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luckyricochet · 4 years ago

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I want you to answer A-Z on the fandom asks so I can peer into your psyche 👀

Wow I love you. This actually took around three hours since I wanted to think about the answers. See them under the cut!

A - Ships that you currently like a lot. (They don’t have to be OTPs because not everyone has OTPs.) Friendships, pairings, threesomes, etc. are allowed.

From Hanyou no Yashahime — Sesshomaru and Rin

From The Mandalorian — The Mandomera’s been creeping up a little bit.

B - A pairing–platonic, romantic or sexual–that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.

Honestly can’t think of one. I’m very set in my ships.

C - A ship you have never liked and probably never will.

From Naruto — SasuSaku. Sasuke was cute as a kid so I get Sakura having a crush on him then, but I think she would have gotten over it when he became a homicidal clown who abandoned the village and tried to kill her and her teammates multiple times.

D - A pairing you wish you liked but just can’t.

From Harry Potter — Ron x Hermione. I’ve always thought their personalities didn’t match and not in the good ��opposites attract” kind of way.

E - Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?

I only know how to write angst, drama, and introspective musings so no.

F - What’s the longest you’ve ever been in a fandom?

Over fifteen years in the Harry Potter fandom, but I’ve had to separate that from JKR herself in the recent years.

G - Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?

“Have I ever had an OTP”? *laughs from shipping hell*

From The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare — Nat and Kit were my first OTP. Read this book in fifth grade and was immediately loved them. Boy literally risks banishment from the colony to help prove she’s not a witch.

H - What is your favorite source text for fandom stuff (e.g., TV shows, movies, books, anime, Western animation, etc.)?

I love visual media, so TV, anime, and film

I - Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?

I’m not going to let tumblr dot com put me off of a particular show/book/etc. itself, but it has definitely made me think less of certain types of fans who are in a fandom.

J - Name a fandom you didn’t think about until you saw it all over Tumblr. (You don’t have to care about it or follow it; it just has to be something that Tumblr made you aware of.)

The...period drama fandom? More widely, the history fandom. They both create some of the most beautiful edits celebrating history and I love it.

K - What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?

From Avatar: The Last Airbender — It’s gotta be Prince Zuko

L - Say something genuinely nice about a character who isn’t one of your faves. (Characters you’re neutral about are fair game, as are characters you merely dislike. Characters that you absolutely loathe with the fire of ten thousand suns are exempt, as there is no point in giving yourself an aneurysm over a character that you hate.)

From Harry Potter — I think Ginny is a Mary Sue but I loved when she stood up for herself in Half-Blood Prince when Ron was trying to slut-shame her.

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

From Parks and Recreation — Leslie Knope. Unending positive affirmations, thoughtfulness, and support!

N - Name three things you wish you saw more or in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).

I don’t really have a main fandom but I haven’t mentioned Free! yet so let’s go with it for this one.

1. Less Nitori because I can’t stand him.

2. More female characters! I get half the appeal is the boys, but I’d love to see a girls swim team in some capacity.

3. More Haru and his family dynamics! Doesn’t have to be a ton, but I want to know what his relationship with his parents like, especially as an adult.

O - Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?

Salt and the Sea - The Lumineers. “From the destruction, out of the flame. You need a villain, give me a name.” Such an Odesta song. (Finnick x Annie from the Hunger Games)

P - Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).

For The Mandalorian — A historical AU set in early 1900s New York City where Mando’s just some government agent sent to “report” on slum conditions to satisfy some housing law. He goes meaning to write up a generic report but then finds the orphaned Baby Yoda abandoned in one of the tenements. Shocked by the conditions of the slums, Mando goes from being an apathetic, middling-level bureaucrat to being an anonymous investigative journalist reporting on the corruption in the government that allows for the city’s most vulnerable citizens to live in squalor, leading the government on a search to find who within their ranks is exposing them.

Q - A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.

Sherlock, because it just took so long for the third series to come out. I had moved on to other fandoms by the time it did. Still have fond memories of when I was active in it, though.

R - Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?

From Lord of the Rings — Aragorn and Legolas. This is played up a lot more in the films but I love it.

S - Show us an example of your personal headcanon (prompts optional but encouraged)

For Lord of the Rings — Boromir definitely taught Faramir swordplay when they were little kids since their father didn’t want to.

T - Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending?

From Hanyou no Yashahime — Rin made the first move. Sesshomaru would be way too clueless to even know how to go about it.

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

From Pirates of the Caribbean — James Norrington: Commodore in the Royal Navy during the 18th century, must I explain any further? Cool, calm, and collected on the job while looking v good while he does it but a nervous wreck in front of the woman he fancies. Tell me that’s not straight out of Austen.

From Star Wars (OT) — Luke Skywalker: An unapologetically good person in a crapsack world, doing his best to bring light into the world. A classic hero archetype who grows out of his naïveté to become a cunning—but still benevolent—Jedi.

From Prince of Tennis — Yukimura Seiichi: His duality is *chef’s kiss*. Super scary and in charge on the court, gentle sweet boy who loves art and culture off the court. He struggled for so long but was able to overcome it all through his hard work and willpower.

Bonus favorite, because I couldn’t resist...

From Band of Brothers — Doc Roe: He’s doing the MOST for his guys but he really just needs a hug. Plus he’s got the accent.

V - Which character do you relate to most?

From Little Women — Jo March, especially as portrayed by Saoirse Ronan in the 2019 adaptation. Writer, holds grudges, opinionated, stubborn, eschewed “girliness” in her youth but is more open to it and romanticism as an adult.

W - A trope which you are virtually certain to hate in any fandom.

I’ve gotten to the point where even the hint of a love triangle tests my patience.

X - A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.

It’s about the yearning: Longing Look

Also will definitely always ship the Brooding Boy and the Gentle Girl

Y - What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?

Anything in the MCU or general superhero content.

Z - Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go! (Prompts optional but encouraged.)

I love fandom so much. I’m sort of facetious about being obsessed with people who aren’t real on my other social media accounts, but in all seriousness, being able to escape the real world to get excited over characters and relationships that face their own struggles, triumphs, and emotions is such a gift. So often they speak so powerfully on the human experience—How can you read, or watch, any of Tolkien’s work and not be moved by what he has to say about humanity and the power of good? Even if the stories are fictional, the messages they impart about life aren’t, which is what I love so much about them.

#itsacanofpeachessir #ask

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bigamcthyst · 5 years ago

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TASK 001:

FLAUNT Magazine sits down w/ Amethyst Pryce!

Amethyst is struggling to hear over a blow dryer. We’re in a small photography studio in at PRYCE Production Studios and the 26-year-old beauty is honing her look before the shoot. Everyone was a little late (traffic), but now the space is humming with garment hangers sliding across clothes racks and paper grocery bags shuffling snacks to their designated areas. Amethyst is seated in a sweatshirt, juggling two stylists preparing her for a shoot, interview questions, and FaceTime calls from a teenage sneaker broker and influencer. Last night she was battling with her event planner trying to iron out details for her upcoming event for the famed PRYCE Productions, and she’s preparing for a huge roll out to reintroduce the company to this generation. But despite this dizzying to-do list, the Bay Area native is relaxed, almost unbothered. It’s just another day in Amethyst’s world. Her brother Akeem Pryce is nearby, keeping her sane by forcing her into rap cyphers with him. This puts a lot into perspective but the question still remains: who is Amethyst Pryce?

Interviewer: For those who don’t know, tell us a little about who you are.

A: I’m the daughter of Allen Pryce, one of the most critically acclaimed producer/directors in the movie and TV industry. My brother, Akeem and I are the heirs to PRYCE Production.

Interviewer: That’s a crazy world to be apart of, dating must be crazy? Do you find it harder to date?

A: Well I think I make it hard, I don’t allow myself to make one person a priority.

Interviewer: Now you said ‘person’, does that mean you aren’t totally hetero?

A: Amethyst smirks, before giving a simple head nod. Women are nice to look at, can you blame me? Don’t get me wrong I love men, but it’s something about loving a woman that just... I can’t explain it.

Interviewer: So in your own words, what do you identify as?

A: I’m bisexual, gender wise I am female and I use she/her.

Interviewer: So earlier you mentioned that you were an heir, let’s expand on that and your role at PRYCE Productions.

A: Sure, I have taken on the role as Producer/Screenwriter. I’ve pretty much been a writer my whole life. I’ve always loved having writing as an outlet especailly with everything I’ve been through. The producer role was introduced to me by my father, who got me the opportunity to intern for Quentin Tarantino.

Interviewer: Wait, THE Quentin Taratino?

A: Yes, Mr. Pulp Fiction himself.

Interviewer: I have to admit, that’s pretty impressive. How did he introduce you guys and did you even know how big of deal that was at the time?

A: The day of my 17th birthday, and it was the summer, July 7th. Cancer gang baby! So I was old enough to know like who he was and what that opportunity would mean for me. I just remember my Dad calling me into his office and there he was. Quentin Tarantino in a tie dye shirt. And the rest was history.

Interviewer: So I’m sure you gained a lot knowledge and experience from both him and your father. Are you afraid of letting them down? That’s a lot of pressure for someone who isn’t even in their 30s yet. Do you have any fears at all?

A: I can’t lie and say I don’t feel any pressure but pressure makes diamonds and I’m already a gem. I think I’m just afraid to not accomplish everything I want to professionally and personally before I die.

Interviewer: So, what are your aspirations:

A: I want to make my first million dollars from a film or TV show that I wrote and produced by myself, no Daddy involved. I got all this old money, I wanna be able to say I got some of it on my own. I want to find love someday and have a big ass family. I really want to have a house in the Philippines as well. A big ass crib.

Interviewer: Most of your goals seem pretty family-oriented, which is surprising because you’re very driven and flashy. Some could mistake you for boujie, especially with your upbringing. What do you have to say about that?

A: I get that assumption a lot. Crazy thing is, I’m only so ‘flashy’ because of my mother. I remember watching her get decked out in the flyest shit to go to galas and movie premieres with my father. She was an amazing host and always had us looking fly whenever she hosted parties. I get my sense of style from her. She was everything. I’m not boujie though, maybe a lil girly but hey.

Interviewer: Some people may be familiar with the tragic loss of your mother, but to some this is all new information so if it’s alright, can you talk a bit about that?

A: My mother was diagnosed with stage 3 brain cancer, the proper term is Glioma. My brother and I didn’t know because she begged my father not to tell us. So we basically went on about life like nothing was wrong. Eventually her condition worsened and she ended up in intensive care in the hospital, soon after that she was gone.

Interviewer: That must have been tough, I couldn’t imagine dealing with something like that. I’m so sorry for your loss.

A: Thank you but I didn’t lose her, I gained an angel. I talk to my mom every chance I get. On days I feel like I can’t get through, I just feel her presence and her love. It’s funny because even in the afterlife, she remains the glue of our family.

Interviewer: That’s a beautiful way to look at it, you have this strength about you that just glows. How are you not married yet?

A: Shit, you tell me honey? If you let my best friend Ashtyn tell it, I’m a grandma and a prude.

Interviewer: Are you really?

A: Hello no, but she thinks I work too much and don’t make enough time to play. And she’s not wrong, but I just feel like if you like me then you should be fightin’ for my attention. Chase me and I’ll love you forvever. A girl likes to feel appreciated.

Interviewer: Well, you heard it here first ladies and gentlemen, if you want a chance with Amethyst you’re gonna have to come correct.

A: Period! Nah but I just want some romance, like 4 page letter, getting caught in the rain kinda romance.

Interviewer: Well since we’re on the topic, what are your likes and dislikes?

A: I like wings and I love sushi. I dislike waiting and I hate repeating myself.

Interviewer: So impatient and greedy? Got it.

A: Oh, wow. I can’t say you’re wrong.

Interviewer: If you had to describe your social media presence, what would you say?

A: My twitter is a bunch of inside jokes and me rambling at 3 A.M. Snapchat was originally just for my close friends but I’ve opened it up for my fans so I can take them through my work days at PRYCE Production studios and just my work days and trips in general. My instagram is my favorite app to use because I get to showcase my style. I love to put looks together. I’m the type of girl to beat my face and get dressed just to go get a snack from the kitchen.

Interviewer: Now take us through your phone, what’s going on there?

A: I have three phones. One is a business phone, for all holllywood friends, contacts and connections. One phone is kinda like a business phone but I use it to stay in contact with staff at PRYCE Production studios. And the last one, of course, is a personal phone for friends, family and a boo thang when I get one.

Interviewer: Okay, I love to end interviews with this question becasuse the answer says a lot more about you than anything else will. What is your music taste like?

A: Oh that’s a hard one. I really love all genres. I can go from Biggie to Mary J. Blige, to Old Dominion, to Elton John, to Queen to Frank Ocean, to Juvenile, to Too Short... It all depends on the mood I’m in or the mindset I need to be in at that moment.

