#cue the 'suffering from success' meme

[mauv-the-bluest-cat-ever]

[daughterofluthien]

“decisions were respected” Sorry but didn’t Scott violently throw Isaac against a wall more than once just because Isaac liked his ex girlfriend in canon? That’s the literal opposite of healthy...

Hey, anon!

This is in reference to this post about Scallison for the shipping meme, where I said that one of my favorite things about Scallison is that the show lets them have a healthy breakup, and even date other people while still remaining friends. The scenes you are referring to are a pair of scenes in 3x13 Anchors.

So lets’s take a look.

(under a cut bc it turns out that when you try to be comprehensive, things get v long v quickly 😅)

The Scenes

I’m actually gonna copy/paste the dialogue of both scenes (along with minimal action/inflection notation for context) so that we can really make sure we know what we’re talking about here, so bear with me:

The first of these scenes occurs as Scott and Isaac are getting ready to head to school in the morning. After some initial ‘hey, what’re you doing, are you heading to school’ dialogue—during which both boys seem a bit awkward—we get the following:

ISAAC: [anxiously] Can I ask you a question? SCOTT: Okay... ISAAC: Are you angry with me? SCOTT: No! ISAAC: Are you sure? SCOTT: ...No. ISAAC: [awkwardly] What's that mean? SCOTT: I guess I'm not really sure how I'm feeling... ISAAC: [nodding] Okay. ...Do you hate me? SCOTT: [sighing] No, of course not. ISAAC: Do you want to hit me? SCOTT: [taken aback] No. ISAAC: I think you should hit me. SCOTT: I don't want to hit you. ISAAC: Are you sure? SCOTT: Why would I want to hit you? You didn't do anything, did you? ISAAC: [stammering] No. I mean, um... What do you mean? SCOTT: I mean, like, you didn't kiss her or anything, right? ISAAC: No! Absolutely not. No. SCOTT: ...Did you want to? ISAAC: Oh, yeah. Totally. [scene cuts to hallway outside the room. Isaac flies through the doorway and hits the wall] MELISSA: Hey! You two teenage boys? Don't test my entirely un-supernatural level of patience! ISAAC: ...Feel better?

The scene then ends, and we cut to subsequent scenes of Stiles and then Allison also getting ready for school.

The second scene is much shorter and happens later in the episode, after Isaac saves Lydia from an arrow that Allison fired while hallucinating. He and Scott are in Scott’s room again, and he’s telling him about the incident:

SCOTT: Right at her head? ISAAC: Almost right through it. And she keeps saying the same thing-- that she keeps seeing her aunt. Whatever's happening to you guys is getting worse. If I hadn't been there, then Lydia would be dead. SCOTT: ...What were you doing there? ISAAC: Uh... [scene cuts to hallway outside the room. Isaac flies through the doorway and hits the wall] MELISSA: [groaning] Oh, you guys, come on! This house does not have a supernatural ability to heal! So, stop it!

But of course just the text of the scene isn’t enough to accurately convey everything in even a tiny portion of a larger narrative, because nothing happens in a vacuum. With that in mind, let’s look at...

The Context 

The first of these scenes occurs immediately after the opening credits, and is the first time we see either Scott or Isaac this season. (Assuming you consider 3B a separate season, of course, which is a whole ‘nother can of worms. This tv show we all choose to enjoy sure is Something.)

Often, the opening of a season is used to reintroduce the audience to the main characters—letting us know where their characters arcs are starting, and what they’ll be struggling with this season. Teen Wolf did this previously (and did it well, imo) in 3x01 Tattoo. Act 2 of that episode begins with a series of four scenes showing our main characters getting ready for school in the morning, highlighting where everyone currently is, and setting up where their arcs are going to go.

Scene order taken by itself would seem to indicate that they were trying to do something similar in this episode. It starts off with the hook of Stiles’ extended nightmare sequence. He can’t tell dreams apart from reality anymore, and wakes up screaming. Cut to black, cue opening credit sequence.

Immediately after the first ad break, we get a sequence of three scenes. The first is the longer of the two Scott and Isaac scenes (which, as previously mentioned, occurs as they’re getting ready to head out to school). The second is of Stiles. He’s packing for school, and the audience learns that he’s been struggling to read when he’s awake as well. Finally, we see Allison leaving her and her dad’s apartment. She seems like she’s doing fine, if a little over-focused. But then she gets into the elevator, and has an extended hallucination/flashback of Kate.

We learn soon after this that all three of them (Scott, Stiles, and Allison) are suffering from the aftereffects of their sacrifice in the previous season. According to the explanations we get both from Kira and, later, from Deaton, they’re slipping into bardo, or the space between life and death, and there’s a door open in their minds. 

Okay, problem established.

It stands to reason, then, that all three of those opening scenes are supposed to serve to set up this problem. We’re shown, in three successive scenes, that all three of our sacrificees are, as the kids say, Not Doing So Hot.

(yes I know the kids don’t say that, let me be an increasingly out-of-touch millennial in peace)

This is all well and good, and honestly makes sense! Under this paradigm, the Scott and Isaac scene should be highlighting that Scott is Losing Control. Bardo is affecting him, and it’s causing him to be more aggressive. Giving in to violence in a way that he generally holds himself back from. Heck, the scene even starts with Scott flexing his fingers, and we (and Scott) see the shadow of a clawed hand against the door.

In the context of the narrative, it makes sense.

Except.

eXCEPT—

The Framing

The thing about the medium of television is that, when we’re talking about a scene, we can’t just look at the narrative structure. We also have to look at the scene itself: how it’s shot and directed, how it’s edited, even what music is paired with the scenes.

In the Stiles and Allison sequences, the scenes are very clearly shot for tension and horror. Long lingering shots on the things that Just Aren’t Right. Music that heightens the tension. Stiles gets some nice lil scare chords over the shot of the book that he can’t read, and there’s a very quiet droning in the background of the Allison nightmare sequence that slowly grows into some classic horror soundtrack music.

Okay. So far that tracks with the narrative thesis.

Now let’s take look at the Scott and Isaac scene.

We start out with some of those lingering shots I was talking about, as Scott is halted in his tracks when he notices the shadow of the clawed hand. We see his own hand is human and unshifted. There’s quiet, percussion heavy music over this portion of the scene that increases in tension at this point. Shaken, Scott closes his hand into a fist, and when he opens it, both the shadow and his own hand are smooth and human. The tense music fades out to silence, and he breathes a sigh of relief.

Scott opens the door to reveal Isaac, which startles him. There’s a short musical sting to underline this moment, and then the background music cuts out completely, leaving us (and them) in the awkwardness of this moment. 

And OH BOY. IS IT AWKWARD. 😬

You can kinda see the Awkwardness Inherent in the System in the dialogue that I pasted up at the top—it’s a lot of back-and-forth, short statements, trailing off... And both Posey and Sharman are playing up the awkwardness as well. Neither boy looks like they really want to be there, and that includes Isaac, who initiated this entire conversation.

But here’s the thing.

The thing that really frustrates me about this scene.

It’s not the sort of awkwardness that exists to increase the tension. The sort that builds and builds until it reaches a fever pitch and you know something just has to give. You know, the sort of tension that you would want to build if you were showing how the protagonist of your show is no longer fully in control, and is on a knife’s edge of lashing out at his friend and beta.

Instead, it’s played for comedy.

And once again, a lot of this is down to the music.

Before the dialogue that I quoted at the top even begins, the music starts back up, and this time the tense percussion has been replaced by light, pizzicato strings. (That may not be the exact right term, fyi, I only really know enough about music theory to be dangerous.) But you know, the playful, plucked strings that often accompanies comedic or otherwise not-serious scenes.

Background music tells the viewer how they’re supposed to feel about the events in a particular scene, and the music here is saying that we’re not supposed to find this whole confrontation that dramatic. In fact, we’re supposed to find it funny.

But it’s not just the music that that frames this scene as comedic. It’s also the fact that we don’t actually see Scott shoving Isaac. Instead, the scene cuts to the hallway, and all we see is Isaac flying through the doorway.

Now, obviously I don’t have a direct line to the director and editors’ minds here. But I would bet money that those particular shots were chosen 1). because it’s so much easier to do a wire pull stunt when you don’t have to show what it’s in reaction to, and 2). because it’s kinda difficult to show your main character directly doing a violence and make it funny.

But show someone yeeted into frame, and that’s funny. Right?

(Spoiler alert: not in this context, it isn’t)

Now, I know I’ve been focusing on the first scene a lot—partially because it’s longer and partially because it’s really the only reason that the second scene exists—but I do want to take a look at the second scene really quickly as well. It’s much shorter and generally adopts a more serious tone than the first one, mostly due to fact that we’re smack dab in the middle of the action at this point. The weird visions that the sacrificees have been having all episode have started endangering lives, and they can’t just wait for it to resolve on its own.

But then the focused, intent exposition is broken by Scott’s question of “why were you there.” Then smash cut to a near identical shot of the hallway,and Isaac yeeting into frame.

The thing is, this scene is entirely dependent on the previous one. It only “works”—and I use this term loosely—as a call back to the scene at the beginning of the ep. Heck, both even have the stinger of a frustrated Melissa at the end of both scenes, frustrated at all the boys-will-be-boys roughhousing going on in her house.

Much like the first scene, this one is also set up and framed for Comedy.

Which is um. A Choice. 

But What Does It All Mean

What frustrates me about these scenes, at the end of the day, is that the narrative intention and the directing/editing seem to be fundamentally at odds.

On the one hand, it makes narrative sense to say that the purpose of the scenes is to show that Scott is losing control. That he’s being affected by bardo and the open door in his mind, and it’s putting the people close to him in danger. But then on the other, the way the scenes are actually used are as comic relief. As a way to release tension between very tense, dramatic scenes. 

I don’t think it works, as I don’t personally find it funny at all. But that really does seem to be the intention.

Once again, absolutely wILD choices were made on the part of tptb, and I really wish anyone had thought for two seconds about the implications of all of this, but nO

Ahem.

So now (literally 2K words later I’m so sorry 😅) what does this tell us about the characters? Certainly no one here is arguing that shoving someone is a good or defensible choice, whether it’s due to forces outside the character’s control or not. But even taking the influence of bardo in mind, is it even in character for Scott in the first place?

Because canon can also be written inconsistently/out of character, especially when we’re talking about a long-running show like tw.

One’s an Incident, Two is Coincidence...

Well, we all know the end of that saying.

So let’s end by looking at a few patterns.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this, once again, eXCEEDINGLY long post, this is reference to a post I made about scallison. I said the following in that post:

And I also really like that they [Scott and Allison] didn’t get back together. That they were allowed to be friends. That even though sometimes it hurt to watch someone you love loved love become romantically close to another person, decisions were respected, and no friendships were broken over it.

The first pattern we need to look at, then, is this:

What’s Scott’s pattern of behavior toward Allison and Isaac’s relationship?

And does Scott’s behavior toward Isaac in these two scenes match the pattern, or is it an outlier?

3x11 Alpha Pact: Sacrifice Prep The revelation that Allison and Isaac have grown close enough for him to act as emotional tether for her is very visibly a blow to Scott. He looks like the rug has been pulled out from under him, but he doesn’t look angry or upset, just.... sad. In fact, it looks like he’s swallowing back tears. But he nods towards the two of them and just says, “It’s okay.”

