#i like to think they wear their trained outfits to events and canonically sing their commissioned songs there

[rorynni]

vbs doodle idea: toya discovers nail polish (probably by An or Mizu)

/nf!!

OKAY SO my thought process here was that an and toya are both wearing black nail polish in their BURN MY SOUL outfits, and since that was actually the first time toya wore nail polish in a card, an did his for him

[osir-ethria]

.... Debating on whether or not I should do something other than the Schneeblings...

Well here’s another thing about them anyway.

Whitley loves fashion and designing with a much more creative aspect to clothing. Jacques however found out and called it far to feminine and that he should be focusing business and other things (minus fighting).

Winter would always let Whitley choose the dress she would wear to business meeting with Jacques and tell him about the guests reactions and how many compliments she got because of his choice. She did this in the form of a letter that Klein would hand Whitley because if she was seen anywhere near Whitley he would be reprimanded by their father. She’d first give him a list on what the event was about, how she was to be represented, and if Jacques was there to enjoy himself a little or purely just business.

This helped Whitley with his look when he went out on formal events and got to choose. (This is me saying please change his outfit for once. Maybe inspired by Weiss?)

Even though Winter never directly told Weiss but Whitley was the one who designed her outfits minus the Volume 7 one... I’d have to say Weiss looks good but like, the pounds of hair in that braid is unnecessary. She has a lot of hair but why make it not proportional to the rest of the head. Other than that she actually picked up a few things from Whitley just by studying what she’s been wearing.

After the half of the group that got to Vacuo arrives at the main kingdom they need new gear. The Atlas gear is going to give them a heat stroke. They are trying to decide what to do and they see an obviously emotionally unavailable Winter write a few things down, hand it to Whitley, and tells him to go all out.

Later she explains the whole fashion thing with them and tells them that if they’d trust him with their outfit designs to just list necessities, color schemes, any requirements that’ll help with how they fight, and what style of clothing they are comfortable or uncomfortable with. When Whitley receives these papers from the group he starts crying, they aren’t seeing it as weird and actually trust him with it. Remember, Jacques hated this side of Whitley.

Whitley works with Pietro to design the new gear and everyone loves it. Comfortable, looks good, and does its job. I also remember that the Schnee dust company doesn’t only have dust mines in Atlas even though it was the majority, there are some all over Remnent. (This is from the World of Remnent episode Rooster Teeth did about the Schnee Dust Company.) The Schnees however stay with the refugees instead of going somewhere else so they can help them. They also have enough money to help provide for the refugees like buying tents, getting food and water, and any other necessity. Whitley gets a good feeling from helping and not keeping it all to himself.

Whitley better ask Winter to train him or Winter forcefully teaches him because she can’t handle losing another sibling. This is just with a sword he hasn’t gotten his semblance yet.

He’s smarter than a lot think he should be, the only thing that’s stopping him from being a huntsman is how young he is, like I would prefer if he was around Oscar’s age, and he’s not of the physical or aura capability of a huntsman. You could argue Jaune was like that but Jaune was of the age to go to beacon, had a weapon, and was physically fit to the point he could play it off as maybe going to the school. The only thing he was lacking was skill which was remedied by Pyrrha.

Whitley hasn’t had any of that but I wouldn’t doubt that he’d be a good fit. I can imagine him trying to use his left hand but it doesn’t work out so he forces himself to switch and it works but he wanted to use his left hand for that. He’s not as nimble as Weiss but more so than Winter so he’s slowly forming into a mix. Best part would be he keeps his sarcastic attitude and teasing only being serious in serious situations.

I think all Schnees are brutally honest with everything but understand and feel bad when they hurt someone who hasn’t done anything bad to them or has gotten on their nerves. If they are misunderstood for what they say and they know it wouldn’t be easy to understand said topic they go soft and attempt to explain, Winter and Penny at the Schnee manor in Vol 7.

I also like to think that each of them are slightly gifted in the others area of art. Whitley is better with design, art, and visual concepts.

Weiss is better musical and hearing as well as being able to take quickly to anything she was forced to learn by Jacques or genuinely wanted to know. Weiss and Whitley also share common interest in design from a mathematical stand point because it gets their motors going which was derived from Jacques trying to control them and force how they think, what they do, and what’s going on.

Winter is more about art through movement. She taught Weiss how to dance and is probably the only person who could stand a chance against Yang with Martial Arts. With her being the most controlling of her emotions she could easily do acting which she was forced to do while in school before Atlas Academy.

Whitley learnt how to play the piano from Weiss with videos Klein recorded where Weiss explained how to play. This was an assignment by Jacques to prove she was practicing but Whitley caught them once and asked Klein if he could see the videos. Jacques thought he had the natural talent for the piano, nah he just practiced a lot with Weiss’s help.

Winter hasn’t listened to any of Weiss’ personal songs. By personal I mean the RWBY soundtracks. I head canon that those songs are Weiss describing their journey and how she believes their friends, enemies, and family feels.

I like the idea that Weiss’s songs were used as protest. Now Winter has heard a few she just never put two and two together that that was Weiss singing since she always had a soft pitched opera voice. Well not until she heard someone in the refugee camp blast This Life Is Mine which included the more opera segment. That broke Winter. The idea was on a head canon post but I forgot the name and I’ve liked to many posts to the point I doubt I’ll find it.

Whitley got two copies of Weiss’s songs, using a bit of money for himself and Winter there, and as a bonding activity between them and if they ever feel stressed listen to her music and voice. This is how Whitley realized that Jacques had been lying to him about his sisters just abandoning him and not caring for him at all that they left him, but rather Jacques pulled him away from Winter to ensure he wouldn’t end up like Weiss. This Life Is Mine hits close to Whitley as for Winter as much as she agrees with Whitley that it hits close she knows that Weiss’s song Path to Isolation hits more for her.

Weiss had managed to submit War, Until The End, and Fear to the people who published her songs before everything the evacuation using Pietro. Pietro questioned why and she just gave a quick summary, not explaining everything but just enough. Those publishers got though the portals and with the help of Whitley and the Schnee money got Weiss’s ‘final’ track out.

The songs are played everyday which was new for the Atlesians that survived compared to the survivors in Mantle. No one expected Weiss to be so defiant and see how abusive Jacques was to her and which they can assume the rest of the family. How they weren’t picture perfect.

......... I should stop now. Written to much again. I’ll most likely try to find the post with the idea that Weiss’s song were used as songs of retaliation in Mantle. If I do I’m going to reboot it so here me go, deep diving.

[meganhoa]

We Met Poppy Clarke in Season 1 (PART 2)

PART 1: WHO’S THIS MYSTERY GIRL?

PART 2: WE OFFICIALLY MEET POPPY

In 2x02 House of Dolls, we meet a girl with a low pony tail, a gray sweater, and a pleated skirt. (Sound familiar to this girl from the auditions in Season 1?):

We don’t know anything about her except that Jerome is trying to avoid her for some reason:

And she’s blackmailing him (note that Jerome was wearing his jacket in their previous encounter - ooc for him in the series - and now she’s wearing hers too except now Jerome isn’t wearing his anymore):

For three 11 minute episodes, this girl doesn’t have a name. Let me repeat...we don’t know who she is for three episodes. Remember what I said in (part 1) about the mystery girl being nameless to prevent a spoiler? I think this is all a continuation of that scene that they first asked us to notice her in.

After some bickering, Jerome challenges this girl to do her worst because he’s not going to play her game. Only then do we finally get the reveal from the girl herself.

Jerome is her brother:

Let’s talk about the biggest photo Poppy chose to display in the school.

Jerome: “Poppy!” Poppy: “Oh hi, Gerbil, remember the time you dressed up as a girl?” Jerome: “They made me do it! They made me do it! It was a school play...”

If it was a school play...wouldn’t everyone in the hallway already know about it? Wouldn’t they have already seen him in the costume? And then there’s the bit about “they made me do it”, who is “they” if Mr. Winkler was the only drama teacher? And if he auditioned for a part in the play, how is it that “they” MADE him wear the costume if he knew what the part was going into it?

I would argue that this is supposed to represent a picture of Jerome from season 1 in the ballerina blow up suit and they just didn’t have one on hand. I would argue that the dialog supports that because in the canon of the show, that’s the only time we know of that Jerome has dressed up like a girl and is the scene your mind immediately goes to. “They” would then be Winkler and the 7th graders (Poppy’s class) and since I believe she was there, it checks out that she would have the picture on her phone (where we know the pictures were since Jerome took it away). That would also mean that no, the rest of those people in the hallway hadn’t seen him in that outfit before (exception: Alfie). And since the whole scene in season 1 revolved around the play, Jerome wasn’t completely lying.

