#zep behind the scenes

[harveyguillensource]

Harvey throwing back to his slick dancing in rehearsal for his "Stronger" number on Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist.

[agentperezbian]

Anyway, what are some examples of Adam's kindness in the film? /gen

Unfortunately, because pretty much every scene of Adam outside of the bathroom (besides his kidnapping) didn't make it to the final cut of the film, I'm mainly going off of the original Saw script as well as deleted scenes from Saw 3 for my assessment of his character. Which means you can dismiss everything I say if you want, because only what makes it into the movie would be considered canon.

That being said, I like to consider the outline of Adam's character we see in the script as well as the scenes written and filmed for later movies to be indicative of Leigh's vision for the character, and not something to be tossed out just because they ended up on the cutting room floor.

The scene where Adam, who states how far he is willing to go to get money for food, gives his last bit of milk to a stray cat is a big one for me. He states that he likes how "non-judgmental" the cat is. Which I think alludes to Adam being harshly judged by those around him and maybe even avoided by others due to the way he's perceived. We learn that Adam used to want to be a vet in the script, and these two factors together seem to indicate a large love for animals and a desire to help and care for them. Adam in the script definitely shows nurturing traits.

We have the cut scene from Saw 3, a flashback of Adam and Amanda running into each other in their apartment building. Adam compliments Amanda's hair and tries to get her to open up a little. He's awkward but polite, and seems to feel bad about potentially making Amanda uncomfortable. He seems to flounder a bit but doesn't get upset even when Amanda barely says a word. He's handing out flyers for Scott's band, spending his free time giving them free promotion despite the fact that from what we learn, Scott doesn't seem to value Adam's friendship much. This, to me, is more evidence of Adam going out of his way to help others, with seemingly no reward for doing so.

Adam, to me, displays a very self-sacrificial personality. He seems to not really value himself very much. John calls him apathetic and it's very much true, but he isn't apathetic to others. He's apathetic to himself. Even when he tells Lawrence "facts" about him they all relate to things other people have done to him. I think he very much sees himself as a passive observer in his own life, which is why it's so easy for him to hide behind a camera. When he kills Zep, it's to stop him from killing Lawrence. Despite the fact that Lawrence had just shot him. Really, it would be more beneficial to let Lawrence die and continue to play dead - it would be safer, and allow Adam to attempt to escape. But he saves Lawrence anyway. In the original script John calls Adam a pawn, and i think even without him outright stating it this theme is still very much present in the film. The pawn is never meant to achieve greatness. The pawn will never be able to satisfy its own wants. The pawn can only elevate others.

[punkmush]

writing down my favorite parts of the Saw (2004) DVD commentary with Leigh and James PT.3 (rest will be under the 🪚 tag)

•Leigh loved filming the scene where he pretended to die by the cigarette. Of course he did.

•Leigh slammed his camera down so hard during the red room scene that James told him “No photographer would ever set their camera down that hard.”

•In all the scenes where the lights are off, they had to pretend that it was actually pitch black. Meanwhile it was bright as can be, they just pitched down the light a lot.

•During the showing of Saw, the scene where Adam goes to open the closet, someone in the audience yelled “Oh you idiot!!!”

•They called Adam “The worst spy photographer the world has ever seen.”

•Leigh wanted to laugh in the beginning of a scene so he asked Cary to do his Marlon Brando and the whole crew laughed at it.

•They also laugh when Tapp hides behind the pole for cover.

•During the screening of the scene where Lawrence cuts off his foot, someone puked.

•Originally Zep came in and checked Adam’s pulse, which we know wouldn’t have worked.

•Leigh actually landed a punch onto Zep’s actor by accident. (i think? i can’t tell if he’s being sarcastic or not)

•No way they just described when Lawrence and Adam are grabbing at each other as “The Love Scene.”

•The whole ending sequence starting with Adam searching Zep’s body was filmed in one shot.

•THEY SAID ADAM DYING IS UP TO INTERPRETATION ADAM ALIVE TRUTHERS WE WIN /j

•They ended it with Leigh doing a BBC announcer impersonation oh my god. It’s actually not bad.

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

Happy 8 Years on Tumblr, my friend! I'm so glad we've gotten to know each other recently!! 💕

For my question from your sleepover Friday list, here goes: Who would you ship me with from SPN, The Boys, or Big Sky world?

A little bit about me:

You probably know by now that I'm Latina lol

I love to cook and try new recipes and restaurants

Love oldies music -- anywhere from the 40s to current stuff, especially rock, R&B, 70s, 80s, 90s

I'm also a movies and TV junkie lol. I love trivia and behind the scenes stuff! AKA: I'm a big nerd. 😂

Hobbies include nature walks, painting, yoga, reading of course

I'm a creative writer, but also a writer/editor professionally (with some teaching on the side)

I guess you could say I have a "cat-like" personality lol. I love being with my loved ones and friends, but I also value my alone time, when I can write and do my work in peace. I've also been told by friends that I'm a good listener...

I don't want to ramble too much, but I'm very interested to know who you would match me with. 😜 Again, happy Tumblrversary!! 💓

Hey Zep! Same! I've always been awful at making tumblr friends but I've been enjoying to get to know you too!

Oh good question! I knew some of these things but not all. Hm, I could definitely see you with a lot of people but I'm going to go with...

Ben (Soldier Boy)

Now while I think you'd handle any of our favs well, I think Ben is the one that needs you the most. We all know he's got his issues and is out of place in time. But I think you'd be the one to wrangle him in. I think he'd be leery at first but would bond over music, something not so foreign to him and start to drop his guard. You'd be a "light" for him, someone to show him new foods and places and good times but understand his need for solitude and space. He'd tease you about being a nerd but secretly adore that quality.

Your creative side would be something that confuses him at first, especially as he absently watches you fill a page with words as the day progresses. He'd be baffled that you can make something from nothing as his whole life has been about being what other people want from him, not fully being able to think for himself and his own aspirations. He'd scoff at your invitations to try your hobbies but eventually he'd relent, complaining the whole time while actually enjoying them. Especially yoga. Ben's not very good at it though, probably because he spends the whole time with his eyes glued on you.

Finally, after he feels like he can really trust you, he'd sit you down with a scotch in hand and tell you about his life. Down to the nitty gritty details. He hates it. Really fucking hates it. Hates how it makes him feel weak and vulnerable. But when he's finally finished, that feeling dissipates. He's never said those words out loud. Never allowed himself to think such things without hating himself for not being a real man. But with you? Yeah, maybe with you things will be alright.

So there you go! Ben's the winner but this was actually a really hard choice!

[starlightsailfish]

Tape, Puzzle Piece and Hello Zepp for the Saw asks~

Tape: Which movie is your personal favorite of the whole franchise?

SAW IV! It's got Mark, Peter, Lindsey, and Rigg being their usual sexy selves and both subplots are lots of fun to follow! I love Hoffman and Rigg's relationship and Hoffman being a normal dude, Jill's interogation scenes ("aw Jill no. no!" Classic), whatever the hell is wrong with Strahm I love every scene he's in and how pushy and snappy and pretty he is.

The whole subplot with Art and Eric is probably the weakest part but hey at least Hoffman is there with his tits out. I also forget about this movie's traps a lot because, compared to 3 and 5, they just aren't that impressive. Also why didn't we get the theatrical ending it is so much better at building the energy of Hoffman's reveal???