Interviewer: I think that is officially one of my favorite answers. Amethyst, thank you for sitting down with me today. I can’t what to see what you do with PRYCE Productions

A: Thank you, it was a pleasure being here with you, truly. This was fun.

#🄿🅁🅈🄲🄴 — tasks.

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thatssonano · 6 years ago

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Hey, remember the research paper about why TV fails to represent female muslims? Well here it is.

Hey guys,

So I'm finally gonna try to write a real little thing about how TV fails to write muslim women. I thought about doing a real research paper and I wrote the introduction and got really anxious because it reminded of my very stressful master degree lol so this is much more simple. Anyways, let's get to it.

As a kid, I was very hungry for representation on TV. Mostly because I had no models, no one to identify with. As a very introvert and self-conscious kid, I didn't know what to be or what to do. At some point, I started looking up to my sister, very beautiful, very intelligent and very ambitious girl. So I thought "I ought to be like that, that's what a muslim girl like me should be like.”

Thing is, I wasn't as smart as she was, my grades were not as good, I wasn't as pretty or as popular at school, and there was not a single box I could fit in. I ended up being the "weird but nice little sister". But I was so invisible everyone would nickname me "Sarah 2" (my sister's name being Sarah.) And you know what? For the first time, I felt like I existed. Because I was "the little sister". Dude, how sad is that?

I was too white for them, not muslim enough, too weird for them. So obviously, it was tough to pave a way for myself when I was the only girl like me.

The first time I was finally not nicknamed was when I got into college at the age of 17. Only because we didn't choose the same college. And I understood I didn't have to be as smart or as ambitious as her, I understood that I didn't have to get the life she had when I was 22. 22, guys.

I'm turning 26 in one month. And I chose my own life. But God, how much time it took me to realize that there wasn't only one type of "the muslim girl"? 22 years.

I'm not saying that to share about my life or whatever, I just want to show the consequences of not having representation on TV. And for sure, many people don't care about representation, my sister doesn't, my brother doesn't. But I do. Maybe that's because I'm hypersensitive, maybe that's because I believe art should mirror reality. All I know is that it's necessary for many.

I met Sana Bakkoush on a random fan video about several fictional couples on youtube. I didn't know Skam then but there was this second in the video where I would see Noora and William staring at each other or whatever, and there was this beautiful hijabi girl in the back. I had to know what this show was about. So I did my research and binge-watched it. With much luck, I got to the end of the whole show before episode 3 of season 4 came out. So I learnt to grow with Sana, I fell in love with her, and I just felt like I could understand her. I was her. I finally was validated with her. Up until episode 5, all was well. And then,… it just broke? Still today, I'm trying to understand how they could let that happen and I guess there's one obvious reason. The writing staff was white. Julie Andem is white. And to me, if you're not from that community, you should not try to write about this one.

As the plot thickened, you could feel like it was unbalanced, incoherent, and that many things didn't make sense. But that's pretty normal, because if you don't live the problem, you can't understand. Now I won't curse Julie Andem for not trying, but I guess what should have been done was to hire a muslim writer. And God, people can't tell me it's too tough to find. Even if it was not Iman Meskini's job, she could have asked her. God, this girl taught more about ramadan through her ig story than Skam ever did.

Now I'm not saying she didn't do us all dirty when she gave us 9 episodes instead of ten and it all broke us on June 17th 2017 (Yep, this day is a national holiday now). And honestly, I've got not one good explanation for this except they didn't feel her story was that important. Unconsciously, I hope, because it would be too evil otherwise.

The reason, to me, that Sana was so many people's favorite character was because Iman Meskini gave her so much realness. Sana was strong yet vulnerable. Everyone, muslims like non-muslims could understand her, and I think she inspired so many people. Her life is amazing, and she's what now? 22. I really hope she gets a Nobel Prize in the future, she deserves it.

Now let's talk about the others. I think it'd be a bit faster.

Imane Bakhellal. Uhm. Well the main issue is the same, she was written by a white man. So obviously, it was 1. wrong. 2. wrong. 3. wrong. The story barely focused on her faith and whenever we'd see her pray she'd be interrupted. Look, I've been praying for 13 years and the only times I've interrupted my prayer were because I had just realized I had not done wudhu. Or I was too jet-lagged so I was praying in the wrong direction.

Thing is, Imane didn't make me feel anything. And it was even sadder, because I am a muslim living in Paris. To me, her story wasn't focused on her, it wasn't even focused on religion or her struggle living between two cultures. I didn't learn a thing. And God, that hurt. That hurt even more when the director didn't acknowledge it was poorly written and was actually proud of it. It hurt that white people get the right to write our story and we're there, not having any voice. It sucked. But I guess, she had ten episodes, right, even if the last episode was within the same day.

It didn't really bother me that she kissed him. The speech she recited did though. I got really frustrated about it. How hard would it be to find a muslim writer? Honestly, I would have been glad to join them, even as a volunteer.

I'm not actually mad at the actress, I guess it was just a reflection of her relationship with islam. And I know many people got the representation they wanted, but to me, it remains poorly written. To me, it remains hypocrite because they don't get it. Being a muslim woman of color in France sucks sometimes. But having at least her story focused on her would have been great too.

Ok, let's move on.

Amira Mahmood. I love her a little less than Sana, but I mean come on, that's understandable, right?

Amira is strong, she's beautiful, kind, smart. And her season was going well, until it wasn't anymore…. Because, well, it ended. I keep on wondering why it happened and I came with no logical answer. So maybe it was lazy writing, maybe it didn't matter to them, maybe the writers were just tired. I don't know, honestly, I don't know. But it pissed me off bad. (Honestly it was the third character I was let down on, lol, it started to be a lot to handle). Also, the other seasons were so greatly written, they had depth and understanding, it was soft and beautiful. And to me, season 4 just felt… lazy? Sure, I loved Mohammed but the Australia plot wasn't even that important it actually got fixed over text? And how hard would it be to find exciting plot for a muslim character? What? Everything should be about kissing, hair and sex? Well, no. I mean, I would have loved to see her actually working, I would have loved to see her actually bonding with her dad, I would have loved to see her at a boxing game… The summer and fall after I graduated high school was a very hard time to me, mostly because it was a time of discovery and transition. Everything was changing. God, they should have explored that more. So I don't know, I just felt detached then, and I think that's more sad, actually.

But I do believe the actress did a great job, and I wish Tua all success.

Shall I give a little paragraph on Nadia from Elite? Hell yeah I'm going to. Well, the show is focused on sex so, I mean, are we even surprised the writers did this to Nadia? Not really, but we're still mad. Again, it was written by white people; who focused on all the stereotypes people spread about muslims. The strict dad? Check. The very quiet and invisible mom at the mercy of the dad? Check. The muslim girl who does not actually know why she's religious and only follows her parents' footsteps like a sheep because islam is just way too strict so no one in their sane mind would ever venture in such a religion? Check. The hunger for having white friends and doing the same? Check. Falling for a white guy and giving up everything she ever "believed" for him? Check. I hope the writers heard about what people had to say about it.

Honestly, I know some would say "there are muslim girls like this". Well, ok. But what about us? We've been invisible to society for years and years. I grew up without having a single fucking idea about who I was and I just always felt like I was the odd one out. Too white, too Algerian, too muslim, too girly, too boyish, too into traditions, following too much her parents' rules… Well, growing up I just decided, I will never be enough of something, because I’m a little of everything. So yeah, some muslim girls do that, but some others don't. And we want to see these girls too. We want to normalize their way of life, so they can just live. And we want them to have the same screen time than the rest of the cast. And we want them to have exciting plots too.

God, I've been smothered by the fucking veil debate in France for weeks and weeks and I couldn't breathe anymore. That's why we need visibility. To be acknowledged. To erase ignorance and hate. To create a homogenous society in this globalized world where everyone is different and it is okay. Because as long as your liberty isn't in danger, then the other can live as he wills.

To finish I guess some of you would be like “if you’re so eager to criticize the work of others, just write your own story” Well I did. I actually finished one scenario in French and I have just started one in English. But how can I actually make it into reality if I don’t know anyone in the business bold enough to work with me on it?

Honestly if you've read all of that, congratulations, thank you so much, love you all, peace out.

I didn’t write everything I wanted but I believe it’s long enough already lol. Be safe, well and kind. (that’s what Bob Morley says and he’s a king).

#love #islam #muslim representation #skams #Skam #Druck #skam fr #elite #nadia shanaa #amira thalia mahmood #sana bakkoush #imane bakhellal

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calliecat93 · 5 years ago

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Top 10 Favorite Female Characters

Happy International Women’s Day everyone! For many years now, there have been a lot of strides made in women’s rights. It’s still far, FAR from perfect, but we’ve still made many strides and fiction is no exception. So I thought, in celebration of today, I’d talk about some of my favorite female characters of all time. I had a LOT of options and narrowing it down was tough, but I think I made a pretty good list. So let's get on with it~

10. Kimberly Hart/The Pink Ranger (Power Rangers)

I don’t talk about Power Rangers a lot on here, but let me tell you all. Kimberly is one of the first female superheroes I ever saw, and I love her so much. She begins as a one-dimensional valley girl type, though still a good-hearted person. She’s the token girly-girl while Trini was more of the token tomboy. But Kimberly over time developed form being the least willing to be a Ranger, to devoting herself full-heartedly to her duties. She could kick just as much ass as her fellow rangers, and look pretty while she did so.

Kim was a fantastic character, especially in a boy-aimed tokusatsu adaptation. There have been many other great Pink Rangers since her time. Heck my actual favorite Pink Ranger of all time is Jen from Time Force. But the reason Kim is on here and not here? Kim is the one who started it all. She and Trini defined kickass female Rangers and none of the ones we have now would have existed without the original ladies. And as much as I also liked Trini.. well... I think that Kim is the clear stand-out among most female rangers, especially since she lasted so long. I was so sad when she left and especially how Zeo screwed her character over with that stupid Dear John letter to Tommy as well as how the 2017 movie wrote her because it just made her incredibly unsympathetic and unlikeable. But she left one Hell of a legacy and I love her.

9. Hermione Granger (Harry Potter)

Despite my feelings about the author in recent years, Harry Potter is still a series I grew up on and love. Albeit I’m one of the few who got into the films more than the books, but still. The one thing that got me into the series? Hermione. She begins as a bit of a snooty know-it-all, always rubbing her knowledge int he faces of others and coming off as kind of a brat. But we soon see that she really doesn't know how to make friends and is a serious student and good person. Once Harry and Ron befriend her, we see how much of a brave, loyal, and determined girl she is, using her brains and talent in academics to get all the info they need. They would have died multiple times without this girl.

Hermione is someone we grow up with and kind of the representative of young girls. We watch her as she struggles with her status as a Muggle-born witch, how her pursuit of knowledge can overwhelm her, and of course what happens when she realizes her feelings for Ron. I... am not a huge fan of the pairing for many reasons, but her frustration and struggle feel very real. She makes mistakes, some more called out than others, but she does genuinely strive to do good And through it all, she is loyal to Harry and to the fight against Voldemort, growing to be proud of who she is and of her heritage as a ‘mudblood’. Even n the final book, where she’s forced to erase her parents memories to protect them, Ron abandoning her and Harry, and getting tortured by Bellatrix, none of it stops her from fighting for what she believes in.

Looking back now, Hermione has her problems both in the books and the films. Some of Ron's better moments got lost because the writer favored her which I can see whyt hat annoyed many people (I’m not one of them, but still), and the whole House Elf plot in the book has some... not great implications. But it doesn't stop Hermione from being a strong female character who is intelligent, brave, and Emma Watson’s strong performance really helped bring her to life. She ain’t perfect, but I still grew up watching her and I will always be grateful for that fact.

8. April O’Neil (TMNT 2012)

Screw the people who hated on her, April is awesome!

Really April in any incarnation of the Turtles is awesome. 2k3, Rise, the films. heck despite her being kidnapped every episode, even OT April was determined as Hell and you wouldn’t get in her way! But since I’m only picking one here, I gotta go with her 2k12 self. Her 2k3 self is also a close contender, but this was the version I spent the most time watching and for any of you who have follow me long enough knows, I spent a LOOOOT of time defending her from ship haters.

Looking back now, yeah there are some problems. Her limited screentime in S1, some of the Kraang stuff got rushed/crammed in, her missing mom story went nowhere, her being Donnie’s love interest. there’s plenty of problems. But those are more story issues than actual character issues. The last one especially si more an issue with Donnie’s character than April since she herself was NEVER defined by the ‘love interest’ card. She never existed for that purpose, and it shows especially by the end.

