#its him its hanky code

[missinglaterals]

Drag-King Clown named Hank or Hanky (he/him)

[doctordoombignaturals]

the result of an enlightening conversation with a friend

[waywardsalt]

mentally rotating damien yayyyyyy

[sp0o0kylights]

You know what I want to see, I want to see more of Steve, Eddie, and Robin being 1980s small town kids from Indiana, by which I mean;

Robin is The Source of Gay Knowledge purely because her parents host Hippie Christmas and she managed to sneak away to find a neat bookstore in Indiana once. 

Her knowledge is not in depth. It's patchy, woven together through rumors, stories she heard or things she picked up from her parents' old pictures. She's got a handful of zines, one book, and some movies she managed to order for Family Video behind Keith's back.

She acts like she's Queen of the Queers because in Hawkins she pretty much is.

(Max and El ask her what a lavender marriage is once, something they overheard snooping around. 

Robin confidentially answers that it's code for when one woman dresses up as a man, fooling officials into wedding two woman.

She does not live this down two years later when they find out what it actually means.) 

Eddie doesn't spend every weekend in Indianapolis. 

Gas is expensive, his busiest days of his "job" is Friday and Saturday, and he has no fucking clue what the hanky code is. 

He's wearing that bandana because Metallica front singer James Hetfield has one on all their tour posters. 

Eddie does make it down to a gay bar though, by accident. Rick needed some back up for a shady deal. Promised Eddie a boatload of free drugs to sell if he agreed to just stand there and look mean. 

He was warned the bar they were meeting in was 'weird' and to not 'freak out' --which Eddie thought was hilarious given his nickname and general appearance, but whatever.

He doesn't understand when they get there, because it's just a bunch of hot men with hanky's in their back pockets everywhere.

Then he sees two women kissing and it clicks. 

He can't out himself in front of Rick, but one of the bartenders playfully dresses him down for his own hanky, letting him know all about the code and teasing him through his embarrassment. 

He's got an offer to come back and learn what color and which pocket his hanky should actually be in, a prospect Eddie was salivating at until Chrissy Cunningham up and died on his ceiling.

(He still wore the hanky, because the feeling of that bartender tugging it out and stuffing it back in might be the closest thing he's ever had to sex and he absolutely wants a repeat. 

He's young and horny, sue him.) 

Steve Harrington may not be academically smart but he's not dumb. 

He figured out a while back that the basketball team as a unit probably crossed the queer line more than once--or at least it did before Hargrove came in. 

( Brad Handly for example, went around slamming kids into lockers and screaming slurs like a fucking movie villain one Monday because the varsity team got dead drunk at Laura's party on Sunday and hey, look, there weren't that many girls there, okay?

They all had fucking hands and mouths. Everybody but Tommy was single and hot to trot. Nothing gay about it.

Its not even like they were kissing or treating each other like chicks. It was just Brad's first time and they got to tease him later for overthinking it. 

Dude graduated soon enough after and given Steve was on the team as a sophomore, he hadn't thought about the guy and why he might be freaking out so bad in years.) 

Robin's entire panic attack at Starcourt, and a few more after had Steve replaying that whole incident. Reframed it a bit, and, yeah.

In retrospect that had been extremely gay, actually. 

It sat with him a lot easier than he'd thought it would. Partially because of Robin, but mostly because that's just who he was.

Stranger things had happened to Steve and this one didn't want to kill, maim or otherwise eat him, so it got filed under 'interesting facts he should never tell his parents if he wanted to keep his trust fund' and then he went about his day. 

(Or he tried too, anyways.

It caught up to him when Eddie and Robin somehow figured out the other was queer and dragged him along to some bar Eddie had a standing invitation at, with demands for Steve to do what he did best.

Babysit.

Their magical trip was utterly destroyed when Brad Handly happened to be the very same bartender who had given Eddie the invite.

 Considering Brad's immediate bark of laughter followed by a hug and introducing himself as "Steve's gay awakening", Steve ended up having to speedrun through Eddie and Robin both having a crisis for him.

It didn't help that Steve had politely, and laughingly, corrected Brad with a casual; 

"Pretty sure that was Tommy man, but if it helps I think that tongue of yours gave Matt Burdon a crisis."

--which ended up with him answering a lot more gay sex questions with Brad than he cared too. 

At least he, through Brad, was able to help Robin connect to some local lesbians and--after a second crisis from Eddie regarding how Steve managed to have more sex than "the resident town freak and guy who actually knew he was gay, Steve!"-- even helped Eddie out by catching the metalheads tongue with his mouth later that evening.

The last one landed him a boyfriend, trust fund be damned.) 

[rotteneldritchhorror]

cause im a freak for queer history and love hanky codes and all other kinds of flagging:

Eddie of course constantly flags black on the left [S&M top/sadist] (half of the reason he flags it so constantly is because its just useful to have lol), like I said in my last post- whenever he wants a new piercing he flags purple on the right [piercee], learned about the hanky code from a "fitness zine" that was just DEFINITELY a gay kink/porno mag he either found discarded somewhere he definitely wasnt meant to find it, or actually bought it at a proper place with a fake ID, and either found they had an article in that issue or found a slip of paper with a written out code. Anyways it gave him the biggest sense of relief in his life to know he wasnt evil to wanting to hurt the boys he had crushes on and knowing that he wasnt the only boy into other boys.

