#I want the costumes to be FUN to look at goddamnit!

[affixjoy]

I just watched Star Trek: The Motion Picture and it was somehow better and worse than I expected?

My first and most important thought: the viewing experience was improved so much by having read @gunstreet’s very excellent fic The Promised Land. I highly recommend it!

Some things I loved:

💫 Bones! And his groovy little disco outfit! They really pulled him right off the dance floor and onto The Enterprise.

💫 Spock! And his dashing black cape. This feels like his Princess Di revenge dress moment and I’m not mad about it.

💫 Kirk’s face when Spock shows up. The angst and hope is just *chef’s kiss*

💫 Kirk changing into the skimpiest version of the uniform he can find the second he knows Spock is back. You know what he really wanted to wear was that low cut green one from TOS.

💫 The whole “This simple feeling” scene was really sweet and lovely. It was so good to see Spock come back to himself after that.

💫 The terror of it all. Watching those people get lost in the transporter beam felt more violent than any death on TOS. There was so much haunting tension!

💫 Just Bones in general. I don’t know guys, maybe I’m just in my Leonard McCoy phase but every time he was on screen I was 200% more interested in whatever was happening.

And some things I really hated:

💫 Those bland uniforms should be thrown in the incinerator. Where is the color? Where are the stupid (affectionate) little short black pants and boots? What is this sad beige nonsense.

💫 Just way too much spaceship porn. I get it, you have a bigger budget now and you want to compete with Star Wars or whatever. The art itself is great! But you could probably cut an hour of space views out.

💫 Where is my joy? Where is my fun? So much of this movie is grim and serious. Kirk is so SAD for most of it. I want more banter or something. I get that that probably wasn’t the tone they were trying to go for, but imo that’s such a big strength of TOS and they should have tried to liven things up a little. Put in an extra dash of wonder.

Overall I didn’t hate it, but I probably would have liked a heavily edited version more.

[juneknight]

In the spirit of missing dorm room Marc: maybe something fun like them going to a costume party, maybe matching, maybe in a couples costume, with colossal tension because of the implications of going matching? Anything that’s fun for you and is written by you is fun to read tbh

The exact moment you realize you’ve fucked up is this one: the bathroom door opens (a rush of steam and humidity flooding out, scented softly of Marc’s shower gel the one you use every now and then just to have his scent on you) and Marc comes out dressed nearly in the full costume that you had thrust into his arms a half-hour ago. The look in his eyes lets you know right away; you’ve overplayed your hand. 

Now he knows that you’re in love with him. 

“We don’t have to do this,” you backpedal. “Actually, this was a bad idea—” 

You bite off your own words, aware of how offensive they might seem, but Marc doesn’t look offended. He has paused to lean against the bathroom doorway—god he looks good, the holster sitting so low on his cocked hips, it’s enough to make you drool—and watch your frantic pacing, the white robe you’ve donned swishing around your ankles. You immediately sense that he’s doing That Thing, the one where he doesn’t speak and lets you dig yourself into a deeper hole. 

Well two can play at that game. You flop down on your bed and bury your face in your hands. How’s that for silence. You can barely hear his slow, careful footsteps over the ruckus in your brain, all your internal voice telling you that you had dug your own grave, you had fucking coordinated these costumes and now your feelings for him—for your best, closest friend—were plainer than day. 

The bed depresses as he sits down next to you. 

“You okay?” 

You shake your head. 

“You ever coming out of there?” 

You press your hands against your face tighter. 

His breath brushes your fingertips, his forehead resting against your temple as he whispers: “Is there room for me in there too?” 

“I didn’t even think when I bought the costumes, Marc, I swear.” 

“You didn’t?” 

“No!” 

He hums. 

“The couple’s costumes were buy-one-get-one-half-off, and so I spent most of time in that part of the shop anyway.” He hums again. “I saw mine first and I thought—wow, I’d look really good in that! Not that you don’t look really good in yours too—” He hums. Goddamnit, he’s doing The Thing again! “Marc, say something, you know I’m prone to nervous rambling, this isn’t fair—” 

“I think…we’re going to be late for the party if we sit around much longer.” 

You peek from your hands. “You still want to go? With me dressed like this? And you dressed like that? But people will think things. Most people who show up together and are dressed in couple’s costumes are…together.” 

“We should get together soon, then,” he says mildly. “Like now. Or on the walk to the party. We could get together outside Harrow’s apartment while we wait for him to open the door, but that’d really be pushing it. I’m more of a safe-than-sorry kind of guy.” 

You blink. “You. Say that again.” 

“You say it, actually. I want to hear you say it.” 

Your hands fall to your lap, tugging at the ends of your sleeves. You’ve always heard that the eyes are the windows to the soul, but you hadn’t really believed that until you met Marc. Sure his eyebrows are expressive, and the crinkles at the corners of his eyes let you know that he is happy, but there’s something about his eyes themselves—warm and dark and so fucking safe—that can look at you and see inside you and somehow love what they see. 

“Marc, I really like you,” you murmur hesitantly. 

He has the perfect opportunity to say it, to say the most notable Han Solo line in all of cinema. I know.

“I really like you too,” he says softly. “Let me get the vest on. Gotta complete the look.” 

And when he does complete the look, it is a sinful one. Yes as a little girl you had had a huge crush on Han Solo (and Luke, Leia’s plight truly resonated with you). Seeing his image come to life over the blueprint of the man you are (swiftly) falling in love with is a recipe for a cocktail of feelings in your belly. Arousal. Fondness. Adoration. Desire. 

“Ready, Leia?�� he asks, holding out a hand to you. 

You let out a breath you’d been holding since he opened the bathroom door. You take his hand. “Ready.” 

[wormbraind]

wanna write an AU where aisha dies instead of alec (not necessarily in new Delhi btw). i feel like the fact that he was the one to die was appropriate and ultimately pushed aisha to do some good things but goddamnit i want to see my blorbo sufferi kind of wonder how he'd react since alec's natural response to trauma is to become even more dead inside. he probably wouldn't get much time to be upset before he became an emotional black hole

would be interesting if taylor looked at brian, very obviously grieving his sister, and then alec, who i figure is either deceptively chill or even more obnoxious but is certainly not displaying his emotions in the Proper Neurotypical Way so taylor just goes oh there's alec 'sociopath' vasil for you! never even really cared about aisha! alec would most definitely not make good decisions. i need more time to think about what bad decisions he would make and how it would go but this would be so fun to write (local man giggles and kicks his feet while writing about fifteen-year-old boy he relates to a little too much suffering)

little thing. maybe alec modifies his costume in honor of aisha. a more twisted mask and more grays maybe

[sunriseverse]

finished the fourth episode of zmyx so you will, unfortunately, all be hearing my thoughts so far.

to start off, the show looks really good! the aesthetics are on point, the lighting and staging is good, and the costuming is lovely. it takes a minute to get going, and at first i assumed it was some sort of esports show a la qzgs, with the cgi wolves, but aside from that, there isn’t really an issue.

on the topic of costuming—i really enjoy the distinct aesthetics each character gets from the very start! ljs with a very casual, somewhat untidy appearance, and rbj/rnz (not sure if he’ll be using his novel canon name later or not, so i’ve added both for posterity) in hanfu that initially made me assume this was a transmigration into a period drama novel. i think rbj’s hanfu is a replacement for the novel canon crossdressing, since they can’t…….well, you know. (oh, crossdressing, you will be missed! more reason for me to actually read the novel.) but hey, as a hanfu enthusiast, i’m not complaining. would love to know how he knows how to use a sword, though.

as for characters—the chemistry between hjj (yes, the hjj, of reunion fame—i initially recognised him and then dismissed it, because surely not, yes? but no, dmbj is in everything) and rbj’s actor is very good! i wasn’t sure exactly what i would be getting, since it is a censored adaptation, but the two of them really click. rbj is, i think, going to be my favourite, because he has a bit of a sh!era wx feel about him—he’s smiling on the surface, but underneath that he is dangerous. i would also love to know what’s up with lqs’ hearing?? my first thought when it happened was “oh, local man experiences autism for the first time!” but it appears to actually just be a character trait, which is cool. lqs also feels a little like wx to me, but an early era wx, which is amusing, considering hjj’s dmbj role—he’s inexperienced, and sometimes reckless, but he does, actually, have a thought process behind what he does, even if it’s just that he wants to help someone.

in terms of how romantic it is—i’m only four episodes in, but—very. i would honestly put it up with shl in terms of how explicit it is? which is kind of amazing, and makes me assume they’ll cut a LOT before it gets rereleased. rbj calls lqs his wife out loud (after another character takes a stab at them and asks if lqs is rbj’s wife outside the door, but still), gives him a ring because “it’s something [i] wanted to give you outside the door” (probably plot relevant, but who cares), and they share a bed, canonically, onscreen (this one doesn’t have an explanation. there quite literally was only one bed). also, there’s just a lot of general Vibes, in the vein of “these two people immediately fall into synch around each other”. and rbj makes lqs carry him, multiple times.

the episodes are also all under twenty minutes so far, which is good, because there’s almost eighty episodes, and as a very busy person with an adult life, i could not fit this in any other way. closing notes are: very fun, can’t wait to see how the plot evolves, and, goddamnit, am i going to have to read another hundred-plus chapter novel????

overall, i am giving it……..8.75/10, with points detracted for the lack of onscreen crossdressing and so far lacking in cat appearances (lizi we love you). why, aiqiyi, why????

[onceuponaoneshotfanfic]

Oh my goodness! I feel so honored! Thank you for all the love and kindness!

To celebrate, send me a character and a quote from the list below, and I'll write a little blurb to go with it! Obviously I love writing for Roy Kent, but check out my Masterlist if you want to see anyone else I enjoy writing for (or you can suggest someone! No guarantees but hey, maybe I'll find someone new to write for!).

**EVENT CLOSED**

(Quote sources are linked)

“Okay, maybe I have a crush on you! So what?” 

“You haven’t changed at all.” 

