#Valentino is totally scared of the dark

[brunhildaart]

I think we all know exactly what happened after Vox accidentally shocked him and triggered the Pavlovian response that resulted in Valentino biting his lip... Doesn't help that I also kind of believe that Valentino's afraid of the dark, which is why he gravitates constantly to bright areas and jobs where he's constantly surrounded by light. Vox just got him horny and then plunged him into darkness... Well, Vox, you better turn that screen brightness to LIGHT MODE because he's not going anywhere until Pentagram City has its power grid restored.

I took some screenshots for reference

[kibbles-bits]

any voxval fics you’d recommend?

Ah, yes, voxval fics... The one ship that finally made me cave and read explicit stuff. I am now numb to everything.

Everything.

I'll only be posting completed fics. Warnings, almost all of these are explicit. A couple also have Angel, you know, suffering.

And please mind the tags.

First off is a couple of favs that I always go back for a reread:

Corrupted Love by DoveFactory (Words: 149,495)

In a moment of blind desperation to one-up Alastor, Vox puts himself in a compromising situation that leaves him worse for wear. His state triggers something in Valentino who decides to change the nature of their relationship.

The title and summary of this is so misleading I thought it was going to be a dark fic but nope. The Vees are a bunch of goobers and Valentino always wins. I would scream about this every time it updated. I love the characterizations and their banter it almost made me forget there's sex in like every chapter. Honestly I wish there was more tags referencing the character/story stuff.

Virtual Reality by passthevoxcord (Words: 7,634)

Vox gets tired of his cybernetic biology being a barrier to his sex life, so he starts a new project to fuck Valentino in VR. Val will try anything once, but he has something else in mind.

This one ends up being so sweet I want to die. passthevoxcord's other fic, Only a Shadow, drives me nuts but its a WIP and hasn't actually gotten to the voxval yet.

choke behind a smile by gloriousmonsters (Words: 19,881)

"I'm not scared by extreme, although I doubt I'll find it interesting. What is it?" Valentino's eyes narrow slyly over his smile. "If you aren't scared, why do you need a warning?" Vox has everything under control in his new business partnership with benefits. His emotions, his unfortunate desires, the little mind games they play. Even Valentino himself. When Val offers an invitation to a special show he's performing, Vox knows it's a dare, and knows he has to take it, show Val that he can't be scared or destabilized. He has no idea of how deep under his skin the show will get.

Everyone's so normal. I love this Valentino. There's another Valvel fic that has the same Valentino I also recommend called bad girls go backstage.

Great Expectations by MarenRose (Words: 11,280)

“It’s his goal. Those three simple words. If he could get to hear them once, could let the reality of their meaning and spoken existence occupy his mind for only a few indiscernible moments, then maybe, Vox could learn to see the appeal of this god forsaken holiday. He might even learn to ‘love’ it too.” Or: Vox hates Valentine’s Days. His prick of a ‘wife’ is just too damn hard to please.

This miiiight have been the fic that made me Lock In on voxval? I'm not sure. It's sweet. Alastor is hilarious.

biting keeps your words at bay by Subedarling (Words: 1,511)

“You can’t hit me,” Valentino says. He’s practically vibrating with rage. “You’re not allowed to—you can’t hit me!” Vox sneers, cruel and mocking and hopefully masking the way his heart is breaking apart inside his chest. “Baby, I can do whatever the hell I want.” A decade into their partnership, Vox and Valentino have their first and last physical fight.

This might be the only non-explicit fic in this list. I am all for Val being the worst just because he's Like That. But I will not say no to an implied tragic backstory. I read this one a lot and want to die. Can I draw this. I want to draw this. Oh my god I have free time I can totally draw this...

And my other recs:

Just For The Record by PeppermintWalrus (Words: 13,795)

Vox is thrilled about his new film enterprise with his business partner, ready to build a lucrative empire for the denizens of hell to experience true cinema, in the only genre their depraved minds desire. There’s just one problem that he finds out too late; Valentino has never filmed porn before. Vox decides that some... hands-on teaching, is necessary to save their production.

Yeah you read that right.

a putrid feeling that i've addressed by spoondrifts (Words: 5,162)

They weren’t a couple because Valentino was pathologically noncommittal and Vox simply knew better. He tried the whole romance thing with a certain radio demon a few decades back, and he’d learned his damn lesson. Hell just wasn’t the place for that sort of cutesy bullshit. Also, he was pretty sure that Valentino was straight up incapable of love, which was both par for the course for Vox’s friendships and amazingly convenient—things couldn’t get complicated if there was nothing to complicate in the first place. Or: Full Moon, Vox/Val edition.

Haha I love pain. I lied, this is the second non-explicit fic.

Little Miss Hellion by DoveFactory (Words: 10,657)

Hell’s worst married couple spends a day of family bonding at a beauty pageant doing whatever it takes to make sure their daughter takes home the crown, because failure is never an option for the Vees. Pilot AU where Vox and Valentino are married and Velvette is their adopted daughter.

It's more Vees than voxval but they're married so.

The Art of Pimping by MarenRose (Words: 9,161)

Desperate to close a deal with one of the most lucrative investors in Pride, Vox does the unthinkable and pimps out Valentino for a one-time date. What could go wrong?

Val's attitude in this one is funny and Vox. Yeah. Vox made a mistake.

You Found Me by passthevoxcord (Words: 4,338)

Long before Velvette came along, it was just them. Vox and Valentino. Valentino and Vox.

Sobbing.

Something Less Than Dishonest by daphnerunning, Galiko (Words: 33,931)

He isn’t expecting the way Valentino walks, for some reason. Maybe it’s the extra limbs. Maybe it’s the wings. Maybe it’s the heels. Vox had skipped briefly through a few of the slut’s movies, for research, and isn’t expecting the way Valentino moves in person to feel so… Different. “…You must be my four o’clock,” he says, standing and offering a hand. Oh, shit, he’s huge. Valentino towers over him, easily would without the stripper heels. Vox is not afraid of heights.

Vox is so offensive in this it loops back around to hilarious.

Red Skies and Valentino by alternatedoom (Words: 86,050)

"Vox and I are special friends, doll. Go give him a kiss," Val says to the boy.

Angel does not have a good time. But the Voxval is nice.

before you go by xoTsundoku (Words: 4,426)

Before Alastor came into their lives, Vox and Valentino were happy. Maybe they still can be.

A Farewell to Ghosts by Accidental_Ducky (Words: 37,149)

"What do you think that is," Vox demands, pointing at the new guy. Valentino turns, eyes raking greedily over the man's body. He's gorgeous, skinny in a heroin chic way with big blue eyes and blond hair that falls just so across his eyes. "Hot." "Don't fucking call the ghost hot!"

The only human AU I've liked so far. Love the character interactions. Vox and Val are hilarious.

God I hope I didn't miss any. There's definitely some good WIP ones out there.

[storm-angel989]

Hi I rlly like stories!! Ur an amazing writer and I love all your stuff:) I’m not exactly sure if I’m doing this right but I’d like to request something if your ok with it ofc! Can I have a Vox x daughter Reader where she has to tell the vees that she’s bisexual ( it doesn’t have to be bisexual, I just chose that bc I am :) whatever ur comfortable with! ) and she’s rlly scared bc she doesn’t know if they will support her. Srry if this is bad! You totally don’t have to do this if you don’t want too! I love your work❤️

Hi there,

Thank you so so so much! I’ve touched on the topic of coming out in several different stories. If you check out my master list, you’ll find the following stories:

Valentino x Teenage Daughter (Daddy, I like girls) 

Vox x Teenage Daughter (Dad, I like girls) 

However, I haven’t written on specifically for a bisexual reader, so see below! Velvette and Vox’s daughter, coming out to her parents. Enjoy!

<3 Mandy 

I laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling, counting the few glow in the dark stars that remained stuck firmly above where I slept. I think it was my Uncle Valentino who put them up. I sighed and rolled over as I pulled my head over my pillow. Uncle Val. He was the first person I talked to and the one who suggested I talk to my Dad. 

Bebita, you can like both boys and girls. There is nothing wrong with that, Uncle Valentino had said. You’re not confused. Sexually is a spectrum, mi amore. There is no right or wrong. Your Mom and Dad love you, no matter who you love. I promise

Still, despite his reassurances, I was dreading that conversation. As Uncle Valentino escorted me back to our flat, I made him promise he would be there to support me when I came out to my parents. With a kiss on the forehead, he promised that not only would he be there, but it would all be okay. 

“Hey baby? Dinner is ready,” my father’s voice floated down the hallway. 

Reluctantly, I sat up and swung my feet over my bed as I trudged my way out to the kitchen. I slid into my seat and my Uncle Valentino reached over and patted me on the head.

“Bebita princessa, mi amore. Before we eat, let's talk, yes?” He prodded gently. “I told you parents that you have something very important to share with us.” 

I swallowed as the fear knotted in my stomach.

“Come on baby, what is it?” Velvette asked. “Spill, what’s on your mind?”

“You know you can talk to us,” Vox added. 

I took a deep breath and my Uncle Valentino gave my arm a reassuring squeeze. 

“Mom, Dad. I think I’m bisexual,” I said softly. 

Silence over the table. I allowed myself to look up. Vox and Velvette stared at me with confusion. 

“And…?” Vox prodded. “And…you failed your science test? You need help in math?”

“Someone is bullying you? Give me the names, I’ll handle it,” Velvette added. 

I shook my head. “No…just, I think I’m bisexual. I sort of had a crush on a girl and we kissed. But also, like, I really liked my last boyfriend?” 

“Okay,”  Vox said slowly. 

“Sweetheart, we love you no matter who you love,” Velvette said as she walked over. She pulled me into a hug and I hugged her back. “Your father and I aren't exactly straight ourselves.” 

“You’re not upset?” I asked anxiously. “I thought for sure…”

“Babe. Have you met your Uncle Valentino?” Vox asked as he glanced at Valentino. “He’s the definition of…”

“Alright,” Valentino interrupted. “See bebita? I told you your parents would love you no matter what. Now, Vox. Pass the potatoes. I’m starving.”

[ravenslop]

this is probably the only time ill post something but im shocked nobody has drawn valentino as a (dark) cardiophile given his heart motif and how he could totally be imagined as listening to someone's heart or watching vital signs as he tortures one of his employees. angel dust refusing to act scared of him so he ties him down and puts a stethoscope on his chest, commenting about how his heart can't lie or something. you cant tell me you dont see it.

