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lucalicatteart · 1 year

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Finally finished my weird hanging painting thing (originally a secondhand partially-done 'paint by numbers' kit that I found at a thrift store and kept to repurpose lol)! Imagery somewhat based in my own worldbuilding projects, and text written in my constructed language for one of my fantasy species, but also vaguely inspired by old tapestries and illuminated manuscripts and etc. I've never been great at neat clean patterning or text, but it looks cool from afar, and I always enjoy making "props" or things that are somewhat like real objects that might could exist in my world. :0

(additional pictures/info under the readmore)

Here's what it was originally! I probably didn't have to actually have a river running down the middle because it further makes the composition of the whole thing weird (various connected yet separate locations and things happening, instead of one unified event being portrayed), but I wasn't sure if I'd be able to fully cover up the already existing paint that was there.. and I can also kind of justify it by going with a more "all the imagery is just symbolic so it doesn't have to make exact sense" approach lol.. How is one half of the grass green and the other is suddenly snowy? shhhh.. it's not literal.. shhh...

Made a vague sketch, then painted over it, and then added more distinct lines in black pen. Center image first and border second.

The very last thing was the text, which actually took forever to translate because my conlang is still only like.. partially done, and some of the grammar is not worked out exactly how I would like it to be, so a few sentences I had to think about for a long time before just going "eh, this is probably not how I would do it if I considered it more, but I'll go with it for now" lol . I also am not entirely satisfied with all of the characters for the writing system, but again, it's good enough for a quick project, it doesn't have to be 100% accurate and perfect because it's a fake language that nobody knows anyway lol.

I thought about breaking down the text and translation here like I have for some of the tidbits of Avirrekava (the language) in things I've posted in the past, but I think it would take too long and is not interesting to anyone but me ghghj, so for the sake of getting the post out quickly, I shall not spend an hour typing All That lol.

The general jist of the writing though is that it's just about the Avirre'thel being cast out from the other elves, after abandoning their magic for immortality as a means to truly attain perfection (an important concept in elven culture), the usual, blah blah blah, but how it's Actually A Good Thing, because the gods are wrong and immortality is Cool actually and they like the shitty frozen lands they were sent to, so it's fine that everyone else is being a Hater about it lol

Lastly, here's a few photos outside in the sun to TRY and show the gold detailing actually shimmering or showing up! It really doesn't come through in photos, but there's plenty of little golden spots to highlight light or Importance.

Mostly the fire, the pink sparkle that represents magic, the red drop that represents blood, the light behind Inaashi's hands and head (common symbol for the elven religion/one of their main gods, shout out to anyone who read the ancient elven religion post and recognized that lol), the sun, and the symbol for the Avirre'thel/country of Navyete at the very top. I did a few other gold bits, but they're not highlighted because they're Significant, more just that it looked more symmetrical to have some gold on the border too lol.

Other things of note: The animals are not actually significant to Avirre'thel culture really, I just wanted to put a cat and a bird because I like them lol. (I also wanted to have a few funny looking creatures, as I was slightly trying to go with the 'in some old medieval painting the anatomy and perspective is very weird' vibe, though I think some of the other parts of it look too Normal to pull it off entirely). Same with the four leaf clover, which means nothing in their culture - but these are the only areas where stuff was just added self-indulgently .

Bligabata (giant cabbage that grows along rivers in Navyete) making an appearance! The architecture of the building IS based on actual concepts for ancient elven/older Avirre'thel architecture and metalwork. The Avirre'thel who's turning away from Inaashi/elves/magic and collecting blood, is doing so in a Special Bowl, as is part of their culture (collecting it in the hands, or just in a normal vessel would be disrespectful, they have Specific Bowls which is the only thing blood can be kept in, etc.).

The figure that represents Jhevona (and thus, a closer connection to magic, celestial imagery, etc.) is in weird ugly teal, which is not necessarily a color or design associated with them, as I don't have much common culture (like clothing) worked out for Northern Jhevona (who the avirre'thel would have come into contact with) yet, BUT everyone else is in more Typical colors (a northern elf in green, Inaashi in lavender + white + blue, an Avirre'thel in darker purples and reds).

Some things, like the four figures in the corners, and the two people + fish in the stream, do not currently have a meaning, but in-world they would.. Like, I could make up lore for how they're culturally significant and it would be true because I am god of the world, but I don't have anything currently. But just know.. they DO mean something, I just haven't decided it yet, maybe kind of fill in as I go, come up with a meaning later lol. Probably along the lines of an old myth from the ancient elven religion, a story, etc.

