#the outfits all follow the same palette
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AxA Mommy & Me
By request, Ayoshi and I have made the decision that Jada is now a mother. Of course, her children must wear AxA. So, please put down the snow boots and miniskirts for the time being, cause this AxA is focused on the kiddies. We have outfits for your mommys and daddys, and children of all age groups. Get your kids, toddlers, and infants all ready and strapped in cause they now have some AxA clothing for themselves.
Item Index Download | Download | Follow Ayoshi
The item index linked above will show the basic info for the items in this collab. Below are credits + Patreon .zip download of the entire pack
Basic info
All items are BGC and do not require other meshes/packages/versions.
All hairs come in 24 EA Colors
The clothes come in 1 out of 2 palettes
► 30 colorful solids | palette used
► 20 denims
► 30/35 patterns/graphics
Report any issues to me through Tumblr DM with images.
Follow my TOU for all items
File Name Info
Items that are named the same are differentiated in the file name by age group
► CU - Child
► TU - Toddler
► IU - Infant
► Adults do not have this so their files look like normal AxA files
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a summar(ule)y of 196 culture
since the tumblr veterans have been kind enough to introduce us newbies to their site and culture, i think it is only fair that we explain the culture of our glorious former home to any tumblr users who might be interested in the #196 tag. keep in mind, all these things are based on my perspective of the situation.
first of all, some general information (that you might’ve already heard):
196 (r/196 on reddit) was a subreddit with only one (official) rule; "post before you leave." it was mainly a meme/shitposting sub, but it cultivated a large queer and left-leaning community. in protest of the recent api chances in reddit, 196 has shut down indefinitely until reddit reverts these changes.
now for some culture/references that you might come across
spronkus kronkus:
spronkus is this yellow, rabbit-like creature.
they were the mascot of our subreddit. their appearance can vary from images to image, but as far as i’m aware, their full outfit consists of a bandanna in the colours of the trans flag around their neck, a gun labelled as such (other wise you obviously wouldn’t know what you’re looking at), and an axe also coloured like the trans flag.
r/place:
this is a rare event on reddit where the entire website gets a huge white canvas and can start creating pixel art on it. 196 participated by collaboratively creating our mascot, spronkus with "196!" written next to them.
this version of the pixel art was recreated by me as i couldn't find a nice image of it. there were some changes between the first version and the end result, so this might not be exactly how it looked in the end
post titles/"rule":
reddit forces it's users to title every post they make. as most of the posts on 196 spoke for themselves, many user instead titled their posts "rule", to indicate that they followed the subreddit's only rule. some people also tried to make puns with the word or tried to include it in words that shared some letters (example: wor(ule)d).
anarcho-stripperism:
as the amount of cropped porn jokingly posted to the subreddit increased, the moderators decided that porn would be banned from the sub, with one exception: anarcho-stripperism. she made food fucking videos, in which she jokingly tested the fuckability of different food items (fruits, pasta, etc.)
bigotry showcase:
bigotry showcase was a post flair (basically the reddit equivalent of tags) on the subreddit and was later restricted to only be used on saturdays. under this flair people posted instances of different forms of bigotry to make fun it.
eating babies/hungryposting:
at some point, the subreddit started to pretend to like eating babies, which started a variety of memes regarding the subject. even a post flair called "hungrypost" was added because of this
goblinhog:
goblinhog is the most prominent and well-known member of the 196 moderation team. besides this, on 196 he was mostly known for changing people’s flair if you enjoyed him enough about it.
flairs:
flairs are little tags that are displayed under your name in posts or comments, they are also subreddit specific. most subreddits give their users a palette of preset flairs and the option to make your own custom flair. however, in 196 you only had the option to customize your flair during special events. if you wanted to customize your flair outside of those events (which was basically the entire time), you had to ask a mod to do it for you.
punching nazis:
from time to time, the same gif of a person with a nazi armband getting punched in the face, and promptly falling to the ground, was reposted to the subreddit. this became a sort of tradition.
discourse/drama
wasp discourse:
the wasp discourse was a one to two weeks long heated discussion that generally divided the subreddit into two factions. one side said that they were justified in killing wasps if they were attacked by them, while the other claimed that since wasps are just animals, they aren't aware of what they're doing in the same way humans are, and therefore should be spared.
drama about the british:
there was a time when jokes along the lines of "ew, british" became pretty frequent on the subreddit. as a response, some user claimed that this was akin to racism and tried to get others to stop with the jokes. a debate over whether or not it was important or necessary to stop followed afterwards.
pillar discourse:
this was a debate over which type of pillar should be considered the best (ionic; doric; corinthian). i have seen the question "which pillar is the best?" being used as a sort of greeting between 196 refugees on here.
related subreddits
195:
195 was the predecessor to 196, and also was a social experiment with the same premise as 196 (one rule, post before you leave). as the creators of 195 ended the experiment, the community wanted something with the same vibe to continue posting, and thus 196 was born.
197:
197 is another part of the 196 ecosystem and is commonly understood to be the more politically right-leaning and bigoted as 196, as some people who were banned from 196 continued posting there. besides that, the subreddits were essentially the same in terms of how they functioned.
19684:
this subreddit adds a second rule which banned all mentions of sex (that’s why it’s name is a pun on 1984). some people took this as banning all discussion of sexuality, which resulted in a community that was slightly less accepting of queer people. it is currently still up and running as the 196 moderation team wants a way to stay in contact with the community.
amendments to the posts:
u/femboy_expert:
another well-known 196 user. as the name suggests they're an expert on the subject of femboys, with their flair on 196 reading "phd in feminine boys". as the subreddit was somewhat obsessed with femboys, it's no wonder that they became popular.
u/shitcum_backup:
this was the main account of a pretty popular shitposter on the subreddit. although i didn't see them as much in the last few months, i remember them sometimes having a unique speaking pattern, in which they referred to themself in the third person.
u/monko74:
this user commented "Every day I thank god for not making me a r/196 celebrity," which led to many users of the subreddit treating them like a micro celebrity. there are even a few subreddits solely dedicated to u/monko74.
691:
a sister subreddit that inverts the rule of 196, here you would be (temporarily) banned for posting. some time ago the members of this sub initiated a rebellion/revolution against the bot who performed all the bans (roomba).
u/Smart_Calendar1874:
this wasn’t necessarily part of the subreddit, but it was a pretty popular meme. and since it’s getting posted on here again, and i know enough about it, i’ll add it to the post. this user made a post to r/AskReddit titled "How would you get a small cylinder (5.1in length, ~4.5in girth) unstuck from a mini M&Ms tube filled with butter and microwaved mashed banana? [sic]" it was pretty clear that they were referring to their penis, yet they continued to claim "it’s a cylinder," in the comment section. this lead to comments like "it is imperative that the cylinder […] remains unharmed," in response to people’s advice of cutting the m&m tube.
it's going to be very interesting to see which aspects of 196 culture are going to survive the tumblr migration, and which aspects won't be applicable on this site.
i'm obviously not the ultimate scholar on 196 lore. if i’ve missed or left out anything, or said something wrong, please comment it.
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rêvasser
élan part two: harry was too observant. y/n worried he could see the cracks in her walls.
wourdcount: 12.8k+
—————
Fran🫧
send me a pic of your nails when ur done!!!!
After answering with an agreeable response, (Y/N) flicked to an email from her stylist. Details were being rehashed over what she wanted to wear to the 132 Gala coming in the next few weeks, Dom again trying to push her in the direction of a darker outfit while she gravitated towards her usual palette of softer hues. Outside the window, glimmering buildings swept by with too many cars on the street and too many people, not paying attention, trying to cross the pavement.
Harry was a silent wall beside her, quiet and stiff. Just like usual. This was the first she'd seen him since the pilates incident. Though he was in a substantially better mood than that last meeting, even giving her a slight smile when she climbed into the SUV beside him, (Y/N) still heard the round of reprimanding he doled out for her.
She'd happily take Harry over her father, though. Now that, for the first time ever, he'd followed through on a threat (i.e. getting a bodyguard for her), there was a level of worry tied to any contact involving her dad. But, he hadn't called at all this week—not even a passive-aggressive text sent her way. When she had texted him that she finally RSVP'd to the upcoming Gala like he'd been hounding her to do just a week prior, he'd left her on read. While she much rather preferred this limited contact, she had a brewing worry that something worse was in the works if he was willing to ignore whatever information Harry had relayed or anything he'd read in the press.
But, she'd take what she could get. Focusing on the Gala with prepping and planning was something she'd happily let take her attention, even if the whole bodyguard/handler/professional babysitter thing was going to be hard to ignore given that Harry would have to accompany her to any and all events surrounding the event.
Though there was one thing her mother did instill in her before she divorced her husband and began jaunting around the world with (Y/N) left at home: Nothing could ruin a good nail appointment. Not even the presence of a bodyguard was an exception to that rule as far as (Y/N) was concerned.
"Thank you, Sully," she chirped, stepping out of the SUV with a wave over her shoulder. Harry predictably followed right after her, the soles of his shoes patting against the concrete. "You don't have to come with me, if you don't want," she told him, stopping him before he could close the door behind and prompt Sully to leave, "It's kind of a long appointment, so if you wanted Sully to take you to get something to eat or whatever, I'm sure he'd be okay with that."
While she couldn't imagine Harry taking her up on the offer, at least not after the clear line he made earlier in the week, she still felt it was something she should give as an option. Nail appointments weren't very exciting if you weren’t the one in the chair.
"No, thank you," Harry answered without a lag, closing the door behind him with a slam. He didn't even look at her as he spoke.
Turning on her heel, (Y/N) took in a deep breath and moved on. Stepping through the front door held a moment of deja vu with the way Harry trailed behind her silently. The women manning the front gave her the same curious looks as the waitstaff at the brunch shop though they all treated her with more familiarity after coming to her regular appointments for almost two years now.
"Hi! Welcome in, (Y/N)!" the same blonde woman that always greeted her said, her eyes floating above her shoulder to find Harry, "How are you?"
The shining smile that earned her a top spot in the rumor mill bloomed on (Y/N)'s lips, "I'm doing perfect, thank you! You?"
"Same as always," she chirped back, the same answer she always gave despite never detailing what the same even entailed. "You're in with Carlotta this morning, right?"
"I am," (Y/N) beamed, stopping at the front podium with her designer purse hanging from the crook of her elbow.
"She'll be right with you," the girl started, pointing in the direction of Carlotta's usual station over her shoulder, "You can take a seat at her station while you wait."
"Got it, thank you," (Y/N) said, voice ever-pleasant and rehearsed.
Taking the first step towards her chair, she saw the way the eyes of the other woman reached around and spotted Harry. He'd been seen at her side enough times to be recognizable to the right people, unfortunately. "Are we checking in for two appointments today or do we just have a friend tagging along?"
"Just a friend," (Y/N) answered quickly. Hopefully the word friend would work through the media circuits just as well as everything else being said.
Taking her seat at her usual station, (Y/N) made herself at home with a cross of her legs and her purse hanging from the hook drilled into the table. Harry pulled a vacant seat to sit beside her, taking the outermost side to leave her bookended by the wall and his body. Protector instincts, she figured.
It wasn't long for him to begin to squirm, a fidget to his fingers.
"Sorry," she whispered to him, pulling her phone from her bag to find the photo she was using for inspiration.
A pinch appeared in Harry's brows. "What do you mean?"
Keeping her voice low, she left her attention on her phone while she spoke, "I know it takes a bit to get used to knowing people are watching you, so..."
It wasn't a surprise to feel others' eyes on her though it had been a while since her presence was notable to the staff here at her nail shop. The addition of a friend at her side was surely something that was garnering her more attention than usual, but Harry clearly wasn't used to it with the way he couldn't settle where he sat. While she was sure there were times that Camila and Monroe, his previous employers, were photographed with eyes on them, she couldn't imagine it was at the same level as she was currently going through.
He'd get used to it. Maybe.
Shrugging his shoulders, Harry swept his gaze around the room. "It's a little different, but I can handle it."
She didn't doubt that. She couldn't imagine there was much Harry couldn't handle.
Soon enough, Carlotta came out from the back with a fresh pair of pink gloves on, her usual smile, and big bouncy hair.
"Good morning, honey! How are you?" she asked, brown eyes glimmering in the bright sunlight streaming through the sweeping windows. (Y/N) saw the second she seemed to register the extra guest at her side.
"I'm good, thank you," (Y/N) greeted, stretching her hands out for Carlotta to have a look once she took her seat across. "How are you?"
"Good," Carlotta sang, prying her eyes away from Harry to glance at (Y/N)'s nails, "What are we thinking for this set?"
As much as (Y/N) was sure Carlotta wanted to ask about Harry, and why he was the first extra to ever come with her to an appointment like this, she kept her focus. She listened as (Y/N) went through and showed her the simple inspiration photos she had in mind from grazing through instagram. Glossy nudes with a sparkling French tip was the request at the moment, something easy before the elaborate set she would be getting right before the Gala night.
The appointment went on as normal, Carlotta keeping her conversation to (Y/N) and the rapport they've built over the years. She was sure her tech was waiting for her to bring Harry into the flow, but (Y/N) didn't deviate from the route they'd already embarked on. Besides, Harry was much too involved in his brain and his job to be answering any kind of questions Carlotta may have wanted to ask.
Despite Harry's perfect patrolling and the perfect distraction Carlotta was being, it wasn't long after she had started filing and shaping (Y/N)'s acrylics that there were titters and hushed whispers to be heard across the studio. Harry stiffened beside her, his jaw hardening as he scoped out the sound.
Peeking around him, she saw a group of teenaged girls giggling around a single station as if they were waiting for their own tech to arrive. Two of them had eyes on her while the third was looking at her phone that had the camera conveniently facing towards where she and Harry were sat. The second they realized they were caught, the trio clammed up and looked away, phone disappearing under the lip of the table. Rushed whispers were exchanged between them though none of them dared to return her gaze.
While (Y/N) was used to the treatment, something inside her ticked. It was another set of photos taken without her consent that would build towards another narrative that was anything but true. She was more than accustomed to that, this week had been enough already. More photos of herself was the last thing she wanted.
Nonetheless, there was no way she could react other than with a smile and brushing off the moment. Still, she won't be called "kind" or "warm", she'll be called stiff. At least it wasn't "bitch", though.
When the girls caught her smiling, they gave her a small wave before erupting into more giggles in their corner of the studio. Harry barely held back his scoff as he watched the scene.
Carlotta had gone quiet the second (Y/N)'s attention had shifted. They both saw as Harry shot a stiff look towards the girls, even when they were too caught up in themselves and whatever was going on in their phones to notice.
"Sorry," (Y/N) whispered, leaning towards Harry. She was hyper aware of Carlotta's quiet presence, but she couldn't forgo addressing the moment with the way Harry was reacting. "They'll be over it soon, it's okay."
Harry only shook his head.
She wished she knew what was going on in his head. She wanted to know what he thought of that moment, what he collected from the way she reacted, or how much he was beginning to regret taking this job now that so many eyes scrutinized him.
"Do you like this, or were you thinking a little bit sharper on the edges?"
Carlotta's question pulled (Y/N)'s attention back to her nails, right where it needed to be.
—————
"I'll be right back," Harry murmured, standing from his spot as he scoped out the bathroom.
(Y/N) sent him off with a quiet okay, her attention placed on the sweeps of the small brush going across her nails.
"So," Carlotta nonchalantly mused, her gaze stuck on her work, "you know I don't believe everything I read, but I have to ask... Is that the guy?" Guiding (Y/N)'s hands under the lamp, Carlotta flicked her gaze up to look at her client through the fan of her dark lashes.
With her back stiffening and lips thinning, (Y/N) didn't know what to say. Despite the conspiratorial smile on Carlotta's face, (Y/N) didn't feel like she was in on the joke. Her nail tech was one of the closest people to her in a funny way (nail appointments sometimes felt like therapy after a long week, and too many times had (Y/N) shown up hungover beyond repair), so it cracked at her shell just a bit to know that random stories could wriggle into the mind of someone who actually knew her.
Shaking her head, (Y/N) gave her a mild smile. "It's not like that." She paused before offering up the rest of the story. "He's my new security actually."
"Like a bodyguard?" Carlotta bubbled, taken aback as she paused in her line work of the French tip she was making. She seemed to mull over the possibility before nodding her head some. "I guess the stories have gotten a little out of hand, recently."
"Yeah," (Y/N) offered lamely, "He'll at least make it sound a little bit more intimidating when I need photographers to get out of my way when I'm trying to get to my car."
Swallowing around her dry throat, (Y/N) suddenly found it hard to speak about it all. Other than Francesca, most people didn't want to hear about how "hard" her life was; it was a joke, as if there was no way she could have anything negative happening. While in many ways that was true��she had a home, income that she never had to worry about, and the kind of time to indulge in herself that she knew many others didn't—but that didn't negate the fact that there were unique challenges in her life that wore on her. She hated to think about Carlotta listening to this and talking to her coworkers later about her spoiled client.
Lighthearted as always, Carlotta's features lit up with a smile as she guided her hand in for the final round of drying. "I'm sure he will with those shoulders."
