#i think amethyst really has some great humor as well!!! the good thing about these longer fics is that i can fit the humor in well with the | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

gaspardcaderousse · 4 years ago

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Masterlist of Amedot Moments & Tidbits

This is a post I originally made and maintained starting around the time Beta came out, but accidentally deleted it recently (rip the hundreds of notes it had accumulated). Luckily, I was able to find an earlier version via Google Cache, so behold: the edited masterlist, ten whole pages long in Google Docs. As of 1/30/2021, this contains every moment from the show and comics and won’t be updated unless more media is released in the future.

If you can think of anything I might’ve missed, please let me know! Reblogs are obviously welcome. I’ve also got a video of all amedot moments in the show if that interests you. Amedot rights!

IRL

Amethyst and peridot gemstones are commonly paired together in jewelry, similar to how ruby and sapphire (a canon couple) are.

There has been a fair bit of art of them drawn by the crew. There are multiple pieces of them interacting by Danny Cragg, Maya Peterson has drawn art of them (she has an amedot tag of her own art on her tumblr, plus some other romantically suggestive art of them together), Nicole Rodriguez has drawn shippy art of them (she doesn’t have an amedot tag, but some can be found in her peridot tag), comic writer Grace Kraft has drawn them (she has a tag), and Rebecca Sugar has drawn them together, too.

Catch and Release

When Peridot is running up the stairs, Amethyst pulls out her whip and says “Hey” to Peridot in a rather provocative tone.

Too Far

Peridot is obviously desperate for Amethyst to pay attention to her and see her as cool. She made jokes about the other gems to impress her (even if she was unknowingly being rude) and said to Steven that she thought she was being “cool” by doing so, and tries to make Amethyst laugh with her names for things (ex. “rythmatic pulverizer”). This behavior is typical of someone who has a crush, and was not just due to Amethyst’s status as a quartz; Peridot argues with and states that she dislikes Jasper, another quartz (and not a defective one, at that).

Peridot was visibly upset when Amethyst didn’t find her funny and said she felt “smaller” when Amethyst gave her the cold shoulder.

Peridot goes out of her way to save Amethyst from the drill head, even managing to break her leash in effort to do so.

After saving Amethyst, Peridot is shown to have fallen on her; that and her reaction seem to reference the anime trope where the character will fall on their love interest and immediately become flustered.

Peridot’s apology at the end of the episode! This is probably the most heartfelt apology she’s given (compared to her actions at the end of Back to the Barn and throughout Barn Mates), and she specifically calls Amethyst “the best gem here”. She also admits that she was in the wrong with her statements and this is the first time she does so – compare with Back to the Barn, where she acts like Pearl needed to prove herself to her before Peridot could apologize. In that way, this was a huge turn for her character.

That little exchange of smiles at the end. It’s adorable.

Steven’s Birthday

Amethyst invites Peridot to join them and even blows up a cute lil Peridot-shaped balloon.

It Could’ve Been Great

Peridot tries to impress Amethyst with her knowledge about gems (specifically how they immediately adjust to the gravity of any planetoid), and is disappointed/surprised when Amethyst doesn’t find it interesting.

Peridot tries to compliment Amethyst by saying that the Beta Kindergarten was nowhere near as impressive as the Kindergarten Amethyst originated from.

Message Received

Aside from Steven, Amethyst was the most visibly upset at Peridot’s betrayal, likely due to how close they were.

Log Date 7 15 2

When trying on the paint cans Steven gives to her, Peridot is shown to want to impress Amethyst with her new height. She also wants to show it off to Pearl, but she’s specifically trying to help Amethyst, whereas it’s just her height she wants to show Pearl; she wants Pearl to see how tall she is, and wants Amethyst to see how capable she is and actually wants to do something to actively help her.

If we assume Peridot’s shipping chart represents the gems, and that the green is Peridot and the purple is Amethyst, it is clearly shown that they are paired together.

Peridot’s descriptions seem to imply that Percy and Pierre represent Peridot and Amethyst respectively, and she obviously thinks those two belong together. At the very least, the pairs have similarities.

Amethyst says that she uses shapeshifting to be cool and directly shapeshifts into Peridot, showing that she obviously thinks Peridot is cool.

Amethyst is shown to know Peridot well enough to perfectly mimic her speech patterns, and says that she has been practicing doing so. She also says it’s “hard to beat the original”, to which Peridot responds to by blushing and giggling.

Peridot states that she finds Amethyst’s company entertaining.

Barn Mates

Peridot seems to be picking up some phrasing from spending time with Amethyst, directly referenced in the “Holy smokes!” scene.

Hit the Diamond

As soon as Peridot says that she’s scared, Amethyst immediately decides to ambush the Rubies in her defense.

Too Short to Ride

Peridot shows off her tablet-velcro innovation to Amethyst, attempting to impress her again.

Amethyst tries to win Peridot’s desired prize for her.

Amethyst gives a whole little speech to Peridot about how they like her for who she is, which shows that Amethyst genuinely likes Peridot for who she is and wants her to enjoy herself.

Amethyst tries to throw away Peridot’s tablet. While not necessarily the right thing to do, she was still trying to help Peridot in doing so. This also unintentionally means that Amethyst is the reason Peridot discovered her powers.

Amethyst also casually touches Peridot a lot throughout this episode (ex. putting her arm around her shoulders). Peridot doesn’t seem to mind this, in stark contrast to how she reacts when Mr. Smiley touched her.

Beta

Peridot is obviously very excited to see Amethyst; she runs down to see her, arms open wide, shouting her name happily.

Peridot is excited to show her art off to Amethyst (and specifically Amethyst).

When Steven tells Peridot why Amethyst is upset, Peridot doesn’t hold her attitude against her and immediately tries to make her feel better by telling her that she’s better than Jasper and insulting Jasper’s Kindergarten. I mean, it’s not the best way of comforting someone, but Peridot hasn’t been shown to be particularly good at comforting people.

This episode makes Amethyst the first person for Peridot to give affectionate nicknames (Ams, Big A).

Peridot is also obviously more physical with Amethyst (for example, putting her arm around Amethyst’s shoulder) similar to how Amethyst was with her in Too Short to Ride, even though Peridot seems to be have an aversion with physical contact except with those she is very close with.

Earthlings

Peridot seemed particularly worried when Amethyst left to fight Jasper, even more so than Steven did.

They both seemed to share a mutual desire to protect one another. Even so, they were also trying to protect Steven, so this doesn’t necessarily solely indicate romantic interest.

Back to the Moon

When Amethyst walked away from Peridot during Doc’s rant, Peridot reached out to her for a few moments.

The Kindergarten Kid

Given Peridot’s previous attempts to impress Amethyst, her behavior at the beginning of the episode seems to be in attempt to show off to her. She may also be trying to show off to the other three Crystal Gems as well, but she specifically says some things in response to Amethyst and has tried to impress her more in the past than the others, so this is possibly directed more at her.

Amethyst is the most clearly insulted by Peridot’s comments at the beginning of the episode, showing that she really does care about her opinion. However, she forgives her after Peridot beats the corrupted gem and admits her misjudgments.

Amethyst is the first to compliment Peridot’s ability to bubble.

Last One Out of Beach City

When they arrive at the party, Amethyst tells Pearl to talk to a nerd. While this isn’t necessarily just referring to Amethyst and Peridot’s own relationship, it could be interpreted that way, as Amethyst calls Peridot a nerd rather frequently.

Adventures in Light Distortion

Amethyst seems to be actively listening to and taking interest in Peridot’s comments about the space ship, shown further when she refers to Peridot saying the gravity engine “bends reality”. While not necessarily romantic, it does show how their relationship has developed since It Could’ve Been Great, when she mostly ignores Peridot’s similar comments.

The New Crystal Gems

When Lapis says she doesn’t know who Amethyst is, Peridot seems visibly annoyed.

Peridot indirectly states that she thinks Amethyst has a good sense of humor (an opinion which she has voiced multiple times before).

Back to the Kindergarten

Amethyst’s entire motivation in this episode is to cheer Peridot up; she obviously cares a lot about her wellbeing and emotional health. It is obviously very effective, as Peridot begins to feel better throughout the episode in direct response to Amethyst’s actions, which goes to show just how well Amethyst knows her, and how much Peridot cares about Amethyst’s opinion.

The first time Peridot smiles since the beginning of her depression is in direct response to Amethyst complimenting her. She’s also very visibly blushing.

The two are essentially flirting throughout the entire episode. Amethyst poses while leaning against a wall while complimenting Peridot resulting in the above reaction, they joke with each other while gardening, and at one point Peridot can be heard speaking passionately to Amethyst about their project while Amethyst smiles at her with half-closed eyes. Amethyst replies, “Oh yeah?” in a tone that sounds very obviously flirtatious.

Again, Amethyst is shown to casually touch Peridot a lot; she puts her hand on her shoulder and even picks her up and carries her at one point. Again, Peridot is perfectly okay with it.

The gardening project happened because of Amethyst, and ultimately is what taught Peridot that even when some things are beyond saving, there is always hope to be found somewhere, and sometimes you have to move on. This is another major character development for her - again, one caused directly by Amethyst.

Letters to Lars

Amethyst and Peridot are seen doing improv together and seem to consistently agree with and encourage each other. While this isn’t necessarily romantic, it does show that they have been spending a good deal of time together casually offscreen.

Can’t Go Back

While Lapis is spying on the Crystal Gems on Earth, Peridot can be seen looking upset. Amethyst approaches Garnet and Pearl in what seems to be a worried way, and the three of them talk to Peridot, who eventually seems to brighten up. It seems like Amethyst noticed that Peridot was upset and came to the others with her concerns, leading to them cheering Peridot up, making her the direct cause in Peridot’s change in attitude and showing, again, that she cares for her emotional state.

As the Crystal Gems walk away, the projection of Peridot is the first to walk through Lapis, followed by Amethyst. This could be symbolism; Peridot is moving on from Lapis and her sadness over her leaving, with help from and while forging a stronger relationship with Amethyst.

Made of Honor

Amethyst and Peridot are seen standing together and casually interacting on multiple occasions throughout the episode - more than either with anyone else.

At one point, Peridot leans back on a chair while talking to Amethyst before falling over. The way it’s posed looks like a pretty textbook example of flirting (… and then making a fool out of oneself in attempt to flirt).

At the end of the episode, Amethyst puts her arm around Peridot’s shoulder. This is, yet again, an example of how physical they are with each other.

Reunited

Like in Made of Honor, Amethyst and Peridot are seen standing together and casually interacting multiple times onscreen.

Peridot is very physical with Amethyst in this episode, grabbing her arm and hiding behind her and pushing her in attempt to help push Steven’s shield. This shows again how physical they are with each other, and again shows that Peridot is very comfortable being physical with Amethyst (noticeably more so than with any other character at this point) despite her aversion to contact.

They can be seen bragging to each other about how they attacked Blue Diamond. Bismuth is also there, but they noticeably seem to be directing their boasts at each other.

Change Your Mind

Peridot and Amethyst seem to be taking inspiration from each other on their new regenerations. Amethyst has a triangle shape around her gem now, and Peridot has her stars on her knees like Amethyst’s old designs.

After the battle with White Diamond, Peridot immediately runs over to Amethyst and practically tackle hugs her. This is far more physical than she’s been with anyone else before in the series, and they both seem genuinely overjoyed to be with each other. Amethyst also holds her hand up right beforehand, either to wave or high five her.

Steven Universe: The Movie

When Amethyst recovers from Spinel’s attack, Peridot doesn’t initially realize that she’s back to normal and reacts very strongly upon seeing her, exclaiming that she can’t bear to see Amethyst “vacant and bereft of personality”. Interestingly, Peridot doesn’t seem affected at all to see Ruby, Sapphire, Garnet, or Pearl in such a state, but she’s so upset by the sight of Amethyst reduced to a shell of herself that she physically refuses to look at her.

In addition, Peridot immediately changes attitude and reacts excitedly when Amethyst tells her that she’s back to normal, despite the fact that the world is in dire threat of destruction.

When the gems are seen working on repairing the city towards the end of the movie, Peridot can be seen riding inside of Amethyst (who is shape shifted into a crane) to put up the donut on the Big Donut. They share a wink and a smile while doing this. It would have been just as easy for Amethyst to put it up on her own; Peridot isn’t really doing much to help, she’s just chilling there to hang out with Amethyst.

Bluebird

Throughout the episode, Amethyst and Peridot are the only two characters to point out that Steven likes tomato soup. Of course, this isn’t really evidence and by no means indicates anything romantic, but it does highlight how similar their thought patterns have become in certain ways. It’s reminiscent of the “Holy smokes!” scene back in Barn Mates.

Everything’s Fine

Peridot mentions to Steven that Amethyst told her that he was prohibited from messing with plants. Since Steven Universe: Future focuses so heavily on Steven, the other gems don’t interact all that much, but this makes it clear that Amethyst and Peridot, at least, are hanging out offscreen.

2017-Present Comic Series

Please note that all the comics are written by different people, and are considered “level 2 canon”; rather, not inherently canon but you’re free to consider them canon as long as they don’t contradict the show. Any italicized points are from entirely non-canon comics that directly contradict the show in some way. Even the non-italicized ones are not necessarily canon, however.

All throughout Issue 4 (in which Amethyst, Peridot, and Steven visit a renaissance fair together), Amethyst and Peridot are continuously very physical with each other, especially Amethyst towards Peridot.

When Steven calls Peridot cute, Amethyst can be seen blushing and holding her hands up to her face in a way that shows her clearly gushing over how “cute” Peridot is. While this is pretty typical behavior for Steven regarding cute things, it really isn’t for Amethyst; she just thinks Peridot is that adorable.

Amethyst is very excited when Peridot wins a joust, notably more so than Steven.

In Issue 9 (in which Vidalia gives Peridot and Lapis art lessons), Amethyst models for them. Peridot is notably very enthusiastic while illustrating her.

Amethyst seems concerned for Peridot specifically when she and Lapis start arguing.

In Issue 11 (in which Steven, Lapis, and Peridot take part in a cooking competition), Peridot runs into Amethyst at the competition and is especially happy to see her.

In Issue 17 (aka Peridot Becomes A Gamer), Amethyst is the first of the Crystal Gems to try to convince Peridot to get out and do stuff.

She also seems to be cheering for Peridot during her match against Pearl.

Although Peridot had been entirely immersed in the video game when the others first approached her and then smug during her match against Pearl, she actually indulges in some genuinely lighthearted banter with Amethyst before their match. She actually seems pretty happy, despite the context of the comic. In turn, she also reacts downright fondly when Amethyst loses.

Amethyst is also the first to comfort Peridot when she admits that she’s been using video games to cope with Lapis leaving, and in turn opens up to her a bit in attempt to empathize.

In Issue 33 (in which Peridot introduces Amethyst and Pearl to Camp Pining Hearts), Amethyst is the first to approach her and asks to watch the show with her.

Amethyst and Pearl make Peridot blush when they agree to continue watching CPH with her.

It’s Amethyst’s comment about Percy and Paulette’s lack of chemistry that gets Peridot excited; she blushes and gets the star effect in her eyes.

Harmony

Peridot and Amethyst are seen paired together throughout the course of the comics, walking close to each other, sitting together inside the Harmony Core, etc.

There’s a panel where Peridot’s Twitter is visible, and Amethyst is, interestingly, the only other gem visible in her image gallery.

Camp Pining Play

At one point during rehearsal, Amethyst comes up behind Peridot and announces herself while sparkling.

Peridot is clearly impressed and enthusiastic about Amethyst’s acting abilities.

Crystal Clean

Similarly to in Harmony, Peridot and Amethyst are often paired together.

Amethyst is also physical with Peridot like in the show, grabbing Peridot’s arm once she gets onto the warp pad at one point, which Peridot doesn’t seem to mind.

Directly after this, when they warp back into the temple, Amethyst seems to be standing in front of Peridot in a protective position.

Misc.

Peridot and Amethyst’s relationship has been consistently shown to advance the plot and cause them to develop as people – it is undebatable that they are important to each other’s characters and the plot as a whole.

Amethyst has more nicknames for Peridot over the course of a few episodes than she has for any other character, including characters like Steven and Pearl who she has known for the entire series.

Overall, there are actually quite a few parallels to rupphire (one saving the other soon after meeting (Too Far and The Answer, with one even being followed directly by the other, drawing further attention to this), both couples being short with somewhat opposing color schemes, one being higher ranked and the other lower ranked on the gem caste system, one acting on emotions and the other one logic, etc.) The parallel is strengthened in Steven Universe: The Movie, when Sapphire saves Ruby from a berserk pizza cutter; this scene is even more similar to the drill scene from Too Far.

As with rupphire, amedot also parallels conniverse in the sense that one saved the other when they had very little knowledge of each other, both are short in stature with somewhat opposing dispositions, etc.

Relating to the former two points, Rebecca Sugar has called the act of saving another in such a way as was done in The Answer as “ridiculously romantic”. Given all the parallels with two of the show’s largest ships and then this…

#steven universe #su #peridot su #amethyst su #amedot #perithyst #screms

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love-takes-work · 6 years ago

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Ace/Aro Amethyst headcanons

Some people headcanon Amethyst as asexual and/or aromantic. I think that's pretty cool.

Unfortunately, some people are really hostile to this idea. Sometimes in a way that's problematic.

No, I'm not going to tell you you have to headcanon Amethyst as asexual and aromantic or else you're an acephobe. That's silly. Here's the problem: I recently came across a post on Reddit where a member of the Steven Universe subreddit demanded to know where the "stupid" headcanon of ace Amethyst came from and opined that it's ridiculous because that orientation does not "fit her personality."

Think about that for a sec, y'all.

Sexualities don't have personalities. This is a problem.

If you follow some of the interviews Rebecca Sugar has done over the years, especially lately, she sometimes talks about her growth toward understanding herself as bisexual and why it took her so long to figure it out. It was partly because media representation of characters follows a certain system, and as a result she'd been led to believe bisexual people were aggressively sexual, greedy, unfaithful, and extremely desirous of attention.

"I didn't know you could be a SHY bisexual," she said, and you can hear the wonder in her voice at that idea.

So let's really consider that, please. Any orientation can have any type of personality. And if you pigeonhole someone into what their orientation is likely to be because of how you interpret their personality and what messages you've internalized about what traits go with the way they are, you are probably contributing to this damaging message.

Moving on: full disclosure. I'm an asexual Steven Universe fan. I'm also aromantic. And anybody who says asexual people wouldn't have a personality like Amethyst has probably never hung out in a room full of asexual people. (Uh, I have.)