I don't know, probably other stuff, but that's my Trying To Keep It Short rambling for now lol. I'm just glad I finally finished this! For how vaguely sloppy it is up close (everything being completely freehanded, only used rulers once when doing the initial sketch and lining where the border should be + my hands are shaky + the canvas is bumpy + my handwriting is scratchy and terrible + etc. etc.) it still took a REALLY long time, even when not trying to make it all perfect. Especially if including the text translation + writing, which took like 3+ hours itself.

Maybe all the asymmetry/lack of things being centered is NOT because I was too lazy to measure anything, but is actually because in-universe, it's a practice illustration made by some young apprentice who has to work on little canvases for years before he can be trusted will a full sized mural or tapestry. It's his first week on the job! of course he's uncoordinated! don't laugh at him!!! lol

#worldbuilding #elves #I AM WORKING ON A NEW PAVENTURE POST also !!!! I know I keep being like 'oh I'm going to get back to that! I'll stick to it this time!!'#and then another whole month goes by without me posting a new poll adventure - however - this time I DID fully intend to so #*do another one soon but my beloved beautiful perfect cat unfortunately passed away AND there was a heat #wave ANd I felt sick for a while for unrelated reasons so I just genuinely was not focused on posting online at all #I am trying to get back to it though along with other things hopefully so.#ANYWAY #avirre'thel #irithoas #maybe???? not super relevant to elves but I'll keep it intheir tag anyway also. Just since their lore is so closely tied with avirre'thel s #stuff and they're mentioned in the post. Or the gods are. Inaashi is.#OIGUGUGUGUHH I should have done a tapestry with the FCJhjkING triplets!!!!! Sehalanora Semoniyare and the other one whatever the hell #his name is. ... sehalanora my beloved .. (I'm referencing the ancient elven gods - for those who dont know)#It's funny that I rarely watch tv shows and when I do I rarely if EVER care about characters at all in any capacity #with maybe like a handful of even then extremely minor exceptions so I cannot relate to the concept of like 'having a blorbo' or whatever #but then for my extremely niche worldbuilding content #.. it's like OMG MY FAVORITE character!!! my favorite obscure god from a religion #that I entirely made up myself for a cultural group that I also made up that literally only I and maybe like two other #people who are able to sit through my novel long dry and wordy worldbuilding posts care about!! you all know them DUH!!#even WITHIN modern elven culture in the world at the moment in current day most people do not give a shit about them hghj #BUT .. I should have made a painting of the siblings actually!!! I stand by that!!#I mean I like Inaashi and Nisateyu and everything too. Actually all of them are fine except for Ea'ivuyera I guess. whoever the #like War and Order bootlicker god is basically. and the Evil dumbass one. but all the others are fine. I'm suprised I'm even able to rememb #that many ancient elven goofily long names ghgh.. But I could have maybe made it about the elven gods #The thing is just that.. i Don't have ancient elvish worked out as a language and I knew I wanted to put text on it #so it kind of HAD to be something written/drawn by the Avirre'thel #Knwoledge of the ancient elven gods is still a thing in their culture. But usually more as a joke or just a common fairytale knowledge #sort of thing. not really something to make a painting of. Inaashi is here less because of Inaashi The God being genuinely significant and #and more just she's there to Symbolize the elven religion as a whole. just like all the other figures are mere symbols of things. etc.

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stardustedstories · 3 months

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Hey friends. As I'm sure you may have noticed, I haven't been doing a lot of writing as of late, for a wide variety of reasons. I've been trying to do All the Things!, and as a result I'm running myself ragged. Something's gotta give, and if I don't step back to reevaluate and take a deep breath, that's going to be me.

So in the interest of keeping myself from burning out or giving into the looming anxiety that's pretty present most days, I'm going to take a little hiatus. About a week, maybe a little longer, depending on how things go. I probably won't be completely gone for this period of time (I might pop on occasionally and still like a few things here and there), but for the most part, I'm going to be taking a step back, so I can focus on getting myself together, both offline and online.

#✦ general || ooc ✦ malaprops: of or concerning mal / in an inopportune way #[been thinkin' about this for a little while]#[I keep trying to do too much and maybe if I take a little break I'll be able to fix that]#[anyway I appreciate all of you and I'll hopefully be back soon and refreshed!]

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derelictheretic · 9 months

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Okay so update! My family and I are all okay, the only real injury is my siblings ankle got twisted or something while we where getting out and it's swollen to heck but aside from that we all got out pretty okay.

We've got semi-stable living conditions atm, can't really go into detail there but we're okay for right now and the community where we live has been amazing and giving us a lot of support. Thank you to everyone who left kind messages on the last post, I really appreciated it and it meant a lot to me.

