#i feel like at that age?? at that place in their character development??? romance aside that would be legit be

[ethanhuntfemmefatale]

sometimes i think about an AA universe where Edgeworth didn't have to be shuffled off every 5 seconds so he could maintain credibility as a rival....where Phoenix didn't have to win every case...yes AA is a game yes i understand why it did that for the narrative. but when I look at those lonely scared 24 year olds from AA1 i can't help but think that their version of a happy ending would be to be able to get used to each other. to face each other over stupid cases and small things. Sometimes one winning, sometimes the other, until it hardly matters anymore, all that matters is finding the truth together. I want them to take each other for granted!!! i want them to look at the other across the courtroom and say "time to face this bitch for the hundredth time i guess!!" these poor bastards have never had anything approaching emotional stability before let them have each other damn it

[stromuprisahat]

Hey,

Could you do a meta on the similarities between Labyrinth (1986) and the Shadow and Bone Trilogy? I read through that one scene (Alina and Darkling Interactions on your blog) between Alina and the Darkling after her and Mal get captured and Alina has to bargain for his life and they speak about fairness and the way the public views them both (Chapter 21 of the first book, I believe). I vaguely remembered this type of conversation from another piece of media, and saw in your tags that you attributed it to Labyrinth. Honestly wondering how much the movie influenced the trilogy, as I feel like Alina was supposed to be a Sarah Williams type of character but got her character development strangled by the narrative. Honestly wondering if this makes Mal Toby (romance aside), because Alina fought hard for this man and chose him over the ‘glamorous’ life she could have lived with the guy with powers (Darkling/Jareth). Genya might be Hoggle (works for the bad guy before becoming loyal to the protagonist). Maybe this is all a stretch?

Sorry if this is weirdly formatted. Thank you so much!

No anon! Why?!

I've watched Labyrinth once, and didn't enjoy it, so I was considering passing this on someone else, but since you've delved into details, I just HAD TO rewatch it, because I can't stand not knowing what's going on! So, I'll type as a watch and this will get veeeeeery long.

First of all- I hate those ugly-ass puppets and scenes. I find them creepy, and not in the good way. I totally don't get the ?US? obsession with them, and yes- I've hated Sesame Street, when it got imported here, and I've always hated Czech attempts at copying such production (Táhni, Františku z Fanfárie a Jůheláci taky, když už jsme u toho.).

I feel like Labyrinth is one of those movies, where fanon became widely-accepted canon, because I just can't see plenty of stuff allegedly present.

Alina and Sarah certainly have two things in common- they live in their own version of the world, and they're unbearably immature spoiled brats, even though you'd expect more from them their age considered. Yet somehow, Sarah's so unreasonably whiny, she almost makes me love Alina. Perhaps if we'd age her up a little and gave her potentially world-saving powers, she could've taken the S02show!psycho's place. They seem more alike than the book girl.

I mean... I don't like children, and I wouldn't be such a bitch to a ?one? year old...

The baby was a spoiled child and wanted everything for himself…

The baby can barely stand and certainly doesn't seem able to talk. It doesn't have mental capacity to imagine "everything", sure as hell not want it.

…and the young girl was practically a slave.

Sorry, but a scene earlier I saw her room. I watch her father respect her privacy. Her evil step mother being nothing but polite and non-threatening. I come from a loving family, and I've been keeping eye on my eight-years-younger brother since he was born. To an extent- yes, but they just want her to make sure he doesn't burn down the house on accident or something. He's even fed for fuck's sake! That's hardly slavery. And no, she doesn't get a pass as a moody teenager. This is a spoiled brat behaviour.

Sarah's straight up lying to make herself the victim. That's very Alina. Or more precisely- it's very Alina's new mommy Ol' Bags, but then again it's been said before Alina would grow into Baghra in time.

Goblin King, Goblin King, wherever you may be… …take this child of mine far away from me!

We have a better Czech ballad about children-stealing demon punishing short-tempered mother:

"Poj�� si proň, ty Polednice, pojď, vem si ho, zlostníka!“ – A hle, tu kdos u světnice dvéře zlehka odmyká.

Kytice- Polednice (Karel Jaromír Erben)

“Come and get him, noon witch, come take him! I can bear no more!” And look, someone’s outside – a thumb is stealthily working the lock at the door.

A Bouquet: of Czech Folktales (transl. by Marcela Malek Sulak)

I went through it quickly, and the translation doesn't look bad, so it's available on libgen if you're interested.

Alina had her immortality and complementary powers, but what does Jareth see in Sarah is beyond me.

Sarah says she wants her brother back, but honestly- it sounds more like she doesn't want to get in trouble because of him. I don't know if it's only the acting, or if it's intentionally portrayed so, but she doesn't look like someone, who just realized they care about someone else.

It might be the whiny undertone in her voice. Irritating, if anything.

Yeah, a pissing puppet is exactly what I needed to see...

Genya is certainly prettier than Hoggle.

And doesn't piss in public.

The walls of the Labyrinth look like Terezín before reconstruction.

Sarah gets an advice and doesn't bother to delve into it. Another tiny similarity with Alina. Except Alina had her half-a-thought of doubt, and her advisor is a malevolent cunt with her own interests. The freaky worm seemed genuine in its desire to help.

Obligatory song and dancing. *shoot me, please*

The only way out of here is to try one of these doors. One of them leads to the castle at the centre of the labyrinth. And the other one leads to… …certain death.

Please, pick the death one...

"Helping hands"... every creep's wet dream...

Yeah, the evil hot accent isn't enough to make me like this villain. Fucking 80s...

Those depressive warning faces are probably the only thing I might even ~like~.

Okay, NOW he was hot.

Jareth and Sarah have the fairness conversation, when he shortens her time to punish her for her defiance. Aleksander and Alina's take place, when he wants her to face consequences of her own actions and accept responsibility. He's the wronged one there, because she didn't consider anyone or anything, when she chose to trust Baghra and ran off.

Sarah gets Hoggle to follow her by stealing his stuff. She gets the doorknockers to let her in by tricking the mumbling one into taking the unpleasant ring back into his mouth and doesn't even try to pull it out again, or knock without it attached. She's rather cruel in her thoughtlessness, isn't she?

Aleksander never shames Genya for wanting to be Alina's friend. He never blackmails her to help him. She's the one, who provokes his rightful wrath for no good reason.

I think Jareth might be what LB (sometimes) wants us to see in Aleksander. Except it's hardly what she shows by his actions, only what her characters describe.

Another difference- Aleksander doesn't only want Alina, he needs her for his plan to save his people. Jareth merely has the worst possible taste in women.

Okay, the dog making hoof-clopping noises also isn't the worst idea.

I'm kinda sorry Aleksander never tried to poison/drug Alina. That might be fun. Even the collaring couldn't really make her compliant, so he's technically nicer even in this aspect. I can see antis claiming he tried to woo her by showing her the splendor of Little Palace and giving her the centre role in Winter Fete, but the former wasn't different from Grisha in officer training, the later was the Crown's doing. He's even said to despise such events.

Sarah is a modern teenager. Alina's considered adult in her world. I got to the ball scene, where it's painfully obvious Sarah is a child in adult's clothes and make-up. I'm a bit surprised she was played by an actual teenager.

Alina starts off willing to do anything for Malyen, and ends up becoming just what he wants. Sarah starts off selfishly bullying a baby, only to turn 180° as soon as he's stolen, so excuse I'm not persuaded she means it. She doesn't manage it in next hour and half.

~ I have to face him alone. - But why? ~ Because that's the way it's done.

The logic is very Alina, but she never insists on facing the Darkling alone, except that one time she attempts murder/suicide.

Oh no, Aleksander would never wear something this teAsticleless

And no, I truly don't mean the colour.

I ask for so little. Just let me rule you… …and you can have everything that you want. Just fear me, love me, do as I say… …and I will be your slave.

Again, that's no Aleksander at all. He didn't want to rule Alina, he wanted to rule alongside her. He only tried to force her once she endangered his plans for his country and people.

He never promised her everything she's want, because the only thing she seems to want is to be left alone to live in obscurity with no expectations placed on her.

He doesn't want her to fear him and she never does. He doesn't even crave people's fear. He uses it as a tool, when there's no better option.

He doesn't mind Alina defying him, finds it attractive actually, as long as it doesn't ruin- once again- his plans for Ravka and Grisha protection.

The slave line actually reminds me of much better representation of book!Aleksander- I Wanna Be Your Slave by Måneskin.

I was pretty sure I've seen Cinema Therapy episode on Labyrinth I deeply agreed with, but can't find it, so... :(

[abigailnussbaum]

Some Grumbling Re: My Adventures With Superman S2

There's more items in this list, but I think you can probably sum up my frustrations with this season when you observe that its best episode so far has been the one that Clark wasn't even in. There's a version of this show where, per the title, Clark/Superman is a secondary character and the actual heroes are Lois and Jimmy. But that's not what MAWS has ever tried to be. Clark has always been a main character, and yet he's also the character that the show seems to have the most trouble using well.

"Krypton was an expansionist empire and its remnants are targeting Earth and expecting Clark to act as their conquering vanguard" is not a terrible idea, but it's not the Superman story. It's the Invincible story, and Invincible is probably doing it better because it's not tied to a PG-13 rating, is able to go a bit deeper into what imperialism actually means and looks like, and doesn't have MAWS's bizarre tonal whiplash between scenes of genocide, quirky workplace shenanigans, and new adult romance.

This is something I've observed in a lot of recent Superman stories, but there's a tendency to respond to the problem of "how do you write a story about a character who is omnipotent" by making Superman a lot less powerful. By which I mean physically - notice how often Clark gets smacked around on this show, even by creatures or machines that Superman should be able to easily swat aside; or how rarely he's able to control a confrontation in a way that prevents it from turning into a city-destroying brawl - but also mentally. This is a Superman who is seemingly always on the back foot, reacting to everything from supervillains from outer space, to government agencies who are (not unreasonably) suspicious of his motivations, to most eligible bachelor competitions. And, to be fair, that's a lot more justifiable in a show where Clark is 22 and has only been doing the hero thing for a few months than in something like Superman & Lois, where he was forty and had been Superman for decades. But watching MAWS, I never get a sense that Clark is thinking about these issues and trying to develop as a superhero. There's no indication, for example, that he is trying to come up with strategies to manage government and public mistrust, or testing his powers to see how he can use them safely without constantly being a nuclear weapon at a knife fight. Instead, he's forever flustered and reactive, and I'm past the point of finding this cute or charming. I would like a hero who actually behaves like a hero, or who is at least trying to get to that place.

(On that note, holy crap did I want Clark to read Sam Lane the riot act. Among the things I am past finding cute or charming is men being all "I'mma get a shotgun" in response to their daughters having a boyfriend. Sam being a deadbeat dad who abandoned Lois years ago makes that attitude even less tolerable. That Clark put up with his delusional posturing and self-aggrandizing protectiveness crosses the line from young and insecure and goes all the way to doormat, which is not something I enjoy in a main character even when they're not Superman.)

I am not OK with Kara being a multiple genocidaire, however unwittingly and unwillingly. Again, it feels like a reflection of this show's tonal inconsistency, and the age group it's aiming at, that it expects me not to think too hard about the fact that this character whom it is setting up as a quirky fish out of water and Jimmy's potential love interest has slaughtered billions of people, and that we will probably be expected to handwave that at the end of the season. Call me a stick in the mud, but I'm just not there for it.

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC Review: Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa

4.25/5. Releases 1/16/2024.

Vibes: Pride and Prejudice but make it queer (obviously), light humor around big issues, family warmth, that ol' Darcy Darcy-ness in a younger package

Oliver Bennet has a problem: aside from his sister Jane, his family doesn't know that he's not a girl. Trapped by societal norms and the persona he's forced to wear, he sneaks out as his true self and runs into the stiff, cool Darcy (who was actually a major dick to Oliver when he was dressed as a girl). The thing is--when Darcy is actually able to be himself, he's actually quite kind. Also? Very appealing. But no matter how much they connect, a future for Darcy and Oliver, as their true selves, seems impossible. Unless....

I don't usually read YA, but I was kind of fascinated by the concept of this series of remixed, diverse takes on old classics. And a retelling of P&P starring a trans boy was too good to resist. Also, this is my favorite cover I've seen in a LONG while.

Luckily, it lived up to my expectations beyond the cover. It's sweet and unique, while honoring the original story. And right now, I think that seeing a trans kid living out the happily ever after of one of the most enduring love stories of all time is something we need to see.

Quick Takes:

--To be clear, this is a true YA romance. The characters that need to be aged down are. I think it was totally necessary to appeal to the target audience, and it works. I mean, being a youth~ in 1812 isn't exactly like being a youth~ in today's world anyway. It's just like P&P in that it's chaste, but unlike P&P in that there is kissing. (Yay!)

--Like I said, the book stays true to the original story, but obviously it's not married to it. Oliver has a lot in common with Elizabeth, but he's not Elizabeth, and his relationship with Darcy is not Elizabeth's relationship with Darcy. It's more based on friendship and understanding--in a lot of ways, it's a friends to lovers story. Which I think adds a sense of queer found family to the romance, and I think that's necessary here.

--It would be very easy for Oliver's mindset to be quite dark. Understandably so, as most of his family is ignorantly (and it's true ignorance, they don't know) deadnaming him on the regular. He's forced to wear dysphoria-inducing clothing, to act as a girl. But I think Novoa understood that there did need to be a somewhat lighter touch here. The point is not to paint a tale of like... a historically accurate trans experience. It's to tell a love story.

