#but still trying not to overthink things

[daily-hanamura]

[fictionadventurer]

Beauty and the Beast for the WIP game?

My only real attempt at writing poetry before this year happened during a stretch when I tried to write a Beauty and the Beast retelling in verse. I got about two-thirds of the way through before it fizzled out and languished forever unfinished.

When it comes to my recent novel-in-verse obsession, the simplest option would be to take another look at this work and try to finish it. There's a lot of terrible poetry in there, but there are some that are somewhat better than I remember. I can't claim to be a judge of what's good poetry, but some of these are readable, so I'll share some of them here.

The first set of semi-readable poems covers the first meetings between Beauty and the Beast. (These are all numbered, and I'm leaving the numbers in place to better differentiate between separate poems. I think the speaker in most of these is fairly clear from context, but just in case, I'll put the speaker's name in the title, too.)

VI. beauty and beast

he is every nightmare i’ve ever forgotten he is thunder and darkness and death he is fear with fangs he is beastly

she is every dream i’ve never dared for she is roses and sunlight and life she is hope with jewels she is beauty

*

VIII. beauty

the chair creaks when he sits

my knees quake when he speaks

the master laughs when i ask

when i will die

my ears doubt when i hear

my mind reels when i realize

the master wonders when i began

to think he’d kill me

IX. beast

the rules are these you are mistress of this castle the servants will obey your every whim the rooms and all within are yours including me

you will dine with me at dusk we will not speak if you want silence you will look at me and try not to scream

i will not harm a hair of your head i will not cause a moment’s worry you will do whatever you wish except leave

X. beauty

his mercy shatters my world makes it bigger and at the same time smaller

how can i live in a monster’s cage

my life will be long and lonely with him my friend and at the same time jailer

how can i look at a monster’s face

the castle teems with wonders that all belong to him and at the same time me

what do i do with a monster’s love

*

The next set of poems I feel like sharing starts with Beauty finding a portrait in the castle, and then leads into her sharing a dance with Beast that makes her kind of freak out over the fact that she might be falling in love.

XXII. beast

today you found a painting in a long-forgotten room covered in cobwebs and shrouded in dust

there was a reason it was lost

the portrait showed a man with a face like the dawn and eyes like the sea you thought he looked kind

he was young and a fool

you may keep it if you wish or lock it back in darkness it matters not to me i used to see him daily

i doubt i’ll see his face again

*

XXIV. beauty (and beast)

if rooms have souls the ballroom is wise a radiant beauty long past her prime

she treasures the days when she lived and was loved she keeps them and counts them like pearls on a string

(she is not the only one, my dear)

long past midnight in moonlight and hush this sleepwalking girl can glimpse former days

a flash of a gown and a whisper of waltz what glorious balls must this room have beheld

(they were marvelous indeed, my friend)

it seems a shame she grows old alone with nothing but darkness and dust held within

i would dance for her return the spark of life if only we had music and i had a partner

(i will gladly dance with you, my love)

XXV. beast

my dear beauty don’t you know i learned dancing long ago

one step closer take my hand with a waltz you’ll understand

let the music guide your feet in a dance that’s slow and sweet

hand in hand and heart to heart it’s not love but it’s a start

XXVI. beauty

he is hulking beastly

i am small delicate

i should be stumbling crushed

but

we marvelously miraculously dance

and it feels like flying

XXVII. beauty (to the portrait)

man on the wall i may be mad but i must give voice to the storm in my heart and you are the only one near

the master puzzles me i know his home as well as my own but i know so little about him

(is he beast or man or nightmare or dream or captor or friend)

i saw his face and thought him a beast

(but he grows roses and reads poems and has never killed or even raised his voice)

i heard his voice and thought him a monster

(but he spared my life gave me his home and all he owned offered his heart and never once has been anything but gentle)

i watched him dance and thought him a man

(with grace like an angel or a prince and i think that maybe he was not always so lonely and that his heart aches for things lost)

what am i to think do say be feel about him now

and why do these questions always come at midnight

*

The final poem is one that I had completely forgotten about, so I was shocked to find it lurking in the latter sections of the document and showing signs of using some decent imagery. By polishing up the last couple of lines, I've got something that's not half bad as a standalone poem.

