#I kept forcing to at least finish the sketch

[nounaarts]

I’ll finish this another day is what I’ll keep telling myself for the next week or so

#lmk #lego monkie kid #honestly the sketch looks fine as it is #I’m too lazy to finish it today #yknow that moment when you’re drawing and you just suddenly get sick of drawing? #but you don’t want to randomly stop in the process? #that’s me #I kept forcing to at least finish the sketch #I hate leaving it with blank gaps #this is gonna be a WIP for a while #I can feel it #monkie kid #macaque #lmk six eared macaque #lmk macaque #sun wukong #lmk sun wukong #lmk monkey king #monkey king #lego monkey kid fanart #sketch #art #nounaarts

[ghcstao3]

Soap likes to draw. It’s a simple fact of his life, and just about anyone who knows him knows it too. On or off base, he’s usually never without a notebook and an apparatus of some kind, because it passes the time, and it serves well to document his missions in further detail for both himself and debriefing.

Everyone knows this, and Soap is aware of that. What no one knows, however, is Soap’s favourite subject, because that’s a notebook that’s kept secret and often left only to be used on leave.

The only person who knows is Ghost, whose form fills those pages in some way or shape, because Soap knows damn well no matter the effort he’d never be able to hide such a thing from him, especially not once they’re living together beyond work.

(Of course, it doesn’t help, either, that Soap prefers to study Ghost while he sketches, rather than drawing solely from memory—because how else would he capture the most intricate of details?)

That being said, Soap could trace the fixation back to a single moment in time, where an itch to scratch branched off into a near obsession from only a couple of seconds, and that moment is the first time Soap ever sees Ghost’s face.

It’s unexpected, the way Ghost pulls off his mask in front of the 141 and company. His eyes are almost squirrely, never quite meeting anyone’s gaze, but Soap doesn’t think he’s ever been so in love.

He doesn’t get quite enough time to memorize, however, before another mask is being slipped over mussed blond hair and pale scarred skin, and suddenly Soap is overcome by the desire to draw Ghost.

To draw Simon.

When they finally arrive back on base following the Las Almas operation, Soap doesn’t waste any time pulling out his notebook and drawing Ghost to the best of his memory. When he finishes, he knows he’s gotten some things wrong, but he hasn’t much to work with. He erases and pencils in new lines tens if not hundreds of times trying to get it right, but it simply isn’t possible.

It’s too bad for Soap, because he just isn’t satisfied with his current result, and it’s too bad for Ghost, because Soap is a persistent, stubborn sonuvabitch.

They’re not quite on leave when Soap begins his endeavour, just between missions. He starts by making a purposeful show of drawing the 141, forcing them to sit so he can, supposedly, get everything perfect. It’s under the guise that he sucks at drawing people (a complete and utter lie), and what better way to practice than with those waiting around.

Soap saves Ghost for last, and it’s a damn good thing he does, because what a difficult affair it is convincing him to sit for, what Ghost deems, “a stupid art project”.

“I have better things to do, Johnny,” Ghost tells him. “And you do, too.”

Soap shrugs. “Maybe. But I won’t stop asking ‘til you agree, Lt.”

Ghost would continue to push off the request—a true testament to his resolve, really—but Soap would continue to insist, so finally, eventually, Ghost breaks.

The encounter is more than reluctant, but Soap figures that Ghost has realized it's either now or later that it happens. He still wears his mask, of course, but it’s only the balaclava—so at the very least, Soap could get his eyes just right.

And that’s a better start than none.

They’re tucked away in a quiet corner of the base for Soap’s “stupid art project”. Ghost shifts constantly while Soap scribbles away in his notebook, first unsure where to look, then unsure of where to put his hands. Soap wears a smile the entire time.

“You’re allowed to move, you know,” Soap says after much too long of a time. He keeps himself from laughing. “It’s better if you do, really.”

Ghost glares daggers at Soap. “You didn’t want to tell me that sooner?”

Soap grins at the Lieutenant but makes no further comment. He’d rather have his life spared for the time being.

Once Soap has finished, he doesn’t say anything. He just sets his pencil down and closes his notebook and makes to leave. Ghost watches every movement closely and remains silent himself. Only, he doesn’t move from his spot, and Soap can almost feel that he has a question he’s debating to ask.

It never ends up phrased as a question, but Ghost’s hesitation is so palpable it might as well have been.

“Let me see.”

Soap hadn’t expected Ghost would want to, though a part of him had most definitely hoped otherwise. He doesn’t put up a fight for such a reason, instead wordlessly passing the notebook to Ghost to browse.

It’s Soap’s turn to fidget as Ghost flips through pages. Most take only a few seconds, nothing more than an impassive look, but Soap knows the moment Ghost stumbles upon the page of his face, sans mask. There’s an instant of realization from them both, and the world feels at a standstill.

When Ghost clears his throat, Soap does his best not to flinch. Maybe this endeavour isn’t worthwhile. Maybe it’s nothing more than an invasion of Ghost’s privacy. Of his person.

Finally, Ghost looks up at Soap, his hardened gaze no different from the one he always wears. There’s no emotion in them, and Soap doesn’t know if that makes everything better or worse.

Soap doesn’t notice how tightly Ghost grips the notebook until later, when he spots the accidental smudge of graphite from the Lieutenant’s thumb.

“When did you do this, Johnny?” Ghost asks. His voice is low and steady as usual, but there’s a near unnoticeable strain that sends guilt through Soap’s body. By now he’s certain he’s made an irreparable mistake.

Soap swallows. “When we got back from Las Almas, sir.”

Ghost looks back at the drawing and nods. He does as Soap had and closes the notebook, sliding it back and standing from the bench where Soap had told him to sit. Soap waits nervously, impatiently, for Ghost to say anything, to curse him out, to tell him to get rid of it, but soon it seems like he would do nothing of the sort.

“Not bad,” is all he tells Soap, before walking off to disappear to God knows where. Soap stays glued to the spot for a solid five minutes following, until he finally feels like he can breathe again.

Not bad. Soap supposes it could’ve been a lot worse.

#i hope i haven’t posted this before #simon ghost riley #john soap mactavish #ghost mw2 #soap mw2 #ghost x soap #soapghost #ghoap #ghostsoap #writing

[dailydoseofdragon]

Have you ever wanted to draw something but you fought due to your skill level at the time you decide not to do it

I used to all the time! Honestly it got to the point where I stopped making art entirely for 4 years straight because of it. I don’t know what exactly convinced to pick it back up, probably some combination of a million different versions of the holy shit two cakes post and the no one will ever draw art the way you do post. I think the best you can do is try. Your skill level is never going to improve if you don’t take risk and you might end up paralyzed for four years wondering why you can’t make a ‘perfect’ art piece.

One of my favorite works I have made was actually a rough sketch animatic I put off for months because I just wasn’t good enough in my eyes to make it. I’ll be honest I can’t yet draw humans to save my life but I’m doing my best to learn. It took three weeks of my brain screaming at me and playing the same song over and over before I caved and started drawing. I’m not going to lie I hated it immensely at first. I even stopped working on it for a month or two before forcing myself to continue working on it. But then I finished it and I just kept rewatching it over and over because I made it! I did that?!? Yeah sure it’s not perfect and the human characters are little more then modified stick figures. The beginning was a little iffy because I didn’t really understand how to make animatics. But god I still go back to it and watch it because I honestly never thought I could make something like that. I hope one day to come back to it and see how much I’ve improved to be honest.

I think maybe you should still try even if you don’t think you are ‘good enough’ to make it. How are you ever going to reach the vague notion of good enough if you don’t try at least? You can’t walk a mile without taking a step and all that yknow?

Ha, sorry if this makes no sense I have a lot of feelings on this topic and am currently sporting a killer headache right now. I struggled with the idea of ‘good enough’ ever since I first sat curled up on the couch as a teen learning to draw dragons from wattpad tutorials.

TL:DR I guess-

#treasure trove #bonus #you all now know my deepest shame 😞 #I learned by drawing wings of fire tutorials on wattpad #Which you can probably easily see in my art style tbh

[sroloc--elbisivni]

bunnyguard reflection

in the spirit of 'fuckit it's my own blog i can be sappy if i want to' as well as 'this took a year and 78k and i get to keep talking about it for at least one more day' now and here is the time and place for personal yap that did not go in the last author's note.

preliminarily speaking, i had this concept in mind before I'd finished either the usagi yojimbo comics OR watching Rise. i spent so much of both of those series fishing out little moments and choices by leo and usagi that made me go 'oh my god i NEED these guys to meet, i need to watch them bounce off each other.' I kept collecting snips of ideas, and dialogue, and encounters that never quite all panned out or fit together because this was just so much fun for me to play in. I had a lot of wanting to turn this into a real story but no concrete frame to build it on, and then in january i saw the year of the otp prompts go by. and went 'oh haha that looks fun.' it was even the year of the rabbit. and then i went 'oh!! what if i did VIGNETTES for these!!' and then less than three days later the Battle Nexus as political element of the Hidden City, complete with connections to the very different other iteration of it that we'd seen, fell into place and suddenly this silly little whim was an actual big project staring me down with an ambitious goal in mind, and I had no idea if I could pull it off.

structuring it as a month by month thing was something i'd never done before. it forced me to wait to find out what would happen, to keep building to something that didn't exist yet, to lay down the track while I was driving the train. and at the same time, it gave me space to grow, to practice putting together a beginning, middle, and end every month. and it gave me something to look forward to, and the excitement of dropping in threads that wouldn't pay off for months, and watching as it went to see what the audience reaction would be. were people getting out of it the things i wanted to give them? was i hitting the notes i wanted? i had the sketch of the year, but i was still learning what was going to happen until the moment the last word hit the page. plot and character choices, but also big thematic stuff! i described November's fic as 'the ten of swords' to Space and then went 'wait a fucking second' and realized that I could draw a connection, in order, between each fic and a numerical card of tarot's suit of swords. (mostly one-to-one --october straddles 9-10, and December loops us back around to the Ace of swords, for new beginnings.) i couldn't have done that on purpose. if i'd had that thought in january i would have gone 'no that's too pretentious and too hard' and avoided it.

also!! this has been a year of my life!! over the course of this series, i've had four different living situations (that lasted longer than a week), two different jobs, and gone back to school. i had to change meds, which was an anxious ordeal in 'am i even going to be able to focus on anything now?' the cat that was purring on my lap while i worked on the first few months has now passed away. this fic kept me company on the flight for my move to a different continent. it kept me sane in the middle of a very stressful summer. it's helped me meet and get closer to some really cool people. i can FEEL how it's made me a stronger writer.

and on top of all that: i am deeply, genuinely, truly proud of this series. i'm glad i wrote it. i'm amazed at how it's turned out. i can see things i would change if i did it over, but i'm glad i won't be. i'm glad this is the way it exists. and i am utterly blown away that there are people who told me they were looking forward to it every month, that they've been following it since the beginning, that they like what i've done with this place. this is the longest-term project i've ever done. it's the most words i've ever put into a single narrative. i can't believe it's never going on my wip rotation again. whadda hell.

i have no idea if i'll ever do anything like this again. i hope it won't be anytime soon--there are other things i want to do in the meantime. but god, am i glad i did it.

#sroloc babbles #fic talk #bunnyguard

[lazar-codes]

01/02/2024 || Day 11 (dop)

TLDR:

🔸 added last class' ASL words to my program

🔸 worked on toggle for Frontend Mentor project

🔸 started and finished an illustration for fanart

🔸 started and nearly finished editing and rendering my recording of my illustration

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I can't believe I'm sick again. I've gotten sick for 3 out of the past 4 months, and I'm annoyed. Luckily this is the mildest illness compared to the other 2, but it's still not fun. All my symptoms have been spread out, so the past 3 days I've had one runny nostril, yesterday I was completely exhausted, this morning I lost my voice, and now the other nostril's runny.

Work

Frontend Mentor - I've been slowly chipping away at this project but now I gotta get my butt into gear because I wanted to finish this in January, and it's now February and I still have a lot left to do. Today I worked on the implementation of the toggle between the "monthly" and "yearly" plans, and I got it to work by changing the display to either the "monthly" or "yearly" cost to be either "none" or "block". This is basically what the HTML looks like, and below's the functionality for the toggle.

Basically, I get all the elements that have the term "plan_cost" as their class name and for each element, depending on what the toggle is on (i.e. monthly or yearly) I change their display property. I can fix the code to make it not repetitive, but for now it's fine. I've been doing this project using TypeScript and some of my errors are a little confusing, but Google is a good resource.

Anyways, here's what I have so far. It ain't much, but it's honest work;

Art

Ok, I'm gonna do a bit of a ramble here. I've been replaying The Last of Us Part 2 throughout all of January and I finished it last week. It's still an emotionally heavy game, but it did the trick and motivated me to want to draw some fanart. I've been sketching random stuff in my sketchbook almost every day (not lately now that I'm sick but whatever), but there's one idea that I had that I kept on coming back to, and today I had enough energy to sit down, open up Photoshop, and just draw it. And oh man, that felt really good! I haven't drawn in Photoshop in a while because I've been forcing myself to use Procreate, but it's just not the same. I feel like PS allows me to draw with more control of my lines and details and such, and my image just looks sharper than on Procreate. So I actually managed to pump out a piece that looks pretty much how I imagined it would look, and I didn't get frustrated like I would on Procreate. I also recorded my process and was working on making it a speedpaint, but nearly 4 hours of raw footage was rough on my PC and it's already super late at night, so I'll finish up that process tmr. I love making speedpaints and watching them afterwards. At least that'll count for my days of productivity tmr.

#studyblr #100 days of code #codeblr #programming #coding #lazar blogs #100 days of productivity

[mayyosgallery]

Sketch based off of an AU I saw

Deathbringer chuckled, raspy from the pain.

"I've seen a lot of reactions to being about to die, but I don't think laughing is one of them."

"You're trying to kill me? That can't be right! You've barely managed to get a little spit on my face!"

Glory hissed in response, but the chair the Nightwing held between them assured she'd not hit anything vital.

"Queen Scarlet's treasured assassin and this is all you've done? I must admit I just assumed you were trying to flirt with me!"

"Ex-Queen Sc-" She parsed out the last bit and stopped.

"Right! She had a little accident didn't she? Rainwing Venom? Call it baseless intuition but I don't think something like that happens on accident! What do you think?"

He was fishing, that much was clear. But for what? Regardless, she hid anything he could use deep in her mind.