And in that sense, I found that the way Novoa approached the Bennets reacting to Oliver's transness really refreshing and lovely. Like, the point here is not to make you feel down about Oliver's future, but to celebrate who he is (and maybe feel seen--as a cis woman, I can't speak to how effective that is).

I suspect that this lighter touch won't work for everyone; and that's valid. If I'm being honest, I don't super care about whether or not it works for cis people.

--There's a molly house scene! Darcy is in a molly house! I loved this. I found something about placing a romantic hero we often so associate with heterosexuality and the ideal for women in a super queer space... And making it this place where he feels comfortable and true... Really compelling. It was one of my favorite scenes in the book.

Also, it allowed for some real romantic connection between Oliver and Darcy. Their relationship is super sweet, and I found the twist on how that relationship would have developed if we did have an Oliver and a Darcy rather than an Elizabeth and a Darcy super smart. It would've been super easy for Novoa to just duplicate the original dynamic and go "but here's a boy". That would've done a disservice to both this work and the original, in my opinion. I appreciate him doing the work to make something super distinct that is AWARE of the differences here, as I do think some queer retellings of het stories occasionally do just execute a quick genderflip and call it a day.

And I get why they do. But at the end of the day, it does remind me of the sensibility that queer love stories need to be palatable and safe for straight audiences, to appeal them and to make them seem "just like them". However, a queer romance isn't 1 to 1 with a straight romance. There often are different dynamics at play. I so liked that we got that here.

TW: transphobia (from characters, not the narrative), general queerphobia, deadnaming, dysphoria

I was super happy with this book, and I think it will definitely appeal to a ton of teens out there. Definitely going to recommend this to my teen sibling. However, it's well-written and mature enough to hold a crossover appeal towards adults. A smart and sweet take on a classic book.

Thanks to Netgalley and Feiwel & Friends for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[acacia-may]

Hearts In Tune (Holiday Kelbrey (OMORI) Fic)

Description: Big and exciting changes in the lives of her friends and the fast-approaching holidays force Aubrey to confront her own dreams for the future and her feelings for a certain someone that she had long tried to run away from. After years of insisting she was happy being alone, she never expected it would be Sunny who ultimately called her bluff.

When she decides to take his advice and be more open about her feelings for Kel, however, she ends up with more misunderstandings and more problems than she would have anticipated…

Relationships: KELBREY (Romantic Kel x Aubrey) CENTRIC. Sunny and Aubrey Platonic Friendship is also included as well as Sunny, Aubrey, Hero & Kel Friendship. Mentioned Relationships: Sunny is engaged to be married in this fic, but it doesn't specify to whom, and Hero finding love again & having a girlfriend is also mentioned but it doesn't specify who he's in a relationship with. Past Romantic Hero x Mari is referenced.

Characters: Aubrey (POV Character), Kel, and Sunny. (Hero is mentioned quite a bit but doesn't have any dialogue, and Basil decorates as proof of life).

Genre: Romance, Slice of Life, Friends to Lovers, Some Hurt/Comfort, Developing Relationship, Misunderstandings, A little Attempt at Humor, Holiday Fluff, and Warm & Fuzzies

Word Count: 7,000

Rating: T for a brief sequence of legal drinking. This story takes place several years after the Good Ending of OMORI so the characters are all aged up. There are no other warnings and aside from a brief moment of Aubrey's insecurities, only lighthearted fluff & fuzzy feelings here.

Warnings: Major Spoilers for OMORI! A brief sequence of legal drinking. Some misunderstandings. Kissing.

Link to original post on AO3.

A/N: The title of this fic is a reference to the song "Aubrey" by Bread which is also referenced in this fic. 💖

Full text of the story is below the cut. Thank you for reading!

With a heavy sigh, Aubrey stared down at the earrings Kel had just given to her. If she hadn’t had too much spiked eggnog at their annual holiday party, she would probably have had a better appreciation for them. She had never seen earrings in the shape of baseball bats before, and Kel had been so excited to give them to her. But… Aubrey sighed. Looking at them now made her chest grow tight and a lump form in the back of her throat. Even after all these years, was that really how Kel saw her? Was she always just going to be “bat girl”?

Aubrey supposed that there were certain things in life that a person could never really come back from and, if she had to guess, picking a fight with somebody in church with a nail bat was one of them. It was a wonder that she and Kel were even still friends after that, but it had been over a decade since then. She had changed. Her feelings towards Kel had also changed, but maybe she had been wrong to think that his feelings towards her had changed too. They still bickered and teased each other, but at the end of the day, she knew they cared about each other—at least as friends. It seemed wrong to hope for anything more than that, but that didn’t stop Aubrey from hoping, as much as she didn’t want to admit it… And that made it her fault—her fault she was irrationally upset over a pair of earrings, tipsy from too many glasses of spiked eggnog, and sitting alone in the cold on the deck watching the blinking icicle lights wondering if she’d be alone like this forever.

The idea of being alone had never used to bother her—or least she had pretended it didn’t, but then Sunny had gotten engaged, and, surprising as it was, it had gotten her wondering: would that ever happen for her and did she even want it to? She knew she wasn’t the only one. As happy as everyone was for Sunny, these big life events of friends had a way of making a person take a step back and wonder “what am I doing with my life?”

If Aubrey had to guess, Hero was likely the most affected. With the exception of possibly Sunny who was much more quiet about such things, Hero had the most domestic dreams of anyone in their group…or at least he had had them before Mari had passed away. In a rare moment of vulnerability, Hero had once told Aubrey that all of his dreams of settling down and having a family had died with Mari and he couldn’t even imagine that life for himself anymore, but Aubrey wasn’t sure that was entirely true—and not just because he had been sleep deprived and a little inebriated at the time he had told her.

Even so, he didn’t talk about it, and she certainly never brought it up, but it had been “the year of weddings” for Hero as many of his friends from college had all started settling down and it was clear it had taken its toll on him. Aubrey was sure that Hero had to be wondering “what am I doing with my life?” and “will this ever happen for me and do I even want it to?” more so than even she was. Perhaps he was completely desensitized to it by the time Sunny had announced his own engagement, but Aubrey doubted it. Hero had done what he always did—congratulate Sunny with a hug, pop a big bottle of champagne, enthusiastically tell him how happy, excited, and proud he was of him, and celebrate with him for hours. Then, he picked up multiple extra, extremely long shifts at the hospital in the following days. No one had seen him in two weeks—not even Kel.

Aubrey could tell Kel was a little worried about his brother, but he had been so busy himself that Aubrey wondered if he was just letting it go by necessity. Aubrey couldn’t be sure, but she wondered if Kel was also going through some sort of existential crisis or introspective evaluation of his life and his dreams for the future thanks to Sunny’s big news. Up until this point, she had never known if Kel even wanted to settle down one day. It was something they just never talked about, but ever since Sunny had gotten engaged, Kel had started saying things like “when I get married, I want to have a huge wedding with tons of people” or “when I get married, I want to have a buffet so people can just eat whenever they want” or “when I get married, I want to give everybody bubbles instead of rice because I think it’ll kinda hurt to get hit by rice.”

It was strange to hear Kel talk so nonchalantly about getting married one day. Aubrey supposed she should have expected it or at least expected that it was something he wanted, but what surprised even more was how it stung a little to imagine it, to imagine Kel settling down and spending the rest of his life with someone that wasn’t her. Aubrey sighed. But it wouldn’t be her…She was “bat girl.” She would always be “bat girl.”

Aubrey’s attempts to resign herself to this fact and pretend it didn’t bother her had all been complete and utter failures. It seemed that every time she even got close to a relationship with somebody else, she always found herself reaching for the phone to call Kel or thinking of a silly story he had told her recently or wishing he was there with her instead. Needless to say, none of these “almost-relationships” had gone anywhere, and after a certain point, Aubrey had to admit that she didn’t want them to. Kel was the person she wanted to call with happy news, the person she turned to whenever she was sad, the person she wanted to share everything with. She knew—no, she had known for a long time, that Kel was the one person she wanted to be with. Sunny’s engagement had just been the final nail in the coffin, forcing her to realize that not only did she want a relationship, but she wanted a relationship with Kel.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Aubrey bit her lip and stared down at the bat earrings.  She knew that was never going to happen. She was too cold, too harsh with him—too “bat girl.”

She sighed again, shaking her head and burying her face in her hands. “What is wrong with me?”

Aubrey hadn’t realized she had said those words aloud until she heard a voice humming beside her. She jumped—practically dropping the earrings and the cup of eggnog she was holding. Calming herself with a deep breath, she turned to find Sunny taking a seat next to her on the deck with a twitch of a smile.

“Sunny, you can’t sneak up on people like that,” she sighed. Sunny nodded apologetically. Aubrey wondered how long he had been standing there, but she decided not to ask.

“Are you okay?” Sunny asked quietly with a slight tilt of his head. Aubrey’s face flushed, but she nodded, shrugging her shoulders.

“Yeah…I just needed some fresh air for a minute.”

Sunny blinked at her, and Aubrey fidgeted. He was always so unreadable, but if she had to guess, he probably saw through her lie. He was one of her best friends after all. Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Aubrey decided to change the subject. “Congratulations again.”

Sunny’s face seemed to light up as he quietly mumbled with a bright smile, “Thank you.”

“Do the holidays feel any different now that you’re engaged?”

Sunny pursed his lips thoughtfully but shook his head. “Not really.”

“You’ve got a big year ahead of you though. Lots to look forward to with the wedding and everything. Must be nice…” Aubrey’s voice trailed, and she felt Sunny’s gentle hand on her shoulder.

“It’ll be you someday…” He paused, then quickly added. “If you want.”

Aubrey chuckled, but her face felt warm. Was she really so transparent? “I don’t know, Sunny. I’m not sure all that domestic stuff is for me.” Despite her attempts at a shaky laugh, she could tell from the look in Sunny’s face that it had not completely masked the twinge of sadness in her voice. “Can you imagine ‘nailbat girl’ settling down?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t be silly,” Aubrey snorted a shaky laugh, but she swallowed hard as she caught sight of those earrings. It seemed that Sunny had also caught sight of them—tilting his head curiously before he asked in his quiet and matter-of-fact way.

“Is this about Kel?”

With flushing cheeks, Aubrey choked, “What? No. Why would it be about—?”

She stopped abruptly, met with Sunny’s blinking eyes. There was no way he was going to believe anything she said except the truth, so she merely sighed—tightening her grip around those earrings. She swallowed hard, then quietly asked, “Does everybody know?”

“Kel doesn’t.”

Aubrey sighed. She supposed that was something at least—a small comfort given the circumstances, though she suspected that was only because Kel was oblivious or just didn’t want to see it.

“Good,” Aubrey mumbled. “I’ll try to be more subtle.”

“No.”

Aubrey’s brow furrowed, and she whipped around towards Sunny in surprise. It wasn’t like Sunny to argue or really even talk much at all. She tilted her head. “What do you mean ‘no’?”

“You should tell him.”

“Sunny,” Aubrey groaned with a somewhat affectionate sigh. “I know you mean well, but it’s never going to happen, so…” Her voice trailed off, and she ran her hand through her hair. Her head was starting to ache from the haze of alcohol reminding her exactly why she never drank. As her blurred vision came back into focus, she caught sight of the earrings again, and her insides twisted. “I’m just ‘bat girl,’ remember?”

“No,” Sunny repeated a little more forcefully though the look on his face was kind and gentle. He, somewhat awkwardly, patted her shoulder with his hand, making Aubrey chuckle breathily in spite of herself before Sunny’s mouth twitched into a slight, affectionate smile.

“You’re strong, but you’re soft too—kind. You really care about your friends, even if you don’t show it all the time…but you have shown it to me and to Hero too. You’re even soft with Basil sometimes.” He let out two heavier breaths which Aubrey knew meant he was chuckling lightly at the thought before he sighed. “But with Kel… I know you care about him, but…you don’t really show him that part of yourself as much.”

Aubrey could only blink at him. It was one of the longest speeches Sunny had ever spoken to her in one sitting, but even more than that, she knew it was all true. She loved her friends, but it had never been easy for her to be vulnerable—to be soft with them and with Kel most of all.

Sunny was right. She was more openly kind and affectionate with him or Hero or even Basil than she ever could be with Kel. Perhaps, she scared of opening up to him most of all because she knew that he was the one who could hurt her the most, because he was the one that she cared about the most. He was also the one who had left her behind.

Even all these years and all these apologies later, the weight of him leaving her alone and their friendship falling apart after Mari’s death hung heavily like a dark cloud over their relationship. She knew it wasn’t entirely Kel’s fault, and she wasn’t blameless herself. They had apologized to each other and tried to make amends for everything that had happened a very long time ago, and she didn’t hold it against him anymore. Still…she could feel herself gripping tightly onto the walls she built around her heart so she would never be hurt like that again. And even now when what she wanted more than anything else in the world was to open up to Kel and let him in, she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

“You really think I’m too cold to him…?” she asked quietly though she was sure she already knew the answer. “There’s not really anything I can do about that now, is there? I hit him with a nail bat in a church—there’s no coming back from that.”

“If Kel can forgive me and Basil, he can forgive you too.” Sunny paused with a slight smile. “But…that’s not really what I meant. I just meant…he’s probably afraid that if he asks you out, you’re going to say ‘no’… You’re one of his best friends…He wouldn’t want to risk messing that up unless he was sure you were interested.”

