#percy is credence's big brother
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mattdeeryradio-blog · 3 days ago
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 A Sweet Treat: Heath Brother’s Interview MAWSB #11
In my previous blogs, I talked briefly about the famed Philadelphian Jazz siblings the Heath brothers. I brought up sax great Jimmy Heath and his bassist brother Percy. Albert Heath, who we have not previously mentioned, was the third prominent jazz sibling of the clan (Condit, 2003, p.43). Albert rose to prominence playing with the previously mentioned Benny Golson and got even more acclaim playing with the John Coltrane quartet (Condit, 2003, p.43). Jazz educator and saxophonist Rick Condit was lucky enough to interview the three brothers during a stint at the famed Iridium, which some jazz/guitar fans might know was Les Paul’s haunt in his later years (Condit, 2003, p.43). In Condit’s 2003 Journal article “The Heath Brothers: Giants of Jazz” we learn the brothers' influences, their history, the jazz circuit at the time, and the jazz scene of Philadelphia in the forties and fifties (Condit, 2003, p.45). Bassist Percy Heath recalls how his mother would take him to the Lincoln Center, which was part of the “chitlin circuit”, the same circuit that gave Jimi Hendrix and Little Richard prominence, at the young age of eight (Condit, 2003, p.45). The Lincoln Center, which still plays jazz concerts today in Philadelphia, had Percy experience greats such as Louis Armstrong, Willie Bryant, and Cab Calloway, at a very young age (Condit, 2003, p.45). Rick Condit asked the brothers, “What made Philadelphia Jazz different?” and “Why did artists come to Philadelphia to play Jazz?” (Condit, 2003, p.45). As mentioned in the other blogs I have written, saxophonist Jimmy Heath brings up the subject of the second-string bebop players in Philadelphia in the forties (Condit, 2003, p.45). In Jimmy’s words, he said, "Philadelphia being only 90 miles from New York, all the groups would come to Philly and perform. So we were in on the ground floor of the bebop generation.” (Condit, 2003, p.45). This statement that he said gives credence to the idea that the city of Philadelphia was partly responsible for shaping the sound of bebop jazz, which ultimately permutated to the style of hardbop jazz. What Jimmy is saying, is that since Philadelphia was in relatively proximity to New York, a jazz musician could get extra playing gigs, as well as scope out the scene happening in Philadelphia (Condit, 2003, p.45). Jimmy stated that not only big greats like Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker would come play shows at the bigger venues at Philadelphia, but that smaller talented local bands would regularly play at the clubs in the local jazz scene (Condit, 2003, p.45). Jimmy Heath said that the local Philly Jazz scene was “flourishing” so the whole jazz scene fed off one another (Condit, 2003, p.45). You could see upcomers one night at a small club, or a big name act one night at a bigger venue. Percy Heath states “Philadelphia was like a stopover because it was cheaper to be in Philly than to be in New York. So, all these guys could develop their skills and then hit New York when they got straight.” (Condit, 2003, p.45).
This article contributes greatly to my research, as I now understand, thanks to both Rick Condit and the Heath brothers, why Philadelphia was so important to the jazz scene. It appears that initially in the 1920’s and 1930s big band jazz players would play Philadelphia as a stopover gap to the much bigger payday of Manhattan. It appears that both Manhattan and Philadelphia were creating a new form of jazz from the early 1940s to mid-1950s the style of bebop. The big names of bebop of Manhattan were influencing the second-line beboppers, up-and-coming young guns of the scene. Since these younger players were younger and more brash in Philadelphia and were largely playing for themselves and each other, and not for a bandleader quite yet, this allowed them to be way more experimental with their playing. Because of this, Philadelphia created the style of hardbop jazz from these experimental second-line beboppers, which in turn ushered in a new jazz age of the mid-1950s to late 1960s, before fusion started coming into shape. We all know Philadelphia is a big city, but, strangely, we always seem to be in the shadow of New York. However, it goes to show, that because of Philadelphia, jazz was able to thrive and give shape to its hottest players, along with shaping the genre.
For production day unfortunately I did not get to join Zoom as I had work during that time. I would like to see if there is time with Professor Zaylea, or perhaps fellow cohort Joelle Delprete to go over the GH5 camera. I have a classmate of mine who, while not part of my cohort, could be a resource. His name is Robb Koncyzk, and while I don’t think he has spent much time with the GH5, is very familiar with Canon DSLR cameras, and would imagine, it would not be a far stretch from the GH5. Maybe I can set aside time to meet with any one of these individuals, if they have free time, I know this semester has been hectic, to learn some of the basics. There are two classmates of mine Tison Whitten and Tyler Loughery who seem to know a good deal about framing, as I have seen both of their work. Maybe, if they were willing, I could ask them how to get good shots and prepare. That being said, with the T.V. News Practicum class, I have been doing packages learning how to use the T.V. camera, microphone, tripod, and shotgun mic. For work at the University of Penn, I have been learning and doing recordings using a Panasonic camera mounted on a tripod connected to a Zoom recorder. For the T.V. News Practicum, Advanced Video Editing, and for my A.V. job at Penn, I have been utilizing both Adobe Audition and Premiere for editing both audio and video. For one assignment for Advanced Video Editing, I had trouble using the Blue Snowball mic. I finally found a certain setup to get good results from it, without feedback, hiss, or other weird effects that were happening. Two weeks ago, I used the T.V. Kit Camera and Rode shotgun mic to record voiceovers. I was having trouble getting a decent sound, as all my initial attempts sounded distorted. With the help of producer Maggie Przywara, I learned that the gain was set high on the camera, which led to voice-overs being recorded and distorted. Adjusting the gain helped get a cleaner signal and cleaner recording for the voiceovers. I hope to get some time to test the GH5 this week, and to meet with someone who can show me the basics of it.
                                           Works Cited
Condit, R. (2003). The Heath Brothers: Giants of Jazz. Jazz Education Journal, 35(5), 42-43, 45-48, 50-52. http://libproxy.temple.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/heath-brothers-giants-jazz/docview/1371012/se-2
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paintingraves · 7 years ago
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12. “I heard you scream. Nightmares again?” // Thesival?
“I heard you scream. Nightmares again?”
Percival looked up from his cup of coffee, bleary eyed and tongue heavy inside his mouth. He stared at Theseus for a second, before hanging his head low. “Yeah.”
“Hey,” Theseus said, stepping closer. He held a cup of tea in his own hand, and he took a sip from it, burning his tongue as he searched for the right words. “I’m cool with it. I just think, maybe you should talk to someone about this, and I'm just saying - I’m right there.”
“Yeah,” Percival repeated. “Yeah, I know, Thes.”
“It’s just…” Theseus hesitated, before deciding honesty was the best answer, manliness be damned. “We been roomates for over a year now, you know? Best mates, even. And seeing you like this…” He took a deep breath. “My offer still stands, you know.”
“Which one?” Percival asked with a hollow smile. “The one where you kidnap me and drag me to your car to make me see a psychologist, or the one where I should sleep in your room because it is supposed to make me feel better?”
“Both,” Theseus said nervously. “But mostly the latter. The former too. If you want I can call the doctors for you, come with you to appointments, even, but I can’t keep just… watching you as you refuse any help. I love you, man. You don’t deserve that shit.”
Percival smiled again, tight lipped. He looked far more lonely and sad than any guy had the right to be at nineteen, and Theseus felt at a loss for what to do. “It’s not the end of the world, eh, mate?”
“No, of course not,” Percival said dryly. “I just -” His voice wavered. “I just fucking nearly killed my brother, you bloody wanker - oh, God, Theseus, Theseus, what the fuck!” Percival buried his face between his hands and let out a muffled scream.
“You didn't do it!” Theseus said sharply, his voice booming as Percival broke down into sobs in front of him. “You didn’t do anything, Percy, this crazy woman did! You couldn’t have known!”
“I should have noticed!” Percival shouted, on the verge of hysteria. “Every evening that woman came to fetch him at school and brought him home where she was supposed to help him with his homework, feed him and then I’d be there at nine to pick him up, and instead she beat him where I couldn’t see, fed him the worst she had in her pantry and brainwashed him! My little brother, Thes! Even my bloody father didn’t notice, and he’s a fucking cop! What the fuck is wrong with our fucking family!”
Theseus didn’t know what to say.
He could only repeat, weakly, “It wasn’t your fault.”
“Credence has to go to therapy now,” Percival sneered. “He’s bloody nine. I can’t fucking believe this.”
“At least she’s been arrested,” Theseus said without great conviction, feeling weaker by the second in the face of such pain. He was a bit better than his brother Newt was when it came to understanding people, but he was still young, and he wished he knew what to say to make Percival feel better. His words sounded empty to his own ears, threads of hope they hung onto to ignore the fact that Credence was fucked over, and that Percival’s family was being torn apart once more. “There’s been too much evidence of abuse, it was even in the newspapers. Her own daughters will have to find a new home.”
“Thank God for that,” Percival muttered. “I don’t even want to imagine what they went through.”
Silence fell again.
“And she seemed okay, you know?” Percival said after a while. “Hell bent on religion, that’s for sure, but Queenie Goldstein is pretty much the same about being jewish and she’s the most adorable person to ever exist. Right? I trusted that cunt. I paid that cunt, and this is what we get.” He shook his head. “Didn’t want to follow my dad's footsteps just out of principle, but I think I fucking will. If only to notice such scum in the world before it’s too late and get rid of it. A policeman.” He smiled and looked at Theseus. “How does Officer Graves sound?”
