#that milo costume fucks SO hard

[athenianblessings]

Minding my own damn business when I notice that Milo costume in the KotZ 3rd anniversary banner

[spid3r-trans]

↓↓ some quick twins au for the birthday boys!!! ↓↓

If there’s anything Milo Morales hates, it’s spiders. So when a certain mask-wearing idiot crashes through the window of the room that he shares with his brother, he knows he’s fucked. 

When Milo gets home from school, his twin is nowhere to be found. He’d expected it, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it. 

Milo would cover for his brother in a heartbeat, but having to explain to his parents why they hadn’t come home together— having to lie to them at all — well, Miles better have a phenomenal reason to be out on this particular Friday night. 

Something about his brother has been off the past few days. Since the death of Spider-Man hit the news, Miles was more anxious than usual. He was hard to reach, and never where he was supposed to be. Milo can only give so many excuses to their teachers, and classmates-- to their parents before they all start to catch on. 

But worse, Milo didn’t know there were secrets they couldn’t share with each other. 

He thought they told each other everything, that no matter what happened— what either of them said or did — they would have each other's backs. 

Nothing was supposed to come between them. 

So what had?

Milo punches his pillow, getting the lumps out before he buries his face in the purple sheets. 

Seriously, his brother better have the hottest date in the world. That would be the only explanation Milo would accept, but that theory also relies on his twin having any sort of game— so Milo is really out of ideas. 

He reaches for his headphones, cranking the volume and squeezing his eyes shut as if the action alone could stop his thoughts from racing. 

Milo barely hears the tapping. 

It’s light at first— a gentle rapping against the glass window — easily mistaken for the raindrops. But it gets more urgent, insistent– annoyingly offbeat with the music from in his headphones to the point where it's nearly unbearable. 

Milo pulls them off his head and sits up, squinting at the window through the darkness. 

For a while, he doesn’t see anything. Just the rain splattering against the glass. But his heart is pounding, the hair on his arms is raised.

He knows something is wrong even if he can’t see it.

The window creaks. Fingers slide underneath. 

Milo’s hands find the baseball bat he keeps by his bed just as the window starts to slowly open. Slowly. Slowly.

There’s a sharp CRACK of thunder followed by a flash of lightning that illuminates the silhouette of a figure– a person– crawling through the window.

On all fours. 

The scream leaves Milo’s mouth just as his brother removes his mask.

–

Their father is at the door in seconds– nearly breaking it off its hinges as he throws it open– only to find his one of his sons lounging nonchalantly on his bed. 

Milo blinks up at him.

“Oh, sorry dad. Did you hear that? I was just watching a scary movie. CGI is really crazy these days.” He lets out the start of a laugh, but stops when he sees his father’s eye twitch.

“A scary movie?” Jefferson asks in disbelief, “In a thunderstorm?” He’s not really talking to Milo. He's already walking away– shaking his head and muttering about ‘the youth,’ and ‘losing his damn mind.’

Milo will apologize again later.

For now, he jumps up, shuts the bedroom door, and flicks on the light switch – looking up at the corner of the ceiling where his twin is perched.

Milo doesn’t even know where to begin. His brother is dripping wet from the rain, wearing what looks like a child’s Spider-Man costume, clinging to the ceiling.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” He asks. 

“I tried to get your attention before I came in–” Miles starts, and then looks at the club Milo had discarded before their dad had come in. “Were you going to hit me with a bat?”

“Was I gonna- Yes! Yes, I was going to hit you with a bat! Get down.”

Miles does. He drops from the ceiling with more grace than he’d shown in his entire life-- spinning around and landing solidly on the ground. This was the same kid who tripped over his own shoelaces every day? The same kid who fell off the wii fit board trying to hula hoop? 

“What happened to you?”

“Just promise me you won’t freak out.”

–

Milo does freak out. But he thinks it’s an appropriate amount, given that his own brother is a human spider.

“How big was the spider that bit you? Actually, don’t tell me. Don’t tell me.” Milo shivers.

He stands up, wiping his hands on his jeans as he shakes his head. “I don’t know, man. I don’t know. Maybe we should-” He stops when he sees Miles’ face. 

And suddenly it makes sense– why Miles’ hadn’t told him right away.

Because Miles didn’t want Milo to think differently about him. Miles didn’t want his brother to think that he was a freak or a hero. 

The last thing Miles needs right now is a brother that doesn't believe in him.

“This still makes more sense than you having a date, actually.”

Milo sighs.

“Okay, okay fine. What can I do to help?"

Miles seems surprised at first-- and then relieved. He grins at him.

Milo might hate spiders, but he loves his brother.

[r0-boat]

Bull hybrid milo finally getting to fuck you, but losing his mind once he bullies his fat cock into you. He’d try being so gentle, but he snaps the second he bottoms out.

henfhdh

He can't get the photo shoot out of his head. Ever since Milo saw you in that costume. You're pink felt horns and those fake ears, you looked just like him, your pastel pinks and soft Lacey whites on your outfit making his mind go wild.

You can't even watch you while you work every time you bend down right in front of him, Milo can't help but run away, afraid that you'll see his cock swelling right in front of you.

With the image still fresh in his head, he can't get sleep. It doesn't help when his thoughts wander to something even more perverted. You and that seductive outfit bending over a hay bale, presenting yourself all for him and letting out a strained moan in the form of his own name.

He can't do this anymore...

Milo's sat at the entrance of the barn watching you on all fours cleaning out the old hay and replacing it with new bedding.

You heard Hooves clacking on the hardwood you turn around to see your dear him

" Milo hello sweetheart what do you need?" You're poor Bull look disheveled he let out a strain to whimper " need, please... Farmer"

His face was completely red, no longer caring for his shyness; he practically fell on top of you, his cock hardening as he began to grind against your plush thighs.

"P-please? I'll be a good boy I-i promise I'll do the tip."

You give in; how could you say no to that cute face? Rolling your panties to the side as Milo crawls on top of you, his face burning a Deeper Shade of red. A shamelessly doesn't hold any of his loans back when he rolls his hips the head of his twitching cock barely penetrates your hole.

Wanting him to be closer, you left your arms around him. He does the same, wrapping one arm around you and holding you. Milo continues to grind his shaft against your entrance. You felt every pulse of his shift as he pressed his body against yours. Milo begins to move more, pushing his hips down onto you harder and harder. His moans are becoming more like whimpers and wines. He gasped when the tip of his cock caught in your entrance the tip ever so gently pushing in.

His brain becomes fuzzy he couldn't help himself but slowly push all the way into the hilt.

"M'sorry! M'sorry! Please! Please! I can't do it! I can't do it! Please! I just want to fuck you! Please let me fuck you all the way! Please! Please! please!" He begged, his words slurring as drool rolled down his mouth. You weren't surprised your Bulls weren't really good at self-control. " you may, Milo, be a good boy and fuck me" his eyes widened, and you thought his freckled face couldn't get any redder. His lips quivered as he slowly began to thrust; your moans were lovely and pleasing, encouraging him to fuck you harder. Your praise constantly rang in his head. He wants to be a good boy. He wants to fuck you hard, fuck you hard and satisfy you, satisfy his mate.

He practically loses it, his thrusts slow and passionate, quickly becoming fast and deep. His big cock stretches you for all your worth. The barn filled with your lewd moans and the sound of sex, His heavy balls slapping against you. He's been feeling so full for the past couple days he wants to empty it all inside of you and make your body milk his cock, instead of some dumb machine.

Milo nuzzles his head into your neck, his eyes rolling back feeling you clench around his shaft and come for him. Your screams of pleasure, his name rolling off your tongue, push him over that edge as well, slamming one final time inside of you before painting your walls and filling you to the brim. You feel each throb as he shoots more and more inside of you. Milo couldn't help but slide his hands down to your ass, holding you up more and grinding yourself onto him, trying to get as deep as he can.

A satisfied smile on your face, sprawled out in exhaustion, covered in sweat, and dripping with cum is a memory he'll never forget.

[krushkreates]

thinking,, many thoughts about milo growing up and sweetheart helping him unravel that at 6:50am

cw: father issues, toxic masculinity, gender roles, body dysmorphia, disordered eating habits, mentions of weight, unhealthy communication style

—

masculinity has always been at the core of milo’s being. strength, security, toughness, take-no-shit-give-no-shit. hardworking. never resting. never this or that. no weakness. of course he’s all those things. his father didn’t make him want his approval for nothing, ya know.

he didn’t spend hours in the gym sweating his ass off to grow muscles that would’ve made the career bodybuilders jealous. he wouldn’t have spent hours in his kitchen picking apart the labels on his food, careful tracking on notebooks that would be thrown into a box under his bed so his mother wouldn’t find them. sore muscles and sore feelings went hand-in-hand with the tired eyes that nit picked every single muscle and thing on his body. he wouldn’t have forced himself into grueling marathon-esque runs for months on end just to hear his father say i found this wrapper on the floor by your things. you need better self-discipline. all the while he’s spent the past three days drinking only water and hot black coffee because he needs to stay in the weight class for boxing.

milo greer isn’t that kind of man. he likes food and cooking. he likes old dramatic noir films and dressing up. for the love of god sweetheart stop laughing at me and help me find my damn dress socks. he likes sleeping in and hates cardio. he likes running and most importantly, he loves his sweetheart.

sweetheart. the one that came in and dismantled everything he had heard on loop his entire life. the one that tears off labels and scribbles over nutrition info and says let’s have cake for breakfast when he’s not doing well. the one that encourages him to try different things in fashion and spends hours pouring over fashion history to suggest new things for him. the one that happily and dramatically re-enacts his favorite scenes from movies (in costume, mind you) with their terrible transatlantic accent. the one that peppers his face in kisses while complimenting him. you look so handsome baby.

the one that puts sheets over the mirrors when they notice he refuses to look in them while brushing his teeth in the morning. the one that held his hand during his first therapy session because he admitted he was too afraid to go alone during their fourth argument about it. the one that encouraged him to tell david about the bullying. the one that drove him to a secluded area on his dads birthday so he could scream and yell about how much he hated the way he made him grow up. i hate how you made me feel like my own skin would never be a safe place for me. fuck you! i have what i need. i have the love of my life and my best friends and mom and i don’t need you. i’ll never need you anymore.

the one that teaches him that masculinity is more than big strong silent man. it’s opening up when you’re sad and not bottling it up. the one that teaches him that weakness doesn’t make you less of a man, much less of anything. the one that reassures him that they love him no matter what.

milo thinks of this as he’s in the gym. he’s there because he likes it now. he looks forward to eating because he gets to share the experience. he likes eating again. he likes working hard. he likes expressing his emotions. he likes communicating when there’s something wrong. he likes the masculinity that encompasses him now. it’s gentle and strong, warm and inviting. it’s still him.

milo thinks of this as he texts sweetheart about dinner tonight. his phone vibrates in his hand. we’ll make whatever you want honey.

[annahxredaxted]

Old pointe shoes

Characters: milo/sweetheart

Tw:old injury

Genre: memorabilia

—————

Milos POV

Today was my day off. Great right? Wrong. Sweetheart, still has work so I’m stuck at home alone for 12 hours. Sure that doesn’t seem like to bad they go to work at six am and get home around six twenty pm but fuck did the days drag on when I’m alone.

-

I decided to be efficient with my day, and organize the shared closet that me and my mate utilized- let’s just say it’s not the cleanest thing in the world, but who cares, right? Wrong. I genuinely would rather eat shit right now then clean this hellhole- fuck it looks like a tornado was contained in there and just left. But his sweetheart asked if he’d do it, and there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for his sweetheart.

—

6:09pm

“BiLliE jEaN iS NoT mY lOvEr SHeS jUsT a GIrL wHo cLaIMs ThAT I Am ThE oNe,”

The shifter stopped in his tracks.

“,the hell?” I said under my breath. I picked up what seemed to be a shoe box, covered in stickers, Polaroids, tape, and random stuff. I slowly turned the box, spectating every inch before I opened it.

I opened it to see a scuffed up pair, of pointe shoes, white, with the ribbon almost falling off. They aren’t mine - definitely not.

“Who’s are these? I didn’t know they were a dancer..”

I slowly lifted one of the shoes up, sole basically falling off, careful not to damage them anymore then they were. When something caught my. eye.

It was a picture, of sweetheart in a ballet, uniform? Costume? Outfit? Fuck if I knew. The picture was beautiful, they were smiling, holding a bouquet of flowers, one hand up, looking like they were waving to the crowd.

(Author pov)

“Heh.” He was too mesmerized by the newfound discovery to hear the front door unlock.

“Hey, milo. Whatcha got there?” He suddenly jumped, turning his head, to see his mate peering over his shoulder.

“Where- where did you get that?” They asked, obviously wanting to rip the box out of his hands and yell at him to never touch that again. But they didn’t, they were calm, and patient, awaiting an explanation.

“Oh, I found it in the closet, you told me to clean, but I stumbled across it.” He said turning his full body towards them.

“Why didn’t ya ev’a tell me you were a dancer sweetheart?” He asked gently smiling, a sense of anticipation behind it.

“Oh- I dunno, never came up.” They shrugged it off, lies. They purposely kept it from milo. They didn’t want to tell him, cos they thought he’d be weirded out at them being a dancer.

“Ah, guess I should start asking ‘bout you past a little more then.” He muttered scratching the back of his neck, holding one of their most prized possession, with one hand.

Panic rose in them.

“Oh. Well uhm. Do you mind putting the shoe back. Please?” They mumbled, not wanting to embarrass milo, for crossing a line.

He could tell he struck a nerve. No matter how hard they tried to hide it. They couldn’t hide from milo. They were his mate. They couldn’t hid a zit from him, if they tried too.

Guilt overflowed his chest, he felt so bad about crossing their boundaries, that yes - weren’t technically in place yet, but he should’ve at least asked..

The shifter mused to himself, about all the better ways he could have handled the situation at hand.

“Sweetheart- baby I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to cross a line.” He blurted out quickly as they were taking the box out of his hand.

“It’s- it’s fine milo. Just ask next time. Okay?”

He smiled and nodded.

They sighed, they could obviously tell he felt bad. But they still loved him.

“Now c’mere you big goof, I just got home gimme a kiss.” They said making grabby hand at the pouty shifter

He beamed with joy, and came over to them, kissing them, he loved kissing his mate. It made him so happy. It was like a stress reliever for him.

They slowly pulled away, his hands wrapped tightly around their waist, theirs around his neck.

—-

“And so this girl, pushed me down the six foot stage and I had to get a surgery because she fucked up my ankle, and that is why I quit dancing- I didn’t want to, I just had no Choice ya’know?” They said talking with hand gestures, lying their head in their boyfriends lap.

“Hmm. She sounds like a bitch.” He said looking down at them.

“Ya I guess.”

“But I think it’s a blessing in disguise,” he started, sweethearts shocked face, was enough for him to chuckle

“, no no, I mean like if you were still a dancer, you would have nev’a met me. And I would have nev’a met you. You picking up what I’m putting down?” He asked a faint smile on his lips.

“Ya ya, I get it.” They said playfully pushing his face.

“Doesn’t mean I don’t miss it though.” They admitted

“Yeah, sometimes that’s how it is. But you can’t change the past, no matta’ how hard you may want’a ya can’t.” He said

“I know I know..” they sighed

“Hey. I love you.” He said smiling down at them, not just a cheeky grin, but a full blown smile.

“I love you to milo..”

—-

Kthxbai<333

[sluttywonwoo]

masked intentions || lc x reader

summary: you and chan decided to pick out each other’s costumes for a halloween party, but he thinks it’d be funny to switch out your real costume for something a bit more scandalous 

warnings: swearing, alcohol, suggestive content (18+) 

word Count: 1.4k

a/n: reworked this piece originally posted on my tom holland fic account ( @wazzupmrstark )

masterlist + ko-fi

You’d wanted to do a couples costume, but Chan reasoned that it was “unoriginal” and “overdone”… you were pretty sure he was still bitter over losing the couples costume contest last year after you’d just started dating, but you weren’t about to argue (you two really should have won- but that wasn’t the point). Instead, he suggested that you pick costumes for each other and be surprised with them on the night of Mingyu’s party.

Even though you were hesitant at first, it had been admittedly pretty fun to put Chan’s Halloween costume together. You knew he loved the movie Atlantis so you collected everything he needed to be the perfect Milo Thatch, right down to the messenger bag.

