#I get worked up a lot about trying to draw an oc exactly the same over and over again

[coyotehusk]

Nico sketches.

He’s just really fun to draw 🥺

[soularsss]

Drawing Likeness: with Tem!

okaay since a few people actually showed interest in me sharing a bit of what I've been doing to figure out how to really capture likeness, specifically Temuera Morrison, I figured id do my best to write it out

I am also going to entice you with some of my recent clone art! (oooh some of it is unreleaaasedd)

I am putting the whole thing under the cut because I have a feeling its going to be long:

Read more!!!

a couple disclaimers before we start

-This is not some definite post about how everyone should be drawing clones, nor is it in any way claiming that this is the right way. This is just my musings as I stare at a mans face for way too long and try to replicate it

-I am inexperienced. As kind as you all are to me, drawing real people is relatively new to me, capturing a persons identity through their features is difficult for anybody, and I am no different. I have watched many a video on likeness and had my share of classes, but If im being honest, i rarely put it into practice successfully. So there'll probably be errors in this post or things i will come back to in a few months and wish I had said/done differently

ANYWAYs you guys get my vibe im just here to ramble and today we are rambling about mr copy paste. I am doing this for Law, my clone boy, because I plan on delving further into oc fanart and I want to put effort into representing him correctly!

SO LETS BEGIN

Before even deciding what specific pose of a person I want to draw, I tend to grab a bunch of references and compile them like so

(all of these can be found on my pinterest)

Why so many? Well, we are about to delve into facial features, so when we are dealing with photos we have to take into account that there are an abundance of circumstances that will influence how a persons face will appear, some of these include:

focal length: All of these are taken on different devices, and focal length can play a big part in distorting faces

age will play a part, your face changes a bunch throughout your life!

lighting, while not as major, can muddy the waters and make it difficult to interpret facial planes and features

SO, to make sure we get a proper grasp of what's really going on, I like to make sure we have lots of options to compare and contrast with.

Next up! What I like to do is block out the main facial features with colour on different layers, the features I block out usually are the general face shape, eyebrows, eyes, nose and lips. But what you are looking for is the defining features of a person, so that could include other things! Maybe a scar, or some particularly prominent cheekbones.

I dont have any rhyme or reason when it comes to picking my colours, all that matters is you can see all the shapes clearly.

Now I may be biased, because Ive been staring at these for 4 hours, but notice how it still looks like Tem? :D

Anyways, now we can break these parts down, and you'll see what I mean about compare and contrast:

We'll start with isolating the facial shape, putting all these next to eachother you'll notice they arent exactly the same (partly because of my shoddy work) But the distinguishing features run through each shape! Namely the very soft rectangular shape I sketched out in the bottom right there. Along with his soft, wide jaw structure.

I did the same for the rest of his features!

You'll notice I highlight the prominent shapes and ratios,

When drawing anything, it is important to start from the very base shapes and build up.

When drawing something you want to look like someone, those shapes relative to other shapes is what makes it look like them.

I didnt use the same technique with his eyes and lips, but I wrote out some helpful info for them! More importantly for his eyes.

When drawing eyes, I find the most important part is where exactly I draw the creases, (along with the overall shape of the eye itself) it is important to understand where those will present themselves with hooded eyes.

NOW, with an understanding of his facial features in place, lets take a detour to colours:

before I start, a couple things to note:

-Temuera morrison versus the clone troopers in the animated shows:

While I love the animated shows they don't exactly stay close to their source material. Im going to link here to an excellent post discussing whitewashing specifically in relation to the clones.

Temuera is Māori, of Te Arawa (Ngāti Whakaue) and Tainui (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Rarua) whakapapa, and also has Scottish and Irish ancestry.

The Māori people are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (Aotearoa). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia. Māori people often vary in skin tone, Skin colour doesn't determine ethnicity. There's often a correlation but it's not a requirement.

But that is a tangent! What we are aiming for is to stay true to Temuera.

Bringing back my reference photos from before, Ive colour picked a buncha values and theyre all over the place. Why doesnt this work?

Similarly to earlier, you have to take into account the photos themselves. Many things like lighting, colour grading (when it comes to filmography) and makeup, can alter how a skin colour presents in photo.

You can attempt to get true to life by swatching from certain places on the face. Here I've tried to pick some photos with good lighting, and I've also tried to avoid overly lit/shaded areas.

Tem has a very warm, tan skin tone, Instead of colour picking I tend to try and replicate it myself, but I do often bring in references to make sure Im staying true to the source!

a brief intermission to talk about colour theory, something I myself struggle with alot. Often, when putting in flat colours without a background, I will forget to make sure the colours i intend to use will work with the skin tone i have picked! (something that is apparent in older works of mine, not just in relation to clones, but in general, the colours I end up with stray largely from their original sources and it is something I am doing my best to keep in mind and improve in! Although I don't think i am nearly experienced enough in the topic to say I have succeeded yet lol.)

anyways back to Tem :))

Now we can put all of that into practice! Things to keep in mind when drawing out a piece next to a reference like this:

the distance between the eyebrows? how far down his face does his nose go? Basically just, in relation to eachother, where do all those shapes we found earlier, sit?

The screenshot above is from before I did it myself, but instead of directly tracing from the reference, a handy trick I use it to complete your sketch first, and then overlay a traced version to see where your inconsistencies are! Alternatively, you could move your sketch over the image, but I didnt do it that way so!! uh!! im sure it works exactly the same!!!!

When it comes to a final illustration, or any sketch that isnt a direct study, of course you can push and pull and stylise! You'll see below that I'm not exactly 1:1 to my reference photo either.

The important thing with stylisation, or at least my own personal understanding of stylisation is that you need to thoroughly understand the thing you are stylizing! "You need to know the rules to break them" and all that. While shapes, lines and rendering can change, when it comes to drawing someone, and making it look like them, you have to make sure to keep their core features true to source. Caricature can capture a persons vibe whilst drastically exaggerating features, but it will only look like them if you KEEP THOSE FEATURES!!!! SHAPES!!! AHHH!!

But that is just my perspective on the discussion of style versus realism, please dont take is as Law, I dont know what Im on about half the time!!

anyways, after fixing your sketch, add local colours!

I rexified him because why tf not! But this is where you can go crazy with that clone personalization!

And then here is a very very barely rendered version (if you guys want me to explain how i RENDER that would need to be a completely different post, and I havent had anyone ask about it yet so who knows! maybe one day) But I digress, hopefully you learnt something new through my ramblings! It has certainly helped me organize my thoughts and I have also found some areas I would like to focus more on in the future to improve my own art!

TLDR: In order to understand an object, be it a face or a building or literally anything, you have to break it down to its simplest forms, understanding LARGER shapes will help you immensely in the long run

If you guys like this sorta content do let me know! I'd be down to do similar things for armor/anything really, I am very anti gatekeep so really anything at all you want to know! Send me an ask :))

also if you see a spelling mistake.. i don’t know how that got there

[astrid-gallivan]

Let’s talk about Bro

This is a post that I’ve been working on for a week now. It’s a post I knew I would eventually have to make, but it certainly is coming out sooner than I anticipated. This is to clarify and lay down exactly what my headspace is when I draw Eddys Brother (Bro) since I draw him a lot. It'll be a long post no matter how hard I try to cut it down. I'm sorry! ;.;

For a quick TL;DR- I do NOT ship Bro with any of the EEnE characters. PERIOD. I also do not ship the Kanker sisters with any of them. I do however understand that there is a lot of grey area in humanity and support you if you use these characters as Art Therapy for trauma. This is a hot take I’ve seen around various communities, and not everyone processes trauma in this manner, but I do not support the romanticization of these relationships in real life (especially if you are a child!). There is a distinct difference between fantasy and reality, and I am happy using fantasy to point out the abusive and toxic problems in reality so that others can recognize them. But even still, adults, don’t have kids in your fantasy! 😑 And realize that you dont have to share everything you create and that some things can still trigger others!

Okay, now for the long stuff where I break a few things down. I’m going to be fully honest with you. I hardly watched EEnE when I was a kid. But I saw the movie and Bro has stood out in my brain since then. That’s 16 years. Aside from the Eds always trying to get money for jawbreakers, he was really the only thing I remembered about the show. Finally watching the entire show (not even a year ago now) I found that I related quite a bit to Eddy. And I realized part of that was specifically because of his brother. I looked up to my abuser to the exact same degree that Eddy did with his brother.

