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milla984 · 7 months

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And in the Beginning...

Summary: after spending a day at D.C.’s most renowned multifandom convention Spencer and Garcia stop for a coffee. Spoiler alert - our fave Resident Genius dumps their order on Reader.

Pairing: Spencer Reid x gn!reader (Reader is a sci-fi buff)

Category: fluff

TW/CW: swearing, mentions of food, some Star Wars-related talk

Word Count: 2k

Once again, a ginormous THANK YOU to @drgenius-reid for taking the time to beta-read the first draft (aka witnessing the horror)!

The following work is my entry for @imagining-in-the-margins' CM Meet Cute (or not) Challenge and is also part of the series Spencer Reid, my beloved

“Highlight of the day?! Jamie Hewlett signing my copy of The Cream of Tank Girl! In you face, Mr. 'Superman Can Fly'...!”

The woman carrying a Chinese paper umbrella rummaged through her purse to retrieve a wallet and pay at the coffee truck parked outside the convention center; stylish two-tone glasses matched the army green jumpsuit with a teddy bear patch on her right leg and the blue mandarin collar button-down shirt she was wearing, and her blond hair was tied up in a pair of small side buns.

The tall man beside her chuckled as he picked up two cups. “I don’t know if I should be more impressed or worried.”

“Why?! We made a deal and it’s perfect: he can have Sci-Fi-Gate, I’m keeping WashCon.”

“Sci-Fi-Gate has amazing Star Trek guests, though…”

A long and colorful scarf was wrapped around his neck and a deep red cravat necktie peeked out of the hem of a plaid design vest, combined with a single-breasted brown coat and a pair of grey pants.

“I can't believe you would really choose the Captains of the Enterprise panel over my emotional stability,” she frowned, paying zero attention to the cosplayer in a trenchcoat with a pair of black wings attached to their back she was about to brush past.

When the feathers smacked her cheek she pulled back, the tips of her umbrella almost poking the tall guy dressed as Doctor Who in the eye; the sudden movement startled the cosplayer and a rapid swing of their dark wings created a commotion in the crowd of people waiting for their turn to order. In the confusion that followed, a random shoulder bumped into yours and pushed you out of the line and off the sidewalk, right in front of the Fourth Doctor - who was struggling to maintain his Fedora in place and watch where he was going at the same time.

Needless to say, he ended up failing at both.

“Oh my God, are you okay?” the blond woman asked.

“I’m so sorry, SO SO SORRY—” the tall guy apologized simultaneously and she cut him off, rushing to your side.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt?”

The frantic exchange prompted your brain to whoosh into light speed mode to elaborate and discharge the ‘Ah, shit!!’ and ‘wait… is this iced macchiato?!?!’ inputs in favor of a more suitable reaction at the sight of the considerable amount of caffeine soaking your hoodie.

“... I think I’m okay.”

“First-aid manuals suggest removing all clothes or jewelry near the affected area within moments after the spillage of a hot liquid,” the tall guy said, and the woman gasped in shock.

“Please tell me you didn’t get burned! Once I got this non-fat steamed white chocolate vani—”

“I’m fine,” you growled a bit.

Someone behind you was snickering and, despite the relief of not having sustained serious injuries, the attention was already making you feel uncomfortable.

“Scalds are caused by sources of humid heat and certain types of fibers retain the water, which can be responsible for additional damage to the skin,” the tall guy explained again, speaking faster than anyone you had ever heard.

You tucked your shirt in your jeans and raised an eyebrow in his direction. “Let me guess: you’re a doctor.”

“Well… uhm, yes, this is my…” he faltered, unable to tell if you were referencing his costume as a pun or not. “I am, actually.”

“Not that kind of doctor,” the woman added.

She sighed as soon as she realized you were standing there speechless, drenched in coffee, your gaze wandering back and forth between them. “I’m so sorry…”

“They should be more careful with the lids. I think I got lucky,” you muttered through gritted teeth as you pulled the zip down.

Thanks to the decision to splurge some money on yourself, earlier on, you had something to replace your soiled hoodie with. The Fourth Doctor looked away and focused his attention on the cups he was still holding in his hands; before he threw them in the nearest trashcan he inspected their content, confirming he’d fortunately spilled on you a combination of 98% half-caf iced caramel macchiato and just 2% regular hot americano.

The woman was still clasping the handle of her umbrella. “Listen, we were about to check out this itsy-bitsy lovely Indian place ‘round the corner, maybe you should come with us. You know… to try and get cleaned up a little.”

You dug into the shopping bag at your feet, taking a sealed package out to rip the plastic film wrapped around a brown sweatshirt with a stylized front print of the panoramic view of the desert, Jabba the Hutt’s palace and twin suns on Tatooine, and put it on.

“No offense, but my parents taught me to never follow strangers.”

“None taken,” the tall guy replied, “they were absolutely right. According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, about 90,000 individuals are reported missing in the U.S. every year and the National Institute of Justice estimates that approximately 4,400 unidentified bodies are recovered annually.”

For the second time in less than five minutes, you considered the possibility he could truly be from Gallifrey. You also wondered if he was aware of his perfect facial structure: everything about his demeanor indicated he wasn’t too skilled in the art of charming people using his sculpted jawline and lean figure.

“... do you always quote statistics about murders and kidnappings like it’s a casual topic of conversation?”

His eyes got even bigger, showing a hint of gold on the inside. “It was merely an observation—”

“Yeah, he… does that,” the woman came to his rescue, “and even if it sounds bad, trust me it’s- it's part of his job. Our job. Except, I don’t deal with the scary, disturbing, yucky stuff.”

Your question wasn’t meant to come out in such a sarcastic tone. “You’re cops?!”

“FBI. Tech Analyst and Behavioral Analysis Unit,” she explained, and the tall guy waved a silent greeting at you.

Even though the chance of running into the Bureau personnel stationed in D.C., at some point, wasn’t unreasonable, ‘two FBI agents walk into a multifandom convention dressed as characters from sci-fi TV shows’ could have easily been the beginning of a bad joke.

Plus, it was hard to picture the Fourth Doctor as a G-Man. “What’s your Ph.D. in, exactly?”

“I have a Ph.D. in Mathematics. And Chemistry, and Engineering. And I hold BAs in Psychology, Sociology and Philosophy.”

“Google him. Spencer Reid, B-A-U,” the woman suggested after a short pause, in response to your skeptical expression.

Judging by her tone she was daring you to, as if the situation wasn’t already giving off major The Twilight Zone vibes… and yet, instead of bidding them an unenthusiastic farewell, you pulled out your phone to type his name.

A plethora of results popped on the screen seconds later, so you first clicked on the link titled BAU’s newest member.

“With three doctorate degrees from Caltech already, and a staggering IQ of 187 as well as an eidetic memory there is no psychological exam or test the FBI could put in front of him he could not ace,” the piece said about newly-recruited Spencer Reid.

“When I ask why he chose Caltech over MIT and Stanford, he quickly runs down a list of Professors he had a desire to study with. He makes no mention of the weather or girls,” an older article reported.

You skipped through at least a dozen mentions of SSA Reid’s outstanding performances in the field, then a PDF document, property of the California Institute of Technology, caught your interest and you read the title aloud.

“Identifying non-obvious relationship—”

“Non-obvious relationship factors using cluster-weighted modeling and geographic regression,” he recited by heart, “that's my Engineering dissertation.”

He was too prepared on the subject and too adorably peculiar to be an impostor posing as a genius FBI agent for kicks, during the weekend; you picked his Fedora off the ground as a peace offering.

“Seems like you’re a wunderkind, Doctor Reid.”

Spencer lowered his chin so he could mask the rush of blood to his cheeks and his friend giggled, gently linking arms with you.

“Now, there’s something relevant we need to discuss, pronto… how do you feel about veg biryani?”

An hour and a half proved to be all the time you needed to form a solid conviction that Spencer Reid going on a spiel about the original blueprints of a fictional space station was the best thing since sliced bread.

“It’s part of the iconic imagery Lucas wanted to establish, there’s no health and safety. And don’t forget it was originally designed by the Geonosians.”

You snorted at the mention of the classic ‘designed by a flying alien species’ argument. “That’s not an excuse! Even if the Geonosians designed it, they knew it was meant to be used by humanoid creatures.”

After leaving the restaurant, where you had insisted on paying for your share - much to Garcia's dismay, you’d walked back to the convention center’s parking lot and now you were waiting by your car for Penelope to get hers. As you had recently discovered, she loved mugs, old Italian movies and playing the ukulele; Spencer wasn’t as outgoing and chatty, especially about his private life, but Star Wars was for sure one of his numerous areas of expertise.

“TIE fighters don’t have a proper defense system and the original prototype even lacked structural integrity to support atmospheric flight. The Empire doesn't care about casualties, it’s safe to think they never bothered to install a guardrail or other appropriate safety measures because to them the Death Star technicians are expendable.”

“Okay… solid theory,” you admitted, making him smile as he wiped his forehead to get rid of a lock of curly hair.

“Thank you. It’s nice to have a discussion with someone who knows about the Geonosians. Or the Death Star. It only happened twice but I’ve had people asking me what that was.”

When the convertible Cadillac with a plastic Hawaiian lei tied to the rear-view mirror stopped inches from you, Garcia - behind the steering wheel - proudly gestured at the extension of her eccentric personality.

“Meet Esther. Isn’t she fab?”

You wolf whistled your appreciation, gliding your fingertips over the leather upholstery and orange body paint. “Quick question: how much do you think I’d get if I sued two FBI agents for… damages, let’s say?!”

Penelope produced a fluffy pen out of the glove compartment and scribbled something on the back of a PetMAC receipt she handed it to you.

“Sweet pea, if I were you I'd settle for a lifetime of free IT support.”

“I’ll take it,” you said, “I’m kind of tired of being bullied by my own laptop.”

She stared at you for a moment before her face lit up, like a girl on a trip to a four-story candy shop. “... have you ever been to Baltimore ComicCon?!” she asked out of the blue while Spencer plopped himself down on the passenger seat.

You shook your head. “Do you guys—”

“We should totally go together!!” Garcia proposed. Or rather, declared.

