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castlebyersafterdark · 21 days ago

Note

i just rediscovered this gem of a post from years ago about lover's lake and byler... in light of recent discussions on here, you might be interested! its in screen shot form as it's been deleted by the original user. in two parts, long but you like long and this was one of the original lover's lake/byler sexuality posts back when we were all in the trenches! would love your thoughts!

part 1

https://www.tumblr.com/pinksmonkey/762360269808762880/the-truth-about-hosegate-and-lovers-lake?source=share

part 2

https://www.tumblr.com/pinksmonkey/762360644233232384/the-truth-about-hosegate-and-lovers-lake-part-2?source=share

PART ONE 🦞 PART TWO 🦞 PART THREE

Whewwww!! That was a long one. Very insightful deep dives back into the roots of Stranger Things theory. I've been so entrenched into celeb gossip and speculation and horny headcanons and fic writing that it's fun and useful to take a revisit to some show analysis. This was certainly a thorough venture.

Thoughts:

I don't know enough about It's Always Sunny for the references but if you do, enjoy!

It's always refreshing to see everything listed out - all the sexual references in the show. Sometimes I feel like, am I fixating too much on this subject? Is something wrong with me? But, no. It's a response to the lack of willingness to talk about this stuff in the greater fandom. It's just concentrated here as a reactionary decision. And it's interesting. This is only one aspect of the show - but it's important? As a part of life. And television. And the medium. Coming of age. 80s nostalgia. Supernatural mysteries, of which several are metaphors and allegories for growing up and identity and trauma and sexuality. Analytical discussion validates this.

A call back to the juxtaposed horror of Barb getting killed while Nancy loses her virginity would be a perfect full circle moment for Will and Mike having an intimate scene together. Their lovemaking or whatever the scene would entail would not be paired with something terrible, because we've reached a climatic point in the coming of age arc of the whole show. Nancy's was a loss of innocence, a step too quick perhaps into swiftly leaving childhood. Sleeping with Steve while her childhood best friend was dying. All the while, Will was in the Upside Down, thought to be dead, yet for a greater purpose, even younger than Nancy/Barb, and ultimately another representation of the loss of childhood. A lot of imagery with Will, too. Things forcibly taken. He and Mike - that's a choice. A positive. Down with love and culmination of breaking out of repression. Not having to leave childhood, but but forge forward on the natural progression because it's happening with your childhood best friend.

I'm not sure what would be going on simultaneously in the scene, but I like the acknowledgement of the cinematic inclusion of nature shots to represent intimacy and sex and orgasm, etc, when these elements aren't blatantly shown in some sort of sex scene. Could be onto something there. I've seen great theories and ideas involving Lover's Lake and gates and keys lately where this could play in (see Greenfiend's recent ideas! Shoutout!)

Liked the line in the first part "It's not possible to sexual something that's already sexual" which - absolutely. Agree or disagree, I personally agree. Like it or not - that's puberty.

I don't think I've ever addressed it, but I'm a big supporter of the one way sign theory. Some fans I think have grown weary of over-analysis and getting too caught up in the tiniest of mundane set details (every single instance of certain colors don't all hold meaning, counting ceiling tiles to prove time travel, the arbitrary and slightly slightly anachronistic inclusion of a very small background book or cassette a year too early, etc.) but the one way sign?? Hugely meaningful. Just wanted to acknowledge that.

"It is this tension between disgust and curiosity that allows shame to find its way into the coming of age of every human who has ever lived." 👏👏👏

I'm including this gift of a scene screenshot here because it's always worth looking at again. This sums it all up!! Come on!!

AND - I always forget this one. Hmmmm.

Love the symbolism mentioned I never fully correlated myself which is neat - the painting as a symbol of maturity as well. Color pencil drawings on notebook paper -> oil paintings on canvas. Their relationship as an evolution. "This fight felt more adult. Like one you can't come back from." Childhood, growing up. They can't really come back to the way things were post-painting gifting, van speech. Everything has changed about their dynamic now. "There is a huge sensuality in creating artwork for someone."

I feel like Mike taking the painting like that is the first step into the shifting of the tides. His hesitant acceptance of sexuality through symbolism. Coinciding with hosegate, of course.

Everything on this slide really. I never noticed the drill in the Jonathan / Argyle conversation. This show loves and adores a suggestive visual metaphor!!! So we can acknowledge all of those and not the hose? The HOSE is the most OBVIOUS one.

Actually, everything on this slide as well. Validates WHY someone who is also not a 15 year old finds this story so universally resonating. Cosigned.

"Lover's Lake exists in the show for a reason." - YES. I feel like Chekhov's scenic body of water has been underutilized. Sure, it was a gate in season 4, a hideout for Eddie, but otherwise has cropped up again and again. We've yet to utilize the Lover's namesake. I lean more towards Will and Mike having their consummate moment here more than anything else. Poignant. Thematic. Cinematic. All of the above. There's plenty of storyline opportunity for Will and Mike having to run, to hide, to seek refuge together somewhere. They're attached at the hip, they'll find and escape together somewhere. Cabin at Lover's Lake is where I'm placing my bets for any intimate scene together. "Moonlight on the water at the end of the world." Beautiful, truly.

Will and Mike have always been inevitable:

Closing thoughts and cosigned agreements that stand on their own:

❤️❤️❤️❤️

#asks #queued #Very long read and very long post here but it's a good synopsis of what most of the conversations around these parts are built around!!

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aphilosopherchair · 1 year ago

Text

Vampire Psychologist For Hire

Human recruiter filling position for psychologist:

You left your gender checkbox blank. It's our fault that the system controls were not fully in place, but I do expect meticulousness from my psychologists.

Vampire graduate who majored in human psychology:

My pronouns are they/them.

Human recruiter:

Ah! I really have to tell the technical team to update the form. I have absolutely no problem with your gender identity or your species. But you only have textbook and secondhand insights into human psychology.

Unlike human psychologists, you don't know what it feels on the inside to be human. Observations and textbook knowledge don't tell you everything. Many things are left unspoken.

Vampire graduate:

While I cannot pretend to know exactly how it feels to be a human, I am willing to work as hard as I can to try to understand the complexities of the human mind and heart, perhaps even harder than the average human candidate. Through studying human literature, observing my own relationships with humans, and developing a strong emotional bond with my human friends and classmates, I have already developed a deep appreciation and understanding of the human psyche that goes beyond mere textbook knowledge or casual observations. While there are certain aspects of the human experience that I do not share, I am confident that my empathy and dedication to the field of psychology more than make up for any lack of firsthand experience.

Human recruiter:

Why should I recruit you when I can just recruit a human top scorer with the same grades?

Vampire graduate:

While a human with the same qualifications may also have a great understanding of humans, they are likely to be inherently biased by their own perspective. I, however, also have the advantage of being able to objectively analyze humans' strengths, weaknesses, and motivations from an outsider perspective.

Additionally, as a member of a paranormal race, I have the ability to manipulate human minds and feelings to improve mental well-being.

Human recruiter:

Mind manipulation? By now, you're stark raving bonkers! How do I know you won't put it to bad use?

Vampire graduate:

As a vampire, I understand the importance of being self-aware and responsible when it comes to my ability to manipulate the emotions and actions of others. I take care to only use this power in situations where it is necessary or beneficial, and to never misuse it for personal gain or at the expense of others. I also make sure to seek consent before using my ability on individuals, and I always prioritize their safety, comfort, and well-being.

Human recruiter:

That's what you'd say of course. I have no reason to trust you.

Vampire graduate:

I understand your skepticism and reticence. In a world dominated by humans, it is often difficult for vampires like myself to be seen as anything other than predators or manipulative. However, while it may be challenging, this does not mean that it is impossible for you to trust me. In the end, trust is built through communication and understanding, which is why I have been open and honest with you about my ability to manipulate minds and my intentions in using this ability.

Trust is also earned over time. I think if you give me a chance to prove myself on the job, with ample supervision at the start, you will be able to put aside your hesitations about working with a vampire by and by. The best way to find out if i'm good at my job is not through urban legends, groundless hearsay or unscientific mob opinion but to give me a shot and see how things work out.

I can even agree to a contract outlining specific guidelines for how I will use my vampire abilities, and what steps we can take to ensure that my mind manipulation is always used in a beneficial way.

Human recruiter:

Hmmm. Excellent pitch. But it sounds too good to be true. For one thing, I need to review the clinical evidence and adverse effects records later. And why should I be the first to hire a vampire as a psychologist? I prefer someone tried and tested.

Vampire graduate:

If you would like to work with experienced practitioners, that is certainly your prerogative. However, it is often beneficial to have a fresh perspective on a problem, and working with a vampire psychologist can provide that. Please consider what I have to offer.

Human recruiter:

It's true. We have clients who remain unyielding to all the therapy regimes out there. Psychology has improved by leaps and bounds but is still an inexact science. We do need fresh ideas.

Vampire graduate:

Please also remember other positive traits of the vampire race. For example, I can live for millennia in the absence of mishaps. During my long lifespan, I can examine numerous times more clients than human colleagues are capable of. The synergistic effect of that extensive experience and my unique perspective will empower me to generate breakthroughs in therapeutic innovations.

Human recruiter:

Cool, but the manner in which you're comparing yourself against your human colleagues before you even start your job is concerning. Psychologists are not melodramatic lone heroes. We often need to engage in teamwork with one another in order to serve clients in a therapeutic setting. This can be in the form of team discussions about a client's treatment plan or case, collaboration on the research of a particular issue or hypothesis, or even simply supporting each other as we help clients through treatment. Are you sure you'll be a good team player?

Vampire graduate:

That is a valid point. I apologize for the misimpression. While professional independence is important, collaboration and teamwork are equally essential. I don't view my vampire heritage as something that makes me better or worse than my colleagues, it's simply a part of who I am and a source of unique strengths and flaws. As a member of the greater psychological community, I am committed to collaborating with my colleagues to help our clients in the best possible way. Thank you for the reminder to be a supportive team player.

Human recruiter:

OK. A critical question: HOW do I know you won't succumb to the temptation of your overworked co-workers' and vulnerable clients' blood? You may have excellent grades for your degrees in human psychology, but what about vampire psychology? I can risk neither the life of whichever assessor I assign for your probationary period nor those of all the appointees you see in the reception area outside, who have entrusted their welfare to our practice.

Vampire graduate:

I can understand that the possibility of a vampire drinking human blood is a concern, especially in a field like psychology that works so closely with humans. However, you have nothing to worry about in that regard. I have testimonials from my professors—

Human recruiter:

Ah, yes. But the academic world is nothing like the messy real world of full-time working adults. Our educational system in Typingland is so infantile it requires hardly any practical experience like internships to earn a PsyD. Your self-control may be stretched to its limits by manipulative patients, vitriolic parents and unsuccessfully forestalled suicides, although I must say most clients in our practice are incredibly sweet in spite of their personal difficulties.

Vampire graduate:

The work of psychologists is indeed strenuous. Nevertheless, my lifestyle has given me a strong foundation for coping with the stress.

Human recruiter:

The lifestyle of a vampire?

Vampire graduate:

As a vampire, I understand that I have certain physical and psychological needs, but I have taken many steps to ensure that these are met in a safe and ethical way that don't involve living humans. My physical needs can be met through a diet of donated blood, while my emotional needs can be met through strong professional boundaries, self-care practices, and maintaining a strong support network.

I regularly engage in personal wellness practices such as meditation and physical activity to maintain my emotional and mental vitality. I also check in with my psychologist for vampires at least once a month, adjusting the frequency with the stress I experience and the intensity of the blood thirst at any given time. This helps to provide a safe space for me to express and process my thoughts, feelings, and experiences. It also gives me the opportunity to practice managing my blood thirst through a variety of behavioral and mindfulness techniques.

If you would like, I can arrange for my psychologist to send you an evaluation report.

Human recruiter:

I'm deeply impressed. (Claps and shakes head in awe.) I must say that I've never met a candidate, human or vampire, with your level of dedication. Quite a number of the psychologists I know have undergone depression themselves in the course of this emotionally draining and underpaid work but were late in seeking professional intervention. They need to learn a thing or two from newbies like you.

Vampire graduate:

Oh, why, thank you!

Human recruiter:

However—I'm afraid our clientele and the public won't share my sentiments.

You may think I've been demanding and prejudiced, but the others? They won't even sit down like this to sift through your personal history or examine your well-crafted arguments. Public attention to the fanciful layers and facets, okay, just layers and facets, to marginalized demographics like yours has been fleeting to start with and pretty much vaporized in a Tiktokified economy. Social media?? It's a wasteland made up of countless virtual enclaves out there. Every phone zombie just scrolls past news and advocacy messages that don't amuse them or address their own problems. And algorithms?? Gawd! Don't. Even. Get. Me. Started. On. Algorithms.

What people out there will get with their precious microseconds for us, though, is that our practice is employing a dangerous and powerful person, if they would even see you as a person at all, to work on fragile humans in despair.

Look, we don't need bloody fangs and the bat wing stuff to further complicate the ongoing uphill battle of getting psychological condition sufferers to walk through our doors.

Welp . . . I'm sorry for my bluntness. I tend to let down my guard when I'm not in front of clients. You're a fine young vampire who deserves better.

Vampire graduate:

(Momentary silence.)

(Soars over to fan human recruiter with their bat wings while slightly frowning to themselves.)

Those are indeed tough challenges. How about this? Let's start by offering virtual sessions for clients who would feel more comfortable initially meeting with me through a video conference. This can help to gradually introduce me to them in a non-threatening environment and allow them to get to know me better before they agree to meet in person.

We can complement that with an on-site "try-out" session for clients who remain hesitant to work with me or lack technological access or digital literacy. A try-out session could involve a brief, low-stakes meeting where clients can meet me, ask questions, and get a sense of my approach before deciding whether to continue with therapy. This can help to build trust and rapport with them, and give them a chance to see that I am interested in helping them and can provide effective treatment.

As we graduate to proper therapy sessions and make good progress on cases, we can highlight statistics, success stories and testimonials from past clients who have worked with me, and emphasize my ability to provide effective treatment. That is, with their consent and proper anonymization of course. Given your practice's reputation for integrity, the credibility of anonymized feedback should not be a problem.

Perhaps, I can even make up for the reputation risk at the beginning by offering fun, one-of-a-kind indoor levitation experiences that are a soother of the nerves and a break from the mundaneness of everyday life. The experiences would also attract potential clients otherwise resistant to treatment because of public perceptions of psychotherapists as rigid doctrine-driven professionals, who they think won't understand their unique struggles and decision rationale, like reasons for investing all their time in an unstable line of work or sticking with a violent spouse. They are stress relievers no one can find in self-help books or chat responses from even the best of AI technology!

Human recruiter:

W—ow. I'm tempted to try that levitation myself. I have to think about your proposals and discuss them with the others.

There's just one last thing that I don't understand, and anyone, whatever the temperature of their blood, can sense this coming from miles away.

Vampire graduate:

Please go ahead.

Human recruiter:

Why a career in human psychology? Wouldn't you face less discrimination and be more at home with vampire psychology?

Vampire graduate:

I've always been fascinated by humans and their unique abilities to adapt and survive without paranormal powers, especially the human capacity for empathy. It's been my dream since I was young to study the human mind, to explore the depths of their emotions and figure out what truly motivates them.

Many people think that clinical counselling is about entering broken minds, but it is simultaneously about tapping the power of the marvelous human stores of mental resilience, mental flexibility and boundless optimism.

The wonders and possibilities of human psychology energize me. They keep me going every day despite the uncertainties of my chosen career path and the suspicion and taunts I get. I am one of those who believe that you can flourish in the long term only if you are emotionally invested in what you do.

Human recruiter:

Even if you don't end up on our team, I have no regrets taking time to interview you. It's been a great pleasure exploring the awe-inspiring sides and possible futures of our field with you. This sounds cliché but I sincerely mean it: I wish you the very best in your psychologist career.