I do like true crime and dark romance. I have a fascination with the dark side of humanity. I also love stories where the villain gets the happy ending. However! These are two very separate and distinct things and reading dark romances does not mean that you promote the toxic relations contained within or that you want to marry a serial killer.

I don’t draw Bro to be a villain who gets a happy ending. My Bro art ultimately explores the dark side of humanity and helps me to understand and cope with my own experiences that I had when I was a child. I am actually very selective on what I post with him. There's a reason I've got a lot of just Bro without another character, and the like, two I do have are with Eddy... and he's not happy. Art Therapy is a real thing, and I very much promote that. Creative outlets are a safe way to explore and understand our experiences. I want people to process their own experiences because honestly, doing so has made my life so much better! But I don’t support shipping Bro with any of the characters- aged up or not- just because they find it hot. I have seen some OC ships… that I’m more understanding of since it’s a form of projecting yourself into the story. And I know that young adults will have their own OCs be their age. I admit, I do have my own OC with Bro. But I don’t post this, and never will, because it’s only for me to work through something that happened, to release something that I’ve been too afraid and ashamed of admitting happened to me. So I can finally heal from something I’ve been carrying for 20 years. Nothing else.

I think it was honestly pure genius to make him an attractive and mysterious character on the show. Why? Because he portrays the reality of the dark side of humanity. He’s the light that brings the moths into their death- even his own brother, Eddy. I admit I’m a crazy moth that is always attracted to that light. And I don’t condemn you if you are a crazy moth too. There is nothing wrong with someone liking True Crime, dark romances, or villain characters in general. But my moth friends, as you fly around the light, remember what that light represents. Remember that while bringing things into the light makes them lose their power, don’t fly too close and get burned. Balance things. Give yourself breaks. Introspect. And give yourself some grace if something has happened to you. It wasn’t your fault. You’re not stupid for it having happened. You aren’t at fault. Period.

As for the Kanker sisters, I have never been a fan of the Kankers being shipped with the Eds. I always had a very certain “ick” factor with them, because they harassed the boys all the time. I wasn’t going to include them in my comic originally because of how much I didn’t like them…but I decided to take a different direction with them and have them acknowledge what they did and mature while still teasing everyone. This approach is very rooted in reality too- people can realize what stupid and harmful things they’ve done and can change. It doesn’t mean everything is fixed or that the people they harmed should welcome them into their lives with open arms. The change doesn't erase what happened. But they can be proactive and take actions to prevent future harm. They can educate people on why they were wrong and help make the world a better place.

I don’t know what anyone’s take on this will be, but for everyone calling out problems regarding these characters, seriously good on you. You really are doing a good thing with that and problems need to be pointed out. It’s how we learn and change the world for the better. 

And if something in here doesn't make sense or is confusing, please point it out so I can clarify and update it! This post is just so long... and I still feel like I didn't get to hit everything I wanted to say... 🤦‍♀️

[marreddream]

Housamo Short Fic - Character Goods

-- “Man, it’s already dark out. Wintertime’s rough.”

It was time for Cafe Asterism to close for the day. Hermes was helping Shinya clean up the store.

“Hmm… Shinya. Your pins.”

Hermes pointed at the two can badges Shinya always kept fastened to his work apron. Shinya angled his apron upwards for inspection. The pins looked the same as they always did.

“Yes? What about them?”

“They’re of…Taromaiti and Kalki, right?”

“Mmhm. There was this pop up shop in Akihabara that would draw whatever you asked for and make them into custom buttons, right then and there. So that’s where I got them from. I just thought that if I had them, since Kalki and Taromaiti work at the cafe here with me, people would more easily be able to recognize them. Cuz’ you know, we don’t have a uniform code or anything.”

“What were you doing in Akihabara?”

“There was this collab cafe doing an event with this show my friend Sitri really liked. He invited me since I’d never been to one before, and the stall happened to be nearby. It was a fun day. Have you been to a collab cafe before, Hermes?”

“Nope. Not really into any shows or anything like that.”

“Mm. …the stall isn’t there anymore, so I can’t get a button of you by the same maker. But I could try making it myself for me to wear for when you’re working here, if you wanted?”

“Nope. No thanks, I’m good. Just curious about the pins was all.” --

-- "Hey, Catoblepas."

The youth with an azure pentagram on the back of their hand pointed at the assorted can badges, pins, and keychains festooning Catoblepas' backpack.

"What show are these characters from?"

"I actually don't know. I got them around the time I was summoned to Tokyo. This weird kid and his twin had laid a blanket out at the park and was selling them on the cheap.

The awake one - oh, the other one was asleep - said they were all handmade by him, which is super hard to believe, right? The quality of the stuff's through the roof. But considering the level of skill other hobbyists are operating at nowadays, maybe he was just some sort of prodigy crafter then?

I did ask where the characters were from, and then he laughed a bunch and said a bunch of stuff I didn't really get. I didn't feel like asking any further would get me anywhere so I just bought some pieces that I liked, thinking I'd look up where they came from when I got home. But nothing ever came up no matter how hard I looked. So maybe they're OCs."

"Whoah, what a story. You know, I swear I've seen some of these designs around, from somewhere once before…" --

-- "Toji, look! Doesn’t that mask look like Tezcatlipoca?”

Ryota pointed at a row of plastic children's masks lining the wall of a festival stall. 

“Huh. You’re correct. It really does.”

“Wow, a lot of these look like people we know. That one looks like Licho, and that one looks like Cait Sith, and… that one sorta looks like Furufumi. Wow, what are the odds?”

“... you’re not going to point out the ones that look like you?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Those ones. They look just like you.”

“Huh?! Not even! That’s just some… random fat cartoon guy!”

“Do you need to get your eyes checked out? It’s the spitting image. I’m not making fun of you.”

“Geez, you’re just trying to get back at me for last year when I said that one mask looked exactly like you! Because it did! Hogen said so too!"

"Just because there were shared traits in common does not mean it 'looked exactly like me'. Short hair is not an uncommon hairstyle anywhere, in the land of the living and land of the... 2D plane, and I'm not the only one in the world with horns like these either."

“So you do agree that it looked like you.”

“It did n- sigh… whatever you say, Yakushimaru. Why don’t you ask for another person’s opinion on whether the mask resembles you or not? I’m sure you’ll find that they’ll agree with me that it does- well, what good timing. Licho, help us settle a debate.”

“Huh? What’s up, Sakimori?”

“Licho, does that mask look like me?”

“Wow, it looks exactly like you, Ryota.”

“You see?”

“No way! Nuh-uh!”

“Geez, what a bunch of kids. Hey, that one looks like Cait Sith, and that one looks like Tezcatlipoca.”

“And that one looks like Furufumi, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, it really does.”

“... and what do you think about that mask?”

“That one looks like you, Licho!”

“Huh?! Not even! That’s just some… random cartoon lion guy!” --

[just-a-carrot]

Hiya, so when I was drawing my little sally face x OW collab I was struggling on Gidget and wanted to ask:

How do they present themselves, like in clothing choice.Do they where in more tight or loose clothing, more feminine or masculine, there opinions on dresses or more into suits?

Ig just there fashion do’s and dont’s 

This question could be extender to the rest of the cast, but only if your up for it (i feed bad asking too many or large questions )

Also fun fact: the WR on Genzou’s shirt stands for White-Rabbit

I hope you have a great day !

i'm not super good when it comes to fashion and outfit design and all that, so i sometimes have a hard time really being able to say exactly the type of outfits and fashion the chars would wear, but i can give some examples and such!

for gidget in particular i feel like generally what they're shown wearing in OC as well as their OW epilogue is the type of stuff they'd wear:

i think they have a really good fashion sense but i don't know how to replicate that myself LMAO so i just try

but generally they try to dress somewhat snappy but also androgynously for the most part. they do not wear dresses or skirts and much prefer suits. but i don't think they really have any sort of preference when it comes to things beyond that, just so long as they think it looks good and interesting

for the others, iggy, for instance, has zero fashion sense, and prioritizes comfort over anything else and always wears the same things over and over again. genzou prioritizes practicality over all else i think, since he needs clothes that allow him to move freely and can get dirty, etc. i'd say he also prefers comfy clothes but doesn't mind getting all dressed up and looking nice, too (and someone he cares about telling him he looks nice would probably make him a bit flustered as he doesn't often get compliments on his looks). orlam prioritizes sleekness and snappiness above all else and would refuse to leave the house in something he didn't think made him look like a million bucks. he loves suits loves loves LOOOOOVES suits and likely owns many different ones. even at home by himself he'd wear semi-fancy things like nice robes lol. bucks is similar to genzou i think in that she tends to prioritize practicality since she also needs to move around a lot, works out and sweats a lot, etc., however, she often likes to dream about wearing dresses and going somewhere fancy

[einsatzzz]

Profile Info + Project KHRe(:born!!!)