The fast paced bickering between them in this scene is also what I was comparing Jerome and the mystery girl to in part 1.

Now the heart to heart that ties this whole thing together:

Poppy: “I can’t believe you deleted all my photos!” Jerome: “I had to take action.” Poppy: “You’re evil! Those photos are mine!” Jerome: “Why do you want photos of me on your phone anyway, Poppy?” Poppy: “I- like them...” Jerome: “...loser.” Poppy: “They remind me of when they were taken. Like...my recital. Mum dodged it but.. you came.”

Where do I start?

Let’s talk parents. We know that Jerome’s parents sent him to school at 5. In Jerome’s own words they “left him to rot” so I’m going to go out on a limb and say that means he never leaves the school and/or Trudy & Victor’s care. He dodged Mara’s question about seeing them during holidays. Poppy says that Joan didn’t come to her recital and John has been in jail so long she doesn’t even remember him. So that’s both Clarke kids implying they never see their parents. I’m going to go ahead and assume that Poppy never leaves school either. I think that’s backed up by her knowing all the ways to sneak around Anubis House and the property...how does she know so quickly if she’s completely new? That means, it’s reasonable that she’s been in other parts of the school building this whole time and could’ve absolutely came to the auditions in season 1.

Let’s talk recitals. What a coincidence, it is canon that Poppy can either sing or dance and Jerome knows it. He’s even attended her recitals. Of all things he could’ve supported her in...it matches S1 mystery girl perfectly. Poppy couldn't have been an artist or an athlete or something instead? Let’s go back to the mystery girl in season one. Yes, I framed it that she came to annoy him. But with new information, you could also argue that she was grinning because she was about to showcase a talent for her brother who she assumed would be proud of her. That girl practiced for hours...maybe she was just excited to show a new number to the one person in her life who has ever shown her that they cared. Also something else to consider...if Poppy is a dancer, there is a possibility that she would have to dance with boys sometimes. And remember who Jerome said was worse than terrifyingly soul-witheringly bad (yikes??) even though he wasn’t? It was the boy who could dance. Maybe he’s had to watch that boy dance with his sister and he didn’t like what he saw?

(Side tangent: How did Mick hear about Alfie and Jerome’s whole plan failing before they even got home if it was just the two of them, Winkler, and the 7th grade? Remember, he laughs about it as soon as they walk in the door. I would like to propose that soul-witheringly bad dancer boy could also be Mick’s little blonde brother. After all, Mick has moves you’ve never seen, so maybe they took dance to improve their sports game. Jerome has issues with Mick, it would check out.)

And finally...Winkler. If we’re assuming that the Clarke’s never leave school, wouldn’t that mean Poppy would have to be doing some of her recitals through school? And that probably goes through Winkler in some capacity? So he would KNOW. He got super mad for some reason when he’s let a lot of shady stuff fly. And once he got involved, that’s when mystery girl got all of the focus for the rest of the scene.

Let’s talk clothes. In this heart to heart scene, they are finally wearing a matching gray uniform (remember when I told you in part 1 to remember that they matched in that scene). Poppy was playing jacket tag the whole time leading up to this and now they are matching. Matching for the scene that; we learn how close they actually are, how much they care about each other, how much Jerome is there for her, and how much Jerome means to her...she adores him. I think it would make perfect sense for her to want to be like him, to look up to him (after all - Jerome tells Mara that he trained Poppy himself). Maybe this is just something I’m picking up on as a little sister that has a big brother who is my best friend that I can’t quite explain to you but it stood out to me immediately.

We don’t really have a solid timeline as far as when the events within season one took place. We don’t know when the audition scene or the play was in relation to the school year. Even if it was about halfway through the year like it was about halfway through the season, that would still give us 7-9 months between when we see these girls. Plenty of time for Poppy to get taller (her family is TALL, she would shoot right up) and start wearing a little makeup. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the first time we meet her she’s dressed exactly like the audition girl right down to the hair...not even a little bit. There’s too many uniform combos for that and we go on to see Poppy’s hair in all sorts of styles.

So um...yeah, we met Poppy Clarke in season 1 and didn’t even know it.

[usemeasabadexample]

Bechloe Fic: The Kraken Has Been Unleashed

Summary: Chloe has a way with her. That’s for sure. And, as uncomfortable as it might make her to think about it in this very moment, Beca’s starting to wonder just what that really means.

Set at the beginning of Pitch Perfect 2. Kind of canon, kind of...not canon. Mostly fluff and fun and maybe some very mild angst at best. Nothing too stressful. We’ve been through enough of that!

Read on AO3

Chapter 10

Beca's alarm wakes her up way too early the next morning.

Usually, she'd snooze the clock ten times, roll out of bed and barely have time to brush her teeth before running to class. This morning is different though. It's the first day of her internship and she wants to be prepared.  Wants to look professional. And she's pretty sure professional doesn't include a messy bun with sweatpants and one of Chloe's Barden t-shirts.

So she gets up early. Showers and puts on something nice before grabbing a bowl of cereal.

“You look hot this morning DJ. What's up?” Stacie ambles into the kitchen and gestures to Beca's outfit while opening up the refrigerator.

Beca looks up from her breakfast. “Hey Stace.” She swallows the bite she just shoved into her mouth. “Nothing. Just...won't have time to change before the party later.” The stool screeches across the floor as she stands and drops her bowl into the sink. “See you tonight.” She grabs her things and rushes out before Stacie can ask anymore questions. Stacie can sniff out a lie from a mile away so the last thing she needs to do is play a game of 20 questions with the house genius.

“Can’t wait!” Stacie calls out as Beca hustles out of the door to get to her first class on time, excited for what the day holds.

-----

Jesse’s car is rounding the corner as Beca walks away from her last class so she picks up speed. She doesn’t trust him. He has a knack for embarrassing her in public places. Not maliciously. Just...dorky.  

“Hey superstar!” Jesse shouts out of the car window as he screeches to a halt. He leans over the center console to sling the passenger door open for Beca. “Damn! Work it Bec!”

Beca practically sprints the rest of the way to the car. “Oh my god.” She jumps in and slams the door, frantically trying to roll up the window. “Please shut up.”

Jesse laughs. “Is that any way to talk to your chauffeur for the day?”

“Keep it up and it’ll only get worse.” Beca side eyes him and adjusts the radio.

Jesse always plays late fifties pop songs and while Beca appreciates all types of music, she can't sit there and listen to it for extended periods. Although it does give her ideas for new mixes. Chloe always loves it when she mashes up old school songs with new stuff. Her thoughts stay trained on her best friend and she wonders what Chloe is up to. Between the rush of getting ready and trying not to freak out, there just wasn't time to see her this morning.

That's her excuse anyway.

If she's being honest, avoidance tactics may have been at work. She feels like absolute shit for keeping the internship from the redhead but she doesn't know how to broach the subject. Under normal circumstances, she knows she would be excited to tell Chloe. But there's a lot at stake for the Bellas right now and she doesn't want to add anything else to the older woman's plate. She wants Chloe to know that she's there and she's present and she's going to fight for them because letting Chloe down would be the worst feeling in the world.

Jesse's small talk forces her to dismiss the thought. They talk about classes and auditions and their last hood night party the Trebles are hosting later tonight and before she knows it, they’re pulling up to the Residual Heat Recording Studio.  

Her nerves bubble up again.

She's excited and hopeful but she still has the weight of guilt lingering in the back of her mind. Jesse reassures her that everything will be okay. He reminds her that she's worked hard for this opportunity and she deserves this shot.

She gives him a quick kiss before running away while he continues to holler out more embarrassing comments. He's definitely a nerd but he knows her well. His goofy antics have calmed her down considerably and she takes a moment to appreciate his charm before charging ahead.

-----

The afternoon is a blur.

She fucks up her name tag picture, makes a shit ton of coffee and hands out a lot of snacks. She's nobody important here but that's not the point. There's a lot to be learned. A lot to be gained. This is her shot. It's her first step into the world of music production and she's looking forward to paying her dues.

