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withered--s0uls · 7 days

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OKAY, I think I'm done for now.

@electrozeistyking and I a little while ago talked about how GD!N would react to DAS!Cyn. They went on about in a reblog but basically he would be extremely happy bc DAS!Cyn is a separate entity to the Absolute Solver, therefore meaning she's not the one behind everything.

So at first they probably both would be extremely happy. DAS!Cyn in her own AU upon meeting N first is absolutely terrified that he might hate her after everything the AS made her do. So the fact GD!N would react very positively to her presence would be a huge a relief to her.

Now, the issue is that the "Dormant" in "Dormant" Absolute Solver is in quotations for a reason. It simply lost interest in her as a main host / had no need for her anymore. It still has admin rights over DAS!Cyn and she still has a Solver Form. Though she doesn't use it by choice bc of PTSD triggers (until possibly a specific point in Ep7 but I'm waiting for ep8 to decide).

So yeah I think that would make both GD!N and DAS!Cyn kinda anxious to put it lightly.

(More Art and stuff under cut because this crossover has been living RENT FREE IN MY HEAD)

Also fun fact

@electrozeistyking has mentioned and shown Beanie finding comfort in the sound of her fathers core.

Well funny story.

DAS!Cyn always was comforted by her brothers core back at the manor, when they first reuite at the start of Ep6 and she sees DAS!Uzi summon her Solver wings and tail, her instinct is pressing closer to DAS!Ns chest for comfort. Her memories of the Solver features are very very blurry, but she is triggered by seeing them regardless.

I thought It was cute the girls have that in common, so I decided to draw them and GD!N sleeping with the girls having their heads close to his core :3

OKAY FINALLY WE GET TO THE DOODLE PAGE

I didn't feel like fully making these so they're sketchy doodles :"

The first two are based on Zeisty saying GD!N would probably pick DAS!Cyn up and spin her around. Also you probably noticed between this doodle, the first drawing & the Tiny!N & DAS crossover post, but DAS!Cyn displays flowers on her visor to emote happiness!

The 3rd and 4th are just random interactions between the kiddos lol. I feel like Beanie probably would be happy to have another Auntie, not to mention one closer to her age so they can do silly kid stuff together. DAS!Cyn... oh boy

She would feel a whole range of emotions; grief about missing so much of her brothers life (like he has a kid ffs), guilt and self blame after finding out what happened to Uzi (she blames herself for everything the AS caused, even tho she never agreed to it) which might end up in a "slight" breakdown, anger at the AS for causing GD!N that kind of pain and eventually once she processed all those emotions she probably would be excited to get to know Beanie. Like!! Imagine finding out you have a little Niece!!

She probably would struggle to easily keep up with Beanie bc she still has motor issues like in canonverse so she's a little slower, so it'd be mostly her trying not to fall over her own feet whilst being dragged around by an excited toddler who probably even with child lock is stronger than her lmao.

Also I drew DAS!Cyn in an alternate outfit bc I wanted to actually kinda show the oil reserve canister,,,

Ok wanting to respond to the hashtags specifically bc :)) yay

Also ig this is some DAS lore fact drops lol

Yeah, DAS!Cyn kinda didn't take it well either when she first realized the AS technically can still take over if it really wanted to after she transferred bodies in an attempt to escape. Imagine getting your core nearly crushed in an attempt to flee from robo satan just to find out entity STILL can use you for their bidding. Like!!! Damn that's not fair the kid nearly fucking died trying to break free!!!

DAS!Cyn definitely would want to spare Beanie the horrors too. DAS!Cyn herself is mentally like 7-10/11 at best 6-9 at worst -- despite kids usually just saying whatever comes to mind, she repressed most AS related stuff for a reason, she definitely wouldn't share what she knows with her newfound niece

I feel things would be either super great and happy or super traumatizing depending on when in the timeline we throw DAS!Cyn at them. If she's there during ep 6-7? Oh boy. Oh no. DAS!Cyn & DAS!N have an exchange during Ep7 that would not go over so well if it was GD!N in DAS!Ns place, because it would be awfully similar to GD!Uzis death -- she doesn't die, because DAS!N can't get himself to shoot with her being so close to the AS, despite her literally shouting at him to do it and that she won't be angry, that'll be fine. -- yeah I don't think GD!N would handle that well 😭 Zeisty feel free to get the angst train rolling if you wanna add your two cents on how that'd go over -- any point before that? Probably fine. Post S1? I'd imagine also fine depending on what Ep8 throws at us (except like... look at ideas list for more info*)

I'll assume that'd be Beanie reacting to seeing DAS!Cyn having the Solver tail and possibly the glitching Solver symbol in her visor. Yeah she definitely would try to play it off and go try and hide somewhere until she can get it under control again. High stress or negative emotions causes her Solver to act up (unrelated to the AS, just her own Solver form without the entity controlling anything!!) So what I said above to her reaction to the news of GD!Uzi being dead? And possibly finding out the reason why? Yeah that might trigger her tail and wings to pop out and her to basically be reduced to a hyperventilating ball on the floor because of proceeding to blame herself for all of GD!Ns suffering due to thinking the AS actions & it being a danger are her fault

Other things I kinda wanted to doodle but didn't for now, might do at a later point;

Cyn still has a Solver Core, which is the same as a DD core (except smaller lol). So I was playing with the idea of Beanie noticing that her core sounds different from GD!Ns due to hers being severely damaged and actively leaking after the AS attempted to crush it during the body transfer. DAS!Cyn then trying to play it off

Some kind of acknowledgement of the Oil reserve canister on DAS!Cyns back, it was made by Tessa before the AS did the medurder and stuff. It's supposed to help keep the Solver in check by preventing overheating, hence why its directly connected to her chest where her core is

There was something else but it slipped my mind

Smth I'm not gonna say publicly for now until Zeisty posts something about it and/or eventually posts the chapters bc I don't want to spoil esp not bc it isn't my place to :" (if you're curious, Zeisty, lmk I can tell you in VC or DMs lol) but it partly would possibly be related to the 1st idea listed

* I have an idea for what happens to Cyns original body (the one the AS uses & that wears Tessa) post Ep8 IF Ep8 let's me do it that is. I think it could be fun to crossover that idea bc of GD!Ns ghost sight.... tho it definitely also would be fucking stressful and trauma inducing bc Solver stuff sooo yeah rip (again, if you want I could elaborate in vc or DMs on this bc I want to first wait and see what the season finale brings before I do anything "official" with this)

GD!N reacting to the information that DAS!Cyn canonly shot "Tessas" gun at the AS (well technically at its tentacles. Point being that kid fired a gun/knows how to use one) -- which again could be very interesting if we were to toss them into the same Ep7 bc that's when she does it

Possibly GD!N finding out ab the scars/cracks surrounding DAS!Cyns core bc,,, yeah

Anyways uuuhh heightbsheet bc I'm 99% sure I drew stuff inaccurate

These were actually so fun to draw and think & talk about. I'll post the GD x IC crossover once I'm done with that (yes, yes there is more than what you already saw Zeisty. Not much more but more nonetheless)

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emypony · 9 months

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wake up bestie they dropped Senti's ICHOR form <3

(it's me im they)

heavy reffed / partially traced her GGZ sprite because it was perfect and i just wanted to get the concept out of my head so it would stop living rent free in my mind.

I drew her as a dragon because technically the genes from Garuda were...well, dragon. Hua just magically mutated them for a phoenix (plot device) but I think it'd be cool if Senti turned into a dragon form! (even if her motifs are still feathers hehe)

BLACK SCLERA WITH RED EYES IS SO SEXY BTW THEY SHOULD REALLY GIVE THAT TO HER I THINK SHE DESERVES TO BE COOL FOR A BIT

godspeed and i hope other's thought of a form for her as well...SHE DESERVES IT!!

anyway join the funky discord to talk more senti <https://discord.gg/C56wrfSDRX>

#herrscher of sentience #honkai impact #hi3rd #hi3 #honkai impact 3rd #senti #emymart #rkgk #doodle #sketch #size difference goes brrr ive always loved that hc #can grasp Felis's waist with ONE clawed hand <3

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41319kbex · 2 months

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Hell Hath No Fury

I apologize in advance for any feelings you have while reading this. I just…had angsty Beckett in my mind tonight. I felt the need to feel the special kind of hurt that only an emotionally tortured Beckett…or more accurately, the special kind of hurt that only an emotionally charged performance by Stana Katic can make me feel. I need to feel that kind of hurt that comes from the uncanny way she can somehow make Kate Beckett a 4D character, making me feel what she’s feeling through the TV screen. So…that’s mostly how this story happened.

This changes the ending of the season 3 finale so that Castle takes the bullet for her. I’m really, really sorry if this story makes you feel things. I only hope my words can do half of what Stana would do with the material.

I don’t own the show or the characters. But angsty Beckett has been in my mind all day, living rent free.

xxxxx

Staring out the window at the hospital, she couldn’t help the tears that slipped down her cheek as she replayed the events that brought her here. She’d been giving the eulogy at Montgomery’s funeral…and before she’d known what had happened, she’d been tackled to the ground as a shot rang out. When she’d heard it, she’d expected to feel the bullet tearing through her flesh, but all she felt was the weight of the man who had tackled her. The man who was her partner.

A strangled sob escaped her lips as she thought of Castle. Castle, who was so innocent in all of this, who was now here because of her. Her mind went back to the cemetery.

“Castle!” she murmured, realizing a second later that he’d been shot. “No!” she moved from underneath him and immediately rolled him onto his back. She saw the blood soaking through his clothes. “No! No, no, no…” she murmured, doing everything she could to stop the bleeding.

“Castle…Castle, don’t do this. Stay with me, ok?” she pleaded with him. “Stay with me…” she murmured as the tears slipped down her cheeks. He hadn’t responded, hadn’t moved. She could at least tell he was breathing…barely.

Another sob escaped her lips. There had been so much blood. Blood that was still on her skin, her clothes. She replayed the ambulance ride…the way her own heart had stopped when he flatlined and they had to shock him back. He’d been in surgery for the past 2 hours. A nurse had come out to let them know the surgery would still be another couple of hours. But Beckett hadn’t been able to leave, hadn’t been able to bring herself to even get cleaned up.

Lanie, Ryan and Esposito were in the waiting room, but all three of them had given her space. They were worried about Castle, of course; but they had never seen Beckett like this.

