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#the minute i was introduced to the wild card concept
adamwatchesmovies · 4 months
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Time Trap (2017)
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Time Trap is an honest effort from directors Ben Foster and Mark Dennis, who clearly have enthusiasm for this story. Unfortunately, the film never lives up to its potential. We spend so much time with characters who are stupider than we are that you'll become bored and frustrated waiting for them to catch up to you.
Professor Hopper (Andrew Wilson) has been searching for his missing parents and sister for years. After discovering their abandoned vehicle, he claims to have solved the mystery of what happened to them. When he vanishes as well, his students - Taylor (Reiley McClendon), Jackie (Brianne Howey), and Cara (Cassidy Gifford), her sister Veeves (Olivia Draguicevich), and Veeves' friend Furby (Max Wright) go investigate the site.
As Professor Hopper enters a cavern near his parents’ van, he spots what looks like a cowboy, frozen still up ahead. Not frozen as in ice, frozen as in he doesn’t move. After taking a couple of steps, the rancher begins moving normally while the daylight behind Hopper flickers rapidly from light, to dark, light, to dark, over and over. What could it mean?
If you haven’t guessed, it’s pretty obvious when you see it in action. Professor Hopper has stepped through a time barrier. Inside, time passes by so slowly that to those watching outside, it looks like you’re standing still. The mystery is obvious even if you don’t know the film’s title. I realize the characters in the movie don’t know they’re in a movie but it takes them an eternity to put two and two together, even when they receive camera footage from Furby that show him wondering where they went, waiting for them to return overnight, and then descending into the same cave in which they disappeared even though to them, they've only been gone for a few minutes.
The problem isn’t that it takes long for the students to realize what they’ve walked into; it's that the film makes it too obvious to those watching. There’s plenty of strange happenings: ropes suddenly snapping, phones being unable to contact that surface, artifacts from the past in pristine condition, etc. In any other movie, these would draw you in. Here, they make you restless. Within minutes, it’s clear too much time has passed. Even if the party gets back to the surface, so much time has passed that everyone they know has been reduced to dusty bones and memories. Escape is almost pointless except for the fact that you can’t live underground.
Time Trap is 95 minutes long and it’s about an hour before the non-mystery steps aside so the plot can begin. It gets pretty silly and inconsistent from there. Magic is introduced for no reason except to force a happy ending in a movie that shouldn’t have one. Villains show up out of nowhere. The characters jump to wild conclusions. Meanwhile, you’re still stuck asking questions about this time cave. If the time barrier has been there for millions of years, shouldn’t the place be filled to the brim with random bugs and debris that’s been blown in by the wind? What about rain?
Time Trap is a concept and nothing more. It either needed to keep its cards closer to its chest - and even then, that ending desperately needed a re-write - or do something worthwhile with its idea of people forced into the future against their will. There’s got to be a movie that handles this idea better. Even if there isn’t, not enough about this film works for me to recommend it. (July 16, 2021)
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muzzleroars · 3 years
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Hehehe i just had a funny thought so every thief after Ann if you fused him wouldn’t know arsene is jokers first persona and come the fight with yaldi when arsene pops out all of the thief’s are going “What is that I’ve never seen it before, jokers never shown that persona before where did it come from?” Heheh I’m just picturing there faces and it’s making me giggle
omg for real tho!!!! like what if all the thieves after the original team have,,,,no idea that akira has a personal persona, like they just assume his role as the wild card means he instead only has a rotating door, a sort of trade off. bc i could honestly see that being skipped over as it’s not something that would come up and it’s really not that important for them to know he had arsene. so then he summons him at the final confrontation, breaking his chains and evolving him to his ultimate form as satanael, all the thieves too dazzled and amazed to say anything in the moment...but then afterward, half of them are like “akira...YOU HAVE A PERSONA?? WHO IS ARSENE????” and then he has to have the embarrassing moment realizing he NEVER TOLD THEM.....
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trickkombowerskru · 2 years
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NSFW ABC’S-Rodrick Heffley
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Request:Yes
A/N: This request is literally a year old and I am so sorry for the long loooong wait anon. Thank you for waiting this damn long and being patient with me
A- Aftercare
(What they’re like after sex)
I’m not even entirely sure if Rodrick even knows what after care is tbh, so you’d probably have to explain to him the concept and then he’ll be pretty decent at it. Cleaning you up and then giving you all the attention you need afterwards
B -Body Part
(Their favorite body part of yours)
Rodrick loves your thighs the most, he bites them all the time just to watch your reaction before he goes down on you
C- Cum
(Anything having to do with cum….we’re all thirsty nasty ass hoes don’t act surprised)
This man is NOT good at pulling out when he should so plan accordingly to avoid any unwanted consequences.
D- Dirty Talk
(How much do they dirty talk? What kind of things do they say?)
He tries, that’s the keywords but honestly he can't do it to save his life, will listen to you doing it for HOURS though
E- Experience
(How experienced are they? Do they always know what they’re doing?)
He isn’t really experienced, if he’s even experienced at all that is. ether way it’ll be a learning experienced for both of you
F- Favorite Position
(Self explanatory)
Anything where you’re on top, as established here he’s a sub through and through
G- Goofy
(Are they serious or goofy during sex)
ABOLUTELY Rodrick is giggly and adorable the whole time
H- Hair
(Are they well groomed? Does the carpet match the drapes? etc…)
I mean he’s decent, but this is Rodrick  we’re talking about soooo you know.
I- Intimacy
(How romantic they are within the moment)
He isn’t the most romantic guy in general, but like outside the bedroom he tries
J- Jerk Off
(How often they masturbate)
If you don’t think he doesn’t go for it at least a few times a weak... then you’re wrong, of course he’s still down whether he got off prior or not his body agrees to it will be a gamble 💀
K- Kink
(One or more of their kinks)
You can’t convince me this boy doesn’t have a praise kink you can’t
L- Location
(Favorite place to have sex)
As cliché as it is the back of his van, it’s just so hot to him
M- Motivation
(What turns them on)
You just you in general, you could be doing anything and Rodrick could find a way to get turned on
N- No
(Something they would never do to you)
He wouldn’t be into pain at all
O- Oral
(Are they a taker or a giver?)
I’d say he’s more of a taker for sure, but that doesn't mean he won’t return the favor, especially considering he’s the sub here
P- Pace
(How fast or slow they take it on you)
You always control the speed, but if he wants to slow things down or speed them up he’ll go faster
Q- Quickie
(What they think of them and how often they occur)
They definitely happen semi regularly
R- Roleplay
(How often you do it)
It wouldn’t be this cup of tea
S- Stamina
(How many rounds can they go? How long can they last?)
One maaaybe two rounds depending on the day
T- Toys
(Do they use toys on you or do you use toys on them?)
It’d be a process of introducing them slowly, but after a while he wouldn’t be able to get enough of them
U- Unfair
(How much they like to tease you)
I mean he tries to sometimes, but his ass gets punished if he tries anything too intense and he knows it 💞
V- Volume
(How loud are they?)
OH RODRICK IS LOUD
W- Wild Card
(Anything)
After sometime please tie him up, he loves it
X- X-Ray
(Let’s take a peak inside their pants)
I think he’s probably average
Y-Yearning
(How high is their sex drive?)
Did you not see the part where like practically everything turns him on, he always yearns for you
Z- Zzz
(How quickly they fall asleep afterward)
Honestly Rodrick is probably out like a light 5 to 10 minutes after you finish
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steve0discusses · 3 years
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Yugioh S5 Ep 20: Yugi’s Senshi Outfit
So I’ve been doing a lot of work, and I haven’t looked at the blog for a hot minute and when I finally checked back in to do these posts I noticed something on my tumblr was just blowing up. I got all excited thinking “oh shoot, Did I draw something right??” and instead, it was a random post I made about the bootspants from season 1. Three years later, resurrected from the grave and covered in...thousands of notes? I don’t understand how this website works.
Anyways, the comments are mostly good, but a little bit wild. A lot of people seem to think I would know what Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure is, when I’m an adult who is still watching the first 5 seasons of Yugioh. (I will never have time to watch Jojo,) and then some other people started talking about Actual Card Mechanics that went...completely beyond my comprehension. But then there was one person. One person who said one thing, and brought it all together.
Poots.
The boots that are pants.
Poots.
I can’t believe I looked at all the different combinations, but a Poots never crossed my brain.
It is so perfect, so cathartic, although it took 3 years to get there.
Poots.
Anyways, we’re in S5 and unfortunately not in poots anymore, Yugi is now dressed in a tupperware container from hell and they have wandered into a desert. On cue, Grandpa has an injury, but at least this time it’s not his ass.
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You know how there’s artists who do hyper-realistic versions of pokemon monsters with detailed bone structure and muscle anatomy? I dare them to look at this orb and tell me how the hell it has wings. Like go ahead and try and pin a spine down on that thing. I’ll wait.
(read more under the cut)
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So Joey decides to sprint down this endless desert with just boundless positivity.
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Over the edge of this sand dune is a whole bunch of huts,just random civilization out in the middle of no where.
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One girl walks over and it’s a look.
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She’s really the only one here who can talk, and she just seems...so incredibly bored to be here. A whole lot of Wednesday Addams energy. She leads them into a hut where an old guy pulls a scroll out of blue fire. As you do.
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Again, this arc should have been a video game, because while it’s something to get the player interested if there’s some riddle they have to solve to progress, when you’re watching a TV show, it’s not like I’m the one solving the riddle. The format is honestly one of the downers of this arc, tbh.
It has strong “I played a D+D sesh and made a webcomic out of it vibe” and I know I just called out like half of you, but listen, I will not take it back.
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This episode, our gimmick is some asshole is going to be yelling at us from the other end of the map, just shouting in the background for the entirety of the episode like that tangible human skull meme.
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Then Wednesday Addams hands over yet another MacGuffin because why not?
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Tea can twin it up with Yugi now. Her necklace doesn’t seem haunted, but it’s only a matter of time. (also her necklace looks so freakin terrible, we’ll see it later and I’ll have a lot more to say because wtf it looks like some sort of polly pocket.)
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I’m not 100% that the voice that shouts at us from the end of the hall this episode is Mokuba’s voice actress. But I’m 99% positive it is, or Mokuba’s voice is just really that type of vibe.
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Stuff happens, and it felt like card duel stuff, so I’m gonna skip over the part where they pulled out their duel monsters one by one, since the fight was pointless anyway because the worms can turn you into stone. So Yugi and Pharaoh decide to have a chat about it because their plan is clearly not working.
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This is when Pharaoh has a vivid lucid daydream, which seems like something that would have been more convenient before he ended up turning into stone on the floor of some desert. But, hallucinations never come when they’re convenient on this show. They usually come during card games, tbh.
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Imagine with me that you’re dreaming of like...an old ass greek guy who is 99% Alexander the Great. Imagine he tells you to fuse with a sentient paper card that you already carry around in a weird capsule.
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Please
For the love of all that is holy
Do not think about what it means to fuse with the Dark Magician.
Dark Magician is...he “exists” but he’s like not even a person. There seem to be whole fleets of dark Magicians, which are all the same guy, just cloned, right? Or maybe they’re a family? Or like...I don’t freakin know. Like they’re all hanging out together in some card dimension so it’d be more like fusing with the guy who dresses like Barney the dinosaur instead of actually Barney. Like he’s more of like a concept than a dude, but apparently you can just introduce him to your...whatever this armor is supposed to be, and Dark Magician turns into a Super Suit.
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I want to express my thanks to the Yugioh team for not putting Yami in his underoos. Hell, they didn’t even take off his jacket. I do not know what art directer ok’d this for animation and said “yeah, this won’t kills us if we animate it.” but that is a hell ton of lines and design right there. Yeah they have 3d, and probably had to 3d that staff...but that doesn’t mean you don’t end up drawing it, in the end--you still have to draw over your 3d. You still have to draw literally everything.
Anyway, when we get to the eye of the storm. The secret to getting there was that you have to fly, which again--3/5 of these guys already have a monster that can fly. We can finally tell the voice at the end of the hall to stop yelling because it’s really bothering all the townspeople, and then move on with the quest.
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Everyone else was stone during this. So when they un-petrified they kinda looked over at Yugi and were like “how freakin long was I out???”
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But youknow, Yugi’s 2 people, so it’s fine. So long as you don’t get down to the third bastard still sitting around in there.
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After this, our NPCs vanish, and the show pushes us directly forward. No time for them to piss off a land turtle or set a bunch of wolves on fire. Just get out of the desert and freakin go.
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I’m just so bothered by this random ass huge chunky necklace.
It’s like the size of your freakin fist. And it’s just...a pentagon. Congrats Tea, you have a fake ass plastic necklace. I guess it’s so that when we’re far away we can still see it on her chest but like...This show loves huge ass necklaces, and they’re all basic ass shapes. We got a pyramid, the Kaiba’s wear squares, Bakura wears a circle with kind of phallic bits hanging off of it and this is just...it’s literally just a pentagon.
I guess Ishizu wore a wadjet and Duke has an indecipherable clown as his necklace. But man...the Yugioh necklace game is just a lot of shapes.
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And so we continue on with this filler arc, which is also a pokemon arc, and even secretly has a Sailor Moon arc just stuffed in there for funsies. This arc is weird.
Also, I brought up the human skull so I legally have to post this.
youtube
Anyway, here’s a link to read these in chrono order, in case you just got here: https://steve0discusses.tumblr.com/tagged/yugioh/chrono
And I’m off to drink a bin of ice water because it is 5 billion degrees right now in this house.
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sloppy-butcher · 3 years
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Maybe J, K, L, W and X for Hillbilly?
anon... you know DAMN well what you are doing. playing with my heart like this. i legit screamed when i saw this. thank thank thank YOU !!! he's JUSt what the doctor ordered <3 much love anon. hope you enjoy
edit;; i wrote SO DAMN MUCH I i need to go to horny jail
Fluffy Alphabet for The Hillbilly (Max Thompson Jr.)
Jealousy - Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?
Oh yes, but he would never even know he was. Max doesn't know what being jealous is nor does he know what it feels like. He would just begin to feel angry for no apparent reason, a burning familiar fury igniting in his stomach making him want to scream and get his chainsaw. Watching you interact with other people, be it killer or survivor, makes Max very sour. It’s extremely bitter when he sees you talking to others - were you happier with them? He’d get mad and his intrusive white noise would threaten to blind him with unjustified rage. 
He’d growl as he looms over you, silver eyes burning with unspeakably deep anguish. No words would fall from his mouth but you could tell from the mere way he stood there that he was upset. You tentatively reach up for him, Max flinching away from your gentle hand. Your heart breaks as you see a wave of unworthiness wash over his deformed features - he feels undeserving of your affections. Max is unsure if you even love him anymore. You belong with normal people with normal faces. How could he ever have believed that you would want to be with him? He recoils from your attempt to touch him again and you feel tears well up in your eyes. There was such profound sadness in that face and your inability to alleviate some of that pain scorned you more than any knife ever could. 
Before he could react, moving faster than lightning, you engulf him in a hug. Desperation to soothe his obvious heartache seeping through your embrace. Suddenly he breaks and gives in to your understanding and unwavering love. You must teach him how to recognize and deal with jealousy in a less self-destructive manner.
Kiss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?
Hell no. Gonna be dead honest, he would be terrible. There would be too much teeth, his lips would not be able to conform to the correct shape and his tongue is untrained and a little too eager. But what he lacks in technique, he makes up for in passion. Once he knows that you don't mind that his kisses are wet and unusual and his confidence to seek you out grows, he wastes no time in getting quite accustomed to smooching your face. Every chance he got, Max would be planting multitudes of kisses on your person, moving up and down your body with his mouth leaving behind moist teeth-marks and red skin. His favorite place to kiss is your face - be it your cheek, the corner of your mouth, the top of your forehead, it is always your face that gets drenched in his love. 
The first kiss was an awkward one, Max had been acting suspicious all day. When the elephant in the room became too much to leave unchecked you approach him and ask him softly if something was wrong. You’d notice right away that he was shaking, his nervous hands fidgeting with the frayed edge of his shirt and his gaze never once having the confidence to meet your line of sight. After having a moment to compose himself, Max finally raises his head and meekly asks if he could give you a kiss. It's such a jarring, out-of-place question that for a few minutes after you remain stuck in stupefied silence. When you manage to give him a gentle nod, Max shuffles closer, his breathing hot and flustered across your face. In an instant, his lips are on yours, not even kissing you more just sloppily pressing themselves against you, and his eyes are closed. The kiss lasts only a heartbeat then he's pulling away, filling with embarrassment and shame. He begins to hurriedly apologize for the awful attempt at such a delicate and intimate act, shrinking away into his own self-doubt. 
He stops when you put your hand on his shoulder and sweetly plant another kiss on his forehead. “It was great, Max.” You whisper into his ear feeling all tension drain from his body at your reassuring words. “You were great.”
Love Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?
He’d be an absolute mess. Why was he feeling this way? What even was this feeling? Perhaps he was sick? Maybe he was dying? He had never expected dying to feel this good, however. If he was dying then he’d gladly do so because then he’d get to stay longer with you. It was always you who set off that suffocating goodness in his chest, his knees always felt like straw when he’d steal a sneaky look at you. He would assume that feeling like this was normal for everyone when being around such a wonderful and kind person such as you so it would take a long time for him to realize that pining the way he does was not actually the norm. 
He remembers how the men did it on T.V, how they expressed love to their partners, and though nervous, Max knew what he had to do. So one night when alone he pulls you to the side gets down on one knee. He produces a strange bundle of dead flowers and other miscellaneous items that you supposed was meant to be a bouquet. He coughs and tries to force the words to come out but all he could manage was a pathetic mumble. Getting over your stupor at his forwardness, you suddenly sigh and let out a gentle giggle. He looks up at you with wide, unsure eyes - so much like a desperate child that you couldn’t help but place your hands around his crooked face. You call him a goofball and he smiles. You weren’t refusing him so, that means you love him, right? He’s elated. Ballistic! Wild! Walking on air! He stands up quickly and effortlessly sweeps you off your feet, cradling you to his chest as he spins around, all the while laughing his relief and joy.   
Wild Card - A random Fluff Headcanon.
Max has a great fascination and strange enjoyment in being openly flirtatious with you. He absolutely loves it when you make crude jokes, smacking his ass and calling him sexy. He blushes and buries his head in his hands, unsure about what to do with himself when showered in such open tenderness. He babbles and shrinks away and to anyone else watching it would seem that he hates being so degraded but really he absolutely loves it. Call him a good boy, a strong, handsome man and he crumbles like a sandcastle against a wave. It makes his insides burning in a most fabulous way and he feels something fuzzy buzz up in his chest. It's a borderline praise-kink thing. 
He also enjoys showering you in that same raunchy show of likeness, though do forgive him for all the lines he uses are the same ones he picked up earlier from you (he’s not very creative). He’d smack your ass then would pull away and wait for your reaction. When you’d smile, he’d wheeze and produce a sound you assumed to be his own version of laughter. 
XOXO - Are they very affectionate? Do they love to kiss and cuddle?
Yes. Most definitely. Having been deprived of physical affection all his young life, Max would behave like a starved man when you first introduce the concept of cuddling. He’d never want to stop cuddling you. His love language is touch. If you are at the point in your relationship where he is comfortable enough to allow you to touch him, Max constantly begs you for attention. 
He loves, and I mean LOVES, when you rake your fingers through his hair. It's an odd thing, coarse, wiry, and scattered across his shoulders in patches, but you manage to always find the best spots to gently stroke as he lies peacefully in your lap. Often you find that Max has fallen asleep and his ragged breathing simulates a cat purring. 
When he wakes expects to be covered in kisses and wrapped in an impossible bear-hug. He’s careful to not hurt you with his strength but sometimes he can't help the urge to bring you as close to his chest and humanely possible. He kisses the top of your head and goes wild when you start peppering his face with butterfly kisses. He giggles and can’t help but squeeze his eyes shut and grin like an idiot. You just made him feel so good. 
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cuttoothed · 4 years
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Second fic for @aspecmartinweek, this time for the prompt “Family”. Jon/Martin, because it’s me.
I have many feelings about marriage as a societal convention with a...difficult history, and just as many feelings about marriage as an expression of love and devotion between individuals and also what makes a family so yeah. 
Tags/warnings: Incidental asexuality, sex averse ace Martin, sex averse ace Jon, mention of past break-ups due to sexual incompatibility, Martin’s relationship with his mother, Martin’s self-esteem issues.
*
Martin goes to his first family wedding when he’s five years old. He doesn’t really know what a wedding is, except that they go to sit in a church, and everyone is dressed up fancy, and his cousin Sarah is wearing the prettiest dress he’s ever seen. He asks his dad about it, while the vicar drones on.
“They’re getting married,” his dad explains in a whisper. “Because they love each other, and we’re all going to have a big party to celebrate that.”
That sounds pretty nice to Martin, and at the reception later he informs several of his older relatives that when he gets married, he’s going to wear his triceratops t-shirt, and the cake will be chocolate. 
Stuffed animal weddings become a fixture of Martin’s playtime, after that. He officiates over the unions, wearing his dad’s black suit jacket so he can be the vicar and with his mum’s day planner as the holy book of choice. 
“You know your dad and I are married,” his mum tells him one day, as he’s recounting the wedding of Fred the rabbit and Speckles the giraffe. 
“Really?” Martin asks, wide eyed. She laughs, and takes a photo album from the high shelf, and sits Martin down in her lap to show him the pictures of their wedding day. His mum is in a cream colored dress with flowers in her hair, and his dad is in a fine suit, and they both look so happy. 
Martin thinks that getting married must be the best thing in the world.
*
By the time he’s an adult, Martin has come to terms with the fact that he’s not the kind of person who gets married. Oh, he’s the sort who’d like to. Despite his dad’s piss poor example, he’s always been a romantic at heart. But he isn’t the kind of person that other people marry . 
He’s had a handful of relationships, few of which have lasted past the “wait, you don’t have sex?” conversation. Those that did, eventually fell apart for other reasons; he’s too needy, or he’s too nervous, or he devotes too much time and heartache to his mum.  
