#the part of the dream that has the same color as the usual comic is the part he remembers most clearly
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I love supporting journalism but NYT is paywalled and we all need some GOOD NEW QUEER COMICS so posting the full article under the read more!
Original Article
By George Gene Gustines
June 9, 2023
‘The Dog Knight’
Frankie Jude Bryant is a nonbinary middle school student who is dealing with identity, the usual academic challenges and, oh yes, trying to become the Dog Knight, a champion for humans and canines. Despite the presence of magical talking pooches, this journey of heroism and self-discovery feels grounded thanks to captions that get into the head of Frankie, who prefers they/them pronouns. On the first page, they think, “Do you ever feel like you don’t make sense?” Later, Frankie muses about their frenemy Dallas, who misgenders them: “She gets it wrong on purpose just to make a big deal about correcting it.” And when Frankie finds their tribe, “For the first time in a long time, I look in the mirror and I don’t feel a pain in the pit of my stomach.” Written by Jeremy Whitley, drawn by Bre Indigo and colored by Melissa Capriglione.
‘Marry Me a Little: A Graphic Memoir’
The cartoonist Rob Kirby chronicles his 2013 march down the aisle in Minnesota with his longtime partner, John Capecci. The story highlights where gay marriage stood at the time (each state was making its own rules before same-sex unions became the law of the land in 2015) and looks back at Jack Baker and Michael McConnell, who somehow were able to obtain a marriage license in Minneapolis in 1971. The personal recollections are powerful and honest: Rob remembers when he first casually used the word “husband,” which felt like “a small but genuine political act.” He also acknowledges the white, middle-class privilege that allowed him ambivalence about getting married. His ultimate conclusion: “Marriage does not define a relationship. Unless you want it to.”
‘Gatsby’
The messages of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” — about social status, love and chasing dreams — are revisited in the present with a racially and sexually diverse set of characters in their 20s. Gatsby is a Black tech millionaire looking for a love who got away, and Lu Zhao, the stand-in for Nick Carraway, is visiting from Singapore and summering on Long Island (where a $5,000-plus afternoon shopping spree highlights the casual wealth). The main characters are refreshingly blasé about their sexuality: Lu’s girlfriend, Alexis, asks, “How do you identify?” But Lu’s answer does not really matter as Alexis says, “I love being on this journey with you. I’m here for you no matter what.” Written by Jeremy Holt, drawn by Felipe Cunha and colored by Dearbhla Kelly.
‘Hex Americana’
The cartoonist Bree Wolf spins a tale about auto racing, teen romance, monsters and ghosts. Flesh-and-blood Ken forms an unlikely alliance with Dante, who died in a previous race and haunts his car as a ghost. A successful partnership will allow Ken to compete in the annual Grand Prix and help Dante move on to the afterlife. The more than 300-page story packs in a lot of character growth, action, flashbacks and drama. The relationship between Ken and Karen, his mother, is particularly nuanced. Karen is supportive of her son, who is gay, but she struggles with how to correct her overbearing friend James when he makes thoughtless jokes about Ken. (Iron Circus Comics. Aug. 30.)
‘Death Drop: Drag Assassin’
The Gayborhood, as it is called in this five-part series, has seen better days. Thugs feel empowered to assault young gay men, and a drag queen named Lunaira has gone missing from the club Posterior Delusions. Residents have little faith in the local police. Enter Death Drop, a former hit man and current drag queen, who is pushed by Mother Henny, the hostess of the club, to find Lunaira. “She’s a queen of color who has been missing for more than two days,” Mother Henny says. “You do the math.” It helps that Death Drop and Mother Henny used to date. Let the investigation begin. Written by David Hazan and drawn and colored by Alex Moore. (Scout Comics. June 14.)
‘Turtle Bread’
Kim-Joy, a British baker and cookbook writer, teams up with the artist Alti Firmansyah for this story about Yan, who is struggling with low self-esteem and social anxiety. When Yan finds a local baking club, she is plagued by doubts about whether she will fit in or be liked, but she soon learns that everyone struggles in different ways. Yan eventually becomes confident enough to rally the club members to seek out and support one of their fellow bakers who needs it. Yan would qualify as an ally, but there are characters with significant roles in the story who are gay and lesbian. And there are recipes, including one that gives this story its title. (Comixology Originals. Available now.)
Original article
#check please fans DIS ONES FOR YOU!!!#BUT ALSO QUEER LIT AS A WHOLE!!!#omgcp#queer literature#pride month#pride literature#book rec#comic rec#queer comics#omg check please#heartstopper#nyt#be gay do crime#pride#lgbtq+#heartstopper comic#I speak
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you are clearly a tiger where does the bear come from
I go by last name Bearr in a lot of places to distance myself from my family but it's also because people call me bear, because anyone who knows me knows I'm absolutely obsessed with bears. I also have a bear OC who I rep'd for a while named Noël
Apollo, the person in my PFP, is 100% my fursona and a white tiger, and my entire reasoning for it was just because I saw white tiger furries and felt like damn hes like me for real. But he also represents more of me than Noël does because Noël is an absolute gremlin meanwhile Apollo is an idealized version of myself personality-wise (or perhaps represents an amount of positivity and cheer that scarcely shows itself these days).
Apollo is also based off of my old Pokesona by the same name
This design is a heavy modification of a design that was initially given to me by a past abuser, and then in some stupid twist of fate, modified by my second abuser that I had right after. This design here is my finalized version of him with adjustments to help me distance him from the aforementioned abusers, but I don't really think it ended up working so I just kind of abandoned the pokesona entirely in favor of a proper fursona.
Additionally, I had one other bear OC who was relevant for a comic I was making for a short period of time as a means of processing a lot of the grief I've amassed over the years named Mímir.
In the story of this unreleased comic, he is the last living(?) being on the planet after the earth turned into a permanent winter (think Fimbulvetr from Norse mythology but without Ragnarok coming right after) and all that's left for him to do is explore the frozen world and try to imagine what kind of people had lived there.
This would have gone into greater detail as those lives who were present during the event that led to the freeze would have had their crystalized memories turn into trees, that Mímir then would be able to study and process. Afterwards, he would make snowmen effigies to honor their memory
The world is entirely monochrome aside from when Mímir has dreams about a world of color. This wasn't an intentional choice, but I was gravitating towards monochrome because I had really been into Inabakumori who was especially influential style-wise. That, and I had listen to a lot of The Microphones albums -- specifically The Glow, pt 2. and It Was Hot, We Stayed in the Water. I tried to convey how these albums made me feel in addition to my perspective on how I felt during these times about my place in the world and how I felt more like a spectator than someone who was part of it.
That tangent aside, Mímir was someone I also represented myself with for quite a while, so that's a +1 for the bear counter. Usually when people ask I just say "I'm a bear in real life but I'm a big kitty cat on the internet" which is equally as true, but I felt like sharing a lot more details on myself and my fursona/OCs
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back again for more bound to want rambles. whoops <3
i'm talking about color this time
there's not much to say about part 1 since you were really consistent with the dull, hazy yellow, but i LOVE it all the same. it's like an old, worn out photograph. it fits with the messy dream vibe So Well and makes everything feel even More out of focus, adding perfectly to the effects of roses and thorns and other dream-like effects you added in place of boxy panels (ADORE IT)
i also just hfkjdhgssg i love how that color persists even AFTER vash wakes up in part 1. the messy dream lines have faded and we're snapped back into stiff, reality-ground boxes, but that hazy color is still there. still pervading everything. vash is awake now, but the dream still has him.
but then moving on to part 2, we're back to your usual color-scheme with the dark green/light pink combo... or so i THOUGHT, BUT LIKE THE ENTIRE FREAKING PART 2 IS STEEPED IN SAD GREEN HGJFKDHLGSFDSKJGHFDLKSJGHFDSLKJHGFLKDJSHG
except for 2 exceptions.
when ww sits vash down for a drink they have a pink bg, but it doesn't have that airy, happy feel that that color usually holds. there's this subtle ring of green around it, and a static effect around the outside of this little bubble of warmth. almost like they are happy to be together and share this moment despite the issues they're having, but the weight of what's going on keeps seeping in
(and ik i'm talking about color but i'm OBSESSED with the poses in this panel. ww and vash are essentially sitting the same exact way- right arm up on the table and body turned left- but they're mirrored in opposite directions. they won't face each other, even though they're exactly the same. and ww, honest in this moment, faces the camera while vash turns away. ghakfjghdsfkgjhdg)
also i lied there's more than 2 exceptions. when ww apologizes, there's this really deeeeep dark pink in the bg of the small panel vash reacts in. happiness tainted by all his pain and confliction, i assume
and this isn't pink, but i lost my MIND over that static-y spotlight effect on wolfwood in the next page. it reminds me of a few symbolism things, but i don't feel them that strongly so i'd love to know if u had anything specific in mind drawing it that way!!
but anyway a page later when vash is thinking about how "unfair" it is that he doesn't deserve ww, but ww won't leave, there's this gorgeous static, pink/green effect going on again. all these conflicted emotions and pain and want jfdhgsfdkghjdskg
but my favorite FREAKING part is after the ID, the FACE that vash makes as he finally breaks, and there's just this RING of true, soft pink around him as the green finally dissipates
and then panel 2 rolls around with wolfwood and it's almost entirely gone. barely present in the occasional "ribbon" effects that flow around the pages afterwards- still there in the background and still hanging over them- but it's okay now. that sad, painful green doesn't encompass them anymore. it's just spaced naturally throughout their lives, which is how it is for normal, healthy relationships.
i just.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH.
SYMBOLISM METAPHORS AND MASTERFUL DETAILWORK I COULD TALK ALL DAY ABOUT COLOR ALONE
:D!!
the color choices are also… my steps of becoming a better artist… grips fists DMGKSDMGKS BUT YES, THANK YOU FOR YOUR ANALYSIS ON BOTH PARTS!!! i'm very glad the diluted yellow could give that kind of feeling, and things are definitely more deliberate in the second part, given there's more colors now to work with!!!
vashwood consists constantly of heavy thoughts, looming agony and pending tragedy, but in these rare moments where they get to just have each other, it gets to clear and they can feel like the only two people in the world, for just a teensy tiny second! i like to build that white/pink space as a tangible place for them kind of, not always, but i realized it's a common string in my vw comics.
i'm curious to know what you were thinking of symbolically for that wolfwood spotlight panel!!! frankly, there wasn't a lot of thought behind it! it's just the narrow focus of vash now that wolfwood's in front of him and their conversation has come to a quiet, the heaviness of wolfwood's vulnerable leaving the space for a bit, leaving just wolfwood's prescence.
also thank you for sending this in particular, bc this is what made me realize i forgot page 4. AND THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR YOUR LOVELY ANALYSIS!!!!! i don't have disputes, it's pretty much on the nose of what i hoped and intended for those moments to come across. i'm glad it was effective! thank you!!
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MORPHEUS
Greek god of Dreams and head of the Onerioi
SOURCES
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
"Bullfinch's Mythology"
Author:Thomas Bullfinch
[Theoi.com|https://www.theoi.com/]
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Ethereal Morpheus
The painter of slumbers
The stroke of your brush
Brings to light
Forms familiar
Gossamer in nature
With pictures of conciousness
|Who is Morpheus?|
Morpheus: The Shaper , The Lorekeeper, The One Who Forms, The Raven Haired One and The King of Dreams and Nightmares. Morpheus usually appears in the guse of a human or in the form you are most comfortable with( (he appears to me as Dream of the Endless but with slightly altered features). He is the black winged leader of The Oneiroi, which are the thosuand dream spirits who slumber within the same cave as Hypnos their father. Through the gates of horn and ivory, they fly out like a flock of bats . The gate of horn is said to bring truthful dreams while the gate of ivory is said to bring falsehoods. The Odyssey located the realm of dreams past the streams of Oceaus close to Asphodel Meadows, which is a part of the underworld where the spirits of the dead reside. They are all winged in a way(winged ears or wings on their backs) when not appearing in dreams. He has two other named Oneiroi siblings known as Icelus/Phobetor who is the fearsome one of Nightmares who appears as animals and monsters in dreams and Phantasos the oddly whimsical one who appears as objects in his fantastically woven dreams..the rest of the Oneiroi are unnamed..
|Mythology|
Morpheus sadly does not appear in many myths but some speculate that he was the nameless dream spirit that Hypnos sent out to the grieving Alcyone whose husband Ceyx died at sea after a visit from Iris(who was sent by Hera) goddess of rainbows. Morpheus appeared in her dreams, taking the shape of her dead lover to tell her that he perished at sea. But Alcyone, after seeing her husband's corpse wash up on the shore, couldn't bear this news and tried to end her life, but she and her husband got turned into kingfishers. Also, a neoclassical painting by Pierre- Narcisse Guérin portrays Iris coming within the dark cave, filling it with blinding radiance, and apparently, she also stirs up Morpheus from his slumbers.
|My Experience|(*UPG)
Morpheus is my patron deity, who is like a father to me. He apparently had been watching over me ever since I was little but did not introduce himself until the time was right. Morpheus, to me, appears as Dream of The Endless from The Sandman but with wings. Sometimes, he has dark, inky eyes and wild hair like in the comics or looks more like Tom Sturridge in Netflix's The Sandman. Morpheus is very serious and quiet(I'm like that as well lol) but is very sweet and overprotective as well. He has infinite patience, apparently, which is even more impressive considering I work also with the loud and loveably obnoxious Icelus who is his chaotic brother. He sees me as one of his children and student being a no nonsense mentor and father figure...unlike a certain someone I know who kept messing around by picking The Emperor knowing Morpheus already took that option while we were trying to establish a tarot card for him. His energy is so gentle and calming, making him very helpful if one has anxiety (like me) or trouble sleeping. He likes to hum and give snuggles to me or to the various plushies I have set out for him (I have two squishy unicorns that are filled to bursting with his energy due to him smothering them). I have no words for how freaking grateful I am to have such a lovely deity as my patron!
|Associations|
[IC]*Note this is mostly UPG*
Animals and Creatures
Ravens and crows
Cats
Nocturnal rodents like raccoons and Possums*(upg)
Butterflies
Rabbits*(upg)
Unicorns*(Upg)
Colors*(all upg)
Dark blues
Black
Purples
Some light blues
Teal
Silver and white
Misc Objects
Feathers
Skulls
Keys*(upg)
Paintings*(upg)
Books or poems(*upg)
Anything related to The Sandman by Neil Gaiman*(upg)
For some reason, he loves surreal memes and laughs like a growly Seth Rogan*(upg)
Soft stuffies and plushies*(upg)
Foods and Drinks
Popcorn*(upg)
Chocolate
Calming teas
Blackberries*(upg)
Anything really as long as it's not caffeine(coffee, energy drinks) or overly sugary(like peeps marshmallow candy type of sugary) because in his eyes it's the thought that counts
Incense and Oils
Sandalwood
Lavender
Any calming and lightly scented blends
Planet
Moon
Music*(all upg btw)
Classic and Progressive rock
Funk
Psychedelic rock
Just 60s and early 70s music
Soft rock
Swing and 50s music
He LOOOVES Pink Floyd , David Bowie, The Church , The Doors and Echo and The Bunnymen
He only likes one metal song and that is "Enter Sandman" by Metallica
Tarot card
The Emperor*(upg)
The Moon
Crystals
Amethyst
Selenite*(upg)
Blue agate
Ruby *(upg)
Rose Quartz*(upg)
Herbs and flowers
Mugwort
Hydrangea*(upg)
Lavender
Poppies
Chamomile
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(Thought I drabble or oneshot this dream I HAD??? O/// _ ///O and I still remember this morning! Just so you know- I'm recovering from Covid (still in isolation) but the dream didn't have to do that for me! 😆 Anyway, Connor and Haytham were in my dream so- probably its during their father and son trying to get along missions~ I will call this-
Maid in red outfit
(Sad note: There were no dialogues in the dream so its just actions and reactions lol 😂)
I ended up in someone's mansion, very old but managaeble. There are maids handling each task everywhere and have distinct color outfits of them, I was just standing by the hallway. I got mesmerize by the interior design cuz it literally looked like in AC3 game, until someone dragged me into the room. I do not know who but they told me to put this on, still confuse but I put it on the outfit they gave me.
After that, I was moved into a different room and there were maids in it too. All of them are doing their usual, like cleaning floors, wiping the table, dusting off the shelves. And I look my clothes- they're red (like Shay's templar Enforcer outfit red) with floral embroidery on it. I wondered why my outfit is pleasantly special while others are colorfully plain?
One of the maids signaled me to join them and I didnt know why, so I joined the girls on the floor. They gave me a damped cloth and started cleaning, I went along with it. The door at the other side of the room, opened and there were men coming in with specific color coding clothes like the maids.
And there he was- Connor entered the room being one of the guys but his outfit has the same color as mine. The last person along with Connor is Haytham wearing his blue navy outfit but his tricorne hat is missing. The maids and I were still doing our cleaning duties inside of a huge dining room which I realized just now.
Some of the men are sitting, some are standing which Connor preferred to and so is Haytham, some leaning onto the walls and some are uninterested. They started looking at the maids around them. Connor rather- looked at me, probably the outfit I wore (Twinies lol 😂). That's where the men looked at me, then someone called the maids including me to go out of the room and waited for one of us to be called.
We all did and waited outside. Couldn't tell what's happening inside, there's total silence. That's where a guy busted through a door! All beat up on the floor, the girls panicked and ran away. I went to check and see what's up. Inside: I see windows got busted, table is broken in half, chairs were destroyed and its everywhere and I see Connor holding up one last guy.
As he saw me, he rush towards me and hugged me tightly. Thought it felt nice and hug him back, (my dream me hugged him right?) only I felt- HIS BACK! FULLY BARE! I felt the blushing went throuugh my chin to my head, then Haytham had to cut in because I heard him grunting. Connor threw a piece of red fabric at his father's face.
I realize that's Connor's cloth, thought someone might've pulled him and ripped it off. We all went out of the room immediately and that's where the dream ended~
(So- what you all think? 😆😂 I have multiple dreams before and after this one but this is only dream I remembered, although this dream has a kiss part but i dont wanna add it or else it will sound too mary sue in a way, so I prefer to write this in a wholesome and comedic way 😂 Hope you all enjoy reading this lol~ I plan to make this as a comic once I'm fully recovered for better visualization hehehe)
#assassinscreed#connorkenway#haytham kenway#x reader#drabble#oneshot#assassins creed#mentioning shay cormac#dreamtale
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NEW OC IDEA
Ok, I just had a dream where I was on a school field trip and we were driving by a laboratory/farm run by people with TVs for heads, so, I've decided to make one of my own!
Name? [still pending, but his initials will be CRT (get it? HA!)]
Age? I'd say his body would look like a man in his 20s, early 30s.
What's he look like? He has a human body that still has the same functions [yes, he can have sex and ejaculate human cum], but he just doesn't have to eat or use the bathroom. His head is just a tv with a digital face. There are wires coming out that functions like hair that he puts in a low ponytail to keep them from getting tangled. His 'chin' has one square area that has the red, white, and yellow video/audio outlets, but it's essentially like a soul patch. He can put cords in if he wants to grow it out like a beard, but he prefers to keep that area clear. I'll draw a picture of him later. [Fun fact: he can take his head off without any issues (like the body could be taking a shower and the head could be sitting on the couch, talking to ya). He does it usually to shower and put on clothes.]
What does he wear? Mostly comfy clothes. He does like wearing the color scarlet, though.