April began as a helpless, but very determined girl hoping to save her father after their abduction in which only she got saved. She spends most of her time getting intel for the Turtles while undergoing training from Splinter. She slowly, but gradually, grows into a capable kunoichi who can hold her own and gradually becomes an equal to her reptilian companions. She’s friendly, takes shit from no one, and she is probably the biggest Determinator in the entire series where ven when utterly helpless, she will STILL be defiant until the bitter end. he goes through Hell, and every single time she finds a way to pull herself together and forge on.

Despite how I fell off the series by the end, I was very happy with where April ended. From a girl just wanting her life back, to accepting her reality and making it her own. She trains herself in both ninjutsu and her new psychic abilities and becomes a kunoichi in her own right with them. She was even able to hold her own against Shredder! This girl became a badass and while there are issues here and there, I think she by far had some of the best development in the series. She remains my favorite character in 2012, y favorite April, and she has more than earned her spot on this list.

7. Avatar Korra (The Legend of Korra)

Another character who got unnecessary hate! Oh wait, that happens to every female character ever. Silly me!

Korra is what made LoK so great to me. She is a bull-headed, somewhat arrogant girl who has devoted her entire life to being the Avatar. She is the anti-Aang, so much so that she is terrible at Air Bending. But she’s also a very determined girl and went to Republic City to make Tenzin train her. Over the course of the series, we see how despite her arrogance, she is a good person who is truly devoted to her duty and genuinely wants to protect everyone. But she’s faced with her own vulnerabilities and flaws as a person as she has to learn to allow others to help/guide her and learn from her mistakes. And HO BOY does she make MANY mistakes.

Over four seasons, we watch Korra grow. She’s faced with the fact that she is vulnerable in S1 and while she doesn't fully overcome it, she does so enough to face Amon despite knowing what’ll happen to her. In S2, she faces the worse of herself but in doign so, truly improves herself and puts things right while letting go of most of her arrogance. S3 has her a much more well-rounded person trying to do what’s right, but it ended in her torture, poisoning, and she is just broken by the end. S4 has her slow recovery both physically and mentally and the road is long, hard, and just painful. But by the end, she accepts what happened and is able to find the balance to restore her power, return to her duties, and save the world from utter calamity.

I related so uch to Korra, moreso than I did Aang. She got a lot fo hate for her attitude and... well, not being Aang. But she grew so much and I loved how much of a badass and fully layered character she was. Yeah, she wasn’t Aang, that was a good thing. I loved her form the beginning, and I loved her even more by the end. She’s a great example of a female protagonist and shows that yes, a female action heroine CAN work. The Avatar franchise has many outstanding female characters (Katara, Toph, Suki, Azula, Asami, Jinora, Kuvira) but to me, Korra beats them all and I love her.

6. Wonder Woman

Well I couldn’t leave off the most well-known female superhero of all time now, could I?

Wondy is awesome. I first saw her on Superfriends back when Cartoon Network reran it. While it is a super campy show, Wondy was a true hero who stood equal to her male companions and was just as capable of saving the day as them. She was pretty much the only main female, so of course she was the one I was drawn to and I loved seeing her in action. But she could fall into the Damsel in Distress role cause... well, girl and lie I said, Superfriends is super campy. But I took what I could get int hose days!

Fortunately, Wondy has had much better media rep since... and in fact before with the Lynda Carter series. I hadn’t seent hat when I was a kid and while it’s cheesy, Wondy was still a badass there who easily held her own. Her Justice League DCAU self was when I really fell in love with her. Kind, beautiful, righteous, and an utter powerhouse. Seriously, I think she kicked more ass than anyone in both the original and Unlimited series. She has two animated DC films, which are both pretty dang good. Bloody, but good!

But of course, we have the Gal Gadot film. This was the film that arguably has saved the DC Cinematic Universe, and for good reason. While I’m not a big fan of Wondy being a demigod, she still showed why he’s so good. She’s a true hero wanting to do good, and in a setting like World War One, that is hard to find. She’s caring, devoted, strong, and is just a shining example of a true hero. She inspires hope in a cinematic universe that thrived off of grittiness, and Thank God we have her. I can only hope that the sequel holds the same quality, but nothing will take this away.

Wonder Woman is awesome. They screw her up sometimes, both ina nd out of comics. But there is no doubt that she earned her spot as a beloved feminist icon, as well as her spot here on this list.

#5. Kim Possible

You do not know how obsessed with this show I used to be. It is probably my all-time favorite Disney animated series of all time. Why? Because of it’s clever writing, fun humor, great action, and of course it’s characters. Kim especially.

She is the girl who can do anything, and she lives up to that claim. She’s a cheerleader by day, crime fighter by night, and she handles those worlds flawlessly... for the most part. She’s tough, smart, and a badass who uses her cheerleading skills to aid in her crime-fighting. She faces mad scientists, monsters, and everything in between and she ALWAYS comes out on top.

She’s now flawless, mind you. She’s bossy, smug, and can over-react when she faces things that she can’t do such as cooking or.. really anything normal/standard teen problems. She’s especially bad at maintaining dates. But whenever she faces a problem, she finds a way tog et through it whether it be with help from Ron, or finding her own way in solving it. She doesn't cry or mope about things like... well, the live-action film has her do. No, she gets up and finds solutions while still saving the day in the process. That is what makes her great, she’s a character before she’s a girl. Hence why she is a great female protagonist

Kim is someone I strived to be like when I got that age... with varying success. But hey, it just proves that Kim Possible can indeed do anything. Call her, beep her if you wanna reach her, and she’ll be there. just like how she’s here for this spot.

4. Ruby Rose (RWBY)

MY DAUGHTER!

When I first got into RWBY, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But the first character I fell in love with? Little Red here! I adore this girl to pieces. She gets a lot of flack form some for being ‘flat’ and ‘underdeveloped’ and I don’t have time to go into every reason why that’s not true. You can read this for some examples of why shes awesome. But let me summarize the gist of it as best as I can.

Ruby is a teenaged girl striving to be a Huntress like her mother, wanting to do good in the world like the heroes in her storybooks. Over time, as he overcomes her own flaws and the burdens of leadership, she learns how colossal of a task doing good truly is in a world that is harsh and cruel. She loses friends, her school gets broken apart, and the world seems to become more and more divided. And she’s right int he middle of it. So what does she do?

She gets up and continues on.

She decides to fight because she wants to help. She wants to make the world a better place because that is what a Huntress is supposed to do. She puts aside her own feelings in hopes that she can help do something. Even as she is pulled more and more into the true realities of her world, she stands firm and continues on. And when everyone else seems broken and on the verge of quitting? She grabs the reigns and pushes everyone forward herself.

Ruby may be a somewhat standard protagonist, but her determination and quirkiness help her stand out. She’s goofy, naive, and a socially awkward klutz. But she’s still a good-hearted person who always tries and in a world full fo monsters that thrive on despair, this is a very admirable trait. She’s gone from a girl afraid of being viewed as special, to taking the lead int he war against Salem all because it is her duty as a Huntress to protect everyone. She inspires those around her and also inspires me. She’s what got me to stay with this show, and I have yet to regret it.

RWBY has MANY great female characters. Weiss, Blake, Yang, Maria, Nora, Penny, Winter, and many others. But Ruby was always going to be my first pick. What can I say? I adore this girl~

3. Blossom (The Powerpuff Girls)

The Powerpuff girls was, and remains, my favorite cartoon of all time It was funny, action-packed, great characters, and great animation. I adore all three of the girls. Bubbles is cute but certianly no pushover, and Buttercup can be a jerk but she kicks a LOT of ass. But the one who I always loved the most was the commander and leader of the group, Blossom.

Blossom is the most mature of the girls, being very intelligent for her age. She’s smart, confident, and a natural leader. She’s also rather bossy, full of herself, and can be obnoxious at times with her egg-headed nature. From what I can tell, she was the leat liked... which sucks for me. I loved Blossom because of how smart she was and because of how good of a leader she was. Sure she had the occasional slip, but she was usually fairly reasonable, strategic, and always tried to look after her sisters and break up their spats.

I still remember the episode that made me love her. It was Princess’ introductory episode. In it, Blossom tried her best to be as reasonable with her as she could, trying to give her the benefit of the doubt since she was new and probably didn’t know how to make friends. It especially makes since if you’ve seen the movie and know how much the girls themselves struggled. But once it became clear that Princess really was a despicable little brat and she pounded her sisters, Blossom was pissed but still calm unlike the other two. Due to this, she easily thrashed Princess, destroyed her power suit, and gave her the mother of all The Reason You Suck speeches, telling her what being a hero truly means and how she’s nothing but a spoiled brat. It remains of my favorite PPG moments ever and after how much Blossom tried to give her a chance, it was very deserved.

Sadly, Blossom hasn’t gotten the best rep in other incarnations. Her PPGZ self while fine... wasn’t Blossom. Like... at all. And the less said about the 2016 series the better. Still, I remember how much I looked up to the original Blossom and enjoyed seeing her kick butt every Friday. I even still have one of my old dolls that I cherish to this day. Allt he Powerpuffs are great, and I will love them forever.

2. Sailor Moon/Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon)

Speaking of childhood heroines!

Ah Sailor Moon, We’ve had a long history, you and I. The first show I ever kept up with. The first fandom I ever got into. The first anime I ever got into. nd of course, the first heroine I ever truly loved.

Usagi (well... Serena when I was a kid, as the 90′s) is someone I still hold close to my heart. She is a klutz, crybaby, and far from an ideal heroine. She can be rather immature and at times selfish, preferring to sleep or eat sweets than worry about her Sailor Senshi duties. But as he grows, we see that through it all, she is a pure, caring young girl. I think the manga/Crystal anime did a MUCH better job at portraying that side to her, though the 90′s anime presented her more heroic side as well. They just sometimes forgot that he was past being a crybaby...

Usagi loves everyone. Her lover Mamoru, her fellow Senshi, just everyone. She doesn’t like fighting, but she will if she has to. She goes from crying in the middle of fights to being able to face God-like entities with just a magic crystal. Despite not having wanted to be a Senshi to begin with, she accepts her destiny and tries to save everyone, even her enemies. It just shows how despite her flaws as a person, she is a true hero who can always be relied on.

Sailor Moon did a lot when it came out. it helped revolutionize the Magical Girl genre, helped give anime a standing in America, and showed how femininity is not a weakness. There’s many other great female characters (Ami, Rei, Makoto, Minako) and all are their own character. But Usagi has always been the one I loved most and so she claims the Number Two spot.

Honorable Mentions

Sakura Kinomoto (Cardcaptor Sakura) Katara (Avatar: The Last Airbender) Twilight Sparkle (MLP:FIM) Agent Carolina and Kaikaina Grif (Red vs Blue) Lois Lane (Superman: The Animated Series) Hawkgirl/Shayera Hal (Justice League/Unlimited) Gosalyn Mallard (Darkwing Duck) Webby Vanderquack (Ducktales 2017) Rapunzel (Tangled franchise) Anna (Frozen) Cinderella, Ariel, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Tiana, Moana (Disney Princess) Kida (Atlantis: The Lost Empire) Meg (Hercules) Esmerelda (The Hunchbakc of Notre Dame) Jane (Return to Neverland Princess Elena (Elena of Avalor) Hikaru Shidou, Umi Ryuuzaki, and Fuu Hohouji (Magic Knights Rayearth) Nami (One Piece) Misty (Pokemon) Winry Rockbell (FMA) Ran Mouri (Detective Conan) Kagome Higurashi and Sango (Inuyasha) Pretty much all the Pretty Cures Nancy Drew Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games) Ms. Frizzle (The Magic School Bus) Daphne Blake and Velma Dinkley (Scooby-Doo) Calico ‘Callie’ Briggs and Felina Feral (SWAT Kats)

And I’m sure there’s more, but we’re gonna be here all day if I keep going. So let's go ahead and get to Number One. Which tbh... this was a no-brainer.

1. Mulan

Yeah, this probably shocks no one. I’ve talked about Mulan like... a billion times by now. But there was no other option for me.

Mulan is my favorite movie of all time, and the title character is my favorite character of all time. She’s a young woman who wants to bring her family honor, but struggles to do so in the ways she’s expected. She goes to war in her father’s place to save his life, and she struggles even more. She’s someone who doubts and is ashamed of herself, but over time she decides that she’s done hating her refection and tries to prove her worth. She not only becomes a better soldier and earns the respect of everyone around her, but even after she’s unmasked, she goes on to save all of freakin’ China! The whole country, including the freakin’ Emperor, bows before her because of this. You do not get more respect than that.