“One of us needs to go talk to her...convince her to at least get the blood off her,” Ryan said

quietly.

Esposito studied her for a moment before looking at his partner. “You want to volunteer to get your head bit off? Because I'm pretty sure that's what's going to happen the moment any of us go over there. I’m not telling her she needs to go anywhere.”

Lanie took a deep breath. “I’ll go talk to her, since neither one of you want to man up,” she shot them both a look. She approached her friend carefully, knowing this was going to be a tough conversation. She also knew the conversation would get a lot harder if someone came out of the operating room and told her Castle hadn’t made it. She knew her friend could take a lot, but she honestly wasn’t sure if that wouldn’t be the final thing to break her. “Hey, Kate…how are you holding up?” she asked, keeping her voice soft.

Beckett drew a ragged breath, a few fresh tears sliding down her cheeks. “I’m fine,” she stated lowly, withdrawing deeper into herself.

“Honey, you are not fine,” Lanie stated simply, her tone still soft, being very gentle with her best friend.

Swallowing hard, Beckett finally turned her head away from the window to look at Lanie, the heartbreak evident all over her face.

“Oh honey,” she embraced her friend then, her heart breaking for the other woman.

Beckett couldn’t help it. The understanding embrace from her friend broke the dam and she couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. “I watched him die in that ambulance, Lanie,” she murmured. “I watched him die…and my heart stopped for a minute too when they almost didn’t get him back…” A sob escaped from her. “This was supposed to be me…he’s here because of me…”

Lanie gave her friend a few moments to get it all out so that she’d be able to listen. Only when Beckett had pulled back from the hug did Lanie release her. “Kate…” she started, trying to find the words to comfort her friend. She didn’t think now was exactly the best time to deal with the can of worms known as Beckett’s feelings for the writer that hadn’t just been opened but had pretty much exploded because of the events that had transpired, so she tried to find some kind of words to offer her some kind of comfort. Though she knew the only comfort that would make any kind of difference would be a doctor or nurse coming out to tell them that Castle was going to be fine. “Castle is going to make it through this,” she started.

“How do you know?”

“The fact that no one has come out with bad news is a good sign. No news is good news right

now.”

“God, Lanie…there was so much blood…” she breathed, a few more tears sliding down her cheeks.

The woman was quiet for a moment, trying to decide how to best go about the task of suggesting her friend leave long enough to get cleaned up. “Speaking of blood…how about we get you cleaned up, hmm?” she suggested. Seeing the look Beckett gave her at the suggestion did cause the medical examiner to pause before deciding to try another approach. “Kate…I’m not suggesting you leave. Just come with me…we’ll find a place to get you washed up…Ryan told me he has a clean set of sweats in his trunk. You can get the blood off you, change clothes…” she took a deep breath. “Castle’s mother and daughter are in the waiting room. I’m sure they’d love it if you joined them…but you need to not have his blood on you when you go over there,” she tried again.

Beckett swallowed hard at the mention of Martha and Alexis. “Oh God, Lanie…they must hate me right now…that bullet was meant for me…”

“They don’t hate you,” Lanie interrupted. “And stop going down that rabbit hole. It doesn’t matter who the bullet was meant for. Now come on.” She placed a gentle hand on Beckett’s elbow and when her friend didn’t push her away, she gave Ryan a nod to go get the extra clothes as she led her friend down the hallway to find a place to help her get cleaned up and changed.

xxxxx

The door to the bathroom had just closed and Beckett had moved to the sink to start washing her hands. That’s when the shock…realization…set in that it was Castle’s blood. She was covered in Castle’s blood. As a homicide detective, the sight of blood no longer phased her…she’d seen more than her fair share in the years on the job. But suddenly the knowledge the the blood covering her belonged to Castle was something she just could not process. “Oh God…God…Lanie, get it off…get it off…get it off…” she started to panic.

Lanie barely had time to get the door locked before her friend was freaking out. “Kate…hey…hey, get what off?” she tried to calm her down.

“The blood…his blood…” she breathed, completely falling apart then as her back slid down the wall and she sank to the floor. “His blood…I’m covered in his blood…Lanie…he can’t…he can’t…he has to be okay…” she was sobbing now, struggling to breathe through the pain in her own chest.

“Oh Kate…honey…just breathe…” she murmured, feeling completely helpless to help her friend. She started getting some paper towels and wetting them with cold water to start cleaning the dried blood off of her hands, hoping that washing the blood away would help at least some. She

had never seen her friend like this; even when she knew Beckett had issues with certain things, or when something bad had happened to her; she’d definitely had her share of needing to comfort her friend, like when Will had left her. But Lanie had never seen her break like this.

It took almost an hour for Lanie to get Beckett cleaned up; it had taken over 25 minutes for her to be able to get her friend breathing normally again after she’d completely fallen apart. And now, the woman who walked out of the bathroom in a set of NYPD sweats had managed to pull it together. It was still obvious she’d been crying…it wasn’t like she had makeup to be able to hide that, but she wasn’t going to break at the moment. At least as long as no one came out with any kind of bad news.

Slowly, cautiously, Beckett approached Martha. “Martha?” she kept her voice soft. Seeing the older woman stand, she wasn’t sure who embraced whom. “I am so, so sorry…” she apologized as she held the other woman tightly.

“It’s not your fault, Katherine…” Martha stated as she clung to the detective. Finally releasing the embrace, she knew all too well the look in the younger woman’s eyes. Fear. Love. Fear that the man she loved wasn’t going to come back to her. She’d seen those emotions mirrored in her son’s eyes as well regarding the woman in front of her. “No one blames you, dear.”

Beckett knew she needed to seek out Alexis. She knew better than anyone the pain Alexis was feeling right now. She’d been in her shoes when she’d been just a few years older than Alexis. Taking a deep breath and steeling herself, she was determined to be strong for the girl. Her need to be there for Alexis had currently pushed away the crushing weight of her mother’s case, how similar this was to what had happened to her mother. “Alexis…” she approached softly.

Alexis had adopted a stance at the hospital window, much the way Beckett had at the other end of the hallway before Lanie had come to talk to her. She didn’t say anything, didn’t even acknowledge Beckett’s presence; she simply stared out the window.

“Alexis…he’s going to be okay…” she started softly, echoing the words Lanie had told her not even a full hour earlier, and managing to make herself sound much more confident than she felt.

“How do you know that?” Alexis spun on the older woman then. “You can’t know that, because you’re not a doctor! You’re a cop…a cop who my dad has been following around…a cop who was supposed to keep my dad safe…” she started in on her.

Beckett said nothing, just let the girl vent. She knew more than anyone how she was feeling. The hurt, the fear. She’d prepared herself for this. “I know,” she stated simply once the girl was done. “I was supposed to protect him. He’s my partner…and I didn’t hold up my end. And I’m sorry,” she apologized. “But he’s going to be okay,” she insisted again. Why couldn’t she just believe those words yet, though?

“My dad was only there because of you.”

Those words cut through her like a dull knife. “I know.” She swallowed hard. “And that’s something I have to carry with me for the rest of my life.”

The detective’s words caused Alexis to soften slightly. She took in the older woman’s appearance; she’d been crying. She looked like she was trying to be strong, but Alexis was mature enough to see the worry in her eyes, the guilt that was there. She was mature enough to realize that blaming Detective Beckett for her father’s situation was not going to help anyone; if anything, it would make matters worse. This was hard for her too. It was then that she moved from the window and pulled Beckett into a bone-crushing hug, letting her tears of worry fall.

Beckett just held her tightly. Quite honestly, she wasn’t sure if the hug was more for her benefit or Alexis’s. But she knew the girl was feeling lost, scared, hurt…the emotions she’d felt the day a detective had informed her and her father of her mother’s death. Castle had once asked her to look out for Alexis if anything ever happened to him; that was a promise she was going to keep. After another few moments, Martha joined the two younger women, wrapping them both in her arms as well.

Lanie, Esposito and Ryan watched as Beckett insisted on remaining strong for Castle’s mother and daughter.

“She gonna be ok?” Esposito asked Lanie after a moment.

She was quiet for a moment before answering. “Not if he doesn’t make it,” she answered quietly.

It was at that moment a nurse came through the doors. “Who is here for Mr. Castle?” The entire group moved over to her in answer to the question. “The doctor will be on his way out momentarily to talk to you.”

Beckett felt her heart drop. That didn’t sound like good news. And a moment later when the doctor came through those doors, her heart dropped again for a different reason when she saw it was Josh. Her boyfriend. The boyfriend she hadn’t thought about, hadn’t even remembered was working today in this hospital. Of course he had to be the doctor. The only relief she felt was from the fact that she knew he was damn good at his job.

“Josh…is he okay?” she asked.

The doctor studied the group, including his girlfriend…the look on her face; he could tell by the way she looked, whatever was between her and her partner was more than she felt for him. “Mr. Castle is alive. He’s as stable as he can be at the moment. He’s not out of the woods yet, but

he’s being moved into the ICU and you’ll be able to see him soon.”

Kate’s eyes met those of her boyfriend and knew this had told him everything he’d needed to know, everything she’d been denying for months about Castle. He was more than her partner. “Thank you,” she breathed.

He nodded and after giving her a long look, headed back through the doors.

About half an hour later, a nurse came back out. “Mr. Castle is in a private room in the ICU. You can come back, but no more than three at a time.”

“You guys go ahead. We’ll wait right here,” Ryan told the three women who were most worried about him.

Beckett gave them a grateful look, and Ryan nodded his head with a small smile before the three woman who cared most about the man followed the nurse back to his room.

xxxxx

She sensed the relief in both Martha and Alexis as they saw Castle in his hospital bed, still sedated and hooked up to machines, but at least alive and with a steady heartbeat. It felt like a punch in the gut to see him there, knowing it was in her place. She watched as Alexis and Martha moved to his bedside, both moving chairs closer to him. It was only after an encouraging look from Martha that Beckett stepped closer to stand at the other side of his bed. She was silent as she studied him, her fingers absently running ever so lightly along the top of his hand. “See, Alexis…I told you that he was going to be fine,” she offered the girl a small smile…a smile that she had perfected in her line of work.

“Thank you, Detective Beckett,” Alexis told her softly.

“Kate. You can call me Kate.”