In all honesty, the prospect of attending another convention on your own was depressing and you’d given up on the one in Maryland for that specific reason; you turned to Spencer for his approval, too, and he nodded, maybe because he knew there was no way of stopping Garcia if she had her mind set on a specific goal.

“Baltimore it is, then…?!”

Penelope shot you a smug grin. “Keep in touch. We still owe you a nice dinner and ComicCon’s not up until September, I’d hate to run a background check on your license plate to find you.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at the idea and saluted them goodbye as they drove off, Esther’s taillights shining bright red.

What a weird Saturday. Meeting a real life genius and the quirkiest FBI agent ever came with a price, and one of your favorite hoodies was most likely beyond salvaging. You needed to know if Spencer Reid was well worth it.

Garcia’s words then echoed in your ears, so you sat in your car and unlocked your phone, scrolling through the most recent Google searches: you had a lot of reading to do.

@matthew-gray-gubler-lover, @thisiscalmanditsdoctorreid, @pretty-boys-book-club, @spookydrreid, @f-me-reid, @foxy-eva, @scorpiofangirl1109, @a-potato-wearing-plaid, @cynbx, @reidsbookclub, @nagemasstuff, @hotchsdharma, @reidmainbitch, @lizzylynch1, @will-grahams-eyes, @padawancat97

»»»— read pinned post for taglist info —«««

#spencer reid fic #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x gn!reader #spencer reid fluff #criminal minds fluff #criminal minds fic #dr spencer reid x reader #my gifs #milla writes stuff #mentioningmargins #there are references from a couple of other tv shows hidden in this work #feel free to let me know if you can find them #quot “i understood that reference”

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phoenixcatch7 · 9 months

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Open up

Based on this wonderful art of @puppetmaster13u for the dollhouse au!

It had been a long day, and was destined to be even longer.

The original plan had been bad enough; the league had a media conference planned for three o'clock, one that involved foreign presence and thus required pristine presentation.

Then, as all perfectly good plans that could have been left alone by the universe did, it was derailed by a villain attack or several. He said several because it seemed almost a dozen separate villains had individually had the bright idea of sabotaging the well publicised event. Though they'd failed, the accidental collaboration had done what each alone could not, and now the league was dragging themselves to base to hurriedly patch up the thankfully minor wounds and try and rush to meet the deadline.

Each league member on the list had a formal version of their usual super suit - flash's main change had been a bowtie before it met almost unanimous disapproval, and on the other end of the effort spectrum was Bruce. Not of his own will - he quite envied Flash's staunch faith in the single black bowtie - but he not only had been raised for the fast and critical world of the upper class, but was currently in a metal plated marionette held together by glue and screws and wires, which meant changing attire was more of a debacle than it would ordinarily be.

He flipped open the toolkit with the best approximation of a sigh the doll body could manage. The chest inflated and deflated, which was in fact a rather worrying sign because it wasn't supposed to be able to do that. He grabbed a screwdriver and a pit of tar glue and approached the mirror. He'd just have to go into the globally broadcast meeting stinking of sulphur... Perhaps he could borrow perfume from one of the girls, cologne combined dreadfully.

The chest cavity opened with little tugging, and he held one side in place as he attacked the bent hinges. An odd feeling, for sure. He took a hammer to the dent, imagining it was the penguin's face and praying Clark didn't decide now was the time to approach him on his self soothing metalworking hobby. He'd been entrusted with the override code for the door and Bruce was now quietly regretting that.

The chest cavity doors creaked back into place, which enabled him to finally pull out the costume change for the evening and dump it on the side.

Now for the leg, having been crushed under a tank penguin had smuggled into Gotham. It now bent the wrong way, and hiding it under his cloak had been a pain, but at least it hadn't come off -

There it went. Batman watched, almost despondent, as it toppled free of his body and crashed to the ground. The unhappy static that raced up his spine at the sight was expected - he'd be paying for the lack of care for the Patriarch Doll in nightmares tonight.

Joy.

He tipped into the nearby stool and kicked the lost limb closer with his remaining foot, squinting. Just a cracked screw and torn spring at the knee, thank goodness. He'd have it fully attached again within the hour.

But he was pretty sure he couldn't bend that far over without his jaw falling off, so face it was.

Hood off, wires unlaced under the chin, hidden screws loosened. The gas mask came off. The velcro on top of his head took good old fashioned yanking, but eventually peeled off with reluctant crackling, revealing the unpainted grey metal beneath.

As expected, his jaw was almost entirely loose, unable to close now without the structure of the mask. The nutcracker mouth in the lower jaw fell to tap against his throat, leaving either side of the actual lower jaw to hang in the air. Experimentally, he opened and closed his mouth, and watched all three parts swing and clink like a robot body horror wind-chime.

This was going to need a finer touch, and so he stripped off his gloves to access the sharp points of his talons - capped while with the league to keep the prick of steel rending claws to a mere suggestion.

He felt bared, now, all his top layer removed and abandoned, the door to his room at his back. He feels the paranoia to double check the lock, reassures himself that even if he'd somehow forgotten in his haste to hide away none of the members were mad enough to try and get in. Outside Superman, of course, but he always knocked.

Still, he hurried through repairs, running diagnostics in the back of his mind as he daubed glue into the cracks and set about restructuring his own jaw. Ears swivelled. Neck rolled. Glider snaps curled.

The jaw pieces were setting nicely when there was a noise at the door, and batman whipped around, cloak flaring behind him. The pliers dropped from suddenly weak fingers.

Captain marvel stood in the doorway, eyes wide as he took in the room, face pale as he saw Batman propped up in middle, bare of his many obfuscating layers. Black tar speckled his lap, wires hung free like veins, blank eyes glowed, his jaw gaping, skinless. Glinting claws and spikes in full view, a limb discarded on the floor like garbage. His chest a dark hole, void of organs, of machinery, of anything that could make him run. A decades old terror gripped his heart.

HE SAW!

Both froze. Time stretched interminably.

The captains chest heaved for a scream, and batman was moving before he knew it, grabbing his fallen leg and lunging.

Captain marvel fell with a crack. Batman caught himself on the door. Five seconds before short term memory entered long term, had he reacted in time?

Hm.

He considered the body of the champion of magic laid in front of him, idly rebalancing the eternal tally graph of potential energies the dolls might run on in the back of his head and as always coming up none the wiser. This was a very inconvenient place for a body. Perhaps he could nudge marvel into the hallway to wake up. He glanced up and down the empty corridor, staying out of view of the camera.

Maybe he had overreacted slightly.

Bonus:

Billy and Green Lantern sat in the monitor room, ostensibly on duty but really checking out the watchtower camera feeds of the day before. Lantern was pointing at the screen.

"Here," he said, with a glee Billy didn't honestly appreciate. "Look at that. You go down like a sack of bricks and then -" he clicked forward two frames, "- this silver hand thing appears on the door frame. Look at that, that's a proper horror movie hand curl. The claws! Just missing the glint of a blood covered axe appearing from the shadows."

Billy shuddered, but couldn't help moving closer.

"What do you think it was? Can't have been batman, right?"

"You were there, you tell me." Lantern patted him on the shoulder before he could retort. "I mean, doesn't look much like him. Doesn't really have claws and his are black anyway. Pretty sure his gloves are sewn into his skin at this point."

"I didn't need that mental image," Billy said, because he really didn't.

"Could be another Robin variant? Like that black bat thing?"

"Dunno. I mean, unlikely. Maybe it was batman. Maybe he can shapeshift a little."

"We've had that on the list of possible powers for ages, still nothing firm one way or the other."

"It probably is batman -"

"But the claws -"

They trailed off.

"We'll just add it to the list. I'll save the file, hang on. We can talk about it at the do next week - you're coming right?"

"Yeah, but I've got, uh... A diplomacy thing with the yetis at nine, so I'll have to bail then."

"You always have the weirdest personal missions. Hey, maybe you can ask them about batman, pffft. Maybe he's one of them."

#Not pictured: batman in Victorian-esque drip complete with a black full face phantom of the opera mask in a brightly lit room.#Bundled up in as much cloak is polite and just a dark splotch on camera between a very bright superman and wonder woman #Alfred sarcastically pretends to shed a tear of pride #Also not pictured: batman spending five minutes straight making sure his doors locked while on one leg #long post #batman #dc comics #bruce wayne #cryptid batman #Possessed doll au #Remind me to do a Halloween one because the bats would 100% do a scare competition with the poor goons as targets #Bonus points if you freak out a rouge. It gets harder every year.#Pretty happy with how this turned out but my first plan was to have it the start of the Reveal™. The vibes were right.#Maybe once I've got more done for this au

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isaksbestpillow · 5 months

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what do we think could be the backstory of these sneakers?

that's a lot of closeups of a sneaker not to be seen again in upcoming episodes. i don't know much about shoe brands, but choosing a grey shoe with the N symbol among all the nikes and adidases is an interesting choice from a director known to be particular about costuming.

the shoes are basically falling apart, but day has kept them in his closet. happens to all of us. i have a shoe with a broken zipper that i've been intending to get fixed for years now, without much success. it would be a good pair of shoes, if only i could get around to do this small yet impossible task.

mok asks how long day has been wearing the shoes for them to be in this condition, but day doesn't share. the shoes seem to have a lot of sentimental value to him, that much is clear. he appears very concerned to have them fixed by tomorrow. mok says they can be fixed, but tomorrow's too soon - why not buy a new pair instead. day falls pensive for a moment before saying, soom mai dai jing o, can [they] really not be fixed. there's actually no subject or object in this sentence in thai. is he still talking about the shoe or something else entirely, i don't know.

sensing how important this is to day, mok fixes the shoes, just like he fixed the fish tank for the fish night gifted to day. things take a turn however when august gets day a pair of sneakers as new as his gracious persona. august and day do their run, mok stays in the background unable to enter the scene. they come back home, and there's a very deliberate shot of the old shoes left in the closet as mok places the new pair next to them. if i know anything about p'aof and his film making, this is not the last time we're seeing those shoes.

now what's interesting to me is how we transition from the shoes to the kitchen where day's mom awaits, then to the balcony. night is there, unable to enter the stage. he seems to regret whatever it is that's going on between him and day, but he's resigned to his role as the villain of the story. today he and mok are the same, doomed to stay in the shadow.

so what's the point of all this, then. i'm not claiming the shoes represent a past that involves both day and night, but i am theorising it, a little bit!

