#i feel like some of them have a vibe that is further enhanced by music

[pastel-charm-14]

how to romanticize your life - a series - post 2 - romanticizing school

soo many people see school as something to avoid, as a chore. but we as individuals have the power to change the way we view school. it's an opportunity for growth, discovery, and personal development. so without further ado: here are a couple tips to help you romanticize school!!

have a positive mindset. in order to study effectively, you need to put aside the negative connotations you have with school and studying and replace them with positive connotations. write out a cons list and then counteract each negative with a positive. for example: con - school is very time consuming | pro - it teaches you time management skills.

create a peaceful and cozy school morning routine. drink some water, watch something funny, use the bathroom, brush your teeth, do your makeup, listen to some nice music, pick out a cute outfit, do your hair, have some matcha.

i also like to say affirmations in the mornings like "i love school" or "i'm amazing at school" to help get me into that positive mindset i was talking about earlier.

make a to-do list. part of romanticizing is not stressing. if you prepare for your day in advance, you can worry less and enjoy more.

really explore your school campus. find all the little nooks and crannys, and don't miss out on anything your school has to offer. for example, i found a little covered picnic table over by the greenhouses at my school that i love to sit at. cute places to study and hang out make school so much more enjoyable.

appreciate being a student. there is so much community and everyone is working toward to common goal to really figure out who they want to be and what they're going to do. it sounds dramatic, but it's true. so i advise you to embrace student life. attend events, plays, games, join clubs, and study with your friends. so go to that football game, participate in spirit days, and enjoy being a student to its fullest potential!

materials are also a huge part of school. you don't have to spend big bucks, but these are some basic things that have helped me:

-cute planners/notebooks, sticky notes -> for goals/organization, writing down something quick, although take physical notes as well!

-books -> gives you something to do, i like romance and educational books

-ipad -> helps with notes/studying, customize it to make it cute, add widgets, and keep in mind that it's all about the vibes

dress to impress. wear cute outfits. treat school as a fashion show. i know dressing up and feeling confident has really enhanced my school experience. some of my favorite things to wear are preppy cardigans, nice jeans, skirts, high knee boots, long sleeve turtlenecks, and just tons of cute tops. layering is very important to me as well. you can also add jewelry to help elevate your style a lil bit.

have a space that you dedicate to only studying. i have a desk in my room that i use, and it has improved my study habits, my grades, and my discipline. it makes studying/schoolwork so much more enjoyable. it always good to keep in mind that your environment impacts tons of other aspects of your life too. make your space your own and personalize it. some potential spots could also be coffee shops or the library, whatever works for you.

make a pinterest board to motivate yourself. this could include study-with-me's, study tips, just general inspiration, or things to do with your main area of study or your major if you're a uni student. this helps you think about "huh, that could be me".

bonus tips:

absorb study content/vlogs

have a good-vibes playlist

in case ya missed the intro post:

stay tuned…

[techguys]

The Best Bluetooth Gaming Headsets For Every System

If you are someone who thinks gaming is simple, all it requires is a phone or gaming system and a wifi connection - then you are very much wrong. For those who take gaming seriously, it is a skill, a proper sport which requires specific tools to be able to play up to one's potential. And mind you - serious gamers take their tools seriously. While having a comfortable chair, a steady internet connection is important - it is also important to have the best bluetooth gaming headphones or wired gaming headphones by your side to fully enjoy virtual gaming. Gaming is not only a virtual experience, it has very strong audio components as well that add to the feeling of playing online games. You need to be able to hear and see everything clearly in order to forget about the ambient surroundings and fully immerse into the virtual world. You need to be able to hear everything - be it a bomb blast at a distance or enemy footsteps, be it firing of a gun or some instructions from your gaming partners. And on top of all this - no chaotic noises from your surroundings should disturb you! Now if you are thinking - where can i find such versatile and cool headphones then this is your lucky day. We have curated a special list of headphones that will ensure a good and comfortable listening experience. Checkout the below list of gaming headsets that you can buy right away:

Immortal 300

Get. Set. Slay! Get ready to be your best at the gaming field with these stylish and powerful wired headsets. The 5 RGB LED modes add to the overall vibe of the headphone. Simply put these on and get in control of your listening experience. Just turn on the 3D driverless spatial audio mode and get that edge in every firefight. They pump out the ultimate surround sound that provides pinpoint positional accuracy. With these, you get to hear every movement of the enemy with 3D driverless spatial audio for PC and Mobile. The 50mm drivers know how to keep on pumping the right audio for you to enjoy online gaming. Furthermore, with these headphones, you will not only be able to hear everything clearly but also be heard clearly. The mic is enhanced with ENx Technology that carefully isolates your voice so your squad hears your instructions loud and clear! When you are not killing the online demons, you can switch on the music mode that will help you seamlessly enjoy your favorite music or movie with relevant optimisations. Immortal 1300D

If you love gaming then you have to check out these bluetooth headsets. Designed to enhance your gaming experience, they come loaded with many interesting features. The automatic breathing LED effect on the earcups looks absolutely cool.  Increase your immersion and in-game awareness with ultimate surround sound that provides pinpoint positional accuracy. Listen to directional footsteps from far away with 3D spatial sound for fps games like BGMI, COD, Free Fire etc. They pump out boAt signature sound that keeps you entertained and immersed in your favorite source of entertainment - be it music, movies or games. It supports dual connectivity - bluetooth & aux. This way you get to experience more freedom to connect the gaming system of your choice with this bluetooth wireless headset. The dual microphone also adds convenience. The power of ultra-low latency further ensures that your audio & video is always in sync. These bluetooth headsets are designed for long gaming hours as they are not only powerful but also extremely comfortable.

Wings Vader 350

Get ready to conquer any battlefield with these amazing gaming headphones. Whether listening to music or playing a game, the huge 50 mm driver will provide a dramatic and detailed audio experience, enveloping you in deep bass and immersive sound. The low latency gaming mode guarantees a smooth and uninterrupted audio experience that is always in sync. It doesn;t matter whether you are using them to play online games or watch your favorite moves, your audio & video will always be in sync. These headphones ensure that there is no loss of quality or time when you are speaking or hearing. Thanks to its 20-hour battery life, you can play your games, watch your movies, or listen to your music for hours on end without worrying about running out of juice.

Razer Barracuda X

These ultimate gaming headphones that are guaranteed to keep you company during those tense gaming moments. They are lightweight and the earcups come with a memory foam that ensures comfort for long hours.With a high-speed 2.4GHz cnnection, enjoy seamless audio whether you’re gaming at home or out with your phone, easily jumping between devices. The 40mm drivers push out exceptional highs, mids and lows. They provide deeper gaming immersion and a more dynamic listening experience for music and videos. Hope you enjoyed reading through the list of these headset wireless and wired headphones. You can count on them for your next gaming marathon!

[oddquake]

byakko and atsushi <3

[bethanyeliseart]

Everyone has their different opinions on stranger things 4 (& are entitled to them), but I really do hope everyone enjoyed the score and music this season! Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein along with the many other artists used did such an outstanding job of creating a story outside and alongside the dialogue.

For example, "there are some things worse than ghosts...", which plays at the end of episode 2, sets up the terror that Vecna causes. The music let's you know that this an entirely new type of threat that we and the characters don't know much about at that moment. It also has the vibe of a ticking clock which of course fits wonderfully. This eerie feeling is also enhanced further when the show decided to use outside music at the end of episode 3 where Max realizes she's next and El leaves with Owens. At first I thought the song was an original score, but it's not! It's "There's a Storm Coming" by Dance with the Dead. It still fits perfectly though. The vocals and synths set up this feeling of dread of knowing our heroes are in danger, Max knowing she is doomed because she hears the clock and El having to go back to a place that's full of traumatic memories for her. The music here gave me chills in these moments. And Vecna menacingly calling out to Max feels like it was always apart of the song. This song playing is when you start to know the plot just got ten times more tense.

And then of course they used Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)" beautifully, showing Max's internal struggle with depression and also showing her fight to live. But they also added an orchestra to it! Which made the stakes feel even higher and made me literally cheer her on as she ran. They used an orchestra again with the same song in the finale where the heroes finally fight back against Vecna after they got knocked down. It's a different arrangement, but both versions make the scenes all the more emotional.

Then in the last minutes we hear the original Stranger Things theme that always plays in the credits, but it's so much darker and intense. The scene seems like it'll end happily until we hear those familiar notes paired wth Will feeling the presence of Vecna. Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein's score playing over the dying flower field assure the audience that things have only begun for Vecna and the upside down. Ahhh I just love when shows use music so much like this to enhance the storytelling. That's all!

[noyaism]

Own It

Pairing: SunaxFem!Reader

Word Count: 3.9k

Warnings: car sex, drug usage (weed), degrading, orgasm denial, creampie, choking, spit play, sir!suna, power dynamics, spanking, praising, and a touch of size kink (lmk if i missed any warnings!)

Song Inspo: Own It - Drake

Ever since your first year of high school, the very first day when you met Suna Rintarou for the first time, you found yourself hopelessly crushing. You couldn't tell if it was his stoic look, the vibe he gave off, the intelligence under it all, but whatever it may have been, Suna peaked your interest in every way possible. This caused you to almost instantly befriend him. He was a bit of a tough nut to crack at the beginning of your friendship, but he eventually let you in and let you get close, and as that happened your feelings for him only grew stronger. 

And now here you were, in your first year of college. The feelings you had for him were the same as they had been for years now, not diminished in the slightest. Your friendship with him had become so important to you, though. He was a vital part in your life, and you had to learn to cope with the fact that telling him how you truly felt might ruin the way things were. That was a possibility you couldn't even begin to fathom, and so even though it almost killed you to do, you tried your best to keep those feelings at bay.

Even with your barred feelings, you still did everything with Suna, trying your best never to make your true feelings known. One thing the two of you had recently got into, after a party you were invited to and forcibly made him accompany you to, was smoking. You knew people who did it in high school, but it was never really your scene. You knew Suna had done it a couple times before going to the party, but that night he finally convinced you to try it, and ever since then you two smoked together almost on the daily.

It was a night as normal as any other one. Suna had texted you, asking if you wanted to go smoke. That question was a no brainer, as it always was, and he picked you up fairly soon after. You drove to your usual spot, the picnic area of a park that wasn't too far away from campus. It was usually emptied out by eleven, a couple stragglers stargazing was the most you ever saw. Tonight was about the norm, Suna’s car being the only one in the parking lot, you two the only ones around.

“Let me try rolling it.” You offered as Suna pulled a rolling tray out of the glove compartment, and the weed out of his jacket pocket. 

“You sucked last time you tried to roll. Sure you're ready to try again?” You stuck your tongue out at Suna, shaking your head lightly at the dig.

“I’ll never get better if I don't practice. Hand it over.” It was a fair enough assertion, thus Suna handed you the rolling tray, with both the bag of bud, a grinder and a pack of wraps on it. Admittedly, you weren't the best at rolling. Someone else had always done it for you, either that or you were smoking off carts, so it was never a skill you had really developed. It wasn't until recently that you had started to roll yourself, and it was definitely a bit harder than it looked. 

“Now see, this one is much better.” You said as you dried the blunt off, running a lighter over it to seal it all up. Suna chuckled lightly, nodding his head as he admired your work.

“Yeah, it looks pretty good, I gotta hand it to you.” You let out a satisfied chuckle and got into the back of the car, settling comfortably in the backseat and patting the space next to you.

“Cmon, I can and will smoke this thing alone if you don't get back here.” You jokingly threatened. Suna nodded, quickly grabbing his phone and putting some music on shuffle before joining you in the back. 

A white cloud of smoke filled the car, hazing your sight just enough for Suna, who sat beside you, to be just a bit more blurry than he should be. As he took the last couple hits the blunt had left he cracked the window open a bit, discarding it onto the cement below and rolling the window back up so too much of the smoke didn’t escape. You laid your head on his shoulder, breathing in the familiar smell of cannabis and letting your breathing level out as the high started to set into your body. As per usual, the weed mellowed you out, allowing you to just relax with him. The silence from the lack of conversation was easily filled by the music that played from the speakers, F**k the World by Brent Faiyaz reverberating through the vehicle. Suna hummed lightly along to the song, and you shut your eyes and simply listened to him. 

It was times like this that you wished you had the guts to tell Suna how you felt about him, but once again you thought it best not to. Maybe it was how stoic he was; even though you were definitely the closest person in the world to him, and you probably understood his emotions the best, there was still no way for you to read if these feelings were at all reciprocated. It was the same things you found so attractive about him that also terrified you to open up. You didn’t want to read into the way he treated you, as you thought that was only setting yourself up to be disappointed, and so you simply wallowed in the feeling of a love so painfully unrequited that you were addicted to how bad it felt. 

“Are you okay, y/n?” He asked, noticing your expression was a bit off, which you hadn’t previously noticed. You nodded your head quickly, picking it up off his shoulder and looking over towards him.

“Yeah, yeah I’m chill. Mind kinda started to wander, is all.”

“Off to where?” 

“It’s nothing.” You quickly objected, shaking your head a bit frantically.

“It’s obviously something, just tell me.” You sighed lightly, knowing very well Suna wasn’t going to drop the topic until he knew what was bothering you. He cared way too much about how you felt to just let something like that go. You knew you had to just swallow your pride and tell him, but you couldn’t get the words out. The pure thought of saying you liked him made your throat feel like it was closing up. So, logically, there was only one way for you to get your point across.

Thus, you kissed him.

It wasn’t a long kiss, frankly because your cheeks got so hot you thought your head might just explode, but it was enough for Suna to understand what exactly it was you were trying to say. As you pulled away the gravity of what it was you actually did hit you, and you hid your face in your hands, shaking your head a bit.

“I’m so sorry, Suna. I didn’t mean to...well I did, but I just don’t want the fact that I like you to make things different between us.” Before he responded Suna took hold of your chin between his fingers, pulling your face up and out of hiding so you were now looking directly at him. 

“You’re an idiot. A pretty one, but an idiot nonetheless.”

Before you could ask what he meant his lips were on yours once again, but this kiss felt so much different than the first one. This one had passion behind it, passion that you didn’t know Suna even had for you. Your arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him in closer so you could kiss him deeper. He pulled you onto his lap, hands firmly gripping your ass. 

As the music changed you began to move your hips to the rhythm, I Don’t Think You’re Ready by Tank bumping through the speakers. It was a pretty fitting song for the current situation, as you were simultaneously so ready for what might happen with Suna, and yet you hadn't a single clue if you were ready to take it all. 

Your hands snaked up into his hair, tugging softly on the brown strands as the kiss began to get even more heated. It didn't help that it was already pretty hot in the car, but this offered you the perfect opportunity to not only undress yourself, but Suna as well. You pulled your shirt up and off of you, letting it fall to the floor without much regard for where it was going. His jacket and shirt joined the growing pile, and in an instant your lips were reconnected. Kissing him was addicting, even better than what you had imagined it might've been like. 

You whined a bit as he pulled away, a pout coming over your lips.

“I’m guessing by that look you're okay with going further with this.” You nodded your head, leaning forward and kissing him softly.

“I’m all yours, Suna.”

“That's what I like to hear.”

Now that he had permission to continue, Suna was more than ready to get into it. Just as much as you fantasized what it would be like to be intimate with him, he thought the very same about you, and wanted to make some of his fantasies a reality. He reached behind you and swiftly unclasped your bra, lips latching onto your nipple as you discarded it. He rolled the opposite bud between his fingers, and your hips continued to grind into his. He kissed all over the skin of your breasts, a sweet gesture in comparison to his next moves. 

With one fluid motion your back was now clad to the backseat, and Suna hovered above you. The silver chain he wore around his neck dangled down into your face, enhancing the pure sight of him. Not even Michaelangelo himself could’ve carved a face and physique as near perfection as Suna’s, and the fact only your eyes got to feast upon the sight made it all the more attractive. He pulled your leggings off of you, your panties going with them. The feeling of being so bare in front of him was an interesting one. You would’ve expected that you were going to be more shy, more nervous about it, but it felt so right that you couldn’t have possibly felt that way. Suna bit his bottom lip as he looked down on you, admiring the sight of your nude body in front of him for what would be the first of many times.

“You’re fucking gorgeous, you know that?” He questioned before going down on you. While he wasn’t the biggest fan of his car, insisting it was a soccer mom car with way too much space than he would ever need, it seemed that the space was finally going to actually come in handy. You quite comfortably were laid out while he still had plenty of space to be between your legs. He placed soft, slow kisses on your inner thigh, each kiss heightening your need for him. By how wet you were it was obvious you were ready for him, and he wasted no time giving you what you wanted.

His lips latched onto your clit, sucking softly before he began licking long stripes between your folds. Chills ran down your spine, and moans started to slip from your mouth aimlessly. Suna’s tongue flicked over your clit, making you feel pleasure previously unbeknownst to you. Sure, guys had given you head before, and sure, it felt okay, but nobody had ever come close to being this good. It felt absolutely unreal, and the extent of your pleasure was potent in the way you said his name. Over and over again; Suna, Suna, Suna. Like a prayer desperate to be heard. And he loved hearing it, too. It was all he needed to know how good he was making you feel.

Your hips bucked toward his mouth as you began to chase your orgasm, the heat pooling in your core becoming hotter and hotter. You needed to cum and you needed it bad, and you needed him to give it to you. Suna slipped a finger into you, the second coming in quick succession. His mouth parted with you and his thumb began circling your most sensitive bud, so he could come up and loom over you.

“Feels good, doesn't it?” He asked, with a shit-eating grin on his face. He couldn't shake just how pretty he thought you looked like this, all desperate for him to please you. You nodded your head frantically, looking up at him with pure lust in your eyes.

“Ple-please make me cum, Suna.” You begged, much to his liking. He leaned down and kissed you gently, that same grin on his face as he pulled away. 

“Of course, baby. I’ll make you cum,” He prefaced before quickly removing his fingers from you, leaving you empty and with a ruined orgasm. You whined in frustration, confused as to why this was his course of action.

“But you’re gonna cum on my cock. Got it?” You nodded your head as Suna moved to take off his pants, finally letting his hardened erection spring free. You weren't sure what you had expected him to be packing, but the mere girth of him surpassed whatever you would've thought you were getting from him.