Can he talk? What does his voice sound like? Yes, he can talk. It's just like if you put a voice through a slight bitcrush filter. Not sure what his voice is similar to, I'll let you know when I figure it out.
What's his personality? I'd say he's pretty chill, laid-back. He cares deeply for those close to him, especially his girlfriend. He's very curious about how humans function and of how they think and feel. (Like, why do humans feel bad about themselves?)
Wait, girlfriend? He has one? Yes, she's fully human. They met when he needed help fixing his head when it was glitching out, and she was in the phone book. She came over, they talked for hours, and after a few more visits, they started dating. He helps her through her trauma and mental issues, like her self hatred for her body, her anxiety, etc. It's really sweet.
What's her name? What does she look like? Dunno yet. Gotta work on that. I'll let ya know when I come up with something.
Is this from an already existing series? Is it part of that world? No, it's it's own thing. It's own series. Might make lil mini comics and random pics of it. Yes, some will be NSFW.
When should we expect some pics? Soon. I'll work on the designs today and we'll go from there. May take a while, but you will be notified if you set your notifications to where you get one whenever I post or reblog anything.
And that's it. I'll see if I can get a character page done today or at least get a good idea of their design.
Tagsies: @fatgumsupremacy @omniuravity @neonvehk
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✴𝔸𝕓𝕠𝕦𝕥 𝕄𝕖✴
Birthday: November 7th
𝙳𝚘 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚗𝚊𝚖𝚎?
✻ I go by Wynn here, but I have no objection to nicknames as long as they are not offensive or harmful. Have fun with it!
𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚏𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚜/𝚐𝚊𝚖𝚎𝚜/books/comics?
✼ When it comes to games, my biggest major hyperfixation is genshin impact. It's definitely something I invest a lot of my time in, not just in gaming but also in my writing and drawing. (Update: Baldur's Gate 3 has also consumed my entire soul now). I have played some Honkai: Star Rail and absolutely loved the first parts to it, but unfortunately had to hold off on playing any more for lack of computer space. Once I can get my hands on a proper gaming PC, I would love to play Undertale/Deltarune. I am also one of those people who could sit you down and give you a several hour rundown of the FNAF lore. Depending what consoles I'm able to get in the future, I'd also love to get into playing the Zelda games.
✻ Jujutsu Kaisen makes me want to throw my laptop out a window right now. There's your intro the the kinds of shows I like. I am a weeb and I really like (but also deeply hate) Jujutsu Kaisen, Bungou Stray Dogs, Demon Slayer, Attack on Titan, etc. If it makes me suffer emotionally, I probably enjoy it. I am also attempting, key word being ATTEMPTING, to get through One Piece. Gotta catch up with my frinds who are actively up to date on it please pray for my soul. Also getting back into Fairy Tail and loving every second of it! If it's not anime, I like a lot of the MCU shows or movies, and also have yearly rewatches of Gravity Falls and the new comfort show addition of the Owl House to give myself a break from the emotional torture that comes from being a weeb. I watch Helluva Boss and Hazbin Hotel religiously, my sense of humor is broken.
✼ I like reading. Unfortunately I stopped being able to stay motivated to read regular books sometime back in high school. What has my solution to that been? Webcomics! I have a much easier time keeping up with reading if stories are paired with pictures, so Webtoon is my biggest go to for that. My biggest recommendations for those who also enjoy webcomics would be Omniscient Reader (my current top favorite if you don't mind lots of cliff hangers), City of Blank, Lore Olympus, Down to Earth, and Covenant.
✻ !!! If you have any recommendations ever for games, shows, movies, webcomics, songs, or any other sort of media, feel free to send them my way! I love checking out new genres and subjects and learning about the sorts of things that other people take interest in and that's usually where most of my interests come from any way. I am an interest sponge!!!
𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚍𝚘 𝙸 𝚎𝚗𝚓𝚘𝚢 𝚍𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎?
✼ Most of my time is spent writing, drawing, or playing genshin. I also enjoy baking, painting, making carvings out of bars of soap, and driving my entire family crazy by being hyperactive at the ungodly hours of the morning. Since I at least do my best to get out of the house sometimes, I also enjoy hiking, any sort of rafting or boating, and scuba diving. I have a lot of travel goals since I enjoy seeing new places and exploring. I have also recently finally achieved my middle school dream of finding a group to play DnD with, and it has become a major hyperfixation. When I can't think of things to draw? DnD character. Not sure what to write but needing to put some words on paper? DnD character backstory. Bored or unmotivated in general? Make up new DnD characters. It is my cure all.
𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚊 𝚏𝚎𝚠 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚘𝚖 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚊𝚟𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚜?
✻ My top three favorite animals go sloths, possums, bats in that order from favorite down.
✼ My favorite color is very specifically phthalocyanine green
✻ I love anything related to outer space and could probably talk for hours about it
✼ Same goes for the ocean. I think I just find all the unknowns about both the ocean and space to be very cool
✻ I like sushi. A lot. It's a major comfort food and if it wouldn't make me sick I could probably have sushi every day and be perfectly satisfied
✼ I enjoy anything that has me working in the kitchen, and I'm actually hoping to go to culinary school sometime in the next few years
✻ I try to hoard DnD dice like a dragon hoards treasure which is probably why I can't afford a better gaming setup :,)
✼ Making art for people is my love language I could probably make money off of it but I don't because making free art for people brings me joy and joy > profit
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An unnecessarily long analysis of "India" from the superhit anime series Hetalia
This character is introduced to being a part of the elephant admirer's club along with Thailand in an alternate universe episode where the characters are reimagined as high schoolers. I like to assume this is a nod to the elephant Indira that was given to Japan when Nehru was the PM. Otherwise, it could be just another stereotypical "joke" about how both India and Thailand revere elephants
The next time you see India is in an episode about different countries writing horror movies. So obviously you'll have a scene from a Bollywood movie.
So this is the picture where we can see how India is portrayed in this series. (in the previous scene it was just some squiggle). But this is where you get his actual physical appearance
Like how they whitewashed him (a hint of him being a Bollywood actor). He also has lighter hair and eyes than the average Indian(that's quite interesting to note). So all in all your typical Bollywood actor. The film follows the plot where India has to fight against a phantom that kills people in a temple. He faces it and then the phantom surrenders with a dance number with background dancers coming from literally nowhere
The other countries get quite impressed with this plot twist by Japan saying:
Just another proof that the writer didn't watch a single Indian horror film.
But he later went out to watch an Indian film, this can be seen in a Halloween episode where India along with Prussia dress as Salman Khan from Veer, particularly in the song Mehrbaniya. The funniest part is how they show a shehenai in the comics while in the mv you see it’s a western band or something playing western instruments like bagpipes. This stupid show made me to see a Salman Khan film, I wont forgive the show for this sin. They could’ve referred a better Bollywood film.
I couldn't find the anime clip, but he is more dark-skinned compared to his initial appearance, this is from the comics(colored by a fan)
(yes they are shipped after one dance scene)
These are pictures from the anime btw. (i found this later)
So after the comic finishes, we get to know that India and Prussia met on Twitter. So he speaks in a Kyushu dialect(Hakata dialect). I don't know what's the implication of this tbh. I'm thinking this is how the author tries to distinguish his way of speaking from other countries.
This is however not the last Bollywood dance scene that we might get, there is another scene from a Halloween comic strip.
The guy who says India has energy is England we will come to that guy in a while. All I have to say is that I can't relate to this stereotype, but I've seen people in schools and colleges dancing at stuff like Baila. I think there is some truth to this stereotype
Let's take a break from Bollywood. There is a dream Lithuania gets where India claims that it is a stronger ally to Russia than China. This was an interesting point the series mentioned. I've never seen people talk about Indo-Russian relationships in non-Indian media
This is the strip. So he calls India Yindu( 印度, That's how they call India in Mandarin. It means broken/crescent moon). This is different from the Japanese word インド(Indo) which is India in Japanese.
I'm delving into this too much, but Indo Russian relationship was huge during the Nehruvian era and it has remained since then. I seem to notice the pattern where India has some similarities with Nehru, along with wearing the Nehru coat in the horror film with a lot of roses.
Ok back to Bollywood, the author makes a note about rain being used in happy scenes in some Indian films, but it is usually used as a thing that represents sadness in English media(forget England's dress). IDK what film this happens in. I can only think of the Aashiq2 scene with rain.
this is where I thought of the contrast between English and Indian art in this picture. A song about the sun coming in English is written in contrast to a Hindi poem about a couple rejoicing in the rain.
I couldn't find it but there is a picture in that same strip about how people in different countries watch films in India's part you have the Indian audience dancing(i didn't know it was a thing until I asked someone)
There is another cameo of him with China cooking for England. This is a nod to the several Indian and Chinese restaurants in Britain and how the food served in these restaurants is relatively better than English "food". (English food being bad is a recurring joke btw)
it's also funny to note how America couldn't differentiate the cuisine of England, China, or India.
Since we don't have like a proper scene with India from the manga we can only gather from the bits of scenes he's put in. So before he comes in the show in the comics, he is written in England's notebook as one of the incompetent allies. This will be later proven wrong in the other scenes with both of them. He is mentioned in passing in one of England's songs where he(England) boasts about having "holiday houses" in India and Hong Kong. This could be a reference to the east India company and how these countries were holiday spots back in the 19th and 20th century
this is a scene where we can see the both of them together. for context: England faced a huge economical loss from the American war of independence. This is where India provides "tea"(one of the many commodities England has taken from India)
Addressing people with honorifics in Japanese culture is a huge thing. So calling him England-Ji makes sense. Also, India is under Britain so calling him -Ji makes sense. But then if you think of actual history…
England discovered the Assamese growing tea and didn't want to depend on china for it. So there is some merit to this scene. but again, the author might've given the wrong context. In 1776(when the war happened) the British didn't have that strong of power over India(still in the east India company phase).
This is about England "reviving" from this provision of goods from India. This particular scene also reaffirms this whole stereotype of India being a healing country too.
Later you get scenes about how he is in England's "house", just a sweet way to say that he is colonized. (yes there is another picture of him with an elephant)
This is another example:
There is another mention of India in the comics where it seems like Portugal has lots a bit of India and the Netherlands has him now (this is the only mention of the other European powers India was under). Also its a bit weird that Portugal thinks he has completely lost India when he had Goa way up to the 60s
I've already mentioned this before, but India is shipped with England and it is iffy at the least and downright evil at most. It's weird because most of the ships in this show are weird if you think of its historical context
Then there is this brief Introduction of India in the comics where they talk about him being good at mathematics (maybe a ref to Aryabhata) and arguing (Idk who this is a reference to). It says he has a princely aura. This is another fetishized way of portraying the royal kingdoms in India. Also, I like the fact that the author claims that he has his thoughts which do not allow people to argue with him. Reminds me of all the Indian news channels on TV.
in this, he seems to wear the rudraksha beads even though the show doesn't mention personified countries to be religious identities. But thank god the author gave him a better complexion
Interesting to note the fact he and raj have the same hairstyle
In his first appearance, he's dressed like a politician too lol
What’s with these rose garlands??
This is one beautiful picture that looks like it romanticizes the two centuries of colonial oppression by making them out to be friendly.
The author calls him the gender swap of a hyperactive character called Hungary-> "Mr. India is a character that is as well made as Mr. Hungary, and it's
quite an unexpected character, so I'm going to add a little more character. Indian people are very interesting!"
For context: the author was in New York for a while, so he has interacted with Indians. There is a comic he wrote about a Japanese student in NY who had an Indian character.
The author has also mentioned how it is easy for him to imbibe the behavior of Indians along with Italians. This feels a bit sus. The author seems to treat Indians as specimens tbh.
Also, he should stop saying namaste. The word has lost its meaning for me. And that tilak looks like a pimple at this point lol.
As you likely pointed out he is the embodiment of the privileged sect of Indian society. With his tilak, his behaviour, and his "respect" for England (to prove that he is on the level of Britain)
then again, this is just like how America is a blond-haired blue-eyed guy. (External perception people outside have of the USA). In India, this can be replaced by a Savarna man.
While this character feels like a caricature (in a show about caricatures). India is a pretty cool character for someone who barely gets proper "screen time". However, when we question what exactly is India and what aspect of India he is about. His image gets heavily questionable. I think it's better to assume that this guy is born from the outsider's perspective of India rather than the internal politics of India. Like the name he has which is not a word in any Indian language. Just like how America is born from the European dream of conquering that land in the western hemisphere.
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"My Little Cane" Content Review and Causality Study 2 of 2
About 4 minutes to read.
Saturday morning, 28 March 1970. Age 9.
"My Little Cane" Content Review and Causality Study 2 of 2
Dream #: 1,195-02 - causality (and influence) study only.
To understand any of this regarding how it relates to my childhood dream requires reading part one. It also requires comprehending the factual nature of dream content causality and influence in contrast to the mistaken (and misleading) approach of "dream interpretation" in most forms.
The Jail:
This childhood dream's first setting is an unlikely isolated and exposed jail cell in a playground. Examining why - and where - helps resolve what I was intuitively thinking while dreaming, which usually ties to the same responses to dream state dynamics (often in the same order depending on specific REM sleep factors), even now at age 62.
In real-world terms, I did not have physical access to the playground because I was sleeping. Another factor is that it was the weekend. Cages and restrictive areas have occurred in dreams with the recognition I am navigating my sleep cycle while physically immobile without access to real-world locations and usually link directly to the part of the narrative that corresponds with vestibular-motor ambiguity (which I will probably elaborate on in another report) as with this dream.
It is an intuitive recognition and temporary focus, enough to bring about corresponding dream content, not something that guides my entire dreaming experience as dream state attentiveness continually changes along with the resulting content.
Deciding What Color My Magic Walking Cane Should Be:
While dreaming, I associate the two men in the jail cell with my lack of access to the real-world playground. What comes next validates this typical dream state awareness. When a person lacks leg mobility, they sometimes use a walking cane. Loss of real-world leg mobility (because of physical immobility while sleeping) has been the theme of my first post-hypnagogic dream virtually every sleep cycle for over 50 years. There have been isolated instances where the narrative is slightly different than usual. Many people describe this physiological response to entering or leaving sleep and are honest enough to acknowledge it, except some report it as "falling off a cliff." Other people have no clue and pretend it has a (real-world) "meaning." How sad to lack comprehension of sleep cycle responses or to pretend it is an occult event when it is simply mind-body communication dissipating because of not being fully conscious (as are various forms of sleep myoclonus).
Escape and Evasion:
With this dream that is further into my sleep cycle, I achieve imaginary leg mobility and run. Aware that I am dreaming, I chant, "Invisible, invisible," and pass through the ground into an underground cave. Being underground is another recognition of not being conscious, but there is also an influence from seeing "Hudd and Dini" comics in Cracked Magazine, where a panel sometimes featured the two prisoners crawling through an underground tunnel.
Brenda's Marionette Show:
Recognizing the dream state as "performing on a stage," I summon a marionette show featuring Brenda. I "help" her by controlling "heavier" (real-world) physicality with the elephant marionette without using its strings. The strings becoming tangled (for her) imply muddled thoughts when trying to engage in mind-body discernment or communication that otherwise cannot exist while in REM atonia. (A real-world influence here was Carol Burnett's iconic charwoman - the cleaning lady with the mop and bucket.) Arm mobility is implied (as it often is in this part of a dream's timeline) with the marionette's usage of the mop and bucket, the mop being a human arm in REM atonia. (In other dreaming experiences, a feature correlating as such, such as a sword, baseball bat, guitar neck, and so on, might bend or become floppy, indicating an emerging state of awareness regarding my anticipation of arm maneuverability.)
Haunting Earl's House in Cubitis, Florida:
In this part of my dream, I am having fun "being invisible," though it was a factor of dreaming that eventually faded as I grew older. It is the opposite of summoning invisibility to hide, which occurred earlier in my dream.
Ricardo Montalbán, Taxi Driver, Kidnaps Me:
Protoconsciousness personifies here as a celebrity, which is often the case. There are a few reasons for this, which I have explained many times. One reason is that my mind, while sleeping, reaches a similar state (and modeling) as when watching fictitious content on television, with less attentiveness to my real-world environment. In contrast, when watching the news on television, my cognizance is more present. As a result, real-world news rarely influences my dreams as movies do.
Haunting King Street's pre-Civil War Queen Anne Mansion in La Crosse, Wisconsin:
The outcome of this childhood dream at age 9 (while I lived in Florida) featured the first house I would live in as an adult years later in Wisconsin. There was no way I could have known I would be living in La Crosse years later in the King Street mansion at age 18.
Despite this outcome rendering the leg mobility focus (and spontaneous kicking), I felt larger and older than my real-world self. I felt my mood change into an atypical sustained awareness. There is possibly a "self-fulfilling prophecy" on one level, as I knew about the house when I last left La Crosse in 1967 and certainly knew how adults often acted. On a side note (unrelated to this dream report), my connection to Zsuzsanna years before we met is inexplicable.
On the other hand, the outcome's influence partly came from the iconic Charles Atlas comic book advertisement, "The Insult that Made a Man Out of Mac!" One panel features a man kicking over a chair, with part of the text reading as "...give me a REAL body." It is not difficult to trace the influence. My dream self's body is not real. Additionally, I thought of myself as an annoyed adult while dreaming at that point.
The outcome crucially demonstrates how all dreams and imaginary physicality, no matter how vivid, must come to an end (obviously for mental and physical health reasons), in this case, by keeping me as a "ghost" to where my only choice was to abandon the dream state deliberately.
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⋆｡˚⁀➷ WRAPPED UP.
⤷ pairing. ceo!kuroo tetsuro x (female) secretary!reader
⤷ genre. fluff, smut, office au, friends with benefits au
⤷ warnings. swearing, taboo relationship, the use of princess as a nickname, possessiveness, messy sex, rough sex, begging, brief mentions of degradation, ass slapping, ass groping, teasing, (unexpected) sir kink, manhandling, dom!kuroo, sub!reader, power play, spitting, consumption of another person’s spit, lingerie, dirty talk, penetrative sex, sex without a condom (please be safe, kids), *unedited
⤷ note. this might be one of the dirtiest things i have EVER written... so i hope you enjoy! and of course, happy valentines day ♡
1.6k | what's a better valentine’s day gift for your boss than yourself?
the relationship you and kuroo have is a bit taboo. the secretary and the ceo. with the way you sway your hips with a little more emphasize when you leave his office, the way you laugh at all his jokes, the way your body dip downs (ass in the air looking absolutely perfect) to grab at fallen papers. of course, something was going to happen. you were practically betting on it.
but of course, it takes two to start the devil’s conga line.
it was kuroo who wanted you to stay later than usual. only you and him in his big office space and yet he urged you to stay, big hands rubbing at the inside of your thighs. it was him who insisted on how sexy you looked in the middle of meetings; your hair neatly tucked behind your ears, lips pouted and a fire behind your eyes that would make any man weak. it was kuroo that guided you to his desk, smile bright and eyes glowing with mischief because he knows he’s got you right where he wants you. you can’t complain though, you want it too.
he grabs at your waist turning you around so your thighs are firmly pressed against his desk. the lace you have on perfectly shapes your body. it presses at your delicate skin, digging and reaching into all the places kuroo wishes he could touch. he swears he could stare at you all day like this; bent over, dripping pussy on display just for him.
this was different though.
no matter how many times you walked in his office with your alluring eyes. kuroo prided himself on being professional. there was a natural attraction between the two of you, that much is obvious, but for the sake of his company, kuroo never made a move. the feeling of belittlement against you for ‘sleeping your way up’ would make him stay awake at night with guilt. however, tonight things were different. maybe it was the fact that this was your first valentines together or maybe fate just has a really niche sense of humor, but whatever the case; you’re still sopping wet and begging to be fucked.
his hands roam your body. he moves slowly, studying every curve and dip like you’re the latest from leonardo de vinci. ah yes, the redness from when i smacked her ass contrast perfectly to the color of her eyes. you’re beautiful. he desperately craves to say it but the words die on his tongue before he can speak. instead, he lets his actions talk.