In a bizarre series of events, her boss unexpectedly storms into the office and announces they'll be producing a new Christmas album for Snoop Dogg. The Snoop Dogg. It's crazy but she stifles her excitement. She doesn't want to be labeled as some psycho newbie on her first day but relaxing isn't easy. Between draining her brain for a quick idea on how to make Snoop's new album original and the exchanges happening between this Dax kid and her boss, she’s struggling to control her reactions. Her facial expressions always give her away and the one she's wearing right now screams absolute confusion because Dax is now high-kneeing around the room and this is all really fucking weird.

Thankfully, her phone buzzes and it gives her a reason to look away from the train wreck happening in front of her. She has four messages, none of which she noticed earlier. They’re from Jesse, Amy, and Chloe respectively.

She opens Jesse's message first. It's some idiotic, cheesy 'hope everything is going well’ message and she replies by calling him a dork. It seems like her go-to word when referring to him.

She hesitates before opening Amy's messages because she never knows what the blonde is going to say. It's almost always inappropriate and usually impossible to understand, but she opens it anyway.

Shorty! Where is our toothbrush?!

Yep.

What the fuck does Amy mean by our toothbrush? Beca refuses to believe the obvious. That Amy is implying (more like directly stating) that they use the same toothbrush. That just cannot be right. And even if it is, why would it be missing?

She makes a mental note to buy a new one immediately.

Maybe two.

The second message is almost just as cringeworthy.

Your acawife was asking where you were! You're gonna be in the dingo house tonight!

The urge to roll her eyes is too strong to avoid so she rolls them around before deciding she will not be messaging Amy back. She clicks Chloe's message instead. It's the most recent one.

Trip to Copenhagen is all booked! AHH! :-P

Beca chuckles to herself. She can hear Chloe's voice singing the message in her head. It's cute but it also makes her feel bad because they haven't even discussed the issue of Worlds and Beca promised she would be there for Chloe.  Yet, here she is. At an internship that she still hasn't told Chloe about while the redhead sits at home and plans alone all afternoon. She knows she's going to have to address all of this at some point but how? This isn't really her area of expertise.

Another message comes through.

It's Chloe again.

You okay? Haven't heard from you today! :-(

Ouch.

Beca wonders why she acts like such a dick sometimes. There doesn’t seem to be any logical excuse. Especially when it comes to Chloe. She's the last person on Earth Beca wants to disappoint but it seems like it's destined to happen.

She takes a deep breath and types out a reply.

Sorry Chlo! Busy day. I'll see you at the Trebles’ later!

It's vague and lame but she can't tell the truth and she doesn’t want to outright lie to Chloe so she hits send and shoves her phone back into her pocket as her boss storms back into the room. She straightens in her seat and tries to blend in for the rest of the day.

-----

Beca exits the studio, overwhelmed and stressed, and throws her bag into the back seat of a cab before jumping in and giving the driver directions to the Bellas’ house.

She leans back and takes a deep breath that vibrates her through her lips on the way out. She knew this business would be cut-throat but wow . Today proved how messed up the music industry really is. The people are self-serving and the pace is incredibly fast and it feels like the multi-tasking skills needed to get through each minute are nearly impossible to master.

She’ll get through it though. She has to. This is her shot to get out there and start making a name for herself. This is her dream.

Plus, she’s glad to have the first day out of the way. It can only get easier from here.

Hopefully.

Possibly.

Who knows.

She shakes it off and pulls her phone out of her pocket. She hasn’t had a chance to check it since she messaged Chloe back earlier. Sure enough, there are a few new messages from her best friend. Chloe has no qualms about sending Beca multiple texts in a row. Even when Beca doesn’t answer right away, Chloe will continue babbling without worrying about whether or not she's being annoying.

If it were anyone else, Beca would probably send a string of expletives and permanently block their number. But, like everything else, Chloe is the exception. She smiles and opens their text thread.

Okay! Can't wait! XO

I hope they have the green punch!

Please bust out the cell phone dance move! I love it!!! ;-)

So, a Legacy showed up to our door tonight to audition and we accepted! She's totes amazing and you're going to love her!

I don't think we are breaking the rules bc she came to us! Loophole! :-D

BTW, Legacy means that her mom was a Bella. Her mom is THE Katherine Junk! Omg!

Beca chuckles at the enthusiasm in the messages and pictures Chloe grinning excitedly as she wrote them. A wave of anticipation hits her and she’s overwhelmed with the sudden need to get home as quickly as possible. She tells herself that she’s just anxious to get home after a long day but she knows that's a lie. Before reading those texts, she was tired. Even considered not showing up to the party but there’s a new energy flowing through her and she wills the cab driver to hurry the fuck up already.

When she finally makes it home, she throws her bag down, uses the bathroom, and races through the bushes to the Trebles’ house.

-----

Beca approaches the party, surprised at how out of control things seem already. It's still pretty early but the acapella crowd clearly came to party tonight. She wonders what type of trouble the Bellas are getting into and smiles thinking about all of their past Hood Nights. They've had some wild ones and she's sure this last one will be no different. Especially if Chloe has anything to do with it.

Chloe has a way of making Hood Nights, and most parties in general, more fun than they probably should be. Some of them, in particular, stand out for reasons that Beca isn’t prepared to think about right now. Mainly because they involve Chloe getting way too handsy.

But she already said she’s not thinking about that and scans the crowd for red hair instead.

Oddly enough, she can’t quickly spot her best friend but she spies Jesse sitting up on the deck. And because the night has her feeling light and giddy, she creeps up behind him and grabs him by the shoulders before giving him a quick peck on the lips.

His drink almost slips out of his hands and Beca mutters a quick “oh shit” before dropping down next to him. She takes a deep breath, ready to de-stress after such a crazy day, but Jesse starts asking about the internship and about Chloe and damnit.

“Oh, she’s just..she’s like, locked into the World’s right now and I’m looking for the right time. It’s-- I’ll tell her.” Beca tries to shrug it off like it’s no big deal but it dampens her mood and she excuses herself to grab a drink at the tiki hut. Why did Jesse have to bring up Chloe and the internship in the same sentence? Beca already feels like the absolute worst person in the world and the thought of Chloe having to ask Jesse for her whereabouts just makes it even worse.

This sucks.

Beca takes a huge gulp of whatever concoction is being served tonight and notes that it’s not the green punch that Chloe was hoping for but she can't dwell on it because she notices there’s a really tall girl just standing there staring at her. The girl's arms are stretched out towards Beca and she has no idea what’s about to happen.

“Hi!”

“Hi…” Beca responds hesitantly, still completely unsure.

The taller woman rambles something about being sisters and then it clicks for Beca. She realizes this is the girl- correction- the Legacy, that’s been added to their team.

“Oh yeah! Hi. Chloe texted me that we added a Legacy. I...didn't even know that was a thing.” She lifts her shoulders and gestures with her hands as she speaks. It feels odd.

The girl giggles and keeps staring at Beca so Beca just chuckles uncomfortably and takes another sip.

Then another.

And they're both just sort of standing there awkwardly.

Beca gives a tense smile and widens her eyes, which finally seems to break the other girl’s manic look.

She slaps her hands to her forehead way too hard. “Ouch! Oh my god. I’m sorry! I'm Emily. By the way. Sorry. I forgot that you didn’t know my name yet and I think the others have already started calling me Legacy so it’s totally okay if you want to call me that too I just figured you should know my real name because I totally-”

Beca reaches out and briefly touches Emily’s arm to stop her rambling. “Emily.” She pulls her hand away. “Nice to meet you.”

Emily beams and Beca really wants to get as far away from this interaction as possible.  

“We can get to know each other better later. Right now…” Beca uses her head to gesture across the yard where she can see a few of the Bellas bouncing up and down. “Let’s go catch up with everyone else.”

“Oh!” Emily nods rapidly and Beca thinks she looks like a battery operated bobble-head. “Yeah, definitely! Let’s go!”

Beca nods once before taking a shot and refilling her cup as Emily follows her into the crowd.

-----

“Beca!” Amy is the first person she encounters.

Of course.

She is immediately picked up and twirled around by the blonde. “Where have you been? Oh my god! Have you gotten taller? No! That’s not possible!”

“Amy!” Beca kicks her legs and starts to protest the manhandling but she sees a flash of red hair as she’s being spun around and the words die on her lips.

She starts laughing because jesus christ. It’s been a long day and it feels like she’s been waiting to see that red hair for way too long now. She presses on Amy’s shoulders and frantically wrestles herself out of the tight grip, almost toppling them both over in the process. Amy strings together a few choice expletives and she can hear Stacie muttering something inappropriate but it doesn't stop her.

She bounces right up to her best friend with a smile so wide she thinks her head might explode. “Chlo!”