“...Sexy,” Theseus admitted with a sigh. “Look, Percy - I’m sorry this is happening to you.”
Percival shrugged again. “Not your fault. I’m sorry for being such a shitty friend and roommate.” He swallowed his coffee in three gulps and gagged. “Motherfucker, that shit’s cold! Disgusting!”
Despite himself, Theseus laughed. “Alright, drama queen. Don’t forget your croissant. Left it on the counter.”
“Not hungry,” Percival said as he rose up.
“Baby, you need to eat.”
“Pet names won’t make me want to eat more or sleep with you, mate,” Percival said, but Theseus could see the hint of a genuine smile on his face.
“Can’t keep a guy from hoping. Seriously though - I don’t care if you hit me in my sleep or some shit, I’m a tough guy, can handle a few kicks and all that jazz. I just don’t like hearing you go crazy when I know I could help. Not to mention, I think the room next to ours might hate us just a bit if this continues.”
Percival snorted. “Last time, we heard them fucking till two in the morning, they can handle my screaming.”
“Well I can’t,” Theseus said. “To be perfectly honest, I’d rather hear you fucking.”
Percival laughed, and Theseus felt happiness bloom in his heart. He’d made him smile!
“I’d rather be fucking as well,” Percival said at last with a grin. His cheeks were pink as he looked at Theseus, and Theseus was reminded that Percy looked way more adorable than he had the right to be. Theseus wanted to kiss him. “And I will once these exams are over.”
“Oh?” Theseus asked lightly. “And who will you be fucking?”
“My own hand, probably,” Percival said mournfully.
“Didn’t Seraphina ask you out?” Theseus frowned.
“Oh, right. Told her I wasn't interested.”
“Oh. Why?”
“Just because. I'm not quite sure myself. It just didn't feel right.”
“So…” Theseus asked carefully. “Is there someone you’re interested in?”
Percival winked at him. “I’m not telling you, Scamander. C’mon, get out of the way. I need to take the bathroom and pretend I am a functional human being for one more day.”  
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sidekickjoey · 6 years ago
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My (Very) Spoiler Filled Review of Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindlewald
That movie was so much better than I was expecting considering all the reviews I’ve seen knocking it hard for the past week. Here’s my recap of my experience with it character-by-character, as well as some of my responses to reviews/criticism I read beforehand-- let me know what you think! 
Read at your own risk, there’s a lot of spoilers here. Scroll REALLY fast until you see the gif I put at the end, mobile users! I’m sorry read mores don’t work for you! 
1. Newt Scamander, never change. I found myself going ‘awwww’ way too much over this man in this movie. He’s so quirky and so true to himself the whole way through, and I absolutely am in awe of it. He’s seriously a dream of a man. The gentleness he gives toward his creatures and his utter playfulness with the ZouWu (look me in the eye and tell me that didn’t make you feel all warm inside) was breathtaking. Eddie Redmayne once again outdid himself with his portrayal of Newt. His expressions this movie too were phenomenal, especially since we didn’t always hear Newt speaking. A+ to him all across the board.
2. Let’s talk about Queenie. I see a lot of people upset at what Queenie became in this movie, but in all reality, I don’t think it’s as out of character as everyone is saying. Think about it: Queenie experienced something traumatic. She found the one man she loves more than anything, and then suddenly he’s ripped away from her because of a rule the main four all acknowledged in some way was super ancient and not right. She gets him back, but yet again, she is hounded with society being like “Hey, we see your love, but it’s not right and we will send you to prison if you try marrying each other.” That stuff gets to you. It makes you think irrationally. Someone mentioned “But Queenie was so smart last time and now she’s acting like an idiot.” Well, yeah. That’s kind of what Jacob was saying. It’s because she feels threatened, and that pressure has gotten to her so much that she is desperate to find a fix for it. Was it a lot to use a love potion on Jacob? Yes. Was it a lot to jump the gun and follow Grindlewald? Yes. But she felt she had no choice. She was backed into a corner, and Grindlewald held out his hand and said he can make all her dreams come true. When you are desperate, you’re going to take whatever chances you can get. 
3. By the way, let’s talk about Grindlewald. I walked into this expecting Hitler 2.0 to be honest, but what we got is kind of scarier in a way. Grindlewald is, as we saw in the first movie with his “Won’t we die just a little” comment to Newt, not exactly wrong. He’s fighting for things that should be fixed. He wants freedom and he wants truth. He wants wizards to have to not live in shame, and he wants them to be able to marry muggles and even interact with them without shame. However, he’s a bad guy fighting behind these causes. His methods and means of going about things are all wrong. With the WWII vision he saw, he pandered to fear to gain support. He took the message and said “Hey, this is the future if we don’t act” without informing them that, sorry to break it to you, that’s the future regardless. And that my friends is dangerous. He’s so sly and he’s so manipulative, and he gets away with what he does with his supporters because he’s not fighting for a bad cause. It sends chills up and down my spine thinking of it. Also, I’m not too fond of Depp, but his delivery of Grindlewald, especially during the speech, was fantastic. If anything, his role of the villain offers you a chance to hate him all you want. I really enjoyed his portrayal this time around.
4. Oh my goodness, Newtina. I’ll admit, I wasn’t the biggest Newtina fan coming into this film. I liked them, but idk, the chemistry wasn’t really there for me and it seemed a bit forced. This film, however, changed my mind. My heart freakin broke hearing Newt call out to Tina in his home. He looked so utterly devastated. And Tina reacting so hurt to him, calling him Mr. Scamander? Rip out my heart and serve it on a plate, will you? Newt is freakin precious around her, and you could actually feel he was crazy about her this time. His cute little fawning over her eyes and her stance was precious. It reminded me of when Harry talks about Ginny having nice skin. Tina’s admiration for Newt also was precious. The way she finished his sentence, the way she understood his methods with the ZouWu? Idk, I could feel she really is starting to understand him and become attached. My heart melts for them this time around, and even though the kiss didn’t come, I think it’ll be there next time and beautiful as ever.
5. Dumbledore. Jude Law can freakin slay. I absolutely was in love with everything about his portrayal of Dumbledore. I literally have no complaints, he was perfection.
6. Credence, or whoever you are. This was a bit of whirlwind. If there was ever a part where I got tripped up, it was probably at this reveal. One moment he’s the son of that nanny of his, then he’s a Lestrange, and the next moment he’s some random? I really feel for his frustration because how do you even comprehend all that. I full out shouted though when his big ending cliffhanger thing happened. A lot of people are tripped up because “in the canon verse Dumbledore only had one brother and one sister, JKR is ruining everything, doom and gloom forever.” However, let’s look at what JKR said: not everything we think we know at the end is true. This could be another one of Grindlewald’s mind games. Remember, Queenie told Grindlewald Credence was unsure of his choice. What if this is a ploy to retain his trust? And, if it is true, what if there is a lot more to the story that we will find out that explains why Credence went absolutely unknown and unspoken of in the original Harry Potter books? We are only two movies in to a five part series, everyone. There’s time to figure things out. Don’t let that stop you from enjoying the movie and ones to come.
7. My dear Leta & Theseus. Theseus was what I thought he would be. The kind of outgoing, stiff, Percy-like character who plays a near opposite of his brother. I liked though the moments when Theseus let his guard down and took care toward Newt. His hug was one of those times, and at the end when Newt hugs him back? Magic, right there. I wish we knew a bit more about how he came to be with Leta, but that’s okay. I loved getting to know her a bit and see her past with Newt. She seemed like someone who would give it all to protect those she felt she wronged or cared about, so I do not see her passing as all that out of the blue. Someone needed to do it, and it did two really important things. One, it gave Theseus something other than his boring ministry job’s orders to fight for. Two, it made Newt finally choose a side. Though our time was short with her, I adored her being around.
8. And then there’s Nagini. I feel like we will get way more time with her toward the end of the series. I loved her being there as Credence’s support and friend. I’m still wildly intrigued as to how she ends up in Voldemort’s company, especially after seeing her so pointedly choose against Grindlewald. 
9. The Troublemakers: Nicolas Flamel and McGonagall. Flamel was honestly really funny here, and I know some people have said he was pointless, but I really enjoyed him being there. He provided a good moment of comic relief, and in the end he helped save the day. Not every character has to be some dark, deep character. As for Minerva, I know the timeline is wrong. I get it. I think that was a bit of fan service so people who are HP fans but aren’t as into FB see a familiar face. Not everyone is reading up on HP lore and timelines. To some people, there is no problem with it. It sucks for those who know about the issue, but I don’t think it’s enough to start a riot against JKR for. There’s loads that doesn’t always make sense in the HP universe, and frankly, this will go down with that. Take a deep breath and move forward, everyone.
10. Lastly, Jacob. My sweet summer child. He’s really put through the ringer with this movie. One second he’s engaged, the next second he’s lost in London, then his girlfriend suddenly isn’t with him and he finds her at some villain rally? One man can only take so much. I feel for him at the end when he’s so incredibly lost and looking ready to die. Bless Tina for keeping an eye on him. I’m really glad he has Newt around. His moments with Newt were adorable, and I love that he, much like Tina, is starting to accept that Newt’s just a quirky guy. He’s starting to read and understand him more, which I loved the expression of when he stops going on about Queenie to talk about Tina for the very depressed Newt. He’s really coming around. I hope there’s a happy ending in the ropes for him. He’s more than just a character used for comic relief. I think he has something destined in the future. I just want it to be good.