Billy tbh has basically the same discovery story as Eddie except it was almost definitely accidental, he fully thought it was an actual fitness mag when he bought it with a couple of other porno mags and then Self Discovery, he occasionally flags light blue or navy blue on his middle back beltloop [oral and anal respectively, giving or receiving] but not that often cause Internalised Homophobia

Robin finds out about flagging because she found a lil slip about the hanky code in a lesbian zine she found tucked away in the very back of the local library and only kept it because it was something queer (she knows what Eddie's flagging and clocks him IMMEDIATELY and One Of Them), she doesn't flag cause she's wayyyy too awkward for that, even if it'd help her know whos one of the queers lol

Steve finds out EVENTUALLY because he confides in Robin about the Gay Feelings but she keeps dancing around it because shes not about to out Eddie, even if its literally so him and Steve can just kiss already and get over with it lol, but EVENTUALLY he finds her lil slip and recognises the black hanky (half the color codes are mismatched but the black is consistent enough for him to be right). He probably buys a light blue hanky and wears it on his right [cocksucker] exclusively when hes hanging out with the guys (Eddie especially, but also billy, jonathan and argyle because sure why not)

Speaking of which! Argyle knows. He might not have any friends, but he sells weed to a shit tonne of queers in cali and has dabbled in going to the occasional gay bar and gets in enough high conversations with kinky queers to gather what flagging is and generally how to do it (he doesnt flag much cause hes less of an 'actively looking to hook up' kinda guy and more of a 'if the time strikes', go with the flow, but sometimes he flags lime on his left [dines off tricks/sex for food] when he's in the mood lol

Jonathan is the last to find out and its only when he gets high as shit with them all and asks about why the fuck Eddie keeps a black bandana in his back left pocket and only his back left pocket and all of them explain it to him all at once until he just nods along and accepts it until like 5 minutes later where he just randomly goes "Wait- youre all gay??" as if that isnt known knowledge

[steddielations]

I get why you like sub Eddie but don’t forget how he wore that bandana in his pocket. If queer sexuality codes are anything to go by, that boy is dominant as hell.

LMAO so I’ve never taken the hanky as anything more than metalhead fashion, I don’t think it was intentional flagging, people are allowed to headcanon whatever they want of course, but if you’re going to take the hanky code as law and use it as the reason people aren’t allowed to write him as a sub, then by your logic he’s a switch because he wears it on both sides in the show, so keep the same energy when its in the other pocket (:

[xx-emowarz-xx]

Alright I guess it's time for a real pinned post.

Hello, my pronouns are He/Him. I'm a true scene king in that I like Crunkcore and bright colors but also in that my music and aesthetic preferences are sort of a grab bag of goth punk emo and occasionally raver and hip hop shit. I do have raccoon bangs irl thanks for asking.

***disclaimer about the PFP: Ronnie Radke is a very bad man but he's immensely funny (not for the reasons he thinks he is)***

This blog was originally created to run a poll bracket for emo music. I ran 2 (each with 64 songs, first won by I'm not okay by MCR, second won by my Immortal by Evanescence)and then quit my job because My Chem beat Evanescence twice, now I just blog about mostly emo but also goth and punk stuff. We may run a third bracket but honestly the statistics on the second bracket weren't very good so idk if I will. I don't think anything will ever be as good as RPF week so why bother (RPF week was the week I ran the following polls: Good Charlotte v Paramore v BVB ; The Used V FOB ; and SWS V PTV. I reblogged a lot of Kellic and Summer of Like posts and started a vicious rumor about Hayley/Meg Thee Stallion Yuri because I'm a feminist.)

Anyway if you want the third bracket you can put songs in the ask box and if we get to 64 I'll run it. I think we're at 17 rn. MCR and Evanescence are both banned from competing because they won and each band only gets one song per bracket unless I make an exception, but the popular bands mostly already got their two song so I might not. If you don't send me new songs by different artists that's cool I just won't run it and I'll keep posting insane shit

Warnings about this blog:

This is an anti-racist pro-hip-hop blog. 🔫you will listen to Rico Nasty.

I do occasionally get very horny about Black Veil Brides specifically and emo guys who paint like whores more generally. If you don't want to be jump scared by a picture of Andy Beirsack with insane thirst in the tags turn back now.

I'm a sex work and drag type of transsexual and I'm mean about it. I'm a transfag a communist and a punk in that order.

DIY or die. Punk fashion is cheap and easy The End.

This one's important: I listen to and love all types of emo music, (every thing from metalcore to midwest emo to Crunkcore to that old-school weezer type shit). I am NOT a my chemical romance fan (or a P!atD fan). I do not judge MCR fans and occasionally reblog their posts if they are funny, but please keep in mind that you are not talking to someone who defines emo as MCR/FOB/P!atD. I'm infact occasionally hostile to that definition. Emo is punk's very sad son and she inherited his take no shit attitude and his diy fashion. Its not just wearing black and listening to My chem.

Twentyone Pilots will never appear on this blog because they are not emo.

I don't write or read RPF but I believe in their beliefs.

I have a tag called #andy Beirsack gay s/m Dom. This is because I noticed my eye candy wearing hanky code and I realized he doesn't know what hanky code means. If you made a post about hanky code and I tagged it with a rock star you don't like, sorry I just like having the hankies all in one place. If you're a BVB fan and I just called your guy gay, I don't actually think he's gay I'm making fun of him for being clueless and straight. I can show you my fag card if you want.

Ask me about Travis Barker's cloning facility.

[belle--ofthebrawl]

Mushy May 2024 days 4 & 5: First Aid and Animals.

No animals are hurt, there is a therapy dog!

Not what I had in mind as the first installment of the Hell on Wheels Au, but I suppose it would be appropriate to call it an introductory crash course. Basically it's a human au where they're all into bikes and cars and rollerblades, with a little bit of mystery sprinkled in regarding the Emeritus family and the role they play in a predominantly Catholic town, led by the good (?) Father Defroque.

Rating: General with a blink and you'll miss it hanky code reference.

Word Count: 2.5k

Characters: Aurora, Aeon, Sunny, Aether, Dewdrop.

As always, thanks to @forlorn-crows for putting the event together and @askingforthesun for being interested in this au that I once thought would never make it out of my head. The worst injury I've ever suffered required a mere six stitches so if any description of the fracture and sprain and mild head injury is unrealistic, I apologize and blame it on the ghouls still being extraordinarily resilient even as humans.

“Rory!” Aeon yells as soon as she goes down, nearly crashing his own bike as he tries to stop in time. She's on the ground in a heap, all he can hear is the sick crack of her helmet when she fell. He shoves his bike to the side and off the trail as he rushes to her, heart pounding and palms sweaty under his fingerless gloves.

“God, fuck, Rory-” She's not moving. Is she unconscious or just unable to? His hands are shaking as he pats her over, takes her pulse, checks to see if the sprawl of her limbs is unnatural, if there's a bend where there shouldn't be. 

