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rawritzrobin · 2 years

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Glitter and Crimson Chapter 3

Title: Glitter and Crimson

Pairing: Jason Todd x Stella Covington (My OC)

Warnings: Cursing, past major character death, a little bit angsty, fluff.

Summary: Jason, Tim, and Dick arrive in Stella's universe. They are greeted by non other than Nightwing himself.

Sequel to Angel Amongst Bats

Masterlist

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

Chapter 3: Unexpected Guests

“Gross. What did I just step on.”

“Oh grow a pair. It’s just sewage.”

Dick made a gagging noise as he brought his foot to the wall to wipe the gunk off his shoes.

“I think the street is this way.” Tim said, casually rolling his wheelchair down the alley. He looked down at his watch. It was 4:30 am. He wondered if the time matched up here in this universe.

Once he made it out of the alley he studied his surroundings.

“I think we’re in New Town.”

Dick perked up at this comment. “Great! We’re close to the Manor.”

“Yeah but we’re also in Park Row.” Jason said grimly.

“Let’s get to a busier part of town. Maybe we can call a taxi.”

“Some of us aren’t in civies Drake. You want us to just hop in a cab in our suits and roll up at the manor?”

They began walking towards busier streets anyways. They were careful about it, sticking in the darker areas of the streets. Although they were in their hero gear, they didn’t want to run into any trouble.

Tim rolled his eyes. “Okay how about I take a taxi to the manor and then come back for the two of you?”

Out of nowhere, they heard a loud high pitched scream.

Instantly, Dick and Jason tensed up. They all turned their attention to where the source of the scream came from. Not too far from where they were standing, they could see a gang of men surrounding two women.

“Tim go back into the alley and stay hidden. Once we take care of those clowns we can all hop into a cab.”

Tim nodded and backed into the shadows.

“Ill take care of the clowns. You get the girls to safety.”

“Why can’t I take the clowns?”

Before Jason could argue, Dick had already shot his grappling hook onto the roof and was headed straight for the group of men. Jason groans in annoyance and runs full speed towards the group of men.

“Hey assholes. How about you pick on somebody your own size.”

The group of men looked up, drew their guns, and aimed them at Nightwing.

Jason took this chance to tackle one of the larger men in the group to the floor. What Jason didn’t notice, was the man standing on top of the building wasn’t his Nightwing. Dick stared at Jason wide eyed from his spot three buildings over. He had heard the voice on the rooftop and stopped in his tracks.

Jason heard Nightwing drop from the roof and heard a few gun shots go off. Jason pulls out his own gun and starts shooting. Luckily for them, he was not shooting to kill. Jason landed a few shots in their shoulders, and legs, making sure not to get anything vital. The girls the men were after ran away in terror.

Once all the men were on the ground, Jason put away his guns and walked up to Nightwing.

“Next time, I go after the scumbags and you save the girls.” He said placing his hand on Nightwing’s shoulder.

Nightwing grabbed his hand and pulled it behind his back, pushing Jason into a wall.

“Who are you?!?” Nightwing screamed.

“What the fuck are you doing?!” Jason screamed back.

“Who are you and what are you doing in Gotham?!” Nightwing said pushing Jason harder into the wall.

Jason was confused. What was Nightwing playing at?

While Nightwing had Jason pinned against a wall, Dick noticed one of the men getting up off the floor and pulling a gun from his pocket. Dick acted fast. He jumped off his spot on the roof, and pushed Nightwing and Jason out of the guys shot. Jason was able to break free in that instance.

The man pulled the trigger and Dick screamed out in pain.

Jason pulled out his gun, shot the gun out of the mans hand, and punched him in the face, knocking him out.

“Nightwing!” Jason screamed, concern lacing his words.

Nightwing stared at the man dressed exactly like him.

“Argh. I’m fine. Bastard got a lucky shot in.” Dick said, his arm over a fresh bullet wound in his shoulder. Jason bent over and examined his wound. Luckily the man was a bad shot.

“Are you guys okay?” Tim asked, rolling his wheelchair quietly towards the three men.

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

Nightwing took in the three men in front of him. Was he dreaming? But when he saw Tim roll up in his wheelchair, everything clicked.

“Dick? Jason? Tim? What are you guys doing in my world?”

The three men looked up. Tim smiled, guilt spreading over his face.

“Hi Nightwing. Uh we can explain.”

“Can we explain at home in the Batcave? This wound hurts like hell.” Dick said through gritted teeth.

Nightwing nods and presses a finger to him com. “Uh Alfred. Weird ask. Can you bring the town car to my location in Park Row?”

“Whats wrong Nightwing?” Batman asked through his com.

“We have some guests that need our help. Well, Alfred’s help.”

——————— “Be careful with that. Let me help you.” Jason said as he took the baguette from Stella.

“Please Jay. It’s just bread. I’m not going to pull anything carrying like 2 ounces of yeast.” She laughed at him and rubbed her stomach. She smiled at the man carefully balancing 5 bags of groceries in his arms. Latte and Snacks, a German Shepard Wolf Hybrid Jason picked up right after Stella disappeared for extra protection, launched out of the car when Stella opened the back seat doors. Snacks is at the front door in seconds, while Latte follows behind as fast as he can.

Jason was extra careful with Stella now that she was carrying his child. He wouldn’t let her hold anything or do anything that could remotely be dangerous. This included walking and feeding the dogs. ‘You could fall and hurt yourself’, he exclaimed loudly one day when she bent over to give Latte some water.

