#and when I was making the gifs of the edwin in hell scenes and of Charles dying I kept asking myself why I was doing this to myself

[fan-a-tink]

the case of the very long stairway as small gif moments because apparently I like pain. let's get into it

Charles' expression pre-flashback vs. post-flashback

and the literal last moment of his life

some adorable edwinisms

I've always been obsessed with the way Edwin runs around the corner in this shot

these two just break me. every time.

this next one is a moment I'd been wanting to turn into a gif for a while. Charles is about to say "hi" before Edwin pulls him down and covers his mouth, but in this moment he's just so purely happy to have found Edwin again and there's the hint of smile on his lips

one of the most gorgeous shots of the show

and finally, this one, so that it's not all gloomy

other episode gif sets: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 8

[princesimonsblog]

I need to talk about Charles’s death scene because it's the most beautiful death scene and one of the most beautiful scenes in general that I've ever seen.

It starts with quick flashbacks of what happened previously, Charles defending that kid and then getting himself attacked by his friends because of that. We've already seen all that.

But then it switches to him, alone and shivering, in the attic. We know what is going to happen. We already know he is dying. The light is cold, just like he is.

Then, enters Edwin, holding a lantern, bathing the attic in a warm colour. And Charles can see him. We and Edwin know why, Charles doesn't, yet.

Edwin wanted to bring him the lantern in case it helped, but it's already too late, Charles is dying. So he stays. They talk, Edwin answers Charles's questions, all while Under the Milky Way plays in the background (and what a beautiful song). Charles learns that Edwin is dead and is a ghost and he looks sad for Edwin, but he asks more questions, until he can't anymore.

When Charles doesn't have much energy left, he's not shivering anymore, his body can't even do that anymore. He's too tired to talk. Edwin reads him a story, changing his voice according to the characters.

Charles looks out the window as Edwin's voice fade in the background.

Then, we see him standing near that window, in a tank top, no longer wearing that blanket. At first, we don't see Charles's body, giving us the time to understand what just happened. And then he turns and sees his own body. He just died.

And despite knowing that throughout the whole show, Charles is a ghost, seeing his memory of his death still hurts. It's unfair. He was killed by his friends because he chose to do the right thing. But it's also beautiful, because Edwin was there. Edwin made what would have been a cold and lonely death a warm and friendly one, despite the fact that they were just strangers back then.

Charles then choses to stay with Edwin, and it's the start of a beautiful friendship between the two, a much more beautiful existence then they both ever had when they were alive (or even in death in Edwin's case, when he was in Hell).

This scene never fells to make me cry. It's so sad and beautiful. It makes me feel so deeply for him, a beautiful soul whose life got cut short.

And another reason why I love this scene so much is because it's when Charles and Edwin first met. It's how and why they became friends. This scene wrecks me on so many levels and I'll never shut up about it.

[alexwilltellyouthings]

Dead Boy Detectives was really smooth with how they decided to keep us hanging with Edwin/Charles. We have hints, but no real way of knowing how their relationship will move forward and that feels very deliberate.

'Cause I mean. We see how Edwin is acting after realizing his feelings. He's not all that subtle (for us) in episode 6. He changes clothes, checks Charles out, lingers on a touch on his shoulder, etc. It's clear he changed.

But then, after hell and the confession, we have just TWO scenes focused on them, and they are somehwat hard to decipher, especially when it comes to Charles' reactions. The scenes are pretty opposite.

First, the roof right after hell. They are standing very apart from each other (not usual at all), each looking away, and there's an awkwardness going on when they do make eye contact. It's cute, but unlike anything we've seen from them before, and it indicates a shift in the dynamic that neither of them seems quite ready to face.

Then Charles reassures Edwin that they're good, they smile, Crystal shows up and goes straight to lean against Charles, not even thinking about it, while Edwin is still at the other side. It feels very interesting to me that they chose to go with this unbalance of proximity. It looks... hurtful, to Edwin at least.

Then there's Crystal with her memories, saying goodbye, Esther, the whole shebang, and the next time we see the boys by themselves is at the very end. Which was also a very interesting choice in proximity, as we all know. But this time, the other way around — they are closer than ever.

Also I think it's worth noting that, before this, when they are about to leave Port Townsend, both Charles and Edwin have a little moment with their respective love interests. Charles and Crystal act kinda shy at each other in Niko's room, while Edwin talks to the Cat King. Again, it feels deliberate.

So are there going to be other awkward moments? Is Edwin going to be fine with the craving he now clearly has? Is Charles going to act confident or bashful? And obviously there's room for the Cat King and Crystal to still mean something romantic and/or sexual to them, in one way or the other. Basically, the evidence can point to any direction. And as much of a Payneland truther I am, I have to admit it can also point to a whole different development. The show made sure to leave all doors open, including the ones leading to heartbreak.

It makes me anxious, and it's also lowkey brilliant.

[bloodyspector]

To everyone who wanted to know my thoughts on Charles' behaviour at the end of 'The Case of the Very Long Stairway' aka the famous post-confession rooftop scene: ⬇️

We've seen him flirt and be all sassy towards others in vulnerable moments to lighten up the mood, but that's not what he's doing in that scene. He's actually taken aback by what happened in Hell and you can see how things are finally catching up to him when he talks to Edwin

He was only focused on getting him out of Hell so now that they're back on Earth without any demons trying to kill them, he's starting to process everything that happened and things might be getting too real for him and that's why he changes the conversation so fast

We haven't even seen him act like that before, even less with Edwin, and it's clear that it has to do with the confession. I think he's starting to realize that what he feels is more than friendship and he's scared of that

He might deny it and tell Edwin that everything is fine, but we all know that's far from the truth. Yes, they're still close friends and associates, but Edwin's feelings are now in the open and it's gonna change things between them whether they like it or not

