped by the foot, and are forced to Stay with april. Charles meanwhile tries to get April to backoff because he made a deal with the police to clear Danny’s record, without TELLING her any of this mind you, but I will save my rage on that little plot point for in a bit as Danny who he drug along sees the turtles and tells the Shredder.

So we get the return of the shredder arc as Raph goes through a window, our heroes fight valiantly, and Raph’s friend Casey who he met earlier shows up, the two having bonded as all true friends do.. by beating the shit out of each other ending with raph shouting DAMNNNNNNN really big and dramatically into the sky for some reason. The Turtles and friends escape with an injured raph from April’s burning second hand store. She had a second hand store it was poorly established and only there because she had it in the comics.

Our heroes retreat to a farm April’s grandma owned in Northampton, Massachutes, where Mirage was located at the time the original comics where they were exiled to the place were written and a location that has been a staple of the turtles ever since. The turtles slowly recover, lick their wounds, talk about who hooked up with who on gilligans island etc, before Leo connects with Splinter via meditation, who tells them to come back. Splinter also starts to connect with Danny and convinces him to swtich sides.. or at the very least squat in the boys old home.

The boys return home, find danny, and prepare, Danny goes back and ends up giving away the Turtles are home.. but the turtles are ready and in an awesome sequence kick the fuck out of the foot squad sent for them with some well prepared steam vents. Casey goes to get splinter since Danny told them and with Danny’s help, finds him, since Danny found out they were gonna kill him. Casey beats up Tatsu, shredder’s right hand man, and they get him out.

We get our final fight which is awesome up until the climax.. which is splinter casually tripping shredder with nunchucks and thier bloody history being kind of rushed and unsatsifying. Casey crushes shredder with a garbage truck, April gets her job back, more on that in a moment, she and casey hook up, and we end with the fucking awesome song T-U-R-T-L-E Power by partners in cryme. Seriously check it out it’s fucking triumphant.

youtube

The song is just good.. cheesy? Sure but that’s half the fun. It’s the gold standard for movie theme songs for them and stacks up handily with the various animated series themes.. all of which slap. Okay... ALMOST all of which slap. Fast Forwards is aggressively medicore, which is doubly suprising to me since 4kids was REALLY damn good with theme songs. It was one of the three things they were best at along with finding VERY talented voice actors and setting japan based works in america because merica dammit.

The plot is very solid: It skilfully packed half of eastman and laird’s run on TMNT into 90 mintues while adding things like April’s job at channel 9, the way the foot recurited kids etc. The plot flows well for hte most part and apart from one annoying subplot we’ll get to never has a moment that feel unecessary or dosen’t pay off later. And the stellar plot and fun pacing of it helps boilster the characters that do work... and help paper over the ones that are so thin the’yd fall down a grate...

Our Heroes, Villains and Annoying Middle Aged Guys:

Yeahhhh character is hit and miss here. Some are rather strong, others are the bare basics for the character their adapting and most are just to serve the plot but some work some don’t, So let’s talk about it starting with our boys:

Raph is the most fleshed out of the turtles, being the main focus of the first 2/3 of the film, and having his anger be part of what SHOULD be a character arc, learning to temper it. And while granted MOST TMNT properties do this, to the point that Rise Raph is so loveable in part because his boisterous bruiser big bro attitude is a refreshing break from the usual grumpus we get. But at the time this hadn’t been done in every version but the 87 cartoon, so exploring it was valid.. but despite saying this should be a thing htey just forget about it and the most plot relevance he gets is going thorugh a window. He dosen’t really get a resolution.. his arc just kind of stops dead for the final half and it’s one of the film’s weaker points, one I only just now noticed on this rewatch. He’s still the most entertaining.

Leo is the weakest of the turtles. He really lacks a personality here mostly just being leader and while his spirtual side is touched on, it’s mostly a plot device. He’s just kinda the leader because he was in the comics to the point Partners in Cryme called Raph the leader. His role in getting taken out by the foot was taken by Raph, so he just has.. nothing to do for most of the film other than gripe at raph ocasionally and say orders. He’s probably the worst Leo i’ve seen outside of Next Mutation. I prefice that because after watching Phelous’ review it’s VERY clear those four are the worst versions of the characters, and no personality is still better than either having your team do nothing or yelling at them as your personality. I chalk this up to the Mirage Leo, and the mirage turtles to a poit being kind of bland. Not TERRIBLE characters, especially for the time, but not nearly as fleshed out or individualized as they woudl be in other adpatations, and with most traits LEo DID have, like his badassery flat out gone, he’s just.. nothing here.

Mikey and Donnie are a double act here with both sharing a brain. Interestingly instead of his normal genius character, Donnie is Mikey’s best friend and the two simply trade jokes and schtick together. The two are interchangable.. but easily the best part of the film and a lot of the most memorable gags and lines, from Ninja Kick the Damn Rabbit! to “Do you like Penicllin on your pizza”, are from them. Thier there almost entirely as comic relief but it works, with both clealry being more modled ont he 87 cartoon turtles, a move that helps lighten the mood in darker moments. Their just genuinely charming and it’s intresting to see such a diffrent version of Donnie, and other incarnations, specifically the 2003 and Rise versions, would retain the sarcastic edge.

