#alex rider - everything machine

[mcskullmun]

[taraljc]

I am vastly entertained by the technology/resources gap between the Department and SCORPIA. SCORPIA has money, influence, and gadget after gadget, but the Department has paper-pushing middle management, a minuscule budget, frequently condemned offices, and vastly superior HUMINT and SIGINT.

And this is one of the very few shows I can think of and I've mentioned this before where the things that both Kyra and Smithers can do on computers is actually within the realm of possibility. Instead of 'enlarge and enhance' we get 'blow up the saturation and see if we can get a hue and then stare at it until we recognise a billboard'! instead of I will use this laptop to decrypt this program we get I need to daisy-chain 40 machines working in parallel just to run pattern recognition on the code and then even when the encryption gets broken it turns out you have to be physically on site and connected to the server in order to read the nested code.

You have no idea how many times during Arrow or pretty much any MCU film that features a guy in a chair where I have beat my head against the wall, occasionally screaming about how 'hacking' is portrayed.

I particularly love that nobody at Point Blanc ever figured out that Kyra hacked the keypads and that the only visual cue you got that clone Kyra wasn't actual Kyra was the fact that she didn't put in the 0000 keypad code and by the time you register that, Alex has been conked in the head with a fire extinguisher. which granted should have crushed his skull and killed him but I am willing to cut them slack. Although at some point Alex is going to need some serious medical care for all of the traumatic brain injuries he has sustained.

also the timeline is a little wonky in Series 3 like I think it's supposed to be about 2 weeks in February 2023? because there is a time cut between two of the episodes where Alex's wounds from his beat down have had time to heal. but it couldn't have been longer than that because the delivery receipts on the pad thai that hid the plastic gun was dated 10 days after Pritchard transferred into the Department.

That said the data on screens and props is wildly wildly divergent and I have no idea how old Alex actually is supposed to be because if he was 6 months old when John was killed on 6 January 2006, then he is actually younger than he is supposed to be in the first series (although Alex Friend's passport has a completely different birth year then his Gemini file). But the date on the disc says it is from 21 May 2006 which means they may have meant that it was 1 June 2006 but that doesn't make any sense either because all of the dates across the entire series have been consistently written day-month-year.

(also I love the surveillance footage from the bridge where John Rider is supposedly killed that's conveniently goes from black and white to colour and swaps camera angles repeatedly.)

anyway I'm screen capping a metric fuck ton of on screen data to go through later. I've also noticed some small changes to the set apart from the brick patio that appears out of nowhere in series 3 which makes me think because it took 5 years to shoot 3 seasons during a global pandemic that they must have had to rebuild the 42 Collbridge Road kitchen set.

also I can't help but wonder if at one point they were going to try to mess with Mrs Jones backstory because all of her earrings are six-sided like the SCORPIA logo. and how much do I love that they actually have like a little animated logo with a musical sting and everything! I wonder if Damien Cray threw that in for free.

[bigmilk-13]

CSOC WEEK: DAY 3

Prompt: Relationships

@carmensandiego-ocweek

FAMILY:

Francessa Messina Denaro - daughter of an Italian mafia godfather (Sent to kill Orfeusz but killed his brother instead since he's an identical triplet). Was killed by her family after they found out she didn't finish the job, but that was ten years after Florence was born.

Orfeusz Meadowes - Died in a "terrorist attack" sent by Francessa's family. The youngest Admiral in Polish Marines history. Loved his daughter a lot even though he barely saw her because of work

Zeus Meadowes - Florence's uncle, Orfeusz's identical triplet. He was the one Francessa killed, since she fell in love with Orfeusz and she knew that her family would kill her if she didn't do her job. She ran away with Orfeusz to Poland afterwards.

Tadeusz Meadowes - Part-time member of the Polish Land Army since he has a muscle disease, only living relative of Florence (well, used to be), raised her till she was 16. Taught her everything she knew and died protecting her from a machine gun

WORK:

"We women have got to have each others back, Phantom."

Julia Rothman - Leader of Florence's former organisation, SCORPIA. Was quite attached to Florence when she first came, since she saw "The Incident™" happen first hand. Was the one that ordered to take Florence and invited her to join the international criminal organisation. Florence was by far the most skilled and the youngest, so she became her favourite.

She gave Florence the nickname Phantom, which then evolved into the codename "The Phantom Sniper" after she did nearly all her sniping missions successfully without getting caught.

Professor Yermalov - her mentor at SCORPIA, was in charge of the martial arts unit, helped her become even better at stealth than she already was. She was quite attached to him and he was like a father to her even though most people at SCORPIA considered him rude and frightening.

Countess Cleo- Basilisk's mentor. Forced them to do everything and also was the one that made her anorexia get worse. Basilisk looked up to her but Cleo just saw her as just some other extra

Tigress - Mortal enemies, always competing but Tigress knows that Basilisk is better than her. She liked the challenge though

Carmen Sandiego - all will be revealed in cs-oc week prompt 7

Alex Rider - To be honest, they were best friends at SCORPIA. When she came, she became the youngest but earlier he was- so they bonded over being the youngest at the criminal organisation. Alex always respected Phantom and vice versa. When SCORPIA fell after Basilisk's experiment, and she saw Alex's face in the news after some kind of escape- even though she was brainwashed she knew she remembered him. She just didn't know who he was.

[canyoucount-suckas]

Hallo

Your Alex rider incorrect quotes are pretty neat :D love that shit

Okay bye

Haiiii

Very funny that I saw this just now, considering I just finished reading chapter 6 of Everything Machine :D

I think I'm in love with MDF

Okay byeeee :)

[anitalianfrie]

Right so what's up with MotoGP omegaverse?

so, this should be the moment where i admit i don't even remember half of the guys competing because i started after the end of the season and i laser-focused on the marquez brothers and the italian guys. Anyway, I'm not going to give you a list of who i think is what, because we're here to talk about DYNAMICS. thoughts under the cut because i got a bit ranty.

So, motorsports are an hypermasculine enviroment, every single one of them. Think how bad it gets when you are riding death machines at 200kph that will try to kill you at every turn. You have to be strong you have to be aggresive you have to be a real man you have to fuck a lot (i'm not sure how this translates to being able to ride motorcycles but i also never claimed to be in the head of somebody really stupid) = you have to be an alpha. So of course for the longest time only alphas where considered strong enough to ride properly. Betas? too weak, not aggressive enough. Omegas? they can hold the umbrellas, maximum. They are too submissive, they will never overtake an alpha, they will lay down and show their neck to be mated right then and there when the alphas should do their real manly racingTM.

This of course doesn't take in account the fact that kids will start riding minibikes waaayyy before showing their second gender (in their puberty) so. Beta riders are most definitely there, and once stereotypes around omegas start to subside in the family sphere (thank you omega activists) and parents allow their omega kids to continue racing, omegas are there too.

Which doesn't mean that betas and omegas (in particular the latter) aren't treated horribly and always underestimated. A couple of omega champions (Jorge and Marc) change a bit the perspective, but the rosquez divorce sets everything back to 50 years. (No, i'm joking. Mostly. Just know that the rosquez divorce here is bad. really bad) Still, in the paddock there isn't much equality: alphas are almost always half of the grid, if not more, followed in numbers by betas and then omegas.

Are relationships between riders incentivized? OF COURSE NAWT, because those evil cunning omegas will try to make the big, strong alphas loose their focus from the championships with their evil ways. And betas are not even considered, because a true alpha rider will only fuck a traditional, stay-at-home omega that will raise their pups while he throws himself down the circuits at 200kph on the other side of the world. (you know, like true alphas do). And of course omegas are expected to not get pregnant because they're an investiment for the team and the least they can do is not getting a pup bred inside them and ruin the championship for everyone. As you might imagine, omegas get offered waayyy less contracts than alphas and betas.

I said before that i wasn't going to say who's what because i've put down like, maybe five riders, but i changed my mind, so.

Jorge is an omega, as per @whatwepostintheshadows amazing post, as is Marc. Vale is an alpha, more on those two here. Dani i'm not really sure, because I can see him both as an alpha and a beta, always criticized for not being alpha enough/not agressive/strong enough. Alex is probably a beta. Enea is probably an alpha (is this purely based on his nickname being "la bestia"? maybe. I'm open to discussions about him). And for the academy, I'm sure of pecco being a beta, but i'm not sure about anybody else.

Suggestions/ideas in the askbox and/or dms about this are highly appreciated please do come to talk to me about this :)))

[too-many-rooks]

Tag people you want to get to know better

Thanks @strangesoulmates for tagging me!

Three ships (As I’m writing this out I’m realising they all have pretty similar themes, I guess I have somewhat consistent taste, this is all just reminders of humanity, enemies to lovers, trying to kill each other and excuses to cover my blorbos in blood.)

1.) Alex/Yassen

Can I be controversial and admit this one took a lot of convincing? Originally I was expecting the fandom to be more into ‘unlikely parental figure’ Yassen (which is a trope I’m an absolute sucker for.) but any way these two characters interact is interesting to me, and I’ve definitely come round to it from a perspective of this is only ‘healthy’ because it’s them and no one else can really understand them like the other can, and if it’s not ‘healthy’ it’s all dubious and quite fun. Big sucker for the (sort of one sided?) enemies to lovers, borderline obsession, as character foils of each other, with Yassen kind of representing Alex’s future and the dichotomy of like... sunshine puppy and murder kitty vibes. Then there’s the loyalty to each other before their ‘side’, different worlds and different morals but a unique understanding of each other.

(Also worth mentioning that I like Yassen with basically any Rider - I don’t see John/Yassen as anything but unhealthy hero worship/daddy issues/manipulation but that itself is still interesting, and I’m a huge sucker for Ian/Yassen, either as like an old married couple or people who have a few brief, but very intense encounters throughout their lives. I feel like there’s been a bit of a ‘Yiannaissance’ recently that I’m really enjoying. Do we have an official ship name? Yian? Iassen? Neither seem great.)

2.) Jonathon Reid/Geoffrey McCullum.

Peak different sides, enemies to lovers, vampire hunter and powerful newborn vampire in 1918 London in the grip of a pandemic, great gothic industrial vibe. I played this game obsessively during lockdown. (Can’t imagine why.) Themes of duty and purpose and humanity and horror, the game sort of rushes you into a forced romance with one of the female characters but the chemistry between these two is insane they are kind of obsessed with each other and the fight that happens when one of them tries to kill the other is just TEEMING with homoeroticism.

3.) Villanelle/Eve Polastri

First two seasons of Killing Eve are some of the best television ever created. The theatricality of the murders, and the comedy contrasted with some just devastating moments, the OUTFITS. That ending really took the wind out of my sails with this one and kind of spoiled it for me but what was there with the themes of mutual obsession, both trying to kill each other, Villanelle drawing out this dark side of Eve that has always been there, Eve drawing out this humanity that also been in Villanelle, just the whole vibe of being the only people in the world who could possibly understand the other properly and hating that so much you try and kill each other before realising they can’t be apart.

First Ship - I think the first one I really went insane for was Morrigan/Warden from DA:O. Morrigan helped me realise I was a lesbian I was so in love with her. Still am tbh.

Last song - ‘King’ by Florence + the Machine, I went to her concert this week and she ran right past me it was amazing.

Last Movie - finally got round to watching Everything Everywhere All at Once, so incredible!

Currently reading - chapter 3 of ‘The Viking Diaspora’ by Judith Jesch for my seminar tomorrow. (I really want to read more novels this year!)

Currently watching - His Dark Materials, interspersed with weird niche YouTube video essays, and mildly embarrassing amounts of Bluey.

Currently consuming: last thing I ate was some cinnamon raisin bread with one of the fancy jams I got in the jam advent calendar I bought myself. Now I need to figure out where I can find pineapple and yuzu jam bc I want to eat it forever.

Currently craving: supermarket bakery chocolate chip cookies, and some sweet and spicy fried chicken.

Tagging @countessrivers and whoever else fancies!

[sithwitch13]

Forbidden Door 6/30/24

Amanda and Negative One, I'm gonna cry

Ooh, Serpentico? I didn't know we were getting Serpentico!

