#and it drives Edwin crazy

[carebeardean]

payneland spiderman au where masked Charles rescues Edwin, who immediately starts yelling at him for putting himself in danger & Charles is like mate did you recognize me by the sound of my voice🥹?

Edwin using Every Inch of his willpower not to look at Charles ass in spandex is like of course I would recognize you anywhere. you absolute fool.

2 years after they start dating Charles puts it together & laughs so hard he busts a rib

[dont-offend-the-bees]

Edwin doesn’t think about the Blitz, and the way you could hear the bombs falling, even deep underground in the depths of the Athenaeum. He always harboured a particular dislike for the doodlebugs, and the ponderous tick-tick-tick of them as they made their way to their final destination. The way the ticking would stop, and the moment of silence as the bomb fell, before the explosion.

This feels like that.

He can feel the pull of it, the alien power flooding his body and rooting him to the floor, seeking its target. He looks over at Charles, just like he’s done countless times over the last sixteen years. The moment Charles’ eyes meet his, everything stops.

Charles’ mouth drops open on a gasp, the call of the magic possessing Edwin finding its answer. Edwin can feel it rising up through his feet, through his whole body, like a tidal wave. Somewhere very far away, a trumpet wails. Summertime.

Just before it closes over his head, he says, “Charles—”

Tick-tick-tick-tick. Boom.

When L&H told me they were planning on posting this prequel today I couldn't resist doing a quick drawing for it! Not sure it's my finest work (my waterbrush is going through a rebellious phase) but glad I got it out!

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

literally the easiest way to make someone care about a character and make them feel well-rounded beyond basic traits like personality, sexuality, ethnicity, etc, is to give them an actual character arc, and it’s shocking how many people do not seem to fully realize this

you cannot just cram a bunch of tropes. tropes are not the main event, they are tools to tell the story you wish to tell. emotional impact comes from the lead up, so you can’t just jump ahead and expect the payoff to work. “I want this character to just ___ already!” but they’re not there yet. that’s where the arc comes in - how do they get there?

and! most importantly, and this is something I really want people to think about when writing - the most important relationship your character should have, always, is with the world and society around them. defining your character purely through their interactions with other characters are, I find, how a lot of female characters end up feeling flat or not engaging with the themes as much as the male characters, and also how queer and non-white characters wind up as devices for other characters’ development instead of being more fleshed out

[a-bisexual-panicking]

something something charles had to ear edwin screaming in agony for what could have been hours without being able to do anything because of the steel collar

[gay-strawberry]

okay but if ghosts cant feel physical touch. why does charles snuggle into edwins neck. if he cant feel it why would he snuggle

[tentaclecats]

NO BECAUSE IM SEEING ALL THIS DEAD BOY DETECTIVES STUFF ONLINE (i have never watched this show) AND IVE SEEN PEOPLE COMPARING GAY GUY #1 TO KAZ BREKKER AND IVE SEEN PEOPLE COMPARING GAY GUY #2 TO JESPER FAHEY BUTTTT

BUT WHEN I SAY I SHIP KAZ AND JESPER. SOCIETY. SOCIETY GOES CRAZY. SOCIETY CALLS ME GAY.

[mazekingdom]

I enjoyed Dead Boy Detectives but... am I the only person who feels like the whole season was built on top of a gigantic elephant in the room that never got adressed 😭

[theashesofthefirststar]

I’d also like the add that Charles being a 100% heterosexual dude who could never return Edwin’s feelings doesn’t make sense from a marketing stand point or a narrative standpoint.

The developing relationship between Edwin and Charles is a big selling point for a lot of people. And sure, there’s plenty of fans who would be okay if any potential romance between them was snuffed out in season 1, but there’s also a lot of fans who would lose interest and only engage with the show via fan works. All of this is to say that cutting off the possibility of Charles and Edwin developing a romantic relationship isn’t in the best interest of the show’s longevity.

Then there’s the potential character arcs going forward. Niko is now a ghost stuck in the astral plan. Crystal has her memories back and plans to reconcile with her past self. Edwin has accepted his sexuality, his feelings for Charles, and his feelings of loneliness and now has to learn how to navigate these newly discovered parts of himself.