I don't have the brain power for dm's at the moment but I'm sending hugs to y'all <3

#slowly trying to get back to normal even though everything is very not normal #my computer and display tablet are fine but my monitor got murdered from the smoke damage #my fiancé is letting me use his monitor for jow since its the only one that didn't die ajsjsbabsba #for everyone who was worried I was checked by paramedics on the day and they said I was okay #and now i'm also getting set up with headspace bc mentally I am static noise #but !! I am optimistic that everything will be okay :'> somehow #for now i'm trying to catch up on the assignments for class and I should be able to get back to working on comms #It'll just make me feel more normal if I can do that so yeah hopefully i'll be able to get back to them asap #ANYWAY !! I am mostly okay and I miss y'all tons and hope everyones keeping well <333 #nadine is typing...

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volivolition · 15 days

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Idk if you saw or not but a new chapter of the fury of a shattered mirror dropped last night! I haven’t read it yet but I thought I should let you know 😎👍

awughgh HELL YEAH!! ive been away from my laptop for a while so i didnt see, thank you birdy!! :] this is the best news ive had all day hkjgh <33 excited very excited going to read it now <33

#volta transmissions #SKILLS ARE BACK BABEYYYYYYY!! ehehehehe :] oh i LOVE seeing them come back from just ''??????'' SMILES REALLY HAPPILY #welcome back to the world little ones... oh im so happy to see them... :'] ''You do you softie'' EHEHE... skills interactions :D! yay!!!!!#okay i'll add more liveblogging in the tags as i go probably hkjhg <33 i appreciate you very much birdy <33 #''the avant-garde prick is just making shit up again'' HAKJDHKJ... ''You did us proud holding out til the end'' WAH... ENDURANCE... ;O;#WELCOME BACK ENCY SMILES!!! no motorics skills yet though thats to be expected hkjh <3 ency ''you have the facts'' and #empathy ''and the emotions'' HKJGH IS THAT A FACTSFEELINGS SKILLSPOSTING REFERENCE /J lots of voli talking!!! very happy about this <3 #VOLITION - ''if we had the logician here...'' ''...'' ''damnit i thought that would work'' HAHAJKSHDSKJH SMILES. HA.#''Punch something. maybe Coach will show up'' HHFKJH... oh my god this makes me so happy... cmon we gotta get the gang back together...#half light!! hello!! my darling!! LETS GO!! ough buT NOT ENOUGH TO GET ARMS BACK NOOUIGHJ MOTORICS WHERE ARE YOU LITTLE BUDDIES???#''try to get eyes back online'' ''come on come on--'' OUGH I LOVE... i love how theyre all supporting each other as they come back online..#TEAMWORK!! CMON LETS GET EVERYONE BACK!! YEAH BOI WE GOT A MOTORICS BACK UP!! HELLO PERCEP! calm down! you need composure in here!!#THE JOYWIRE... OUGH STOP STOP IM SO FOND... VOLI CMON. nooo ourgh takes damage... ''You were really gonna cut me out?'' AWAH... WAHHH!!!!!#ow my heart my HEART. chemi baby my little darling... hugging him kissing his forehead... THERES OUR LOGICIAN HELLO DARLING!!#hkjh trying to cue in interfacing DAMN :'] good metaphor anyway concept it was very well laid. voli keeping track of each of them too hehe #HI DRAMA YAYY! platonic love story! friends!!! ''Neuroplasticity's off the charts.'' ''I'm surprised you know a word that long that isn't-#'''amphetamines''' ''Dextromethorphan asshole'' HAJKSH YOU FUCKING TELL 'EM! YOU'RE NOT E-CHEMISTRY FOR NOTHING!!!#again with trying to get Phys back in hkjhg INLANDDD SMILES HI THERE DREAMER!! Logic just like ''yeah. i hate it here.'' ''have you tried?'#HM NO INLAND I DONT THINK WE HAVE HKJHG... /FLAGRANT DISREGARD LETS GO LETS GET IT/ SHIVERS MY DARLING!!!#okay this is the 20th tag. hopefully a reblog will be enough to finish out my thoughts but god knows i have so much to say hjhg

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norashelley · 7 months

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October was A MONTH. I ended up not having energy to be active online. I let my queue run out. I'm sorry for neglecting my blogs on here. But I want to be more active this month and I am going to try!

#no promises #but i'll try to at least keep my queue going!#and now that i got my photo editor back hopefully i can find time & energy to get some original posts up too #anyway missed you all & hope your month was better than mine #hope our novembers will be ok too

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jokerownsmysoul · 2 years

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a dance for your existence

Summary: you and Arthur are getting ready for bed when midnight strikes and his birthday officially starts. Though there's a upcoming celebration ahead of you, you don't miss the chance to show him how special and loved he is.