Newly beltless Kyle Fletcher cheering himself up by destroying SNAKEMAN

Roddy, grabbing Gabe Kidd in an aggressive hug: "LOOK AT MY NEW FRIEND, ISN'T HE SO COOL, UNLIKE A CERTAIN BABY SEAL BOY"

KOR, chilling with the Conglomeration plus Ishii and Willow: "Sorry, did you say something? We were busy making friendship bracelets."

BARK-OFF

STAT TIME AND ALSO STOKELY AND MOMO WATANABE

WILLOW TIME AND ALSO TAM NAKANO

Forming a conspiracy board because Tam and Momo are wearing contrasting colors while Kris and Willow are wearing the same color.

Oh my god Toni's ringside outfit

YEAH MARIAH

And here's Mina to keep the love triangle going

LIJ, you are so adorable

Aww, Alex's face paint

Aaaaaa it's time

So is the crowdsurfing a reference to Cody, Punk, both, or neither? I'm good either way

Is it just me or does MJF not have his usual dogshit spray tan?

LOL Kenny's face blurred

Double LOL they called Okada the Best Bout Machine

Okay gremlins let's see how cunty you're feeling tonight

Reasonably, excellent

Oooh Okada is very shiny tonight

Dying at Nick and Okada doing Antics

God I love these horrible little scamps

Dragon vs Dragon time!

Ah, it's the time of the match where Danielson tries to give us all a heart attack

EVERYONE SHUT UP IT'S TIME FOR THE SAPPHIC LOVE TRIANGLE

Oh my god Toni lol

Mariah's beautiful face acting, she's so amazing and the absolute heart of this story

Mariah: "now kiss"

TEAM POLYCULE WINS

THE HORNINESS CONTINUES WITH OC VS ZSJ

Black Glasses Dark Jeans Orange

Thank you Tony Khan and Hiroshi Tanahashi for your gift of squirming men

Is my brain failing more than usual or was this supposed to be a Zero Hour match?

I have been informed it was always a main card match and now I am sad

Aww, yay for Hook

This is the most "whoever wins, I win" match of the night for me

Ladder matches always make me nervous since every time I try to use a ladder I injure myself

ELP nipple attack, congrats to us all!

OW FUCK JESUS

Don't mind me, I'm just sitting here screaming "PLEASE BE CAREFUL" every 30 seconds

:3

Stephanie's whole look is reminding me of Hela from Thor: Ragnarok and I'm here for it

I have no good occasion to do eye makeup like Mercedes' but I really really want to. Maybe just for sitting around and playing video games.

Holy shit Stephanie's dragon screw is brutal

BRITT

SHOW IN JAPAN I'M GOING TO DIE

Mox vs Naito time!

Oh good they didn't make Taz or Nigel leave when JR came in

Oh shit yes and the Death Rider theme

RED SHOES

Mox why are you not wearing the NJPW shorts

Please stop saying "tran-KWEE-low," it's pronounced "tran-KEE-loh"

Mox has two gears, Nigel: "violent" and "clumsy puppy"

Aww, grats Naito

MAIN EVENT, LET'S GO SWERVE

Garcia watching? HMMMM

I HAVE BEEN SHRIEKING THIS WHOLE TIME OH MY GOD

I may actually be dying

HEAD PATS AAAAA

SWERVE!!!!!!!!!

The forehead kiss

The tears

Fletcher comforting Ospreay

I love everything

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

"THIS IS DRAGPUNK, FUCKER!" -- ONLY ON MAN'S RUIN RECORDS.

PIC(S) INFO: Spotlight on the "Werewolves On Wheels" picture disc to the "Demons On Wheels" album by San Francisco garage rock band THE DEMONICS, the band's second full-length released under the late, great Man's Ruin Records in the fall of 2000.

ALBUM OVERVIEW: "Combine an infectious, hook-laden hard rock/punk blend with an obsession with '60s biker movies, and you have THE DEMONICS, whose "Demons on Wheels" is an invigorating exercise in rowdy, reckless fun. If this California band had been around in the '60s, this release would have been the perfect soundtrack for Dennis Hopper's "Easy Rider." Everything on the CD is about the misadventures of bikers, and infectious gems like "Race Against Dawn," "Dustin' the Fuzz," "Dunebuggy Denise," and "Fuel-Injected Suicide Machine" give the impression that THE DEMONICS loved every minute of "Easy Rider ."" 

-- ALLMUSIC (Alex Henderson)

Definitely one of the coolest picture discs in my music CD collection to date, which is why I just had to display the disc twice in this post. Duh! It's so @$!*#&% awesome!! Halloween vibes galore!

Sources: www.cdandlp.com/en/the-demonics/demons-on-wheels/cd/r119044162, discogs, & my extensive music CD collection.

[sharkpupsblog]

😭 Back Pains 😭

A Katja x GN! Soul Rider Reader Fanfic!

Wooo!!!! Another silly fluffy Katja fic!!!! Once again I’m not using the ‘Katja freezes everything she touches’ thing to make it extra fluffy :D had a lot of fun with this one but it feels a bit ooc and short :( …so sorry for that 😭💔 also I SUCK at commas and all that I’m so sorry for that :( hoping to improve on it soon🙏 huge Ty to @ mistfalldruid for the req I had so much fun writing this silly fluffy fic u saved Katja fans from my angst evils 🤭 also I realized this is my fifth katja fic wow . 😭❤️ anyways ty and enjoy !!! :D ❤️❤️❤️

Summary: You spend time with Katja after you get hurt and she worries for you.

Warnings: none.

You lay down on your stomach on Katja’s bed. You stretch and let out a quiet groan as your bones crackle and pop. Once you’re done stretching you let out a sigh going completely flat on the bed your body slowly relaxing. Today had been hard your team accidentally bumped with Katja’s during a mission to destroy a Dark Core machine in Hollow Woods and obviously Katja’s team wasn’t fine with letting you do that, so a fight broke out. While you gathered enough energy to destroy the machine your friends fought the dark riders. You thought you were safe from the fight and that you were clear to do your job but right as you were about to deliver the final blow Sabine and Khaan came out of nowhere and knocked you off your horse. You hit the ground hard. Hard enough to knock all the air out of your lungs and leave you with a horrible pain in your back. Your horse kept running for a bit before realizing you had been knocked off. When you recovered you got back up with the help of your horse who came running back to you when they realized you were not on their back anymore and together you both destroyed the machine. As you did you kept your guard up terrified to get hurt again. Once the fighting was over due to the fact that the machine was destroyed Jay and Sabine rode off. Katja looked for you and once she found you and you made eye contact with her, she looked to Valedale she was trying to tell you to meet her there. When you nodded, she rode off following her teammates. Your friends didn’t see Katja’s interaction with you since you were behind them, and they were celebrating their win. When their little celebration was done you told your friends you would stay behind and clean up. once you were done with cleaning you could see Katja, but Alex told you they would do it. Alex and the others saw your fall, and you went red clearly embarrassed, but they assured you that you were fine and since it looked like a hard hit it would be better if you went home to rest. You got on your horse you thanked your friends wishing them luck with the clean up and you rode to Valedale If they asked you any questions about it you would just say you took the Valedale trailer home. Once in Valedale you rode up the little mountain that held the entrance to the Valley of the Hidden Dinosaur. You rode into the entrance taking the elevators down into the valley and then you rode through it and to the ice witch lair. You rode slow because of the ice and because your back was killing you. when you made it to the lair the magic protecting the entrance slowly faded and the ice spikes that looked like fangs slowly went down to let you in. when it was clear to go in you led your horse inside to a little spot where Mortifa was eating hay. You had taken a while to get here so Katja got home first. Your horse neighed and Mortifa neighed back welcoming you both. You took your horse’s reins off and you put them away watching as your horse trotted over to Mortifa to join her in eating. You walked deeper into the lair, and you went straight to Katja’s room thinking she would be in there. She wasn’t but you were too tired and sore with no energy to go and look for her, so you laid down on her bed. And now here you were on her bed waiting for her. You sighed again this time the sigh was from boredom. You closed your eyes maybe you could catnap while you waited for her. You closed your eyes only a few seconds passing before you felt a blanket be draped on you. You opened your eyes seeing Katja and what was draped on you was not a blanket it was her poncho. You smiled at her, and she smiled back at you sitting next to you she put her hand on your back. She watched your face making sure you were not in too much pain before rubbing your back “how are you feeling?” She asked you and you hummed “like shit” you laughed softly “your friend hits hard.” Katja’s nose scrunched a bit in anger and her brows furrowed “I saw what she did and that brute is not my friend” she shook her head Katja didn’t want any harm to come to you she was angry really fucking angry.

Angry enough to cause her magic to react to her emotion making her hand cold, cold enough for you to feel through the poncho and your clothes. You shivered a bit, and you said her name causing her to tense as she realized how cold she had gotten she quickly removed her hand from your back apologizing. You reached for her hand, and once she made sure it was safe she allowed you to grab it. You kissed her palm and then the back of her hand making her relax she frowned “I should have kept an eye on you.” You shook your head “it’s my fault I should have been looking around” you let her hand go propping yourself up on your elbows letting out a quiet groan of pain as you did. You laughed and you covered your eyes with your hands confessing something to her “I’m so embarrassed!” You laughed more your cheeks turning red “I keep imagining how it happened and I feel it must have looked incredibly silly” you huffed and smiled at Katja she did not return the smile. “It looked horrible It didn’t look silly” when she said ‘silly’ it sounded angry. you sat up when she said that the poncho sliding off of you as you sat up. You frowned “Katja I’m fine” you picked the poncho up from behind you putting it on you loved her poncho it was really warm and soft, and it smelled like her perfume which you loved because it smelled like vanilla and cinnamon. “I’m fine I really am and if I don’t laugh about the pain in my back then I’ll cry about it” you rubbed your back it still hurt a lot. “Don’t be upset Katja I’m fine” you pouted a bit when the angry look on her face remained. She let out a huff looking away from you not wanting to see the sad look on your face and you scooted over to her nudging her. “Laugh with me?” You kissed her shoulder that got her attention she looked at you the angry look on her face gone replaced with a surprised one. Your smile returned and you kissed her shoulder again and even though she was still a bit angry she smiled back because she knew you hated seeing her upset and she loved the affection she got from you “I promise I’ll stick by you next time” you rest your head on her chest and she messed with your hair. Katja was about to say something to you, but you beat her in speaking “also I’m stealing your poncho” you were playing with her trying to lighten the mood and remove any negative emotions she had left. She let out an amused laugh “you wouldn’t be stupid enough to dare steal it from me.” You kissed her cheek before you slowly started to scoot off the bed and she narrowed her eyes at you “don’t you dare” She saw you look behind her and she followed your gaze seeing you look at the door. She was about to stand to block the door of her room, but you beat her, and you got off the bed laughing loudly as you ran out of the room. Katja laughed surprised by your little game, and she stood up running after you. The rest of your day was full of laughter, and you completely forgot about the pain in your back and Katja forgot her anger.

TY FOR READING! ❤️❤️❤️🐎🐎🐎

[tothemaxxx]

My Favorite Films and Performances of 2021

Another year of watching movies mostly at home! Would I have enjoyed certain titles more had I seen them on the big screen? Very likely! Did we buy a slightly larger TV? We sure did! Big screen or small, I found plenty to enjoy this last year... there may have even been a few instant classics. As per, I didn't get to see everything on my list. But I am excited to say that I've finally gotten back into Letterboxd after almost a decade's hiatus and it has injected some new excitement (and more organization) into my film-viewing habits. Here is my Top 20 as a list on Letterboxd, if you're into that sort of thing. Otherwise, keep scrolling! Thanks for your passing interest in my taste in film. Happy watching!

TOP 10

Ranking is VERY loose, and subject to change as the years pass and the details fade.

