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robinofgothamcity · 3 years

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♡ prompt: "don’t leave me. don’t you dare leave me.”

♡ pairing: jason todd (redhood) x fem reader

♡ lyric inspiration: "everybody loves somebody sometime. everybody falls in love somehow."

♡ note: not checked for grammar or spelling mistakes / i wanna note that this doesn’t follow TITANS Jason Todd. you can use whatever version you want. the reason i say this is because the lack of gifs for Jason that Tumblr provides is w a c k.

“don’t bullshit me Jason, I really don’t need you coming up with any kind of excuse on the spot,” you told Jason. he could tell you were being completely serious. you weren’t feigning anything as you looked him straight in the eyes, “i’m done with the excuse and i’m personally done with waiting for someone who doesn’t make time for me.”

Jason tried grabbing your hand but you immediately took it back. not caring if you were making a scene or not.

Dick and Tim were in the unfortunate situation of being present for you argument and although they felt kind of awkward being around, they low key wanted to hear the rest of the argument. they felt awful for you but Jason had it coming.

“don’t leave me. don’t you dare leave me!” Jason screamed. you shook your head, “you did this to yourself, Todd. you don’t get to play the victim in this situation,” you stated before grabbing your bag and exiting Jason’s apartment.

Tim as well as Dick stood in awkward silence. not knowing whether to comfort Jason or leave. this was the first time in what felt like ages that they have seen Jason so vulnerable.

you were Jason’s version of normal. although you weren’t a hero or any kind of sidekick, you did help out any of the teams that needed an extra hand at their respective lairs. you had a flair for working computers and knew your way around them when Tim wasn’t available.

a few weeks had passed since your ‘break up’ with Jason. you had helped out the Bat’s a few times within the weeks but you made sure to keep your distance with Jason. whenever he appeared, you went to another section of the Batcave or moved completely to the second level so you wouldn’t even have to run into him.

today, however; you were hanging around Tim’s team. you were in the mood to bug Connor as you were helping Jon with some of his schoolwork and decided to stick around. you weren’t particularly close with Connor but he did have a soft side with you so you messing with him didn’t necessarily upset him.

“Tim or Connor, how much would it cost for you to bring me food from the chicken place around the corner?” you asked the two boys. “Connor could probably take you. I don’t think Tim’s moving from his computer anytime soon but I don’t mind piggybacking you there,” Wally said from the other side of the table.

you huffed, smacking Tim on the side of the head and getting up.

“well if that’s the case, come on West, you’re taking me,” you said grabbing his shoulder. Tim from the corner of his eye examined your interaction with Wally. you were getting a bit closer to the redhead and he found it a bit weird considering you weren’t close with him while you were with Jason, “hold on,” Wally smirked as he hauled you over onto his back.

you laughed, holding on tightly as he zoomed out the door. Tim knew it wasn’t any of his business to get involved in relationship drama. he wanted nothing to do with it personally but seeing you close with Wally rubbed him the wrong way for some reason. maybe it was the idea that he still had hope for you to that made him text his adoptive brother.

“your girl is going out with Wally. they’re going to be at the restaurant by my place if you’re wondering.”

Jason had been moping around when he wasn’t going on any missions so when he saw Tim texting him, he found it weird within itself. he hardly messaged any of his brothers so receiving one from Tim no less was pretty odd.

his heart dropped a bit reading the text. he had no idea you were even close with the speedster so to be going on a date with him put him on edge. Jason immediately ran out of his door and booking it on his motorcycle to the restaurant.

had any police been on the streets, Jason would’ve received copious amount of tickets by the way he was speeding but he could have cared less. he arrived to the restaurant in due time. he saw you sitting down, eating with Wally as the two of you were basically scarfing down the food in front of you.

Jason felt a pang to his chest as he watched you talk with Wally like nothing was wrong. he had never seen you so care free before. even when the two of you went out for a date or something, he felt so on edge thinking that something could happen to you.

Jason didn’t want to sound more problematic than he already was but he felt a feeling of possessiveness hit him seeing you with Wally. like he didn’t want you going out with anyone that wasn’t him. his eye twitched every time Wally made you laugh or whenever you reached over to smack or touch him.

eventually, he saw you and Wally getting up from the table. he quickly hopped on his motorcycle and drove back to his place, more upset than he thought he would be.

he shot Tim a text back, thanking him for letting him knowing.

Jason had heard a few days ago that you were planning on going out with a few of your friends with a club in Gotham and that happened to be today. he knew that following you to whatever club you were going too would be wrong but with the way he was feeling, he didn’t care. he was coming along..even if he had to hide in the crowd.

he inched his way back to your place a few hours later to see you already getting dressed. you were wearing one of Jason’s favorite outfits and that alone made him want to go over to you and remind you that you were his. (WHY DID THIS GO SO YANDERE ALL OF A SUDDEN PFT).

the funny thing in all of this was that he saw you slip in some crocs into your bag. he knew you hated wearing shoes let alone heels so to see you probably change into them through the night made him chuckle.

once you got into your car and made your way into Gotham to the club you were meeting your friends at, he walked in through the side and stood in the corner as he watched you get ID’d and walk inside. all of you were sitting at a table and ordering your first round of drinks. you downed a shot of whatever you had ordered before grabbing your friends hand taking her out into the dance floor.