3x12 Lunar Ellipse: “I look for my friends” This is the epilogue of the season. Scott walks into the hallway at all of his friends in turn. Satisfied. Happy. First at Lydia and Aiden, then at Danny and Ethan. Then he turns and watches as Isaac and Allison walk down the stairs, and they’re laughing, and so obviously happy, and Scott’s small smile grows. He isn’t jealous here—he’s happy for them. 

3x14 Illuminated: Mutual Recognition Scott and Allison are both at Danny’s halloween party, but they’re not here together. He sees her from across a crowded room, just like he did at the winter formal, so many months ago. But so much has happened, and they’re different people now. Allison’s with Isaac, and he’s starting to having feelings for Kira, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt, and that he doesn’t miss the relationship he and Allison had. For a moment, his fingers slip away from Kira’s, and he and Allison share a sad smile. 

Believe it or not, these are actually the only other examples I could find of Scott reacting to Isaac and Allison’s relationship. And uniformly across them, he’s sad, yes—after all, he loved her, and that relationship is very definitively over now. But he never seems jealous, and he isn’t angry.

So, if the Scott and Isaac scenes in Anchors don’t fit the pattern of Scott’s behavior towards the new couple, what pattern do they fit?

“Hit me.”

The teen wolf writers have a... really upsetting habit, honestly, of “resolving” interpersonal conflict between two characters by having the “wronged” party hit the other. Afterwards, the tension is almost completely broken between them, as if letting the person act aggressively in a way consensual to both parties has somehow solved the problem.

2x11 Battlefield: Derek and Peter After Peter comes back from the dead, he confronts the now pack-less Derek and offers to help him. Derek, likely remembering that Peter killed Laura and was responsible for most of the events of S1, attacks him instead. After taking a beating, Peter says the following:

PETER: Okay, go ahead! Come on, do it! Hit me. Hit me. I can see that it's cathartic for you! You're letting go of all the anger, self-loathing, and hatred that comes with total and complete failure. I may be the one taking the beating, Derek, but you've already been beaten. So, go ahead. Hit me if that will make you feel better. After all, I did say that I wanted to help.

3x13 Anchors: Scott and Isaac We’ve already discussed this scene in uh. Detail. So I don’t think we need to go into the specifics again. But just a reminder that this dialogue exists:

ISAAC: Do you want to hit me? SCOTT: No. ISAAC: I think you should hit me.

5x15 Amplification: Scott and Liam During the previous supermoon, Liam—swayed by grief, the full moon, and Theo’s manipulations—tried to kill Scott and take his power. They’ve since rediscovered an equilibrium in their relationship, and Liam’s back in Scott’s pack, but they’re both still dealing with the implications of that event. In this episode, they’re attempting to break Lydia out of Eichen, but they’re not as strong as they should be, due to the mountain ash laced through the building, and are having difficulty breaking down a door. Then, the following exchange occurs:

LIAM: Hit me. SCOTT: What? LIAM: Hit me! I'll get angry, then I'll get stronger. STILES: Hit him. Hit him! LIAM: I tried to take your powers. I tried to kill you. Hit me! STILES: He also left you for dead. LIAM: I wanted you dead!

6x16 Triggers: Liam and Theo No one actually directly says “hit me” in  this one, due to the circumstances, but the sentiment’s there. In this sequence, Liam and Theo are trying to convince Gerard and the hunters that the whole pack is hiding out in the zoo, so Theo goads Liam into hitting him, in order to stage a very audible fight.

THEO: Okay... Then they have to believe us.[shouts] Isn't that right? LIAM: [whispers] Why are you yelling? THEO: [shouts] You got a problem? Oh, that's right, you always have a problem! LIAM: [whispers] What the hell are you doing? THEO: [shouts] Shut up! [punches Liam] Yeah, you see that, Scott? Your little Beta can't even take a punch. And what do you think, Malia?

While there’s a variety of primary textual reasons here, all of them deal with personal issues between the pair, and all of them involve some level of catharsis for the person doing the punching. Taken all together, it’s honestly a pretty troubling pattern, especially given the inclusion of an actual canonical abuse victim initiating and receiving the violence.

TL;DR

This is a writer issue, not a character issue. The serious narrative context conflicts with the comedic framing in a way that is honestly baffling to me, and it doesn’t fit the established pattern of Scott’s character and actions. Moreover, it’s an example of the writers’ apparent belief that interpersonal conflict can and should be solved through consensual violence.

The pattern we do see, is that the Scott is saddened by the knowledge that Allison has moved on, but he’s glad that she and Isaac are happy. Similarly, Allison is saddened that Scott is moving on as well, because she does still care for him deeply. Despite their conflicted feelings, neither tries to disrupt the other’s new relationship.

On other shows, that would be a season-long, drama-filled plotline. Here, nothing.

And I legitimately love that so much.

[iseleylaura]

3, 7, and 13 (if you’re okay with it) from the ask game?

you’ve chosen two of my favourite numbers 👀👀 (not for the ask game specifically, just numbers in general lol)

let’s see — I’ll take my time answering these since I have nothing better to do atm!

3🌼Are there any fictional characters you relate to/identify with?

Why of course; this is primarily a fanart blog after all ;)

Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Miraculous Ladybug): Marinette gets SUPER socially awkward, especially around people she finds attractive or is crushing on. If I see an attractive person in public, it’s all over. I guarantee I will make the interaction the most awkward thing. ALSO she is a seamstress! I love sewing, especially cosplay costumes

Sherlock Holmes (BBC Sherlock): Poor bean is just socially and emotionally repressed to the point where he thinks everyone just hates him so he acts aloof as a façade of self-confidence (uhh haha me??). This is how I’ve been like my whole life irl (Internet-me is v different from actual-me). He’s not the best with empathy, and he uses logical reasoning 99% of the time — which is what I innately do too. Both he and I have had to learn how to be compassionate through the very few people we’ve trusted enough to get close. Selfish and unyielding; can’t be bothered to pretend to be interested in something. HATES small talk. Will be rude if necessary. Needy and clingy af from those they want attention from. We also have a hard time recognizing social cues and get very absorbed in our work when we’re passionate about something. Deep down, we’re both just touch-starved biology nerds.

Sophie Hatter (Howl’s Moving Castle): she sees herself as plain/vanilla, which is something that I’ve been told I am irl multiple times and subsequently, believe too. Basically I’m waiting for my Howl to show up and be like ‘nah bby ily.’ She also gets petty aggressive when things aren’t clean and is definitely a ‘if you want it done right, you have to do it yourself’ kind of person, which — same. She doesn’t suffer fools lightly, and neither do I. BUT she secretly loves to dote on the people she loves, even if they are high maintenance

707 aka Luciel aka Seven aka Saeyoung Choi (Mystic Messenger): Is literally just vibing and memeing all day bro. He has an eccentric sense of humor, which isn’t quite ‘lol rawr xD’ but LIKE it’s the contemporary version of it that only the people of tumblr.com can truly comprehend. He is definitely a geek/weeb and introverted af, but can be loud and outgoing when he wants to be (me me me me). Doesn’t give a FUCK about gender — let’s horde all the styles, fem today, masc tomorrow. I wish he were real, because we’d get along so well. Honestly — he’s my fictional soulmate, and I can’t complain about it, because at least he exists in one form, real or not. :’))

Haruhi Fujioka (Ouran High School Host Club): Is perpetually unimpressed by the caveats of corny rich people. Is easily won over by the promise of good food. Literally so self conscious of her own behaviour in situations that she cannot tell if someone is flirting with her or being genuinely pleasant. Like Sophie, she doesn’t suffer fools lightly — which again, I do not either lmfao. EASILY EMBARRASSED. BOTH LIVING IN A PERPETUAL STATE OF MORTIFICATION. We’re both also academically inclined/rational thinkers, though Haruhi is probably most certainly going to be more financially successful as a lawyer than I’ll ever be making my crafts :))))

Merlin (BBC Merlin): Moody introvert, good with hands, falls in love with the sunshine extrovert type (oh, me?). Ends up doing the entire group project, is never rewarded individually for it. Feels constantly overwhelmed with the burden of existing and feels like no one will ever truly understand or know their true motives/feelings. Has a lot of secrets/thoughts they’d never voice aloud for fear of rejection (or being #cancelled). Feels really lonely a lot of the time, but has friends that enjoy his company. LOVES animals; considers animals easier to get along with than humans — hard agree. Also, dragons — aspec represent.

7🌼Describe your aesthetic in emojis.

✨🌿👒🐇🦔🍄🌞🍓♥️

13🌼What is your home situation like?

It’s stable, and has always been relatively. I know I am very privileged in that way, especially with my parents always having been together. I have siblings. I live in a house. I have a degree. I have resources that allow me to pursue my hobbies. We’ve always been middle class people.

However, the recession from 2008 ish basically signaled the downfall of the industry that both my parents worked for. Since then, my mom has only worked on yearly basis, and it’s never guaranteed if she’ll be hired again after each year. My dad, after a decade long period of laying off people, is somehow one of the surviving staff members at his work, and will likely finally get laid off by the end of the year bc of the pandemic (and the inevitable death of the industry, as mentioned above).

For me personally, I’ve been unimployed since last August. Mainly, this is bc I was in college until last December when I graduated. Since the new year, I’ve literally just been at home doing personal projects since I can’t get a job since I graduated literally when the pandemic started.

Also, I realized that I don’t want a job related to what I majored in (lmfao so cliche). I honestly feel very lost as to how to progress with my life because while I have specific things I want to do and become and accomplish, I feel like the odds of them ever happening is very slim. I know in my heart that I need to do something creatively fulfilling, but it’s really hard to make any sort of living with your art or Etsy or YouTube channel or whatever.

So basically I’ve declared 2020 a dud year; and I’m desperately hoping that I can find a job/career/sense of purpose in 2021 :’))))

Sorry for the long response, but I enjoyed thinking these things through for all of the internet to see yay.

thank you for your asks!💞

[psyga315]

Fixing RWBY Volume 4

Volume 4 is… interesting, to say the least. It is obviously a breather volume, but at the same time, it tries to hammer home that every character is suffering to some degree. It also tries to do a sort of Game of Thrones-style “location-based arcs”, where multiple plots unfold across different areas. The only problem is that not everyone gets that spotlight. I can point you guys to the scene where Ruby sees Jaune training and nothing comes of it.

This is where I was beginning to see the problems of RWBY (dropped out midway through Volume 1 and only picked it back up before Volume 3), but I couldn’t quite put my finger on where exactly. Some critics have pointed to Volume 4 as a place where things begin to fall apart, especially in regards to Blake’s character. Then again, she was drawing pictures of the man who abuses her so…

As such, I’m going to tackle this Volume and try to tweak it so that it’s better. As before, I’m not going to reinvent the wheel or slap unneeded characters around. At this point, the only biggest change was Hazel’s appearance earlier in the show. With that in mind, we should begin with a meta-story first.

Keep Moving Forward

Volume 3 was a success and hype for Volume 4 was at its peak. Because RT managed to sell the idea that RWBY was gonna get dark way earlier than they did, I don’t see them using RWBY Chibi for anything other than training people to use Maya. Although there were plenty of animators from Volume 2.5 that used Maya, the ones RT picked out had experience with Poser and thus, they need to bridge the gap before the big Volume.

Around the same time, Miles and Kerry begin to realize that they’ve undertaken a rather ambitious task. Realizing the limit of their age earlier than they did (no joke, part of the reason the Faunus subplot got ditched was because they considered themselves too young and inexperienced to properly tackle it), they had an emergency meeting to figure out how to handle this Volume.