Thanks for reading this incredibly long review! As reward, enjoy a Newt.
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the-love-of-reblog · 6 years ago
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My (mostly negative) Thoughts on Fantastic Beasts 2
Sorry y’all but I’m frustrated.
Fuck you with the Titanic in this fucking movie are you fucking kidding me???
“Your names is (whatever) Dumbledore.” Me, outloud, in the theater: BOOOOOOOO
Can’t Credence just like...be a random Wizard kid? Like why does everyone have to be related, this isn’t Once Upon A Time.
So like I know we all knew that Credence was coming back because of press for this movie but straight up, Credence should be dead and him being in this movie makes no sense.
Jacob “Oh yeah my memory totally wasn’t erased” YES IT WAS! THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO GET YOUR CHARACTERS BACK TOGETHER BEYOND JUST “UHHH NEVER MIND THAT PLOT POINT. WRITING IS HARD.” JKR WHAT THE SHIT.
I’m not against Queenie going over to the Darkside. It’s very interesting. But it should have been WELL. WRITTEN??? Like wtf bitch turns on a fucking dime. Give her more than one scene to side with Hitler. And also when her boyfriend doesn’t want to go what’s her motivation at that point??? UGH.
Leta girl I’m sorry you could have been cool but you were given nothing and then you died to spur our heroes onward. Why were you hated in the Wizard World? Can we get an explanation for anything? No one knew you killed your brother, so like...what was going on?
That drowning baby reveal was the only good part of the movie.
Ok the cat was the other good part of the movie.
Why did the big cat fight the little cats? Why didn’t all the cats just play? Just saying.
Actually I kind of liked what Depp was doing I KNOW. I’m SORRY. He’s an absolute fucker in life but he was kind of one of the strong parts of this garbage movie. Also he had a point about Muggles making A-bombs HEY THAT WAS A FUN MOMENT.
Remember when the Nagini thing was announced and we all said “That’s...questionable” but then we were assured it would be some really cool moment and it is...literally nothing? She did nothing. She was literally just there. Why did any of this occur?
Hey were is Flammel’s wife?
And why don’t they keep food in the house? Just because you’re immortal doesn’t mean you don’t get snacky what the hell?
HALF-ELF? HALF-ELF? YOU’RE JUST GOING TO CASUALLY DROP ON US THAT SOMEONE FUCKED DOBBY’S COUSIN AND WE’RE JUST SUPPOSED TO ROLL WITH IT???
That’s not how the Mirror of Erised works.
Why was there an amphitheater in a graveyard?
Are you seriously summoning your followers by draping Paris in black chiffon? You extra bitch.
The Niffler that came out at the end and stole the Glitter Brooch of Plot Point was a fullsize Niffler. And like...it Did Not take that thing. There was no way a groundhog zipped over Johnny Deppwald and he didn’t notice it took the thing. Which, fine, plothole, at this point, what’s another, right? Except we set up the Chekov’s Niffler of the baby Nifflers! Newt left a note saying “BRB going to Paris I took the Baby’s with me” and then THEY NEVER SHOW UP AGAIN. AND THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN THE PERFECT TIME TO USE ONE. Tiny baby Niffler stealing pins I would TOTALLY buy! But THEY FORGOT TO USE THE THING THEY SET UP AND I’M SO FUCKING ANNOYED WHYYYYYYYY????
Dumbledore just tell people you made a blood pack not to fight jfc everyone already knows you two used to bang like this makes way more sense and would help everyone.
Dumbledore remains a selfish jackass on the side of good who cannot communicate.
JKR McGonagall was not teaching at Hogwarts when Leta and Newt were children check your own timeline what are you doing?
Newt’s brother had a name but to me he’s just “GQ Percy Weasley” sorry bro.
This whole series has a major tone problem. We can track the rise and fall of Wizard Hitler and the quest to defeat him, or we can have unrelated misadventures with adorable magical creatures. Trying to do both is...uneven.
Bunty. Honey. Go get a new job. Please.
Flowers on a weird family tree...like...I get it and it’s stupid? Like I get it. But it’s dumb. It’s a dumb way of communicating a serious thing.
Casting for Young Newt was on point.
Ok so Leta switched the babies and no one knew. But they tracked the kid who went off with half-elf grannie and was handed off to the anti-witch foster mother (...ok) so everyone thought that that kid was LeBabyStrange. Meanwhile actual blood relative child was dead with the Titanic. Cue the Celine. So sad. Much tears. So in this world, there were 2 separate wizarding families transporting controversial male babies to America. On the Titanic. Two magical families -- in a world where Divination exists and is a real thing that people believe in -- decided to board the TITANIC with the magical babies they wanted to hide in America. Two of them. On the Titanic. Literally just...fuck off.
Are we really expected to deal with 3 more of these or is it just a trilogy? Because last I heard was 5 movies and I think I will cry. (“Just don’t see them!” BITCH YOU KNOW I’LL SEE THEM. FUCK.)
Leta’s wardrobe: the actual star of the movie. Gimme those shoes, girl.
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auroargraves · 7 years ago
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Ok but multiple people pretending to be Graves's husband/wife to visit him in the hospital.
I love this idea when I read that post because those who claimed to be his husband/wife were those who cared so much about Percival e.g Theseus, Tina, Credence, and Newt.
Theseus thought he had the big advantage here since he was a war hero but that didn’t stop the head healer from preventing Theseus from going in because, “You might be a war hero but you have no relation with Mr. Graves. Only close relatives and spouse are allowed to visit him.”
Trust Theseus to blurt out, “I’m his husband.” to the head healer. And when he saw her skeptical face, he barrelled on. “We got married before the war. No one knew about it because it was supposed to be a hush-hush thing. We were just young men who were afraid of death and we only had each other. And now he got kidnapped… I…Oh Merlin… I just want to see if my husband is alright. That’s all, ma’am.”
For added effect, Theseus actually mimicked Newt’s unassuming position; curling his body by wrapping his arms around his torso and it worked! The head healer huffed out a heavy sigh and waved him in and Theseus dabbed at the corner of his eyes and clasped her hand and murmured a soft, “Thank you.” before stepping into the ward with a dramatic, “My dearest!”
Tina though — she actually fought the assistant healer to grant her entry; wailing loudly about, “My husband is all alone in there! He must be so scared! I need to see him please! Please he needs to know about the baby I’m carrying. He needs to know that he can’t leave us!”
Tina rubbed at her flat belly and let tears fall from her face, her lips wobbling a bit when she saw the assistant healer seemed hesitant.
“Please… just a moment with him is all I ask for. Please do it for the baby.”
Credence though, he brought Modesty with him and mumbled that he wanted to see Mr. Graves. The healer asked if they were Mr. Graves’ children and Modesty nodded while Credence announced, “I’m his wife.”
The healer was too shocked to say anything that he let the both of them walked in while murmuring, “Well, Mr. Graves sure likes ‘em young.”
As for Newt… well the day he visited the hospital, the head healer was once again in charge of guarding Percival’s ward and when Newt told her that, “I am Percival Graves’ husband.” the head healer looked at him and said, “I thought your brother is Mr. Graves’ husband.”
Newt actually cursed Theseus but he plastered on a smile. “Well you see, my brother and I are both married to Mr. Graves. You know how progressive law is in England. That’s why Mr. Graves is allowed to have two husbands to care of him for his every needs including his very big sexual appetite and Percy has always have a big appetite to satiate so my brother and I always love to pamper him—“
“You can go in!”
Newt smiled, curled his lips into a grin because he knew how to manipulate people to be stuck in an uncomfortable situation and this time he succeeded. With a slight bow and a soft “Thank you.” Newt walked into the ward.
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dannissa13 · 7 years ago
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Shut up and drive
Here is the version for reading on Tumblr. Enjoy.
Things change and life goes by but sometimes meeting the right person can turn everything upside down. Rich boy and his driver find each other and shenanigans ensue. Love, sex, drugs, drag queens and one crazy aunt are on our heroes path. Will they? Yes! Won’t they? Maybe. 
He was never a person to hate his job, nothing was able to break his spirit, not even years of police academy training and that subsequent gross termination from the force, huge drug scandal he had gotten himself into like a complete moron. But shit just kept getting weirder and weirder as years went by. And as far as he knew this one promised to be the most difficult and shitty of all. Driving some wealthy prick around who’s barely legal to drive himself, and probably getting him outta trouble over and over again. Promised payment was good though, the first time in forever he’d have extra money after paying for everything and living on a budget won’t be a problem anymore. Is it worth all the trouble in the end - he’ll see.
He cursed his mother’s “exquisite” taste not once or twice in his life, both adult and not because when it came to picking a name for him she really pulled a good one on everybody. Choosing the fancy “Percival” over hundreds of others, she might have been blinded by vanity or trying too much to look like a rich lady but ended up screwing said Percival’s childhood in a big way. He didn’t blame her, not in the slightest. People have whims, and Mum was always drawn to extravagance. He sighed. All this recalling of the past didn’t help his cause, especially not today, on his first day of a new job. He had a few before, random and scattered in amounts of income and trouble he had to go through to complete given tasks but this type of thing was entirely new. After getting kicked out of the police, when he was still young and ambitious, trying to do the right thing, speak up in the situation he then deemed wrong, life gave him not even lemons, it gave him nothing. So, after piecing together what’s had left of his dignity he went on to do anything to keep himself afloat.