Whenever he was gone for patrol he would make sure all the doors were locked and secure before he left. Their security system was updated after that particular incident. If that failed, well, that’s why Snacks was there. He was currently standing at three feet tall at the shoulder, weighing in at 145 pounds. Jason made sure he was specially trained to only attack when Stella was in danger. During one particular night, Jason forgot about Snacks and he nearly tore Roy’s leg off. Luckily Stella was there to stop him. Snacks had a soft spot for her. Jason swore he got even more protective of her now that she was carrying a baby. Sometimes he would growl at Jason if he got too handsy with her. Jason had done too good of a job training him.

Stella had to admit, it was nice having Jason waiting on her hand and foot. He spent most of his free time at home now, not that he didn’t before, he just took less other worldly missions and usually didn’t take part in the more dangerous villain gatherings. He even cut time off nightly patrols. No one had a problem with that, they even encouraged it.

Stella smiled at the man in front of her. “Are you sure you don’t need any help?”

“I’m fine.” He said through gritted teeth.

Stella closed the trunk with her keys and followed Jason to the Manor doors. Latte and Snacks wagged their tails as they came up towards the stairs. Surprisingly, Alfred was not there to greet them. He usually always knew when guests arrived and was always there to greet them as they entered. They stood in front of the door and stared at each other.

“Do we knock?” Jason asks.

Stella shrugs and taps the door three times loud enough for anyone paying attention to hear. They wait a moment and someone finally opens the door.

“Stella.”

“Hey Dami.” Stella says with a smile. Damian nods and steps aside. Snacks and Latte push past him and Snacks immediately jumps at Titus. The two start to wrestle and play with each other, while Latte barks at them.

Stella steps through next and Jason carefully maneuvers himself and the groceries through the door. It takes all the self control inside Damian not to trip Jason as he walks in precariously balancing all the groceries. He didn’t want Alfred to have to clean up the mess.

“Where’s Alfred?”

“He’s a little caught up with our guests right now.”

“Guests?” Stella asks tilting her head. Snacks starts to growl at something in the living room. Stella walks in his direction and she notices a familiar wheelchair peaking out from the side of the doorway. She takes a step closer to get a better look.

“Tim?” Stella exclaims.

Tim rolls into full view. As soon as he notices her he smiles brightly.

“Hi Stella. It’s been a while.”

A/N: I’m sorry for the random fandom hopping these past few days. I am all over the place.

#Glitter and Crimson #Red Hood #Jason Todd #Jason Todd x OC #Nightwing #Batman #Sequel #Tim Drake #DCU #DC #AU #Batfamily #Batboys #Jason Todd Fanfiction #red hood x oc

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letsmakearuntonight · 9 days

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#glitter and crimson #all time low #lyrics #song #music #love

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somethingsgottasaveyou · 8 months

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glitter & crimson acoustic >>>

#not a day goes by where this version doesn't give me chills #all time low #glitter and crimson

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fentanylaced · 7 months

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Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly (2003)

#fatal frame #fatal frame 2 #fatal frame crimson butterfly #glitter gif #glitter graphics #glitter edit #glittercore #red glitter #black glitter #web graphics #horror games #ps2 horror #survival horror #horror edit #game cover #tw eyestrain #my edit #fentanylaced

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amphibiahawks321 · 3 months

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https://www.tumblr.com/amphibiahawks321/740136156574941184/some-cookie-run-kingdom-x-mreader-cookie-in-a?source=share

Could you do more of these when you get a chance? I'm loving them!

✨[Some Cookie Run : Kingdom x M!Reader Cookie in a nutshell]✨ pt2

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biillys · 1 year

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BILLY WEEK → DAY ONE

i'm flesh and bone i'm a rolling fucking stone and the experts say i'm delirious

give me therapy i'm a walking travesty

all time low; therapy

#i dont understand COLOUR or PALETTES or PROMPTS so please. i am sorry #i am so fucking sorry #idk what this is but like. i guess if u squint its Palette Inspired.....maybe #again. i am SORRY #anyway. efforts were made! emotions were had! i'm emo!#i know this songs been done before a few times but ive always wanted to take a crack at it so. here we ARE #billy and max would be atl girlies u know this we know this #billy and max in the crowd of an atl concert listening to the nightly therapy speech.......#also the glitter and crimson speech........ gonna stop myself before i fucking lose it #anyway i hope this is okay and i hope at least one person doesn't think it's Rough jkahdbjkwa #ALSO the way mr horsegirl gaskarth himself talks about this song and how his feelings have changed over the years re: therapy #like........... Billy.........................#god.......#billyhargroveedit #harringroveweek #billyweek23 #m #gifs

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en8y · 1 month

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[IMAGE ID: eighteen rectangular banners, all of which have blinking outlines. the nine on the left have flashing names and wiggling icons, while the nine on the right don’t. the first two have a warm brown background and a dark brown border; they both have the words “caramel arrow” in the middle, in dark brown and tan. the third and fourth have a pastel yellow background and a dark green border; they both have the words “clotted cream” in the middle, in warm yellow and off-white. the fifth and sixth have a light brown background and a dark brown border; they both have the words “almond cookie” in the middle, in dark brown and tan. the seventh and eighth have a pastel yellow background and a warm yellow border; they both have the words “pastry cookie” in the middle, in light purple and dark purple. the seventeenth and eighteenth have a pastel blue background and a warm purple border; they both have the words “cream unicorn” in the middle, in pastel yellow and medium pink. END ID.]

a set of epic and super epic cookie blinkies! free to use; please link back/credit if you can!