Hello! You can call me Ein. I'm an artist who's trying to improve my drawings and to manifest the visions in my brain. I also love OCs very much, whether it's mine or others' OCs. For more information, you can refer to my Carrd and my Tags page. Feel free to send an ask too if you want!

Blog’s Current Status: Semi-active (can be inactive on weekdays; working on my projects)

OC Profiles (Oniyanagi Wiki)

Kurumi (Wiki Page ⬗ Character Tag)

Kana (Wiki Page ⬗ Character Tag)

KHRe Webcomic

Status: IN-PROGRESS WITH CH1 Target Release Date: SOON IM COOKING SO HARD BUT THE GLAZE PROCESSING WILL TAKE SM TIME EVEN IF I FINISH IT WITHIN THIS WEEK

Main Tags

#einart - Art posts on Tumblr since 2022.

#queue i can't put into words - Queued posts. I will occasionally remove this tag from older posts.

#khre - Posts related to KHRe:born's universe and related AUs.

↳ #khr oc - Posts related to KHR Original Characters, both mine and others.

↳ #khre oshiete - Posts related to KHRe OC asks answered under a "Oshiete Yuipachi-sensei" crack segment.

Project KHRe(:born!!!)

@amiahoshi (Sou) and I decided to call the project "Katekyo Hitman Re:born!!!"*. We call it either Re:born!!! or KHRe for short. This is my main brainworm cultivating mega-project that has several sub-projects under it (including the webcomic). Anyway, read below for more details on this project!

*Note: Inspired from T/oky/o Gh/oul's title, where it had "T/G:re". And it really just emphasizes the "Re" in "Reborn", meaning "again, do over" - mainly since it's a retelling. MOST importantly...it's very easy to remember for me and my goldfish brain.

So far, the major ambitious projects I have under this are as follows:

Oniyanagi Wiki

This is a wiki site I made in Miraheze and I have already set it to public, so you can visit it through this link (or the one I linked above in the OC Profile section).

All characters/items/stories information related to KHRe is planned to be compiled here bit by bit, including certain canon characters (due to the inevitable canon divergence).

I learned a lot from making this wiki.

KHRe Webcomic

A webcomic that features KHRe's story. KHRe is sort of a similar universe to canon, but not exactly the same. There will be additional characters, which are our OCs, then there will also be modifications/additions to the story/lore as well (e.g. certain arcs/chapters will be rearranged, certain events will happen earlier).

Tsuna retains his protagonist role in KHRe as well (I'm so fond of him, my 2nd fave...), but he will also be joined in this role by the twin bosses from Oniyanagi, Kana and Kurumi.

Oniyanagi's full 10th Generation line-up can be found here.

Just like canon, it starts with Daily Life Arc. I will draw chapters for as far as I can get into the story. One of my main goals in making this webcomic (besides being able to draw both KHR and OC art at the same time) is to improve my art.

Into the Looking Glass

This is a Horror RPGMaker game that features a prequel story for KHRe through Kurumi's childhood (around 8-9 years old). Long story short, it does follow the classic formula of a kid exploring a scary place by themselves.

The title is very much still subject to change, but I referenced Alice in Wonderland for it. Because it's Baby Kurumi (Alice) stumbling in an otherworldly place (Wonderland) and the events that take place moving forward changes her life.

This will take a very long time to complete, but I wanna finish it eventually because I'm also a big fan of Horror RPGMaker games and I've always wanted to make one.

KHRe Test Game (no title yet)

Yes...that's right. I'm editing this now after three months and still no title. 👍

This will be a very short RPGMaker Game with Tsuna as MC and it's definitely less ambitious than the previous two listed here. This is just me testing and learning the features of RPGMaker before I go do more work for Into the Looking Glass.

The game is just about Tsuna being invited to the Ninomiya Estate by Kurumi and he has a very "fun" time there 😂👍✨ (just like a normal Daily Life Arc episode~). It won't be horror, but maybe for Tsuna it will be 😀.

Other Projects

As for other projects that are even more less ambitious and more doable in a shorter time, I do have MV Projects for KHRe plus a few shorts (like this one) I plan on drawing them in. I listed my priorities here (along with the major projects I mentioned) and will try to update when I can (at least monthly).

═══════════════ ◈ ═══════════════

That's all for now! THANK YOU FOR COMING TO MY TED TALK! Any questions are always welcome and very very appreciated! 👀✨I really just love talking about this series, OCs and my projects. I will also continue to update this pinned post as I figure out my projects more.

[neuroprincess]

August - Larissa Weems/Female Reader - Part Two

Larissa Weems/Female Reader

Summary: After knowing about August's existence, Larissa tries to get closer to the teenager and making it work can be difficult when both are socially awkward.

Classification: Fluff

Warnings: OC (original character)

Word count: +2700

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four (soon)

Unrevised

The teenager takes a bite of apple as she stares at the courtyard distractedly, the social groups are dispersed, gathered together talking about random things, mostly about Rave'N Ball which soon became the main topic. Everyone seems excited describing their party clothes bought especially for the day and who they would bring, she knows she should be excited about the same things or at least pretend so she could socialize with them, but she isn't and can't, the only promising thing about the ball is the food and dancing. She loves to dance, since childhood it seems to be the best way to express herself, more than words anyway. At the age of four she started ballet classes and continued performing until 13 when she had a growth spurt, being too tall and with an inadequate bone structure to continue being a dancer, August used her abilities as much as she could to continue dancing and in the end had to let go when mom found out, disapproving. Y/N understood the motivations, it was the girl's first individual interest and something she had devoted herself to for years, this didn't negate the fact that using shapeshifting is a type of cheating and this consumed a lot of her daily energy to continue with the farce. Besides, where they were living was not very kind to any outcast and unsafe for someone like the teenager, in the end they had to resort to the most radical alternative, sending her to Nevermore. Learning things that she, as a mom and normie, could never teach.

August takes one last bite before discarding the rest of the fruit in the trashcan next to the bench she is sitting on, as turning around she notices the presence of the principal almost next to her, standing looking at some vague point pretending to be analyzing the students, except for her as if barely acknowledging her presence. The girl waves a hand in greeting to get her attention and succeeds, they exchange a quick smile and nod, looking back to the courtyard. It's awkward, none of them like this atmosphere and at the same time they don't make the first move towards a real conversation.

"I... I heard that you haven't been using your abilities for two days now." the blonde begins running over the first few words before continuing "How do you feel about that?"

"It's boring, I confess my life seemed easier. And some people just won't stop staring at me."

"Well, you're pretty and tall, you draw attention from boys and girls." Larissa tries to hit back with positive points and winks to her "Anyone interesting?"

She notices how the girl unconsciously stares at a specific group and looks away blushing, redness taking over cheeks and ears. August just whispers "No." and stares at her confused, she thinks that somehow it's not normal for the principal to ask questions like that. But this is a new world which she is still learning the rules.

"Right... have you already been introduced to your classmates?"

"Not exactly, that blonde werewolf talked to me the first day and told me who was who, after that we never talked again." the teenager shrugs shoulders about the fact, she had met a few students who either seemed intimidated or didn't even bother to introduce themselves properly "And that's okay, I'm trying things on my own."

"I understand." neither of them knows what to say anymore, remaining in a silence for minutes that isn't uncomfortable despite the growing anxiety in the pit of their stomachs. She knows August is talking about Enid and it's her group that she has unintentionally stared at. The girl stands up slowly when she notices some students are already gathering for class "Your uniform looks very... short."