He still gets the occasional invitation to a family wedding, checks the RSVP boxes on the card and sends it back:
Yes, I will gladly attend!
No, I will not be bringing a guest
He’s not even sure why he goes, other than familial obligation. He wears his best suit, and sits through the service, the reception, the first dance, an observer to other people’s happiness. He braces himself for the inevitable questions from aunts and uncles and cousins:
Yes, he’s here by himself
Yes, his mum is fine
Yes, he knows they’ve legalized gay marriage now, lovely for all those couples, a real step forward for the country
After each wedding he writes his mum a letter to tell her about the service, and the dress, and the cake, and all the relatives who said hello and wished her the best. His mum never responds, but that’s not surprising. It’s barely even upsetting anymore. 
*
And then there’s Jon, and it’s...well, Martin’s never imagined being quite this happy. 
It’s not perfect, or even easy. There are mistakes and misunderstandings, the raw edges of their personalities sometimes rubbing up against each other in ways that hurt. But they forgive each other, and try harder, and they’re getting better at it every day. 
(In fact, the sex conversation is one of the easiest Proper Relationship Talks they’ve had, and there’s something kind of funny and fitting about that.) 
Jon is also not the kind of person who gets married, Martin knows, though in his case it’s by choice. Jon is pragmatic, doesn’t see the point in a lot of societal conventions and cultural traditions. He understands them—well enough to expound for over an hour on the classist implications of soup spoons one day—but he’s not much inclined to bend to them himself. 
They’ve never actually...discussed it, certainly not in relation to themselves, but Martin is very confident that it isn’t something Jon would want. And that’s fine. Jon loves him—he tells Martin so at least a dozen times a day, and he could never tire of hearing it—and that’s enough. More than enough.  
*
Martin gets an invitation to his cousin Paul’s wedding. 
He deliberates for a full day over whether to attend. He knows Jon won’t want to, and Martin doesn’t want to put him in an awkward position. But...there’s that sense of familial obligation again, and even though Martin is quite sure Paul wouldn’t even notice his absence, he’d feel guilty if he didn’t. He tells Jon about it quite casually, over dinner, trying not to put any hint of expectation into it.
“Right,” says Jon. “Do you want me to come?”
“Oh, I mean, if you want to? You don’t have to, though.”
Jon shrugs. “I’d rather spend the time with you than not. And I’ve never been to a wedding.”
“You’ve never—really?”
“I only had my grandmother growing up, and it isn’t as if I have old friends beating down my door to invite me to theirs. I was expecting Georgie’s to be the first,” he grumbles, “But she and Melanie are really taking their time about it.”   
“Okay,” says Martin, “Great!” He checks the RSVP boxes on the card:
Yes, I will gladly attend!
Yes, I will be bringing a guest.
*
The wedding is almost two months later, but Jon still ends up rushing out to buy a suit at the last minute because he forgot. He looks very handsome, though, and Martin finds himself smitten all over again. 
They sit through the service, and Martin nudges Jon to stand at the appropriate times. He does, politely, and afterwards at the reception, he politely greets Martin’s aunts and uncles and cousins as they approach, introduces himself and—diplomatically—answers questions about how he and Martin met, how long they’ve been together, what he does for a living. 
After a while he starts to look a little wild eyed, and Martin finally rescues him from great-aunt Susannah, towing him off into a corner to recover. 
“How are you doing?” Martin asks. 
“Your family are certainly...inquisitive.”
“Sorry, I know they’re a lot. If it makes you feel any better, they’ve been asking me about when I’m going to settle down and get married for the last decade.”
“Well, it’s nice that they’re concerned about you.”
“Nosey, more like,” Martin snorts. “Anyway, this is what my family’s weddings are like—what do you think?”
“It’s, ahh…” Jon glances around the loud, busy room, pop hits blaring from the DJ booth and fluorescent strobes lighting up the darkness. “It’s certainly something. I’m not sure I’d want our wedding to be like this.”
“Sorry, our what?” says Martin. 
“Oh,” says Jon. “I didn’t—I mean, not to assume or anything—”
 “You want to get married?”
“Not right this second!” Jon says hastily. “Probably not for a—a while? But I have thought of it. Potentially. For the future.”
“Oh, right,” Martin says, too stunned for anything else. The idea that Jon might want to actually get married, to him, is...well. A very new concept. 
“If you don’t want to, of course, we don’t have to by any means—”
“I want to,” Martin blurts, then feels his face go hot. “Not—not right now, like you said, but...I do want to. I want to marry you someday.” 
The words sound incredibly daring, coming from his mouth. Jon’s expression is relieved and delighted, and he grasps Martin’s hand in his. 
“That’s wonderful,” he says. “Martin, that’s....” He kisses Martin’s knuckles, fiercely, and then squeezes his hand tight. “Maybe we could have a...slightly smaller wedding, though?”
“You, me, a couple of witnesses and a registrar?” Martin grins at him. Jon smiles. 
“We can have some guests,” he says. “Once I don’t have your entire family to contend with.” 
“I think I can agree to that,” Martin laughs, and pulls him close. He doesn’t care who else is there: as long as he has Jon, Martin will have his family with him. 
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dweemeister · 3 years
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Melody Time (1948)
Disengaged and disinterested, Walt Disney was adrift at his own studio in the late 1940s. The studio’s modestly-budgeted package animated features were designed to save it from financial ruin. Yet, they required artistic and storytelling compromises that Disney was loathe to make. In this period, Disney shuffled personnel around the various departments – whether due to personal conflicts or dissatisfaction with their artistic approach on a certain film. Melody Time’s segments are of varying quality and limited experimentation, reflecting the organizational tumult within the studio. No standout moment exists in Melody Time, even though it is more energetic and looser than the preceding Fun and Fancy Free (1947).
The modern Walt Disney Company has advertised Melody Time as a film, “in the grand tradition of Disney’s greatest musical classics, such as Fantasia.” Audacious comparison to make, but functionally inaccurate. Fantasia, as imagined by Walt Disney, Deems Taylor, Leopold Stokowski, and the studio’s animators, was crafted so that its animation would empower the music (in cinema, the reverse – where music serves the action on-screen – is almost always a filmmaker’s approach). The reverse of that relationships holds here. Melody Time contains these seven segments, or “mini-musicals”: “Once Upon a Wintertime”, “Bumble Boogie”, “The Legend of Johnny Appleseed”, “Little Toot”, “Trees”, “Blame It on the Samba”, and “Pecos Bill”. Some of these mini-musicals are more watchable and more artistically interesting than others – although that standard is relatively low in Melody Time.
“Once Upon a Wintertime” is based on an overused Disney narrative template that never ceases to be a bore. A young couple are out and about, flirting and flitting, all while the woodland animals scurrying back and forth mirror human courtship. The segment, however, is partially redeemed by Frances Langford singing the segment’s title song (composed by Bobby Worth and Ray Gilbert) and the unmistakable influence of Mary Blair (1950’s Cinderella, the “It’s a Small World” attraction at Disneyland in Anaheim) in its aesthetic. With any piece of animation involving Mary Blair, one can expect an eye-catching use of color and her modernist art style. “Once Upon a Wintertime” is like a holiday card brought to animated life. Unlike a picturesque and meaningful holiday card, though, it overstays its welcome. But the stereotypical treatment of the young women appearing in “Once Upon a Wintertime” is, to put it mildly, clichéd writing at best. Hackneyed, too, is the fact that the woodland animals come to the human’s rescue.
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee is one of the most recognizable (and overplayed) pieces of Western classical music, even to those folks who go out of their way to announce their distaste for classical music. Given a jazz rendition by the Freddy Martin Orchestra, “Bumble Boogie” is a thankfully brief three-minute foray. Here, an insect (that does not seem anything like a bee) flies through a series of surreal images – mostly parts of musical instruments (piano keys in particular) – that it must avoid. The segment is visually entertaining to watch, even if it must have been the easiest to prepare, design, and animated for in all of Melody Time. If placed in either Fantasia or Fantasia 2000, it would easily be the weakest Fantasia segment ever produced.
Third in the film is a segment that feels most like a classic Disney production. “The Legend of Johnny Appleseed” is Disney’s glorified and sanitized take on the eponymous American pioneer, nurseryman, conservationist, and missionary. Walt’s personal ideology and perspective on American history included the fulfillment of Manifest Destiny and the taming of the nation’s wilds as among humanity’s greatest achievements. These are notions that Walt – through his films, theme parks, television shows, and public and private remarks – never questioned. Narrated and with Johnny Appleseed voiced by Dennis Day, there is a sincerity to Johnny’s characterization not present anywhere else in the movie. Again, Mary Blair’s artwork – this time, her forested backgrounds – appears as if heaven-sent. The umbrella-like canopy of the apple trees and “untamed” forests are inviting, and attract one’s eyes upward – towards the apples, paradise.
The title song (sometimes referred to as “The Lord is Good to Me”) featured in the opening moments of “The Legend of Appleseed” is one of the earliest – and one of the few – mentions or depictions of religious faith in a Disney animated work. It reinforces the mythos that surrounds Johnny Appleseed (and, by extension, the belief that white men are divine heroes for civilizing the lands west of the original Thirteen Colonies) to the present day. I was not raised in any of the Abrahamic religions, but it difficult to deny the simple charm of the title song and this segment – even if it endorses a troublesome perspective on American history. “The Legend of Johnny Appleseed” is the best segment of Melody Time – from its unassuming storytelling and wondrous animation. It is the only Melody Time segment that I could possibly envision as a decent feature-length animated film.
Based on a 1939 children’s picture book of the same name Hardie Gramatky, “Little Toot” is a chore to sit through. The segment shares similar narrative and aesthetic tissue with Saludos Amigos’ (1942) “Pedro”, which concerned an anthropomorphic mail airplane that thinks it could. Along the Hudson River in New York City, Little Toot is a tiny tugboat who aspires to be like his father Big Toot. Just as in “Pedro”, this is a case of an anthropomorphized vehicle child who attempts to assume adult responsibility in order to prove that they can perform tasks as well as the adults can. Given that Little Toot is a meddling prankster playing tugboat games, it is difficult to feel much sympathy when he finally faces the consequences of his actions – which probably includes calamitous infrastructural damage and human casualties. Of course, Little Toot is eventually redeemed through some heroic deeds. All of the tugboats will love him, as they belt out with glee that Little Toot will go down in history. The segment is grating, including the novelty title song sung by The Andrews Sisters. Aside from some fascinating water effects, there is not much that “Little Toot” offers in the way of animated interest. Otherwise, it is least interesting segment of the film.
The palate-cleanser is “Trees”, a four-minute segment based on Joyce Kilmer’s poem of the same name (music composed by Oscar Rasbach and performed by Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians). Its aesthetic harkens back to a few seconds near the end of the “Ave Maria” in Fantasia, but otherwise “Trees” is distinct from anything else that has appeared in the Disney animated canon. When setting to work on “Trees”, layout artist Ken O’Connor (1941’s Dumbo, 1987’s The Brave Little Toaster) found himself enamored by the concept art, and endeavored to be a faithful to the style set by the concept art as possible. To do this, O’Connor frosted cels before drawing pastel images onto the cel. Before being photographed by the studio’s multiplane camera, each cel was laminated in clear lacquer to prevent the pastel from smudging. Thanks to O’Connor’s experimentation, “Trees”, however fleeting, lays claim to some of the most beautiful animation among all of the package Disney animated features.
“Blame it on the Samba” sees a reunion of Donald Duck and Brazilian parrot José Carioca (Saludos Amigos, 1944’s The Three Caballeros) are walking about, depressed, directionless. Suddenly, they encounter the Aracuan Bird (who debuted in The Three Caballeros), who whisks them inside a cocktail that introduces them to the rhythmic pleasures of the samba. The segment’s title song is based on Ernesto Nazareth’s polka Apanhei-te, Cavaquinho, sung by The Dinning Sisters with adapted English lyrics, and accompanied by organist Ethel Smith (who appears as herself).
“Blame it on the Samba” feels like it should have been featured in either Saludos Amigos or The Three Caballeros – and that was the intention exactly. Intended to appear in Saludos Amigos, “Blame it on the Samba” was animated and completed in time for it to be incorporated in The Three Caballeros. Given Donald Duck’s lust for human women in the second half of the latter movie, “Blame it on the Samba” might have otherwise been a serviceable penultimate number in that film. The segment is an explosion of color, a kick in the rear for a movie that feels much longer than its seven-five-minute runtime might suggest. And yet in a segment for a music genre innovated in Brazil and popularized by Brazilians, the performers and the performance lack any discernible Brazilian influence or roots. This is not samba music. Instead, it is the culmination of what a white American might think samba music sounds like. This unfortunate development probably would have been avoided entirely if “Blame it on the Samba” appeared in those two aforementioned films instead.
“Pecos Bill”, based on the Texan folk hero of the same name, makes reference to American Indians in ghastly ways. Simultaneously, its absurd humor and lack of fidelity to sensible human behavior and physics make it a delight to watch. The segment also boasts the presence of Roy Rogers and the Pioneers (and Rogers’ horse, Trigger). Child actors Luana Patten and Bobby Driscoll, both of whom had just starred in Song of the South (1946), make brief appearances in the segment’s hybrid animation/live-action introduction. Rogers, then contracted to Republic Pictures, was one of the quintessential stars of the singing cowboy subgenre – singing cowboy movies were almost exclusively made by the “Poverty Row” studios including Republic, and they were extremely profitable against their barebones budgets). “Pecos Bill” all begins with the atmospheric, moody “Blue Shadows on the Trail”. “Blue Shadows on the Trail” describes and, through its spare instrumentation, reflects the emptiness and desolation of the American West. It is a beautiful ballad, and could easily be placed in any Western (singing cowboy movies or otherwise).
Once the hybrid animation/live-action introduction concludes, “Pecos Bill” steams forward with comic hyperbole followed by another comic hyperbole. The title song (music by Eliot Daniel, lyrics by Johnny Lange) doubles down on the exaggerations. Those exaggerations include the segment’s constant gunplay – escaping censorship from the Hays Code: a risqué gag that includes Pecos Bill’s guns going off because of love interest Slue Foot Sue. At least Melody Time ends brashly and riotously, but any impressionable children watching will require a discussion from a trusted adult. Its depictions of American Indians and men-women relations are deplorable, but after just over an hour of inconsistent quality, I found myself enjoying “Pecos Bill” more than I imagined.
Shortly after the release of Melody Time, Walt Disney embarked on a three-week cruise to Hawai’i. Walt rarely went vacationing, and he spent these weeks fully concentrating on his family and escaping from the minutiae of managing his studio. Even after returning from Hawai’i, Walt did not spend much time in Burbank. Walt invited animator and fellow train enthusiast Ward Kimball on a trip to the Midwest. Together, they attended the 1948 Chicago Railroad Fair, visited the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, and stopped at other locations close to Walt’s childhood in the Midwest. Through the end of 1948, Walt spent more time constructing the train set in his backyard than paying attention to the animation and live-action movies his studio was producing. What seemed like idleness to many (including New York Times film critic Bosley Crowther, who believed that Disney was a cinematic genius wasting his time on quixotic projects) was a major inspiration for a draft sketch entitled “Mickey Mouse Park”, dated August 31, 1948.
The package era at Walt Disney Productions (now Walt Disney Animation Studios) was nearing its end. Every film during this run – Saludos Amigos (1942), The Three Caballeros (1944), Make Mine Music (1946), Fun and Fancy Free (1947), Melody Time, and The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) – faced the same narrative of Walt Disney’s personal indifference to the projects, a lack of direction and motivation among the animators, and audience and critic dissatisfaction when compared to Disney’s Golden Age movies. A return to non-package animated features would be imminent, in spite of Melody Time’s mediocre performance at the box office. The Disney studios would attempt to begin a period of renewal with a tradition that inaugurated their animated canon – with a fairy tale.
My rating: 6/10
^ Based on my personal imdb rating. Half-points are always rounded down. My interpretation of that ratings system can be found in the “Ratings system” page on my blog (as of July 1, 2020, tumblr is not permitting certain posts with links to appear on tag pages, so I cannot provide the URL).
For more of my reviews tagged “My Movie Odyssey”, check out the tag of the same name on my blog.
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Masked Singer Season 5 Review
I haven’t gotten to talk about The Masked Singer here in awhile, but season 5 left me with a lot to talk about after seeing how it nosedived this show into being DEAD television by the end of it.
I’m going to put it all past a read more for you here, because I have over 18000 characters in me to talk about how bad of a season this was apparently. There are also some thoughts about Season 3, and Season 4 (which I skipped reviewing because of how uninteresting it was, but boy did it’s bad qualities have a huge impact on Season 5).