I’ve only grown to love and relate more to this story as I’ve grown older. I’ve learned to not define myself by society expectations, but just as who I am. Mulan struggles with expectations, family, warn, and most of all her own insecurities. She wants to see something worthwhile when she looks into the mirror, but she always just feels shame. But by the end, she puts it aside and becomes the best version of herself. She returns home with more than enough to honor her family... and her father tosses it aside to hug her. He’s just grateful to have her home, the greatest girl and honor. She’s someone who we watch grow and her journey hold sup even today. Argubaly even moreso.

Mulan was a film that changed me. Shaped my beliefs and values into what they are now. Even today, I see it as a flawless movie, and Mulan a flawless heroine. he’s a perfect example of a female protagonist, or heck just a protagonist in general. I love her and because of how much she shaped my five-year-old self into who I am now, se is my favorite female character of all time.

And that’s that! Well that was fun! Thank you all for reading and to all thw women out there, whether you were born as one or made the choice to identify as such. Whether you love men, women, or whoever. Whether you care about love or not. I hope you all have a lovely day and stay true to who you are. Happy International Women’s Day everyone~!

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1dandjbnews · 6 years ago

Text

Beyond Belieb-f: Fact or Fiction

“You are about to enter the world of strange truth, a world where the line between fact and fiction is almost imperceptible...” - James Brolin (Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction), May 25, 1997.

Throughout Justin Bieber’s career, spanning ten years, he has gotten himself into many controversies and was the victim of many rumors and lies which a lot of people still believe, due to the Justin Bieber hate bandwagon. In this post, I’m going to separate truth from fantasy and open the minds of the people who believe things that Justin Bieber never did.

I hope this thread will help people with how they view Justin and hopefully be able to generally separate what is true from what is false when it comes to everyday life too.

1. “Justin Bieber said rape happens for a reason”.

FALSE: This one was a misquote by Rolling Stone Magazine, in Justin’s interview with them in January 2011, when asked about politics. Bieber’s original quote is “Well, I think that's really sad, but everything happens for a reason. I don't know how that would be a reason. I guess I haven't been in that position, so I wouldn't be able to judge that.”. This interview was when Justin was still 16 and back then, he barely had any real knowledge of politics or serious matters such as listed above.

2. “Justin Bieber wrote in the guest book at the Anne Frank house that he hoped she would have been a Belieber”.

TRUE: While this event took place and Justin did write “Truly inspiring to be able to come here. Anne was a great girl. Hopefully she would have been a belieber.”, the media and his haters over exaggerated his comment. The Anne Frank museum staff did defend Justin by saying “His comments were quite innocent, he was here for more than hour and interested in Anne Frank's life, and that for us is the most important thing.”. Unfortunately, Justin’s comments in the guest book can still be twisted or taken the wrong way by small-minded people who want a reason to hate him.

3. “ When asked to try being a vegan, he gagged and spat out a vegan steak that had been specially ordered for him“.

FALSE: This one only has two sources and was most likely invented by a writer to victimize vegans and slander Justin.

4. “He makes fans pay tons of money, even though he can afford all the tickets be 50 bucks instead of 100+ for mezzanine seats”.

For the Believe tour, ticket prices were:

Lower Level Seating $36.00 - $86.00 $47.25 - $101.45 w/ Ticketmaster fees

Upper Level Seating $36.00 - $76.00

Also, Justin isn’t in charge of how much his tickets cost, it’s management who’s in charge.

5. “He went to a children’s hospital in England and was talking to the nurse who was working there when Justin Bieber visited the hospital. He made them clear an area for him so he didn’t have to wait around near the sick children, he then spent about 5 minutes with them while the cameras were on and left without so much as a thank you”.

FALSE: This tale NEVER took place. There is no photos or evidence of him going to that hospital in England and he never attacked any photographers (at said hospital). Usually, Justin will spend quite a lot of time with sick kids

6. “He attacked a photographer at said hospital”.

FALSE: The only paparazzi scuffle that happened in England was the one video where a paparazzi pushed Justin’s bodyguard and Justin confronted the paparazzi, however, Justin was quickly restrained and went back into the van.

6. “He peed in a restaurant kitchen”.

TRUE: But, he actually urinated in a mop bucket, also, he was drunk at the time and many celebrities have urinated in places they shouldn’t, such as Hayley from Paramore (sink).

7. “Someone's coworker did security for him once. He faked a really bad asthma attack and made them call the paramedics and then laughed his ass off when they came through the door. His people talked the paramedics into not saying anything bc you can go to jail for that apparently”.

FALSE: This one was invented by a writer. If anything is partially related to this claim, then it’s an incident in November 2011, where Justin was rumored to have an asthma attack during an interview and was taken to hospital for it.

8. “He also called for a car to take him to the mall and didn't like the color so he sent it back. And then he went to the mall and stayed 5 minutes before saying it was the shittiest mall he'd ever been in“.

FALSE: Pure fiction! There are no reports of him ever doing this. This claim stinks of the “Justin Bieber is a brat” mentality.

9. “He's banned from walt disney world for punching out Goofy“.

FALSE: It’s a total fabrication. There have been zero reports of this ever taking place, also Justin has been to Disney World many times since this claim came out.

10. “Not only does he me make his fans pay tons of money for a concert, but on a school night, he didn't even show up until half way through the scheduled time“.

FALSE: It’s true that he was late, however, it was only by 35 minutes and not half of the concert duration.

11. “He's quoted as screaming 'Fuck Bill Clinton!' to cameras and attacked a paparazzo, who is suing. his mother is quoted as saying she's 'hoping he'll soon mature'.“

TRUE and FALSE: While Justin did scream “Fuck Bill Clinton” and spayed a cleaner on the picture (probably the cleanest Clinton’s ever been), many people disliked Clinton and him screaming “Fuck Bill Clinton” isn’t too different from how many people react to the current President of the United States (as of this post), Donald Trump (who, I, in no way support and dislike as much as the next guy). He never attacked a paparazzi during this incident.

12. “He spat in an old man's face“.

FALSE: Not an old man, but a Club DJ, but, this is alleged.

13. “When he went to Vermont, he was kicked out of every single business he went in. IHOP, Walmart, Hannafords, everywhere. He went to the movie theater and threw a temper tantrum when told he couldn't bring his subway sandwich into the theater, as it was against the rules. He then made a HUGE mess of the theater and had to be carried out by his bodyguard kicking and screaming about how they were all worthless monkeys”.

FALSE: This one NEVER happened. There is no proof or reports of this ever happening and the only thing that shows up when “Justin Bieber banned from Walmart” is searched online, is a meme picture. There was talk of Justin possibly facing banning from the U.S due to alleged involvement in a brawl outside a Hampton’s nightclub, but, as of 2019, Justin is still in the U.S.

14. “He randomly showed up to Disney unannounced and demanded that the entire Yachtsman Steakhouse be cleared- reservations cancelled and all- so that he could eat there. The staff had to call every single one of the guests to tell them that their reservations they had been planning for months were cancelled and wasn't allowed to give them an explanation. Disney also decided that it wasn't fair to their guests and gave them free dinner at another restaurant, which obviously lost them a lot of money and business for that night. So after personally shutting down the restaurant, Beiber comes down in nothing but a bath robe. Like I'm so sorry Biebs was it just too hard to put on pants and act like a respectable human being?“.

FALSE: Not a scrap of evidence to this claim exists.

15. “I don't hate him because he has a 'girly' voice or because he's gay. he can be gay if he wants (even though he's not)“.

FALSE: Not a real argument.

16. “I hate him because he's not a good person and he's basically the leader of a teenage girl army (with a couple of older women, teenage boys and older men, but mainly consisted of teenage girls). He can make them do whatever he wants“.

FALSE: This makes little to no sense. Justin Bieber is a musician, not a political leader. Not ONCE has he ever forced his fans to do something he wants. Also, there are many people who have done MUCH worse than Justin has, yet have gotten away with it, managed to slip under the radar and still have huge amounts of support.

17. “He made some of his more 'devoted' fans cut their hair off because some internet trolls 'leaked' that he had cancer, and asked his fans to shave their heads to show their support. A lot of them did“.

FALSE: This was a 4Chan prank and Justin is not responsible for it.

18. “More internet trolls leaked that he had been smoking weed which made a lot of his fans CUT THEMSELVES (which is a serious problem) to stop him from smoking weed under the hashtag '#cutforbieber?' or '#cuttingforbieber?' Those weren't his decision, but he didn't make an attempt to stop them, he didn't deny the rumors, he just let them carry on cutting and turning it into a joke, thinking it was funny that people did these things because of him”.

FALSE: Another 4Chan prank! Once again, Justin is not responsible for this. Also, the best thing he did was stay silent about it, because if he had responded, more of these pranks would have happened and would have gotten to Justin one day.

17. “Justin Bieber spat on fans”.

FALSE: It’s an urban legend, that never happened! The Internet and TMZ went bananas over a picture of Justin spitting off of a balcony into a bush and with Justin often stating how he loves his fans, a claim about him spitting on them would make headlines and it did. The picture of the fans crying is from 2011, which was superimposed into a picture of Justin spitting off of a balcony.

18. “Justin Bieber was a huge brat on TV shows“.

FALSE: These are claims. In 2011, Marg Helenberger claims Justin punched a cake and locked a producer in a closet, but, unfortunately, nothing about this has come up since. In 2010, David Koch of Sunrise (Australian morning news show) also accused Justin for swearing at a floor manager for touching him (to direct him to where he had to go), but if this did happen, then Justin isn’t wrong for calling out a grown man touching him (what 16-year old would want a grown man touching them?).

19. “Justin Bieber said that he doesn’t believe in abortions“.

TRUE: This took place in 2011, during an interview with Rolling Stone magazine. In Justin’s defense, this was 2011 and back then, a lot of people were still pro-life and Justin had grown up in a Christian household. Since times have changed and we are more progressed, many people’s views have changed.

20. “Justin Bieber has made racist jokes and said the N-word multiple times”.

TRUE: There are thousands of reports of these events happening. While his racist jokes and comments were wrong (and still are), he was 15/16 and uneducated at the time, apologized and has since acknowledged his mistakes and educated himself on how horrible racism is, and now shows support to the Black Lives Matter movement.

21. “Justin Bieber punched a fan in the face, made that fan BLEED“.

FALSE: This was not a fan, but a stalker. Justin did punch him, but, only as a means of self defense. How else are you going to react if someone is invading your personal space? Also, Justin most likely felt threatened by the guy putting his hand through the window.

22. “Justin Bieber has been done for drunk driving“.

FALSE: The drunk driving charges against him were over exaggerated and he was below the legal limit.

23. “Justin Bieber eggs his neighbors“.

TRUE: He egged his neighbors ONCE, but, that was due to possible harassment prior to the incident. The thing is, the victims seem to still be whining about the incident (”GIVE ME MONEY! I’M A VICTIM!”), long after it took place and Justin had served his punishment for the incident.

24. “Justin Bieber made jokes about Prince’s death with petty Instagram comments“.

FALSE: Justin simply commented “Well not the last greatest living performer”, responding to a Instagram post that said Prince was the “last greatest living performer”, unfortunately, people took it the wrong way, twisted Justin’s words and accused him of being egotistical. However, Justin was most likely saying that other artists such as Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Beyoncé, Madonna and Barry Manilow were still alive and not every legend was gone.

25. “Justin Bieber throws tantrums on stage with him just ending up leaving the concert“.

TRUE: However, not as bad as you may think. A lot of these incidents were due to disrespectful fans not listening to him when he told them not to scream, clap off beat or throw water on stage. These can all distract him from playing, singing and can even put his life in danger (if he slips on water he doesn’t know is on stage).

26. “Justin Bieber threatens his neighbors“.

FALSE: There is no solid proof to support these claims. It’s a well known fact to demonize someone when someone else is doing it.

27. “Justin Bieber abandoned his pets”.

FALSE: He never “abandoned” any pets. If you’re talking about the monkey, he simply didn’t have the correct papers nor was he given them, also at the time, he was busy touring. The hamster was given to a fan.

28. “Justin has cheating scandals, he was horrible to Selena Gomez”.

FALSE: These claims are as old as the hills. At first, Justin and Selena’s “relationship” was PR, also prior to the November 2012 accusation of Justin “cheating on Selena”. Selena had been on the beach with Justin’s ex-friend Alfredo Flores, in various pictures where the both of them seemed very in love, this took place in July 2012. Also, there is video proof of Justin being physically assaulted by Selena in 2011.

29. “Justin Bieber hates Asians“.

FALSE: This is a total fabrication. Since when did he ever hate Asians, where’s the proof. He’s been to Japan multiple times and has been very welcome in Asian countries. There is one incident where Justin has mistakenly offended South Korean and Chinese fans by visiting the Yasukuni Shrine, which he thought was a place of prayer. He apologized for this incident.

30. “Justin Bieber groped a underage fan breast at a meet and greet“.