“Rory!” He repeats, heart pounding in his ears. Her helmet is still in one piece, no sign of cracking or damage so that means she's got to be okay, right? Why isn't she answering him? 

His first instinct is to lift her up under the arms, get her off the trail in case someone else came along but he freezes. Wasn't there something about not moving people after a bad fall? Something with their spine…what if he made it worse? What if his best friend was paralyzed because he tried to help her? And what if she was paralyzed already anyway? Dammit, why had he told her his first aid knowledge was good enough? There was a lot in her pack but the most he could do was clean up the scrapes and bandage them. Why isn't she waking up?

She groans quietly and he could cry with relief. 

“I'm calling for help.” He says, “Rory, I’m right here.” 

Her hand is moving feebly on the ground; he grabs it and squeezes it to let her know he won't leave. A futile gesture when he pulls out his phone and thumbs the pattern only to see the little exclamation mark that tells him there's no service. They're too deep in the trail.

“Oh fuck.” He mutters.

Aurora groans again, struggles out of Aeon's grip to pry her helmet off. Her dark hair is stuck to her flushed skin in sweaty clumps but there's no blood that he can see.

“Ow…” she hisses, touching her head gingerly. Aeon, a flash of an old first aid class coming back to him, turns on his flashlight, checks her pupils. They both react to the light, a good sign. She's looking around, brow furrowed. He can't tell if that's a good or bad sign.

“My bike…?” She asks, in typical Aurora fashion.

“Looks fine.” Aeon says after he checks over his shoulder for it. “What year is it?”

“I dunno, I’ve had it since I was little.” She answers and he frowns. “Oh, you mean this year. Right, concussion check.” She tells him, then says. “That's going on the channel.” She mumbles. “You got that footage, right?”

Her GoPro. It's still filming from its secure place, strapped around his neck. He could laugh. He could scream. After taking an awful fall like that, all she's thinking about is her vlogging channel?

“Can you stand up?” He asks, but she’s already trying, slowly working her way up to a sitting position.

“Feels great.” She wheezes, flopping back down with a wince. “Just gonna…take five.”

She reaches for her shoulder now, revealing a large and ugly scrape on her forearm, blood already coagulating into a filthy mixture with the dirt. That he can help with, as soon as he fetches the black cylinder strapped to the frame of Aurora's bike. Inside is anything he might need for this exact situation if he had the brains to use it but self deprecation isn't going to help Aurora. The wipes, the little ibuprofen packs and the gauze is what's going to help her right now. Any idiot could figure it out, he tells himself. 

Aurora grits her teeth at the sting of the wipes on her raw skin but bears it with patience as Aeon clumsily wraps her up. He tucks the ibuprofen under her tongue at her insistence; apparently it enters the bloodstream faster that way. He guesses it makes sense. Not like he hurts himself this regularly to know anything about the fine usages of painkillers. Still, he makes her swallow down some water so her mouth isn't too dry.

And then there isn't any more he can do. She can't even sit up without crying out in pain, clutching her side and even though she isn't saying anything, he's pretty sure there's something wrong with her ankle too. He saw the way she’d gotten tangled in the bike when she went down, an awful replay he can't shut off. He manages to coax her off the main trail, dragging under her arms while she kicks with her left foot to help. Props her up against a tree, gives her his snacks.

“Go.” Aurora says. “I promise I won't pass out.”

“If I meet up with anyone, I’ll have them get help and come straight back.” He promises. 

She tries to laugh and it hurts to see it. The sound of her coughing follows him as he picks up his bike and starts trekking back to the start. It takes him longer on foot but after seeing Rory crash like that, he's a bit wary of his own bike at the moment, his own skills too new to be tested and risk hurting himself. Only when he clears the jumping areas and sets down on the flat starting section of the trail does he get back on and peddle. From there it's easy and it isn't much longer until he's dismounting again, pulling off his helmet and checking his phone for service. The single bar he gets is almost taunting him. 

He's about to dial when a dog barks, then another. A cheerful voice cries out in return and from around the corner on the road comes the strangest sight he’s ever seen; a woman on rollerblades dressed like it's the 80’s being skated over the asphalt by a team of half a dozen mismatched dogs.

“Excuse me?!” Aeon calls out, abandoning his bike to break out in a jog. “Miss? Ma’am? Hello?”

“Stop!” The woman bellows joyously and somehow, each and every dog comes to a halt. Some sit, while others lay down and others still stand and guard the woman that serenely rollerblades through them like a sea of fur and slobber.

“Hey, honey.” She says with a bright grin. “What can Sunny do for you?”

“My friend, she's on the bike trail-” he starts. “Something went wrong on a jump and she crashed, she can't move, and I-”

“Breathe.” The woman says at the same time a cold, wet nose touches his overheated hand. He looks down into the friendly eyes of a golden retriever, who licks at his fingers. 

“Breathe,” the woman says again. Sunny. She introduced herself as Sunny. The golden retriever nudges his palm and he grabs hold of its fur. “You got someone who needs help, I can help.”

“I gotta get back to her.” He blurts out. “Please, an ambulance.”

“I know sweetie, I know.” All the exuberance from her expression is gone, but there's no worry in her eyes. Just determination and Aron trusts her immediately. She unclips a lead from her belt and passes to him.

“Let me take this crew back to my car while you take Sweetness there and get back to Aurora; she's an ex-therapy dog and knows her way around someone in pain.”

He thanks Sunny, watches her take off the way she came with her odd little crew and looks down at the dopey, panting grin of Sweetness the golden retriever staring back up at him.

“I didn't tell her who my friend was.” He says, befuddled. Sweetness just blinks and tries to check his pockets for treats.

______

She's coughing again when he gets back to her, setting his bike down and untying Sweetness' leash from it. For a dog going grey around the muzzle, the golden had kept up surprisingly well and it's with a tail waving like a flag that she beelines to Aurora, nudging her way under her arm and licks the dried tears off her face.

“Cinnamon?” Aurora asks, sounding confused. “How did you-”

“I met a woman on skates with a lot of dogs.” Aeon says, sitting down on her other side. “Do you two know each other?”