“I can’t believe you remembered.” 

“You used to have feelings for me. Admit it.”

“I don’t want them. I want you.”

"You're so cool, it makes me hate you so much."

"I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you."

"Maybe I don't quite know what to say, but I'm here in your doorway."

"No, you idiot. I love you."

"I can't not love you. It's just not in me... crap, did I say that out loud?"

"I'm so scared that you'll never want to hold my hand again... and your hand is the only hand I want to hold."

"What makes you think I want to kiss you?"

“ just come over. “

“ i wouldn’t have called you if it wasn’t important. “

“ truth is that i’m so damn in love with you that i don’t know what to do with myself. “

“ may i have this dance? “

“ so… is this like, a thing now? “

“ do you think we should move in together? you spend all your time here anyway. “

❛ i can’t get enough of you. ❜

❛ i’m not jealous. ❜

❛ i won’t bite. unless you’re into that sort of thing. ❜

❛ what are you looking at? ❜

❛ are you wearing my shirt? ❜

❛ don’t mind me. just enjoying the view. ❜

"Are you joking?" "If I were you would be laughing."

“I could kiss you right now!” "You're very welcome to it."

“Why are you blinking like that with your eyes? Is everything ok?” “That was supposed to be a wink!”

“I like your costume, you look very cute.” “Are you making fun of me?”

“Aww, you’re blushing. I like that look on you.”

“Annoying you is what I’m best at.”

“You’re very lucky I love you.”

“Are you trying to flirt with me?” “Yes. Is it working?”

"You think I would be here if I didn't love you?"

"You have no idea just how much you mean to me."

"Goddamnit, I love you! Alright? Happy now? You figured out the big secret."

"You did this to me! You made me fall fucking head over heels for you."

"You're my bestfriend! We shouldn't- I shouldn't be feeling like this. Fuck."

i'm in my bed, you're in your bed. one of us is in the wrong place.

i fall for your smile every single time.

i don't want comfortable. i want passion.

“you know my mum likes you more than me, her own child” “can’t really blame her”

“my sister thinks that we’re dating”

I never had anyone to call my own.

What am I supposed to say when someone asks me if I still miss you?

"you’ve given me so many memories, i'd hate it if you become one"

"Does that mean we can finally kiss now?"

“you’re going on a date?” “well yeah..it’s not like we’re exclusive or anything right?” “yeah..yes ofc not” “yeah”

“we were never just friends, we aren’t just friends, and we will never be just friends”

“i always had a thing for you”

“could you..do that again?”

“how drunk were we?”

“you have NO IDEA how long i’ve wanted to do that” “you have no idea how long i’ve wanted you to do that”

"if we loved again, i swear i'd love you right."

"i wonder why we bother with love if it never lasts."

"cause i see sparks fly whenever you smile."

everything will be alright if you keep me next to you

i've been loving you for quite some time

i don't want to dance if i'm not dancing with you

they don’t know how much i miss you

“I’ve got a bit of a past.” “I don’t care.”

“See him? He’s mine. You know what that means? Back the hell up.”

“please don’t be in love with someone else. please don’t have somebody waiting on you”

“I can’t even listen to my favourite song without thinking about you!”

“He’s so perfect… and he doesn’t even know it.”

‘  we  were  something,  don’t  you  think  so  ?  ’

‘  if  my  wishes  came  true,  it  would  have  been  you.  ’

‘  i  don’t  quite  know  what  to  say,  but  i’m  here  in  your  doorway.  ’

‘ i  don’t  know  anything,  but  i  know  i  miss  you. "

[whatisbraincells]

A very unhinged Quantumania review(SPOILERS)

WHERE TO START

RYAN BERGARA?!?!

BILL MURRY?!?!

DAVID DASTMALCHIAN?!?!?

WILLIAM JACKSON HARPER!?!???

LOKI AND MOBIOUS?!?!?

Anyway-

Something I noticed is most of the quantum realm has a warm color scheme(reds, oranges, yellows and browns) including the landscapes and clothing and Kang and his army have cool colors(blues, greens and purples) like they’re armor and abilities which is some cool use of color to signify that Kang is a colonizer conqueror

I adore Kang’s costume design

The mask making his face blue like the comics and the realistic yet futuristic textures

Cassie>>>>>>

She’s such a realistic child of superhero.

She just wants to join in

She’s a sweetie

She also reacts very queerly to Jentorra

I adore Scott and Hope’s relationship! It’s also very grounded and realistic. They’re in love and they live together and Hope is basically Cassie’s step mom and it’s not a big deal.

CASSIE CALLS HANK AND JANET HER GRANDPARENTS

They’re a family goddamnit

Scott went to dinner with Jimmy!

Scott Lang is the best mcu dad I will not take any criticism

I like Janet’s arc, it’s so interesting to learn more about her life and her regrets

Most of the fights would’ve gone by quicker if Scott and Cassie had stingers

I know it’s not like something ants have but like they have no long range attacks

In the scene where all the Scotts make a mountain is similar to how some species of ants work

HANK PYM AUTISTIC ICON

His special interest is ANTS

The line “she wasn’t you, baby” fucking hurt

THE PARALLELS BETWEEN JANET AND HOPE AND SCOTT AND CASSIE.

Scott and Cassie are very physically affectionate and I love that

The ending felt a little clunky but I’m glad Scott didn’t die bc Paul Rudd is a sweetie

I think we could’ve spent less time on action and more on quantum realm world building but it’s a marvel movie and I’m a clown

The quantum realm world design and species designs is so fucking cool. It’s so interesting to look at

“Is that building alive?” “Your’s are dead?!?”

“STOP ASKING ABOUT HIS HOLES SOME OF US HAVE HOLES.” William your line delivery always gets me

The living buildings do kinda look likes dicks tho

“It’s not to late to not be a dick” “Look at me I’m such a dick”

MODOK being Darren took me so off guard but I loved it.

Jonathan Majors’ acting is brilliant

He made me feel kinda bad for him, or at least understand him

Michelle Pfeiffer’s line delivery felt a bit stale, but the emotions were there. She did a great job at playing someone who wasn’t able to genuinely trust others or show her feelings for 30 years.

Evangeline Lily is a darling and I adore that Hope’s character isn’t performative in her badassery

Kathryn Newton is a badass and a sweetheart as always

Michael Douglas is awesome at the old scientist who just really likes ants and his family

And Paul Rudd is amazingly loveable and soft as Scott, of course. His main motivation has always been Cassie and Paul Rudd sells the fuck outta that.

All the side actors a great(William Jackson Harper in particular but that is biased bc I’m a Chidi stan)

This is a movie about family, as many of the phase 4 projects have been. It’s about protecting your family and what you will do for those you love.

(i mean it’s no tlou but yk)

I found the pacing a bit off

But I loved the ending(anxiety icon Scott)

victorianwowkivictorianwowki victorianwowkivictorianwowki victorianwowkivictorianwowki

I’d give it an 8/10 definitely a fun watch

[gaytwirights]

So like. Thoughts on the yyh live action (spoilers but like. That's obvious)

Tbh. The pacing was kinda rushed and I didn't like the wigs. But aside from that, it was a very enjoyable experience

Would I recommend it to someone who hasn't seen the original? Lmao absolutely not. I feel like this was an adaptation made for the people who were already fans. Certain characters (one of whom was simultaneously my bisexual awakening and my transgender awakening) were less focused on, which would make their impactful moments less,,,, impactful for a new viewer

I feel the biggest issue is that there are so few episodes that they couldn't get a whole series' worth of familiarity with the characters. Kurama's and hiei's big powerups happened in season two, and that's what made those moments so cool. By that point, we were already familiar with the characters (and thousands of filipino youth, myself included, had become bisexual because of dennis), so we got excited when these characters we already loved got cool powerups

All that said, the way they chose to compress the story was very cool. I really don't have much to say, aside from that. It was just really fun to watch all these familiar elements get put together in a new and exciting way. Even as someone who's been a fan since I was young, I was still caught off-guard by the changes and still found myself on the edge of my seat

And on that topic, the emotional moments really hit hard, and are really good at showing the depth of the characters, even within 5 episodes. When yusuke bad to fight his schoolmate, he was trying to get the demon insects out of him until the very end. When kuwabara finally broke the rock, it was because he wanted to be able to defend the people he cares about. The way yusuke and kurama had that common theme of dying and leaving their mothers to grieve (and it never gets brought up again!!! But we appreciate it nevertheless 😌). Parallel of yusuke and toguro had me tearing up tbh

And let me just say, I SCREAMED when hiei showed yukina his necklace. I've been waiting for this moment since I was GRADE THREE GODDAMNIT

And also, as much as I hated the wigs, I really liked what they did with yusuke's and kurama's costumes. The change to yusuke's costume was small -- they really just had him wear his uniform top open, rather than closed -- but it gave him a more 'casual' appearance. He really did look the part of a highschool delinquent, someone who doesn't care about rules or customs (like wearing your uniform properly). And as for kurama's costume, I loved that they used a fabric with a flower brocade for (what seems to be) his designated outfit for demon business. They really went for the flower motif, and I 100% support. However I would have appreciated if they spent a little bit more of the costuming budget on getting my boy a good wig

I also liked what they did with keiko's character. In the original she was just kinda a love interest, which. I mean. Fuck me for expecting a personality from a woman in a 90s anime. But here, there's some rough edges to her that made me think, right, she's yusuke's childhood friend

Another thing I liked is how they did the fight scenes. Here's the thing, a good chunk of the cast are teenagers. And they have to face off against various yokai. Yokai who happen to be much stronger than them. Even considering their shooty slashy boom boom magic, they have to really strategize how they're gonna attack. I really love how they had the characters really make use of their surroundings. Vehicles!! Metal doors!! It was so cool!!

Finally. Effects pretty 💛 there were some gay moments which I super appreciated 💛 but they should've brought a child in to play koenma

[toxic-potions-productions]

Preparations at its finest

Dave: Okay, everyone's invited, presents are wrapped, decorations are on their way.....Whew! I think that's all there is to prepare for 75's birthday tomorrow. Now, I just need to find that costume I wanted to surprise her with for more "private" fun. Let's see....

