#and i try to fit the lyrics/overal vibe of the song to said character

[milkcanslam]

Request Number 1895: "Machine gun by wasureru"

Requested by: @thelesbianwhitelion

Thumbnails/rough sketches v

[chinomiko]

hi! i know it must be kinga boring for you recive questions about castiel bc ppl are obsessed ober him for years but like the other person who asked you a few days ago, i follow you (and ply mcl) for like 10 years and ever since day one my fav boy has been tiel. till this day at the age of 22 he's my favorite and my comfort boy so i joke that he's not a fictional character anymore for me and that i know him personally at this point lol

with that being said, i bet you can imagine that over the years i've been elaborating his personality beyond what the game gives us but he's your boy, you created him therefore you know him and your word is canon, so i'd like to ask a few stuff!! nothing too big, dont worry but here we go.

tiel is an amazing songwriter and since he's very emotional not very good at express it (he does it a lot better now that he's an adult 🥹) i bet his lyricism is very deep and poetic so i have this headcanon that he at first wouldn't like taylor swift because obviously lol but then he payed attention to her lyrics and ends up basically being a swiftie since he likes her writing a lot. what you think about that?

and what kind of music crowstorm sings? like there are any bands that you listen and think "hey this would be in a crowstorm album!" (i have a playlist with this name btw lol). im probably wrong on this one but since this is my fav band i like to think that catfish and the bottlemen are the irl crowstorm, musically speaking

and the last one: another thing that gives me so much comfort is the lystiel friendship. not having present parents, being so closed off i know that lysander is such an important presence on tiel's life because he was basically the only close person he had (specially after the debrah fiasco); if lys didnt had taken the farm and went to college and bla bla bla do you think he would still be part of the band with castiel? im not sure if im mixing the canon with a fanfic i read a while ago (lol) but the band was more of a fun thing to lys, right? he liked writing most (i always imagined him getting into a literature degree or something like this). i also like to think that he helps tiel with lyrics at times, even if he's out of the band (in my head the canon is that they are best friends and pretty close till this day, i pretend lys never left our lives just like armin)

anyways sorry for this big ask 😭 i dont even know if you will read it all but if you do, thank you! and dont feel like you have to answer, i know its too much its just that mcl is my hyperfixation till this day like for real, i have a fanfic that i write still and i even plan on making it into a book sometime. except from the main characters (who is my oc) all the characters will be based on the game's ones :)

ilysm take care and stay hydrated!!

Hellow !

Aww thank you so much and for all your love for Castiel ^^

What a long ask, I'll try to answer in order.

Castiel being a swiftie. No sorry, I don't think he would be. If candy likes her, I'm pretty sure he would try to listen. Also he is an open minded person for sure, so I'm sure he would be curious to listen and study what all the hype is about, it could also help as some sort of far away inspiration, but I don't see him being a fan.

What kind of songs Crowstorm sings This is hard to answer because my musical knowledge is pretty limited and I'm sure I would miss on lot of potential groups or singers that would fit well. And it would require too much research time to have a real detailed and clear answer, but I still did check a bit and here is a little list of songs/groups that I think would have a fitting vibe for Crowstorm

City of the dead - Hollywood Undead The worst in me - bad omens Paranoid - I prevail Trauma Just pretend - Bad omens Ice Nine Kills - A grave mistake Catfish and the bottlemen sounds nice but I think its a bit too soft for what I imagine for Crowstorm.

What is his voice like I think something similar to this (not necessarily the song itself, just the voice. )

bonus, I think this song is so so fitting for Castiel's breakup song, I love it. Dial Tone - Catch your breath

Castiel and Lys friendship. It was'nt mentionned much in UL/LL because I didnt wish to bring too much drama by mentioning Lys when he was not there for the players, but of course Lys and Cast always kept in touch. It is very clearly mentionned in Lys' AL that they keep in touch, that Lys helps Castiel write songs and Cast also like to come to his farm to have a break and spend time together. You should play it if you havent, you'll have a good chunk of Cast and Lys friendship :) However yeah I can confirm that Lys would not like to do it serisouly and professionally, but he'll be all the way around to support and help Cast.

[zenlesszonezero]

Join Zenless Zone Zero with Tsukishiro Yanagi, the deputy leader of Hollow Special Operations Section 6! Beneath her ordinary office lady exterior lies a meticulous, emotionally intelligent big sister to the team.

[nightcolorz]

more on dissociative armand- some songs that i feel fit him & this headcanon very well because i cant not relate him to songs (my armand playlist is something like 17 hours long at this point, not including 3 separate ones that are also for him)

- Christine by Siouxsie and The Banshees

“she tries not to shatter, kaleidoscope style, personality changes behind her red smile, every new problem brings a stranger inside, helplessly forcing one more new disguise”

Now, this song is actually about a woman named Christine with DID, but with this headcanon the songs, and particularly these opening lyrics match up with Armand very well, both with his disconnect between Armand, Amadeo and Arun and with his intense masking to hide his abnormalities and discomforts.

- Valley of the Dolls by Marina (and the Diamonds)

“Born with a void, hard to destroy with love or hope, built with a heart, broken from the start”

&

“Living with identities that do not belong to me”

&

“Pick a personality for free, when you feel like nobody”

This song has a whole lot of thing that feel very Armand so i’ll go in order of the lyrics.

The first set of these lyrics definitely reminds me of Armand thinking and talking about his own past and what little he remembers of it. When he is talking to Daniel in 1973 he uses the metaphor of a black hole to talk about the absence of a meaningful self or life, which he projects onto Daniel even as it relates to himself a lot more. Armand is always a character that is sort of “doomed from the start”, his narrative of horrors and dehumanisation beginning at such a young age (even with things like “not made from human hands”) that he doesn’t really know anything else. He doesn’t have any sense of self than a void, and his heart really is broken from the start, never really being able to love someone or understand love at all. (“would he recognise love, if he were to experience it?”)

The second set of lyrics add onto this and the HC of dissociative disorders/ his identities really being separate. The identities of Amadeo and Armand never did belong to him, they were given to him, assigned to him by Marius and Allessandra respectively. Then there is Arun, who he doesn’t remember. He doesn’t know if that was his true name at all and all he does remember is when that life and identity was taken from him. It doesn’t come back up until his relationship with Louis, and when it starts to be used in their unhealthy Dom/Sub relationship, it again doesn’t belong to him, but to Louis.

The third set of lyrics really is an add on to the second, Armand doesn’t really feel like anyone, he has no fixed identity, so he keeps choosing different parts to play to please or serve whoever he’s around and what they want, be it Lestat, the theatre coven, Louis or Daniel. These come so easily and freely because it’s all he knows, it’s not putting a mask over a real person, its becoming another phantom of a person that he has always been.

- Another Marina song, Fear and Loathing

“I’ve lived a lot of different lives, been different people many times, I lived my life in bitterness, and fill my heart with emptiness”

&

“Got different people inside my head, I wonder which one that they like best, I’m done with trying to have it all, and ending up with not much at all”

I don’t really have anything to say here that wouldn’t be repeating what I said for Valley of the Dolls as it’s very much the same thing, but these lyrics are too fitting not to also mention, and this song is So Very Armand both in lyrics and sonically, it has that perfect dreamy-gentle yet heartbreaking tone.

Last but not least Identity by X-Ray Spex gives me a very similar vibe even if the tone is very different (a classic punk song). I can’t really say much about the lyrics as they are quite repetitive (“Identity is the crisis can’t you see”) but it’s very Armand nonetheless and gives me the impression of Old man no nonsense Daniel confronting him about his lack of self

YESSSS UR SO RIGHT THESE R PERFECT!!!! Every time I get sent Armand songs I get ten more years on my life

[for-a-longlongtime]

Songs and musings in the Key of Peña-Rockford

(Those gun holsters have me all fucked up. Seriously.)

I warned y'all about how obsessive my hyperfocus can get, right? Damn ADHD. The choke hold (all the puns intended) that this fic idea has on me is unreal, haha. But all of your comments and encouragements about this Rockford Pena WIP are making me so happy and relieving some of the stress I feel about writing it - thank you! I don't have another snippet to share just yet (so I hope this post isn't too much of a cock tease), but since I always love to read about character thots and writing processes (e.g. the extra posts by @mysterious-moonstruck-musings about her Destiny & Deliverance series, and @gracieispunk with her White Lotus posts), I figured I'd post a little update with some musings and songs I'm associating with this fic.

