[Penultima]

Adopted

Username: Dr. Paine
Name: SSV’s Nectar and Pollen // May
Gender: Female
Height: 21 in
Weight: 38 lbs
Color: Black Heavily Ticked Extreme White
Genotype: Ayat BB cchcch DD Ee hh II Kbky mm swsw TT UU LL

Theme song comp: What's this collie's "before/after" theme songs? It could be a hero/villain arc, a morning/evening comparison, a happy/sad playlist; interpret "before" and "after" however you want! But you should include 2 songs in your entry, and I always appreciate links to youtube or spotify to listen, although it's not necessary to link them! A brief explanation of your "before/after" should also be included.

Ends at the top of page 3 or on May 4th, whichever comes first!

Design idea suggested by cincil. on Discord!

[wolfhaunt]

Username: wolfhaunt
Name: WH Dangerous Desires [Brutus]
Name Meaning(s): Dangerous --> Danger (What's Up Danger); Desires --> Brutus is a song about struggling with very dark desires such as wishing for a close friend's demise; Brutus --> villain arc song title = Brutus
Gender: DMAB
Prompt: 1) Hero arc - What's Up Danger - Blackway, Black Caviar
2) Villain arc - Brutus - The Buttress

I had a really hard time finding a "heroic" song, but What's Up Danger definitely has the right vibes! I imagine that Brutus was a brave and well-admired sort of daredevil, but someone close to him pushed him out of the "spotlight". He is torn between 1) accepting that a lifelong friend has turned him into a sidekick, 2) his desire for recognition and praise from others, and 3) being confused and driven mad by jealousy. To sum it up, he feels pushed aside by his long-time friend's accomplishments and is consistently fighting with resentment and guilt.

[Dr. Paine]

Username: Dr. Paine
Name: SSV’s Nectar and Pollen // May
Name Meaning(s): After lyrics in the second song.
Gender: Female
Prompt: (links to be added)

Before - Come Along
After - Solar Waltz

The lands surrounding Mistyoak are rife with rumour and mystery, the sort that burrows into the heart of any young pup with a spark of adventure. May was particularly troublesome in her youth, disobedient and utterly resistant to any guidance from people, even the other dogs never made much impression. Time was meant for adventure and play, nothing more. In the end, it wasn’t a matter of if- only when, that she’d make a run for it. She broke loose one early October evening, disappearing into the forest and eluding all search efforts through the fall and winter, as well as most of the spring.

She reappeared, fittingly enough, on the first of May. She was certainly larger, and her coat was dusted with pollen and flower petals. Otherwise, she was... fine. Perfect health, even perfectly well fed. Certainly something to raise many questions, but her people just decided to take the good fortune. The other collies tried to get the story from her, but to this day, May has never shared her experiences in the forest. She returned a quieter sort of dog, eager to learn and assist with work around the farms- especially anything involving bees.

(These songs have always felt paired to me, a wild adventure that gives way to somber realization of how one has to slow down and do some upkeep, otherwise there’ll be nothing at all!)

[ExVenor]

how have I only just now noticed this beauty :o

Username: Half Tree
Name:
Name Meaning(s): (optional)
Gender: Male
Prompt:

[aexer]

Username: aexer
Name: EF Heads I Win Tails U Lose, "Lark"
Name Meaning(s): Just a fun name for her fun self
Gender: Female
Prompt:
🌞 Magnifique - Ratatat 🌞
🌚 Topsy at the Top - Martin Landstrom 🌚

I went with morning/night for a comparison. Lark is definitely a night owl. She needs to be dragged out of bed every morning and goes about her day with egregious slowness until her brain finally catches up and is fully awake. Some days she's even been caught napping out in the fields when she should be working the animals on the farm. Once the sun starts to set, however, that's when she comes alive and is ready for all kinds of activities. Dinner time fetch? Midnight walks? Yes please! If her energy builds up for too long she is known to start doing zoomies all around the house and kennels while everyone else is trying to sleep.

I went with two instrumental songs. Magnifique is so chill and definitely evokes a warm, lazy summer morning. The night time tune is an electro swing piece that I could see playing in the background as Lark gets up to her regular mischief.