*10 minutes of scrolling through the internet later...*

Dave: Hmmmmm! 빌어먹을! (Goddamnit!) There's no good costumes! I just wanna find the best one! ...........!! Hello, what's this?

*Sexy Naga roleplay costume, same day delivery*

Dave: !!!!! Oooooooh~! This looks good. I know how much she loves her Nagas. & it's gonna be delivered in a few hours after ordering it?? & it looks incredible! ..........You've charmed me. *Orders it*

*Thank you for your purchase! Arriving at about 4:00-4:30.*

Dave: Hehehehe. This is gonna be a great birthday.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dave is the king of spoiling his misses, prove me wrong

Happy early birthday, 75~! 💙🧡💙🧡

[konako]

Bouncing off of Ruby in horror, what's she and her girl(s) planning for Halloween costumes?

Fun! Well, are we talking last-minute costumes, or an entire month of planning behind it? Are they coordinating to match costumes, is it a pair, does it only make sense when they're together? Lots to consider.

But if it's Ruby, alone, a last minute thing (last minute, last minute thing): She's buying some cheap plastic fangs and telling everyone she's a vampire. That red thing on the corner of her mouth might be syrup, or it might be actual blood. Only when Dorothy kisses her, she'll know the difference. Either way, she likes it when it gets on everything...

If it's Red Kansas, only pretending they gave the costumes much though, then Dorothy is all dressed in her usual blue, wearing Ruby's red cape, telling people she's Superman. Don't worry, Toto is Krypto. Ruby found a notepad and is pretending she's Lois Lane. (Though Belle would be more convincing...)

If they actually planned it ahead, then they're Artemis and Apollo, because Ruby is kind of nerdy when you give her the chance. And Dorothy wanted to bring her crossbow to the party... (If no one gets it, they have a back-up plan)

Belle is NOT doing anything at the last minute. She only learned what Halloween was about in August, and she's already came up with what they're going as: WandaVision, wait no, that's not right. Lois Lane and Superman! What? This one is taken, too? Um. What about: from one of Belle's favorite novels, 1988's Silence Of The Lambs: Clarice Starling! ............... Wait. What's— Oh. No, yeah. She sees the problem. Sherlock Holmes and Watson then?

Snow thought Halloween was weeks away. She lost track of time. She was busy celebrating Emma's birthday! What now? Fuck. Well, Belle gave her an idea. They're going as Mary and The Lamb. From Mary Had a Little Lamb. Naturally! Snow is Mary, of course, easy. Ruby is the Lamb. Funny, of course. Wait, that's the lyrics about again?

Mulan doesn't understand Halloween. Dressing up as... other people? Do they mean, like... fictional people? Doesn't that get confusing in Storybrooke? Oh, okay, you can dress up as monsters, too. But... that doesn't really help either, does it? Mulan is having a hard time wrapping her head around it. Ruby says it's okay, they can dress up as objects, too — weird concepts, even. It's just about having fun and being creative. So... Mulan decided she's going as a Rubik's Cube. A... Rubik's Cube. Ruby should have seen that coming, when she bought her that last month. Well, okay. So I guess Ruby is going as... The red side? No, that's stupid. What can go with a Rubik's Cube, goddamnit? A chess board? At least it's got squares... Ah, shit, they could have gone as Chess Pieces! Mulan, is it too late to change your mind?!

Regina refuses to dress up for Halloween. Henry is all grown-up now, her Trick-or-Treating days are finally over! She's past that. She's a serious, mature— She is dating Ruby Lucas now, so that's up for debate still. And, okay, that party sounds fun. At least it will give them an excuse to hold hands in public, and then sneak back to the mansion to have some private fun. Okay. But she's not dressing up as some wild, ridiculous thing. Isn't there a long black dress she can wear? Morticia, that's her name. Can't she be that? Ruby would look so handsome in a suit, kissing up her arm. Regina makes that suggestion. And Ruby wonders if she's heard of this other character called... what's her name? Countess... something. Lady Alcina? Dimitrescu...?

[benchisanidiot]

I've watched the first episode of the atla live action now, and I am not impressed so far. The first 20 minute exposition dump is giving us information that would have been learned organically trough like 2 and a half seasons of interactions and cunning and the characters actually DOING things. Which is another point that a lot of the things that happen in the first episode of the netflix season just sort of. happened. Not as a result of the characters having motivations and personalities and relationships that made THem affect the plot. Which was a core part of the original show and part of why I think so many people love it; the focus is not so much on lore or plot but on the characters and their relationships. The lore and plot is very much still there they just aren't primarily what drives the show forwards and creates tension and release. The netflix show so far has lacked that, and it shows. It's boring at times, there's practically no comic relief, they just kinda made Sokka a doofus who's also a bit mean. They never show the characters Caring for others or for themselves or for the world. They just sort of say it without showing it to be true. It lacked that whimsy and fun and hope that shined trough the animated show.

I think it would have been fine if they had removed Sokka's sexism, I've seen a Inuit fans of the show being iffy about it too, but then they should have made his interactions with Katara and Suki different, and actually GIVEN HIM AGENCY. But they just take out the CHARACTER MOTIVATION that makes the plot make sense and let the plot roll on as relatively normal.

Aang is also just. Weirdly serious. We don't see any of his whimsy or fun loving nature apart from those 5 seconds in the flashback that was the weird start of the first episode. Where's my little guy? I see his face but he's just not there inside. He's 12! He's naive and whimsical and unserious and a CHILD.

With all the character's Iøve had multiple moments of HE WOULD NOT SAY THAT GODDAMNIT and I just stopped watching cause I thought "why waste my evening doing this I could be doing literally anything else"

I think it looks really really cool. I'm loving what costume design has done, and what the cgi artists have done (not with the animals though but the backgrounds and settings are absolutely gorgeous), it just feels like the made it look really good and forgot about the core of the show...

So overall a lot of telling and not showing (like everything) weird set up's that never really got pay off, character decisions that I don't really get what they want with, and just in general a bit boring. Again the first 20 minutes is just exposition dumping. With like so much information that we in the show would have learned along side the character's naturally, and would have given them AGENCY and would have given us at least some suspense, but that they just decided to hand to us. Idk I don't really think it's worth using 8-9 hours of your life on. Just go watch the original.

[bxcketbarnes]

A-List Party

Pairing: Carter Baizen x Nerd!Reader

Words: 1800+

I've never seen Gossip Girl but Carter fucking Baizen is just... ugh, incredible. He's adorable as fuck and have been wanting to write for him for a little while. I hope you guys enjoy this, and as always, let me know what you think! xox

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" You ask your friend while fiddling with your fingers. Your eyes stare down at the tight white dress in front of you before slowly rubbing your stomach. "I've never worn something like this."

She nods her head and shoves the dress into your hands. "Yes, absolutely! Y/N, you're going to Blair Waldorf's party in Upper East Manhattan. You gotta dress the part," she mentions while unwrapping the angel wings you bought.

You quickly slip the dress on before looking into the full-body mirror. A slight gasp leaves your lips as you don't hate what you're seeing. Katie glances up to see you checking yourself out. "I-I look incredible," you whisper, meeting your friend’s eyes through the reflection.

"You do! I knew you'd look good in it," Katie grins while rushing towards you with the wings. "Okay, her party starts in twenty minutes. We need to get movin'."

Your friend helps you put the angel wings on while you grab the halo from the mattress. "I'm nervous, Katie," you mutter and she turns you around, resting her hands on your shoulders.

"It's going to be okay! You had to have gotten an invitation for some reason," Katie reassures you with a soft smile.

A deep breath leaves your lips and nods your head in response. "You're right," you whisper and slip your heels on.

"Go get laid!" Katie yells, causing your cheeks to heat up.

Your eyes widen, shaking your head. "N-No, no. There's no way I'll get laid," you mumble while the two of you walk towards your front door. Katie rolls her eyes and opens your door for you.

"Babe," she starts and grabs a hold of your hands, "you're a beautiful girl. Who the fuck cares if you happen to be a little nerdy."

"Almost every guy in the Upper East Side," you tell her quietly, clearing your throat afterward.

Katie sighs and moves some of your hair from your face. "Just try to have fun, okay?" She mutters and you nod your head.

After walking almost ten minutes you finally make it to Blair's place. You stare up at the fancy-looking place while walking up the steps. The music can be heard from outside as your stomach churns with nervousness.

"You can do this, Y/N," you whisper to yourself before stepping into the place.

The smell of alcohol hits your nose as you close the front door behind you. People begin staring at you as you walk further into the place, needing a drink.

You can feel judgment from some of the stares and you tug the hem of your dress down slightly. You release a deep breath and grab a plastic cup from the table.

Whispers are heard around you, causing you to pour more liquor into your cup. I knew this was a bad idea. You think to yourself while pouring some juice into the cup, topping your drink off.

You chug half of your drink and walk towards the back doors. Your eyes glance around the backyard, seeing the variety of costumes people are wearing.

One costume sticks out to you personally and you let out a laugh. "Of course someone has to dress as the devil. Goddamnit," you sigh while heading further into the backyard.

"You look hot," a random guy slurs and takes a step towards you.

You avoid his touch, thanking him quietly, and continue forward. You grow closer to the person wearing the devil costume, hoping to strike up a conversation.

You let out a groan, noticing Carter Baizen is dressed up as the devil. "Great," you mutter as his head glances around. You try to stay out of his line of sight but fail immensely.

A smirk comes to his lips and you notice his blue eyes roaming your body. "Well, look at this," Carter says with a grin and he takes a step towards you. "Come here to convert me?"

"Fuck off, Carter," you mutter and go to leave when he grabs a hold of your wrist.

"Oh, come on," Carter laughs and bites his bottom lip. "I'm just trying to have fun."