“it’s too bad these have to go, princess.” a single finger traces your lace cladded entrance. the action alone has you whimpering. “i’ll buy you another set though.” you feel him shift from behind, body leaning down to press a chaste kiss to the small of your back.
one of his hands snake up to your neck, yanking at the roots of your tresses. the force makes you gasp. a mixture of pain, shock, and pleasure rushes through you. your head whips back in an uncomfortable position, but you’re able to see kuroo’s perfectly sculptured face, so really you have no complaints. “how do you feel about red?”
the sound of fabric ripping in half has you concern, at first. but kuroo tetsuro, for as long as you’ve known him has been a no bullshit kind of man. he teases and jokes but when it comes down to business, he’s a cutthroat beast. so it makes sense for him to move on as fast as he came.
there’s no time for you to wonder in astonishment at how he throws your (now useless) panties across his office. he’s already pulling out his cock and sinking into you until his body presses right against your back. naturally, your lips part into a pout that’s wrapped around a wanton moan. the stretch is sensational and the burn evens out the euphoria. he feels you up so well. you can feel his cock rub up against your walls, reaching spots within you that have never been touched by anyone else before. you understand now why your boss is no play and all business. when kuroo needs to, he’s not afraid to get down and dirty just like right now.
“this cunt was made for me.” is what he purrs into your ear. it’s embarrassing how much that affects you. the mere idea of being his has you clenching around his huge cock. his free hand rubs at your back, grabbing at the supple flesh on your ass. you can feel his nails dig into you, the coldness from his rings slightly soothing the pain.
“this ass was made for me too.” and to further cement his claim, he delivers a particularly hard thrust at the same time he smacks at your cheeks. the movement makes you fly forward, papers and other (probably very important things) slide off the top of his desk, but you don’t have time to care. not when the man of your dreams is fucking you so good. you’ll worry about the crumpled up project approval papers later.
“god, and that mouth.” he shifts to the side. the pressure on your head heightens while he pulls at your ends. your neck feels stiff and his thrust begin to shallow. his ring cladded fingers draw at your jaw, thumb playing with the entrance of your mouth.
“this pretty little mouth.” his lips brush against your own. his breath fans across your face. he’s so close to kissing you in fact if you moved just an inch closer you would– a fat glob of spit cuts you off. the sudden action made you flinch at first but kuroo made it very clear you could tell him to stop at anytime. his saliva comes down from his long tongue and slots within your mouth perfectly.
he clamps your jaw shut and you have no choice but to swallow him whole. “good girl, just like that.” he coaxes you while petting at your crown. when you finally open your mouth and all of him is gone, kuroo swears he could cum right then and there.
“you’re so fucking sexy. holy shit.” his shallow thrust began to get more punctuated now. you can’t hear anything besides the slapping of skin-on-skin contact. you don’t hear kuroo’s phone ringing for the third time. you don’t hear the bustling street life just below tetsuro’s flamboyant row of glass windows. all you can focus on is the intense pleasure that pumps through your veins. it makes you see stars with every thrust, makes your legs shake with every murmur of pretty girl. the white hot coil within you is thinning. it’s about to snap, you can feel it.
“te– tetsuro, please?”
“please, what, princess?” his voice is strained. he’s close too.
“please, can i come, sir?”
he can’t believe it. he must have died in the middle of the day and ended up in some kind of sex heaven with you as the starring role (not that he’s complaining). he has the a fantastic view of your ass bouncing, you swallow him down like the pretty slut you are, and you respond perfectly with every little touch, every little action. you’re perfect is what he concludes.
“fuck, yes.” his fingers dig into your sides. his grip is like a vice on your skin as he shoves himself deeper within you. “cum for me, princess.”
you feel his dick twitch and seconds later he’s cummings with a shaky sigh. you’re finally able to let go, you come at around the same time, milking his cock for every last drop. kuroo takes it upon himself to fuck you through your orgasm, a little slower this time, but it still has you breaking down.
he remembers the way you sauntered into his office, skirt a little too short and eyes practically begging for him. you must have known something was going to happen. there’s no way you just wear pretty pink lace to your everyday job. no, today was a special day for you and apparently for him too. when things finally get too much, kuroo tucks his softened cock back into his pants.
you’re hair is messy. it’s matted from all the sweat and tangled from all the times kuroo raked through your locks and pulled. your chest rises and falls quickly and your eyes are closed trying to concentrate. the blissful veil of sex is finally settling and yet you still look as gorgeous as ever. he’s left there staring at you like you’re the only thing that matters to him. like he wouldn’t mind waking up everyday to your face weather you’re smiling up at him or snoring up a storm.
when you shift to hop of the desk is when he finally makes a move. he grabs onto your waist, trying his hardest to steady himself so you’re able to balance too. your feet hit the floor and your legs feel like they’re gonna give out at any moment. they wobble under your weight. you can’t help but laugh. it’s a sweet, melodious tone that’s a little scratchy from your... previous actions, but still, he thinks it fits.
“what’s gotten you so giggly?” he guides you to one of his plush office chairs. as you walk, your body remains flesh against his.
“i just–,” your hues lock onto kuroo’s dark ones. “i wouldn’t mind if we did this again, yanno?”
he smiles down at you watching while you readjust your skirt back over your legs. you bend forward with you’re ass in the air. you must be doing it on purpose, he knows with the way you comically wiggle your hips. and he nods, “yes, i wouldn’t mind that either.”
#hqradiostation#haikyuu#haikyuu!!#hq#hq!!#haikyuu smut#hq smut#kuroo tetsuro#kuroo smut#kuroo x reader#kuroo tetsuro x reader#kuroo tetsuro smut#haikyuu x reader
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Streamer!Scaramouche [2]
thanks for all the support in the first part! i wrote a second part where scaramouche plays genshin + the reader comes in (i tried to make it as gender neutral as possible, so let me know if there’s something off!). you’re a close friend of scaramouche and also a voice actor!
i had been planning this since i wrote the first part, but because i was busy and uninspired i couldn’t finish it. but here it is and it’s actually pretty long (over 5k words...)! i hope you guys will like this!! obviously he’s a little nicer than he is in game but,,, for the sake of the plot + it being a modern au, it had to be done sjnfdskjf
He was selected to play the beta for genshin because of his popularity and tbh he really wanted to play it
The game hadn’t really caught his eye all that much when he first heard about it but he saw how everyone online went crazy over it (plus other streamers who also were selected to play it in early access kept talking about it) and he became more curious to know what it would be like and if it’d live to everyone’s expectations
However he couldn’t really play it until it was officially released because he had a very busy schedule, and when he saw other streams of people playing it he was,,, lowkey jealous because it did look fun
When it was finally released and the game finished downloading and installing, he went live right away
And since so many people were looking forward to seeing him play plus the game was getting so popular so fast, that stream of when he first played hit his biggest milestone of live viewers ever
ANYWAYS skip forward to further into the game
when it comes to the gacha,,,
we’ve established that this boy is loaded. he won’t hesitate to throw some big amounts of money at the game to get every single character and weapon he wants and get their constellations to the max
i feel like he’d make little bets (and it works as a way to thank the chat for the support) like “if i get (insert newest character) in the first 50 pulls, i will gift 50 subs”
he’d be SOOOOOOO LUCKY it’d make everyone who doesn’t play think that it must be very easy to get the 5 stars or that the drop rate must be very high,,,
so in the end he’d have to gift the subs and it’d be funny to see the chat go absolutely crazy because everyone is commenting at the same time trying to see if they got lucky too and got the sub
but the chat goes so fast that they can’t even see their own comment after they send it sNDJGDJSK
he’d end up turning subs mode on for a while because it goes crazy
and that’s when he’d see people going “I GOT THE SUB-” all excited and he can’t help but chuckle and congratulate them for being one of the lucky ones
probably another game he can use to play with some subs once in a while! they could play co-op and when he’s a very high level he’d go to the worlds of some of his subs with lower level to help them with whatever they need
SO, LITTLE SKIP HERE
this is where i want the reader to slide into the picture
you’d be a voice actor, and also you have been a friend of his for a very long time
he met you even before he started streaming and you were always so supportive of him, as he was of every and each of your dreams
in fact, he would have invited you over more than once to stream with him
people don’t say anything bc they’re afraid of scaramouche banning them (it’s happened before) + they understand it can be disrespectful... but…
some people lowkey ship you two a little bit,,,,,, you didn’t hear it from me. scaramouche don’t ban me----
so one day he’s making another livestream playing genshin (sponsored by mihoyo to promote the newest update and event) and they’re going to release a new character
AND he has told everyone that you are the voice actor of the new character, who will be introduced in the event and is also getting their own banner
so everyone is very curious of what they’ll be like, if scaramouche will try to get them (obviously he will, he has every single character…. the amount of money he has put into the game…. just thinking of it gives me the heebie-jeebies)
could he even,,, main them,,,,
spoiler: he won’t because he’ll stay honest till the end (and no hard feelings) but there are other characters that he has built up to the max just like them and still work better with the way he plays but he’ll still find a chance to use them often
he didn’t know anything of what the character you voiced would be like because you wanted to keep it a surprise and he knew his audience would enjoy seeing his first reactions
I think the character you voice in the game would have the role that Scaramouche has in the actual game, and their design would be fairly similar (maybe similar color palette) to the design fans made for him as a genshin character (the one i mentioned that he uses for popup notifs of subscriptions and all!)
needless to say he’d absolutely love their personality and the charisma you showed in their lines
of course when he finally gets them he shows everything about them including all their voice lines and he compliments y/n’s voice acting… that was the first time people suspected that....
mayhaps… scaramouche….
has feelings for you....
it’s in the soft gaze in his eyes,,, the gentle smile on his lips,,, his soft voice when saying “I think this one is my favorite line of theirs”
and just how BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL his laugh sounds when someone comments he should invite you and ask you to do that voiceline live for him and everyone else
he’d jokingly reach for his phone and be like “should i call them? i could”
(but he wouldn’t because he doesn’t want to disturb you, you may be busy, considering you still hadn’t replied to the messages he sent to you before he started the stream a few hours ago)
if anyone dares be mean to you saying you got the chance to voice act for genshin just bc of scaramouche
or implies that he did something to get you there he’ll get quite mad even tho he won’t speak up about it (he might if enough people say it)
people can see something shift in his gaze,,,, and he bans them permanently right away
it’d be kinda funny when he does those “reading unban requests” streams and he goes past immediately rejecting people who said those kind of stuff, not even reading the apologies JSNKJFNDSJKGNSDK
some people say he’s too strict about it but literally his stream his rules. people who don’t like him should just not watch him
and people who like him should NOT speak badly about you or doubt your talent and effort, which is what brought you that opportunity in the first place
one day he’d be streaming playing the game, he had been using your character and gathering materials to get their last ascension
and at one point he’d grab his phone and look at the screen for a second before putting it back down and saying he had planned something else for tonight besides playing genshin for a while
then, the doorbell would ring (before he could even close the game-) and it’d be heard from his setup room so people in the chat heard it and they’re all like???
it’s definitely not takeout because scaramouche never orders takeout when he’s on his own, he usually cooks for himself and just orders it when he’s with friends and they all feel like eating something different
actually, offtopic, but i have a feeling he’d be very responsible when it comes to food and like he’d cook himself proper meals all perfectly balanced and all- he could afford having someone cook for him but his house = his privacy and personal space so he’d rather do it himself
it’s like, past 10pm, so no way it would be a package or mail at that time
and then he says “we have a visitor tonight”
and then the chat goes crazy saying “CHILDE” “HARBINGERS” but mostly “Y/N!??!?/PLEASE LET IT BE Y/N”
AND IT WAS YOU!!!!
and omg you brought takeout--------
it had been a while since they had seen you in scaramouche’s stream and you didn’t have your own channel (even though there were many people who encouraged you to open one)
SO everyone was very excited
i feel like scaramouche wouldn’t be the biggest fan of eating on camera so you guys would put the food away so that you can eat it later on your own without an audience
and you two would just spend a while talking to the chat, watching videos
AND reviewing fanart and fanmade content together!! it’d be so cute especially fanarts of the two of you together, little animatics or comics of funny clips or memes from his streams of you two,,,
someone made a little felt plushie of the genshin character you voiced and the way you COOED because it was SO cute
only those who were truly paying attention were able to notice the soft smile on scaramouche’s lips and the way he looked at you as you gushed over how cute the little plushie is and how talented the person who made it is!!
also you’d tell him you saw signora make a stream where she talked to some of her fans on discord individually to give them advice on their life/problems (nothing too serious) and it was very funny and you wanted to do that with him someday
and he’s like “that… could be a huge mess. people could say some crazy stuff” and you’re like “NO but i talked to her about it and she said she got her mods to talk to them first and approve them before they moved them up to the channel where she was to talk to her”
and he’s like “still…….. what if people lie and then when they get to talk to us they say something-”
and you’re like “BOY!!!! DO YOU NOT TRUST YOUR FANS *GASP*” and everyone in the chat is also going “GASP” “HE DOESN’T TRUST US…” “IS THIS YOUR IDOL…..?” “SAY SORRY” (all good fun, obviously he’d love to talk to everyone if he could make sure there won’t be anything disrespectful said)
SO!!!!! you two say you’ll plan to do something like that soon and everyone is very excited, they can already tell it’ll be both super cute and hilarious
before he ends the stream, you two watch some videos together
some are about some upcoming videogames and he talks about them and what he knows and explaining things to you... he is.. so knowledgeable…
the way you look at him as he goes into a little rant about it… cinematic parallels with the way he looked at you before
ONCE AGAIN, people aren’t blind. they notice. but they keep it to themselves bc scary scara (the way i had to resist overusing this one joke with his name-)
so the stream ends and you two walk out of the setup room to go to his living room and eat the takeout you brought while watching something on tv
he apologises because the food is cold now, but you brush it off saying it’s ok, you had missed being on his streams and you two can just heat up the food again
he doesn’t look at you in the eyes as he mutters that you know you can join his streams whenever, and instead just says it as he makes his way to the kitchen to heat the food
you join him in the kitchen soon after and tell him you also bought something for dessert and put it in the fridge already before
and honestly he didn’t know how much he wanted to eat that dessert until it was in his fridge, so he can’t stop himself from sighing and saying “god, i love you”
there’s silence for a second, right as the microwave beeps as it finished heating the food
it feels eternal to him, but you immediately started laughing and said jokingly “of course you do! you’re welcome!”
he’s happy you took it as a joke because that’s not how he planned to confess (he didn’t plan to confess anytime soon in the first place) but at the same time ?? he’s lowkey offended inside because? you took it as a joke?? is it so unrealistic that you wouldn’t even think that he meant it romantically?
it’s at that moment that he realises that if he didn’t want to confess before, now he does.
he wouldn’t want anyone to know about how he let that slip because he’s sure no one in you two’s friend group even knows he likes you
but you,,, actually,,,,, were actually caught off guard too because scaramouche wasn’t precisely one for words of affection and he showed his care for everyone with his actions
in fact, you had never heard him say those words before but well- it was kinda nice- if only he meant it as you feel it- but he couldn’t, right? who’d confess their feelings so casually while looking at a dessert in the fridge with desire-------
that night, it gets pretty late and to be honest he’s a little too tired to drive you home as he usually would, so he asks if you’d like to sleep over
it wouldn’t be your first time doing so, not even the first time you stayed unplanned, and he had a couple guest rooms that you could use so you accepted
also, staying for longer meant you could keep watching some more of that series with him without worrying about it getting late
or,,,
“actually” you said in a low voice, almost a whisper, since it was getting late and you two had been in complete silence while watching the series “i lowkey still wanted to stream some more”
he scoffs but then lets out a short chuckle, replying in the same volume
“it’s past 2am, who’s going to watch me stream now?”
“i would” have mercy for his poor heart- “but i’d be the streamer too this time so it doesn’t count”
“what even would we do”
“can we play that co-op game you played with childe? it was so much fun”
had you not brought it up, he wouldn’t have offered that ever because? if he had recently played it with childe he didn’t want to stream it again and make it feel repetitive for his audience
(jokes on him because when genshin came out they put up with it being the only thing he streamed for over a week. they’d rewatch any game if it’s you two playing it)
but to be honest, he didn’t really want to stream anymore that day and just wanted to be with you, just you and no one else
he got up from the couch and walked towards the hallway, making you look up to him in confusion for a second, but then started getting excited knowing this meant he was going to let you play it with him
“i don’t really feel like streaming anymore today, but we can still play it. let’s go”
the next day, you two wake up around the same time and make breakfast together
scaramouche i feel is not very talkative in the mornings
in fact, i feel like he’s just not the most talkative in general. he’s more the type to listen, but it’s different during his streams because he’s doing what he loves and talking about what he loves
and when it comes to you and he talks more it’s because he’s talking to who he loves----
before you’re going to leave and you’re standing at the door about to say goodbye to him, he suddenly speaks up before you can
“do you want to go somewhere tomorrow?”
you raise your eyebrows in curiosity from the sudden request, but then smile at him and nod
“yeah sure! what do you have in min-”
“it’s a date” he said, interrupting you, which was weird enough of him (since he would never interrupt you), but his words were even weirder-
“h-huh?” you felt the heat rising to your cheeks, and scaramouche just repeated his words
on the outside, he looked so casual and just, confident- bUT INSIDE he was actually panicking a little bit
but just a little bit.
After a moment, you smiled at him again, this time somewhat more shily but also excited for your date!