FALSE: The fan was like two years younger than him and didn’t seem to mind. As of 2019, she has often spoken about it and still has no problem with it.

31. "Talks down to alternative/rock bands such as Linkin Park and The Beatles and said screaming isn’t music”.

FALSE: More like fans of alternative rock bands have been talking down to Justin, sending him death threats and sexualising him.

32: “Justin Bieber disrespected the Argentinian flag”.

TRUE: This took place, however, it isn’t as bad as you think. A fan threw it up on stage and Justin thought it was simply a shirt, he didn’t know it was the Argentinian flag.

33. “Justin Bieber is rude to fans”.

FALSE: He’s only “rude” to disrespectful fans who stalk him and get in his personal space, K-Pop fans would know them as “sasaengs”. He’s only called disrespectful fans out, that’s all.

34. “Justin Bieber is very violent to photographers/paparazzi”

FALSE: Not a chance! He’s lashed out at photographers and paparazzi in the past, but, it’s only because they’ve provoked him. Of course he could have acted a bit better, but other celebs have done much worse than Justin.

35. “Justin Bieber ignored a disabled fan”.

FALSE: The video is staged and was a smear campaign to get Justin hated (and it worked). The person who played “Justin” was YouTuber, known as Brad Souza, the disabled “fan” was a hired actor.

36. “Justin Bieber bullied Shawn Mendes”.

FALSE: Justin and Shawn are longtime friends and they were simply joking around. If Shawn truly had a problem with Justin’s lighthearted jokes, Shawn would have said something.

37. “Justin Bieber hates Anime”.

FALSE: The tweet was fake.

In conclusion, only seven and a half of these claims are true, the rest are all fabricated stories made up by people looking for sympathy (fake hate crimes) or created just to slander Justin and get him hated and unfortunately, it worked.

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taz-writes · 7 years ago

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25 Writing Questions

@whycanthisnotbeeasier tagged me in this pretty massive tag game, which is pretty cool! Thanks for the attention! Here goes nothing...

1. Is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason?

A few of them, for a few reasons! The most obvious is Book 3 in my Feilan series, under the working title Storm and Shadow (it’s edgy I know). Reason being, it just got too damn messy. The end of book 3 is the low point of the whole series in every available subplot--so many things go wrong, a few MASSIVE things happen that are game-changers for book 4, and it’s hands down the most difficult scene I’m going to have to write for this series. When it came down to it, I couldn’t do that. The real end of the story at book 4 wasn’t that clear to me either, which is a major problem. So what I’m doing now is working backwards, a little bit. I’ll return to the Purple Sands once and for all after I’ve tackled book 4 and I know where I’m actually going with this.

Also, I’ve been delaying work on a few other baby WIPs because they’re just not developed enough to see the light of day yet. But that’s pretty minor.

2. What work of yours, if any, are you embarrassed about existing?

Uhhhhhh... literally the entirety of the original drafts of books 1 and 2. They’re beautifully-written bullshit. Also there’s some really bad Homestuck fanfiction from six years ago still floating around the Internet somewhere under an old pseudonym of mine. I like to pretend it doesn’t exist.

3. What order do you write in? Front of book to back? Chronological? Favorite scenes first? Something else?

I like to write front-to-back, which in my case is the same as chronological. I’m a bit of a pants-er, and my outlines often don’t make any sense once I’m actually a few chapters in and I realize that the planned plot point coming next is painfully out of character (or just impossible in general). I tend to use the exciting parts as motivators to get me through when I get writer’s block.

4. Favorite character you’ve written?

Violet. Hands down, indubitably, Violet Ravenhart. She’s probably the best fictional character I’ve ever created--she has so many layers to her, and she’s so nuanced, and genuine and close to my heart in ways I never expected. I think I’ve done a really great job creating her, and I only hope I can write her as well as she deserves.

5. Character you were most surprised to end up writing?

Kyrina, I think... she was originally supposed to be something COMPLETELY different than what she’s become. All of my villains used to be really two-dimensional and flat, but Ky’s come the furthest away from there. She used to be an Azula expy? Now she’s just a dumbass.

6. Something you would go back and change in your writing that it’s too late / complicated to change now

Part of me wants to say that I’m proud of everything I’ve made, and I do plan to stick to my guns, but there are a lot of aspects of Feilan’s worldbuilding that are incredibly messy. The magic system is the most obvious... if I could go back and change that, and make it significantly less complicated and hard to understand, then I probably would. But the whole thing is built into the structure of the world, and I’m emotionally attached, and besides, it’s unique! It’s definitely got plus sides.

When it comes to things like that, I’m more likely to retcon or explain the weird thing than erase it altogether. Any dumb trope can work if you write it the right way.

7. When asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write?

Oh god, I love telling people about my stories. I talk about Being A Writer all the time! I don’t share my work very often, though.

8. Favorite genre to write

Fantasy!

9. What, if anything, do you do for inspiration?

I like to take walks, or just go sit alone in places. I draw my spirit and energy in writing from the natural world... when I feel drained and creatively empty, I go to the creek behind my house, or I take a walk around Schenley if I’m at school. It even helps to just sit outside for a while. Nature inspires me.

10. Write in silence or with background music? Alone or with others?

Depends on the scene! Always alone, though. Other people tend to distract me. I write with background music most of the time, but if I’m working on poetry or the scene is particularly intense then I turn it off. My writing style, especially in emotional moments, is very reliant on the rhythm of the words. Having music in the background interrupts the natural flow.

11. What aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing?

DIALOGUE. Dear lord, I used to be so bad at dialogue. I’ve also improved at plotting, but that improvement is... nebulous.

12. Your weaknesses as an author?

I like tropes, and I also like doing weird stuff. I often like both of these too much, resulting in plots that jump from point to point with little clarity. I’m also a consistent retconner, so my characters’ motivations and goals can change with little to no warning. I’m working on that.

13. Your strengths as an author?

I’ve been told that my prose has a very strong flow to it, especially in descriptive passages. So for all my faults with the construction of my stories, my actual mechanical writing is consistently excellent. And I’m also a fan of my character concepts, even when I don’t write them out as well as they maybe deserve.

14. Do you make playlists for your work?

Absolutely! I have spotify playlists for most of my stories and all my main characters. I don’t actually listen to those while I’m writing, I prefer listening to video game music, but making playlists for my writing is a lot of fun.

15. Why did you start writing?

Because I couldn’t find any books that told stories I wanted to read, so I decided I’d make them myself. I wanted to read stories with characters who dressed like me and thought like me and did amazing things without people questioning it all the time. Also, I wanted stories with fairies who weren’t vapid useless girly-girls.

16. Are there any characters who haunt you?

Most of them, at some point or another. All of my main characters in Feilan are manifestations of some part of me. I wrote Violet to cope with depression in high school, Dusk came directly from how trapped I felt when my parents wouldn’t listen to anything I said, Sayara is the physical manifestation of righteous fury against the world. So their muses lean pretty hard into me when I start running into those problems again.

17. If you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be?

Please use an outline. I know they “cramp your style,” but please, for the love of God, use a freaking outline. And figure out the ending FIRST.

18. Were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? What were they?

Yes!! Some of those were things I watched more than things I read, but it still counts. I was really into the Redwall books as a kid, and they’re a direct cause of the weird tropiness inherent in my early writing. I think I still favor a lot of cheesy tropes that I learned there--I like to think I write them with more nuance, though. The TV show Avatar was also a MASSIVE influence in how I create stories and characters. I mentioned earlier that Kyrina used to be an Azula expy, but on a larger scale ATLA introduced me to grey morality that works. Zuko’s redemption arc is on a level I strive for to this day. Rick Riordan’s books inspired my character voices, I’ve always liked his humor and his writing showed me that you don’t have to cling so closely to traditional grammar rules to write well. Fullmetal Alchemist was another big influence on my stories’ morality,

There are probably more, but I don’t remember any right now.

19. When it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, etc.?

See: Taz’s greatest flaws as a writer.

Jokes aside, I like to keep one single print paper outline for each story that I’m working on. I’ll write out notes to myself there, create a chapter-by-chapter outline, and edit things in the outline as I go. They’re a great time capsule of all the things I’ve retconned over the course of my series. Recently I’ve also started using Evernote to track things digitally, but I’m still figuring out how it works.

20. Do you write in long sit-down sessions or in little spurts?

Both! Depends on the day. I write when I have the spark and the attention span, and I write for however long it lasts.

21. What do you think when you read over your older work?

Some of my old work is actually quite good! So I’ll appreciate that for what it is. The parts that are less good I laugh at, and I’ll send excerpts to my friends going “hey look at this ridiculous bullshit I created three years ago isn’t it funny??”

22. Are there subjects that make you uncomfortable to write?

Yeah. There are a lot of uncomfortable things lurking on the periphery of Feilan that I’m super awkward with. Violet’s trans-ness is the main one that comes to mind, because I want to confirm it in canon but there’s really no way she would ever bring it up of her own volition. Sayara’s too stupid to notice anything and definitely wouldn’t be rude enough to ask about it if she did. There’s also, well, the fa Viandre situation. I’ve avoided going into too much detail about the abuse there, but every situation with Dusk and fa Viandre gives me the willies. I write it because I think it’s important, and it’s a powerful arc, but it’s fucked up.

More generally? Sex scenes are uncomfortable to write in general for me, I don’t mind reading them but writing them is super awkward. Romance in general can be that way sometimes. I just don’t know how to handle it.

23. Any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing?

I don’t know if there’s anything obscure, necessarily. I think being a musician helped my writing improve, because I’m very sensitive to what Sounds Good, and with poetry especially it’s become more of an instinct than conscious knowledge.

24. Have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story?

I wouldn’t say I’ve ever become an expert on anything in the interest of research, but I’ve become moderately proficient with a few things. I’m in the process of learning everything I can about conlangs so that I can finally give all my made-up words some internal consistency, so that’s cool. I took a couple group fencing lessons. I’m pretty lazy about my research, honestly, and when I don’t already know something I lean towards just making it up from wholecloth.

25. Copy / paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of.

I knelt by the crack, peering into it, hoping, even as the desperate stillness grew stronger and the silence did not change and time almost seemed to stop.

Cool starlight slid like molten silver through the shimmering gaps in the trees, sinking into the world around me. This cool starlight illuminated everything: the pocks and picks in ancient stone, and the knife-point edges of blades of growing grass, and the dust that had settled upon the little hiding place and the child’s bones it hid.

This is an old excerpt, from my newer draft of book 2. I think I wrote this almost exactly two years ago. I’m rather fond of it, though. This is Feilan’s aesthetic in a nutshell.

This was an essay at the end, but also a tag game, so... @jade-island-lives @firewritten @thewingwriter @lady-redshield-writes, if yall wanna do this, go for it! No obligation of course. :) Anyone else who sees this and thinks it’s cool, feel free to do it and say I tagged you, too!

#taz shut up #tag game #this was fun! thanks!

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playchoices · 8 years ago

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Inside Choices is a behind-the-scenes blog from the Pixelberry team!

With Choices nearing its one year anniversary, The Crown & The Flame trilogy has come to an end. It's been an epic year-long journey for Kenna, Dom, and the rest of their ragtag crew. As one of the first books to launch with Choices, the team behind TC&TF started work on it long before August. Months later, saying farewell to one of our first series feels like saying good-bye to an old friend.

The team has weathered marathon brainstorms and late-night writing sessions, and celebrated epic plot twists and awesome character art. With the final chapter in the rearview mirror, the writers of TC&TF took the time to reflect and reminisce...

The Crown & The Flame trilogy is over, and it's been quite the journey. How do you feel?

Kathleen: Super weird. It kinda feels like graduating from college, actually. Like, you've been immersed in this cool new world for so long and surrounded by these people you've grown to love (even though Val's always stealing your food and Dom wants to party all the time instead of doing homework), and you get so attached that you kind of forget there's a world outside. Now graduation is looming and half of me is like "oh thank goodness" but the other half is going "WAIT, NO, I LIKE IT HERE, AAAAA".

Eric: So many feelings! Sad because I’ve dedicated so many hours to TC&TF, and it’s like saying goodbye to close friends. Happy because we were fortunate enough to get to create this whole world from scratch! Proud because I feel we’ve brought the series to a satisfying conclusion. And of course grateful for the fans, whose passion for it made Books 2 and 3 a reality.

Since we're at the end, why not talk about beginnings? How did TC&TF first come about? What were the early days like?

Kathleen: Lot of brainstorming, LOT of revisions. The first story that we outlined was much more focused on courtly intrigue, less so on the action. It looked totally different from the version of TC&TF that exists today, but there are a few relics from that first version that we kept because we loved them so much. For instance, Sei Rhuka was one of the first characters we created for that earlier story, and she survived the move to TC&TF pretty much unchanged (because what would you change? She's perfect).