Cast

Human recruiter Human (with two AI -dubbed lines)

Vampire graduate AI (with human stand-ins in various instances)

#diversity #inclusivity #fantasy #fantasy art #fiction #work life #vampire art #psychology

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taegularities · 2 years ago

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Hello, lovely Rid 💕💕

I'm here to ramble to you about your ramble in response to my ramble lmao.

First of all, we really do think alike apparently, because I also checked the wordcount of my feedback before sending it and it's probably the longest one I've ever written and will ever write. Even without all of the quotes it's like over 2k words, I really don't know how to shut up 😭😭😭

Thank you so much for taking so much care to write such a thoughtful response, Rid 🥺🥺🥺 I always love reading your responses to feedback, and not only my own, because everyone points out different things and you give even more insight into the story and your writing process. I can just read about your stories forever, even when it comes to commentary about them.

I watched the mv for 'when you're gone' and I totally agree with you that that scene matches OC's mood in the beginning of the chapter very well 😔😔😔 It also matches the way I was reading the Valentine’s day drabble, smiling at how adorable they were when I knew how we left off in cmi6. I've said it before but I'll say it again, the thing that hurts the most is knowing how happy they're able to make each other and seeing how they're now hurting each other instead 😭😭😭

Also about the rambling to my sister lmao. Cmi is the first fic I've properly talked to her about (she reads fanfic too, just not bts ones) and I was fully ranting to her about how Jungkook was keeping everything in and trying to be strong until he couldn't anymore, and now he's ignoring OC, I don't think I've ever ranted so much even about a real life person lmao. I might have not painted him in the best light because of how mad I was though 😔😔😔 But I probably will just ramble about how cute he is to her later on when everything works out 😌😌😌

Also also everyone has been adding onto the sadness and angst here and I don't know how they do it, because every time I even think about OC with someone else or just them being even sadder I want to cry lmao. But I still love reading everybody adding to the chaos, I can't lie.

Last but definitely not least, I feel like I haven't properly checked in on you in a few days, so how are you doing, Rid? 🥺🥺🥺

I MISSED YOU (she says after just 2 days lol), honestly, i was gonna shoot you an ask today lmao but since you're here, i can just say it now: i hope you're doing well! how's school going? <3

2k even without the quotes? i don't deserve you fr 😭 no but seriously, i copied it into a doc, and thought, kay, must be around 2k, like all of it (which is already a lot) BUT 5.7K.... and it was like 10 pages long !! i went "awwh" out loud 😭

and thank you 🥺 i was even thinking of making a smol commentary one day, when i've got the time, bc i could talk about them forever 😭 i really love reading everyone's reviews and theories, bc sometimes it makes me rethink things that i didn't consider even while writing.

ikr? i spent my teenage years crying to 'when you're gone', and i kinda remembered the song when you pointed out that 'he can be comfort even now' bit :( and you're actually so right. might argue that it hurts even more to relate it to the vday drabble.. especially, considering what's still to come.

hahaha i get it 😭 after that chapter, it was hard to hold a high opinion of him, bc he did kinda fuck up :// but yes, i promise you, there are gonna be scenes and chapters that are so fluffy, it'll be almost disgusting, really. it's so cute that you ranted about it to your sister hahaha i really love that you're so invested 🥺

I KNOW! it's amazing how everyone was ready to jail me for all the angst... yet, they keep coming up with scenarios and songs that break me for good 😂 i wasn't as much in pain when i posted the chapter as i am now hahahah

ahh i'm okay, ivi, thank you for asking! i think the biggest reason for my bleh mood was that i'm... very bored. i've been feeling pretty unproductive since i took this super long break after graduation and quit my last job. which is why i'm lowkey excited (but also very scared lol) to start my semester next week and my job in may! will join you in your academic misery hahah but yeah. i'll be busier, but i'm looking forward to it, bc i do like being busy! hope you're all good, too 🥺🤍

#i LOVE the chaos everyone adds to <3 #and i love you !! <3 #notes for rid 🌹#ivi <3 #fic: colour me in #long ask

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realisationanddoubt · 1 year ago

Text

Unleashing repression

I've been putting this off for a little while but apparently I'm mentally healthy enough that I can't repress things as well as I used to. A palpable irony to that. It means that current circumstances have actually affected me far more than I would expect.

It's always exacerbated by relationship issues. That's always the way isn't it. It was supposed to be casual. That's always the way too, huh? We agreed. I checked in so many times and you always agreed it should be casual. You were lying though. I suppose I knew it too. Things were always a little tense. You'd fly off the handle when I spoke to basically anyone but you. You were possessive over me before you ever had a right to be. Yet I pursued. Because I was lonely. Because I enjoyed the physical affection.

It was stupid of me. Of both of us. Everyone I've spoken to about it says it's not my fault. I was clear. I constantly communicated. Yet I saw the red flags and ignored them. You certainly think it's my fault. That I used you. When you seemed ready to actually date I asked you if you wanted to date me and you shot me down.

I don't know where I stand here. It reminds me of my relationship with Nichola in a way but I don't know if I'm over adjusting. You've said some things that have really hurt me. If I choose to discard that as just mean things am I being overly sensitive? Am I being self-centred, only thinking about myself?

It's so easy for me to believe I'm at fault. Therapy hasn't been able to fully take that away. I'm better than I was though. Better at rationalising, at examining. So let's examine.

I'm struggling to think it through properly. It's as if I've put up an emergency wall. Fenced it all in to avoid it. I suppose the first step is to figure out why. I know why the fence is there of course. It's because my self-esteem is too fragile. If I pick at this scab and find that I'm in the wrong it feels like it will confirm everything my past traumas said to me.

I'm not wrong though, am I. Keep going, don't let this train of thought escape you. I make stupid decisions sometimes, everyone does. You're insecurities weren't mine to control though. I saw what I thought to be red flags but it would be arrogant of me to assume it was my duty to control your feelings. I'm not responsible for how you feel just as you aren't for me. No one can control another person to that extent. I know this. I've tried. Far too many times with far too many people. Tried to keep them happy at all cost. Tried to make myself so small, so convenient in a bid to make others lives easier. I didn't this time. To begin with at least. I definitely did towards the end. I faltered. It happens.

It wasn't casual because I only wanted sex. It was casual because you were already with someone. Unhappily of course. Someone you'd told many times you didn't love, told him you were only together for the kids. I couldn't invest in that though. Not again. I couldn't tie myself to someone who would possibly never leave their life for me. I've played that game a million times. After you did leave him I did try to pursue you but then it was too late. Honestly, us being together in any form would have undoubtably been devastating to my mental health. I was more than willing to let you break me down all over again

You did I suppose. I didn't want to get angry or upset with you. I couldn't. Every time we saw one another it was an insight into what I did wrong. That's how it always is I suppose. Never a flurry, just a constant trickle that erodes.

It's almost like the old me vs the new me. The habits of giving in, relenting, trying to change for someone every time they bring up issues is ingrained deeply in me. But I am someone else now too. There's that part of me that can stand up. Tell myself I deserve better than that.

It sets about a sort of crisis. Trying to not people-please. Trying to live up to expectations. The reality is though, you wanted me to be someone I'm not. You wanted me to not display any traits of mental health issues. Not allowed to be depressed because it made you not feel wanted. Not allowed to forget or be impulsive ala ADHD because it made you feel like you didn't know where I stood.

I think that's the crux of it. We could never understand one another. To you anything I did was with malice. You said I only supported you to fuck you despite the fact we were friends for almost 5 years prior to anything happening. Despite the fact it was just a drunken night that we agreed to keep on a casual basis.

I am not broken, cruel, malicious as you often imply. I'm just different. I just think differently. Any time I meet someone with those neurodiverse traits they understand instantly. Hell, even most people who are neurotypical seem to understand my intentions.

I've discussed this with friends but never with myself. I defaulted back to my old crutches. External validation. It's taken me a long time to get any kind of internal validation and it's ok that I struggled to apply validation to myself. This is the first scenario post therapy that has challenged these issues.

I went through this with my mother. With Nichola. Now with you. This insistent that I am wholly responsible for their mood. That it is me that needs to fix it. That I need to tend to all your needs and emotions, I need to make you feel secure, I need to be the one to do it all.

I don't though. Not anymore. It took some time to get here but less than the last two times. I'm getting better. There is nothing to even forgive myself for. I would be mortified at the idea of trying to make someone solely responsible for my emotions and self-worth now. I've been there too.

I continue to improve on myself. I don't yet have that confidence to know when I'm in the right. Or perhaps it would be arrogance to be that sure of myself. I don't even know. But I'm doing better than yesterday. That is all that I can ask of myself.

I tried really hard to consider every point you brought up. Nothing I did was good enough. You always acted as if I wasn't good enough. Talking to you makes me feel like a shitty person. I'm not though. I'm just not. That shouldn't be so hard for me to type.

I persist. Despite mental health issues, despite relationship issues, despite everything I will continue to persist. I matter. I matter to me. I'm worth more than this.

#relationships #mental health #repression #repressed emotions #people pleaser #relapse #therapy #adhd problems #depression

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hobbitsetal · 2 years ago

Note

I saw your post on the entertainment debate floating around, and read the tags, so I was wondering if you did end up writing a post on storytelling and God?

Not a separate post as such, but I had a few under my "art faith and media" tag that probably qualify!

But for you, dear anon, let me go off just a bit because I'm procrastinating editing and this is a worthy writing project.

What has storytelling to do with God, first and foremost? I would argue He is the original Storyteller, that the Bible is the story of humanity's quest to understand and follow this Great Being Who reveals Himself to us in many ways and through various means.

Jesus taught through parables, in the tradition of various Jewish rabbis, as a Jewish rabbi Himself. God affirmed and continued the human yen for storytelling while He walked this earth with us. I find that eminently lovely.

The first followers of Christ were charged to go and spread the news of what God had done--charged to become storytellers and forth-tellers. Storytelling itself was changed by the presence of God. I've seen a post on Tumblr talking about the old story form of a man who loses his lover to death. The Greek myths end with him losing her forever. The stories post-Jesus end with him recovering her. Take that one with a grain of salt--I am no scholar and I can't find the post again--but it's a beautiful thought.

So, do we now go on to tell you to write stories with good Christian morals?

Absolutely not. If you set out to write a moral, you'll probably bore everybody. Write a good story and your own values will filter into it. Art is terrifyingly revelatory. I've laughed with my husband before over how various life changes and events and struggles seep into my characters and storytelling, whether I want them to or not.

And that brings me to what one might consider the heart of storytelling: knowledge and understanding. Those who read more widely are, apparently, more empathetic. Reading puts us in the shoes of others, in other situations and other worlds. Reading humanizes other people to us, and that is a valuable weapon against selfishness.

Storytelling gives us a safe way to work through questions and struggles. Some scholars apparently believe that the books of Job and Jonah don't describe historical events, but are records of the ancients Jews grappling with the problem of pain and with the idea of a God Who is willing to embrace even our worst enemies.

Storytelling gives us a medium to examine our world in a way that removes it from us just a bit, just enough to study issues with a little more breathing room. What makes a god? What is worth fighting for or dying for? How does one determine right and wrong when everything seems uncertain and you don't know who's lying?

What does hope look like in the face of great darkness? Read The Lord of the Rings. What might God's love look like in another world, in another place? Read C.S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, or his Space Trilogy. Is morality contingent on gods? What is the responsibility of those in power to defend against oppression, racism, abuse of power? Read Terry Pratchett's Discworld.

You don't need to agree with everything you read. I adore Pratchett, but he was an atheist and it shows in his writings, and I am very much a theist to my core. Nonetheless, he makes important observations about human nature and right and wrong.

If you read through a Christian lens--that is, through the mindset that there is a God, that He cares about us, and that objective right and wrong exist--everything you read has the potential to teach you important things.

Why am I talking so much about reading? Because I'm a writer, and reading is what I think of first. Movies, tv shows, podcasts, oral stories--all qualify equally as storytelling. I think art--paintings or web comics or whatever else you would like to name--can be storytelling. They all have the potential to move someone emotionally, to point them to insights about humanity, to provoke the imagination.

Storytelling, then, is a way to understand ourselves and the world around us better, both as it is and as it relates to God. Storytelling is a reflection of the Great Creator, the original Storyteller, the One Who knows us most intimately and perfectly...the One Who created us for joy.

Embrace imagination, my friend. It is created by God.

#art faith and media

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lalaangeldust · 4 years ago

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𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬

𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚 𝐱 𝐠𝐧!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 [ 𝟑𝐤+ 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 ]

[ 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 ] : gross sticky icky fluff // friends to lovers troupe <3 // hanta is a huge dork, we all been knew this // hanta is also sickeningly sweet and affectionate // GOD, I JUST LOVE HIM SO MUCH

[ 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 ] : on a clear night, you go out to stargaze on the dorm roof; nothing out of the norm for you but in the middle of admiring the stars, sero comes out to join with something big he needs to get off his chest.

[ 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐮𝐞 ] : you - blue // sero - orange

[ 𝗺𝘆𝗸𝗶𝗲'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲 ] : i'm totally not projecting my fantasies onto sero and i'm totally not a sucker for friends to lovers fics :| /s

Sitting on the cool concrete of the dorm roof, the night illuminated by nothing but the streetlights below you and the stars above as you lay in silence with your legs propped against the roof's ledge. You've always thought the best part of UA was how it was out of the way so the stars are clearer than they were back in the city. Although graduation is soon and end of year exams are menacingly looming over you, you couldn't resist the urge to come out and soak up the full moon's gorgeous light. Nights like these, alone on a clear night, soft music playing through your headphones, scanning the vast sky, connecting the dots as your eyes wander to make constellations of your own are arguably one of your most favorite things in life.

The only thing that could possibly make this better is... him.

Eyes trailing to the brightest star you can find and admiring how it sticks out from everything else in your vision, your mind uncontrollably wanders to Sero. How that star kinda reminds you of him...

Ugh! what a ridiculous thing to think! Damn him for always finding a way to worm into your thoughts. Your hands fly to your forehead with a smack, outwardly groaning as you drag your fingers down your face in an attempt to shake off your thoughts. You've been friends with him for nearly three years! You would think you'd be over your petty crush on him by now. You two are practically siblings with how you two are almost always attached at the hip, always causing trouble together, always there when the other needed it, always making you feel safe... It would be weird to have feelings for him... right..?

But before you could rationalize your emotions any further, a hand reaches for your headphones, lifting one side off your ear as you hear a soft voice murmur behind you, “The moon’s beautiful tonight, isn't it?”

You practically jump out of your skin, immediately shooting up to take a defensive position. Although you can’t make out the silhouette you’re now facing, the all too familiar laughter that comes from them is more than enough to give away who this false intruder could be and you sigh in relief.

“Sero! You scared me half to death!!” you exclaim, relaxing your shoulders at seeing his familiar frame emerge through the dim light.

Tall and lean with a smile that could nearly rival the sun, the boy chuckles at you. His long pitch black hair he's been growing out for the past year cascading down the sides of his face, just barely brushing past his shoulders framing his face in a way that makes his dashing features stand out even more. Sero approaches you wearing a loose muscle tank top with his hands tucked in ill fitting sweats and a pair of black stud earrings he stole from you in his ears.

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Sero chuckled, "I didn't mean to scare you so bad, doll". You send him a deep glare through the darkness and he throws his hands up out of his pockets to either side of his head in defense.

"...Maybe you shouldn't sit out here with music blasting in your ears,” Sero snarks back, “I could’ve been a villain,” he continues mockingly, “Not to mention that horrible stance you took. I don't think you’d fair very well against a villain while sitting down,” he teases with a wide grin smeared on his face. You scoff and roll your eyes in response.

“Are you only here to tell me how much of a hazard I am? Or do you want anything else, tape face?” you grumble.