So before I get to dissecting season 5 of the Masked Singer, I have to go back to moments of season 3, and a whole lot of season 4. Season 3 is where we start to see the first inkling of bad tropes occur that persist through season 5 to make it worse. It introduces really obviously weak performances that get the performer to skate by when they shouldn't, leading to the biggest upset I have with the season. Kandi Burruss really shouldn't have won season 3 in my honest opinion. within her first 5 performances, she had two clear duds; her cover of Shout!, and her cover of Man, I Feel Like A Woman. Both were covers that had questionable energy (Shout! less so, but Woman was absolutely unenergetic compared to Twain's original vocal performance), and the latter had a key change to the accompaniment that didn't lend any favors to the energy or vibrancy of the cover. I also need to put into context that what I think is Night Angel's worst performance (Woman) somehow won her a face-off round in season 3 (a forgotten show element from the last two seasons? wowie). Obviously I can say that Jesse McCartney should have won season 3 (I just think he had more consistent performances and output throughout the season), but that's a bit off course. What I really want to get to with Burruss cover of Woman is that it's for all intents and purposes just a middling cover. We'll see these happen more in seasons 4 and 5, but they pan out to usually axing off the contestant. Barring the element of Burruss actually getting eliminated, this is pretty much the first notable Punt Song in terms of performance quality. I want to establish the concept of the Punt Song because it plays a larger role in season 4, and season 5. I also need to establish another trope that season 4 introduced which also cursed season 5, which is excusing bad performances. It panned out so much worse in 4 than in 5, but for 4's sake, Chloe Kim should have been out from her first week. Her performance of Big Girls Don't Cry was weak and mildly sobby, but to the panel it's "emotional", and "it's okay, I'm sure you'll do better next week :)". This performance beat out Wendy Williams cover of Native New Yorker. Was that a great cover by Wendy? No, not really. However, whereas Chloe was a weak, sobbing mess on her first swing at bat, Wendy was bringing the comedy and entertainment factor and should have been safe on that alone. This show failure here is especially notable because having comedic factor in an otherwise bad performance actually pans out successfully in season 5, which makes me question the judges consistency in evaluation from season to season (to be fair though, the judges are Robin Thicke, Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy Whalberg, and Nicole Scherzinger. They're already a collective 3/4 of a middling joke). The last part of Season 4 I want to bring up is the usage of the term "taking us to church" in regards to it not only being a cursed term by the end of season 5, but also being a poor reflection on the judges evaluation skills. Look, I get it, this is a Fox competition at the end of the day, so it's obviously hokey pseudo sentimental faux entertainment tailored for white audiences, but don't say someone "took you to church" and then immediately axe them off after that. Yeah, I'm gonna say it; LeAnn Rimes shouldn't have won season 4. Was she bad? No! I just think Taylor Dane was better than her during the week where they axed off Taylor, especially after the panel said that she "took them to church". What did Dane lose to you ask? a somehow more intimate cover of a Billie Eilish song. Is that a bad thing? No, in fact it was pretty good, but I don't think it was good enough to beat what was probably the best performance of season 4. ------------------------------------- Anyways, all of those ramblings from seasons 3 and 4 aside, I'm finally getting to season 5. Yes, I know it took me almost 4000 characters to get here, but I really wanted to go off for a minute and preface the bubbling layers of garbage from the previous seasons that contribute to season 5's flatlining quality out of the gate. If you think a bevy of Punt Songs and poor evaluation amped up another level are all that season 5 has wrong with it, then prepare yourself, because it only gets so much more gimmicky. --- So I'm going to go about this week by week because this show basically was committing sins weekly by this point. So week 1, I'm sorry, but yes, I know seeing Kermit the Frog come out of a snail costume was very : 0 worthy, but Kermit shouldn't have lost that week! His performance wasn't even bad! So what did Kermit lose to anyway? Danny Trejo doing a bad, borderline comedic cover of Wild Thing. You couldn't ask for a more "go home uncle Frank! You're drunk!" performance, but we got it. The judges saw more of a comedy factor in the performance than they needed to see, and let that slip by while they just left Kermit to take the fall. Already not off to a great start (especially since Trejo's character is part funny and part cringey for basically pining after Jenny all season). --- Week 2 is where we get to the first big problem I have with this season, which is letting problematic celebrities be contestants. I'm just going to skirt by Caitlyn Jenner's performance and say that it was maybe a punt song, but to be fair, I don't have high hopes for Jenner having any real vocal prowess. I mean, her cover of Tik Tok sounded like your unamused uncle singing it during karaoke at a family party you barely remember when you were 12. That aside, I just want to point out that Caitlyn Jenner was on this show, immediately lost her first round, then went off to do Caitlyn Jenner things this year like try to become governor of California, and whatever else I forgot she got into the headlines for this week. I don't know the worst representation of a trans woman as a public figure (speaking from a trans woman's perspective) getting this big of a "haha, hehe, hi chum : )" spotlight on national television after everything she's done. Barf me out. --- Week 3 didn't matter too much. Trejo finally got booted after a second performance with bad vocals. However, I want to bring up week 3 for the structural change that it brought to the season that ultimately robbed it of some value. Prior to this season, we had 3 groups in seasons 3 and 4, groups A B and C. Starting in 5, we only have a group A and a group B, but now we have "wild cards". These are performers that get to slot into a groups set of performances for the week and stack against them to make even a "just-safe" performer look cannable. I know what you're probably thinking. "In a show where we're trying to see the gradual performance growth of a performer in order to gauge their consistency and quality, doesn't allowing a performer to come in weeks into the show give them the opportunity to progress further along in the competition with little to the no evaluation?" Yes. It does give them the opportunity, but we'll get to that problem when we get to Omarion's character of The Yeti. For right now though, I'm just going to say this. The wild card group really didn't have any reason to exist if they show could get literally 1 more performer this season (which they technically did). A and B were 5 members each. There are 4 wild cards. All you needed was literally one more regular performer, and the wild cards could have just been group C. This feels like the kind of resource scalping covered up as a fun gimmick that only a large corporation could do for why we have wild cards instead of a group C, but that's where we stand. --- Week 4 is notable for the same reason as week 2. Ugh, do I really have to say it? Yes, Logan Paul was also on this season of the Masked Singer. Yes, one of the problematic Paul brothers. Yes, especially my least favorite one because he's a big reason as to why my hobby of trading cards has had a huge boom for the worse. Yes, I'm going to blame the rise in scalper culture on Logan Paul. Yes, I'm going to blame eBay getting more anal about how every TCG single should be PSA/CCG/etc. graded on a listing on Logan Paul. I just don't like the guy. Why is he here? --- Week 5 is where this show starts to cement itself as dead television. So for those unaware, Nick Cannon, who usually hosts the Masked Singer, was absent for the first third of this season. Filling in for him was Niecy Nash. So where was Nick you ask? Why as a wildcard of course! Nick's wildcard performance was pretty meh all things considered (the only other thing that was meh that week was Nick Lachey's cover of 7 Years, but that's less on him and more on how 7 years is just a bad song for the pop music lexicon). However, Nick's unmasking is where the show really starts to be dead television this season. Before I even get to that, I just want to point out that the costume for Nick Cannon's character just looks absolutely atrocious by season 5 standards. The costume for the Bulldog barely looks like it holds to the standards of season 1 of this show! Anyways, back on track. Nick Cannon decides to pull a "trick" from season 4. Back in season 4, Mickey Rourke forcibly unmasked himself instead of getting voted off. Here, Nick Cannon pops in as a wildcard contestant after being MIA for 4 weeks, just to give a meh performance and then forcibly unmask himself for "shock value", and then be like "hey guys! :D" and resume hosting the show the following week. Eat me. --- Week 6 isn't too notable besides the fact that somehow one of the previous wildcards (Mark McGrath as Orca) somehow go integrated into group A as a member during the same week of them introducing another wildcard, Omarion's "The Yeti". I only bring this up because if they're going to integrate two wildcards into a week and already remove the specialty factor from one of them, then what was even the point of the gimmick? The show would have been better off mix and matching members from groups A and B each week for the performance lineup instead of muddying the group lineups with wildcard characters like this. --- Week 7 is upsetting to me. Two hour special. 8 Performances. Two people out. And who you may ask? Why, wildcard from previous weeks Bobby Brown who was given a super obvious punt song (that he did pretty well on salvaging on the back half of the performance), and Tamera Mowry, who gave a solid pop performance that week. I only bring up Mowry's performance because during that same week, Nick Lachey gave us all a very underwhelming, overly clean performance of Foo Fighters "The Pretender". This is really upsetting because the judge evaluation is extremely suspect here, as they were giving Mowry plenty of legitimate praise, while all they gave Lachey was "wow that was solid. haha ur such a rocker :^)". It's just really upsetting to see how the judges evaluation pans out, because for the record, Lachey won this season, and I honestly think he should have been punted this week. This is also coming from a week where Omarion gave us a cover of Justin Bieber's "Lonely", which is another song I hope desperately leaves the pop music lexicon, because like 7 years, it's a sentimental white boy ballad that just doesn't authentically resonate. --- Week 8 isn't super notable besides the show giving Tyrese Gibson a super obvious punt song, and wow, who would have guessed it, Tyrese Gibson was eliminated that week after being given a super obvious punt song. Zzz. --- Week 9 isn't super notable besides another upset to me. So this week, Hanson (who got eliminated) gave a pretty solid performance of "I'm Still Standing". So what did they lose to you ask? How about Jojo giving us a cover of Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud" with extremely questionable instrumental accompaniment. I can't remember exactly how I articulated it when I first watched it, but to put it in perspective, when LeAnn Rimes aimed for art, she succeeded. When Jojo aimed for art, it just left me confused. I honestly though Jojo should have gotten the boot here, but c'est la vie. --- Week 10 is where Omarion gets eliminated after being given a punt song (surprise). A middle energy performance of "Celebration" by Kool & The Gang isn't much to write home about, but I sometimes get suspicious of the behind the curtain politics of the show. The same week they give Omarion a super obvious punt song is also the second week in a row where Jojo gives us an artsy take on a song that nobody really knows. I'm not saying that Omarion's repertoire coordinator forced him into taking a punt song that week in order to let Jojo get to the finale, but. Wait, no, nevermind, that is what I'm saying. I feel bad for Omarion here. I do think it's pretty bollocks that Omarion basically got to come into the top 8 playoffs off of only one performance (which is a severe abuse of the wild card mechanic from the show producers), but they actually were trying to go for this neat character arc with the character of the "The Yeti" in the song choice. Like, the writers actually put some care into it, and then they give him a punt song on both a writing and performance level, and it just leaves a sour taste in my mouth. I also just remembered that week 10 is where Donnie Whalberg's character of Cluedle-Doo both performs and unmasks. Cluedle-Doo was another dead television gimmick for the season. See, all the characters get clue packages, but Cluedle-Doo will come in and block certain clues from being revealed to the judges, instead replacing them with clues provided by Doo himself. If that sounds annoying, that's because it is. More so when done by a character pompous attitude that does nothing but interfere. I do want to point out however that when I say that Donne performed, Donnie PERFORMED. There are no two ways about it, Donnie's cover of Return of the Mack was the best performance of this week. The only thing that even came close was the Chameleon. I don't need middling Kool & The Gang covers, I don't need art performances of songs I've never heard, and I don't need a Lewis Capaldi cover done by Nick Lachey (so much emotional white boy music this season. Gag me). I really think that Donnie should have been a regular contest, and I think that Nick Cannon should have been Cluedle-Doo as a gimmick character. It's more obvious, and it makes more sense. Obviously this leaves characters to create and fill slots for, but damnit, don't tease me with one of the best performances of the season just to let it whittle out like that. --- Alright, Week 11...the finale. There really isn't much to say, so I'm just going to cut right to it. I don't know what that cover of "Faithfully" Nick Lachey gave us was. There's an obvious problem with the Masked Singer where the short performance time makes slow burn ballads like faithfully translate poorly. As a result, the emotional arc of the performance feels stunted, and it's capped off with a declaration fest ending in one sustained note for "wow, I don't know anything about a good performance, but I'm easily impressed : 0" bait. This is clearly the weakest performance from the three tonight. Jojo's cover of "How Am I Supposed To Live Without You?" by Michael Bolton is...better than what Nick Lachey gave us, but it has its own problems. The Bolton original earworms on you because of the anguish in Bolton's vocal tone. Jojo is too clean to give us even a smidge of anguish until after she's unmasked. That more forgivable though. I'm not going to forgive Jojo for littering an emotional ballad for multiple unnecessary pop diva vocal runs. They're not appropriate here for emotional flavor. They don't add anything musically. They just feel like a forced device from the executives perspective. They stand out in poor musical taste, and they really take away from what Jojo was trying to do in the chorus. Speaking of, the short form nature of the performances makes doing a double chorus with a key change from one chorus to the next feel like another arc stunt. Just bad direction right there. And finally, Wiz Khalifa as the Chameleon doing Gangsta's Paradise. I'm just gonna say it. Wiz Khalifa got robbed. Hip Hop performers tend to be pretty middling on the Masked Singer, with Bow Wow just beefing it at the end of season 3, and Busta Rhymes being unceremoniously eliminated week 1 of season 4. Wiz was different though. Wiz knew what he wanted to do with not only the character, but also with his performances. Chameleon was by far the most consistent and quality character of the season, with only one marginally middling performance during his run. Wiz's cover of Gangsta's Paradise isn't a masterclass in voice personality, but contextually for the show, it pushed more for what the character was trying to do right at the end where it counts, and the judges failed to evaluate that correctly. Wiz was actually doing sung parts that week. Wiz was engaging with the crowd and judges far more than Jojo and Nick were. Wiz even gave stage presence and his musical presence a real arc in this performance. On top of his already present cool swagger that he had on stage, this was easily the best performance of not only the finale, but also for the Chameleon. It's even up there for the best performances of the season. Giving Wiz third place for two C tier pop ballad performances shows a super evident lack of evaluation skills in the judges, and really reinforces the super obvious ballad bias the show has. --- So anyways, this has been a long one, but I think I got it all out there. Masked Singer season 5 really took the uninteresting quality level of Season 4 and just elevated it to being obvious and gimmicky on top of that. I've seen shows become dead television in my time, but this is a staggering nose dive into the realm of dead television. I "hope" Season 6 is "better" than this (if we even get one. This season might have been so gimmicky because the ratings could have sucked hard), but I'm certain it will be if this is the direction they opted for within just one season. Sorry to talk your ear off, but as someone who likes to think they know what good musical performance is in a context like this after being in many concerts in popular music contexts, this show has really not sustained itself as being "it", chief.
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flowercrown-bucky · 4 years
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As it turns out, adventuring in the unconscious mind is super overrated.
Fandom: 1970s!Loki Multi-Chapter
Pairing: Loki x ConArtist!Reader
Warnings: Swearing, drinking, drug references, later death, later smut, crime, loki and the reader are con artists..... It’s a wild one y’all, hold onto yo’ seats.
.Word Count: Lots
Chapter One
[Something Wicked This Way Comes - Chapter Two] 
Loki’s life on Asgard has become vapid; uninspiring. He’s got the taste for a little danger. During a trip to earth, he finds just the danger he’s looking for.A partner in crime - in every imaginable sense. 
TAGLIST IS OPEN - EITHER COMMENT OR MESSAGE ME TO BE ADDED
Authors’ Note: When I worked as a barmaid, one of my regulars used to refer to his wife as ‘the current Mrs Osbourne’. I always found it funny, and I snuck it in here. 
Also - I’m back. Yipee ki yay, motherfuckers.
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You sighed as you slept, your breasts heaving.
Loki turned on his side, running the tips of his fingers over your sleeping form. The thin blanket was draped over you, not quite thick enough to warm your body properly. 
You snored, he had noticed, and it had bothered him to no end. As a god, he was required to sleep very rarely, which left him with nothing better to do than watch you sleep, most nights. 
He was intrigued by your mind. He had never entered a consciousness quite like it before, and the mystery of the contents of the shelves was really getting on his nerves. 
Over the last few weeks, you’d been sharing a room. After all, it was cheaper to have one room and it helped maintain the pretence that you were husband and wife. 
Your system had become fairly streamlined, and you’d become quite comfortable in each others’ presence. Comfortable enough that you’d allow yourself to sleep and trust him to protect you. After all, your body was a powerful asset, and you would rather it remained in one piece. 
Your unconscious mind, however, was a mystery to Loki, and one he fully intended to investigate.  
He lifted his hand, pressing his palm against your forehead. 
He looked around, briefly. It was just ask dark as it had been before, and just as empty. 
He wandered towards the boxes again. What was stored in your mind that you so badly needed to hide? You had revealed everything to him, but not your mind, and that was a concept he really, really struggled with. 
He grabbed at the handle, jiggling it with all his might, but it just wouldn’t budge. 
“I told you never to invade my mind again.” Your voice startled him. 
“You’re supposed to be asleep.” He spun on his heel. 
“And you are most certainly not supposed to be inside my head, so don’t try to take the highroad with me.” You crossed your arms over your chest. 
“You’re supposed to be asleep.” He repeated, blinking incredulously. “Your body is asleep. How are you not asleep?” 
“Are you broken, or owt?” You raised your eyebrow. “As you can well see, I am not asleep. I find it suits me to be at least partially conscious at all times.” 
“Are you always like this when you’re sleeping?” He eyed you suspiciously, sat once again on your chair. 
During the short period of time he’d known you, he had discovered that you found it very difficult to sit normally on a chair, opting instead for a number of uncomfortable looking and seemingly anatomically impossible positions. It didn’t annoy him as much as had he thought it might. 
He’s asked you about it once. You’d mentioned that you had been briefly employed as a contortionist, but brushed it off whenever he tried to bring it up again. 
In all honesty, it wasn’t the most unusual thing he’d discovered about you. 
“Yup.” You popped the P. “And yes, that does mean that your midnight perving has not gone unnoticed.”  
“I do not perv.” He rested one hand on his hip. “I observe interesting things. You happen to be interesting.” 
“Well, I sure am glad you think so.” You drawled. “Anyhoo, to what do I owe the pleasure of this little midnight intrusion?” 
“Are you ever going to tell me what’s in all these boxes?” He asked. 
“Trust me when I say it is best for our combined safety that I don’t.” You looked straight into his eyes. 
He hated when you did that. The only other person who had ever looked at him was that same intensity was his mother, and she had always had quite the knack for staring straight into his soul. 
Come to think of it, so did you. 
--
Loki shifted his weight in his seat, lifting his eyes from the steadily melting ice cube in his glass to the pair of breasts that had shifted into his line of vision. They were, he noted, rather nice breasts. Large. 
“Another drink?” A smooth voice asked him. 
“I’m good, thanks.” He cleared his throat, waving a hand dismissively. With the assistance of his unique talents, the evening’s entertainment had left him rather better off than he had started. 
To any other man, being dealt a three and a seven as a holecard in your first game of the evening would surely be a bad sign of things to come. But Loki was no ordinary man, and with a little coercion his cards had switched themselves out for a slightly better hand. Never a pair of aces, he had learned, it was much too suspicious. No, two queens were his weapon of choice. 
But, as ever, if you made a man a fool, he would call you a thief. 
It did not bother him much. He had been called far worse.  
He’d had no need for your quick hands and easy deceptions in his games this evening - but you were, as ever, his charming accomplice, as pretty and poisonous as you had been the night you met him. 
His eyes were on you now, and it seemed he was not alone in that. You were slightly distracted as you crossed the room, one hand running through your hair to smooth it. Your carefully outlined eyes had smudged ever so slightly, the seam that ran down your left thigh slightly askew. 
“Really? Him?” He raised one eyebrow as you approached him. 
“What? He’s cute.” You stuck your tongue out at him. “Sort of.” 
“Finished?” He continued, holding out his hand. 
“He certainly is.” You raised your eyebrows. 
He pulled a face at you, and you couldn’t help but grin as you reached your hand into the side of your dress. This was, he had learned, your favourite place to keep things you would rather not lose - with the exception of your handgun, of course, which was always either tucked into the band around your thigh or under your pillow whilst you slept. 
He wondered briefly how the hell you explained why you were in immediate possession of a 10mm glock to the gentlemen you entertained. 
A tiny metal key dangled between two of your delicately manicured nails, and he grinned. 
“You beauty.” He held his hand out further to you, palm up, waiting for you to drop it. 
“Tut, tut, tut. Where are your manners?” You teased. “Ask nicely.” 
He stared at you incredulously. You tilted your head to one side, sticking your tongue out mockingly. 
“You are an infernal nuisance, you know that?” He rolled his eyes, leaning over to grab your arm and tug you into his body. You were supposed to be his wife, after all. 
“So I’ve heard. Now, if you want the candy..” You leaned into him, your voice dropping to a low whisper. “You’ve got to play ball.” 
Your lips brushed gently against his jawbone, nothing more than a chaste brush of skin, leaving a burning trail in their wake.
“You know I could just kill you, right?” He turned to you, trailing his fingers down your arm, his own wrapping round your waist. 
“But what would be the fun in that?” You blinked up at him innocently. 
If he wasn’t a god, if he didn’t have so much self restraint, he would be melting in your hands. 
He felt a gentle jingle and a slight weight in his back pocket, followed by the gentle brush of your fingers across his bum. 
“You know, a good fuck would really sort out your little attitude problem.” He mused, turning to face you.
“Nice try, Loki.” You rolled your eyes. “And, well..” You waved your hand at the gentleman who had been your evening’s companion. 
“I said good.” He chuckled. “And by the way, darling, you really shouldn’t touch a man’s bum like that. Leads the mind to all sorts of unsavoury places.”
“You fucking wish.” A very un-ladylike snort left your mouth. 
“Mr Evans, who exactly might this delightful young thing be?” A sharp voice drew his attention. 
He glanced up at the man standing before him. He was tall, taller than Loki, and thin, like one of of those gross spiders you find in the corner of your room. His face was drawn, likely from stress, he concluded . A smattering of whiskers littered his chin, a slightly unpleasant twinkle in his lined eyes. 
“My lovely lady wife.” He smiled, pulling you in to him a little tighter. “The current Mrs Evans.” 
You turned your head in such a way that only he could see you rolling your eyes.
“Charmed, I’m sure.” You turned back to face your company, a tight lipped smile curving on your face. “I do apologise, but I don’t believe we’ve met before.” 
“It does seem that way, so please, allow me to introduce myself.” He took your hand in his own, lifting it to his face and pressing a gentle kiss to your knuckles. “Roger Slater. I was just chatting to your husband here, not twenty minutes ago.” 
Something about the way he was looking at you made Loki grab you a little tighter. 
“Would you like anything to drink?” He asked, trying to remain as polite as he was able. “I’m sure my fine lady can assist me in carrying a few extra drinks.”
“An old fashioned, if you would, my good man.” His tone was level, his voice smooth. It made Loki cringe. 
--
You weren’t paying that much attention to either of the men before you, so the cold fingers wrapped around your wrist and the sudden sharp tug came as something of a surprise to you. So much so, that you almost yelped in surprise. 
Almost. 
You gathered your composure as you steadied yourself, smoothing down your skirt with your free hand. You weren’t sure whether it was the heels that left you so unsteady on your feet, or the negroni you had necked not five minutes earlier. 
Loki’s hand was tight on your wrist as he led you towards the bar, his fingers icy cold on your delicate skin. Why was he always so cold? 
“Be careful with that one.” He whispered. You opened your mouth to question him, but he had turned towards the barmaid to request more drinks. 
The man to your left wasn’t particularly subtle in his eyeing of you, his gaze sweeping your form a few times before shooting you a smile that made your skin crawl. 
You shuddered, grabbing at the tumbler closest to you and taking a long sip, scowling to yourself. 
“Why the long face?” A look of bemusement settled on Loki’s face - something you found really, really infuriating. 
“These men.” You grumbled. “They talk to me, treat me like a pretty little piece of fucking meat.” 
“That’s because to them, you are.” He shrugged dismissively. “Nothing more, nothing less.” 
Rage bubbled in the pit of your stomach, like an angry, venomous torrent climbing up your throat. 
“Why, you little - hmmmph.” His hand slapping over your mouth cut you short. 
“Might I remind you, darling, that you have a role to play. You shall get your vengeance.” He shot you a sickeningly sweet grin. “But for now, you shall have to grin and bear it, little pork chop.” 
You seethed from behind his hand. 
“Hold your tongue, that’s all I ask of you.” His gaze was earnest. “Will you do that for me?” 
You cast your gaze downwards, nodding your head. 
“Good girl.” He lifted his hand from your mouth, smiling as you glowered at him. He kissed your hand delicately, a brush of his lips across the skin of your knuckles, before holding out his arm for you to take. 
The unusual gentleman, Mr Slater, was, as promised, still waiting for you across the room. He thanked you politely as you handed him his drink, his eyes alight as if something were terribly funny. 
“Are you sure we have never met before, Mrs Evans?” His left eye quirked as he spoke. “You seem awfully familiar, but I can’t quite put my finger on it.” 
“I guess I just have one of those faces.” You shrugged. 
“Yes, quite.” He said. “Anyway, I have a rather unusual talent that I often whip out at parties, just as a little amusement. I feel it might interest you both, if you care to indulge my silliness.” 
You glanced across at Loki, trying to hide the bewilderment from your face. He shrugged, holding out his hands. 
“Be my guest.” He agreed. 
You weren’t really sure what exactly you were expecting. Perhaps table top magic - rabbits out of a hat, coins from behind ears, that type of thing. Hell, maybe he was truly psychotic and was going to stab the both of you. 
“It’s more of a childish parlour trick, really, but I have this unusual gift for reading people. Amateur psychology, really, but rather fun.” He grinned at your confused faces. “I pick up little things about people, tells me all sort of things. Secret affairs, family feuds, the yearnings of the heart. Even people’s greatest fears.” 
He paused for a moment, lifting his glass to his mouth. He gathered the drips from the corner of his mouth with his thumb, looking back up at you both. 
You thought it was a real shame he considered ‘people reading’ his greatest talent and not this overblown display of amateur dramatics. 
“The pair of you are a little more enigmatic than most, but I think I could give it a crack, if you would allow me.” 
You nodded breathlessly as he leaned towards you, your heart hammering in your chest. It was almost as if every nerve, every cell in your body was imploring you, screaming at you to not let this strange man come any closer to you. 
Your feet felt frozen in place as his hand landed on your shoulder, his calloused palms like sandpaper against the soft skin of your shoulder. A breath stilled in your throat as his head dipped so his lips were level with your ear. 
“You will kill again, and it terrifies you.” He whispered. “It keeps you up at night, doesn’t it? Not the knowledge of what you have done, but what you know you will do. It’s okay, darling, your secret is safe with me.” 
You exhaled sharply as he drew away from you, a nervous laugh bubbling out of your chest. 
Who the fuck was this guy? 
He winked at you as he took another sip of his drink. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Loki’s line of vision flitting back and forth between the two of you, looking for any hint of what he had said to you, what could’ve so clearly, so deeply, unsettled you. 
You sure as hell weren’t going to tell him. 
Your eyes followed him closely as he leaned in towards Loki. Unlike you, he maintained his cool composure, but you were fairly certain you saw something adjacent to fear flicker in the back of his eyes. 
Over time, you’d become an accomplished lip-reader, but this time, you felt for sure that your skill had failed you. You’d not picked up much, a single word, in fact, but you knew it couldn’t be correct. 
That word, that single word, that allegedly had Loki witless with fear? 
Himself. 
His hand shot out, grabbing at your wrist, his nails biting into your skin. 