One solution was to simply keep the girls separated for one or two episodes before they’re reunited, nipping the problem in the bud and allowing the plot to continue. Miles insists that there should be a longer degree of separation. After all, all these girls have been traumatized and this isn’t going to be a simple pat on the back for them. The idea is then extended to one volume, to which Kerry suggests that the girls spend two Volumes separated. One where they’re getting over their trauma and the other where they’re doing something about their situation.

Instantly, the idea sticks and plans for both Volumes 4 & 5 began to take shape. Now comes the question of how to handle the high concept of four, maybe five plots going on at once. I’d assume that, with the Volume 2.5 thing, RT would have a lot of animators they could call upon. And so, a means to tackle the idea was formed: Much like how RWBY split up, so too should their animators. Miles and Kerry would continue to write scripts for the episode (barring suggestions from each animation team) and the four animation teams would handle their respective arc.

We have Team Mistral, the main team that deals with all the RNJR scenes and scenes that don’t involve the other members of RWBY, such as Salem’s Lot and Oscar. Then we have Team Atlas, who handles Weiss’s scenes. Team Menagerie handles Blake’s and Team Patch deals with Yang’s.

M&K also decide, this time, that, if they’re going to get serious, they should at least set up some sort of timeline. This leads to a month of brainstorming between them and other members of the crew to figure out what sort of hijinx would happen in a 6-8-month timespan and more importantly, how the saga would unfold. Should it all be at the same time or split across different points? Miles argues that it’d get too confusing, so at the same time would do.

They also decided to plot out how Volume 4 would unfold. Each episode will have RNJR as a major focus, with the members of RWBY sharing focus each episode. The way it works would be as follows:

· Episodes 1, 11, and 12 would focus on RNJR and WBY.

· Episodes 2, 5, & 8 would focus on Weiss.

· Episodes 3, 6, & 9 would be on Blake.

· Episodes 4, 7, & 10 would be on Yang.

· Some episodes would sprinkle in scenes of Salem’s Lot and Oscar.

This obviously messes up the flow of Volume 4, but at the same time, it would give everyone proper focus instead of randomly across the entire volume.

With the hype of Volume 4 reaching critical mass, it premieres on October of 2017 (remember, they delayed Volume 3 by a year to get the additional animators) and this is how Volume 4 would be tweaked…

Salem’s Arc

The first thing we see is Salem’s group celebrating their victory over Beacon while berating Cinder over getting injured. Salem destroys any vague wording she had given in the original and outright says that the method of which Cinder took her powers was considered unnatural and that she did not expect Ozpin to have a Silver-Eyed Warrior in his academy. Hopefully the audience can put two and two together that she’s talking about the Grimm-

[cue that clip of the audience reacting to the Volume 4 trailer and someone shouting “IT’S SUMMER!”]

… Salem explicitly points out that Cinder used the Grimm and that’s why she got fucked up by the Silver Eyes.

Most of these scenes stay as they are with the exception of Hazel being the new member of the group and thus be introduced to Watts and Tyrian, the latter of which being the one who saved Cinder last Volume. Hazel shows some remorse to the Fall of Beacon (to the point where he takes over Emerald saying “it’s almost sad” from last Volume) but when Salem says Ozpin was killed, he is relieved. At least something good came from the bloodshed.

Another change would be that Salem assigns Watts to Atlas instead of Haven. Her reasoning is that, with the CCT being down, she’d need to find a means to see what’s happening in Atlas. Watts understands and prepares a transport to Mantle, knowing he can hack into it with relative ease. When Hazel gets his assignment to talk with Sienna Khan, he asks if Tyrian would be a better choice, since… Y’know, Faunus. When Salem considers switching Tyrian’s job with Hazel’s (hunt the Silver-Eyed Warrior) Hazel and Tyrian instantly reject the offer. Hazel because he doesn’t want to hurt Ruby and Tyrian because he wants to hurt Ruby. Note that Salem doesn’t mention anything about the Spring Maiden. It’ll become apparent why in Tweaking Volume 5.

Also, I’d keep Salem’s motherly nature in this scene because that was always the nice contrast to Ozpin and considering how I dialed up the untrustworthiness of Oz, having Salem treat her minions like children instead of tools or assets would set up a huge contrast.

Cinder’s scenes are kept the same. At some point, I want to establish that the reason characters seemingly teleport all over the place is that it’s something Salem’s Seers can do. This would be done by placing multiple Seers across Remnant, which his why Watts is also going to Atlas, and then using one Seer to teleport to the other.

Oscar’s Arc

I like to thank Vexed Viewer’s video on how the creators screwed up introducing Oscar, since it gives me an easy means to avoid all the shit they did.

Oscar’s arc begins same as it does, but this time, his aunt (who we actually see) enters his room and asks if he’s okay. This has been the fifth night in a row where Oscar has had night terrors, almost centered around the exact same thing: the Fall of Beacon. Despite living so far away from Vale, he remembers the massacre vividly. More importantly, he remembers fire. Lots of it.

One of the episodes would end with focusing on him, only for a voice to pop up: “Hi! I’m Professor Ozpin!” That’s clearly more of an ending bit than a beginning bit.

Episode 6 and 7 would be where we see a good chunk of Oscar’s story unfold. Obviously, we have Ozpin trying to get Oscar to go to Haven, Oscar wants nothing of it. He has dinner with his aunt where, slowly, Ozpin takes over Oscar and forces him to go to Haven, convincing Oscar and his aunt that he always wanted adventure. Even without a body, Oz manages to find someway to ruin someone’s life to have his way.

Also, we don’t have him take the train. That’d be like if in Lord of the Rings, everyone was walking into Mordor and suddenly some 12-year-old kid flies in on the hawks. He’d be in actual walking distance from Haven. About an hour away. The encounter with Hazel stays the same, but Oscar has a slightly longer conversation with Hazel where he asks him if he’s ever been pressured to do something he doesn’t want to do. Hazel, having no idea about Ozpin’s reincarnation, tells him he has, but the reward would be to have peace of mind. This motivates Oscar to fully commit to going to Haven.

Also, skip the stinger because we’re going to use that for Volume 5.

Yang’s Arc

It’s mostly the same, but Port and Oobleck aren’t in the house since they’re dead. Also, Ironwood states in a letter that he apologizes for DQ’ing RWBY and that there’s no need to thank him for the arm so we can get rid of that meme.

There’s another plot detail, one that I’ll establish in Weiss’s arc, but the long story short of it is that the news plays footage of the ball where the Trophy Wife laughs about Vale lacking proper defenses, setting the already upset kingdom into fury, since those defenses were Atlas’s and as far as everyone knows, they were part of the problem. Taiyang is forced to go out and help quell the demands to go to war on Atlas.

Here’s how I’d structure it:

Episode 1 would have Yang adjusting to life without the arm. The simple montage of her doing chores which gets interrupted with Adam flashbacks.

Episode 4 has Taiyang giving her the prosthetic. She tries to wear it, only to have flashbacks of not only Adam, but injuring Mercury and Blake leaving her. She gets her signature hand trembles as she remembers the train from Volume 2, Gretchen’s death, and Raven telling her about Summer. It ends with her asking if she should really become a Huntress.

Episode 7 shows her watching the news when the Trophy Wife footage comes on and sees Weiss attacking her with a Boarbatusk. For the first time since arriving in Patch, she feels concern for her teammates. She knows that Ruby would be safe since she has Jaune and the others and Blake can die in a fire for all she cared. Taiyang comes home, tired and even battered a bit, having to stop some people from committing Atlasphobic attacks, which led to a Grimm attack. They have a chat about the state of Vale and Yang asks Taiyang why she even became a Huntress in the first place, to which Taiyang replies that she wanted to be like her mom, Summer. After she left and was presumed dead, Ruby had been menaced by a small bird Grimm (I’m going there) and Yang tried to fend it off. This was the spark that led to her being a Huntress. Yang, however, doesn’t buy the idea and goes to bed.

Episode 10 would bring the Atlasphobic attacks right to Yang’s home as the house is bombarded with people citing Taiyang as “Ironwood’s bootlicker” and “a droid sympathizer”. They want Taiyang’s head because if he’s not with them, he’s against them. The sad thing is that most of them are traumatized people who lost loved ones to the attacks. Yang wants nothing of it, but the moment the group grabs Taiyang and tries to string him up, her anger flares up, grabs the arm, and slaps it on her. She goes in and saves Taiyang from getting lynched but when it comes time to attack the crowd, she flinches and remembers attacking Mercury and recalling the words of doubt Blake casted in her head. She ejects the arm and, realizing she’s fighting people without awakened Auras, fights to knock them a few out before calling everyone out for letting fear control them. This obviously doesn’t instantly resolve the tensions with Atlas, but it does inspire Yang to return to being a Huntress.

Episode 11 has Taiyang, after healing up from the beating he got, talking to Yang about Raven. Because she knows about STRQ in this tweak, we don’t need to do the whole “oh, so now you talk about her” thing, but Yang does ask what Raven meant with Ozpin valuing Summer as a Pawn. Taiyang asks when she met Raven and notes that she would add that little detail. He then explains to her that Summer was special, just like Ruby, and that she was sent on special missions that none of the others were invited to. With Ozpin kicking Raven out, having favoritism placed on Summer and making Qrow his personal Huntsman, he slowly dismantled STRQ and Taiyang has quite a bit of upset over that. Realizing that this is what’s happening to RWBY, Yang decides to head to Haven…

Episode 12 has her using her motorbike, only to be stopped by a Huntress, Heather Shields, who asks for her help in tracking down a bunch of bandits. She isn’t interested until Heather says that their leader is possibly in league with the White Fang as they have a Grimm Mask. This piques Yang’s interest since this could either mean Raven or Adam.

The reason I added this subplot about Atlasphobic attacks is that I really didn’t want that ballroom scene to be in a bubble and I also wanted to emphasise the whole “angry at Atlas” thing.

Weiss’s Arc

Quite literally the same arc, but with a battle between Weiss and Jacques because he didn’t really have any earned comeuppance in Volume 7 and it’d be a better place for “This Life is Mine”’s rock version than battling giant bumblebees.

Episode 1 has Weiss more subdued than her earlier Volumes, showing her father’s leash is well on her neck. She is asked to visit her father, leading into episode 2, which has no actual changes outside of the reasoning for Ironwood’s embargo being more vaguely worded, since we want to illustrate that he’s going 1984 right now.

Episode 5 is Episodes 6 & 7 of the original mashed up into one episode. However, we get a shot of Watts recording the ball, then using the Seer to teleport to Vale and hand his recording to a local news outlet before moving to Mistral with the Seer.

Episode 8 is Weiss mastering her summon and sneaking out… Only to be caught by Jacques. Jacques is well aware that Weiss’s songs were nothing but hate speeches to him and he demands respect. Weiss refuses, telling him that he’s a poison on the family. Jacques remarks that she’d technically be poison too, since the Schnee children share his DNA. It soon leads to a battle in the Schnee manor where Jacques over relies on Dust as he isn’t a skilled fighter while Weiss over relies on her summon. As such, the two are evenly matched until Jacques runs out of Dust. Realizing that her fighting has become sloppy, she goes back to using her Glyphs and uses one to pin Jacques in place in a manner similar to how Watts pinned Ironwood in their V7 fight.

