#only for stede ahhhhhh

[pealeii]

Xgycxyxoyfupfuxyf ed speaking gently around stede

[electric-friend]

dude now that we have stede with an earring. earring magic stede if you will. do you think we will get to see him get the piercing? because i made that post ages ago about stede’s fucked high pain tolerance from the canonical evidence of him just kinda being alright about being stabbed, and how if stede got a piercing it would be really funny if everyone expected him to be a big baby about it and then he handled it like a champ because it’s comparatively not painful at all really… only to start pretending it hurt when ed walked in in an attempt to induce coddling from his favourite guy. but now i’m worried that we will see him get pierced on screen and the writers are gonna like… decide that stede bonnet is the kind of guy to get really dramatic about it and his high tolerance for pain will get retconned for a gag.

however, imagine how funny it would be if it went like this:

stede: wahhhhhhh no no no wait wait wait ahhhhhh guys wait no hang on can we think about this ahhhhhhhh no no no

roach: we go on three. one! two!

roach: (pierces the ear)

everyone: …..

stede: i’m ready. have you done it yet?

everyone: …are you ok?

stede: …yes! what’s going on, guys?

like wee john or something idk: looks great captain!

stede: oh, was that it? nice! what do you think, do i look ‘cool’? this’ll get ed’s attention for sure!

[one-strugling-bean]

OFMD Random Commentary (Ep 10)

We have reached the end it seems - Let's make it count

Omg, of course, she's doing better by herself; I'm happy for her

I really feel bad for Mary, now

I really hope that orange survives until the show ends. Like, last scene of the show, Stede is writing some random letter in his study before going off to his wedding with Ed or something, and the orange is right there, as a paperweight, on his desk

Yeahhhhh the kids wouldn't be too happy with you - for good reason. You're a deadbeat, man

Huhm, I'm sure Ed's doing just fine, of course

When did Jim get back on the boat, what??

Jesus, okay, go for it guys

I am so proud of Mary, honestly

He's wearing Stede's robe, stooooop-

Lucius is everyone's therapist isn't he

Nononono, why are you going up to peak??

Ah, Mary's kind of explosion felt so good to hear. She's completely right, u go girl

They had a showing for Ed's lyrics, this crew is amazing

They're all so supportive, ahhhh, it makes me so happy

Mary, girl, just ask him to go away again, he probably will, it's easier

I enjoyed Jeffrey, he seemed nice

Jeez, Stede, way to damper the mood

Does Izzy have a crush on Ed? Or, well, Blackbeard? Why have I only thought of this now?

I'm gonna guess that by the end of the episode, Stede is gonna go back to sea - planning to find Ed and his crew

Why is he messing this up for her? Why why why, let her have her evening, man!

Ahhhhhh Stede, what are you doinggggggg

"I forgive you by the way-" Oh shut up Stede, you're making me mad now

I love Mary so much, you don't understand, in one episode she became top 5 for me

"I don't fit here anymore, do I?" No honey, you don't. Probably never did. It's just more obvious now

Oh, this scene makes me happy..... That hug made me so fucking happy, you don't understand....

Oof, meanwhile Ed is learning to let go...

Nonono, he can't be dead

Wtf wtf wtf wtf WTF Lucius!!!!!!!

I didn't mean that kind of letting go!!

He has a whittler partner to get back to!!!

And the books!!! All that literature!!!

Meanwhile, Stede is just, Stede-ing back home. Clueless to the chaos and destruction happening in his absence. Marvelous.

They're leaving them....? To die...? What the fuck

The orange metaphor was cute ngl. I'm glad the kids got some sort of closure at least

So they took Jim and Frenchie and left the rest. That's- that's- that's not right........

Omg, it had to be double death of course

No wait- triple death

Mary is amazing, I like her a lot. Don't think I've said that enough.

God, I'm so worried about everyone else though...

Lucius can't have died... right...?

Stede found them!!! Omg, I'm so happy Stede found them.......... I hope he has food in that boat

Aaaand roll credits..... just like that

I feel emotionally betrayed. How dare this show

Uhhhhhh, I'll do one last post after this. More collectedly, explaining some of my thoughts on the show. So uhh, stick around if you care about that, maybe?