Larissa notices that when the teenager stands, they are 6 inches apart, the uniform set with the skirt, which should be just past her knees, looks too small for her size, like it shrunk in the dryer or something. The sweater is tucked tighter against the body instead of being comfortably loose around her, the shoes look slightly uncomfortable, and the skirt that should be below the knee reaches her knees.

"Oh, that! I guess I spent so much time changing my form that I didn't even realize I had another growth spurt, I just forgot to warn Mama. I could take care of it with my own hands, but shapeshifting is out of our deal." the girl straightened the clothes on her body trying to make them conform to the uniform as best as she could, feeling embarrassed by the situation "I think I can handle 5 days until I can use my abilities again." she whispers the last part for only the two to hear.

"Why don't you tell your mother? I'm sure soon you will stop growing and be able to wear only a size of clothes." "Because that's how it happened to me" the blonde mentally adds, in her school days she had to change the size of her clothes and shoes three times. Growing pains as a teenager, her mother always told her on the way to the mall to buy more clothes. Victoria Weems is as tall as her daughter and apparently the girl inherited that from them, even if Y/N's genes allow her to be a little shorter than the two older Weems "I'm sure she'll buy."

"I'm sure too and that's exactly the point." she says simply, her tone making it clear that she doesn't want to continue the topic, then puts the backpack on shoulders "I have to go, botany class now."

"Right! August, think carefully about the ball, it's not mandatory, but it's a great experience and you have a week to prepare." the principal blinks as the girl walks past her, in response she just gets a shy smile.

Larissa smiles back and as soon as the teenager disappears from her vision she turns to the group of students where Enid is, Wednesday with her, Xavier a short distance away from them, Bianca, Divina and Yoko are nearby talking to the duo, the new student doesn't seem interested keeping the same expression as always, which sends a shiver down her spine when directed at her as Addams realizes the tall woman is staring. The blonde immediately turns to go back to her office, pretending this moment didn't happen, even being a teenager she gives her some chills, not that she is scary but yes her actions, she doesn't know what to expect from her.

On the way through the halls Lara August doesn't leave her mind. First, as principal for many years and past hundreds of students, she didn't believe August would follow through on the deal so easily, the next day the fountain was completely clean and more than before, once again Larissa found herself looking for her, this time knowing who to look for and not found her. What made her upset was the possibility that the girl had gone back to using the abilities to hide from her, a possibility soon denied by Thornhill who had the girl as a helper most part of the day and claimed she saw her go straight to the dormitory. Second, she learned more about her supposed daughter, August sleeps in Ophelia Hall sharing a room with a psychic outcast, the academic curriculum is focused on history and literature, she tried fencing and left when Bianca beat her in 10 seconds, after being rejected by the yearbook she is still looking for an extracurricular activity. And last and not least, that the teenager loves hot chocolate, or should at least like it a lot, because Larissa has seen her drink many cups of hot chocolate with whipped cream this morning for breakfast.

And something struck her as she analyzed the short conversation they had at the break, the group that Lara stared at was precisely Enid's... with Wednesday. It couldn't be possible, she wished there wasn't the slightest chance that the blonde was liking the other girl. Not only would it be ironic considering her own past with Morticia, it would also be Y/N's ruin and maybe August's, because as far as anyone can tell the two are complete opposites. Perhaps, with some hope, her possible love interest could be any of the other girls or even Xavier.

"I wonder if this is how parents feel or act when their children are having a crush on someone."

The day is already over for the Nevermore students, most of them have finished dinner, going to their respective dormitories or gathering in common rooms to study for exams the next day. August doesn't feel the need to spend her evening like this after having dedicated all her free hours to it, she sees how desperate everyone is about some difficult subjects and wonders if she should approach them for help, giving up the idea when they find the answer by themselves or with the help of Bianca, who majestically walks around the tables helping their classmates with small things as if she has all the content memorized in her brilliant mind and making a point of showing how intelligent she is. The shapeshifter tries to be discreet as she stares at their interactions, knowing she is failing in this as her eyes can't leave her until the other notices, Bianca frowns as their gazes meet. August turns face quickly and places her hands on cheeks knowing she must be blushing, this is how it works, when in her normal form the pale skin gives way with annoying ease. It's not like she knows how to hide reactions and emotions either, another part of her socially maladjusted personality.

"Hey, white head!" the siren calls out approaching her, laughing when she notices how the girl stiffens at the desk, dropping the book she was reading and slowly turns to look, confusion in her eyes wondering if it was she who was called "Yes, you. Are you having a hard time too?"

"Yeah, no, I mean no. I've been studying all day." she stutters, trying to look anywhere but Barclay's intimidating eyes.

"I see. So do you have a problem with me?" the question is direct and sincere, too direct for the blonde's conversational standards.

"No, never, I'm... I'm sorry." the two stare at each other for a few seconds that seem tense and that atmosphere is cut off by the queen bee's loud laugh, August not sure how to feel about this reaction, even more confused.

"You were staring at me."

"I didn't even realize. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." she swallows dryly and finally gets up the courage to look her in the eyes, feeling legs getting weak and maybe pressure dropping along with it, if she wasn't sitting up she would probably fall to knees on the floor.

"It's all right. Well, if that's it..." Bianca says casually ready to go to another table to offer help.

"Bianca! Actually..." the shapeshifter takes a deep breath trying to gather courage to continue "I need help, not with the exams. I'm terrible at fencing, you know that, you're the one who made me kiss the ground a month ago." the two laugh for different reasons remembering of her first fencing lesson "Could you give me some lessons or some help? Please."

"Sure! Maybe after the ball, you have the potential for a good opponent, Lara."

"Thank you..."

As soon as the siren gives back August gets up gathering her belongings and tries to leave the common room as discreetly as possible, a difficult task when she messes with the strap of the backpack attached to the chair and quick steps that make the shoes resonate on the floor. "She knows my name! She knows my fucking name!" is the only thing the blonde can think of while running to her dorm, avoiding curious and even judging glances at the big smile on her lips. When she enters the bedroom she seems to be walking on clouds and suddenly feels silly for acting this way just because Bianca Barclay knows her name, maybe it's no big deal, she is a brilliant student with a great memory, or maybe it's too much because after all she is the queen bee while August is another teen without any highlight and who would never draw her attention. August sighs and walks to her side of the room throwing the backpack on the bed, that's when she notices a perfectly wrapped red package on top of the blankets, she stares at it confused, for a moment believes that maybe it's a gift for her roommate and they got the sides confused, but there is a note with her full name written in cursive handwriting.

The package is opened with care, the ribbons undo the lace to reveal a complete uniform set, from blazer to shoes, what makes her happiest is the skirt in the right size looking perfectly cut for her slim and tall body. She looks at herself in the mirror with the skirt clinging to the body, loving how it looks, she would no longer have to adjust every time she sits down or stands up and that is a great relief. All the items are folded up again to be stored and only then August notices something at the bottom of the package, she pulls out a small thick black book with gold details, Good Omens by Neil Gaiman. Next to it a note attached written "It's one of my favorite books, maybe you'll like it too. Good read, August." and immediately she knows who gave her the package. Principal Weems. The only person in the academy who knows how she likes to be called and uses the name. No matter how stubborn and proud she is felt good to earn it from her, almost hugged for someone other than her mom caring about her.

Another morning begins with Larissa comfortably working on her laptop, it's one of the rare occasions when it's calm, especially with the recent events in Jericho and Nevermore, of course, over the question of a certain student's motherhood. Momentarily the tension was lifted from her shoulders and she felt good, relaxing against the chair. Eyes closed thinking of good times, both past and present. She remembers clearly the day she met Y/N, ten years younger, cheerful and spirited, always friendly when she served her a cup of tea. Their first kiss in front of Larissa's apartment, her former home when only a teacher. They barely had a first date before falling into each other's arms, drunk on love... and wine. She sighs remembering those nights on weekends when they bought bottles to accompany home-cooked dinners and it always ended in the same thing. She can remember the young woman's face in vivid details, it's surreal.