Jason walked in a bit closer but making sure to stay hidden. he saw you just dancing with your friend and couldn’t help but gulp. the way you were dancing and grinding up against your friend would have had him dragging you to the nearest bathroom for getting him riled up. (insert gif above)

he remained watching you until he noticed a guy approaching you. the guy was on the taller side, greasy hair flopping to the side of his face, and his clothes looked like he hadn’t changed out of it in days.

“really, I’m fine. I don’t dance with people I don’t know,” you stated as you friend pulling you away. the guy quickly grabbed your other hand, “c’mon, one dance?” you shook him off, stating once again that you weren’t interested before walking back to the table.

Jason, although the interaction was minor, was seeing red. he waited until the guy left to catch him in the single bathroom, leaving him bloody and bruised. he looked down to the guy before chuckling, “you should really learn what no means,” he spat before leaving.

by the time he entered the floor again, you were already back on the floor dancing. you were dancing with another friend as you sipped on a drink and minded your business. it took a few internal screams to remind himself that he couldn’t just walk over to you and take you by the hand but almost after that, he heard commotion coming from the other end of the bar.

closer to where you were.

Jason walked slowly to make sure shit didn’t get out of hand. you didn’t even realize that an entire fight had broken out by you as you were too busy singing to the song that was playing. it wasn’t until you heard gunshots that made you flinch and realize that shit was going down.

you grabbed your friend, screaming at them to forget their things as you took everything the Bats had told you about situations like this and basically run for your life. you ran to the nearest exit before hearing gunshots going off again. this time, you tried ducking but it was far too late. you felt an impact against your left shoulder blade.

the gunshot immediately made you fall onto the ground as Jason practically sprinted to you. you weren’t even conscious enough to realize what was going on anymore but as you tried to get up to run once again, you felt yourself get pistol whipped on the nose as you fell again.

Jason finally made it towards you after he signaled the Outlaws and even the some of the Bats to make their way to the club. you were trying your best to keep your eyes open but they were slowly starting to fall shut.

“hey! hey! don’t fall asleep on me,” you heard Jason’s panicked voice. you laughed, leaning against him, “of course you would’ve followed me here but Jay, I’m kinda tired,” you whispered as your eyes fell completely shut. Jason shook you again as he tried to make sure you stayed awake, “don’t leave me. don’t you fucking leave me!” he screamed.

it took a few minutes but eventually, the paramedics came in and got you onto a stretcher as Tim, Roy, and for some odd reason, Damian walked inside. they saw your state of being and looked to Jason.

“a fight broke out and one of them shot off with gunshots. she got shot on the shoulder and hit with the gun to the nose,” he explained as he watched the ambulance put you inside. he knew...he hoped that you would make it out okay because he had some business to take care of before he went to visit you in the hospital, “I’ll be back,” he growled, getting up and running out the door.

Roy, Tim, and Damian looked at each other realizing what he was about to do. they quickly followed him out the door but by the time they reached him, he was already running down the darkened ally, trailing what they assumed were the people that hurt you.

Jason managed to tackle them to the floor, getting the ring leader as he stepped on the guys throat. he made sure not to make him pass out as he wanted the guy to feel his punches. Jason was big. size comparison to Superman so the punches to the face felt unearthly.

“JASON STOP!” Tim screamed as Roy grabbed his best friend along with Damian, “if you get caught up in all this, you won’t be able to visit her. stop!” he yelled as he asked Roy to keep him calm, “go to the hospital. Roy can even take you but Robin and I have this,” he continued.

he wanted to argue but for the first time in his life, Jason actually listened. he knew that he would get nothing by spending the night in a jail cell. Roy let him go when he realized that Jason was calm enough and let him to his motorcycle to follow you to the hospital.

Jason got to the hospital about a half hour later. he immediately ran to the front desk, screaming your name to the receptionist who flinched back in fear. she walked him slowly to the room where you were at and informed him that you weren’t severely injured and most of the damage was on the nose. the blood you had lost was already getting pumped back into you.

he saw you asleep on the bed as he pulled the chair up to your bed. Jason had never saw you this way before and frankly, it scared the shit outta him. he never wanted to see you this way again.

without realizing, Jason had fallen asleep on the chair with his hand holding yours. it wasn’t until you actually woke up to see Jason asleep that you slowly shook him awake. Jason jumped up in fright and when he saw that you were awake, a sigh of relief was released.