Splinter is splinter. That’s about it, he’s peformed well and the puppet is amazing but he gets kidnapped a half an hour in and outside of influcencing Denny, more on that in a moment, and finishing Shredder he dosen’t do much but spout exposition. He’s not bad or anything, but he’s essentially a rodent shaped plot device. He was also puppeted by Kevin CLash, aka the guy who does Elmo. So there you go.

April on the other hand.. is truly excellent. This might be my faviorite April. Judith’s april nicely blends the cartoon and mirage versions: She has the cartoons energy and job, but the comics sheer will and casual nature. Judith just oozes personality and her April is just a joy to watch, from her breezy chemistry filled interactions with the guys to her confrntation with Chief Sterns, knowing she’ll get thrown out by the asshole. She’s confident, and even when afraid dosen’t back down to her attackers and even helps out during the sewer ambush. I mean it’s a pot on the head but still it’s neat. She’s easily the best part of the flim and the most fleshed out of the cast. The worst I can say is they kinda shove her store from the comics, Second Time Around, in there for no other reason than it was in the comics: It dosen’t come up until it’s needed for the foot’s assault on her place. But overall.. she’s just fantastic to watch.

Speaking of fantastic to watch, Elias Koteas is fantastic as Casey. Seriously he’s only second to the 2003 version in my eyes, getting the concept of a testorone filled average guy who decided to just go out and hit people with sports equipment after watching too much A-Team.. I mean that part of it’s not in this version but it’s implied, just right. Like judith, Elias is just really funny to watch and his big scenes, showing up just in time during the foot assault on april’s place and his fight with Tatsu are some of the best parts of the film, the former taken directly from the comics. This version isn’t without problems: His friendship with Raph, his most endearing aspect and one that has been carried throughout eveyr version Casey’s important, with the only exception so far being rise and we have a movie to fix that, is absent here. HE does save the guy, but they don’t really bond or anything. In fact he disappears for about half an hour after his big fight with Raph. But... again he’s just so damn entertaining, down to his JOSEEEEEEEEEEE Conseco bats (There was a two for one sale!).

Shredder is just a LITTLE better than splinter, if only because his actor projects a true aura of menace and I feel this version had some influence on the pants crappingly terrifying 2003 version. And the idea of the foot recurting teenagers like I said is a good one: He gives them home and a cause, they give him plausably deniable backup. And his fight with the boys in the climax is really awesome... the conclusion sucks but otherwise h’es okay. Not the deepest villian, but he has enough presence to be enjoyable.

His right hand man Tatsu, whose been adapted ocasionally since this and reimaigned as Natsu in the IDW comics, a female version, is also fine. He’s your standard grimacing goon but has enough presence to work.

So that brings us to the penningtons. Charles, april’s boss at the station and his son Danny who’s joined the foot as he feels his dad dosen’t love him. Charles..is about as interesting and likeable as a dog turd and is the worst aspect of the film. No debate there, he just sucks. He sucks so hard he’s classified as a black hole. The film wants you to see him as a put upon wokring dad whose frustrated with his son’s increased moodiness, skipping school and crminal undertakings and just wants to help him and loves him deep down. The problem is his actor’s delivery instead of concerned.. is just pissed. He just seems pissy and upset about the whole thing and comes off like he’s only mad about Danny doing this because he’s embarassing him and not because you know, it’s bad. When confronting Danny about stealing, he dosen’t consider MAYBE he’s part of a gang or needs help, but just wonders “Why are you stealing when I give you stuff”. Because, Dipshit, sometimes kids do crimes not because they need the stuff but because they WANT to, and because they want to act the fuck out.

The most he does for the kid is agree to try and get April to back off the police when Cheif Sterns offers to let Danny go and not put him on record in exchange for it. The problem.. is this makes him even MORE unsympathetic. While I do get wanting to help your child, I do and it’s a sucky position... he again should be sympathetic.. but he handles the thing so badly it sucks. He just tells april to ease off, with no reason given, then fires her when she SHOCKINGLY dosen’t give up taking the guy whose refusing to take her hard work seriously or actually solve the crime wave problem to task for his shitty behavior as ANY person facing a shitty, corrput cop would. She just wants to hold him acountable and get him to actually do something. He clearly knows her on a personal level too as he talks about his issues with his son freely with her, something you don’t do with an employee unless their also a friend on some level.