“Oh yeah.” Aurora says, kissing the dog’s head. “This is Little Miss Cinnamon Pooh Sweetness the 3rd. Her full name by the way, but everyone calls her Sweetness for short.”

“No.” Aeon says patiently. “The dog walker.”

“Oh, probably Sunshine. One of Mountain's friends. Good!” The exclamation sends her into another coughing fit that she tries to swallow down with water. “She's gonna get Aether, he volunteers at the free clinic.  Oh he's hot, you're gonna love him.”

“You have several debilitating injuries and all you can talk about is your damn influencer career and how hot some rando is.” He carefully ruffles her hair, avoiding the tender spot she touched earlier.  “One of these days, you’ll fall and get some sense knocked into you.”

“Til then, there's you.” She says, poking her tongue out with a wink. Aeon sighs loudly and scrubs at his face, staring up at the sky.

“Yeah.” He says. “I guess I can be your common sense.”

____

Aurora is right though. Aether is hot when he stumbles up on them, jogging at a neat pace with a whole-ass red paneled wagon stocked with supplies and Aeon isn't sure if laughing is appropriate. The way Sweetness bwoofs and wiggles away to try and herd Aether closer to Aurora doesn't help at all. He just scratches her absently, even feeds her a treat from his pocket. Good with dogs and good looking? 

Woof.

“Aurora.” He says sternly, looking down at the both of them. Aeon thinks that if the guy wasn't trying to be professional, he’d probably say something like “not this shit again”.

“My knight in khaki armor.” She says dreamily.  “I think I cracked my rib again. And there's something with my ankle.”

“Again?!” Aeon says in disbelief. 

“Again.” Aether confirms, mouth in a firm line as he squints. Aurora dimples up at him, lifting her arms as gently as she can, making grabby hands.

“Uppies?” she asks sweetly. “C’mon, show off those muscles to my buddy here, Aeth.” 

Aether looks at Aeon, who sweats under the stony gaze. 

“Can you help?” He asks. “I’d like to get her in the wagon without too much jostling.”

He might not be a beefcake like this guy, but Aeon still considers himself decently strong. Plus, Rory weighs like, a buck fifteen soaking wet. It's clumsy but they manage, with Rory hissing and cussing the whole time but it just makes Aether smile, shockingly.  He surveys his grumpy passenger and nods.

“I would be more worried if she wasn't cursing us to hell and back.” Aether says, picking up the handle of the wagon. “This isn't going to be a smooth ride, but it's definitely not the worst situation you’ve been in.”

“We hoped she would grow out of it,” Aeon confides. Sweetness is carrying her own lead, leaving Aeon free to haul the two bikes. If Aether can pull Aurora, he can carry them bikes without complaining. Out loud, anyway. “But as you can probably see, her sense of self preservation is about as stunted as her height.”

“Boo, cheap shot!” Aurora says, sticking her tongue out at him. Aether chuckles, directing the wagon away from a stone jutting out of the ground.

“Learned that pretty quick after she moved in.” He says. “She sprained her wrist her first day in town at the skatepark.”

“Yeah, she sent me a picture of it.” 

“Not having fun until I draw blood.” Aurora sings, then quietly mutters ouch.

“Hang on, princess.” Aether says with a smile that makes Aeon's heart skip a beat. There's a flash of metal from a silver tooth. God, could he get any hotter? “We’ll getcha taken care of.”

______

Aether's ride isn't what Aeon is expecting. It's a bright red mini-van, handicap accessible that easily takes Aurora in her wagon. Aether fusses over her, making sure she's strapped in as best he can manage, directs Aeon to the passenger seat after loading the bikes in and doesn't even put the key in the ignition until everyone's seatbelt has clicked. Sweetness makes a space for herself under the wagon, thumping her tail when Aurora coos her name.

“Can you believe this guy won the demolition derby at the county fair last year?” Aurora teases from the back as they set off, just a hair over the speed limit.

“That was outside of working hours.” Aether says primly.

“Real mean at bumper cars too.”  Aurora says. “I mean, brutal.”

“I reiterate.” Aether says, clicking his blinker on a full six seconds before he switches lanes. “Outside work hours.”

They don't go to the hospital. Aether makes a face when Aeon questions him and chews his lip before answering.

“It's…” he starts, then sighs.

“I'm not fucking going there.” Aurora interjects. “Not after the horror stories I’ve heard from the others.”

“Horror stories?” Aeon asks. His mind immediately goes to ghosts walking the halls at night, doctors killing people for their organs, corpses rising from the morgue in the basement but the explanation as Aether puts it is rather boring.

“It's a Catholic based hospital.” He says. “Very Catholic.”

“Your suffering is a test from God type of Catholic.” Aurora scoffs. “Sure, the doctors are good but there's crucifixes and crosses everywhere, the nurses are nuns who were too mean for the parochial school and saying you don't want to be prayed over gets you marked as non-compliant in your file.”

“They can't do that.” Aeon says incredulously. 

“Privatized healthcare.” Aether mutters. “Thankfully, there's an anonymous donor who sponsored the opening of a free clinic in town. Not to brag, but we have just as good a team and equipment as the other guys.”

“If you say the hospital’s name you have to spit.” Aurora stage-whispers. 

“Gross.” Aeon replies, fascinated.

“The staff are better looking too.” Aurora says in a normal voice, making goo-goo eyes at the rearview mirror. “Delta still single?”

“And not looking to settle.” Aether says with a smile.

“Neither am I.” Aurora says with an equally crooked grin. Aeon fiddles with the window button and wonders if he’ll ever have a normal day in this new place. The rest of the drive is silent save for the classics station Aether flips on. At one point, they pull up at a four-way stop and get revved at by a motorcyclist who Aeon is pretty sure has the right of way.

“Thanks, Dew.” Aether calls as they drive past the biker. “See you tonight?”

The biker pulls a red and black striped handkerchief from their back pocket and waves, which is enough of an answer to make Aether laugh.

“I love how he just has that ready.” Aurora says. “Also, you should be ashamed of yourself, cruising for booty with an injured lady in your backseat.”

