timepiececlock | HELP! Epic songs for epic kisses. Ballady whatever.

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HELP! Epic songs for epic kisses. Ballady whatever.

I am trying to write a fanfic where it involves an epic make-out moment, and... I don't know what to listen to!

Music is VITAL to my writing process. And all I can seem to find to listen to on my comp is break-up songs! ARGH!

I need some quick recs. Something sweeping. Romantic. Swooning. Swooping. Other cleaning & vertical movement metaphors, I don't know. I'm not asking for links, just names I can play from youtube or something. Anything to jolt my brain into the right sphere of sappy romantic thinking! They can be totally mainstream, too. I don't discriminate in my pop.

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeellllllllllllppppppppppppppppppp!

ETA: The pairing I'm trying to write for is Uhura/Spock, if that helps.

ETA 3: 1. You guys are so thoughtful for responding! 2. I don't think my romantic vernacular matches everyone else's, apparently. I should figure out how to fix that. To clarify my confusing and incomprehensible request above: Not slow songs, because slow songs tend to be sad even if they are romantic and my brain thinks sweeping/swooning/epic = big music and energy. Seventy-six bloody trombones.

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I think another thing that I really liked about the Sailor Soldiers as a group was the focus on duty. A blend of military/religious/familial duty that they owed to both Sailor Moon and to the identities within the wider universe. A lot of superheroes feel a self-imposed duty, like Batman, Superman, and Iron Man. The Sailors, though, were obligated to serve in an almost military way--especially in their past and future lives where they were actually commanders and body guards--something we don't see in most female superheroes. At least not that I've seen. This concept of serving, of duty, of the first season where all 4 of the inner scouts died just to buy time for Moon to get to Beryl...that was new to me, to see girls doing on tv. Buffy, which I saw later, was comparable in that she was also unable to separate her identity from her duty, but she was just one person. She didn't have a team of five and then nine soldiers at her back, just as morally and metaphysically obligated as her to fight the good fight.

And I loved that they were Serenity's body guards. I just loved that. I've always been fascinated by the concept of a bodyguard, and bodyguard characters in fiction interest me because they're so deeply immersed in a leader's environment, but they have this clear, defining purpose, and one that is essentially an act of utmost generosity. When I was watching Avatar:TLA, I always thought of Katara as more of Aang's bodyguard than anyone in the group. Especially in the season 2 finale. The devoted need to protect him from others and himself through all three seasons was much clearer defined in her character than in Sokka, Toph, Suki, or Zuko.

Hmmm, that is interesting; you're definitely right, about military obligation being a rare thing in female superheroes. I can't tell you how many times I've seen them motivated by feelings for the hero (Millerna about Allen, Hawkeye about Mustang), so to see them bound by external forces, forces outside of relationships, is certainly refreshing.

(I'm rapidly growing to hate the "women = obsession with relationships [especially with men]" mentality. We need more Katara's in fiction, who train because of a dormant desire for the power to spill blood. We need more Robin's from One Piece, an archaeologist whose overwhelming love of history comes from her archaeologist MOTHER, TAKE THAT, PATRIARCHY!)

AMEN about the bodyguard in AtLA. I think that's part of why I found the Katara/Aang pairing so disappointing; why did the hero-bodyguard relationship have to translate into romance? Particularly when Katara was almost objectified during that phase when Aang had to overcome his feelings for her to master the Avatar State. In Basara (my favorite manga in existence! CROSSDRESSING REVOLUTIONARY HEROINE IN LOVE WITH HER NEMESIS), there was another hero-bodyguard relationship that translated into romance, but what made this one unique was that the DUDE was the bodyguard and the woman, Chacha, was the pirate chief. I... don't think I've seen that since.

Which reminds me! After the episode wherein Katara and Zuko run off together to exact vengeance on her mother's murderer, I was plagued (blessed?) with the fantasy of Katara as a ~~ninja~~ pseudo-heroine with Zuko as her stoic, lieutenant-esque bodyguard. It was SO COOL.