And she comes to the realization that there is one more thing to take care of, to finally talk to Y/N, two days earlier all the courage she had gathered to make that call crumbled as soon she heard her voice on the other side of the phone. She hung up without saying anything, hoping that the other woman would think it was a wrong call or just someone making a prank. When there was no return call she knew she was safe and initiated a plan, not very complex, but still important and difficult to approach the teenager. If was any other child she knows it would be easier, but every time she is around August can't stop thinking that this girl is her daughter, even if there isn't a DNA test to prove it yet, imagining how she must have been as a kid, about who she is, what she likes or dislikes, the guilt eating her up inside every second she spends next to her.

"August, what..." she whispers startled when the girl opens the office doors unceremoniously, she is red and disheveled hair evidencing that she ran all the way there "I see you are wearing the..."

"I thought we had an deal, Principal Weems!" she almost shouts interrupting the older woman, to the surprise of both of them "I tried to behave, to fulfill our deal, I'm not even using my abilities. And you betrayed me! I feel dumb for trusting an adult."

"What are you talking about, Lara August?" Larissa doesn't know if she is confused or angry at the teenager's attitude, her tone of voice expresses that.

"You weren't supposed to call my mom and you called her."

"I didn't..."

"She's here!"

"Shit!"

"Yeah, shit!"

"Watch your mouth, young lady!"

taglist: @opheliauniverse @inlovewithmiddleagewomen @scarr0713 @missdowling @dvrkhcld @heidss @loudchaoscoffee @xvyzxx

Join my taglist here ^^

[floororangejuice]

BION Information master post!! (abibaz oc)

real image of me after making all of this or something

hit the read more to get blasted with everything or something

HEADS UP!! THINGS WILL BE PURPOSFULLY LEFT OUT OF SOME INFORMATION!

I want people to find some things out through hints and clues hidden in art, so there may be a big chunk missing! Also, his story isn't FULLY finished yet too, so there will be a lot more to come. This post will (if I remember to) be updated along with any major art/information I make about him! (FEEL FREE TO ASK ME ANY QUESTIONS TOO!)

BASIC NEED-TO-KNOW INFO

Bion and Bryne are the same person. Bryne is the person/version of himself when he was alive, and Bion is the spirit that remains after death.

I just wanted to clarify this as this can be something that is easily mistaken if you see me draw them at different times/in different posts, sense at first look they can seem like completely different characters.

In my interp of abibaz, it takes place somewhere in the 90's, so that is also where his story takes place.

BASIC LORE (quick/low effort summary)

Bryne is a poor-ish guy living on his own and looking for a job and in some way ends up applying as an IT guy for the school. He applies for this job because it somewhat relates to his huge interest in computers, and he is already desperate enough for any job so this place seems perfect for him so far.

Upon entering the school for the first time, he can immediately tell something is off. He cant place his finger on exactly what it is but it does raise some red flags for him. Even so, he continues on for his interview and gets hired yadda yadda I dont really know how to explain that part and its not important.

Though, adding to his suspicions about this place, he has to meet and be around Alex now. I dont know how to word it in a good way, but basically he thinks Alex is a massive freak.

As time goes on, he gets more and more curious about what is happening in the school. Kids keep going missing, if there is any at all, and the place constantly smells like iron and rot. Bryne tries to research about the school online, trying to find any documents or reports about the school, like possible crimes that happened or any leads on the disappearances, but keeps coming up empty-handed.

This leads Bryne into a spiral, he keeps trying and trying to find information, it just seems right out of his reach. He spends most of his time at work in his own classroom, in the back with his personal computer most of the time because of this. That computer is like a sort of personal companion to him now, with how much time he has spent there alone with it.

Alex is aware of Bryne's researching, and after a while started to have his own fun with him. Setting up red herrings and letting information slip as a way to reel Bryne back into a game he almost had set up from the start.

Anyways, as time goes on Alex starts to get bored of this, and decides one night to finally get some real enjoyment out of this.

He was ready. The clock seemed to tick exceptionally slow that day, there was nothing different about that day from the rest, all but that usual feeling of dread seeming to hang heavier on Bryne's shoulders.

Alex slinked into his room, looming over him just watching him before making his presence known. He just started talking to Bryne, placing a hand on his shoulder and getting close to his level. Bryne could sense that something was wrong with this little meeting of his, though he did this type of thing this one felt wrong.

Bryne started to head out of his room and to the exit doors, hurrying his pace as he got further away from his room. Though when he finally reached the exit, he found the doors to be locked. No matter how much he tried he couldn't get them undone. He was now stuck here, unsure as to why. He started to panic, Bryne had always been weary of Alex, and now his suspicions have been proven. He was stuck there with a monster.

Now, I dont feel like I have the capability or patience to write the whole next segment, but to quickly summarize it: Bryne gets fucking hunted and chased through the school, becoming exhausted and more panicked over time and ends up heading back to his room, then Alex corners him there and kills him by giving him so much blunt force trauma to the face through smashing his face into a computer screen. yay!

I will probably try and write it out better at a later date when I have it more clearly thought out and have the energy to

anyways, here is a quick demonstration of what that looked like:

really good mock-up i know right

Anyways, after this there is a week period(important) of time where he is dead, his body rotting away, semi-untouched. Bion apears within one of the computers as, well, him, and has to re-learn what it feels like to exist again along with his newfound unstable emotions and overall physical form.

He now has a hatred for Alex that burns brighter than the sun, and in simple terms is extremely violent over even the mention of him.

I'll add more onto Bion's way of processing thought and emotion later, but it is a pretty key part in everything he does. He is extremely impulsive.

MORE ON BION

Bion is a massive recluse, hiding away in his computer most of the time, rarely ever coming out. The computer is his safe space, leaving it even voluntarily causes him to get horribly stressed. The only times he ever fully leaves is when he is driven by an extreme emotion. (usually anger)

Touching him is most times lethal, he is electrically charge. Holding onto him or touching him in general causes a feeling of numbness after a period of time, intensity varying on his emotion and the time touching him. (it feels like when one of your limbs falls asleep, but a bit more painfull)

GAME MECHANIC

If Bion was ever added in game, or if I felt like ever attempting to mass mod the game, his mechanic would be to locate Alex.

He would be a (mostly) neutral character, helping the player by showing where in the map Alex is with a pop-up map. It would only be accessible in his room. Along with this Alex would be unable to enter the room at all, but he could just camp at the door and completely trap you, so it would be wiser to be quick while in Bion's room.

Bion's room is also located in a semi-inconvenient spot, near the end of a very long corridor with the only exit down that hallway being one of the rooms with a red key required door. (I'll add a map of where his room is later)

He also has the chance of being a hostile character too. If you provoke him with enough questions about himself, his past, speak of Alex, or bring a special item to him. Any of these will result in him killing you instantly, or becoming one of the hostile character that chase you in the game from that point on.

I also have an idea with him for an Easter egg ending that is related to his lore, but i have to do some more developing on it before I explain it to the public.

EMOTIONS (?)

Because he is a spirit now, his reactions and emotions are alot more raw and intense, causing him to lash out often or go into violent spirals. He is his greatest enemy. (other than Alex)

His most common emotion that happens is rage, appearing whenever his mind starts going down a path of thoughts about how he was wronged, and the monster that he was wrongfully made into.

His rage and his fear of new things causes him to become more of a recluse than he already was. He cant even go out of his classroom without being reminded of how he was made into such a beast.

Bion can still feel and react like a normal person, and is still somewhat the same man he was. Whither that is good or bad is for you to decide.

The way he comes off when not in any fit of emotions is more flat and mechanical, being inside machinery for so long has changed the way he talks a bit, becoming more formal and thought out.

ART + MORE

Here are my Toyhouse pages for both Bryne and Bion where you can find most if not all of their art, which includes lore art.

(lore art will be specified in the bio of the images, and you can usually tell because there is more effort in the details)

BION

BRYNE

ALSO, Bion has a twitter account! its mostly fun silly stuff, but occasionally there will be lore related posts!

@B10NSC0MPUT3R <- link to his account!!!

btw this is going to be updated with more soon!!!!! im probably going to add some facts + more clarifications later!

