#solarpoweredflashlight

[writefastdienever]

250 Words: There are some types of booze Vi can't drink anymore because they taste like bad memories.

The waiter brings the wine and the butterflies in Vi’s stomach break out their baseball bats and go to town on her guttyworks.  Caitlyn notices her flinch – ace detective, of course she does – but Vi grins, breathes through her nose, tries to swallow against the noxious way her head is swimming.  

Be cool.  

This is their first date – first real date – and it’s supposed to be fancy and perfect and, above all, puke-free.

But as she copycats Cait and swirls the blood-red poison in her glass, the smell of it almost puts her on the ground.  Jaw clenched, gut knotted, that foolhardy grin tightening into a garish horror-house leer, Vi holds her breath and –

“Vi–” Caitlyn’s hand darts across the table.  Her fingers lay lightly on the back of Vi’s white-knuckled claw that’s this close to snapping the glass stem in two.

Putting the wine back down on the table feels like a stay of execution.  She’d push it away, too, but Cait chose the restaurant, chose the wine….  

Only Caitlyn’s too smart, too good, too perfect to think that Vi might be pushing her away, and their hands stay folded together on the table.

Vi, mortified, rolls her thoughts around, hoping one might shake loose so that she can explain herself.  But how does she explain that, for all her maverick ways, she’d do anything to be esteemed in the eyes of the right person?  

–Even if, as her nauseous memories would tell it, that person’s the wrong one.

[wheatbeats]

Hey there! I was super impressed with your soundtrack recommendation. Could I bother you for some suggestions for songs that ~feel~ like the old Redwall cartoon theme song? I've tried looking at peoples' Redwall-themed playlists but I feel like a lot of music veers too cartoony and narrative or else is too Grimdark Fantasy... do you have any suggestions for things that straddle that delicate line between whimsical adventure and serious swordfights?

Thank you, I’m honored you came to me. Let’s see if I can at least give you a few places to start.

In terms of film and television scores and whatnot, I’ve got a few ideas that might be what you’re going for. One of the first things that came to mind was “Kingdom Dance” by Alan Menken, from the Tangled score (this plays during the montage when Flynn and Rapunzel explore Corona). I know this movie is mostly remembered for its songs, but Alan Menken’s surrounding score is probably some of his best work.

Aside from that, I can also recommend “Chariot’s Theme” from Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade by Michiru Oshima. The entirety of this score might also help you, both for the OVA Enchanted Parade and for the anime proper, but I personally prefer the OVA score because they recorded with a better ensemble in a far better space. The version of “Chariot’s Theme” used in Enchanted Parade sounds far warmer, richer, and fuller than the one used in the series, so I’d recommend it higher.

Next option is “Clock Tower Parade” by Two Steps From Hell, a trailer music company. TSFH is certainly known for their bombastic, trailer-esque crushing modernistic scores, but they also have an extended catalogue of many other styles, including light and soft music. “Clock Tower Parade” is one of my favorites of theirs; whimsical and light but also relentless and exhilarating. 

Another option is another personal favorite piece of mine: “Final Fantasy VI (Symphonic Poem: Born With the Gift of Magic)” by Nobuo Uematsu, orchestrated by Roger Wanamo. This arrangement was a part of the legendary Final Symphony concert series that toured a few years ago (and still tours around Europe to this day, I believe), and I think it’s the best way to experience the incredible score to Final Fantasy Vi in full orchestration. The 18-minute symphonic poem runs the emotional gamut from heroic to sinister to mysterious to silly to action-packed to gleefully insane. There are two excellent performance recordings out there, but I’d personally recommend the one by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, they really knocked it out of the park with this one.

I’d also recommend the entireties of both Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch and Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom by Joe Hisaishi, as well as The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and its sequel, Prince Caspian by Harry Gregson-Williams. These are some of my favorite fantasy scores and they’ve never disappointed me.

hhhhh okay this is getting long, but don’t worry! We’re at the halfway point. Classical music time.

The good news is, you’ve got a lot of options. 

The first I’d recommend is Suite from “The Love for Three Oranges” by Sergei Prokofiev. I’ll admit that I don’t know much about the opera it was drawn from, but I heard the Chicago Symphony perform it live once and I absolutely fell in love with it, especially the love theme in movement 5. 

Shifting our focus over to France, I thought you might also like to look into Images by Claude Debussy, but especially the second movement, Iberia, which is divided into 3 parts: By the Streets and By the Ways, The Perfume of the Night, and The Morning of a Holiday. This movement specifically draws from at least a loose understanding of Spanish music, because back then Spain was still considered a bit exotic to the rest of Europe. 

