#WAIT but i do also thing its weird that arthur had like No reaction to learning supernatural shit is reall

[telemartus]

have started listening to malevolent podcast. on ep like 4. Current theory is mr voice in arthur's head is big eldritch thingamabob the cult is in to and every time Arthur kills someone he gets more control (arthur's partner, eddie). Have no idea if Mr Voice will end up being cool and besties with Arthur but i hope so bc i love Venom From Marvel Comiques

[issdisgrace]

Shit I'm sorry I didn't notice the request info-

Okay, can I please request Thomas Shelby x Tall and buff male reader who's the sweetest thing on earth but has one "flaw".

He's too damn handsy. Place, time, people, pffff, suit, shirt, naked, he doesn't care.

He just really loves Thomas man tits and his ass.

Not in a teasing way, it just makes him relax.

Just Thomas's reaction and how he's dealing with it. Whatever.

Thank you~ 💕

4 TIMES MR. HANDSY STRUCK

WARNINGS: Accidental groping, purposeful groping, swearing, yeah thats about it.

A/N: I hope you like this. I had a fun time writing this, so please feel free to request again.

Y/n was a tall and buff man. He looked like he could kill anyone without a second thought. But in reality, he was the kindest and sweetest thing to ever walk the earth. He was a gentle giant in all senses of the word. But there was one thing about the man that many would consider a flaw. It was the fact that he was handsy, very handsy when it came to his partner, Thomas Shelby. The man couldn’t keep his hands off Tommy. So here are 4 scenes in which Y/n couldn’t keep his hands to himself.

Walking down the streets of Birmingham on the way to The Garrison. It was quiet and peaceful; the sun had actually been out. Unlike most other days in Birmingham. Y/n had his arm wrapped around Tommy’s waist as they walked, casually talking. Tommy hadn’t realized Y/n’s hand slipping closer and closer to his ass until the man squeezed it, causing Tommy to yelp in surprise.

“I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m sorry.”

“I wasn’t expecting it, that all.”

Tommy says brushed it off, and the two continued their walk.

The Garrison was loud with hustle and bustle of the man drinking inside. In a corner booth sat the Shelby family and, of course, Y/n. The family talked and drank, Y/n adding in every once in a while not want to interrupt those who were speaking. Y/n threw his arm overs Tommy’s shoulder and continued onto listening to the conversation at hand. Without even realized himself, his hand moved down and now was on Tommy’s chest. It wasn’t until John made a joke about it out that he and Tommy realized.

“Y/n, you done feeling up my brother for the night? It’s a bit distracting.”

Y/n’s face flushed, and he quickly unwrapped his arm around Tommy, covering his face in pure embarrassment.

“Sorry.” He mumbled in his hands as the family had a laugh.

It was sometime after 10pm when Y/n managed to covince Tommy to call it quits for the night and join him in bed. Y/n sat in bed paeintly waiting for Tommy to be done with his night routine and join him. Eventually Tommy join him and they curled up togeather. They talked for a little bit until Tommy relized Y/ns hands found there way to his chest.

"My prince, can you explain to me how your hands always seem to find my chest."

"I'm sorry. I didnt mean to."

"Shh. It is ok my prince. Im just curious."

"I dont know. I guess touching them grounds me. It makes sure i know that everyting going on is real. But i guess it also calms me. I'm sorry if i make you uncomfortable. I can stop."

"Its fine my prince. I dont mind."

Tommy was hosting a party for the Peaky Blinders in order to celebrate some of their new achievements. The rowdy men happily drank the beer that was in the house and chatted. Tommy leaned against the bar, talking to Polly when Y/n came up behind him, grabbing his ass gently with both hands. Then resting his head on Tommy’s shoulder. Tommy turned his head slightly to look at you.

“Do you need anything, my prince?”

“No, just a little bored.”

“Ok.” Tommy said, then returning to talk to Polly.

The Shelbys, minus Tommy, who was nowhere to be seen, were sitting around having a drink at The Garrison

“Is it me or is Y/n really handsy with Tommy? I feel like half the time I see him with him, he’s either grabbing Tommy’s butt or his chest. It’s fucking weird.” Arthur slurs slightly, the alcohol getting to him a bit.

“Oh no, he is. You're definitely not imaging it, Arthur.” Ada says.

“Sometimes I think the poor thing doesn’t even realize he’s doing.” Polly adds in.

“Its fucking funny as hell. Have you seen the way some newcomers react when they see it happening? It’s fucking priceless. Their eyes get all wide and shit and they look like they’ve seen the most traumatic thing in the world.” John said.

“I’ve heard some newcomers people ask around, asking if it was a normal thing.” Finn adds.

“I know it’s also grate to see their reactions when they're told it’s a normal occurrence.” John says. After he says that, out of nowhere Tommy appearing

“What are we discussing this fine evening?”

“Nothing.” The other Shelby boys say at the same time like a kid that got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

[chrizbang]

Pairing: Lee Felix x female reader

Genre: Smut

Warnings: mature content, lowkey slow burn, breeding kink, soft!dom Felix, creampie.

Word count: 2.975

You and Ashley have been friends for four years now. You went through a lot of hardships together, especially when Ashley had an unplanned pregnancy in the last year of college. Luckily, Mason, now her husband, is an amazing person, and even though it was hard, she was able to graduate. You loved her baby, Arthur, so much, like it was your little brother. You knew that their anniversary was getting closer and you wanted to surprise her.

"No way, I cannot ask you for something like that."

"You're not asking, I'm offering. Besides, you know I love spending time with Arthur," you said, holding your phone with one hand while you tried to wash the dishes you used to eat dinner with the other. 

"I don't know Y/N..."

"Girl, just stop. I'm not taking a no for an answer. Spending quality time with your husband is important and I know that you have been not getting laid lately."

"You have no idea how hard it is to have sex with a one-year-old making a mess everywhere." You both laughed. 

"I'll go to your house tomorrow at 7 pm. Get a reservation at a nice restaurant, get shaved and, wear your best dress. I want you and Mason to have a good time together."

"Okay, but only because it is our anniversary. I'm gonna take this as a present." Ashley sighed, knowing that she had to say yes anyway.

"Because it is, Ashley. I'll see you tomorrow, bye."

"Bye, honey."

You finished your shores and were planning on watching some videos on youtube when you heard your phone buzzing. You picked it up and saw that you had a message.

Felix, 8:45 pm: Hey

Felix, 8:45 pm: Sorry for messaging late but, are you free tomorrow?

You chuckled. Almost 9 pm wasn't late.

Y/N, 8:46 pm: Sorry, I'm going to my friend's house after work.

Y/N, 8:47 pm: I'm going to babysit her baby so she can go have dinner with her husband.

You met Felix at work, during lunch. He was new there and you have seen him sometimes walking around the place, but you never talked to him. Until one day when he dropped his coffee on you. You remembered how embarrassed he was, his cheeks were red and he profusely apologized. Ever since, you had some small talk with him here and there until one day you gave him his number, saying that he could message you if he needed help with something from work. You know it was bullshit since he was from a different department, but still, you needed an excuse to talk to him. He messaged you a few times but eventually, you thought it was a lost cause.

Y/N, 8:57 pm: Why do you ask?

Felix, 9:00 pm: Nothing.

Felix, 9:01 pm: It's silly.

Y/N, 9:03 pm: If it was that silly, you wouldn't have messaged me.

Y/N, 9:03 pm: Spit it out.

Felix, 9:12 pm: There's a convention for Star Wars fans tomorrow. You said that you loved the movies one time so I bought tickets for you.

Y/N, 9:14 pm: Why didn't you tell me before? 

Felix, 9:15 pm: I didn't know if you would want to go. But it's okay, don't worry about it.

You thought for a moment. You really wanted to spend time with him. Felix was so sweet, respectful and kind. He was also very, very handsome.

Y/N, 9:30 pm: Do you wanna come to my friend's house tomorrow with me? 

You looked at your phone five minutes later and saw that Felix visualized the message but didn't answer. "Congratulations, you fucked it up, Y/N," you said.

You sat on your couch and turned the tv on, planning on finally watching your favorite youtube videos, when you heard your phone buzzing again.

Felix, 9:50 pm: Sure, why not? Is it okay with your friend? She doesn't know me.

You sighed, happy that he answered.

Y/N, 9:51 pm: I'm gonna tell her but I'm pretty sure she'll be fine.

"Is he cute?" Ashley asked, putting on her earring. She looked gorgeous with a tight red dress that accentuated her curves and contrasted with her dark skin. Her curly hair was in a bun, leaving her neck and shoulders exposed. You knew Mason would love it.

"He is very cute. And he's so nice too. I only invited him over because he seems really sweet."

You went to Ashley's house one hour before she would leave for dinner so you could help her get ready, and by help, you meant to force her to wear something that wasn't a t-shirt and jeans.

"How do I look?" she turned around, facing you.

"Gorgeous as always."

Ashley hugged you tight. "Thank you so much, Y/N. You know you don't have to do this, right?"

"But I want to."

The bell rang.

"That's probably Felix," you said.

"Let's go downstairs, I wanna meet this boy."

When you went to the living room you saw Felix talking to Mason.

"Hello, I'm Ashley, nice to meet you."

"I'm Felix, nice to meet you too," Felix raised his hand so he could shake Ashley's hand but she gave him a light hug. You smiled, finding really cute how awkward he was.

"Arthur is sleeping now, he already ate, but if he wakes up, there's milk on the fridge. He usually sleeps all night so you don't have much to worry about."

"Okay, you guys have to go before you're late for dinner," you said, pulling Mason and Ashley towards the door.

"Call me if you need anything. We'll be back tomorrow morning so you'll don't have much trouble with him."

"Don't worry about it. You can take your time."

"Also, don't forg-"

"Baby, we have to go," Mason insisted, holding her hand and trying to get her inside of the car.

"Fine. Bye everyone, see you tomorrow."

You waved at them before going inside and closing the door.

"I'm gonna check on Arthur for a second, you can wait here, okay?" You told Felix.

"Sure."

You went upstairs and checked on Arthur's room. He was sleeping soundly. You felt the urge to lightly pinch his chubby little cute cheeks but you decided not to bother him. You went to the living room again and Felix was sitting on the couch.

"Are you hungry? We bought pizza."

"Uhm, not really."

"Are you sure?" you insisted.

"Okay, one slice would be good."

Felix got up and followed you to the kitchen.

"Your friend has a beautiful house," he said, admiring the place.

"She does. I mean, she's an architect and Mason is an engineer, so they were able to buy a nice place," you cut a piece and handed it to him.

"You said that you studied together."

"We went to the same college, but I graduated in graphic design. For obvious reasons, I don't make as much money as them," you laughed. "Did you always wanted to work in a publishing company?" Felix sat on the balcony standing in the middle of the kitchen. "Honestly, I just wanted to work with what I love. Graphic design is not something that people value but it is what makes me happy." You looked at him and Felix smiled at you, his dimple prominent on his face. He was so cute. "What about you?" "Oh, marketing is definitely not something I dreamed of working with. My family has a long line of people that have been working with it, so I barely had a choice,” Felix confessed. "Oh, yeah?" "Yeah." He looked thoughtful like his mind was somewhere else. "I actually wanted to work with art. I love painting." "Really? That's so cool. Do you have a picture of a painting to show me? I would love to see it." Felix hesitated for a while before he grabbed his phone and scrolled through his gallery. "Please don't think I'm weird," he said before showing you the picture. You raised your eyebrows when you saw what was on the screen of his phone. A beautiful painting of you. You realized that he used your profile picture on Facebook as a reference. "Felix, this is amazing." "It took me a week to finish it," he said, holding his hands behind his back, clearly feeling shy. "I love it, really." You and Felix finished eating. You talked more about your plans for the future, the things you wanted to do with your life, your dreams. You were sitting on the couch watching tv when you heard Arthur crying upstairs. "Ops, somebody woke up." You got up to go to his room and you noticed that Felix was following you. "You don't have to go if you don't want to." "It's fine, I wanna help you." When you entered the room, Arthur was up in his crib, deeply crying. "It's okay," you said in a soft tone, picking him up. "I think somebody needs to change its diaper," Felix said. "You are right," you laughed. "Let's change this little boy." You put Arthur on the changing mat and started to change him, but to be honest, you had no idea what you were doing. Felix laughed. "Let me help you." Felix quickly changed his diaper, he clearly knew what he was doing. "Woah, how do you know that?" you asked, looking at him dumbfounded. He laughed again, amused by your reaction. "I have a small brother so I have changed his diaper plenty of times." "Aaah, that explains a lot."

"Let's see if he wants to eat," Felix said, holding Arthur in his arms. You went to the kitchen and looked for the milk. After pouring it into a pan, you heated it up. "We need to make sure we don't overheat it so it won't burn the baby," Felix said while he tested the milk's temperature. You put it into a baby bottle and gave it to Arthur who promptly drank it. "I guess he was hungry," Felix chuckled. "Do you plan on having kids, Felix?" you looked at him, completely mesmerized by how good he was with kids. "Yes, I love kids. I plan on having two kids one day." "That's so cute, I'm sure you'll be an amazing dad." Felix smiled, making your heart skip a beat. "Do you want to have kids, Y/N?" he looked apprehensive. "Yeah, one day. I still need to find the right person." "Of course." Arthur went back to sleep again when he was done eating. "Not gonna lie, taking care of a baby can be tiring," claimed said, sitting on the couch. Felix sat next to you, his knee touching your leg. "Do you want to watch a movie?" you asked. "Sure!" Twenty minutes later, you started to sleep. Your head felt heavy until it fell on Felix's shoulder. He simply smiled, enjoying the feeling of you so close to him.

The sound of the bell ringing woke you up. You were laying on the couch, a blanket over your body. You looked around and Felix was sleeping on the smaller couch next to yours, with just a pillow under his head. You got up and answered the door. "Hey!" Ashley said, hugging you. "Hi. How was your night?" "It was amazing. Thank you so much, Y/N." Ashley went to the middle of the living room to drop her bag on the couch, Mason following behind. "How's Arthur? Did he behaved?" Mason asked. "Yeah, he slept almost all of the time." You rubbed your eyes, still feeling sleepy. Ashley turned around, seeing Felix sleeping on the couch. "You guys could have slept in the guest room," she laughed. "I'm gonna check on Arthur. What about some breakfast later?" Mason suggested. "That sounds great, but I think we should go home. Besides, you guys need to spend some family time with your baby." You woke Felix up, and while he was trying to get conscious, you chatted with Ashley about dinner. Mason went downstairs with Arthur and you chatted a little more before leaving. "Do you want me to take you home?" Felix asked, leaving Ashley's house by your side. "No, it's okay, I'll get an Uber." "Aw, come on. I'm not gonna let you leave on an Uber so early in the morning." You looked at him, admiring the freckles on his skin. His pink lips looked soft and you had to fight the urge to kiss him. "You know what, okay. I'll go with you." The drive to your house was silent, the music playing on the radio helped you to distract the thoughts on your head. The night you spent with Felix was amazing, seeing him being so sweet like that only made you even more attracted to him. Felix stopped in front of your house. "Well, we are here." "Do you want to come in?" "Oh... uhm, sure, yes, that would be great." You smiled and left the car, running to open the door for him. "Please don't mind the mess," you said, taking some clothes that were on the couch. "Don't worry about it." "Do you want to eat something?" "I'm fine, I'm still full because of the pizza from yesterday." "Okay." There was an awkward silence for a while and you realized you didn't think this through. Invite him over and what? "You know what? There's something I want to eat," Felix said. "Oh, okay. What do you want? I have bread, cereal, we can make panca-" "You." "What?" you looked at him, your eyes wide. "I w-want to eat you." Felix stuttered, his face showing that he was feeling too shy to be saying the words that left his mouth. "Oh, I'm... I-" you didn't have the chance to finish, Felix approached you and kissed you. You were still processing what was happening so you didn't kiss him back yet. Felix noticed and stopped kissing you. "I-I'm so sorry, Y/N, I shoul-" "No! It's okay. I just wasn't expecting." You kissed him, holding his face and tasting his lips. His left hand held the back of your head while the other held your waist. He bit your lower lip, his tongue entering your mouth and playing with yours. He pressed his body against yours and you felt his semi-hard dick. You whined, trying to control your breath. "Do you want to keep going?" Felix asked, his forehead resting against yours. You simply nodded. "Where's your room?" You grabbed his hand, guiding him to your room. Once you were inside, Felix slammed you against the door, pressing his body into yours. He started to grind his clothed cock on your heat and, this time, you couldn't hold your moans anymore. "Felix," was all you managed to say before he kissed you again. A messy kiss that screamed how much he was longing for you, how much he desired you. His hand grabbed your ass, pulling you closer as if it was even possible. "I wanna taste you," he said, taking you to the bed. You laid down and he wasted no time to take off your pants, pulling your panties with them in a swift movement. Soon enough, his tongue was exploring your wet lips, savoring the taste of your arousal. Felix played with your clit, his tongue sliding against the sensitive skin. You hoped that your neighbors had already left for work, otherwise you would end up waking them up because of your moans. Felix stopped eating you out to unbutton his shirt. "You have no idea how much I wanted to fuck you," he said, his voice deep, making you raise your hips, craving to be filled up. "Felix, please," you moaned. "You want me to fuck you, baby?" "Yes, please." It was embarrassing, you weren't used to begging. Most of the time that you had sex, you were always the one in control. But not with Felix. "Are you on the pill?" Felix asked, taking the rest of his clothes off and pumping his rock-hard cock. "Yeah, please fuck me." "Anything for you," he growled, sliding his dick into your dripping pussy. Felix already started an incessant pounding into you, stealing moans from your throat. "You are so fucking beautiful." You closed your eyes, feeling the burning on your stomach getting stronger. "Fuck, so fucking good, Y/N. You are taking me so well." "Please, don't s-stop." "Turn around, I wanna fuck you from behind." You didn't have much strength left, but Felix helped you out. He was inside of you again, hitting the right spots in this position. Felix felt your pussy tightening against his dick and he started to play with your clit. "Fuck, Felix, I'm gonna cum," you screamed, not being able to control yourself anymore. You came, a long moan leaving your mouth. "I'm gonna cum inside of your little pussy, I'm gonna fill you up so good." He didn't slow his pace, his hips hitting yours in a fast rhythm. "I'm gonna put a baby in your little cute belly, baby girl," he said, closing his eyes as his dick slid in and out of your pussy. "Fuck," you moaned. "You are gonna look so good, all swollen, f-fuck." A few lazy thrusts and Felix came inside of you. He kept thrusting on you for a while until you milked him out. He laid by your side, trying to catch his breath. Felix put his arm on his face, hiding it. He looked completely flustered. "I'm sorry, Y/N. It was way too soon for me to let out this embarrassing kinky stuff." "Felix, shut up. It was fucking hot," you smiled, turning around to hug him and rest your head on his chest. He played with your hair, the warmth of his skin making you fall asleep. But sleeping wasn't on Felix's plans. "Ready for round two?"

[woman-with-no-name]

Dutch van der Linde x Arthur Morgan x f!reader

Title: "Angels"

A/N: What can I say, I was bored. I'm not a writer or a native English speaker, but I decided to do this for fun so don't judge me too hard. ✌️Hope y'all enjoy.

Warnings: A bit of fluff, but mostly smut.

Summary: Dutch and you are together, but you can't stop thinking about the nature of his relationship with Arthur, so you decide to ask him.

Story under the cut.

"Dutch?"

"Yes? Darling." He looks up from his book nonchalantly.

"Were you and Arthur..." you pause, and turn your head to look behind the chair you were sitting on, as if there was anyone else in your tent except you two. A silly habit you had.

"Were we what?" Your hesitation made Dutch close his book and put it beside him. You smile awkwardly.