Puzzle Piece: Favorite trap and why?

Ohhh this one is tough. The Rack has a special place in my heart because it was the first SAW trap I saw on youtube and it fucked me up at the ripe age of 13! :) It would be great if slow-ass-motherfucking Jeff would HURRY UP.

The Cube and Reverse Bear Trap 2.0 are BANGING because we LOVE seeing people survive in genius ways plus head-traps are just really great because of that freedom to move adds to the terror of imminent death. Also it's Peter and Mark being sexy so???

And then there's the Acid Needle trap which is visually so disgusting and unique from all other traps we love a good chemical-based trap!

Hello Zepp: Favorite twist of any of the movies?

Ough it's a hard tie between Saw 1 and Saw 3D. Zep's tape, the pan to Jigsaw waking up, and Adam's screams are SO ICONIC and left me just sitting there for a good 10 mins after just absorbing it all.3D was such a crap movie but the reveal of Lawrence being an apprentice the WHOLE TIME while Hoffman gets his ass kicked around is sooooooooo GOOD and the series ending where it all began is so poetic and makes the movie worth it for that alone.

Honorable mentions go to Daniel being in "a safe place" because that's just a silly little prank :) and 4's theatrical ending because Hoffman sexily unstrapping himself and rising from his chair is so POWERFUL seriously why did they remove that??? Now he just kinda pops ups behind Rigg and that's just not as cool. :(

Thank you for the asks!!

[theflirtmeister]

Re: your omegaverse saw rewrite

dear god how would that even work with peepaw in the bathroom? Adam suddenly goes into heat and what they thought was a corpse just raises to mount Adam while Lawrence looks on like O_O WTF IS GOING ON (while trying to chew off his leg to get to Adam???)

poor Zep just completely unequipped for it all as he watches behind the scenes

LITERALLY WHY I COULDN'T HAVE JOHN IN THE ROOM, and also leads to questions like: is john an alpha? what does that mean for the story? would kramer's character willing knot adam in a bathroom??

[videostak]

didnt end up watching lovers live cause i ended up watchig almost famous w/ my sister it was alright u kno like meh one of those 70s nostalgia movies that kinda annoy me. like that and dazed n confused type stuff rly annoy me. philip seymour hoffman as lester bangs was v cool tho lol. like idk felt appropriate casting. the rest of the movie was like alright not bad but u kno it bieng autobiographical makes u kinda want more but also knowing that its restrained a lot by being a safe type autobiographical movie u kno. wathcing it tho makes me think abt my life and music and where i should be or where i should go hmmm. like that record store just straight up hired me w/ no experience or anything just cause ppl here have such dogshit taste that the stuff i was selling made me seem really cultured lol. and i dont even kno if ill be able to get a job at the store downtown cause i realized that i probably didnt get it the first time cause theres like. no contemporary music i listen to. I just theres nothing i feel worht listening toooo idk stuff ill be like oh tahts cool but really think they didnt give it to me back then cause like i didnt say much abt new music and to be bleak abt the current music scene would def be a red flag for them like to be truthful lol. like that and i listed tons of freakout shit like brotzmann no wave  minimalism etc lolll. thought like itd make me look real smart but realized it just made them think to not put me behind the register lol. anyways thats prooobably why i didnt get it tho honestly they couldve just already decided not to give it to me from the start since it was a interview i got from a ex friends friend so like couldve just all been a formality. another reason is i had mentioned recently getting the stones first album on cd and the interviewer wass like “u just started listening to the stones?” and i was like ya basically LOL so that also probably cost me the job lol... which is funny cause now im like a huge rolling stnes fan tbh like just rly totally understand why theyre as popilar as they are and like v much will praise the stones over stuff like led zeppelin n stuff lol wel i guuess that isnt sayying tooo much since i rly have a tolerate/hate relationship w/ music like zep and who. anyways if i do apply again im gonna try to list new artists even if its shit i dont actually listen to like honestly rn just thinking ummm harry styles,tennis,beach house,black midi, death grips, sophie, maybe some more. of the ones there i only actually have listenend to tennis black midi death grips and sophie. but gotta have a list like that just so they think i listen to contemporary stuff even tho i dont :P just like b4 i thought there were nice bands and there are nice artists like sophie for sure is up there but like kinda become disenchanted w/ so many modern groups just knowing who theyre shamelessly ripping off u kno like every modern indie artist doing a stephen malkmus type voice/delivery or sounding like a bad cocteau twins parody or like if mbv were muzak. u knooooo. but i obv cant say that cause like. the new stuff is what sells and what they have to be savvy on since its like u kno theyre selling that new. wiiiish i could be in some positiion where i could state my opinion and get paid and be honest and ppl respect me. i guess thats the point of a journalist but obv writing articles abt how much shit sucks and why u should only listen to real artists like the stooges or the nutty squirrels and stuff w/ real deep actual depth that are actually saying/doing something like the b52s or cluster isnt something that is like contemporary -_- liiike idk just need tooo make some money i guess but i think its insane when ppl acknowledge my personality and opinions so im like i should exist on that alone lol. even w/in the time that i got rejected for that job ive listened to so much more and could genuinely add more to that list even tho i get into music at a snails pace. like b4 i just put dub on the application but now ive truly heard more reggae and could just list both reggae/dub together instead of just dub. sucks tho appplying knowing they rly dont care abt music or passion and just need someone who knows whats goin on w/ t swift n harry styles T-T they should hire me cause i see visions of god when listening to einstein on the beach very loud and focusing on the flute

[tobinshotsauce]

ᴢᴏᴇʏ’s ᴇxᴛʀᴀᴏʀᴅɪɴᴀʀʏ ᴘʟᴀʏʟɪsᴛ • ʙᴇʜɪɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ sᴄᴇɴᴇs, s𝟷ᴇ𝟶𝟹 - ᴢᴏᴇʏ’s ᴇxᴛʀᴀᴏʀᴅɪɴᴀʀʏ ʙᴏss

[safetyhazardfics]

In honor of #FreeBritney, Harvey shared a behind-the-scenes look at his performance of Stronger on Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist! (source)

[harveyguillensource]

Harvey posted more behind-the-scenes choreography rehearsal, this time for “It’s the Hard Knock Life”! Since Annie was such a pivotal inspiration in Harvey’s life, we’re so glad he got to knock this number out of the park on TV.

For audio and Harvey’s captions for these clips, check out his Instagram Stories before it’s too late!

[captaincryolicious]

The aftermath of a battle

➳ Childe x gn! Fatui reader

➳ Oneshot ; 4.5k

➳ Sort of fluff? ; Mentions of blood, violence and injuries

Who knew that this bloodthirsty harbinger could be such a sweetheart after a tough battle? [11.07.2022]

Zep's Note ; This has gotten SO LONG help me. Anyway this took me quite some effort to write so please don't let this flop hehe.

content under the cut | masterlist

The rusty and foul odor of death and bloodshed that hung over the dark and lifeless battlefield was a peculiar reason for a facial expression that radiated satisfaction and pride to rest on one's features. 