Aubrey scoffed with a snorted laugh. “You think Kel actually wants to date me?”

Sunny shrugged. “He thinks about you all the time.”

“You’re a mind reader now, Sunny?” Aubrey teased with the twitch of an affectionate smile, but Sunny just shrugged again and took a deep breath before he started singing, a little monotone but it got the point across.

“‘And Aubrey was her name…’”   

As Sunny started humming what Aubrey could only presume was the rest of the song, her brow furrowed. “What?”

“Kel listens to this song all the time… Hero lent him the record. It’s a love song to a girl named Aubrey...” He paused then added, “It’s sad.”

“Sad?”

Sunny nodded and started singing quietly again, “‘For a love that wouldn't bloom…For the hearts that never played in tune.’”

Something panged in Aubrey’s chest. There was something hauntingly beautiful about it. The hearts that never played in tune…was that really her and Kel?

“It’s sad,” Sunny repeated, his face falling. “Whenever Kel would listen to it, I’d feel guilty for being so happy.”

“Oh Sunny…” Aubrey wrapped her arm around his shoulder and gave him a side hug. “You don’t have to feel guilty about that. We’re all really happy for you—Kel especially. He wouldn’t want you to feel guilty for being happy. Nobody wants that.” Aubrey sighed, staring down at her hands. “And you know, Kel might just like this song. It might not mean anything. I mean locking himself in his room and listening to sad music is kind of Hero’s thing, isn’t it?”

Sunny shrugged, but Aubrey was sure that having been both of their roommates he’d have to concede that she was right. “Hero has been listening to this one song recently too… It goes ‘She’s got a way about her…’”

Aubrey’s brow furrowed. “Is it love song?”

Sunny nodded. “A really pretty one.”

“Do you think…?”—she stopped—“Do you think he’s still thinking about Mari?”

With a tilt of his head, Sunny thoughtfully pursed his lips—his brow furrowing in concentration before he finally admitted, “I don’t know.”

“You know he has that one friend of his…” Aubrey tilted her head at Sunny with a knowing smile, sure he would know exactly who she was talking about. “I know it’s probably not ever going to happen, but I always thought they’d be really good together.” Aubrey paused as Sunny shot her a pointed look. “What? You don’t think so?”

Sunny blinked at her. “No, I think so… She’s wonderful. I’ve had multiple recurring dreams about their wedding… and only some of them were in Headspace.” He paused. “I added her there, and they’re married with three kids now.”

“What?”

“It was a beautiful wedding,” Sunny continued. He either didn’t hear her or didn’t acknowledge that he did. “Captain Spaceboy cried… so did Basil… He did all the flowers. And the ghost of Mari was there…She was really happy.” He paused and turned to look her squarely in the face. “But you just changed the subject. This isn’t about Hero.”   

Aubrey huffed but affectionately rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to talk about me and Kel, Sunny. It’s not going to happen.”

“But that song…” Sunny began to protest, but Aubrey caught him off with another huff.

“I don’t care what songs Kel is listening to. It’s just a song. It doesn’t mean anything.” She tried her best to shrug it off, but even without that knowing look on Sunny’s face, she knew it didn’t sound convincing. “I mean…by that logic, Hero would have a girlfriend or want one, and as I much as I wish he did, I think that’s just about as likely as Kel wanting to date me.”

When Sunny didn’t respond, Aubrey’s eyes narrowed. Curiously, she tilted her head at him. Sunny, it seemed, had completely zoned out—staring intently at something over Aubrey’s shoulder.

“Do you hear that?” he asked. With a deep breath, Aubrey tried her best to focus. There was a low roar of chattering and the clanging of dishes coming from inside the house and some holiday music playing in the background. Before she could ask Sunny what specifically he was talking about he added, “The piano.”

Aubrey whipped around to follow Sunny’s line of vision through the window into the house. She couldn’t hold back her gasp or the breath that got caught in her throat as she stumbled in disbelief, “Hero?”

They hadn’t been expecting him. After all, he had told them a week ago that he had to work late tonight and likely wouldn’t be able to make it to the party, but there he was seated at the old piano in the living room which had been thoughtfully decorated by Basil with evergreen garlands and holly. His hands were gently gliding up and down the keys playing Christmas music for the first time in years.

While Hero had often played carols for them when they were younger, Aubrey couldn’t remember the last time she had heard him play piano at all. She had always just assumed it was one of those things he couldn’t bring himself to do without Mari. Sunny had told her that he knew Hero still played sometimes, particularly if he was asked or just to keep up a little bit of practice, but Aubrey couldn’t remember the last time she had actually seen Hero sit down at a piano and start playing on his own. More shocking than that, however, was the look on his face as he played. He kept glancing up over the top of the piano at something in the corner of the room that wasn’t visible from the window with a bright, beaming smile across his face. For the past decade, his smiles had been tight, metered, and bittersweet. They hadn’t ever reached his eyes, but now…Now he…

“He looks happy,” mumbled Sunny with an expression almost as stunned as Aubrey felt. As they glanced at each other, she knew they were thinking the same thing. Neither of them could remember the last time they had seen Hero look that happy. Something ached in Aubrey’s chest. She hadn’t realized how much she had missed his smile until she had seen it again after all these years. The look on Sunny’s face said he felt the same way.

“What do you think he’s…?” Aubrey began to ask though she wasn’t entirely sure how to word her question as she tilted her head, shifting and fidgeting trying to get a glimpse of whatever it was Hero was smiling at.

Her attention was suddenly pulled away from Hero to Kel who came bursting through the sliding door onto the deck with a bright smile on his face. Aubrey felt her face flush and a swooping sensation in the pit of her stomach as he met her eyes. Did his smile widen just a little when he did?

Despite her best attempts to convince herself she was just seeing things, her mind suddenly went blank—empty except for a wistful, lovesick ‘Oh…’ she felt deep in her bones. He had such a lovely smile, and his dark eyes were so warm and so kind…

When she heard Sunny somewhat playfully hum beside her, her blush deepened. She realized she was staring. With a sigh, her mind filled with a string of curses, mentally kicking herself. What was wrong with her today?

Swallowing hard, she looked away abruptly before Kel could see that embarrassing redness in her cheeks. Luckily it seemed he didn’t notice as he practically bounced up and down in excitement.

“Hey guys, guess what,” he exclaimed exuberantly. “Hero’s here, and he brought a girl with him!”

Sunny gasped, covering his gaping mouth with his hand as Aubrey’s eyes widened, blinking in disbelief. “No way…” she mumbled, but Kel nodded.

“No seriously. It’s…pretty unbelievable. I mean he called first and asked if it was okay and I said ‘sure’, but I guess I didn’t really get it until he walked through the door with her and…”

“Someone we know?” interrupted Sunny, seemingly startling Kel. Sunny glanced at Aubrey who offered him a pensive but knowing smile. They both had someone specific in mind, and the toothy, lopsided grin that curved across Kel’s face as he nodded in response seemed to imply that he had been thinking of the same person.

“Yes,” he answered practically beaming at them, and it was all Aubrey could do not to race for the doorway back into the house. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself—gently reminding herself that they needed to play it cool and not make a big deal out of it. Unfortunately, it seemed Kel did not get the memo on this point and sped through the sliding doors.

As Aubrey turned to do the same, she felt Sunny’s hand reach out to stop her. It clutched onto hers with a gentle squeeze, and she turned to look at him perplexed. He didn’t say anything but the look on his face—the smile tugging at his lips said more than enough. Aubrey fidgeted, knowing exactly what Sunny was thinking, knowing how her words had so immediately come back to bite her.

“This doesn’t mean anything,” she huffed, but the bright red blush on her face implied otherwise.

*-*-*

Despite her continued insistence to the contrary, the truth was it did mean something. No, she didn’t think it was a sign from the universe that she needed to actively pursue Kel or confess to him, but she did decide that she should probably take Sunny’s advice and be a little softer and a little more openly affection with him. Over the next week, she made a conscious effort to treat Kel more like she might treat Sunny or Hero or even Basil. She tried her best to be more openly supportive and didn’t tease him for the stupid things that he did. That last one was growing increasingly difficult as Kel seemed to be doing more and more outlandishly ridiculous things as the week went on to the point where Aubrey almost wondered if he was acting that way on purpose. The thought made her insides twist. Had Sunny told him about their conversation?

Aubrey swallowed hard—pushing the thought away as she tried her best to focus on what Kel was saying now.

“Gosh, I can’t believe I had my sweater on backwards the whole time,” he laughed. “I am such a scatterbrain sometimes.”

Aubrey sighed, but she bit her lip and shrugged her shoulders, trying her best to reassure him. “That happens sometimes. It’s okay.”

She could have almost sworn she watched his brow furrow just barely before he mumbled, “Uh…okay, I guess.”

After a few moments of awkward silence, Kel asked, “So uh…you looking forward to the holidays?”

Aubrey nodded. “Yeah. It’ll be the first year I don’t have to work on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. I finally have some seniority around the hospital.”

“That’s awesome,” Kel replied with a smile. “Hero has to work Christmas Eve this year, but I think he has Christmas Day off. That’ll be the first time he’s off on a holiday, I think. It makes sense that doctors and nurses have to work on all the holidays, but it kind of stinks sometimes.”

Aubrey sighed. Kel did not have to say that again. While she loved her job as a nurse and found it very meaningful and rewarding, it was a bummer to have to work holidays. Up until a week ago, however, she would have almost sworn Hero felt the exact opposite. He was often purposefully picking up shifts on major holidays if he wasn’t working already, but now that he was bringing someone home for Christmas, Aubrey was sure he felt differently and was grateful to be off work on Christmas Day for the first time ever.

“You should stop by on Christmas, you know? Our extended family won’t in town until Día de Reyes this year, so it’ll just be us and you know my mom is going to make way too much food.” With a bright smile, Kel chuckled, but Aubrey sighed.

“I don’t know… I don’t want to impose.”

“You wouldn’t be imposing. Besides, Hero is bringing a girl home—don’t you want to see that?”

Aubrey sighed again. The honest answer was yes, but she didn’t think it was her place to barge into their family’s holiday celebrations.

“It’s all anybody’s been talking about. Heck, it’s all I’ve been talking about,” laughed Kel. “I mean it’s really big, right? Hero putting himself back out there.”

“Has he said anything to you about it or just…?” Aubrey’s voice trailed. She was trying her best not to pry.

“No. He’s really secretive or just—I dunno—shy or something, but she’s really great. I’ve…”—he paused, fidgeting with his hands—“honestly been hoping for this for a long time.”

“Me too,” Aubrey admitted. “So has Sunny. We used to talk about it all the time when we were away at college—hoping that the two of them would eventually go out. Sunny said he has actually had dreams about their wedding.”

Kel laughed, and the way his face lit up—bright and warm, made Aubrey’s face flush. She could only hope he didn’t notice. “That’s awesome! Too bad Sunny’ll be out of town this year and miss it. But that just means you have to come for Christmas now. Then you can tell Sunny all about it and how happy they are.”

“I…I don’t know…” Aubrey stumbled. Yes, she had been trying to be much nicer to Kel but agreeing to spend Christmas with him and his family, especially for the main purpose of prying into Hero’s business, seemed like a step too far. Kel, however, seemed determined, and he suddenly took her hands. Even though they were gloved, she was still so shocked by the gesture that she practically jumped backward in surprise.

“Please…” he whined, dragging the word out far longer than it needed to be.

Aubrey’s face blushed a deep red, but luckily, before she could say anything, it was their turn to order at the Burger Boys’ food truck they had been waiting in line at for the last twenty minutes. Aubrey sighed. She had not expected this walkthrough Christmas light display to be so busy, but she had to admit she was glad there were so many food vendors there. They had been waiting to eat until the rest of their friends arrived, but after Sunny, Basil, and Hero all had to cancel at the last minute, they decided to just eat without them.

“Yes, uh…hi!” Kel began to order. “I’d like two fish tacos, a spicy chicken burrito, and a chimichanga. And…whatever she wants.” As he turned towards Aubrey, she resisted the urge to press her palm to her forehead.

“Uh…” stumbled the food truck worker. “This is a Burger Boys. We only sell…uh…burgers here…”

“Wait…what? No way. I thought this was a Taco Time.” Kel laughed before motioning over his shoulder. “Oh that’s over there…my bad.”

Aubrey gritted her teeth. She had known Kel for most of her life. There was no way he was this stupid. Had her affection for him really blinded her this much?

Kel blinked as if waiting for her to tell him off for making them wait for twenty minutes in the wrong line or for her to tease him about getting the lines mixed up in the first place. And, sure, on another day she might have motioned to the big, glowing, neon sign that said “BURGERS” in bright red letters directly above their heads, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that that was the problem—that she had been too harsh with him all this time so instead she just shrugged her shoulders as Kel asked her, “Hey Aubrey, do you want burgers or tacos?”

Aubrey’s stomach rumbled, but she managed a tight smile. “Whatever you want, Kel.”

Kel blinked at her but ultimately, thankfully, decided, “Burgers are fine. We’re already here.”

When they got their order and finally sat down at one of the folding picnic tables to eat, Aubrey caught Kel staring at her with a curious expression. “Hey…Aubrey…is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” she quickly replied. “Why?”