He stopped circling her, she matched him, "See, if you don't respond then the banter just becomes a monologue; which I can do!"

He gladly started, smiling madly, "So you had to get away from Scarlet pretty quickly! Maybe you thought you could make good with Burn, but after it turned out that you didn't finish off Scarlet as well as you thought you did that bridge... well... It burned."

Don't react.

"Which leads you to your other options, run away forever - somehow I think you aren't doing that. Blaze. Or, you take your bets with a lost princess act in the Sea Kingdom? Make your way onto Blister's side."

Don't.

React.

"Which is why you can't kill me, because you know that'd leave us on the same side! I really do think we'd make quite the duo!"

Don't... react..?

"Unless, Starflight didn't tell you? I really would appreciate at least some expression, by the way. It's only really satisfying to brag about how much I've figure out about you five if you are surprised! And finding all of your names was a LOT more difficult then you'd think!

Starflight, leader of the group, of course he kept you in right? That's why you didn't actually put in all your effort in fighting me! I mean, the only other option is that you were wasting energy on something silly like making sure I can't read your mind!

He told you that we're all liars! Every single one of us, as powerless as ever other dragon! It's not like he couldn't know, even in the one in a million chance that he somehow could read minds unlike every single other NightWing, then he would've realized the game as soon as he met another one of us!

What are the chances that he just hasn't! I'd have to be pretty low, considering exactly where I got my information...

But that just means that little thought experiment was useless, because he told you!"

He was lying, that much was clear. He was just trying to wrench her open so she'd let her thoughts go... she couldn't react. She couldn't.

Even as her breaths lost pace and her heart raced.

"There it is!" He smiled, "Glory, two tips from a professional - only since I heard from a little bird that we may end up working together."

He laughed offhandedly and looked down at some blood on his claws, "The trick to hiding your feelings isn't to be blank, it's to be loud."

His back talons planted themselves on a rock by the cliff side, a rope tied around it.

In an instant she traced the path of it.

"Secondly? Never let someone monologue."

It wrapped around her ankle and pulled her, from the angle she couldn't brace herself. She swung at the other assassin, only to catch on the makeshift shield.

She realized all to late that with her claws occupied she would have no way to catch herself on cliff, and would forced off it.

She could catch herself in air with her wings... but Deathbringer would certainly escape.

#witness! my art #wings of fire #glory wof #deathbringer wof #wings of fire au #wof au #Why was there a human shaped dragon sized chair on a cliff? #Shut up I don't know

[trinkerichi]

TEKVENTURES! I wanna ramble about Tekventures.

if you remember them you qualify for a veterans discount

So they were Sgt.Frog ocs that my best friend SARAZA and I made on flipnote for edgy amvs and comics. I wanna say I wassss 13? give or take. But these little guys were my EVERYTHING. We thought of a billion stories about them. Then I got sick of drawing frogs eventually and wanted to make them more of an original thing. Our first sketches were of anthro goats, but over time with my style changes, an the fact that I hate spending more than 2 seconds drawing anything, they no longer resemble any specific animal and turned into fuzzy nondescript species of alien thing. ANYWAY I wanted to make them into a "real comic series" when i was 17. That's when I started the chapters that are still up on tumblr n webtoons! and a few other sites probably that I forgot about.

I've been harsh on it in the past but honestly I still love it to bits. What's there is a solid little comic and i still think it's adorable!

The only thing is, that's judging it based on what's there. It's a basis for a cute episodic thing with low stakes! Like the early mlp fim episodes or the new care bears cartoon. But that's NOT what it was planned for in the long term. Oh no, I was so ambitious. I had at LEAST 50 episodes planned which would weave together into this massive arc that would introduce other space teams, wayward space travelers with secret pasts connecting to the main cast, sad backstories for everyone, ALL of the family members of the main cast, a villian team with like... 'anti-versions' of the main cast, and a dramatically foreshadowed final confrontation with robot clones that want to destroy their planet. OH AND ROBIN too! Besides all that, they ALSO have multiple side story episodes about crashing to earth and befriending a human girl named Robin who has to keep them secret.

That might have been um. a lot.

But when you start writing a story with your best friend when you're 13 you most likely have NO CONCEPT of "too much". Who am I kidding I STILL have trouble pacing myself. But when you come up with a story it's hard not to think it's just GOLD! And that you've gotta keep it no matter what! Because that stuff is fun!

I went full force into the comic in my senior year of highschool and eventually I finished the first chapter! It took me a year. And then I looked at my plans for the other 49 episodes and thought "maybe I need to rework some things.."

I rebooted the comic once, tried making smaller stories, all that, but I wasn't quite feeling the same drive anymore. I realized I was comparing my work to high budget tv shows with like. a full team of writers and artists. and studio funding. and greenlit seasons and all that. And it was making me feel TERRIBLE about my art!

So I quit comics! I started hating comics! I hated how long they took and how restricted I felt (with my own expectations) and I lost my confidence in finishing projects because I was so sad about giving up on my big magnum opus. and I just kinda gave up and started only doing fandom art for a couple years. I did a jyushimatsu ask blog and kept it up for ages! And then a new season of Osomatsu came out and I realized when comparing it that I was basically writing an oc at this point. And that I CAN commit to long term projects if i dont get self conscious about it!

I still didnt wanna jump into comics again. But I thought of some new characters that I was becoming attached to. the very very beginnings of what could turn into a new idea.

I thought "well i still love cartoons about space! even if im not making tekventures anymore maybe i could do another space story. a really tiny one."

so i started making an rpgmaker game! and it started taking forever. so in the meantime i made a really rough doodle comic about how the characters first met. as a little side story thing.

and THAT was the key. I had to stop thinking about it like i was making a big cool tv show and starting my career and all that. its just a fun thing, off the cuff, not overthinking it, just for fun and personal expression.

so im still going with it! and its GREAT! Rocket chip has 12 planned chapters, and I'll be halfway done by the end of the year.

But BOY did it take me forever to learn that.

#trinket rambles

[noffy96]

Errink fic: What death takes from us Chapter 3

Here it is, the final chapter of this fic, hope i managed to deliver on the ending!

What death takes from us:

Patience rewarded

Word count: 10359 (this chapter

Chapter (3/3) (Complete)

(first chapter)

Chapter Summary:

Error feels like something is off. And his worries get confirmed when he visits the Doodle Sphere. He has to find a creative solution to help his boyfriend, even if he doesn't enjoy it. But maybe something else was baking up

Link here to AO3

Or continue below the read-more line

He sighed as he closed the portal behind him. Something was off, really off. The feeling only got stronger as he headed towards the house Ink called his home. He had a feeling something had been off this morning. He should have called instead of believing Ink over Tekst. And the loud sounds coming from inside only confirmed his suspicions.

But he had needed a full day of rest. It had been a whole week, of being around way too many people. It was a wonder he hadn't somehow crashed. But he was feeling normal again.

Or as good as the new normal was letting him. Despite being back for six months now It was still not anywhere near how it had been before his little vacation to the afterlife.

He took another deep breath, as he listened to the sounds coming from the house. It could mean one of two things. And he hoped it wasn’t the same as two months back. Ink had been going through enough emotional turmoil lately.

He gave a light shudder as he remembered the normally bright room being covered in coats of thick black ink. The scream of pain he heard as he rushed up the stairs. His boyfriend's face stuck in that jack-o-lantern smile, with black tears streaming down his face.

If he closed his eyes he could still see the way ink collapsed when he came back to himself. He clenched his fist. It had taken everything not to wrap him up in a hug. It would have hurt, and only have made things worse.

He stood in front of the door and debated teleporting in, but decided against it. Didn’t need to get an attack thrown at his face today. He opened the door or tried to at least, but it got stuck. He pushed a bit harder, enough that he could slip through the opening. The door was pushed shut, the second he let go.

He glanced around the room and saw every surface of the room covered with different unfinished works. Canvases with half-finished sketches, different types of yarn work, paper craftworks, plants, sculptures, clay figures, and even more things he couldn’t name.

It was usually a mess, finding materials everywhere. But not covering the ground until there was no place to walk, not this unlivable. He didn’t even see a way for ink to move around by jumping from wall to wall. The sounds he heard from outside seemed to come from the kitchen.

Summoning his strings, he used them to fly over the mess. He grabbed a hold of the doorpost as he looked inside. Loud music was blasting from inside. All the counters were littered with different bowls, glasses, pans, and other appliances. It looked like Ink had started cooking and baking dozen of different recipes and not finished any.

Ink had ever since his death, tried to keep the balance. And lately, he had the feeling Ink was trying to tip it into his favor instead of his own. So the forces that be, were probably trying to make Ink create, no matter how he felt about it.

And right in the middle Ink was working on a cutting board. He managed to find somewhere to stand and checked over his boyfriend. Ink seemed to half throw something on a bit more haphazardly instead of his usual outfit. Some brown shorts and a white T-shirt with different art stains of god knows what. And more worryingly scarf nowhere in sight

Ink's eyes were shifting way too quickly through its symbols. Different spirals kept popping up, as he was mumbling to himself.

But he breathed a small sigh of relief to see that his eyes weren’t very cloudy. So this was most likely not a swallowing too much ink situation. And he had a feeling he knew what it was.

It was one of the worst feelings when the multiverse decided it had enough. And everything becomes so loud, so demanding. The only way for the painfully loud voices to stop, for him, was to destroy. Ink had told him, it was similar for him. Over the years both of them became good at fighting the instinct. But occasionally, it grew stronger and could overwhelm them.

The last time it took hold of him, he was destroying universe after universe, not really realizing which one he did. Popular or not.

Ink in contrast could start making so much, to fill the void up. It often happened when protecting alone wouldn’t be enough. And it could get really bad if all his colors were used up. Ink would forget to eat and drink. And just become a machine that just kept churning out artworks.

When he asked what was wrong with what he had created. Ink had called them ‘soulless’. In the months after, he had been destroying those artworks and universes one by one. Slowly as to not upset the balance and send ink into another spiral. Ink never mentioned it. It had been their little secret

Ink only had one that was so bad in the time they became friends. And to see his then-friend look at all the art he had made with such a sad frown on his face. It had ached something in him.

Ink did like to get feedback on his work. But never seemed to hate or even dislike anything he made. But then, well he never saw ink look so sad.

Now Ink was fighting that instinct, to go out there and make new AU’s. And seemed to be in a creative manic spiral. Listening to the creators to make something, but not being able to finish anything.

He knocked on the wall, Ink didn’t seem to react.

“Ink?”

Still nothing. He huffed, trying not the be insulted at being ignored, He used his strings to clear some space in front of the counter. Then jumped to the now free floor, putting his hands down

“Squid!”

Ink stilled for a second, then slowly looked up. Yellow flooded his eyes and face way too quickly.

“Ruru~! Good to see you! How was your rest?”

Ink's voice was a tad too loud. And he hid a flinch,

“Been fine, you’ve been busy”

Ink nodded happily, but there was a hint of purple in there too. And now that Ink had stopped cutting whatever he was working on. He was swaying lightly, he could also hear bones rattling just below the music.

He frowned and looked to the side,

“You mind if I turn that off?”

Ink turned his head towards the music player, confusingly looking toward it. After a few seconds, he shook himself out of his thoughts

“Oh yeah, that’s fine.”

There was a hidden strain in there, and he had a feeling Ink had put on the music to drown out the noise of the creators. But considering his confusion, it had stopped helping, and he hadn’t realized it was still playing.

Using an attack he quickly turned off the music. Ink"s eyes shifted through more symbols, and he came up with an idea.

“What are you baking?” Ink looked back at him, eyes blinking fast quickly.

“Uhhh..” Ink looked down at his hands.

“...cake?....” Ink started very confused. Eyes cycling a couple more times through his symbols, then looking up happily

“A strawberry chocolate cake! “

He kinda doubted that was what it started as, but he could see a way to quell some of Ink’s restlessness.

“Want me to help finish it?”

The of Ink slammed his hands on the table. Eyes turning to stars.

“You serious?! Yes!, yes, please! Thank you Error!”

Ink’s face flushed a happy bright yellow And despite the circumstances, he couldn’t help but give a small smile himself

Baking meant getting dirty, and if he hated something it was creating. But getting Ink to actually finish something, would probably quiet the voices for a bit. And he was willing to suffer through the unpleasant bits.

Ink’s tired swaying had become happy bouncing, as he took off his jacket and scarf, dumping them through a portal back to his home, not wanting to get them dirty.

“So what can I do for you Squid?”

Ink started looking around the counter space, picking up different bowls and pans. Before suddenly grabbing a box with a cake printed on it from beneath three measuring cans. And handing it to him.

He took it carefully, trying to avoid the sticky fingerprints all over it. But grimacing as the icing coated his fingers as their hands brushed together.

“That’s the one I am making! Can you do the wet ingredients, then I go do the dry ones after I finish with the strawberries “

And Ink beamed, going back to cutting up the fruits in front of him... This time it was a little less frantic, Still a bit too quick for his liking. But he knew he shouldn’t rush this. And with some careful maneuvering, he got around the counter, to grab what he needed.

He gave a nod

“Sure thing Inky”

After staring at the box with a glare for a few minutes, He let out a few curses and grumbles. Pulling out his glasses and putting them on. As he read the instructions he went over to grab everything from Inks fridge. Double checking if things weren’t expired, knowing his scatterbrain of a boyfriend.

When he closed it, he noticed that Ink was staring at him. Focussing on his face. Then he realized he was staring at him because of his glasses, he felt his face flush and quickly took them off.

Ink had seen them before why did he have to act like it was the best thing he had ever seen? He deliberately kept his gaze away as he cleaned off some measuring cups, and started adding the wet ingredients together.

Bringing his attention back to his boyfriend after he started searching for a mixer. Only for Ink to look quite lost.

“What is the last thing you did Kiki?”

Ink looked back surprised, back to the bowl he was holding, then up again.

“Added the flour…but I feel like I am forgetting a step”

He grabbed the box and wandered over to stand next to him. So he grabbed his glasses again. Giving a little warning glare to not say anything.

“So you did the flour and sugar?” Ink nodded

“Added the coca?” Ink shook his head, glancing around the room. Then back in the bowl.

“Got butter in here?...should that be?” He quickly scanned the text.

“Is like two steps down, but don’t think it’s gonna be a huge problem” He muttered, turning the box a bit more so Ink could read it. Who took the box gently and read it over, nodding along as he read it over.