As you can see in this gif, he's already starting to blush and be all shy around Edwin, I don't know when he'll realize he's in love with him too, but it's obviously gonna create some tension between them until he does

Edwin is his closest friend in the entire world and there's no way he would want to led him on or ruin their friendship so he's probably gonna start distancing himself from him, being less touchy than usual, not wanting to be the two alone in the office... And Edwin is gonna snap

I know it won't be pretty because hiding things from him is a big no especially now that he's willing to help others with their personal issues, so Charles refusing to tell him something important when he knows it's eating him up might hit a nerve

We don't even know if Charles knows he's bisexual so him realizing their love goes deeper than what he thought at the same time he has a sexuality crisis is gonna make him question everything so until he's ready to tell him what he feels for him, I'll enjoy the angst (sue me)

If the show gets renewed for a second season there's no way we won't see him come to terms with his sexuality like Edwin did in the first one. We also might see him panic because of how much he notices Edwin staring at him now so it's gonna be great

Charles might also think that crossing that line would be unfair to Edwin because of his anger issues and low self-esteem

As he told Crystal in 'The Case of the Two Dead Dragons', he's got some shit he needs to sort out before getting into a romantic relationship with someone so learning how to love himself might be their focus before we can get that friends to lovers slowburn we all like

If you got here I apologize for my long ass rant and if there's anything that doesn't make sense let me know since english isn't my first language and all I know is self-taught

[darklinaforever]

All the posts being horrified at people shipping Edwin with the Cat King make me laugh.

The delirium of being alarmed because the Cat King would be an adult and Edwin a minor kills me with laughter.

Edwin is certainly a 16 year old ghost, but... it's all in his description. A ghost. And he's been a ghost for a long, long time.

Are you telling me that he hasn't had time to evolve in all these years, and especially since his traumatic stay in hell ?

A little logic please. Edwin does not remain at the same point as when he died, frozen forever. He’s a character with an arc and development. And then, you're not telling me that Edwin behaves like a typical immature teenager ?!

And the Cat King may be thousands of years old but he behaves very immature most of the time. In fact, you could even say like a teenage form. Objectively speaking, he does not appear morally very different from the other official adolescent characters in the show.

And then, this kind of consideration of age will always make me laugh, when we are essentially talking about two supernatural beings ! Conclusion : We don’t care about their age difference !

And let's not even talk about those who are angry with this bracelet story, while I still point out that it was literally a punishment for Edwin having performed an equivalent in terms of spell on one of his cats, with Edwin having himself been quite condescending about this / these animals about how they all look alike to him.

The bracelet is a consequence and punishment for Edwin's actions.

It's not for nothing that the Cat King tells Edwin exactly the line he told him about not seeing the evil in a little spell.

Then... accusing the Cat King of being a sexual and other abuser, as well as a potential rapist... Wtf ?

Already, it's forgotten that clearly, during the scene and all the others where the Cat King tried to seduce Edwin... Well our dear ghost seemed more than appreciative.

For those who don't understand, the Cat King is literally what allows Edwin to finally embrace his sexuality ! Without Cat King, probably no love confession to Charles !

And in fact, it's a good thing that Cat King was interested in Edwin and showed interest in him, tried to seduce him, etc. It's not negative in his purpose. Edwin is this guy who is quite stuck while the Cat King is very extroverted and helps to unblock our ghost.

It makes me laugh even more to see all these people screaming in defense of Edwin, his physical integrity, etc, while our ghost boy... well he clearly wouldn't have been against kissing the Cat King and maybe even more at the beginning.

Need to watch their scenes again properly... Edwin's body language doesn't show that he's uncomfortable.

Okay maybe he is, but in the sense that the Cat King reminds him of his lack of experience, but beyond that, very clearly, in general, around the Cat King, (except when he takes the appearance of Charles, obviously he feels uncomfortable in that moment) Edwin seems simply extremely attracted to the Cat King / receptive to his advances :

Same with all those people being mad that the Cat King forced Edwin to tell the truth.

I repeat... THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE POSITIVE FOR EDWIN ! THIS ALLOWS HIM TO EVOLVE ON HIMSELF !

I'm not saying that the Cat King behaves morally (as for offering Edwin to sleep with him in exchange for his freedom before offering to count the cats, or forcing him by magic to reveal what he really thinks), not at all. He is clearly a form of antagonist / anti-hero, neither good nor bad, and finally rather neutral in the plots of the show.

But this character and actions essentially only serves the positive evolution of Edwin's character regarding everything related to sexuality, but not just that, also his emotional relationships with other men AKA Charles. Again, without the Cat King Edwin probably wouldn't have confessed his feelings to Charles. So the Cat King essentially allows Edwin to fully embrace who he is as an individual, his complete identity.

And it's nothing new that a morally questionable character with morally questionable actions has this kind of role in relation to the protagonist.

Seriously, the antagonist who allows the hero's sexual awakening, as well as its deepening on itself is as old as time. Even more so when this antagonist and hero share similar characteristics such as their loneliness.

Besides, it's not for nothing that the first real kiss that Charles gives himself to someone is to the Cat King (especially after all this talk about kissing and Edwin finally understanding their appeals), even if it's on the cheek that still a kiss. A second kiss more precisely, which he gives on his own and which is much better than his first with the crow.

Crying foul about this makes me wonder what universe these people who are complaining live in as for the codes of fiction. Again, people who cannot see beyond the surface should not be allowed to open their mouths.

[manicpixiedreamedwins]

I know we all joke about Charles Rowland having these over-exaggerated people pleasing tendencies, but I just want to say they make a lot of sense for someone who grew up in the hell hole of a home that he did.