There are shy people in the groups. There are conservative people in the groups. There are easily offended and sensitive people in the groups. But you will also find bawdy asexual people cracking gross jokes, asexual people who nevertheless turn everything into a sex joke, asexual people who are sex positive and even occasionally promiscuous or interested in sex. (If you don't understand how that's not a contradiction, I'll just leave you on your own to read some asexual education, because I'm not actually trying to go there with this post.)

Personally, I was raised by a rather crass mom whose sense of humor led her to blurt "IS IT A PENIS? BWAHAHAHA!" at the start of every round of Pictionary. She taught her daughters sex education early because she wanted us to know the facts, and though she joked about sex a lot, she also made it very clear that she expected us to make sex a part of our lives when we were older, and didn’t want us to think it was shameful or should be hidden. She gave us access to birth control in our mid teens and made sure we had the resources to make good choices about sex. It wasn't embarrassing or weird in our house. And even though I turned out ace, my siblings are straight and married. I grew up making ridiculous sex jokes and not being at all shocked by sexual humor or sexual situations. It was all just a good time and an accepting atmosphere. It was also okay that I didn't desire it myself. It didn't mean I couldn't dish out the innuendo with the best of them.

And yet, sometimes when I've come out as ace to someone and then they notice I use swear words, or am not horrified into covering my face during the movie's kissing scene, or have done things they really don't expect asexual people to enjoy, I'm treated to this weird mixture of shock-and-mock:

"Whaaaaat? Aren't you too PURE to use language like that, young lady?" "Plug your virgin ears, girl, we're talking about ADULT THINGS." "Don't worry, I won't mention S-E-X. LOL triggered." "She wouldn't be interested. It's about relationships and she thinks that's ICKY." "GASP! You just used the F word! Wait isn't that ironic?"

No, having a vocabulary that includes vulgarities and being tolerant of other people's desires is not inconsistent with being asexual. Being asexual means I don't feel sexually attracted to other people. It says absolutely zero about my behavior, and nothing I do is "wrong" behavior for an asexual person, because I am doing it.

Back to Amethyst.

Asexuality is a dicey issue for discussing Gems because technically they're all asexual. They are not a sexually reproducing species, so there really shouldn't be any reason for them to desire each other sexually. But they do seem to want intimacy and closeness in some situations, and there's definitely romantic attraction between some of them. It's sometimes hard to tell whether "sex" would be a concept available to them (besides Gems who shapeshift to mimic how humans do it), because it is after all a family show and sometimes you have to wonder if the relative chastity of some of the romantic scenes is due to the intended audience.

Amethyst has been more than once described by Rebecca Sugar as Dionysian. She was set up as an opposite to Pearl's Apollonian nature. If you don't know, Apollo vs. Dionysus is a concept of Greek origin that's often used in literature to set characters at odds with each other. Apollo is everything Pearl is: rational, clean, proper, perfect. Dionysus instead embraces the mess, just like Amethyst: Dionysian characters are sloppy, unruly, chaotic, and (this is important) hedonistic. They do what feels good.

Given this, I understand the root of why some people feel asexuality and Amethyst wouldn't go together well. And all things considered, it's true: Amethyst seems, to me, like the kind of Gem who would try anything, especially if other people seemed to enjoy it and especially if abstaining is portrayed as prudent and restrained. She's a let-it-loose kind of character. It's hard to imagine someone like her, who loves to eat, sleep, hoard, and be lazy, wouldn't have tried a few rolls in the hay, right?

Well, sure. Maybe.

And yet we've seen no specific evidence of it.

She could choose any form but she's never seen trying to change herself to look sexy; she's displayed no particular intimate or romantic interest in anyone beyond casual physicality and warmth; she's the only main-four Crystal Gem who hasn't been pursued romantically by a human; she's a little insecure and seems to crave attention sometimes but never spins it as a need to be fulfilled by romantic attention; she never expresses that she wishes she was someone's partner. Who knows? Maybe she's tried it out, found nothing she liked, said "Eh," and decided it's not her bag.

Hedonism is about embracing what feels good. If those kinds of relationships just didn’t feel good for her, I could see her just deciding they were boring and still fully embracing her other Dionysian qualities. She can indulge in naps and eat all the food in the fridge and hoard all the garbage she wants . . . without that indicating she must also possess and pursue amorous relations.

There’s also the fact that a minority of asexual people are like “eh, screw it, I’ll try it,” and don’t find sex completely objectionable or might even like it. (Not all, not most, not me, but this does exist.) They still may not desire it the way non-asexual people do, or may experience no attraction despite having neutral or positive feelings about the act itself. Who knows? Amethyst could be like that. We’ve seen her eat food that she doesn’t even like, just ‘cause it’s there. Some people take or leave sex like that.

And if you say her "type" necessarily incorporates promiscuity or a large sexual appetite, or you say she couldn't be ace because she's not uptight and strait laced, you're buying right into the damaging stereotypes about asexual people.

It's certainly not acephobic to headcanon Amethyst as bisexual or pansexual or lesbian or whatever you want. And it's fine if you believe the closeness she’s displayed with others that I interpret as friendship or non-romantic intimacy is actually a different flavor. What's NOT fine is saying Amethyst CANNOT be asexual or aromantic because of weird beliefs you have about what ace/aro people would be like.

Further, asexual people unfortunately don't have that much representation, and usually we're reduced to embracing absence as evidence. If a character isn't shown to "like" anyone that way, whoa, they might be ace! It's so very rare that a character does actively say or do something that indicates their lack of attraction. We often have to see ourselves in the "not yet" if we want any representation at all, running the risk of having our headcanons smashed as soon as a writer decides a certain type of attraction in a relationship will make that character interesting. But at least we're in the same boat as every other fan there. What we want to happen isn't necessarily what will happen.

And for those who think Amethyst might be ace and/or aro, she's such a great example of someone who isn't defined by the overly cautious, conservative germophobe who's obsessed with logic and conflates their abstention with purity and righteousness. I get really tired of asexuality being tied in with those traits because non-ace writers can't imagine ace people without sucking fun and flexibility out of their souls. (And on the flip side, isn't it wonderful to have the logical, organized, clean, perfect character be a giant lesbian? This is one box queer women rarely see themselves put in, but I know they're out there. I'm friends with a few.)

As for me, do I headcanon Amethyst as asexual or aromantic? Honestly, I am not very invested in this theory.

I can see it and I could support it in a debate if someone asked me to. But I think Amethyst could turn out to be anything; really, the most likely thing for her to be is fluid. I think she's cute with Pearl sometimes, though Pearl having a mom vibe and being so much older and having other attractions does give me pause. I think the idea of her with Peridot or Vidalia is interesting, though Peridot more than Amethyst reads as possibly ace and there's more built up between her and Lapis now. I could even see her with another tertiary character someday; I wouldn't bat an eye.

But Amethyst as ace and/or aro would also make complete sense to me and might even fit best with her livin' free and unbound attitude, and when you look at the asexual flag, Amethyst is certainly dressed for it.

#steven universe #amethyst #asexual #aromantic #gif #ace characters #aro characters #su analysis #my su analysis #myblog

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thegeekerynj · 4 years ago

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Short Reviews, when the Big Mouth doesn’t have much to say… Or is trying to get caught up from COVID / Election Overload

An Occasional Attempt to Read, Discuss and Review the Wonders of Comics

By: John Rafferty, cranky old man, and Fan of All Things Comics

Short Takes

Short Reviews, when the Big Mouth doesn’t have much to say… Or is trying to get caught up from COVID / Election Overload

Legion of Super Heroes 6-10 (DC Comics)

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Pencils: Ryan Sook (#6 - 7, 10) Various (8 - 9) Inker: Wade Von Grawbadger (#6 - 7, 10) Various (8 - 9)

‘You want to be called Bouncing Boy?

Looking at the Memexes, we were considering “The Bullet”.

Bullet?

It’s a projectile that——

No, with me, it’s all about the BOUNCE.

———————————————————————————————————

Can Brian Bendis write everything?

Between story, and downright FUN, this is a great book. Team books are hard to do well, if for no other reason, because of the characterizations.

Multiple characters mean multiple personalities, and some of those will always get underdeveloped in relationship to the team, as the writer invariably has favorites Unless…

What we are seeing with LSH is development of characters from across the spectrum. Every book has development of some of the characters, even if they’re not directly involved in the story. This is a far cry from what you see in other books.

Add to this Ryan Sook’s breakdowns, and Wade von Grawbadger’s inks, and you get a pretty package, all tied up in a big bow. More importantly, this is a story with a legacy reaching back 60 years, and is being truly refreshed for a new audience.

This isn’t the Legion I read in 1967, but it’s damned good!

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶.5

===========================================================

Suicide Squad #9 - 10 (DC Comics)

Writer: Tom Taylor Artist: Bruno Redondo

I have Kord’s location.

Okay. Do you also have the Senator?

Oh, did you want him back for some reason? That spineless mouth-breather championed a law to dump more waste into the sea. Delusional, greedy @#$% thinks he owns the world.

I have some friends reminding him he does not.

———————————————————————————————————

Floyd Lawton, first appearance, Batman #59, June 1950, as the man who never misses.

Floyd Lawton, a man who feels no rereason to continue living, but has no wish to die: who puts his life on the line to save his teammates time and time again, to save his daughter and her mother, all with the wish of dying in a truly spectacular fashion.

Floyd Lawton, who finally finds a reason to live, in the eyes of his daughter, Zoe.

Floyd Lawton. Deadshot. Perennial member of Task Force X, finally earned his pardon.

Game Over.

By all that’s Unholy, Tom Taylor is a hateful SOB! But the man writes a great story!

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶

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Marvel Zombies Resurrection # 1 - 4 (Marvel Comics)

Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson Artist: Leonard Kirk

‘Fine. I guess we came all this way.

Might as well do something really stupid.

———————————————————————————————————

This sums up exploring the World, any world, during a Zombie Apocalypse. Especially when those with Super Powers have been turned into Super Zombies.

So, we pick up with Peter Parker, Forge, Karla Sofen (Moonstone), Valeria and Franklin Richards, a Flerkin named Chewie, and the reprogrammed Sentinel lovingly called ‘Nana’, moving from defendable place to defensible area, seeking a ‘safe place’. Somewhere they can rest for more than one night… if that is possible.

Always realizing the next tree could be hiding a zombified Avenger, or Defender, or Loved one…

Johnson’s Miniseries is another version of the Marvel Zombiepocalypse, which begs the question, what happens when Zombie Galactus infects your world? Or, more importantly, when it CARRIES the infection to your world?

Leonard Kirk’s art style is perfect for this story, a very dark, visceral style which is a little hard on the eyes, making the reader work for every panel. Yes, it hurts to read, but IT SHOULD! It’s Zombies!

This is worth the read if you can get all 4 issues (the first issue came out in July).

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶

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Rorschach #1 (DC Black Label)

Writer: Tom King Artist: Jorge Fornes

‘They won’t talk to me. Treating me like I’m a damn Kindergarten kid. I got twins in Kindergarten. Duane and Dwight. I’m not a Kindergarten kid.

Jesus Christ. What’d they say to you?

That you’re dying.

Shit.

===========================================================

In 1985, Walter Kovacs died.

It went unnoticed, but for the few in attendance, for Kovacs died following the Alien Invasion of New York, which, in effect saved the world.

Yet, unnoticed, but for the few, Walter Kovacs became a red splash on the Antarctic permafrost.

And Rorschach, the Crime Hunter, died with him.

Or. did he?

In a world existing somewhere between Watchmen 1985 and Current Multiverses, Tom King and begun a noir-ish tale… Did Rorschsch come back, to foil an assassination attempt, and die in the process?

Did he come back, and fail at an attempt at assassination?

Or, Gentle Readers, is there a whole slew of balls in the air we just haven’t seen yet, that we are going to be expected to juggle deftly, as they drop just into sight?

I can’t wait for the answer!

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶.5

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Justice League #54 - 57 (Death Metal Tie-In) (DC Comics)

Writer: Joshua Williamson Artists: Xermanico (54, 57), Pencils: Robson Rocha (55 - 56), Inks: Daniel Henriquez (55 - 56)

“Don’t you get it Cyborg? We’re not the Justice League!

We’re the Suicide Squad!

———————————————————————————————————

I have said before I am not a fan of Joshua Williamson’s writing.

Maybe I just don’t like him on the Flash.

Four issues, each of them a very good story, each building, with some action and humor, to a smash mouth endpoint, that brings us to Death Metal #5.

I have to say, I’m enjoying this run of Justice League, even with the switch of artist teams mid - tale Xermanico’s work os beautiful, right into the valley of the Starros (that gave me giggle fits!) Rocha and Henriquez’s work is very pretty, and a little darker than Xermanico’s, giving a more atmospheric touch to the Antenna of LOD.

I have to admit, they do a mean Kori, as well! Really FIERCE, with a Full Length mohawk!

Well worth the cost of admission, and a strong addition to the Metal storyline.

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶.5

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Nightwing #75 - 76 (DC Comics)

Writer: Dan Jurgens Artists: Travis Moore and Ronan Cliquet (75), Ronan Cliquet (76)

‘We have to talk.’

———————————————————————————————————

Four words.

Four words that have ended more relationships than violence.

Dan Jurgens has done a masterful job of tying up the Ric Grayson / Amnesias storyline that seems to have run for nigh on ever… by bringing it full circle to Anatoli Knyazev, the KGBeast.

The artwork in these two issues was pretty, with obvious switches between that of Travis Moore (the Titans / Batgirl pages) and Ronan Cliquet’s Batman / KGBeast pages.

Nicely tied up, completing multiple storylines in two issues. Ready to move forward/

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶.5

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Young Justice #19 - 20 (DC Comics)

Writers: Brian Michael Bendis and David Walker Artist: Scott Godlewski

Red Tomato?

I think he said Tornado, and you know it.

Honestly, he talks so fast, I can’t understand him most of the time.

———————————————————————————————————

Damian Wayne, Robin. Cassie Sandmark, Wonder Girl. Bart Allen, Impulse. Conner Kent, Superboy. Stephanie Brown, Spoiler. Keli Quintela, Teen Lantern. Zan and Jayna. the Wonder Twins. Jinny Hex, Naomi, Amethyst,

Twenty issues in, and the book is cancelled… or is planned to end. Either way, this is a suck way to do things, DC.

This is a great group of characters. Much better than the roster in the Young Justice cartoon, simply for the diversity. Some heroes just coming into their own, some who have existed for years, (the Wonder Twins have been around in MULTIPLE iterations since the 1970’s), all helping each other… This was a great jumping in book for pre-teens who weren’t up for all the violence / hyperkinetic action / storytelling of a true adult book.

And, it was FUN!

Bendis, Walker and Godlewski produced a fantastic product every month.

One which is ending too soon. Unless, of course, it is going to come back in a new package…

Hint, hint, hint…

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶.5

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Amazing Spider-Man 50 - 53 ‘Last Remains’ (Marvel Comics (duh!))

Writer: Nick Spencer Artist: Patrick Gleason

‘You’re going to love it, Pete. There’s no better feeling in this life — Than being surrounded by those you love.

———————————————————————————————————

So, what are the rules around DEAD Characters returning?

Do they have to be relevant after so many years? Shouldn’t they be, well, driven to do something? Not take more than 50 issues to finally get around to saying…”Bazinga!’, or it’s equivalent?

I must admit, issue 50 is the first issue of a Spider-Man book I picked up, and started to enjoy, until I realized I needed to pick up the LR issues also in order to get the whole story. Didn’t’t we get enough of this in the Shooter Years?

What about a year and a half ago, when Marvel vowed they would never pull this crap again??

I guess they forgot… (Insert comparison to jackass in office here).

Too much work, don’t really care.

Especially when the reveal of who Kindred is happens in issue 50, and Peter finds out in #53… Puh-Leez!

At least it’s not Professor Warren and his Gwen Stacy clone. **BRRRRR** Freakin’ Creepy Old Perv!

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶

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Batman 101 - 102 (DC Comics (bigger DUH!))

Writer: James Tynion IV Artist: Guillen March (101) Pencils: Carlo Pagulayan Inks: Danny Miki Artist: Carlos D’Anda (Pages 13 - 16)

‘DOUBLE RENT! And you don’t talk to the other tenants! They are good people.

Little Santa Prisca is a community. We live through BANE. We live through JOKER. Don’t blow it up with all your nonsense!

You got it Charlie, No Nonsense. Not Here.

Hey! What’s your policy on Hyenas?

———————————————————————————————————

So, Lucius Fox is one of the richest men in the world.

Selina Kyle has put the Bat on a One Year Clock to get his stuff together, or she walks.

Clownkiller might be the Bernard Goetz of Superhero Vigilantism (look up the reference, I can’t do everything!), but he goes about proving you can’t keep a good vigilante killer down if he has Google.

Ghost Maker is more than we thought, and knows who Bruce Wayne keeps in the closet (or cave).

Is there anyone in Gotham who doesn’t know who Bruce Wayne is?

Tynion continues to pump out some great product, the stories and characters do not disappoint. Including Grifter as Fox’s ‘bodyguard’ was a nice touch, having him get the drop on Batman, a nicer one.

The art in both books, while vastly different, is simply gorgeous. I want to see more od the team of Pagulayan and Miki, I’m hoping to see their work grow with the storylines.

Next issue, BATTLE Sequences! Should be fun, not that it hasn’t been so far.

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶.5

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Shang Chi #1 - 2 (Marvel Comics)

‘I have to save my Little Sister!

I have to kill my Big Brother!’

———————————————————————————————————

Only meetings should have agendas.

-Me, just now

Once upon a time, Sax Rohmer wrote stories about the machinations of one Fu Manchu, and his oft overturned attempts to take over the world.

In 1973, Steve Engelhart and Jim Starlin brought Shang Chi, son of Fu Manchu into the Marvel Universe, where he and his MI-6 partners Clive Reston and Black Jack Tarr were responsible for being the monkey wrenches in the machinery of Fu Manchu’s Plans.

It seems that Shang Chi is back, without his prior father. He is still proficient in all forms of martial arts, but now, he is ‘Champion of House of the Deadly Hand’ (like that name isn’t going to come to but him in the butt like a Karmic werewolf), and since the passing of his ‘Father”, now the Commander of the Five Weapons Society.

The artwork is pretty, and the story, steeped in Asian Mysticism, is a little draggy so far. Is the story good? Yeah, it’s a nice reminder of a character I exjyed a long tome ago.

Will it get better? Time will tell.

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶.5

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The Rise of Ultraman #1 - 3 (Marvel Comics, by way of Tsuburaya Productions)

Writers: Kyle Higgins and Matt Groom Artist: Francesco Manna

Oh. You’re here to fight because you think we’re one of the species that can’t evolve.

No. I know you cannot evolve.