Just in time, Harry returned with the conversation quieting then. Only a round or so more of drying with her hands under the lamp was needed before Carlotta was doing her ending spiel of how best to take care of the acrylics despite the fact (Y/N) was a longtime client with some of the best retention she'd ever seen (at least that's what Carlotta told her).
"I love them!" she bubbled to her tech, standing up from her spot with her hands spread out to catch the clean lines of the French and crisp edges in the shaping. "Thank you so much."
"Of course," Carlotta said, rounding her station to offer (Y/N) a loose hug, "I'll see you soon for your Gala nails, right?"
"Right—hopefully, I'll have an idea ready then." A round of pleasant, albeit a bit forced laughter sounded between them.
Goodbyes were shared before Carlotta went about cleaning up her station and (Y/N) and Harry were silently heading up to pay for the service. Only, (Y/N) was stopped with a rushed call of her name, the voice high-pitched and jittery.
Stopping where she stood, Harry beside her ready to step in at a moment's notice, she turned to see that trio of girls, their own nails glimmering with paint and artificial length. They all looked at her with hopeful eyes and flushed cheeks. They were young—as young as (Y/N) was when she started traipsing around town by herself. She hoped they were being careful and looking out for one another.
"Yes?" she pleasantly chirped, lashes fluttering in a quick blink.
One of them dared to shuffle forward in her Prada sandals, sparkling iPhone clutched in her hand. "Can we get a picture with you?"
Without a second thought, (Y/N) answered with an "Of course! What are your guys' names?"
High on her attention, they flushed and giggled, hands shaking as they took turns to introduce themselves. The one with the phone in her hand—Izzy—was the ringleader it seemed, the most fearless of the trio though she seems just as incredulous to the fact (Y/N) was actually speaking to them.
"You're, like, my favorite person on Instagram, bestie," Izzy chattered off, too-white smile beaming, "My parents hate that I follow you, but I don't care—I think your outfits are cute, and I can't wait until I'm old enough to dress like that without them telling me no."
While the girls laughed and giggled, getting into position for the photo, (Y/N) tried to play along with a bubbling smile. It was more than uncomfortable to hear that these girls' families hated her, as well as hear about how much they couldn't wait to wear the same ensembles as she. At least, they were being nice.
Honestly, (Y/N) hadn't even thought that the outfits she posed in were something that should be reprimanded. She dressed in a way that made her feel pretty. She hadn't thought that the summer dresses she'd favored these last three months would be a subject of debate in households she didn't even know existed.
Suddenly the off-the-shoulder bodysuit and pair of high waisted jeans she was wearing weren't enough. She wished she had pulled on a sweater despite the heat outside.
Nonetheless, (Y/N) just laughed along, playing the part long enough to keep them happy before retreating for the day. Taking the offered phone, she turned towards Harry with it stretched out towards him.
"Will you take a picture of us, Harry?" she asked, acknowledging him for the first time since he grew stiff when the girls had initially spotted them.
"Sure," he answered gruffly, his gaze on her intense as usual though there was more curiosity than scrutiny this time around.
The girls posed around her, arms around her waist and beaming smiles directed at the camera. Harry tapped the screen a couple of times while the girls giggled at her sides. The breakaway was seamless afterwards, Harry passing back the borrowed phone and (Y/N) slipping away from where she was swaddled between them.
"It was so nice to meet you guys," she beamed, "But, we really need to head out. I'm sorry!"
"Totally fine, thank you," Izzy spoke for them, bouncing on the balls of her feet, "Maybe we'll see you at our next appointment."
"Maybe," (Y/N) laughed just before offering a wave as a final goodbye.
Her smile stayed stiff on her cheeks as they walked away, though the girls must not have gauged their volume very well with the way she could hear them clearly over the growing distance.
"That's her new boyfriend, Sydney! The one that she left Damien before, remember? He's the one in those pics from the other day," Izzy chattered off, much too loud to be appropriate in a place that would be considered a spa. And, because the subject of her gossip was within hearing range.
It was an interesting thing to be a few teenaged girls' favorite villain. Even with the way they seemed to like her, they still would believe that she'd lie and cheat and fight like that.
Harry was a solid, silent pillar beside her. He was a brick wall following wherever she went, only giving out a curl of his lips when he was acknowledged and he knew it was polite to do so. He stayed quiet up until he was escorting her through the plaza to meet up with Sully.
"Do y'ever get used to that?" he asked, voice just a hair louder than the click of her heels over the bricks under her feet.
"Hm?" she sounded, paying a little too much extra attention to the photo she was trying to take of her nails to send to Francesca.
"Having people watch you all the time and take photos of you. Do you ever get used to that?" he detailed, casting his eyes around to where Sully could be waiting along the curb.
Shrugging, (Y/N) tossed her phone into her purse. "I mean, kind of? It's been happening since I was in high school, but it's definitely been a little different lately just with... everything being posted about me and all." A beat passed once Harry spotted their car, the route changing as she followed after him. "I think I get it on the easier side, though, compared to others. At least people aren't attacking me or anything, right?"
Harry's lips thinned at her words, jaw tight. "Right."
Definitely the wrong thing to have said.
Replaying her words with Harry's icy reaction, (Y/N) wanted to cringe. Why did she even say that? Of course he wouldn't think that was funny or even lighthearted when his entire job was to keep her out of harm's way.
For a split second, she wanted to tell him about the letters and the photos she received. She wanted him to know that she knew that facet of her existence was serious—that she took his job seriously. But, that topic was more than off limits—something that would no doubt end in a phone call from her father and a one-way ticket to a Swedish cabin with no internet or link to the outside world for a minimum of six months.
(Y/N) followed Harry to the SUV, silent as ever as there was no way to really recover from her slip. He held the door for her to slide inside before he came in next to her.
Sully, the perfect breath of fresh air, twisted in his seat when they filed in. A broad smile could be seen under his moustache. "Let me see," he told (Y/N) offering a hand out for her.
Happy to show off her nails, she gave her hand to him. "They're a different shape than normal, but I thought they would look nice with the French tip."
"They're amazing," he smiled at her, the same response he always gave her when coming back from a nail appointment. "My daughter is going to want some just like that when she sees them on her phone."
Settling back into her seat, (Y/N) smiled. "Let me know, and I can set up an appointment for her and everything. She'll just need to take care of them."
"I'll tell her you said that," he told her before twisting back to face forward in his seat, "Anywhere else for the day?"
From the corner of her eye, she could see Harry observing the moment. Just like usual.
She could go and start some prep for her Gala night outfit, take a look at Vivienne Westwood and Dior, but the idea of Harry being her only companion after her misplaced joke wasn't something she had much interest in. She, at least, needed Francesca for something like that.
"Just home today, Sully. Thank you."
Sitting in the back of the SUV, bench seat shared with Harry, (Y/N) felt exposed. She just hoped she was making the right moves under those watchful eyes.
—————
Heaving a sigh, (Y/N) listened to Francesca with her phone pressed to her ear, her gaze cast across the New York skyline.
"I'm sorry," Fran pouted through the line, (Y/N) practically able to hear the flutter of her lash extensions through the receiver. "If I had known, I wouldn't have promised I could make it."
"It's okay, it's not your fault," (Y/N) soothed, chewing her bottom lip, "I can move my fittings to later in the afternoon, maybe? Would that work?"
"You know how my mom gets when she comes into the city," Francesca sighed, sounding exhausted before the day had even started, "Her and her husband are back on that thing about me being a gallery owner, so you know they're planning on taking all day to make me realize how much of a dream it is for me—I just don't know it yet."
(Y/N) couldn't help the itty, bitty smile that touched the corner of her lips. How silly the two of them were; Francesca's worst problem is her mother wanting to gift a gallery to her, while (Y/N) squirmed at the thought of having a personal security guard follow her to keep her safe.
Nonetheless, she did feel her heart deflate a bit knowing that her best friend wouldn't be accompanying her to something they both loved doing. As a bonus, Francesca would have also been acting like a buffer between she and Harry. Now she was going to be left with him sitting and brooding in the corner with his criticizing gaze while she twisted and turned in a multitude of mirrors.
"I'm sorry, (Y/N)," Francesca said again.
"It's okay, don't worry, okay?" (Y/N) repeated, hearing the sounds of the city from her free ear as the morning rush began and wouldn't stop until late at night. "Tell them I said hi, and I'll send you pictures of my favorites. Maybe we can still do our alterations together if everything matches up?"
"Yes, definitely! I'll see you tomorrow night and we can talk about it more then."
"See you tomorrow," (Y/N) settled, sinking into her lounger, "Love you."
"Love you, too, bestie!"
With that, (Y/N) pulled the phone from her ear and ended the call. Out on her balcony, the morning chill touched at the bare slashes of skin revealed by the open, crochet knit of her cardigan. Despite growing up with a fear of heights, sitting up in the balcony of her high-rise apartment, it was easy for (Y/N) to luxuriate in the thin air and clear out her brain for even a moment.
She was going to get through today. Even if she is photographed today, if she receives an intrusive letter, if another story is spun dragging her name through the rain and mud, she was going to make it through. Besides, she loved going to Fifth Ave; the fashion houses were her second home in the city. She couldn't back out on them now, not when her stylist pulled rank and ensured she would have a private fitting at Vivienne Westwood and a tour across an archive of Dior jewelry just for her.
(Y/N) was just going to have to trust the opinion of sales people who worked on commission and were too scared to look her in the eye half the time. To be fair, they hadn't steered her wrong just yet, even if they never really looked at the way the garments fit her, just because that would require a longer than a single second glance at her.
Taking in a deep breath, (Y/N) reminded herself: she was going to get through today.
A buzz in her hand alerted her, taking her from the skyline and back to her phone.
Sully👑
I'm here and ready whenever you are.
At least she would get to see Sully this morning. It was always a good day when he was there to ground her.
Trekking through the building, (Y/N) gave her usual smile to the uninterested doormen and avoided eye contact with the man who was tapping away aimlessly on his phone, another person waiting to be buzzed up, she was sure.
Peering through the glass doors, she saw the SUV on the curb, Sully having made his way to sit just outside the entrance. He was stationed outside the car, his hand poised on the door handle to help her in. Even with the deep tint on the windows, she was sure Harry was waiting inside. A silhouette with too nice of a profile to be wasted on a security detail.
Sully's features softened into a grin when he saw her step outside of her building, his usual all black attire just as immaculately pressed as always. "Good morning, Ms. (Y/N)," he greeted, hand on the door to pull it open for her.
"Morning, Sully," (Y/N) reciprocated, the long form of her cardigan fluttering behind her.
Just as she suspected, Harry was waiting patiently on the bench seat of the SUV when Sully pulled the door open. He didn't look up as she slipped inside, crossing her legs once the seatbelt was secured across her form.
"Good morning, Harry," she murmured in the quiet of the leather interior.
Glancing up at her from where he had been tapping away on his phone, Harry took her in in a brief sweep over her form. He brought his knuckle up to his nose, brushing underneath the tip. "Good morning."
The sound of Sully's door slamming shut brought (Y/N)'s attention forward from where she was stuck on the flickering green of Harry's eyes. "Now to Ms. Francesca's apartment?"
"No, actually," (Y/N) clarified, shifting in her seat, "Franny's mom is coming into the city today so she had to cancel."
"Oh no," Sully genuinely pouted at her through the rearview mirror, eyes meeting hers, "I'm sorry, (Y/N). Straight to Fifth Ave, then?"
"Yes, that's perfect," (Y/N) chirped, feeling Harry's gaze on her through the interaction, never once did the shift to Sully. "Vivienne first, please. Dior after."
"Got it."
Pulling away from the curb, Sully was the expert driver he always was, slipping them seamlessly into the traffic without so much as a jostle over the pavement. Cars were slow moving at this time in the morning, but she knew he would make quick work of the distance.
"Jus' us today?" Harry piped up, his voice a low gravel that had (Y/N) pulling her gaze on her nails to land on him.
Swallowing, she nodded. "Yeah. If you don't want to sit through all the dress stuff, though, I'm sure Sully can take you elsewhere while I'm busy. I can just let you know when I'm ready to move to the next spot."
No hesitation before he spoke again: "No, thank you. I'll be staying with you."
She didn't expect any other answer if she was being honest, but it was the polite thing to ask.
With no room to argue, (Y/N) fell silent, leaving just the sound of distant car honks and the light radio melodies playing. The route to the Vivienne Westwood location on Fifth Ave was a familiar one, even with the traffic and swerving drivers it didn't seem so long from where (Y/N) sat. She gazed out the tinted windows, the world looking just a little bit blue. People in too high of heels to be walking on the crumbling sidewalks with brand name shopping bags tucked under their arms were blurs beside her as Sully toured them through the city,
The car slowed when the storefront came into view, the elegant font of Vivienne's name bold over the crystal windows.
Sully sent them off after helping (Y/N) onto the concrete, promising to return as soon as he received word that she was ready to move on. Harry was her silent shadow as she stepped over the sidewalk like a runway. The mannequins in the windows were corseted and perfect, standing on thick platforms with sparkling jewelry. An effortless smile stretched across her lips as she pushed the door open, the brassy golden handle warm under her palm from the New York heat.
Her heels were muffled as she stepped over the eccentric carpet. (Y/N) swore she could breathe just a bit easier in here. Many of the shops along this Avenue were the closest thing to being at home, especially when she was growing up and itching to do anything but be at home with her parents. She had an abundance of nice memories tied to these stores and brands; summers spent with Francesca and a credit card, impromptu fashion shows with pieces that wouldn't go together on a runway. While there were more than a couple of workers that became annoyed with them after only a few minutes of the duo walking into the shops, these places were the easiest escape.
Sweeping her gaze across the shop, she took in the elaborately dressed mannequins and clean shelving. Everything was lit up on display, highlighting the contrasting colors and the punk-inspired pieces that gave Ms. Westwood her name. Racks and displays were scattered throughout, leading the walkways like a twirling river of black and white streaks. (Y/N) gravitated towards the racks with the signature structured corsets of the Westwood brand, draping fabrics and glimmering pearls.
The entire space was quiet, her stylist—Dom—having made his calls and ensured the space would be free of any other shoppers while (Y/N) was getting her fitting done. (He was a little paranoid when it came to others leaking looks and style choices when it came to events like this Gala. It had happened once a few years earlier with a different client, and he seemed to have never forgotten). That left the entire morning free for (Y/N) to try on all of the imported pieces they had picked from the archives and Harry to brood around her like a temperamental potted plant.
It didn't take long for a familiar head of coiffed blonde hair to appear around the corner of a jewelry case. A too-white, too-straight, too-perfect smile was plastered across his face—the kind of smile (Y/N) was halfway sure was fake, but that was just commission-based customer service.
"Will!" (Y/N) greeted with a matching smile, breaking the ice as she turned on her heel to face him fully.
"(Y/N)! How are you, my love?" Will bubbled, posh accent wrapping around her name. He was adorned in his usual all black suit, velvet accents lined throughout. The length of the flared pants made him look that much taller, long limbs strong. The classic Vivienne Westwood pendant had been refashioned into a broach he pinned to his lapel, chains falling from around the Saturn that glimmered like the gunmetal manicure on his fingers. Something shimmery rained over his eyelids, just punk enough to fit Vivienne but high class enough to please those that guarded Fifth Ave like a dragon's treasure.
When Will approached her, hands delicately held out with his lips puckered, she didn't hesitate to turn her cheek and indulge in the air kisses he always made a fuss about. Though it made her cringe, like one of those girls she knew in private school that spent the summer abroad and suddenly started speaking in an accent and bringing up their travels at any given moment, she enthusiastically partook in the greeting.
Best behavior was required in shops like this, the associates tending to be some of the worst gossips and best storytellings in the city. If she was anything but perfect, with the way the media was already latched onto her, it wouldn't take much convincing for someone like Will to sell a story to any publication.
"I'm doing so well now! I was hoping I'd be paired with you for my appointment."
He waved her off with an incredulous face. "Well, of course they'd pick me. They only give you the best, hunny!"
A round of laughter erupted between them, something that sounded just as fake as it felt in her throat. Harry was notably quiet, watching everything unfold. He didn't bother to try and step in to introduce himself, observing as always.
"Come, come," Will gestured, inching towards the grand fitting room plotted in the back of the shop, "All of these gorgeous archive pieces made it in last night, just for you! I shouldn't be surprised, you and Dom have such wonderful taste, but I just love to see it, really."
Will chattered to her as he escorted them through, bubbling about how excited he was to show her the garments as well as see them on her. While she knew a portion of his personality was a customer service front, he was one of her favorites here. He was more positive than uppity, unlike most of the other sales people she'd run into during her time perusing this street.
Making it to the large fitting room in the back, (Y/N) immediately spotted the white garment bags hanging from the single stall. It was a large room that could have easily fit in stall after stall, but instead was used as a luxury space for only a single patron. Plush carpeting was installed under their feet, black lightning bolts breaking up the creamy white. A shimmering chandelier hung above the circular dais situated in front of the three-sectioned mirror on the far end of the room, crystals dripping from the wrought iron branches almost low enough to graze the head of the person standing on the dais. Cozy chairs were pushed throughout, the space anticipating guests, along with the tray of champagne glasses and a chilled bottle awaiting serving.