Alexis nodded and offered a smile that looked like it mirrored the one Beckett had given her. “Kate.”

After another couple of moments, Beckett took a deep breath. “I’m going to give you guys some privacy with him. Please text or call if you need anything…or if anything happens before I make it back,” she told them, giving each woman a gentle shoulder squeeze.

Alexis didn’t really notice, but Martha knew enough stories from her son to know what the detective was most likely going to do. She stood and pulled her into a hug. “Take care of yourself Katherine. He’s going to want to see you when he wakes up,” she said lowly, just loud enough for Beckett to hear.

“I will.” And with that, Kate headed out of the room, her jaw clenching as soon as she was through the doors of the ICU. The boys and Lanie saw the look in her eyes and the way she was walking; Beckett was back…and she was on a mission.

“Beckett! Hey!” Ryan called.

“Where are you going?” Esposito asked, though judging from the look on her face, he had an idea of what her general plan was.

When she met the eyes of her friends, they saw the look of determination. “I’m going to hunt down the son of a bitch who shot him. And then I’m putting him in the ground,” she said lowly, her voice carrying a dangerous edge that they had never really heard before. She didn’t even give them a chance to say anything as she strode out of the hospital with determined, angry strides. She wasn't going to just find the shooter and bring him to justice; she was going to kill him.

xxxxx

So I can leave it there…this can be a one shot. Or I can revisit this and add more. What do you guys think? Feedback is everything!

I also don't know how active Castle fans are anymore. I've been off this site for years...so...if anyone reads this at all, I'll be happy!

#castle #caskett #beckett #kate beckett #richard castle #rick castle #castle fanfiction #caskett fanfiction

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ygiroadrift · 3 months

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Velvet and Veneer live in my head rent free 2

Okay, back to the V&V art! Sorry for the AU intermission LMAO.

Anyways! This is the moment where I first drew Velvet's final scene outfit... And it's with poster paints. This is also the time where I drew her disastrous looking hair without references and I um. messed up lol.

But that's okay, because I love this piece and I certainly love Velvet as well as Veneer (it's mostly Veneer in this post but I ended up progressively draw more of Velvet in January lmao. Maybe. IDK my memory kinda sucks).

I also drew Veneer and painted it with watercolors.

Their final scene outfits are so cool okay!!

And also- DUDE. THE AMOUNT OF WEED (zaza???) SMOKES ARE INSANE. So it's logical for me to also hop into it lol.

I'm kinda hesitant on posting the doodle above, because I colored the eyes that way (and GOD it looks like those jankyass arts in dA. THAT IS NOT WHAT I WAS TRYING TO DRAW.) But he looks so goofy in here so I want to share it here because I can.

Anyways, fineliner time (black and red edition)

Changed my mind, pen time

The creaturification had just began.... Fear me.

And to top it off, tail headcanons.

I have done this to Rhythm N Face so now it's V&V's turn to have it haha - I AM UNSTOPPABLE.

Anyways, unhinged aside, that was the moment I ended up noticing that THESE TWO. Have their hair design based off of the musical notations - Veneer looks like the bass clef, and Velvet looks like a treble clef. That fact is SENDING ME because number one, that's brilliant. Number two, that kind of matched the dynamic between Velvet and Veneer.

Like HEAR ME OUT

(I already rambled this a bit in Twitter like a few weeks ago but I'm just gonna recapped it here for abit)

Veneer being the bass and Velvet being the treble makes sense. The bass presents intruments/music that are lower in tone. In other words, it's usually the place to write the background music are. Meanwhile, the treble presents the higher notes; the vocals if you will. Despite treble being able to stand on its own, the treble's quality can be far more greater if the bass is there as well ("best being brought together" sort of thing). Velvet wanted the fame. She wanted to be the star. Which is why she has far more vocals/lines during the singing scenes. And yet, despite being able to stand on her own, she still bought Veneer onto her journey. Veneer, being her twin brother who also cares about Velvet, jumped in anyways and became the background singer (plus he didn't seem to mind being the background singer...). They are a duo after all.

... I am aware that at this point, that's already common knowledge in this fandom - But uh yeah! That's my though of 'em.

ANYWAYS. Pencil doodles (ft. "Orchid" purple girl and Kidritz)

Okay I'm gonna stop today. I think that's enough for today, so um later alligators /hj

#ygiromadethis #ygirorambles #artists on tumblr #traditional art #fanart #velvet and veneer #trolls #trolls 3 #trolls velvet #trolls veneer #trolls kid ritz #trolls orchid #gonna post again. tomorrow lol

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the-hilda-librarians-wife · 8 months

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Introducing Meiri (pronouced May-ree), my Bell Keeper's daughter OC!

I'd been thinking about creating this OC for a long time, and finally got the energy to actually conceptualize her a few months ago. Stubborn and smart, Meiri is the kind of person that at first sight makes you assume she hates you, but if you manage to stick around long enough you'll see she has a soft core, especially for her dad. Don't point it out, though. She'll deny it to her grave.

(Introduction and a bit more of lore under the cut)

I wanted to make her introduction post today because the plan was making it on her in-universe birthday date. Originally it was going to be on the 21st of September, but that one was already taken. By The Hilda The Series. I'm not gonna compete with that. Oh, and also because I'm kinda terrified about the looming announcement of season 3 and wanted to introduce her asap in case they destroy something in Meiri's lore with the new season. No idea how long we will have between the announcement and the release date (I mean, last time there was enough time to freak out about her dad, so there's hope!), but I wanted to get her origin story at least mostly posted before the new content arrived :') will I manage it? Who knows!

Anyway, most of her content will be in the form of fics (obviously), but I've been trying to draw her as well because I feel some ideas are just best executed that way. I'm still only beginning, though, so don't expect much from me 😅

Aside from the info already mentioned in this post, I'd like to add that she uses she/her pronouns, is on the autistic spectrum (I don’t know how to write neurotypicals anymore, sorry) and that there are also two other designs for her, for a 9-12 age range and a 15-17 age range, but those will (hopefully) come later on as I expand the Meiridom.

Ah, yeah, that's the tag I'll use for all the content related to this OC. Because. You know. Kingdom. Meiri. Meiridom. Anyway.

This lil gal has been living rent free in my mind as of late sooo here she is! Thank you for your attention :)

(And special thanks to waddles for hyping me up and for helping me with drawing stuff since I Do Not Know what I’m doing hdjdbdndbjs)

[(Should probably also mention that that last picture is a Canva slide. The only thing I drew there was Meiri)]

#meiridom #meiri #hilda oc #the bell keeper hilda #hilda the series oc #idk if you can tell from that second picture but the vibes are these #its a polaroid picture. the capital letters are supposed to be BK's handwriting and the D'Nealian handwriting is Meiri's adition #he's probably saying something like 'kid look at the camera for a second you only move in once we gotta register it'#and shes yelling back 'IF YOU DON'T COME AND HELP ME ILL MOVE RIGHT OUT'

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qhazomb · 2 months

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i really like this one theory i saw here that brought up the idea that rainbow isn't really desmond's "shadow." or at least, he wasn't originally, and isn't JUST desmond's shadow.

because when you compare rainbow to the other characters' shadows, he's VERY different from all of them. the other shadows often felt like they were one and the same as the people they represented the negative parts of. rainbow meanwhile feels entirely unique from desmond. some notable differences being his disdain for cats (whereas desmond clearly loves cats), he plays piano instead of guitar, and heck, dude also seems to be a way better artist than desmond is, when you compare the various doodles he includes on his notes to the faces desmond drew for the mannequins.

thinking about my spin on what exactly rainbow's deal is. maybe he was an entirely new consciousness that came into being as a result of so many people's minds becoming connected by the rainbow chemical. all that mental energy just kinda... coalesced into a brand new entity.

and then, for whatever reason, he found and attached himself to desmond. desmond's mind definitely influenced the way rainbow appears in the mindscape, and maybe his personality didn't fully solidify until he "settled down" in desmond's head. maybe he took on the role of desmond's "shadow" as the main thing the chemical was being used for was inducing extreme fear/mentally breaking people by bringing out their "shadows" to the forefront. he took on the role of desmond's shadow and also a representation of the psychoactive chemical that more or less created him. he did steal its name for himself, so.

basically, rather than truly being desmond's shadow, he's more like a... mental parasite, i guess you could say.

...and comparing him to a parasite feels pretty apt, imo. having him around actually helped desmond, in the end, and they do say that having parasites can actually be beneficial, as they help to calm down an over-active immune system and such. all the pushing and prodding rainbow had been giving desmond's brain finally pushed des to get his act together.

also, when considering the "not really a shadow but a mental parasite" idea, maybe a reason rainbow's so worried about mayer being stopped and the rainbow chemical being rid of, is because it might mean he'll be gone, too. if he truly was just desmond's shadow, then yeah he would still definitely be a permanent part of desmond's mind. but if he's actually something foreign, that was only able to get into desmond's head due to the chemical agent? then i could see why he'd have concerns about... being evicted, so to speak.

that said, i think des' brain has been so damn saturated in the stuff (that 'brain pulsing' comment at the end) that his brain chemistry has likely been forever changed, and rainbow might not actually have to worry about no longer getting to live rent-free in there. (especially if he continues to push the idea that oh yeah he's totally a natural part of desmond's mind, same as anybody else's shadow, don't worry about it, please put the mental de-wormer away, it's fiiiiiine.)

kinda but maybe not really?-related: i dunno if i just missed a note or failed to trigger some dialogue, but as far as i can tell, rainbow never seems to acknowledge rosemary, even once? like, not even when she completely foils his attempt at wasting desmond's time in the crypt. he never offers any reaction to that. and like, i feel like he couldda used her as further demotivation for desmond, like "if even the head researcher for this project was murdered for trying to stop it, what makes you think YOU'LL fair any better?" or something like that, but no. he never says or writes a word about rosemary.

not sure where i'm going with that bit, but i just thought it was interesting :U

#in sound mind #agent rainbow #desmond wales #rosemary james #ECP au

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imzadi-caskett-huddy · 2 months

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Hell Hath No Fury

I don’t own the show or the characters. But angsty Beckett has been in my mind all day, living rent free.

xxxxx

A strangled sob escaped her lips as she thought of Castle. Castle, who was so innocent in all of this, who was now here because of her. Her mind went back to the cemetery.