“No reason…” Kel mumbled turning his attention back to a packet of mustard he was trying to open on his hamburger. It quickly exploded all over his coat, sweater, and the table. “Shoot!” he muttered as he quickly tried to clean it up. Aubrey huffed—reaching up to wipe off the mustard that had splashed onto her cheek, but she held her tongue. “Sorry,” said Kel with an apologetic shrug of his shoulders.  

“Don’t worry about it.”

Kel stopped wiping up the table and stared right at her. Keeping his eyes transfixed on her, he reached for his soda, took off the lid, and poured the whole thing directly onto his coat.

What the heck?

Unable to even process what had just happened, Aubrey could only blink at him in astonishment. Quite without thinking, she immediately reached out to hand him some napkins, but Kel swatted them away with his hands.

“Oh come on!” he exclaimed in exasperation. “What is wrong with you?”

“What’s wrong with me?” Aubrey shot back—the words tumbling out of her mouth before she could even think to stop them. “You just poured a whole soda on yourself.”

“Yes, I did, and you didn’t tell me off or laugh or tease me or say, ‘Gosh Kel you’re such a moron’ or ‘Why in the world would you do that?’ You’ve been acting weird all week. It’s freaking me out. I’ve been trying to do more and more ridiculous things hoping that I’d get some sort of normal response from you, but you’ve been acting…” He paused as if he couldn’t think of the right word before finally deciding on, “really weird.”

“Hold on…” interjected Aubrey. “You’ve been doing these things on purpose? So your backwards sweater and making us wait in the wrong line and trying to order tacos at a burger truck…and that thing with the mustard—?”

“Oh that was an accident, but the other ones were on purpose,” Kel admitted. Then, he sighed. “Look, Aubrey, are we fighting or something? ‘Cause whatever I did, I’m really sorry. Could we just hash it out like normal? You’ve been really quiet, and—I dunno—it just feels wrong.”

“You think we’re fighting? You think I’m mad at you?” Aubrey shook her head in disbelief. “I’ve been trying to be nice to you, you goofball.”

“Thank you! Yes!” exclaimed Kel, throwing up his hands. “I’m a goofball. It feels really good to hear you say that again.”

Aubrey sighed. Kel was unbelievable.

She shook her head and buried her face in her hands. “Kel…” her voice trailed. She didn’t know what she wanted to say. “This…isn’t a joke.”

Kel’s expression softened, and he reached across the table to take her hand. “So something is bothering you…” he said in a quiet voice.

With a sigh, Aubrey shrugged her shoulders.

“You want to talk about it?”

No, thought Aubrey, but she knew she didn’t get that option, so she took a deep breath. “I…I’ve just been really worried that I’m too harsh with you. We bicker and tease each other, but that doesn’t mean I don’t—”

She stopped abruptly. A flush of rose filled her cheeks as she pursed her lips. She thought of Sunny, engaged to be married and happier than she had seen him in a very long time, and she thought Hero putting himself back out there after all this time, even when they had all thought it was impossible. But mostly she thought of Kel—his warm kindness, his unwavering loyalty to his friends, the way he always tried to make her laugh whenever she was feeling down, and how he’d stop the world to make someone happy again, even if that someone was her. Maybe Sunny was right after all. He deserved to know.

“Kel…you’re one of the nicest people I know. You’re kind and cheerful and you always choose to see the best in people…and you go out of your way to try to make them happy—to make them laugh or smile, because that’s when you’re happiest too. You…have a really big heart and have been such an incredible friend to me. I feel like I don’t show that—or say that enough.”

As he tilted his head at her, Kel’s dark eyes widened in surprise. His jaw fell slack, but he somehow managed a breathy chuckle and a teasing, “Wow…tell me what you really think of me.”

Despite the blush in her cheeks, Aubrey let out a breathy chuckle before she somehow mustered the strength to look him in the eyes. “I think you’re really great, and I don’t want the fact that we bicker or tease each other sometimes to hide that. You’re…”—she paused and stared down at her hands again—“really important to me. I just wanted you to know.”

The next few, silent moments were some of the longest of Aubrey’s entire life. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Kel, let alone even begin to imagine what he must be thinking, but after what felt like an eternity, she felt the picnic table shift as Kel got up from his seat, walked over to her, and pulled her into a tight hug.

“Thank you,” he said. “That’s one of the nicest things you’ve ever said to me.”

“Not the nicest?” she quipped, her voice shaking as he pulled her against his chest. He didn’t answer that—just held her for a long time.

Even so, it wasn’t long enough before he let out a long and heavy sigh and whispered in a quiet, serious voice, “You know, don’t you?”

As he pulled away from her, Aubrey tilted her head at him in confusion. He looked flustered—almost guilty.

“This is exactly why I wasn’t going to tell you,” he began sheepishly rambling. “I didn’t want to make things weird, but I guess it was pretty obvious, huh?” He paused, chuckling as he rubbed the nape of his neck. “Look, I appreciate all of this Aubrey, but you don’t have to use the kid gloves with me. I’m okay. Like I said, I wasn’t even going to mention it. I mean, I know it’s not going to happen, and I didn’t want to make things awkward for you or anything so—”

“Kel.” Aubrey bit her lip. He looked almost relieved when she interrupted him. “I don’t…what do you think that I know?”

Kel paused and audibly swallowed, but he shrugged. “How I feel about you.”

The sincere look in his eyes made Aubrey’s face burn—her stomach erupting with butterflies, but somehow she still couldn’t believe it. “What? What do you mean?”

Unexpectedly, Kel’s face fell, and Aubrey’s insides twisted at the pained look in his eyes. The helplessness of his stumbling, “Please, Aubrey…That’s…not fair…just forget it,” was enough to make her heart ache.

Still, she somehow managed to say what was probably the worst possible thing she could have said at the moment, “No.”

“No?” choked Kel, and Aubrey’s face flushed.

“Sorry. I…I didn’t mean it like that,” she quickly added. “I just…I know I’m not hearing you. I…I can’t be. You’re…you’re the one that doesn’t…” She stopped.  “I—I’m…just ‘bat girl.’ That’s why you got me those earrings, right? Because I’m the girl who picked a fight with you with a bat in a church, and there is no coming back from that.”

“Aubrey…” Kel sighed, almost as if he didn’t know what to say. “Yeah…you’re right—you are the girl who picked a fight with me with a bat in a church…and also in the park and at our secret hangout spot by the lake…”

His voice trailed, but he expression softened. “But you’re also the girl who sat out by that lake with me for hours the summer after we learned the truth and several years after that. The girl I could talk to about anything, even things that were too difficult to say to anyone else because I knew you’d never judge me. You’re the girl who I always want to make laugh because even though you don’t smile all that much, whenever you do, it feels like everything is going to be okay. You’re the girl who always teases me but I know you’ll always be there if I need you. The girl I always want to call if I have good news or bad news or any kind of news at all—the girl who is one of the best friends I’ve ever had, who I think about all the time—when I’m at work or on a run or listening to this song that makes me think of you…even when Basil drags me to some craft fair in the middle of nowhere and I find those earrings…”

Kel sighed. “That’s why I bought them—because I was thinking about you, because I’m always thinking about you…And not because you’re ‘bat girl’ but…because you’re Aubrey…and I…I uh…”

He stopped, but the light flush of red in his cheeks said everything that he couldn’t say. Aubrey swallowed hard. Her hands began to tremble. She had no idea what to say—what she even could say to follow up all of that.

“I’m pretty sure I’m the moron, here,” she teased with a light, self-deprecating chuckle. “I honestly had no idea you felt that way. This whole time I thought I was… that you were… that after everything…” She sighed heavily. She was completely butchering this, but thankfully, Kel cut her off with a playful laugh.

“Seriously? It was pretty obvious. Everybody knew about it. Heck, even Basil called me out on it at the Christmas party.”

“Really? Sunny called me out then too. Do you think they planned that?”

 Kel shrugged. “Dunno. I mean, Hero mentioned it a couple of times too, so maybe they’re all in cahoots.”

“Well they didn’t show up today, so it wouldn’t surprise me.” Aubrey paused with an affectionate roll of her eyes. “Though to be fair, I think they were exaggerating…I mean I don’t think we were that obvious…” She twisted her mouth to one side. “I mean, you didn’t know how I felt about you either.”

“And how’s that?” teased Kel with a lopsided grin.

Aubrey’s face flushed, but when she looked up into Kel’s eyes, they were so kind, so affectionate, and so sincere that she realized… “You…you really don’t know?”

With a helpless shrug of his shoulders, Kel smiled just slightly at her, and she reached up to gently cup his face in her hands, then leaned forward and kissed him. It was a brush of their lips—they were in a public place after all, but it was enough to make Aubrey blush bright red.

When she pulled away from him, she mumbled, “Does…uh…that make it clear enough?”

“I’m not sure I really got that,” he quipped with a bright, bantering smile. “You wanna try again?”

“Not here,” she laughed, playfully patting his cheek as he leaned towards her again.  

“How about when you come for Christmas?”  

Aubrey stopped. “That was a real invitation? I thought it was one of your purposefully ridiculous things.”

“No, that was real, and the offer still stands if you want it.”

As Aubrey met Kel’s eyes, a smile spread across her face. She reached out and took his hand, giving it a gentle, affectionate squeeze. “I’d love to.”

Kel laughed before he playfully poked her in the arm. “But just one thing…you’re gonna have to leave your bat in the car.”

As Aubrey laughed in spite of herself and tried her best to stifle it, Kel winked at her. With an affectionate roll of her eyes, she playfully tapped him on the back of the head. He really could be such a moron sometimes, but he could also be a confidant, a pick-me-up on the worst day, her best friend, and the person that meant most to her in the world. She supposed Kel could be a lot of things, and as he had pointed out, she could be a lot of things too. But as Kel’s face softened into a warm, affection smile and he intertwined their fingers as they began to walk together through the Christmas lights, Aubrey knew there was one thing that she would never be again...and that was alone.

[moonstone27ls]

Unicorn Warriors Eternal ep 9

Not giving spoiler warnings either. I’ve had a rough week too tired.

Sooo... a LOT has happened.

So physically Seng hasn’t aged (as far as I can tell) mentally or spiritually he has because of the cosmic plane or whatever.  Still part of me is convinced Morgan is in the “evil” because it goes after Melinda a LOT. 

While a part of me is okay that Edred put his feelings aside for the bigger picture. I’m gonna be honest not still sold on Winston being part of the team.

Again its not earned. Its just there for plot convenience if you read my views from ep 8. Whatever the reasons (writing/time crunch, etc), Winston in my opinion hasn’t earned it.

I thought we’d get an interesting ep where he’d have some ACTUAL character development. Have to fight being a monster. But the factor that he’s literally vocal under a short amount of time, just makes me think. “Dude you feigned that whole “Oh I’m a monster” just to get into Emma’s pants”. Before shippers or lovers bash me for even criticizing precious Winston. I’ll make it clear. I don’t hate the guy.

Separately on their own I’m actually okay with Emma/Winston. Whats bothering me is that this ridiculous love triangle is still going on. So with no real development other than to give drama, Winston just still annoying to me. Still acting like this is an outing (closest to him being serious was when he saw Melinda fight), I mean I’ll be honest his pompous attitude rubs me wrong. He’s like “Oh I’m a whiz at chess.” and “Oh I know ALL about science fantasy from my books”. I dunno its either the tone or again I REALLY hate love triangles. So for this to drag on makes it tiresome.

Ironically I feel little feeling for Winston. I’m more sorry for Edred. He’s literally given up his home/identity/ life/ and he’s finally transitioning into the factor that Emma is sharing duality with Melinda. And more importantly, the woman he sacrificed it all for... either doesn’t remember him or isn’t there.

And I’ll also say again I don’t believe Melinda has feelings for Winston. I’ve seen enough of her character. She’s literally the stereotypical tough character(I wanna say like Raven but that feels too simple). I feel like if she was in there she’d be annoyed with Winston just as she was with Emma.

And I’ll admit the duality shared here is... confusing. Its not Melinda, but its not fully Emma either. Its like watching Aang had to share his body with the previous avatars and they were all tug of waring for control.

I do give Winston points for trying to be accepting? I say trying cause again to me he still feels out of place. And the guy will only apparently be useful every full moon... sooo heh. 

But I also think this is hard for me because Tartakovsky kinda .... I don’t wanna say fails but he’s kinda... meh on romances. If this series continues I REALLY for the love of all good want the love drama dropped. 

That being said... still wonder whats the endgame in regards to Edred? I know  Tartakovsky said Melinda’s his favorite and that this story is focusing on her. Which I don’t mind, I just kinda don’t want to see Edred fallen to the waysides.

I wanna think that Edred’s love for Melinda(and vice versa) is genuine because he keeps showing us all these flashbacks with them. I feel like that’s there to solidify their relationship. And the final shot is with HIM seeing Melinda (not counting Emma cause she’s more the vessel. I know he’s not really in love with Emma) get separated. 

Now onto Melinda/Emma. I do like their story arcs. This story is shaping Melinda more out. On the exterior yes she seems the tough/warrior like sorceress. But her flashbacks from her childhood and with Edred. Show her vulnerability and the trauma thats affected her from losing her mother.

Their...duality or amalgamation is confusing me a bit. But I constantly remind myself that this is part of Tartakovsky ‘s plan and that its a metaphor for growing up.

And Emma herself I am happy with. She’s matured a lot from this experience as from the beginning. She fought this. But now she sees the bigger picture. Its bigger than her or Winston. She’s needed to help Melinda and the others fight.