But evidently… Chan did… not put as much thought into your costume. The only word that came to mind as you held it up to your body was… stripper. It was a black, strapless, silk-looking body suit coupled with sheer tights and a pair of unmistakable signature rabbit ears. Complete with a black bow-tie and everything. A playboy bunny. Classy.

Chan was lucky he had to be at Mingyu’s early to set up or else you’d be throttling him right now. He’d left a sticky note attached to the costume where he’d laid it out on the bed too that read: can’t wait to see you tonight ;) scrawled in his handwriting.

You took a deep breath and threw the clothes lingerie back on the bed. Sure it was Halloween, aka the sluttiest holiday of the year, but couldn’t Chan at least pretend to keep it in his pants?

You had put so much time and effort into his costume and he comes up with this basic ass bullshit? Yeah, you were fucking pissed. You whipped out your phone to text him.

-are you fucking kidding me??

-wym

-what the hell is this costume

-oh! you like it?? ;)

-what do you think? do you really want me to show up to gyu’s in this?

-no lol that’s for… later tonight. i have your real costume here at mingyu’s place just thought it’d be funny to let you think it was your costume

You wanted to scream in frustration. The party was starting soon and you were supposed to, what? Show up without a costume in your normal clothes? You weren’t about to be that person.

If Chan thought he was so funny, then you could be hilarious. Without wasting anymore time you slipped into the tights and the bodysuit, smirking at your reflection in the mirror. The tight fabric did an excellent job of hugging your curves and it pushed up your cleavage perfectly. The way the costume ended up fitting put your entire ass on display, not that you were complaining. Go big or go home, baby.

Makeup and hair was easy after that. A bold red lip and dark eyeliner was all it took to make you look the part. You put the ears on and took one last look in the mirror. You were ready.

The party was already in full swing once you finally got there. People were scattered out in the front yard, half naked, fully drunk. You smiled at some familiar faces as you passed, feeling your cheeks get warm when you heard whistling behind you. In any other circumstance, you’d feel embarrassed about being dressed like this out in public, but the anticipation of seeing the look on Chan’s face was making it all worth it.

It was so crowded inside that you could barely squeeze past the front door, nearly tripping over a pile of shoes as you did so. The room was warm from so many people dancing so close together, and the sticky feeling of bodies pressed against yours as you slowly made your way through the masses was making you start to regret your decision.

You looked for Chan, but it was hard to see over the crowd. You spotted Mingyu over by the bar in the kitchen though, so you figured that was a good place to start.

“Damn, y/n,” Mingyu mused once you finally reached him, grin tugging at the corner of his mouth as he looked you up and down. “You should wear that more often.”

You rolled your eyes, but ultimately returned the grin. “You like it?”

“I’m not even going to pretend like I don’t.”

“You don’t look too bad yourself,” you quipped back, with a nod of approval at the sexy shirtless firefighter thing he had going on. The neon cargo pants and suspenders combo was really doing it for you. “Make me a drink?”

He was more than happy to, and hopped over the counter to mix you something strong and fruity. You leaned against the bar casually as you waited, still scanning the sea of people for any sign of Chan. Occasionally people who weren’t your boyfriend caught your eye and sent you a wink or a ‘sup from across the room and you had to admit, the attention was definitely boosting your confidence.

Mingyu returned with a drink in hand, your name scribbled across the orange solo cup in black sharpie. You thanked him for it and took a sip, trying not to make a face at the overpowering taste of tequila.

You chatted with Mingyu for a few minutes more before he had other host duties to tend to and left you to fend for yourself. You had no other choice than to mingle after that- it was either that or stand awkwardly by yourself in the kitchen until Chan found you.

And eventually he did find you, but you weren’t alone by then. Quite ironically a guy who was dressed up like Hugh Hefner (there were several) was chatting you up when he finally saw you from the other side of the living room.

You caught his eye and forgot- just for a second- why you were so pissed at him. He looked incredible in his costume, with his hair quaffed just right and the fake set of round glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose. He looked perfect.

But you were quickly brought back down to earth when you heard ‘Hugh’ ask if you wanted another drink.

“She’s good, thanks.” A familiar voice rung in your ears followed by a hand on the small of your back. When the guy didn’t budge, you felt Chan stiffen next to you. “That means you can fuck off now.”

“What was that for- we were just talking!” you exclaimed, spinning around to face your boyfriend.

For the first time that night Chan got a proper look at you in your costume and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. You couldn’t help the surge of pride and victory you felt as you watched him go through the five stages of grief at once.

“It was not just talking, trust me.” He was speaking in an even tone, but his voice wavered just the tiniest bit, making you weak in the knees. “I saw the way that asshole was looking at you, same way everyone at this fucking party is looking at you. Like they want you.”

You shrugged. “You’ve only got yourself to blame for that, babe.”

“You weren’t meant to-“

“I wasn’t about to show up without a costume. I didn’t want to be lame. You were supposed to leave it at home for me.” You were half teasing him, half telling him how you really felt. You were still pretty pissed with him to be honest.

“Whatever, I’ve got your real costume in Mingyu’s room, let’s go get it.”

“Nah, I think I like this one you picked out. Seems to be a crowd favorite.”

Chan looked over your shoulder and made eye contact with a guy that was shamelessly staring at your ass. “Yeah, wonder why that is.”

You watched Chan’s eyes get dark as he smirked down at you. “C’mon,” he urged with a nod back towards the hallway. “Let’s go.”

“Chan, I’m not changing right now, I’m serious.”

“I know, I don’t want you to.”

You blinked like you hadn’t heard him right. “What?”

He leaned in closer so that he could whisper in your ear. “I’m going to take you into that bathroom, pull that stupid costume to the side, and fuck you so hard up against the mirror that you’re seeing stars. I want people to hear you moaning out my name as I push you over the edge. I want you to look so fucked out, so… satisfied afterwards that everyone knows how good I make you feel, how I’m the only one that can make you scream like that because you’re mine.”

lmk what you think i always appreciate feedback!!

forever tags: @hotgirlmingyu @hotgirlvernon @myunghoehoehoe @haven-cove 

send me an ask to be added/removed from a taglist

[boldlyvoid]

Amoreena | Chapter Five

Chapter Five

main summary: Heaven is a real place and it's located exactly 14.6 miles away from the FBI, Quantico Headquarters. Off behind a small park, under a fantastical willow tree surrounded by wildflowers, in every colour young minds can imagine.

Don't forget, heaven also comes with angels.

Chapter Summary: (fluff only) weekly Saturday reading only they are joined by an extra 15 lost boys, not just Spencer

Warnings (adding as they happen): fluff, hurt/comfort, depressed spencer, reader has a daughter, falling in love, strangers to lovers, library smut, oral (female receiving) lots and lots of fluff

word count: 3K

from the beginning <3

He woke up Saturday morning to the sound of a bunch of voices coming from beyond the walls of his room. Only it wasn’t his room, it was the room he slept in when he stayed with Y/N and Amoreena, he hasn’t left since he arrived on Thursday and he had no plan to either.

They still hadn’t told her about their relationship, not wanting her to come crawling into bed with her mom in the morning to find Spencer there too. She wasn’t ready to explain to Amoreena what it meant for Spencer to be in her bed, how they were in love and that she might need to learn how to knock before entering.

So he slept in the spare room, completely contently because he knew she was only on the other side of the wall, instead of 30 minutes away like she would be when he slept at his own apartment.

It had been a week since he saw them reading in the park, and now they were his family. It was incredibly fast, anyone who heard the news would say so. But that’s how his life worked, he blew through everything incredibly fast, it only made sense for him to skip every step in the book and become a stepdad overnight.

He woke up then, missing Y/N and Amoreena as he thought about the last week. Finally getting dressed and peaking outside, through the crack in the blinds, to see what was going on on the farm.

There were a bunch of men in the field with the cows dropping new cattle off in a big truck as a bunch of children ran around the yard. Y/N wasn’t kidding when she said her 7 siblings had produced 15 cousins for Amoreena to play with. Children all between the ages of toddler and 7-years-old, screaming while they ran after Rufus and the cats, it was a pure dopamine rush to witness.

He found Y/N in the living room, a book in one hand and a coffee in the other, “good morning cutie, all the ruckus on the farm wake you up?” She did her best fake southern accent as she smiled at him. Beautiful as ever in the early morning sunshine.

He nodded with a yawn, sitting beside her and snuggling into her shoulder. She placed her mug in his hands so she could wrap an arm around him and pull him in closer, letting him take a sip of coffee and become a real person again.

He noticed she was reading a book he had never seen before, reading the pages and not know the words. It was a first for him.

“What’s that one about?”

Y/N closed it to let him look at the cover. It was a hand-bound book, wrapped in green fabric that was at least 30 years old and in well-loved condition. The gold lettering reading Amoreena, along with a pressed gold rose and the author's name. He had never heard of it before.

“My grandma was an aspiring writer and the reason I love books so much, her name was Peggy and she had a dream once about a wonderful little girl named Amoreena and the magical life she created for herself. She wrote it all down and my grandpa had it typed and bound for her, she was so proud of this book,” Y/N gushed, smiling as she held it to her chest softly, thinking of all the memories Spencer didn’t know yet.

“Really?” Spencer couldn’t help but smile at her.

She nodded softly, “she loved Elton John, so much so that when my sister Ashley came out she threw her a party. Almost all those kids out there are Ashley's, by the way, she went down the adoption and foster root after I did IVF.”

She pointed out the front window at all the people gathered on her land, “Ben and Dylan dropped their kids off too while they help dad and Evan with the farm. Those are my brothers in case you didn’t know their names yet, there’s also Carver and Francis but they don’t live as close.”

Her little life was just so perfect, “did they want to come with us to read this afternoon? We need some lost boys.”

“They’d love that, are you sure you can handle 16 kids between the two of us?” she smiled, pure love spreading through her body as she held him.

“They’re not so different from psychopaths right?” He teased, watching her settle against him even more as they enjoyed their Saturday together.

“What else can you tell me about your grandma?” He snuggled into her more as he asked, wanting to know as much about her happiness as possible.

“She was always listening to music, she loved Elton's song Amoreena the most. It was the song she played for the majority of my childhood. It only made sense for me to name my little miracle Amoreena too, cause I wouldn’t have her unless nanny suggested I have a baby.”

“I would have loved to meet her.”

Y/N’s smile changed then, “she would have loved you and your big mind.”

“My mom wants to meet you and Amoreena,” he announces softly, he hasn’t really told her anything about his family yet.

“What’s she like?”

“She has schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s and she lives in a care home in DC right now, I try and see her when I can but she has her own schedule so I have to fit around when she’s having a good day,” it was hard to explain it to most people, but not to her. He didn’t feel any shame or fear in introducing them. Y/N was the most loving human, and Amoreena was just the same.

“When is she free next?” A simple question that made him feel incredibly giddy.

“Tuesday from 3-5,” he snuggled in closer to her as she wraps her arm around him.

“We’ll pick Amoreena up from school after work and take her over,” Y/N agreed, their lives intertwining like they were always meant to.

Like she was the ivy on his old cottage, she took him in and made him her own, wrapping herself all around him and never letting him go again.

He basically finishes her coffee while she holds him on the couch. The sound of the kids outside making them laugh every once in a while, dogs barking and cows mooing, the farm was alive and roaring while they enjoyed each other's company.

“Did you bring your costume for the reading today?”

He sat right up then, looking at her like she lost her mind, “of course I did, I wouldn’t have Penelope spend a week tracking down a Captain Hook costume just to forget it.”

Y/N’s jaw dropped, “you didn’t?!”

He simply nodded with a cheeky grin, “come on Tinker Bell, everyone knows she had a thing for Hook.”

“Who didn’t? He was the first and last bad boy I was interested in, I typically go more for Milo’s and Ariel’s; full of adventure and always learning something new,” Y/N teased him.

“Mhm, I always had a thing for Aladdin and Belle in search of far off lands and happy endings,” he mused, making her smile just as much as he was, “but for real it was between Hook and Wendy for my costume,” he made her laugh again, wanting to hear it for the rest of time.

“You still can, I have a blue nightgown you can borrow,” it was so easy for them to flirt, it fit into their conversation so simply it felt like they had been together forever.

He couldn’t help leaning in to kiss her, resting her back against the couch softly as she held onto him. He loved kissing her, she tasted like coffee and happiness every single time. She made the cutest sounds when they would make out like she was surprised by it or she wasn’t used to it at all.

She made him feel like he was young again like he was 21 and in love for the first time. All his trauma disappeared and that Spencer who used to stare back at him in the mirror was gone now. That guy packed his bags and left the farm to never be seen again.

Good fucking riddance is all he had to say.

He was happy, he enjoyed being happy and he was going to stay happy. It was the only goal he had going forward, and as long as he was in her embrace, surround by the laugher of her child and family, he knew it would be possible.

Amoreena came running inside then, finding the two of them making out on the couch before they could part from each other.

“Ewww!” She cried, jumping on top of the two of them and knocking the wind out of Spencer.

“Get off,” Y/N tried to speak as she was crushed by the two of them. “Mom down!”

Spencer picks Amoreena up then, taking her away from the couch and spinning her around like she’s an airplane. She cheers and cheers and doesn’t want him to put her down because it’s so fun. The next thing he knows he’s being dragged outside to twirl all the kids around like they’re Peter Pan, flying through the air on their way to Neverland.

He’s surrounded by giggles and tickles fights, he’s tackled down against the dirt as a herd of tiny children dog pilled him. Laughing until he cried, feeling more joy than humanly possible and then Y/N’s telling them all to get ready to he’d to the park.

Coming down the stairs in a pirate costume to a bunch of screaming kids was an experience and a half. Spencer couldn’t believe how happy it made them all to imagine Captain Hook had broken into the house and Amoreena, or Peter Pan as she corrected him, chased him outside with all the lost boys.

He took a moment to learn all their names, all 15 of them, however, unlike the cats, they had relatively normal people names.

Kate, Cade, Jet, Lauren, Cassie, Sara, Evan, Benny, Olivia, Jessie, Owen, Maddie, Gwen, August, and Parker, were the cutest little family of cousins. some looked like Amoreena, some looked like their own mothers, a handful of them were adopted out of the country, they were the most perfect cast of lost boys.

He's never had any cousins, no pets, no siblings. His life never felt lonely until he realized what he missed out on.

“Dad,” Amoreena whispered as she tugged on his shirt lightly, “look!”

She pointed towards the house where Y/N was standing. When she said she was going as Tinker Bell he really didn’t think she meant looking exactly like Julia Roberts at the end of Hook.

She looked magical in her beautiful white dress, curly hair with the most perfectly placed flowers and flawless wings wrapped around her shoulders. She was a vision standing on the porch, waiting for him to pick his jaw up off the floor and compliment her.

“Tink,” the words are more like air, soft and barely there.

“Is Captain Hook being nice? Or should we take him to the pond and let the Alligators deal with him?” Y/N teased, marching down the stairs and poking Spencer's chest.

“Ouch,” he teased her, holding his hand over his heart to make her feel bad.

But she didn’t, “some Pirate you are,” she teased, sticking her tongue out at him before taking Amoreena’s hand and running off down the trail towards the main house, everyone following her lead.

Nanny packed enough snacks for all 16 kids, and a little extra just in case. Spencer slipped the lunch box over his shoulder and they made their way towards the adventure. Y/N pulling a wagon just in case the littlest ones didn’t want to walk anymore. It was spectacular.

Y/N stopped then, pretending to stand like an army man turning around abruptly to look at the troop. “Lost boys, are we ready?”

“Yes, Tinker Bell!” They cheered back.

“On my lead, 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4,” she marched, bringing her knees up high as they all followed her down the path. “We’re following the leader, the leader, the leader,” she began to sing.

Spencer was in awe, his heart felt like it was going to explode as he watched everyone follow her. Singing along as they marched their tiny little butts down to the park.

“We’re following the leader wherever she may go!” Amoreena yelled the lyrics back, leading the pack as Peter Pan should.

“Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day Tee dum, tee dee, it's part of the game we play Tee dum, tee dee, the words are easy to say Just a teedle ee dum, a teedle ee do tee day

Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee dum We're one for all, and all of us out for fun We march in line and follow the other one With a teedle ee do, a teedle ee do tee dum”

It was like magic, they all knew the words and they sang the whole way down the path. Every verse and then repeating it. Not a single kid strayed from the path, no one complained about sore feet or hot backs, they loved their Aunty Y/N and so did Spencer.

