For @tempestpanda

I've always been iffy about writing love songs, so I've been putting off making one for Panda. But when I wrote the song for Jace, I asked myself, "What is it that makes love songs so hard to write?" I figured if I could do it for someone else, I ought to be able to do it for the person I love, too.

Now, I've written a love song before, but even now, I find it sort of embarrassing to sing because it's so... elementary, I suppose. Here's what I don't like about love songs.

1. They are full of meaningless platitudes and "sweet nothings."
   
2. They tend to recycle these vague sentiments.
   
3. They do this in such a way that they don't seem sincere and instead come across saccharine.

There are some people that do love songs well. Ironically, Ben Gibbard, for one. I like these love songs because:

1. They're full of fresh imagery and new ideas.
   
2. Even if they're over-the-top, they're incredibly interesting and moving.
   
3. They're visceral.

So it's not that love songs are inherently hard, they just tend to be boring, and I don't like falling into those boring lyrical trends. I don't like to exaggerate my feelings and use hyperbole for something so important. Granted, poetic hyperbole is another story; I just don't want to lie and say things I can't fully commit to.

So that was the challenge with this. I wanted to write something meaningful, visceral, and something I could honestly commit to.

When Panda and I met, there was an instant attraction. We didn't plan on it, we didn't even really act on it for a long time. I was in a relationship at the time, and Panda had just gotten out of a rotten one, so we weren't interested in such a thing. However, I found his scent appealing enough to steal his hat from time to time. After I got out of my relationship with Roo, I had hoped to be single for at least a little while, but that wasn't in the cards. Now, we're engaged, and I can't really imagine spending my life with anyone else, so I suppose that's how it goes :3

I wanted to write him a song he would like, so I approached it from an industrial rock angle, which is hard because I don't know a lot about it. I've listened to enough of it to recognize some patterns and get the gist of it, but I'm not sure this song does the genre justice. Even so, I needed to approach this with the dark imagery the genre favors. Most industrial love songs involve obsession or lust or some other unhealthy aspect of relationships, and Panda has told me he'd love it if I wrote something like that for him. I can't, though; not only is it a poor representation of what love really is, it's also just not true to my own feelings. However, I figured I could pull from that imagery and still get what I wanted to say across :3 I'm afraid I may have fallen into a couple of the pitfalls I'd hoped to avoid, but oh, well x3

So, without further ado, here you go, Panda. Rie Ruv Rue! <3

Lyrics:

If this is doom, then I'll be done in,

Because I'm captivated by your dusk.

It sings to my darker side,

And when we collide, I am shaken.

You entertain my howl,

You navigate my stray.

You invigorate my foul.

You know how to make me stay.

You have my philos, love.

You give me eros in spades.

There are no conditions.

You are bound to my stains.

Our love is greater than light,

Because we're bound by the pheromones,

Every rung of genetic code

down to the smallest quark.

More precious than God,

More insistent than heaven.

Because salvation is fleeting

but an atom is forever.

If this is fate, so mote it be, then,

Because I have no intention to flee.

I'll let go of the reigns,

As long as you remain, I am perfect.

You keep my criminal secrets,

You hold my temper in.

You are more than my soulmate.

You are my chemical friend.

Our love is greater than fate,

Because we're bound by the pheromones,

Every rung of genetic code

down to the smallest quark.

More precious than God,

More substantial than matter.

Because predestination is fleeting

but an atom is forever.

From the same meaningful dust,

Out of the nothingless void

Of the strongest potential,

A molecular bond.

Woven from the same thread

Into the marvelous fabric,

Stitched into corresponding shapes,

And made from two into one.

Our love is greater than fate,

Because we're bound by the pheromones,

Every rung of genetic code

down to the smallest quark.

More precious than God,

More substantial than matter.

Because predestination is fleeting

but an atom is forever.

Our love is greater than time,

Because we're bound by stardust,

Every line of quantum code.

Down to the zeros and ones.

More persistent than dust,

More alive than gray matter.

Because life is fleeting,

but an atom is forever.