Chloe’s head whips around and when her eyes land on Beca, her face actually does explode into a display of pure joy. She reaches out and grabs Beca, hooking her arm firmly around the shorter woman’s shoulders to drag her in close.

Chloe's laugh echoes in Beca’s ear and Beca can’t stop her smile from growing impossibly wider as she wraps her arms around the redhead’s waist as best as she can and squeezes back. The scent of fresh laundry and liquor invades her senses and it’s all a little overwhelming but it feels good and she can't help but sink further into it. She lets her body sway back and forth with Chloe's as she breathes her in. Exhilaration and borderline manic happiness taking over in the moment.

“Beca!” Chloe pulls back but keeps her arm firmly around Beca’s shoulder. “Where did you come from!? Where have you been!?” Chloe’s mouth is wide open and the way her eyes are bubbling with excitement reminds Beca of a shaken soda bottle. The look is scary powerful and Beca can’t find it in herself to formulate a response so she just laughs like crazy and brings her cup up from around Chloe's waist to clink it to redhead’s before taking another sip.

Chloe’s eyes stay trained on her as she downs the drink and it makes Beca feel like a shot of Red Bull has been directly injected into her veins. It travels through her entire body with lightning speed and everything inside of her buzzes to life.  She crushes the cup in her hand as she continues to drink, eventually cracking it. Remnants of the liquid leak down her arm but she keeps chugging. The atmosphere and the energy of the party has her head spinning and she just wants to let loose. Have fun.

She’s buying time too. Chloe’s presence is taking her to another level of excitement and she doesn’t know how to quite contain it at the moment. It feels like the cup is the only thing anchoring her to sanity at the moment.  

“Beca!” Chloe swats the crushed cup straight out of Beca’s hand, the last few drops splashing out when it hits the ground and Beca’s eyes widen but she doesn’t move. Her arm stays frozen in the air, invisible cup still in hand. Mouth still open.

And Chloe smiles.

It’s that mischievous, self-satisfied smile. The same one she used after their shower duet so many years ago.

Beca won't forget that look.  It makes her shiver but she smiles back, hand coming back down to squeeze Chloe around the middle again. "You're going to get into trouble tonight." Beca tuts, pretending to be put-off, "I can feel it."

Chloe nods enthusiastically, apparently thrilled by the notion, and moves both hands to Beca's shoulders. It brings the two of them face-to-face and she leans in to speak directly into Beca’s ear. "And you are already in trouble for getting here so late."

Beca’s chest tightens as Chloe pulls back to lock eyes but she keeps herself together. "Is that right?"

"Mhmm." Chloe is still nodding, all breezy happiness and cool confidence.  

"Well," Beca shrugs, doing her best to appear nonchalant, "what are you gonna do about it?"

Chloe drapes her arms further around Beca’s shoulders, big blinking eyes boring into Beca, “I’m going to dance with you."

Beca’s hands involuntarily squeeze the redhead tighter, fingers eventually pressing into Chloe hard enough that she’s afraid she might leave a mark. She panics momentarily, not wanting to hurt her best friend, but then Chloe’s laugh cuts through the party noise and the redhead is dragging her through a crowd of people back towards familiar faces that instantly start shouting when they see the duo approaching.

“Beca!”

“Chloe!”

“Bloe!”

“What’s up bitches?!”

“Where were you guys!?”

Beca dodges Amy’s swinging arms as Chloe continues to pull her into the circle of Bellas but all of her ducking and dodging distracts her right into Stacie’s waiting hands.

“DJ!” Stacie shouts, squishing Beca’s cheeks and before Beca can react, Stacie starts moving in with puckered lips. There’s nothing Beca can do because one of her hands is still wrapped up in Chloe’s and the other is no match for Stacie’s strength so she braces for the onslaught coming her way, eyes shut and lips sucked in.

But it never comes.

Instead of sloppy Stacie kisses, Beca feels herself being pulled out of the taller woman’s grasp. She sees a flash of red and green and her favorite smile and she lets herself collide with the person reining her in. Hands squish her cheeks again but this time, she doesn’t even consider trying to fight them off. Instead, she wraps her arms around Chloe and returns the smile, letting everything around her disappear because Chloe leans in and peppers her face with kisses that match the beat of the song and the thump of her heart.

It makes Beca feel giddy.

Goofy.

Like she’s already had too much to drink but she knows that can’t be.

And really, in the moment, Beca honestly doesn't care what the reason is.

What the feeling is.

All she knows is that Chloe is here and everything feels perfect so she grabs on tighter and pulls Chloe in closer. Squeezing and laughing like a crazy person.

"You're insane! You know that, right?!" She's borderline shouting to be heard over the music.

Chloe pulls back just long enough to look directly at Beca. Eyes dancing and hands squeezing Beca's shoulders tightly. She mutters a quick, "mhmm" and leans in again, bright blue eyes crossing briefly as they come nose-to-nose.

It makes Beca chuckle.

"I know." Chloe mumbles the words and kisses the tip of Beca's nose.

Beca takes a deep breath and lets the tingling feeling take over as the beat drops and she falls into step with Chloe.

[soraegeeks]

Review: Thanks for Saving Me

It’s BEYOND obvious that I’m a Baku x Deku stan and I’d never entertained the Todo x Deku dynamic. That was until I read Esselle’s fic Thanks for Saving Me. I’m not sure how I was introduced to it but I’m so glad that I was.

TFSM is a 7 chapter TDDK fic with a Quirkless Izuku who’s a college sophomore and a little younger than our heroes. The official summary:

Midoriya Izuku is a university sophomore, a fanboy, quirkless. On the list of things he is not: a hero.

That's why he's more surprised than anyone when he rescues Todoroki Shouto, his favorite pro hero, from a deadly villain attack. His actions fling him into the media spotlight, grabbing the attention of the entire country, including Todoroki himself. But Todoroki actually wants to get to know him past the headlines.

Izuku finds himself living a story straight out of a fairy tale, one where the mysterious, handsome prince is played by the real-life superhero he has always admired. But Izuku is convinced he's the ugly duckling, not the swan; could he ever be remarkable enough to get his happily ever after?

This story is SO GOOD! There’s a villain attack at Izuku’s school and he meets Todoroki, Pro Hero Shouto, while helping a tour of high school kids escape the chemistry building. I was GEEKED when I read that one of Izuku’s majors was chemistry. I have a degree in chemistry and got all kinds of feels and started imagining my old stomping grounds as the setting. LOL So, by the power of CHEMISTRY Izuku stops Todoroki from making a misstep that would have blown up the whole building and finds the right chemical to knock the villain unconscious. Izuku saved his hero and his hero THANKED HIM!!!!! I would have died on the spot if I was Izuku. LOL I’m sure that he left a part of himself behind in the ambulance when Todoroki cleaned and bandaged a cut on his cheek. And gave him his phone number??!!! YUP. Dead. There lies Izuku Midoriya cause of death Pro Hero Shouto’s overwhelming cuteness.

The next morning Izuku is resurrected and dies again because he is awakened by Todoroki CALLING HIM ON THE PHONE!!! Evidently, the news got out about who he was (Todoroki told them in order to not take all of the credit for the rescue) and Todoroki called to warn him that the media knew and were on the way to his apartment. These goofballs didn’t get to that part of the conversation before Izuku answered the door to a mob of reporters while wearing PRO HERO SHOUTO PAJAMAS!!! Total fanboy. LOL

Todoroki uses his pull and gets them an interview so the media will stop hounding Izuku. Bless Izuku’s heart and I love Esselle for keeping him a canonically horrible dresser. LOL A pinstriped maroon suit with his sneakers. Thank goodness for Todoroki trying to help this poor walking disaster. So, the interview…..I suffer from issues with second hand embarrassment. Even though I’ve read this chapter multiple times I can’t say that I’ve read the whole interview scene. I think I threw my phone a few times and scrolled quickly by. In fact I’m quickly scrolling by now as I reread to write this review. HA! Embarrassment, you won’t catch me!!! ANYWAY, from what I did see, Izuku was his usual adorkable self and charmed everyone. Todoroki arranged a car ride for Izuku back to campus and I swear these lines were perfect to describe their interaction in the car “Izuku slowly raises his head to look at him again. Todoroki is watching him out of the corner of his eye, like he's afraid if he looks at Izuku full on, Izuku will fling himself out of the moving vehicle. Honestly, the assumption might not be that far off.” If Izuku could he would have tucked and rolled out of that car in embarrassment. LMAO Oh and Todoroki is a jerk. A jerk hiding behind that stoic demeanor. I love when he’s written like that. LOL