“Oh, you wound me!” Sero exclaims dramatically, “I was simply wondering what my lil’ muffin was up to,” he muses, the dimples on his cheeks becoming visible as his grin only stretches wider as he speaks.

“Oh god, muffin!?!? ew!” you groan, “What the hell, I thought we agreed on no more stupid pet names,” you say with a giggle while scrunching up your nose.

“I didn't think it was stupid,” Sero huffs as he plops himself down next to you and wrinkles his nose back at you, “Muffin is a valid nickname. You just have no taste,” he concludes with a short nod, still smiling like an idiot.

You just roll your eyes and stick your tongue out at him before tilting your head up to go back to looking at the stars. Sero chuckles softly, staring at you for a moment while admiring you as you look at the sky with a softened smile on his face.

“Why you up so late?” he inquired.

“I could ask you the same thing, Sero,” you reply while throwing your head back down to look at him.

“Mmm, well, I was sleeping but… I suddenly woke up and couldn't go back to sleep,” he grunts as he adjusts himself into a more comfortable sitting position next to you.

You hum in acknowledgment before you look back up to the stars in the sky and Sero is left to admire you once again. How your eyes glimmer with the stars as the full moon softly illuminates your frame is a breathtaking view he would never tire of. The look on your face when you gaze at the sky, the look of pure adoration and awe is a look he hopes, prays, dreams you’ll give him one day.

“What’re you thinking, hun?” he softly asks, hoping you’d give him just the slightest glimpse of what goes on in your head. You pause for a moment, taking in his question and wondering how to answer it.

“Just thinking. Thinking thoughts. Nothing notable or important, I can assure you. Just enjoying the clear night,” you say, swerving his question to avoid the real answer. him.

“Ah, that was a rather vague answer,” he jests, mildly disappointed that you didn't let him in and you only hum in response.

“What about you?” you ask, “What made you wanna come up here?”

“Oh, well..” he begins but is held back by a lump that suddenly lodges in his throat, not really wanting to fully admit why he came up here with you.

In reality he hadn't slept at all. He’s embarrassed to admit it but he couldn't stop thinking of you all night, all day in fact. You just about consume his every thought and tonight, no matter what he did, he just couldn’t shake the thought of being with you.

After being so close with you for years now, people often assume the two of you are dating but the idea is almost always dismissed by a shy laugh and an averted gaze... Sero would be lying if he ever said he didn't relish the idea of being in a romantic relationship with you but... You never seemed all that interested in the idea and Sero was too scared to push the idea you may like him even half as much as he likes you. Never going farther than light hearted flirting and banter, some may call him a coward maybe but to him? Being your friend was enough. Well, that was until Mina and Kiri gave him a harsh wake up call earlier that morning.

They were scolding him on how painfully obvious it is how both you and Sero are nearly head over heels for one another, how they've spent the past year pining for one another, yet the both of you have stayed so blind to the fact you have feelings for each other. Absolutely dumbfounded by this, he asks what he should do about it, about you, to which they immediately and overwhelmingly demand him to confess his feelings for you. That is the real reason he came to find you.

“When I was trying to go back to sleep, I thought about something someone said… about taking chances,” he spoke in a soft and thoughtful tone, “Taking that blind leap of faith into the unknown things we’re afraid of because... what’s the worst that can happen…?” he pauses, rubbing the back of his neck, suddenly realizing how silly he probably sounds as he looks at you, “I dunno- sounds kinda dumb now that I say it out loud,” he says dismissively.

“No, no. I don't think it sounds dumb at all. I think it’s very insightful” you say, ushering him to continue by resting your head on your palm as you look at him intently to show your interest.

“Well, uh,” butterflies swarm to his chest as he tries to find the words to speak, finding it much harder to talk when he knows he has your full attention.

“Well, it led me to think about you 'cus I know that's something you talk about a lot as well… and I figured since it's a full moon tonight, you'd be up here,” he concludes. His gaze nervously shifting to his feet, averting his eyes from you to try and calm the fluttering nerves in his chest.

“I’m glad you did,” you hum, a low warmth growing in your chest from knowing he thought about you, “I enjoy your company,” you add thoughtfully. Though you probably just meant it in a friendly way, it didn’t change how much it meant to Sero to know you like having him around.

“I’m happy to hear that,” Sero chuckles nervously, a light blush dusting his cheeks as he slightly scooches closer to you. You take notice and you subtly tilt to the side, leaning in his direction not yet touching shoulders but leaving an opening to do so if he wanted.

“I uh- I also wanted to tell you something- In regards to what I was thinking about…” Sero mumbles nervously, hoping you didn’t catch what he said so he would have an excuse to not go through with his confession. Pretend like nothing happened and move on to just enjoy the simple friendship you two share.

“Oh?” You inquire, “What do you want to tell me? I’m all ears,” Sero fiddles with his thumbs, taking a moment to gather his thoughts before he speaks as you patiently wait for him.

"I- uh, I love you," he blurts, head swimming as he looks at you, eager and insatiably nervous to hear how you may respond, horrified you may not reciprocate his feelings and ultimately ruining what relationship you two did have.

"I love you too, Sero," you giggle.

Sero's heart drops, confidence dwindling as he assumes you thought he said "I love you" in the way you two always have. Just as friends. But he didn't. He meant it. He meant it in so many more ways he couldn't even begin to describe. He didn't expect you to reciprocate his feelings in the first place but that doesn't make him hurt any less.

"No, you don't understand," Sero sighs as he runs his hands through his long, thick hair, "I'm in love with you," You turn you head to him, Did he-? eyes widening at what Sero said, unsure if what you heard was a wishful hallucination or not. When you said "I love you" back, you genuinely meant it in the same way he does now. God, you've been in love with him for what seems like the first moment you two met but you would've never guessed Sero felt the same for you.

You sit in silence for a beat trying processes what Sero had just said to you. Your friend, your closest friend, is in love with you..? Something you've dreamt of becoming a reality. You start to get dizzy from the overwhelming euphoria and anxiety the realization simultaneously brings. You look at Sero, placing your hand on his to ground yourself as you look up at him, a warm smile spreading on your face.

"I love you too, Hanta," you say earnestly. Sero's heart leaps in his chest at your words. Not only did the person of his dreams reciprocate his feelings but they also addressed him by his first name?! He might as well be dreaming. Hearing his name fall off your lips like warm honey for the first time sends him flying through cloud nine.

"Y-you mean it??" Sero stutters, still unable to believe it. You give him a heartfelt smile as you squeeze his hand before standing up. You wordlessly walk around Sero and crouch behind him.

Utterly confused and growing increasingly flustered at your sudden close proximity, Sero opens his mouth to ask what you could possibly be doing but you shush him before he can say a word. Leaning against him, you ask permission to grab his hand and Hanta lets you guide his finger to the brightest star in the sky, hyperaware of every subtle shift, adjustment and breath you take behind him, clinging onto every passing moment.

"You see that star? The really really bright one right there and how it's brighter than the others?" you ask.

"Yeah... why.?" he questions, eager to hear what you have to say.

"Forgive me if this is too cheesy but it sorta reminds me of you," you say softly.

"Wh- I don't think a follow," Hanta replies and you give a short, breathy chuckle in response.

"Out of all the stars in the sky, you stick out to me to most. You're the brightest star," you murmur close to him, guiding his hand back down and you make your way to sit next to him. Hanta takes a moment to process what you said. Him? A star? He doesn't understand how you view him in such a way when there isn't much special about him in the first place... but he tries not to pay any mind to those thoughts as his eyes are glued to you sitting back down beside him.

"Pff, that was super cheesy," he snorts.

"Shut up, I'm trying my best," you grumble, "And... that's what I was really thinking about before you came," Hanta looks at you in awe, nothing but love and kindness filling his eyes as he gingerly grabs your hand, lifting it up level to his face.

"It's aright, doll, I was only teasing.. I think it's cute and~," he hums before placing a soft kiss on your knuckle, "I'm ok with cheesy," he concludes with a wink. Heat blooms on your cheeks at his action and you throw your head to the side, covering your mouth and cheek with your other hand in embarrassment. Hanta chuckles, just about ready to burst at how adorable you are and gets a sudden burst of confidence coursing through him from seeing your flustered form.

"Aw, don't get shy on me now, love," he coos, tugging your arm to usher you to look back at him. You look at him with a flustered scowl and Hanta isn't sure if you did it to intimidate him or what but all it did was make his heart scream for you more. His hand slides to your forearm and his other hand goes to grab your other arm, pulling it away from your face.

"Here, come here, baby," he murmurs, pulling your arms to guide you to his lap. You give little resistance as you follow Hanta's hands, shifting around to make yourself comfortable against him as you settle between his thighs. As soon as you got comfortable, Hanta's arms find their home around your waist, hugging you close and breathing you in. You sigh contently as your back rests against his strong chest, never feeling safer than you do right now in his arms.

"It's ok if I call you baby now, right..?" Hanta asks, not wanting to be too much at one time.

"Well, it would be if we were dating," you tease with a raised brow.

"Wha-?" Hanta looks at you confused for a moment before he realizes, "Oh! How could I forget," he chuckles softly, cupping your face in his large palm, guiding your face too look at him, his dark eyes practically engulfing you in his loving gaze.

"Would you care to be my partner..?" he purrs, voice dipping to a soft and low tone that sends goosebumps down your spine.

"W-well, when you put it like that how can I say no?" you mumble, not being able to help the heat rising up your neck, painting your cheeks pink once again from how small you feel under Hanta's enchanting gaze.

"So... is that a yes..?" Hanta inquires, hand still placed tenderly on our cheek. You nod your head against his palm, fingers caressing up and down his forearm as he holds you.

"Mhm, I would love nothing more," you reply in a soft and tender tone. Hanta melts at your words, feeling on top the world and like he can do anything. An uncontrollable smile erupts on his face, charming dimples ornamenting his cheeks as he hugs you tight to his body not wanting to ever let go.

You shuffle in his arms to turn yourself around in his lap. Now facing him, you tuck your face into the crook of Hanta's neck, wrapping your arms and legs snuggly around his torso. Hanta holds you equally as close, affectionately running his fingers up and down your back in complete bliss with you snuggling up to him.

"Can I kiss you..?" Hanta asks, voice just barely above a whisper. You lift your head up to look him in his deep eyes and you cup his face in your hand. Hanta leans into your touch, grabbing your hand on his face and guides it down just enough to plant a chaste kiss to the edge of your palm. You sigh and softly smile, nodding at the boy's question.

"Please kiss me," you murmur, leaning closer into his body. Hanta places his hand on the back of your neck, pulling you and a colliding your lips together. Though it was clumsy at first, you quickly adapt and your lips lock together like puzzle pieces. Tenderly, Hanta pulls away from you and rests his forehead against yours. The kiss you shared was short and sweet but still left the both of you breathless and yearning for more.

"May I kiss you again?" Hanta questions playfully and you giggle in response while nodding your head against him. He leans in, smiling against you as you mash lips with together, the both of you sighing into the other's mouth. This kiss a lot more confident than the last as Hanta takes the lead to explore every bit of you he can, taking note of every noise, movement and reaction you give. This time you pull away, surfacing for air from Hanta's intense hold on you.

"I can kiss you again, right?" Hanta asks again.

"How many more kisses do you want??" you giggle.

"That is a dangerous question to ask, my love," Hanta purrs into you, his breath ghosting your neck as he nuzzles his face underneath your jaw and lays a soft peck where his face lies, "I'd take all of them," he says, scanning your face for any discomfort but once he sees you're ok with him continuing, he lays another peck on your neck.

You laugh at the ticklish feeling, lacing your fingers through his dark hair as he continues showering you with short kisses.

"Let me know if I'm being too much, yeah?" kiss on your neck, "I don't wanna be too much," another kiss on the neck, "or overwhelm you," kiss on your jaw, "'cus that would be sad," kiss on the corner of your mouth.

"Hanta!" you squeal through giggles.

"I'm sorry, hun" kiss on your cheekbone, "I just can't resist," kiss on your cheek, "you have no idea," kiss on the chin, "just how long," kiss on the nose, "I've wanted," kiss on the eyelid "to do this," kiss on the brow, "And now," kiss on the temple, "I can't," kiss on the forehead, "Stop,"

Erupting with giggles, you desperately try to squirm away as Hanta continues to relentlessly shower you with kisses.

"No, no, no! Hanta!" you cry through your laughter, "No more!"

Giving you one last peck on the lips before pulling away, Hanta finally gives into your pleas and stops his assault of kisses. He presses his forehead against yours as you calm down from your laughing fit, pulling some giggles from Hanta as well because of your contagious laugh.

"I love you," you sigh once you've finally calmed down. Hanta hums in response, placing his hand on the back of your head, letting his fingers lace through your hair.

"I love you too," he says, heart feeling full and beaming with joy.

Forever and always~

𝒇𝒊𝒏 . ✩

[ lil easter egg of sorts for those of you who don't know~ in Japanese when you ask someone "The moon is beautiful, isn't it?" or

『月が綺麗ですね』 // "tsuki ga kirei desu, ne?"

it's actually a very poetic way to confess your love to the person you're asking ]

[ I think it's literally so fucking cute 'cus i myself am deeply in love w/ the moon :) ]

[ if this were a thing in English and someone confessed to me this way, i would immediately demand for their hand in marriage >:| ]

[ god, japanese culture is so cool, i love it sm ]

ALSO- CAN WE NORMALISE ASKING SOMEONE OUT BY ASKING THEM TO BE YOUR PARTNER INSTEAD OF BF / GF????

"would you care to be my partner?" UHBIJNIJAHHHH LITERALLY SO ROMANTIC AND GENUINE HOLY SHIT- i'm making myself simp

RAAAHHHHHHH

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ordinaryschmuck · 3 years ago

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What I Thought About "Knock Knock Knockin' on Hooty's Door" from The Owl House

Wow. They are really pushing it for that secret message, huh?

Anywho--Salutations, random people on the internet who certainly won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons!

I think it goes without saying at this point that Season Two of The Owl House is setting itself up as a season without filler. Now, filler episodes aren't always bad. Yes, it hurts when a series turns away from the main plot for a week. But at best, they're utilized as a chance for the writers to play around with the characters and developing said characters without it relating to the overarching story. So, some people who see that consider it a bad thing that a series doesn't have that many filler episodes.

I like to call those people: F**king morons.

Don't get me wrong, I see where some of you are coming from. And I'd be willing to agree...if The Owl House was a plot-driven series. Which it's not. It is a character-driven series. Because for every plot thread and narrative that the show presents, they always relate to the characters and develop them further each time these threads get brought up. For example, look at "Knock Knock Knockin’ on Hooty's Door" (It pains me just to write that). Several narratives move forward, and it’s all done to make the characters grow. And to explain how requires going into spoilers. So keep that in mind as you continue reading.

Now, let's review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Hooty: Might as well start with the character that this episode is about.

To tell you the truth, I wasn't a huge fan when I found out we're getting a Hooty-centered episode. I've grown to love him over time, but he is a comedic character that's best used in small doses. Primarily due to how his voice is grating to me (My ears are still bleeding...). With that said, I do really love his contributions in "Knock Knock Knockin' on Hooty's Door" (Seriously, there couldn't have been a less awkward title?). Hooty's antics when trying to help everyone are as hilarious as they are heartwarming. He deeply cares for his friends but just doesn't understand how his plans could do some unintended harm, which is pretty lovable if you ask me. We also get some surprisingly great insight into his character, as he feels insecure about basically being the comic relief who doesn't really do that much other than being funny. Rarely do you get that level of dimension from a comedic character, and it's even more uncommon for that to work out as well as it does here. It once again proves just how competent the writing is in this series to the point where we get an episode about Hooty, and it's funny and heartwarming instead of being annoying. And whoever is responsible for that, you're the best.