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yoan-le-grall · 9 months

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#gif #anime #saint seiya #anime 80s #destruction #cataclysm #glitter #building #legend of crimson youth

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starkidmunson · 3 months

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glitter & crimson

“Marry.”

“What?”

“Marry. He’s hot, I’m not gonna kill him.”

“Eddie, we’re not playing FMK; you’re supposed to be telling me his name.”

“Oh. That’s…. Joe Jonas.”

“…he’s literally from Hawkins. And he’s holding a hockey stick.”

“Nobody from Hawkins is that hot, man, no way.”

~~~

Gareth posts the clip to his personal TikTok. Before he can get around to reposting it on Corroded Coffin’s band account, it has more than 100k views. Things only spiral from there, because once the band shares it, the video goes more viral and ends up on the screens of the right people.

chiblkhwks: harrington94 is social media challenged, but we’re going to make sure he sees this. Will keep you posted.

The comment is immediately overshadowed by a busy day of PR. A photoshoot to an interview to a radio show to the green room at the Fillmore in Boston, before an intimate pre-album release show for members of their fan club. Eddie has completely forgotten about the video entirely, but Gareth’s phone pings with a text notification.

“A response has been issued!” He declares to the room, still grinning down at the screen of his phone.

The rest of the band shares a collectively confused look, all seeming pleased to find they’re not alone in whatever they’ve missed.

“What?” Jeff asks for the group.

In lieu of an explanation, Gareth just flips the phone in his hand around to show a TikTok, stitched with the clip they’d made earlier that morning.

~~~

“Marry. He’s hot, I’m not gonna kill him.”

#Stitch

“Is… is that supposed to be a compliment?” Steve asks, making a pinched face as he laces up his skates.

“You watched the whole video. He compared you to Joe Jonas.” The girl behind the camera responds, but he levels her with an unimpressed look. She doesn’t respond, and after a beat, he sighs.

“Yeah, alright, I guess Joe Jonas is hot. I’ll take the compliment.” He huffs, standing to his feet and moving from the bench he’d been suiting up on toward the ice. The girl follows him, gliding toward the net once they're in the rink, never falling out of pace with him.

“Do you know who it is talking in the video?” She presses, and Steve looks unimpressed again.

“You mean the other hot guy?” He asks with a grin, then nods. “That was Eddie. I’m surprised you don’t know him, the Party listens to Corroded Coffin all the time.”

The video loops back to the stitched clip from Gareth’s initial TikTok then. Everyone in the room processes what just unfolded.

“The Party? Did… did Steve Harrington just make a reference to DnD? Or is that some sports thing I dont understand?” Jeff asks.

Freak raises his hand, indicating he’s next to speak. “Not only that, but his nerdy DnD friends listen to us all the time?”

“Did King Steve call Joe Jonas hot?” Eddie asks, visibly still trying to connect the wires in his brain that fried at Steve’s agreement. “Did he call me hot?”

All three turn toward Eddie, whose face is still reflecting the long form math equation his brain is trying to work out, and Jeff sighs.

“Well, boys. I think we’ve officially lost him.” He says, bowing his head. Freak and Gareth join him solemnly, making Eddie huff and cross his arms over his chest.

“You’re all so dramatic.”

“Gee, I wonder who encouraged us to be this way,” Freak exaggerates through a grin, before shoving a guitar into Eddie’s chest, just in time for Paige to open the door and summon them.