Warnings: none.

Words: 3800

Notes: I didn't manage to develop a more in depth piece to celebrate Arthur's birthday the way I wished, this story came to me while falling asleep the night before and I kinda just blurted out my feelings into it without much of editing and a bit written in haste. I just wanted to post something to celebrate. ❤︎ I really tried to have it ready by 21st of November, but as he sings to us, that's life. I think he would still appreciate the loving thoughts, even if a little belated. The sentiments are relevant every day, no matter what day is, after all. ❤︎ Happy birthday, Arthur. 💋🌹

You and Arthur knew that it was time to get ready for bed as soon as the closing credits of the romantic movie you've just watched started rolling off on the television screen in front of you.

You were tangled up beneath the cocoon of a warm blanket, and the thought of leaving the cozy bliss of his embrace wasn’t exactly appealing.

“She should've stayed with him,” you commented bitterly, rubbing your bare feet against Arthur's under the blanket in seek of some fleeting comfort before one of you would pull the other out of the bed.

“Yeah. But I understand why she didn't. She wanted to follow her dream and see the world.”

You angled your head in within his arms, cocking your head up to him. “If I was her, the only world I would need to see is you by my side every day,” you let him know. “I could never give up on a life with you. You're my world.”

Arthur pecked your lips, a tender, reassuring smile on his face while his forefinger grazed your chin. “You'll never have to. I want to have you here forever.”

At the familiar spark of your smile, Arthur quickly slipped out of the blanket and reached the side of your bed, bowing at your feet with a sort of gentleman-like theatricalism of a real old fashioned mime, managing to make you laugh as planned as he stretched out his hand, waiting for you to take it.

A soft chuckle left his lips when you pouted, simulating the same amount of theatricalism as you struggled to adjust to the cold emptiness that he left on the side of his bed.

“Time to get ready for bed,” he coaxed you with his soft-spoken, raspy voice at your implied plea to get back under the covers with you. He was much braver than you to leave the warm and cozy nook you've shaped together since after dinner; and frankly, after the bittersweet ending of the movie you've just watched the only thing you wanted to do was to hold him. The certainty that you had all night for that made you scoop yourself up.

His grip led you both to the bathroom once you held onto his hand to wrap up the last steps of your bedtime routine and return to the comforting warmth you sought; more the warmth of his arms draped around your waist in familiar manners than the comforter’s itself.

Getting ready for bed with Arthur was a daily routine that he managed to turn into a small but big adventure every night, and often felt like watching a movie of your day. You tossed your working clothes left on the tiled floor since afternoon when you've taken a bath together into the laundry basket at the opposite corner of the bathroom, wiped away any trace of lingering makeup (whether it was the most persistent patches of white paint on his jaw or unseen lipstick marks on the chapped corners of your lips) and moisturized your hands, making sure Arthur’s hands were taken care of as well as you applied a dab of lotion on his knuckles before you peeled yourselves off your homely clothes, craving to get into your pajamas.

The faucet was running low from the bathroom sink as Arthur looked for dental floss when you headed to the bedroom to get into your pajama and grab a clean pair of socks for him. You knew he wanted to sleep on them at night and you always liked to make sure his exhaustion didn't make him skip this step. You liked to know that his feet were kept warm throught the night.

When you stepped into the bedroom, clues of how you've spent your evening coated any corner in front of you, shaping a movie like the one your bedtime routine did. The static TV left on at the foot of the bed that painted the bedroom ambience of its bluish glow, the unmade bed where the blue blanket crumpled by your cuddling laid in the middle, your empty cups of hot chocolate with sprinkled cinnamon resting on each respective bedside table. They were all reminiscences of your Sunday evening about to be covered snuggly beneath your dreaming eyelids, to turn into treasured memories and be locked in your heart with a special key.

You quickly changed into your pajama before you reached Arthur’s bedside table. You were about to open his linen drawer when the red neon-flashed digits of his alarm clock caught your eye.

It was 00:24 am, on the 21th of November.

Enthusiasm swept you off your feet as you realized that midnight struck; otherwise a ordinary thing, but not today. Today was the day when it meant something a lot more special.

You waited for Arthur to come back. Minutes rolled on slower than usual until finally you heard the bathroom light being clicked off and the quiet padding of his feet, just a few seconds before Arthur walked through the bedroom door barefoot and covered in only his underwear and white undershirt. You loved this bedtime look on him.