[disney-rapunzel-merida-vanellope]

- I need Asha as a kid and, considering the latest disney trends, I think it’s guaranteed to happen. We had tiana, Rapunzel, merida, Anna, elsa, Moana, raya, mirabel as kids so Asha is definitely showing up as a kid. The question is, how young? Cause I think I would want her a lil bit older than the norm. Like older than younger raya. Maybe as a 10yo even. Usually they are shown as babies or very young toddlers but I think it would be neat to show her kid self older than the norm. But who am I kidding, she’s probably gonna be a baby girl like tiana wishing upon a star too

- I need Asha in various outfit changes… since I’m positive we’re gonna see her younger self there’s at least 2 looks. Disney also likes to do a different outfit for the movie’s ending, so that’s 3. Not bad but if she’s going to be a Disney princess she needs more. If I’m not mistaken, only pocahontas gets 1 look (og movie) and all the others get at least 3. I need Asha to pull at least 5 :D IM VERY SERIOUS! And they can’t all be purple!!! Can she get some jewelry beads in her hair? 👉🏻👈🏻

- It occurred to me that the Disney princess and her sidekick is something a lot more blurred than I realized. Like jasmine’s is rajah 100%. But Snow White, cinderella, aurora and Belle have a lot of options. Flounder is probably our first choice for Ariel, but Sebastian is actually very important and scuttle is there too. Pascal is definitely rapunzel’s but Maximus is also crucial. Pua is Moana’s but he’s not even the adventure sidekick. Pocahontas has 2 with equal importance in the movie even tho meeko is the fan favorite. Mulan has 4. Merida has angus but her brothers as bears are more iconic imo. Tiana has no pets but ray and Louis are equally important, raya tuktuk and sisu… all this rambling cause it occurred to me that if I had to do fanart of Asha and her sidekick I don’t know if I’d chose Valentino or the star 😟 like sure I can do both but it just made me realize that choosing 1 bff for most disney princesses is not that easy and it will have to come down to the fandom fave or smallest a lot of the times for both fanart or even official merch. If disney does a series of the princesses and her sidekick who will they choose???? Cause I bet it’s gonna be the star for plot relevance and iconicness but her bff is actually the goat u know… just 1 am thoughts

- I need a banger opening song…. I’m talking hunchback of Notre dame or lion king or Hercules levels of banger. Look at me, when will my life begin is an all time fave song of mine I DONT WANT THIS PUT IN QUESTION FOR A SECOND HERE, but I need Wish’s opening to not be that. No when will my life begin, where you are or family madrigal type of cheery songs. I want heavy and more dramatic or dark. Frozen heart, all is found and Arabian nights are all also certified BANGERS and give the mysterious, exciting, dramatic vibes I’m looking for… but are damn too short… I need more. I’d love for it to be sung but a narrator like in hunchback and Hercules or just a non character, just a voice like in lion king or brother bear. (I wrote this and then immediately went to search that 1 article that talks about the songs and they said Asha sings in all of them except the villain song so we’ll see)

- Asha has a song, the king has a song (A VILLAIN SONG!!!!) and there’s 7 songs in total. So, my predictions according to Disney’s pattern in previous movies and my guesses because of our very limited knowledge on the movie: 1) opening, 2) this wish, aka the I want song, 3) villain song, 4&5&6) Asha and friends, Asha and the king,asha solo II, 7) ending song. I could always use more songs 🙂 but the AMAZING NEWS (if that article is accurate) asha sings in every song!!!!!! A lot of disney most iconic songs are by male singers but I gotta confess…. I lean towards more female voices 😐 Ariel and jasmine only having 1 song + reprise in their movies… JAIL. Like I’m so serious I’m kinda scared to confess which disney songs I think are overrated but truth is, the songs are fine I just don’t like that they are sung by old man with too deep or rough voices 😅😭 anyway ASHA SIIIIIIIIIIING BABY GIRL

- It’s the teasers and posters fault, but I’m imagining 75% of this movie being set at night 😭 I mean… it is about stars… not complaining tho. But I truly am just associating this movie with a dark blue color

Random rambling thoughts on ✨WISH✨ before the movie comes out

- This movie is for the sleeping beauty girlies… or at least IT HAS TO BE. Any other vibe and I’m gonna be extremely disappointed. It’s already giving medieval European fairytale with gorgeous animation so they can’t fumble this bag. I’m not really sure yet what I expect from the plot but I just need a sleeping beauty energy to it idk idk. I don’t really know what I mean by it cause sleeping beauty is so contradictory in itself, it’s so epic but also so quiet and calm and simple… we’ll see

- This movie is gonna comment on astrology and the horoscope right right??? You cannot do a movie about wishes and stars and not give us a peak into the starry night the characters look upon to and study! If I don’t have a scene of asha discussing constellations then what’s the point 😒 but like even just the aesthetics in the background or something. I need it

- I know everyone knows this movie is set in Spain but the official sources say Iberian peninsula and u bet your ass that, as a portuguese gal, imma remind y’all about it cause we get so little representation while the Spanish get everything well now they’ll have to share 😭😭😭😭😭

- Asha having friends is so anti Disney princess of her 😭😭😭 those other girls only talk to animals. Tiana and Pocahontas are the only girls with a bff and that’s only 1, Asha has 7 😭😭😭 I’m not very impressed with their designs but I guess they can grow on me

- I’m guessing the movie is entirely in the kingdom and it’s nearby places like tangled and sleeping beauty, as opposed to movies like moana or frozen that force them out of their home in a long journey

- Do u guys think the Easter eggs will be subtle or Ralph breaks the internet kind of in your face? Cause disney is making a lot of promises, dozens of Easter eggs right? But I think the in your face crossover will be just for the once upon a studio short, and in the movie the cameos will be more Easter eggs and subtle. (Out of topic but have y’all seen that Lego trailer for the Disney princesses vs Gaston thing? I’m telling y’all rn, disney in gonna give up an official disney animation studios movie of the princesses all together in an adventure before 2040!! IM JUST SAYING!)

- I hope the musical numbers take notes from encanto in the dynamism of we don’t talk about Bruno and dreamlike sequences from surface pressure. I just don’t love when characters are forced to be stuck in reality, it feels very limited. Animation is supposed to break those restrictions. And like, not every musical number has to be like this, but I just want more than a character singing in point A, B and C u know? And I like how, for example, a character would start singing the song and then the 2nd half is a montage? Or like in when will my life begin where she starts singing, but then it’s all montage and she just sings again at the end. (Uncharted waters was a very good song with a very boring scene let’s be honest, and something like that is criminal but it would be even worse in animation)

- I’m really not sure what to expect from the plot and I haven’t really thought a]much about it but rn, if I had to guess, I’d say the movie is about a kingdom that parallels present day USA kkkk hear me out!!! The kingdom had low days of war but fought for independence and began from scratch. This family has magic and can grant people’s wishes and promises the people the equivalent of the American dream. But as generations pass, the king starts collecting more and more wishes without ever intending to grant them to the people or maybe the price of the wishes keeps getting higher. The "American" dream doesn’t exist anymore but people still believe in it cause they are powerless but hopefull. Basically the movie is gonna be about dethroning a tyrant and dismantling capitalism 😃 (look I’m not good with words or brain power but I think u understand what I mean). Maybe the king’s magic is fake, he just knows how to work with the stars own magic while no one else can. And in the end, Asha and her friends are gonna Robin Hood their way into granting the peoples wishes or just make then see that wishing only goes so far as you’re willing to work for your dream??… but like I’m serious, I really think this movie is gonna be a shade to America and is gonna go against everything bob iger represents

[crimsondustofficial]

A Diamond Heart

Oh god.

Who knew that he'd stoop to this level?

Well, considering that he was a former client of Valentino, and he completely bailed on him for not paying up. News certainly travels fast around Pentagram City. But the way that they found the poor guy. . .Poor bastard bled out from the various injuries delivered to him by the TV Demon Vox, while that son of a bitch Valentino stood off to the side, smoking a cigarette and let the pink smoke evaporate into the air before that god awful grin stretched onto his face, his gold tooth shining in the dim streetlight. Letting others do his dirty work and not getting any blood on him. . .

Fucking pathetic if you ask me.

From the bustling sounds of car horns beeping from annoyed workers who were just getting home and cursing up a storm at whoever's taking too long because of their exciting phone conversation, to a few gunshots sprinkled in there every once and awhile, and to finish off with the icing on this sinful cake, the disgusting and awful smell of death, gunpowder and cigarette smoke that lingered in the air of the city, this was the afterlife of the many Demons all over Hell. Sure, some were having very peaceful afterlives. Just doing what they usually do, maybe repeat something they did when they were still alive. And. . . others who haven't changed from their human shells before they broke and rotted away, leaving nothing but the soul left. Sin tendencies picking up after being on hold for God knows how long.

Of course, there was some rehabilitation.  What with the Princess of Hell going out of her way to try and cleanse the ugliness of the city's residents, her little passion project hasn't really helped her one bit because it was in a bit of a slump.Adding a little bit more smoke into the air, a soft exhale could be heard from the entrance of an alleyway. "What a Fucking mess. . .Ugh." A long pair of legs, that were certainly some eye candy for a lot of weird fellas, covered all the way up to the upper thigh with only a little bit of skin exposed before being covered by a hidden but short black mini skirt. Those thigh high, very dark yet fashionable high heeled legs crossed over meticulously while the owner of those legs rested their body against the brick wall of the alley they were standing in. Inhaling and letting out another soft exhale, a puff of rose magenta smoke escaped its way out of a mouth with small, sharp teeth and one beautiful, gold tooth sticking out. A tight pink and white striped suit clung to the body perfectly while the four arms that were out and showing, one fuchsia pink gloved arm holding a cigarette between the fingers while the other rested on the side in a sassy manner. The other two gloved arms were crossed in a bit of an angry note. Stale wind blew by through the Demon infested city, small tufts of white hair with some small, pink details danced with the air. Heavy eye shadow and eyeliner covered eyes, one white and one black, narrowed in what appeared to be frustration or complete anger, the bright pink irises shone brightly. What many residents of Pentagram City who went to the swanky studio in a part of the city would know who this person is. Or who've seen them around the block a few times, usually either smoking, joining in on the turf wars with another Demon, or going through a punishment from their Boss, there they were. Angel Dust. A good money maker and very well known adult star had unfortunately been sent out here by this corner by that motherfucker of a Boss, Valentino. Ugh, just that name made Angel wanna throw up. History with Valentino. . . it wasn't pleasant. Thankfully, his time was up and pushing his body off of the wall, the sound of high heels clicked and clacked against the concrete sidewalk before finally stopping in front of a large building. 'Hazbin Hotel' was what the sign basically screamed out for any newcomers to see. For a few weeks now, Angel Dust had been staying at this hotel in order to be cleansed of his sins with the help of the Princess of Hell herself and her girlfriend who at times looked like she wanted to rip him in half for what stupid act he pulls. Walking up to the second floor where his room was, Angel Dust then paused when he spotted a room with the door adjacent. Poking his head a little bit, his alluring pink irises took in every detail of the room. The theme had a sort of night black and blood red feeling. The night black paint covered the walls while the blood red covered the furniture surrounding the room. But lying on the small couch in the room was a little girl. She wasn't like the other Demons living in Hell. In fact, she was probably the only real Human to really be down in the city of Demons. Ruby Diamond was her name. She had the age and body of a small six year old girl, with honey blonde hair cut short and sprawled out behind her head. Her bright sky blue eyes were shut at the moment as her small chest rose and fell. Her small body rested with her head fell to the side, one arm resting on her slowly falling and rising stomach as the other arm was dangling off the side of the adjacent couch. However, the adult film star spider caught a glimpse of something very small and. . .pink. A small adorable face appeared from behind the couch as a small pig whose body was a mix of black and dark pink spots painted in various areas. The small pig headed over to Angel, only to give a happy little noise as Angel picked up the animal and hugged the pig close. "Did you miss your Daddy, Nuggs?" Angel asked in a sweet tone, looking down at his darling pig who was currently enjoying the warmth and softness of Angel's fluff. Gently taking his eyes off of his baby, the spider star's eyes locked onto the sleeping little girl on the couch. Fashionable high heels clicked and clacked quietly against the carpeted floor of the room, a dark silhouette cast over Ruby, who moaned quietly as her body jolted a second. Then, sweet dreams lulled her back into a deep slumber. Two free arms settled Nuggs down back onto the couch, giving his small head a light pat. Slowly and carefully, Ruby was swept up into Angel's arms, a content sigh of satisfaction of feeling the softness of his fluff and the warmth wrapping around her small body escaped her closed lips while her mouth stretched into a small, yet noticeable smile. Her usual hot pink and clean white dress had been folded up and off to the side by Vaggie earlier and her new outfit was a comfortable and clean baby blue nightgown that reached down to her knees. From where Angel was standing, Ruby had the position and appearance of a baby, trapped in a good dream. Quietly, high heels started up their clicking and clacking against the carpeted floor over to the black and red matching queen size bed. The cool, blood red bed sheets hugged Ruby's small body comfortably as a pair of hot pink gloved hands made sure that Ruby wasn't left feeling a chilly breeze blowing in through some sort of crack in the room or from the window if they were open, which they weren't. And the room didn't look super old enough to even have a hole. The other gloved hand brushed a few small strands of honey blonde hair out of Ruby's sleeping face. The sight was honestly something to cherish and hold in his heart for the rest of his afterlife. Lightly brushing his fingers against her soft cheek, Angel had the sheer determination of protecting that smile. That face. That. . . girl. The ugliness of what someone like Valentino could do to such a little treasure like Ruby pierced right through Angel's heart. "Sweet dreams, Precious." He whispered to her deaf ears before motioning to Nuggs to head out. Softly jumping off of the couch, Nuggs walked alongside his owner, who took one last glance over at the peacefully sleeping child. Making sure that the door didn't make any noise, Angel left the room, encasing it in total darkness and with no trace that he was ever there. "Such a sweet little girl, isn't she?" Perking his head up and looking over his shoulder, pink irises captured the permanently grinning face of Alastor. How long had that Radio Demon been standing in the hallway? It's not like Angel really cared, just as long as that grinning bastard wasn't gonna start popping up behind him. Unless he'd like to eat a whole bunch of bullets. "Just the way that she can wake up each day without a care in the world and a bright smile on her face. . . I just get scared." Angel replied, crossing over two of his arms, his eyes turned back to Ruby's door while Fat Nugget rested comfortably in the second pair of arms. "You're afraid that something might happen to her?" Alastor questioned, his head tilted to the side in a bit of confusion, his brow quirked just a tad. A quiet sigh escaped Angel's lips, his eyes half lidded but narrowed. "Valentino has broken a lot of people. Including me. I don't want her to end up in his web of abuse and manipulation if she ever meets him." Angel paused after a while before replying with certainty dripping from his voice. "She has a diamond heart, Angel. Very strong yet beautiful. As long as she feels safe here and is able to see you come back everyday, then that's all she can ask for." Alastor replied almost immediately, There was a soft pause in the hallway as Alastor's words were on repeat in Angel's mind. "Now then, I must take my leave. My radio broadcast won't start on its own. Until next time." Alastor bid Angel goodbye before taking his leave, disappearing after his body continued down the stairs to the main area, leaving Angel and Fat Nugget in the hallway. Heels clicked and clacked over to another door, a gentle push given to open it and the light from the hallway to shed some light into the room. Pink was splashed all over the room, from the walls to the furniture, even to the curtains. A brown box that had various sex toys thrown in haphazardly with the words ' sex toys' scratched out with black sharpie marker and 'work stuff' written over it. A small pink bean bag was the ultimate throne and bed for Fat Nugget. Settling his darling pet down into his bed, Angel rubbed Fat Nugget's head, however his face had a clear frown stuck onto it. Turning his head over to the tall mirror covered makeup dressing table, his heart wrenched. Gently slamming his hands onto the table, Angel's eyes darted in different directions before screwing closed tightly, his hands clenched into shaky fists. A cold sweat trickled down his forehead as an awful memory of Valentino taking advantage of him once more burned back into Angel's mind. Letting out a shaky breath and looking at himself in the mirror, Angel still had that frown and those narrowed eyes present on his face. "A diamond heart..."