"You know...a thing? Back then? Before... when you were y- " you stop yourself before you start that argument again.

He eyes you, clearly amused by your question, and lets out a little laugh.

"And what makes you ask that?" He leans forward, crosses his arms and waits for a response. He wasn't wearing his hat so you could clearly see the suspicious look in his eyes.

You start squirming in your chair, your palms are getting sweaty.

"Oh, nevermind." Your nerve was gone, you weren't sure anymore if you want to start this topic.

"I don't know why I asked that. Sorry, love." You quickly take a nearby book in your hands and open it on a random page. You realize how this is the most idiotic thing you could have done. But it's too late. Dutch knew what you were and weren't reading, since you never did it by yourself. He was always there. Not that you mind it. You loved when he would read out loud, and you would be laying across the cot, with you head in his lap, and his free hand would be in your hair, stroking it. If you fell asleep he would either let you, or make a tiny clinging noise with his rings right next to your ear. The noise would immediately wake you up and he would always pretend he didn't do it on purpose. However, his clenching jaw and smiling lips would tell otherwise.

You could feel his eyes on your face, but you didn't dare look at him. Thinking you made him upset you hoped he would just forget about it. Trying to think of something to distract yourself, you turn the next page of the book.

You hear the cot squeak under him as he relaxes back. You lift your gaze and see him looking up at the plain canvas of your tent, as if thinking of a fond memory.

"Alright, my darling. Since it's you, I suppose I can tell you..."

Your gaze is immediately on him. You excitedly slap the book back on the shelve, lean forward on the chair, your elbows on your knees, as if Dutch was just about to tell you a juicy gossip about someone from camp, and not a confession about a past lover.

Seeing your reaction Dutch couldn't help himself but to let out a throaty laugh.

"But." He raises a finger at you, eyeing you. "First you have to tell me what made you ask that."

"Fine." You feigned offense and playfully roll your eyes at him.

"Its just...I know you two go way back and...well, you are both so... well, alluring. I just couldn't help myself not to think about...you two...you know." You make a weird slapping gesture with your hands.

Dutch closes his eyes and exhales a laugh. He brings his hand up to his brow and rubs his eyes. You loved to make him laugh with your silliness.

He clears his throat and continues: "You think Arthur is... alluring?" He drawls the last word to highlight it. Then leans, and spreads his legs to get closer. His elbows are on his knees, mimicking your pose. He watches your expression. Your faces are now just inches apart.

Fuck. You are trapped. How are you supposed to say yes without it sounding wrong?

"I mean, I suppose so... But he's, you know, not... Uhh, you know...bad. Khm." You look away. Not knowing what to expect. You can feel his eyes on your temple.

The tent flaps are open, and of course, who else is supposed to walk by other than the man himself. You curse under your breath. Can this get any worse?

"Howdy folks, how's it going?" Arthur greets you both.

Dutch knows what he is doing to you. He lets you sweat under his gaze for a few moments more. Arthur walking by only made it better for him. Bastard.

"Arthur! Hello. Come, sit down, son. We were just talking about you." Dutch exclaims cheerfully.

Arthur stops at the entrance, wooden floor boards squeak under his boots.

"Me? Why are you two wasting your time talking about me?" Arthur hesitates but takes off his hat, and enters the tent. Dutch moves a bit on the cot to give Arthur room to sit down, but not nearly enough. The space is way too small for both of them. Forbidden thoughts enter your mind again. But you quickly shoo them away.

Their knees are touching on the small cot and Arthur is holding his hat in his lap. Dutch wastes no time and places his hand on Arthur's knee. Arthur just glances at it but quickly relaxes to the familiar touch.

"My sweet lady was just telling me how alluring you are." Dutch turns his attention to Arthur.

Arthur glances at you, blushing and fighting the smile that's creeping on his face.

"But I know that already. I know that well..." Dutch continues and raises his palm to Arthur face.

"Ain't that right, my boy?"

"Dutch..." You notice Arthur grip his hat harder.

Dutch being this intimate to him didn't start jealousy in you, only awe. You couldn't help yourself but smile at how you weren't the one that's nervous anymore.

Dutch slowly moves his hand on the younger man's neck. Then behind it, and finally entwines his fingers in Arthur's hazel locks. His eyes grow darker as he grips the hair harder and brings Arthur closer to him.

Arthur hisses through his teeth but does nothing. His body goes slack. His eyes are half closed as he gives in. Dutch presses his nose on the stubbly cheek and then angles his head. Their lips are less than an inch apart, breaths mixing. Arthur closes his eyes completly, his breath uneven. Dutch laughs at this, he playfully pokes his nose with his own, and then pulls away completely. He lets his hand liger on Arthur's shoulder as he relishes in the other man's flustered expression.

"We will see you tonight, Arthur." Dutch removes his hand, and turns his attention to you. "Won't we, darling?"

You pick up your jaw from the floor and nod.

"What do you say, son?"

Arthur blinks, and exhales loudly.

"Yeah. I mean, yes. Da-... Yes. Dutch." He quickly shifts away from Dutch and coughs awkwardly. He then looks at you, embarrassed.

You melt under his soft blue eyes. "See you later, Mister Morgan..." You wink at him and lower your eyes at the hat he didn't put back on his head as he stood up to make his exit.

"Good boy." Dutch follows him to the edge of the tent and slaps his behind on the way out. Arthur shoots him an angry look but his smirk betrays him.

Dutch leans on the tent post and pulls a cigar out of his pocket. He puts it between his teeth and looks back at you.

"So, my sweet, any more questions?"

...

Evening came faster than you thought. You were pacing up and down the tent, while Dutch was kneeling at the small stove, tending to the fire.

"Nervous?" He watches your steps.

"A little bit, yes." You stop and turn to stand right next to him. "But...very excited too." You say as you caress his cheek with the back of your hand, and lean down for a kiss. You feel him smile and you pull away.

"Oh, is daddy excited too?" You never failed to rile him up with that word. He stands up and casually kicks the stove door closed. He wraps his arms around your waist and watches you through hooded eyes. You lean into the warm palm he brought up to your face, and you kiss each other tenderly.

"Khm... I hope I ain't interrupting something..." you hear behind you.

Arthur enters and ties up the tent flaps behind him. Dutch let's you go and places a small kiss on your forehead as he strides towards his former lover. They look at each other for a moment, unsure how to act. Dutch breaks the ice as he firmly rubs Arthur's shoulder. The younger man just laughs at this, and grabs him by his vest, pulling him into a tight hug. You giggle at how your lover was caught off guard. Something you rarely see.

" I missed this. You."

" I know, son. I did too."

They hold each other like this, long, until Dutch lifts Arthur's head from the crook of his neck to leave a soft kiss on his bottom lip. He catches it between his own and nibbles on it lightly. You hear a satisfied hum coming from Arthur, and it turns you on instantly.

"You two are beautiful like this, I hope you know that."

Arthur breaks the kiss and looks at you, shyly. His reaction makes you think about how you've never seen him act so "small". You two talked, but it was always about something random, and he would often keep his distance. But Dutch would tell you stories about him too, how capable he was, how many fights he won, and just how brave "his" Arthur was. Seeing him like this you also saw what Dutch loved about him, he loved reminding him of just how special he is to him.

Dutch reaches for you and you take his hand. He leads you between them and Arthur accompanies you in front of him. You reach behind and bring his face next to yours. Instinctively, he wraps his arms around your middle, and you lean into him. Dutch steps back a bit to get a good look at you both.

"Well, well. What did a man like me do, to deserve you two gorgeous angels..."

Arthur lets out a little laugh. "I ain't no gorgeous angel Dutch."

You slap Arthur lightly before Dutch even opens his mouth to answer.

"You deserved that." Dutch laughs and looks down, hands on his hips. He raises his head with a sinister look in his eyes, a look you knew well.

"That means I must be close to God, right?" His eyes looked almost completely black now.

"And what do good angels do in front of their God?" He caresses both of your faces. His thumb slips into your mouth as he pulls Arthur into a sloppy kiss, inches away from your face. You suck on his thumb, letting it slip pass your teeth and he pumps it in and out lightly. They kiss eachother hungrily, biting. Licking his lips and panting Dutch pulls away.

"They kneel, don't they?" He purrs.

Arthur and you get on your knees, a little bit too fast to conserve any dignity.

Dutch pulls out a cigar out of his front pocket and lights it.

"Might as well enjoy this to the fullest." He says smugly in that delicious dark tone you adored.

You trail your fingers up his thighs and reach for the gun belt that was still sitting on his hips. You unbuckle it and Arthur grabs it to throw it on the cot and proceeds to cup Dutch's cock through his pants. Arthur smiles as he hears a sigh from above. He goes to unbutton the fabric between you and your prize but Dutch stops him.

"Use your teeth would ya? Like you used to..." He teases, and you rise an eyebrow at Arthur.

"Go ahead, Mr. Morgan. Teach me something new."

Arthur complies and skillfully pulls on the edge of Dutch's pants and the top button gets loose. He bites down on the fly and looks up as he slowly pulls it down. A hand comes down to drag a ringed finger over his cheek.

You free his semi hard manhood and pump it a few times.

"Kiss me..." Arthur whispers, and leans in, to catch your lips in a slow but passionate kiss.

You feel Dutch instantly getting harder as he groans at the sight.

You pull away to lick a long, wet stripe up the shaft and then kiss Arthur again. You both work your way down his length, kissing and licking his cock from both sides. This makes Dutch's chest puff up as he savors the feeling of two tongues leading him to fulfilment. Arthur takes him in his mouth and you place your focus on his balls. Dutch takes the cigar from his mouth and his breathing quickens. Holding the cigar between his fingers he carefully places his hands on both of your heads, rubbing caringly.

"Oh, my angels..."

You start to lick your way up his Apollo's belt, you knew he liked the way your ticklish, warm kisses added to the sensation Arthur was giving him.

A slight whimper hits your ear and you knew he was close. Dutch rarely moaned during your times together, and when he didn't try to conceal it with a strained cough it was an absolutely irresistible sound to come out of him. It never failed to make you proud of yourself.

Arthur looked absolutely delicious with his ocean eyes filled with lust as he pulled away from Dutch to catch his breath. He cupped your chin to give you a sloppy kiss and then you both presented your open mouths and tongues to the man above.

Dutch panted and his brows furrowed as he used his hand to jack himself off, and paint both of your faces with his spent.

You twirl your tongue around your lips to collect as much as possible in your mouth to swallow it. Arthur and you smile at each other playfully. He uses his finger to collect a drop from your chin.

"Missed a spot."

You could barely open one of your eyes.

"You think?" You laugh.

"You two are unbelievable..." Dutch shakes his head, smiling.

He puts the cigar back into his mouth and tucks himself in. He lazily walks back and sits on the chair. Arthur helps you get up and holds you close.

Dutch eyes the cot as the smoke collects around his head.

"I think it's time for you two to give daddy a show..."

...

[drarryruinedme7]

Hello 💕 I’d like to request Draco increasingly growing jealous as Harry opens bday presents (bc he’s afraid Har won’t like his gift as much as others). Any era you’d like to write! Thank you 💕

Hi, my love, I hope you’ll like the small ficlet I wrote for this. ❤️Thanks for the prompt!!

Drarry | 1k | G | birthday presents, established relationship, fluffy fluff | beta: my darling @malenkayacherepakha

Private Business 

What the bloody hell do you give the Saviour of the Wizarding World for his fortieth birthday?? 

Draco stared helplessly at the shop windows of Quidditch Supplies. Harry fucking Potter had everything he wanted.

Every year hoards of fans and Quidditch teams and his coworkers in the Auror department, his friends, the entire Weasley family (and there were definitely too many of them in Draco’s opinion) would send Harry tons of gifts resulting in Harry having everything a man could think of.

With a sigh, Draco walked down the streets of Diagon Alley, trying to think of something clever.

They only started dating six months ago, the press had started leaving them alone barely a couple of weeks ago and Draco was now fully feeling the pressure of dating the Boy Who Lived.

After a useless and tiring walk, Draco went back home, panic rising in his chest. 

One’s fortieth birthday was something special, he couldn’t just give Harry a superficial thing! 

He took a deep breath to calm down: he still had one week. He could do it.

***

Oh, dear. Fucked. Draco was so fucked. 

They were all gathered around Harry in the garden of The Burrow. Draco shuddered as the sunset lightly kissed all of them in rosy-light. He would have never, ever, imagined himself enjoying a party at The Burrow, of all places. 

Certainly not for Potter’s birthday. Certainly not while all he could think was how beautiful the git was when he smiled with gratitude and sincere affection. 

Draco also didn’t expect to be sweating with anxiety while looking at Potter opening all his gifts. They were all simple things but Draco could tell they held a greater meaning which made Harry’s eyes water. 

Molly and Arthur gave him a portrait they commissioned of Albus, James and Lily laughing together; Hermione and Ron gave him a new tent with a note that Draco didn’t understand but Harry’s face split in a huge grin and he snorted when he saw the tent— there were dozens of other small things, and all of them made Harry snort or laugh or say “awww”: a carillon enchanted to play the songs that helped him when he was having nightmares after the War (Ginny’s gift), a book of recipes for his rediscovered passion for cooking (Neville’s)... 

His kids even planned to show him they had learned in secret how to perform a Patronus Charm all together and the party took a challenging and funny turn from that point on, with silvery thin animals running and zig-zagging all around. 

Oh, but did Draco want to disappear right there. When the gifts finally ended everyone looked at him and Draco prayed for the soil to open and swallow him whole, but that didn’t happen. 

He cleared his throat and felt heat rushing to his cheeks, surely showing a massive blush that not even the sunset light could hide. “Er.” He glanced at Harry who was looking at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “I… it’s, um, private,” Draco mumbled.

Oh, no.

Why.

The second he said it he knew how wrong, how filthy and dirty it sounded. There were kids around, for fuck’s sake, and what it looked like was that Draco had just told Harry’s entire family he bought him something sexual for his fortieth birthday.

Harry’s mouth dropped to form a comical ‘O’ while George snorted, breaking the tension in the air. In a matter of seconds, everyone was laughing and finally wandering around the garden, shooting him weird glances, smirks, someone even patting him on his arm (Charlie, with an accompanying ‘nice’). 

The worst thing of all is that after seeing all those presents, Draco really didn’t want to give Harry his own— he was sure it was inadequate and horrible and…

“So,” Harry murmured into his ear. When did he get so close to Draco, by the way?

“It’s private, mh?” He pressed his chest to Draco’s back and Draco distinctly felt Harry’s hard cock pushing against his thigh.

Great. So now Harry expected it to be something naughty and Draco would fail on every damn level with his birthday gift. 

“I just… I, er…” Draco gently disentangled himself from Harry’s embrace and turned to face him. “I think I fucked up, actually. I… if you want I can show you now, it’s in my pocket.”

Harry cocked his head with a smirk. “Oh yes, it is.” He hooked a finger in Draco’s belt loops and pulled him into a crushing kiss. 

Draco pulled out of it against his will, wanting to put an end to his agony. “No, seriously, you git!”

He took a steadying breath and fished a vial out of the pocket of his trousers. He handed it to Harry who took it with confusion written all over his face.

“It’s…” Draco straightened his shoulders, cleared his throat. “My memories… all the memories I’ve collected of you. But they’re not like standard Pensieve memories: they contain the feelings and the things I was thinking during those events too, so it will be like actually being in my head.”

Everything seemed to stop as he waited for a reaction from Harry. He was staring intently at the vial in his hands, so steady Draco wondered if he was breathing at all. 

When the silence was starting to be too dense, Draco felt compelled to talk, do anything to fill it. “I’m sorry, it sucks, I know. They all gave you these meaningful presents, but I… look, I don’t trust people easily, so I thought I—”

Whatever the rest of that sentence was, it got lost in the heat of Harry’s mouth, suddenly covering Draco’s. In a second, Harry’s body was flush against Draco’s and a smile made its way into their kiss. 

“You’re amazing,” Harry breathed on Draco’s lips. “Don’t you dare doubt it, this is the best gift you could have given me.” 

Draco finally took a breath of relief: maybe he hadn’t chosen so poorly, after all. 

[sortaotaku]

Happy New Years! 🎉

Ikevam New Year’s Set Stories

2021 Super Awesome Set

I wanted to share because I understand the paywall is probably too much for a lot of people. It’s a pretty informal overview of the stories though~

Boys Talk - Team Abnormal 

Shakespeare, Le Comte, Jean

Setting: Thermae

Le Comte asks why Shakespeare is looking gloomier than normal. Shakespeare says he feels a bit weird about a sarcastic comment Arthur made about the three of them (Shakespeare, Le Comte, Jean) being abnormal.

Le Comte: I guess he means we’re deviants. Idk where he got that from. 

He comments that Shakespeare likes to tease people and wonders what to do with him.

Jean: You two are most definitely deviants

Them: Wha? 

Le Comte calls his comment unnecessarily cruel. Shakespeare defends himself and says unlike Le Comte he’s a gentleman

Le Comte is like LOL I feel like you added an insult in there

Jean: It’s best you hear the truth bc you’re in denial. You’ve been buying <your name here/MC> dresses a lot. Are you sure it’s not just bc you like dressing her up?

Le Comte: What else am I supposed to do? She looks ravishing in everything. I’m not doing anything except sitting and watching in the dressing room.

Shakespeare: A grown man enjoying dressing up a girl like a doll sounds pretty deviant to me

Jean: Yep. He’s the most deviant one.

Le Comte: Judging from the content of your plays I think you’re worse than me.

Shakespeare: My writing isn’t necessarily representative of my desires

Jean comments about how Shakespeare has been inviting MC over to his villa a lot.

Le Comte comments that he quite likes Jeans fixation on MC and Jean tells him to shuddup.

Shakespeare also says he isn’t doing anything weird. He says he blindfolded and cuffed her for research purposes.

Jean: Hold on, I’ll come back with my sword.

Le Comte: Don’t run around the mansion naked and angry. Return to the water now.

Shakespeare states that Jean is upset by trivial matters. Basically “tough luck, that’s life”

Le Comte: Yeah, be more open-minded

Jean: I must destroy the world then

Shakespeare asks if he had any weird encounters and Le Comte says he’s basically been a recluse 

Jean admits to giving MC a boost on his shoulders, but... He was shocked because her thighs were pressed against his cheeks and they were soft. 

Shakespeare: How are you insult us when you had her pressing her thighs against your face? You’re the worst deviant one.

Le Comte is basically like LOL and Jean is kinda baffled.

End

Boys Talk - Battle Against Desires

Theo, Napoleon, Mozart

Setting: Thermae

Mozart calls the two of them sighing in sync annoying

They do it again and state they’re tired

Mozart comments that this is rare considering how adept they are at dealing with the more eccentric residents 

They’re both like “That’s it!”

Napoleon is like that’s what everyone says. Everyone thinks I’m sensible

Theo: Yeah, I thought common sense is something everyone should have. We just look overly sensible because everyone lacks it.

Napoleon is like how about we just toss that (sense) out, I’m sick of it. 

Theo: Yeah, I’m going to do whatever I want

Mozart: Hold on, if you do that you’ll lose sight of yourselves.

Mozart (Internally): They say it’s the most dangerous when people go off the rails. These two keep order. I must stop them.

Mozart adds that everyone didn’t start out selfish. He asks if they’re sure if something else isn’t making them this way.

Napoleon says its a problem that MC sees them as so sensible.

Mozart is like: 🤨 Why?

Napoleon says that everything is wrong. She lies around in the common area asleep and apparently sleep undresses. (Half way, that is)

Mozart: Yea sounds about right... Wait what? Don’t tell me you...

Napoleon: Obviously I buttoned her up and tucker her in so she wouldn’t catch a cold.