(Now's the time to dip if you don't want to read something kind of heavy and also really messy, sorry. CW for mentions of Charles' home life)

The night nurse gave us some insight into what Charles' home life looked like (that, and we can piece together how he must have been feeling from his reactions to the Devlin house). We know he had a volatile, objectively abusive parent. We know he and his mother were terrified of this man, enough that he keeps checking in to try and make sure that his mom is still okay all these years later.

Alright. Still with me?

There's this thing that happens to kids who grow up in households like this (trust me).

Because one parent is so volatile, they learn to model after the other parent who is constantly keeping the peace. They're constantly walking on eggshells, they have to be hyper-vigilant of even slight differences in the atmosphere to prevent a catastrophe. If they have needs or wants, then those needs and wants are not being met. If there are problems (there are) then they are not being talked about (ever, and if they try then all hell breaks loose and there are consequences).

These kids form a facade of "everything is fine, there are no problems and we are happy here". You know, what we would call a people pleaser.

This is Charles. This is very much a survival instinct, it kept him reasonably safe in life (truly, he only died once he deviated from it and "rocked the boat" so to speak).

In all fairness, it has worked out fine for him in death too- Edwin responds well to it. Edwin actually does react very well to Charles' attempts at merry making, deep breathing, even his playful ideas like boardgames and boxing. What he knows works, actually. It works so well he's stuck around for thirty years, so in his mind he probably doesn’t think he should change anything.

The second time he deviated from people pleasing, in all fairness, even when he had to or else he would get separated from Edwin, also didn't work out well. He reacted on genuine, earnest feelings. He was fucking angry when the night nurse showed him his trauma. He was pretty raw when he pushed her over the bridge and into the fish. That was all earnest, uncensored emotion, not a measured act.

Edwin reacted poorly. Everyone reacted poorly. Back to people pleasing.

Charles is really only confused when people pleasing doesn't work. When he reaches out to try and befriend Monty and gets snubbed, I think he's genuinely confused. He can't figure what's wrong. This always works. It always works with Edwin at least. So what's wrong?

That continues on when he's doing everything he'd typically do to engage Edwin while he's reading and it's just... not working (because remember the hyper-vigilance- he knows something is different and so he's unsettled).

This continues onto the roof scene. He knows something is completely and utterly fucked (he just doesn't know it is between Monty and Edwin, or that Crystal’s powers are gone) and he's uncomfortable. In a previous life, he'd be waiting for the other shoe to drop and something to hurt.

He's relieved when Edwin finally starts opening back up a little and trying to talk to him. Yes, he misinterprets what's happening at first (he assumes Edwin is coming out in general, as opposed to trying to tell him he likes him), but things are going back to normal in his mind.

They're reconnecting. He does get a little uneasy because there's still one wall between them (the cat king) that he can't manage, joke, or talk his way out of yet because Edwin hasn't explained yet.

This gets interrupted anyway. (At least there's no more cat bracelet, lol. A win for Charles).

There's more pressing issues, though- he needs to rescue Edwin from hell. He literally cannot be separated from him. Their whole thing has been not being separated from each other since... well since the start. So he keeps his promise, sloughs through the depths of hell, and goes to get him. Easy enough! He disarms the babydoll spider with a bomb, a moltov cocktail, and Edwin's journal. This was probably the least of his problems.

Success. He's got Edwin back. His afterlife is good again. Now things can go on as normal.

Only FUCK! Now Edwin is asking him to express... his... feelings...

-Well. Look how well it went the last time Charles did anything on his own volition. First he died, then he pushed Edwin away. This seems kind of important. He can't fuck this up, but they are literally running out of hell, but he can't fuck this up because that would mean he pushes Edwin away-

He comes up with something that feels close to right, measured, things that Edwin has responded well to before (and under all of that he asks him to stay, please stay, be patient, but it comes out as a declaration because that seems more certain). He cannot lose Edwin here.

They run back up the stairwell together. Charles hopes maybe Edwin understood.

Charles wishes he had better words on the roof. He doesn't, other than to reassure Edwin they're okay-- he would have wanted that. The last time he said anything, it was too extreme. He says nothing and hopes maybe Edwin will give him some sort of clue on what to do again, eventually.

Idk, maybe I'll write more later but... this is so fascinating to me because it's like so obvious as someone who grew up in the absolute tar pit that Charles did. He's not dumb, or making arbitrary choices with what he's doing here. He is doing what he knows works to keep what's important to him close to him. He's just wildly out of his depth when that doesn't work.

[dulltulipz]

also, here’s a thought for the dbd community. I really thought throughout the whole escaping hell process we were gonna see Edwin and Charles holding hands a lot more than we did. It felt like it would make a lot more sense expecting that they had to get through these tight spaces and almost maze of people in hell and out of need being they are in literal hell?? they barely held on to each other? Like we get the moment when Edwin finds the exit out of gluttony and grabs Charles hand but that’s it and you can’t even really see Edwin grab his hand with how fast the scene goes. Idk maybe i’m being picky but i just think these these characters would have been holding onto each other a lot more.

[seahorsepencils]

Further proof that the end montage is at least partially a Ted hallucination or dream: it takes place after Ted looks at the snow globe, which is likely a reference to the ending of St. Elsewhere (i.e. where it's implied the show was actually all something an autistic kid imagined while looking in a snow globe, a.k.a. the Tommy Westphall universe).

This is not to say that the whole show is in Ted's head - only what happens from when he shakes the snow globe to when he wakes up on the plane (holding the copy of How to Change Your Mind: The New Science of Psychedelics). For example:

Roy becoming the football team manager. Ted is the one who wanted Roy to be a coach in the first place, and I'm not convinced Roy would want to be a manager, or at least not so soon - this seems more like Ted is imagining someone stepping into his place.