And now he’s supposed to just sit here, smoking, even though the new contract specifically forbids him from doing so in client’s car, waiting for said silver spoon fed, spoiled, rich kid, he read so much about in spare time before work started. Heir to the richest family in this goddamn city, lucky little bastard, had his fair share of fun in early days, before the “tragic and sudden death” of his parents, “poor thing, orphaned at such a young age”. Newspapers were full of ripe headlines when that happened, pouring more and more pointless condolences towards the kid and his new caregiver, boy’s aunt, a conservative politician with two daughters of her own. Now a senator, the woman held everyone in an iron fist, especially her children, but the rotten brat was still kicking, fits of his “heroic” benders almost a stuff of legends. That’s why Percy was here - not really a bodyguard, but close. Legally bound from actually disclosing true nature of his work to the client but obligated to take care of him and make sure “no one gets into trouble”. They’ve hired a wrong guy for this. Percy grinned. This is going to be interesting.
The mansion he had parked next to was glorious, all marble, columns, and statues, ivory colored facade with huge windows, in some overly fancy style the name of which he could never remember, with gargantuan wooden front doors adorned in ornate metalwork, polished so well you could see yourself in it. The definition of luxury, over-the-top wealth, and a bit tacky for his own taste. Something more modern would look so much better. There was more to estate than just the main building - opulent looking glass arboretum full of exotic flowers, a pool, the size of a small lake, servant’s shed, guest house, a parking garage, tennis court, and a huge field of perfectly manicured grass lawn, surrounded by high hedge fence, enclosed in a real, stone fence, with gates, guards, dogs and cameras. What did he get himself into this time around?
Last drag of the cigarette burned tips of his fingers and next one was in his mouth even before he could consciously think about pulling it out of the pack. Waiting sucked, chainsmoking was bad for him, but so was the unbearable boredom of simply sitting on his ass and Percy knew so much more of this would come later. The first thing he’ll buy gonna be a smartphone, maybe even the fancy one. Finally, something good will come from working for rich assholes.
Huge doors of the mansion flew open with a bang that startled birds on all of the surrounding trees and made Percy jump a little. With that noise came others, even less pleasant sounds - people were loudly and angrily fighting on a subject matter that wasn’t new at all for both of them. Yelling insults at each other, two voices Graves couldn’t identify were getting louder and a fight was coming to an end. With triumphant “Leave me the fuck alone and get the fuck out of my business!” tall and slim figure, dressed in all black slammed the doors shut and marched towards the car with a focused determination of a very pissed off person.
After taking a closer look of the cloud of black angry angst heading his direction, Percy realized that he got royally screwed over - this was his client and now he was supposed to deal with an attitude like that. This better pay off, because Lord above know Graves needs a stable job now more than ever, but if this little shit would try something like that with him, Percival definitely can’t guarantee politeness and flexibility around problems. Ain’t nobody got time for that.
When only a few steps separated them boy stopped, still not looking at Graves, sighed deeply and then, like a magic trick, untensed and unfurled, like dropping an act or changing a mask. This sudden metamorphosis was a bit creepy, to say the least, but seemed genuine, like something he was doing not for the first time. A new smile lights up the young fresh face and shining eyes were on Percy, studying him up and down. After waiving his hand lightly kid greeted him
- “Hi. You must be my new driver, right?”
- “Hello. Yes, I think I am exactly that.”
- “I’m so terribly sorry for what you just had to witness. My aunt and I have way too different points of view and our outlooks on life certainly collide from time to time. I promise you I’m way more well mannered with people who I don’t personally disdain.”
- “Okay, I’ll remember to not get on your bad side then.”
- “And we’ll have a grand ole time. Speaking of manners, I’ve completely forgotten mine. I’m Credence, Credence Barebone, nice to meet you. Yes, yes, I know what you’re thinking - what in the hell kind of name is that. Truth is, my parents were not only rich but also weird. I know, right, eccentric wealthy people calling their spawn an unusual name. Who calls their child something so bizarre in the twenty-first century, ha?”
- “You are not the only one wondering about that. Percival Graves at your service.”
He did a joke curtsy, flourish and a bow. The young man chuckled.
- “Nice to meet you, Mister Graves. We’ll definitely find a common ground, with names like that.”
- “Just Percival, please. I don’t really like being a “Mister”, makes me think about my age quite a lot.”
- “Then you should call me by my name too. Just Credence, no misters here either.”
- “It’s a deal!”
Kid grinned and shook Percy’s hand vigorously, maybe too excited for his own good. Thankfully this all went smoothly and this Credence wasn’t such a stuck up dick Graves imagined him to be after all. That’s a win in his book one hundred percent.
The boy climbed into the backseat of the car and Percy sat behind the wheel. It was action time, finally. After fastening his seatbelt and fixing rear view mirror Graves started the engine and slowly drove to the mansion’s main gate. Before leaving the grounds completely he turned to a kid and firmly insisted
- “Belt. I won’t go around with my passenger not following the safety rules.”
- “Alright, alright, I’ll buckle up. But only for you.”
Wait, was that a wink? Is this little bastard is flirting or something?
And they went to the city. The ride wasn’t really that long and Percy always found the radio to be boring and somewhat annoying so they drove in near silence and there was a comforting quality to that. Credence looked at the window, forehead pressed against the glass, seemingly so deep inside his thoughts he won’t be able to support any meaningful conversation even if he’d tried to. Graves didn’t mind though. They both were just enjoying the view.
When the destination was close his passenger left trancelike state of overthinking something and spoke
- “It has GPS, you know?”
- “What does?”
- “The car. Tablet and a mount for it are probably both in a glove compartment somewhere. At least they were the last time, but I don’t think that previous guy could have stolen it. Our security is really vigilante.”
Percival laughed softly
- “Well, thanks for the heads up, now I’ve changed my mind about stealing all of your earthly possessions and getting easy money. I’ll have to earn them the old fashioned way - by honesty working my ass off.”
- “You better do that. Where else I’ll find such a charmer with a sense of humor matching mine.”
- “You won’t be able to, I’m unique in that, even my brother doesn’t get my jokes half of the time.”
- “What to say about mine, then? Aunt Mary thinks I’m an asshole for trying to prank her so many times. But let’s be honest, she’s kind walked into some of those herself, I just tweaked the stuff a little bit.”
This version of Credence he definitely liked more, not the yelling angsty one from the morning encounter. Hopefully, he’ll continue to be more like this and this endeavor will be fruitful.
*A few weeks later*
He’s nice, this kid. Polite, sweet, caring, great sense of humor, huge personality, charisma, and charm just roll off him in waves but there is something about him that’s wrong. Percy is not able to pinpoint what’s exactly going on with the boy, but he knew trouble when he saw it. Credence was hiding from something and said something haunted him day and night. Yes, on a surface level everything seemed okay, all smiles and laughter, but at times, you could see the real boy, that emptiness behind his eyes, that dark despair in his actions, that unbearable desire to just run away from all of it. Kid acted out on those urges constantly - Percival knew all too well the tendencies of self-destructive behavior.
They met a few times a week and Graves drove him around to a plethora of different places - business meetings, lunches, social events, huge shopping malls and clubs, restaurants - you name it. Kid seemed to be fine, not really getting in trouble, except a few small ones, like drinking himself silly on some occasions or going out somewhere high as fuck, but mostly things went smoothly.
This day promised to be no different - drive him to a club, pick him up later, go through the closest drive-thru and get greasiest, grossest fast food, chow down on it and bring the kid back home. Easy-peasy, right? He’ll have some free time with Credence is partying and a meal afterward, pretty sweet deal.
Pulling up to some hot spot, all flashy lights and blaring music, security guards with stone faces, huge bulky dudes that can knock anyone out with just one punch, guest list, overpriced drinks and a crowd both out and in the facility - yeah, not surprising at all, boy loves places like this, Percy climbs out of the car and opens a door for his passenger, who is already a bit high on weed after pregaming with his pals.
Kid stretches his long limbs before getting out and shoots Graves an interesting look, half sided smirk indicating that he’s up to no good. Oh, that is a familiar expression, mischief written over his features in big bold letters. This deserves a sigh. What is he planning and what kind of problems they will get into? The boy starts talking which makes everything clear - two places in a list for only one person because his friend flaked out and it would be such a pity to let so much money go to waste.
- “Cmon, let’s go in! Better than just sit there and wait for me like a dog. It’ll be fun! You should have more fun, with me!”
Kid is basically whining all while pulling at his sleeve. Graves sighs again and reluctantly agrees.
- “Okay, okay, please leave my arm alone. I’ll go with you, but promise you’ll behave. It’s important.”
- “Whatever you say, daddy!”
- “Don’t call me that, goddamnit. I’m old, yeah, but not that old.”
Percival locks the car and puts on the alarm, only then following Credence, who’s long gone, chatting up the guy with a tablet in hand, talking about the guest list. The ease of getting into a party when you are loaded is fascinating. Securities part and tablet guy leads the way, into the small dark hallway leading up to even darker but bigger room. Some EDM is playing, crowd jumps up and down under the strobing lights and lasers, the smoke machine works it’s hardest and there even bubbles in the air. Well, that’s definitely overdoing it.