My Spotify currently is curated by @sin-djarin, who somehow knew just the right songs that relate to this WIP. Particularly these three tracks are on constant repeat. Going back and forth with her about little things that come up, or question ‘why this and not’ has been so much fun really. It makes me giddy because it turns the fic into something collaborative rather than just something from the inside of my brain, you know?

Whisper - Morphine

I included this track the other day already with the WIP snippet; it’s sexy and slow and that bass line really gets to me, then the saxophone ups it even more. @sin-djarin sent me several Morphine songs (I have to admit that somehow I wasn’t familiar with them) but this one stands out. The push and pull that’s happening in the lyrics is also delicious, and a lot of it feels like it’s coming from Rockford’s POV about Javi - that’s all I’ll say about it for now.

A Perfect Twist - Mike Patton

This song has an exuberant, rather bombastic vibe to it that I would’ve never associated with anything related to Peña. Although, those lyrics... they are definitely about brat taming.

I'll bend you over my knee Let's see what you can take You're never gonna break

And I'll squeeze that noose a little tighter Breathing like a snake How much can you take? You're never gonna break

And I'll turn those screws a little tighter You can hardly wait You're never gonna break

Just one more twist of the pliers Got you on the brink How much can you take? You're never gonna break

There’s something about the dizzying tune and pace that somehow evokes the noir-like Rockford vibes in the Merge Mansion clips, laced with liquor and cigarette smoke and things spinning kinda out of control.

Wait who said Masquerade Mansion? 🎭

In relation to these two?

Shhhh let’s pretend you didn’t see that. Keep your eyes wide shut. 🎭

Broad Daylight - Gabriel Rios

This is the only song that suddenly came to me re: this fic, and I was all… the fuck is this. I like the song, it's catchy, but it just didn’t make any sense to me with regard to Javi and Tim. The only thing I could think of in relation to the track was maybe a vague reference of Peña getting caught up with Los Pepes, things that were done in the dark and shouldn't come out in the daylight:

Back in the old days, tight like a fight Used to hang with the devil in the broad daylight

But still, it puzzled me. I think something in one of the Morphine songs musically led me to Broad Daylight, weird as that may sound. After way too many replays of that song (and @sin-djarin joking about 'what are those Polaroids Tim has on Javi?', since the song mentions polaroids), the relevance of the song finally clicked with me;

Look at you shaking you can't find his plight Got you scared of ghosts in the dead of night While you're making up stories trying to make it ok He'll be bringing them in to let them out and play In the broad daylight

We'll see how it goes from there.

At some point, there's also going to be a bit of Marcus Pike in the fic (pancakes!). I have to be honest - I don’t really read a lot of Marcus!fic, so I’ve been trying to figure out how he fits in and some of his character traits etc. But the wonderful @secretelephanttattoo was very quick to offer me some insights about Marcus that I needed! Go read it here.

TBH, I had absolutely not planned to write anything about Peña any time soon, because why I love him in canon and in the many fics I've read, I didn't exactly feel like I had a good enough handle on writing something about him that has some plot rather than just fucking. But then this fic idea popped up. If there's anyone who knows him really well, it's @goodwithcheese (you'd better be reading her incredible new story Paranoid Heart about Javi!). So I dropped some questions and fortunately she was totally up for some character chat right here, which is really helping me figure out some things. Thank you babe, and I hope more people will contribute thots to your 1K Celebration Confessional about their sins!

Also, I've been trying to put a time and place to the fic, but I've decided to not get too hung up about that because it's really not literature but Fic/Porn With Plot. It doesn't all have to make sense. But in case you're curious, I'm leaning towards this taking place in the US in recent enough times that smartphones are a thing.

Age wise, I'm seeing Tim Rockford as being 48/50 years old probably. Javier is about 40, 41 years old - just to give you an idea of 'which Javi' I'm looking at, I've got a sense of him as he is in Narcos S2 around episode 4-9, after Carillo is murdered, and Berna takes him to see Judy Moncada.

Reader insert (I know, I haven't spoken a lot about her yet!) is probably about 40 years old too. And finally, Marcus Pike is give r take about 37 years old, which corresponds with his Mentalist appearance.

BTW, I came across an edit that had all of the Tim Rockford bits from the ads without the additional stuff. A whopping total of 48 seconds. Man, I hope that Pedro is aware of how fucked up he has us about Rockford with less than a minute of his acting. Even my wife said 'I would totally watch a show or movie based on this character' when I played the Merge Mansion ads for her.

Finally, here's a video of Pedro talking about "real fantasy fullfillment in terms of getting to immerse yourself in an experience" and how he "loves being a detective, that's fantasy fullfilment for me" re: the Merge Mansion event day.

*hits replay*

Say 'fantasy fullfillment' one more time? Respectfully.

Like I said, I hope he knows how fucked up he has us all about Rockford. I sure am glad he did these ads and whatever he got paid, it sure wasn't enough.

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

Updated tag list (comment if you want to be added, or if I added you by accident!) based on folks who commented/reblogged on the prev posts:

@sin-djarin @legendary-pink-dot @imalrightllama @secretelephanttattoo @rhoorl @mysterious-moonstruck-musings @trulybetty @goodwithcheese @linzels-blog @rifflovesjoey @maggiemayhemnj @magpiepills @youandmeand5bucks @morallyinept @5oh5 @missredherring @avastrasposts @anavatazes @imaswellkid @pedrit0-pascalit0 @angelofsmalldeath-codeine @survivingandenduring @boliv-jenta @prolix-yuy @sheepdogchick3 @inept-the-magnificent @northernwindd @alltheglitterandtheroar @readingiskeepingmegoing @txlady37 @rebel-held @alwaysmicado @heareball @clawdee @covetyou @bellsbluebrd @alltheglitterandtheroar @axshadows @casa-boiardi @bastardmandennis @stealyourblorbos @chronically-ghosted @katw474 @beabliss @nerdieforpedro

I don't know why some usernames don't seem to link when I try to tag them, btw. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this?

[vulpixisananimal]

SIFSTEM PLAYLIST

I got a few suggestions from people, and I have explinations for a lot of the music too BECASUE IM A HUGE MUSIC NERD!!! Below the cut!!

ALSO I'm gonna add more songs over time and will probably update this. Lol. I'm ALWAYS taking suggestions for it! I like music!!!

PLAYLIST ORDER

Each section for the Sifstem members is designated by an ISAT origonal song, and in each section is song for that member! There's two exceptions which I'll go over real quick!

Your fault/Last Midnight - First song on the playlist, it's about basicly all the members. It's about a bunch of characters arguing about who's fault it is that everything's gone to shit before blaming it on the witch. And then in Last Midnight the witch goes off on them about it doesn't matter who's to blame, they have to deal with it.

It takes two - Last song on the playlist. Also from Into the Woods, this, by contrast, is about how people change and work together well.

Also some songs I choose off lyrics, others off of just vibes.

NOW FOR THE SECTIONS

Siffrin

Final room (act 5/6) - If there was a good Siffrin theme from ISAT, I think this is it. I like it.

Russian Doll - "Why should I try again?" This was a song reccomended to me a while ago actually, it fits.

Touch - ok this one's a bit mean but, listen, he is so touch starved. This song fits. "Touch, I remember touch, feelings came with touch."

No dogs on the moon! - vibe song! Silly fella song!

Bohemian Rhapsody - one of my favorite songs of all time ever. There's too much to type out, tbh.

Loop

How can you help me, Stardust? - do I even need to say anything?

Absolutely cuckoo - listen to the lyrics. "You might decide I'm a nut \ Give me a week or two to \ go absolutly cuckoo \ then when you see your error \ you can flee in terror" LIKE COME ON

The Future - "I'm worried about the future, ain't fucking with that past shit." Loop is really trying to move on. How could they? They're stuck in their betters shadow, their mind.

A humans touch - this one was by @\jackoboltrades! Very fitting for Loop who still feels they don't deserve love, or that they're just a star, not human, not real.

Rage Awakened - based purely on the loop fight. It's a vibe song but I love this song. Also Lingering Will (the character this theme is for) does have some similarities to Loop, being echoes of the past defeats and wishes.

Haunted - being haunted by past mistakes or just the past in general. Though it has some romantic undertones that I can take or leave

Mal Du Pays

Mal Du Pays - AGAIN do I need to explain anything

Mr. FEAR - "Hello, my name is mr. fear." considering how Mal Du Pays is introduced and how it interacts with Siffrin, well, that line alone makes it an MDP song.