[kurtmustdie]

caught up with cringetober because I literally forgot to do it, individuals and explanations under cut

Day 1: Heterochromia I’ve come to the revaluation that my sona is already cringe as hell considering not only can his entire body change color but he also has differently colored eyes as a staple of his design. They’re usually yellow and blue but this time I color picked the blue from the trans flag and the mint from the Vincian flag for this color palette, it turned out really pretty :)

Day 2: Self Insert Now she isn’t my self insert anymore, but back in the day when I was at “peak cringe” she definitely was. This is my warriors OC Icypelt and I have a post going over part of her story on my profile somewhere. She’s been through a lot and I think her modern design is very pretty :)

Day 3: Unnecessarily complex fit/design Spider scene is kinda infamous in my brain for having wayyy too much detail but I love them and I think this might be my favorite one out of this batch, super cute, the pose is really cute and the colors are nice and fits her really well :D

day 4: Angel x Devil inevitable MCR reference ik, Helena and Revenge, love them dearly. Poor revenge man this one is cute and looks like a sticker!!

Day 6 (I skipped day 5 because I didn’t want to open up ms paint today): neko i kinda hate this one but cat Gerard yay

Day 7: Pinterest base at first I wanted to draw hobie in place of Gwen but I remembered that I haven’t really drawn Mikey with her even though they’re supposed to be friends so I drew her instead. Idk. The height difference is not accurate because of that but Jumping Spider is small because he’s based on a jumping spider and those are tiny who would have thought

Day 8: tumblr sexyman i have never played undertale a day in my life i just know a lot of people wanted to jump sans’ bones

day 9: Crossover ship/rarepair OH BOY THIS ONE GOES KIND OF HARD AND IM EMBARRASSED ABOUT IT BECAUSE THEY KIND OF WORK FOR EACH OTHER UM MIGUEL OHARA X CLOTTED CREAM COOKIE IM INSANE OMG-

day 10: fursona i already have a fursona I already drew and yes I colorpicked from the lesbian flag how could you tell /j

Day 11: Yandere LYLA is technically canonically a yandere because spoiler alert she tried to kill Miguel’s fiancé via overheating her in the shower (essentially literally boiling her like a lobster) because she was “in love” with him (she said if she did have autonomy and had feelings the would be in love with him but she doesn’t but idk who knows I don’t).

day 12: niche interest ik MCR isn’t exactly “niche” but the black parades story in particular has always caught my interest and I have my own interpretation of it and a whole kind of story I’m still developing and character arcs and headcanons and interactions and yeah you get it, death in particular has evolved into god knows an OC on his own I just keep him attached to MCR because… it makes more sense that way, ig-

day 13: creepypasta does this count- whatever grimdark is just the same thing as a creepypasta- I’m not really in the MLP fandom anymore but it was my first ever “fandom” I was actually apart of. My first hyperfixation if you will. I wasn’t in the grimdark part of the fandom because I was too young for it but I was actually watching the izzzyzzz grimdark video and I was like “oh” and drew a rainbow factory Rainbowdash. Honestly I should draw ponies more they’re fun to draw

Day 14: candygore (?) im not good at drawing candygore and since I was rushing this o didn’t do it as well as I thought I can, but it still turned out pretty cool

Day 15: song lyrics aaaa inevitable hesitant alien drawing this one turned out so cute!! The colors and the sparkle eek so cute aaa action cat lyrics I’m breaking down right in front of you I’m sorry

planning on doing the rest of the month now, maybe not exactly on time since I’m still in school but I’ll try to get 31 drawings out by Halloween. Love the idea of cringetober because I just love all things cringe. Ack this is so good

[bluebeads-art]

your art is so amazing !!! i adored the 3d printed stuff (as someone who has had to design myself 3d printed merch before because i don't usually have much access to the merch in my fandom lol), it's so good?? and all your coloring is beautiful <3

all this to say it might not seem like i reblog much but rest assured all the stuff i liked (or didn't) went into my queue a few times over hehehe. i LOVE your art it's amazing <3

wishing you luck with the identity and health stuff, even if it doesn't get better i hope you find happiness within it 🫡

gah this got away from me sorry for the ramble

aaaaaaa I saw this message in a notification on my phone, said "I'll read that when I actually have time to reply," then the notification got dismissed somehow and if there's no notification prompt to remind me of something, it no longer exists to me. It's been a month I'm so sorry ^^;;

Thank you so much! I wish it was easier to convert more of my stuff to be 3D printable, but my usual modeling style is not watertight in the slightest and disregards gravity entirely. 😆 3D modeling has always been really cool to me because there's so many different workflows depending on what you're trying to make. Keeps things from getting stale!

Speaking of differences, I feel like people don't tend to mention my coloring. :0 I think my line art usually steals the show, heh. I used to be a lot more conscious about color theory and shading when I was younger, but these days there's no thoughts, only vibes 😂

Ok the line, "even if it doesn't get better i hope you find happiness within it" hit me unexpectedly hard (in a good way). Any nice messages I get always means a ton to me, but while I don't seem to be able to articulate why at the moment, I think that line will stick with me for much longer than usual. Thank you so much ♥

---

Speaking more generally (this message just gave me a good excuse to talk, heh)- spoilers; the artist in my brain refuses to die. So after, like, a literal year of not touching it, I've started working again on a 3D modeling project that I started in 2021 that has been haunting me ever since. Been trying to redesign a robot OC of mine Rayner, and I'm really particular about wanting his joints to work in a physical space instead of bending the rules artistically. I'm Really bad at designing complex hard surface objects in flat 2D though. However, there's a reason artists tell you not to character design in 3D, and that's because it's slow, it's easy to lose design cohesion, and most importantly it just sucks, awful workflow. But I am Doing it. And while I was super stuck for years and almost developed a friggin phobia of the project, I am now Doing It. And it's actually working out this time. The 3D model itself is MILES from being done, but the design almost is, and while that's a boring end result for other people, it represents a huge milestone and accomplishment for me in many ways.

I've been drawing a little bit lately too! But I feel my social media hiatus has given me a healthier relationship with posting? Like I have a few doodles that I could either post now or post soon, but I don't feel the same pressure to anymore? Where even if I never post them, I think I'm fine with that. I've always thought I made art for myself, but that's not exactly true because I was also making art for the sake of sharing. And while I don't think there's anything wrong with that, I think being able to separate the two and be content with simply just creating is healthy. Also I'm still not as active on social media in general anymore which is probably healthier as well LOL.

So I'll prrrobably start posting again soon-ish now that I've broken this blog's posting silence? Not sure how to wrap this monologue up. My physical health problems are going to keep on probleming, but in terms of artistic fulfillment I've been in a much better place this past month, and that's a huge yeehaw from me 👍

[butterscotch-goat]

my dearest charlie, at last you're at peace

(lots of OC rambles under cut)

caption inspired by I believe a stage play version of Frankenstein? can't find it unfortunately :(( lmk if you do I'm happy to credit. Anyway OC time

CW for discussing of death, animal death, graves & corpses n stuff...

I know for sure she'll put in the box of deceased animals that were used for experiments in the grave, and I know she'll keep his glasses. Everything else tho I'm not really sure.

So I'm still trying to figure out exactly how Beatrice will and/or will not grieve. Cuz like. Yeah Charles needed to die and when he did Beatrice was not too fond of him, but at the same time, he was her best and only friend for over a decade. She loved him, and he loved her, until the uh. The plot. Happened. The Terrors™ if you will

I know she helps bury the body with Winston, but I'm not sure how many of Charles' belongings she'll put in the grave too.

I'm most stuck on how she will react upon finding the body, with aster there, gripping a blood-soaked candleabra.

I do know that she'll make sure Martha doesn't see anything while the body is being taken care of. Something along the lines of "Martha, stay in your room, close the door, and don't look out to the back yard. Draw the curtains, okay? Promise me you won't look and won't leave your room until we're done, okay? Read a book or practice one of your magic tricks or-or something. Occupy yourself for a bit. I'm sorry." Beatrice does NOT want Martha to see another corpse.

Not to be too cliche but I am a sucker for "character goes off on another character about pent up feelings and slowly gets sadder and sadder and ends up a crying mess on the floor" and something like that could work between Beatrice and Aster, with Beatrice having pent up feelings about missing Charlie (not Charles. Charlie. The shy boy she met in primary school who wanted to change the world) And aster maybe not exactly realizing that Beatrice is GOING THROUGH IT.