Nate and Jamie having very positively framed moments with their dads. Both of those storylines were left in a gray area; the level of positivity in those interactions seems more a representation of what Ted wants with his father. Also, if we think of Ted as a quasi-father figure for both characters, this is another replacement narrative showing how he isn't needed.

Sam playing for the Nigerian team. We know this is a goal for him, but it's likely not something that would happen so soon. And probably something that Edwin Akufo would block from happening for the next few years. But the image supports Ted's own personal decision to identify his original country as "home" and to go back.

Trent changing the title of the book. It's not the Richmond way. It's the Lasso way; and Trent knows that more than anyone, so it's very unlikely he would take Ted's suggestion and change the title in real life. This is just Ted minimizing himself and what he was able to uniquely offer the team.

Roy starting therapy with Sharon at the football club. It seems unlikely that Sharon would settle down with a job in one place, when we've been told her tendency has been to jump from job to job. (Again, this might happen eventually, but not so soon.) The function of this scene in Ted's mind would be a further stretch of Roy becoming manager - replacing Ted in his job and then beginning a similar therapy journey with Sharon. (Also, Sharon is wearing the same shirt she wore when she first met Ted.)

The Stonehenge Beard wedding. Insane for all the reasons people have suggested, and specifically, Roy as Beard's best man. Another image of Ted being replaced by Roy.

This is not to say that some of the things can't have happened - it wouldn't be the first time the show has blurred the line between fact and reality, and "Beard After Hours" did this with some very heavy blurring. The final shot in the montage calls back to that episode, with the woman who gave Beard the pants and her partner appearing as two of the wedding guests.

I think Ted wants to stay - not only is he reading a book with the title How to Change Your Mind, but he literally asked Beard if they were making the wrong decision - giving Beard a clear opening to weigh in and say they should stay. He wanted to be convinced. But Beard, in his sleep-deprived state, shifted the focus of the conversation and made it about him leaving Ted, changing the "we" into a "me." So Ted went home by himself. But he still wants to change his mind (hopefully with some psychedelics), and deep down, he has to know that he's wrong and that everyone from Richmond loves him and wants him around. Or if he doesn't, Rebecca and Diamond Dogs are gonna show up in Kansas on her private plane a year later and ask him what the hell he's doing and when he's coming back.

[roseganymede95]

This is either really bad writing or really good writing and I'm super on the fence about it.

On the one hand, I feel like the show tried to inform us for a couple episodes that Charles has ~anger issues~ without ever really showing that to be true. His outburst against the Night Nurse is what Crystal points to as evidence, and it's super understandable that Crystal would be freaked out about that, but also--the Night Nurse was trying to send Edwin back to Hell. Charles resorting to that level of violence was pretty expected. His weapon of choice is a BAT. The kid bludgeons people in the line of duty, this is a known and accepted fact among the characters. Crystal might be freaked out after seeing it, but it's not a revelation about Charles' character.

SO. If the writers of the show think that Crystal is correct in calling Charles out during this episode, it's bad writing. It's making your characters react to a problem you didn't establish, in a way that doesn't make sense within your established narrative.

OR, this could be really GOOD writing, if you assume that Crystal is being an asshole here. Crystal's whole character arc is about slowly realizing that she used to be an genuinely shitty person, and deciding to change for the better. It's a good arc, and it only works if you let her character *actually be an asshole.* This scene MIGHT be a case of really good writing, if it was intended as to show Crystal intentionally weaponizing a phrase that Charles said, in a moment of extreme vulnerability, while he was talking about his own abuse. It's a good line because it's cruel, and it showcases a side of Crystal that she SHOULD want to grow out of. It's showing-not-telling us that yeah, this girl is totally capable of being The Worst if she's not careful.

Idk. Obviously I love this show, but sometimes the writing is so clunky (which makes sense! They only had eight episodes, they had to exposit a LOT) that I have a hard time telling when it's good on purpose vs. by accident.

1x03 vs 1x05

[just-call-me-angel]

Little Miss Loser

Chapter 2 - The Adventure Begins

Warnings: Grandpa Edwin being a general menace to society, brief mention of drugs, Dwayne has no bitches???

Author's Note: I fucking love writing Grandpa Edwin, hes so fucking hysterical. The entire time I was writing this scene i had the image of the grandpa saying "No Bitches?"

Summary: Grandpa Edwin offers some important advice

Ao3

Chapters: ||1||2||3||4||5||6||7

Your morning begins early and with a groan you pull yourself out of bed to get ready to head next door for the Hoover road trip. You change quickly, tugging on a pair of shorts and an old white shirt with Fredrick Neitchze printed on the front (You had borrowed it from Dwayne a few months back and he had yet to ask for it back). You shuffled around the room making sure you had everything you needed for the weekend, tossing a few things you had forgotten into the little brown duffel bag you had packed until finally you decided you were ready to leave. With a huff you picked the duffel bag up and left your room, closing the door behind you with a soft click before making your way through the rest of your house. It was the weekend so your parents were home though neither of them were awake yet. You left your bag at the front door sighing when you noticed your dad asleep on the couch. It wasn’t the first time you had found him asleep in the living room nor would it be the last, at least until the divorce was finalized and he moved out of course. Quietly you shuffled around the furniture, kneeling in front of the couch to poke your dads sleeping face, laughing a little when he jolted awake.

“Wha–” he looked around confused, eyes unfocused and still heavy with sleep.

“Dad it's me.” you laughed softly, placing a hand over his until he stilled and looked back at you, a small tired smile slowly spreading over his face. You smiled back as he reached out to ruffle your hair.

“What are you doing up so early kiddo?” he asked, words slurring together in a sleepy drawl.