[sylvies-chen]

listen I know this fandom has latched onto every detail of the teaser like bloodthirsty hounds so this might have already been mentioned… but have we screamed about how Ed is wearing the pearl necklace in the scene yet??? no??? cause AHHHHHH 

it’s also the scene where he does this: 

I fully thought that barrel shot was going to be like a Stede nightmare or dream sequence or something at first, but now that it’s clear that they’re all part of one scene and confined to this very specific post-Kraken Ed look, the pearl necklace being present makes this so much more interesting. And I know there’s been lots of buzz and speculation that the man Ed is shooting is Hornigold, so like… okay working theory walk with me here:

Ed reconciles with Stede and Hornigold or whoever this man is (among many others) catches wind of it and reaches out, calling Ed soft, making threats to Stede and Ed’s crew or maybe even offers Ed a chance to work together again or something. But of course by then, Ed will be fully committed to Stede (as evidence by the pearl necklace) so none of this will appeal to him in any way. And the threats make it worse, which is why he looks mildly scared or worked up in that first picture. So he kills Hornigold, symbolizing the death of the past version of himself and of Ed rejecting the lifestyle so many other pirates like Hornigold and Izzy and Calico Jack have wanted for/from him. And, in the process, Ed reminds people (the audience as well as people in this fictional world), that he hasn’t gone soft, and is perfectly capable of committing violent acts but now doesn’t do it for cruelty’s sake, only whe necessary or to protect people he cares about like Stede.

[dubiouscrow138]

These are legit all my thoughts and a couple more on the teaser.

BUT

As a person with experience firing single-load black powder muzzlelader rifles, the sights are WACK.

Pistols, now and especially then, are so much worse.

So the fact that Stede is RUNNING and manages to SHOOT the dude he's fighting without flinching, without fighting recoil, and with the gun going off first try?

STUNNING.

In that moment you see his skill growing and it's a fucking beautiful thing. The luck AND the ability. Assuming this dude has not fired a gun before S2 (which would be fair unless he was taught as a kid and likely hated it) the fact everything worked out and the dude went down is AMAZING.

Moving on.

I want to see what happens with Izzy, as well.

A few of the questions I have:

How well will Izzy balance after loosing his toe?? Why did we see him with Stede??? Did he ditch dear ol' Ed in Blackbeard mode after he had a knife thrown past him??? Will we see growth, character and respect and otherwise with Izzy and Stede??? Is he giving Stede lessons???? Is THAT why Stede turned to him all hyped and going "I did a punch!"???? When is Izzy practicing his sword skills with the candles??? Is this a him thing or a helping Stede thing??? How long is he shirtless???

LIKE AHHHHHH

I'm so feral for this. Go wounded me with S2 but this bitch cut to the chase in S1 so I will either be wrecked or overjoyed. Only time will tell.

Welcome to the documentation of hyperfixation, people.

OBLIGATORY COMPLETE OFMD SEASON 2 TEASER THOUGHTS AND SPECULATION POST™

Okay, to start off, I cannot BELIEVE we got this. I cannot BELIEVE we got a voiceover of Stede's note to Ed. We were all thinking it. We were all hoping for it. I CANNOT BELIEVE WE LEGITIMATELY GOT TO SEE AND HEAR HIS LOVE RIGHT OFF THE BAT. HE LOVES HIS ED SO SO MUCH.

Followed by this shot right as Stede is narrating. It's difficult to tell, but it seems like Ed??? The one-armed jacket and the fact that it's layered with Stede's narration makes me quite certain it's him. But ALONE??? AND COMING OUT OF THE SURF??? (There's a shot later that has me PARTICULARLY raising eyebrows at this moment. I'm thinking that he fell off the boat/was lost in that one storm shown later, and Stede of course is going to dive in after him or attempt to get to him in some sort of dramatic way. Which makes me think he and Stede are going to potentially talk feelings/reconcile on the beach)

And the fight choreography of this. Are you actually kidding me right now. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. GETTING TO SEE ED ABSOLUTELY KICKING ASS IN COMBAT??? NEVER IN A THOUSAND YEARS DID I EXPECT TO SEE A SHOT LIKE THIS BUT I'M HOLLERING SO HARD OVER IT (NOT TO MENTION, AGAIN, LOOKING AT THIS AND A LATER SHOT..........I'LL SCREAM ABOUT MY THOUGHTS WHEN SAID SHOT APPEARS HSKDLS)

Oh, they're PINING pining. They're YEARNING yearning. They're GAY gay.