Mozart: Are you her mom?

Theo: I get that! I would do that too.

Napoleon: Theo~ 🥰

Mozart: Can you guys not hug in the bath? Anyways what about Theo?

Theo: I went in for a bath and MC was in there stark naked bc she mixed up the time.

Mozart: Yea, she’s ditzy sometimes. Don’t tell me you...

Theo: Obviously I simultaneously tossed her my own towel and quickly turned around.

Mozart: Are you her dad? 

Napoleon: I get that! I would do that too.

Napoleon~ ❤️❤️❤️

Mozart: Stahp hugging in the bath... So you’re saying you don’t feel free to express your desires bc you’re seen as too sensible?

Them: Yea

Mozart: That’s easy to fix. Just act on your desires. It’s important to be true to your feelings. I just do what I want.

Napoleon: Easier said than done. Women find it even more frightening when a “safe” man comes onto them more than normal men. They feel violation AND disappointment because of the breaking of expectations.

Theo: And you’ll lose trust that you cannot recover.

Mozart: That sounds oddly convincing from you two.

They sigh heavily again. Mozart smiles a bit and comments that he must warn MC to be careful from now on and encourages them to cheer up.

End

Boys Talk - Imagination Station

Dazai, Arthur, Isaac

Setting: Thermae

Dazai talks about how great a bath after a good drink is. Arthur agrees and asks Isaac what he thinks. (Note: Don’t go into a huge hot bath while drunk)

Isaac: STAHP TOUCHING ME YOU TWO! Why did you guys insist we bathe together?

Dazai: It’s a good way to get to know each other.

Arthur: Yep, we know each other well but there are no limits on luvbbb ❤️

Isaac: If this is your love I have some doubts...

Arthur + Dazai: Lalalala~~~ 🎶

Arthur: Isn’t it funny how alcohol loosens inhibitions? I’d love to get naughty with MC

Isaac: Don’t you dare touch her!

Dazai: I find it questionable too.

Isaac: Dazai?

Dazai: Women get uncomfortable with sudden moves. You haveta do “that” 

Isaac: huh?

Them: I-mAg-I-nA-tIoN!

Isaac: 🤨huh???

Arthur: Lemme explain. We’re writers. We think up scenarios for a living.

Isaac: ?

Arthur: GOSH. We can do anything we want. In our minds. In vivid detail.

Dazai: Ai-kun is confused still, we must invite him into our minds

Arthur: Good idea! Naughty story time!

Isaac: Hold on—

Arthur and Dazai cook up an Isaac x MC smut headcanon in which Dazai still calls her “Toshiko”

Isaac didn’t even notice at first and commented that it makes sense Mc was drowsy because she’s a hard worker. He gets embarrassed when he figures out and the other two are like LOLLL 😂😂😂, we love your reactions!

Isaac: You’re saying you spend your days thinking about lewd stories of MC?

Them: No.

Arthur: We could imagine but the real thing is a whole different thing.

Dazai: The real thing trumps fantasy.

Isaac: So you were trolling me?

Them: Yes.

Isaac: You’re the worst!

Them: Rofl

End

Boys Talk - A Steamy Nighttime

Leonardo, Vincent, Sebastian

Setting: Thermae

Leonardo: A bath sure is nice!

The other two: ...

Leonardo: Why so quiet?

Vincent: I don’t think MC registers me and Sebastian as men. (Correct. You are indeed an angel and not a mortal man)

Leonardo: Why?

Vincent recalls how he was sunbathing with MC and she commented how he was comforting like a little brother

Leonardo: Pride must’ve been hurt by that. Sebas?

Sebastian: Similar. She said I was like her dad.

Leonardo: Dad-zoned, huh (*This isn’t my own abridging of the story, he actually said that) It’s not as bad as you think. Its proof MC is comfortable, that’s important.

Vincent and Sebastian says that : They want to be seen and treated as reliable men

Leonardo (internally): I’m pretty sure she sees them as men though. If I’m too serious about this, they’ll try too hard. The best thing is to make them laugh

Leonardo: You must get comfortable around women. If you get too self conscious things get weird right?

Sebastian: I see. How?

Leonardo: Prof Leonardo shall teach you. This is classified so don’t share

Them: We Promise.

Leonardo: Did you know a women’s breast is as soft as the inside of their arms. Start there with the inner arm

Vincent: Brilliant. What do we say after

Sebastian: Practice on me master Vincent

Vincent: Your arm is hard

Sebastian: I’m actually swole. (He says quite muscular)

Leonardo: You weren’t supposed to take this seriously

Vincent: Will you give more tips? I wanna get closer to MC

Sebastian: Please teach us professor Leonardo

Leonardo (internally): I didn’t expect this... They’re so pure. I can’t let them down.

Leonardo: When someone licks their lips it means they want you to kiss them, so watch out.

Vincent: You’re a genius! Arthur does that all the time! But I won’t do that since it will startle MC if I suddenly kiss her.

Sebastian: Start with the forehead/cheek

Vincent: Anything else?

Leonardo: Playing with hair = Wants affection

Sebastian: Isaac does that a lot, but he DOES crave affection. I gotta watch out for that.

Leonardo: Listen. I didn’t expect this...

Them: Teach us more!

Leonardo: 😓 

End

A/N

Sorry it’s late. Distracted my Animal Crossing. You can find 2020’s set in my previous post or under the “2020 New Years Set” tag.

[cattles-bians]

exes au part 14

post directory

obsetress:

obsetress: viola

em: holy shit

em: i think viola could hold a truly ridiculous number of things in her hands

em: danis like i have a little fanny pack right here- and violas like (turns up nose) absolutely not

obsetress: pre therapy viola during her relationship w dani: buys dani a birkin too, is like "here baby, so you don't have to use that fanny pack"

obsetress: dani's like "oh. i, um. like my fanny pack"

obsetress: viola therapy era after her relationship with dani: buys her a hermes fanny pack instead

obsetress: jamie rolls her eyes but dani is literally

em: i think a lot abt viola offering solutions completely unprompted n then being really offended when ppl dont take her up on it

em: pre therapy obvs

obsetress: SAME

obsetress: oh link is gross

obsetress: cost is grosser

obsetress: but viola lloyd dropping $2550 on a fanny pack for her ex gf? chefs kiss

---

obsetress: ok just remembered viola slouching or leaning or w/e n like

obsetress: brain practically applying that to exes au and imagining when and where she'd slouch n everyone's reactions to htat

obsetress: bc like she has perfect posture but when she chooses to do it it's a power move

obsetress: and i. hm

em: yeah

obsetress: viola sitting up stock straight when they first get to brunch and as soon as she's ordered her bloody mary shes pulling off her sunglasses and dropping them on the table and just sinking back

em: how to phrase this w/o sounding too much like a whore

em: actually no way to say this but like i feel v strongly abt the way we make women take up less space wrt to knees together calves touching type deal and i think maybe

em: maybe viola can manspread a bit as a treat

em: hate that term but i cant think of a better one

obsetress: nah she does n it's hot

obsetress: just had this image pre divorce of viola and arthur at marriage counseling on opp ends of the couch n arthur's sitting v tight close and vi is just

obsetress: leaning and spreading a lil

obsetress: the first time jamie sees her do it she's so taken aback

obsetress: because she's NOT expecting it

em: jamies like ah ok late in life lesbian deal and then jokes on her viola is fluent in dyke slouch

obsetress: jamie immediately trying to suss out just how long viola has been fucking women

obsetress: she says to dani later "i thought she was all proper like" and dani's like "she is" and jamie's like "so wot was that then" and dani's like "well, people are gay, jamie,"

em: ghfjhgljkJFDASJKKJFGA

em: jamies like so wait how long HAS viola been

obsetress: jamie: so you were vi's first serious girlfriend right? dani: dani: jamie: right???????

em: violas been fucking women longer than jamie has lbr

em: i mean shes clearly only 35, jamie,

obsetress: jamie: so... vi... viola: hm? jamie: you're, uh, gay, right? viola: obviously jamie: right. well dani told me you've been dating women since–– viola: since i was 15, yes jamie: but you married a man

em: violas like u went to jail everyone does stupid shit occasionally

em: jamie: so how long have you been dating women viola: since i was 15 jamie: no i meant like. in years viola raises her eyebrows and jamies just like haha nevermind fuck

obsetress: she tried!

obsetress: she tried

em: jamie on her 35th birthday pencilling 'many happy returns' into violas ????th 35th birthday card

em: yknow i think

em: i think something's afoot

obsetress: jamie, giving up on the direct approach

obsetress: slipping in next to rebecca at the wine bar

obsetress: "becca"

obsetress: "hi, jamie" "hi. how old is your girlfriend"

em: am fucking losing it thinking abt jamie like. realising how much gay energy viola has

em: like taken ABACK

obsetress: fksljfLKSDJFLJ

obsetress: just like

obsetress: why are jamies reactions to viola so funny

obsetress: montage of jamie realizing how much gay energy viola has

obsetress: jamie watching viola sitting

obsetress: jamie watching viola pick up a variety of glasses and mugs

obsetress: jamie watching viola compare hand sizes with dani, jamie's girlfriend and viola's ex girlfriend who she dated for literal years and whose hand size she definitely already knows

em: NOT THE HAND SZIES

em: they go for a walk and viola immediately complains about the sun and jamie's like

em: i have a spare hat but ur not gonna like it

em: its a snapback that says daddy or smthn in gold, owen got it for jamie for her bday, jamie Loathes it

obsetress: BYE

obsetress: viola looks better in it than jamie does

em: jamie has that

em: am i attracted to viola? moment

em: it passses

em: she has already compartmentalised the weird psychosexual power play

em: queen of compartmentalising

obsetress: jamie: had another one of those moments today dani: what moments? jamie: where i thought i might be attracted to vi dani: well, you did let her fuck you... what was it, four? times in one night, so

em: jamie; yeah but like that aside

em: jamie 'thats neither here nor there' taylor

obsetress: she is the queen of compartmentalizing tho

em: i was gonna be like. 'jamies like wait i dont remember saying four' but. i think she would tell dani

em: because the flip of that is dani callin up vi n i dont think she would necessarily

obsetress: i think she would and dani would make her anyway

obsetress: well make her is harsh but

obsetress: dani would very curiously ask in very convincing ways

em: lovingly coax it out of her

em: dani: what if i fucked you four times in o

obsetress: dani: let me do five

em: viola probably wears so many rings jamie doesn’t even clock the ever present thumb ring

obsetress: jamie just. writes it all off

em: am laughing abt like. viola v meticulously taking off every single ring and putting it in its proper location before...

obsetress: there is something. so hot about that

obsetress: im gonna scream i think

em: i was just meming and now im thinking abt it and

em: truly played myself

em: actually this is me refusing to unpack whatever the hell theo crain gloves made me feel

obsetress: sdkfmsldjfa

obsetress: fair

em: sublimate it into rings

obsetress: i just like um

obsetress: thinkin about when she and dani are together and like

obsetress: it's intentional and everything has its place but vi also makes a show out of it

obsetress: and like

obsetress: she's SO painstaking about it and definitely makes dani wait a little bit and

em: helps dani outta her big ass earrings

em: i mean dani doesnt even Need the help

em: viola meticulous lloyd

em: i mean she just wears so much goddamn jewellry

obsetress: she can tell when dani's getting impatient and goes even slower

em: viola has like

em: viola is one of thos ppl thats really into expensive watches

obsetress: !!!!!!

obsetress: yeah

obsetress: nice lil canon nod too

em: she drags dani to antique auctions n danis like i cant. actually tell the difference between the real and the forgery and violas like (passionately explains it for like 30 minutes) and dani is

em: like shes mentally checked out but also v intensely watching violas hands as she points to the parts of the watch

em: rebecca gets it tho

em: rebecca Gets It

obsetress: dani shoving vi into the bathroom at the auction house and tugging vi's hand between her legs v rebecca grabbing her own auction paddle and bidding against viola for the same watch

obsetress: (rebecca n vi fuck in the car on the ride home)

em: dani grabs a paddle n mimes spanking viola n then the auctioneer is like '$250 to 201' and danis like aw Fcuk

em: violas like i cant take u Anywhere

obsetress: dani gives her the 🥺😌and viola's immediately over it and pulling out $250

obsetress: dani: i didn't even want it, i was just–– vi: i know dani: what am i even gonna do with a–– vi: i'll sell it for $500 at a private auction next week dani: so technically i'm making you money dani, grinning: it's like i'm your employee dani: do you have any more assignments for me, boss? vi: dani get your hand out of my pocket i need to focu––

[daintykeith]

DESERVING

Title: Deserving

Summary: A one-shot love story featuring Arthur Morgan and John Marston in which John struggles to understand Arthur's new behavior around camp.

Word count: 1.6k+

Notes: mild cursing | feedback is appreciated!!!

Tags: @southernlynxx @rdr-secret-cupid

I’m your secret cupid, @southernlynxx !!! I'm so sorry this took forever dear; the past few weeks have been totally insane and out of my hands to control. I chose your first wish and decided to mix it up with some good reassurance (happy) angst which i found fitting for the theme; 

John trying to understand & accept Arthur’s affection around camp! I hope you enjoy it, happy late Saint Valentine’s day!!!

P.D → I was inspired by this photo I took in my game! Totally worth it.

John never thought it would be like this.

At first, it was awkward—maybe bizarre. But that was just the beginning.

As the sun rose from the West, John walked out of his tent like a dead man; dark bags under his eyes and scratching his side, yawning without shame. Thirty minutes of sleep—or less—felt great. Just what he needed, right? Taking guarding rounds at night for the past few weeks to avoid him. Yes, that man. The one who had become his greatest relief and headache at the same time, Arthur Fucking Morgan.

While John agonized, Arthur was at his best. Refreshed, clean, and glowing like a damn pearl who had found its way to the surface, gleaming under the Sun—too shiny for John’s liking. Thankfully, his tormenting and seductive eyes were nowhere to be found yet. But, why was John avoiding him as if he was a pest? It’s complicated, you’ll understand later on.

John walked to the empty soup cauldron and grabbed the coffee pot next to it and a metallic cup nearby. He sighed as he sipped from the coffee he had just poured himself; feeling the smoke coming off his mouth like locomotor steam. He needed it to be functional, it had become his coal and main source of energy.

He stood next to the fire in the common area, waiting for Dutch to give a speech he had asked everyone the night before to hear. Why the hell would he give a speech so early in the morning when even the rooster hadn’t yet given his call to the sky? He wondered, staring his distorted reflection in the coffee in his hand.

It was a quiet morning, everyone who woke up, quickly waved at John and left to grab a coffee, or so it remained until the feared one appeared. He walked graciously without effort, his shirt had some buttons undone that showed his chest and collarbone, looking like a damn angel. He rinsed his face and John saw with detail from afar how every drop of water dripped down his face and neck. It made him thirsty. That man was no other than Arthur Morgan.

Arthur ran his hand through his hair and over his nape. To John, that man could’ve been the Devil himself walking on Earth, an angel who had fallen from Heaven for his ego. He was too full of himself, afly in making everyone blush in a moment’s notice. Before John could realize, Arthur was staring at the red in his cheeks and grinned, satisfied from his reaction.

“Damn you!” John whispered, looking anywhere but at him as he burned his tongue and narrowed his eyes.

Arthur, with his smug grin, quickly grabbed his coffee and sat next to the fire a few feet away from John, who didn’t know Arthur was just mesmerized with his foolishness, head over heels for a stubborn and reckless but loveable little piece of shit—a nickname truthful to his nature. A true rascal! Against his better judgement and all prognostics, an all-standing jinx befell upon him like rain in a desert.

He admired John from the ground, his strong jawline, the scars on his cheek that ran to his nose and the corner of his lips. However, his foul mouth didn’t catch up with his beauty—quick witted and far too fast for his train of thought that always got him in trouble. Arthur drank from his coffee and looked at John in the eye who, this time, didn’t turn their gaze away but held it dearly.

“What are you thinkin’ about?” John asked with his raspy voice, trying to sound uninterested but contradicted by the widened pupils in his curious eyes.

A walking contradiction, Arthur thought with a grin. “Wanna’ know?” He took a long swig of his cup and let it sit in his lap.

John hesitated for a moment.  "No." Nevermind.

The blue-greened eye man cleaned the corner of his mouth with his thumb and licked it and slightly blushed. "What a shame."

John couldn't stop staring Arthur, something had lit in the corner of his mind.

"Anyway, what does Dutch want this early in the morning?"

"Don't know, don't care."  Arthur rolled his eyes and looked at his feet.

John gulped, bothered by Arthur's sudden behavior to which he decided to blind the eye on.

"He's been acting... strange," John mutters, making a long pause.

He was right. Dutch had changed; it was the gleam in the eye he had always told them to not have—those of an ambition far too great, burned by being too close to the Sun. Everybody had noticed but kept quiet, making a silent agreement in not talking about the matter. John had a hunch of what it meant, but also kept quiet.

"No more than you; what's going on with ya'? Did the wolves eat the brain whole? You've been avoiding me!"

Did he notice? He knew he wasn't hiding the fact so well, but admitting it hurt his pride.

"The hell you sayin'?! No, I haven't!"

Arthur smiled in response, as if it was the answer he was expecting.

"Why?"

John narrowed his eyes.

"Why what?"

"You know."

He stood up, spilt the coffee left in his cup into the fire and slowly walked to John. His body swung with temptation, a fierce cat-walk with a daring look in his eyes.  John felt like his feet were stuck to the ground, unable to take just one step aside to avoid the storm walking straight to him. His metallic eyes were bewitched by  Arthur's; he sure knew how to charm him every damn time.

He didn't stop until he towered over John, trapping him with his voluptuous figure.

"Why are you so shy?" He whispered to John in the ear with a burning breath that heated and tinted his cheeks in deep red.

John forgot how to breath. He was so close that he felt their bodies touch and their minds collide.

"I, uh..."

"you what, dear?"

How shameless could the bastard be? Didn't he have any limit?

"I don't wanna talk here; let's go somewhere else." John imposed in a soft mutter.

"Alright."

They went to John's tent taking hands. They were cramped in such a small place, where their breathing burned eachother's skin and only a dim light shined through the entrance. A long pause arrived when the world had seemed to stop rotating and time had gone somewhere else, making everything but them oblivious and unimportant.

"I don't understand why are you doing this," John said with long sigh, finally giving in.

John rested his head in Arthur's shoulder, feeling his body finally relax after the tense moment.

"I thought we were a secret, ya' know?" he muttered, "a thing only you and I knew. Our thing."

Arthur combed his fingers through John's black hair, softly caressing the back of his head and humming in agreement.

"I don't seem to understand why you smile at me every time you see me or why you, like, want to touch me every time you can—or when you look at me like that."

"Does it make you uncomfortable?"

"No! I, ugh... I don't know."

Arthur chuckled. “I get it.”

John sighed in relief. Did it mean he would stop acting weird? I mean, Arthur would always be a bastard no matter how you look at it, but he called it an improvement.

“I'm sorry” he continued ”, but there's no stopping me in loving you.”

What. In. The. World. That's not what he meant!

“Arthur, you're not listening—”

“Every damn word, of course I do...”

“Then why are you doing this?!” John buried his head deeper, frustrated. “I'm an asshole, okay, I get it. But that's not a reason for you to do this to me.” Enchanting me, making me drunk with every word you whisper. Damn you.

“John, I—”

“I don't deserve it.”

A long silence between them came to be except for the more recurrent footsteps outdoors, stumping into the grass and dirt. John held tighter to Arthur, who stepped back only to take a closer look to his face, eye to eye.

“Listen closely, you little piece of shit.”

John flinched to the sudden grab by his collar, wanting to look away but Arthur only held his gaze closer.