You manage to wiggle yourself out of his grip and cross your arms over your chest. "Well, there's plenty of women here that you can do that with. You don't want me," you tell him and take a sip of your drink, attempting to walk away from him again.

Carter tilts his head a bit and quickly catches up to you. "Hey, now that's not true," he mentions as he follows you back into the house. "Y/N-"

"Carter, just stop," you sigh and turn to face him. You swallow the lump in your throat as people stare at the two of you. "Don't follow me."

The brunette watches you walk away from him before he lets out a sigh. His blue eyes look around the room, noticing the stares. "Mind your business," Carter tells them off, narrowing his eyes.

You make your way upstairs as you try to find a bathroom that's not occupied. You stumble into someone as your eyes are trained on the floor. You apologize immediately before looking up at the person.

Chuck Bass stands in front of you and your breath hitches in your throat. You tuck your hair behind your ear and go to speak when he cuts you off.

"So, who the fuck invited you?" He asks with an attitude, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I-I," you stutter, trying to come up with an answer.

A scoff leaves Chuck's lips and shakes his head. "You really thought it'd be a good idea to come here alone?" He smirks and stalks closer to you.

You stumble on your footing and almost fall back when a pair of hands rest on your hips. "Except she's not alone," Carter's voice mentions, causing your heartbeat to rise.

Chuck rolls his eyes, muttering of course while moving past the two of you. You turn around, Carter's hands still resting on your hips.

"You okay?" He mutters while glancing down at you.

You nod your head and provide him a small smile. "Yeah, thanks," you whisper before stepping away from him. "Actually, do you know where the restroom is?"

Carter laughs and nods his head in response. His hands rest on your lower back and lead you towards the bathroom door. "Right here," he mumbles while holding his hand out.

"Thank you," you mumble before walking into the bathroom. A gasp leaves your lips at how gorgeous it looks, hearing Carter chuckle behind you.

Your cheeks redden and glance over your shoulder, seeing the brunette leaning against the doorframe. "You're cute," he grins and your cheeks blush more. "I mean, this is nothing. You should see my place."

"Did you just hit on me?" You ask him while leaning against the sink. You furrow your eyebrows as you grow confused as to why Carter Baizen would want to flirt with you.

"Glad you finally noticed," he says, taking his bottom lip between his teeth. Carter walks into the bathroom, causing you to stumble back a bit.

His blue eyes look down at you, your back hitting the wall behind you. Your breathing picks up when Carter's chest almost touches yours. "C-Carter-" you stutter as your eyes flutter shut.

"I wanna corrupt you, little angel," he mutters, causing a shiver to run down your spine.

Carter brings his hand to your face, his index finger hooking under your chin. He makes you look up at him and your heart pounds against your chest. The brunette leans down to connect his lips with yours.

Your hands rest on his chest, your fingers gripping the shirt he's wearing as you kiss him back. One of Carter's hands slides up your side, a moan escaping your lips.

You let out a gasp when Carter picks you up suddenly before he sets you onto the counter. Your arms wrap around his neck as you run your fingers through his hair.

He stands between your parted legs, his fingers digging into the tops of your ass cheeks. Giggles become louder, causing you and Carter to pull apart. Two girls stop in front of the bathroom door, their giggles dying on their tongues.

"Carter?! You said you were coming back," one of them says and your chest clenches.

Of course. A dry laugh leaves your lips and Carter tries to explain when you push his chest roughly.

"God, fuck you, Baizen," you laugh and carefully get off of the sink. You walk past the two drunk girls, ignoring Carter's yelling as you make your way down the stairs.

You find yourself at the drink table, making yourself another drink. The lights go out as soon as you finish making your drink, a light gasp coming from your lips.

Voices from others echo off of the walls as a few people bump into you. You fall back against the table and feel your ankle roll. You let out a pained cry before dropping the drink in your hand.

I can't do this… you think to yourself and stumble your way through the dark. "Carter?" You find yourself calling out as shadows quickly walk past you.

"Y/N? Where are you?" His voice yells and you end up tripping over something.

A scream comes from your lips and you hold your hands out to catch your fall. Someone ends up stepping on your hand and tears dance along your waterline.

The lights suddenly come back on and everyone's eyes look down at you. Tears stream down your cheeks as Carter rushes over to you. "Come on," he whispers before pulling you up from the floor.

You wrap an arm around his shoulders as he leads you out the front door. You cry silently as the two of you head towards Carter's vehicle.

"Can I take you home?" He asks you after both of you slide into the car.

You wet your lips, glancing over at him. "You mentioned that I would like your place…" you trail off and bite your lip. "I'd like to see it if you let me."

Carter laughs before smirking at you. "You can absolutely see my place," he says while starting his vehicle. His right hand moves to rest on your thigh and squeezes it gently.

"Can I kiss you again?" You ask him as you aren't able to get the kiss you shared with him earlier out of your head.

He glances at you and you notice his blue eyes quickly glance down at your lips. Carter doesn't say anything before he presses a rough kiss to your lips.

"Let's get out of here, gorgeous," Carter mumbles after pulling away from you, a smile coming to your lips.

This is actually happening? I'm going home with Carter Baizen. Holy fuck. 

-

Taglist: @metalbuckaroo @starbuckie @jessalyn-jpeg @thewxntersoldier @bumblebet-20 @queen-of-mischief @broadwaybabe18 @hallecarey1 @glxwingrxse​

[vincent-frankenstein]

41: “You did all of this for me?” With Moceit plz?

Summary: Deceit loves getting sick. He loves having to lock himself away in his room to protect his reputation, to protect himself from being coddled. He can’t let the others see him in such a state. But then they find out, and Patton won’t let him ride it out alone. 

Warnings: sickness, weakness, Banter and teasing, sympathetic deceit

Pairing: moceit with like, background familial dlamp 

@figurative-siren-song uwu

Deceit just loved being sick.

Really, it was such fun! It involved all of his favoritepastimes — such as being unable to leave his bed for days on end, and coughingup a lung every time he tried to speak, and sneezing his goddamn brains out every five minutes. He could think of no grander way tospend his time lying curled up in bed, trying to force his stomach to staywhere it belonged.

And the added bonus of being completely and utterly trapped? Well, that wasjust the cherry-on-top.

Obviously, he could let the others see him like this. Such glaringsigns of weakness would never be used to his disadvantage! Why, they'dprobably drop everything to care for him, to nurse him back to health like the"family" they claimed to be!

Not.

He sneered, glaring balefully at the cup of tea on his desk. It hadlong since gone cold, but he couldn't risk going out to get a new one. It wastimes like this where he almost wished things could go back to how they used to be;at least then he'd have access to the old kitchen, the one in the Others' partof the mindscape, where he knew he wouldn't be seen. There could be any numberof sides waiting for him in their newer, grayer commons, and the thought ofanyone seeing him in such a state made his stomach churn.

Besides, he doubted he'd survive such an encounter. With how his head ached,one boisterous laugh from Roman or offended screech from Logan would be enoughto kill him. He wasn't too keen on the idea of dying. Surpringing, Iknow, from the embodiment of self-preservation.

But he was hardly needy. He could handle a few days on his own. He greetedhis solitude with open arms, and —

Oh no.

He barely had a moment to hiss a panicked curse before the bed dropped outfrom under him and he was tugged down-sideways-up until the living room floorrose up to meet his feet. He staggered, pressing his hand over his mouth andstumbling into the banister.

"Deceit?" Oh. Good, good, good. That was Patton's voice.He could hear Logan shifting beside him. He was in the commons, how fun! Definitely not a terrifying prospect. "Are you okay,kiddo?"

He shifted against the stairs until he was leaning nonchalantly, and crossedhis arms, lifting an eyebrow. "Of course not," he said, digging hisfingernails into his arm to keep from coughing. He was met with four confused,disbelieving stares.

"I've got a more important question," Roman declared. "Arethose Scooby-Doo pajamas?"

Deceit's nose twitched with annoyance. "...No."

"They totally are!" Roman's laughter was like tiny explosionsagainst Deceit's aching eardrums. It took everything in him to not wince.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize I wasn't allowed to have leisure clothes,"Deceit snapped. "You have oh-so-much room to judge, Roman, in thatsale-rack Halloween costume of yours."

If Roman's laughter was tiny explosions, his offended squawking was likeshoving a bazooka into Deceit's ear and firing. "'Sale-rack Halloween costume?'"he repeated, one hand clutched against his chest. "How dare you?!Do you have any idea how much effort I put into this outfit?! Weeksspent planning and sewing —"

"Falsehood," Logan cut in, raising an eyebrow. "You told meyourself you simply conjured it up on a whim."

"Wh — but — okay, but, the emotional effort —"

"Now, now, kiddos, let's not fight, okay?" Patton said, holding uphis hands placatingly. "Roman, your outfit is lovely. And Dee, yourpajamas are super cute!"

Deceit blinked. "...Thanks," he said drily, to which Pattonbeamed, completely genuine. "Alright, can we get to whatever dilemma youneed my help with? I wasn't in the middle of something."

"Oh, yeah, I'm sure your midday nap is way more important thanhelping Thomas," Virgil said with a roll of his eyes. Deceit opened hismouth to retort, but Logan lifted a hand.

"Enough," he said evenly. "Deceit, I assume you're aware ofthe surprise party that Thomas plans to throw for Joan's birthday nextweek?"

"What? No!" Deceit placed a hand against his chest,feigning surprise. "Why would I know about that? It's not like I suggestedit!"

Logan continued as if he hadn't spoken. "Thomas is about to spend aprolonged amount of time with Joan to brainstorm ideas for the channel. We needyou to, ah —"

"Keep his mouth shut," Deceit finished, and Logan nodded."Well, as fun as that sounds, I do believe I'll have to pass."

"What? Why?"

Because his legs had begun to shake, and he doubted he could stay uprightfor much longer. Because his throat ached and twinged with every word out ofhis mouth. Because his head pounded, black spots dancing in front of his eyes,and he just wanted to sleep, goddamnit.