But what about Charles? In season 1, we see that he struggles with understanding his own feelings and expressing them to their fullest. And it only makes sense that he’ll explore that more in season 2. Also his relationship with both Crystal and Edwin were left in weird tentative places. He likes Crystal but she’s not ready for a relationship. He loves Edwin but he’s not sure if it’s in the same way Edwin loves him. These are threads left open by the narrative, and any good story will use those threads to explore Charle’s struggle with emotions. Not to mention, dbd is ultimately a teen drama, and love triangles are the bread and butter of the genre(see all of season 1). Interpersonal conflict is a widely utilized genre convention. It’s unimaginable to me that they’d drop all of that potential conflict by making Charles straight lol

you know. I think the reasons it feels so literally narratively wrong when people refer to charles as being straight (such as in interviews where his love life comes up and so on) are that A) he’s never deemed outright straight in the show, so it’s just an assumption that he must be straight by default (which is silly in a show like this), and B) what he says following edwin’s confession. I know I’m biased, but even when I try to look at it as neutrally as possible, the way he reacts in general and the specific words he uses just don’t sound right when you imagine them being said by a Totally Definitely Straight guy.

first of all if you actually listen to it instead of absorbing the scene superficially it’s not particularly a rejection at all, and the actors have stated that themselves– it’s not him saying no, it’s him saying “I can’t give you an answer right now, but I will eventually”. that’s not an interpretation, that’s literally just the truth of what he said (and again, the actors agree). can you imagine a straight guy saying that, or possibly even more damning, “we have literally forever to figure out the rest [“the rest” meaning anything that goes beyond the kind of love charles already solidly has for him]”.

imagine you’re a straight man who’s unwaveringly confident in his orientation and your gay best friend confesses his feelings for you. you would not respond with the implication there is a “the rest” to figure out. since the main, obvious obstacle would be your solid lack of attraction to men, that’d probably be essential to your response– it wouldn’t be a “I can’t say–“ it’d be a “I can’t be–“. and on top of all that, I feel like the whole thing would have to sound far more apologetic– “I’m sorry, I love you and that’ll never change, but I just can’t love you the way that you love me.” something like that, right?

tldr: this is a rare instance in television where assuming a character is straight by default makes Less sense than the alternative. and charles’ choice of words in the confession overtly suggest that he is, at the very least, unsure of his orientation.

[moose987]

How often do you think they have to reorganise their bookshelves?

Because you KNOW Charles is just shoving books back on in random places.

And you KNOW this drives Edwin absolutely crazy!

“Charles! Why on earth would you put supernatural beings next to our collection of Sherlock Holmes?!”

[theaceace]

once again thinking about Charles making an explicit reference to Orpheus and Eurydice as he's leading Edwin out of hell when like. Orpheus is a real person in the sandman/DBD universe. They could feasibly meet Orpheus, who failed where they succeeded, who couldn't bring his love back from the afterlife, and doesn't that just drive me crazy. Doesn't that keep me up at night

[pippin-katz]

Edwin’s Magic

Alright, this has been on my mind since I watched the show over a month ago. Why the fuck doesn't Edwin actually use magic??

I'm not including mirror hopping or the disguises because that's something both he and Charles do. I'm not talking about the alchemy he does either. I'm referring to spells and incantations.

The reason it drives me crazy is because the show sets Edwin up to be a magic user, but he really isn't. I can count the number of times he uses magic on one hand.

Ep. 1: fire spell, magic lasso Ep. 2: nothing Ep. 3: nothing Ep. 4: nothing Ep. 5: nothing Ep. 6: nothing Ep. 7: nothing Ep. 8: magic lasso

During the boxing scene, Edwin asks when he'll need to hit someone. Charles specifically lays out a scenario where there's a murderous ghost that he needs to save a client from, but specifically says: "and your magic doesn't work". That phrase implies that Edwin regularly uses magic as his go-to skill during cases. In fanfics, Edwin uses magic constantly, because people got the same impression, yet we barely see him actually doing magic!