It was a sight that would have been unsettling for most people, even for the most experienced warriors who carried physical as well as mental scars of the countless battles they fought in. Yet, this pair of striking blue eyes skimmed the war zone in an almost lazy manner, carrying a dangerous glint and pupils dilated to the size of the pale moon in the night sky. The left corner of his mouth was curled upward ever so slightly, the devilish grin on his chapped lips growing every time he laid eyes on a new dead body. A gentle breeze toyed with some fluffy tufts of orange hair, the wind making sure the bloodstained mask that was casually pushed to the side of his head wasn't to be obscured from view – if only someone would have been around to witness the male's presence. But there wasn't a living being to be found; it was just the harbinger surrounded by countless corpses, and not even the sight of the mangled bodies of his fallen Fatui comrades was enough to make his smug grin falter. 

To him, the smell of death and blood that wasn't his own, was the smell of yet another victory. It had been violent, faint echoes of the bloodcurdling screams of many warriors seemingly still lingering in the murky air. There hadn't been mercy, the deadly dancefloor that was the battlefield wrapped in a darkness that foretold the demise of many. There hadn't been a way out for the enemy nor the Fatui, and both sides fought with much vigor, giving more and more upon losing comrade after comrade. It had been a madhouse from the beginning to the end, with a fight that took more lives than most, but it was the victory that mattered and not the way it was reached. 

A crisp midnight breeze blew over the plains, howling hollowly as it gripped and shuddered the tall grass and harvested the souls of the deceased. The male stood unaffected by the chill, hardened by the Snezhnayan cold that devoured the frostbitten wildlands back in his homeland, and still on a high after fighting in a delirious brawl. A scarf as red as the crimson that was spilled got caught in the wind, fluttering behind the tall figure heroically. His smile still hadn't faltered, and it only grew wider when a twig snapped in his close vicinity. 

     "Are you done admiring your slaughter?" your voice rang through the silence when you  appeared on the scene, struggling to keep your balance after nearly tripping over the spear of a fallen soldier while approaching the male. 

     "Certainly, if you offer me something else to admire," came the reply, the vicious grin merging into a boyish smile when the harbinger laid eyes on you. 

     "I brought myself, hope that's enough."

You paired your reply with a laid back jazz-hands gesture, mentally shaking your head at the sight of Childe covered in blood beaming at you with a broad smile. It was a huge contrast with the malicious Fatui he was barely ten minutes ago, and so out of place against the backdrop of massacre. 

     "Of course, Y/N" Childe replied, plopping a gloved hand on top of your head and ruffling your hair lightly. "You're plenty admirable if you'd ask me." 

Then his hand traveled from the top of your head down to the side of your face, using the pad of his thumb to wipe a streak of blood off your cheek. "Are you hurt? I must say that today's brawl was quite the intense one." 

     "Nothing major, just some cuts and bruises," you reassured the male, quickly deciding that Childe was fine too, judging by the way he was acting. A shiver ran down your spine when you glanced around, and you added, "but I'm cold and most likely really sore when I wake up after getting some sleep for what is left of the night. Oh, and I kinda want to get out of here as soon as possible. Unlike you, I'm not one who deems the aftermath of slaughter as a form of art." 

In reality, fragments of the moonlit battle were repeating in your mind over and over and you knew you couldn't put it behind you as long as you stayed on the crimson-stained greenfields. It wasn't your first time to witness the demise of many, enemies and allies alike, but you had yet to develop a cold indifference towards it that was much-needed when you carried the insignia of the Fatui. 

As much of a cold-blooded warrior Childe might have been, he was also a guy with a caring and protective side that was bigger than he let on, and he had a knack for sensing discomfort in the ones close to him. Hence he didn't fail to notice the slight distress that seeped through your tough demeanor. 

     "Usually after a mission the Fatui regroup and head towards a camp together to rest and heal before returning home," the eleventh harbinger mused, casting one last glance towards what he called a success before turning to look at you again. "There aren't any Fatui left to regroup now, though, so I think it's best if we seek an inn nearby instead of setting up a camp." 

You grimaced at how he mentioned his fallen comrades so casually, but then nodded gratefully at the idea of going to an inn for the rest of the night. Inns in Teyvat were cozy and homely, welcoming and comfortable, and that was exactly what you longed for right now. But then your eyes landed on the dark red stains on Childe's disheveled clothes, illuminated just enough by the faint glow of the full moon in the sky to be revealed, and you knew you weren't in a much better shape. As rapidly as they came, the images of a warm inn diminished, and you heaved out a small sigh.

     "Childe, we're covered in blood," you murmured, taking the fabric of your nearly-ripped coat between your thumb and index finger only to find blood stains indeed. "No innkeeper in their right mind would let us stay." 

     "Don't worry about that," the taller told you, his gloved hand still resting against your cold cheek. "Some inns located in the more remote areas receive financial support from the Northland Bank, and in return they welcome the Fatui without asking questions or making an issue of it."

     "Even when it's so clear that we commited murder?" 

You remained skeptical, but Childe waved it off with a dismissive gesture of his free hand. "It's not an irregular occurrence that I arrive somewhere with fresh blood sticking to my clothes and dripping from my hair." 

You still said nothing, and the male released a small breath before gently poking your cheek. "If they really end up refusing us, which they won't, just smile at them innocently. You look harmless and adorable, they can't possibly deny you a cozy and safe room." 

Of course you knew he was trying to lighten the mood and make you feel better, but the fact that he called you harmless and adorable, jokingly or not, earned him a sharp glare. 

     "I'm not harmless," you countered. 

He finally drew back his hand from your cheek, releasing a melodious chuckle as he stepped back and opted for taking your hand in his instead.

     "If looks could kill, I wouldn't stand a single chance," the Fatui elite joked, giving your hand a little squeeze before pulling you to walk with him, away from the misery that you two left behind. 

✧

It was as if the nearest inn was miles away. You felt sore and exhausted, and you envied how Childe still managed to look fairly unaffected while you undoubtedly fought in the same battle against the same opponents. Your injuries were starting to hurt more and multicolored bruises were springing into bloom all over your skin. You wondered if the man next to you also felt the strain of continuous movement on his cuts, but even if he did he was doing a formidable job at hiding it.

The path that led you two away from the far-stretched plains now brought you into the hills, the sandy tracks sloping gingerly and taking you up higher and higher. Pine trees and slender firs stood tall in the hillside forest, like fickle silhouettes against the vast midnight sky embellished with Teyvat's bright stars. It was such a deserted area that you had little hopes of an inn actually being located here, but with travelers and adventurers everywhere, people set up their business in the most peculiar places. Childe seemed to know where he was going, and with your hand still in his, he led you further uphill confidently – albeit a bit tired too. 

Past missions always ended with Fatui carriages bringing you back to the inhabited areas, or if you were alone you often got lucky and ran into a cargo escort that was willing to give you a ride after Childe offered them some of his seemingly unlimited funds of Mora. But tonight there was no carriage and no cargo escort, only the youngest Fatui harbinger gently tugging you along while casting worried glances in your direction occasionally.  

     "I'm fine," you reassured him for the umpteenth time. 

That wasn't a lie; everything hurt, you were losing blood and your muscles were screaming, you were hungry and tired and still quite shaken by the battle you had fought, but that was by far not enough to take you down. Weakness was a curse among the Fatui, and showing any signs of it was a taboo. 

     "So am I, but that doesn't lessen my desire to find a bed and sleep," Childe pointed out, his eyes skimming your dark surroundings before flitting to you for a second. "Being tired doesn't mean you're weak and not okay."  