Dark Impetus - Vibe song! Mysterious figure cloaked in dark, too. Lol.

Ghosts - "Maybe the past aint what it cracked up to be \ Maybe I'll find a way to just move on \ Maybe we're all ghosts cause I cant feel the ground \ And all these shades they dont make a sound \ I think there is a God \ I think he hates his job" Do I need to say anything.

Stained, Brutal Calamity - Recomended by a friend! Both vibes but also the lyrics that come later have a MDP vibe. I like it.

Burn My Dread (last battle) - "Tear up your fear \ the end is coming near" Honestly Persona 3 has a vibe that could fit MDP quite well.

Null

I WON'T LET YOU GO HOME - Act 5 Siffrin, someone who's both repressing their own feelings to their family but also doesn't want to let them go, to the point of hurting everyone. Nuff said.

Panoramic Feeling - this and the other Katana Zero songs are here cause, well, Zero fictive, plus has the vibe.

All for now - same song used to fight Ramos. It was this or Full Confession, and this fits more for it's desperate or crazed vibe.

L'impeto Oscuro - This is actually a retrain of Dark Impetus, it's the them of a time traveler who can stop time (Kingdom hearts lore dont worry about it.) This specific mix also included the music for when time is stopped during the fight. It's ruthless, endless.

I'm my own master now - Very heavy and hard and strong and powerful, also! The Lyrics! "Bear the mark of my scars \ Shedding blood underneath the stars"

Labyrinth - Being lost in an endless labarynth of their own mind. Very much like act 5 Siffrin, like Null. Plus, Null is not exactly mentally stable.

Rain on brick - Katana Zero song, it's the menue theme. It's just. . . Vibes.

[nudgeling]

I've had a resurgence of listening to First Aid Kit recently so I decided to pair up a bunch of their songs and lyrics to traffic characters and ships. I'm surprised they’re not more popular in fandom spaces since they’re pretty similar genre-wise to both Crane Wives and the Oh Hellos, so consider this is my community pitch (+ commentary cuz i wanna)

Fleeting one - BigB

"My love is a fleeting one / My man could be anyone / And our love is a setting sun / My life is fleeting one / My work is just a web I've spun / Oh, my life is a setting sun / Baffled by the lives we were lent / We met the end too soon / I was honest when I told you / We're as cryptic as the moon"

BigB has a bit of a history with wavy loyalties. The secret soulmates with Grian, betraying Cleo, and most recently tricking Skizz (I know that was resolved but a pattern is a pattern my man). And well, not that I have any clue what the man's up with all the cryptic gaslighting but I feel like that applies as well.

The lyrics outside the chorus seem to be about a couple falling out of love, but I like to apply it to him and Cleo, which still fits fairly well. Angst galore ofc.

Wolf - Pearl

"When I run through the deep dark forest long after this begun / Where the sun would set, the trees were dead, and the rivers were none / And I hope for a trace to lead me back home from this place / But there was no sound there was only me and my disgrace"

Scratch this being the most Pearl-like FAK song, this is the most Pearl song ever. It's basically what started this whole project. All the lyrics and all the vibes just screams DL Pearl. The song is also a bop, one of my personal favs, if I were to recommend just one of these to listen to then this is a strong contender.

Josefin - Martyn

"You go home with feet bare in the snow / You raise up your head to the dead / You seek of such magical things / And nobody knows where you've been"

This smells of watcher lore guys. Don’t have much more commentary than that, it’s just watcher lore straight up.

King of the World - Lizzie

"I keep running around / Trying to find the ground / But my head is in the stars / And my feet are in the sky / Well I'm nobody's baby / I'm everybody's girl / I'm the queen of nothing / I'm the king of the world"

The lyrics is giving Last Life Lizzie, but it’s also one of the more whimsical-sounding songs on the list which feels very Lizzie in general.

I'll admit the rest of the lyrics isn’t particularly easy to tie into the life series since there’s a bunch of specific modern references like going to the airport and traveling through states, but I love the song way too much not to include it. Might be the personal favourite.

Rebel heart - Desert duo

"You told me once I have a rebel heart / I don't know if that's true / But I believe you saw something in me that lives inside you too / Now I all I hear is the wind / There’s a storm coming through / Did I misplace or forsake my love now that I gave it to you?"

Picking just one lyric section from this song was difficult. Every single word, top to bottom, fits Scarian like a glove. It also slams in a "But I know you truly saw me / Even if just for a while" which just MMMM. Makes me wanna bite someone.

I Found a Way - Treebark

"We play the game with skillful hands / And so I asked for your demands / "Give me your love, give me your gun" / And you traced us back to where we begun"

Tbh this song could apply to a lot of traffic dynamics but it had a lot of loyalty themes which is why I put it at Treebark specifically. That being said: man. It works so well. Specifically Martyn POV. The gun in the lyric above would ofc be the beheading, plus the song later mentions the protagonist having a lot of guilt and being prone to running. It's got C!Martyn all over it.

My Silver Lining - Skizz

"I try not to hold on to what is gone / I try to do right what is wrong / I try to keep on keeping on / Yeah I just keep on keeping on / I hear a voice calling / Calling out for me / These shackles I've made in an attempt to be free / Be it for reason, be it for love / I won't take the easy road"

This is another one where it just is Skizz. He’s probably been the most consistantly loyal and good-natured person in the series, doing anything and everything for his team. I feel this especially with how he was in Limited Life, being determined to spread some light into the world despite the game they found themselves in. When making this list I found that most of these songs could fit multiple dynamics/characters, but this is his song, full stop.

Stay Gold - Flower Husbands

"The sun shone high those few summer days / Left us in a soft, wide-eyed haze / It shone like gold / It shone like gold / But just as the moon, it shall stray / So dawn goes down today / No gold can stay / No gold can stay"

👏ANGST👏GALORE

Another one where I just want to quote the whole song. The song is all about grieving time periods and memories you can’t get back, to which I'm thinking late-game 3rd life, post-3rd life divorce or s1 empires characters having weird nostalgia. I go feral for all of it.

Bonus empires:

Heavy storm - Sausage

"I saw, I saw, I saw, I saw an old photograph / And the picture that appeared / Well, it took me back to the times / When she was around / She used to play that old mandolin / And the moon and the sea invited her in / I wish that I had told her by then / What she knew deep down / That she only wished that time would come back"

S1 Sausage angst my beloved. Or s2, could work either way, but I'm partial to s1. "She" could be either Pearl or Gem, however there is a "he" in the first chorus which is very much Fhwip. Like Stay Gold it’s all about grieving old times, so I like to imagine a post S1 Sausage grieving his old family :D

[heavenbelongstociaran]

me and my wilmon playlist

i like to think of myself as the second coming of christ when it comes to making playlists right, and i have this completely reasonable in length young royals playlist and i feel like i nailed it, in terms of the general vibe of the show AND scene specific themes.

ANYWAY, the reason i'm bringing it up is because i think there are a few songs that are very season specific that are in there.

season 1: visions of gideon by sufjan stevens

I KNOW everyone and their mother would agree that this song is very tragically wilmon.

"I have loved you for the last time

Is it a video? Is it a video?

I have touched you for the last time

Is it a video? Is it a video?"

giving very much episode six, when simon and wille were saying goodbye just before wille left for the palace. even though simon was being reassuring, comforting and encouraging (calling him brave, saying the royal court couldn't force him to do something he didn't want to do), wille (imo) didn't seem to believe him. and i think the way they kissed just made it seem like wille had already made his mind up, even though he said that he wouldn't lie about the video. it felt like he knew he was going to do it, and that it would inevitably be the end of the relationship, hence the lyrics being "i have loved/touched you for the last time."

honourable mentions include:

i'm your man by mitski

on and on by djo

favourite crime by olivia rodrigo

love in the dark by adele

it almost worked by tv girl

hurts me too by faye webster

take me home by pinkpantheress

let light be light by lizzy mcalpine

season 2: crack baby by mitski

gonna start with the honourable mentions first because there are loads:

i loved you by sunday cruise

thursday girl by mitski

why didn't you stop me by mitski

capable of love by pinkpantheress

genuinely, there are so many more but these are the ones that popped into my head as i was scrolling through the playlist.

you know that one saying that's like, "you never know how good you had it until it's gone" or however it goes? that's how season 2 felt.

both simon and wille were trying to recreate what they had or could have had with other people (marcus and felice, respectively) and realised that that would be impossible.