Lilith’s Letter to Hooty: I mean it when I say that I love how Lilith kept her word about her and Hooty becoming penpals. Their friendship was something I would have never expected to love, and I'm still shocked that it works so well, so seeing it continue like this just warms me to the bone. Plus, it is pretty sweet that Lilith's kind words are what inspired Hooty to do what he's done in this episode...meaning it's Lilith we should thank here--SON OF A WITCH! Even when she's gone, she's still working her way into my heart!

King going through Puberty: What?! KING IS EVOLVING!

(There, I made a Pokemon reference. Do I get my cookie now?)

Eda Keeping Herself Awake to Train Herself: I'm willing to bet a large sum of money that this has everything to with Raine getting captured last week. If Eda was still the most powerful witch in the Isles, she might have actually saved them. But she isn't, and now the love of her life is in the clutches of a tyrant planning something that could potentially be the end of everything. So I can understand Eda pushing herself to her limit to get back on top again, as I would probably do the same. It's not healthy in any way, and Eda would be doing more harm than good. But when it comes to the people you love, logic doesn't always win out in the end.

Luz Wanting to Make her Way into Amity’s Heart by Making the Echo Mouse Happy: ...That's it. I Just...I just love everything about it, ok?

This was also when I knew that I was wrong to doubt that there would be zero Lumity in this episode. I realize my follies now, and I humbly apologize.

Hooty Teaching King About Demons: This was so funny. So, so funny. Probably doesn't come as a surprise, especially since The Owl House proves itself as a comedy before, but the jokes have never hit as frequently and as hard as they did here. From Hooty getting offended by King's dance to him and Dana's insert wanting a "DNA sample," everything managed to successfully make me lose my s**t. It does come at the expense of King suffering, but I can stomach that much more than if it were Eda or Luz. And, as a bonus, we get lore about how demons work, added with another great joke of King getting in trouble with Hooty for saying he already knows this stuff. Humor isn't always the show's strong suit, but when it works, it f**king works.

King Wanting to Know What he Is: But despite how funny King's vignette was, we still get to see more of his character grow. We learn that he's frustrated now that there's this big question mark over his life now, feeling extra angry that his father "abandoned" him to leave such a present mystery. It shows the hidden resentment he has that Lilith inadvertently brought out, made even worse when King's father hasn't responded to the video yet. King hasn't really gotten that much development until "Echoes of the Past," so it's pretty cool that the writers haven't really slowed down on it. Especially when it leads to these great moments of King venting his frustrations.

King’s Shouting Powers: KING learned FUS RO DAH!

(And now that's a Pokemon reference AND a Skyrim reference. WHERE'S MY GOSH DANG COOKIE!?)

Eda’s Nightmare: If King's vignette hits you hard with the laughs, Eda's will absolutely hit you harder with the feels (never make me say "feels" unironically again). Knowing that Eda's life got thoroughly screwed over by the curse is something we could figure out on her own. But seeing just how much the curse ruined her life and tore apart relationships that mean the world to her really does a swell job at ripping apart the soul. What's even more tragic is, technically speaking, it's all sort of Eda's fault too. She kept hiding the curse, refusing to be a burden to others who would do all they could to help. If she had only been open and honest, things probably wouldn't have changed much, but they most likely would have been better than they are now.

Eda Attacked her Father as the Owl Beast: ...I don't know what I was expecting when "Keeping Up A-Fear-Ances" hinted that there was some possible tension between Eda and her father...but it definitely wasn't this.

The fact that we see blood where his eye used to be doesn't make things any happier, either.

Raine Broke Up with Eda: Before we get into anything else, let's celebrate the fact that it's now confirmed that Eda and Raine really did use to date in the past. Because this show is just f**king phenomenal with its LGBTQA+ representation!

But, seriously, this is a fantastic reveal that goes far beyond just shipping...well, sort of. It shines a new light on Eda and Raine's interactions from last week, revealing that while they're not a couple anymore, they still very much love each other. It helps make their last interaction especially tragic, as they were both on the same page now and could very well be together again. Only for them to be forced apart for the second time in a way that's much worse than the first. And I frickin' adore that this series changes the impact of one episode one week later. Again, it shows just how competent these writers are, and kudos to them for making something so...perfect.

The Moon Person: WHO THE FU--Nope. Nope! We have more than enough mystery bulls**t to deal with through CreepyLuz and Philip Wittebane, so I am PUTTING YOU ON THE BACKBURNER FOR NOW!

(They're probably nothing more than a one-off character, anyway)

The Owl Beast and Eda are Connected: Through visuals alone, we, the audience, can clue into what the curse really means. The Owl Beast doesn't want to be a part of Eda as much as she doesn't want it to be a part of her. Whether they like it or not, and they very much don't, they're stuck together. The thing is, and this is what I love the most, they still decide to make the best of their situation rather than let it ruin their lives even more. This might be the best possible turn Eda's curse could have made. It'll still affect her, and there are probably more negatives than positives, but at least now, it's not the worst thing in the world. And I feel like that's all anyone can ask when in a position like her own.

Eda's “Pretty Dream”: I don't know what emotions are toiling inside me more with this moment. Awe and wonder over how beautiful Eda's dream is, or heartbreak over the implication that she has only had nightmares since getting cursed...I'm gonna say both. Yeah, it's definitely both.

Eda’s Harpie Form: Well, fan artists are gonna have a field day with this...especially the freaks.

(You know who you are. And you're weird!)

Luz Calling Amity a “Cotton-Candy Haired Goddess”: ...Have I ever mentioned how much I love this show?

Hooty Kidnapped Amity: ...Hooty, if your stupidity wasn't charming, I would be more than willing to call the authorities over how you kidnapped a girl in your version of a knapsack and locked her in the basement. For that is going to ring SO MANY alarm bells in people's heads.

Amity and Luz Stuck in a Tunnel of Love: *Smacks lips* Mmm. The adorable awkwardness of this moment is just *chef's kiss* magnifique!

Luz being afraid of getting made fun of:

Amity’s look of hope: I mean...just...f**king--LOOK AT HER:

That is the look of a girl who, while embarrassed as hell, still is ecstatic to learn for a brief moment, everything that she is hoping for has a high chance of being real. Who, in their right mind, wouldn't go "Aw!" at something so pure and innocent?!

Luz Destroying the Tunnel of Love: This is how to effectively utilize dramatic irony. The audience can understand why Luz is tearing the place apart because she explicitly states that she's afraid of Amity rejecting her in the end. They also know that's bogus, thus making it extra painful to watch Amity's heart break more and more with each second (which is perfectly represented through Amity's expressions). You feel bad for both of them, and even worse when you know that it can easily be prevented by the simple art of communication. That's what makes it great dramatic irony. Knowing the point of view of each character results in a scene that evokes emotions in two different ways.

Hooty’s Breakdown: This was...genuinely hard to watch. Not that it was badly written, far from it. It just...hurt seeing how destroyed Hooty was when he realized he failed the people he has such an admiration for. On the upside, a wholesome moment follows soon after as the Owl House gang tries to reassure Hooty that he's done a lot of good that night. It's a pure action that shows even though Hooty gets on their nerves all the time, they still care about him...damn it. I think I'm gonna cry.

Eda’s Advice for Luz: ...Eda...You're the best.

You found out that your surrogate daughter wants to ask a girl out, and not only were you quick to deliver the best possible advice ("Just go for it!"), but you also quickly reassure her that it doesn't need to be perfect.

And you know what? That's it. Eda is the best cartoon mom! She might not technically be Luz's mom, but I don't give a s**t because she is the best!

Luz and Amity Ask Each Other Out: Shh-sh-sh-sh...

Do you hear that?

...

...It's the sound of dozens of Lumity fans collectively losing their s**t...and I'm one of them.

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

HOO-HOO-HOO-HOO!

IT!

IS!

CANON!

AH-HAHAHAHAHA!

HOLY S**T! Holy s**t! Holy s**t...might just be the best way I could possibly describe this! Finally, after all the waiting, speculating, and praying, THESE TWO IDIOTS FINALLY GOT TOGETHER! AND IT WAS PERFECT! I mean, it was awkward as s**t, but that's what makes it perfect! You know why? You wanna--Hey! *snaps fingers*. You want to know why? It's because they're teenagers. Of f**king course, it's going to be awkward! This is their first relationship, so there will be a lot of missteps along the way. And that, in itself, brings me to the best (second best part?) thing about it happening in episode eight of the new seasons. Most endgame couples get together in the climax or even at the end of the series. But to have them get together this early on, means there will be quite a few episodes dedicated to showing them grow as a couple.

And better than that--EVEN F**KING BETTER THAN THAT--dozens of kids are going to see these two, a realistic depiction of young love that just so happens to involve two girls, and are going to learn once and for all that there is nothing wrong with being who they are. That fact alone is f**king incredible. Yes, it sucks that season three got cut short, and we'll have even less time with Luz and Amity, but knowing how many kids have felt seen today almost makes it worth it in the end.

And if I see one mother f**ker saying this was poorly paced, I might just hunt them down for SPORT...Sorry if that was an overreaction. I'M JUST SO HAPPY! Because they're happy! Look at them. Listen to them! It's so...GAH-HAHAHA!

“They’re adorable! And deserve all the happiness!”: You're darn right, Hooty! You're darn right.

King’s Father(?) Shows Up: What the--WHAT?! They're doing this now?! Here?! After everything else?

Oh, man. What could this mean? What dynamic changes will this cause in the main cast? How could the writers fit this in during the next two episodes? And what--

Hooty Eats the Letter: ...Pfffft--HAHAHAHA!

Oh, man...I should be mad, and I wouldn't blame others if they are...but that is too much of a brilliant f**k you that I can't help but appreciate it. Bravo writers. Bravo.

WHAT I DISLIKED

...Dislikes? Dislikes? You would honestly believe that after everything I witnessed in this episode, that I would have the gull to list anything wrong with it?!

HOW DARE YOU ASSUME THAT I WOULD BE SO CALLUS TO--Actually, I do kind of have an issue with the episode's title. It's just too much of an awkward mouthful for me to get behind. I understand that the writers wanted to sneak the K into the secret message, but were there really no other titles starting with K that they couldn't come up with?

But that's just a personal issue, and in no way do I think anybody else would feel the same way. Especially with how well-written everything else is anyway.

IN CONCLUSION

"Knock Knock Knockin' on Hooty's Door" (title aside) is another A+ episode. It was hilarious, heart-wrenching, and downright adorable while keeping me entertained with every minute. I'm sure there are some issues I was willing to ignore due to how expertly written everything else was, but why bother looking for the chinks in the armor when I could just enjoy a perfect episode for being so...perfect! Some of you might be willing to disagree with me, but to that, I say: Don't knock it till you've tried it.

(Now, if you don't excuse me, I'm going to go lie down. It's...It's been a day.)

#the owl house #the owl house season 2 #the owl house reviews #the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #toh hooty #king clawthorne #eda clawthorne #raeda #luz noceda #amity blight #lumity #lumity is canon #what i thought about

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obeyme-kaidii-writes · 4 years ago

Note

Alright, this combination spoke to me. I personally am struggling to pick between Lucifer, Satan, Beelzebub, and Diavolo as my favorite, I love all of them. So Poly with the four, but with the angst prompt of "I don't know how much longer I can endure this." in response to the tortures of not being able to choose. Up to interpretation, but this resonated with me.

I may have gotten a teensy tiny bit carried away with this one. But I had a lot of fun writing it, so I hope you enjoy it too!

Complicated

Diavolo / Lucifer / Satan / Beel x poly gn!MC

Words - 5330

Content warnings - some angst, lots of comfort and fluff, polyamorous relationship w/MC (no demon x demon relationships)

Prompt/Inspiration - anon request, “I don’t know how much longer I can endure this.”

Summary - You had managed to fall in love with not one, not two, but FOUR demons - and now you had to figure out what came next.

AO3

Complicated.

There really wasn’t another way to describe the current state of your life.

Beel was the first one to really take an interest in you. A genuine interest. You fell in love hard and fast. Perhaps it was the guilt over not being able to reveal what you knew about Belphegor’s situation, but you didn’t feel comfortable making your feelings for him known. It just seemed like something that would burden him, and you really didn’t want to risk losing the one friend you felt the most safe with while you were all alone in this new realm.

As your year progressed, the situation with Belphegor was finally resolved. But still, you hesitated to say anything. You knew how close he was to Belphie, and you convinced yourself that it would be best if you didn’t do anything that would come between them. It was obvious even to your own heart that you were just making excuses for yourself, too scared to take a step forward.

It was then you started growing closer to Lucifer. Your initial relationship with him had been...strained...to say the least. But after he realized the lengths you were willing to go to in order to help his brothers, he couldn’t help but fall in love with you. You had an inner strength that he honestly admired, though he would probably never admit that to you. And he enjoyed your company immensely, even if it was just having you nearby while he worked. Everything just seemed easier with you around, even Mammon’s shenanigans didn’t stress him out quite like they used to anymore. And you enjoyed his company as well - he was a source of stability for you in the chaos of the House of Lamentation. You would often take refuge in his study with him to recharge after a day of playing referee for the other overgrown children you had as housemates.

You had also managed to catch Satan’s eye, particularly after the whole dating sim fiasco with Levi. He liked the fact that you saw him as an individual - you never compared him to Lucifer, nor did you ever try to force the issue about them getting along. You just let Satan be...Satan. And he loved spending time with you reading together. It was like the two of you had your own private book club; he was always ready with a book recommendation for you.

It was Satan that had actually approached you first about the possibility of being in a relationship. You were surprised to hear that he had had such a strong interest in you, since he was always so reserved most of the time. Your initial reaction was of course to want to say yes, but the fact that Beel, and Lucifer especially, still held pieces of your heart made you feel incredibly guilty. You didn’t even have to ask to know that Lucifer was the absolute last person he’d ever be ok with sharing your affections with, even if you could get him to consider a polyamorous relationship.

So, you instead asked Satan for time. And he agreed to give you some space to think things over. You knew it was unfair to him to expect him to wait...but you couldn’t bring yourself to tell him “no”. You didn’t want to tell him “no”, after all. It was just the only option you felt was available to you.

Hoping to avoid Satan, and delay the inevitable, you started spending more time with Barbatos at the Demon Lord’s Castle. He taught you all about Devildom teas, and showed you how to bake some of Diavolo’s favorite treats. And Diavolo was more than happy to sample everything you tried your hand at preparing.

At some point, you had just started dropping by even when Barbatos was busy, just to chat with Diavolo and he was always glad to see you. He’d ask you about your life in the human realm, and you’d ask him about life in the Devildom. You probably learned more about Devildom history and lore from these conversations than you ever did in class at RAD; and you eagerly soaked it all up, hanging on Diavolo’s every word, absolutely enchanted with his storytelling ability and his life experiences that spanned several millennia.

Unlike with Beel, or even Lucifer, you didn’t realize when you had started falling for Diavolo, or Dia as he asked you to call him now. One day you had just tried to stop by, only to learn that he was still stuck at RAD, working with Lucifer. And you were absolutely devastated. It shocked you honestly at just how upset you had gotten over the loss of one simple visit. But as soon as you felt that familiar ache in your heart you knew exactly what was going on.

It was the same thing that you had been trying to avoid dealing with with Lucifer and his brothers. And you had somehow managed to get tangled up in again. Only this time things were far more complicated than family relationships between brothers. There was just no way you’d be allowed to enter into a relationship with Lord Diavolo, crown prince of the Devildom. That is if he was even interested in you in that way, which you highly doubted. Why would he be? You were just a simple human. You didn’t have any great experience or insight to offer, your education wasn’t even that exemplary. There was nothing about you that you felt entitled you to ever expect to be more than just friends with the Prince, and you were lucky he even humored your attempts at friendship.

You weren’t sure how, but you did manage to make it home that afternoon and crawled into bed. The tears just started on their own, and you were powerless to stop them. You had fought them off for far too long at this point, your body simply decided it had enough repressing those emotions and they all came pouring out. How much longer would you be able to endure this? You honestly didn’t think there was much more your heart could take, and you had no one to blame but yourself.