“We can have a meltdown over Harrington after the gig,” Gareth promises with a pat to Eddie’s back as everyone moves around him, exiting the green room and heading for the stage.

~~~

Riding his post-show high, Eddie makes a bold move in the CC band TikTok, commenting under the video Steve had stitched.

corrodedcoff!n: we’ll be in chicago 1/26 if harrington94 and ‘the party’ are free 🎫

He only gets about 20 minutes of peace before Gareth is jumping around, proclaiming himself the greatest wingman in history.

“It’s an offer for free concert tickets made over social media, and he hasn’t even answered, Gare Bear.” Eddie tries to get him to relax, but he, too, is eager to see how the other reacts to the offer.

He wakes up the next morning to the answer he’d been waiting on, and his stomach flips as he reads it over.

harrington94: only if you guys come to the home game 1/27 🏒

__________

Steve doesn’t even bat an eye when Max shoves her way into the locker room, b-lining straight for him.

“Can I help you?” He asks without looking up, unhooking the padding from his calf and letting it drop to the ground in front of his locker.

“Are you using TikTok to publicly flirt with Eddie Munson?” She asks, voice quieter than he’d typically expect from her, but he just scoffs.

“I’m just being friendly! You’re the one who started this in the first place! What, you didn’t expect me to log on and check if they’d responded?” He asks in response, freeing his foot from the skate, before placing a cover over the blade and letting the boot drop into the lower shelf beside his locker.

“I’m just confused because you’ve been super weird about coming out, and now you’re out here hitting on a rockstar all over social media, that’s all.” Max says, and Steve freezes for a moment.

“Do you…” he trails off, before closing his eyes and rubbing a thumb into his temple. “You really think I just accidentally came out?”

“You called Joe Jonas and Eddie Munson hot, encouraged this rockstar to come to your game when he’s in town and also accepted tickets to see him perform, Steve.” Max was monotone, and held her hands up defensively when he groaned. “I’m not starting anything, I’m just saying that this could get blown out of proportion now.”

They discuss a little further, deciding neither of them will publicly acknowledge anything that’s been posted to the account for now, until they actually come up with a plan.

Once he’s in his car heading home, Steve calls Robin.

“Dingus,” she greets, as always, and he lets out a grumble. “Uh oh. What happened?”

“I think I accidentally came out on the internet, and it’s Eddie Munson’s fault.” He’s met with several seconds of silence as he starts his car on the path to him and Robin’s shared apartment.

“Eddie, the drug dealer from high school?” Robin eventually asks, confused, and Steve groans again.

“Yeah. He uh, also is in a band?” He supplies, and Robin’s quiet for a moment as she processes. Then, he hears the tapping of a keyboard. “What are you doing?”

“Looking Eddie up, obviously.” Steve can practically see her eye roll, even though they’re not FaceTiming. “You’re nothing if not consistent, I guess. Doe-eyed curly brunet.”

Steve scoffs. “You say as though you’re not the one currently waking up beside Nance every morning.”

He’s met again by a short silence, before Robin lets out a little puff of air, in a small laugh. “Thank you again for being so cool about that, by the way.” She says, before he hears clicking on her end. “Apparently, Eddie is out as bi. Corroded Coffin does a charity show for the Trevor Project every year, and he’s been to a lot of Pride events.”

Steve’s stomach twists with each new bit of information she provides, because a part of him wants to be that out, wants to be like Robin or apparently Eddie, freely sharing that part of themselves with the world and having no one give a shit. But that’s not how it works on so many levels for Steve. Beside the shit he’d have to deal with on the ice from certain other players, he had no idea how it would impact the team overall. There’s no way to gauge how fans would react, when there’s never been an openly gay player in the NHL. And that didn't even begin to touch on how his parents would react.

“Hey,” Robin breaks him out of his spiral and he realizes he’s been chewing a hole into his cheek. “I can hear how loud you’re thinking right now. Do you need me to come home?” She asks, gently, and he sighs.

“Please.” He mumbles after a long pause, and is grateful when he hears the jingle of car keys from the other end of the phone.

~~~

Robin scrolls through article after article once she gets to their place, pulling Steve onto the sofa with her and laying his head in her lap. Her fingers twist through his hair, doing her best to keep him calm as she reads up on the situation playing out to try and help gauge how big of a hole he’s dug himself this time.

“I don’t think there’s really anyone who thinks you were flirting with him. Not seriously, at least.” She tries to assure him, but he’d already seen the twitter posts to contradict that before she came over. He sighs and rolls onto his back, so he’s looking up at her, and shrugs.

“I kind of don’t think there’s any avoiding it, at this point.” He mumbles. “I’m not… I’m not ready to come out, not like this. Not on this scale. I think the only thing I can do is carry on and hope it doesn’t get turned into any bigger of a deal.”

Robin hums down at him, and continues to brush his hair back out of his eyes. “Okay. So you don’t come out yet. But don’t overcompensate for it, okay?” He scrunches his face up at her, and she types something into her phone before turning it back into his face. He immediately pales, met with a photo of him out with Heidi last year. With a black eye on full display, he looks miserable behind a fake smile.

“Low blow,” he grumbles, pushing himself away from Robin to sit up beside her, and she raises her eyebrow at him, still holding the photo pointed in his direction.

“‘Maybe they won’t notice or ask why my literal teammate punched me in the face at practice if I take a fucking supermodel out to dinner.’” Robin’s imitation is a little too good, a sure sign of too much time spent together.

“Hey, it worked, didn’t it!” He asks, taking the phone off of her and closing out of the image before locking it. He drops it back into her lap with a sigh. “I just don’t know how many times I can keep getting away with hiding it.”

“Well, it helps that Billy got traded out to LA. He would be insufferable about this, and would absolutely make everything 10 times worse.” Robin muses.

Steve sighs and hesitates for a moment before dropping his head back into her lap, curling into her. “I just want it to be on my terms, when I’m ready.”

“We’ll figure it out, and it’ll all be okay, no matter what. Okay?” She assures quietly, leaning down to press a kiss to his cheek.

His phone dings with a new notification; Max texted him a screenshot from TikTok.

corrodedcoff!n: you’ve got yourself a deal 🤝🏻

#hockey player!steve #rockstar!eddie #Eddie Munson #Steve Harrington #Steddie #should I keep going?#lmk if anyone is interested in part 2 #anti billy hargrove #hockey au #Steddie hockey au #Steddie rockstar au #starkidmunson writes #glitter & crimson

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queen-rainy-love · 4 months

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Cookie of the Year Round 3

Here's round three! (This was supposed to be out yesterday but life.) And I will be adding a couple pictures here and there. Okay! Let's go!

Snapdragon vs Stardust (Winner: Snapdragon)

Cotton vs Moonlight (Winner: Moonlight)

Oyster vs Frost Queen (Winner: Frost Queen)

Kouign-Amann vs Black Pearl (Winner: Black Pearl)

Cream Puff vs Milky Way (Winner: Cream Puff)

Dark Cacao vs Sea Fairy (Winner:Dark Cacao)

Latte vs Shining Glitter (Winner: Shining Glitter)

Frilled Jellyfish vs Créme Brûlée (Winner: Frilled Jellyfish)

Capsaicin vs Clotted Cream (Winner: Capsaicin)

Parfait vs Prune Juice (Winner: Prune Juice)

Hollyberry vs Linzer (Winner: Hollyberry)

Mozzarella vs Sherbet (Winner: Mozzarella)

Pure Vanilla vs Caramel Arrow (Winner: Pure Vanilla)

Pitaya Dragon vs Golden Cheese (Winner: Golden Cheese)

Fettuccine vs Icicle Yeti (Winner: Icicle Yeti)

Burnt Cheese vs Crimson Coral (Winner: Burnt Cheese)

I wouldn't be surprised if Golden Cheese finish in the top three. She deserves it after the three years of waiting.