Would you say that Hawkeye kind of mirrors Katara as a female bodyguard to a man, Mustang? Of course, Katara was far more independent than Hawkeye and not motivated by romance at all until the very end, so "mirrors" isn't right.

(by the way, I am endlessly amused by your choice of icon. Kyon as Haruhi's romance-motivated bodyguard?? LOL, it's true, in its own way!)

After the episode wherein Katara and Zuko run off together to exact vengeance on her mother's murderer, I was plagued (blessed?) with the fantasy of Katara as a ninja pseudo-heroine with Zuko as her stoic, lieutenant-esque bodyguard. It was SO COOL.

Zuko as her servant/soldier/guard/minion/leuitenant/interrogate-people-for-her/ninja-buddy was practically my FAVORITE thing about that episode! =D I love how they work so seamlessly together, too. Such great partners. It was like seeing everything I'd postulated (from way back at the season 1 finale) that their relationship *could* be as two people who are very similar at their core, played out in front of me exactly how I imagined it, possibly better.

Would you say that Hawkeye kind of mirrors Katara as a female bodyguard to a man, Mustang? Of course, Katara was far more independent than Hawkeye and not motivated by romance at all until the very end, so "mirrors" isn't right.

I'm tempted to say no. I've only seen the first anime, so I don't know why Hawkeye joined the military or what exactly her relationship is with him in the manga; in the first anime it's pretty clear that she believes in him politically and that they're kind of absently in love, a la Donna to Josh in The West Wing. Very much like J/D, actually. I think the reason it doesn't translate to ATLA for me is that Roy/Riza and J/D exist as full-grown seasoned adults who work in a very structured environment with a clear definition of their work relationship. Aang will never be a king or a general, never be part of any structured environment like work, government, or military, so he and Katara will never relate to each other in that manner. They won't have those divisions. And, as you said, Katara is independent. Given that she stands to have high status as the only born Southern Waterbender and brother to the future chief (possibly the Chief herself if something were to happen to Sokka), there's little reason for her to choose a life with Zuko or Aang besides love. Unlike Hawkeye, whose career is in the military. Katara's profession normally would not involve her working for either Zuko or Aang. So it comes down to love or politics. From a political standpoint, she could better help her tribe economically by being with Zuko or another sovereign leader, because marrying the Avatar, while good for bragging, doesn't actually get your people anything tangible. If the airbenders were alive and if Aang was a centralized leader, maybe. But as it is, the only reason Katara would follow/serve/marry Aang would have to be love, because when with him it'd be harder for her to advance professionally or politically on her own merit.

what made this one unique was that the DUDE was the bodyguard and the woman, Chacha, was the pirate chief.

I guess the difference is that this woman Chacha was the militant leader? I've seen/read plenty of shows where the queen/princess/priestess falls in love with her male bodyguard. That's old hat to me. I've almost never seen stuff where the female is bodyguard to the male figure, and loves him. Or in the case of SM, is woman guarding woman.

(by the way, I am endlessly amused by your choice of icon. Kyon as Haruhi's romance-motivated bodyguard?? LOL, it's true, in its own way!)

LOL, I like to think of Kyon as the accidental high priest to a chaos demon.

Hell yes to everything about Zuko and Katara as fellow ~~assassins!~~ I wish we could've seen more of that; they were *SO* dangerous together. And the Painted Lady/Blue Spirit parallels and potential were just never tapped. NOT to mention the Oma/Shu storytelling potential that could suit another type of romantic audience's taste palate. Oh, well; at least these things make our fanon really damn cool. ;_;

(possibly the Chief herself if something were to happen to Sokka)

... fanfic senses tingling! Would you consider it a poor reason to kill Sokka off in canon? Leave Suki and their potential tikes bereft? ... as a writer, I wouldn't.

re: Katara and Aang

Hmmm, wow, I didn't consider setting. I think that they both shared political causes, to varying degrees and up to certain points; aside from her natural compassion, saving AtlaLand was certainly what bound Katara to Aang in the first place, and I agree with you when you say that Hawkeye was at least partially driven by Mustang's ideals (perhaps they're what attracted her to him in the first place.)