Fifty-Four of your years ago, my brother came to assist you. And you killed him.

———————————————————————————————————

In the late 60’s, on certain New York television stations, the Saturday Afternoon hours were filled with Japanese imports, Kaiju - United Science Patrol, and of course the story of the death of Moroboshi, and the coming of Ultraman.

Ultraman, a human - alien symbiosis, who fought the Kaiju menace coming to take over the Earth.

Forward to 2020, a new Ultraman, with a new team of USP helpers / friends, and what looks at this point to be a corrupt system surrounding them.

This creative team has done a marvelous job with the material thus far, reviving this character for a modern reader.

It’s just a shame it’s only 5 issues…

It is definitely worth the read.

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶

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American Vampire 1976 #1 - 2 (DC Comics)

Writer: Scott Snyder Artist: Artist: Rafael Albuquerque

‘DAMMIT! Before what happened with Gus, you were the best vampire tracker and killer around. I’m asking you to help me take down whoever this PEELING MAN is.

But if this shitty music and LASERS is your life now, then just say so, and I’ll leave you to it.

It’s not a laser, you goddamned idiot.

It’s a SOLAR LAMP. **klik**

———————————————————————————————————

Ten years ago, Scott Snyder, Rafael Albuquerque and Stephen King started a journey which has spanned 10 Years in real time, but 200 years, and 12 separate cycles in series time.

The current iteration has our favorite group of vamps and exterminators running around 1976, wrecking discos, trains, and graveyards, all in the name of bringing back Stoker’s primary villain.

Snyder proves again he is up to the task of creating a world of whimsy and horror, providing mayhem, madness, and the occasional snorting giggle. His droll wit, and ability to write a phenomenal action piece makes this cycle of the American Vampire story a must read.

Out of 5🌶 🌶🌶🌶🌶

#Legion of Superheroes #suicide squad #marvel zombies resurrection #rorschach #jusice league #Dark Nights Death Metal #nightwing #young justice #amazing spider-man #last remains #batman #Shang chi #the rise of ultraman #American vampire 1976

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thosequeenboys · 5 years ago

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Oh, Baby (Ben Hardy and Joe Mazzello)

Summary: On a visit to Ben’s film set, Joe witnesses Ben enjoying a baby for the first time, which gets each of them thinking...

A/N: This was written for “First Time” prompt for Hardzzello Week. During in my holiday shopping at a crafts fair, I saw items that inspired my descriptions of gifts, though the ‘piece de resistance’ was a real thing!! Other writings featuring Joe and Ben (together and individually) can be found in my Masterlist

Warnings: A somewhat crass reference to baby making, but other than that, just fluff and love!

Joe woke up an hour before his alarm was set to go off. As always, his first image upon waking was of Ben. Usually, he snuggled under the covers and flipped over, letting himself indulge in his mind’s reel showing highlights of their past times together and previews of their anticipated visits. Today, was one of those visits; he was travelling to Montreal to see Ben as he finished taping The Voyeurs. Joe set a record in getting ready, and 20 minutes later he was getting into his Uber, planning to catch an earlier flight.

The wheels touched down two hours before his expected arrival. As the cab drove him through downtown Montreal, he saw an outdoor crafts fair, festively decorated, set up for the holiday season. He noted the cross streets in his phone and vowed to stop by for some Christmas shopping for his family. His first priority though was seeing Ben. He arrived at the set and checked in with the guard who found his name on visitor list.

He entered the cavernous sound stage where multiple scenes were being set up. Cameras framed the perimeter. Staff were moving props and equipment. He looked around for a wave of blond hair. Walking around a corner to another set, off in the distance he saw the unmistakable handsome man in his life. But, wait, what was he doing? Joe did a double take.

Ben was standing next to a woman seated with a car seat and diaper bag beneath her. He was holding a baby on his hip, one hand supporting the baby’s bottom, the other wrapped snuggly around its upper back, cradling its head against his shoulder. And what was particularly endearing was Ben masterfully and naturally doing The Baby Dance - shifting from leg to leg, swaying his hips loosely, giving the baby a little bounce and maintaining eye contact. He looked like a pro! It was a new image of Ben. At family events, Ben interacted with Joe’s older nieces and nephews warmly. He cracked jokes, played board games and kicked a soccer ball with them outside. They loved his energy and humor. But he had not interacted with the babies. Truth be told he seemed a little intimated at the prospect.

Staring at his love across the room holding a baby filled Joe with excitement and awe. His stomach tightened. He was thrilled to see Ben for the first time enjoying a baby. Occasionally, the topic of children came up, but they hadn’t seriously discussed it, though Ben knew that Joe was eager to have a family. Joe wondered if maybe now Ben could envision them having a family too. Joe breathed deeply and took in the sight a little longer before making his way over to Ben, who was now chatting with the seated woman, alternating between looking at her and cooing at the baby, who looked at him.

As Joe approached, Ben’s face lit up and he walked toward him. “Ohmygod-you’re here early! What a nice surprise! Hi, You!” Ben leaned over and kissed Joe’s cheek, proudly holding the baby and thrilled to see Joe.

“The early bird gets the worm. Hopefully.” Joe couldn’t resist. “Hmm. I see you found a substitute for my attention, though probably not as articulate and witty, I dare say.” Joe said in his charming, slightly haughty manner. He looked at the baby who appeared to be about four months old. “And who is this charming fellow?” Joe asked, stroking the baby’s onesie-covered arm.

“This is Christopher. And this is his mom, Anna,” Ben said, turning toward Anna who gave a wave. She’s a grip. Her nanny is only available in the afternoons for a few days, so Christopher has been our special guest on set.”

“Anna,” Ben said, shifting Christopher over to his other hip and resuming The Baby Dance, “This is my…Joe. Joe Mazzello.”

“Hi, My Joe,” Anna said with a laugh, and Joe and Ben joined in. Joe and Ben locked eyes. Though they were established as a couple in their social circle, they were still figuring out their positioning in the world. Joe really hated the term ‘boyfriend,’ which tripped Ben up during introductions. My Partner? My Man? Of course, it would be easier if it were just ‘ My Husband,’ Ben had thought lately.

Anna continued. “I’ve heard so much about you-and the great Uncle you are. Ben’s been so helpful caring for Christopher between taping before my sitter arrives. He’s such a natural, and Christopher has really taken to him.”

“My nieces and nephews always enjoy spending time with him.” Joe said beaming. Ben was called for the final scene for the day. Once Ben finished work, the boys bid farewell to Anna and Christopher and headed out. They settled into Ben’s rental car, Ben at the driver’s seat. Joe looked over at Ben. He couldn’t shake the image of Ben holding Christopher, and it filled him with a warm rush.

“What?” Ben said, feeling Joe’s eyes on him, pausing before starting the car. “You’re worried about me driving?” he laughed.

“Well, there’s that, now that you mention it,” Joe said with a laugh. Then he reached out and touched Ben’s hand, which was resting on his thigh, holding the car keys.

“No, actually, I keep picturing you holding Christopher. It was just….so beautiful. And you seemed to like it. Did you?” Joe asked somewhat tentatively, concerned about the prospective answer.

“Yeah,” Ben responded. “I did. I really did. I mean, I was nervous at first. Anna helped me feel more comfortable. It was amazing having another person respond to you. Want you. When he laughed at my antics, it made me melt. And, this sounds weird, but that feeling of holding him - It’s hard to describe. It was like no other physical connection.”

Joe smiled broadly, happiness overtaking him. “I totally get it. I’ve felt the same way with my nieces and nephews. I think it would be stronger when…it’s yours. I mean, if…when you’re the father.”

‘Yeah,’ Ben said, staring out the windshield. “I’ve imagined it.”

“You, you have?” Joe asked, trying to contain his excitement, eagerly wanting to hear more.

‘Yes, at night, when I go back to my flat, you know, I picture this…story. Where I have a baby. WE have a baby,” He clarified, looking over to Joe. “There are a few scenes. First, I see us taking it home after it’s born and then staying up at night taking turns holding it, singing, reading, walking, trying to get it to sleep.”

“You were quite a rocker and a roller in your baby dance with Christopher,” Joe noted.

‘Yeah, it did seem to help keep him calm.” Ben said.

“What else did you imagine?” Joe asked, wanting to conjure the images too.

“Well, the baby was restless and nothing was working so finally, we put it between us in bed and we both held it. We all fell asleep together. Then, I fast forwarded to the baby being older and we went to the playground. We pushed it in the swing. I was in the front of the swing, you were behind it. Sometimes, I held its legs when the swing came forward, and you held the swing from the back so it was suspended, and the baby giggled. Then we sang Queen songs in time to the swinging, really getting into it, and the baby was clapping and laughing. Like we were two cool, creative, fun dads.

“I bet we would be.” Joe said. “Wow, those are really nice images. It’s nice to hear you’ve thought about them.”

Joe leaned over and kissed Ben softly on the lips. Ben turned his body to Joe, and the keys slid off his lap as he moved his arms around Joe’s neck and deepened the kiss. They made out passionately until Joe pulled away, breathing heavily. “It’s a good thing you can’t get pregnant, ‘cause I swear to God, I’d want to take you home right now and…”

“Really, Joseph,” Ben cut him off. “Wouldn’t you want to make an honest man of me first?”

“Yes, yes, absolutely, I would.” Joe said between pants. “And I want to continue this make-out session, but…Seasonal topic change! I have to do some Christmas shopping, and I saw a cool crafts fair downtown. I thought maybe we could stop there before heading home.”

“Sure,” Ben said, slightly out of breath. “I’m game. May find a few things as well.”

After parking, Joe pulled up his Christmas shopping list on his phone. “Ok, let’s split up – I’ll be more efficient that way - and meet at the Hot Chocolate stand over there in 45 minutes,” Joe said, motioning to the little café area.

“Sounds good,” Ben said.

Joe made the rounds and found silver amethyst earrings for his sister, an intricate turquoise necklace for his mom, hair accessories and hand-decorated Girl Power journals for his nieces and a big stuffed dinosaur for his youngest nephew. He walked by a stand with a hodgepodge of jewelry and eyed a rack of bracelets. His gaze gravitated to a thin, earthy brown leather bracelet with subtle streaks of gold. He took it off the rack and put it on his wrist as he imagined giving it to Ben as an engagement ring of sorts. Yes, he would make an honest man of him first. Joe took off the bracelet and fingered it, playing out a scene of giving it to Ben on a sunset beach, though truthfully, he didn’t want to wait that long. He made a mental note to Google most romantic places to propose in Montreal. His reverie was interrupted by the saleswoman. “Oh, that’s a lovely choice, made by a local artist. Happy to give you his card.”

Joe checked his watch and made a bee line to the Hot Chocolate stand. He was pleased that he got through most of his shopping list, but ecstatic by his last purchase. He felt high thinking about them committing to each other in a formal way and….Suddenly, Ben ran up to him. “I have to show you what I found!” He pulled a garment out of one of his bags. It was a white, long-sleeved baby onesie featuring a repeating montage of small beagle dogs engaged in different activities: walking with a bone in its mouth, sitting wearing glasses reading a book, snuggling next to a dad dog with a tie, chasing a ball, sleeping with a teddy bear under its paw. Each image was drawn with fine black pen and featured a burst of a primary color-the bone was yellow, the book was blue, the tie was red, the ball was orange and the bear was green. Ben couldn’t contain is excitement, “Isn’t this the CUTEST thing? I got one for Christopher. And another one.” He looked at Joe. “In case, you know, we need another baby gift.”

“Very cute and good planning.” Joe said, touching the soft clothing.

“How did you do?” Ben asked.

“Oh, I finished most of my shopping for the fam. And an unexpected thing or two. A successful expedition.” Joe said, feeling a wave of emotion thinking of the bracelet.

Joe reached for Ben’s hand, as they walked to the car, each of them looking forward to their visit -- and their newly-envisioned future.

@warriorteam1924 @lapofthemusicgods @nightoftheland @heybuddy-drabbles @hey-holtzy @im-an-adult-ish @halfasleepoetry @roger-taylors-car

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thatwitchglenda · 5 years ago

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BASIC INFORMATION

FULL NAME: Glenda Calliope Chittock PRONUNCIATION: /ˈɡlɛndə ka-LYE-oh-pee MEANING: Fair and good; beautiful voice REASONING: Glenda was a sort of ‘pick a name, any name’ sort of choice. Calliope is her paternal grandmothers name. NICKNAME(S): Glen, G PREFERRED NAME(S): She doesn’t really prefer nicknames to her full name, so really it’s up to whoever is talking to her. BIRTH DATE: October 3, 2000 AGE: 19 ZODIAC: Libra GENDER: Female PRONOUNS: She/her ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Heteromantic SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Heterosexual NATIONALITY: English ETHNICITY: Colombian/Mexican CURRENT LOCATION: While she’s shared a flat with Amelia in muggle London for some time, the two girls are currently in the process of moving to the Peakes. LIVING CONDITIONS: See above ^ TITLE(S): n/a

BACKGROUND

BIRTH PLACE: Mould-on-the-Wold HOMETOWN: Mould-on-the-Wold, a quiet all wizarding village SOCIAL CLASS: Middle class EDUCATION LEVEL: Hogwarts. While the end of her 7th year was interrupted, Glenda was in the process of and has since completed NEWT examination

BLOOD STATUS: Pureblood, although her family is so far down the ranks it doesn’t say much. FATHER: Augustine Chittock MOTHER: Collette Chittock nee Alderton SIBLING(S): None BIRTH ORDER: n/a CHILDREN: n/a PET(S): None. She never got one when she went to Hogwarts, but she’s been thinking about getting a cat for some time. OTHER IMPORTANT RELATIVES: Honestly, the Chittock’s have very little family outside their immediate circle PREVIOUS RELATIONSHIPS: Peter Pettigrew ARRESTS?: None PRISON TIME?: N/a

OCCUPATION & INCOME

PRIMARY SOURCE OF INCOME: Working as Sienna Rowle’s stylist/assistant SECONDARY SOURCE OF INCOME: Sponsorship through her podcast CONTENT WITH THEIR JOB (OR LACK THERE OF)?: Very content. The podcast and getting to work with people she really admires is basically a dream come true for her. Working with Sienna, on the other hand, is just super fun? She actually really enjoys it and she can’t deny that the benefits of the job (ie pretty great pay, tagging along on trips, etc is awesome as well) PAST JOB(S): Internship at the WWN SPENDING HABITS: She used to spend way more than she has. Now she can actually afford to buy the things she likes but really she’s just... lowkey a shopaholic? She likes to shop, she loves to buy things for other people. MOST VALUABLE POSSESSION:

SKILLS & ABILITIES

LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN: English DRIVE?: Barely. Her family does own a car, simply because they live outside of London and relying on the floo and apparition constantly just isn’t an option. But she never properly learned how to drive? She’s driven it maybe a handful of times and is basically an old lady at the wheel. JUMP-STAR A CAR?: LOL CHANGE A FLAT TIRE?: Definitely not RIDE A BICYCLE?: Yes SWIM?: Yes PLAY AN INSTRUMENT?: She used to play the piano fairly well but she hasn’t touched one since she was at least fifteen. It’s unlikely she could do more than a few cords and a few songs burned into memory. PLAY CHESS?: Nope BRAID HAIR?: Yes, she loves to braid her hair! Her mum used to dutch braid her hair every night before bed and so she usually sleeps in braids out of habit? Girl likes her braids. TIE A TIE?: Yes, she learned before Hogwarts on her father. Frankly, he liked to pretend that he couldn’t, it was very cute but also pretty horrifying until she got the hang of it. PICK A LOCK?: She probably thinks she’d be able to do so with a bobby pin if she tried (thanks to all those muggle films), but thankfully, there’s alohamora.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

FACE CLAIM: Cierra Ramirez EYE COLOR: Dark brown HAIR COLOR: Dark brown, almost black HAIR TYPE/STYLE: She’s always kept it fairly long and can pretty much count the times she’s cut her hair in her life. Depending on her mood she’ll straighten it or just curl it; but Glenda’s gotten pretty decent at updos in the last year or so. She’ll throw in the occasional space buns or whatnot. GLASSES/CONTACTS?: Glasses but really only for reading far away/watching television. At Hogwarts she constantly forgot to take them to class with her, which often resulted in needing to take notes from whoever was sitting next to her. She’s gotten much better at wearing them when she actually needs them. DOMINANT HAND: Right handed HEIGHT: 5′1″ or 155 cm WEIGHT: We don’t need to know that BUILD: Petite/curvy EXERCISE HABITS: Honestly, she doesn’t really go to the gym unless someone forces her to go with them. Back at school when Amelia was on the quidditch team, the girls would regularly work out together. Now she more so relies on youtube videos and a yoga mat to get a workout done in her room TATTOOS: None, although she’s not opposed PIERCINGS: She’s had the standard lobe piercings for as long as she can remember, but has gotten some over the years. Two on each lobe, as well as her helix and tragus on one side, and rook on the other. MARKS/SCARS: Most of her scrapes were healed before they ever got a chance to scar; but she does have one particularly notable one on the back of her neck. Not having listened to her mum, she’d hurt herself and terrified of getting in trouble, had hidden the pretty large cut away. Sadly, it had resulted in dittany not being used soon enough. NOTABLE FEATURES: None USUAL EXPRESSION: LOL let’s just say resting bitch face. CLOTHING STYLE: Honestly, it’s always changing. Glenda’s super into what’s trendy and ‘in’ and her style really reflects that. She loves bright colors and things that make her stand out (especially given that she’s so short), and her staple is heels. She honestly almost always has some sort of heel on. JEWELRY: She basically always wears her mothers necklace that was given to her before leaving for Hogwarts. It’s a pretty simple design, just a small pendant with a tiny wildflower in resin. Earrings are also a staple for her, she rarely takes them out and is always sporting something. ALLERGIES: Pollen, latex, dogs. Sad. DIET: She’ll literally try anything once PHYSICAL AILMENTS: None to make note of

PSYCHOLOGY

MORAL ALIGNMENT: True Neutral TEMPERAMENT: Sanguine PRIMARY INTELLIGENCE TYPE: Musical Intelligence APPROXIMATE IQ: 121 MENTAL CONDITIONS/DISORDERS: None SOCIABILITY: Emotive PHOBIA(S): Touching raw cotton, spiders ADDICTION(S): At most her phone DRUG USE: Occasionally will smoke some weed but more socially than anything else ALCOHOL USE: Again occasionally and as a social thing PRONE TO VIOLENCE?: Not really. Although she might want to sometimes, Glenda’s never actually hit anyone

MANNERISMS

SPEECH STYLE: Very casual QUIRKS: Her height, she’s so short. She talks pretty loudly and very quickly compared to others, she’s definitely that person that you have to remind to speak quieter sometimes. Very extroverted HOBBIES: Roller skating, baking HABITS: She has pretty much the same wake up routine? Cannot function without making some tea in the morning. NERVOUS TICKS: Lip nibbling. So much lip nibbling. When she’s uncomfortable or nervous or basically anything other than neutral. She also tends to wring her hands when she’s nervous and she’ll fiddle with her rings or any jewelry she might have on. DRIVES/MOTIVATIONS: Honestly, she’s just always trying to one-up herself. It’s not that she necessarily has to prove anything to anyone accept herself. FEARS: Being mediocre. Although she wouldn’t admit it, she’s terrified of people hating or disliking her when she does actually put herself out there. POSITIVE TRAITS: NEGATIVE TRAITS: SENSE OF HUMOR: DO THEY CURSE OFTEN?: Not too much, but she doesn’t mind cursing and regularly does so CATCHPHRASE(S): None, really?