There is a bar with some stools but otherwise seating space is scarce, leathery couches beside the walls are jam-packed some people even sitting on a floor next to them. Credence says, more like yells to overpower the music, that he’s going to go say hello to a party’s host, whose birthday it is and he’ll be back soon. Percival signals to the bar and to his best abilities pantomimes that he’ll wait there, sitting his behind onto the first free space available. Bartender gestures to a gloving menu with rather inventive cocktail names, all of which are overpriced for the amount of booze they’re containing. Graves points to a water and gets a shrug and a glass of it with ice a little lemon and a straw, how fancy.
The place is loud, as he’d expected, flaring lights and all that smoke obscure the vision, his water is more expensive than a good meal and people surrounding him are superficial, stupid and shallow. Maybe coming inside wasn’t such a good idea. Getting a headache isn’t a priority right now. Time is put on hold, so he drifts away to his thoughts and goes through a few of the waters while waiting.
Boy jumps on him unexpectedly, long arms snaking around Percy’s chest, warm breathing on the back of his neck.
- “I’m back, darling! Are you having a good time without me?”
He’s happy, aloof and cheery. That means uppers, but not a lot of ‘em. Credence is rubbing his cheek into Graves’s, skin a little damp, eyes shining in the dark, irises are blown out and blush strong. Not the worst feeling, to be honest.
- “Not really. Are you ready to go? It’s kinda late.”
Kid starts to whine, pouting and dragging his voice
- “No, I wanna stay! We haven’t danced yet! I want a drink! My friends are still here!”
- “A drink you can have, but we’re going afterward, you’ve had enough for one night.”
Most of the people are actually left, maybe some of the aforementioned friends too, but boy was high and overly excited.
- “Give me Red Bull Vodka! And my friend’s gonna have it too!”
- “No, I’m not going to. Driving, remember?”
Another pout. This is kinda endearing but mostly annoying.
- “Then I’ll drink both! Maybe some E-s to go faster? We’ll come home in no time!”
So amphetamines it is. Goddamnit, this is going to be a disaster.
- “No. Sorry, kiddo, I always ride sober.”
- “Is that a challenge?”
- “No, that’s the way of living a long life with as little bones broken in the car crashes as possible.”
Credence looks like he’s going to cry. Lucky the liquor comes and boy downs it like water, one after the other, grabs Percy’s wrist and marches towards the exit in almost a straight line. When the doors of the establishment are in the view and fresh air is only a step away, kid stops fully, turns around and slams Graves into the wall full force, lips suddenly on his, soft mouth half open, running long fingers through man’s hair. He is taller, not by much, yet it’s noticeable. Percival has no idea how to react to that but it ends as quickly as it’s started. Whispering so close to his face that every breath tickles the skin, Credence explains
- “My petty ex, sorry for that. If he would have seen me here he would’ve told my aunt. I’m not supposed to be in this place. You were my only chance for cover.”
- “Understandable. Let’s go home before some other tattletale asshole recognizes you.”
A brisk walk in chilly night air almost erases the feeling of damp warmth from Graves’s lips although memory will be there forever. He has to hold the stumbling boy upright, latter crushing hard after adrenaline wave faded off. Laying him down is a hard piece of work, lanky limbs tangling and body not cooperating whatsoever. He’s conscious thought, able to speak, think and assert his will. Also for somebody who’s both high and drunk Credence is very talkative
- “You know what we should do? Shrooms! Like, right now. I know a guy, he’ll hook us up. It’s less than a twenty-minute drive from here, let’s go!”
- “This is a bad idea. I’m not taking you there.”
- “But I wanna be fucked up! Really fucked up, tripping balls. Aunt Mary will be so pissed anyways so I might just get the best of it and spend her rant watching rainbows riding each other.”
- “You are already fucked up enough and gonna feel like shit tomorrow’s morning, trust me.”
- “Who gives a damn about tomorrow? It’s not gonna be my problem, I’ll be out cold.”
- “And afterward, you’ll vomit all over the place, cry and wish to be dead.”
- “Yeah, that’s exactly how you know you had a good time last night.”
- “Sounds good when you are in the moment, but I know from experience how actually disgusting you’ll feel. Been there, done that, doesn’t recommend this to anyone.”
Kid laughs that stares in disbelief
- “You did some? Really? Don’t seem like a person who would, exactly, all adult and boring, no offense.”
- “I did. Stopped after that garbage wrecked my life. You should too before it’s too late.”
- “It’s already too late. She won’t let me live in peace or live at all, that’s probably my last years so I wanna go out with a bang!”
What is he talking about?
- “Care to elaborate, maybe?”
- “My parents. I think you know what I’m talking about.”
Yeah, that. Fuck, this is not a territory Graves wanted to thread even if he could manage to be careful and respectful.
- “Yes, I’m sorry. I’ve read about the tragedy.”
- “Oh, you most definitely had, it was all over the news: “Courageous senator takes the orphaned nephew, the only heir to the combined wealth of his parents, under her wing, giving him a new home and two sisters to play with.” I’m sure, Ma’s and Pa’s money wasn’t the main reason. She’s my actual aunt, of course, on the father’s side, his younger sister, mother had no real family that I know of, but as much as Pa was rich she was smart. They made an excellent business duo, the Investor, and the Inventor. Father’s money quadrupled in the first two years of their marriage. Match made in Heaven, people said. Aunt Mary wasn’t convinced though. She always thought my mom wasn’t trustworthy. When I was little, I’ve heard them fight, my parents and her, and, for a few months though my mother was a witch, because of my aunt’s words. Only after I’ve become a little older I understood that she used the different word, the one that starts with the “b”. She probably hated them both, her brother for being older and inheriting all of the money and my mom, for taking the control of my dad over, being an intruder, an outsider. She took his last name, she named me according to a family tradition but that wasn’t enough. For those five years, I’ve spent in her house, living alongside their family the only thing I’ve dreamed of is to get out as soon as I can. No, she never did anything bad to me per say, but she’d never hesitated with the reminders of her kindness.”
That was a truth bomb of a century. Damn, this kid is screwed. Percival has no idea what to say or how to handle this and the rest of the ride is grim and silent. They arrived at the mansion somewhere between late night and early morning, when everything is dead asleep and sun isn’t even thinking about rising, only living souls not in their beds are last security shift, who lets them through the gates. Credence is still silent, seemingly upset with Graves’s lack of tact and discretion around the painful subject but Percy still has no idea what to say
- “Listen, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked. It’s not like I don’t give a shit, I just don’t know how to say this. So yeah, sorry.”
- “I’m okay. Good night. I’ll call you when I need your services.”
Oh, that was cold. Boy disappears inside the house and from his life for a little. There is no calls or texts on his new phone, only some bits and pieces from servants group chat about Lady being angry and grounding the kid. Chief of guard spills a little more, telling that Credence got a big whooping and recovering from that, which doesn’t sound right. The situation is shitty from every perspective.
Percival comes by the servants quarters once in awhile trying to get any news, making friends with everyone who can tell him anything useful but people are definitely scared of the Lady Mary whom Graves haven’t seen yet. Who even has servants and calls herself Lady these days, good God.
Everything goes back to normal suddenly, much like it went south before. He wakes up one morning to a phone call and comes to pick up Credence like nothing’s happened. Boy definitely hides something but after the last time, Percy’s not touching this with a ten foot pole. This is not his problem.
*Two months later*
Their next outing is to another club in Brooklyn, how predictable now. When they went to gay clubs it was in the low and never to the same ones. Well, this tactic was working in their favor for now.
Boy always asked not to wait for him in front of a building, for hours on end, and to pick him up after he’d texted. That worked out for them both. Killing time isn’t that hard and there are some coffee shops to hang out in and maybe hit on cute baristas, or just read something like an actual person. Nightlife isn’t for him no more.  
Text he receives is pretty concise
“Wait for me outside in ten minutes. Don’t come out.”
Okay, it’s working time. Parking near the club’s well-lit entrance Percival checks his watch - one minute left, good job, and prepares to wait some more.The person approaching the car is definitely not who Percy was expecting. Long lean legs in some kind of designer shoes, heels high and soles blood red, shiny skimpy skirt, he wasn’t sure of the material but it looked like a translucent leathery condom, so probably latex, and a top, made of the same thing over a small, almost nonexistent bosom, covered with a contraption made entirely out of thin straps and metal rings, like a cage snugly fitted over the stranger’s upper body, fingerless gloves and a small hat on top of huge mane of raven hair - the whole getup is black, see through and scandalous. Nice.
This wasn’t a first time he drove some of the Credence’s friends around, part of them young, pretty and kinda stupid socialites, fun, drunk and a bit petty, part - weirdos, bohemian fancy fucks who were high on some shit, yelled nonsense and asked dumb questions. This one was probably both, beautiful and weird so ride promised to be a handful. Maybe boy’s aunt will finally leave him alone about getting a girlfriend when he shows up with this one here, but probably bringing home the lady, who’s dressed like an expensive fetish prostitute will result in even more scrutiny.
The girl opens a car door and not really that gracefully plops herself in the backseat. For such a young woman she’s wearing quite a lot of makeup, features dark but skin so pale it was almost white. He hadn’t expected her to start undressing either. Was this some sort of prank, or did Credence actually ordered him a hooker?