“I’m really sorry, but my wife and I have to leave.” He spat out, turning on his heel, and striding away as quickly as his legs would carry him, almost dragging you behind him. 
You had never seen him this flustered before. His cheeks were ever so slightly pink, his eyes glittering with anger, his chest rapidly expanding with every shallow breath. His grip on your wrist was like a vice, and you felt for certain that there would be the imprints of his long fingers marring your skin in the morning. 
Just before you reached the door, you were fairly certain you heard the unusual man call ‘See you around!’ cheerfully over your shoulder. 
“Who the hell was that?” You asked as you hurried down the corridor towards the lift. 
“I don’t know.” He replied. “Like he said, we were talking when you were out. He owns a jewellery company. I didn’t think he’d try and get to us. Messing with you in that way, saying he thinks he knows you to try and catch you offguard.. It’s certainly unusual behaviour.” 
“See, there’s the thing. I don’t think he was fucking with me there. He looked familiar to me, too. I think I’ve met him before.” You pressed a finger to your lip thoughtfully. “And don’t even try taking the ‘weak mortal’ path here. You were bricking it too, I could see it in your face.” 
“You see what I want you to see, little mortal, and nothing more.” He shot you a glare. “Now, about that key.” 
“We all see only what we’re shown, Loki.” You mused. “Even you.” 
He glanced at you curiously as you stepped into the lift. 
The encounter with Mr Slater had left Loki deeply unsettled. From the very off, something about the strangle man had made him uncomfortable. 
He couldn’t even really work out why. He was, if anything, perfectly pleasant. Polite, courteous, well spoken. There was, at least on the surface level, nothing wrong with him. 
But yet, he was nothing short of creepy. His smile wouldn’t have been any more unsettling if black widow spiders had crawled out from in between his pale lips. 
When he revealed he had a little talent, Loki wouldn’t have been entirely shocked if he’d told him it involved punting kittens. 
He himself was not exactly known for his strict adherence to anything resembling a moral code, and if anything, it made it all the more unusual that he had affected Loki so badly. 
If there is anyone in this world - or any other - to be truly afraid of, it’s not the man who stalks your nightmares - it’s who stalks his. 
He was, however, desperate to know what Roger had said to you. You would, of course, never tell him. Under other circumstances, he would consider subduing you in some way, but from the few encounters with your subconscious mind he had already had, he got the feeling that even then you wouldn’t willingly surrender the information. 
It was this he was pondering as he rifled through the irritatingly mundane belongings of one Mr J Grey. When you’d selected him as your victim of the evening, you’d done so on the premise that he was wearing a very expensive suit, but as Loki was discovering, he hadn’t quite been the man you were looking for. Aside from half a gram of cocaine in a small ziploc bag - honestly, who kept their narcotics in their bedside table? - and a scuffed Barclaycard with yet more cocaine tightly pressed into the embossed numbers - expired, he had checked - he had found nothing of any real value. Knock-off watches, fake leather wallets, poorly made suits, but nothing particularly valuable. 
“Your judgement is poor, darling.” He said. “This man is both immensely dull and revoltingly messy.” 
“I am sorry to disappoint, but we Terrans are a rather messy species.” You remarked. “In fact, we are renowned for it.” 
He laughed, staring down at his gloved hands. You were quite right - humans truly were a messy, invasive little species. A cosmic nuisance, of sorts. He was just glad that, for the most part, they stuck to their own planet. The furthest they had actually gotten was their own bloody moon, so they weren’t exactly regarded as a threat to other species. 
“I think we should cut our losses and get out of here before he gets back.” You sighed, running your hand through your hair. 
Loki muttered his agreement, rising from where he knelt on the floor. He was happy to dispose of the clammy plastic that clung to his hands, flinging them into his pocket dimension as he headed towards the door. 
He dropped a throw-away comment as he walked down the corridor, eliciting a true, from-the-chest belly laugh from you. Quick as ever, you responded within a heart beat, but Loki found himself missing your witticism, distracted by a sudden thought. 
Since when did humans start referring to themselves as Terrans?
-- 
TAGLIST:  @chxrryycola @the-middle-oldest-child​ @possessedjoker​ @amour-delicate @marvelouslyme96​
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msindrad · 4 years
Text
Temporal orientation is a thing
This might be one of the most unusual and hopefully also most interesting pieces of fandom meta you‘ll ever read!
I wanna talk about the perception of time by Manco, Mortimer, and Indio in For a Few Dollars More because I earnestly believe that understanding somebody‘s time perception is fundamental for understanding their modus operandi.
Here are two short paragraphs of theory, which you can freely skip if you want to.
Let’s imagine that there are four dimension of time perception: namely, past, present, future, and eternity (categories above time that can’t be influenced by it). And there are four possible positions of prioritization for each of them in a person’s psyche.
The first position is their strongest element, it’s the time that they live in and for. Their goal, their main element, the very dimension that they unconsciously filter everything else through. The second position is their consciously used instrument – they employ it to be successful in the time dimension from the first category. They’re fully in control of acting in and through it. The third position is the position of lacking control, of susceptibility, uncertainty, concerns, and fears. It’s there, but you can’t do anything about it, but you’re still desperately trying to – either to suppress it or do something impulsively. Whenever something or somebody influences you there, you’re hurt, lost, or troubled. The fourth position is the position of negligence. Whatever is there just doesn’t interest them. It’s unreal, uninteresting, and irrelevant.
With that being said: Manco’s profile is: 1Present 2Eternity 3Future 4Past
Mortimer’s profile is: 1Past 2Future 3Present 4Eternity
And finally Indio’s: 1Eternity 2Future 3Past 4Present
Now, what do I meant by it all, and why and how it can be relevant for understanding these people.
 Let’s start with Manco and with the most obvious thing about his profile. He is absolutely uninterested in the Past. He never explains anything through his previous experiences, except for when he is unsatisfied with him and Mortimer not having read Indio’s intentions correctly when he robbed El Paso’s bank. And even then it’s irrelevant, the past is dead, he doesn’t care why they did what they did anymore. The same with Ferdinand – he could’ve punished him for how he didn’t inform him about the two other strangers in town, but the moment is gone, the Past doesn’t matter, and the only thing he needs is being informed right now. When Manco is reminded of his past actions he shrugs it off because why care about what happened? And he himself isn’t exactly somebody who can be defined through his past – he is the man with no name, after all.
He draws all his conclusions from the Present. He is a tactician who gets all his clues from the circumstances he or others find themselves in. Be it his assessment of how crazy his informant is, the fact that his wanted hotel room is temporarily occupied not by him but by Mr. Ramirez, or his observation of the actions of a smart rival provoking his targets. Somebody whose perception isn’t totally dominated by the Present wouldn’t start a card game with their targets just to find out whether they’re lucky today!
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And even when Manco rushes to Indio without thinking after he and Mortimer fail to predict his plans correctly, he’s only thinking about the Present: how they’re wrong, how their plan isn’t working, how he must fix everything! He isn’t thinking strategically, only tactically.
Then, Manco’s Future. He has some vague intentions, plans, he feels that this dimension of time is there, but he also feels that it’s uncovered, and so he tries to distract himself from it while simultaneously trying to be kinda ready for it in advance. He wants the reward money but what for? To buy a farm? Does he, though, is he really the type who retires young? He realizes that he needs and wants the money in the moment, but he hasn’t everything planned out. When he is in El Paso he is simply gathering information, he has no clear-cut plan as to how apprehend Indio and his gang. And he can’t really produce any good idea on the spot when Mortimer tells him he should join the band (he simply makes a joke to Mortimer about bringing Indio a bunch of roses, not seriously considering any realistic variants), and his mental habits of a tactician provide a strong contrast to the fact that Mortimer, on the other hand, has a highly positioned, in fact, instrumental Future, but I’ll go back to it in a minute.
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Manco is so bad at living in the Future that he, again, makes a really bad decision of stating his intention to collect the reward for Indio and his gang in the future – while talking to Indio himself, and Manco’s only luck then is that Indio doesn’t want to out him to everybody right then and there. What he does operate through in this scene is his Eternity. He states who he is, and who the gang are, disregarding any time constraints. The same thing he does when talking to the bought sheriff at the beginning of the film. He he makes a point that the sheriff is bad while describing his concept of sheriff to him before taking away his star.
The same with Mortimer: when he approaches the Prophet, he wants to have an idea of who Mortimer is, not what he has done or the like. When he listens to Mortimer and assesses him from all sides, he asks him, semi-jokingly but genuinely intrigued: “Tell me, colonel, were you ever young?” Which isn’t really a statement about any concrete Past, obviously he knows that sometime in the Past Mortimer was a young pup. But the question is meant to ask: “Have you always been this focused, this driven, this disciplined?” In other words, is this who you are?
 Then, Mortimer.
I love him very deeply, he is one of my all-time favorites, but I can’t deny that he is tactically crippled. He is a brilliant strategist (as his Future is in the second, instrumental position), but, girl, is in he in big trouble whenever he has to face the Present. Both his awkward encounters with Wild, the hunchback, demonstrate it.
Motivated by his loss, he uses all the information he has carefully collected over the years to come up with a plan (the dominant Past), he thinks every major strategic decision through (second Future), but whenever he has to improvise, well. He can only continue the course that somebody else sets for him in the here and now.
When Wild recognizes him in the tavern, Mortimer is lost. Should he try to leave? But he hasn’t finished his soup? Is it already too late? He didn’t think of how they would face each other again when the Future he planned would become the Present for him. And so, he waits for whoever is quicker than him to make the next step for him. It’s literally so when Manco decides to test him outside – he simply returns every impulse.
Mortimer doesn’t know how to treat him then, he is simply planning for the Future (they’ll work together) after having consulted the Past (he actually goes into an archive to try to reconstruct who Manco is). But having gathered all that information he can only follow Manco’s lead when the other provokes him. Because he is tactically short-sighted and basically helpless like a newborn kitten.
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A quick contrast – when Manco is caught off guard by Indio and his gang waiting for him to descend that roof, he instantly acts in the Present, assessing the situation: he puts away the bag with all the money. And Mortimer? As soon as he feels somebody’s shoulder below his foot, he is simply panicking.
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Even when Indio invites him to try to shoot him after having shot his gun out of his hand, he simply obeys, accepting that there is no choice in the Present, until Manco introduces another choice into the situation and fixes everything so that the fight is fair (second Eternity).
And for Mortimer, Eternity is a blind zone. He is a practical man and seems to have no access to it. Everybody is what they’ve done (Past), and what they could be done with (Future), that’s it. But he has no idea what to do in the goalless Present because he has no guiding Eternity.
 Finally, Indio.
He has no relationship with the Present whatsoever. He is so detached from it that he actually catapults himself from it by smoking weed to not be overwhelmed by it. (He also does it to block his weak Past from nagging at him, which only makes sense given his more than unpleasant biography). 
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And he actively disregards what others might think of him in the Present, e.g. his public inspections of Manco or how he doesn’t bother to explain his thought processes to Nino before sending him to kill off one of others from his gang. It’s Chuchillio who acts in the Present for him instead when he shoots off the tip of Manco’s cigar; and from what we’ve seen of others, e.g. of Wild, they all compensate for Indio’s detachment from the Present, it’s their primary function. And Indio, well, he, like Mortimer, makes plans using his second Future (he always foresees things), but he bases them on his Eternity.
First time he sees Manco, he knows he’s a bounty hunter, and assessing him from this standpoint of Eternity, he integrates him in their robbery. If you listen to his speeches closely, e.g. the speech in the church, he always leads everything to what things are but also what they should be. He rhetorically asks his gang whether they think a carpenter can’t make good money, and also how safes work; he talks about how the people of Agua Caliente are unfriendly to strangers. 
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I would even argue that he keeps the pocket watch of Mortimer‘s sister not because of any sentimental value attached to it (that’s the perspective of the Past, which is adopted by Mortimer), but because it has significantly influenced his understanding of Eternity, and is now a part of his self-image and a reminder about certain hurtful truths.
 That’s my take on it. I would love to hear your thoughts! Also, if somebody is interested in my opinion about the whole thing in the GBU, Justified, or something else, let me know. Cheers!
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the-navistar-carol · 5 years
Text
Daminette Songfic: ‘Summer of ‘69’ by Bryan Adams
From the Maribat AU of @ozmav
@maribat-archive I’m back at it again >:)
I got my first real six-string
Bought it at the five-and-dime
When he had first been taken in by Bruce Wayne, he had turned up his nose at the prospect of entertaining some kid superhero from France. She wasn’t going to be impressive.
She wasn’t even going to be good!
Man, Damian thought to himself, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, was I wrong.
Played it 'til my fingers bled
Was the summer of '69
It had taken forever for them to even consider being on speaking terms, let alone friends. That alone had been a marvel in and of itself.
Not that he’d trade it for anything in the universe. If it came to it, he would probably let the world burn for another minute with her.
“Dude,” Dick had whistled. “You are whipped.”
Again, he’d turned up his nose at the prospect. He hadn’t even known what the former Robin had meant.
But yeah. I had been.
Me and some guys from school
Had a band and we tried real hard
She’d never given up, not even when she was flung into the floor. Not that she did now. Ladybug, Marinette, was and is the greatest girl he knew.
Top of her class, an aspiring designer, with the biggest heart he had ever seen. And not only that, but she was a superhero, saving cities on the daily and pulling the croissants out of the oven.
At least he had a family, people who were there as backup. And not to mention the budget of a billionaire.
She managed with a family who barely knew what she got herself into, a class who had turned against her, and the funds of a bakery. Plus public schooling.
Damn, he mused. If she was one of us, look out Joker.
Jimmy quit, Jody got married
I should've known we'd never get far
Dick had befriended her first. Well, second, after Alfred. But he had taken the first step.
His teasing had never failed to make her laugh, giggles scrunching up her nose and a beaming smile that lit up the room. Ladybug and Nightwing would have late-night philosophy talks, making each other think beyond their boundaries.
She’d taught him to bake, always there with patience when he’d fudged a recipe.
The eldest Robin had shown her more complicated gymnastics (not that she wasn’t already more flexible than most of them would ever be), and acrobatics that turned her every slip and fall into a tumble, and she’d roll right back up onto her feet.
Dick had taught her how to get back up.
Oh, when I look back now
That summer seemed to last forever
Jason had taken her under his wing after Dick.
Whenever she’d curled into a ball, shuddering after a hard practice, he would toss her into the air and take off like a shot, careening through the halls of Wayne Manor. It wasn’t long before her laughs rang off the walls, the Red Hood with a wild grin.
They had the sibling dynamic — there for each other, even at their faults.
Marinette had introduced Jason to color schemes and designs, at least how costumes worked. It was most definitely because of that awful helmet.
Jason, on the other hand, had taught her how to shoot. It was out of necessity, he claimed. If she didn’t know how to defend herself, and her yo-yo was out of reach, she may not have a choice.
Jason had given her the tactics nobody thought she would know.
And if I had the choice
Yeah, I'd always wanna be there
Tim had warmed up to her third, although he had been a bit worried about her age.
As her superhero duties became more needed back in Paris, the two of them started working together at night, on cases none of the rest could crack. The Insomnia Buddies, she’d dubbed them. Or, rather, as Tim called them, the Coffee Crew.
Whenever he became stressed to the point of a breakdown, she taught him meditation, she taught him calm.
The Red Robin showed her computers, and how to bypass firewalls with a tap of a key. Underhanded, but in case she needed the information.
Tim had taught her how to think.
Those were the best days of my life
He, Damian, had taken the longest. It had taken years to become as close to her as the other three were.
But they eventually bonded over common interest and curiosity about the other, growing closer every time they spent an hour in each other’s presence.
Marinette opened his mind to possibilities outside simply what had been placed in front of him. You never have only two choices, she told him firmly, eyes narrowed in determination. Never.
The newest Robin may not have been the first to pick her back up after a tough spar, but he would always be there in a real one, whether it was to take the hit or let her rest.
He, Damian, had given her a real partner.
Ain't no use in complaining
When you've got a job to do
The summers she spent at Gotham had become less of a chore and more like a long-lost family member returning to them. They gained inside jokes, and Skype chats between Gotham and France became more common, until it was almost an everyday thing.
They watched each other grow from bratty kids to mature teenagers, from gangly to sure of themselves.
And man, had her almost literal transformation had him whipped.
Watch out, Hawkmoth.
Spent my evenings down at the drive-in
And that's when I met you, yeah
He’d joined an exchange program to Paris, planning on not telling her, but of course the day he had Jason blurted it out on their nightly video call.
She’d gone absolutely red, and fallen off her desk chair with a loud thud. To this day, it brought a smile to his face.
“R-really?” Her voice had been hesitant, but excited nonetheless. “I can’t believe it! When are you coming?”
Dick, from his position out of the way of the camera, gave Damian a knowing look, a wry grin, and a small wiggle of his eyebrows.
Dumbass.
Standin' on your mama's porch
You told me that you'd wait forever
It wasn’t long after that announcement, when she was in her final year of lyceé, that her video chats had started to become more… tired. She’d change the subject whenever they talked about her classmates or, worse, her friends.
It wasn’t only him who had noticed it. Tim had been the first to pick it up, and immediately set off on finding information about the class. Without telling Marinette, of course.
What he found was no concrete proof, but more videos on the Ladyblog detailed a girl named Lila Rossi.
An awful liar if he ever saw one.
Oh, and when you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
The detective work lasted a week and a half before it was outed. Marinette didn’t get mad about it, but simply hung her head and apologized for not telling them.
His heart had torn to see his angel beaten down like this.
She was across the ocean, president of a class he couldn’t defend her against.
He, Robin, a superhero, was useless.
The exchange program left in six months.
Too long.
Those were the best days of my life
He went to her over winter break, though. Thank whatever higher power he could.
As soon as he had stepped into her room with the door closed, she had broken down in his arms. His brothers were right behind him, and joined the hug with words of comfort and encouragement.
It had taken her half an hour to calm down, but when she had finished, they were tears of happiness. Happiness that they were there for her.
“We’re gonna make this the best two weeks of your year, little lady” Jason had promised her with a crooked grin, the white patch in his hair tousled.
Tim didn’t miss the way she looked away at the word lady. “Mari-bug, what’s going on?”
She took a deep, shuddering breath, and tugged Damian over to her bed, not wanting to let go of him. “It’s a long story.”
We aren’t going anywhere, angel.
Oh, yeah.
Back in the summer of '69
When she finished, she had had to take breaks three times—three times!—to calm herself down.
“And I’ve almost been akumatised because of this, a few times,” she admitted, her voice a quiet whisper. “I figured out how to not let my emotions get the best of me, though. My parents don’t really know.”
Jason’s expression clearly told Damian he was in need of a skinning knife. Or guns. Guns were faster.
A series of pops filled the room. Dick, an uncharacteristically serious expression on his face, had popped his knuckles. “I think that it’s time some other people knew the harm Lila caused.”
“And if she gets akumatised,” Damian added, “she’s well deserved it.”
“She can’t keep going like this and not receive the consequences,” Tim put in. “It’s not right.”
Hell’s coming to Lila Rossi.
Man we were killin' time
We were young and restless
And the damned Lila situation didn’t even begin to cover Chat Noir. But Marinette insisted they get away from the topic.
She was on winter break, dammit, and Jason was hellbent on making good on his promise.
Tim had the best idea, oddly enough. An arcade.
While Damian had found the concept childish at best, the way Marinette’s eyes lit up at the prospect quickly stilled any protest.
To the flashy lights and cheap prizes we go.
We needed to unwind
I guess nothin' can last forever, forever, no! yeah!
Once they got there, Dick was quick to pull out his credit card and get a near- unlimited token supply. He nudged Damian with a sly grin. “Get her a big prize, loverboy.”
Thankfully, he said it out of her hearing range. Then he pushed him over, and they toured the arcade together.
Naturally, Jason was a master at the shooting games. Tim was an unexpected genius at Guitar Hero. Dick, of course, managed to beat the highscore on DDR by a good hundred thousand points. Show-off.
You deserve all the joy, angel.
And now the times are changin'
Look at everything that's come and gone
The two weeks had come and gone like nothing. But the two months afterward were an absolute hell of a waiting game.
But Marinette was happier, knowing that her Gotham friends were there for her.
“He’s still whipped,” Dick cackled one night after a video call.
Tim grinned, and ruffled Damian’s hair. “I can see why.”
He’d only growled at them, but they persisted anyway, giving bad advice they knew full well was awful.
But what else were brothers for?
Sometimes when I play that old six-string
I think about you, wonder what went wrong
The exchange program left them in Mlle. Bustier’s class. Well, at least Damian and a few schoolmates.
He could see just how bad the class was for himself.
At his first step into the class, he had been mobbed by a tanned brunette (Lila) claiming to be his lost soulmate, which he quickly and sharply shut down, and proceeded to sit next to Marinette.
Damian could hear her fake sobs from all the way in the back.
“Can you believe it?! He doesn’t remember me!”
Oh, fuck off.
Standin' on your mama's porch
You told me that it'd last forever
He stood, furious, and proceeded to give a thorough explanation on why she was wrong, a liar, and an awful person.
“I’ve never met you, I’ve known Marinette since I was ten, and I don’t see how the daughter of a single French domestic diplomat would ever meet an American at a charity gala in Gotham!”
Silence.
Then explosion.
Not fiery, of course. Of apologies, launched directly at Marinette.
She simply raised a hand to quell them in their tracks. “Some of you I will be able to forgive. Some of you I will not be. Thank you for your apologies.” Her tone was nowhere near the broken girl who had sobbed in his arms two months ago. She was reforged, stronger than steel.
And with a head held high like that, nothing can bring you down.
Oh, and when you held my hand
I knew that it was now or never
Nathanaël, Alix, Ivan, Myléne. They were able to be forgiven easier than the rest.
Sabrina and Chloé, she was neutral to. They, if they wanted to gain her trust, had a neutral starting ground.
Max, Kim, Nino. They were forgiven less easily, and would take weeks to even be on friendly terms again.
Alya, Lila, and Adrien she probably never would.
And he was perfectly fine with that.
They don’t deserve her.