Let's see what next time will look like!

#cookie run kingdom #cookie of the year #burnt cheese cookie #crimson coral cookie #golden cheese cookie #pitaya dragon cookie #pure vanilla cookie #caramel arrow cookie #capsaicin cookie #clotted cream cookie #latte cookie #shining glitter cookie #oyster cookie #frost queen cookie #snapdragon cookie #stardust cookie #I'm only tagging the ones in the pictures

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the-crimson-flower · 6 months

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#diabolik lovers #ayato sakamaki #picmix #gif #glitter #bats #halloween #sakamaki #halloween was like #more than a week ago #late but meh #with love the-crimson-flower

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lemon-jades-world · 1 year

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🩸┊color of the day: crimson ˎˊ˗

X X X

#cotd #color of the day #crimson #paint mixing #makeup #lipstick #pouring #food #stirring #glitter #stim

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jackinalex · 6 months

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Would love to hear your thoughts on Glitter & Crimson. It’s about Jalex isn’t it

I really gotta stop mentioning things I'm afraid people will latch onto. Sigh. But tbh, I've been wanting an excuse to use my English teacher knowledge to analyze the shit out of that song in particular. If you took an AP English class, you know that it's 90% bullshitting you're way through claims and that is absolutely why I am who I am. This is so fucking long, dude.

I spent an embarrassing amount of time on this. Like I literally printed out the lyrics and annotated it like I was in college. But this is my shit, y’all. I love to analyze things. So, there’s a few different ways that I went about this: what the literary devices mean vs. what Alex (the liar) says the song means vs. the Jalex conspiracy theories that keep me in Delululand. Please scroll on if you don’t want to read about me being delusional about Jalex. Also, the very, very last of this is where we get into the absolute most delusional theory I have, so scroll to the bottom if that’s all you want.

Let’s start off with what Alex has said about the song so that it can provide us at least a little context. Alex told Apple Music: “To me, this song is about two characters who are deeply in love, whose love is not allowed to be that by [a certain] society. They’re gay, and they don’t feel like they’re accepted in their own skin for who they are, or for who they want to love. It’s a cry out to seize that power back and saying, ‘No. You don’t get to dictate how we live our lives.’ Obviously, I can’t speak to that, being a straight guy, but I know a lot of people who live that experience every day. And it was something that felt very meaningful that I wanted to address for them because they can’t [in this way]. They aren’t songwriters.” This is less helpful context-wise, but he also told Kerrang: “This was dramatic to record (laughs). It was one of the last songs we wrote – in fact, it might have been the very last one. The record was almost done, but I felt like there were a couple of missing pieces. We actually went out to Big Bear [Lake, in California] – me, Jack, Zakk and Andrew. We rented a cabin and locked ourselves away for a minute. As we recorded Glitter & Crimson, it was one of those moments where we went, ‘Oh, thank god! We’ve got the thing that we were missing!’ I think the performance in the bridge is me almost knowing that it was the last take. It’s like when the director is about to call, ‘That’s a wrap!’ and everybody is like, ‘Holy shit!’ You feel that swell of relief and appreciation for getting through it.”

Most importantly, during the Wake Up, Sunshine Twitch Listening Party, Alex literally says he wrote G & C about Jack (starts at 1:36:26). Idc if he's joking, bro. It's good enough for me.

I guess the best way to go about the analysis is just to go lyric-by-lyric. Then, I’ll go a bit deeper into more of the bigger symbols. I want to preface this by saying that Alex probably did not mean for a lot of these things to mean what I’ve interpreted them to mean. And when I say I interpreted them, I mainly mean that I took what was given to me and recalled the connotations that these words carry (that was so wordy; idek if that made sense).

It’s a typical story, three in the morning

You’re holding my head.

To me, this seems fairly literal. Sitting with another person at 3 in the morning with them holding your head is really intimate. It could be after sex or just an intense conversation. I think that this is one of the lines that points toward this song being about a gay couple the most. I know he doesn’t specify what gender the couple is, but since Alex simply cannot write a song without inserting himself, I’m guessing they’re dudes. The holding my head kind of gives off that vibe to me, too. Anyone can hold anyone’s head, of course, but something about it just gives me the image of a guy holding a guy’s head. No matter how you spin it (head on the shoulder, head on the lap, etc.) it is super intimate, which means that this is a situation between two people who are very close. It’s vulnerable, too. There’s also the idiom “to hold something over someone’s head,” but I do think that the meaning here is literal. The idiom doesn’t make sense here. We gotta remember that Jack and Alex (and Zakk and Andrew) wrote this song together at a lake house. Every time I hear the opening lines, I think about Jack and Alex being together at 3 am in the lake house in one of those bedrooms, Jack holding Alex’s head. 🥺

Caught in the tension, silent confessions

At the foot of your bed

The tension line could be in reference to the relationship, which we know is not accepted by those around them. It could also just be another reference to sex lol. I’m leaning more toward the former, though. I think the silent confessions depend on where the couple is at in their relationship. If they’re established, I think it’s probably a confession of love (like, we’ve been seeing each other, but I’m actually in love with you). But if it’s in the very early stages, the confession could be the confession of feelings. These two people are really close, so if they’re not yet a couple, then they’re definitely best friends. “At the foot of your bed” makes me think about sex again lol (specifically head because…Yeah).