“I look forward to it”
Just with that, you two knew you had made the first step
You weren’t just friends anymore
You two had hung out on your own many times before, in fact and as it was mentioned before, you two had even slept over at his house or yours many times before
but it had all always been purely platonic, and you guys had never even questioned that aspect of it even after realising you had romantic feelings for each other
he’d spend the rest of the day thinking of what you could do the next day, as if he hadn’t been brainstorming for ideas all night either
i feel like he hasn’t gone in many (if not any--) dates before
solely because he has never been interested in romance plus he had never liked someone or at least, not as much as he liked you
and even when he found out he felt something for you, he just always told himself he was okay with how things were, because he’d never experienced anything beyond friendship and didn’t feel the need to try and maybe ruin the friendship
SO he didn’t have many ideas of what a good date could be
he definitely didn’t want a cliché corny date, but he really didn’t have any idea of what was good enough for a date
(and if for future dates you want something he’d consider a “”cliché corny date”” he’d do it for you and actually enjoy it)
the last thing he wanted was to have to ask you what you could do for your date
1- because he didn’t want to show you any side of him that didn’t look like he always has everything under control and he’s always composed (as if you wouldn’t want to see every side of him, even his most vulnerable sides- you’d have to work on that with him when you two become official)
2- he… kind of wanted to surprise you…..
but it really got to the point where he really didn’t know what you’d like the most (or what he’d like the most too) and what he wanted most over anything else is to not disappoint you in you two’s first date
SO he finally texted you asking if there was anything special you wanted to do (and therefore indirectly admitting he……….. just really wanted to ask you out. so much he did it without thinking of what he’d do if you said yes--)
you didn’t seem to mind, and in fact you were happy he asked for your opinion
overall, scaramouche was very independent so he wasn’t one to ask others for advice, opinions or anything, much less for help regarding anything
“how long has it been since we last went to the arcade? we could go there! i heard from childe that they added new games!”
and he’s like !?!?!?? THAT…. is…….. the perfect idea
“that actually sounds perfect” he admitted, and the message brought a big smile to your face
“just don’t get mad at me when you lose at all of them” he sent right after, teasing you, and you couldn’t help but let out a laugh out loud
“the last time i won in your favorite game” you reminded him, and even after he read your message, he took a little bit to reply
(he needed a second to put the pieces of his pride together SJNFKJDS)
“don’t get used to it, it won’t happen again”
“we will see about that” the more you two joked like this, the more excited you got thinking about tomorrow
scaramouche was sure now that it’d be a great first date that you’d both remember forever
the next day, it was almost the time for the date and scaramouche was going to pick you up at your house
i feel like scaramouche would be very fashionable and even in his style he doesn’t try to hide that he’s loaded…
not that he cares about buying cheap clothes, literally he’d say if he likes it and it’s good (aka it’s not cheap because it’s made of something that won’t make it last longer than 3 weeks) he’ll get it
but it just so happens that many times… the clothes he likes most are from famous brands…
AND THIS DAY!!!!!! he’s putting together one of his favorite outfits because it’s a special day
it almost hurts me just how nonchalant he’d look on the outside, making it a little hard to know exactly just how much this date meant to him (because as i said he’s not one to be very vocal about his feelings or even his thoughts)
BUT i trust that you… since you know him well…. can see past all that and you know that this is not just anything casual to him. this is special.
STILL!!!! he’d try his best to not let the blush rise to his cheeks and show, as well as to not let his voice shake when he complimented that you looked very good
ANYWAYS i think i think Scaramouche wouldn’t be one for big pda
the most he’d do where anyone can see is hold your hand or put his arm around your waist
WHICH IS WHY he’d try to be all smooth (and he would manage) reaching for your hand and lacing his fingers with yours
he wouldn’t make eye contact because then he’s sure it’ll show on his face that he’s getting somewhat flustered, but he’d still ask if you’re okay with it, to which you said yes
the area where the arcade was is always somewhat crowded so when you two were getting there, scaramouche would tighten the grip on your hand a little bit to make sure you wouldn’t let go and you’d be pulled apart by people trying to walk past however they can
you know that if you two got serious about your relationship, he would want to be the first person to share the news with his fans
BUT since he was so popular now, you two lived in a pretty big city and now were at a popular area (+ scaramouche wouldn’t be the type to try and hide his identity because he’s never had people make a fuss when they recognise him)
you were a little worried someone would see you two and maybe take a picture and post it online and it’d go viral before he can admit it himself
because of that, you end up throwing back to him the question he had asked when he held your hand
“are you sure this is okay?”
your question confused him because he didn’t know what you mean, so he finally looked you in the eyes and waited for you to explain further
“it’s just- what if somebody sees us and recognises you?”
he looked away from you and back at where he was going, taking a few seconds to answer before he just shrugged
“i don’t care”
you softly let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding as you waited for him to say something, and almost missed the way he whispered
“as long as it doesn’t affect you”
for someone who seemed and actually tried to seem to self-sufficient, who appreciated his friends but was also okay on his own because he was absolutely comfortable with himself, he was actually…
more selfless than people would ever know, especially when it came to you
you two would have SO much fun in the arcade, trying every single game many times
this time though, scaramouche won in his favorite game so he lived up to his words
you two won so many tickets you literally didn’t even know what to do with them once you got the couple prizes you were interested in
you bumped into a couple fans of his, so you talked for a while
once again, you were met with suggestions of opening your own streaming channel, and even scaramouche said “i’ve told them that many times too, but they always say they think their streams won’t be fun enough”
and the fans are like “NO!! literally everyone thinks you’re super nice and fun!! of course you don’t have to if you don’t want to, but we’d love it!!”
one of the fans (exaggerating a little as a joke) said “i’ll be your number 1 fan i swear” and the three of you laughed, except scaramouche who just scoffed and smirked
“i am ALREADY their number one fan. but good try” <- scaramouche in his head. say it outloud u coward.
but at the same time it was a joke scaramouche chill pretty much everyone knows you’re their number one fan……. even though you think you’re so smooth………. they just don’t say anything
they were very nice and fun to talk to and you knew scaramouche and you didn’t really want anything else from the prizes, so you offered you two’s tickets to them
“we don’t really need these anymore so maybe you’ll have more use for them!!”
they got SO excited, the way their eyes lit up :( scaramouche is convinced you’re an angel but he’s also very happy to see how joyful his fans got because those were more than enough for the prize they really wanted-
so after that cute little interaction and having used up your energy for competition, you two leave and think of buying some ice cream or a milkshake or something to end the date nicely and to enjoy while you walk back home
the arcade was not exactly very close to where you two lived (it was far from your house, but even farther from his-) so he asked if you were okay with walking back or if you two should get an uber or something, to which you said you were okay
walking back with him meant!! a little more time you could spend with him
and he was happy you said that because he was feeling the same way and still didn’t want the day to end
we’ll see more about the kind of things he likes and dislikes if he’s released as a playing character BUT FOR NOW i really get this vibe that he’d LOVE boba tea
i even think he’d?? enjoy tea in general??? classy boy…
SO you two would end up going to get some boba
it was very touching how, when reading the flavors they had that day, he suddenly and casually went “oh, they have your favorite” and you looked at the one he was pointing at and !!! indeed it was your favorite!!!!!!!
he remembers this kind of details very well
you take the chance to talk some more as you’re walking home
scaramouche asks about your job with voice acting and you tell him that you actually have been recording some new lines for your genshin character lately because in the next update there’ll be an event involving them
he’s looking forward to it but he teases you a little asking if it’s okay for you to spoil him with such information
but it’s okay because it’s not like he’d tell anyone, especially knowing it could get you in trouble
when he drops you off at your house, he has a hard time saying goodbye
literally you’re standing at your door and he’s in front of you, a couple steps away, looking away from you
you don’t say goodbye either, mainly because you know scaramouche is working the courage to say something, and you can also sort of guess what he wants to say
you think of saying it first, but then think that it would make scaramouche proud to be honest about his feelings and confess first
“i’ve liked you for a long time”
you can’t help the smile that makes its way onto your face, unconsciously reaching a hand up to slightly cover it
“i feel the same way” you replied to him in a soft voice
he took a deep breath and exhaled it softly, finally lifting up his gaze and making eye contact with you
it was already dark outside, so you couldn’t appreciate the faint rosy blush on his cheeks well
“can i kiss you?”
your eyes widened for a second, not expecting him to ask and if anything, thinking he’d just step forward and do it
so you were a little embarrassed and caught off-guard to reply properly, so you just nodded and put your hand down as he took the last couple steps and his face was right in front of yours
he’d cup your cheek in one of his hands, feeling the warmth of your skin
you closed your eyes, and he looked at you for a second longer before he finally leaned in and closed the short distance that separated your lips
at that moment you both knew that you had been missing on so much more when you two just settled and were content with your friendship
but!! that was about to change now, so it was all worth it
after that, scaramouche would make clear that this would be the first day of your relationship!! and even if he didn’t say it with words, you could just feel his happiness!!
so!! after that, because of work you two got a little busy the next couple months so dates weren’t very frequent
or at least, they weren’t dates like the one you first had
but still whenever you two were free he’d go over to your house, or you’d come over to his to play, stream together, or literally just spend time together doing anything
he wouldn’t let people know you two had started dating straight away (if anything, only his other streamer friends -aka you two’s friends in common- knew)
but the day he said it, he wanted you to be there
SO one day you two were streaming and you were currently reacting to one fanart of you two together
so he looked at you and you made eye contact and it was like you two spoke with your eyes like
“do we tell them now”
“let’s tell them.”
so scaramouche would clear his throat and without closing the fanart, he’d say he has something he wanted to announce
everyone was excited thinking it’d be some new project, maybe involving you
maybe some merch??? and the fanarts had reminded him of it???????
BUT THEN he straightforwardly said
“y/n and i are dating”
and everyone goes aBSOLUTELY CRAZY
amidst the chaos, you two catch a comment saying “will you unban the people who shipped you two” and you laugh
and you look at each other like “did you read that one?” “yeah”
and scaramouche is like “yeah, i guess i will have to unban some people”
and when some get unbanned they’re like “fREEDOM!!!!”
and jokingly they’re all like “APOLOGISE!!!!!!!! SAY SORRY!!!” so he just laughs and you join them being like “!!! apologise!!! you banned them for it and!! look at you now!!”
so he ends up trying to hold in another laugh as he mutters a halfassed ‘sorry’ and everyone starts commenting claps and hearts and celebrating that he apologised. now justice has been made.
the rest of that stream suddenly feels livelier and brighter!! you two are laughing a lot and so is everyone in the chat!!
and also the new genshin event would’ve already just been released that same day so you can talk about some of your experiences with recording or what you thought of it
and scaramouche would let you play it yourself!! (he still hadn’t played it) and it was also the first time you played genshin live!! you’d show people the characters you have and everything and tell them some anecdotes
people would be SHOCKED because you!? don’t have the character you voiced!? D:
and you’re like “yeah… i pulled for them and used up all my primogems and… didn’t get them”
and your banner is back because of the event, so scaramouche won’t let this slide!!!!!!!!!! YOU WILL GET YOUR CHARACTER.
your luck is terrible compared to his so at one point you’ll literally feel bad for how much he’s spending for you to get it
but he doesn’t mind at all and everyone is having fun so!!
and once you finally get them you’re sO HAPPY and everyone in the chat is celebrating
and you think it’s over but scaramouche is like ???? what are you doing?? open the wish page again. you’re going to get them c6.
and you’re like oh my gOD PLEASE NO DON’T SPEND MORE MONEY ON ME FOR THIS
but he won’t listen and he’ll do it
so!!! he’ll always do his best to be the best boyfriend he can be for you!! so you better give him your heart!!!!
#genshin#genshin impact#genshin impact x reader#scaramouche#scaramouche x reader#genshin impact scenarios#genshin impact imagines#genshim impact headcanons#genshin impact fluff#genshin impact scaramouche#scaramouche scenarios#scaramouche headcanons
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Sims 4 Legacy Challenge
a challenge by @chellplays (revisited by @lybeuh)
This is a twelve generation challenge for all of the marriage candidates from concernedape’s stardew valley.
Usual rules apply, meaning no cheats that give you an unfair advantage. Your sims do not have to look or be named after the characters in each generation. do whatever you like!
Generation 1: Abigail:
You were raised with humble upbringings. Your dad ran a general store, while your mom was best at complaining about your “alternative lifestyle.” You left home looking to start a life free of rules and parents, and with 20 000 simoleons in your pocket, you settled down in a new city.
traits: music lover, adventurous, geek .
aspiration: the curator.
career: tech guru, esport gamer branch
goals:
⦁ max out the rock climbing skill
⦁ reach at least level 5 of the video game skill.
⦁ reach at least level 5 in any musical instrument.
⦁ complete the frog collection.
⦁ climb the top of the mountain in Mt. Komorebi
⦁ have one “quirky” trait, appearance-wise (e.g. unnatural hair color).
⦁ have two best friends, and marry one of them.
⦁ own a cat named david jr.
⦁ have at least two children.
Generation 2: Emily:
You’re just working at the bar to make ends meet… but your real passion is tailoring. You make your clothes from scratch.
traits: cheerful, vegetarian, good.
aspiration: freelance botanist.
career: barista.
goals:
⦁ max out the knitting skill.
⦁ complete the knitted clothes colection.
⦁ must live in the same house as your sibling.
⦁ make a best friend with a sim who lives in another city/world.
⦁ grow your own garden. you like your meals organic.
⦁ decorate your house with clothing racks. you love fashion.
⦁ develop max affinity with another sim in both the green and pink bars, have two or more children with them, then “ask just to be friends.”
⦁ never marry.
Generation 3: Sam:
You are an outgoing, friendly sim who is brimming with youthful energy. You play guitar and drums, and want to start a band as soon as you have enough songs together. However, you do have a habit of starting ambitious projects and not finishing them.
traits: music lover, outgoing, ambitious.
aspiration: musical genius.
career: entertainer, musician branch.
goals:
⦁ have a job as a part-time retail employee as a teen.
⦁ reach level 10 of the entertainer career.
⦁ max out the guitar skill.
⦁ reach at least level 5 in the video game skill.
⦁ must not be the youngest child. live with your younger sibling(s) until they are old enough to move out. have a good relationship with them.
⦁ have a strained relationship with your father (if not applicable, with any one parent).
⦁ become best friends with two other entertainers.
⦁ be married twice, and have one child with each spouse.
Generation 4: Sebastian:
You are a rebellious loner who lives in your parents’ basement. You tend to get deeply absorbed in computer games, comic books, and sci-fi novels, and will sometimes spend great lengths of time pursuing these hobbies alone in your room. You can be a bit unfriendly to people you don’t know.
traits: loner, geek, bookworm.
aspiration: computer whiz.
career: freelance programmer.
goals:
⦁ reach the top of the freelance programmer career.
⦁ reach level 5 of the keyboard (piano) skill.
⦁ reach level 5 of the video gaming skill.
⦁ max out the programming skill.
⦁ have a negative relationship with your half-sibling and step-parent.
⦁ live in the basement of your parents’ house.
⦁ only have one child, with whom you have a strained relationship.
⦁ eventually let your relationship with your spouse deteriorate and subsequently get a divorce.
Generation 5: Penny:
You live with your mom in a little trailer. while your mom is out carousing at the bar, you quietly tends to your chores in the dim, stuffy room you are forced to call home. you are shy and modest, without any grand ambitions for life other than settling in and starting a family. You likes to cook (although your skills are questionable) and read books from the local library.
traits: family-oriented, bookworm, neat.
aspiration: big happy family
career: none.
goals:
⦁ live with your mother (if not applicable, any one parent), with whom you have a negative relationship.
⦁ you must cook for your parent and clean the house every day.
⦁ live in a trailer-esque house. you are by no means wealthy.
⦁ reach level 5 of the cooking skill.
⦁ both you and your parent may not have jobs
⦁ marry the first person you fall in love with.
⦁ your spouse is the only one who may bring in any income, while you are a stay at home mom.
⦁ own a luxury pool at some point in your life.
Generation 6: Harvey:
You’re a little old for a bachelor, but you have a kind heart and a respected position in the community. You live in a small apartment, but spend most of your time working. There’s a sense of sadness about you.
traits: genius, foodie, good.
aspiration: successful lineage.
career: doctor.
goals:
⦁ never date throughout your teens or young adulthood. focus on your career instead. get married only as an adult.
⦁ reach the top of the doctor career.
⦁ you love planes and decorate your house with plane related items
⦁ own a coffee machine. drink coffee as much as possible.
⦁ go jogging at least three times a week.
⦁ set up a reading garden in your backyard.
⦁ live in an apartment until you marry
⦁ have at least two children. having spent most of your life single, you want to have a comfortably sized family asap.
Generation 7: Haley:
Being wealthy and popular throughout high school has made you a little conceited and self-centered. You have a tendency to judge people for superficial reasons. But is it too late for you to discover a deeper meaning to life? Is there a fun, open-minded young person hidden within that shell?
traits: materialistic, snob, outgoing.
aspiration: fabulously wealthy.
career: none (only get one after you are married).
goals:
⦁ become enemies with your one of your sibling as a teenager.
⦁ max out the photography skill.
⦁ you may only get a career after you are married, and you must follow the same career path as your spouse. they opened your mind and inspired you to have interests beyond shopping.
⦁ earn at least three points in charisma, so you may donate to online charities after you are married.
⦁ bake a cake for every birthday that comes around.
⦁ grow a flower garden.
⦁ become friends with your sibling(s) again after you are married.
Generation 8: Elliot:
You live alone in a cabin. You are a writer who dreams of one day writing a magnificent novel. You are a sentimental “romantic” with a tendency to go off onto flowery, poetic tangents. When you can afford it, you enjoy a strong beverage at the bar.
traits: romantic, bookworm, loner.
aspiration: bestselling author.
career: writer, author branch.
goals:
⦁ reach the top of the author career.
⦁ live in a cabin-esque house near the beach
⦁ max out the writing skill.
⦁ reach level 5 of the piano skill.
⦁ reach level 5 of the cooking skill.
⦁ own a small garden.
⦁ specialize in romance books and poetry. later, you may also specialize in sci fi or mystery novels.
⦁ write love emails to your love interest at least once a week.
⦁ go to a bar at least once a week
Generation 9: Leah:
You love to spend time outside, foraging for a wild meal or simply enjoying the gifts of the season. You’re a talented artist with a large portfolio of work… Yet you’re too nervous to display it to the public.
traits: art lover, loves outdoors, foodie.
aspiration: painter extraordinaire.
career: none (painter, later on).
goals:
⦁ max out the painting skill, and paint at least 5 masterpieces.
⦁ date only one person in your young adulthood and have a child with them, but never marry. your partner is unsupportive of your artistic lifestyle and encourages you to “get a real job.” whether you choose to get a traditional career, that is not as a painter, is up to you.
⦁ eventually marry the love of your life as an adult: someone who is supportive of your art. if you did choose a career, quit and take up a career as a painter.
⦁ have at least one child with your new spouse.
⦁ harvest wild fruits, vegetables, etc. on weekends.
⦁ grow an excellent apple tree.
⦁ attend a flea market and sell your art.
Generation 10: Maru:
You acquired a passion for creating gadgets at a young age. When you aren’t in your room, fiddling with tools and machinery, you sometime do odd jobs at the local hospital.
traits: ambitious, outgoing, geek.
aspiration: nerd brain.
career: astronaut, space ranger branch.
goals:
⦁ reach level 10 of the athlete career track.
⦁ max out the handiness skill.
⦁ max out the logic skill.
⦁ have a negative relationship with your half-sibling.
⦁ upgrade at least five objects.
⦁ own a rocket ship.
⦁ your sim’s partner must be friends with your father (if not applicable, with either parent) before you can become engaged.
⦁ eventually, your relationship with your spouse becomes strained and you break up. you die as soon as your eldest child is a young adult.
Generation 11: Alex:
You love sports. You are quite arrogant and brag to everyone that you are going to be a professional athlete. Is your cockiness just a facade to mask your crushing self-doubt? Are you using your sports dream to fill the void left by the disappearance of your parents?
traits: bro, active, dog lover.
aspiration: bodybuilder.
career: athlete, professional athlete branch.
goals:
⦁ reach level 10 of the athlete career track.
⦁ max out the athletic skill.
⦁ become enemies with your father, but have had a very close relationship with your mother.
⦁ begin dating in your teens and go on at least three dates with three different people.
⦁ do not marry until you are in the later stages of young adulthood. you’re marrying your soulmate, someone who stuck with you despite your arrogance.
⦁ own a dog named dusty.
Generation 12: Shane:
You are often rude and unhappy, and suffer from depression and alcohol dependence. However, your attitude starts to change towards your spouse. After work you frequently spend your evenings at the bar. If you could reset your life maybe you’d start a chicken farm. Only free-range eggs of course.
traits: lazy, gloomy, cat lover.
aspiration: friend of the animal.
career: retail employee.
goals:
⦁ go to the bar after work every day.