“Okay, glad to not have ruined another batch”

Handing the box back. He got some of the batter that was stuck on Ink's fingers on his own as they lightly brushed. And he flicked it at him. Making Ink laugh and dodge out of the way. And he went to grab the mixer and went back to his own bowl.

He stirred everything together until it was good and ready. As he pushed the bowl next to Ink’s, so they could add them together. As he started to search for some chocolate, and as he was rummaging through the cabinets, he noticed something on his hands. There was still some dry icing on his hands.

From when his hand had brushed Ink’s

….

…

…

Their hands had touched.

…

…

…

And he hadn’t even realized

He turned around quickly staring at his boyfriend's back, who was happily kneading what had at this point become a dough.

He hadn’t helped bake anything since he came back. This should have been similar. He should have flinched away, been struck by pain…he wasn’t. All they had to do…? Was it just waiting? That just didn’t feel right.

He felt his body tremble, as he took a step closer. Because this couldn’t be happening. It wouldn’t have so suddenly just been over. For months they had to be careful with every interaction. Noticing how many of their routines now involved touching. Fuck only after losing it all, had they both noticed how big his progress had actually been.

That when they fell back into their routines, they had to work around the casual touches now.

And maybe he did glitch? Maybe he had just brushed the icing. He really shouldn’t be getting his hopes up. But he hadn’t felt that pushing sensation that had accompanied their interactions ever since that miserable first kiss. The feeling had weakened greatly over the last month. But it had been there before. He was getting his hopes up, but he couldn't stop himself.

He was just two steps behind Ink now. And his love raised his head,

“Everything alri-”

Ink stopped talking as he reached forward and wrapped his hand carefully around the other's upper arm. Just below the t-shirt sleeve. Feeling those bones for the first time in over half a year.

“Er-ror?”

Ink gasped and then he had frozen up, and so had he. Just that one moment of contact. It was still prickling as if he had slept on it. But it didn’t hurt, and it didn’t seem to hurt Ink either.

Throwing all caution to the wind he let go and Ink let out another surprise gasp.

He took the last two steps forward and warped his arms around Ink’s chest, Pulling him close against his body. Burying his face into Ink's shoulder. There was a clatter as he yanked Ink's body back, the bowl of ingredients falling over the floor in front of their feet.

For a few seconds, they just stood there, both of their chest heaving with scared quick breaths. His arms tightened as no pain came. Feeling those familiar ribs between his arms and chest. Struggling to hold in his tears.

A trembling hand reached up and rested against his arm…stroking up and down

Once

Twice

Then grabbing on tightly. Scared to let go. Ink’s breath grew labored and quick. Both their bones rattled as reality seemed to settle in over them.

His voice stuttered a bit, but for once it wasn’t the glitches.

“Got you…I’ve got you…”

The sound Ink let out was between a sob and a dry laugh. And then wetness hit his arms. He opened his eyes, raising his head a little. Just able to see yellow-blue tears roll down Ink's face, dripping down his chin. Then feeling them against his arms.

He squeezed a bit tighter. Fighting hard against his own tears.

“Ssshh..it’s okay…It is okay…No need for the waterworks Kiki…if you continue…I will start as well”

A laugh seemed to get punched out of Ink. Along with another sob. A second hand came up to hold onto his arms. In response, he nuzzled softly at Ink's neck. His own face felt warm at feeling that familiar body heat again.

Another sob tore out of Ink's throat. Then Ink started tugging desperately at his arms, making him loosen his grip lightly. Just enough for Ink to turn around. He caught a glimpse of the tears-stained face. Eyeshapes in the form of a soul and a teardrop. Yellow, blue, pink, and purple are all mixed into one.

Inks hands reached up and grabbed his cheeks, feeling it leave behind some more batter, and was pulled down roughly into a kiss.

The last time they kissed, it had burned so bad he had screamed. But now…now all he could feel was inks teeth against his own Just like he remembered how it should feel. Warm and welcome. But also, so very hungry.

Inks magic teased at the seam of his teeth. And for once he didn’t hesitate to open them. Consequences be dammed, as his own hand came to rest against Ink's cheek. Stroking that ink stain that seemed burned into his love's bones.

Tongues quickly rolling out one, by one. Each of which Ink happily devoured. His own tongue fighting so hungrily against his own. Their chest pressed together, their legs tangling together from how much they tried to pull each other closer.

They tumbled onto the ground with painful grunts but neither stopped their hungry kiss. As tears rolled over their cheeks, trying to pour in all of their longing.

Beneath his hands, he could feel Ink’s magic rushing. He knew what was coming, and he growled and pressed closer. Hopefully conveying.

Don’t stop

Let it happen.

Give it to me.

Give me all of you.

The familiar taste of ink hit his tongue. There was still a grossness factor to it. But now it was largely overwhelmed by the fact that it was just able to happen again. And he licked up every single bit that spilled between their mouths. With happy little grunts and groans. Then let his face fall in inks neck.

His boyfriend was now sitting on his lap. Arms looped around his neck and back. Legs warped around his waist, and he was trembling. He tangled around him just as tightly. His own arms held tightly onto Ink’s back, Bringing his legs up to further case him against his chest.

Fuck Ink was trembling so hard. He stroked his hand down the other's spine, trying to calm him. As his own soul hammered faster than ever within his own ribcage.

“Ruru..?” Ink’s voice was thick with tears, and he squeezed a little tighter

“Right here Kiki” Warm hands were gliding over his back. And he was really happy he decided to take off his coat earlier. One of the hands balled into a fist, holding on desperately. It felt so right to hold him close once again.

“Is…is this real?”

He sounded so scared, so fucking scared, and it just made him hold on tighter. Tight enough to hurt his hand, for it to probably bruise Ink's bones.

“I….I didn’t go mad…right?...this isn’t the universe trying to trick me into creating something…right?”

A couple of tears fell, landing against inks shirt.

“Dunno, how that would work Squid…but no…unless we both went mad”

Another sniffling laugh.

“With our track record, we just might have…”

He barked out his own laugh, and gently pinched inks hip bone, making him laugh and flinch away. So he kept doing it. Wanted to hear that laugh more now that he could feel it against himself.,

“What’s that Squid?! Would an insane person make you laugh?”

“Aahh, Nooo, stooop~! “

Ink let out a high shriek as he continued to giggle trying to fight back, but he crushed Ink against himself, making it hard to move

“Trying to undermine my sincerity, aren’t you?!,

“So-orry! Pl-please! S-stop “ Another high burst of laughter, that he could feel through every part of his body, his own face falling into an easy grin

“RURU!” he stopped his teasing fingers, and Ink was panting hard, giving him a soft glare.

He simply raised an eyebrow, and Ink kissed him, quickly and sweetly. Then resting their foreheads together as he tried to catch his breath.

“Thanks, Ru”

He trailed his hands back up Ink’s spine until he was holding onto his back. Giving a quiet hum as he stared into Ink’s eyes. The one teardrop shape had also transformed into a soul, and they were just shifting through all the colors.

But he quickly returned his hands thumbs stroking soothingly beneath his eyes. Eyes raking up and down. Still, a slight tremble in the other's smile.

Ink's hands raised up again, this time he felt them gently trace over the tear marks on his face. Until they hid the frames of his glasses. He blinked, having completely forgotten he had been wearing them.

Ink’s hands gently took hold of them, and with a quiet hum, took them off. Reaching up, and putting them somewhere on the counter, out of danger.

But that hadn’t happened, and now both of them were gonna take their time and enjoy this next kiss. He felt a tongue tease at his teeth, he slowly opened up. He had wanted to return only one. But his body didn’t seem to fully cooperate and summoned three of his tongues.

They both leaned in for another kiss. Half-hooded eyes keeping eye contact the whole time. He didn’t wanna miss a shift in those colors, wanted to see how hard he was affecting him.

.

Their first kiss had been desperate, trying to convince themselves and each other that it was real. Afraid it would be taken away just as quickly as this little miracle had been given.

Ink hummed happily as they invaded his mouth. His hands lowered till they held onto his shoulders. His own hands reached up to hold the back of Ink's head softly guiding them into a soft push and pull.

Ink’s mouth still tasted of the ink he puked up. But underneath that was the taste, that made ink, well ink. It always reminded him of artificial fruit flavors, this time it was strawberry with banana. It also always did taste kinda chemically, but it didn’t bother him, he was sure he himself was a bit static-y.

Breathing is a bit labored and quick. Ink’s eye lights fully pink. And with a trembling smile, his boyfriend hid himself in his neck. And he gently petted the other's spine once more.

His half-open eyes were still locked with Ink’s. The Pink flush on his cheeks slowly gained more and more colors.

Then there was a desperate little noise, and the hands on his shoulders tightened. In response, he pulled Ink as flush against him as he could. Summoning his final two tongues to tease at the edges of inks mouth. Not able to do more than kinda lick at Ink’s skull. Until, after a few minutes they both pulled away.

“I don’t wanna forget this….” Ink mumbled and he nuzzled the side of Ink's neck.

“You won’t” He breathed out with the utmost confidence This was too important, he just knew he wouldn’t forget.

“But-”

“You won’t” he interrupted. Giving the collarbone a little kiss, which made Ink let out a little surprised gasp.

“...C-could…could you…do something…to ease my mind…that i won’t forget…”

He gave a nod “Anything”

He felt Ink swallow, and his face became a little warmer

“C-could you…mark me?...”

Ink's voice trailed off and became very quiet, and he felt his own eyes widen in surprise, pulling back to look at his boyfriend's face. Which was covered with a pink-blue-ish blush.

“I…you didn’t like it when we tried last time”

Ink nodded. They had only tried once. About a week or two before his death. It had been a spur-of-the-moment thing. They had been making out, He had asked if he could try. Ink agreed but he hadn’t enjoyed the feeling of being marked up.

Ink had said that had liked seeing the mark, but he didn’t like the pain of getting one. He rather tries something different to try and get a similar effect. Like drawing on each other's bones, or hiding one of the thousands of bracelets he had made on his person.

Even if the possessive side of him was disappointed. Ink managed to hold up so many of his boundaries. He’d survive without biting and marking up his lover, it wasn’t the end all be all.

“I…” Ink started, fingers trailing down his arm, until they reached his hands. Then Slowly ever so slowly intertwining their fingers together. Which made his soul beat almost out of its chest. Despite having had their hands all over each other this one thing still felt so much bigger.

There was a soft squeeze which he returned.

“I know….But…I still want to. I want more than words written on my scarf…I…want that proof…something that can only happen because we touched”

Ink still didn’t meet his eyes. There was a pretty big flush on the other cheek, mostly colored blue and pink but it gained a hint of orange. He felt his own face heat up, as his eyes scanned the other's neck,

“Okay…” he breathed out.

Ink’s eyes shot up.

“Really?” He sounded so hopeful. And his own soul tried to beat out of his chest. When he gave a nod. Looking away from the sheer intensity of that gaze

“Where?

He asked if anything to make that gaze stop. He felt Ink pull back a bit, and when he glanced back. He saw Ink’s eyes darting around with a flushed nervousness. Seeing that made him calm down a little.

“A-ah…my neck…I guess…”

He gave a little nod and leaned closer. But then Ink pulled back and he looked back up surprised. Ink’s eyes widened realizing what he did.

“A-ah…sorry Error…I…” At this point, Ink’s whole face had become pink, and he pressed a kiss against his cheek before he could spiral too far.

“It’s okay..” He pressed another a bit lower And he heard his love’s mouth close with a click.

“Just…let me know if it becomes too much…okay?”

A little nod, and he pressed a kiss against Ink’s jaw, then one against the topmost vertebrate. Ink's hand tangled into the bottom of his shirt. The other hand also reached forward, but kept on kind of hovering between them.

He pressed a kiss, a vertebrate lower, Bringing one hand up to where Ink’s neck met his skull, gently guiding him to turn throat. His other hand tugged Ink's shirt out of the way, and then gently wrapped around Ink's spine just below the ribs.

He felt ink freeze up, and he held still himself. Before removing the lower hand and moving it up, gently resting against the scapula instead. And his lover seemed to relax more. He kept kissing down until he reached a little over halfway.

Placing a second kiss, and whispering.

“Here?”

In his own mind, it seemed perfect, Just high enough, that it could be partly obscured by the scarf if he so wished. But not low enough that Ink would not miss it if he glanced into a mirror.

He felt Ink swallow.

“If you think it’s best?” he sounded unsure but also was breathing slowly and deeply. Not something he was used to from his Squid.

His own heart hammered, but still tried to keep a calm voice. Ink seemed nervous enough as it was. And he nuzzled the other's neck softly.

“I can keep go-”

“NO-! “ Ink yelled then stuttered and pulled away., turning completely pink once more

“I..i just…you know how I am with this….stuff. It’s all the same to me...I mean to say..i…uugh. What I mean is..”

“Kiki…..breath”

Ink’s head fell forward burring himself back into his shoulder with a groan. And he kept on petting the other's back soothingly. He was no stranger to Ink’s troubles with emotions. The intimate kind especially.

“You’re okay..”

He breathed against his love's skull. They stayed quiet for a few seconds. Then Ink mumbled softly

“It’s weird to want stuff like this…and at the same time still feel…I dunno. It’s not scared? Abrasive?....something like that....”

He pressed a kiss against Ink’s cheek once more.

“You are allowed to change your mind Inky”

“I know! Like I said I want to….I really, really do…honest. Dunno why I suddenly pulled away…”

Even without seeing his face, he knew Ink was pouting, so he continued to pet his back soothingly.

“Emotions are weird Inky, we can just not dwell on it and try again if you want. Or we can sit and figure it out. Whatever makes you more comfortable in the end.”

Ink shifted around a bit, before pressing closer.

“Drop it and try again…don’t think I have enough paints to last me an emotional rollercoaster”

He gave a nod, gently guiding his love's head back again. As he started kissing back down his neck, until he reached, the same spot... But he decided against pulling back this time. Just kept giving soft closed-mouth kisses against the vertebrates. One hand gently stroking down Ink’s spine. Making him relax a tiny bit.

But he could practically taste the others nervous. He opened his mouth and Ink took in a sharp breath but instead of closing his teeth over the bones, he brought out two of his tongues and started licking them and the sensitive magic between them.

Ink’s breath stuttered out of him

“Er-ror?”

He pulled back just enough, letting his breath ghost over the now wet bones.

