#marcoxtuffy

The meme

Let it not be said that Tuffy isn't a Smurf who knows what he wants.

'Subtle' was not a word anyone would use to describe Tuffy when it came to his crushes, and yet neither was confident. In fact, as Marco HAD described it at first, he was more like a puppy - would follow you around with those big sad eyes and whine for attention without you knowing which one of the several possibilities he was asking for. It was sweet at first, in a sort of 'does your mama know that you're out' kind of way, but Marco thought Tuffy would get bored sooner or later and bog off.

He did not.

Marco was bemused. There were plenty of young men in the village that were available and possibly more suitable to Tuffy's needs. Marco was a slightly older, salty ex-navy seadog with only good eye ever since 'the incident'. Still, it was a constant in his life, something he'd sorely been missing during his adventures at sea. But there was something endearing about it. Perhaps if Tuffy had been more assertive it would have been obsessive or clingy, but the way he went about his highkey admiration was sort of cute, at least to Marco, who was far too used to temporary flings at ports he no longer remembered the name of. He figured he could entertain Tuffy, at least for now…

Hozier - Too Sweet (Official Lyric Video) (youtube.com)

Tuffy Foley was born along the coastal area of the Long Island section of NY, in a slightly run down neighbourhood. Once rumoured to have been a famous smugglers area for pirates, the summers were often overcrowded with tourists and the winter’s barren of much company. Tuffy was raised by his aunt and uncle, due to his biological parents having lost custody of him as a toddler. His aunt and uncle were kind folk and Tuffy trusted them whole heartedly – the same could not be said for the kids his age around the area. Tuffy was much younger, and much smaller than most of them, so he quickly became an easy target to their constant taunts and physical jabs.

Tuffy endured the black eyes and taste of gravel for far too long before someone stepped up to them. But someone did – Hefty Ortiz, a slightly older and braver kid than Tuffy, who’d had enough of the peers his age picking on the ‘poor guy’ and told them to back off. Hefty was not a kid to be messed with either, he was strong enough to easily hold his ground and the bullies knew he didn’t bluff. For Tuffy, he had found a new idol that day, and was forever in his debt.

Tuffy meet’s Hefty’s mom’s. X and Y Ortiz, a lesbian couple who had been raising their son into a compassionate and strong minded young man. X worked as the local sports coach, whilst Y was a social worker, so it was easy to see where Hefty’s strength and empathy came from. This was also Tuffy’s first positive representation of homosexuality – Tuffy had likely endured bigoted slurs from the bullies, despite being too young to know what the future had in store for him, and being around the Ortiz family has likely saved him from years of further denial.

Teenage Hefty discovered girls, Teenage Tuffy discovered Hefty. I mean, kid Tuffy looked up to Hefty but teenage Tuffy worshipped the very ground he walked on. It was an almost unhealthy obsession, and unfortunely this did start to strain his relationship with Hefty who found him to be broaching into slightly unhealthy co-dependency and imitation behaviour.

Hefty travels to Belgium. Tuffy, still lost in a fantasy parasocial relationship with him, follows. Ultimately, despite their adventures, his affections are never returned and it becomes obvious to Tuffy they never will.

A heartbroken but bitter Tuffy turns to … more unwarranted approaches and with his new found self-appointed freedom at no longer pursuing Hefty exclusively, Tuffy moves on … to his best friend, Handy Turner. When that doesn’t work, Tuffy decided to try a new outlook and attempts to attract the attention of a much older man, Wooly Sherman. That also does not work. Tuffy sulks and decides to give up for now. 

A few years later, Marco Spaziale is back in the village. His first trip away since the ‘incident’ in fact and what he’d really like now is a quiet night in the pub and a pint to relax. What he GETS is a sulking Tuffy who’s pissed about another failed rizz attempt. Marco is … bemused but annoyed. They exchange some banter and Marco tells some bone-chilling sea stories. Well, that gets Tuffy’s attention. Actually now that he thinks about it this Marco fella is sort of handsome in a very ruggish and badass way – Just Tuffy’s type. Those scars are pretty cool. Tuffy’s into it. He’s found a new object of his affections.

Marco suspects there may be a distant link between Tuffy and the weird skeleton dude walking around. Tuffy has concerns of his own.

It took some time but Marco warms back to Tuffy. He kind of originally viewed him as a sad little puppy, but like sad little puppies they have a way of warming your heart. Unlike his friend Dreamy who Marco tends to perceive as something akin to a little brother relationship with him, Marco’s never really had anything to do with Tuffy before and romantic feelings are eventually reciprocated. Marco is a bit older and more experienced about life in general whereas Tuffy has followed Hefty his whole life and is younger and a bit sheltered. Marco shows him some of the world. Tuffy discovers he has seasickness.

Tuffy and baby Vitriolic. Aww. He’s a good dad despite Vitty having er. Her own social issues djdjk

Tuffy, Hefty, Smurfette, Handy, Marina, Wooly, and Marco (c) The Smurfs

Une petite meme! It’s not that petite I wanted to lineart/shade but fck that

In order:

Dressing up as the thing that took ur bf's eye might not be the kindest costume but Tuffy has a point. There is some weird gut feeling there, almost as if his great-great-something uncle was a pirate, but who knows right

Marco and Tuffy (c) The Smurfs

But I’ll be true to the song I sing; And live and die a Pirate King!

For I am a Pirate King!

And it is, it is a glorious thing To be a Pirate King!  

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My pirate AU has been on my mind again recently ...... I made my bots play out some stuff earlier that was fun once I got them to stop trying to murder each other /lh

Ah Marco, he gets tied to masts as much as Harmony signs contracts.

Also shout out to Pirate AU for being the AU where Marco DOESN'T have an eyepatch

Some middle aged men~ The Harmony/Jokey one was just copy and pasted but everyone else is new!  -Not pictured but I've decided Barber and SmurfRuby get to be together bcuz Ruby deserves someone nice after all she's been through with Handy and Sapphire.  but anyway they've found a new business in shampoo. Ruby originally sold it to the gals but since the men are growing hair now, they get funky stuff too and business is booming on both ends! All this to say Tailor smells like coconut~  - I originally hc'd that Don wouldn't age but tbh I kinda like the idea that he gives up eternal youth and invincibility to be a mortal Smurf. He did this just because he wanted to experience true smurf life initially, being with and growing old with Somebody is a bonus.  -Brainy is trying to grow a beard. It's not going very well. He hates his husband's follicly gifted face (affectionate)