Those were the best days of my life
Near the end of the exchange program, he took her to the Eiffel Tower as the sun set, overlooking all of Paris. He wasn’t nervous, of course he wasn’t. Damian Wayne, nervous in front of the girl he had been absolutely whipped for for the better part of a year?
Oh, you better believe it.
At the top tier, he covered her eyes for the entirety of the ride.
“Damiaan.” She was struggling to hide giggles. “I’ve seen this before, y’know?”
“Nah,” he grinned. “You haven’t.”
The top deck was empty, devoid of any and all tourists.
And then the fireworks started, filling the sky with all the colors of the rainbow.
Worth it.
Oh, yeah
Back in the summer of '69, oh
She grabbed his hand, eyes widening in surprise as a dazzling smile swept any amusement off her face and replaced it with wonder. “Oh my God, Dami.”
“I told you, you haven’t seen this before.”
“Wait— you— for me?”
Don’t you dare freeze.
“For you,” he agreed. “I love you, Marinette.”
Those words had been like weights—saying them the first time was hard.
It was the summer of '69, oh, yeah
Me and my baby in '69, oh
She didn’t say anything, only turned her gaze away from the fireworks and to him, the colorful explosions mirrored in her silver eyes. She was close, he could quite distinctly smell the strawberry lip gloss.
“Dami, I…” Hesitation. Shit.
Then, she launched herself at him, arms going around his neck as she crushed him in a tight hug. His arms came up to pull her close.
“I love you too, you extra idiot!”
Oh.
It was the summer,
They had shared a first kiss then, beneath the fireworks and the stars and the moon.
Neither of them were particularly any good, and she kept giggling, but he wouldn’t have traded it for anybody else.
Nor anywhere else.
Never in the world.
the summer,
This time, after she had graduated université, started as a designer, and finally moved to Gotham, they didn’t have to wait for time zones.
This time, as he caught his breath when he saw her in dazzling white, they would never have to wait again.
And this time, they could face things together.
Was he still absolutely whipped for Marinette Dupain-Cheng?
Always.
the summer of '69, yeah
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Text
Stuck With U
Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Rating: Mature (M) Notes: This is fluffy goodness. Check out the song Stick With U while you ready this beauty. Warnings: mentions of quarantine, COV-19. Summary: 
Tony hears the voice of an intelligent stranger in his Philosophical Ethics class and is immediately hooked. When he sees the person attached to the voice, there's no turning back.
Or, the one where Tony meets Peter in a coffee shop and an epic love affair occurs. It's based loosely off of Stuck With U.
Read it on AO3 here
I'm not one to stick around One strike and you're out, baby Don't care if I sound crazy But you never let me down, no, no
Tony always figured his humanities credit would always come back to bite him in the ass. For most of his college career, he’d gotten away with sticking around the engineering building – being a genius in the high school setting made bringing college credit in with him a brilliant thing. Despite having the ability to stay stagnant in the part of campus Tony liked the most, he wasn’t going to get to graduate unless he took a humanities course. And since karma was the ultimate bitch, the only thing available during his final year at UT Austin was Philosophical Ethics. What the actual fuck was philosophical ethics? To top off the increasingly delicious shit sundae, the humanities building was all the way on the other side of campus – and the class was in the middle of the afternoon. The petty part of him wanted to just skip the damn class every week to make a point. Who he was making the point to, he didn’t really know – which is why he found himself trekking across campus in the late September heat every Monday and Wednesday.
The first couple weeks were dull, the mundaneness of going through the syllabus and getting introduced to the course always seemed like a waste of time. The first real lecture happened the third week on Wednesday. The concept of virtue ethics wasn’t too complicated – how to live life and find the balance between virtue and vice. Dr. Sadler turned out to be a pretty interesting conversationalist and kept the entire class engaged throughout his talk. Tony didn’t think he’d be so interested in what the man had to say, but at the end of class – his hand hurt from writing notes and his mind was running wild with all of the information bestowed upon them. Other than the long walk from the engineering lab, Tony wasn’t hating the class. In fact, there were a few other people in it that were just as engaged in the topics and asked questions, rose their hands to answer intelligently, and sometimes even beat Tony to the punch.
One such day, Tony spent an extra second looking at the passage about Socrates before thrusting his hand into the air. For such a cool guy, he prided himself on his intelligence. When a soft but sure voice a row in front of him spoke up before he did, Tony tilted his head and watch with wonder as the guy recited the exact thing that’d been passing across the front of his mind since the question was asked. The feeling of being miffed stuck around for a second, then a weird sort of warmth settled. He hated to admit that he recognized it as respect and pride. Whoever the heck that kid was, he had a good brain on his shoulders. Tony forced himself to think of anything but that for the rest of class – his attention easily placed back on the older man at the front of room. The professor was the most interesting one he’d ever had. If Santa Clause wore Pink Floyd suspenders and brown instead of red – he’d be Dr. Sadler. It was easy to watch him walk around the lecture hall and blather on.
The day before the first test of the semester, Tony found himself in the little coffee shop not far from the building he was slowly getting accustomed to. He spotted it heading to class the previous day and decided to check it out. With his backpack over his shoulder, he figured he could stick around and get some studying done, too. The line wasn’t very long, so he was standing in front of the register in no time. Looking up from his phone, Tony started to order, but stopped dead in his tracks. The human person in front of him was the most beautiful thing in the entire world. His hair was on the longer side, the ends curly. The barista’s eyes were big, brown, and bright – the irises of them like warm chocolate. The thing that distracted him the most, though – was his smile. It was soft, like a shared secret and after a second of staring too long – it looked a little uneasy.
Laughing to himself and shaking his head, Tony got himself together. “Can I get your biggest sized espresso, please?” Tony asked, his voice a little scratchy from the lack of talking all morning. The guy behind the counter nodded, his smile taking on the adorably shy quality from before. “Can I get you anything else?” he said, and Tony’s eyes immediately bulged. He recognized that voice – this was the kid who answered oh so eloquently a couple of classes before. “This is probably going to sound weird, but you don’t happen to take Philosophical Ethics with Sadler, do you? There was this guy the other week that said some great shit about Socrates and his take on virtues – you sound like him, but what the fuck do I know?” Tony got out in what seemed like one breath. He shot a sheepish smile in the other guys direction – his shoulders shrugging. “I do, actually. My friend Wanda and I call him Santa. This is our third semester taking one of his sections. I’m Peter,” the other man replied, his cheeks turning the slightest shade of pink.
“Santa. That’s funny. I thought that, too. The suspenders really drive it home,” he slipped his credit card across the counter as he spoke – his eyes following Peter’s fingers, their length stupidly distracting for some reason. “Peter – nice to know you. I’m Tony. And I have to say – I was pretty impressed,” Tony finally managed to get out – if he didn’t then, he probably never would. The pink on the other’s cheeks turned to red and he tucked his head. “That’s something coming from Tony Stark,” Peter’s eyes flashed with mischief when Tony looked at him suddenly. “Yeah, I know who you are. You TA’ed in the physics lab in front of me last semester – I heard you tear down a kid in the dullest of tones. Kind of badass, dude,” Peter finished, the man passing him his card and receipt. “Oh, well – I aim to please. Do you have a break coming up anytime soon? I was going to study for Sadler’s test tomorrow – I could use a brain like yours.” He blushed at the way the words sounded in the space between them – but felt a bit better when the guy was nodding at him, his smile the entire width of his face.
“I’ll be off in ten minutes, actually. If you camp out in the back of the store, you’ll get the best Wi-Fi. I’ll come find you.” Peter flashed him a smile and turned his attention to the person behind him. They were probably pissed; he’d been standing there stupidly for way too long. Running a hand through his hair, Tony leaned against the pick-up counter and waited for his coffee with a dazed look on his face. What were the chances that the brainy intellectual he couldn’t decide whether he wanted to pat on the back or slap upside the head – was so goddamn beautiful, too? It didn’t seem fair. Hearing his name called, Tony pushed himself out of his thought and grabbed the cup – the warmth of it immediately grounding him a little. He didn’t wait for any of the heat to seep out, his tongue very used to his dumb ass self sucking down coffee straight from the pot. The coffee was tasty, and the extra jolt of caffeine immediately made him feel a little more motivated.
By the time he’d gotten his books out on the table and his laptop open, Peter was heading towards him. The pile of books in his hand made him seem a little younger than he probably was – the long sleeves of his hoodie were covering his hands, adding to the adorableness factor Tony started tallying in his head. Peter sat down and spread himself out, their clutter on the table taking up the entire surface. Looking up from his screen, Tony found himself smiling – Peter’s eyes were so nice, and they were staring right back at him. He tucked his lower lip between his teeth and ducked out of the eye contact, his fingers absentmindedly playing with the pen he’d set on top of his notebook. “You said you’ve taken his courses before, right? How are his exams? I bet a guy like that doesn’t change ups his teaching style all that much,” Tony said, breaking the silence. Peter nodded, the gesture obviously one of his customary reactions. “The format changes every time. The way he asks his questions doesn’t. The review we went over yesterday did a pretty good job mapping out all the things to look at.”
The hour went fast after that. They spent the entire time laying out a study guide highlighting all the information they went over in the review session and the things they noted more than once throughout either set of notes. When the blaring alarm cut through the haze of their little bubble, Tony had to blink a few times to remember where he was exactly. Tilting his head, he watched Peter start to collect his things, a soft smile on the guy’s face. “Thanks for sharing your break with me. I don’t think we’ll have to do much studying after making this thing,” Tony remarked, his fingers pointing to the several page document they put together. He caught the light pink hue on Peter’s cheeks and felt himself fall just a little. He didn’t know where he was falling exactly – but this guy did something to him, something that made him feel a little itchy and a lot warm. Like maybe he had a Peter allergy, but the histamine response was so, so, so worth it. “I like the way your brain works, Tony. See you tomorrow,” Peter said, his books once again tucked into the swell of his arm. He walked backwards for a second, looking Tony over – then he turned and headed to the back.
Tony watched the door swing back and forth, a dopey grin on his face.
The test went unsurprisingly well – Tony didn’t have to spend much time at all thinking deeply about any of the questions. The study guide they put together prepared him more than adequately. When he walked out, he noticed Peter was also getting out of his seat – so he waited. Their eyes met when Peter turned his paper into Sadler and the guy broke into a smile as they walked out the door together. “You’re a much better study partner than Wanda. That was so easy,” Peter admitted, his hands knotted together in front of him. “I’ve never finished one of Sadler’s exam that quick.” Peter’s cheeks were ketchup red and getting cuter by the fucking second. “I’m happy to have been a big help, then. I like him. He’s one of the smartest guys I’ve ever met, and I feel like that’s something coming from me,” Tony snorted at the look on Peter’s face – the pureness of quirked eyebrows and a crinkled nose so terribly hard to resist.
“You’re kind of an ass, aren’t you, Tony Stark?” Peter asked, his nose still crinkled, lips pulled into a shit eating grin. “Yeah. I’m kind of an ass. If you let it, it’ll grow on you,” Tony reached out and lightly punched the other’s shoulder. “Do you have class, or can I show you what I’m working on for my honor’s thesis? You were outside my lab last semester, right? So that means you’ve at least taking thermodynamics – you’ll understand a good bit of it.” Tony stopped his rambling when he noticed the look on Peter’s face – he looked like a kid that just got invited to Wonka’s chocolate factory. After a little bit of discussion, the day before, Tony found out Peter was a couple credits shy of being a junior and was soaring through the biomedical engineering program – the same way Tony did his own. Despite the guy’s shy tendencies, Peter was very smart and very outspoken about it. He smiled over at the younger guy and pressed a hand to his shoulder again. “You in or not, Petey?” Tony prodded softly, his smile widening at the enthusiastic head nod. “I’m in, I’m in. I haven’t seen the honors’ labs, yet.”
It was a little silly, how easily things seemed to settle into place. Tony considered Peter one of his best friends almost instantly. When Tony sat down on Peter’s right the next class, Wanda and all of her scarlet haired glory didn’t utter a word. The three of them talked like they’d always been a trio both before and after class – Tony found out very quickly that Wanda was very strategic, he’d need to watch his ass around her. Tony also found himself heading to the coffee shop at the edge of campus every Tuesday at 2PM to spend Peter’s hour break with him. They usually looked over Ethics, the homework a lot easier now that he was talking to a human and not the stupid robot he’d built for a robotics competition his sophomore year. The more time they spent together, though – the less of it they spent talking about Ethics. Tony knew the testing ideology now, so he wasn’t all the worried, anyway. No, he appreciated when the topic would stray away from philosophy and tread into the more personal. Peter was a conundrum and kept getting more complicated week by week.
Tony didn’t really do the feelings thing. Throughout most of his time on his own, he kept to himself. It was easy to get lost in another person; he’d seen enough people do it. He could still remember pre-Bucky Steve – the man was the life of the party. Tony liked to be by himself, and yet – he slowly started to find himself looking forward to Tuesday afternoons and the hour and a couple extra minutes Peter spent sitting with him, pretending to study and talking about all of the things. The week Peter missed class Monday and then wasn’t at work Tuesday, Tony was a little worried. It’d been practically an entire semester now of meeting up and he wondered a couple things when he didn’t have a way to contact him – why the hell hadn’t they ever exchanged numbers, and why did it seem so monumental, Peter not being there? Curiously, Tony waited until Wanda wasn’t busy behind the counter and nodded at her – his empty cup in his hand. “Where’s Peter?” Tony tried to casually ask, his fingers pushing the cup towards her in aid of his effort. “His aunt passed away. He’s been putting together her funeral for this afternoon.”
Tony felt his stomach drop. Peter mentioned May practically every time they talked about life outside of academic pursuits. It seemed like she was the most important person to Peter and the fact that she was suddenly gone – Tony knew how much the man must be hurting. Thanking Wanda, Tony didn’t wait around for the refill of his cup, his fingers already typing furiously on the screen of his phone. Google immediately showed him the obituary and where the funeral service was being held – if he wore the blazer in his car and got there in the next twenty minutes, he could make the service. Determined, Tony stopped in the bathroom and splashed some water on his face before grabbing his things and heading out to his car. A quick stop at the florist by the church and Tony was dragging his ass to the back of a small chapel.
Despite the place being small, there were a lot of people stuffed into the pews. It was obvious by the way Peter talked about her; how much she was loved – the people in the room just proved that. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house (Tony included), the ceremony was really beautiful and Peter’s brief, but powerful eulogy tied the entire thing together. Tony didn’t know the woman, he felt a little out of his league being there, but it felt good to support another person. Their eyes locked for a brief minute during Peter’s kind words about his aunt and for a brief second – he didn’t look as sad, anymore. Tony’s wobbly smile must have been encouraging, because the last half of his words were spoken more confidently. At the end of the service, Tony waited in the back pew for the crowd to say their condolences to Peter – he didn’t want the man to see him crying, either. He got himself together in the meantime – his eyes a little itchy from the blazer he’d been rubbing them on.
When he approached Peter, Tony immediately noticed how distraught he looked. He couldn’t imagine what it was like lose someone so special. Tony’s parents passing was hard, but he took it in stride – they weren’t very close. Peter looked like he might keel over – so Tony pulled him close, his arms tight around the younger man’s waist. He felt hands fist into his jacket, Peter’s nose pressing into the front of his shirt. Tony held him a little closer, his arms tight around him until the shaking stopped. He didn’t know when his hand started to move ever so slightly up and down the small of Peter’s back – but the touch was there, and it didn’t seem like he was going to be pulling away from him anytime soon. Peter looked up at him after a while, his cheeks tear stained, and eyes rimmed in what looked like an uncomfortable red. Without thinking, Tony let a thumb brush away a stray tear. “Your words were beautiful,” Tony mumbled, the lily in his hand a little crumpled from the neglect of it during their embrace. Peter didn’t seem to mind the bent stem, the boy bringing the flower to his chest. “Thanks for coming, Tony.”
A little while later, Peter found him sitting out on churches steps, his blazer now over his knee, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up. He’d been watching all of the people try and get the last little bit of Peter’s attention before they headed off to do who knows what. Funerals were funny things – people flocked to them, like the thoughts of someone else dying but not them were enough to overcome the grief. He remembered his parents’ soiree – there were so many people he’d never seen before, it felt more like a banquet dinner than a human person’s funeral. He kept his head down and waited until it was just Peter and a small violet urn – the last little piece of a life the man would no longer live. Tired eyes looked at him and, in that moment, all Tony saw was gratitude. He didn’t rush to give him a hug, or say how sorry he was, Tony simply held a hand out and let Peter take it.
They spent the rest of the night eating May’s favorite Thai food, with Peter regaling him with all of the best May Parker stories. The health conscious, vegan diner waitress with the biggest heart and warmest hug. The silence they eventually fell into was nice and easy, a little bit of relief from all of the emotion they’d been wrapped up in since he saw Peter for the first time at the church. Tony didn’t know much about Pho – but could tell this stuff was the real deal. He liked learning new things – especially where Peter was concerned. A noodle hit him in the chin and the wet squish of it slapping his skin broke the silence between them. Tony watched Peter laugh for probably the first time in days and felt a little piece of him melt – just a little.
“Why’d you end up coming, anyway?” Peter asked out of the blue, his voice still heavy with sadness and unshed tears. His eyes were hopeful, though – watery doe eyes big and looking directly at him. “I don’t really know, to be honest. Wanda told me about May and it just seemed like the right thing to do. Tuesday’s don’t have to stop being our thing because something bad happened in your life. I guess – you’re kind of stuck with me.” Tony shrugged his shoulders and went back to eating – his honesty a little too much for him in the moment. He’d never spoken so bluntly to someone before – at least, not someone he was saying something nice to, someone he admittedly admired so very, very much. “Okay, that sounds good,” Peter replied simply after a while, his shoulder pressing into Tony’s chest when he leaned over to press soup warm lips to Tony’s cheek. He felt his cheeks heat up, the spot on his skin a little moist from Peter’s lips.
It was pretty easy to make more than Tuesday their thing after that.
----
So go ahead and drive me insane Baby, run your mouth I still wouldn't change being stuck with you Stuck with you, stuck with you
The transition to being a boyfriend was surprisingly easy for Tony. Peter was the one person that gave Tony motivation outside himself – the happiness he felt when Peter smiled at him or looked pleased with him was totally different, something he wanted to cling to for as long as possible. After finals, Tony brought Peter into his small two-bedroom apartment – the two of them spending the entirety of winter break together. A part of him wanted to ask Peter to stay when the spring semester started, but he eventually came to the conclusion that they weren’t quite there yet. It didn’t stop Peter from being over at his place all the time, though. He understood what it was like to hate a roommate – the whole reason he lived by himself in the first place came from dislike of having to be around other humans. So, he didn’t mind the fact that his boyfriend found his apartment to be more comfortable than a place shared with two other dudes – dudes that, if Peter was to be believed, were very disorderly and distracting.
It was stupidly nice to have Peter with him all the time; Tony wasn’t going to object to that. It was nice to come home to a table filled with engineering textbooks and a couple cups worth of old coffee. There was a certain feeling about walking in to see someone he cared for so diligently doing something – it felt like a punch to the gut more often times than not. Peter’s brain was one of the things Tony loved the most about him. Loved – funny, they hadn’t said that word, yet. Though, Tony thought about it constantly. Time went by with Peter in a way that made things seem effortless. The longer they were together, the more Tony felt himself wanting to soak up all the things that came with having Peter Parker in his life. There were so many things he wanted to do with Peter in his life and the fact that they hadn’t taken the final step was a little intimidating – the more Tony held off, the scarier it all got. The worst thing that could happen was losing Peter, it didn’t take him very long to realize that.
It seemed silly, then, when Tony started to be a bit more of an asshole. It wasn’t Peter specific – there were enough dirty looks sent his way from the general populace to know he was being a bit of a prick to everyone. He didn’t mean it, either – there was a part of him that kept using that as an excuse for his grumpiness. The deadline for his honors thesis was quickly approaching and Tony felt stupidly underprepared. There were a lot of variables that were out of his hands and the stress of not having complete control of the situation made everything seem a little more monumental than normal. And though it felt like the world was quickly starting to close in on him, Peter remained steadily beside him. It was easy to see how much Peter endured in his life – he easily let Tony’s shitty remarks and sarcastic quips fly off his back. Every time Tony was a shit, Peter shook his head and gave him space – and later when Tony came crawling back with stupid excuses and promises of many, many kisses, Peter welcomed him back with open arms.
The closer it got to the due date, the worst it got – even Tony could rationally perceive it. It wasn’t hard to see how much longer it took Peter to bounce back from the stupid arguments Tony started – sometimes on purpose, if he were being honest with himself. It wasn’t hard to notice how Peter spent a couple extra days away between his stays with Tony. The rational part of him understood that he wasn’t the only person on the planet that needed space – that he wasn’t being nice to the person he loved more than anything. He couldn’t find the words to make Peter understand the type of stress he felt, so he didn’t say any. There were so many things trying to crush him – it seemed easy to lean heavily and rely on the one thing that hadn’t demanded anything from him.
Of course – things can only take so much pressure on them before they snap. As an engineer, Tony knew that better than anyone else. The morning the dam broke, Tony pressed the home button of his phone, his eyes blinking from a surprisingly refreshing sleep. The night before was one of the best they had in the past few weeks – Tony finally felt a little better falling into a deep sleep with Peter in his arms. After the second press to the thing, he put the pieces together and realized he didn’t plug it in to catch any charge overnight. Turning over, he caught the time on the clock on what he considered Peter’s bedside table for a while and his eyes bulged. There was no way he’d make it to his advisor meeting on time. Despite consciously knowing that, Tony went into panic mode. He got up out of bed and started rushing around the room. In his haste, he almost missed the sleepy “Tony?” coming from the bed.
“Go back to sleep, Pete. I’m a goddamn mess and don’t have any of my shit together. You don’t need to see this shit fest,” Tony mumbled, his teeth clenched together in a desperate attempt to keep whatever was bubbling up under control. There was so much stress and of course he’d be late for the one thing he needed to go to – the news about whether he’d get the rest of his research data approved, the final pieces missing to the honors thesis that’d been haunting him for weeks now. For whatever reason, Peter’s softly spoken “Sorry, Tones,” made him snap – his frustration finally breaking the last remaining supports keeping everything together.