He could have TOLD april what was going on. She’d be furious at Stern’s naked corrpution and prioritizing shutting her up over actually solving crimes.. and thus put at least some of that energy into shutting him down or finding a way around it, going to the papers or something like that. Even in 1990 pre-internet, there were ways to get around Sterns blackmail and expose him so someone who’d actually do the job could get the job. Instead he just comes off as a selfish coward who rather than try and fight the guy blatantly abusing his power and using Charles own son as barganing chip, goes along with it because it’s the easier option to simply bow to him instead of TRY and stop this. And it’s not like he’s even going after a beloved public figure or someone who could hide behind his rep: Sterns was blatantly failing a crime wave, April had called him out on his failrues and coverups multiple times. The public was against sterns.. finding out he tried to blackmail the media into shutting up about him would PROBABLY end him... I only say probably not because the public wouldn’t skewer him, but because police tend to escape consequences for blatantly murdering someone on a daily basis and Andrew Cumo is STILl mayor over in new york, the same city this movie takes place, 31 years later, depsite EVERYONE asking him to resign over a long history of sexual harassment and a more recent but still horrible history of hiding death numbers. I don’t doubt people being stupid enough to ignore this or the bilaws with cops being stacked enough for him to get away with it, but just because someone gets away with a crime dosen’t mean you shoudln’t try and go after them in the first place. Fuck. Charles. Pennington.

Danny on the other hand is FAR more interesting and I think gets way too much flack when it comes to this subplot. Unlike his dad, whose dead weight, Danny is intresting: He provides a POV character for the foot’s MO in the film of taking in wayward teens, and his character arc is pretty engaging, slowly realizing the foot dosen’t care and that hte turtles are the good guys. HIs actor does a great job and while not the biggest presence, he’s not a bad addition to clan hamaoto and I wish other adaptations would find a way to use him. The pull between doing the right thing and his found family is a good struggle. My only real issue with his plot is the moviies flawed aseop about family. It tries to contrast shredder and his using the kids blatnatly with Splinter and Charles really loving their sons. And it works with Splinter and the kids because despite being a tad strict, Splinter clearly loves his sons and works with them to help them. The problem is ENTIRELY with Charles and Danny. As I said Charles love comes off as transasctional: He either thinks he can buy it or just expects it because he shot a bunch of goop into Danny’s mom after two minutes of disapointment. It dosen’t work with them because neither option is good for Danny. His father is neglectful, chooses throwing his jounralistic integrity out the window over talking to his son or his best friend about another way, and abrasive. Danny is no saint, he does do crimes, but it’s clearly a result of a shitty upbringing and the shredder and co actually offeirng him the love he desperatly craves. Danny goes to the foot because his dad is bad at his job but the film never adresses that and just expects Danny to go back to his dad because the plot says so. Danny would HONESTLY be better off with Splinter. No really. Sure he’d have to live in the sewers.. but he did so for a few weeks in the course of the movie. He’s fine down there. Splitner actually cares about him and took an intrest to him and knows how to raise a child. Let him become the fifth turtle. An aseop about family is not a bad thing: Loaded subject that it can be given how many outright abusive families exist, i’m one of the lucky ones who dosen’t have that issue, family is an important thing and can be a source of comfort and support. But this film tells you you should love and respect someone who does not love, respect or value you because he spent a minute in your mom’s vagina and that’s not how family should work and is outright dangerous to kids in an abusive situation. Love the film otherwise but fuck this aseop skyhigh.

Final thoughts:

Overall though.. the film is bodacious. It’s funny, well paced, has an awesome cast, and outside of a certain bald asswipe... it’s a really good superhero film. Is it the best i’ve seen? Nope. Not even close and character wise most of them are as thin as a wet paper bag covered in ranch dressing. But it’s still a fun as hell with awesome corepgraphy, a killer soundtrack, seriously the soundtrack is damn excellent and only didn’t get it’s own section because I didn’t have enough to say and some of the best effects work i’ve seen in a film in the turtle suits. If you haven’t seen it I urge you to check it out: it’s a breezy 90 minutes, it’s on hbo max and it’s a shell of a time. Will I do the next film?

We’ll see how this one does like wise and such, but I will be doing the rise film whenever it comes out this year. So look for that and keep possesing turtle power my dudes. If you liked this review subscirbe for more, join my patreon to keep this blog a chugging, comission a review if you have more turtle stuff you want me to cover, and comment on this. What do you think of the movie, what are your thoughts on the review, what can I do better, what other turtle stuff would you like me to cover/ Let me know and i’ll see you at hte next rainbow.

#teenage mutant ninja turtles #teenage mutant ninja turtles 1990 #leonardo #raphael #donetello #michealangelo #casey jones #april o'neil #the shredder #oroku saki #new line cinema #golden harvest #film #90's movies #the 90's #partners in cryme #judith hoag

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theparanormalperiodical · 4 years ago

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The REAL Story Behind The Crooked Man And The 7 Other Fairy Tales & Nursery Rhymes With *Even More* Disturbing Backstories

It was 4 years ago that we first met the Crooked Man.