“Yes, sir.” You replied, causing Suna to chuckle lightly. He guided the tip of his member between your folds, lubing up with all the wetness that was already present. It was such a sight for him, one he had been wanting to entreat upon for a long, long time now. 

“That’s my good girl.” He praised before slowly starting to push into you. He took his time, not wanting to hurt you, but he had to admit the way you were clenching around him already was enough to drive him mad. He bottomed out soon enough, and you took him to the hilt. It felt so unbelievably good, and you gave him the okay to start moving. Suna kept his hands on your hips, keeping you steady as he began thrusting. Your eyes rolled back and your back arched, your body overwhelmed with pleasure. 

Your brain was kind of scrambled, hazy from how sensitive you were due to your previously denied orgasm, in conjunction with the high you were still on, but you could make out the song that had started to play. Own It by Drake, again, a pretty fitting song for the moment.

You’re still the one that I adore, ain’t much out there to have feelings for…

Both you and Suna had your passions, the things and people you cared about, but those lists were incredibly limited. There just wasn’t a lot that truly excited you. However, there had always been something that made you gravitate towards each other, something that made you need to be around each other, that caused you to be instrumental in each other's lives. Even if you wouldn't outwardly admit it, you adored each other.

Next time we fuck, I don’t wanna fuck, I wanna make love… 

But this time, you two were simply fucking. There was nothing more to it. It was raunchy, it was dirty, and little did you know, the fun was only just beginning for the both of you.

Suna kept his thrusts a bit on the slower side, much more concerned with how deep he was hitting than how fast he was going. It drove you absolutely wild, feeling every inch of him each time he moved. It was almost too much for you, your walls tightening around him more and more with even the slightest of moves he made.

“God damn, this slutty little cunt just can’t get enough of me, huh?” These words caught you completely off guard, you just wouldn’t expect Suna to say something so utterly vulgar, but admittedly, it turned you on way more than it probably should’ve. You shook your head lightly, looking him in the eyes, your gaze spilling over with desperation.

“N-need more.” You begged, much to Suna’s satisfaction. He smirked down at you, letting his right hand snake up your body and wrap around your throat while the left kept you firmly in place, with the entirety of his cock filling you up. 

“Cmon baby, you got better manners than that, don't you?” His tone was so divinely condescending, not really asking if you knew better, but insinuating you needed to. You were in no position to be anything but obedient, nor did your intentions differ. You wanted everything he had and were willing to do whatever it took to get it.

“Please, sir. I need more, I need it so bad.” You repeated, sounding even more desperate than you did before. By the look in his eyes you knew this was enough for Suna, who slowly pulled out of you. 

“Open your mouth.” He instructed, to which you immediately obeyed. He spat into your mouth, which you more than willingly accepted, a small smirk curling the corner of your lips as you swallowed. You were letting Suna know that he was in charge, and that you were there for him to use, his toy. He easily got the message, letting out a chuckle as he released his grip on your throat.

“Nasty little bitch.” 

Suna quickly turned you over onto your stomach, your face now pushed against the cold leather of the seats. His re-entry was quick, a soft squelch being heard as your walls greedily pulled his length right back in, giving you that oh-so euphoric feeling of being full once again. You moaned out loudly, a small yelp following at the unexpected spank he rained down on your ass. It was the first of many, while Suna simply enjoyed how you squirmed on him with each hit. 

After a fairly decent amount of spanking, enough to leave a deliciously painful sting on your skin, he started to fuck into you again. Suna’s slow strokes certainly weren't gentle, each seeming to hit deeper than the last, but this quickened pace turned that feeling up to a ten. Your mouth hung open as you took it all, moans and whines spilling out carelessly. Suna kept one hand firmly pressed onto the window for leverage, the other gripped hard on your waist, certainly enough to leave a light bruise. The sound of skin slapping with each of his thrusts rang through your head, and his grunts added atop that easily drowned out whatever music was playing. You much preferred this song, anyway.

“C’mere, ride me like the good little slut you are.” You didn't need to be told twice, as Suna pulled out and sat himself down you got yourself up and straddled him. You lined his tip up with your entrance, not lowering down onto him just yet, egging him on just to see how he would react. Fitting to what you expected, he grabbed onto your hips and forced you down, a surprised moan coming from you as your head fell onto his shoulder. 

“No no no, you don't get to tease me, whore. When I tell you to do something, you do it. Got it?” You nodded your head, letting out a small ‘yes sir’ in reply, too breathless to speak above a whisper. Suna’s hands gripped onto your ass as you started to ride him, bouncing on his length, circling your hips a bit every time you came down. 

Holding your orgasm back for this long was way more taxing than you would've thought it would be, your legs were shaking and your walls spasmed sporadically, desperate to finally get some relief. A pit of heat once again started to billow in your core, and you prayed you would finally get to cum.

“S-sir please, I need to cum...fuck, please let me cum.” The utter anguish in your voice did so much for Suna, knowing how much control he had over you and your pleasure turned him on more than anything else. He owned you, and he owned your orgasm, and you were both well aware of it. He was incredibly close himself, evident by how he started to pound up into you, matching the pace you had set. 

“Cum for me.” 

And you did. Almost instantly your high washed over you. You let out a moan that bordered on a scream as your juices spilled all over Suna’s dick. The spasms of your walls around his length made Suna cum as well, depositing a load out into you. For a while you two were fairly quiet, both catching your breath from what was undoubtedly the best orgasm either of you had had up until that point. 

You slowly got up and off of him, soreness almost immediately setting in now that you were empty. Suna ran a hand through his hair, fixing it up a bit before looking over at you. He motioned to his cock, a bit of a smirk still present on his lips. 

“Clean up your mess, baby.” You nodded at your instructions before leaning down, taking Suna’s length into your mouth. You licked up every last drop of both you and him, leaving nothing to waste. Once finished you popped your head up, wiping the corner of your mouth. Suna pulled you up and kissed you, placing a peck on your forehead as he pulled away. 

“So, you like me too?” You asked with a small smile. The answer to the question was more than blatantly obvious, but you still wanted to actually hear him say it.

“Of course I do, y/n. Everyone seemed to know but you, anyway.”

“And who is ‘everyone’, exactly?”

“Kita, Aran, the twins, you name it. Atsumu still won’t stop teasing me about not asking you out. Texts me every single day asking if we’re together yet.” 

With that in mind you picked up the shirt Suna had taken off, pulling it over your head before reaching up into the front cupholders to get your phone. He redressed himself fairly quickly, leaving a bit of his jacket unzipped at the top. You unlocked the device and started a Facetime with Atsumu, drumming your fingers on your thigh as you waited for an answer, making sure only you were in the frame.

“Hey! What’s up y/n, long time no see.” Atsumu greeted, giving you a smile and a wave. He was sat on his couch, a plate of sushi and a can of beer visible on the table where he had set his phone up.

“Yeah, it’s been a while. I was just calling to tell you he finally did it.” Atsumu looked at you a bit confused at first, but as you moved to get Suna in the frame as well it immediately clicked.

“Holy shit, thank god. I was getting tired of waiting, I was going to do it for him soon.” You let out a small chuckle, happy to see Atsumu was as bright as ever in his humor.

“Wait, hold on. Are you wearing his shirt? Did you guys fu-” Before he could finish the question Suna ended the call, shaking his head lightly.

“Yeah, I’m never gonna hear the end of that one.”

[filmsthatdonotexist]

The first thing you should know about this film is that, by all accounts, it should not exist.

It appears to be so expensive, so extensive in its use of locations, that surely some record of its creation should exist. But it simply does not. All names connected to the production appear to be aliases and It's location of production is unknown, presumed Italian due to many context clues, but with a few others within the film contradicting such, with a fictional rating of "H" described only on some copies as "Hastur," in a way totally unconnected to the MPAA, in a situation some have compared to a bizarre version of the situation surrounding the former "X" rating.

Its date of production is estimated at some time within the 1970s or 1980s, but the fact that  this is such a wide margin of time is telling in and of itself, as is the fact that the film mainly appears to only survive in the form of copies of faded prints or in widely bootlegged VHS tapes; for there was never any copyright information attached to it as far as we know.

The plot is seemingly simple, a woman is in love with a gargantuan monster, and mutilates people in a way that, when they appear dead, they are transmogrified to monsters themselves, as she slowly transmogrifies and, in the end, realizes she has become the beast she seeks.

And yet, it is at once difficult to capture with how it scatters through time and space at once, at one point cutting from what seems to be the woman's origins as victim of occult abuse in a dungeon; to a pseudo-documentary that appears to become more surreal and unhinged in its description of the things happening in the film, to a montage of clips from multiple strange silent films thought by most scholars to be totally otherwise lost.

It can be compared to immensely; deliberately transgressive films like Sweet Movie or Saolo: 120 Days of Sodom, with large amounts of nudity; sexual assault; and gore, but it relies less on the scatological in those films but rather on the flesh itself, conflating through cinematic language the mutilation of the flesh through violence to the transmogrification of the flesh into monstrous forms through the unknown force.

Even amongst the undoubtedly expensive sets; location shooting; casting of extras; miniature effects for the Beast's rampages; and even the other creature effects; the transformation effects are egregious in their ostentatiousness, infinitely more extensive than even many contemporary high budget films could have afforded, and while there have been some online attempts to dissect how the effects were done; most parts remain a mystery; and some have speculated that certain effects may have been impossible by the effects of the era, in particular the mass-murder-transformation-orgy scene in the theatre.

The enigma of how it could have acquired such a budget is further enhanced by the many pornographic scenes therein, some hardcore, some softcore, though for most it is difficult to judge which is which due to the strange editing style of these scenes. Which could be compared to a film like Tinto Brass' Caligula in terms of pornography with a budget except for the fact that; again; there appear to be no actual records of this film's production despite its likely considerable expense.

But, the final disturbing thing is the fact that, while the footage of the actual film runs five hours, the actual runtime is at seven, occupied by multiple "Intermission" slots. Given the fact that there appear to be multiple cuts of the film with different footage added or missing in ways patchworked with these "Intermissions", these "intermissions" appear to be covering for two hours of missing footage in the film

There have been multiple attempts to assemble a "definitive cut," but there s still remains a missing thirty minutes, and all attempted producers of such cuts appear to have had psychological breakdowns after or shortly before completion. This becomes more disquieting when one notes the multiple records of people having physiological feelings of illness at watching "normal" cuts of the film, only abating at those Intermissions, with further physiological effects observed at those "definitive" cuts.

There have been few studies into whether the source is simply a self-imposed nocebo or something further, but those studies that have been done have had... disquieting results...

...

... ...

Kayfabe aside, this one was partially based on a dream of mine, which I shall recount to you in full because it is perhaps even more disturbing than the fictional film that came from it.

The dream involved me and a couple of friends (Not any particular friends, just generic ones) going into this strange "movie theatre" which was supposedly at Six Flags but looked to me more like the livestock area at our county fair.

It looked very dingy, though I'm not sure in the way of a school or of a 90s-era movie theatre, it may have been a mix. There were multiple stories in that building, which was far more spacious than the weird, tucked-off corner would indicate. I remember seeing what looked like a gross mildew-y empty olympic swimming pool through some of the windows, in the center of the building, no reason why.

There may or may not have been something moving there.

The films they showed in each room were... odd. One of them I distinctly remember was this descent down what looked like a regular multiplex theatre seats but far longer, going slowly down like a weird hybrid of dark ride and film, with "people" around me that looked like 2d sprites and these "screens" floating around with stock-art-like images. It overall gave me the vibe of a combination multiplex and the feeling of a grainy photograph of a decrepit carnival ride and Shutterstock, if that makes sense. I think I recall there was a laugh track, and this weirdly stock old-timey dance music.

Another one I remember was a crudely drawn/animated Pearl from Steven Universe as a bee violently stinging other bees in what seemed to be a gory-yet-sexualized matter.

But the one I remember most in the halls was that one poster, just green text on a black background (more minimalistic than my recreation), The Ghastly Love Of Beauty And The Beast, rated H. In the dream, I understood that H was for Hastur, and that it signified something terrible.

I opened up the door to go in, and it was not a conventional theatre, but rather, a strange room that looked like one of those rooms in a fancy Victorian-type house, but made entirely of hand-sculpted pottery clay glazed with a blue checkered pattern akin to cloth, like a weird mix of lumpiness and elegance, with an crudely hydraulically operated (Think like a carnival ride, adorned with the stuff the room was made of) elevator in the middle that opened up for us. I almost went down with my friends, but at the last minute, as it was descending, I got out, and ran away.

My friends did not make it...

[creativenicocorner]

Slides a ⭐ for a star person :p

Holy shit it took over a year and I barely remember which fanfic ask this is about...I think it's like a director's cut one? REGARDLESS! I do remember the star was to like talk about whatever - and while looking for a WIP I came across an attempt to answer this WITHIN a wip? Past Nico what were you thinking?!

I do know this was written sometime before Ch15 of Terpsichore came out, because there were a few references? But I rephrased the wording a bit.

Forgive me for using this as an excuse to just babble on about how I choose the music titles for chapter sections in Terpsichore, but also, I'm not entirely sorry haha Without further Ado! Here’s hoping this rambling makes sense haha!!

⭐ AN ANSWER!（♥￫ｏ￩♥）

So it’s taken me a long time to figure out how I wanted to answer this. For a while I was going to ramble about M*A*S*H how it was a rather formative show for me growing up, especially in its anti-war message as well as how it feels like a comedy played in a minor key. There was even going to be a link to a video essay on the show, and then I was going to hint at a want to write a series following the changelings in a pre-show context in the sort of vibe M*A*S*H gave.

But it got lost, and weighty…and…idk, I can’t seem to stick to a lot of things these days? I don’t know.

But there’s always been in me the want to attempt to explain why I choose the music pieces I choose to title the sections in each chapter. Cause despite the little message at the bottom of the first chapter and the last chapter talking about motifs leitmotifs…writing prose is nothing like composing music.

And not only that I’m sure less than half of the people reading the fic will listen along with the playlist. Which is 100000% fine! I anticipate it even!

Because at best, those sectional pieces serve less as soundtrack more like a silent movie’s musical medley.

Because it’s the written word, and I’m not Andrew Hussie ldgj though the day I find out how to put a little ‘play button’ to listen to music during a fic, I might do that. But at this point in time Hell No haha.

Despite this, there is a process behind my music selections.

There is a difference between what I consider ‘corpse de ballet’/ ‘ensemble’ sections, and ‘leads’ / ‘duet’ sections.

Or what my poor readers go through as ‘a shit ton of prospective shifts’ and two prospectives at best, at the same time. I don’t know why I’m such a fan of bouncing between perspectives so much that you probably feel seasick. I always consider it a miracle anyone understands what the heck is going on dfjglk The answer is probably because I like third person omniscient writing, and am a sucker for situational/character irony. But I’m also a grammar school drop out haha and don’t actually know the rules of writing by heart? I’m just a fool with a bunch of vibes and a dictionary doing their best lol.

[ stressed coffee sip ] Fake it til you make it baby

But yeah! Enough borderline weird self deprecating! Let’s talk music!!

So! Usually when writing a section I try and think about who are the central characters in the section, and or what is the theme/emotion I’m trying to call on. Is there a motif, or a reference I can play on musically? An idea or concept I can echo or even enhance? Will it be a specific genera of music tied to a character because that character embodies and or is known for a specific genera (example: Nomura and Opera- more on that at during ACTII )

Once I answer those questions, I’m able to narrow down my music choices. Which, again, acts more like a book of suggested musical medley orchestras and musicians would purchase during the silent movie era as like a cheat sheet of what they could play during a specific scene.

So…for instance, for a character like Barbara Lake I wouldn’t use video game music -or maybe I could…but it would only be in terms of perhaps referencing her son.- who I would have a higher chance at choosing to select a video game music piece for (hang on to your butts ACT II Zelda soundtrack).

In the fic I’ve built the idea that in order to explain Barbara’s ability to paint, that she not only took classes but was part of the production team in putting on a play, mainly in set design painting props. Which opens me to a world of musical options when it comes to Barbara’s character. Especially when certain musicals hold songs that can be really fitting to her character later on. An example of this can be seen in ch3 “Aquarius”, and ch14 “Julia”.

Ch3 is Barbara’s big planned picnic date. The first date she and Walter go on after she ingested the binding spell. The two of them coming together, but also the magic of which awakening something magical inside.

And Ch14 in which the binding spell is broken, but also whatever was holding Barbara’s potential to reaching towards that magical something inside her is also broken. And in a sort of my own attempt at written diegesis between the narrative and the song selections in the sections, the lyrics to Aquarius is written out as Barbara depends into the water. In which it is no longer the dawning of Aquarius, Aquarius is starting to take center stage. Their cue is played.

That would be my example on a very character driven musical choice.

Not only that, but it is at Ch3 where Walter is influenced more and more to Barbara’s appreciation to musicals, so much so that it begins to influence his own array of music pieces. His dreams no longer dialogue from movies he fell asleep to, but sometimes full on reproductions of staged musicals and plays. An example of this can be seen in Ch11 On the Right Track from Pippin the Musical - which oof I could go into a full dissertation on in regards to changelings/Pippin and The Pale Lady/Leading Player.

Not only that, but due to influence from Barbara’s love we get the moment of Walter’s ‘I want’ section piece in the form of Ch9 “Corner of the Sky” (aka Pippin’s I want song as well). The moment before this happened there was the interaction with Angor AND Otto AND the repercussions of Angor attacking the school. It is clear to these characters that Strickler is not giving his all in killing Jim, and perhaps never tried to give his all. Something that Otto proclaims as Strickler making excuses, and Strickler insists is tact.

Then there is the situational character driven choice.

I’m going to continue to use Barbara as an example here, and say that THIS can be seen in Ch2 “No. 9 – Finale Andante” and ch12 “Le Lac Des Cygnes Introduction: Moderato Assai”

Both of these music pieces come from Swan Lake. The reasoning behind the choice is probably asinine in thought process (Barbara Lake, Swan Lake), but also thought out in the sense of the following:

In Season3 of Trollhunters Morgana, in order to attempt to reacquire her shadow staff from Strickler (“The Exorcism of Clair Nuñez), transforms herself to take Barbara Lake’s physical form.