"Crack baby, you don't know what you want But you know that you had it once And you know that you want it back Crack baby, you don't know what you want But you know that you're needing it And you know that you need it bad"

said realisation definitely hurt wille incredibly, considering he said he wished it hadn't happened. it made him realise what life could be like, but he threw that away because he thought he was doing the right thing by denying the video ("protecting" simon). i actually have no idea how to explain this but like, trust me bro.

season 3: too many to name.

heaven by mitski. these fuckers were so in love this season, it was quite sickening (/affection). thinking about season three wilmon makes me want to cry, ignoring their communication issues, and other things that had a negative impact on their relationship.

a part of that by anna kendrick. HERE ME OUT. so, the song is from the movie adaptation of the play "the last five years" and anna's character, kathy, is watching her husband succeed and do all these amazing things in his life and is wondering where she fits into all of it. in season three and maybe the whole series, there's the topic of where the big five fit into the society or positions they're placed in and their positions in each other's lives. wille's struggle w/the monarchy and wanting out, august wanting in (for example).

dark circles by ryan beatty. this has simon written all over it.

casino by ryan beatty.

capable of love by pinkpantheress. goes with what i yapped about regarding season two. whenever they break, or rather when simon breaks up with simon, they seem to feel like this is the be all, end all of everything and that they won't love anyone ever again. in capable of love, pinkpantheress is saying that people pretend that the bond that she has with her love interest doesn't exist, ie people ignoring the fact that simon and wille were together at one point and only acknowledging wille when he got with felice BUT she also says that that doesn't matter, considering everything they went through to get to where they are now. she goes on to say that she'll never be able to love anyone the same way if they were to ever break up and i think that, throughout the series, this has shone through.

ribbons by ryan beatty. https://genius.com/31122186/Ryan-beatty-ribbons/Whos-gonna-hold-you-while-you-sleep-well-its-brave-to-be-nothing-to-no-one-at-all

little faith by ryan beatty!!!!!! (quite frankly, the entire album, Calico.)

general

there are a lot of songs that could encompass the show. capable of love. literally any loyle carner song about struggling with your identity and familial relationships and breaking cycles (polyfilla). sufjan stevens (mystery of love, everything that rises). so on and so forth. but wilmon and the young royals are not one dimensional enough to be described by one or eighteen songs, they're a whole catalogue. that playlist on paper is the most random thing i have ever crafted because fo&o, boygenius and brockhampton have no right to be in the same playlist, but hurt like we did, cool about it and any way want me absolutely deserve to be together; in a cool way, i think that's literally what simon and wille are like: on paper, they don't make sense. the crown prince of sweden, white and privileged and a gay brown boy from a small town who just happens to be an antimonarchist, but if you take that all away, they're two boys trying to find their place in the world, making mistakes.

feel free to give feedback and song recs !!!

playlist links:

apple music: https://music.apple.com/za/playlist/young-royals-but-i-made-the-soundtrack/pl.u-6mo4ZzvSBedVApW

spotify: (i haven't updated it on there in at least six months): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/25Pf9bDFBl6vtXOH9cvJC5?si=0b8a0ff36bb5435e

[goron-king-darunia]

Annon-Guy: What do you think of the Sonic Adventure 2 Songs?

All of them are bops. Sonic's theme takes the original lyrics, bumps them up to fit a faster paced and more upbeat song. Improves upon the original in every way. The original from Sonic Adventure is already a 9 out of 10, but this pushes it up to a 10/10, and the opening whistle sound is iconic, honestly. Tails' theme is, musically, better than the original. The arrangement fits with Tails' character growth as he becomes more capable and confident, even though he botches the main mission at the end and almost gets Sonic killed because, well, he's an 8 year old kid. Or he used to be. Sega seems to be scrubbing up the lore and trying to make his age ambiguous now which I literally just found out about because I couldn't remember whether he was 6 or 8 or 10 and apparently he's been depicted as young as 4 and a half in some materials which is wild. Like, I love the child genius archetype in fiction but dear god 4 is definitely too young. If he wants to be meddling with machines that can crush his little bones in his own house I guess that's fine but running around and destroying Eggman with Sonic at age 4 is insane. Little buddy you should be sipping some juice and making sand castles. Sonic's already too young to be fighting villains like Eggman as a teen (though to be fair I aged wildly out of the target demographic so EVERYONE in that series except maybe Eggman and Shadow are too young to be doing what they're doing! XD) Tails fucking up a grown man at age 4 is just insane to think about. Like yes yes child genius but FFS, 4 is just a baby. And they did it again with Cream and Cheese later. I understand that in a lot of lore it's all the animals against Eggman because he's literally a terrorist and they have no choice but come on, when you can walk around station square and see grown adults who aren't doing jack shit to stop Eggman, it should not fall to fucking prepubescent kids to fight back. AUGH!) Rant aside, Tails' theme also increases the pep as Sonic's new arrangement does, but the flaw is that the lyrics don't flow as well. The chorus absolutely cranks it up to 20/10. That slow and yearning "I want to fly high" is absolutely killer. The first verse absolutely bops too. But when it gets to later verses, the lyrics fall apart and just don't fit the rhythm. Also, they lose out on the absolutely killer bit of "there's things that only I can do, No one's Alone!" from the first arrangement. Now it's just smushed together into some unrecognizeable word salad due to trying to fit the original lyrics in an arrangement where they don't vibe well. I think it would be possible to take the best parts of both arrangements and make a 12/10 song, but as it stands, they're both about equally good at 8/10.

Knuckles' theme improves. The softer voice for the rap fits much better with the lyrical vocals they ported over as a backdrop from the first arrangement, but the sound mixing is poor so that it's difficult to parse the lyrics if you don't already know them. But then again maybe that's just my auditory processing disorder. That said, I do think the contrast of the rougher rap and the softer vocals being kept separate in the original was thematically on-point. If they had kept the rap in the new arrangement distinct from the vocals they took from the original and kept it as a refrain between verses, it would be absolute fire. Still an improvement. The scratching lends a hip-hop quality to it that I definitely jive with. Absolute fire. Original was a decent 7/10, the new version manages an 8.5 out of 10. If the sound mixing was a little better and they kept the original vocals as a refrain, I think it could be a 9.5 out of 10. Shadow's theme is, sadly, the weakest to me. It absolutely fits his character, but the vocal performance is weak. Say what you will about the game "Shadow the Hedgehog" but that had absolutely baller themes for Shadow and the lyrics absolutely added to it. I understand that theoretically Shadow would have actually permanently died at the end of SA2, and they only brought him back because he was insanely popular. So setting him apart with the harsher techno-rock-metal soundtrack where the lyrics aren't the focus sets him up as an intimidating foil to Sonic's more cheerful and upbeat personality and the contrasting themes absolutely reflect that. But I feel like they could have done a little more to reflect Shadow's ultimate conflict of realizing that revenge doesn't change anything and that Maria wouldn't have wanted him to destroy the world for her. Honestly I feel the same about Richter's theme from DotNW but in a different direction. While Richter's theme does try to telegraph his more complicated feelings and motives by setting up that harsh, rhythmic bass line and bringing in the sweeter violin, it sounds too dissonant to me. I think they could have had more synergy. Shadow's theme is a bit of the opposite. I think there could have been more contrast. Honestly the lyrics come in so late and so low that I forget this song even has lyrics. 8/10. I prefer more of the themes from the Shadow the Hedgehog game.

Eggman's theme is absolute fire. No notes. Massive improvement from the first game. This song has everything. The mechanical noises reminding you of who he is, Ivo Robotnik, and how that ties into the grand scheme of things. The self-aggrandizing lyrics. The droning rhythmic synth track that just oozes "factory assembly line" energy. It sounds cool but intimidating, with just an edge of "how fucking goofy, who does this guy think he is?!" While I absolutely adore the toothless joke villain Eggman gets set up to be in a lot of the newer stuff, namely the Sonic Boom series and games, I love this intersection where Eggman has just enough over-the-top zazz to make you raise an eyebrow. It sits right on the precipice of "either this guy really knows what he's doing and is so confident about it, he doesn't care if he looks goofy doing it or he's an ABSOLUTE idiot who just happens to fail upward." And it's right in that sweet spot where he can be the butt of the joke while also being intimidating. Absolute peak of both camp villain and cartoonishly evil while having just enough power and wits to be a genuine threat. The main chorus literally begins with "I am the Eggman" which, in spite of all odds, makes the name that Sonic gave him as an insult out to be a genuinely threatening moniker. As if to proclaim, yes, go ahead, think of me as a joke. Underestimate me. It won't matter in the end. He is not just Eggman. He is THE Eggman. The one and only. And he's going to build his empire over the bulldozed remains of your city whether you put respect on that name or not. And his theme song encapsulates all that while being a genuine bop. 100/10. Genuinely one of the best themes ever written for the Sonic Franchise.

