#these two actors must absolutely work together again as a couple

[theancientwise]

While rewatching old series

I'm rewatching season 1 of "Knightfall"...

And I still believe that these two had a thing going on much more interesting and tragic than Queen Joan and Landry.

I mean, just look at how they're looking at each other here. Particurarly, at William's eyes.

It's obvious that they loved each other. In a dark and very twisted way indeed. But they did love each other.

[favvn]

You know what else drives me crazy about The Naked Time? This exchange:

It isn't just because of Spock saying, "Jim, when I feel friendship for you, I am ashamed" or "Understand, Jim. I've spent a whole lifetime learning to hide my feelings." Although, that absolutely is part of it, the fact that Spock is locked into his regret over not telling his mother he loved her and his shame at realizing that, despite all his work to adhere to Vulcan principles, he still feels love. It's that gap between duty versus desire, between expectations versus wants, and what remains in spite of the pressure. (I realize his words parallel a love confession in any other context, between any heterosexual couple, and that fandom looks to his shame as a confirmation of internalized homophobia, but the biggest issue for Spock is that love, sorrow, shame--all powerful emotions--still exist for him. He is not a Vulcan if he feels these emotions and gives into them. He is only a half-Vulcan and half-Human, caught between worlds and the judgments and expectations of two very different societies.)

It's because Kirk changes his phrasing of "We've got to risk a full-power start!" to, "We've got to risk implosion!" Implosion, like many words, holds multiple meanings. The intended meaning is "a violent collapsing inwards," the opposite of explosion. But implosion can mean integration, a coming together towards a single center point. We've got to risk coming together. We've got to risk integration. And Spock responds, "It's never been done." They repeat these lines twice. Repetition is a device to call attention in writing. Why have Kirk say they have to risk a full-power start twice before only to change it to implosion and repeat it twice? The two phrases mean something different, but it's important enough to bear repeating. (One could argue it is sloppy writing, or perhaps a case of actors failing to remember their lines, but what are the odds it was either of those, especially with someone as thoughtful as Leonard Nimoy. Either a writer is a professional who understands the power of words, or everything is somehow coincidental, holds no actual meaning, and writers don't think carefully about word choice and meaning, especially in an era where nuance can make or break a story on the screen.)

In the 1960s, during the time of the Hays Code, of course, two men couldn't be together as a couple on TV or in film, not even in space, in a time set centuries beyond our present. But damn if the dialogue can not hint at it, dance around it in plain sight. Again, Kirk and Spock's relationship must exist in the margins, between the lines, encased in nuance and multiple meanings, because to use explicitly clear phrasing would mean it all gets cut.

Hence, this bit of dialogue. The slaps become Spock catching Kirk's hand and holding it steady--direct sustained contact, a coming together, implosion. Spock is torn between regret and shame and love, while Kirk shouts about the ship being destroyed and ending the lives of the crew, their shared duty to the ship. The dialogue is Spock's turmoil writ large--do what must be done, accept two separate halves becoming a whole (is it Spock's two halves or Kirk and Spock? I'll leave that up to you), or remain apart and give into despair. But Kirk tells him their only chance is to risk implosion, to come together, and they have to take that chance.

[jjsmaybank20]

Celebrity News 2

Jenna Ortega x GN!Reader

Summary: Once again, everyone thinks that you and Jenna broke up. In reality, you just wanted to cause some drama.

Warnings: literally all fluff, and my shitty writing

Word Count: 706

A/N: woooo part 2 cause I couldn't help myself. also, im back from the dead! for a bit. i have midterms right now which are whooping my ass so... wish me luck!

Part 1

navigation  celebrities (romantic) masterlist

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2,628,553 Likes

Y/N_Y/L/N: Sadly, after 1 ½  wonderful years, Jenna is not my girlfriend anymore. We are still on good terms, I promise, but I just thought I would let you guys know.

User57: WHAT?! THIS CANT BE REAL

User32: This is not happening. What the actual fuck.

y/n&jenna4life: No i refuse to believe this

arianagrande: I’m so sorry, Y/N/N!

jenniferlawrence_: dude that sucks! Hope you’re doing okay

>Y/N_Y/L/N: i’m okay, thank you for thinking of me

---

THIS IS NOT ANOTHER FALSE ALARM: ACTORS JENNA ORTEGA AND Y/N Y/L/N HAVE REPORTEDLY SPLIT

According to an instagram post Y/L/N posted last night, said actor and Wednesday star Jenna Ortega have split. A couple months ago, there was a false alarm in the end of the two’s relationship, caused by a hilarious dispute over a game of Monopoly. Well, this time, it seems that no one will be laughing. Ortega and Y/L/N are scheduled to be on The Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon tonight, so maybe they will provide some insight as to why the seemingly perfect couple has split. 

---

“You guys are on in 5!” A stage attendant calls into the dressing room, prompting you to stand up at the same time as Jenna. You grab her hand and bring it to your lips, pressing a chaste kiss to it. She smiles at you, blushing, before squeezing your hand and making her way out of the room. You follow closely after Jenna, excited to talk about your new movie with her. 

The introduction music begins to play, and you hear Jimmy Fallon calling out both your name and Jenna’s. Jenna walks out first, waving to the crowd, and you follow behind, buttoning your suit jacket and winking at some of the people in the  audience. 

As the two of you take a seat, Jimmy jumps right into the interview. He asks you questions about your roles, and just about the film in general. He also asks Jenna some questions about the second season of Wednesday. Finally, he gets to what he had been wanting to ask the most. 

“You guys were absolutely amazing in this film, but I have to say. It must have been difficult working together, at least for a little while.” Jenna gives him a confused look, and you fight the smile that is trying to make its way onto your face as best you can. “Why do you say that?” Jenna questions.

Jimmy gives her an odd look, explaining, “Well, because the two of you broke up, right? At least, according to Y/N’s Instagram post.” You still manage to keep a straight face, even when Jenna whips her head around towards you. “What the hell did you do, Y/N Y/L/N?!” 

You look around as if you can’t see her before turning back to Jimmy. “You know, sometimes I can still hear her, nagging me as if she were my girlfriend or something.” She finally breaks, letting out all of the laughter that she had been trying to hold in. Jimmy and the rest of the audience laugh with her, but they are clearly confused. 

Jenna rolls her eyes at you, ignoring your laughter. She turns to Jimmy to explain. “Ignore this little shit, they think they’re hilarious. So what happened is, Y/N is not my partner anymore.” Jimmy becomes even more confused, exclaiming, “So what is it?!” Jenna holds up her hand, revealing the glittering ring that you had purposed with only a short while ago. “They’re my fiance.” 

Jimmy gasps, not expecting this at all. “Oh my god! Congratulations!” You have finally recovered from your amusement, and you thank the man for his kind words. As soon as you fully sit up, Jenna smacks the back of your head. You wrap up the interview, and you and Jenna head home.

As you get ready for bed that night, Jenna turns to you. “You’re a fucking dick, you know that?” You just grin at her, replying, “But you love it. You love me.” Jenna can’t help but smile at you. “Fine. I do love you. So much.” She presses a kiss to your lips before heading into the bathroom. You just stand there in your room smiling. Life couldn’t get much better than this.

---

@lovelyy-moonlight @pnsteblnme @MrsLillithy @alotofpockets @theenglishswiftie @tundra1029 @ampitrit3 @didyoubringauntienat @jensortega813 @ortegalvr

Join my taglist!

[lurkingshan]

I’ve been thinking about what makes the relationship between Jom and Yai in I Feel You Linger in the Air work so well despite the lead up to the romance being somewhat underwritten (which it plainly has been, especially on Jom’s side). I’ve discussed with some of my watch buddies that Tee Bundit gets bored of his own romance narratives and prefers to focus more of his attention on everything else happening around the romance (see: Step by Step), and he has plainly been doing the same in IFYL. So why is this romance working so well despite that?

First, I must give Tee credit for landing the big moments, even if he’s gliding over some of the building blocks to get there. Yai reciting that love poem, his series of increasingly obvious confessions and Jom finally opening up to receive them, their escalating physical desire, that olive oil scene, their dance both in reality and fantasy, their first sex scene, the intimate talk in the tub, Yai taking Jom to see the fireflies—this is all peak swoony romance. And crucially, he is grounding all of these moments quite intentionally in a sense of foreboding and impending doom, so even as we find joy in these two falling in love, we never forget what they have to lose and the danger that is lurking all around them. This works to tether the romance fantasy elements to something that feels more real, making the entire relationship feel both more vital and more fraught.

Second, I think the characterization for Jom is strong enough for us to fill in the gaps around his feelings for Yai. Jom met Yai after the worst day of his life and on the heels of realizing his lover had betrayed and strung him along for years. Yai’s earnestness and sincerity, his straightforward way of communicating, and his confident assurance that he wants to be with Jom no matter what must all be a balm to Jom’s hurt after what Ohm did to him. Jom has become more calm and centered as his relationship with Yai has progressed; he no longer seems anxious and scared at all times despite his continued awareness that he’s in a dangerous situation. You can read that as Jom simply allowing himself a pleasant distraction amidst his confusion and turmoil, but to me he just seems more centered and secure with Yai. His feelings for Yai seem genuine and his desire to be with him grows stronger each episode. I’ve noticed how much more Jom is smiling in these last couple episodes, and it doesn’t even feel conscious on his part. He just likes Yai and it’s coming through loud and clear.

Third, I must give it up for the actors. Nonkul and Bright are killing it in these roles, and they have created a very natural chemistry that can quickly ignite into intensity. Their depiction of physical desire is tangible; I can feel it in my own body when the tension between them ratchets up. They play beautifully off each other, and not just in the way they physically touch; everything from their body language to their facial expressions to their eye shine when they look at each other to their vocal intonations is just loaded with feeling and palpable chemistry. This is a story based in a fated connection and likely some form of reincarnation and inter-dimensional time travel, and so the pull between them needs to feel strong enough that you believe they would come together over and over again through time in all their various forms. We need to believe this relationship is something they will fight for and that Jom will mourn when he inevitably gets forced back to his own time, and they are absolutely selling it.

IFYL is delivering some of the best Big Romance we’ve seen in bl this year, despite having a story that is playing with a lot of big themes and is interested in a lot more than the romance. It’s a really remarkable show and another sign of how the genre is evolving.

[des-no9]

10, 18, 23, 30 for the character asks!

Answered a few of these before so I've pasted some answers, but also added in a couple bits too ^^

10: Are they proficient in playing any instruments?

Actually yes! Vanquish came from a family of singers, bards, actors. They travelled a lot when she, her sister and brother were tiny putting on plays and musicals with their troupe, but as they got a little older, they settled in a city and her father became quite prolific and set up his own company and theatre.

After shit happened, she kind of got out of practice with a lot of what she learned when younger, except the lyre. She kept playing that all her years, and can still play it beautifully to this day.

Although, it's rare she will.

She'd really love to learn a different instrument, though. It was picking up the lyre and playing during her journey through BG3 that brought back some of her memories - and while thankful, she also wished she could have kept them locked away, for it also reminded her why the lyre is the instrument that lingered.

18: What would your Tav be doing if they weren't kidnapped on the Nautiloid?

I think Van would probably have ended up in one of these scenarios:

1: slowly have her memory return by itself about her past and Nezarr and get as far the fuck away from this place and people as possible, maybe jump on a pirate ship or onto a travelling theatre caravan on to a new adventure, a new world 2: be picked up by Nezarr before any memories start to return and the cycle starts once more 3: her memories refuse to return for a long time and she sets up home and shop somewhere new of what she used to do - divination, tarot and tea leaf readings etc for the locals, Caiphon eventually gifting her, her pet familiar cyclops fox named Onyx

23: What do they do after the absolute crisis?

Alright. Well. This is a long one, enjoy.

Neither of the canon endings really make me happy and work for Vanquish, so I'm rewriting in that tldr; Emps and Orpheus both survive and work together after Vanquish hauling Voss in to help her talk these two into working together to defeat the brain. Then Vanquish pretty much having to body block Orpheus afterwards to stop him ripping The Emperor apart, Voss and Lae'zel one arm each.