"There's no denying that you are an idiot— but my idiot. I'm a fool myself, an old dirty bastard that's only getting older with every day that goes by, thinking that I'm the happiest man alive every damn time I look at you and even though I know I don't deserve it either. I ain't a good man, John. And you fucking know it." He grabbed his collar stronger as if it was a threat, with that dead look in his eyes that had seen the deeds their owner had done.

After Arthur realized what he did, he let John go.

“If it was about deserving, John, you would've never been mine."

He gently took John's hand laid it in his face, placing a gentle kiss in the back of his hand.

John couldn't speak a word. His mind had gone blank except for the beautiful image of Arthur lovingly playing with his fingers, laying kisses in the tip of his fingers, and the words that uttered in the corners of his mind, echoing Arthur's whispers.

"I'm sorry, John. But I beg you, let this damn fool love you and show it to you."

John placed his hand in Arthur's earlobe. As if both had read their minds, they looked into each other's eyes before leaning into a soft, gentle kiss.

Their kisses never tasted sweet. It was rough, with sweat and blood that was so common in there lives. Neither of them deserved the sweet taste of paradise, but they were making one of their own.

“You make me feel like a fool, Arthur.”

“You too.”

John wished this moment lasted forever. He wanted to enjoy the moment when their souls had gotten closer, but a voice outside called.

“Arthur, John, Where are you?!” Dutch called, irritated of waiting.

They separated and held each other's gaze for a moment.

“We should go,” John whispered tenderly as he rolled he eyes.

“Let's go,” Arthur chuckled.

Arthur gently held John's hand before heading out of the tent, ready for the world.

[lady-plantagenet]

What hasn’t already been said: The Spanish Princess 2

Episode 3: GOOD Grief! (we finally have a good episode on our hands)

To all those of you keen enough to have come back for another segment of ‘what hasn’t already been said: TSP’, as opposed to have just been scrolling when you see this - welcome back! (Scrollers you too <3)

Drawing of Thomas More’s Son AKA who Margaret Pole at this point wants to be the step baby momma of ;).

To anyone who’s seeing this for the first time: what this is a list of observations, jokes, reactions and criticism which occur to me upon a rewatch. I wait every week until Saturday to do this so that I have had my fill of scrolling through the tag and aggregating what has already been said. I tried doing a whole spoof (here where I gave up 10% in) but tbh a) I don’t know the history well enough b) it’s more time consuming than I thought and c) this series is just not as funny or as crazy as TWQ, so it’s untenable. Having said that: This is not a hatepost. I’m not hatewatching this series and nitpicking on purpose but expressing my honest views and trying to find the good in it as well as the bad.

Without further ado...

First Scenes: 

LMAO the way Wolsey suggests they break their alliance with Spain is freaking hilarious because the actor delivers the lines as if he were a high school girl making a personal attack by suggesting the prom change its theme to 70s disco to the chagrin of the peppy up-and-coming rival.

Also @ Henry VIII looking like the peppy up-and-comer’s bff and shy stan with that pencil bite and small smirk when Catherine loses her cool against Wolsey.

I’m sorry... who is Henry married to again?

Also what is Margaret Pole doing at the council meeting?? I’m not saying I don’t like it.

Margaret Pole warning against certain repetitive thinking creating madness :(((

Attempted Naked Twister:

Oh Catherine, what is with you and all the other STARZ protagonists and that weird politcky bedroom talk? Who actually finds this sexy?

‘Catherine you are unnatural’ ooof that line delivery was somehow haunting.

Was the whole ‘I can’t be rushed you are off-putting with your overpowering’ a callback to Arthur and Catherine? Apparently there’s another writer for this episode so I won’t put all subtly past them. 

Scotland:

‘Shitey men’ asdkjashd

Look I’m tired of all this ‘my children won’t be safe’ line getting repeated. Look mate, murder of royal infants and children was not exactly a common occurence, even in cases of deposition. The Princes in the Tower are an exception to this but a very infamous case for that reason. Child murder was extremely taboo. In situations like this with an infant kid, no one is going to bother murdering the babies and taking their thrones, the lords will just vie for power and make themselves de facto rulers and oust the queen. It’s not a question of safety but a question of holding power. Stop giving all women characters perma mummy brains.

Maggie being all caring:

‘Barnaby’ *scoffs* ‘Such an English name’ - OH MAN 0_0 is Catherine mocking them for trying to adapt ? Like I know it’s meant to show her envy for Lina, but it’s coming out all messed up.

Our girl Maggie’s smile screams I’m beating your ass in chess.

Anyhow this is the least histrionic we’ve seen Catherine so far.

Chaplain vs Catherine:

I’m interested how Catherine will feel at Stafford’s execution given that I have noticed this show build up to a friendship between them.

Why is everyone laughing at the whole ‘will you delight us with new schemes’ line was not that funny?

LMAO at Thomas Boleyn’s attempted brown-nosing. 

You know what? Ruairi is a decent actor. When he says ‘so you admit it? you lost the child because you tried to be a man?” the actor conveys Henry’s troubled mind, lowkey scare towards Catherine and bewilderment all in one. The way his eyes do not move but just widen emotionlessly also gives this sense that he is being manipulated (which I guess they are going for with Wolsey). Then the whole choir music in the background.. I don’t know.. I’m liking this, it’s creating a vibe of a king of haunted and increasingly paranoid Henry. I’m sure they are going for that, so good.

Ursula Pole and Mama:

Maggie Pole say ‘riches don’t keep you safe’ with tears in her eyes :’(. Please tell me how this is not her thinking on her parents and granddad Warwick and what befell them ;’(.

I find Ursula refreshing actually, don’t get those types of heroines often. But they are making her similar to a gold-digger, an exhalted marriage was first and foremost considered a thing of honour. Noblepeople wouldn’t speak in such mercenary terms regarding their marriages. 

Post Mary Defiance:

I love the ‘horse’ nickname from Brandon n’awwww

Also just realised what made TWQ so atmospheric - that wierd ‘oooo’ sound effect in the background when a character was being paranoid or worrying. They are using it during Henry’s ‘How is it that I have no sons?’ and it is just... so effective.

Catherine calling them ordinary children... she just keeps striking me as more and more classist. Like ok, I know every royal was... but still, I thought she was meant to see Lina as a friend and equal despite her race and status. To add the race element, this kind of rubs me the wrong way.

Also it is so clear by the end when Catherine states how the king is upset with her, she expects Maggie to ask her about it.. but she doesn’t lmao.

Back to Scotland until Sexy boy fencing:

I love me this soft boi. Angus <3 <3

I like how they address that some men don’t really like killing and that violence isn’t inherent in a man’s nature.

Oh man, are we supposed to look at Lina’s house and deplore the impoverished conditions? It would go for at least 3,000,000 pounds in today’s property market?

Is Catherine being particularly classist again with ‘Why u not becoming a butcher Wolsey, ey?’. 

Though I will admit the ‘but giving meat to the poor is also good’ was one of her only smart comebacks.

Just realised, Catherine’s pink dress pretty as it is, looks straight out of the 1570s... why?

Montage and After:

You guys are right, there is this weird longing between Henry and Wolsey lmao. It is actually insane.

So basically Catherine is officially depressed

OOOFF we have Stafford as regent instead of Catherine. (edit: I suppose it’s cause they go to France which they didn’t historically? Also if Stafford is at home then what is his son later doing in France, why would he be there without his father. This show didn’t think this through)

Meg Singing:

An impassionate speech is not too anachronistic. But despite the title of this post (what hasn’t been said) I will reiterate that 16th century and Medieval people’s problem wasn’t that they were ashamed of their grief and didn’t cry. In fact, crying was somewhat more socially acceptable then than it even is now! Even manly men like Arthur were written as crying in literature such as Malory’s Morte d’Arthur. Obviously you couldn’t go overboard, but in truth crying was indeed often too performative rather than hidden too much behind doors.

Pole and More UWUWU in France and after:

I LIKE THIS INTELLECTUAL FLIRTING

It’s nice to see a depiction of romantic feelings between mature and level-headed subjects.

God Mary Tudor is so beautiful in this scene jesus. and the music when she was being presented was also very beautiful.

Maggie Pole getting given ‘a modest income’ yeah... she was one of the wealthiest peers of her day.

Also Maggie’s lady cousin not lady aunt Frost!

‘shaking of the sheets’ lmaoooo

William Compton cracks the hell out of me. I love this guy. He is just so creepy and twisted yet super keen and friendly. ahaha He looks like a riot, I hope we see him more. lmao tiles.

Also this palace feels very anachronistic almost 18th century-ish.

I like the Louis and Mary sequence, it’s nice seeing him trying to make her feel less scared, but OMFG when he lay on that chair.. for one second I thought they were trying to kill him off already.

Scotland: ‘Love is an open doooooorrrrr’ + Last Scene:

I ship Meg and Douglas ahhhh this soft boi x strong woman match is everything Henry and Catherine could have been.

I wonder... why is Lina speaking in Spanish more than Catherine. hmmm Are they trying to foreshadow Lina’s eventual return home and how Catherine become a true englishwoman?

Conclusion:

7.5/10

I cannot in all fairness believe it. This was actually decent. I’ve given up on historical accuracy long ago so by this point I’m focusing more on how it stands as as drama. I mean, TWQ was also a flop when it came to grasping the complex issues of that era but why do I feel compelled to rewatch it every year? Because it had atmosphere when it came to acting, music, certain aesthetics (though the costumes let me down often). It felt adequately gothic and dark, yet bright and jewel-lish when it had to be, sometimes both at the same time. Some one-liners were also memorable etc...

So far TSP 2 did not have any of this. Everything felt way too off and anachronistic. But not even consistently anachronistic. The music was also often very meh (though I just noted the absence of the spanish stringy theme that kept playing in season 1 - I guess I understand why), the dialogue very clichéd (‘alright lads let’s throw in the words: king, crown, power, fight, battle + other buzzwords and we have ourselves Shakespeare’) and so on... but I saw a change in this episode and I couldn’t initially point out what it was.

Upon rewatch, I identified some of the improvements (noted above) but above all: The producer was different! Boy does it show. Unfortunately, I think she is only for this one episode which really sucks. Come back! There is more chemistry between the couples, less predictable interactions, pervy Compton, cinnamonroll Douglas, better music, more scenic shots (e.g Douglas and Margaret in church) e.t.c. I hope it will match the rest of the STARZ productions in getting better towards the end.

Look it’s no masterpiece. But I’ll give credit where it’s due because at least this time it didn’t leave me feeling wanting and unsatisfied (if that makes sense).

[magicjesuscup]

How would the KoTR react to Gray from Lord El-Melloi Case Files(don’t answer if you haven’t heard or watched)

I got two of these, so I’m going to delete the other one. I'm also going to say this is after they learn about her past and not them reacting to how she looks. I'm doing it this way because there are so many saber faces I don't think they'd have much of a reaction to a girl who just looks like their king anymore.

I also want to note that I think Gray only ever referred to Waver as "Sir" in the subbed version, so I'll be sticking to that in my response.

Another thing to note: I wrote Arthur/Artoria, Lancer Artoria, and Mordred’s reactions a few days before everyone else’s. So, theirs are kinda in the form of mini fanfiction while the rest are headcanons.

SFW and spoilers for the Lord El-Melloi Case Files.

Arthur/Artoria

Oh. Oh god do they feel guilty about this. The whole reason Gray looked the way she did was because her village was trying to resurrect them!? This poor girl never had a life of her own because she was expected to live as someone else. (No, they don't see this as anything similar to what they experienced when they were alive. They chose to be king; Gray was born into this madness.) They fought so hard so people could live their lives; this isn't what they intended.

"I never would have imagined anyone would rob someone of their life to resurrect me. Forgive me."

Gray shook her head and stared at the ground. "It wasn't all bad. I was able to meet Sir, and because I had Add, I could protect him. And I met a lot of people through him too. Some were strange. Some were kind. But they're all important memories for me, and I wouldn't have them if my childhood had been different."

Hearing that made them feel better. If she wasn't sad over things, why should they be? Still, they were a bit worried about what would happen if her village ever caught up to her.

Lancer Artoria

Artoria looked at Gray with all the confidence and dignity befitting a king. "There are several versions of me running around Chaldea. You are not one of them. The things I left undone and have yet to do are my burden to bear, not yours."

Listening to that calm tone and noting her body language, Gray looked at the floor. She was so shy and timid. "I'm really not like you at all."

"No. You are a failed King Arthur." Artoria put her hand under Gray's chin and tiled her head upward. The look in Artoria's eyes was soft and there was a hint of a smile on her face, "But, you are an exemplary Gray." Artoria dropped her hand. "You need but tend to your own affairs, whatever they may be; I shall handle the rest."

"Pft." A voice under Gray's cloak spoke. "Once and future king my foot!" Gray moved her cloak aside revealing the mystic code, who continued, "Two world wars, Brexit, a handful of pandemics-"

"Rhongomyniad." Artoria's voice was full of authority and her tone carried a warning.

The mystic code fell silent. Gray looked in shock from Add to Artoria. Sheepishly she requested, "I know you'd like me to live for myself, but I'd really like to learn how you did that."

Artoria stifled a chuckle. "I'd be honored to teach you."

"H-Hey!" Add protested. "Don't I get a say in this!?"

Artoria's voice immediately slipped back into its normal deadpan. "No."

Bedivere

Good boy Bedivere is kind, but also acts like the butler she never asked for. She doesn't want to make him feel bad by declining his offers to help her, but it's very strange for her to have someone offering to do things for her. She's kinda used to being the one to run errands and do little tasks. So, instead of accepting his offers, she suggests they do the tasks together instead. They get along well. Bedivere is a people person and conversations come easy to him, which is good since that's not one of Gray's strong suits.

Gawain

Word gets to Gawain that Gray is somehow related to King Arthur. He's kind of excited by this because that means she's his kin too. He's very curious how they're related, but is fairly certain he'll never find out. Documents detailing her family tree either probably don't exist or have been long destroyed. He basically appoints himself her big brother. Of course, he realizes very quickly he can't be rough with her like he was with his brothers/sisters raised to be boys (no wrestling and what not). Luckily, he doesn't have much trouble adapting. He tries to be kind and gentle, but it kinda comes off as weird and creepy?

Gawain: If you ever need a hug, Big Brother Gawain is here. *holds out his arms for emphasis, like he's ready for a hug right now.*

Gray: Oh. Thank you. *is 100% not going to hug him, but appreciates the gesture.*

Lancelot

Okay, so Lancelot had has a body guard crush on Artoria, and this girl is not helping. Sure, he's used to seeing other girls that look like his king running around and acting differently but none of them are this cute(!?). Like, every time Gray's around, he pictures Artoria acting like Gray and then starts smiling like a doofus.

Gray: Sir Tristan, is Sir Lancelot alright? He's had that look on his face for five minutes and he doesn't seem to be aware of anything happening around him.

Tristan: Oh, that's just the face he makes when he's thinking about a pretty girl.

Gray: Are you sure?

Tristan: Yes, he does it a lot; you'll get used to it.

Merlin

Merlin is super torn. Gray is the type that gets flustered pretty easily. People like that are super fun for him to tease, but she also looks too much like Artoria. Every time he looks at her, he's reminded of raising the tiny king until she was five and then popping back in her life to train and advise her. Also, what if he says something lewd to her, she deems him a pervert, and then never speaks to him again!? That would be awful. For now, he'll just treat her the same way he does Saber Lily.

Mordred

Mordred put his hands on his hips. "I don't get why you're bothering with that hood. Do you have any idea how many people here look like father? Nero. Joan of Arc. Okita. Bitch, you ain't special." He noticed Gray turning away from him and decided to switch tactics a bit. "I look just like father too; you think I should hide my face?"

Gray stammered out a, "Well, no-"

"Damn straight I shouldn't." He jerked his thumb towards his face. "This mug is mine. I'm not hiding it anymore, and neither should you."

Gray thought about what Mordred said and slowly removed her hood.

Mordred grinned and slapped her hard on the back a few times. "Look who's balls dropped; good job, kid!"

Tristan

Gray follows Tristan around sometimes, but he doesn't mind. Gawain and Lancelot are acting like complete weirdos, so he's guessing she's just grateful to have found a knight that can act like a normal human being. He's also 100% wrong. Gray is fascinated by Tristan's ability to somehow see with his eyes shut. Her working theory is that he has mystic eyes that let him see through his eyelids and they take such a toll on him they cause him to randomly fall asleep throughout the day. She tags along with him waiting to see some evidence (her experiences with Waver have taught her to always look for proof). Also, Gawain and Lancelot know this, but they're not telling him. Can you blame them? He called them weirdos; they're going to enjoy watching him be wrong!

[imasimpforstevengrant]

I can see you

Author's note:

First, I never thought I would write a fic after almost two years later. I had this idea after watching a fanmade video about Arthur and Harleen falling for each other. I had fun while writing this, since Arthur is a completely new character (not following the comics). Please note that this is written purely for amusement and I don't profit from it.

Second, sorry for any typos. English is not my first language (Chilean Spanish for the win, everybody!). I hope you like it.

_________________________________________

Warnings: angst, self hatred, a bit of swearing, sexual themes and stalking.

Words: 1.730

Summary: Arthur Fleck doesn't live. He barely manages to exist, devoid of any bond. Until one day, a woman reminds him of how much of a human he is.

_________________________________________

He had seen her several times, but he never had the courage to talk to her. He usually avoided her when she was too close to him.

Arthur knew himself too well to know what would happen: his hated laughing fits. Therefore, he preferred to love her from distance, without her noting his existence. It was better this way.

The first time Arthur saw this young woman was in the hallway. She was going down the stairs to the seventh floor of the building. He cherished every move she did. This stranger danced while listening to music, thinking no one would notice her. She shook her figure as she mouthed passionately the lyrics of whatever song was listening. Arthur hid near the wall that divided the halls, and thus, the apartments.

He glared at her like a predator. His mouth watery caused by the hunger she woke within him. Arthur swore he could feel her in his arms, dancing vehemently to a song. He wondered during long periods of time how it would feel to touch her skin.

His lust was a loud, thundering storm that kept troubling his already cursed mind. But in the outside, the silence suggested indifference.

It kept like this for months. Arthur had also yearned for innocent things, such as a smile or even a kind word from her. He constantly fantasized about her and the guilt and regret fought after the lustful desires roamed through his fractured psyche. This was too much for him to bear. He wrote about the woman in his journal, dedicating pages of misspelled but honest thoughts. Arthur found a new way to cope with insomnia.

It was a rainy day when his feelings took another radical turn. Arthur returned to his flat after another shitty day of work. He headed towards the elevator, pressing the button to open it. He waited patiently. The bell rang and the sliding door opened.

"Fuck!", he hissed lowly when he saw her. She was carrying a bag and had her hair done in buns. Arthur thought she couldn't be more beautiful.

"Hi" she chirped, grinning at him.

"Hi" was all Arthur could reply after his failed attempt to keep his gaze in the ground. Was she actually talking to him? The beloved stranger noticed a trace of blood in his lips and sweetly asked:

"Are you alright?"

He remained silent for a few seconds, studying her expression. It was so kind and sincere.

"Yes".

"Are you sure you're okay?" Her question echoed through his mind. Even her voice turned out to be as smooth as her appearance. Arthur inhaled deeply.

"I am, miss. Thanks for asking" he replied puzzled, trying to figure out why would she even care.

The door opened and she politely waved goodbye to him and wishing him well. Arthur didn't give a verbal answer but he certainly waved back to her.

Arthur smirked. And his gesture did not disappear until he arrived home.