And that leaves us with Rouge. And for a new character BOY OH BOY, did they hit it OUT OF THE PARK with her theme. That soft jazz, the soft, sultry vocals that ramp up into confident high heady notes. Absolute banger. Tells us everything we need to know about Rouge as a character. A spy, a theif, a sneak, and a Woman with the uppercase W. She knows who she is, she knows what she wants, and she will use everything to get it. Overtly sexualized, but in a way I don't necessarily mind, even if it's right on the cusp of being inappropriate for a game meant to be played by kids. She was a lot of young mens' (and young womens') sexual awakening for a reason. While noting in the canon of the game shows her actively using her body in a sexual way to get what she wants, I don't think it's inaccurate to extrapolate from her theme and her way of speaking and walking that she absolutely would if this was a game for Adults. The parallels to Catwoman are not an accident. And her theme song does a masterful job of indicating all that without actually treading into inappropriate territory. Even Wild Canyon's theme explicitly references her as an object of desire and that Knuckles being that shy guy that doesn't know how to deal with pretty women is absolutely affected by her. I think part of the reason it's easy to forgive Rouge being sexualized is because she's an active, intelligent character who is at all times, using the people around her. She is not some sexy lamp that you can upskirt for sick thrills whom the narrative has to repeatedly assure us "don't worry, this isn't skeevy, she definitely likes it, we promise." This is a woman with steel-toed high heels that breaks into bank vaults and could kill the average man with a single kick. She's hot, she knows she's hot, and she uses that to her advantage to wriggle into positions of power and advantage. And she's fine with being that way. Her arc isn't about some condescending narrative about how she shouldn't have to behave that way. If anything her main arc is that she's absolutely stellar being exactly as she is and provides valuable skills to the team to help save the world. She's a stereotype, but not actually one that I mind. Because she's not just a sexy woman who loves money and jewels and has nothing else to her. I would classify her as a witch archetype despite not having supernatural powers other than sensing gems, which is a gimmick Knuckles also has and is never explained as anything other than a game mechanic. She has power and talent in her own right and while she is a direct foil to Knuckles and works alongside Eggman and Shadow, she isn't defined solely by how she relates to the men that surround her. She's an absolute beast and I love her. One of my favorite Sonic Characters of all time. Even with her damsel in distress moments, I never got the sense that she was incapable. Just overconfident. But not in a "LOL, how stupid of a woman to think she can tangle with the big boys." but "She is literally walking among titans, she's bound to trip up a little." The only time it felt forced was in her final confrontation with Knuckles where she falls off a beam. I understand the idea was probably "she's tired from fighting and can't right herself immediately, which is the reason she fell in the first place." so it's ambiguous whether she could have saved herself, despite having wings. But even if all the nitpickers are actually correct and she was never in danger, Knuckles reaching out to save her is more about the kind of person he is than the kind of person Rouge is. That said, yeah, her theme is a fucking banger. Second best track from the character themes, for real. 20/10 at least. No notes. Absolutely accomplishes the goal of distilling who Rouge is into a single song. Absolute queen.

[katerinaaqu]

I was wondering if you ever watched any EPIC animatics that you liked? I know you don't like the musical so maybe the answer is just no xD but while I for one like most of the musical, I also was veeeryy iffy about God Games and did not like it one bit, but there are some animatics based on the song that I still love despite my dislike of the song itself haha.

(tho I absolutely despise Six Hundred Strikes to be honest... not sure if even a good animatic could save it for me but who knows what other artists might cook up with it lmaoo)

Of course. Like I said I have nothing against the artists who create (I can only agree or disagree with their artistic choices according to my own tastes like any other form of art) or the musicians behind the singing. All are very dedicated artsist and amazing animators and I appreciate their hard work for what it is regardless of whether I like or dislike the source of their inspiration.

Arguably one of my first introductions to the musical back in the day when I thought it had potential as Odyssey adaptation (before I got disappointed especially in Circe Saga) was through animatics. More specifically I believe one of my first introductions was the last few seconds of "Remember them" through @wolfythewitch animation:

I thought it was perfectly aligning to the spirit of the Odyssey while using the melody. Also this animatic was so beloved to me because the character design resembles the design of a beloved character that I am working with @artsofmetamoor for our stories whose name is Caleb and is from the animated series and comic w.i.t.c.h. In fact I prefer when I hear some of the songs of the musical that I still like to imagine Caleb in there because he is such a better match in my head for the songs! And he conducts himself in a manner similar but also different to Odysseus in our stories!

Generally I adore their animatics and I absolutely appreciate the fact that they try to insert some actual lore details in there, something very hard to find these days (for example Tiresias drinking the blood of the sacrifice)

I believe another animatic that I liked was from the "Warrior of the Mind" by @mircsy

I really loved the fluidity of animation in it as well as the details of transformation or Athena appearing in a mask to signify the recognition. I also liked the inserted details on the boar hunt on Odysseus suggesting a plan and then even teaching it to others to fit the lyrics (yeah this boar thing had nothing to do with the actual boar in the Odyssey but it was very interesting way to show that to animatic). And once again that also gave me Dilla vibes, an OC that I am working with my friend @artsofmetamoor although our OC fits more with what Athena became later in the musical plot for she is a very emotional and engaging person, once again the animatic gave us very good source of inspiration for future projects etc

So yes there are several animatics in specific that I really liked (although I admit I stopped actiely following some of them due to the whole cringe that got over me after Circe and the changes of the plot and on occasion I disagree with some artistic choices here and there although again that has nothing to do with the artists. It is purely on my own perspective) but I really like it when these little detals are inserted there. I also saw some projects on the go that I really loved as a detail and such it is just that I just have the intense dislike for the plot of the musical so I do not follow them actively but sure there are amazing projects out there with really good details

[carolperkinsexgirlfriend]

4, 15, 22 please

4. How many WIPs do you have right now?

Oh jeez. Okay, so I’ve got two for The Untamed, two for Naruto, one for The Penumbra Podcast, one for Sweet Home. I’m not going into detail on those because you guys don’t care. And also, “in progress” is generous for them, since I haven’t worked on any for well over a year. I’ll go into more detail about the uhhh, nine Stranger Things Ones?? -Steddie Upside-Down AU - this is almost done!!! So close! I’ve also partially written four smaller fics from other people’s pov’s, so those could be argued as separate! But I didn’t count them that way lol. -Platonic Stobin Mind-Reading AU - this one!!! I’ve been thinking of it <3 the name says it all. The Russians gave them mind-reading powers, but only for each other. I have no plans at all for this fic. I just want hijinks and mostly fun. -Aro4Aro Stancy AU - this one’s almost exclusively just for me <3 and the premise is, wouldn’t it be both funny and tragic if two aro people were dating each other, had never heard the word “Aromantic before” and couldn’t figure out why they were so fucking weird about each other once they broke up? -Christmas - I’m going to be honest, this was supposed to be posted LAST christmas, but it’s a character study on Nancy, Jonathan, and Steve’s relationship with each other post Stancy break-up, and the weird in-between world where you’ve fought monsters together, faced traumas together, and also hurt each other irreparably <3 Or, it’s about their reactions to Christmas lights! -The Crash Bang Incident - Max crashes the car into Eddie’s van on the way to the tunnels in season 2 with Steve passed out in the back seat. Enough said.  -There There - Steve goes back in time, but Robin DOESN’T. He has a mental breakdown about this and makes it Robin’s problem, whether she likes it or not.  -The Red Strings of Crazy - character study of Robin just sort of, spiraling about trying to figure out what the hell is going on with Steve Harrington post his introduction to the Upside Down. She admits to being virtually Obsessed with him in season 3, so I totally think she has a murder board and stalks him about it because come on. She WOULD.  -Carol/Nancy - this is just porn…..I’ll probably never post it because I’ve never written porn. But! Carol sees Jonathan’s creeper photos of Nancy, and feels a certain way about them.  -Stobin Body-Swapping AU - this has no actual words of the fic written, but I’ve got like thousands of words of contradicting world-building. Pretty much, something happens in the future that kicks them back into the past in each other’s bodies. But not at the same time??? So Robin in Steve’s body will go confront Robin in Robin’s body, and she’ll be like, dingus…is that you??? And no, it’s past Robin. And Steve does the same thing. And they completely fuck up the timeline, because by the time they GET to the inciting incident in the present, Steve and Robin have both thought the other was crazy for YEARS because of all the yelling and accusations. This one may never get written, or if it does, I might say fuck the logistics and just go for the vibes because I cannot figure it out. 

