Half a Moon: 14 Days of Celebrating Women

Sliding in with one last RNM post :) Here are some icons I've made of Rosa Ortecho lately.



Rosa becomes so much more than just the drug-addicted older sister as we get to know her in s2 and beyond. For the senses theme, I wanted to write about her new powers after she was resurrected by Max. Because some alien DNA entered her system (and with some vague sci-fi magic) she gains the ability of electromagnetic manipulation and superhuman hearing - including being able to hear subatomic vibrational frequencies. These heightened senses wreak havoc on her at first because they're so hard for her to control. It seems unfair for Rosa to be the one to have to deal with these side effects, when her thoughts/anxiety/depression already take up so much space in her brain and make her struggle with out of control feelings. I think the loud noises she hears as a result of her powers are a great metaphor for the way her anxiety and mental health issues crowd out any positive thinking or hope sometimes.

She's clearly excited to be alive again, but she's thrown into a world that has moved on for ten years with out her. And, as she discusses with Kyle, she kind of expected a completely clean slate. He tells her that her brain/body are completely healed and show no ill effects from her previous drug use, but she still wants to drink alcohol. The powers make it even harder to cope, and she does turn to drinking again.

However, as she starts to understand her powers, she starts to understand herself better, too. As Isobel and Michael and others help her control her powers, she actually starts to gain control over herself and her own emotions. She wears Maria's necklace which blocks her powers altogether, but that turns out to be more of a quick fix that doesn't ultimately stick. She takes off the necklace to help her sister and her friends, and learns to filter out the noise and hone in on specific sounds or vibrations, which leads to her being able to tune out all of the loud noise and live a more normal life. It takes time and emotional work, but Rosa harnesses her powers to find alien technology and save everyone from Jones in s3. She gains a real sense of self-worth through that experience, too. That, combined with AA and her friendships in the show, really give Rosa a completely new lease on life. And then she gets her happy ending in NYC!!