IN THE BALLET SWAN LAKE The wizard Von Rothbart, in order to obtain what they want, transforms (granted someone else) Odile to look like the hero Odette in order to trick the prince into proclaiming this imposter Odile as their one true love. In which Odile is the mirror to Odette, and while looking similar (in fact typically the ballerina who performs as Oddette would also perform as Odile) are opposites in spirit.

And, at least in Terpsichore, what near primordial eldritch force can rival that of the Eldritch Queen that we know from cannon will inevitably impersonate Barbara Lake?

But wait, there’s more.

In chapter 2 the piece used in section 2 is the end of ACTI from Swan Lake. The music hints not only the arrival of Odette, but also her inevitable tragedy. What is written in this section, briefly at that cause we watched how the scene plays out in the show, you don’t need me writing that back at you, but I digress- What is WRITTEN in this section is Barbara sipping the enchanted tea that binds herself to Waltolomew Strickler. Something that you, the viewer and fan will know ends in tragedy, as do I the writer and also fan knows will end in tragedy. The only people out of the loop here are the poor poor characters.

And then the revolving door of bad situations that is ch12 happens, and we return to Swan Lake with “Le Lac Des Cygnes Introduction” In which Barbara is introduced to Jim Lake’s Trollhunting world, finally. But wait! There’s EVEN more.

Because not only is Barbara introduced to Jim’s Trollhunting world, Barbara begins to allow herself an introduction to that weird magical more that’s inside her via dream. And YOU/WE the reader/writer/audience, are introduced to the strange figure Giselle is talking to on the beach of Lake Superior…who…well, you’ve probably already have an idea as to who that figure is ;)c

There are also moments when I just select a song piece because I think it fits Thematially well - ch11’s “Powerhouse” section. Aka the music that plays in Looney Tunes whenever an assembly line montage occurs - to which in that section Jim Draal and Walter are putting together the booby-traps to thwart Angor Rot (as well as try to reassemble some sort of emotional connection between them). Or it could be a reference to a meme I really enjoyed, example Ch12’s “Roundabout” aka the music piece known vernacularly as “The Jojo Meme” but also like…meme aside it’s really good and fits and just lkfgjkgsdj I have a lot of feels about Roundabout and I won’t apologize for it haha

And yet, something I pride myself in, is that you don’t need to know all of this to enjoy the story. It isn’t necessary to listen to the Swan Lake pieces or even the Musicals, or even the Jojo Meme. Because, if I did my job right, those echoes ought to be in the writing. The pieces to the section have always been optional. Just little markings in a booklet to be given to you the reader/composer as a suggestion and you can choose to play those pieces along to the silent film, or boot up a ragtime. And that’s the power you have. And that’s equally as wonderful!

[ohwereusingourmadeupnames]

And the Sunshine Shinin’

Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Rating: Explicit (E) Warnings: stripper!Tony, smut Notes: I used @modest-demon‘s artwork as inspiration for this one. If you want the full effect, take a peak at it here before you read through this :D Summary:

Tony Stark is a notorious stripper going by the name Iron Man. The further he gets into his career, the more behind the scenes he becomes until he's only working private jobs. Peter Parker hires Iron Man for MJ's bachelorette party and sexy stripper Tony Stark dances his little heart out. Little does Peter know that Tony Stark is Morgan Barnes-Rogers's Uncle Tony. Things get interesting when he walks with her into Peter's kindergarten class the morning after their strip club experience.

You can read it on AO3 here

Tony never thought he’d make stripping a career. In fact, he’d never stepped foot into a strip club until the first day of what would become a pretty damn good job for a long time. He’d been struggling since graduating from MIT – the prospect of joining good ole’ daddy dearest in his suits and executive bull shit made Tony’s stomach curl every single time he thought about it. Not only did he have a pretty subpar relationship with his father, he also wasn’t known for being able to sit still for long periods of time – and the executive side of Stark Industries did not include regular recess – he checked. Jumping from department to department wasn’t helping anyone. Tony regularly complained about how bored and restricted he felt, and his father was always going on about the lack of effort coming from his son. The prospect of turning 18 brought a lot of things with it, one of them being a complete sense of freedom.

When Steve, one of his buddies he’d met in college and then again through the Stark Industries internship program, mentioned what he did on the side for “fun” money, Tony was instantly intrigued. There weren’t a lot of people privy to the information, but he’d been taking formal dance lessons since his mom mistakenly put him in a ballet class at the ripe again of 6. The glaringly obvious opportunity in front of Tony’s face came with added benefit of pissing his father off if the man ever decided to track him down or find out what he did with his time. Who would have thought that a teenage act of rebellion could be something that was just so – right? That first night walking into the club, Tony felt more nervous than he ever did during a test at MIT or a presentation at his father’s company. The adrenaline coursing through his veins was the thing missing and he knew it right away. He’d been pretty sure of it putting his routine together earlier that afternoon – his feelings in that instant sealed the deal.

The guys are the door were thorough in their inquisition about his age and a couple different forms of ID had him in the door – the look shared between the man and Steve probably working in his favor, too. In all honesty, he probably only had one shot to make an impression at a place like the one they were in – the club obviously more upscale than some of the others out there. He followed Steve closely, the narrow hallway like something Tony never experienced before. It funneled down into what he quickly found to be a dressing room with men and women alike in various degrees of undress. It was an instant sensory overload – and he wondered how people ever got used to it. Though, thinking about it, he’d need to get over it pretty quickly. There were bound to be a pretty decent collection of humans on the other side of the door. Sucking in a breath, Tony squared his shoulders up and walked over to the empty space next to Steve.

“I didn’t work out a costume. You think there’d be something I could put on for tonight?” Tony asked Steve under his breath, his friend chuckling – a long finger pointing to a big closet in the corner. “You take it, you wash it. Just make sure you can move in it and get it off,” Steve replied steadily, his own pilot costume laid out on the bench in front of them. Tony nodded and made a straight beeline to the closet – there was a wide selection of the customary clichés, all things Tony figured he’d never be able to pull off. Digging into the stuff a little bit more, he found a black vest that was thick leather halfway until what he assumed would be mid-chest and the rest was solid strips of that same leather, like the billowing plastic pieces at the end of bike handles. He smirked and pulled the vest against his chest – the piece of music he’d dance to finally clicking into his head. The black leather chaps he found at the beginning of his search would go perfectly with the piece of main inspiration for the personality he planned to portray.

Getting the pants on, he felt confused by the suspenders attached to them, but went with it – they looked good down off of his shoulders and would create movement throughout his routine rather nicely. He slipped back into the shoes he decided to wear and took a look in the full-length mirror on the wall – his eyes bulging for a second at the sexy stranger he saw looking back at him. The outfit enhanced all the things Tony was looking to put on display and it gave him more of a darker vibe – something he wanted to make sure he projected, too. The air of mystery seemed to be half the fun of something like this – if he could keep people on their toes, how could they not come back for more? Running both hands through his hair, Tony ruffled the locks giving himself the fresh out of bed look. Hopefully his choices would have the desired effect and capture the audience’s attention. Though he’d never used a pole or danced in front of a crowd in a way meant to be titillating, Tony knew what it was like to desire attention and found many ways to acquire it over the years.

What more was taking your clothes off for someone other than the explicit and sometimes forceful demand for attention?

The steady thrum of nervousness stuck around and kept Tony in front of the mirror, the younger man watching himself move through the motions he’d been practicing – his natural ability to understand the beat of music would help him, but he wanted to be prepared. The last thing he wanted was to go out there and make a total ass of himself. He raptly watched the suspenders down by his hips fly through the air out of a turn and smiled – his outfit choice really was exactly what he was looking for.

He took a break from worrying to watch a bit of Steve’s dance from the side of the stage – the guy couldn’t really dance, but the firmness of his body and the boyish charm he used seemed to have the same effect. Watching an older lady put a five-dollar bill in the small waistband hiding under the plain black pants he started the routine in was one of the best experiences Tony could remember having and immediately eased all the lingering feelings of self-doubt. If dopey ass Steve Rogers could win over the old bitties – Tony would be way more than okay.

He watched with fascination as Steve came back into the locker room covered in sweat and fisting several bills in his hands – a black trash bag slung over his shoulder. Tony yearned to feel the tangibility of cash he got to shake his ass for and gladly gave up his music request to the sound guy a few minutes before stepping on stage himself. There was just enough time to give Rogers some shit before going out and doing the same damn thing.

“I thought that old lady was going to go for the whole package, Stevie – you got lucky,” Tony smirked, the shit talk falling seamlessly from his lips. Steve colored and smacked him on the bare shoulder, “It’s your turn next, Tony. They’re going to love you,” he felt the other man’s eyes trail over him for a second and then the glance was gone – the idea of it enough to add to the little bit of confidence he’d managed to acquire throughout the night waiting to perform.

Tony ran through the routine he’d put together in his mind a couple more times on his way up to the stage – he practiced a couple shimmies and then straightened himself up. With all of his costume in place, Tony waited impatiently for his time on the stage. Before stepping up, a guy with a microphone in his hand stopped him – his hand flat on the naked flesh of Tony’s stomach. He looked up surprised, the idea of being touched so candidly still something that was settling into the depths of his mind.

To make this work, he’d quickly need to get over it and as the fingers lingered for an extra second, Tony took a deep breath and pushed the gross feeling that threatened to overtake him away. “What’s your name, kid?” The guy asked now that he’d successfully gotten Tony’s attention. “Tony,” he said back to him quickly. The man smirked and shook his head. “What’s your stage name?” Tony felt a flush of embarrassment run through him, but quickly got his shit together – the perfect name coming to the forefront of his mind almost instantly.

“I’m Iron Man,” Tony said with confidence, his eyes wide with excitement.

The announcer made up some bull shit about Tony’s backstory while he got himself set up on the middle of the stage – the lights still low. He gave the opening music a couple seconds to play before he stepped forward and started to roll his hips – the sweet beats of Ginuwine the soundtrack to a life changing experience.

Needless to say, Tony truly found himself on the stage that night – his black trash bag full of money a true motivator. The subtle fuck you he said to all the people who didn’t give a shit about him a fabulous consolation prize.

----

The brilliance of that night was almost twenty years ago. Just like Tony figured, the costume idea and stage name went off like a rocket – his career bloomed so quickly that he didn’t have a chance to think about his father’s disappointment or the untimely death of his mother only a couple weeks after that first dance. The more time he spent on the stage, the more people seemed to like him. With his structured dance background and ability to be shameless, Tony easily understood just how right the business was for him. After that initial time up on the stage, Tony got his feet under him and started to dance more and more throughout the night. Instead of going once an hour, he went twice – and when someone was missing for the night, or not getting as much in the way of tips like the rest of them, Tony filled in there, too. It was easy to see that his mysterious persona and crazy moves on the pole were crowd favorites. Who would have thought being able to move his hips and look good almost naked would make a name for him?

Things stayed that way for a while, too. Tony left his engineering background behind and focused completely on dancing. And since he had such a following, the club he danced in let him use the poles and dance floor space whenever he wanted. The routines and moves changed, but Tony kept with his signature style. The main addition that stuck with the rest of his get up was a felt cowboy hat. He used it often to keep the brim low over his eyes – the inability to see his stare always seemed to do the trick. When he’d slide down onto his knees and pull the hat off of his head, the crowd went crazy. For most of his performances, Tony kept that air of mystery about him and only let the crowd get a glimpse of anything other than his swaying hips and tight ass once or twice per dance. On top of that, he spent a good amount of time on the pole throughout his dances – the only thing a spectator could really see was the way he spun, or the tightness of his legs when he’d slide down with no hands and only the muscles in his thighs to stop him.

About ten years into his career, Tony got offered an opportunity to move to a new club with a few of the guys he’d been dancing with for a while. Between him and Steve – Fury’s did really well, and though they made the club more money than it ever made before, their cuts of the take were not going up in the same way. It never bothered Tony much, he took in enough on his own to make at least a thousand dollars any of the nights he danced. Yet, he couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to take a place from the ground floor up. He owed Nick Fury a whole lot for initially taking a chance on young Tony Stark – however, he owed himself a lot more and the move to Marvel’s Finest was the easiest decision Tony could remember making since stepping on the stage for the first time. Aside from dancing, Tony and Steve spent a good bit of time recruiting other dancers and after a couple years of making the club a success – Tony started to take his turn behind the microphone as an MC.

For about thirteen years, Tony appreciated the stripping life for all that it was. The parties, the ability to make a whole month’s worth of money in one night, even the drugs every now and again. It was easy to let the years pass by in a haze of dance routines and pot-induced binges. He liked the notoriety of being Iron Man and for a long while, that was enough. Things started to change when Steve met Bucky and all of the people around him were suddenly starting to settle down. His friend still danced of course – one couldn’t give up primetime floor spots on Friday and Saturday nights, but he was also starting to move his work life away from the club. Though he’d never admit it, Tony felt a little jealous anytime he saw the two of them together and felt like an old fuck when he was around some of the younger dancers that were getting the easy attention of the crowd like he used to. People came specifically to see Tony these days – he wasn’t pulling the wild and spontaneous crowds the way the younger guys were. And all of the sudden, dancing wasn’t enough.

Of course, he’d been a college graduate since the prime age of 15 – he had a mechanical engineering degree under his belt, one from MIT of all places. If he wanted, he could walk back into Stark Industries, which was still being run by his stingy, asshole of a father, and get his job back. The idea of it popped into his head a few times but then he always remembered how miserable he’d been there, how boring the humdrum of day to day shit was in a stuffy situation like cooperate America. The entire reason he’d escaped to dancing in the first place was to get away from that situation – no, that wouldn’t work. No, instead of heading back into the fire of being a businessperson, Tony wanted something with creative freedom, something that would allow him to do what he wanted when he wanted.

The perfect opportunity fell into his hands when he spent a random afternoon with Bucky, the man a perfect mixture of old fashioned and hippy. His creative spirit always had Steve out at art shows or taking in theater – in all the time Tony knew the guy, he never thought to picture Steve Rogers in an opera house. He seemed smitten, though, so Tony went out of his way to get to know the guy – to create a relationship with him that could withstand Steve keeping Bucky in his life. The first few times were a little weird, kind of awkward – Tony wasn’t the easiest to get along with and Bucky’s personality threw the man for a loop. The more time Tony spent with him though, the more Tony understood why he was perfect for Steve and the more he realized just how cool the guy actually was.

They were out hiking at one of the remote locations the group found earlier that summer, enjoying the bright sunshine and absence of other humans. Tony watched with curious eyes as Bucky pulled a camera from his bag and started to take pictures of everything around him. He’d seen the man’s disposables before, but this thing was nice – a fully functional film camera with a wide digital display. He looked over the man’s shoulder while he showed him a couple of the functions. “Do you want to try it?” Bucky asked, his hand already in the process of handing the thing over to Tony before he could even respond. He nodded anyway and eagerly accepted the camera, the tech part of his brain already trying to categorize all the different parts and pieces. He didn’t take a picture for a while and simply studied the tech in his hands. Knowing how it worked always helped Tony make the most of those functions. Fiddling with it, he happened to glance up and see Bucky staring out into the distance. Without much thought, Tony brought the camera up and glanced down the viewfinder – he fiddled with the focus slightly and pressed his finger against the button, the snap of the shudder oddly satisfying.

A couple of weeks later, Tony was practicing a new routine in the gym and dance space he converted the garage of the house into. The garage door was wide open, so he shouldn’t have been surprised when he finally noticed the presence of another human. He’d been balls deep in step counts and music timing to even notice Steve – his friend was leaned against the open wall watching him when Tony came to. “What the fuck, Rogers?” Tony asked, the man grabbing the towel he’d thrown against the chair he kept around to toss himself into when he needed a break and wiping his brow. The taller man smiled and pointed at the open door. “If you didn’t want someone to come in, you shouldn’t keep the door wide open. Besides, I needed to show you this,” Steve unfolded his arms and revealed the brown envelope he’d been holding in his hand. “Bucky was showing me the prints from your hike a few weeks ago and when he showed me this one, I had to catch my breath.” Finally, he let the envelope out of his hand, Tony’s sweaty fingers fumbling with it. He pulled the photo of Bucky he sneakily snapped out and glanced at it – he looked lost in thought, a soft smile on his lips pulling the whole thing together.

“This is the best picture I’ve ever seen, Tony,” Steve said after a couple minutes of silence. Tony blinked back from his observation and tilted his head. “Thanks, Cap. Now tell me why you needed to interrupt rehearsal to tell me that,” Tony snapped back, his eyes still focused on the really good picture in his grasp. He knew exactly what the other man was alluding to. The idea of crafting his own camera and getting really good behind it had passed through his mind multiple times since he realized how cool the science behind photography really was. Maybe a push in that direction would be enough to motivate him – to convince him of the worth of the knowledge in his head. He got his wish – Stevie boy never missing the opportunity to impart wisdom upon him.

“You’ve been looking for something to do. I think you found it. The dance company Bucky’s niece dances at is looking for an in-house photographer. Do your smart kid thing, practice a little, and see if maybe you like seeing dance from a different perspective. It might keep you busy,” Steve motioned for the picture back as he spoke, his hands a little reverent as he put it back into the envelope for safe keeping. “Think about it,” he spoke again, Steve’s free hand patting Tony’s shoulder lightly. Watching him wipe his hand off against his jeans was the right amount of satisfaction – the man’s words fresh in Tony’s ears when he turned back to the open floor and started going through the motions of the routine again.

The start of that new adventure was slow going. Tony decided that if he was going to get into the business, he wanted to have a piece of technology that he knew would do the work he wanted it to do. He got the same model as Bucky’s and made a bunch of custom adjustments to it – both in its programming and the structure. The camera body’s ability to have several different lenses attached to it brought even more ideas for adjustments to be made. By the time he felt satisfied he’d spent more time screwing around with the camera than actually using the damn thing. Tony spent an annoying amount of time snapping away during rehearsals and whatever photos he could get of Steve working or him and Bucky interacting together. Tony knew the easiest way to get good at something was to practice, so he did. Little by little, he felt himself find a level of comfort behind the camera – to the point where he wanted to be there more often times than not.

