We don't have the same pressures as the titled do, but Mother grew up with those values, and so has always treated Michael like the second son. Which means he's been indulged. Yes, he went off to war, but I bought that commission for him, and it certainly impresses the ladies. He could have gone into business. He could have learned the handling of the land. Instead, he's one for adventure. He doesn't want to read the reports from our ships. He wants to sail them himself. He's charming, he's quick, but he drinks and carouses as if he hasn't a care in the world.
I suppose he doesn't, so long as I'm taking care of everything.
Book I:
He's more frustrating than I can articulate. It's like he hasn't changed a bit in all the years we've been apart and he acts like he expects me to be the same, too, like he's just going to blow right back into my life and everything will be exactly the way it was before. Hearing his voice and seeing him here hurts a lot worse than I ever thought it would. It took me a lot of time and therapy to come to peace with our past, but when he showed back up it was like he started unravelling all the stitches where I'd sewn myself up. I'm scared of what's gonna spill out if he keeps ripping the seams.
I want him to leave. I want to forget he ever showed up, and drink till I can convince myself the shit he's showed me was just a nightmare. I want to let him go.
I want him to stay. I want to save him from this shit he's gotten himself into and show him he doesn't have to live like that anymore. I want him to let go.
Book II:
Fuck, fuck, fuck, I've got a tiger by the tail. He's creepy and fucking terrifying in a lot of ways and I can't get enough of that shit and like I know I need to not be into that but fuck me running, I wanna ride that crazy train right off the rails. It's getting harder and harder (ha. haha) to remember that I'm supposed to be using him. I'm trying not to think about the possibility that he can read minds. If he can, we're fucked, but at the same time, if that was the case why's he playing along like he doesn't know what we're planning behind his back?
I'm so far in over my head I can't even see the surface anymore. He's our best bet. I can't stop now, no matter what's going on between us.
I'd give anything to have met him under better circumstances, without the world falling down around our fuckin' ears. I don't wanna have to use this against him. I don't wanna have to do this.
(It bears noting that Books I & II have different POV characters.)
I can't say I spend much time with anyone, really. I believe I'm probably closest to my brother. Things were different for us growing up. We were forced to mature more quickly than our peers. I'm not entirely sure he succeeded.
In suppose it would be a fair assessment to say I'm jealous of him. People like him. I'm not sure he'd have to work a day in his life, but he'd never go hungry.
No, actually. It's Cas. It's harder to capture because it's creature!Cas. Although it could apply to Dean in some ways too, so that might be something to explore.
Huh, interesting. Are you writing the story from Cas' pov, and, do you have anything special you think about in order to distinguish his voice? (I'm always curious how people write Cas :D )
It probably will be from Cas's POV, because the main conflict is an internal conflict for him. Writing Cas's POV is HARD!
A lot of people go too formal with him. He does speak more formally than most characters, but he doesn't talk like a term paper. It can be hard to find that balance. I have Aspergers, and I know a number of other people who do as well. There are some similarities between Aspie voices and Cas's voice, so a lot of times for a rough draft I'll really delve into that part of me. He has the same intense focus and struggles with social interactions. We also tend to learn social rules as concrete, rather than fluid things. Grammar rules become rigid, but many of us can also pick up on certain phrases as just accepted and use them. I've actually improved my verbal social interactions by leaps and bounds, but I can easily get back into that previous headspace to help with Cas.
The other really important quality to doing Cas justice is his subtle humor. That I haven't found a way to really bring out though. It's one of those hit or miss things, and even writing, in control of everything, it's hard to do it on demand.
I've actually been thinking about this a lot since we had this discussion yesterday and I wanted to see what you thought about my theory.
I'll have to rewatch to be sure, but I'm wondering if Cas is less likely to use contractions than other characters. Enough so that many fans picked up on it as a character trait. But we know he uses contractions without issue. From his first line "I'm the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition."
People unhook contractions all the time for emphasis, especially if they want the emphasis to fall on the second word of the contraction. "I did not wear Rhonda Hurley's panties, Sam. And even if I did, they weren't pink." (For example.)
So I'm wondering if fewer contractions is the tell for one of Cas's main character traits? But instead of being the marker for social awkwardness, it's the marker for his intensity. (Cause let's face it, Cas is pretty damned intense.)
But Cas uses contractions when he's being intense; "destiny can't be changed, Dean", "I'm not a hammer", "you're just a man, I'm an angel"
And when he doesn't, it's a normal amount of emphasis I think? The way you're talking about?