Quietly, she says a long, meaningful goodbye to The Emperor and Karlach, who became a mindflayer, and they go off together and start living their lives as they wish, flitting between the Underdark and a home beneath BG.

After a few tense nights hovering by Voss and Lae'zel's sides with the githyanki as they recover and prepare to leave for one of Voss' hidden outposts, Vanquish is sort of, panicking really. Suddenly she'd built up a small group of close, trusted friends and those she could maybe even call more, and now just, everyone's leaving. Everyone has their own lives to fix, to recover.

And she'll once again be alone.

For while at the githyanki camp, she feels like she fits in, at least with Voss and Lae'zel, and she'd burn the world for them. And after what they'd did for them, she knows those loyal to Orpheus and Voss may as well at least listen to her. Respect her. One day see a friend, too.

Voss commands a LOT of respect over the githyanki that follow him, so them seeing him start to see an istik as an equal, they follow.

Orpheus however, Vanquish and he kinda clash. He knows he owes so much to her for what she did for him, their people, but being freed after millenias in chains and silence kinda kicks the hornets nest of emotions for a bit. He'll get there. Also, Voss adores her. And for Voss to adore someone like her, she must have worth, meaning. However, it also stings that Voss adores her.

When they leave, Voss and Lae'zel promise they'll be back for her when they're ready, if she still wants to join their rebellion, and become an honorary warrior. Voss hands her one half of a very old sending stone pair, carved in tir'su that isn't even used anymore, letting her know that either he or Lae'zel will use the other half.

And they kept to their word. Voss returns to her one day on Qudenos to pick her up, and take her to her new home, if that's what she still wants.

(all the while she'd been setting up home in a small, solitary house far outside Baldur's Gate, sometimes checking in with The Emperor and Karlach, sometimes Gale or Astarion. Vanquish used to do a lot of tarot readings, tea leaves, divination stuff etc before all this went down, so she kinda picks that up for a while before Voss comes swooping in)

So, Vanquish in the end joins the githyanki rebellion because of her love for Voss, Lae'zel. And eventually she grows to love Orpheus too, and actually they become weirdly close in that 'you're someone I can sit in a room with for 8 hours and do absolutely nothing with but feel so comfortable and make you a cup of tea without asking and the only word you'll say is thanks and that's fine'.

Also. She steals all of Orpheus' clothes. Until Voss gets her some custom githyanki leather/cloth/fur armour made, as she can't wear anything too heavy because of her burn scars.

He also might gift her a custom githyanki circlet <3

Orpheus refuses to let her have her own dragon though. It's something weird he can't get pat. An istik on a dragon, but also how the knowledge of the dragons were obtained never really leaves him. He's always had a complicated relationship with them. Even after Voss and Qudenos insisted he have his own, Qudenos picking one of his close mates for Orpheus when he and Voss were very young. She always rides with either Lae'zel or Voss. Qudenos takes her out for cheeky solo rides, now and then.

tldr; she joins the githyanki rebellion and a polycule of her, Voss and Orpheus.

30: What's your favorite thing about your Tav?

I think, despite everything that's happened to her, what she's capable of and still does, the sound of her laughter, the kindness in her smile when she adores you, the playfulness she's kept, and somewhere in there in time, her desire to just love, and be loved.

Aesthetically, her skintone is like the Astral Sea, with her navy and white freckles, along with her burn from her patron(s) that kind of melted a large patch of her skin to a strange nebula.

Also:

-her fat fucking ass -her fearlessness, that's sometimes impulsive stupidity

[itsays]

my gmmtv 2023 review

the interest - now why are we giving pretty privilege boy roles out of his range. AGAIN. be so serious rn. you know who would’ve slayed this role? apo. might watch though ngl lol

beauty newbie - i was like totally sold on it until win came on screen lol it is funny though that he is playing eunwoo’s role... you know... the pretty privilege boys together

our skyy 2 - it’s giving kpop boy group and that’s not a compliment. also there is no way these couples are popular? earthmix ohmnanon and firstkaoh sure i believe you but the rest? somebody call nugupromoter. no offense to joong. 

midnight museum - finally real fucking television. finally gun being cast with a fellow ACTOR. i win. like im so excited ARE YOU DUMB!!!!

the jungle - this doesnt have subs PISSING ME OFF. they need to stop trying to sell us krist as a casanova be so serious rn. the male cast is mostly but not entirely bad... while the female cast is excellent i fear so yes i think i will watch this...

dangerous romance - i dont know what that trailer was supposed to be lol i’ll wait for it to come out to decide ... it doesnt look... good? um... but i guess

faceless love - i do not like dew. sorry to him but in association to bw i do not like him. i was surprised to see peach here? let out a scream when i saw kao. my baby kao being paired up with the enemy i could cry.... you know im watching this be so fucking serious. i see this is based off a jdrama... that i didnt like lol but whatever

only friends - this looks soooooooooo messy. drama of the year idk

loneliness society - there’s A LOT of remakes this year... i kinda wanna watch this but i also kinda dont wanna watch anything with joss in it so idk

last twilight - YOU WILL NEVER BE LAST TWILIGHT IN PHUKER YOU WILL NEVER BE TEH AND OH-AEW YOU WILL NEVER BE BKPP GIVE UP. this sounds like a really interesting concept gmmtv does not have the range for.... but... i might give one or two episodes a chance because again. interesting concept.

wednesday club - the absolute happiness i got when i saw jane here bro she didnt post ANYTHING about this i thought she had no projects i was losing it... MESSY MESSY MESSY YOU KNOW I WILL BE TUNING IN BE SO FUCKING SERIOUS RN ANOTHER CONTENDER FOR DRAMA OF THE YEAR excited for ohm jane and joon together SLAY!

cooking crush - give this ship up to god i BEG gun is way too good for this when will he get something on his level. i would watch for gun honestly. but it doesnt even look GOOD

phro thoe khue rak raek - this does not have an english name. does that mean it’s a lakorn? i dont really like those... i also dont like that prim (it girl btw) is being paired with dew and this is not my vendetta against him i SWEAR it’s because he looks so much older than her even though i googled it and it’s 4 years but idk she’s still a kid

23.5 - well im obviously watching this be so serious rn lol they really threw some bl there out of nowhere i was so confused like alskfjaksjfalk CAN WE LEAVE WOMEN ALONE? PLEASE? anyways this looks so cute uwu 

hidden agenda - i REALLY like joong and i wish all of the projects gmmtv give him didnt SUCK like lmao i am so upset give him something good i beg of you. and if you must use him as fanservice at least AT THE VERY LEAST give him a partner that is up to his caliber. couldnt they just pair joong with jamie IDK! remember my post where i said men get everything handed to them with lead roles for their debut and girls have to work in the background for years to be promoted to support actresses?

double savage - terrible name but i saw ohm with a gun so slay. i didnt understand this trailer at all to be honest but i think i might watch? looks very different from what they usually do so that’s interesting

find yourself - you had me at older woman younger man i fear alskfjakjfa ONE OF MY FAVORITE TROPES AND GUILTY PLEASURES... IF YOU WILL and honestly i was upset because to me it looked like the male lead was 25 and the female lead was like 30 so i was like BOO TOMATO TOMATO they arent even committing but then i googled them and turns out he’s 26 and she’s 42 WOAH that’s a lot. well anyways i most likely will watch this. ok so the characters... 23 and 38... oh that’s bad. just turn off your brains girlies

a boss and a babe - it doesnt look BAD but it doesnt look... good....

enigma - i was REALLY into this until i saw win.... that man does not have the range for this.... also.... is that like... a teacher student relationship.... um.......... i HOPE im the one misunderstanding because that would ruin an otherwise really promising drama?

two videos are hidden and i dont know what they are?... one is definitely cherry magic but what’s the other one and why arent they there? anyways i gotta SAYYYYY i am very curious to see that trailer alskfjaskfjakl

overall thoughts:

i think (at least from this trailers) gmmtv dramas are starting to look better visually which is crazy. but i wonder if they simply used this level of quality because it’s just like. trailers and not the real thing. i hope not because it looks a lot better like this

i dont know if im in the wrong here but i am growing progressively angrier and honestly resentful of bls. the way they are favored the way we get quantity over quality the way they overshadow everything the way they inevitably result in women being thrown to the back and neglected. im starting to think a mass extinction needs to happen. boycotting it isnt enough i need them gone.

you gotta give it to them, they DID stray away from what they usually do in terms of genres and stories...

gmmtv is actually fun when you ignore the bl and focus on the rest i always say this!

i dont think i saw gawin ONCE.... 

no way they’re promoting gawin and krist as a couple😭

i didnt see kapook :( like... she got no projects but i know she was there meaning she’s back to background character :(((

i couldnt help but notice milklove outdid literally half of the bl couples in interactions on twitter and i smile.

honestly. after comparing this year’s review to the last two I HAVE TO SAY. this is MILES better than anything they’ve done before...

i swear to god gmmtv had so many female rookies and i say NONE of them other than prim? although she’s barely even a rookie atp... but the other girls where are they? i swear to god there were at least 5..... nowhere to be seen here

i feel like they are giving prim main girl treatment and that is very pleasing to me bc she is a STAR easily the best actress gmmtv has currently (from the younger side at least)

oh and i forgot. what a wasted opportunity not to have tor and kao together. en fin la hipotenusa.

[mon-ancien-amour]

Getting ready to throw my book a funeral and ughhhh. I can’t even express how horrible this makes me feel. I really threw everything I had into this. Publishing isn’t a meritocracy, but no matter how many times I say it, I believe it less and less. That’s why everyone else has an agent/book deal and I don’t. I must just suck. Everyone who gets a deal is somehow “deserving of it” but apparently I’m not deserving of anything because I don’t have one.

So many people I know have written another book (or worst, their first ever book!) in the time I’ve been querying this one, so many people have easily gotten multiple agents, multiple book deals, hit lists in the time I’ve only been querying

I’m at the point where I can’t even have any writing friends because there’s a chance they’ll write a new manuscript (or their first ever manuscript) and get an agent before I’m able to

I don’t fit in anywhere bc I’m not good enough for the “real” authors and most of the people querying are newbies ripe with toxic positivity and silly questions that annoy the crap out of me

because let’s face it, there is a tiny percentage of people who query for years and years and years with no success. whenever i go see a play, I always think about the actors who never made it. well, i’m the author who never made it. realistically speaking, someone has to fail? so naturally, i’m part of the unlucky sample size of people who will never get there.

in my group chat alone, I think I’m... the last one without an agent? :S apart from one who took a break to have a baby and another two who chose to self pub, and one who hasn’t been writing long but basically got a 100% request rate and will probably have an agent handed to her the second she goes into the trenches again

they always say “write something else!” “keep going!” but I haven’t been able to write for five days because I’ve been having mental breakdowns every single fucking night after midnight.

And the toxic “KEEP GOING” mentality only works for the first couple of books. After you’ve written like 4 (I’ve written way more than that, but only queried 4 so far), it’s exhausting to write another one, and another one, and another one, all while equipped with the knowledge that you’re very likely to fail, and it will all have been for nothing

seriously, if I died tomorrow, what have I even achieved? I have nothing to show for my writing, it’s completely embarrassing that I’ve made it to this age with no agent or book deal

and i’m all alone. NO ONE else is struggling like this. It’s absolute bullshit. And what drives the stake in deeper is the fact that my 4th book completely flopped. Like we’re talking 0 request rate, trash trash trash. and they say that only happens if you’re a garbage writer who can barely string sentences together, because if you know what you’re doing even a smidgen, then surely ONE person will request your book.

nope. no one. i have gone back to the starting line. At this point i’m exactly like a person who hasn’t written a single book bc no one even knows I’ve written any! And the longer this goes on, the more ashamed I am of my failure. I don’t even want to tell people I write anymore, because there’s nothing to show for it. 