1. DRIVE MY CAR, Ryusuke Hamaguchi

2. LICORICE PIZZA, Paul Thomas Anderson

3. BERGMAN ISLAND, Mia Hansen-Løve

4. BENEDETTA, Paul Verhoeven

5. WHEEL OF FORTUNE AND FANTASY, Ryusuke Hamaguchi

6. THE VELVET UNDERGROUND, Todd Haynes

7. ANNETTE, Leos Carax

8. SPENCER, Pablo Larrain

9. THE POWER OF THE DOG, Jane Campion

10. THE LAST DUEL, Ridley Scott

Imagine my surprise upon drafting this list, that at some point in the last year Tumblr imposed a limit of 10 images per post! What's a guy with a top 20 to do other than be bummed out?!

Here's 10-20, sans photo, also loosely ranked:

TITANE, Julia Ducournau

WEST SIDE STORY, Steven Spielberg

RED ROCKET, Sean Baker

THE LOST DAUGHTER, Maggie Gyllenhaal

THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD, Joachim Trier

MALIGNANT, James Wan

CRYPTOZOO, Dash Shaw

DUNE, Denis Villeneuve

ZOLA, Janicza Bravo

THE SOUVENIR: PART II, Joanna Hogg

And a special commendation to is-it-a-film-or-a-series, Peter Jackson's THE BEATLES: GET BACK

I also enjoyed:

About Endlessness, Azor, Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, Beckett, The Big Trim, Boiling Point, Candyman, The Card Counter, Caveat, Censor, C'mon C'mon, Compartment No. 6, The Duke, El Planeta, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, The French Dispatch, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, The Good Boss, The Hand of God, A Hero, I'm Your Man, In the Earth, Jockey, Lapsis, Last Night in Soho, Limbo, Mad God, Mandibles, The Many Saints of Newark, MASS, The Matrix Resurrections, The Mitchells vs The Machines, The Night House, Nightmare Alley, No Sudden Move, No Time to Die, The Novice, Old, Old Henry, Only the Animals, Parallel Mothers, Paris 13th District, Passing, Pig, Prime Time, Quo Vadis Aida, Riders of Justice, Saint Maud, Seance, Shiva Baby, Stillwater, The Summit of the Gods, Swan Song (the one with Udo Kier that is), Test Pattern, The Tragedy of Macbeth, Undine, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Violation

And these documentaries:

Becoming Cousteau, Billie Eilish: The World's a Little Blurry, Julia, kid 90, Like A Rolling Stone: The Life & Times of Ben Fong-Torres, Listening to Kenny G, Procession, The Rescue, Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain, The Sparks Brothers, Tina, Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage

And some memorable (and mostly underdicussed) performances worth shouting out:

Niamh Algar as Enid Baines in Censor

Moises Arias as Gabriel in Jockey

Javier Bardem as Julio Blanco in The Good Boss

Don Cheadle as Curt Goynes in No Sudden Move

Jodie Comer as Marguerite de Carrouges in The Last Duel

Anders Danielsen Lie as Joseph in Bergman Island and as Aksel in The Worst Person in the World

Ana de Armas as Paloma in No Time to Die

Ariana DeBose as Anita in West Side Story

Benicio del Toro as Moses Rosenthaler in The French Dispatch

George DiCaprio as Mr. Jack in Licorice Pizza

Virginie Efira as Benedetta Carlini in Benedetta

Adèle Exarchopoulos as Agnès in Mandibles

Mike Faist as Riff in West Side Story

Brendan Fraser as Doug Jones in No Sudden Move

Isabelle Furman as Alex Dall in The Novice

Skyler Gisondo as Lance in Licorice Pizza

Seidi Haarla as Laura in Compartment No. 6

The Haim family as the Kane family in Licorice Pizza

Brittany S. Hall as Renesha Bell in Test Pattern

Rebecca Hall as Beth in The Night House

Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock/Venom in Venom: Let There Be Carnage

Harriet Sansom Harris as Mary Grady in Licorice Pizza

Sally Hawkins as Maggie in Spencer

Simon Helberg as The Accompanist in Annette

Kathryn Hunter as Witches in The Tragedy of Macbeth

Amir Jahidi as Rahim in A Hero

Riley Keough as Stefani in Zola

Udo Kier as Pat Pitsenbarger in Swan Song

Vicky Krieps as Chris in Bergman Island

Tōko Miura as Misaki Watari in Drive My Car

Katsuki Mori as Nao in Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy

Tim Blake Nelson as Henry in Old Henry

Hidetoshi Nishijima as Yūsuke Kafuku in Drive My Car

Allessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti in The Many Saints of Newark

Woody Norman as Jesse in C'mon C'mon

Masaki Okada as Kōji Takatsuki in Drive My Car

Taylor Paige as Zola in Zola

Park Yu-rim as Lee Yoon-a in Drive My Car

Martha Plimpton as Gail in MASS

Renate Reinsve as Julie in The Worst Person in the World

Simon Rex as Mikey Saber in Red Rocket

Jonathan Richman as himself in The Velvet Underground

Agathe Russelle as Alexia/Adrien in Titane

Makita Samba as Camille Germain in Paris, 13th District

Rachel Sennott as Danielle in Shiva Baby

Reece Shearsmith as Zach in In The Earth

Kiyohiko Shibukawa as Segawa in Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy

Milena Smit as Ana in Parallel Mothers

Kodi Smit-McPhee as Peter Gordon in The Power of the Dog

Suzanna Son as Strawberry in Red Rocket

Timothy Spall as Major Alistar Gregory in Spencer

Dan Stevens as Tom in I'm Your Man

Tilda Swinton as J.K.L. Berensen in The French Dispatch

Honor Switon Byrne as Julie in The Souvenir: Part II

Fusako Urabe as Moka in Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy

Annabelle Wallis as Madison Mitchell/Emily May in Malignant

Jeffrey Wright as Roebuck Wright in The French Dispatch

[nemorialex]

First Ride

For Alex’s 22nd birthday, their brother got them a bike. It would be a quaint gesture if it wasn’t a full motorcycle, which came with it’s own charging garage, and already-paid-for lessons to boot. Never, for one second, think that Zack Miller does things half-assed when it came to spending money or spoiling his family (unless he finds it funny.)

Alex unlocks the garage and flips on the light. In the middle under the spotlight is a simple, small motorcycle with a black teardrop shaped body and silver trimming. Alex didn’t know what sort of brand or make or model it was, and for the most part didn’t much care either. It was a bike! And that was just cool.

For a moment Alex simply sits on the vehicle. Unplugged, helmet on, engine off, getting a feel for the shape underneath them, treating it carefully like it was a slumbering beast they were hesitant to wake up. They’ve studied manuals and rules of the road inside and out. Aside from actually getting a test and being awarded a license (something which, while the right thing to do, still seemed questionable to them somehow...) they had everything they needed.

To say the past few days have been weird would lead to an odd spiral that leads to “the past entirety of their life has been weird.” That being said, Alex felt a sort of jumpstart as of late. A refresh. Something had knocked some sense into them and it was too soon to tell if it was nonsense or just the sort of kick they needed. It jostled them from confident joy one day and crushing anxiety the next. Which brought them to here and now, carefully starting up the engine and feeling it roar to life underneath them. They close their eyes. More than the rumble shaking their ribcage, they can sense the ripples it leaked into the earth beneath. Even on tiptoes, through boots, if they really focused, they could feel the echoes of this beast make it’s presence known farther out than could be seen. 

Their eyes flutter back open. That’s not why they’re here. They aren’t going to tap into something supernatural or profound here, or try to reawaken or stretch any ill-used powers on their part. They are here for the basic, deafening urge  that has been calling to them for a long time now, that they haven’t given into thanks to obligations or illness. 

They need to RUN. 

And with that thought they rev the engine once and peel out of the garage, barely remembering to hit the button to close the door on their way out. It is so, so much faster than using feet alone, and despite the fact that they’re just sitting and barely moving, their heart races with the pace of it. The helmet muffles out most of the chittering, purring song of the electronic beast, but they hear it regardless and enjoy the white noise. It’s not Nothing, but it’s nothing that their brain can focus on either. It’s a basic pleasure. An indulgence. 

Alex is careful to only take backroads and long stretches of straight-aways. The busy city and the twisting mountain paths were no place for an novice rider. For now, anyway. Despite the adrenalin of the moment, they were only going about 30 mph. There was a voice in their head praising them for remembering to be safe and to figure out how to brag to Frenchie about their level-headedness later. In the meantime, Alex would drive as long as they could stand or the battery would last, whichever came first. Then they’d carefully portal back to the garage and lock this marvelous machine away until another day. 

Another day perhaps very, very soon.

[mcskullmun]

[Idiot]

[turnipotentiary]

Hamlaf Coffee Shop AU

This is the fic I was talking about in my last post! It’s pure fluff, and I love it. Tell me what you think, reblog and comments are always appreciated! I think I missed the “Alex is a food rider” part, but oh well. Below is the inspiration, done by @shanshala​, who is absolutely amazing.

Lafayette smiled at the coffee shop counter. His hair was tied up in a big poofball bun, he was wearing the signature white shirt and purple apron of the shop that contrasted nicely with his dark skin, and a perfect customer-service smile. He was ready to start his shift.

And then in came human hurricane Alexander Hamilton, the bell tinkling as he shoved the door open, clearly in a rush, cheeks pink from the cold outside. Lafayette felt his customer-service smile drop, replaced by an absolutely lovesick expression.

“Bonjour again, Alexandre,” he said, grinning charmingly at Alexander, who huffed. “I need a black coffee with four expresso shots, nothing else,” he said, hopping from one foot to the other impatiently. Lafayette laughed, going to the coffee machine. “You seem to run on coffee,” he observed, and it was true. Every day without fail he came running in, ordered a black coffee with an insanely unhealthy amount of caffeine, and ran back out in a hurry.

Alexander nodded, not in the mood for small talk. “I do, which is why I need that coffee,” he said. Normally other baristas would be indignant, and in fact several other employees had quit the morning shift just to avoid Alexander. But Lafayette found this incredibly endearing, and he’d volunteered for it, begged for the shift, in fact. He was quite the romantic. But still, he wasn’t in too deep, he told himself; the manager paid him extra to work the shift. So it was practical as well.

Lafayette smiled, writing “Alexandre” in loopy cursive on the cup and handing it over. “Bonne journée, mon Alexandre,” he called after Alex’s retreating figure. Receiving no response, he sighed dramatically, returning to the coffee machine. He didn’t see Alexander admiring the fancy cursive Sharpie on his cup as he turned the corner.

This pattern continued as it always had; Alexander would rush in, Lafayette would flirt shamelessly with him, and then he’d leave, and Lafayette would pine. Then one day Alexander just…. stopped coming.

“What happened? Do you know where he went?” Lafayette asked Hercules the next day, trying desperately to be casual. He failed, judging by the huge grin on his friend’s face. “Why do you care?” he asked, knowing full well why. “No reason, curious only,” he said, flustered. “Well, I heard he went on vacation,” Hercules said. Lafayette nodded. “Ah.” And so he set about his day, resigned to wait until his Alexandre came back.

And he did. Two weeks later, he came back, hair in a messy bun that somehow seemed to endear him even more to Lafayette. He approached the counter and Lafayette immediately got to work on his order, knowing it by heart after months. “How was your vacation?” he asked flippantly, hoping for a response, even though the more rational part of his brain told him that he’d probably get a grumpy one-word answer in response.

To his surprise, Alexander started talking. “Oh my god, it was horrible! Well, the vacation itself was pretty fun, me and a buddy went down to LA, and yes, it’s way more sunny than the Seattle weather here, I swear I was almost blinded-” Lafayette giggled- “but once I got used to it, it was complete heaven, like, it was actually warm! Can you believe that?” Not stopping for an answer, he continued on. “And the beaches were amazing! But the horrible part was that all the hippies there made the coffee shops assume that I wanted, like, creamer or something,” he said, emphasizing creamer as if it was some instrument of the devil. “And the barista at the coffee shop near the place me and my buddy rented was horrible, just yes or no answers, not friendly at all! The customer service in LA sucks,” he finished. Noticing Lafayette staring at him, he blushed slightly. “Sorry, I know I haven’t been the best customer either,” he said sheepishly. Lafayette began to reassure him that it was no problem, really, but Alexander talked on. “But yeah, really, sorry for that, y’all must go through some shitty people,” he said, still talking at the rapid pace he had been for the past five minutes. “Oh my god, was I talking too much? Sometimes I get overexcited, shoot off at the mouth, I’ve been told it’s very annoying,” he said quietly.