They want to be back with each other so so so bad I'm losing my mind <3

"Fuck you, Stede Bonnet." The way he's JUST as dramatic as we were all thinking. The way he's hurting in a way WE ALL ANTICIPATED. LIKE, YOU HATE TO SEE IT, BUT MAN DSJKLDSSDKL. Also, the contrast of him saying that vs Stede's voice over is so so insane. The editors are INSANE FOR THAT ONE.

AGAIN, GOING BONKERS OVER ED'S CHARACTERIZATION BECAUSE HE SEEMS EXACTLY HOW I ANTICIPATED. Outwardly, angry, hardened, and cold. Inwardly, heartbroken, desperate, and wanting nothing more than to be back with Stede. Because hello, HELLO, HE'S NOTCHED WHAT I ASSUME TO BE HIS NUMBER OF DAYS WITHOUT STEDE IN THE WALL??????

HI OLU HELLO OLU MY DEAR DARLING OLU

but also screaming and crying and throwing up because this is ALSO what i was anticipating/hoping for. the crew being like "ummmmm lmao captain?? you really think you've got this under control???"

"You think Blackbeard's going to murder you?" I THINK NOT BECAUSE WHAT IS HE EVEN SHOOTING AT JSLDKS. OFF TO THE SIDE??? A WARNING SHOT????? Also the lighting of this and his look matches the ending shot so I'm very eyes emoji at this entire thing.

HOWEVER...

"MURDERER THRICE OVER?????????????"

Like sorry, that sign won't stop me because I can't read. Look at him. LOOK at him. You're telling me he stole the wedding cake toppers so he could PAINT HIMSELF ON THE BRIDE??? SO HE COULD MAKE HIMSELF INTO THE BEAUTIFUL BRIDE HE WANTS TO BE????? SO THAT HE COULD PLAY PRETEND MARRIAGE BETWEEN HIMSELF AND STEDE???????

INSANE!!!

INSANE FOR THIS!!!!!!

Again, bonkers editing. The split screen. The CONTRAST between Stede's hopefulness and Ed's depression. The WAY THEY LINED IT UP TO MAKE ED LOOK LIKE HE'S TAKING AIM AT STEDE. THE WAY THIS PROBABLY PERFECTLY ENCAPSULATES THEIR CHARACTERIZATION IN THE FIRST FEW EPISODES HSDJKLSDS LIKE BITING THE EDITORS BITING THEM BITING THEM

ALSO ED AND ALL OF HIS GUNS,,, NINE GUNS???????

It kills me because he's probably being exactly what he thinks people see him as. He's probably like "Oh, you want a monster? I'll give you a monster."

WHICH,,,, NO, HONEY. YOU'RE A SWEETHEART, SORRY ABOUT IT.

AND THEN LOOK AT THEM. LOOK AT OUR DARLINGS!!! FANG'S FUCKING SPIKES ARE SO METAL. FRENCHIE'S WOLVERINE COSPLAY SHDJKLSHDLKS. JIM!!! JIM JIM MY BELOVED JIM, AND THEIR PAINTED BEARD. THEIR GENDER!!!!!!!

Honey hsdksjds the drama of it all. THE DRAMA. CRASHING WEDDINGS TO DISRUPT LOVE BECAUSE YOUR OWN WAS DISRUPTED??? SIIIIIIRRRR THE THEATRICS, THE SPICE OF IT ALL

excuse me ma'am that is a gay man shdkjshkls THAT IS A GAY MAN. WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING,,,

kiss me instead like wtf

OKAY NOW THIS,,,

THIS.

PRESIDENTIAL ALERT: THE BABYGIRL IS FIGHHHTTTTIIIING

BUT IZZY WATCHING ON??? IZZY????????????

I have Genuine Thoughts™ about this. I have a feeling that the big arc/character development Con mentioned might pertain to him like, REALIZING what's important, and what Ed actually wants and needs. And a good chunk of that will be him realizing the consequences of his actions, and maybe potentially wanting to undo the damage. And also, in his Bitchy Izzy Ways™, he might also get very very tired of Ed's sulking/theatrics and want to rectify things for that reason too.

So I feel like he's going to sort of team up with Stede and show him the ropes for that reason?? So they ALL can work towards betterment???

WHICH IS NUTS LMAO. NEVER EVER EXPECTED THAT.

REGARDLESS, GO STEDE BABY GO!!!