FAVORITES

ACTIVITY: Listening to music tbh. ANIMAL: To have? Cats. To just like admire? Sloths, man. BEVERAGE: Tea COLOR: Pink DESIGNER: Marc Jacobs FOOD: Straight up just some farfalle with pesto and loaded with pine nuts. Topped with some parm. Amazing. FLOWER: Daffodils GEM: Amethyst HOLIDAY: Halloween MODE OF TRANSPORTATION: Apparition MOVIE: Ever After MUSICAL ARTIST: Tove Lo maybe? Stevie Nicks? SCENERY: Some pretty fucking mountains, man. SCENT: Woodsy, musky scents. Or rose. SPORT: Honestly, none SPORTS TEAM: ^^^ TELEVISION SHOW: Superstore, Arrested Development. ...Greys Anatomy WEATHER: Snow!! VACATION DESTINATION: She’s gone nowhere really, like, she’s been on one holiday because of Sienna and so I don’t think she actually has a favorite.

ATTITUDES

GREATEST DREAM: That her podcast really, really takes off. That she becomes properly relevant in the music industry as someone who genuinely has something to say. GREATEST FEAR: Irrelevance, but also loneliness. She doesn’t want to base anything of herself on love or relationships but she definitely has this fear of ultimately being alone. Or not even being alone, but being lonely. MOST AT EASE WHEN: In her room, hanging out with her best friends and listening to music. It’s peaceful, it’s happy. LEAST AT EASE WHEN: In a new environment with new people that she doesn’t necessarily know or trust. She’s not necessarily uncomfortable, but she’s more on guard than in any other situation.

#bio #if witchery is a sin she’s going to burn-smiling︱Glenda Chittock

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aelaer · 5 years ago

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Tagged: All about me and fanfic

Thank you for tagging me @dragonnan! My fan fic history is a long one... and in three fandoms. Which is why most of this will be under a cut for anyone who has a lot of time to waste. And is morbidly curious. But there’s some (okay, dozens) of fanfic recs for three fandoms under there too, sooooo.

Tagging at the top so you don’t have to read my verbose-ness if you don’t want to: @amethyst-noir @cairistiona7 @mdcbd @phierie if you’re interested in giving it a shot :)

1. At what age did you start writing fanfiction?

13. You can still find my earliest works online, too; I kept up anything that wasn't completely deplorable (though fanfiction.net deleted my stupidly popular, several hundred reviews of a story I did in 2004 because it was script format. The bastards xD Popular with all the little kids).

2. Who is your favorite author?

Lmaooooo what a question. Okay so for three fandoms. The big thing that’s common between all my favorite authors is that romance is not a primary genre with any of these writers. So if you like gen (of all genres) you’ve come to the right post.

If anyone here is a LOTR book fan (especially Aragorn), let me direct you to storiesofarda.com. It’s an old site, not even mobile friendly. Anyway, go read the works of Cairistiona and Meckinock. If you're more into hobbits and anything fluffy, go read Shirebound. That I remember their names since I was last active in fanfic in LOTR in 2011 speaks to their quality. I've had the honor of meeting Shirebound several times in real life as well, this last time in New York back in April after several years apart (though I'd like to meet Cair one day for sure, as well). I had a lot of favorites years ago but I’d need to reread the old stuff to see what still lives up to my expectations.

Scanning my favorites in Sherlock, Jolie Black , CaffeineKitty, and hollyesque on AO3. Stillwaters1, chappysmom, Radon65, and Morgan Stuart from fanfiction.net. But I have a couple favorite stories from authors who only wrote a couple fics (below).

Now the MCU (okay basically Doctor Strange, let’s be honest), on AO3: Grim Revolution and merrywil (the latter is pretty new and needs a hell lot more attention, she is a great writer). I love those long, introspective character one shots. There's not a lot of authors who don't focus on romance in the MCU with Stephen as a main character -- indeed, it’s partially nonexistent -- so shorter list. ElenaCee wrote some great stories just after the first film but has sadly moved onto other fandoms.

Dragonnan on AO3 is currently my favourite whump writer. Two of my fandoms and lots of my favorite tropes. I feel spoiled. My favorite romance-is-their-primary-genre writer is amethyst-noir for her characterization of Stephen combined with the oh-so-fun (for us) scenarios.

3. Favorite type of scene to write?

I can usually tickle myself quite a bit when I get some really great situational comedy into a story. I can never be fully an angst/whump writer because I adore comedy. So yeah, situational comedy for sure.

4. What is your favorite fanfic?

Stop asking me these questions ahhh. Okay so I'll be mentioning fanfics not by any of the authors listed above (which are in my most favorite stories too but, well, their works are all favorites anyway. Just look at all their works in said fandom for more favorites if you’re lacking reading material and have similar tastes. And once you’re done reading all the works by those authors, come back here for more. Seriously, read the authors above).

I listed these fics in alphabetical order because that seemed most fair.

LOTR (Most are book-verse. I need to reread a lot of these. Most of these authors have several works for the fandom, though I think each of these particular stories have Aragorn as a primary character):

A Proper Course of Action by GadFlyGirl (absolutely hilarious one-shot after Helm’s Deep about ‘the Denethor situation’)

Across the Years by MistyC (a very creative and well-written story that spins an old cliche in a much more interesting way)

Butterbur and the King by Eledhwen (fantastic character one-shot from one of my favorite minor characters)

Conversations with the King by athelas63 (great characterizations, good healing scenes)

Conversion by Pentangle-linnon (for everyone who says that first person can’t be done in fanfic - read this one-shot, then tell me what you think now. A work of pure brilliance)

Crossroads of Light and Shadow by Mirach (this one I recommend simply for the creativity alone; the art she was able to execute with the text in flipping fanfiction.net is really mind-boggling. Very creative!)

Doomed to Live by fliewatuet (it was never completed, but it’s so freaking good that I am putting it here anyway)

For Every Evil by Mirrordance (fantastic modern incarnation AU that spun out into a series)

Greet the Dawn by Neoinean (a great, very long long-shot with two characters meeting and it’s just a great combination of humor and angst. More great characterization)

Helping Strangers by Imaginigma (fantastic one-shot, really interesting OCs, a wonderful scenario)

In Shadow Realm by Legolass Q (original concept, well-developed characters, engaging plot, truly magnificent)

Light Fingers by Aearwen22 (I think this is the only fic here that doesn’t star Aragorn- he’s a pretty minor character. Brilliant brilliant characterizations of the OCs and a look of a part of society often ignored in LOTR fan fic)

Pale-Faced Tark by Carafinwe (everything by this author is brilliant, but the visceral imagery she managed to capture in two short chapters here still blows my mind)

The Patient by Scribe (another fantastic modern incarnation AU that spun out into a series)

Ransom by MP brennan (man I just continue to see how much the LOTR fandom completely spoiled me with all of these brilliant, plotty fics. Another original concept with brilliant OCs and fantastic execution)

Shattered Stones by MCat711 (a very creepy, original, well-executed one shot that keeps you guessing the whole way through)

The Weight of Power by Nefhiriel (does it follow canon as established by the Appendices? No. Do I care? No. The story’s absolutely fantastic and makes those small discrepancies mean nothing. This was also the first story I ever drew fan art for. I then made something for Shirebound a year later, then didn’t make anything again until that Ebony Maw piece I posted a bit back)

With Hope and Without Hope by docmon (AU scenario in that the Three Hunters are captured while trying to rescue the Hobbits. Very well-thought out and compelling plot, fantastic characterizations all around)

Sherlock:

Annie’s Song by Berouge (One of the only romantic-leaning fics listed here [Sherlolly], but that is due to its excellent characterization and execution. Creative one-shot.)

The Case of the Missing Bus Ticket by Unsentimentalf (I think I burst a rib laughing to this story. Long one-shot. Situational humor at its finest)

Constantly by thesignofserbia (great one shot concerning Serbia)

Drowning by Dayja (I like a lot of her stuff. Angsty.)

Firestorm by Dustbunny13 (This is... beyond words. So gorgeous. I adored it from beginning to end. Have read a few times. Sometimes accept it as season 3 alternate canon, it’s just fantastic)

Fortune and Bust by ThessalyMc (a wonderful gap-filler fic, very similar to a lot of my favorite authors listed above in quality and type of content)

The Green Blade by verityburns (excellent case fic)

The Holiday by Scriblit (both whumpy angst and humor and case fic? Yeeeessss. Another I’ve read several times.)

Landscape With The Fall Of Icarus by Caitlin Fairchild (another Serbia fic? Yes predictable of me)

London Orbital (another story, very long one-shot, where I burst a rib laughing)

Rigging screws, size 1 3/8 inch, galvanised by AJHall (another excellent case fic)

World Enough, and Time by StoneWingedAngel (an excellent and creative execution of a trope that you'll realize by the time you get to day three)

Doctor Strange (unless stated otherwise, they’re all one-shots. Need more multi-chapter fics... or just gen Stephen content in general):

The Architect by mudgems (a great what-if with Stephen, Loki, and the Time Stone)

Born of the Same Impulse by GwendolynStacy (WIP multi-chapter. Time stone shenanigans send Stephen and Tony back to just before Ultron and a few months after the car accident, but before Kamar-Taj [the accident happens in 2015 rather than 2016 for this to work. It’s brilliant])

Citizen Erased by Imagined (WIP multi-chapter. One of the only romance-is-a-major-genre story [ironstrange] on the list, but the plot concept is incredibly unique, the mystery is being unraveled so wonderfully well, and the collection of characters is really fantastic and in-character.)

The End of Infinity by FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls (WIP multi-chapter. It’s canon compliant, only Stephen does a fantastic trick after canon and snatches Loki from the claws of death to go back to 2016 and fix everything. Peter, Tony also co-star. I am very much looking forward to where this goes)

Extracurricular Activities by EmptyHead (I am cheating here and linking a series. But it’s so damn creative, and while Stephen plays a big role, he’s definitely not the starring character. Synopsis is that MJ learns the mystic arts. It’s really brilliant!)

Geniuses by decotex (Stephen Strange's and Tony Stark's backstories, published before IW came out)

Hearth Sorcery by keshwyn (Another cheat here with a series of 5 one-shots, but this is too excellent and undervalued not to link. Excellent OC and world-building, highly recommend)

Holiday Magic by KarToon12 (Stephen plays Santa Claus for sick kids. It's adorable)

i hope you hold the mirror up (to show me what i chose) by CallicoKitten (Stephen and Tony being assholes to one another, published way before IW. I love it)

Like an Old Coat by ValmureEld (Could definitely see this as a follow up scene to the events in the Doctor Strange film. Great character interaction sequence)

Magic In Our Veins by Luna_Heart (the lack of Loki and Stephen interaction stories is criminal. Absolutely criminal. I want more!)

The Night’s First Watch by fathomfive (omg this is so good. So so so good. Excellent character study, I can’t recommend it enough)

of coffee and (questionable) first impressions by Phierie (Ooohh I love this alternate first meeting lots. Beat up on monsters and a coffee break after the work. Great stuff)

Project Code 131793 by StrangeMischief (Absolutely haunting and incredibly well-executed AU. I would adore to see more in this universe, it is so interesting)

Replay by INMH (the horror of Dormammu and coping with it)

You’ve Got Mail by Jadesfire (it’s about the mail situation with the Sanctum. What is not to love about that concept)

5. What tags do you avoid like the plague?

A/B/O, mpreg, not Mary friendly (for Sherlock), not Team Cap friendly, anti-Steve, anti-Wanda (or similar). Any of that anti-character bullshit, but in the MCU those are the two I see the most (and so probably make me rage the most. I once saw anti-T’Challa for instance and that just confused me more than anything). A bit of a rant in the next two paragraphs (I have Strong Feelings on this topic).

I don't tolerate the anti-character crowd. I really don't. Disliking a character is one thing and completely normal (I have my own list), but expanding time and energy to write just how much this character sucks is mind-boggling (and tends to make for really shitty fanfic. So you create a strawman villain of the character you hate for your favorite character to go against? Good job, you’ve made your favorite character appear entirely too stupid to deal with a well-developed character in conflict, and have made your favorite character 2D. Have a gold star). Your energy can be used elsewhere that isn't focused on hate. If you hate the character but aren’t creative enough to present them as anything but a strawman in your writing, don’t bother. Create an OC for your antagonist instead. Stop making canon characters so ridiculously OOC.

The real world is too filled with negativity to have it as part of a major focus in my fandom experience. It actually really, really bothers me that I cannot save a filter that automatically excludes all those anti tags as they haven’t been canonicalized on AO3. What perhaps bothers me even more is the number of kudos those hate-filled fics with incredibly OOC characters receive. The hypocrisy in this crowd is just astounding when you start pointing out the flaws in their favorite characters, too (FYI: All well-developed characters have flaws. I love Stephen Strange for his flaws. Before Stephen made his debut, Tony Stark was my favorite for similar reasons. It makes them INTERESTING).

Anyway, rant over.

6. What AU do you wish to write but feel like you won’t manage?

If I really really really want to write something, I'll write it. That said, there are things that I don't plan to write that I would adore reading (like that unfinished Stephen travels to the HP universe in Harry's fifth year fic ahhhhh I want that it would have made the 5th year so much better. Maybe if I bribe the original writer with fan art... wardmason you’re killing me).

7. Do you outline, or write as you go?

Depends. The outlines only tend to come into play for long stories with several scenes, and writing tends to happen first before outlining.

8. What has been your favorite story to write so far? Why?

Such hard questions! Uhhh I had great fun writing in my youth but I can barely remember it. Within this last year, uh... can I just say all of them? I've written about 100k in 6 months, I'm clearly enjoying myself here. I’ve had vibrant moments of delight in writing or planning several of them.

9. Do you prefer to write one-shots or multi-chapters? Why?

Both. Just depends on the story I want to tell and how long that story is saying it should be. I like posting a variety too; have one-shots coming out while I am working on the longer stories in the background.

10. What is your favorite kind of comment?

Oh those deep analytical ones that clearly took time to write. They're so lovely and really make my day. Every fanfic writer knows exactly what type of comment I am talking about.

11. Why did you start writing fanfiction? Why are you still writing?

I started because I had just seen the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie and I really liked the characters (before the sequels ruined them in various capacities) and I thought, "I should put them in Middle-earth!" 45 chapters and 7 years later that damn fic got completed (after dozens and dozens of rewrites as my writing abilities improved over the years).

Now, it's because I really enjoy writing and I like playing in copyrighted playgrounds with characters and worlds I love. Yeah, I could write an original novel, but it wouldn't be nearly as much fun.

#personal #about me #fanfic #fic rec #doctor strange fanfic #lotr fanfic #sherlock fanfic

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stevenuniversallyreviews · 5 years ago

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Episode 115: Adventures in Light Distortion

”There's no time.”

Steven recently had a really long day. It began with checking out an art exhibit at the barn, and ended in a spaceship grappling with his mother’s dark and secret past. It had its moments, like fusing into Smoky Quartz, but all in all it was life-changingly bad. It’s not fair that another such day has come for him so soon, but here he is.

We don’t have a moment to waste as this follow-up to Steven’s Dream opens, because every second spent on Earth is a second where Greg is speeding further from it. Steven is already blaming himself for the abduction, adding a more personal sense of rush to the affair. The irony is that while Blue Diamond’s actions aren’t his fault, the guilt he harbors causes serious mistakes that are his fault. But considering the dire circumstances, who could blame him?

Even the exposition here is swift and economical, as Garnet gives Amethyst and Pearl the lowdown on our last episode and Pearl dusts off her old Pearlsplaining cap from Season 1 to tell us about the Zoo. As is standard to this show, we learn important plot details while developing the character relaying them: in this case, on top of being a great showcase of Pearl’s nerves (“Amethyst, turn into a chair, I need to sit down!”), we add new wrinkles to her past. Her terror is informed by how anxious she was at seeing the palanquin in Steven’s Dream, and that brief moment of her eyes darting away from “When I still served...Homeworld” speaks volumes. We’ll go into more detail later about the implications of the Zoo and Pink Diamond’s efforts to help Earth through half-measures before going full Rose, but for now, it’s a terrific beat in retrospect that Pearl only knows where Greg was taken because she served the creator of his new prison.

With the Gems all caught up, we get straight to business prepping for takeoff, and it’s here that Steven makes his first two mistakes. First, he brushes off Peridot, the planet’s most qualified expert in modern Gem space travel. He doesn’t even invite her along, despite how obviously helpful she would be. Impatience trumps any sense of caution, and while it doesn’t make much sense for him to leave a helpful ally behind even in his frazzled state, her inability to grasp the importance of the situation (mixing serious travel concerns with pointless aesthetic quibbles) perhaps makes her a liability in his mind. Regardless, his second mistake is even bigger when it comes to his personal life, and it also involves leaving someone behind.

Yes, there’s no time to waste. So no, he probably shouldn’t have waited for Connie. He even tasks her with defending Beach City, showing that he does value her as a fighter as well as a friend. By itself, this probably wouldn’t be that big of a deal. But alongside his second foray into space down the line, it’s understandable that Connie starts to think that Steven doesn’t take her as seriously as he should. While there’s truth to that, the bigger issue is that Steven thinks that he alone should bear the burden of his perceived mistakes, and while it’s only hinted at now, that sense of martyrdom only gets worse as his guilt grows. This is a throwaway moment in the episode, but has major ramifications down the line.

And then we’re off! I’m honestly not into the gag of Pearl still not getting that 70 years is a long time for humans—it works early on, such as in Space Race, but she definitely would know better by now—and it’s joined by her not knowing the word for “birthday” despite several episodes introducing her to the concept. She’s grown a lot, and at times the show doesn’t seem to want to reflect this when an easy joke can be made. But at least she’s good at winding her way through a variety of space rocks, including tiny sentient ones.