Give me Edwin the Sorcerer! Or the Wizard, or Mage or whatever title he wants, just let him use magic!!

(ko-fi)

[chacharealsmooth07]

I think by the time Monty kissed Edwin, Edwin already knew that he loved Charles. In the same that Charles would always go to Hell, they may not be in love or an official romantic relationship, but they do love each other and they are domesticate partners in a technical sense of "living" together. (The only time either Charles or Edwin are in relaxed clothing is when they are alone together.)

And Charles did not reject Edwin. He accepted the love and the notion of Edwin being in love, he just expressed that his reciprocation isn't quite there. He also leaves it open, he doesn't say: No, for good, I will never be in love with you. He says: We have literally forever to figure the rest out.

Monty is a sweet boy, a good character, and one of my favorites, but to imply that their relationship would necessarily work as an endgame relationship is a bit crazy to me.

Edwin is dead, Monty didn't even really want to be human or alive in the state of consciousness where he can experience love. And I don't think love is what was driving Monty, it was infatuation.

Monty had never loved anyone, he didn't even know about it a few days ago, but there's this pretty boy who makes him want to smile and he seems to like him back.

And Edwin, rejecting Monty, was great on Edwin's part. He handled it gently, as gracefully and kindly as he could. Simply, so as not to lead the poor boy on.

So yeah

[ticktockheartstop]

I just find it sooo interesting how Charles chooses to kiss Crystal after the most emotional day in Port Townsend so far. Let’s review:

1. Charles is clearly jealous of Monty and Edwin at the beginning of the episode: “You? Him? Spending a lot of time?” (Whether this is platonic or romantic jealousy, I’ll leave that up to you… though I definitely have thoughts.)

2. Edwin is really trying, for maybe the first time ever, to comfort Charles and get him to open up (because the Devlin case in the previous episode made him realize that Charles has major walls up). Edwin paying, even slightly, is definitely a new, potentially kinda scary thing for Charles.

3. Crystal is really concerned about Charles and not afraid to hide it, and it’s clearly irritating him. So much so that he nearly snaps at her — which he never does to her — and he stops himself, only to say, “As long as I’ve got my best mate and a case to solve, I’m good.” *pause* “I appreciate you. But leave it, yeah?” I just think it’s really significant that Charles didn’t say “as long as I’ve got you guys” or “my mates” or “you and my best mate.” Crystal was a hit of an afterthought, I think.

4. Charles tells Edwin off for not telling him about the Cat King, so much so that Edwin feels the need to say: “I don’t understand why you’re so angry.” Charles is clearly not in the best mood, not thrilled about the case they’re facing, and not thrilled about his “best mate” hiding things from him.

5. Charles nearly watches Crystal jump to her death, and it wasn’t even him who saved her. It was Niko. He looks the most devastated of all of them, and then gives her that big speech of how important it is for her to know that jumping isn’t worth it, because it’s not actually her mom, no matter what it feels like. And she basically tells him he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, because she knows her mom wants to see her.

6. Charles is so jealous, watching Monty flirt with Edwin as he’s stuck digging through a dumpster.

7. Let’s just be clear on one thing: Crystal was the first to “attack” the Night Nurse, even if she tried to do it psychically instead of physically, and no one bats an eye. But then, when Charles gets violent with her after she threatens to take Edwin back to hell and makes him relive all his trauma, all while basically teasing him, everyone FLIPS OUT about him attacking her. It’s honestly kind of unfair, and I’d lose it too if my friends looked at me like that.

8. Charles really loses it for the first time (maybe ever in front of Edwin). He feels like he can’t help Crystal with her problems, and he can’t get Edwin to be honest about what’s going on in his head, so he definitely can’t help him, and it’s heartbreaking. But the real kicker is that the only one who steps up to try to comfort him in that moment is Edwin, because the others are still stunned by his outburst. But Charles flinches away from his touch, because he can’t fathom how anyone could love him or want to be near him in that moment.