With a *sickening* reveal via rottweiler fit for the latest season of Rupaul’s Drag Race, the suited gentleman staggered his way from The Conjuring 2 (2016) into our nightmares.

But his ashy undertones, gnashing teeth, and general aura of “I’m a demon, or something, which means I have no real motive apart from wanting to kill you” isn’t the only thing that fits the film far too well.

The Conjuring universe is the definition of ‘based on a true story’. And the Crooked Man fits the brief.

In the opening scenes of the film we see lovable and bulliable Billy stutter through a nursery rhyme:

There was a crooked man, and he went a crooked mile, He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile; He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse, And they all liv'd together in a little crooked house.

Accompanied by a totally-cursed-i-mean-just-look-at-it zoetrope (it’s a bit like a mini projector that shows you a moving cartoon), Billy introduces us to one of the handful of extra entities terrorising London’s most haunted house. You can discover more about the true story of 284 Green Street which inspired The Conjuring 2 here.

But Billy also introduces us to a real nursery rhyme inherent in British culture - and British history.

Yes, the nursery rhyme, like many, is based on dark and twisted reality softened for a bedtime story. And amongst this history was a real person. Unfortunately, the Crooked Man is not the only fairy tale monster or nursery rhyme entity that will be haunting your dreams.

Are y’all tucked in?

The Crooked Man

The nursery rhyme was first told sometime in the 17th century during the reign of King Charles I. But the Crooked Man was not the Stuart King - it was allegedly inspired by Scottish general Sir Alexander Leslie and the covenant he signed.

The covenant secured religious and political freedom for Scotland despite prevailing animosity between the English and the Scottish.

The crooked stile is the awkward alliance between the two parliaments and the crooked house refers to the collective union the Scottish and English lived together in. But the ‘crooked’ part works on another level, too.

The great recoinage of late 17th century meant sixpences - which feature in the rhyme - were made of very thin silver and thus easy to bend.

An alternative origins story links it back to Lavenham, a village in Suffolk (England). The half-timbered houses leaned at off angles as if supporting each other, creating a crooked aesthetic that matches the nursery rhyme.

The Pied Piper Of Hamelin

I distinctly remember hearing the story of the Pied Piper when I was about 7 years old. I was there, sat crossed-legged on the wooden floor in assembly and listening to the headteacher tell us the tale of the musical maverick with an overhead projector.

I remember it being far more nostalgic and not so traumatising.

The story goes that sometime in the 13th century a peculiar man dressed in brightly-coloured clothes (pied clothing) was hired by the town to rid them of the rats with his pipe-playing abilities. Hamelin had been suffering from an infestation that would threaten the locals with the plague. The piper was to play his pipe, entice the rats with his magical music, and lead them to a river where they would promptly drown.

He was hired and he did the job - but they didn’t pay up.

The piper couldn’t exactly refund his services. Instead, he sought vengeance, luring away the children of the town with his magical pipe. He waited until Saint John and Paul’s day where the adults would be in the church, dressed in green like a hunter, and played his pipe. The children of the village swarmed to him, all 130 of them, following him out of the town and into a cave. Three were unable to follow due to being blind and deaf and thus told the villagers what had happened.

The real story:

Some versions of the story claimed he made them walk into a river, others claim he returned them after payment. But what we do know for sure is that there is a street in Hamelin called Bungelosenstrasse. On this street - ‘the street without drums’ according to translation - the children were seen last. No music and no dancing is allowed on this road.

Bluebeard

We open on a typical Medieval scene: a powerful and wealthy man is looking for a young wife to replace the last one who mysteriously went missing. Bluebeard’s been through quite a few women, actually, but it’s his latest bae that stars in this story. Bluebeard marries his neighbour’s daughter and goes on a business trip.

He tells her he can stay alone in their house but she cannot open a certain door.

Of course, she opens the door and finds the corpses of his ex-wives. Her and her sisters band together to kill Bluebeard, showering themselves with a wealthy inheritance.

The real story:

This tragic tale of murder and mystery is unfortunately all too true.

There are many alleged origins of the folktale. Let’s start with the Medieval ruler of Brittany, Conomor the Cursed: his new wife agreed to marry him to prevent him from invading her father’s lands but accidentally walked in on a room full of his dead, old wives. She was visited by their ghosts who warn him if she falls pregnant, he will kill her, preventing a prophecy that claims he will be killed by his own son.

She gets knocked up, gives birth, and then she gets her block knocked off.

An alternative inspiration could be a similarly brutal figure: Gilles de Rais (15th century). He was accused of murdering approximately 140 children who suddenly went missing in the Nantes countryside. He was condemned to death and executed in 1440.

Snow White

It’s one of the most popular fairytales of all time.

The story goes that a queen gives birth to a baby girl but dies in childbirth. The king’s new wife is wicked and vain, asking her magic mirror ‘who is the fairest one of all?’ on a daily basis. When the child turns seven, the mirror changes its answer from the queen to the child, Snow White (yeah, that’s weird). The queen hires a huntsman to kill Snow White, but she begs for mercy and says she will live in the woods and he can pretend he killed her.