So, fanboy Izuku is a member of his school’s Pro Hero Fan Association. Any surprises? No? No, ok. LOL And I hate the smarmy chick who is vice president of the club. Just gonna put it out there. DO NOT LIKE! NYET! And OMG Izuku’s clubmate showing him a Twitter feed of Todoroki watching him during the interview??!! Yo! Looking back, Todoroki was sprung from day one. LOL HE EVEN RETWEETED THE TWITTER THREAD. Yup, sprung. LOL Moving on to the end of the week and Izuku takes Shouto up on his offer of a tour of his agency. Again with Jerky Shouto teasing Izuku about that god awful maroon suit. LOL To Izuku’s surprise, Shouto personally escorts him around on the tour. HIs assistant Aiko alluding to the fact that Shouto had been looking forward to it all week. Oh. Everything is going well, Izuku gets to see a lot and fanboy and then Shouto gets a call from his assistant. Enemy number one is in the building. Shouto’s dad, Endeavor. DUN DUN DUUUUNN!!! These two fools take off running and HIDE in a damn broom closet. WHAT?! LMAO All is still semi-good until the unthinkable happens. All of the excitement leads to Izuku getting a hard on. NOOOOO!!!!!!!! And he’s squished up against Shouto in the small hiding place. “his leg juts out a bit more, and his thigh slots between Izuku's, and Izuku's soul abandons his earthly body.” RIP Izuku Midoriya. AGAIN! At the end of their adventure Izuku ends up with an invite to the Hero’s Gala. An invite from Shouto to attend WITH HIM! Izuku has left this planet again. How many lives does this kid have? LOL

Poor awkward Izuku. His phone calls with Shouto are a mess. It helps that Shouto is awkward as well. As for the gala, Izuku pictures himself going as “Todoroki's friend-guest.” *snort* FRIEND-GUEST?! A guest that is a friend? LOL The things that go through this kid’s head. And what will this walking fashion disaster wear?! Now to worry when Shouto offers to get his outfitted in a suit. Oh! And Shouto wasn’t slick wanting to keep Izuku on the phone after they finished talking about the gala. “How was your day” indeed. LOL

It’s suit fitting day and this whole section is my favorite part of this chapter!! Izuku’s running late at his hero fan association meeting and his fellow club members overhear him talking on the phone with Shouto. Of course that annoying vice president immediately jumps in to say that he’s lying. BLEH! And just as Izuku’s deciding that that he’ll quit the club, who comes to his rescue? None other than Shouto showing up AT the club room to personally retrieve him. You go Shouto! Go save your wannabe bae!!! Their car ride over was adorable with Izuku admitting to liking to see Shouto for who he really is. And NOT wanting Shouto to follow his embarrassing fanboy Twitter account. HA! All of the things that Izuku knows about Shouto’s public persona never ceases to amaze Shouto. Even amazes the tailor. The tailor who’s noticed that Shouto has taken a liking to Izuku. And yeah, Shouto is practically damn drooling when Izuku shows off his tailored tux. Alright people, the TodoDeku train has left the station!! LOL

Momma Inko is a treasure. Even she thinks that Shouto likes him. Recounting all of their “dates.” Gotta pay attention to a mother’s instinct. They KNOW things. LOL When the news showed that Shouto got hurt in an overseas mission poor Izuku got so worried. When he finally talked to Shouto, he jokingly played it off that Izuku was just worried about not being able to go to the gala. JERK! LOL I thought we were about to lose Izuku again when he accidentally called Shouto by his first name and when he heard Shouto call him by his first name. How many more lives does this kid have? Is there a 1-Up mushroom anywhere nearby? LOL And it’s absolutely adorable that they stayed on the phone and Izuku fell asleep with the phone next to him. Like some high school romance when you’re not supposed to be on the phone late at night. LOL

Ooooooo, Todoroki showed up at Izuku’s apartment as soon as he flew back into town. *sings* He wanted to spend time with Izuuukkuuuu! And poor oblivious Izuku still doesn’t realize that it means that he’s interested in him. LOL An impromptu date, cause it is a date. Shouto even brought takeout to eat together. They ate, and talked, and enjoyed each other’s company.

And then IT’S GALA DAY!!!! They’re taking Shouto’s private jet to the location of the gala and the jerk that is Shouto “forgets” to tell Izuku that Ururaka, pro hero Uravity, and Hanta, pro hero Cellophane, will be flying with them. Izuku called him out though. He knows those jerkish ways. LOL Looking back on this segment and this was all a setup for his friends to get to know Izuku. To know him and see all of the wonderful things that Shouto sees in him. ANDDD Izuku’s soul left the building when the plane hit turbulence and Shouto stopped him from falling by pulling him onto his lap. “ Izuku is mentally filing away every detail regarding the entire experience of Todoroki Shouto's Warm Lap.” BWAAAAAAA. Shouto was so protective of him afterward wanting him to feel comfortable with the turbulence. Touching Izuku’s hair and shifting over so their legs almost touched. Such tiny intimate actions. I love how Shouto’s style team pampered Izuku getting him ready for the gala. Izuku deserves a nice night like this. WOOOOOO when those two saw each other in their suits it’s like electricity in the air. They are both so far gone. LOL

Shouto was amazing helping Izuku navigate the red carpet of the event. Even pointing out two girls who were fans of Izuku’s hero actions. The interview with Kaminari made me laugh. The whole time I was thinking, being friends that I know those two have talked about everything already that Kaminari was going to ask. But they had to do it on camera for sure. And when Kaminari asked who Izuku was and Shouto hesitated with “my…” I wondered if he stopped himself from saying “boyfriend” and later on thought maybe he was going to say “date.” “"I feel pretty damn lucky that you're here tonight, too."” Shouto is a goner. LOL

Inside the venue Shouto AGAIN surprised Izuku and introduced him to All Might himself!! Shouto really does enjoy seeing Izuku freak out. The jerk. LOL LIke how do you not tell him he’s going to meet his favorite hero and like Shouto’s surrogate dad??!! LOL All Might’s words of wisdom were just what Izuku needed to finally get it through his head that he had performed heroic acts and it didn’t matter if he was quirkless. All Might in his fatherly way ALSO alluded to Shouto being fond of Izuku. Does EVERYONE know how Shouto feels about Izuku? LOL The hand holding at the table SQUUEEEEEE!!!! They are so adorable. And Todorki’s acceptance speech where he purposely took time out to thank Izuku...yeah, if anyone didn’t know before, they knew then. LOL 

At Shouto’s class’ after party EVERYONE pokes fun at them. His class knows and they’ve been itching to get to meet Izuku. LOL Poor Izuku, consistent minor heart attacks. LOL And then a moment that I had been waiting for (and forgot that I was waiting for) was the introduction of Bakugo! First off, thank you Esselle for making him married to Kirishima. YES! The rival-friendship between him and Shouto. Staring each other down before smiling. Yes, YES!! But I was looking forward to how the interaction between Bakugo and Izuku would play out. Immediately like an older brother/younger brother thing. LOL And Oooooooo is Shouto a little bit jealous???!!!! Tee hee! Well, I think he got over that pretty quickly when Izuku slipped again and ended up on his lap AGAIN! Not that Shouto minded at all. LOL 

And THEN the walk back to Izuku’s hotel room and  both of their insecurities popped up. Shouto’s fault, though. While Izuku thought there were no way that a pro hero would be interested in him, Shouto was thinking that he had nothing to offer Izuku other than being a pro hero. These two disasters. LOL But Izuku acted on his feelings and shared his first kiss with Shouto. Who proceeded to then beat down his door to tongue Izuku down something filthy. LOL WOO BOY!!! These two have been dancing around each other for months and now they’re in Izuku’s hotel room losing their minds. I think that Izuku dies again, more than once. LOL And OMG!!!! Todoroki is so turned on that he can’t control his fire side. YOOO!!!! His mouth is so hot that he’s blowing steam and his jacket caught on fire. LOL Shouto blindfolded listening to Izuku jerk himself off and then watching. HOT!!! On the bed rutting together, in the shower washing each other, Izuku got his man!!!! It tickled me that Shouto was very comfortable walking around naked, not like Izuku would complain about seeing him. And he finally convinced Izuku to be mutual follows on Twitter. LOL Welp, can’t say no now.

Well, that’s it. I really enjoyed this one. And enjoyed the reread I did tonight to work on this review.