“What are you sorry for, Pete? I was so happy to have you in my arms last night that I forgot to plug in my phone. I let myself enjoy something for a second and now I’m late and not going to finish college. I’ve been working my ass off and I’m not going to finish. I’m not saying this is your fault – but fuck it all. This is the worst possible time to fall apart.” Tony kept talking as he swept around the room, Peter’s confused look only slowing him down for a second. On a normal morning, the sheet slipping down the other’s shoulder in the tantalizing way it was would’ve had him getting into bed and ignoring all of his so-called responsibilities. Oh, how Tony longed for those days. He could feel tears starting to prickle in his eyes – a combination of shame and frustration mixing together to make a hurricane of hard to handle emotions. Slipping into the first pair of shoes he saw, Tony grabbed his bag and fled the apartment – hot tears spilling down his face something he was glad Peter didn’t have to see.
The walk onto campus was brisk enough to keep everything at bay – he’d never be able to get onto campus as fast he did that day again. Getting there with a couple minutes to spare, Tony instantly felt like a jackass. Not just because he’d lost his cool, but because he might’ve insinuated that the one good thing in his life was causing a commotion – which he wasn’t. Not at all. In fact, the only thing causing a commotion was Tony himself. That much was apparent when Dr. Coulson presented him with a fully approved thesis – the latest pieces of data and all.
It felt good to finally be done with the damn thing. Better than good, actually. He felt a lot of the cobwebs from the past few weeks start to shake off and the haze clear a little bit. What he was faced with wasn’t much to celebrate – the confused look on Peter’s face still alive and present in the forefront of Tony’s mind. He wondered why Peter continued to stick around through Tony’s latest grump streak, why the man chose to stick around and be on the end of ill-timed uncertainty. For the first time, Tony understood how important it was that Peter did stick around.
Pulling his phone out, Tony started to formulate a plan – one that would say sorry and thank you all at once. With quick fingers, he sent Peter a quick text, the good news still fresh in his mind.
Tony Stark [11:12AM]: I made it on time. They accepted my thesis. I’m officially done. Tony Stark [11:13AM]: I’ve been an ass, and I’m sorry. Tony Stark [11:14AM]: I’m glad you’re still here.
He clicked the lock on the phone and tucked it into his bag. There were a few things he needed to get done before heading back to his apartment. Before his little tissy fit, they’d been planning to spend the weekend together. If luck was in his favor, Peter would still be there when he walked through the door later. Tony forced himself not to think about what would happen if the man wasn’t there, or if he stuck around just to confront him and then jet. There were so many things Tony wanted to say – so many emotions he wanted to share. He just needed the chance to get the stuff out in the open. It felt important to be able to open up to Peter like that – share his fears and vulnerabilities. Peter was the man Tony invited into his bed on a regular basis. For all intents and purposes, they were sharing everything – cooking utensils and bodily fluids alike. It would make sense that he’d be able to be a little looser with the restraint on his feelings with him, too.
The nicest part about being with Peter came from all the similarities they shared. He knew the perfect thing to bring back to the apartment as a white flag and could honestly say he was looking forward to giving it to Peter. It relieved a lot of stress – something that Tony obviously wasn’t the best at dealing with – feeling so confident in the reception of a gift. A quick perusal through Game Stop had him clutching a small black bag and feeling a whole lot better. It didn’t really matter, finding the right present. What mattered was the fact that Tony felt good and conscious enough of his behavior to want to make it right. Baby steps, and all that.
Walking into the apartment to see Peter’s black Chuck Taylor’s still piled messily against the wall by the front door was an instant relief. Tony felt his chest unclench a little bit. The steadily collecting pieces of Peter around the apartment were still there, too. The PS4 and its many cables were still sitting next to Tony’s X-Box – and the collection of Family Guy and American Dad DVDs were ensconced nicely with Tony’s Mad Max collector’s edition box set. Now that he wasn’t stuck in a rut of anxiety and stress, Tony could see just how much of Peter there was around the place. Not even noticing made the feeling of rightness sink in a little more – the simple fact that it was natural felt like a pretty big thing. Gripping the bag in his hand, Tony kicked off the Van’s he’d been wearing and walked further into the apartment.
He wasn’t expecting the coffee table in the middle of the living room to be decked out with sleek black table settings and a single rose in between them. Though the TV wasn’t on, Tony could hear the scratch of the record player across a vinyl – the noise immediately making him feel calm, like the soothing noise of rain on a rooftop. Peter walked casually out of the kitchen carrying out a big pot – Tony knowing right away that there was mac & cheese waiting for them under the top of said pot. The other’s eyes were soft when their gazes met, and Tony felt himself relax just a little bit more. He wasn’t really sure what was going on, but he didn’t mind the light smile on Peter’s lips or the delicious scent of melted cheese and butter. The one thing Tony felt certain about was the fact that he didn’t deserve the beautiful man setting the hot dish on the table – he didn’t deserve the sweetness that laid so inherently inside Peter Parker’s heart and soul.
“What is all this, Pete?” Tony asked, his hands still fiddling with the bag he’d been clutching onto. Peter shrugged and took a seat on the couch – his hand patting the cushion next to him. “It’s not anything, baby. You did good shit today. I thought maybe we could celebrate with the only dish I can cook and the rest of that red we didn’t finish the other night.” The words were so genuine and so easily delivered. Dropping his backpack, Tony didn’t hesitate to sit on the couch next to him, their thighs brushing with his movements. He set the Game Stop bag on Peter’s lap and used his now free hands to grab his cheeks lightly. “This world doesn’t deserve you, Peter Parker. Especially me,” Tony murmured. He closed the gap between them easily, their lips connecting in a way that spoke of both parties leaning forward to partake.
Pulling away, Tony let his thumb linger against Peter’s lips for a moment, his eyes greedily taking in the way the other was looking at him. It felt like a long time since he’d been able to see those eyes with so much clarity. He let that sink in, the idea that he spent any time at all not worshipping the brown orbs that looked at him with so much want and affection. “I don’t know why you’ve stayed around with all the bull shit I’ve been dumping on you, but I’m glad. I hope you know that – I’m so fucking happy that you’re here, Pete,” Tony couldn’t stop himself; the words were dripping from him like a leaky faucet – each droplet of truth a little bit bigger than the last.
Peter caught one of his hands and brought it up to his lips, Tony’s breath quickening slightly at the touch. Those chocolate brown eyes kept up their glance, Peter’s gaze smoky – a little hazy in the way he couldn’t focus on just one part of Tony’s face. “I knew who you were getting into this. You’re an asshole – that’s not a lie. I didn’t expect that to be pretty. I didn’t expect you to be bright and shiny all the time. I get that you were stressed. You’re a human, Tony. And like you said, I’m stuck with you.”
Tony couldn’t remember a time when his words being used against him felt any sweeter. He quickly wrapped Peter in a tight hug, his lips pressing against the side of his head in a tender kiss. “Ecstatically so,” Tony said in a whisper, his entire being simply overwhelmed. He forced himself to pull away, Tony knowing that if he let himself, he’d get pulled under the spell of Peter and all the peaceful goodness his boyfriend could bring. He tapped at the bag he put on Peter’s lap, a soft smile on his lips.
“I know I can’t buy love and all of that, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to try,” Peter pulled out the Nintendo Switch version of Super Smash Bros Melee while Tony spoke, his eyes lighting up. They’d been watching all of the trailers and reading up about it – it was the ultimate date night adventure. “There’s a reason why we’re so good together,” Pete said, his feet already carrying him to the tv to get the game into the console. The remotes joined the bowls on the table, and the spent the rest of the night was spent yelling at the tv, each other, and binging on way too much mac and wine.
The next morning, Tony woke up with a gratifying hangover and Peter’s entire body weight against his right side – the best reminder of the gift he constantly got to keep on getting.
The slurred ‘I love you’ pressed against his chest wasn’t too terrible, either.
----
So lock the door And throw out the key Can't fight this no more It's just you and me
Two years with Peter past by insanely quick. After publishing his thesis, Tony graduated with highest honors and scored a pretty decent engineering job with Valero. The pay was great, the hours were nice, and he got to stay in his apartment. An apartment that at the start of the next semester, became Peter’s, too. Tony wanted to be able to give Peter the ability to have a stress-free academic experience. Their schedules intersected in a way that meant they got to eat dinner together every night – it was one of those scenes out of those dream montages for such a long time. Watching Peter learn and grow in both his knowledge and expertise was a lot of fun for Tony. Many nights were spent with the two of them discussing Peter’s work – the man was following Tony’s footsteps and doing an honors thesis, too. The five-year program was the perfect way to get a head start in the professional world – and Tony couldn’t wait to see what Peter was going to bring.
Aside from their jobs, Tony and Peter spent a lot of time with each other and the tight knit group of friends they developed during their time together. Steve and Bucky were old friends of Tony’s, so they were easy to add to Friday night dinners and double dates. It was silly to think that Bucky Barnes wouldn’t get along with another human. He and Peter kicked it off instantly and suddenly, two became four. Tony met Bruce in that lab at Valero – they were both fresh out of school and starting their careers. A little commonality went a long way. He and Natasha were easy to incorporate into the chosen family they were creating. Natasha treated Peter like a mother hen – it made his heart warm to see them sitting in a chair together, the woman running her fingers through Peter’s chestnut locks. Tony didn’t know much about family – but he understood enough to realize just how lucky the group of them were. Thursday night game nights and Sunday afternoon cookouts were the regular – it was nice, they were happy.
The original plan after Peter graduated was for the younger man to join him at Valero. There were many places for a mind like Peter’s in the depths of the energy company’s labs – but a piece of Tony felt like maybe that wasn’t the right place for him. The compound Peter created was unparalleled and his research was insane – to the point where Tony spent many hours reading through it, marveling at the intelligence within the written words. Tony could cop to settling for something that was steady and gave him enough freedom to enjoy the work he was doing. It was enough – yet, Peter deserved a lot more than that in his professional life.
Which is why it wasn’t much of a surprise when Peter brought up a job offer he received in New York – he’d been bouncing around for a couple of days and Tony finally sat him down and asked outright what the fuck was going on. His boyfriend presented research in New York and while there, Oscorp Industries sent a headhunter after him – offering him a job that was hard to pass up. Peter told him about it nervously, his hands fumbling in front of him, long pauses between stuttered out words. For a second, Tony wanted to be offended – the way Peter was acting made him feel like the scariest mother fucker in the world, like he’d be so far away from supportive. Yet, he saw the slightest bit of hope in Peter’s eyes and understood where the nervousness came from. “I want you to come with me, Tony. I know, you’ve got a job here and there’s the guys – but I think we could really make a go out there,” Peter flashed a smile at him, the hope in his eyes growing with each word.
Instinct kicked in and Tony nodded, his eyes wide. “Holy shit, Pete. Congratulations. That’s – that’s amazing!” They were hugging before Tony could even blink, his hands grasping onto the material of Peter’s t-shirt. “I will absolutely move to New York with you. Absolutely.” Tony heard the words in his own ears, the certainty of them. He felt his entire stomach clench – not because he was mad or upset, but because his entire world was about to change. Everything in his entire world was about to change. Peter’s hands framed his face and the rest of the conversation was history – Tony losing his pants in celebration not too long after that.
The next couple of months were jam packed full of both Tony and Peter getting ready to move their entire lives across the country. Peter was finishing up with the last few mandatory things for school and Tony was quietly making future plans – he’d been working on a few things in the lab with Bruce, things that could change the face of energy. Given the right place to do some expansions, they could easily be onto something. While Peter prepped the final parts of his thesis, Tony put together proposals and made finishing touches on presentation material. Though they weren’t spending an insane amount of time together, it was easy to feel assured – secure in the fact that they were going to spend the rest of their lives together. They were making plans and figuring things out. Tony was content and thought for certain that Peter was, too.
It made sense – the timing. Tony’s slew of interviews in New York were the same week as Peter’s thesis approval. When the younger man dropped Tony off at the airport, he was still a little grumpy from the little dispute they had earlier. Tony could still remember the heated look in Peter’s eyes. “Why do you have to go this week? You’ve been so quiet about all of this and now all of the sudden you’re leaving? This is a big week for me,” Peter’s voice was a little raw at the end, they’d been hashing it out for a while.
Tony shook his head, the roundabout argument of the unfortunate timing getting a little old. “I’ve shown you the arc reactor plans, Peter. I scheduled all of the interviews to happen all at the same time, so I only had to make one trip – if things go the way I’m hoping, I’ll be home before you find out. I’m sorry, Pete. It’s shit timing, I know. I’ve been keeping this close to the belt because I’m nervous and don’t want to jinx any of the opportunities. I’m sorry, Petey,” Tony mumbled, his hands desperately trying to grip Peter’s cheeks, trying to sooth the other.
There was no soothing, though – Tony could remember a time when he felt as irritable as his boyfriend and shook it all off. There were important things that needed to happen on this trip – and so many of them were hanging in the air. It didn’t make any sense for both of them to be irritable the entire time Tony was away. He ended up leaving the car with a soft kiss against his cheek and a subdued “I love you” which Tony took and returned in stride. With his bag in his hand, Tony stood on the curb and watched Peter pull away, a soft smile on his lips. Turning when he heard Bruce, Tony smiled even wider – they were heading to New York to pitch their arc reactor idea to a couple of investment companies. If all went well, they’d be well on their way to establishing their own energy business. Tony wanted to have the plans in place before telling Peter – he wanted to bring something to the other man to be proud of. Shaking his head and trying his hardest to clear it of the argument, Tony followed Bruce into the airport and boarded the airplane in no time.
The first day of meetings was a total blur. By the time he wandered into his hotel room, Tony sent Peter a quick text message saying he loved him and then dropped onto the bed – his brain totally wiped. Like he figured, there weren’t too many companies willing to give them free rein on the construction and use of the arc reactor – and Tony wasn’t willing to part with such a great piece of technology. It didn’t seem like Bruce was all that keen, either – and he hoped their next day of meetings would go a little better. He didn’t notice his phone buzz a couple of different times, his body and mind lost to the land of slumber until early the next morning. He got up in a rush, the disorienting feeling of sleeping too long hitting him – his body still so tired despite being immobile for more than ten hours. Rolling over, Tony checked his phone and grimaced at the ten missed calls from Peter and the handful of text messages that were considerably more concerning.
Peter Parker [7:30PM]: Hey babe, I love you, too. How’d all the meetings go today? Peter Parker [8:45PM]: Should I take the lack of communication as a good or bad thing? Peter Parker [9:34PM]: I’m getting a little worried. You haven’t answered any of my calls, either. Are you okay? Peter Parker [11:21PM]: I guess you’re just not answering. I hope New York isn’t up in flames, or anything. Peter Parker [1:01AM]: Dammit, Tony.
Sucking in a quick breath, Tony looked over the texts again. He wondered idly how he managed to miss every single one of these – how he didn’t wake up to the buzz. The fatigue of traveling and haggling must’ve really kicked his ass. Tony pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and thought for a second – his brain still a little slow from the haze of sleep sticking around. Why did it seem like Peter was so strung out? Biting down on his lip a little more, Tony shook his head. He knew why Peter was upset and understood it. Things were changing – uncertainty was the name of the game when the entire Earth felt like it was shifting gears. Long fingers tangled into the strands at the front of his hair for a moment before Tony was typing on the screen.
Tony Stark [7:45AM]: Pete, I’m so sorry. Tony Stark [7:46AM]: I got into the room and crashed. Tony Stark [7:47AM]: The meetings were all a bit useless – but we’ve got the ones I’m most looking forward to today. Tony Stark [7:48AM]: I miss you, baby. I’ll call you when we’re done for the day.
He didn’t know how satisfactory that was, but with the time difference between New York and Texas, Tony wouldn’t be able to call Peter before their first meeting at 9AM. He knew Wednesday was the day Pete had a late lecture and liked to sleep a little later into the day. To sweeten the deal a little, Tony clicked on the camera and sent a selfie of him blowing a kiss, his eyes so soft – even he could see the shine in them. Sighing, he got up out of bed and started to get ready for a day filled with negotiating and attempting not to sell their souls. It was exhausting business, trying to prove one’s worth to the rest of the world.
Fortunately, these meetings went much better. There were two investors especially interested in the end product Tony and Bruce had in mind – they were willing to back the project with a workable and decent percentage off the top. The meeting with the bank finished off the last little bit of money they needed and by the end of the day, Tony and Bruce were business owners – hoping to lead the way in clean and sustainable energy, one arc reactor at a time. Tony couldn’t believe they actually convinced people to buy into their idea. In their time in the lab, they’d put together a protype of the model they were interested in building – the thing only missing the necessary elements to bring it together. After Tony passionately describe the construction process and the benefits it would bring – the right people were eating out of the palm of his hand. Tony and Bruce exchanged a couple of brief hugs and then they were off in their separate directions – the one thing Tony appreciated about Bruce more than anything else. There weren’t any expectations.
Excited, Tony pulled out his phone and pulled up Peter’s contact information, his thumb hitting the call button without another thought. It only took a couple rings for the man to pick up – Tony glad for the millionth time that his lover wasn’t petty or able to hold much of a grudge. Tony did dumb shit all the time – he forgot silly things and didn’t answer his phone. Peter took it with grace, the man a saint in that way. A slightly subdued voice met him on the other side of the line. “Hey, Tones,” Peter answered. Tony couldn’t help but smile, regardless of how much he knew Peter wanted to yell at him.
“Hey, baby. I know I fucked up – but I’m so happy to hear your voice,” Tony responded immediately, his body relaxed for the first time since leaving home. Peter chuckled, the sound an immediate reminder of home. “You didn’t fuck up – I was just being a little needy. You leaving got me a little scrambled. I think I just miss you,” Tony sighed at Peter’s words, his heart heaving against his chest. “I miss you, too. But I’ll be home tomorrow – just in time to pick you up to celebrate,” Tony couldn’t contain the excitement in his voice, the joint success of following his dream and Peter realizing his so nice, so fulfilling for the both of them.
“And just what all are we celebrating?” Peter asked, the background noise making it sound like he shifted while he spoke. Tony ran his free hand through his hair, fingers tugging at the ends ever so slightly. “Your thesis approval, of course,” Tony started with, his voice dipping a little, “and the opening of S&B Tech. Bruce and I found some investors today. We’ve got enough to get off the ground and get a functioning prototype up and running.” The words were beautiful coming from his lips – the happiness in his chest hard to be contained.
He heard Peter gasp, the little inhale of breath a recognizable thing – something so very Peter. “Are you serious? I didn’t know you were looking to open a company, Tony! Why didn’t you tell me?” Peter’s question was valid, and Tony thought about it when they started this whole process. “The only honest answer I can give you, Pete, is the fact that I was scared of failing. I didn’t want to make all of these big plans and end up not fulfilling them. When we get to New York, I want us to be able to build from the ground up. It’s just you and me, baby – I wanted to make sure I could give us something worthy of us – of who we are together.” Tony felt so impassioned by the words coming out of his mouth, a huge smile slipping across his cheeks with them.
There was a moment or two of silence on the line, the only really exchange was the sound of their breathing. He’d been with the man long enough to recognize the organized pause – Peter was collecting himself, getting his thoughts together. Tony stuck the edge of his thumb into his mouth to bite at the cuticle – the wait killing him ever so slightly. “I’m such an idiot,” Peter mumbled, the words just barely there across the line. “I thought you were pulling away from me, or something. Like you ran off to New York with Bruce and you weren’t coming back. You’re just brilliant and trying to make the whole world see it. I’m such an idiot and so fucking proud of you,” Peter’s voice broke at the end, a soft laugh trailing off the last couple of words. Tony joined him, his chest lightening with ever vibrating laugh. “I told you before, Peter Parker – you’re stuck with me.”
The next day when Peter got him from the airport, Tony was greeted with two hands on his neck pulling him close – their lips meeting in a hot kiss that lasted much longer than appropriate in public. When they broke apart, Peter was grinning at him, his eye wide and bright – the irises rich like melting chocolate. “Hello, Mr. Entrepreneur,” Peter said softly, his cheeks a bright pink from the flush of their kiss. Tony smirked and leaned in for another quick peck. “Hello, Mr. Parker. Are you ready to celebrate all of the great things happening to us?” Tony’s answer came with a hand slipping into his, Peter’s slim fingers gripping his tightly.
“You bet, Mr. Stark.”
----
Kinda hope we're here forever There's nobody on these streets If you told me that the world's ending Ain't no other way that I could spend it
They stuck around Austin just long enough for Peter to walk across the stage for graduation. Tony didn’t want to admit it, but he’d never been prouder of anything in his entire life. Though they were seated far from all of the graduates, Tony and the crew all got up with a roar when the announcer called Peter Parker across the stage. Summa cum laude, honors graduate, and the Ben Henson grant winner – all and all, the man was stupidly smart, and Tony was so very glad to have someone like him attached to his side. Peter eventually found them after the four-hour ceremony – he looked a little tired and overwhelmed, yet, his eyes were glowing with excitement and happiness, too. When Tony pulled him into an embrace, Peter’s arms came around him tightly. “I’m proud of you, baby,” Tony mumbled, his lips pressed against the side of Pete’s head. Pulling back, Tony saw Peter’s lower lip tremble for just a minute – then he disguised it with a quick kiss to his lips. They didn’t get much more time alone together, the rest of the group embraced them both in a huge hug – the tears that didn’t get shed during the ceremony now cascading down all of their faces. Endings were hard – and this one came with more than a few changes.
Later that evening, Tony was sitting in a foldout chair with Peter in his lap. They’d lit their firepit on the small apartment balcony and the rest of the clan was gathered around it. Bucky and Steve were holding hands between two chairs, Bruce and Natasha were idly chattering to each other from the ground where they decided to camp out after Tony finished with the food on the BBQ. It wasn’t the most high-class graduation party, but they were quickly trying to put their lives into boxes and get their shit together to move across the country. Peter wouldn’t have wanted anything more, either – the boy wasn’t used to fancy things or people making big deals out of what he assumed to be the smallest things. Arms squeezing around his shoulders brought him back from his thoughts, Peter smiling down at him. “This is the best, Tony – thank you.” And little things like that were the nicest reminders of just how good he actually had it – the simple way Peter liked to live his life was all Tony ever wanted, he just didn’t know it until he met the man.