⦁ get pizza delivered at least once a week
⦁ only get married as an adult.
⦁ after marriage, quit your job as a retail employee and choose a different career path. you’ve been encouraged by your spouse to give up alcohol.
⦁ after marriage, start a small garden.
⦁ have a maximum of two children.
⦁ max out the pet trainig skill
⦁ adopt a cat named charlie.
⦁ adopt one dog and train them all tricks
#stardew valley#stardew#sims#sim#sims 4#sims 4 challenge#sims 4 legacy#game#twitch#youtube#sims 4 generations#challenge#legacy#ts4#ts4 challenge#ts4 legacy#sv
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a/n: This is by far THE MOST requested fic I’ve ever had and (a year later) it’s finally here!! First of all, sorry that it took me so long but when I first wrote Wildest Dreams I never intended on it having a follow up, but the amount of love I got from it was so overwhelming that I decided to put this together for you all :) I’m not gonna lie, I’m a bit nervous about it, considering the amount of requests I’ve had the past year, I know there’s gonna be a lot of expectations and I wanted to do something a bit different so it’s not too predictable lol. So yeah, as always, feedback is very much welcomed!! If you enjoy please reblog it to support my writing, it would mean the world to me <3
word count: 13.7k
warnings: none!
concept: It’s Evan’s birthday and he decides to do something a bit different.
Wildest Dreams: read part 1 here :)
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
In the last two steps, you have to use your leg to support the box as it starts to slowly slip down your fingers. This serves as a reminder to start exercising again now that the midterm is over — meaning that you should finally give in to Nia’s pleas to join her in the free week of Pilates classes she got when signing in at the gym, “Exercising is one of the best ways to relieve stress!” She would argue, to which you’d simply reply with something along the lines of: “So does binging another trashy reality tv show!”
Thankfully, no one seems to notice your struggle, sparing you the embarrassment of listening to their teases due to your difficulty in carrying one of the smallest boxes of the bunch. Nate barely glances at you once you finally reach the car to hand him the box, only shooting the longest smile you’ve ever seen coming from him—which somehow still manages to be probably the quickest when compared to any other regular person. His girlfriend, who stands with hands on her hips, entirely held his attention. Nia’s purple strands of hair poke out of her half-bun in every direction and her bottom lip has found its permanent spot between her teeth as her eyes fixate on the vehicle in front of her, barely blinking.
“Everything alright, Ni?” You prompt, trying to even your breathing. “Forgot something? There’s still time to check.”
“It’s not that.” She mumbles, shaking her head to break out of her thoughts. “My keyboard doesn’t fit.” Nia nods at the instrument lying on top of the car’s ceiling.
“Oh,” You say, frowning your lips as you take in her stressed figure. Clearing your throat, you attempt to blurt out a joke, “Maybe it’s a sign you shouldn’t move it and stay right here in our little flat with creaky doors.”
She breathes out a sharp laugh, finally looking at you as she drops her arms. “Don’t start.” She warns, “You promised; no crying today.”
“Don’t worry, I’m good at holding back the tears.” You give her a soft smile, pulling her smaller frame into a hug. The sudden reality of your best friend and roommate leaving you hitting you at once. “Gonna miss you, Ni.”
You feel her sigh into your shoulder, arms circling around your middle. “I’ll be ten minutes away.”
“Not the same.”
“I know.”
The two of you sway in silence for a moment, and you watch from over her shoulder as Nate attempts to awkwardly pick up the keyboard, almost dropping it on the sidewalk in the process. He grunts, the instrument tilting in his arms, and you giggle as you hear Nia sigh once more. Tightening your arms around her, you release each other as she turns to check on her boyfriend who holds the instrument as you would a newborn — except this one is half his size and hard as a wood plank.
He glances between the both of you, helpless. “Uh, where does this go?”
“You can put it with the other big boxes upstairs, babe. We’ll take them Sunday.” Nia says, moving to close the trunk. She looks back at him, calling back in a sing-like voice before he disappears inside, “Thank you!”
You lean back against the car, a playful pout plumping your bottom lip. “Am I only seeing you again on Sunday, then?”
“Nope, I’ll pick you up for Evan’s birthday — did you forget about it already?”
You have. “Of course not. It’s on — tomorrow.”
“Is it tomorrow?” Nia gasps, eyes widening. “Holy shit, tomorrow’s Friday.”
You nod slowly, just as shocked as she is about how quickly the past couple of weeks have flown by. Between piles of book reports and stress-tear-stained essays during midterms week, you also had to find some time to help Nia with packing boxes while searching for a new roommate for yourself. If you managed a five-hour sleep on these past days, that would have been a well-rested night. So you can’t really blame yourself for forgetting about Evan’s birthday when Nia herself had it slipping through her mind.
“This is an emergency,” Nia says, eyes focusing on a point beyond you and, you feel like, if you listen close enough, you can hear the engines inside her head working. “I’ll have come here earlier so you can help me with my outfit.”
You chuckle. “What even is the theme this year?”
“He didn’t tell me,” Nia says in a huff. “But, on the bright side, I don’t think this year he’ll do anything too crazy — he was too busy these last couple months with that short film I told you about, remember?”
“Evan doing something low key? That’s a first.” You raise your eyebrows, skeptical.
“I mean, I don’t know. I’m just guessing.” Nia shrugs, picking at her nails. “I’m only saying because he mentioned once he was only inviting, like, twenty people.”
Now, this is a surprise. “I’m glad I made the cut, then.”
It’s not a secret to anyone who’s ever had any kind of interaction with Evan that he’s fond of the dramatics of life — his bright-colored outfits with mismatching patterns being the first example that comes to mind — and that reflects as well in his events. Especially when it comes to his birthday.
To be fair, you’ve only actually been to two birthday parties of his so far — considering the invitation usually finds you because he’s close to Nia and sees you as some sort of extension of her. Nevertheless, they were both impactful enough that left a clear impression of how much he enjoys celebrating himself. Last year in particular you remember quite well. It was what he called “Evaney” themed; being a mix of himself and his favorite artist: Britney Spears. And, while you and Nia showed up as one of at least fifteen different variations of the Baby One More Time schoolgirl outfit, Evan pulled a perfect match of the Oops! I Did It Again red bodysuit that he got one of his fashion student friends to tailor for him, as well as freshly dyed beach blonde hair to suit it. He even went as far as photoshopping pictures of himself on Britney’s body and had them printed on posters hung on every single room of the house. There were even custom-made cups and napkins with them — two of them that Nia stole at the end of the party still sit somewhere in your kitchen to this day.
Another particular thing you remember quite clearly was that there were enough people crowded in his living room to fill up your entire apartment, as you recall. And that’s about how a typical event at his home is like — even on his friendsmas dinner there were much more than just twenty people eating turkey out of disposable hot pink plates. So, Nia’s information leaves you wondering what he could have in mind for tomorrow with such a limited list of people.
Before you can voice your wonders to her, though, Nate pushes through the entrance door again. You can tell he, much like you minutes ago, is trying to cover his heavy breathing. “I left it on top of those big boxes with a bunch of books in ‘em.”
“Brilliant! Thank you, baby.” Nia grins, wrapping an arm around his middle. “By the way, we just remembered Evan’s birthday’s tomorrow.”
“Is it tomorrow already?” Nate asks, and you hold back a giggle at the way his face scrunches in discontent. He hates going to Evan’s to a point that’s nearly comical. “Fuck’s sake.”
“And I think I’ll come here early so we can get ready together.” Nia nods towards you.
Nate grunts. “Do I have to go this time?”
“Of course, darling.” She rises to her tiptoes to pinch his cheek, to which he brushes it off.
Nate looks at you, and you only send him a tight smile in solidarity. The two of you share similar experiences with Evan, considering the only reason either of you even gets invited is that because you’re close to Nia, and she’s close to Evan. Although you like Evan, even if you’re not that close with him, you can still put on your social mask for a couple of hours and have fun at his parties. Nate, on the other hand, is likely the least sociable person you’ve ever met, and it’s obvious how uncomfortable he gets every time.
Nia seems to sense how tense he gets as well, because she steps in front of her boyfriend, finding his eyes with her doe-like ones. “I mean, if you don’t want to, then you don’t have to.”
He sighs, “Of course I’ll go with you.” He looks up at you. “Maybe this time we can actually count how many faces of his we can see from the couch.”
This time you don’t hold back a giggle. “I have a feeling we’ll have an easier time this year.”
“Hope so.” Nate taps on Nia’s back. "Let's go, then? Is everything you need in the trunk?”
“Yup.” She answers, circling the car and opening the door to the passenger’s side. Before entering, she gives you one last look. “Do you want me to bring anything for you tomorrow?”
“I’m good.”
“‘kay!” She enters, closing the door behind her in a click and leaning over Nate to wave at you from his window. “See you tomorrow! Don’t cry too hard tonight!”
“I won’t!” You wave back.
Watching as the car pulls back, before driving away and disappearing around the corner, there’s a light breeze that raises goosebumps on the exposed skin of your arms. You cross them under your chest, leaning back into the wall of your building, not quite ready to go back to your empty home yet. The seconds blend into minutes and you stand there The promise you made to Nia not even a minute ago already pooling in your eye, knowing you wouldn’t be able to keep it anyway, you let it tickle its way down your cheek.
A rougher gust of wind hits you and, this time, you turn to go inside.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
The days are still not long enough so that the sun can shine proudly at seven in the afternoon, but as spring just about rounds the corner there’s still a golden glow as the rays provide one last warmth before disappearing on the horizon. And that’s how the sky greets you once you step out of your building to make your way towards Evan’s house for his birthday.
As planned, Nia arrived at yours with plenty of time so the two of you could help each other get ready, a bag filled with clothes she’s just taken to Nate’s yesterday under her arm for you to help her choose. “I’m thinking something monochromatic tonight.” She said as she walked in, making you jump in your spot on the couch as you didn’t hear her using the spare key. “I’m just not sure what color.”
She ended up choosing red. There was an old box of red hair dye you found lost inside the bathroom cabinet after Nia left — along with two different brands of shaving cream, although those belonging to Nate — and, after presenting it to her, she decided to go all for it, taking it as a sign. Nate showed up just about an hour after his girlfriend, still in his work attire and barely batting an eye at Nia’s new hair color as she blew dried it. The only comment leaving his mouth being, “You look like a tomato,” before kissing her forehead and excusing himself for a nap while the two of you finished getting ready.
What neither of you realized was that Nia’s last-minute decision took more time than you predicted, giving you barely enough time to get dressed. To her, that wasn’t exactly an inconvenience considering she had an outfit ready to match any color she wanted — in this case, was a red-dyed denim two-piece. and a matching jacket that ended up discarded after she noticed it covered her newest shoulder tattoo (though you tried to argue she could just have Nate carry it so she could wear it considering she eventually would get cold at some point). To you, however, was more of a stressful task, seeing you hadn’t taken in mind to think of an outfit beforehand. So you ended up just going with the safest option that didn’t give you a lot of room to overthink, choosing to finish your makeup on the way so Evan wouldn’t have any of your heads on a plate for being late.
You’ve found that applying mascara on a moving vehicle is not the easiest task, as Nia holds your elbow to help you keep steady while talking nonstop with the driver about a topic you stopped paying any mind to about ten minutes ago.
“I’m loving our black and red moment, by the way.” She turns to you, loosening her hold as you finish the last coat. “You look like one of those hot businesswomen with your teenage daughter who likes to dress like an animated character.”
You laugh at her comparison, only now noticing the discrepancy between both your outfits. Without even realizing it, you also ended up going for the monochromatic look. Except unlike Nia’s, yours completely lacks any color. “That’s actually the best comparison you could make.”
“I know — You can take a left right here — Here, I have lip gloss.” Nia fetches a small tube from her jacket (that she ended up taking, after all), presenting it to you.
“Do you not have lipstick?”
“Are you not planning on smudging it later?” Nia wiggles her eyebrows, teasing. The hint behind her words makes you roll your eyes, snatching the lip gloss from her hand without bothering to give her an answer. There was about a month or so, just before winter rolled around, that Nia felt as if she had a mission to get you with someone. You suspect, knowing too well how her mind works, that she must’ve felt some sort of guilt for what happened during her film project last year. It was clear that her attempts came from a place of good heart, but this doesn’t mean that it made them any less annoying. However, after her plans to move in with Nate became more concrete, her cupid persona seemed to have disappeared, or so you’d thought. But now that there’s nothing else filling her mind anymore, it looks like she’s back at it, and you can’t help but snort. “What? I’m just saying-”
“You say a lot of things, most of them are incorrect.” You say, “I’m not smudging anything tonight. Not on a party with twenty people, for fuck’s sake.”
“Don’t say that before — right there! The big house on the corner!” Nia leans over the console, signaling to the driver where to park. It’s so sudden that you notice how he jumps just slightly from his seat, chuckling to yourself at how Nate snaps his eyes at her.
The front of Evan’s Victorian home is unusually quiet once you step out onto the sidewalk. So much so that, if it weren’t for the lined cars parked along the street and filling his driveway, you would’ve thought you’d typed in the wrong address.
The discrepancy is clear to you when compared to other gatherings Evan hosts in his house, but especially for his birthday. Last year, you could hear Toxic blasting from his place from the moment you turned on his street, and a small crowd gathered on his front yard — most of which you recall being comprised of people plastered out of their minds, particularly one semi-naked man who was using one lamppost as a strip pole while swinging a stuffed snake
That’s more or less the standard one could expect when invited to a party at Evan’s. So, to find the street as silent as any regular day is, to an understanding, odd.
“Are you sure it’s the right date?” You ask as the metal creak of the front gate mends with gushes of wind whistling through the air.
“Yup,” Nia says simply, walking in front of you. “You can hear the music inside, shush.”
You come quiet, listening in, and, surely, you can hear the faint keys of a piano coming from the other side of the stone walls, but it only brings up more questions to your head than answers. Evan seems like the last person on Earth who would listen to classical music. Deciding not to voice your question this time, you follow short behind Nia, kicking some loose stones on the gravel path leading to the front door.
There’s no need for more than a single knock for it to open almost immediately, revealing a lace-clad Evan downing the last bits of his wine. Without the barrier you can hear the music more clearly, the keys of the piano meshing in a peculiar way, not like anything you’ve ever heard in a classical song— at least not ten years ago when you tried to learn piano for a year before giving up.
“Look at my favorite people!” Evan says with his purple-stained lips, pulling Nia for a hug with the arm that’s not holding the door open while pointing at a spot behind her. “Did you greet Jonathan when you passed him? It’s his birthday as well.”
He points to a spot where a gnome statue sits in the dry grass, face painted in clown makeup. Nate’s voice comes from behind you, “Christ.”
“Nate!” Evan chirps, going straight for the man standing with a sharp smile and throwing his arms around him. “You know you’re my favorite grumpy, right?”
Nate only taps on the shorter man’s back, quickly moving to Nia’s side as soon as he’s free from the embrace. With that, Evan turns to you, hands finding your elbows as he takes you in, “And what have you been up to, bug? It's been ages.”
“You know… Books and… Stuff.” You chuckle, brushing it off. “Happy birthday, E.”
“Thank you!” He claps his hands together. “Now, c’mon, let’s get all of you started.”
Following him inside, you’re met with a glittery box standing right next to the entrance; rolls of tape seal it shut, and a hand-sized hole has been cut on top of the lid. You try to peek at what could be inside, but strings of colorful crepe paper are stuck to the hole, making it harder to know its contents.
Evan picks up the box, holding it to his side. “So, I need each of you to grab a piece of paper inside the box. There will be a number in it but for now just hold on, drink, and chat while waiting for further instructions.” His voice lowers at the end to give his words more of a mystery behind them.
Nate tenses in front of you and you have to keep yourself from chuckling at his desperate gaze moving from the box to his girlfriend as he moves uncomfortably on his feet. Nia, however, only gives him a pat on his back, barely looking at her boyfriend as she does a little dance in excitement. “Oh, this feels fun.” She says, quickly reaching her hand inside the box and retrieving a piece of paper. “Mysterious, but fun. What do you have in mind, sir?”
“Nothing too crazy this year, darling, you can relax — We’re all too tired.” He moves the box towards Nate, who reluctantly reaches inside. “Just something to mesh people together that won’t give me too much of a headache to clean tomorrow.”
“Smart.” You say, peeking at the box as it’s presented to you before reaching for a paper inside, quickly reading the number eight written on it before folding the piece between your fingers.
“Nice! As always, drinks in the kitchen. We’re starting in ten minutes!” Evan claps, hushing the three of you further inside.
Surprisingly, this time around there are no posters of his face in sight as you follow Nia and Nate to the kitchen. There’s a mild mash of voices coming from the living room — where the sound of the piano is the loudest, and you wonder if he got an actual piano or if it’s just a Bluetooth speaker —, but it’s not nearly as loud as you’re used to from past times. The lighting has been lowered to a buttery yellow; you realize once you enter the kitchen that feels too bright to your eyes in contrast to the hallway.
“Is there any alcohol?” You wonder out loud, and Nia glances at you with her eyebrows shot towards her hairline. “What? I’m just asking ‘cause everyone is unusually quiet.”
“There’s wine and — what are these guys right here?” She picks up one out of four plastic jars sitting on the kitchen island, reading the label stuck to it out loud, “Strawberry Mary — ooh, this looks fun.”
You reach for the other three to check their contents, but all have names similar to the one Nia now fills her cup with — fruity, yet mysterious: Lana Banana, Jenny Berry Mix, and Pineapple Suzan. “Did he come up with these?” You chuckle, reaching for the berry mix.
“It was probably Adam,” Nia says, and you frown. “That bartender guy? The one with the pet snakes.”
“Oh, yeah. I know him.”
The room comes quiet as you serve yourself, and only after you glance up you realize a tension lingering in the air. Nate stands awkwardly in a corner, eyes fixed on Nia as he moves his head around subtly. Glancing between the two of them, you notice how their expressions change as they keep their eyes locked, not a single word being uttered out loud. To you, it almost feels as if they are reading each other’s minds, and the heat of their silent argument becoming clear once Nate huffs, shaking his head.
Nia clears her throat, seemingly uncomfortable, shooting you a knowing look. It’s only when she gives you a toothless smile that you realize the silent question behind it. “Uhm, I’m going to check if there are any sweets outside.”
Beelining towards the doorway, you quickly make your way out of the room. The hallway is empty and, from where you stand awkwardly in the middle of it, you can tell Evan’s left his spot by the front door, meaning he’s likely gone to the living room where the rest of the guests are. You can hear them chatting, although like you previously pointed, the voices are much more controlled than what you’re used to, and that makes you oddly flustered by the thought of walking in alone.
Considering the limited amount of invitations this year, the chances of you knowing anyone are slim and, to add to your sudden nervousness, most of the people from Evan’s closest circle of friends are — like himself — inexplicably intimidating. This is mostly because it feels like this unspoken competition that everyone has settled with each other, to subtly brag about your success whilst simultaneously pretending to be impressed about the other’s accomplishments. And for you specifically, considering you’re not part of this artist clique that they lock themselves into, it feels particularly tiresome to be part of those interactions.
So, you opt to wait for Nia, pretending to admire one peculiar painting hanging on a wall opposite to where the doorway leading to the living room stands. Every so often, you catch yourself glancing over your shoulder one way or the other, either towards the kitchen to check if your friends are joining you, or to the doorway where the rest of the guests are in. At one point, the voices get louder, joining in a laugh before tangling together in a mess of noise you can’t make sense of. It’s after a minute that you hear footsteps coming from the living room, making you freeze on your spot, carefully turning your back to whoever’s about to catch you avoiding the party, and focusing on the piece you’ve been staring at for the past five minutes.