Episode 11 has her try to get on an airship before Ironwood stops her and tells her about the closures in place… Then assures her she has clearance to go, inquiring that she goes to investigate Winter’s findings on Haven. She jumps at the chance because she thinks Winter is there. Episode 12 is her on a private military aircraft with Pilot Boi.

Blake’s Arc

… Oh boy. You can tell why I saved this one for second last. Blake’s arc is by far the most infuriating of the arcs and really sets a bad standard for her. I remembered flipping her off when she said “we’re not going to fight the White Fang” when I was first watching Episode 11 because I had it up to here with her tomfoolery.

So, instead of making the battered abuse victim abuse Sun and chilling at her parents’ place as the rest of her team suffers while being stalked by someone who has a big lesbian crush on her, we’re gonna rehaul her entire arc.

Episode 1 has her secure passage on a boat. It’s not as grand as a liner in the original, but it’s not the rinkydink rowboat she was on in the comics. Rather, a simple cargo ship she had to bribe in order to get on. She has no clear goal in mind and when asked where she’s going, she says “nowhere. I just want to keep running.”

Episode 3 plays similarly to Runaways and Stowaways, but Sun stalking Blake is removed. If he wanted to be a good Samaritan, he shouldn’t dress up like some fucking cultist for no discernable reason other than “le bait and switch!” Instead, he’s there because SSSN need a lot of supplies and money to back to Haven and Sun is just doing his job as a security guard. He plays catch up with Blake whose moody nature causes a Grimm to attack them. The Grimm is defeated, but the ship has taken damage and must make a pitstop. When asked where it’s landing, the captain says “Menagerie” and this fills Blake with fear.

Episode 6 has Sun and Blake arrive on Menagerie, where it’s actually crowded this time. Failing that, the big problem is that they’re intolerant towards humans, since this is their turf. Obviously, the captain is met with tons of scrutiny and forces Blake to do the one thing she’s avoided her whole life: Talk to her mother.

I should explain something before we continue. In this tweaking, Ghira was killed by that group of people in Adam’s short. This explains the sudden shift between White Fang leaders and Adam’s words in Volume 3. In honor of Ghira leading a noble cause, Kali was given the title of Chieftain of the village I forgot the name of (Kua Kuana?) With her status, Kali could grant humans a temporary pass. And so, Blake reluctantly visits her and we get a touching reunion.

We also see Blake get introduced to the Albains, who in this tweaking aren’t telegraphing that they’re bad guys and are genuinely trying to get in Kali’s good graces. When Blake gives the Albains the business of the White Fang killing people, they state that they’re well aware, as they have Adam in custody and will sentence him to exile in the wilds of Menagerie where he’d most likely meet his end at the hands of monsters. Keen eared viewers would notice that Salem said that Adam was meeting Sienna Khan so… what gives? Well, that’s going to be explained in…

Episode 9 has Blake and Kali talk a bit about Ghira, we have that much needed talk, but instead of Sun busting it, it’s Fennec. He reports that Sun had been kidnapped by renegade White Fang members, but not saying that it was their members that kidnapped Sun. This causes Blake to give chase and goes to the outback where we get to see one of the vicious monsters Blake talked about instead of leaving it to the imagination or DC.

There, we see Sun and Blake were able to defeat it with moderate difficulty before they see Adam. The three fight, but as Blake’s trauma kicks in, Sun protects her and ends up knocking Adam senseless, revealing that it isn’t even Adam, but Ilia using a Semblance that makes her camouflage as other people (think Neo’s Semblance, but on a smaller scale). Blake and Sun are confused before Ilia knocks Sun out and retreats. I should also mention that in the battle, they also knock the scroll out of her.

Episode 11 has Blake explain to Sun why she ran (without her being a bitch about it) and Sun says why that reason’s bullshit. Kali and Corsac come in and they converse about how Adam is still out there. Kali shows plans for a raid on Haven and Corsac feigns condemnation of Adam’s actions. Blake then states that the White Fang has gone too far with its corruption and must be destroyed.

Episode 12 isn’t focused on Blake, but rather on Ilia, as she reports to the Albains and informs them on why she had to disguise herself as Adam. It’s here we find out that, yes, the Albains were in on Adam’s plans the whole time, but had to keep up appearances. They then explain that their goal is to try and prevent Menagerie from going to Mistral’s aid.

Ruby’s Arc

Finally, we get to RNJR. This is gonna be a long one since they’ll have all 12 episodes, even if they appear in only one scene. Let’s knock these out of the park by saying that Episodes 1 & 2 relatively stay the same, but episode 2 has them arrive in Shion just as Raven’s team attacks. This leads to a battle where Ruby battles her sister’s mom and doesn’t even know it. However, Ren sees the mask and freaks. Making matters worse is that the Nuckelavee appears and forces Raven to retreat. The group manages to hold off the Nuckelavee, but are unable to defeat it, leading them to run with a Huntsman following them, the same one that died in the original.

Episode 3 has Ruby talking to Ren about what the hell was up with his freak out but Ren refuses to talk and Nora isn’t helping matters. The huntsman introduces himself as Shiro Wan and says how he’s been assigned by Lionheart, the Headmaster, to investigate a recent string of bandit attacks. He then says that, if they can help him with the bandit, he can get a good word in to bring the group to Mistral. Ruby later confronts Jaune on his training with Pyrrha’s video as Jaune berates himself for letting Pyrrha die at Beacon, saying that if he was stronger, he would have helped her. We end the episode with him confiding in Ruby something: “Ozpin tortured Pyrrha…” That or he wants to kill Cinder.

Episode 4 reveals that Qrow is not only following them, but is talking to Raven about the Spring Maiden. Raven feigns ignorance, but her wording leads Qrow to confirm that she knows where the Spring Maiden is. Also, I want him to say this:

Qrow: If you don’t tell us, we’re all going to die.

Raven: And who’s this ‘we’ you’re referring to?

Qrow: EVERYONE, YOU DUMB FUCKING EDGELORD BITCH!

… I just want to do that.

Episodes 5, 6, and 7 are relatively the same, but Tyrian kills Shiro. Episode 8 has Jaune lay into Qrow about Pyrrha and Qrow tries to defend Oz by saying that Pyrrha chose, but Jaune brings up how he saw the contrary, even asking Qrow if they informed Pyrrha about Salem and the Relics, to which he sadly says no. Episode 9, 10, 11, and 12 are relatively the same as well, with only two exceptions. The first is that, in the flashback for Kuroyuri, we see that Ren makes friends with a ten-year-old girl before Raven and her bandits attack. Nora is also there and with her depression and the bandits, the Nuckelavee is let loose onto Kuroyuri, the ten-year-old last being seen with Raven and looking at the destruction with remorse. During the Nuckelavee fight, Ruby’s silver eyes act up, freezing the Nuckelavee in place for Ren to hand some final blows, rather than “hold arms down to win”.

The stinger isn’t really plot important, but reveals what will immediately happen in Volume 5 as Jaune, Nora, and Ren, with Pyrrha’s shield (if you’re gonna say she has extras, at least show she has extras), carry it over to a house and knock on the door… It’s clear what’s going on, but as the door opens, we cut to black. To be continued in Volume 5.

DVD Extra

I’d say four extra stories starring each member of Team RWBY. Maybe even adapting a story from the comics?

And that’s Volume 4… The next tweaking is going to be my final one and I’m gonna go out on a bang.

[somniatcr]

chasiinglegnds asked:  hello, yes, can u answer all of the love headcanons for all of ur hq muses because i have no mercy.

      still accepting !!

akaashi keiji,

😍 , how does he act different when he starts to like someone?

for the most part, keiji isn’t really the sort to act noticeably different when feelings develop, albeit however strong said feelings happen to be. he’s an inherently difficult person to read by nature and this isn’t something that changes simply due to feelings and feelings alone. in fact, if anything, he’d likely attempt to push his emotions down further still, outwardly reacting even less than normal in an attempt to reign them in, to keep them in check; to prevent them from being noticed, sniffed out by friends and teammates alike.

granted, this would ultimately change if he discovered that his feelings were requited, in which case cue the subtle, yet purposeful, gestures of affection--- brushing his hands or fingers against the other’s, brushing hair out of their face, sitting just a bit closer than is otherwise necessary  ( knees brushing, feet touching ), and so on and so forth.

💞 , how would he ask someone out on a date?

honestly? he’d probably just ask outright. keiji’s a pretty straight-forward guy, so if he wanted to ask someone out  ( and knew that the answer was likely to be yes--- because he’d never ask if he didn’t think the chance of success was high ),  he would just... go for it. the only potential concern here being that sometimes he’s a bit too to the point and that, coupled with his naturally impassive features, may lead certain people to misunderstand his intentions  ( for example, thinking that he simply means as friends as opposed to as a couple ).

💗 , when would he realize he’s fallen in love?             

when the thoughts of them begin to become all encompassing, the realization that they’re always on his mind abruptly becoming too aware. keiji’s quite good at shoving unwanted thoughts and / or emotions into the back of his mind, generally to deal with later  ( when he’s alone ).  so, to have someone suddenly infiltrating his mind so frequently and with such a ferocity that he’s found himself incapable of stopping it, of, at the very least, shoving them away for another time. that’s a big red flag!

🌹 , what are some weird / interesting things he does upon developing a crush?

you mean aside from doing his best to pretend that he hasn’t? to be honest, nothing in particular. at least nothing weird or especially interesting. he would probably feel himself instinctively fretting over them more  ( something he would, again, fight to keep in check when possible ).  he’d also probably wring his hands or fingers  ( a nervous habit of his )  around them more than he would normally.

🥀 , what would he do if he fell in love with someone out of reach / who didn’t love him back? 

simply do his best to get over it. if he knew that his feelings were unrequited or that his chances weren’t good, he’d never let anyone know to begin with. it would simply be his problem and he’d deal with it the best that he could, which would entail a lot of him attempting to crush the feelings and keep busy, to keep his mind off of them as much as possible until he inevitably, hopefully, gets over it.

🍫 , how does he deal with being lovesick?           

he doesn’t. it’s as simple as that. he just doesn’t deal. it’s like that meme--- you don’t have to deal with the feelings if you pretend the feelings aren’t there.

🎀 , how does he make himself look attractive for his s / o?     

he’s already so attractive already, he doesn’t have to do anything. i kid, i kid  ( even if it is the truth ).  he’d probably put a bit of extra effort into his clothing choices  ( when not simply in uniform )  and add just a hint of cologne, something warm and cozy, like him.

💍 , what does he like about being in love?     

he likes how happy that seeing the other person happy makes him. he likes the idea of being loved in return. he also really likes the way that physical affection, intimacy, with the other person makes him feel; all comfortable and cozy and warm.

💔 , what does he dislike about being in love?

he dislikes the lack of control  ( he hates feeling as though he has no control and emotions are bad for that )  and the fear of rejection more so than anything else.

yaku morisuke,

😍 , how does he act different when he starts to like someone?

like keiji, yaku does his absolute best to shove the feelings down and pretend otherwise. the problem, however, is that he lacks the ability to maintain that hard indifference that keiji does. yaku is, unfortunately for him, not the best at keeping his emotions in check. he may be exceptionally stubborn, absolutely resolute in his intentions of not talking about things, not admitting to things, pretending that he doesn’t think or feel things that he does, but you’ll always be able to read it on his face or in his body language, especially once you know him well enough.

he would definitely fluster more easily, go awash with pink  ( across his nose and to the tips of his ears specifically ),  find himself going rigid, muscles taut, whenever they happen to touch or brush against him. he would also find it more difficult to properly face them, to look them in the eye, because he knows where his weaknesses lie.