I don’t have the strength to keep going anymore. I’ve literally wasted the last decade of my life.

[niuxita21]

So, I really enjoyed doing an inventory of all the shows I watched in order to select the top 5 last year, so I decided to do it again this year, taking advantage of the fact that I’m going through a bit of a work crisis and have a lot of unintended free time. I also imposed a rule that I could only include new shows I watched this year, otherwise at the very least MSH2 and Evil would be on this list again, and that’s boring. Anyway, once again, I give you my top 5 shows of 2022.

5. Hacks (HBO Max)

It’s no surprise that this show is on here when Wanted, the show it closely reminds me of, topped my list last year. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the whole “older and younger woman are forced to work/hang together for plot reasons and start out bickering but eventually grow fond of each other” should become a trend the way the “group of teenage girls survives a plane crash in the woods/a deserted island” premise seems to have taken off. The relationship between Ava and Deborah is truly what drives the show, and I’m glad the people behind it recognize it to the point of referring to it as a “love story” in some media outlets. However, this show does have a leg up on Chelsea and Lola from Wanted in that 1) Ava is actually bi and 2) her attraction to Deborah has been acknowledged in canon, all of which makes their dynamic VERY interesting. I’m very excited to see where the writers take it in season 3 with the starting point of them working separately for the first time, and I hope this show manages to steer clear of whatever dumpster fire is going on over at HBO Max. *fingers crossed emoji*

4. Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)

(No illustrations because I still haven’t finished it, boo.)

I know, I didn’t think this would be my type of show what with its 2:1 male to female lead character ratio and complete lack of lesbians (no, Cara Delevingne’s character’s 2-second guest spot doesn’t count), but what hooked me was the unlikely dynamic between Oliver, Charles, and Mabel, which is a weird hybrid between fathers/daughter and BFFs that I really enjoy. That plus the whole murder-mystery aspect was what made it must-see TV for me in the second half of this year. Very excited to see more of my favourite weird, dumb little family getting into EVEN MORE trouble in season 3.

3. Yellowjackets (Showtime)

Again, no surprise this show is here when the other show I dubbed as “Lost with teenage girls” (The Wilds) also made it into my list last year. However, I do think this show is more deserving of that title, purely because of the way it got me staying up late reading all sorts of theories and how haunting some episodes were. Super stoked to be getting at least TWO more seasons of whatever batshit insanity the writers come up with to explain the “how cannibalism” and “why cannibalism” of it all (even if I will forever be bitter by the casting of adult Van and the gross torpedoing of only the hottest married lesbian couple on TV since Stef and Lena *cough*). The sole fact that THAT is the main premise is just... absolutely bonkers, lmao. Your fave gritty, male-dominated, Emmy-bait shows could never.

2. The Mallorca Files 

From being harmlessly entertained by it, to becoming absolute T R A S H for its lead crime-solving duo in the span of a short dance sequence, to the crushing despair upong finding out it had been left incomplete courtesy of the pandemic and might not even get another season, to the soaring excitement of the season 3 announcement, this show put me through a rollercoaster of emotions this year. But now I’m just happy that the COVID-truncated season 2 won’t be the last we see of the hottest crime-fighting pairing this side of the Atlantic. I mean, realistically, it’s just your typical upbeat, Castle-esque crime drama with the standard bickering lead m/f duo, except with the added value of bilingualism (well, sometimes), with honourable mention to the lead actors’ commendable yet adorable efforts to get the Spanish pronounciation right (seriously, I want Elen Ryhs’s pronounciation of “García” as my ringtone. Oof); the gorgeous Mallorca setting, which ALMOST justifies the Airbnbs costing 1000 dollars a night in the summer (not that I’m speaking from experience or anything); and, most importantly, HEIGHT DIFFERENCE. It also pretty much cemented what is clearly my “type” of late when it comes to hettys I will become absolute trash for against my better judgment (namely, tall(er) handsome goofball + hot gringa. See also: Rollins/Carisi and Magnum/Higgins). It’s good to know that, even in my mid-thirties, I still find ways to surprise myself. So yeah, if you know me, you can pretty much guess why such a run-of-the-mill crime drama is so high up on my list. But if you’re into that sort of thing, you should definitely check it out. At the very least, it will put a smile on your face.

1. Mine (Netflix)

A K-drama on my top 5 shows of 2022 list?? It’s more likely than you’d think! I wasn’t interested in K-dramas for a long time because I thought they were all romances and that’s extremely boring to me. However, after a friend of mine introduced me to them via one show that was all about female-bonding with zero romance/love interests, I started to understand the appeal, and this show marks the fourth K-drama that I’ve watched in little over one year. The moment I heard through the grapevine that this show included lesbians, I decided I needed to check it out but, as usual, that ended up being the least interesting part of the show for me given that the actual plot involved none other than one of my FAVOURITE neo-tropes (namely, woman gets attached to a child that is not her own and needs to fight tooth and nail for her right to be their mother), with the added twist of the typical adoptive mom/child/bio mom familial love triangle turning into a Harold-adjacent, two-mom situation AND a trio of complex, three-dimensional leading ladies who, despite maybe not completely liking each other at the best of times, were 100% down for teaming up to bring down trash men. It’s like this show reached into my brain and took notes of EXACTLY what to put in to get me completely obsessed with it. I’m having a hard time dealing with the pesky K-drama custom of shows having only one season because like, what am I supposed to do with my life now???? WHERE will I find another ice queen lesbian character that can threaten to kill a man without breaking a sweat???? Life is pain.

[socialmediaevans]

END GAME | 05 - chris evans x reader social media au

liked by chrishemsworth and others

chrisevans trying to see if she got it right 😂

view 30.378 comments

chriscaptain WHO? WHO IS SHE??

⤷ marvel2000 of course it must be @theofficialyn

jessicaalba man I miss you LOL

ynmarathon you know who was golfing today too right?! 😏 they fuckin’

⤷ queenyn2 hey thats not a nice language!

⤷ evansbros you guys celebrities go golding all the time, as far as we know they could be in different places…

⤷ alltoochrissy sometimes you guys pretend not to see…. evansbros u aware that there are pictures of them together all around already, right?

⤷ princyln and he was checking her out sm 😋🥰 they looked amazing

selenagomez idk why but these pictures are so damn funny LMAO

⤷ selandyn yall talking about yn but what about these two!!!

⤷ believeinurl i miss jelena :(

⤷ ynstarcrossed these interactions are so funny I wanna thank yn and chris for making the internet go absolutely insane

theofficialyn FIY I did get it right and I also won!!! 👑

⤷ chrisevans you won one round out of ten, sweetheart

⤷ theofficialyn fine but at least I didnt google what FIY means, grandpa

⤷ chrisevans aye she feisty 😂😂

⤷ fan200 I AM SOBBING THEYRE DEF DATING

⤷ queenyn its been what three months since they became friends?!

⤷ multiversions the way I just KNOW that theyre having good s** 🗣🗣🗣

⤷ ariandyn1 omg you guys are gross shut up multiversions!

liked by avaduvernay and others

theofficialyn todays fit 💙

view all 11.200 comments

yncolombiafans oh to be this pretty

randomdistr is this a male shirt?!

⤷ notourbae omg you guys are so crazy its literally a two set, you reading too much into it let her be!

chrisevans 😍

⤷ captainverso bro hes so whipped LOL

⤷ queenyn3 first you call her sweetheart then you comment heart eyes on her picture and you expect me not to create expectations?! honey you just got the whole world having it as a pet

⤷ evanscity yn didnt even reply him 🤡 she doesn’t deserve him

haileybieber this watch and those bracelets are 🔥

⤷ bieberworld Its so funny how yn is literally the peace maker, like shes friends with everyone even with those who dont talk with each other 🗣

⤷ theofficialyn got it from this blonde pretty friend I have 🥰💕

⤷ greatfans she works with everyone like omg to be this sucessfull

chrisworldevans its funny how everyones going crazy but at the end of the day theyre just friends

⤷ ynsummer says who?

liked by sunshine234 and others

thetimegossip and they were together yet again!!!! stylist yn and actor chris evans has been friends for a couple of months now but for some reason fans and even their banter at each other’s posts tells us otherwise…maybe its more than a friendship and that was the atmosphere at the gold club today according to by standers. some fans told that they were very touchy. these two been cooking the internet and everyone seems to be about to blow 🔥

view all 9.892 comments

chrisfan she looks awful in this picture

worldofthemakeupss Im glad there arent many pics of them today taken without consent, let them be

[jeriafterdark]

The Ring Saga - Part 1/4. The Moment that made me believe in JunZhe/LLD

Part 1 : My Treatise on the idea of CP, JunZhe / BJYX, and Homophobia

Part Two - link will be updated as I post

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five Nov 28, 2022

In order to get my mind off of the absolute drama of the state of the community right now, I’d like to write a treatise on the validity and loveliness of JunZhe / LLD; welcome to my TED talk. This will come in FOUR PARTS.

LONG POST AHEAD!---

Important note for new followers: welcome! This is all speculation/CPN (cp fiction), it's impossible to know for sure that these actors are together unless they willingly come out themselves. And considering the environment in c-ent and China, homosexuality isn't exactly welcomed, so there's that.

I only present my view and what I've gathered, and I try to maintain an accurate account of events even if that sacrifices it being fun to read, so be forewarned! My sudden zzh appreciation posts just pop out tho so I'm not perfect ok?

1. My initial skepticism about JunZhe/LLD:

Initially, after I finally believed that BJYX/YiZhan (Wang Yibo/Xiao Zhan) was real, I highly doubted that their story could be replicated again. If you are unfamiliar with their story, I recommend rainbowsky’s blog / accio-victuuri’s blog. Anyway, in the back of my mind I knew that lots of LGBTQIA+ people exist in the entertainment industry in every nation, and it must also be true in China as well. And people fall in love on set all the time, they get into their character, they find chemistry in each other, they get together, and that’s that. Well, I figured since it happened once already with WY/XZ, how likely was it to happen again in ANOTHER danmei adaptation so soon between the lead actors?

I also would like to note that I’m usually not in any overseas fandoms so the idea of CPF (couple fans) was completely foreign to me. I see that many people treat CPF’s as some kind of delusional fans who just want two men to boink? But the treatment of CPF’s by a lot of solos / general public seem very homophobic to me, as someone from a country whose LGBTQIA+ communities are allowed to exist and maybe even thrive (of course there are exceptions, etc). In my eyes, CPF’s are just ordinary fans who recognize when two people have quite a clear romantic connection. And in our case, I don’t even believe that we’re just CPF’s, that we’re fans who “ship” two people - I think we’re just fans who support a real couple.

1.5 Homophobia in entertainment and the hurdle same-sex couples must pass

People fall in love all the time on set. Straight or gay or queer people.

However, we do have homophobia in entertainment. Oftentimes heterosexual couples are assumed to be the default of any “normal” relationship (this is often coined as a part of "heteronormativity"). Thus, any interactions between a man and a woman are “naturally” seen as romantic, and normal, and thus accepted. And so the bar for a man and a woman to actually be seen as romantic and in a relationship is extremely low. They can brush elbows and give each other the side eye - and audiences would be gnawing at their bits shipping them, and no one would be doubting it.

(Ex) I will cite the famous “Brangelina” cp - Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who both divorced their current partners to be with each other after meeting on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith. The tabloids were on fire with their relationship, in which they spent a lot of personal time together + appeared in each other’s space all the time. Sound familiar???? Everyone assumed they were together, honestly, I was a teenager at the time and even I knew lol. (Of course they ended up divorcing after like over a decade, but that’s an aside).

On their falling in love on set:

Del Prete[assistant director] remembers one night, after filming in the desert, Jolie and Pitt stuck around in lieu of returning to their hotel, built a campfire and spent the night in their trailers. "It was a little more than a working relationship," he added. "You don't really see those flirtatious type of things."