“You're no lady.” Aeon and Aether say at the same time.

“Owe me a coke.” Aeon says quickly and the way Aether chuckles  makes his heart do flippy things. Even if it's offset by Aurora gagging in the background.

_____

Aurora's taken in by the aforementioned Delta, who doesn't react to her flirting save for a crinkling of their eyes behind the mask they wear.

"They have the technology." Aurora calls as she's wheeled through a set of swinging doors. "They can rebuild me!"

"She's something else." Aether says with a shake of his head. "I'm gonna call Sunny and let her know it's taken care of. Then I can get you signed up for a first aid course, if you're willing."

"Absolutely." Aeon says. He doesn't ever want to feel helpless again, doesn't want something worse to happen and not be ready to handle it. Aether slips behind Delta's desk and spends a few minutes typing.

"I can schedule you for a check-up as well, get you in the system. Why don't you take a seat in the waiting room over there? We got new magazines."

"That's really nice of you." Aeon says earnestly. "Thanks."

"My pleasure." Aether says sincerely. "It's what I do." Aeon takes a seat on a comfy pleather chair, Sweetness laying down beside him. He looks over the magazines, spends a few minutes reading an article about exotic trail reviews then gets too fidgety and turns on the television. It opens to a local news station, a pretty, immaculately made up reporter talking about local crime.

"-any information regarding the theft, please reach out to the sheriff or Father Defroque." She's saying. "Back to you, Brad."

"Robbery?" He asks Aether, who shrugs.

"Not like the money was going towards anything important." He says dismissively. "Don't trust the church, kid. Not in this town."

"Never have." Aeon says, gut squirming in suspicion at the way the priest currently being interviewed smiles. Something about him seems...too friendly. Too kind. Artificial. In comparison to Aether, the man is almost slimy. "Never will."

"Atta boy." Aether says and the tone of his voice almost makes Aeon blush.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

it’s so silly Ive thought of Hobie when making a couple decisions before. I’m sitting here getting slowly converted into a punk (fashion and music wise) because of this man too 😭

YES! YES! This is what I MEAN.

I love that Hobie inspires so many people and influences the real world because he is derived from the real name - real movements and a real era!

And like - people don't even KNOWWWW how deep 70's fashion and punk/other countercultures go, especially back in a time where being out about ones views either in public or at home could be dangerous.

I really wanna do a break down of stuff like this cause I love it.

Things like crust pants, which Hobie wears. Which connects to punk ideology of being low-waste and clothing modification in addition to being another place to put patches

The history of Lace Code, and the cousin of lace code - The Queer Hanky Code.

I'd also like to study the history of things like 'battle jackets' and vests. But I know for sure that there is one photo of a black punk artist performing in 1979 that looks really close to Hobie, or at least his style and essence.

I'd love to talk about that one day, since I know NOTHING about the music lol. That's one thing that's beyonnndd me, but I know it's so rich in history and culture its INSANE. Like..the specific clubs in London and New York that were famous for their shows, the way 1979 changed the music scene UGHHHH I wish I could write about everything under the sun

But yeah Hobie is like such a good role model which in insane considering he want to be the opposite. But I love how people could be like 'What do blue laces mean? Oh that? IM ON BOARD AND I LOVE HIM.'

We can all empathize with him, PLUS he gives us ways to express the same anger he faces in the most compassionate punk rock way I LOVE HIM

Take this photo on your journeys

[nightklub-au]

Syzoth “Reptile” Terron

A low level bouncer and enforcer for Shao’s business, both at the club and in his dirtier work

A hulking brute of a man with an intimidating stature and rough hands

Syzoth was part of a smaller biker gang that Shao took over a long time ago, folding its members into the ranks of his underlings for physical protection

He maintains his service for the safety of his family, knowing their lives would be threatened if he were ever to betray Shao’s orders

He’s got a kind heart, but isn’t squeamish about getting his hands dirty and engaging in violence

He’s known for his sharp tongue and for being a “cold blooded” killer, earning the nickname Reptile for that reason alongside his proclivity towards all things scaly

Wears his wedding band at all times, as well as a friendship bracelet his son made for him

His family doesn’t know what he does for a living, and he wants to keep it that way

His partner does know that he sometimes does sex work to make extra money, which he advertises via hanky code to guests at the bar

He has deep guilt about feeling unfaithful to his wife, as over time, he’s grown feelings for some of his coworkers, a result of the dissonance and separation between the two lives he lives. But he’s trying to ignore that and just keep playing the game with no consequences

Owns a snake and a few lizards at home, and became friends with D’vorah through their care for odd creatures, despite being very different types of people

Through D’vorah, Syzoth has been brought into Ko’atal’s conspiracy to take power from Shao and seize ownership of his business, many of his underlings believing things could be run better with less bloodshed and more profit. As long as Ko’atal ensures the safety of his family in the aftermath, Syzoth will follow him

Full commission piece Here by Spicyboelives

Ko’atal’s Konspirators

All AU Bios

(IDs in ALT)

[bazpitchs-violin]

my headcanons for todd as a speech kid because i have literally been unable to think about anything else since it first popped into my mind:

todd would be an info kid. he just would, i don't make the fucking rules

todd's first info is about the hanky code, and even though he manages to present it without being too explicit about what the code means, he blushes the entire time he's performing

neil definitely helped him make his va's

i also think that after his first season in it he would move into oratory, because todd has opinions, and strong ones, he's just always been scared to talk about it

and i think there's something about the environment of speech that clicks to him. you're not fighting for attention you're just up there, telling your stories. and i think part of that really resonates with him

i do in fact think his oratory is either about gifted kid burnout or about how sometimes expectations from parents can bridge over into emotional abuse

i also think he has a poetry program, and i think there are at least two walt whitman poems but i also think he loves performing andrea gibson

he does di one year and absolutely hates it because the rooms are always so sad and its a mental weight on him

however, he gets into hi and goes fucking mental

he would love hi

he commits to his bits so well and his pops are so clean and he's just fucking funny