I think it might have to do with the cadence Misha speaks at and the way here doesn't use filler words as much? Or... Extra words at all maybe. Like, instead of "what are you doing here" Cas would say "why are you here" kind of thing. Less moving his hands around to hedge his words with body language. A lot of direct statements, not as many "well, maybe..."s. (I'm sort of spitball hypothesizing here... This isn't too say you're necessarily wrong. Someone could probably parse the transcripts on super wiki if they wanted to...)
I could absolutely be wrong! I was guessing based on month's old memories. I've been rewatching but I'm still in season 2 (and season 1 rewatching with my daughter for her first time.) I like your theory. I mean it's basically about writing the best Cas, so I'll take any "guidelines" for him I can get.
Don't tell him I said this, but I'm so proud of Sammy. It was tough, just the two of us growing up together, especially when we presented. I bought a lot of lemons to try and cover up that awful smell in the apartment after his first rut. It was especially tough since omegas aren't supposed to be bread-earners for their alphas. We're not supposed to work, right? Working is for alphas. But I wasn't gonna send Sammy to the factories. Dressmaking was hard, and my eyes and hands still hurt sometimes, but Sam was such a bright little alpha. I didn't want him to get caught up in making pennies a day, when he could someday be more than that. I let him sell papers, but otherwise I'd make the money. And I liked it. That's weird for an omega, I know, but I did. And when Sam got on that train to California, university bound, I knew it was worth it in the end.
He's bull-headed and annoying sometimes, now that he's grown enough to have a mate to wash his clothes and make his meals, instead of a brother. I love him and I'm proud of what he's done and what he'll be, but if he thinks I'm going to go out west and be a bored spinster doing needlepoint, after working all my life? He's got another thing coming.
I think he's better at this job than he--or any of us--give him credit for. I'm still mad he didn't tell us sooner... but I would've done the same thing. Hell, I've told outright lies to keep Sam safe at other people's expense.
I'm still mad though.
... Wait, was this a question about feelings?
It's not like that. Having Benny around, it kinda felt like being a kid again. Which is a whole bag of worms I don't need to open--talk about regrets. And then Cas walking around all intense, and saving my skin. It's not something that'd ever work though. He's some kinda weird parasite and I'm walking bad luck. And it don't matter how I feel anyway. Love or... whatever. That's not enough.
[from about halfway through the story; timing is important on this one]
We don't have the same pressures as the titled do, but Mother grew up with those values, and so has always treated Michael like the second son. Which means he's been indulged. Yes, he went off to war, but I bought that commission for him, and it certainly impresses the ladies. He could have gone into business. He could have learned the handling of the land. Instead, he's one for adventure. He doesn't want to read the reports from our ships. He wants to sail them himself. He's charming, he's quick, but he drinks and carouses as if he hasn't a care in the world.
I suppose he doesn't, so long as I'm taking care of everything.
Book I: He's more frustrating than I can articulate. It's like he hasn't changed a bit in all the years we've been apart and he acts like he expects me to be the same, too, like he's just going to blow right back into my life and everything will be exactly the way it was before. Hearing his voice and seeing him here hurts a lot worse than I ever thought it would. It took me a lot of time and therapy to come to peace with our past, but when he showed back up it was like he started unravelling all the stitches where I'd sewn myself up. I'm scared of what's gonna spill out if he keeps ripping the seams.
I want him to leave. I want to forget he ever showed up, and drink till I can convince myself the shit he's showed me was just a nightmare. I want to let him go.
I want him to stay. I want to save him from this shit he's gotten himself into and show him he doesn't have to live like that anymore. I want him to let go.
Book II: Fuck, fuck, fuck, I've got a tiger by the tail. He's creepy and fucking terrifying in a lot of ways and I can't get enough of that shit and like I know I need to not be into that but fuck me running, I wanna ride that crazy train right off the rails. It's getting harder and harder (ha. haha) to remember that I'm supposed to be using him. I'm trying not to think about the possibility that he can read minds. If he can, we're fucked, but at the same time, if that was the case why's he playing along like he doesn't know what we're planning behind his back?
I'm so far in over my head I can't even see the surface anymore. He's our best bet. I can't stop now, no matter what's going on between us.
I'd give anything to have met him under better circumstances, without the world falling down around our fuckin' ears. I don't wanna have to use this against him. I don't wanna have to do this.
(It bears noting that Books I & II have different POV characters.)
I can't say I spend much time with anyone, really. I believe I'm probably closest to my brother. Things were different for us growing up. We were forced to mature more quickly than our peers. I'm not entirely sure he succeeded.
In suppose it would be a fair assessment to say I'm jealous of him. People like him. I'm not sure he'd have to work a day in his life, but he'd never go hungry.
This from Dean's pov?
No, actually. It's Cas. It's harder to capture because it's creature!Cas. Although it could apply to Dean in some ways too, so that might be something to explore.