Lanie, Ryan and Esposito were in the waiting room, but all three of them had given her space. They were worried about Castle, of course; but they had never seen Beckett like this.

“One of us needs to go talk to her...convince her to at least get the blood off her,” Ryan said

quietly.

Beckett drew a ragged breath, a few fresh tears sliding down her cheeks. “I’m fine,” she stated lowly, withdrawing deeper into herself.

“Honey, you are not fine,” Lanie stated simply, her tone still soft, being very gentle with her best friend.

Swallowing hard, Beckett finally turned her head away from the window to look at Lanie, the heartbreak evident all over her face.

“Oh honey,” she embraced her friend then, her heart breaking for the other woman.

“How do you know?”

“The fact that no one has come out with bad news is a good sign. No news is good news right

now.”

“God, Lanie…there was so much blood…” she breathed, a few more tears sliding down her cheeks.

Beckett swallowed hard at the mention of Martha and Alexis. “Oh God, Lanie…they must hate me right now…that bullet was meant for me…”

xxxxx

Lanie barely had time to get the door locked before her friend was freaking out. “Kate…hey…hey, get what off?” she tried to calm her down.

“Alexis…he’s going to be okay…” she started softly, echoing the words Lanie had told her not even a full hour earlier, and managing to make herself sound much more confident than she felt.

“My dad was only there because of you.”

Those words cut through her like a dull knife. “I know.” She swallowed hard. “And that’s something I have to carry with me for the rest of my life.”

Lanie, Esposito and Ryan watched as Beckett insisted on remaining strong for Castle’s mother and daughter.

“She gonna be ok?” Esposito asked Lanie after a moment.

She was quiet for a moment before answering. “Not if he doesn’t make it,” she answered quietly.

“Josh…is he okay?” she asked.

he’s being moved into the ICU and you’ll be able to see him soon.”

He nodded and after giving her a long look, headed back through the doors.

About half an hour later, a nurse came back out. “Mr. Castle is in a private room in the ICU. You can come back, but no more than three at a time.”

“You guys go ahead. We’ll wait right here,” Ryan told the three women who were most worried about him.

Beckett gave them a grateful look, and Ryan nodded his head with a small smile before the three woman who cared most about the man followed the nurse back to his room.

xxxxx

“Thank you, Detective Beckett,” Alexis told her softly.

“Kate. You can call me Kate.”

Alexis nodded and offered a smile that looked like it mirrored the one Beckett had given her. “Kate.”

“Beckett! Hey!” Ryan called.

“Where are you going?” Esposito asked, though judging from the look on her face, he had an idea of what her general plan was.

xxxxx

So I can leave it there…this can be a one shot. Or I can revisit this and add more. What do you guys think? Feedback is everything!

I'm also not sure how active the Castle fandom is still here...I haven't been on this site in years. And now I've fallen back into the Castle rabbit hole and I couldn't help myself. Hope you like this.

#castle #caskett #kate beckett #richard castle #rick castle #castle fanfiction #caskett fanfiction

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siconetribal · 2 years

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Safely Grounding

Pairing: Jason Todd x Fem!reader

Tag: @vbecker10 (it isn't Loki, I know)

Warning: PTSD description, panic attack

Author Note:

PLEASE READ WARNING. So, this idea has been lingering around in my head for a while. I've been too nervous to share it because I'm not super confident in my ability to depict Jason properly, but I tried. So here is the quick one shot that's been living rent-free in my mind.

He could not think. The silence was deafening, every little sound echoing in the void. He could not breathe. The air was too thick, clogging his throat. His heart was racing as the world warped and spun at a dizzying pace, while his inner brain slowly turned in the opposite direction. Each shallow breath scratched against his esophagus like invisible sand paper. He did not want to be here. There was no way he could be there, but the odd scrape of the metal bar against the ground caught him off guard. Sweat trickled down the back of his neck as he clenched and unclenched his clammy hands.

Are they really sweaty? Why is it so quiet? Am I finally dying? Was everything just a dream and I’m still stuck there? Where is he? I need to get out of here! He needed to move, but his body would not listen. He was paralyzed as the footsteps and unhinged maniacal laughter rang in his head, growing louder with each passing second.

“Jason,” a distant voice lingered in the background. “Jason,” it called again, a little louder and he forced himself to look up. “Hey, Jay, it’s me. It’s Y/N,” he forced himself to focus on the young woman who was crouched down on the floor a couple feet from him.

“Y/N.” He whispered the name. The fear in his voice broke her heart. The fiery confidence and recklessness that normally lit up his blue eyes was nowhere to be seen. The flame in them was dwindling fast as he slowly sank deeper into his mind. She was not going to let that happen. No matter how many times it took, she would always be there for him when he needed someone the most.

“That’s right, I’m here. It’s ok, you’re safe. I promise you, you’re safe. I need you to feel your surroundings, love. Feel the ground, it’s hardwood. Touch my hand, it’s warm and real. You’re home, you’re safe at home.” She slowly reached out to her vigilante boyfriend, giving his bigger hand a comforting squeeze. Seeing him not flinch away, she slowly moved in closer to him. “You’re at home with me. I was in the kitchen cooking and the pot scraped against the stove, ok?” She continued to speak in a steady and calm voice, detailing the events that had led to triggering one of his panic attacks.

“I need you to take deep breaths for me, ok? Let’s get you laying down on the floor.” She gently nudged him to the right, easing him on to his side before rolling onto his back. “There we go, see? You’re on the floor in our bedroom. We’re going to take some deep breaths.” Taking control of his hands, she guided them so one lay flat on his belly and the other on his chest. “Slowly in through your nose and out through your mouth. Nice and easy, go at your own pace. Do you feel the hand on your stomach? It’s moving up and down with each breath. The one on your chest isn’t moving at all. You’re perfectly fine.” She continued to help him pace through the steps, grounding him until she felt the tension completely vanish from his body.

This was embarrassing for Jason. He was a hardcore crime fighting vigilante that survived life-threatening situations on the daily. He’s heard all sorts of things, from metal scraping against metal and bones crunching under the force of his fists. A man feared by many, and yet, here he was curled up in the fetal position in the corner of his bedroom. Fucking can’t believe I flipped over the pot on the stove. I’ve heard that shit hundreds of times! He mentally groaned, covering his face with hands.

“Hey, none of that.” A sweet voice from above drew him from his internal misery as he stared up at two stern looking eyes. “I don’t know if you know this, but you’re actually human, and you have every right to have moments like these. Hell, I’d be shocked to know if anyone deserves it more than you!” Y/N lectured him for the umpteenth time, tugging at his arms until he was sat upright once more. “How are you feeling, better? Do you need a few more minutes?” She searched his face and body for any lingering signs, relieved to see none. I still can’t be too sure. He might be trying to hide from me again. The corners of her lips turned downwards at the last few times he lied to her about being alright.

As she predicted, Jason was trying his best to push down any of the lingering feelings. He wanted to get past this and make life easier for Y/N, but his dumb brain failed to take a hint. His lips parted as he prepared himself to reassure her, but the words died in his throat at her sincere concern. She was fussing with his clothes, straightening them out and combing his hair with her fingers. The left corner of his lips tugged upwards and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into his chest. “I’m not completely fine, stay like this with me a little longer.” He whispered into her hair.

“OK, we can stay like this” She smiled and hugged him a little tighter. “We can stay like this for as long as you need.”

#jason todd #red hood #fanifc #fanfiction #batman fanfiction #jason todd x female reader #jason todd x y/n #y/n reader #y/n #one shot #angst #panic attack #ptsd tw #panic attack tw

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duskstars · 4 months

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for the avemygo revue starlight au, what weapons would the rest of avemujica and mygo have?? I'm Obsessed with the concept

THANK YOU SO SO MUCH ANON and I’m sorry for the late response I was sick right after the holidays and then I’ve been busy busy BUT . It gave me time to think abt this and develop the AU a bit further in my head even if things aren’t concrete exactly yet. I was able to come up with the rest of ave’s weapons, mygo I’m not TOO SURE yet but I do have weapon name lore for them .

For ave, Sakiko’s got her falchion (single blade), and for the others, Uika has dual blades (one blade for each band: ave and sumimi, and having something similar to Sakiko but still a bit more implying she has a lot more going on and could be pulling a lot of strings) & Nyamu’s got like. Brass knuckle kitty claws, she’d love trying to go head first into a fight but probably end up swatting her hands all over the place (like a cat fight). Mutsumi has a scythe for the obvious death themes, but also bc scythes can be used for gardening (tysm for my gf for that idea!!). Umiri would probably have a simple blade or dagger (like an anelace maybe?) or maybe something like koharu’s weapon? (Umiri’s is the most subject to change atm) All of their weapons would be named similar to their stage names: Sakiko’s is oblivisci (to forget), Uika’s is multis doloribus (many sorrows), Nyamu’s is laminae amoris (blades of love), Mutsumi’s would be flos mortis (flower of death), and Umiri’s would be timere (to be afraid)!! I also drew some more doodles for you bc this AU lives in my mind rent free

MORE STUFF UNDER THE CUT IF YOU’RE CURIOUS

AS FOR THE WEAPON NAME AND (one specific version of the) AU’s LORE . While I don’t have mygo’s weapons solidified yet, I do know that I want the bands/groups to be a thing in this AU, and crychic was a thing and participated in a few revues before disbanding. Sakiko, Tomori, and Soyo participated in them, and Mutsumi and Taki would’ve too if it went on for longer. Sakiko and Tomori’s weapons change names after moving to Ave Mujica and Mygo, even though Tomori would hesitate to change her weapons name for a bit. Soyo wouldn’t change her weapons name at all: she’d keep it the same and as a reminder of crychic.

Sakiko, Tomori, Soyo, Taki, Mutsumi, and Uika would be the only ones with revue knowledge: Anon, Raana, Umiri, and Nyamu would be participating in them for the first time. Even though Mutsumi and Taki didn’t participate in the crychic revues, they did know about them, especially Mutsumi. Uika would have WAY too much knowledge abt all this stuff for her to have not participated before but no one really knows for sure . Cue all the battles between Mygo and Ave Mujica members for Top Star (imagine soyo vs the entirety of mygo, uika vs sakiko, etc etc). I see this version of this AU as a weird combo between avemygo and revstar, as I wanna keep the respective groups and their closeness / drama but also keep the revue system and top star system and all the drama that comes with that too HDJFJSJDJ though if this was a by the books revstar AU I gotta think abt what school everyone would go to bc that’s a lot of symbolism and ideas in on itself JDNFNSK MAYBE I CAN SOON .