The job with the dance academy opened a ton of doorways for Tony and after a couple years, he felt good enough about the steadiness of work that he could deem the business he put together successful. T. Stark Photography – the business cards he passed out were sleek and mysterious, just how Tony liked it. It felt good to be known by others in a way that didn’t include him taking off his clothes and dancing to rocky-stripper beats. The more he got into the photography world, including modifying cameras and mastering all of the Adobe Photo products, the further he allowed himself to stray from the stripping world. He started to do more MC work and when he did dance, it was for private parties and small groups at Marvel’s Finest. With all of the changes, Tony could finally say he felt pretty good about his life and himself. There was enough money coming in to keep him in the nice house he’d built from the ground up and freedom to do what he wanted, when he wanted.

Which is why Tony found himself taking a stripping job for the first time in a while – the guy on the phone sounding very enthusiastic and eager, the combination of which was very hard for Tony to turn down. He made the appointment and scheduled his remaining photo gigs for the month around the private dance at Marvel’s Finest for a Michelle Jones’s bachelorette party. The thing that really made him smile was the fact that the person on the other side of the phone was looking for Iron Man specifically – not just the dancer Tony Stark. He’d been much more open about who he was the more time he spent behind the microphone instead of on the stage. Only some of the older people who saw Tony dance in his younger years still knew him as Iron Man. Well, he’d also done a magazine spread in Play Girl once – but that was years ago, too.

The night of the party ended up on a Thursday, which worked out perfectly for Tony. Steve and Bucky tied the knot about a year after Tony’s photography journey started. It was the very first wedding Tony shot and still his very favorite. There are still several of the prints from it littered around his in-home studio. A year after that, they adopted a baby girl named Morgan – and Tony immediately fell in love with her. They gave him the privilege of being Uncle Tony and ever since she was big enough, he took care of her on Friday’s. The girl was now 5 years old and one of the coolest people he’d ever known. He got to take her to school for the first time, too – so Tony found himself excited most of the day Thursday. For the first time in a while, he was ready to dance and have fun with people that were obvious fans of his “work”. Then, he’d start the weekend off with one of his favorite humans on the planet. The chocolate chips for their traditional Friday night pancakes were on his counter, waiting eagerly to be consumed.

A few minutes before he was set to perform, Tony found himself with his phone in his hand, the song selections for the night still in limbo. He could do any of his performances to most of the songs he had in mind – he’d been dancing long enough to piece together when a hip roll would look good where. Yet, he himself found going back towards some of his old stuff, Kid Rock’s Cowboy popping up way too often to be ignored. The song entitled lots of work on the bar and lots of time with only his vest and the small black pair of briefs on – but he figured that’d be perfect for a bunch of women (and a couple of guys) eager to have a little time with Iron Man. With that settled, Tony went back into the locker room to grab his purple felt hat – tonight he was rocking dark tear-away jeans that fit all of his contours in all of the right ways. His black vest was reminiscent of the one he wore that first night and thick black boots finished the look, the laces tied just enough to give him support and the ability to move.

A spark of excitement went through him when he settled into the open space of the dance floor, the music starting to loud applause of the people at the end of the stage. He tipped the hat over his eyes and started to move, his hips swinging, his steps long filled with a couple of spins and full body rolls – his eyes intent on the pole right around the time the song got close to the first chorus.

Buy an old drop-top find a spot to pimp And I'mma Kid Rock it up and down ya' block With a bottle of scotch and watch lots a crotch Buy a yacht with a flag sayin' "Chillin' the Most"

His back hit the pole at the end of the beat, and he climbed his way up it – the man glad that he still had his jeans on for this move. Tony let his hands drop and he spun down to the space right before the floor, the clench of his thighs stopping him. He used the strength in his back to flip him over and back onto his feet – the last couple of beats hitting with the sway of his lips before the dance really started.

Cowboy, baby! With the top let back and the sunshine shinin' Cowboy, baby!

Tony pushed himself to his knees and felt himself sliding towards the crowd, one hand bringing the hat from his head and the other slipping down by his boot, his abs and crotch on display with the thrust of his hips when the friction inevitably slowed him down. There were bills thrown on the dance floor around him, but Tony didn’t pay any attention – his eyes suddenly drawn to a younger man with bright eyes that were peeled on him, his hair long and a little curly, a few of the locks at the side of his neck curling against the skin there.

He flawlessly brought himself back to his feet and used the next few hard hits of the bass to get himself into a position to tear his pants off – the black briefs he chose having the desired effect he predicted, the applause for once actually driving him on. Tony made is his way across the stage to all the different groups of women, his back to them, wiggling his ass, or his chest and abs on display for the hands that were grabbier than he usually allowed. The man was standing in the cluster of people gathered around the bride – so he saved them for last. His closeout moves were some of his best and by the end of the song, he was freely shaking his ass in their direction – the smallest amount of hope that those doe eyes were still so transfixed upon him making the moves a little extra.  

The end of the song came before anyone was ready for it and Tony was quickly gathering the vest that was within reach to get off the stage. Whoever was prepping the stage for the next dance would get the remainder of his stuff and collect whatever tips that came from the dance not currently tucked into the waistband of his underpants. Tony felt a faint smile on his lips from the amount of fun that’d been and finally understood what balance actually was. Shaking his head, he went through the process of getting dressed – which included pulling bills from his underwear and trying to get the little bit of glitter he put on his body earlier off. His skin was still slick from sweating for 5 minutes straight, so a shower was the only way to really clean himself up and that would have to wait until later. Now that his job was done and his money was collected, Tony snuck out of the back door of the club – the call of his pillow louder than any thought of staying out and enjoying a night with a partying crowd.

Morning came fast and not for the first time, Tony felt grateful for the little bit of responsibility he learned over the years. There were so many nights when sleep would claim him not long before he needed to be up for something or another. It only took slowing down a bit to realize how nice it was to actually get a good night’s sleep. He got himself up and through the few things he needed to do in the morning, the excitement of seeing his little punk picking the pace of the activities up a little bit.

With little effort, Tony got himself into his car and headed towards Steve and Bucky’s place. It seemed like they liked Tony Friday’s just as much as Morgan did – they greeted him very cheerfully and told him of their plans to simply enjoy the evening at home together. Everyone got a hug before Tony was buckling the little girl into the booster he kept in his backseat for this very occasion. She’d been babbling about something or another since he got there, and he felt content to let her talk while he got her to school on time. Before he left, Bucky insisted on him going in and meeting the teacher – he wanted to make sure the guy knew who it was picking Morgan up later.

It was pretty funny how things worked out. Tony couldn’t help the laugh that left his lips when he recognized those doe eyes from the club the night before – the pink blush the exact same, too. The sputtering was cute – he couldn’t deny that. Morgan looked at him curiously for a second before she was distracted by another kid running by her. The girl gave his leg a hug and ran off – leaving the two adults to their own devices.

Not wanting to make the moment awkward, Tony stuck out a hand between them. “I’m Tony. Or Uncle Tony, if you listen to Morgan. Nice to meet you,” Tony spoke confidently, his words trying to say all the things he couldn’t in the current situation – ‘don’t freak out’, ‘I’m just an average guy’,’ you’re so fucking cute’ – all of those things. The man thankfully extended his own hand and grabbed Tony’s, the touch of their palms like an electric shock.

----

Peter couldn’t explain the amount of excitement he was still feeling after MJ’s bachelorette party. When she asked him to plan it, he knew Marvel’s Finest was the best place to take them. Even if MJ decided to take it as a joke, Peter felt obligated to make sure all of the people he invited to join them would enjoy the show, nonetheless. If he decided to book Iron Man for his own pleasure, no one really needed to know that. He could still remember the way that Play Girl opened up to the Iron Man spread – the pages so well used. By the time Peter was old enough to actually enjoy anything like a strip club, the notorious Iron Man wasn’t dancing nearly as much, usually only for private type events.

When the opportunity presented itself, Peter decided to take advantage of it. And boy was it the best abuse of friend power he’d ever experienced. The whole look immediately made Peter hot, his skin on fire. The music selection was perfect for the performance the man decided to put on, and oh – those black briefs. It shouldn’t be legal for people to look that good. The physical manifestation of his attraction was within his grin and if he thought too hard about it – he might have thought the man was looking right back at him.

It shocked the absolute hell out of him when the very star of his fantasy later that evening walked through the doors of his classroom – Morgan Barnes-Rogers in tow. His jaw fell from its tucked position, the muscles surrounding it the only thing keeping it from hitting the ground. In this setting, he could see the man’s salt and pepper hair, his brows arched in recognition. Peter collected himself in time to smile at Morgan before she ran past him and into the writhing mass of kids collected on the play mat.

He was a little surprised when the man stuck a hand out between them an introduced himself. Peter took another second to collect himself before reaching out and grabbing onto it, their palms flashing warm on contact. His fingers gripped the others, the touch probably going on for just a little bit too long. “I’m Peter. Peter Parker. I can’t um – it’s nice to meet you, too,” his words felt a little choked, like he couldn’t quite get them out – but the man’s returning smile gave him courage.

“Bucky said to come in and introduce myself, so here I am. I’ll be picking Morgan up later today, too.” Tony kept the smile on his lips and Peter felt his stomach clench at the sight – the other man’s hand was in his hair and the stretch of his t-shirt revealed the slightest hint of that torso that’d been on display less than twelve hours earlier. His cheeks felt so hot and he forced himself to grin – the idiocy of it probably radiating from his expression. “Sounds good, I’ll be sure to look for you, then. Nice performance by the way,” Peter got the words out quickly, the mortifying feeling of wanting to die fleeting once they were off his tongue. The other’s eyes flashed with something akin to amusement and he saw the man’s grin broaden – the crinkle of his eyes so fucking charming. “Thanks, Peter Parker. See you later,” Tony replied, the man giving him a wink before casually strolling out of the classroom.

The rest of the day, Peter tried his hardest to focus on the young children looking to him to teach them things – he truly did. Luckily, they were slowly working their way through the vowels and were focusing on the letter ‘e’ today – so there were many worksheets that required lots of coloring and minimal teaching on Peter’s part. He kept a close eye on Morgan and wondered just what the back story there was. They weren’t too far into the school year yet, but he knew both her parents from the parent-teacher meet and greet earlier in the year. Until this point, he’d never seen the illustrious Uncle Tony, though the girl did talk about him often. What were the chances that Peter’s walking wet dream was also a tender-hearted man attached to one of the most spirited children he’d ever encountered? Life was weird in the way it threw people into other’s paths. Shaking the thoughts from his head, Peter managed to make it to lunch without thinking about it again.

Sitting down, Peter immediately felt relief when he saw MJ in her usual spot across the table. “Iron Man is Morgan Barnes-Rogers’s Uncle. He’s just as handsome in person, and he’s coming back later on to pick her up. I might have alluded to making sure I kept a lookout for him, I’ll probably see him again. What the hell, MJ?” Peter blabbed all of this at once, his hands successfully pulling apart the brown paper bag his sandwich was currently in. Her soft hands grabbed his, his fingers coming easily off with the slightest of pressure.

“That’s the stripper from last night, right? The one who made me go home and download a Kid Rock song?” MJ questioned, her fingers loosening to have her hands back to pick at the food in her own lunch. “That very one. Is it cliché to want to spend time with the man who I paid to take off his clothes for us? Or am I overthinking this?” Peter’s question seemed valid, but the laugh MJ couldn’t keep in made his face color. “Pete, you’re an idiot. If you hit it off with the guy, does it really matter?”

Peter thought about that question for the last couple of hours of the school day – his mind never moving away from the fact that no, it didn’t matter. He himself had lots of hidden parts to himself – people would never believe the guy that taught their children graduated with a degree in biochemical engineering before thinking about elementary education. Every person was composed of parts and pieces. Though, some parts were a little bit nicer than others. Biting the edge of his thumb, Peter toiled with the idea until there was no time left and he was ushering all the kids to the drop off/pick up point. Like he said, Tony was there waiting, his eyes lighting up when the little girl came into view. He watched Morgan launch herself into his arms and knew in that instant that he was going to let whatever happened – happen.

Tony approached him a minute or so later, Morgan tucked carefully in his arms. “Thanks for taking care of her. She said you guys did ‘e’ for elephant today,” Tony started, a soft smile on his face. The little girl kept herself tucked against the older man, so Peter didn’t mind talking back and forth. “We did. We also learned that elephants are gray. I’m not sure if you knew that, or not.” Peter bit into his lip and felt blush overtake his cheeks.

“How do you feel about coffee?” Peter asked next, the words tumbling from his lips in a fashion that spoke of reckless abandon – like if he didn’t get them out that instant, he never would. The other’s brown eyes caught his and they exchanged a look – the same connection rushing through him like when their palms touched earlier. He watched Tony nod and reach into his pocket. “I like it. Shoot me a text sometime, let’s go for a cup.” His smile was wide and genuine – the card he took from him still warm from the man’s touch.

The card felt heavy in his pocket, the burn of it like a constant reminder of something Peter couldn’t quite name yet. He forced himself to keep it there until he got the classroom put back together and himself home – there were social standards that needed to be kept, after all. They didn’t do too much moving around in class, so the clean-up wasn’t too complicated. There just wasn’t anything to keep his mind away from the thought of what Tony Stark accepting his invitation for coffee actually meant. Whatever it was, Peter planned to make the most of the encounter – simply because he felt determined to understand the man, not just the nude skin he could still remember very, very, very vividly. He quickly shook his head and got his things together – the faster he got home, the faster he’d be able to give into his impulses. There was only so much self-control a guy can have. It didn’t hurt, either, that he only lived a few minutes from the school. Nope, it didn’t hurt one bit.

The first thing he usually did when he got home was change out of his work clothes – the stuffy shirts were nice and all, but there was nothing better than a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. This time, however, he pulled the card from his pocket and took a good look at it. Though he didn’t expect to see the man advertising his stripping career on business cards, Peter was surprised to find that Tony Stark owned a photography business. After a quick check on Instagram, he found out that said photography business was very successful. He spent a bit of time looking at all the different shots, his idea of the man already changing.

There was so much detail in every single picture the man posted – each photo contained so much soul. One of the most recent posts was of the little girl in his class – clicking on it, he noticed the crown on her head and a big five on the cake. She was smiling and looking directly at the camera, a small bit of frosting in the corner of her mouth. It made him feel a little funny, how much of her personality Tony managed to capture in one snapshot of time. More determined than ever, he typed the number on the card into his phone and sent off a couple of messages.

Peter Parker [7:01PM]: Hey, this is Peter Parker. Peter Parker [7:02PM]: Your snazzy business card told me you’re a photographer, so I stalked your insta – you’re really talented, Tony.

Satisfied, Peter put the phone down and went about changing – finally content a few minutes later when he settled onto the couch with his phone in his hand and Stranger Things on the tv. Soon, there was Thai food on the way – the true beginnings of a great night. And it got a little better when he felt his phone buzz a little while later. Looking at the messages, he felt himself smile.

Tony Stark [8:05PM]: Hi, Peter Parker. Tony Stark [8:06PM]: Such praise, many thanks. I enjoy being behind the camera very much. Tony Stark [8:07PM]: Is teaching your one true love, or do you have something else up your sleeve?

Sucking in a breath, he felt something shift inside him. Of course, that would be the first question this mysterious man fired off – the one thing Peter kept close to himself. For whatever reason, he couldn’t get his foot in the door with any of the tech businesses after graduation – so his retreat was very quick, and he changed gears to satisfy the need to have a job and take care of himself. Elementary education fell into his lap when MJ suggested it during one of their many get togethers. He flew through the master’s program and came out on the other side a certified teacher. It didn’t fuel his fire or get him excited – but it paid the bills and kept a roof over his head. All things that were essential after losing the last piece of his family halfway through his freshman year of college. The fact that Tony hit the nail on the head with the first question made his heart race.

Peter Parker [8:10PM]: You can tell. Your stuff really is amazing. Peter Parker [8:11PM]: I actually have a degree in Biochemical Engineering. At one point in time, I wanted to work on tech. Peter Parker [8:13PM]: What are you two up to this evening?

Tony Stark [8:20PM]: Biochemical Engineering, huh? We’ll have to nerd out during this coffee date we’re having. I graduated from MIT with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Tony Stark [8:22PM]: We made chocolate chip pancakes and now I’m hoping she slips into a food coma so I can get some editing done. What about you? What does Mr. Parker do on a Friday night?

Peter Parker [8:35PM]: It sounds like you have an interesting past, Tony. What was MIT like? Peter Parker [8:36PM]: Chocolate chip pancakes? Color me jealous. Mr. Parker watches Stranger Things and eats too much Thai food. Interesting stuff, I know. Peter Parker [8:38PM]: Will you have Morgan tomorrow? Or can I interest you in brunch with your coffee?

Tony Stark [8:55PM]: I do – it’s very colorful. Maybe I’ll tell you about it someday. It was full of too many classes every semester and lots of burns from the welding torch. I graduated really young and very fast – so I didn’t do much MIT living. Tony Stark [8:56PM]: There are many interesting things about that. Such as: what did you order? And – what season are you watching? Tony Stark [8:59PM]: Little Squirt returns to her parents bright and early. They get to deal with her grumpiness after the sugar crash. I’d love to do brunch.

Things continued in that easy manner between the two of them well into the night. He got a video of Morgan saying goodnight with the low pitch of Tony’s voice in the background instructing her on what to say. Then when she went to bed, they got into a more in-depth conversation about some of the cool theories the Duffy Brothers used to write the show and a few of the cooler projects Tony worked on throughout college. Peter didn’t even think to broach the topic of stripping and thoroughly enjoyed the entire exchange. When he looked up at saw that it was well past 1AM, Peter shook his head and pulled himself off the couch. He’d gotten through most of the second season and couldn’t remember much of it at all. That was a satisfying feeling – being so wrapped up in another person like that. They exchanged another couple of texts before Peter got himself into bed and snuggled under the covers.

Peter Parker [1:21AM]: I’m going to sack out. It was nice talking to you, Tony. Have a good rest of the night!