💞 , how would he ask someone out on a date?

he would absolutely never. even if he thought maybe he had a chance. he still wouldn’t go for it. they almost definitely would have to ask him.

the only exception to this is if they were already dating. in which case, like keiji, he’d simply ask. albeit while being a touch flustered while doing so  ( he’s so bad at being vulnerable with people that it makes me want to absolutely strangle him ).

💗 , when would he realize he’s fallen in love?   

when he notices the subtle changes in his already difficult to control physical responses  ( you know, when he’s around his object of interest ).  when he’s no longer simply finding himself getting flustered or flushed with pink, but now his palms are also beginning to sweat, his chest goes tight, he finds it just a little harder to breath--- he finds his gaze constantly being drawn to them, regardless of what they’re doing. that’s when he really starts to get nervous because once his body’s upped its game, things have gotten even more serious than he’s expected  ( and now it’s really too late to stop it! ).

🌹 , what are some weird / interesting things he does upon developing a crush?

god, the absolute worst thing that he does, or at least that he tries to do, is leave. his fight or flight instincts kick in so hard and he just--- tries to escape whenever possible so that he doesn’t have to deal with it. something i’m sure the other party, if observant enough, would definitely begin to notice.

🥀 , what would he do if he fell in love with someone out of reach / who didn’t love him back? 

his mind would probably be a wreck. not so much due to his being sad or feeling as though he’s been rejected  ( as, like keiji, he likely never confessed to begin with ),  but rather just due to stress. he would probably get himself all worked up because he doesn’t want to ruin his friendships  ( if his feelings were for a friend, that is ),  he doesn’t want to seem weak or vulnerable, and he hates how badly it affects him which, in turn, would begin to effect his performance in other areas for a while  ( his schoolwork and performance on the court would suffer for a bit, at least until he managed to get his shit together again ).  eventually, though, after his little breakdown, he’d do his best to shake it off and keep busy, to move on.

🍫 , how does he deal with being lovesick?     

as mentioned above, he mostly tries to avoid the person that he’s interested in so he isn’t actually seen being lovesick. aside from that, he mostly just stresses himself out about it.

🎀 , how does he make himself look attractive for his s / o?     

he mostly tries not to embarrass himself, which ironically seems to become increasingly harder not to due to his frequently being more easily flustered. otherwise, he fusses over his appearance a bit more  ( spends a little more time trying to make his hair look decent in the mornings, spends a little more time picking out his clothes when not in uniform, etc ).

💍 , what does he like about being in love?     

he likes how lost he finds himself getting in the little details of the other person that he’d never quite noticed before. he likes the idea of having his feelings reciprocated, of having someone fall in love with him. and, although scary, he does kind of like the warmth that it leaves washing over him; it’s nice.

💔 , what does he dislike about being in love?  

he dislikes how easily the other person begins to affect him  ( it leaves him feeling embarrassed which he hates ). like keiji, he’s not a huge fan of feeling as though he’s out of control of the situation. and, of course, the fear of rejection.

hanamaki takahiro,

😍 , how does he act different when he starts to like someone?

this feels like an unfair question--- makki practically develops a new crush every day of his life. he’s one of those people who develops tiny crushes on people all the time. but for the sake of answering the question, let’s just say that he’s moved passed the initial crush phase and into like-liking someone.

in this case, of the four of them, makki’s the most likely to actually flirt. not in any sort of in your face, obnoxious sort of way and not with frequent cheesy pick up lines or anything of that nature, just... basic flirting and flattery. he’s also the most likely to purposefully initiate physical contact  ( and not just the subtle hand or leg brushing that keiji pursues ), but casual arm, and back, and shoulder touches; his arm thrown about their shoulder, hands on the knees, and all those sorts of touches. he’s easily the most forward about his feelings.

💞 , how would he ask someone out on a date?

makki’s the sort to be sort of playful about it, even to perhaps use a hint of humor  ( which happens to be his biggest defense mechanism, for the record ),  perhaps suggesting a challenge  ( and if i win, you’ll let me take you out, right? )  or jokingly asking when they’re going to go out with him already  ( i’ve been waiting for ages! ).

💗 , when would he realize he’s fallen in love?             

he wouldn’t realize it, not until it’s hit him like an absolute freight train. he isn’t an idiot by any means  ( even if, at times, he does act like one ),  but he tends to get so wrapped up in his little crushes and infatuations and feelings in general that sometimes he doesn’t fully comprehend the intensity of them until it just sort of... smacks him in the face. metaphorically speaking, of course.

🌹 , what are some weird / interesting things he does upon developing a crush?

he’s the sort of person who’s prone to talking about people more frequently than he normally would otherwise when he’s interested in them. so, definitely expect that.

🥀 , what would he do if he fell in love with someone out of reach / who didn’t love him back? 

play it off with humor, probably. that’s sort of his thing. he feels hurt, humor. he’s upset about something, humor. he’s affected by anything ever, humor. he has a penchant for deflecting and goes about attempting to make himself seem extra okay when he’s definitely not.

🍫 , how does he deal with being lovesick?     

he just sort of allows himself to get wrapped up in it. he loves the feeling of being in love. the polar opposite of what both keiji and yaku are trying to do.     

🎀 , how does he make himself look attractive for his s / o?     

he tries to show off a bit more, especially with his sense of humor. he loves making people laugh and would definitely go out of his way to try to make the person that he’s interested in especially happy, to try to make them smile and laugh as much as possible.

💍 , what does he like about being in love?     

he loves the way that it makes him feel. he loves seeing the person that he loves happy and laughing and smiling, especially knowing that he’s the one responsible for that. and he loves the idea of being loved back.

💔 , what does he dislike about being in love?  

he mostly just dislikes that fear of rejection. he doesn’t handle being hurt particularly well.

hoshiumi kourai,

😍 , how does he act different when he starts to like someone?

kourai is the one who promptly starts making more of an effort to spend time with them, as much as possible  ( and hopefully without making it too obvious that he likes them--- if, that is, he even realizes that he does just yet because, fun fact, sometimes it doesn’t immediately register that he has a crush ). he wants to be around that person, to get to know them better  ( which probably means asking a lot of questions ).

he would also probably take what they heart just a touch more than he would with everyone else. their words and actions would be felt more deeply, would garner the biggest reaction. he also tries to show off just a little bit more when they’re around, going out of his way to seek their attention because it’s their attention specifically that he wants.

💞 , how would he ask someone out on a date?

honestly, there are two potential, and very different, ways that he might go about this--- all depending on the circumstance, what he’s feeling in that particular moment, and on where his mind happens to be at the time.

he would either ask as casually as possible, almost making it seem as though he’s asking them out as a friend  ( all the while hoping that they want it to be a date and that that’s what it ultimately becomes ).

or he just kind of... blurts it out. it’s pretty fifty-fifty.

💗 , when would he realize he’s fallen in love?            

like makki, it probably just kind of hits him out of the blue one day. either that or he realizes when someone else brings it up or points it out to him. though, unlike makki, this is less because he becomes so wrapped up in his emotions  ( although, that’s definitely true too )  and more so because he just doesn’t think about it. he doesn’t even consider the idea of falling in love until one day he just... is in love. it’s a very ‘ oh, wait a minute! ‘ , light bulb illuminating kind of moment for him.

🌹 , what are some weird / interesting things he does upon developing a crush?

he has a bad habit of staring at the person he’s interested in. which, to be fair, happens, sure, but--- he doesn’t quite take into account the fact that he’s doing it and that it’s rude to stare, especially when you’re as wide-eyed and filled with awe and wonder as he happens to be when doing it. he just really enjoys taking them in, in watching and learning about all the little things that they do, the habits that they have, all their quirks. as i mentioned above, he just wants to learn all that there is to learn because he’s genuinely so curious and interested.

🥀 , what would he do if he fell in love with someone out of reach / who didn’t love him back? 

he’d just be heart broken. he would, without a doubt, pout and mope the most out of the four of them and would, likewise, pour his emotions and energy into volleyball more so than the rest. so, initially, lots of sadness and moping  ( and him not seeking attention and praise the way that he normally would, generally lacking his usual fiery spirit and zest for life )  before moving onto a brief hyper-fixation on his sport. and then he’d just kind of bounce back and it’d seem like everything was just fine.

🍫 , how does he deal with being lovesick?      

he’s a bit more... all over the place, if that makes sense. he’s not used to being lovesick, to feeling those sorts of things, and doesn’t quite know how to react or to process what he’s feeling and, so, becomes a bit more reactive, a bit more emotionally turbulent, a bit more forgetful. things like that.

🎀 , how does he make himself look attractive for his s / o?    

like makki he definitely tries to show off more. he wants to look cool and fun and to seem smart and interesting and all the things that he imagines that he should seem, should be, for the person that he likes. he, of course, tones it down if they’re together when they tell him that it’s unnecessary  ( because i’m sure that it, and he, is a lot ).

💍 , what does he like about being in love?     

he loves how new and exciting that it is, he loves the way that love makes him feel, and this idea and potential reality of having this one special person that’s just his and his alone. he loves making the other person proud, he loves seeing them happy.

💔 , what does he dislike about being in love?  

if he were to be rejected, that one be the thing that he dislikes about it the most  ( otherwise he wouldn’t even really consider the idea of it, so it wouldn’t be a fear as with the other three ).  he is the one most prone to jealousy, though, so he wouldn’t like the way that makes him feel.

[hedgehog-o-brien]

K, x, z for fic meme because they all fit a fun theme :P

K: What’sthe angstiest idea you’ve ever come up with?

OK, well, you asked, lol. To beperfectly honest, I come up with a lot ofangsty ideas. I just never write them down because A) I like writing fluff andromance far better and B) I’ve got to be in a really really specific headspaceto actually put angst to paper, which is also why Home Fires has not beenupdated in forever. But here’s two of them, one for Leverage and one for theLibrarians. If you want more details or if you want to take these and run withthem, be my guest!

Leverage

-         A jobgoes horribly sideways and Parker is stuck in a burning building without anexit. There’s no way Hardison or Eliot can get to her, so she tells them goodbyeand orders them to leave before the cops/firefighters/authorities get there. Rightbefore Eliot drives off, the building collapses so yeah, it’s pretty clear thatParker is gone. They’re both devastaded, of course, and all Leverage Inc activitiesare put on hold indefinitely while they work out their grief.

Until six or so months later, when theyfind out (somehow) that Parker isn’t dead, but has been ���rescued’ from theburning building by Cha0s, who orchestrated the entire thing and is now keepingher as his prisoner and personal shiny snatcher. If she escapes, or tries tocontact Eliot and Hardison, Cha0s will kill them. Cue a very underground rescuemission, involving both Quinn and Michel Dayan (who has a score to settle withCha0s anyway), a rat race across Europe and an eventual happy ending. Of sorts.

Librarians

-         Icall it the ‘Ezekiel gets kidnapped by an evil organisation’ fic, and that’sbasically what it is. Ezekiel gets kidnapped by his old boss, who proceeds totorture the ever living shit out of him because of the way Ezekiel defectedfrom MI6 all those years ago. The Library team is left frantic to find him, butthey’ve got very little to go on and after three days of no luck, they’re aboutto give up.