15. How do you come up with titles for your fics/chapters? 

Almost always, I start with a theme that’s prevalent in the work. For example, for the Steddie Upside-Down AU, I was ruminating on survival, and hope through adversary. Usually, I spin through my mental rolodex of poetry/songs, find one that fits both thematically and has something I like as a title (either in the lyrics/verses or the title of the work). In this case, it was “A Litany For Survival” by Lorde which is an excellent poem. I think used lines from the poem as chapter titles. This doesn’t always work, but it’s my favorite method! One of my other favorite titles I’ve found this way is an unpublished au where the main character can see ghosts, which I titled “with feet that make no sound,” from the poem “Haunted Houses” by Longfellow. Sometimes, a title just comes to me without this method, but creating chapter/fic titles is like my least favorite part, so this is the go-to method. 

22. Do you know how your fic will end before you start writing?

Sometimes, but rarely! I know how the Aro4Aro Stancy AU is going to end. The Steddie Upside-Down AU was entirely a wild card. Often, when I’m writing, I’m telling the story to myself at the same time as I’m telling it to any readers. So, if something wild happens, we’re experiencing it together!

[pluto-the-chinchilla]

This is for a multichapter slowburn (extremely slowburn) he-said-she-said canon-divergent Red SolNep fic I have a lot of drafting for but will most likely never write. But I wanted more SolNep content so I decided to try and put some music to it. It’s not properly organized yet so the flow is jank but I hope rarepair lovers will like it! :33 💚💛

Track List~

“Falling for the First Time” by Barenaked Ladies

Sollux POV! The perfect song for his conflicting feelings, his back and bird self-contradicting mindset, and how he tries to pessimistically talk himself out of making a move. If you’re willing to be self-indulgent like I am you can see little Nepeta allusions in the lyrics. :33

“Kids Again” by Artist vs Poet

Both about one another. A sort of light hearted song being far more sentimental toward the other for their fears and doubts. Taking it in baby steps and promising to be there for each other and how they care regardless of where those feelings take them.

“Boba Date” by Kimmy

Nepeta POV! Just a cute very in character date idea for Nepeta who most agree would be a filthy weeb — plus she canonically loves tea! This could work for any Nepeta ship. I like to imagine maybe Nepeta eventually makes a little cafe in the new world for artists and writers and people just trying to catch a nice vibe. Bringing Sollux here only to tell him it’s all on the house… what? I said this was self-indulgent!!!

“Hot” by Avril Lavigne

Nepeta POV! Just a song for all of her big romantic shippy f33lings!!! The opening line is “oof” and might give the false impression that this is a more yandere route. It’s best to put “I wanna lock you into a closet” on the same level as “I could just eat you up” or something. The rest is her just gushing about Sollux and how crazy about him she is, wanting to do anything and everything with him. I like to think at this point in the relationship it’s actually been over a year since they’ve hooked up, Sollux is in a much better place in his life and she’s gushing over watching him thrive and how they thrive together.

“Emergency” by Paramore

Once again Nepeta POV and depending on the circumstances this could fit other ships, however this is the first song I feel especially world for them. In my head this is a conflict involving his past loves Aradia and Feferi (particularly Aradia; since while I love him and Fef infinitely more I acknowledge that Aradia keeps him firmly pinned in his grief) and Sollux is still going through the motions. He should be healed and over it by now he thinks but Nepeta knows better. She’s more in tune with her feelings. She knows how Sollux must have suffered and of course she knows she’ll never take the place of Aradia or Feferi and she’s not trying to — she’s never going to replace anyone but nor is she going to be a bandage placed on top of two wounds that refuse to stay closed. She knows he’s trying to move on but recovering isn’t linear and despite how Sollux feels like anybody who tries to be with him is doomed Nepeta both doesn’t see things that way and even if it was a threat that she thinks he’s worth it. He’s carrying a lot of weight but she’s str0ng af and wants to help shoulder it with him. Oofie this one was long.

“Broken Sutures” by Ultrakylstron

Sollux POV. I deliberately went down a rabbit hole of looking at nerdcore music to see if I could find a Sollux vibe. And this one is a little contrived, especially if you don’t know about Honey & Clover (which is a cute, soft, passively sad shoujo anime that I can’t recommend because it does that creepy thing where a child character design gets passed off as an adult to make l0lic0n more “acceptable”) but essentially it’s unreliable guy likes a cute girl who likes someone else. And the lyrics go into applauding him for moving in but how that always falls through and it becomes an amalgamation of loving Nepeta but also never letting go on what he’s already lost. Also the idea of her getting him into anime more his vibe is… 💋 chef’s kiss.

And… more… I’ll come back I swear but I’m on my phone and my eyes are sensitive even with blue light glasses. )X

[paperlovesadness]

i might be delusional because of miles' recent ig story but i just listened to mr schwartz and that got me thinking, what if that song is about miles?

especially the line "having attempted twice, both incorrectly/do we get a third try?" made me think it could be a hint to TLSP...

(and now i'm going to relisten to the song imagining alex telling miles "kiss me now before it gets to cute". i blame miles kane and his instagram stories, that's all)

also, i hope you don't mind that i just randomly sent you this ask but i had to share this thought with someone and i don't follow too many alex and miles blogs on here

Oh I don't mind at all! Really glad you did. I love talking about these things. And even more - connecting with other people here! So thanks for the ask 💛 and do it anytime!

[warning: I went overboard and this is long. Kinda a little Mr. Schwartz analysis? Very chaotic though! ]

I 100% see where you're coming from with that one - I'm not fully concinved if any of the songs on The Car are literal/about anyone/thing specific BUT Mr. Schwartz is the one that struck me as potentially Miles-ey from the very start too.

Or even just as the one that seems most likely to actually refer to something very specific / one easiest to decipher (maybe Body Paint too - as in seems more specific. Not as concinved that it's could be about Miles though)

Like most songs on the album it seems very introspective. Alex figuring out stuff about himself. But the stuff I'd say could very much be centered around a certain relationship.

From what I've seen the attempt twice lyric made quite a few people go "TLSP?" and I get the vibe too. They definitely got closer than usual both of those times. So to me -if we take the 'milex' point of view for the song - I'd think he could be reffering to their relationship taking some leaps and turns and changes (towards romantic?) twice (probably around the recording of both albums. It was very visible they were super close) - they tried working out what they are exactly to each other and how to work with that. But both times they failed. And seems like he'd like to try again.

'kiss me now before it gets too cute' also makes me feel like its said by someone who doesn't fully want to face the depth of their feelings? Like they're head over heels - the kind that just makes you want to love the person and hold them and take care of them and it's tender and gentle. So they run from it like "okay let's just kiss and focus on the physical aspect - I'll just face the being attracted to one another part".

And then the message of the song overall - I see it as a sad analysis of being kind of 'caged in' by showbuisness? Or maybe society in general. Though I'd say the former more.

Having to pretend something, wearing a mask. "Wardrobe" (the business? management?) "lint-rollin' and smudging dubbin'" - helping put on the stage/public persona.

Mr. Schwartz as a potential stand-in character for himself or Miles. Anyway - someone who doesn't fit into the mold they are expected to fit in the business/sorroundings they are in. Asking after all the-wives-and-the-kids-small-talk. Being expected to be a certain way. It's hard, but they try staying strong for the people who depend on them ('the crew'). Still there's no helping it - no way to ignore the norms and expectations - 'it's at the heart of what the business is' after all.

You sharing your thoughts actually popped a new one into my head - which is maybe Miles saw some hints in Alex's lyrics that he's still thinking of them/their past (he'd be able to more than we are with the context). And that got him into this feely-yearn'y memory-lane mood? Cause the timelines of TC coming out & Miles going nostalgic kinda add up

(Sorry for the unnecessarily long response 😅 something I can't help, I always write too much. Should add a warning to my ask box!)