Her long red nails went first, one by one as she presses fingertips to them and watches colored plastic fly away. Next to go were gloves, then the hat, shoes and the leather body holster. She wasn’t looking at him at all, minding her own business and Percival was a little confused, to say the least. When the skirt and the top started to come off he decided to take the situation into his own hands.
- “Hi, there! I have a quick question if you don’t mind: what in the actual fuck are you doing and who are you for God’s sake? Why are you almost naked in a stranger’s car?!”
- “What are you talking about, Percy? You definitely know me, c’mon.”
With those words, the last pieces of clothing were gone revealing smooth pale skin, complete absence of breasts and shiny tape covering the genitals. Wig went off, cap too, and there was Credence in just ridiculous amount of makeup staring back at him.
- “Wait, are you secretly a drag queen?”
- “No, actually, but some of my friends are. It was a themed night and I’ve decided to try it. On a more important note, though l didn’t pin you as a type who’s aware of gay culture, you know.”
- “We all got our secrets.”
- “Now I’m interested. Spill it!”
- “Ugh, okay. I had a different life before rehab and met people from different places. Is that enough information?”
- “Of course not! But I’ll wait until you’ll be ready to talk more.”
This kid. Rummaging through a purse he whips out a package of wet wipes and starts rubbing his face, peeling lashes off and smearing black and red all over. That’s a mess. The whole packet is barely enough to remove everything and boy’s skin looks inflamed, some lipstick residue left behind. When it’s time to peel the tape of his junk Credence shoots Percy a sharp look which makes the man averted his gaze to the road ahead, glancing in interest while kiddo shimmies tight jeans on up to the knees and rips sticky bonds with a hiss. Going commando is brave idea after all of that. After putting the t-shirt on boy leaves the car to return borrowed garments to a tall tanned queen waiting him out. They chat for a little, painted blonde bursts into laughter a few times while looking at Percy and then back to the kid. That little shit. They hug before parting and then she waves you both goodbye as the car drives away.
Credence is surprisingly timid now, trying not to look in Percival’s general direction and twirling his fingers, fidgeting in his seat, checking the belt and doing all the stuff people usually do when they’re worried.
- “What’s wrong? You’re kinda jittery, kiddo.”
He freezes completely with a look on his face of a bunny who just saw a snake unhinge its jaws to devour him. Truth comes out of him in a few minutes, almost a whisper
- “Can you keep a secret? This secret. Please. She’ll freak the fuck out if I show up looking like I was before. And I couldn’t do it inside. Please don’t rat me out.”
- “I won’t. Also, why should I? Nothing good will come of it if I do that.”
- “It’s just I can’t trust anyone my aunt hires. She makes them spy on me and tell her everything. There’s no one inside that house to support me.”
- “Your aunt didn’t hire me, main security guy did. And I’m not from your house, right. This is safe with me.”
Credence’s voice is soft and it sounds like he’s sobbing
- “Thank you. I’m sorry I’ve acted like ass before. I’m such a dick to you.”
- “Stop it. It’s okay. Let’s get food and go home. What would you fancy this time of evening.”
He is laughing now and it’s so much better seeing him smile than cry.
- “Taco Bell! Let diarrhea come, I’m ready.”
Now both chucking, they go into the drive-thru and eat tacos in the night. It’s the most peaceful after party in Percival’s memory. When he drops the boy off latter still smiles and that’s warming man’s heart to the very bottom.
*Next week*
Past several days are packed to the brim with activities, meetings, and plans. Kid’s birthday is coming and he is busy as ever. One night that he gets off, after supervising all the preparations, is the night of fun for him and a horror show for Graves. They go to some friend’s house, then to a liquor store, then to another friend to pick up five people - it’s insane. When the gaggle of tipsy youngsters finally get off at the destination he asks the boy to stay for a little
- “Hey. Be safe there, okay. Don’t do anything stupid.”
- “Yes, daddy. Can I go now?”
- “Oh God, don’t call me that. But in all seriousness, keep yourself in check. And one more thing. Credence, please, stay out of trouble this time around.”
- “Aww, you really care about me”
- “Somebody has to, you know.”
- “Alright, okay, I promise I’ll try my best. Bye-bye, I’ll text you.”
He blows a kiss a runs off into the crowd. That deserves a deep sigh. After the few hours of mindless driving and visiting numerous cafes for a cup of coffee Percival finally hears the phone chime. Text appears on the screen
“Pick me up.”
He pays quickly and rushes out of the building, while chiming resumes, one text after another
“I’m outside”
“Take me home”
“Now”
“Percy, I don’t feel so good”
“Please come and get me”
Fuck, what did the kid do? Graves speeds up, ignoring few road signs to be there for the boy as soon as he can. It’s a record time, but he could have been arrested for reckless driving. When Percival pulls up to a club Credence is nowhere to be seen. Shit. He’s trying to find the kiddo behind the building, in the alley where people smoke, take drugs and fuck, sometimes simultaneously. Thankfully, Credence is there, back against the wall, eyes glassy. That’s bad, really really bad. Percy jumps out and hurries up to his precious passenger.
- “What did I said about staying out of trouble?”
His response is slow, voice weak and raspy
- “Leave me alone. I know I fucked it up, let me wallow in my misery.”
- “Fuck no! You’re coming with me. Right! NOW! Move it, young man.”
Graves has to drag the kid into the back seat and put seat belt over almost non-responsive body. Goddamnit, both of them are so fucked. Boy is blabbering nonsense at this point
- “Just drop me off at some hotel, I’ll be alright, she won’t even notice I’m missing. I’ve done it before, quite successfully, actually. Just lie to the old bitch in the morning and everything will be fine.”
- “Listen, I don’t really want to be a part of this.”
- “Oh, me neither, buddy. She’ll go ballistic. Totally not looking forward to that”
- “This can cost me a good paying job, you know. The job that I really need. I’ve helped you as much as I could, but this you’ll have to face alone.”
- “I always face her alone.”
- “I don’t think you have a choice here. We can do this the easy way or the hard way and you are the one who has to choose which way it’ll be. I’m not really a fan of the second option and it might cost me this job and some other things, but you know that I’m bound by contract and can’t really do anything about that. And I’m also the man of my word. Plenty of things I’ve fucked up in this life, but promises - never. If you can’t keep your word you can’t be a decent man.”
Percy waits for response but gets no answer. Fucking brat has decided to give him a silent treatment. When the sound of an opening car window distracts Graves from driving it’s already too late - Credence is already vomiting copiously out of the full speed driving car. Goddamn little pig. The rattling of the door handle is the last thing Percival wants to hear at the moment. Is that idiot for real? Does he really want to just walk out of the moving vehicle?
Pulling over near some dingy alleyway, as far from the street lights as possible, Percy jumps out of the car first, to help out. The younger man is heaving, face red, puffy and sweaty, capillaries in his eyes busted from forcefully hurling over and over again. This is incredibly shitty. He helps the boy stumble into the privacy of the alley and rubs circles on his back, whilst the latter pukes his little heart out, last few spasms just empty dry heaving, the kind that will only make you feel worse. Shit. Coming back now, looking like this isn’t a good idea.
Something from not so recent memory surfaces and Percy is ready to act on it. Grabbing Credence tightly he marches back, shoves him in and floors the gas pedal. Closest 24-hour pharmacy is five minutes away but they got there in two. After gathering the supplies and paying Graves storms out just in time to catch that goddamn idiot boy falling out of the car. After even more dry heaving and tears they finally go to a place Percival wasn’t ready to show to anyone yet - his home.
Juggling keys and a plastic bag with all the medical things in one hand and trying to pull essentially passed out Credence up the stairs man basically fell inside his shitty apartment. Oh, this is gonna be one long long night. Dragging lanky body, even though kid was freakishly thin, was difficult especially when trying not to bang him up too much. Percy’s bed, this time thankfully made, was the only choice of surface to lay an unconscious body on. Digging into the bag, Graves produced out an I.V. unit, tubing, and a needle. Being out of practice could’ve hurt this idea but man focused all the mental capabilities he owned and pierced boy’s vein giving him much needed fluids and medication to make Credence better. Turning him on a side and leaving a bucket for any mishaps Percy left to make himself coffee. So that’s how his friends felt when he was like that. Shitty kind of feeling, he’s not gonna lie.
In a few hours and two more packets of I.V. fluid kid was better, not so ghoulishly green in the face and less choking on his own breath. It was time to talk some sense into him. Walking into a room with a sick person in it is always hard so some psyching up was needed. Graves slapped himself in a face a few times and entered. Boy was laying there, on his bed, in his home, suddenly so miserable and distressed and small looking, curled like a fetus on his side, face wet with tears. Like a punch in a gut, that is heart-wrenching. Percy tries to be understanding and gentle
- “Hi, sweetie. Are you feeling any better?”
Soft murmur is almost inaudible
- “A bit. Thank you.”
That’s probably bullshit but at least he’s trying to be polite, so some progress was made.
- “Do you want anything? A glass of water maybe?”
Boy whispers something Graves can’t hear. Dammit. Now for even more pointless asking.
- “I can do anything you want, really. I know full well how bad you feel right now, kiddo. Let me help you.”
Credence coughs a few times and rasps out an answer Percival was dreading
- “I would like to stay here, with you for a while. Maybe even longer. It’s nice, your place, it’s real and lived in and so homey, you know. Feels like someone actually lives here, not like a fucking dollhouse I exist in.”