Before leaving for the night, Steve pulled Tony aside – the older man’s hand tight on his shoulder. “Do your best to keep him, Tony. This you, the guy standing in front of me – it’s the best version. I’ve never seen you look happier. And man is he good for you.” Steve stopped then, his hand moving to wrap around Tony’s shoulders to pull him in to a light side hug. “I’m going to miss you, brother. I’m happy to know that you’ve got someone worthy standing by your side, though. Take good care of each other.” He gave Tony another brief squeeze and stepped away, his hand finding Bucky’s – who’d been standing over to the side talking to Peter. The two of them left shortly after. Their goodbyes with Bruce and Natasha were brief – their places in New York weren’t too far from each other. After the door was shut firmly behind everybody, Tony didn’t have to wait long for Peter’s arms to wrap around him – his hands finding the thick locks at the back of his head. “Take me to bed, Mr. Stark.” He didn’t need any more spurring on than that – the rest of Peter’s graduation celebration took place behind a firmly closed door, just the two of them.
The moving van came two days later, the entirety of the life they built together over the past couple of years barely fitting into a medium sized U-Haul. It felt a little bittersweet driving out of Austin – Tony did the most growing of his life in that crazy city. He met the man of his dreams, graduated college, and realized exactly what he needed to be doing in life. He owed a lot to Austin, Texas. They shared a sad smile as they pulled onto the highway and started their first leg of the journey. Peter reached over and grabbed his hand, their fingers intertwining easily. There wasn’t much to be said – leaving together, sitting across the cab of the truck packed with all of their stuff – it was the easiest decision Tony could make. The grin Peter couldn’t keep from his face the first few hours of the drive said he felt the same, too. Though they were heading into the unknown, it didn’t feel as scary as Tony knew it could have.
Since neither of them were in any hurry to actually get there, they spent a couple weeks driving a longer route through Alabama, and then up through Virginia and into Pennsylvania. In the places either of them were eager to explore, they stopped. They took in the Atlanta Renaissance festival – which was an absolute blast. Tony had a hard time believing he’d change his lock screen from the picture of him and Peter dressed up as knights – his boyfriend’s tunic slipped down over his shoulder probably his favorite part. The day was nice when they drove through Virginia, so they spent a few hours exploring Virginia Beach – the taffy they found at a place called Candy Kitchen still making his stomach hurt from the massive amount they ate over the following few days. In Pennsylvania, they spent an afternoon in Philadelphia – the nerd in them both enjoying all of the history. The video he posted of Peter running up the stairs like Rocky got a lot of hits – and ended up scoring Tony the nickname Adrian.
By the time they actually got to the house they managed to score for a pretty decent price, Tony was more than eager to not be behind the wheel. Their adventures were great, and it was more fun than he figured either of them were expecting. It also took them three weeks, most of which Tony spent driving in some fashion, whether it was on the highway or navigating the little side streets of the places they were visiting. Despite the house being completely empty, it was nice to walk in somewhere and finally feel settled. He insisted on carrying Peter over the threshold of their home, regardless of the fact that they weren’t married, and he wasn’t the woman, thank you very much. Tony couldn’t help the huge grin that played across his face when Peter pulled him into a kiss, the younger man still tight in Tony’s arms bridal style. “It’s kind of perfect though, isn’t it?” Peter broke their kiss just long enough to get the words out – Tony’s favorite brown eyes alive, lit with passion and nerves and want and excitement.
That first night on the floor of their brand-new house was one of the best Tony could remember spending with Peter. Fatigue and tiredness fueled love making that was soft and sweet – Tony realizing that there was no need to rush, that now that they were home, they had all this time of their hands. Grown-up responsibilities were cake compared to the thought of what unlimited time with Peter Parker could give him. And when they were done, Peter slid their fingers together, Tony’s left hand tight in Peter’s right. “Do you want to be my husband, Tony Stark?” Tony sucked in a breath and turned his head, eyes wide. The dopey look on Pete’s face spoke of total sincerity and for a moment, Tony let himself soak that in. The most amazing person in the world wanted to marry him – wanted to keep him forever. Leaning forward, Tony pressed his lips to Peter’s nose, the touch lingering. “You bet your cute ass I do. Tony Parker-Stark has a nice ring to it.”
From that point on, life became about getting everything together. Their house, their jobs, and ultimately – their marriage. There weren’t too many surprised people looking back at them when they FaceTimed everyone to let them in on the news. Tony chuckled at Bucky’s “about damn time” and Peter colored when Natasha asked how good the celebratory sex was. It was hard to not be excited when Tony could feel everyone else’s joy for them. It was pretty easy to get lost in the bliss of what having Peter Parker as a partner was like, and the beautiful freedom of working for himself and himself alone. Things were good, and Tony tried to cling to every single piece of that goodness that he could.
The next time Tony looked up from the happy little bubble he was living in, another year had past and they were quickly approaching their wedding date. It was not very surprising, how easy it’d been to plan a wedding with Peter by his side. A small venue outside of the hustle and bustle of the city caught their eye early on and they snatched it up while they could. The place was small and intimate, on the right side of casual – the perfect representation of who Tony and Peter were together. Tony got his way with casual suits, his a light grey with a soft linen white shirt underneath and Peter’s a contrasting dark navy with the same white shirt to match. They didn’t sweat the small stuff and let it all come together.
At least, that’s what Tony thought, anyway.
Then, the coronavirus hit and everything about regular life came to a screeching halt. One week before they were set to get married, Tony got a call from the venue letting him know they were closing and could not guarantee a date that they’d be open again. To say he felt a little gutted was an understatement. Their entire group of friends took the week off to help Tony and Peter put the final touches together for the big day. While he got the call, Steve and Bruce were working on the labels for the small bottles of whiskey they were giving as favors for the guests. Watching the news, the past week kept Tony on edge, though he tried not to show it – he did all the things Peter asked. It seemed as if they were going to keep putting things together until there was no reason not to anymore. When Tony told him about the venue, Peter fell into the loop of Tony’s arms and let himself have a breakdown moment – their friends be damned.
Things got a little worse the next day when shit started to really break down in the city – the virus count was steadily climbing, and they were officially on a stay at home order. There weren’t better people to be stuck inside with, Tony knew that. It just hurt a little – knowing how close they’d come to actually getting married, to having that very group of people stand by their side as Tony finally got to say his vows to Peter and make the bond between them a permanent thing. Peter’s hands constantly grabbing for him or his sad eyes always looking to connect with Tony’s spoke volumes – the man just as distraught about the missed opportunity. In the craziness, it felt silly to be so down about a wedding – Peter was still healthy and safe, that should’ve been enough.
But – it wasn’t. After a mad rush to get groceries and enough supplies to take care of six adults for a while, Tony found Peter wrapped up in the comforter on their bed, his head somewhere in the jungle of all the pillows they kept there. “You doing alright, Petey?” Tony asked softly. He kicked off his shoes and climbed onto the bed behind Peter, his hands reaching until he could pull the other man closer. His lips pressed against his fiancé’s forehead without a thought, the man turning at the contact. “Don’t pretend like you’re not just as strung out. We were supposed to get married tomorrow. I couldn’t wait to see that ring on your finger,” Peter’s words were a little hard to make out, his face was still pressed against the pillow. Tony managed, though, and pulled him a little closer, his lips pressing a string of kisses against any of the skin he could reach. The tactile movement gave him a couple moments to think, his brain on overdrive – an idea finally coming to him.
“Why don’t we get married tomorrow, anyway? Natasha is ordained, she was going to do the ceremony. Let’s just – do it.” Tony sat up a little, his arms still tight around Peter’s middle. He could see the cogs turning in Peter’s head the second he put the idea out into the air. “The people in this house are the only ones that truly matter to me, Pete. I could care less about everything else – all I need is you. And someone to sign the marriage license,” Tony added as an after-thought. “There’s no reason why we can’t still get married tomorrow, baby.” He added a kiss to his last statement, the press of his lips against Peter’s a silent promise. “I guess we’re getting married tomorrow,” Peter replied with a laugh, his smile covering his cheeks – the sight of it for the first time in a few days lighting Tony’s heart on fire.
It didn’t take much effort to get the group on board with what they had in mind. Instead of walking down the aisle at the small venue, Peter would meet Tony at the bottom of their stairs. And instead of feasting on beef and brisket sliders, Steve and Bucky were going to put together a breakfast feast. It wasn’t the big thing he imagined being able to give Peter – what he felt the man he loved deserved. Yet, he couldn’t stop himself from feeling a little excited, no matter what got them there, Peter was going to be his husband - and there was no other way he could think of spending the rest of his days. He wanted Peter to have all of his time, wanted to know the feeling of losing his mind because of the man for as long he’d have him.
The early part of the next day flew by in a flash. Tony, Steve, and Bruce spent most of the day putting together the backyard of the house. They strung up white fairy lights around the perimeter of the fence to match the awning of the porch. Tony mowed the grass and etched around the fence, determined to make the slushy feel of winter disappear from the yard. The day was luckily not calling for snow, or stupidly cold temperatures, so they’d be able to enjoy some of the evening outside in the beauty of a crisp New York night. They moved all of the wooden furniture to the edge of the porch to make a small square of space where the six of them could dance to the playlist Peter spent a couple of months meticulously putting together.
Before Tony knew it, he was getting himself into his suit – the grey of it making his pale skin and dark hair really stand out. He put a little extra fuss to his hair and even let Steve trim up the sides of his beard that he couldn’t see – Tony wanted to look perfect. With the look pieced together, Tony glanced in the mirror. The cut of the jacket fit his shoulders perfectly and led down to his trim waist. The pants were cut right above his ankle, his socks with Peter’s face on them just barely visible. He laughed when Bruce presented them both with a pair the night before, they were the perfect thing to break up the simplicity. Stepping back, Tony nodded at his reflection, his nervous hands running through his hair – fingers just conscious enough not to ruin the rugged look he was going for. Steve and Bruce flanked his side in the mirror for a moment, the three of them looking smooth – like they were heading to the party of the century, instead of the living room of Tony’s house. Wrapping his arms around them both, Tony couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “Thanks for being here, fellas. Means a lot.” Neither answered, they simply squished Tony between them.
The second Tony saw Peter start to walk down the stairs, he knew it wouldn’t have mattered where they did this – his soon-to-be husband was an absolute vision. The navy looked good on him and the smile that spread his cheeks from ear to ear completed the look – the happiness radiating from him something Tony knew he needed to work hard to keep around. The man was stunning, and it took Tony a second to realize tears were tracking down his cheeks. He couldn’t think about anything other than the fact that with each step he took, Peter got that much closer to becoming Tony’s husband. Their gazes locked, glistening chocolate brown meeting the lighter honey color of Tony’s. Peter’s pace visibly sped up after that, his smile stretching impossibly further.
Peter’s hand slipped seamlessly into the crook of Tony’s elbow and they took the final few steps together – Nat was set up at the far side of the room, the sliding glass doors behind her letting in natural light. Steve and Bruce were set up on Tony’s side and Bucky on Peter’s, the whole crew huddled together for the most important day of their best friends’ lives. Stopping in front of Nat, Tony turned until he was looking directly at Pete, his hand holding the other’s tightly in his own. They didn’t break eye contact – not even when Nat started to talk.
“It’s a little unconventional, this whole wedding. Which, I think is pretty perfect for Tony and Peter. Since I’ve known them, they’ve been the weirdos of the group. They always bring off the wall movies to movie night – and don’t even get me started on the boardgames they pull out when it’s their night to host. In all of my life, I’ve never experienced a couple who walked together in their weirdness – but these two do. Tony owns his love for making things blow up and Peter will not hesitate to talk to you about how many times he’s gotten his hands stuck to the desk because of his latest experiment. There are no two humans that deserve each other more than Tony and Peter do. It’s a true gift to be a part of that tangible love between them – and I can’t wait to see what the future holds. Like this day, like the two of them – their love is unconventional,” Nat’s voice was bright and confident, her eyes roaming between them. “Pete, you’re up.” She finished in a soft tone, everyone in the room now looking at the youngest of them all.
“Tony, I didn’t expect you. You blew into the coffee shop that day and I haven’t been the same. There are so many things about you that drive me insane. You’re bad at picking up your socks, you leave your whiskey glasses all over the place, you never sleep, and you’re always working. You’re irritating and you know it – which makes it even worse. But, without all of that, you wouldn’t be the most caring, lovable asshole I’ve ever met. You’re my strength in the storm, my reason in times of chaos, and the only person on this entire planet I’d pick up after. You love the same way you live – loudly, hard, and with everything you have. I’m lucky that I got your attention and that you haven’t left me alone since. I promise to keep you level and put you to bed when you need it. I can’t wait to watch your hair gray and spend the rest of my life by your side. I’m stuck with you and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I love you, Tony Stark,” Peter’s eyes jumped from the small vow book to Tony’s every few seconds – his voice getting more and more watery the longer he talked.
Tony wiped a hand under his eye, Peter’s words making everyone in the room cry. Sucking in a breath, he chuckled when Nat arched a brow at him, her eyes big and wet, too. “Good luck doing better than that, Tony.”
“I think it’s funny – how much you didn’t expect me. I dreaded heading into that Ethics class every week and then all of the sudden – I’m listening to this voice impart such wisdom. Then I saw you and it was pretty much over for me. You’re the smartest person I’ve ever met, and you have this way of making everyone else see things your way. You’re stubborn, and when you want something, there’s no persuading you otherwise. I can’t wait to argue with you about time in the lab and whose turn it is to do the dishes. You’re the world to me and I’ll take all that comes with that. Pete, you’re everything I didn’t know I was looking for and all that I’ve ever wanted. Our brains together can do anything and today is just the first day of that journey. I promise to keep you safe, happy, and under piles of Legos. I wouldn’t change loving you, hating you, wanting you – for anything. I love you, Petey.”
When Nat finally got around to telling them to kiss, Tony gripped Peter’s cheeks and pulled him close. Their lips met in a kiss that felt different – despite Tony having tasted the other’s lips at least a million times by then. He let a soft groan slip before pulling away – his cheeks a matching shade to Peter’s. Turning around, Tony brought their joined hands to his mouth, his lips brushing the white gold band now settled there.
Later, sitting around the porch with bellies full of delicious breakfast foods, Peter sat in his lap and wrapped his arms around his neck, the position reminiscent of many times before. “Hello husband,” Peter said against his lips, the man’s eyes bright with booze and happiness. Tony pressed another kiss to his lips before answering, “Hey, Mr. Parker-Stark.” He dropped his face into the crease of Pete’s neck, breathing out a sigh of relief. It felt good to finally have his husband in his arms – the day suddenly feeling so long without this closeness. “Now you’re really stuck with me,” Tony rumbled against the skin of Peter’s neck. His lips lingering with each word. He felt Peter’s hands frame his face and pull until they were looking at each other.
“Happily so, husband of mine.”
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smuttymess · 4 years
Text
bts astro soulmate reading | for anon
sign: libra sun | aries moon | libra rising
lover: Min Yoongi | soulmate: Jung Hoseok
This reading is for my cute anon moot. Honestly this one was tough because your chart is quite unique, but I am really happy with how it turned out - I fuckin snapped on this one. I hope you enjoy & it feeds your inner delulu ;)
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A sun in Libra means that your soul craves balance, harmony and peace in your life and your relationships. Due to your caring, optimistic, and encouraging nature you happily boast a large circle of friends and acquaintances who adore you. Generally, you are known as a king person who people can rely on for a vent sesh or some good advice in a pinch. Upholding your integrity and high position in these interpersonal relationships is one of your highest priorities, as you want to maintain the persona you’ve established at all costs. Above all, you want to be respected and loved by those who you are close to and even sometimes those you are not, fearing unsteadiness and turbulence in terms of your image. If your sun sign represents what you want, you moon sign represents what you need. And you, Aries moon, needs fire, excitement, stimulation, and adventure. Your Aries nature is at odds with kind, harmonious Libra, wanting to disrupt, rebel and shake things up. This creates quite an interesting contradiction within your truest self, which desires both balance, security and stability but also independence and unpredictability - a dilemma that you may struggle to find peace with throughout your life.
Charming, attractive and strong, it is likely that you have your share of admirers. You can’t help it (you flirt as easily as you breathe!) plus your slightly mischievous demeanor only makes you more alluring to those you meet. This works out for you nicely, as given your Libra nature you love nothing more than to be adored romantically. One of the most passionate signs in the zodiac, it’s not unlike you to be involved in many romantic relationships, falling in love easily and unabashedly with a variety of people who come into your life. While one day you may envision an a home and a more stable life (your Libra heart at work) that thought can feel somewhat foreign when there are just so many people, places and things to explore.
Your adventurous spirit and joie de vivre makes you the life of the party, the one people call for a good conversation or a night of debauchery. It is not uncommon for your friends to entrust you with scoping out the next opportunity to get into a little trouble, knowing you will find the best option. While your Libra is happy to have a wild night out, your Aries moon usually wants to up the ante - why go to a regular old bar when you could go to a secret, underground lounge that boasts go-go dancers and fire eaters. It is at one of these events, a lavish multi-course dinner at a downtown music venue to kick off a long, eventful night, that your attention is drawn to the stage for the night's entertainment. From the minute you lay your eyes on the performer on stage, his hands gripping the microphone as his piano accompaniment dances through the air, you are fully entranced by the artist. Your Aries moon makes you much more decisive than others who share your sign, and you decide quite quickly that this boy with the black hair and broody mannerisms is what you need. Soon after leaving the stage, you make a flimsy excuse to get his attention, sauntering up to him and immediately making yourself known - his dark, slightly glossy eyes penetrating every inch of you as he introduces himself as Min Yoongi. There is a strong physical attraction here, and when he asks what you're up to after the show, you have no choice but to invite him along to the next spot.
In the hours, days and weeks that follow in getting to know Yoongi, you learn more about the beautiful soul that lies beneath the very strong, masculine persona that owns the stage. As air and water signs, you two connect quickly - fucking after a couple rounds of whiskey back at his place - after which you spend hours tapping into the mind of the soft and creative Min PD. Yoongi is a true Pisces, his caring, romantic and sentimental nature clear very early as he sits back and enjoys simply basking in your company, letting you open up and taking you in as your eyes light up, energetically moving from thought to thought (as you are ought to do). His dreamy, patient and sensitive quality is heightened by his Neptune in Capricorn, providing a softness that makes you fall hard and fast. He is drawn to your demonstrated strength, his more reserved, thinking Virgo Moon latching on to your confident, optimistic Libra Aries duality.  He possess a graceful, calm quality from his Libra Jupiter that you deeply admire, as it is something you seek within yourself. You are both generous, peace-loving people, finding comfort in each other's propensity for pleasing each other. This extends into your sex life as well, which is equal parts passionate and intense.
You and Yoongi are both wired for pleasure and togetherness, and as a duo you are able to satisfy both of these desires, devoting countless hours to daydreaming, cuddling and fucking in his studio or at home. You two enjoy switching up power-play dynamics, you straddling him and pinning his hands to the bed while gently marking his neck to release moans from his lips before he uses his strength to flip you over and return the favor. Your sexual compatibility is not to be understated, the passion both of you possess being some of the most powerful in the zodiac.The concept of time ceases to exist when you find yourself intertwined with Yoongi, his hardness pressed into your center as he grinds against you, his lips expertly tracing your ear, and neck before moving to your breasts to tease your nipples until you're practically falling apart. For however soft and gentle Yoongi is, there is nothing that turns him into an animal quicker than hearing you beg underneath him as his fingers trace lower, slipping in between your thighs and onto your clit. He craves this level of intimacy with you, the moment you melt and truly become his. Say my name baby, I want to hear you.
It is only after months of amazing sex and pillow talk with this dreamy duo that he differences between you become very stark. Yoongi is a diehard romantic at the core, often making decisions in love that are more emotion-based - the main reason why he keeps his Pisces Sun and Mercury quite guarded. You, on the other hand, tend to be wary of commitment and tend to keep things casual and light, your Aries moon wanting freedom and autonomy. This scares Yoongi, who is quite willing to be loyal to the right person and wonders if he can really be enough for your highly sociable and outgoing Libra spirit. This is heightened by your strong need to be around people, receiving stimulation from the outside world, fueling his increased neediness (his Venus in Aries) that eventually transforms into resentment as he cannot see a future wherein you are ready to give it all up just for him. Ultimately, this relationship unable to move past a very intense friends-with-benefits scenario given your places in life, and you both need ample space to heal your wounds after going your separate ways - though you are not alone for long.
A double Libra, the way you present yourself - poised, polished, and elegant - and how you want to be perceived are very much in sync. You exude luxury, and and while your fashions may not be the loudest or most expensive in the room, you know how to make an impression even in a room filled with trendy, designer-clad fashion types. On a particular night out at a gallery opening, dressed in one of your newest thrifted and expertly styled pieces, you find yourself approached by a handsome stranger. Great find. Where did you get that that? Turning around, you are surprised by man who the voice belongs to - a tall, slender gentlemen dressed head to toe in contrasting prints: an asymmetrical color-blocked striped sweater and denim cutoffs paired with orange slides and a green beanie. His look is unusual, something that just anyone could pull off, but it striking nature of his posture and his face that truly has you staring. His hair parted to the side, you're able to take in the full visual of the man: his piercing dark brown eyes, sharp nose and defined jawline. After some light conversation, he offers to grab a drink sometime, which is less of a request than a demand as before you know it he hands you his card, the length of his fingers brushing yours and sending chills up your spine. He flashes you a devilish smirk before exiting the exhibit almost as swiftly as he arrived, prompting you to exhale as you begin to feel the ground beneath you once more.