#last twilight

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365-days-of-taylor-swift · 8 months

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October Day 3

Since this is the Halloween month™ 🎃 I figured it'd be fun to dive into Taylor's costumes/outfits during her different eras! I can't wait for us all to reminice on our fave past and presents looks of hers❣️

Check out the masterpost to vote on other currently running polls!

Like which album's aesthetic you love the most or which album actually matches your own style best!

#365 days of tswift #taylor swift poll #polls #taylor swift debut #taylor swift music videos #music video #outfit #tim mcgraw #teardrops on my guitar #our song #picture to burn #should've said no

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ao3-shenanigans · 6 months

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My thoughts on The Marvels and Suggestion for an Alternate Ending

Oh thank goodness @yalocalfanficaddict you’re my new bestie, I’m proposing right now/lh

So… The Marvels

A lotta people think that it’s Bad™️ and I won’t say that their wrong per se but also think there’s more to it then that

Spoilers for the movie, obviously

Here’s who should watch it

1. People here for a silly goofy time; with low expectations

2. People who like cats eating people

3. People who like women

4. People who like muscular women in tank tops

5. People who had a musical phase and aren’t quite as over it as they’d like everyone to believe

6. People who think Kamala’s brother is attractive

7. Ms Marvel fans

8. Did I mention the cats?

If you’re coming to watch a serious Avengers: Endgame type movie, I’m sorry but this ain’t it. However- However, I do think it’s a very enjoyable film.

I went to see it with my sibling and we had a lotta fun, where there plot holes? Yeah and I’ll get into it a bit, but like the characters for the most part where very likable and fun to watch; there were some well done fight scenes and some character development that I think was pretty darn okay.

Here’s what I think didn’t work- the pacing felt at times a little off but I believe that’s because they could’ve lost their battles a little harder. The first few losses are devastating but the second half of the movie they had a pretty easy time and lost with minimal damage to themselves (physically and emotionally) and the civilians/cities.

Captain Marvel as a character is generally over powered. Thats kinda her whole deal. Which is great for Captian Marvel fans but bad for writers because how does one set up any sort of stakes for that?

The answer is to pull emotional punches - if you can’t level up physically, it has to be emotionally- which the movie *almost* manages to pull off. Carol struggles because she feels like she doesn’t measure up to the hero Monica saw as a child and the hero Kamala thinks she is. She thinks she has to earn her place with family, and the only way to do that is by solving everything and saving everyone on her own, but everything she does just ends up making things worse. She feels like she is responsible (and kinda is) for the genocide of an entire race and a half of people and has to shoulder the weight and grief of that on her own.

Which is A GREAT CONCEPT!! I love that!!!

The movie only half way fallows through with that though. At the three-quarters point of the film where the interpersonal conflict comes to head (where it always does), it doesn’t quite hit as hard as it should. It doesn’t make me feel it, I want the gut punch and stab in the back while you’re at it.

I think they apologized just a littttle too quickly, which *is* in character, but doesnt necessarily make for the most entertaining screen drama

Over all though, there was some very fun fight scenes- the characters basically have this thing where they switch locations if they use their powers so the first fight is actually three fights on like different planets before they meet and that was cool; really fun cinematography

The cgi was well done (in my unprofessional opinion) and the costumes looked pretty good over all

Kamala is my favorite as she’s a teenaged character who actually feels like a teenager

She’s also an artist and fangirl who animates and writes fanfic so obviously I love her but yeah she totally stole the show; her family is amazing as well; 20/10 for them

It is briefly implied that Valkyrie and Captain Marvel have some sort of relationship (platonic? Romantic? No idea, there were cheek greeting kisses)

Carol Denver is technically married to some random prince though she makes it abundantly clear that it is completely platonic and only for a political advantage, he belongs to a race of people that can only communicate through singing and musical improvs, there’s this whole bit and I freaking love it.

The prince gives off Conan Grey vibes, no I can’t explain, no there will be no further commentary on that.

There’s also a sequence where the flerken (space kitties with tentacles in their mouths) are eating crew members. It’s shot like a horror sequence but has the most beautiful operatic music behind it- ten out of ten, I absolutely adore every second of it

Things that I think could’ve been changed for a more satisfactory ending:

⁃ Carol has too darn of an easy time, here’s how I’d change the ending:

I would have her flying into and restarting the sun as WAY more of a big deal. I’m sorry but that was to easy, she was completely unscathed by that.

I would’ve also had that be the final sacrifice of the film, instead of Monica. Like I get that Monica’s set her up for multiverse nonsense but I would’ve rather her stayed and Carol being the one to give up everything to atone. Of course it would need a little more lead up, but Monica’s did as well.

Together with that, I wouldn’t have had the villain chick attack again after being impaled, I would’ve let it play out and given her a second look into her character and whether or not she’d forgive Carol. I probably wouldn’t let her ultimately live either- have them both die (or ‘die’ in carol’s case most likely knowing marvel).

I think this would give Kamala and Monica a satisfactory point to their character arcs as well- Monica having forgiven Carol and accepted her as family contrasting where the villain doesn’t, and Kamala to a point where she both recognizes her hero’s humanity and fallibility but also great sacrifice thus motivating her to do start a team and do better to live up to the name she’s picked for herself.

Overall I rate the movie an 8/10, Kamala stole the show, I loved Monica, there were some great scenes, I had a lot of fun and I totally recommend it to anyone who’s into that sorta thing <3

#this is not proof read #so sorry if there’s typos lol #the marvels #ms marvel #captain marvel #professor marvel #monica rambeau #carol denvers #kamala khan #mcu #ao3 shenanigans #not fanfiction

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aemiron-main · 1 month

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TFS Henry and Boy Scouts

So, I know some people (including me for awhile) thought this picture-

-was just some sort of promo or BTS image because it wasnt a scene that appeared in the play when I saw it/when some other saw it. However, I’ve since found multiple people who saw the play very early on in the previews saying that this WAS definitely a scene in the play and they DID watch it. Unfortunately, I couldnt find any other info about the context of the scene.

And now, I’m staring at Henry’s costume here- because it almost looks like a vintage boy scout’s uniform with camo shorts:

Which brings me to this BTS pic of one of the versions of the Roane Daily Citizen Creel papers that has an article about Cub Scouts in it (it says “Cub Scouts Need More Den Mothers”):

And also, looking at Henry’s outfit again, it looks like the shirt could be a scout shirt that’s untucked and unbuttoned- and so, if we were seeing Henry from the front, he would likely have an undershirt visible, which is interesting considering that it would be a parallel to the grey tank top/undershirt we see Henry wearing during TFS:

Anyway! Much to think about! Was TFS Henry a boy scout of some sort? Is that how he ended up in the cave in Nevada? Was he doing some sort of scouting thing?

And it also makes me think about the military men that were send into the cave-esque UD tunnels to scout the area who ended up being killed- and this is especially interesting because those men were intentionally lured into a trap by Flayed Will- so, was Henry intentionally lured into a trap in Nevada at the cave?

It also makes me think of how often various members of the party are scouting, especially in early seasons, like with Lucas scouting out HNL in S1 with his binoculars.

And there’s 152637848 other scout connections (Petey McHew at summer camp, Bob and Scott being boy scouts according to one of the comics, the camp knowhere stuff vs patty being ‘the girl from nowhere’ etc etc) but I’ll save those for another time.

#stranger things #the first shadow #henry creel

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lavampira · 3 months

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Top 5 songs and top 5 memories?

ffxiv top 5 asks

ty beloved!! 🖤

8. top 5 songs

lunacy

thicker than a knife’s blade

the open box

close in the distance

insatiable

10. top 5 memories (from msq, raiding, with your FC, anything!)

not ranking these because they’re all beloved memories but:

the “what if we did something wild tonight” “yes” “let’s queue for mhach and see how far we get before maintenance starts” moment with gigi and actually getting below the last 25% of the final boss when servers shut down. and everyone unhinged in the chat, including so many people yelling ORB across all the alliances over ozma.

encountering the very kind and confident but very terrible healer named robert in wanderer’s palace hard with meg and kels and experiencing the most absurd 40 minutes of pure comedy with robert doing what can only be described as robert things

azia and I getting tsukuyomi in a roulette, forgetting how the normal mechs go for a minute, and then ending up in A Situation where azia was tanking as a dnc and I was hardcasting a rez to pick up the healers as a smn when the fan aoe happened, wiping us below 10%. trauma bonded in the chili’s that night.

last week before hades ex prog, everyone who was on had a dance dance standoff with shinryu, unsynced, as a “warm up” in which meg, jay, rogue, kels, grey, and I were all dnc with all of our partners on gigi as rpr, trying to see how far we’d get, only for everyone but rogue and me to get swiped off the platform. but rogue and I did it! somehow!

all of the hangouts with the FC outside of the shirogane house but especially during holiday events when the yard is decorated and everyone puts on costume glams. also the occasional late night roulettes with them that get very, very silly, like the time 3 of us helped someone through paglth’an and found out a drk using tbn on a dnc and the dnc using improvise will survive akh morn from lunar bahamut if the healer is down.

#there are so many other stories i want to add shdgdh i love mmos for the sillies with other people playing a game #and ffxiv’s community has been SO incredible for it tbh #asked and answered #birues

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leafostuff · 2 years

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A very cheerful Halloween (Ft. Yabuki Nako)

Note: So i finally had the bright idea to do a smut, mostly it just came to see if I had the talent to write this type of oneshot (I don't) and honestly Even if i was good at writing those i will continue to only be a fluff writer due to this actually being very hard mentally to write, but i hope yall will enjoy my first ever smut for My favourite Iz*one member

Thanks for: @torotauri21 @erospandemos for editing and suggesting help with this, I couldn't do this without them

tags: anal, clothed sex, blowjob

words: 3.2K (the most i ever written)

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"Well…its not like I have anything else better to do,” you thought to yourself as your eyes gazed upon the house. The techno music could be heard from the inside and the lights couldn't shy away, and even though you weren't much of a party animal, if you were asked if you would rather stay at home and play stupid games or come to your college’s Halloween party, the priorities were fairly obvious.