She finds shelter in a cottage belonging to seven dwarfs who agree to let her stay as a maid until the evil queen asks the mirror her favourite question. It claims Snow White is still alive and the fairest of them all. She goes through several methods of attempting to kill Snow until she falls into a deep coma. The dwarfs host a funeral, a prince comes along, and he, uhhh, kisses what he assumed to be a corpse and she is awakened.

They then get hitched but don’t invite the queen to the wedding. The queen asks the mirror yet again the identity of the fairest, assuming Snow is well and truly deceased but the mirror breaks the bad news to her again. The queen tries to kill her once more but Snow’s hubby forces her to wear red-hot iron slippers and dance in them until she dies.

There’s a lot going on here.

But rather than unpacking everything that's wrong with all of this *gestures to everything*, let’s just get to the dark reality beneath it all.

The real story:

The inspiration is generally deemed to be Margaretha von Walbeck, a young woman who had a terrible relationship with her stepmother. She was forced to move to Brussels and fell in love with Phillip II of Spain, a romance not popular with her parents.

Suddenly, however, Margaretha died. Rumour has it she was poisoned.

Another detail of her life also links her to Snow White: her father’s copper mines were often filled with child labourers whose growth was stunted by working in them, mirroring the ‘dwarves’ in the story.

But Margaretha is not the only contender: Maria Sophia Margaretha Catharina Freifräulein von Erthal *inhale* also hated her stepmother. This - and the fact that her stepmother was given a mirror as a gift by her husband - also ties her to Snow White.

Hansel And Gretel

It’s possibly the most simple fairy tale up for discussion: a brother and sister are sent out to the woods by their father. The mother asked for him to send them away so they can survive a famine. But Hansel uses stones to trace their steps back home. One day, however, he uses crumbs. They get eaten by the local wildlife, so the kids get lost.

They then discover a witch's house, a gingerbread cottage. She lures ‘em in, fattens up Hansel, and prepares to feast on his flesh. The kids plot against her, throw her in the oven, and steal her stuff before heading back to live with their father.

Okay, so maybe this one isn’t based on a true story. It’s based on true stories. Yep - plural.

The real story:

Child abandonment and infanticide was pretty common during plagues, famines, and all other circumstances of poverty. In fact, this particular tale is believed to come from the Great Famine which stretched across Europe from 1315 to 1317. Child abandonment surged during this time.

Rapunzel

Turns out Disney lopped off a lot of Rapunzel’s real story to make it a family friendly movie. Yep, this is a weird one.

A pregnant woman begins to crave a kind of salad leaf (Campanula rapunculus, also called rapunzel) in the garden of the house next door. He goes out to nick it but is caught by the homeowner - a witch. She says he can take the rapunzel, but in return he must give her the child once it is born.

The witch raises Rapunzel as her own but locks her away in a tower when she is 12 to protect her from the outside world.

A prince eventually rocks up and decides to climb her immensely long hair. Unknown, probably PG-13 and probably not consensual acts happen. Still, given it's the medieval era they agree to get hitched after escaping.

The witch discovers her plan, cuts off her hair, exiles Rapunzel, and uses the locks as bait for the prince before throwing him to the briar roses below where he is promptly blinded. Rapunzel gives birth to twins and the prince finds her, identifying her only by her voice. Her tears restore his voice.

The real story:

Being kidnapped or being kept hidden away from the rest of the world is pretty common, well, all of the time. But Saint Barabara, a Greek saint, was the main inspiration for the tale.

She was locked away in a tower in Turkey in the third century by her father in an attempt to protect her Christianity. But her Pagan father’s efforts did not succeed and she discovered the ways of Jesus. She escaped but she was eventually caught by her father who then tortured and beheaded her.

Religious intolerance, y’all.

Beauty And The Beast

Time for another Disney classic with a heavily edited plotline.

The father of a family seeks shelter in a grand palace during a storm. In the morning before he leaves he takes a rose from the garden but is caught by a beast who threatens to kill him for nicking a flower. But the beast agrees not to kill him if his daughter takes his place instead.

The daughter moves to the palace but asks to go see her family for a week. She is then convinced by her sisters to stay at home. A magic mirror then reveals the beast is dying because she isn’t with him. She returns to him and her love breaks the curse that makes him appear so monstrous.

The real story:

Petrus Gonsalvus (1637-1618) was born with hypertrichosis. This meant he had a thick layer of hair all over his body - his physical difference didn’t go down very well. He was kept as a ‘wild man’ in a cage and fed raw meat.

When he was 10 years old he was gifted to the king of france. But he wasn’t kept as a ‘beast’. He was educated like a nobleman and was taught to read, write, and speak three different languages. He was then married off to the daughter of a court servant.

He was married to her for over 40 years and they had seven children together.

(Aww.)