[yangingaround]

Bumbleby & Arkos (w/ a little Renora)

okay so back around the time volume 3 wrapped up airing, parts of the fanbase noticed there were a lot of parallels between Bumbleby moments and Arkos moments throughout those few volumes - and to a lesser extent Renora (not so much parallels in characterisations as there were similar uses of narrative tools and themes, though the order, extremity and results could often differ), so i just wanted to review and remind myself of those (as well as any new ones that might have cropped up)

i’ll break it down volume by volume under the cut

Volume 1

alright, we don’t get too many in volume 1 but what we do get are pretty significant

Blake and Pyrrha both take action to ensure they get the partner of their choosing during initiation

when Yang is walking through the forest, for a brief second there’s someone moving across the screen (confirmed to be Blake), and then Blake shows up at the end of her fight with the Ursa and she purposely makes eye contact. Blake had obviously followed Yang and deliberately stepped in so they could partner up. Pyrrha’s more direct, she pinned Jaune to a tree with her weapon so she could go fetch him

there’s a small Renora parallel here in that Nora purposefully sought Ren out, but it’s not as blatant as ensuring they’d team up

Blake and Pyrrha both seem to be rather indulgent to Yang and Jaune’s quirks during initiation - Pyrrha letting the inexperienced Jaune take point despite that they were going the wrong way and she probably knew it, while Blake, while eye-rolling a couple times, clearly doesn’t object to Yang’s silliness and seems to be enjoying spending time with her. both moments also have one asking the other “think this is [the temple with the relics]?’

another small Renora parallel, in that Ren’s clearly used to Nora’s antics and is just kinda tiredly resigned to them

On a smaller note, there’s a couple of interesting parallels in the designs of Blake and Yang compared to Ren and Nora. The first is that both pairs have matching eyes: purple (like Yang’s eyes) is a color associated with Blake and Yang has yellow as her main color (like Blake’s eyes); similarly, Nora’s eyes are green (one of Ren’s colors) and Ren’s are pink (Nora’s primary color). The second is that they each have a color that both members consistently wear, that is, purple for Blake and Yang (all of Blake’s outfits except her dress and all but Yang’s dress and pajamas have it somewhere...that’s four outfits apiece) and pink for Ren and Nora (both of their primary outfits plus Ren’s apron and Nora’s dress in addition to it being the color of their auras).

another thing of note is that Yang and Nora have similar, strength bolstering Semblances, while Blake and Ren are both compared to ninja at some point or another

Volume 2

there ones we get in volume 2 are a bit bigger though it’s still only that major one, however, major scene parallels started kicking in around the dance arc - these scenes were often adjacent to each other from this point

encouragement and promises regarding the dance

at the end of their heart to heart, Yang encourages Blake to do something that will take her mind off things (go to the dance) and get some rest before she burns herself out, because she wants her to be okay, with a lighthearted promise of saving her a dance, so Blake didn’t have to take her up on it if she didn’t want to - Blake then takes her up on the dance offer

similarly, while it’s split up across more scenes and not in the same order, we have a scene where after a talk with Pyrrha, he jokingly promises to wear a dress to the dance if she can’t get a date. later we get Pyrrha encouraging Jaune to ask Weiss out properly, because she wants him to be happy. At the dance, Jaune does change into a dress to keep his word

Volume 3

onto volume 3, where we get a couple of whoppers following the events of episode 6

things happen to Pyrrha and Yang in 3x06 that cause some drama with their partners, though those partners are ultimately supportive of them, that results in them crying in 3x08

Pyrrha learning about the Maidens and the pressure on her leads to her unintentionally lashing out at Jaune when he tries to be supportive but says the worst thing Pyrrha could have heard in that situation, and she runs off in tears. after Yang is framed for attacking Mercury, the uncomfortable surface similarities to Adam make Blake wary - thinking she’d lost Blake’s trust, Yang breaks out in tears - before Blake walks back on the comparison to Adam because she does trust Yang - like Pyrrha, Yang ends this 3x08 isolated from her team

while it’s not a parallel, the danger unfolding in the Vault in 3x11 is intercut with the events in the Dining Room

However, these simultaneous events are a very deliberate directorial choice: Arkos is set up with definite romantic intent from volume 1 onwards thanks to Pyrrha’s feelings for Jaune. intercutting a sequence where something gamechanging happens between Blake and Yang, that will absolutely test the bond they have, into that - it sets up a deliberate comparison; and especially when paired with Adam saying “i will destroy everything you love [...] starting with her”. that’s a deliberate word choice (as he could have easily said ‘everything you care about’), the use of ‘love’ when paired with events involving a pair of characters to which romantic feelings are canonically present is going to romantically charge that statement from a directorial and writing perspective

the next parallels are across 3x11 and 3x12

Blake and Pyrrha try to warn Yang and Jaune away from impending danger (Pyrrha, successful, in getting Jaune away from the fight before it starts, Blake isn’t because she’s too far away and faint for Yang to hear her or make Yang stop)

Pyrrha finally kisses Jaune and makes him fully aware of her feelings before she charges in to fight Cinder. Adam says he’ll destroy everything Blake loves, right before Yang shows up (and then Yang charges in to attack him when she sees Blake is injured)

Pyrrha dies at the hands of a villain she didn’t stand a chance against. Yang is critically and permanently injured by a villain she didn’t stand a chance against.

Jaune will never see Pyrrha again and is very obviously upset and distressed over that. Yang has been abandoned by Blake and the way she talks about it in 3x12 shows that it’s what she’s most affected by from the Fall of Beacon

relatedly, in volume 4 we have Yang saying “a piece of me is gone, and it’s never coming back”, with the heavy implication that she’s not so much talking about the physical loss as she is about losing Blake. and, as we find out in volume 5, it’s highly implied that Yang thought she’d never see Blake again, saying “If she comes back” after Weiss says “when she comes back”)

Volume 4 & 5

Not as many across these two volumes, but there are a couple

Yang and Jaune are both shown to be deeply affected by the loss of their partners

also it’s probably nothing to do with this but interesting to note: Yang and Jaune are the ones shown trusting Ozpin the least

with their redesigns come another important detail, both wearing the colour of someone they’ve lost; the bandana Yang ties around her leg (and not just that, but her shoelaces and hair tie in her DGAS outfit) is now a more vibrant purple, more closely matching the purple that Blake is associated with, while Jaune is wearing red cloth around his waist, part of Pyrrha’s colour scheme

additionally, their ‘upgrades’ in volume 4 (Jaune’s updated armour + sword and Yang’s prosthetic) incorporate the lost partners in some way - Jaune’s literally incorporating Pyrrha into his own gear while Yang changes the blue lights on her prosthetic arm to the same purple as the bandana around her leg

with the reveal of Jaune and Ren’s semblances in these volumes, another parallel manifests between the three named pairings here: each partnership involves an offensive and a defensive/supportive Semblance

Arkos: Pyrrha can control metal and Jaune can act as an Aura battery

Bumbleby: Yang’s strength and damage output increase as she takes hits, Blake’s shadows allow her to avoid taking damage and make her harder to hit

Renora: Nora’s strength and damage output increase when she absorbs electricity, Ren being able to mask negative emotions allows him to essentially become invisible to Grimm

Soundtracks

finally, all three pairings have had outright love songs (Dream Come True, Boop and BMBLB) that have appeared on the soundtrack albums but not in the show (Boop did finally make a small acoustic appearance in the show in volume 4)

interestingly, All That Matters, Dream Come True and Boop all deal with similar themes of the singer (Yang, Pyrrha and Nora, respectively) feeling like the person they’re singing to (Blake, Jaune and Ren, respectively) doesn’t feel the same as, or as much for, them (to various degrees of tragedy given the tones of the songs)

lastly (and the most tenuous point, because it could be that the song is just that generic), Shine seems to draw imagery for all three pairings

for Arkos, the mention of stars (Pyrrha often appeared in starry night scenes, such as her training sessions with Jaune, her fight with Cinder and the message she left for Jaune that he trains with in volume 4) and lines like “That the girl you've been waiting so long for could be me“ - as Jaune was too enamored by Weiss to notice Pyrrha’s feelings

for Bumbleby, there’s a couple of verses that evoke both Yang’s sun imagery and Blake’s shadow imagery: “I was cold in the dark It was empty in my life From the outside it looked so bright But nothing felt right... to me Like a sky with no sun Like a night that has no day My heart was eclipsed by the dark Then something changed I saw a little ray of light come through The tiniest of sparks came into view And then You made me hope again” some of this could be evoking what was already going on between Blake and Yang (with Yang helping Blake out of the darkness she’d found herself steeped in), or it could’ve been foreshadowing how things have changed up between them

for Renora, there’s a few lines that could be foreshadow-y allusions to the backstory we got for Ren (and to a lesser extent, Nora) in volume 4: “When I needed a hero you knew it And you were there And I'm scared but I'll open my heart up I'm ready to dare”

anyways, that about covers it, hope it makes some degree of sense

-Mod S and Mod H

[xtoxicblueberry]

((not my art, that was done by the wonderful, and lovely @ronyascribbles)

“ I will help you if so desired, if you need my staff or bow just call me. ”

Name: Kari Age: 20-24 Gender: Female Nationality: Nohrian Race: Human Birthday: 08/02

Height: 5'4" (162.56 cm ) Eye color: Apple green Hair color: Light blue Hair style: Typically up, mainly in twin tails. She will wear it in a bun if she’s either in the bath house or its just a super hot day. Though she will wear it down at times. Clothing style: Other then her adventure outfit that she wears to battle; she typically wears comfy clothes. Tank tops and short shorts or pants, depending on the weather. Her clothes are typically black.