“how are you feeling? do you need anything?” he asked as you shook your head, “why did I know you would follow me to the club tonight?” you said with a tired smile. Jason shrugged, “you know how hard it is for me to quit you,” he confessed.

while you did want to keep up your anger towards him, you weren’t even in the mood to start arguing with him. “Jason, seriously?” you said, not knowing what to say. Jason checked the door to make sure it was closed before basically hovering over you, “I can’t lose you. I just can’t. you’re the only thing that makes me feel normal. I know I wasn’t prioritizing you but I just can’t see you with anyone else. seeing you with Wally earlier almost made me want to kill him. I swear, I’ll start being better. I’ll make sure to make time for you but please, don’t leave me,” he yelled but softly.

you had never heard Jason so vulnerable before, “wait, how did you know I was with Wally earlier?” you asked. Jason smiled sheepishly, knowing he was about to rat Tim out, “Tim might’ve told me,” he said. you squinted your eyes, “that asshole,” you said.

“Jay, it’s hard to believe that when this isn’t the first time its happened. I just, I can’t be put in third or fourth place anymore. I see the way Dick and his girlfriend are and he still makes time for her and I always question why can’t you do the same!” you replied. Jason nodded understandingly, “I know but please, please trust me. one more chance and if I screw this up, you have every right to leave me for good,” he said almost immediately.

you sighed, thinking for a few moments, “fine. one more chance and if you ruin it, it’s over. I won’t care what you say or do to try and get me back,” you threatened as Jason sighed in relief.

he bent down for a kiss that had went longer than usual. it was getting steamier by the second but before you could continue, you heard a knock on the door indicating that the nurse or a doctor realized you were awake, “later, I promise. you’ll have enough time for this when you nurse me back to health,” you whispered making Jason laugh, “good because the way you were dancing with your friend might’ve turned me on more than I want to admit,” he said.

you rolled your eyes as Jason sat back down on the chair as the doctor walked in.

#DC comics #DC imagines #dc imagine #dc #dc x reader #jason todd #jason todd imagine #jason todd x y/n #jason todd x reader #red hood #red hood imagine #red hood x reader #red hood x y/n

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yyxgin · 3 years

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oh so thé barman is coming on a double date w the other barman 😐 to our workplace (i think). the girls are pretty can’t lie,, bruv i better be working that day,, one of them (barman, i think we know it’s not our beloved electric scooter rider) pisses me off so much. the other is a little fucking sweetheart (not when he’s staring at ass, he pointed one out to me today, although it is funny seeing how he is an ass man over boobs which i didn’t think he would be).

side note: i got to ride his scooter‼️‼️ n then i was scared by my coworker calling my name out of her car window and fell off but it’s okay. i was zooming 💨

i once dated a guy who crashed his dad’s car (without telling him he was going out to drive it) and did dr*gs on another occasion while i was ft-ing him so. p sure you’re doing better than me.

my problem now is, i’m TIRED of being alone and not constantly having someone to talk to/ask to fo out with bc i feel like i’m awful to my friends bc of my shitty rota meaning if i have a day off of work like, we have to go out on that day or nothing. or, i go out before the dinner shift but have to rush back home to run to the bus stop (aggressively power walk) to get the bus in time. it’s like, i don’t wanna have to do that. plus ew sweaty n all that don’t need that before i’ve even started work yuck 🤮 rounding back to me being lonely and praying for a pretty boy,, the new kp at work is hella cute. i went to starbucks on my break and got him coffee today but he left before i got back, like 😐 getting stern words tomorrow. i’ll probably be upset (but not surprised) if he tells me he has a girlfriend. he’s sweet, only a year older than me (i like my men younger than me, if my track record has anything to do w it… OKAY BUT NOT PEDO YOUNG LIKE MY BOYFRIENDS HAVE ALL BEEN A FRE MONTHS YOUNGER THAN ME but still in the same academic year) i also have a thing for maknaes bc they bias wrecker me 😐 im awfully down bad for jungkook and hwasa and i.m. and (i’m scared of jeongin from skz tbh bc he’s too close to me in age) and bambam (ik hes not the maknae but he almost is) so on and so forth

um😩 idk what else to chat to you about but it is almost 3am so i think a goodnight is in order, my love ~ 🌻

awwh im sorry to hear that 😩😩 has the double date already happen ?? do we have any info on that ?? spill the tea bestie

SJSKS WHY IS THAT ME. i am so clumsy,, i rode my best friend's neighbour's like,, electric scooter thing and almost drove into a car and died. these things are scarily fast and i dont like it.

i- yes. you know what, maybe my ex boyfriend wasn't as bad. sure, he was into my best friend, sure, he did tell me i look ugly while wearing a ponytail, but at least he didnt take drugs <3

i totally get that :// it sucks w your work and everything, but nobody can really blame u for wanting to hang out w them on your days off.

DNSKSK how did it go w the second guy ?? so rude of him to leave before getting the coffee smh 🙄🙄 at least u had 2 then <3 also i get your obsession w younger men, i had like 3 crushes on boys one year younger than me 😩 miss girl was very desperate as u can see.

i was lowkey shocked to find out hwasa is the maknae. i totally thought it was wheein. also jungkook is and will forever be my first ever ult i can never get over that boy. jeongin is my other ult too so 🤩🤩 he is too powerful. also he's close in age too but i mean he's still older than me by 2 years so its all good. i get weirded out by groups where there are people younger than me. like enhypen and p1harmony lowkey scare me, why are there babies. literal babies. they should be at school and not getting overworked-

YOU BETTER START GOING TO SLEEP SOONER ❗❗‼

#💌ask #🌻 anon

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angevon · 6 years

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Souyo Nov Writing Challenge (prompt list)

Day 11: Confession

Links

AO3

ffnet

Yosuke has something important to say, if he can manage to say it.