You weren't sure if the male meant what he said; he was notorious for his desire to get stronger and exhaustion blemished your strength and greatly limited your capabilities and vigor. Didn't that just plainly mean that being tired made you weak? If Childe ever were to face a formidable warrior who just so happened to be gripped by exhaustion, he would definitely complain about the lack of strength in his opponent. 

Fighting someone who wasn't at their full potential put a tarnish on his pride, and beating them brought him not the slightest satisfaction. 

He was just trying to be nice, you concluded, but you still appreciated the gesture. Though he was a solid and reliable mentor to his Fatui subordinates, you were one of the few who enjoyed the privilege of seeing Childe's true face that was hidden underneath his Fatui mask for most people.

He saw no need in bringing the comfort of reassurance to the Skirmishers and Agents, he wouldn't adjust his plans and behavior to benefit them, he would spare them not a single smile or kind gesture, and never would he ever feel the slightest hint of worry or sympathy towards them. 

Even for his fellow harbingers, this softer and warmer side of him was locked behind his blue eyes as cold as the ocean. 

You knew you were special. 

     "See those lanterns over there?" he suddenly asked, and you followed the line of his pointed finger to spot a few orbs of light between the trees a bit further up the slope. 

     "Is that an inn?" you guessed, relief washing over you when Childe confirmed your suspicions with a faint smile.

     "Likely the most Fatui-friendly inn out there," he said, and then you finally noticed the limp in his step now that he started walking faster, probably spurred on by the fact that a comfortable bed was within close proximity. 

     "Because of their extremely remote location, the rare guests they welcome are all travelers and adventurers who don't have a lot of Mora to spend." 

The two of you had reached a stairway carved out of cracked stone, that would bring you to the main entrance of the inn. It was still dark around you, with only an occasional lantern providing you some illumination. Yet, even in the faint lighting, the pained grimace on Childe's face was hard to miss, and you mentally scolded the man for letting his stupid pride get in the way of admitting that he was hurt. 

     "Let me guess, they solely rely on the continuous support from the Northland Bank and welcome the Fatui with open arms because they know they need them?" you mused, deliberately not commenting on his obvious pain for now. 

     "Exactly," the ginger-haired confirmed, still holding onto your hand as you ascended the stairs. "They act quite obsequiously which works in our favor no matter how you look at it." 

The Fatui truly were powerful and influential, people left and right kneeling down before them with merely a snap of their fingers. They were like parasites, clawing their way into the business of the weaker and making them dependent on the Snezhnayan bank's funds. More and more business keepers practically fell on their knees at the Fatui's feet, and they gladly used their growing army of sycophants to extend their reach all over Teyvat. 

Maybe you weren't the biggest fan of this method in the beginning, but you were quick to find out that it was quite easy to get what you wanted or needed by simply showing your Fatui insignia. 

Even when you were covered in the traces of a massacre.

You were exhausted, and you were this close to giving up and letting yourself collapse onto the hardwood floor when the crisp midnight air was replaced by the comfortable temperature inside the inn's main hall. You were at your limits, after not only partaking in your toughest battle so far but also having to walk to the nearest inn without so much as a break. Your last bits of energy were invoked to stay on your feet, as the last thing you wanted was to embarrass the harbinger next to you, and you forced a faint smile when the innkeeper approached you two. 

     "Good evening, and welcome to –"

What was supposed to be a warm and polite welcoming got halted by a sudden silence, when the middle-aged man in front of them took notice of the miserable shape both you and Childe were in. You almost felt ashamed when you cast a quick glance at your comrade, the various shades of light grey that made up his coat and pants doing absolutely nothing to hide the stains of deep crimson. 

     "Hi," the male next to you greeted, flashing the innkeeper his most harmless, toothy grin – one that had fooled many in the past. "Does there happen to be a room available?" 

     "Ah, certainly there is, sir," came the hasty reply, and the older man quickly had to fix his composure after being so obviously taken aback. He was not to blame, though. How often did a man covered in blood request a room with an almost child-like smile and his voice laced with buoyancy?

     "Absolutely splendid," Childe grinned, and you truly wondered what archons had blessed him with this amount of energy even after a night this tiring. 

     "Is medical assistance sought?" the innkeeper then asked, his eyes flitting to smears of blood, bleeding cuts, and blooming bruises that adorned the Fatui in front of him. 

     "There is no need, thank you," the harbinger replied, still stretching his polite and friendly act. "However, may I request for medical supplies to be delivered to our room?"

     "I will see them delivered immediately." 

The man bowed deeply, and you cringed when a soft crack broke the silence. Fortunately, a young-looking clerk shuffled towards you, asking the two of you to follow her in a meek and quiet voice before scurrying off without awaiting your reply. Understandable, you thought. You would probably do the same if you were to escort two bloody people to their room. 

Even with your only company being a timid young girl, the particularly stubborn ginger-haired male still tried his best to hide the limp in his step as you were led through the dimly-lit hallway. You were definitely going to comment on that after you had a good night of sleep. Childe's pride and unfaltering urge to always show the best and strongest version of himself was weirdly entertaining to you, in a way that made you shake her head and roll your eyes with a light amused grin tugging on your lips. 

     "Here is your room," the girl spoke upon suddenly coming to a halt. She didn't face you, didn't even spare you two a single glance, acting as if simply looking at a harbinger and his comrade was just as lethal as encountering them on a battlefield. All she did was push the heavy iron key in your hand and mutter a quick enjoy your stay.  

Then she was gone. 

     "Everybody is so afraid of us, even children" Childe commented, his eyes trained on the end of the hallway where the young girl had just disappeared. 

Gee, I wonder why, you almost replied sarcastically. But a sheen of sadness you thought to find in the male's eyes made you decide to stay quiet. You knew very well how much he missed his younger siblings, and you figured that maybe this small occurrence managed to hit closer to home than most of the times he witnessed someone cowering in fear afore him. 

     "In the very least, that means we look like true Fatui," you said, attempting a mild joke while you inserted the key into the lock and opened the door to your room. 

The hinges creaked in protest, and you could only hope the sound wouldn't disrupt the sleep of any of the other guests – if the inn even had some to begin with. Silently, you pushed the wooden door close after you had both entered the room and locked it safely. Then you turned around to face your companion, planting your hands on your hips as sternly as you could muster with little to no energy left.

     "Alright, now cut the tough act, Childe," you tiredly demanded, trying not to go under and drown in the wave of fatigue that crashed down on you now that you were truly alone in a place of safety and comfort. 

Almost, you told herself. You could almost rest. 

     "Yes, boss," the harbinger responded with a sheepish grin, groaning quietly when he took a seat in one of the three crimson leather armchairs in the room. 

     "Good boy." 

You didn't care whether Childe heard your remark or not. Your eyes had caught sight of a small first-aid kit sitting on top of the golden-lined sandbearer nightstand, and you instantly went to take it. The will to sleep was massive, but the will to clean and cover up both your injuries topped it with ease. While moving towards the bed to retrieve the supplies, you allowed yourself a moment to wonder just how much support the inn received from the bank. The interior seemed a bit too luxurious for a place that had to use their last mora to keep itself from collapsing financially. Not that you really cared, but even in your tired daze you did not fail to notice. 

     "Now fess up. Where does it hurt?" 