Anything else.... kinda feel those incarnation descendants are probably going to be the ones to help her get to the others. Cause I don’t see any other way how she would8B. Sooo good luck next fight.

[wondereads]

June Reading Wrap-Up

Reviews and thoughts under the cut

Into the Wild by Erin Hunter (7/10)

I am rereading the Warriors series with some of my friends, so this is the beginning of a hefty endeavor, especially considering how much more has been published since I last read it. While I remember some crazy stuff from this series, the first book is pretty standard. Honestly, you could probably transplant this plot into a high fantasy and nothing would be amiss. I do appreciate that even with a name like ShadowClan and their constant antagonism towards ThunderClan, the Erins did not decide to just straight make an entire Clan evil and instead create a corrupt ruler instead. As someone who has read the books before and is now like twice the target age, everything's very predictable, but I can definitely see some twists taking a fourth grader by surprise. After dwelling on it for a little while though, and putting nostalgia aside, I decided to drop all my Warriors scores by one; the writing is just mediocre.

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger (9/10)

Another reread, I find the plot to this book super engaging, especially for middle grade, and it does a great job setting up a conflict that will last for over nine installments. The pacing is great, keeping the major reveals for later without stalling in the middle, and there's a ton of fun worldbuilding. Sophie is, obviously, ridiculously overpowered, but that presents a ton of obstacles by itself, and I find it incredibly interesting that she has to deal with her own existence not fully being her own, a complex concept for middle grade. I will say that, while not unexpected, the weird focus on romance was a little grating at times. Connected to that, I'm sorry, but I just don't like Dex. I can tolerate him, but I think the breaking point is when Sophie tells him some really devastating news for her and he just focuses on what it means for him.

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White (9/10)

This book was amazing. There are very few bad things I could say about it, and most of those are personal preference. Now, it isn't for everyone, as it's basically gothic horror to the extreme with some very sensitive topics. However, as long as you can stomach this sort of thing, I highly recommend this book. It's dark, tense, and not without some hope. My one technical gripe is how perfect Daphne seems, but that can be easily brushed past. I really liked the writing, especially with how the author played with the style and actual look of it.

Fire and Ice by Erin Hunter (6/10)

This book is probably my least favorite of the first series of Warriors. I feel like there are a lot of easily avoidable conflicts and some very bad decision making by Fireheart, Graystripe, and a bunch of other characters. Also, there isn't much progress towards the overarching plot of the series. A lot of stuff is set up, but, particularly when it comes to Fireheart's suspicions of Tigerclaw, we're mostly just back where we started. I will say that I really like the introduction of a lot of characters, namely the WindClan cats, Silverstream, Cinderpaw, and Cloudkit. Also, Sandstorm gets a lot of character development in this book, and I really like how she is gradually warming up to Fireheart. On the other hand, Graystripe is definitely on the outs with me. I always remember that Fireheart was basically Brackenpaw's mentor.

Lioness Rampant by Tamora Pierce (9/10)

This concludes my reread of Song of the Lioness! I'll be continuing with The Immortals Quartet soon, but for now, I really like the ending to this series. This is likely the saddest book in the series with two major deaths, and no, Liam is not included in that, good riddance. Honestly, my retching whenever he started talking is what brought this down from a 10 for me. Alanna has grown so much since the beginning of the series, coming to a place where she can accept love and femininity without letting it affect her own goals. One thing I really like is how close she, Jon, and George are despite their complicated romantic pasts with each other. The fact that their friendship takes precedence over anything else means so much to me.

The Raven King by Nora Sakavic (8/10)

There truly must be something wrong with me to willingly continue the All for the Game series. I am being so deadly serious when I say these books are horrendously written. It's based on a sport that's basically fancy lacrosse that is given the bare minimum explanation, the pacing is all over the place, and the plot is poorly connected if not outright nonsensical. And yet here I am. I think this series, thanks to strangely evocative characters and its absurdist plotlines, evokes the same feelings as fanfiction. As an actual published novel, this is a garbage fire. As something fun and quick to read, it hits every button. The absolute misery Neil goes through only to be put back together by his team and his not-boyfriend just works. I immensely enjoyed myself, but also 0/10 never read these books.

The King's Men by Nora Sakavic (7/10)

This book being the longest of the series makes sense, but I still don't think it was enough. Everything I said about The Raven King applies to this book, and I'm incredibly feral about Neil and Andrew. However, the ending is rushed to the extreme. The resolution is pretty unsatisfying, and I feel like there's still a lot of character stuff to be sorted out, particularly concerning Andrew. The ending was just way too abrupt, and I wish the epilogue had been a proper chapter with a different epilogue set in the weeks/months after the finals. Well, that's what fanfiction is for, and it will probably be better written than these books.

Exile by Shannon Messenger (8/10)

Another second in series, and another with some dubious character decisions. While I really like this series and think the plot progresses significantly in this book, the way Sophie is treated just makes my blood boil. You're telling me that you brought a thirteen-year-old to one of the most dangerous places in your world to help with an incredibly delicate process and then got mad when she messed up?? Are you kidding me? Alden's insane for having her do it, the Council is irresponsible for approving it and then getting on her back, and Fitz in particular really needs to shut his mouth. I did like that we got to see the real beginnings of Sophie and Keefe's relationship, one of my favorites in the series, and I love how complicated yet genuine Grady and Edaline are.

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (9/10)

Guys, I don't think you understand how much of a chokehold this series has on me. I have a whole plan for how my summer reading's gonna go, and I throw it all out the window because I can't stay away from Folk of the Air for so long. Jude has to be one of my favorite protagonists ever; I love how ruthless and dedicated she is, and I love her and Cardan's relationship. It's super toxic and unhealthy, but it works for them. I love dark faerie lore, and the way Black uses it to trick the reader and make engaging intrigue is just so good.

Forest of Secrets by Erin Hunter (7/10)

After the lull that was Fire and Ice, this book picks up quite a bit, especially at the end. It still is so funny to me that this plot could be transplanted into a high fantasy novel and nothing would be out of place. There's forbidden romance, a major natural disaster, a tragic miscarriage, and a betrayal in pursuit of power. Not to mention the secret (aha get it because of the title) Fireheart discovers about Bluestar and some RiverClan cats. This book is a major turning point for the series as one major character will no longer be around as often and Tigerclaw has now officially made his move. Very fun, but also just not well-written enough for me to bump this past a 7.

Twisted Love by Ana Huang (DNF @ 60%, 3/10)

I just really couldn’t make myself continue this book, but I did make it past my threshold to rate a book (halfway). Contemporary romances are really hit or miss for me, and this was a definite miss. It was boring, unreasonable in a way that defies even romance logic, and the toxic masculinity from the male lead was horrendous. The main character had no discernable personality traits other than sweeter than sugar, and the whole plot was disjointed and forced. I did bump this from a 2 to a 3 simply because I can see how this appeals to some people, and my genre bias is probably coming into play.

Everblaze by Shannon Messenger (9/10)

I think Everblaze marks a significant turning point in the Keeper books. This is the first time we start really interacting with species outside elves, specifically politically, and it's the first time doubt in the council comes front and center. The books are starting to explore what the worldbuilding actually means, and it means a lot of dubious things when it comes to control and privacy. The development at the very end (and I mean very, literally last page) disrupts the pattern that has been set in these books so far, and it definitely makes you want to keep reading. Fitz and Biana sufficiently redeem themselves in this one, but Dex is going to have to step it the fuck up before I even consider giving him another chance, especially since I already don't like his pushy romantic feelings for Sophie. As always, my favorite relationships lie in Sophie and Keefe and Sophie and Grady and Edaline, the latter of which really stood out this book.

The Wicked King by Holly Black (10/10)

The Wicked King is absolutely my favorite book of Folk of the Air. I just love magical politicking, and Jude does it so well. This sounds weird, but her time in the Undersea is a part that has always stuck with me. She's obviously miserable, but I think it's when I realized just how far Jude would go for her ambitions (and just how far Cardan would go for her) and I love it. Speaking of Cardan, the build in their relationship is so well done; a true enemies-to-lovers arc if there ever was one. As much as I know what's really going on with the twist at the end, it still hurt to read. I enjoyed this reread so much that I ended up changing my rating from a 9 to a 10 because I really can't think of anything to criticize about this book.

Bonded By Thorns by Elizabeth Helen (9/10)

I have officially gotten Kindle Unlimited, and I picked this book up on a whim. I've seen some stuff about it on social media, and it was just so much fun. It is very much a fantasy romance with far more focus on the relationships than the plot or worldbuilding, but they definitely weren't lacking. It's clearly a Beauty and the Beast retelling (specifically the Disney version), but the addition of some magical shenanigans and an extra villain really freshen it up. Despite not being a very plot-heavy book, it's a great length that never really drags. A lot of fantasy romances tend to move very slowly, but this one didn't, and I really like it. Also, the love interests are distinct and quite complex. My one dislike lies in the main character, who is very much a typical protagonist for this genre. Easy to read through the eyes of but not exactly super compelling.

Woven By Gold by Elizabeth Helen (8/10)

I immediately picked up the sequel to Bonded By Thorns since it was such a fun read. As with the first one, the romance is very strong and probably my favorite part of the book. Also, we get to know more about the princes (including the evil one) and their complicated pasts with their actions and one another. I felt like Rosalina was adapting a little quickly, but then I remember that she's spent months in the fae world at this point and it seems less unrealistic. As fantasy romances are wont to do, the plot is a little thin and drawn out, but I really only have two major gripes. One, the problem introduced at the end of book one is resolved almost immediately, which was a little unsatisfying, but it did introduce some characters and plot points. Two, the 'big mystery' concerning specifically Rosalina and her family is so obvious. Like, I get that they are not aware of the tropes of the genre they're in, but come on. Surely someone can at least suspect it?

The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black (9/10)

There are 308 pages in this book. I highlighted something 228 times. I remember when I read this book the first time I was a little disappointed that there wasn't much of the intense scheming that came with The Wicked King, and I take that back. Maybe Jude's plans are a little more straightforward this time around, but even knowing what was going to happen there was still an insane amount of suspense. The relationships in this book are so strong, and not just romantically. Jude and Madoc's fraught parent-child relationship in particular has me riveted; it's incredibly complicated and so good. But also romantically, Jude and Cardan are at the top of their game this book, and it's amazing to see Cardan so unashamedly in love. They deserve their happy ending and to take off their armor, one piece at a time.

[onlytibki]

Yelling into the void about OPLA

Spoilers ahead!

Neutral: Some major scenes that outlined certain themes of the original story were changed, which is fair. Some things were added in certain areas, which is also fair. There's pros and cons to these things in various directions so I'm keeping it all under 'neutral'--by the same token, my disappointment about it not fitting the original story is tempered by how much just knowing the original story made me excited to see these characters and places in a live action. The two things kinda cancel, so, neutral.

Pros:

Set building. Urgh,, this summer has been a highlight for physical sets as opposed to greenscreening things. It was GORGEOUS and it paid off SO WELL.

Make-up. Again, physical make-up (I think) not CGI'ing a face, and it went so well. The Fishmen are high-key terrifying and honestly it fits the narrative. (The CGI was also amazing, though)

Fitting like 50+ episodes into 8 hours. A LOT ended up on the cutting room floor but the result was cohesive and coherent and that could not have been easy. And yet, even with so much on the floor, I think they only completely culled two or three characters? (Johnny and Yosaku (tragic) and the Island of the Rare Animals dude (but his island was shown in the maps)

Cons:

Fight choreography. There was a lot of variation in quality, imho. Kuina was incredible, as well she should be, but in some of the major fights there were moments of stillness in the background, etc. I should not have seen Luffy just stand there with his fists up while Zoro engaged Cpt. Morgan.

Make-up. If they did the Fishmen, and Merry, so goddamn well, why the hell are we missing Sanji's eyebrow and Usopp's nose? Usopp's nose might've been distracting but it didn't have to be ridiculous.

I'm not sure if it's cinematography, or editing, or directorial decisions, but I feel like they wasted precious time on a few scenes, whose minutes would've been well-spent including short, more cinematic shots. Ex: scrap kid!Sanji's "Day 2", replace with a shot of grown!Sanji bowing in front of the Baratie. Quite a few of Oda's iconic double-page shots would've translated SO WELL to the screen. Why not use them??

Side Notes

ZORO WAS IN GOA KINGDOM holy shit the things that could've changed. I wonder if Johnny and Yosaku were there too? Also his scar wasn't big or bloody enough.

Helmeppo was there. I somewhat had an opinion on him by the end of the season, which is an impressive achievement.

Scratch that, my opinion on Helmeppo is that Zoro's cutting of his hair was hilarious but the butt shot was unnecessary. Ditto Sanji being shirtless to rescue Luffy. This is OPLA why the fan service.

Nami was in shackles until age 12. :( But Bechdel test, passed!

Also this version of Nami would've absolutely tried to get with Kaya before stepping aside given the Usopp/Kaya romance.

Mihawk was PERFECT. Like absolutely iconic. Honestly the whole cast was, obviously, but you don't see as many people gushing about this fact regarding Mihawk

What the hell happened to Gin. He ate the food and then vanished from the face of the earth.

Garp's development/arc was an interesting take, and honestly it was a chunk of the really engaging part of the watch for me. I guess in canon he was too busy doing Marine things to chase after Luffy after he left Dawn Island so this is a good take.