You rushed to him the second you saw him and crashed your lips to his, your nose nudged eagerly against his. If it weren't for Arthur who was so fluid in his movements that moving for him was like following innate steps of an eternal dance, your enthusiasm would surely have made him lose his balance, and you along with him as you circled your arms around his neck.

Toothpaste and the irresistible familiar taste of his mouth filled your tongue as you kissed him with unrestrained passion for minutes on end, your toes curling until a low gasp gave away your need to catch some air.

“What was that for?” He asked as he took a deep breath, a sweet, hazy smile blossoming in rosy-dimpled cheeks while his eyes sparkled bright at your inexplicable giddiness.

“It's officially your birthday,” you enthused with a coo, indicating the time signaled on the alarm clock.

“Oh,” he let out with a bashful laugh, sincerely flattered but with less enthusiasm than you. It was okay though. You had all day ahead of you to show him how special it was; the rest of your life to show him how special he truly was, too.

An idea suddenly ignited itself in your mind, driven by your everburning enthusiasm and love for him before you withdrew just a few steps away from him.

It was never too early to start celebrating.

A birthday cake was taking a nap in the fridge unbeknownst to him, a handmade knitted sweater to keep his body warm and a handwritten letter to keep his heart even warmer wrapped in shiny envelope were waiting to be revealed by his gentle hands, and a path of surprises thoughtfully thought-out only for him was kept hidden from him so far successfully, awaiting him to be shared with you and make him feel cared for.

But once you got so lucky to meet the stroke of midnight, you wanted to start and prolong the Arthur Day as much as you could. There was always time for one more gift, for one more celebrating moment. He deserved it all.

Arthur’s brows knitted together in quizzical amusement as he kept his gaze firmly on you, trying to figure out what were you up to.

He laughed as he watched you simulate the familiar steps he used to follow and that you’ve memorized from all your past shared dances to improvise a failed attempt to bow, before you stretched your hand out to him as much smoothly as you could get. The steps may be coming from his teachings, but the elegant grace they carried on him every time was definitely lacking on you; it made it all more intriguing.

“May I have this dance, Mr. Fleck?” You asked flirtatiously, batting your eyelashes.

Arthur had taught you that everything had a peculiar twinkle if started with a dance, especially if the partner was him and the love this dance embodied was yours. There wasn’t really anything that a dance could not initiate and let the fun begin with the memories to make together.

“You may, ma’am,” he played along and took hold of your hand, completely flattered in the way he smiled at you oh so sweetly. The familiar, seductive hints in yours voice tickled his lower belly and his toes, ready to fly into a dance as a pair of wings.

Rather than guiding your hands to rest around his neck as you did oftentimes, they drifted lower to land on his waist. “Let me lead you tonight, sweetheart,” you said in a hushed whisper as your hands drew him close to you.

His crow’s feet crinkled before your reverence as he leaned in. He nodded eagerly, enthralled and curious, and melted into your embrace with undoubted trust in his enamored gaze as he let you guide you both into the first few dance steps.

His experienced moves begun to accompany yours pretty quickly as you started a quiet back and forth, a steady focus on how and when to move your feet. With a partner like Arthur music was one of the main characters of your dancing, but not inherently essential in each of them. Like many other times, tonight you danced to the beats of each other’s heart, brimming with unconditional love for one another as you guided his hips in a gentle rocking. You searched for his eyes, wanting to focus on every little expression on his features, hoping that you were getting it right.

You felt a little tentative in this different role you weren’t used to take, but surprisingly also a lot more confident than what you expected, as you centered yourself in the familiarity of how your fingers molded to the well-known curve of his waist and how his arms around your shoulders felt, emboldened by the desire to hold him close the way he held you all the time.

Suddenly it didn’t seem all completely new to you, after all. The roles may be inversed, but it was always Arthur and you, dancing barefoot in your bedroom in the middle of the night.

There was happiness in his smile and the way his endearing green eyes gaped at you as he followed your steps without any doubt or fear, letting you know that he would follow you wherevere you would go, and the grasp of his touch holding onto the spots of your skin left bare was warm. It made you realize that getting it right wasn’t so important for him as long as it was you to hold him and make him feel so seen and desired.

Every time Arthur would sway to himself or would pull you into a dance he had this innate gift of originate a fairy tale dimension all around, making you feel over the moon even though your feet were firmly solid on earth. Every melody rooted deep within him went exposed into blossom, enveloping you in a space that spoke of timeless enchantment and freedom.

To get the sense of magic that Arthur so easily achieved whenever he let his body get lost in a dance was practically impossible, and truthfully, you didn't even want to. Somehow, the ever-present sophisticated flare inside him was coating every little step out of sync of you, intermingling together in a perfect match of Arthur and you, that wasn't imperfect at all.