Only when Ezekiel is really really aboutto die, some kind of mental connection opens up between him and Cassandra, sohe can finally tell his friends what happened. Team Library puts the piecestogether, make a mad dash to London (it turns out Jenkins knows the Queenpersonally, which is a huge help) and manage to make Evil Boss give up hislittle torture project. Evil Boss gives them Ezekiel’s coordinates, which turnsout to be a ditch in the middle of Scotland where they’ve dumped himunceremoniously. They find him there, naked, barely conscious and dying ofshock, hypothermia and various injuries, bring him back to the Annex and, withthe help of some healing oil and TLC, nurse him back to health.

I’ve used elements of that last one forHome Fires, btw. If you couldn’t tell, lol

X: Acharacter you enjoy making suffer.

Jacob Stone, for some ungodly reason. Butonly if Ezekiel Jones is there to patch him up again.

Z: Majorcharacter death–do you ever write/read it? Is there a character whose death youcan’t tolerate?

I wrote it once, and it… wasn’t a success, lol. Both interms of reception and my own liking of it, I just… I know I’m better with othertropes. As for reading, I like Character almostdeath a whole lot better, bc real CD is so… definite. Or something. IDK. Also,I get enough death around me in real life, it’s not something I need fictionfor to experience it.

But, if you

are

killing characters off, then for the love of god, don’t touch AlecHardison.

[thedragonlover]

4. "i'm too sober for this" and 11. Dear diary wish you the best day!!! 🌻❤

aaaaaAAAAA THANK YOU

Evidence I can be a dumb: I reblogged that and didn’t even think about the fact that replying to asks about this would mean I’d have to post my writing on tumblr… is it weird that I got a little nervous? Considering I normally just write what I feel like and have uploaded lots of my work elsewhere.ahaha ignore meeee

I’ll write for MM because, hell, it’s cute and I feel like cute today okay not at all because you’re a MM blog and wanted a good chance you’d like reading what I wrote

just beware because I swear bunches and am writing this for giggles, and also I’ve never written for this fandom be gentle

4. “I’m too sober for this.”(Where MC isn’t paired with anyone, but you’ve still had the party and finally met the RFA face-to-face. Trying to avoid spoilers for anyone who hasn’t completed particular routes.)

.

It was a small get-together - just you and the RFA members meeting up for a nice celebratory dinner. It was a shame that V couldn’t make it, but he was grateful for the invitation. You were so relieved to have helped make the party a success, although you didn’t want to take a lot of credit. Everyone chipped in and put in so much hard work that, really, it made you proud to be a member of such a wonderful, kind of dysfunctional family.

Then you all sat down.

Zen got pretty defensive when Jumin commented on this “commoner establishment.”

This was a place that you had picked out, have some respect; don’t worry that it doesn’t meet his ridiculous standards, he’s just a stupid trust fund kid; babe, he’s calling me shallow, I’m too handsome to be anything like that materialistic bastard!

At this point, you were waiting for them to start pulling on each other’s pigtails to fuel all of the fanfiction people were writing about them. You very pointedly suggested seats that put them far enough to avoid physical violence. “No glaring at the dinner table.” They still continued to provoke each other, but at that point you’re glad they’re not making a scene.

No, you wouldn’t let Yoosung play a handheld at the table. Mostly because you forgot yours and wanted him to suffer with you. You said that talking with everyone can be fun too.

“Well… playing video games with everyone would be even better!”

For the love of…

“Especially when I wreck you,” Seven snickered, poking Yoosung’s face.

Of course he took the bait. “What?! No way, I’ll totally own you! Name the game and the time!”

“Mario Kart, an hour before your curfew, you cute widdle baby~” You hadn’t realized a person could literally talk in tildes, and then there was Seven.

“You’re barely older than me!”

Oops, maybe Jumin and Zen weren’t the only ones who needed to be separated.

You told them you’d wreck them both decided to be the adult here.

But, that’s right! Jaehee was here! This woman was a godsend, able to wrangle the most intimidating of business reports into submission! And she knew judo? Hell yeah! You could count on everything remaining under control with this badass at the helm!

…she looked so exhausted though. That’s right, it had taken a lot of convincing (both for her and Jumin) to escape paperwork hell. And you were going to enlist her help in babysitting all of these dorks? Oh, you couldn’t do that to this poor soul. Mama Jaehee needed a night off too.

“I don’t understand why we are eating here. I have chefs at home who would cook whatever dish you desired.”

“I swear, every time you open your mouth, I have to ask myself whether going to jail is worth it! It gets harder each time!”

“Ohoho, that’s what she said~”

“Seven, come on, that one’s not even clever…”

“Clever girl~”

“Don’t.”

Jumin was describing the fancier, more expensive lunch he had earlier that day with Elizabeth the 3rd. Zen was trying to ignore him, caught a waitress’ eye across the restaurant, and nearly made her run into a doorframe with a smile-wink-combo. Yoosung was “sneakily” playing his game under the table, and you let him because he promised to give you a turn. You didn’t notice Seven had stolen everyone’s napkins to make origami cats until his army was being sent to capture the entire table.

When your order was finally taken you asked if someone would drive you home later, and after being offered cars and a rocketship and even a piggyback ride, it’s Jaehee that inquired, “But, why do you ask?”

“I’m too sober for this.”

“Ah,” she responded. Then she added a drink to her order too. “Same,” she thought.

Zen is all for this development! “Well, you can count me in, babe. I just hope you don’t get too handsy with me, or I won’t be able to contain the beast…” Cue more winking.

Deadpan, Jumin responded, “Are you rabid? A beast that presents a safety hazard to society should be put down.”

“Wahh,” Yoosung cut in, “can we please not talk about putting down animals?!”

“Yeah!” Seven stood up. “Don’t! Talk about! Sad things! Around! The baby!” And he clapped for each pause, this man was a living breathing meme and there was no stopping him. So much for not making a scene.

As Yoosung argued about not being a baby, Jaehee accepted the wine glass handed her and downed it in one go. Zen was impressed. And he wasn’t going to be outdone, but then he started choking.

“Children,” she muttered.

“Yeah,” you agreed, an exasperated smile growing. “But they’re all my children, so.”

What a wonderful, dysfunctional family you had.

When Seven tried to ruin the moment with Bee movie quotes, you told them all, “But if you guys don’t cut the shit out, I swear to god I’m going to hang out with that Unknown guy because at least he seems to have some chill.”

“What the fuck,” Unknown blurted out, hiding in a nearby ficus.

11. “Dear Diary, …”

.

The moment you heard Seven start cackling, you knew you were going to regret inviting him over.

Regret turned to horror when he began, voice loud and singsong, “ ‘Dear Diary, today I actually cleaned up the apartment!’ ”

He was standing in your living room, on your sofa, with his shoes on, reading out of your personal diary, and you didn’t even care if you didn’t get away with his murder.

“ ‘But! Hold your applause! Because I also… put on people clothes! And I look pretty damn fine, if I do say so myself–’ ”

You lunged. He leapt over the back, whooping with glee. The chase was on!

Once you managed to convince him to skirt around the couch, you tried to leap over it just as dramatically, and faceplanted - thankfully on the cushions, but still, that hurt your dignity. And then he was sitting on your back, effectively preventing you from getting up and clobbering him.

“Seven! Get off!”

“ 'I hope you’re not a police officer, Diary, because I’ve got Fine written all over me!’ Aww, there’s even a little winkie face! Ooh, is that a list of pick-up lines I see? Were you waiting to use these on little ol’ me?”

“Seven, I mean it–”

“ 'You must be Jamaican, because Jamaican me crazy.’ Ooh, that one’s old but gold.”

“SEVEN, I’M GOING TO KILL YOU–”

“ 'Are you religious? Because you’re the answer to all my prayers.’ Ah, I’m swooning! Take me, MC, I’m yours!”

With a full-body heave, you launched the man off of you and into the coffee table. It broke. Thankfully, you wouldn’t have to worry about paying V back for breaking it if you were locked away for second-degree murder.

“They’re pick-up lines, not throw-down lines–ouch!”

“Give it back!”

“Ahh, don’t hurt me, master! OW okay that one really hurt.”

“Then stop being a brat and let go–”

“And lose this comedic gold? God Seven will never let this go! I must spread this gospel!”

“AGH I’M NOT YOOSUNG OKAY I WILL END YOU!”

Some time later, after you’d reclaimed your property and handled the irritated police officer called out from noise complaints, Seven came out of your kitchen to find you still pouting on the sofa.

“I hate you,” you moaned.

“Your complaint has been filed and sent to God Seven, and–” He lifted his arms to form an “x” in front of him, declaring, “Hate denied! You must forgive him and smile!”

“Not a chance.”

“Come onnnn…”

“Go away.”

He brought a hand to his chin, as if contemplating a serious matter. Eventually, he nodded several times to himself, then made a pose he had literally ripped from the anime you two were watching earlier.

“Then you leave me no choice! I will have to use… my secret weapon!”

You arched an eyebrow.

Grinning, he sang, “You can come with me to see Elly~”

“…are you suggesting I join you in hacking through Jumin’s security, sneaking past all of his bodyguards, and breaking into his home, to pet his cat?”

“Someone sounds interested…”

You stared.

Hard.

“…dammit Seven, why do you know me so well?”

You threw a pillow at him when he mimicked Karin’s pose and laugh from Street Fighter V.

Kind of like how Jumin threw the two of you out that evening. He was seriously considering the restraining order this time.

These got so out of hand so fast ahaha. Hope they’re mildly entertaining?

[auburnfamilynews]

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Base your guesses on who we don’t pick for premium accuracy!

Here we go, heavy on the PAC-12 and we get yet another Michigan game for Crow to scoff at. If you’d like to submit your picks as well, just visit the link below to make sure they’re documented!

MASH THAT BUTTON

Oregon (-3) @ Washington (O/U 51)

Washington has been a huge let down this year. I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt dropping that weird rain delay-ed game vs Cal, but they then lost to a god-awful Stanford team. I know this game is in Seattle, but I can’t help but think UW should be getting at least a touchdown in this one. If the Ducks win here, the division is practically wrapped up for them. I think the #1 defense in the country gets it done, 27-17 Ducks. - Ryan Sterritt

So, when thinking about this game, I just don’t trust the Huskies. And after doing research, I really don’t. Since Peterson got to Seattle, the Huskies are 10-14 vs AP Top 25 teams and 0-2 against Oregon teams that enter the game ranked in the top 25. Good enough for me, especially since I think Oregon is the best team in the Pac-14 or whatever. Oregon covers, 28-17 and under. - Drew Mac

I feel like we, as fans, like to project success onto former opponents, even though it may not mean very much, because it inflates Auburn’s resume in some way. Folks, this ain’t that. Oregon is a great football team. Their defense is pretty remarkable, and I think they’re getting better. Oregon right now is on pace to allow less (fewer? Whatever) touchdowns to conference opponents than they did to Auburn (don’t check my math there). I like Oregon here, and big. Oregon 35, Washington 13. - Josh Dub

This one is a sneaky matchup. The Ducks might have one of the best QBs in the country but his receiving corps is very limited due to injuries which now includes his go to target in tight end Jacob Breeland. On the flip side, Washington has put together two really bad clunkers this season but still have the potential to take the Ducks down. I think this one is low scoring with Oregon’s #1 ranked defense proving the difference. UO 27 UW 13. - AU Nerd

Washington is an up and down squad that’s lost to both Bay Area schools. The Ducks have rolled right along since the opener and arguably, this might be their toughest game left on the schedule. But the Ducks offense is rolling right now and as Auburn fans, the more Oregon wins, the better Auburn looks perception wise. Oregon 38 Washington 24 - Will McLaughlin

Having not really kept up with the PAC 12 very much, I thought “Oh, this has to be the decider for the division right?” In a way, I guess it is since if Oregon wins there isn’t much chance they will slip up enough to let any of the other teams catch them. However, even if they lose they are still firmly in the driver’s seat. From what little I’ve seen I think Oregon is the best team in the conference and they’ll take another step towards a title with a win here. Oregon 26, Washington 24 - AU Chief

Oregon is by far the more consistent team. My biggest point of frustration with Oregon was my biggest point of gratitude in week 1…they run the ball too often when they should pass with a dynamic quarterback. I don’t expect the Huskies to be able to hold up against an Oregon team that should be playing more of an up-tempo, pass-centric style of offense instead of having their Saban-minded coach hold them back. Oregon 34 Washington 24 - Josh Black

Oregon continues to be really good. The win over the ducks by auburn gives me hope against the teams remaining on our schedule. Washington is really tough to predict all the sudden, so I’m going with the ducks. Oregon 35 Washington 20 - Son of Crow

Washington has been an unpredictable mess all season. They’ve blown out BYU after the Cougars upset USC and Tennessee. They’ve lost to an average Stanford team. I think they’ll be ready for this one, but I don’t think it will be enough. Oregon will control the game, run the ball more than they should, and keep the Huskies at arm’s length. Oregon 24, Washington 14 (Oregon covers, UNDER) - James Jones

Belushi’s all the Washington fans after they suffer yet another loss.