Finding a pause in the chattering, (Y/N) asked, "Are any of the girls helping today, or is it just us?"
"Just us!" Will chirped, carefully uncorking the bottle of frosty champagne, "Dom made it especially clear that he didn't want anyone unnecessary to be here; he said he wanted to make sure no one could leak anything."
"Sounds like Dom," (Y/N) sighed with an affectionate smile, dropping her purse onto one of the houndstooth printed armchairs.
Harry found his own chair silently, sinking into the cushioning though he didn't seem to relax much at all. His gaze stayed alert, looking around the entire space—probably looking for any cracks as if a supervillain could swing through the drywall and take her captive. Or, anything (Y/N) could damage should she finally snap in his presence.
She wondered what he thought, not three weeks into the job without a single tantrum that she knew her father had prepared him for. Hopefully she was showing she wasn't as much of a problem as her father was convinced.
Shrugging out of her cardigan, (Y/N) caught the way Will eyed Harry. He swept his gaze over, analyzing the same way Harry analyzed everything else.
"But, I see you brought a friend," he tittered, looking at her with that sly gaze. Harry didn't even flinch at the first acknowledgment of his presence.
Keeping her demeanor perky and bright, (Y/N) made a point to look confident—but not too proud. She didn't want to look like she was showing off a significant other, so she couldn't smile too much, but she still had to smile just enough not to look shy or smitten. She didn't want to give Will any reason to describe her as being "bashful, over the moon for her new man".
"Yes, that's Harry," she gestured to him, Harry barely offered a small smile when he took a second to look in their direction, "He's my bodyguard"
"Bodyguard?" Will asked, blonde brow raised in an arch.
Sighing, (Y/N) politely took the offered glass of bubbling champagne from Will's hand. "You know how it goes sometimes," she started, sipping delicately from the flute for a chance to pause, "Photographers have been a little crazy lately, so I figured I might need a little extra help."
"Oh I'm sure," Will bubbled, looking at her with a furrowed brow feigning concern, "With everything that's happened with Damien, I bet those paparazzi can't get enough of you."
He eyed her the same way he eyed Harry, as if there were details he could glean from her with just a glance. He was hoping she would spill, give him something to whisper over.
Shrugging it off as nonchalantly as possible, she took another careful sip of her champagne. "Anything for a photo, you know," she said, rolling her eyes as if being hounded for personal information and photos of intimate moments was nothing more than an inconvenience. "But!" she perked up, popping her hip with a spark to her voice, "I want to see what Dom picked out for us!"
Hooked by her excitement, Will caught the giddy way she talked and reacted with his own enthusiasm. "Okay, okay, sit down and close your eyes," he instructed, waving her back into her spot, "Because, you are going to freak."
Doing as asked, (Y/N) settled into her seat with her eyes fluttering closed. She could hear Will padding away, leaving her with just Harry though if she hadn't already known he was there, she would have assumed the complete silence meant she was alone. She couldn't imagine being so quiet all the time, alert and scrutinizing. She wished she knew what was going on in his brain.
The zip of garment bags and rustling of fabric drew closer as the time ticked on another minute. With the way her heart peaked, her giddiness was no longer an act. This is the stuff that made these events worth it for her; she loved playing dress up as a girl, and this was just the same but even prettier, in her mind. She could pretend to be a real princess this way.
"Okay"—a pause for dramatic effect—"open," Will said, a smile clear in his voice.
Blinking her eyes open, (Y/N) saw the flash of pearl pink laid hanging in front of her. Will held the padded hanger up for her to take in the entire gown, his free arm behind the skirt to help put it on display under the light. The fabric looked like liquid pearl, tinted in a pastel, cool pink that glimmered with a golden sheen in the light. It shifted before her eyes, showing shades of silver and purple, metallic and pearl. A blend of everything pretty in the world, (Y/N) decided. The top was the signature corset that she loved from the Westwood designs, the neckline featuring a deep scoop to show off her chest, structured and tight. The skirt was a length that would drag behind (Y/N) as she walked, draping down from the corset with a thigh high slit up the side. The sleeves to hold it up were nothing but a three-tiered string of pearls, each loop bigger than the last to rest lower and lower on her arms when she put it on.
While there was a small collection of garment bags hanging up behind Will, (Y/N) couldn't imagine looking at another gown after this. It was too beautiful—the perfect personification of her thoughts that she had jumbled together to Dom during a late night FaceTime. She couldn't have ever imagined her scattered thoughts coming together enough for him to know exactly what dress from the Westwood archive to request for her.
But, this was exactly it.
She almost felt as though she needed to wait, to make sure it didn't just melt off of the hanger and drip onto the floor. She wanted to ensure it was real before she became too excited.
"Dom picked a couple from the archive and a few from the most recent runway, but this is my favorite," Will told her, his tone conspiratorial like he was sharing a secret just for her, "I think it would look gorgeous with your coloring, too. And, I know you're a pearl girl, so."
Standing from her seat, she abandoned her glass of champagne on the side table. She was sure her eyes were too wide on her face, taking in all of the gown as if it would disappear if she blinked too long.
"Are you kidding?!" she bubbled, "I love this! I almost don't want to see the others, I love this so much."
Will shook his head immediately. "No, no, no, we're playing Barbie today, you're still trying on the others. But, I'm happy we're on the same page with this one."
In a split second, (Y/N) saw something flourish in Will's eyes. The corner of his lips quirked up, too sly of a curl to be innocent. He turned towards Harry, showing off the dress just as grandly as he did for her.
"What do you think, Harry? This would look gorgeous on her, don't you think?"
Harry, the master of nonchalance and being chronically unbothered, barely batted an eye when Will caught his attention. If not for the fact (Y/N) knew who he was and what his job entailed, she would have thought he was one of those people from Williamsburg, where it was cool to be uncaring. Fortunately, she knew he genuinely couldn't care less about what was going on in this fitting room as long as (Y/N) wasn't being assaulted or causing property damage.
His eyes fell over the gown, sweeping over the details in that scrutinizing way he always looked at his surroundings. "It looks nice, yeah. I don't know much about this kind of stuff, but 'm sure it would look nice on her."
A beat passed. Will waited for more, waited for his digging expedition to come up with results. Harry only blinked.
"Okay, well!" Will moved on, smile a touch stiff. He turned towards (Y/N) with those same bright eyes. "Let's get you all tied up into this, and then we'll see for sure."
(Y/N) eagerly allowed Will to usher her through the door to the changing stall, eyes flitting to the dress as soon as she could spot it in the mirror. He didn't waste a second before he started chattering to her about some drama that apparently happened when the garments were dropped off the night before, trivial things that were embellished for the sake of getting her to laugh. (Y/N) wanted to say she listened intently, enjoying the way he prattled on and told the story as if it were a myth, but she honestly couldn't spread her attention between him and the dress that was beginning to swath around her body.
Her day clothes were dropped to the floor at her feet, leaving her in undergarments before Will helped her into the dress, the corset stiff with the boning straightening out her spine. The beginnings of the look came together before her eyes, the fabric forming around her body the tighter the corset was zipped. The skirt seemed to be dripping off of her body the way it moved under the light, molten and sticky. With the slit opening up as high as her hip, the pearl glimmer stood out against her skin. Will helped her push the straps of her bra down, sliding them into the sides of the corset to make it look that much more real.
Times like these were the only moments (Y/N) felt as if she could be photographed—wanted to be spotted. She loved dressing up, she loved feeling pretty in her skin, she loved these kinds of special moments. It never got old to her, feeling the glide of silky fabrics on her skin, the glimmer against her skin tone, looking like the princesses she used to idolize when she was a kid.
Twisting and twirling in the mirror, (Y/N) could feel the smile curling on her lips.
"Well, what did I tell you?!" Will beamed, standing back in the mirror to meet her eyes in the glass, "Better than the runway, my love!"
"You're so sweet," she told him, a pout on her lips as she matched his eyes in the mirror, "Thank you."
"Let's go look in the big mirror, see it from all the angles," Will prompted, reaching his hand out to help her step off the circular, raised platform in the dressing room.
(Y/N) followed him through the door, letting him take her to the three panel mirror at the head of the room. He held the skirt for her as she stepped onto the platform, her feet chilled through her socks once she was steady. He fanned the gown around her, the split showing off the stretch of her bare thigh. She stood tall with her posture corrected with the corset, but the confident tip of her chin had everything to do with the way she felt in the dress.
Running her hands over the fabric, she followed the ripples in the pearl with her eyes. Seeing herself like this, she didn't care what her dad had to say about her, the tabloids, or the rumors. She liked what she saw in the mirror, and that was enough.
"Do a spin, look at the back," Will instructed, hands clasped together with his own smile beaming on his features. When (Y/N) did as much, showing off the deep dip in the back that showcased the planes of her back and the seamless lines of the corset, his smile only widened. "Classic Vivienne," he murmured, impressed as if it were his own work, "What are you thinking for your hair?"
Using her hands to loosely emulate the idea she currently had in her head, (Y/N) craned her neck as she looked in the mirror. "I'm not sure yet, but I think Dom had something vintage in mind. Big and drape-y to show off the dress, but I haven't talked to my hair stylist yet."
"Jewelry?" Will asked, circling around her as if appraising a diamond.
(Y/N) launched into a description of what she and her stylist were thinking, imagining the Dior pieces glimmering against her skin and the way her hair would tickle her collarbone when she turned her head. She could already see the set of pearly nails that were going to be on her fingers, the tiny bag that she was planning on hanging from her elbow the whole night. Her bare feet shifted to be sheathed in the perfect pair of Manolo's she knew Dom was going to insist she wear to go along with the gown.
Everything came together with each twist and turn of her body in the mirror, pearls and crystals sparkling in her mind.
Will chatted away to her, telling her something about how the skirt could be altered to lower the slit (something she was not interested in doing, honestly) and how glimmering crystals could be added here and there. She offered him a bubbly smile in the mirror, nodding along, though she might have been a little too absorbed with the way she felt in the gown to be paying any real attention.
In the mirror, with a twist to show off the back once more, (Y/N) caught sight of Harry. Just as usual, he looked at her with those ever-observant eyes. Even from the distance he was sitting away in the long room, she knew he was watching everything.
This time, though, he sat with his elbows crossed over his knees, leaning forward as if he couldn't see enough. A furrow of his brow shaded his eyes. Though he tended to keep his eyes latched to her anyway, he looked earnest this time; like there was more he was trying to find before him.
(Y/N) swallowed. He hadn't even realized she was looking at him, she didn't think, at least with the way he didn't shy away when she found him staring. Or, he just didn't care.
Maybe, she could argue, he found Will as a possible threat being so close and so touchy with her. That was his job anyway, see those kinds of possibilities where she normally wouldn't. And, he took his job seriously.
"I know we've pretty much picked already, but let's take a picture and try on the others," Will propositioned, pulling her out of her head, "We'll send them to Dom and see what he thinks, right?"
With a flutter of her lashes and her gaze disengaging with Harry's form, she straightened her falling smile. "Right! My phone's over there, if you want to take the pictures really quick!"
With her phone in hand, Will began snapping photos of her, (Y/N) posing and smiling with every angle on display for her stylist to analyze later. The moment erupted into giggles as the posing became more ridiculous, Will fueling her with the ways he angled her phone and goaded her to get more and more wild.
All the while, (Y/N) could feel Harry's eyes on her.
She found she didn't mind having his eyes on her.
—————
In front of him, (Y/N) twirled and twisted while her friend took photos of her. Harry watched the whole time, cataloguing the way the dress formed around her body, the silk sliding over her skin and glimmering under the light.
Harry's chest felt tight. He couldn't take his eyes off of her.
She looked gorgeous.
In the front of his mind, he knew well that he would do better to be paying attention to their surroundings, watching her friend's hands, anything that actually pertained to his job.
But, he didn't. Instead, he watched his client. Even when she caught him.
—————
"Yes, sir, we're on the way."
Harry's voice was gruff and low as he spoke on the phone, (Y/N) listening in from where she sat next to him in the SUV. She played with the slowly dulling edges of her nails, pretending as if she had no idea as to what her dad was saying and asking on the phone to Harry.
She pretended not to catch the way he glanced at her from the corner of her eye, his gaze sweeping over her form before he was facing forward once more. "Yes, sir—she's dressed appropriately."
(Y/N) had to tune it out then. She didn't care to hear more of the checklist Harry had to go through in order to approve her walking out of the house. She felt more than exposed; under a microscope with everyone awaiting her downfall.
Not soon enough, it seemed the end of the phone call was finally nearing. Harry shifted in his seat as he spoke, giving a time estimate to their arrival before a mild "See you soon." left his lips and the call ended.
Biting back a sigh, (Y/N) sunk into her own seat that much more.
Of course, her father would call Harry over his actual daughter. She couldn't be trusted to give honest answers, obviously. Some days she felt disappointed over the way he acted with her, other days saddened for the little girl inside of her that ached for her parent's love, but days like this brought anger to the surface. She couldn't fathom how important he must think he was to believe he could speak to and about her the way he did.
Though the thought of looking at—let alone speaking to—him today was making her more than annoyed, she was already on her way to the country club and she couldn't back out now. At least she could eat as much as she wanted and buy just as many drinks all on her father's card.
He was going to be way too enthralled with his stupid country club friends—and Harry—to even acknowledge her, anyway. Whenever she was invited to see him on the green, she was meant to be nothing more than a pretty accessory, to show that he was a family man too, not just a ruthless businessman. She was there to be gazed upon by men way too old and way too married to be looking at her the way they did, but that was part of the reason she was called upon.
By the time the structure of the gated country club came into view, (Y/N) was already reading through the familiar menu in her head. She was going to buy the entire patio a round of drinks, she decided. Maybe even two rounds.
Going through the gates, Sully pulled them to the front of the building. The golf course stretched for miles around the main building, perfectly green and manicured, gorgeously maintained attractions throughout the holes with fountains and elaborate sand traps. The perfect kind of course for people with too much money and not enough actual understanding of the game. Around the back were the tennis courts and pool, everything warm blues with mosaic tiles, waitstaff crawling all over the place to tend to every whim of the clientele.
The bistro was her father's favorite part, though. That was where the whiskey was served.
He only pretended to care about golf just so he could laze around the club and smoke cigars in the afternoon and drink whiskey with people too stupid to realize he only saw them as dollar signs.
She could only hope he'd already had a chance to drink this morning with his friends, leaving him too sloppy to care if she snuck off to play some tennis or out to the koi pond in the garden. Maybe, Harry would even become too distracted with her father, too wrapped up in the schmoozing and drinks and promises, to follow her out. Maybe she could get a real chance to be alone this afternoon.
Sully helped (Y/N) out of the car as Harry waited for her on the walkway, the grand building behind him full of warm woods and golden fixtures. Large glass windows almost filling the complete space of the walls showcased the inside of the villa, the view only obstructed from the amount of greenery planted outside, tall bushy trees and manicured hedges acting as shades.
Keeping her tennis skirt from riding up her thighs, she used Sully's hand to steady her as she stepped onto the stone walkway.
"Thank you," she told him, voice quiet compared to the nature-esque sounds that came from the club and the various activities others were partaking in.
Sully nodded at her, gentle smile on his cheeks. "I'll be back soon. Do you want me to wait for your father's cue or yours?"
"Mine," she answered immediately. If it were up to her father, she'd spend the entire evening here with no end in sight. It would probably turn into some unwanted date with a random man he thought would be good for her.
Sully's smile was understanding as he nodded to her. "I'll be here as soon as you need me."
With that, she shared her goodbyes with her driver before joining Harry at his silent post a few feet ahead of her. He barely glanced at her before he started leading her into the club, opening the door for her to step ahead. He once again took the helm as he led her through the country club, (Y/N) standing back in favor of lagging behind. He might not know the club as well as she, but he at least knew where her father was expecting to meet them. This way, he would be the first person they saw, as well; that could buy her a couple extra seconds of being off before slipping into her role.
Walking into the Bistro, (Y/N) was greeted with the familiar smile of the waitstaff that knew her well. They didn't stop them as she gave a small wave, already assuming she was there to meet her father at the most boisterous table in the restaurant.
It was easy to spot him in the otherwise polite eatery, other patrons quietly dining with fresh tans or aching sunburns from the time outside. Sidelong glances were sent in the way of her father's table, some envious, others annoyed. She could deeply relate to those who were fed up with his noise. He was always much more bothersome after a few drinks.
Men gathered around him, clustered around his small table. (Y/N) recognized most of them. Some of them elicited a stiffening in her spine, her guard going up the much further in case their eyes wandered too close to her, others she knew as investors he most likely originally meant to meet here, and some she didn't know at all. It was still easy to suss them out, anyway; it was the giddy smiles on their faces and the way they barely drank, that showed they were people who had been fighting to be invited to the table and were way too excited to be in such a close orbit to her father and his friends. Gullible, the only way to describe them.
Twisting her Cartier bracelet around her wrist, (Y/N) tipped her chin with faux-confidence and plastered her tabloid-famous smile the second they stepped into the dining area. Harry was still in the lead, glancing at her over his shoulder once he also spotted their intended table.
Her smile didn't waver, ensuring he didn't catch any kind of reaction that could be relayed to her father.