Gertz also noted an obvious friendship. "You definitely saw a back and forth ... just an easiness about people that have not spent a lot of time together," she said. "Or, you know, just an easiness when you have 150 people in the crew around you dissecting every part of the scene, and you still have a fun camaraderie, a banter, that you’re able to maintain."

^^^ All of these things are typical of people who fall in love - it happened to Brad Pitt/Angelina, Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo, and here - Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan (do you know of the 'One Rainy Night' story? where they spent the night in ZZH's trailer?)

Here are 5 couples in C-ent who fell in love on set (heterosexual cp's), maybe their CP fans also got a lot of hate, I wasn't in the fandom at the time, so I wouldn't know. But it's readily accepted, and they actually announced their marriages after falling in love. A luxury our boys don't have.

1.51 - Queer Old Hollywood and Lavender Marriages

Because queer people didn't have the luxury of being out and proud, they had other means to shield themselves from retaliation and persecution, i.e. the lavender marriage.

Queer actors and actresses have existed since... acting began? If I were to go back, we can compare current c-ent to Old Hollywood (1920s-50s).

You may have heard of Hollywood's Hays Code, which outlawed any "sexual perversions" in motion pictures, in which homosexual relationships fell under. But did you know that the early 1920's actually were very accepting towards queer relationships? The "Pansy craze" swept the world, people were out and gay and dancing and dressing in drag, even straight people. The film Manslaughter (1922) was the first film to show a kiss between members of the same sex, and it was only in the 1930's when the code started to be enforced and homosexuality was forbidden. Universal Pictures actually put in provisions in actors' contracts, "morality clauses," that made sure they were straight! And if not, then they'd lose their livelihoods, so if anyone felt any gay feelings, they'd have to resort to other options. I.e. the Lavender Marriage. (This video is fantastic on this history)

A Lavender Marriage is a type of marriage where both partners are of the opposite sex, but are gay / lesbian. It's a marriage of convenience, meant to be a shallow shield against outside eyes, so each partner could pursue their own lives privately under the guise of already being in a heterosexual marriage. Many famous people were speculated to be in lavender marriages: Rudolph Valentino (who got married a few times and divorced his wives after a few years, and whose wives actually got married to him to hide their relationships with their girlfriends lol).

(Natacha Rambova / Rudolph Valentino - they're both gay)

Judy Garland famously married Vincenti Minnelli, an openly gay man in New York. She later even advised her only daughter, Liza Minnelli, to marry gay men because they make the "best husbands." The fact that he was gay was an open secret! If you had any gay feelings, people in the business knew, and they were fine with it usually as long as you weren't too ~in your face~ about it, or too public with it.

Cary Grant also famously lived with his "roommate," Randolph Scott, for more than 10 years and cycled through 5 different wives. They had many many many pictures of them shown in fan magazines, promoting their "cp," their "best friends" and "bachelors" image.

Yes, the CP-branding does extend all the way back to Old Hollywood. They'd write about their favorite recipes, so women at home could practice those recipes in the hopes of marrying these men. Their studio knew of these photos, taken by a gay photographer, actually, and stressed that the photos not be too gay. Just enough. Anyway, even after all the CP promotion ended, they still stayed in touch and lived together.

Interestingly, Chinese people have a version of this called Tongqi (同妻) or " tongfu (同夫) is another neologism for men who have married lesbian women."

See how gay Old Hollywood was? And how queer current Hollywood is? Do you really think that it's that different to C-ent? Queer people exist everywhere, in all eras. And the fact that they were gay/bi/queer was an open secret.

1.52 Current C-ent is similar to Old Hollywood

As you may have seen, current c-ent is on a censorship mania. After WOH aired, rules were enacted to basically ban dangai dramas, or anything that's deemed too queer. We know that if it weren't for censorship, like the Hays Code, we'd probably have gotten a WenZhou sex scene / kiss scene / nude dual cultivation scene.

In terms of actors, there are also a few famous personalities in c-ent whose sexual orientations are open secrets (I can't say who bc ofc it's unconfirmed, but if everyone and their mom knew Rudolph Valentino, a famous and highly popular actor, was gay, then is it that farfetched to assume that people in the entertainment business also know? And that they don't really care, or are even happy for their friends/ colleagues?)

Even straight actors kept their relationships a secret and had CHILDREN (Andy Lau, HK). Maintaining image that you're single is important for keeping up a fanbase and fan-following, as c-ent and Old Hollywood have assumed. (It makes the whole JunZhe obviousness even better because clearly they know how many fans they stood to lose by being close, but they didn't care).

In addition to that, there are still lots of studios who take advantage of actors, young and old, and sign them without properly giving them backing or just working them to the bone for x amount of years (ZZH's old studio, where he sustained a knee injury and was encouraged to work anyway and permanently injured his knee / GJ and his first signings where he was scammed). (in the US, contracts can be broken at any time but the studio can still have a "sunset clause" where they'll receive x amt of royalties for a time).

Now that I've established that queer people exist, and how open secrets were a thing in Old Hollywood, and how current c-ent is similar to Old Hollywood in that queerness = bad, queers = exist, we can move onto JunZhe.

2. JunZhe and SHL/WOH

In the case of WOH/SHL, they went ALL OUT in showing how absolutely gay for each other Zhou Zishu and Wen Kexing are. And in the BTS, these two are EVEN MORE in love than on-screen.

And in interviews and promotions, Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan both support each other so much, and are almost UNCOMFORTABLY in each other’s personal space. They are constantly touching, giggling at each other, looking at each other, sneaking a peak, smiling lovingly,

like - there’s a certain level of internalized homophobia (we all have it due to the world we live in, don't worry) that makes people deny that this could be anything but “bros” or “bromance.”

But when you apply these interactions to a man and a woman? If a man and a woman were to act in the same way that they do? One constantly holding onto things for the other (concert), instinctively reaching out for each other if one is falling (Happy camp), brushing each other’s hair away from their eyes (every second of WOH BTS), staring at the other’s lips while they talk (Ace Actress interview, WOH promotions), brushing shoulders in every interview (everywhere), casually holding onto one other’s waists while they cross paths in a cross-promotion (Tom Ford promo), just IMAGINE THAT. With a man and a woman, most wouldn't doubt that they’re something more than “friends.” I don't do these things with my friends. Like. AT LEAST, one must acknowledge that these two are flirting.

BUT SOMEHOW, when it comes to two men, or two women, they are dismissed as just “close friends,” or the dreaded - “roommates” stereotype lol. Now, the caveat is that it is detrimental to a person’s image in CN media to be out of the closet, so I understand if people deny them their love on that… but as I've said above, these aren't really secrets? Everyone in your industry knows that you're queer. And they're fine with it. They literally cannot go around blabbing everything because their careers are also on the line, and they don't want to make enemies. They just have to put on a façade according to the Code.

Why not just acknowledge that their actions are more than friends, respect what they show to the public and support them in that endeavor? Or at the very least, leave the CPF’s or fans who acknowledge their relationship alone - just cuz one couple is gay doesn’t make your world explode. It took a lot, like a LOT of evidence to get over my own internalized homophobia (even as a decidedly queer person), that these two men can’t be in love, they’re not allowed so it must just be friendship and closeness and then omg did they really say that to each other, and then why are they always touching each other, and etc etc down the pit I went lol.

3.The Significance of THE RING:

Normally, idols and stars in c-ent wear jewelry that they either 1) own themselves or 2) are sponsored to wear during red carpet / premieres / photoshoots etc. If they were still working and have a dedicated fanbase, they also would avoid wearing rings on their ring fingers. They have a vested interest in the obtainable ‘bachelor/bachelorette’ look, so that their solo fans can have the fantasy that they, one day, may be able to be with them and thus continue to support their idols with the $$$$$.

So it is quite rare for two seemingly single bachelors to start wearing rings on their ring fingers. And we know they were single because Ma-jie, the chief producer of WOH, specifically only chose single actors for the leads of Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishu. I know all of this from other fandoms, and it’s just rational to assume that in order to continue your lucrative career in entertainment, and to cater to your solo fans, you must maintain the “available” facade. SO, BOY WAS I SURPRISED WHEN I SAW THOSE ENGAGEMENT RINGS.

Part Two: The Rings to Rule Them All (Queue'd for tomorrow, Apr 23, 2022)

As a sidenote, BJYX also has a lot of CPN (cp "fiction" or unconfirmed observations) revolving around rings. It's actually shown that XZ does wear a ring around his neck, whose outline can be seen in a lot of impromptu videos or photos. For more about them and their ring, check here. So yeah, rings are a thing. I mean, they're a thing for het couples, so why wouldn't they be for gay couples?

Now that I've laid the ground for the Ring Saga, let's get to it in the next part!

[chelsie-fan-55]



‘Oldies are doing well’ Phyllis Logan hails older generations as Downton helps BritsDOWNTON Abbey star Phyllis Logan says it was “fabulous” to be reunited with the cast and production crew to shoot a second film due out early next year. The sequel follows on from the events of the first film released two years ago, which was set in 1927 with Robert and Cora Crawley, the Earl and Countess of Grantham, receiving a visit from King George V and Queen Mary during a royal tour of Yorkshire. Filming of the second film, which sees Dominic West, Hugh Dancy and Laura Haddock join original stars including Dame Maggie Smith, Hugh Bonneville, Michelle Dockery and Elizabeth McGovern, started at Highclere Castle in Hampshire in April and finished in June. Phyllis, 65, who has portrayed Downton housekeeper Mrs Hughes in all six series of the original ITV drama and reprised the role for both films, said: “It was fabulous to be reunited with the cast again, we had such a lovely time, but it was over far too quickly. “During the six seasons that we did (for TV) we usually started filming in the February and finished in the autumn, so we had a good six months of each other, and now it is curtailed into a matter of weeks, so it was done a bit too quickly but we had a great time. “There is lots of nice, really fun stuff in it, I must say and some lovely star turns.” Phyllis, who is also the narrator of fly-on-the-wall TV show The Highland Vets, which starts its fourth series on Channel 5 tomorrow (MON) night, believes period dramas like Bridgerton and Downton have provided much-needed escapism during the past 18 months of the Covid-19 pandemic. She says: “With the likes of Downton Abbey it looks so magnificent, the costumes are magnificent and the mores of the time are different where you don’t air-kiss and have to be suited and booted, and straight-laced, well certainly outwardly.. who knows what they got up to behind closed doors. “But we try to show some of this too and the public just can’t get enough of this type of costume drama. “Everyone has been bingeing or re-bingeing on their favourite shows just to give them a sense of normality. “If you can watch Bridgerton, if you can watch Downton Abbey, or your favourite comedy show, you think the world is ok now, or get a sense that life is continuing in a fashion.” Downton has also led the way in using older actors in prominent roles at a time when TV and film has been criticised for being ageist. Phyllis says: “It’s been fabulous and long may this continue. With Dame Maggie (Smith), Dame Penelope (Wilton), myself and Jim Carter, the oldies are doing well.” Her husband Kevin McNally, who is also 65, is best known for portraying Joshamee Gibbs in all five Pirates of the Caribbean films but joined the cast of Downton for its second series on ITV as Horace Bryant. Phyllis says: “It was nice to have my husband in Downton as well but it was very peculiar the way it happened. “He was on set at one point and said I have just been offered this job and I said ‘oh, what is it?’ And he said Downton Abbey, and I said ‘very funny, what’s the job?’ And he said Downton Abbey and I said ‘oh come on, I haven’t got time, I’ve got to go back on set’. And he was being serious. “They did not even tell me they were going to offer it to him and I thought they should have run it past me first, surely.” She adds: “And it ended up with most of the scenes we were involved in being together, which was unusual. “In normal circumstances as he was playing a posh person and I was playing the housekeeper as usual, I thought our paths would never cross but the way the storyline worked we were always together. “So sometimes we got picked up in a car together to bring us to the castle and it felt like ‘bring your husband to work day’, so I thought ‘what is going on?’” Phyllis, who also starred as Lady Jane Felsham in Lovejoy with Ian McShane for eight years, met Kevin, who portrayed Bernard Ingham in The Crown last year, when they co-starred in mini-series Love and Reason in 1994. Since then they had only appeared together in short films and an episode of comedy show Rab C Nesbitt until their joint stint in Downton, but Phyllis says she would be happy to work together again in the future. And Kevin’s help was vital when it came to recording the narration for The Highland Vets, which follows the vets, nurses and receptionists at DS McGregor & Partners veterinary practice in Thurso, Caithness, as they treat animals in the remote northern tip of the UK mainland. After recording the first couple of episodes of series one in a studio in London’s Soho, Phyllis has been forced to do her narrations since the first lockdown in March last year from the study of her home in west London. She says: “Kevin was my sound engineer for the Highland Vets. They sent all this equipment and I was so useless at using it that Kevin was thankfully around and on hand to be my sound engineer.” The fourth series of the Highland Vets, which contains seven hour-long episodes, starts with the vets treating a young Common seal spotted struggling on a beach by a walker. She adds: “I haven’t done many narrations. I enjoy this one because it is such a lovely programme, there is always something different cropping up, so it is a pleasure to do it.” As a result of the repeated lockdowns for the pandemic she has yet to travel up to Caithness to meet the staff at the vets. But Prince Charles did pay them a visit during a two-day tour of Scotland, where he is known as the Duke of Rothesay, at the end of last month (JULY). Unfortunately the TV cameras were not there at the time but wearing a kilt, he was welcomed by senior vet and director Guy Gordon, who introduced him to his team, including Katie Reiss, 22, who had only started work a few days earlier. Ms Reiss said: “It’s an unorthodox start to work! We spoke about my training at Edinburgh University and chatted about how the vets have been really helpful integrating me into work. “He (Charles) said to stick at it and not lose hope because I have wanted to be a vet since I was a wee kid.” Guy says: “We felt honoured that Prince Charles was keen to visit our veterinary practice to meet the staff and learn about what we do. “He stayed with us for about 45 minutes chatting about aspects of our work with genuine interest and insight. “The light drizzle didn’t dampen this special occasion nor cause him to hurry, he took time to engage with everyone. “So they have the royal seal of approval.” She adds she loves getting to see The Highland Vets before anyone else to do its narration. “There are a few sad bits that do not go to plan but it is so heartfelt.. and the fact that they are in that location which is absolutely spectacular, that they all love it, they love their lives, their jobs, their workmates, their animals. “It’s just beautiful and lovely and life-affirming stuff, even when things go wrong.” Phyllis also stars in a film, The Last Bus, with Timothy Spall which they shot two years ago but has just been released. It tells the story of an old man whose wife has just died using his free bus pass to travel to the other end of the UK, where they originally lived, with her ashes in a small suitcase. She will also be seen in the second series of BBC drama Guilt, which is due to air later this year. *The new series of The Highland Vet starts tomorrow at 9pm on 5Select. Source: Sunday Express