"I have some personal business to attend to," he said simply.

Virgil huffed. "'Personal business?'" he repeated, raising aneyebrow.

"Yes. I'm afraid I must nunya," Deceit said.

Patton's eyebrows furrowed. "What's 'nunya?'"

"Nunya business," Deceit said. He shoved away from the banisterand drew himself to his full height. "Roman is more than capable of comingup with excuses for our dear boy Thomas. Now, if you'll excuse me —"

"Hold on, you expect me to do your job for you? After you insulted myprecious outfit! Ha! Fat chance, Lyin' King!" Roman declared,setting his hands on his hips.

"Technically, you insulted his outfit first," Logan said. He dugaround in his pocket for a moment, drawing out an index card. "'Nocap.'"

"Well, yeah, of course there's no cap!" Patton said, a smilegrowing on his face. "Dee's not wearin' his hat!"

Logan's groan was like stepping on a landmine. Deceit couldn't help butwince, pain wracking through his skull, pressure building inside his forehead.Black spots danced before his eyes. When the world slotted back into placearound him he found every eye in the room on him, and he shifted beneath thesearchlights, eyes narrowing.

"You don't look very okay, kiddo," Patton said, with concern inhis eyes. Deceit's nose twitched.

"I assure you, I am fine —"

"Yeah, bullshit," Virgil said. "You look like shit. Well,shittier than usual."

"How kind of you to say, Virgil," Deceit said, with a roll of hiseyes. "I must say, you're looking quite shitty yourself, as usual."

Virgil hissed — and Deceit made the ultimate mistake of hissing back. Thecoughing fit that followed had him wheezing for breath, tears building in hiseyes, and when it finally subsided he was met with the worst punishment of all:pity.

"Oh, honey... you're sick," Patton said softly.

"Well, now the pajamas make sense!" Roman said, nodding tohimself, as if that was the most important aspect of their conversation. Deceittook a step back, eyes narrowing.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," he said, voice ragged. "It definitelymatters."

"Yes, it does," Logan said. "As metaphysical beings, we areincapable of dying, but that doesn't mean we can't get sick. Any illnesses wedo manage to catch should be treated properly, lest they become worse."

"Gee, sure wish I'd thought of that!" Deceit said, in ahigh-pitched tone that made his throat ache. "Oh, wait, I did. I wasresting before you all decided to drag me out here!"

Logan blinked. "'My bad,'" he said awkwardly, pulling out a vocabcard.

"Yeah, if I had known you were sick, I never would have made fun ofyou," Roman said, and to his credit, he did look genuinely apologetic."Your pajamas are quite becoming."

Deceit yanked his shirt into place and rolled his eyes. "Thank you,Roman," he said, only half sarcastic. At Roman's pressing stare, hesighed. "Your outfit is ridiculously ugly as well."

"Hey! Oh — wait, thanks!"

"Now am I allowed to go rest?"

"Of course." Logan straightened his tie and nodded. "Myapologies for dragging you into this, Deceit."

"I don't accept your apology." Finally he was free to sinkdown, and he did so with great relief, collapsing onto his bed with anexhausted sigh. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and pretended like the roomwasn't rocking around him.

And that's how he spent the five hours that followed: curled up atop hisbed, shivering and miserable. He considered it a worthy use of his time. Whatelse could he have been doing? Something productive? Unrealistic.

When the knocking first began, he had sunk so deeply into the throes ofexhaustion that he brushed them off as hallucinations. But then came a voice,muffled through the door: "Dee?"

Ah. Patton. Far be it from him to let Deceit simply rest. He lifted himselfas well as he could, wobbling dangerously, and hissed out a vague response.

"Okay, well, there's no need to be like that," Patton said."I've got somethin' for ya downstairs, if you feel down to seein'it!"

"I definitely need some inane movie night right now,"Deceit hissed, words lisping and slurring. His room had grown quite cold, buthe hardly had the strength to turn on the heat. "I'm doing just fine in here,thanks."

"Dee, I know you," Patton said. "You're probably hidin' inthere with the heat off, wallowin' in your own self-pity."

"... No I'm not."

Patton sighed. "Take it from me, hun," he said. "That's notgonna make anything better. You can't hide from your sickness and jus' hope itgoes away."

Deceit groaned. "I can damn well try!"

"No. No, you can't," Patton said. "I promise, it's not amovie night. Or, well — not technically. Would you just come down?"

"I'm afraid this illness is terminal, Patton," Deceit said."They've already had to amputate both my legs. I can't walk."

"Oh, poor baby," Patton cooed — and then he gently pushed open thedoor and stepped inside. He rubbed away the goosebumps on his arms, shivering."Oh, honey, it's like a freezer box in here! And you're not even under anyblankets!"

"I like the cold," Deceit insisted, stubborn as ever. Hesniffled, burrowing into his pillow so he didn't have to look at Patton'ssympathetic frown. "Leave me to die, Morality. It's far too late forme."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Patton rolled up hissleeves and — hefted Deceit into his arms, and oh, oh wow, he was reallystrong — and he nestled Deceit against his chest and carried him out of theroom.

Deceit hadn't the energy to struggle, but even if he did, he doubted hewould have. Patton's touch was burning fire against his skin and he melted intoit, eyes slipping shut. He hadn't realized how cold he'd truly become until thewarmth drove the ice from his bones, bringing feeling back to his fingers andtoes.

The living room had been thrown to chaos — the couches pushed aside, theircushions torn from their seats to become building blocks for the grandestblanket fort Deceit had ever seen. Patton set him down in the center and stood,brushing off his hands.

"Wh... what is this?" Deceit asked, eyes narrowing. The jolt ofwarmth had brought clarity back to his mind, and with it came that familiar,sharp suspicion. The living room was dark, the lights dimmed to a comfortableglow — and the Netflix startup screen shone on the tv. None of the others werein sight.

"Well," Patton said, lowering himself down to the edge of the fortto sit. "Virge told us about your tendency to hide away wheneveryou're feelin' less-than-okay."

Ah. A betrayal, then. He knew there was something shady behind this.

"And, well, I know the feeling..." Patton twisted his handstogether in his lap, rubbing the pad of his thumb over the back of his otherhand. "So I figured, if you gotta feel miserable, you might as well do itcomfortably!"

Deceit raised an eyebrow, and Patton stood. "You've got full access toNetflix, and there's a couple different heatin' pads in there. I'm cookin' upsome chicken noodle soup for ya, and then I'll get outta your hair. We'll all stayclear of the commons for ya."

Deceit blinked. He glanced around the fort, this time with wide-eyedconfusion rather than suspicion. "And you did all of this... for me?"

"Well, yeah!" Patton said, as if it made all the sense in theworld. "I care about you, hun. We all do."

...Huh. For the first time in his life, Deceit was stricken speechless, notby fury, but by care. He looked down to his lap, and then back up atPatton, and forced bitter truth to coat his words. "Thank you," hesaid, more genuine than he'd ever allow himself to be otherwise.

"'Course!" Patton beamed. "Alrighty, I'm gonna go finish up that soupfor ya! Then I'll stop botherin' you —"

"You're not," Deceit said before he could stop himself. Pattontilted his head to the side; the sight was undeniably adorable.

"Not what?"

"... Bothering me," Deceit finished lamely. "You don't haveto... leave. If you don't want to."

Patton's lips parted in a little 'o' of surprise — and then he smiled, andit looked like the sunrise. Deceit leaned closer to the heating pad at his sideand pretended that that was the reason for the flames blazing across his face."Are you sure?"

"I mean, it's not like I care either way," Deceit said. Brusquely,he snatched the remote from its pillow-throne and began clicking throughNetflix. His eyes narrowed. "As long as you don't get too close. I wouldn'tfeel terrible if you got sick."

Patton made a little squeak, almost inhuman in how touched and excited itwas, and he nodded, hair flopping down in his face. "Soup for two it is,then!" he said, and bounced off into the kitchen.

An hour later, Deceit fell asleep against Patton's chest.

A few days later, Patton got sick.

Deceit built him a blanket fort.

[girlfriendsofthegalaxy]

tuesday again 6/29/21

i read part of a book, the reading section is no longer fallow, we have planted and sown some sort of crop

listening venus fly trap by MARINA. a dear mutual whose post i cannot find and i do not want to tag in case i am misquoting her called her latest lyrics “preachy” and i gotta agree? this one is almost but not quite a fun throwback to electra heart era. whereas that album was very much about watching “weaponized femininity” and a persona crumble around you, this is more of a mean-girl single designed to get your attention on the rest of the album. “why be a wallflower/when you can be/a venus fly trap” is an inherently delightful line.

undefined

because i take a week off from this project every december, one week’s listening gets doubled up. glass animals’ mama’s gun gets on here bc it is perfectly engineered to stick in the back of my brain. i love a layered, kind of cluttered instrumental backdrop. the chimey-chimes! the sad woodwind! i don’t know that i particularly care for the lyrics or the people in the internet arguing about whether this song is about drugs or schizophrenia (the band said it’s about drugs, don’t be terrible to people with schizophrenia)

undefined

reading here is a stab at the beginning of a post, bc i fully intended to finish this book sunday night and then. didn’t.

i’m trying to walk a fine line between pointing out things i find irritating and taking an older work for what it was at the time but tumblr is not known for its reading comprehension so i am belaboring some points and being more diplomatic with my word choice than if i were jawing about this book with friends. i read The Drowned World by JG Ballard as one of my first forays into the adult (shut up) fiction section at the library. there are some lines that have stuck in my brain for more than ten years, such as (describing sailing over a city under sixty feet of water) “...like a reflection in a lake that has somehow lost its original.” i’m a sucker for “sad man on the bleeding edge of civilization holes up in a once-grand building with looted bits and bobs”. i think it’s good set dressing and i love a poor little meow meow. 