“Just…trying something...see if you enjoy it okay?, if not…I’ll stop”

Ink gave a tiny nod, with another sharp intake of breath. And he continued the kiss and lick at the artist's neck It wouldn’t turn tender like ecto would. But he did see Ink’s magic react, the paints swirling towards the points he made contact with misty clouds of pink and purple.

He could feel Ink slowly relax more and more into his arms. Even craning his head to the side more. Ink’s bones tasted a bit like paper he thought distantly. But most of his attention was on the bone beneath his tongue. After a while ink softly asked

“Higher?”

And he did without question, not able to hide his smile, as Ink let out another gasp. Giving the spot the same amount of attention. Then slowly he opened his mouth, resting his teeth against the points he was gonna mark and holding still.

Ink's body tensed again, but not by much, and mumbled a quiet.

“Go ahead”

And he closed his eyes. Focusing on his intent, he bit down slowly and carefully. Trying to pour all his feelings into this bite.

How nervous he was feeling, But also how excited he was. That he loved Ink so much and he was fucking ecstatic that Ink dared to trust him this much. Loving the way Ink just fitted into his arms so perfectly, and that soon everyone would know he was his. That no one could question it, not even Ink himself.

Ink’s breathing quickened beneath him, slowly getting more and more labored. He felt himself growing concerned. And he planned to pull away. But then felt a hand on the back of his head pushing him closer instead.

A surprised noise left him.

“Pl-please…m-more”

Ink’s voice was sounding surprisingly wrecked. Part of him wanted to pull back and check, but the grip on his head increased. And he felt a hungry flare rise up. Ink wanted him to mark him up. Show the world that he was his, so he was gonna give it all that he got.

He bit down a bit harder. And Ink let out a noise between pain and pleasure, that made the heat on his face rise higher and higher. He was pretty sure that along with the love, he was pouring that possessiveness right into Ink.

Mine

That feeling of

Love you

Love you

Mine

LOVE YOU!

MINE!

No one would take ink from him again. Not even his own body was gonna keep Ink at this much distance again. Not if he could fight it. They were gonna stay together like this forever.

His eyes widened but he had sense enough not to suddenly pull back and let go. So he slowly relaxed his jaw and summoned all his tongued to lick, over and under the abused bones.

Ink’s other hand was scrambling against his back, sometimes petting, sometimes grabbing tight. He was pretty sure he had felt the nails scratch through the shirt at his bones.

But he was snapped out of everything when he started tasting marrow.

Then he slowly pulled back to look at the damage.

His face lit up with dark blush at what he saw.

Oh, it looked so good, it was hitting him right in all his possessive tendencies. There was a perfect circle of where he had sunken his teeth in. Part of it held the blue sheen of his own magic.

Ink was gorgeous like this.

His T-shirt was pulled down so his shoulder was bare and panting harshly. Eyes half-lidded, but swirling with rainbow colors and little soul symbols. Even the slight tears in his eyes.

And then there was the mark.

But the wound was also colored yellow and pink. Ink’s current emotional state.

“Looks that good?”

He saw the little bit of blue on Ink's finger before he took it into his own mouth. He felt his whole face burn up.

His eyes snapped up to Ink’s, Who’s smile turned teasing, and he made a dry swallow.

Ink giggled and sat up straighter again. The hand that had held him to Ink’s throat, came down to gently stroke his cheek. Then seemingly wiping the corner of his mouth.

“Ink! What the fuck! Gross!”

Ink just laughed, dismissing him entirely, and dropped his hand tracing over his new mark. And he couldn’t help but go back and forth between his love's face and him tracing it.

“Is it always supposed to feel like this?”

He shook himself out of his stupor.

“What?”

Ink stroked over the mark again, seeming to press it a bit harder.

“Getting one of these…It felt so different from last time…is…is this how it is supposed to feel? Cause…cause that. I want more of that…But..”

Ink’s eyes dropped down, not looking at him anymore, but he could still see Ink’s smile growing every time he pressed into the mark.

He raised his own hand, settling it right next to Ink’s and pressing the mark together. Ink looked up back up Staring into his face with wide surprised eyes.

“I think…it might be a special moment kind of thing. Takes both you wanting it, and me giving. Last time… wasn't like that..was more…”

“Trying for the sake of trying,” Ink finished

He gave a nod, and Ink’s eyes widened slightly as he breathed out

“It only works, if our emotions align”

He closed the gap between their teeth with a small kiss.

“Makes it more special?… Don’t you think?”

Ink’s smile grew, then his eyes dropped down toward his neck

“Could….could I try?”

His face gained color again. And he was sure he heard his body buzz. Even if he didn’t feel it.

“You sur-”

“Yes!” Inks said leaning closer, before backing away with a flush.

“I... I wanna try making you feel like I did! I … I really want to try! “

He felt himself nod and Ink’s smile grew, and before he could comprehend. Ink was leaving kisses on his neck. his hands dropped down and hold onto Ink's arms.

Ink’s breath felt warm against his neck, his soul started beating fast out of his chest. And he felt a tongue join the action just like he himself had done.

His hands held on tighter and he feared he might even be leaving bruises. He didn’t know how long Ink kept kissing and licking at his throat. But it felt longer than when he had done it.

He felt his ribcage brush against Inks with every shuddering breath. The way Ink’s hands held onto him so tenderly. Like he was precious, The solid weight of him on his lap, it was making his head spin.

But then he could focus on the teeth he could feel against his throat. His body shivered, and he felt a wave of glitches pass over him. They stung lightly but luckily didn’t return.

It took him another long embarrassing moment to realize that Ink was waiting for some sort of signal, that he was okay.

So he moved his hands up to his love's shoulders, closing his eyes he breathed

“Okay”

He felt another hot puff of air, and then slight pinching pressure, that slowly, increased. That pain was familiar in a way. In a way, his body normally behaved. But he could also feel something different. It was weak at first, just a shimmer of it.

It was kinda familiar, and after a few seconds, it clicked as to why. It felt like Ink’s healing magic. Something so intention and emotion-based. It was often quite weak. But it was similar. But there was a uniqueness to it. Like it’s its own flavor. And the more he relaxed into it. The more he could feel it. Learn how to pick it apart.

As it slowly draped over him, like a warm crochet blanket. His rapid breathing slowed, as the pain crew. Gently he caressed the others back up and down. He felt a shudder going down Ink's back. And he let out a high-pitched sound, as Ink's teeth dug in deeper. For a second he could feel ink’s ecto body appear, then just as quickly disappear.

There was a fire in the action too, something hot and burning. Ink pressed himself a little closer, and he moved his head to the side, giving Ink all the room he could wish. As he tried to untangle these emotions that were being poured into him.

His face flushed as his bones began to ache pleasantly, His hand gently pressing into Ink’s back, hopefully letting him know how much he was enjoying this experience.

Eventually, Ink slowly pulled away with a darkly flushed face. When their eyes met his. boyfriend's mouth twitched up for a second. It felt like he saw thousands of emotions swirl inside those ever-changing eyes.

He reached his hands up to said face and pulled him into a firm kiss. Holding him close for a few seconds.

“Thank you, Kiki” He whispered against his teeth as he let go, and Ink’s smile was a bit wobbly. And he turned his throat a bit

“So tell me…how does it look?”

Ink stared at it. Then whispered.

“Gorgeous”

He preened at the compliment. Reaching up to touch it. Feeling the slight dend in his bones. It would heal with time, and might even become a bruise for a day or two. Not long. But there was something terribly exciting about having Ink so clearly mark him up.

It was a statement in itself. Cause nobody else would ever be allowed that close to him.

Inks hand hovered between them so he took it and brought it up to his neck just beside the newly made mark. The flush on Ink's face got a lot darker. He simply raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend. And after a few seconds of hesitation, he felt Ink’s thumb press slightly into it.

He had to swallow a moan, but couldn’t suppress the shudder. Inks glanced up, their eyes holding for a second. And Ink did it again with a little smile on his face. And he glared after holding back another moan.

He leaned forward and stole another quick kiss. When he pulled back, Ink was smiling brightly.

“Satisfied?”

Ink nodded. Arms raised around his back once more and pulling him into another hug. Ink tugged his face over his shoulder and he did the same. Glad to be holding Ink close.

“I ain't letting you go for the rest of the day, you know that right,” he muttered

Ink laughed and he could feel the rumble of it through his chest.

“Honestly…same. But…is that safe?…shouldn’t we…you know… try and tone it down so you don’t overload yourself?”

He squeezed Ink tighter

“If this is just a one-time thing, I ain't fucking missing out by toning it down ”

Ink nuzzled and kissed his jaw. Then he let out another laugh

“There is batter all over your face”

He returned the gesture with a kiss of his own, and a little growl

“And who’s fault is that?”

Ink let out another giggle, and then a deep happy sigh

“I missed this…”

The arms around him squeezed him gently.

“Me too…”

They happily stayed like that for a couple of minutes. Hands gently trailing over backs, hips, arms, their bare bones. With little nuzzling kisses placed here and there. It was almost sickeningly sweet, but fuck it. They hadn’t been able to do as much as hold pinkies. He was gonna indulge all he could for as long as he could.

But the kitchen floor was getting uncomfortable, he opened a small portal beside them to peek into Ink’s room. Happy to see it wasn’t such a mess as the rest of the house.

“Ruru?”

He smirked, and pulled back, placing a quick kiss on Ink’s teeth. And then opened a bigger portal beneath them. Making them fall through right onto Ink’s soft bed.

Ink let out a shriek when they fell, holding on for dear life. Then he angrily sat up and straddled him further pushing him into the bedding.

“What the Hell Error!! “

And he laughed loudly.

“That’s for dragging me into all your portals squid”

Ink gave a pout, and wriggled himself lower, until he was laying on top of him, instead of sitting.

“If you wanted to cuddle, you should have said. No kisses for this clever trick.”

He said while burying his face into his chest. Laughing softly at his boyfriend's slightly childish antics. And raised a hand up to pet, and then softly trace Ink’s skull. Ink let out a soft sigh and buried himself further in.

“Your soul beat…it sounds different…I think”

His hand stopped moving. Staring down at his boyfriend.

“Explain?”

“The beat…is different? Last time…it was… one, two, one, two a pause. One, two, three? And now it is more like..a quicker one, two three, one, two, three. And a longer pause? That… is not normal for souls right? I mean I know yours is not like normal souls..but for it to change?.... Are you alright?”

He could hear the worry creep in. And he craned his neck forward to place a kiss at the top of his skull.

“Dunno if it is or not…just know that the beat is irregular. Sci made no mention of it after he checked me out. So doubt it something serious”

He felt Ink’s arm tighten

“I didn’t like how much you were glitching after the check-up”

“Not much to be done about it, I sure as fuck didn’t like it either. But rather not die a second time because of something stupid”

Ink let out a sad hum.

“How are you doing with the voices by the way?” He asked Ink softly

And Ink let out a sad laugh

“Of course you noticed.”

He rolled his eyes

“Be hard not to Inky”

“The creators have quieted down. For now, I still...feel them. But…then again. They always seemed to leave me alone, when we do stuff like this”

He blinked a couple of times, a hand trailing down Ink's arm until he found his hand, intertwining their fingers softly

“You never told me that”

He felt Ink shrug.

“Didn’t want you to feel obligated to hug me if you were having a bad day”

He felt his soul squeeze in gratitude. But also regret.

“I am willing to fucking help you, you know that right? I can deal with a bit more discomfort than normal. If it helps, I know how terrible it can be when the pressure to do our job becomes too great”

Ink stayed quiet. And he had a feeling that Ink indeed knew. But still felt like this was his own responsibility. He didn’t expect this to resolve in one day. But he could work on this. They work on it together.

He nuzzled to the top of his loves head

“If they still screaming at you tomorrow,. I help you create some SU’s”

Ink shot up, staring at him. A mix of excitement and worry on his face.

“You don’t have to I know-”

He cut him off with a kiss

“YOU have been doing my job, when I was gone. YOU have kept doing my job to keep the balance even after. Because my glitches were so bad that leaving the Anitvoid was a fucking pain. I think I can return the last six months, no fuck, that's wrong, I've only been back six. So that means EIGHT months of work, for ONE fucking day Ink. I don’t like creating any more than you like destroying. But I am willing to do it for you. Just as you are for me. I am sick and tired of seeing you run yourself so fucking racked okay?”

There were some blue tears gathering at the corner of Ink's eyes. And he gently encouraged the other forward to bury his face back into his neck. He noticed the surprise gasp and felt Ink shift away. Ink’s face heated up, and he realized he pulled him to the side ink had left the mark.

“It’s alright Kiki. You have been wonderful, let me return the favor okay? “

Ink was shaking and he felt a slight nod. And he gently traced his hands over Ink's ribs. Trying to follow the patterns of where he thought the tattoos were.

“Ruru…I…sorry…didn’t mean to worry you..”

He kissed the side of his boyfriend's face

“No harm done, you know I love it when you only pay attention to me. But not at the cost of yourself,

“I’ll try…to be better”

He pulled back. Cupping Ink's face in his hands, staring into Ink's eyelights. A pink teardrop and a blue upside-down triangle.

“I Love you as you are, But your consideration is really appreciated”

Ink's eyelight shifted, to a star and heart. And he was pulled up into another soft kiss. He let his eyes close as Ink pressed closer and firmer. Letting himself be pressed back into the soft blankets.

Fingers were tracing up and down his cheeks, as their tongues met once again. Most of the Inky taste was gone, only leaving that artificial flavor that was so Ink. It had shifted as the colors had. It now tasted like watermelon.

His own hands kept trailing up and down Ink's ribs and spine. Stroking the bones through the thin t-shirt. Trying to make Ink let out more soft sighs. He wasn’t trying to rile him up. No, he was trying to find that perfect spot that would make Ink sink into him as if they could do this all day.

Fuck he wouldn’t mind if this is all they did the whole time they could still touch. Minutes ticked by with nothing more happening. Either their tongues were softly sliding together and sharing hot puffs of breath. Or they kept giving each other soft little pecks on the mouth and cheeks.

One hand was simply holding onto Ink's back, the other stroking down his spine. While Ink's hands weren’t letting go of his face. That was until unknowingly to both of them Ink’s shirt rode up a bit and he stroked the bare bone of his love's spine.

Ink let out a very surprised-sounding squeak, and pulled back, blushing madly. Tugging his shirt back down seemingly feeling embarrassed. Sitting back up and glancing away with a flushed face. He slowly raised back up onto his elbows

“You…okay?”