The painting you first thought was just random strokes of earth tones abstractly put together you now realize it’s a man and it doesn’t take you more than a second or two to recognize Evan’s side profile in a peach shade. Your hand claps on top of your mouth as you fight the urge to laugh. The sound comes out muffled, but it stops as you hear the footsteps falter as they turn into the hallway. Keeping you back to them, you listen as the wooden floor creaks as whoever was approaching makes their way back. You peek to catch sight of who it might be, but all you make out is the shadow of mustard corduroys turning the corner.
As if on cue, Nia and Nate finally appear from the kitchen, thankfully neither appearing to be sour after the talk in the kitchen.
“Finally.” You say, still feeling giggly from your finding. “Nate, you have to check this-”
“Okay! Let’s start, then. Do we have everyone in the living room?” Evan’s voice interrupts you as he calls out. Nia guides you along with her to the living room. And, as soon as the three of you enter, Evan nods at you, before continuing, “Now that all the bunnies are trapped, we shall begin!” He laughs, clapping his hands together before motioning vaguely to everyone. “Before I explain what I have planned, I want to pair you all. So, I’ll call out the numbers that each of you picked when you arrived, so everyone can find their pair.”
You frown, confuse yet curious about what Evan’s up to as he calls out the numbers. Now that you stop to glance around the room, you note how there are more people than you’d expected. It’s still not nearly as many as previous parties of his, but it still feels like the room is nicely filled, maybe just a dozen people above twenty. And amongst them, there’s quite a few you recognize as they pair up together — like Georgia, the first one to be called, whom you spent a good half of the New Year’s party with, or Taylor, who gets paired with Nia (you remember him particularly from a film festival that Nia had been part of — he produced and directed a short film comparing the second wave of feminism to the wildlife in the Amazon Rainforest, and Nia couldn’t stop complaining about how bad it was for the entire week after).
It’s when Evan jokes with someone on the other side of the room, however, that you see him.
He’s tucked in a corner, right next to the bookshelves, arms crossed under his chest in a way that makes his tattoos pop out of his biceps, something you notice even standing on the opposite end of the room. His smile is subtle as he watches the scene in front of him, but it’s still enough for a dimple to poke at one side of his face -- it’s barely there, but you’ve seen it up close enough times that you notice those details. His hand holds a drink, but you pay no mind to it because what calls your attention is the mustard corduroy hugging his hips, the same one you watched run from you not only five minutes ago.
He laughs, and you avert your eyes, mouth still hung open. You wonder if anyone will notice if you leave.
But, as though he could read your mind, Evan calls the number written on that sits crumbled inside the pocket of your jacket. “Where are my number eights?”
You step forward and, like a magnet, your eyes glue on Harry as he raises his hand.
Shaking your head in disbelief, you have to fight against an urge to shut your eyes tightly as the regret of having left your room at all tonight becomes almost overwhelming. All you expected for the night was to forget about book reports and endless essays piled up on your computer, to relax, maybe drink a bit more than you should while watching Evan’s friends dancing with a taxidermy beaver or something of sorts (that was on his friendsmas party two years ago). Instead, here you are on what feels like the first day of class dynamic your teacher has imposed to make everyone interact with each other. And, suddenly, the long pages of (insert boring book) don’t seem that bad right now.
And to make matters worse (because the universe just likes to add a little more spice to your tragedies) of all people standing in this living room you just had to be paired with the one with whom you had a fling-like relationship six months ago.
It’s awkward before he even approaches you, the tension making you fidget in your spot anxiously, barely being able to shoot a tight smile his way.
The last time you saw Harry was through the rearview mirror of a car, standing on the sidewalk like an abandoned puppy with his tail between his legs. Though you admit you let your dramatics take away when you turned away from him to leave, the feeling behind it was genuine. You were upset. He had led you on, after all, made you think he wanted to have something more just to ignore you for months and, later, appear with a redhead under his arms and call her his girlfriend. So, yes, it wasn’t the best note to leave on.
But despite how you left the last encounter, the spark of nervousness that shoots through your stomachs right now doesn’t come exactly because of his presence, but more so for the awkward nature of this encounter. At the time it happened, you avoided any activity that had the slight possibility of seeing him again like the plague. You were hurt, and you were mad — though the second part was more directed at yourself than at him. But that was six months ago. After all, as much as you felt enchanted by him and as much as those two weeks you spent together were nice, that’s all that it was: two weeks. Yes, you were sad and, yes, maybe you shed a tear or two while watching Love, Rosie with Nia afterward, but that passed as quickly as it came.
That is, until now.
“Your hair is shorter” This Is all you blurt out when he stands in front of you again.
“It is, yeah.” Harry runs his hand through his hair. The strands that last time you saw him, curled around his jawline, now peek just under his earlobe. “Did it myself, actually.”
“Really?” You take a big gulp from your drink, gaze going anywhere but meeting his own. “Found yourself another talent.”
“Another?” You can hear the smirk in his voice.
“I mean, besides acting.” You grin, holding the cup to your lips and sparing him a glance. “Suppose after your debut you’ve gotten yourself busy with casting calls”
“Of course” Harry laughs. Now that you’re closer you have a better look at his dimples as they pop out, as well as the constellation of freckles hugging his nose, and the mole right under his lips. You avert your eyes again. “I’m set to be the next Bond, in fact”
“Oh, wow.” You raise your brows, grinning at the brim of your cup. “I can see it.”
He turns to you, “Can you?” You peek at him. "Why is that?”
This is exactly what you were afraid of all those months ago after last seeing him. The entire reason you ran from any possibility of seeing him again afterward. You can still remember clearly how much of a flirt he is, even when he doesn’t mean to be. It’s not a secret that Harry’s a charming man. His words are like honey, and when he uses them just right, you know is enough to have you melting. And it doesn’t help how well you seem to click together. Even now, you still feel it by your impulse to flirt back, to look him in the eye, and get just close enough to feel the scent of his cologne. Do all that just to turn away in the last second. Tease him the same way he did you. But you don’t do any of that, of course, because you’re as petty as you are bitter. So, instead, you click your tongue. “Don’t get too comfortable, Harry, bet your girlfriend wouldn’t be happy about that.”
He chuckles. “What girlfriend?”
This time you turn fully at him, brows shooting up not in defiance, but surprise. “Yikes.” You say before you’re able to hold back.
“Yikes.” Harry still holds a smile when he repeats it, head falling as he lets out a — nervous? — laugh.
A question pops into your head. One that lingered in your mind for a good while now, but comes back a bit louder now that you have the information that his relationship was short-lasted after all. It’s a short one, but one that requires a long answer, you suppose. What happened? You think. But you don’t dare to voice it, you don’t want to have this conversation with him. Whatever the explanation is, it’s not going to change anything. So you just avert your gaze back to Evan, who now calls for everyone’s attention again.
“I know you’re all dying to know what this is all about. So, I’m going to explain it all.” And with that introduction, Evan dives into a monologue you only pay half mind to. It’s hard for you to focus on the words rapidly leaving his mouth as you can feel Harry glancing at you every so often from the corner of your eye. You listen in to Evan describing himself as a feisty kid and mention his love for drama, and then you feel the ghost of Harry’s arm bumping against yours as he sways on his feet. You try to pay attention to the story being told of the events leading up to this birthday party, and then you have to hold yourself back from meeting Harry’s eyes once you feel them at the side of your face once again. He makes a comment under his breath that you don’t quite catch, and you’re about to question him before Evan’s voice comes in an even higher pitch. “I wanted tonight to be exactly that: chaotic. I didn’t want anything to quite make sense, and I didn’t want to think much, if I’m honest, last year of film school is taking a big chunk of my functioning neurons and m’dad’s whiskey collection is taking the rest of them.”
There’s a collective laugh that takes place and, once again, Harry’s eyes peeking at you. “Everyone can relax, it’s not one of those murder mystery parties, as I’ve heard some people guess — for fuck’s sake as if I have the time and patience to plan something like that.” He says with a sip directly from a wine bottle you just now realize he’s been holding. “It’s a scavenger hunt, you have a partner and an envelope with clues. Each pair will find something related to moi and after it’s all done, we’ll eat burgers and talk about me for the rest of the night.”
“Sounds easy enough.” Harry mumbles.
Evan claps his free hand on his wrist, hushing everyone. “So off you go, c’mon! I’ll be hungry in an hour.”
“This is gonna be…” You start. “Interesting.”
“Interesting is a great word to describe it.”
“Well, let’s try to do this as quickly as possible, then.”
The side of his lips quirks up. “On a rush?”
“This is not exactly a comfortable position to be. I think you get it.” You say, fidgeting on your feet. You wait for a second for him to say something so you can start the activity, but he doesn’t and you realize there’s a piece missing. “Do you have an envelope?”
Harry nods, reaching for his pocket where the envelope sits folded in half. He swiftly opens it, taking out a card.
“Well?” You prompt, “Read us the first clue, Bond.”
There’s a smile that Harry fights against at the nickname and you’re not sure due to the dim light, but you think there’s a hint of a rosy tone on the apple of his cheeks. “An activity that grows lives and ruins manicures.” He reads out loud, pausing for a moment before laughing to himself. “I know this one.”
“Grows lives?” You frown. “As in, a pregnancy?”
Harry shakes his head, leading the way towards the corridor. “As in, gardening.”
“That’s a very weird way to put it.” You say, following him. “Does he garden?”
He walks into the kitchen, greeting two people you don’t recognize who are searching for something — their clue, you assume — inside the cabinets. “No, but his sister does. There’s a greenhouse in the back.”
You simply hum in response, muttering a quick thank you as he opens the door for you that leads to the back garden. The greenhouse is not unfamiliar to you from the outside, there have been a good amount of summer gatherings in his back garden for you to know of its existence. But you’ve thought nothing more about it. If you’re honest, you never really paid much attention to it. If anything, you assumed he used it as storage at most, never taking Evan as someone who enjoyed gardening. Though now you know you were right, you've also learned that his sister lives with him and you wonder why he’s never mentioned it before.
The curiosity inside of you wants to question Harry about it, to ask him what else he knows you don’t. When you think about it, there’s a lot you want to ask him about. Not just regarding Evan, but also regarding him. You wonder what he’s been up in the past six months if he ended up adopting the kitten he’d told you about back when you were still filming or if he read any of the book recommendations you wrote on his notes app one particular night the two of you chatted for longer than the moon could hold itself up in the sky. The part of you that begs for you to say something on the short walk is so strong you have to physically bite your tongue to be able to hold back.
You don’t have to hold for long, however, as Harry takes it upon himself to say, “So,” He starts, clearing his throat, “How- uh- how are you doing?”
Somehow, his words click something inside of your mind. They remind you of why you shouldn’t let that curious part of you win. The sole purpose of it not falling for his charm. You shake your head, “We’re not doing this.”
“Doing what?” He frowns, his steps faltering for a second.
“Small talk.” You answer, focused on your goal. “We’ll just solve this thing as quickly as possible so I can go back home and finish my Euphoria marathon.”
“Right.” Harry nods once, and you can’t help but notice the way his lips quirk down, the frown not leaving his face. You can’t lie and say it doesn’t make your stomach drop the slightest bit to see you’ve upset him, but you have to remind yourself how much he’s upset you, too.
It’s protecting yourself, you think. After tonight, you don’t have to see him ever again.
Inside the greenhouse, you’re greeted with a mix of scents you’re not prepared for before stepping in. The space is compact, with a single corridor narrowed with garden beds on each side. Dozens of branches and leaves tickle you as you walk in, most of them belonging to different flowers that, despite the chilly weather that still lingers outside, are already blooming. It’s a blend of colors, bright reds, and ocean blues, soft purple petals kissing pink and yellow ones.
“We should look for gloves.” Harry’s voice startles you, chuckling as you jump a bit.
“Huh?”
“Gloves.” He says. “I think whatever we’re looking for has to do with the gloves, ‘cause he mentioned manicure.”
“That makes sense.” You look around. Many gardening tools are piling under the tables that hold the garden beds; watering cans and empty pots. You look between bags of fertilizer and drawers filled with shovels. There’s so much stuff to look through that, at one point, you sit back on your calves, glancing around, lost.
You hear Harry leafing through as you’re doing, feeling his legs brushing against your back as he passes by and you stop, watching him from your spot on the floor. He’s got a concentrated look on his face, bottom lip worried between his teeth as he scans through the walls before he opens another drawer. That’s when his gaze falls, catching yours. You quickly turn away, pretending to go through another pile of empty pots and blocking the sound of a chuckle coming from his spot.
For a moment, the only sound in the room is the clicking of ceramics and the opening and closing of wooden drawers. That is until you hear from Harry, “A-ha!”
You look up again, seeing him move to the back where few pairs of gloves hang on the wall — so obvious yet still hidden between raincoats and summer hats. “Right under our noses.” You say, getting up.
Harry searches inside the gloves, tongue trapped between his teeth. “Bingo!” He says, pulling out two tiny bottles from inside one pair.
“What is it?”
“Liquor.” He grins, peeking at you from under his lashes before ripping a piece of paper attached to it. “It says ‘one for each, now get to clue number two.’” He holds up one bottle, offering it to you, to which you take it. “It’s chocolate flavored.”
“Of course it would be a drinking game.” You open it, feeling the artificial chocolate scent braid with the alcohol. “Christ.”
“Don’t smell it, or it’ll be worse,” Harry says, downing his with one quick tilt of his head. “‘S not that bad, actually.”
You mimic his action, letting the drink swiftly burn its way down your throat. Unlike Harry, you can’t help but scrunch your nose at the taste. “You’re a fucking liar.”
Harry only giggles in response, taking the empty bottle from you and placing it back inside the gloves, along with his own.
And then again, silence. You turn to the flowers to find some comfort.
A family of tulips glances back at you, their petals in a full red, it’s the kind of beauty you’re scared to ruin if you touch, so you just rest your hand on the wood. “They’re beautiful.” You only notice you say it out loud when Harry hums back in agreement.
“They are.” He says quietly but somehow feels loud by how close he is. “Tulips are my favorites.”
You stop, brows raising incredulously at him. “No, they’re not.”
“What?”
Cursing the universe for playing with you like this, you can’t help but laugh at the situation. “It’s just- they’re my favorites, too.” You look at him. “My nan used to plant them when I was little.”
“That’s sweet.” He says, smiling and you nod. “The red ones represent true love.” He points. “And the purple ones represent royalty.”
You blink at him. “Do you just look up tulip facts in your free time?”
Harry laughs. “Yeah, basically.” He looks down at you, and you can’t help but notice how the greenery around brings out the shade of his eyes. “I worked at a flower shop for a tick.”
“Really?”
He nods. “For eight months. My favorite part was writing on the store board every morning.” His face lights up as he recalls his experience. “I used to write silly stuff like, ‘one day I’d like to meet tulips.’ The old ladies loved it.”
You shake your head, breathing out a laugh. “You’re dangerous.”
“Dangerous? Why’s that?”
Because you’re sweet, you want to answer, because when I think I won’t get charmed by you again, you hit me with tulip puns. Your lip finds its spot between your teeth, you’d be damned to give him the satisfaction of hearing you tell him that, so, instead, you shrug. “Because.” You can tell he wants to dig more by the way his lip twitch up, teasing a smile, but you just nod towards the door before turning away from him and heading out.
There’s a distinct change of temperature when you step outside, and it’s only when you do that you notice the greenhouse was heated. Thankfully, the night is not too windy as it would get a week or two ago when winter was still insisting on making itself present, but it’s still chilly so that it makes you hug your jacket closer to your body. Harry also notices the difference, as you hear him wince as he steps out from behind you — unlike you, he’s not wearing anything to protect his arms from the cold, which only makes it harder for you to not ogle the tattoos hugging his skin.
“So, what’s next?” You prompt.
Harry reaches for the card again, taking it from its spot on his pocket before reading the second clue. “‘Not feeling too creative to write this one, it’s on the third tree on oak.’”
“I mean, at least we don’t have to think too much on this one.” You say, “Oak Street is the one to the left, right?”
“Yeah.” Harry sighs. “Can’t believe he’s making us go out on the streets.”
You start to make your way back towards the house. “Too tired for a stroll?”
“‘S cold,” Harry says, scrunching his nose. “Here, there’s a side gate.”
He guides you through a gravel path to where the black gate stands, hidden between bushes and branches. Strings of fern hug the bricked fence and the surrounding grass is high enough that it tickles your calves through your tights, making you believe this path has probably been left unused for at least a couple of months now. This information brings out an extra worry for you, as you take a better look at it, noticing how the gate is closed shut to the fence.“Is it open?” You wonder out loud.
“Shit, I don’t think it is.” Harry huffs under his breath. “But, I mean, we could easily jump it.”
You stop, turning to glance at him as the suggestion leaves his lips. He stands there, hands on his hips, examining the gate, tongue poking out as he frowns. After a second, he meets your eyes. “What? It’s not that tall.”
“I suppose.” You say, looking back at the fence that ends just below your shoulder length. It would be easy enough for you to climb it with a boost, however, “I’m wearing a dress.”
“Oh,” Harry scratches the back of his neck. “Let’s just go inside-” He turns back.
“Wait,” You stop him, not sure if it’s the slight amount of alcohol in your system already making you more adventurous, you train your gaze at the gate, analyzing it again, before looking back at him. Squinting your eyes, “You have to close your eyes.”
He laughs, “Are you sure?”
“It’s not that high.” You shrug. “But I need your help.”
“Of course.” He moves next to the brick wall, kneeling before it and nodding towards you. “C’mon, step up.”
Hesitantly, you glance at his thigh stretching his trousers, a sudden wave of insecurity hitting you. “Are you sure you can lift me?”
Harry simply puts his hand out in a silent request for you to hold. “Of course.”
“No peeking.”
He shuts his eyes tightly, chin meeting his chest as he looks down. And then you take his hand, feeling his fingers lock in a firm hold as he helps you use him for support. You hesitate again before using his thigh as a step, “Wait, I’m gonna ruin your trousers.” You worry, but Harry only shakes his head, still keeping it facing the ground, the strands of his hair falling above his eyes in a makeshift blindfold. When he doesn't feel you stepping in still, he encourages you with a squeeze in your hand.
You attempt to do as quickly as possible with your dress clinging to your legs, tightening your hold to Harry’s hand to step on his thigh. Once you let it go, you can still feel it lingering behind your back as you use your arms to boost yourself up the wall, sitting on it for a moment before jumping to the other side with a huff.
“Can I open them?” You hear Harry’s voice calls from the other side, and you smile, nodding even though he can’t see it.
“Yes!”
And then his face appears as he stands up in a jump, grinning at you. “See? Easy Peasy.”
“I feel like a teen sneaking out.” You say, and you instantly give another meaning to your words as Harry boosts himself up. This time, you certainly don’t hold yourself back from staring at the way his muscles flex at the movement, the tattoos on his arms stretching, and his shirt rolling up. He makes it look so easy, so effortless, barely taking five seconds until he’s jumping in front of you.
“That was fun.” He puffs, patting his trousers lightly.
“So, how are we finding the tree?” You ask, taking a quick glance to where his hands brush on the fabric of his trousers. “Should we read the clue again?”
“I know which one he’s talking about,” Harry says, nodding to the left before beginning his stride in that direction. You follow him, trusting his words as the two of you turn the corner where Evan’s house is located.