Anyway, that's all for now :)

[saiilorstars]

ch.23: Winters' Fall

Steve Rogers x OFC fic • squeeze your eyes for a Bucky Barnes x (2nd) OFC

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag​ @arrthurpendragon​​​​​ ​​​​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​​​ @stareyedplanet​​​​​​​​ @gloryekaterina​​ @lenonizi​ @averyhotchner​​ @foxesandmagic @kmc1989 @caplanbuckybarnes​​​​​​​​​​​​

Story Masterlist • Seren’s Masterlist• Chloe’s Masterlist​​

Also available on Fanfic ○ Ao3 ○ Wattpad

If you’d like to be a part of this OC’s work/edits, let me know!

'Just introduce yourself and tell them the situation, Seren, it's not that hard.'

Seren rolled her eyes. Leaning back in her seat, she gazed ahead at the screen where Tony's face was. He was lucky he was behind that screen and not sitting with her in the plane because she wouldn't have been able to guarantee his safety at that moment.

"If it was so easy, why didn't you fly out to Malibu instead?" she raised an eyebrow at him.

"We've been over this. You're the people person in this team," Tony answered, to his credit, smoothly. "Steve swore by it too, you know."

Seren cocked her head to the side, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "I don't see him on the screen—is he still alive?"

"Oh c'mon Twinkle Star, you've only been flying for 2 hours. We're not that bad."

Seren would've loved to be that confident but she couldn't deny the genuine fear she had leaving Steve and Tony in the same room for more than an hour. They were working on their relationship, true, but she was leaving them for a lot longer than an hour. It made her nervous…

"I'm going to do what I can but I just don't think it'll go well for me if I announce myself as the agent who introduced Chloe to S.H.I.E.L.D., the place who is now hunting Chloe," she said to Tony.

"Well, don't introduce yourself like that then," he said with a shrug.

Seren deadpanned the man. "That's literally what happened."

"Just say you're Chloe's best friend. I guarantee that'll get you in through the door. Treat it as an undercover mission, Soul."

Seren was about to point out that it would be a downright paradox but Tony chose that moment to end the transmission. She leaned against her seat, trying in vain to relax. There was no way she could relax even for a bit knowing what was coming.

~0~

It was a breezy kind of day in Malibu, but then again it was always breezy near the Californian coastline. Seren had a few missions there to know that.

She came up to a pretty village-esque house that, while looking like almost every other house down the block, stood out to her with its stark white painting and beautiful colorful flowers growing all over the front walls. Seren wanted to think that was all Chloe. She had mentioned once or twice to Seren that she used to have quality mother-daughter time doing the gardening. Seren eyed the small porch garden lining the door and smiled softly.

I'm going to get you some of that mother-daughter gardening time, she thought.

Drawing in a breath, and the determination to see her promise through, Seren walked up to the door and knocked. She had very little time to come up with a reasonable introduction when the door opened up.

A blonde woman in a pretty sunflower patterned apron stood on the other side. Seren immediately recognized her from all the pictures she had seen in the past. Charlotte Winters smoothed out the sides of her apron and greeted Seren with a polite smile. "Yes, can I help you?"

"Um, my name's...Seren Soul. I'm...well, it's sort of…" Seren looked around the street and while there weren't a lot of people, she still felt like what she needed to talk about had to be done more privately. In most cases, she would just show her SHIELD badge and things would start rolling off immediately. Even that was different now.

"I know you," Charlotte said, tilting her head so that all her blonde hair fell to one side. Seren could no longer tell who was more nervous — she or Charlotte. "Is Chloe here…?"

Seren shook her head.

Charlotte's eyes filled with more fear. "Oh my goodness, is she—?"

Knowing exactly what Charlotte was going to say, Seren shook her head fast. "No, no, no! She's alive, I swear. Can I, come in?"

Charlotte nodded and opened the door wider for Seren to walk in. She closed the door almost immediately after and led Seren down to the living room.

Seren saw the dozens of plants crowding the room — Chloe said her mother was all about the gardening after all — and felt like she'd been indulged into a forest. She especially liked the vines dangling around the television that hung on the wall.

"You're Chloe's friend," Charlotte said. "I, uh, remember your hair…" She made a quick pass at Seren's hair and smiled nervously. "I've seen you in a lot of, um, news. You and Chloe — your friends, right?"

Seren nodded. "Yes…"

I like to think that we still are, she thought.

Charlotte untied her apron and invited Seren to sit down on the couch. "I was just cooking — my husband and boys are always hungry when they get back from work. Chloe has brothers…um…ir she…"

"I know," Seren promised. She could see Charlotte trying to figure out whether or not Chloe had discussed the fact that she had a family. "Chloe told me all about you. I'm Seren Soul."

Charlotte nodded knowingly. "You're the girl who put that missile in space with Iron Man."

"Part of my resume, I guess," Seren said with a light smile. Charlotte tried matching it but she failed miserably. "Mrs. Winters—"

"You can call me Charlotte, it's alright." She tucked some hair behind her ear and sat down on the other couch across Seren. "Um, can I…can I offer you something?"

"No, that's alright, thank you," Seren said, sighing. She had to get started before Charlotte lost her mind with crazy suppositions. "I want you to know that Chloe is alive and she's…she's doing okay…"

The assurance could only do so much for Charlotte and it showed. "I-I try to keep updated as much as I can. We all do. My sons — they're better at the internet stuff. They tell me when they see something about Chloe. And of course my sister in law — May? — she used to tell me whenever Chloe stopped by to visit her and Peter. But May says that Chloe hasn't come by anymore."

Seren nodded silently. She could easily understand why. "Have your sons told you about what happened to SHIELD?"

Charlotte sighed lightly. "Yes. It's all gone now, isn't it?"

"I'm afraid it is. Er…do you know what happened to Chloe in all that mess?"

Charlotte shrugged. "Not really. The news was mostly about the assassin that disappeared, and then you of course…and Captain America…"

"Right, okay," Seren said, mentally preparing herself for what she was about to dump on the poor woman. "Can I ask what exactly you know about Chloe ever since she ran away?"

"Not much," Charlotte said lamentably. "Chloe was very brief the last time we spoke — that was years ago. She said she was okay but that she needed to get away."

"Mrs. — Charlotte, you don't need to feel guilty about anything because Chloe did not leave because of you," Seren said. She recognized the same guilt her parents carried in Charlotte's eyes. And she saw the same relief in Charlotte's eyes too.

"Are you being honest? Because…because in these past years, I have never had a moment of peace knowing my daughter was out there somewhere…purposely avoiding her family. If I had something to do with her leaving…" Charlotte swallowed hard, "We wanted Chloe to have the best grades for college; we wanted her to be well rounded at school…the pressure we put on her…I see now that we may have pushed her too far."

"I can't speak to what Chloe felt in terms of pressure about school but I can tell you — assure you — that she did not runaway because of that."

"Then why did she do it?" Charlotte's voice cracked. Her eyes glistened with fresh tears. "And why doesn't she call us? She hates us?"

"No, no, none of that!" Seren exclaimed. "I'm so sorry — for your family and Chloe — that I have to be the one to tell you what really happened. In any other circumstances, I would let Chloe explain it but…Charlotte, your daughter is going through a very hard time and I'm scared that she might not come out of it."

Charlotte's face paled with worry. "What do — what do you mean?"

"The reason that Chloe ran away is because she accidentally touched a-a piece of alien technology that-that…merged with her."

"What…?" Charlotte's brows furrowed with confusion. "Merge? What do you—?"

"Your daughter is merged with an alien hive mind. That's like a-a…how do I say…" Seren felt her face flush as she struggled to find the right words to explain Chloe's condition without freaking her mother out. "Well, it's basically a unified consciousness that's formed by many, many individuals — in this case a foreign extraterrestrial race — who can share thoughts, communicate with each other and so on…"

Charlotte looked absolutely lost and Seren hated herself for it.

"I suck at this and I can't say how sorry I am…" Seren let out a long, heavy sigh, "Trust me, I really wish Chloe was here…to explain this…I-I don't know the extent of things about the Hive Mind…"

"I wish Chloe was here too," Charlotte said with a sad smile, "But I appreciate you giving me something new to go by on. You telling me that Chloe is still alive helps me breathe a little easier. But you said…you said she needed my help?"

Seren nodded. "She does."