Oh, here we go. That’s why Graves doesn’t help people. Fuck, how to lay him off now, when he found himself a “knight in shining armor”, a savior from his horrible life. Damnit!
- “Listen, kid, you might think that your life is the shittiest, worst life in the whole wide world, that you were robbed of your happy childhood with your loving parents in your pretty mansion with awesome toys but you’re wrong. You are privileged and pampered and don’t have any clue what outside life is like. You’ve never worked for anything, never really struggled and you never will because you’re rich. That woman won’t have any power over you when you’ll turn of age and on your merry way you go, all parties and no worries, until the end of your days. This is not your life and this life is not for you. There is not a single goddamn chance you could survive on your own.”
- “So I’m just some kind of spoiled rotten brat for you, ha? I’ve expected that, kinda predictable, really.”
- “Can’t fucking deny what’s there. Money corrupts people. I get it, okay. You’re bored. Having everything doesn’t satisfy you no more, so it’s time to mess with other people’s lives. Now, lemme tell you something - I don’t wanna be messed with. At all. I have my shit to deal with, so please, can you not add to that pile. It’s kinda huge as is.”
Credence starts crying for real now. Huge tears, sobs, and snot coming out of his nose. Fuck, it’s only got worse. Percy needs to do something quickly, so, in a state of complete and unfiltered panic he leans over a boy and gives him a full body hug, pressing wet face into a fabric of his shirt. Kid is wailing, grabbing him like he’s drowning. Graves clumsily pets his head and back and tries to murmur something soothing. Crying stops in a few minutes and Credence just lays there, pressed into him and breathing heavily.
- “Listen, I didn’t mean to hurt you like that. You’re not a complete stranger to me and I care about you but that’s not something I have a lot of experience with. Suff like that is hard for me, I don’t know what to say or how to feel. I want to help but I don’t think I’ll be helpful.”
- “This is all her fault! That disgusting, vile, worthless bitch ruined my life. She’s always onto me and it’s hard for to be genuinely disinterested and unenthusiastic about things I like and she knows that and uses that knowledge to get to me every single time. Concealing my true feelings, my real identity, being fully aware of how I act, how I talk, how I move is a fucking torture. That repulsive scum of the Earth is always ready to strike and always happy to do so. I hate her, I’m tired of this and I just want to be myself, to be accepted. It’s so draining not only emotionally but physically too.”
- “Well, I’m sorry for you, kid, but there’s nothing I personally can do about it. It’s your life and the power is yours. Tell her to piss off, take the situation into your own hands and do whatever you like. And whatever she does to you isn’t your fault. You are stronger than this and you can fight her back. Take what’s yours   and leave.”
- “As soon as I turn twenty-one. Next week. I’ll do it! Thank you, Percy.”
- “That’s the spirit! I’ll support you as much as I can, but, ultimately, you are the one to do it. And I believe you can.”
- “Thank you.”
His eyes are glimmering and he’s smiling beautifully. Fuck, Percy is so screwed. Boy leans in and parts his lips a little. Oh no, Graves feeling the huge mistake coming yet still goes with it. The kiss is soft and chaste, Credence’s hands all around him and gentleness of this encounter melt the rest of coldness inside Percy’s soul. They sit calmly, still hugging and kid finally drifts off. The man decides not to leave his side and falls asleep next to the boy. It’s the best night of sleep he had in years.
Morning is hazy, they hurry back to the mansion but before leaving the apartment Credence kisses him again, morning breath and all, still that doesn’t bother Percival even a bit. They drive in nice silence, holding hands, boy now sitting in a front seat and it’s magnificent. He’s probably falling in love, fuck. Before leaving the car kid turns around and with a serious look tells Percy something that both comes as a shock but also as an old news
- “I’ve liked you from the first day we met.”
- “You know, I kinda got that from all of your flirting.”
Boy blushes heavily.
- “No, you weren’t sneaky at all. But that was sweet. I like you too. Now go before we get in trouble.”
Credence squeezes man’s palm before climbing out and going inside. Oh good God, what did Percival got himself into?
*Credence’s Birthday*
So, the day has come. Twenty-first birthday of Credence Barebone, the single richest miserable boy in the world. Percival was ready, he bought the present and cleaned his apartment, leaving beautifully packaged box in the middle of the bed. Champagne, strawberries and chocolate cake in the fridge, pressed suit on, few spritzes of cologne - he was prepared as fuck.
Driving up to a highly decorated front gate Percy spotted the man of the hour himself, dressed more casually than Graves expected. Tight leather pants, plaid shirt, and a mesh tank top. Yes, sure, he looked incredible in the getup but how about the fancy party they were supposed to head to? Something definitely went wrong, kid never came this far to meet him.
Credence almost ran to a car wasting no time on climbing in, close to Percival. They both smile
- “Hello to you, birthday boy! So what’s all of this is about?”
- “Hi, handsome! Well, we discussed my party with aunt Mary and I’ve decided to spend my day the way I actually wanted to. So we’re going to a club my friends booked up and we gonna party ‘till we drop! Cool, ha?”
- “You had a fight, right?”
- “Yes, we had one. But I’m a legal adult now and I can do what I want to. So let’s go!”
- “Are you sure that it’s a good idea?”
- “Oh come on, old man, don’t be such a grouch, just join me for a bit of harmless fun. We’ll have everything - drinks, drugs, food. Let’s go, you really need something like this just about now. I personally know how big of a cunt my dearest aunt can be, so, for putting up with Auntie Cuntie’s bullshit you need a good reward. Forget about her and let’s roll!”
- “Okay, but I’ve warned you, just by the way. If we’re gonna get into something you’ll bail us out, it’s kinda your turn.”
- “Fine! And don’t be so grumpy, you’ll like it, it’ll be fine, you just need some molly and life will get peachy!”
- “That’s not the best idea you’ve had. Let’s not get high at all, okay. It’s bad for you!”
- “So why’d you smoke then? It’s bad for the health too, you know, it’ll destroy your body eventually.”
- “Oh yes, I’m well aware of that. But tell me, sweetness, what’s not gonna kill you these days? The air we breathe is polluted, the things we eat are highly processed, everything around us slowly goes extinct, diseases becoming more and more potent and garbage litters our habitats, even going into space. We’re fucked as a civilization and as a species, we’re doomed as a society. Why should I care about lung cancer or heart attacks when I have a bigger chance of dying even before that can happen to me. And, then, why do people who live “healthy” lifestyles are still dying of the same things. Yeah, I don’t really give a fuck anymore, if it’s doing nothing to help or harm me really, why stop.”
- “Well, fuck. That kind of life philosophy is deeply flawed and quite depressing.”
- “I don’t really care much about that.”
- “Maybe you should, and things in your life won’t suck as much!”
Percival chuckles
- “ And maybe I want something to finally suck me off.”
Boy’s face flushes in pink so fast upon hearing those words. It’s delightful seeing him flustered and hiding his eyes. So cute.
- “The rant about smoking was sarcastic actually. I wanted to quit for a long time now. Who knows, maybe you’ll help me.”
Credence is even cuter now, hopeful and happy and so adorably helplessly sheepish with affection. You can feel the waves of adoration rolling off him. Such a sweetie.
They parked next to the club and Percy recognized the place.
- “Is that the same place you did a drag night in?”
- “You’ve remembered it? Yes, my best friend works here and he’s, sorry, she’s booked for today.”
- “Tall, tanned blonde? She made a great girl out of you. But don’t worry, I prefer you as a boy hundred times more.”
He’s blushing again. This is so fun. They get in and place is decorated with every possible thing in the party store, bright colors and crinkling plastic everywhere. A huge group of people waits for them and cheers when Credence walks in. All those people are his friends. And he deserves each and every one of them.
People surround kid’s and congratulate him, wishing a ton of things and filling his hands with presents. Percival hopes boy is having a good and excuses himself to a bar. Well, he just can’t skip a celebration like this, so they are Ubering home tonight because he’s drinking.
Six Long Island iced teas and five White Russians later Percy is pretty shitfaced, relaxed and happy. The show in the background isn’t as obnoxious as he’d expected but maybe alcohol gave him more tolerance to that kind of bullshit. Music starts playing and everyone storms to a dance floor leaving him alone with bartender. Gesturing for a refill he hears footsteps approaching
- “Make that two, Candy. And put it on gentlemen’s tab. No lady should pay for her drink.”
Percival turns to find that drag queen from before sitting next to him, dressed in sparkly rhinestoned black leotard, insanely high heels and bunny ears, tail is probably somewhere there too
- “Hi! Did you want to speak to Credence? Unfortunately, I can’t find him in the crowd, but you might be able to do that from the stage.”
She’s laughing
- “No, deary, I wanted to speak to you. But first, the treat.”
And downs her drink in one gulp. Impressive.
- “You seem like a nice guy, I’ll give you that. And the benefit of a doubt. But our dear, sweet Credence has been through hell and back and I don’t want nobody hurting him, you get me? So, in case you don’t actually have feelings for him, stay the fuck away. Is that clear?”
- “More than clear, Ma'am. I do actually have feelings for him, and think that’s none of your business but, considering that Credence likes your company so much I won’t tell you to piss off right away. We can try to be friendly to each other at least.”
- “Well, I like your style. He chose right this time. Don’t break his heart or I’ll break your face. Bye.”