As you finally find a spot to park your car near the house you get up and look at yourself, Wearing a simple black suit and followed by grey jeans such as when being asked about your costume, you could excuse a random movie or TV series that people wear suits and you forgot your black glasses at home finishing the look of the badass with a suit. On the outside, you could spot some people dancing, probably already drunk.

Finally, you take a deep breath and enter the party. The first scan of the room and it came to your senses how big this place is since even with a party of around 80-90 people, there was a ton of space to walk around the dancing crowd, I guess when your parents are rich, Hosting parties this size isn't much of a problem to you.

A peek at your phone reveals the hour is 9:30 PM and remembering how the host announced the party was starting at 8 PM, you could confidently say you were late to the party, another scan of the crowd and you manage to find your friends, dancing wildly in the center of the floor, their faces red from the alcohol however from where you were standing it was hard to recognize their costumes.

“God, this gonna be a mess of a party huh?” you think to yourself like a radar trying to look for airplanes, you start another scan of the room to find anywhere to be safe from the chaos as suddenly a face you didn't expect at the party shows itself on the bar chairs that were on the side.

“Nako? what is she doing here?” you thought to yourself as you could spot the small girl with the blonde hair sitting happily and looking at the people dancing, she wore a cheerleader outfit with A small tank top that left little to your imagination, and the skirt, well… you wouldn't even call it that, as her legs were on full display, however as you look at her face you could notice some red spots and scars on her face, making you confused but you quickly noticed that those were fake, and still you had to agree that she was attractive

Yabuki Nako was quite a weird case since even when being one of the more popular Cheerleaders in the college with a record of almost every guy asking her out, her shy demeanor could only keep those relationships for a couple of days before breaking up with them, saying she didn't feel the click with them.

Suddenly the thought of maybe walking over to her and maybe striking up a talk seemed more appealing, “it's not like I have had much to lose talking to her anyways” the thoughts came as you couldn't notice a guy holding a plate full of glasses of beer as you take and drink it quickly, giving you that extra boost of confidence to walk over and talk to her.

As you get closer to her she notices you and looks at you, her brown eyes locking on with yours as you go over to sit near her, “Pretty loud here, isn't it?” you ask however it seems that the music seems to blow your question as she leans closer to you. “It's pretty loud in here isn't it?” you ask again, this time loud enough for her to finally hear you.

“Yeah, but you get used to it” she explains while scanning your clothes, “What costume are you supposed to be in?” she asked, a cute smile escaping her mouth trying to analyze you.

“Uhh…Agent K from Men in Black?” this is the first thing that comes to your mind

“So…you are Agent K…but again?” she jokingly said as you can't help yourself but laugh as Nako joined you,

“Well, what are you supposed to be anyway? if it wasn't for your fake scars and blood spots, I could swear you came to a Halloween party without a costume” you say teasingly as Nako couldn't help but giggle cutely, resulting in both a seductive but cute look.

“Well…no, I am a zombie cheerleader, all the cheerleaders decided to do a group costume,” she said turning her look to the crowd as you join her, helping you notice the similar costumes as Nako with the same scars and fake blood spots on their face.

“Anyways what do you think? doesn't it look cute?” she asks as you turn your gaze at her body again, now being closer you could notice her curves closer, with her chest being surprisingly curvier than expected from her height, and thighs that guys could only dream about.

“Uh yeah, it looks really cute, suits you very well,” you say, trying to avoid saying anything too inappropriate for the moment as Nako seemed to blush a little from your compliment

“Your name is Eunwoo right? from history?” she asks.

“Yeah, second year” you reply.

“Cool, my friend is also majoring in history, I assume you know Minju? she is also in the cheerleading squad” she asks, and…well when every class she enters every guy can't help himself but look at her with awe it's hard not to know the girl, luckily since she does have a boyfriend, looking at her was the only thing they guys could ever do.

The rest of the party went pretty much the same for the both of you, talking about your life outside of college and overall having fun, and once in a while taking another round of alcohol, you learned how Nako was majoring in Pedagogy and was planning to be a teacher in the future, you also learned she was in the same year as you, which caught you by surprise since her height fooled you

During the conversation, you could notice Nako getting closer to you and her hand even closer as it was crawling up your thigh, however, you stopped yourself from doing something too hasty, since you didn't know if Nako was flirting with or just being nice and this was the way she was always with people but then…

“Hey, want to like…get out of this party, we could still hang out if you want” She was saying as a shy smile escaped as you knew what the signs, and well…

“Sure, I don't see why not” you reply while returning the smile to her, the two of you stand up from the bar chairs and head out of the house with nako following you, you could feel the eyes of the entire room following you as finally, you get out of the house as you suddenly feel the silence of the outside since the music got weaker and people starting leaving.

As you take a look at your phone again the hour was 11:30 PM, you didn't expect two hours to pass by so fast, but as people always say: when you have fun, the time always seems to move faster, as after a couple of minutes Nako gets out of the house as well, since she was probably telling her friends she was leaving.

“Wanna go over to my place? it's very close to here and with how much we drunk, I think its best for us if we didn't drive right?” she asks, at least she was not enough drunk to stop thinking rationally, you nod and the two of you start walking with nako in the front and you following right behind her.

The more you were looking at her from behind you couldn't lie to yourself that your eyes were fixated on her cute ass, and how it was swaying during her walk, as finally after 10 minutes or so of walking you get to her building and soon after a 2 minutes travel in the elevator you get to your apartment.

“Listen, I'm going to the bathroom to take off the make-up, the remote of the TV is on, so feel at home,” she said, walking toward the bathroom and closing the door, leaving you at the entrance of the apartment, the place itself wasn't too huge as expected from a college student but it wasn't small either as you find yourself sitting on the couch and turning on the TV, with the channel being on the romance movies.

A couple of minutes later Nako gets out of the bathroom, now with her face clean of the fake scars and blood spots, her cheerleader outfit was still on her however her blonde hair now tied to a ponytail instead of the long hair from before. “What are you watching?” she asked, walking around you to the couch, sitting near the left of you.

“I don't know, some romance movie? you can change the channel if you want” you reply as she just shrugged her head and joined you. As the movie hits the 50-minute mark the inevitable Sex scene comes as in all of the romance movies in the last decade or so, maybe it was their way of making people watch the otherwise mediocre movie but since you didn't have anything else to do you continued to look at the screen.

Suddenly you could smell the scent which was Nako’s perfume feel closer to you, and as you look to the side of you, Nako’s face was leaning closer to you with her eyes laser-focused on your lips, maybe the alcohol started affecting you since instead of backing away you lean into her, capturing her lips, her eyes do look shocked but right after they close, letting the kiss flow.

you couldn't be sure if Nako added any more lipstick on her lips since even by normal standards, Nako's lips were very sweet as slowly you could feel how the small girl climbed your lap and stayed there, as after a couple of seconds you release from the kiss, looking each other with pants

“Someone ever told you you are a good kisser?” she asks shyly however her smile shows a deeper desire, and the followed wink doesn't help her look any purer

“You’re…very hot” this is all you can say between the gasps for air as she leans in closer and takes off your glasses and puts them on the coffee table.

“How about we make it hotter then?” she asks as she takes your hands and put them on her waist and quickly dives in to kiss you, slowly but surely your hand slowly move lower and lower which by the end magnetizes toward her perky ass, you give it a small squeeze which in reaction result in Nako’s cute yet seductive moan, giving you enough time to let your tongue meet hers, turning the kiss into a passionate makeout session.

“Mmm…the bed,” she says between moans, as it was a demand by her as even without answering you pick her up from the couch and pin her to the wall, Nako in the meanwhile had the time to put her hands around your waist as suddenly the two of you release from the kiss and the moment becomes very awkward.

“You don't know where the bedroom is?” she asks you as all you could do in that situation is laugh, making her a bit confused.

“What do you expect, it's my first time in this house” you answer as Nako joined in the laugh as her hands get to your chest and give you a small kiss on the cheek

“God you are so cute, my bedroom is the last room on the right, now what are you waiting for? it's not polite to let a girl wait, and from feeling how hard you are, I don't think your little friend wants to wait as well” she said with another wink as you picked her up again and started walking toward the bedroom.

As you enter the room the two of you fall to the bed as Nako’s hand travel toward your jeans as slowly but surely she undoes the belt and the buttons and takes down your jeans, revealing your boxer with a tent to make nako gasp “Mmm, even harder then I expected” she said.

“You sound like you are experienced in this stuff, is there a chance you lie about your status?” you ask

“I may be single, but I'm not a virgin, but can I say the same about you?” she asked teasingly as now her hands were on your boxer, slowly slipping it off your legs to reveal the treasure as some girls would call it was in full display.

Nako’s face leans closer toward your member as her tongue slips out of her mouth and gives it a small lick on the tip, which gave you the chills.

“Mm…your tongue…so good,” you say between moans quietly as her smile grows larger while her licks become way more aggressive, now starting from the base and to the tip, resulting in more moans coming from your mouth.

“Aiwish” she says, it's hard to understand with her tongue out as finally, she opens and mouth and slowly but surely takes it inside, “so goowd” she mouthed as she bobs her head on your member while you tried your best not to moan too loud. you couldn't lie that It did catch you off guard that a shy girl like Nako was so good at bed but it made the moment much hotter.

As the blowjob continues the situation becomes much steamier when Nako starts to sometimes look up at your pleasured face as she winks and she even sometimes stops sucking, instead kissing your length as in the meanwhile your hand gets toward her skirt, trying to get closer to her ass and more specifically toward her panties, managing to take them off even with her skirt trying to stop you.