“We’re off on an adventure, adventure, adventure,” Y/N changed the words, making him smile as she brought happiness into the world. “We’re off on an adventure to read out in the sun! Tee dum, tee dee, a teedle ee do tee day…”

Every single time he thought she had given him the best day of his life, she manages to outdo herself.

—

They barely listened to the story, it was a disaster of epic proportions but they tried. 15 kids is a lot to handle as an ex FBI agent and a librarian, they had lunch and instead ran around the field playing lost boys instead. It was still an amazing afternoon.

He was going to be covered in bruises the next morning. He had been kicked, poked, trampled, jumped on, the whole 9 yards. They were the most energetic bunch in the whole world, and then they came home to ice cream.

“Y/N,” Spencer finally pulled her aside when all the kids were preoccupied with their cold snack after a hot day.

“Yes, cutie?” It was a nickname that was sticking, much like pretty boy, and he didn’t mind it at all.

“We’re going to need more than 2 songs tonight to get her to go to bed,” he teased, stepping into that step-dad role with ease.

She couldn’t stop smiling at him, wrapping him up in her arms gently so he didn’t crush her fairy wings. “We’ll take her swimming, that’ll tire her out instead. Are you lookin’ for some alone time?”

“I love her dearly, but I can’t kiss you as much when she’s around,” he whispered before pecking her quickly and hearing the group of lost boys pretend to be sick.

“Just because he’s my dad doesn’t mean you have to be gross like your mom and dad, mom,” Amoreena’s smart mouth making them both shake their heads and laugh.

“What would you do if I did this?” Y/N teased before dipping Spencer back like a princess and kissing him, he stuck his foot out in shock as she held him there.

“Ewww!!” All the kids yelled as she returned him to his feet.

“Or this?” Y/N pulled him into another kiss, her leg popping like Princess Mia’s in the princess diaries.

Amoreena and her cousins were all screaming then, laughing at how gross their aunt and her new boyfriend were being. Used to it clearly, their grandparents were just as in love and watching from the porch as they held each other on the swing.

“I love you,” Spencer announced, loud enough for all to hear without a care in the world.

“You better,” she smiled. “I love you too, cutie,” she added before kissing him one last time.

His life felt perfectly complete.

Y/N’s brothers were incredibly kind just like her. He learned that Ashley was the oldest with 5 kids and her wife Susie, then Ben who was 46 and his wife Shannon, they had 3 kids. Dylan and Laurie had 4 and Even, her twin brother had 3.

Turns out her mom had 2 sets of twins back to back, 7 children and only 5 pregnancies. It felt crazy for him to think about having that many people in his life for his whole life, he wouldn’t have known what to do with anyone more than just his mother growing up.

Spencer helped Bob with the barbecue, they made burgers and hotdogs for all 16 of the children while they continued to run through the fields. They had enough energy to last them 5 straight days of chaos. It was amazing.

Y/N and Spencer managed to wander off while all the kids ate, sitting under a tree with their dinner so they could finally have some time alone together.

She was beautiful, sitting in the afternoon amber glow as she tried to keep her hair from blowing in her face. Tucking the strands behind her ears so she could eat her dinner in peace before spencer handed her the hair tie on his wrist. Then she got ketchup on her cheek, seemingly on purpose as she smiled at him and laughing as Spencer wiped it off with his thumb. He was so in love he felt stupid, smiling at her like he’s never seen another person before, absolutely enamoured.

“Derek and his wife wanted to come over tomorrow and have his son meet Amoreena if that’s okay?”

Her face lit up, “his son is the one named after you right? Not your godson?”

He nodded with yet another smile, his lips were going to fall off at this point. “Yeah, he’s the sweetest little guy, Hank’s never been to a farm before.”

“You tell them our gates are always own to new minds and pure hearts,” she smiled. “That’s what nanny used to say.”

He leans in and kisses her then, resting his forehead against hers as she held his cheek in her free hand, smiling ever so softly as she stared into his eyes, they didn’t need words, he knew she loved him too. A week of pure bliss had passed within the blink of an eye, and they still had forever to go.

Taglist: @shemarmooresfedora @spookyspence @spencers-dria @manuosorioh @reidsfish @mochionly (send me an ask if you want to be added to the tag list, I don't always see every reply! i love you guys thank you so much for reading)

[mi-burke]

31st October, 1997; midnight || @laurelborialis​

So much of this had been on a whim — or not a whim, necessarily, but Milo and Laurel’s fervent desire to bounce back from the riots and let themselves have some fun for an evening. Milo had always liked Halloween, and it was hard to ignore that he’d just gotten better at it since his mutation manifested.

He’d been a little leery of the costume contest when they asked for his name, but there were other Milos in New York City, right? It wasn’t giving too much away if he didn’t look like himself. Besides, Laurel had worked so hard on her costume; he didn’t want to be a wet blanket out of a sense of paranoia that ran entirely too deep for someone so young. For the second time Milo decided, why not? And he and Laurel put themselves one step closer to a series of events neither of them could’ve seen coming in their wildest nightmares.

Being on stage was nerve wracking, but Milo gently pushed it down and stood closer to Laurel for reassurance — or as close as he could, considering her costume. The anticipation buzzed in his chest as he actually let himself believe that maybe they could win this and maybe they could have something especially nice out of this evening, not that they even knew what the prize was—

Milo took a sharp breath in when their names were announced, looking to Laurel with a broad grin, but before he could even say anything it all went red.

The cold was what struck him first, how fucking cold and sticky the liquid was that splashed down around them. Milo didn’t even have enough time to think it was a prank before the smell struck him — he was intimately acquainted with what real blood smelled like, and it may not’ve been fresh, but this was real blood. A loud THUD followed shortly after and he almost jumped out of his skin, a shock of horror shooting through him as Milo registered the head first, and the fact that he knew this person second.

Rosie.

He’d complimented all of her outfits in the week leading up to Halloween, Milo couldn’t help but remember; her enthusiasm had been so sweet that even he in all his shyness had to appreciate it. He remembered too when he’d heard her class was canceled just a day or two ago, confused but feeling relieved because he hadn't finished the homework. Now, he just feels sick — a nausea he only manages to suppress thanks to five years of similarly horrific experiences.

Milo doesn’t manage to suppress the scream, though. He doesn’t even realize it’s him at first, the voice pouring out of his throat unfamiliar until he shifts back to himself out of shock; now the suit on him is too big, too heavy as it's weighed down with god knows how much blood soaking through the fabric. Chaos erupts as everyone around them takes in the very genuine horror of their reaction and registers this is all terribly real. Rooted to the spot and gasping for breath, his survival mode kicks in and all Milo wants to do is run. But he can’t ( and won’t ) do that alone.

“Laurel?” he finally manages to croak, eyes still locked on Rosie’s own unblinking stare even as his hand reaches blindly for his friend.

[revchainsaw]

Stargate (1994)

Welcome to the Cult Film Tent Revival my freaky fanatics, prepare yourselves to take the sacrament from across the stars, as we engage in the miraculous works of one of our most beloved Cult Saints, Saint Kurt. Coming to us from the golden age of Sci-fi Adventures, when Hollywood would dump the big bucks into a film so out of this world, we are partaking this evening of 1994's Stargate!

The Message

Every child has an Egypt phase. I remember fondly flipping through my DK Eyewitness guide to ancient Egypt with my Anubis warrior action figure from the movie stargate propped up on my desk. This wasn't even school work, Egypt inspired this young freak to learn outside of the classroom, and Stargate inspired me to look to Egypt in the first place. My father was a military man, as mentioned before, and this film irked him to some degree. He hated that the film was slightly critical of firearms, but mostly he hated that it depicted the high security military installation where he worked unrealistically. You know the high security military installation in the side of Cheyenne Mountain. yeah, that one. I don't know why my father expected a bunch of nerds from Hollywood with not security clearance to have any idea what it looked like in that hyper-secure location, but he did. I suspect after they lost him on the guns he was looking for any reason to hate Stargate, and so, impressionable as I was, I thought for years that this movie was really stupid.

Thank the Gods of Cult that I had the inspiration to give this film a second chance. I have to say, it's a little stupid, but it's not REALLY stupid. Also, Disney's Atlantis is totally just animated Stargate, and that's pretty fucked up.

Stargate is the story of how a big old nerd, whos name is NOT Milo, played by James Spader was enlisted by a bunch of military bad guy types to use his crackpot pseudoscience egyptology crap to decipher a bunch of writings that every other scientist or academic was wrong about. When he does this he succesfully creates a Stargate, a bridge between our world and another.

Our other hero is Sergeant Kurt Russell. Russell is sitting around trying to take two and not call his doctor in the morning, just generally being sad about guns because his son accidentally shot himself. Like father like son I guess. Sorry if that sounds cruel, it's just so desperately reaching for pathos and drama that it kind of enters into the realm of parody parody. I may have been raised by gun nuts, but I am very pro depicting guns as dangerous. Stargate is about as subtle as a pie in the face, or a bullet in the face. Ok, I'm done. Anyway, the military has one more mission for Kurt and he decides for some reason that means that guns are good again for killing bad guys, except for later when he decides that guns are bad again.

So Disney's Atlantis and Guile from Street Fighter enter the Stargate and discover a world where illiterate humans are kept in subjugation by a ruling class of aliens who use them to mine precious minerals and demand to be worshipped as Gods. The leader of these aliens is an immortal alien being who has possessed the body of a teen boy pop sensation and goes by the name of Ra.

James Spader is gifted a wife by the locals because it's so quirky that women are property, i guess, but it's okay because they happen to be in love, and with her help he is able to learn the truth behind this worlds condition. Ra had built the Stargate to travel between worlds and was worshipped in Ancient Egypt, however the people got wise to his BS and he had to escape. He took many humans hostage and crossed the stargate and then banned reading and writing as an attempt to quell any kind of uprising, and it's worked for a long time.

Ra is pissed at the earth boys though because he knows a nuclear weapon when he sees one. Turns out Kurt Russell brought a big ol bomb with him across the stargate as a contingency plan for any aggro aliens they may have found. Hey, they found them so I guess it wasn't too bad of an idea. Ra punishes his worshippers by having them mercilessly bombed and Spader and Russell team up with the locals to revolt. They eventually gain the upper hand and Ra attempts to flee with his Pyramid space ship but our heroes teleport the nuke onto his ship and save the day. Thus launching several Sci-Fi television series that I have never watched.

The Benediction

Best Scene: Ra Footage

The Throne Room Scene where we are first introduced to Ra and his godlike warriors is pretty excellent. It's so menacing how he surrounds himself with a force field of children, and the combination of futuristic technology with an ancient Egyptian aesthetic that this film sells itself on is on it's ultimate display in this scene. I really like the villains in this movie and I savor whenever they get to be shown off.

Best effect: Mastadge Ride

The CG on Stargate is better than in Species which sought to be it's competitor a year later, but it is still dated. It's utilized in cool enough ways and sparingly enough that even though it looks cartoony at moments it is very easy to forgive. Being Easy to forgive however, would be a pretty lackluster qualification for best effect and I'm going to have to turn this honor to the practical creature effects for the Mastadge. When we are first introduced to our alien world one the first things we see is the fuzzy maw of one of these creatures, before it takes James Spader for a very harrowing trip across the desert. These alien beasts of burden do sometimes reveal that they are mounted upon horses, but in close ups they just look so good. I love them and I want one.

Worst Scene: It's just sad OK!

Kurt Russell becomes very popular with the young men from the village of Ra's worshippers. They come to see him as some kind of hero and seek to emulate him. However, these people are very peaceful and not in any way battle hardened. A group of the young men stand up to the leaders and seek to aid the Earthlings in their revolution. They are brave but in many ways out classed by Ra's elite guards. Through the sheer force of numbers they do succeed in casting off the shackles of their oppressors but not before one of the young men we've come to care about is tragically blasted all to shit in slow mo. That scene made me cry a ton when I was a kid, and I dreaded waiting for it as an adult. It is worth noting that if you aren't 5 years old a lot of the drama in Stargate is pretty hamfisted and corny. It's a pretty excellent action movie, and a pretty goofy drama.

Coolest looking Villain: Animals as Leaders

I used to think that Ra was really stupid looking, but I was a kid and was biased towards cool warriors with animal heads, but I really have a much better appreciation for the effects and costume design of all of the godly villain crew than I used to. That said, The Anubis guy in particular still holds up. It's the dope Jackal head, the teal of the armor. It's what I picture when I picture Stargate. The Horus guys are also worth a mention with their awesome hawk jets. I couldn't pick a "Best" villain, so I went with the Coolest Looking.

Worst Aspect: Lacking Character

When I have fond thoughts of Stargate, they almost never revolve around the characters, or if they do it's in a juvenile manner. Who had cool armor, who had cool weapons, or who did the coolest thing? I have a hard time caring about these meandering people. They are inconsistent. They have no flaws that they work on or grow from. They are special because the script insists that it's so, and I don't really care if they succeed or fail at any point in the film. It's a shame because we have a good set up, and good lore. If at any point any body acted like a real person I think Stargate would be better remembered as a film than as the weird older sibling of a long running television series.

Summary

I'd like to say that Stargate succeeds at everything it's trying to do, but it doesn't. Stargate fails in the tragedy and pathos it attempts to create within it's characters; but it does succeed in almost every other way. Stargate is an engaging and exciting action movie. Stargate delivers on it's science fiction concept, and provides some fun fantasy lore to round out it's world building. Stargate is also a great looking (at most times) special effects spectacle. For all of those reasons, It is not a great film, but it is pretty darn good film.

Overall Grade: B

[flying-elliska]

Shadow and Bone Season 1 Review

Ok so I got distracted by a need to watch all of Ben Barnes' filmography (lmao) but here is my review : It was really fun to watch and it was clearly made with love which is already the main thing with YA fantasy, which is often turned into a soulless moneygrab when put on screen. The actors were GREAT. I did think that the Crows suffered from being mashed up with the Shadow and Bone story, but they were still a highlight. I also think it was a bit rushed, esp. when it came to Alina's training. The costumes were beautiful, I want a kefta now. Plus the crossover fanfic interactions btw the SaB characters and the Crows were just pure joy. Also Milo, obviously <3 I'm in hyperfixation mode so here, have an essay :

The "Shadow and Bone" Characters :

- Jessie Mei Li !!!!!! She really made me like Alina so much more than in the books, she absolutely is the 'human embodiment of literal sunshine' and she was a joy to watch. Her character's arc is cliché but her acting is so expressive and endearing, I really felt for her all the way through. (maybe I'm biased bc Jessie talking about her ADHD and seeing her thrive at the same time is like!!! i love them they deserve all the best.) I like that they made Alina more proactive - even though she does make some stupid decisions... but I just don't understand people who put that down as bad writing, like ??? have you ever met a real person who only makes wise, good decisions ?? a character like that would either be at the end of their story or just in the background because that makes them static. The things with the maps in the beginning does a good job of illustrating how she is just this one girl making rash, erratic decisions out of fear and loyalty and doesn't have a sense of the bigger picture, caught in the tide of bigger events. It works for her character. When it comes to the choice of making her half-Shu, I do think it really makes sense re: her character feeling like an outsider but I do understand the criticisms that the microaggressions felt too relentless and one-note. I am really looking forward to them introducing Tamar and Tolya and hopefully connecting to them over her heritage in a more positive way.

- Mal in the books was one of the most annoying YA characters I've ever come across, so I really liked that they made him much more of a loyal, devoted friend. I found his relationship with Alina cute, it really gives us the sense that these are two orphans who found a home in each other, childhood best friends (and potential sweethearts) separated by war, two army grunts and ordinary people caught up in the wheels of power and war that usually crushes people like them, it's a great way to introduce the dynamics of their world and it's a trope that always makes me emo. It felt a bit too one note to me, though, and too heavily on the nose, like Mal's only personality was his attachment to Alina (and his resentment towards the Grisha) and too much of her emotional arc also relied on him. Them hitting us over the head with the meadow scenes felt like pure telling instead of showing and it ended up being super repetitive and kind of annoying. I am willing to like this pairing, but I wanted more scenes of them just having conversations about things and really understanding why they like each other beyond the whole childhood friends bond that we're asked to accept exists at the beginning. So I hope there's more depth there in next seasons.