He built a routine in his free time. If he couldn't be with her, he was satisfied enough to watch her. At night, he usually followed her to the now empty playground. The woman was swinging in a rope made out of clothes stretched and extended in what seemed a big, dome-shaped cage like. The blonde had the habit to exercise there, not bothered by some bystanders (mostly men) who whistled at her.

Despite the jealousy that grew within him, Arthur understood it wasn't strange. He surely wasn't the only one after her affections.

He took a liking to this new scene: watching her move as if she was practising a gymnastic routine was fantastic. Her movements were so delicate, yet sensual. She seemed to go along with the air, soaring with it.

But she didn't notice, obviously. The girl would probably had gone running and screaming for help if she had discovered him.

Arthur was wrong. He was so wrong.

One day, he sneaked around wearing his yellow hoodie to preserve his identity. He was outside the building, hiding in the shadows. There she was again: beautiful and unreachable. Her long, platinum blonde hair fell like a waterfall. Arthur was amazed. She moved her arms in a graceful way once again, to flow through it in a twirl that swinged her back and forth. The girl seemed to smile before the risky move, congratulating herself in silence on this apparent progress.

Arthur laughed out loud, amazed. But he soon clasped a hand in his mouth. She turned around immediately to his direction. Arthur felt the panic and tried to run.

She called him. Not berating him but genuinely interested. There was no violence in her voice. Arthur argued with himself over and over about if this was a good idea from the beginning. The man was walking around like a disoriented dog while grasping his curly locks, out of fear and guilt. He stood still for a while, without saying a word.

He then realized the woman kept calling him.

Arthur tightened his eyelids, fighting the urge to run away. He kept still during long seconds until he finally decided to face her. It was now or never. Little did he know that she was just a few feet away from him.

Once Arthur turned around, he almost tripped taking a step away from her. He stared at the young woman: she showed no signs of fear or disgust. In fact, she seemed curious about him. She clawed at the fence that separated the playground from the building and dead end alleys. He imitated the action, staring directly at her eyes, blue like summer sky. She smiled at him, her perfect teeth shining like pearls. And it was in this moment when Arthur could pay more attention to her attributes. The girl in question was the owner of an astounding beauty: expressive blue eyes, pink full lips which formed a sweet smile. And that was only her face. Arthur was infatuated. Her face lit up once her lips curved into such expression. Was she hypnotizing him?

He wouldn’t mind, of course.

Arthur stared at her mouth, and wonders how it would feel against his own cracked, dry lips.

But her body was another wonder. She wore a white, long, sleeveless shirt adjusted to her body shape, leaving nothing to imagination. God, if he only could trace his fingers down her hips he'd die happily.

He continued his private appreciation watching the grey shorts that left her most of her thighs uncovered. He then darted his eyes up to her hair. Her long, slightly wavy strands of hair were dyed in two different colours: the right side was strawberry pink from the half down. Same with the left side, except the colour was a electric blue. It added a dreamy touch to her.

Arthur pictured himself playing with her hair, doing little curls with it. It looked so silky.

"You've been enjoying my show, have you?"

Arthur looked up to her again.

"Yeah" he muttered, ashamed.

"Why the long face, babe? It's not like I'm upset", the woman said.

Arthur stared at her again, but out of confusion.

"Are you not upset?"

"At all" she quickly replied, "I like when people see me, actually".

Arthur felt a cold shudder in his back. It was in this moment he sensed something in his chest. He perceived it as the natural reaction to the first conversation he held with someone else without the other significant being weirded out of him. This common trait was enough to give him hope of a new, happy chapter on his mirthless life.

"Yeah... You know, I like when people see me too".

The woman nodded and leaned her face into the fence. Arthur took a deep breath and it didn't take too long to emulate the pose. She was bold enough to let him come closer to her as if she wanted him to kiss her.

"What's your name?" He hummed against her face.

"Harleen Quinzel", she answered "and you are...?"

"Arthur" he rushed to give his reply, "my name is Arthur Fleck--".

A chuckle escaped his throat.

'Oh, no. Not now, not now please', Arthur silently begged as his loving expression fade away so shame would take its place.

His brain of course showed no mercy.

The laughing fit lasted almost ten minutes. It was the first time in years that he truly believed he was going to die of suffocation. He struggled with choking more than two times every minute. Arthur wasn't completely drawn into his fit. He looked for a fraction of seconds at the girl. Harleen shocked at first. After a few moments, she joined him believing innocently he was laughing out of amusement.

"You know, you can tell me the joke so we can laugh together".

Arthur wasn't able to silence his noisy curse. He only covered his mouth, shaking his head trying to make her see the desperation in his eyes. Harleen's facial expressions morphed from fun to actual worry when Arthur's hand reached his throat in an useless attempt to breathe, still clawing at the fence with the one that left free. Her eyes widened in horror. Arthur felt too powerless to even show her the card explaining his fucking condition. It was alright if she wanted to run away. He already accepted his shameful defeat.

However, to his surprise, she nimbly climbed up the fence to help him. The stalker was too weak to keep standing but when he was crumbling into the ground, Harleen helped him to stand up.

She spoke to him, reassuringly. And she spoke so many things he couldn't process while taking him to a bench to contain him. So far she was a few seconds ago and now she stood with him throughout the painful laughter.

"I'm sorry--" Arthur tried to hide his face in his arm but Harleen seemed to understand... Or at least took pity on him.

The laughing fit finally ended and Arthur got a card from his pocket. He remained silent, disgusted with himself. The blonde took it and read it carefully. Her serene gaze towards the object comforted Arthur slowly. Once she finished reading it, she returned it to his owner. Harleen seemed truly surprised... Or maybe scared. He didn't know and felt too embarrassed to even talk to her. One thing was for sure:

Arthur Fleck never felt uglier in his life.

[lallemxnt]

the first time you saw yourself on tv : a : i remember i did a race for the mycosis et the journalist said « tonight you’ll be on the tv at 11pm » i had school the next day but i waited until 11pm to see it and he cut me off at editing m : mec !! so what’s crazy is that when there was the terrorist attack in paris there was this big manifestation and i got interview by BFM tv like « why are you here » and i said something that i found kinda lame but my roommate told me « no it was great it was rlly cool » and they also cut me off at the editing, so the first time i saw myself on tv was in skam a: you’re rlly good on tv m : same for you they shouldn’t have cut you off both laugh the first scene you played together : m: well it was- a : the poni scene m: oh yeah putain that right a : yeah m: it was the poni scene a : there was this mood really uh... you could feel everyone was together and it was ouf first kiss in front of the camera m: our first scene together was the first scene i filmed of my life a: really ? m: yeah a: he was amazing, david stopped and said « if it’s gonna be like that during the whole shooting it’s gonna be great, » he’s too modest the first advice you would give to someone who wants to be an actor ? m: work « like a pig » (french expression) a: yeah yeah, i would say knowing why you’re doing it because in the hard moments it’s what makes us stay, it’s why we wanna shoot, why we wanna support projects, giving life to characters and also the reality of this work, it can goes from everything to nothing, so yeah you have to work like « a pig » the first concert you’ve been to : a : star academy m : kyo a : og yeah, the luck !! m: yeah it was amazing but i was 11 a : it was the period of... what’s his name ? you know i listened to « le mur du son » m: oh yeah denzey * they both sing* your first reaction after getting the characters of eliot and lucas ? a: i was sick m : makes a joke about how his voice was a: and my agent lost his voice so he sent me a message with bottle of champaign and yeah i called my ex girlfriend and i was like « amazing it’s skam » and we broke up one week after m : wow putain its crazy ! i was in korea, basically its rlly funny because it’s the same story as axel, i was in seoul with my ex girlfriend and they called me so i was rlly happy and we broke up one week after a: laughs idk why im laughing m: skam breaks hearts a: right. don’t do skam the first thing you do when you have time for yourself ? a : ohhhh ! you don’t know what i did yesterday ? i watched for the first time harry potter m: ohhh putain a: it’s amazing m: the first one ? a: yes the first one m: the first one is so good a: why did they hide harry potter from me m: they didn’t mec a : it’s amazing, really watch harry potter m: yeah no you’re right a: yeah sorry, little tips i’m giving to y’all, it’s amazing harry potter m: i listen to music or i hang out with my friends because i don’t really have time to do it since one year oh and i also go and i take walks it’s cool the first time a fan recognized you in the street ? a: you it’s skam ? m: yes a: i did an ad for tabbouleh and two days after a girl stopped me in the street and she asked me « it’s you in the ad for tabbouleh ? » and for me i was brad pitt, i was too happy m: me it was in seoul it was for modeling, my agence there told me « you know here you’re famous » and i was like « really ?? » because it’s weird you know and people in korea are really into modeling so when i was in seoul during the evening, girls stopped me and they were like « can we take a pic for instagram? » a: nooo so cool m: yeah and since we’re going back there this year it’s gonna be ... a: ten times worse putain so you know where to go ? m: oh yeah a: great we’re gonna eat great things ! the first time you saw the rest of the skam fr cast ? m: happiness a: you think we’re gonna say « oh really i wouldn’t have taken two or three » no rlly it’s so coo, it’s like a holiday camp m: uh no a work camp haha a: no but it’s amazing and it’s by a producer who’s david hourregue and he’s amazing thanks dad m: thanks dad the first thing you can say about season 5 : a: really ? so... m: arthur becomes a cosmonaute a : did you heard about alexia ? m: no a: because she left to do a mission in the nasa m: and that’s how they met a; its in a package of chocolate m: and they found the gold ticket a : and boum m: in the space a : it’s high, every night we say « see you soon » a : kiss we love you

[aithuzah]

What are the full total of times in which Arthur had all the clues for figuring Merlin out? (Hell most of the ones I remember could have turned very much into Merthur feelings revealed)

(note: as always, this turned out longer than i intended and doesn’t directly answer your question, but i didn’t think a bullet point list of scenes would convey Arthur’s perspective or the way I see his thought process contributing to a magic reveal of this kind.)

assuming you’re asking because of this part of this post that’s going around again:

“The series gives Arthur everything he needs to ~solve the puzzle of Merlin,~ in moments like this where there’s so clearly something wrong, that doesn’t add up based on what he knows. In canon, he stays willfully blind to all of it, and he’s forgiven for ignoring what is, at times, literally waved in front of his face.”

i want to rephrase a little: Arthur is given a lot of clues throughout the series pointing towards Merlin’s secret that could have driven him to push a little harder or investigate a little more in general, OR possibly put a few things together towards the end of the series in high-pressure, emotionally charged situations like the Disir decision. 

when i talk about clues, i’m talking about all the little quirks and oddities and contradictions that surround Merlin as seen from Arthur’s perspective. on their own, they’re easy to dismiss. but they keep happening, and they keep piling up, and Arthur knows it’s strange. he keeps calling Merlin a mystery, a riddle, someone he never figured out. 

in canon, he doesn’t seem to try that hard. and i think a lot of people would say that means he just trusts merlin that much, or respects his privacy, or doesn’t care enough about his weird servant’s weird habits. and i think all of that is true, to an extent. that’s why i think it might take a super-charged situation like the Disir, where Merlin’s bizarre, deeply emotional reaction to such a serious moral/legal/social/political question matters, for all the strange things that Arthur had been ignoring to suddenly fall into place for him.

but honestly?? the first really big "clue” that came to mind is the showdown with Kilgharrah at the end of season 2. 

like, they’ve been told many times that the only way to defeat magical creatures is with magic— in this case, specifically dragonlord magic. which they don’t have! because the only one left died right after they found him! (and hey, wasn’t Merlin acting weird and quiet during that whole mission? but never mind the riddle of Merlin, there’s a dragon to slay—) 

but Arthur’s going to challenge the dragon, because it’s his duty as prince to protect his people. except, hold on, Merlin is insisting that he comes with him and the knights, even though there’s nothing he could do to help. 

the knights get roasted before they can do anything. arthur gets in one stab at the dragon’s side and gets knocked out. and then he wakes up and Merlin says they won, Arthur “dealt him a mortal blow,” but the dragon’s gone. did it fly off and succumb to its wounds elsewhere? did its body disintegrate? and wait, he only landed one blow, was that really enough to kill a massive dragon? whatever, who cares, they survived. what else could have happened, anyway?

i think something about it would feel off to him in a way he can’t pinpoint. the same feeling of wrongness, the sense that he’s missing something— that same feeling he’s had so often when it comes to magic. when it comes to Merlin. why does Merlin always seem to know so much? why is he always involved? where does a defenseless peasant get all that courage? 

and sometimes, after yet another victory over magic, Merlin seems to be smiling through tears, through heartbreak. what burdens could a simple-minded servant possibly carry, to produce those sudden moments of deep wisdom and stunning sincerity? 

also, Merlin keeps saying he’s “protecting” Arthur or that he “saved his life.” what’s that all about? Arthur’s the big strong knight who does all the saving and protecting, right? must be another one of Merlin’s jokes. or delusions. right?

all of these contradictions, inconsistencies, and oddities should add up to something if Arthur is paying any attention at all. at the very least, i think it would point to the idea that Merlin’s secrets are big, maybe even important enough to affect the kingdom. which WOULD warrant more in-depth thought and investigation than Arthur might have bothered with otherwise. like, is he really JUST a servant/peasant? or hey, wasn’t his best friend a goddamn sorcerer? what’s that all about?

my point is that Arthur could have realistically figured Merlin out (to some extent) at pretty much any point in the series, if he had the right catalyst—maybe just one more key piece of evidence pointing in the right direction, or a similar kind of what’s-the-morality-of-magic pressure like we see in the Disir or Sins of the Father. but within canon itself, i think the Disir is the most natural moment for it to all come together for Arthur, based on the nature of their dilemma and Merlin’s intense emotional response.

[demaury]

the best of me (chap.2)

“If anything bad happens I flush the rings, I leave my bestman spot to Baz, and I fly back to Paris.“

OR. Eliott and Lucas have never worked up the courage to actually make a move, and thus spent years dancing around each other without ever acknowledging their feelings. However, an engagement party gone a little too wild, an hotel room and a very bad idea might be all it takes to make everything blow up. (read on ao3)

“LALLEMANT’S HERE.”

Lucas should have known that having Arthur and Basile at the same time around a pool wasn’t a good idea, yet it wasn’t until he heard his two friends wail as soon as he set a foot on the deck installed on the rooftop that he realized it was a completely fucked up idea. He barely had any second to blink before two pairs of arms grabbed him like vices; next thing he knew he was sputtering water after getting back to the surface.

At least he had the bright idea to change into swim trunks before coming there.

Bless him.

“You,” he scowled, hair dripping all over his face as his two friends were laughing their asses off, “I swear to God you both are dead.”

“Oh, c’mon, don’t say you didn’t expect it,” Arthur snorted, hands falling to his hips.

Lucas lifted himself up onto the edge of the pool in a splash of water, warily accepting the hand Basile landed him. “Astonishingly enough I thought that we were between civilized people. My mistake,” he groaned as he grumpily fistbumped them hello, before going to see the girls.

Only Nola and Manon were there, but he wasn’t surprised since Emma had already been told by the girls herself that Daphné, Alexia and Imane were held back in some shopping session but had promised to run back to the hotel as soon as possible. Yann’s girlfriend-turned-fiancée had been a part of the group for almost two years now, and since she didn’t have a weird obsession with how hot Eliott and Lucas getting it on together would be — Arthur’s ex had one of those and Lucas had wanted to strangle her more times he could count — she had been welcomed to stay. She and Yann had met up through Imane, both working as interns in the same hospital, so it had been easy from there, Lucas could only guess.

“Consider yourself lucky,” Manon pointed out from her spot on one of the deckchairs, closing the book she was reading as she pushed up her sunglasses, “you’ll never have to worry about keeping a wedding dress clean for a whole day with these two around.”

Next to her, Nola paled. “Oh please no.”

“Already talking about wedding dresses but I don’t see any ring yet,” Arthur snickered.

Nola grinned. “My fiancé couldn’t wait to propose, I guess? We’re gonna go shopping when we get back home.”

Lucas turned to Yann with a shocked expression. “Who does that?”, he scoffed.

They were at the beginning of their relationship. Lucas didn’t know much himself about functioning relationships but he could only guess that technically those kinds of inadvertent dick moves happened later down the road, usually.

Yann looked a bit sheepish. “I wanted her to pick something she likes,” he mumbled. “She’s gonna wear it after all.”

“Didn’t you pick your wedding suit for your dad’s second marriage, like, two days prior or something?” Basile quipped.

“I didn’t want to go,” he grumbled. “That’s different.”

“I don’t think any of us particularly wanted you to livestream us the whole thing but I guess we all take one for the team, uh?” Eliott casually chimed in, joining him on the edge of the pool and letting his long legs dangle in the water.

Since Lucas was mature, and a very functioning adult at that, he stuck his tongue out as a response.

*

“It’s too bad we’re only here for the weekend,” Eliott complained with a sigh as he flopped down onto Emma’s bed. “Remember those three weeks after your BAC?”

Lucas snorted as he kept rummaging through his travel bag, squatting at the foot of his bed. He hadn’t wanted to take everything out but now he was starting to rethink his decision as he exhumed a wrinkled denim button down. Daphné, Basile, Eliott, Yann, Nola, Imane and him had gone out for lunch in a restaurant nearby, while the rest was dispersed in the city to do some shopping, then everyone had flocked back to the hotel and they had spent the better part of the afternoon by the pool occasionally trying to drown each other when they were mostly alone, on the seventh floor. It was the coolest thing Lucas had ever seen. It wasn’t so much that he had never seen something like that before, but he just had a thing for climbing and rooftop activities — back in Paris he had specifically chosen his new flat according to whether or not he had access to the one of his building. And well, also if he could afford it or not, but that was another story.

“We were young and wild and free,” Lucas commented dramatically.

He eventually set the shirt down, before grabbing his travel bag and emptying all of its content on his bed. It wasn’t like Eliott of all people would bat an eye at his calvin kleins. He reached for a pair of black pants finally standing out on the white comforter now that they weren’t lost in the deep end of the bag.

“I’d pick the black shirt,” Eliott said casually.

Lucas quirked a brow at him. “You just say that because it’s the one you bought me.”

Eliott grinned, making his eyes crinkle. “Well, yeah. Precisely,” he said, shrugging a little.

“I’m not going to dress all black, that’s right up your alley,” Lucas quipped.

“I’m trying to bring a little bit more colors, if you must know,” Eliott retorted, tugging at the hem of his light grey tank top as if it was a proof that it was a color. “Besides, the jeans you had this morning were fine, and they would look even finer with the black shirt. Who bought them for you?”

Lucas pondered the question and considered telling him to fuck off, but instead he just sighed. “Manon,” he grumbled, and Eliott started laughing like an asshole. Which was kind of sweet, but vaguely irritating. Lucas glared at him. “Someday I’ll claim back my closet, and you and Manon will finally stop dressing me up like I’m some sort of baby doll.”

“Wrong choice of words on every level.” The bastard smirked cheekily, regardless of the unimpressed look Lucas sent him. “Plus, we dress you up because you’d still be wearing sweatpants to your dates if it weren’t for us meddling in.”

“You’re admitting you’re meddling in, we’re getting at it,” Lucas bit back haughtily.

“Just admit I care about you, you little shit,” Eliott snorted.

Lucas cocked an eyebrow. “What did we say about size jokes?”

“It was a term of endearment,” Eliott protested, sitting up on Emma’s bed and leaning back his weight onto his hands.

It cruelly emphasized the veins on his arms and the sun was shimmering onto his skin and the tattoos he had on the underside of his arm. Not afraid? Not afraid. It had been a recurring joke between them when they were younger (a lifetime ago) and someday Eliott had snapped and just gotten it inked for good. Lucas had almost chocked himself when he had seen it on Instagram.

“And I’m feeling so endeared right now.”