Upon remembering the whole reality warping element of modern Gem space travel, Steven makes another hasty decision in boosting the speed, despite acknowledging that it might kill him. I mean, he makes a joke about how syrup can go with his new pancaked form, but it’s still an acknowledgment that self-sacrifice is a badge he’s proud to wear. And while it’s obviously a good thing that he survives, it can’t be healthy for his self-image to be proven right when he takes actions that might hurt or kill himself to help others.

Perhaps not wanting to delve too deeply into that topic quite yet, we get an extended comedy bit about the weird distortions the Gems face as physics gets wonky, as well as a small lesson about how light constructs work (complete with unusually cartoony diagrams, such as the one above comparing heights). I’m surprised by how effective the humor is; it’s not riotously funny to me or anything, but considering the stakes it really ought to feel annoying and in the way, and it works just fine. Part of the reason is that there’s nothing else to do while we’re waiting for the ship to arrive, so nothing feels interrupted. But I also appreciate it because it finally starts to show how destructive Steven’s rashness can be.

Activating the gravity engine was a choice that was reckless, but made sense: Steven needed to get to his dad in fewer than 70 years. But frantically pressing buttons he doesn’t understand to fix the Gems, instead of letting a more experienced hand figure it out, is almost frustratingly dumb. I say “almost” because it’s crystal clear by now that Steven is losing it, and the sight gags of our growing and shrinking Gems can’t hide that something is going to go wrong. When it inevitably does, and Steven is alone for the first time since Greg’s abduction, all that manic energy collapses into the grief he’s been trying to put at bay.

After the little visualized diagrams and the distorting forms of the Gems, we get an even more impressive animation-exclusive sequence: the striking use of onion skinning to convey the mindbending speed of the ship. Together with the ruby red lighting and the immediate disappearance of the Gems’ bodies, the tone lurches from one form of alarm to another. What was once a frenzied dash to fix things becomes a life-threatening race against the clock, and allows for one of the best performances of Zach Callison’s tenure on the show.

Steven has panicked before, but the greatest asset of this episode is Callison’s ability to crank it up a notch and sell the sheer stupefying terror of not knowing what to do in a crisis. He’s amazing throughout the episode as he practically hyperventilates his lines without delving into overdramatic emoting, but his despair as he’s left all alone on a doomed ship is heartwrenching.

It takes a strong performer and good, earnest writing to make a scene like this work, because verbally laying out all of your problems could come across as just telling instead of showing, and openly weeping can falter in any number of ways. It could’ve been melodramatic, it could’ve been overly childish, it could’ve been incoherent, and instead it’s a raw and moving outburst of sorrow after an episode where huge tears were a reaction to danger instead of emotion.

It’s also a great choice to follow up this moment of anguish with quieter determination. Instead of narrating his newfound resolve as he tries again to turn off the warp speed, this time eventually succeeding, the sequence is wordless and tense. Steven doesn’t need to tell us why he’s trying so hard, and after such a strong speech there’s no need to gild the lily when visuals work on their own.

The return of the Gems coincides with the return of regular light and animation, creating a palpable sense of relief despite it being sort of a given that they weren’t really going to kill off three main characters in this episode. Garnet provides Steven some much-needed reassurance, and while it doesn’t solve his martyr complex forever, it’s a welcome capper to the episode.

The logistics of an episode that’s literally just getting our characters from one place to another can’t be easy to navigate. If the crew wanted, we could’ve used that warp speed to jump straight to the action. Still, despite moving faster than light, it’s nice to slow down from the huge cliffhanger of Steven’s Dream to let our hero have a moment to collect his thoughts. Now that the initial shock has had a chance to pass, we can proceed with the rescue operation with a competent Steven that isn’t unrealistically okay with how things are going, and as a bonus we get our second episode since Bubbled that explores Steven’s increasingly sacrificial mindset. Everything working out for the best may seem like a neat way to finish Adventures in Light Distortion, but we’ll see the downsides in time.

Future Vision!

Yes, Steven leaving Connie behind is a catalyst for the Breakup Arc. But perhaps more importantly, they combine with Garnet similarly tasking Peridot and Lapis to protect Beach City to form the Crystal Temps!

We’re the one, we’re the ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!

A perfectly good entry in the Steven Universe catalog, bolstered by an amazing performance from Zach Callison, but ultimately an episode that isn’t too special on its own. It needs Steven’s Dream to pack its full punch, and the victory at the end is just reaching our next episode safely. Still, I like it!

Top Twenty

Steven and the Stevens

Hit the Diamond

Mirror Gem

Lion 3: Straight to Video

Alone Together

Last One Out of Beach City

The Return

Jailbreak

The Answer

Mindful Education

Sworn to the Sword

Rose’s Scabbard

Earthlings

Mr. Greg

Coach Steven

Giant Woman

Beach City Drift

Winter Forecast

Bismuth

Steven’s Dream

Love ‘em

Laser Light Cannon

Bubble Buddies

Tiger Millionaire

Lion 2: The Movie

Rose’s Room

An Indirect Kiss

Ocean Gem

Space Race

Garnet’s Universe

Warp Tour

The Test

Future Vision

On the Run

Maximum Capacity

Marble Madness

Political Power

Full Disclosure

Joy Ride

Keeping It Together

We Need to Talk

Chille Tid

Cry for Help

Keystone Motel

Catch and Release

When It Rains

Back to the Barn

Steven’s Birthday

It Could’ve Been Great

Message Received

Log Date 7 15 2

Same Old World

The New Lars

Monster Reunion

Alone at Sea

Crack the Whip

Beta

Back to the Moon

Kindergarten Kid

Buddy’s Book

Gem Harvest

Three Gems and a Baby

Like ‘em

Gem Glow

Frybo

Arcade Mania

So Many Birthdays

Lars and the Cool Kids

Onion Trade

Steven the Sword Fighter

Beach Party

Monster Buddies

Keep Beach City Weird

Watermelon Steven

The Message

Open Book

Story for Steven

Shirt Club

Love Letters

Reformed

Rising Tides, Crashing Tides

Onion Friend

Historical Friction

Friend Ship

Nightmare Hospital

Too Far

Barn Mates

Steven Floats

Drop Beat Dad

Too Short to Ride

Restaurant Wars

Kiki’s Pizza Delivery Service

Greg the Babysitter

Gem Hunt

Steven vs. Amethyst

Bubbled

Adventures in Light Distortion

Enh

Cheeseburger Backpack

Together Breakfast

Cat Fingers

Serious Steven

Steven’s Lion

Joking Victim

Secret Team

Say Uncle

Super Watermelon Island

Gem Drill

Know Your Fusion

Future Boy Zoltron

No Thanks!

6. Horror Club 5. Fusion Cuisine 4. House Guest 3. Onion Gang 2. Sadie’s Song 1. Island Adventure

#adventures in light distortion #steven universe #su #steven universally #review

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typetypetype2 · 5 years ago

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Chapter 1: Witch Store (Working title)

Wobble has always been a hangry cat and by this point, he knew when it was feeding time. He also knew when it was time for his human to wake up. Bouncing his tiny body through the apartment he marched his way to the bedroom. It's only a few steps for a human but for a tiny cat, it would take a while. Being that he is a familiar on the smaller side everything he did took a while. He's lazy to boot so that doesn't help.

Making his way past colorful plants that towered over him almost looked like he was on another planet until he made got closer to the couch. He loved to sleep in the corner by the lavender and jasmine. Past the pale purple couch, now he could see into the kitchen. He looked at the counter-tops he was never allowed on. Continuing on his journey he could finally see the bedroom door which was only slightly ajar. No matter how much he had demanded it keep it open his human always refused. Nudging it gently with his head he crept inside the room. The walls a deep purple and every accent was a light teal green. It was the only room in the tiny apartment that had any sort of style. He climbed the bed and found his human underneath all the covers. The a/c was on full blast so they had buried themselves in blankets to make up for it. It also kept someone from scratching their face off to wake them up, which may or may not have been what Wobble was getting ready to do. He burrowed himself under the covers to find that his human was awake and using her phone.

"Good morning baby." I kissed his forehead while rubbing his back. Wobble meowed in return almost as if begging for his owner to get up right this second. Glancing at the time I rolled over. "Did you come to wake me up or to ask for breakfast?" Wobble said nothing and made his way carefully out of the sheets and down to the carpet stretching. I followed suit, my favorite time of the day is to stretch with him in the mornings. "Alright, I'll get your food first then I'll feed the plants then I get to feed my face." I smiled and grabbed the remote to turn off the a/c and placed it back on the nightstand, unplugged my phone and walked out the door toward the kitchen. Wobble's food was stored above the top shelf so that way even if he grew he hopefully wouldn't be able to reach it. A familiar of his kind never really grew to be any bigger than he is now but I didn't want to take any chances. He had already broken one too many glasses and forced me to start buying plastic instead. Anytime he would get hangry he would launch himself onto the counters to bat off whatever may have been in his way. Heaving on the bag of food I half expected Wobble to jump up to try and grab it, but that was a fear that I always had.

After Wobble's food bowl was filled I grabbed a cup of water and began to water the plants. In total there had to about 30 of them in the apartment alone. I always start in the bathroom that way brushing teeth and using the toilet would be easy without Wobble trying to but his head into everything I'm doing. There are only 3 plants in the bathroom anyway all because of Wobble. There used to be more but for some reason, he hated every plant that was in there so the rest were moved downstairs.

Downstairs is the shop that I work in. It's owned by one of my best friends who has willingly rented me this apartment when I was down on my luck. Nowadays, I'm doing fine and am pretty well off. Having enough to buy my car, my broomstick, and many more witch supplies that before I was doing without. After a few years, my friend had found Wobble trying to get into the apartment one day while I was out shopping. He took the cat to his house since it was getting late but all the Wobble did was scream until he introduced him to me a day later. The tiny cat went silent and still in my arms which meant he was a familiar. Even better it meant he was meant to be MY familiar which meant I had been stuck with an animal, a magical animal, I had no idea how to take care of.

It didn't take long for the two of us to get close, however. It was almost like we had the same personality, which is rare for a witch and her familiar to have. Usually, for the first few years, a witch and their familiar would have to work together and would regularly bicker and avoid each other. For these us though, we never fought. Except for the occasionally scratch to the face to signal it was time for me to wake up, which I hate, our relationship has been pretty smooth going so far.

"Now that all the plants are taken care of it's time for some cereal!" Pouring out the remaining water and placing the cup face down in the sink, I made my way to the fridge. Grabbing a bowl from the cabinet and one of the cereal boxes from the top of the fridge the breakfast had been made. I decided to stand and eat. It didn't make sense to sit when I still have other things to do. I grabbed my phone from the counter where I had placed it earlier and a spoon from the top drawer and began shoveling spoonful's of sugary goodness down my throat, barley thinking to chew. I hadn't eaten the night before because work had gotten too hectic for me to take a break. With a mouth full of cereal I got a phone call from Jax. "Hewwo?" I asked, chewing the rest of the food in my mouth. "Did you eat?" "Maybe?" "What does that even mean?" He asked confused. "I might have been eating and I might have not eaten, why do you ask?" I put down my spoon hoping he was inviting me out to eat for some real food. "Well, we were going to eat at Kick's but if you ate already then," I didn't give him time to finish. "What time? I'm down. Who is we?" "Me, Sari, Jenni, and you? If that's okay. I know you and Jenni weren't getting along last I heard." I shook my head disappointed. Jenni and I haven't gotten along in a while. After I came out to the group Jax had approved, Sari nodded and asked inquisitive questions, and Jenni ignored me. She choose instead to call me 'she' for the rest of the time we were hanging out and I wanted nothing to do with her from that time forward. However, I am hungry so I shall go. I won't like it and I know for a fact that I'm going to be annoyed while there, however after the event but my tum will be full of great food and I haven't seen Jax and Sari in a while. "No, I'll go. I won't like it or enjoy myself but I'll go. I miss you and Sari plus I'm hungry so." "Is that a good idea? I don't need you getting upset and going home in a hurry." "I'll bring Wobble and some amethyst to keep me grounded so I should be fine. Tell her to try to be polite. If she manages to still piss me off I might just spell cast her." "Oh my gosh don't do that! That's not nice!" "Well, she's not nice! Don't ask me to be civil while letting she misgenders me the whole damn day! Wait, what time are we going?" Asking that I looked down at my bowl of cereal. I either had time to scarf it down or I'd have to pour it down the drain. Whatever I did it would be an upsetting waste of cereal if I don't get to enjoy it. "Uhm, we going right now. Is that ok? If not we can schedule something else another time?" "Nah, I get ready now. I go." "Okay. Well, hurry up we almost there!" "Oh please, I know damn well you're either still in bed or stuck in traffic. Sari is probably waiting for a ride from Jenni and Jenni is nowhere near ready. If I hurry I'll be the first one there and Jenni might not even come." Jax chuckles "you know us so well." We laugh together as I pour out my bowl into the sink. Turning on the garbage disposal and enjoying the sound of the cereal grinding up and going down the drain. "What was that noise?!" I laugh again "It was the garbage disposal." "What is you disposing of? A body?" "Nah, I did that last night. I dumped it out in the harbor with the rest of them." Jax was dying laughing at the thought. We both had a strange sense of humor. Having been on Bumblr for around the same amount of time and sharing memes for years.

I told Jax that I'd meet him in the parking lot of the restaurant and hung up the phone. Since I need to hurry I might as well take the broom instead of the car and get dressed sooner rather than later. Bringing my phone with me I marched into the bedroom after dumping my bowl in the sink. I already have an outfit in mind, that new black and purple dress I bought two days ago, a black jacket, and my black work boots. I started to close the door until I heard a tiny meow in protest. Leaving the door open I starred into my closet realizing a little too late that the dress was still in a bag on the floor in the corner from when I bought it. Turning my head I now saw that's where Wobble had planted his butt and yawned. It's not difficult to move him at all it'll just be a chore I didn't want to deal with while being in a hurry.

"Don't worry bud you're coming with me." I scooped him up in my hands and grabbed the bag. Placing the cat on my bed I pulled on the dress and did a twirl in the mirror on my bathroom door. Wobble mewed in approval. Scooping Wobble in my arms again I rushed into the living room almost hitting my foot on the couch, I grabbed my vented backpack from its hook and plopped Wobble inside. Putting the bag down I began to slide my foot into my boot while simultaneously putting on half of the jacket. I lost my balance. Beginning to lean backward I mouthed the word balance while drawing a small straight line with my finger swiftly I was propped back up straight. I finished placing on my jacket, calmly but on boots then zipped my backpack and placed it on my back. Grabbing some amethyst and dried lavender off my altar I made my way through the door making sure to lock it behind me.

"Broom, come" I whispered sweetly. Hearing the familiar sound of the wind moving I readied myself to grab the broom. It came with a breath of cold air. I caught it and stroked its brush. "It must be freezing in the shop. I'm sorry I left you down there all night." I spoke in a hushed voice. The broom made no noise but I could tell it accepted my apology. As I saddled up Wobble voiced his protest, he hates flying but the way I see it he'll get over it one day.

"Up." I commanded. As I began to hover I secretly wished I would beat everyone else there.

#Chapter 1 #my story #no name yet #the start #chp 1 #taray #taray97 #typetypetype2 #main characters #main character #taray's story #taray 97 #witch #Naja #Jax #Jenni #Sari #witch store

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undine-taz · 5 years ago

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Retrospect Reviews 4

Steven Universe-Cheeseburger Backpack

You know, I wasn’t a huge fan of this episode at first. By about the 3rd or 4th time I watched it, I found it had really grown on me. At first I felt a bit frustrated because I felt like there was very little in the way of character growth going on, and it was just meant to set up for other development in the future. I see some slight development now, but I think it could have used a bit of a push to make it a really solid episode.

Plot Bare Bones:

Status Quo: Steven is yet again alone at the temple, waiting for the Crystal Gems (or, well, waiting for the mailman, but you know what I mean.).

Impetus: The Gems finally return and Steven wants to go with them to prove that he can be useful on missions even without reliable use of his gem.

Mini-Plots:

The Whirlpool (which Steven overcomes with his sweaters)

The Crystal Shrimp(Steven conquers them by using bagels as a distraction)

The Waterfall(Here Steven’s ingenuity fails- his raft floats away and Garnet smashes up a bridge for them)

Climax: They reach their destination just in time, only for them to realize that Steven has forgotten the Moon Goddess Statue in his excitement at being included.

Resolution: The Lunar Sea Spire collapses and Steven and the Crystal Gems are left to paddle home.

Overall Opinion:

My general storytelling philosophy dictates that the characters must be changed by the plot in some way. At first I really felt as though there wasn’t significant change in our beloved protagonists, but with a few rewatches I felt like there were perhaps some changes, but quite subtle ones that were more for the audience’s benefit than the character’s.

The gems don’t believe that Steven is capable of going on missions, and they’re proved right. Steven is wonderful, but he’s still very immature. His mistake ended in the failure of the mission overall, in spite of his earlier successes. Those earlier successes were pretty unimportant ones in terms of the mission, anyway. As Garnet shows, the obstacles were insignificant to the CGs. Even without the confirmation later, it’s clear that the gems are humoring Steven.

In the end, the relationship between the Crystal Gems and Steven hasn’t shifted, but at least Steven has the experience of failure and the confirmation that Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl do not judge him based on his successes. They hasten to reassure him in spite of his mistakes, which I think is great. He’s allowed to fail. The narrative doesn’t exempt him because he is a good person.

In short, I have mixed feelings on the episode. The characters didn’t move forward much, but maybe they don’t need to. That said, it lacks a certain dynamism to it. It’s a bit flat, a bit one-note. It elaborates on the relationship between Steven and the Crystal Gems, but it might be unnecessary emphasis considering it’s just a restatement of things we already know. Ultimately I find it to be a cute episode, a good one, but it doesn’t push the boundaries.

A Different Direction:

Here I just want to speculate on interesting storylines for my own pleasure and edification. I think perhaps it would have been interesting if the Mr. Queasy substitution had worked-but not completely. It restored the Lunar Sea Spire without preserving and restoring the historical aspects of it that Pearl found so important. It might create an interesting moment for Pearl, especially since so much of her later character arc revolves around her resistance to change. Seeing the Lunar Sea Spire changed would most likely be more difficult for her than to see it simply destroyed. It would give a bit of complexity to her reassurance of him- I would imagine that she would still reassure him, but it would be something a bit more difficult.

I would also love to see Steven realizing that it wasn’t a total victory. He accomplished the technical objective but missed the underlying one. Not only would it introduce him to the realization that some victories aren’t complete, he would get his first hint that victories can have different meanings for different people. It would also neatly foreshadow that Steven will be a changing force on Gem history.