Ink gave a little nod, still avoiding eye contact. He decided gently rest his hands on Ink's upper arms rubbing them gently. Ink’s eyelights were quickly shifting through many symbols, most noticeably an exclamation point.

Ink never mentioned having had a problem with any kind of touch. But then again, he doesn’t remember ever seeing ink in a crop top. Maybe his spine was just super sensitive. Wouldn’t be the strangest thing.

Ink was looking panicked enough that he decided to drop it for now, and see if he could help him calm down.

“Sorry about that”

Ink shook his head,

“I-it’s fine…just…suprised thats all”

It seemed like a load of bullshit as Ink hadn’t really stopped his shaking. He gently tugged at his arms, and to his surprise Ink followed easily. Ink's head laid against his shoulder as he curled himself around his ribs.

Inks eyes seemed to linger on the mark, one hand coming up to trace his own. Still oddly quiet.

“I…just… too much I guess” Ink mumbled softly.

He paused at the admission, gently cradling Ink closer to himself. He understood that feeling perfectly. And he gently nuzzled the top of Ink's head, for now not making eye contact so his boyfriend could calm down.

“It happens Kiki. Anything I can do to help?”

Ink snuggled closer, rubbing his face against his shoulder like a cat would. With every breath seeming to calm down more.

“Can you just talk?”

He hummed,

“Did you check your phone today?”

Ink shook his head and his smile grew, he knew Ink would get a kick out of this news.

“Well, I got a text from Blue, so i am assuming you got it as well”

Ink shuffled around and pulled out his phone. The second it was unlocked he stole it out of his hands. Smiling as he saw that Blue had indeed sent the message to Ink as well so he wasn’t breaking a secret.

Ink tried to make a grab for it, but he just caught it in his strings and rose the phone to the ceiling.

“Uh-uh, no peaking, That’s no fun at all Kiki.”

Ink glared at him and crossed his arms and laid down on him again, seemingly trying to put all his weight on it. It was fine, he didn’t mind and wrapped one arm around his boyfriend. ,

“So, Blue gave us a status update Can you guess what it is about?”

One of Ink’s eyes turned into a question mark. And he was happy that this small discussion was already working on keeping Ink's mind off what just happened.

“Did…did he finally make it into the royal guard?”

“Wrong, sorry that would have been great for him though, you get two more guesses” And he held up two fingers

“Yeah he deserves it, but.. mmmm “ Ink looked around the room.

“Did he win that, ‘Best Sans in the multiverse poll’ thing that was going around?”

Ink gave a shrug that implied he didn’t care so much either way as he lowered one more fingers

He laughed hard

“Fuck I had completely forgotten about that shit, Dunno, check that later, weren’t you up against him?”

“Last chance to guess Squid”

His love closed his eyes and seemed to rack his brain deeply, and made all kinds of little vocal noises. That over some time he just had come to dub as thinking noises.

“Did his brother finally ask out, fell’s brother? “

He brought his fingers to Ink's forehead who went crosseyed following it, then he gave a firm push, making Ink bend backward.

“And wrong again, That was the closest you got through”

Ink rubbed at his forehead with a pout and sat up straighter again.

“Wait really?... I was close? Wait did he ask out someone else?! I was sure Stretch was having a crush on- “

He slapped his hand over Ink's mouth with a little glare.

“Hey no more guesses, you only had three you little sh- EW gross INK did you just lick me?!?”

He was surprised that no glitches sprang up from his angry outburst. Ink only stuck his tongue out at him. And he glared at his boyfriend, he didn’t want to think about how badly that could have gotten if that had activated his glitches.

He wiped his hand on one of the many blankets surrounding them.

“So do you wanna know or not”

He grumbled trying to get the gross feeling of his hand, while seeing Ink excitedly nod. Then his eyelight became an exclamation point.

“Wait!! Don’t tell me…?! “ A smile was growing on Ink's face, the eyelights changing into rotating stars. And he couldn’t help the grin of his own.

“Yup, he and Lust got into a relationship. A couple of months ago apparently”

Inks clapped his hands excitingly. Both had seen the pinning from their shared best friend. And his own case, both of those idiots during the Undernovella’s marathons. Sometimes those two were acting just like his beloved soap opera. It was only a lot more painful to watch it happen in real life”

“Oh, I am so happy for them. But why did they wait so long to tell us “

He chuckled, shaking his head

“Dunno, why didn’t you tell anyone, we were dating those first few months”

Inks eyes turned determined

“Because you didn’t want me….ooh…I see your point….that was insensitive of me wasn’t it?”

He raised his hand up so he could cup Ink’s skull again, placing a chaste little kiss on his nose ridge.

“Perhaps, at least they didn’t hear it”

Ink gave a nod,

“Can I have my phone back now so I can congratulate them properly before I forget?”

“We really aren't going anywhere hmmm?” he asked with a laugh

He chuckled again and lowered the phone, which Ink snatched out of the air, He unlocked it, but then he froze.

Gathering some blankets from around them, wrapping one around them and Ink snuggled up into his side as he texted with a smile.

Ink hummed.

“Wasn’t planning on. No. How about you grab some chocolate, and we then alternate between watching some Undernovella reruns and some art videos? You know….make this a proper impromptu stay-in date”

“Fuck, You read my fucking mind Ink”

He kissed just below Ink's eye, where a light flush still was. Opening a portal into a fell universe and took several bars of chocolate. Breaking off some pieces to nibble on as he warped his arm around his boyfriend's shoulders, pulling him closer to his side.

When he was about to pop the fourth piece into his mouth. His lover tugged on his arm, he looked down to see Ink look up with a little hopeful smile. He brought the piece to Inks' mouth who bit into it with a smile.

Then Ink held up his own little piece bringing it to his mouth. He made sure to lick at Ink’s fingers as he took it. And Ink dove after them for a short-but well loving kiss. And then snuggling back into his side.

After a few moments of silence on which Ink was scrolling through his phone to find a video

“This isn’t gonna last…is it..”

Ink's voice was sad, and low, He closes his eyes and didn't dare to speak louder than a whisper

“Most likely not…”

Ink held him a bit tighter

“You know I don’t blame you for-”

He leaned down for a kiss, cutting Ink off again

“I know, we keep fighting, remember”

Ink gave a soft nod, eyes a pale blue and he nuzzled closer

“Let's just enjoy what we have”

Ink gave a smile, as he started a video.

Later, much later. He woke up, The deep sleep was struggling to let him go. It had been a while since he slept so soundly. Nothing had woke him up in the middle of the night. Or whatever time it was in the Antivoid

But then he realized that he wasn't at home, he wasn’t lying on his bean back. No, he was lying on a bed that he had also come to be familiar with.

Ink’s

Ink and he had been able to hug, they had been able to touch. And by all likelihood.

Yup, there was still a weight on him. Ink was lying on top of him, and one of his hands was tangled in his shirt. His own arm was wrapped around his boyfriend's lower back, holding him to his chest. Their other hands tangled together in a loose hold.

His body didn’t feel as calm as it did yesterday. The second he moved the glitches would most likely start once again.

And he hated that, so he laid still. As still as he could to be able to have Ink in his arms for just a few seconds longer. And by the silence in the room he had the feeling ink was doing the same.

His breathing sounded like he was awake, they lay there, completely still for a while. What was it five minutes? Ten? Fifteen? He didn’t know but he knows they gotta end this at some point.

“Morning Kiki” he breathed out. Making sure his chest still moved as evenly as it could

“Morning Ruru.” Ink’s emotions were always more muted in the morning, as he ran low on paints. But his voice was quivering, dreading the inevitable as much as he, most likely all up on his blues.

He was afraid to squeeze the hand still tangled with his own, to breathe too deep and let their chest start moving out of rhythm. Afraid of the pain he knew would come.

He kept his eyes closed and mumbled

“I love you so much…thanks for yesterday..”

Inks breath hitched and there was wetness leaking into his shirt.

“Love…you to…” The words were quiet, so very quiet. But he knew they would be added to the tally.

He braised himself

“Okay…let’s do this”

“Yeah…”

He counted to three and then removed his arm from around Ink. Immediately his body started prickling and burning badly. Ink pulled away now free from his hold. Shuffling to the other side of the bed a safe distance away. He struggled through the pain feeling the cool air hitting it as the blankets got taken off.

But it was over relatively quickly, his head was buzzing, as were his ears. But he had expected the glitching to last much, much longer.

He slowly sat up and stared at his hands in wonder. Glitches were obviously going down his arms and legs. They were buzzing like crazy, leaving little shocks of pain like always. But it was more bearable,

If he had to rate it, he had been expecting nines across the board. But right now it was at seven. Still painful, quite a lot so. But..fuck he could grin and bear this.

He looked back up to his boyfriend. Ink had been staring at the mark on his neck. And when iInk noticed him staring flushed and then quickly started chucking his paints.

Their eyes met. Ink took a last gulp and gave him a sad smile. His mouth opened, but no words came out.

After a couple of false starts. Ink shook his head, moving to the edge of the bed.

“Well, I am sure you need a minute or two, I make us some toast okay?”

Ink tried to do business as normal, maybe so that it wouldn’t hurt as much. It made his soul sink at the thought.

“Wait!” he managed to get out, just before Ink’s feet hit the floor.

Ink looked back up, A question mark in his eyes.

He started at his hands again and held it out. Ink looked back at it, tilting his head from side to side. Before eyes widened with exclamation points.

“You sure?”

He gave a nod. Ink's hand reached forward. Slowly, tentatively. When their fingers almost touched. Ink pulled away slightly as if scared. A flash of orange came over Ink's eyes, and he closed the distance.

He let out a wince, but before Ink could retract his hand back, he intertwined their fingers. And held on. He closed one eye and bared through the pain for a few more seconds and then let go with a slight hiss.

Ink held his hands to his chest. Upset that the touch had hurt him. But also didn’t seem to be rubbing his hand like he had done for the last few months and they accidentally brushed together. A smile broke over his own face

“Yeah…fuck…that hurt…but…if that is how it is when I am agitated…if I rest enough…I think I’ll be able to hold your hand again.”

Ink started at him, eyes little pinpricks

“You…you…really?”

He nodded. Shaking his hand still, trying to cool it down.

“Yeah…maybe rest two? or three days? just to be fucking safe. But I am pretty sure. This feels like…you know a really bad day from before…Then...Yeah I am pretty fucking sure we are able to just-”

He was cut off by the noise Ink let out. Ink's hands had flown to his mouth, and he could see that he was restraining himself to not propell himself forward and hugging him once more

The tears that were flowing out of his eyes had a happy yellow sheen to them.

“I…this is…” Ink laughed sounding half delirious.

Ink closed his eyes tightly hand pressing closer to his chest

“I am trying not to get my hopes up…”

His soul nearly broke in two at the words, As fucking lovely as Ink’s consideration for his condition was. Both of them wanted this back so bady

“Ink…” he said slowly, waiting until ink met his eyes again

Then said with all the conviction he could muster

“I am sure, we won this one battle”

Ink shook, then the smile that broke over his face was large.

“I wanna kiss you…but I can’t so I am gonna do something stupid”

Before he could even make a face. Ink started blowing kisses at him, and it made him huff out a burst of surprised laughter. But Ink didn’t stop, and the giggling, sound of pure happiness was addicting.

So maybe…just maybe, he blew a few back.

Maybe they sat there doing that for longer than was strictly necessary.

But after all this time, when he felt closer to normal than he had in so very very long. Who cares that he was acting a bit silly with his boyfriend.

They earned it. And they were gonna damm well enjoy it. He thought as he stroked over the mark Ink had given him. Ink flushing and doing the same.

He wasn’t gonna let go, not if he could help it. They might not be back to before exactly but they made it.

They finally fucking won.

#noffys writing #errink #error sans #ink sans #fanfic #undertale #utmv #ink x error

[art-gelato]

posting a snippet of the perc’ahlia tam lin au i’m working on bc i’m excited abt it but idk how long it’s gonna take me to write the whole thing, esp since i’m working concurrently on like 4 fics for these crazy kids. anyway enjoy

...

Percy settled as comfortably as possible on a nearby log and busied himself with sketching. He enjoyed the close observation that revealed all the little details—how the leaves’ edges grew jagged, how thin veins webbed the lighter green undersides. He could not attest to exactly how much time he passed this way, only that the sun was descending from its zenith when he was at last satisfied with his drawing. Mild hunger panged his stomach, and he decided he would eat his sandwich and then head back.

Before closing his sketchbook, he reached for one of the leaves. He could press and preserve it, perhaps start a record of the variety of plants he finds in the area. It would be something to do until his workshop was finished, at least.

“I’d recommend against that, darling.”

Percy snatched his hand back and whipped towards the voice, every nerve in his body alight. He felt himself reflexively reaching for the rapier at his hip, though he was at a poor angle to draw it.

A woman leaned against a tree a few meters away, watching him impassively. Her long dark hair was pulled into a braid and woven with vines, and a pair of fresh green leaves were tucked into the locks behind her right ear. She was dressed somewhat plainly in earth-toned clothes that fit loosely around her for ease of movement.

But Percy’s attention snagged on the bow she held casually in one hand. He couldn’t help thinking about how fast she might be able to draw from the quiver on her back, how good her aim might be.

Diplomacy, as ever, was his first recourse. Still, he kept his thumb on the guard of his rapier, out of her line of sight.

“Indeed?” he asked.

She smiled, though her expression was void of mirth. “Indeed,” she replied. “Unless you’d like a nasty rash, of course.”

His gaze had wandered to her face, but movement snapped it back to the bow. She’d made no motion to raise it, though—the bow itself seemed to have an eerie life, the vines he’d taken for intricate etchings twisting and resettling. Ah, he realized. And now that he was looking for more oddities, he could see fine lines of faint green meandering along her exposed skin, as if she had vines in lieu of veins.

He forced himself to meet her dark eyes. “And it would have nothing to do with stealing from a faerie’s wood?”

Her smile sharpened. “That might have its own consequences, yes.”

Oddly, this eased his nerves. There were rules here—strange, dangerous rules, but rules nonetheless. Full of quicksand as it may be, it was a field he was familiar with. “I hope I’m not trespassing, at the least.”

“Not by my ken,” she said. “Though I hear there’s a new lord at the manor.”

Percy wet his lips. “I have his permission,” he said. “I should like yours, as well.”