“I’m going on a road trip with the Hoovers, remember.” you replied as you moved to grab his glasses off of the coffee table. He thanked you quietly and pushed the glasses onto his face, squinting for a moment until his eyes adjusted.

“Oh thas right. Forgot your mom told me about that when I got home last night.” he ran a hand through his dark hair, now speckled with gray. You nodded and tilted your head up at him with a frown.

“You and mom argue again?” you asked softly and watched the way his shoulders slumped and his brow furrowed.

“Nothing escapes your notice huh kiddo.” he said, attempting a laugh, “I hope we didn’t keep you up last night.”

“I was asleep before you got home. You just look like mom gave you shit last night.” You replied with a shake of your head.

He snorted and attempted to give you a stern look, “Your mother will give me more hell if she finds out I let you curse like that.”

You shrugged and laughed with him, glad to see the tension leave his shoulders even just for a moment, “I won’t tell her if you don’t.” you joked and he beamed at you, leaning over slowly to press a kiss to your forehead.

“Atta girl. I knew I taught you well.” he praised, “I suppose you gotta head out soon then?”

You nodded silently and he mirrored your actions, turning to glance over his shoulder at the closed door of the master bedroom where your mom was likely sleeping. “You should say goodbye to her before you leave.” he told you quietly.

“I know.” you huff, crossing your arms and biting at the inside of your cheek. He sighs and ruffles your hair again with a smile.

“Ya know what, you just head over to the Hoover’s I’ll deal with your mom alright, I’ll tell her you had to rush out the door,” he promises with a wink, smiling widely when you look up at him again.

“You don’t have to do that dad.” you whisper and he shakes his head stubbornly.

“Don’t worry about it kiddo, she’d only give you a hard time before you leave and I want you to have fun with the Hoovers.” he pauses then a sad smile playing on his lips, “Lord knows you need some normality in your life with the divorce going on right now.” You move to give his hand a gentle squeeze and give him a cheeky grin.

“The Hoovers are the least normal family out there dad.” you tease and he chuckles, squeezing your hand back.

“I suppose that’s true but that only means you’ll have tons of crazy stories to tell me when you get back.” he replies, pinching your cheeks softly before you can swat his hands away. He pulls you up off the floor with a grunt and brings you into his arms for a hug,

“I love you kiddo, I want you to have a good weekend alright, try not to worry about this shit at home alright.” he whispered, holding you tighter. You nodded against his shoulder and squeezed him back.

“I love you too dad…. I’ll try.” you mumbled into his old t-shirt, “I’ll uh bring you back a cool rock from the beach or something.” you promised softly, grinning when you felt his laugh rumble through his chest. Slowly he let you stand up, pressing another kiss to your forehead before he brushed your hair out of your face.

As you were preparing to grab your bag and leave he stood up and shuffled around. “Wait one minute.” you turned and watched as he searched for something until finally he spotted his wallet and picked it up tugging a couple dollars from it. He handed them to you with a smile, “Don’t spend it all in one place.” he teased and you shook your head, poking your tongue out at him.

“I’m gonna get so many drugs with this dad just you wait.” you joked, shoving the wad of cash into your pocket not worrying about how much or how little he had given you.

“Just don’t tell your mother.” he replied with a chuckle and you made a motion to zip your lips, lock them and throw away the key. He shook his head at your action and opened the door for you, watching as you quietly picked up your duffle bag.

“See you later kiddo.” he said finally as you stood on the front steps and smiled back at him with a nod.

“See ya Dad.” you mocked a salute and spun on your heel, dramatically marching across the front lawn over to the Hoover’s home next door, grinning to yourself when you heard your dads bark of laughter behind you.

You set your bag on the front steps in front of the Hoover home and knocked loudly on the front door until you heard shuffling around inside and finally the door opened to show Olive staring up at you with a big grin. She barely gave you a chance to enter the house before she was jumping to give you a hug, chanting excitedly about the Little MIss Sunshine Pageant. You laughed and hugged her tightly until Mrs Hoover entered the hall and beckoned Olive away.

“Olive, go tell your brother that Y/N is here and make sure you have all your stuff, your dad wants to get on the road soon.” Sheryl spoke softly, smiling at her daughter's excitement. Olive gave you one final hug before finally releasing you and barreling down the hall.

“DWAYNE YOUR GIRLFRIEND IS HERE!” she shouted as she ran past Dwayne’s room before diving into her own room with a giggle. Sheryl laughed and shook her head before giving you a quick hug.

“I'm glad you could come with us on this trip.” she said before letting you go. “You have your bag packed and everything I assume.”

You nodded and motioned towards your duffle bag that you had left at the front door and she nodded back, “Perfect, I made eggs if you wanted to have some before we left.” she tells you, motioning towards the kitchen table. She gives your shoulder a pat and moves back through the house, presumably to finish her own packing. You take a small plate of eggs and sit down quietly at the table to eat until Dwayne finally shuffles out of his room, a little smile forming when he sees you.

You smile and wave at him,” You ready for the adventure of a lifetime?” you tease and he rolls his eyes, tossing his own duffle bag next to yours before he sits next to you and swipes your fork out of your hand. You laugh as he steals a few bites of your breakfast, playfully shoving his arm when you realize he had finished what was left on the plate.

“Dick head” you tell him with a pout as he shrugs at you with a smirk tugging at his lips. You shove him again, laughing when he grunts at the feeling of your elbow pressing into his side. Frank enters the room quietly again wearing all white and sits across from you and Dwayne, smiling politely when you look up at him.

“What about you?” you repeat, turning to Frank with your question “Are you ready for the adventure of a lifetime?”

Frank snorts, “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

You laugh with Frank as he plates up his own small breakfast while Dwayne stares at you for a moment. Finally he pulls out his notepad and quickly writes something down before tapping you on the shoulder.