————

When Beel dropped by to remind you of dinner, you pretended to sleep and choked back your sobs until he went away. When Lucifer stopped by to check on you, you told him you were busy with schoolwork. And when Satan asked if you would like to come over to his room to read, you said you weren’t feeling well.

You thought you had managed to throw everyone off the scent. But when Diavolo popped in to apologize for not being there when you had tried to visit him earlier, everything quickly started to unravel.

You opened your bedroom door, completely shocked to see Dia and Lucifer on the other side. He had never come by before just to see you. Maybe a few times to check on Lucifer, but he usually would send Barbatos to run any important errands or to issue any invitations. Seeing him before you now, you immediately became aware of how awful you must have looked. Your eyes still red, your hair a mess, your uniform all disheveled since you hadn’t bothered to change when you got home.

As you stood there, opening and closing your mouth, struggling to string together a single coherent thought, the unthinkable happened - Beel walked by on his way to the kitchen, Satan not far behind him, and they both turned to look your way as they walked past your door. Your eyes flicked from Beel to Satan to Lucifer to Dia and you instinctively tried to slam your door shut to escape, but Lucifer caught it before you could.

“Is there something the matter?” he asked.

And of course, once again, your body decided it had just had enough of containing your repressed emotions and let your tears flow freely. This was it, you thought. You were going to be forced to face what you had been trying to avoid and that would just be the end of it all. Since you had refused to make a choice on your own, your choice was about to be made for you and you were going to end up with absolutely nothing as a result.

—————

It took awhile for you to calm down. Beel was sitting next to you on the edge of your bed with his arm wrapped protectively around your shoulders. Satan was standing nearby, holding a glass of water for you. You thanked him quietly for his thoughtfulness, and slowly sipped the chilled water, trying to buy yourself some time before you would start being forced to answer questions. And Lucifer and Dia were sitting across from you in two plush, wingback chairs that they had dragged away from the wall.

Everyone silently waiting for you.

“I’m...sorry…” you finally mumbled out. Beel gave you a reassuring squeeze, and Satan sat down beside you, taking your free hand. What you wouldn’t have given to be able to freeze time and just continue living in that perfect little moment surrounded by your favorite demons. But this was reality. And it was about time you faced that.

“It’s ok, but what are you apologizing for?” Satan asked.

“I umm…” your lip started trembling and you took a deep breath to try to calm yourself. There wasn’t any way to run from this, not this time.

“Take your time,” Beel reassured you, rubbing your arm.

“I’m sorry for avoiding you guys, especially you Satan. I know that wasn’t fair.” You felt him tense up beside you, no doubt expecting the reason for your avoidance to have been due to the fact you were planning on rejecting him. But he didn’t let go of your hand either, which only made you feel more guilty.

“It’s just...I can’t...I can’t choose…” you started to fidget nervously in your seat.

Lucifer seemed to have caught on quicker than the rest, “You mean to say you have feelings for more than one of us?” You meekly nodded, keeping your head down and your eyes glued to the floor. You had absolutely no desire to see the expressions on everyone’s faces as they exchanged looks with one another.

By this point Dia was getting a bit uncomfortable. This didn’t seem like the sort of conversation he should be part of - it was between Lucifer and his brothers after all. Even though he treasured you greatly, he had never made those feelings known to you nor had you ever expressed more than friendly interest in him, so it didn’t even occur to him that he might also be involved.

“I think I’ll go ahead and head out so…”

“No..!” you called out, looking Dia right in the eye, desperate for him to stay. You were surprised at your own reaction, but you couldn’t let him leave without knowing how you felt. The only thing that would hurt worse than him knowing your feelings and rejecting you, was if he thought you didn’t care for him at all and preferred someone else to him. And you couldn’t let that happen. You at least wanted a chance to keep him as your friend.

“I...ummm…you’re part of...this…” you mumbled out as your eyes fell to the ground again.

Diavolo was caught completely off guard with your confession, a deep blush spreading across his cheeks. As was Lucifer, who for the most part had been unaware that you had been spending enough time with the Prince to have any sort of relationship.

The silence that followed was killing you. It felt so oppressive. All you could do was wait for someone else to decide to speak. You couldn’t understand why Beel was still holding you so gently, or why Satan hadn’t moved from his spot next to you, your hand still wrapped in his. It was only a matter of time, you thought, before they’d all leave one by one and you’d find yourself alone. Part of you wanted them to hurry up and go so you could wallow in your own self pity, because the other part of you wanted them all to stay and tell you how much they all loved you, and you knew that was never going to happen.

“Can I speak with them? Alone?”

“Lord Diavolo…” Lucifer had started to object, but quickly stopped himself. He could use this time to talk to Satan and Beel, and it seemed they had a lot to talk about, “Alright, we will be in my study. Let us know when you’re finished.”

Satan, who had been staring at you this whole time, glared at Lucifer for assuming he’d just go along with his suggestion. But even he could see the tender look in his eyes as he gazed at you. There was no doubt Lucifer cared for you immensely, and seeing as this was for your benefit, Satan decided to comply, giving your hand one final squeeze before making his way out of your room.

Beel was having a more difficult time letting you go. He could practically feel how upset you were, and didn’t want to leave you alone. But after looking at Lucifer and Lord Diavolo, he finally accepted that it would be alright to leave you be for just a few moments. So, giving you one last hug and a kiss to the top of your head, he followed after Satan, with Lucifer not far behind.

Now alone with you, Dia dragged his chair closer to your bed so that he was sitting right in front of you, knees nearly touching. He took the now empty glass from you and set it down on the bedside table before taking both of your hands in his own.

“This has been bothering you for some time, hasn’t it?”

“...yeah…”

“Is this why you started spending so much time at the castle?”

“Sorta. I asked Barbatos to help me learn more about Devildom baking so I could avoid everyone else,” you gave a self deprecating laugh, “But then I started spending time with you….and...well then that started to be the reason I came…”

“So you really enjoyed our time together?”

“Of course!” you replied, raising your head to meet Diavolo’s gaze. He was much closer than you were expecting, and you flushed in embarrassment. He chuckled at your reaction. You were just so cute when you got flustered, he had a hard time resisting the urge to tease you, but he’d have to save that for later.

“Then why were you so upset?”

“Because...I...realized it didn’t matter.”

“Didn’t matter? Why would you think that?”

“Because...I’m...I'm just me. A simple human. And you’re you. And I should just be happy you even put up with me or talk to me at all. And even if I told you how I felt, it wouldn’t change how I feel about them and it just didn’t seem fair to have to choose, not after Satan already confessed to me. And I know Lucifer hasn’t said anything yet, but I can tell the way he looks at me. And there is no way Satan would ever be ok with me having any sort of relationship with Lucifer. And Beel is like my best friend and I’m sure if I say anything it would just upset Belphie and I don’t want to hurt him or make Beel think he has to choose…”

You snapped your mouth shut, realizing what you had just done. You had just unloaded everything, all the secrets and worries that had plagued your heart for the past several months, you had shared it all. To say you were mortified right now would be an understatement. You truly wished the ground would just swallow you up. You’d wish for death if you thought it would make a difference, but with your luck you’d just end up right back in the Devildom.

“So what I’m hearing is you’re too busy worrying about how everyone else feels to worry about yourself?”

You nodded your head, averting your eyes.

“What do you want then?”

“...it’s selfish…”

“Then be selfish. We’re demons after all.”

“Wha…?” you looked up at Dia again and he was gazing at you softly, a small smile on his lips as he encouraged you. Was it really ok for you to just ask for that ? Would they really not hate you if you did? It didn’t seem possible for you to get everything you’d want, how could you be that lucky? Surely if you said anything, then you’d lose everything, right?

At least that’s what your human conscience was telling you.

But here sat Lord Diavolo, future king of the Devildom, telling you that it was ok to ask for whatever you wanted, in a way that suggested you just might be granted it. And you wanted so badly to believe that that would be true.

“Go on, love, tell me what you want to do.”

————

Lucifer took a seat at his desk, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms in front of himself. Finding out that you had a close relationship with Diavolo had come as a huge surprise. He had suspected that Satan had taken a liking to you, and he wasn’t at all surprised to discover that Beel was fond of you as well. But Diavolo? He wasn’t sure what to make of that.

“I assume you wanted to talk to us. So what is it?” asked Satan. He was agitated. He didn’t like the idea of leaving you alone with Lord Diavolo, especially not after it seemed that you may actually reciprocate his own feelings. But since, it appeared, he wasn’t the only one in your heart, he had to put your best interest first. And in this case that included letting you speak with Lord Diavolo while he discussed things with his brothers.

“Obviously.”

“Well?”

“First, I want to hear what your thoughts are on this matter. It’s clear that Satan has feelings for them, but what about you Beel? You’ve been quiet this whole time.”

Satan and Lucifer both turned to look at Beel who was seated in one of the large chairs near the fireplace. He raised his head to look at his brothers, before sighing and sitting back in his seat. He knew how much they cared for you. He had even started to realize when Lord Diavolo had begun to take an interest in you as even his casual interactions became more friendly. And he had decided that he was going to keep his own feelings to himself, not wanting to interfere in his brothers’ happiness. Never once had it occurred to him that he may have been causing you to suffer as a result.

“I love them,” he replied, a soft blush spreading across his cheeks. Of course he loved you. How could he not? You were just so bright in his eyes, and you brought so much hope with you. When you had told him that you wanted to help Lucifer and Belphie makeup when you had first arrived, he didn’t doubt you for a second. Even though he barely knew you at the time, he just had this feeling you’d make it happen. And the closer the two of you grew, the more deeply he trusted you, the stronger his love for you became, the more he wanted to protect you and your happiness.

“Then I suppose that makes three of us,” Lucifer said, clearing his throat.

“So? What are you suggesting we do?” asked Satan.

“That depends on them, of course. But it seems the primary reason for their struggle is because they feel unable to choose between us.”

“I already confessed directly, have you?” Satan asked, staring Lucifer down.

“I have not, and I don’t believe Beel has either,” Beel shook his head in agreement, “I think that’s irrelevant though based on the conversation we just had in their bedroom.”

Satan scoffed, walking to the other end of the room to put some distance between himself and Lucifer. Of course his brother was right. It didn’t really matter who said what first, or even who you fell in love with first. All that mattered was what you wanted. And right now, he wasn’t sure what you wanted at all.

He had to admit it did sting a little when he realized you weren’t interested in him alone. Particularly since Lucifer was one of the other parties involved. The idea of being in any sort of romantic relationship which also involved Lucifer just made his skin crawl. But despite that, the idea of losing you entirely was even more painful.

“I believe we need to decide what we would like to do if they express an interest in maintaining a relationship with all three...four...of us. Would either of you have any objections to that?”

Beel immediately shook his head. He didn’t have any issues with a polyamorous relationship, not if that’s what you wanted. He just wanted to see you happy, and he knew it would make him feel better if you were with someone else who loved you just as much as he did when he couldn’t be there. The only other concern that crossed his mind was how Belphie would react, but he knew that Belphie adored you too in his own way, and you enjoyed his company as well. So there really wasn’t any reason for Beel to say “no”.

“Satan?”

“No objections, so long as we get private time with them too.”

“Then it seems we are all agreed. We will wait to see what they decide.”

————

You wrapped your arms around Dia’s neck as he lifted you up effortlessly and spun you around, the both of you laughing. He was so glad to hear what you desired, and more than happy to do what he could to make that wish come true. You hardly asked for anything for yourself, something he found absolutely charming, but now that you confessed to him that you wanted to be his? He’d give you the whole Devildom if you asked for it. Maybe even if you didn’t.

You hid your face in his neck as you hugged him close. You were pretty sure you must be dreaming at this point, but you didn’t care. You were going to make the most of this dream for as long as it lasted. You still had the other 3 of your beloved demons to talk to, but having Dia on your side made that not seem nearly as scary now. He had given you permission to be yourself, and he didn’t shame you for it, or guilt you into changing your mind. He just listened, and accepted you with open arms.

“I want to suggest we make a break for it, and run off together, but I think Lucifer and his brothers are waiting for us.”

You pulled back to look Dia in the eyes, and smiled at him. He was even more handsome up close, and you couldn’t help but run your fingers through his hair before resting your forehead against his. You wanted to savor this moment for just a little while longer. After you left your room, there was going to be a whole host of things to discuss and negotiate. It might honestly be awhile before you’d get to have some alone time like this with him again, but you knew he was worth it. They all were. You’d figure things out one way or another, of that you were certain.

“Alright, I guess I’ve put this off long enough.”

“I probably shouldn’t carry you into Lucifer’s study, should I?”

“Probably not,” you laughed.

Diavolo set you down gently, only releasing you from his arms when he was sure you were steady on your feet. He pressed a tender kiss to your forehead before offering you his hand, and entwining his fingers with yours. He beamed at you, when he caught you staring at your joined hands, lifting them up to kiss the back of the one he was holding. You blushed at the gesture, but couldn’t help but smile when your eyes met his.

“Shall we?” he asked, leading you to your bedroom door.

————

You peered sheepishly around the corner of Lucifer’s study door before entering the room, Diavolo slightly behind you, with one hand gently resting on your lower back to encourage you. As your eyes scanned the room, Lucifer, Satan, and Beel all turned to face you, various expressions of anxiety and excitement written on their faces. You turned back to look at Dia, and he just smiled and nodded at you, guiding you inside.

“Hey…” was all you managed to squeak out.

Not wasting a moment, Beel rose to his feet and wrapped his arms about your shoulders, pulling you to his chest. He kissed the top of your head, before resting his cheek against you.

“I love you,” he whispered, “and I’m fine with whatever you want to do.” You clutched at his shirt in return, relief washing over you. He didn’t ask you any questions, he didn’t pressure you to make a choice. He just supported you like he always did, the same support you gave him. You took a deep breath, breathing in his scent, before slowly pulling away so you could see his face. He smiled at you softly, and you just felt your heart melt. How could a demon possibly be this cute? you wondered.

“I love you too,” you replied, making his smile broaden. You hadn’t said it to him yet, and hearing those words in your voice made him want to jump for joy. Caught up in the moment, you briefly forgot about the others in the room with you, until Lucifer cleared his throat. You blushed heavily when you realized you were being watched, and you could hear Dia chuckling behind you.

Beel let you go, but immediately grabbed your hand and brought you to the chair he had been sitting in earlier. You took your seat, starting to feel a bit nervous again when he stepped back, even if it only was so Lucifer and Satan could have a chance to speak with you.

They were probably the two you were most anxious about speaking with. Their relationship was complicated enough as it was, you weren’t even sure they’d want to stick you in the middle of it.

“We’ll be outside if you need us,” Dia said, more to you than anyone else, as he offered you a smile. Beel nodded to you as well, before slipping out after Diavolo to give you some privacy with Lucifer and Satan.

Lucifer nudged the coffee table over so that it was positioned in such a way that both he and Satan could sit side by side in front of you. Even after he took a seat though, Satan remained a little ways away, silent and watching. Part of Lucifer wanted to chastise him for being stubborn and troublesome, but then he remembered that Satan was the only one to openly confess to you, and as such, probably had a lot more to discuss with you, preferably in private.

“I’ll keep this brief for now,” Lucifer began, returning his attention to you and holding the hand nearest him, “But I too, love you, deeply. And I hope you will accept me. I’m willing to do whatever is needed to insure your happiness.”

You had not been expecting such an open and forward declaration of love from Lucifer, of all demons, but you could see the unbridled passion in his eyes as he looked at you and waited for your reply. All you could do was nod your head, which made Lucifer smirk, pleased that he had rendered you speechless. He leaned forward, kissing you tenderly on the lips. It was only the briefest of touches, but it contained a promise of more that made your heart race.

“We will talk more later,” he said, as he gave you one final kiss to your forehead, turning to look at Satan before he left the room.

