I think it's interesting to look at the 'Mr. Bridgerton' scene as a backdrop for the eventual mirror scene. Firstly, in the fact that I think we've kind of misinterpreted it.
So many people are of the mind that scene's purpose to 'drag' Colin, but really, that scene has 3 primary functions. The first is to inform Colin that Penelope is aware of what he said of her, thus opening the door to clearing the air between them and providing an avenue for which Colin can apologize. The second is to establish the ground that they are currently on: Penelope has given up on the dream of Colin Bridgerton, in particular the perfect prince that can do no wrong, and has made it clear to him. It also creates distance between them that they will bridge.
But the third, and to me the most wrapped up in the mirror and the inner workings of their relationship is that it reveals how Penelope feels about *herself*. It's not necessarily an echo of what the ton considers her as, after all, we have a lot of evidence indicating that, for all intents and purpose, people aren't *unkind* about her, but rather that they ignore her. Audience members recognize this as Penelope's own shyness being the cause, she is often sitting off on the sidelines or not really talking to much of anyone, in the books she's referred to as the 'one who doesn't speak', and her LW business takes her away from being a character in the action of the ton to a bystander, kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts that perpetuates itself. Pen felt unseen so she became LW to have some power, but then LW herself must remain unseen and Penelope continues to be by design of her own making.
No, I think what it really reveals is that Penelope has incredibly low personal self esteem. We as a fandom has lauded that scene as her dragging Colin, saying that he's cruel and calling him Mr. Bridgerton is absolutely meant to create distance between them, but I don't think she's dragging him.
Because the person she is *actually* dragging here. . .is herself. And it is a general theme in her life. In Whistledown. Aloud. Even with Marina, when she complimented her, she assumes that she's lying. When Edwina says she's wearing a pretty dress, Penelope puts herself down and doesn't believe her, even when the compliment is genuine. In truth, Portia is not seen as being particularly unkind to Penelope. At least, speaking as someone who's mum was *awful* about my size and weight and outfits, Portia is. . .overall rather mild. She's not KIND and loving, not by a long shot, but she's also not targeting Penelope only. She's plenty mean and critical to Prudence, too, even to the point where she foists her off to her own cousin as a pawn piece. Penelope has low self esteem because of a lot of reasons, she's bullied by Cressida (I think a lot of girls are, she was pretty mean even to Daphne in S1) and her family isn't very tender to her, and she's not being pursued at every turn, but part of it is also her own perpetuation.
Listen to what she says "Of course you would never court me" "I embarrass you" "I am the laughingstock of the the ton". She sees *herself* as an embarrassment. She puts *herself* down. Arguably, more so than the ton does. She's meaner to herself than anyone else is, aside from Cressida. And honestly? Looking at Colin's face there. . .he is HURT that she considers herself this way. That she's projecting that onto him. Yes, he's hurt that he hurt her, of course he is, he never wants to hurt her. And yes, he's ashamed that he said he wouldn't court her the way he did and that in doing so, he validated her fears that she is unloved and unwanted, but also because. . .she already feels that way about herself. She's felt that way for years. And it's painful to care about someone, to see them as wonderful, and realize. . .they don't feel the same about themselves at all. I don't think Colin is out here feeling so wounded over the fact that she called him cruel and won't refer to him by first name anymore, but that he's most hurt by what she says about herself.
Because he *doesn't* see her the way she accuses. She says she never expected him of all people to be so cruel, but he feels the same way. He never expected her to be so cruel to *herself*. He wants to go somewhere private, not because she is an embarrassment, but because he wants to have a private conversation with her. Maybe assure her. Maybe explain himself. Maybe hash it out. But god Luke Newton's acting. . .he is *aching* for her. And it feels like he's going to do those lessons not in atonement for what he said (thank god) but to genuinely help his friend who thinks badly of herself. To lift her up. It's not about him at all, not about earning forgiveness, but about elevating Penelope. And that's. . .fuck, I just find that's just so heart stoppingly beautiful.
You can see, in that scene, how much he cares about her. How deeply and genuinely he adores her as a person. And just how painful it is for him to know he has validated, whether on purpose or otherwise, how poorly she feels about herself. How low her self-confidence really is. She is giving him a glimpse into the cracks of her heart, and when he sees them, he wants to reach out with both hands and make it feel better. Make her feel better.
After she says 'even when I change my entire wardrobe', he looks so fucking crushed. So 'don't say that'. So 'you really believe that?'. So 'God, I hate that you think that way'.
Because regardless of it all, he does love her. It's not romantic yet. It's not sexual yet. But he genuinely, truly, from the bottom of his heart, thinks she's wonderful. That was evident even in the 'purpose' scene. Every time Penelope opens up and reveals a facet of herself, he likes it. He likes her barbs and her dreams, he likes talking to her. He likes her. And he feels awful that he hurt her. And he feels awful that she's hurting herself. He loves her. He wants her to love herself.
