The way he yells “ED!!!” in this scene is just heart wrenching. Like this is hands down some of Rhys’ best acting. The emotion behind it just shreds my heart every time! 💔😭😭😭

She is Queen of the house, and my heart ❤️❤️❤️

Lmao thanks!!! The post word limit makes you get creative! 😂 Also I love that even Izzy is won over by dog-Stede! And the crew saying they still appreciate him as a human! 😭🥹❤️

LMAO as my Canadian friend would say SLANGIN HOG! (I have no idea if that’s a Canadian-ism or just a her thing 😂😂😂

Ooooh I could definitely see that! I like to picture him with those blue china style designs where the tattoos are all in blue with no black outline. But with lots of florals and filigree.

Pffffft. This is incredible! 😂 We once changed the light switches in the tattoo shop to little glow in the dark, 3D printed dick covers to see how long it would take the boss to notice.

🫂🫂🫂 I’m so sorry, he looks like a kind sweet soul.

It would make sense for Ed to come up in this sort of tattoo background, he would’ve had the hazing and scrubbing tubes apprenticeship that isn’t very common now-a-days. But I think he’d welcome someone like Stede with a gentler approach b/c I imagine putting on that tough guy front gets exhausting.

As an aside the breaking hands thing is very much true in the history of tattooing. Back when it was rougher, more underground, and the know-how was more closely guarded. Some shops would absolutely see it as protecting their income to incapacitate an up and coming artist.

In this world John is Trixie Mattel and his makeup line is Calypso.

The pride flags and the wall of fancy aftercare creams. Or how the lobby looked like an antique store shagged a greenhouse. Ed would especially be intrigued by the hot blonde with a full bodysuit under a fussy dandy outfit greeting him like he has no idea who Ed is. Even as the crew are freaking out

Thought you had to earn tattoos and that they had to hurt. Ed would hear Izzy bitching about ‘Some twat who doesn’t even tattoo opening a shop right down the street and how they used to break people’s hands for that back in the day.” And Ed is intrigued. Intrigued by the bright teal paint and 2/

lol he’s got the Ben nye theatrical greasepaint and has somehow discovered the magic of not getting it on his delicate lacey shirt cuffs. (There’s probably better stuff out there but that would be my first guess.)

He’s also insane enough to be like “So let’s pick this up again first thing tomorrow and the artist having to be “Nope you’re going to REST and HEAL from a massive open surface wound.” He’d probably tip really well but have a slightly bitchy comment about the chair being uncomfortable. ❤️

Stede is the kind of guy who’d walk into a shop blank, and make an appointment for a full ornamental bodysuit. The artist would be internally like “yeah OKAY.” And be absolutely bewildered when he not only shows up, but sits through the first session like it’s nothing. Only faltering after 10hrs

I love this! I will never grow out of my Alice in Wonderland phase.

For real. I know it’s good when I get to the end and hear birds singing and realize it’s daylight out! 😂

And finally, some Gentlebeard for you. There are four pictures of them in the fic, but this is the one I like the most 4/5

Same. I end most nights under a blanket and 3-4 cats, scrolling my 110 open fic tabs trying to talk myself out of starting a 70k fic at 2am.