“Isn’t that my shirt?”

You grin almost instantly as you look down at your shirt and then back up at him, “what this old thing?” You ask feigning innocence. He gives you a pointed look and shakes his head at your antics.

“Oh come on, I’ve had it for months, I can basically claim legal ownership at this point.” Your reasoning only serves to make him roll his eyes and make Frank laugh across the table. You take a minute to look at the shirt Dwayne is wearing, grinning when you read the words Jesus Was Wrong and you quickly decide that its the next shirt you’re going to swipe from under his nose.

“You really are best friends huh?” he asks, earning a nod from both of you, “How does that work with him not talking?”

You grin cheekily and shug, “Oh its actually pretty easy, I like the sound of my own voice so it works pretty well that I do most of the talking.” Frank snorts, clearly amused by your response. It doesn’t take much longer for the rest of the family to enter the room, rushing to eat breakfast under Richard’s instruction so they could finally get out on the road. You caught Dwayne sneaking glances at you every few moments, his cheeks flushing red when his eyes would meet yours.

If daily life around the Hoover family was hectic then preparing for a roadtrip with them was in a whole other league. It was pure chaos as everyone scrambled to the car, shoving suitcases into the trunk and climbing over one another to get into the bus. After much arguing about seating arrangements you wound up sitting in the back with Dwayne next to you and his grandfather Edwin on the other side of him while Olive and Frank took the middle row of seats and Sheryl sat in the passenger seat and Richard drove. It wasn’t as cramped as you had expected but that didn’t seem to stop Dwayne from sitting as close as he could to you which you didn’t really mind if you were completely honest. In fact it gave you the opportunity to rest your head on his shoulder for most of the ride and he seemed content to rest his head on yours, watching as you doodled in his notebook, occasionally smiling a little when you proudly pointed at something particularly amusing that you had drawn.

Blessedly despite the chaos that had ensued while trying to board the bus, everyone seemed far too tired to fill the trip with idle chatter. Occasionally Olive would lean over her seat to tell you how excited she was and you would smile back acting as if it wasn’t the third time in the last hour that she had said those words to you. Edwin Hoover however did not seem as content as the rest of the family to maintain the silence in the car.

“Jesus Im tired” he huffs, “I am so fucking tired” You stifle a laugh watching as he taps Dwayne’s shoulder to get his attention. Dwayne doesn’t move away from you or really make any attempt to show he’s paying much attention to his grandfather.

“You know how tired I am?” he asks, barely waiting a second for Dwayne to reply before he continues, “ If some girl, came up to me… begged me to fuck her… I wouldn’t be able to do it. That's how tired I am.” this time you don’t bother to hide the quiet laughter that bubbles from your chest, especially when Richard coughed nervously in the front seat.

“Dad! Language… Please” he asked, staring back at his father in the rearview mirror. Edwin Hoover huffed and waved his hand in exasperation before gesturing to Olive, who sat in front of him listening to her music and blissfully unaware of her grandfather's cursing.

“She’s listening to music!” he shouts back to his son, “Hey Olive, I’ll give you a million bucks if you turn around!” Olive made no move to look back at her grandfather and continued listening to her music, dancing a little in her seat.

“Alright but… the rest of us.” Richard exhales.

Edwin rolls his eyes, “oh yea the rest of you.” he turns his attention back to Dwayne, tapping his shoulder again, this time a little harder, “ Can I give you some advice?” Dwayne turns to look at him, still leaning heavily against your side and shakes his head with a bored expression.

Edwin seems unphased by the lackluster response of his eldest grandchild and proceeds to talk “I’ll do it anyway. I don’t want you making the same mistakes I did when I was young.” Dwayne glances at you and you offer him an amused smile as Edwin gives his best impression of a wise old man imparting great wisdom upon a young traveler, “ Dwayne, this is the voice of experience talking. Are you listening?” Dwayne doesn’t even pretend to care and shrugs while you giggle next to him, clearly amused by the entire situation.

“Kid, fuck alot of women.” he pauses for dramatic effect and you already feel a bit dizzy as you hold your breath to keep from laughing, “ Fuck alot of women. Not just one woman. A lot of women–” Richard coughs again a little louder, clearly trying to get his father to stop talking. Dwayne maintains his bored expression and you can barely contain your laughter as you rest against his side. You can hear Frank in front of you stifling his own laughter as he glances back a few times. Edwin doesn’t even seem to notice or care about his sons attempt to silence him as he continues talking.

“Be honest with me kid? Are you getting any? You can tell.” Edwins words have you nearly bursting into tears with laughter while Dwayne looks a bit annoyed next to you. Frank turns fully now to watch the conversation continue.

“Yea Dwayne….” you say between giggles, “You gettin any?” Dwayne glares at you immediately sending you into another fit of giggles before he finally turns to his grandfather and shakes his head, cheeks slightly pink with embarassment. You feel a bit bad teasing him like this but you can’t help it when he makes it so easy.

“Really? I thought for sure you two were screwing with how often she’s over.” Edwin says finally, clearly not bothered by the immediate awkward silence that fills the back seat as your face heats up. You can’t even bring yourself to look up at Dwayne but you can tell he isn’t enjoying the turn that this already awkward conversation has taken. He crosses his arms and moves slightly so he isn’t pressed so closely to you and you don’t move to stop him at first, far too embarrassed to try. Edwin and Richard argue back and forth for a moment while you shuffle nervously next to Dwayne.