@morrak​ kindly offered me a pretty vintage hardcover that came in the mail a few weeks ago and i finally had time to crack it open. i draft these posts on sunday, and this sunday it comes to you from my phone in my landlord’s backyard, where a hammock really isn’t helping with the ninety-two degree heat and fifty-eight percent humidity. a good backdrop for reading about the earth remembering it used to mostly be a big swamp.

i typed a very long draft that ended up being mostly “wow kay you’re saying a novel written in the 60s is worried about the destruction of the world but in a dreamy and kind of sexist way with a tenuous relationship with reality at best?” yes. that’s just how old sci fi is sometimes and we can point out how parts of it don’t hold up for a modern audience while talking about the parts we do like.

for example, it takes a lot of its flavor and style from late-1800s harder scifi about hidden worlds/a changing world due to industrialization (think Journey to the Center of the Earth, or any novel about a secret paradise at the South Pole, or Erewhon). it is, instead, a softer scifi mostly concerned about the effects of living through a disaster that isn’t your fault and couldn’t be prevented, and what staring at constant ruin (no matter how beautiful!) and isolation does to a guy’s brain (as opposed to “harder” scifi like a lot of Verne’s work or Liu Cixin’s The Three-Body Problem that are really interested in how future technology might realistically work). i personally don’t think it’s a meaningful remix of these early altered-world novels, or at least i personally don’t find it terribly compelling in this particular aspect. women in late-1800s scifi either don’t exist at all or exist to be rescued from primitive humans so the author could write about some cool guns killing people. Beatrice thedrownedworld is in fact a catalyst for part of the book, but she does not feel like a real person, whereas Robert thedrownedworld feels like most of the professors ive had. poor bea, trapped in a sixties novel only to look pretty, be negged, and serve as a psychosexual metaphor. i have a pet theory that if you fuck in an older dystopia (like older horror) you die, but i don’t really have enough data points to separate it from standard misogyny just yet.

but at the same time, it’s such an interesting example of an apocalypse that isn’t humans’ fault. the earth is just doing some fucked-up shit for a while, and we might as well go see what’s up. in a lot of earlier scifi, the earth is just doing some fucked-up shit in the polar regions and we might as well go see what’s up.

sidebar, bc i’m me: in late-1800s scifi there’s some fun brotherly love/camraderie among the protagonists that you could put an interesting queer reading on (ask me about my Professor Arronax-twentythousandleaguesunderthesea-is-trans-theory) but Robert thedrownedworld is extremely straight. also like most of the professors ive had.

this is a book i’m fond of for its place in my life at a particular time and some really good imagery. sometimes on a sunday afternoon you read a short novel that does an excellent job of telling the story it set out to tell, and that’s enough.

watching the L0ki show. d/isney for once did not queerbait me, i do find their budget and attention to detail in costuming and set dressing excellent, and i do love an unapologetically not very nice woman. from previous experience with this particular flavor of #content this particular company puts out, i do not think it will hold my interest for a full season. also i am unable to read TVA as anything but Tennessee Valley Authority but that’s a different post

playing fallow week due to NDA

making lots of cleaning and packing and move-prepping. bought a fuckton of future textile crimes at various yard sales, which need to be frozen bc im inherently suspicious of old yarn and i’ll be fucking damned if i bring carpet beetles or moths into a new place. bug-free zone in the new place goddamnit

[trashbaggage]

okay okay okay

the movie “enchanted”, but witcher-fied (sorry this got away from me a bit)

there’s a stereotypical medieval fantasyland where jaskier julian alfred pankratz is the prince of lettenhovia. he’s got the looks, voice, and affinity for attracting woodland animals of a disney princess. also, the tragic backstory: his parents died in a freak accident when he was young. but don’t worry, his creepy “uncle” stregobor took upon himself the burden of ruling in their stead, until julian grew up and became ready for the throne.

(basically, stregobitch is like rasputin, and had tricked and slimed his way into the crown’s good graces before, surprise surprise, killing off the king and queen. he left julian alive to take some of the heat off of him with that extra distraction of grieving child. alas, poor little princeling that he can play the benevolent guardian to.)

and things are gr8 for good ol streggy, julian seems more inclined to sing and wander than become bogged down with the responsibility of becoming king. everything’s comin up stregs.

and then, of course, there’s a prophecy about how julian will be his doom or whatev and he needs to get on that shit STAT like he’s never heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy before (to be fair, fantasyland doesn’t have ancient greek tragedies to learn from so rip stregosaurus). but before he can implement his sophisticated plan of julian dying in an “accident”, our dear jules wanders too far and falls down a magic well into the Real World.

and he’s like, sweet, look at all this stuff! this is great and - oh hello, very attractive man with silken white hair and eyes as golden as the dawn light falling gently upon newly blossomed lillies and thighs that can crush his head and his heart, what up. and geralt is very confused and frustrated and oddly and begrudgingly charmed by this loudly dressed and loudly singing idiot accosting him outta nowhere, but his daughter ciri seems to like him so i guess we can keep him for a night but if he pees on the rug he’s out.

cue fun family bonding, musical numbers, shenanigans, all that jazz; julian, now jaskier cuz new world new him babey,, exploring and learning and having the time of his life and trying to get this broody man to open up and show that kindness his scowl can’t quite hide.

aaaaand cut back to streginald throwing a fit that the prince has cleverly evaded his dastardly plans, he has underestimated him it seems, and he can’t just let this massive loose thread keep flappin in the breeze, so he sends yennefer to deal with him.

now, yennefer is streggo my eggo’s daughter in this, and he’s raised her to be his right hand woman, his evil apprentice, the (much smarter) kronk to his yzma, and she’s been promised power once her dad fully claims the throne, so ofc she gets right on tracking that crafty twunk down to kill him. in the process, she comes across roach, julian’s horse and bff talking animal companion, by the magic well, gathering up the fucks to go after her wayward idiot. a struggle ensues, and yen and roach both go through the portal.

so now we got the side plot of these two trying to find jaskier, yen to kill him and roach to huff reproachfully at him for getting into this mess and if anyone is gonna kill him she will for dragging her across realms (she does not like portals, okay, they feel weird) not some uppity witch. so they got their tomfoolery of yen almost killing an unaware jaskier but then roach foiling her plans. she also tries to kidnap ciri as bait for a trap, but she can’t hurt this kid she’s too precious, ow ow ow, why does her chest feel weird?? she’s actually starting to find the boundaries to her thirst for power and it kinda sucks and feels nice at the same time??? 0/10 do not recommend

during this, geralt’s quiet life is being upended by this weird dude and he’s never danced so much in his life and his child is conspiring against him to set him up with this clearly deranged but very nice and pretty man but he’s not staying ciri we have to get him back to .....wherever tf he came from i don’t even like him, what are you talking about,,,

it all comes to a head at the costume ball, where geralt and jaskier are dancing and making eyes at each other until roach bursts in and tries to charades her way into warning her idiot to run motherfucker but she can’t talk in this realm so ugh and geralt horsegirl rivia is just like omg ur best friend is a horse that’s so fucking cool i love you even more.

and then yen bursts in; she’s kinda struggling to fulfill her mission, cuz she’s been watching jaskier and geralt and they just seem like two idiots that couldn’t possibly threaten anything, let alone her father’s power grab. she’s also made frenemies with roach, she’s the only motherfucker who can handle her in this city. so she just tries to scare jaskier into never returning, which works pretty well because she is v v scary, and then stregobonkers comes strolling in like wtf why is this taking you so long just kill him!! and yen is like i’ve kind of grown this pesky con- 🤢 consci- 🤢, wait, just, give me a min,,,, conscience!! yeah, that’s the bitch! anyway, stop telling me what to do dad and stregobego drops a bomb and goes i always knew you had a weakness to you, just like your parents!

and it’s just,,

silent.

what? what do you - my parents?

and it turns out he saw the power she held and wanted it under his control, so he killed her parents (it’s like, his signature move at this point) and groomed her to be his obedient little weapon. and, understandably, yen is pissed off and hurt and goes to lash out at him, but he just smirks and clicks his fingers while muttering under his breath, and everything stops for yen a second time as her mind blanks.

sneaky streg had put in a fail safe, in case she ever got out of line, and the amulet he gave her “for protection and focus, you must never take it off” lights up and puts her under his command and she turns into a sickass dragon that starts tearing up the dance floor, literally, in her rampage to kill jaskier.

geralt and jaskier go oh shit and dodge for their lives and things are looking pretty dire, but then jaskier looks at the suits of armor set up for decoration and goes wait a minute and grabs a sword to toss at geralt and just goes cover me boo and aim for that amulet and if you miss we’ll probably all die so no pressure!! and just sprints out and distracts angry dragon!yen and geralt goes goddamnit jaskier and sneaks around until he can jump at her and do a completely improbable matrix leap to stab at the amulet, and because this is a romcom and i get to choose my coping mechanisms, he makes it and yen is free from streg egghead’s power and she turns to him, still a dragon, and smiles wide with all them sharp sharp teeth and he goes ohhhh shiiiit and tries to run, but jaskier very helpfully trips him up and goes eat up my lady and dragon yen does, with great relish.

in conclusion, everyone lives happily ever after except streggles. geralt gets over his baggage and professes his love for jaskier, jaskier goes i’m not that easy geralt there needs to be wooing! i deserve to be wooed!! before heavily making out with him in the next five seconds. jaskier gives yen his blessing to become queen of lettenhovia, because he never really wanted the job anyway and she deserves it after what she’s been through. she still comes back every sunday for brunch and to teach ciri how to fight (she’s mine now, i’ve adopted her so she needs to learn the fine art of pointy things geralt) and geralt, jaskier, and ciri take holidays to fantasyland and roach is free to roam wherever she wants and becomes an advisor to yen.

the end

(extra dramatic addendum: geralt finally brings jask home to meet his family; vesemir opens the door and geralt goes this is my boyfriend, jas- but vesemir cuts him off with a choked out pRiNcE JuLiAn?! and it turns out vesemir is also actually from fantasyland. he worked for julian’s parents; the prevalence of monsters had been steadily rising, and so they had the idea to create witchers to combat them. kaer morhen was created under their sanction and vesemir was a teacher there, but he became disenfranchised with every boy that didn’t make it through the trials. when the keep was attacked by fanatics against witchers, he smuggled out eskel, lambert, coen, and geralt, and hid them away. he looked at these traumatized kids and went well that won’t do, followed up on some rumors of a new world, had a mage friend alter the boys’ memories, and skedaddled for our world. very shocking reveal, angsty angst-ness as geralt and the others deal with repressed memories and the fact that jaskier’s parents were responsible for it all, y’know, all that good stuff)

[riseandshinelittleblossom]

The Hedge Maze

I have been debating over whether or not to post this, or hell even finish it, for the last couple of weeks, so before I talk myself out of it again...here it is. I apologize.