#steven universe #cheeseburger backpack #su spoilers #su #taz reviews #retrospect review #garnet #amethyst #and pearl #and steven!

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dontcallmejules · 6 years ago

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Made this a while ago and never posted it... Meet Zui.

What is their full name?

Zui. That's it.

In detail describe how they look

5'11, slender, slight athletic build yet considered on the waifish side. Dusky, smooth complexion with gray tones. Erratic, un-combable, silver-white hair that stands out in a crowd, hence the hood.

How old are they?

Mid to late twenties? Age unknown.

What clothes do they like to wear?

Black/gray/purple muted tones. Suede. Things that hide in a crowd and make no sound.

Any piercings?

A lot.

Do they have any other jewelry they wear?

Necklace coils in pure silver. A favorite stolen item from foreign royalty visiting Vesuvia.

Any tattoos? No

What do they smell like?

Clove, ash, and vanilla.

What are their four trinkets? Questionably stained dagger. Half empty whiskey bottle. Wanted poster that looks nothing like her. A pouch full of stolen trinkets.

GOVERNMENT MANDATED FERSONA No.

What kind of magic are they good at? Illusion/invisibility. Control of localized wind bursts and whirlwinds. Some healing magic comes in handy.

What kind of magic are they bad at? Love and happiness spells, earth magic, accurate tarot readings.

Of the four, six or seven magical elements which are the most connected to? Four: fire, air water earth. six: fire, air, water, wood, earth, metal. Seven: fire, air, water, wood, earth, metal, aither. Air

What does their gateway look like prior to their memory loss? What does it look like afterward? A dark, lonely, narrow collection of alleys in an unnamed city. Calm with a light drizzle of rain. Zui hasn't seen it since after the memory loss so she wouldn't know what it looks like post-memory loss.

Do they have a familiar? If they do. What type of animal is it? What is it’s name? Is it still around after they lost their memory? A minuscule, snow gray rat named Rat. He's still around after the memory loss although she doesn't know he's her familiar. Zui goes days without seeing Rat. When he's around he likes to stick close by and prefers naps in the base of her hood. He's much older than a rat should be and, although she's seen him injured or possibly killed numerous times, Rat always returns unscathed.

Have they ever cursed someone? Cursed their names, yes. Physically harmed them, yes. However, cursed magic has consequences not worth dealing with.

How do they handle those headaches/migraines? Drinking. Sex. More drinking.

What tarot card do they connect the most with? The Moon, Upright: unconscious, illusions, intuition.

Where were they born? She doesn't know. Assumes somewhere in the slums of Vesuvia.

What is their favorite color? Plum purple.

What is their least favorite color? Orange. Yellow. Anything bright and offensively cheerful.

What were they like as a child? Quiet, fast, smart. She learned how to pickpocket to survive.

What were their parents like? Parents?

Do they have any siblings? If the answer is yes how many? Probably, who knows.

Do they have any other relatives they are close with? Doesn't know any relatives and really isn't close to anyone anyway.

What are they afraid of? Showing weakness. Growing attached to another person. The majority of her own emotions.

What do they identify as? She/Her

Do they have any allergies? Nothing so far... except stupidity.

Do they have any other medical problems? Headaches, insomnia, night terrors, sleepwalking, and memory loss, obviously.

What about mental health issues? Distrust of anyone. Promiscuous. Alcoholic.

What’s their personal hygiene regimen like? Near religious. Prefers to bathe in streams with scented soaps and herbs she carries on her person at all times unless there's a high-quality spa available... then she's all over that.

Favorite rock or gemstone? Amethyst, granite, the crooked cobblestones of Vesuvia.

Favorite tree? The weeping willows that line streams outside of Vesuvia with their wispy, ground-sweeping branches and long, slender leaves. Great for afternoon naps.

Favorite type of weather? Overcast and either cool, damp, or both.

Least favorite type of weather? Dry summer heat.

What is their favorite season? (remember winter is summer and spring is fall) Whenever the weather is mild and the sun not beating down.

How many languages could they speak before the memory loss? How many do they currently speak? Understands one yet can't speak it. Speaks some important phrases of another. Speaks fluent Vesuvian.

Do they sing or play any instruments? She sings quietly to herself. What do they tend to joke about? Dark sense of humor. Or sarcasm. Both. After a stressful day, how do they relax? A drink, someone attractive to sleep with, a long, quiet bath. Guilty pleasures? Everything. Idiosyncrasies? Will silently appear next to you. Whether by magic or practiced stalking of the city streets. One minute she's absent, the next, looming over you. Her height and slightly disconcerting presence make this alarming to some. How do they act when they first meet someone new? Hesitant, guarded, quiet besides bad jokes. How quickly do they warm up to them? Slowly. Very slowly. Unless they click, then too fast. In what order would they prioritize Love, fame, money, power, and knowledge? Knowledge, money, power, love, fame. List four or more things they love to do Drink, get a full night's rest, wander through Vesuvia's bustling markets, fuck. List four or more things they hate to do Pay any form of a bill. Attend parties. Small talk. Kiss ass. List five or more things they have said that sum up who they are "Ah, I see... you're an idiot." "I would love it if you bought me a drink." "How do I know I can trust you?" "You certainly take yourself very seriously..." "Go away." How do they react to (both verbal and physical) conflict? Verbal: Stern, silent. Off-putting smile. A very sharp tongue and no qualms. Physical: Fast, sleek, uses magic to avoid injuries let alone contact at all. Terrible to fight as you can never get a shot in. Disarms first then threatens until the offender gives up. If her adversary doesn't give up, they get hurt. If the injury is serious, they get fed to the palace eels.

What kind of bad habits do they have? All of them. Just list the seven deadly sins, well, besides gluttony. Never quite got the hang of that one. What kind of character faults do they have? All of them, or at least she feels she does. Swears, does not fit into social standards, steals to survive, uses sex as a tool and a weapon, vain, prideful. What’s their best trait in their opinion? Stubborn and strong-willed. Entirely resilient in all situations. Fearless. What do they think of their appearance? Vanity is a large part of her life. She uses looks to her advantage in all situations. How do they interact with people in a position of authority? Is mindful of authority to the point they'd rather not get killed for pissing off the wrong courtesan. Otherwise completely ignores authority and social statuses to a fault. Who did they look up to as a kid? The older, more skilled child thieves on the streets. She also saw their flaws and learned from their mistakes. How do they interact with kids? She doesn't. Do they want kids of their own someday? She doesn't. Are they religious? If so what god/goddess or gods/goddesses do they worship? She is still waiting to see a sign of actual "higher" life. What do they think the meaning of life is? There is none. What would they want their last words to be? Hopefully nothing foolish. What do they want to do before they die? Live a full life. What/how do they want to be remembered for after they die? She doesn't expect to. How do they express affection? Protective to a fault. If it's romantic affection she can be fairly obsessive and will tail them around the city to learn their routine. Super attentive and great gift giver. However, she gets bored easily and may ghost at the drop of a hat. What do they normally eat for breakfast? Whatever is fresh on the market to snatch that day. Unless in a mood, then liquor. Do they like spicy food? If it's free. Favorite fruit and or vegetable? The ones that "roll off" the cart and accidentally make their way into her bag. Do they like sweets? Easy to pocket, so of course. Do they drink alcohol? Do fish swim? If they do, what do they act like when they are drunk? Tipsy: calm, relaxed. Drunk: flirtatious and more aggressive. Dead drunk: fights whoever is near or just naps it off. How do they take their tea/coffee? Spiked. What food would they refuse to eat? Anything rotten or dirty. Brings back too many memories of childhood. Is there anything they eat that most people would find unappealing? Eel, snake, anything charred to a crisp and served on a stick is fair game. When going on the road what food could they not live without? Bread and dried meat travel well. What meal gives them a sense of nostalgia? Fresh berries, a favorite as a kid and easy to pluck off the bushes outside the city. What do they do when no one’s around? Wander aimlessly, enjoying the silence. Check her bags to see what loot has been recently acquired. How would they react if a prized possession got stolen? Vengeful. She would retrieve the item at all costs and take as much of the thieves possessions as possible for their foolish actions. Depending on the item, she may take more than just their belongings. What’s the first thing they would buy if they won the lottery? Liquor. A new, more inconspicuous bag or two. A few nights in one of Vesuvia's luxury spas... or luxury brothel. What would their favorite modern invention be? Air conditioning and running water. In a new unfamiliar place, what do they do? Properly assess the situation. Learn the layout of her surroundings and the patterns of the residents. Proceed with caution. Someone just threatened them what do they do? Depends on the person, the threat, and the situation. Usually, just smile. A rather well rich looking woman just dropped her purse and didn’t notice. What do they do? Enjoy the free dinner, expensive liquor, and additional purchases made with whatever gold and jewelry are in the bag. Plant the empty, stolen bag on an enemy. Watch what happens next while eating free snacks. What’s the worst thing someone has said to them? "I know you actually care." What is the strangest thing they’ve ever come across? She once stumbling upon Count Lucio in one of Vesuvia's worse-off brothels enjoying a harem of filthy whores representing all shapes, sizes, sexes, and creeds... all wearing only goat masks and braying like barnyard animals. The Count invited Zui to join. She did not. Luckily this memory is currently lost. Let's hope it stays that way. Someone just stole food from them what do they do? Retrieve the food. If the thief ate it, still retrieve the food out of principal and dispose of the critically wounded offender with the palace's handy, dandy eels. They meet a man at a crossroads. The man says they can have everything they’ve ever wanted. What happens next? Seduce the man. Take everything he has. Leave him drunk and pantsless in a field nearby. As a child what would they say they wanted to be as an adult? ie. When I grow up I’m going to be _______ Never filthy and shoeless again. What’s their D&D alignment? Chaotic Neutral. What is the stupidest thing they’ve ever done? Fell in love. Made friends. Things that can get you in trouble. Have they ever got in trouble with the law or been arrested? Illusion magic comes in handy... so no, not yet. Do they know how to win a fight? Always. Are they good at hand to hand combat? Quick and skilled at disarming/subduing foes. Have they ever stolen something? Is this a joke question? Have they ever killed someone? No, but those eels certainly have. What/who do they find disgusting? Brown-nosers. Family life. Status. Body odor. What upsets them the most? Being exposed as having human feelings. Body odor. What anime character would they be? What is Anime? What Disney character would they be? What is Disney? What monster would they be? Humans are monsters enough. What mythological figure would they be? The invisible kind. List three songs that you associate with them. "World in My Eyes" Depeche Mode / "Rid Of Me" PJ Harvey / "IOU" Wolfsheim The more adult round What kind of gift would they be the happiest about receiving from a lover? The lover naked, possibly holding a fresh bottle of bourbon. Are they an easy lay? Nothing is ever easy with them. If it appears easy, she's probably stolen all your items and left before you could blink. Major turn-ons. Sarcasm, a sharp wit, intelligence, clean and well-manicured individuals who smell amazing. Major turn offs Crude comments, arrogance, bad hygiene, vile body odors. Erogenous zones? Wouldn't you like to know? Who are they romantically interested in? This Julian fellow who seems to be conveniently wherever she is. The Countess also comes to mind. Plus there's this woodsman type although she’s currently forgotten his name. How do they interact with someone they're romantically interested in? Sly jokes, inappropriate comments at appropriate times, a lot of bodily contact. Where do they like to be kissed? Everywhere and anywhere. Do they like cuddling? She likes touching in general so- Big spoon or little spoon? Big spoon. What traits do they look for in a lover? Fast whit, sharp tongue, does not restrict her, reliable, generous. How many past relationships have they had? If one-night-stands count, too many. If they don't, not enough. How many people have they had sex with? Enough to know what she likes and really, really doesn't. Giving or receiving? Yes, please. Top, bottom or verse? Top, usually. Sub dom or switch? Never a sub.

#mc #fan apprentice #The Arcana Game #arcana #zui #the arcana #apprentice #the arcana apprentice

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isaackuo · 5 years ago

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Starco Week5 Wrap-up!

This week was really fun! It was nice for someone to actually see the silly comics I draw! Normally, hardly anyone even notices so I rarely put in the effort of a multi-panel comic.

Here are links and explanations to my Starco Week 5 comics:

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185176588866/awkward

The one that started it all for me! I actually didn’t even notice there was a Wedding prompt later in the week. I just saw a post about “Awkward Dating Moments” and the Kellco shipper in me thought of a cute little comic that MAXIMIZED STARCO AWKWARDNESS.

So I thought, why not? It was only 3 little panels, and it mostly involved me drawing Kelly - who I find easy to draw. And I thought it was freaking hilarious.

EXPLANATION:

This comic refers to Booth Buddies, a “memorable” episode among us Starco shippers. In it, Kelly and Marco are on a wedding date, until Star Butterfly yoinks Marco away to the infamous photo booth. Then things get a little weird. In this comic, Kelly gets back by yoinking Marco to be her breakup buddy “booth buddy”, when Marco and Star are on a “wedding date” ...

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185223809716/yeah-im-a-bad-boy-princess

This one was the toughest for me, and also the weakest. I don’t follow AUs and I’m not used to thinking in terms of AUs. I tried to study the Bad Boy AU a bit, but I couldn’t think of any funny jokes for it. Honestly, I just went with the first idea I finally thought of which was vaguely funny.

EXPLANATION:

This comic references a few of the “bad” things canon Star actually did:

1) Trash a cop car in Star vs Echo Creek

2) Shoot a cop chopper out of the sky in Sad Teen Hotline

3) Murder the MHC in Cleaved

But “nice” AU Star wouldn’t do that stuff, right? So Bad Boy Marco picks up the slack for her. So ... it’s funny? I dunno, I think my sense of humor is too obtuse a lot of the time. You really need to be in deep with the show to even remember the stuff I’m referencing and make the connections?

I guess either you “get it” or ... oh well.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185220760531/starco-snugs

Haha, this one was “controversial”. I mean ... if you read my stuff then you know I think Star was addicted to the thrill of having both Marco and Tom, the same way Marco was addicted to the thrill of two timing with Star and Hekapoo (in Night Life). I think this was cute and tragi-comic, and it’s one of my favorite parts of Star Butterfly’s character. Let her have her distinctive flaws, okay?

But apparently this also cuts a bit too close to home, since it’s one of the things hardcore Tom stans criticize Star for (both the character and the show).

Anyways ... while everyone else was going sweet lovey-dovey, I went a bit freaky. I mean ... I think of this as romantic, but maybe I’m just weird that way. Like ... just imagine. Marco Diaz consoling Star every night for breaking up with Tom, and then he gets hit by “Mind Eraser” so he gets to do it again tomorrow. Isn’t that romantic?

EXPLANATION:

This comic is based on the “Mind Eraser” spell Eclipsa teaches Moon in Total Eclipsa the Moon. It’s one of my favorite spells to make jokes around, because it’s basically the flashy thing from Men in Black.

So I ponder ... what if Star really went all out using “Mind Eraser” and she went completely nuts taking advantage of it on Marco Diaz? Okay, in Here to Help, Star rushed to skip the awkward talky talky stuff and went straight for a kiss first. Maybe she’s used to it because she’s had the confession talk with Marco dozens of times already?

Oh, I also snuck in a joke referring to how Tom didn’t let Star kiss him on the lips after they broke up. As such, the only actual Tomstar kiss shown was the Lava Lake Beach kiss Marco saw from a distance. A bit mean to the Tomstar shippers, don’t you think?

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185256268271/when-is-this-state-going-to-end-starco-road

Road Trip was a challenge for me. I wanted to minimize drawing effort since my arm was sore, but I also wanted to depict a long amount of time. So I was thinking of them taking turns driving, but I switched to a bicycle based on Honey and Clover. Using a bicycle also allowed posing them in cute ways not available with a car, so it all worked out!

I was also thinking to try and cram in a joke about Star not being able to just use magic - using the Thor reaction gif to Steve Rogers not having the internet to look up the weather meme ... but ultimately it just didn’t fit. Also, I wanted to minimize drawing effort.

EXPLANATION:

Not much going on here - there’s really only one joke. But the cuteness of Star slumping on Marco really sells this one. Apparently, everyone else also thought so, since this ended up being pretty popular.

Oh, I suppose the sheer absurdity of doing an interstate bicycle trip eastward from the California coast is also a bit funny.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185303660951/isaackuo-sword-fight-club-xover-double-fight

I initially struggled with this prompt. I mean ... crossover double date? It’s just weird to me. How do they even know each other? How did they meet? It makes no sense?

Well, a classic Douglas Adams writing trick is to take what you’re stuck on and turn it around. And so I did. How do they even know each other? THEY DON’T. It’s just some random “Fight Club App” meetup. Once I had that epiphany, it was a matter of figuring out what couple would be the funniest to fight ...

EXPLANATION:

I’m proud of all the jokes I packed in here. Of course, we start off with the fact that this “date” is a random “Fight Club App” thing. Not only that, but it’s a Sword Fight Club. Like that’s a thing. You’re just going to randomly fight some strangers with swords. Like you’re in freaking Highlander except there’s no Prize or whatever.

But it’s funny because getting into some random fights is indeed the sort of thing Star and Marco would do for a fun date! Same with Steven and Connie, really (although this is more along the lines of Steven and Amethyst wrt Tiger Millionaire).

Then there’s the fact that Marco Diaz wore baby Mariposa to a sword fight. Who even does that? Oh right ... Queen Solaria and Queen Eclipsa. Which fandom didn’t question at all ... we just thought it was cute.

Star’s “We’re fighting kids?” is a reference to Alone Together, when Kevin freaks out that Stevonnie is actually two kids.

Marco is okay with fighting a kid, since his Season 1 karate nemesis was 8 year old Jeremy Birnbaum (remember him?).

The slit eyes Mariposa give Steven are based on the way baby Meteora looks at Marco.

Connie’s right - Star and Marco are 15 ... not all that much older than she is. But Star has been through a lot of serious stuff making her grow up young. She has lost touch with what teenagers even do (as she noted in Cornonation).

Star’s shocked at Steven’s age the same way Connie was shocked when she learned Steven’s age.

Even though Steven’s age disconnect is caused by wibbly wobbly gem hybrid growth rates, Marco assumes it’s because he “Did time in the Neverzone”. I had fun rewording that phrase until it implied something like doing a prison sentence.

The final kicker is baby Mariposa revealing she’s almost as old as Connie. This calls up fandom mixed feelings about Neverzone age ambiguity and what the heck this implies after Gone Baby Gone. And I mean ... you all saw it coming, right? You knew baby Mariposa had to be there for a reason, right? It’s funny because you see it coming a mile away.