- Ben Barnes!!!! Just jksdfhgkdjghdf. I'm not a big villain stan usually and I hated the Darkling in the books but DAMN his performance is just amazing. They managed to make him more sympathetic and human while at the same time making clear the stuff he does is deeply horrible. There's the Magneto-aspect of 'well clearly his methods are fucked up but he's addressing a terrible injustice nobody is doing anything about' that makes it very tempting to root for him ; and again, well, like, Ben Barnes is so hot and charismatic it feels uncomfortable (which I guess is part of the point lol). His loss of humanity is, up to a point, understandable, brought about by despair, loneliness, grief and a sense of powerlessness - living so long he starts to see other people as disposable, losing so many people he stops caring, seeing over and over how hate never seems to stop, etc. It's a logical explanation for going insane.

But the hunger for power is also very much present as a motivation and this ambiguity is there constantly. Does he maybe come to genuinely care for Alina or is it totally bullshit ? I think he does, he's just so fucked up that it comes out as possessiveness and a need to control her. He wants Alina to be his equal but he's incapable of treating her that way. It's tragic, in a sense, but the show doesn't excuse his actions either. Like his monstrosity is a product of this world full of injustice, yes, and that warrants some compassion, monsters are always a symptom of their environment in some ways and dehumanizing them completely is an excuse ; but at the same time, he sabotaged his own cause anyway the moment he started to treat other people like things, as he does with Alina, because that just perpetuates the cycle of violence and hate. At some point he started feeling like he was the only solution and he was owed power for his sacrifices, and he's using his cause as an excuse. When Alina came to him, there was a possibility for redemption, taking down the Fold, and it's a test because there is finally someone on his level of power. But instead of seeking to remedy the power imbalance between them, he made it worse, by lying to her, manipulating her, etc, and the antler collar is the ultimate sign of this.

I love those scenes towards the end (the antler-based body horror has big Hannibal vibes, so messed up). I like Alina telling him they could have had this, that she had compassion for him and his cause, that they could have worked together, and he's the one responsible for screwing it up and this time his claim that he's the misunderstood victim ("Make me your villain") appears delusional and self-serving instead of somewhat justified. The almost-lovers to enemies vibes, the sense of lost potential, and the angst of the whole 'oh you could finally have been loved by people, too bad you fucked it up !', very juicy. There is this fundamental idea that power/respect/love is not something you are owed no matter how good your intentions are or because you're strong or you have suffered or you're willing to commit horrible drastic actions, you have to keep proving you deserve it, and trying to claim power without responsibility of care turns you into a monster. The thing with the stag was an excellent metaphor of the fact that there's things you can't take, they have to be given to you, and the wonderful power there is in understanding that is what allows Alina to harness the stag amplifier's power. This is really when she escapes his grim utilitarian outlook and a different way forward and owns her own power fully on her own terms.

Anyway I hope Alina gets to beat the shit out of him at some point that would be very sexy but I'm also looking forward to see how their arcs parallel and diverge from each other as Alina starts to grapple more with the implications of her power and the harsh dilemmas of war and her own dark side. I want to see him become scared of her, and I feel it will be more visible than in the books where he just has this cold aggressive facade all the time. This one feels a lot more openly emotional which is just a lot more interesting.

- As for the other characters ; Zoya mostly made me sad. The actress has the perfect vibes but I'm not sure I love their take on her character so far, it does make sense in terms of the later books - that she has internalized prejudice regarding her mixed-race heritage, that she is jealous of Alina because of how hard she's fought to get where she is and Alina kind of takes it away from her, etc. But I would have liked to see a bit more of her being badass and sharp-tongued in a clever (even if mean) way instead of spending most of her time being rejected by men and being racist towards Alina. I did like the ending though, of her actually seeing the monstrosity of the Darkling in action and the mention of her aunt. And her brief bonding with Inej was great, just because it was badass but also maybe because it could be a part of Zoya learning to accept her Suli heritage in turn, maybe not right away but in time, when thinking of that part of herself, she won't only think of her parents' ruined marriage and all the pain it caused, but also of that badass and brave acrobat girl who went toe to toe with these really scary monsters without even having any powers and !!!!!

- Also Leigh's cameo was so cute and as an aspiring writer this is just such wish fulfillment

- I honestly think that having the Crows there actually made the S&B story better ? Not only in terms of the much needed levity breaks but also in terms of themes. For instance, Matthias and Nina's story gave us a really raw and visceral view of how the Grisha are hunted. And Inej's relationship to Alina really gave us a sense of what Alina actually means to people who believe in the Saints in a way that doesn't feel just like 'ugh those superstitious people' because we know that Inej's faith is part of what makes her who she is and a person with morals, and something that saw her through the worst moments of her life. It feels so special that she got to meet Alina and given a sign that maybe the world is not completely shitty. And Alina's kindness towards Inej really gives you a sense that she might be, or become worthy of that belief in time, or at least that she wants to, that she's figuring out her power to really touch people's lives might be a good thing, and that she's starting to accept this responsibility more fully. And her arming Inej is a nice parallel to that. I'm very emotional about this scene, because one of the first things we see of young Alina is her taking out a knife to defend Mal from the bullies, because she's protective and brave, but she's also aware the world is a shitty place, and so her giving that knife to Inej is a sort of spiritual transmission and recognition of sorts, that she trusts Inej with that fighting power, that she'll use this knife to defend herself and her loved ones and not abuse it. It's so interesting. And a counter point to the Darkling's fucked up relationship to power that Alina might at some point get afraid she'll replicate. That you could see Alina trying to gather followers and using people's admiration for her like he did but instead she sets them free and empowers them. It's great. And I feel that when Inej takes to the seas, she'll think about Alina. (I do hope somebody tells her Alina's not dead at some point though god). Girls giving each other knives is my spirituality, honestly.

- And I also noticed an interesting parallel between Kaz and the Darkling in terms of being two emo dudes who like to wear black, are prone to violence and have a thing for two very powerful women they think are special and want to have at their side, but of course, they go about it in very different ways. The Darkling comes at it from a place of power while Kaz comes from a place of utter powerlessness, first of all, and he understands why it's important to set Inej free. Him spending the entire season trying to earn enough money to pay off Inej's indenture is the opposite to the Darkling putting that collar on Alina and while I do have issues with how the show portrays him, I do love that. Love is about setting the person you love free !!!! And that confrontation scene was so powerful, when Kaz tells the Darkling Alina was tired of being a captive ! Drag him !

- As for Genya, I liked the actress and her chemistry with Alina, but I'm not sure they did a great job of making her arc very clear, for instance what it means for her to get that red kefta, her relationship with the other Grisha, etc. Her and David are already very cute though. Also very much looking forward to see where that goes.

So yeah I think they did a great job with this bit actually, I enjoyed a lot more than I think I would and even though it is a very tropey story, there's plenty of depth there too.

The Crows :

- I'm a bit more nitpicky about this because I care about these characters so much. I think overall the problem is that the SaB story in the books happens on this massive scale with enormous stakes, and that next to that the Crows' issues feel less important ; it's like their impact is distorted by the gravity of the much larger story. Like for instance, Kaz in the books is very much at the center of everything, this larger than life trickster figure who knows and controls almost everything by sheer cleverness, and he has this sense of allure and mystique that can't happen here, and so his aura just shrinks. On top of that they're not on their home turf. Being introduced to these characters before they've reached their full levels of badass is weird - there is a reason why prequels generally happen after the main stuff, because they count on the love you have for these characters at their full potential to make you interested in their story when they were less badass and interesting. So I had several moments where I was like 'oh this feels wrong'. Tbh the idea that they would even volunteer to kidnap Alina in the first place, what with Inej's backstory, feels kind of wrong, esp since they had no idea of what would happen to her if they succeeded.

- But I still enjoyed a lot of it though, especially the fact that they were this force of chaos in the midst of this bigger narrative that's a lot more self-serious. The bits with the train, or the circus acts were very clever. A lot of the best moments in the show happen when they come to disturb the other plot in unexpected ways. I'm still dead over the whole 'Alina jumps into their carriage' scene, that was fucking gold. The team up at the end !!!! Alina and Kaz making a deal ! Inej stabbing the Darkling !!!! Them stealing the Darkling's carriage !!! They don't give a shit that the story is supposed to be super dramatic it's great.

- Jesper is the one character they completely nailed from start to finish and he's probably my favorite part of the whole show. He's very funny without being reduced to the role of comic relief ; he's just so! damn! cool!!!!!!! I honestly feel this is a thing they actually did even better than in the books, or at least Six of Crows where I felt Jasper kind of disappeared behind Kaz and they insist a lot on his flaws and issues. So before we dig more into those problems I love that they gave him time to be this ultra badass who saves the day several times ; while at the same time, hinting at further developments like his powers or his gambling issues. Kit Young is just perfect, confident without being arrogant, a bit cold when it comes to crime while at the same time being so obviously caring with Inej - I loved their friendship, that was so sweet. My main criticism is that they should have made it clearer he was bi because there are already people calling him gay and that's very annoying. I know some people had a problem with his hookup and like...I can see it's a bit of a cliché...the charming badass bisexual adventurer....it's a trope I kind of love though lmao and the scene itself felt kind of cute and fun. He's not the only person who is shown to have an active sexuality and he's also not the only queer person around and we know he's going to have a more substantial romantic arc later so eh. On a larger note I loved the little casual hints of completely normalized queerness - Nadia thirsting over Zoya, Fedyor and Ivan, Poppy, etc. Having grown up with fantasy where queerness was either completely erased or very tormented and problematic, this was refreshing as hell.

- Inej and Kaz...my faves... They have a kind of relationship which feels so rare and unique in terms of what exists on TV and while I don't feel they entirely replicated it, the core is still there - the mutual respect and building of trust, the longing, the repression, the trauma, etc. One thing I really like is their arc around faith - in the books, Kaz is dismissive of Inej's faith in ways that often feel really shitty and I like that he learns to be more respectful of it. It's very much linked to hope/survival ; Inej keeps this token from her parents and she hopes to find them again ; Kaz tells her it's no use and she'll survive better if she gives up. He believes Alina is a fake, while Inej wants to believe that myths can come true and there is hope for good things in the world. Kaz comes to accept that Alina is the real deal and, out of respect for Inej's faith, to stop pursuing her. I loved the bit about Inej struggling to kill as well - it's the dilemma of what her survival and that of the people she really cares about are worth in such a shitty world - her compassion is a good part of her but so is her survival instinct, and that's the part Kaz represents - that even after she's been through hell, broken in unfathomable ways, even if she gave up all hope and faith in the world, even she becomes dangerous and ruthless to survive, she will still deserve dignity, and to be treated better. And meanwhile she is willing to break her principles, which she holds so dearly, to save him, when he's never had anyone who cared for him like that - enough to keep him alive. That bit in the church !!!!! God !!!!!! Bye !!!!!!! And then him basically calling her his own version of a Saint, that he doesn't believe in miracles but he does believe in her !!! It's very emblematic of their whole arc ; he empowers her to survive in a ruthless world and loves her at her most dangerous ; but he loves her laugh too, he finds her a ship and her parents, he honors her capacity for love and hope even when he can't share it. And she sees that he's capable of doing better, that he's worth caring for. This whole thing kills me honestly and I can't wait to see where they take this next. I'm not mad they're a bit more soft and obvious than in the books, Kaz would just have come across as an an asshole otherwise.

- That said, there are bits of how they introduced their backstories I don't like. I get that making it so Inej was still tied to the Menagerie gave them a very powerful reason to want to kidnap Alina beyond greed so that they wouldn't look like very shitty people. But in the books Inej is terrified by the idea of simply seeing Heleen or the Menagerie and the way they have her interact with her feels weirdly casual and dismissive of her trauma. Also, in the books, the fact that Kaz had to convince Per Haskell to buy Inej's contract through a lot of effort, that he wasn't the one holding that above her head either, made the power dynamics more palatable. I especially disliked the scene where Kaz says he won't free other girls because just Inej is special, it makes him look like he has the power but he's just too much of a callous asshole to do it, and that he just freed Inej because he liked her which is absolutely not what their relationship is about at the start, it's a lot more about seeing Inej's dangerous side behind a facade of powerlessness and relating to her, in a sense, and this scene made it all feel cheap.

- Also, what was that about Inej having a brother ? Not a fan of that either. I'm afraid they're going to make her story all about finding what happened to him, and that's 1) too on the nose similar to Kaz's story and 2) it kind of cheapens her own arc, a female character realizing that what was done to her was wrong, reclaiming her own power and dignity and then making sure it doesn't happen to anybody else, harnessing her personal experience to save strangers, that's so powerful - making it about a family member at first, especially if it's about revenge, it's so much more simplistic and unoriginal and the perspective really annoys me.

- Also not a fan of Per Haskell not being there because he's a very important part of Kaz's evolution, so I hope he shows up eventually - and the way they introduced Pekka Rollins was kind of like...weird and out of place. I just found the Crows' introduction scenes stilted and not as cool as they should have been - well, Jesper and Inej were very cool, but we needed to see Kaz in action first, we needed to see why he's such a menace before we see him flounder later, and I just...I don't know exactly but it didn't work for me. Also this is a very petty thing but I wasn't crazy about the Ketterdam sets, I know this is probably a budget thing but in my head it looked like this incredible mix of Amsterdam and Venice - specific locations in the book directly remind me of parts of Amsterdam I know very well - and instead what we got felt like this very generic London-ish fantasy setting....so boring. Also a lot of scenes that felt to exposition-y. I don't mind that Kaz was a bit softer than in the books, like many people have said some things work in books and don't work on a screen, and you need to make the character's inner dynamics more explicit. But I do agree that, at the same time, he should have been more ruthless towards people outside of his group. Loved that scene where he faces the Inferni though, and how well they illustrated his disability and aversion to touch.

- I don't have that much to say about Nina and Matthias ; I'm still not super sold on the whole 'haha misogyny!' thing and I dislike that so much of Matthias' change of heart relies on the fact that he finds Nina hot. But I did think that the actors had enough chemistry to make their scenes together interesting and cute ; I loved the waffle scene. Even though it's disappointing that they didn't find an actress who was more clearly plus size for Nina, I still think Danielle does a good job bringing her bold, unapologetic energy. I'm really looking forward to seeing the Crows as a whole team.

So yeah, even though the season didn't feel like a perfect, coherent whole, it was just a lot of fun and I really hope they get renewed. In particular I feel like tying the first trilogy to the Crows' story could create such interesting parallels in terms of themes, about power, the cost of survival, hope, trauma, etc etc

[tomspancakes]

This Way: Part 8

*not my gif*

Pairing: Tom Holland x Actress! reader

Word count: 5261

Warnings: Alcohol 

Summary: More crazy quarantine things and some confessions?

A/N: Sorry for not updating sooner :/ writers block really be rough. Please don’t hesitate to ask to be in the tag list or lmk if you’re enjoying this series/ have critiques for my writing! Enjoy part 8 :)

*Italics = flashbackkkk

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7

+++

You walked towards Tom’s room seeing the door closed. You knocked on it with your foot struggling to hold everything now. 

“It’s unlocked.” Tom said quietly. You rolled your eyes knowing he wouldn’t get up to open the door. You set the ice cream and chocolate down before opening the door a crack and picking everything up you walked through the doorway smoothly closing the door again with your foot. 

“Oh that’s a lot…” Tom said looking up at you from his phone then standing up to help you set everything on his nightstand, “Why’d you bring all this stuff?” He asked while plopping back down on his bed and resuming to scroll through instagram. You noticed a bunch of dvds were neatly stacked at the edge of his bed.

“Thought we could get wine drunk together and have some yummy comfort food after this rough week.” You said and sat at the feet of his stretched out legs.

“I’m not that big a fan of wine.”  He said stubbornly not wanting to look up at you. He was embarrassed because of how he stormed off due to his jealousy. You sighed and patted his shin.

“Ok I tried I guess I’ll just go watch a bunch of movies and eat all this myself…” You sighed dramatically getting up to grab the stuff, Tom threw his phone to the side.

“No no stay. Sorry I’m just a little grumpy.” He said running his fingers through his hair.

“Yeah I know, you little baby.” You joked, reaching over and poking his cheek making him smile a bit.

“You know there is absolutely nothing going on between Harrison and I right?” You said getting right to the point while pouring a glass of wine for yourself and Tom. “He’s also your best friend, he wouldn’t let anyone get in the way of your friendship. Plus I’ve got my eye on someone else.” You handed Tom a glass as he sat up and he tried to hide his joy, but his red face wasn’t helping.

“And who may that someone else be, darling?” He asked flirtatiously.