You shifted your weight on the other leg and raised one of your hand out, gesturing him to take the offered hold as you tried to switch position. He took the offer and one of his hand went to join yours up in the air while the other rested on your shoulder as you continued to lead him into a improvised slow waltz, your bare feet sliding and dragging themselves on the cold floor or the bedroom in familiar patterns, a brief feeling of warmth whenever yours would touch his own. You hoped this dance was a perfect start to make his day worthy of thoughts and memories that were good and joyful, a kind of gift born musical only for him.

The neon-blue fluorescence coming from television bathed his beautiful face, dipping into his dimples like liquid silver blue, polishing the apples of his cheeks, the spot of light on the roundness of his nose, his heavy brows. Around you there was a bubble of light that more than resembling the moonlight, this time resembled the artificial light of the spotlights. In your bedroom, as your bare feet chased one another in a clumsy slowness, you felt like you were on a stage the moonlit blue color of the night sky. While your movements pulled Arthur into this enchanted moment, you thought it was exactly where Arthur was supposed to be. With you, under a private spotlight created by the glow of your souls chasing one another in a never ending interweaving.

It suddenly dawned on you that the steps you created together, no matter how uneven you executed them, were a prolungation of you and therefore much more beautiful than any other already constructed one; personal steps of a sole path made by you to guide Arthur to your heart.

You were basking in this wonderfully imperfect asynchrony when in a bolder flourish you secured your hand around him and dipped him low, in a way definitely less smooth than Arthur’s when he was the one to lead, but you made it work.

A sudden gasp that turned into a enamored laugh burst from his lips as he fell backwards beneath your careful guidance, infecting your own laugh that went to echo in the stillness of the night along with his own. You were happy to know that no matter who took the lead, every dance of yours would begin and end with laughter still.

You watched him from above secured safely in your hold, how the stray curl perpetually on his forehead had fallen backwards. Your eyes bore together, telling unspoken declarations of how much you loved each other before you pecked his nose. You were already missing the sight of his endearing features up in the night light when you pulled him back up, strategically lifting him in a way so that his lips crashed into yours as soon as his body rose in a upward twirl flush against you, ending this yearned collision in an unexpected kiss.

Your uncontrollable laughter prevented your lips from connecting once his sense of surprise faded into a intoxicating craving for you and he brought his focus on your mouth, kissing you in a kiss that was all teeth and lips that could barely touch between chuckles.

“I fancy you,” you purred into him when you pulled slightly back, nuzzling his nose with yours and applying a discrete focus on your movements to keep the beat of your funny dancing steady. “You're so pretty. I want to eat you up.”

He let out a incredulous, bashful snort you didn’t hear since your first dates that dared to make your legs go weak. “Then do it.”

He joined his lips with yours again, and this time there was nothing to stop you mixing your flavors while his tongue moistened yours with ardor. Lots of time kisses was the one way to go when nothing else was enough to express your feelings. You would understand.

The passion settled in this breathless kiss made both of your feet slow down a little as your mutual desire took over, the waltz now taking the hint of what felt more like a gentle sway.

The moves your lips followed onto one another was another common dance occuring between you that you’d never get tired of. Everything with Arthur felt a lot like dancing. He had a kind of music inside him that was all his own and used to beat solely to the tune of his soul – and yours, – so it made sense that no matter what he was doing, it would find a way out through him to sparkle and envelope you.

Your breath stalled in your throat as you watched him watching you when he pulled back. You could never put into words how much it meant to have him in your protective hold, to know that his heart belonged to yours.

His skin smelled like moisturizer; he must have smeared some on his cheeks that every day had to be covered in grease paint. His hair was slightly greasy, shaping into soft curls to graze the top of his white shirt, and his lips, polished in relaxed bliss, damp of your saliva and so beautiful, made you want to kiss him forever till you last breath.

The woman who wins your heart must be so lucky, you’ve thought to yourself the first time you saw him, long time ago. He’d entered your heart instantly. Something about him spoke to your heart that he was special. Soon, and definitely very easily, he’d proven you right. You would’ve never imagined that this woman was going to be you.

“Thank you,” you said instinctively in a hushed whisper, voice heavy and full of inexpressible feelings cut through the silence of the night. Every time you tried to express them they didn’t really reflect fully what you wanted to capture in the first place, but you kept trying. For him.

“For what?” He asked softly.