Tony Stark [1:30PM]: The pleasure was mine, Peter Parker. Sleep well.

It didn’t take long for sleep to pull Peter under and when it did, he felt a little floaty right before losing consciousness. His last conscious thought was how nice it was to really smile for the first time in a long time.

----  

There weren’t a lot of things more intimidating than going out with a human that spent years making a living from how attractive they were. Peter understood that it didn’t define who Tony was – but that didn’t change the fact that the older man had a confidence that Peter couldn’t even think about touching. A little bit of the morning was spent dwelling over how out of his league Tony was and the rest of it, Peter spent in his closet trying to decide what to wear. There was an immediate relief felt in getting out the door.

He assumed most of his nerves were coming from the fact that he’d thoroughly enjoyed their conversation last night and he could easily see himself getting in way too deep way too fast. The survival mechanism of trying to talk himself out of things was a little absurd – but he managed to overcome it and dress relatively well. He glanced down at the blue baseball shirt and dark jean combination he inevitably ended up in. The idea to feel comfortable settled in when he saw the shirt and no matter what else he found that he knew he looked good in – Peter went back to the same shirt every time.

The café he told Tony to meet him at was within walking distance, so he took the opportunity to work off a little of the excess nerves on the walk over. In all of his twenty-five years, Peter never imagined he’d be so hyped up for a date. He’d never felt this way before – like he couldn’t control himself, like things were out of his hands and he was running totally on instinct. Peter felt a little more like himself by the time he got to the café, a smile on his lips at the thought that though he was nervous, he’d get to spend some time with the person he was quickly becoming very interested in. His eyes scanned all around the shop until they settled on the recognizable disarray of hair – Tony’s bedhead one of the things that caught Peter’s eye right away both on the stage and in the classroom. Quickening his pace, Peter made it to the table in a couple of strides, the smile on his face growing a little wider. “Howdy, Cowboy,” Peter said, the tone of his voice laced with sarcasm and joking – he hoped the words were welcoming and just on the right side of teasing.

Tony’s smile just about blew him backwards, the words’ effect a lot better than he could have hoped for. There was the slightest bit of blush on the older man’s cheeks – the color not nearly as beet red as what Peter knew took over his own face. Sitting down across from him, Peter relaxed into the chair and put all his focus on the man before him.. “Hey, Teach. You look bright and bubbly this morning,” Tony remarked, his body turning more towards Peter, too – their eyes locking for a minute. There was heat and curiosity in the shared gaze. There were a lot of things between them – that much was obvious. Most people didn’t engage in several hours’ worth of conversation if they were repulsed by the other person. Peter knew there was attraction, especially on his part. There were too many times of getting himself off to the photos of Tony and more recently, the vision of the other man up on the stage doing what he was obviously so good at. The probing nature of the other’s glance spoke of lust, but Peter wasn’t quite sure and hoped to find out throughout the rest of the conversation.

“Just wait until I have my coffee,” he said jokingly, his hands fiddling with the wrapped-up package of silverware on the table. “Did you and Morgan have a good time together last night? I have to admit, your chocolate chip pancakes served as motivation for brunch today. Rosetta’s has the best overstuffed pancakes,” Peter didn’t try to filter himself – their conversation last night consisted of anything and everything. It didn’t make any sense to not continue that trend now that they were together in person. He watched Tony’s face break into an even bigger smile and tried in vain to remember the sound of the older man’s chuckle. Oh, how he wished to hear that sound all the time.

“Time with Morgan is always the best. We watched The Princess and The Frog, and the rest was history. I think I told you about everything else last night. I honestly can’t remember the last time I spent that much time texting someone else. Steve still has to call every time he wants to say anything – I’ve gotten used to his old guy tendencies,” Tony remarked, his hands thumbing with the menu on the table – though he didn’t open it.

Things stayed pretty light and easy between them, they ordered the promised coffee with an omelet for Tony and bananas fosters pancakes for Peter. They chatted a bit more about Tony’s first robot creation Dum-E and Peter’s foray into teaching. Tony was easy to talk to and Peter absolutely acknowledged that him being easy on the eyes contributed to how much he felt himself paying attention to the man across from him.

He wouldn’t change that for a second, though – all the things he was learning about Tony made him want to keep on listening. Of course, there were parts of him that just wanted to jump across the table and forcefully take Tony’s lips in a kiss, but those urges were a little easier to control. What he couldn’t seem to get a grip on was the brightness of his smile and the blush that would not stop traveling further and further down his chest.

Somewhere in there many topics, Tony’s stripping finally came up. “How did you end up becoming Uncle Tony, anyway? It’s obvious that Morgan adores you – you must have known her most of her life,” Peter said absentmindedly, his mind putting together all of the pieces he currently held in his hand. “I’ve known Steve and Bucky the entire time they’ve been together. I was one of the first people they told when they found out they got cleared to adopt Morgan. Steve was my college roommate. He got an internship at my father’s company, Stark Industries – though he lasted about as long as I did there. He got me my first stripping gig. It made total sense to make me Uncle Tony when the little one came. They need at least one bad influence that isn’t a direct parent,” Tony replied softly, a laugh stuck in the tangle of his words. The thing that got Peter the most wasn’t the casual way he talked about his stripping, but the starry-eyed look he got in his eye talking about Morgan and her family. They were obviously special people to the older man across from him. Peter shook his head and focused on the things he’d just been told. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I never knew I needed to thank Mr. Rogers for the special gift that Iron Man brought to the world.”

The purely genuine laugh that surrounded Peter in response made his heart clench, the feelings he’d been trying to hold back all evening finally overwhelming him. Peter joined in and felt the oxygen quickly leave his lungs in the flurry of it all. “So you were the one that booked that dance. When I left, I spent a lot of time wondering who in the crowd could have known me – you’re all a little young to have been around during the busy time of my career. The peak of Iron Man’s,” Tony mumbled with a shake of his head.

“I am and I will gladly own up to being the person interested in seeing you dance. I’ve wanted to ever since I saw your spread in Play Girl – but I was never old enough. MJ gave me the reins of her bachelorette party and well, you know the rest.” Peter thought he’d feel embarrassed admitting something so honest like that – but he felt a sense of power overcome him. Maybe now wasn’t too bad of a time to start going after the things he wanted. If all the things the older man taught him in their brief exchanges, it was that being confident and going after things was the only way to get shit done.

Tony didn’t say anything for a couple of minutes, the older man busying himself with finishing off the espresso in his cup and resettling into the back of the chair. His mouth felt a little dry watching Tony stretch the time out, the man obvious in his actions. When their eyes eventually caught – Peter felt a hitch in his breath. The slight heat he’d noticed earlier was now scorching, overtaking Tony’s pupil without leaving much of the beautiful, chocolate brown iris behind. “I think that’s one of the most flattering compliments I’ve ever gotten. I don’t think I’ve ever had a fan that hadn’t seen me dance before. I know for a fact that it wasn’t the dance you were looking for, though, was it? The real strip club experience is a little different than the private shindig you got. There are usually dancers out on the floor willing and eager to give lap dances. I used to be one of those guys, but seniority and all that,” Tony shrugged, and slung his arm carelessly over the back of his chair. “If you’re interested, I could be talked into a private show that’s just for you.” Tony looked up at him then, the connection Peter felt there earlier suddenly scorching hot – a total contrast to the softness of their conversation the night before.

It would be silly, he figured, not to take the man up on the generous offer, so he nodded eagerly. “I am very interested. I can’t promise to keep my hands to myself, though – I’m a kinesthetic learner, hands-on is the only way I know,” Peter’s voice sounded a little scratchy in his own ears and he noticed the words licking across the older man’s skin were affecting him. “Sounds good. One condition, though – we go to my place,” Tony’s voice was low and deep, too – the rumble of it doing things to the tightness of his pants. Gulping in air, Peter nodded – he figured he’d probably agree to just about anything in that moment. They continued to stare at each other, intensifying the heat of moment until the server came to deposit the check on the table – the magic broken for the time being. Peter grabbed the bill before Tony could get his hands on it, a little triumphant gasp slipping from his lips. “You can get the next one,” Peter said, his hand brushing against Tony’s shoulder as he walked past him to pay at the register.

The warmth of Tony’s hand in his own was not nearly as surprising as the way it made him feel – why did the guy have to be so fitting, their palms were staticky, the heat of the combined touched scorching, the burn of it just barely on the right side of tantalizing. Despite the brief interruption of getting into the car, Tony’s grip was sound the entire way to the older man’s house. Instead of teasing like he figured, Tony kept his fingers laced tightly with Peter’s, the gentle sweeping of the thumb on the back of Peter’s hand in tune with the Zeppelin on the radio. The ride was surprisingly peaceful – a huge contrast to the roaring heat of the moment back in the café, but just as nice, just as characteristic to the man he was finding himself enjoying getting to know. In all the ways he assumed he was going to get to know him, too.

They weren’t in the car for very long, the housing division they turned into was a little upscale, yet understated, too. There weren’t a lot of houses jammed into the lot like some of the new subdivisions, so Peter figured the house wasn’t amongst the brand spanking new ones that were constantly being slapped together. The house they pulled up to was one story with a lot of yard surrounding it. There were a couple of trees in the lawn and a really cool screened in porch attached to the front of the house. Other than the one pulling into the driveway, there weren’t any other cars. The house looked immaculately kept and a little bit different than all of the others surrounding it. “I love your porch,” Peter mumbled, his brain mostly still preoccupied checking out all of the things about the place. “Thanks, I built it myself. Other than the guys that came and laid the foundation – most of the house was done by me, now that I’m thinking about it,” Tony replied, his eyes lighting up with pride and excitement.

There were so many things to learn about the man, Peter was quickly finding out. He couldn’t’ decide what he was most excited about, but the hand on his arm and the long finger pointing toward the door reminded him that one of the things he was going to learn very soon was how Tony Stark looked giving a lap dance.

The hand on his arm didn’t stop pulling him until they were in the house and down the hall, in the obvious comfort of the older man’s bedroom. Tony directed Peter to sit on the edge of the bed and he went willingly, his hands sliding under his thighs to quiet the already eager fingers. There wasn’t anything happening yet, and he could already imagine his greedy fingers roaming all over that smooth skin. He’d been unable to get it out of his head since the initial glance of paleness and muscles rippling under the surface. They exchanged a look and Peter couldn’t help the laugh that escaped his lips at the shit eating grin on Tony’s face. Wide eyes watched the older man place a black version of the purple felt hat he wore in the club and start up some music – the round globes of his ass in the painted-on jeans already starting to move to the beat. He’d never see MGMT’s Electric Feel the same ever again.

Tony started to play with the buttons on his shirt, his shoulders and hips moving with the beat. Each time the drumbeat would hit, he’d snap his hips forward – the move hooking Peter’s attention, keeping it on the fluidity of those hips. The distraction of Tony’s hips made the bareness of his chest in the next moment a surprise – a soft gasp left Peter’s lips before he could reign it in. The small noise brought a smile to Tony’s face, the man’s eyes watching him despite the rest of his body moving fluidly. He stopped listening to the music and let his entire focus stay on every single one of Tony’s movements.

By then, the man was close enough to touch if Peter were to reach out – the body rolls he was doing absolutely fucking sinful. He about shouted for mercy when Tony settled onto his lap – his ass grinding down onto the bulge Peter was having a hard time hiding – the friction light. That friction didn’t last long and Tony was stepping back, his hands moving to undo the button and zipper on his pants – the jeans tumbled down his legs shamelessly a second later. The briefs Tony was wearing weren’t much different than the ones he’d been moving around on-stage in. Where the others were black, these were maroon and highlighted Tony’s cock perfectly.

The microscopic attention to detail Peter paid to Tony’s dance at MJ’s party told him that this bulge was sizably different than what he’d seen before. Peter’s eyes were drawn to it, the press of Tony’s cock against the fabric now obvious the closer the man got to him. Strong hands were grabbing at his arms, Tony placing them on his own hips – he was thrusting his hips within inches of Peter’s face. Peter’s fingers squeezed the bare skin tightly, his arms wanting nothing more than to pull him in, pull him to his mouth or at least close enough to press his nose to the bulge there and take a long, deep breath. Tony didn’t stick around long enough for him to do any of those things, though – the nimble limbs were turning and suddenly Peter had a close-up view of the perfect bubble of Tony’s ass. The briefs barely covered the edges of the man’s cheeks and every swing of his hips made the muscle clench and sway ever so slightly. Without much thought, Peter let his hands grab at the globes, the warmth of the skin there another catalyst to the tight press of his cock pressed against the zipper of his jeans.

As quickly as the view was there, Tony was pulling away. The song was over, and the music changed to something Peter didn’t recognize. There wasn’t much blood anywhere near his brain, anyway. He did register demanding fingers pulling at the bottom of his shirt, his hands flew up and made the drag of it off his body a little easier for the man. When there was nothing left to block the sweet press of skin on skin, Peter pushed himself off the bed and captured Tony’s lips in a kiss. His hands settled low on the man’s hips, his greedy fingers moving to the firm groove of Tony’s ass cheeks – the fabric of the briefs much softer than he figured it would be. Tony’s hands were demanding on his face, the man tilted his head until the kiss was perfect – Peter felt himself get lost in the sensation of smooth firmness under his hands and warm wet pressed against his lips. The press of Tony’s erection against his own brought him back to the surface, his need for oxygen suddenly forcing him to break the kiss.

“You are the sexiest person I’ve ever seen in my life. I’m glad that was my first ever lap dance. Nothing will ever compare. I think you should fuck me. Does that sound okay?” Peter found himself feeling bold – the charge of arousal in the room something that was easy to be brought under by, something that he willingly let take ahold of him.

----

‘Does that sound okay?’ That simple phrase shouldn’t have sounded so good to Tony, but he couldn’t deny how fast the rush of heat traveled over him. His back broke out into a sweat, his skin suddenly tender from the sensitivity of arousal. “Better than,” Tony finally managed to get out, his hands moving down the length of Peter’s chest – his pecks defined, yet slim, the nipples there insanely responsive to the touch. He spent a little bit of time getting acquainted with the side of Peter’s neck and the sweeping sensation of goose flesh breaking out over the other man’s skin. It felt like it was moving across his own skin, though when he checked – there was only sweat and smoothness.

His cock gave a reminding pulse and he forced himself to get back on task. Greedy fingers played with the button and zipper of Peter’s pants, the short, impatient thrusts against his hand too good to just give into the want they were both feeling. He could feel Peter’s impatience – the feeling tangible in both the way he pulled him in for a messy kiss and the subtle pulse of the cock he’d been palming. His own impatience gave way, his fingers deftly getting the button done and the zipper down – Tony’s hand shamelessly slipping under the waistband of Peter’s underwear and gripping the man’s hardness without warning.

“Shit,” Peter gasped, the word hot against Tony’s lips. His lungs were grateful for the break in the kiss and for a couple moments, Tony let himself trace and touch all Peter had to offer. The younger man was long, the length probably an inch longer than Tony himself. The girth was a little on the thin side – but the head made up for it. It was thick and dribbled precum beautifully – his fingers swirling in it every couple of strokes. “You need to get my pants off, please. I want you to touch me – fucking everywhere,” Peter gasped, the man so suddenly mobile – it scared the shit out of Tony.

He pulled his hand free of the other’s pants and watched with fascination as he stepped out of them – both boxer briefs and jeans were kicked aside in one movement. Tony took a second to enjoy the look of Peter completely naked. He was on the slim side everywhere on his body, though there was great muscle definition there, too. There was so much youth still clinging to the man, yet there were so many reminders that the person in front of him was all man – all man and about to be all his.

Tony followed suit and joined the other man in nudity. He let Peter looked his fill in the time it took to close the space between them (which, admittedly wasn’t very long.) Their lips met in a fierce kiss before Tony was pushing Peter onto the mattress. Brown eyes watched the younger man scoot up the sheets until his head was in the nest of pillows at the head of the bed. His legs were slung open wide and a hand was already around his length – those long, pale fingers wrapped around Peter’s hard-on lightly. Licking his lips, Tony mimicked that action, his hand following the pace the young man set. He stood at the end of the bed and let Peter watch him, his moans and sighs in conjunction with the speed up and slowdown of Tony’s hand over his cock. The sweat on his back was starting to bead and trail down the dimple of his spine – his forehead joining the club, the collection of it there making his hair wet and sticky to his forehead. When temptation became too much, Tony got onto the bed and slapped Peter’s hand away – his mouth replacing the fingers without a second thought.

He hollowed his cheeks and started a pretty ruthless pace right from the get-go – he wanted to see what Peter Parker looked like on the edge – and then he wanted to take him there with his fingers and cock all over again. One of his hands ran up the middle of Peter’s stomach, his fingers playing over the slight ripple of abs with every aborted thrust the other man tried not to make. The other hand moved under the heaviness of Peter’s length and tangled in the light dusting of hair just behind his ball sac. Deep throating him, Tony wasn’t surprised when fingers were tangled in his hair, the pressure of them on the pleasurable side of pain. Tony eased up and let the cum spill down his throat – the high pitched “Tony!” coming from the other sending another jolt of uncontrollable heat to the tip of his cock.

There wasn’t much protest when Tony finally settled the entirety of his weight against Peter’s chest – his cock settling against the man’s stomach. And though he’d just found release, Tony could feel Peter’s cock throb when he brushed against it. Peter’s thighs settled around his hips, keeping him in one spot for the time being. Tony leaned forward and pressed his lips against Peter’s – his tongue diving in without much preamble, the man eager to share the taste of release fresh on his tongue. The moan he heard was sinful, the echo of it forever engrained in the front of Tony’s memory.

There were things one just couldn’t unhear.

Peter sucked desperately on his tongue and tightened his leg against Tony’s hips – the man quickly regaining his interest in the proceedings. His thrust up against Tony was signal enough – the desperation in Tony’s body finally starting to win out. “Want you on my lap,” he mumbled, his lips pressing first against Peter’s, then against the soft skin of his chin, and finally against his neck – the length of flesh quickly one of Tony’s favorites.