And she downs his drink too before leaving. What a bitch. Strong, confident, cool bitch. The bartender puts three shots before him, on the house. Graves waists no time and takes them one after the other. Oh Jesus, was that a moonshine? While he’s trying to remember how to breathe, kid jumps onto his back and squeals from glee
- “Best. Party. Ever. This is so awesome!”
He seems off, though, movements twitchy and weird, excitement clearly chemically amplified. This is worrying.
- “We gotta go, Credence, it’s time for you to get home. I don’t want it to be like the last time.”
- “I don’t wanna do that. Not now, not ever. That place is not my home, it never was. It’s just the house I live in. I don’t have a home since Ma and Pa died.”
This again. Dammit, Percy hoped not to provoke that type of conversation on the boy’s special night.
- “I’m talking about my home, kiddo. I have something there for you. That was supposed to be a surprise but I just couldn’t help myself. So, whatcha think? Let’s ditch them and go?”
Boy smiles so widely his cheeks probably hurt.
- “Okay, but gimme a kiss first!”
And they do kiss, boy’s tongue inside his mouth and weird taste with it. Graves notices the effects only when it hits him. That’s uppers. Credence shoved a bunch of molly in his mouth. Goddamnit. Alcohol and drugs hit him hard, all inhibitions lost and mind open to anything. Everything’s a blur, faces, shapes, lights. It’s all so bright and bizarre and loud. He remembers only fragments: dancing, kissing, drinking some more, singing, contests and doing coke of off Credence’s stomach. How they end up in the bathroom is a mystery yet the door’s closed and no one is there to interrupt them passionately making out.
When thin long legs cross behind Percy’s hips and pull him flush against kid’s crotch a brief moment of lucidity brakes through all of the substances bringing one sober thought - this isn’t right.
“Graves, what the fuck are you getting yourself into? He’s barely an adult, he’s technically your employer and his mental aunt will eat you with shit for breakfast. You are so fucked. Why are you doing this? Just say no. Politely decline his advances, go home, masturbate for a few hours and the next day it will be like nothing ever happened. He’ll forget everything, he’s so high. And you are high too. This is such a bad idea.”
The voice in his head, that annoying subconscious worm who ate his hopes and dreams, that piece of shit, was drilling his brains again with the usual. Although Credence’s advances were a good distraction, especially when he starts palming Percival’s cock through the fabric of his pants and moans softly.
Ah, fuck it. What did the kid yell the other day? YOLO? So be it, you really only live once, it’s time for him to live again. Maybe that’s drugs talking or maybe it’s just the years and years of suppressed desires coming back to him, but Percy was ready to party like he did long long long time ago and there was nothing to stop him. Finally.
And his lean beautiful body promised infinite pleasure, the most sensual good time on this earth. Goddamnit stop thinking about him this way. Fucking poet all of the sudden, this always happens when he’s high.
But all of the words in the world can’t describe the way Credence rubs himself against Percival’s body and how hard, hot and bothered he is. Oh, how strong is the desire to just devour him whole. They kiss aggressively, biting and wrestling their tongues, hands palming one another greedily. Boy is panting already, eyes dark with want and lips bright from kissing and moist with saliva. Percy’s dress shirt goes first, suit jacket and tie he cautiously left in the car before entering the club. Kid’s top follows, leaving him in mesh only which spikes man’s interest even more. Biting a pink nipple through the fabric, squeezing his ass and rutting into boy’s hardness with his own is intoxicating.
Credence is moaning louder and louder as less and less clothing separates them. Percival pulls his own trousers and boy’s leather pants to expose them both and rub themselves together. Kid’s jaw goes slack as he bucks into the hand pleasuring him and digs fingers into Graves’s back. The sting of pain only makes him hotter and now aforementioned leather garment is pulled down to Credence’s ankles and Percival is firmly between them, petting the soft skin on the back of boy’s thighs. Only thing latter can choke up is a desperate plea  
- “Back pocket, there’s lube. You’ll tear me with that thing of yours without it.”
Another wild kiss. Another breathless moan
- “Stretch me first, please. You’re fingers, I want them inside me. Hurry! I can’t handle myself no more!”
So Graves is lifting Credence’s whole body up into the air and propping him on a sink counter, boy’s knees squeezing Percival’s ribs while latter’s hands ran across untouched buttocks and loin. Prying said lube is a task in on itself and Percy has to open the package with his teeth, spitting chunk of wrapper on a floor. Lathering his fingers quickly he gently traces middle one between boy’s cheeks before teasing the tight ring of muscle with barely a tip. Kid shivers and pushes himself forwards seeking penetration.
- “Hold your horses sweetie. You wanted to be ready, right? So let me help you.”
- “Don’t tease me, please. I want you so badly. Percy, fuck me!”
- “Your word is my command, baby.”
And with that one finger is inside boy’s body. His hole flutters when Graves curves a fingertip upwards upon thrusting in, picking up pace. Credence moans every time Percival moves and soon he’s ready for more. The second finger goes in smoothly, joining the first, stretching hot, velvety tightness. A perfect litany of sighs moans and gasps leaves boy’s lips when his mouth isn’t occupied by Graves’s.
Leaving a trail of bite marks and hickeys, bright purplish-red against almost white skin Percy showers boy’s neck and collarbones in attention while adding the third finger in. Kid writhes and gasps trying to find purchase and to sink more on digits pumping in and out of his body. Wet sounds fill the room, boy is begging for more with his movements and noises and Graves complies.
Pulling out completely Percy gives Credence a soft kiss and before kid is able to say anything else opens up a condom he found in the same pocket lube was in. Just touching himself right now is too much, the head of his cock swollen and slick with pre-come. Unrolling the rubber slowly Graves hisses at the feeling. He hopes Credence is ready because he can’t wait anymore.
Pushing in slowly he looks into boy’s eyes intently, watching his expression, gentle not to hurt the kid. Surprisingly it easy, sliding inside to the hilt while Credence is tensing completely before going slack and moaning. He is tight, hot and trembling, delirious with raw want. As Percy’s trying to steady himself before going any farther boy starts rocking forwards, impaling his body on a hard cock, letting out soft sobs. When they change the angle kid goes ballistic, clenching around Percival, clutching his neck, clawing the back of man’s head. Graves repeatedly thrust into that sweet spot, grinding it some more.
All those drugs are messing with his ability to last and he is already getting closer than he would have liked to. Every friction sends a red-hot wave up the pit of Percival’s stomach and when they pick up the pace it becomes almost unbearable. Sharp jolts of pleasure make his head swim and hands shake. Boy’s breath, hot and damp against his skin makes him prickle with goosebumps, makes his nipples hard as he rubs their bodies together, chasing kid’s warmth, pressing Credence’s rock hard cock better them.
Throaty whimpers boy makes go higher in pitch, he quivers and trembles and rubs himself back against Percy’s skin. Rhythm is punishing, bodies move in perfect sync, everything else completely fades. Only them and sweet pleasure ahead. Kid’s shaking rasp voice in his ear begs for more
- “Don’t stop, please! I’m so close! Cum inside me! Please! Feels so good!”
Broken moans and gasps leave boy’s mouth while Percy earnestly thrusts into him, hard and fast, rocking the thin form underneath him, making Credence arch like a bow opening pale throat for further assault. They both are so unbelievably close, kid’s body clenching hard, core tight with anticipation and Percy can’t take it anymore, hoarsely moaning
- “Now be a good boy and come for me!”
And Credence unravels completely, almost shouting, convulsing, squirting cum all over their bodies, his body spasming chaotically, muscles fluttering, milking Percival’s cock. Graves climaxes hard, rocking himself into his sweet boy, grunting, and moaning. Aftershocks are exquisite, warmth and relaxed calm happiness fill them both. Embracing each other they pant for air and kid giggles. After a slow and gentle kiss, Percy pulls out and takes the condom off, tying it and tossing into a trash can. Credence pulls his pants up, face scrunching as the material touches his ass. Then chuckles softly when Graves gives him a concerned look
- “I’ve never been fucked like this before. Good God, I can barely stand. You’ll probably have to carry me to our car like a bride now.”
- “And I will. Do you need time to recover?”
- “Not really. I’m still very much high. Let’s go, we should come out if we wanna go anywhere.”
- “Did you plan this, by the way?”
- “Birthday sex? Yes. The best gift in the world! What else did you get me?”
- “Round two, if you’re a good boy.”
Credence most definitely is expected by that proposition and after hasty fixing their clothing both men walk out only to be ambushed by a cheering crowd. Fuck, they heard everything. Percival has no idea where to hide his face and how to avoid stares so the first drink in his proximity ends up in his mouth before he can even collect himself. And another one, and another one. It’s a bliss, being so hammered that nothing bothers you anymore.
He doesn’t remember how exactly did they get home, but they are in his bed, nude and cuddling, boy’s head on his shoulder, legs tangled together, hands wrapped around each other and for the first time in forever Percival feels complete. He’s loved and he’s loving back, all thanks to this disaster of a man lying beside him. Credence is amazing and deserves happiness and Percy will do anything to make his dear beloved boy happy.
The end.
P.S. Oh, hi there. Thanks for reading, please leave me a comment or like and reblog if you’d enjoyed it. Ask me stuff here on Tumblr and my other fics are here and here. Go bother me, I’ll be happy to talk to you. Bye.
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