he definitely does history based hi's though thats his brand

and i think he has a poi

and i think his poi is about being quietly gay

because on the speech circuit there is plenty of gay/queer material being presented

but for the most part its all the same type of gay/queer

and todd doesn't feel represented by it

so he does a poi about how it feels to not fit in either

but to know he's one and not the other

and frankly i do think he uses cuttings from boyfriend material

but i also think he uses a lot of fun artsy metaphorical things

and also i think he wins

because he's good at it

and i think that neil is a cute supportive speech boyfriend

and i think that neil tries to watch todd perform whenever he can

and i think the first time neil sees todd actually compete he gets the same look on his face as he did in the sweaty toothed madman scene

because todd has finally figured out how to talk and make people listen to him, and his voice is fucking fantastic

and neil is so fucking proud

[lisafrnkenstein]

both "eddie munson is sexually experienced and suave and really good in bed and knows what he is doing" and the "eddie munson is a lame dork loser nobody likes and obviously has to be a virgin because there's probably no way he's ever kissed anybody" are both like. fundamentally incorrect with the information we are given about him.

first and foremost: he is coded sexually, if we are interpreting him as queercoded. the hanky code, the handcuffs, those are not just "gay signals," they communicate s&m top. that's a pretty bold (and almost impossible) statement to make for someone who exists pre-internet, if he has no experience. that's not readily available knowledge to someone who is not on the scene and actively picking it up.

BUT we also have to consider: he is very young, still in high school, and socially rejected.

important to note though, examining his behavior, he is not socially awkward. awkwardness to me implies a level of unintentional clashing with social rules, and eddie very specifically seems to clash on purpose. he knows what he's doing and that's why he's doing it. it's part of the "rebel" design of his character; he knows the social rules, and that's why he's able to say "fuck them." that's also why he can pull it off without most people cringing over it, because, speaking as an autistic person, if actually socially awkward people (like autistic ppl) do half of what eddie did, it would instantly cause mockery. but eddie conveys disdain for the rules and social conventions, not unawareness, so he can pull off that behavior in a way that makes the audience like him.

which means reasonably (as we are shown) he would mesh INCREDIBLY well with other people like him. nerds, rejects, outcasts, other metalheads, etc. the kids latch onto him quite a lot for someone who is supposed to be socially awkward, because he isn't. he IS charming and magnetic and inspiring....to a select sub group of people.

part of his queer coding IS his social reject status. which literally means other queer people are likely to connect well with him, because they are also going to be socially rejected. and eddie DOES display a level of aptitude when it suits him (like how easily he made chrissy feel comfortable using the exact same overdramatic "socially awkward" behavior and seemed to know it would work.)

in fact, chrissy actually mentions that she thought he would be "mean and scary," which is based more on assumptions made bc of his associations with metal music and d&d, which is also the basis of the cafeteria monolgue; he wasn't seen as a freak for his "dork" behaviors or for being a nerd, like more modern d&d players might. the theme of the season was the satanic panic, and eddie's social reject status was based on everything about him being demonized as evil, not socially awkward. in fact if you observe, he consistently shows very nice and even gentlemanly behaviors, meaning that everyone who percieves him the way they do does it bc of stereotypes and associations, not out of observing his behavior.

the point I'm trying to get at: in a little rural town like hawkins, liklihood is he doesn't have a lot of opportunity or even a decent enough pool of people to choose from; but also he is implied to have some level of sexual experience. i would posit, then, that he has only a little bit, probably just hookups (bc of the nature of flagging,) due to things like the constraints of his age and location. he wouldn't have had much of a shot before becoming an adult because high schoolers were afraid or wary of him, but outside of school where he wouldn't carry that reputation, there would be no reason why he wouldn't succeed.

eddie probably has a level of charm and natural draw and talent that would work pretty effectively on the right people (but not most,) but probably not enough practical experience to actually be knowledgeable.

and i would very easily say its likely he has no romantic experience and probably has never dated before.

but like. the two ends of the spectrum on this take are both easily contradicted by actual canon evidence, so they're getting to be fairly annoying interpretations. he is neither a smooth sex king nor an awkward virgin.

[ghostofechoes]

Here me out, here me out!

Okay so everyone knows about hanky code dom Eddie right?

But listen listen, virgin dom Eddie who know what he wants but neither has the time nor the people to actually have the experience with!

And Steve, after learning about this whole hanky code is like ‘want to practice with me’ just friends with benefits with out really going all the way of course… its not like he’s been crushing on him for months pshhh no that make this awkward.

It’s not like Eddie is actually a beast of a presence once his confidence sets. It’s not like Steve’s also got a natural talent to sub that awakens in these sessions.

Nope just good ol friends ol buddies ol pals

[lesbianrobin]

im so sorry i just need to say something and i feel like youre one of the very few reasonable people in the stranger things fandom and i just. honestly. is it just me or have people latched onto the hanky code thing WAY too hard with eddie even though it was like fully not intended coding by the wardrobe department and also. barely makes sense for the character at least in my eyes idk like maybe it Is just me but i feel like a twenty year old high schooler from rural indiana wouldn't be some kind of bdsm expert who's well versed in gay culture and flagging like that. like yeah its fun that the double meaning is there w/the hanky bc eddie Is very much a homosexual but i feel like people just latched onto it as if it's canon gospel with zero thought as to whether it would make sense for him (or his relationship with steve which is a whole other can of worms) but. yeah sorry for rambling just Yeah

oh no yeah i totally agree!! i like joking ab it and i'm not opposed to the idea of eddie like knowing ab the code but i don't rly think it was intentional and i don't think that eddie is like a hardcore bdsm dom at all dkcndncnf. like. i am a firm virgin eddie believer because he is a goofy little gay nerd in rural indiana who spends all his time playing dnd or guitar or selling weed out of his lunchbox. even if he IS flagging intentionally i do not think he has any practical experience.

my personal favorite interpretation of the hanky came from my friend sarah @steveharrington this isn't like anything she posted but she had the idea that maybe eddie learned vaguely about hanky code but not rly any specifics and he got So excited about the idea of flagging in any way that he just went out and got a black one bc it matched his usual outfits and he started wearing it without much idea of what it Means bc he wanted to have a connection to the community. i just think that concept is adorable.