Needless to say, this one is the one I’m most proud of. I had so much fun writing and rewriting it in my head until it was perfect! The only bad thing is that you need to be pretty familiar with both Star vs the Forces of Evil and Steven Universe to get all the jokes. But hey ... my sense of humor is obtuse like that.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185295564211/the-honey-moon-ball-starco-wedding-prompt

This was another tough one. I already blew my best wedding joke on Day 1, and I didn’t even notice there was a Wedding Day prompt at the time!

I struggled and struggled to come up with anything. So I just latched onto the first joke I came up with. In lieu of good jokes, I tried to sell this one with sweet cute character art showing Tom being dashing and Starco being lovey dovey. Still ... this is one of my weaker ones.

EXPLANATION:

Obviously this is based on the Blood Moon Ball/Curse, but this time Tom’s hitting them with a different curse - the Honey Moon Curse.

As we find out in Curse of the Blood Moon, Star didn’t pay attention to the MC and she thought the Blood Moon light was just a fun party light. So in this comic, she’s just obliviously caressing Marco while he questions what Tom means.

I initially thought of Tom explaining that he was confused about what Marco had previously meant when he said he wanted a “honeymoon”. But then, I thought it would be funnier if it’s simply ambiguous whether or not Tom is being spiteful or a silly practical joker or what. Sometimes it’s funnier when there’s a psychological tension - you don’t know what Tom’s thinking/feeling.

https://isaackuo.tumblr.com/post/185313724836/toy-star-starco-week-5-prompt-au-of-choice

Another one which was initially tough for me. I’m just not familiar with AUs, so I knew I’d have to make up my own. But what? Nothing clicked until ... TOY STORY! After that stroke of brilliance, there were too many ideas. The hard part was paring things down into a manageable short comic.

I’m most proud of the INSANE look of Princess Star tapping her Wand at Diaz. And also the Pony Head box for Princess Star.

Anyway, the great thing about Toy Star is that I didn’t need to fill in much detail in order for the reader to imagine a whole world around it. I mean ... we all know and love Toy Story. It’s part of our cultural consciousness. So it’s really easy to imagine some fun enemies-to-buddies story just from a few suggestions.

EXPLANATION:

The boxed Princess Star bonking Diaz off the bed is actually not quite how it happened in Toy Story. But close enough! (We don’t actually get to see the majesty of a boxed Buzz Lightyear until Toy Story 2.)

Princess Star has ball jointed arms similar to Buzz Lightyear while Diaz is a flexible stuffed doll like Woody. I left off “Butterfly” because “Princess Star” feels more self centered and self important.

Diaz is named “Diaz” just to make Jackie’s line sound more intimate and personal.

Mermaid Jackie is, of course, a reference to the popular fan theory that Jackie was a mermaid. This “Sunny Atlantis” mermaid is a reference to the Pixar short Knick Knack. She’s an aquarium decoration, rather than a toy. This is a reference to how Woody’s girlfriend Bo Peep was also not a toy (she was a lamp).

The mermaid in Knick Knack has shades rather than eyes. So that’s why mermaid Jackie is lifting up shades to look down toward Diaz.

The panel where Diaz is getting out from under Adam’s bed is directly based on a Toy Story screenshot. The original does have a cactus pictured on the bedspread. I thought it would be kinda funny if it’s ambiguous what sort of “cactuses” broke Diaz’s fall.

The “must be some mistake” panel is also directly based on a Toy Story screenshot.

Princess Star immediately trying to Narwhal Blast Diaz indicates she’s even crazier than Buzz Lightyear. Buzz merely shifted around pointing his laser arm at Woody. Oh - the “psycho” look in her face really sells this, I think.

The fact that Princess Star is somehow aware she has to tap the button on her wand to activate it is ... well I think it’s funny. (The button placement, of course, is plainly designed for human use.)

Princess Star requesting a nearby Quest Buy is a reference to Quest Buy, the episode where they go to Quest Buy to buy a wand charger. “Or do you still use Plutonium” is a reference to Buzz’s technobabble “distolic fusion” ... but I thought the use of real world “Plutonium” would give the joke a bit more kick (sort of a Back to the Future reference also).

Diaz answering “we’ve got double-A’s” is a reference to Toy Story where Woody says the same thing.

“Look, new friend,” is something Star Butterfly would say, but with a flat attitude more like Buzz Lightyear. This indicates Princess Star has a bit different personality than canon Star Butterfly. It fits in more with Toy Story, helping the reader imagine how this Starco relationship will play out.

“Multiverse High Command” is a mashup of “Magical High Commission” and “Star Command”. The threat of the multiverse being destroyed is something Queen Moon warns Star in Star Comes to Earth. The spiel where Princess Star explains her mission is similar to Buzz Lightyear explaining his mission. Presumably, it’s written on her Ponyhead box. Again, all this stuff helps the reader imagine how this Starco relationship will play out.

Diaz’s “You’re a toy” is, of course, a reference to Woody trying to explain to Buzz Lightyear that he’s just a toy.

“I believe the term you’re looking for is ‘Magical Princess from Another Dimension’“ refers to a similar Buzz Lightyear line, as well as how canon Star introduces herself to Marco Diaz in Star Comes to Earth.

But really ... there are SO many memorable Toy Story lines that cramming in references is like shooting fish in a barrel. Too easy! But still fun!

Of all the silly ideas I put out there for Starco Week 5, Toy Star is perhaps the one which has gotten some interest. It’s begging to be fleshed out. I welcome anyone to do whatever they want with it!

And again, a big thanks to everyone who read my stuff, followed, reblogged, and such! Especially, of course, @starco-week

#starcoweek5 #starco #svtfoe #star vs the forces of evil #Thoughts #myart

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minijenn · 6 years ago

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Three’s a Crowd Preview 3

And its the last one I’m gonna give ya’ll but imo my sweet fusion son is such a delight that I couldn’t resist giving ya’ll a taste of him since oh god i’ve missed him so much and he’s so GOOD and ahhhh see for yourself:

“I-I’m ok!” the fusion announced, using both sets of arms to pull himself up into a sitting position. He let out a gasp, however, upon noticing the very fact that he did indeed have four arms in the first place, stars filling his eyes as he burst into a delighted smile. “No, I’m even better than ok! I-I’m back! We did it!” Stepper broke into another round of cheerful chuckling as his upper arms pulled himself into an excited embrace once more. “And it feels better than ever before!”

“STEPPER!” Mabel’s ecstatic shout caught the fusion off guard, especially as she plowed right into him, knocking him flat onto his back as she locked him into a heavy hug. “Oh my gosh, its so great to see you again! It feels like its super long since the last time you were around!”

“Aw, come on, Mabel,” Stepper chuckled, sitting up as he returned her hug. “You technically see ��me’ all the time. Ok well, maybe not me me, but Steven and Dipper me… Oy, this is getting kind of confusing… But still, it is pretty great to be back together like this!”

“Ooo, I am lovin’ those super harmonious vibes you guys got goin’ on there!” Mabel exclaimed as she effortlessly climbed up to sit atop the fusion’s shoulders as he stood. “That’s it! Operation ‘Find the Harmony’ is officially a success! Now we just need to come up with a new mission for you! Now let’s see… hm…”

“I know,” Stepper spoke up with a bit of a wry grin. “How about Operation “Who Said You Could Sit On My Shoulders”?” He asked playfully as he used both sets of arms to hoist her off his shoulders and hold her out in front of him.

“Hey! Its not my fault that you make such a good lookout post!” Mabel protested, sticking her tongue out at the fusion.

“Oh, so you’re finally admitting that I’m taller than you then?” Stepper asked with a knowing smirk.

“Ha! Not a chance!” Mabel shook her head triumphantly. “I’ll never admit defeat! Never! NEVER!”

“Mabel, I’m literally double your height right now,” Stepper pointed out, still grinning.

“…And your point is?”

“Heeeeeyo!” Amethyst called as her and the other Gems began to venture over to the pair. “There he is! Our four-armed main man Stedip!”

“Uh… actually, Amethyst, its Stepper,” the fusion pointed out with a bit of an amused chuckle.

“Oh, yeah, I know,” the purple Gem remarked. “I just think Stedip sounds funnier.”

“Heh… right…” Stepper said a bit sardonically before Pearl spoke up.

“Well, it certainly is a treat to see you again, Stepper,” the white Gem said, gently pushing the chuckling purple Gem aside. “You know, while you’re here, we might just have to fit in some combat training if at all possible. I’d love to see what you’d be able to pull off with Steven’s shield, Dipper’s sword, and that special journal of yours all at the same time…”

“Oh my gosh, that’d be so much FUN!” Stepper exclaimed with an amazed gasp. “I’d be unstoppable with all three of them! Plus, I got plenty of hands to hold them all in,” he grinned, waving three of four of his hands before raising the final one enthusiastically. “And one to spare!”

The others all shared a warm laugh over the fusion’s humorous quip, though it gradually died out as Garnet approached Stepper next. However, the fusion simply took in a deep breath and straightened his posture, offering the Gem leader a solid expression as he allowed her to silently inspect him. “So, Garnet? What do you think?”

It took a rather expectant moment of apparent scrutinization from the Gem leader, she finally broke out into a small, pleased smile accompanied by a nod of certain approval. “I think you’re looking pretty stable, Stepper,” she confirmed warmly.

“YES!” the fusion cheered loudly, only to quickly catch himself and reign his excitement back in. “O-oh, I mean, uh… that’s cool. Ya know… just like I am. Cool and stable all the way!”

“DORK!” Mabel shouted teasingly, letting out a rowdy laugh as Stepper spun around to face her in faux offence.

“Hey!” he snapped, grinning himself as he geared up to chase after her as she ran off. However, before he could, his attention was quickly diverted by a very loud, very angry yell from a very perturbed green Gem.

“YOU!” Peridot shouted, her tone and expression both burning with fury as she stormed up to the somewhat startled fusion. “You’re that four-armed abomination that destroyed my attack robinoids with your information log-based projectiles!”

For a moment, Stepper simply regarded the green Gem with a bit of confusion before he realized exactly what she was talking about. “Ohhhh right, the… dumb robot things,” he said, boredom filling his expression briefly. “Well… I’m sorry about breaking them, Peridot, but—actually, wait, no, we’re not sorry because you tried to use those things to destroy the Gems and Mabel!”

“Well, it’s your fault that I even came to this doomed planet in the first place, you malformed pebble!” Peridot retorted harshly. “I would have never requested an envoy to Earth if not for your destructive actions against my beautiful machines!”

“Ugh, whatever, Peridot,” Stepper scoffed, rolling his eyes as he scowled down at the green Gem. “What matters is that you’re here now, so you might as well try to make the most of it by helping us build that drill.”

“I will not take orders from the likes of YOU!” the green Gem ranted, furious. “I should have figured all along that you were merely the despicable fusion between the Steven and that irksome Dipper given that they’re both just smaller clods coming together to make one bigger one!”

“Alright, that’s enough,” Garnet interjected just as it seemed as though Peridot was reeling back her first to strike the fusion’s legs since she couldn’t really reach the rest of him. So instead, the Gem leader easily lifted the green Gem into the air, even despite her angry struggling as she tried her best to even so much as land a hit on Stepper. “I think its time for you to go cool down… again.”

“Honestly, that’s like the third tempura tantrum she’s thrown today alone!” Pearl remarked as her and the other Gems began to take their leave, with Peridot sending hostile, though ultimately empty threats Stepper’s way all the while.

“I’m not finished with you yet, you four-armed… whatever it is you are!” she yelled fiercely as she pounded against Garnet’s secure hold on her. “You’ll pay for ruining my precious robinoids, you hear me? PAY!”

“Pfft, yeah, sure,” Stepper remarked with a small smirk as he crossed his upper arms. “I’d like to see you try.”

#i love this new confident pure bb stepper #he's such a dork i love him #jen writes #universe falls #three's a crowd #uf preview

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lovely-qualms · 6 years ago

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FMA Secret Santa 2018 Gift!!

Ahh, I’m cutting it so close, I’m so sorry I didn’t post it earlier! This is for @sassyfirealchemist (who coincidentally was also my Secret Santa!) for the Secret Santa exchange by @fmasecretsanta2018 !

I hope you like, and I’m sorry for the lateness again!

Title: Fortunes and Feelings

Rating: T+

Relationships: Roy Mustang/ Edward Elric

Tags: Historical (Victorian-ISH), Romance, Humor, Policeman!Roy, Psychic!Ed, circus

Find this fic on: FF.net and AO3

There were two things that Roy believed were working rather valiantly towards making his morning effectively terrible- well, three were he not used Hughes’ incessant early-morning ramblings. The first was the apologetic woman standing at the entrance of his favorite coffee spot who dared tell Roy the place had closed due to bankruptcy (immediately after this, a passing carriage horse had kicked a puddle directly at his boots, which did nothing to Roy’s sour mood). And, well, the young policeman and his chatty colleague currently stood in the midst of the second noisy, colorful, terrible thing.

The bloody circus.

“When I bring Elicia she’ll win every prize there is! Oh-Roy- she’s going to be so excited about that carousel! Don’t you think?” Hughes nearly squealed in delight at the thought of his daughter running around the amusements (wastes of money, in Roy’s opinion).

“Yes Hughes, I’m sure Elicia will have great fun here. Why a circus needs two policemen to keep guard in the ass crack of the morning I’m not sure.” Roy grumbled. It was currently rather cloudy and windy, and the few people actually here that weren’t staff or guard seemed to regret their forwardness of schedule.

Hughes shrugged, “You know pickpockets and drunkards love to ride the coattails of these kinds of places. Oh, look! There’re the acrobats!”

Just as Roy rolled his eyes at his friend’s behavior, a young blonde man swathed in thick brocade and fluttering silks approached them. Looking around, Roy pegged down a similarly silky tent that must belong to this man that lay to the right of them.

Roy and Hughes shook his hand (which Roy silently noted was automail) before he spoke, “Good morning, Officers. Chief Grand sent you, right? I’ll be giving you a little tour of the area, as our ringleader has a lot of last-minute preparations to take care of before the crowds really set in.”

“Do we get a name, o tour guide?” Roy asked, masking his displeasure with veiled sarcasm.

The blonde’ mouth quirked into an amused smile, “Ed. My brother and I are psychics.” Out of adherence to decorum, Roy refrained from rolling his eyes, but his skepticism must have shown through because Ed gave him an unamused look. “Let’s go see some hot spots of potential crime, shall we?“

….

They made their way slowly through the large field of gallantry and show, Ed pointing out various tents and shady areas that needed ‘special supervision’. The young man seemed incredibly familiar with the layout of the area, even though the circus hadn’t been set up for but a day or two. When asked, Ed simply explained that their layout was similar wherever they went, and he knew whose tents were whose and “all that shit”. His teasing personality got on Roy’s nerves, especially since his day hadn’t started out particularly well either.

“Those are where the drunkards like to drink and flirt with ladies and whatnot” Ed gestured to several gaps between tents sporting respectively, an ashcan and several empties liquor bottles.

“Attractive,” Roy muttered.

Ed cast a quick, annoyed glace at Roy, “Jeez, Who spat in your breakfast?”

Roy ignored this remark, turning to Hughes instead, “I’ll patrol northern half of the grounds, you get the Southern. We can switch at noon.”

Hughes gave the teasing affirmative, “Sir, yes sir,” going as far as to offer Roy a salute before turning away to his patrol before Roy could snap back. When Roy turned around to Ed, he realized the blonde had disappeared into his nearby tent, leaving Roy alone to work.

————————————

Roy didn’t see Ed until the next week, as the circus was incredibly busy in its opening days. Between shifts patrolling the northern or southern blocks of the fairgrounds, Roy and Hughes made it their personal goals to find the most ridiculous attraction there.

Roy, in a valiant attempt to top Hughes’ sighting of “world’s hairiest man”, decided to test his luck with the fortune tellers’ tent on his break that Thursday. Surely some ridiculous prognosis of his life would override some bloke who doesn’t shave enough.

Roy easily recognized the tent- it was the reddest, most decorated tent of the lot (outside of the central Big Top of course), huge lettered sign notwithstanding. Because of the time and cool morning breeze, not many people were out yet, so Roy took the opportunity to slip through the silks hanging in the doorway and into the small room.

Inside, the tent was considerably darker than outside. The thick canvas walls blocked out the sun, and only a few candles and a dim lantern lit the inside. Ed sat on the opposite end of a small table covered in yet more silks, cards, books, and glass knick-knacks.

When Ed recognized his new customer, he smirked. “Officer, don’t you have a patrol to keep up?”

Roy sat casually in the chair across from the blonde, “I’m on my break. Decided to come check out the validity of the local psychic.”

“Well, you don’t get to check me out for free.” Ed snipped, cringing a second later when he realized how his words came out.

Roy rolled his eyes and dropped two coins into the box by the door, “Now may I check you out?”

Ed glared, “Just sit and show me your hand.”

Roy did as he was told. Ed grabbed his hand, explaining as he picked opened a large book with his free hand, “Today I’m giving palm readings. I want to switch it up every week or so, but this is a pretty simple method. Good for the start of the week.”

“You don’t really think my hand will tell me my future.” Roy stated, already not on board with Ed’s ‘methods’.

Ed looked up at Roy blandly, “Your hand’s not telling you. I’m telling you, based on how your palm lines read.”

“Well then, what do my palm lines say?”

Ed looked intently at Roy’s hand for a second, tracing down one or two larger lines, “Well this one represents your inclination towards your friends over your family, and this one here means you’ll have good luck in love….” Ed explained.

Roy snorted, “Now I know you’re phony.”

“Hey, I’m just reading what it tells me.” Ed huffed, still concentrated on the hand in his grasp. He drew a finger down Roy’s hand lightly, “Let’s see now… despite your thrilling occupation, your occupational future looks fairly calm- see, that’s this line here.” Roy refrained from rolling his eyes yet again. Ed already knew his occupation; of course, he could deduce that he lived a relatively more “thrilling” life than others.

Silence reigned for a while as Ed analyzed the finer trails of Roy’s palm, going so far as to open a reference book somewhere around the base of his thumb. The silence lasted long enough for Roy’s palm to become lightly clammy under the pressure and heat of the other’s hands before Ed broke his gaze, looking up at Roy’s face almost apologetically, “Everything else’s too vague, especially since all I’ve got is this candlelight. It sets the mood, but really messes up my vision.”

Roy, taking this admission as proof of Ed’s position as more of entertainment than of divine reading, stood, “Well, Edward, your services have been most interesting.

Ed wrinkled his nose, “My services- You make it sound like I’m a prostitute or something.”

Roy laughed, “Hey it’s you who said it.”

Ed looked exasperatedly at the policeman, “Don’t you have some drunkards to kick around or something?”

Roy, still amused, left the tent ever more intent to return.