Her eyes raked up and down him, considering. There was an edge to her, a hunger, like a void that could never be filled, and it made Percy feel distinctly hunted. It set his heart racing in a way he didn’t entirely mind.

At last, she said, “Well, you do seem to know your manners. Continue to mind them, and I’ll allow it.”

“Is there anything else I ought to mind?” Percy asked.

She tapped her chin in thought, though he had a feeling she already knew. “Stay out of the darkest woods,” she said. “Where even noonday sun struggles to reach through the leaves.”

Ominous. He liked it. “Very reasonable,” he replied. “This is a lovely forest, and I am grateful to have your leave of exploring it.”

She acknowledged this with a hum. “If you’re to be here regularly, we may as well have some proper introduction. What might I call you?”

It wasn’t outright asking for his name, but Percy still knew better than to give it. She was testing him, seeing if he’d let down his guard now that they’d struck an accord. In a fit of daring he was previously unaware he possessed, he answered, “I believe ‘darling’ will do.”

Delight sparked in her expression, cracking through the cool mask she’d worn so far, and she threw her head back and laughed. She kept laughing as she disappeared back into the trees, her light chuckle echoing like the call of a magpie long after she was gone.

#perc'ahlia #vex'ahlia #percy de rolo #percival de rolo #the legend of vox machina #critical role campaign 1 #writing counts as art

[creoterative]

“Even if the whole World decides to stand against me, I’ll fight like I always have.”

Hiya guys!

I finally finished my little Mitch sketch for a Star Wars AU. Also thank you again @ericsonclan for answering my questions regarding that AU a while ago, I gave him the purple lightsabers that you suggested ;) Was pretty cool drawing him like this, I like Mitch a lot and still, come on, he’s Anakin’s long lost oldest son, you can’t change my mind xDDD

Imma add some headcanons, just a few because I’m tired, but still, I like this AU:

- He grew up in the Clone Wars, so all he knows is War.

- His parents are never mentioned by anyone, not even himself. If anyone dares to ask, he gives them one stern look and turns the question down. 

- As a Padawan, he makes his first lightsaber himself, of course, but quickly adds a second one because Yoda sees how he struggles to keep his balance with only one.

- Mitch is an expert when it comes to lightsaber duels, he loves weapons in general. He’s a shitty pilot though. 

- He’s strong with the force, but more with force thrusts and big waves rather than concentrating and moving delicate objects for example.

- His master is Plo Koon, who can help him control his emotions in battle as well as gain the strength he needs to protect other people, which is what Mitch desires most. 

- Mitch has two purple lightsabers and uses them in a very aggressive way, his defense isn’t the best, but one swing from these lightsabers can throw a grown man to the ground pretty quickly. The purple colour comes from his tendencies to the dark side, which show especially in battle since he can be quite cruel to his enemies.

- He survives Order 66 and from then on tries to protect a group of young Padawans, that become his closest friends - amongst them are Willy and Tenn. Mitch is 18, when the clone army turns against the Jedi. 

- Mitch had a braid, like every human Padawan, but he hated it and kept it as short as possible, until Order 66 made it useless and he cut it off.

- Most of the time he uses his lightsabers in reversegrip or backhandgrip.

- He wasn’t really fond of Ahsoka because both were pretty snippy and sassy, but that got a little better after Order 66.

- Mitch’s armor, at least part of it, is inspired by Obi-Wan Kenobi’s armor because he thought of him to be the best Jedi general of all time, but the rest of it, more specifically all the red and dark red parts, are in remembrance of his old master Plo Koon.

#twdg mitch #twdg #twdg au #star wars the clone wars #star wars au #The Walking Dead #the walking dead telltale games

[quibbs126]

I just wanted to show you these guys. As evident, I never finished the page, but still

So these are two characters I made around January last year, named Felix and Helix (Felix is the left, Helix the right)

They’re identical twins, if you couldn’t tell

I got the names from a book I read a long time ago, though I don’t remember much about it. What I do remember is that the main character’s name was Felix and he got transported to another world, and in this world, people kept thinking his name was Helix, I think because that’s a more common name there and “Felix” was just odd. I thought the names worked because of the twin thing, so I used them here

They’re supposed to be based on birds, I think ravens, though as is probably clear, they aren’t the most accurate depictions of bird people, such as the lack of wings. But I kind of like how they look here. The red sketch was from me afterwards trying to figure out their anatomy for future reference (also the dot eyes was a reference to the fact that I was initially planning on Felix having dot eyes, while Helix had normal, but eventually I decided against it since they’re supposed to be identical)

The expressions you see on the page were supposed to be me trying to figure out some expressions for them for practice, the top right being Felix and the bottom left being Helix. As you can see, I never got around to Helix’s. They were supposed to be more indicative of their personalities, like these were expressions they’d reasonably make

I’ll explain the weird pictures in a bit

So why don’t I talk about the characters themselves? So as listed, Felix and Helix are twin brothers, and they’re both magic users. They were from an RPG idea I had that admittedly I don’t really have other ideas for other than these two. I think the pitch was “RPG where every character was an animal” but I’m not sure. Anyways, back to them, so Felix is the main character you’d play in the game, and he’s basically the mage of the group (it’s an RPG with a party), as you can probably imagine. Felix is an absolute sweetheart with a love of magic, always wanting to learn and always willing to do the right thing, hence why he decides to help take on the evil force plaguing the land or whatever. Oh, also another thing I should mention, Felix doesn’t talk, he’s a mute protagonist, though Helix can talk perfectly fine, and technically, so can Felix, he just doesn’t for reasons. Helix on the other hand is one of the antagonists, for reasons I’ll explain in a bit. However, he does eventually become the final party member, but again, we’ll talk about that in a second. He’s not as open and a bit more socially awkward than his brother, and he’s not that great with people, his only real friend growing up being his brother. He also gets flustered easily, but he doesn’t want people knowing that. I feel like he’s your typical “edgier foil to the goofball main character” sort of guy. Though he’s not inherently a bad person, he will go to great lengths if he feels the ends justify it, something Felix doesn’t agree with. Also he can be a bit of an ass sometimes, particularly to strangers or people he inherently doesn’t like. But another thing to mention is that their brotherly bond is very strong, or at least it used to be, with both of them loving each other and doing whatever they feel it takes for the other

So we’d first meet Helix relatively early on in the game, though not at the very beginning. If this were like a 15-20 chapter game, he’d first show up around Chapter 4. Or I suppose another good comparison for time would be like, an area soon after leaving Midgar in Final Fantasy 7. Anyways so basically the party goes to a town, and there, everyone seems to already know Felix, despite him never having been here, and they may not be too fond of him. The rest of the party questions why this is, assuming perhaps it’s an impostor trying to steal Felix’s identity for selfish reasons and/or tarnish his name, though Felix already has an idea of what’s going on. Sure enough, with enough investigating, they find this “impostor”, only for them to learn that this guy isn’t pretending to be him, rather it’s Felix’s identical twin brother. There’s clearly tension between the two but neither really go into it, as Helix is kind of vague about it (since Felix already knows the details), and Felix just doesn’t want to talk about it. We fight Helix, defeat him, and then he flees, with Felix hesitant to see him go, but has to accept it nonetheless. At this point it’s not entirely clear that Helix is part of the villain group, but we learn it in later encounters, with Felix pretty appalled at this, with Helix angrily explaining he had to for Felix’s sake, again to the confusion of the party. Throughout their encounters their conflict gets more heated, up until late in the game when Felix starts to get through to Helix, and he starts having second thoughts. Either that or Helix learns what the villain promised him wasn’t what it was, or he’s starting to think that the actions they’re taking aren’t really worth it, and his sense of morality is kicking in

So the main conflict between these two has to do with Felix. When they were young, they were both just regular kids, with Felix talking perfectly normal just like his brother, but one day something happened to Felix, and afterwards he just suddenly stopped talking, to the confusion of his parents and brother. He never seemed bothered by this, but it was odd to the rest of them. As they grew older, it was clear something odd was going on with Felix, and Helix grew increasingly concerned. While I never fully fleshed out what this “thing” was, the idea I think I had was that young Felix made some sort of deal with this eldritch entity, and they now share the same body. Felix doesn’t talk because talking had something to do with the demonic being, like letting it out. Felix is the only one with all the details of what exactly went down, and he’s always seemed perfectly fine with it, but Helix is afraid of it and what it’ll do to his brother. While he’s never seen it himself, he knows that when Felix gets angry enough, he turns into this eldritch horror being and when talking to the people affected (typically they were other kids their age), they were legitimately terrified of him. Also, as you can likely guess, those sketches I haven’t elaborated on are supposed to be ideas for that form. In Helix’s eyes, Felix was most likely cursed, and is potentially being used as a host for whatever this thing is, and he wants to get rid of it for his own sake. Felix however, disagrees, implying that the deal the two made wasn’t inherently malicious, and neither was the creature/curse. Helix however, doesn’t listen, thinking the thing is manipulating him into thinking that way, and becomes increasingly determined to stop it. This all came to a head a few years before the main story starts, with a big argument that caused Helix to leave and go off on his own, having never returned since (oh I should probably mention how they argue. Basically the idea is that while yes, Felix doesn’t talk, Helix knows him well enough that he can tell what each expression he makes means, essentially letting him “talk”, at least in that sense. Felix is a very expressive person). Felix regrets the argument, but he didn’t know where Helix went and knows he can be hard to stop, so he’s just been waiting for Helix to come back on his own so they can make up. Meanwhile Helix joined the evil team because the leader promised him a way to get rid of his brother’s curse, so long as he followed their teachings and did their bidding, and Helix agreed

Oh, another thing I should mention (which I probably should have mentioned earlier but saved for here for dramatic effect), Felix is the older twin, while Helix is the younger. I know that doesn’t change much about their ages, but it does have some effect on their dynamic, at least for them

As for the curse itself, while there are some references to it and it does occasionally somewhat manifest itself, such as in that death glare Felix has, we’re not privy to what exactly it is or what it does, at least not until the final stretch of the game

Speaking of which, so at the end of the game, when getting to the final boss area (probably a castle), we see Helix having a change of heart, whether because he had come to the realization this wasn’t worth it or he learned his boss wasn’t going to help him cure his brother, but rather use his curse for their own purposes, and he decides to try and stage a coup of his own, trying to stop the villain, only to fail horribly as he gets caught, and the others refer to a punishment, but we cut away before we see what. Then later on, once the heroes show up to the castle and to a certain area with large pits with seemingly no bottom, they see Helix bloodied and beaten on the floor, and Felix, in distress, tries to go to him, only to be stopped by the main villain who reveals themselves to the heroes and probably monologues about their plans or something (as is clear, I never really thought much about the main villain). Then, in a moment where Felix is pleading for his brother’s safety, possibly even trying to strike a bargain with the villain, the villain decides against it and instead strikes Helix potentially fatally, with him letting out a scream in agony, and then tossed away into the pits, seemingly to his death. Seeing his brother presumably die in front of him invokes a rage and despair unlike any Felix has ever felt, and for the first time in game, we hear him speak, and he turns into his eldritch form, though much bigger than any he has before, going completely feral (we also later find out the reason Helix has never seen Felix’s form is because when they were younger, he was relentlessly bullied which sometimes led to him getting knocked unconscious, especially as he’s not particularly physically strong, and upon seeing this Felix would go into rage mode). As we enter a fight with the boss, “Felix” attacks with his magic (as the creature is a magical beast, not so much a physical attacker), and it now has no magic limits and does tons of damage, it also damages the other party members as well, as “Felix” has no restraint and is just going ballistic. The battle ends once the rest of the party is down, and as we see in the cutscenes, his attacks go so wild that he ends up causing the other party members to fall into the pits too, destroying the area around them

We would then follow the party as they’re in the pits, which do in fact have a bottom, even if everything is complete darkness. As they walk around, they find Helix, who is miraculously still alive, but is only barely holding on. While the rest of the party don’t really like Helix (he’s been kind of a jerk to them and was also part of the evil team), the altercation they had above told them that he had at least tried to turn over a new leaf, and they know he’s probably their best shot at getting Felix to calm down, so they have their healer heal him. He tells them all of what he knows of Felix’s curse, explaining how he had just wanted his brother to be safe, but he thinks he was a fool for trusting the villain. He’s fully aware the party doesn’t like him, and expects them to leave him down there to rot, but they (reluctantly) take him with him, and he agrees to help them stop the villain and calm down Felix, and Helix becomes the final party member. How the rest of the story goes, I’m not sure, but the two brothers do end up reconciling at the end

So that’s about it for the story of them. Oh, but maybe I should also mention how their skill systems are supposed to work, since it’s relevant to the whole “game” part and I just thought it was interesting

Okay, so Felix and Helix are magic users, and they cast spells by reading from tomes. When you start the game, Felix has your typical fire, ice and lightning spells. But throughout the game (probably by finding them in the areas and not by purchasing them), you can find other tomes, and they give you different spells. For example, Felix might find a tome with wind spells, and he can equip it. However, he can only use the spells from the tome he has equipped, so it’s not necessarily just a case of “get new tome with better stats”, it depends on what spells you want to use. I’m not sure if this applies to just him since he’s the magic user or if it should apply to the whole party, but I feel like having all the characters being able to equip weapons where each one gives you certain abilities you can use and having to figure out which one to best use in which situation could be an interesting system. Now for Helix, while he uses magic tomes like Felix, due to his dark ties, he only uses dark magic spells, though I’m not sure how much variety you’d get out of his equipment, given you get him in the final area, though admittedly that area could be long, so there might be more tomes for him. Also not sure if he should be able to use Felix’s tomes, as you’d eventually be able to use both, and I don’t just want two of the same character. I dunno

Oh yeah, another random tidbit pertaining to dark magic, but Helix now has a transformation ability of his own that he gained during his time with the evil team, namely that he can transform his cloak into a pair of wings to fly with. We see it before this part in the game, but I thought I shouldn’t mention it before his powers. It definitely shocks Felix when he sees it

But yeah, that’s Felix and Helix. I know people usually come for my Cookie Run stuff, so this probably won’t be looked at that much, but I do like these two and was reminded of them today, and I just wanted to share them with you

#original characters #character design #mage #raven #video game idea #my ocs #my art #I don’t know what to tag this #I feel like drawing them again #felix #helix

[suffering-frombrain-rot]

I don't really talk about my new spiritual journey much simply because I don't want my mom to find it or her side of the family. I also don't want to make anyone uncomfortable when I'm in the mood to info dump about my deities so I figured I'd rant a little here, more like, discuss the signs I got from each deity that led me to contact them and what working with them has been like.

