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Read it at: iy_themes | LJ | MM.org | FF.net
Pairing: Sesshoumaru/Kagome
Rating: T
Inspiration: “SesshKag - Lovers” © 2009 Lady Shieru & “In Your Eyes” © 1986 Peter Gabriel
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iy_themes #15 | Dark
This was the most pleasant sort of writing experience - one totally unexpected, LOL.
I was checking my dA account, trying to catch up on all the fabulous things those I have under watch over there were doing, and I was delighted to see a brand new Sess/Kag fanart from the wonderful Lady Shieru. She's really been cranking it out lately, between standalone works like this and a doujinshi of "Tears of the Fallen," so its been like S/K heaven over there of late, LOL.
At any rate, I was absolutely taken by this piece...and initially, not for the best reason :P I just flat out don't like the expression/color of Kagome's face in this piece ~ for some reason, seeing those big splotchy blushes across the cheeks of female leads just totally yanks me out of an intimate scene. I even commented to someone that it looked like a "shameful" blush instead of an excited one. I dunno, that's just an issue I have with most lovey-dovey fanart out there...like the female is always supposed to be slightly uncomfortable to find herself in the clutches of the male. It brings to mind that embarrassingly horrible romance covers from the 80s and 90s.
But once I got past that initial impression, I was incredibly impressed with the piece - especially the attention paid to Kagome's outfit. I don't think I've ever seen one like it, with the sparkling accents on the pattern. That made me curious ~ where could she have possibly gotten such an exquisite kimono? And wearing it with an underkimono of crimson red? LOL, it looks positively scandalous to my Western eyes, hahaha!
The pose of the characters is obviously intimate, but also familiar. The artist herself notes that this kinda grew out of the original bounds she had for the pic, and she really outdid herself - the background only adds to that sort of comforting, known intimacy between the two. It also took my muse on a bit of a wild ride, trying to come up with some sort of background for this piece, how they'd wind up in such lovely-appointed surroundings.
My first thought was "wedding," but I immediately know the dress was all wrong (what little bit I do know about traditional attire is about wedding attire, haha), so instead I moved a bit further back in my mental historical timeline, and came up with the idea of courtly attire. Surely the wife of such a powerful figure would have sinfully beautiful clothes...!
And thus, the idea was born :)
I wanted to write something intimate for this pairing, but in a different mode than Allegiance or Fleeting. I wanted to move away from the hurt/comfort aspect of romance and into something deeper, sweeter, more sensual. And, well, Sesshoumaru wanted a chance to take the lead in my head - so once I settled on a point-of-view, the rest literally wrote itself.
The song I actually picked up a couple of weeks ago, after seeing a random rerun of Cold Case late one night. “In Your Eyes” was playing at the end, and its just one of those songs that, if you hear just the right portion, sticks to your brain in a haunting way ~ so I looked it up and filed it away for future reference, because I knew I could get a lot of mileage out of eyes eventually, LOL. But listening to the song while brainstorming the idea helped take me in the direction I ultimately went with the prompt theme - away from literal darkness, or a loveless union with dark implications (always delicious to explore with these two), and merely setting it at night, in the dark.
So what I ultimately ended up with was a little piece of time, the night these two return home after a long trip at court, winding their way through intrigue and diplomacy and very, very careful manipulations. Kagome is cynical and a bit frustrated, maybe knowing whatever they agreed to was doomed from the start thanks to her knowledge of history; Sesshoumaru is merely content to finally have the ngiht alone with his wife, in their own home and thus, in relative peace and safety.
It was fun and refreshing to write Sesshoumaru like this, as the one initiating the encounter, since he's usually the more reserved of the two in my head. I'm still trying to wrap my brain around him being the one to soothe her, but its fun to meet and defeat challenges, no? :P Plus, I just love the sexual chemistry between these two characters, the way their personalities clash and yet complement each other at the same time. It certainly makes for interesting times, romantic or not, LOL.