[Kruxly]

Username: Honey~
Name: GSK Roller Coaster Ride // Splinter
Name Meaning(s): Representation of emotions as a roller coaster, always up and down and the feeling of being shattered into many pieces (Splinter)
Gender: Male
Prompt: I chose to go with songs that represent severe mood swings, from feeling really happy one moment to feeling the worst the next as this is something i deal with on a daily basis. So this would be this collie's Happy/Sad selection.
High Hopes - Panic At The Disco
Bad Life - Sigrid

Splinter is a very empathetic dog, he is super sensitive to his handlers emotions so he knows if one of them is having a bad day and will actively try to cheer them up by playing and nuzzling them or bringing them one of his favourite toys to them as a form of a gift. 9 times out of 10 it works and both him and the handlers feel much better afterwards. He will also try to help other dogs who seem nervous or down with the same tactics and has a seemingly magical touch when it comes to making them feel better. It is no wonder that he can make friends easily, everybody seems to love him and his antics.
However, it can be really difficult to drag him out of bed when he's having a down day himself, usually someone will snug him in a blanket, give him some pets and some treats and leave him to it until he feels better as trying to do much more overwhelms him and he becomes non-responsive.

[-s-i-n-]

username: cincil.
name: life in black and white | cipriano
name meaning(s): --
gender: male
prompt:

the antlers -- putting the dog to sleep

this song resonates with the feelings of abandonment this collie felt as he was sent to kennel after kennel with no hope of finding the right owner. each time he would offer his heart and loyalty on a silver platter, and yet they would send him away because he was deemed "unable" to be trained, too rowdy and hyper. after being abandoned so many times, cipriano began to lose hope and worried that he might never find a home that he truly fit in. forever to be unwanted and possibly put down.

gloria gaynor -- i will survive

finally, cipriano began to flourish under the lengthy training sessions he had with his newest owner -- a sweet girl at the kennel "canines of royalty". she was strict but always rewarded cipriano with the best biscuits and belly rubs ever. this song highlighted the way this collie felt because as he rose to the top and was rewarded with ribbons from the title program, previous owners would walk into the kennel looking to buy back the collie. and to them he and his owner say, "go on now, go, walk out the door!"

[Southern sweetie]

Username: southern sweetie
Name: Villain of the tracks | Anarchy
Name Meaning(s): -
Gender: female
Prompt: villain arc low - villain arc high

Enemy - Imagine Dragons x J.I.D

Anarchy truthfully never had the best of starts within life; though some would say it was never the worst. Born into a family of poverty they did their best with raising the pups to hopefully be that break in the system. A winner and a champ. She knew just how much it meant for the family to finally get a win. She trained and trained never breaking her focus and goals. Eventually all the hard work had finally paid off and she secured a victory. However that victory was short lived when an unknown man had appeared on the farm waiving bags of green paper and coins. The betrayal of sending her off and to an unknown place was like waves of black surrounding anarchy. The new place smelt of despair and death. Metal walls and concrete floors. Hands men who would shout nasty things to each and every kennel. No interactions or love… just a Black Sea of nothing; beginning to make her drown.


Revolution - the score

Anarchy grew and grew. Not just in size but in hatred and resentment. To anything and everyone she would make a mental note. The time was coming; a revolution of her own. She would finally be the rabid canine everyone claimed her to be. She would get her victory of becoming a survivor.



“Don’t you hate being called a villain?”

“No. Being called a hero is just a symbol for the forgotten. Being called a villain is proof I survived.”

[Penultima]

Close for judging! Will decide tonight or tomorrow!

[Penultima]

Username: Dr. Paine
Name: SSV’s Nectar and Pollen // May
Name Meaning(s): After lyrics in the second song.
Gender: Female
Prompt: (links to be added)

Before - Come Along
After - Solar Waltz

The lands surrounding Mistyoak are rife with rumour and mystery, the sort that burrows into the heart of any young pup with a spark of adventure. May was particularly troublesome in her youth, disobedient and utterly resistant to any guidance from people, even the other dogs never made much impression. Time was meant for adventure and play, nothing more. In the end, it wasn’t a matter of if- only when, that she’d make a run for it. She broke loose one early October evening, disappearing into the forest and eluding all search efforts through the fall and winter, as well as most of the spring.

She reappeared, fittingly enough, on the first of May. She was certainly larger, and her coat was dusted with pollen and flower petals. Otherwise, she was... fine. Perfect health, even perfectly well fed. Certainly something to raise many questions, but her people just decided to take the good fortune. The other collies tried to get the story from her, but to this day, May has never shared her experiences in the forest. She returned a quieter sort of dog, eager to learn and assist with work around the farms- especially anything involving bees.

(These songs have always felt paired to me, a wild adventure that gives way to somber realization of how one has to slow down and do some upkeep, otherwise there’ll be nothing at all!)

I had an INSANELY tough time picking a winner for this comp, I LOVED so many of them! But I decided I loved the story and thought that went into this story of before/after, so congrats to Paine!