Lafayette wasn’t a very violent person, but at that moment he wanted to punch whoever told him it was annoying. How could anyone possibly say that, with the way Alexander’s eyes shined as he talked and the passionate way he described everything? Lafayette felt like he’d melt any second, he was so smitten. “It is alright, Alexandre,” he said. “I quite enjoy it, actually.” He winked. Alexander flushed, but recovered quickly. “Oh yeah, I forgot- the worst thing about that coffee shop in LA was that the barista was nowhere near as attractive,” he said, grinning. Lafayette blushed. “Is that so? Perhaps time away from me has made you realize you’ve grown attached?”

Alexander grinned. “Exactly.” There was silence for a bit as Lafayette busied himself with adding something extra on his cup, handing it over as Alex’s phone pinged. He pulled it out of his pocket, grabbing the coffee with a hurried “thanks” and rushing out the door, same as always.

Except several hours later, when Alex got off the phone with his boss, he found a number written elegantly beneath his name, in which Lafayette had added a little heart.

And several hours later, Lafayette felt his phone buzz as he cleaned up in preparation to go home.

“Bonjour?” “Hey Laf! This is Alex.”

And several weeks later, the number labeled “❤️Alexandre❤️” texted him, telling him to meet at the park.

And several minutes later he was there, Alexander looking nervous as he sat across the park bench from him, fumbling with his words.

And several hours later, Lafayette left, lovesick smile on his face as he kissed his new boyfriend goodnight.

And years after that first time, he was kissing Alexander again, this time in celebration as a ring glinted on his finger.

Yes, the customer service is trashy eight times out of ten in LA (although there are some really nice people) and yes, it’s set in Seattle because I just thought it fit. And yes, I’ve been there, and yes, the weather is very grey, although I might be biased because I’m used to sunlight.

oh yeah, and the Space Needle is awesome.

[lgbtqiahistoricalromance]

Finishing Out Summer 2020 TBR List! - Updated 7/31

Starting back in March, I was adding novel after novel for purposes of reading during social distancing and Summer 2020. I’m hoping you all found some great reads, even if you haven’t been able to read them all. *Here is another batch to round out Summer 2020, and I’m thrilled by the selection that includes sapphic, trans MCs, and more eras and locations than any list to date.

Leather and Lace by Rebel Carter (Good Sky series #5) - May 20th - sapphic

Mary Sophia James came to Gold Sky, Montana to find a husband at the insistence of her overbearing mother. Striking out in spectacular fashion after setting her eye on Julian Baptiste, her options are dwindling, and time is running out. She needs to find a man to marry before her condition becomes…obvious. Her mother’s prejudices and sharp tongue aren’t helping matters and Mary, to her shame, hasn’t behaved much better. But all her plans are derailed when she spots the most beautiful person she’s ever seen across the town square. Alex Pierce is strong, intriguing, looks stunning in a pair of trousers…and a woman.

Gold Sky is accepting of all types of love, and that between women is no different. Still, Alex didn’t expect to be so floored by the sight of the firey haired, yet fragile looking young woman. Mary needs to be married and Alex has a solution. Because in Gold Sky, Montana there are many ways to be married…and not all of them include a man.

Leather and Lace is a 35k word novella set at the same time as the events of book 2, Hearth and Home. It includes a passionate and romantic f/f love in a town where diversity, and love, reign supreme.

Note : Leather and Lace has a bit of mail-order, arranged married, kind of secret baby with some foreced proximity sprinkled on top!

The Sugared Game by KJ Charles (The Will Darling Adventures #2) - August 26th

It’s been two months since Will Darling saw Kim Secretan, and he doesn’t expect to see him again. What do a rough and ready soldier-turned-bookseller and a disgraced, shady aristocrat have to do with each other anyway? But when Will encounters a face from the past in a disreputable nightclub, Kim turns up, as shifty, unreliable, and irresistible as ever. And before Will knows it, he’s been dragged back into Kim’s shadowy world of secrets, criminal conspiracies, and underhand dealings. This time, though, things are underhanded even by Kim standards. This time, the danger is too close to home. And if Will and Kim can’t find common ground against unseen enemies, they risk losing everything.

The Revolutionary and the Rogue by Blake Ferre - August 24th

Perrin deVesey knows pain. As a member of Crimson Rose, a secret club for men who love men, he’s taken the vow “to stand and shield.” Standing together during these perilous times is the only thing keeping their necks from the guillotine. Now their leader is using the club to rescue wrongly accused traitors. After losing a past lover to an unjust execution, the decision to support this treasonous cause is easy…until a devastatingly handsome Committee Officer complicates Perrin’s whole world. Officer Henri Chevalier hates aristocrats. But the man he finds while investigating Crimson Rose is more than just wealthy and fancily clothed. He’s a rogue that could take him to the heart of the uprising and stop it before it starts. His plan to get close to Perrin and steal his secrets backfires, though, when Henri finds himself falling for the damned aristo and his dangerous smile. His heart is even more conflicted as he learns the truth behind their cause…and the truth his own people have been hiding. Together they must make the choice—to stand and shield at any cost—and their love might be the deadliest weapon in all of France.

Healing Lance by MD Grimm (A Warrior’s Redemption #1)- July 28th

A baby’s laughter. A mind uncaged. Lance is known as Scourge, the warrior in the black armor, the dog of the warlord Ulfr Blackwolf. He was just a boy when Ulfr found him and molded him into the perfect weapon. He slaughters and pillages on command, merciless and numb, devoid of emotions. Then a baby girl laughs at him during a raid. And everything changes. When Gust, a talented healer, is out deer hunting and stumbles across a magnificent horse bearing a mortally wounded rider, he has no idea that his life is about to change forever. Gust applies all his skills to his patient, determined to save the rider’s life, and is rewarded when the man opens his eyes. As friendship, and more, bloom between warrior and healer, so does the danger over the horizon. Ulfr has not forgotten, and Lance must take his first steps on the long road to redemption.     

The rest of the series is either out this Summer or finishes in Sept!

Unhallowed: A Novel of Widdershins (Rath & Rune Book #1) by Jordan L Hawk - July 17th

Monsters. Murder. Librarians. Librarian Sebastian Rath is the only one who believes his friend Kelly O’Neil disappeared due to foul play. But without any clues or outside assistance, there’s nothing he can do to prove it. When bookbinder Vesper Rune is hired to fill the vacancy left by O’Neil, he receives an ominous letter warning him to leave. After he saves Sebastian from a pair of threatening men, the two decide to join forces and get to the truth about what happened to O’Neil. But Vesper is hiding secrets of his own, ones he doesn’t dare let anyone learn. Secrets that grow ever more dangerous as his desire for Sebastian deepens. Because Kelly O’Neil was murdered. And if Sebastian and Ves don’t act quickly enough, they’ll be the next to die.

My Heart’s in the Highlands by Amy Hoff - July 17th - sapphic - time travel

The year is 1888. Brilliant and beautiful, Lady Jane Crichton has fought the constraints of her Victorian Edinburgh upbringing to become one of the first women to attend university for medicine. Denied a degree because of her gender, she decides to marry a closeted gay man, providing him with political and social cover and herself with the time and money to pursue her scientific interests—one of which is a time machine. Jane’s machine works…but not exactly as she expected, and soon she has crash-landed in the 13th-century Scottish Highlands. There she is rescued by a wild, red-haired warrior woman, Ainslie nic Dòmhnaill, next in line to the chiefship of the great Clan Donald, the rulers of the Sea Kingdom of the Isles. Despite the constant threat of attacks from enemy clans, harsh winters and a touch of homesickness, Jane finds herself bewitched by this land, this time and this magnificent woman. The rough and warlike Ainslie also feels the magic and revels in a passion and love neither she nor Jane had ever imagined. But Jane is hiding a dangerous secret—one that threatens to tragically transform their Highland fairy tale.

Kinship and Kindness by Kara Jorgensen (A Paranormal Society Romance #1) - releases July 29th -trans MC

Bennett Reynard needs one thing: to speak to the Rougarou about starting a union for shifters in New York City before the delegation arrives. When his dirigible finally lands in Louisiana, he finds the Rougarou is gone and in his stead is his handsome son, Theo, who seems to care for everyone but himself. Hoping he can still petition the Rougarou, Bennett stays only to find he is growing dangerously close to Theo Bisclavret. Theo Bisclavret thought he had finally come to terms with never being able to take his father’s place as the Rougarou, but with his father stuck in England and a delegation of werewolves arriving in town, Theo’s quiet life is thrown into chaos as he and his sister take over his duties. Assuming his father’s place has salted old wounds, but when a stranger arrives offering to help, Theo knows he can’t say no, even if Mr. Reynard makes him long for things he had sworn off years ago. As rivals arrive to challenge Theo for power and destroy the life Bennett has built, they know they must face their greatest fears or risk losing all they have fought for. With secrets threatening to topple their worlds, can Theo and Bennett let down their walls before it’s too late?

More under the cut...!!!!

My Highland Laird: Sci-Regency Book #5 by JL Langley - releases August 10th

Bannon Thompson, talented artist and youngest son of the Duke of Eversleigh, is hastily shipped off after his latest indiscretion. After crashing on rural Skye, leaving him and his valet the sole survivors of a diplomatic mission, Bannon must navigate the complexities of a primitive clan society and take up a role he never wanted: helping a sexy Highlander ensure the safety of both their planets.

Laird Ciaran MacKay wants nothing more than to keep his clan safe from the off-world intruders who killed his father. Suspecting complicity among his own people, he has no choice but to trust outsiders from a spaceship crash—and he can’t seem to fight his attraction to the stubborn redhead. Drawn to the handsome laird, Bannon risks a bold affair. But there is more at stake than reputations as they find two lost Regelens and uncover the Intergalactic Navy’s plot.

Artful Deception by Jackson Marsh (The Clearwater Myseries Book #5)

“Deception. The lie that tells the truth."

A damaged painting tempts Lord Clearwater to a final battle with his arch-enemy, and it's not a summons he can ignore.

Archer must free his homicidal brother from incarceration and reinstate him to the title. He will be left humiliated and penniless, but free to live his life with Silas with no threat of exposure. The alternative is death.

Drawing inspiration from a work of art, Clearwater manipulates a series of illusions to stay one step ahead of the endgame. While James, Tom and Silas race to solve clues and reach Archer before the fatal deadline, the assassin, Dorjan, remains hot on his heels ready to kill.

The sixth book in The Clearwater Mysteries series brings back popular characters from previous adventures in a fast-paced, twisting mystery that can have only one of two possible endings.

Or perhaps one of three. After all, deception is the lie that tells the truth.

Ten or Fifteen Miles by BL Maxwell - May 27th

Tim Latham had only been riding for the Pony Express for a week before he has to show the new guy the trail. Being raised on a farm in the Sacramento area, the Pony Express gave him an opportunity to see more of the country beyond his family’s little plot of land. He loves everything about the job: the adventure, the scenery, and the speed. Racing the wind on the back of a horse was as close to perfect as he could imagine.

Jeremiah Rollins grew up in San Francisco under the shadow of his father's successful shipping business. But Jeremiah craves the adventure he reads about in the dime novels he can’t get enough of. On a whim, and despite his father’s disapproval, he signs up for the Pony Express and leaves his old life behind for the steep, rocky trails that cross the Sierra Nevada. Both men are excited to begin their journey on their first ride together to Nevada Territory. They set out, making their way from station to station, racing as fast as their horses can carry them, and their friendship grows every mile. They both wanted adventure, but they may end up getting more than they dreamed of. Every ten or fifteen miles brings new experiences, and new feelings that grow with each mile they pass. 