[not-a-perfect-metaphor]

I don’t often - ever, really - talk about my personal life, but I wanted to share a little something that seems particularly relevant in leu of everything that’s been happening between the Js.

First, to provide the necessary background information, I do have a long term partner, which I think I’ve mentioned a few times (he posts here every once in a while 😊).

While we’re definitely not fully in the closet, we’re also definitely not fully (or even largely) out of the closet, especially when it comes to our professional identities.

We live separately, and sometimes we spend long, very difficult periods of time away from each other only communicating (whenever possible) over the phone.

When we ARE away from each other…to say ‘it’s hard’ obviously doesn’t even remotely do it justice, and not only are there frequent, negative emotions to combat but there are also MANY misunderstandings and disagreements, most of which stem from the fact that we simply aren’t communicating as much or as thoroughly as we wish we were…as much as couples who are very openly together as well as living near or with each other tend to communicate.

Now add on the fact that Jared and Jensen are both pretty significantly in the spotlight as successful actors, and in that sense, they both need to be even MORE cautious about how and when they’re communicating…

I can only imagine how stressful that must be.

However, on the positive side of things, all of this is also a huge part of why I’m not worried in the way many others are about the future of Jared and Jensen’s relationship due to whatever it was that went down/is going down concerning the prequel, because…I’ve SEEN how much these two love each other. I’ve witnessed, as have we all, the strength of their connection and the lengths that they’ve gone to for each other time and time again.

Just because this was the first time we’ve seen them clash over something to this degree absolutely doesn’t mean it’s the first time it’s happened.

And honestly what I feel it comes down to is the fact that you don’t have a relationship as profound and genuine as theirs, a relationship that is fifteen years strong, without a solidness to its foundation that simply wouldn’t allow it to collapse due to something like this current misunderstanding.

You just don’t. ❤️

Now, let me add that EVERYONE’S emotions are valid. I am in no way trying to tell you that you shouldn’t feel a certain way about any of this. That’s the last way I want this post to be interpreted.

You feel whatever it is that you’re feeling.

Of course!

I’m only trying to say that it truly never occurred to me for even a single second that Jared and Jensen might not work this out, and for anyone who’s been doubting that, doubting whether or not they will, my advice would be to ask yourself if YOU would give up on a relationship like the one that they have when faced with a similar disagreement.

I also encourage everyone to steer clear of the many toxic posts circulating around Tumblr (and everywhere), many of which contain outright lies not just on the prequel interactions but also on the pasts of Jared and Jensen before any of this happened.

I’m not quite sure why people seem to be fabricating all of these harmful bits of misinformation (attention-seeking, ignorance, who knows), but if something strikes you as being difficult to believe, look into it further, because it’s probably not true.

And I’m still not feeling great (just a stubborn flu-type thing, not COVID, don’t worry), so I’m not as active on here as I’d like to be, but if you want to chat about any of this, or just about anything, please feel free to reach out. Forgive me if it takes me a little while to respond, but I would love to hear from you!

[calzona-ga]

[Spoiler] talks with The Hollywood Reporter about his return to the ABC medical drama and why the surprising reunion with Chyler Leigh had to be filmed via green screen.

[This story contains spoilers from the April 1 "Breathe" episode of Grey's Anatomy.]

The magical beach on Grey's Anatomy just delivered a double surprise.

Viewers knew that Chyler Leigh would be returning to reprise her role as Meredith's younger half-sister, Lexie Grey, but she wasn't the only former star who came back on the show's magical beach. Eric Dane, in a surprise appearance, returned to reprise his role as Lexie's on-screen love interest, Mark Sloan.

Both Dane and Leigh appeared together on the beach as part of a central storyline as Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) continues to battle COVID-19. Dane and Leigh become the latest former stars to return to Grey's Anatomy this season, joining Patrick Dempsey (Derek) and T.R. Knight (George) as the Shonda Rhimes-produced ABC drama continues to focus on the impact of the pandemic on the medical community.

Dane and Leigh's Mark and Lexie appeared for the first time since the season eight finale. That episode featured Lexie telling Mark that they were meant to be as she died from injuries sustained in a plane crash. Mark, meanwhile, was killed off in the season nine premiere as Dane left the series to pursue TNT's The Last Ship.

Below, Dane talks with The Hollywood Reporter about providing closure to Mark and Lexie's love story, being part of Meredith's big storyline — she's now off the vent and breathing on her own — and why his reunion with Leigh had to be filmed via green screen.

What was the pitch to come back? Had you seen that Patrick Dempsey had come back and wonder if you were going to get a call?

No, I hadn't. I was in Shanghai, China, when Krista Vernoff reached out and said, "I have an idea." She texted me. I said, "Well, I'm in Shanghai, of all places. And I'd love to hear your idea. Give me a couple weeks to clear quarantine and I'll find you." And she says, "How would you feel about coming back? I don't know if you've seen what's going on, but Meredith is in this coma in a fever dream from covid. And she's seeing all her friends on a beach." And I said, "Well, that kind of makes sense. Yeah, sure, let's do it."

Was the pitch for both you and Chyler to return the same episode

Absolutely.

What was it like reuniting with Chyler after all these years?

It feels like I never left. It was very comfortable and very easy, and it was so nice to see a lot of the same faces with the crew. It's a role that always fit for me, like one of those great old t-shirts. And it was just like putting the t-shirt back on and hanging out on a beach for a couple days, and catching up with some old friends.

Did you actually film with Chyler? She's a regular on a show that films in Vancouver, which would have meant she had to quarantine in the middle of Supergirl production to film this.

Chyler was in Vancouver. So we had to work some magic. Chyler could get here but then she couldn't get back to Canada. There was some green screen. There was a lot of me and Ellen. And Ellen an eye line.

Were you bummed that the logistics didn't work out for you and Chyler physically share a scene together again after so long?  

Yeah. I'm honestly bummed you even asked me that because I wanted to sell the myths of us actually being on screen together in person. But don't take it personally. It's OK, you're doing your job. But Ellen and I see each other every now and again, Justin [Chambers] and I see each other every now and again. I spent so much of my life with these guys. When you see them again, it's not a big, "Oh my God, what have you done?" It's like, nobody skips a beat. It's just, everything kind of fit. It fit then; it still fits.

What did you and Ellen talk about between takes?

We talked about kids, my 11-year-old just found Grey's Anatomy and she's asking me a lot of questions which are difficult to answer. We talked a lot about our kids finding this show, and how do we handle that. How do we police what they're able to watch? Are they of age? Is it appropriate? Some of it raises some questions that I'm not quite ready to answer yet. But I don't mind it because both my kids now want to be surgeons. And all their baby dolls they used to play with are now being cut open, and they're stitching up bananas. It's fun.

On-screen, the episode implies that Mark and Lexie wound up together in whatever this special beach is. Shonda Rhimes said back in back in season nine that killing off Mark was the only way for Mark and Lexie to really be together. In Lexie's last dying words, do you think Mark and Lexie were meant to be?

Absolutely. I mean, the line Meredith asks is, "So you guys are together." And I say, "I guess on your beach, we are." But I think Mark would have found Lexie no matter what. Whether it would have been on Meredith's beach or Lexie's beach, or anybody's beach, I think Mark would have found her.

Does this feel like you have closure with this character again? Did it feel like there was any lingering questions that you were really able to put a bow on this time?

I think it all came full circle. The one question I think that everybody was left with was, obviously Mark Sloan saying goodbye to Lexie and she said, "We're meant to be." And then Mark passes on, and we don't know what that meant. And now we know, Mark and Lexie are together in their parallel universe.

As an actor, do you feel like this is the closure that you maybe didn't quite get the first time?

Yeah. I always felt like there was closure. I've always trusted these writers and what they were doing as far as the overall story and the character's departures. They've always handled that really well. I guess the only people that weren't provided with closure was the audience. And I hope that this can do that for them.

Even though you didn't film in the same place, it really does feel that way.

Two-thousand miles of distance between us is not going to the chemistry that happens on screen between us. I know who I'm talking to, she knows who she's talking to. And that translates.

Mark spoke about always looking out for Callie (Sara Ramirez) and Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) and their daughter, Sofia. That felt like something special to be part of, too.

I can identify with that. I lost my father at a pretty early age and I always felt like he was looking out for me — still to this day, to a degree. So those words meant something to me, and I believe in them.

Ultimately, Mark and Lexie help Meredith fight to stay alive in her battle with covid. What does it mean to you to have been able to not only come back, but to do so in such a meaningful way?

It's a pretty poignant moment. I would think anybody speaking to anybody beyond the grave would probably provide the same advice. You get one lap in life, it's very important that you live every day to the fullest. You keep both feet in today, you stay present. And you're there for your loved ones.

Any regrets about not being able to reunite with Patrick Dempsey to bring McSteamy and McDreamy back together?

No. I love Patty. That wasn't the story. There were no regrets. I've never had regrets about anything on the show.

You said in a 2013 interview that you would have stayed on Grey's until the last episode but ultimately left because you couldn't pass up the role in The Last Ship. Looking back, any regrets about asking to leave?