“Some guy named Tom…” He smiled at you, “...Hiddleston.” You burst out laughing watching Tom’s face drop. 

He picked up a chocolate and rolled his eyes, “You’re such a tease.” He threw it straight at your forehead causing you to stop laughing because it actually hurt a bit.

“Ouch, Tom, what the hell?” You said rubbing your forehead giggling again.

“Oh my god, y/n, I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to throw it that hard.” He sat closer to you checking your forehead to see that there was indeed a red circle from the object.

“Yeah, stupid, don’t even know your own strength. You’re Spiderman for Pete’s sake! Pun intended.” You both laughed and he softly kissed the spot on your forehead making you blush, “It’s ok though I deserved it.” You chuckled and sipped your wine.

He shook his head laughing with you before picking his glass up as well. “Anyway you’re right I had nothing to worry about, I don’t know why I got jealous all of a sudden. Just kinda wish I was the only one to be on top of you.” He smirked and looked at you as you almost choked on the wine.

“Tom! You’re so dirty!” He laughed at your reaction and winked.

“Alright what are we gonna watch? Seems like you’ve picked a lot already.” You said looking at all the movies laid out in front of you noticing what movies he’s picked out, “Wait, you remembered?” You asked and your pulse quickened.

~

You and Tom were taking a lunch break after filming a crazy action scene and he just asked if you wanted to hang out in his trailer. After picking food up from Crafty’s you both walked to his trailer. 

“As much as I love our costumes I always love the feeling of taking them off. Better yet we’re twinning!” Tom said and you laughed. You both were in matching sweats and black under armour long sleeves that the crew gave you so you don’t stain your costumes in any way.

“Really? I think mine is fairly comfortable. Maybe it’s cause us girls always have to deal with much more uncomfortable outfits.” You wondered.

“That’s true, Z told me about this one time her heels made her feet bleed, but she kept wearing them because it made the outfit nice.” You nodded not surprised because Zendaya would stick through any shit and still serve looks. “Anyway, I kinda wanted to get to know you more. Ya know since you’re new to the cast and all.” He opened the door and let you walk in first.

“Thank you kind sir. Ok what’d you want to know?” You asked and followed him to the couch then plopping down on it. 

“Hmmm…” He looked up trying to come up with something. “Ooo top 10 movies.”

“10? That’s quite a lot.” You laughed while taking a bite of your sandwich.

“Ya I know, but just in case we ever have a movie marathon or something I’ll be prepared.” He said thoughtfully.

“What makes you think I’d want to hang out with you again?” You joked.

“Ouch ok nevermind then.” He said scooting away from you. You began to laugh.

“I’m just kidding. I’d love to hang out with you more, I have a feeling you and I are gonna get along really well.” You smiled at him and he smiled back excited. “Alright this may change, but as of now my top 10 movies are…”

~

“Of course I remember, darling. It was the first time we really hung out alone. I got the movies a few days after you told me which ones you liked, but we just never got around to having a full on marathon so I kept them. I of course mixed in a few of my favorites.” He said while looking at his hands. You smiled and placed a hand over his as your heart melted.

“Tom, that is seriously the sweetest thing ever. Thank you.” He looked up at you and relaxed when you were happy about it. 

“Alright, which one did you want to watch first?” He asked, taking a sip of his wine.

“Hmm… Oh, let’s watch Atlantis!” You said, picking up the dvd and handing it to him. Tom got up from the bed and put it in the blu-ray disk player. You moved the dvds off the bed before going back onto the bed and putting the snacks in the middle of you and where Tom would be sitting.

“Mind if I sit closer, darling?” Tom asked.

“Oh no not at all, let me just move the snacks.” You said and Tom just pulled them up and put them over his lap.

“There. Problem solved.” You laughed at the snacks that were now sprawled out on his legs. He scooted closer to you causing your shoulders to rub and your face heated up.

“You’re silly.” You booped his nose giggling, starting to already feel light from the wine.

-

“There’s no way you’d play Mr. Incredible what the fuck? Milo Thatch yes, but not Mr. Incredible.” You and Tom were now wine drunk and talking about random stuff. The bottle was almost done and you two were barely paying attention to the movie.

“What do you mean? I’ve got the guns to play him.” Tom said flexing his arms in front of you wobbling a bit.

“You may have muscles, but you look nothing like a father and they’re not big enough.” You said squeezing his flexed arms.

“What? I’ll fight you right now, I have big arms.” He said pretending to be mad then he pouted and laid on your lap.

“You do have big arms, but they’re not crazy big like Mr. Incredible’s, so I like yours better.” You said playing with the curls on his head through his head.

“Ok… I’ll take it…” He said in defeat, but also flattered by the compliment, “I feel like I’m floating.” He said raising his arms and his legs like there was no gravity and his hand ended up in your face.

“I feel like I’m spinning and floating.” You giggled, swatting his hand away. 

“Can I tell you a secret, y/n? He whispered and you hummed in response swaying side to side, “You sometimes make my head spin and make me feel like I’m floating, even when I’m not drunk.” You gasped.

“Do I make you nauseous?” You stopped swaying and looked at him sadly. He sat back up across from you and took your hands in his.

“No no...” He laughed lazily, “you make my head spin in a good way. And I feel like I’m on cloud 9 when I make you smile.” He said looking at you dreamily. You tried to keep a straight face, but he wiggled his brows at you making you laugh. “Ooo you smiled! You’re making me float!” Tom said letting go of your hands and wiggling around like he was a ghost. 

“Tom,” You couldn’t stop laughing, “Stop, you’re so stupid!” You were holding your hand over your stomach. “It’s not even funny I don’t know why I’m laughing so hard.” You wiped the tears that formed and you calmed down laying on your left side. Tom flopped over your right side like a human blanket. You turned your head to look at him, “Tom can I tell you an even secreter secret?” You both giggled at that.

“Tell me your secreter secret.” 

“You make my heart beat fast sometimes and you make my head spin too.” Tom smiled widely at you. You closed your eyes embarrassed of confessing that.

“Hey, open your eyes.” Tom said poking your face and laughing, “Look at me, darling.”

You opened your eyes to see his brown ones really close. “You’re cute, you know?”

You shook your head and he laughed softly. Tom looked down at your lips and back at your eyes, he almost leaned in to kiss you, but he cleared his throat and got off you. He didn’t want to cross any lines especially since you both were drunk right now. You sat up stunned and feeling a little awkward.

“S-sorry I didn’t want to-”

“No no it’s ok I get it. Thank you.” You said a little sad because your drunk self wanted that kiss, but Tom knew sober you wouldn’t want that yet. “You’re so thoughtful, Tom.” You said crossing your legs like a little kid and Tom sat back down across from you, “I really admire that.”

Tom blushed and laughed lowly, “Well after realizing I was worried for nothing over you and Haz I just felt good inside. Like we really don’t need to rush things right now. I had a lot of fun with you so far and I just don’t want to mess anything up by rushing. I guess before I just felt like I needed to get you right away because I was worried someone else would catch your eye.” He looked into your eyes kindly, “I realize now that if you do fancy someone else then I’ll just have to get over it. I can’t fully control what happens to us no matter how much I wish I could be yours I just can’t force anything you wouldn’t want. But also everything is easier said than done, so you’ll also have to be patient with me.” He chuckled and you smiled up at him. “And with all you’ve said to me about your feelings it’s kinda reassuring to my little hopeful heart. Sorry for ranting, I’m done.” You both laughed. Your head was spinning slightly because of the alcohol, but also because of what Tom was saying.

“Wow, you truly are amazing. How’d you think of all that in the span of like 45 minutes?”

“I’ve been thinking about it- well-you a lot, just needed a little push to tell you I guess.” He said, shrugging his shoulders, “Like you said we need to self evaluate so I did and I’m feeling good about it.” You both smiled, “Alright let’s carry on with the movies now.”

“Ok I’ll go change into my pjs first to get more comfy.” He nodded and you stood up feeling his eyes trail your figure as you walked out.

- A few days later -

You woke up pretty early this morning considering you and the boys played a game of drunk cards against humanity last night causing you to have a slight headache right now. You looked to see that already on your night stand was a glass of water and a tylenol with a note. 

The note said, “Morning love. Knew you would need this when you wake up. Haz and I went for a run - Tom xx” 

You smiled gratefully for the kind gesture and took the tylenol and drank the water. You decided  to make breakfast so the boys could eat when they got home. When you got downstairs Harry and Tuwaine were still knocked out on the couch. You giggled at the sight and snapped a quick picture posting it on your story captioning it, “After a crazy night in.” You would’ve still been on that couch, but Tom insisted that you sleep in your bed because it was better for you and he carried you to your room. Your phone pinged bringing you out of your thoughts of the kind boy.

Zendaya: Omg thank god you’re awake! Talk to me imy :/

You: HAHA omg why are you awake?! I’ll call you, about to make breky

You pressed the facetime button and Z immediately answered, “These quarantine naps really be messing up my sleep schedule.” You laughed at her energetic self even though it was 12am in LA.

“Ya you should definitely sleep soon.” You said while grabbing fruits, sausage, and pancake mix. 

“Yeah, but I miss you so let’s talk.” She said. There were no eggs left in the fridge so you texted Tom and Haz asking if they could pick some up when they were done running.

“Ugh I miss you too. Don’t get me wrong I love being with the boys, but I miss living with you and having little spa days.” You sighed and Zendaya went off facetime for a bit to text someone.

“I know I keep seeing our celebrity friends post how they're together and doing facials and stuff. It hurts to watch because I miss my girllll.” She said dramatically.

“I know this shit is rough on us, but thank god for technology.” She nodded in agreement.

“So will you finally update me on Tom? It’ll be my bedtime story.” She said laying her head in her pillows.

“Ok will do.” You thought about all the things you needed to tell Z, “Low key a lot has happened…”

-

It’s been an hour since you started making breakfast. You had just finished making everything, but just needed the eggs. Zendaya fell asleep as soon as you finished telling her about you and Tom, to say she was excited for you is an understatement. You were now sitting at the table watching videos of baby otters when the door opened. 

“Hey guys? What took you so-” You stopped speaking when you heard a cluck, “What the fuck, did I just hear a chicken?” You got up from your spot and ran toward the front door and sure enough Haz was there holding a chicken you stared at him wide eyed, “No…” And as if on queue Tom walked in with 2 more chickens. You face palmed.

“Hi, darling. We couldn’t find any eggs at the market, but someone was selling chickens when we were on the run so we decided to buy them!”  Tom said excitedly. 

“Meet Chestnut, Ranger, and Predator.” Harrison said proudly pointing at every chicken. You sighed, but couldn’t help smiling at how wholesome the situation is.

“You guys are funny, but I guess it works.” You giggled and went over to pet the chicken Haz was holding. “So no eggs for breakfast today, but I made pancakes, sausage, and cut up fruit.”

“Ah hell ya! I’m starving.” Haz said and walked off. Tom stood still smiling widely at you.

“What, Holland?” You asked, returning the same smile.

“You’re looking gorgeous this morning. Well you do everyday, but you have this happy glow to you right now.” He babble and you blushed at his words because you were just in shorts, a sweatshirt, and your hair was in a very messy bun.

“Thanks, you really know how to woo a girl. Oh and thanks for taking me to my bed last night as well as giving me the tylenol. I seriously have so much to thank you for honestly.” You said and chuckled a bit.

“Oh don’t even worry about it, darling. I don’t mind doing anything for you. You know?” You smiled at his generosity. “Thanks for the breakfast.” He said and kissed your forehead walking away to put the chickens in the back before letting you respond. You blushed even more.

“Alright Harry, Tuwaine? It’s time to wake up boys.” You said a little loudly and they groaned. 

“It smells yummy.” Harry said sleepily. 

“Ya get up now, breakfast is done.” You said pulling him up lazily and he groaned a bit, but got up anyway leaning his whole body over you as you walked over to Tuwaine to get him up. The chickens clucked again when Tom and Haz set them outside. 

“What the hell did I just hear chickens?” Tuwaine said getting up quickly.

“OH MY GOD WE HAVE CHICKENS!” Harry said getting off you excitedly. You laughed and went to give Harry and Tuwaine a tylenol and water before you all gathered at the table for breakfast.

-

It was now 5 pm and the boys were all taking a power nap. You laid on your bed scrolling through social media seeing all your celebrity friends post about their quarantine self care, making you think about what you told Z this morning. You looked at your naked nails and felt the urge to paint them so you got up to look at what polish you brought. Someone knocked on your door.

“Hey, love, whatcha doing? Some of the boys and I just woke up.” You turned around to see Tom with messy hair. You giggled at the sight and walked over to fix his hair. He smiled as you brushed your hands through his hair. 

“I was about to paint my nails. I keep seeing people post lil quarantine spa things and I decided to pamper myself a bit.” You said looking down at your feet worried you sound like a loser. 

“Huh that’s funny. Tuwaine was just saying we should do a spa day with you.” He said nonchalantly. You looked up and raised a brow.

“That seems like a huge coincidence…” You said suspiciously.

“What? I didn’t do anything…” 

“Mhm…” You bit your lip and smiled at him while he just tried to hide his smile. “So let’s get started then shall we?” He chuckled and nodded. You walked down to the living room to see Harry and Tuwaine in robes making you laugh loudly.

“What the hell you guys went all out.” You said looking at the assortment of face masks and snacks on the coffee table. “You even managed to get some of my favorite ones. Do I even want to know how you guys got all this?” You asked, picking up your favorite ones.

“No you don’t want to know.  Plus, I still had the skincare stuff you sent and recommended to me.” Harry said proudly.

“And you're just now deciding to use them?” You laughed at him.

“I just never got around to using them.” He chuckled, “Plus when uh Tuwaine suggested we do this I thought it was the perfect time to use them!” He said excitedly.

“Tuwaine how’d you know I wanted to have a spa day? You’re literally the sweetest.” You said going over to hug him. He looked at Tom behind you with wide eyes and Tom put a finger over his lips and shook his head furiously. 

Tuwaine nodded at him and said with a bit of panic, “I uh just uhh noticed you looking at a bunch of skin care things online and I thought you might be missing it.” You let go of him and looked up at him.

“Wow I didn’t know I was that obvious.” You said blushing, “But thank you this is seriously one of the kindest things anyone has done for me.” you looked at him then the two other boys, “Alright I’m gonna go change now then.” You said and picked up a fluffy robe.

-

Under the robe you wore a sports bra and shorts. Haz now joined all of you and lazily laid across the couch still a bit tired. Tom was also now in a robe. You walked over and picked up headbands handing them out to all the boys and you put one on yourself.

“Ooh I’ll go get us drinks.” Haz said, he was no longer tired.

“What? We just drank last night.” You said laughing a bit.

“Yeah, but don’t you girls drink when you do stuff like this?” He asked, you nodded your head.

“You’re right. Can I have wine though?” He gave you a thumbs up. You turned to see the boys with headbands on and you began to giggle, “You guys look ridiculous.” You snapped a picture of them.

“I feel like I look hot.” Tuwaine and Harry said at the same time.

“Jinx!” They both said making you all laugh. 

You grabbed one of the face masks, “Ok who wants to help who?” 

“I’ll take Harry.” Tuwaine said and you nodded looking at Tom to come over to you. Harrison came back with beers and wine for everyone plopping down between Harry and Tom to wait for his turn. You wiped Tom’s face with a moist towel and grabbed some cleanser spreading it on his face and Tuwaine followed your actions. 

“I haven’t cleansed my face since Christine reminded me to. I keep forgetting.” You gasped.

“What the hell? How is your skin so nice still?” You asked wiping the cleanser off.

“I’m just perfect.” He said smiling with his eyes closed. You rolled your eyes.

“Shut up you div. You’re the ugliest out of all of us.” Harry said.

“You’re a div. You look like me.” Tom said without hesitation.

“That’s why you’re both ugly.” Haz said you and Tuwaine laughed at his snarky rebuttal. You dipped your fingers in the face mask and spread it over Tom’s face. He opened his eyes looking innocently at you.

“Do you think I’m ugly?” He asked. 

“Hmm. Depends on the day…” He looked at you hurt and you chuckled, “I’m just joking. You always look good.” You booped his nose and he smiled again, his eyes sparkled.

“I hate being around when you guys flirt.” Haz said, taking a swig of beer.

“We all do, mate.” Tuwaine said while focusing on getting the face mask on Harry’s face. You blushed and even though you couldn’t really see under the mask Tom was too.

“Alright. All done.” You said fixing his headband a bit.