Hope you survived reading this answer!

[fandomfluffandfuck]

i know imagining animatics/fanvids set to songs is a time-tested fandom tradition, and i vaguely remember that you talked about having playlists dedicated to characters, so i wanted to ask: do you have any songs in particular that inspires you to translate it into a different medium? (not necessarily for fic purposes)

like for example i recently listened to gravity by john mayer (the lyrics is so stucky-coded, which you know, ouch) and i'm vividly imagining making a stopmotion thing with paperdolls that have movable joints flat on the table, a snowy sky as the background, the bucky doll falling in slow motion (as the background streaks red) while we see the form of a chair slowly becoming visible at the bottom of the screen... and then it switches to a parallel scene where the steve doll's falling with the pieces of the triskelion floating in midair. then as he crashes into the river we see the bottom of it is the waterlogged version of the room he wakes up in the future, and as he lands on the bed it freezes him ❄ the frost spreads and spreads, until it reaches the other doll being held in its own cold prison, serving as a tomb where he slumbers ❄

...wish i knew how to outline things properly and break tasks down into manageable chunks lol, but it is very fun to think about making art! (but actually following thru ambitious projects is 😭)

I think you'll enjoy this post

Also, this post

I 👏🏻 LOVE 👏🏻 THIS 👏🏻 QUESTION 👏🏻

As far as imagining fics based on songs, you can very much see that I do that to some degree with the amount of fics I have that use song lyrics as titles, lol. But when that happens, it's not so much about hearing a song and then coming up with a fic concept based on the song, usually, I have the fic written, then a song comes on shuffle and I go Oh! Oh, This Is The Exact Vibe! This Song Has To Be The Title Now!

Your idea for the John Mayer song sounds beautiful and haunting, by the way! It perfectly fits that song! It would be truly, truly breathtaking. Just the idea in my imagination is breathtaking.

I have a vivid imagination, so usually when songs remind me of stucky and inspire me, I imagine fan edit type videos in my head. I don't know how to edit, though, and I have too many things going on to teach myself right now, so... they'll stay in my mind.

This got longer than I intended, lol

"What Was I Made For?" by Billie Eilish

I used to float, now I just fall down

I used to know but I'm not sure now

What I was made for

What was I made for?

Takin' a drive, I was an ideal

Looked so alive, turns out I'm not real

Just something you paid for

What was I made for?

'Cause I, I

I don't know how to feel

But I wanna try

I don't know how to feel

But someday, I might

Someday, I might

When did it end? All the enjoyment

I'm sad again, don't tell my boyfriend

It's not what he's made for

What was I made for?

That song vividly, vividly shows me Steve--Steve before he encounters the Winter Soldier and really begins to make a life for himself in the 21st century. Aimlessly wandering around Brookyln. Staring out into space. Frowning. Wringing his hands. Trying to figure out how he feels and who he is now that he's woken again to a new world. There isn't a war. There aren't any people he knows. What does he do? Who is he?

I mean...

"In Over My Head" by Grandson

When I was nine, I'd make believe

The good guy always caught the thief

The room went dark and I couldn't sleep

I was in over my head

At 15, I would look around

And all my friends had it figured out

They all thought it, but they never said out loud

I was in over my head

Oh, I feel this vertigo

Sick of being an optimist

I'm trying, I'm trying

But I'm in over my head

I'm in over my head

...

I thought I'd make change happen overnight

I was 20, thought I had a good hold on life

Didn't know it at the time, I was not alright

I was in over my head

Now I'm pretty sure at 26

That it isn't gonna be some little fix

The game wasn't rigged by accident

I'm in over my head

This is another Steve song. I hear this song and I see an edit showing us Steve from the playground, squaring up with bullies twice his size, Steve as a teenager, getting in trouble with Sarah, giving her gray hairs, Steve as a young adult, getting in fights in alleys, enlisting illegally, Steve in the military, standing up to his superiors, then Steve post-serum, post-war, entangled in his Captain America suit--watching the news after a mission, wading through the scene of a protest, frowning at his phone, opened to angry discussions on social media... he doesn't know what to do. He feels paralyzed.

(Also, "Left Behind" by Grandson also gives me MAJOR Steve vibes. He's stubborn. He cares so deeply about topics. All of that. I see Steve getting angry in that song, I see Steve crying with that song. <3)

"Black Vultures" by Halestorm

Black vultures circling the sky

Feels like the end of the world

But it's only the beginning of it all

Forget the things that you've heard

Been a survivor since I began to crawl

I'm falling down but I'm not out

The devils at my door

I don't give in, I don't give up

I won't ever let it break me

I'm on fire, I'm a fighter

I'll forever be the last one standing

Black vultures circling the sky

Pick at the pieces

Scavengers wait for me to die

But I'm not defeated

I'm on the edge of the war

I'm holding on and hanging by a thread

I am the eye of the storm

And you haven't seen the last of me just yet

This feeds my brain the idea of Bucky lying on his back on the ground, in the middle of fucking nowhere, a meadow that's muted and dulled. The sky is overcast. There are vultures and ravens flying overhead, circling, but also perched in trees at the outside of the meadow. He's exhausted. Worn thing. Greasy. Gritty. Bloody. He gets up, turning over to crawl, and eventually finds the strength to walk. To stagger. It cuts to black. And then there's a montage of destruction in the most beautiful way as he tears through HYDRA bases. Ending them.

"Devil In Me" by Halsey

I don't wanna wake it up

I don't wanna wake it up

I don't wanna wake it up

The devil in me

Gotta wake up, gotta wake up

Gotta wake up, gotta wake up

Gotta wake up, come back to life

This is simple. At least, it feels that way to me, lol. It's purely Bucky. I see Bucky screaming, sweating, hair amess, after having a bad night, coming too close to horrifying memories through dreams, and trashing their [Steve's and his] bedroom. Thrusting the nightstand onto its side. Cracking the lamp. Ripping the sheets. Needing to do something. Squeezing his fists.

Finally, finally sinking down in the corner of the room to sob. Hands to his head, trembling. He sits there for who knows how long before Steve comes in and holds him. He tells him it's okay again and again and again. It is. They can replace everything. Sometimes you just need to get it out.

"Guilty (For Your Love)" by YONKA

You tripped on love, you got cut, you were bleeding

I carried you through the night, an emergency

I want to inhale your disease

I would do anything for you, I am guilty

I get goosebumps when you're near me

You're just like the movies

I am guilty for your love

...

I had monsters in my bedroom 'til you came along

You scared them off and kissed my head

Told me that they've all gone

You taught me how to stand up to my demons, that's real love

You been messed around so much, you forgot how to trust

Had the wool pulled over your eyes, but I ripped it off

I'm the pill you needed when you thought that you were all done

This is one million percent stucky in my head. I see so much with this song. I see them in war times, I see Steve getting up in a commanding officers face, throwing his own queerness in their face when the officer comes to deliver Bucky his blue slip. Yelling. Eyes lit with a challenge. They won't discharge Captain America. They couldn't. I see Bucky throwing himself in front of Steve. Blocking him from fire, from bullets, from danger and absolute death with his body. I see Steve taking the stand in Bucky's defense against the United Nations Court. They will only convict Bucky if it's over his dead body. I see Steve and Bucky lying in bed, sheets tangled, Steve's fingers tracing Bucky's jaw, his sharp cheekbones... yeah.

"Are You Really Okay?" by Sleep Token

Are you really okay?

You woke me up one night

Dripping crimson on the carpet

I saw it in your eyes

Cutting deeper than the scars could run

And don't you know

I can see it in you even now

And don't you know

I want to help you but I don't know how

And are you really okay? Yeah, yeah

Are you really okay?

And I, I cannot fix your wounds this time

But I, I don't believe you when you tell me you are fine

Please don't hurt yourself again

Just please don't hurt yourself again, oh

This song, depending on the mood I'm in when it comes on, flips back and forth between coming from Bucky's point of view, about Steve, or Steve's point of view about Bucky.

It's mostly the same either way, I see Bucky or Steve filling the role of the narrator in the song--waking up to see their partner bleeding, shaking, incoherent, and hurting. They're dazed. So hurt that they have a thousand yard stare and can't totally focus. The rest of the night is spent on the balcony of their apartment. Smoking a cigarette despite supposedly having quit, sharing it between them silently. When they slide back into bed at dawn, they're wrapped up so entirely in each other.