It took a second or two to rearrange and grab the needed supplies, the men both laughing with the ecstasy of the moment as they moved about. With Peter across his hips, he could feel the man’s hard cock against him – his lubed-up fingers were eager to press against what he figured would be a tightly furled muscle just waiting to be relaxed. Tony didn’t waste any time teasing and pressed the tip of one of his fingers lightly against Peter’s rim. The body above him relaxed, more of his finger slipping in with every breath Peter took to calm himself down. The angle was perfect to find Peter’s prostate early on and he very quickly had a lapful of eager and moaning Peter Parker. The second finger he pressed inside did so easily, Peter’s body so on edge and welcoming of whatever Tony had to give. The scissoring motion of his finger had the man clutching at his neck, the fingers in his hair pulling at the length. “Come on. You’re just being a gratuitous shit now, Tony,” Peter murmured, his eyes so glazed over Tony wondered how much of what was coming out of his mouth he would actually remember.

There wasn’t any reason not to follow Peter’s order, though. And to be honest, he was being a little gratuitous in his pleasure. He’d been thrusting up against Peter’s left butt check while his fingers worked him open – and when he was able to focus enough, Tony let his fingers of the other hand run over the hard cock pressing against their stomachs. Slipping his fingers out, Tony rolled the condom on and poured a generous amount of lube into his hand – grasping himself just long enough to spread it around his length.

If he fucked around too much with himself, there’d be no going back. It seemed like Peter was just as eager, his big brown eyes were watching every one of Tony’s moves – his hands gripping his shoulders tightly. It didn’t take but a small little nudge and he was sliding into the tightest heat he’d ever felt. Peter’s coordinated move down onto him made his entry quick and clean – the press of his pelvis against pert ass cheeks almost as delicious as the tightness around him.

Tony kept a tight grip on Peter’s hips, the other man already starting to rise and fall on his pulsing length. He could feel Peter’s thighs flex against his own, the reminder of pure strength a straight shot to the core. A chorus of moans and loud slaps of skin were the only noises in the room for a long time – Tony letting Peter control the pace until he felt the other tightening around him. He’d increase the grip on Peter’s hips and pull him hard into his lap – Tony’s thrusts short and teasing but not enough to get there, not yet. Tony couldn’t get enough of the needy huffs Peter would pant against his lips, or the ridiculous drool of precum that seemed to leak more and more each time he brought the other so very close to the edge. The smear of it against his stomach too good to give up just yet. “You’re fucking driving me nuts, Tony. If you touch me, I’ll come apart,” Peter whispered against the skin of Tony’s chin after a particularly hard thrust against his prostate.

Moving quickly, Tony grabbed the back of Peter’s thighs and flipped their position. Tony pressed Peter into the mattress and let the last little bit of control he was clinging to snap. He lost track of everything other than hot velvet and sticky slick against his stomach. In the end, Peter dug his fingernails down the length of Tony’s back and let out a loud ‘fuck’ – his cum splashing hot and wet between their bellies. Tony turned his head and bit down into the side of Peter’s neck, his own orgasm rushing through him with a force that was so close to being way too much. He let his hips thrust through the entirety of it, Tony only stopping when the sensitivity was too much.

They maneuvered a little so Tony could pull out and dispose of the condom, the man returning to collect Peter in his arms in no time. He pressed a kiss to Peter’s neck and held him close. Soon, they’d need to roll out of bed and wipe off the sticky goodness of their coupling, but for now – both men seemed pretty content. Peter’s fingers ran along the length of Tony’s forearm, the touch bringing gooseflesh to the surface of his skin. “How do you feel about pizza?” Tony murmured after a while, his stomach grumbling, remind him of how much energy it took to strip and fuck the shit out of someone. He felt the rumble of Peter’s chest as the man chuckled, his soft lips pressing against whatever parts of Tony’s skin he could reach. “I could kill a pizza right now.”

It wasn’t conventional – how quickly they fell into bed, or how easily they seemed to fit together, but there wasn’t much about Tony that could be said to be conventional, anyway. They spent the rest of the day eating pizza out of the box, Peter sometimes getting away with stealing the pepperonis from Tony’s slices and sometimes getting caught in the act – and ending up with the pepperonis anyway. It was easy, being with Peter, and at that point in his life, Tony was looking for easy. Snuggling into the comfort of the couch, Tony let Peter lean into the circle of his arms. The older man pressed a kiss to shower wet hair and pulled him close.

“Steve and Buck are having a BBQ tomorrow. Want to come?” Tony asked softly, his nose sliding across Pete’s soft skin. “Yeah, I do.” Peter replied instantly, his body relaxing further into the warmth of Tony’s chest.

“Good – Morgan’s expecting you, anyway.”

[katiejaynefilms]

Independent Project- Critical Reflection

Our group was quite excited for this project and after the introduction to the task we took a week to individually research and pitch ideas. We really wanted to take this opportunity to create something quite abstract and expressive rather than a more traditional narrative piece. I have personally done portraiture in the past with paint, and I liked the idea of exploring the connections between people, colour and sound. I came across a video of stop motion paint that was put to a scene from fight club and that really inspired me. I shared my idea and we then we put together a group of videos that were much more expressive and messier with paint and clay onto skin. There were other strong ideas that fitted the overall vibe but would have been difficult to combine, so we eventually did settle on the paint.

Research: https://katiejaynefilms.tumblr.com/post/647568626154618880/my-group-has-had-a-few-different-ideas-for-this

We also knew from the beginning that since the last project had focused on pre-production everyone wanted to be involved in shooting this time round. DOCMA had been so much fun that we took on that style with this film, splitting the time to 24 second each and individually shooting each section, without really being sure what everyone else would create. There was not clearly defined roles for all of this, instead it was a much more collaborative project. I had originally pitched the idea, of expressing different emotions, in separate colours in conjunction with sound. Jack added to this suggesting we went with a car crash sequence. I was happy with this as it meant we could explore a sound narrative rather than through visuals.

For my section I had red, and I quickly drew out what I imagined it would be like, as with my segment in the middle representing the crash, I knew it had to be quite intense. I set up my bathroom with a ring light and just explored pitying paint in my brother without overly planning his actions. I shot probably far to much footage and then edited it together with sound I found to send to James who took on the bulk of the editing for this project. I thought it would be easier to imagine with sound added even though it wouldn’t be the sound we finally did use and tried to match up the actions with sound effects to create some cohesion.

After the rough cut was submitted, and we went to the editing workshops is was pointed out that the pacing was not quite right and some of the momentum was lost, especially as the end felt like an overly long outro. We worked on this afterwards and I suggested with make quicker cuts, especially in the middle sections. The first sound edit, although very good, didn’t quite work with the overall film, as the radio section at the start didn’t quite match up. After we had feedback on this, Peer and Jenny had second attempt which I thought was a lot better. The muffled music was much more effective, and although there were a few mistakes they managed to sync sounds to movements which was what it needed. I still felt like some of the segments were disjointed and wanted to experiment with adding a wash of colour to each part. I attempted to do this changing around the intensity before settling on adding a light tint. I think the blue enhanced the deathly feel Peer had talked about at the end.

Colour grading: https://katiejaynefilms.tumblr.com/post/651049908150927361/independent-project-colour-originally-when-i

Overall, I came up with and developed the concept, shot and edited my footage, and experimented with the colour grading, but I was not responsible for any submissions. The group worked well again through having open and ongoing conversation in the group chat and setting deadlines for everyone to stick to, since we were working independently. Although I did feel as though engagement dwindled with some people as time went on.  I felt as though I was not enough help with the post-production last time, so I tried to offer more feedback and opinions this time round regarding the editing and sound work. Especially since after the rough cut this was encouraged, after I expressed that I didn’t want to come across to critical of other roles.

The crit was valuable, and I now agree that the title should have gone at the beginning to provide some context. I think I forgot how weird the film was because I knew it so well, so it really wouldn’t have spoiled anything for the audience and wouldn’t have prevented them putting together their own ideas. It was really nice to hear what different people thought because how people interpret work as a reflection of themselves is important to me. Technically there was many shortcomings with the film, which were pointed out and that we maybe could have fixed and improved with more time. The sound was not completed in my opinion and could have been developed further, the editing could have been cleaned up as well, with shorter cuts. It would have also potentially been nice to try mixing the footage up slightly more.

[alaxamber]

Double Trouble-

After thoroughly embarrassing his Minion on their way to Videos Game Con, Professor Venomous finds himself quite "inspired" by a certain song by Tenacious D. He has a couple hours before the Con starts, so why not park in a shaded area and enjoy some phone nooky with his husband? After all, two are better than one.

CW for cursing.

Link is for A03 heed tags!

It was a very long drive but neither Venomous nor Fink minded, plus the added fact that they were close to the end of it helped soothe the long ride jitters. With her doing more high-level school and Minion work, the only time they got one on one time was when she had a Videos Game Competition. He loved to drive and she got easily distracted, having caused far too many wrecks in the past few months and she didn't want to 'fuck up her chance to fuck up Rabiiiz09339,' because she got pissed at an old ladies driving. 

So that's how they had found themselves nearing three hours into the drive in comfortable silence; his soft instrumental music playing quietly with his right hand on the steering wheel, his left on his thigh while Fink sat next to him staring out the window.

Suddenly there was a flailing next to him as he pulled off the highway. Fink was trying to catch her drink, her headphones and phone with flailing motions and squeaks. It appeared she tried to take a drink and must have split lipped it, causing it to spill down her front. In the chaos the headphone cord was pulled from her phone and the loudspeaker kicked on;

Damn , 

"Shit, just a second Boss!" she scrambled as he leaned trying to catch more of the song. His Minion had a tendency to listen to music that interested him, but he would be too "old to get it". 

A hard day's rockin'. 

"No wait, Fink," his voice quick, Wasn't that that actor from…. What was it called? 

Better slip off ma shoes .

"Boss it gets totally inappropriate" she was still scrambling as she slammed her drink down between them and tried to get her headphone jack back in. Her thumbs seeming to be unable to pause the song that continued to play. 

Maybe give a little stretch and a bend.

Dip m'toe to jacuzzi, baby.

"No, connect it, it sounds like that actor." He reached for his loose aux cord and spared a glance at his companion. Her green cheeks were flushed a darker shade, and Venomous could scent a distinct embarrassment from the girl. 

  Slip out this book:

The Buttress of Windsor. 

Ho ho ho, who's this? How's it goin'?

[sung]

That's the first thin' I say to you.

How's it goin'? 

Are you flowin'?

"Flowing? Does he mean?" There was fake gasp and outrage in his voice. And yes, he could literally feel her shrink in her seat, her face even redder. 

"Boss, come on, it is him though, Jack Black's band," she had listened to him and let it keep playing, "A friend sent me the link… can I turn it off now?" She asked and made to mute it. 

He had been both listening to her and the lyrics, his interest peaked immediately when she confirmed it was the short, round, funny, actor. The actor that reminded him greatly of his husband. 

Listen, honey,

Thinkin' 'bout a couple things to say to you,

Showin', growin',

"Look, just plug it in and I will quit making comments," he offered, and looked over with his brow cocked high and a smirk on his lips as he dangled the aux cord. Really, the teacher from School of Rock could not have written something that bad.

Man I'd like to place my hand

upon your fuckin' sexy ass and squeeze.

And squeeze!

"Oh that's right, you haven't seen Tenacious D, that's R rated." she snorted. She had always found it funny that Boxboss had never kept over PG13 movies in the house. A sinister smile came to her lips and she shoved the cord in and turned the music up. He didn't know she had upgraded his trunk awhile back and the music now had a low boom. Boxboss had made sure no bits rattled due to the low vibes.

Still, he had been half-listening to,  the lyrics now much more interested in the singer and the song. 

Take off your blouse, 

And your underpants,

Then take a look,

He jumped with the bass came and blinked rapidly when the next few lines came out, his lilac cheeks blushed darker  

'Cause here me and KG come naked,

"KG?" He asked again, in hopes she would pull up a picture.

Out of the side-hatch,

With the oils and perfume and incense.

She laughed and leaned over showing him the photo of the album cover; by god… they were both like his round shapely little bird of a husband. He found himself sad neither had bio enhancements or adjacencies, but both men were right up his alley. 

They stayed quiet as the music pulsed through the car, Fink's smirk never left her face. And Venomous now knew exactly why. The song had caused him to imagine quite a few scenarios, he was thankful the last bit of the drive to the convention center had been easy and he could see the large building coming into view. The song sounded like it was nearing the end, and his groin had a slight ache against the hem of his jeans. He noticed her moving to pull the cord-free again.

Let's roll!

Oh!

"Let him finish," Venomous said, holding out his hand, he had not made any further comments about the lyrics caught up in his thoughts. 

Fink laughed oddly at this and held her stomach, trying to contain more of her laughs, seeming to now taking full enjoyment in his own embarrassment as the song continued. 

[2-part:] Ahh, oh!

What! Yeah! Huh! Nah! Oh!

Ah, that's it, that's right, ohmygah, oh-I-think-I'm-gonna, Ohh!

Deht! Deht! Eeee!

...Splooge!

"We're here Fink," he slid into the nearest handicap stall. She scrambled for her phone pulling it free and nearly bolting from the window instead of opening the door. Venomous just sat there for a moment blinking slowly, a smirk curling his lips as he pulled back from the spot and rolled to the back of the lot. The tournament wouldn’t start for nearly two hours, and Fink hated it when he tried to "talk shop" with the other bits of the crowd. Looking out, he checked that his windows were shaded by the trees and no other groups were loitering near.

With a groan reached down adjusting himself in his jeans, thankful that the pain had kept the physical reaction to a minimum. A sigh of relief rushed from his nose as he grabbed his phone and pulled open a few apps, finding the band and song quickly on VillTube, and sent a link to Boxy. The next text had a picture attachment. 

The photo attached was Ven looking up at the cam, his soft sweater pulled up to show just a bit of his lower stomach over the button of his jeans and two semi-hard lengths pressing against one side, and a text bubble saying "Can I have two Boxy's for my Cobmas gift?"

To read more it gets M

Art is by @firecooking

[lochsides]

evermore: Track-by-Track review

I didn't think I'd be writing another review for a Taylor Swift album so soon after folklore but here we are. Truthfully though, evermore feels more like a figment of my imagination than a real album, and as a result this album has been a grower for me. When Taylor said evemore would be the sister record to folklore, I was curious as to the distinguishable differences between the two, because Taylor wouldn't simply give us the same album twice. evermore is, strangely, both the wild younger sister that's more experimental and the wise older sister with a mature outlook on life. Where folklore was a product of isolation, evermore is a product of creativity and that can be felt in the music.

I’ve written my thoughts and theories on each song, and bolded my favourites, below the cut, if you’re interested. I also included my current ranking at the bottom.

Taylor has been very good at picking leading singles for the folklore/evermore era. willow is brilliantly catchy while maintaining the alternative folk sound that she established in folklore. Her vocals suit the song so well, especially on ‘follow’/“hollow” in the chorus. They pair so beautifully with the mesmerising production. The reason this song is one my favourites is purely because of the rhythm and the guitar. The lyrics are, for once, a bonus. As an entry point to evermore, willow does not ease the listener in, the song instead throws the listener in the deep end — which I feel was intentional, as Taylor said evermore was the product of wandering further into the folklorian woods.

champagne problems is easily my favourite song on this album. Storytelling is Taylor's biggest strength as a songwriter and I think this song is a achingly beautiful example of what an emotive storyteller Taylor is. It would be so difficult for me to pick a favourite lyric from this song but I love how she sets in train in the opening line, "you booked the night train for a reason, so you could sit there in this hurt / bustling crowds or silent sleepers, you're not sure which is worse." The accompaniment is gorgeous and the composition of the bridge is breathtaking. Every time the bridge plays I get chills.

gold rush was a grower for me. I'm still not a fan of the intro/outro but I enjoy the production in the rest of the song once the beat kicks in. I think it's one of the more experimental sounds on evermore but it's very catchy. I won't even talk about how the chorus called me out with "I don't like slow-motion, double vision in a rose blush, I don't like that falling feels like flying 'til the bone crush."

'tis the damn season is the non-holiday-holiday song that still has a classic sound and production. I know this song is Dorothea's perspective but I get a lot of illicit affairs parallels with this one as well: "don't call me baby" / "you could call me babe for the weekend", "what started in beautiful rooms ends with meetings in parking lots" / "the road not taken looks real good now, time flies, messy as the mud on your truck tires".

tolerate it is a hard song for me to review because I literally zone out every time I listen to it. I think it's my brain's way of protecting me from toxic relationship trauma 🙃 but it's another gut-punch track five, what else is new? I mean she literally said "now I'm begging for footnotes in the story of your life, drawing hearts in the byline, always taking up too much space or time," and broke my nervous system.

no body, no crime is the best country song Taylor has ever written, period. The sirens at the start, the storytelling, the way it sounds like an old-school murder-mystery movie. HAIM on the backing vocals were great, though I do wish they had at least a verse of their own. That's literally my only critique of this song. It's that good.

There's so much maturity in Taylor's outlook on happiness. I connect this song to her tarnished relationship Sc*tt/BMG and how she's happy after leaving but she was also happy during the time she was with them. I really enjoyed the simple addition of the piano and the way it built up to add depth to the production. Taylor's delivery of the line "no one teaches what to do when a good man hurts you and you know you hurt him too" really hits me.

dorothea is a really nostalgic, retro school-dance-vibe, kinda playful song with a personality, which I adore. The production is absolutely timeless. I woke up today with the chorus stuck in my head. I think "if you're ever tired of being known for who you know, you know, you'll always know me" is fun word play and I'm a nerd of that type of thing. (Side note: to me, this song feels very reminiscent of her friendship with Karlie Kloss, right down to the "selling makeup in magazines.")

coney island gives me desolate, abandoned theme park vibes. The simplicity of the production only enhances it. It's everything I could've hoped for in a song titled "coney island" and featuring The National. Matt Berninger's vocals are absolutely astounding. What does it say about me that my favourite aspect of this song is the feeling of despair laced into its bloodstream.

ivy is another favourite but what did I expect from a song filled to the brim with longing and mentioning the crescent moon? The instrumentation and her vocal styling is similar to willow. There are also lyrical parallels of "... your freezing hand, taking mine" / "I'm begging for you to take my hand" and "how's one to know I'd meet you where the spirit meets the bone" / "I never would've known from the look on your face" and she echoes both those sentiments in a different way after the respective bridges and I wonder if that's intentional. Knowing Taylor Swift, probably.

cowboy like me belongs in the center of a country/folk/slow blues Venn diagram. It's the perfect blend of the three genres. Marcus Mumford's back vocals sound so good with Taylor's. "We could be the way forward, and I know I'll pay for it" and "the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to fuck this up" are great lyrics.