The street in question is much calmer than the one you were just in, with no cars coming or going from the residences — that stand much closer to one another, you notice, giving the whole street more of a narrow feeling to it --, which is not exactly odd, but certainly is a contrast with the main street that Evan’s home faces, that one being more lively with people either coming home or leaving it to enjoy their Friday night. The sudden lack of background noise makes the walk to your destination a tad awkward, as none of you make an effort to strike a conversation. Instead, you resort to silently observing the surrounding area as you walk alongside Harry, noticing how the trees here bend over the sidewalk, their naked branches slowly but surely growing back the leaves they lost months ago — it makes you wonder how beautiful this must look during the peak of springtime, their full branches blending together, making a ceiling of flowers.
“Here.” Harry stops abruptly, making you almost bump into his shoulder, as you were too busy with the scenery you’ve made in your own head. “‘S this one.”
“I thought it said the third one.” You frown, looking back and noticing the way you’ve passed way more than just three.
“This one is the third.” He says, motioning to a small birdhouse stuck to its trunk with a number ‘3’ painted to the front in blue. “It’s a bit of an inside joke,” Harry chuckles to himself. “Now I get why the bastard wanted me to have this card.”
You look closer at the tree, trying to see if there’s something attached to it besides the birdhouse, but there’s nothing. Before you can question it, Harry opens the front of the tiny house, retrieving two tiny bottles from inside of it, similar to the ones you found in the greenhouse. “Oh, no.” You say, laughing. “Did he just put liquor inside a stranger’s birdhouse?”
Harry shakes his head, “This is not a stranger’s birdhouse.”
“Huh?” You frown, glancing back to the house where you stand in front of, its front completely dark, showing that no one must be at home. You point to it over your shoulder. “Do you know who lives here?”
“Yeah,” He starts, offering you one bottle. “I do.”
Your brows shoot up in surprise, glancing back and forth from the house to the man standing in front of you, an amusing grin growing on his face. “You live here?” You ask, “This is your birdhouse?”
“It is, yeah. In fact, I was the one who built it.” He gives the birdhouse a small pat.
You can’t help but let your mouth hang open for a second. “That’s-” You pause, not sure which word to use. Impressive? Amazing? Hot? “That’s nice.”
Harry smiles, and the two of you stand there for a moment, admiring his work in silence. You suck your bottom lip in, keeping yourself from inquiring further.
Being presented with how little you know about Harry only peaks at your curiosity at what had happened last year in your brief experience with him. When you were with him it felt as if you’d known him for months rather than weeks, but looking back at it now, you wonder if your infatuation fooled you into thinking the two of you were close. Maybe that’s why you were so upset at the premiere after all because all that did was prove to you how much you didn’t know him at all. No matter how many sleepless nights you spent together sharing bits of your lives, it wasn’t enough for you to get to know him.
It’s only when a car turns into the street that you break away from your thoughts, looking up at him and clearing your throat. “We should take this back to Evan’s.” You say. “I’m not sure how it would look from an outsider’s point of view to see us downing these tiny bottles in the middle of the street.”
“You’re right,” Harry says. “Should we read the last clue while we’re at it?”
“Sure, yeah.”
He reaches for the card inside his pocket, presenting it to you. “You do the honors this time.”
You take the card, brushing your thumb over the words before stopping for a second to read them out loud, “You’ll find your prize behind the words of buried legends.” You snort. “That’s so corny.”
“Words of buried legends,” Harry repeats, letting out a hum. “Bet he was feeling quite poetic when he wrote this one.”
“Maybe because it has to do with poems.” You peek at him, a slight raise to your eyebrow. “‘Words of buried legends’? like dead poets and stuff?” Upon reading it again to make sure, you mumble, “He really made this card especially for you, huh?”
“Makes sense.” Harry agrees before nudging you playfully with his arm. “Look at you with your literary mind!”
“Could’ve used some better wording but I’ll let it pass.” You giggle, shrugging as you hand him back the card. As you do so, you notice there’s something written on the other side. “What’s in the back?”
Harry’s brows meet. “Huh?”
“In the back of the card, something’s written on it.” You nod towards his hand as he’s about to pocket the card again.
Harry turns it around, reading it with a chuckle. “Ice breakers.”
“You gotta be fucking kidding me.” Your mouth drops open in amusement. “Well? Go on, then. Break the ice.”
Harry makes a show of clearing his throat before reading the question as an announcement, “What celebrity do you think you could pull on your best day?”
“Is this the actual question?” You squint your eyes at him and he turns the card to allow you to read it as well. Surely, the same question reads right on top of it and, as you take a glance at the ones below it, they’re not that much better. You shake your head, “God, I have no idea.”
“I know mine.”
“You didn’t give a single thought on that one.” You say. “This should be good.”
“Jennifer Aniston.”
“Jennifer Aniston?” You stop on your tracks, raising your brows at him. “You know she was married to Brad Pitt, right?”
“Ouch.” Harry makes the theatrics of putting a hand on his heart, head falling dramatically to the side. “Right where it hurts.”
“I’m not saying you’re bad-looking, but he’s Brad Pitt.” You emphasize with a laugh, pushing him playfully as you keep walking. “Like he is the male beauty standard. Personified.”
The front of Evan’s feels more vivid than it was when you first walked in hours ago, the lights inside seeming lighter and the curtains having been pulled back, showing people wandering around on the inside. You walk past another pair crouched in front of the bushes that line next to the front gate that creaks as you open it.
Harry rolls his eyes. “Sure, let’s hear yours, then, sweetheart.”
“Ew, don’t ever call me that again.” Your nose scrunches and your face grows hot, but you attempt to shake it off, stopping to think of the question. “Huh, on my best day? I think… I don’t know, maybe Drake?”
“Oh, no!” Harry’s hands cover his face as he shakes his head into them. “I feel like that’s the most basic answer anyone could ever give to this question.”
You gasp. “Did you just call me basic?”
Harry holds the front door open for you and, before he’s able to give you an answer, you bump right into Nia. She instantly blurts out your name, as if she’s been expecting you to appear. “I’ve been looking for you!” She says, sparing Harry a glance over your shoulder before pulling you slightly to the side. “Do you think we could talk for a second?”
“Sure.” You hold out the word, looking at Harry before focusing on your friend again. “Did something happen?”
“No, no, nothing happened. Just—” Nia starts, locking your arms as she guides you back outside, pulling you to a corner a few steps away from the front door. “How are you? How's it going?”
“I’m fine. Why?” Your brows knit together at her interference and you wonder if it has anything to do with her conversation with Nate.
“I’m talking about-” She looks over her shoulder, clearly checking if anyone is listening in. Even after making sure that there’s no one there, she still lowers her voice. “When I saw he was your pair, I wanted to rescue you right away, but fucking Taylor pulled me with him and I didn’t get the chance.”
Oh. “Oh.”
“Is it too awkward?” She keeps her inquiry, holding your hand close to her chest. “We could ask them to switch so we can do the rest together, I’m sure Evan’s too plastered to notice.”
“Nia, I-” You smile as you come to realize that she pulled you aside just to check if you’re uncomfortable, having witnessed first-hand your whines and cries over Harry last year. “It’s okay, really. It’s not that bad, surprisingly.”
“Really?” Nia blinks, taken aback. “I- What happened?”
“Nothing.” You reassure her with a squeeze on her hand. “We’re just chatting, it’s not that awkward.”
“Okay.” She nods and nods, before falling serious again. “But if anything happens you just have to scream for me and I’ll be right there, okay?”
“Okay.” You say, pulling her for a brief hug. “Thanks, Ni.”
The two of you return inside just as Taylor brings up his brother’s hair sculpture collection that’s being exhibited at a local gallery — a subject you already have been the victim of hearing for about an hour during New Year’s and, by Harry’s face, he seems as helpless as you did back then. Nia doesn’t waste a second before pulling her pair away, “Let’s go, pal, those clues won’t solve themselves,” she shoots you a look over her shoulder, pushing Taylor towards the living room and you chuckle.
“He really is one of a kind, that man,” Harry says with a sigh before meeting your gaze. “Is everything alright?”
“Yeah, just lady talk.” You brush aside. “Let’s find those poets, shall we?”
“We shall.” Harry smiles, looking around for a second before guiding you down the hallway, turning just before entering the kitchen where a staircase. This is a way that — like the greenhouse — you’ve never been to. Still, Harry navigates so casually as if it were his own home and, to some degree, you suppose it is. You follow him up the first flight of steps, stopping just before turning into the next one where a door you never really noticed before stands. Harry rests his hand on the handle, turning to you before saying, “There’s an office hidden right here.”
You watch as he opens it, motioning for you to walk in first. And, indeed, the inside of it is an office, just a bit smaller than the living room on the opposite side of the house. Two bookcases that go from the floor to the ceiling mostly covered the wall, only leaving a single space in the middle for a dark wooden cabinet. In front of it, an L-shaped desk takes up the middle of the room, most of it is filled with files and paper stacks, as well as two computers lying asleep. For a moment, you just stand by the doorway, admiring this room you’ve never known of its existence, your eyes quickly sweeping through the bookshelves completely packed with dark cover books of all sorts. “Do you think this is where it could be?”
“Probably, yeah.” Harry nods, turning on the lights. “I don’t know where else he could have any poetry hidden.”
You move towards one bookshelf, the one closest to the door, reaching to brush your finger through the spines perfectly lined. “But look at the size of these, we’ll take forever to find anything in here.”
“Those big ones are mostly law books, I think,” Harry says, opening cabinets at the other side of the room, right next to where a white couch stands. He turns to look at you, “His sister’s a lawyer, this is her office.” Harry says, “But Evan’s got a corner right here where he keeps some of his stuff— like books of sorts. It’s the only place I could think of.”
You hum, not knowing exactly what to respond to this information.
“You can go through the ones on that side, it could be there as well.” Harry nods towards a cabinet right next to the door where you came from, and you nod.
The first two cabinets are of no luck, both being mostly filled with boxes full of children’s books and old toys — some of them mixed with more stacks of paper, but those, instead of having long texts, have drawings of all kinds from what you could gather in a glance, from child-like scribbles to actual sketches. You can hear Harry going through drawers on the other side of the room and, upon closing another empty cabinet, you peek at him, watching his broad back flexing under his shirt as he moves around. Averting your eyes as swiftly as you looked, it’s still enough to bring warmth to your cheeks.
Finally, you open the cabinet at the very bottom of the shelf. On the top, there are piles of DVDs, most being different variations of Barbie movies, but, right at the bottom, you find books. You don’t stop to check their genre at first, simply moving them away until you stumble upon a small box, the top of it marked with the word ‘prize’. “Found it!” You call back, taking the box away from the pile before setting the books back in place again. “Under Rupi Kaur? Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure she’s very alive.”
“Don’t tell Evan that,” Harry says as he crouches next to you, taking the box from your hands. Inside, there are, as expected, two tiny bottles like the ones you found before but, what calls both your attention, is a small bag of sweets lying in the middle. Harry takes it, “Oh, those are nice.”
He hands it to you and you open it, quickly shoving a jelly candy into your mouth before nodding. “Yeah.”
“So…” Harry starts, peeking over his shoulder, “Do you want to go back there?”
You glance at him, his eyes hovering above yours, lips twitching up just barely. “Uh… Maybe not right now.” You answer, “Unless you feel like sharing our Jellies with other people.”
Harry only laughs, shaking his head as he sits back and you do so too, right next to him. He reaches for his pocket, presenting another tiny bottle, the one you found inside his birdhouse, “We still got these.”
“Right!” You fetch your own out of the pocket of your jacket.
Harry opens his, holding it up towards you. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” You say, mimicking him.
Both of you down your drinks, the liquid tasting bitter, like medicine on your tongue, the only reminder of alcohol being the burn as it slides down your throat. You rest your head back on the cabinet behind you as the two of you fall into silence once more. A part of your mind is already beginning to swim around the space inside your head, and you decide to not take the last drink just yet, laying it next to your leg. Though you’ve only had the equivalent of two shots, you realize the long break you’ve had from drinking for the past couple of months -- which wasn’t exactly an intentional choice, but more like the result of your lack of free time -- is showing itself to have been enough to make you more of a lightweight.
And even though the night so far has been strikingly surprising in terms of how comfortable you felt being around Harry again, it doesn’t mean the questions you’ve been carrying since last year have gotten any quieter. They’ve only gotten louder. More persistent, even. The curiosity you feel to know what happened is almost suffocating now. And you’d be damned if you let a drunken mind stop you from having this conversation.
You glance at him from the corner of your eyes, only watching the back of his head bobbing along with the music -- still the piano -- that comes faintly from behind the closed door. Your lips part, feeling the question form right at the tip of your tongue, but not knowing how to voice the words. Will it be awkward? You think so, but what if it ruins the night? Tonight, that’s been so oddly refreshing. A night that only served to remind you how you became so infatuated with him in the first place.
But you know you won’t be able to let go of this ich inside your head unless you bring it up. And you want to, you do, but as you take too long to think of the right way to do so, Harry decides to break the silence, murmuring next to you, “That’s a good one.”
Your brows knit together, trying to make out any trace of familiarity within the song that’s playing, but you don't find any, which only leaves you even more confused. “Do you like classical?”
“Love,” Harry says simply, his eyes closed as he moves his head with the piano keys. “Especially this one. One of the greatest works from one of the greatest contemporary composers: Billie Eilish.”
Your lips fall open, “Shut up. Is she playing this?”
Harry laughs, a full one, that brings a grin to poke at your lips. “I mean, as far as I’m aware, no. It’s a version of her song — listen in.” He points to his ear, nodding with the melody as he sings along, “So you’re a tough guy, like it really rough guy.”
You shake your head incredulously, “Of course he’s playing classical versions of pop songs!”
“Did you really think Evan had a taste for Chopin or Debussy?” Harry asks both dimples poking on his cheeks.
“I think at this point I’d believe anything you tell me about him.”
Both of you laugh, the air surrounding you light and warm, before falling quiet again. This time, however, you simply stare at each other for a beat. You watch his eyes, with their almost hypnotizing jade shade, glancing between your own. He rolls his lip between his teeth, nibbling at it. This is the closest you’ve been to him all night, and the details on his face only feel like a reminder of your doubts. Like the nostalgia you feel with a bittersweet memory.
“Should we-“ You stop, the words falling from your lips before you can think about them. “Should we talk about the elephant in the room?”
You half expect Harry to frown, to play dumb, and question you the meaning behind your words. For a second, you even expect him to shake his head, to get up and leave the room. And, for some reason, you kinda want him to do so. To finally break the mask of the nice, sweet guy he’s been putting on all night and allow himself to play the role of cold prick you put him on for the past months.
But he doesn’t do it. He only gives you a short smile. “I was thinking about how to bring it up.” Harry’s gaze falls to his lap for a beat as he scratches his nose. “We should, yeah.”
You nod, more to yourself than to him. This is it. The moment to ask what you’ve been waiting for for six months now. You decide not to think much anymore, allowing the question to roll freely, “I don’t really know how to word this better but- pardon my French- what the fuck happened?”
Harry chuckles, but not an amused one. It’s more of a dry, nervous laugh. “How cliche is it if I tell you I was really fucking stupid?”
“Pretty cliche.” You say, “But also pretty true, I suppose.”
“I’m sorry for that.” He looks up, eyes meeting yours again, his own softening upon seeing you. “I really am.”
“Thank you for apologizing.” You smile a little, “But I think I deserve an explanation.”
“You do.” He speaks quietly before clearing his throat. For a second, he doesn’t say anything else, just takes a sharp breath, focusing on his fingers that play with the hem of his trousers. “I- Uhm- I know this might come as a surprise, but I’m not very good at letting people down.”
“A bit, I guess.” You try to humor, but your tone doesn’t show it. You sound quiet, hurt.
He peeks up at you, and continues, “Jess- the girl you met at the premiere- she’s lovely and all, but- how do I say this- we were never really supposed to be together.” Harry sighs, “I didn’t like her like that.”
You frown, “Then, why did you?”
“A couple of months before we met- before Evan even mentioned the film project to me, one of my mates kept insisting that I should meet his sister.” He pauses, “That was Jess.”
“I figured.”
Harry nods, “As I said, she’s a lovely girl, really nice, but we just- didn’t click like that, you know?” You hum in agreement, ignoring a small twist in your stomach when he repeats the endearment term. “But I guess she really wanted to try it, and, for months, I just kept pushing and pushing, cause I thought maybe with time I could bring myself to feel the same way.” And then again, another humorless laugh, “But- spoiler alert- I couldn’t and I should’ve just told her that.”
Your mouth hangs open for a beat before you decide against saying anything. It’s clear as you watch him explain that the entire situation for him felt more complicated than you’d ever considered. Not once did you think about the possibility of him being caught in a twist of his own decisions, and not once did you regard his feelings with the whole situation. In your bubble of gloominess, all you could think of was how he played you and used you for a bit before moving on to the next girl that fell for his sweet talk.
Looking at him now, however, his head low and brows set on a permanent crease, lips frowning down, you can feel the internal conflict pooling out of his pores. You’re not sure if it’s exactly a look of remorse that he gives you, but it sure seems close to it.
Harry huffs in what feels like frustration as he keeps recalling the events, “But all my mates kept taking the piss, pushing me to ask her out and then, in the middle of it, I met you.” He finally smiles a bit, and you have to look down to hide the warmth that spreads on your cheeks, “And we-uh-” He shrugs, “I mean, we clicked, didn’t we?”
“I think so.” You say, just above a whisper.
“I think so, too,” Harry says, holding your gaze with his own. “And when I was with you I let myself forget about that, forget about the pressure to be with someone else, I guess.” His lips fall again, eyes meeting his lap, “But when we came back, there wasn’t much running away from it anymore. The night we got back I met that friend of mine and, I’m not sure if he said anything to Jess, but she asked me out.”
“And you said yes.”
“I said yes.” He repeats, shaking his head, “I shouldn’t have, but I said yes.”
“So you just dated her? Even if you didn’t like her like that?” You say, trying to understand his thought process. Even if his words tug at your heartstrings -- which you try to not think about right now -- you still can’t help but feel a bit for the other girl.
“I thought I could- I don’t know, I thought with time maybe I could-” He stumbles around with his speech, before finally letting out a sigh, “I don’t know what was going through my head, to be honest. I was a prick.”
“At least you can admit to it.”
“I was a prick to both of you.”
You fall quiet, hoping he takes your silence as an agreement. When he doesn’t offer anything else, you speak up again, “Did it work, though?” He frowns, and you clarify, “Letting time force feelings into you?”
“I found very quickly how hard it is to develop feelings for someone when there’s someone else on your mind.” He says, and you bite back a smile that wants to spread on your lips.
“It’s very easy to say that now.”
“I know.” He agrees, “And I wish I could’ve realized that earlier, before even bringing you into this mess.” Harry reaches for your wrist, which lies on top of your lap, giving it a gentle squeeze. “For that I really am sorry.”
“I know you are.” You reassure, turning your hand to find his, squeezing it back. “And what happened to Jess?”
“She was rightfully upset when I told her.” His thumb brushes against your knuckles, moving the rings on your fingers around just slightly, and it’s almost enough to distract you from his voice. “We broke up a day after the premiere.”
“Ouch.”
“But it’s fine now, she’s got a boyfriend now who actually cares for her the way she deserves,” Harry says.
“That’s nice to hear, at least.”
“It is, yeah.”
You look down at your hands locked in your lap, squeezing his one more time before letting it go with a sigh. “You really made a big mess, huh?”