You placed the small box on the chair's armrest and knelt down in front of the male, already drawn to his right leg before he even answered your question. Maybe he could fool an innkeeper and a young girl, but you hadn't failed to notice the little pause paired with a grimace every time he took a step. 

     "You know, just the usual scratches and bruises. Nothing too serious." Childe brushed it off casually with a breathy chuckle, something he always tended to do when he was hurt after combat. As if admitting that one was injured was the same as admitting one was weak.

     "Childe," you sharply said. 

     "Okay, okay," the harbinger gave in, a mischievous smile crossing his features. "Well, Y/N, as you can see there's quite a painful cut in my lip. How about you start there?"

Would this harbinger ever stop? 

Swallowing a snarky remark, you drenched a sterile gauze with disinfectant and gently dabbed it against a cut as far away from his lips as possible. The harbinger flinched, letting out a surprised hiss upon the sudden intense sting. You muttered a small apology under your breath, but you didn't relent. All you wanted was to crawl under the oh-so-inviting sheets of the bed that stood in the center of the room, but you both suffered injuries that needed treatment – all minor, but in high quantity. It would take time, especially since Childe didn't seem too adamant on cooperating. 

You got to work on the many cuts and wounds that littered the Fatui elite's body. Much to your surprise, he endured it quietly, biting his lips to stop a pained grunt from spilling every time the sting of disinfectant was too much. The innkeeper had also provided you with several cold compresses, and you placed them on the armrest so the harbinger could apply them as soon as you were finished. It was quite a tiring task, and you felt your body growing heavier as your own injuries started to hurt more as well. Yet you persevered, even when you realized you also had your own wounds to tend to. 

By the time you deemed Childe well enough, you felt borderline exhausted, and you wiped your forehead with your sleeve. You wanted nothing but to close your eyes and take a good nap, but you weren't done yet. 

     "You're good to go," you told the male, offering him a tired grimace. "I would go to sleep if I were you, and hope for the pain in your leg to lessen a bit overnight."

You turned away from him, rummaging through the first-aid kit to take out the supplies you needed for your own injuries, but Childe's gloved hand prevented you from moving. 

     "Allow me, Y/N," he objected, his gaze on you solemn. "Did you really think I would go to sleep after all you did for me? I'm going to return the favor." 

He got up, gesturing towards the leather armchair.

     "Sit down and relax. Let me take care of you." 

You simply nodded and sat down, way too exhausted to turn down his offer. And come on, how in Her Majesty the Tsaritsa's name could you ever deny a gesture so sweet? 

Your eyes fluttered close as you relaxed in the extremely comfortable seat. You let your head roll back against the backrest, heaving out a deep breath as your entire body slouched. It was pure bliss, until the purgent sting of disinfectant made all your muscles tense up as you hissed in pain. 

     "Sorry," Childe murmured, his hot breath fanning your skin as he leaned over you in utter concentration. 

It was clear that you were the one who usually fixed up injuries; the harbinger was hesitant and a bit clumsy. He was overbearingly careful with you, but even in your tired daze it managed to warm your heart a little. His tongue poked between his teeth cutely, and you almost let out a laugh as you compared this to the bloodthirsty Tartaglia you witnessed a few hours prior. Was this really the same person? You had no idea how he managed to pull it off. 

His fingertips ran over your bruised skin ever so gently, and he warned you each and every time he dabbed a sterile gauze against a cut to warn you for the sting that would instantly follow. He was really trying his best to make it as bearable as possible for you, and he was doing a great job. Your entire body felt like it was burning under the intense sting of disinfectant, but his gentleness made up for it. 

When he was finished, you were covered in bandages as much as he was; you really made quite the pair, huh?

     "Thanks," you quietly said, flashing your comrade a faint smile. You were grateful for his care, but you were simply too tired to properly show him.

 The harbinger answered your smile, leaning forward and placing his arms under your knees and behind your back as he slowly picked you up bridal-style. You  let out a squeal in surprise upon the sudden gesture, and Childe chuckled softly. 

     "Let's get you to bed, shall we? You fought well today, Y/N," he cooed, and you felt the limp in his step as he carried you towards the king size bed. 

     "Don't burden your leg like this, Childe," you lightly scolded him, but it merely earned you a mischievous grin from the ginger-haired male.

     "I'm fine," he urged, gently letting you down onto the soft mattress. It dipped under your weight, creating a comfortable little dent for you to sleep in. 

He walked around the bed, getting under the covers on the other side. Instantly, he was next to you, engulfing you in a hug that was surprisingly sweet. Again, you found yourself wondering how he could perfectly pull off what seemed like two completely different personas. In the deadliest brawls he was Tartaglia, merciless and dangerous. Ruthless fighting and bloodshed seemed like a game to him, a way to pass time. But after battle you often met Childe – or maybe even Ajax, though you were reluctant with that assumption. Regardless, he showed you a side so much softer and sweeter, a side that you hoped was only for you to witness. Filled with giddy smiles and warm hugs and sweet gestures, you often spent the time after conflicts with the eleventh harbinger. 

You shifted in his arms, turning to face the male next to you. His blue eyes were dimmed with utter exhaustion, but he still mustered a cheeky smile when he caught your gaze.

     "Y/N," he started slowly, and you didn't miss the mischief that laced his voice. "You know, the cut on my lip particularly hurts a lot." 

You stared at him incredulously, before you closed your eyes and heaved out a sigh. 

     "Shut up," you sputtered, nuzzling closer to his warm body to get as comfortable as you could. All the tension glided off your being, and the memories of the massacre you witnessed merely hours ago slowly vanished as slumber slowly overtook you.

Childe's soft giggle was the last thing you heard before you drifted off to dreamland. 

[punkmush]

writing down my favorite parts of the Saw (2004) DVD commentary with Leigh and James PT.2 (rest will be under the 🪚 tag)

•James was (and probably is) a huge fan of Shawnee Smith and had a crush on her.

•Every scene with Shawnee was shot in one day.

•The scenes during the reverse bear trap where they closed in on Amandas hands going through the guts and getting ready to stab the guy; was actually Leigh’s hands.

•After she gets the trap off, when Billy shows up it’s actually James behind him puppeting him.

•Leigh was too nervous to stay in the screening area during Sundance.

•They describe Adam as “an angry young man.”

•The scene where Zep is peeking from the closet was inspired by Black Christmas

•In the script, Leigh wrote that during the scene where Zep is holding Alison and Diana hostage; Zep was supposed to take Alison’s underwear and put it on. (wtf leigh…)

•The scene where Tapp and Lawrence are talking in the car, that scene was actually filmed indoors.

•The car chase scene at the end was also indoors.

•Leigh says for anybody who wants to be filmmakers, “Use your budget as an aesthetic.”

•Stygian St is named after a short film that James worked on.

•The scene where Tapp and Sing find a man in a trap in John’s hideout was Leigh’s favorite to write and James least favorite to film.

•They used too much fog for when John comes out of the elevator that Tobin Bell came out coughing and James described it as “One of the funniest things he’s ever seen.”

•The cloak for jigsaw was supposed to be all red, but they flipped it inside out.

•When Sing walks through the tripwire that’s actually Leigh’s legs and when the shotguns go off it’s Leigh’s body falling over.

•Instead of the shotguns going off, it was written to be two iron cocoons coming out of the wall to wrap around Sing, and crush him into a box.