Satan kept his eyes trained on the door to Lucifer’s study until he heard the tell-tale “click” signifying it had been locked. He then sighed, his shoulders relaxing, as he turned to face you. His mask, the carefully crafted one he often hid behind in his attempt to control his emotions, crumbled away and you could see just how exhausted he appeared. Your heart ached knowing that you were to blame for that. He had been waiting for your response to his confession for several weeks now, and you had always managed to avoid answering him.

You knew you needed to apologize to him, before anything else, so you stood up and hesitantly moved to stand before him. Fortunately for Satan, even with as close as you were, you were unable to hear the way his heart thudded rapidly against his chest. Or if you did, you didn’t mention it. Instead, you simply reached out for his hands and held them tightly, rubbing your thumbs along his knuckles.

“I’m sorry, Satan. I was...I was scared. And I acted childishly and selfishly. I should have spoken to you…”

Your apology was cut short when you suddenly felt his lips crash into yours. Taking advantage of your surprise, he wrapped one arm around your waist, pulling you close, and with the other he gently cradled your head, holding you in place. It took a moment for your brain to catch up with what was happening, but once you finally realized you quickly looped your arms around Satan’s neck and deepened the kiss. You could feel him smiling against your lips when you did so, happy tears starting to spill from your eyes.

“I love you,” you whispered, when you finally broke away for air, “I’m sorry for not talking to you.”

Satan rested his forehead against yours, his thumb rubbing soothing circles on the back of your neck, “I guess you’ll have to make it up to me,” he teased.

“I guess so,” you laughed, before pulling back to look him in the eyes, “Are you sure you’re ok with this? With Lucifer and everyone I mean.”

“I won’t lie and say I wouldn’t prefer to have you all to myself. But,” he paused, tucking a few stray hairs behind your ear, “but I’m willing to work with you, to try to find a compromise we can all be happy with.”

“Really?” you could feel your tears threatening to spill again as your heart started to overflow with joy.

“Really. Will you promise me something though?”

“Of course, anything,” you said, wiping at your eyes, trying to fight off your tears.

“That you will talk with me if things change. And that we will be able to spend time together, just the two of us.”

Your vision blurred with tears, unable to hold them back any longer, “I promise. I’ll talk to you. About everything.”

“Good,” he whispered, gently kissing away your tears as they slid down your cheeks. You couldn’t stop smiling now if you even were to try. You threw your arms around his neck and hugged him as tight as you could manage, hoping to convey even a fraction of your happiness to him. When you felt him hug you back tightly, arms wrapped around your waist, you knew you had been successful.

Against all odds, and despite your fumbling attempts at dealing with your own emotions, you had managed to get everything you had wanted. Never in your wildest dreams could you have imagined things working out this way. Your arrival in the Devildom had been a lonely one. But you weren’t alone anymore. Not now, not ever.

#200 followers #anon request #request #gn!mc #poly mc #obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me lucifer #obey me diavolo #obey me satan #obey me beel #lucifer x poly mc #satan x poly mc #beel x poly mc #diavolo x poly mc #obey me angst #obey me fanfic #poly angst #poly comfort

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anexlarrieblog · 3 years ago

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Weak larrie anon here. I've never shared my story. I just. Stopped. I was a 1st gen larrie. Day one. If I said who I was most OG larries would know me immediately. I am one who just disappeared. I am probably a coward. I used the excuse that I was "tired" and then left. I think I was slowly un-larrying long before I realized it. Like most CTs time exposes the truth. My belief became unsustainable especially after the 'hiatus" and the baby. Jay's passing and everything that went with that. (1)

I pretended for a while. My entire online EVERYTHING was larrie. All my friends. People I had gone to concerts with and slept outside for days with and grown up with were all larries. Although I was a larrie my crush and lowkey fav was Niall. I found it almost impossible to cold turkey. It was so scary. I made a Niall account and started making friends there. Found out what it was like to be a "normal" fan. No stress. It was so much fun. I couldn't remember the last time I had fun in fandom. (2) No one telling me daily how I was supposed to feel or think. Being excited about Niall posting and not the dread that always came with any posts that had to do with louis or harry. It was so freeing and easy. I realized that it was never supposed to be so hard. And frustrating. And stressful. And one day I walked away. I had made new friends. Real friends. I told them about my larrie stuff and they never made me feel bad. They empathized with how hard it was. I never looked back. (3)

Just a little add on to my larrie post. Because I think some ex-larries need to hear this. Once I realized that Harry and Louis are exactly who they say they are and not the made up version that larries love I also realized that I don't necessarily enjoy them as people as much and that's okay. Like, I don't hate them or anything. I'm still a fan of the music but not so much of them as individuals. That was a hard pill to swallow. But I find I enjoy their music much more now. The end. lol (4)

——————————————————————————

Omg anon thank-you so much for sharing your story. It’s very interesting and a good insight into un-larrying especially since you were an OG bigger Larrie. A lot of people who I’ve spoke to so far seem to have found Jays passing and surrounding events a breaking point. I also agree it’s fine to un-Larrie and not support Harry and Louis as much as you used to, because you weren’t supporting the real version of them. And like you say the acceptance of personal responsibility that comes with that. People who become rads on the other hand… different sort. So glad you are happier now anon and you’re not a coward in the slightest you owed no one an explanation and it wouldn’t have got you anywhere anyway! Please come chat to me anytime 💕

#im dying to know who you were but totally respect you wanting to remain anonymous #as I said you don’t owe anyone anything #and I’m glad you are a happier person now #ask #anon #ex larrie

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chibimyumi · 4 years ago

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I hope you're doing well

I have questions if you don't mind

Who do like Axel von Fersen in Marie Antoinette or Axel von Fersen in 1789 les amants de la bastille and also do you like Marie Antoinette in Marie Antoinette or in 1789 les amants de la bastille

Thank you for answering my questions

Dear Anon,

I am doing well, thank you very much! I hope you too.

Hmmm, as a quick answer I would say I prefer both Marie and Fersen from ‘Toho MA’, but the full answer is slightly more complicated.

Firstly, it is almost unfair to compare them to each other because in MA they are the main characters, whereas in 1789 they are main-support or secondary-mains at best.

Secondly, MA has a far bigger focus on the characters because that is what drives the plot, while the opposite is true for 1789, which mainly sells a spectacle. I myself am more fan of subtle and deep story-telling rather than spectacular shows, so the MA versions of Marie and Fersen are more to my liking.

Thirdly, the quality of the characters also depends greatly on the cast. My first view of MA is the A-cast, and therefore my impression of the characters is that they are incredibly well written. After comparison with other casts however, I started to wonder whether it was just the A-cast being too good, and the musical itself being ‘fine’. (In short; I’m not fully sure how much I’d ‘clearly’ have preferred MA Marie and Fersen were it not for A-cast. Click here for a comparison between the two casts written by my friend @wildandwhirlingwords)

But, I shall go into more detail for both characters why MA’s version appeals more to me - someone who enjoys character writing most.

🌹Marie Antoinette🌹

M.A. 2018

In my opinion Marie Antoinette is better in MA because you see her journey and her motivations. We all know that the historical Queen screwed up majorly, but in MA we see why, and in what ways she indeed had very little other choice from her own perspective. She was a flawed foreign woman in a time and place where flawed foreign women were hated most.

In the beginning of the musical the King comes tell Marie that she’d have to live more economically. Marie is clearly not very enthusiastic to hear that, but she also never protests. She just asks ‘why’ and then accepts the answer - albeit broodingly. More importantly however: we need to keep in mind that despite being called Madam Deficit, the historical Marie Antoinette was actually quite economical at first because the Austrian court where she comes from was way less extravagant than the French. It was after her marriage into French royalty that she became more extravagant, because she was criticised for “not being a proper royal” by the French. According to the court, the 14 year old Marie was “a peasant unworthy of becoming Queen.” When you’re that young and criticised by your entire new life, you do everything in your power to make sure you can actually have a life; you adapt. So when Marie was then suddenly told to stop ‘adapting and be a proper Queen worthy of the French”, we can see why more is at stake than “Karen needs to deal with only 10 dresses a week.”

Something else that adds depth to her character as opposed to her 1789 counterpart is that as the story progresses, Marie actually grows. She becomes more mature and more serious, and you see in her how all the events have a clear toll on her. From her own perspective, she really was trying very hard, but anything she tried was inadequate to improve the situation. What she didn’t know is that no matter how hard she tried, the situation was already un-salvageable before she was even born. The populace AND the court had already decided to hate her for being an unintelligent foreign woman from an enemy state, after all. This is an insight most historians nowadays agree on.

In a later scene where Margrid confronts Marie, she asks the Queen: “what makes you think you are better than us?” Marie confirms nor denies, but replies: “I am merely Queen as I was appointed by God.” When she adds: “All I know is duties, you are free,” there is also a clear sense she genuinely doesn’t know why she was appointed by God, but as she is now, all she can do is her best. She is still ignorant, which was a genuine problem about her. She does not know the hardships of not being from the top rank, allowing her say something as insensitive as: “at least you’re free.” But again, despite her ignorance, her feelings are sincere. From all the unfair expectations she was made to live up to from age 14, you really do see why ‘a life without duties’ seemed so much more appealing to her.

1789 - The Lovers of the Bastille

Marie in 1789 is more of a side-character, and the musical itself just is not very character/story driven as MA is. 1789 has the tendency to take the tropiest of tropes and stay on surface level with the characters. Ouki Kaname is an incredibly good actress and she tries her best; but she cannot do more than the script gives her to work with.

In this musical Marie is not portrayed in a very relatable or sympathetic light. She is extravagant because she has escapist fantasies, but we don’t really see what she’s escaping from. The sympathy from the audience is supposed to be drawn from the tragedy that she’s married to the King but is in love with Fersen. Oh, and she has a son but he’s mortally ill. Meanwhile however, you don’t see how her life is so bad she needs to escape... and you also don’t see Marie really being worried about her son than an occasional: “Oh Ill again? Sucks I guess. Gotta cry my eyes out on my lover’s lap, AHHH FERSEN 💗” It was not until her son had already died that Marie woke up, but the lack of portrayal of Marie’s perspective and the pacing really makes one legitimately wonder whether the child did not just die of Marie’s neglect. And about the forbidden love ...we’ve seen enough love triangles with star-crossed-lovers... I don’t know about you guys, but I am numbbbbb to this “problem”.

When Marie receives message from Olympe that she finally gets to meet her lover after a long separation at the Palais Royal, one of the first things she says is: “is that not the place where revolutionaries and prostitutes are gathered?” This immediately sets up an empathy-barrier between her and the common people. This Marie clearly views herself too good for people who do anything to get by; why would you care about her then? Because Marie’s story is not fleshed out you don’t see parts that can make you go: “oh, the revolutionaries really hate her for reasons beyond her control, she is in danger.” Or “she was raised by a puritan society, making her hate on sex-workers; that’s part of her character flaw.” Instead it’s just this Diva being quite judgemental.

Ouki was trying very hard to make the focus about her own safety, but with the script being what it is... she’s still a mostly unsympathetic character who is a martyr of forbidden love.

There is one scene where we see her take on a much more mature and responsible role. That was the first time I personally felt like Marie from 1789 is an actual human being with feelings and personal difficulties. But in great part this is Ouki’s acting... (the other cast didn’t do much for me). What is also important is that Marie was ‘humbled’ because her son died. Marie did not have much of a personal growth, and then she changes to a more sympathetic person because of an external factor just... feels less earned.

In the finale Marie appears again in her execution clothes, and the way Ouki appeared really felt like a punch in the gut. She sings “as a recompense for our griefs, people have learnt forgiveness.” However, the story skimped over the characters so much I was left to wonder: “who learned to forgive whom?” Do you think the people forgave you? Or was there somebody you hated but now learned to forgive? What was your grudge? Do you understand the angry mob’s grudge?

The finale of the musical treats like after the heroic sacrifice of the protagonist (Ronan) the oppressive monarchy was replaced by a good democracy, and a Reign of Terror will DEFINITELY not happen under Robespierre or something. But if you’ve had a BIT of European history you just know it’s a blatant lie. So the finale just feels too simplistic, and this simplistic feeling was in part presented by Marie’s very empty, lip-service-y line.

⚔️Hans Axel von Fersen⚔️

M.A. 2018

Fersen is a bit harder to compare which version is better, because honestly, depending on who plays Fersen in MA, Fersen is either the most generic Hollywood sweeping-lover-hero, or a diamond mine to excavate. In the same post linked above by my friend, she explains in detail the differences between TashiroFersen and FurukawaFersen. K-musical fans, don’t @ me, but from what I can tell, the Korean Fersens are also very... typical.

In this post I have discussed Furukawa’s Fersen in great detail, so I shall skip over these for this post. But to summarise, when portrayed by Furukawa at least, Fersen in MA is very nuanced and restrained. Even if we do not fully credit Furukawa however, then at the very least the script allows enough space and material for an actor to flesh him out so phenomenally well (I think Tashiro and some other actors just.... really missed out on the potential).

Fersen in MA incredibly memorable because the main atmosphere of the imminent doom awaiting everyone is carried by him in a way nobody else does. The moment Fersen enters you feel the tension that the musical wishes to tell. Fersen has seen revolutions, he’s seen the power of anger; he knows shit is going to hit the fan because he’s familiar with this trajectory.

Fersen has excellent self control because he knows how a lack thereof would hurt Marie’s reputation and escalate the growing chaos. You can see very clearly how Fersen does want the intimacy, but to him duty and the grander picture has priority. In all the small actions from Fersen you see how he is a savvy intellectual through and through. (More about reservation later).

In contrast to 1789, we also get to see so much more of Fersen in MA because he is the narrator and a main character. Throughout the musical he’s been trying to de-escalate the chaos and even though his plans were actually well thought-out, the problems were just simply too big for any one person to solve. When Fersen mourns Marie there is a clear sense that he is not really surprised, just really upset that things had to come so far. Instead of singing something accusatory to the angry and hungry people, he sings: “fate, why did you give her everything, only to show her hell in the end?” Fersen truly understands why the people were duly angry, but that not taking away his sorrow of losing Marie who he knows is a better person than people make her out to be.

Also in great contrast to 1789, the finale of MA is rather grim. It does not suggest hope or that all problems will eventually disappear. The story for these people have ended, but the problems and the world will continue to our days, and days far beyond ours. It gives a feeling that the world of MA is so extensive that we - the audience - are part of it. In the finale when we see Fersen again, he also stays in tune with this feeling. “How can the problems of the world be solved, what is true justice? We remain clueless” he sings, and the way he looks into the unknown distance is almost a reminder to us that nobody has reason to stop worrying and fight for justice.

1789 - the Lovers of the Bastille

Now if we were to compare MA’s Furu Fersen to 1789′s Fersen, we see a stark contrast between the two. Where Furusen was incredibly reserved and hyper aware of everything, 1789′s Fersen is just the over-romantic lover who had been pining for his love. For a moment Marie realises she probably should not be cheating on her husband and backs away. Fersen however, is the one to make further advances, actively pulling her back to his side.

When he embraces Marie you see how he is just dreaming and indulging, something Furusen would never do. Furusen might hug Marie, but not without sh*tting 50 colours. 1789′s Fersen is the sweeping Romeo that most of history makes him to be, and little more. But again, Fersen plays but a very small role in 1789, so it is also unfair to compare him to MA’s Fersen.

Regardless of whatever nuance might or might not be there however, it is also just quite hard to like this Fersen because he is ‘just another privileged aristocrat who is just needy’. When making out with Marie in Palais Royale they find out that Ronan fell asleep there drunk. Ronan simply complained that Marie was too loud and woke him, and Fersen immediately shuts him up, and then draws his sword at him for ‘speaking rudely’.