Eliott flipped him off and Lucas chuckled. “Who are you rooming with anyway?”

“Arthur,” Eliott said casually. “Why, needed me to brush your hair?”

“Not really, but who’s gonna read me stories about hedgehogs and raccoons?” Lucas deadpanned.

“Hilarious,” Eliott deadpanned with the same voice.

Lucas laughed and went to push open the bathroom door, then stopped halfway and turned back. “Hey, I was meaning to ask. You still have the address of the tattoo parlor where you got those?”, he asked, gesturing at Eliott’s tattoos with his chin.

Eliott glanced down at his arms, a little bit lost, then he grinned. “No way, you’re gonna get one? After all this time?”

Lucas huffed and shrugged. “Dunno. Maybe? I’ve been thinking, you know. So you still have it or not?”

“Yeah, no problem,” Eliott smiled with a nod. “I’ll send it to you. They’ve got an Instagram page and all, no bad surprise.”

“Nice,” he nodded, almost to himself.

“What are you thinking about getting?” Eliott asked, curious. “If you don’t mind me asking, of course.”

Lucas pondered the question. “It’s not really- I don’t know, I was thinking about maybe getting something about my mom, but it sounds- I don’t know it seems kinda stupid.”

He scrunched his nose, mostly to himself. Now Eliott was gonna imagine him with a real-size portrait of his dead mom tattooed on his chest or something equally weird. All he had thought about so far was something small and rather casual, like a date or something no bigger than that. He had debated for months about it, thinking that it was maybe a bit hypocritical — after all he hadn’t really been the best son towards the end and he still had to live with a sense of relief that had washed over him after she had passed, before the actual pain could settle in — but now he considered that it didn’t mean he couldn’t honor his mom anyway simply because she wasn’t there anymore.

“It’s not stupid if it means something to you,” Eliott said.

Lucas huffed a laugh, which was his number 1 reaction whenever he had shared too much and just wanted it to stop. “Yeah, well, I’m just thinking, you know? Plenty of time for me to chicken out.”

“Not afraid. Remember?”

“Thank you Octavia Blake. I’ll remember that,” he snorted, pushing past the bathroom door.

*

Everything was fine, Lucas thought.

Absolutely, a hundred percent fine. He was fine. Yann was fine. Nola, Imane, Manon, Arthur, Basile, Daphné, Emma, Alexia were all fine. Eliott was fine. And the waiter who had been painstakingly hitting on him for the better part of the past hour was absolutely fine too.

They had all reunited at a bar down the street to get predrinks before hitting the clubs to celebrate, and Lucas was happy about it, he really was. Having all his friends gathered in one place and a free night to remember the good old times, what more could he ask, right? The third time Guillermo or Guz or whatever that stupid nametag read came around and eye-fucked Eliott without even the slightest hint of embarrassment, he genuinely thought he would burst though. The problem wasn’t that anyone was hitting on Eliott — water under the bridge and all — but it was rather that everyone seemed to find it the funniest thing on the goddamn planet.

Daphné certainly didn’t need another umbrella in her stupid cocktail.

Arthur didn’t need a refill.

And no one cared about the goddamn tapas and their fucking recipes.

As soon as the stupid waiter had gone back to the kitchen with a bright smile and a lingering look on Eliott, Emma leaned over the table. “He wants to give you the d so bad,” she grinned devilishly.

Eliott snorted and shook his head, leaning back against the backrest of his chair. “Maybe hookups at the back of a restaurant are your thing but they aren’t mine.”

Yann laughed, making his glass spin a little between his fingers. “Mr. Demaury’s a romantic, we been knew after all.”

“A romantic who’s single and isn’t getting any,” Emma commented, nose in her glass.

“That’s comforting, Emma, thank you.”

The table started laughing, but apparently Emma’s remark had sparked some interest in Daphné’s mind. Lucas knew something stupid would come out of it even before she opened her mouth — it wasn’t that she was stupid, it was just that this whole conversation was.

“She’s got a point,” she said thoughtfully. “You’re like one of the hottest guys I know, don’t tell me you’re still hung up on Macha.”

“Macha’s hot,” Alexia added, widening her eyes comically. “You guys were goals.”

Lucas almost snorted, but managed to hide it behind a coughing fit. Everyone knew that Eliott was bipolar, but he didn’t like to bring it up or to speak about it to all of them; in the end Lucas was generally the only one, sometimes along with Alexia or Basile whenever he needed advises, to know the extent of his low lows. The fact that at least one of Macha (her name was Marie-Charlotte, but beware to your nuts if you dared to call her that) and Eliott’s many breakups had been caused by a tantrum she had thrown because he wasn’t answering her texts fast enough, when he had already made a supreme effort to write her, with words, that he wasn’t feeling alright at the moment, was one of the things that only Lucas knew, and sometimes he wished he could share this information and the resentment towards her without betraying Eliott’s trust.

It was a tough balance to maintain, but he was managing it most of the time.

“Yeah, well. Macha’s busy these days,” Eliott shrugged. “It just wasn’t working with her in Berlin and me in Paris anyway. We’re both better apart.”

“Maybe we should try to set you up instead of trying to set up Lulu,” Basile said. “That’d make for a nice change.”

“I’ve never asked anybody to set me up,” Lucas scoffed.

“My bestman isn’t going to attend my wedding as a single man,” Yann retorted. “If by then you don’t have anybody to rock your nights, I’ll have to provide.”

“You wish you could, Cazas.”

On the other side of the table, Eliott grinned at him with a knowing look. “Spikey much, uh?”

Lucas rolled his eyes and downed his drink when he saw the waiter come back to their table with something they hadn’t even ordered, everyone holding back their breath with conspirator looks.

*

The first club they went to had a fifteen meters queue spilling outside the entrance and the slowest bouncer of the century. It took him an infinite amount of time to decide whether or not the group of five boys at the top of the line should be let in, before eventually deciding to ask them for their IDs. They all pretended to fumble for a while — or maybe they truly were this intoxicated already, hence why reaching for one of the four pockets of their jeans was so hard in the first place. In the meantime, Lucas was repressing the urge of constantly rolling his eyes by chatting away with Alexia and Eliott, until both got hooked by two girls (Dutch, apparently) from the group behind them. It wasn’t like he could really blame them. Eliott was Eliott, and Alexia radiated the cool vibe every single breath she took. It was rather the feeling of being left out that he resented always a little bit more than he was supposed to, and not just because people were hitting on Eliott.

Why should he care, after all?

If Eliott had game, he was happy for him.

Okay, maybe he was a bit upset. For the first time in forever they both happened to be single at the same time, and thus had no one clinging onto them for attention. This time, Lucas was clingy. Problem was, Eliott was one of those people who could fall in love with a doorknob, and when it was paired with good looks and good personality, celibacy wasn’t bound to be Eliott’s strong suit, and up until now Lucas’ theory had been pretty much verified. With a huff to himself he lost interest in trying to keep up with the conversation with the Dutch girls. On his other side, Daphné and Basile were happily sucking faces, which kept grossing Lucas out even after all these years, so he sidestepped them to reach Nola, Imane and Manon and finally find civilized people to talk to.

When they got inside, the club was packed, the walls thrumming to the beat of the music, the air stuffed and the bartenders busy for a while. Arthur, Manon and him lost a few more minutes of their time, trying to get their attention for drinks, while everyone was flocking into a booth somewhere on the side of the dancefloor. Apparently it was vodka night, a weird mix that made the drinks a blue as icy as the neon lights spread everywhere around the club. Two of those helped him relax and enjoy the night, and from his spot in the nearly desert booth his friends had managed to get a grip on, he could see them dancing the night away. Yann and Nola were giggling stupidly while doing those sickeningly couple dance moves, Alexia was busy making out with one of the Dutch girls from before, and Eliott was laughing with some girl in a corner, her extra-long, extra-straight hair cascading to her hips Ariana Grande style.

He blamed it on Emma’s insistence during their flight, on the drinks he already had, on the colors of the neon lights, but suddenly he was sixteen again, and he was kissing Chloé until he jaws hurt, while his eyes were desperately glued to Eliott’s as if he needed those stormy grey pools to breathe. What was that party called again?

Right. Kiffance.

What a joke.

*

He had only scarce memories of the second club, probably because it was not all that different from the first one. The third one, however, was in one of those underground locations that tried so hard to look grunge and hipstery — not like he minded. He was on whatever beverage Basile and Arthur had deemed fit for the occasion, and it tasted a bit weird and was strangely colorless, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as what he feared at fist. The floor swayed a little when he got up, but it was a fun feeling that made him giggle for almost nothing. He felt warm and fuzzy and his accent in English had gotten so thick that he wasn’t sure anyone could get a single word anymore, but it didn’t seem to put off the guy who had pressed him up against the wall a while ago, and who was slowly climbing his way in the top 5 of the best kissers Lucas had come across in a long time. He was kinda hot too, the kind Lucas wouldn’t mind letting in his pants. In their booth, the boys were apparently cheering on him for some reason, and Yann raised his glass to him, making Lucas huffing a little breathy laugh between wet kisses.

When the guy reached for him to drag him in a more secluded corner, he followed suit.

For some reason though, the memory of a pretty brunette with bangs and a chirpy voice stuck at the back of his head while they walked around the dancefloor.

*

What time was it? He had no idea. All he knew was that, while he was making his way back towards the booth after maybe or maybe not giving a blowjob, ‘fuck yes’ was the answer he had given when Arthur had come across him with the promise of some fresh air and some weed. Like the good old times. The air hit him in the face as they got outside through the back door, a welcomed kick he didn’t know he needed that made his head spin a little. They settled against some sort of railing, taking a hit every now and then.

Emma showed up at some point, and Lucas vaguely heard something along the lines of the girls minus Daphné going back to the hotel, and Arthur probably needing to find a place to crash because she was sure she had seen Eliott leave with someone.

Lucas handed the joint to her then went back inside. There was probably some room left in his system for another drink.

*

There was some room left for one, but probably not for three. The fact that the ground now swayed dangerously should have disqualified him from dancing, but the beat was just so alluring and the movement of the other people helped him steady himself and follow — to a certain degree. People and faces and neon lights kept printing themselves a second too long in his brain each time he blinked.

*

He tripped over his own feet in the stairs leading up to the street, nearly falling face first in a fit of giggles. The others were lost to the crowd, for those who still remained at least, and his mind kept skipping what looked like a frame every now and then.

*

Wow, what the fuck, you okay? The voice was familiar. French? Maybe. He didn’t know, and suddenly the brick wall next to him grew alarmingly close.

*

Fuck he was gonna regret this. A giggle burst out of him.

*

Lucas cracked his eyes open with the feeling of rising up from the dead. His brain was fuzzy and his throat dry as a desert, and if there weren’t many pleasant occasions on which those two things gathered at the same time, this one was definitely not one of those. He found himself staring at the void, eyelids heavy, for at least good minute. The blinds hadn’t been shut at all, and apparently all the sunlight in the world had decided to flood in this particular room in order to make his eyeballs melt. With a wince at the pounding headache, he closed his eyes and tried to swallow down some saliva. Which, in fact, wasn’t that good of an idea. Lucas winced some more in disgust at the bad taste, curling a little bit on himself. The question was now how much courage he had left to get up, for a total of three minutes, just enough to grab a glass of water he’d probably apply first thing on his forehead, then go to the bathroom to relieve his bladder from all the liquid he had the night before. Good plan. Good. Plan. That was a good plan, Lucas thought sluggishly. The major flaw was that he didn’t know if his stomach would make it.

Said stomach started gurgling and Lucas felt a chill run up his spine.

Okay. The bladder would wait. It would. He squeezed his eyes shut, digging his face deeper in his pillow. Fuck. How many fucking drinks did he have? He hadn’t had a black-out since college, and now he was starting to remember why he had stopped pushing himself to the breaking point.

Because it fucking sucked afterwards.

A quiet huff echoing in the room and a movement on the other side of the bed made his eyes snap back open, the mattress dipping a little bit.

Oh no.

Oh no, no, no.

He forced his last two surviving braincells to connect together, but his mind was blank. All he could hear was the birds chirping aggressively outside, a few cars passing down the street and someone walking outside the room, feet digging into the thick carpet.

Thomp, thomp, thomp.

He didn’t remember hooking up with anybody. Let alone bringing them back to the hotel afterwards. That being said he didn’t remember much at all in the first place. He tried to scan his memory for any available clue but the only that came to his mind was Yann happily cheering on him for some reason, a very colored cocktail he didn’t remember the name of and-

Oh. Yeah.

He had hooked up with someone. Some guy. In a club.

Now he recalled. He also recalled getting down on his knees and he humfed to himself.

Yeah. Great. He didn’t dare to move now. It wasn’t his first one night stand, don’t get him wrong. He had had his share of those. But rarely ever with a hangover of this magnitude. Fuck he wasn’t in the right state to have the awkward morning after talk. No matter if the guy was all casual about it — they lived in two different countries and Lucas was literally there for two days, it wasn’t like something else would happen anyway. It still felt impossibly awkward regardless and the prospect of dealing with it didn’t help his already unsteady stomach. Particularly when he couldn’t get out. Because it was his room, right? Lucas squinted his eyes. It must be. Who else’s would it be?

It didn’t make sense. He spared a glance around. The armchair in the corner. The table aligned against the wall. The commode with a small tv screen. He could make up the dark shape of a building towering outside, across from the street.

It wasn’t his hotel room, Lucas thought.

Unless they had built whatever that building was last night.

He knew the hoodie thrown carelessly on the armchair though. And the sneakers near the foot of the bed. Heartbeat rising as realization downed on him, Lucas mustered enough courage to sit up, and after taking a deep breath, he turned his head to the other side of the bed, hands clutching at the sheets pooling low around his waist, where Eliott was still dead to the world.

[lightsandlostbells]

Skam France season 3, episode 7 reaction

hope they called that mural “Jackson Bollocks” as an ode to the method of creation

Episode 7

Clip 1 - Intervention

Lucas is lying on the couch when Mika comes up holding the drawing from Eliott, asking if Lucas is the hedgehog. He says he found it in the trash. Nooooo, so Lucas threw away the drawing? Yikes. Whereas Isak had the courage to reach out to Even after receiving it, the drawing was a symbol of hope (bolstered by Jonas’ comments about Even needing to break up with his girlfriend), to Lucas it means nothing, just another knife to the heart. Because you know, they decided to make Yann walk away from Lucas, so Lucas did not get the reassurance. Not just about Eliott needing to break up with his girlfriend, but about much at all. Like why bother reaching out to anyone and opening your heart when they’re just going to reject you?

Not the main point, but Manon is like, “What have we said about going through the trash?” to Mika which I think is funny, that Mika has such a strong habit of going through the garbage that Manon needed to have a talk with him about it. Who’s really the raccoon in this show, hmmmm?

Lucas jumps up and confronts Mika about it, trying to grab it, but Mika gives it to Manon instead. Mmm, not sure how I feel about Mika making this moment not private and doing it in front of Manon and Lisa. Because yes, obviously Manon suspects/knows Lucas is gay, and Lucas is in need of help. But Mika also knows that Lucas was so defensive about being called gay and being seen as gay, he’s been defensive about what happened with Eliott the other weekend, so IDK why he’s just like, Manon, look at this drawing someone gave to Lucas (which is a love note). Lucas came out to Mika, not Manon, Lucas might not be ready to talk to Manon about it. 

Mika gives the cue to Manon and she mentions an intervention so you know they were talking about this. I don’t mind them doing that since Lucas is so clearly struggling, but again, kinda ehhh on doing this prompted by the drawing. 

Lisa is just sitting there reading a magazine the whole time. Mika says Lucas is just wasting away on the couch and is like a stain that won’t go away, and they already have one stain, with a glance at Lisa (who asks where’s the stain). It’s a funny moment except that I was like YOU MADE HIM STAY ON THE COUCH and then Lucas also says it, the couch is his bed now. THANK YOU. Not that it’s good Lucas is about to cry when he says this, but good that he did call them out for that moment, because it was really thoughtless and did have an emotional effect on him. They better feel the guilt from that and make up for that moment later by having Manon on the couch, or they all take turns, or something that doesn’t give Lucas nowhere to retreat in his own home.

Lucas doesn’t want to talk to them at first, but with some firm prodding by Mika, he says that Yann rejected him when he told him he was gay and that he feels like he’s being made fun of when he goes to school, everyone is whispering about him because of a guy who forced him to deal with it (Eliott, forcing Lucas to confront his sexuality) who went back to his girlfriend and doesn’t give a shit about him. He’s crying as he says this, for obvious reasons; it’d be horrible for anyone, let alone someone who has been hiding and bottling up his emotions from everyone.

I haven’t been the most complimentary toward Axel’s acting in the past; I wasn’t impressed with him in S1 and S2, and there are also some moments in this season where he felt off. But I think he does a really good job here. He sounds like a kid who’s barely holding it together and finally letting it all out.

Mika takes what I think is a good tactic and says to put aside Eliott right now. That’s important, because there are bigger issues underneath, more than one relationship. He says Yann isn’t homophobic. Yann has never had a problem with Mika, so there must be something else. (I agree with him that Yann isn’t homophobic, but I also think it’s possible for someone to have a different reaction to their best friend being gay vs their best friend’s older roommate who probably isn’t more than an acquaintance being gay. For example, the acquaintance probably isn’t encountered in many intimate or close contact situations, whereas a homophobe might start to freak out about sleeping in the same bed as his best friend or changing clothes around him. Again, not that I think this applies to Yann or that Mika should say anything like this to Lucas right now, just an observation.) Mika says it is frustrating when people react like assholes. He also says something really good, which is that Lucas will spend his whole life telling people he’s gay. This part is very good and true to life. Lucas will have to come out over and over, especially in a world that views heterosexuality as a default. And it might get easier but it’s not necessarily ever going to be easy. People will have varying reactions of acceptance. But Yann won’t leave Lucas. Mika is doing most of the talking, which is good because he’s the one with firsthand experience of coming out to many people, while Manon rubs Lucas’ shoulder.

Lucas is really crying and breaking down. He says no, they didn’t see how Yann walked away from Lucas and left him like an idiot. So Lucas feels that both Eliott and Yann have left him. He thinks he never should have told him. Which tbh is one reason I feel it was bad to have Yann react like that, because now we get statements like this, although Mika thinks it’s important to talk rather than keeping everything inside and suffering.

Lucas says Eliott doesn’t care about him. Manon says something really good, too, that Lucas isn’t gay because of Eliott. She mentions seeing the gay websites on his phone last year which … might be embarrassing and not the best thing to bring up in the moment when Lucas is already miserable, like the point is made clearly without that example, Manon. He says he didn’t know back then. Know that she saw the websites or know that he was gay (meaning he was questioning)? I think he meant the latter, so he was just kinda fumbling and figuring everything out in S1 and maybe didn’t consciously understand why he tried to sabotage Yann and Emma’s relationship. Although Lucas seemed like he knew what he was doing more than other Isaks, IMO, because his performance came across as more consciously manipulative to me than Isak, who seemed more haphazardly opportunistic. Which was why S1 Lucas reminded me of a serial killer and I didn’t care for him, lmao.

Anyway, Manon says that is was bound to happens someday, which is true. I don’t know if it totally doesn’t matter that Lucas fell in love with a guy now, because who knows, maybe Lucas would’ve had an easier time with coming out part if he were in university, or if he wasn’t struggling with rent and his family on top of everything else. But he would’ve had to deal with it sooner or later, or else repress himself and be miserable.

Mika says a closet is dark, narrow, and smelly. There’s no benefit to going back in there, so be proud and live your life. Fuck anyone who judges. Good speech, Mika, you’ve leveled up from your earlier appearances.