One Georgia transfer QB does well (Justin Fields) and the other one does not-as-well and plays for a not-as-good team (Jacob Eason). Oregon’s loved by all the metrics and the fact that their defense gets better and better looks nice for us. Duckies win 38-14. - Jack Condon

Arizona State @ Utah (-14) (O/U 49.5)

Just as the Pac 12 North could be decided this week, the winner of this one will be in the driver’s seat in the South. Utah is ostensibly the better team here, but damn it if I don’t REALLY want Herm to be successful in Tempe. The Utah defensive line will be the best unit on the field, so I’ll take them to win in a super low scoring game. 20-7 Utes. - Ryan Sterritt

This one is really interesting. I thought the Herm Edwards project was going to be a dumpster fire to watch. Instead it is somehow working. I don’t think they win this one on the road in Salt Lake but I think they get really close and have a shot at the end. State with the backdoor cover but Utes win 38-34 and the over. - Drew Mac

I get WHY were picking this game, bug I just don’t care. I’m too old to stay up and watch these. So, team Herm I guess. Arizona State 31, Utah 28 - Josh Dub

Don’t mind Herm, he’s just leading his Sun Devils to the top of the PAC-12 South standings is all.... Utah is absolutely the better team but being the better team hasn’t mattered a ton playing Arizona State this year. I expect this to be an ugly affair with the Utes questioning the reason for their existence midway through the 3rd quarter. But in the end, Utah’s stout DL proves too much and they are able to knock Herm off his perch. Utah 28 Arizona State 17 - AU Nerd

This is a Top 20 contest and unless you’re one of the few that have Pac-12 Network, you won’t be able to watch it. I wanna give some credit to Arizona State for going out of the box and hiring Herm Edwards. When he was hired, a vast majority of people (and I did too) thought what on earth were the Sun Devils thinking. But he’s got his team at 5-1 so far this year in Edwards 2nd year and helped put the Sun Devils back on the map. Utah has quietly gone about their business and also sit at 5-1 on the year. I think Utah wins but the Sun Devils cover. Utah 28 Arizona State 20 - Will McLaughlin

So I had to double check the spread on this one. Utah is favored by 2 TDs? Sounds like the Herm Edwards experiment is going really well. The Sun Devil’s have the same record as the Utes, so I guess it’s not all bad, but dang that’s a helluva spread. Anyway, I knowing nothing about either of these teams I guess I’ll go with Utah. Utah 32, Arizona State 21 - AU Chief

If a game is on the Pac-12 Network, does it even exist? Utah 27 Arizona State 20. - Josh Black

I haven’t watched one minute of either of these teams but I know herm Edwards hasn’t exactly installed the air raid. Utah 30, ASU 14. - Son of Crow

The Sun Devils can open it up when necessary, and they play a close game nearly every week. They’re very much a 10-6 style NFL team. Plenty of games within the margins. When Utah is healthy, they’re the best team in the PAC-12 South. They win at home, but I don’t like them to cover that number. Utah 31, Arizona State 25 (Utah wins, ASU covers, OVER) - James Jones

Wasn’t Utah supposed to be incredible this year? Best defensive line in the country? Admittedly I haven’t watched any of their snaps, but I just feel like going with Hermie here. Sun Devils spring the upset 31-27. - Jack Condon

Michigan @ Penn State (-8.5) (O/U 45.5)

At a certain point, you just have to accept the Michigan offense is trash. I’ll give Penn State the benefit of the doubt from last week, as Iowa is prone to do that to people, but otherwise their offense has been a ton of fun to watch to far. QB Sean Clifford is completing 65% of his passes for nearly 10 YPA, but he’s far from a pocket passer. He’s the team’s second leading rusher with 252 yards on the ground on 59 attempts (most on the team). Give me Penn State 28-17, and cue up the Jim Harbaugh 3rd Place memes. - Ryan Sterritt

*begins to read matchup*

*get to the “Mich’ part*

Yup, the other team.

Not Michigan covers and wins 24-10 and the under - Drew Mac

The B1G brand of football right now is gritty, low scoring, tough football games. Penn State is doing everything right (except the Pitt game. Ignore Pitt.) If Michigan wins, they’ll be right back in the conversation. If they lose, Harbaugh might have some uncomfortable conversations coming up with his superiors. Penn State 24, Michigan 22 - Josh Dub

I don’t trust either of these teams. Both have an insane amount of talent but are lead by coaches who thrive at snatching defeats from the jaws of victory. But do I really trust Shea Patterson to go on the road & get a big W? I do not.... Nittany Lions get it done. PSU 24 MICH 14 - AU Nerd

These two have wins over Iowa the last two weeks, and I picked Iowa both times. Never again Iowa... Anyways, a Whiteout at night and no faith in Michigan, I have to go Nittany Lions here. Penn State 24, Michigan 13 - Will McLaughlin

Penn State 28, Michigan 21 - AU Chief

Good grief Michigan has a horrendous offense. I’m honestly surprised the spread isn’t a tad bit wider since the game is in Happy Valley. I don’t view what happened at Iowa last week to be indicative of much for Penn State, as playing poorly in Iowa is a thing that happens to just about everybody. Penn State 27 Michigan 10 - Josh Black

Jack is trolling us. I’d rather talk about the NBA. Penn state 22, MICH 12. - Son of Crow

Bad offensive lines don’t travel. I could potentially have a bit of a vested interest here. Penn State struggles on offense at times, and they tend to make mistakes that kill drives. However, I don’t think Michigan can do anything to punish them. Defensive touchdown picks up the front door cover, but it stays under by the hook. Penn State 28, Michigan 17 (Penn State covers, UNDER) - James Jones

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Why are we picking this game? Because I like watching Crow and Chief suffer when they’re forced to acknowledge B1G football. Michigan is just not good, and boring to watch. Penn State is slightly less boring. Lions 34-20. - Jack Condon

Tennessee @ Alabama (-35) (O/U 61.5)

We’re seriously picking this one? Ugh, fine. Tua is gonna blast these guys and pad his Heisman numbers before he has to go up against Burrow in a few weeks. 52-20 Tide. - Ryan Sterritt

Last week Tenneseee got their first SEC win of the year.

They won’t get one this week...

The team Tennessee is playing wins and covers.

48-10 - Drew Mac

Don’t let an SEC win fool you, Tennessee is still a massive dumpster fire. Alabama gets to cakewalk through their biggest rival once again. Alabama 51, Tennessee 17 - Josh Dub

Lol. Alabama 52 Tennessee 17 - AU Nerd

Our National Nightmare is over!!!! Alabama finally got a night game!!! (They got one next week too). Guess they’ll have to find something else to gripe about now. Alabama 55, Tennessee 14 - Will McLaughlin

Remember that time Tennessee almost beat Alabama? That was 10 freaking years ago. Oof. Alabama 56, Tennessee 10 - AU Chief

Alabama may hit the over here by themselves. The only good thing to come out of this game is the complaint out of Tide fans that the game is kicking off…too late. You just hate to see it. Alabama 59 Tennessee 13 - Josh Black

Alabama is going to destroy Tennessee, as is the ritual. Let the record show I have been respectful to the tide. Alabama 45 Tenn 4 - Son of Crow

Vegas is daring you to take Tennessee in this one. If this line was under 30, everybody would bet Alabama. I still think they probably cover. I’m not sure that UT can do anything against Alabama’s secondary. Alabama 55, Tennessee 10 (Alabama covers, OVER) - James Jones

I refuse to find a GIF to pimp a pick on an Alabama win. Tide names the score. With kickoff at 8 pm CST, they’ll guarantee that the students will be there at night to see those idiot lights. Bama 59-21. - Jack Condon

Florida (-5.5) @ South Carolina (O/U 49.5)

Yeah, I do NOT trust Sakerlina to do something good two weeks in a row, especially now that Grantham will have a week to prepare for this third string Gamecock quarterback. I’ll take Florida 30-14. - Ryan Sterritt

Is it just me or were you more impressed with Florida after the LSU game than in the Auburn win? I was. I was also impressed that South Carolina beat Georgia with their 3rd string QB. What’s that? Oh, you didn’t hear that the Gamecocks beat the 3rd ranked Georgia Bulldogs between the hedges with their 3rd string QB? That’s crazy... because that absolutely happened... Carolina beating Georgia that is. But they won’t beat Florida. Florida and the under. 31-10 - Drew Mac

This line seems like an overreaction to Florida losing to the best team in the country and South Carolina beating Georgia. Florida will bounce back in a big way here. Florida 35, South Carolina 14 - Josh Dub

Oh man... This one I am VERY interested to see what happens. Ryan Hillinski is reportedly going to play while Florida’s top 2 pass rushers are not. Gamecocks got a ton of momentum while UF is looking to rebound from a strong but ultimately losing showing last weekend. I don’t think either of these teams have great offenses so it comes down to defense. If UF was fully healthy, I would give them the edge. But this is on the road in Columbia against a team that believes again.... But it’s Will Muschamp. This is the exact type of game you would confidently predict him to pull out only for his squad to pull a stinker. I trust Trask at this point more than a banged up Hillinski. Unless he throws 3 picks, including a pick 6 to end the half then I think Gators get out alive though maybe not as convincingly as AU fans would like. UF 28 SCAR 20 - AU Nerd

This game is VERY interesting now. After the Roosters shocked the world and beat Georgia in Athens (thank you very much), we’ll see who plays at QB after Ryan Hilinski left last week’s game. Yeah that’s right, South Carolina beat Georgia in Athens, with a 3rd string QB. The Gators have had back to back tough games against Auburn and LSU so we’ll see how up they get for this one. They have a bye next week before their clash with Georgia in 2 weeks. I want to pick South Carolina here badly but I learned the hard way the last time I picked South Carolina so I think Florida wins a close game. Florida 23 South Carolina 17 - Will McLaughlin

Boom really coach those boys up last weekend. What an amazing thing to see. I really don’t see it happening two weeks in a row. Although if it did it would make things pretty interesting in the East. Florida 24, South Carolina 17 - AU Chief

I’m interested to see how well the Gators can hold up with this being the tail end of a brutal 3-game stretch. Going back out on the road a week after being in Baton Rouge is going to affect this bunch, and South Carolina’s defensive front 7 is no joke. The problem is that South Carolina’s offense is all but nonexistent without Ryan Hilinski. He’s going to play Saturday according to Muschamp, but I would be shocked to see him healthy enough to lead this team to victory 2 weeks in a row. Florida 24 South Carolina 13 - Josh Black

South Carolina can’t string two competent games together. I don’t care that it’s a home game. They have coach boom, who is a buffoon. Florida 30, Scar 13. - Son of Crow

This is all in how each team reacts to their games last week. I think Florida takes some positives in what they were able to do on offense, and South Carolina won’t be able to count on a team refusing to throw over the middle or down the field. I think Florida puts it on the Gamecocks. Florida 37, South Carolina 16 (Florida covers, OVER) - James Jones

I’m gonna venture that the Gamecocks don’t score more than about 13 points in this one, and there’s no way they get two stupid games in a row to score two huge upset wins. Georgia just Georgia’d, as they’ve been known to do. Florida is going to win a really boring game and all the people that think USC has a chance to pull this one off are going to be sorely let down early on. (Please prove me wrong, Carolina). Gators 31-10. - Jack Condon

from College and Magnolia - All Posts https://www.collegeandmagnolia.com/2019/10/18/20921026/staff-picks-college-football-week-8

[averyxadeline]

I once saw a shirt that said “If you’re reading this, raise girls and boys the same way”. I googled that sentence today and all of the above were the only results I found.