•The X thats supposedly “glow in the dark” was actually just a light with a black sheet cut out in front of it.

•The phone that was in the box behind the wall is fake and the number on it is painted on.

•It was written that the scene where Lawrence is telling Adam to fake being hurt by the cigarette, they were to turn off the lights and cut the pipes to talk to each other through them. Although it was shot, it never made it in.

[firespirited]

Hp and other "tainted by bad things" fans dithering on art vs the artist meanwhile everytime Grimes speaks her older music gets more bitter to listen to.

Maybe it's because many of my faves turned out to be horrid and discarding art was something we just had to learn to do. I thought it was a universal coming of age experience, the 'never meet your heros' adage...

I can imagine holding on to a cover or a movie based on tainted art because enough other people were involved. I even waver on The Smiths sometimes because the other musicians are brilliant and hate Morrisey as much as anyone. But then I'll listen to a song where moz is the main focus and he says something that triggers thoughts of his messed up worldviews and the magic is gone.

How has 'losing' artists played out for you? For me there have been some that are just visceral nope never again (MJ) and others that slowly rotted (led zep).

Star Trek of course is the ‘big foundational one’ for me but the fandom, at least on here (and back on LiveJournal) were very open about how we can hate aspects of the show and have to own the fact that strong female characters went hand in hand with behind the scenes misogyny, that space! africa and space!irish vs space!asexuals episodes went alongside complex examinations of our predjudices.

[bourbonbees]

Suptober Day 6- Cemetery Boys

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34336042

Rating- G Jack POV

Jack has discovered there are a great deal of things that he loves about being human, he loves eating cake, taking his dog for walks, and swimming, but there’s nothing he loves more than his family. His family is not conventional, he’s got three dads, one of which is an angel, but all of them love him unconditionally. It’s rocky at first with Dean but after some quality time spent listening to Zep and going fishing together, the grumpy hunter warms up to him. It also doesn’t hurt that Jack’s first dad, Castiel, is also Dean’s partner and therefore holds a lot of sway over him, whether he likes it or not. Sam, his third dad was the best! He’s the one that establishes family movie night, Jack’s favorite night of the week!

Sam lets Jack pick the movies pretty much every week, much to Dean’s dismay. This week Jack chooses Ghostbusters as his pick. It’s great, he especially loves the jokes and the Stay Puffed Marshmallow man. He isn’t sure where the writers did their research for the movie though, his experiences with ghosts contain a lot less whimsy and a lot more salting and burning. The movie is just wrapping up when it hits him, they don’t have a name, every great team of heroes has a name.

“Hey, why don’t we have a name?” Jack poses the question, looking to Dean for a response.

“Kid, how much candy have you had? Are you sugar crashing? Remember, me Dean, you Jack, that annoying guy over there, Sam, this adorable ray of sunshine, Castiel.” Dean is concerned, he feels Jack’s forehead and looks him over, his parental instincts kicking in.

“No like a team name! Like there’s The Avengers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, uh The Fellowship of the Ring.” Jack lists off, Sam sending him a proud smile at the last one.

“Jack, hunters don’t really do teams. We’re kinda solitary, it’s our nature.” Sam explains, causing Jack even further confusion as he looks around at his family. They do everything together, live together, celebrate wins together, spend holidays together, work together, is that not a team?

“We’re not a team? Isn’t a family a team?” Jack frowns, worrying that he’s misread a long series of social cues. He is prone to that sometimes, his brain working a bit differently from his dads, neurodivergent, that’s what Sam had called it.

“Jack, oh, of course we’re a team. But more than that, we’re family.” Cas swoops in, reaching over and patting Jack on the shoulder. Cas is always the gentlest of his dads, he gives really good hugs, and is the one Jack goes to on the days where being a human is too much to deal with.

“Would it make you feel better if we had a team name?” Dean offers, following Cas’ lead. Jack doesn’t miss when Cas sends Dean a small nod of approval. Dean has a different parenting approach, sometimes he’s a bit harder on Jack. Jack doesn’t like that but he understands that Dean is trying.

“Yeah, I was thinking Cemetery Boys!” Jack says right away, looking around the room expectantly. Sam chokes slightly on his beer while Cas smiles approvingly, Dean laughs softly, shaking his head at Jack.

“Well we do spend a disproportionate amount of time in cemeteries, so it makes sense to me.” Jack defends, his cheeks feeling hot, blushing, that’s what Sam had told him it was. Sometimes Jack hates being human, blushing is embarrassing and makes him feel a bit like a baby.

“Shouldn’t we be cemetery men?” Dean questions, raising a quizzical brow at Jack.

“Technically speaking, Jack and myself are neither male nor female. So, no.” Cas supplies, shrugging his shoulders at Dean and earning an eye roll. Jack doesn’t understand why his dads enjoy teasing each other so much, maybe annoying someone was another human way to express love?

“So, you’re telling me, I came out as bisexual for nothing because, I’m not really dating a man?” Dean blanches, gently smacking Cas on the shoulder. Hitting people is another love language Jack has learned, but not too hard, he learned that after accidently punching Sam a little too enthusiastically on the shoulder. Play fighting is good, actual violence is bad, he had explained that to him.

“We’re non-binary! Claire taught me that.” Jack is happy to interrupt, always happy to share the latest things he’d learned. He loves Claire for that reason, she’s always full of new things to learn, she is an excellent big sister. “Claire, Me, Cas, and Dean, we’re all LGBLT? Or is it LGBTQ? Either way, Claire is a lesbian, she also taught me that. And Dean, you’re a bisexual! Cas, you’re gay, I think? So, you didn’t come out for nothing, you came out for your non-binary partner.” Ha! Jack is very proud, this is one area he feels confident he knows more about than Sam, Dean, or even Cas.

“You’re surprisingly well informed for a toddler.” Sam compliments, tipping his beer bottle at him.

“The toddler age range ends at 3, I assure you, Jack is 4. He is no longer a toddler. I read all the development books.” Cas corrects, earning a laugh from Dean and a groan from Sam.

“He did, trust me Sammy, made me read some of them as well. Babies are weird man. Glad you came out fully formed kid, it was a relief.” Dean chuckles. Jack is relieved he came out fully formed too, it’s a lot more fun hanging out with his family when he can talk to them like this.

“I’m a celestial being, age doesn’t exist for me. I am as old or as young as I want to be at any given minute. Isn’t that neat?” Jack prides himself on choosing this form, a teenage body, he likes it because he can help his family. He likes going hunting, driving cars, and helping Dean cook dinner, a baby couldn’t do any of that!

“He really is your son-uh I mean they really are your child?” Dean self corrects, Jack notices he does that a lot more lately, again he really is trying to be better. Jack admires that about Dean, it’s something he tries to emulate as best as he can, always working to be a better person and make his mistakes right.

“Oh, I’m comfortable with he/they, just like my dad! I do feel like a boy most of the time.” Jack looks to Cas who nods along with him. They’d talked about it once, Cas explained that Jack could change a number of things about himself if he wished, if it would better match his soul. But Jack is really and truly happy with who he is. So is Cas.

“Yeah that’s my son.” Cas says fondly, pulling Jack into a hug. This is a good hug, the kind that makes Jack feel safe and cared for. Cas always makes him feel like he belongs, that no matter what he has a place in his arms.