“Just for existing. And for sharing your existence with me,” you spoke with ease, as if it was the most obvious thing to give as an answer; it was for you. You lowered your eyes for a moment and nuzzled his jaw, feeling exposed at the openness of your nightly confession before quickly locking your eyes back to his. His gaze was tender and patient as he waited for you to speak. “Not a day goes by where I'm not grateful that you exist. I’m happy to be able to celebrate your existence with you. And not just on your birthday, but every day.” You dared to unlace the grip you had of him during this shared dance so that your hand could rake through his brown locks, grounding yourself to the nape of his neck. “Every day lived with you is worthy of celebration.”

The soft look he gave you was sweet and understanding, letting you know that he felt the exact same way. “I like this day a little bit more if you’re with me. And…– and my life,” he confessed. “I like to exist with you.”

You knew that the so called right words for something, anything, didn't quite exist, but some of them fit more than others into a declaration, and he couldn't find any right now. He didn't know what to say exactly to let you know that your presence in his life was slowly smoothing the sharp edges of every bad memory of his past, sheathing them with kinder and more loving ones filled with laughter and a kind of romance he didn’t know was possible to find for him. But this time, like many other, you understood him even without further words.

He brought his fingers to your face, and your eyes fluttered close as he stroked your cheek with his typical gentleman’s manner. You leaned into his touch and looked at him through your lashes, a little lazy as you blinked and brought your hand to cover his own, and you both realized that this time it was really the time to go to bed.

He gave you one last tender kiss, and while your mouth buttoned with one another his lips on yours led you to the bed where you fell blindly with a shared giggle, too busy to taste each other just a little more before pulling away.

You continued with your bedtime routine a few minutes later. Arthur folded the blue blanket in the usual spot at the foot of the bed and pulled his pajamas pants on, while you finally could grab that pair of clean socks for him that had led you to discover the beginning of his birthday. He took them with a quiet thank you and rolled them at his ankles. Those were the quiet and simple moments typical of the end of a day where you wrapped up the day past to welcome the one ahead of you. You were already longing to celebrate with Arthur. It was going to be very difficult to fall asleep, considering that your eagerness and a little bit of lingering nerves were starting to grow as the minutes marked by the alarm clock went by.

You lifted the covers on each side of the bed and met in the middle of the mattress where you snuggled up close, happy to hold each other till the morning light would break in.

“Happy birthday, Arthur,” you told him as you laid face to face, heads framed by your hand-in-hand pillows. He responded with a sleepy hum and a intoxicating smile. You would’ve liked to go grab a sole candle and let him blow it out on a last-minute midnight snack as a extra nightly celebration to accompany the gift of this dance, but he was getting sleepy, and you wanted him to get the sleep he needed. You held onto the certainty of what would happen in a few hours when he would feel enough rested, of thirty-five candles blew out on a homemade birthday cake and stolen moments to express how happy you were to celebrate your favorite person in the world, and grateful that this person was Arthur.

You pulled him close to your chest and cradled him into a warm embrace, caressed his hair and listened to his quiet breathing as he slowly gave in to a needed rest and his eyes closed. “Goodnight, my love. We got a special day ahead of us. A special day for my special one.”

You’ve planned every detail to make this day as special as Arthur was, that would start as soon as you woke up. It had to be perfect, because Arthur was perfect to you. Yet none of this felt enough for a special man like him who, frankly, deserved to receive the moon wrapped in a lasso with a red bow and a spotlight-drenched stage where he could shine on forever, for his good heart and innate talented qualities to be finally manifested and acknowledged, for his dreams to come true, for being seen, even if Arthur was always telling you about how yours was the only glance he needed. It was even harder to show him what your heart held for him when to matter most for the both of you were the little things, though you knew they meant more than any big thing ever could. But still, most of the time it felt like trying to give him the entire ocean with a sole drop of water.

It hurt sometimes, not being able to explain something that at the end was inexplicable by nature. Human feelings, the strongest and everlasting ones. The feeling that carried Arthur’s name was the hardest. But if there was anyone worth trying to do or express the impossible for, it was definitely Arthur.

At the end of it all, it was clear what the truest, most precious gift of them all really was; Arthur, and his desire of wanting to share each of his daily breathes with each of yours.