[laylacooke]

Carry On || Evelyn & Layla

timing: monday night (6/15) after the bar fight with francesaca. parties: @thronesofshadows & @laylacooke summary: evelyn has a heart-to-heart with with a vain werewolf that just came from a bar fight.

The bar fight turned out to be more than she could handle. Layla was proud, but after a few swift punches, she had just gotten angry, and did things she probably shouldn’t have. But as she hobbled the streets of White Crest in the late-night hours, she held her head high in accomplishment. Plus, there’s nothing a little foundation and concealer couldn’t hide, if need be. But even as a wolf, who now fed on a healthy diet of whatever she wanted, she knew all the meat in the world couldn’t fix the fatigue, cuts, and bruised ribs in a jiff. And when a bench came up, she found herself sitting on it, needing to catch her breath.

She was out for a small walk. Evelyn knew that being out late could draw unwanted attention, but that had never been something she minded too much at all. She was not a fan of Soul on the Rocks. In the few times she’d been by, it had resulted in a lot of men looking at her in ways that made her track down where a few of them lived and give them nightmares. She wasn’t planning on going in tonight - just out for a walk when she spotted someone - a redhead who couldn’t have been even of legal age to drink (not that Evelyn was by any means expert in guessing ages, but she had a feeling she was correct in this case), who looked to be in very poor state. She could have just continued on her way, but she’d been spending enough time around people who seemed to genuinely care about others, and it was starting to get to her. She brushed her hands against the skirt of her dress and sat down next to the girl. At least she was wearing her contacts. “Are you quite alright? Do you need me to call a doctor?”

Layla could smell someone coming, and when they sat down next to her, she raised her head to address them, “Just peachy.” A doctor? A doctor was the last thing she needed. Although, the last time she was there, they had given her some pain meds that had made things interesting. But right now, she couldn’t even remember the contact information for the person that had reached out to her, and while every fiber in her being wanted to get up and blow off the kindness the lady was offering, she didn’t have it in her, “And no. No doctors. I’m not exactly in a position to be talking to doctors.” Which was true, considering doctors knew cops and cops could arrest people. And bar fights weren't exactly on the list for law abiding citizens, “Nice accent, by the way. I take it you’re not from around here?” In fact, the woman had looked familiar to Layla, now that she was getting a better look, but she couldn’t quite place her face.

“You do not,” seem peachy, Evelyn wanted to say, but it was not her place. “I only mean, you do not look especially ready for going for a late-night walk.” She raised an eyebrow. “No doctors then. That is fine.” For a moment she found herself wondering if the girl was supernatural, if she had physiology that, like Evelyn’s, made it difficult for her to see a doctor. “Not originally, not.” She let a soft smile cross her face. “I am from England. London, to be precise. I have been here for just over four years, but the accent is not something I believe I will ever be properly rid of. Not that I would wish to be.” Evelyn pulled out a small handkerchief from her bag and handed it to the girl. “This is not much, but perhaps it will help work on those cuts. Wait,” she paused, pulling out a small set of band aids from her bag (a habit she’d made herself have since she was little. Quick and easy repairs in case she got a cut, because explaining why there was blue when there should have been red was too much to worry about) and held one out to the girl. “Better than a doctor, hm?” 

She listened, through the pain, as the woman explained her background. And then it hit Layla. She had seen this woman before. In magazines. Her hometown confirmed and connected random circuits in her mind, “The accent’s pretty amazing. I wouldn’t want to lose it either.” She noticed the handkerchief and took it. Evelyn’s command had stopped her, and when she saw the band aids, a smile slipped over her lips, “So much better.” Taking those in her hand, she slowly shifted her weight and began wiping the blood from the various wounds, “By the time I get done with all these band aids, people won’t recognize me.” She laid the handkerchief on her lap and took one of the small band aids to stick on her arm, “By the way, loved that spread in Vogue you did.” She took a slow breath as she continued to try and doctor herself up.

“Thank you.” Evelyn offered the girl another smile. “I will admit, I think it assists in getting what I want. Well, that and flashing a pretty smile.” The other girl accepted the band aids and Evelyn filed that bit of information away for later use. She knew the other girl wasn’t mara - her injuries gave a clear sign of that - but maybe there was something else. Or perhaps she just didn’t want to go to the doctor, which was valid enough in its own right. “Well, you have a lovely face, I should hope people will still recognize you.” She startled for a moment at the comment about Vogue. “That was ages ago. Also, small, nothing totally cover worthy.” It had been a nice story though - one of her birthdays, something her father had pulled. Multiple pages. Something he’d done that showed that he did care about her. “So, you have an interest in fashion?” Evelyn grabbed one of the band aids and made quick work of it, placing it on the girl’s arm. “Well, then I figure you know who I am. Evelyn Hoffman, pleasure to meet you. Would you mind telling me your name?”

“Yeah, no problem. I mean, let’s face it, you are hot.” She could say that. Layla may have had a slight crush on her growing up, but she had long since grown out of it. Frankie was her one and only, aside from an intoxicated kiss with Ariana. But even as dark as Layla’s heart was right now, it still only beat for one other person. “Thanks. Sometimes it gets me in trouble. Hence the bar fight.” She shifted, her ribs bothering her with each breath she took, “I liked it. And as embarrassing as this is going to sound, I had that photoshoot hanging on my wall at home. But yeah, I like fashion, when I can afford fashion.” She wasn’t exactly dressed to the nines. Honestly, she had stolen her current outfit from a nearby store earlier in the day knowing she wanted to go out on the town. Showing no emotion, as the band aid was placed on her arm, she continued to listen to Evelyn, “It’s nice to meet you, and you already know my name actually...It’s Layla. We’ve talked before, online.”

“I suppose looks do get you places,” Evelyn raised an eyebrow. “Thank you, your endorsement is appreciated, and I have learned that more Americans than I would have believed recognize me.” She nodded along briefly, a small giggle escaping her lips at the girl’s next comment. “Nothing to be embarrassed about. Consider it a plus in my book.” She winked at the other girl. “I appreciate anyone who appreciates fashion, and it is sorely lacking in appreciation in this town. LL Bean makes good quality products but that is not exactly life changing, though they have a slightly nicer line, now.” She’d looked into it when she’d ordered clothing for Alain in the week that he was at her home. “Oh, Layla! My apologies, I do remember you. Also, though this is not an ideal way to meet, this town seems in favor of me meeting people in bizarre ways, so you are right in line with that.” Evelyn glanced around them - the sidewalk was relatively clear, all things considered. “Can I get you something? Something to eat, or anything? If nothing else, this area of town at night is less than ideal.” I can handle myself, but I am also not keen to out myself to you, no matter how nice you may seem. 

“Uh yeah. Do you think they would have let me into a bar, underage, if I looked anything other than what I do?” Her vanity coming through, she straightened up her posture slightly, proud of herself, “Not to brag, but I’d say I’m pretty hot. At least my girlfriend thinks so.” This was far from who Layla was. Yes, she used to take pride in herself and how she looked, but it wasn’t a big deal. Evil!Layla, on the other hand, loved the way she looked and used it to her advantage. “You know, I think those pictures are still hanging up in my room, back in Tennessee. And LL Bean. Is that even still a thing?” A disgusted look came over her face, “Give me a nice pair of Louboutin’s or Red Bottoms any day.” She continued to doctor herself up while the conversation carried on, “Don’t apologize, and no, it’s really not, but I’m still glad to finally meet you in person.” She opened another band aid and stuck it on herself, “At least someone else thinks this town is totes messed up.” Looking herself over, she noticed one other cut she had missed, “But I think I’ve had enough drinking for one night. Call me crazy, but whatever it was I had tasted like gasoline. I went more for the chaos anyways.” 

So, she’d been correct about the girl being young. Evelyn gave herself a small bit of internal congratulations. “You do have beautiful features. I am glad you have a girlfriend who appreciates it.” She offered the girl a small shake of her head. “Well then consider me doubly honored.” Evelyn gave a small shrug. “Yes. Practical clothing. I too prefer Chanel or Valentino, but we are in Maine and many like practicality, so I suppose they must find some way to stay in business.” She clicked her tongue against her teeth. Marley probably would have told her to feed on the girl - but, despite all her injuries, she hardly seemed scared, and Evelyn shrugged it off. This girl was barely over the age of eighteen if she was over that at all, and that was a no in Evelyn’s book. “I am pleased to meet you as well, Layla.” She knit her eyebrows together at the girl’s comment. “Oh, I was not offering to buy you alcohol. I meant more like a sandwich or something. I might be able to bribe the owner of a couple restaurants around here to open. However, it is not necessary. I would not recommend drinking something that tastes like gasoline - or petrol, if you would like me to highlight how English I am.” She winked at the other girl. “Regardless, I think we should avoid chaos for the evening and perhaps go for a walk. Have you seen the Common at night? It is beautiful.”

