#buck smith

[woyseck]

Poison 🤍🪽 dir. Todd Haynes

[mosneakers]

A bottleneck effect forms on the rooftop balcony as Tycho and Coni reach the passageway, desperately trying to push past the personnel crammed together. Forced to a halt by the blockage, Coni calls out to the man in front of her.

Coni: What's the hold up?

Alex: Abduction attempt, apparently…

Tycho’s insides completely plummet as he strains to hear better, pushing forward to get a better listen.

Tycho: What? H-how do you know for sure?

Alex: [Grins slightly, tapping headset] Documentary production. We've got eyes and ears on everything.

Coraleye: I held onto him as tightly as I could, but in the end it wasn’t enough. He just… slipped away. I tried to conjure up a spell or something to save him, but trying to work under that kind of pressure was just useless.

Alex: I’ll be honest, the sound of his screams… and then yours… it was harrowing. [Brief pause] Cam and I couldn’t sleep for days after witnessing that.

Coraleye: [Nods knowingly with a sweet, but somber smile] I know the feeling, honey. Alex: —So, what happened next?

Coraleye’s body stiffens as she crosses her arms, trying to keep herself together. Election night loops in her mind and she clenches her eyes shut. With an inescapable frown, she fights against the tears, but a shaky breath escapes her, and little droplets release in a downpour.

Coraleye: ...Then he was gone. I lost my friend that night. Alex: Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it's safe to say you lost three friends that night.

Coraleye: [Defeated nod] Yeah. You could say that.

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

Have you seen Poison (1991)?

Yes

No

Haven’t even heard of this movie

Voting ended onAug 4, 2024

[ozu-teapot]

Poison | Todd Haynes | 1991

Edith Meeks, Angela M. Schreiber, Anne Giotta, Barry Cassidy, Buck Smith, Marina Lutz, Millie White, Richard Anthony, Rob LaBelle, Lydia Lafleur, Evan Dunsky

[mosneakers]

Coraleye: [Screaming] SOMEBODY HELP! Hold on, Erwin! You're slipping! Erwin: Coraleye, let go! They'll get you too! They can hurt you! Coraleye: No! I can't let them take you! The fluorescent cyan beam engulfing Erwin intensifies, fighting against Coraleye’s grip, further straining his voice. Erwin: Cor, please— You have to save yourself! Coraleye: Please, I—I can’t lose you!

═════════════════════════════════════════

Tycho: Why would you just let her go like that, Coni? Erwin's clearly up to something shady. He lied to us both, remember? Coni: [Rubbing forehead frustratedly, with a sigh] So only Erwin's forbidden to lie? Interesting standard we’re setting here. Tycho: [Narrows eyes] It's different and you know it. Coni: So what's the alternative, Tycho? Go ahead, just tell her it makes you uncomfy when she's alone with Erwin, when you're supposed to be working on those issues. Do you realize how unhinged you'd sound? Look, at some point, we're going to have to face the music.

Tycho opens his mouth to dispute Coni's argument, but before he can say a word, the double doors burst open, flooding the hallway with security personnel and uptempo jazz. In the midst of the chaos, Mrs. and Mr. Smith dash forward, followed closely by the entirety of their team and some camera stragglers from a documentary crew, all rushing in a panic. Tycho and Coni whip around, bewildered by the sudden commotion.

The shouts from head of security barking orders and the garbled static of two-way radios blur into an indiscernible mess, rendering it impossible to detect the specifics of the emergency. But Coni and Tycho, relying on context clues and gut instinct, just know it’s no coincidence that Coraleye and Erwin happen to be in that direction that this group is advancing—up.

[mosneakers]

The Spot - San Myshuno, Election Night

[mosneakers]

Ophelia: Tyke, you seem just as stressed out about this as Jill is about the votes. It's going to be okay. Johnny: Yeah kid, chill out a little. You're overthinking it. She's gonna take it just fine. She doesn't give off the vibe that she's got any issue with aliens. No shot she won't accept you.

Tycho smiles politely at the bartender as he requests another cocktail. Tycho: It's not that she wouldn't accept me. It's that I lied to her for so long. And erased her memory! Several times, mind you. Johnny: Well... we all mess up, bud. Just be honest with her and it'll be fine.

Ophelia: Mhm. 'Cause the longer you keep putting it off, the worse things are gonna get.

Tycho: I know, I know. Tonight's the night. No matter what happens.

Ophelia: ...And do we have a strategy for this "Mission Rectify-a-Lie"?

Tycho: [Sigh] A vague one, maybe. I haven't seen her in a while, and tonight could be my last chance with her. So when she gets here, I'll set everything aside and just enjoy our time together. We were planning on getting a hotel here in San Myshuno tonight, so that's probably when I'll tell her. But I'm not entirely sure, I'll just go with the flow. I'm sure the tone of the night will be determined by whether or not Jill wins.

Johnny: Well, you better figure it out soon. [nods head in the direction of the staircase] Looks like your darling is making her grand entrance.

[mosneakers]

Coni stands before Jill Smith, who pensively scans over a document Coni has presented to her. as Jill gently bobs to soothe Levi, her infant son strapped to her torso. Jill tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and nods as she concludes the letter.

Jill: I see. Coni, first and foremost, I'd like to thank you for being so vulnerable and for sharing this information with me. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to keep these things to yourself around those closest to you. Your story is exactly why I'm driven to make a change.

Coni: Right. Thank you for your time Mrs. Smith. Jill: You know, for what it's worth, my father and the rest of our family were close friends with Bella Goth— or at least with who we perceived to be Bella at the time. Even if it turns out it wasn't the real Bella my father befriended, I still want to do everything in my power to make things right for the horrors inflicted on the original, Coni.

Coni stares blankly into the abyss that is the infant's black eyes, as he coos and wiggles his toes.

Coni: From now on, please call me Belladonna. It's how Bella would have wanted it.