I hope you enjoyed my rambles, lol

[kindred-sims]

I’m SO glad to provide some motivation for you to keep working on your amazing story! 😄

What about 10, 15, 18?

The motivation is most appreciated, thank you! ❤️

10 - Is your story fully planned or are you still working things out? is there a definitive end?

I wouldn't say that its fully planned, as of this moment I really only have plotlines in mind for the first two generations. As far as other future gens, who knows what might happen! I do try to have some things planned ahead of time so I have a general idea of what I'm doing, but I also like to just play and see what happens.

15 - What have been the highlights of creating your story?

Getting to fully explore the characters' personalities and relationships with one another, and to see how they eventually evolve over time are definitely a couple of things! I've also loved getting to just chill and work on my own historical fiction piece (albeit in Sims 4 format), since I've been wanting to create one for years and its just been such a joy to finally do that.

18 - Choose a song that reminds you of your story

You get a two for one for this question! I couldn't decide between putting something with lyrics or something instrumental that just fit the overall vibes, so I decided to go with both! I'd be lying if I said I didn't have the A0GG theme on repeat while I was getting the Wakefield save ready, its probably one of my biggest inspirations for historical gameplay next to Little House on the Prairie. As for the first song, I just feel like the lyrics fit Jo and Caleb's story extremely well, and overall just the entire theme of this first generation.

[sugarcarnation]

i’m bored. so you get an alli trivia quiz! made by yours truly. let’s see how strong this alliance really is (no pressure but this will determine the rest of our relationship)

1. what type of characters tend to be my favourite?

2. who’s music do i listen to the most?

3. who is my favourite male character in bsd? female character?

4. what’s my favourite crime?

5. why did i stop watching the latest show i started?

6. what book series am i currently rereading?

7. what au idea do i attach to frazel?

8. who’s at the bottom of my bsd character ranking?

9. which taylor swift song did i assign to alex rider?

10. why do i find yassen’s (from alex rider series) name so funny?

and bonus question: what is something that i’m afraid of that many people keep in their homes?

love that you decided to do this publicly. gotta make it embarrassing for me if i fail to answer anything

(answers under the cut to not make this get too long lmao)

what type of characters tend to be my favourite?

main characters!!! i know that one. you also generally like a character who suffers™️

whose music do i listen to the most?

okay idk if i can say who you listen to the most but you do listen to a lot of taylor swift. and ariana grande tends to end up in your spotify wrapped as well. and i think you used to (still do?) listen to little mix

who is my favourite male character in bsd? female character?

i can confidently answer this. dazai has been your favorite from literally the first day i decided you had to join me on this journey. i was trying to tell you about atsushi and you went yeah what about that guy in the river though?

and your favorite female character is yosano. even if i’m pretty sure you keep forgetting that that’s her name since you only refer to her as akiko

basically you have great taste in characters

what's my favourite crime?

🔥🔥🔥 ARSON 🔥🔥🔥

why did i stop watching the latest show i started?

the last show you started from the beginning was how to get away with murder and you stopped it because they killed of wes (your favorite character 😔)

what book series am i currently rereading?

alex rider!! the book series about people repeatedly traumatizing a child

what au idea do i attach to frazel?

i know we talked about this but i don’t remember 😔 that being said while trying to think about what it could be my mind repeatedly went hades and persephone au so here’s my au proposal where hazel rules over the underworld and starts dating flower boy frank

who's at the bottom of my bsd character ranking?

lmao it’s verlaine. my extensive chuuya backstory essay really didn’t paint him in the best light

which taylor swift song did i assign to alex rider?

had to think about this but i believe it’s dear reader. i remember this because i texted you like i think dear reader is an oda song because ✨vibes✨ and you were basically like well i think it fits alex and you wrote an entire essay about it where you analyzed the lyrics 😭

why do i find yassen's (from alex rider series) name so funny?

because it rhymes with assassin. and he is an assassin. he’s yassen the assassin

what is something that i'm afraid of that many people keep in their homes?

idk if i’m gonna give the right answer to this 😔 i think there was something else but i can’t remember so i’m gonna have to go with dogs. that counts right??

i hope my answers were satisfactory and this won’t be the end of our friendship <3

[dkniade]

i love the way you write 😭😭 i’ve checked out a bunch of your stuff over the last few days and i am eyeballing your works respectively

from one midnight poet to another — what inspires you to take up poetry as a medium? who are your favorite authors/poets/inspirations?

Ahh, thank you! That’s very flattering to hear!

As for what inspires me to write poetry… Mostly my own feelings and thoughts, I’d say. The same goes for writing and journaling, but when I’m upset I find poetry to be one of the fastest mediums (if I’m in the mood to do so) to relieve my stress, anger— something like that. Personally it works much better for stress and anger towards particular things than sadness because if I’m just sad with no reason, finding words and essentially finding a concrete thing to be sad about makes it worse for me. Though with that being said, I’m trying to learn how to write wholesome poems about healing, as well. (I think.)

Poetry, to me, is an amplifier and a type of freedom, I guess. There are some things I can’t really say to others in real life, but in poetry I’ve no audience (in the sense that I’m not actually speaking to anyone) so I don’t have to worry about my diction and tone.

But also, I think poetry is a great way to tell a character's story concisely, maybe even in-character too, especially if the character is a poet themselves. Writing in-character poems, for example my Venti poems “Flute Song” and “Song of Feathers Fit For Flight”, forces me to think like the character and then kind of create something as the character, which I find interesting. I'm writing as the character who’s writing something themselves.

As for other poets/inspirations… Initially it was anime opening themes, particularly Hello Sleepwalkers’ “Goya no Machiawase” (Overnight Appointment/Midnight Rendezvous) because of the idea of going towards and talking to oneself.

おやすみ　その絶望を受け取って

明日への僕は歩き始めた

また今夜　待ち合わせよう

Good night, I accept this despair and

Started walking towards tomorrow

Let’s meet again tonight!

And then it changed to the VOCALOID producer Neru’s works in his first two albums Sekai Seifuku and My Name Is Love Song. If I had to pick songs then I’d say “How To World Domination”. (Note: This is Oktavia’s translation which conveys the intentions well I’d say)

どうせ愛なんてって薄幸ぶって強がっても

きっと本心じゃ疚しさに襲われて

どうだい現状の僕は

そうかい、どうしようもないな

うるさいなお前なんて大嫌いだ

Even if I say “To hell with love”, embracing my misery and feigning a “I’ve stopped giving a shit” sort of air

I know I couldn’t do that without feeling ashamed for hiding how I really feel

How goes things, my present day self?

Oh I see, it’s hopeless, huh?

God you piss me off, I hate you so much!

and “Terror”

やられたらやり返せ 君の番だ 捨てた夢の全てを拉致しろ

心の居場所を賭したレジスタンス

笑われたその分だけ 笑い返せ 言わば人生のクーデター

勝ちも負けもない延長戦 僕らの反撃前夜

If they strike at you, strike back! It’s your turn now! Take back every one of your abandoned dreams

It’s a resistance where your heart’s place is at stake

Laugh back only as much as you were laughed at! A coup d’état of life, so to speak

Going into overtime with neither wins nor losses

It’s the eve of our counterattack

But recently it’s been the alt-folk band The Amazing Devil’s lyrics. I like their style and their rhythm and rhymes a lot, but also I LOVE their call-and-response sort of conversational lyrics. I guess I’m finally thinking about that more since, well, they write songs in English where the aforementioned aspects are easier to pick out (than in Japanese).

I remember for my “The Immature Liege and the Heartless Joker”, I was inspired by “The Old Witch Sleep and the Good Man Grace”. (You can see it even in the title too.)

'Cause we'll dance together so close we're sharing breath

But now I'm leading, doesn't that just scare you to death?

'Cause I'm all yours, you're all mine

Let's dance together, you and I

'Cause I'm not trapped, oh with you, you see

You're the one who's trapped with me

And then, “Farewell Wanderlust” has the “flirting with your (metaphorical) enemy” sort of vibe that I also really like.

"Come, devil, come, " she sang, "call out my name"

Let's take this outside, 'cause we're one and the same

Our gods have abandoned us, left us instead

Take up arms, take my hand, let us waltz for the dead

Defiance. It seems in the songs and artists I like, there’s always a sense of defiance against unpleasant feelings. I like the idea of telling yourself to be stronger and stand up for yourself, or if you’re not ready for that yet, then at least face your feelings as they are without trying to soften it to make them sound acceptable. It’s what I strive for in my pieces too.