Evelyn was fluffing Layla’s feathers and it made her feel good about herself. She liked this woman. “I know.” Her smugness remained as they continued to discuss clothing, “Ugh, what I wouldn’t do for Chanel or Valentino. But you’re right. I mean even the name of the state sounds boring...Maine.” She finished doctoring herself up and passed the remainder of the band aids back to the woman next to her, “You’re a peach.” Standing up, Layla stretched and slowly popped her back and neck, “And thanks, but no thanks. Not really that hungry, but a walk would be nice, I suppose. Can’t commit robbery every second of every day, now can I?” She winked at Evelyn as she moved away from the bench. “

“I suppose it is a bit ordinary, but for all that it is small, I do find this town quite lovely.” It was true; it was not something that she would have ever believed possible, and even though this town had many more humans than Evelyn would have hoped for, she did find a certain comfort in it all. “Thank you…” her voice trailed off, eyes tracking the girl as she got up. Making jokes about robbery. Evelyn let a light giggle escape her lips. “Good one. Well, we can go for a walk, if you wish - particularly if it keeps you out of trouble.” She stood up and talked to where the girl was standing, holding out her arm. “Shall we?”

[fly-pow-bye]

What’s Airing On Cartoon Network? (April 2020)

I didn’t make an article because they didn’t even list them until they started airing. They did list them for this month though, but some of them don’t even have descriptions. This is all according to The Futon Critic. All of this is listed after the break.

Apple & Onion

Show is so big, it managed to get a guest star.

April 4th:

Petri - Apple and Onion must get back to their apartment to put the lid on their petri dish. (9:30 AM) (Not a half hour episode.)

April 11th:

Floored - Apple and Onion get lost beneath their floorboards and must find a way out. (9:30 AM)

Election Day - Apple runs for Mayor. Episode guest stars Isiah Whitlock Jr. (Clay Davis on HBO's "The Wire") as Mayor Naise. (9:45 AM)

Ben 10 (2016)

April 5th:

Digital Quality (10:00 AM)

Tim Buk-TV (10:15 AM)

April 12th:

Growing Up is Hard to Do (10:00 AM)

The Hex Factor (10:15 AM)

Craig of the Creek

April 18th:

Creek Daycare - Craig and his sister, Jessica, try their hand at running the daycare at the creek. (9:00 AM)

Sugar Smugglers - Craig, Kelsey and JP become smugglers to sneak candy to kids in need. (9:15 AM)

April 25th:

Tea Timer's Ball - The Tea Timers throw a dance and invite everyone in the creek. Craig believes it's solely to prank him, while Kelsey deals with an unwanted admirer. (9:00 AM)

Sleepover at JP's - JP invites his friends over for a sleepover, but it happens to be on the night of a huge game of Flashlight Tag in the creek! (9:15 AM)

DC Super Hero Girls

No descriptions for this one, either.

April 5th:

#AllAboutZee (4:00 PM)

April 12th:

#TweenTitans (4:00 PM)

April 19th:

#EmperorPenguin (4:00 PM)

April 26th:

#BreakingNews (4:00 PM)

Power Players

No descriptions, but all of them are on the app and have been released as See It Firsts, so just look at that article.

April 5th:

Freeze! (10:30 AM)

King Axel (10:45 AM)

April 12th:

The Trojan Bear (10:30 AM)

Thirst for Power (10:45 AM)

April 19th:

Party On (10:30 AM)

Bringing Up Baby (10:45 AM)

April 26th:

Stretched Too Thin (10:30 AM)

From Below (10:45 AM)

Teen Titans Go!

Only one episode, and it's that one.

April 4th:

Teen Titans Roar! - The Titans are outraged when their favorite cartoon is rebooted so they come up with a plan to get this new show off the air. (10:00 AM)

ThunderCats Roar:

Speaking of Roars...

April 4th:

Mandora - The Evil Chaser - Lion-O "accidentally" releases a whole space prison-full of criminals and winds up on the wrong side of the law. (10:30 AM)

Dr. Dometome - Lion-O is tasked with mapping the beaches of Third Earth, which leads to him somehow draining the oceans of all their water entirely. (10:45 AM)

April 11th:

Mumm-Ra, the Ever-Living - Every time Mumm-Ra gets ahold of a magic artifact to restore his powers, the ThunderCats just smash it and turn him into a dinky skeleton again. Until today that is, because Mumm-Ra just remembered he's got the Ancient Spirits of Evil. (10:30 AM)

Study Time - Lion-O never pays attention during Tygra's training sessions so when he's asked to do a pop quiz on "sword magic" he accidentally opens a portal to the Astral Plane and releases the Nether Witch. (10:45 AM)

April 18th:

Berserkers - The Cats' Lair is attacked by gold-loving robot pirates - the Berserkers! This is a good thing, really, since it means Lion-O and the ThunderKittens can ditch their chores and fight robo-pirates instead. Just don't tell Tygra! (10:30 AM)

Jaga History - Freed from the Astral Plane, Jaga - ghost of the ThunderCats mentor - is now free to visit the Cats' Lair. Which means he can finally tell them why Thundera, their home world, exploded. (10:45 AM)

April 25th:

Barbastella - While flying with his new invention, Panthro hits it off with a new friend - Barbastella, the Queen of the Bats.

Adopt a Jackal - After a battle with the Mutants, Jackalman gets confused and accidentally returns to the Cats' Lair with the Thundercats.

Total DramaRama

April 18th:

Pudding the Planet First - After Chef says opposing viewpoints make the world more interesting and fun Izzy applies it in the worst way possible. (10:00 AM)

Supply Mom - When Chef's mom becomes the supply teacher for a day Duncan replaces Chef's to-do list with one of his own. (10:15 AM)

April 25th:

Mooshy Phon Phons - After eating Chef's extremely rare and expensive chocolates Courtney drags Owen, Izzy and Beth all the way to the Norberian Alps of Fruffenberg to replace them. (10:00 AM)

Student Becomes the Teacher - Chef is knocked unconscious right before a School Board Evaluator shows up for a big review. Now Owen has to fill in so Chef doesn't lose his Teaching License and to ensure the kids earn the pony ride Chef promised for good behavior. (10:15 AM)

Transformers Cyberverse

No descriptions for this one, either. That last one, though.

April 5th:

The Trial (7:00 AM)

The Prisoner (7:15 AM)

April 12th:

The Scientist (7:00 AM)

The Alliance (7:15 AM)

April 19th:

The Judge (7:00 AM)

April 26th:

The End of the Universe (7:00 AM)

Unikitty

No descriptions for this one.

April 5th:

Sunken Treasure (4:30 PM)

April 12th:

Dawn of the Donut (4:30 PM)

April 19th:

P.L.O.T. Device 2: Beyond the Bored Dome (4:30 PM)

April 26th:

The New Nemesis (4:30 PM)

Victor and Valentino

This show's back!

April 18th:

The Guest - Vic and Val blame each other for eating all the food in the kitchen and making a huge mess. However, they soon discover that a ghost is actually to blame. They enlist the help of Achi to unlock the world of spirits among them and kick the ghost out of their house! (9:30 AM)

Ener-G-Shoes - When Vic uses trickery to buy a pair of super cool sneakers from Maria Teresa's yard sale, the shoes try to walk him to his demise as punishment. (9:45 AM)

April 25th:

La Cucarachita - When Vic's beloved pet cockroach dies, Vic turns to Charlene's dark magic to bring her back to life. (9:30 AM)

Lords of Ghost Town - When Victor and Valentino recruit a ghost to scare away a bully, they end up messing with the realm of the dead, which has disastrous consequences. (9:45 AM)

[dragonshoard]

I noticed you know about DP and I had an idea. What if Danny dies at his 20's and somehow, someway, he wakes up as a Demon in Hell because a )someone fucked up big time up in the Pearly Gates and misplaced him, or b) Heaven or someone up there truly believed the ''all ghosts are evil no matter what" thing and yeeted him downstairs regardless of him being a hero. He still keeps all of his ghost powers but how would he fair as a demon? How would Hell and its denizens react to him? The HH crew?

I saved this in my drafts and forgot about it whoops 

OOHHHHH OH NO POOR DANNY 

If he ended up in hell… it probably wasn’t by accident, I hate to break it to you oof. People in hell aren’t there just because they killed someone or did something super awful. We have a ton of other sins that people don’t talk about a lot like sloth, envy, pride, or gluttony. So if Danny ends up in Hell, one reason may be because he becomes overly arrogant and prideful (and doesn’t realize it until he’s died). 

But to be perfectly honest, I think his position in Hell was secured regardless of whether he changed the timeline or not, because of Dark Dan. He straight up destroyed the world. I dunno who in heaven is gonna look at that and say that, yeah, this guy totally belongs in heaven. Not to mention, but if they take into consideration a certain counsel’s dislike of him (one eyed bastards) its a shut in the door type of case. 

Hell doesn’t care much about Danny tbh. Unless he pulls a Radio Demon, things will continue on as they always would. Danny, on the other hand being the person he was and whatnot, is straight up going through culture shock, completely horrified. From the cussing, to the abundance of murder and everything else being accepted. It’s just too much. 

Danny needs legit years to re-evaluate himself, trying to figure what he had done to deserve this. Seriously, you end up in the same boat with murderers and racists, and what’s the worst thing you remember doing? Maybe snatching someone’s water at one point? Or maybe because he accidentally hit someone with his ectoblasts once? 

Because honest to god that is the worst luck and the biggest fuck you I have ever known. In life, he was a standard teenager. In half life, he was a hero. 

Also, is he an adult when he dies? Or is he an actual teenager in Hell. We’ll go with teenager verging on young adult (17-18?)

He’s in serious denial and isolates himself for months before probably finding trouble (or more accurately trouble finds him). Maybe he gets in the middle of a turf war by accident and saves some people on the sidelines. And that results in him making some friends, maybe a few imps/helborne demons who are actually pretty nice when they’re not being all… murdery and slightly insane xD

( I like the idea that his abilities in half-life pass down and become more powerful when he’s a demon. Maybe they would also take longer to heal or regenerate than a normal wound would )

The only people who would know who Danny is (or was) would be the royal or high class population in hell who concern themselves with human matters. 

It scares him to death (again) when he’s approached by Valentino’s goons, for example, and he has to disappear for a year after the incident (in which he vaporized a few groups of his minions and it took longer than normal for them to heal/regenerate - Valentino is still pissed). 

I kind of imagine his social circle is almost exclusive to helbornes (imps, hellhounds, etc) because he can get around the fact that they’re in hell because they were born there instead of earning their place like a human did. 

He does favors and builds up a lot of IOUs without really meaning to. He ends up living in a crummy apartment on good days and on the run/couch surfing from the more powerful overlords on bad ones. Cuz I’m straight up imagining that Danny does still do the hero thing when he is given the opportunity and steps on a lot of toes in the process. 

Appearance hmmm.. 

He’d probs end up using his old ghost color palette to choose clothing. He shows up in hell with black and white streaked hair and his eyes vary between blue and green (or both at the same time sometimes). White, black, and green with the occasional blue if he’s feeling good about it. 

His powers are actually seriously unique from what I’m reading. He could, easily rise to be an overlord if he wanted to. However, he wants none of that and, honestly, just doesn’t use his powers enough to raise public notice. 

I dunno where I’m going with this tbh (looks back at question)

OH THE CREW

Tbh he’d probably have been in Hell for a few years by the time Charlie goes in for the interview. He’s skeptical af because this was the literal Lucifer’s daughter. 

But… she looked genuine with her pitch so he didn’t think it would hurt to check the place out. 

Charlie would be too much in a good way. He’s used to see that manic energy in a more murderous direction, so it’s really nice to see someone so genuinely kind and pure in Hell. 

Alastor is all kinds of wrong and Danny makes it a point to stay as far away from him as possible. Alastor doesn’t know much about Danny to begin with but is very curious. 

Angel would make Danny uncomfortable if he ever hit on him, but otherwise he wouldn’t mind talking or hanging out. Not Danny’s first choice though. Angel, on the other hand, recognizes him because Valentino has been vying for his head for years by that point because Danny took out some of his stronger henchmen for over 3 months. Angel is kind of terrified if I’m being honest and makes it a point not to hit on him. 

Danny really likes Vaggie and, in a lot of respects, she reminds him of Sam. It’s a good type of grief and he likes hanging out with her and would listen to her vent. He tries to give good advice, but sometimes he falls short. Vaggie finds it almost comforting for someone from around her time because he actually understands what she’s talking about in regards to the human world (or references, all the references). 