Yosuke was lying on his back on his bed in the dark. It wasn't an unusual occurrence these days. Third year was proving to be as stressful as everyone had warned him. With all the homework he had, his dad had even reduced his hours at Junes.

But schoolwork wasn't what was was causing him to stare at the ceiling with his mind reeling and his heart racing. It was something else entirely. And the closer he came to the conclusion, the more he broke out into a cold sweat.

He'd honestly been trying to ignore it, but after today... he couldn't.

Before he could stop himself, he called his best friend, Souji. "Y-yo, partner..." he said in a shaky voice when the phone picked up.

"Yosuke? Is everything all right?"

Yosuke wanted to laugh. Trust Souji to zoom in on his hesitation. "No," he answered with full honesty. "I really need to talk to you."

"...Yeah?"

Yosuke rubbed his face. "I don't even know where to start."

"Start with what's first on your mind," Souji suggested.

He took a deep breath, trying to psych himself up. "So, Chie invited me to a basketball game today. That kid that sits behind her was like 'Oh is it a date?' but no, I definitely don't feel that way about her. I mean, could you imagine that? Me and Chie?"

"Not really," Souji said.

"A-anyway, I guess she'd planned to go with Ichijo, but something happened and he'd bailed. No one else was interested, so she'd turned to me." Yosuke began to warm up to the topic. It was easy to keep going now that he'd started. "So we go to the game. It's some college game all the way over in Okina. They're professionals. They even have cheerleaders."

"Cheerleaders, huh? Sounds like you had fun."

"Well, the cheerleaders are supposed to be distracting, right? To make the other team fail their plays, I guess. I mean, they were there and all, but... I don't know, I just kept noticing how on both teams, those basketball players had some really short shorts on. That was way more distracting."

"The better to move around in, I suppose," Souji said.

"Never really noticed a guy's calves before," Yosuke admitted. "Actually, that's a lie, I noticed back when—but a-anyway," he rallied on, "You ever notice how tall basketball players are? And sometimes, when they throw the ball, they're so graceful about it. It was almost like a dance. Ichijo really missed out."

"What about Chie?" Souji asked.

Yosuke blinked. "What about her?" He paused. "Oh yeah, she was there too. I don't know. I don't think she noticed. Oh, actually, after the game... her scooter broke down, so she had to ride with me on mine."

"Oh," Souji said in a knowing tone of voice. "So it finally happened."

Yosuke sighed. "Yeah, yeah. The up close and personal plan. It wasn't that great."

"Why not?" Souji asked. "Because it was Chie?"

"Maybe," Yosuke said. "But I think... it'd be the same with any girl. Do you remember when we first got our scooters? And then mine got crushed and I had to ride with Kanji? I hated it at the time. But looking back, it wasn't so bad."

"Kanji is a good guy," Souji said.

"He really is." Yosuke sighed. "He was really nice about it, you know? He made me hold on tight so I wouldn't fall off when we headed down a hill. I thought for sure he'd get tired with my extra weight, but he wasn't fazed at all."

"You don't weigh much," Souji teased.

"Come on, I don't weigh nothing!" Yosuke shook his head instinctively, though he knew Souji couldn't see it. "But yeah, Kanji is strong, but you know what the kicker is? He's so soft. He likes kids and makes all those cute toys for them. And even though Teddie is all 'don't touch my fur!' he doesn't hold it against him. Doesn't that make him pretty amazing?"

"He is a good guy," Souji repeated. "But why are you saying this now?"

"I'm trying to tell you!" Yosuke said, beginning to sweat. "I've been noticing it more now. When guys are, you know. Being strong. But also soft." He waited for an answer, but when there was nothing, he filled the silence. "W-when they take time to style their hair. When they smile with their teeth and you can really feel it. When their clothes fit just right. I'm noticing all these things. And I think... I always did, but I just ignored it."

"Go on," Souji said softly.

"Because... guys aren't supposed to notice these things about other guys, right? Girls can compliment girls and it doesn't mean anything, but for us, it's... weird." Yosuke sighed. "Now I see why Kanji hated those words. 'Weird' and 'strange' and... 'different.' But if it's weird, why does it feel like it happens naturally?"

"Yosuke..."

After that, Yosuke waited with bated breath for Souji's response. He'd all but spelled out what he'd meant with all this. Though, on second thought, maybe it wasn't so clear. It had all made sense in his head, but he could see now that he'd been rambling. If Souji didn't get it, then he just had to say it.

"S-Souji," Yosuke said. His throat closed up then, forcing him to choke out his next words. "I... I'm gay."

There. He'd said it. It was out there, and he couldn't take it back.