On a related note, it does take a bit away that we didn't go through 250-ish chapters before learning about any of Luffy's family, but obviously that wasn't going to happen anyway. Also, kinda wish we'd seen him yell out 'Fist of Love' or them both fall asleep at the same time post-Enies Lobby arc style, but he was definitely using haki so it's fine.

On a different related note, actually VERY upset that we (1) didn't get Garp saying that line about how he left Luffy with Dadan so he could grow up to be a respectable Marine, and have Loof respond with Garp's training and (2) had to listen to Garp telling Luffy that the GL isn't a game, given that Luffy's already lost Sabo to the world and (3) didn't get any mention of Luffy's brothers or Dadan at all, actually.

Quick Summary: I do think a degree of enjoyment was both added and subtracted due to my knowledge of the original story. Not sure if I would've sat through the whole thing if I wasn't already tied heart and soul to the crew, but I am and I did.

But it was definitely fun and really well built. 8/10.

[onewomancitadel]

Features, not bugs, in RWBY ships

I was musing on the tone of various RWBY canon or likely-canon ships and the refutation and/or reaction of disgust to them - a microcosmic example of fandom behaviour in total, which is why I thought talking about it was worthwhile: sometimes the point of conflict is a feature, not a bug.

Obviously this was for comparison's sake - since I am a shipper of a mostly-controversial, pseudo-crackship (in truth rarepair, definitionally) - and there is a very good point of comparison in the ship that is Rosegarden.

Disclaimer: I'm not a Rosegarden shipper per-se, and I mostly say this because I am not aware of current fandom trends or discourse surrounding it, only historic controversy; I have received asks and replies about it on my blog, though, so am aware of some things said about the ship and have read some of the popular ship meta. I don't really say this to imply I am more objective about this ship or my other ships because I have the capacity to talk about a ship with a certain emotional distance; I wholeheartedly embrace emotional bias and don't really think it gets in the way of actual analysis if you are sensibly interpreting the text and I object to the notion that romance is unserious and not worth consideration.

In addition to that I think it is very embarrassing if you are at a point in your life where you are harrassing (read: harrassing, not criticising) people over their pet ships about a gunsword fairytale anime show. I prefer to be civilised and talk shit on my own blog - or, er, objectively criticise other ships. Ha!

That requisite nonsense aside (that is unfortunately necessary because in the event this post is read out of context it's important to establish) I think RG is an interesting case study because the usual refutation (other than Oscar is too young for Ruby, who is notably younger than the rest of the cast by about the same margin, and let's not get into emotional symbolism and age) is that the romance is impossible because of the bad wizard currently residing in Oscar's head. There is some proposed element of dubious consent and/or old stupid (affectionate) man makes it weird/Ozma's a perv etc. that makes the pairing impossible because how they can be togetherrrrrrrrrr.

What I think is interesting here is that the ongoing and persistent problem of Ozma and his reincarnation is kind of the point, and representing that on a very personal level - a romance that would be part of symbolically resolving the Ozlem wound is currently impossible because of Ozma's curse itself actually makes a hell of a lot of a sense thematically. The conflict is the point, therein lies the solution already in your face.

I seriously cannot imagine any rendering of RG that would not involve the fact that the romance is grounded in angst if it progresses in any serious direction. If anything it saves the pairing from being tonally flat; I really think a straightforward romance that's just fluffy and cute would be out of place, especially since a simplistic romance would probably just involve more of Ruby running away from her feelings and her personal attachment to the world that transcends who she is as a Huntress (there is a conversation like this between her and Ozpin at the dance in V2 that basically smacks you over the head with this sentiment; it's very telling that it's Ozpin who does that because of her future possible connection to Oscar). Here you've got the romance wrapped up in the character development, and there's no easy way to develop Ruby being in touch with her deepest most personal feelings and how those do or don't influence things (and the same is true for Oscar since he kind of doesn't have a life of his own literally) and how they both prioritise those is meaningful. Which is part of the irony because that is in part the solution in the story to confront those fears and that love.

Of course, the real question is how can the solution (Oscar and Ruby) be prevented by part of the problem (Ozma's reincarnation curse), because now you're in a sticky position. But that kind of ironic duality is persistent in R/WBY and from a mythic reading it's the wound that can only be healed by the weapon that dealt it - it's something like that, that's the paradox of the job, it's everything in opposites. Really we're also dealing with an issue of conflation here because of what 'canon' is or is not presumed to mean: I seriously doubt the romance is in any way consummated before Ozma and Oscar are released from their curse. Whatever fashion that eventuates - whether Oscar lives or dies (and my money is on the former) - means that you either get tragic consummation as he passes or they can finally be together happily once Ozma and Salem are saved. Whatever form their relationship continues to develop in (and I about expect it to take on a more serious tone what with Ruby beginning to confront the truth of her mother) likely won't read as being all that inappropriate with Ozma hanging around, but that there's the tension that any romance at all could be inappropriate at all with him around and - to the characters - there is no guarantee that Oscar can be freed of his curse - so the tension will be there anyway.

It seems to me that agony, pining (ha!), refusal, denial, are all part and parcel of figuring out how to handle Ozlem on a cosmic scale and how to handle their own personal relations that represent that. The romance is playing a part in the ultimate plot resolution and you really can't shuffle it off to the side or do it in a cursory manner.

Really I think the takeaway here is that yes, you might find it gross there is a bad wizard in Oscar's head who complicates the romance, but that's the point. On one level it's basic interpersonal emotional drama that seems to be oddly controversial in fandom at times, on another it's doing serious plot work. I seriously cannot envision any romance for Ruby that is not majorly related to the main plot and you really can't get more Ozlem than Oscar, this isn't background stuff. I don't think Ruby is supposed to have a tonally flat romance at all or something archetypally simple and it's not going to be an easy development. What is frustrating to me is that the angsty element (Ozma) might inspire a sense of disgust (which is part of that whole harrassment thing because some people need their mummy to take away their Internet access) but that sense of weirdness is itself arguably the interesting - and most importantly revealing part - about the story.

Now the age thing I don't really get, because people have shipped Ruby with everyone else older than her, but it probably twigs as weirder since Oscar is younger than Ruby as opposed to the reverse - to be quite honest I wouldn't be surprised if that were an intentional play on gender and age stereotypes, since Oscar and Ruby already have that going on with their respective characterisations - and in addition to that I think they are both symbolically children progressing into adolescence, and to be even more frank, any development of the relationship so far has been firmly in the childlike end of things. I assume in this case that some of the flak against RG have been because of casual dislike and ship competition, which is sad, because if you aren't almost exclusively using the monomyth to argue for your ship, are you even doing ur ship metaz rite? It's a shame fans had their hopes up about Ruby/Penny because her death flags were waving loudly in the sky and that must have really hurt. I say that with sincerity, I've experienced the 'this character shouldn't die' pain too. I don't really know what RG fans had to do it with it though, if they wrote R/WBY according to what the fans wanted it would be a very different show...

I mentioned writing this post for comparison's sake: I was interested because similar refutations of the ship Knightfall are always to the effect of similar grievious mortal distaste and conflict: Cinder killed Pyrrha (the other kills are ok though including those ones of Beacon overall that Jaune was also upset about)/Cinder is too evil/Cinder is gunna die anyway and Jaune's gonna kill her etc. is why the ship can't be canon.

Most other media I'd probably agree and say the writers would be too pissweak to use Pyrrha's death in any sensible symbolic way or have an interesting dramatic resolution of it or transform tragedy into comedy because sad man who does nothing for several volumes is more interesting (or gets back to the girl who changed for him whilst he waited patiently) or something (heavy sarcasm). My bets are still hedged especially because of the fandom tantrums about xyz plot development that does make me wonder if they would stick to their narratively developed guns and also, you know, Pyrrha's a touch more sensitive subject than Ozma getting in the way of things (so to speak). But in this case, on any of those points, the refutations put forth are themselves the point of the ship, because a positive resolution of Knightfall would make a statement about Ozlem as well as forgiveness and redemption and rebirth. You have their character development, a redemption, the ulimate narrative purpose of Jaune and Jaune's Semblance, etc., all embedded in the romance; if I'm totally straightforward Pyrrha's death is essentially the red string of fate between them because it's what lets you personally connect him to her, and to represent something like the Fall of Beacon on a personal level (and the death of innocence). But all of that is really naturally uncomfortable for a lot of people, and I think it's worth saying that if it were tonally aberrant to RWBY, I would absolutely, not ever, expect it.

But if RG, for instance, is already a little bit weird - and the conflict is a feature, not a bug - it does make me *eyebrow raise* about Knightfall, as well as other potential RWBY ships, like Emerald/Mercury, that is clearly a little more problematised in depiction and is likely going to develop as enemies-to-lovers. Ren/Nora and Blake/Yang don't have nearly the same angst, though they do have a bit of it - if I had to tell you, I would think they've staggered out the romances tonally and dramatically for a reason, the same as the redemption arcs starting out rather soft and building up to something more dramatic (and probably quite likely a peaceful resolution with Salem and something rather cosmically huge with the gods which both involve more than 'kill the problem and then everything is better' - not a worldview endorsed by RWBY).

Of course, I think the irony of any beef people have with RG about being weird is that the weirdness is... not very weird to me, because he's a prince under a dark curse. That is asking for someone to save him and is a neat gender-spin on a fairytale dynamic and it's probably going to involve a romance. I seriously cannot imagine the symbolic resolution of Ozlem is 'oh, we should've stayed friends I guess, romance made it messy...' as if that's the problem itself with Ozlem is that they loved each other (some might say so and I think there is meant to be a bit of a tease there) and is the reason Salem had such conflict with the brother gods. Lulz, jk, let's just be friends to prevent a ceaseless eternal feud and abandonment by the evil gods who are obviously good and not bad at all and our messy love repeating across the story just like my reincarnation curse, cuz honestly I'm kind of commitmentphobic.

Lol no. The romances are clearly doing something symbolically and whatever final statement they make about Ozlem et al. is going to be dependent on the resolution of say, a ship like RG itself, and it doesn't necessarily mean it's a positive one (TRUST IN LOVE AND OPEN UP OUR EYES... yeah ok) - you can tell I'm being concillatory here - nevertheless, Oscar's connection to Ruby, whether it's tragic or comic (where's my wedding, where is the divine comedy of the soul!!!), is narratively important, and if it's a bit icky to you, that's probably the cosmic wound luv x

[mianmimi]

I guess it’s okay to talk about Black Panther spoilers now right? This isn’t written in any kind of order, just whatever spewed from my brain first.

I absolutely loved the movie. Everyone brought their best to the table with this one. The acting, directing, writing, all of it hit so perfectly.

Queen Ramonda is easily the most beautiful being in the entire MCU. The lady is the definition of STUNNING.

The ladies in general shone wonderfully in this movie. I loved how complex they were, being beautiful, strong, smart, and assertive all at once.

The way this movie dealt with grief was handled incredibly well. You could tell there was a lot of respect there too, and that the people making this are coming from a place of love and loss. Chadwhick’s absence was felt but it didn’t feel empty, if that makes sense. Like yes he’s not there but his presence was everywhere, especially in moments were the characters were grieving.

Shuri’s arc in this was 🤯 Like holy fuck. One of the best character developments in the MCU thus far. Her journey made sense too, and you can definitely see where her emotions and choices steamed from. Honestly I wondered if this was gonna be a villain origin story for her, and even if she did go that route I don’t think I could ever consider her villainous. Her choices would be justified. She grew so much from that happy go lucky little sister from the first movie 🥺😢😭 She had to grow up fast and my heart aches for her. I was happy to see her interacting so well with Riri! She finally found a friend closer to her own age. I hope we see more of them. Riri was really endearing and I can’t wait for her show!

And now for Namor. I fucking loved every bit of him. The good, the bad, and the sexy. Cause fuuuccccckkkk that man’s all sorts of beautiful. But hotness aside, I loved his character. Sure he’s the antagonist but if this story was told through the point of view of the Talokanil, he’s definitely the hero. The man is a great leader and true king. No one can deny that. Everything he did was for his people. He lives and fights for his people and sees them as his family. Hell he even admitted his mistakes and how he compromised them, he didn’t need to do all that yet he did. He’s a man of his word too. Whatever he says, he does. When he said he’d do something, he fucking did it. I just loved everything about his character.

I really didn’t expect to enjoy Namor/Shuri. That pairing wasn’t even in my radar. Like at all. Never crossed my mind. But while watching movie I definitely got some vibes there. I didn’t expect the ship to take off the way it did either! But definitely pleasantly surprised. Do I think it will ever be canon? Nope. Nothing I like ever becomes canon so this is a doomed ship already 🤣 And even in the context of canon, this ship will not work due to the fact that Ramonda’s death was directly caused by Namor. Realistically that’s gonna be impossible to overlook in the light of romance. I just don’t see Shrui excusing that and becoming Namor’s queen or anything without something MAJOR happening to work in Namor’s favor. And that’s where the fun of fanfiction and fandom comes in. You get to tackle that challenge creatively to make the ship work, or you could simply avoid it altogether with AUs. That’s the fun of fanon. And that’s why I have no issue with people shipping it 🤷🏻‍♀️ I really enjoy it too, if anything for the challenges that come with it. Cause challenges prompt characters to change and grow.