The second her father turned to face them, stopping his conversation short, she knew the whiskey in his hand was not the first of the day. His eyes were glazed and warm, less scrutinizing but still nowhere near kind.
He lit up when he registered Harry's presence. "There he is!" her father shouted across the restaurant, a waiter's steps faltering at the outburst.
Stepping just out from behind Harry, (Y/N) noticed the way her father's gaze didn't deter from her bodyguard; a man he had met for the first time only a few weeks prior. In some ways, she was relieved to be ignored—it was easier this way, she knew—but other parts of herself were sore from the sting of being nothing worth noting to her dad.
Harry gave a small wave, still a touch too far away to give his own greeting back. At least he was being courteous of the other diners.
"This is the Harry I was telling you all about," her father continued, much too loud for the space though no one corrected him, "He's my daughter's handler."
Noises of recognition rattled around the table, some pretending, others giving knowing smiles. (Y/N) didn't dare to think about the stories he shared about her and Harry. He would no doubt be painted as a shining knight, clean and unwavering in control, while she would be left to be the troll of the story, the one being needing to be controlled.
Once they were near enough, those surrounding the table stood to introduce themselves to Harry, offering hands to shake and exchanging pleasantries. Harry took it in stride, his deep voice sticking out from the too-excited greetings of the others.
(Y/N) stood quietly behind. She could feel a pair of eyes or two falling upon her, but she was largely ignored in favor of Harry.
It's better this way, she reminded herself. None of these men's attention was worth it.
Feeling more like decor than a person, (Y/N) stood and watched as Harry was roped into the conversation, even taking a seat her father pulled up. All the while, her father sang Harry's praises, a hand clasped over his shoulder. Harry was just so smart, and qualified, level-headed and strong. (Y/N) had been so much better-behaved even—she might even be ready to be a wife instead of running around the city with her friends. Who knew it was a babysitter his wild child needed to finally calm down; another man to tell her what to do.
That comment made her smile dip. She hoped no one noticed.
The table erupted into laughter at his comment, jovially agreeing as if she wasn't standing right there. Harry was the only one to look at her from over his shoulder, a smile notably missing from his lips. He matched her eyes for a lingering moment before he dropped his gaze.
"Right," he said once he rejoined the conversation, the word missing the same enthusiasm the rest of the table held.
She stood for a moment longer, listening in as she fiddled with her bracelet, before she started inching away. "I'm going to go," she mumbled, noting the way no one seemed to look in her direction but Harry, "Probably get food or something."
(Y/N) turned on her heel then, half expecting Harry to follow, though she was sure the bigger priority was to stay with her father than continue babysitting her. She could feel the eyes of other patrons on her as she left the table, but she didn't stop to reconsider before she was slipping out through the backdoor.
The patio was bathed in bright sunlight, country club members lounging in the warmth with cocktails in hand while waitstaff meandered through the wrought iron tables. She didn't pay anyone any mind as she made her way through, giving smiles to those she made eye contact with before glancing away in favor of making as small of an impression as possible. Though it was generally frowned upon by the club to exploit its high profile members with covert photos or posting any details about the dealings within, that didn't mean it didn't happen. She knew more than a few times stories of her time at the club had been leaked to the press along with blurry photos, and she definitely didn't want that to happen again today with the way her father was shouting her business across the entire dining room inside.
Stepping off the stone patio, she made her way towards the gardens. A short hedge "maze" made most of the garden, leading her through with flowers littered around the space, small fountains, and a koi pond glittering in the center. Other than the tennis courts, this was her favorite space at the club.
The scent of the vibrant flowers beckoned to her, drawing her into the mini maze. A small smile took over her features, reaching out to caress the soft petals of the blooming roses. Fluffy bumble bees flittered between the blossoms, their tiny bodies covered in pollen as they went to each plant. A soft buzz filled the air as she walked, her careful footsteps over the plush grass adding to the delicate noise. It was easy to block out the rest of the commotion like this; the thumps from the tennis court, splashes from the pools, and the chatter from the patio all melted away. Trickling from the tiny waterfall fountains led her closer and closer to the center.
Zagging through the maze, she felt the sun warming her shoulders around the straps of her tank top. That same warmth seeped through to her bloodstream, floating her to the clouds just a little bit.
This was the first time she'd been out without Harry at her side. She'd almost forgotten what that felt like.
To be fair, she was beginning to get used to the feeling of having an extra shadow following her everywhere she went. That unsettling edge she had tied to having a security detail had begun to dull, finally. She didn't completely mind knowing that someone had eyes on her at all times, whether he was checking for her safety or for her bad behavior to peak. It wasn't something she would consider a normal feeling yet, but she could get there.
Hopefully, though, she wouldn't have enough time to get used to him. Hopefully, he'd be relieved of his post before she got that far.
With the lack of stories being printed about her, she even hoped that her father would grant her freedom sooner rather than later. The only things she saw about herself tended to be things about her summer outfits, or analyses of her instagram posts. Nothing major had been posted since Damien. She had to be on the right track if rumors about her were losing traction.
Falling back down to earth, (Y/N) grounded herself as she gazed down into the koi pond. The concrete barrier was carved with roses, the reliefs matching the actual blooms coming through in the hedges. The fish were graceful pops of color in the clear water, bright calico coral tones shining under the sun. Lilly pads with tiny flowers floated on the surface, allowing the kois to move like ghosts underneath. This was her favorite spot in the gardens, making it easy for her to sink to her knees with her hands perched on the lip of the barrier and gaze down at the creatures.
That childlike urge in her to reach out and pet the fish rose, wishing she could treat them like pets. (Y/N) almost wanted to laugh at herself with the way she had to remind herself to keep her hands to herself.
Suddenly the sound of footsteps sounded through the maze. They were close enough (Y/N) could hear the quick pace, the purpose someone would have to have to breeze through the leisurely maze like that.
For a split second, her muscles tensed, her lungs squeezed. Her first thought made her want to run.
The letters.
Whoever wrote them didn't want to hide anymore. They waited until she was alone like this. They could do and say anything they wanted here. No one would even know with the cover of the hedges.
Her heart raced in her chest when they grew close enough (Y/N) swore she could hear the sound of the grass crushing under the intruder's feet. Her breath caught in her throat.
She whipped her head around just in time to see someone breaking into the clearing.
It was Harry.
He had a scowl on his face, shoulders tensed, and eyes hard. He stopped in his tracks when he saw her sitting there in the grass, legs folded underneath her.
(Y/N)'s hand fluttered up to her throat, a sharp exhale leaving her lungs. It was just Harry, he reminded herself.
"Jeez, you scared me so bad just now," she breathed, sinking from how hard she had been tensed in wait.
"Sorry," he said, lips thin as he shifted his gaze to the koi pond behind her.
Though he looked just as closed off as he usually did, his demeanor matching his dark clothing, there was a bit more of an edge to his aura. If she didn't know any better, (Y/N) would think he was angry.
He heard her say she would be out back, she knew that. He couldn't be angry at her when he didn't follow her out of his own volition. Right?
A slight pinch knitted her brows together as she looked up at him. "Are... Is everything okay?"
Not shifting his gaze from where he had landed them on the blooms of roses in the maze, he gave her a curt nod. "Yes."
"Okay," she said, unsure of what else to offer in the quiet of the maze. Awkwardly, she rose to her feet, brushing nonexistent dirt from her tennis whites.
A beat passed before (Y/N) turned to face him once more, finding his gaze already on her. "You can keep walking if you want. I didn't mean to interrupt you," he said, his voice low as if to match the buzz of the bees.
"Are you sure?" she asked, still catching the storm in his eyes even if it had settled some.
Only a single nod was given in response.
With that, (Y/N) was the one to lead him through the maze. Harry was a welcome ghost behind her, silently following. He didn't complain with every lingering step between the blooms, didn't bother her as she felt the softened rose petals, didn't push her through in annoyance of the bees flying around their heads.
The second half of the maze seemed to relax him from the way she saw his shoulders relax, his gaze softening the longer they spent away from everyone else. She almost wanted to take him back to the beginning when they finally finished, the end of the maze opening up to a stone walkway that split with two avenues. One took them back to the bistro's patio, the other to the golf courses.
"Are you hungry?"
After the quiet that followed them through the maze, Harry's voice was a shock.
"Yeah, actually." (Y/N) answered after a beat.
"C'mon," Harry said, gesturing for her to follow after him as he started down the pathway rounding back to the restaurant.
The patio was just as bustling as when she had slipped through earlier, the expansive windows allowing her to peek inside and find her father still holding court. Pushing through the small gate that separated the space, the waitstaff turned to look at them from the pinched creak the iron hinge gave.
A familiar woman smiled from where she stood at the extra hosting podium stationed outside. "(Y/N)," she brightly greeted her, "Are you dining with us after all today?"
A short glance was spared in Harry's direction before (Y/N) was nodding. "Yes, please. Thank you."
The familiar hostess quickly seated them, menus and glasses of water left on the table. The waitress would be only a moment away, they were told. The service was always on the quick side whenever (Y/N) was here; they knew good and well who her father was, and the club loved a generous member.
Harry was quiet as they were waited on, looking over the menu as if it were a textbook to study. He didn't even look up when the fair-haired waitress made her way to their table. She introduced herself as Carly, though (Y/N) already knew her well enough from the last handful of times she had been dragged here by her dad.
"Before we start, were you wanting to open up a separate tab today, Ms. (Y/N), or put today's meal on your father's?" she asked, her smile bubbly as she relayed the same question they always posed.
"On her father's."
Flicking her gaze from the waitress, she saw Harry still looking at his menu as if he hadn't just spoken. That storm had returned to his gaze, a pinch appearing between his brows.
Carly was silent, looking between the two of them.
"On my dad's tab, please," (Y/N) confirmed, offering a soft smile before the silence had time to settle for too long.
"Perfect," Carly answered, writing down whatever message needed on the pad in her hand, "I'll give you guys a moment with the menu and come back and take your order. Sound good?"
"Sounds good," (Y/N) answered for them both, perfect smile on her lips until their waitress stepped away.
Silence settled between the two of them, Harry still focussed on his menu. Though it was a bit bold for Harry to assume they were going to be dining on her father's dime, she couldn't deny it was a little funny. That was her own plan after all, she just hadn't anticipated his vehement agreement.
Soon enough, their waitress returned. "Had enough time?" she posed, reaching to her apron pocket for her notepad.
Glancing at Harry, she saw the small nod he gave. "I think so," (Y/N) answered, already familiar with the menu enough to not have to glance through.
"Great," Carly chirped, pulling her notepad out, "Any drinks? Starters?"
Before she had a chance to order her raspberry lemonade, Harry piped up, "A whiskey on the rocks, please. And, the coconut mango cocktail."
There was a beat that passed as Carly wrote everything down. (Y/N) looked at him with raised brows. That was not at all what she had expected; wasn't he still on the clock?
For the first time, he glanced at her over his menu, something loaded in his eyes as he tipped his chin towards the leaflet with all the drink specials printed.
"And, for you?" Carly asked, facing (Y/N).
"Um," she fumbled, "Can I get a glass of Chardonnay please? And the raspberry lemonade."
(Y/N) didn't plan on drinking her wine, but felt as if she needed to match Harry in the ordering process at least.
"Alright, I will get all of that going for you, and I'll be back to take your lunch orders." With that, their waitress left, her notepad snapped shut and her gaze just a touch wary between them.
(Y/N) couldn't blame her.
A moment passed before (Y/N) dropped her menu to lay flat on the table. Harry looked up at her through his lashes.
"Are you really going to drink all of that?" Honestly, she wondered what a drunk Harry would look like.
"No," he deadpanned, "But your father is still going to pay for it whether I drink them or not."
The smile that tugged on the corner of (Y/N)'s lips was something that she couldn't help. It was out of character for the person she thought Harry to be—a loyal follower of her dad—, but definitely something she would have (and has) done herself.
"Right," she answered, gaze shifting to the menu in search of the most expensive items she could spot.
Maybe, Harry was closer to being on the same page as her than she thought.
—————
"Thank you, Carly," (Y/N) said as she signed the check, quickly passing it back to their server.
"Of course," Carly beamed. Her smile only widened when she saw the three digit tip on the line for her. "Thank you, Ms. (Y/N)."
(Y/N) didn't linger then, knowing Sully was up front waiting for them to be taken home. "Ready?" she asked Harry as she stood from her chair.
"Ready," he answered, much more relaxed than at the beginning of their meal.
Ignoring her father, (Y/N) left the bistro behind. He probably didn't even remember inviting her out for the day. It didn't matter, though, she thought.
He'd remember the three extra appetizers and handful of drinks left untouched on their table.
—————
rêvasser is to daydream in french.
I know it's a little light on harry at the start of this story but more exciting stuff is coming!!!!! thank u sm for reading, sorry for any mistakes, and if you have any fun ideas or anything please let me know !
#writing#harry#harry styles#harry one shot#harry imagine#harry blurb#harry au#bodyguard harry#harry styles one shot#harry styles imagine#harry styles blurb#harry styles au#bodyguard harry styles#harry x reader#harry styles x reader#love on tour#pleasing#harrys house#as it was#satellite
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hi bendix! any tips for drawing/ lighting backgrounds? yours are so gorgeous and cohesive, is there anything specific you think about when planning the layout and props?
Thank you for the question! I'll do my best to answer it, but if something doesn't make sense, feel free to hit me up with some follow-up questions, because sometimes I just end up rambling, hah!
There's a couple of things I keep in mind when I do my bigger illustrations. I always want certain things or characters to be in focus, so for my cowboy illustration, I wanted the four characters from my comic to be the main focus of the piece. I used a couple of different techniques to emphasize this, whereas one of them is lighting.
The background is overall a lot darker and has more contrast between dark and light, than the foreground. To further separate the group from the background, I used the window in the back to add a rim light (that honestly makes no physical sense but it looks neat so...), to make them feel more cohesive as a group.
The second thing is balancing the amount of details I put into it. While there is a lot of stuff, the background has broader, bigger and clunkier shapes than the group in the foreground does.
To keep the feel of the details to a minimum, I kept them within those shapes, so the paintings still feel like single boxes, with stuff in it.
This helps the foreground pop with all the smaller details I've added there.
The next thing is colour. The overall colour scheme is very reddish and brown, but to connect the four characters in the foreground, I added blue to them.
Kain, Christie and Dakon all wear bits of the blue and Raki is holding playing cards with the same blue, while his entire outfit is tinted blue-ish, so even if it's black, the cold tones match with the blues.
This also puts them in contrast to the background characters that are exclusively red/brown and stays within those colour groups.
The details on the table are only 3-4 colours as well; I like to keep my palette to a minimum so the things I want to stick out, actually stick out, and so it doesn't get too busy.
The final thing I like to do, is direct the gaze of the viewer, and use contrast in shape and gestures.
The background and the background characters has very straight lines ...
... whereas the foreground characters are more curved by leaning towards each other, and by sitting around a small round table, that forces them closer to each other as well.
To further direct the gaze of the viewer, I use the eye-lines of the characters. We tend to follow eye-lines in pictures, so I always make sure that my background characters (or some of them) are looking at the thing I want to show off, and that the main characters especially are doing the same thing.
When all is said and done, whenever I start a new illustration, I can basically picture it in my head because I have hyperphantasia. When I sit down to draw, I nudge things around until the idea fits as an illustration, so don't be afraid to just throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks. Winging it will take you far, hahah!
I hope this was somewhat helpful :)
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Hello! For the event could I please have prompt 7 from the expired medicine list with Finicky or Katniss, whichever one you think would work best! Thank you and congrats on 3000!
☼ cerulean pt1 (Finnick Odair) ☼
warnings; swearing, a harassment accusation, whore used derogatorily.
wc; 2k
prompt; 7. fling.
notes; reader/finnick are the same age, pre-canon.
—
Gloss lets out an annoyed sigh, coming to a stop. “(Y/n), I told you that we should’ve left sooner.”
You press your lips together, eyes searching the crowd to find the designated rows for mentors and stylists. Most—if not, all—of the seats that are reserved for you have been completely taken up. Except for a pair that have been strategically left absent, intended for you and Gloss to sit in.
Which would be perfect, if it weren’t for the fact that your tributes’ stylists are placed a row beneath, on the opposite end. That’s where you had told them to sit, because you thought you’d be a few minutes late. Those minutes ended up turning into a half hour, as you had to change your entire outfit and adjust your makeup to match.
In the years you spent training for the Games and preparing for the Capitol, they never told you just how many rules there are to follow, here. They range from obvious to unspoken, but to you, half of them are unnecessary.
The one that shot you down tonight is the palette rules. The first is that you cannot wear the same colors that your tributes will wear for their interviews. You got past that one just fine, as they’re usually forced to wear bright colors to draw attention, something that you aren’t really into.
The second one is about matching outfits with mentors. You’re not allowed to wear the exact same outfit as your other mentor unless you’re siblings or dating. Whereas Cashmere and Gloss got away with it for years, you wouldn’t be able to do the same, not that you want to, anyway.
It’s the third that you got caught on. See, you’re allowed to wear the same colors as Gloss, but you’re not allowed to match colors with mentors outside of him. This is for multiple reasons, the primary one being in case a camera pans to the crowd, it needs to be obvious who is where and what they’re wearing.