another interpretation i enjoyed a lot is from the fic the affliction of the feeling where eddie is a virgin who thinks he knows what he's into but very quickly discovers that he in fact does not. it is explicit fair warning but i figure ur okay with that judging by the content of this ask lmao.

ultimately i think of the hanky as like something fun to play around with but i wish people didn't take it so far because it's definitely like. not rly in character. even setting aside whether or not he'd realistically be well-versed in hanky code yknow the thing is that eddie has this sadistic DM persona but when he's with chrissy or steve or any of his other friends he's always so genuinely sweet and playful and goofy in a way that just. does not scream sado top to me. eddie hates when his friends are upset or uncomfortable and he'll do anything to make them smile. i rly cannot see him being like taunting and sadistic during sex vnfncnfnc like sorry but he's a nerdy little virgin and he would be giggly and awkward and sweet.

nobody asked but personally i think his first time eddie would try So hard to be sexy and cool and his partner (steve bc i am a steveddie warrior and this is my post) would be like What are you doing and he'd be like uh seducing you and steve would be like no the fuck you are not you're acting like a pornstar who failed theater in high school and eddie's like ouch :< and steve is like look just relax can you just be eddie right now and eddie's like aw yeah... :')

anyway. sorry about all of that fkvjfjcjf basically i totally agree with you i think people latched onto the bandana wayyy too hard for what it is. thank you for the ask!!

[epic-sorcerer]

Queer imagery in BBC Merlin

Content warning: kink/fetish, fisting in particular but I show I big image containing a long list of different kinks, homophobia, dom/sub dynamics, sex

Merlin is shown wearing a purple tunic in s4, despite the fact he is a servant and purple(especially with such saturation) was extremely expensive bc purple dye was so hard to make. Gwen also has a light purple dress(or maybe 2? It’s hard to tell). Even though it’s definitely lighter than Merlins tunic, it’s still expensive.

it was illegal for peasants to wear expensive fabrics because of the Sumptuary Law. Basically it makes sure that lower class people are not fashionable. However, BBC Merlin doesn’t seam to care about that law, considering Merlins other bright clothing so take this was a grain of salt.

Basically what I’m trying to say is that there’s no way they could have gotten their hands on these clothes without the help of nobles. Gwen might have, because she works with clothing and could have easily mixed blue and red dye together. Merlin probably not have because he’s never shown to be particularly materialistic or interested much in fashion, despite his bright clothes. Bright Purple would have been much, much harder to get.

It makes the most sense for Merlin and possibly Gwen too to have been gifted such expensive clothing by a noble for being a good servant. I’d imagine Arthur would be the one to give Merlin the tunic and morgana the dresses.

Why does this matter? Lavender(and also purple in general) was considered a queer color starting in the 19th century. Queer men especially were said to possess a “streak of lavender” and a serge of homophobia at the time was often referred to as the “Lavender Scare.” Purple and lavender is still used now to symbolize queerness.

Since Merlin is a modern interpretation of Arthurian myths, it would be perfectly plausible that this symbol was on purpose. Merlin/Arthur and Gwen/Morgana are both extremely popular ships and they are both shown to have a very deep form of trust(Gwen/Morgana being at the beginning of the show). Arthur and Morgana gifting Merlin and Gwen purple clothing could be show them they accept their queerness and/or signaling their own queer attraction to them.

Now, this next symbolism concerns only Merlin/Arthur.

Merlin is shown to have three neckerchiefs.

Navy blue, red, and light grey. Why does this matter? Well, let’s take a look at something called the handkerchief code, also known as the hanky code or “flagging.”

This code has its origins all the way back in time during the Wild West in the USA, but got more popular during the late 20th century in USA and UK gay bars. This code was used mainly by queer men and some nonbinary people to signal to other queers what they wanted sexually. While typically worn in people’s back pockets, a handkerchief could also be worn around one’s neck to show they are a versatile and experienced.

According to this code, Merlin is into;

Red: fisting and getting fisted. This color was hard to get an exact shade from, but the second best option was dark red for double fisting which is honestly so similar I’m not sure if it really matters much.

Light grey: stone topping and getting fucked by a stone top

Navy blue: fucking and being fucked anally

For any one wanting to make their own interpretations of Merlins neckerchief colors(the lighting makes it hard to tell the exact ones) have a look at this handy chart

Not only that, but Arthur is seen wearing a favour on his left arm in s3 ep 4.

What’s a favour? It’s a fabric strip of affection commonly given by maidens to knights before a tournament as a symbol of good luck. It’s often a very important scarf, hankcerchlif , towel, really any bit of cloth that can be tied around someone’s arm. This is also a popular trope in historical media for a female love interest to give a favour to a male one to show chemistry between them.

Regardless of your stance on Merlins gender identity, you have to admit how commonly Merlin is shown to be gender nonconforming(GNC) or otherwise be associated with “womanly” qualities. Especially in a society so heteronormative, the only “pure” option for a knight receiving a romantic gesture would have it be from a woman. If the token was from a queer man, it would also out the noble and cause lots of horrific chaos and destroy both of their reputations.

Even if it was common for women to give knights favours, queer men still existed and with that came romantic gestures—this time hopefully more secret.

Even though the favour on Arthur’s arm doesn’t look exactly like Merlin’s neckerchief, Merlin was the only person to speak with him while preparing for the tournament. Also, the original theorist who I linked in my sources also pointed out that Merlins neckerchief looks lopsided. Almost like Merlin tore off a bit of it and hastily tied it back on.

Although this theory is definitely flawed, it doesn’t matter. Arthur is still wearing a red handkerchief on his left arm. But what does that tell us exactly?

Regardless of wether or not it was Merlin’s, the red is the same shade and also implies Arthur is also into fisting. What about the placement? Sicne it’s on his left, it shows that he is a top/dom, meaning that he prefers to be the one fisting. Since it is worn around his upper arm, it shows that he is simply into the fetish, compared to what other placements mean. In another source, it shows taht upper arm means switch, but because Arthur is wearing it on his left it wouldn’t really make sense for him to signal being a “top-switch” compared to being a top and having the fetish in general.