No regrets. Look, Grey's Anatomy is a fantastic show and it provides a fantastic life. I'm an actor, I think it's very unnatural for any actor to play the same character for eight years. It's just counterintuitive to what I think I'm doing for a living and I think what my purpose is with my job. So, as much as I loved being there, and as much as I loved working with the people I was working with, playing Mark Sloan for 17 seasons just seemed like, I don't know, a little antithetical to what I'm supposed to be doing as an artist. And you get to a point where that's all anybody is going to see you as. And even with The Last Ship, I wasn't playing Mark Sloan, but I was playing a guy that certainly looked like Mark Sloan and had some of the same characteristics. And then I took a year off and said I need to mix things up here because I'm not finding any real joy in the work I'm doing. And then Euphoria came along and was very different and something I've never done. And it's going to challenge me and keep me engaged. And nobody is going to expect this out of me, so let's do it.

What's the status of season two?

Season two is going to be fantastic. I don't think principal photography has started yet, but I know we are prepping right now. I think mid-April we start shooting.

Is the plan still to get the show back on the air this year?

I believe so. We do take a long time filming it. And it's a gift to get that much time to shoot an hour of television. We take 30 days to shoot an episode sometimes, which is unheard of. When we were shooting Grey's in the early days, the 10-day episodes that we would get were unheard of. But 10 days and two units, people were like, wow, that's a luxury.

So to return to Grey's and get to spend a few days on the beach and not on set and in scrubs under the gun like the old days must have been a nice final memory of the show.

It was a great couple days on the beach with some old friends.

[thedistantdusk]

Arcadia, Chapter 1

My submission for the 2021 Hinny birthday challenge for the HG discord! Thanks to Liza for organizing, to @accio-broom for the Brit-pick, to @secretkeeper13 for the beta, and to anyone else who helped (I'm probably forgetting a few folks, apologies).

The challenge theme this year was content based on TV! This is an (extremely loose) X-Files AU, but you absolutely don’t need to be familiar with X-Files to understand this :D

TW (spoilers): swearing, references to (severe) mental health concerns, (eventual) consensual relations

___________________________________________________________

D A Y  + O N E

The woman probably finds herself charming as she stands in their driveway, her hands clasped in frozen excitement.

But Ginny just finds her creepy.

Really fucking creepy.

Harry drops hired car into first gear as they pull in. This woman— the head of the village council, Ginny reckons, the one she spoke to on the phone— wears perfectly-pleated Chino pants with a lavender jumper draped across her shoulders.

Her attire is standard for a posh village… especially a new-build village, one with a covenant and loads of stupid rules. It’s the woman’s eerie, opened-mouthed grin that shoots a chill up Ginny’s spine.

Her stark white teeth glint in the sun, but her smile doesn’t move an inch… and the longer Ginny stares, the more unsettled she grows. The only thing larger than her grin is the mane of yellow hair that surrounds her face like an ersatz halo.

Harry clears his throat as he turns off the car; Ginny realizes this is the first sound either of them has made since leaving London.

Awkward.

She reaches for her door handle, but the random woman gets to it first.

“You must be Jenny and Henry!” she shrieks, yanking on Ginny’s shoulders before she’s even unbuckled. “Oh, sorry! Love, do let me get the strap!”

Ginny’s on her feet and pressed to the stranger’s perfumed bosom before she has a chance to tell her she can manage just fine herself, thanks.

“Lovely to meet you in person!” the woman cries, nearly shaking with enthusiasm. It’s not until Ginny’s returned a weak squeeze that the vice-like grip around her middle weakens.

Rubbing her aching shoulder, she sneaks a glimpse at Harry; while she fought for air, he apparently climbed out of the car, only to stare at the two of them like a deer in the headlights. Now his elbow’s at an awkward angle, his hand behind his back, which could only mean one thing: he’s reaching for the wand in his back pocket.

Shit.

Ginny shakes her head and hopes her eyes convey what her lips can’t: She’s just a standard Muggle weirdo. Relax.

“I’m Jane. Jane Connors. In the flesh!” The woman (whose voice Ginny now finds painfully familiar) throws her hands in the air and twirls on the spot. “I take it you’re Jenny and Henry Petri!”

Harry interrupts with a booming chuckle before Ginny says a word; in three quick steps, he’s wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “That’s Pee-tri, actually. Like the dish,” Harry— Henry— adds with a wink. “And speaking of dish…” His eyes travel over Ginny, his voice going all deep and silky.

She bites back a shudder, hating the way her stomach drops as his fingers graze her arm. All that keeps her grounded is knowing the truth: Harry’s good at his job, nothing more. The only reason he’s suddenly become a skilled actor is that his career demands it.

Hers does too, she reminds herself firmly. And if she has any intention of successfully completing her first solo mission, she needs to get her shit together. Now.

Ginny blinks up at Harry, appropriately sobered; his eyes glimmer with mirth. As suspected, he’s only doing his job. Touch is just part of the assignment description. He has no way of knowing what it does to her— because really, truly, it shouldn’t.

And maybe if she keeps telling herself that, it’ll eventually come true.

Harry winks at Jane, tugging Ginny against his side. “My new wife and I had a long journey from the city! We were hoping to get some alone-time before tucking in, I’m sure you understand.”

Jane looks puzzled. “You— but it’s 5:43!” An uncomfortable giggle burbles from her lips. “You must be moved in by 6. Surely you’ve read the covenant rules?”

“Erm… may have missed that one,” Ginny lies. “There’s quite a few, see. We’re used to—”

But Jane shoves her fingers into her mouth, cutting her off with an ear-piercing whistle. Just as quickly, another chill races up Ginny’s spine. People up and down the street emerge from their semi-detached homes and race towards them, their faces in downcast unison.

They’ve all been watching. Waiting for the signal. Ready.

Ginny’s not sure how long ago the Department of Mysteries delivered the moving van and left it on the street, but the horde of random people aren’t fussed with the details, either. Within five seconds of Jane’s whistle, the strangers throw open the back door and begin an unloading process that reeks of military precision.

“Here’s the house key!” trills Jane, pulling it from her pocket. “Oh, and Petris!” She turns to Harry and Ginny, wagging her finger. “I’ll also need a copy of your car key, ASAP. We’re firm believers in the buddy system here in Arcadia.” She returns her attention to the stone-faced neighbors, who are now scurrying to the door. “This way, friends— right this way!”

“I— that’s really unnecessary,” Ginny says, bewildered, as people rush inside their new house, boxes in arms. “We’re perfectly able to—”

“Nonsense!” cries a man with grey sideburns as he takes a box from the back. “We’re neighborly here. You’d better get used to it.”

“Yes!” chimes another voice. A chubby man wearing a Polo and a golden necklace emerges from behind the lorry, hurrying up the walk. “We’re like a family here. We all— oh no!” He lets out a startled cry as a box labeled FINE CHINA topples from his arms and lands on the pavement with a thump.

He rushes towards it, face falling, but Ginny’s main concern is the box’s silent descent; she runs over, making a mental note to have a word with the designer of these props. Would something noisy and fragile have killed them? For fuck’s sake...

“Sorry,” the man says with a pained wince. “I’m just so clumsy. I-I promise, I’ll—”

“It’s fine,” Ginny soothes, dropping to her knees. “Don’t worry, really. We aren’t too big on dishes.”

Maybe if she keeps him talking, he won’t realize it’s bloody empty. Seriously, this is amateur shit. Luckily, he’s too distracted to notice.

The man offers a sheepish smile. “I’m Mike. Mike Snodgrass. You may have seen Mike and Jess in the resident guide, but erm…” He trails off, sadness in his voice.

Ginny cocks her head to feign confusion, but of course she’s familiar with Jess Snodgrass, 25, reported missing last November. Her photo’s been on Ginny’s desk for almost as long. Even now, Jess appears in Ginny’s mind with such startling clarity that she can almost see her beside Mike... all 5 feet of her, with curly red hair, bright blue eyes, and a lopsided grin.

Jess Snodgrass… Arcadia’s third missing person. The first to disrupt the couples-only disappearance pattern.

Mike shrugs. “But erm… it’s just me now,” he repeats. “I’m a primary teacher at Saint Julian’s, just up the road.” He nods to his left. “So if you’ve got any homework or school questions, give me a ring!” He pastes on a smile that doesn’t match his eyes; it’s an expression with which Ginny’s well-acquainted.

“I’ll have to remember that, Mike Snodgrass,” Ginny says, shaking his hand.

She immediately regrets it.

Seeing Mike Snodgrass on paper is one thing, but touch makes him human. His hand feels big and warm, his smile earnest and sweet; he reminds her so strongly of Neville that her stomach aches. Ginny breathes through her nose and focuses on the way his necklace — a medallion of Saint Julian, appropriately enough — sparkles in the sun.

“Like I said, I’m all alone,” Mike repeats, offering his hand to help her up. “If you ever need anything, Jenny, don’t hesitate to ask!”

Ginny taps her chin. “Actually, I do have a question! I reckon it’s just a rumor, though. You don’t have to confirm or deny.” She winks at him and leans in as a woman in a fleece jumper rushes past.

Mike’s smile widens, his face brightening… and ah fuck, that one hurts, because she’s about to break his heart.

“Mike…” Ginny murmurs, studying his expression. The more she says his name, the less he reminds her of Neville; she wants to keep it that way. “With everyone being so bloody hospitable here, how come there are so many disappearances?”

Mike stops bobbing. His smile vanishes as quickly as the former occupants of Jenny and Henry’s new home. When Ginny looks back into his eyes, her gut plummets with a sensation of wretched familiarity.

Because she expected sadness on his face… the same type she saw when he mentioned Jess’ name. Sadness she can deal with; sadness is painful, but she sees it all the time.

She sees something worse, though.

Fear.

And not day-to-day fear. This isn’t like hating needles or avoiding clown movies. Mike’s face is filled with the sort of wide-eyed, gripping, primal terror that seizes your insides in a vice. This is how you’d feel if your entire family were held captive in a dungeon, and a single word to the wrong person would spell their deaths.

Or how you’d feel if your ex-boyfriend were the corrupt government’s most desired fugitive… and you still fancied him very much, indeed.

“I… n-no idea,” Mike finally stutters, blinking. Then he sucks in a deep breath through his nose, his expression brightening again.

“So what do you and Henry do for work?” he asks in a booming voice, his grin now unnaturally wide. “We’ve got a carpool to the city if you’re interested. Reducing our carbon footprint is of utmost importance here in Arcadia!” He finishes by spreading his hands in each direction before placing them on his hips, that shit-eating grin still plastered across his face.

In another life, Ginny might’ve laughed. There certainly would have been a lot to cackle over, if she had the luxury of easy laughter. After all, she may as well be living in an am-dram nativity performance, complete with an overeager Joseph beckoning her to the stables after her harrowing desert journey.

Now, though, his reply only fills her with sad, professional detachment. Because fucking hell, how much did this poor man rehearse to get that line right?

She takes pity on him and snaps the bait. “My husband and I work from home,” she says, matching his volume. Someone’s clearly listening; it’s the least she can do. “You won’t see us out much.” Ginny brings the box to her hip. “And seriously, don’t worry about replacing the dishes, either. We mostly do takeaway.”

“No, let me bring you new ones,” Mike insists, his eyes pleading. “Tomorrow? Would that be—”

“What is this?” a voice demands from the back of the truck. Ginny peers around Mike’s shoulder. The man with the gray sideburns stares inside the lorry with a look of disgust.

“A trampoline!” Harry says, stepping aside as another neighbor races past. “We’re thrilled to put it in the garden, aren’t we, Jenny Cakes?”

Jenny Cakes. Is he fucking serious? Two can play at this game, prat.

“Indeed we are, Hen,” she croons, leaning into his side. “Jen and Hen.” She heaves a dreamy sigh and stares into his eyes. “We even rhyme!”

“Rhyming or not, this isn’t allowed,” the man barks, crossing his arms over his chest. “You’d have to apply for a special exemption with Mr Gogolak, but in the meantime…” He checks his watch. “5:53. Seven minutes. It’ll have to go in the garage tonight. I’m Oliver, by the way— Oliver Skinner.”