Also I’m a sucker for enemies to lovers and this ship is 💯 actually, genuinely, enemies to lovers. I adore that size difference too there’s just something so sweet about it 🥹 I really like how Shuri had her own agency too! Meaning that she’s not gonna be a pushover and she’s her own individual person that gets her goals. Actually they’re both like that! They have their own goals and roles outside of each other and I absolutely dig it. I can’t stand pairings that can’t exist without the other. I need them to have separate lives, identities, and responsibilities. I need them to be complete characters before being a pair.

Also the alliance they formed in the end….. Why did I think of Shuri getting kidnapped or something and Namor finds out? And he sees the bracelet he gave her just laying on the ground and suddenly there’s war in his eyes? *faints* Let him burn the world to find you girl 😭

[mediaevalmusereads]

How the Dukes Stole Christmas. By Tessa Dare, Sarah MacLean, Sophie Jordan, and Joanna Shupe. Avon, 2019.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Genre: historical romance, anthology

Part of a Series? No

Summary: From the ballrooms of London, to abandoned Scottish castles, to the snowy streets of Gilded Age New York, four bestselling authors whip up unforgettable Christmas romance.

***Full review under the cut.***

Content Warnings: graphic sexual content

Overview: My foray into holiday romance continues with this collection of 4 novellas written by some heavy-hitters in the romance world. Because this is an anthology, my review will be structured a little different than normal.

"Meet Me in Mayfair” by Tessa Dare

"Meet Me in Mayfair" follows Louisa Ward, the eldest daughter of the Ward family. The Wards have been living in their London home for more than a decade after borrowing money from the Duke of Thorndale. Their father's friendship with the duke has meant that the debt has been forgiven, but when the Duke dies, the new Duke calls in the debt (plus interest). To keep their home past New Year's, Louisa must marry a wealthy gentleman, but when she stumbles into that very Duke - James - at a Christmas ball and he takes a liking to her, things get... complicated, to say the least.

What I liked about this story was the appropriate pace and scope. Dare didn't go for a whirlwind romance with improbable outcomes, but kept the focus on the scope of one night. As a result, this story felt more emotionally and mentally intimate, and the small, "mundane" moments felt heavier and more important than bigger shows of love or attraction. The only thing I didn't like was the epilogue; I felt like the story ended in a natural place at the close of the last chapter, and the epilogue felt inserted in order to bring some hot, sexy times to a story that frankly didn't really need it. Still, this story was a pleasant read with a couple that had a relationship built on mutual respect, and I enjoyed the experience.

"The Duke of Christmas Present” by Sarah MacLean

This story follows Eben, Duke of Allryd, who is awakened in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve by Jaqueline "Jack" Mosby. Jack is Eben's childhood friend (and later lover) who left him and disappeared for 12 years; now, she has come back for a mere 2 days - to spend Christnas with him before she leaves for Scotland. Eben is too hurt to want anything to do with her, but when a massive snowstorm prevents either of them from leaving the house, they confront must their pasts and examine their feelings towards one another.

This story was a very angsty romance that didn't go too far into sad boy territory. The 12 year absence meant that the angst felt well-earned, and I liked that MacLean didn't push it aside too readily. I also think that MacLean did a good job flashing between past and present, which helped give depth to the couple's past and emotions, and Eben's arc had some nice development. The side characters were also pretty fun, and I don't think I can identify much that I thought could be improved.

"Heiress Alone" by Sophie Jordan

This story follows Annis, the second eldest daughter of the Ballister family. When her parents and 4 boisterous sisters accidentally leave her behind in the Scottish Highlands, Annis is left to spend the winter in the company of her two elderly servants and her neighbor - the surly Duke of Sinclair.

This is my first time reading a Sophie Jordan story, and unfortunately, it wasn't to my taste. For one thing, the Duke embodied all the stereotypes I dislike most about Highlander romance heroes - bad Scots dialect, random antagonism with the English, and a bossy, grumpy demeanor that made me wonder why the heroine found him attractive. The romance also didn't feel very organic, and it was based more on physical attraction than emotional intimacy. If you like old school romances where the hero and heroine are thrown together in scenarios where sexual tension is palpable, you might like this story. But personally, I found it dull.

"Christmas in Central Park" by Joanna Shupe

Rose Walker is a popular advice columnist for a New York City newspaper, posing as a wealthy married woman and dispensing tips for cleaning, baking, decorating, and all sorts of household improvements. But when the owner of the paper - Duke Havermeyer - insists that she host a Christmas party at her home to charm the paper's board of trustees, she must pull off the ultimate deception in order to keep her job.

I'm off mixed opinions regarding this story. I really enjoyed the premise, and I think Shupe did a good job setting up the stakes. However, I also think this story would have worked better as a full length novel. There were a lot of themes and emotions to unpack, and while the pace wasn't bad, I also felt like I needed more time to process all that was going on. The extra time would have also allowed Shupe to show rather than tell a bit more, but even so, this was an interesting story and I liked the ideas she was playing with.

TL;DR: In my opinion, three out of the four novellas make this collection a worthwhile read. While I could nitpick each of the stories, they are light and enjoyable enough for the holidays, and I would recommend this set to any historical romance reader.

[elenajohansenreads]

Books I Read in 2023

#57 - Arctic Wild, by Annabeth Albert

Rating: 3/5 stars

The plot ended up being not quite what I felt the blurb promised, in that the crash and ensuing rescue was over so quickly, and the bulk of the book was focused on the mundane and civilized recovery. I thought the relationship was going to develop more in the wild, especially given the title of the book, but the crash is the inciting incident, not a major plot arc.

Setting that aside, this felt a smidge more formulaic than the first book in the series, especially with an age gap being one of the obstacles. Whether or not it's a "big" age gap is subjective (I feel like it's big but not creepy or insurmountable) and how well any given reader responds to the harping on it that Reuben does is going to depend on how they feel about the age gap in the first place.

I got tired of it.

But the real thing that got my blood up here was Toby and Reuben's families. Amelia, as the bratty teenage daughter, was a brat, but at least she came around and wanted her dad to be happy; Toby's family was consistently rude and awful and ungrateful. Not every minor character in a romance novel has to be likable, and I think his family members were a realistic level of awful (as opposed to being cartoon villains) but I hated the constant emotional self-flagellation Toby put himself through about how he needed to be there for his guilt-tripping, entitled family. They weren't worth it, and he doesn't really seem to get that by the end, so it was just frustrating.

[writingwithcolor]

Black woman saves and houses abused white woman and child

@dykecalianna asked:

Greetings! I follow this blog whenever I can and I recently came out with something in my story that I wanted to inquire about:

There’s a white woman in her late 30s, let’s call her “Vicky”, who (along with her daughter) is a victim of domestic abuse, and another character, a Black woman, “Cherry”, is made aware of this after a change encounter the two have at a café. She helps Vicky flee from her husband and lets her stay in her home - later, the two fall in love and get together.

I’m very aware of the White Saviour trope, and do my best to stay away from it. This is nothing like it, but does this fall under some sort of negative stereotype for Black women, like “saving the fragile white woman”? I should note that Cherry and Vicky are the exact same age, only Cherry is single and living alone. She is described by many as being very cute, and she is also secretly a well-renowned writer (she uses an alias when writing, so she kind of feels like a super heroine, which then ties with her storyline about Vicky). Also, I think it’s pretty clear, but the abusive husband is also white like Vicky.

I think it’s touching that Cherry saves this woman and her child from this abusive situation. I would like to discuss some areas that may help you explore if there’s a mammy / strong black woman / sacrificial negro dynamic here.

The chance encounter

Did Cherry (Black woman) meet Vicky (white woman) for the first time and instantly decide to get involved? I feel that it’s a bit sacrificial for Cherry to place herself in the middle of what could be a potentially deadly situation, as domestic abuse too often leads to, for a perfect stranger. 

This level of involvement would not align with how much one might put on the line for someone they do not know at all. Cherry is now at risk of retaliation from Vicky’s abuser if he finds them, or Vicky allows him back into their lives and lets them know where her home is / they make up and he learns about Cherry’s involvement etc. 

Their relationship prior to Cherry helping Vicky

The risk might feel worth it for someone you know, but it’s a lot to ask of a stranger. In the case of a “chance encounter becomes savior” situation, she also doesn’t know anything about Vicky and is letting a perfect stranger into her home. Of course, everyone is different and based on her personality and experiences may be willing to assume these risks. The child being involved might also influence that. Cherry might be one of those people, but it’s worth acknowledging as a big undertaking in the narrative. Her actions should not be brushed aside as nothing or just “her duty”. Too often servitude is just assigned as natural for Black women. Their own lives take a back seat and to take care of other people / ensure their well being comes first.

Suggestion: built a history between the women

A better fix might be to develop some level of a relationship between the two before Cherry risks so much to save them. They could even just be acquaintances. It helps if they know each other on some level,  at the least. Even if it’s strangers that see each other often at the cafe and strike up small talk all the time but never speak outside of that, old high school classmates that ran in different groups, friends of friends. This creates some sort of relationship where Cherry feels she knows Vicky “enough” to assume the risks, especially as a child is involved. 

Without knowing the exact circumstances, I’ll pose a few scenarios and explore the pitfalls.

If she witnesses the abuse

Witnessing the abuse and getting involved as she sees it happening - I wouldn’t fault her for that. I’d instinctively get involved too!

If something happens in the public eye, it would help if other bystanders get involved too; Cherry just happened to take it to another level and offered her sanctuary.

Again I’m still having a hard time figuring out why Cherry has been placed in this situation before proper authorities, women’s shelters, etc. if she doesn’t know her at all. As I’d suggested, it might be best if they had some sort of relationship prior, no matter how subtle.

The escape from the abuser

What role does Cherry play in the escape?

Physical strength / sacrifice 

Is she expected to use brute force aka be “Strong” to physically save Vicky or fight off her abuser? I would avoid that, as you will have a Strong Black Woman on your hands.

Must Cherry put herself in direct danger with the abuser to save Vicky and the child?

It's asking a lot for Cherry to storm into the home, potentially get harmed or die for a stranger in a domestic abuse situation that she does not know a lot, if anything, about. For example, what if  there’s deadly weapons in the house? 

Could Cherry involve others to help?

Maybe Cherry could call authorities and possibly show up alongside them.

If authorities aren’t involved, perhaps she waits outside to drive the getaway car as the friend and child escapes (I’m 100% inspired by Enough with Jennifer Lopez). Even better, if she could bring along someone else, preferably non-Black, who could help in the situation.

Emotional strength 

The Strong Black Woman is often about being forced into emotional labor.

Is Cherry allowed to react with fear, sadness and anxiety about the situation? Or must she keep it together for the sake of the White woman? Perhaps it’s triggering based on her past; she should be allowed to process that.

Allow Cherry to deal with her own wave of emotions. Even better if she has an outlet for that. She might not lay them on Vicky, but she also shouldn’t be expected to be a perfectly composed rock whose purpose is to comfort and support Vicky. 

Vicky shouldn’t rely completely on Cherry for emotional support. She needs other sources to expel her own fears and emotions. Whether a therapist, parent, other friends, chat forums, journal, or a dog!

Mammy (dynamic between Cherry and the white woman and child)

Given the other factors in the story, I would stay away from Cherry being asked or offering to care for the child. Vicky should take primary care for her child or get help from others besides Cherry or other Black women, as this would give their dynamic mammy and servitude vibes. 

Same applies to Cherry physically taking care of and serving Vicky - avoid it. Also, once Vicky is up for it or she has the means, they can split the chores or Vicky does the majority or contribute to housing expenses (again, if she has the means) but in some way she should pull her weight, so all the domestic care does not fall on Cherry. 

It’s all about avoiding putting Cherry, the Black Woman, in the position as savior of white woman and child + servitude role any further than the implications the first incident creates. Initial comforting and support is fine, but the rest of the white woman and child’s world shouldn’t continue to rest on the Black woman’s shoulders.

Explore Cherry’s life outside of the white people

A very important aspect that will keep this away from SBW and Mammy tropes; give Cherry her own life. Cherry absolutely needs to have a plot line that does not revolve around Vicky and child. She needs to talk to other people, and about other subjects, besides those two. Her main problems, drama, and highlights of her life shouldn’t revolve around them. 

Give her emotions, weakness, and vulnerabilities. She needs other friends and/or family, interests, and a little romance absolutely helps too. She is this amazing writer, so you’ve got something to work with right there! Ultimately, she needs her own life, things going on that have nothing to do with them.

Good luck with your story!

Colette

[robthegoodfellow]

I think I finally put my finger on why aspects of the Mike/El relationship bother me, and it’s pretty much summed up in this video I watched years ago about the longstanding sci fi trope wherein an utterly naive yet powerful female character meets and ultimately falls for an average Joe male character who must teach her how to human (and also inevitably how to romance).

The video brings up how in almost every one of these stories, there’s a scene where the ingénue, so innocent of social conventions and norms, strips or almost strips off her clothes in front of her later love interest and must be instructed on the proper way to behave. Of course, in most sci fi stories intended for adults, this scene is presented in a titillating manner that is meant to play into hetero male fantasies—but basically the PG version of this scene happens almost immediately upon Mike, Lucas, and Dustin finding El in the woods and bringing her to Mike’s basement: Mike offers El dry clothes and El stands, reaches for the hem of her shirt, and the boys recoil in horror; Mike then teaches El the notion of “privacy” and directs her to the bathroom. I’m not saying this scene was presented in a creepy way—but it is very much part of long tradition related to this trope of establishing very lopsided power dynamics between the main romantic couple of the narrative.