“That eager huh?” she says as she releases her mouth from your cock, now sitting on the bed with her knees as you could swear her breasts were more bustier then before. “if you wanna fuck me that bad, just take my outfit off,” she said, almost starting to take her tank top off as you stopped her, taking her body and instead seating it on your naked lap as you lean into her ear.

“Actually, how about we keep this outfit on?” you whisper in her ear while taking your hands and letting them fall on the exposed belly, rubbing it slowly as Nako smiled, as she took her hands, putting them on her skirt’s edges and took them up.

“Well then…what are you waiting for? my ass can't wait any longer” she teases, wiggling her ass from side to side like a Matador, playing with the bull to try and exhaust him. In her eyes you were the bull as it seem to work since right after you had enough as you finally thrust your member into her ass, making her gasp in surprise.

“Ohh yes” she moans as she arched her head back in pleasure as you continued to thrust in a moderate pace while your hands roam over her belly as slowly but surely they get over to her busty chest, you give it her right breast a small squeeze, resulting in a moan as like a loop you thrust your member into her ass and right after squeezing her tits.

“FUCK FUCK FUCK, YOU ARE SO GOOD” she shouted, “PLEASE GO FASTER, IM SO CLOSE EUNWOO” she demands as her body start moving up and down, her request driving you forward resulting in your faster pace with the thrusting and the squeezing of her tits to be stronger.

“IM CLOSE NAKO,” you say loudly as finally after enough thrusting and squeezing, after all of the pleasure both of you went through, you finally give in, finally cumming in her ass, as both of you feel the sense of relaxation as right after Nako falls into the bed, her face was tomato red from as not soon after you fall as well, finding yourself looking into her eyes.

“Wow…” you say, panting from exhaustion as Nake seemed to smile as with the little power she had she scooted closer to you with her hands crawling around your neck and pulling closer to her slowly.

“Yeah?” she asked, beaming a smile that was so bright that even the light of the moon coming from the window couldn't stand a chance against Nako.

“I…don't know if i can really judge only the sex as an experience but…i think i…love you?” you manage to ask as she looked at you with a smile and a blush, but unlike before it was much less red as she moved her hair around her ear.

“Awww, I love you too,” she said as she leaned her nose into yours, nuzzling it in the process. You really had a hard time believing that a girl this cute could be this hot and so good in the sheets, the Dichotomy sometimes is just amazing.

“Okay be honest, you didn't expect to have sex with a girl on Halloween right?” she asked as you couldn't help yourself but nod, giggling cutely as Nako joined you. “If it makes you feel better i didn't really expect to find myself a boyfriend on Halloween” she adds.

“Am i your boyfriend?” you ask as she slowly lets her hands cup your face

“Mmm maybe, i mean you are cute, funny, got the bod, and honestly I am not lying by saying you don't complain about dating a cute girl like me right?” she asks and before you can even answer she continues speaking

Suddenly she was standing up and going toward the bathroom “well I'm gonna clean myself and get some new clothes, I really suggest you will take a shower as well after me,” she says as she gets inside the shower.

~-~-~

1 hour later and the both of you finish your showers, and luckily enough besides some stains of cum over your undershirt your clothes were very clean but due to the smell you had to put in the laundry, leaving you shirtless. the two you lay near each other on her bed, sheets under you.

You two wanted to keep talking, wanted to talk about what it meant between the two of you but when the hour is 1 AM and there was a long night of sex, not a lot of people can stay up and talk. Nako soon enough fell asleep on your chest, feeling the warmth of it as you couldn't help but smile at her

“good night” you whisper, planting a kiss on her forehead and two cheeks as you two as well started drifting off to sleep, thinking about the wonderful time you had and hoping to get more in the future.

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So...thanks a lot for reading this, i really hope the tags make sense (again new to smuts) and yeah...uhh don't expect more smuts from me, anyway seeing you next update

Edit: i am aware there is a chance I didn't really match the clothes in the pic with the clothes in the oneshot, so sorry

#nako #izone smut #kpop fanfic #kpop #Smut #izone nako #fluff #izone packs #izone icons

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rebelfell · 4 months

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Definitely not thinking about doing a Dirty Dancing couples costume with Steve.

And he’s ready to go in his black tank and black pants (looking so so so fine in his loverboy best) and then he shows up at the party only to find Eddie there in jean shorts and a white shirt knotted under his pecks.

Because you told HIM you were gonna be the genderbent Swayze to his Jennifer Grey.

#meanwhile you nancy and robin are already there as Charlie’s Angels #and steve and eddie just fully commit to the bit and do the loverboy scene right in the middle of the living room #christmas who? new years what? valentine’s day when?#it’s always halloween for me #steve harrington imagine #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson fluff #steve harrington fluff

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dragoncityinteriordesign · 2 years

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Okay, so because of enthusiastic interest in the last post, I think it may be time to talk about Chu Shuzhi, Comfy Goth Fashion Icon.

There’s a weird lot to say about the clothing choices of a guy who wears the same thing 99% of the time. (His kid-twin outfit, the brown torture pants, his fighting shorts, and his random laundry day outfit are his only costume changes.) Part of it is that it’s a fight-compatible outfit -- his first bout in the MMA arena, he wins in everything but his scarf. But it also is absolutely the look of a man who has reached a point in his life where, you know what, to hell with deciding what to wear every day. He’s Steve Jobsing this shit.

Piece by piece:

The coat: For as much of a coat as it is, it doesn’t look that heavy. It’s probably a kind of heavy cotton or linen, especially given the way it frays white at the hem. We never see him fasten it, but if he did, it appears it would close with large plastic snaps. We also only see him with the hood up once, which is a crying shame, because the resemblance is uncanny.

The not-actually-a-scarf: I, like everyone else, initially thought it was a scarf. Then he took it off in the sub-zero lab, unfurled it, and draped it around his shoulders, and I about lost my damn mind. That man has an entire pashmina wrapped around his neck on a daily basis. I hope we’ve all appreciated the part where it’s sheer and fringed, too.

The shirt: It is not a skinny-strapped undershirt. It’s a sleeveless black knit tank top. As someone who, in my professional life, wears a lot of sleeveless things with blazers over them, I appreciate this approach to thermal regulation.

The pants: They’re not quite black. They’ve got a drawstring and pockets. They would not get in the way if he needed to kick you in the face. The puppet’s pants stop mid-calf, but Lao Chu tucks the bottom hems of his real pants all the way down into his boots. (Actually, Zhao Yunlan does this too. It’s cute.)

The boots: I have accused them of being UGGs, and I’m not entirely sure they’re not. What gets me every time is how not badass they are. They have completely un-rugged tread on the bottom. They have loops on the back that look like they should be bootstraps, except they’re the length of handles on clutch purses; I legitimately cannot tell if they came with the boots or if they’re aftermarket mods. The soles are a charcoal grey; they just look white in some lights. (The tread is also not UGG-standard tread.) They have no zippers or laces on them. Chu Shuzhi does not fuck with zippers or laces. His coat has snaps. His pants have a drawstring. He will go to the barber every week like clockwork to keep his edges crispy, but fuck you if you think that going from naked to fully clothed should take more than thirty seconds.

Maybe my favorite thing about this outfit is that it’s not flattering. You want to see this man in a flattering outfit? He’s got plenty of those. He is an already handsome dude who is smoking hot once you start peeling layers off him. In a cast with some truly spectacularly attractive people, he is holding his own. It’d be easy to dress in a way that highlights that instead of covers it.

But Chu Shuzhi doesn’t have time to be model-gorgeous. He has shit to do, and on top of it all, Zhao Yunlan handed him Guo Changcheng and now he’s like oh great now I gotta be responsible for this water bottle.

#guardian #zhen hun #dragon city fashion #chu shuzhi #chuguo

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a-trick-or-two-with-lepers · 1 year

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Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert (NBC 2018) Breakdown and Review

Quick disclaimer: This is the second version of JCS that I've seen in full. I was introduced to the rock opera through the 1973 movie, and I'm not afraid to say that that is where my bias will always be, especially considering I'm more of a film buff than a theater nerd. However, I am aware that putting a feature-length film and a live recording of a performance on the same level for criticism is unfair, so I'll try to keep the comparisons to a minimum.

With that out of the way, here are my (slightly deranged) thoughts on NBC's JCS Live!

~Overture~

I can only imagine how hyped JCS enjoyers got while watching this live back in 2018. Not only is the live orchestra doing an amazing job, but the guitar players get their own time to shine on stage! This is so damn cool to see, because the guitar riffs are really what makes the song. When the "Heaven on Their Minds" riff began and we got to see one of the guitarists on stage just going at it, I knew I'd be in for a treat.

I'd like to take a moment to talk about the set design as well. One thing I know to be true about most JCS productions is that the set is almost always bare-bones - but in a meaningful way. The story relies more on the actions and emotions of its characters than the environment, which makes sense as Jesus and his compatriots were not necessarily wealthy. This remains true for this particular production. The staging is really impressive; you're never short of something or someone to look at.

Also... the outfits! I'm a sucker for leather, and this production has no shortage of it. The costumes, while aesthetically pleasing, show how much the ensemble in this play favor rebellion.

I love when casts are as diverse as possible - in ethnicity, skin color, body types, gender presentation, etc. This cast fits the bill, and everyone does a fantastic job in the overture. In fact, the ensemble this cast provides are just amazing in general. You can tell each and every one of them has oodles of experience under their belt. I have no complaints about any of their performances.

I will say, the flashing lights during the more chaotic bits were a bit much for me, but that's more due to my propensity to get overstimulated. Overall, the choices made in this section were top-notch, and I really can't be mad at any of it.

Enter: John Legend.

You know how I was really digging the costuming? Well...

Look, I understand that most productions have Jesus just looking like a normal ass dude with normal ass clothing, but was the grey shawl really necessary? Whatever, I'm not too put out by it. At least we get to see some John Legend tiddy.

It occurred to me during this part of the play that I am not a fan of live audiences. Once again, my easily overstimulated brain may be to blame, but I found myself wishing for most of the play that the audience would just quiet down. Nevertheless, I'm sure the cast was happy to be so outwardly appreciated.