Three Blind Mice

Three blind mice, three blind mice, See how they run, see how they run, They all ran after the farmer’s wife, Who cut off their tails with a carving knife, Did you ever see such a thing in your life, As three blind mice?

The real story:

It's one of those nursery rhymes you grow up with - and 17 years later you realise how traumatic it actually is.

This nursery rhyme can be traced back to the reign of Bloody Mary (16th century) who had a tricky relationship with Protestants. And by that I mean she burnt them alive, hence the nickname.

The three blind mice represented three Protestant bishops who may have been blinded before their execution or spiritually blind for following Catholicism. Another reference to Queen Mary was her as a farmer’s wife.

Her husband, Philip of Spain, owned several estates and thus was technically a farmer.

Welp, there goes your childhood.

If you liked this post go on and like and reblog. Go on, share your love for my amazing talents with the world!

And if you want to read an article about the paranormal every weekend then you best be hitting follow!

See you next week, kiddos. Sleep tight.

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somuchchaoss · 4 years ago

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When Witches Connect Over Literature (Lumity Fic) (Pt 9)

Chapter Nine: Forever Hand In Hand

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"...Edaaaaa..." Eda turned around to see Luz timidly in the doorway of the kitchen, shifting her weight from side to side. Eda rolled her eyes, possibly knowing where the conversation was going. "I was just wondering if Amity and I could go out tomorrow on a date?" Luz asked. "Oh, so is that the kids call hangouts now?" Eda joked. Luz shook her head. "No, me and Amity are going out on a date." Luz stated. Eda stopped, looking over at Luz like she was joking. But Luz looked dead serious. "Oh... you and Amity finally realized what love was then?" Eda asked. Luz snorted a little. "Yep, so, can we go?" she asked. Eda thought for a moment. "Give me one second." Eda said, walking past Luz to the stairs.

"HEY KING! YOU OWE ME $15!" Eda shouted. Upstairs, there was a familiar squeal of rage as the tiny dramatic king of demons threw a tantrum. "Wait, you guys were betting if me and Amity went out?" Luz asked. Eda shrugged. "It was more of a bet that you confessed and realized that she liked you all this time." Luz face palmed a bit mentally. "Dang, I'm that oblivious aren't I?" Eda snorted and ruffled Luz's hair. "You said it kid, not me." Luz grinned and playfully wacked Eda's hand off of her hair and smoothed it back. "So, is that a yes?" Luz asked. Eda nodded. "Just don't do anything stupid, okay kiddo?" Luz proudly puffed out her chest and grinned confidently. "I'm never stupid." she said with a smirk and turned around to leave. And then she hit her face on the wall that conveniently appeared. Eda snorted. "Riiiigghhht. Never stupid. Gotcha."

_________________________________

Meanwhile, on the couch, Amity was having a gay panic attack (every Tuesday).

'Did all of this really just happen?' she thought. She sat there, almost dumbfounded. Like, this whole situation felt so...rushed and unreal. Was she dreaming? Only one way to find out...

"Hey Amity!" The familiar voice of the chipper Luz called from the side. And with that, Amity smacked Luz's arm. "Ow?" Luz whimpered. "What was that for?" "Sorry," Amity sheepishly said. "Just wanted to make sure that this was real." Luz rubbed her arm. "Oh, well...that was one heck of a way to determine that, wasn't it?" The two laughed awkwardly, feeling like this situation was a bit awkward.

"So...has Eda agreed to the date?" Amity asked. Luz nodded. "But," Luz said. Amity froze, hoping to the Titan that Eda wasn't gonna set up a bunch of boundaries. Although, Eda didn't seem like that type of witch to do so. "I'm impatient and restless, so therefore, we will have our date in about..." Luz looked at her wrist. "15 minutes!" Wait, how could Luz tell time? Was there an invisible clock on her arm? Must be a human thing. Wait, 15 minutes? NOW? "I'll be right back, I'm going to go set everything up!" Luz said with a cute grin. "In the meantime, you could go talk to Eda if you'd like?" And with that, Luz had already rushed up the stairs.

"...What just happened?" Amity pondered aloud. That was ten types of information and it was too much for Amity to handle right now. But taking Luz's suggestion, she went to the kitchen to talk to Eda.

____________________________________

"Hey there, kid." Eda said, as Amity made her way into the kitchen. Amity gave a small hum of greeting before awkwardly standing still. The two were silent for a moment before Eda spoke up. "So, you and Luz are together now?" she asked. Amity nearly choked over that. She broke into a fit of coughs.

"Woah, jeez kid." Eda chuckled. "Didn't know you'd have that kind of reaction." Amity tried to ease her aching throat from the violent storm of her coughing. She was pretty sure her face was tomato red at this point, from embarrassment or lack of air she didn't know. Finally, Amity managed to recollect herself, heavily breathing to try to regain control of her quickly beating heart. "Well..." Amity quietly said. "Not exactly. I think that's the point of this date." The two went quiet, not sure of where to bring this conversation.