This one occurs during an extended period when Beauty is still trying to process her feelings toward Beast and figure out if this is really love or if her feelings are being warped by isolation and close proximity.

XXX. beauty

if this is love it is a dark and grasping love a child stumbling in the night crying for a candle flame and cherishing the smallest spark of light

if this is love it is a bleak and desolate love a skeleton tree in a barren desert windbeaten and scrubbed to bone and bursting into bloom at the first drop of rain

if this is love it is a smoke and mirrors love a sleight of hand or trick of light that takes my broken heart and fools me into thinking he can make it whole

[ashdash2417]

This thought came to my mind last night, but imo, I think for the decision that N would have to make, there's a bit more than just choosing the universe over the one drone he loves.

Because like, in the past, he's always been called useless and terrible, because J has said he's, well, useless and terrible (in the pilot at least), so if he were to choose to save Uzi instead of the universe, there’d be a chance of someone (probably J) saying "Once again, N has done something useless" or “You’ve really messed up,” or something like that. Once again, N has done a fuck up, and this one was a major fuck up, and for how he (once) wanted to prove to the team that he was anything but useless, N could not have made a worse decision.

However, it he were to choose the universe over Uzi, it would be like betraying her when she needed him most. He would be no better than the other drones that would leave her. He would be no better than her father. If he chose the universe over the one drone that actually helped him stand up for himself, the one drone that’s actually made a difference in his life, he would be just like everyone else that left Uzi.

He knows that Uzi doesn’t wanna be left alone once again, he knows she doesn’t want him to leave her like everyone else did. He’s the only one she really has. He’s the only one that stood by her side when no one else did. It just wouldn’t feel right to leave her now.

So basically, N is damned if he chooses one path, and he's damned if he chooses the other path. Like a "damned if I do and damned if I don't" kinda situation, and honestly, I feel really bad for him.

[handsomethrowrug]

Headcanon: So what exactly are the "Outsider" Lions?

Short answer: They are lions with mixed heritage of Pride Land and Kavu lions.

What is a 'Kavu' lion?

These are lions that live in the area we know as the K.alahari Desert. 'Kavu' is the S.wahili word for 'dry', and hail from a desert area known as the Dry Lands. This would be an area further to the south than the desert that appeared in the original movie.

The difference in appearance is stark compared to a Pride Lander lion. Kavu lions are slightly smaller than their bulkier cousins, but their lean build and longer limbs make them look almost malnourished in comparison.

Read-more because this is getting super long!

In terms of physical characteristics, their fur is thicker and longer, often giving them a 'scruffy' appearance to help them regulate the extreme temperature changes of the day and night. There have been cases of manes or tail tufts being curly/wavy. Some Kavu lions develop spots or 'freckles' as they mature, different from the spots lion cubs have, though it's unclear whether it's a long-forgotten aesthetic reason (akin to 'beauty marks'), or another way to protect them from the sun. Their noses are angular and slender to lessen the risk of sand irritating the nasal chambers. They can be black or pink.

Their pelts are normally darker and muted in colour as another sun-protecting adaptation (though they look 'washed out' compared to Pride Landers). Normally, they would be in tones along the lines of sand-brown, warm greys, or russet. There have been cases of darker tones appearing that are nearer to a dark brown or black. Tail tufts for lionesses are usually dark brown. For male lions, they are black, and they grow a black mane to further protect them from the blistering sun. The eye rims are normally darker on the upper half, and usually darker on the lower half, though this is not always the case. Finally, their eyes are normally somewhere on the blue-green range. When having cubs with Pride Landers, the eye colour is usually a recessive gene, meaning that most cubs would have red eyes. However, there can be some rare mutations, such as Vitani's purple eyes.