That night, Jack sets a plan into motion. He waits until everyone is asleep and gets to work on creating gifts for his family. He uses his powers to manifest a set of matching black crew neck sweatshirts with the words ‘Cemetery Boys’ embroidered on the front in white thread. He then designs a magnet, putting a little ghost and tombstone on it. Once he’s satisfied he goes through the recycling and finds a box to put the sweatshirts in.

The next part is the most dangerous. Jack, creeps down the hall to the door that leads into the garage attached to the bunker. His eyes glimmer when he finds his target, the black 67 Impala, sitting dead center in the garage. Dean had just waxed her the day before so she was extra shiny. Jack likes when Baby is shiny, it makes the sun reflect on his face, nice and warm. He takes the magnet and carefully places it on the bumper, making sure not to scuff or scratch the shiny metal. Then in a flash, he is back in his room, laying in his bed as if nothing has happened.

Dean doesn’t notice the magnet until they are packing for a hunt the next day, a simple salt and burn case in Wisconsin. The whole family is going! Dean has even promised Jack that he will take him to Wisconsin Dells if it goes well and they will go to a place called Deer Park where he could pet and feed a bunch of deer. Jack likes animals, sometimes more than people, they’re much less complicated.

“Oh my god! My Baby is a whore! You gave her a tramp stamp?” Dean gasps, pointing to the offending ‘Cemetery Boys’ magnet on the bumper.

“You like it? I made it myself!” Jack beams with pride, hoping Dean was speechless because he was blown away by his ability to create magnets.

“Also, the term you’re looking for is sex worker. You need to be more sex positive Dean, especially for someone, who from the sound I hear coming from your room at night, seems to enjoy sex a great deal.” Jack blurts out nervously when Dean doesn’t respond. Jack tends to do that, he wishes he could stop, another part of what makes him different from most people.

“Oh, for the love of Christ. Please Jack, no.” Sam is doing something Claire told Jack is a facepalm, meaning he was either embarrassed or frustrated, perhaps both?

“Do not be ashamed of our healthy sex life, Dean. But do but ashamed of your gendered slurs and generally overdramatic demeanor. The car is unharmed, it’s a magnet.” Cas steps in, doing the teasing thing again. Jack really doesn’t understand his dads, but he’s glad they seem happy together.

“I swear one day Baby and I will drive away and leave you all behind. Traitors.” Dean threatens, this is a joke, Jack measures. Dean does that a lot, uses sarcasm and empty threats, at first they used to confuse and frighten Jack but now he just accepts it’s part of his nature. Dean is grumpy. Loveable but grumpy.

“See your theatrics are quite comical. You couldn’t leave us if you tried. Who would open the pickle jars for you, darling?” Cas smirks, Jack remembers witnessing this scene, Dean saying all the “no words” at a jar of gherkins as he struggled for a good 5 minutes, until his dad took the jar and opened it within two seconds.

“It was one time! And I swear I loosened it!” Dean glowers, clearly ashamed by the great pickle debacle of last week.

“Dads, stop. I will remove the magnet.” Jack decides it’s his job to play peacemaker, he steps up and gently takes the magnet off baby’s bumper, Dean visibly sighs in relief. Jack tries to hide his disappointment, he’d meant the sticker as a gift.

Cas notices his mood shift and is by his side, pulling Jack into a side hug. “Hey, you can put it on my truck.” He offers, rubbing Jack’s back and making him instantly feel better, must be magic dad powers Jack figures.

“Thanks dad, this is why you’re my favorite.” He says without thinking, Sam and Dean giving him matching offended expressions.

“Uh-what about me, I’m the one that sneaks you candy when Cas isn’t looking.” Sam makes a good point, he is exceptionally good at sneaking. He and Jack have so much fun together, that’s how they ended up with Miracle the dog. Sam had helped Jack smuggle him into the bunker and once both Jack and Cas had bonded with the dog, Dean couldn’t kick him out. Though Jack knows that Dean loves the dog just as much, he’s caught him slipping Miracle some of the good bacon when he thinks no one is looking.

“No Dean is the one that gives me candy. You help me pull pranks!” Jack laughs as Dean, flinches, quickly busing himself with packing all their bags in the trunk along with the weapons they’d need.

“Dean!” Cas says in his low, ‘oh no you’re in trouble,’ voice. “We’ve dicussed this, Jack’s intake of high fructose corn syrup is frighteningly high. He needs to eat real food.” He adds. Nougat is a food, Jack thinks privately, nougat might be his favorite food in fact.

“He’s a kid, he’ll be fine. Dean and I lived on that shi-stuff as kids and we turned out alright.” Sam, usually the vegetable police, surprisingly comes to Jack and Dean’s rescue, earning a matching raised brow from them both.

“Did you though?” Cas challenges, hand on his hip, sometimes dad gets sassy. Jack likes when dad gets sassy because it’s funny, makes him laugh.

“Well damn, don’t sugar coat it or anything babe.” Dean says in disbelief, opening the passenger door for Cas, Sam climbing into Baby’s backseat before Dean motions for Jack to come sit behind him. “Do I even want to know?” He sighs as he spots the box Jack is carrying.

“Well you’ve all been distracting me, I almost forgot.” Jack pauses as he opens the box and holds up the Sam sized sweatshirt. “I made us all shirts! Team shirts, we’re the Cemetery Boys!” He says proudly, shoving the shirt at Sam, then two at Cas, one for him and one for Dean. Jack pulls on his own shirt right away, stretching his arms and modeling it for them all.

“Can you all wear them for me?” Jack pulls out his trump card for this one, using the ‘look’ that Sam had taught him. He made his eyes big and kept them open just long enough so they were watering slightly, then bit his lip.

“I really screwed myself when I taught you my secrets. Really, using my own puppy eyes on me. Really short sighted of me to teach you that.” Sam sighs as he pulls on the sweatshirt, Cas doing the same.

“Nope, still not doing it. I don’t do matching shirts.” Dean holds firm, shaking his head at Cas when he holds out the sweatshirt to him as they pull out of the garage.

“Dean, the couch in the library is awfully uncomfortable. It’d be a shame if you had to sleep there.” Cas is firmly on team Cemetery Boys, pulling out the big threats to get Jack his way.

“Ugh fine, but no one can ever find out about this!” Dean groans, waiting until he’s at a stop sign at the end of the road to pull it on. Jack lights up, his team is complete, all three dads are wearing his shirt!

“It’s funny how easily emasculated you are Dean. Life is a lot more fun when you stop caring about gender expectations.” Cas smirks, Dean rolling his eyes at Cas and mimicking his know it all expression.

“Dean is sensitive, dad, and he’s really good at making pies! I think he cares less than you think he does.” Jack pauses, pleased when Dean makes eye contact with him in the rearview mirror and smiles. “Besides, I saw the pink underwear he hides when I helped with that laundry that one time.” He adds, Dean’s smile quickly disappearing, his eyes wide as he tightly gripped the steering wheel.

“Jesus Christ, kid, stop selling out all my secrets.” Dean grits between his teeth, now he is blushing. Jack knows Dean hates blushing just as much as he does.

“Oh that’s good! Can’t wait to tell Claire that one!” Sam barks out a laugh, taking his phone out of his pocket.

“You wouldn’t!” Dean hangs his head in shame when they stop for a train.