I only remembered that scene when rewatching the video essay just now—at the time, it didn’t strike me anything noteworthy aside from highlighting El’s total lack of socialization. In context of the rest of the show, though, it does inform why the dynamic between El and Mike in season 3 REALLY rubbed me the wrong way. Because narratively, El is so naïve and so lacking in basic communication skills that she and Mike might be similar ages, but El is operating from a place of HUGE disadvantage re: her knowledge and familiarity with human society, norms, agency, language, etc. I don’t want to put too fine a point on it, but Mike’s developmentally a middle schooler, and El’s developmentally a fair bit younger.

(Not blaming Mike in all this... he’s a kid. On top of which, it’s unreasonable to assume a character knows what genre trope they’re in. This is a storytelling decision I’m taking issue with!)

On top of that, the show presents El at the start of the season as incredibly isolated and very much dominated by the two men in her life (who are apparently the ONLY people in her life?), and Hop mentions to Joyce that this has been the state of affairs for months. So for months, El has been totally dependent on Hop and Mike as her windows into the human world—the former a controlling father figure (sorry Hop, but you were such an immature ass that season) and the latter a boy who wants to make out with her. And I gotta say, I really, really did not like that. El’s superpowers do not even scales in this regard—they hold all the cards re: her socialization (other than the TV, I suppose?), and have far too much sway over how she therefore views the world and herself.

(You could argue that her socialization occurs piecemeal off-screen/during the clusterfuck Secret Sister ep, and/or during her months hiding in Hop’s cabin, but... that doesn’t cut it for me.)

Obviously (thank GOD), Max intervenes and plays a major PLATONIC role in El’s growth for the rest of season 3, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling that having El involved in any kind of romantic relationship so early in her relative development is… dicey. Obviously, I don’t wanna deny her the agency she does have, and if she wants to date Mike, great. But she’s been fixated on the literal first non-lab boy she’s ever met. And a part of me wanted her to have some space to figure herself out a bit more.

Idk if the move to Cali helped with this, any—but I was kinda relieved at first that she was getting away from Mike and Hop for a while (bc obv Hop wasn’t dead dead). And then s4 happened, and the booster shot I got yesterday is kicking my butt way too much to parse all that.

[yurimother]

LGBTQ Manga Review — Whisper Me A Love Song Vol 1-3

A Joyous Exploration of Love that Strikes a Chord

It is by no means a stretch to call Eku Takeshima's Whisper Me a Love Song one of the most popular Yuri manga series of the moment. Last Summer, the manga won second place in Yuri Navi's Fourth Yuri Manga Sousenkyo behind only the ever-popular Bloom Into You. Indeed many draw connections and comparisons between the work and Nakatani's near-worshiped bestseller, and for good reason, as the high school romances explore similar themes of discovery and question what love is. I have been saving this series for some time, and with Kodansha's recent release of volume three, it seemed the perfect time to dive deep into a review and reading of not one, not two, but three volumes of the beloved series.

Whisper Me a Love Song follows energetic first-year high school student Himari. On her first day at school, she sees a performance by the school's band and is instantly captivated by the music and the band's fill-in lead singer, Yori. When Himari confesses her "love" to Yori, she is surprised when the senpai returns her feelings. However, the two have different ideas of love and struggle to reconcile with their feelings of affection and admiration for each other.

A central theme for the first three volumes of Whisper Me a Love Song is exploring what love means. While Yori feels a romantic attraction towards Himari and wants to start dating her, Himari's love is not amorous. She loves Yori's music, loves spending time with her senpai, and loves the idea of seeing her perform with the band again, all of which are valid forms of affection, but she does not know how to return Yori's feelings. The first three volumes see the two characters explore the meaning of love and relationships. It feels very appropriate and fitting in terms of a theme for the school-aged characters, like something a real youth may experience. Figuring out what love means to you is something many adolescents, particularly queer ones, will undoubtedly experience.

Takeshima tackles the subject matter of Whisper Me a Love Song's exploration of love deftly. For one, there is a complex myriad of emotions for both characters to feel and express. For example, Himari feels appropriately confused and conflicted during much of the series. She wants to spend time with Yori and enjoys her company, but also wracked with guilt over not returning Yori's affection, especially once Yori's bandmate Aki confesses that she is in love with Yori requests Himari stand aside to let Yori off the hook. The best part of Himari's journey is unquestionably when she seeks advice, whether from family or another older student, Momoka Satomiya. One particular conversation with her mother resonates well. As she explains to the child, love is something you can grow into, and you may date someone without being completely enamored by them. It may feel like an obvious lesson, but one we rarely hear or see expressed in romance narratives.

ori's journey is a bit less complex and compelling than Himari's. While in the first volume, she struggles to give voice to her feelings and drives much of the story, in the later story, she is mainly reactionary to Himari. For example, when Himari begins spending time with Momoka, she feels jealous and worried. While her character lacks some agency in the second and third books, her stories are still compelling and her growth noticeable. Himari's love of seeing her perform with the band causes her to confront her stage fright and join them full time. Her steadfast conviction that she can write an enchanting love song to get Himari to fall for her is likewise adorable and has the perfect amount of youthful, fanciful optimism.

However, the best part of Whisper Me a Love Song is the sheer joy Himari and Yori get from spending time together. The bubbly younger girl is constantly bouncing off the walls and eager to see Yori and get to listen to her music, and for Yori's part, her passion and excitement, whenever she sees Himari, is evident. It is a lovely change from the typical aloof and damaged star pupil we expect from the senpai in a Yuri series. Chapters featuring the girls going out shopping together or picking outfits became standouts for me, not for their Sapphic content but merely the contagious happiness and pleasure both girls show. Other notable elements of the series include its supporting cast, who are thrilled by Yori and Himari's struggle and enthusiastically encourage both girls with a furious lesbian ride-or-dieism one usually expects to find only in liberal arts colleges.

While the series has many strengths, it does stumble on multiple occasions and has a few points against it. For one, it misses a huge opportunity to explore LGBTQ+ identity. This feature would have been the perfect accompaniment to Himari's journey to understand love and its different forms. While outright discussion of same-sex romance is unusual for Yuri, its absence here is somewhat more prominent because of its subject matter.

Furthermore, Whisper Me a Love Song has some struggles with pacing. Despite being relatively long for a Yuri manga, it moves quickly from one issue to the next while not always taking time to explore them fully. For example, the first two volumes effectively build and foreshadow the revelation that another girl loves Yori. Only for the plot to just as quickly come the next book, with Aki, the girl who once asked Himari to let her have Yori, suddenly changing her character and encouraging their relationship to develop. The one advantage of this quick pace is that it allows for the series to have turmoil and emotion without becoming too steeped in melodrama.

Sadly, the series' faults are highlighted a bit more due to its unfortunate similarity to Bloom Into You. Comparing the two Yuri series is understandable, as they deal with the analogous subject matter, and Takeshima's series began hitting its stride shortly after Bloom Into You was winding down. However, the latter has the advantage of being much more fleshed out, with eight volumes, a (phenomenal) light novel spin-off, two anthologies, and an anime series. While both series appear to survey many familiar Yuri tropes, Bloom Into You, for the most part, manipulated these in subversive and exciting ways, especially when it came to Sayaka. Whisper Me a Love Song does not have any such achievements, although there is still time for the continuing series. I will say, though, Himari's journey of exploring love and seeking advice from different sources about what it can mean is both more exciting and realistic than Yuu's "come to lesbian Jesus" moment at the end of her series.

Whisper Me a Love Song is a delightful school romance series. Takeshima brilliantly chose to put two characters feeling different forms of affection and admiration together, and the result is a passionate and fast-paced exploration of what love means. The main characters, Himari and Yori, are so delightfully passionate and excited by each other that it is hard not to get swept up in their emotions and pure gleefulness. The series has some issues with pacing and being a little too predictable and safe. However, the compelling central relationship will entice most readers. Hopefully, once it has a bit more time to do its own thing and delve a bit deeper, this uncut gem of a series will shine like a polished jewel. I can unequivocally say that I am now a dedicated fan and am very excited for volume 4, especially given the end of the third book. But if you want to find out more about that, you will have to pick up this series for yourself.

Special thanks to translator Kevin Steinbach, letterer Jennifer Skarupa, editors Tiff Joshua and TJ Ferentini, and the rest of the team at Kodansha Comics for their excellent work on Whisper Me a Love Song.

Ratings: Story – 8 Characters – 8 Art – 7 LGBTQ – 4 Sexual Content – 1 Final – 8

Check out Whisper Me a Love Song Volumes 1-3 in English digitally and in paperback: https://amzn.to/3idOaAy

[interact-if]

We’re going strong on Day 7, folks! Introducing the lovely Billi :chinhands:

Billi, author of Spilt Milk

Latino Heritage Month Featured Author

You are the heir(ess) of a hotel empire enjoying your independence before you  eventually assume the role of CEO. with no shortage of money, drink, and warm bodies, you would say you have a pretty good life.

Your father, however, would beg to differ, and threatens to cut you off until you demonstrate “some semblance of common sense”—whatever that means. Like he does every week.

You didn’t think he would actually do it this time, though.

Some Scottish guy once wrote “[it’s] no use, however, crying over spilt milk.” but, damn it, you’d like to see someone try and stop you.

Spilt Milk Demo TBD | Read more [here]

Tags: comedy, romance

(INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT UNDER THE CUT!)

Q1: So, tell us a little bit about the projects you’re working on!

I’m currently working on Spilt Milk, a novel made in Twine. It’s essentially a game where you play as an heir[ess] whose father is fed up with their shenanigans™. It’s definitely inspired by that genre of television where a character is completely and utterly removed from their element. Re: Schitt’s Creek, Arrested Development. As it is Latino Heritage Month, I’d toss in Que Pobres tan Ricos [starring one of my favorite Latino actors,  Jaime Camil] and Silvana sin Lana. It’s incredibly fun to write—I make myself laugh at least—and I hope it’ll be fun to read as well!

Q2: What excites you most about using interactive fiction? What are some of the biggest challenges?

Interactive fiction as a medium is incredibly exciting! I’m an impatient reader, picking up books with the intention of finishing, of finding out what happens next. Upon rereading, I love stumbling upon little details that, in my initial haste to reach the ending, I overlooked. Purposely knitting in those details to be missed, then noticed, gives me a little sense of satisfaction each time. That may apply more to fiction authors in general, but it’s definitely prominent in interactive fiction in which those minute details can entirely alter the direction of the story. What I find challenging with interactive fiction is figuring out how to actually write it.

Do I approach this section linearly? Do I first explore all these branches and then return to the main plot? And if you’re like me and have a bunch of activities going on, when you get a chance to write, you tend to work on the fun scenes just for the sake of getting something on the page. I do realize that one of these days I’m going to have to sit down and write all the interludes and transitions I’m currently neglecting. I both dread and look forward to it because, at the very least, when it’s done, it’s done.

Q3: What has been something in your project you’ve had to do a weird amount of research for?

I’ve had to do an absurd amount of research on noughties culture: fashion, music, memes. I grew up in the aughts, but my experience was that of Club Penguin, Claire’s, and Disney Channel. So I’ve been rediscovering the era through this project.

I’ve spent more time than I’d like to admit making playlists, pinning outfits, and browsing old websites for design ideas.

[Aside: some aspects of the early internet aged like, well, milk].

Q4: Which of your characters is most like you? How?

I put a bit of myself in each character; however, I think the way I interact with the world is most similar to Bri. I’m laid-back to a fault; the boundaries I do have, I’m firm on. I also love me a good grilled cheese. Unfortunately, I don’t have a rivalry rife with sexual tension, but it’s only 10am—that’s subject to change.

Q5: Does your heritage influence your characters as you create them? (How? Why or why not?)

I’m Afro-Latina, born in the States. My mom is Colombian; she found asylum here with my brother back in 2001. Because of Colombia’s political situation, most of my extended family on my mother’s side lives everywhere but: Spain, England, and Texas [its own country by every definition of the term]. My dad is your standard issue African-American man from Georgia. You can definitely find influences of my heritage in my writing, because it is such an important part of how I view the world and the world views me. I don’t think I would know how not to let it influence my writing.

Bri is an absolute overachiever, which comes from having incredibly supportive parents that have afforded her every privilege and never let her see the color of her skin as an obstacle to overcome.

Juanes’ background is more than a little influenced by my older brother’s experiences; he grew up with a single mom. My mom did not have an Abuelita to help out around the house, but she found herself a family in the tight-knit community of Latinos in Roswell, GA. His addiction to telenovelas and general camp comes entirely from me.

Santy is mixed. The interest in theatre comes from a place of trying to find your niche, your own little place in the world wholly separate from the labels people try to place on you. Santy tries their absolute best to be unapologetically themselves, but it is tough sometimes, which can be seen in the way they fret a little too much about how they’re perceived.

Q6: What is something you love to see in interactive fiction?

“Can you say ‘Diversidad?’”

Interactive fiction is very much a medium that lends itself to representation, and I love seeing creators take advantage of it to showcase their own cultures or simply create an environment in which readers feel both safe and seen.

Q7: Any advice to give? 

In general: Make your bed before you leave the house; it’s a different kind of gratification coming home to tucked sheets.

To creators: Terrible first drafts are a thing. That’s why they’re drafts.