~Heaven on Their Minds~

youtube

I'm gonna say this once and I won't say it again. THE MARKETING TEAM LEFT BRANDON VICTOR DIXON IN THE GODDAMN DUST. Seriously, every time I came across a video of this production on Youtube, his name was either not in the title, not in the thumbnail, or he was labeled as Tim Minchin. The poor guy is the main fucking character and nobody could be bothered to give him the credit he deserves. I understand that Legend is more famous, but seriously. That just rubs me the wrong way.

Anyway...

I'm back to loving the costuming. Judas' vest is so cool, and I love the symbolism of his tank being red. Honestly, any Judas in red has my heart immediately.

His performance here is good, but nothing I'm overly impressed by. I can understand wanting to save energy for later performances, though, and I'm definitely not offended by Dixon's singing. He's a bit stilted in his delivery, a little nasally in his vocals, and I sometimes have a hard time believing his performance. Though, I can imagine it's kind of hard to stay in character when you're struggling to be heard above the audience. I mean seriously! When Jesus did the bit where he reached out to the audience, the crowd got so loud that if I didn't know the lyrics to this song by heart I wouldn't know what Dixon was saying. It made me a bit mad, to be honest. I don't know, maybe that in itself is symbolic or some shit.

I do like Dixon's phrasing in some parts, especially when he sing-speaks the line "do you care for your race?" as well his sassy delivery of the titular line. I did not care for the way he sang "how put down we are," but he later totally nailed the original riff on "sour," which is one of my favorite vocal runs of all time. The way he interspersed the bits where he wasn't singing with spoken complaints was cute. He also did a really nice break at the "puh-LEASE" bit.

He really made the song his own. The last twenty seconds gave me chills. Dixon is clearly a very skilled performer, and though there were parts of his performance I didn't love, I overall really enjoyed watching him sing one of my favorite musical numbers.

One last thing about this part: I don't really like how Judas is singing directly to Jesus. A big part of Judas' characterization is that he is a sort of outcast-loner type, and his relationship with Jesus fails mainly because both men fail to communicate effectively. When Judas is literally expressing his concerns directly to Jesus, and Jesus outright ignores him, it makes Jesus come across as an unresponsive dick. Again, this is the first theater JCS I've seen, so I'm not sure how much of this is written in stone as part of the Broadway production. Instead of doing the right thing and researching that, I'm just going to judge the play based on how I initially responded to it.

~What's the Buzz / Strange Thing Mystifying~

I'm not sure if this is a constant in most JCS productions, but "What's the Buzz" feels too slow to me. It's a bit jumpier in the '73 version, but that may be because they were recording it in a studio rather than in front of a live audience. I will say, there's not much room for breathing in this song. Once again, though, the ensemble is doing a banger job.

I came into this not really having a strong opinion on John Legend. I really only know the one song from him ("All of Me," obviously). I've heard people criticize his performance in this, and while I'd much prefer a rock singer or seasoned Broadway performer in this role, I can't say I'm too offended by his casting. He's more focused on his voice than his acting. When it comes to musical theater, each line should be treated as its own and should portray a slightly different emotional tone. With Legend, all his lines kind of sound the same and seem to hold the same level of importance. He's also not very good at the kind of talk-singing that is usually present in this role. But, I can't deny that he sounds pretty damn good. I especially liked how he sang "Mary, oooh, that is good." Very sexy indeed.

Speaking of Mary! Who doesn't love Sara Bareilles? (No seriously, who? I just wanna talk...) I really really really love her dress, and her voice is just lovely. Very soothing and unassuming.

When Judas comes in for "Strange Thing Mystifying," he is once again portraying the perfect amount of sass and shade. I really missed the "hey cool it man :(" line from Simon, though. It's so adorable in the '73 JCS.

I really liked Legend's staccato "Who. Are. You." parts! Whoever made the decision to direct him like that knew what they were doing.

All around, there was more singing than acting going on from the main cast. In my opinion, this makes the characterization kind of weak, but it doesn't make the songs unenjoyable.

Also, I love the choreography here! Especially when they sing "when do we ride into Jerusalem?" Still can't top the '73 choreo for me, but that's a very high bar.

~Everything's Alright~

While I absolutely adore Sara Bareilles' voice, I wish she enunciated a bit more for this song, but that's just a personal preference. Her singing and her entire vibe is just so calming and gorgeous, and her runs are spot-on. Then we get to the little Judas and Jesus interaction.

In the original movie, this is the scene that made me realize, "Wow. These men really love each other." Every scene with Carl Anderson and Ted Neely is just so emotionally intense that it's impossible to look away. That is not really the case with Legend and Dixon.

Though they both sound good (for the most part), the desperation and emotional overflow is just not there. And I say for the most part because both Dixon and Legend struggle a bit with the higher notes. Dixon went for the belt, but was a bit flat. Legend opted to sing "when I'm gone" with a poorly sung falsetto, and it just. Does not fit. Whatsoever. It was a weak performance of a line that is meant to be fraught with emotion.

Also, by the end of the song, I'm pretty sure the point is supposed to be that despite Mary's careful ministrations, Jesus is still stressed and upset. But here? Nah, Jesus is just snoozin'.

Despite J and J's subpar deliveries, I enjoyed this song even if just for how Mary was presented.

~This Jesus Must Die~

Norm Lewis! I! Don't really... have a pre-formed opinion on him. So many people seem to, but I just haven't been involved in theater for so long that I'm a bit out of the loop.

Nonetheless, he is a wonderful performer. His vibrato is liquid gold. However, I was under the impression that Caiaphas is a role usually played by bass singers. Lewis is very clearly a baritone. I'm not sure I'm too happy with this choice, especially since he seems to struggle a bit with the lower notes. It's not nearly as noticeable as Legend's struggle with high notes, but I really wish we got to have a beautiful, gravelly bass voice in this role. Even without the inhumanly low tones, Lewis manages to make this role just as intimidating as it should be.

Jin Ha does a good job as Annas. I don't have much to say about his performance.

What I find particularly funny about this part is that you can tell who the stage performers are. Legend is a singer. He sings. These priests that have like, two lines each? They're PERFORMERS. They are taking their fifteen seconds of fame and milking them as much as possible, and I respect the hell out of it because it makes for some very enjoyable performances. The "What then to do about this Jesusmania?" guy killed it.

I love the costuming here as well - very cool geometric designs on the jackets.

Though I would love to say I fancied this version of the song, they didn't include the "Jesus is cool" line. And for that, this is my least favorite song in the production. (/j)

~Hosanna~

I don't have a whole lot to say about this one. It was good! Just a few little tidbits:

-Legend starting a crowd clap was cute

-This song works really well for Legend cause it's right in his register and he doesn't have to reach for any super high notes

-The key change is super cool! I LOVE Legend's runs during this part as well

-The last part where they all sing "SUPERSTAAAAR" was awesome and I can imagine them using that for a lot of cable advertisements

~Simon Zealotes / Poor Jerusalem~

First of all: Simon's cute as hell! Look at his lil' hair!

I just love when this role is played as the most energetic, chaotic, batshit insane guy you've ever seen. And I cannot express how delighted I am to see a role in this play being done by a rock singer! Erik Grönwell's performance here is my favorite out of anyone in this play so far. His belts are out of this world.

The ensemble can't be discounted here either, 'cause they sound freaking amazing. But I've already expressed my love for them.

Surprisingly, Legend's falsetto actually works well for "Poor Jerusalem." It makes sense, though, as this part is meant to be a bit gentler and more downtrodden. He sounds really nice.

Side note: when did they change the "but you close your eyes" line to "but you live a lie?" Is that just for this version or was it changed previously? I feel like it doesn't really add anything.

~Pilate's Dream~

Not much to say here either, it's a pretty short song. I will say I really like Pilate's outfit. The colors are reminiscent of '73 version, which is an immediate like from me. I also like how Pilate looked straight into the camera at the end of the song. Pretty impactful even if I know for a fact they went to commercial break right after that.

~The Temple~

Okay. I'd die for these guitarists. I love whenever they're on stage! They're killing it!

Anyway, I found it pretty funny that the temple-goers just started dumping glitter on the ground. I wrote in my notes "Slay ig," so, slay ig.

It's pretty cool too how the "temple" is literally just a huge cross on the ground. The slow movement of the camera makes this a languid realization, which is neat.

Speaking of which, I forgot to mention that the camerawork so far has been really good. I never feel like I'm watching something stagnant, yet I still feel like a part of the audience. Good job, NBC crew.

"My temple should be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves" is my favorite part of the original movie. It's so undeniably powerful, and Neely's rock-belt is just heavenly to listen to. (He performs it live, too, so I know it isn't just a trick of the recording studio).

Legend's version of this line? Eh, it was alright. It was honestly better than I was expecting. I was really worried he was just gonna sing it the way it was written and go for the falsetto, but he instead chose to stay in his range. He also has an intentional voice break, indicating a bit of emotion, which is nice to see. I don't know why he sings the "get outs" in lowercase; it's just kind of funny.

The lepers sound really good, but when Legend is trying to sing his part over them, I can hardly hear him. What I did hear, though, was like? Really good? Super rock-sounding. Hopefully we hear more of that later...

~I Don't Know How to Love Him~

No notes. She slayed.

Yvonne Elliman supremacy, but Sara Bareilles Mary Magdalene now has a place in my heart. I'm glad I watched this production if just for her, honestly.

~Damned for all Time / Blood Money~

What can I say? The priests are spooky, the lighting is badass, and Norm Lewis is the best singer here.

As far as Judas goes, Dixon is doing exceedingly well for how ridiculously hard this song is to sing. Carl Anderson owns this song in my heart, but Dixon is not disappointing. He makes up for the lack of insane belting by adding his own runs, and it works well. I wrote in my notes that "Brandon actually looks like emotions are happening," so, yeah. Also, the BICEPS! Needless to say, I was enjoying it.

~The Last Supper~

I forgot why I wrote "Aw, gay apostles" in my notes, but going back to it, I noticed how much hugging kissing was going on between these guys. Can't complain, love a good smooch.

Mary is also in this scene, which differs from the movie. And she shows her hospitality towards Judas, which is cute. I always wished they had Judas and Mary interact more in the movie.