I'm not all about the way long story short stars but the song quickly settles into its skin. This is easily the most pop-sounding song on evermore but it's still somewhat experimental in comparison to Taylor's existing discography and I think it's cool that she can find space to experiment within a musical space that she has all but mastered. Say what you will but Taylor Swift knows how to make hits no matter the genre. The lyrics "he's passing by, rare as the glimmer of a comet in the sky and he feels like home" reminds me so much of Call It What You Want.

marjorie gave me chills on the very first listen when Taylor sings about how her grandmother left her backlogged dreams to her. I love that they used her grandmother's actual vocals in the background, that's a really heartwarming detail. This song comes with some really solid advice too. It just feels very personal. I love the way production builds on "what does didn't stay dead" right to the bridge, which is my favourite part of the song.

closure is easily the most experimental song on the album with that the scratch tape sound and those drums. I love the sheer pettiness in her tone and the lyric "don't treat me like some situation that needs to be handled" is brilliant. That said, this is probably my least favourite. I think it's a cool song but just not for me.

evermore has some of the most beautiful lyrics on the album. "I replay my footsteps on each stepping stone, trying to find the one where I went wrong" and "barefoot in the wildest winter" are some of my favourites. I'm not a big fan of the sudden shift in tempo on either end of the bridge but Justin Vernon's falsetto makes up for it. The production is otherwise beautiful.

Note that the bonus tracks are currently at the bottom because they have not been released yet.

[nightwideeyes]

2020 review

do we really wanna do this? I’m not sure but god knows I need it.

shout out to 2016 me for starting this. I’ll compare it afterwards and see how many steps I’ve taken back

okay okay all jokes aside

all the bad shit that happened, all my thoughts, all my feelings

this is 2020 in retrospect, so buckle up and join me on the ride

see, I was pretty hopeful for this year because I spent half of 2019 in a toxic relationship which I deeply and passionately regret with all my heart because it took a toll on my mental health. The rest of 2019 I spent recovering from self hate and anxiety

so I went into 2020 with a fresh start fever thinking this is the year that will change things

but the anxiety didn’t really leave. throughout january i was rather okay, euphoric about the new year. at the end of february my anxiety got worse and i was overthinking a lot, started being tense a lot etc etc

then march the absolute avalanche introduced herself. miss rona. i don’t want to whine about how shit the pandemic is, how terrible it hit us all because it certainly hit people a lot harder than me but still, it’s not nice, its annoying and frustrating and can mess with someones head enough

so during march and april my anxiety was on peak levels. i was constantly mad, upset or nervous and had to spent my time in homeschool, having no distraction whatsoever

i spent a lot of time outside in the forest and discovered new magical places where I could find some peace and thats where I’ve been hiding away during may, becoming part of nature, finding back to my old self somehow

on my birthday the 11th I was feeling well, I was content and happy and thought shit would be alright again

but the day after I came home from school and received the message that my fathers cancer was back after 10 years. although I’ve pretended like it wasn’t all hopeless and things would be alright again I think it hit me the hardest this year. it’s been the starting point of me confronting myself once again with the thought of him dying, of leaving us behind, of me having all the responsibility of what he would leave us. of going through the struggle again, of going to hospitals again, of seeing him vanish again. it was devastating.

in may I attended an assessment center for a job I wanted to do with all my heart and felt so confident and strong that I could do it

but in june I received a letter of rejection and had to write myself in for another year of school because i didn’t really have an alternative

meanwhile my dads treatment got rescheduled again and again until june and he had his operation on the day I wrote my second final

so unknowingly and unnoticeably i was put under so much pressure of one unfortunate event following the next and it felt like I was just supposed to function when I didn’t want to function anymore

but these times ended and I wrote my fucking finals, passed them, celebrated a bit and my father recovered too, like we all had hoped anyway but didn’t know for sure

so summer had been the best time. although there were still restrictions on public life me and my friends had so much fun together and did amazing things and I think we just grew closer from the creativity of coming with ways to spent time with each other without having to go out much

i was doing a lot of yoga, a lot of mental self care during summer, watching atla, spending time trying to get in touch with my body and soul and I discovered some good music that helped me find myself and develop myself

at this point I would like to thank

5 seconds of summer; for making me realize that deep in my heart I will forever be teenage me stuck in my emo phase and that’s how I feel most comfortable

Upsahl; for reminding me that I’m a bad bitch who doesn’t need anyone or anything to be happy with herself

Yungblud, for reminding me its okay not to be okay and that broken people stand up for themselves and are strong together

and Blackpink, mostly for giving me more reasons to simp for cute girls

in august i was working for two weeks at a factory to earn some money and although I’ve been there before this time it’s just been hard. I felt really stupid and not taken seriously by the staff and I think that’s when I was getting anxious again, feeling very stupid and very unable to do anything right

from the anxiety starting in august it went into september with me. I started a new school year, gave this weird boy a ride to school two times before I scared him off for some reason (maybe because I was giving him badass lesbian vibes as I was playing Use Me by PVRIS in my car constantly) and was quarantined on the second day of school bc of our english teacher

in september my dad was submitted into the hospital a second time and we thought he had gotten worse again but this time it was a result of too much mental pressure. i was stressing into that again, thinking of ways I could help him with his responsibilities and worries.

the rest of september I spent in this weird state of perpetual tension and kind of continued it into october

on the fourth of october I went to Lehesten all by myself and I felt so proud and accomplished and I realized that I don’t need anyone to feel better but myself. so I went on some more field trips in october, enjoying some me time and some peace of mind, getting back into the bands I was listening to as a teen, recalling the times I felt free with myself

in november I was living off post human survival horror and felt so careless yet free of all of my worries, feeling numb but content

so until december there have been pecks of anxiety here and there but I’ve spent the fall months rather well, mentally

now december started well but the anxiety has increased again and now it’s been on moderate levels

but nonetheless I’m getting through day by day and I hope I will reach the state of carelessness again in order to collect my thoughts

so although 2020 has been a year of disappointment, hurt, fear and way too many thoughts and worries I would like to move onto the point of this list which might help me move on further

2020 positivity

a collection of things I've learned, I am grateful for and what I've experienced and done all year which I am proud of

- I've been more open and confident about my sexuality than ever before

- I've been spending so much time outside getting inspired

- I've been creative

- I've been writing the most honest and uplifting poetry ever since I started

- I've self printed and binded a poetry collection of my past and the sorrows that came with it to help overcome it

- I've started drawing again, started yoga and meditation and enhanced my spirituality, I've picked up the guitar again

- I've graduated 12th grade with an average of 1.6

- I've started 13th grade with crippling fear of failing and got used to it after a month and appreciated the challenge

- I've dealt with a big disappointment and learned that when one door closes a new one opens somewhere else

- I've learned what it means to support each other as a family but also when it's time to step back and distance yourself to protect yourself when you can't help anymore

- I've been getting in touch with the most free and careless version of myself

- I've rediscovered my love for old music I used to listen to

- I've learned that I don't need anyone to do what makes me happy

- I've learned to appreciate my friends more than ever for being my light and support

so although this year was full of disappointment and hurt and fear and worries it helped me grow

throughout this year I have been the bravest, strongest, most honest and authentic version of myself

I do not have any hopes for 2021. I just want to continue growing the roots I have dug for myself now. I want to continue blooming into the person I've strived to become all these years

I want to grow and continue blooming. I want to continue becoming the version of myself that makes me feel content about myself. But I also want to know I am valuable and whole at any time.

I want to overcome this anxiety and I want to be free of fear again.

so this is me manifesting it.

I will grow and I will continue blooming. I will continue becoming the version of myself that makes me feel content about myself. I am valuable and whole at any time. And I will overcome this anxiety and I will be free of fear again. I will not be afraid anymore. I will be clear again.

Ich werde keine Angst mehr haben, ich werde wieder klar sein.

[twentiethcenturymoviesandtv]

Ladyhawke: Facets of Film

There’s more to a good film than a solid story and compelling characters.  Otherwise, it’d be a book.

There’s a lot that goes on in the process of making a movie, in taking a story and putting it on screen.  There’s costumes, sets, props, special effects, camerawork, music, and, perhaps most importantly, performances that best get across what the script is trying to convey.  It’s a project containing a lot of different elements that all come together perfectly to tell a story in a visual medium in a meaningful way.  It’s not a movie without ‘movie magic’, after all.

Of course, some films do better with this than others.

See, the point of all of these things is for one simple reason: to better express the story and characters already present in the script. They are there to accentuate, to enhance, to be good enough to dazzle, but not so good that they overshadow the rest of the movie.  It’s a difficult balance, one that can be achieved if the same effort is put into both story and the actual movie-making itself.

The question today is, is that the case for Ladyhawke?

Does Ladyhawke use its storytelling devices well?

Let’s take a look, starting with one of the most important elements in a film: cinematography. (Spoilers below!)

The camerawork in a film can sometimes make or break it.  When done well, it is breathtaking, when done competently, it is adequate, but when it’s done badly, it’s really bad.  There’s more to camerawork than just pointing it at the action.  There’s a lot to consider.

The cinematography, teamed with the editing process, is designed to evoke a reaction out of the audience.  A good director knows how to use the camera to emphasize certain details, or overall feelings.  The camera is used to help tell the story, while leaving a visual mark on it.  Such scenes in Ladyhawke include the stunning shots of the landscapes, giving us wider looks at the expansive world that the characters reside in.

The camerawork in Ladyhawke is, most of the time, good.  Not fantastic, but good.  Most of the shots are standard uses of the camera to get us to take note of the dress in Navarre’s bag, or the emphasis on his sword.  The long takes in the fight sequence in the climax are notably impressive, building a steady rise in tension, as well as showing off the semi-realistic, brutal sword fight.

There are two scenes, however, that surpass ‘good’ camerawork, in my opinion, and become great.

The first occurs semi-early in the film, when the Bishop wakes up in a cold sweat in his bed.  He sits up, and we are granted a look at his bed and room: above him, carved into pillars, are birds of prey.  Hawks. Given his connection with Isabeau, it’s fitting enough, but then comes another work of brilliant editing.  Right after that shot, there is a wider one which reveals something else: carved into the bedpost are wolves, facing away from him. It’s an interesting and effective way to hammer home his connection with the pair before we even know what it is.

The other scene that I’m referring to is a little longer, but is, in my opinion, the best use of camerawork in this entire film.

It comes towards the end of the film, after Navarre (in wolf form) has been rescued from the ice-water and brought back to camp.  Isabeau waits with him as dawn nears, signaling both of their transformations.  There is an instant, made longer with movie magic, where the two watch each other transform, both fully aware of what is going on.  That moment is full of shots of their eyes meeting, and transforming, never actually showing the pair’s bodies change.  In another film, this edit would be an excuse to show off the transformation itself, but Ladyhawke doesn’t.

By using the camera effectively, this scene takes on a different emphasis, one of mutual love and grief.  This is the scene that fully drives home the couples’ love and separation, and the audience feels it, which, once again, is the point of good filmmaking.

Oddly enough, there are very few ‘special effect’ shots in the film itself.  It’s all very down-to-earth, with no outlandish creatures or large set-pieces. For being a film made in the era of big special effects, there’s nothing accomplished in the film that isn’t done with simple camerawork.  We never see a transformation in full, we only see before and after, with some clever shots in the middle to give us the idea.  While that may seem disappointing, it’s actually very smart to portray the scenes like this: it emphasizes the emotional impact of the sequence, and prevents any ‘dated looking’ special effects in hindsight.  It also adds to many of the film’s unique qualities and elements.

There’s more to a film than the camera, however.  Let’s talk about the rest of the visuals.

While nowhere near the iconography of The Wizard of Oz, Ladyhawke has its fair share of memorable images, notably Navarre’s black armor and gem-encrusted sword and Isabeau’s mid-air transformation into the titular Ladyhawke.

Part of what makes these images memorable are the distinctive looks of the characters, assisting with the expression of the character. Phillipe’s clothing is scavenged, looking appropriately thrown-together and unremarkable, further demonstrating his scrounging lifestyle and ‘normalness.’  Navarre is dressed in black armor, in a subversion of both the unscrupulous ‘Black Knight’ trope and the upright ‘Knight in Shining Armor’.  Neither villainous nor a champion, Navarre is a good man on a quest for revenge, a darker path than most heroic characters in fantasy films.  He rides a black horse and carries a unique sword that he plans to use in this revenge quest: once again, completing a memorable image.

By contrast, there’s Isabeau.

Isabeau doesn’t get armor, but she does get a simple, yet elegant enough, dress, combined with Navarre’s black cloak.  This gives her an ethereal vibe that slowly dissipates the more we find out about her, but still retains her sense of otherworldly dignity.

Speaking of otherworldly dignity, let’s discuss the score, which is anything but.

Now, I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears mentioning again: Ladyhawke’s musical score was recorded by Alan Parsons, and the result is a combination of orchestral instrumental and synth music. Does it fit?

…..Sort of?

Once again, the music is a part of the film’s individual identity, for better or worse.  Sometimes the music fits, (mostly the instrumental bits) but one of the biggest complaints about the film is, in fact, the soundtrack.  Many people’s complaint is that the music is incongruous, and takes them out of the film experience.  On the other hand, lots of people agree that it does add to the ‘individuality’ of the film.  So which is it?

Honestly, this one is usually personal opinion.  Depending on what one is looking for in a fantasy film, people either enjoy the soundtrack or dislike it.  Personally?  I enjoy it’s differentiation from contemporary fantasy soundtracks, but can understand why some would disagree.

No matter which way you feel about it, you do have to admit that it’s distinctive.

The musical score does rise and fall with the action, playing triumphant fanfares over battle sequences and quieter, introspective music over reflective scenes, and it does do what a soundtrack is supposed to do: get a reaction out of the audience, and help influence the emotion in a scene.

Another one of the odd things about this film is the lack of sets within it.

There are sets, obviously.  The cathedral, the prison, the barn, etc. are all examples of sets used within the film, but an equally large portion of it is set outside.  The film feels very natural in this sense, by using very grounded sets, further adding to the relatively realistic tone of the film as a whole.  The scenes in which the actors are performing are very tame, plain, and in a way, more accurate to the period and setting they are actually trying to portray. Unlike many contemporary fantasy films, Ladyhawke feels very real-world in comparison.  Being set in medieval Europe, there are no ornate palaces or magical caverns.  As a result, every set and landscape feels like it is genuine and solid, adding weight to both the story and the performances that are coming across.

And after all, the performances are arguably the most important element.

No matter the thought or quality put into sets, special effects, costumes, music or cinematography, in the end, it’s on the performances to sell the story and characters.  Each individual scene rests on the actors and their ability to compel the audience.

Matthew Broderick’s performance as Phillipe Gaston is charming, managing to pull off a semi-comedic character in fairy-tale circumstances. He’s sly and smart, but out of his comfort zone, rendering him rather helpless at times.  He is a character struggling to catch up with events, slowly becoming a part of the story and learning to do the right thing, even at risk to himself.  He’s humorous and later compassionate, expressive and outspoken to the other characters, and in his private discussion with God.

Navarre is almost the opposite, closed off and mysterious. Rutger Hauer’s turn as a good man cursed is very compelling, portraying both the grim determination for revenge, and the broken heart of one half of two star crossed lovers.  (Special mention goes to the above scene with the mutual onscreen transformation, appropriately heartrending, and his confrontation at the Bishop at the end.)  Hauer also has good chemistry with Broderick, depicting the growing friendship between the two very well.  He portrays the full gambit with restraint, giving the impression of emotion bubbling under the surface until his joyful reunion with Isabeau at the end.

Michelle Pfieffer as Isabeau is haunting and heartbreaking, a woman living a half-life, cursed to be with the man she loves, but unable to have a relationship with him.  Separated from all she knows, with little choice in her life’s direction, she also becomes friends with Phillipe, revealing the sad, borderline hopeless existence she is forced to live in.  (Again, special mention to that transformation scene, and her cold confrontation of the Bishop.)  She portrays a woman containing quiet strength, forced to go on and remain solid for both herself and Navarre’s sake in the face of the curse.

John Wood as the Bishop is appropriately disgusting, an old man motivated by jealousy and lust, taking out his anger on the couple.  He cannot bear to take rejection from Isabeau, and he remains obsessed with her after the curse that he dredges up.  He portrays a man attempting to retain control until the end. Unable to take Isabeau and Navarre’s bond, he attempts to break it, once and for all, leading to his own demise.

Leo McKern’s performance as Imperius is both comedic and remorseful, a man atoning for his past mistakes by trying to help the couple.  He contributes dry wit as well as his sincere services, and his connection with Phillipe allows him to help the couple. McKern shares many scenes with members of the cast that perfectly showcase his gravitas that effectively balance out his lighter moments, rounding out our memorable main cast.

Every character in this film is perfectly realized, coming together as a team against a rotten man.  There is no good vs. evil in this story, only the power of love over the power of jealousy and obsession.  These characters come across as slightly fairy-tale-esque, but slightly twisted in odd ways.  The performances are appropriately subtle and reserved, coming across as very genuinely human and understandable to a very genuinely human audience.

The acting, like everything else in this movie, is understated, and very simple.  It’s not bright or colorful, or loud, or epic, it is very down-to-earth and modest. It tells a compelling story with compelling people, assisted by the work done to make it (with the exception of the music) a very realistic and grounded story.  The performances perfectly match the rest of the movie, subdued, but genuine, and gripping to an invested audience.  Every element in this film is tailored to fit a specific mood, moving the plot along without being obvious about it.

Ladyhawke has been called a cult classic, unpopular upon its theater release.  It was greeted with mixed acclaim, labeled as ‘inconsistent’, and debated since then as to whether or not this film was actually good or not.   Yes, the music can seem a little incompatible with the film, but overall, it comes across as a reasonably consistent, grounded film with a compelling story and characters, and it really works.