#answered #sketchbook #avemygo revstar au #<- NEW TAG FOR IT

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imapuppy5000 · 2 months

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Story about Vlk’s Backround and some of her time in hell. It’s a bit messy and jumps around a bit but it’s all I could manage.

Vlk

Vickey snarled in rage as the cop drew his gun. Mary had been shot already and had fallen back, leaving Vickey alone with the two officers. She held ‘her’ captive tightly by her wrist before making an inarticulate noise of fury and throwing the girl at the officers.

“There. F—kin give me my kid back!” She spat. “Both of em.”

The first officer pulled the teen behind her and directed her outside of the house while the other kept Vickey at gunpoint.

“You aren’t getting them back.” He growled darkly, eyes narrowed and body tense.

That wouldn’t do. “I am.” She sneered. In a moment her dagger was free from her boot and she was charging the officers. Two shots rang out, she dropped.

Her breathing was ragged for a few moments before it stilled and she went limp.

The new officer carefully crept forward and poked her with a foot while his partner kept her at gunpoint. She didn’t move. Their guards dropped slowly and the man lowered his gun. Vickey’s eyes flicked up. She grabbed his ankle and yanked him to the ground, slashing his throat with her knife. There was a boom and she blinked.

The world around her was a hazy red, a pentagram above. Around her were screams and gunshots and honking. It was all too much. Carefully she examined her surroundings and came to the grim understanding of where she was. Hell.

Hell was a lot like the world of the living: taxes, rent, overpriced apartments, jobs, the whole shebang. Sure it was a little more violent than earth was but she didn’t mind too terribly. She was a sinner, she knew it. With all the lives she had taken, things she had stolen, and people she had hurt, she knew her good acts couldn’t make up for it. But that was okay.

She fit in decent enough and had recently secured a job in a club, making a pretty penny dancing. She knew how to woo men and women alike, she knew how to manipulate people to get the most from them and these being degenerates only made it easier. After all, it was easier to convince a sex addict to blow some money on a lap dance than it was a good Christian.

Of course she looked different but the tail was nice to have (good for balance on the poles) and the fur hid a majority of her scars from life. The self inflicted ones did hurt now though, which sucked. Mostly because she could never feel pain so having it now was odd and uncomfortable. Luckily, new wounds or blows still didn’t hurt. The one scar that wasn’t hidden was on her back, it was new. She guessed it to be the exit wound of the bullet that killed her. She had another on her hip that was barely visible where one of the bullets had entered and (presumably) shattered her hip. The one lodged in her collarbone was hidden by fur: as were the ones Mary and victims had inflicted on her.

Along with her differing appearance she sported a new name, Vlk. She wanted to leave her old life behind her. She wanted to forget it ever existed. Mary, her partner and the love of her life, was immortal so despite their sins they wouldn’t be joining her down here. And Lilith, her adopted daughter and everything, was far too sweet to be sent down here. She’d be in heaven where she belonged. Layla would probably join her eventually but the two never got along and would probably stay their separate ways. That being said, she had no ties to the living and wanted it to be striped from her completely. New look, new name, new job… new life.

Speaking of her job she had recently caught the eye of a moth demon. He spoke in an accent that annoyed her and the way he talked to her was the way she talked to others she was trying to manipulate into bed. Even still she went along with it, played his game, and took the money he offered. The propositions to join him at his studio didn’t take all that long to start. He said she’d make a great actor. And she would. She acted with Mary all the time when the god wanted her. Her lack of being able to feel pain and affinity to blood was also a great thing to have with some of the kinks these demons had. He offered her a nice paycheck and, to sweeten the deal, a paid apartment. She happily took him up on the deal even if the apartment was sub par.

The movies were rough and she was bored of this but it wasn’t like she wasn’t used to it. Mary played these games too. She could suck it up. She made Valentino plenty of money, even not being the most popular she was the most versatile and could be used in pretty much anything he needed. The variety was nice, though not nice enough to keep her entertained for long. Sex was never something she liked all that often, even if she was good at it. And she was. She knew exactly what to do and how to cater to individuals, how to read signs and adjust based on them. She could easily figure out if someone was dominant or submissive with a simple conversation and, much like her partner in life, often used that to her advantage.

What she couldn’t figure out is why Valentino was so interested in one of the other actors, a demon named Angel Dust. He was probably the most popular by far. Vlk could understand the attraction but why did Valentino care for him so deeply? Why was he the favorite toy? For a few months Vlk had assumed the feelings were of jealousy, that she wanted to be the favorite like she was with Mary. But after a while she had come to learn that she didn’t care if she was the favorite. She’d really rather not be. What she was feeling was… concern? Concern for a grown man, a sinner, a willing pornstar. That had never happened before and it caught her off guard. Maybe it was because he so clearly didn’t want to do some of, if not all, the things he was made to. Maybe it was because he was trying to get better, something all the demons at the studio knew of and mocked him for. Maybe he reminded her of herself when she was helpless and scared. Whatever the reason she was concerned about him. Everytime he had to cover marks in makeup or the limp he so desperately tried to hide after a long night.. it all worried her. It made her angry? At her boss.

But dwelling on it brought up confusing feelings and she was never one to try and deal with those. She’d rather pop some painkillers or sleeping meds and just check out. Not that she had any sort of drug to ignore the happenings about her— they were too expensive and she was trying to avoid overdosing… again. So she didn’t get any. She just learned that if she went into work and worked full force she’d eventually forget her feelings. And when she was under a certain rough moth she tended to blank on those feelings too. She was quick to become a stand in for Angel. When the spider was at the hotel she was the one called on. She made a point of putting on a show, slowly drawing Valentino’s attention away from Angel Dust. When she saw the overlord was getting antsy and clearly yearning to sink his grimy little claws in Angel, Vlk would approach the moth seductively, keep his focus on her, and (unfortunately) eventually bed him.

Angel seemed relieved that he wasn’t used as often and his thankful face the first time he realized what Vlk was doing did make her feel a bit better about doing it. He had smiled. The first time she had seen him do so without his fake and gaudy persona. It was beautiful. She shot him a sympathetic smile back before the door closed and she was left alone with the stupid moth again.

Let it be clear: despite her not hating him, she did not like Valentino. He was everything she hated in a person but she couldn’t bring herself to feel that strong of an emotion towards him. She was indifferent to his existence. She’d rather he didn’t exist, sure, but everyone would rather that. Except maybe Vox and Velveete. She wasn’t special in that regard. Unfortunately, when the wall blew down and raiders rushed the studio Vlk was put in an interesting position that made it seem she had a lot more loyalty to her boss then she truly did.

Val had been with a young teen. A hellborne. Vlk didn’t like that one bit but she had been restrained before she could bite off her boss’s head. When the attack happened it was clear who the gangsters were going after and Vlk panicked. The teen, Harley, had been immediately thrust in front of Valentino as a human shield. She was vulnerable and terrified and that look… it was just a quick moment as they made eye contact and Harley seemed to beg for help. Vlk couldn’t say no to such desperation. She had leapt forward, form shifting in and out of focus as she dashed between the attackers and dispatched them one by one in a matter of seconds. Limbs were torn off, heads were the wrong way, and several fallen bodies had chunks torn out of them or bite marks littering their skin. When the noise settled and Vlk had calmed enough to return to her neutral form she had immediately rushed towards Harley and blurted, “Are you okay?!”

“Thanks to you I am.” Valentino had cooed, tossing Harley aside and grabbing Vlk’s face roughly. “You’re the only one that stayed to protect me. How sweet.”

Vlk struggled in his gasp but couldn’t pull away. Her eyes darted to Harley and she relaxed as she saw the teen slipping into a robe and mostly uninjured. Their eyes caught again. She was okay, if not a little terrified. She flashed Vlk a shaky, thankful, wave and skittered off, leaving the fox demon alone with Val.

A new proposal. Better pay. Less sex. She would spend most of her day acting as Val’s personal body guard and, on occasion she’d have to do a few movies. She accepted almost immediately. A body guard was a pretty nice job, if she had to say so. And getting to let off steam like that was an exciting prospect. The agreement was made but no deals were formed. Vickey had made a deal with a demon once. She knew better than to do it now that she was working with real and powerful demons. As a bodyguard she was working alongside a few hell hounds. But she didn’t mind that. They seemed alright. Another bonus was that Val had made Vlk to escort Angel to and from the hotel. She was pretty sure it was to make sure the demon kept coming back to work but Val insisted it was to ‘protect him’ and ‘keep other whores off of him.’

The reason this was a bonus? It helped Vlk get to know more about Angel and the hotel. She liked its premise. She liked that he fought so hard for betterment. She would ask his progress on their walks and encourage him when he seemed down. A few times she had carried him back to the hotel after particularly rough nights. He had complained at first but eventually just accepted it so long as no one from work or the hotel saw. The poor guy had fallen asleep in her arms once, grimacing in pain every time she jostled him.

The familiar circumstances were not lost on her but she had also promised to forget Mary and thus pushed those thoughts and feelings aside. She was just helping a friend. At least.. she hoped they were friends. She hadn’t really made any in a long time. Harley and her were getting there but the younger seemed a bit scared of her. Fair enough.