People Like Us by Ruby Moone (Winsford Green #2) - July 21st

Arthur Fitch clawed his way out of the violence and poverty of the slums of London to become a valet to the aristocracy. His ambition to secure a higher position led him to a disastrous appointment with a cold, brutal man, and when things come to a head, Arthur is forced to flee into a snowstorm to find safety. Joseph Wilkinson is the Winsford Green blacksmith. He has a good life, good friends, owns a thriving business, but at the end of the day when he goes home, loneliness consumes him. When he stumbles upon a small man determinedly trudging through the snowstorm, he invites him into his home to shelter. Arthur Fitch is older, smart-mouthed, and as prickly as hell. But, as Joe peels back the layers, he discovers a warm, funny, vulnerable man whose tastes in the bedchamber leave Joe gasping and desperate for more. Trouble is, having found the real Arthur Fitch, how can he convince him that life in a small town can be infinitely better than working for an Earl? That love really is possible for people like them? Particularly when Arthur’s past catches up with him in horrifying fashion.

Seaworthy bu KL Noone (Character Bleed Book #1) - August 1st - bisexual MC - contemporary, but with a lot of historical touches

An epic motion picture! A gay Napoleonic War love story! Ballrooms and battles at sea! Romantic happy endings on the silver screen! And a film that’ll change everything for its stars ... Jason Mirelli can’t play adrenaline-fueled action heroes forever. He’s getting older, plus the action star parts have grown a little thinner since he came out as bisexual. This role could finally let him be seen as a serious dramatic actor, and he needs it to go well -- for his career, and because he’s fallen in love with the story and the chance to tell it. The first problem? He’ll be playing a ship’s captain ... and he hasn’t exactly mentioned his fear of water. The second problem? His co-star: award-winning, overly talkative, annoyingly adorable -- and openly gay – box office idol Colby Kent. Colby’s always loved the novel this film’s based on, and he leapt at the chance to adapt it, now that he has the money and reputation to make it happen. But scars and secrets from his past make filming a love story difficult ... until Jason takes his hand and wakes up all his buried desires. Jason could be everything Colby’s ever wanted: generous and kind, a fantastic partner on set, not to mention those heroic muscles. But Colby just can’t take that chance ... or can he? As their characters fall in love and fight a war, Colby and Jason find themselves falling, too ... and facing the return of their own past demons. But together they just might win ... and write their own love story.

The Engineer (Magic & Steam Book #1) by CS Poe - May 28th

1881—Special Agent Gillian Hamilton is a magic caster with the Federal Bureau of Magic and Steam. He’s sent to Shallow Grave, Arizona, to arrest a madman engineer known as Tinkerer, who’s responsible for blowing up half of Baltimore. Gillian has handled some of the worst criminals in the Bureau’s history, so this assignment shouldn’t be a problem. But even he’s taken aback by a run-in with the country’s most infamous outlaw, Gunner the Deadly. Gunner is also stalking Shallow Grave in search of Tinkerer, who will stop at nothing to take control of the town’s silver mines. Neither Gillian nor Gunner are willing to let Tinkerer hurt more innocent people, so they agree to a very temporary partnership. If facing illegal magic, Gatling gun contraptions, and a wild engineer in America’s frontier wasn’t enough trouble for a city boy, Gillian must also come to terms with the reality that he’s rather fond of his partner. But even if they live through this adventure, Gillian fears there’s no chance for love between a special agent and outlaw. Based on the short story, “Gunner the Deadly.” Entirely revised, newly expanded, and Book One in the exciting new steampunk series, Magic & Steam.

Pirate’s Promise (Pirate’s of Port Royal Book #1) by Jules Radcliffe - May 12th - the rest of the series is also out this Summer!

Press-ganged as a boy, Job Wright must learn how to live as a free man.

For years Job has been a captive, treated as a servant—and sometimes more—by a crooked merchant crew. Until the day his ship is attacked by pirates. English pirates, no less, and Brethren of the Coast, a brotherhood of free men who owe allegiance to no one but themselves. Job thinks he's been rescued at last, but he's badly mistaken. As an Englishman aboard a Spanish ship, the Brethren believe he's a traitor and an enemy. But just when pirate justice is about to be delivered, Garrett Dubh intervenes. He both saves Job's life and recruits him to the pirate ship Audacious.

Surrounded by a fearsome crew, Job finds protection under Garrett's wing. He's ready to do anything for the handsome pirate—things he'd never willingly do for another man. But Garrett ignores Job's shy overtures. He believes Job is too traumatised by his past. Too young to know what he wants. And nothing Job says will change his mind.

To show Garrett he can take care of himself, Job leaves the safety of the Audacious. He joins the most ruthless Brethren crew in the Caribbean, led by the enigmatic and cruel Rusé.

But in the French pirate haven of Tortuga, thoughtless actions can have fatal consequences, something Job is about to discover. And this time, Garrett isn't there to save him.

Chasing a Legacy by D. A Ravenscroft - May 2020

Against the tense political backdrop of the Second French Empire, siblings Camille and Marianne find themselves wrestling with personal demons both past and present. As Camille strives to keep family secrets buried and unveil a plot against them, Marianne becomes involved with the handsome Baron Auclair and his mysterious younger sister. Little do the siblings know that soon their very different lives will come crashing together…

-

The sequel to a sequel! In this follow up to the unofficial Les Mis sequel ‘Chasing a Ghost’, we follow Enjolras and Grantaire’s children, Camille and Marianne, through dangers untold and family strife. Set in 1866, towards the end of the Second Empire, this story has murder, mystery, romance, drama, comedy, and a pet lion. And yes, it’s very, very queer.

https://www.lulu.com/en/gb/shop/d-a-ravenscroft/chasing-a-legacy/paperback/product-y58wrq.html

Two Rogues Make a Right by Cat Sebastian (Seducing the Sedgwicks Book #3) - June 23rd

Will Sedgwick can’t believe that after months of searching for his oldest friend, Martin Easterbrook is found hiding in an attic like a gothic nightmare. Intent on nursing Martin back to health, Will kindly kidnaps him and takes him to the countryside to recover, well away from the world. Martin doesn’t much care where he is or even how he got there. He’s much more concerned that the man he’s loved his entire life is currently waiting on him hand and foot, feeding him soup and making him tea. Martin knows he’s a lost cause, one he doesn’t want Will to waste his life on. As a lifetime of love transforms into a tender passion both men always desired but neither expected, can they envision a life free from the restrictions of the past, a life with each other?

Best Laid Plaids by Ella Stainton (Kilty Pleasures #1)- August 31st

In 1920s Scotland, even ghosts wear plaid.

Welcome to a sexy, spooky new paranormal historical series from debut author Ella Stainton.

Scotland, 1928

Dr. Ainsley Graham is cultivating a reputation as an eccentric.

Two years ago, he catastrophically ended his academic career by publicly claiming to talk to ghosts. When Joachim Cockburn, a WWI veteran studying the power of delusional thinking, arrives at his door, Ainsley quickly catalogues him as yet another tiresome Englishman determined to mock his life’s work.

But Joachim is tenacious and openhearted, and Ainsley’s intrigued despite himself. He agrees to motor his handsome new friend around to Scotland’s most unmistakable hauntings. If he can convince Joachim, Ainsley might be able to win back his good name and then some. He knows he’s not crazy—he just needs someone else to know it, too.

Joachim is one thesis away from realizing his dream of becoming a psychology professor, and he’s not going to let anyone stop him, not even an enchanting ginger with a penchant for tartan and lewd jokes. But as the two travel across Scotland’s lovely—and definitely, definitely haunted—landscape, Joachim’s resolve starts to melt. And he’s beginning to think that an empty teaching post without the charming Dr. Graham would make a very poor consolation prize indeed…

The Gentleman’s Thief by Isobel Starling (Resurrectionist Book #2)

Tuesday 28th December 1897. Mr. Benedict Hannan, the owner of Hannan’s Auction House in Fitzrovia, London, receives an unexpected visitor at his Bloomsbury home. The man on his stoop sends Benedict’s heart into a flutter, and on inviting the mysterious stranger into his house, he is inviting mystery, adventure, and volcanic desire.

Sebastian Cavell—master thief, gives the impression he has sought out Benedict for the sake of business, but the kind of business Sebastian has in mind has nothing to do with making money!

Cavell has been tasked with finding the whereabouts of a missing German aristocrat. With Benedict’s society connections, Sebastian gains access to his Gentleman’s Club and to men whose behavior is not so gentlemanly!

Benedict is pulled into the circle of a dangerous secret society and he not only learns the truth about the mysterious Sebastian Cavell, but learns the truth about himself and all he truly desires.

The Curse of the Mummy’s Heart by Julia Talbot - June 30th

Something is rising in the desert sand, and between two adventurous men.

Famous 1920s Hollywood actor Douglas Fitzhugh and his brother Donnie are headed for Egypt on a classic monster movie quest. Their mysterious benefactor, a man they call Grant, has sent them to find a stranded archaeologist, and all they have to go on is a handwritten journal. That's just the kind of adventure Douglas loves, and he never passes up the chance to get away from his studio-driven life.

Charles Angeloff is also on his way to Egypt with a special object his father has asked him to return to the tomb he ripped it from. Charles is just out of university, and when he meets Douglas, he falls hard for Douglas' charm and his worldly ways.

As they travel, more men of adventure join them: a cowboy, a rich seminary student, and a librarian. When they're all together, it's like magic happens, and the men all realize they're on a mission to stop the horror that stirs beneath the desert sands, even as that creature sets its sights on Charles. Will Douglas and Charles lose each other just when they've found what they both think is the man they want to be with forever?

Starcrossed: A Paranormal Historical Romance (Magic in Manhattan #2) by Allie Therin - May 18th

When everything they’ve built is threatened, only their bond remains… 1925 New York Psychometric Rory Brodigan’s life hasn’t been the same since the day he met Arthur Kenzie. Arthur’s continued quest to contain supernatural relics that pose a threat to the world has captured Rory’s imagination—and his heart. But Arthur’s upper-class upbringing still leaves Rory worried that he’ll never measure up, especially when Arthur’s aristocratic ex arrives in New York. For Arthur, there’s only Rory. But keeping the man he’s fallen for safe is another matter altogether. When a group of ruthless paranormals throw the city into chaos, the two men’s strained relationship leaves Rory vulnerable to a monster from Arthur’s past. With dark forces determined to tear them apart, Rory and Arthur will have to draw on every last bit of magic up their sleeves. And in the end, it’s the connection they’ve formed without magic that will be tested like never before.

Another Chance For Love by Ellie Thomas - July 4th

Former British Army Lieutenant Adam Merryweather survived the Western Front of WWI and has slowly recovered from his injuries. But can he heal from a broken heart? Torn between family duty and personal happiness, he sacrificed his love for Alf and has never ceased to regret it in the two years since the war ended. Adam is slowly putting his empty life back together, working for the family firm in the city centre of Bristol and trying to stop his mother’s meddling to find him the perfect socially acceptable bride. When he happens to meet Alf out of the blue, Adam is determined to try again. But convincing Alf to give him another chance may be too much to hope for. Can a chance meeting bring them back together? Or has Adam lost another chance for love forever?    

The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows by Olivia Waite - July 28th - sapphic

When Agatha Griffin finds a colony of bees in her warehouse, it’s the not-so-perfect ending to a not-so-perfect week. Busy trying to keep her printing business afloat amidst rising taxes and the suppression of radical printers like her son, the last thing the widow wants is to be the victim of a thousand bees. But when a beautiful beekeeper arrives to take care of the pests, Agatha may be in danger of being stung by something far more dangerous…

Penelope Flood exists between two worlds in her small seaside town, the society of rich landowners and the tradesfolk.  Soon, tensions boil over when the formerly exiled Queen arrives on England’s shores—and when Penelope’s long-absent husband returns to Melliton, she once again finds herself torn, between her burgeoning love for Agatha and her loyalty to the man who once gave her refuge.