Lucas seems to be feeling a little better as Mika and Manon cuddle up to him. Lisa is like wait …. you’re gay? God forbid there’s ever a fire in the apartment because Lisa would be toast.

I think on its own, this was a really good scene with several important messages. It’s just that in context we have two white characters supporting a gay guy when the black character failed - and supporting him because the black character failed. And I don’t think Yann or any other black character needs to be put on a pedestal and depicted with no flaws, but with common stereotypes of black people being more homophobic than white people, and with this being a change in the remake rather than an adaptation of an original scene (like if Jonas rejected Isak and Eskild and Noora comforted Isak about it) it’s just a weird choice that they should have thought about from a broader perspective. I get that Yann comes around in a few clips but I don’t know why they needed to take away one of the character’s best moments for the angst. Lucas easily could have been crying over being outed at school by Chloé, for example, and have Manon and Mika comfort him over that.

Clip 2 - The happiest place on Earth?

Lucas goes to school and sees Basile and Arthur. They notice him and jump into action, seeming very chipper and supportive. Including Arthur, who was last seen hitting Lucas in the head. Uh oh. They know, don’t they.

Arthur’s glasses are taped up from the fight, lol. 

Arthur “casually” drops in that oh, he was in a gay bar this weekend! So you know the boys, and probably the whole school, heard the news about Lucas being gay. Arthur is like, we should go sometime! Basile is like, we should go to Gay Pride! All of this is awkward but also, the best thing Basile has ever done, at least. 

There’s no apology between Lucas and Arthur for the fight at Chloé’s party, which I don’t really mind because I can buy that Arthur maybe realized Lucas was struggling due to his sexuality and lashing out, and that he’s over it, and Lucas is just happy that his friends accept him. But I do think the fact that it’s totally glossed over is something that falls way more into Disneyland than not, lol.

Arthur mentions his mom’s friend Catherine, who is a lesbian. Errr, his mom’s friend, or his mom’s friend? Basile and Arthur are like, lesbians, so cool, and one version of the subs includes that they’re like “especially in porn”? I think it’s Arthur who says so. Heavy sigh if that’s the case, like ... of course. I guess that’s teenage boy Magnus-level ignorance on the level of “who’s the girl and who’s the guy” that I will put to the side for now, although I don’t think anyone’s going to roast Arthur for it like Isak roasted Magnus (which is what makes me cool with Magnus’ line, that it’s called out and even the other boys are shaking their heads at him). Anyway, Lucas looks amused or at least not upset by all of this.

Daphne interrupts by literally bursting through them to ask Lucas if he is gay. Basile leans forward to smell Daphne’s hair and she hits him in the face. GOD WHEN WILL THIS END. I mean, I would endorse an episode that’s just Daphne hitting Basile in the face, but even more I would endorse a season where we didn’t have this retrograde, creepy, sexist bullshit excuse for a budding romance. (And I’ve said the same thing about Noorhelm, lmao, but Skam France at least had the excuse of adapting the series closely from existing sexist bullshit. This is whole new sexist bullshit, and in some ways I find it even worse because Noorhelm/Marles are at least from the girl’s POV. Daphne doesn’t even get that dignity here.)

Lucas says it’s true and Daphne screams and launches herself at him. The boys look happy. Arthur says they were afraid of making fools for themselves. Lucas says they did, but that it was funny.

Daphne is happy for him but thinks it’s a waste for the girls. There’s a moment where Lucas is clearly thinking “... straight people ...” but he ends up saying he’ll take it as a compliment. Basile takes the moment to remind Daphne that he is extremely heterosexual, as if she or any of the rest of us could ever forget. We know you’re aggressively heterosexual. That is your one character trait. Daphne thinks he is also extremely annoying. She gives Lucas a vigorous kiss on the cheek before she leaves, and it seems like a presumptive gesture about how Lucas is her Gay Best Friend now but at least it made Basile mad. Basile pouts and Lucas is like, well, it seemed like she was thinking of you. So Lucas has been outed but is chill with it, and the real good news for everyone is that Daphne wanted to kiss Basile for reals? Yay! And by yay I mean WTF.

This is obviously a big moment for Lucas, and a nice scene for him in terms of his friends accepting him considering the talk Mika just gave him about people’s reactions, and of course how bad the first two times he came out went. So from that perspective, sure, I get why it’s enjoyable. But watching it in the larger context, ???????????????????

Skam France: Our version of the coming out scene was realistic. This isn’t Disneyland. Also Skam France: This scene.

Now I don’t think it’s unrealistic for Lucas’ other friends to support him once they learn he’s gay, not at all, but this clip? Total Disney. They might as well be wearing mouse ears. Hell, the boys were giving off such goofy chipmunk vibes that I legit thought of Chip ‘n’ Dale (no, really, look at Arthur’s face in this scene). It’s not just that they’re supportive and chill, it’s that they’re almost about to throw Lucas a coming out party in their enthusiasm, like if they had confetti and noise makers it would not be surprising. And yes, it is sweet of them to try to make Lucas knows they’re fine with him being gay, and the overcompensation from the straight friends is a thing that does happen in real life. But in the context of “this isn’t Disneyland”? Get out of here. You took away what would have been an iconic moment for Yann, but Lucas’ other (white) friends were OTT enthusiastic. All the white kids had a great initial reaction to Lucas coming out, it’s the black best friend who doesn’t. Curiously, in the original show, Mahdi had a great reaction to Isak coming out and was the one to chime in about pansexuality. In fact, in the same scene as Isak coming out to him, it’s shown that people were also stereotyping Mahdi with the gossip, saying he was an angry homophobic Muslim when Mahdi is not homophobic and isn’t even Muslim. Skam certainly wasn’t perfect on racial issues but that moment was actually toying with the expectations of the homophobic black guy and shutting them down. I really don’t think Skam France was trying to present that stereotype on purpose - I think the goal was just dramaaaaaa - but again, they should’ve considered the larger implications. 

And lmao, this isn’t Disneyland but Lucas getting outed at school went swimmingly and he didn’t seem concerned at all? He didn’t come out to Basile, Arthur, or Daphne of his own volition, it was clearly via gossip that they learned. And instead he’s just like ... haha these goofballs? I get that perhaps he values his friends’ reactions and their acceptance more than what random other students might think, but this is perhaps the most jarring part of the scene for me, particularly in terms of supposed realism. Because if that’s your defense ...this material is definitely not more realistic than how it was handled in the original. Isak being outed at school wasn’t the end of the world for him, but it was something that made him uncomfortably visible to other students, with suddenly receiving attention from randos (even if they meant to be nice). When he came out to Mahdi and Magnus, he was nervous about it, and it went well but there were still the insecurities in his delivery and dialogue, Magnus had dumb comments, etc. It was nuanced, realistic and optimistic. This scene was going for happy but it also felt like it smoothed over more complex content. 

However, I might not be as critical over that part of the scene had a) the damn Disneyland comment hadn’t been made just a few days prior b) a certain comment in the later clip with Chloé didn’t make it seem like they’re being dismissive of the effects of being outed. 

Clip 3 - Lucas and Yann hug it out

Later that day, there’s activity in the common room, the boy squad making use of the new table football. Yann approaches the boys, you can see that Lucas gets a little happy when he sees him approach. Arthur gets Basile’s dumb ass to leave so it’s just Yann and Lucas.

Yann apologizes for leaving and says he needed to think about everything. And I have to say, some of what’s frustrating is that the straight character “needed to think about everything.” I get that not everyone reacts perfectly, that’s what Mika said earlier, but frankly, I don’t like that we have to make a gay character’s coming out about a straight character’s soul searching. That’s neither the time nor the place. It was important that Jonas didn’t make Isak’s coming out moment, a time of great vulnerability for Isak, about himself. And Lucas was in even greater distress than Isak, he was telling Yann all about how miserable he was prior to mentioning Eliott.

One way that I feel like they could’ve made Yann’s walk-off more justified for the ~angst - still very disappointing to ruin that iconic moment, but more understandable - would be to have Lucas come out, Yann is cool with that, but then as they’re talking and laughing Lucas lets slip how he ratted out Emma last year and Yann gets upset and walks away. Again, not the best time or place, but at least that would’ve clearly been about something wrong that Lucas did to Yann that Yann is right to get mad at, not cheap fake-out homophobia for the dramaaa.

Yann says he doesn’t have a problem with gay people, especially not Lucas, and it was a little weird to think about Lucas having a thing for him; it’s flattering but he doesn’t want thing to change between them. I mean, Lucas already told you that he fell in love with Eliott so lol, Yann, chill, he’s moved on. 

Yann says Lucas is his best friend and that’s why he reacted badly, because Yann always told Lucas everything and was there for him, tried to give him opportunities to talk, but Lucas couldn’t do it and ended up talking to Mika and the girls, half the school knew because Yann did. Arrrrrrgh. THAT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENED. The only person Lucas actually told was Mika, another gay person (and seriously, if you can’t figure out why Lucas would come out to another gay guy first, get over yourself). But everyone else just guessed or found out by accident! In fact it kind of bothers me that this part is never corrected, like it almost feels like the narrative itself is conflating coming out with being outed. And Lucas told Yann on Friday that people “suspected” or gave him weird looks or whatever, which should’ve already given Yann a clue that Lucas isn’t telling them directly.

Anyway, Lucas says sorry, and thankfully Yann says he doesn’t have to apologize, because if that had slid by as justified I would’ve been pissed. Yann says he’s the one who needs to apologize, that if Lucas was afraid to tell Yann, it was because he was afraid of Yann’s reaction. I think it’s more complex than that, Lucas needed to accept himself as gay before telling anyone else, but Yann makes a thoughtful, empathetic point here. Yann realized he made a lot of gay jokes and homophobic comments, and he’s sorry for that. Lucas is sorry for not talking to Yann earlier. (For real, you have nothing to be sorry for! You don’t owe it to anyone to come out to them at a certain time!)

Yann suggests they hug it out, so they do, and Lucas cries from happiness. Yann says not to keep something like that from him again. At least Lucas should know to come to Yann later in the season when shit gets real.

Yann asks about Eliott, and Lucas says he and Eliott were supposed to pain the mural, and Yann suggests they do it together with Basile and Arthur. Why do I feel like letting Basile near a paintbrush is a bad idea? I just feel like he’s the kind of guy who would paint everything, consciously or subconsciously, to look like boobs.

There are some nice messages in this scene and I like that Yann took responsibility for his prior homophobic jokes, but what frustrates me again is that Yann didn’t actually need to walk away from Lucas in order to get that content? We could’ve had a supportive coming out scene on Friday, and today Yann tells Lucas he was thinking about it over the weekend and he realized all the crap he said in the past, and he wanted to apologize for everything. Therefore getting in the same good message while not resorting to cheap drama. Because yeah, I’m glad this plot thread didn’t go on longer, but the fact that it was so short and easily resolved kinda makes it more apparent how they just wanted a shocking Friday cliffhanger.

Clip 4 - Religion and science

Lucas sits down in class next to Imane. When he takes out his book, there’s a note inside. A drawing from Eliott. It’s his raccoon fursona, looking at his phone in one panel, with a sad face as there is no activity, and the next (the alternate universe) is the raccoon happily looking at the phone because there’s a message from Lucas asking about the drawing, and a response from Eliott (one that’s the same as the exchange from Isak and Even in the equivalent of this drawing). Lucas didn’t send Eliott a text yet, so I dunno how I feel bout this drawing in that light. Like Isak did reach out to Even after the first drawing, and the second was Even’s way of apologizing for not responding to Isak’s text, hinting at his internal conflict. Even was seriously giving mixed signals: let’s break up, actually here’s us in a parallel universe, now I’m not going to respond to you talking to me again, now here’s me responding finally and saying I miss you. But Eliott is sending him another note being like “talk to me” when it’s really not his call. Eliott broke up with Lucas and got back with Lucille, so Lucas has the right to ignore his drawings entirely. Lucas clearly doesn’t want to talk to Eliott and has not given any hints that he’s ready to talk. (But also ... then it gets ridiculous that Lucas is still like HE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT ME when Eliott is begging Lucas to talk to him, like Isak was getting the sense that Even was indecisive by his hot-cold dynamic, couldn’t make up his mind, would send a note and then ignore Isak for days. Eliott is now on fire for Lucas again, clearly. I guess it works if you think Lucas is trying to believe Eliott doesn’t care to avoid getting hurt again, but I don’t know if that’s in line with him crying and being upset about it.)

Anyway, Imane looks at the drawing, too. Lucas puts it away and asks Imane if she did her homework, and she says she thinks she messed up - like she did with Lucas before, about evolution theory and homosexuality. She says that homosexuality did play a role in evolution, and Lucas says she wasn’t wrong about everything, like the way science was used to hurt gay people. Imane says we’re past that now. Errr … “we’re past that” as in Lucas and Imane and their disagreement? Or past that in that science is no longer used to hurt gay people because … that is strongly debatable … even if it’s not as extreme as in prior decades…

Imane and Lucas agree that science and religion evolve, they just take time. Imane says that no religion condones homosexuality, but that none of them say to hurt homosexuals, and like, L M A O. You cannot say with a straight face that no religion is against hurting gay people. Even if the beliefs and practices aren’t like “stone gay people to death” there are plenty of churches that advocate for conversation therapy or other harmful practices. That statement is so bizarre? It assumes an inherent benevolence in religion by default, as if destructive and doomsday cults don’t exist, for an extreme example. And I think it’s also a sweeping statement to say no religion condones homosexuality, either, although it might depend on your definition of “condone.” There are some major faiths where homosexuality isn’t mentioned in the religious texts at all, so not exactly approval, but not explicit condemnation, either. This is just a weird line, and I seriously wish this conversation had been more focused on Islam (as Isak and Sana’s was) as not only are Imane’s lines so broad as to not make sense, but I feel like it’s more powerful talking about her own religion and her own experience and POV on it, rather than encompassing every single religion. Especially when Islam in particular is seen as hostile to gay people, like part of the reason Isak and Sana’s friendship was so important because there’s a belief that Isak’s sexuality and Sana’s religion means they cannot mix and they are incompatible as friends and could never get along. It’s a little odd to me that Islam itself feels downplayed in this conversation.

Lucas is all, so this means you’re asking for forgiveness? Imane tells him not to get cocky. Heh. 

This is a sweet scene but I’m wondering how it’ll fit into the narrative. It happens in episode 8 in the original, and it directly prompts Isak to come out to his mom later that episode. Unless Lucas were to come out to her shortly after this clip, I feel like that purpose of this scene would get lost, unless they connected it to Imane again.

Clip 5 - Lucas and Chloé

Chloé is outside, Lucas sees her and goes up to her, she tries to leave but he tells her to wait. She’s like, here we fucking go again.

Lucas says he’s sorry for everything. He says he thought it could work with a girl like her, who was so beautiful and cool, but it’s not her, it just doesn’t work with girls at all for him. Chloé says that he sucks and that she really believed it. But that she doesn’t get what it’s like to be in his shoes and how she would have reacted, so maybe one day she could forgive him. You know what? It’s not perfect, but I do think this is a nice inclusion. She’s still mad at him but she does show empathy for his position, and acknowledges that she doesn’t understand what it’s like to be gay. At least it’s a sign of character growth. The resolution with Emma is the only thing that I would’ve liked more from with the original S3, and if Emma had said a line like this, I would have been more satisfied.

Lucas is about to go but then Chloé says she’s sorry too, because she might have gotten a little revenge by talking. Again, something that I do appreciate, her apologizing to Lucas for outing him, and if Emma had done this to Isak, I would’ve been pretty fine with the resolution of her character in S3. Lucas says not to worry, if she hadn’t he wouldn’t have had the courage to open up. WHAT. Are you fucking kidding me? You were doing so well with this scene and then you drop that unholy horseshit in there?

If Lucas had been like, “Don’t worry, we’re cool,” in the sense that he had forgiven her, or he was trying to move on and put it past him, then sure, I understand that. He doesn’t want to have a grudge or a standing feud or anything, and he knows he used Chloé and he’s thinking they both hurt each other, time to wipe the slate clean. Fine. But framing Chloé running her mouth in revenge as a good thing? Making the gay character grateful to the straight character for outing him? Fuck off.

If a real human being said this to someone ... I would disagree with the principle that the outing was actually OK but I’m not going to argue with someone’s personal experience and feelings. But Lucas isn’t a real person. He’s a character and the people behind the show put words in his mouth. In this case, he’s basically saying it was a good thing a straight person outed him in vengeance because he wouldn’t have had to courage to do it himself so soon. It is absolutely baffling why anyone thought this line was a good idea. It is again a case of prioritizing or soothing a straight character’s feelings. God forbid Chloé have to live with the guilt of outing someone? Because actually it was a good thing! 

And Lucas did have the courage in him! He came out to Mika first, before Chloé started yelling about he was gay at a party, before he knew he’d been outed. But another thing about this line that bothers me isn’t just that it states the outing was a good thing in the end, it’s the idea that the gay character wasn’t brave enough to come out and he needed a straight person to force him out of the closet. Suggesting that Lucas just didn’t have the guts in him. Fuck off.

The beginning of this scene felt like an improvement over the handling of Emma’s character in S3 - and it’s pretty rare for me to think Skam France actually improves on Skam, tbh. But that one line? Makes the handling of this subplot even worse. It makes me grateful that we didn’t get Isak telling Emma how her outing him was actually for the best. It makes me wish Skam France had just copy-pasted the original scene. I would rather have Chloé not apologize than to have her apologize and get Lucas’ followup line.

The way the outing is treated in this episode bothers me so, so much, and this is perhaps the worst of it. It bothered me that Lucas seemed so unruffled by learning everyone he knows now knows he’s gay; it bothers me even more that Lucas is now alleviating the guilt of the straight girl who outed him because her selfish, vengeful action ended up giving him courage. What the fuck were they thinking.

Chloé says she’s happy for him and Eliott. Lucas says they’re not a couple, and that he believed in it more than Eliott did.  Chloé says she knows what that’s like. They say goodbye. So they wrapped up that storyline wayyyy faster than in Skam. I wonder what’s gonna happen with that? Is this the last we see of Chloé? I feel like there will probably be one more clip with her toward the end, maybe as a send-off, maybe her and Yann hooking up. But her walking off did have a finality about it, so maybe not.

I feel like they’re flying through all these subplots and trying to make Lucas cool with everyone so they can get to the Lucas/Eliott content and drama. The Imane-Lucas conversation was in episode 8 for Sana and Isak, this conversation with Chloé was in episode 10 for Emma ... what are they going to put in place of those clips?

Yann and Emma come out and Emma is talking about her FWB thing with Alex. Yann says now that Lucas is done with Chloé, is it OK if he tries? LMAO. Well, that’s blunt. Lucas says it’s fine, but to do it right because Chloe’s a nice girl. Uhhhh, ok. Because of That Line this Chloé praise is putting a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t want to demonize her or anything but it’s just another sense of Poor Sweet Nice Chloé who didn’t do anything that bad, as opposed to Chloé being a mostly decent person who made a big, thoughtless mistake (like many of the characters on this show) but who apologized and matured. But at least Yann is checking with Lucas about pursuing Chloé, instead of dating her secretly like Jonas did with Emma. 

Some POV-breakage as Emma sees Raptor Alex with a girl and it took me a moment to realize it was Manon due to the distance, despite her distinctive wardrobe. I thought she was just upset about Alex talking to some other girl all of a sudden, lmao. Anyway, Emma realizes that Manon and Alex are probably having a heated Charles-related discussion and that Manon isn’t opening up to her.