•••••

tag list: @arthurflecksgirl @arthur-flecks-lovely-smile @sweet-nothings04 @flowerglitterwoman @forever-fleck @ajokeformur-ray

#Hopefully next year I'll manage to post a birthday piece in time what do you think 🥲#I have a very conflictual relationship with my writing these days where I can't stop writing 24/7 but nothing I write feels quiet enough #Not that anything I've written so far was enough but!!#I just have so much I want to tell him #I've been wanting to write about this kind of dance since forever and I'm a bit unsatisfied about how it turned out #Not as I wanted or Arthur deserves #I'll keep trying 😭#Anyways #arthur fleck x reader #arthur fleck x y/n #arthur fleck x you #On a side note I couldn't wait to use this Arthur screencap as a intro for a piece and it felt right for this one 💙💙💙

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jichanxo · 12 days

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still on the topic of titles: though i can see why you wouldn't, but isn't it hard for you to let go of placeholder names? and an unrelated new question: if i remember correctly, in senseific, you've completed writing the kuwagami part, but not the school stories part? do you have a problem with stringing it together, so that the relationships/events would fit with e/o naturally? (i hope i phrased that coherent enough)

this is long as usual, so

on titles:

the working titles are too literal and functional for me to get that attached to them, I think. It’s just shorthand for the larger idea itself. I suppose if there’s a placeholder title I like enough, then I’d keep it/adapt it into something similar. Funnily enough I’m probably likelier to think of titles/captions for my drawn artworks, though the file names themselves are still super literal lmao. those ones are usually the ones I’ve planned out in advance, because I want to convey a specific idea and it can be hard to do that visually without having a plan.

obligatory examples: this arasawa piece -- the text itself was a key part of the storytelling, so this one was decided early, about the same time as my initial sketches. it's two parts, duty and desire, conveyed in imagery and words, both important. this schrödinger's cat themed umineko artwork -- i didn't really have anything concrete for this for a long while, but this was always about flux and uncertainty, so the words were always floating around in my head when i was making this.

on senseific:

STRINGING THE TWO PLOTLINES TOGETHER, OH BOY. this is very much something I have to just… wait and see on. If my process for the kuwagami plotline is any indication, then I probably will have to rewrite/shift things around when I find something doesn’t work. That’s part of why I made an excel sheet for this fic, so I (hopefully) can see which parts aren’t meshing and how I might be able to resolve them. Move things around, put them earlier or later, etc. and of course, there needs to be breathing room so it feels like they have lives that exist outside of each other. I’m feeling kind of nervous thinking about it right now. I suppose I just have to try?

I have tried to consider where these two plotlines would interact, but I just need more details to make sure I get it right, hence my need for note taking. I've also left a bunch of gaps so that there's room to let it grow in between kuwagami stuff.

The school related (as in, including school stories but also other stuff that takes place there) stuff I have right now is something like:

Thing I invented for the intro

Follow up to this, resolution, lead into kuwagami story beat

the conclusion to the dance club story (as far as my vague memory could get me), but With Kitakata. since the dance club is so early, it was an easy choice as a kind of starting point

Itokura related thing I invented and desperately need to flesh out

Follow up to that

(Imagine a big gap of time here)

6. big moment that’s simultaneously a kuwagami beat and a school story beat -- yagami's continued refusal to trust kitakata or let him in on the investigation, resulting in the two of them getting into a physical fight. amasawa ends up going to sawa sensei to get them to break it up, and yagami realises that kitakata has a right to be worried for his students and shutting him out was a dick move actually (spoilers? but I’ve already talked about this scene before, so…)

and from this last point it's pretty obvious that kitakata has to be involved with the conclusion of the case. i haven't written anything yet because i need to do the rest first, but this is almost certainly happening despite not being written down yet

but yeah, because my process is Like This, I kind of have no choice but to present the story in chronological order to make sure that everything progresses logically. ...honestly the structure of the ever-changing is obscenely impressive to me, I suppose it’s the power of planning — that you can go back and forth in time while keeping it meaningful and coherent. I love it so much… I will never stop singing the praises of the ever-changing, genuinely...

anyway, while i say the kuwagami plot is done, it's still pretty open, it's just that i've locked in what i think the major conflicts and resolutions are for that relationship. there's still room for the other plot to grow into (i hope) and in worst case I can tinker a bit with rewriting some stuff to make it work.

#jitxt #kitakata sensei #this was about writing but. a little bit of artist process talk as well #it can be fun to think about these processes in comparison to each other #anyway after flicking through my doc again today i'm feeling a bit more motivated!#“how are you going to merge these two plotlines together” “i'll handle it”#“and how are you gonna handle it” “i'll just deal with it”#(that one shirou meme is me rn)#my confidence on doing it fluctuates. but all i can do is say i'll do my best and see how it goes #this is what i have. this is what i gotta work with #but at the very least hopefully this helps show my train of thought #excuse the compliment detour. i don't think i can overstate how impressed i was reading the ever changing the first time #i clicked it thinking “well it's not done but i wanna read kuwagami so i'll try it and see how i feel”#and then it was so good that i read every chapter #but yeah i um... read a snippet i wrote of kitakata and yagami on a date and suddenly i'm energised again #gotta keep writing so they can go on their date yknow 🙏#...going to post this before i start overthinking it again 😔

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