Glitter and crimson, fighting the friction

What a perfect mess

Glitter and crimson are massive metaphors/symbols in this song, so I’m going to hold off on going too far into that just yet. For now, we can discuss how the two are contrasting. Glitter is pretty and can symbolize the beautiful things in life (it can symbolize a lot of other things, too, which we will get to, promise). Crimson, on the other hand, often represents blood and violence (and a lot of other things, too), so this is one of the first instances of conflicting ideas and feelings. The two ideas come together despite being opposites. “Fighting the friction” could be another reference to tension, whether it’s conflict brought about because of societal pressure, or sexual tension. It could even be both.

While I know that Alex definitely wasn’t trying to reference pride or the history of it, the mention of glitter was an excellent way of doing so. Glitter has a rich history with the LGBT community. It is tied with queer nightlife and the performance arts of drag, burlesque, and cabaret. In the past, it was a way to signal queer identity to other queer people, a practice that some people use to this day. It was also used as a kind of beauty and/or gender defiance when men were ostracized for presenting femininely and women were ostracized for presenting masculinely (Dorwart). Overall, glitter can also symbolize fakeness, materialism, greed, treasure, and excitement. In the instance of the lyric, I tend to think that the glitter is representative of the beauty of the situation, but also having to hide the relationship (the “characters” are being fake by hiding their relationship.

While crimson can symbolize blood, violence, anger, warning or revenge (which is what I believe its main purpose is with the lyric), it can also represent vigor, passion, love, and courage. I definitely think that love and passion are an important part of this, too. Every facet of this relationship is intense, whether it be a negative or positive thing. This is also hedging into Delululand, but crimson (it’s called red in the flag, but the shade is definitely crimson) was one of the colors of the original pride flag, representing life. I’m certain that Alex was not thinking of the pride flag when he wrote this song, but there are so many references that he did accidentally that this song could be a gay anthem tbh.

With the “perfect mess” line, Alex has given us an oxymoron and another example of contrast. The two words are technically opposites, but when they come together, they create a new meaning. In the narrative, this refers to the relationship feeling so good and right to the guys, but not allowed by society, those around them, and even maybe themselves. If we look at it through a Jalex lens, the “mess” could easily be the conflict between them having feelings for one another and the pressures of the band and their friendship (a very classic fanfic trope for a good reason). There’s a lot to lose if things don’t work out, so there’s a very real question of whether pursuing a relationship is worth it. As we’ll get to later, it definitely seems like it is to them.

I wonder if you feel kinda like I feel

Temporary

These lines feel fairly literal to me. To feel temporary means to feel impermanent or uncertain. I think that both could be prevalent here. I also think that those feelings pertain to both the relationship and just their lives in general. It feels like the relationship can’t last because that’s what society tells them, and the uncertainty comes from not knowing if they even want it to (because they too are influenced by society). Alex has always written a lot about existentialism and these two lines strongly evoke that concept (which, to me, is more proof of the song being written from his perspective vs some “character” but we’ll get into more instances of that later).

Fixed on a moment just out of focus

And we can’t quite see

Being us ain’t good for us

I put these three lines together because they finish out the first verse and because there is significant enjambment, too. The first line is literal in the sense that the two characters (air quotes) in the song are trying to imagine what a good life together could be like, but they’re struggling too because that future seems so impossible (as we see with the second line). However, “and we can’t quite see” also brings into the second idea here. They can’t see the future and it also seems like being themselves and together isn’t good for them (probably because it’s dangerous for a lot of queer people in the world, even still). That leads us into the chorus, which is where we get to the cry out of the chorus.

And I don’t wanna wait till the sunshine fades

And bury our love in a shallow grave

Sunshinesymbolized happiness and life, so by the sunshine fading, that has to do with the beauty and goodness of the relationship wearing off (whether that be due to societal pushback or just conflict between the two guys). Sunshine is also what the yellow represented on the original pride flag. Again, I do not think that Alex ever intentionally referenced the flag, but…Anyway, it could also just be a little wink to the album itself “Wake Up Sunshine” or the song on the album. That song is also about existentialism to a certain extent, though it’s directed toward someone else and not about the narrator’s issues with it. Meanwhile, typically, shallow graves are done hastily by criminals (not always, but that’s what it is most associated with) because they don’t take much time or effort to dig. Alex (and Jack; Jesus, I keep forgetting he helped write this song) probably chose to pair these two lines because they almost have the same amount of syllables (11 vs. 10), but it’s also possible that he chose this specific phrase because being gay was a criminal offense for years. A shallow grave also indicates urgency and haphazardness, which would mean that the burial would probably be unplanned and quick. The narrator (Alex) is clear about not wanting that.