Join me next time as we discuss the behind the scenes story of Ladyhawke with a segment titled: Facets of Filmmaking.  Don’t forget that my ask box is always open, and I hope to see you in the next article!

[joshhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

Magia Record episode 7 was great! Immediately I just wanna say, this episode is an absolute visual feast, the Wings of Magius’ maybe HQ is already such a pretty location, the water dripping upwards and shit is so damn good, but then we spend like the entire rest of the episode just slurping up that Inu Curry juice because apparently the Amane Sisters (they’re introduced here and they’re so fucking theatrical they’re immediately my favourite twins in anime) can like, use Witches as a means of attack, as in like, just fucking spawn them, separate from their own Doppels which they also drop by the way, and the action animation the entire time is so damn good, I absolutely loved just looking at this episode. It also sounded fucking popping as well, the theme that plays as they’re inside the Magius base is so fucking good, it’s got that exact fucky yet catchy Madoka vibe, sounds the most like a Kajiura Madoka song without being by her it’s great, and the battle music later on has that vibe mixed with that sort of faster, more involved pace that you’d expect from an action song, it’s so good. TL;DR one of the best episodes yet audiovisually.

Anyway, plot stuff. So Felicia does go with the Wings for a bit where she meets the Amane Sisters, and the pair, plus later Mifuyu who I didn’t actually know was Magius, make it very clear that, yeah, their goal really, genuinely is the salvation of magical girls through the elimination of all Witches. Except apparently to do that, they’re also needing to protect the Uwasas. So that’s some big mystery sauce, frankly I’ve not even got any guesses as to what exactly the deal with this is. And also again however it relates to Doppels, like maybe Doppels as a whole are the result of a rumour - the rumour is that if you come to Kamihama you’ll be saved and that in and of itself could refer to getting your Doppel, but then where’s the actual physical Uwasa that you gotta fight? Fuck I like this, I really do, I feel like the mystery’s told in a compelling way and even though ultimately the only way to know for sure is to rewatch the show when I know the answers, I still just feel like these elements will hold up on a rewatch as well, just the way the dialogue is written and how the show’s been handling itself and its exposition makes me feel like I’ve got nothing to worry about. 

Now obviously Felicia ends up not joining the Wings, in fact once they use Witches as an attack Felicia goes off the shit and fucks them up really badly, further helped by Iroha’s Connect appearing once again. It seems a lot better in this than in the game lol. Speaking of things relating to Iroha reappearing, she also drops her Doppel once more, specifically to destroy the Lucky Owl Water rumour, and I know I’ve praised this episode’s visuals loads already but thank you Inu Curry for making this look so fucking good, the pair of arms coming out of Iroha’s back before that fucky Doppel face pokes her head out and then Giovanna unleashes hell, horrifying crown of thorns and everything, it’s just so fucking good.

But yeah Felicia’s with us for real now, and once we leave everyone’s all “come live with us for a bit, also restrain yourself” and it’s here where actually my biggest problem lies. Because the restrain yourself shit is great because on one hand it makes sense to have everyone tell her to stop going sicko mode whenever she sees a witch, I didn’t even think much of it because like, of course you don’t want someone that goes on a total rampage in any fight, that’d be uh, hard to work with. But Felicia reminds us that actually, witches are fucked up monsters that killed her parents and she has every right to detest their mere existence, why should she tone down? Fuckin great scene, enhanced a lot by the seiyuu’s delivery too, I loved it. But what kinda bugged me is that, Yachiyo’s distrusted Felicia this entire time, but then the second they get out of Magius’ HQ she’s all “you should come stay with me”. And it just felt like too sudden a heel turn. Now if perhaps Iroha had convinced Yachiyo to let Felicia stay, and then in the maybe few days between the end of the episode and the scene after the credits we learned that Yachiyo had become endeared to Felicia, sure I’d take that, it’s specifically that she changes her mind in basically 0 time in universe that annoyed me. Oh well.

About that post credits scene, it seems Iroha’s finally moving out of Takarazaki (was that its name? I don’t remember) and into Kamihama - more specifically, into Mikazuki Villa! The whole gang’s here, almost, Sana’s not ready yet. But we’re in the house, Iroha’s probs about to get her new uniform, all that sauce. Also Sana might be ready because Iroha gets a text from an unknown sender that just says “you’re a magical girl, please help me” and maybe that’s her setup, hey I’ll take it. The Minazuki Quintet are maybe nearly here!

Also, so Kyouko’s really badass in this episode, because she seems like she’ll join Magius, free food, place to stay, get Grief Seeds, all that nice stuff, but as a result of both being weirded out by the Amane Sisters and their vague theatrics, but also kinda that good old magical girl senpai attitude she has, she bails. And that attitude is basically telling Felicia to chill and be a magical girl for her own sake rather than anyone else’s and stuff. Same philosophy she has in the original anime obviously, she is the same character after all, but I think it’s fun seeing that philosophy of hers be put to good use in other settings, with other girls that aren’t so contrasted with her. I can’t see this anime getting deep into the character stories for the game and I can’t see someone like Yuma getting to appear, so whatever Kyouko’s sisterly instinct there is I won’t be able to see, but this is still pretty good. For the record yeah I’ve not read the stories in the game still obviously I’ve just heard and seen the shit about Kyouko being basically adopting Yuma anyway.

Also, a Black Feather of Magius shows up who sounds uh, a lot like Kana Hanazawa. Everyone already thought Kuroe would join the Wings of Magius so yeah, maybe she really has and we just saw her here. Neato.

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 351: MAÂT

At the end of 2019, Growing Bin Records tossed a special surprise into one of my mailorder packages, which took the form of an unmarked and incorrectly sequenced test pressing of an upcoming release. Even without any context to anchor myself to, I dove over and over again into the entrancing landscapes of world music infused post-rock, cinematic sunset disco, solar stoner blues, seaside psych folk, balearic dub pop, organic studio jazz, and new age fusion contained therein, all the while feeling as if I had some secret sonic treasure completely to myself. And after spending a few weeks in blissful ignorance, having no clue where or when in the world this music was created, its source was finally revealed as the trio of Adrien Colle, Tim Karbon, and Maxime Castanet, otherwise known as MAÂT. Far from spoiling the magic though, knowing the authors of Solar Mantra only enhanced the experience, as did the loose ideological framework provided by the song titles and Alan Briand’s enigmatic artwork, for now, I had conceptual signposts to guide my imagination as it continued exploring the trio’s exotic environments, where rainforest rhythms anchor skeletal stoner blues riffs as smoke-shrouded vocals croon towards the sunset; where bass synths filter between fusion walks and subsonic growls while idiophones of every color splash and sparkle; where pastoral prog guitars jangle over the heavenly drone of an electric organ; where chanted harmonies flow into mantric incantations above spiritual synth cascades, swelling cymbal shimmer, and ambient funk basslines; and where heady angel voices melt down over soul-affirming expanses of dub-kissed dreampop psychedelia. I was also thrilled to discover that MAÂT dedicated the album to Don Cherry’s, Naná Vasconcelos’, and Collin Walcott’s work in Codona, a favorite group of mine who here provide less of a direct sonic inspiration and more so a spiritual one, as Solar Mantra sees another trio of gifted and sympathetic collaborators pushing each other to the limits of individual creativity in the search for sonic transcendence.

MAÂT - Solar Mantra (Growing Bin Records, 2020) In “The Walk,” echo-soaked toms, tambourines, and chain off snares gallop through the void while claps crack, four four kicks beat beneath dreamspace vibraphones, and desperate smears of singing fade into focus. Then everything cuts away, leaving space for ceremonial organs and fat acid basslines to ambulate beneath a pair of voices seeming to intone “can’t you see how they walk?” as bells and shakers swell violently. A squelching synth solo seeks out the sunrise and light kisses of dub delay work the snares as the track spreads further out into pastoral folk psychedelia, with ecclesiastical organ chords supporting jangling acoustic guitars. Vibraphones add soulful jazz flourishes and harmonize with bleary-eyed fusion leads as pleading vocals thread in and out of the stereo field and at the track’s conclusion, kick drums and shakers move together, hand drums spill over themselves, and those smokey vocal hazes continue flowing in round over light acoustic guitar brushstrokes, before it all ends in a fractal storm of xylophones and shakers. “Jaki & Bryn” comes to life on smoldering synth swells as twanging guitars play single note snake charmer leads before working into a potsmoke chug. Synthetic bells melt and pitter patter percussions pop beneath lyrical incantations, with everything slowly devolving into self-oscillating abstracting. As we snap to the groove, we find ourselves floating on a post-punk raga of skeletal guitar riffing while shakers and bongos guide the hypnotic groove. Organs dart and dash like fireflies and haunted vocalisms flow in each ear, with touches of downer prog and crooning blues mergin into a stoner lullaby. At some point, everything cuts away, leaving lonely lyricisms to float in the void, accompanied by a light panorama of shakers and melting chordscapes. Later, as ping pong echo drums rush us back into the groove, music box arps move drunkely over melting FM synth environments…the whole mix growing strange and alien. Subtle blasts of galactic magic suffuse the stereo field as we work towards the end and eventually, it all reduces to minimal guitar work and hazy vocal hymns, with drums clattering wildly and everything filtering towards darkness.

Minimalist organs join a dancing panorama of filtering chords in “Feuglace” before everything starts reversing in time. Subsonic drums and shakers emerge amidst a bubble cloud of echo-morphing vocal expressionism and as soul-soaked house chords pan across the spectrum, we drop into the groove proper, where dazzling cymbal patterns work around slap bass fusion lines while snares and claps swing on the beat. Idiophones play melancholic island melodies and at some point, the groove grows abstract, with militant percussions pounding then fading as kalimbas, marimbas, vibraphones, and tapped cymbals dance through a cloud of reverb. Then comes a smash cut into tribal hand drum rolls, Afro-folk guitar refractions, and ghostly vocal harmonizations while xylophones beat out sunshine refrains. And later, after the vocals morph into a cloud of fevered insect psychedelia, smeared deep house pianos return alongside handclaps and equatorial fusion basslines to guide an irresistible groove, wherein sparkling ride cymbals and cycling organ riffs refract sunshine and those scatting echo vocal swim far in the distance while the stereo swells with mutating choral hazes. The A-side closed with “Solar Mantra” and its steel pans dancing in a picturesque sunrise. Shakers and tambourines glitter over a tropical bongo groove and layers of plucked psaltery slowly suffuse the stereo field with a jangling dance of polyrhythmic string psychedelia. Sensual sub basslines soften the vibe and kalimba melodies fall like a gentle summer storm until suddenly, vocals ride in on effervescing tapestries of electronic drumming and sing towards the sky: “I want you to grow / praise the sun”. Bleary-eyed synths solo softly and vocal scats imitate shakers as everything reduces down to simplistic hand drumming, ambient thumb piano atmospheres, and plucked string shimmer. But eventually, the groove slowly builds back in strength, though somehow it all seems shambolic and barely held together as various passages flow in and around each other according to some unknowable logic, with plucked psaltery glowing and smokey vocals moving between the titular solar mantra and wordless soul reveries.

“Quetzal Pacino” builds wondrous anticipation from the outset, with mallets tapping and ethereal atmospheres swelling. Violins soar to the surface and drums take on a spaghetti western gallop before dropping into disco intoxication, with hi-hats working the mind via energetic double time flourishes and big synth basslines snapping and sliding. The background swirls with fantasy orchestrations and occasionally, marimbas emerge to beat out anthemic island melodies. Basslines filter into a monstrous growl, martial snare rolls portend some mighty climax, and radiant whooshes of electro-psychedelia flow across the mix until the drums drop away, leaving basslines and layered mallet instruments to pound on the beat, ride cymbals to swell into flashes of white light, and oceanic phaser strings to seek out the sky. Then, things reduce further and string synths start weaving paradise spells amidst a rainfall of cymbal shimmer. And as the extasy-laced disco groove builds back to epic proportions, with a sunset symphony swimming overheard and filtered basslines roaring, the vibe is of some thrilling chase scene…of convertibles careening down seaside highways in the light of the setting sun…the heart racing along with urgent disco drum pulsations while textures of tropical exotica subsume the spirit. Cosmic electronics harmonize with Renaud Guy-Rousseau’s clarinet in “Clairière,” with druidic cycles and ancient melodies spreading into delirium drone. Textured clicks move beneath howling ghosts while cymbal and rimshot splashes bring to life a tribalistic drum groove, which kicks fully into gear once romantic basslines begin executing drunken dances amidst layers of polyphonic idiophone mesmerism. Synths percolate like bubble clouds, hi-hats bash away, and moaning brass electronics mimic a siren until the rhythms disperse, leaving behind machine screams and computronic synth flourishes. Eventually, the clarinet re-emerges…its touches elegiac and reverb soaked jazz enticing the groove back into focus, now with sawing strings and sliding portamento sonics reminding me of the magisterial post-rock and desolate folk Americana of GY!BE, especially Efrim Menuck’s screwdriver guitar freakouts. 

In “Mount Bevray,” blurred e-piano bass chords support solar feedback swells as slap jazz and fusion funk basslines dance across shimmering ocean wave crests. Layered cymbal polyrhythms gleam in the sunlight, brass polysynths spread outwards into new age fusion cloudforms, and all the while, wordless vocal cycles build in support…these paradise incantations of impossible beauty…so simple yet so emotionally affecting. At some point its all obscured by dark filtering, with the cymbal patterns fading and synths soloing through banks of moonlit seafog. But soon, the radiant rhythms of tapped metal return, bringing with them the psych pop vocal cascades and nimble bassline motions as the background overflows with wavefronts of balearic bliss. “Llomé Dub” opens in a futuristic seaside saloon setting, where lofi island percussion and snake tail rattles surround daydream ivory leads and tapped cymbals fall like rain. Droning organs sing LSD lullabies and an upright piano flutters on an echo breeze until we lock into a breezy psych pop groove featuring Laurel Canyon basslines that occasionally transmute into subsonic bubbles and drums that swing and sway in the dubwsie sunshine. Echo modulating tom toms and hyperkinetic ride taps join dopamine choirs to background lazed acoustic guitar strums and after a devolution into crazed delay fx and anxious musique concrète, we transition towards one of the best musical moments of 2020, as vocalist Leya descends upon the mix like some balearic angel to sing flower power dream lullabies while heavy dub basslines skank over bopping reggae-pop drumbeats, body swaying clap rhythms, and soaring 60s organs. The good vibes only increase from here, as the song works itself into a breathtaking closed eye chorus seeing Leya’s vocals move towards pure wordless revery while crazed echo lasers whoosh upwards…the whole thing so perfect as to soar the spirit towards a cloudland paradise. Then, it all breaks down and returns again to the seaside western settings of the intro, as saloon pianos and echo panning guitars move over a ghost town bassline thump. And as the drums resume, bringing rimshot taps and a jazz pop swing, glorious cascades of piano chord mesmerism flow over seasick sequences and oceanic organ wavefronts before it all gives way to an outro of bleating synth detritus, abstracted ivory flutters, and underwater dub bass.

(images from my personal copy)

[ryansjane]

axelle judges non bl shows > The Stranded

summary: When a tsunami strands dozens of teens on an island at their private school, they soon realize no rescuers are coming and they must save themselves.

grade: 9/10

pros:

- the visuals of this series. while the filming shots in themselves are nothing to ride home about and similar to every well produced netflix show, the visual of the island with luxuriant vegetation and stark cyan sea is so damn beautiful

- the acting. obviously for a show of this size there is not one bad performance in the bunch, every actor does their job extremely well but I especially wanna applaud March Chutavuth (Anan) who I’m used to seeing in romantic comedies and really really impressed me throughout the whole season, I would actually find myself rooting for his character at times because of his acting. so yeah kudos to him it was really pleasant to see him in a more challenging role!

- the story. while the ‘stranded on an island’ trope has been done a bunch of times I feel like this one really managed to switch it up with the fact that the students are stranded on an island they used to live on and go to school to so they have their old high school building and their homes there and they already know the island. and there’s of course the supernatural elements who come in to add a whole other five hundred layers to this show haha

- the music. I almost never talk about the music in a show because it’s mostly only there to enhance the ambiance of a scene but here I feel like music and sound design played a fundamental role in the ominous and creepy vibe of the show and really made it such a better experience that I couldn’t have not talked about it

- the characters. they’re all really lovely but also you don’t feel overwhelmed with five different characters that you love a hundred percent. personally while I loved all the characters the only ones I really really love are Arisa and Kraam, so I didn’t feel overwhelmed by switching favorite character every time a new scene came on like it sometimes happens in other shows. apart from that I feel like the show really managed to give them distinct personalities and aspirations despite being only 7 episodes long and I do feel there was enough character development to be satisfied

- the pacing. really thinking about it damn this series is really so good, especially the pacing ties it all together because it never feels slow at all but there are still some scenes with a lot of rush and anxiety. I feel like this story is constructed like a heartbeat diagram that keeps going up higher and higher until the very last minute of the show

- the length. it is very short, extremely short even. but (and this goes hand in hand with the pacing) I feel like the short length really added to the show because there’s not one moment wasted, every single second of the show is used to further the plot and so you have literally no way of getting bored or even stop watching the show. I also feel like the series stopped at 7 episodes especially so it could have that cliffhanger at the end which I’m not mad about

cons:

- I personnally sorta struggled with the super natural elements. like this show is definitely one where you go ‘?????’ all the time while watching it haha, which I don’t mind but because the show is so short and ends on a huge ass cliffhanger that leaves you with more ‘?????’ well it’s hard to process it. I don’t really know how to explain it but I guess I’m not satisfied enough in the sense that I’m like “this show is incredible, BUT...” I want answers! I feel like if we would’ve had the answer of what’s going on with Kraam my mind would’ve been freed of that space so I could focus more on that cliffhanger, but because no question has been resolved and they add more in the last scene it feels slightly frustrating, like you wanna KNOW lol.

would I rewatch it: hell fucking yeah, I’ve wanted to rewatch it the moment I finished the last episode lmao