Silence followed. Souji was still there, Yosuke could hear him breathing. But he wasn't saying a word. Yosuke's pride in having finally said it rapidly evaporated. Why the silence? Of all his friends, Souji was the only one he trusted with this. The one he felt needed to know, even if it would affect their friendship. Would it affect their friendship? The cold sweat returned. What if—

"Thank you for telling me," Souji said. There was a short pause. "I know it isn't easy..." Another pause. "I'm sorry. That silence went on a little too long, didn't it?"

"N-No, I'm fully aware that I need to learn patience—wait," Yosuke said, "What do you mean you know?"

"Because... I do," Souji said simply.

"You... so you..."

"Yeah."

"Huh." Slowly, Yosuke began to smile. If Souji was gay too, then... it was all okay. He relaxed as a profound sense of relief flooded through him.

Short-lived relief, anyway. Because if Souji was gay too, then... then every stupid thing... everything he did and said that hurt Kanji, every thoughtless comment...

It hurt him too...

"I'm sorry," Yosuke said.

"I'm sorry, too."

"Huh? What are you sorry for? I—"

"I could have told you," Souji said. "Helped you."

"Souji..."

Another silence followed. Yosuke felt tears in his eyes. He managed to blink them away.

"I was such a dumbass..." he said.

"Don't say that."

"Well, don't say you're sorry either!" Yosuke said. "You can still help me. You can always help me."

"I think," Souji said slowly, "we can help each other."

Yosuke took a moment to process that. "Y-yeah... we can. Promise?"

"I promise," said Souji. "Now..."

He trailed off. "What?" Yosuke prompted.

"Tell me more about those basketball shorts?"

#souyo #souyowrimo 2017 #slash bl #my fic #this one is important to me for Reasons #hehe #i couldnt resist a cheesy ending though #also sorry chie im sure you hated riding with yosuke hahahha #i should write a chie centric fic about her side of this story hahaha

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hypnoticharlequin · 7 years

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Hypnotist Posters (Again!)

I’ve done this once before, but there are so many interesting old hypnotist posters around I couldn’t resist showing off some more I’ve come across.

I covered the Flints in my previous post but I wanted to show this one off. I actually unironically love this poster as it reminds me of Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s works due to the floral pattern and the lush skin tone used on Miss Flint.

What I have found out since the last installment was that Miss Flint was heavily advertised as a solo performer, getting her own posters and other things. According to one source I found, she was famed for her dress collection and women would attend her shows, just to see what dress she was wearing that night!

Also, she had the cutest nickname a hypnotist has ever had. Seriously, “The Little Hypnotic Subeam” is just fantastic and would actually make her stand out amongst her contemporaries who went for much more formal and authoritarian titles.

I think this poster is from the 1890s. At least that is the date I see linked to this poster when it is mentioned and the art style sort of fits that date.

Obviously, the first thing that draws your attention is Kennedy and his pose. Where a lot of hypnotists went for a more intimidating or solid pose, Kennedy seems rather fancy-free.

Also, it’s nice to see the moon from Majora’s Mask getting work. This was one of it’s earlier appearances while it was still young and fresh faced. The people on the moon are pretty cute, I like the woman in the middle, I mean it takes a lot of effort to be having so much fun you almost fall off the moon. This poster seems to fit in with a tradition that saw magicians hanging out with various magical beings on their posters. Seriously, the sheer number of posters that feature magicians just chilling with Satan is pretty mind blowing.

If I could sum this poster up in one sound, it would be never ending screams.

Now, I can’t find much about “The Amazing Ormond” but I do wonder if this is Ormond McGill, better known as Dr. Zomb. He wrote the book “Encyclopedia of Genuine Stage Hypnotism” which is still considered to be the bible of stage hypnosis.

This poster is honestly terrifying. I’m not sure if it’s partially due to the reproduction, old paper stock with a black background is notorious for its inability to scan well. But the black eyes mixed with the uplighting give this a seriously creepy vibe, Ormond’s face having an almost uncanny valley look to it.

But, I can’t deny it worked, I’m not able to go through my folder of hypnosis posters without this one catching my eye. In fact, one of the main reasons I am writing this post is so I can delete this image from my hard drive.

I don’t know why, but this poster reminds me of a perfume ad. I’m not sure if it’s the color palette or Miss Brandon’s slightly wistful look.

Joan Brandon is pretty famous in magic circles for being the first televised female magician. She was famous for combing her magic with orchestra music (played by her own orchestra) and was very well known for her signature trick, a magic cocktail bar (a variation on the Think-A-Drink trick.)

In hypnosis circles, she is most known for her books, The Art of Hypnotism, Successful Hypnotism, The Science of Self-Hypnosis and Help Yourself Thru Hypnotism and Self Hypnosis which are all still good reads even to this day.

The Art Of Hypnotism is also known for its rather amusing photographic illustrations. It’s easy to find online but quite often turns up for a few dollars on eBay or in second-hand bookstores and I thoroughly recommend it.

This poster is one of those I see around a lot and only recently bothered to look into the history of. It’s from 1966 and I always thought it was from later on. This poster looks just so very 60s I really had it down as a later parody of the style as opposed to actually just being of that era.