8. If that wasn’t enough, as they leave the lighthouse, Crystal is staring at him with major concern. For obvious reasons. But I relate to Charles in the way that that look would drive me CRAZY, and I think it’s so important that later, when offering an understanding ear, Edwin doesn’t let Charles see the scope of his concern for him. That’s why I think Charles responds more politely to his offer to talk to him if he ever needs it.

9. Slightly out of chronological order here, but before going into their respective rooms, Niko says, “I think I’m going to go do something where I don’t have to think now.” And Crystal says, “Yeah, I’m with you.” … and then she goes and makes out with Charles.

10. Idk, it just seems a bit self-destructive of Charles to go make out with a girl right after she says that, and to kiss her for the first time right after she says “I just want something that’s real.” After he spent the whole day being jealous about Edwin spending time with Monty, and keeping a meeting with the Cat King from him, and after Charles lost his mind (understandably). Like, this is not the time to make romantic decisions! This can only end with someone getting hurt.

[darklinaforever]

The Cat King did not sexually harass Edwin. I'm tired of seeing this bullshit.

He only offered to sleep with him once and as soon as he saw that Edwin was uncomfortable, he offered him another task.

Yes, he continued to flirt with him the other 2 times he saw her, but at no time did he try to force Edwin to do something he didn't want to do. That's all the difference.

And also, for the thousandth time, Edwin was clearly in crush on the Cat King in return. He enjoyed all the flirting and interest the Cat King gave him. Not only that but it was positive for his development.

So please, people stop talking about this bullshit.

I also saw someone say that the Cat King acted like a predator towards Edwin... But in what way ?

Because he asked him to sleep with him ? Do you know that sexual proposition does not necessarily equal predatory ?

Because he put a spell on him ? Punishment for Edwin doing the same thing to one of his cats.

That he had him watched ? Well he literally gave him a task / punishment to accomplish in his own town. Logically, he therefore keeps an eye on Edwin.

Whether people liked it or not, but Edwin liked the Cat King and was attracted to him. He was not traumatized by him. He's not afraid of him. He appreciated all the flirting and interest that was shown in him. And the Cat King didn't force him to do anything at all. He didn't even try. The complete opposite of the behavior of a predator and a sexual harasser.

Frankly, it's getting ridiculous. It's okay to dislike the Cat King and the Catwin relationship, but stop trying to turn it into something it's not.

What are you so afraid of ? Edwin will probably end up with Charles anyway.

But I imagine that what once again drives these people crazy is precisely the fact that canonically, whether they liked it or not, Edwin had a crush on the Cat King and appreciated his attentions, without experiencing / feeling them like attacks, which they obviously were not, as I said in many others posts...

[breyito]

Distraction: High School AU

Charles and Edwin start an…acquaintances with benefits kind of thing. They are not friends, but have been paired together for the full term in History class. Charles is one of the cricket star players and very cocky but still nice, if annoying. Edwin is the head of the debate team and the chess club. They are both very stressed due to their home lives and argue a lot, which ends with them snogging the daylights out of each other. They agree to keep doing it (as a stress relief) unless they find someone else they want to seriously date; but they are not together and there won’t be any feelings involved; that’s the deal. The rules are mostly at Charles’ insistence, even if Edwin writes them down. Of course, Charles falls for Edwin pretty much immediately, although he tries to hide it. (He fails miserably and it’s obvious to everyone except Edwin, of course.)

“You aren’t getting any ideas are you, Eds?” Charles asks, desperately wanting him to say ‘yes, actually’.

“Ideas?”

“About us, I mean.”

“What ‘us’? Charles, all you’ve ever been is a distraction. A pretty fit one, mind you, but just that.” Edwin smiles that smug smirk that makes Charles want to either punch him or snog him senseless and leave him panting. “You haven’t forgotten that, have you?”

Snippet:

“Would you finish tidying up quickly? I have other things to do.” Edwin says, putting on his shoes. 

“Like Monty?” Charles asks, snidely.

“Pardon me?”

“You heard me. Are you leaving to go fuck him?”

“What…? How is that any of your business?”

“Just answer me, Eds!” he pleads. 