In the early stages of dating, you two are both delightfully hard to get, the ego of his Aquarius Sun exhilarated by the chase and you turned on by the charming elusiveness of his personality - classic Air sign energy at play. Initially, see each other as enigmas, as things to be explored and conquered. You soon realize that his emotional detachment is merely a facade, a way to protect his fierce independence and ensure he does not get hurt again - something you can relate to quite well. Aquarius Hobi is highly perceptive, quickly able to put a finger on the pulse of who you are and what you want, seeing past your gentle, calm persona and tapping into that very restless, energized and mischievous Aries that beneath the surface of your do-gooder Libra. Initially, what starts as a more physical relationship and attraction to each other's complexity blooms into something much deeper and more profound as you get to learn each others shared insecurities and powerful internal worlds that are constantly thinking and reaching for new challenges. While you typically want to be fawned over and doted on, you enjoy diving beneath his into his independent, strong-willed and no-nonsense exterior (hello director Hobi) and accessing his softer sides - something very few people can do - through intellectual communication and shared experiences in your various social groups. Though slow to commit emotionally, once you are able to tap into his Venus in Pisces, you get to unearth the beauty of his dreamy, playful, sweet and adoring persona, which is in endless supply once he feels that he can trust his heart with your compassionate Libra soul.
By the time you find yourself naked in Hoseok's room for the first time, you are keenly aware that your physical relationship together is a space wherein you will surrender in ways you haven't been able to with anyone else. You in your Libra/Aries combo you possess both masculine and feminine features and an ability to both disarm and enchant but also dominate, but in bed it is Hoseok who more often than not holds the keys to your pleasure. His Aquarius ways makes him one of the least conventional and spontaneous partners in the zodiac, and this paired with his intense and impulsive Jupiter in Scorpio makes him an extremely passionate and engaging lover. He instinctively knows where to touch you to send you over the edge, having an awareness of your body that is almost unnerving - his ego loves knowing he has that control and you enjoy his slight posessiveness, enjoying role play during your regular nights out on the town. There are few things sexier to you than watching his eyes peering over his glass from across a room as he watches you so casually flirt with strangers, his gaze moving from your lips down over the curves accentuated by your outfit fo choice, knowing full well that the same outfit will be ruined within seconds of getting home. Your Aries moon is exhilarated when paired with the inventive Aquarius, who does not even think about fucking you until you've achieved your third consecutive orgasm by his fingers and tongue in the backseat of the car on your way home, you legs draped over his shoulders as he purrs into your folds. It isn't until after he feels satisfied that he unbuckles his pants and thrusts into you vigoursly, hitting your walls as his low voice coos into your ear. Are you thinking about him, baby? You know damn well only I can fuck you like this. Now be a good girl and tell me who you belong to - don't be shy now.
You and Hoseok are like-minded, airy souls, and together you are an extremely sociable and likable pair that enjoys life’s many pleasures and pushing the boundaries of the status quo. You work well as unit to achieve your individual goals, affording each other the delicate balance of freedom and togetherness your signs both truly need in a partnership but few others are able to provide, effectively eliminating the desire to stray. At the end of a long day of independent endeavors, you are both able to come home to each other and keep the fire burning in creative ways - think candlelit nights at home in with a personal chef followed by Hobi tying your wrists up and enjoying you for dessert. Your inner worlds compliment each other: the boundless encouragement of your double Libra serves as a healing tool for his relentless perfectionist and self-critical nature, while his dedication to excellence helps push you away from your indecision and people-pleasing ways and towards your goals. Given your shared taste for novelty and tendency to break from convention, you two may decide to push a traditional life of marriage and family to the back burner for many years, choosing to dedicate your lives to your work and each other as you continue to build, learn, and experience the world around you on your own terms. Together, you create a minimalistic home that serves as a base for you to quickly touch down and recharge before stamping your passport en route to your next delightful adventure.
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otonymous · 5 years
Note
Your Gavin NSFW HCs!! So good so good so good! The game hasn't been out long but all of these boys are already near and dear to my heart. I wreck myself thinking of your HCs for the other three if you wrote them 💦 For now, may I humbly request some NSFW HCs of my (potentially/somewhat) shady sunshine Kiro if you're willing to bless us with trying him out? No worries if you're not taking requests/busy! Just slid in to let know your Gavin HCs lit some fires 🔥🔥
Hello awesome Anon! 💕
Thank you so much for your lovely comments and your incredibly polite ask! 😍 It totally brought a huge smile to my face to know that you enjoyed my Gavin NSFW HCs!  Sorry for the long wait in answering your Ask - I hope you’re cool with Kiro’s NSFW ABCs!  Thanks for reading, and hope you enjoy them 😉
Warning: NSFW/18+: Explicit/graphic language - reader discretion is advised.  TRIGGER WARNING: mentions of smothering & breath play (can be incredibly dangerous - please take a moment to read up on it if you’re curious and practice safe sex in more ways than one!!)
The ABCs of Kiro (MLQC Headcanon - NSFW)
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A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)
This sweetheart has already raided the convenience stores beforehand for your favourite snacks and will lay them before you while you’re still wrapped up in his sheets
Enjoy feeding each other Pocky and chips, laughing and getting to know one another in your post-coital bliss
B = Body part (Their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)
He loves your ears: loves to nibble and suck on the lobes, run his tongue over the shell of your ears, softly serenade you with the sweetest love songs just to watch the tips grow red
Kiro is particularly fond of his lips: he loves licking the salt of potato chips off them, loves using them to feel the heat of your skin as he peppers your body with kisses, absolutely adores it when you come undone from his mouth alone
C = Cum (Anything to do with cum)
Kiro loves to come in you, but he also loves pulling out to lay the head of his cock on your trembling folds just watch his cum paint your pussy; reach a hand down to gingerly smear it all around and Kiro is insta-hard again
He also loves to take you from behind so he can cum on your ass and watch it drip down the curves of your cheeks and onto your thighs
Kiro has a hard time keeping control when you look up to meet his eyes as your tongue peeks out to taste that drop of pre-cum on the head of his cock
D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)
He may or may not have a couple pairs of your clean underwear that he buries his face in while he’s jerking off, thinking of you
They definitely come in handy with his crazy busy schedule and all the traveling he does for work (see “Jack Off” below)
E = Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)
Kiro is quite experienced (especially when it comes to certain kinks)
Prior to meeting the love of his life (i.e. YOU) he has engaged in meaningless sex here and there with some groupies, some members of edgy underground organizations (one of whom introduced him to his kink - see below, under K)
F = Favourite Position
Hands down, 69 is Kiro’s favourite position because he likes to give and receive at the same time
The superstar will keep pulling down on your hips and thighs, trying to get you to rest more of your weight onto his face (see Kink below)
G = Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc.)
There can be a lot of jokes and laughter leading up to the moment, but you can bet that once Kiro gets down to business, he’s never been more serious about anything in his life
Boy can be INTENSE and seriously driven to give you as much pleasure as possible
H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)
Like Victor, Kiro is completely bare (in case the superstar has any wardrobe malfunctions on stage)
But if you MUST know, Kiro is a natural blond
I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)
Kiro is a romantic at heart: he firmly believes in love at first sight, the red thread of fate and the concept of soulmates
From the very moment he laid eyes on you, he knew you were the one and hasn’t looked at anyone else since (and never will)
Even still, he cannot help but feel insecure at times, hating himself whenever he questions whether or not his Evol had any influence on your feelings for him
Hence, sex with Kiro often takes on an incredibly intimate tone and can be more properly referred to as lovemaking: his cerulean eyes will be searching yours as he buries himself deeply inside you, laying his soul bare with every tender word he whispers in your ear, each burning press of his body against yours — he’s expressing the depths of his love and seeking confirmation that you love him as Kiro the man, not Kiro the superstar with his overwhelming charm
J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)
Kiro masturbates quite frequently, close to daily, depending on how tired/busy he is — he finds it hard not to, since you’re never far from his mind
His insane work schedule unfortunately translates into a lot of time away from you, so he often has to rely on himself to release his pent-up energy
Also expect to engage in some mutual masturbation over FaceTime
K = Kink (One or more of their kinks)
Kiro has an oral fixation and lives for you to sit on his face
He’s even cool if there’s a bit of smothering - VERY MILD breath play is something he’s into
He won’t do it to you unless you request it yourself, Miss Chips! (you can bet safe words/gestures will be in full effect)
L = Location (Favourite places to do the do)
Anywhere he can get you alone: with his jam-packed schedule, Kiro has to take advantage of every hour, every minute, every second he has with you
You guys have gotten busy in a variety of places: in his dressing room, a variety of broom closets, hidden behind clothing racks backstage, inside a parked van with tinted windows, in bathroom stalls, on a deserted beach in the middle of the night, etc. — anything goes
M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)
While Kiro loves everything about you, he especially loves the sound of your voice, and finds it absolutely irresistible when you sing a song he penned himself (he’d wonder whether his Evol rubbed off on you)
The man melts to hear you moan with pleasure, so feel free to be as loud as possible whenever you have the luxury to do so
N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn-offs)
I’m just gonna keep it real here: none of the MLQC boys share.  NONE.
O = Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)
This boy likes giving and receiving equally (see Favourite Position above)
Very skilled at eating you out and can happily do so for HOURS (this superstar has had lots of vocal training, including tongue stretches 😉)
P = Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)
If time isn’t an issue, Kiro tends towards slow and sensual because he wants so badly to prolong the moment of physical and emotional intimacy with you
When you’re indulging in a quickie though, the man can snap his hips as fast as a jackhammer and with almost as much force
Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)
While Kiro doesn’t view quickies as ideal, it’s much better than nothing and beggars won’t be choosers
It’s pretty much guaranteed that sex is gonna happen anytime you and Kiro get the chance to meet up in person
R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)
Kiro is totally game when it comes to experimenting (except no additional partners!)
His kink game is strong to begin with: anything you mention he’s likely already tried, so feel free to ask him anything
S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)
With all the recording/filming/concerts/TV appearances/promotions, etc., Kiro has even longer work days than Victor.  You best believe he has the stamina to keep up
He’s also a younger guy and is super fit from rehearsing dance routines all the time, along with his usual sessions at the gym (he’s gotta work off all that junk food after all)
So, if given the time and opportunity, Kiro can go many rounds and doesn’t require much recovery time in between
But don’t worry, the boy’s EQ is so high he would never push you past your comfort level; you wouldn’t even need to say anything and he can read you like an open book
T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)
Kiro doesn’t have any toys for his own use, but as mentioned in Dirty Secret above, he does keep a pair of your panties around to assist him in fantasizing about you when he’s stroking himself
The superstar does have a collection of costumes from movies/dramas he’s filmed in the past and took a particular liking to.  Feel free to peruse and let him know which one you want him to wear 😉
LOVES using toys on you, and is quite open to you using toys on him 
U = Unfair (How much they like to tease)
Kiro likes to tease his lady when she loses at video games, not when she’s in the bedroom (unless you explicitly ask for it)
V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)
Kiro, the singer, can get incredibly loud during the act when he doesn’t have to be discrete
His moans and groans are made 100000000x more irresistible by his beautifully sensual voice
W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)
You’ve inspired every love song he’s written since meeting you
X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)
Kiro has a nice cock, average girth and slightly above-average in length
He is cut and curves very slightly to the right
Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)
Kiro had a high sex drive to begin with, but it has shot through the roof since meeting you
His mind can’t help but drift to more sensual matters whenever he sees you or even thinks of you 
Much of this is tied to the strength of his feelings for you; oftentimes he finds that words just aren’t enough to express how much he loves and desires you so he tries to show you with both his words and actions
The man does try to suppress his thirst, as he doesn’t want to scare you off
Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)
Kiro tends to pass out immediately after sex, but only for 5-10 minutes before he’s completely energized again and ready to go, as if he took a power nap
If you’re up for another round, so is he!  But if you’ve had enough, Kiro will break out the post-coital snacks (see Aftercare above) and maybe toss you a gaming console controller, smirking as he climbs back under the sheets with you
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pursuedbyworms · 4 years
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why the fisher king is my favorite episode of criminal minds (i’m referring to parts one and two this whole time, i just combine them in my head)
(also read as: joey feels like rambling)
as a whole overview, the fisher king is an intriguing mystery with codes, clues, and old-timey medieval references that the bau gets wrapped up in with the goals of rescuing a kidnapped girl
let me just say, i love the mystery. i think it’s the most well-crafted out of all the episodes. it has all these aspects: the individual packages/messages everyone got sent, an ominous introduction to their “quest”, and many, many puzzle pieces that are all connected. the way it’s all presented, as a quest for the knights at the round table, really hits the spot for me, since i’m really into that kinda thing and the minute a sword is seen my cryptid brain goes “mmm!” the whole concept of the clues leading to this book, the collector, that needs to be used in order to solve this coded message is genius and epic. before we knew anything, we were presented with this wild array of clues: a rare butterfly, an obscure baseball card, and a head in a box (that one isn’t related to the collector but it’s still one of the best ways to ruin a date night). also, skeleton keys. i just think they’re neat. 
anyway, enough of me rambling about the complexity of the mystery. now let’s talk about the other aspect of this episode that is done really well: the character development. this ep introduces reid’s mom, which adds a significant piece to his character and shows us this new side of him. we’re also presented with the character conflict when elle gets shot, which can be seen as a result of gideon pushing the press conference despite being specifically told not to. gideon obviously is shown blaming himself, causing him to stay at the hospital to be there for elle. elle getting shot also shows us how characters like morgan and jj react to this kind of thing, since up until this point in the show there hasn’t been anything like that. (nevermind, there actually has at least a few times. but nothing has been quite as dire as this, unless you’re counting derailed, which i kind of do now that i think of it.) i think these kind of episodes are really important, since they show how much the team really cares about one another. (the other example coming to mind rn is that one where prentiss and reid get trapped in that cult compound, which is another one of my favorites. god, there are so many examples of this kind of thing, which is just another reason why i love this show so much.) oh! this is an edit later on because i just remembered elle’s whole afterlife-airplane conversation with her dad, which provides us with some backstory! man, shows like criminal minds sure love tossing in those scenes with characters’ dead relatives/friends/whatever when they’re in a near-death situation. anyway i think this one was a pretty good one, even if it seemed random.
so.. we have an epic mystery unraveling AND character development? what else can there be? ah, yes, let’s discuss the ending. (and by ending, i mean the part where they go to the house till the end of the ep.) i think this is a very strong conclusion to a really great case, leaving the audience feeling satisfied. we have a good scene with reid confronting the unsub, and then an explosion, and then the whole scene of them figuring out where rebecca is and saving her right before the house burns and crumbles to the ground. it’s great! (and then there’s the finishing scenes after that paired with the real good song by five for fighting that i just adore.) i bring up the ending of this mainly because it’s, again, satisfying. unlike one of my other favorite cases, the replicator. listen, i love that case. i just think it was building to something grand, and the conclusion we got felt anticlimactic and rushed. (except for that one epic scene with rossi saying “zugzwang,” that is absolutely gold.) it left me feeling unsatisfied, sure, the case was solved and everything turned out okay (well except for strauss...), but i never got to see a real confrontation with the unsub, a confrontation including everyone. plus, the whole thing of blake-getting-taken-and-trapped was met with a real stupid solution with no real consequences and then they just straight up left the building?? it was that easy?? i also think they could’ve gone farther with the helicopter getting controlled, but i’ve been talking about the replicator for too long so i’ll just save it for another day. 
other misc notes: 
- anderson. listen, i love this minor character. you can tell that he was crying after finding out that elle was shot, he clearly cares about the team. (my point is just further proven as the show progresses, anderson is the real g.) he’s definitely good at his job, too, he just made a mistake (granted, hotch and gideon also made mistakes). but yeah, no one is to be blamed for elle getting shot except the fisher king and his freddy krueger lookin’ ass.
- the shot of reid diving while the room explodes behind him is kind of ridiculous but i still think it’s great. also, it is hilarious that he is clearly covered in a bit of soot back at the bau while morgan and hotch just Aren’t.
- we get two examples of characters with awful handwriting: gideon and his illegible markings and reid’s scrawly-ass letters. it’s peak representation for us lads with poor handwriting.
- did i already mention the sword? because it’s freakin’ rad. 
- elle’s anger/sarcasm while being interrogated is so hilarious and very in character for her.
- there’s some good n’ funny dialogue in this episode, including the garcia quote “your mom read you valentine’s day poems? hello, therapy.” 
in conclusion, the fisher king is by far the best, most well-crafted episode/case of criminal minds. i simply adore it. also, season one is the best season of criminal  minds. 
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Been feeling under the weather all day so I finally started SWSH and put a couple hours into it here are some of my initial thoughts:
Chairman Rose: Welcome to the world of Pokemon! Me: Oh you’re definitely the bad guy. I’m definitely gonna have to kick your butt at some point I just know it
Ok first of all I just want to say I frickin love the poses I can do for my trainer card and the SECOND I saw this one I actually shouted “YES” out loud. Everyone, meet ya girl Orion. (I’ve since updated my shirt and tweaked a few things but I forgot to take a picture of that).
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I love all the starters, but Soccer Is My Life so Scorbunny won me over (Grookey was a close second though)
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I’m weak to bunny fistbumps.....
Hop is a sweetheart and I already know by the end of this game I'm gonna be crying...Hop you're trying so hard to be the best like your bro but I've been playing this game since before you were born, YOU HAVE NO CHANCE....
Hop's mom and my character's moms as soon as Hop and I are gone: FINALLY let's go have ladies night *high-fives*
Leon: *appears with his stupid ad-riddled cape and white booty shorts over white pants look* Me: gosh I can't believe how much smut I've seen of this dude on twitter Me after playing the game for 15 minutes: Oh he’s a handsome idiot, that’s why.
I booked it to the first clothing store I saw to change outfits, why you killing me with expensive fashion stuff SWSH???? Let me be a cheapskate in this game I’m begging you I DON’T WANNA PAY $20 FOR A SHIRT IRL OR IN A VIDEO GAME
It was actually super cool seeing all the gym leaders walk out an get introduced but for a moment I was like “Oh shoot am I gonna fight them all here??? Right now??? I mean I totally could but that sucks that I don’t get to go to different cities / gyms” and then the celebration ended and I was like “Oh ok then” lmao.
Which also begs the question: did all the gym leaders (minus one) just come on out specifically to walk across the stage and show off? Man no wonder Goth Gym Leader dude stayed home, I would’ve too
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I forgot fighting gal wasn’t in this game.... :( I’m sorry fighting girl you were really cute but unfortunately the Galar Unicorn was also cute and I need me one of those
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The only reason I know this dude’s name is because everyone ships him with Leon. His sly smile is really cool and I instantly liked him because he seems like he’ll be a fun character (also I have a dragon trainer bias) but then he whipped out his Rotom phone and took a selfie and that cracked me right up
Marnie was so much sweeter than I thought she'd be omg???? I'd die for you sweet goth girl
Bede (or as I like to call him, the Pink British Bastard): OHOHO YOU THINK YOU'RE TOUGH ENOUGH TO DEFEAT ME? Me, oneshotting every single one of his Pokemon: yeah dude
Man I can tell I’ve been playing too much BOTW because my first reaction at seeing the wild area was “Wow that’s kinda small”
I did discover the other half of it later though so I’m somewhat mollified. I love the concept of it though! The only downside is if I see 10 of the same Pokemon in a bunch of grass I’m a little less-inclined to explore that section.
I wasn’t too impressed with the Dynamaxing thing when I first saw the ads for it but it seems fine (I still prefer the Mega-Evos though). I encountered one of the “Special” Raids while nyrooming around the Wild Area too so that was fun.
I'm always worried about under-leveling so I wound up dinking around in the wild area WAYYYY too long and over-leveled my starter and every other pokemon I had lmao
Speaking of, here's my current team layout:
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I swapped out my Yamper a bit ago because I found a yellow glowy one and I already feel super bad.....Yamper I love you but GOOD STATS....
I genuinely feel HORRIBLE about switching her out for this new dude I'M SORRY COMPETITIVE POKEMON BREEDING IN XY HAS RUINED ME FOR POKEMON I'LL TRY NOT TO DO THIS TOO MUCH
Me seeing a tympole: Juliana!!! :D The same tympole: *zooms towards me at terrifying speeds* Me: JULIANA NO
I keep stopping Scorbunny (King Kazuma) from evolving because I DONT WANT MY BABY TO GO THROUGH HIS GRUMPY TEEN PHASE YET HES SO CUTE
The curry minigame things are so much fun please let me cook more  in video games I love it...
I think my biggest complaint so far is I wish soft-resetting was faster. I love all the “we’ll heal your Pokemon!” folks and the wandering Pokemon, that’s cool (and the little details like the Key Item Escape Rope and the reminders on the map of where I’m supposed to be going at the moment) and the instant access to the PC box. 
UH OK ONE MORE THING: I JUST RAN INTO AN EEVEE AND UHHHH THAT”S NOT WHAT YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO SOUND LIKE LITTLE BUDDY, DO YOU NEED TO SEE A VET?
Man that’s a bummer, I actually loved Eevee’s old cry. I’m assuming this was a switch after Let’s Go Eevee / Pikachu.
Wild Budew: *uses Worry Seed on my Yamper The Game: Yamper acquired Insomnia! Me, laughing hollowly: Me too
It’s gotten to the point where my Pokemon are so over-leveled I’m legit worried they’ll stop listening to me THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE...WHY DID I DINK AROUND IN THE WILD AREA FOR SO LONG...I’m actively avoiding trainers / pokemon battles trying to get to this dang gym
Milo: Can’t wait to see you at the stadium! :) Me, with my severely over-leveled team and OP fire-type starter Pokemon: Haha yeah....me too
Me: FINALLY the Gym is in sight! Hop: Actually you need to go somewhere else first! Me, shaking him by his shoulders: HOP YOU DON”T UNDERSTAND, I HAVE SIX MINOR-GODS ON MY TEAM I NEED A BADGE TO CONTROL THEM
“All companies running ads are owned by Mr. Rose” oh yeah he’s definitely a bad guy
Aw the little Grass-gym mission is cute, that’s a kinda fun new addition to the gym battles haha.
WHY are the NPC trainer dudes at the Grass gym so CUTE
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Aw Milo is cute
“You can now catch Pokemon up to level 25!” ONLY 25??? You’re killing me SWSH
I like that the badges are all pieces of a puzzle! Neat little detail.
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