It actually took me a long time to find out even the most basic things about this guy but Merlin (real name William Joseph Rawle) was from Australia and was Australia’s oldest performing hypnotist.

I want to zoom into the text under Merlin for a moment, as it is rather glorious.

It really is a throwback to older posters to have a description of the acts performed front and center, but compared to some of the older hypnosis posters (which promised utterly insane things) this seems rather restrained. In fact, these are now considered stock hypnotist tricks.

What makes me chuckle is the onion eating trick. It’s done all the time but it always interests me to see which fruit is used as the replacement taste. In the UK it always tended to be an apple, and I’ve seen orange used a bit in the US. I wonder if you could do a chart of “onion taste replacement fruits” arranged by geography.

Being the oldest performing hypnotist, Merlin has several other posters over the years.

This one focuses more on his mind reading as opposed to his hypnotism, but I utterly love the design. It has this almost 3D effect which makes it look like the poster has a few actual physical layers, but I do suspect it might be the issue with scanning black ink rearing it’s ugly head once more.

While the last one was pretty joyous this one is practically metal, with its skulls and very industrial images in the crystal ball.

This poster seems very old school compared to the other two, mostly due to how text-heavy it is. But unlike some posters, the claims all seem pretty normal by today’s standards. The only one that sticks out to me is the one about treating children for nervous complaints while they sleep. All the methods I have seen for this involve just standing and whispering to your child while they sleep because nothing helps the nerves more than an adult looming over your bed whispering at you in the deepest, darkest night.

Virgil and Julie were a big magic act in the 1950s and 1960s taking shows containing a few hundred illusions around the world.

Hypnotism played a part but it was nowhere near the focus of the show, but this poster is something to behold, it really is a mish-mash of everything that was hip in the era. The B-movie Esq UFO and the almost eerie-cutie spacewoman flying around it.

Julie’s costume is very similar to that of the Jeannie from the Tv series I Dream Of Jeannie which debuted in 1965 and went a long way to putting the “harem” costume we know today into the public consciousness.

I want to end on this poster which became quite the rabbit hole for me and I’m frankly not 100% sure I’m correct on all of it.

I had a real good laugh when I saw the Reveer because he looks like every stereotype of a magician and hero cowboy got thrown into a blender. The turban and the Lone Ranger mask just look so silly together.

I also found it funny that his name was close to that of Reveen, the hypnotist famous for his performances in Canada who would have been performing at around this time.

Then I got to digging and found I could find hardly anything on Reveer, apart from some poster seller listing him as Tony Cole, a magician who apparently worked sharpshooting into his magic act which does explain the Lone Ranger mask.

Tony Cole also apparently had posters of his own, but all I can find of them is the following:

And no, Tumblr isn’t going weird, that is the only image I can find of one of his posters. I did, however, turn up a news article on him from 1977 from “The Independent Record from Helena, Montana” advertising a show he was going to do.

As you can see the resembelence is there so I presume this is the same guy.

As an aside, you might realize this picture is totally and utterly unreadable. The place I found it had the plain text of the article, unfortunately, it was made by OCR copying the document and the results are an utter mess.

Some highlights include:

To be able to make someone do what another person desires carl brln^a gleam .into the eyes of ambitious people.

This impression oF hypnotism's power is one of the mast fallacious and dangerous, according to Cole, who when pressed will admit bis lull name is Tony Colo, a hypnotist, magician ami entertainer.

In between all the weird OCR errors, we can see a recurring theme that Tony Cole doesn’t like to use his first name, which means he is the Cole from the latter poster and would explain why he would make a stage character.

M PEOPLE L'NDEH HYPNOSIS won t do anything they wouldn't do normally, " ttie Canadian-born entertainer said In an Interview In Helena.

Cole recalled ihnl a Groat Falls A A W manager had been hypnotized and was told he was Elvis Presley. The man began gyrating and singing, dulng spills and performing in the late-lfloOs style (bat endeared Presley lo the teen set. Cole said. He added that the shy A & W manager would not normally rarry 1 don't think a person has to put someone in an embarrassing situation or use anything smutty or not in clean family fun in order to entertain.

I’m sure we can all agree that Elvis’ late-LfloOs style was by far his best style and one that really became his signature. And all of the teen girls were into Elvis for his pet bat.

He tries, to Tony Cole, a hypnotist, magician and all-around entertainer correct any misconceptions about hypnotism, anri he hypnotizes willing members of the audience.

He tries to himself? Is that some artsy way of saying he tries to be himself?

On his stage, people might shiver In Ihc arctic temperatures he has described or away In Lhc breeze like palm trees.

And his chauffeur and helper, Wayne Adolph, emphatically added In his gravelly voice. "It's real."

I don’t know why that bit made me laugh so hard, but it really did. I’m not sure if it’s the fact the guy is called his “helper” or just the fact he decided to just randomly join the interview.