First of all Fersen and Marie, if you’re gonna do a clandestine meeting, you CHECK your surroundings. Second of all, FERSEN Ò.Ó, this peasant is untrained and weaponless; you can’t just unleash your high-ranking martial arts at him with a shiny sword. This is EXACTLY the reason the revolution happened; the people were sick of the suppression of the powerless by the powerful. UGHUM. It truly is mind-blowing to consider how 1789 Fersen and MA Fersen are both...Fersens.

This Fersen is not very involved with the revolution from either side. He just proposes to help Marie and the King escape once, but got dismissed immediately. The following time we see him it is in the finale.

There he stands, a knight in shiny armour singing a really hopeful phrase to a relatively upbeat and hopeful music: “do not rely on force, but seek for hope and courage.” Here again unlike with MA’s Fersen, you don’t really feel like this Fersen has experienced anything. It was like he was an employed special guard, told by his boss there’s nothing he needed to do, his boss is dead, and oh wellll, moving on!

Conclusion

Because Marie and Fersen in MA are main characters whose stories are fleshed out, it really is very unfair to compare them to their 1789′s counterparts in a race of ‘who is better’. In the end of the day, 1789′s aim is to sell a spectacle, and it realllly is a phenomenal piece if you’re there for the spectacle. The choreography, songs, stage, everything is masterpiece-level. So if you’re there for the spectacle you get exactly what you went there for. The story and characters however... not so much. If one is more drawn to a direct, glittery spectacle with hands-down-amazing-songs however, they’d probably find Marie and Fersen from 1789 more enjoyable. If you’re into first and impressive impressions, the MA counterparts might demand a BIT too much attention and patience to get into.

Introduction and character analysis Fersen ‘MA’ 2018

Comparative commentary on MA Cast M and Cast A

#Marie Antoinette #Hans Axel von Fersen #Fersen #MA #1789 #comparative commentary #TOHO #musical #1789 les amants de la bastille

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peppernine · 3 years ago

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I don’t agree with everything you’ve written here. A lot of it is good /advice/ but not necessarily sensitive to the wide, WIDE areas of d/Deaf culture.

I also am not a fan of you speaking for d/D/HOH, as you do say you have only been studying the language and doing “independent research.” I’m not sure what that means but you must be aware of the issues we have with hearing people speaking over us.

I do consider myself deaf, I have severe bilateral hearing loss and have been wearing hearing aids for over 10 years. I have also had to teach myself ASL and have other d/D/HOH friends.

I’m gonna respond to each point individually here and do my best to expand upon what I like and didn’t.

1. There are multiple ways to write signed language, and the biggest thing is that writers should pick a method and be consistent. I personally don’t like reading “translated” ASL in dialogue written in quotation marks.

||| "I don't know what you're trying to say," signed Mark doesn't quite do it for me, because logically I know that the better phrasing would be: Mark signed, "I don't understand. "

I feel that this causes a lot of the artistry and familiarity of ASL to be lost in translation. There’s also the issue where many authors will try to write a signing character as though their dialogue would match completely with a hearing person’s dialogue. For example, a fluent signer would never directly give an impassioned speech full of flowery language and metaphors. ASL is descriptive in its vagueness and bodily expression, not its use of idioms. Just translating the SL would likely fall flat if you are trying to create something dramatic. Instead a writer should focus on body language and HOW the signer is communicating. Most importantly to me is that ASL is fundamentally not a written language. So reading it and hearing it in my mind is incongruous. THAT SAID, it is still a very appropriate way to allow your character to communicate. If someone can Gloss correctly and appropriately, I would actually prefer to read THAT but learning gloss is very difficult and I don’t expect authors to be proficient, and gloss can differ between signed languages. I also don't see an issue with the character signing and only being replied back to, especially if the POV character is non-fluent. For Example:

||| Tim made a series, of fast, complicated gestures with his eyebrows raised. "No I don't think that would be an option her, Rosie prefers things quiet," Sasha responded out loud, with her own fingers carefully shaping out letters and patterns. Another flurry of hand movements in response from Tim, Jon caught the words "cook," "home" and "important" but that didn't give him any further insight. "Oh, like what we did when we were kids?"

Here I understand that the conversation is happening, one character is signing, one character is using SimCom and the third, Jon, is only aware of one half the conversation, without any SL having to be translated at all.

2. Your example here is correct, but there is more than just facial expressions that are important. In ASL there are five parameters of communicating that are used in every phrasing and each contributes a different meaning. The facets are handshape, palm orientation, movement, location and non-manual. There is an argument that non manual gives the most MEANING to communication — so yes just watching a pair of hand sign is about 50% meaningless. But I want to give writers other options here. You can sign with exaggerated motions, tiny motions, quickly or slowly, with pauses and fidgets and emotion.

3. In regards to lip reading I have nothing to add except that while almost none of us are fluent lip readers, IF a hearing and speaking person covers their mouth or are not facing me (or the d/D/Hoh person) I have now lost at least 50% of what you are trying to communicate

4. There is slightly more nuance to the d/D/HOH conversation. For example, I consider myself deaf. I have severe hearing loss and wear hearing aids and have for over 10 years. However I grew up in a household that didn't sign (even though half of my family wears HAs). I learned to speak as a hearing child and attended mainstream schooling. I didn’t learn ASL until college, and I don’t have a large Deaf community that I have been able to insert myself into. Capital D Deaf indicates CULTURE. Those that do not consider themselves even deaf, or remain fully immersed in the hearing world are often referred to as Hard of Hearing. The phrase “hearing impaired” is generally considered insulting along similar lines as “person with autism”

5. All correct here. I will only add that similar to how there are Romance languages and Germanic based language families some SLs are more or less similar. ASL is very close to French SL because they were introduced by the same school.

6. Id like to add some minor nuance here. Similarly to how hearing people can walk into a conversation and also be confused, multiple signers will have to rely on context clues to join the conversation. The interesting thing about ASL I’ve always found is that the language is extremely referential. Rather than continuously naming a person or using the same phrasing ASL will simple designate a “space” and refer back to that space during the conversation. For example if I wanted to talk about two different people I might place “Mary” on my right side and sign things related in that space, and refer to conversations with “frank” by signing on the left side of my body.

7. This is another area that needs expansion. It’s not so much that the language itself is blunt. It does of course lack a lot of flowery descriptors and synonyms are rare so there’s not a TON of niceties built into the language. HOWEVER Deaf culture is EXTREMELY blunt. This is generally because most Deaf people rely nearly 100% on sight in conversations, therefore if something is visually obvious it can, and should, be referred to. If discussing weight, a hearing person might say something like “you look...healthy.” a Deaf person might sign LOOK FAT, YOU. Because weight gain is visually obvious. A Deaf conversation might also be brutally honest in terms of someone not liking your new haircut.

8. Not all deaf people use sign language, not all American sign is ASL, some only use Signed English. Some Deaf people were forcibly mainstreamed and not ALLOWED to sign. Not only is there a lot of personal choice involved in whether someone signs or not but there is SO MUCH discrimination in whether some one CAN sign. There are schools for the deaf that only allow verbal communication. Similarly, there are many fluent Deaf people who English is not their first language and the written word can contain a communication barrier. There are a multitude of reasons why someone may or may not choose to sign, or why they may or may not Simultaneously Communicate (SimCom).

9. I also want to make a point that you should never ever consider Assistive devices as curative, or believe that CIs/HAs make hearing easier for a d/D/hoh person. There is a LOT of energy that goes towards sound processing, speaking, and carrying a vocal conversation with hearing loss. The only way I can describe it is similar to someone trying to immerse themselves in foreign language - you have to allocate a lot of "processing" power to translating in your head in real time, and in processing your own voice, tone and phrasing. I am also, for example REALLY BAD at locating sounds - I don't know where they come from! So I am easily overwhelmed in traditionally "loud" environments because my brain just gets overloaded with auditory information. Assistive devices are an accommodation that is not perfect. Some people will choose to only wear their devices at certain times and/or around certain people. We advocate that children actually receive "hearing breaks" to lessen the energy strain of trying to process sound constantly. Your character may or may not have devices and they may not wear them all the time. If your character is from a hearing family, they may want to wear them constantly because that's how they were raised.

10. My last comment on the topic involves subtle ways to think about how being d/D/HOH might affect your character: they may like music and they might like it LOUD! Subtitles on EVERYTHING! Your character may be startled when people approach them suddenly! It is a fact of Deaf culture that Deaf people will gather in well lit bright areas. Your deaf character might sleep like the dead! Vibrating alarm clocks! Even with my HAs I have issues hearing doorbells, smoke detectors, microwave alarms, or even tea kettles! I can't tell you how many times I've left the sink running because I couldn't hear it. Batteries die! SL allows communication from far away or through windows - your character might have conversations in completely different rooms! Expect that your character will likely interact with the world in a very unique matter..... all that to say that I had to come back and remember what the point of this paragraph was: deaf people are really loud!!! we don't have a great awareness of what an appropriate sound level is - and often we can't accurately hear ourselves. This turns into deaf people sometimes inappropriately being loud (speaking, slamming doors, with fidgeting etc) until we try to modulate again, OR as someone trying their utmost best to be so quiet to the point where they tiptoe around everything because they're not sure what is and what isnt' a noise so they try to be the most silent.

Tips on writing sign language

Disclaimers: while I have been learning ASL (American Sign Language, I am not yet fluent. Also, I am not deaf. Both of these things being said, I have been learning ASL for nearly a year and I’ve been doing independant research about the language itself and the Deaf community. What I’ve listed below are things that I have learned from my own personal experience signing, what I’ve learned in my ASL class, and what I’ve learned from my independant research.

1) When you write signed dialogue, use quotation marks and everything else you would use for any other type of dialogue. Yes, I know they didn’t do that in the Magnus Chase series, but many Deaf readers were made uncomfortable at the choice to depict sign language as not speech. Establish early on that the character signs and then use tags such as “xe signed,” or “hir motions were snappy with irritation.”

2) Without facial expressions, someone’s signs are going to be almost meaningless. All of the grammar is in the face, as are some descriptors. For example, if you can’t see a character’s face, and you’re only looking at their hands, the signs would be the same for the statement “Xe doesn’t have dogs.” and the question “Does xe have dogs?”

3) There is no such thing as fluent lipreading. The best lipreaders in the world can only understand about 70% of what’s being said, and factors such as darkness, the presence of mustaches, lack of context, and a bunch of other common things can easily lower that ability. If someone’s lipreading, they’re taking little pieces of what they can lipread, and stitching together context and other details to get a general picture of what’s going on, but there’s still always going to be holes.

4) If you’re writing a character who can’t hear, know the difference between deaf (lowercase d) and Deaf (uppercase D). The medical term for not being able to hear anything is deaf. People who use their deafness as part of their identity are referred to, and refer to themselves as Deaf. They are part of the Deaf community.

(more tips below cut)

Keep reading

#actually deaf #not meant as a slight against you OP just adding in some additional considerations as a deaf person #also take this or leave it idk we all know experiences are widely varied these are just my thoughts when i read about d/d/HOH characters #writing tips

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sage-nebula · 8 years ago

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I feel it may be painful, but I'm sending you a brotp: Alan and Sycamore with "You don't have to stay".

The days immediately following the Flare crisis blended together in afrenzied smoothie of reconstruction and damage reports. Reconstruction wasstill ongoing at various sites; much of Lumiose City had been devastated by therampaging roots and Zygarde battle, and League officials were still cleaning upthe debris and shrapnel that covered the site of the battle against Lysandre’srampaging Megalith. For his part, Augustine had helped where he could. He hadprovided as much information as he was able between what Steven Stone had toldhim and what he himself had witnessed, but when it came to the actualreconstruction there wasn’t very much he could do. His inexperience when itcame to construction aside, there were other areas he felt it far moreimportant to give his attention to.

But with everything going on, the days and events in them had passed ina snap---and it was for this reason that he felt surprised (albeit pleasantlyso) when he saw Diantha standing in the lab’s foyer after Sophie told him hehad a visitor waiting for him there. She was dressed in a sharp pantsuit, no doubtbecause (as Champion) she had been working constantly for the past few days,but although Augustine could see weariness in her eyes when she looked to him,she still offered a pleasant smile in return for his warm grin.

“Diantha! Wonderful to see you,” he said, and in a play at the“sophisticated” courtesies they had always exchanged for fun, he placed a kissagainst her knuckles when she held out her hand for him to shake. Despite thefatigue that plagued her, she chuckled. “To what do I owe this pleasure? I can’timagine you have a lot of time to spare.”

“No, I don’t,” she said, and her smile faded in a small sigh. Augustinefelt his heart drop a fraction in response. “And I am here on business,actually. Is there somewhere we could talk?”

“Of course,” Augustine said, and he gestured down the hall toward thekitchen and dining area as he stepped aside to allow her to pass him. Dianthatook the gesture graciously, and once he stepped into pace just behind her he asked, “Would you care for something to drink? Coffee? Tea?”

“No, thank you. As much as I would love to indulge, I really don’t havevery much time to spare.”

At that time in the afternoon, the kitchen, dining area, and livingroom were all thankfully empty. Cosette was outside, administering vitamins andmedicine to the lab’s pokémon as needed, and Sophie and Alan were both in theresearch room, translating some ancient tablets pertaining to mega evolutionthat had been discovered days before the crisis. Manon, too, was out; she hadbegun the day by going over the mega evolution tablets with Sophie and Alan,but her attention had waned quickly, and when Serena and the others had droppedby to extend an invitation to go hang out with them, she had accepted. (Theinvitation had been extended to Alan as well, but he had declined despiteurging Manon to go and enjoy herself.) As a result, Augustine and Diantha hadthe room to themselves for the time being, and after he pulled out a chair atthe table for Diantha to take a seat, Augustine grabbed a chair for himselfacross from her.

“So,” Augustine said as he took a seat, “what can I help you with?”

Diantha offered another small smile, but it was tight and didn’t reachher eyes, and after a second her gaze dropped down to her hands.

“I suppose it won’t do any good to beat around the bush, so I’ll getright to it,” she said. “I’m here to talk about Alan.”

Augustine’s heart stalled for a moment before it resumed beating at afaster kip than before. “What about Alan?”

Diantha looked back up at him, her eyes touched with pity even as sheforced another small smile. “I think you know.”

There hadn’t been very much time in the days following the Flare crisisfor Augustine and Alan to talk about everything that had happened, but untilthat moment Augustine had felt that it was for the best. Immediately followingthe crisis Alan had gone (unwillingly) to the hospital to have his injuriestreated, while Lizardon did the same at the Pokémon Center. Once they were bothpatched up they had returned to the lab, and while Alan had tried toimmediately resume work, Augustine had (thus far) managed to keep him away fromextensive manual labor. That wasn’t to say that Alan was fine, though;however much he insisted he was, Augustine didn’t miss the way he pushed foodaround on his plate instead of actually eating it, or the way he no longeroffered his opinion or asked questions about things unless directly asked. Hedidn’t miss, either, the way Alan had almost called him “sir” once after agreeing to a task---didn’t miss the way Alan had caughthimself on the first syllable at the same moment that Augustine’s own heartfroze, right before quickly ducking out of the room. Alan insisted he was fine,but Augustine knew that to be a lie. He had just thought---had hoped---thatthey would have time to talk about it as things calmed down, and that Alan would be able to ease back into life at the lab once he was given time to rest and recuperate.

But now, with Diantha visiting him on “official business” to talk aboutAlan, Augustine had a dreadful feeling in his shoulders that told him theirtime was up.

“I think I do, too,” he told her, “but I’m going to hope against hopeand ask you to elaborate anyway.”

Diantha sighed again, light and not at all happy. “Very well. Thepolice have been conducting investigations into the remainder of Team Flare.They’ve rounded up a number of Flare agents right here in Lumiose, but asidefrom Malva---who turned herself in after the battle with the Megalith---they’vebeen unable to identify any other high-ranking Flare officers. Everyone they’vefound so far has been ranked no higher than a grunt within the organization,and according to all testimony none of them ever spoke more than a handful ofwords to Lysandre, much less had insight into any of Flare’s grander schemes orplans.”