Of course Edwin would make a joke like that, he had done it in the past and it had never really bothered you before. But things were different now and they had been for nearly a year. Dwayne was your best friend but more often than not these days you found yourself wondering if there was something more between the two of you. Above all else you found yourself wanting there to be something more between you. You were already so close so really all that would change would be the name you used to describe your relationship. You had no idea if Dwayne even liked you that way or if he even liked girls at all, neither of you talked about things like that. You know you should tell him but the idea of losing your best friend absolutely terrified you. What if it made him hate you? What if the idea of being with you in that way disgusted him? There was so much you could lose if you told him how much you cared for him and that was a thought that filled you with dread. Frank sent you a sideways glance and offered you a small smile as if he knew exactly what you were feeling.

After a minute or two of silently running yourself in circles in your head you tug on Dwayne's arm to pull him against your side again and he doesn’t try to fight it though you can see the slight flush to his cheeks as you rest your head back on his shoulder. He sighs as he rests his head against yours, gently tugging your arm to rest on his lap so he can trace little shapes on your forearm. This is fine , you tell yourself, more than fine. This is perfect. You don’t need anything more. Don't be selfish , you remind yourself, if this is all you can have with him then that should be more than enough. It is enough. It is.

“Dad, I swear I’ll pull over.” Richard threatens, bringing you back into focus.

“So pull over! You’re not gonna shut me up! Fuck you!” Edwin shouts back, “Jesus your as bad as those fuckers at Sunset Manor”

Frank perks up and you see the familiar glint of mischief in his eyes, you had seen it a hundred times in your own eyes, especially when you were around the Hoover family, “ What happened at Sunset Manor?” he asked innocently.

Sheryl sighed, “Frank don’t encourage him”

Frank gives her a smile and shrugs as Edwin replies, “I’ll tell you what happened. I paid my money. They took my money. I should be able to do what the fuck I want.” Edwin leans heavily into his seat with an exasperated huff. You grinned, you had heard this story a hundred times and somehow it never failed to be amusing.

“He started snorting Heroin.” Sheryl explains rolling her eyes while Richard looks absolutely horrified to be having this conversation while trapped in a car.

“You started snorting Heroin?” Frank asks, eyes widening as he looks at Edwin.

“I’m old!” Edwin says with a wave of his arms.

“That stuff will kill you.” Frank says, trying to hide the amused look on his face.

“What am i an idiot?” Edwin huffs, once again turning to tap Dwayne on the arm. Dwayne sighs and lazily looks at his grandfather, clearly ready for the conversation to just be over. “And don’t you two get any ideas about that stuff. When you’re young you’re crazy to do that shit.” he motions to you both this time, voice a little less amused and more stern. Dwayne nods and you offer a quick mock salute and a playful smile which Edwin returns.

“What about you?” Frank asks, giving you a sideways glance and a cheeky grin.

“When you get to my age you’re crazy not to do it.” Edwin replies, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back into his seat. After a bit longer, Olive turns to face her grandfather, lifting her headphones over her ears and tilting her head curiously.

“What are you guys talking about?” she asks.

Edwin looks at her for a minute and then casts a glance to Frank and then to you and Dwayne before looking back at Olive, “Politics” Olive’s nose scrunches up as she quickly turns back around, no longer interested in what the adults are talking about as she pulls her headphones back over her ears.

Edwin leans back in his seat with a long sigh, “Fuck alot of women kid. I’ve got no reason to lie to you. Not just one woman. A Lot of women.” he points then at you, “you be careful though, there are some real creeps out there.” you snort at his advice but still give him a nod of agreement. The car goes quiet again, except the low hum of the engine and the sound of cars rushing past. Everyone seems to have had their fill of small talk for the time being and for now you are content enough not to try and fill the silence like you normally would. Dwayne pulls his notebook off of your lap and carefully flips through it until he lands on a page he had already written on. He places the notebook back on your lap, tapping the paper to make sure you know he wants you to read it.

“Welcome to Hell” You smile at the note, laughing as you lean a bit more heavily against him. You can feel him laugh quietly as he goes back to tracing shapes on your arm. It doesn’t take long for your eyes to start to feel heavy as you start to fall asleep to the sound of the car engine and Dwayne’s steady heart beat. He wrapped an arm around you carefully shifting you to make sure you were comfortable before he too began to drift off with you curled up against his side.

[fan-a-tink]

Something about how loudly Edwin says Charles' name in this scene has been driving me insane and I think I've finally figured out why.

When Charles finds Edwin in hell, Edwin is rolled into a little ball of misery, covered in blood and quietly sobbing. It's probably a position he's developed over decades, making himself as small as possible, being as quiet as possible, trying to take up as little space as possible. He's almost pretending he doesn't exist in order to stretch out the moments before the spider finds him and the loop starts again.

And then Charles says his name and Edwin looks up and sees Charles, and it's like all of his defenses just vanish. He doesn't whisper Charles' name, he says it, loudly, as if he has completely forgotten where he is and that they need to be quiet. He gets up, unfurls his limbs, slowly standing up to his full height, taking up space again. Every instinct in his body should tell him to stay hidden and as invisible and silent as possible, but Charles has just smiled at him, and Edwin speaks again, asking "Is that you?" and letting out a shaky breath of relief.

He is completely vulnerable and exposed now, like Charles' arrival has made him completely forget that they are in hell and that he could be ripped apart by a spider doll demon at any moment. All the defences he has built up over literal decades just completely crumble as soon as he hears Charles' voice.

And then the spider comes and rips him away, and I don’t think it would have done (at least not yet), had Edwin not alerted it to his presence like that. I think that’s why this moment wouldn’t let go of me, because I always thought it shouldn’t be this easy for Edwin to abandon a survival tactic he has developed over decades of torture. But all it takes is Charles being there, and Edwin forgets everything else.