If you’re reading this wear black or wear nothing. If you’re reading this I fucked your girl for some honeybuns. If you’re reading this you look like a muhfuckin uuuuuuuh. If you’re reading this give me head. If youre reading this thick thighs r life. If you’re reading this fuck you. 

if youre reading this wear black or wear nothing if youre reading this I fucked your girl for some honeybuns if you’re reading this you look like a muhfuckin uuuuuuuh if you’re reading this give me head if youre reading this thick thighs r life if youre reading this fuck you 

ifyourereadingthiswearblackorwearnothingIfyourereadingthisIfuckedyourgirlforsomehoneybunsIfyourereadingthisyoulooklikeamuhfuckinuuuuuuuhIfyourereadingthisgivemeheadIfyourereadingthisthickthighsrlifeIfyourereadingthisfuckyou

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IFYOUREREADINGTHISWEARBLACKORWEARNOTHING

The girl is an idealistic, one that thrives in the atmosphere of the insulated and secure. Black is her soul but she has embraced it; dark lipstick, brazen hair, nose rings and brave words, sisters chant the war cry of a new era of gender triumph. But is there really equality on an island only populated by girls? The island is buried in a thick fog of ignorance of the mainland. Our cries are loud unto ourselves but are we really heard? If we do a rain dance and the storm does not hit, do we really suffer? Perhaps the world I’ve lived in thus far has been a utopia because I’ve surrounded myself with boys and girls alike who’ve shared my world views and my voice against a very hypothetical form of bigotry. When I am only hearing these loud cries, it is easy to assume everyone is shouting in unison, but in the dead of silence, the nefarious whispers begin to creep down your spin and flood into your veins like an old heart attack. Maybe I’ve overestimated boys I thought were my friends, boys who I assumed saw me as their equal, boys that I thought respected me. Because no friend tells another that she is any less because of her gender, because of her looks, because the course of study she has embarked on is all “floozy” and “feminized”. “What’s the point of studying Literature and the arts? You can’t fix anything!” I study Literature precisely because I am self-aware that I live in a world that is ignorant to the nuanced sphere of human emotions, I and many others am attempting to fix what you do not see. Yes, engineering, sciences, mathematics and computing have their value in fixing society, but the arts do not fix, they reconcile, they heal and they protect, specifically from the brutality of a mechanical world where everything has become entirely utilitarian (cue locomotive noise and let this aural discordance upset musical souls!). The thing is, yes, we won’t earn much and maybe we won’t even be employed easily, but that is not our agenda, we don’t have an agenda, it’s not about the money but a wholesome livid life. Yes, let’s laugh about how the FASS student cannot fix a sink,  or call her a “scrub” for not being able to understand mathematics well. But darling, I’d like to see you patch up those little holes of emptiness in your chest with a hammer and nails.

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There is a humming in my ears and red strings bind my hands to his, but neither of us tied them. Ownership is a funny concept; I own this shirt because I bought it, I own this dog because I adopted her, I own this person because I love him/her. Because I love a boy, and because he loves me, the stars have aligned and we implicitly owe certain things to each other! The glittery pigments on my eyes are there akin to worship of him, the glorious tears that fall do so in his name, the slickness between my thighs are nothing but an ode to him. My body nothing but enslaved to him my idol? When he kisses my cheek, should it feel like a branding mark or love? Or both? Because I know in his eyes, it is love, but he has become the unknowing owner of this empty house and it is the world that deconstructs love with the politics of ownership that continues to build up walls. “How does your man let you out of the house wearing that? What does he think of that top? Did you dress of for him?” My body is no longer my own not because he demanded it, but because by the World’s gaze, love has become the defining mechanism of consent. That’s why marital rape isn’t “a real thing”, that why girls/boys who are raped by their significant other are assumed to have wanted it because they have before. So when I splurge my money on a 100 different lipsticks, it is so he might notice each and every colour. When I choose a pair of shoes, it’s not about convenience but whether they will risk making me taller than him. And when I wax it’s fully because he must believe that I am a hairless cat with the innocence unknown to all forms of natural female sexuality! Razors and too many variations of smudged red lipsticks have become the aesthetic of feminine ownership and I know that he does not expect me to shave for him or dress up for him, but what does is that everyone else does. “Your girl” has had her honeybuns stolen in the name of love and all its irony!

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I look in the mirror, the depth of self-reflection spits back at me in horror. This face has become unknown territory; the nose ring I thought would express an edgy part of myself has deemed me a “bad girl”, the makeup caked on my face as an empowering attempt of feeling myself has labelled me as insecure, my natural chest and cleavage should not be exposed, and yet I am also not ‘womanly’ without it. The male gaze tastes like metal; the angry sort of tang you get from licking a rusty spoon, it spoils the flavor of anything you eat. I am the most stereotypical girl; I am everything you’d expect. I love clothes, makeup and arts, but most importantly I loved that I was comfortable loving these things. But when a boy insists that, “all girls only dress up for boys” and my own mother tells me that I shouldn’t wear certain things because I’ll, “scare boys off and look ugly to them“, I start tasting metal. The new metallic highlighter that I bought to compliment my skin tone disgusts me with its new ironized significance, I’m subtly afraid of wearing culottes in front of a guy who likes girls who wear them because I don’t want him to assume that I’m doing so for him and when I feel more self-conscious than confident when wearing red lipstick because I know someone is going to sexualize my libertarian choices and assume that I’m “trying hard”. Don’t get me wrong, boys are not the singular villain in this treachery, girls too ingest this patriarchal logic; they swallow it and spit it out at each other in the brazen tussle of femininity until it consumes everyone. Wave upon wave, femininity has indeed become a competition of who adheres most the hegemonic master text of what a girl must be. I look in the mirror and light pink is so drab against my lips but maybe boys will think I’m innocent! I look in the mirror and see a neon sign that screams, “YES” where my cleavage used to be. I look in the mirror and I realize that my eyes don’t work anymore, I am looking through someone else’s. I look in the mirror and I do not recognize myself.

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Let me tell you a story about a young 14-year-old girl who did not understand love and suffered for it. A girl who just wanted to be loved by a boy at the wrong time and place and suffered because no one taught her better. A girl who liked a boy who convinced her that sending nudes was the only way he’d like her back. A girl who figured that this must be the natural path that romance takes because not one, but two boys demanded this from her. A girl who recognised harassment as a romantic pursuit because that’s what happens in movies. A girl who felt ashamed of her own body and responsible for a violation she had no control over. A girl who was afraid of talking to boys until she was 17 because at the back of her head, she assumed that this was the main agenda of all boys who befriended her. A girl who was wrong because someone set the wrong precedent. A girl who was given a second chance at love and realized that not all boys are sexual animals, but they still exist and sometimes we fall prey. I am an example, but I am not the whole story. Girls are getting touched and raped before they’re old enough to make sense of their own bodies, and it’s not just about rape but sexual harassment that has become normalized within a pop culture that begs one to, “send nudes” and makes memes out of it instead of addressing its travesty. America is seeing an epidemic of rape culture across college campuses and they’re still asking why. The infamous Dehli rape of Jyoti Singh was successful in raising awareness against rape culture but only because she was elevated as the “Nirbhaya”, the pure and fearless, only because her body was worthy in purity. But what about every other body? What every body from young rape victims to sex workers who face violence in the industry? The thing is, to not be seen as a sexual object, a girl has to be pure. But when she’s too pure, she’s a prude. The spaces that liberate female sexuality are growing smaller and smaller alongside the proliferation of this culture and these mindsets. A girl, like me, cannot survive a world like this.

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Dear boy who once tried to come off as the ‘nice guy’ by telling me you dance with fat girls in the club out of pity, did you think you owed her anything? Did you assume that her body that you deemed inferior was meant to be denigrated? Did you think that you did her a favour with your attention? Did you think she was in a club to validate her body? When the lights go down and the music is turned up, I bet you inched across that dance floor looking for someone to impress and you assumed that the fat girls would give you the time of the day because they have no better option? Check yourself. The girl is abundant, she is a blossom through which life flows, her body is a vessel to be celebrated for every curve and inch that is not yours to explore. It is not your place to deconstruct her colors and shapes. She is not yours to dismantle. The shape of her body does not define her self-worth, confidence and ability until it ‘becomes’ so in your eyes! The Kardashians will go on about thick thighs and body positivity, until anyone has thicker thighs than them. Rappers will sing of a woman’s curves unless they are on her waist and not her chest or butt. And boys will say that they’re accepting or any body shape until she threatens their ideal of beauty. Don’t get me wrong, yes some boys are perfectly accepting of a curvier woman, but that’s because their beauty ideals aren’t as narrow. But the real problem is not what men’s ideal women look like, but the fact that men still think it��s their place to validate a woman’s body or deconstruct it. Beauty can no longer be in the eyes of the beholder when that beholder is not worthy. When the lights go down and the music is turned up, let it be a celebration of every body on that dance floor in the perfect amalgamation of size, colour and gender.

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I have described at least 5 instances of sexism, some more personal than others but all of equal exigency. But the final instance is the most potent and deadly. It is the instance that has yet to come. It is the rebirth of all the above even after being educated and made aware of the very real genderized travesties that still exist today. The last instance is the ignorance of now. It is the blind eye that scoffs at this as another extremist liberal irrationality and continues to deny the silence the voice that they are screaming for. It is when we assume that in our own peaceful and idyllic contexts, we are untouchable and share no part in this fight. Don’t get me wrong, tis a battle but not one of a gender binary. It is not about boys against girls and vice versa, but collective humanity against a toxic mindset and culture. We can no longer be impartial; you have read this, you are reading this, now you know. Now you have no excuse. So I suppose that the real slogan of the t-shirt should be, “IF YOU’RE READING THIS AND YOU STILL DON’T CARE,

FUCK YOU.“

If You’re Reading This I once saw a shirt that said "If you're reading this, raise girls and boys the same way".