As Penelope finally discovers her true place, Agatha must learn to accept the changing world in front of her. But will these longing hearts settle for a safe but stale existence or will they learn to fight for the future they most desire?

--

*If more come to my attention after this is posted, they will be added!!!

[sareyen]

A Machine Without Feelings: A Jane Eyre AU (Part 6/11)

Read on ao3

Chapter 6

“It is so very odd.”

Charles looked as Moira as the woman drummed her fingers on the table. Moira crinkled her nose, taking a bite of the sweet cake on her plate and washing it down with a sip of fresh tea. She then pursed her lips thoughtfully before looking at Charles.

“What is your opinion on the topic, Charles?”

“On what?” Charles asked, marking some of Peter’s English work with a pencil with one hand, taking a sip of his tea with the other.

“On Mr Lehnsherr and Miss Frost,” Moira supplied, Charles coughing and choking on his tea, spitting a little onto Peter’s work book. Moira clicked her tongue, throwing him a napkin, which he used to dab at the book and along his chin.

“What about them?” Charles asked, voice squeaky and not because he almost choked on Darjeeling.

“Well, it has been almost a month since Miss Frost and her party returned home, but Mr Lehnsherr hasn’t gone to visit her at all in that time. It is only natural after courting for him to propose, but he has not even seen her since! It is not a long trip by horseback, and the master is a skilled rider. So, as I said, it is very, very odd.”

“Is it for sure that Erik intends to propose to Miss Frost?” Charles asked, pain twanging in his seemingly hollow chest cavity. Moira, as always, looked a little startled every time Charles called the master by his first name, but she was slowly getting used to it. The first time, Charles thought he had to go and mount a horse and ride to fetch Dr Hank McCoy. Now, Moira just gave him a funny look every time he did it, but otherwise pretended she didn’t hear anything.

It was not like people didn’t know that Erik and Charles got along well, even if they sometimes heard what sounded like a heated argument coming from the drawing room over a chess game, the two men often drinking whisky as they played and debating politics. They were used to Erik’s occasional bouts of rage, but Charles was usually such a serene being, that hearing him deliver a biting retort against someone like Erik with equal vitriol was startling, and potentially even more terrifying. Hearing Charles raise his voice was scarier than the shark-like grin Erik would shoot at Charles whenever the tutor said something amusing.

Erik did not treat Charles like he treated other subordinates, and it was obvious that their master favoured the young tutor quite a bit. Everyone that worked at Ironfield thought that Charles was extremely charming, and he was always apt at making conversation, but they didn’t think that the Charles Xavier charm would have worked on the seemingly impervious Mr Erik Lehnsherr.

It clearly had, though, and people were all the happier for it. Charles seemed to temper Mr Lehnsherr’s sour moods, and Alex had even taken to calling upon Charles to appease Erik whenever he noticed the master’s mood declining. Charles was always able to divert Erik’s mood over a game of chess or with a walk around the estate, sometimes even making the master forget his anger by playing a horrible rendition of a Liszt piece on the piano.

Even if Charles was not able to soothe Lehnsherr’s fury every time, he was the only one that could withstand the brunt of it without crumbling into tears. Alex had asked him how someone so small and soft like him could brave it, and Charles would just give him a lopsided smile, saying either “I’m tougher than I look” or “Erik is just impassioned, but not scary”.

So, Moira often asked Charles about their master now, knowing that if anyone knew what was going on in Lehnsherr’s labyrinth of a mind, it would be him. Unfortunately, Charles looked as stumped as Moira, the older woman sighing.

“I understand that you are young, and don’t really know the ways of courting,” Moira said, stuffing another morsel of cake into her mouth. “But a man does not pay attention to a woman like that without having the intention to propose. They looked quite taken with each other during their last few days here, and Miss Frost was even spending time with the staff, like Scott. If a woman of high birth like her takes the time to ingratiate themselves with the help, then it is obvious that they are planning to take over the household.”

“I see,” Charles said, voice tight. Charles had begun to indulge himself too much in his feelings for Erik, beginning to read too fancifully into the lingering touches and heated gazes the older man showered him with. From Erik’s tale about Magda, and how he had taken numerous other lovers on his travels, and now with Miss Frost, Charles knew that Erik’s tastes were not… like his own. Erik was not unnatural, and what Charles hoped were touches meaning something more were likely just how Erik treated a close friend.

Charles knew Erik did not have many friends, if any at all. He did seem taken with Miss Frost, but apart from her, Charles was really the only one Erik seemed to let his neck tie down for. Charles treasured that, but now with Erik’s engagement drawing nearer, Charles realised that he couldn’t go on like this any longer.

Charles had to find a new situation, which meant that he had to leave Ironfield Hall and everything contained within it. The thought filled Charles with a heavy feeling of emptiness, but he knew it was what he should do; once Erik was married, he and his wife would need to send Peter to school, and Charles’s presence would be rendered useless. Charles would rather leave on his own two feet before he was forced out by Erik and his new, beautiful and rich wife.

“I need to find a new situation, then,” Charles said, Moira’s eyes growing downcast. The woman reached across the table to rest her hand atop Charles’s, patting it tenderly.

“It saddens me to hear you say that, but I understand. I’m sure the master will find you a good situation. We will all miss you when you leave, though. Especially little Peter, he’s grown quite attached. Hopefully you can find something close by, it would be a shame if you were sent away to somwhere distant, like Ireland.”

“The feeling is mutual,” Charles sighed, getting up from his chair. “Is Erik in his study? I should discuss these things with him ahead of time.”

“Yes, he was there last I checked,” Moira replied, Charles kissing her cheek before heading upstairs to look for Erik. Charles knocked on his door twice, but the movement garnered no response from within, and when Charles opened the door it was confirmed to be devoid of human presence.

Charles searched the drawing room, and came up empty as well. The tutor walked the now-familiar halls, until he looked out the window and saw Erik strolling through the back gardens.

Charles quickly headed down that way, legs moving swiftly in case Erik decided to disappear to another corner of the large estate, and was relieved to find him still there, observing some bloomed pink flowers.

“Erik,” Charles called out breathily, the older man turning with a smile on his face, one that was growing more permanent by the day.

“Charles,” Erik returned, turning to face him fully. “Did you run here from town? Your cheeks are bright red and you’re struggling to catch your breath.” Erik’s tone was slightly teasing, knowing full well that Charles was not nearly as physically fit as Erik, the scholar just rolling his eyes as he slapped his chest to get some more air in.

“I need to discuss some things with you,” Charles said, Erik raising a brow, a movement that endeared Charles more every time. ‘Christ, stop, Charles. Do not fall for him more now that you are exerting your independent will to leave him.’

“About what?” Erik asked, gesturing towards the large open field speckled with a few grand trees a little further off Erik’s property, an invitation to venture there. Charles and Erik walked, Erik standing close to Charles like always, arms brushing. Charles coughed, side-stepping a little, causing Erik’s brow to crinkle.

“You are to be engaged soon, so I need to seek a new situation,” Charles explained, Erik’s head snapping to look at him as they walked, the grass soft and rustling under their boots. Charles pointedly kept his eyes trained ahead of him, noticing how the clouds were beginning to drift in, the late afternoon air growing a little muggy.

“And where did you hear that from?” Erik asked, Charles exhaling loudly.

“Everyone, and it is obvious that you intend to propose soon,” Charles countered calmly, shrugging. “Moira says that it will happen any day now.”

“And you trust Moira to know about my intentions? About my heart?” Erik asked, Charles giving the taller man a slightly frustrated look.

“I don’t need Moira to tell me, I’ve seen it. I’ve seen the way you and Miss Frost look at each other, and even if I was blind, I would still be able to see that you two are an excellent match,” Charles said hotly, Erik regarding him silently. Charles filled the silence quickly. “Look. I have very much enjoyed my time here, and very much love Ironfield. I love the friendships I have with Moira and the others, and I love teaching Peter. And I love-”

“And?” Erik pressed, the two of them stopping to stand beneath a large oak tree, whose trunk was circled by an old and worn wooden bench.

“And, since you are to be married, I need to find employment elsewhere. You will send Peter off to school, and with no pupil there is no reason for me to stay here,” Charles said, Erik scoffing.

“I can think of plenty of reasons for you to remain here,” Erik said, Charles rolling his eyes.

“Erik, I thought you knew me. I… I love being here, but I cannot sit idle with nothing to do. I want to teach children, to educate them so that they can go forth in the world on their own two feet. So, I cannot stay here once you marry. I will not. If you are unwilling to help me find a new situation, then I will advertise myself.”

Charles turned his nose up and spun around, aiming to head back to the mansion. Charles was only able to take two steps before his arm was seized by Erik, who whirled him around forcefully. Charles opened his mouth to utter a slew of rude words at his soon-to-be-ex-employer, but any noise building in his throat was cut off when Erik sealed his mouth over Charles’s.

Charles gasped into the touch, hard and possessive, Erik’s lips rough and all-consuming. His hands tightened around Charles’s biceps, the tutor’s hands flying out to grip the front of Erik’s waistcoat in a bid to not fall to his knees.

Charles was frozen into place, Erik groaning as he tilted his head a little more to slot their mouths together more tightly, and Charles whimpered. Erik’s tongue ran along Charles’s plump and berry-red lower lip, before sliding in and tangling with Charles’s, tasting him.

“Ngh- Erik- What are you-” Charles gasped, growing a mind to gently push at Erik’s chest, their mouths pulling apart with a slick smack. Erik’s chest was rising and falling heavily, but nowhere near as much as Charles’s, whose breaths shook as his cheeks were painted red with heat.

“Stay here. If you don’t find any other reason to stay, I will give you one,” Erik murmured, nudging Charles’s nose with his.

“But… You’re marrying Emma. You- We can’t do this, Erik. This is wrong. We’re both men, and- Oh, God help me. What do I-” Charles stammered, blue eyes growing impossibly wide, frantic. Erik just growled, moving his hands from Charles’s arms to cup his face, pressing his forehead against the younger man’s.

“No, Charles. Do not tell me that this is wrong. You are my equal and my likeness, I’ve known it from the moment I first beheld you. It’s you that I want, you infuriating, intelligent, singular man,” Erik said, voice rough and dripping with passion, Charles’s legs wilting as he whimpered, leaning into Erik’s embrace.

“You… You can’t. You’re not like me, Erik. You can’t… mock me like this. You love women, you’ve told me so yourself. I’m not… I’m not going to be some mistress that you lock away in a tower while you have dinner with your wife! Do you think, because I am poor and little, that because I am a man, I am soulless and heartless? I am not a machine without feelings! I have as much soul as you, and full as much heart, and just because I am unnatural it does not mean that I don't deserve to be loved, fully and completely. I deserve that, just as much as any one!” Charles cried out.

Erik groaned and clunked his forehead against Charles’s again, thumbs stroking Charles’s cheeks, which grew damp with desperate tears.

“Charles, I offer you my heart, my soul. I love you, fully and completely. Please grant me the honour of having you by my side,” Erik said, kissing Charles again, softer this time, but no less passionate. Charles sobbed as he slid his arms from Erik’s chest to wind them around the man’s neck, rising up onto his toes to kiss Erik back with abandon. Erik seemed to sigh into Charles’s returned embrace, wrapping his own arms around the younger man’s soft waist, drawing him closer.

“You love me?” Charles asked against Erik’s mouth, the older man chuckling, pulling back to look into Charles’s eyes, which shone with tears and glimmered like the ocean at dawn. Erik thought he was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, and Charles gazed up at his Erik with overflowing adoration.

“Fully and completely,” Erik repeated, Charles letting out a choked laugh and pulling Erik back down to kiss him again, giving in to the blissful feeling of Erik’s lips against his.

“I love you,” Charles whispered to Erik when they finally pulled apart, burying his head into the crook of Erik’s neck, breathing him in deeply.

As they held each other, there was a crackle of thunder, rain beginning to pour down from the heavens. Charles and Erik looked up at the sky, rain pattering against their faces, before looking back at each other and laughing, sharing another kiss under the rain.