Hobies: walking Around, exploring, window shopping. Likes: Talking to people she gets along with, playing with Animals, looking at things she finds interesting, almost all things sweet, ice coffee, relaxing, enjoying nature, making up stories about her scars and seeing how far she can go and what people would believe, stimulating conversation, storms, and rainy weather. Dislikes: Being around so many people, being touched in any way, by a person, unless she is very close with said person, talking to someone she just met, messy things, getting dirty, chocolate flavored things.

Personal Skill: Vigilante - Grants +20 Hit/Str/Crit if attacking a unit that has attacked another unit without a weapon equipped.

Affiliation: None (Recruitable in Birthright, Conquest, and Revelation. )

Roster: A traveling young woman without a set destination. Cold and distant, she is hard to befriend. If you gain her trust she will become a very loyal and trust worthy friend. Most likely to comfort others in distress. Born August 2nd.

History: Kari was born a high class Noble, her father was a leader of one of the higher up fractions from one of the many armies under King Garon, her father was a great Knight and her birth mother was a troubadour. They met in the army. Shortly after Kari’s birth, the mother was killed on the battle field. Her Father developed the habit to get Kari any and everything she could ever want; going above and beyond what she would ask for. He became doting and spoiled her. Though she didn’t like it, her father had her take many lessons, some consist of Piano, violin, dance, chess, singing, stiching and anything else that he felt a proper lady should know how to do. To try and make sure the loss of her mother didn’t affect her to much, he remarried. The woman had the wicked step mom Syndrome, she never wanted children. She would act innocent and kind in front of Kari’s father, but once he wasn’t there she would be mean and horrid. She was a pure Noble woman, both her parents came from money, she never worked a day in her life. She was a floozy and only looked for money in men. She cared more about her social status and looks above all else. She would never allowed Kari to call her “mother” or “mom” though she was in her life for many years. Kari was mainly raised by butlers and maids, due to the demanding hours of her fathers job. This caused her to say humble and kind. The maids and Butler’s tought her many life skills, such as cooking and proper cleaning techniques. she would often help them out with chorus, for fun. When she was still young, but old enough to take care of her self, her father died in battle. Leaving her with the step mom whom really didn’t want anything to do with her. One night, she slipped poison into Kari’s food, though an elderly maid whom took care of Kari since she was born stopped it from ever reaching her. Thus as punishment, the woman made the maid eat the food, losing the closest thing to a mother she had left. After Kari’s father passed, her step mom would bring home a different man every night. One night, the man she took home turned out to be a thief. Him and his small gange turned over the house killing all who lived there. With the help of some maids and Butler’s, Kari managed to stay hidden for a long time, but once he found her he tried to end her life. Though he failed, the man did however leave a large scar going down the left side of her face and partly her neck causing her to have nerve damage on most her face and lose eyesight in that eye. Once she was able to move around once more, she went to an old friend of her fathers. He managed to save her eye. Once he fixed her, and she was fully healed, she left. She now wonders around, she does what she needs to do to survive.

RECRUITMENT

Birthright Recruitment Recruited In: Chapter 12: Dark Reunion Recruitment: The Avatar must talk to her. Starting Class: Adventurer Starting Level: 16 Motivations for joining the Avatar: She wants to help end the war.

Conquest Recruitment Recruited In: Chapter 14: Voice of Paradise Recruitment: The Avatar must talk to her. Starting Class: Adventurer Starting Level: 16 Motivations for joining the Avatar: She wants to help end the War.

Revelation Recruitment Recruited In: Chapter 13: A lost Peace Recruitment: The Avatar must talk to her. Starting Class: Adventurer Starting Level: 16 Motivations for joining the Avatar: She wants to help end the war.

UNIT STATS

Asset: Speed Flaw: Resistance Skill(s): Point Blank, Luna, Resistance +2, Locktouch, Pass Weapon(s): Killer bow, Recover, Mend Class Sets: Adventurer                   Heart Seal > Maid

SUPPORTS

Romance Supports: Corrin (M), Jakob, Kaze, Saizo, Subaki, Silas, Xander, Azama, Hayato, Kaden, Hinata, Ryoma, Takumi, Arthur, Keaton, Odin, Leo, Laslow, Benny, Shura, Niles.

Other Supports: Corrin (F), Felicia, Rinkah, Orochi, Setsuna, Mozu, Oboro, Kagera, Nyx, Beruka, Peri, Charlotte, Selena, Asugi, Dwyer, Sigure, Sophie, Shiro, Kiragi, Selki, Mitama, Rhajat, Siegbert, Forrest, Ignatius, Velouria, Soleil, Nina.

Ideal (‘Canon’) Spouse: Keaton or Shura

QUOTES

Event Tile: “ Hum? What’s this? ” (item) “ No such thing as to much practice.. ” (exp) “ Hmm.. I feel I’m improving.. ” (weapon proficiency)

Level Up: “ Wow! I impress myself sometimes! ” (6+) “ There’s always room for improvement.  ” (4-5) “ Do I disappoint you? ” (2-3) “ Tch, that’s it?  ” (0-1) “ forgive me! ” (0-1, most skills capped)

Class Change: “ This is new.. ”

Support: “ I got your back! ” “ I’ll help you! ” “ don’t worry I got you! ” ” I’ll keep you safe! ” “ I’m here for you! ” “ Who’s the enemy here? Hehee kidding~” “ Don’t back down! ”

Attack Stance: “ Let me have a go! ” “ I’ll take a shot! ” “ My turn! ” “ Time to strike! ”

Guard Stance: “ Time and place! ” “ I thought I was the blind one! ” “ I won’t let them hurt you! ”

Critical / Skill: “ I have no mercy for scum like you. ” “ I’ll make you pay! ” “ I won’t hold back! ” “ I’ll shoot you down! ”

Defeated Enemy: “ On to the next. ” “ To easy. ” “ I suppose that was amusing. ”

Partner Defeated Enemy: “ Nice shot! ” “ I missed that do it again! ” “ killer shot! Hehe. ”

When Healed: “ This is a nice change of pace. ” “ Thanks! ” “ Who are you again? Kidding~”

Defeated by Enemy: “ I-I didn’t see you coming.. ”

Death Quote: “ This is it..  Mother.. Father.. I’ll.. See you Soon.. “

Retreat Quote: “ Ugh! It’s to blurry, I can’t tell who is who! I have to fall back! I don’t want to hurt an ally”

DLC Battle Quotes: Boo Camp “ You’re the monsters everyone’s talking about? You aren’t so scary.. I’ll show you true horror! ” Museum Melee “ Ooo ~ I see something shiny ~ that’s mine now hehee” Ghostly Gold “ Huh… Ghosts… Who would have though.. All well, time to die again~” Anna on the run “ I know my eyesight isn’t the best.. But I think I’m seeing double.. ”

Confession Quote: “ I don’t need my sight to see how much you mean to me. You have my heart now and forever…. (I hope you know what you’re getting in to. Hehee)”