#hazbin hotel #oc

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melonnade · 7 months

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OC-TOBER DAYS 2-4 (commentary about each character under the cut)

2: NEW OC - Luo Yuqing

3: OLD OC - Tess (joint effort between @millidew and I)

4: REDESIGN - Sanya Harris

Day 2 - new OC: technically Xiang Wanyi is my newest OC but he was Day 1, so I’ll just do my second-newest. for a long time, Luo Yuqing didn’t really get much character development from me. from the onset, I knew I wanted a character like Song Riyuan as the protagonist of this OC universe. SRY needed a friend of some sort but I didn’t really have a clear-cut idea, so I just quickly scribbled in LYQ’s design without thinking much about it and made their concept “cloud recesses wangxian but lesbians.” so for a while, LYQ has just been “what if Lan Wangji was a girl?”

after fleshing out SRY a bit more though, I figured LYQ deserves some more actual thought from me too, so she has this sort of inverse character development thing with Riyuan. Waymond Wang in Everything, Everywhere, All At Once has a quote that lives rent-free in my head: “When I choose to see the good side of things, I’m not being naive. It is strategic and necessary… This is how I fight,” and “We have to be kind. Please, be kind.” This is SRY’s mentality at the beginning of the story. LYQ has a more cynical worldview: sometimes kindness hurts more than it helps. It’s more similar to Megumi from jjk’s “who’s to say that someone you save won’t kill anyone in the future?”

not going to get too much into plot, but over time, stuff happens and the two begin to slowly swap ideologies. after a time skip, LYQ has basically SRY’s original mentality, while SRY has taken on LYQ’s. I get so excited just thinking about how they’d interact when they meet again—they’re still so, so important to one another but there’s this distance now that they’re not sure how to navigate. to SRY, her old mentality was the reason why she wasn’t able to keep the two of them from being separated—she hates that part of herself. to LYQ, her memories of SRY were what got her through everything—she takes on that ideology as a sort of homage initially, but grows to believe it completely. there’s so much fun potential here for different situations.

I’m just going to try to describe her in a sort of stream of consciousness way. overall, LYQ makes me think of the North Star—always there, always constant, never wavering. basically, she doesn’t give up ever. not in a Naruto Uzumaki bold, confident kind of way, but in the same way Sisyphus keeps pushing that boulder, slowly but surely, over and over again. Luo Yuqing’s character is like the way waves against cliffs over the course of centuries can turn rock to sand. not sure how much this makes sense, but these are the types of associations I have in my mind with her. the vibes, if you will. she’s very fun to think about, now that I have more of an idea of what she should be.

Day 3 - old OC: Tess is the very first OC I ever made, before I even knew what an OC was. she’s a group project of a character, so I guess Millie and I have shared custody. she’s very edgy, very cringe, and was very fun at the time to make. I don’t think I ever drew any ref art of her, so this is just a drawing that I made today of what I remember her looking like. Tess is so funny to me because I remember thinking, “if she’s an assassin, she can’t be 12, because I’m 12, and 12 is too young to do anything like that. she can be 13 though.”

I drew her with her manic pixie dream girl traveling companion Sel, since I didn’t want to separate them!

I think Tess & Sel’s creation was a formative time in my life because this is basically how I make every OC now. they always come in pairs—their personalities are developed around one another, so I almost never make individual OCs. you can pretty much group all my OCs into two: Luo Yuqing & Song Riyuan, Qin Tianxiao & Xiang Wanyi, Haneul & Anna, Zach & .Soren, Atlas & Louisa, etc. If a character on my Art Fight doesn’t have an obvious foil, it’s most likely just because I haven’t drawn their ref sheet yet. anyway, I just think it’s funny how that moment in my life influenced my entire creative process, even now. if you spend enough time looking at my OCs, there are definitely clear patterns that I tend to follow though!

Day 4 - redesign: another part of my OC creation process is when I scrap certain universes, I try to reuse the characters if possible. either I’ll essentially blend them up with another character to create someone new or I’ll just stick them in a brand new universe. Sanya Harris initially was a best friend/sidekick-type character in an urban fantasy monster-hunting OC universe that I’ve abandoned. (like all of my other OCs, she had a partner OC too, but he’s been recycled into Zach lol). she was a college student working a part-time job as a motel receptionist in rural Kansas. now, in her current backstory, she lives in California and is a teenager going to summer camp. this whole situation is very funny to me.

actually, a lot of my OCs would fit for the “redesign” prompt because all of the recycled ones are basically redesigns. for example:

let’s compare the art I drew of Tess to Haneul’s original design from 2021. “they’re the same photo” meme etc, etc.

their personalities are very similar too—they’re basically the same person. again, I find this hilarious, but yeah, there are definitely character archetypes that repeat in my OCs that are easily identifiable if you’ve been watching me make a lot of them over the years.

#OC-tober #my ocs #my art #clear days faraway rain #hawthorn ridge #long post

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i-can-even-burn-salad · 1 year

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Chapter 31

Glass Shards

Warnings: Talk about a sexual relationship between a minor and an adult, including dubious consent. Nothing explicit. Basically ace depression paradise. In exchange, you’ll get fluff in the second half.

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When they had finished their meal, Merridy resumed her tale, so Damien would have no chance to bring up the topic of her vouching for him again.

“Working with Cedric was… I don’t know. I hadn’t been proud to be stealing before, but helping him acquire certain objects his clients wanted? It was like a game. A risky game, I admit.” She grinned. “I’ve always been good at climbing. A window in the second story or entry over a roof was nothing for me.”

Getting paid by rich people to take jeweled baubles from other rich people hadn’t burdened her conscience. Cedric had never asked her to do anything that went against her morals.

“Soon I had saved enough so I could afford the rent for a small room. For the first time since I had arrived in Caldeia, I was truly free. I would still have given anything to find my family, but I was… I don’t know if I was happy. But I was content. I had friends, and a place to stay, and I thought that was as good as it was going to get.”

She watched Damien, trying in vain to interpret his facial expression. She didn’t doubt that he had listened to her, yet he seemed somehow absent.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“This Carl. Was he also a confidant of Cedric?” he asked a question she had not expected.

Merridy shook her head. “No. He would have liked to be. I mean, if you’re not part of it, you don’t really know about it, but he always suspected there was more to it. I don’t think Cedric trusted him. It probably would have made Carl furious that he trusted me instead. I, who could do nothing right, became the confidant of the leader of the thieves’ guild, as he sometimes jokingly called his little empire.”

She smirked, but the mirth did not reach her eyes.

* * *

Damien found it difficult to really comprehend what he had heard. Merridy’s story had saddened him, but what had shocked him most was her confession that she had vouched for him.

By the Seven, what had she seen in him that she had trusted him so much? He would not have trusted himself! By now, it was clear to him that he would rather have the second hand chopped off as well than allow Merridy to come to harm. But back then?

No, he realized after a moment, even then he had not wanted anything to happen to her. When she had sat so stubbornly in front of him, talking to him through the fever and insisting that he try to escape, she had somehow managed to awaken his will to live. She had broken through his shell of self-hatred and given him back his humanity. Anyone else would have given up on him; his own family had given up on him. This Carl must have been out of his mind not to treat Merridy better, and he certainly hadn’t deserved her staying with him for so long.

“He was an asshole,” Damien grumbled softly, yet wondering about himself. Why did he even give this man a second thought? Why did it upset him so much to think about him, even though he had never met him?

“Who?” Merridy asked, a confused look on her face.

Damien’s eyebrows drew together and he scowled. “Carl. If he really believed you couldn’t do anything right, he must have been blind. What did he expect you to do? Break into the queen’s treasury?”

Merridy looked at him for a moment, confusion clear on her face as she tried to follow his train of thoughts. Then her cheeks turned slightly red and she stammered, “No. Not… not that. Yes, I wasn’t a very good pickpocket. But that… that’s not what I meant. I was… uhm. Bad… in bed.” She gave him a sheepish, apologetic look, then stared at the ground. “I’m sorry. I’m sure that’s the last thing you wanted to know.”

“Oh.”

Damien felt hot and cold at the same time when he realized the meaning of her words. He immediately regretted having brought it up. Change the subject, he should urgently change the subject.

While he frantically searched for another, more innocuous one, he watched as Merridy backed away from him. It was a small distance, hardly worth mentioning, but it seemed to him like a huge gulf opening up between them. And the expression that crept onto her features he knew all too well, having seen it himself in the mirror for years: Disgust and bitter self-hate.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked softly.

When she didn’t reply, he gathered all his courage and moved closer. He gave her time to voice her objection or back away as he raised his arm, to put it around her, but she didn’t. Instead, she raised her head, and just looked at him silently. She looked so sad and vulnerable that it pained him.

“It’s okay if you don’t. But maybe it will help. I can see that something is still bothering you,” he tried again to get her to speak.

Merridy leaned her head against his chest. What he wouldn’t have given to be able to guess her thoughts at that moment, but he couldn’t even read her expression anymore. Through his clothes he could feel the movement of her jaw as she opened her mouth, hesitated again, and then finally began to speak.

“I agreed to be his girlfriend at the time, but secretly I doubted that decision right away. I thought… I thought it would be something great. Isn’t that what everyone always talked about? Falling in love. I never understood it, but I dreamed of it, too.”

She tilted her head up, a sad smile on her face.

“Carl wasn’t bad looking… I guess? I don’t… I don’t even know. I don’t… I don’t think I see people that way. Ever. But he was nice to me, and I thought that maybe I had really fallen in love with him. After all, I was so excited around him and looked forward to seeing him every time.”

She lowered her head, her voice quieter as she continued, “By the time I realized that I didn’t really desire to be with him in that way, it was too late and I decided to give it a chance. It was… strange, but somehow also… nice? At first, I was… I don’t even know how to describe it. I felt like I was the most important person to him and that was wonderful.”

Merridy’s hand, resting on Damien’s chest, played with the strings on his shirt. She was silent for a while, and when she continued to speak her voice was rougher, her words coming more haltingly, as if she had to force every single one out.

“At some point, the subject of sex came up. I’m not sure I was really ready for it, but… I didn’t want to disappoint him either. I mean, everyone knows that it’s part of it. It made me awfully nervous and even though I wasn’t really afraid of it, I was shaking all evening.”

Damien had resolved to just let her talk, to not interrupt her, but now he couldn’t hold back. “Did he force you?” he growled, surprised by how angry he was.

“No. No! I agreed to do it. I…” She hesitated, and Damien could feel her shrug. “At the very beginning, I was curious. It seemed to be such a big deal to people. And when the first time turned out to be pretty disappointing, I thought I would learn, in time. I’d understand it eventually, and I would figure out how to enjoy it. But it was just boring. I’d lie there, let it happen, until he complained that I was too apathetic. Then I made an effort to feign a little enthusiasm.” She laughed, but it didn’t sound quite right. “It never lasted long.”

Damien forced himself to not interrupt her again, to remain calm, at least on the outside. Inside, his emotions were churning. He raised his hand to her head, stroking her hair, as much an attempt to calm her down as one to help him keep his composure.