“Let’s go back inside, liebling,” Erik murmured, Charles’s heart stuttering at the endearment. They kissed for a moment longer, before linking their hands and running back through the field. Charles didn’t care that the rain was soaking through his threadbare coat, nor that the mud from the field was caking his fraying boots. Charles didn’t care about anything apart from the man beside him, the heat radiating from their joined hands overcoming the chill of the rain.

The two men were giggling like schoolboys by the time they made it back to Ironfield Hall, stepping under the outer covering and shaking their wet clothes uselessly, soaked to the bone. Charles laughed as Erik ran his fingers through his hair, and he was sure his own was plastered unattractively across his forehead, but Erik looked at him like he was the most radiant being he had ever laid eyes upon, and Charles had to kiss him again.

Erik leaned hungrily into Charles’s touch, their mouths moving in synchronisation like their lips were made to slot together. Charles groaned when Erik’s hands gripped at his back and his hips, digging through his soaked layers and warming him up.

Erik crowded Charles against the heavy wooden door to the mansion, Charles laughing as Erik grudgingly fumbled behind Charles to unlock the door but unwilling to pull his lips off Charles. Erik kissed Charles like a drowning man and Charles was air, while Charles kissed Erik with equal need in return, a man in a desert while Erik was his oasis.

The two of them stumbled inside once Erik finally unlatched the door, the tutor and the master trying to stifle their giggles as the ran upstairs, tracking a trail of rainwater and mud behind them. They passed by Charles’s room first, and when Charles turned to open it, Erik murmured a brief ‘no, bed is too small,’ before tugging Charles’s arm further down the hall.

Erik took Charles to his own chambers, which had been relocated after the fire incident, and closed the door behind the two of them. They were both breathing heavily, Charles standing in the centre of the room, water droplets dangling on the fringes of his wet hair and already looking dishevelled.

Erik made his way towards his lover from his position by the door, leaning down now to kiss him slowly, and a little chastely.

“I’ve been dreaming of this for so long,” Erik said gently, cupping Charles’s shoulders, before sliding his hands down until they held Charles’s wrists. “I looked everywhere for you abroad. I went to Germany, to France, to the Americas, but never found you. And then, when I thought I was truly alone, I found you here, waiting for me.”

“You’re not alone,” Charles said, letting Erik guide his hands so they rested on his chest, over his beating heart. “Not anymore.”

The two kissed again, for what seemed like both the first time and the millionth time. As they kissed, Erik untied Charles’s neck tie, discarding it onto the ground as Charles did the same for him.

Hands fumbled between them, not wanting to move apart but needing space to undo the buttons of their waistcoats, which soon fell to the floor beside their ties. Trousers pooled at their feet, and when Charles was only in his shirt he walked backwards until the backs of his thighs hit Erik’s tall bed. The older man reached down to grasp him under his legs, hoisting him up effortlessly, Charles’s shirt rucking up to reveal pale, untouched thighs.

Erik hovered above Charles, kissing his lips, his cheeks, his chin, his neck, before removing the last piece of clothing from the beautiful man beneath him. Erik touched Charles like he was the most precious thing he has ever held before, and so gently that Charles might as well have been made of glass.

They held each other for the first time that night, and when Charles fell asleep curled up in Erik’s arms, the older man leant down and pressed a kiss to the crown of his hair, praying to God to let him keep Charles by his side for the rest of his life.

***

Charles and Erik did not part from each other’s side from that moment on. They woke in Erik’s bed every morning, bodies satisfyingly sore while rolling around naked under the sheets until either one of their stomachs rumbled, and even then, they would lay there tangled in each other’s arms until both of them grew unbearably famished.

Charles began taking all of his meals with Erik, much to Moira’s surprise. Charles felt awkward asking her to serve them their meals, and began to take it upon himself to carry two dishes on a silver tray to share with Erik wherever they wanted. Sometimes they dined in the drawing room while finishing up a game of chess, other times they ate at the table in the back gardens. Most of the time, though, they ate in Erik’s grand dining room. Erik usually ate there alone, and being the lone diner at a table fitting 15 was a solitary and lonely affair. Once Charles joined him, however, all of Erik’s meals were filled with talk and laughter, and the occasional rub of an ankle discreetly beneath the table.

Moira had pulled Charles aside a week after the sudden change in their dynamic. The woman hand frantically asked Charles about what was wrong with Mr Lehnsherr, and had somehow deduced in her confused mind that Erik and Miss Frost’s engagement had fallen through, and now he was trying to diminish his loneliness by spending time with his only friend. Charles had fallen into hysterics and assured Moira that that was not the case, but the woman had not relented.

Charles and Erik were not particularly discreet, though they refrained from kissing each other or touching too intimately in front of others. But when you live amongst people for so long, they are bound to notice things, like how Charles’s room never had a fire going any more, or that there was the sound of chatter emanating from Mr Lehnsherr’s chambers long into the night after the candlelight has darkened.

The person who found out first was Scott, though that was understandable, for a reason Charles was still trying to wrap his head around.

“You lied to me,” Charles seethed, tears collecting in his eyes. It had been a week since Charles and Erik had consummated their secret relationship, and it was far too soon for it to all come crashing down.

“What are you talking about, Charles?” Erik asked, shoulders stiff as Charles thrust a finger out the window.

“You told me that you weren’t marrying Emma Frost! You promised me that you… that you loved me, and now you’re inviting her to our home? Without telling me?”

Erik looked at Charles, blinking twice, before he burst out laughing. Erik slapped the surface of his desk as he laughed wildly, the sudden noise startling even Charles.

“You’ve misunderstood, Charles. Emma is not here for me,” Erik said, smirking a little as he got up from his chair. “Come, let me show you.”

Erik joined Charles by the large window behind his desk, pressing a large hand to the small of Charles’s back. Emma sat on a brilliant white steed in her matching white riding uniform, somehow devoid of dirt specks despite having ridden from her neighbouring estate. Charles had not seen her since before he left for Westchester, but she was still as radiant as ever.

“I don’t understand what you are showing me, Erik,” Charles grumbled, turning to his lover with downcast eyes.

“Just watch, Charles,” Erik said, smiling down at the younger man, who narrowed his eyes at him but turned back to the scene below. Erik’s hand rubbed gentle circles at Charles’s back, a deep swell of affection building inside him as he looked at his intelligent but sometimes short-sighted lover.

Charles continued to look down as Scott appeared from behind a pillar, Emma lightly hopping down from her horse when she saw him. Scott grabbed onto the horse’s reins as always, Emma saying something to him, Scott smiling in response. And then, in a movement that was far too practised to have been novel, Scott leaned forward to kiss Emma square on the mouth, the woman returning the touch by cupping Scott’s cheek with a white-gloved hand.

“What in the dickens?!” Charles exclaimed, eyes wide as Erik started laughing again. Apparently, the noise could be heard from outside, because both Emma and Scott looked up. Scott looked embarrassed, but Emma just smiled, waving up at the two men.

The other couple soon joined Charles and Erik in the study, Scott more scandalised about being caught smooching by his employer and friend than the fact that those same two individuals were also smooching in their spare time.

Of course, once Scott knew, his brother Alex was also informed. He, too, did not care – apparently, he once had a relationship with a man called Armando in the past, but that was tragically cut short when the man passed from consumption years ago.

Unfortunately, word spreads like wildfire amongst servants; once the Summers knew, Angel too found out and was overly supportive of Charles and Erik, just glad that someone could now permanently temper Erik’s foul moods. Lorna was also unbothered, because Peter was always easier to look after when he was in a good mood, and being chastised by Erik when he was angry always dulled Peter’s own temperament. Charles did not know how Anna-Marie felt about it, but on the rare occasion that he saw her, she would give him a small smile that looked like it held a secret, one that made the hairs on Charles’s neck stand up.

Moira was the last to find out, and only realised it when she had walked in on Erik leaning down to peck Charles on the lips one evening. She had screamed, and the rest of the help and run in frantically, only to find Moira a blushing mess and Charles burying his face into Erik’s chest, mortified. Erik just grinned at them all smugly with his shark-like smile, sending them all scuttling off.

Moira didn’t mention it to Charles again, but she would give him worried looks when she thought he wasn’t looking. Charles, for the most part, ignored it – the response from the household was, for the most part, overwhelmingly positive, and that was more than Charles could ever ask for. Amongst these people that he considered family, he never felt like an ‘unnatural child’ or wrong. He just felt like Charles, a man who happened to love Erik.

Charles still felt giddy when he remembered that Erik loved him back.

Now, Charles and Erik sat in the undercover stone pavilion in a corner of the estate, shadowed from the sun and view of the servants. Charles sat on a stone bench, Erik lying across its remaining length with his head resting on Charles’s rounded thighs.

Charles held a small book in his hands, reading it out to Erik in his dulcet voice, the older man’s eyes closed while his mouth was sloped upwards in a relaxed smile.

“Misery and degradation and death and nothing that God or Satan could inflict would have parted us, you of your own will did it,” Charles read, holding the book with one hand while the other carded through Erik’s hair. “I have not broken your heart – you have broken it, and in breaking it you have broken mine.”

“Heathcliff is an idiot,” Erik huffed, Charles closing the book with an amused grin. They had been working their way through Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, and Erik often piped up with grievances about the characters, which Charles found amusing yet annoying at alternating times.

“Why? I find it rather romantic for him to believe that their love is so strong that they would only be parted if one of them willed it, that there is no power in the universe that could break them apart unless they wished it,” Charles said, placing the book down on the bench beside him, now focusing on the man reclining on his lap. Erik just snorted, rolling his eyes.

“It is not romantic, it is foolish. He just won’t get it through his thick skull that Cathy may have had a legitimate reason for leaving him,” Erik explained, Charles raising a brow.

“What do you think is a legitimate reason for someone to leave the one they love?” Charles asked, Erik pondering for a moment, turning his gaze away from Charles.

“Opposing ideals, maybe. Or having the same ideals, but not being able to agree on how to achieve them,” Erik said, Charles chuckling.

“Then maybe I should leave you. We hardly agree about politics, Erik.”

“Don’t joke about that,” Erik said, Charles smiling as he leaned down to press his mouth to Erik’s, the angle awkward with how they’re sitting but the touch pleasant nonetheless. When Charles was about to pull back, Erik let out a disgruntled noise and hooked his arm over Charles’s neck, tugging him back down.

Their lip lock was broken when Charles could no longer contain his giggles, Erik huffing and rolling over so his cheek pressed against Charles’s thigh now.

“What’s another valid reason for someone to leave?” Charles asked again, stroking his fingers through Erik’s hair, his lover exhaling a long breath.

“Maybe if they found out the person they loved withheld something from them, something damning,” Erik said, his voice still and quiet.

“But if they love each other, they wouldn’t withhold anything important from each other, would they? The deceiver must not love the other person very much,” Charles said, Erik shaking his head before turning it to lean into Charles’s thigh, hand squeezing his knee tightly.

“That doesn’t mean they don’t love them. Maybe they just don’t know how to say something. But they love them. They really do love them,” Erik repeated, and Charles felt him press a kiss to his thigh, sighing warmly.

“Mm, if you say so. Do you want me to read more to you now?”

“No,” Erik murmured quietly, eyes closing. “I just want to stay like this, for a while.”

***

“Charles, really?” Erik said, glaring at the shorter man, who only smiled back at him sweetly.

“Peter needs new clothes too. It is only practical for him to accompany us,” Charles responded, holding Peter’s hand as the little boy clambered into the carriage. Charles stood on one side of the door, and Erik on the other, the two of them staring at each other. While Charles just smiled languidly, Erik’s eyes were hot and his mouth was set into a hard line, an expression intimidating to everyone but Charles.

“You are my torturer, Charles,” Erik eventually muttered, deflating as Charles just laughed, climbing into the carriage to sit beside Peter, making Erik glare at him again. Erik stomped his way into the carriage, sitting on the side opposite to Charles and the little beast. Once Scott kicked the carriage into motion, Erik grinned and reached forward to pull on Charles’s arm, the young man yelping as he matched the lurch in the carriage to fall onto the seat beside Erik.