"Hey," Eda said after a few minutes. "Not to be a Nosey Witch, but...how do I put this lightly...why did you come here? I mean, I got some bits and pieces of what may have happened, but I want your story first." Eda asked. Amity froze. 'Is she gonna rat me out to my parents?' Amity was starting to panic again, but some part of her mind was telling her that Eda was really not that kind of person.

"Well, I ran away from home." Amity bluntly stated. Eda raised an eyebrow. "And-" "Don't tell me. It's your parents isn't it?" Eda interrupted. Amity nodded, slumping a bit. "Hey, I understand. Maybe I wasn't in the same situation as you were, but I had to run away from home when I got cursed." Eda said. Amity was silent, but looked at Eda with interest. "My parents were worried of me getting caught by the Emperor. And Lilith was already with him at this point. So really, I wasn't safe anywhere. My parents were desperately trying to find a way to either undo the curse or find me somewhere in a forest where I could live the rest of my days as a beast. Personally, I sort of knew that there was no way to undo my curse and I didn't like the idea of just forever living as one. So, one night, I just...left. And that's how I got here." Eda said. Her eyes seemed glassy, but she shed no tears. Shaking her head, she turned over to Amity. "My point being, aside from the tragic backstory," She started. "Is that I get where you're coming from. Sort of. And trust me, I knew your parents back in school. Both jerkwads who thought they could control everyone. Couldn't control me though. And they can't control you, either." Eda placed her hand on Amity's shoulder. "So if you need to stay here for a while, or hell, forever, you're always welcome to stay." Eda finished with a grin. Amity shakily smiled back at Eda. "Thank you." She whispered, her voice quivering a bit. "No problem, kid." Eda said.

______________________________________

About 13 minutes had passed, and Eda and Amity were happily chatting away with some anecdotes about Luz. Both hardly noticed the time going by until the familiar voice of Luz called down from upstairs. "Amity, I hope you're ready for the best date of your life!!" Luz called. Amity giggled a bit. "Well, Eda." Amity said with a grin. "It was nice talking to you." She started to leave. "Wait, kid. Before you go, there's one thing I need to tell you." Eda said. Amity turned around to face the witch. "If you break her heart," Eda started coldly. Amity gulped. "I will personally find you and break your kneecaps..." Amity started to sweat nervously. "Or I'll send Hooty after ya, if I'm too lazy." Eda finished with a casual shrug. Amity squeaked, and nervously scampered out the room.

_____________________________________

Amity made her way upstairs before being dragged into a room by a unknown force. The room was dark, but smelled faintly of chocolate and lavender. Suddenly, the lights turned on, and there in the center stood Luz in an otter suit with the tutu over it. Amity realized that this was peak romancing. "Luz..." Amity struggled to say without breaking out into laughter. "My name is not Luz. I am...AN OTTER!" Luz cried, pointing her finger to the sky. Or in this case the ceiling. "Well, okay Otter." Amity playfully smirked. "Now, if I may direct your attention to your outfit of the night, ma'am." Luz gestured to a chair that had a cat onesie sitting on it. On the table right next to it were flowers and a box of what seemed to be the smell of it, chocolate. Amity was doing her best to not laugh, but with the look on Luz's face made Amity's heart melt. She could tell that Luz was trying her best, and she was doing a date the way she wanted to have a date. And if that involved wearing an otter suit, so be it. It was more romantic than the boys Amity's mother tried to set her up with at parties. "I'll let you get changed, and when you're finished, meet me in the room across from this one." And with that, Luz bounced out the door (how she did that will remain a mystery till the end of time).

Amity felt touched. Luz was putting in so much effort into making this a great date. And yet, Amity was worried that it would be an Azura book club part two, falling into the same things that was done at said book club. To put her mind at ease, she took the cat onesie and put it on. After successfully putting it on, she turned her attention to the box of what was probably chocolates. She opened the box to find a note from Luz.

"Hey Amity,

I'm rushing a little bit, but I remembered that Eda and I went out to the market a few weeks ago and while I was browsing, I bought this for you because I thought you might like it. But I never gave it to you for some reason, I might've just forgot, ha ha. (typical me, amirite?)

Hope you like it!

~ Luz Noceda"

Amity smiled faintly, and reached into the box to pull out a chocolate statue of Amity and Luz hugging. Welp, if Amity wasn't already swooning before, she definitely was now. Putting it back in the box and closing it, she went to the door across from the room.

Outside on the door was a sign that said, "For mi amor, Amity Blight" Amity had no idea what mi amor meant, but she hoped it was a good thing. Opening the door gently, she gasped at the sight.