Huh, interesting. Are you writing the story from Cas' pov, and, do you have anything special you think about in order to distinguish his voice? (I'm always curious how people write Cas :D )
It probably will be from Cas's POV, because the main conflict is an internal conflict for him. Writing Cas's POV is HARD!
A lot of people go too formal with him. He does speak more formally than most characters, but he doesn't talk like a term paper. It can be hard to find that balance. I have Aspergers, and I know a number of other people who do as well. There are some similarities between Aspie voices and Cas's voice, so a lot of times for a rough draft I'll really delve into that part of me. He has the same intense focus and struggles with social interactions. We also tend to learn social rules as concrete, rather than fluid things. Grammar rules become rigid, but many of us can also pick up on certain phrases as just accepted and use them. I've actually improved my verbal social interactions by leaps and bounds, but I can easily get back into that previous headspace to help with Cas.
The other really important quality to doing Cas justice is his subtle humor. That I haven't found a way to really bring out though. It's one of those hit or miss things, and even writing, in control of everything, it's hard to do it on demand.
Yessss (I think this is most obvious when they write him as speaking without contractions, which totally isn't how he speaks.)
I wonder--I think one of the things is, when Cas is making jokes, those are some of the few times he's not being (as) literal.
I've actually been thinking about this a lot since we had this discussion yesterday and I wanted to see what you thought about my theory.
I'll have to rewatch to be sure, but I'm wondering if Cas is less likely to use contractions than other characters. Enough so that many fans picked up on it as a character trait. But we know he uses contractions without issue. From his first line "I'm the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition."
People unhook contractions all the time for emphasis, especially if they want the emphasis to fall on the second word of the contraction. "I did not wear Rhonda Hurley's panties, Sam. And even if I did, they weren't pink." (For example.)
So I'm wondering if fewer contractions is the tell for one of Cas's main character traits? But instead of being the marker for social awkwardness, it's the marker for his intensity. (Cause let's face it, Cas is pretty damned intense.)
But Cas uses contractions when he's being intense; "destiny can't be changed, Dean", "I'm not a hammer", "you're just a man, I'm an angel" And when he doesn't, it's a normal amount of emphasis I think? The way you're talking about?
I think it might have to do with the cadence Misha speaks at and the way here doesn't use filler words as much? Or... Extra words at all maybe. Like, instead of "what are you doing here" Cas would say "why are you here" kind of thing. Less moving his hands around to hedge his words with body language. A lot of direct statements, not as many "well, maybe..."s. (I'm sort of spitball hypothesizing here... This isn't too say you're necessarily wrong. Someone could probably parse the transcripts on super wiki if they wanted to...)
I could absolutely be wrong! I was guessing based on month's old memories. I've been rewatching but I'm still in season 2 (and season 1 rewatching with my daughter for her first time.) I like your theory. I mean it's basically about writing the best Cas, so I'll take any "guidelines" for him I can get.
That's cool. If you notice anything when you get to the Cas parts, I'd be curious to hear about it!
Don't tell him I said this, but I'm so proud of Sammy. It was tough, just the two of us growing up together, especially when we presented. I bought a lot of lemons to try and cover up that awful smell in the apartment after his first rut. It was especially tough since omegas aren't supposed to be bread-earners for their alphas. We're not supposed to work, right? Working is for alphas. But I wasn't gonna send Sammy to the factories. Dressmaking was hard, and my eyes and hands still hurt sometimes, but Sam was such a bright little alpha. I didn't want him to get caught up in making pennies a day, when he could someday be more than that. I let him sell papers, but otherwise I'd make the money. And I liked it. That's weird for an omega, I know, but I did. And when Sam got on that train to California, university bound, I knew it was worth it in the end.
He's bull-headed and annoying sometimes, now that he's grown enough to have a mate to wash his clothes and make his meals, instead of a brother. I love him and I'm proud of what he's done and what he'll be, but if he thinks I'm going to go out west and be a bored spinster doing needlepoint, after working all my life? He's got another thing coming.
This is a question about Cas, isn't it?
I think he's better at this job than he--or any of us--give him credit for. I'm still mad he didn't tell us sooner... but I would've done the same thing. Hell, I've told outright lies to keep Sam safe at other people's expense.
I'm still mad though.
... Wait, was this a question about feelings?
It's not like that. Having Benny around, it kinda felt like being a kid again. Which is a whole bag of worms I don't need to open--talk about regrets. And then Cas walking around all intense, and saving my skin. It's not something that'd ever work though. He's some kinda weird parasite and I'm walking bad luck. And it don't matter how I feel anyway. Love or... whatever. That's not enough.
[from about halfway through the story; timing is important on this one]