The inspiration song also contributed to the atmosphere as well, with lovely lines like this:
All my instincts / they return / the grand façade / so soon will burn
Without a noise / without my pride / I reach out from the inside
In your eyes / the light, the heat / In your eyes / I am complete
In your eyes / I see the doorway / (in your eyes) / to a thousand churches
In your eyes / the resolution of / (in your eyes) / all my fruitless searches
Pairing: Sesshoumaru/Kagome
Rating: T
Inspiration: “SesshKag - Lovers” © 2009 Lady Shieru & “In Your Eyes” © 1986 Peter Gabriel
Based upon:
iy_themes #15 | DarkThis was the most pleasant sort of writing experience - one totally unexpected, LOL.
I was checking my dA account, trying to catch up on all the fabulous things those I have under watch over there were doing, and I was delighted to see a brand new Sess/Kag fanart from the wonderful Lady Shieru. She's really been cranking it out lately, between standalone works like this and a doujinshi of "Tears of the Fallen," so its been like S/K heaven over there of late, LOL.
At any rate, I was absolutely taken by this piece...and initially, not for the best reason :P I just flat out don't like the expression/color of Kagome's face in this piece ~ for some reason, seeing those big splotchy blushes across the cheeks of female leads just totally yanks me out of an intimate scene. I even commented to someone that it looked like a "shameful" blush instead of an excited one. I dunno, that's just an issue I have with most lovey-dovey fanart out there...like the female is always supposed to be slightly uncomfortable to find herself in the clutches of the male. It brings to mind that embarrassingly horrible romance covers from the 80s and 90s.
But once I got past that initial impression, I was incredibly impressed with the piece - especially the attention paid to Kagome's outfit. I don't think I've ever seen one like it, with the sparkling accents on the pattern. That made me curious ~ where could she have possibly gotten such an exquisite kimono? And wearing it with an underkimono of crimson red? LOL, it looks positively scandalous to my Western eyes, hahaha!
The pose of the characters is obviously intimate, but also familiar. The artist herself notes that this kinda grew out of the original bounds she had for the pic, and she really outdid herself - the background only adds to that sort of comforting, known intimacy between the two. It also took my muse on a bit of a wild ride, trying to come up with some sort of background for this piece, how they'd wind up in such lovely-appointed surroundings.
My first thought was "wedding," but I immediately know the dress was all wrong (what little bit I do know about traditional attire is about wedding attire, haha), so instead I moved a bit further back in my mental historical timeline, and came up with the idea of courtly attire. Surely the wife of such a powerful figure would have sinfully beautiful clothes...!
And thus, the idea was born :)
I wanted to write something intimate for this pairing, but in a different mode than Allegiance or Fleeting. I wanted to move away from the hurt/comfort aspect of romance and into something deeper, sweeter, more sensual. And, well, Sesshoumaru wanted a chance to take the lead in my head - so once I settled on a point-of-view, the rest literally wrote itself.
The song I actually picked up a couple of weeks ago, after seeing a random rerun of Cold Case late one night. “In Your Eyes” was playing at the end, and its just one of those songs that, if you hear just the right portion, sticks to your brain in a haunting way ~ so I looked it up and filed it away for future reference, because I knew I could get a lot of mileage out of eyes eventually, LOL. But listening to the song while brainstorming the idea helped take me in the direction I ultimately went with the prompt theme - away from literal darkness, or a loveless union with dark implications (always delicious to explore with these two), and merely setting it at night, in the dark.
So what I ultimately ended up with was a little piece of time, the night these two return home after a long trip at court, winding their way through intrigue and diplomacy and very, very careful manipulations. Kagome is cynical and a bit frustrated, maybe knowing whatever they agreed to was doomed from the start thanks to her knowledge of history; Sesshoumaru is merely content to finally have the ngiht alone with his wife, in their own home and thus, in relative peace and safety.
It was fun and refreshing to write Sesshoumaru like this, as the one initiating the encounter, since he's usually the more reserved of the two in my head. I'm still trying to wrap my brain around him being the one to soothe her, but its fun to meet and defeat challenges, no? :P Plus, I just love the sexual chemistry between these two characters, the way their personalities clash and yet complement each other at the same time. It certainly makes for interesting times, romantic or not, LOL.
The inspiration song also contributed to the atmosphere as well, with lovely lines like this:
Without a noise / without my pride / I reach out from the inside
In your eyes / the light, the heat / In your eyes / I am complete
In your eyes / I see the doorway / (in your eyes) / to a thousand churches
In your eyes / the resolution of / (in your eyes) / all my fruitless searches