On top of that, for districts that are expecting for their tributes to be popular, it’s customary to submit what color the mentor is going to wear. You meant to do this, but you kept putting it off because you were busy and had other things to worry about. Gloss knew this, and thought that he’d be nice and submit it for you, and he was going off of the last color you’d mentioned.
It was cerulean blue, because you’d seen the color in a stylists’ closet, and throughout the week, you haven’t been able to get it off your mind. When you overheard the District Four mentors talking about a similar color, you had to give it up. They have a monopoly over the color blue, you would be the one shamed for going out of your boundaries.
And you suppose you could’ve talked to Finnick Odair or Mags Flanagan about them choosing a different color, if it weren’t for the rivalry that’s been going on over the past couple of years. It’s only grown worse in the last year.
To make an extremely long story short, Finnick started the rivalry when he didn’t join the Career pack during his Games, and proceeded to openly bash Districts One and Two as a whole. At the time, he said he hated the Career dynamic, the names you’re given, and the attitude you have about everything. He finished by saying each time one of you dies, you have it coming because of stupid actions made early on.
Instead of Mags, his mentor, trying to downplay his words and squirm their way out of it, she stood behind him. Everything that came out of his mouth dragged them down further into a grave. When he won, he refused to take anything he said back, because he meant every word.
Since then, the Careers have excluded District Four from every one of their activities. Between the Capitol week, during the tribute parade, the training, the interviews, and the time in the arena. No one is to intermingle with the fish district, even if it means death.
Well, you won two years after Finnick had, at the bright age of sixteen. You shunned Four the way you had been taught to. When you got home after the Games, you got the full story regarding Finnick, and his personality. It was a warning from Cashmere and Gloss to stay away from him.
The next year—last year—you finally got to meet him. It was your first time as a mentor, and even though Gloss had told you he would be watching you like a hawk, he didn’t have time to. He was juggling both tributes to pick up the work that Cashmere usually did with her eyes closed. This is because you weren’t used to the workload.
Needless to say, your mentor's warnings meant nothing.
In the month you spent in the Capitol, you grew close to Finnick. It wasn’t on purpose, honestly you don’t remember how the two of you ended up talking for the first time, much less becoming more than that. Way more than that. Finnick is well aware that he’s handsome, and he’s got the charm to go along with it.
That’s how you ended up in the same bed together, multiple times, until you had to leave the Capitol when your final tribute died. But before you left for the year, Finnick gave you a nasty parting gift. He went straight to Capitol reporters to tell them what you’d done together for the summer.
It was like he couldn’t wait to tear you down, despite the fact that you had done nothing to him.
Thankfully, you can put on a good show. At the train station, with about a hundred cameras and microphones in your face, you’d burst into tears. You claimed that Finnick had harassed you the entire time you were in the Capitol, and he couldn’t take no for an answer. He had threatened to ruin your reputation if you tried to breathe a word of it.
There was a lot of skepticism following your statements, because it’s he-said, she-said business. He pointed his finger at you, and you did the exact same thing without going any lower than he did. It worked out exactly the way you had been hoping it would.
It’s been a pain in the ass to be near him this time around.
This is why you couldn’t just ask the Four mentors to pick a different color. You were forced to change your mind, and you’d decided to go with a light pink, because it was safer. Your whole attention had shifted to that shade of pink for the last half of the week. And it wasn’t until you were on your way out the door to get on the elevator, Gloss asked you what you were wearing, because cerulean had been submitted, not pink.
If he had told you that he had done that for you, neither of you would’ve shown up this late. With the only pair of seats left being squeezed between Enobaria and Finnick.
You can already guess how this is going to go.
“Gloss, I’m sorry.” You start, looking at him. “Please, don’t make me sit next to Finnick.”
“It’s your own fault.” He tells you, starting down the aisle.
You roll your eyes. “I don’t think you understand that you had a part in this too, if you’d told me—”
“(Y/n), it’s your job as a District One mentor to remember to submit your color.” He cuts you off. “I let you slide last year, and you know that this year, you were supposed to handle it.” He stops at the end of the row, holding his hand out. “Now you’ve got to deal with this.”
You grind your teeth slightly, squinting at him, wondering if you’ll get in trouble for strangling someone from your own district. You then take in a breath, giving him a fake smile, and turning to head down the row, toward Finnick. You could be an ass and sit in Gloss’ seat next to Enobaria, but you’re sure that he’ll make you get up and move over.
Finnick glances up at you, meeting your eyes. A smirk plays at the corner of his lip, “I see you’re still breaking rules.”
You ignore him, sitting in your seat, crossing one leg over the other. He’s referring to the color you’re wearing, which is entirely too similar to what he’s wearing. The Capitol will easily be able to distinguish the two different shades, but the districts are a different story.
Gloss sits on your other side. When you turn your head to talk to him, you see that he’s already captured Enobaria’s attention, leaving you to your own devices. You’d jump into the conversation, but Enobaria hasn’t grown to like you quite yet. She prefers Cashmere, because they’d been working together for a couple years.
“Are you really going to give me the silent treatment?” Finnick pouts in a mocking tone, “I thought we had something.”
The back of his forefinger brushes against your thigh. You slap his hand away, glaring at him. “Leave me alone.”
“Why? Are you going to go crying to the cameras again?” He asks. “That was smart of you to do, I wish I’d thought of it myself.”
“You’re not smart enough to.” You mutter. “Keep wishing.”
Finnick doesn’t respond, he doesn’t have time to. The lights overhead dim, signaling that it’s time for the interviews to start. It isn’t until Caesar Flickerman comes on stage, dressed in sunflower yellow, do the lights go fully dark.
This conceals Finnick’s action of twisting his upper body to face you. You eye him out of your peripheral the best you can, leaning away from him slightly. You were stupid to think that you’d get a fairly relaxed evening the night before the Games.
Finnick leans over the arm rest that separates you, getting close to your ear to whisper. Despite the fact that Caesar is loud enough to drown out anything he would have to say.
“I really am sorry.” He whispers. “Let me make it up to you.”
You keep your eyes on Caesar, forcing yourself to listen to the jokes he’s cracking, knowing that he’s leading up to introducing your first tribute. Your thoughts begin to stray when you feel him touching you again, attempting to innocently play with the bottom of your dress.
“Any way you want.” His fingertips dancing on your skin. “I promise I’ll be gentle.”
You grab his wrist, eyebrows drawn in. “Stop.”
“It won’t happen again.” He murmurs. “It’ll stay between me and you.”
You break your eyes away from Caesar to stare into Finnick’s, which are easy to make out in the darkness. “I’m not falling for the same trick twice.”
“It’s not a trick.”
You let go of him. “Enough.”
“We were good together.” He whines a little too loudly. Gloss glances over, but Finnick’s already pretending to be watching the show in front of you.
Finally, Caesar introduces your girl tribute. Gloss looks away.
“How about I take you out to lunch?” Finnick proposes.
You shake your head at him. “Finnick, face it, what we had is nothing more than a fling.” You snap quietly. “I’m the only girl your age, which means I’m your only option, and I’m telling you no.”
“A fling?” Finnick echoes, “No, I saw it as more than that.”
“Right, so what went through your head when you went and told the Capitol that I was a whore last year?” You ask, watching him. Finnick opens his mouth, and then closes it. “That’s what I thought.”
“You’re not going to forgive me for that, are you?”
“Why should I?”
Finnick hums, looking away. He doesn’t speak for several tributes, and just when you begin to think that the conversation is over, he looks over. Right as his boy is coming to the front of the stage.
“You do look gorgeous tonight, I think cerulean is perfect on you.”
You force a smile, “I’ll never wear it again.”
--
this was part of my 3k celebration!!
#ilguna#finnick odair#finnick odair imagine#finnick odair fanfic#finnick odair x reader#finnick odair oneshot#finnick odair x you#finnick odair x yn#finnick odair x y/n#finnick imagine#finnick fanfic#finnick x reader#finnick oneshot#finnick x you#finnick x y/n#finnick x yn#thg#the hunger games#notstinglesstoo#ask#3k celebration#requested
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If there's one thing I'm proud of as an artist, it's the fact I'm a style chameleon. I decided to sit down and recreate 4 artists I really love, and who better to do it with than with the most varied character in the entire franchise: King Dedede! This isn't just for appreciation though, but a study on how other people translate DDD's design, since character design is a passion of mine!
Let's start with @miniiieevee!
Oh my gosh their art is super great, and I think the most important part of getting the style right was the sparkles. I have never seen someone do highlights this way, and it's both super recognizable and super cute! For the King himself, we have a nice round beak, visibly blue eyes, a distinct head, pointed crown jewel, an undershirt, and stripes along the top of the belt. Like most of us, they use the (owo) kind of mouth and really fluff up the coat. Separate fingers can also show up for posing, following Spongebob physics. The stitching on the gloves and the little round eyebrows are another really cool touch! Out of all of the styles I looked at, this one has the most pastel colors.
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Next is @das-a-kirby-blog!
Das-a-kirby-blog has such a cool variety in their work, from really shapey sketches to super abstracted color schemes, which while super amazing, didn't provide me the best ref material. The colors here are frankensteined from a few sources, so I hope they capture their actual base color palette. They go for the pin-shaped route for body shape, with the undershirt (though sometimes there's no under layer), typically black eyes, extra belt stripes, and a chunky diamond shaped crown jewel. My favorite touch is the cottonball on the crown. Like I said at the top, they excel at shapes in their art!
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Third is @jojo-schmo!
I've been silently reading their roleswap comic, but I should've been loudly reading it because I super recommend it! I'd also say design wise their Dedede is the most unique! Besides myself they're the only one here to pick the kimono, they have a single blue stripe at the top of the belt, a triangular jewel, and the coolest element of the style, spirals! I've not seen anyone stylize the trim this way, and it's so cool in execution. Another unique element that really adds to certain expressions is the spiky teeth (which matches real life penguins! ...Don't look it up).
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Last but not least, @cosmicwhoreo!
God, their art is everything. The flow of the lines is so clean and smooth and everything they draw is super expressive. Their Dedede is by far the hugest, and also marks the 4/5 DDDs with a separate head, and 3/5 with black eyes. We have the belt stripes, occasionally a shirt, and a smooth tear drop jewel, but a uniquely shaped crown band. This design sees a lot of influence from the anime unlike the others here, so the color scheme is the most unique.
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As a conclusion, it's really cool to see all the different design elements that we pick and choose for DDD. Some give him his smash outfit. Some people give him a body type closer to K64 or KATFL. Some people draw his eye color, or separate eyebrows, and others don't. There's no detail that's the same across every version, but they're all our lovable king. If you don't recognize one of these artists, check them out! I can only do a fraction of the incredible work they do, and let me know if there's any other characters or artists you'd like to see this exercise with!
#my kirby art#kirby#king dedede#art style study#I actually have no idea if @s notify the person or not#Probably?#I hope I did you guys justice
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After I finished Wilson's wardrobe I was having an itch to draw other outfits for everybody else. In particular, the Magmatic line up. To be honest, it's my least favorite line up. I don't hate it but I wasn't huge about it. Mainly since overall to me it felt kind of rushed and didn't really match the same level of awesome as the Gladiator line up. They just didn't feel like proper "sequel designs" as it were. I always saw the Magmatic as an upgrade from Gladiator. They're returning champions so they should look the part. And so here we are.
The main core elements for each one were the following:
Same color palette. (Black, Red, Yellow and Brown)
A champion belt or accessory.
Integrating parts of the Gladiator into the Magmatic.
Reflect abilities and battle roles in design.
Overall, very pleased with the results. Had a lot of fun too. Def will need to do some art with these versions of the Magmatics. And of course I'll touch base with everyone's personal wardrobes but for now just wanted to get these particular outfits taken care of since redesign was inevitable for all of them. Better to just knock it out now.
Hope you enjoy and I'll see you on the next one.
#don't starve#don't starve together#wilson percival higgsbury#willow#wolfgang#wigfrid#wickerbottom#wes#webber#wendy#winona#wx-78#maxwell carter#woodie#concept art#to who knows where
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Bennett's Outfit and Hairstyle (Genshin Impact) [Male frame]
没有传说中那么夸张啦，不过就是走路经常会掉进猎人打猎用的坑里，或者被突然倒下的树干砸到脑袋，都很平常嘛，对吧？
～
It's not as bad as the legends say, but it's normal to fall into a hunter's trap on a walk, or to be suddenly hit in the head by a falling tree, right?
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BENNETT! 🥳🎂🎁
Sul sul, today is his birthday and to celebrate it with all of you, here you can download his outfit and hairstyle to do him in The Sims 4!
【Everything shared below, has been tested by @lea-heartscxiv and me in Ultra quality (non HQ) following our needs, if you find any problem let me or him know. ⚠️Also we don't have the game updated, Lea and me are on version 1.102.190.1030 (October 31th, 2023), so I can't assure that it works correctly in higher versions. Use it at your own risk. Thank you⚠️】
I'm back from the darkness! Since Simblreen I got burned too much with so much CC I did for that same event and it made me stay away for a while together with a pain I have in my arm where is my skilled hand. Now I'm more recovered and also I know how to control the pain in my arm (literally when it hurts too much I stop doing everything I was doing), so without further ado I leave you with CC I've been preparing for today.
Download under keep reading ↓
If you download my CC it means your agree with my T.O.U (English/Español/日本語).
General Info:
one piece outfit (clothes)
gloves (2 versions, HQ and non-HQ)⁽*¹⁾
boots with socks
arm bandana (upper right bracelet)
body scars drawn on sim by me from scratch (two types, real scar and painted scar on scars or tattos) [Painted scars is for those who want a more drawn style, like original color of Bennett's model]
band-aids on face and left forearm
hairstyle with glasses (24 EA Swatches + Bennet swatch) [Male and Female Frame]
hairstyle without glasses [⚠️ Not avaliable yet. Coming in a week or so due to time constraints. I'll reblog this post with update if you follow me here and/or you download from SFS. In case you're following me on Patreon, my Patreon will notify you that is update⚠️]
Bennett eyes recolor
all LOD's
normal, specular and emission maps included
custom thumbnail
HQ compatible (only gloves have non-HQ version)⁽*¹⁾
~⭐️~
~Bennett's outfit~
Outfit Info:
one piece outfit (clothes)
boots with socks
gloves (Painted and adapted on hands with Blender. Left bracelet is disabled since a part of gloves uses that texture location)⁽*¹⁾
arm bandana (upper right bracelet)
all LOD's
normal, specular and emission maps included
custom thumbnail
HQ compatible
All is opposite frame compatible tho there are deformity on Female Frame
Compatible with higher and lower game sliders
There are small bugs with some parts of clothes
⁽*¹⁾ Only download HQ version of gloves if you have "HQ mod" if this isn't the case, download non-HQ version. Gloves in non-HQ version have less pixelation than when use HQ version without "HQ mod" that I don't know how to avoid (if someone know, feel free to tell me)
LODs Info:
Complete Clothing: LOD0: 11229 poly LOD1: 5827 poly LOD2: 3003 poly LOD3: 1457 poly
Gloves: LOD0: 930 poly
Boots with socks: LOD0: 2136 poly LOD1: 1214 k LOD2: 733 poly LOD3: 470 poly
Arm bandana (Upper right bracelet): LOD0: 264 poly LOD1: 210 poly LOD2: 168 poly LOD3: 83 poly
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (Patreon ~ Always free, no adfly)
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (SFS ~ Always free, no adfly)
Lower and higher game sliders:
~⭐️~
~Bennett's body scars and band-aids~
General Info:
body scars drawn on sim by me from scratch (two types, real scar and painted scar on scars or tattos) [Painted scars is for those who want a more drawn style, like original color of Bennett's model]
nose face band-aid (placed on Left Nose Piercing) and left forearm band-aid (placed on Socks) with mesh made by me from scratch and texture used from Bennet's model [Original + 84 swatches from Crystallum Palette]
custom thumbnail
HQ compatible
Opposite frame compatible ※except for left arm scar which I've disabled as it's misaligned with UVs female frame, if you want me to do it also for female frame don't hesitate to send me an ask on my Tumblr, I mainly don't need this scar specifically for any of my female frame OCs for that reason I've put it aside.※
LODs Info:
Left arm band-aid: LOD0: 152 poly
Nose band-aid: LOD0-1: 236 poly LOD2-3: 118 poly
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (Patreon ~ Always free, no adfly)
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (SFS ~ Always free, no adfly)
~⭐️~
~Bennett's Hairstyle with Head glasses~
Hairstyle with Head Glasses Info:
24 EA Swatches + Bennett swatch
Texture located on Head accessory, so hat cuts are disabled for this hairstyle
Base game compatible
Hat not compatible
All genders and agender
Teen to elders (Child, Toddler and Infant version eventually)
Texture hair and hair mesh made by me from scratch
normal and specular maps on glasses included
Split hair compatible (Patreon/SFS) [Extra info: I'm currently making changes in this option and expanding considerably the offer of colors and palettes (besides placing it in other places so that it doesn't cause problems as it happens with version located in piercings, although this time it won't only be for split hair color, but it will have many more options available. I will also make a special palette with all Genshin Impact hair colors of characters that I made and will make (as I'm doing with eyes) so that all my hairstyles can use those colors too.]