The others would be a mix of wary and happy in his presence. He’d be one of the milder characters and doesn’t have a tendency to over-exaggerate or take things to the extreme. He’s a bit similar to Charlie in that he likes to play mediator. He doesn’t use his powers much initially because he knows how unique he is in that respect and doesn’t like to talk about the reason he was in Hell (which is a huge red flag). 

Cuz, well, the reality is that he has no actual idea why he’s in hell. He doesn’t know about the observants judgement or anything of the sort. He just woke up there after dying. 

[c-hristy]

Character Sheet - Franklin (Hazbin Hotel)

Franklin

Character Information - 

True Name: Franklin Magne

Nicknames: Frankie / Frank / The Moon (by Charlie) / Shitstain (by Bea)

Likes: Pranks / Carnage / Murder / Meat / Video Games / Streaming / Smiling / Sarcasm / Peanut Butter

Dislikes: Nativity / Religion / Redemption / Emotions / Humans / Pickles / Low Frame Rates / Yellow

Biological Information - 

Species: Deer Demon / Wendigo

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Gay

Abilities: Wendigo Transformation / Light Manipulation / Playing the Saxophone / Tap Dancing

Professional Status - 

Occupation: Prince of Hell

Relationships - 

Family: Alastor (Father) / Charlie (Mother) / Margret (Sister) / Beatrice (Sister) / Lucifer (Grandfather) / Lillith (Grandmother)

Friends: Valentino / Sir Pentious / Angel Dust / Husk / Razzle and Dazzle / Niffty

Frenemies: Vox / Vaggie 

Romantic Interests: N/A

Enemies: ...just a lot of demons

Franklin Magne is a hell born demon birthed to Alastor and Charlie and by line of succession, the prince of Hell. He has very little empathy or sympathy for the demons in Hell and mainly does whatever suits his fancy, not caring much for those around him.

Appearance - 

Franklin, as an adult, is 7’8”, the same height as Alastor. He is nearly identical to Charlie, only sharing the same ears and antlers of his father. He has the same eyes, nose and blackened lips, as well as the same dark red cheeks that Charlie has. There have been times that people have confused him for Lucifer because of the likness and there have been times that he has used this to his advantage. 

He usually wears a blue sweater and black jeans. The reason why he wears blue is because when Franklin was a child, he had an uncanny ability to just wander off and seeing a blue-clad child was the easiest way to find him among the red landscape of Pentagram City.

 

When in full Wendigo form, his antlers grow and branch and he also grows a few inches in height. His claws and teeth extend. He has double radio dials, much like Alastor, though instead of red, they are shades of grey. His hair grows longer and rougher to the touch and he is impossibly strong - though he has never once been able to defeat Alastor in a fight. He enjoys the terror that his Wendigo form beings and will occasionally allow himself to fall into it just to remind those around him to be scared of him.

Personality - 

Franklin has very little to no empathy. He’s a sociopath and he knows it; when he was younger, he did try his best to latch onto some sort of emotional connection but he was met with failure with each attempt. Because of this, he grew up to be snarky, sarcastic and cruel with a lot of the things he says and does. He does not believe in his mother and Margret’s ideology of redemption, believing that demons who go to Hell are meant to be there; they should suffer for the sins they committed.

He does have a soft spot for smaller things, however. Egg Bois in particular are demons he’s fond of and he enjoys carrying them around and talking to them. He’s an avid streamer of whatever video games he can get his hands on and has garnered quite a following in Hell for his streams. 

Franklin likes to inflict pain and doesn’t feel pain himself; the only times he can remember some sort of negative emotion is when he feels guilty for breaking promises that he made to Charlie when he was younger. He also enjoys protecting his sisters from any wrongdoing, though there have been times that he’s actually became friends with the people who have hurt his sisters.

Background - 

Franklin was born in Hell to Charlie and Alastor, the Princess of Hell and the Radio Demon. Instinctively, he doesn’t care much for the process that goes on around him, though he does have a strong tendency for violence. He has two sisters and he cares for them, though he isn’t quite sure he’s as attached to them as they are to him.

Relationships - 

Alastor:     Alastor is Franklin’s father.

Franklin inherited much of Alastor’s personality and mannerisms, though the distance from empathy is something he had on his own. The two butt heads occasionally, due to Franklin wanting to believe that he is stronger than his father (he gets put back into place rather quickly). Franklin convinced Alastor to come onto one of his streams once and it’s an annual thing now; they’ll get together once a year and play video games on stream for a few hours.

Charlie:     Charlie is Franklin’s mother.

Growing up and still currently, Franklin is a mama’s boy. He respects the decisions she makes in life, though he doesn't believe in her ideologies. She is pretty much the only person he feels he is connected to emotionally and he relies pretty heavily on her optimism in order to feel down to earth. They tend to spend a lot of time reading together or dancing, since they both can tap dance pretty well.

Margret:     Margret is Franklin’s sister.

Franklin doesn’t have a large opinion on his oldest sister; she’s neat and organized, which he can respect. Their age difference, her being seven years older, kept them at a distance that neither knew how to work with. Because of his difficulty feeling emotions, Margret keeps her distance because she’s not able to really handle his manic moods.

Beatrice:     Beatrice is Franklin’s sister.

Bea is five years older than Franklin and she is his best friend. They enjoy pulling pranks and telling jokes together, though he finds much more entertainment out of Alastor’s dad jokes than Bea does. The two were nearly inseparable growing up and he has a much stronger fondness for her than he does for Margret; they share a lot more in common and the age difference doesn’t seem to be that big of an issue. 

Valentino:    

Like Beatrice with Angel Dust, Franklin and Valentino are also best friends. Though there was a lot of drama that happened between Val and Bea, Franklin thought the whole ordeal was hilarious and found himself hanging out around Valentino a lot more. At first, the pimp was against Franklin and tried to deter the demon from latching on, but the two eventually found a mutual interest and then their friendship formed.

Sir Pentious: 

Franklin thinks Sir Pentious as a means for comical relief. The cliche snake demon makes Franklin laugh and he also enjoys being around the Egg Bois; he uses Pentious as a way to be around the little demons. 

Angel Dust: 

Angel Dust and he have a good relationship. When Franklin casually mentioned that he was gay, Angel almost immediately swept him up and the two bonded. 

Husk:

Franklin adores the stories that Husk tells. He thinks the detailed descriptions about how humans fight wars are interesting and fun to listen to. If he’s forced to be at the Hotel, since he tends to avoid it as best he can, he’s usually found at the bar with Husk.

Razzle and Dazzle:

Frankie doesn’t have much to say on the two goat demons; they spend most of their time with Margret and Charlie at the hotel and he doesn’t have too many fond memories of them. He just knows they’ve always been there and aren’t going away any time soon. 

Niffty:

Franklin thinks Niffty is adorable and he has tried in the past to talk to her to become her friend, though she seems to want to not be. He isn’t sure why and continues to pester her, since he thinks that most demons should either be scared of him or love him and there should be no in between and he doesn’t want her to be scared of him.

Vox:

Because of the relationship that Bea has with Vox and the entire process of Franklin becoming Valentino’s friend, the two are passive of each other. Franklin knows that Vox is stronger and way more powerful than he is and chooses not to test that boundary.

Vaggie:

Franklin isn’t sure why, but he knows that Vaggie doesn’t have the greatest opinion of him. He supposes it’s because of his urge for violence and death, though he can’t quite put his finger on it. He doesn't ever remember a time where the two of them had any good memories together.

Trivia - 

-Jakarva came up with the name Franklin, as well as the names for Margret and Beatrice.

-Franklin means ‘landowner of free’ or ‘free man’.

-Franklin constantly pushes Alastor’s temper. There have been times during Franklin’s childhood where Alastor has threatened to eat him, to the point where he has nibbled a finger or two of Franklin’s to get him back in line.

    -Charlie has absolutely forbidden Alastor from actually eating Franklin, though the younger demon doesn’t know that.

-Frankie consistently eats the family cat. When the cat reappears, since it wasn’t killed by an angelic weapon, he lets the cat live for a few months before he gets bored of it and eats it again. Both Bea and Margret hate when he does it and they do their best to keep the cat away from him.

-Franklin doesn’t see himself getting into a relationship anytime soon; he sees most demons as inferior to the point where he would be uncomfortable with being with one.

-He is frequently touchy and continuously forces himself into everyone’s personal space, though he would snap if anyone where to enter his without permission. 

-He plays the saxophone quite well and Margret hates it because he continuously will only play songs that are memes.

-Franklin is a total memelord. 

-Keeping with memelord status, he can play the mash up of Sandstorm and Never Gonna Give You Up on the sax. 

-He swears that he taught Alastor how to floss, whip, etc, but if we're honest, he really didn't. 

-Franklin is probably the funniest character to write, and by god, even if he can’t feel a wide range of emotion, he’s still hilarious (and he knows it).

((If you so decide to use him, give me and @trinswhimsys a tag! We like to see any use. Please don't use him without tagging / permission, thank you, we are protective of our beanie boy))

** Want to see more of Franklin? Follow this link **

[d20-eggroll]

Sunday Game Highlights

So much fucking shit happened I apologize for this. I’ll put a break at a certain point.

Barnabus is a big warforged who wants to open a magic item shop and he made fast friends with the bard Valentino. So he gives Valentino a “free sample” which turns out to be an indestructible fantasy deathnote. The whole party is like UM. THAT’S SOME EVIL SHIT.

Bark climbed out on to the mast of the airship. And failed her dex roll spectacularly when she tried to do a fake wobble to scare Mango, ACTUALLY FALLING OFF THE FUCKING AIRSHIP. Mango dove after her but she’s a 90lb bird person so she was having a bit of a shit time actually getting a hold of Bark.

Hawk tied a rope to himself to go to the rescue and try to assist, diving off the side, and FAILED HIS ROLL HORRIBLY TOO so it turns out he forgot to actually tie the other end of the rope to the ship. So now we have 3 party members overboard and only one of them can fly. Since he was falling from above Hawk barely managed to grab on to Mango, and Mango finally catches Bark. Getting them to the ground safely is hard enough on her that she has an exhaustion point. They have landed in a totally featureless sea of grass.

A fucking faerie dragon shows up? We name it Bulb. It tries to charm all of us but somehow only Hawk (WHO IS A HALF-ELF) gets affected, but Mango snaps him out of it. Then some orcs show up and we actually wiggle out of that without violence but Bulb is just Gone. Like ok, 30 second faerie dragon why not.

MEANWHILE, THE CAPTAIN CRASHES THE FUCKING AIRSHIP. The other half of the party sets out looking for the three.

Mango is firing flares off in to the air with firebolt and control flame. They are finally spotted so Valentino casts major image to make a GIANT VERSION OF HIS HEAD IN THE SKY? and tries talking to them with it while also making it wink. Mango casts mirror image back but it is just a giant middle finger. She is still mad at Valentino.

After much major image shenanigans they do finally meet up. At this point they realize this storm they have been seeing isn’t a storm at all, it is the Dread Fleet, a group of slaver drow traveling in magical darkness. It is headed in the direction of the downed airship. They rush as hard as they can but they are hours away, and when they get there the entire crew is gone.

They spend the night in the empty ship. Hawk is starting to hear things and see shadows no one else does. A voice and the image of an elven woman try beckoning him in to the woods and he wisely refuses.

Mango takes watch with Valentino and finally has a chance to give him a piece of her mind. Resistant to admitting he did anything wrong, he tries to give Mango the book from Barnabus telling her to write his name in it. She immediately tries to set it on fire and it refuses to catch. She gives it back to him and in the end the conversation is good, he apologizes and admits he might have feelings for Bark, Mango admits she wants to like him and isn’t going to hold a grudge.

TURNS OUT BARK HAD STEALTHED UP BEHIND THEM WITH SOME SECRET ROLLS AND LISTENED TO THE ENTIRE CONVERSATION. THEY ARE BOTH MORTIFIED.