And that's where the mirror scene comes in. Because the mirror scene isn't about sex, not really. Not entirely, at least. The mirror scene is about *intimacy*. The mirror scene is about being seen. Not just her seeing him, or him seeing her, but for Penelope to see *herself*. In a way, through his eyes. Because hers are biased rather negatively toward herself, which is evidenced in the 'Goodnight Mr. Bridgerton' scene, and in so many little moments we've already gotten where she's literally looking down on herself, feeling down. She doesn't necessarily *like* what's in the mirror, but he does. Because he likes *her*. And he wants to show her that he does. Show her that he finds her beautiful and have her recognize that in herself.
The 'Goodnight Mr. Bridgerton' scene is about Penelope revealing how she sees herself. The mirror scene is about Colin showing her how *he* sees her. The Goodnight scene is about Penelope thinking she means nothing to him, that he thinks of her the way she thinks of herself, that this is how everyone thinks of her, and the mirror scene is a direct response to that: No, he doesn't. No, he doesn't think she's embarrassing. No, he doesn't think she's a laughingstock. No, he doesn't think she's unappealing. And he doesn't think she should, either.
And he's going to show her that. Not just tell her, but show her. The mirror scene is so often a focus on Penelope, so much of Polin is in Penelope's focus, but approaching it from Colin's perspective and his motivations is so fulfilling, too. It's a glimpse into them in conversation, and a demonstrate of how Colin loves her. How Colin loves in general, openly and earnestly and altruistically. How he encourages her to be braver and more confident in herself, bolstering her because he just likes her *that much*. How he finds the most fulfillment and satisfaction in caring aloud. The mirror scene is a demonstration of his heart in reflection.
When Luke Newton said the first word that came to mind with the word 'Mirror' was 'Exposed', he doesn't just mean physically. He means emotionally, too.
God this couple is so fucking good.
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Fellow Travelers Omegaverse AU (that no one asked for 😂)
On the outside Tim seems like the perfect image of a beta, he's hardworking, religious and plain. But he actually hiding a big secret, not only he's homosexual but he's also an omega both things that can get him fired from the state government in the 50s. His secret was uncovered by Hawk, a war hero alpha whom he met on election night.
More HC below cut! 👇
- Tim was using drug/scent blocker to hide his scent
- Hawk and Tim are a fated pair so the scent blocker doesn't work on Hawk (Thus, Tim's surprised Pikachu face)
- Hawk is arranged to marry Lucy, another Alpha from an influential family in DC
- Lucy became pregnant, and they parted ways in 1957, soon after Tim learns that he's also pregnant with Hawk but he doesn't want to ruin Hawk's family so he keeps quiet
- Tim named him Jackson, while Lucy named her baby girl Kimberly
- In the 1960s, Hawk and Lucy are going through a divorce. Hawk helps Tim and his child hide from the FBI.
- Hawk feels a strange familiarity with Jackson right away but he doesn't figure it out until later, while Jackson realises it within a few days he meets Hawk.
This Omegaverse AU will not leave my mind so I just drew it. I think we need more Omegaverse AU in the fandom, what does everyone say? 👀✨
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yes i did make a tumblr purely because i did not see enough discussion about the relationship that is fearnechetney yes i did do that. the tag is dry and it bothers me because it’s easily top three favorite dynamics of bells hells for me.
oh so you have a really gorgeous, mischievous, hundred year old six foot tall faun who likes to steal stuff that is so cool oh and what if i told you that the number one character that is making moves on her is a three foot tall four hundred year old werewolf gnome that makes wooden toys, and WHAT IF i told you that she is totally into it.
and maybe you’re like oh that’s interesting! okay so what, is it just a joke or something? well, yes at first it is! it’s a game of chicken, of flirting and poking fun at each other hahaha oh WAIT but then it’s MORE.
it’s chetney talking about how much joy it brings him to see people play with his creations, getting to see fearne play with multiple wooden toys he made (dorian’s ship, her wolf, her dolls). it’s chetney being the one to first find out fearne’s postcards aren’t real, and gently asking her questions about them instead of giving it to her bluntly, because it would have hurt her to know the truth. it’s chetney using CLOTH to make fearne little dolls for her to use to vent her frustration. chetney reminding fearne to ask morri about her parents, because it had been bothering her so much.
it’s fearne telling chetney the wooden wolf is maybe her favorite thing she owns, when she has so many things. it’s fearne trusting chetney with the one thing her parents left her, letting him hold it and inspect it. it’s fearne reassuring chetney after he wolfed out that they all had problems. it’s fearne gripping onto the net that chetney is trapped in, holding on and defending him from the hunter. and when she casts stoneskin, which only requires touch, she chooses to kiss him.
a lot of people have insinuated that fearnechetney is one sided, or just a joke, or anything but a romance, but i disagree. i think it started as a joke for sure, but as the episodes progress, it feels more and more like these two characters really care about each other, and understand each other. and the idea that the ship is one sided is so strange to me, because fearne has actively flirted back with chetney since the beginning. fearne got up at 3 AM to wait outside his door, fearne chose to kiss him to cast stoneshape, and fearne was the one that held onto the net and told the hunter to fuck off. i think writing off their dynamic/relationship as a joke just because you don’t ship it does both characters a big disservice when we talk about their growth and how they’ve come to care about one another.
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