Legend sounds good at the beginning. Once again, this song is well within his range, and his falsettos don't feel too out of place. However, they didn't put a pause between the "when you eat and drink" line and the "I must be mad" line, which I thought was odd.

When the accusations start flying, Jesus just. Doesn't seem mad. Judas does, and Dixon completely upstages Legend in this scene.

After the apostles sing a second time, and Judas starts dishing out the insults to Jesus, I feel like it should have been more one-on-one and personal. I would've had the apostles move further away or even leave the stage for this part.

Oof. Legend singing "Get out!" in falsetto was just... not good. When the audience clapped for it I cringed so hard.

Let's see if Legend can redeem himself with the next song...

~Gethsemane~

With how bad everyone made it out to be, I was expecting Legend to completely biff it here. But to my surprise, he really stepped it up here, in both terms of singing and acting. Obviously, it was nowhere near as impactful as Gillan or Neely's versions, but I could at least see that Legend was trying. This part made me recognize that he isn't necessarily a bad actor, he just isn't consistent enough in his performance for it to be believable that he is in character.

He displayed some really impressive rock-belting midway through the song, right around where most people usually go for the g5 note. It sounds so gravelly and crisp, and I really wish he used it more during this performance. Additionally, I am very happy that he didn't go for the g5. That part usually makes or breaks the performance, and with Legend I think we know which way the egg was gonna fall.

There were some good choices made here as well as some bad ones. He still did some nasty falsettos in the latter half of the song, which actually made me laugh. Seriously, who convinced him that was okay? I feel like this would have been a well-regarded performance without that.

Overall, I'm impressed. The weak points were weak, but few, and the strong points were really strong. It wasn't nearly as poor as people made it out to be.

~The Arrest~

The kiss was nice and tender. I like the way Jesus hugs Judas afterwards too, that was very sweet. For some reason it sounded like Legend said "Judas, must you betray me with a gay?" which I thought was pretty funny.

I like how the arrest was framed as a news stint, with reporters and mics and all that. It was also pretty neat how they interspersed the solo lines with ensemble lines.

~Peter's Denial~

Peter was good, but the real standout here was that guy with the phone that sang "But I saw him too, he looked just like you." God DAMN! They went OFF!! Can he play Judas next please?

~Pilate and Christ~

Pilate is really the one bringing the camp here. He ate this up.

~King Herod's Song~

Well. What do you want me to say here? It's Alice Cooper. Do you really think I am physically, mentally, or legally capable of criticizing Alice Cooper?

I'll spare you the fangirling I did in my notes app; just know I, as well as the audience, was very happy to see this man doing his thing.

Also, as a rocker, he actually made this song fit with the rest of the play, which is truly a feat.

(Still not as good as his episode on The Muppets).

~Could we Start Again Please~

Even though I love Sara as Mary, and Peter did a good job as well, I wish they included more ensemble in this song. I feel like it's more impactful that way as it shows that there were still people who believed in Jesus. Still, I'm so glad they decided to keep this song in most JCS productions because it's one of my favorites.

~Judas's Death~

Oh no, he lost the leather vest! I'm not complaining though... 😏

This is the part where I praise Dixon for his showmanship, 'cause this man just got THROWN and he KEPT SINGING! I found that to be very impressive. Though I will say, the increase in his emotional performance seems to cause his singing to suffer a bit. To be fair, it's an incredibly hard part to sing.

Aside from Jesus going bonkers in the Temple, Judas' reprise of "I Don't Know How to Love Him" is my favorite scene in the original movie. Did Dixon live up to my expectations? Well, considering my expectations were pretty low to begin with, he exceeded them.

This is seriously the best acting I've seen in the whole play. Dixon completely sells his performance. Consider me a proud and satisfied viewer.

Although, quick PSA to the audience. You don't actually have to clap every time a man sings in falsetto, mkay? Thanks <3

~Trial Before Pilate~

This song is notorious for its difficult timing considering it's just talksingtalksingtalk *BUM* talksingtalksingtalk *BUM* for a bit. This Pilate though? Yeah, he nails it. I was really impressed by his performance. Also, when he said "talk to me Jesus Christ," that was the most sexual tension I've seen in a stage play, wow.

I don't really understand what was going on in the flogging scene, because the ensemble members were just running past him individually, but Legend was selling it. It definitely looked like he was in pain, and the lashes on his back didn't look sloppy or rushed.

Another emotional crux of the play is when Pilate basically yells "DON'T LET ME STOP YOUR GREAT SELF DESTRUCTION!!" I was a little let down by this guy's performance of these lines honestly. However, he was virtually perfect the rest of the time so I can't really be mad.

~Superstar~

THIS. THIS IS IT.

For whatever reason, Dixon just decided to turn the iconic scale up to 1000. The diamond laced fit. The dancing. The footwork. Everything about this performance was absolutely incredible, and I am just ecstatic about it. I mean, the man was full on spinning on the ground while singing. Every run he did now has a permanent residence in my brain. If you decide not to watch this version of JCS, I understand. I don't blame you. But if nothing else, please please PLEASE watch this part on Youtube. You won't regret it.

In the words of a close friend of mine, he slayed, ate it up, left no crumbs, licked it clean, you could eat off that plate again.

~The Crucifixion~

There were some lines in here that definitely weren't in the movie, and again, I'm not super familiar with the broadway play so I'm not sure how much of this was changed for this version alone. Nonetheless, Legend did a good job here. I mean, attempting to portray Jesus dying on a cross is a task to be sure, and he accomplished it.

~John Nineteen: Forty One~

There seemed to be some resurrection imagery here, so, congratulations Christians. He did the rising. (I am not religious, can you tell)?

I love me a good curtain call. They're just so joyous.

So! Was this production worth two hours of me composing my thoughts on it into a Tumblr post approximately five people will read? You tell me. I certainly enjoyed my time with it, and I hope to do this with more productions. I'm looking forward to watching both the 2012 revival and broadway productions, the 2014 Swedish one, and the 2000 movie. Please let me know if you have any suggestions for others I might enjoy or that you would like to see a breakdown of.

#jesus christ superstar #jesus christ superstar 2018 #review #jcs 2018 #jcs #john legend #brandon victor dixon #alice cooper #nbc #sara bareilles #Youtube

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smileflowcrs · 7 months

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"when granted everything, you can't do anything."

NIKOLAI XIANG is participating as SATORU GOJU !

getting told from friends and fans alike that everyone's favourite special grade jujutsu sorcerer reminds them of him, nikolai felt like it only made sense to be gojo for halloween. similar in both appearance and personality, it was an easy costume to put together, and an even easier decision. in true fashion of his own character ( extra as ever ), he sports a dazzling pair of panthère de cartier earrings, as well as a limited edition tank cintrée watch from the same company, and his hair is dyed a light ash grey to make the character come to life. jujutsu kaisen is one of the few series that he has an attachment to; satoru gojo is a character that he deeply resonates with.

#anchortask04 #no 1 look up the prices for those jewellery pieces #he is Too expensive 😔

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ronearoundblindly · 2 years

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Autumn Is Healing (Oct 31st)

Flufftober Day Thirty-One--A Sweet Treat

drabble for steve rogers x super soldier!reader (see previous or series)

Warnings: they are sooooo awkward and soooo fluffy! Vague illusions to Hydra crap and insecure!reader for a bit. WC 2.5k (oops)

“OW!”

The shout echos in the hallway, rippling in tandem with thumping music from the party. This is already not going the way you planned.

“I think you broke my nose,” Peter Parker whines.

“I’m sorry,” you yell back, still alarmed with the hair on the back of your head standing up. It was a reflex, and your reflexes hurt people. “You scared me, and I just…”

Bucky examines Peter’s nose, but the kid fights him, tears streaming down his painted face. Your punch has smeared one black circle in the middle of eight, including Pete’s two very real, very watering eyes.

Steve rounds the corner with a wig and wide eyes. He heard. Of course, he heard.

“What’s going on?” He takes stunted strides forward in tight, brown leather pants. You notice his gaze slip over you before returning to Bucky.

“She hit me.” Peter points dramatically.

You, in turn, point to one of many fuzzy appendages dangling off the boy. “He put those things on me.”

“They’re legs, Aut!” Pete moves his hands to yell back. “I’m Shelob. It’s a spider. They have legs.”

Bucky shrugs at Steve. “He’s okay. He’s just an idiot.”

“Miste—Sargent Barnes, sir, I don’t wanna bleed on your cat.”

“She’s fine. As is your nose, Parker.” Bucky adjusts Alpine in his arms again, grumbling, “that’ll teach you not to sneak up on super soldiers though.”

Peter can’t help but wipe away more tears, further ruining his makeup, and you feel horrible.

“I’m so, so sorry. I didn’t hear you. I—I was distracted. I—“

Steve immediately looks at you. “Are you okay?”

“I didn’t mean to—he just caught me off guard—“

“What’s your on guard look like,” Peter screeches.

“You know darn well what—“ Steve stops himself, shoulders sagging like a disappointed parent. “Nevermind, let’s get you cleaned up.” He makes to grab a leg before checking to figure out which is the kid’s real arm.

“Nah, I got him. I’ll give Alpine a treat and some water while we fix ‘im up.” Bucky rubs between her ears while jutting his elbow past Peter. “Go on. Into the kitchen with ya.”

Steve leans over to you while they leave. “What is Buck supposed to be?” He stares at the back of his friend’s light grey, boxy suit with a mandarin collar and the slicked back hair. He no doubt saw the gnarly, fake scar across Bucky’s eye the instant he walked in, too.

“Yelena’s idea. Actually, it started with my costume—“ you gesture down and Steve’s eyes follow “—except I didn’t buy it as a costume. I just liked this dress and thought it looked nice.”

“That’s a dress?” He looks you up and down, cheeks flushed by the time his focus is back on your face. “I’m about to go get you a shirt again.”

You shove at his arm.“Not funny. It is, okay. It’s just—“

“Invisible?”