Custom Thumbnails
LODs Information:
Hairstyle with glasses: LOD0: 10108 poly LOD1: 5053 poly LOD2: 2525 poly LOD3: 1261 poly
※Choose download only one version of each frame or choose download between "M-F_Merged" where two frames files are together.※
!!UPDATE!! ⚠️Fixed a bug in CAS swatch 25 for Female Frame Hairstyle that made it impossible to change color because it had the same swatch value as number 16, if you have this version or the Merged version, please re-download it so you can use the last swatch of Female Frame.⚠️
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (Patreon ~ Always free, no adfly)
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (SFS ~ Always free, no adfly)
Preview in CAS:
Split hair color:
~Bennett's Hairstyle without head glasses~
24 EA Swatches + Bennett swatch
Base game compatible
Hat compatible
All genders and agender
Teen to Elder
Child, Toddler and Infant version eventually, this post will notify you that is update if you're following me
Texture hair and hair mesh made by me from scratch
Split hair color compatible [Extra info: I'm currently making changes in this option and expanding considerably the offer of colors and palettes (besides placing it in other places so that it doesn't cause problems as it happens with version located in piercings, although this time it won't only be for split hair color, but it will have many more options available. I will also make a special palette with all Genshin Impact hair colors of characters that I made and will make (as I'm doing with eyes) so that all my hairstyles can use those colors too.]
Custom Thumbnails
LODs Information:
Hairstyle without glasses: LOD0: 10848 poly LOD1: 5372 poly LOD2: 2684 poly LOD3: 1341 poly
※Choose download only one version of each frame or choose download between "M-F_Merged" where two frames files are together.※
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (Patreon ~ Always free, no adfly)
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (SFS ~ Always free, no adfly)
Preview in CAS:
Split hair color:
~⭐️~
~Genshin Impact Eyes~
color eyes of characters as non-default
color eyes of characters as make-up face
!!NEW CATEGORY!! color eyes of characters as occult eye lid [YOU NEED THIS MOD TO UNLOCK THIS CATEGORY CAS]
⚠️ Important: At the moment both only have swatch of Razor and Bennett's eyes, but I'll add more as make other characters, which in that case will be notified in corresponding post so that if you wish you can download or re-download it with new swatch (if you downloadi it from SFS), for those on Patreon I'll simply modify the file and make it notify the update of that post
※Choose the one that best suits your needs or choose the three of them with MERGED file.※
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (Patreon ~ Always free, no adfly)
✨DOWNLOAD LINK✨ (SFS ~ Always free, no adfly)
~⭐️~
Let me know if you find any problem. 🙏❣️
IF YOU LIKE MY WORK PLEASE CONSIDER BECOME A PATREON OR TIP ON KO-FI. ANY HELP IS ALWAYS WELCOMED BUT ALWAYS OPTIONAL. YOU CAN ALSO COMMISSION ME HERE OR FROM TUMBLR, IF YOU WANT ME TO DO SOMETHING SPECIFIC FOR YOU. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
👀👉MORE DOWNLOADS
Next Genshin Impact character will be 珊瑚宫心海 (Sangonomiya Kokomi), soon I will share a WIP. As general information, from now on I will upload content at least once a month, but without a fixed date. So that way at least once a month you will have content, and in this way I will also have a regular schedule, because before I used to publish everything I finished at the same time and left you with months without content due to I get burned.
Happy simming! 🍀
💛
🛹 You can find me also on Patreon | Pinterest | Ko-Fi | Blogger (Shared with Lea) | Instagram | X (Twitter) | My F.A.Q. | My T.O.U. | MORE DOWNLOADS 🛹
#sims 4 cc#ts4 cc#ts4cc#sims4cc#type: clothes#frame: male#type: body accessory#type: hairstyle#frame: unisex#age: teen to elder#theme: videogame#game pack: base compatible#hair pack: Bennett (Genshin Impact)#Genshin Impact x The Sims 4#Bennett#Genshin Impact#原神#VanS4CC#Van-YangYin#always free cc
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so i like the april fools shuffle units a normal amount. i have done redesigns for almost all of them and i draw them A Lot.
rambling additional notes on all of the redesigns below
a couple notes if you ever want to draw any of these redesigns for yourself at any point: i'd appreciate being credited for these redesigns (obviously anyone not redesigned i don't need credit for lol) and you don't need to follow my specific skin tone + hair/eye color schemes i have laid out. those are how i personally like to draw the characters and i've included them for anyone who might want to stay completely accurate to my redesigns, but you're welcome to use your own preferred color schemes for the cast when drawing them with these outfits!
now onto the fun(?) stuff
aoharu is pretty straightforward with redesigns, its basically just leoni but with a sun theme instead of stars. adding the image for the color palettes for the unchanged designs just because it has the notes for ichisaki too (their changes were too minor to completely redraw them, in my opinion).
ichika remains entirely unchanged design-wise other than adding a sun pin to her suspenders. saki stays mostly the same too, other than changing the design on her armband and switching her pigtails for a ponytail (in an attempt to seem a little more mature/imitate airi's hairstyle/move on from her childhood self since she's started to believe that honami and shiho want nothing to do with her and ichika anymore).
not too much to say about airi and ena's outfits either, i wanted to go a little more cute with airi and cool with ena, but there's minor changes with both of their hairstyles, with airi switching her pigtails for a ponytail as well (moving on from her idol days but still maintaining her usual sort of style) and ena's hair being a bit longer/messier.
yyj is definitely the most drastic, they're the only unit where i changed every single character... i have a lot of trouble drawing the mmj outfits, but also the lighter color scheme and clover theme just didn't really make sense for yyj to me? so instead i went with a mainly black and character color combo for their color schemes, alongside gold and white to accent it and a more spacey/dreamlike theme. everyone's black and white are slightly tinted with their character colors too!
they're split into pairs for matching accessories, but it doesn't mean much otherwise. kanade and an both have the dangling star charms and a single larger wristband (with those being on opposite sides from each other) as well as no buttons on the front of their outfits, while both hinomoris have the large bows on the backs of their outfits, smaller wristbands on both arms, a legband, and star shaped clips (like the other pair, the clips and legbands are on opposite sides from each other) and they do have buttons. they're split differently for the same style outfits though, with kanade/shizuku and shiho/an being the matching pairs this way.
kanade has the most obvious design changes. i swapped her character color to a medium-light blue rather than red, because tbh she kind of stood out too much if she was still red. she's not meant to be the leader of the unit, she doesn't want to stand out. her hair is a lot shorter than canon and she usually keeps it braided for practice and performances (and leaves it loose otherwise) (both the haircut and style were initially suggestions from shizuku). shes the only member of the unit to wear tights and to lack any star shaped hair accessories.
shizuku i don't have that much to say about, i had designed kanade first and then shizuku to match. its pretty straight forward i think? she's got the tallest socks not counting kanade's tights though.
for both an and shiho i wanted to go a slightly cooler/less feminine direction, while still sticking to the general theme i had going. which lead to the shorts and vest combo! otherwise the only notable change with either of them is that an's changed her clips to two regular gold ones and she's got a ponytail now when they practice/perform, much like kanade's braid.
fts was both very fun and an absolute pain to redesign because on one hand, i can do whatever i want, on the other hand, it's like vbs there's really no consistent theme to carry through everything. except a lot of layers i guess. so my goal was to kind of merge their casual aesthetics with something more vbs-like.
tsukasa wearing his jacket incorrectly was inspired by my own tendency to do so whenever i get too warm. i think he just does it because he thinks it looks cool though (its a little silly and a pain to keep it on but he's committed to the look). also leaving his middle layer as his fish jacket from his casual sprite was a funny little thing i thought worked for him.
with rui my goal was just pockets. lots of pockets. they're probably hiding little robots and tools in those pockets. i should have put more pockets on their pants too but oh well. combine that with wanting some obnoxious bright greens and blues and at least one item that kind of clashed color-wise with the rest (their pants in this case) and this is the result. the sketch doesn't convey it well but their black jacket and pants are both kind of loose, while the green hoodie and tshirt underneath fit okay. also their hair is kind of long if they ever untied it, but no one ever sees that.
hapisen for the most part sticks to their canon sprites, just simplified slightly for my sanity. mafuyu's costume still drives me insane to draw though, that's so many layers to think about.
other than questioning my sanity every time i draw mafuyu, there's only one change from her sprite, which is making her hairtie one decorated with pompoms much like a lot of other parts of her costume. i just thought it tied things together a little more.
the upper half of haruka's outfit is more or less completely unchanged (other than making it fit in a way that looks slightly more masculine), but then i replaced his skirt with pants and gave him boots (wxs meiko, who is the sprite haruka's outfit is originally just a recolor of, wears heels). i figured if i was going for a more princely sort of design for haruka then changing those felt fitting. beyond that he's obviously got shorter hair (a choice he makes after seeing kohane decide to change herself, wanting to embrace the genuine person he wants to be beyond the idol people knew him as) and that's about it. hits this guy with the transgender beam.
kohane's outfit is really just a bit simplified from the original with sizing/proportions of elements adjusted to (in my opinion) suit her better. the ribbons in her hair felt like a cute addition (and i like to give kohane ribbons in general), while her hair length is an in between of her two standard canon ones, longer than the usual one we see but shorter than pre-canon/early mainstory. her glasses are optional, she changes between them and contacts with how she's feeling for the day and what kind of shows hapisen is planning. the more intense the show, the less likely she is to wear her glasses.
kyushumi was kind of intended as niigo but without one member in a mostly white outfit since they don't have someone like kanade who is intentionally trying to save people. although they're also a little happier off anyway, so they don't need someone like that. they're my most drawn shuffle unit, so also probably my most thought-through redesigns.
each design takes slight inspiration from a member of niigo (nene/kanade, minori/ena, honami/mafuyu), but that was just kind of as a personal guide for what kind of vibes to go with for the outfits. they've all got personal touches to them.
nene's hoodie is very loose on her body and arms, but a normal fit in the length, and her shorts are actually long enough to be seen. she just wants to be comfy, she's tired a lot, very low energy girl. glasses because i think nene should wear glasses anyway, so as opposed to canon nene who i like to believe just favors contacts, this nene does not.
minori is pretty obviously similar to ena's outfit, but there's a few nods to mmj in here. she's got clover shaped earrings, the pattern along the bottom of her dress is meant to resemble the tips of the clover leaves from mmj's symbol, and her shoes are just the mmj unit outfit shoes in different colors.
the goal with honami's outfit was simply "how little skin can she have exposed" because i imagine her being more worried about that than usual here. so long sleeves, long skirt, high collar, etc. her hair is longer (for no particular reason tbh, i simply liked how it looks) but still styled the same, and she's got a solid red scrunchie now. the four buttons on her outfit are all meant to look like the moon, two full moons and two opposite facing crescents. also i will never stop joking about the fact that she's naturally the second tallest girl in the cast (not counting vs, then she's third tallest) and i gave her tall heels on top of that. she is towering over all of her unitmates here.
while you're welcome to use these designs for any (non-incest) ships you'd like, i do have a personal list of ships that are canon to my own au with the shuffle units, which is what i originally designed these for. the "canon" ships are
ichika/saki
ena/airi
honami/kanade
akito/touya
mafuyu/rui (qpr)
haruka/kohane
mizuki/nene
however you are not by any means required to follow these specific ships! i have no desire to enforce the ships that go with these, so draw whatever ships you might prefer with these designs. i'm happy to see anything!
anyway if you made it this far congrats on surviving i know this is a lot of text o7 i hope you've enjoy my silly little character design insanities ^^;
#you guys have no idea how much these live rent free in my head#the chibis were a fun little project#and then it turned into the full sketch references for everyone once i realized i needed a better way to share my designs#project sekai#prsk art#project sekai fanart#prsk fa#w1f1 draws#saki tenma#ichika hoshino#airi momoi#ena shinonome#kanade yoisaki#shizuku hinomori#shiho hinomori#an shiraishi#akito shinonome#touya aoyagi#tsukasa tenma#rui kamishiro#emu ootori#mafuyu asahina#haruka kiritani#kohane azusawa#mizuki akiyama#nene kusanagi#minori hanasato#honami mochizuki#april fools shuffle units
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request: can i request romantic hc’s for donnie, leo, and april with a friend who’s into more feminine things ? they love the mall, shopping, clothes, makeup, PINK and are never seen without a pair of heels. don’t get them wrong though, they’re highly intelligent and witty, think elle woods from legally blonde, and surprisingly strong ?? (i mean have you seen pilates girls ???)
🝮 rom. donnie, leo, april headcanons !!
donnie, leo, april x girly!reader (indiv.)
author’s notes: This was so fun, but I misread this for the LONGEST and was just like “omg cute bimbo!reader??? in love” cause i’m a bimbo in training 💕 i hope you like it!!! Also pretty sure I spelled al-naturale wrong but I didn’t feel like searching it up.
word count: 2.4k
┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Donnie 💌
Pink and Purple are a good color combo, considering they’re analogous colors! So, while he had tried to push purple into your wardrobe, Pink was a suitable settle! (Though, you did find a few items to be a nice enough median between pink and purple to add them to your wardrobe, stationary supplies, and even a matching bracelet or two. This delighted him beyond imagine)
You and Donnie do have matching bracelets, in a unique purplish-pink shade of fuchsia. And while you manage to adjust yours to fit any outfit, Donnie was not much of a fan of having its material against his wrist. But, fret not! He treasures it all the same. It has undergone a couple of experiments to make it nearly indestructible and rests neatly on his tech-bo, near where his hands rest. So, that counts for something, right?
If you’ve ever been up late at night, then you know just how weird things can get around the AM hours. And, as if following the “ late-hour-culture ”, you have successfully gotten Donnie into a pair of heels. This was a planned adventure, one planned for two important reasons: 1.) for Donnie to prepare himself to willingly stand atop death trap shoes and 2.) to make sure his brothers weren’t home to catch any of it.
To prepare for this night, you and Donnie went through trial after trial of measurements to secure the perfect size in heels for him, and out you ventured to collect samples in your most FAVORITE way possible.
Shopping !!! April tagged along, and when you showed up to meet her, you met a new person—Sunita. She apparently had just as much interest in shopping. You were unsure if it was for the same reasons as you, but who cares? The best delight of shopping (aside from the cute fits, mirror montages, and fashion-show-shots on your phone) were the try-on-and-step-out-to-show-your-friends moments!
Wait, you were here for Donnie’s heels! … He wouldn’t know (he will, there was a safety-tracker embedded in your cute phone. he had one on everyone important to him, don’t worry!)
There was one particular moment walking in the store where the heel of today’s beauties ended up snapping off in escalator. Had it not been for Sunita and April’s quick hands, you might’ve gotten down these moving steps with record time! But, the most shocking part for them was when you mourned your shoes for a second and immediately pulled out a second pair (which of course was within the color palette of today’s outfit, cotton-candy pink.) Their puzzled looks were responded with you purring out a, “ What~? You didn’t possibly think I wouldn’t plan ahead for the classic ‘heel breaks’ scenario, did you? ”
They burst out laughing at that.
After a little girls time in the shops, you ended out the day with a rather nice array of choices for Donnie to try: platforms, stilettos, kitten heels, chunky heels, and wedges! How’d you pay for them, you ask? Oh, well, that’s easy. Your beloved have you an allowance on the premise that you do not question anything at all.
When the night of the plan came around, you had even snuck in some makeup. This part wasn’t hard to convince Donnie to be on board with. He wears a mask and also was vaguely experienced in make up to begin with (what, you think he beginners luck’s those eyebrows every day?)
Surprisingly yet also unsurprisingly, Donnie had no problem walking in the stilettos. Well, initially he wobbled, latching onto you, but he recovered remarkably quick. Platforms were a breeze. The platform part of this particular shoe was apparently far too perfect in ensuring the balance and comfort of the foot’s distribution with weight. You couldn’t help but be a teensy-weensy bit jealous and vowed to get yourself the same pair in your size later.
The most memorable part of this night had to be the little dance montage you both had in a pair of stilettos. This one happened to be the one and only time you ever saw Donnie almost completely shatter his ankles when you both suddenly heard the, “ We’re home! ” ring out through the layer. The struggle to release his feet from the pretty pink heels with the ticking time bomb of his brothers’ barging in was immensely stressful yet also hilarious.
He later let you convince him into an entire get up—full makeup, cutest of heels, and the best outfit you could come up with. Had it not been for the “mutant, stay hidden” part, you definitely would have hit the town.
Oh, but that doesn’t stop you guys from being able to online shop. Donnie’s most favorite creation for you was an emulator that could let you try on the digital clothes as if they were really there. This saved you from clothes that didn’t fit but also doomed your wallet!
It also allowed you and Donnie to use the emulator to wear extravagant clothes neither of you could imagine having, dancing hand in hand as the two happiest people in the entire world.
┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — Leo 💌
So the most unexpected part was that your boyfriend had wack fashion sense. It was either a hit or miss. He would come up to you like, “ Hey, do these match? ” And you would turn to see him trying to get a nasty, worn-out basketball shirt to work with the most distressed khakis you had ever seen. At this point, they weren’t distressed, these jeans were downright TRAUMATIZED.