If you look closely, you can see a different colored stripe on the favour. It’s hard to tell exactly what the color is, it could be yellow, gold, orange, etc. because the color is so dubious, I’ll just leave y’all with a list of color meanings that may apply to Arthur’s favour.

YELLOW: pisser/watersports kink

YELLOW, Pale: spitter/spit kink

MUSTARD: Has 8+ inch dick

GOLD: two looking for one

ORANGE: anything anytime

Also, it’s important to bring up what many in thsi fandom refer to as the “fisting scene.” Where Arthur threatens Merlin by showing him his gloved fist and pulling a bit at the glove.

In the blooper, you can see Merlin’s actor(Colin Morgan) breaking character and giggling as Arthur shows him his fist. Many in the fandom agree that this was a clear innuendo for fisting, and it is very well possible.

Merlin is shown hitting Arthur and saying he was just doing some horse play, but still indirectly convincing Arthur that he needs to teach Merlin a lesson. This is actually a common act in BDSM sex, where the submissive person purposely angers the dominant into punishing them in a way that somehow involves sex or fetish play.

If you look closely, you can see Merlin is wearing at kinky red fisting handkerchief, showing Merlin is perfectly capable of being a submissive fistee. Also, the hanky code also includes other symbols such as latex or rubber gloves that, surprise surprise, also mean fisting. Although it’s more likely Arthur’s gloves where made of leather, it can still further be interpreted as a fisting symbol if you want. Either way, Arthur’s favour still holds water as he is undoubtedly the dom in this situation.

Also, Merlin is very impulsive and a madlad. Tell me he wouldn’t wear his secret fetish symbols infrount of stuck up, Roman Catholics who are none the wiser. He’d probably think it’s hilarious which is probably why he wears them almost everyday. Merlin loves playfully misbehaving(and is also a brat sometimes) so it makes sense for him to have some dangerous fun.

Now, you may be asking. Why does this matter? At the end of the day, it probably wasn’t intentional. Well, there is alwyas room for doupt BUT I do have some ferther proof. One of the co writers of BBC Merlin—Johnny Capps—actually won a Stone Wall Award. You know, an award named after a core part of queer culture?

The award’s website and Wikipedia page say they give the award for art that describes the LGBT experience well. While I am unsure why or what Capps made to be nominated, it still shows he is very much in touch with queer culture. Capp himself even said at an interview about Merlin, “... in the end, deep, deep down it’s about sexuality and things you just can’t tackle head-on.”

Well, what says more about sexuality than the main characters fist fucking each other? That’s a lot of sexuality. While I am unsure of Capp’s age, he does look to be about middle age and it would make sense for him to know about a code popularized in a 70s to 90s. Especially for someone who has made multiple queer oriented stories in his life time.

Sources:

Why is purple considered the color of royalty?

Sumptuary law

How lavender became a symbol of LGBTQ resistance

How Lavender Became a Symbol of LGBTQ Resistance(part 2)

flagging opinicus rampant

Handkerchief code

DO YOU KNOW THE HANKY CODE?

Picspam: The Red Favour (Proof of Arthur Wearing Merlin's Favour in 3x04)

Five medieval love tokens

The Lady's Favour

Hanky codes

Nominees for Stonewall Awards announced

Merlin series 5 spoiler-free launch report

Pls reblog I spent hours on this /np 😭👊

[xx-emowarz-xx]

Yesterday my sister asked me if i knew who Andy Beirsack was, and i was like "yeah I've heard the name" and she was asking me if I knew anything about him, like if he was secretly a horrible person (because two weeks ago she was like "hey listen to this band i found" and sent me falling in reverse and i was like "did u know they met in prison and one of them possibly helped murder a guy" and she was like uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, and a month before she sent me Pretty Scene Girlby Clover and i was like "this is a ripoff of pretty rave girl I saw it in a post about plagurism in scenecore and also it lowkey promotes the fetishization of mentally ill girls", but anyway, point is, i've accidently made her afraid to listen to new emo bands because without consulting me because she thinks i'll have dirt on them all (for the record idgaf if she listens to people who are problematic i just like saying fun facts about things, unfortunately in the case of emo/scene music the fun facts are often not so fun)). Anyway. Point of the story is yesterday i was sitting at the dinner table with my christian parents trying to think of a nice way to say that all i really know about Andy Biersack is that he accidently wears hanky code, and i got this information from a tumblr blog that is really really horny.

LMAOOOOOO

For the record you can tell your sister that Black Veil Brides has some pink flags but are mostly kosher. Like Andy's thing is that he's never had a coherent political thought in his life and he's nice to anyone who's nice to him, which leads to him hanging out with card carrying transphobes like Ronnie Radke and Jeffree Star but then turning around and correcting his own wife when she accidentally implied that trans people don't exist. motherfucker was in Falling In Reverse's most yellow fever core music video but now he's opening for baby metal. Its the duality of nice liberal straight white men. Also their old bassist was a predator but they kicked him out and almost ended the band over it and now they're going around calling their new bassist the redeemer (during their 3rd album they gave themselves these nicknames for the album. Andy was the prophet, CC (the drummer) was the Destroyer, and the two guitarists who I have trouble keeping apart were the Mourner and the Mystic respectively, the old bassist was the deviant which looks pretty bad for them in retrospect) so I think they handled the bassist is the worst guy ever thing as well as they could have.

All of this information is stored in my penis btw.

But also, second rant, I like to yap, I will say that I cannot believe that in a post Diddy world we're still like "the emo scene is uniquely bad." Like this is no shade to you I also like talking about the evil things rock stars do, but what we've learned in the past few years basically since the me too movement and the Epstein murder and the Diddy parties and all that shit coming out is that the music industry in every genre is crawling with the worst people imaginable and the only reason that punk and folk and smaller scenes like that are more notorious for it than pop music is because the pop divas have the money to cover it up. Again not about you necessarily I also know the t on the emo scene and not on other scenes really just me yapping.

But anyway love how influential my dick is I can't wait to have to delete this blog if my band gets any traction