There were some late nights, and times when I definitely thought I was gonna crack under the stress. Fortunately I had Eric and Kara, two heroes of legend, fighting by my side.

Kara: The first draft of TC&TF was written under so much pressure and at such a frantic pace that it was nothing like the book that ended up being released. To give you an example of how much things change, Val Greaves, everyone's favorite mercenary, was originally a male character just named Mercenary. Kathleen had the idea of making her a woman, and then the character of Val really started to emerge as the snarky, mean voice that the cast was currently lacking.

Another thing that came about because of that time was just the incredible trust between the writers. On most products, there's a more formal process of logging changes, but because we were so short on time, we were just actively editing each other's work, and I think we managed to get through that without killing each other, so it really says a lot about how well we work together! Sometimes you write your first draft and you don't realize how much better it can be until you take a step back. I wrote a scene once where Dom is carrying a sack of flour down the castle hallway, and I thought, this is boring, I'll add in a choice. Oh, I'll give the choice a timer! Then I realized I'd just made a minigame about carrying a sack of flour. So I cut the whole thing. But sometimes it isn't until you write the scene that you realized you're going down a bad or boring path. The early days were a lot of that.

We rewrote a lot of things together, but it was such a privilege to work with Kathleen and Eric on creating this world. It was amazing when we reached a point where we'd revised and revised and revised and finally felt like we'd burned away everything that was boring or not working and all that was left was even stronger than it had been before.

Eric: Hectic! It's one thing to write a book now, knowing what Choices looks like, but back then we were writing with placeholder art (everyone was Queen Adriana!) and we just had no idea what was going to work and what wasn't.

Also, I echo everything Kara said above about trust. So many times I wrote a thing and thought, "Oh gods, I'm a fraud! I'm a terrible writer!" and then had either Kara or Kathleen or Jessica swoop in and turn my garbage into gold. Having the safety net of a great team makes standing on the tightrope a lot more fun.

Strong world building is crucial to any good fantasy story. That ranges from history and culture to what you yell when you stub your toe. What was the worldbuilding process like for the Five Kingdoms?

Kathleen: You start super general (place names, general time period/level of tech, climate), then build your details on top of that. Every detail comes from somewhere, everything is the way it is for a reason. In those early stages it helped us to give each of the kingdoms a "thing" that they're known for. For Fydoria, it's knowledge and art, for Thorngate, it's trees and archery, for Lykos, it's jerks and backstabbers, lol.

That gave you a jumping off point for what these people would be like, and how they relate to the other kingdoms. We were also very deliberate about what colors and styles of clothing the different kingdoms would wear, which I was really into. It's great to look at a character and immediately know whose team they're on (or whose team they want you to think they're on...)

Then you take your pages and pages of notes to the artists, and they do some kind of beautiful magic that turns your dreams into something real you can look at. We work with some AMAZING artists. I have the Aurelian castle set as my computer's wallpaper because I like to stare at it all day.

Eric: Ditto what Kathleen said. The incredible art helps tremendously with this process. Sometimes we'd get a piece of art back and it'd be SOOOOO good that it'd inspire us to go in a new direction. That kind of moment (like with Val) is really special.

What did you consider the most challenging part of writing TC&TF?

Kathleen: Not making every chapter 5,000 lines long, haha. I have issues with writing these super long, flowery dialogues, but thankfully Eric is there to keep me in check. It can also be hard to find a character's voice sometimes, especially if you and that character don't have a lot in common.

Eric: Keeping Kathleen in check. HA! Seriously, though, we had a HUUUUGE cast, and all of the characters have compelling backstories and fun voices and fans on social media. Trying to make sure everyone got ample screentime (while still telling a good story) was tough.

Going off of that, what were your favorite scenes to write in TC&TF? (Spoiler alert!)

Kathleen: Oh man. I'm a mean person who loves writing the super intense emotional climaxes where everyone is crying and screaming at each other. So basically the whole Whitlock/Hex arc. One of my favorite writing moments though was when I was working on that kraken scene in book 2 and I had to turn to my boyfriend and say "Hey, what sound does a kraken make?" Boyfriend: "<kraken sound>" Me: "Yeah... but like, how do you spell that?"

Kara: My favorite scene to write was a dream sequence where Kenna and Dom get married, because I got to jump around in different scenarios and it felt a lot like fan fiction in the best way. But my second favorite was when Val has to pretend to be a handmaiden for Zenobia Nevrakis. I loved the idea of getting to see from Val's point of view as she has to infiltrate this girly world of gowns and bodices. She's usually a character who's seen it all and can handle anything, so it was fun to get her out of her element for once.

Brandon: I had a major blast with the entire final battle, but I have a special place in my heart for the scene between Luther and Kenna in Chapter 13. I love when you get to shine the spotlight on a bad guy, in a way that makes you almost sympathize with them...but not quite.

Eric: By far, the action scene where Dom turns into a dragon for the first time. I was actually writing from my apartment, and I was like, "If I turned into a dragon, what would be the most fun, badass things I could do?" (Cut to me flapping my arms through the air as I run around my apartment breathing imaginary fire on unsuspecting Nevrakis boats...) It was silly, but I did get some good stuff outta that.

TC&TF is filled with so many different villains, heroes, and everyone in between. Who was your favorite character to write?

Kathleen: I have a soft spot for terse warrior types who just have no time for your nonsense, so writing Sei is always super fun. She behaves the way we all sort of wish we could, except she can get away with it because she's crazy strong and can light you on fire with her mind.

Brandon: Oof, tough choice. I think we all have a lot of fun writing Val (because who doesn't love that character who gives the bad guy the finger?). Personally, though, my favorites to write have been the Nevrakis, specifically Luther and Zenobia. Zenobia is just so annoyed and out of place most of the time, which is fun to play with. She's like, "Ugghhh, dragons? Really? Whatever." It's like she stepped in off the set of Mean Girls. And Luther is just such a fun jerk. He's got sort of a cynical wisdom, but also has zero self-awareness and is totally unapologetic for any of the ruthless stuff he's done. That is a character I really love to hate.

Eric: Severin. I felt like his art asset was really imposing, and his character represented this first challenge for Kenna on this impossible path. It was fun to make him this physical, monosyllabic, gruff presence that couldn't be reasoned with. She'd have to eventually fight him in combat to prove herself. Plus, he's kinda dumb, and I love writing dumb characters. Alas, no one seems to care much for Severin...

In a way, TC&TF lives on in The Royal Romance. Olivia in TRR is a descendant of Zenobia, for one thing. If Kenna and Dom and the rest of the crew were around now in present day Cordonia, what do you think they'd be like?

Kathleen: Kenna is super responsible and runs her Kingdom like a proper adult, but when she gets frustrated with politics she dreams of running away to tour with Val and Sei's metal band (Damsels of Destruction). Kailani just won like, 12 olympic medals for weightlifting and martial arts. During the off season she and Noa split their time between running a gym and touring with Cirque du Soleil. Whitlock runs one of those tech companies that does supersonic maglev trains and smart dishwashers and stuff. He's totally gonna colonize Mars. This is fun, I wanna do this all day!

To write fantasy, you had to know the fantasy genre pretty well. What makes the fantasy genre special to you? And what are some of your favorite books?

Kathleen: I was raised on a diet of Grimm fairy tales and Greek legends (which probably explains a lot about me). I love the fantasy genre because you take these wild, magical worlds that look completely different from anything we know, and use them to explore themes that are really close to home (coming of age, sacrifice, family, etc). Fantasy is a dramatic metaphor for real life. Because I'm a huge nerd, I dig fantasy books that have logical, internally-consistent magic systems. Sabriel by Garth Nix is hands down my favorite book, but the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede was the first series I got super into. Arglefraster!

Eric: When I was little, I wanted to play Dungeons & Dragons with the older kids in my neighborhood, but they wouldn't let me play. That led me to this one book (I don't remember the name) that was basically like single-player D&D. It had a page where you kept track of your hit points, potions, etc. It was incredibly nerdy, but also the awesomest book I'd ever experienced. Little did I know it was paving the way for my career.

Pixelberry was the first place where I really felt comfortable letting my inner nerd loose. I finally got to not only play D&D (we ran a campaign after hours), but to write something within a similar world...

What's next for The Crown & The Flame team? Can you give us a hint about what you'll be working on after this?

Kathleen: *Evil cackling, hands rubbing together in glee* Ahem. I don't want to give anything away, but I will say that I seem to have been typecast as a genre writer and I am 100% okay with this.

Eric: No hints. We're definitely not planning something for Halloween.

Ooh, intriguing... To all the fans of The Crown & The Flame, thank you for coming with us on this epic journey! Check back every week for more Choices adventures!

-Jessica

#inside choices #playchoices #long post #the crown & the flame #behind the scenes

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icedfairy · 8 years ago

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My entry for @touhoushipcollab. Sanae Momiji as promised. The season bit is the first section and then I go off into my own nonsense as standard. Enjoy

Sanae squeezed Momiji's hands as they lay next to each other, watching the autumn leaves fall. Before she would have worried about meeting here, where any tengu with a camera could take a picture. But the two's relationship was an open secret now so most reporters wouldn't bother. Now they could just relax together.

"Still it would be nice if we could go into town on a date," she muttered absently.

The wolf tengu's ears twitched. Of course Momiji would hear her. "It would be nice." The woman grinned slightly. "But I've read enough novels to know the downsides of forbidden romance."

Sanae smiled a bit in return. She hadn't expected Momiji to love romance novels, or enka songs, but she had to admit the wolf tengu had really good taste. Even if she prefered mecha shows herself. "Hm, that reminds me. You never told me which book was your favorite."

"The Yojimbo's Secret." Momiji's grin widened.

"Wait." Sanae thought for a moment. "Wasn't that the one with the swordswoman, the young noblewoman, and the maid servant?" She blushed as she remembered some of the choice passages.

"That's the one."

Momiji's tail wagged as Sanae felt her face burn. She knew Momiji could be passionate but... Well romance was about fantasy right! She fanned herself to try to cool down.

Fortunately Momiji took pity on her. "My second favorite is 'The Dutch Lady.'"

Sanae tried to remember that one. "Oh. That's the one set in the Meiji era isn't it?I remember reading it right after I came to Gensoukyo." The lack of mecha manga had really forced her to broaden her reading base. "The daughter of a noble family meeting the duchess from across the sea beneath the changing leaves."

"Two souls destined to part joining together for a brief moment. A moment of perfect joy." Momiji caught a leaf. "It was nice seeing a writer use autumn leaves instead of cherry blossoms for a romantic meeting."

"Even though we started dating at a flower viewing festival?" Sanae pretended to look hurt before giving Momiji's arm a squeeze.

Momiji returned the hug. "It's just overdone in fiction. I prefer the leaves, but I don't hate flowers."

Sanae looked above to the leaves. Shizuha had outdone herself as usual, painting the maples a deep red. She had to admit the display was honestly more colorful than the sea of cherry blossoms. But she still prefered the spring festivals. "Do you like it more because of your name?"

"That might be part of it, but I suppose it's more because of the meaning." Momiji pointed to a tree. "Flowers bloom and die because of love. But the leaves change and die to save the tree. So that more leaves might sprout after winter." She smiled. "I guess I appeals to me as a warrior."

Sanae sighed. "You really think too much about dying dear." She poked Momiji in the side. "And saying you like duty over romance isn't the best thing to say to your girlfriend."

"I don't like duty more than romance. I just have priorities," Momiji protested. "Besides you have that same sense of duties as well. After all, you sacrificed your old life to stay with your family didn't you?"

"That's one way of looking at it." Sanae shifted on the bed of leaves to look at Momiji. "And I found love doing it."

Momiji shifted to look at Sanae. "Yes we did. And a duty that goes beyond that."

Sanae gazed into her lover's eyes and smiled. "Well, maybe I can learn to like autumn more."

----

"Now." Momiji's ears twitched towards her. "Back to your first question. I know you weren't just interested in my reading habits. You were worrying about something, aren't you?"

"Alright." Sanae sighed. Having a girlfriend with supernatural senses was both a blessing and a curse. "Well... I just wonder if I make you feel like you aren't feminine. Like you have to be strong and in charge. The experienced one in the relationship."

Momiji sniffed, but she seemed more amused than annoyed. "Strong not being feminine is human nonsense. And I'll always be the more experienced one in our relationship Sanae. You aren't going to become older than me."

"I know I know, it's just-" Sanae shook her head. "You like stories about girls who are cute and who get excited over flowers and frilly dresses. But you're always cool and collected and strong when we're together. I'm just wondering if you afraid I'll judge you for that, and-" Sanae stopped as Momiji stared at her.