Next up is The Sleeping Beauty Suite by Tchaikovsky. If this suite sounds familiar at all, it’s because it actually served as the score for Disney’s own Sleeping Beauty. Yeah, that famous Disney song “Once Upon a Dream”? Tchaikovsky wrote that. Blew my fucking mind when I figured that out.

Next, over to Britain! I’d be remiss if I ever recommend music to anyone without bringing up Gustav Holst, my greatest compositional love, and this time I recommend his piece The Moth and the Flame, sometimes also known as The Lure. Also coming from Britain is the brilliantly intense Symphony No. 1 in D Minor “The Gothic” by Havergal Brian. The entire symphony is absolutely worth a listen, but seeing as it’s literally the longest symphony ever written, I’ll just recommend the first movement here. 

And finally I recommend looking old school, to my best friend and secret twin brother Georg Philipp Telemann, and his surprisingly badass Concerto for Flute, Recorder, & Strings in E Minor. My favorite part of this piece is absolutely the fourth and final movement, which draws inspiration from Polish folk music. 

So, TL;DR, the recommendation list follows as thus:

“Kingdom Dance” from Tangled, by Alan Menken

“Chariot’s Theme” from Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade by Michiru Oshima

“Clock Tower Parade” by Two Steps From Hell

“Final Fantasy VI (Symphonic Poem: Born With the Gift of Magic)” by Nobuo Uematsu, arr. by Roger Wanamo

bonus recommendations for both Ni no Kuni scores by Joe Hisaishi and both Chronicles of Narnia scores by Harry Gregson-Williams

Suite from “The Love for Three Oranges” by Sergei Prokofiev

Images: II. Iberia (a. By the Streets and By the Ways, b. The Perfume of the Night, c. The Morning of a Holiday) by Claude Debussy

The Sleeping Beauty Suite by Pyotry Ilyich Tchaikovsky

The Moth and the Flame by Gustav Holst

Symphony No. 1 in D Minor “The Gothic”: I. Allegro assai by Havergal Brian

Concerto for Flute, Recorder, & Strings in E Minor: IV. Presto by Georg Philipp Telemann

I hope this helps you! Some of these recommendations might get a bit away from Redwall’s sound, but hopefully they give you some of that whimsical adventure and serious sword fights you’re looking for! 

[korrafitness]

Have you ever thought about joining a roller derby league? Great way to get workouts in but also socializing, and also derby is FULL of queer women. Plus it's the kinda recreational sport that you can just pick up start doing at any age, it's not like you have to have been doing it since you were a kid.

hmm the first ive heard of it thanks for the info! :)

[logosminuspity]

Soup, Lace, Typewriter :)

Soup: Comfort food?

Dried cherries for sure. No sugar added. Just the good stuff

Lace: Your favorite things to wear?

If it’s not ungodly hot, sweatpants, sports bra, comfy t-shirt. That’s comfort mode. I suppose it does bear saying that I do greatly enjoy a few times a year getting fully decked out in a formal dress and jewelry and makeup and even some heels. Makes me feel preeeetty

Typewriter: If you had to come up with ten words to describe your life story so far, what would they be?

“There once was a girl who wanted to know everything.” (if we’re going with a sentence...rather dramatic though). If we’re going with 10 random words: gay, rugby, chemist, uncertain, driven, obstinate, perfectionist, introspective, passionate, curious

[logosminuspity]

namira

“fond of” is an interesting phrase haha. I suppose I could say some things I’m fond of that many others are not would be science (chemistry), and full contact sports. Also I suppose I’d say I’m oddly fond of learning about strange deep sea critters and black holes. It’s like a bizarre fascination.

[multishep]

[6:25:54 PM] Kiniro: I would go full Cindy and let Aria step on me

[logosminuspity]

Smirk

(because lesbians smirk) I didn’t know I was gay until I was 19 and got my first kiss, my first gf (who was my first SO in general), my first crush, and the first time my heart was broken. 

[writefastdienever]

85 Words: Karma uses a phrase that Riven's heard from other lips long, long ago, and it drags her back to the past suddenly.

The air gets stuck in her throat, mostly smoke now with the sun rising over the charred skeletons of the village.  She’s standingat a scorched stone gateway, looking down at the smoldering timbers and tryingto forget the night.

“Smile,Commander!” one of her men cajoles as he strolls past, bag of loot in hand.  “It’s ours now.”

Riven smiles automatically,choking out the memory of another bloody conquest.

“Did you hear me?”Karma asks, holding open the freshly painted gate, “It’s ours now.”