Harry gives him a theatrical scowl. “I’d say nice to meet you, but those who are enemies of trampolines are generally enemies of mine.”

Ginny bites the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing, but Oliver remains unamused. He raises his pointer finger as if to say something, but Harry gets there first.

“Onnnnly kidding!” Harry winks and claps his shoulder. “Hope we can be fast friends, Oliver.”

Oliver just glares back. “Count on it.”

_______________________________________________________

Ginny’s taking this whole thing very seriously. Not that Harry blames her.

Her voice echoes against the walls of the empty home as she paces around the sitting room, her camera flipped outward to record.

Despite his five-year Auror career, Harry has no real concept of what Unspeakables do. Which, he supposes, is by design. He knows they… know things. Secret things. Things you’d be happier not knowing. He also knows that Kingsley isn’t fond of them. Or perhaps it’s Attica Monkstanley, Ginny’s boss, who King dislikes in particular. Attica’s famous for her refusal to disclose anything — ever. This ranges from potential terrorist plots to her favorite type of sandwich. Thus, Attica isn’t particularly popular. After a career built on helping absolutely no one outside her department, the request for Auror backup on an undisclosed, top-secret endeavor went over about as well as a hippogriff stampede in a posh tea room.

Harry sighs at the blank walls of their would-be living room. King’s in charge now. Big in charge. He or Robards were the obvious choices to accompany Ginny — sorry, Unspeakable GW — on this mission, but when you’re Big In Charge, you call the shots. The shot King called was to pass the assignment to Robards, who in turn passed it to Harry; Robards decided he didn’t need to (direct quote) “take off a week from pre-existing assignments for some fake marriage, new-build village bullshit in the arse-end of Muggle nowhere.”

Admittedly, Harry’s in a bit of a lull at the moment. He’d been assigned to track and recover Yaxley, but that trail went cold on the border of Romania. Harry’s certain he’s just beyond their reach, maybe hiding in a cave, but seeing as how Harry’s not Big In Charge, his opinion doesn’t exactly matter.

Which is precisely how he’s found himself in this bland house in the village of Arcadia, pretending to be married to his ex-girlfriend… who, incidentally, he’s still hopelessly infatuated with, even five years after he ended things.

Because Harry Potter is nothing if not pathetic.

There’d been no realistic way to decline the assignment, though. Not that he’d tried. Seriously, imagine explaining that to your boss: “Mm yeah, sorry King, I can’t do my job because I still wank to the memory of Unspeakable GW riding my—”

Ginny’s narration jerks him from his thoughts. “It’s 6:15 PM on our first day of the assignment,” she dictates into her phone. “Auror Potter and I are secured in the home, posing as Muggle couple Jenny and Henry Petri.”

“Pee-tri!” Harry corrects, throwing his voice across the room.

He hopes he’s loud enough for the camera to detect, but he isn’t exactly brave enough to find out. Harry picks up their empty curry boxes and scampers into the kitchen without so much as a backward glimpse. He may have been forced into this assignment, but he’ll be damned if he can't have a bit of fun.

Her narration stops as he dips out of sight; if Harry were the gambling sort, he’d bet all the gold in Gringotts that she shot him a two-fingered salute away from the camera.

For some fucked up reason, the thought stirs something warm and exciting that lies dormant in his stomach. What’s worse is this feeling almost makes him smile.

No.

Harry draws a breath as he enters the kitchen.

As Kingsley’s told him several times, this arrangement is strictly business— regardless of his past with her. And in retrospect, yeah, the whole setup is an easy way for King to A) refuse responsibility himself, and B) put Monkstanley in a tough spot if it goes pear-shaped.

Harry pops open the rubbish bin. This is just the sort of liability King’s always looking to avoid, really, but— wait. He blinks down into the bin to make sure he’s not just seeing things, but nope… for some reason, the interior is divided into three sections, each in a different color.

Huh! Harry mulls this over before picking the blue bin at random and tossing the containers in. Maybe he’d know what each color meant if he bothered to read the covenant rules. Fortunately, he had much more exciting plans that particular evening involving Ron, loads of butterbeer, and a Canons/Falcons match from hell.

Whatever. Surely Arcadia would make an effort to clearly explain their recycling system if they really cared about the planet.

He returns to the living room just as Ginny’s providing a more in-depth introduction. “Right. I’m Unspeakable GW, badge number”— her voice becomes garbled gibberish, an extra level of concealment, before slipping back to normal speech— “and we’re here to investigate the series of unexplained Muggle disappearances in the village of Arcadia. As this may involve a potential escapee from the Thought Chamber, the Department thought it best for me to investigate. The Thought Chamber’s been my area of expertise for four years…”

Harry sinks into the sofa as she continues; he’s unsure if he should be sad or impressed that this is teaching him more about her job than she ever shared. Not that she did this for long while they were actually together, mind. Nonetheless, his chest flutters again with that stupid bittersweet pride as Ginny scans the room with the phone camera. All of this pageantry is necessary for her job, he knows. Careful documentation. Detailed recordings.

But for fuck’s sake, look at how much she’s done! She’s the youngest Junior Unspeakable in history, soon to become Senior, if this mission works out. She’s composed, she’s eloquent, she’s graceful. Another smile threatens to break through before Harry suppresses it; he just hopes that there’s someone in her life to remind her of how special she is.

She’s really dressed for the part, too. Harry’s certain that none of this is actually in her wardrobe. Seeing her out of jeans and a jumper is off-putting, but she’s done it so damn well. She once told him that most of her clothing choices were based on how easily she could wear them flying.

He swallows the sadness creeping up his throat. He doesn’t even know if she still flies, but she doesn’t in this outfit, that’s for damn sure. Her trainers are impeccably white, with a floral button-up blouse done up to her neck. She’s a bit like a young, beautiful Aunt Petunia; Harry reckons this is more or less the goal, but when she turns around to describe the stairwell, his eyes drop to her arse.

Shit.

He glances away as quickly, but he got a good look. Her casual trousers are rolled at the ankles, but they’ve done nothing to make her look… plain. Harry shuffles on the sofa, desperate for anything else to think about. Somehow, Aunt Petunia’s face still puckers in his mind’s eye, but now he can’t escape the mental image of her bent over the oven of 4 Privet Drive, only this time sporting a round, perfect—

“Potter’s here for backup,” Ginny says, returning to the sitting room. “I’m on primary investigation.”

Thank God; he sighs at the welcome distraction before remembering that bantering with her has always been an effective palate cleanser. So he does that, instead.

“Well, you know what they say,” Harry calls, leaning back against the cushions. “There’s nothing less interesting than the suburbs. Which is why I could never do your job, Jen.” He ends with a wink, resting his hands behind his head.

Ginny arches a brow, holding the camera in front of her. “And please take note, Attica, that the next time this happens, I’ll be the one to choose the names.”

She means it casually… he knows she means it casually. But something in her words pricks him. Irritates him. Wedges beneath his skin.

“Quite an assumption I’ll ever spend this much time with you again,” Harry mutters under his breath.

Shit.

He freezes. He didn’t mean to say that out loud, at least not so… bitterly. Once upon a time, he possessed the social graces to think before replying like that— but days of interpersonal nuance are long gone. They belonged to a carefree teenager with few thoughts aside from the next time he’d run his fingers through the thick, red hair that currently swayed in a long ponytail.

By the time he looks back up at her, Ginny’s face is filled with disappointment. And she’s closed her phone.

“I’ll have to redo that last bit of filming,” she says with a sniff. “But for what it’s worth?” She raises her chin. “You didn’t mind spending time with me in the distant, distant past, Auror Potter.”

Ha!

That was a tremendous understatement.

He’d been in love with her. Stupidly. Disgustingly. The first six months after the war were a blur of sex and mourning. They’d been so punch drunk and delirious that they probably used each other’s bodies more than either of them knew. He really thought they’d have a future, though… that they’d end up getting married and buying a house. Except theirs would have been different than this one. Filled with far more character and history and warmth. Their home would have smelled like baking bread and sounded like kids giggling and felt like a soft blanket on a cold night.

But none of that had anything to do with the way he snapped. So why bring it up, really?

“Sorry,” Harry whispers, tucking his hands beneath his bum. “That… I didn’t mean. I’m sorry. I just meant that we don’t see each other much, and…” He lets out a slow breath. Best to stop talking before he digs himself deeper.

“I forgive you,” Ginny says quietly. A full second passes before she offers him a smirk. “As long as I can still call you Pookie Pie in front of the neighbors.”

Harry blinks at the carpet with a sad smile. “Deal.”

[random-imagines-blog]

Perfect Skin {Remus Lupin x Reader Oneshot}

Requested by: @soularsmate Wordcount: 2570 Summary: Sometimes, a little jealousy can go a long way. Notes: Andrew Garfield as Remus Lupin.

To say that Remus got a little testy near the full moon was an understatement. Even James and Sirius knew to keep their joking and pranking of their best friend to a low around those times. It was like he already transformed into a wolf with how he snarled at anyone who poked fun at him. Even you. It wasn’t even like you had said anything mean to him, you just complained a little about a scar that you had from falling off of your broom the last time that you played Quidditch with James. “Why are you even with me if you hate scars?” He asked, making you and your group go quiet. He wasn’t loud enough for others in the Common Room to overhear over the sound of their own chatter, but he was getting there. “If you hate them that much, then I’ll solve the problem for you. I can’t hurt you if I don’t see you. We’re over.”

“Remus,” You protested, trying to reach out for him. Usually a hand on his shoulder or a kiss on his cheek was enough to calm him down somewhat. But he wasn’t in the mood for that today. He backed out from your touch, refusing himself that little bit of comfort. And refusing you that comfort as well. It hurt like hell when he got up and left the room, the cloud of bad temper over his head. You just watched, mouth agape, the sweet boy that you had been dating for four months, walking away like you were nothing.

“I’m sure he didn’t mean that...” James said, running his fingers through his eternally-messy hair.

“Yeah, he cares about you a lot,” Peter added in.

“It’s just his moon time, you know how he gets,” Sirius insisted.

But despite them staying with you and trying to convince you that everything was fine, you felt that sting in his words. He had meant them. You shouldn’t have been so stupid as to bring up scars, knowing that they were an insecurity for him. He often went on and on about how you had such perfect skin. It was like he was ignoring that you had scars of your own. That you went through your own pain and troubles and got to the other side of them. Nothing as intense as his of course but - it wasn’t a competition. It shouldn’t have felt like one.

“I don’t want to be here when he gets back,” You said, getting up after a couple of minutes of the boys trying to cheer you up. “Even if he didn’t mean what he said, he still said it. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

You left the three boys looking sheepish and upset - they rarely ever saw Remus snap at you like that and it left them feeling uncomfortable. James eventually got up and said he was going to go look for Remus, Peter went up to do some homework before the sunset and they would be going out, and Sirius sat there and stewed. He was close to both of you, closer to you than James and Peter were, anyway.

Remus was going to regret this when he came back to his senses after the Full Moon but Sirius had seen the hurt that was on your face, and wanted to make him regret it even more. A plan started to come together in that devious head of his, and he knew he had to talk to you first thing tomorrow.

-

“That’s ridiculous,” You said at breakfast, watching as the sleepy boy piled food onto his plate. The full moon was a rough night for everyone. You weren’t like the others, you didn’t change your form to try to be with Remus, but you spent the whole night worrying about him anyway. You tried not to, you tried to stay mad at him for attempting to break up with you over something as silly as scars but you loved him too much for that. You stared out the window of your dorm all night, waiting to see the weeping willow freeze and the boys come out of it. So you were much too tired to put up with Sirius’s strange ideas.

“No it’s not,” He said, stabbing a breakfast sausage and shoved it in his mouth. He spoke with his mouthful, making you grimace. How did so many of the girls in this school find this attractive? “It’ll work, I’m serious.”