-------------

He returned to Hughes after their shifts were over, finding the other man fawning over a large selection of goodies that, quote, his “darling Elicia would win for sure”.

“Well, you’re still winning. The psychic’s more sarcastic than he is ridiculous, not that I believe a word of that superstitious crap.” Roy sighed, leaning against the wall of a large pink booth.

“Where’s the ‘but’?” Hughes asked, knowing his colleague all too well.

“I have to make sure, so I’m going to check out his tent again next week.

Hughes’ smirk was enough to make Roy wish there hadn’t been a ‘but’, “Sure that’s why.”

----------------------

Ed intrigued the policeman, and he was a far shot easier to talk to than the stuffy women who waited outside of attractions while their children wreaked havoc inside. So, with two coins and a healthy dose of skepticism, Roy returned the next week. Instead of palm books and cards, atop the tablecloth sat a box of stones, metal nubs, and string.

Ed, who had been fiddling with a string tied around a purple stone, looked up with interest, “Officer, I didn’t think you’d turn up. Crime’s been pretty high recently.”

“I can take a small break, can’t I?” Roy responded.

“You wouldn’t be shirking your duties, would you? An upstanding police officer such as yourself?” came the rebuttal.

Roy tossed his coins into the nearby coinbox, “Well, tell me my future and maybe I can dutifully return to my post.”

Ed barked out a laugh, “You’re kind of stuck up, you know that?”

Roy smirked, “So I’ve been told.” He glanced at the stones and string atop the table at which he now sat, “What’re all of these for?”

Ed’s grin grew as he drew into his element, “Pendulum reading, it’s a personal favorite of mine.”

“How does it work?”

Ed picked up a thin chain, “I’ll show you. What’s your birth month?”

“February. Why?” Roy asked.

Ed sifted through his collection on stones which all had little metal loops at their bases. He pulled out a skinny little amethyst from the depths of the box, explaining, “Your birthstone- It makes the reading clearer.” Roy hummed in acknowledgment, but let Ed focus on his work. He’d taken out various maps and calendars, and he had fixed the amethyst to a small chain. Once he was set up, Ed asked, What do you want to know? Location usually works best.”

The reading was fun enough. Roy asked a lot of trivial questions, watching the crystal swing around until it stilled over a location on the map (he was fairly certain Ed was manipulation the rock, but he didn’t comment). He liked chatting to Ed about the questions and their answers more than he did the actual reading, however.

Eventually, Roy stood up, noting his need to actually work before excusing himself from the tent.

------------------

Over the weeks, Roy saw Ed frequently through the circus grounds. They usually chatted briefly and went their separate ways. Every week, Roy also made a point to visit Ed’s tent for a reading of some sort. He had given up on trying to tell himself it was merely intrigue that brought him to Ed’s tent. He was fully aware that he wanted to be in the spirited blonde’s company.

Despite their daily meetings in the grounds, it wasn’t until two months after the circus’ arrival that Roy saw Ed outside of the grounds, in plain, civilian clothing. It was a Sunday, the one day the circus was closed, and coincidentally Roy’s day off.

He had been strolling down the city’s main line of stores, gazing into windows for a birthday present for Elicia, when he had seen the telltale flash of golden hair through a window reflection.

After the first incident, Roy began to see Ed in the marketplace rather frequently. He never bought anything, only talked to store owners and looked into the window of the now-vacant coffee spot. Roy always saw him at side-glances and in passing, so he never actually got around to talking to Ed outside of their occasional on-duty meetings until the next Sunday.

Exiting the local grocer’s, Roy nearly collided head-on with the small man he’d seen around town. Ed let out a colorful array of expletives, cursing Roy for making him drop his food without even looking up to see who he’d collided with.

Roy couldn’t help his amused smile, “For a fortune-teller, you’re not so perceptive on the streets.”

Ed, finally recognizing the recipient of his verbal attacks, snapped his gaze up at Roy, “Officer guy! You should’ve looked where you’re going.”

“I prefer ‘Roy’ off-duty, thank you.” He clipped back, moving from the doorway of the grocer’s to let passers-by through. Ed definitely looked different in plain clothing (just a button-down and some brown slacks), though Roy did notice how the button-down’s rolled-up sleeves did well to Ed’s general appearance. It showed off his masterful automail wonderfully, as well. If anything, he looked more mature than he did in his circus getup.

“Want a hand?” He added as the blonde was struggling to fit his wares into the crumpled paper grocery bags.

Ed shrugged, and Roy took it as an invitation to help. He fit the remaining containers into place and, before Ed could protest, took one of the bags in his arms with the excuse, “I’ve got nothing better to do.” In reality, Ed had become something of a fancy to Roy, and he intended to spend his valuable time seeing that fancy through. After all, the circus wouldn’t stay in Central forever.

Ed looked away, either embarrassed or frustrated, muttering, “Wouldn’t wanna damage your ego too badly by denying you, seems like you wouldn’t be too used to the concept.”

“Oh yeah, I’m never told no. The criminals simply run into the police car. In fact, they have to fight over who gets a ride; it’s simply infuriating!” Roy replied, shifting the bag a bit as they crossed a stopped road two blocks from the circus grounds.

Ed rolled his eyes but didn’t look particularly offended. He changed the subject, “That old coffee shop downtown: Why did it close?”

Roy shrugged, “The owner’s daughter said bankruptcy. It’s weird, because the location is great, and I never saw the place empty.”

Ed nodded but had fallen in a contemplative state that Roy felt uninclined to break him from. They reached the circus grounds at this point, and Ed snapped out of it to take Roy’s grocery sack and bid him adieu.

----------

The circus was packed up two days later. Roy tried to hide his indignation, but he could tell that Hughes sensed his mad mood.

“Come on, Roy, we can go back to catching the big guys now.” Hughes stated as they watched the pack of acrobats walk into the big tent with their equipment tied into large bundles.

“Yeah.” Roy stated mildly, pushing off the wall, “I’ll make a round.”

Hughes’ sigh didn’t escape Roy as he ambled through the falling tents and scattered flyers. he found himself outside of Ed’s tent before he knew where he’d walked. The fortune teller’s blonde head poked out from behind the curtain-door, “Roy, hey! You haven’t come around in the past few days.”

“Yeah, there’s been a lot of ruffians trying to get their final few crimes in before you all go off.” He shrugged, “Need any help packing?”

Ed gave Roy a rare smile, “Yeah, come on in.”

He was tasked with placing all of Ed’s fragile-looking crystals and glass relics into boxes full of hay, which was difficult when the objects were all awkward shapes and curves that didn’t fit nicely into a rectangular space. While working, Roy kept looking over at Ed, who seemed oddly peppy. He’d have thought moving around would be laborious and frustrating, but Ed smiled almost secretly to himself. When they were done with his packing, Roy turned to find Ed looking at him searchingly.

“I guess all that’s left is the tent, huh.” The policeman stated.

Ed looked around, “I guess so, but I can take that down myself. Thanks for the help.”

“It’s no problem,” Roy dismissed, not sure what to do, “Um, I guess have good luck in the next city…”

Ed rolled his eyes and stepped forwards, grabbing Roy’s arms and planting a light kiss on the other man’s lips. Roy froze, not quite comprehending what was happening. He hadn’t even considered his crush being a shared attraction. Through Roy’s stunned silence, Ed smirked, “I don’t like goodbyes. Get out of my tent, asshole, I’ll see you around, yeah?”

Roy couldn’t help his smile, “Yeah, see you around.” He left the tent with a small skip and didn’t explain to a confused Hughes how a patrol round of the grounds had so drastically changed his mood.

-----------

He didn’t see Ed around that day, unfortunately, as they were all gone the next day. Only a mess of paper and trash remained of the circus, and Roy felt all the more dejected for it. It was his day off, and he walked down the downtowns strip, trying to find some way to waste his time and, maybe, distract himself from the day before.

He left a clothing store empty-handed and looked over longingly at the closed doors of the closed coffee shop, really wanting some of their past wares at the moment. What he didn’t expect to see was the door open, and a young man with short, dirty blonde hair adjusting some tables outside. Curiously, he walked across the street to the man.

“Good Afternoon” he greeted, and the man looked up with a happy expression.

“Hello, you curious? We’ve had a lot of questions.” He replied.

Roy shrugged, “I guess I am. Not many shops here go back into business so quickly.”

The boy smiled, “My brother an I just bought the place yesterday. We were part of the circus that just left, and needed a change of pace.”

“Oh?” Roy’s interest had been effectively piqued, “What kind of store will it be?”

A voice from the doorway answered, “We’re selling oddities and psychic services.”

Roy whipped around, “Ed!”

The blonde laughed at Roy’s surprise, “I told you I’d see you around.”

“You didn’t have to be so cryptic,” Roy responded, but couldn’t hide his excitement. Ed had an equally happy quirk of a smile behind his trained natural look, “Where’s the fun in that? You don’t look like you’re working, wanna help set up instead of standing here pestering Al?”

Al protested his brother’s comment and Roy rolled his eyes, already crossing the threshold behind Ed, “I get it- you just like to use me.”

Ed feigned exasperation, “Took you long enough to figure it out.”

Roy helped Ed set up shop for the rest of the afternoon, but not without first pulling him out of Al’s sight and properly reciprocating Ed’s earlier kiss.

His day went much better than planned.

#fmasecretsanta #fmasecretsanta2018 #fma #royed #victorian #edward elric #Roy Mustang #circus

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maidenoftime-ffxiv · 6 years ago

Text

gabriel and the fae - part 2

(( You can find part one >here!< ))

“I’m telling you, Adam, I saw her! The girl they tell all the stories about! Except... Except she wasn’t some wicked temptress or anything evil at all-- she was a girl! An Elezen. And she did... she did have eyes like starlight, and she was-- Nymeia take me, she was the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen, but she wasn’t evil! She was just a girl, Adam! But animals came to her so easily and she sang like... like a nymph, so sweet and so pure--”

“Och! Will ye keep yer voice down, lad?” Adam snapped at his companion. Others in the hunting lodge were looking up and over at the two young men and, considering Gabriel’s enthusiasm, one couldn’t really blame them. He had burst back into the lodge all wide-eyed and fresh-faced, like a babe that had been swept over with the first snowfall of the season.

“But it’s important,” Gabriel insisted. “She seems so... so isolated out there. If she’s a normal girl, then that can’t be good! She deserves to be... to be out here! With other people. I heard a man call her and she ran off, so maybe she isn’t entirely alone, but I can’t just leave her there in the middle of the forest!”

“So do ye plan on kidnapping some lass just mindin’ her own out in the middle of nowhere? Maybe she’s happy there!”

Gabriel was about to offer yet another rebuttal when he noted an old woman approaching the table he and Adam had settled at. She was a very small Hyur woman, donned in robes of emerald green and amethyst. Large rings set in gold and adorned with gemstones were on her small and gnarled fingers, and she used a crooked stick to help her walk. Eyes that matched the emerald green garments she wore peered over at Gabriel, her face deeply impressed with wrinkles and her wiry white hair tied in a tight bun at the nape of her neck.

“Your friend has a point, young man,” the stranger spoke, raising her eyebrows before settling in on a chair, uninvited. “Forgive me. These old bones need a rest, and I couldn’t help but to overhear your tale about meeting the girl with the starlight eyes out in the middle of the forest. If you’ll humor an old woman, son-- why do you feel so strongly about rescuing a damsel that, by all accounts, doesn’t seem to be in distress?”

Adam and Gabriel blinked at each other, and then at the old woman. She seemed perfectly content with her decision to interrupt, clasping both wrinkled hands over the top of her walking stick as she observed the darker haired boy. How much had the old crone heard, anyway? She tutted quietly at their silence and shook her head, shaking out one of her skirts.

“Young people just don’t know how to speak to their elders these days. It’s a shame. Linkpearls are ruining face-to-face communication,” she sighed. “I ask because I, too, have met the starlit maiden. She seemed to be perfectly content where she was, and well-looked after.”

“B-...but she was so frightened and surprised to see me,” Gabriel said in a hushed tone. “She nearly took off running when she saw me.”

“Maybe she was just frightened by yer ugly mug.”

“Shut up, Adam. But-- ma’am, you’ve met her, too? The one with the long auburn hair and the lips like berries? Plump and sweet and...”

“That’s quite enough,” the old woman replied with a frown. “I see what’s going on here. It’s a shame, really. I thought your intentions might be noble, but you’re much like any other young suitor who would chase after a creature they believe to be mysterious and ethereal and magical. Tell me, and tell me honestly -- I’m very good at sussing out a liar. Young man, you fancy yourself in love with the starlit maiden, do you not?”

“Of course!” Gabriel boomed, louder and more quickly than he had anticipated. Even he was surprised at the suddenness of his reply, and Adam raised a brow at him, taking a deep sip from his tankard of ale. “I-- I mean, yes, of course. It was love at first sight, wasn’t it? She’s the most exquisite, most gentle creature I’ve ever beheld, with so much... curiosity, and...”

“If she is as sheltered as you seem to think, do you think you ought to be her first introduction into the world at large?” the old woman asked flatly. “A young man with hardly any life experience himself, who thinks himself quite in love with a girl he spoke to for all of... Five minutes? Am I close to the mark?”

Adam snickered into his tankard, and Gabriel could feel the tips of his ears growing red, along with his cheeks. He cleared his throat and took a deep swig from his own tankard of ale that was starting to go flat. What did this old woman know, anyway, about Juliette? About him?

Enough to call you out, a voice nagged in the back of his head.

“I wish you luck, son,” the old woman sighed at Gabriel’s silence. Slowly, she began to rise to her feet with the help of her walking stick, pushing herself up. “The girl may yet eat your heart out, if you’re not careful. Or if you don’t leave her be. I don’t know if you’re quite her type.”

“What does that mean--!”

Too late. The old woman had somehow already disappeared by the time that Gabriel got to sputtering, and he frowned, swiveling around on his chair to try to find her. Adam laughed again, slapping his companion hard on the back. Gabriel shot a glare at him as the smack stung his shoulder, and then he exhaled, lowering his head and banging his forehead lightly against the table.

“Cheer up. Here-- next round is on me, lad!”

The garden outside of the little woodland cottage was in full bloom. Juliette had her skirts tucked up into her apron as she knelt among the fragrant blossoms, carefully cutting an assortment of bouquets. Her tongue stuck out of the corner of her mouth as she focused, and a beam spread across her face as she pressed snapdragons close to her face, inhaling deeply. Did any flower smell more heavenly than these pink petals?

Her head tilted at the sudden but familiar little ripple in aether, gray eyes lifting to see Grandmother Andete appearing just a few fulms away from the garden. A fresh smile graced the girl’s lips, and she hurried to her feet with a bouquet in hand, fresh earth caught beneath her fingernails.

“Grandmother! You’re back. I cut you a whole bouquet of passionflower. They’ve grown beautifully this cycle. You shouldn’t want for anymore until next season,” Juliette said brightly, the medicinal flowers tucked in a large bouquet in the pocket of her apron, purple blooms bouncing lightly in the soft breeze.

“They look perfect, little dove,” Andete replied warmly, smiling up at the girl. “I’m glad I turned most of the garden work over to you. I could never get the flowers to bloom quite so beautifully.”

The old woman took a moment to assess her granddaughter. In her many years, she had never met a creature quite so good or so gentle. A bit naive, perhaps, but far from stupid. She simply lacked experience. In her young eyes was the look of a woman who had lived a thousand lives, shrouded by sweetness and kindness and curiosity. It was a disservice, Andete knew, to keep Juliette so far from civilization, from her peers, from the world. The girl had powerful magic she knew not yet how to properly control, magic that could be taken advantage of or cause great harm. There was a deep desire to protect others existing within the young girl, and if she lost control in a dire situation...

Andete smiled and reached out, grasping Juliette’s hand to lead her back to the garden. Raphael was away to get more supplies from Gridania, not to return for a couple of days yet. It was for the best. Juliette was, as far as they were both concerned, his one and only child. The man was overprotective, but it, at least, came from a good place. But one could shelter a vulnerable creature too much, leaving them to grow only more and more vulnerable and inexperienced.

“I met the young man you said found you by the brook,” Andete said, looking up at her granddaughter and watching the color drain from her face. “Worry not, child-- you’re in no trouble. I mean only to offer a suggestion.”

“A suggestion,” Juliette echoed as the two of them sat on the rickety old wooden furniture outside of the cottage, in the midst of the blooming flowers.

“Mm. Think of it as a training exercise. I want you to focus on that boy, and I want you to try to see something of him-- not his past, but his future or his present. I want you to think of him, and only of him, until you see him.”

Juliette looked at Andete curiously, setting the bunch of passionflower down upon the old, worn table. The old woman smiled benignly and reached over to pat the back of the girl’s hand before squeezing it. Her head dipped towards the cottage as she continued.

“You have seen people who would be significant in your life in your visions before, yes? Call it curiosity, my dear. I’d like to know if this boy will be significant to you, or if he’s another passerby. It’s as good an opportunity as any to hone your magic and see if you can control it.”

It is time for to you learn how to protect yourself. A boy who believes himself to be saving a damsel in distress is a dangerous thing. I saw the look in his eyes. He will be hellbent on rescuing you until you make it clear you need no rescuing. This is your time to learn.

Of course, Andete didn’t speak these words aloud. She simply held her smile and her granddaughter’s hand as Juliette seemed to mull over the idea. The thumb of her free hand ran over the bouquet of snapdragons she’d gathered, just upon the stems, clearly deep in thought. After the silence, her gaze lifted up to her grandmother, and she nodded slowly. There was understanding in her expression. Andete, it seemed, did not need to speak her mind for Juliette to understand what she meant.

“I will. I’ll try to find him in the other world, and see if anything pops out. And I won’t tell Uncle,” she added with a nod. “I know he would be uncomfortable.”

“You’re a clever little nymph, my child,” Andete said warmly, reaching over to gently pat Juliette’s cheek. “Work hard. If nothing else, it will be an interesting experiment, no?”

Juliette didn’t answer. Her eyes were already unfocused, a dreamy expression on her face as she stared at a spot in the garden that had nothing Andete could see but flowers. A slow exhale came, and soft, shimmering silver wisps of visible air came to pass through Juliette’s lips, trailing out of the corners of her eyes as they started to glow, just faintly. The girl started to slump to the side, and Andete reached out to catch her, gently lowering her onto the soft grass rather than leave her to collapse out of her chair.

“And a hard worker, to boot,” the old woman mused as she looked down at the girl on the ground, auburn hair splayed around her. She reached over for the bunch of passionflower Juliette had put on the table, beginning to pluck out the petals to be crushed inside of the cottage later.

#writing #ffxiv stories #ff14 stories #elezen #mateus rp #mateus ffxiv

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