“—sheer. It’s crochet,” you defend. “It was a style back when I was a kid, and I’m finally old enough to…” you clear your throat “…at least I think I’m…”

You weren’t planning to wear nothing but a matching bra and hot pants under it. It was just something cool to layer over a tank and maxi skirt until Yelena practically tossed go-go boots at you and bought bright, colorful eyeshadow like it was her job.

“So you and Buck are…” Steve prods.

You’d forgotten what the question was. What his question was. You’ve got so many others of your own bouncing around your head and this big, styled hair now.

“He’s a character named Doctor Evil, and I’m Felicity Shagwell.”

Steve’s brows shoot up over a grimace.

“A secret agent from the sixties.” You hold up your hands, index fingers together like a gun, and pose.

He stands there completely baffled, an tinge of pink crawling up his skin, and you think he hates it.

“It’s a movie,” you continue, falling back into a nervous stance in your very tall boots. “Except, Bucky’s character is bald and he refused to wear the cap.”

“Smart man,” Steve grumbles, itching his hairline.

“Who are you? You look…uh…”

Steve’s wearing a long, blonde wig, and you might have guessed he was Thor, but somehow the flouncy cuffed shirt isn’t quite right. Too few buttons are done up through the big ruffles of his top, so a huge portion of his chest is bare. You have to cover your mouth to hide a wanton smile.

“Fabio,” he sighs.

Even though you don’t know who that is, you cackle at his embarrassment. He looks good but so very uncomfortable.

“In my defense, I didn’t know. Yelena only said she knew of a tall blond that I could dress as and that the costume would be simple.”

She wasn’t technically wrong; it’s just shoes, pants, a top, and something on his head—far less complicated than his tact suit, in fact—but she managed the polar opposite of Steve.

“The widow has a way, doesn’t she?”

“I’ve learned my lesson,” he mutters, nodding. “Wasn’t sure whether to be happy or offended when Sam recognized me right away.”

He’s managed to step just a little closer every time he talks, so Steve’s bare chest now seems within licking distance from your face.

You should not be thinking about that.

“Well, at least we both have fun sleeves,” you chirp instead, looking down at your hands.

It’s all you can say, even though there’s so much more you want to say. You promised yourself you’d tell Steve how you feel tonight, but now that he’s standing here, right there with very tight pants…

“Stupid,” you mumble aloud.

“Hey, no, no. The dress isn’t stupid. You don’t look bad. That’s not what I was—“ Steve gently grabs your shoulders and rubs over the yarn. “Just haven’t seen that picture, I guess.”

Monster Mash plays loud enough to filter into the hall while you two stand in silence, his warm hands and eyes on you.

This is it. Say it. Rip it off like a bandage and then run away if necessary, but you need to tell him—

“Punch?”

Damn. You deflate. “I said I was sorry. Pete came up behind me, and those things are all hairy.“

“No, I meant, do you want some punch? A drink,” Steve smiles and steps back, reaching to rub his neck and then having to fight with random locks of the wig. “Come on. Let’s go in.”

Scott Lang is refilling the punch bowl when you sidle on up to the refreshments table.

“Blood orange life-force with maraschino eyeballs and pineapple visera, anyone? Two pint max for the evening.”

“Very funny,” Steve shouts over the music. He scoops the concoction into small cups.

“Hey,” Scott wiggles in his enormous, saggy bumble bee costume, “it’s Cass—excuse me, Carrie’s favorite.” He points right past you. “You good, pumpkin?”

You turn around to see a girl covered in red from head to toe, and you…you freeze.

You stare at her mock-sullen face, the edges of liquid streaks crusting over, her mair matted with goo, and a memory strikes you so vividly, you’re lost for a moment.

A mission. A bad one. A messy one.

Everything is just red and slippery and quiet. Even in the din of the party, you are alone…if you don’t count the bodies in the room.

The next thing you see is Steve cupping your face in his hands and saying your name—your original name—and cycling through any other—Autumn, Rosie, Soldate—that might bring you back.

You’re outside in the crisp air.

How did you get outside?

“It’s okay. You’re okay. Can you hear me, sweetheart?”

You blink. He’s never called you that before. It makes you feel warm all over, but your fluttering joy is short-lived.

“What did I do?”

This is exactly the reason you shouldn’t tell him. Steve can’t feel anything but fear and pity for you if you’re still losing time.

“You just started shaking. You didn’t do anything to anyone. I thought…thought I was helping you.”

There’s the pity. Right on cue. He thinks you should be better than this by now. You agree, but it is what it is.

You push his arms away to step back and hug yourself though you aren’t cold. It’s not the outfit that’s making you feel exposed now.

“We should have thought to limit the costumes,” Steve finally says, staring at his laced boots. “Never meant to make you uncomfortable.”

Looking up at him, mesmerized by how simultaneously shy and huge he is before you, you don’t know what to do. You could get it over with, take the rejection with the hit of a flashback and hope the heartache is mitigated by its own predictability, or you could spare yourself, hold off until another bad day when you finally tell him. However, that’s not really an option because you know that if you stall any longer, you’ll never do it.

You settle for “you don’t make me uncomfortable, Steve.”

Instead of pointing out how you keep shifting from platformed-foot to platformed-foot or how obsessively you’re fiddling with the knit of your sleeve, he clears his throat.

“Good,” he says, standing tall again and flicking the long blond strands over his shoulder. “I want you to be comfortable around me…with me.”

A soft breeze wafts the hair and now you see the resemblance to the cover of a paperback on one of the shelves in the common room. It makes you smile with a little snort.

“What,” Steve asks curiously.

“I see what you did. I know your ploy.”

He smiles, too, but clearly not understanding what for.

“You’re trying to give the full effect of your costume—get that wind flowing for the dashing hero, huh?”

“Actually, I hate this thing and I promise to never complain about the cowl again,” Steve mutters, scratching at the back of his head, “but if you think it’s dashing—“

“No.”

He looks at you, huge and shy and utterly perfect even when ridiculous. He’s waiting for what you have to say.

“You are dashing.” Yikes, your stomach is churning. “Without the—“ you return to fiddling with your belled sleeve’s hem “—and I appreciate you, ya know, looking out for me, spending time with me—“

“I want to make you happy,” Steve repeats, but that’s not quite the same, is it?

Another flip of your gut has you rushing to get it over with, but you can’t quite pin down the words.

“—and not making fun of all this stuff I don’t know or can’t do. Thank you for being patient with me, and you’re more kind than you should be since I’m—“

“You’re wonderful,” he blurts as his feet hustle to close the short distance between you.

“No, but Steve, what I’m trying to say is—“

His hands cup your face again. “I’m crazy about you, Rosie.”

“—that I l…did you just? What? But I was…”

“Of course I’m around you as much as I can be. I don’t care what we do. I like you. I want to be with you.”

For so long, you thought that all those trips to the Botanical Gardens, all those shared meals and star gazing, all that reading aloud while you gardened was someone keeping tabs on you. You thought he was assigned to guard you because no one trusted you to be alone, but maybe…just maybe, you were wrong.

Your voice is small and breathy. “That’s what I was gonna say.”

Steve smirks and absently licks his lips. “Good. I’m glad you want me. All the time, I hope, because I know I need to be around you. It hurts when I’m not.”

His expression doesn’t falter as his thumbs roll over your cheeks gently.

Your hands raise up to cover his. “You did the Cap speech thing—“

“Right. Sorry.”

“—kinda stole my thunder,” you finish.

“Force of habit,” he shrugs, bright blue eyes intent and somehow not at all apologetic, his gaze flickering down to your mouth momentarily. “Say it anyway?”

It should be even easier since you know, since he’s punctured the balloon of fear. It should all flow right out.

But it doesn’t.

Your chest is tight like a vice, your mouth full of cotton. You’ve practiced (out loud and written) a few different ways to ask, but you can only think of the one that made you laugh, the one that seemed so silly you knew you’d never say it.

“You wanna go steady with me, Steve Rogers?”

He grins.

He may be close to a modern man, but Steve still likes the old ways better sometimes. This is one of those things that feels right for a centenarian and a woman over sixty—technically—but while he awaits the inevitable joke about maturity between the sexes from Natasha, Steve’s had dreams about this moment.

“I’d love nothing more, Rosie.”

His lips against yours are soft as satin, capturing short little kisses that make you mewl without realizing. As his hands drop from your face to your waist, skimming across your nearly-bare skin and tangling in the open knit to pull you close, you notice how rough the pads of his fingers are. He mumbles an apology when you both feel a thread snag, but you don’t care. Your hands accidentally yank at the long wig when you grip around his neck.

“Sorry,” you say, too.

Steve doesn’t break away; he pulls you closer, close enough for the naked expanse of his chest to press against the exposed bits of skin on your breasts. The sharp inhale this elicits only broadens how much of you touches him. You can feel an electric shiver devour your nerves all over. You moan and grip a little harder into the fake hair.

“Hate this thing,” he answers right into your skin before you open for him again. “Gonna throw it in the fire.”

You chuckle straight into his mouth.

Just when his tongue begins to dance with yours, there’s a flash but not of heat. Luckily, this distraction has you less apt to startle, so you don’t flinch.

“Shit,” you hear Yelena mutter from the other side of the window to your left, and footsteps follow to signal her retreat.

Steve retracts anyway, stepping back to wipe at his mouth and stare guiltily at the concrete sidewalk. He chuckles to himself.

“Been meaning to do that for a while.”

“Me, too.”

There’s a fiery, awkward moment of staring before he swallows thickly and rights his posture.

“Well, I suppose if she’s got photographic evidence that I had this thing on, I can just—“

Steve carefully pulls the wig and several pins from his head, leaving his normal hair as disheveled as removing the cowl—it’s glorious—then he leans back toward you.

With one of those rough fingertips, he tucks some of your big, goofy hair behind an ear and says, “now. I owe my girl a sweet treat, don’t I? Perhaps something not blood related.”

You’re not sure what on Earth could be more of a treat or sweeter than Steve Rogers, but he can try if he likes. You’ll be right here beside him, where he wants you, where you belong.

banner and challenge details @flufftober

And that's it for Flufftober, gang! Onwards.

[Day Thirty; Main Masterlist; Ko-Fi]

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