“Already did!” Sam sing songs, holding up his phone. Jack is sometimes thankful that Claire doesn’t live with them, living with your sibling seems exhausting sometimes, if Sam and Dean are any indication.

“Alright that’s enough Jack, don’t spill all the coffee. Your dad is allowed to have his secrets.” Cas intervenes, gently patting Dean’s thigh.

“Tea, dad, its spill the tea!” Jack sometimes can’t handle how out of touch his dad is. Guess that’s what happens when you’re millions of years old.

“Oh right, what’s the difference?” Cas sighs, laying his head back against the headrest as if he’s exhausted, Jack knows it’s just for dramatic effect because Cas doesn’t sleep.

“Cas, there’s big difference! One is the nectar of the gods and the other is glorified leaf water.” Dean defends, holding Cas’ hand, it’s meant to be a private gesture, but Jack can see it and it makes his heart happy.

“Tea is good.” Sam tries.

“I rest my case.” Dean counterpoints.

The case is a rough one, it turns out to be a bit more than a simple salt and burn. The ghost, a family annihilator was coming from beyond the grave to try to kill his son who had survived his attack. They had split into two groups, Dean and Cas at the cemetery burning the bones and Jack and Sam with the victim, trying to keep him safe.

“Do you think maybe we can take a photo together in our shirts?” Jack asks offhandedly as he and Sam roam the house looking for any objects that might still tether the ghost to the house.

“Why do you care so much about these shirts and taking a photo together?” Sam asks curiously, making Jack pause to think for a moment.

“Because, I’ve been watching a bunch of shows and movies, and all the families in them, they have all these photos together. They make all these memories together and they display them in their houses for everyone to see. I want that. The fact that we don’t have that makes me kind of scared, like this isn’t real. Like you all are prepared to run at a moment’s notice if I go nuclear.” Jack explains, using air quotes around the word nuclear.

“Oh. Oh. Jack, hey, it’s not like that. I guess, well we’ve been so busy saving people and hunting things, we’ve lost track of normal family things. You’re family Jack. Promise.” Sam says right away, pulling Jack into a crushing hug. Sam is strong, Jack hopes to be that strong someday.

“Can we take a photo then, a family portrait?” Jack asks hopefully.

“Family portrait? Family portrait. Shit! Jack, the family portrait!” Sam gasps, letting Jack go and looking around the room with wild eyes.

“Huh?” Jack is trying to catch up before he spots the family portrait hanging above the fireplace, both the victim and his evil departed dad in the photo. He rushes to grab it off the wall and tosses it into the fireplace. Sam pulls out a container of salt and lighter fluid, coating the portrait, then Jack tosses a match, lighting it on fire.

“Good work kid.” Sam grins as the ghost appears and then bursts into flames. “I think you’ve earned that portrait.”

True to his word, the first thing in the morning, Sam helps Jack use the laptop to find the closest portrait studio. It happens to be a JC Penney portrait studio, making Dean groan and complain about cheesy backgrounds and awkward poses that they’d likely endure. With much coaxing and further threats from Cas to relegate Dean to sleeping with Miracle on the dog bed, he agrees to the photoshoot.

Jack gets several copies of the photos made. He hands out wallet sized copies to Mary and Eileen who both coo over how adorable they look. Cas gets it framed and hangs it in the library, Dean never admits he likes it, but Jack catches him stopping to look at it every day, a proud smile on his face.

This is Jack’s family. His team. His Cemetery Boys.

[greensparty]

This Month In History - November

This is quite a month for landmark pop culture anniversaries: 

Nov. 2, 2001: Amelie opens in the U.S.

In Nov. 2001, one of my favorite French films ever opened in the U.S. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. I was also lucky enough to see this at the Arclight Boston on Valentine’s Day 2020 and it still holds up. Happy 20th Amelie!

Nov. 7, 1986: Something Wild opens

In Nov. 1986, Jonathan Demme’s new wave screwball comedy masterpiece was released. It is one of my 15 favorite movies ever and I’ve written quite a bit about it previously, including this piece I wrote in 2016. Happy 35 Something Wild!

Nov. 8, 1971: Led Zeppelin IV released

In Nov. 1971, Led Zep’s magnum opus was released. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. Happy 50th LZ4!

Nov. 13, 1971: Duel premiered

In Nov. 1971, Steven Spielberg’s feature length directorial debut (after Firelight that he made as a teen that is) premiered on television. Even for a movie-of-the-week, you could see the talent that the director had at such a young age. The whole entire movie is about a business man (played by Dennis Weaver) who is driving and is slowly being chased by a tractor-trailer. The scares are there and so are the thrills. Happy 50th Duel!

Nov. 15, 1986: License to Ill released

In Nov. 1986, the debut album from The Beastie Boys was released. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. Happy 35th LTI!

Nov. 18, 1991: Achtung Baby released

In Nov. 1991, U2 reached a serious creative peak. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. Happy 30th AB!

Nov. 18, 2011: The Descendants opens

In Nov. 2011, Alexander Payne’s excellent comedy-drama was released. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. Last year, I named it my #9 Movie of the 2010s. Happy 10 Descendants!

Nov. 18, 2016: Hardwired...to Self-Destruct released

In Nov. 2016, Metallica released their 10th album, a double album at that. It was a serious return to form for the band. Not going to lie, this is the band’s best album since the 90s, hands down! I included it on my 50 Best Albums of the 2010s list too. Happy 5 HTSD!

Nov. 26, 1986: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home opens

In Nov. 1986, one of the best Star Trek movies was released. Here is my piece I wrote in 2016. Happy 35th ST4!

Nov. 27, 1991: Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse premieres

In Nov. 1991, one of the greatest documentary films about filmmaking was released. Shot over a decade earlier Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam War epic Apocalypse Now was released, this behind-the-scenes footage shot by Francis’s wife Eleanor. The footage was put together with the help of Fax Bahr and George Hickenlooper. I watched it (and studied it) in my Directing class in college. A real inspiration as a director and as a documentarian. Happy 30th HOD!

[shachihata]

something something photographs and video cameras cannot lie but the stories that they tell are only a reflection of the photographer's own perspective, with the person behind the camera ultimately having the most power behind the way shots are framed and people are arranged and "reality" is shown... something about how lawrence was laughing about the fact that he was always the person behind the camera, taking pictures of his family, a representation of how he metaphorically always held financial/social/familial control over his wife and his daughter, until even that control is taken from him by the replacement of that picture and he finally fucking snaps... something about how zep could only ever see snapshots of lawrence and adam thru the video feed that he controls until the final scene of the film, where he dies upon re-entering the reality that lawrence and adam have been facing this entire time... something about how jigsaw participates in and shapes his traps in order to twist his own vision so that he can only see and judge people at the lowest point of their suffering, rather than judging them as people with whole, unique lives that he will never get to see or experience... something about how adam should've FUCKING lived because he broke this cycle of blindness-behind-a-position-of-power. even though his photographed "truths" of lawrence cheating initially shaped adam's perspective on him adam was able to let it go and even REFUSE TO TAKE REVENGE ON LAWRENCE BY LETTING HIM DIE because he realized who lawrence really was as lawrence literally chopped off his leg and tried to kill adam for a chance to see his family again. adam should've FUCKING lived he not only won the game he broke the goddamn thematic-narrative cycle that every other character fell prey to im actually heated about this