HI REVENGE HELLO REVENGE PLEASE DON'T DO ANYTHING DRASTIC LIKE EXPLODE OR ANYTHING PLEASE BABYGIRL <3

yeah yeah the titties we've all seen them.

BUT AGAIN, AGAIN, STEDE OFF TO THE SIDE. STEDE WATCHING. STEDE LEARNING THE ROPES FROM THE MOST UNEXPECTED PERSON EVER SHDJKSDS LIKE WHAT!!!

AND HEEEEEEERE WE GO. HERE'S THE SHOT I WAS REFERRING TO EARLIER.

THE SAME BLACK SAND BEACH. FIGHTING THE BRITISH. ED AND STEDE. ED WITHOUT HIS MAKEUP ON. STEDE IN A DIFFERENT OUTFIT.

ARE THEY BOTH,,, FIGHTING TO GET TO EACH OTHER??? FIGHTING THROUGH CROWDS AND ENEMIES TO GET TO EACH OTHER'S SIDES???????

WHAT IF THEY FIGHT TO EACH OTHER AND THEN KISS HUH???

WHAT THEN.

HIIIIIIYYYAAAA JACKIE <33333

ALSO HELLO IS THAT THE SWEDE BEHIND HER???????

EXPLOSIONS FIRE EXPLOSIONS EXPLOSIONS FEELING VERY WEE JOHN CODED RIGHT NOW!!!!!!

AND THIS IS YET ANOTHER SHOT I WAS REFERRING TO EARLIER,,,

LIKE UHHHHHHHHHHHHH

WITH ED ON THE BEACH, AND THIS SHOT OF SOMEONE FALLING INTO THE WATER,,,,,,

I HAVE A FEELING THAT ED IS GOING TO DO SOMETHING THAT ENDS WITH HIM FALLING OFF THE BOAT. MAYBE HE TRIES TO SAVE SOMEONE???

if he fights to save stede from going overboard or something equivalent i'm going to eat all the tiles off my floor <3

LIKE IT'S BAD BESTIES. IT'S BAD. IT'S DIRE. THE WATER IS SO FUCKING HIGH AND THEY'RE IN A STORM AND JIM IS SCREAMING AND I AM ALSO SCREAMING!!!

But then also, LOOK AT FUCKING WEE JOHN!!! IN DRAG!!! HE'S A FUCKING MERMAID!!! JIM ISN'T A MERMAID???? WELL, THAT'S FINE--WEE JOHN IS!!! LIVING HIS BEST FUCKING LIFE!!!!! AND WHAT IF HE MADE THAT COSTUME HIMSELF SJDKSDJLS <3

AND THE FINAL SHOT I'M CHOOSING, THE FINAL ONE OF THE SET,,, MATCHES UP WITH THAT LIGHTING EARLIER.

WHO ARE WE FIGHTING, ED BABE. WHAT'S THE TEA. WHO ARE YOU CLOBBERING.

IS IT US?

IT'S PROBABLY US.

BECAUSE THIS ENTIRE THING HAS ME SO SO SO DEAD Y'ALL

[knowlesian]

your meta is so amazing, and I was wondering if you had any thoughts about how Stede wakes up in the beginning of ep 8? jolted out of a sound sleep by cannonfire, the first thing he says is "I'm just a stowaway!"

it's an odd line, and it's so out of character to how we see him behaving in the rest of the season.

thank you! also, you bet i do.

(disclaimer: i'm just sort of freewriting while i mainline coffee before dnd and don't have the episode at hand, so forgive the inevitable lack of paragraph structure and some forgotten precise details.)

in terms of really solid tv writing, you want to play around with connections with characters and compare/contrast them— and your a and b (and c) plots— through a shared general theme each episode.

e8's throughline could probably be summed up as people who feel (or are!) disconnected/out of place.

stede's "i'm just a stowaway!" is on the surface a funny line, delivered hilariously, and in terms of practical effect in-world it's doing some work to show us stede's not exactly ready to throw himself into fighting for the ship and getting stabbed for it again quite yet.

take it down a level to the thematic guts, and you get some cool shit.

first: stede's first instinct, rattled out of sleep and afraid, is to disclaim any responsibility or right to be on the ship. it's just full-on he wasn't be supposed to be here today at all mode. which is understandable and if you're only looking out for yourself, the sensible course of action: it's just not what you would want from anybody in a leadership position.