Warning: LEMONS...its just lemons.

Disclaimer: I do not own Maxwell Beaumont (PB does), he owns me.

Tagging some thirsties: @fullbeaumonty @speedyoperarascalparty @leelee10898 @emichelle @ao719

words: 1731

      Finley surveyed the bar from across the crowded ballroom. One or two nobles that she probably should, but did not recognize. The bartender polished glasses in a dreadful attempt to appear busy. With an audible sigh she made her way over. 

      "And for you, madam?" The bartender's heavy voice as he peered at her with intense green eyes.

     "Surprise me."

     Finley spun on her heels and leaned her elbows on the bar, observing the room. 

      In the far corner she could see a dark haired man in a blue sports coat. He seemed as out of place as he was uncomfortable, like one of those dogs that people put Halloween costumes on and then actually took them trick or treating.

       I feel you, buddy.

   Immediately to her right, but closer to the center of the room stood King Liam, his wife Riley on his arm as they chatted away with an older blonde woman. She held a champagne glass in each hand and she gestured widely as she spoke. Finley could tell that the king and queen were less than enthused about the conversation, however she noted that they still gave the impression of being enthralled by the woman's tale.

        The Lady Hana Lee was to their left, a stiff man in a tweed jacket beside her. Finley recognized Hana since her uncle and Hana's father were business associates. She made a mental note to make sure she said hello, lest her Uncle Brandon kill her slowly. 

     "Here you are, miss." 

     Finley turned to see the barkeep sliding a mojito across the bar towards her.

     "Thank you kindly." Finley tipped her head to the man as she collected the drink, swirling it once before taking a sip.

    She hated these sorts of events, but as her uncle had never taken a wife, she was often forced to accompany him.  

     Finley had been raised to fit into courtly life, but as her father was only the brother of an Earl it was never expected that she would live a courtly life, and that was fine by her. 

     From the corner of her eye she saw a man- about her age- wearing a simple black suit coat with a white shirt. She noticed right away that said shirt was unbuttoned far too low to be acceptable, but she ignored him otherwise and continued her ametur surveillance. 

      Still only viewing the man from her peripheral vision she watched as he smoothed his jacket and ran his hands over his chocolate hair before snapping his wrists and sliding up next to her.

     "Good evening, ma'am." he said.

    Without turning her gaze toward him she simply replied, "No."

    He fumbled over himself searching for what to say next.

    "You didn't even look at me. You could at least look a man in his eye when you reject him."

    A smirk formed across Finley's face as she cocked her head to the side ever so slightly.

    She had to admit she was a little intrigued by his persistence and even with only a sideways glance he was quite handsome. Maybe he could be just a bit of fun for the evening, if he played his cards right.

     Shuffling her stance so that she faced him, she peered into his azure eyes.

   "No thank you, m'lord." 

     She offered him a curtsey.

   "That was better, but I feel like that response just lacked the conviction necessary to convince me that you're not interested."

    Finley quirked an eyebrow at him, taking a long pull from her mojito. 

    "I'll take that look as a second chance," he grinned. "I'm Maxwell Beaumont."

    "I'm still unimpressed."

    The brunette man scoffed. "I am a Guardian of the Realm. Won't that at least get me a dance?" 

    Finley giggled, much to her surprise.

    "Fine. But only because you made me laugh."

     They found a spot near the edge of the dance floor, Maxwell immediately pulling her a little closer than the dance actually called for.

      "So, I've told you my name," he smiled down at her before dropping his lips to the shell of her ear. "What's yours?"

    An involuntary shudder shot through Finley's body as his words filled her ear. Her body felt like putty. 

      How did he do that?

      "I- uh- I'm...my name is..it's Finley. Finley Sawyer." she stammered.

     "What a pleasure, Finley Sawyer."

     Several mojitos and a few dances later, Finley found herself gleefully running through the palace's infamous hedge maze, with Maxwell in hot pursuit. Twisting and turning through the foliage, her strawberry blonde hair flying behind her she had never felt freer, and she couldn't remember the last time she'd smiled so much.

      They came to a clearing lined with old timey lanterns, a large round fountain laced with fairy lights in the center.

      "I...I can't...I can't...Maxwell I can't breathe!" She panted, falling immediately into a shrill burst of laughter as he accosted her, fingers wildly tickling her sides as she squirmed.

     They finally fell together on the edge of the fountain, still giggling and doubling over as they tried to catch their breath.

    "I haven't….whoo..I haven't laughed like that in….maybe ever." Finley told him, absentmindedly resting her hand on his thigh.

     Maxwell took a gulp of air and held it, calming his fit before covering her hand in his.

    "Thank you." She said, their eyes finally meeting. 

    "Finley, I," he began, but he paused to wet his lips. "I'm going to kiss you."

    "I would be disappointed if you didn't."

     His long slender fingers brushed her cheek as he tenderly cupped her face. Finley peeked up at him with darkened eyes, leaning closer and closer until at last his soft lips found hers. A bolt of electricity shot directly to her core as Maxwell deepened the kiss, slowly at first but rapidly becoming frantic. Finley splayed her hands against the surprisingly firm muscles of his chest, smoothing her palms under his jacket and over his shoulders.

   Maxwell shrugged the garment off, quickly returning his hands to either side of her face as Finley's fingers deftly worked at his dress shirt buttons.

     "Fin, I want you to know that...I mean I obviously hoped, but...we don't have to do this." Maxwell told her, breaking the kiss.

     A coy grin spread itself across the redhead's lips. "I already know you're a gentleman, no need to go and prove it."

    She slowly stood up, still facing him and she reached behind her to unzip her simple yet elegant black dress.

    Without any straps, it quickly pooled at her feet, her round perky breasts now fully exposed. 

     Maxwell's eyes roamed over the curves of her, his tongue involuntarily running along his bottom lip as he drank in the sight.

     Silently she stepped out of the fabric, throwing one leg over his lap and settling herself upon him. She chastely pressed her lips to his, slowly making her way up his jaw line until she stopped long enough to nibble at his earlobe.

    "Fuck," 

      It fell from his lips in a whisper, his hips bucking slightly as he shuddered.

    "You're a bit overdressed, Mr. Beaumont." She murmured before slowly tracing the shell of his ear with her tongue.

     Maxwell made short work of his dress shirt before fumbling with his belt. Finley dropped her hands between them to assist with the zipper before reaching past the fabric and gripping his hard length. She gently tugged it free of it's confines with a mischievous grin.

    "Big boy. I'll admit I wasn't expecting that." 

     Maxwell's cheeks burned with a twinge of embarrassment but he recovered quickly, his hands gripping her hips, lifting her as he wiggled his hips into position. 

     Finley took her time easing herself down onto him. She gently gyrated her hips in small circles down his length, hands digging into the tanned skin of his shoulders to keep balanced. 

     "Goddamnit, Finley. You're so fucking tight." He moaned, his head falling back. 

     She ran her tongue up his windpipe, nipping and suckling it. 

     When she had finally sheathed him fully inside of her, he gripped the gloves of her ass in two fistfuls and slowly stood up with her. Finley wrapped her legs around his waist instinctively, digging her heels into him. 

     "Do you trust me?" He asked.

     "I suppose I trust you enough."

      Maxwell briefly reached behind him and touched her ankles.

     "Don't let go." He instructed before grabbing her ass once more with white knuckles.

     He slammed his hips into hers, his knees bending slightly as he fucked up into her. 

     "Max... Maxwell, oooooh." She groaned.

     He quickened his pace, rocking gently on the balls of his feet, Finley bouncing wildly into him as she clung to his neck for dear life. 

   She could feel her thighs tighten around his trunk as the familiar warmth gathered in her core. She palmed his cheek, crashing her lips against his and swallowing whole the moans that escaped him. Her other hand slid between their bodies, expertly finding her clit to help herself along. 

      Maxwell's legs began to sputter, the sight of her strumming herself more than he could take and he slowed momentarily as he found his release. 

     Not to be deterred, he buried his face into the crook of her neck, still slamming her hips into his until a moment later Finley joined him, the rush of her arousal coating his cock and abdomen.

      Carefully he stepped back until his calves felt the smooth stone of the fountain and he sat back down. 

     She kissed his forehead, breathing still heavy as she stood from his lap to collect her dress.

   Maxwell licked his lips, enjoying the sight of her dressing in the lantern light. 

    "And to think, a couple of hours ago you wouldn't even let me ask you for a dance."

    He smirked at her, tucking himself away and zipping his pants.

    "Everybody makes mistakes." She answered matter-of-factly. "Will you zip me?"

    Maxwell stood up and grasped her zipper, working it easily up her back. He traced the backs of his fingers up her spine before softly kissing her shoulder.

    "So what do you think, Finley? Can I call you sometime?" 

     She flung her hair over her shoulder, smacking Maxwell in the face with it as she spun to face him.

     "No."

     Finley gathered up her skirt and made her way into the maze.

[im-a-star-boy]

Work Invasion

Yeah uh, here you go, completely unprompted

.oOo.oOo.oOo.

Summary: Peter has to leave early and Harry is not happy about waking up alone

Word Count: 1,962

Date Of Completion: Wednesday, April 1st, 2020

.oOo.oOo.oOo.