Clip 6 - Mural painting time

Boy gang is painting the mural. They bring up Eliott, Lucas explains Eliott’s drawings and the complicated situation. Dude, Lucas, in this case you’re the one not wanting to talk to Eliott. You’re the one making it more complicated. Eliott wants to talk to you. He’s dropping all these hints and yet you don’t buy them. I think it’s fine if you don’t want to talk to him, even if you don’t trust him, but at this point you’re the one holding out. 

Arthur casually drops in that he was dating a 34-year-old with kids at some point … errr ... when did this happen ... how old was Arthur ... I wish I could be assured this was Arthur spinning some fabrication about his love life rather than showing us he has mad game with MILFs. (This is one of those moments where I’m like A Man Probably Wrote This because I cannot see anyone in OG boy squad commenting they were dating a 34-year-old mom as if the viewers were supposed to find this funny or impressive, unless it was Magnus telling an obvious lie to pretend he wasn’t a virgin.)

The boys give Lucas advice, but again, this is so weird because Eliott seems like the one chasing Lucas, and Lucas is the one retreating. They’re all “send him a message, push the matter” when Eliott is the one who has been trying to push the matter for almost two weeks? Skam France has been a lot better about not just copy+pasting the original show this season, but here’s an example where it creeps in, the execution is too borrowed from the original scene, not geared toward the different dynamic in Skam France.

Lucas texts Eliott, Eliott texts back that he wants to see Lucas, Lucas takes advice from the guys on what to send back. They’re like, say I’m busy, but do NOT send a gif. Lol, I like that bit. Emojis were out, now gifs are forbidden, too.

Lucas texts back that he’s busy with the mural and then gets worried when Eliott doesn’t respond. The boys encourage him, and Basile has his most redeeming line ever, that there are billions of Eliotts on the planet, but Lucas is unique. I will pay Basile a genuine compliment, that was a sweet thing to say.

Lucas gets a text that Eliott is arriving, so the boys leave. Basile is upset that they didn’t start the mural. Tbh, totally in character that he was more disappointed by not getting to paint his jizzing flower idea than by not getting to meet Eliott (opposed to Magnus who wanted to meet the famous Even).

Eliott walks into the room. Next to him is a poster that says, “It’s about time.” LMAO, that’s a fun production detail.

Lucas seems like he’s shaking. Eliott offers him a hand with the mural. Or, you know. With something else.

Clip 7 - Lucas uses his ass as a paintbrush

When Yann said earlier this week that the boys would help Lucas paint the mural, I knew Eliott and Lucas were going to get steamy while painting. I just ... did not expect bare asses in broad daylight.

Lucas and Eliott survey the mural and Eliott asks what he was planning on doing, Lucas says he doesn’t know. This conversation is obviously not really about the mural but their relationship status.

Eliott suggests going all Jackson Pollock on the mural. Can I just say ... one of the many things about this scene that bugs me, plausibility-wise, is that no one had any plans for the mural until they showed up? I’m not much of a painter, but ... wouldn’t the first step be to apply a coat of primer? I looked up ways to get rid of a mural and that was the first step on every guide. And wouldn’t the best course of action be to plan what you’re going to paint and draw a sketch of it or something? I realize that these are sloppy teenage boys who DGAF but changes are high the mural will be even uglier than it is now if you just let Basile and company paint whatever the hell they want with no particular vision.

Jackson Pollock was speculated to have bipolar disorder, by the way, so it is a nice detail that he’s Eliott’s go-to inspiration here.

Eliott demonstrates how to go all Jackson Pollock by throwing some paint at the wall. Lucas tries and Eliott teases him, and when Lucas laughs, Eliott says it’s good to see him smile, he missed it. Lucas is all “...” and says Eliott looked happy with Lucille last time. Eliott says he can’t say that. Ever since Eliott met him, Lucas is the only thing that’s mattered.

Tinkly piano music starts so you know shit is about to get real. ELiott throws more paint, Lucas stares at him, then throws paint. Thematically, you could say this is about covering up the old (Lucille and Eliott) to make something new (Lucas and Eliott). Eliott dabs paint on Lucas’ nose, Lucas throws paint back at him, they get into a paint fight. This part is legit cute, although lol, part of me is thinking they will have zero paint left for the mural since it’s all over each other. They’re covered in paint, and then they passionately kiss. Then they take off each other’s shirts. Then they take off their pants as they continue to kiss, pressed against the mural. The camera swoops and swoons. Ass happens. Paint smears on butt cheeks. They are definitely totally naked. Lots of dramatic staring into each other’s eyes. Sex is sure taking place. 

An observation: Paint on human bodies looks striking and pretty at first, but then as it smears together, starts to look like they rolled around in mud and pig shit.

Look … this is not my type of scene. The dramatic cuts and edits, the music, the camera spinning around them. I get for a lot of people this clip was artistic and beautiful, and in another film, maybe it would be for me, too. I mean, I have seen the paint sex clip of J'ai tué ma mère, and it’s really good! Disclaimer, I have not seen that full film, but the editing and music in that scene works well. 

By the way, I totally think this clip was prompted by fans asking for an homage to the film scene. I definitely saw fans asking for it back in S1 and S2. I don’t know if the Skam France crew has confirmed that, though.

@rabidkoalathug sent me a cool bit of trivia about the film scene, by the way: the original paint scene from j'ai tue ma mere, which this paint scene was inspired by, has a song in the background, right? it's called noir desir by vive la fete. the chorus goes like "C'est la manie" which translates to this is mania, or it's mania. i know there's no significance, but just thought it was a cool coincidence. I do, too! I think it actually does add some extra relevance to the scene as an homage, it’s a subtle hint about Eliott’s bipolar disorder if you’re familiar with the original scene and it ties the two scenes together. A fun little Easter egg. 

Overall … this does not feel like Skam. And maybe this lends itself to a larger discussion about what Skam is supposed to feel like, and whether it can diverge from that. But I do expect shows with the Skam label to go for a certain level of realism - that doesn’t mean everything is cynical and gritty, but I do think it should feel fitting toward teenagers’ actual lives. I don’t expect Eliott’s big secret to be that he’s a werewolf, for example. I also don’t expect the characters to be 16-year-olds played by 30-year-olds dressed like they’re posing for the cover of a fashion magazine, or that everyone at the school dance will just happen to know the elaborate choreography for a song that isn’t the Macarena. Skam’s appeal was being grounded in the reality of being a teenager in modern Norwegian society.

This scene is not realistic and grounded. This doesn’t happen with teenagers. Even if two teenage boys started having sex while painting a mural at school after hours, the way this scene is filmed all dramatic and glamorous is not what the reality would be like. I mean … where’s the vulnerability? If they filmed this scene with more awkward fumbling, it would retain a sense of realism. Because this should be awkward! Even apart from the paint, it’s Lucas’ first time with a guy, probably his first time ever. That would be a lot to deal with on its own, and then you add buckets of paint into the scenario, and that would add its own brand of awkwardness even if this was the 1000th time they’d had sex.

Also, L O L forever at Yann having to walk away from Lucas because Realism and yet …. this scene happened.

Fandom went WILD reacting to this scene. While there was a big reaction to the coming out scene, feelings congregated toward anger and disappointment; this scene seemed divided between feelings of genuine enjoyment, bafflement, and hilarity. And in a way, I’m kinda glad this scene came after an episode where the presentation of Lucas being outed pissed me off, because I’m not pissed off at this scene at all. It’s just Too Much. They’re having sex in broad daylight, in front of giant windows, in a seemingly unlocked room. 

If they had just ended on them passionately kissing, covered in paint, it would’ve been fine. I would’ve bought it. I know they want to show their first time having sex, but if they just woke up naked the next day at Eliott’s place, it would’ve made sense. If we saw them stumbling through the door at Eliott’s and stripping off each other’s paint-spattered clothes, it would’ve been fine. I mean, probably take a shower first or hose each other down, but sure. 

I’m not even sure what to say that hasn’t already been said, lol. Just the paint, man, the paint. Like they definitely got paint all over their dicks. Paint drying in the cracks of their asses. Paint is not an acceptable substitute for lube, my dudes. I fucking lost it that the writer had to clarify it was non-toxic paint because everyone was concerned they would get lead poisoning and spend the aftermath of their sexy mural adventure in the hospital. 

It’s still daylight, the sun is shining on them, and they’re right in front of the windows! What! And I know some people pointed out the windows are mirrored on the outside so people outdoors won’t see inside the room. But it’s still ridiculous! The doors aren’t locked! People could walk in!  (And maybe this is just me, but I feel like even if you knew people couldn’t see you through the windows ...it’s just really hard to turn off that instinct that people could see you. Wouldn’t be the same for everyone, of course, but I’d still find it very weird.)

People mentioned that at a French school, typically everyone would be gone by that time and no one would be around to get a glimpse of the Lucas/Eliott technicolor bangfest. While that may be true on average, I would like to respectfully disagree and argue no, the chances that someone could have seen some paint-covered ass and balls are definitely more than slim:

The boys were there painting the mural. They were at the school doing stuff at that time! With that in mind, wouldn’t it be possible that there were other students doing things at the school, too? They have their own “murals” and projects to work on? If no one’s supposed to be there that late, then why are the boys there, anyway? 

Eliott was at the school. He hauled ass to the mural really fast, like less than a minute after he texted Lucas. So “no one at the school” is false because Eliott had to be hanging around the school for whatever reason at that time. It had to be a normal, conceivable thing for him to do. 

This school has an established night security guard who comes in on Fridays. Now, it might be too early for his shift to start. But isn’t it also possible that there are people like this guard, or groundskeepers, or janitors, people who might be checking up on the school after hours?

But errr, the smoking gun, the point that matters most: YOU CAN LITERALLY HEAR PEOPLE TALKING AND MAKING NOISE IN THE HALLWAY. When the boy squad leaves and when Eliott comes in, you can hear some chatter from people outside the room. It sounds like the gym is nearby, actually? That’s what it reminds me of, like maybe there’s sports practice or a game or something going on. And you can hear people talking even when Lucas and Eliott start painting the mural. It’s not even hard to notice? Listen when Eliott is telling Lucas it’s good to see him smile, for instance. You can clearly tell there are people nearby.

I don’t think it was necessary for me to lay that out, however, it makes you wonder ... why did they include the sound of the people talking in the hallway right before Lucas and Eliott start fucking at school? Like was that sound just there naturally because the school was being used for something else besides filming at the time? Because that’s certainly a thing to remove with editing. But lol, I’m just imagining if the Skam France editors put that in on purpose, like hey, wouldn’t it be even hotter if we implied they’re having sex where they could totally get caught by the basketball team or whatever?

There are ass prints on that wall. Just to commemorate Lucas’ deflowering. 

Just a note: My comments and criticisms about this scene are basically coming from an artistic perspective. What I don’t want to do is diminish the effect scenes like this may have for LGBT youth in France, or LGBT people in general, because even if the execution of this clip is too OTT for my taste, I’m sure it also means the world for other people to see Lucas and Eliott happily and passionately have sex on television. In the grand scheme of media, scenes like this are still revolutionary. That’s something I feel about Skam France overall, too; I have a lot of issues with this season, but I’m aware how important it is to people, not just on a level of “I like this show a lot” but “Media like this genuinely improves my life for the better, Lucas’ story gave me the courage to come out, etc.” I don’t think being important means it can’t be criticized on a basic writing/directing/acting level, but I also don’t want to ignore how media like this can touch people’s lives. Anyway. 

I do want to give Skam France credit for this: they sure didn’t shy away from showing gay intimacy. This was way more explicit than anything shown with Yann/Emma or Charles/Manon. And whether you think there’s an element of fan pandering to it, as some do (because the people behind the remakes have to know those Evak fans are a vital resource) it is still important to see gay intimacy normalized on TV and not hidden behind closed doors. In this case ... almost literally, lmao.

Social Media/General Comments:

Mika posts pics with Lucas calling him his protege, and there are more flat pictures after the intervention, so at least Lucas has more warmth coming from that front. He probably feels closer than a distant cousin by now.

For someone who’s apparently not into Raptor Alex other than FWB, Emma makes sure to document their grocery-buying trips in great detail. That’s pretty domestic.

Lucas texts Mika after people at school know that he’s gay, and Mika refers to himself as Lucas’ mentor, which frankly took him long enough? And calls Lucas kitten as Eskild called Isak godkitten. Again, at least Lucas feels more like his home is a home.

But not to harp on this again... Lucas being like, it’s done, everyone at school knows, it wasn’t so bad! Uhhh, it’s not like Lucas walked into school wearing a shirt that said “I’M GAY”or made a public post on his IG or anything that was his choice. He was outed. And I can certainly accept that he realizes it’s not so bad to be out of the closet, but still ... he was outed and him being like “it wasn’t so bad” just seems like such a ridiculous dismissal. Like yay, the matter was taken out of Lucas’ hands, but it’s fine! I’m just confused why the Skam France crew want to make statements about homophobia in France on their SM but then minimize Lucas’ outing to nothing, really. I’m not saying he has to suffer a ton because of it - Isak didn’t - but there was at least some sympathy in how Isak’s outing was depicted, I felt like Julie actually did understand that being outed wasn’t so great (even if we didn’t get an apology from Emma like with Chloé).

And I feel weird making criticisms like that because the Skam France screenwriter is gay? I don’t know how much he’s adapting the story to his personal experience. Maybe this is how it went for him or someone he knows. But I do think you can’t defend choices as “realistic” or have scenes where Mika talks about how people react badly to coming out sometimes, and then present this outing as NBD.

Eliott’s secret account started to follow Lucas on IG during the week. I feel like he just wanted Lucas to pay attention and notice him, lmao, after sending him multiple drawings didn’t do the job. He also “subtly” listens to a song called Toi Et Moi (you and me).

Okay, I’m laughing at the pictures and IG stories with like the boy squad posing in front of the mural with brushes and paint cans when they did not do a SINGLE fucking thing as far as actually painting the goddamn mural. They literally spent more time taking selfies than painting.

But Lucas did make sure to take a picture of the messy paint-covered canvas on the floor after he and Eliott fucked, and Manon says she can’t wait to see the result. Manon … you will see the result of what happens when Lucas and Eliott decide to take their “painting”escapades back to the apartment. You will see it all over the place.

Eliott posted a pic of Jackson Pollock at work on IG and Lucas liked it. So the mystery is no longer a mystery to Lucas, he knows about Eliott’s IG.

I hope in S4 Eliott just continues to post cryptic things on his IG, but because we’re no longer in Lucas’ POV or following their story, they’re just completely random and drive the fans up a wall with trying to figure out what the fuck he means. A mango? Why the fuck did Eliott post a mango?? Alas, we shall never know.

I am not French so please feel free to clarify or correct me on cultural or translation notes.

If you got this far - especially when this wasn’t a very positive recap - thank you for reading!

[lozenger8]

So-Far Best of Loz

These are the fics I’ve written that I love. Featuring Life on Mars, Psych, Teen Wolf, and Various Fandoms. 

Life on Mars

We start off with an oldie: Palimpsest, a remarkably dark mostly-gen but background Sam/Annie fic that heralded the first time I ever wrote something that turned out better than I imagined it. I had workshopped this fic for over a year, but finally wrote out the version that exists in, like, three days of righteous fury. 

Another gen-fic, but focussing even more on the Sam and Gene friendship: Gone Far Away into the Silent Land. I just really like the lyrical nature of this fic and its quiet melancholy. Also, the last line is killer, even if I say so myself.

Sam/Gene fic: Changes. How could I not link this, in which you can see that the current Loz who shipped Burt & Stu readily in Weird City has always been within me. This fic is the first time I ever managed multiple levels of plot, and yes, the pacing is a bit off, and the morals are hinky, but I will always love it. There are some scenes in this fic that I just think are *chef’s kiss*. 

Sam/Gene fic: it’s just gravitational, in which, years and years after writing Sam/Gene regularly, I finally nailed the short relationship fic I had always wanted to write. I reread this one simply for the wordplay and the sweetness and the bit at the end that makes my heart skip oddly. Well done, past-future-Loz, for finally writing a fic that past-past-Loz would have adored.

Psych

Your Code Name is Babalu, a Shawn/Lassiter Choose Your Own Adventure fic that fills me with delight to this day. My ability to nail Shawn’s voice after years of writing Mancunian cops was a revelation and brought me a lot of joy for a long time.

The Closet and Dr Caligari -- Shawn/Gus -- Look, there’s a lot wrong with this fic in small ways, from pacing issues to some telling rather than showing, I’m not gonna lie, but I still love it because it’s a murder mystery with a romance A-plot and it brings the kind of mostly humour with some light angst I like to Shawn/Gus when almost everyone else in Psych fandom brought high angst/melodrama. 

Teen Wolf

I Intend to be Independently Blue - Stiles/Derek. Sorry people who hate this pairing, but I will always love this fic. Getting to write something so different from anything I’d ever written before was such a breath of fresh air and I will always mourn what I thought could’ve been a great friendship between Stiles and Derek. (And, look, I think half of me still thought Derek was, like, 20 at most. Even though I made a Chris Hansen To Catch a Predator joke in the fic itself.)

giving up this whole lie, this whole me - Stiles/Derek again (with added Derek/Jennifer - written before we knew she was definitively evil). Ah, if only the show had allowed Derek to grow onscreen as well as off. I like the nuances and cadences of this fic. I like to write things with quiet desperation in them, and I feel this has that in spades. 

Apparent Lack of Ceremony - Scott/Stiles fic which was trying to resolve the sense I had at the time that Stiles was a little bitter about Scott and his lack of attention, and in which he was completely wrong-headed. This was as much a reaction to how fandom liked to paint Scott at the time (and to this day.) Plus, it’s, like, objectively hot. 

Fragile Bodies of Touch and Taste - Scott/Stiles - PWP that’s character-study and the sort of poetic I enjoy. And hot, again. I just really like it, what can I say. 

A Phenomenon When You Came Along - Scott/Stiles - my most consistently- plotted, well-rounded skittles fic, which is another story where I clutch my hands to my chest and murmur “Good job, me.” It’s just so cute, and real, and happy.

(don’t be mad) cause I’m doing me better than you doing you - Scott/Nogitsune, Scott/Stiles, Major Character Death. So at this point you might’ve been mistaken for thinking “Oh hey, Loz started out writing dark, morbid or super melancholy fic but she moved steadily towards the light and now she’s always sweetness and fluff.” And in this story I prove that within me there is always going to be a murky little trash-goblin, waiting to peek out into the sun. I love everything about this horrible story that I know I couldn’t read if it were written by anyone else. 

I Fear I Had a Love (And Now It’s Gone) - Scott/Stiles, bittersweet ending - see above. I still go ‘why did I do that?’ at myself, and the answer is always: because I needed and wanted to. 

every ribbon you used to tie yourself to me - Scott/Stiles - PWP. I feel like this is one of the hottest things I’ve ever written. (But I also really like First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, in that regard. [And Fraternization, because, as stated, I am a murky little trash-goblin.])

Lovemark 2.0 - Scott/Stiles - It’s my current baby and I love it so deeply for being adorable and fun, with an edge of character-study and an air of innocence. 

Various Fandoms

Don’t Get me Wrong, I’m Only Dancing - Britcom RPF that’s locked on Ao3. This is, hands-down, the cutest shit I’ve ever written and sometimes if I need a pick-me-up I will reread it and beam from ear to ear. 

5 Bottles of Wine and 1 Bottled Courage -- Brokenwood Mysteries -- Mike/Jared -- this is actually tied with Don’t Get me Wrong for being so goddamn cute I don’t know where to put myself. I also love the character voices and plotline and ambiance. 

All Its Splendid Glory - Merlin - Merlin/Arthur. There’s a reason this fic often gets recced around Christmas time. It’s fucking heartwarming. It’s fun, it’s lightly angsty, it has some good character-beats and witty lines. I wrote it in two days and it’s some of my finest shortfic work.