"Ah." The tengu girl was blushing. Very brightly. "It's not that I'm afraid of it. It's I've never been good at it. And well, I enjoy the company of strong women. Which means I'm usually following the path of the warrior."

Sanae nodded slowly. "I get it. I mean I didn't really fit the girly girl stereotype myself back home." Apparently giant robots weren't girly or some nonsense. "But wait, you like strong women? So what about me?"

Momiji leaned forwards and kissed her on the cheek. "Sanae. You've beaten me in danmaku every time we've dueled. Besides I'm not some oni who cares only about physical strength. You've got plenty of strong points."

She snuggled up to the other woman. "Thanks. That makes me feel better." She had a hard time seeing herself as strong, especially compared to someone as cool as Momiji, but she was happy her girlfriend appreciated her.

They hugged each other before Sanae sat up. "I'm glad we're both comfortable with who we are. But maybe we could do something girly together?"

Momiji's ears twitched. "And how would we do that? I don't think we can go shopping in the human village. That's pushing the open secret a bit far."

"You're right." Sanae grinned. "So we'll go to Makai instead! I got Alice to tell me about the best places, so we'll put on fancy clothes and just go be tourists."

"Makai?" Momiji blinked a few times. "Hm... I didn't realize there was much there besides demons. But that does sound interesting." The wolf tengu smiled. "It's a date then."

----

The hardest part of the date so far had been getting into her dress, Sanae decided. The second hardest part was not staring at Momiji.

Youkai tended to stick to their favorite outfits. The only alternate outfit she got to see Momiji wear on a regular basis was a swimsuit. She considered herself lucky the few times she managed to get her girlfriend into modern clothes.

Right now Momiji was wearing a orange-red kimono with gold embroidery, and a jeweled maple leaf hairpin. She carried a red paper umbrella on her shoulder. It wasn't extravagant or 'sexy' but it transformed the no nonsense warrior into a silver haired beauty. Somehow Momiji's stance and demeanor changed along with her clothes. Sanae could still feel the woman's confidence, but it felt softer.

Sanae on the other hand felt like an imposter in her dress. She'd ordered the pink, frilled, Victoriansque piece from Alice, complete with gloves and a parasol. But while the thing fit perfectly, pieces just kept twisting and folding every time she did something like walk a little too fast. She hoped her troubles were cute at least.

"Is something the matter?" Momiji asked. Even her voice seemed more feminine. Sanae felt a little jealous.

"No no, I'm quite fine. Let us see what Pandemonium has to offer us shall we?" Sanae twirled her parasol and tried to focus on the street. At least playing the role of 'foreign noble lady' let her fake some confidence.

The streets were pretty impressive. The passersby were all demons, but the shops were filled with curios and boutiques like any other tourist town back home. Perhaps better, since the goods here were less cheap manufactured shirts and more local high end goods.

And all above it the burning trees of Hokkai swayed, each leaf smoldering blue in the darkness that filled Pandemonium. The first time Sanae'd saw the strange plants she'd been worried about getting hit by a flaming branch. Now she'd gotten used to them though, and the light they shed really enlivened the streets. Especially since they were burning bright before snuffing out for winter.

A tailor shop caught her eye as they walked down the street. She'd just been thinking about wardrobes. Maybe if she talked Momiji into buying something the wolf tengu would wear that as well. Besides the clothes were pretty nice. Makai seemed to have a better connection to the outside world for some things. "Let's take a look in there."

Momiji glaced past her then closed her parasol. "Why not?"

They slipped through the crowd into the store, nodding to the proprietor before heading over to the dresses. To her quiet delight, Momiji went to the modern section first as well.

"I'm surprised," the wolf tengu said. "I wouldn't think that outside world dresses would be easy to modify for wings."

Sanae looked at the backless black dress Momiji was inspecting. "That's just how it's made."

"Eh?" Momiji looked confused, and Sanae forced herself to stifle a chuckle. "I know that the outside world isn't as uptight as it used to be about arms and legs, but there's no back on this!"

"It has side slits too," Sanae pointed out helpfully. "Maybe I could find one in blue that matches it..."

Momiji covered her face with her sleeve. "You aren't trying to trick me are you? This is formal wear in the outside world?"

Sanae chuckled. "For high class dates and parties, yes."

"It seems I underestimated how much social mores had changed." Momiji looked at it again before stepping back. "Well it's a little risque for me."

"Too bad. I think you would have looked nice in it," Sanae tried not to seem too disappointed. It was a lot of money for something that couldn't be worn often.

Momiji glided next to her. "If I'm going to wear something only for you to see, I'm going to pick something a lot more risque then that."

The room spun for a second as Sanae's brain rebelled. Fortunately she got ahold of herself before she fainted. Though she supposed that was 'in character' for her dress. "Well," she coughed, "let's see if there's something better for us."

They peered through the rest of the selection, but there weren't really any dresses that were better than anything they could find at home cheaper. However just as Sanae was considering heading out, she saw two hairpins made of silver and turquoise. They were simple flower designs, but they added a bright splash of color. "What do you think about this?"

Momiji peered at the pins and smiled. "It's beautiful. I've never seen that stone before."

"They aren't found in Japan." Sanae, waved over the shopkeeper. "Excuse me. We'll take these."

One painful haggling session later she was the proud owner of the jewelry. "Here," she said, handing one to Momiji.

"Thank you." Momiji bowed, then reached over. As Sanae blinked in surprise the wolf tengu deftly slid the pin into her hair. Momiji then stepped back. "Would you do mine?"

"Of course!" Sanae carefully added the new pin next to Momiji's old one. She grinned as she stepped back. "The crow tengu are going to notice though."

"Notice what?" Momiji leaned against her shoulder. "It's just a gift between very close friends."

Sanae giggled . "I suppose that's true." She adjusted her gloves again then headed out the front of the store. "I think there's a street with some restaurants through that alley. Shall we have lunch?"

"That sounds like a good idea." Momiji's ears twitched. "Though I hope they serve something other than the salads Alice prefers."

"Maybe one of them will serve wyvern?" Sanae mused as they headed into the side street. Eating a magical creature would be something to talk about.

She felt the aura of the alley change a second before the large figure stepped in front of them. Sanae's heart started racing as she took a step back. Something that resembled a seven foot tall minotaur stood before them, holding a small stabbing sword. The creature's voice was gravelly, but calm. "Quiet now ladies. Drop your purses and jewelry and there won't be nothing to cry about. Better deal than most human girls get."

Sanae closed her parasol, letting her mind summon up her godly powers. The on and off roleplaying was over. "You don't want to mess with us. Leave or I'll exterminate you."

The man moved without speaking, but Sanae hadn't waited for his response. She swung her parasol forward calling up the wind. A massive gust tore through the alley sending the demon staggering back.

And then Momiji was there, a knife buried to the hilt in the creature's eye. The wolf tengu twisted the blade to free it, then pulled it out as she stepped back. The minotaur crashed to the ground.

With a quick flick of her wrist Momiji shook the blood off. "Well, maybe I should consider being girly more often against small fry."

Sanae felt her eyebrow twitch at that. "That was girly? You stabbed a knife in his face."

"The traditional technique is to cut open the femoral artery. But that sprays blood everywhere." The tengu slipped the knife back into her sleeve. "This was much cleaner."

The priestess sighed then hugged her wolf girlfriend. "I love you Momiji."

#touhoushipcollab #sanae kochiya #Momiji Inubashiri

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ehy1 · 8 years ago

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What is going on in the minds of this people??

I was just scrolling on my tumblr and then I saw this blog that said “scenarios and head canons for Diabolik lovers” and I said “hey! AWSOME more to read!” But then I clicked on it and I saw some anon being soooo mean to the writer, he/she said: “You will never be enough for Reiji (or Subaru)” “You are not ladylike enough” and then this: “nobody is defending you ‘cause they agree with me” ….. I mean… really dude?? Do you have that TINY brain to say that??? Ok let’s begin ‘cause I’m not going to let this happen to someone that is making an EFFORT and is spending HER TIME to make a fandom happy and more importantly, she is doing this FOR FUN.

1. NOBODY I repeat NOBODY is lady like enough to satisfy Reiji Sakamaki, he is searching for perfection, and we all know (but some out there thinks that is possible in a tangible way) that perfection exists. PERFECTION DOESN’T EXIST, the human is for nature imperfect!!!!

What Reiji looks for in a lady is that she has to be slender, walk like if she was floating, black hair, perfect manners at the table ( and in everything else) white skin, tall, smooth voice, blah, blah blah. And I’m taking all of this information from all the headcanons that I have read in the fandom. He-Is-Looking-For-Superfitial-Characteristics!!! We have eyes, OF COURSE THAT WE ARE GONNA USE THEM but at some extent, there are feelings, points of view, education, attitudes, actions, dreams, personalities, etc. too that has to be seen in a partner. We cannot only enclose ALL THE CHARACTERISTICS IN A TINY BOX and be just ONE thing. So to say that you are not “this” or “that” has no sense, 'cause we are humans and we have MORE THAN ONE CHARACTERISTIC so to only concentrate in ONE (in this case lady-like) thing is incoherent, right?

I will explain more myself… this example is real btw, I LOVE to wear flowers and pink colors in my clothes but I also like to hear rock metal and I’m not enclosing my personality in “girly” for my clothes or “badass” for the music that I like to hear.

2. HE’S A GODDAMN FICTIONAL CHARACTER GOSH!!!! Please don’t take it so seriously!!!

3. Believe me dude, EVERYONE is good enough for whatever you want!!! Just that we are not meant to be PERFECT in everything or with everyone. Cause Perfection doesn’t exist.

4. Telling someone that is trash, is not good enough, or is insignificant doesn’t make you any pretty, wise or whatever you want. It only makes you look like you are a goddamn abuser that doesn’t know how to spend his/her time and that doesn’t have the ability to just move their fucking finger on a screen to move on with your life and ignore what makes you angry or unsatisfied.

5. SHE IS JUST A GIRL IN LOVE WITH A FICTIONAL CHARACTER!!!! Let her be!!!!!

6. “Stop writing” “stop doing this or that”…. ooooh gosh this phrases, they are just inspirational to me you know?? you can put them in a human translator and they would say

“it pisses me off that even when you are doing something wrong you KEEP BEING HAPPY”

and you know something ?? YEAH maybe we are doing nothing good, maybe I’m a trash at drawing, writing or I look like an epileptic seal when I dance BUT IT MAKES ME HAPPY so don’t stop doing what you like just because some embittered person is there.

7. “I’m doing a favor to the world for stopping you doing/ writing trash”…..really?? I will tell you what you are really doing, wasting your time and making an uncomfortable environment in the fandom, so, please stop it honey.

8. YOU CAN BE IN LOVE WITH ANY FICTIONAL CHARACTER THAT YOU WANT !!!!! (They doesn’t exist anyway lol 😛)

9. Love is not just to “adjust” at your preferences like: “ I like blonde hair or I want them to be tall” love is magical you know, maybe you have like REALLY CLEAR what you are looking for in someone and you end falling in love with something that you never thought about. AND I CAN SEE REIJI SAKAMAKI falling in love with an imperfect human that has a million fails BUT THEN, finding something beautiful in her personality , in the way she moves, thinks or the way her eyes shines when she sees something beautiful.

10. I HAVE SEEN GUYS IN THE FANDOM THAT ARE IN LOVE WITH THE DIAHOES!!!! They are not girls and they are in love !!!! I mean, you are not going to tell a guy to be lady-like right?? 😂😂😂 I mean, just let the fans be ok?

if someone is annoyed by the writing of someone else, really….reeeeeeally, you don’t have to stay in that blog, nobody is tying you up to that blog honey, so just move on.

If you don’t have any nice thing to say, keep it to yourself, nobody wants bad vibes….

Soooooo yeah, this is my opinion, I made this with all the best intentions in the world and please, @diabolical-fantasies don’t hear the bitches bark ok?? 😉

#with all the love #nobody deserves to be hated by doing what they like #keep being in love!!!#diabolik lovers #points of view

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bonniejstarks · 5 years ago

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The Pink Jumpsuit: An essay about the bubbles we live in

‘It seems like someone else’s dream of my past.’ For Emma Neale, the painting ‘Wanderlust’ by Dunedin artist Sharon Singer stirs memories of her childhood, and new understandings of guilt and forgiveness.

There were gifts from my father when he came home from overseas trips. Love offerings; a bit like those a cat might bring home after night revels. Placations. Mixed messages. Guilt trips. Gilt traps.

Top 40 albums and band memorabilia for my younger sister. Leather pants for me, the anxious girly swot he called ‘Stude’ to rhyme with ‘dude’, to make praising my studiousness — and maybe that studiousness itself — seem cool.