The next morning Hawk wakes up with a fucking DISPLACER BEAST on his chest and when he flips his shit it disappears.

While digging around for any of Barnabus’s stock that may have been missed in the raid they discover an urn. Everyone can tell it is enchanted and has something inside that could be amazing or super evil, and after that book everyone’s pretty fucking scared of the shit Barnabus was toting around. While everyone else argues Mango gets impatient and just pops it open with mage hand and everyone flips their shit.

It is a fucking djinn and now Mango has to be relied upon to make three responsible and well-worded wishes. So now hopefully we have a cure in plentiful amounts for this dragon cordyceps crystal disease, and the airship crew were rescued. The last wish was just for the djinn to take his home and go where he might be happy, to be free if that’s what he wanted. So he’s gone now. Waiting for that to bite us in the ass.

The crew, who were tortured during their captivity, are completely fucked up. Hardly any of them want to talk and they refuse to discuss anything that happened. Most of them are missing something. An eye, an ear, fingers, an entire limb, chunks of carefully carved flesh, that kind of thing.

Bark goes off in to the woods and Hawk tries to follow her. He ends up fighting Bark in her bear form and loses flat out, going unconscious after she tears him up... only he was fighting nothing. The real Bark watched him battle with the air then just fall to the ground, uninjured.

When Mango tries to help Hawk she realizes he’s hot to her touch, which is a difficult thing to do. He’s burning up and he can’t feel it, but everyone else can. They check his body for crystals and find none. Mango scouts from the air to find a river to take him to and cool him down in.

On the way to the river we are attacked by three fucking displacer beasts who were following us in the shadows of the trees until Mango spotted them and lit that tree the fuck up. For whatever reason they seem to be after Hawk specifically. Mango twins invisibility and casts it on Hawk and herself before initiative begins, confusing them.

Hawk is trying to fight back but this voice is talking to him from all around and making him hallucinate missing shots he actually hit with saying shit like “Aw c’mooon they have familiiiiies” it was weird

Mango missed a turn setting up for it, but on her next she vaporizes two and a half displacer beasts with two fireballs dropped from 150ft up, also setting a large portion of the forest on fire, while the DM played bonetrousle. It was beautiful.

Thirk decapitates the remaining one with a golf swing and that was some satisfying shit. Hawk is just stomping around in circles screaming GET OUT OF MY HEAD.

The party gets him to the river, Seladi cools it down and when he gets dunked in he is steaming water. Droplets hiss when they hit his skin. We can’t get him cooled down and he’s getting worse and worse, we’re stranded in the middle of nowhere, and we have a whole crew of traumatized people to worry about too. Shit looks bad.

We all go back to camp EXCEPT BARK WHO FUCKING SNEAKS OFF TO GO SEE SOME ELVEN RUINS??? We wouldn’t go bc as far as we know Hawk is dying but she really wanted to see them so off she went!

Trying to get Hawk rested up this High Elf shows up??? and is a racist knob to everyone he can possibly manage to be. He claims to be the protector of the ruins because of heritage or whatever, and gives us 12 hours to get out of “his forest.” Everyone is tired and in no mood to deal with him, but now we HAVE to go find Bark.

Also this elf dude admits the displacer beasts were his pets and listen. I’m not 100% sure but this guy is PROBABLY a green dragon. I don’t know. Just. Geeze I hate him.

That was the end of the session basically and then our DM was like “I didn’t have anything planned for someone falling off the airship. I thought none of you would be dumb enough to jump off the bloody airship.” o o p s

[lovemesomesurveys]

Are you pale or tan or kind of an in-betweener?: My arms got a tan when I was on vacation, but the rest of me is very pale.

What do you think of the word ‘weener’?: I don’t think much about it.

Do you have long or short nails? (why): Short, basically non-existent, because I pick at them.

Do you ever wear anything with sequins?: No.

Have you ever considered growing a mustache/dating someone with a mustache?: It’s not something I’ve really thought about. I wouldn’t be opposed?

Do you like wine? (what kind particularly): When I used to drink I did like white Zin.

Do you prefer skinny people or people with a bit of meat on the bones?: That’s not what I’m looking for in a person.

Does the idea of death scare you?: Yes, but I know that it shouldn’t.

Do you believe you’re going to heaven?: Yes.

What type of bottled water do you prefer?: Dasani.

Do you like to wear anything in your hair? (feathers, hairbands, barrettes): I just use hairbands and sometimes bobby pins. I used to be big on bows and had an assortment of colors to match my outfits.

Do you like to cook? (if so, what’s your fav. thing to cook): I’m not a cook.

What is your favorite magazine to read?: I don’t read magazines. I mean, I may skim one in the checkout line if something catches my attention but that’s it.

What religion do you follow if any? If you don’t follow any, why not?: Christianity.

Do you have a digital camera? (what kind): I do, but I haven’t used it in yearssssss.

What do you mostly like to take pictures of?: *shrug*

Who are your best friends? List from youngest to oldest: My mom.

Do you like to wear fancy hats?: No.

Do you think Jessica Alba is pretty/hot?: Yeah.

Are you familiar with the brand ‘Valentino’?: Yes.

How tall are you exactly?: I would have been like 5′7 or 5′8.

Have you ever seen Desperate Housewives?: Nope.

What colour is your hair?: Naturally it’s dark brown, but I dye it red.

Have you ever dyed your hair with store bought dye?: Once.

Do you ever wear gloves/mittens during cold weather?: Very rarely.

How do you feel in detail RIGHT AT THIS SECOND?: Tired.

What’s better, Thai or Chinese Cuisine?: I’ve never had Thai. I like Chinese, but it’s not something I really crave.

Do you think high heels make girls look more attractive?: It doesn’t matter to me.

Is it gross to not shave your legs if you’re a girl?: Do what you want.

Do you own more t-shirts or jeans?: T-shirts

Between Macy’s and Nordstroms, what do you prefer?: I’ve been to Nordstroms like 3 times total and I’ve never bought anything. Too expensive, and honestly I wasn’t that impressed with what I saw.

Does your hair ever get in the way of your eyes?: Nah.

What does the texture of your skin feel like?: A little dry.

Do you spend more time smiling or frowning?: Neither.

Do you like to go garage sale scavenging?: No.

What’s better, something new and modern or something old and vintage?: I’m definitely a modern, tech kind of girl, but old and vintage things can be pretty cool depending on the item. However, in that case it’s more just for a collector’s item than to actually use.

Are you photogenic according to others?: No one has said that, ha. I’m not.

Describe your favorite pair of shoesies: I’ve been wearing my Adidas for the most part.

Do you own a credit card? (if so, do you use it often): Yeah.

Do you follow trends? (be honest): Some, yeah. It just depends on the trend and if I like it.

Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, J-Lo, Gwyneth Paltrow?: Jennifer Aniston.

How often do you regret your actions?: Often.

Do you ever watch or read the weekly news?: Yes.

Do you think ‘Brigette Jones Diary’ is a good movie?: I’ve never seen it, but it looked kinda dumb in my opinion. Sorry to anyone who likes it.

What do people usually say to you regarding your appearance?: If they say anything at all, it’s about the color of my hair. Though lately it’s about my weight and how I’m too thin.

Do you ALWAYS make your bed in the morning before you start the day?: Nope. I mean, I’m basically always in it anyway.

How many hours of sleep do you get per night usually? is it enough?: Usually about 5. It never feels like enough.

How old you act/feel/look?: I feel old, I probably act younger, and I like to think I look younger, too.

How old are you in reality?: I’m twenty-seven.

What is your favorite book genre?: YA/NA/Contemporary.

Do you like spicy food? What’s your favorite spicy food?: I loved spicy food. I used to eat so much of it and I put hot sauce on just about everything. Due to health issues I can no longer have it and it really, really sucks.

Do you have sensitive teeth?: Yes.

Do you like receiving beauty tips from other people?: It’s not something I seek. I wouldn’t turn any down, but I don’t go asking for them, though.

Would you consider yourself amazing?: Ha, no.

Do you think every individual human being matters?: I don’t have compassion for murderers, child molesters, rapists, or abusers.

Is life pointless?: It can feel that way sometimes, but I’m working on changing that way of thinking.

What was the best thing you bought this month?: Adopting our puppy, Leia.

How much money do you spend on average weekly?: It really just varies.

How often do you clean up?: As needed.

What are you most excited about in life to come?: I don’t have anything coming up to be excited for.

Would you ever spy on a boyfriend/girlfriend if you were suspicious?: No.

Do you completely trust your current boyfriend/girlfriend or best friend?: I trust my best friend, yes.

The most interesting job you’ve had in your lifetime was?: I’ve never had a job.

Do you own anything designer label? What?: Yes.

Do you think the renaissance age was interesting?: Sure.

Do you like the subject of history or not at all?: I do. I just like to learn about subjects of my choosing as I please and not have it be for a class that I have memorize dates and such.

[tuckinpodcast-blog]

EPISODE 5: EVERYONE WANTS TO BE CARY GRANT

LISTEN: SOUNDCLOUD / iTUNES / GOOGLE PLAY

NOTES: None of any real consequence, except that this week, I’m going to try and start some new features on the blog this week, including a movie and book recommendation and some extra information pertaining to episodes.

SOURCES: listed at end of transcript

TRANSCRIPT:

Hi, I'm Jack, and this is Tuck In, We're Rolling: Queer Hollywood Stories. This week, we're going to be talking about Cary Grant and his husband. I think I've mentioned before that I've been in love with Cary Grant for most of my life – the funny thing is that after I had to watch To Kill A Mockingbird in high school I thought he was Gregory Peck, but then I realized my mistake. I don't remember what I saw him in first or why I even ended up so fixated on him, but I very vividly remember watching Arsenic and Old Lace and just being completely captivated. Maybe I'm just sort of into tall, dark, and handsome, but for whatever reason, I collected information and little tidbits about him for forever. Like the bit about how he and Clark Gable would swap monogrammed presents if they didn't like what they had gotten, or that he had once been married to the girl from City Lights.

I really started this podcast for two reasons. The first one is that I'm totally and unbelievably in love with Montgomery Clift and when David Thomson talked garbage about him in The Whole Equation, I wanted to set the record straight, and I'll get to that in a future episode. The second reason is that, as I've talked about before, when I decided to get angry at David Thomson and write a massive rant on my personal tumblr, I mentioned that I had only recently learned that Cary Grant was gay. Someone replied to my post correcting me that he was actually bisexual, and kind of a shitty person. I'm not the type to accept things at face value, and I also like to look at famous people as real, complex people who might be twenty stories tall in our memory, but were really just actual human beings, out in the world making terrible decisions and drinking too much wine when they were supposed to do something important.

So, I went digging. I went digging and I didn't really stop. I read everything I could find about Cary Grant – I read the things that denied that he had same-sex relationships, I read the things that said he was exclusively gay, I read the things that said he was bisexual. I watched his movies – mostly for entertainment, but also as an excuse to try and peel back the persona. My favorite thing about Cary Grant has always been his face and the way he could contort it. He actually got his start as a tumbler and acrobat, and he's this very tall, gangly thing – but somehow, even with all the physical acting he did, it's still the way he expresses his emotions on his face that I like the best. It's pretty well-known that he put on the Cary Grant persona deliberately. He almost considered “Cary Grant” to be someone entirely different and apart from his real self.

At the end of all this digging, what did I come up with? As I'm sure you're not surprised to hear: the content of this podcast.

Cary Grant was born Archie Leach in Bristol on January 18, 1904. His parents, Elsie and Elias, were working-class, and dysfunctional as hell. When he was nine, Elias told Archie that his mother had gone away on holiday, then changed the story to say that she had died. He didn't find out until he was 31 that he had been lied to, and his father had in fact put Elsie away in a sanitarium. Eventually, Elias abandoned Archie and moved away to marry someone else and start a new family. Archie ran away from home at one point to join the Pender Troupe of acrobats, but when they found out that he was seriously underage, he was dragged back to school. At that point, he did a pretty good job of being a very poor student, until he was thrown out of school. He toured with the troupe full-time starting in 1918 at the age of fourteen.