Disclaimer, everything that I discuss about these deities are from my own UPG and all deity relationships are different, if we happen to have similar experience I'd love to hear about them! Side note, the only way that I've ever been able to communicate with my deities is through pendulum which is of course, yes and no questions, and tarot cards, usually I start a conversation and I can get pretty detailed responses, I also read what I think they are trying to say through cards and confirm if it's what they are trying to say!

Athena (Patroness)-

Generally I enjoyed things associated with her until I got that GUT feeling that something was up

I had an obsession for her in midle school, more like I read The Mark of Athena more times than I could count and found her so interesting

ART mostly trying anything under the sun from sketching, painting, sculpting, sewing, crocheting, watercolor, digital, etc... I want to go into an art based work feild

Loved learning about wars and such

Really enjoy finding ways to make my brain think, specially finding series that really make you question reality and morals, following with strategies and trying to guess the next move characters will make

I really enjoy reading, mostly fanfics but it counts

As for signs it was more adrupt

Was curious about deity work and figured I should find a deity to reach out to that represents my interests, who do I find? ATHENA!

I did some tarot card pulls and kept getting cards associated with her

Contacted her through pendulum after doing a lot of research making sure I was safe and talking to her and not a trickster

It was her and she has been with me from the start

She came to me saying that I wasn't necessarily prepared to do deity work but wanted to make sure I was safe and I've definitely felt protected since

Working with Athena has been incredible, she helped me find the motivation to finish high school in a time of depression, helped me form a path for what I should do after school and gave me so much motherly advice. She really has felt like a second mother and I love her energy so much. I had a dream about her recently and she did come to me as a mother figure and taught me how to sword fight so maybe that's something to look into for me! She also has a great sense of humor, for my UPG at least and our relationship feels more comfortable than strict, giving me breathing room considering I'm still new to this.

Apollo (Patron)-

Again, it was just a gut feeling, I kept feeling drawn to him

I love music art, sunshine and although psychology isn't plague or medicine related I kinda lump the two together and I really like psychology

Had an obsession with plague doctors which I associate with Apollo

I grew attached to bumblebees randomly

I named my cat Apollo

Looovvveee taking sunset pictures and watching the sky

I randomly wanted to work more on my intuition which is what we are doing together

I wanted to be outside much more

I started to want to write more often which I never do

Got more obsessed with a character that reminded me of him

After I started working with him, I started waking up super early which I never do, always at sunrise. I was pushed more to go outside and do shadow work, he's really helping me with that and motivation to do art. He feels a lot like a big brother energy and just fun to be around, he has been forcing me to go outside lately but I'm not complaining. He's sent me many MANY bumblebees since I've contacted him and I love it! Shadow work is rough tho but I know it will help me in the future.

Bastet (working with/unspecified relationship)-

I also kept feeling drawn to her but ignored it for a long time as I thought it was more mundane than spiritual

Had a dream of which I can only remember hearing her name, again pushed it off as it was just a dream

Suddenly cats had a much more emotional impact on me, like... I can't explain just how happy they make me, it wasn't usual

Just a few days ago, randomly, my dad's girlfriend told him to tell me that she did a card reading and said that I should look into Bastet

THAT is what pushed me over the edge to do research and contact her

The next day, still hadn't reached out, went to a friend's house, she has three cats, two of them are skittish while the other one just likes to lounge

I thought, heck it, and asked bastet to send me a sign if she was trying to contact me

Two of the cats ran to me at the same time, one from upstairs and the other from further away, the one upstairs was the sleepy boy who was comfortable on a bed, the other was one of the skittish ones

That finally set my proof

Once I contacted her she said she wanted to work with me on financial growth, self confidence, and shadow work like Apollo, all of which I really need help with

After, I was in the car with my dad, I was talking about Bast to him and whaddya know, there was a cat that was sitting on the side of the road, something I never see

As far as what I have had conversation wise with Bastet, she seems like a good friend and I'm very excited to see what she has in store for our relationship, I already have a newly growing alter for her and wold love to get a candle and finish the statue I'm making for her. She's been patient with me as were the other two in terms of an alter and doesn't really care what I have on there as long as it relates to her but it's the thought that counts!

I've had such a wonderful experience with my deities from the beginning! For a while I thought that I'd just be working with Athena, only to find that she's my patron who will guide me for my life alongside Apollo. I'm still unsure how long Bast is going to stay but I really like her so far so I hope she isn't going anywhere soon. I can't wait to grow my practice through these guys and I can't wait for what's in store!

#bastet deity work #athena deity work #apollo deity work #deity work #paganism #spiritual journey #hellenic pagan #kemetic paganism #pagan #witchblr

[cakeinpants]

Musical Soiree: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

So @brassclaws-of-oddworld and I finally finished our Musical Soiree RP thread (the one we started back in August, wow time really does fly) and I wanted to share it along with some sketches. Won't show all of it cause its a lotta words, but I tried to include as much as possible x)

"Read more" to read the thread~

....

Roast elume, paramite galantine, scrab pâté, warm salad, cold salad and warm salad that went cold, fruits and cheeses, and just Odd knows what else, all complemented by champoogne, porange wine, liqueur with mudokon tears, and so on. Pat had to help Kyung navigate all this variety by explaining to her which dishes were made of what and how strong certain drinks were. But the female couldn't help but notice that the mudokon wasn't taking anything himself while showing her all the different foods.

While she listened very carefully to Pat’s explanations of the extravagant array of food and drinks, Kyung took note of which ones she’d most likely have a positive reception to, and which ones could be wild cards to her tastes. All of the meat-based ones appealed to her right off the bat… *But, she did need to eat her greens…* The alcohol was out of the question, not if she wanted to keep her head on straight for the entire event. Of course, the fact that Pat wasn’t taking anything– Not even a single sample– was a bit concerning.

“Do you have a favorite out of all these lovely foods, Oddett? They all look exquisite, it’s hard to pick which one to try first!” Kyung inquired, apparently deciding to try and be sneaky and gauge whether the dancer could even eat any of what was being served.

"Oh, well..." Pat paused, running his eye over the table. "Honestly, I'm not picky, so getting to try anything from here would be a big enjoyment." He shrugged, smiling casually. "Well, except the alcohol... I don't handle it very well." He chuckled a bit awkwardly. "But you can feel free to take whatever catches your eye." He added, noticing a bit of hesitancy in her demeanor, but not knowing the real reason for it. While he didn't seem to find Kyung's question strange or suspicious, Pat kept standing with his hands clasped modestly in front of him, not touching any of the food.

Kyung remained thoughtfully staring at the buffet as she listened to Pat’s reply. Nope, he wasn’t taking anything… From the sounds of it, Kyung was starting to piece together the conclusion that her hunch was correct. At least, part of it had to be. That’s when small bits and pieces of logic began to surface, along with a memory of what Pat pointed out during their first encounter.

He was a Mudokon. A Mudokon that had more privilege than many, sure, but still a Mudokon with great amounts of restriction still applied to him. No doubt, he was kept on an extremely strict diet to maintain his physique… Ah, now it made sense to her! For a moment, the concern was finally soothed now that things clicked in her mind, but that assurance gave way to a new issue that manifested itself out of genuine sympathy— She was going to need to enjoy the food while he stood by empty-handed.

“Hmmm… Perhaps just a sample of roast elume and salad for now!~” Kyung eventually decided, forcing herself to not get cold feet about eating. “Such rich delicacies, I doubt I’d need too much in one sitting,” She mused in order to try and compensate for abnormal silence up until that point. Now, it was a matter of willing herself to take small bites of the samples… Odd knows, it was a feat that was made even harder to do while feeling bad about eating in front of the dancer...

#oddtumblr #oddworld #pat #kyung #sketches #rp thread #web comics #webcomic

[fcrgivemefather]

PROS / CONS OF DATING MY MUSE

name: damien species: human, vampire sexuality: gay

PROS:

this guy. oh man. he’s just the sweetest little guy. he will love you and dote on you but not in a clingy way! he’s just thankful for you and wants to do what he can to make the lives of those he cares about easy and happy.

his smile... like a cup of hot chocolate in front of a fireplace, snug under a blanket on a quiet snowy evening.

speaking of blankets: his embrace. no, not the vampire kind. the holding kind. oh man, he gives some good hugs. shame he doesn’t get many as he deserves em - you’ll fix that, right?

he has a tendency to record his thoughts in his notebooks - sometimes as words, sometimes as sketches. you can absolutely bet he’s sketched you at least one time, perhaps when you were gazing at the stars, the only star he saw being in front of him. 

did you know this man can garden? hell yeah he can! he has a few fruit trees, vegetables, and flowers growing around his haven. watch him show you his flowers, and make them more beautiful by placing them in your hair.

in peaceful, spare moments, he has a tendency to hop on the piano and play. he’ll either improv or play some gentle melodies. if you can nudge him past the shyness, he might even sing; request some abba or maybe elton john and you’ll witness that winning smile for sure.  

his touch is gentle, and despite his condition, he makes sure it stays warm. this man loves touching. gentle caresses of your face, entwining your fingers, tracing the lines in your back...

and yes, this extends into intercourse. if you make it that far, then know he is dedicated to you. he wants to explore you, worship you, devour you. all he wants is for you to understand - to feel - his devotion. there is no better way for him to finish than to put you into a state of utter bliss. he is a priest, after all - it’s his job to have you praying to god, and he’s damn good at it.

HOWEVER. if what would get YOU there is him melting in a puddle... honey, hes your pathetic little meow meow. he’ll show you how to pray.

CONS:

okay im gonna get the obvious outta the way. do i gotta say it? the reflection. that’s a whole list of its own bs.

this man needs therapy. like. big time. he is constantly teetering on the edge of mental collapse and honestly its amazing how he’s kept his grip this long

if you look up the definition of guilt ridden, there’s a picture of damien. buddy can’t catch a break.

he is constantly starving himself, so he is in constant pain. he may find it very hard to be around you at times, and if you try to force your company - even if it is to help - he will freak out and potentially accidentally hurt you in an attempt to stay away.

he tends to lock his worries and concerns away, believing them to be his burden to suffer alone. it is very hard to get him to open up, even to those closest. there’s a good chance this may cause occasional strains on the relationship.

sometimes, this dude ends up getting caught up in some very, very dangerous situations - malicious spirits, rabid creatures, vindictive hunters. he could disappear for a while and come back, bloody and bruised. who knows when he won’t. most worryingly, he doesn’t seem to concerned.

no day time dates. :(

#dash games. #//this is a very important post.

[blackberry-mochi]

I had really wanted to finish up what I was drawing before, and I’m glad I did. The Moxie birthday image still makes me really happy to see....

BUT. Lucky Number Moxie came out last week, and I played through the entire series again... All of the new content and revamped content is wonderful, replay-wise. But even besides that stuff, I was intensely reminded why it had such a profound impact on me...

Lucky Number Moxie, though, aaaa. Thanks to the amount build-up I was deliberately making out of it, I guess.... it ended up affecting me way too hard. Which is new! My first playthrough of Treat and this most recently one both.... are really unique experiences for me. I’ve never felt so genuinely awe-struck by the emotions it made me feel, without me even trying to think about how I should probably be feeling from the things being presented, like I force myself to do. BUT LUCKY NUMBER MOXIE REALLY WAS JUST.... super intense.... probably because it tugged at really sensitive subjects that I struggle with, myself. Just a lot of “I wish I could have this, but”, y’know? Which, now that I’m recovering from the emotions, is solidly just... a splendid thing, FOR SURE. I just felt really intense for a while there. I feel like I want to replay it, badly, but I’m also unsure if that’s necessarily a healthy thing to do.

BUT ANYWAY. More rambling. I’ve been mouse-drawing up until now!! But I recently went and got a simple tablet... A simple $50 one, and!!! I don’t know how to use this thing, yet. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to. I tried drawing something, and it just wouldn’t happen. But, then I just started doodling Mochi. I love Mochi! I love all four of the Treat gays, but Mochi, for me, is the one I identify with most. I drew her hair, then her eyes, and, once the eyes were down, I was like... “Wait.... This is fine?? This looks okay...” and kept doodling the rest of her.... It’s hard to say that it looks clean or quality, but I’m happy I can just, draw things, with this tablet. Doodling with mouse just wasn’t a thing.

I’m FREEEEEE. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to draw comprehensive pieces; the Moxie birthday pic and the Mochi/Treat/Moxie image from before are things I feel really good about, mostly, and I hope I can color things with this tablet... But. At least doodling will help me get better! And doesn’t take much time. And it can be a good sketching base for projects, even. I want to color this...

#lonely wolf treat #lucky number moxie #mochi #moxie #treat #art #doodle

[crimsonfluidessence]

Prompt 23: Pitch

Esredes didn't even think it was possible to be so confusing, difficult, and high maintenance while not even having your voice, but then he met Alvere. Or Honey Man, as his nickname might as well be by now, but that was a different story. Everything he tried to say to the man seemed to anger him, and yet then the next time he saw him he was civil and reasonable again, only to probably get angry again when Esredes tried to say something important. Even if he didn't, he was always looking on him with disdain or glares, and overall it certainly added up to a picture of eggshells to walk on, which Esredes definitely wasn't good at, so he kept cracking them.

It had to all be because he was a heretic and the man was an Inquisitor, or at least, Esredes would've set himself on that conclusion alone if the man hadn't indirectly told him otherwise on their second encounter. Esredes had only been trying to finish writing a report at the interrogation table when the man came right up and close to him, and whether it could be excused by him being voiceless or not, it definitely made Esredes uncomfortable. But he kept writing, trying to ignore the man beside him, only for him to grab his binder and take it right out of his hands the moment he finished writing, leaving Esredes' eyes to go wide as he registered what just happened. The alarms were starting to go off in his head- he was alone in a room with a man who surely wanted to kill him or at least beat him senseless while he was unarmed, and an Inquisitor would know far more about how to hide things in the Tribunal than he did. Don't aggravate it any further, Esredes told himself. And he opted to simply look up at the man. "Ser, if you're going to take the report yourself, please dislodge it from the binder appropriately." But there was more to it. When he had set down his own notebook to write in to pick up his binder, it had a sketch taped to it- surely on purpose?- of a woman. An Elezen woman with a maimed ear and a crooked nose, whose eyes were so bright and full of life- and who Esredes recognized immediately. That was Alais. A former Dragoon who Esredes had found teetering on the edge of doubt, and so had resolved to do as he always did and guide her over the edge to the other side. She had spoken of a fellow knight, a Temple Knight, who she found out to be an undercover Inquisitor and was shocked about, someone who she loved and believed in the goodness of even despite the revelation. "Inquisitors are never good, Alais." Esredes had said to her. "If you see or talk to him again, he's not going to see reason. He's going to try and kill you and me and we are going to be forced to put him down. You have to be prepared to do what it takes." But needless to say, she never took to him saying that well. And now Esredes knew it was more personal than usual.