After unwrapping the leather trousers, I went to a school social with my bottom half dressed like a biker chick; the top half in a turquoise T-shirt borrowed from my mother, which sported a black panther and swirls of gold glitter. The ensemble was a look I wasn’t sure how to carry, though I still drew a lot of attention from the senior boys. “Are you really a junior?” “Whoa, hot pants.” “Hey, Olivia Neutron-Bomb!”

My svelteness was wasted on me, at that age. I couldn’t see it: I just felt awkward, uncoordinated. Even if I had seen it, I was probably still too sensible and bookish to flaunt it, cash in on it, or let it give me confidence. The attention was just unsettling. I got the same feeling in my throat as when I’d seen an aggressive male pigeon treading a female — the flutter and scramble of it, the poor hen hard-scrabbling to get away. There had been no preamble dance of bobbing beak-link, glossy necks shimmering at each other, like panels of sequins. It was all panic, claw, shake, the female’s coos like bottled sobs.

Sharon Singer ‘Wanderlust’, acrylic on canvas, 2019

From the pod of my teenage awkwardness, however I could see that my mother absolutely knew how to cut a figure; elegance was, if not a weapon, a kind of armour. When Mum unwrapped her own gift from Dad that year, my sister and I thought it was hilarious — and dizzyingly bold. He had given her a slim-fit boiler-suit in a light denim fabric, its colour the pink of smoker’s candies. It had fake gold ventilation grommets, a long front zip; and I think it had stitching in a batwing bust. Usually Mum wore deep plums, aubergines, black, russet-red. They were the shades of polished piano wood, tooled leather hardback book covers, candlelight, the heavy, hushed velvet of theatres: colours with body and weight The colours of thought, and of night. The suit was racy, playful, youthful, almost saucy — and she looked stunning in it: dark and sultry like Anni-Frid Lyngstad, from ABBA, with a shiver of haughtiness.

We crowed at Mum when she tried on the new outfit. “You look great! It’s fabulous!”

Silence.

“Are you brave enough to go out in it? Don’t you like it?”

Her quiet reply: “I’m not sure about it yet.”

“Do you think it’s too tight-fitting?”

We knew she and our father often worried about their weight. Weren’t the ‘80s a decade of extreme food weirdness? Hadn’t they tried the bread diet, the grapefruit diet, the cottage cheese diet, the Jane Fonda workout, skipped meals, taken up running, talked about the Lebanese Army Food Diet (which I think involved eating only eggs or chicken)?

Dad sometimes made dark jabs at Mum about her figure. “If only your [x or y] was smaller, you’d be perfect.” His nickname for me was Lumpy. If he found me and my sister eating, he often said with acerbic, Basil Fawlty-esque disdain: “Having a little snack, are we?”

I became anorexic when I was 17. As a schoolboy at Nelson College, Dad had been harassed for his own weight, so his attitude had a backwards logic, even for a man who could be deeply empathetic. He was a close listener, and loving enough that, if I think too hard about his sudden death at age 48 (from a heart attack while he was out jogging), it feels as if a trench is being excavated in my stomach. He repeated what he knew, I guess. He criticised us to pass on the urgent and venomous message he had received from that all-boys’ boarding school culture: fat means failure, slender is status, beauty is, yes, narrowly defined.

‘Wanderlust’ by Sharon Singer, 2019 (detail)

Mum stood side-on to the mirror, hand swiping quickly over her stomach, as she pulled it in: as if women’s bellies should at least sit level with the hip-bones, the way lager should sit level with the rim of the glass, Mum’s swipe a bartender’s beer comb trimming the foam head. She turned this way, that way, a whether vane in the mirror: should she wear it, should she not?

“You look lovely, Mum!” We wanted her to be wedding-day glad at Dad’s return from his travels; we wanted the normal routine to have landed with him. We wanted that ordinary rhythm to mean we were safe: safe to be as selfish as kids need to be, to get on with the job of growing up and eventually, wanting to leave… which makes no sense, it makes no sense, but what does, when…

“I’m just not sure how your father really sees me,” Mum said.

I don’t know if I put two and two together then — the candy-pink overalls and the other time I’d seen her taken aback by a gift. I think it was about five years earlier, when we lived in America, but memory shuffles together events and settings from different packs to come up with a stacked deck. Dad’s not here to contest the dealer’s version.

One Christmas, he gave her some jade and silver jewellery. She loved nephrite; we kids were far too ‘70s-expat-Pākehā-Kiwi to know the word pounamu then. We were busy learning to hide our accents and swap ‘cookie’ for ‘biscuit’, ‘bug’ for ‘beetle’, say ‘jerk’ and ‘turkey’, ‘Get off the grass’, ‘No duh’, ‘Catch my drift’, ‘Mondo bizarro’… And maybe because my dad was a nephrologist, the word nephrite drew the family language to it. The words share a relationship: the root links them through the Spanish piedra de (la) ijada or yjada (1560s), where ijada means loins or kidneys. Jade was thought to have healing properties, for kidney and lumbar complaints. Even the thought of pressing a cool, polished jade amulet over an ache seems soothing.

I suppose if this scene did happen in America, the jade was unlikely to be from Te Wai Pounamu anyway, given jade is also found in California, where we lived at the time. Either way, when Mum opened the gift there was confusion and collapse in her face, which she fought against.

There was something going on here that we hadn’t seen before. I only recall seeing her cry one other time, and that was when she was in pain, from a minute shard flicking into her eye as she clipped my baby sister’s toenails. I had never seen her look so stricken. American TV in the build-up to Christmas hadn’t revealed this kind of reaction in all the seductive ads for toys, toys, toys … Presents were meant to be opened in great communal teeth-baring, group hugs, a festival of cleanliness, perfect skin, efficiency, friendship-joy and great hair. We were all in our dressing-gowns, three of us no doubt with bed-hair, Mum probably the only one who’d brushed hers for the occasion. I can remember looking at the Christmas wrapping to try to figure out what had gone wrong.

Something was very awry. The jewellery was already broken? The jewellery had something missing? It seemed elegant, queenly to me — but the sadness in Mum’s face made me think, are the necklace and bracelet really so ugly? How do I find the ugliness? How do I understand it?

I thought the gifts would look enchanting on her. My mother has very green eyes: she really does. She tells me that green eyes are more common in fiction than in real life. I wonder if that might have subliminally helped to make her a writer?

When she found her image in novels, saw her statistically exceptional eyes and her difference reflected, was that unconsciously affirming?

Mum hid her face in her chestnut brown hair. In the Californian sun, her hair bleached ginger on the tips, which she hated, though she loved candied ginger, and my sister had a giant teddy called Ginger Bill, and ‘gingerly’ was a beautiful word, but what was wrong with the present?

Perhaps I didn’t truly begin to understand until I was 16, when a boyfriend brought me gifts after he’d been away overseas: gold fan earrings, gold fan charm on a necklace, a tropical flower perfume: frangipani or hibiscus, the name lost, now along with its thin sugary fragrance. When I received them, I was confused about what to feel; the offerings weren’t at all to my personal taste, but the gesture seemed wildly generous, and it gave off a thin buzzing edge of a new experience, even though it was also conventionally, stiflingly romantic. Yet as soon as I’d unwrapped the gifts, the boyfriend went at me with a force and insistence that seemed to say I owed him something. He was extracting payment; pushing me down on the bed, so that I felt like the poor flustered female pigeons I’d seen, pecked and trampled and somehow, at the same time, bizarrely, completely ignored by the grinding bull of a bird.

I must have understood it, then, as now it feels as if the two events are filed in the same memory compartment: terrible, terrible presents.

Mum’s jewellery was a kind of hush money. Or an apology. Or a bribe? They weren’t a gift of time. They weren’t companionship. They weren’t home when he said he would be; home at the weekend.

The gift was also a celebration of her beauty, of course: which is fine, and human — don’t even babies spend longer looking at symmetrical features? But that isn’t enough to underpin and make-good the architecture of love.

I also seem to remember that part of the shock was the expense; the gift can’t have really been within our means. The sense of disproportion was all part of the strange scene. If it had been books, or notebooks, pens, typewriter, foolscap, or even a cheap T-shirt with a favourite author’s portrait and some bad but forgivably literary pun printed on it, the gift would have said more about Dad listening to Mum, really knowing her.

I think I remember my father’s devastated expression, too, from that day, and him hugging her as she cried. I’m in the child’s position of feeling for them both; a bad place to be when there are irreconcilable differences. He just wanted to show that he loved her. He thought she would be happy. He thought the receipts for the jewellery were like … billets doux, a love letter.

What can anyone outside a marriage really understand about what goes on inside it? When I said as much to my paternal grandfather once, when he was in his early 90s, he answered, ‘Sometimes even the people inside the marriage don’t have a clue what is happening, either,’ and he told me an extraordinary tale of a house call he had made once, as a GP in Wellington in the 1950s or 60s. When he arrived at the house, the woman patient reported severe abdominal pain. Gramps examined her and told her that she was quite far advanced in labour. She insisted — with real vehemence — that he must be wrong. The husband fully backed her up. He told my grandfather, privately, that it was impossible as there “hadn’t been marital relations for some considerable amount of time”. Gramps was confused; he doubted himself. As he prepared to re-enter the bedroom, to examine the woman again a ‘poor little frightened probationer nurse’, as he called her who had accompanied him that day, called out, “Doctor, I can see a tiny hand!” My grandfather helped the mother deliver a live, healthy baby. He said to me, “I’ve always wondered what on earth became of that poor couple. I’ve thought about them, all down the years.” And, shaking his head, “Not every child is a gift, though it should be.”

‘Wanderlust’ Sharon Singer (detail)

Every Christmas and birthday my own husband says the best gift I can give him is nothing. I think about that, too when I see Sharon Singer’s painting, ‘Wanderlust’, and its arid, red-planet setting. I feel dread at my own covetous impulse to have the painting, partly because I’m not sure I can explain the impact of the strange sideways slipping trail into memory it’s leading me along.

The image itself touches on everything from a scorched earth, to climate refugees, perhaps even to the avoidance of infection. (Sharon Singer has other creepily premonitory paintings of people socialising with face masks in outdoor settings.) It also suggests space exploration; a sense of adventure; threat and fragility; the ludicrousness and the tenacity of so much human aspiration. Yet it also seems like someone else’s dream of my past.

The child in the painting could be my dark-haired little sister, her sweetly rounded limbs when she was under five. She could be in a child’s androgynous, asexual version of the strange gift overalls from the 1980s: a little like a child dressing up as a superhero. The image brings back memories of our guinea pigs: we sometimes carried them in the kind of pet transport cage seen in the painting, and of course, they tried to escape us. It brings back the time well before them, when I tried to run away, with a small, brown, ginger-nut textured zip-up school-case. (I sat happily on a street corner, telling the adults in a car that stopped to ask if I was all right, that I had left home forever. I had a book, a warm jersey, a toy rabbit and maybe an apple so I was going to be fine.)

The small child astronaut in the image, with her long, untied shoelace (such a loving, funny, apt detail) trails its own clouds of meaning: vulnerability, inattention, slap-dash, innocence, the tiny hazards that persist amidst the colossal breaks from the norm and the known.

Those shoes and the carry-case also make me think of my sons, their pet rabbits, my boys’ laces trailing like mouse-tails, the constant reminder, you’ll trip up! (I would still be saying it on the moon, on Mars, on the moons of Mars … ).

None of this has anything to do with a husband in the 1980s imagining his wife in tight-fitting, distinctly non-utilitarian coveralls. My sister points out that the gift was telling Mum she was gorgeous. Was that so out of the norm by then that it unsettled her? It seemed to set off detonations of silence, anxiety, disapproval, contraction, retreat, mystery and the unspoken — which, of course, is different from the silence.

But what if our real life is lived in the silences? The thoughts, and the in-between-the-thoughts, not what we manage to put into words? What we intuit, intimate. (The visual arts and music can both exquisitely, expertly, seep into and explore these interstices, I think.)

The people close to us can never truly know us, and we can never truly know them. Maybe real love is when you feel you do understand the silences — when it’s in what you don’t say that you agree to meet. What if the person you share that with isn’t someone you live with? Or, to complicate things, what if the main way you fight in a family is actually the silent treatment, when it seems as if you are all wearing opaque glass masks, air-locked in the head-gear of your own hurt and anger?

It doesn’t make sense that this dumpy little cosmonaut with her luggage, her pet travel crate, her heedlessly undone basketball boot, brings back memories of my tall, slender mother standing in front of a full-length mirror, looking intent and also a little crushed, trying to smooth her stomach and hips away as she strokes the fabric over the planes and curves of her body.

But what does, what does, when your father buys your mother a parachute suit, a flight suit, a jumpsuit, and then reels with shock, when finally, she makes the leap, she bails, she decides to leave?

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