The room, while still dark, was decorated with floating lanterns, which contained some light balls in them. In the center of the room, was a table and two chairs with two light balls in a jar in the center. Farther away, near a window, was a long table with treats and drinks placed all around it. Luz was near the window, carefully holding a small box in her hands. Hearing Amity come in, Luz turned around and smiled at the other girl. "Hey Amity!" She cheerfully chirped. She skipped over to the girl and gasped dramatically. "OMIGOSH! You look so adorable!" Luz cooed. That got Amity flustered. She felt her cheeks heat up at an alarming rate and she felt the need to hide her face into the hood of the onesie. Taking her hand, she guided Amity to the table and chairs. Amity took a seat, trying to not become so overwhelmed. Luz made her way to the treats table. "You want anything?" Luz asked. "What do you have?" Amity asked. "We have some hot chocolate with a dash of cinnamon, some chocolate toads, this weird gelatin thing that King gave me, and some apple pie with some whipped cream." Amity thought for a moment before saying, "Give me the apple pie." With a grin, Luz carefully cut out a piece of the pie and placed it onto a plate. She grabbed a fork for Amity and brought it back to the table. "Anything else, madam?" Luz playfully asked. Amity giggled. "I'll have some hot chocolate as well." Luz nodded, and grabbed one of the only two mugs of hot chocolate and brought it back to the table. Luz quickly went back to the table and got some stuff as well (it was the gelatin). She sat back down and the two started to eat.

The food wasn't bad, Amity's apple pie and hot chocolate were really nice, to Amity. But the gelatin almost made Luz gag. It was a horrible taste, almost tasted like a bitter flavored dead rose. Or broken dreams. "Food not that great?" Amity asked, noticing Luz's disdain. Luz nodded, almost spitting out some pieces. "I'm gonna sue King for this." Luz jokingly muttered. "Hey, don't sue me! I only have two stars on DemonYelp!" The voice of King called from an unknown place. The two girls laughed. "Well, if you don't want to finish yours..." Amit got up and grabbed a fork. "You can have a bit of mine." She scooped up a bit of her pie and raised it to Luz's mouth. Luz ate it and Amity moved the fork away. "Hey," Luz started after she finished chewing. "I got something to show you." "Right now?" Amity asked. "Yeah, I'm sorry if you wanted to finish." Amity shrugged. "Eh, I wasn't really that hungry." She said. The two got up and Luz motioned for Amity to follow her.

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The two made their way down the hall, until they got to a ladder. "Here, I'll help you up." Luz said, as she started to climb. She grabbed hold of Amity's hand and hoisted her up, almost effortlessly, but really Luz kind of struggled since she has weak nerd arms. The rain had stopped, and the stars were starting to fade a bit since morning was coming soon. Traces of dark purple could be seen hiding behind trees. Luz sat down and patted the ground next to her, motioning for Amity to sit next to her. She sat down cross-legged and took down the hoodie of the onesie since it was a little muggy outside because of the rain. Luz took out the small box that she had stored in the pocket of her otter suit and handed it to Amity. Wordlessly, Amity opened the box up to reveal another box. "Open it." Luz said. Amity opened the box to show a tiny figure of Azura spinning slowly around as soft music played.

"Luz, where did you get this?" Amity gasped. Luz smiled. "I bought it at a convention last year. It was my favorite purchase hands down. I asked Owlbert to get it for me since...I wanted to give it to you." Luz explained. Amity's eyes widened. "But, Luz, this is yours." Amity stammered. "Amity, I have plenty of Azura stuff. You can have it. I want you to have it." Luz insisted. Amity closed the box and without another word, leaned forward and gave Luz the biggest hug ever. "Thank you, Luz." She whispered into her ear. Luz returned it and softly whispered back, "No problem."

The two started to feel something. A thought that both have had, time and time again, but without knowing if the other's feelings were returned. They let go of each other for a brief moment, but still held onto each other's arms tightly. Amity started first, slowly leaning in, eye closed. Luz followed, slowly leaning forward. Both felt like their heart's were going to pop right there and then from the moment of nervousness both felt. But both didn't care. And with a small bit of determination, the two kissed. Their first kiss.

Luz had only ever written what a first kiss had felt like, but now, she really needed to rewrite those stories. It felt...magical. Whether that be from Amity being a witch or love was just magical in itself.

Amity didn't know what a first kiss should feel like, but now that it was happening, Amity wasn't sure where to place her feelings. They were all positive, to be sure, but there wasn't just one. It was a myriad of emotions all overlapping at once. But there was one emotion that Amity could pinpoint. Love. Overwhelming love.

The two moved away, with the feeling of the kiss still lingering on their lips. "...Woah." was all Luz could say. All thoughts had been drained and their head was empty. "So..." Amity said. "Are... are we official now?" Luz grinned, and gave Amity a small kiss on the cheek. "Of course." Luz whispered. The two smiled at each other.

"I love you, Amity Blight."

"I love you Luz Noceda."

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Last chapter soon guys! Hope you enjoyed this one! I think this may be the longest chapter of this so far.

~ Chaos

#the owl house #the owl house luz #lumity #amity blight

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