Anniversaries, RL and Fannish, and a New Fannish Love

[przed]

Yesterday, we celebrated our 4th adoption day. Four years ago, we traveled to China to adopt the little girl who is now firmly a part of our family. It both seems like yesterday, and a million years ago. I can't quite remember what it was like not to be a mom.

This week was also my anniversary on LiveJournal. I've been on LJ for eight years now. Eight! (I came here chasing LotR VigBean RPS, if you can believe it.)

Eight years ago today, I posted my first VigBean RPS. Which I've just put up on AO3, for those of you who are curious about why I'll be going to hell in a handbasket:

Waiting

(Given LJ's difficulties, I'm working seriously at putting all my stories up at AO3 now. Should you want to, you can find me at przed.)

Finally, courtesy of the Brit Awards and halotolerant's mad pimping skills, I seem to have stumbled into a new RPS fandom: Take That. There is fic in progress (5,000 words of a World War I AU, and yes, I know I should really be working on my Pros BB story) and a possible vid. But today, for my own amusement, I thought I'd share a pic spam of some very pretty men.


First, let me just say that none of the prettiness that follows would have done a thing for me if I hadn't also liked their music. Nor would I have fallen for the RPS quite so hard if they didn't slash themselves quite so blatantly or interestingly. (They write songs about each other! Really! Check out Halo's recent post for the proof.)

Okay, on to teh pretteh.

Take That, back in the '90s. I have to say, adorable though they are here (I especially like Howard leaning on Mark's shoulder) I have no interest in them in this era. They're infants! And even though I'm not much older than the lot of them, I still wouldn't have looked twice at them back in the day.


However, they have morphed into a group of very nice looking men. Men, who are entirely willing to form a puppy pile for a nice photographer.


Though they're all lovely to look at (well, except maybe Gary Barlow; he's just not my type) it's Mark Owen who I've fallen for utterly. Here he is in his infancy, and yeah, okay, I probably would have looked at him twice. Possibly more than that.


And another young-ish pic of him.


Here he is after the band reformed in 2005, looking prettier than a man has any right to. (Mark has a thing for wearing scarves. I have a thing for men who wear scarves. This works out nicely.)


Here he is this year, performing the single Kidz. Still adorable and enthusiastic.


Okay, so they're pretty. But why the slash?

Take That RPS fandom rivals Blake's 7 for the variety of pairings you get, but the Mark Owen/Robbie Williams combination is one that has completely captivated me. There is epic friendship. And epic cuddling. And a tragic break up. And a touching reunion. It is, in essence, a narrative tailor made for slash.

Plus, you get visuals like this:

I mean, seriously: explain this pic without slash. I dare you.

Also, they are silly straight boys who are willing to do stuff like this:

(My over-fondness for this picture is also probably due to the fact that my daughter loves luring people in close and then licking their noses. I get a kick out of teenage boys doing what a four-year-old finds amusing.)

Lest you think they only behaved that way back in the day, they're still all over each other now. On stage, even!




Awwwww.