MORE AND MORE PEOPLE are believing in Ihr authenticity of hypnosis, contends Cole, who has certificates from at least three schools of hypnotism and who has been licensed to leach hypnotism Physicians, dentists, psychiatrists, pollliuUnH, ministers, entertainers, teachers, lawyers, salesmen, atnletes and pilots are among those, who are studying or using hypnosis, Cole said.

Some beneficial uses for which hypnosis Is being sLudled include easing childbirth, treating alcoholism, slopping smokers from Indulging and treating empbysemn and asthma victims to breathe properly.

All of these arc medical uses or hypnosis and "the practitioner must by certified as a hypnolechuician and receive a doctor's prescribed order before he hypnotizes someone. Cole said.

Yes, everyone remember to become certified as a hypnolechuician, that is a very important qualification to have.

But ask him about himself and the answers dissolve in shrugs and evasiveness. He doesn't like to use his first name.

Again, some more information that works with the idea that Cole had a few side characters he played sometimes.

He makes good money at hypnotism and his oilier entertainments as he travels across the country and into Canada.

However, I do not wish to see Mr. Cole’s oilier entertainments.

"I know I have a talent but that talent should he scared. ]f pc0pte |,ave a latent and don't share it they re ripping it elf."

And your guess is as good as mine on this last one.

So there we have it, The Great Reveer, hypnotist and fiction all rolled into one oddly costumed package. I wish I could find more on this as there seems to be an interesting story in here, but unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any records I can find.

However, if this taught us anything, it’s that if I get bored of hypnosis, I can just turn this into a bad OCR blog.

#hypnosis #hypnotism #stage hypnosis #posters #design #hypnotists #ocr

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cathygeha · 7 years

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DUTCH by Madhuri Pavamani

E-Original published by Swerve

Publication Date: April 4, 2017

ISBN: 9781250127198

Price: $3.99

Description

“Full of sex, magic, and turmoil...poetic and utterly beautiful. I can't remember the last time a book made me stop and think, wow.” --Meredith Wild, #1 New York Times bestselling author

DUTCH is Madhuri Pavamani’s first book in a stunning new, suspenseful urban fantasy series that will take you on a wild ride full of danger, love, sex, and magic.

I've spent years holed up in the deepest, darkest parts of the city, fighting to keep Death and her Poochas from crossing the dead back to the living. My skill with a blade is bested only by my menace, my despair, my anguish - the strongest weapons I yield.

Then I meet Juma Landry and it all goes to hell.

She is beauty and love and sex and light, everything I am not. And she makes me want things I haven’t desired in years. But the monsters of my life, the evil lurking in the dark corners of my soul, those places craven and vile, bind me to a past I cannot shake free. As the most skilled Keeper for the Gate, nothing and no one can prevent me from excelling at a job I never wanted. I do it because it is my legacy, a fate I cannot outrun, but when Juma becomes my next assignment, each of her nine lives to be ended by my hand, I must decide: the legacy I never wanted or the love I don’t deserve.

"Ms. Pavamani's DUTCH is the perfect melange of poetry, fantasy and rebellious raunch. Absolutely addictive!" --Helen Hardt, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author

"Dark. Sensual. Unputdownable. I devoured this book and can't wait for the next!"--Kate Baxter, author of The Untamed Vampire

Author Bio

Madhuri Pavamani is the author of the paranormal romance trilogy, THE SANCTUM. A Southern girl with Northern sensibilities, a slight twang, and who still uses the word y’all, but never fixin’, she has an affinity for writing twisted love stories and dark poetry. A graduate of Barnard College, and incapable of leaving the bright lights of New York City, Madhuri works in Manhattan, but rests her head in New Jersey. She loves whiskey, tattoos, Bukowski, and yoga.

Author Links

Website: madhuripavamani.wordpress.com

Twitter: twitter.com/madhuriwrites

Buy Links

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZI3C0A

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dutch-madhuri-pavamani/1125684506

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/dutch/id1202992419

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dutch-3

Google Play: https://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN9781250127198

EXCERPT

CHAPTER ONE

DUTCH

I was eight years old the first time I rode an elephant.

I was visiting my grandparents, and the local zoo’s specimen had given birth to a dwarf, so everyone in the household wanted to witness the freak. They rustled up the whole lot of us, waved down some auto-rickshaws, and off we went, zooming toward the unimaginable feat of nature.

I took one look at that dwarf and knew it was scared. I also knew it was a complete bore.

The mom was much more interesting and already back to earning her share, offering rides to any souls brave enough to climb atop her back. My cousins needed no invitation, and before anyone knew what was happening, grandparents included, they scampered up the poor beast’s back and were raring to go.

I stood off to the side and watched, shy and somewhat quiet, still a bit ill at ease in my new environs. It was not every day I was shipped halfway across the world on a bird in the sky, and summarily deposited with two elderly souls I barely knew and certainly did not trust.

The elephant was a good move.

I was warming up to the two brown people smiling while their eyes flashed back and forth in rapid succession from me to the brood atop the grey beast. My grandmother clucked warmly in my direction, offering some words of encouragement as the mahout waved me over.