So how do the genetics work? Aside from the eye colour, as previously mentioned, nothing is recessive. However, the Pride Lander genes are naturally stronger, and they are better suited for the environment (the bulkier build for larger prey, pelts to better camouflage in the tall dry grass/bolder colours to look more intimidating, etc). However, another interesting mutation is the pelt colour being a mix of Kavu and Pride Lander. S.car himself is actually a really good example of this.

(I tried to quickly find screenshots in a similar lighting. I know they aren't perfect xD)

Compared to K.ovu and N.uka, he's actually more saturated, almost terracotta in tone. The other two are defintely more muted, or 'earthen' in comparison. In other words, he inherited the brown from the Kavu side, but it's a bolder, more orange tone because of the Pride Lander side. (Of the above three, I would argue that N.uka is actually the closest to the best example of a Kavu lion, aside from the weak mane from his poor upbringing and his red eyes.)

I was going to try and explain how many there were, but truthfully we all know that's a case of not knowing the sequel was going to exist in the first place. I would imagine it was a case of there being a few, but having mostly Pride Lander genes (with S.car presumably being the most obvious outlier), but then those that were born once S.car took over and the drought began took on the Kavu genes to have a better chance of surviving the harsh weather?

EDIT:

I forgot my main sources for information, whoops.

( ^ for that one, it's point 11)

[thevegetablewhichnoonedaresname]

i unraveled half a dishcloth about 3 times because i was having a toxic man-refusing-to-ask-for-directions moment and kept telling myself "nah you've knit stacks of these and it's literally the easiest pattern" and ignoring the fact that i've been crocheting for 3-4 years and could really spare 5 seconds to google a pattern as a refresher

[ganondoodle]

okay, i know im really bad at answering asks (shame on me! shame on me!)

but .....since its what im currently able to focus on; are there any questions about my OCs you'd like to ask? (the more precise the better, the vaguer the more i would just ramble out their entire history out of context or not know how to answer) i know i havent drawn alot of them, maybe it could get me to (re)design some even ... but i still wanted to put this out there o-o

[orcelito]

Yet again hindered by the "this reply is hidden because you have the user blocked" message. It has me Almost wondering whether I'd be better off not blocking so many people. So that I can freely be a nosy bitch.

Almost, but not quite. My block list is for my sanity, after all.

[qoldenskies]

FIRST DRAFT DEFEATED!!! its 54k words currently

[itsalwaysdark]

i like overthink everything now it makes me feel so dumb. i used 2 be able to just talk 2 ppl but nowadays every single thing im like Is that actually going to make them hate me. Yes probably. and then i just dont respond which makes ppl hate me. this is how it is

[vampirejuno]

Am I Into This Person But Very Nervous About It, Or Just Going Along For The Ride Because Idk What I Want - And Other Paralyzing Questions To Haunt Your Weekend!

[jeremiahthefroge]

Every appearance of the red-haired menace that is early Laurence forces me to sit here and stew upon how I will fix his introduction in the rewrite. As a coping mechanism. Unfortunately since I can't remember the parts where his character isn't just harassment so I can't cook with the themes the way I'd like to. Like the way he calls Aph "my love" after she very explicitly in the text of the game tells him not to do that... bad vibes. I think I could rock with his character if he'd done the same sort of approach in hitting on Aphmau as heavily, but the moment she lays down an actual boundary, he backs way the hell off. I could even fuck with her trying to be subtle about the boundary and him not getting it and continuing to make her uncomfortable before she snaps at him and he apologizes, saying that he truly didn't mean anything by it, and he respects the boundary she lays like his life depends on it from then on out. It would create some immediate complexity in his need for explicit communication, and backs up the sort of deeper character hinting they seem to try to do when he's talking about Castor and Cadenza, this idea that he deeply cares, if being a bit pushy on accident. It would also make a good detail fueling the conflicts later on with the love triangle that can sort of prevent Laurence from looking like TOO much of a dickhead (him being unaware or misinterpreting situations, and the delicate nature of it making him uncomfortable asking questions, is a compelling reason to see somebody hurting his friends' feelings, and makes him significantly more sympathetic, opening him up for feelings of remorse and guilt).