MY CASTLE QUOTES

Castle Grounds Alone - ” Talk about a sugar rush! “ (surge) - ” I snuck in some training, I hope it paid off. “ (weapon proficiency) - ” This is NOT where this belongs, who left it here? “ (item) - ” What do you think will look good on me? “ (accessory)   - ” Wow! Thank you! “ (accessory given)   - ” So pretty! “ (accessory given)   - ” Is.. This a joke? “ (accessory given, not liked)   - ” Hehe thanks shall I try it on now? “ (Bath Towel given)   - ” Hehee thank you, this means a lot to me. “ (Friendship birthday present)   - ” Ahh hehee you know me so well ~ I love this so much! I’ll cherish it always. “ (Lover birthday present) - ” Hmm? Did you need something? “ (idle) - ” W-what? No I was not just dancing! “ (idle) - ” La laa la ~ W-whaa!! H-how long have you been there?! “ (idle) - ” Is someone there? Hehe ~ I’m kidding! I see you just fine. “ (idle) - ” Wow aren’t you cute ~ don’t I know you from somewhere? Hehe “ (idle, married) - “oh? A new face I see, let me know if you need anything. ” (visiting another castle)

Asking - Normal “ What has you so happy? Did something good happen? ” (happy) “ What do you think your future holds for you? ” (dreams) “ I’ll watch your backside- I mean back in the next battle, sound good? ” (team up) “ Indulge me in my curiosity… How do you spend your down time? ” (free time)

Replying - Normal “ I love the feeling I get when I finish cleaning. ” (happy) “ I hope to find true happiness one day. ” (dreams) “ Alright, no promises I won’t mistake you for the enemy ~ I’m kidding,  I’m kidding! ” (team up) “ I often walk beyond the camp boarders, or wonder around the forest. ” (free time)

Private Quarters Friendship “ You called me for something? ” (invite) “ I baked some cookies, want one? No I didn’t put salt instead of sugar in them this time. ” (invite) “ Hehee now this will be fun ~ ” (invite, MU is married)

Lovers “ Hey! I finished cleaning up, don’t mess it up. ” (greeting) “ I missed you! Don’t leave me again.. ” (greeting) “ I-I’ve been practicing my violin.. Would you mind listening? ” (greeting) “ Hehee that’s the best sight to wake up to. ” (awakening, good) “ Do that again and you will regret it.. ” (awakening, bad) “ My hair is such a pain to dry.. ” (greeting, cool down) “ Hehee thanks that felt nice ~ your turn now ~ ” (cooling down successful) “ Oh my! How beautiful! Thank you! ” (flowers)

Bonding “ If that’s all you need, mind if I go? ” (friendship bonding) “ It was a pleasure spending this time with you. Invite me again some time. ” (friendship bonding) “ I’m glad we can spend this time together..   These are the happiest moments of my day. ” (lover bonding) “ I just want to hold you in my arms and never let go.. Promise you won’t leave me.. ” (lover bonding) “ Come here for a moment, Hehee I’m not going to bit you… (See, I told you I wouldn’t bite you, This time. Hehe) ” (kiss)

Extras/little quirks: She won’t dule someone unless there is a wager of some sort; even if she manages to win she will let the other party have their winnings as well. After her father passed away she continues to practice all the things he wanted her to learn when ever she can. Typically after doing one of them she would cry a little and say softly to her self,  “are you proud papa? ” or “am I improving father? ” she can be fairly vain when it comes to her hair, she takes pride in its soft silky texture. When she’s in deep thought she will twirl the ends of her hair. Because of the damage to her left side of her face, she can no longer produce tears from that eye. The left eye is also significantly lighter in color, and has a small thin line down it from where it was cut. Though she hates chocolate flavored things she loves normal chocolate. If she eats anything remotely spicy she turns red and gets sick, if it’s really spicy she will pass out. She is very flexible and uses it to an advantage in hand to hand fighting.

[zeemonkey1]

Hoedown

           He has returned. For a while there I thought I was done with him—it’s been over a month, after all, and the last time I tangled with Curious George all I got was a public domain parody poem that permanently and exasperatingly rings in my head over and over like the time I fucked up on Jeopardy.

           But it’s personnel, kid. George and his crew have come at me, right where I live.

           They had a hoedown.

           I think the creative process went something like this: one of the numerous executive producers, maybe Ron Howard, had a nephew or cousin or something that once told him at a wedding that he wanted to get into screenwriting. Maybe it’s Clint’s kid. Maybe Clint has a kid; I can’t be bothered to IMDB every damn thing so we’ll say Clint Howard has a college-age kid who goes to NYU and is majoring in film studies. Let’s call this kid Steve. Steve is a bit awkward and is just about to slough off his high-school-emo-poetry-writing stage for good and metamorph into the kind of cringy hipster bullshit that infects people with too much money and too little self-awareness. Steve has only left Manhattan once in his life: four days ago, in fact. He took the train to Boston to watch a guy he met on Grindr play the overly rapey bad guy in Oklahoma! Steve sat through five performances, including the matinee that had the understudy take over when Mr. Think He Cute started yelling about tinnitus.

           It went well. Back home after a very eventful weekend, Steve looked at his email. “Hey Steve!” says Ron Howard textingly, “pulled a few strings and can get u writing credit on Curious George. Send a script next Monday.” Now, Steve’s been under a lot of pressure lately. His uncle is Ron Howard and his father is Clint Howard and they don’t need to know what he’s been up to in the six days since that email was sent. Also it’s 1:00 Monday morning and Steve’s roommate is in the Hamptons somewhere but his bottle of Adderall ain’t and maybe he won’t notice if Steve takes four of them.

           This is how the Rankins ended up hosting a hoedown in their barn, and all manner of canon and continuity were destroyed. The Rankins are Yankees to the depths of their rhubarb-eating souls, with downeast accents so thick they could talk a clown up out of a stormdrain. They have no reason to appropriate southern culture unless, for example, somebody behind the scenes watched Oklahoma! five times. So let’s pretend hay bales are benches, and let’s shuck-and-jive and wear our jeans tucked into our boots and yeeee-HAW! We don’t need Ali Hakim we got a monkey

           Allie Whoops and George were hanging Christmas lights in the barn rafters when the entertainment showed up in the dadgum Doodlebops bus. The entertainment for the evening, MYH was kind enough to tell us, was the Uptown Bluegrass Band, just a-pickin and a-grinnin atop the only double-decker bus on the Eastern seaboard. This is how our writer conceived of a bluegrass band. Behold:

The fiddle-player was a grown Tinkerbell in Molly Ringwald’s pink dress and Lisa Loeb’s hornrims. She looked like she was about to go on America’s Got Talent and lose to the cutest little Beyond Belief dropout ever to plié.

The banjo player was Betty Rubble in Back to the Future cosplay. She was not wearing overalls, nor a straw hat, and therefore had to be faking the banjo picking.

The mandolin player was Andy Richter, only fatter and quieter and more plaid.

The bass player was black. The only black person at the hoedown plays the bass. No wonder Token had one in his basement.

Oh and then, O Lord, their leader. Perhaps he was actually from Kentucky as his fake-ass accent purported, because his cowboy outfit was a bright Wildcat blue. Within two sentences he had introduced his guitar. Its name was Beau.

probably a les paul

“But yee-haw shucks and bless mah soul,” quoth the Blue Cowboy, “we shore gon have us a hoedown yippie-kay-yay. Ah reckon you Yaller feller oughta play the gee-tar with us this evenin, ho dee do.”

“Howdy howdy y’aaaaaall,” he added.

I wanted to kill them. I wanted a time machine so that I could murder Steve at the moment of his script’s conception, assume his identity, and rewrite the hoedown episode so that all the guests, and the band, and the monkey, and Allie Whoops end up in the Event Horizon universe for all eternity, and the poor Korean animator forced to bring my vile dreams to life would gouge out his own eyes just to make the visions stop.

But then Allie Whoops and George find MYH’s guitar and destroy it by giving it a bath.

And I then knew the deepest parts of my rage, for I could tell that the guitar existed only so that Georga and Allie could bathe it, and until this episode MYH played the fucking tuba but now he plays bluegrass guitar well enough to be called up on stage with the band, and the very concept of a hoedown in the Curious George universe is contrived so that all of this could come to pass and give George a reason to build a replacement guitar out of shit he finds around the house.

A shoebox. Chopsticks. Dental floss and yo-yo string and picture wire. All lovingly assembled by a monkey, who thus created such a miraculous instrument that when MYH and Blue Cowboy see the warped and peeled mess that was MYH’s guitar, they are not angry. They do not beat or kill George. They are thankful.

It is good the monkey did that. Whatever the monkey does is good. MYH plays the new guitar perfectly onstage, and the song they sing is about the guitar’s construction.

How deliciously meta, Steve.