She reminds me of Hughes, as if she were Hughes' counterpart; both of them were pillars for Mustang, determined to make certain that he received his promotion, but one existed with fraternal or platonic connotations and the other with romantic implications. I received a very romantic impression of Hawkeye from the first anime series, though; my memory of her explanation is bad, but I... think she ran away from home and joined the military in order to protect him and see his dreams through. Maybe? Anyway, I think it implied that her affection for Mustang existed before she decided to follow him, unlike Katara, who was driven by the political cause alone.

But as it is, the only reason Katara would follow/serve/marry Aang would have to be love, because when with him it'd be harder for her to advance professionally or politically on her own merit.

I definitely agree with you, assuming that this reason refers to the post-series timeline only.

Yep, Chacha was the military leader for a faction of Tatara's army (the female revolutionary); sorry, I should've been clearer. I should have said male bodyguard to a female combatant/tacitician/equally-violent-professional; female royalty didn't even occur to me. I think all the princess-guard tropes are their own situation, very commonly romantic and, yes, old hat (classical, to be diplomatic? :P) The lady and her knight, all that jazz, never really the warlord and her bodyguard.

I've almost never seen stuff where the female is bodyguard to the male figure, and loves him.

I think this falls back on the ludicrous lack of female characters with combat abilities. Getting tired of it fast, I tell you. :/

Or in the case of SM, is woman guarding woman.

Outside of SM, I've NEVER seen that! I think. Chacha/Tatara, maybe, but Tatara isn't exclusive to Chacha, which I think takes the charm away. Does Xena count? Hmmm, Claymore might have one (I haven't seen any of it myself, but it's an action/sci-fi series filled with warrior women fighters, so.)

LOL, I like to think of Kyon as the accidental high priest to a chaos demon.

Apologist! Damage control! XD

Would you consider it a poor reason to kill Sokka off in canon?

Oops, I meant "kill Sokka off in fanfic."

Would you consider it a poor reason to kill Sokka off in canon? Leave Suki and their potential tikes bereft? ... as a writer, I wouldn't.

As a fanfic writer, I absolutely would consider it viable. It's no worse than killing off Sokka so that Suki and Haru can have hurt/comfort sex and magic earthbender warrior babies...probably a better reason, or at least a more interesting and unconventional reason to kill off a major character. But, honestly, you don't need to kill Sokka for Katara to become chief.

The easiest thing is for Sokka to say, "Look, Dad, the Southern Tribe is great, and I love y'all. But Suki's agreed to have sex with me every morning and most nights for the rest of my life, and where she lives they have fried potatoes sliced into convenient little snacking chips. I didn't know what a potato was last year. You have to try their food, it's great. See you at the family reunion!"

--Or in the case of SM, is woman guarding woman.
Outside of SM, I've NEVER seen that! I think.

Me either, that I can think of. If I did, something tells me it wasn't a major thing. Maybe the book Neverwhere kind of counts, where one girl Door has two 'guards', one male human loser who barely knows his way around the underworld of London Below, and one female might Hunter.

Maybe the old anime Knights of Rayearth, which though I didn't watch, appeared to have a 3-person magical girl team, but set in more of a fantasy world than Sailor Moon as a city superhero.

This makes me want to write it even more. And actually, I'm writing a team with 3 girls and 1 boy. He's "the boy" instead of there being a "the girl", lol, in a subversive and non-romantic way. In fact, it starts with a trio of 2 girls and a boy.

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HELP! Epic songs for epic kisses. Ballady whatever.

and more thoughts!

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