“At first he still said that I just had to discover what I liked. But I didn’t know how.” She sounded so frustrated. “It just didn’t interest me at all. At some point, I think he stopped even caring if I liked it. He would tell me when he wanted sex and I would agree. Sometimes he wanted to try things. I didn’t want to, but when I said no, he would complain, say that I was way too childish and to give it a chance. Then I gave in because I was terribly ashamed. But it was… I never really enjoyed any of it.”

Damien made the mistake of imagining it for a moment, regretting it instantly. The old familiar revulsion at the subject made him nauseous, and he focused on taking deep breaths, to fight down the sick feeling in his stomach.

“Still, I stayed with him. For so long. I was afraid of change. As unhappy as I was, the situation was familiar, and I didn’t know where else to go. I didn’t want to be alone. Sometimes, at night when I could sleep snuggled up to him, or when we did things together, everything was fine. As it should be. Or so I thought. But then I realized how little he cared what I actually felt.”

She fell silent. Her irregular breaths and quiet sniffles told Damien that she was losing the fight against her tears. His own weren’t far behind, but for now, he managed to suppress them.

“What happened?” he asked quietly, even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know it at all.

“Back then, I took herbs. From a midwife. So I wouldn’t get pregnant. What would I have done with a child in my situation?” She laughed sadly. “Or at all. I couldn’t… I can’t imagine ever having one. The thought alone terrifies me.” She took a deep breath, and when she continued, she obviously tried to keep her voice steady. “I had to take those herbs every day, and one day, I… I had run out, and I noticed it too late. We had been out all day, hiding from the guards, and when we came back… I didn’t want to, but he kept asking, and asking, and… at some point, I gave in. It was always easier to give in,” she whispered.

Damien’s shirt under her cheek was wet. He leaned forwards, so he could wipe his own eyes, before he pulled her closer. Feeling her tremble in his embrace tore at his heart.

“It wasn’t the first time. But this time… for once, it made me realize that he truly didn’t give a shit how I felt. The next day, I took my things, left him a note and ran away. I know that was a cowardly thing to do. But every time I tried to talk about something that bothered me, he managed to make me feel like a stupid little kid. I knew it would happen again, and I… I couldn’t do this anymore.”

She turned her head, looking up at him. Her eyes were large in the flickering light of the fire, her expression so scared and vulnerable.

“You did what you had to do to get out,” he said.

Merridy averted her gaze, but Damien hoped he didn’t merely imagine the way she slightly relaxed against him.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” she mumbled. “Perhaps he was right. Perhaps I am too childish, perhaps I should have tried harder. I mean, it really shouldn’t be such a big deal, should it?” The way her voice shook told Damien that it was a big deal to her. “I didn’t want to be alone. But every time someone so much as hinted at being interested in me, I panicked. I couldn’t deal with it. With the expectations. Not only those, but… all of it. The right kind of love. Whatever I felt, whatever I did, it was never enough. I was never enough.” Her voice broke as she added, “And I don’t think I can be.”

“That’s not true,” Damien said without hesitation. When she made a quiet, disbelieving noise, he added quietly, “You are enough for me. I love you.”

The moment the words had left Damien’s lips, he realized he had fucked up. Merridy froze, shrinking in on herself. How could he do this to her, after what she had just told him? Feeling her stiffen under his touch, where a moment ago she had leaned into it, broke his heart.

Damien let go of her, struggling to his feet. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. Forget it, please. I’ll… I’ll get more wood.”

He hurried out of the faint circle of light, as if he hadn’t seen the branches piled next to the fire, and fled between the trees. He didn’t go far; it was too dark to see anything more than shadows, and Damien didn’t want to move more than a few steps away from the camp.

As his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, he bent down to pick up a few scattered pieces of wood, but with only one arm, the attempt to carry a useful amount was futile. His thoughts were in turmoil, his hand trembling. It was far too late to stop himself from developing feelings for her, but what kind of feelings they were, that was another question entirely. Frustrated, he fought to break off a piece of a larger branch, but in the process dropped the rest. Damien kicked the branch, biting back a curse when the bark of the piece he held scratched his hand.

For a short, wonderful moment everything had seemed so clear. Her words had resonated with him in a way nothing else ever had. All the things she claimed she lacked didn’t matter to him. The thought that he might have managed to fall in love with the one person who would never expect anything of him he couldn’t give had been intoxicating enough to let those words slip out. And now he might have ruined it all, and what for? Weren’t all those thoughts selfish? What was it he could offer her?

Damien finally managed to break off the branch, grabbing it and picking up as many of the dropped ones as he could carry. He returned to the fire, finding Merridy just as he had left her.

“How… what do you expect of me?” she asked without looking at him.

Damien tried in vain to swallow the lump in his throat. “Nothing,” he forced himself to say. He dropped the branches and sat down, further away from her than before. “Nothing,” he repeated, almost pleading. “I’m sorry. I expect nothing. You have already given me so much more than I could ever expect. I’m happy just the way things are. I’m happy when I’m with you. I’m happy because I’m with you. That’s all.”

“Really?” She looked up. The tears on her cheeks glistened in the firelight, but he couldn’t read her expression as she gestured towards their sleeping bags, and the dying fire. “When we find him. When this is over. What do you want to do then?”

“I don’t know.” He knew he should be thinking about the future. But what future was there for someone like him? “I have nothing. I can offer you nothing. I’m sorry.”

“That’s not…” She broke off, watching him for a moment. Then, with one hand clasped around the front of her jacket, she shuffled closer. Sitting so close to him her arm brushed his, she stared into the fire. Her posture was so stiff, Damien didn’t dare to move.

“What future would you dream of, if anything was possible?” she asked.

It was a question he wouldn’t normally have allowed himself to think about.

“I wish I could find a place to call home. I don’t know where. Or how. Just… home.” He had no money, and he couldn’t go back to Caldeia, where his childhood home might still be waiting—if Valadan hadn’t sold it. He probably had. “Not a tent, and not an inn, and not…” He nodded in the direction of the sleeping bags. “I’m sorry,” he added quickly. “I don’t want to be ungrateful.” She had paid for the inn, she had paid for the sleeping bags. Without her, he wouldn’t be alive in the first place. “I just…”

His explanation was cut short when she leaned against him, dropping her head onto his shoulder. The casual, trusting gesture took his breath, and with it his words. Before he could stop himself, he put his arm around her.

“Home.” She turned in his arm so that she was leaning back against him, staring into the embers of the almost burned-down fire with her head tucked under his chin. Damien followed her gaze, thinking that he should probably add wood before it went out completely, but he couldn’t bring himself to get up. Not now. He’d never move again if it meant he could keep her this close.

“What does your dream home look like?”

“I don’t know,” he said quietly. “I never thought about it. I knew it wouldn’t…” He broke off, taking a deep breath. “All I see when I think about it is my childhood home, but the memories… they aren’t the best. I don’t know if I could return, even if I… could.”

“I would like a garden,” Merridy said. “With flowers and fruit trees and vegetables, and… some animals. Chickens. I like chickens. I like sheep more, but they need so much more space. It doesn’t have to be a farm, but Caldeia… it’s not for me. Too many people, too much of everything. I’d like to visit sometimes, but I don’t want to live there anymore.”

Hearing that she might not want to go back to Caldeia made Damien’s heart beat faster than it should. Hope, he realized. The desperate hope that one day they might find a way to let their dreams come true. Hope that her dreams included a future together, just like his did.

“A kitchen,” he finally decided. “I miss cooking. I always cooked at home, and… I think I was decent at it.” Not that it had done him much good. Between his brother and father, he had gotten few thanks, but he had still enjoyed it. He would learn all her favorites, would make the same thing each day, if that made her happy.

“A bedroom with a bookshelf with all the books I love,” Merridy said when he fell quiet. “And a spinning wheel, like the one my mother had. And a bed with so many pillows and blankets, you can drown in it. And everything is white and purple.” She giggled. “Like the sheep and the lavender.”

Damien smiled. He’d give everything to make it come true, if not for himself, then for her. He had never cared much what his bedroom had looked like, but there was something else he missed.

“I miss the glass. Working with it. I wonder if I still can.”

He tapped his fingers against Merridy’s arm, a quiet sigh on his lips. Back then, he had hated everything when he had compared it to the works of his father. He had never stood a chance to live up to his old man’s expectations, not with his lack of experience. But what if he stopped trying? What if his only expectations were to create something beautiful, even if it wasn’t perfect?

“I’d like to try it.”

Silence settled between them, both lost in their own thoughts. Damien couldn’t be sure what she was thinking about, but he imagined it: a house with a warm, welcoming kitchen. With a bedroom full of light and lavender for her, and a room with all the glass and tools for him. Waking up each day with her at his side, living a life free of terror and fear.

When Merridy slumped against him, Damien sighed. “It’s late. We should sleep,” he said, as much as he hated it.

She nodded, sitting up slowly and pulling her jacket tighter around her shoulders. “Mhm,” she mumbled sleepily.

Damien nudged her shoulder. “Let’s go.”

While Merridy got up to put a few branches into the fire, Damien went to his sleeping bag. He laid down, staring at the dark sky above, and at the outlines of clouds, illuminated by silver moonlight. When Merridy approached him, he held his breath. Her sleeping bag was a good half step away from him, purposefully so. He didn’t want her to feel cornered.

It was her who moved it closer, placing it right next to him and sitting down on it. She stared at the fabric under her hands, not looking at him as she asked, “Nothing more?”

Damien swallowed. “Nothing more,” he said, turning to his side so he was facing her.

With a hasty nod, Merridy slipped into her sleeping bag, her back towards him. He lay stock-still as she huddled against him. As her breaths slowly evened out, he relaxed as well. He didn’t have the courage to put his arm around her, but her presence followed him into dreams of stained glass chickens and gardens filled with lavender pillows.

[ID: The top image is a banner covered in colorful glass shards. Across it is written the title of the story, glass shards, in a white to bright cyan gradient with a black outline. The font looks like written with a broad paintbrush. All other images in this post are purely ornamental lines. End ID.]

Tagging: @dont-touch-my-soup @kixngiggles @starlit-hopes-and-dreams

#Glass Shards #whump #fantasy whump #my writing

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purposefully-lost · 6 months

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Like clockwork, at 1:00pm on the first of the month, Sandra knocked thrice, waited only a few seconds, then let herself inside. Charlie hadn't bothered to try and meet her at the door. He looked up from where he was leaning on the kitchen counter and picking at his lunch, a soft frown on his face. He'd known she was coming and he could've been better prepared for it, but he'd been tired, too. Ever since his night with Vi..