Cause the world could be cruel to us or

We could live for the dangerous so

Let’s start, let’s start a riot

Just like a few lines ago, I included these three together for the enjambment. The first line is straightforward, supporting the idea of society being unaccepting to the couple. When we put it with the second line, it’s reiterating that though the world is cruel, they could live for it instead of being afraid of it. When we pair the second line with the third, the narrator is saying that he wants to stop being afraid and instead embrace and fight for what he and his lover have. It is impossible for me to ignore the term “riot” being used here in a queer context because the first pride was a riot! I’m sure most of you know about the Stonewall riots, but if not, here’s a bit of background: there was a small dive bar in NYC called the Stonewall Inn, which LGBT+ frequented. In an article entitled "The First Pride Was a Riot: The Origins of Pride Month” for American University Washington DC, Patty Housman writes:

At the time there existed outdated “masquerade” or “cross-dressing” laws that suggested a “man” or a “woman” must be wearing a certain number of clothing items that matched the gender on their state-issued ID. The police took advantage of these laws to raid drinking establishments and arrest transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. Just after midnight on June 28, 1969, the police raided the Stonewall Inn like they had many times before. Only, this time, something unusual happened: Stonewall patrons fought back.

There are conflicting stories about what actually happened, but essentially queer people fought back against the police brutality that had been plaguing them for quite some time. They were targeted, attacked, humiliated, arrested, and even worse, and they were fed up. Since this event took place in June, we now celebrate in America every June. And again, I’m sure that Alex and Jack didn’t intend to reference Stonewall, but I’m deep into queer theory now, so there’s no going back. Sometimes meanings can appear in works without the original composer even realizing it. Long story short, the riot is a way to take power back, whether it be the metaphorical riot in this song or the proverbial riots at Stonewall. And since this is supposed to be a queer song that references a riot, Stonewall must be discussed.

Hard to sit still when your head’s on fire

Oh, oh yeah

The saying “my head’s on fire” means that one is stressed or overwhelmed. However, “your head’s on fire” indicates that someone is lying. Therefore, I think this line has a dual meaning. I think that it references both here because a) the narrator is frustrated with having to hide his love from society, but it can also indicate that they’ve been lying (i.e, hiding their relationship). “Hard to sit still” calls back to the riot idea. It can be difficult to sit idly by when you know for sure that something is wrong. The narrator is tired of sitting around and hiding their relationship.

‘Cause I’m a supernova

And you’re my four leaf clover

These two symbols are the most important (besides glitter and crimson) in the entire song. This is entirely metaphor; there’s nothing literal in these two lines. The narrator compares himself to a supernova, which is the greatest explosion humans have ever seen. They are the “extremely bright and super powerful explosion of a star.” Supernovas signify destruction and renewal, so the narrator is seeking a new beginning of some sort. On the other hand, four-leaf clover have always symbolized luck, but they can also represent protection and the uncommon. Traditionally, each leaf of a four leaf clover signified something different: hope, faith, luck, and charity. Therefore, the narrator sees his lover as somewhat of a good luck charm. He’s different from others, but he’s everything to the narrator.

This is where I get the most Delulu, so just keep that in mind as you’re reading. I’m now going to argue that the supernova represents Alex and the four-leaf clover represents Jack. I’m not pulling this completely out of my ass, I promise. Alex is obsessed with space. He brings it up every chance he gets and if you listened to Full Frontal, you know how annoying it could get lmao. Point is, the man loves some fucking space, okay? To Alex, Jack has always represented goodness. Nothing sums it up better than his birthday post for him here. He literally sees him as a “bright light in this weird world” and loves him “times a million.” But there’s been countless instances of Alex singing Jack’s praises (and even more of Jack singing Alex’s). This last tour, Jack’s been spending every moment trying to make Alex happy and keep him laughing, and ya know, Alex can lie all he wants and say that “Kill Ur Vibe” isn’t about Jack, but it absolutely fucking is, even if he doesn’t know that. Alex sees himself as a supernova and Jack as a four-leaf clover. Jack is not only a rarity, but also just a constant sign of goodness in Alex’s life and that, my dudes, is fucking beautiful.

There is also a specific species of clover called crimson clover. I doubt that Alex thought about this while they were writing this song, but when I started working on this analysis, it occurred to me that I’d heard the two phrases before in a Lana del Rey song. And if you guys know Jack, he loves Lana. In “Venice Bitch,” she has a line that says, “Me myself, I like diamonds//My baby crimson and clover.” This line is a reference to the song “Crimson & Clover” by Tommy James and the Shondells. It’s a song about the potential for loving someone and what a relationship could be. I don’t know if there was any thinking about this song during the writing of G & C, but it’s interesting how the two songs are essentially about the same thing (just in different contexts). G & C is about the potential for loving someone and what a relationship could be, but through a more cynical lens (at first). The use of the ampersand in both songs is curious, too. I don’t doubt that Alex is aware of this song, but I don’t know that it had much of an influence on it. I do love the idea that Alex wrote about crimson and clover in the same song for Jack (who loves Lana) or even that it was Jack’s idea in the first place. It’s just cute.

Crimson clover doesn’t have a ton of ideas associated it with it, but some people tend to see it as a sign of growth, resilience, love, and affection. The latter two are probably related to it being red and I would assume that the Tommy James and the Shondells song helped with that connotation, too. It’s the growth and resilience that really intrigues me, though. They grow throughout the winter, which is fascinating and definitely lets that resilience ring true. If we’re to link those concepts to the song, the narrator believes that their relationship is resilient and growing, maturing in a way that it necessary for them to thrive. Winter can symbolize hard, rough times, and so the narrator views their relationship as troubled (whether it be because of the way they’re viewed or because of their own issues), but resilient and able to survive the difficult times.

Time to stop being insane about the last two lines and get into the second verse and bridge.