[mellxncollie]

okay alex i'm finally able to give this the comprehensive response it deserves (also you opened a real can of worms here by being one of the few people to write such a thoughtful and expansive comment on a gifset so you're really getting the full commentary)

so firstly just. the baseline gifs are SOOO beautiful and vibrant oh my god. idk how you chose specific scenes for this but all of them slap SO HARD.

aaaaaa okay thank you i chose scenes mostly based off of what scenes i knew looked really good or had interesting colors, but also what i knew could be cropped to a square and still look okay. here are some other gifs that got cut because while the base gifs look pretty good, they don't have the colors and/or composition that work well for this format

then i also adore the contrast (ha) between the high-contrast vs the monochrome ones, both types are a Vibe okay!! the colour palettes are RIDICULOUSLY stunning, the colours are calling my name. ALSO the way that some of them are so subtle but the colour palette is the thing drawing your eyes to specific colours? LOVE THAT.

yes omg i'm so glad that you like the more subtle color picks. i wanted to go with the most obvious colors for most of them, but sometimes those small bits of other colors were just so essential to the look!

gif 1: my eyes are immediately drawn to the bright greens, then i see the light blue and go huh?? so cool, don't think i would've noticed those lights otherwise. also the way the gold background ties in with charles' pins/patches and somewhat edwin's shirt and face -- i know choosing colours specific to them would throw off the palette but it really just gives this ghostly feeling of them not being all there, only in bits and pieces, that i absolutely adore!

god this scene is such a gorgeous one and so fun to gif. but i struggled picking and arranging the colors for it. because yeah. i look at that shot and think green and yellow so adding that blue in the lights felt a bit out of left field. but also that blue really makes the green work so i felt like it needed to be there. and holy shit that observation about them being ghosts and not included in the palette -- not intentional but i'm obsessed now

gif 2: THESE COLOURS!!! going insane thank you. anyway the purple and blue!! again my eyes were going ?? and then i saw those windows, like it's a little spot-the-colour game and i'm having way too much fun with it. getting sunset vibes and i adore it. also the gif itself is just visually stunning oh my god. the movement of the gold leash?? WOW

such a stunning shot! and i didn't have to do too much with the colors, just up the vibrancy and brightness a bit and bam! gorgeous colors! initially this was the gif, using the yellow from the light (and also the leash) but the yellow felt a bit too similar to the yellow in the charles in esther's kitchen palette. i also wanted to include the teal but couldn't quite get it to work.

gif 3: jenny my beloved!! VERY fun colour scheme, love the lust cow inclusion, and then the subtle green to the right. (also i'm looking respectfully at jenny but the way her apron strap is twisted and her bra shows a little. um i'm definitely Looking)

YESSSSSSS JENNY!!! (she is soooo gorgeous) honestly i barely noticed this shot in all previous watchen but when trying to find scenes for this set, it just stood out because of just how many colors there are. also, yeah, cannot forget the lust cow! essential part of the scene.

gif 4: LOVE THE BLUES

this shot (and all the other ferry shots) annoys the hell out of me and my roommates because like,,,, that is not a washington ferry. they don't look like that. but i can ignore that for this set because the BLUES! they're so blue!!

gif 5: CRYSTAL MY BELOVED!!!! god i love the monochrome, also so interesting how it's a literal ocean of blood but the colours are not very saturated reds? and crystal's colour scheme just fits in perfectly, she looks like she was made for that place tbh

idk why i never really pieced together that it was really supposed to be blood because its always been... basically orange. i think this one reminds me a bit too much of dune but i still love it. it's such a stunning shot and crystal looks so good and powerful.

gif 6: idk if this was intentional but it's very similar to jenny's palette with very different vibes, wow!! again the obvious green and yellow, and then the darker orange is like oh! wow i didn't even notice that! like the colour palette block of orange is the most significant orange in that image and it just elevates the whole thing?? idk i love it! (also a VERY fun base gif, look at those funky ghost physics!! like that's not a normal guy bracing himself against a shelf okay)

not intentional but i did notice it when putting the set together and made some effort to not have them right next to each other. but absolutely different vibes, and it's interesting ebcause jenny's is more muted and a bit... ill? in a kind of medieval plague kind of a way? and it's full of knives and blood. and then this scene is in esther's place and her home is bright and vibrant and fun. and despite that, jenny's place is the safe one, and esther's is the place of danger and pain. (also ghost physics my beloved, probably my favorite charles scene from this episode)

gif 7: RAINBOW IN THE CLOSET! LOVE WINS!!

me making this gif: is this too on the nose? will people think this is trite or too silly? everyone in the tags on this gifset: OH MY GOD THE RAINBOW AND THEY'RE IN THE CLOSET!!!! 💛

(needless to say, i'm very happy i chose to keep it that way)

gif 8: this is one where it's such a mundane gif, but i adore that you included it, it made me look at it in more depth that i probably ever would. all the greens, and then the light blue! which actually fades out of sight as the camera pans down, so it's fun to watch the gif over and over to see that little bit of sky! and then the contrast of the bright white of the buildings (and their faces before they step into the shadow). *niko voice* so cool!

i said this on discord too but this one might be my favorite in this set. i love the palette and i love the shot. it's such a blink-and-you-miss-it kind of shot, despite being quite a long take, since it's not really about anything but the dialogue and the transition to the lost and found department that happens right after it. and yet, it's still so beautiful and well composed. the cinematographers really popped off on this show and they did not skip over anything. i'm glad that little bit of blue was somethign you could find, it's definitely such a small portion of the gif that i debated whether or not to even include it. but the color was so pretty and also there's a blue (or almost blue) in every single one of these gifs except crystal's, so i think it helps with keeping a through-line between the admittedly pretty different shots.

thank you so so much again for this comment, i truly treasure it. you're so amazing and kind, and the comments you leave on my work as well as all the fics and other things i see you comment on, it truly fuels the fandom!!

Dead Boy Detectives (2024) 1.01 — The Case of Crystal Palace (insp)