https://www.tumblr.com/marella-moon/755407722923655168/an-old-disco-holdover

inspired by this gorgeous take by @marella-moon on young/older Harry, I've been thinking about Harry's clothes, given the suggestion that he only started dressing disco a little bit before his Total Obliteration Event, as part of his latest downward spiral. but that's not the first time he's dressed that way — it's just the first time since he was young. in his twenties, disco was cool, and so was he — and disco, while very gay, was also a space for straight men to express heterosexuality through sequins. pre-RCM, Harry had longish hair and a moustache and he wore either flares or tiny shorts, heeled boots or hi-tops. he looked both absurdly gay and absurdly heterosexual in the way of all the greatest 70s hotties. of course, when he joined the RCM all that got toned down. some of the change was intentional and some of it was quiet erosion.

but almost twenty years later, that space for experimentation with the allure of bright colours and slippery satin is closed. the clubs all went bust, coke is prohibitively expensive, if a man walks down the wrong street in heels he's liable to get a beating. and as Harry spirals, he starts dressing a little bit more like he used to, groping clumsily for the things that used to make him feel good. remembering when he was loved and beautiful, knowing everything he does to try and reclaim those moments makes him sadder, more pathetic. a remnant, a hangover, a faded glory.

and then he meets a guy who comes to work in a painstakingly hand-altered vintage military surplus jacket from a failed revolution