He looked down at his plate again and shoved the thought forcefully from his mind. At least he didn't have to keep himself distracted against it for long.

"Charlie! You're home early, aren't you?" His mother spoke the moment her eyes landed on him, her eyes calculating. Home early meant he wasn't working, and not working meant he was getting up to no good. He shrugged.

"Just taking a break. I'm headin' back soon."

That seemed to soothe her. "Well, anyway, I'm glad I caught you." She stepped into the kitchen with a bright smile, moving through the space like she lived there every day instead of him. She stepped to the other side of the counter to face him and set her purse down. "I'm heading out of town in a few hours to have a weekend with the girls. Didn't I tell you?" She asked, looking at him expectantly. Charlie glanced up, his brows furrowed.

"No. But, uh, have fun, I guess. Rent's right there." He nodded towards an envelope on the countertop. He'd counted it out this morning, but a part of him wondered why he ever bothered. She never counted it- at least not here- simply tucked the envelope into her purse and moved on.

"Well, Lacy's daughter is getting married. We're scouting venues while we're out." There was a smile on her face like she was genuinely excited for it. He only hummed in response, catching her eye as she looked over at him. "You know her daughter, don't you? Lily Barnes? Soon to be Greenwood. She has a sister your age.."

Oh. That's what this was about. Charlie frowned down at his plate again. He did know the name. The girl had actually been a year above him, but they'd done drama together. "Yeah, I think I know her. Uh, Rachel, right?"

"She just went through a bad breakup, you know." She never missed a beat. "Awful, what that boy did to her. But I told her, I know you're going to be free the weekend of the wedding, and she seemed to think well of you, and-"

"I'm not goin' to a wedding." He straightened up to look at her. Sandra's good-natured expression was quickly morphing into a frown, but she seemed to catch it and smooth it away before it could happen. She drew herself up tall, too, and though she wasn't quite his height, it still felt like she was standing over him.

"Come on, Charlie. You need to get out more!" She appraised him, smiling again as she reached over to flick a lock of hair out of his face. "And she's such a sweet girl. You'd make a cute couple. At least just talk to her?" She asked, trying for something a little more pleading. "She'd be so good for you."

Vi would've been good for him- if only he was good enough for Vi. Picking his plate up, he moved around the counter and scraped the rest of his lunch off into the trash, then deposited the dish in the sink. He spoke as he ran water over it. "I don't think a wedding is really my kinda place," he said, and hoped she'd leave it at. Of course, she never did. Before he could even shut the water off and turn back to face her, she was already chattering again, a pen picked up from the counter and a stack of sticky notes pulled towards her.

"Then let me give you her number. Give her a call, okay? She needs a date, Charles, and you'd be perfect. I know you can clean up nice.." She pulled off the note and promptly stuck it to his fridge, Rachel Barnes' name scrawled across the top in neat cursive. She flashed a smile at him. "Promise me you will."

He nearly crossed his arms, then stuck his hands in his pockets instead. He glanced at the note, then at her. "I ain't promising anything."

"You sound like your father." She did cross her arms. The upbeat smile had finally faltered. He could've hoped that maybe with her trip or whatever, she would've hurried on out, but evidently that was too much to hope for. She looked at him straight on in an accusatory sort of way that made him feel bad for the defendants who sat in court with her. "Will you at least tell me why? You would do well to settle down with someone. Or at least try to. I can't abide you sleeping around with who knows--"

The implication she'd dropped was so shocking that it broke him from passivity. He furrowed his brows. "Hey! Sleeping around?"

"Carter said he saw a car in your driveway the other night. Knew it wasn't yours." Sandra studied him. "You know I don't like you bringing just anyone home. Who was she?"

"I-"

"Charlie.."

"Look, it ain't any of your business," he told her, his voice raised a little since she'd first come in. "And that wasn't-"

"I don't care what it was or wasn't, you don't do that again. I mean, really, you need to be careful. What if you got one of these girls pregnant, huh? And then-"

"Mom!" Charlie hadn't meant to snap, but it came out that way. Vi had been the first person he'd brought home in over a year, and it wasn't as if there'd been a noteable number before that. And he was careful. "I don't wanna tall about it."

"Fine, then!" She snapped back just as harsh, but from her it almost felt like there'd been a real bite. "But I don't want it happening again. Do you hear me?"

"Yeah, I hear you!"

"Good!" She said, and then it was as if their voices hadn't been raised at all. A smoothing of her shirt and a quick goodbye later, he was standing alone in the kitchen again. His skin seemed to burn a little, and a heavy weight had settled back in his gut. It wasn't happening again, because Vi wasn't coming around again. It was a win-win, he thought. At least for everyone else.

Moving to lock the door behind her, he lingered by it for a long moment, then decided he wasn't going back to work for today.

#charlie reimes #ANYWAY #drabble

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faerie-starv · 7 months

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Deviantart Anniversary/Story

I forgot to post this two days ago so here it is. Warning, it's a long story so I hope you have a free time to read.

I created my very first social media account was Deviantart on October 6, 2007. I was living in Orlando for attending college and it was my first time being away from home, renting an apartment, and creating my own account. I started college in July 2007 and was majoring for Multimedia Design(which changed into Digital Media). A week after I started my second quarter, I decided to create my DA account. Quick note, here's the link of what Deviantart looks like back in 2007 by using Wayback Machine so you can get the idea.

Before I made my account, I first discovered the site back in early 2006 when I was browsing through Kingdom Hearts fan site and went to the gallery page section. It was showing fan art from other fans with links of their social media sites(MySpace, Deviantart, etc.). One pic I found was none other than the artist is called Keysha-chan as she was a huge Kingdom Hearts fan and drew them as cute chibis by using Copic markers. I checked out her DA page and I was amazed of her talent as she's the same age as I am. She not only drew KH but she also drew Final Fantasy, Fullmetal Alchemist, Jax and Daxter. She even made her own manga by creating her original characters, Elemental Goddess. She's no longer on Deviantart as she's now active on Instagram(which I follow her) and changed the username to KeyshaKitty.

After I created my DA account, she was the first person I watched. I saved the tutorials such as the markers and plushies. I learned some of it as I'm still learning how to use markers(you'll probably see some of them on my Tumblr page). She was the reason why I created my DA account. Back then, there was a lot of great art; fan art, original art, photography, CSS layouts, etc. There was no AI, people don't mind the 'cringe' art, no one accused you of being 'racist/homophobic/etc.', no SJW's, no walking on eggshells, and so forth. Sure, there was art theft and some trolls but nothing too major like what's happening on Twitter/X or on Facebook today.

I posted my first journal entry and introduced myself then went on following/faving spree.

I couldn't post my artwork till two days after I made the account because I didn't have printer/scanner back then and can only rely at college. It was Sunday when I first logged in and the school was closed. I couldn't upload my pics on Monday as I was starting my class and stay behind to use their Photoshop programs(back then, I didn't have Photoshop). I posted this pic on Tuesday as it was my OC's(which it needs some serious update and I'm making changes) while using some Photoshop. Please excuse my crappy pic as I didn't know what Mary Sue was or that the anatomy was way off. I am planning to remake the pic in the future.

As the date says, I was using the school's computers to put together my pic and it was before I made the account.

I later posted few more pics; two of them were my oil paintings I made when I was sixteen and one photo of Lake Placid, FL that my family used to go on weekends.

Later on, I watched another user who goes by Lily Pily and she was a big Nightmare Before Christmas/Corpse Bride/Kingdom Hearts fan. I read her crossover fan comics and loved her OC's which she became the first deviant to do an art trade with. I asked her if she can draw Emily from Corpse Bride while she asked me to draw her OC also named Emily. This is not my best pic of her as I'm still learning how to draw humans.

I'm also planning to redraw her as well. I'm hoping to follow Lily Pily's other social sites but I don't think she has any besides Deviantart. I still want to keep following her for her art.

I finally got around to post my first DA ID but I kinda traced the figure from the books so you can see how different it is(not proud of it hence why I later took it down).

My god, that pic looks awful! Tracing doesn't help either so it certainly does not make my pic better. The dress is so much cringe as it was based on my old Halloween fairy costume but the colors are just, ugh!!! The wings aren't very good and the pastel colors doesn't mix very well with the dress. This is why I took the pic down a year and a half later. This is what my fursona looked like back then before seeing the current version you see today. There's a reason why I don't like tracing nor using bases(like what I did on my ponysona for Neocities) because it just limits me from doing things. I want to be in control of things.

During 2007 and 2008, I didn't really gain any watchers except two who I know in real life. I also didn't get faves nor comments either until 2009. It was because of two things; one is that I didn't socialize with others nor joined clubs(before it turned into groups) hence why I lack of gaining watchers. Second is that my art was mostly non fan art and I just focused on creating my OC's but sadly, no one was interested in them. :( It wasn't until in 2009 is that I bought myself a digital camera from Walmart and started taking photos. Once I posted them on Deviantart, that's when I gained more watchers, comments, and faves. I still owned this camera to this very day.

Yeah, I used Adobe Illustrator to draw my camera. Loved that camera!

I took a bunch of photos mostly from theme parks and city downtown as well as flowers and birds. So photography is one of the reasons why my page is getting attention but another thing I've done is creating crystal orbs for fun.

Those gained a lot of popularity. Then I started to create my Fakemon, Faerie Mews based on the elements.

The first one was a Fire Faerie Mew(the other is the Chinese Fire Faerie Mew) then I created four more. I ended up making a final pic of four main elements. I really loved making them and I am planning to remake them in the future. I do want to finish the Chinese Elemental Faerie Mews as I only did one but didn't get around to finish.

I would love to post more of my old DA artwork here but I'll have to save it for other time as I can only limit on how many I can put in this post. I just wanted to post the story of my DA anniversary to share it with everyone.

If your asking me about my DA account, don't bother because I closed it back in January due to the site being overrun by AI and the admins stopped caring about the artists. I already removed my pics a year before they allowed AI(thank god I did that) to make it easier for me to clean up and deactivating the account. I've been on DA for fourteen years(fifteen if I choose to stay) before calling it quits.

So now I'm moving on here, Inkblot, Square, and Neocities to post my art. Hopefully you guys enjoyed my long ass story.

#deviantart #my art #old DA artwork

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