“How the hell are you done already?” Tuwaine asked.

“I’ve done this too many times.” You laughed and Tom squeezed your hand and pulled you down to switch spots with him. He looked into your eyes as he carefully cleansed your face.

“You can rub harder, you won’t hurt me.” You said kindly.

“That’s what she said.” Harry said ruining yours and Tom’s moment. Everyone laughed.

“I hate it here.” You joked. Tom spread the face mask over your cheeks.

“Oh this isn’t too hard.” He said satisfied then you felt him spread the mask over your eyebrows making you gasp.

“Tom!” You opened your eyes. “This is a peel off mask you’re not supposed to put it over my brows.” 

“Oh shit. I’m such an idiot.”  

“You’re just noticing now?” Harry gasped and the boys snickered.

“Oof.” Tom said looking down at his hands. You grabbed them.

“It’s alright, Tom. You didn’t know.” You smiled at him, “I’ll clean it off my brows. You can come if you’d like.” He smiled and pulled you to the bathroom.

“Use protection!” Haz joked.

“Harrison!” You, Tom, and Harry yelled at him and he just laughed. When you got to the bathroom Tom grabbed a paper towel and wet it letting you sit on the closed toilet seat. He turned to you and he started to wipe it off. You winced when some hairs were pulled out.

“I’m so sorry, darling.” He said with furrowed brows trying to be more gentle.

“It’s ok, it just feels like I’m getting an eyebrow plucking right now.” He smiled at how you tried to make him feel better.

“I’m kinda glad we got away from them…” He said and threw the paper towel away before leaning on the sink.

“What? Why?” You chuckled. 

“Kinda felt like they were interrupting our moments.” He said, his ears turned a bit red.

“Oh I definitely felt like they were.” You flirted back, “Kinda funny though, I don’t mind it too much.” 

“I did…” He scoffed, “I’m just trying to get brownie points with you.” He smirked, and your face heated up, thankfully the mask wasn’t see through.

“Well you’re definitely already high on the scoreboard then.” You flirted back and walked out leaving him amused. ‘What the fuck that was that flirting, scoreboard? Oh my god…” You beat yourself up. Tom’s pulse quickened as he followed you. All he could think about how nervous you make him without any effort. 

You walked into the living room to see a masked up Harrison putting the mask on Tuwaine. Tom sat next to them. You sat next to Harry on the other couch and he handed you the wine glass he was drinking from, “I’m seriously so happy right now. You’re all so thoughtful and sweet.” You said taking a sip.

“Yeah Tom-uh-we felt like you needed an escape from our hectic energy. Especially since you’re not home right now.” He said popping a piece of popcorn in his mouth.

“Yeah it was rough at first to accept, but you guys are making it easier.” You smiled at him and gave him a hug, “thank you for everything.” He hummed back in response.

“You guys wanna watch a new show while we wait for this to dry?” Tuwaine asked and you all nodded. “Alright let’s watch Too Hot to Handle.” 

“YAY! I’ve been wanting to watch that!” You said excitedly. Tom watched you in admiration at how you clapped in excitement and how your hair swayed a bit when you jumped.

“Tom, mate, stop staring.” Haz whispered to him, “you’re looking creepy again.” He laughed. Tom’s face heated up. 

“Y/n is just so gorgeous and very close to perfection. If not then she is perfect. I’ve felt like such an idiot letting her go.” He whispered back and frowned.

“Mate, you gotta do something about it. We can all tell you’re head over heels. I think you should tell her all this was your idea…” Tuwaine said lowly.

“I want to, but I don’t want to scare her away either. Don’t wanna rush anything.” Tom said while contemplating in his head what he should do in his head. The boys nodded understanding.

“Just do what you feel is right for the both of you.” Haz said, patting his back and turned to the screen when Harry turned the show on.

-

After watching the first episode you all took turns taking a shower. You sat in your room reading over a script again. “Hey, y/n, I had a lot of fun and feel super relaxed now. We should definitely do this again. I regret not doing this whole skin care thing before.” Haz said peeking in your room. 

“It wasn’t all my idea, but yes, we should do this again.” You smiled at him and he walked downstairs to cook dinner with Tuwaine.

You continued to read when someone knocked on your doorframe. You looked up to see Tom again leaning on the wall. “Hey, Tom what’s up?”

“Hey, darling. Did you ever get to paint your nails?” You looked at him weird and showed him your bare nails. 

“Nope not yet.” You chuckled.

“I-I uh could paint them for you while you go over that script.” He said rubbing the back of his neck, “I could even help you run through lines if you’d like.” 

“Wow a full on service,” you laughed, “I’d love to take you up on that offer.” He smiled and jumped on your bed sitting next to you. You reached behind to grab the sparkly red nail polish on the nightstand and handed it to him.

“Don’t mess up.” You joked and he put his hands up in defense. 

“Hey. I don’t usually do this so no promises, darling.” You both laughed. Tom twisted the cap open and you held the bottle in your left hand as he delicately held your right hand. He painted your pinky nail carefully, his tongue poking out his mouth a bit. 

“That’s not too bad, Holland.” You said, impressed.

“Y/n, you’re getting overly confident. That was the first finger.” You laughed at his sass, “Can I tell you something?” You got nervous for some reason, but nodded your head as he painted your ring finger. “I-it wasn’t really Tuwaine’s idea to have the spa day.” He rushed and you calmed down.

“Oh I kinda knew. Harry almost gave it away, but I figured it was your plan.” You chuckled, “You Holland boys can’t keep secrets for long.” You joked and he blushed, “How’d you know I wanted to do something like this?” You asked looking up at him.

“W-well I’ve been texting Z a bit and I asked her if there’s anything I could do to make you feel at home, and she texted me this morning that you were missing self care days with her.” He said a little nervous that you’d think he’s weird, but your heart melted. 

“Ah so you’re the person she was texting when we were on facetime today…” You took a mental note to thank Zendaya later, “But seriously, Tom, you’re so sweet.” You smiled at him, “The spa day definitely felt how a normal day would be like in LA, but being with you kinda gives me that homey feeling already.” You said causing your face to heat up a bit, Tom’s pulse quickened.

“Fuck it.” Tom said, taking the bottle of nail polish out of your hand. You raised your eyebrow at him while he closed the bottle and took your hands in his.

“I-I didn’t want to tell you that the spa day was my idea because I thought you’d think I’m weird. And I don’t want us to rush into anything, I wanna let you take time for yourself too…” He was beginning to ramble.

“Tom, I don’t think it’s weird at all. Calm down and tell me what you need to.” You said laughing a bit and rubbing his thumbs with yours. He relaxed and sighed.

“C-can I take you on a date?” Your heart warmed up, but were you really ready for this?

+++

Tag list:  @averyfosterthoughts​ @thollandx​ @mrsjeffwittek​ @panicattheeverywherekid​ @racewife2004​ @greatpizzascissorstaco​ @witchything​ @wheelertozier​ @runway-to-my-aid​ @rafficorn​ @jessirosebud​ @peterspideyy​  @superstarchick​ @jackiehollanderr​ @astridcommings​ @mineymak712​ @hollands-osterfield​ @inhumanwithpowers​ @aduky​ @thevelvetseries​ @twelfthnightorwhatyouwill1998​ @stahpppppp​ @calcliffornia​ @cahosinparadise​ @viwihere​ @coni-martina​ @eridanuswave​

[eddiemunsonssoulmate]

I finally finished Shadow and Bone!

So here's my two cents cuz I love giving opinions on my shows haha. It's just my personal impression so no hard feelings if you think something else!

Overall it was nice. Loved the costumes, the setting, the fantasy elements and the general lore.

The lore was also at the same time the problem. They do such a shit job of explaining the basics. During the first two episodes I was just like ?? What's a Grisha? The Fold? West Ravka? East Ravka? [some location I've never heard of]? The Darkling? What the fuck is going ooon? It got better later on but yeah. If I wouldn't be stubborn I'd have stopped right there.

It started off too slow for my taste, the middle episodes were good but then kind of lost me at the end a bit.

Alina is fine. Little annoying somtimes but I didn't hate her. A fool for not having sex on that map table. Even bigger fool for saying kissing the hottest man in all of Ravka was a mistake. Could probably be cooler if she wouldn't talk about Mal 24/7.

Hated Mal tho. Or well, strongly disliked. Bland, boring, more like the obnoxious, clingy childhood friend. Not a fan. Can also apparently survive a million bullets and stabs. Would probably be cooler if he had a life on his own besides Alina.

Kirigan. Can poke me with his rod of darkness any time. A++ casting. Could have 45 Minutes of screentime, I wouldn't mind. I volunteer for the map table.

Crows are kinda weird but entertaining. They somehow don't even fit the story until the very end so that got me a little confused with why they're there.

Kaz is cute. He's like a wet, grumpy cat that I want to pet but where I'm also very sure he'd scratch me if I'd do it too long. Why he limping tho? Who hurt you?

Inej, kind of indifferent to her, want to see more. Also, look at Kaz like that any longer without kissing him and I'm gonna smack your head. Good for you for trying to get your freedom tho.

Jesper is the typical funny gunslinger for the comedic relief. Obnoxious but funny, can stay around.

Milo MVP.

Nina and Matthias are going to be the end of me. I love them but they also feel so rushed due to their five minutes of screentime, give me more enemies to lovers please.

Was also very surprised to see Freddie there, did the baseball bat yeet you into another universe?

[thisbrokenmask]

V for Vivian

pairing: female reader x Kim Seokjin

genre: angst, romance

word count: 5,409

warnings: nothing explicit, but there are descriptions of a toxic relationship

summary: certain that your ex sort-of boyfriend won’t turn up to taehyung’s new year’s eve costume party, you go ahead with your half of the couple’s costume you’d planned. 

a/n: I need to stop writing 5k+ ‘drabbles’ in 24 hours, but I wanted to get at least a line of my @btsholidaybingo​​ card completed before New Year! I have two left to do tonight, so hopefully I’ll get them in before the clock ticks over to 2021 here in the UK. Somehow my ‘Costume Party’ prompt became this 5.4k word story, but hopefully it’s okay. Massive shout out to @hereinyourarmsforever​ for putting up with me sending her these at all hours of the day - couldn’t do it with you ♥

“I still don’t think it’s a good idea~” Namjoon singsongs from your bed. He’s lying on his back staring up at the ceiling, the same position he’s been in for the last twenty minutes while you’ve been getting ready. His feet are hanging off the edge to keep his shoes from getting on your sheets, even though they’re brand new and basically clean, especially considering they’ve only touched the floor outside when he’s gotten in and out of his Uber to your apartment. “You know he’ll think you did it for him.”

“I still don’t think he’ll be coming~” you sing back as you adjust your wig, a blonde bob that frames your face. You decide to bypass pinning it tonight, knowing that it will be held on by your hat until you decide to take them both off later. “Besides, if he turns up, he’ll just look like any other guy in a suit,” you sniff dismissively as you pick up your large gold hoop earrings. “I, however, will look hot as fuck whether he’s there or not. See?”

You turn and pose for Namjoon, who looks up just as you’re pushing your red painted lips into an exaggerated pout, blowing him a kiss. 

You laugh when his jaw actually drops and he stares at you unabashedly, blinking at you from behind his wire-rimmed glasses. His eyes rake across your frame, taking in the large cut outs in your dress, the skirt of which finishes way above mid-thigh, and dropping all the way down to the black, knee-high boots on your feet, safety pins instead of zips for added effect. 

“No?”

Namjoon’s eyes snap upwards, mouth still gaping like a lost fish. 

“Huh?” You smirk at the way his voice catches in his throat as he adjusts himself on the bed, not so subtly trying to adjust himself in his khaki cargo pants at the same time. At least they give him some breathing room, you think to yourself deviously, wondering if you’ll have the same effect on everyone else going to the party tonight. 

“Hot as fuck, or?” You turn on the spot, shimmying your hips to make sure your exposed waist draws attention, grabbing your paperboy hat from your dressing table as you go. With a pointed look at your long-term friend, you pinch the bill of your cap between your fingers and pull it down over your wig, relying on it to keep everything secure for at least the first hour of the party. “Or not so much?”

“Definitely hot as fuck,” Namjoon agrees, nodding as vehemently as he can without taking his eyes off of you. “Yeah, screw Seokjin-hyung,” he declares after a few more seconds of inspecting you. “You’re wearing that whether he’s going or not.” 

“I’m glad you agree, kind sir,” you laugh, preening under his attention and performing a curtsey that pushes your skirt even higher up your legs. You try not to spare too much thought to the brief mention of your sort-of ex, too many complicated feelings thrumming under your ribcage at the thought of him. You grab your coat, a cheap red one you found on eBay and super-glued some fake black fur cuffs onto, and your favourite black purse as you usher Namjoon to follow you. “Because I have nothing else.”

Part of you really doesn’t want to see Seokjin, still mad at the way he easily brushed off any talk of commitment one too many times. Everyone thought you were together, your friends referred to you as one of the couples of the group, and yet he would always make a point of saying you weren’t boyfriend and girlfriend - you just… went together. 

Another part of you, though, wants him to be there. Wants him to turn up at Taehyung’s apartment in his stupid suit that makes him look like he walked right off the runway, just so he can see you dressed in Julia Roberts’ knockout opening outfit from Pretty Woman. You could probably have a few guys eating out of your hands with just a bat of your eyelashes to prove a point to him, too. 

You don’t need him, not if he doesn’t want you.  

“I’m sure Taehyung wouldn’t complain if you went naked,” Namjoon ponders, and you can tell by the slightly dreamy tone to his voice that he’s definitely thinking about it. You lightly elbow him in the ribs as he follows you out of your front door before you turn to lock it and he laughs, adjusting his glasses. 

“You look good, by the way,” you tell him as the two of you turn to the building’s elevator. “Who are you again? Mike?”

“It’s Milo,” Namjoon whines as he steps in behind you, tapping at his phone for an Uber. This is the fifth time you’ve gotten the name wrong and by now he’s certain you’re doing it on purpose. 

“Ah, yes, Milo. From Atlanta-”

“Atlantis.”

“Right, right,” you grin as the doors open and you step out into the lobby. “Atlantis.”

Taehyung’s apartment is significantly bigger than yours, easily hosting at least 50-odd people for his New Year’s costume party, and you happily let yourself in like it’s your name on the buzzer. Namjoon follows, your hand wrapping tightly around his fingers to keep him close as you start to make your way through the throng of people. He keeps his expression as blank as he can when he eyes any guy who gives you a double or triple take, fiercely protective of you despite your assertions that you can handle yourself.

He’s known you long enough, though, to know that there’s only so much attention you can enjoy before you get overwhelmed. He knows large crowds panic you, which is why you’re gripping onto him so tightly, scared of getting separated from the people you’re comfortable with. You may bask in the attention of flings and passersby, but you are really only happy to spend time with those you know well.  

You spot Taehyung’s mop of dark curls through the gaudy costumes and head straight towards him, dropping Namjoon’s fingers. You know he’ll be right behind you no matter what. You move as fast as you can without pushing anyone over, a grin already plastered on your face before you reach the evening’s host. 

“TaeTae!” you call out and he whips round, completely forgetting whoever he was talking to as a wide boxy smile takes over his face at the sight of you. He scoops you up when you jump, his arms around your waist as he spins you round in a hug. He puts you down just as Namjoon makes his way into the little pocket of space that always seems to form around Taehyung.

“Hey, kitten,” Taehyung croons into your ear and you flush at the nickname that only Taehyung calls you. There’s always been an unspoken attraction between you and Taehyung, unspoken only because it’s so blatantly obvious that neither of you actually need to say it. You’ve never acted on it, both gluttons for the excitement of dancing around each other and having someone decent to flirt with at parties. The number of ‘almosts’ with Taehyung are too many to count and, still riding the wave of confidence Namjoon’s reaction gave you earlier, you’re sure tonight will be another almost-notch on the bedpost. “You look great.”

His nose brushes against your ear before he pulls away, turning to greet Namjoon, acknowledging the older man for the first time. 

“Who are you meant to be?” Namjoon and Taehyung ask each other at the same time, staring at each other with critical gazes and you burst out laughing between them. 

Taehyung’s brow twitches as he takes in Namjoon’s brown boots, his khaki-green pants and his cream sweatshirt, a light jacket thrown over the top (that you know Namjoon will hide away in Taehyung’s spare closet so he doesn’t lose it). You join Taehyung in his scrutiny of Namjoon’s outfit, but you rather admire how his chest fills it out, how his styled hair sits perfectly above his wire-rimmed glasses.