I think here I'd like to pause and reflect on Grant's childhood. It's very clearly a messed up situation, with his father running off and the whole thing with his mother. It's been said that the way his mother was very standoffish and selective with her affection directly contributed to the way Grant handled his relationships with women in his adult life, and I think that's true. I also think that the kind of pain of a childhood like this really directly impacted his acting. I'm not terribly familiar with the things he did with Hitchcock in the 50's and 60's, but I am familiar with his screwball comedies of the late 30's and early 40's. That old line about depressed people being the funniest really rings true in this case.

So, in 1920, Archie gets on the RMS Olympic to come to America to tour with the Pender Troupe. There's been some biographers who claim that Dougie Fairbanks Sr and Mary Pickford were on the boat and took a shine to Archie, but accounts vary. He wouldn't star in any movies until 1930, and he wouldn't become really famous until about 1937. That's a lot of years touring – whether he was tumbling or acting in plays – between his arrival and his big break. So you know, what was he doing in that interrim?

Cary Grant met Orry Kelly – who went on to become a very famous costume designer – in 1925. Still Archie at the time, he was twenty-one, broke, and had nowhere to go. Orry-Kelly took Archie in, and so the rumor goes, they became romantically involved. In Cary Grant: A Biography, Marc Elliot talks about this relationship quite a bit, mentioning the drama and the arguing that went on. Elliot says that the two had a row at a party and the host sniffed and asked if everyone was just going to sit there and let this blatant homosexuality continue in front of them. In Kelly's lost autobiography, he mentions that he was annoyed with Archie's penchant for blonde women, but proudly said that Archie “always came home to me.” While I was researching this podcast, I also came across some information that pointed to Grant as being abusive towards Orry-Kelly. And the things that I came across were pretty shocking – Grant supposedly knocked Kelly out several times and threw Kelly out of a moving vehicle once. This isn't entirely out of character for Grant, I'll admit – it was well-known that he was abusive towards his wives, going so far as to fly into a blind rage and crash his car into Virginia Cherrill's parked one while she visited an ex of hers. But the things he did to his wives was well-documented. I had never heard of him acting this way towards Kelly, and even though I shouldn't be surprised and it didn't take all that much digging to find out about it, I wanted to take this moment to sort of talk about how domestic violence in queer relationships really is a problem that people don't like to talk about or look into. At least at the time, two men being in a relationship with one another – it's been said that physical violence was almost expected, just due to the nature of the times and the nature of the toxic masculinity of the time. There's a part of me that kind of just thinks that's a bullshit excuse for queer abusers, but if we go back to our Valentino episode and remember the way that the general public reacted to a man just being pretty, and even if we look at the pressures of traditional masculinity and how violence is a supposedly “masculine” trait – maybe, at least, back then, it's half bullshit excuse and half explanation. It might be an explanation, but it doesn't have to be forgiven. You can be expected to do something and still know that it's wrong. I don't want to come off as apologizing for Grant's behavior, because it was unacceptable then and it's unacceptable now, but at least we can look at the times and the environment and get a better picture of the entire situation.

Cary Grant was a very famous man, a very neurotic man, and I think also, a very lonely and scared man, but the fact remains that he was abusive towards his partners, and I'll admit that this has changed my overall picture of him and dimmed my crush on him – and there's a whole other discussion to be had about supporting people who were known to be abusers or even just not very nice people after they've been dead for a long time, you know, things that maybe weren't known or at least well-known while they were alive, or supporting someone's art versus condemning their personal behavior, but I think it's a thought for another time.

So, Archie and Kelly, despite their tumultuous relationship, are more or less together through 1932. When Archie goes to Hollywood in 1930, he stays with Kelly until he gets his feet under him. In 1931, he changes his name at the urging of Paramount studios. Archie Leach becomes Cary Grant – or I think maybe I should say, Cary Grant becomes the persona that Archie Leach could slip into comfortably, allowing him to kind of become someone else and minimize the anxiety that existing in the world gave him. In 1932, Cary Grant meets Randolph Scott, and the two move into a beautiful house by the beach together, known in the press and to their friends as “Bachelor Hall”.

As with Garbo and Dietrich, Randolph Scott was the polar opposite of Cary Grant. He was born into a well-off Virginian family and wanted for nothing when he was growing up. He went to private schools, had a large family, and went off to serve in the Army during World War 1. He returned home in 1919 after attending an officer's school in France, and went to Georgia Tech with dreams of becoming a football star. He transferred to the University of North Carolina after a back injury put his football dreams on hold, but he eventually dropped out of school altogether to go and work as an accountant at a textile firm where his father also worked.

It was around 1927 that he went to Hollywood. His father was friends with Howard Hughes, and sent Scott along with a letter to meet the millionaire. Hughes plays into our early Hollywood stories quite a bit, as I'm sure you've realized by now, and he eventually gave Scott a part in a romantic comedy. Scott did a lot of stage work as bit characters, and eventually got a deal at Paramount – where he met Cary Grant on the set of Hot Saturday. At this point, a lot of biographers start to differ. The two certainly did meet on the set of Hot Saturday, but Orry Kelly's autobiography itself points to Kelly being the one who introduced the two. They moved in together almost immediately, by some accounts to “save costs” and by others because they legitimately cared for one another.

The two would live together on and off for twelve years. Scott became a point of contention in Grant's first marriage – the one to Virginia Cherrill, of City Lights fame. Grant refused to move out of the house on the beach at first, and Cherrill was furious over it. The marriage itself was rushed and was basically the studios putting the squeeze on Grant to marry someone, anyone, lest the gossip columnist Heda Hopper call him “not normal” in another one of her rags. The marriage would last less than a year, when Cherrill would claim that Grant had no sexual interest in her whatsoever, and he was drunk and sullen throughout most of their time together. She also claimed that he hit her – and we've already talked about that a little bit in this episode, but I want to share with you a thought I had while I reading the Elliot biography of Grant.

So, let's pan back and look at Grant's life for a second. He was abandoned by his father, had a troubled relationship with his mother, and basically made his own way in the world without any real influences to base his life and actions on. The way he acted with Cherrill, flying into jealous rages and acting possessive, was, in my opinion, Grant's caricature of a straight man and how a husband was supposed to act. I'm going to talk a lot about the way that queer men internalize misogyny and homophobia in the Monty Clift episode, but I think this is a good jumping point. Again, this isn't an excuse for the way that Grant acted towards his wives and partners, but I think that it's interesting to look at the way that society shapes a person's perceptions. Grant acted like a jealous lunatic because he thought that's how a man should act. He should have known that it was wrong and he should have been better than that, but he didn't and he wasn't.

Getting back to the story, it's very interesting to me that a lot of the articles on Randolph Scott that I find cast doubts on a romantic relationship between him and Grant. Scott's son flat-out denied the rumors, and Bud Boetticher, who directed Scott in seven films over the course of his career, called them “bullshit”. Even Scott's biographer says that there's no evidence that Scott and Grant were ever romantically involved. But, when you go on over to source material on Grant, they're very much on the other side. And, now, I'm going to try and get a link up to a series of photographs that were shot of Grant and Scott at the Bachelor Hall – they document a sort of “day in the life” of the two men, swimming in their pool and running lines while Scott reclines in a chair and Grant lays with his head at Scott's feet. There's one of them in the kitchen together cooking, both of them wearing aprons. There's one of them just looking at each other lovingly.

So, maybe the rumors are true, and maybe they aren't. The pair lived together through at least one marriage each, until the studios finally pressured them into moving out in 1940. They made a movie together the same year – the only movie they would make together – called My Favorite Wife, and instead of choosing separate hotel suites for the location shots, they roomed together, raising more than just a few eyebrows. Most of the first-hand material I've found says that they weren't intimate partners, which – okay. Fine. Even Grant's daughter claims they weren't true, but adds that Grant liked to let the gay rumors fly, so that when he bagged a woman, they felt “special” – gross. Gross, and a little creepy. And honestly, not out of character for Grant, knowing what we know about him now. There are people who claim to have caught Scott and Grant holding hands in a semi-private moment late in their lives, and there are people who claim to have been involved with both of them in the menage-trois sense of the word.

So, where does this leave us? As with most early Hollywood queer stories: we're in gay limbo. Were they, weren't they. There's evidence that goes both ways. Is this just a story about two men who were very close, very good friends, but in American society, we can't view that as anything but gay? Marc Elliot posits that Grant's same-sex attraction goes back to his school days in England, when boys just messed around like that. Maybe it's that. I think I've done an okay job of explaining what a complicated man Cary Grant was – abandoned, neurotic, hypochondriac. He had an addict's personality – first with smoking and drinking, and then later in life, he micro-dosed with acid to keep his anxiety and depression in check. I personally think that Grant is one of the best examples of stars being, ultimately, human. He was deeply flawed and seriously insecure – famously, he sued Chevy Chase for calling him a “homo” in the 80's. Me, personally? I think Grant was a confused, lonely person who took solace from the people that gave it to him, no matter their gender. Regardless of the stories, the rumors and even the truth, what we're left with is: the story of Cary Grant. A man with a charming smile, a devastating personal life, and the acting chops to be named the number two actor of the twentieth century, sliding in right after Humphrey Bogart.

A quick aside before I leave you: I'm going to try and do something a little new starting this week, and that's posting up little blog entries on our tumblr called “Things We Missed This Week”. Basically, it's the parts of a story that ended up cut out of the episode for time or clarity's sake in blog post form so you can have a little extra information. There's a lot I didn't talk about on our last episode, and there's enough information about Cary Grant to fill several books, so I thought that maybe it would be a nice way to give you guys a better picture of what I'm talking about here. This week, I'm also going to start leaving book and movie recommendations on the blog so you guys can maybe get a chance to watch some of my favorites and we can open up some discourse there.

Thank you so much for listening to Tuck In, We're Rolling: Queer Hollywood Stories. This episode was written, researched, edited and recorded by me, Jack Segreto.  I wanna take a minute to pause here and give a special shout out to tumblr users amiddleearththemedbarinhogsmeade and detectivejoan for saying nice things about the podcast and blowing up my head a little bit. Thanks, folks. It really means a lot to me. You can find a transcript of this episode and all of our episodes, along with facts, photos, and recommendations, on our tumblr, tuckinpodcast.tumblr.com. You can also give us a like on Facebook at facebook.com/tuckinpodcast. We accept messages on both of those platforms, so feel free to shoot us any suggestions for show topics or comments you might have. We put out new episodes every Wednesday, and you can listen to us on SoundCloud, iTunes and Google Play, so don't forget to rate and subscribe to us! We'll be back next Wednesday to discuss Marlon Brando, gay rumors, and his impact on Hollywood masculinity. See you next time!

SOURCES:

Cary Grant: A Biography, Elliot, Marc ()

Cary Grant & Randolph Scott: A Gay Hollywood Romance

Inside Cary Grant’s Secret Life With Men

Was Cary Grant Secretly Gay?

Cary Grant & Randolph Scott: A Love Story

Wikipedia. You guys know I only use it for biographical facts and pertinent details, right?