Survival instincts told him to continue not to push it. There was an underlying reasonability beyond the aggression that, while characteristic of Inquisitors who played with their food, didn't have the sort of chilling bite he was used to, and moreso felt like a limitation of the man himself, so he dug his way towards it by continuing to not escalate anything. No words to be exchanged, just waiting for the man to, after more of a pause on the door out than he should have, open the door and escort him back to the entrance of the Tribunal. It was only once Esredes knew he was safe by the entrance did he say something. Or more accurately, that he wrote about the prisoner they had both just been in with, and right then and there had his instinct to stand his ground flare up as the other man revealed to him he had intentionally set up that appointment himself in order to get a specific result. "I am not here to be your object of corruption," Esredes protested. "Whatever it is you're planning, I don't work for you. You would see it fit to stay in your place, just as I stay in mine." The man's eyes narrowed, his lips pressed into a line, and he wrote once again in the notebook. 'Test not my professionalism. I wish to see the wrongs done to that woman brought to light. If I must watch your mummer's farce to uncover the truth, so be it.' What a lovely guy Alais fell in love with. "I'm not a detective. It's not my place to uncover any truth. If you know something about her story- why not tell someone? You don't even need me to do your work. I don't understand." He grounded his teeth. 'You have a far more silvered tongue than I, even when I had my voice. Your job is to do as you do, and talk with her. It is mine to observe, and piece together the truth.' "Why not just reopen her case...? Or is this your roundabout way of doing just that?" 'The latter. You need not know any more than that.' He shut his notebook and gestured towards the clerk desk, where Esredes always turned in reports and left.

He couldn't decide whether he was mad or not. How was he to know if this one was telling the truth or not? Her story had seemed off, that much was true- but it wasn't his job. It wasn't his job, and to make it worse it was being lead along by this man who hated him. So Esredes eyed the man, and didn't move just yet. "...If you say so. I've no intentions of straying over my limited aid agreement. I've no qualms about helping justice, if that is truly what this is, either- but my neck is not an open area for a vampire." But then he shut his eyes, drew in his expression, and allowed it to shift to a much more pensive state. He needed to test the waters, see if he could hook a fish in his mind, now that he knew he could fish. Just how set was he on being an enemy? Esredes allowed his eyes to reopen, funneling the grief and sadness he felt towards her death into his eyes. "Even with that being said. I'm sorry. You're not the only one mourning. I understand." And then he followed this up with fastwalking away, not willing to stay there if it soured. He said what he needed. And all he heard as he fled the scene was a harsh and hoarse hiss tearing out of the man, an awful noise in every way imaginable. Negative. That one was a negative. There was no appeal to emotion here.

This he had told himself before he saw the man with a thousand eyed stare out in the city, who then actually spoke to him about how he had just been thrown out of his house, only to break into a fit of wheezing from the act. Esredes watched his flask fly off him and land a few feet away, and he had picked it up and dropped it in his lap. Then the next time they met in the Tribunal, he had cut off his session just because the woman got agitated by a question, and did not listen to him trying to tell him how that only made them more aggressive if they knew it would get them out of it. Only to then call him to his office before the next time asking him to tell him about his methods and resolve that spat... only to then get angry at something he said after the session.

He sent a letter thanking him for his work and asked if he wanted to do more in the future. Esredes sent back a no. He had increasingly less and less time for people like this who constantly appeared out of the water like piranhas to bite you and ask for more flesh afterwards. So he moved on with his life, and tried to ignore his unwanted new coworker. What a good thing he didn't work at that place full time.

It was a brief while later that Esredes set about his usual mourning routine. He bought a bouquet of blue forget-me-nots, and he went from the city to the highlands scattering them one by one about graves and locations that his people had died in. This included the Steps of Faith. So long ago and yet like yesterday it had felt, that his people made their last stand among the knights when the Horde came, to fulfill her dream. All for them- everything always had to be for them, and in return, there was nothing left for his own people. But it helped him earn his pardon, so what more could be said. Nonetheless, several of his people had perished that day, which meant it was a stop. He stood right in the middle of the bridge, and scattered a few blue flowers as he tried not to think about that day. However, there was a problem. Alvere was also there, standing by the wall and staring down into the Sea of Clouds, with a single white corpse lily lying on the rampart. He only looked up at Esredes a moment as he approached, then returned his look to the lily. Esredes stood there and contemplated if he could even do his usual ritual with that Inquisitor here, or if he needed to come back later. But he decided for removing the hidden rosary on his wrist, shutting his eyes, and whispering his usual chant for the fallen in Dragonspeak. And when he looked back up and finished, he found the Inquisitor was bowing his head towards him. The man looked exhausted, as expected, but there was a glimmer of something lighter in there as he looked back to his flower. Then he stepped aside and gestured to Esredes' bouquet, then to his own. Huh... Esredes stood there a long moment in hesitation, then approached the lily. He carefully plucked out one single, little flower, and scattered it to the stem of the lily. When he looked to the Inquisitor, he wasn't looking at him. "Was she happy." It was a nearly silent rasp out of the man, but it was there. No notebook. His gaze met Esredes', who had raised an eyebrow already at hearing him speak. And after hesitation, he replied. "...Yeah. She was. 'Tis what happens- when you throw away everything you had for the greater good. Even in the hell of desperation... there's happiness in knowing you at least tried to do the right thing." He looked out into the Sea of Clouds. "To at least risk your own demise on terms of what has become your choice."

It wasn't a conversation they had which lasted very long, but the man remained warm throughout it before being on his way. Perhaps it was all too much, drudging up those memories- but the thread of their connection revealed itself to be deeper than he even expected. It wasn't just Alais. In fact, on that day at the Steps, they had both been there, and they both saw it happen, and then...

Esredes wrote another letter, and showed up to his office. He wanted to talk. He wanted to see if now, he had found his openings to sink in to the man. Surely, there had to be a way?

Something was new about this time. He had a wary gaze as usual, but he was open again. Twice in a row. That didn't happen. There was much to speak of between the two of them, and most of it about her. Yet it felt almost too easy, to get him to admit on paper he had been unfair in regards to his treatment of him. And then he told him to tell him a story of her. And he complied. After all, he had offered it earlier in the conversation. "...I take it she's played her lyre for you before? Because she loved playing it for our people. We had this tradition of telling stories or giving little performances around the campfire at night to unwind. Someone made her a new lyre to perform with, and she had it with her multiple nights a week. She'd listen to our stories and weave little songs based off of them, and... it made us all feel better. More hopeful. Like there was still light and life in the world." Alvere's expression softened at that, with a small smile that spoke of pain. He wrote about the way they met, and how romantic it had been, and then added on the page, 'we used to sing together often.' "Really." Esredes replied. "...Hm, yeah. I can see you as someone who sang. She tried to teasingly get me to join in sometimes, but I never did. I don't sing." He raised his brows. 'How exactly can you see that, Master Rosemond?' "...You just have the look about you? Like. I could just see a deep baritone or something come out of you." A hoarse chuckle escaped the other man. 'Not a baritone.' He wrote. He rose and moved over to one of the shelves in his office, pulling out a box and opening it to take out an orchestrion roll, holding it in his palm like a gentle object as he returned to the table orchestrion and set it in. 'The only recording I have of her voice, and mine own.' He wrote. 'Perhaps, you might wish to hear her sing again, as I do.' Soft and gentle harp notes rang out from the device in a lullaby. Esredes watched the orchestrion, transfixed as a familiar voice sung a mournful melody, just as soothing as she had been in life. And soon it was joined in harmony by a deep and booming bass that was exactly as Esredes imagined. The two sang a lover's duet of a love cut short, ending on a simple lyrical phrase from Alais- "Our love will never die." And as it ended, Esredes expression broke a little. Alvere took the roll out and set it back in the box. Esredes watched. And then he picked up the notebook again. 'She composed it. An idle fancy, a little heresy. Duet of a maid and her draconic lover. Now, in hindsight, I do not wonder if, perhaps, she had written it of Shiva and Hraesvelgr. Carefully obscured, of course, to perhaps be a shanty of sorts heard anywhere. Yet I knew her vision for it. Skies became seas, winds to waves. Such care she took.' "...You're correct." Esredes fixed his eyes evenly on him. "She sung the real version for us periodically. We all thought it was beautiful. Never... thought I'd hear it again." Alvere closed his eyes, sat back in his chair, and then reopened them a moment later to write. 'As I said. I always suspected.' A sigh escaped his nose. 'I wish I had heard the real version. Sang it with her. Yet there is little point to dwelling on such wishes.' "Well. If it's any consolation, the censored version is just as nice?" 'I have no doubts as to that.' His gaze drifted to the roll. 'I had almost forgotten what she sounded like, so rarely do I play it. I even forgot the sound of mine own voice.' "...Well. Nice to be reminded, then, I suppose? ...T'would be a travesty to forget." The other man nodded. 'It would be.' Alvere took a sip of his tea, and looked to Esredes. 'Thank you. For indulging me.' As if it was an indulgence on his part. Esredes' eyes went to where the orchestrion roll had come from as he responded, as a thought formed in his mind. It seems the Inquisitor caught it. ''Full well do I know that look.' came the writing on the page when he glanced back. 'Ask your question, and I shall endeavor to respond... well.' "Hm? Ah... no worries. I'd rather not overstay limits again." The man stared at him at that, underlined the sentence he had just written, and added one word. 'Please.' "...Is it possible to make copies of orchestrion rolls?"

It was the other man's turn to blink. He hesitated before writing out a reply.  'I know not. Perhaps, likely, yet I am... afraid of any damage to the roll.' "Mmm... I would be afraid of the same thing. Too risky." Esredes picked up his tea and took a sip to hide his disappointment. It was worth a shot, at least, to preserve something more of the unheard voices of his people for himself- but here it wouldn't be lost either. Perhaps in some years after the Inquisitor perished it could be stolen back, or something. He wouldn't need it anymore... ah, but the man was writing more. 'Yet, if you wish to hear it again... you may ask, and I shall give you the box. I think of all in Ishgard, you alone may treat this as preciously as I.' "...I'll take note of that." Was all Esredes offered to that. Perhaps he was right.

Regardless, that was the end of that. Esredes tried to put the orchestrion roll out of his mind, to varying degrees of success. He didn't exactly have- or want to have- any other excuse to come to the man's office for now, and it would be unethical to steal it. It wasn't for him. But her melodic voice echoed in his memory, over and over again. T'would have been so easy to simply not show up to the final battle, let all those Temple Knights and Alvere himself die in exchange for her life- and trade his own ability to stand here in the streets of Ishgard in the process. Would it not have been worth it? It could have been himself shot down by that warship, and Alvere thrown off the side of the Steps of Faith- and that would have made for a more fruitful reality, plain and simple.

In any case, when he next received a letter from the Inquisitor with worse handwriting than usual to see him in his office, he didn't think much of it. Must have been time to discuss the ongoing case, or something. And instead he found that wide-eyed, confused Inquisitor irritated at his drunk self for sending the letter. Why again was he ever afraid of this one? 'Tell me, Esredes.' The notebook letters appeared in the midst of the conversation that followed. 'Why did you stay, when you knew I did not summon you by actual intent, let alone to discuss the case we are mutually invested in?' "Because you asked a question." Esredes replied without much hesitation. Indeed, he had asked a few pointed ones for Esredes to answer in his usual detached tone. "If you hadn't I would've left. You didn't seem in the mood to deal with my presence." 'Not entirely true. I was more confused, than aught.' He wrote. 'I suppose it works out for the best.' Alvere reached into a drawer- the drawer- and revealed from it a cloth-wrapped cylinder, passing it over as Esredes raised an eyebrow. "What is.." He didn't bother to finish his own question. He took it in one hand, slid it over to himself, and unwrapped it just a little; and when the shiny texture of a new orchestrion roll stared back, his eyes went wide in shock. He looked to the notebook, reading the words forming on it multiple times over. 'After consideration, you are the only one who understands. Who remembers. It would be selfish of me to hoard such a memory to myself.' Esredes stared down at the roll, unraveling the rest and looking over the sheet. "...Thank you." He finally managed to get out. "I... I will... rest assured it's going to be well preserved and guarded. Memories are the most valuable treasure." 'I regret only that it is not the version you knew, that you remembered, yet it is still her song nonetheless. Memories are, unfortunately, all either of us really have left, aren't they?' Esredes, meanwhile, only looked up to read those words before his gaze went right back to the roll. Mhm. Most of the time. They are a small little candle to hold in a perpetually raging blizzard. It's better than completely freezing." The Inquistor nodded in agreement, his gaze going to the white lilies growing in the pot on his desk. 'Sometimes they remind us to be better than we think we are.'

When Esredes later wrapped the roll back up in the cloth and left the office and Tribunal with his new prized treasure to preserve in the vault of memories, one of those spots of light feelings was coursing its way through its heart. He was a fellow monster. That much was undeniable even if he didn't know the extent of it. He was going to be just like Heilyn- insincere and not really meaning a gesture like this, for as little sense as it made in some lens. And yet the feeling was being persistent, and his mind kept going back to his broken throat and being stuck with nothing but honey he didn't like and pain medicine that was too strong.

Even here in the midst of the ill-fated continuation, the question didn't fully answer itself for Esredes, if fundamentally incompatible roles, enemies- could ever truly be more, after all which had happened. And he wasn't going to try to change the laws of the universe. But the man clutched the cloth close to his heart, and set out for the Simoneaux manor nonetheless, and the thoughts of honey flavors and medicine unavailable in Ishgard kept swarming his head like a horde of lit-up bees in a shadowy abyss where no sound echoed when you screamed.

#alvere #ffxivwrite #in action #shiva #ffxivwrite2022 #screenshots