Heavy as ever, light as a feather

I’m caught in between

“Light as a feather” is a common idiom (and synonym) for having very light weight and/or being light and free. Here, the narrator is contrasting the feeling of being free and light because they’re so happy with their lover with the fact that he also feels “heavy,” which means hard to endure or emotionally taxing. When used literally, heavy refers to something being hard to carry because of its weight. So while the narrator is happy, he is also sad and probably anxious and unsure because of the oppression he and his lover are facing. The second line is telling us that verbatim; he is torn between focusing on being happy with his lover and the negative feelings associated with their sexualities and relationship.

Hard to stay focused, process the progress

How long can we be

Happy if happy ain’t meant for us

This calls back to the lines before it. Again, it’s hard for the narrator to focus on how happy the relationship makes him because of how bad society and oppression makes him feel. “Process the progress” probably means that it’s difficult for him to focus on how much their relationship has grown because of how anxious he also is. Progress is also a term used frequently with LGBTQ+ issues. We use “progress” to describe how things have improved for queer folks in the last few decades. I think the narrator could be referring to that, as well, that it’s hard to look at how much progress has been made as a society when things are still bad (especially for trans folks). The second and third lines see the narrator expressing his anxiety again. Yes, he’s very happy with his lover, but society is constantly telling him that they won’t work out, and he’s worried that some part of that is right.

Cause being less ain’t good enough

But being us feels good to us

To be less means not as good or esteemed as someone else. In this sense, I take it as the narrator saying that he has been suppressing part of himself (his sexuality and relationship), since to suppress part of yourself makes you “less,” in a way (I hope that makes sense). Essentially, if you’re not presenting all of yourself, part of you is missing, hence “less.” The narrator says that being less isn’t good enough, which I take as meaning that not being their full, authentic selves is not enough, and by enough, he means he doesn’t want to settle for hiding their relationship in the way that they have been. And besides, with the line, “being us feels good to us,” the narrator is expressing that being with his lover feels right despite all of the anxiety he feels.

I’m skipping the chorus, obviously, so let’s get into the bridge.

No compromise, no second best

There’s no stopping now, this weight on my chest

This is the beginning of the cry out in which the couple takes their power back. No compromise means no more suppressing themselves, which reminds me a lot of the old idea of gay people being allowed to exist and be with their partners at home and in LGBT+ spaces, but nowhere else. The narrator is saying that he’s not doing this anymore. This could be what “second best” is, whereas the best situation would be where they are accepted and allowed to be themselves everywhere, though I do wonder if second best could also refer to the concept of “playing straight,” which is where queer people date only people of the opposite sex in order to fit societal norms. People have historically done this to stay alive. It’s not as common anymore, but it’s definitely something that still happens. This could be a reference to the men dating (or even marrying) women in order to hide their sexuality and not ruffle society’s feathers.

The narrator is putting an end to whatever the compromise and second best are, though. He’s going to be open and honest with himself, his lover, and the world, and that’s what the “no stopping now” refers to. He’s done pretending and making himself lesser to make other people comfortable. “The weight on my chest” is the huge uncertainty and anxiety of his relationship. He’s getting rid of it. It could also be anticipation, though, which would be the anticipation of taking his power back. It’s an important, hard thing that is going to change the course of his life forever.

I won’t settle down, won’t settle for less

I won’t settle for less, I won’t settle for less

I think this is pretty literal. The narrator is not going to sit down and be quiet (and thus, hide his authentic self), and he’s not going to settle for anything but being his authentic self. I do think that the “won’t settle down” could be read as an allusion to Stonewall, since the queer folks that protested those three days were constantly told to just calm down for many years before they finally fought back. “Settle down” could also be a reference to playing straight since settling down often entails getting married to someone of the opposite sex and having children (*I look into the camera like I’m on a mockumentary*). This could also mean that the narrator is not going to be with a woman to appease society. They utilize parallelism (and thusly, repetition) here. Repetition is almost always utilized to emphasize a feeling or idea, create rhythm, and/or develop a sense of urgency. I definitely believe that the use of repetition here is used for emphasis. Not settling is an important theme of the song. Parallelism is also used to create emphasis, but also to create flow between lines, which is always necessary for songs. I’m sure there’s probably more literary devices in the song, but I doubt you guys want me to go too much farther into that lol.

To sum up, the song is rich with metaphors and allusions (even if Alex wasn’t aware of the latter when they were writing it). I think it has the potential of being a great queer anthem. I don’t know that it will ever become that, but all of these possible references to pride and Stonewall are so fucking good (even if it’s just from happenstance). This may make me totally fucking insane, but I can’t ignore the fact that Alex wrote this song with Jack at a cabin in Big Bear, the album was released, and then like eight months later, Alex and Lisa were split up. Then, like another month passed, and Alex was living with Jack. I’m aware that I’m delusional, but this isn’t even me speculating; I’m just reporting events in the order they happened. Take that as you will.

Works Cited

Dorwart, Laura. “Inside the Fascinating History of Glitter and Gay Culture.” Byrdie, 15 February 2022. https://www.byrdie.com/history-of-glitter.

Patty Housman. “The First Pride Was a Riot: The Origins of Pride Month.” American University Washington D.C.,10 June 2022.

“What Is a Supernova?” NASA, NASA, 23 July 2021, spaceplace.nasa.gov/supernova/en/.

#please forgive me for taking forever #also this is not proofread bc like #i'm lazy #anyway? i hope y'all can get some kind of enjoyment out of this?#kalina answers #jalex #jack #alex #glitter & crimson #wake up sunshine

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