Had Peter meant to leave to Stark Industries earlier than usual? Absolutely. Did he mean to leave at 5 am before his fiancé woke up? No... not really. But here he was, 5:30 in the morning, speed-walking to work to meet up with Tony Stark to fix his suit. He stepped onto the subway, finding it slowly filling up with businesspeople and junkies, and made himself comfortable on a seat, pulling out his phone and scrolling through social media absentmindedly. After about ten minutes, the subway screeched to a halt at his stop, and he quickly got off his seat and made his way for Stark Industries which was only a block or two away. He jogged his way there and stepped through the employee entrance, quickly making his way to the elevator and sliding in. 

The elevator quickly went up and Peter bounced his leg anxiously as he reached Tony’s lab. Tony looked up in alarm as the elevator dinged. “Kid? What are you doing here so early?”

“I woke up too early, I was excited,” Peter explained through his blush and chuckle as he stepped in.

Tony snorted. “I can tell.”

Peter scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. “Should I go downstairs into the labs while you finish what you’re doing?”

“No, it’s alright, kid. Come on,” He reassured, scooting over and making room for Peter to sit. 

Peter quickly bounced forward and slid into a seat beside Tony. “So, what are we gonna do?”

.oOo.oOo.oOo.

Harry woke slowly as sunlight streamed into the room, flashing uncomfortably in his eyes. He blinked and turned around, instinctively reaching for Peter to pull closer. He wasn’t there, however, prompting Harry to slowly peel his eyes open to the pale blue walls he and Peter had painted together. He inhaled a deep breath through his nose and looked around slowly, the remnants of sleep slowly drain from his limbs as he pushed himself up. “Peter?” He called softly.

He got no response as he looked to the bed, finding it still empty. He rubbed his eyes and sat there for a long moment, mentally debating about getting up or not. After a few minutes of sitting there, he finally swung his legs over the side of the bed and pulled his heavy limbs up, dragging himself to the bathroom. He bent over the sink and rolled up his long sleeves, splashing water in his face to wake himself up, before washing his face and patting it dry. 

He stood up straight, feeling refreshed, and began his day. He used the bathroom, brushed his teeth, made his way downstairs where he made a bowl of cereal and checked his phone as he made himself comfortable as the news played in the background. He had a text from Peter. It read, ‘Hey hon, I got called into work early to repair my spider-suit. I’ll text you during break, love you!’ With several hearts after. Harry smiled fondly and sent a heart back as he continued to eat.

Once his bowl was empty and in the sink, Harry checked his schedule, finding it surprisingly empty. He laughed to himself. “Of course the one day I don’t have work is the day Peter gets called in early.” He muttered quietly.

He began walking around aimlessly, not entirely sure what to do, and cleaned whatever seemed out of place. He pulled some dishes from his and Peters’ bedroom, he made the bed, he picked up some trash that had littered the area, he vacuumed, did the laundry, did the dishes, and once that was done, he wasn’t entirely sure what else to do. Any other cleaning would require more effort he was willing to put in and he didn’t have much else to do. He turned on Law & Order and scrolled through social media, his mind wandering aimlessly. 

He sat there watching TV for at least three hours before he stood up decisively. He didn’t get to see his fiancé that morning and goddamnit he was going to see him before 5 pm rolled around. He quickly returned to his room, changing, and made a beeline for the door, quickly formulating an excuse as to why he was retrieving Peter from work at 1 in the afternoon.

.oOo.oOo.oOo.

Harry strutted through the main entrance of Stark Industries. The lobbyist looked up at him, making a surprised noise, before letting him go, likely assuming he was there for a meeting. He quietly thanked his status before entering the elevator. “JARVIS, do me a favor and bring me to the floor Peter’s on? He left before I could tell him I had something planned for us.”

“Of course Mr. Osborn,”

“Please, call me Harry. Mr. Osborn just makes me uncomfortable.”

“Alright, my apologies, Harry.” 

A smile grew on Harry’s face as the elevator pulled to a stop. He looked up expectantly. “This is not your floor, Harry. There are others using the elevator,” JARVIS informed right before the doors opened.

Harry nodded before feeling his blood run cold. It was Pepper Potts and Tony Stark. Tony looked up in alarm at being face-to-face with Harry. “Osborn,”

“Stark,”

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to get my fiancé.”

“You have a fiancé? I was unaware of this.”

“We’ve been trying to keep our relationship on the down-low. I guess we’ve succeeded.”

An awkward silence filled the elevator as the doors closed, trapping the three together. “I didn’t know you were engaged, Harry. Congratulations” Pepper asked, attempting to break the awkward silence with a smile. 

Harry plastered one on as well. “Thank you, it’s been two or three weeks now since we made it official, we want the wedding to be around Halloween.”

Pepper laughed. “Going for the fall theme, huh?”

“No, we’re going for the Halloween candy.” He said, a smile crossing his face as he remembered the conversation.

“Harry, please!” 

“No, we are not having our wedding on Halloween, Peter.”

“But-”

“No.” 

Harry stared at Peter indignantly. “Just listen to my idea, I swear you’ll love it! Just please, let me at least try to convince you.”

“No, because I know you’ll be able to do it.”

“Harry! Please! It’ll be so much fun! Instead of fancy suits and dresses and all that crap, we can wear costumes!”

Harry burst into laughter at that. “What?!”

“We can dress up in fun outfits! God knows you have to wear a tuxedo enough to those lame galas, and I have to go with you to those! I hate them! They’re so itchy! Please, Harry!” Peter begged. He was really sold on this idea.

“We are not having our wedding on Halloween, Peter!” Harry shouted, trying not to laugh again.

“Can we at least have it Halloween themed? It’s my favorite holiday!”

Harry considered the option. “Maybe.”

“Think about it, all that Halloween candy.”

“I’m sold, our wedding’s around Halloween. But we are not wearing costumes.”

“I’ll convince you.” Peter sneered, an impish smile donning his features.

Pepper’s laughter broke the spell of his thoughts and he flashed her an amused smile. “So who is your fiancé?” Tony interrupted their casual laughter.

Harry felt his smile fade slightly. “You’ll see him when we get there.” Harry finally said as the elevator pulled to a stop.

Tony’s eyes lit up with surprise. “Him? I was unaware you were gay.”

Harry flashed him an indignant look. “Is there a problem?”

Tony snorted. “Of course not, I’ve been married to Steve for almost three years now. It just came as a surprise is all.”

Harry kept his gaze steady before nodding. “Alright then.” He said, turning back to the doors and exiting as they opened.

“I’m surprised he doesn’t work with you in Oscorp.” Tony continued, following him out with Pepper in tow.

Harry laughed. “He refused to because he knows I would play favorites and he wants to earn his position.” He explained. “I get it, but I think he chose to work here to take a prod at me. He might be doing so, he might not, but I know he’s fallen in love with this job so as long as he’s happy, I’m happy.” 

Tony nodded. “Good mindset to have with any partner.” 

Harry scanned the room of scientists, looking for Peter. He pouted slightly when he couldn’t find him, but felt his muscles tighten as he realized the room had fallen still and most of them were staring at him and Stark. Pepper clapped loudly. “Back to work, everyone, this isn’t show and tell.” She shouted.

The scientists quickly resumed their work, still sparing occasional glances in their direction. After a few moments, Harry smiled as he saw a familiar face begin to weave his way around the scientists, towards him. “Hey, hon.” He greeted happily as Peter ran up to him.

“Harry-” He was cut off by Harry wrapping his arms around Peter tightly and hugging him happily.

“You didn’t say goodbye,” Harry mumbled into Peter’s neck.

Peter hugged back and nuzzled him. “I did, you were just asleep. Gave you a goodbye kiss too.” He hummed, closing his eyes and breathing his scent in.

“Parker?” Tony asked in alarm.

Peter quickly stepped away from Harry. “Uh, Mr. Stark, this is my fiancé, Harry Osborn.” 

“Yeah, we took the elevator up with him. I had no idea you were engaged.”

“Yeah uh… I try to keep my personal life out of-” He hesitated before looking at Harry. “Out of my job life, I know they intersect at some points but I try to keep it out as much as possible.”

Harry knew that Peter was referring to vigilante life, he could tell that Tony knew that too. Tony nodded. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

Peter crossed his arms and took a step back. “Alright now, what did you come to invade my job for? And if you dare say it was because I didn’t say goodbye, I will, in fact, slap you.”

Harry laughed. “Is not wanting to see my fiancé reason enough?”

Peter rubbed his hands together. “Better get to explaining, Osborn.”

Harry put his hands up in surrender. “I had an idea for a date, but it’s something that can’t be done after work. It’s pretty time-sensitive.”

Peter seemed to consider it. “What is it?”

“Can’t tell you, it’ll ruin the surprise.”

Peter bit his lip and glanced back to the lab behind him. “Why aren’t you at work?”

“I had a day off.”

Peter thought for a moment, before sighing. “How much fun do you think I’ll have?”

“You’ll absolutely love it, Peter,” Harry promised.

Peter seemed to look around, before sighing. “Alright, fine. Let me clean up for a bit, you’re okay with me leaving early, Mr. Stark?”

“Kid, you came in four hours early and you’re leaving four hours early. The math seems to line up to me.”

Peter smiled. “Alright, thank you, Mr. Stark.”

Tony patted his head. “No problem, kid. Go have fun.”

Peter nodded and quickly leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Harry’s face. “Give me ten minutes to clean up.”

Harry nodded. “Make it quick babe, times wasting.” 

Peter nodded before quickly turning back and running to his lab. In about five minutes, he returned. “Less to do than I thought, let’s go.”

Harry nodded. “Let’s,”

Tony waved them off as the two went into the elevator. “So, where are we going on this date?”

Harry laughed. “So you know how you wanted to adopt a kitten?”

 Peter’s eyes widened. “Harold you did not.”

“We’re going to the humane society.”

Peter laughed loudly and threw his arms around Harry. “HARRY! YES!!” He cried out happily.

Harry laughed and hugged Peter back. “You’re welcome.”