This led you to discover that his amazing outfit choices to dates with you had been influenced by Donnie and his far-too-extensive vault of “ Human Trends and Aesthetics “. Though, you did admit it was impressive and asked for a pdf to be sent to you.
But anyways.
Leo had a huge appreciation for your commitment to heels. Like, seriously. He has watched you climb up and down the manhole ladders in heels he only knew existed in horror movies where the killer was a gorgeous girl with heels as tall as the blades on knives are long.
You tried to convince him to try on heels.
He refused for a while.
Then you made it a sugary-sweet deal of makeup + heels.
…
He declined.
So you made it IRRESISTIBLE. Makeup + heels + outfit.
Sold! Sucker. As if that wasn’t your true plan all along.
Though, the best part had to be that once he agreed, you were like, “ Great! So, when do we go? “ and he pulled you close, placed a kiss on your head, then said, “ Now, of course. “ And through a portal you both went!
It was a boutique unlike any you had ever seen, in the Hidden City no less. He had told you about it, promising to take you one day. When he found out about your love for shopping, the passion in your voice and the love in your eyes made him want to experience it WITH you. He spent an undisclosed amount of time figuring out if there was a clothing shop in the Hidden City.
And gosh, the shop he found? Boy does it have RANGE. The shopkeep could even change the color of an item with the twirl of her wand! How perfect was that?!
The way your expression lit up had Leo completely and utterly smitten. Together, you guys tried on clothes, sliding open the curtain to see the other’s choice. You would either swoon or laugh too hard at Leo’s choices, quickly turning him back into the room and tossing different clothes to him with a, “ Wear this what those jeans—oh! And add this! Then try this shirt with those shorts! “. Leo was always left speechless, though maybe he just loved looking at you just that much. You truly could make anything work out.
Considering it was his venture, Leo took the bill (with money that may have been his own earned cash or maybe Donnie’s money that no one really knows where it came from….. anyways), and the two of you began your venture out, to a less populated place to teleport out. On the walk, Leo decided to be a gentleman and offer to carry your bag. I mean, how heavy could it be? It was just a little sumthin here, lil sum there. You obliged, of course, with a dazzling smirk, sprinkled with a bit of mischief.
When you hands your bag, letting it go in his hand, he didn’t even have enough time to let out a yelp of any kind. Just, silently dropped to the ground.
“ Whuh—Why’s it so heavy?! How did you—“ He stared up at you walking away, turning just to give a teasing grin, “ What? You offered to carry it! No takesies-backsies. ”
He flexed a bit, straining as he got back onto his feet and goofily ran to catch up with you, “ Y/N, wait! How were you able to carry these?! In THOSE heels? ” This time he let out a “ gyiuu “ as you squeaked out a, “ And WHAT does that mean LEO? ”
You have definitely come home to Leo trying on your outfits (nothing he could ruin. Only stuff he knows fits him OR is already stretchy.)
He once tried on your cute pink overall-skirt and was having a meltdown in the mirror when you walked in. “ Leo? You okay? ” You said, slowly, stepping into your room and sidestepping towards the bed to start taking off your shoes to lay down. “ Yes, I just, Y/N, ” he turned to look at you, a smile growing bigger and bigger as he struck a pose, “ I just look WAY too good in this. ”
Cue a “ You dummy, I thought you were sad or something! “ and a pillow getting tossed.
┆ ── ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ — April 💌
With April, your relationship had bloomed on a night you were preparing together to go to the prom. Neither of you had a date, but whether that was because no one wanted to ask OR they were all too intimidated was… Well actually, it was an easy question. They were intimidated.
April, for how outgoing and overzealous she was. In a good way. You, for how impressive your makeup and commitment to heels were. The two of you were seen together almost always, having become friends in middle school and been basically inseparable. Of course this meant you knew about her dearest four friends below the ground.
But never mind that, they aren’t the focus here. You and April are.
Your relationship had begun the night of prom. April was done quicker than you—as is what happens when one person wears makeup and the other doesn’t, “ al-naturale “ she would call it, purely joking of course.
You were dolling up, placing the final touch—glossy lip gloss upon your lips. As you dragged the tube along your bottom lip, you had made eye contact with April in the mirror and smiled. She was sitting on the bed’s edge, leaning back and completely distracted by your reflection.
“ Yes? ” You purred, pursing your lips and rubbing them to uniformly coat them in glossy shimmer. The tube clicked against April’s desk as you turned to her with your usual cute grin. “ Y/N, uh—“ April stammared, hopping off the bed—stumbling a bit on her balance— and then tripping into you.
Her hands caught on the desk behind you, pinning you there while she was dangerously close. A stuttering mess, she glanced at your lips then into your eyes, “ Y/N, will you, um—the Prom! Yeah, will—You—Um… ” The dark hue blooming on her cheeks stirred a melody of giggles from your lips.
“ Go to prom with you, April? We already are. ” You teased, raising your eyebrow while tilting your head. She leaned back, releasing you from the cage. That made you frown a bit, but she didn’t catch that.
April spun, her back to you, then hit the bed a few times with a muffled scream. Stiffly, she spun back around and dropped to her knee, taking your hand like a knight holds the princess’ hand.
“ No, Y/N, will you go to the prom WITH me, like, as my date. Not as friends, but as—“ “ As lovers? ” Your heart went pitter-patter at that, and quickly you grabbed the sides of her face to pull her into a kiss, “ Of course, April! ”
That prom night had been the best and the most eventful. Not only did you get the last dance with April, at the school event’s adjourning, a mutant had become a party crasher.
Giggling a fit, you tried to keep up with your dearest April, but she was vaulting over all kinds of things! You were agile and strong too, don’t get it twisted, but you weren’t APRIL O’NEIL agile! She looked like a parkour video straight off YouTube! Still your giggles continued, calling out a, “ April, April wait up! ” Your hand reached out, and she of course stopped to take it, “ Y’know, Y/N, if you took off the literal HEELS, you might run faster! ” She hoisted you up and over a thrown garbage bin.
You gave a playful glare and screeched, “ Like hell I will! I would rather DIE than be stripped of my LIVELIHOOD! ” April laughed along with you then yanked you into her chest, cushioning the tumble you both took while narrowly dodging debris that flew past your heads, “ Hush up, Y/N, you might jinx it and get that wish! ”
She sent emergency calls to the boys, and realistically speaking she might have genuinely stood a chance to that party-pooper mutant (and honestly, you probably could’ve done a good number on it too) but..
Who didn’t like a romantic life-or-death run together?
April definitely makes jokes about how you could probably have taken Shredder down in heels. The boys (coughdonniecough) are always quick to try and explain how, um, actually no?
She never misses a chance to go to the mall with you. Doesn’t always get anything, but do you really think she won’t want to spend her free time with you? Blasphemy if you think she would rather do anything else.
Also, April loves giving you kisses right after you’ve glossed up your lips. They are so smooth AND she gets gloss afterwards? Score. Watch out though, she will pepper kisses all over your face. You may have to wipe gloss off ( don’t worry, she refrains from doing it if you have a full face of makeup or so. Aside from lip gloss/lip stick, she would never want to ruin your creation. )
#tmnt x reader#donatello x reader#leonardo x reader#rise leo x reader#rottmnt leonardo x reader#rottmnt x reader#donnie x reader#rise donatello x reader#rise donnie x reader#rise leonardo x reader#rise april x reader#rottmnt april x reader#rottmnt leo x reader#rottmnt donnie x reader#rottmnt donatello x reader#april x reader#tmnt april x reader#tmnt headcanons#rottmnt headcanons
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Color theory in Mean Girls 2024 (and 2004) and why it matters (long post ahead)
So, like a lot of us, I've seen and fallen down the Mean Girls rabbit hole, and say about the outfits what you will, the costume designs actually did a great job displaying symbolism in characters like Regina and Cady through color alone, let me explain
Random Disclaimer: I'm aware that a lot of what I'm about to talk about was utilized in the original, I'm mostly pulling pictures from the newest version since it's the main focus of this post. There will be mentions of the original, but the newest iteration is my main focus today ^^
Let's start with the film's use of Black
Now, we know in Regina's first appearance in the original, she's first seen wearing pink like the rest of the plastics and doesn't wear black until much later in the film (which I will get to don't worry lol) but what's different with this newest version and what I find interesting, is the decision for Regina's introductory outfit to be entirely black.
now you could be saying, "But Amaru, black is sexy, seductive, of course she'd be wearing it." And you're right! But, black also has some different meanings outside of that, which is power.
The first time Regina walks in, time stops. Everyone's eyes are on her, Cady is in awe, and to sum up the musical number, Regina has complete control over everyone. It's seen again when she sits amongst Karen and Gretchen,, but Regina stands out as the only one wearing such a bold black outfit, signifying her control over the two of them. And not to mention the second she gains even more control over the school by creating an entirely new fashion trend, she's wearing an entirely black dress
Now let's talk about the color, Blue and how it ties in with Black
So, when Regina falls from grace and is shunned from the plastics, notice that it's the first time she wears blue. Blue has about a dozen or more different meanings, but the one I'm gonna focus on now is that Blue can be seen as both a conservative and depressed color
Everyone's eyes are on her in this shot, but this time for a completely different reason than in the beginning, and because we brought up how blue can be conservative, we could read this as Regina not only being upset but not wanting to be perceived.
Let's circle back around to Black and why it's important with Cady
The first time she wears black is when she takes over Regina's role within the plastics and makes the final decision on whether or not Regina can sit with the group. Yes, she's wearing blue, which we will also get to, but also wears a black skirt. It's the color palette she wears for the entire second act.
When she's seen wearing all black, it's at her house party while having reign over the plastics and taking the title of the most popular girl in school. It's also when Aaron calls her a clone of Regina, and Janis confronts her about lying. There she has the realization that she has indeed become Regina.
Remember what we talked about with Regina with Blue? Well, let's apply that same logic to Cady.
During a rewatch I noticed how that during "World Burn" and the scenes that follow, Cady is shot from the waist up, only showing the blue part of her outfit, whenever someone brings up the book, or she thinks Janis and Damian are onto her, or even when they ignore her in the gym, you can only see the blue. (Yes, you could argue the angle was used in other shots, but this felt more deliberate, especially with how much the blue stood out against the otherwise dark color palette of other students and the background) Which from before we established as conservative. meaning that not only does she not want to be perceived by Regina, but as the one who wrote in the Burn Book in the first place.
Okay, let's go back to Regina one more time, and talk about her more prominent black outfit, during "World Burn" and when she releases the book for the school to see and causes a riot. (This is also being applied to the original as well)
Since we've established black is a symbol of power, we can see as more chaos descends on the school (as also seen in the original) Regina is placed in the middle of the crowd, all in black. It shows how she has control over people once again through manipulation. Therefore, showing that she's back on top.
And that's it, everybody! Thank you for coming to my TED talk
Sincerely,
someone who has thought about this waaaaay too much after doing extensive color research for a presentation and does a lot of character design
#mean girls 2024#mean girls#regina george#regina mean girls#cady heron#mean girls cady#mean girls movie#mean girls 2004#if anyone wants to come into my dms and talk mean girls I'm open#I need more mean girls mututals#also random but any Pitch Perfect fans out there? Because I could go on for hours about the missed opportunities of Bechloe#and a multitude of other ships#I' need someome to screech with
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Okay! This is going to be a theory! And just an idea! Don't read too much into it, i love pulling out concepts about everything!
Lucifer and Lilith had a child together, Charlie, we all know that fact, but what if Lucifer and Eve also had a Child?
I mean, he did talk mad burns about having bedded both of Adam's wives during their fight, right?
"well, your first wife didn't seem to hate what i had to offer, or the second. Bow chica bow bow." -Lucifer, the big boss of hell himself.
So what if the two of them had sex and the child resulting from that was. . . Emily?
The only similarities in appearance i can point out would be their innocent, bubbly and cute look: round eyes and lashes, big eyes, round face. The way they're drawn brings this puppy-like aura to their presence.
Their personalities are close-goaled copies of each other too.
1. Both are underestimated by their respective authority figures.
- Sera refrains from providing important information to her, because she sees Emily as incapable of making the right decision. Possibly because she's the youngest and is perceived as mentally immature and in need of sheltering from real world problems.
"i'm not a child to protect!" -Emily, a line from "you didn't know?"
- Lucifer sees Charlie's dream as a phase, because he sees his past self in her eyes and sees innocent naivety, instead of dutiful determination to make things better as a rightful heir to the throne.
"you make something nice, you invite people over and then they bring trouble to your doorstep!" -Lucifer
2. Two out of two of them have opinions that contradict the public opinion and the general order of things.
- Charlie doesn't accept the fate they have been given and wants to change the order things are going in.
- Emily doesn't try to turn a blind eye to the situation to continue her life in feigned ignorance like some angels seem to do, she's the first to speak up about the issue aside from Charlie.
3. The two of them share the same code of morals. They immediately duet with each other without having any previous talk about their views. Sure that may (read: definitely) be a result of Viv's rushed pacing of the show, but it plays right into my argument so i'm keeping it in.
Aren't Sera and Emily sisters, though? Yes, but the plot revolves around the ideas and more or less the systems seen in catholic religion; so their sisterhood could be following the same concept as a nun's, which doesn't include blood relations as a requirement to call the other nun a sister.
Sure, they do look very alike, the color palette being differentiated by Emily's purple and Sera's grey.
They have angelic forms similar to birds, same face markings, same dress and eyes that decorate them, they have skin colours that look close to each other (with Emily having more washed out colour.)
However that's what it looks like only at first glance.
- The clothes can be a "work" outfit that could be traditional for seraphs. But judging from their relationship dynamic it could also be Emily trying to subconsciously copy the look of her eldest sister, because she respects her as more of a parental authority.
- Their angelic body structures are widely different, the most striking thing being their wing placement being with Emily having them spread out from her head, taking the place of hair.
- Although both have three eyes on their foreheads, Sera doesn't have an eye in the middle of her chest like Emily does, even though that's a very noticeable characteristic that easily could be used to tie them both together.
- Emily's skin palate changes from pure white to greyish brown, while Sera's brown skin deepens in intensity in her humanoid form.
- both have face markings but Emily doesn't directly copy it. My girl doesn't even have a nose. Kinda like Lucifer.
Lucifer and Emily don't look like they share the same genetics, but we never saw Lucifer's fallen angel form or prior-to-being-thrown-out angel form and since we don't know what Eve looks like, Emily could share similarities with her (other than both their names starting with an "E" (°-°;) ) but we wouldn't know it outright!
Most shows depicting family members are notorious for designing them similarly. Making Charlie and Emily look different but seem similar enough in different ways would be a real iconic plot twist on Viv's part, but as seen in Helluva boss, unless it was a set up, it would look like the show follows the exact same pattern.
Side note: Lilith and Lucifer split, could Eve be the reason they did and why Lilith set off to be in a part of heaven? (Maybe the beach she's on being located in Eden?)
"and if you want to stay here, you are going down there and stopping that bitch." -Lute
#hazbin hotel#hazbin hotel emily#hazbin hotel lucifer#hazbin hotel charlie#hazbin hotel sera#hazbin hotel eve#hazbin hotel lilith#hazbin hotel idea#hazbin Hotel concept#edit: just fixed some wording mistakes
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150+ Followers DTIYS Contest!
Hello! This is going to be a quick OOC post!
This took a smidge longer then I'd have liked but...This blog has gained more then 100 followers, in fact its gained 163 very quickly! (Been planning this since it hit 100 I just am only finally posting this now, oops? >_<)
And that is...honestly a bit boggling, I made this little blog just for the fun of it and to join in on tumblr Slendlr shenanigans, I never expected so many people to actually follow it and like Pink so much! So a quick thank you to all of you, I appreciate you all! ^-^
@dustsansm1 had been the one to suggest a DTIYS so that's what I'm doing!
The contest will be held from now until....let's say April 12th 2024! That's almost three weeks to submit! And there will be a prize for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place!
1st place will receive a full color, shaded half body drawing of a character of their choosing! (as long as its SFW)
2nd place will receive a full color, non shaded half body OR a shaded bust drawing of a character of their choosing.
And 3rd place will receive a colored non shaded icon of a character of their choosing!
RULES:
-NO NSFW
-You can change the pose if you wish
-Keep the outfit the same please
-You must be the one who made the drawing to submit
-can not be AI generated art
-It doesn't have to be colored, can be just a sketch if you want
-can be traditional or digital!
-Must be tagged #pinkslendydtiys (You can also @ this blog as well if you'd like!)
-Must be done before April 12th 2024!
-Have fun!
And a ref below for Pink's color palette.
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Wheeler/Byers Wardrobe Analysis
Season 1 Part 1
Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5
This has probably already been looked at in depth because hasn't everything? But I looked up potential tags that I’ll be using and didn’t see anything (without scrolling for a year), so forgive me if I’m repeating what’s already been said, but I'm new here (Hi. Hello). I’ve seen a lot about the Will/Mike/El color theory. What I haven’t really seen is colors assigned to other characters. So as I am starting a rewatch, I thought I’d take a look at the color palettes for other major characters and I noticed pretty immediately that there are trends, though it’s less about one assigned color than it is about color palettes and how they are worn. And these trends present themselves a lot in regards to an overall family aesthetic for both the Wheelers and the Byers. So they will be the major focus of this analysis, plus a few relevant others like Steve or El who have a heavy influence on members of these families.