“Yes, yes, we all know you’re serious,” You said, rolling your eyes at his weak attempt at a joke. “Look, best case scenerio is that he’ll come down for breakfast, he’ll apologize and everything will be okay. Worst case scenario is that he won’t. Why do you want to make an absolute worst ever scenerio by trying to make him jealous?”

“Jealous always works, haven’t you noticed? Plus this will totally help me score a date with that blonde Ravenclaw. Hogsmeade is coming up,” He sang, grabbing the maple syrup to drench his food. “We’ll be doing each other a favor!”

“Sirius...” You said, shaking your head.

“I do love the way that you say my name,” Sirius said, blowing kisses at me. The thought of kissing him, and knowing where those lips had been, made me grimace. But that soon abated when scruffy haired Remus walked past him, bumping into him, and continued down to the end of the table to eat with some third years. Sirius had gotten a head start on the plan before you even realized that Remus was in the room.

You watched him as he sat down and only took a piece of toast for his breakfast. You frowned, getting to your feet so you could tell him to eat more, but Sirius lightly put his hand over yours. “Just let him be for a little while, it was rough last night.”

“You’re one to talk about letting things be,” You said, but lowered yourself back down to continue your breakfast. That didn’t stop you from shooting looks back to Remus though. He looked so lonely down there. Peter eventually joined him, while James bothered Lily near you. He seemed to be trying his best not to look back at you. If he was going to be stubborn, there was nothing really that you could do, except for wait it out.

And that’s what you would do. You’d wait for Remus until the end of the world if you had to.

--

You finally gave into Sirius’s plan, but only because it meant that you wouldn’t have to walk alone to class or study by yourself in the common room. He kept you company, and was a laugh most of the time. He’d tell you about some of the pranks that you had missed out on the group doing, paying careful attention to Remus’s part in them. It had already been two weeks since the full moon, and he still had not spoken to you. You got to the point of trying to send him a letter through your own but Sirius stopped you from doing that.

“Don’t appear too clingy, it’ll blow the plan,” He said, grabbing the parchment from you when he caught the name written on the top.

“I just want to make sure that he’s okay...” You admitted.

“He’s fine,” Sirius said, rolling the parchment up between his fingers. “My brilliant plan is definitely working, though. You should have seen the way that he glared at me after I hugged you goodnight last night.”

“Yeah, why did you do that? It’s not as if the Ravenclaw girl was around to see it.”

“I like to throw myself into the role. Call me a method actor,” He ran his fingers through his hair, flipping it back behind his shoulders. “Plus I like the practice. This girl might actually make me settle down, if I can just get her to notice me.”

“That’s big for you, congratulations.” You said, more than a little surprised. Sirius Black, being serious? Almost unheard of. “But you know, just asking her out might be better than all of this-”

“I already asked you out, I don’t need anyone else,” Sirius said, his whole demeanor changing. He took hold of your hands, running his thumb over the back of them. He didn’t have to tell you that Remus was in the room for you to know that Remus was in the room. “Besides, who could focus on anyone else when there’s you?”

“That’s enough,” Remus’s voice came out in a sharp tone from behind you. You turned your head around, and saw that you were finally able to catch his eye. But instead of the warm, honey look behind them that you were used to, he looked angry. Downright pissed off, actually. “Sirius, what the hell? You could have any girl you wanted, why y/n?”

“I’m sitting right here,” You said, starting to stand up, but once again, Sirius had a good grip on your hands, pulling you back down.

“Calm down, pumpkin,” Sirius said, eyeing his friend. “It’s not my fault you gave her up, mate. She became fair game the minute you broke up with her for whatever stupid reason-”

“You’re a bastard,” Remus said, shaking his head, glare evident. “You’re a bloody bastard, Black, and I regret that I ever thought you were my friend.”

“Remus...” You said, breaking out of Sirius’s grip as the dark haired boy sat dumbstruck. “It’s really not what you think-”

“Save it,” Remus said, the anger in his voice turning to hurt as he addressed you. “Looks enough like you moved on.”

“I didn’t - let me explain, let me talk to you...” You pleaded. This was getting the attention of the others around the common room, and both you and Remus paused as you noticed the stares. “Please.” You said, one more time.

“Fine,” Remus said, taking your hand and pulled you up towards the boy’s dormitory. James was laying out on his bed, passed out, a book about Quidditch resting on his chest. Remus pulled the curtains over him so that he couldn’t see, then sat on the edge of his bed, watching me. “Why did it have to be Sirius?”

“Wow, he must be a better actor than I thought he was, if he had you fooled,” You said, crossing your arms. “Sirius, seriously?”

That usually got the guys to chuckle, but there was nothing this time. Remus’s eyes still looked at you coldly. You sighed. “He’s trying to play you and some Ravenclaw girl into being jealous. I was against the idea, by the way. But then Peter took your side, James was obsessed with Lily and I had no one else to hang out with so ... I sort of went with it. But I didn’t like it. It got all weird when he was start playing with my hair or trying to hold my hand. It never felt right. Not like it did when you did it. Now can we just put an end to this ridiculous mess, and be together again?”

Remus stood up, and paced in front of you. His usually sweet face was contorted into something angry. As confused as you were, and as much as you were wanting to be over, it was pretty hot. He came in close, his warm breath on your face, and took your chin between his calloused fingers.

“All of that - was a ploy - to make me jealous? Is that really what you’re going with?”

“It’s the truth,” You said, unable to look away from his eyes. “There’s absolutely nothing between Sirius and I. I swear.”

He gave a little grunt, and you couldn’t tell whether that meant he believed you or not. After a long moment’s silence, still gazing into one another’s eyes, he finally spoke. “Good, because seeing you with him...” This time a growl came from between his lips.

“Does that mean his plan worked?” You questioned.

“That smart bastard,” Remus muttered. “He knows that you’re my weakness. Seeing you with anyone else makes me a little crazy.”

Rather than feel angry, you felt a bit happy. Relieved. He still cared about you. He still had your chin between his fingers, and he pulled your face in towards his to meet him in a kiss. You wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling yourself in even closer. Chest to chest. He surprised you even further by letting go of your face, just to go for your  legs, pulling them up so that they were wrapped around his waist.

Sweet Remus Lupin. You knew that he had something of a dark side, becoming a wolf whenever the moon was full, but he was in between cycles right now. This was all him and yet - there was something animalistic about it. Sexy about it, even.

He took a few steps backwards, turning you so that you would fall onto his bed while he was on top of you. With barely a wave, the curtains closed around the two of you, granting you privacy from the sleeping Potter in the next bed. “I thought I was going to go out of my mind,” He admitted, his lips detaching from yours for just a moment. “You’re mine, y/n, and seeing Sirius’s hands on you. Thinking about what you might have been up to...”

“Absolutely nothing, my love,” you said, keeping your legs wrapped around him so that he couldn’t get away from you again. “I’ve always been yours.”

He pressed possessive kisses all up and down your neck, down to your collar bone and then back up. Right at your jawline, he sucked, kissed and nibbled harshly, leaving marks. You didn’t mind at all, but rather you moaned beneath each and every touch of him. Two weeks had been much too long without him. And he clearly felt the same way about you. Hands were running over your ribs, over your chest. He was repeating your name, his arousal felt between your own legs.

The amazing moment of your reunion was interrupted by something bumping against the curtain, and falling down upon the floor.

“Great, you’re back together,” James’s sleepy voice came through. “But do you mind keepin’ it down? Trying to sleep over here, bloody hell.”

“Sorry James,” You giggled.

“I’m not,” Remus grinned.

“Gonna go sleep in the common room then,” James mumbled, and he disappeared out of the room and down the stairs.

The reunion commenced, and you didn’t mind this new jealous side of Remus that sometimes came out. Though afterwards, as he curled up in your arms, you were the one who comforted him that there was no one else out there in the world for you. That he was your one. And that no matter how many scars he had, or where they were, he had the most perfect skin in the world, because it was his.

[hunkydorkling]

Right, so I was watching Billy and Marty's Planet Comicon Panel, yeah. Person comes to the mic and asks who Terry Silver will bring with him once he appears, and is it Mike Barnes?

And so Billy humorously (and Obviously) evades the answer with a cheeky and warm grin, and a very professional response...

... until Marty chimes in his.

So naturally, my thoughts enter a chain:

1. "Wait, what did he say?"

2. "Ah, ten commandments." *sees Billy laugh* "Oh it must be a Christian thing, right?? That's adorable. He's adorable. Totally not thinking about that one sliver of the fandom that's absolutely feral over his cross necklace."

3. Billy chuckling PRECIOUSSSS ~Christian~ man.

4. TEN COMMANDMENTS, BUT BIGGER.

5. Marty: "It's like Cobra Kai and Ben Hur together."

At this point, I was like, okay... surely picking up crumbs. In that quest for crumb-feeding, I did a little bit of digging around about Ben-Hur and found a couple of insights that might interest everyone's pants off. It's a little long-winded, but give it a go under the cut.

ABOUT THE MOVIE (poorly summarized)

Ben Hur is about a young Jewish prince Judah Ben Hur who meets his boyhood friend Messala, who is now a Roman tribune looking to take great over control over Jerusalem. They relive the old times, and through it, Messala offers Ben Hur the opportunity to help him colonize Jerusalem, to which Ben Hur declines. The growing tension ensues when Ben Hur was accused of killing someone, leading to his imprisonment along with his family. This happened during the time of Jesus, whom Ben Hur meets. Seems fitting for Marty's joke, isn't it?

HOWEVER

After some more digging, a few articles surfaced about that specific bath house reunion scene of Messala and Ben Hur.

Eager, I went ahead and pulled up any possible visual. Thank heck for Movie Clips, right.

Awwww maaaaan but anyway, some valuable parallels I've picked up are:

1. There is "rebellion in the wind" because Messala's thinking of taking over Jerusalem. That would be the rebellion of the MD and EF kids against the CK dojo. Cool.

2. Messala left Jerusalem to travel the world and eventually grew up in Rome. Sounds like a Terry thing to me and the whole entrepreneurial pursuit to become the #1 toxic garbage truck in the whole of USA before Kreese came back to him.

3. "It was fate that chose us to civilize the world" UH-HUH... well, you know what I mean.

4. Regarding the fate situation, Messala seemed to be so passionate about reconnecting. Given that it must've been only 10-15+ years since Terry and Kreese met up again after the war, but another 15 could've easily given them more wiggle room to tell all the goss. The enthusiasm won't wane, I bet.

5. Messala talks so highly about Ben Hur. Terry to Kreese, too. Seems a little too overwhelming for some come to think of it.

6. There's a way to Messala's convincing technique that plants its way to Ben Hur's conscience. Had Ben Hur taken it, it would have added way more work to his probable damage control. But Kreese isn't like that. They both share bloodlust. There's something bound to go wrong in which Kreese would take damage control to his own hands without/because of Terry Silver. Maybe.

And while we're on the spectrum of damage control, here's a scene where Messala condemns Ben Hur after he's been maliciously accused of killing someone. He finds his way out of the prison he was in and comes after Messala:

Lots of things run through my mind, but ultimately the question I ended up picking is: what if there was something personal that factored in for Kreese into this karate war, like his family? (If any. Pretty sure Kreese made it clear that he's got no one else on his side.)

And Terry Silver being the Sugar Daddy to this Sugar Baby ends up retracting his Love Bomb and takes everything back after finding out the clusterfuck of things Cobra Kai has gone through? It's definitely his messy business now.

Would Kreese eventually (albeit slowly and painfully) turn a new leaf and side with the two karate dads AGAINST Terry Silver this time?

And I still don't know what agenda Marty had when he mentioned the two titles together, but it's your fault, you old man! Now I won't be able to stop thinking about it. I haven't even started on the Raiders of the Lost Ark x Ghostbusters parallel Billy made because whatever!

But since we're at the topic of slipping in gay context into aged media, here are some notable paragraphs from this article that's well worth the read:

So yeah. It's another day of twisting actor comments into yet another insinuation that makes me extra excited for Season 4.