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Good Girls Don't | Memento Mori: Sequel
Link to MM.org
Link to FF.net
Pairing: Inuyasha/Kagome
Rating: X (MM.org) / M (FF.net) for adult themes & citrus
Inspiration: Under the Table & Dreaming (C) 1994 Dave Matthews Band
Based upon: the universe of Memento Mori
Author's Note: Many thanks to
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hikari_hime_73 for the support in taming the muses :)Huzzah and much rejoicing, for the sequel oneshot is *finally* here!
Wow.
That's about all I can say, coherently. Just, wow.
The thrill of this piece, which has been hanging over my head, being over, finally, is currently insurmountable :P
I've had such a love/hate relationship with this story (as some of you well know), and I've struggled mightily in trying to follow it up. I never expected the original oneshot, Memento Mori, to have the success or popularity it did -- while nice, it was also an added shot of pressure to deliver something equal or better in its stead.
I seriously wrote myself into a corner with the original piece. It was never meant to have a sequel, and I was surprised to see so many people (nearly every reviewer) beg for a continuation. Pushover that I am, I readily agreed, thinking to meet this challenge with equal vigor as I had met all previous ones.
Unfortunately, it was not quite so easy - or interesting - as I'd hoped.
A few 'extras' before I get down to the main grit of these notes :)
the template for Kagome's prom dress
a screenshot of the Shikon jewel keychain
more information on the University of Tokyo medical school (Kagome's undergrad program)
more information on Geidai [Tokyo University of the Arts] (Inuyasha's undergrad program)
I literally rewrote the storyline for this piece dozens of times. I wrote approximately 5000 words and ended up chucking nearly all of it, because I didn't like the direction it had taken. I admit to being verbose, but even for me, 5000 words is a lot of work and I hated to see it go. I just couldn't decide how to work around the bind I'd placed myself in, all while managing to stay within the story's style and keep the characters from going wildly OOC.
In this piece, we see Kagome finally making the transitions necessary to have a future with the enigmatic Inuyasha. There are several things I'm quite proud of, and a few I feel I'll probably never be satisfied with.
First of all, I'm very happy that some bits of the earlier drafts were salvageable, including the sex scene & followup conversation between Hojo and Kagome. This is probably the 'oldest' scene in the story, and I really rather like it. I wanted to give Hojo another layer, make him more than just the usual dim-witted but sweet boyfriend. Of all the characterizations I've foisted upon the poor boy, the one he has in this story is probably my favorite :)
Another scene that (finally) came out right was the reunion at the end. One of the things I especially struggled with was, how could I top the way I used the canon story in the original piece? I was completely at a loss, and this was probably the last part to truly come together in my head. I thought it would be nice to mimic the actual end of the canon storyline, since it was such a long time in coming :) Plus, it fit with the feel I was going for, and the whole 'moral of the story' theme.
What I really wanted to accomplish (and who knows if I actually did it) was show the change that Kagome underwent. She started at one point - Miss Perfect, totally in control, firmly on a life plan - and ended at another, and grows a great bit in the meantime. I felt it completely appropriate for her to journey along a very rocky path. She wants to experience the things she did with Inuyasha, but she's afraid to really let herself go and delve into those feelings. Those sorts of volatile emotions complicate simple life plans.
And so, when she makes her decision, she immediately swings from one boy to the other, because her identity is still very much tied to her social facade. In short, she doesn't know how to be her own person, because she's never really had to be...she has always been something else to someone else. She's one of those people who identifies herself by others' labels. It's not necessarily a *bad* thing, but once those labels are stripped away...what's left?
But really, it wouldn't be fair to allow her (or reward her, even) to immediately go from one boy (Hojo) to the other (Inuyasha). For one, I don't believe in stuff like that; I very much like to be my own person, and think time spent single after a long relationship is very refreshing and healthy. For another, it wouldn't be fair to Inuyasha if she hadn't spent at least some time mourning the end of her relationship with Hojo. This incarnation of his character includes quite a bit of patience, but even the patience of a saint would be stretched for that kind of compassion.
And so, I really tried to show that her idea, to go directly from one way of life to another, led to some pretty serious consequences. She really needed to find some middle ground, so once her pendulum swung from one extreme to the other, I allowed her that. I allowed her to suffer, and in that suffering, grow up a little. Her maturity was rewarded with another encounter with Inuyasha, and a second chance at love :)
Even if, in the end, it isn't executed completely to my liking (and I don't think writers are ever truly satisfied with their work), I'm overall quite satisfied with the whole storyline :) It contains a lot of 'firsts' for me, including the first standalone piece that surpassed 10,000 words :o
As I said before, I struggled heartily with this piece for a myriad of reasons. I like to think *I* also grew up a little bit during this long process :) I learned a few hard lessons about the fickle whims of readers, and about keeping an eye always trained to the future when writing.
Speaking of the future, there is to be one more entry into this little series, before I shut down the universe for good. (Yes, apparently after agonizing over this universe for 3+ months, I have not said everything I wanted to, LOL). My piece for the
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inuyashaxkagome Advent Calendar will be a (hopefully much shorter) citrusy Christmas-themed piece. I've always wanted to write a holiday story, and the most popular aspect of the original Memento Mori was teh smexxorz, so why not kill two birds with one stone?Cross your fingers my muses don't kill me before then...
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Did I manage to convey even half of what I wanted to, LOL? I never know how readers are going to see the themes I try to incorporate...
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It came up just before I had to dash off and bathe dogs, but I read it and enjoyed it. I need to go back and reread it when I have more time and remember to leave a review (though as crazy as the next few days may be, that might be next week).
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Thanks! :)
For me, writing the author's notes for a piece can really be cathartic. Especially when it's something like this, that has been festering in the back of my mind for the better part of three months. Holy God, not even working on Every Heart was this frustrating! :P
I really enjoy the process of writing, and seeing the transition from one idea to the other. Having a place to house my excessive nerdiness and thoughts on research/storylines/themes/issues is why I started this LJ in the first place.
These entries usually aren't so long, except when I'm either really really excited to have accomplished something (like here), or I'm really really insecure about how well I conveyed the message I wanted to (...also, like here :P). I haven't been so manic high since I finished Every Heart, and I needed a place to gush...:D Plus, I need some of the links and codes that I put in this story for the Advent Calendar story, so this entry serves serves multiple purposes.
I need to go back and reread it when I have more time and remember to leave a review (though as crazy as the next few days may be, that might be next week).
Awesome! I look forward to seeing your thoughts on the matter, whenever they may trickle down the pike :)
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The last piece will be up on Tuesday in some form or fashion *crosses fingers*
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Did it take you back to high school? Because it was an interesting piece of nostalgia for me, lemme tell you...
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Hm, good to know I'm not too far off with my characterizations...I'm always afraid I'm making them seem too 'adult' for their situations. I have no perspective because I was always 12-going-on-45, so I never know when I'm crossing the line LOL.
As for me...working on this story was probably the first time I could truly look back on my high school experience with anything other than contempt. Fanfiction as exorcising personal demons...I can dig it LOL.
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I'm not usually in favor of the grand misunderstanding plot device but you used it well in Good Girls Don't. Things are cleared up as soon as they see each other again, it's just that other factors keep that from happening. The sex scene with Hojo was suitably awkward and believable. The lemon in Holiday Spice made a nice ending for the whole story. They complete their transition from a teenage hormonal fling to a loving adult couple.
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