Namjoon eyes Taehyung’s military-style jacket in return, brow furrowing at the frilly black cuffs peeking out at the end of his sleeves, the white ruff at his neck and the two red stripes of face paint across his cheek in return. You love Taehyung’s outfit and you must admit you’re impressed with the level of detail he’s been able to achieve, down to his black painted nails. You’re pretty sure no part of his outfit came from eBay.

“You’re meant to come in a costume,” Taehyung says, eyes zoning in on the book in Namjoon’s hand. “Not your normal stuff.”

Namjoon stares back at him blankly. 

“Do you literally ever see me dress like this on a normal day.”

“I mean-”

“It’s a costume.” He insists, and Taehyung snickers.

“He’s Mike from Atlantis,” you supply, Taehyung leaning closer to you to listen, an arm snaking under your coat and curling around your waist. You suppress a shiver at the heat of his palm against your skin, his fingertips sinking into the curve of your waist.

Namjoon’s eyes quickly flicker down to watch the movement before he levels his gaze at you, his jaw clenching when he arches an eyebrow at you. You can see the playful glint in his eyes and you’re trying just as hard not to laugh as you bite your lip to keep your giggles in check, clinging onto Taehyung’s jacket as he looks on in amusement.

“Wasn’t he called Milo?” Taehyung asks and you see Namjoon’s eyes literally light up.

“Yes! Thank you,” he excitedly claps a hand on Taehyung’s shoulder, jostling the two of you slightly but he’s so happy to hear someone get the name right after all the times you’ve said it wrong that you can’t help but smile.

“And Tae is clearly Adam Ant,” you say, pressing your hand to Taehyung’s chest and smiling up at him. “Gotta brush up on your 80s rock bands, Joonie.” Taehyung stands taller, chest pressed forward into your palm, clearly glad that someone has picked up on his costume first try.

“Yeah, Joonie,” Taehyung grins, knowing Namjoon won’t hurt him, especially not in front of you. 

“Drink, Valerie?” Namjoon asks, purposefully getting your name wrong in a failed attempt to annoy you. You grin.

“Yes please, Joonie.”

“Usual?” 

“Uh-huh.”

“You got cherries?” he asks Taehyung, who looks offended that Namjoon even had to ask.

“Of course.”

With a nod, Namjoon heads off to the kitchen before stopping himself, looking back to Taehyung. “Look after her,” he warns, voice dropping low. Taehyung pulls you closer with a nod, hand slipping onto your hip as Namjoon starts to pick his way through the crowd.

“So,” Taehyung hums when Namjoon finally leaves you alone together, guiding you by his grip on your hip to the edge of the room. Several partygoers vacate the sofa pushed up against the wall when Taehyung approaches, allowing the two of you to sink down into the velvet together. “You look great, Victoria,” he teases, leaning in close with his hand still firmly on your hip.

“Thanks,” you cross one leg over the other, your boot brushing against Taehyung’s knee as his gaze drops down to the skin of your thighs. “Pretty Woman is one of my favourites, and this was probably my favourite look in the whole movie,” you say, repressing a shiver as he lets his free hand ghost against the side of your thigh. His eyes are dark and hooded but he’s still attentive, listening intently. You’re pretty sure you could talk about the colour of his ceiling right now and he’d be just as enraptured. 

“Mine too,” he says, voice low enough for only you to hear. His fingertips ghost the hem of your skirt, barely inches from a heat that always grows when you’re near him. “Especially on you.” He pauses, gaze dark as the hand on your hip climbs back up to your waist and keeps rising, drawing light circles across your ribs. “Although that scene in the bath is a close second.”

“Want me to badly sing Prince songs to you, Tae?” you tease, reaching up to finger the gold detailing on the lapels of his jacket. You can feel the rise and fall of his chest under your fingers. 

“If you’ll be wet and naked and covered in bubbles, you can sing whatever you want,” he grins. “Want me to go fill up the tub?”

“Maybe later,” you say, and it’s not entirely a lie. You’re pretty sure you wouldn’t turn down a bath with Taehyung given the opportunity, but you doubt either of you will remember this conversation within the hour. “This was supposed to be a couples costume, you know,” you sigh, letting the jacket drop back off your shoulders to pool on the sofa. Taehyung watches the material fall, absentmindedly licking his lips when his eyes rove over your newly-exposed skin. “But no way was I passing up wearing this outfit just because we weren’t coming together.”

“Very good choice,” Taehyung says, pressing his lips to your shoulder in a lingering kiss and you feel heat curl in your abdomen. “I would have had to kick Seokjin out if you’d come in something else because of him.”

He feels you tense under his hands and presses another quick kiss to your shoulder, his wandering hands pausing, relaxing to be more comforting than exciting.

“So he did come, then,” you mumble, refraining from turning to search through the crowd and focusing on fiddling with Taehyung’s buttons. 

“He did.”

“Is he-?”

“Dressed as Richard Gere?” Dark umber stares back at you when you meet his gaze, soft around the edges. “Yeah, he is.”

“Goddammit,” you huff, letting your body drop into the back of the sofa. You were hoping he’d at least come as something else, if he was going to come. It wasn’t like Seokjin didn’t look good in a suit, very much the opposite actually, but without you dressed as Julia Roberts on his arm, you figured he’d switch to a different costume that could be recognisable on its own. “Where is he?” you ask, picking at the hem of your dress while Taehyung puts his hand on your knee, rubbing gentle circles with his thumb. His other hand slides across the back of the sofa and you lean your head against his forearm.

“Dunno,” he says without even looking at the crowd around you. “Don’t care, to be honest. I’m just glad you still came. But I’ll keep him away from you, if you want.” 

You smile up at him, knowing that he’s just as protective over you as Namjoon. You’re well aware that the two of them both have feelings for you, a cause of contention between them as they both feel the other isn’t good enough for you. Whether it’s simply lust or something more, you’re not sure, but you’ve never been able to say wholeheartedly that you felt the same about either of them and so you never allowed anything to happen. Taehyung is fun to flirt with, and he knows the limits he’s allowed to dance around with you, whereas Namjoon is your best friend, for years the two of you have been each other’s go-to dates for work events and other things you’d rather die than go to alone.

You’ve made it clear where you stand with both of them, and they respect those boundaries. 

Seokjin, however, had been incredibly confusing for you. He could be incredibly sweet, even domestic when you’d spend weekends in his penthouse with him and you’d quietly become exclusive without a conversation. He’d never said so himself, but you knew from whispers on the socialite grapevine that Taehyung kept you tapped into that he wasn’t seeing anyone else. 

You’d had a few flings over the years, nothing too serious but at least they were willing to publicly claim you were seeing each other. Seokjin had never done that for you, but you’d been more like a couple than any other relationship you’d ever had before. He was definitely the first person who made you feel so fiercely you feared your chest would burst just from him looking at you. The first man to make you feel like you wanted to be with someone long term. 

You haven’t seen him since he let you walk out of Jimin’s Halloween party, although ‘party’ may be too casual a term for the events Jimin throws. Halloween had been an elegant masquerade ball in an old theatre uptown, every room lavishly bathed in purple and silver, from the drapes to the wait staff’s outfits. 

You’d been drawn into yet another conversation about the nature of your relationship when Jimin’s latest flame had asked how long you’d been together, although Jimin had quickly dragged her away with the lure of more champagne to avoid the impending argument. 

You’d jokingly suggested that maybe you should put a label on whatever it was between you and Seokjin, if anything to make those conversations easier, but he hadn’t agreed. Oh no, he’d told you to stop trying to fit other people’s expectations rather than doing what you wanted for yourself. When you’d shot back that maybe you did want to put a label on it, he’d told you firmly, again, that he’d never agreed that would happen. You accused him of giving you whiplash, of treating you like he loved you one minute then acting like you were nothing more than a fuck on speed dial the next. At least Jimin acted like he liked his flings, could bear to be seen with them in public and admitted to the connection, however brief. Seokjin had fallen into stony silence instead of replying, sipping his champagne as he watched the party, making it clear the conversation was over without walking away.

So you did, instead. 

You found Jimin, who protested profusely when you pressed a kiss to his cheek as you said goodbye, and walked out without looking back.

You have only heard from Seokjin once since, a single text that you’d refused to answer, and when he hadn’t tried again you’d assumed that, whatever it had been between you, was over. You weren’t going to be the one to extend the olive branch this time, tired of waving a tattered white flag and being the first to break the silence. If he’d wanted you, he’d known where to find you, known which circles you ran in and which friends he could scout out. 

But he didn’t.

Fuck him, you thought, shaking off the growing ache in your chest and forcing a smile to your lips as you considered Taehyung’s offer.

“Don’t worry, Taetae, I’m sure he won’t be seeking me out any time soon.”

“If he does, you come find me, okay? Or Namjoon,” he adds, and you can tell it almost pains him to suggest you go to someone other than himself. “I don’t want him ruining your night.”

“I won’t let him,” you say resolutely, although neither of you quite believe your words. 

You’re not quite sure how it’s happened, but you’re still wearing your hat two hours later despite having lost your wig from underneath it. You have a vague memory of Jungkook dancing around with a blonde bob, but you’ve had several more Cherry Bombs following the first one Namjoon had made you earlier. He had been making them for you, but when you’d figured out he was skimping on the rum, you stopped telling him when your cup was empty, much to Taehyung’s amusement. 

That’s where you are now, in the kitchen making your next drink in a daze, popping a cherry in your mouth as you go through the motions. 

The kitchen is pretty much empty by this point, most of the partygoers having  collapsed into plush sofas around the apartment or filed out to the balcony ready for the fireworks. You know both Taehyung and Namjoon are out there waiting for you, although your head is a little fuzzy on who you would rather be standing next to when the clock ticks over. 

You’re pondering if you’d be capable of convincing them both to kiss a cheek each at the same time when someone else enters the kitchen. You don’t notice the footsteps coming toward you until you get a strange feeling down your spine, but you just figure someone else is waiting for something you’re using. 

“I’ll be done with the rum in a second,” you say cheerfully, finishing your pour and putting it out to the side for them to grab, but they don’t move.

“I don’t drink rum,” a familiar voice murmurs, sending a chill down your spine that’s definitely not coming from the ice cubes in your hand. “You know that, Y/N.” He takes a step towards you, not close enough for your bodies to touch but you’re definitely aware of his presence now. “Or should I say Vivian?” 

“Seokjin,” you breathe out, turning to see the man in question stood in front of you looking just as handsome as you feared he would. Despite several hours of the party having passed, he doesn’t look anywhere near as dishevelled as most others are, but you assume that’s due to the scotch you recognise in the crystal-bottomed glass he’s holding. He’s always been one for sipping something stronger to keep his buzz rather than drinking to get wasted, and tonight is clearly no different. He’s not wearing a suit jacket, probably hung up somewhere to keep it safe, but he’s still wearing his dark blue waistcoat and the sleeves of his white shirt are rolled up to expose his forearms. His hair has retained its style for the most part, only a few strands having fallen out of place across his forehead. 

“You look good,” he says, holding your gaze, and you know without asking that he doesn’t need to look down at your outfit because he’d have memorised it within the first half hour of seeing you. You consider your words carefully, knowing that this is much more than him simply coming to pay you a compliment.  

“I know,” you turn to grab your drink and make to leave, but his voice still has the power to stop you in your tracks. 

“You still wore it,” he states, and you’re surprised to see his eyes are softer than you expected despite the slight smirk on his lips. 

“Of course I did. It’s a good costume.”

“It is,” he agrees simply, looking down at his suit with a frown. “I just look like a rich asshole without my Vivian.”

“Nothing new, then,” you mutter into your cup and you’re surprised to hear him laugh.

“I guess so,” he says, and if you didn’t know him better you’d think he sounded sad. He takes a sip of his drink and you can’t help but watch the way his Adam’s apple bobs when he swallows. The kitchen falls quiet between you. It’s awkward and heavy but neither of you make to leave. This is the closest you’ve knowingly been to him all evening and you’re torn between wanting to leave him in your wake and wanting to stay close to him. As much as he hurt you, you’re still drawn to him, still feel pulled towards him by the rope around your heart that neither of you ever severed. 

“What do you want, Seokjin?” you ask, wishing you were in between a bickering Taehyung and Namjoon right now instead of here with him. At least you know how everyone feels when you’re with them. 

Seokjin falters slightly at your question and your own nerves grow, a thickness in your throat that even your rum can’t cut through. Seokjin never falters. Something’s wrong.

“I just… I wanted to apologise,” he says, not quite meeting your eye, neck flushing red. You subtly take a sniff of your drink, making sure you haven’t accidentally slipped in something stronger, but the sweet cherry scent is exactly as it always is. 

Seokjin notices your shock and chuckles to himself, embarrassed, but he’s been going over what he wants to say to you for weeks and he’s not about to back out now. Steeling himself, he puts down his glass and turns to you, his expression sincere. 

“I really am sorry, Y/N-”

“For what?” you interrupt, curious whether he actually knows what he did wrong or if he’s just trying to butter you up. He doesn’t falter this time, as if he’s been expecting a third degree interrogation from you, but he doesn’t bristle either. The more you watch him and the way he accepts your sharp tone with resignation, the more you realise he is genuinely apologetic. It’s such a strange concept to you that you briefly wish he would go back to being an asshole to you just to feel a bit more familiar. 

“For everything,” he says, continuing before you can berate him for such a cop-out answer. “For never treating you properly, never treating you like you deserve to be treated.” He slips his hands in his pockets as he takes a few cautious steps towards you, keeping an eye on your reaction to make sure he doesn’t overstep. “I know I hurt you, when I told you I never promised I’d call you my girlfriend. I know I hurt you a lot of times.”

Hearing him say the words you’d wanted to hear for so long, actually admitting that he knew he’d hurt you and apologising for it, is enough to make your throat sting with the rising sensation of tears. You stare into your cup but you don’t see the cherries and ice cubes swimming in your rum: your attention is solely on him.

“I’m sorry I let you walk out of that party without telling you how I feel about you, about us.”

Your gaze snaps to him, feeling like all of the air is being squeezed out of your lungs. Seokjin never spoke about his feelings or spoke about the two of you as an ‘us’, only ever referring to you as two separate people who just happened to go to events together. 

“The last couple of weeks, I’ve… thought about you, a lot. I’ve really fucking missed you, Y/N,” he chokes out, closing his eyes tightly and you grip your cup. You’ve never heard him cry before. 

He looks up at you, eyes red, and you almost step towards him before you catch yourself. You’ve missed him, too, and not just for the way he leaves you weak in the knees the morning after. Despite his reluctance to put a label on your relationship, Seokjin was more domestic than he was perhaps capable of admitting. It had touched you when he’d learned your coffee order within a week, always had your favourite snacks stocked away in his penthouse kitchen and even bought you a small wardrobe’s worth of clothes. 

But it was the occasional evenings spent on his sofa that you remembered fondest, a bottle or two of red wine split between you while you watched TV together. He would always lay your legs across his lap, gently massaging down your calves while your chosen film or documentary played out in front of you until he was pressing circles into your feet with his thumbs. He always said he didn’t care for TV so he’d let you choose, but he’d be just as engrossed as you by the end of the night, insisting on one more episode before you dragged him to bed. It was those moments of intimacy that you missed, when he seemed like he could actually be your boyfriend if only he wasn’t so reluctant. 

You’re not sure if you can bring yourself to believe him, given how easily he threw it all away. 

“Sure, you did,” you roll your eyes, sarcasm dripping from your voice to mask the hurt you can’t swallow. “My phone’s barely stopped ringing.”

His gaze hardens, but a flash of hurt crosses his face. 

“I texted you,” he bites out. “You didn’t reply.”

“You asked me what I was doing for the holidays, Seokjin. You didn’t apologise, you didn’t say anything about what happened. You didn’t give me any reason to talk to you.” You put your cup down on the counter behind you, the temptation to throw it at him growing every second. 

“I didn’t know what else to say,” he says quietly. “I’m not used to…” he trails off, unsure how to phrase it. “I’m not used to being the one to fix things.” 

You laugh hollowly; you can’t help it. It’s bitter, the reminder that you were always the one to crawl back first, but it’s true. 

“It’s not nice, is it?” you ask, letting him see your own teary eyes as you look up at him. “Waiting for someone else to give you what you want.” His features fall and his shoulders drop, the meaning behind your words as clear as day: you waited for him to give you a relationship and he kept teasing you with it, pulling you along like a fool. 