He was awfully scrawny and rather filthy, and I shot him a foul look. No fucking way was he controlling anything if that grey monster decided to stop taking anyone’s shit. But I was eight, and I was curious, and it was an elephant, for fuck’s sake. So I stopped putzing around on the outskirts of the action and leaned in

contemplative

somewhat curious.

Which was enough for Mr. Mahout. Faster than I would have ever assumed he could move, he grabbed me by the nape of my neck and hoisted me onto the dwarf’s mama.

Not on her back, with my cousins

but right behind her ears, on what seemed to be her neck, my hands resting on her head.

She was just like the old man who swam laps at the YMCA every Monday and always bent over to lotion his legs, providing me the perfect view of his ass—hairy and wrinkled and grey.

The mahout settled in behind me and gave his signal, but the old girl wasn’t going anywhere. She bobbed her head side to side, and he yelled something in Tamil, all of it unintelligible since I didn’t speak a bit of anything from the motherland.

At least not then.

He yelled again and gave her some swats with his whip, but she didn’t give a shit. Instead, she lifted her trunk into the air, pushed it about like a show-off, raised it to her head, and sniffed my hands.

I froze, for a second worried I might piss my pants.

I did not want to piss my pants, sitting there high in the air, because I did not want to soil her neck, but really I did not want another excuse to be the laughingstock of my unruly gang of cousins. So I let her do whatever she needed to do, praying all the while her trunk wasn’t full of tiny teeth that could suddenly inhale my hands and then my arms and then my head to chew me up and feed me to the dwarf.

I had not flown halfway across the fucking globe to wind up as dwarf fodder.

So I shut up

and homegirl sniffed me up

and eventually she started walking, doing a slow rotation of the park, giving us kids the ride of our lives.

I was eight, and it was magical.

I am now thirty-seven, and let me tell you, this world is anything but magical.

My name is Dutch Mathew

I kill for The Gate

and I am a Keeper.

CHAPTER TWO

JUMA

I was five years old when I died

and ooooooh god

did it hurt.

The pain is what I recall most, even more than the blood and the fear, the panic in my ma’s eyes as she begged my da to drive faster, the strain in my da’s voice as he emphatically insisted his child would

not

receive

transfusion.

Louder than any of that was the pain, the searing shock and burn of my throat as the bullet missed its mark, entered my neck right below my left ear, and exited slightly lower on the right side.

It had been a normal summer day in Atlanta, hot beyond all get-out, but by late afternoon with a storm on the horizon, the heat had relented a bit, providing some respite from the cramped boxes of our apartments in the Shamrock complex

North Druid Hills Road

Decatur, Georgia.

Hardly glamorous but hardly the hood, kind of a socioeconomic in-between land, rather nondescript and average.

The complex was full of families with kids everywhere

in the pool

on the courtyard

down the street.

A jumbled, excited, energetic mix of brown and black and white arms and legs, ponytails and braids, Mohawks and fades. We played outside, unsupervised, because there were so many of us, a mass of pint-size humanity, running wild.

Until the day I died.

The sky was clear and a bird sang,

which was so strange because usually the heat killed any motivation for creating sweet music. But not that day and not that bird. She was singing her heart out that afternoon.

I like to think of her as a “she” because that song was so damn pretty, so clear and melodious.

Until it wasn’t.

The shot rang out in all of that summer perfection, ruining our fun and scarring our childhood. Those kids I ran with when I was so, so small, they forever remembered that shot. I, on the other hand, forever remembered the pain.

Heat

ripped flesh

pain like fire

too much for a tiny human to comprehend and contain.

And metal.

The taste on my tongue, filling my throat until I coughed and sputtered and felt like I could barely breathe.

I screamed

I think

or I tried at least.

It came out gurgly and thick

choked.

Then arms

so strong and certain clutching me

and being airborne

high above the others

running

fast

faster.

And screaming

everyone was screaming

kids

mothers

fathers

and over all of them was the lilt of my ma’s voice.

Through the haze of my pain and blood loss and trauma, she talked to me. Rubbing my head, begging me to keep my eyes open

we’re close

we’re close.

But she could not ease the pain, damp the burn. Her voice could not soothe my misery, act as a salve, a poultice for the gaping holes in my tiny throat. Nothing could stop the fire that threatened to rip me in half.

That pain remains to this day. It hid in the dark places of my body, lingered in some of my light, and made certain I never forgot it. I might have worked for Death, that sexy mistress, but the pain was my lord and master.

I just didn’t share that with Death. Not then, not ever.

My da was chief of something at the hospital in town. He ran in like he owned the place, I came to learn much later, and started going about the business of saving my life. Until he was pushed away and told to “wait right there!” so they could go about the business of saving my life. But it did not matter, they could do nothing. None of them, neither the doctors and nurses nor my da the chief, because that day, July eleventh, was to be my last on this earth as Juma Landry, daughter of Rufus and Mimi Landry.

Because on that day, July eleventh, I died and became Death’s Poocha.

#Madhuri Pavamani #St. Martin's Press #Urban Fantasy

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