“Erik! Peter is right there,” Charles hissed as Erik held him close to his side in the confines of the carriage. Erik looked at Peter, who was too busy staring out the window at the fields and buildings whizzing past them to even care.

“Peter,” Erik called, the boy turning to him quickly. “If you count the number of buildings that we pass correctly from here until town, I will buy you two new suits instead of one.”

Peter’s eyes gleamed, the boy nodding enthusiastically before turning his eyes back outside with newfound focus, his fingers tapping on the carriage walls as he counted.

“You are impossible,” Charles huffed, but the smile on his face tempered the frustration in his voice.

“You love that about me, especially now that I can just lean down and…” Erik said, leaning down to kiss Charles’s mouth, not too passionately since Peter was in the carriage, but daring enough.

Charles rolled his eyes but gave in to the feel of Erik’s kisses, hungry for them even after indulging in them for the past three weeks.

The rest of the carriage ride went quickly, Peter eventually blurting out a number that Charles and Erik were sure wasn’t correct, but said it was fine any way. Peter beamed, skipping into the tailor’s and beginning to run his fingers through the soft display fabrics and making awed sounds at all the different colours.

The tailor saw Erik, immediately recognising him as the wealthy but stony Mr Lehnsherr from Ironfield Hall, and quickly coming to service him. The man was shocked when Mr Lehnsherr wanted to order five whole new suits for the man that accompanied him.

When the tailor looked at Charles, he was surprised to see that the boyishly attractive man was wearing a terribly old and ill-fitting suit. The tailor wondered why someone of Mr Lehnsherr’s station and reputation was buying so many expensive suits for someone that looked every inch a servant, but did not dwell on it too much when Mr Lehnsherr was paying him such a weighty sum for his work.

Erik ended up ordering six suits for Charles; three day suits and three evening suits, all of varying colours. He even bought Charles three more neck ties, leather gloves and a soft scarf, knowing Charles got cold easily.

Charles thought that would be it, but Erik then dragged him and Peter into a shoemaker’s store, order three pairs of dress shoes and boots.

Mr Lehnsherr paid an extra sum to have the items made up as quickly as possible, the tailor and shoemaker pushing aside other orders to get Mr Lehnsherr’s done. It was not very often that the man bought so many things, and it was even more surprising that it was for someone else. Clearly, that meant this was an important job, and the workers used it as an opportunity to advertise their services to such upper-class gentleman.

It was two weeks later that a carriage laden with boxes of new clothes and shoes arrived at Ironfield Hall, and Charles’s barely-used chambers was converted into a wardrobe. His new clothes covered the untouched bedding, and was draped over the armchair and desk in the corner.

“This is too much, Erik,” Charles complained, Erik watching him fondly as he sat in the middle of a pile of clothes that Erik had forced him to try on, thoroughly enjoying seeing Charles dress up in fine things that were worthy of him. He also thoroughly enjoyed seeing Charles take those fine things off, eventually growing tired of watching him dress and undress and ravaging him amongst the pile of new clothes instead.

That was the first time the two of them slept in Charles’s bed, much smaller than the one in Erik’s chambers, but allowing them a convenient excuse to press tightly together as they slumbered.

***

It was a few days later, after Moira had helped Charles reorganise the mess of clothes that required a new closet to fit into, that Charles retired to bed alone. Erik had been caught up with business, and sent Charles to retire first, the young man having dozed off multiple times as he curled up in the armchair in Erik’s office while the master worked.

Charles did not mind sleeping alone, though he did prefer it when Erik was beside him. Blowing out the candle on the bedside table, Charles lay on his side of the bed, back facing the centre. He had already been half asleep by the time he crawled upstairs and into bed since it was late into the evening now, and drifted off into sleep easily.

Charles’s dream that night was oddly dark, however. It began with Charles standing outside the gate of Ironfield, which was closed and barred with twisted metal, like a goliath had gripped it in his hands and bent it around and around the metal slats.

Behind the gate stood Erik and Emma, hands clasped together. Emma was dressed in white like always, but what was different was that her face was obscured by a gaudy lace veil that sparkled with diamonds.

‘No!’ Charles tried to cry out, but for some reason no sound came out. Charles clawed at his throat and screamed and screamed, but Erik and Emma could not hear him. Charles watched in horror when Erik smiled at the woman in the wedding gown, lifting her veil before closing his pale eyes, then leaning in to kiss his wife on her plush lips.

The scene of the dream changed suddenly, Charles’s body pulled backwards with a phantom force from where he gripped the bars of the Ironfield gate. Charles was plunged into a room full of red, his body small and the faces of Cain and Kurt Marko grinning down at him. Charles screamed again, and like before, no sound fell from his lips as Kurt took off his belt and looped it in his hand, while Cain held a book dripping with blood in his meaty fingers.

Kurt and Cain raised their arms at the same time. When Charles expected the blow to collide with him, an orange light flashed behind his shut eyes, and Charles gasped in surprise.

At the sound of his voice, Charles opened his eyes and found that his vision was blurry, having teared up during his fitful nightmare. He blinked, the strange orange glow of his dream carrying into reality as a candle’s flame flickered dangerously close to his eyes. Charles froze, eyes widening as the candle floated close to him, and he raised his hand instinctively to shield himself from the bright glow.

A candle did not float on its own, though, and Charles visualised a ghost-like figure swathed in a tattered white night gown. The ghost had long, matted blonde hair that cascaded down its back in clumps, and it hunched over itself like its bones were made of liquid. It was a woman, the shape beneath the gown curvaceous in a way a man could not be, but before Charles’s eyes could adjust to the flame’s light it disappeared in a flash, plunging Charles into darkness.

The change in lighting disoriented Charles, and he blinked and rubbed at his face before he heard the sound of cloth tearing, punctuated by the feral noise of growls and grunts. Charles’s heart thumped erratically in his chest as the ghost-like figure tore up the new clothes Charles had worn that day, which he had left hanging on the back of Erik’s desk chair before he went to bed.

‘The Ghost of Ironfield Hall,’ Charles thought to himself, afraid. He kept still, the ghost not seeming to be bothered with him and just angry at the brand-new clothes, which were mere tatters on the floor. The ghost held a knife that looked sharp yet worn, the metal glinting under the moonlight as it slashed through the fabric. Charles observed in still terror as the ghost looked at him again, wearing a face that was not Angels, nor Moira’s, nor Lorna’s, and not even Anna-Marie’s. The ghost wore an unfamiliar face that would have been beautiful if it did not twist in a way that was inhuman.

The human and the ghost stared at each other, the phantom-like woman smiling with deranged abandon, before scuttling out of the bedroom with a terrifying cackle. It was the same laugh that Charles heard the night of the fire, and it struck him in his core.

Charles was too afraid to get out of bed immediately, in case the ghost was still there, lingering in the halls. When he was sure that the laughter had tapered off a long while ago, Charles leapt out of bed and wrapped a thick blanket around his shoulders, the only thing that could cover him that had not been torn to shreds.

Charles did not care that he only wore his night shirt an d a blanketas he raced downstairs, almost tripping on the cloth wrapped around him.

Light still flickered from beneath the door to Erik’s study, and Charles did not knock as he barged in. Erik jumped slightly, looking like he was about to bark out an angered yell at whoever disturbed him so rudely, but when he saw Charles in such frantic, panicked state, the master jumped up with concern.

“Liebling, what happened?” Erik asked hurriedly, Charles throwing himself against Erik, shaking like a leaf. Erik swore under his breath, wrapping his arms around his Charles, kissing his head as he murmured “Du bist sicher, Liebling. You are safe. Tell me what scared you. I’m here, you’re not alone.”

“The ghost,” Charles shuddered out as he buried his face into Erik’s chest. “I saw the ghost.”

Next chapter (7/11) →

[canihldthemic]

Stepping into the Spotlight: The Story of Thee Sacred Souls

About three Sundays ago I woke up and scrolled through Spotify to find the perfect mix to background my Self-Care Sunday activities. Then amongst a mix filled with Kaytranada, the Internet and Jordan Ward came…. Marvin Gaye? or was it Smokey Robinson? I was confused yet pleased to hear a song by either one of them that I never knew but immediately loved. I walked over to my phone to see “Can I Call You Rose?, by Thee Sacred Souls” (???). I had to dig a little deeper to find out who these guys were and how it sounded so much like Motown. Here’s the story of the band that has restarted my obsession with analog music; one that I don’t see dying off anytime soon.

So, what do you get when you combine soul-music, dm’s and vinyls. For California natives Alex Garcia, Sal Samano, and Josh Lane these were the three things that turned them from solo artists to the soulful trio Thee Sacred Souls.

Let's Make A Band: It all started when Garcia and Samano formed their instrumental-only band in 2017. They worked for months creating half-done music that they weren’t sure what to do with. The two lacked a vision for their music and they both agreed that they weren’t that talented at actually writing songs. Then they found Josh Lane on Instagram, who had studied music and fashioned himself a lyricist. He tells the Pacific San Diego that he’d “been writing songs forever”.   A few dm’s later the trio came together to form Thee Sacred Souls in April 2019, and everything else was history.

A Quick Rise to fame: They’ve made a name for themselves in San Diego by playing live shows at local bars. This new-found fame led them to open up for fellow soul music maker, Mac Aryes in November 2019.  From there the band landed a month-long spot at San Diego’s Soda Bar. In between the live shows and opening up for Mac Aryes, Thee Sacred Souls was able to contract a deal at Penrose Records with two-time Grammy winner and vintage sound mastermind, Gabriel Roth. 

Getting to the Roots of the Rose: The soul music of the ’60s seems to be time-specific but contemporary musicians like Thee Sacred Souls and Amy Winehouse find a way to make this sound transcend space and time. Thee Sacred Souls experiment with bass guitars and drums to recreate a sound that combines Garcia’s and Samano’s adoration of Chicano Soul, funk, and low-rider culture  with Lane’s musical influences, who he dubbed “the trio of soul -- Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and Al Green.” 

Analog Culture in the Digital Age: In the age of new music Fridays and digital releases its easy for artists to get drowned in the concept of releasing music to keep up with trends rather than creating composite projects that represent true musicianship. However, Thee Sacred Souls don’t only tap into a vintage feel with their sound but also with the production of their music. Lovers of their slow-dragging soul-filled music, myself included, have been bombarding them with messages on Instagram asking when they’ll be releasing new music. The band's response is always the same: they're focusing on creating their analog sound and producing a vinyl(hyperlink Pacific San Diego article) before their digital releases. 

Their record deal with Gab Roth is a match made in heaven. As one of the masterminds behind Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab”, Roth prefers a minimalist, less is more approach to producing music, ” Show me a computer that sounds as good as a tape machine and I’ll use it”. Roth prides himself on creating retro records, not for the sake of aesthetic or ideology but because “Music should not be perfect or correct. When we play and when we record, we're looking to find what makes us feel good. We're steeped in those old records, but we're not consciously trying to remake a record from 1962.” Roth hones in on making music by using production equipment that preserves the authenticity of music-making that is found in earlier forms of recorded music, which results in a beautifully imperfect sound filled with cracks, echoes, and tape-slaps.

The passion behind the music-making exceeds the feel you get when you’re listening to a Motown era song remake. Together Roth and Thee Sacred Souls make music that appreciates the actual development of the music. They create a feeling that is as hard to find in today’s music. This sort of focus is what separates this band from many others and what I believe is going to make them here to stay. 

Recording their music comes second to the band's passion for playing live shows. However, COVID-19 has affected their ability to actually play live. But luckily the band released their vinyls and two singles before social distancing began. Until they can continue touring you can catch the band's merchandise and vinyls while you can (hyperlink) and enjoy their three Singles, “Can I Call You Rose?”  “Weak For your Love” and “Give Us Justice” — a soul ballad dedicated to speaking out about the police brutality in America and the murder of George Floyd—  where ever music is available. Lastly, follow the band’s Instagram updates!

Until next time, enjoy my curated playlist colored with the artistry of Thee Sacred Souls, Marvin Gaye, Amy Winehouse, and the like.