“Even if I was, it -”

“You’re not, then?” Charles interrupts, grabbing his shoulders and locking his eyes onto Edwin’s.

“...no, I’m not.” Charles sighs in relief. “I mean, he asked me out, but-”

“He asked you out!?” Relief gone, Charles suddenly pins the other boy against the door, preventing him from leaving. “When?”

“I don’t know, Friday?”

“Friday? Today’s Wednesday! And you didn’t think to tell me?” Edwin shakes off Charles' grasp and quickly walks towards his backpack, turning around as he grabs it.

“Why would I tell you? The deal was that unless it was serious-”

“The deal? Really Edwin? The deal!?”

“Why are you even asking me questions if you’re never letting me answer them, Charles!?” the older boy yells, frustrated.

“Because I can’t believe you still think the deal means anything!” Charles yells back, also frustrated. He grabs his tennis ball from the desk and begins throwing it to the floor and back over and over.

“What are you talking about? Of course it means something; we’re still following the rules!”

“Are we, Ed? Really?”

“Of course we are!” Edwin says, throwing his backpack on the chair.

“No, we’re not! We haven’t followed the bloody rules in weeks!” yells Charles, throwing the ball with enough force that it ricochets off the ground and onto the closet and then, like it's inevitable, crashes into their miniature model and shatters all their work along with it. 

Complete silence reigns for a few beats, then.

“This is all your fault!” Charles accuses, rounding up on the other boy.

“My fault!? How could this possibly be my fault!?” Edwin asks shrilly, incredulously.

“Because I can’t stop thinking about you!” Charles yells, yanking at his hair with both hands. “Because everything you do drives me crazy! Because every time you aren’t looking at me, or worse, if you are looking at Monty or Simon or bloody Thomas my blood boils.” He confesses. 

Charles’s eyes find Edwin’s, open wide as well as his mouth.

Speechless, huh, thinks Charles, never seen him like that.

“Charles-? Wha-what are you-” the other boy seems unable to finish a sentence. 

Charles walks up to him again, and this time he makes sure Edwin can’t look away. He pins him against the wall with a leg between his thighs and threads one hand through his hair while grabbing his chin with the other one. He gently caresses Edwin’s lower lip with his thumb before locking it under his chin. 

“Look at me,” he asks, when Edwin tries to escape by closing his eyes. “Ed, open those gorgeous eyes and look at me.” This time he orders it, and the older boy can’t help but obey. “There you are,” Charles murmurs, closer still, smiling “my pretty boy.” 

Edwin gasps at how the words make their mouths brush. He grabs Charles by the biceps and hangs on the fabric of his shirt by dear life. They stay there for a few moments, just sharing breaths, drowning in each other’s eyes.

Charles closes his eyes and presses their foreheads together. If Edwin thought escaping that gaze would make things easier he was sorely mistaken. The younger boy leaves the hand in his hair where it is, but starts moving the other one down, and his lips mouth his cheek until they reach his ear, to begin whispering.

“I can’t, for the life of me, stop needing you. I feel like I’m starving when I don’t have your kisses. Like I might just as well disappear if you’re not looking at me with those jewel tone eyes.” 

“My skin craves your touch so much that I become jealous of the books you treat so gently. My heart tries to jump out of my chest every time I hear you laugh, as if to join you.” Those lips go down and down and stop at his neck. “My mouth misses the curve of your neck, right here." He says, biting lightly. “My hands miss how your waist fits between them.” He continues, squeezing said waist hard, over already fading bruises hiding under the fabric. 

Charles lifts his head again and kisses Edwin deep and long, leaving no corner unconquered, no meagre breath behind. After, he touches noses with the older boy in an innocent bunny kiss so Ed will open his eyes again. “I am completely, irreversibly, gone on you. And I can’t begin to imagine life without you.”

[gayboydetectivez]

I want charles and edwin to solve a case they've seen before. Like charles is reading a newspaper and is like "damn a murder just like this happened when I was a kid" and edwin looks and he's like "yeah me too?? And it's the same house?" It turns into an Amityville horror situation where the house is driving the people crazy.