[iheartsurveys]

166

Are you pale or tan or kind of an in-betweener?: I'm pretty pale Do you have long or short nails? (why): They're a bit on the longer side now I need to cut them Do you ever wear anything with sequins?: I wore a sequiny dress to frat formal senior year Have you ever considered growing a mustache/dating someone with a mustache?: I mean mustaches aren't a total deal breaker but I'm not too fond of the just a mustache look Do you like wine? (what kind particularly): I love wine. I like most whites, and sweet reds like red moscato Do you prefer skinny people or people with a bit of meat on the bones?: Average? Does the idea of death scare you?: Totally Do you believe you’re going to heaven?: Idk what I believe really What type of bottled water do you prefer?: I recently tried Fiji and I'm kind of obsessed...it's expensive af and totally unnecessary but it tastes so good! But I'll drink any bottled water really Do you like to wear anything in your hair? (feathers, hairbands, barrettes): Just hair ties really. I went through a headband phase senior year of high school/freshman year of college Do you like to cook? (if so, what’s your fav. thing to cook): I can only make penne ala vodka and chicken parm and I love both What is your favorite magazine to read? HGTV mag What religion do you follow if any? If you don’t follow any, why not?: None really because idk what I think Do you have a digital camera? (what kind): I have a Nikon something but I never use it because my iPhone quality is way better tbh What do you mostly like to take pictures of?: My animals, me and my friends, landscapes, architecture Who are your best friends? List from youngest to oldest: Britt is my best friend. I have other like super close friends but she's the only person I consider my best friend. Well and my mom too Do you like to wear fancy hats?: Nah Do you think Jessica Alba is pretty/hot?: Yeah she's pretty Are you familiar with the brand ‘Valentino’?: I am not How tall are you exactly?: 5'9 Have you ever seen Desperate Housewives?: Maybe once What color is your hair?: Dark brown Have you ever dyed your hair with store bought dye?: I did once two months ago with temporary real dye Do you ever wear gloves/mittens during cold weather?: Yes especially when driving and the steering wheel is freezing How do you feel in detail RIGHT AT THIS SECOND?: Tired but can't fall asleep because my body is still on mountain time, annoyed because I'm still coughing, and cold because my fan is pointing directly at me What’s better, Thai or Chinese Cuisine?: Thai Do you think high heels make girls look more attractive? Idk, I don't wear heels and I don't think that makes me unattractive, but that's just my opinion. Wear them if you want and it makes you feel good, but also know they're not necessary Is it gross to not shave your legs if you’re a girl?: It's gross to tell girls what to do with their bodies/think it's wrong and/or gross Do you own more t-shirts or jeans?: Hmm maybe tshirts Between Macy’s and Nordstroms, what do you prefer?: Nordstrom Does your hair ever get in the way of your eyes?: Not as much anymore now that I don't have side bangs What does the texture of your skin feel like?: Soft Do you spend more time smiling or frowning?: Smiling probably Do you like to go garage sale scavenging?: I haven't been to a garage sale in a while What’s better, something new and modern or something old and vintage?: Both are great in different ways Are you photogenic according to others?: Yeah I think Describe your favorite pair of shoesies: I just bought a new pair of...shoesies...from target and they're pretty cute Do you own a credit card? (if so, do you use it often): I do and I use it occasionally Do you follow trends? (be honest): Eh sometimes Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston, J-Lo, Gwyneth Paltrow?: Jennifer Aniston How often do you regret your actions?: Every once in a blue moon Do you ever watch or read the weekly news?: Is the weekly news a specific thing or are we talking news in general? If it's a thing idk what that is but if not I watch the news a few times a week and read it online daily Do you think ‘Bridgette Jones’ Diary is a good movie?: I haven't seen it What do people usually say to you regarding your appearance?: I get a lot of complements on my eyebrows lol. And other things or my appearance and general. People I've just met like to point out how tall I am as if I don't know Do you ALWAYS make your bed in the morning before you start the day?: I actually never make my bed in the morning How many hours of sleep do you get per night usually? is it enough?: 7-8 usually. Sometimes I wake up feeling refreshed, and others I wake up feeling like I could continue sleeping forever How old you act/feel/look?: Act my age I think, feel older, look my age or maybe a little younger How old are you in reality?: 23 What is your favorite book genre?: Fiction, sometimes a good thriller/mystery, sometimes fantasy Do you like spicy food? What’s your favorite spicy food?: I do, I don't have a favorite Do you have sensitive teeth?: Yes usually to cold Do you like receiving beauty tips from other people?: Sure Would you consider yourself amazing?: No lol that's quite conceited Do you think every individual human being matters?: Hmm most Is life pointless?: No What was the best thing you bought this month?: A super comfy long sleeve while in Colorado How much money do you spend on average weekly?: It depends How often do you clean up?: I try to clean my room a little every day but I clean hardcore once a week What are you most excited about in life to come?: Working and saving money Would you ever spy on a boyfriend/girlfriend if you were suspicious?: Nope Do you completely trust your current boyfriend/girlfriend or best friend?: I do trust my best friend The most interesting job you’ve had in your lifetime was?: For now my answer is dog walker but it'll probably change to my current job once I start working more Do you own anything designer label? What?: I have daisy Marc jacobs perfume and two Kate spade purses and one wallet. Oh and earrings and a necklace. And a lanyard. I don't have a problem lol Do you think the renaissance age was interesting?: Yes Do you like the subject of history or not at all?: It's not my favorite but periods of it are interesting

[supesofhemlock-blog]

웃 ¿ ☄ @ valentino

MEME STATUS | ACCEPTING

웃 Do they believe in aliens?

Yes! When he was little, he was obsessed with space. In fact, he actually considers himself a bit of an alien, because of what he is and what he can do. He knows that being magical isn’t “normal,” and he finds some of his abilities to be very alien-like. When he was a kid, he would always pretend that he was from outer space and that his real parents were aliens (because he never really looked like either of his parents, so it could be possible, right?). It was also a way to cope with some of the bullying he endured before his powers began to really shine through. 

¿ Are they easily frightened?

Not very! It really depends on the situation, though. If it’s life-threatening for him or someone else, then he can be easily frightened. If it’s something like a mild scare (think horror films, jump scares, being alone in the dark, things of that nature), then he isn’t.

☄ While watching a scary movie, are they the one clinging to a friend or being clung to?

He’s the one being clung to, definitely! He loves horror films and isn’t very scared by them (except The Exorcist; that’s one where he’ll DEFINITELY cling to the friend!). His friends are always seeking comfort in him if they’re scared during a movie, mostly because he radiates complete and total calm, and his friends can feel that. 

[crimsondustofficial]

Watchful Eyes

"A Angel?"

That question rang clear in Ruby's voice as she side eyed Angel a bit. She knew that he had probably been worried the most over her since he's the one who likes to spend the most time with Ruby.

When he's not busy going through a hellish night by Valentino. The thought of that moth son of a bitch left a bitter taste in his mouth. But God, was Angel happy that Ruby was home, safe and in one piece.

If anything had happened to her and it was connected to that sick bastard. . .Oh, Angel would be burning with rage.

"Scared the living daylights outta me. . ." Ruby's eyes turned sorrowful as she stayed in his embrace. She knew it. If she had asked one of the hotel members to take her out and into the city to familiarize herself with the area, then this never would've happened. She would've been back to the hotel with no problem.

"I'm just glad you're safe, Precious."

The silent close of the main door in the lobby closing and disheartened chatter could be heard from downstairs. Charlie and Vaggie were back.

"Well, let's head on down, Sweetness. Seems as though the Princess and Vags are back."

In the main lobby, Charlie and Vaggie's current mood was sorrow. They looked all over for Ruby with no such luck. It wasn't until they heard the clicking and clacking of high heel boots that both of them perked up. Coming downstairs, resting in Angel's arms, was Ruby.

"Ruby!" Ruby looked up from Angel's fluff and slid out of Angel's arms just as Charlie came rushing over. Vaggie let out a sigh of relief before calmly tailing behind her girlfriend.

"Charlie was about to split the city in two when we were out looking for you."

Vaggie stood next to Charlie as she hugged Ruby close. Since Charlie is the Princess of Hell, no doubt in Ruby's mind that she would've done that.

"Well, all I care about is that you're safe and still in one piece."

Vaggie glanced over at the bar where Husk had been moments earlier but saw no sign of Husk. Did he sneak out or something? If he did, then why didn't she hear the front door open?

"Hey, wasn't Husk here just a minute ago?"

Looking over at the now empty bar, there were no signs of Husk anywhere. Which was weird since he made no noise of leaving. For a guy like that, he could move like a panther: Quiet and unnoticed. The bar wasn't overly crowded with people for once. Of course, there were still regulars that would laugh and chug back alcohol until they passed out or stumbled out of the building, going to regret their decision in the morning. Or ogle at a beautiful girl before her date knocks a few teeth out with his fist.

"One Americano, please."

The bartender behind the table nodded and went off to make the cocktail. Husk let out a gruff sigh, running his hand over his tired eyes.

"Hope we're not crowding your space here."

Looking to the side, Damien and Anex both slid into a pair of stools next to Husk's seat. How they knew that Husk was gonna be out drinking and especially at this kind of bar, it confused Husk to no end until the bartender asked what he could get for Damien and Anex after serving Husk his Americano, getting a quiet 'Thanks' in return.

"One Devil Springs Vodka, please."

"A water for me, please."

Off again was the bartender. Husk took a sip of the beverage in front of him, the alcohol burned going down his throat but in a good way. Damien and Anex both thanked the bartender for their drinks and one sniff of the Devil Springs made Husk look over at Damien.

"That sure is strong." Damien nodded in agreement and proceeded to wet his whistle with the drink as it went down smoothly. Vodka was a strong alcoholic beverage but it didn't really seem to affect Damien from how it was or how strong of a smell that wafted off of it. The cold, refreshing water dripped down Anex's throat with ease.

"Figured we'd come out and get a drink. I promised Daisy that we'd be back soon, though."

Husk hummed quietly in response to what Damien had to say, guessing that Daisy was that big dog he saw when reuniting with Ruby. After today's little shenanigans, Husk just really hoped that the kid would be safe from any more danger. However, a little voice in the back of his skull said that's not gonna happen.

"Been hearing around from a couple of regulars around here that Valentino is gonna start causing some trouble again."

Oh, that name. Husk remembered whenever the mention of Valentino came up, Angel Dust's face would turn grim. Years of abuse and neglect can crush your spirit.

"Well, he is an Overlord. Not many people want to mess with someone like him. Unless they wanna end up in a body bag the next morning."

Both Damien and Anex couldn't help but agree there. Bad memories began to replay in Anex's brain, visibly shuddering from them and taking another sip of his water. But from what they remembered hearing about in passing conversation, the target that Valentino had put a price on was someone from the Hotel. Who it was never came up. The static on the mirror flickered and buzzed a little bit as a shadowed figure hummed in thought. Switching back to the Hotel, the image of Angel Dust smiling and laughing with Ruby, who was currently snuggled up next to him, began to play.

"I don't get it, Val. Can't we just go and snatch that little brat now?"

Coming into the room was Vox, who snarled in disgust when seeing how cheery and smiling Ruby was being with Angel Dust at the moment. All that sweetness nearly made Vox gag.

"Patience, Vox. Patience. You and Velvet will get your fun soon enough. But right now, figuring out how that little bitch is Angel's kryptonite is our top priority."

As much as Vox wanted to argue, he couldn't. He did have a good point. If they could get the answer as to why Angel would want to throw away his after life for a small little tyrant such as Ruby was what they needed to figure out at the moment. Otherwise, using this kid against Angel would turn into a total flop.

"Just as long as the little starlight doesn't notice how we're watching her from any mirror, she'll be dropped at our feet at any time now."

A sickening grin stretched onto Vox's face, the mere thought of Ruby screaming while torture rained down upon her played like a movie in his brain. Volts of electricity coursed through his veins at the image of Angel crying his eyes out over the loss of his little friend. "Keep having a sharp eye on the little one, Vox. The first opportunity we get, snatch that brat and bring her right back here."

Making a mental note of these instructions, Vox nodded and quietly walked out of the room, that sinister smile still stretched onto his face as he hummed to himself. Turning back to the mirror, hot pink eyes narrowed before a dark chuckle rang out.

With a snap of his fingers, a puff of red smoke appeared and a cigarette had been conjured up. Taking the cigarette in between his fingers, a long puff of dark, red smoke escaped into the air.

Angel Dust had picked Ruby up and began carrying her to her room, the small child resting in his arms had drifted off to dream land once again. Once tucking her into bed and leaving, the image paused.

Another dark chuckle echoed off of the walls in the room before a low, gruff sigh followed shortly after.

"Keep having your fun, little one. You're gonna find out soon enough that Hell has no place for a little bitch like you."

The awful sound of glass being cut as a giant X had been placed over Ruby's innocent, sleeping face. Unaware that she was now the target of an Overlord.