He chuckles, a guilty smile poking on his face, “I did.”
You nod, finally reaching for the tiny bottle left forgotten next to you, opening it. This time you only take a sip, but it’s still enough to end half of the liquid inside. You click your tongue, “I’m glad we talked, though.” You look up at Harry again, who’s already watching you, giving a small tap on his thigh. “It’s nice to have closure, you know? To give it a conclusion and wrap with a nice little bow.”
Harry rolls his lip inside his mouth, “Is this a conclusion, then?”
You raise your brows, “Is it not?”
“I guess it could be.” He shrugs one shoulder, leaning closer to you just barely, eyes trained in yours. “But I’m hoping that, after today, maybe we could start over?”
You laugh, scrunching your nose at him as you shake your head. “Not a start over, no.” You poke his side, “You’re not getting away that easy.”
“You’re right.” He says, still not budging as he frowns his lips. “But I wish it didn’t have to be an ending as well.”
“Is that so?”
Harry nods, you can tell his eyes hold a shyness that wasn’t here a minute ago, but at the same time -- as paradoxically as it seems -- there’s a boldness as well, one you’re more familiar with. “Maybe we could chat again. This time with fewer ice breaker cards and more bags of sweets.”
You smile, rubbing your chin as you pretend to ponder about his suggestion. “That does sound very promising.”
“I really do think we clicked.” He drops his playful tone as if wanting to make sure you feel the sincerity behind his words. “Wasn’t just saying it.”
“I know.” You say, “And I think so, too.”
His smirk grows, and he doesn’t offer anything else to say, but you can tell he’s holding something back. With the silence, you suddenly become too aware of the way your arms brush together, and how his knee bumps against yours. You notice how his eyes fall a bit from yours, so quickly you could’ve imagined it, but you choose to not think so. If you lean forward, you know he will too, but you don’t want to give him the satisfaction. You’re not letting yourself make the first move.
Surely, you’re aware these thoughts are a direct result of the alcohol sweeping through your mind, testing how much of your pride you’re willing to ignore. There’s no questioning of the wall that you built all those months ago after walking out of this very house with this very man on your tail blurring out apologies. It still stands, tall and strong, and you're not letting sweet words mixed with a drink or two pull it down. Not that easily. But at this moment, looking at his stupidly beautiful face with his stupidly beautiful eyes so close to you, you feel like maybe you could peek through a window, or open up a door — just a creek, just to have a sample of what it would feel like if you were to pull it down.
“Do you want to go back?” Harry asks again, this time more quietly, this time his question has a different implication than it did before.
You're quick to shake your head, voice quiet, “Not yet.”
The corner of his lips quirk up and you raise your brows, silently daring him to ask what he’s been holding. You see his hand moving from the corner of your eyes, but you don’t break your gaze from his, not even when you feel his fingertips moving so gently against your cheekbone, brushing your hair away from your face. Harry leans closer, again just barely, and again, you stay still, only smiling softly in encouragement. Now, you’re stuck in your own silent conversation; both seeking the same thing but not making the move to achieve it -- either for pride or apprehension.
“I’d really like to kiss you right now,” Harry whispers finally, eyes moving down again, this time slowly, making sure that his intentions are clear.
“Do it, then.” You tease.
Harry breathes out a laugh, his hand caressing its way down to your jaw. He rubs his thumb against your cheek, a feathery touch, taking another second to look at you before pulling you in. Your eyes fall closed, as you focus on your senses, and allow yourself to peek from that window, or creek that door open just a bit, to have just this moment to remember when you first got lost in his touch.
First, it’s the warmth of his breath tickling your cupid bow, making your hold your own breath in anticipation. Then, the tip of his nose, gentle against your own, and you can’t help but lean in a bit more when you feel the ghost of his lips on yours. But he pulls back, just so slightly, hoping to have you reach for him again. Except you don’t, knowing what he’s trying to do.
“Uh-uh,” you shake your head, pulling back just a bit to look him in the eye. “You don’t get to tease me.”
Harry huffs out a laugh, “That’s fair.”
This time, there’s no teasing. Still, he goes in just as slowly as he did the first time around, curving his lips around your bottom one so softly it almost makes you lean in again. His kiss is cloud-like in a way that makes you a bit dizzy and when he presses his lips harder, you have to refrain from letting out a dreamy sigh -- still too stubborn to give him the satisfaction. It’s when you feel the tip of his tongue poking out to lick at your bottom lip in a silent request, that you pull away completely.
It’s your turn to smirk now, licking your lips before announcing, “I think we should go back now.”
#harry styles#harry styles x y/n#harry styles fluff#harry styles one shot#harry styles fanfiction#harry styles fanfic#harry styles x reader#harry styles writing#harry styles smut#harry styles imagine
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I love reading your tags. Please, ramble more. I enjoy reading the things you think!
!!! :0 aww you're so nice, anon :') are you sure about this?
bc this is going to be super long,, i hope you have time for this u_u;;
I first encountered the term ‘2p!’ when I was a young weeb in the htalia fandom (I was never in Tumblr at that time though, I think I frequented DA for my content) and was fascinated at the concept because I get it, 2P means ‘second player/player 2’ like in videogames. Their colors get inverted and also their personality.
I was confused for a while and thought ‘was there a game??’, but no, artists just drew darker/inverted versions of the characters. The alter egos. The friendly and nice ones are now cold and mean, and vice versa. They called the AU ‘2p!talia’. I guess that was my first exposure to AUs.
(i think i saw a glimpse of the hzbn hotel fandom doing this recently as well? the usual red-colored characters are all in blue, just like how 2P!Dream!Sans has dark blue colors as opposed to the bright yellows of his 1P! counterpart)
(speaking of alter egos and counterparts........................... if there are any old fans of shizaya,,, talk to me LOL)
There’s the genderbending/genderbent AU, saw it in anime fandoms, where they put the labels ‘fem!’ or ‘male!’ before a character’s name, swapping genders, “what would this character look like if they looked like the opposite gender?”, stuff like that.
I don’t know how or why ppl started using the exclamation points (ex. “genderbent!” , “swap!”) thing, instead of just writing “swap __ , fem __” but I think the “!” does make it seem more organized, if that makes sense?
And thennn here I am in the UT fandom around 2016-‘17, remembering that AUs are a Thing in Fandoms:
‘woah there’s an edgy version of this character, like 2P! (2p is more like an Opposite/Inverted AU now that I think about it)’
‘woah there’s a swapped version! Cool!’
‘YO SWAPFELL? NICE’
‘oh god there’s so many AUs now holy crap-‘
I did kinda dip out of the fandom for some time, but when I came back (surprise, surprise, it was Deltarune that pulled me back in......... and also maybe Vade’s comic dub of that Mafiafell comic) and had to familiarize myself with the AUs once again, I noticed the abundance of Sanscest ships that aren’t the main 4 AUs. More content for my multishipper heart lmao
Like for example. The UTMV part of the fandom. Underverse being the inspiration(??) for content like Nightmare’s Gang, the Star Sanses- I really love how the community made them different yet similar despite being Sanses? It’s just so fun to think about!
(I would love to draw a visual to accompany this, but I am... lazy......... bear with me I’ll try to make this section as short as possible)
We have the base- OG Sans Undertale. Classic, lazy, stinky boneman.
Swap!/US!Sans is, obviously, a swapped alternate. Energetic Sans, a bouncing ball of sunshine, has the Papyrus traits while still being a Sans. Cool Blue.
Both Nightmare and Dream, although not born as skeleton monsters, were transferred into skeleton bodies (their mother apparently looked at a random AU and saw US!Sans and took his image?? I think that’s how it went, correct me if im wrong).
Cross was also?? derived from US!Sans?? A lot of people said he was a US!Sans and I’ve just accepted it-
the thing is i think US!Sans has this boyish, anime charm to him, and having that same kinda feel for NM, Dream, & Cross??? BRUH
the apple twins are obviously different already, even though they look like Sans (yo,, the ‘mwehehe’ laugh headcanon tho,,, love that). they have their own charms, some fanart gives me prince-y vibes even (or king for NM bc, ykno)
and Cross,,, oh lord why is he cute. why is he charming. why is he different he’s literally a Sans- like what, he inherited the swap!sans charm??? Is that what’s happened here?? IM NOT A SIMP I SWEAR- but Cross,, he’s babey,,, do you get what i’m feeling here
Ink and Error? Chaotic immortals. Similar kinda deal with the twins. Although I do love the fact that Error was a Geno previously. Makes good angst ideas for their ships :]
Haha and then you go to Nightmare’s other boys.
Murder trio- Killer, Dust, Horror. All starting out as Classic Sanses and spiraled down into their own horrifying respective timelines.
Have I mentioned I love the found family trope going on with Nightmare’s Gang?? They might be the Bad Sanses, but they still care for eachother, and I love that so much actually. I love that they can get into funny shenanigans and I live for that (that bad sanses shitpost blog? i love that blog btw). Nightmare being the tired dad looking at his rowdy boys messing shit up in the castle again. Are they gently bullying teasing Cross? Seems like a normal day. He’ll benefit from the negativity at least. He’s too old for this. (lmao boomer)
And for the Strawberry!NM thing, he's either made for the strawberry flavor aesthetic, a 2P! alternate of NM, both, or some other reason I didn't know.
#oh gee i rambled a lot;;#i feel like this is an infodump more than a ramble at this point#but thank u again for enabling me anon i appreciate u<3#ask#mblue talks#im gogna sleep i'll finish up the other stroobm wip i have when i wake up later lol
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A Broken Blade, Short comic: Making-of
The very short comic I drew for A Broken Blade took me a lot of time and effort and I would like to share the list of resources I used as well as some of the concept arts, sketches and drafts I made throughout the process. I don't know if anyone will be interested, but I feel the need to share anyway. =)
Sorry for any grammatical or spelling mistakes, English is not my first language.
Literature resources
First things first, while drawing the first page I decided to read some books about how to draw comics because I have very little experience in this field. I chose two books:
Foundations in Comic Book Art: Fundamental Tools and Techniques for Sequential Artists by John Paul Lowe
The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing Comics: How to Create and Sell Comic Books, Manga, and Webcomics by Comfort Love & Adam Withers
It's been a while since I read them, but if I remember correctly I liked The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing Comics better because it's very complete (it’s in the title) and covers all aspects of how to draw a comic. It has a lot of great examples too. Foundations in Comic Book Art talks a lot about inking (which I wasn't particularly interested about), but it also has a nice chapter about perspective. Both have very useful tips so if you are interested to draw comics you might want to read them.
I've also read really good stuff on Making Comics – with Salgood Sam, in particular the article about flow in comics.
Inspiration
I usually start every project by making an inspiration/mood board so I made a small collection of comic pages on Pinterest to see what kind of layout and style I could use. I was mostly interested to see different ways of representing movements and sounds.
Layout & composition
The first thing I did was to draw a thumbnail for each page to get an idea of how I would represent the scenes. I think you're supposed to draw several thumbnails for each page but I was okay with the first ones I drew so I decided to keep them.
I worked on each page separately after that, always starting with a draft. It was really the most important step for me because it helped me to visualize what kind of atmosphere I wanted to use and where to place the lighting. I tried to keep them simple but you can see different degrees of laziness depending on the page. xD
Some of these sketches are very ugly but it does the job. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I wasn't satisfied with the first composition I made for the second page so I made another, more sketch-like, version. I ended up using a mix of the two versions for the final page.
Now, a very important point was that the part of the fic I decided to draw is about Sev having a nightmare. I really wanted to bring this aspect in the comic so I tried to play a lot with the lights, shadows and blurred elements. For the same reason, I decided not to use straight lines for the panels’ borders. I had in mind that it could depict how confused Sev is.
I think colors also play an important part in telling a story. For the general atmosphere, I decided to use the complementary colors blue and orange to separate the moment Sev is dreaming of cold, fear and death to when he wakes up to warm, security and family. And of course the red is for danger, blood and Sev himself.
References
First of all, I can't talk about references without mentioning PureRef, which is the program I use to make reference boards. I can't praise this tool enough so don't hesitate to check it out.
I always use a ton of references when I draw, and I'm not even exaggerating, I can easily spend hours searching for the right ones. There are plenty of places where you can find good references but sometimes you also need to be creative. I usually gather most of my references from Pinterest, Google Images, DeviantArt and Sketchfab (for 3D models). I also have a big folder of refs saved on my computer for the things I often draw. When I can't find what I'm looking for, I try to make it myself with 3D, videos and photos.
Here is a part of the references I used for the comic:
I said it's only a part because I also have separate boards for clones armors and SW characters/species designs.
Among all of these you can see some concept arts and screenshots from various Star Wars series/games that I used as inspiration to draw the interiors. And since I'm bad with interiors, for the panel with Scorch I used SketchUp for the first time to make a very quick model of the scene. I tried to use the rule of thirds for the composition:
There are a lot of photos of my hands too, I don't have much trouble drawing them but references are still very welcome.
After finishing the first page I've invested in a drawing mannequin (S.H.Figuarts - Body Kun) and I can say for sure that it was my best purchase of the year! It's absolutely amazing to make custom references:
I decided to draw over the photos of the mannequin taking the pose because it is waaaay easier that way than trying for hours to get the proportions and perspective right.
Finally, I often put tutorials from other artists on my reference boards, here is the links of those visible on this one:
[Nose tutorial] • [Ears tutorial] • [Hands with knife] • [Folds tutorial] • [Mouth tips] • [Arm studies] • [Folds material comparison] • [Pant shapes and folds]
Character & knife design
For Sev, I decided to use the original design from the Republic Commando game rather than the simplified version we see in SW:TCW. I really struggled to find references for his armor's markings that showed all angles so it's not 100% accurate to the original design, but I don't think that's really a problem. For the armor itself, I prefer the more realistic look so I used references from Star Wars Battlefront II as well as 3D models (mostly this one and this one).
Since I'm a perfectionist at heart, I tried to keep all scratches on the paint the same from one panel to another. :’)
The trandoshan is only visible on a couple of panels but he still needed a design. I used references from different sources but I was mostly inspired by the trandoshan concept arts visible in The Art of Star Wars: the Mandalorian (bottom left and bottom right images).
As a side note, I used one of my own character’s design as inspiration for his muzzle’s markings.
In the fic, the blade is described as being “beautiful” and the image that immediately came to my mind was one of these knives with a Damascus pattern (I just learned that's what it's called). I used various references from regular knives and vibroblades. One of my friend made a speed modelling of the knife I designed and I used it as reference as well, look at this!
Sources of the middle top vibroblade here and bottom left here. The reference on top right is from The Art of Star Wars: the Mandalorian.
Did you know that non-energized blades are called dead blades in Star Wars? It's a pretty cool name in my opinion.
Fonts
The fonts I used on the comic come from Blambot. I used Anime Ace for the regular texts and Death Rattle for the big sound texts. I also use NexusFont to manage the fonts on my computer, it’s pretty useful if you want to use fonts without having to install them.
I think that's all. I hope someone will find this useful and kudo to you if you read the whole thing! ^^
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midday dream
Marinette would like to say that she would so not want to be in the vicinity of time magic being performed again.
For Maribat Platonic November 2021 Day 3 - Future AU
@maribat-platonic-november
There are certain areas of magic that the kwamii have warned her to stay away from – either practicing said magic or interacting with those who do. The creation magic that she inherits by being exposed to Tikki’s and from her more extensive training as the Guardian of the Miraculi is one of the more advanced kinds – and there are times where she wonders if it is right to have such dangerous magic in her hands – but the kinds that the kwamii caution her against are, according to them, hard to master and damaging to one’s psyche – and that are just two of the many reasons that they listed.
Time magic is, obviously, one of those dangerous kinds that the kwamii do not want her anywhere near. And to be honest, neither does she wish to be anywhere in the vicinity of time magic being performed, if only to avoid being thrown into another situation such as this again.
There is something surreal to come face to face with the familiar features that regularly reflected on the pocket mirror every time she grooms herself for a meeting with potential clients. Her own face, albeit older with wrinkles and worry lines that are just forming on her own, splits into a sunny grin that has her quietly grimacing to herself as she cautiously accepts the invitation to return to her doppelgänger’s place even as her guts rolls with unease.
The pit in her stomach widens as each step she takes on well-worn paths takes her closer and closer to where she has come to think of as home.
“We close on Tuesdays now,” the older her with wrinkles and worry lines that speak of the challenges she had overcome – those of which Marinette herself might have yet to encountered – and a tiny tilt of her head that she knows, by heart, is a silent come in, says. “I would prefer to have Sundays off but you know how it is on Sundays…”
She laughs, soft like the tinkling morning dews, and pushes the door open. The bell by the door chimes a familiar sound – one that Carries takes so much joy in, always lighting up whenever it reaches her ear.
Miracle Crafts – or perhaps the Miracle Crafts of the future – opens right in front of her eyes.
The counter is the same with the barest differences from the one in her time – still standing there with the tiny jar with a piece of paper taped to the side that has the scrawling letters that read tips and two exclamation marks written in black markers. Sitting beside the jar is a small box of tissues and a display stands that has a stack of finely printed cards with the elegant writing that reads Miracle Crafts in demibold Comic Sans. The position of the shelves brings forth a sudden wave of nostalgia – for the shelves back in her time that are stocked with supplies and goods, for the colorful shelf that is specially reserved for the plushies of Gotham’s vigilantes that brought the masses’ attention to them, for the now familiar mop of red hair amongst the shelves, for the soft whistling tune that resembles that of a current trending song that Carrie showed her just a week ago.
“Carrie isn’t here right now,” the older her says, grinning like she knows what Marinette is thinking about – which, to be honest, is entirely possible seeing as she both is her and has lived through this very moment. “She has a date at Gotham Museum – you know, the one that we usually visit for inspiration whether we hit an artist block.”
The older her speaks with something akin to pride glimmering in her eyes and there is that sweet, sweet fondness in her tongue that is the same as the warmth the drips for her mother’s lips. As if the familiar way that Carrie’s name rolls off her lips is enough to sooth her to the bones.
What happened in those years that the older her seems to soften at the mere thought of the very teenaged girl that works part-time at her store, she wonders. Just what exactly had happened in the years between the older Marinette and her that has the older her breathing Carrie’s name with soft, soft warmth that she has only ever heard in her parents’ voices.
It is the most terrifyingly intriguing thing that she has ever encountered. And she wants, desperately, for answers – answers for the dozens of questions that that one tiny moment gave rise to.
“Will I remember this?” she asks because she has to know. Has to know if she would be able to bring back these tantalizing secrets back with her. Has to know whether or not this forbidden glimpse of the future would stay with her once she is back, safe and sound, in her right time.
The older Marinette looks at her with something akin to pity and an invisible stone drops in her stomach. The older her have experiences she does not have by the mere virtue of having led a longer life but Marinette knows herself and the wrinkle right there is a silent answer that she is looking for.
Magic has rules and they exist to keep the balance of everything, big or small, in the universe. And while she bemoans the fact that this glimpse into the future, these little sneak peeks of a time that is yet to come would disappear the moment she returns to where she is supposed to be, that just means that she can ask all the questions she wants without a fear of fucking up the timeline any more than it is fucked up on the regular by the numerous heroes and villains and anyone in the various shades of grays between heroics and villainies.
“Come upstairs?” suggests the older her, already making her way deeper into the store, towards where the stairs leading to the more private sections are. “I suspect we have a lot to talk about.”
They do have a lot to discuss, don’t they?
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