“And the police believe Alan did?” Augustine asked, and despite hisyears-long friendship with Diantha, he was unable to keep the hard edge fromhis voice.

Fortunately, Diantha didn’t seem to take offense. “They know he was oneof Lysandre’s top operatives. Malva confirmed in her testimony that Alan hadworked for Lysandre, and files that she turned over on a flash drive confirmedthat Lysandre had far more interest in and contact with Alan than he did any ofthe other Flare operatives they’ve arrested so far, aside from Malva herself.Whether or not Alan knew of any of the details of Lysandre’s plans is unclearto them at the moment, but . . .” Diantha smiled wryly. “That’s precisely whythey want his testimony.”

“He didn’t,” Augustine said, and though he kept his voice even, he hadto struggle to do so. “He didn’t know anything. Lysandre used him the entiretime. He---”

Diantha held up one hand, and Augustine closed his mouth.

“I know,” she said. “I believe in his innocence. I was there at theLeague that day, remember? I saw his face when the roots began destroying thestadium. He had no idea any of that was coming. Someone who was involved inthat incident---someone who helped cause it to happen---wouldn’t have looked asshocked and upset as he did.”

“Then---”

“But the police still want testimony. More specifically, they stillwant to question him about his involvement with Lysandre, Flare, and all of theevents that unfolded. And as much as I believe in Alan’s innocence, my wordwill only go so far. If I prevent them from questioning him, all that’s goingto do is make him look more suspicious. Not to mention, particularlyconsidering Malva’s involvement, my refusal to let Alan be questioned wouldthrow me under suspicion as well. Malvais---or was, I suppose, depending onhow her trial goes---one of my Elite, after all. For one of my own Elite to beinvolved, and then for me to prevent them from questioning one of Lysandre’sknown operatives?” Diantha shook her head. “‘Suspicious’ would be the gentlestword to describe how that would look.”

“I understand, and I wouldn’t ask you to put yourself in jeopardy, but. . .” Augustine scrubbed his hands down his face, his elbows on the table,before he said quietly, “I just don’t believe that a police interrogation is inAlan’s best interests right now. He’s doing the best he can, but . . .”

“I know,” Diantha said, and for her part she did look genuinelysympathetic. “But unfortunately, there isn’t a way to avoid it at this point.The police aren’t getting any answers from the grunts, the citizens are stillon edge after everything that happened, and at this point if the police chiefisn’t out for blood, the head detective certainly is. They’re desperate forprogress.”

“And they’re willing to throw anyone they can under the bus to get it?”

“No---well, yes. Perhaps.” This time Diantha’s smile was a little fiercerthan before, and Augustine felt his heart lift, tasting at the hope on the air.“But I’m not about to let them.”

“But if you interfere, won’t that cause suspicion?”

“If I refuse to allow them to interrogate him, yes. But that doesn’tmean I’m powerless.” Diantha’s smile grew as she explained, “To begin with, theoriginal plan was for the head detective to bring a few officers here with himthis afternoon to formally take Alan into custody. I found out about thislittle plan of theirs moments before they carried it out, and judging from thelook on your face, I think I made the right decision in stopping them.”

Despite himself---and the situation, really---Augustine huffed a laugh.“Yes. Well, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Diantha said. “Second, I moved the interrogation timeto tomorrow morning, down at the station. They won’t send officers to retrieve him,but Alan will be expected to be there at nine a.m. sharp. If he isn’t, they will send someone to arrest him, and Iwon’t be able to prevent it then. So do make sure he’s there, won’t you?”

As much as he wanted to say ‘no,’ Augustine knew---even without thesomewhat pleading note in Diantha’s voice and eyes---that he couldn’t. “I cando that.”

“Thank you,” Diantha said. “Finally, although the only interrogation Iwas required to sit on was Malva’s, I am technically allowed to participate inany interrogation that I choose---and I’ve chosen to sit in on this one. Truthbe told, neither the police chief nor the head detective were very pleasedabout it, but . . .” Diantha shrugged. “I am the Champion. My word overrulesthem, at least when it comes to my own duties. There isn’t very much they cando about it.” She paused, and then said gently, “I’ll make sure they treat himfairly, Augustine. You have my word on that. As much as they may be out forblood, they won’t get it, least of all from him.”

Augustine reached across the table to take her hands in his, and gavethem a gentle, grateful squeeze. “Thank you.”

She smiled, warm but fleeting, and said, “Any time. But now, with that unpleasantnews delivered, I really must be going. A Champion’s work rarely ends, least ofall in the midst of crisis reconstruction.” Diantha released Augustine’s hands,and together they rose from the table, Diantha readjusting the strap of her bagon her shoulder.

“Is there anything I can help with?” Augustine asked, and he placed hishand briefly on her shoulder as he walked her to the door. “Particularly withthe help you’re giving Alan, if there’s anything I can do---”

“No, no. This isn’t anything I’m not capable of handling. And don’tthink of what I’m doing as ‘help,’ necessarily. It’s a Champion’s duty to makesure their people aren’t mistreated, after all. Ensuring that the police aren’table to scapegoat one of my citizens isn’t a special favor; it’s my job. And ifthat citizen just so happens to be the child of a dear friend of mine . . .”Diantha shrugged, but there was a note of cheek in her tone that betrayed herblasé gesture. “Well, all the better.”

Augustine smiled. “Well, I appreciate it nonetheless. Take care,Diantha. We’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

Diantha nodded and said, “See you tomorrow,” before she stepped throughthe door.

As much as the knowledge that Diantha would be present for theinterrogation had filled him with a spot of hope, the moment the door shutbehind her it brought every fear and drop of dead crashing back down into hisgut. It was great that Diantha would be there---wonderful, really, especiallyconsidering her words on how the police were desperate for any high-rankingFlare official they could find to try and appease the public. Despite the factthat Alan wasn’t a high-ranking anything withinFlare, Augustine had no doubt they would spin the story to say as much if givenhalf the chance. The fact that Diantha wasn’t going to let it get that far wasa great relief.

But that didn’t mean that the interrogation was going to be easy. Eventhough Diantha was going to be there to make sure they didn’t frame Alan as amonster within the first five minutes, there was still the matter of Alan’s ownemotional and mental state. Augustine still remembered vividly how Alan hadlooked during the League, both during his matches and when they had finallybeen able to speak the night before his match with Ash. Alan had looked tiredand depressed then, yet compared to how he looked nowadays when he wasn’t purposefully trying to appear “fine,” he had practically looked healthy. It was no wonder, really; after everything that had happened, Augustine would have been more shocked if Alan’s emotional and mental well-being hadn’t taken more severe hits following the crisis. But whether or not Alan’s emotional state was surprising wasn’t the issue. The issue was that he was struggling at all. And given that he was, the fact that he was going to be interrogated by a detective that was determined to find someone to scapegoat for the crisis was . . .

Diantha would be there. She would stop them from scapegoating Alan.Augustine felt confident about that, but all the same . . .

He took a deep breath in a futile effort to dispel the anxiety in hisgut, and then turned toward the research room.

Whatever would unfold during the interrogation would unfold during theinterrogation. For now, he had to tell Alan what was going on.

- - -

Alan took the news remarkably well, though in retrospect, Augustinesupposed that fact shouldn’t have surprised him.

Augustine had pulled him briefly out of the research room to tell himin private, and when he had, Alan had looked surprised for only a fraction of asecond before his expression locked down again. It wasn’t that he was stoic,Augustine thought, so much as it was that he was resigned. He had said, “Oh. Okay,” before asking whether or not heshould head down to the police station right then, and when Augustine had saidthat the interrogation was set for nine the next morning, he had simply said, “Okay”again.

“You don’t have anything to worry about,” Augustine had told him. “Dianthawill be there, and you haven’t done anything wrong. She’ll make sure that---”

“I’ve done a lot of wrong things,” Alan had said, and then---realizingthat he had interrupted---had quickly added, “Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize, but no, you haven’t,” Augustine had said.“What happened wasn’t your fault, Alan, and they’ll see that. They have to.”

Alan hadn’t responded, save for a noncommittal hum, but after a momenthe had said, “Can I . . .” He had cleared his throat, and then asked, “Should Ibring Lizardon?”

“It can’t hurt, though you’ll probably need to tell them you have himwith you when you arrive. Unfortunately, when it comes to legal matters pokémonare sometimes still seen as weapons,” Augustine had said, and Alan had gloweredat the floor.

“Lizardon is not a weapon,” he had muttered.

“I know,” Augustine had said, and he had placed his hand on Alan’s shoulder,squeezing it bracingly.

They had returned to the research room, then, to continue thetranslation and analysis work they had still had to do, and they didn’t speakof the upcoming interrogation again for the rest of the night. The evening hadpassed remarkably quickly; Alan had gone out for a night flight on Lizardonafter supper, and he took a shower and went to bed shortly after he came home.Augustine went to bed not long after that, though he was unable to fall asleepfor a long while, and he wondered if Alan was lying awake, too.

The next morning came too soon for Augustine’s liking, yet although hedidn’t feel very much like eating himself, he still sat both himself and Alandown for a breakfast of coffee and croissants before they left for the policestation. When Augustine said that it was time to go, Manon had asked if shecould come. Augustine was fairly certain she didn’t know where they wereheaded; he hadn’t told her, and as far as he was aware Alan hadn’t, either. Yetbefore he could say anything, Alan said that he had something important that heneeded to do, and that Augustine was just giving him a ride, but that he wouldbe back later.

“Well, okay, but can I come?” Manon had pressed.

“No,” Alan had said bluntly.

Manon had puffed out her cheeks, Hari-san imitating her expression fromher shoulder. “Why not?”

“Because it doesn’t have anything to do with you,” Alan had said, buthe had seemed to regret it the second the words were out of his mouth. Manon’sexpression had fallen, Hari-san’s spines drooping, and Alan had barelyconcealed a wince before he looked away. “And it’s boring and dangerous and youwouldn’t like it, anyway. And Bonnie said she and Clemont wanted your helpredecorating the Gym today.”

“Really?” Manon had said, and she had sounded doubtful, but Alan hadsmiled a little as he had looked back at her.

“Really, so you should go help them. I know you’ll do a great job.”

That had seemed to mollify her, at least a little, and theyhad left after that (though as they walked out to the car, Augustine had madesure to send a text message to Meyer to let Bonnie and Clemont know that Manonwas coming by to help, just so that Bonnie’s and Clemont’s confusion wouldn’tlead to Manon’s feelings being hurt again by mistake). Alan was silent on thetrip down to the station, staring out of the passenger side window, but whenthey arrived Augustine saw him swallow hard, his fist clenched tightly in hislap.

At the very least, Augustine could say that Alan wasn’t alone infeeling nervous.

They arrived at nine a.m. sharp, just as Augustine had promised, butDiantha wasn’t present in the bullpen when they walked in. There were variousofficers milling about, some leaning over desks and others carrying filesacross the floor, but the moment Augustine and Alan walked in the police chief(noticeable from the badge he had pinned to his chest) and a detective strodetoward them, their expressions stony. Augustine put his hand on Alan’s back forsupport.

“Professor Sycamore,” the police chief said as he neared, and he noddedonce. Augustine returned the courtesy. “Is this the boy?”

“This is Alan, yes,” Augustine said.

The detective’s eyes were trained on Alan, and he held out his hand,palm up. “Your License, please,” he said. His tone was too cold for the ‘please’to be much of a pleasantry. Alan silently pulled his wallet from his pocket andslipped his License out of it, handing it over without a word. The detectivestudied it for a moment, and then---seemingly satisfied---handed it back. “Areyou armed?”

“No,” Alan said, and even with the situation being what it was,Augustine could hear the defiance in his voice. The police chief and detective seemed to hear it as well, given the look they exchanged, and beforeeither of them could do anything, Augustine said:

“He does have his charizard with him, but he isn’t dangerous. He keepshis charizard’s pokéball in his right pocket.”

The detective gave Alan a hard look. “Lying on the first question doesn’tget you off to a good start, kid.”

“I didn’t lie,” Alan said flatly. “I’m not armed, because Lizardon isn’ta weapon.”

“Being a smart-ass doesn’t help your case, either,” the detective said,and his eyes narrowed as he stared Alan down.

Alan opened his mouth to reply---likely to say something along thelines of how he wasn’t being a smart-ass, he was just being honest, ifAugustine knew him (and he did)---but before he could, Augustine cut acrosshim. “Well, there isn’t much of a case to begin with, is there? This is just aquick questioning session, after all.”

The detective looked over to Augustine at last, but his glance wasfleeting before he looked back to Alan. “Quick. Sure. Yeah,” he said. He leanedforward and patted Alan’s pockets down, and once he was sure that Alan hadnothing beyond Lizardon’s pokéball on him, said, “You said your pokémon’s acharizard, right?”

“Yes,” Alan said.

“Take a couple of the lycanroc with you,” the police chief said, andthough Augustine was sure that it was meant to be an undertone to the headdetective, he caught it and frowned all the same. Judging from the way Alan’seyes narrowed, Augustine was sure that hehad heard it, as well. “Just in case.”

“Will do,” the detective said, and then grabbed Alan by his upper arm. “Allright, kid, come with me. Time to get this show on the road.”

Alan jerked, as if to pull out of the detective’s grip, yet thoughtbetter of it in the next second and relaxed (a fraction, at least---enough towalk along with the detective). That, Augustine thought, was probably for thebest, even if he had to fight against his owninstincts to tell the detective to get his hands off Alan. But with his owninstincts tampered down, what Augustine said instead was, “I’ll be right outhere, Alan. Good luck.”

Alan stopped, bringing the detective to a halt with him, and thenlooked back. He was frowning as he said, “This could take a while. You don’t have tostay.”

Augustine smiled, and clasped his hands behind his back. “It doesn’tmatter to me how long it takes. I have some work out in the car that can keepme occupied. I want to stay.”

Alan stared at Augustine, his eyes wide and his mouth open a little, asif Augustine had just spoken to him in a different language. But before he hada chance to question it, or even recover from the apparent shock Augustine’sstatement had caused him, the detective gave him a rough little jerk toward theinterrogation room, and he was forced to turn back and keep walking. Onceagain, Augustine swallowed down an urge to tell the detective to at least be gentle, and he prayed that theinterrogation would be over more quickly than the detective seemed to think itwould be.

“Dian---Champion Diantha is sitting in on the interrogation, isn’t she?”he asked the police chief. “That is what I was told, anyway.”

“Yes. She’s already in the interrogation chamber,” the police chiefsaid, and Augustine breathed a sigh of relief. The police chief gave him ashrewd look. “It really is likely to take hours---maybe even a day. We’ll giveyou a call when we’re done; you don’t have to stick around.”

“I meant what I said. I’m staying,” Augustine said, and he gave afierce smile of his own in response to the grimace on the police chief’sface. “Is there somewhere I can wait?”

The police chief nodded to a row of chairs by the door before he turnedback toward his office. “Knock yourself out.”

“Thank you,” Augustine said, though the police chief didn’t show anysign of having heard him.

Though Augustine hadn’t lied when he said he had brought some things towork on, he didn’t immediately leave to go get them. Instead, he walked overand took a seat in the waiting area, drummed his fingers on his knees for amoment, and then pulled his pokégear from his pocket so that he could callMeyer.

It was only 9:10 in the morning, but Augustine could already tell itwas going to be a long night.

#somegiantmess #professor sycamore #champion diantha #trainer alan #trainer alain #lab family #angst drabble meme #this is my first time EVER writing Diantha so #hopefully that was OK #this writer's block is NOT being kind to me so hopefully the quality is OK as well #(like the ideas are there it's just - the quality)#(i'm having such fits with the quality so)#(hopefully this is good sadfsafda)#fic fix

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