aka: the buck is not yet stopping with stede, at this point.

stede's desire to run from taking responsibility for his actions is one of the biggest areas of growth he shows during the season; it takes a near-miss with that skewer! in the earhole! to really get the party started in earnest, but he's getting there.

but then we get to that second part, the right to be there at all implications. that tells us that stede (just like ed) is unsure of his ultimate place on the ship.

he knows he owns it, and physically does not doubt his literal right to stand on the deck like ed does, deep down; stede's access to wealth has given him a level of confidence on 'should i have things', but none on 'are the things i have the RIGHT things to have, and am i wrong because i want them anyway????'.

instead of doubting that he has the right to buy a fancy ship (even if it's the wrong kind of fancy) stede doubts that he belongs at sea at all, that the buck will never stop with him because he's not a pirate or a gentlemen, and he is definitely not fit to be a leader or head a pirate family. he's a soft little rich boy, and that's all he'll ever be.

so that line ties him to ed in terms of emotional state and the general similar-not-the-same overall emotional and life journey they're on; ed is afraid stede will see he's been a stowaway on the revenge all this time, that the worthlessness he sees in himself will become clear and stede will send him packing just like he sent jack packing.

i guess in a way, beyond setting the emotional themes for the episode, stede is echoing something ed hasn't even said yet and establishing yet another way they could intimately understand and relate to each other if only they would HAVE THE CONVERSATION AHHHHHH USE YOUR MOUTHS. TO TALK. ALSO KISSING MORE. AND OTHER PURSUITS AS YOU LIKE. BUT THE T A L K I N G please make up soon. i am begging.

i lost the thread there for a second but yeah! hope that helped on why that line is lowkey a banger.

[teeny-tiny-revenge]

A hug. An actual fucking hug. The type where you're just squishing the other person, and then slowly it goes to just melting into each other. (The kisses were great and I loved the few casual touches we got, but both Ed and Stede need hugs so bad let them hug ahhhhhh.)

The wedding. I have literally never cared about a fictional wedding before. I need to see this one. Let Stede marry for love. Let Ed wear a pretty dress. Let there be so many flowers picked for the both of them.

I want seagull Buttons. Just, I think it would be really funny if in random scenes a seagull was just there, hanging out, looking on in a mildly judgemental way, and sometimes when something weird happens that nobody could have seen coming, the gull turns to the camera to nod sagely like he did in fact see this coming. The sage nod is very important to me. Ed keeps insisting the gull is Buttons. Only half the other characters seem to be able to actually see the gull. Nobody believes it's Buttons (it's Buttons).

Captain Frenchie leading his crew through insane scam operations. Make him sell crypto to the English.

I want to see Ed and Stede open the weirdest fucking inn to ever exist. Themed rooms. Snake on the menu. A library for the guests. Gift shop out back, but it's only fishing equipment.

Spanish Jackie. Give me more Spanish Jackie.

You know what. Manifesting some things I want to see in season 3

Ed and Stede getting to develop a new sense of dress outside of external expectations. I want to see Stede in leather pants and cunty heels. I want to see Ed walking around in an anachronistic mesh crop-top and bunny slippers

A post-Izzy world where Ed gets to determine for himself what he wants to do and who he wants to be without Izzy as a living embodiment of the pressure to be Blackbeard

GARLIC SOUP

Gd I just so badly want to see them get to really follow up on how Ricky was set up as a foil for Stede. Ricky gets so little but he's so fucking chewy give me more of him being like a fucked-up mirror Stede

Give me Ed and Stede's wedding. Fucking give it to me. I will personally put Taika Waititi in a wedding dress if I must

[magniloquent-raven]

AHHHHHH TY!!! i adore soulmate aus lol. i tend to like making the rules a little fluid, it's just comforting to me as an aroace person dflgkj idk. cuz everyone experiences love differently

SO! some more thoughts:

oluwande "i don't even know your favourite colour" boodhari and jim "my favourite colour is teal" jimenez. that whole conversation. they soulmates.

and i can’t stop thinking about like. how they probably met while jim was in the middle of their revenge quest and suddenly they’re seeing colours and going like, oh fuck no i’m not dealing with this right now, i have shit to do. so olu is just kind of stuck tagging along (which he doesn’t mind) helping them track down the dude they’re supposed to kill (which he DOES mind, especially ‘cause he can tell jim has conflicting feelings about it and they refuse to tell him the full story).