[emmodii-mode]

Just finished my first playthrough of BG3. Romanced Lae'zel, but ending up turning into an Illithid because the idea of making Orpheus or Karlach do it didn't sit well with me (or my character).

I told Lae'zel to leave with Orpheus in the end (I heard she wouldn't stay with a ghaik anyway, which she's valid for, but also, it doesn't feel right to ask her to stay when I know how much her people mean to her). And like-

Her face before she flies off---

She looks so heartbroken and sad.

[kyouka-supremacy]

Today was a good day :)

[getoutofmytardis]

it’s so funny that i sometimes think i’ve got good at socialising. new situation and i’m back to negative charisma

[gifti3]

Im in such an obey me mood today haha

other than "pls dont tell asmo about that",,,, i have questions about these freaking vegetables (im putting under the cut since im talking about food and bad eating habits/diet related stuff)

im assuming they would have to be mixed with other regular ingredients to prevent the hunger but it sounds like ppl would use them as the main component in a dish or just eat them by themselves

So does all of it get digested? No leftovers (waste) comes out the other end im guessing? is it like a magic type thing?? it has to be right? Cause if not...ur body will take the calories needed to replace the ones burnt, take the nutrients, and the rest will just get tossed out

And since it doesnt make you full, like wouldnt it be way too easy to overeat this type of thing? so you could accidentally end up making urself go to the restroom more often :/

Ig if it gives u the nutrients u need that itll be useful then. So maybe its a 'heres ur macros for the day' type dealo? but u still have to go eat an actual meal or make sure u mix it with other stuff tho

[slut-for-evans-stan]

Once you get this, you have to say five things you like about yourself, publicly. Then you have to send this to ten of your favourite followers (non-negotiable, positivity is cool~) 🌈🌈

(understandable if u don't want to share though ❤️)

Guess who finally checked their inbox after 4-5 months!? Seasonal depression hasn't really been just seasonal for me... the past few months have been exhausting, and it doesn't seem like it'll get better soon.

In all honesty, thank you so much for sending this in! It made me reflect on things.

As someone with severe social anxiety, body dysmorphia, and other issues, it's hard to take a moment to appreciate my efforts and myself. I had to think about this (overthink, really) but here are some small things I like about myself:

• I like my passionate nature. If I'm into something, I give it my all or atleast try to (even though I haven't been doing that lately).

• I like how compassionate and empathetic I am. I feel very deeply.

• I like my cooking skills, even though I still have a lot to learn.

• I like how the little things in life make me happy, even though often it takes just the little things to make me feel miserable. A tiny handwritten note or a text from someone I adore is enough to cheer me up, make me feel like I matter.

• I like my smile when I'm around, or thinking of, the people I love.

These are a few things I like about me, that make me feel comfortable and less vulnerable sharing here. Once again, thank you for asking me to do this! I hope you have things you appreciate about yourself too ^_^

P.S: This blog is a safe space, and if anyone of you reading this, ever need a person to talk to or simply listen to you, feel free to send in a text, I'll be there for you.

Also, I haven't interacted a lot with anyone here so I don't really know who I should tag, so I'm probably gonna do I apologise in advance if any of you find yourself tagged, I did it randomly.

@bookishtheaterlover7 @ilostmyshoe28 @imyourbratzdoll @squirrel-moose-winchester @rae-pottah @maximeseveridecasey @drulalovescas @wraithlafitte @angelslqver @moonlightlunatic