“No,” he admits, voice barely above a whisper. “It’s not. But I’m ready, I think.” Seokjin takes one more step towards you, his hands still buried deep in his pockets, arms tense with the restraint it’s taking him not to reach out and touch you. 

“Ready?” you ask, head spinning, heart pounding. “Ready for what?”

“To give you what you want,” he says gently. “I’m ready to give you a relationship, if you still want one… still want me.”

You’ve waited months to hear him say those words but now that you’re hearing them you’re struggling to understand. Your eyes search his features and you see that he looks tired, like he hasn’t slept properly for a while. 

You’re conflicted. The disbelief of hearing those long-awaited words sits level on the scales of your emotions, balanced out by the sting of too many rejections in the past. You’re tired, too. Tired of waiting for him, of having your hopes raised by tender touches only to be dashed by the sharp words claiming you’re nothing more than his friend. You don’t want to fall for his words only for them to come back and cut you later on, but you also don’t want to miss out on the opportunity to at least try having everything you’ve ever wanted with him. 

It’s too big of a decision to make in one moment, even when you’re sober.

“I do,” you say hesitantly, careful with your expression. “I do still want you, but-” you put your hand out to stop him when he takes another step closer, hands withdrawing from his pockets to reach out for you. They hesitate in mid-air at the touch of your fingertips to his chest, fingers curling in on themselves. “But I can’t just say yes to this, not tonight. I need time. I need you to prove to me that I can trust you, and that you mean this, Seokjin.” 

His gaze softens and his hands slowly close over yours, holding your palm to his chest.

“I understand,” he says, hands holding yours tightly. “I’m willing to wait. I think it’s only fair, I’ve made you wait long enough.” 

“Too right,” you say, pushing him gently on the chest and his cheeky smirk falls into a grin. 

“Start the new year with me,” he says, gradually bringing you closer until he can press a kiss to your hair.

“Okay,” you whisper, wrapping your hands around his torso and relaxing into the planes of his chest. You’ve missed being held by him. “Let’s go outside.”

You retrieve your glasses and head out onto the balcony together hand in hand, taking the alcohol with you more to keep you warm than to keep any lingering buzz going. Namjoon smiles when you come up beside him, almost wrapping his arm around your shoulder when he catches sight of your hand entwined with Seokjin’s. His expression falls slightly but he recovers, meeting your gaze to silently ask if everything’s okay, and when you nod his smile returns, although it doesn’t reach his eyes. You know he’ll have questions and you’ll answer them in time but, for now, you’re happy to watch as colours explode in the sky above you all. 

If you’d like to read any more of my writings, please visit my masterlist  ♥

[delicatebluebirdruins]

Shadow and Bone

This will contain spoilers (duh) some names being forgotten and its going to get long and some context less chaos

I hope i got the image ids right

Episode one (23rd April)

- ahh so the Fold= Dark Island form VoDT but with less summoning of monsters?

ID: Ben Barnes holding onto the wheel of a boat

- Many smol beans

Brief interlude with Nausicaa Valley of the Wind

Episode 1 cont. up to midway episode 7 (24th)

- magical brown trouser time my good sir

- buddies!!

- they’re not going to leave Alina alone to her existential crisis are they?

That tent looks like a circus tent to me and I have no idea why

- hmm hello completely innocent fallen branch

me: turns to sis and asks if we can we take brief intermission for this headbanger (which we did)

Turns out our brief intermission for the song was useless because after pressing play again it started buffering

we were talking about it and Dad misheard it as shaggy bone

Imagine the darkling but in pastels and black lace

- how the flipping heck can you fake bleeding light

- do you want to get lost Alina?

On Ben Barnes beard: 50% hot damn and 50% fight me (the way he tilts his head in this makes us want to hit him in the jugular)

Episode 3

- ooh look at the stag

- i love the bathroom

- damn Nina

- I wish Alina had time to get some magic tips but oh well

- replays Ben Barnes saying Moya Tsarieta twice

- how?! (Look I told you there was going to be bits where the context is tricky to pin point)

- i love the goat

- oh Jesper

- blue and gold is a great colour combination

- about the dinner scene: if this were me it would be the very rare time I stand up for myself

+ I want to add a small thing about the food taster... one is dream job/ i like him/ and imagine a taster eating something and it goes down the wrong way

- yes Jesper hug the goat- and

ID: a man with his thumb up gif from The Hunger Games; with him saying “nice shooting sweetheart” but I couldn’t find a gif of him saying it

- true north? I am never going to be free of bellarke am I?

- oh that hurts

Episode 4

- “our saint has arrived to late” 🤧

- ohh the stag is so pretty

- horses!!!

- time for a heist- i love this goat

- aww wishing fountain bonding

- the darking is growing on me

- i love Mikhail and Dubrov

- I love what we get to see of Nadia and Marie and Kaz and Inej and Jesper and basically everyone

- i love a heist (this isnwhat the hobbit should of been but you know with more dragons

- Mal is baby

- poor Nina

- ah ha a vicious cycle against the Grisha and Fjerdan

- I thought Arkens reaction was a bit odd

- oh Alina sweet heart- flashback time

- the map room is a aesthetic- using Aleksanders own words against him

That shot of the two of them is great

- poor Alina

- yas queen

- oh the stag!

- oh the machine gun; Mal poor buddy and of course flashback time

- i knew she was going to get the scar removed

Episode 5

- poor Mal

- Nadia is me

- Genya is amazing

- hi David and great minds think alike Alina (i had the same expression on my face when they were flirting)

- oh the creepy masks had a purpose

- “you’re not Ivan” you don’t say

- aand height difference... this first kiss is kind of weird to me

- oh Jesper you flirt

- I’m sorry firey people you’re going to be outshined

- Inej is so beautiful

- Dima?!?!

ID: two people from a scene in the Anastasia Musical the song My Petersburg

- what is the librarians dudes problem?

- Genya you badass... poor Marie (does Alina learn about this?? It would probably be forgotten just like her causing the death of her fellow mapmakers)

- I love the costumes

- Tofin (Idk his name) we don’t know you sorry you’re dead

- oh the kissing

ID: a gif showing two people kissing

- and him giving her the flowers is kind of cute but where did they come from?

- *pinched nose* I hate cryptic messages Baghra... holy shit... i mean I kinda knew he was immortal but still holy shit

- oh Kaz... Inej! Collect your bloody knives

- *snorting* The crows being sent to kidnap Alina and Jesper just watching her climb into the getaway carriage will always be hysterical (i personally would be laughing and thats why anything involving stealth is off the cards for me)

Episode 6

- rest in pieces Arken

- Alina broke Inej

- I love Ivan (remember the thing i said about forgetting names/ getting them mixed up? This is it.. I love Feydor a lot more than Ivan but they are both so cute together)

- my heart will go on starts playing?

- i like that horse statue in the background

- i love the beach... look at those waves... the wet look is great

- you done mess up Alina but also cool

- Mal is burly squid

- “burly squid” wheezing nosies

- now hug

- Kaz I love the cane

- “I see you now” aww

- I knew they were going to snuggle... those cute laughs

- the alarm clock though... i knew Inej should have taken the knife... i love Jesper... poor Inej... clever boy Kaz

- does it hurt? Mal? Does it hurt?

I have a habit at picking at things that hurt and well fictional characters aren’t safe from me wanting to poke something painful

- ride OR die bitches

- aand more height differences... getting very close there guys... Matthias please don’t let her fall.... they are kind of cute

- David through a book... 😂 they carriage jacked the Darkling

- David raising his hand is me... but damn it

- Alina is amazing... please remember you’re wearing the ring... Mal is best boy

- “adorable” snorting noises

Episode 7

- horsey!!!

- ahh the return of the VoDT hair (see first gif)

- Luda is familiar...

- yikes

- poor Aleksander being turned into a pincushion is not a great time

- poor Luda

- holy shit

- rock and hard place

- fuck off Baghra

- he wanted to help 😔

- ah so its like the hollow from Charmed

Image ID: gif from the og Charmed with text saying “ohhh she’s a demon!”

- this shot is beautiful... ah so I guess this could have been what happened if Caspian resurrected the White Witch... i guess

- hi stag.... oh okay 😔 poor Stag poor Mal

Flashbacks to Cinderella and Snow White (the one with Krisien Sterwart) natually it follows along with Snow White

- *squishie noises* poor Jesper... we love you Jesper but please stop talking to Inej just in case she sews her finger to the wound

- i love the crows and i love the chat about the crows

Buffers

The next day (25th) episode continued

- David looks so sad

- personally I would downsize the fold just as reminder of it

- that looks like that hurt

- I love Milo and Jesper 💖

- don’t look at it Alina... Genya is right that colour is horrible... tell her off Alina... poor Genya

- I think Jesper had fun playing a guard

- I knew the Darkling read the letters

Sister: why does he look like Tom Ellis right now?

- oh Mal

- blow dart... lol Kaz

- Milo!?! Oh the bullet you clever boy Mal

- i like the tent... he’s not wrong... we want to play with that dangly bit... oh the angst

- I thought you looked older (idk context)

- I love the outfit but couldn’t the necklace be anywhere else?

- “no mourners no funerals”

- I love the music

Episode 8

- I don’t trust that opening

- me too Crows, me to... how could you not know who Milo is

- I love Nina and Matthias so much... they are so pretty... I am not a fan of taxidermy... oh his name is Feydor sorry we kept getting you mixed up

- God damnit Kirigan.. a not so sneaky Mal... the honorary Crow... pick a side already darkling... Sun Queen?... did anybody notice her being tied down?... Good Mal and good Inej

- Jesper is amazing... so much death... bad bitch Zoya... I love Inej kissing the knife and nailing the Darkling with it... head shot... hello buddy??... this music though... badass Alina... fucking Ivan... holy shit and of course music is amazing

+ brave Kaz

- Inej and Alina bonding time... hugs? No hugs ☹️

- he offered her his hand 😞... Inej wants to hug... finally some hugs... Zoya has grown on me... i love Kanej (is that the ship name)

- Matthias oh no buddy... hill house flashbacks

- i love Jesper so much... Nina going “someone say heartrender??”

Image ID: someone turning around and raising eyebrows at camera

- Kaz saying “she’s a saint” made my heart happy

- I doubt the Darkling is dead...... i was right

- well shit/ coolness of making shadow monsters follow you (please let there be a flashback for this)

Bonus

+ imagine of Matthias and Nina decide to sleep rather than get food and were caught cuddling by the Grisha... I thought of this as I was getting into bed that night and i got up ran to my sister told her my thought she found the idea funny then went back to bed

+ people who own trains are evil?? Looks at snowpiercer

Bonus: the soundtrack is on spotify and itunes

Image id: someone bobbing along with headphones on

[absent-o-minded]

SHADOW AND BONE SPOILERS

I binged the show yesterday in two sittings (Eps 1-5 in one, Eps 6-8 in the other) and I thought that I'd make a list of some of my favourite moments/lines throughout the series. (This is going off of memory as I haven't done a rewatch yet, so I'm sorry if some quotes aren't word for word.) Part 1?

- Milo The Goat being the Main Character for 10 minutes straight

- "She's not like you. No one is." I wasn't expecting to get fucking whipped so hard so early by Kanej but ThErE We gO

- The entire scene of Kaz dressing up as a painter just to get a look at the blueprints to the Archive Library because...why not?

- Alina and Mal being cutie patooties in the Camp before shit hit the fan.

- An underappreciated moment: When Mal said that Alina "looked healthy" and him smiling at the fact that she had developed an apetite from using her powers. I thought that it was a very tender moment.

- Ben Barnes as the Darkling having soldiers make room for him to walk because he is THAT BITCH.

- Mikael and Dubrov! It's always a good ol' adrenaline kick when a TV Show takes your love for two minor characters and shoves it in the blender right before your very eyes...Thank-Thanks Shadow and Bone.

- "Your tracker friend liked it when I put him on his back too." Even my face felt the burn of Zoya and I knew that it didn't even happen.

- The Crows in general were immaculate. Everything from the representation of Inej's religious standpoint (which I thought was done incredibly well) to Kaz being an emo boy (...she said see ya' later boy...) to Jesper going "Bang bang bullet bullet gun!"

- Jespers fucking lines, with some special mentions but not limited to: "...He threw a book at me?..." "I'M NOT THROWING OUT THE GOAT...so soft." "(*Insert Screaming*)" "I lost a little bit of money...I lost all of the money." "Of course, love." "I know. I'd miss me too. I'm fantastic."

- Alina's powers were beautiful (Mega props to CGI). Imagine having the power of being a literal ray of sunshine and then playing a character who has the power to summon literal rays of sunshine? That's Jessie Mei Li.

- The wholesomeness of the Inej and Jesper scene where Inej is trying to stitch her self up and there is a mutual understanding of her position of going back and Jesper inadvertently says that he values her.

- "My Crows." UHHHHNNNNNGGGG

- Genya saying that the Queen has saggy tits had me rolling.

- SPeakIng of GeNYA, Genya and David. The small snippets we got of the two are enough to last me lifeti-yeah, no, about two weeks, I love them both so much, please gimme.

- "You don't have to put-" *sigh* "Yes, David?" PFFF.

- Helnik in the Whaler's hut. I cannot pinpoint one particular thing. Wholesome.

- The build up of the Darkling x Kaz confrontation over the few weeks leading up to the Shows Premiere, the plethora of theories that involved Cane Whacking and Shadow Summoning and Insult Throwing and Fashion Copyrighting, and what did we get? The peak humour that was Kaz fucking throwing down a flash bomb and dissapearing like my perception of time and space after sitting in the dark for 5 hours watching the show. I do not know why I expected anything less, that scene was beautiful.

- The bit where Alina directly put her hands over the mans eyes and radiated her light directly onto his eyeballs? It was brief and swift but I found that so cool.

- As a Film Student, I can just really appreciate the overall aestheticism of the series. They managed to encapsulate both the quintessential elements (The setting/locations, The Score, Costume Design etc) and as well as the more meticulous, intricate details (Again with Kefta details, but also with Characterisation, Prop Design of the Crow Club) and so much more. The essence of the world that Leigh Bardugo has built was captured as if it had been plucked straight from my mind and I revelled in it for those 8 hours.

There are so many moments that I have missed or have not spoken about but I'll end that here as its been quite long, but this series was utterly beautiful, and all of those involved: The incredible Cast, the most talented of Cinematogrophers, Designers, Camera Workers, Writers, Hair and Make-Up Staff, truly to every single person involed - Thank you so much <3

(Also - Please feel free to add anything in the comments, or message me if you want to talk about the show. I'm debating whether to do a more consice review, but we'll see how lazy I'm feeling tbh. Take care everyone <3 )

[msumilo]

* love maze

mirror maze w. / @msunoah !

considering milo hadn’t seen, heard or so much as gotten a singular text from noah all night, he's a bit surprised to find the first time he’s aware the elder had even showed up to the festivities is when they both just so happen to be lost in the quite unforgiving mirror maze. he’s not sure if it was just because he had been high for most of the night, or if it was just his genuine fondness of the other male, but he can’t help but smile to himself whenever he hears him call out his name. “i’m coming—” he shouts, “just don’t move!” it feels like the fourteenth time he’s said it, though he honestly hadn’t been keeping track and he’s pretty sure at one point when noah called out for milo, his response had simply been a loud ‘polo’.

he’s even more surprised when he turns the corner to finally lay eyes on noah, who now had on a striking resemblance to none other than the joker — which milo distinctly remembers begging the other to dress up as so they could match for halloween, despite how ever so complicated their relationship currently was. he also specifically remembers noah’s answer being no every time he asked, yet here he was... looking absolutely hot as fuck, milo thinks to himself. he looks good with green hair. was it stupid that the whole thing made his heart flutter?

he runs over to close the space between them and jumps onto noah without much hesitation. “found you!” milo’s arms loop around his neck with a bright grin and he kisses his cheek in excitement, lips pressing just underneath one of the fake tattoo’s on his face. “hi,” he says breathlessly as he pulls away, the look in his eyes almost innocent before his gaze begins to drift. he isn’t very subtle in the way he checks noah out, though it would’ve been pretty hard for him not to with what he was or wasn’t wearing. “you look sexy,” he murmurs, turning to admire their costumes in one of the many mirrors around them as he bites down on his lip. “we look good together,” he adds, trying to bite back a smile. “don’t you think?”