So here’s the first shot of Nancy in the show. She’s in her bedroom (blue and pink pastels everywhere, blue pastel PJs, blue pastel phone)
And here’s the first shot of Karen along with a shot of her and Holly the following morning. I found this really intriguing that right off the bat, we’re shown Karen dressing Holly in EXACTLY the same outfit she herself was wearing the day before. This really sets the trend for how the Wheelers are presented. Karen dresses Holly like herself and a lot of what Nancy wears emulates her mother.
Nancy’s outfit that day once again consists of pastel blues and pinks, just like Karen’s, including a checkered element, just like Karen's. She’s also matching Barb (though Barb is in bolder shades, red versus pink) and Steve in pastel blue. Later that evening when Steve sneaks into her bedroom, Nancy is no longer wearing the pink sweater, wearing only the blue button down and matching Steve even more.
And here is the whole family. Very pastel. Very aesthetic. Very nuclear. Except for Mike, wearing bold primary colors and stripes, as he often does. I’m not going to talk about Mike’s outfits much independently because so many people already have. But in comparison with the rest of the Wheelers, here we can clearly see that he contrasts. He is the outlier and the outcast. He’s the only member of the family not trying to conform (or in Holly’s case, being shaped to conform). Even their placemats match the color palette. But then look at Ted. He’s wearing clothes he probably wore to the office (what office? I don’t know. He seems to always be sitting around watching TV or complaining, but he does leave for work at some point, so…) All of the female Wheelers are matching in their blue and pink while Ted is lacking any color or personality whatsoever and Mike is popping out in his primary colors, though there’s also a lot of soft grey on his shirt that allows him to blend somewhat. Karen, we know, has settled in this marriage and Nancy, we know, is beginning to struggle with fitting in. She’s been a "good girl" her whole life and this really shows in the way she dresses in early season 1. She is a reflection of her mother.
And then here are the Byers. Brown, dark blue, dark green, beige, tan, denim, shearling, corduroy. These are trends for the Byers family. Muted earth tones and strong texture.
EPISODE TWO
We see Nancy and Barb coordinating again, this time Nancy in lavender and Barb in coral (both in delicate sweaters). I think it’s interesting that Barb wears bolder colors than Nancy. Her outfit from episode 1 and this one are both brighter than Nancy’s very pale ensembles. This seems to really demonstrate how much more confident Barb is in her social status than Nancy is. Barb knows who she is and who her friends are. She doesn’t care about being popular. In a way, Barb is a lot more like Mike and the party than Nancy. So Barb wears bolder colors. She’s not ashamed to be a labeled a nerd or a goody-two-shoes. Nancy has been shown to wear a lot of blue and pink, but here, she’s wearing the combination of the two in purple. Steve, throughout all four seasons, wears a lot of blue. I’m just starting this rewatch and closely looking into the wardrobe, but that is something I remember pretty easily. And here, Steve’s whole crew is all dressed in blue. Is the purple Nancy’s pink beginning to blend into Steve’s blue? Or is it Nancy’s own duality beginning to blur as her previously separate colors have merged into one? (or is it a sweater someone picked up and said “yup looks like Nancy”) I think it’s the second one. I think it has nothing to do with Steve, actually, and a lot more to do with Nancy figuring herself out because purple is a color I know Nancy wears again in later seasons as well (to be examined closer further down the line). Nancy in this scene is conflicted about whether or not to lie to her parents and go to a party with the popular kids on a weeknight, all very out of character for her, and she's still clinging to Barb, begging her to come along and trying to force these two crowds that don't mix together. Barb is in pink. Steve and co are in blue. Nancy is in the middle in purple. And like I said, I don't think this is so much ABOUT Steve as it is about who Nancy wants to be. She doesn't know.
And then we come to that fateful party. Nancy changes her shirt in the car before they go to Steve’s house. She’s wearing bold red stripes, completely out of her usual color palette or style. The texture is different, the pattern is different, the colors are different. It’s not Nancy. And in a few episodes, Nancy tells Jonathan she and Barb went shopping for a shirt she thought Steve might like. It feels safe to assume this is the top.
I also want to note that Barb has not changed her clothes from earlier in the day, nor has Steve. But Barb is now wearing a blue jacket over her bright sweater. She doesn’t want to be at this party, but she came anyway for Nancy. She’s hanging out with people she doesn’t like and she’s now wearing the color they are all also wearing. Except for Nancy. Because she tried to pick out something Steve would like, but there’s a disconnect here. Nancy chose something red, a bolder variety of one of her usual colors, rather than something blue, Steve's usual color. This could be a way of demonstrating that Nancy doesn't actually know what Steve likes or wants (and the obvious that she's trying too hard).
Karen’s outfit in this episode is again very close to Nancy’s. It’s actually very similar to Nancy’s outfit from the last episode where Nancy wore a light blue button down with a pink cardigan. Here, Karen wears a light blue button down with a pink and grey sweater vest. And once again, Mike’s outfit contains a LOUD and nonconforming color palette.
Meanwhile, in this Byers flashback, Will is dressed in Byers colors, but he, like Mike, is also wearing pops of primary colors. Mike’s outfits have contained bright colors but also reflect, stylistically, the Wheelers. His shirts are preppier and he's wearing khaki pants here. Will is similarly reflecting his own family stylistically with a T-shirt and jeans, but brighter.
I also want to note that this (episode 2, the day after the party finds El) is the first time we see Mike in red. Mike and Will's shirts in this episode are actually really similar, both containing blue, yellow, white, and stripes. But the top portion of each of their shirts reflects the person they are seen interacting with most in the episode. For Mike, this is El. For Will, it's Jonathan. And I don't know if I can declare brown Jonathan's color, but he wears it a LOT.
This is long and it will only get longer as I continue this silly adventure, but I'm sharing my observations for fun.
#stranger things wardrobe analysis#nancy wheeler outfits#wheeler family#byers family#byler color theory#nancy wheeler#mike wheeler#karen wheeler#joyce byers#jonathan byers#will byers#my dumbass post
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My dudes this is so fucking unrelated to anything and everything BUT we just got our first sorta bts pic from the new season of the newsreader, and bc I can't just enjoy things for what they are, I WANNA HAVE A CHAT ABOUT HELEN’S WARDROBE JOURNEY.
First of all imma say that yes, the seasons have had different costume designers, so styling will inevitably vary some. Its also set over a period of time, from the mid to late 80s, so like I UNDERSTAND THAT FASHION WILL CHANGE but I think Helen’s styling choices have more to do with her character development. Hear me out.
In season one we’re introduced to Helen, she’s a news anchor (and I think it’s important to note that she’s the first female newsreader at news at six). She’s on the desk alongside someone who has DECADES of experience, and who’s very much a household name. She honestly sort of plays second fiddle to him.
So let's have a conversation about how (I think) her (mainly on air) styling follows her journey and her character development.
In season 1, her outfits are generally very traditionally feminine. Blouses, bows, lighter fabrics. And her colours are quite muted, she wears a lot of dusty tones. Her hair is large and wide, which gives her a softer look. Overall, her styling is quite “soft”. Even in more structured garments, the fabrics generally remain light, or give off a more cozy vibe. Helen’s such a powerhouse and a force to be reckoned with, but her clothing and styling detracts from that, it allows people to see her as less of a “threat”, and Geoff’s in the spotlight.
There is one instance very early on where she and Geoff are trying to film a promo, where he consistently messes up and she actually corrects him. Notice her outfit; it screams 'authority'. Geoff on the other hand, even though he's in a suit, looks almost disheveled and even small next to her.
It's only later on in the season that her silhouette begins to change slightly, the shoulders broaden, the neckline lowers. The colours are also darker. But yet, even though this first outfit is technically more structured compared to what she's worn earlier, there are ruffles on her shirt, and the fabrics almost read like taffeta - giving almost a prom vibe.
See that compared to an outfit she wears later on in the season when she's on the desk with Rob rather than Geoff. The silhouette is the same, the colours are similar, but she has a much more commanding presence. She's starting to take charge. The fabric looks more expensive, the shoulders are broader etc.
In the final episode of season one, the styling has changed ENTIRELY. and this ensemble is closer to what we'll see in season 2.
In season 2, Geoff is no longer with the network and Dale has taken over his position. Helen is now the one with more experience and the bigger name. Helen is the harsh and the blunt one, whereas Dale often comes across as more “human” and personal in his approach.
Helen’s outfits are now a lot more structured, featuring bolder colours and more expensive looking, heavier fabrics. Her shoulders are also often much sharper. She's essentially taking up more space with her appearance, and drawing more attention. Her hair is still big, but it doesn't feature as much volume at the sides. This gives her a sharper look. Also take note of how Dale is matching her, their colour palettes go together. This contrasts Helen and Geoff's time together on the desk, as their palettes clashed more. Helen and Dale are harmonious, whereas Helen and Geoff clashed in both personalities and fashion - Helen had to downplay herself. I wanna note that Helen is still seen wearing blouses on a few occasions on the desk - but again, the colours and prints are much bolder compared to the striped blouse in season 1.
Touching quickly on her casual outfits; in season 1, Helen is almost always seen in jeans or casual slacks, along with extremely simple singlets or jumpers. She rarely, if ever steps away from earth and neutral tones, and she's practically always in a pair of white runners. In season 2, even her casual outfits are changing and becoming bolder; at least in the first half. Here we see her sport blouses and shirts that have more colour; oranges, blues etc. still muted compared to her on air outfits, but bold compared to her season 1 casual fits. She also more often than not opts for more dressy trousers and she's almost always seen in a pair of stilettos.
Towards the end of the season, however, we see the colour palette become more muted and neutral again. Personally, I see this working almost in tandem with how she’s losing Dale.
Then; episode five bb. This silhouette and outfit does in a way mirror her final season 1 outfit, but it's far more exaggerated. It's a wine red ensemble - a much darker shade of red than what she's previously sported, and the shape offers a somewhat exaggerated hourglass look - it's seductive.*This*, is her "revenge dress."
Now, let's get back to the important stuff. Towards the end of season 2, Helen's approached by a new network. She's offered a far better position, and she will be working in the states. Around this time is when we see her professional style shift somewhat again. It becomes far more sleek, with blazers that offer a much more traditionally masculine silhouette. They don't really come in at the waist, they're longer, and the shoulders are a much more prominent feature - yet they're not too big, she doesn't disappear in the garment. She's still in her stilettos - keep in mind that Helen's already relatively tall for a woman.
She's essentially starting back at zero, in a male dominated field where she's already experienced tremendous amounts of hardship due to her gender.
I imagine Helen's come a long way from when she first got a job in a newsroom. She's not gonna let people take advantage of her in one way or another.
So she'll dress in a way that commands respect, in a way where people can't objectify or reduce her to a body or a pretty face.
From the one season 3 bts pic I've seen, I'm assuming this (said above) might be a continuing trend. Also clock the shorter hair, could be the fact that we're approaching a new decade, or could be related to what I mentioned above.
ALSO WANNA SAY THAT THESE ARE JUST MY THOUGHTS N OBSERVATIONS. I MIGHT BE WAY OFF, I MIGHT BE TALKING SHIT, IDEK
#;;ooc#feel free to ignore this bc it’s literally just me ranting about costuming for way too long#BUT HERE WE ARE
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GJ and ZZH Updates — March 24-30
previous week || all posts || following post
This is part of a weekly series collecting updates from and relating to Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan.
This post is not wholly comprehensive and is intended as an overview, links provided lead to further details. Dates are in accordance with China Standard Time, the organization is chronological. My own biases on some things are reflected here. Anything I include that is not concretely known is indicated as such, and you’re welcome to do your own research and draw your own conclusions as you see fit. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or additions. :)
[Glossary of names and terms]
[Masterlist of my posts about the situation with Zhang Zhehan]
03-24
→ BEAST posted a promotional video using footage from several different ad campaigns they've done with Gong Jun. (1129 kadian)
03-25
→ ColorKey posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun, announcing him as their new global spokesperson.
→ Gong Jun posted a commercial (flashing lights cw) he did for ColorKey. (1129 kadian)
→ 361° posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.
→ The Instagram posted a video of "Zhang Zhehan" playing guitar.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted a behind the scenes video from the ColorKey ad campaign. Caption: "Meeting trendy fans crowns your confidence. @ Gong Jun Simon is free and easy, playing with the spring colour palette."
→ 361° posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.
03-26
→ BEAST posted a photo of Gong Jun from that day, advertising the live event they would soon begin. (1129 kadian) They posted another half an hour later.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted twelve photos of him from that day. Caption: The feeling of spring is accompanied by the warm fragrance. @ Gong Jun Simon is looking for a garden full of emotions in the world."
→ Gong Jun posted four photos from the same shoot to his Instagram. Caption: "The Flower God is waking up..."
→ 361° posted a promotional video spoken by Gong Jun.
→ ColorKey posted a photo ad announcing a livestream with Gong Jun the following evening.
→ Gong Jun attended a live event for BEAST in Chengdu.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted six photos of him from after the live event. Caption: "The vegetation and vines are intertwined and delicately outline the jacquard texture. @ Gong Jun Simon 'The Flower God Arrives' lights up the vitality of spring."
→ BEAST posted a video of Gong Jun in the live event location. (1129 kadian)
03-27
→ ColorKey posted two videos [1] [2] of behind the scenes footage from their commercial with Gong Jun. They later posted a photo ad featuring him. (1129 kadian)
→ Yang Yang posted four photos of himself and Gong Jun from the BEAST live event.
→ GXG posted three fancam photos of Gong Jun wearing their merchandise at an airport.
→ ColorKey posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun, advertising their livestream that would begin shortly after. (19:29, 51129 kadian (7 = 5+1+1))
→ Gong Jun appeared in a livestream for ColorKey. [full recording]
→ Gong Jun's studio posted fifteen photos of him from that day's ColorKey livestream. Caption: "Embrace each other with warmth and feel the colour temperature. @ Gong Jun Simon is comfortable and self-contained, breaking the limiting framework."
03-28
→ ColorKey posted nine photos of Gong Jun from the previous day's livestream. (1129 kadian)
→ The Instagram posted a video of "Zhang Zhehan" playing guitar.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted a teaser photo of his red carpet outfit. Caption: "A trailer (you can see it clearly by adjusting the lighting). @ Gong Jun Simon’s feature film will be posted in 10 minutes."
→ Gong Jun posted six photos of his red carpet outfit. Caption: "I'll start with this, see you tonight at the #TV Drama Quality Ceremony#!" He also posted six to his Xiao Hong Shu, caption: "Something new How playful 🤳", and six to his Instagram, caption: "New look 😁" (originally in English)
Fan Observations:
- His watch in one of the photos (below) is at 5:11, with that photo in particular being higher quality than the others. Judging by the other photos, the watch was running normally rather than being specifically set to this.
- The scarf is reminiscent of the black one Zhang Zhehan wore for the 2021 Viya Carnival. Gong Jun's jacket is also the same brand as the one Zhehan wore for the Viya Carnival.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted twelve more photos of his red carpet outfit. Caption: "(Plans can't keep up with changes) The silhouette lines contain the ultimate style, @ Gong Jun Simon releases spontaneity in minimalism and shows a calm posture. See you tonight~"
→ Gong Jun's studio posted another six photos of his red carpet outfit, these all of him in front of a mirror. Caption: "Through the Looking Glass"
→ Yang Yang posted three photos of himself and Gong Jun from the previous day's ColorKey livestream.
→ Gong Jun attended the TV Drama Quality Ceremony, where he received an honorary award for Star of the Year. During his red carpet interview he mentioned that he was flying out afterwards to start filming the next Go Fighting! season, and during his award acceptance they played a congratulatory video from Johnny Huang, one of the other Go Fighting! regulars.
[red carpet interview (subbed)] [full award acceptance] [award acceptance (subbed)]
Fan Observation: During one of the red carpet interviews, Gong Jun mentioned a noodle shop he used to go to in university. Some fans went to it and discovered that one of the items on its menu looks remarkably similar to a dish posted by Anonymous, even down to the bowl.
→ Gong Jun's studio posted eight photos of his award acceptance and performance. Caption: "Congratulations to @ Gong Jun Simon for winning the Quality Appeal Drama Star of the Year. Rise with the wind and keep moving forward!"
03-29
→ Gong Jun started filming Go Fighting! season 10.
→ Tissot posted eight photos of Gong Jun's red carpet outfit, highlighting their watch.
→ ColorKey posted a video of behind the scenes footage from their commercial with Gong Jun.
03-30
→ ColorKey posted six photo ads featuring Gong Jun. (1129 kadian)
→ ColorKey posted a photo ad featuring Gong Jun.
→ The scam released the "August" short film. (see 03-09)
Additional Reading:
→ N/A
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#Please imagine me grumbling while fixing the way I mistyped color as colour in this post#Zhang Zhehan#Gong Jun#Word of Honor#woh cast#lld timeline
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