and through it all they develop this friendship that they’re both extremely protective of, and going from that to anything else would just be. hard. but especially when there’s so much pressure on it because of the ~soulmate~ thing. and there’s this added element of jim not having figured their gender shit out yet, and in my experience that makes trying to deal with your sexuality in general that much more difficult.

but it’s kind of depressing as hell for olu. he never put much stock in all the flowery stories about love at first sight and meeting The One and all that shit, and like. he still doesn’t, not really. he’s practical like that. but this isn’t some fairy tale about hypothetical people who don’t even have goddamn names. it’s about one person. singular. tangible and real and right in front of him. someone he loves. so he tries. he respects jim’s boundaries but he has to press whenever he sees an opportunity, because it’s not really something that can just go unsaid forever, and when you live lives like theirs you never know how much time you have left.

-

i feel like izzy would be the only person on ed’s crew who knew for certain that he couldn’t see any colours. there are rumours, obviously, he’s blackbeard, people talk. about how he probably can’t even feel love, and of course he doesn’t see colours, he’s above frivolous shit like that, he’s not a person to these people and the idea of him ever doing something so human and vulnerable as fall in love is just. ridiculous.

and that shit gets under ed’s skin like nobody’s fucking business. the blackbeard persona has always chafed a little, it’s always been a performance, one of violence and ruthlessness, but it’s gone on so long that he’s not always sure what’s man and what’s myth. and when people make assertions about him like that. well. sometimes it’s hard not to believe them. and it fucking hurts.

new crew members learn real quick not to talk about the colours around the captain. izzy makes sure they know. he’s had too many new recruits lose fingers over this shit, and it’s really not great for overall productivity.

there’s also just. the fact that the entire blackbeard crew wear black and white. and his flag is black and white. and he wears exclusively black.

until stede. after he meets stede, after his entire world bursts into colour while he’s staring down at this strange, fascinating enigma of a pirate bleeding out on the deck of a spanish warship, he gets hit right in the fucking face with a resounding, yes, you can have these things. it’s not impossible.

it’s a revelation for him. he’s a changed person.

and i can’t get the image of him in that pink robe out of my head. how terrifying it is to be that vulnerable. broken-hearted and wrapping himself in reminders that he did love someone, he does love someone. but the second izzy lashes out at him, he crumbles and breaks, without his armour he doesn’t know how to deal with a blow like that.

and then there’s the flag. that last little scrap of colour he gets to keep. the heart people always claimed he didn’t have.

there’s just. a lot to unpack there.

-

and some little quickfire ideas, when pete falls for lucius the colour he starts seeing is red & therefore he is always telling lucius how much better his lil jacket looks now.

izzy can see exactly one colour, and it's because he's in deeply repressed love with his boss. he refuses to acknowledge that the colour means anything and is more than happy to ban soulmate talk on the ship for ed's sake because frankly he can't stand listening to it either.

the colour buttons sees most vividly is blue and if asked he'd say it's for his love of the sea. no one is really sure if that's true or not (it is).

once the crew of the revenge starts to accept that they're basically a family they all start to see a little more colour (it's subtle, mostly, a shade here and there, but the more bonds they have with their crewmates the more noticeable it is)

ofmd fandom how we feelin about soulmate aus cuz im thinking thoughts....about the version where you see in b&w til you make eye contact with your soulmate for the first time

like. maybe most people gain colours a little bit at a time. whenever they fall in love they get one. the deeper they fall in love the more vivid colours are. there's tales of pairs who click instantly but most people think it's made-up bullshit, stories for little girls who haven't grown up enough to know about duty.

but stede always believed. always yearned. for the romance of it, sure, for the beautiful adventure of it all. but also for something beyond his control, beyond reproach, to come along and give him permission to love someone. and to be told that, yes, they will love you as well. and he wears that hope on his sleeve. literally. he hires a valet who can see colours to help him coordinate his outfits, wearing bright pastels in a variety of shades, hoping one day to know what they really look like.

and ed...well, he tucks his little flicker of hope away right alongside the scrap of silk his mother gave him all those years ago. he's gotten old enough to feel foolish for keeping them at all, but still. every so often he'll check, running his fingers over stubbornly grey threads, savouring the feel of it but mourning the sight. and it always gets tucked right back where it was, hidden under the black leather he wears like armour.