"If what you said is true then I don't see how I could help her in anyway. I'm just a normal person."

"You're her mother," Seren corrected, "And trust me, you have no idea how much that could help her right now." She thought about her own mother and how good things felt in her life knowing that Liana was just a call away now.

"What's happening to my daughter?"

"The organization that infiltrated SHIELD kidnapped Chloe for a moment and they forced her into this procedure that really harmed her physically and mentally. She's not brainwashed anymore but she feels extremely guilty about what she was forced to do. The problelm right now — the biggest one, anyways — is that we need Chloe to undergo another procedure to correct what HYDRA did to her and to finally stabilize the Hive Mind inside her. I was the one who found Chloe when she ran away so I know exactly the kinds of struggles Chloe has gone through because the Hive Mind and her are not in a stable relationship. She needs this procedure done but she is refusing to go through with it."

"And what happens if she doesn't go with the procedure?"

Seren would rather not go into deep detail for the answer that Tony had given her was not a life she wanted for Chloe. "Things will…get worse for Chloe."

"Oh, my baby," Charlotte brought a hand to her mouth. The tears in her eyes were threatening to spill from the corners.

"Your daughter has been through hell and back but right now, she's struggling to come back," Seren reiterated. "She hasn't talked to me in a while. We, uh, had to fight each other and she feels guilty about it. So do I, honestly, but right now I just want to help Chloe. That's why I'm here."

Charlotte let out a small, soft laugh. "I may be her mother but I have no super powers. What can I do?"

"Everybody needs help from their mother at some point in their life. I think right now Chloe could use a big hug from you."

"But I can't see her, can I? Because if you were going to let me, you would have already told me to come with you."

"I'm really sorry but I don't think it's the right moment to see her. Bringing you back to New York could push her over the edge."

"Me, push my daughter over the edge…" Charlotte swallowed hard, "How horrible."

"But there is a way you can help," Seren said quickly, "It's why I'm here. I plan to help Chloe as much as I can, even if she doesn't want me to. We thought that getting a glimpse of her old life could help her remember that there's still things to be happy for. I'm thinking we can collect some of her old things and I can bring them back to her."

"You think that would work?" Charlotte asked hesitantly. "Chloe's bedroom is untouched. We keep hoping that one day she'll come back. She had a whole life here."

"Yeah, I've heard," Seren said, eyes drifting towards the portraits on the shelf. "She's talked about your family. Don't think for a second that she's forgotten about this place, about you all." "Really?" Charlotte chewed on her bottom lip to hold back her tears.

"She's told me all about you guys. Her home…" Seren gestured towards the open windows at the front of the room. "The gardening she used to do with you."

"Oh," Charlotte's face softened, "She remembers that?"

"I promise you that she does. And if we get this right, if the surgery goes as planned, Chloe will be stable once and for all. She'll be able to come back here and visit. But right now, I really need to get that box back to her. Can I take some of her things?"

"Yes, absolutely!" Charlotte exclaimed. She cleared the tears from her cheeks and rose from the couch, determined to help Seren.

~ 0 ~

Chloe took slow steps into the laboratory, peeking her head around the entrance to find Tony working at a table.

This is an idea that won't come to fruit, the Animinds warned her.

"Shut up," Chloe promptly responded. This had been an ongoing battle ever since she decided she would take Bucky up on his proposition to go with him. The Animinds swore it would never happen but Chloe was determined to not let them be right.

"Megamind, I can see you," Tony's cool voice still managed to frighten her. He was looking at her from his spot, bemused with her childlike reaction. "You're like a kid getting caught sneaking out."

"I'm actually sneaking in," Chloe said, at least to keep the game going. It helped calm her nerves.

"Never going to happen," Tony dismissed the absurd idea. "JARVIS would have your behind, isn't that right?" He called out to the program.

"Absolutely," JARVIS confirmed.

Chloe rolled her eyes at them. "I was just sneaking up on you to see what you were doing."

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Tony gestured down to the worktable. It was Chloe's suit in front of him. "Though I'd figure out some of the kinks while I have downtime."

"I told you this should be put on pause," Chloe sighed. She didn't want Tony putting in any work on a suit that would never be used. She brought her hands to her hips. "Tony, don't work on this so much."

"It'll be perfect, you'll see," Tony wagged a finger at her then moved around the table. "What do you think about these?" He tapped against the long arm sleeves. "Would you like them as actual sleeves connected to the suit or is this better?"

"Tony…" Chloe smiled lightly, "Thanks for taking my opinions into consideration. I mean, I'm not going to lie, I am a sucker for arm sleeves. They're like a punk vibe, you know?"

"Yeah, I thought so," Tony nodded. "You still have to decide on the color scheme too."

"Oh, I don't know…" Chloe trailed off when she noticed the second work table beside them. "That wasn't there the last time I was in here."

"To be fair, I get a lot of things done when you don't visit."

Chloe looked over her shoulder. "Ha, ha. I've been taking some me-time. So then, what's the new project?" She took a few steps towards the table.

"It's actually for Twinkle Star." Tony watched Chloe come to an abrupt stop. "She'll be in here by tomorrow."

"Seren?" Chloe could genuinely feel her heart begin to race at a ridiculous speed. "She's here?"

"No, she's off on a mission but Steve's not that far away if you...wanted to see him…?"

Chloe shook her head on the spot. "No!" She turned back to Tony, revealing her widened eyes. "And don't you dare call him to tell him I'm here!"

Tony raised his hands in front of him. "I won't."

Chloe calmed herself. She didn't want her last visit to be filled with yelling and bickering. She came to say goodbye after all. "Listen Tony, I'm not in for exams…"

"Sort of figured that," Tony shrugged, resuming his work on Chloe's suit. "Still taking the 'me time'?"

Chloe nodded. "Yeah and I've been thinking about things. I've never really said thanks for everything you've done for me in these past years."

"Don't go getting sappy on me, Winters."

"I'm just saying...thanks for helping me out as much as you have. I know I haven't made it easy and the fact you've had patience with me is never going to be forgotten."

Tony looked at Chloe curiously. "That sounds weird."

"Why?" Chloe tried smiling as casually as possible. "I'm just expressing my gratitude, that's all."

Tony's gaze lingered on her as he reached for a tool. "Why now all of a sudden?"

"Dunno, just doing some thinking," Chloe shrugged. "I've done a lot of meditation."

"Ah," Tony nodded. "Well, it still sounds sappy and that's not my style."

Chloe smiled at him. "Course it isn't." She walked back to him and hugged him.

"Okay, now I know there's something weird. Get off me!" Tony raised his hands in front of him again. "Chloe!"

Chloe laughed at him. "God, how the hell are you in a relationship? Poor Pepper!"

~ 0 ~

Seren had always felt like an intruder wherever she went, and as much as she was working on it, she couldn't help but have the same feeling as she went through Chloe's old bedroom. Charlotte wasn't kidding when she said the room had been left untouched.

Chloe's room was on the second floor with a beautiful view of the streets. It was the only bedroom to have its door decorated with colorful flowers and a mixture of pictures consisting of Chloe, her family and her old high school friends. Inside, Chloe's pastel pink covers were neatly made over her bed—exactly how she left them on the eve of her last day at home—with a few stuffed animals sitting against the middle cushions.

The small working desk beside the door was also left with old books neatly stacked. Seren saw college pamphlets still sticking out from some of the books. Colorful pens were sprawled over the middle. The closet on the far end was left open, allowing Seren to see how cluttered it actually was.

Chloe Winters owned a lot of clothes. The poor closet seemed like it had thrown up a teenager's wardrobe. Blouses were either hanging halfway or on the floor. Pants were still folded but some of them were threatening to slide down its hangers. The shoes below were mostly mixed. However, through it all, Seren eyed a familiar cheerleader uniform hanging perfectly in its hanger. It was about the only thing left neatly.

That was the first thing Charlotte put inside the box.

"My baby was the best cheerleader," she smiled proudly as she grabbed a portrait off a shelf. She turned it around for Seren to see. "She did gymnastics too. Did she tell you that?"

Seren nodded as she took the portrait into her hands. Sixteen year old Chloe stood proudly holding her pom poms over her head. She was in the middle of a pose. "She did. There's a little competition video of hers floating around the internet."

Charlotte laughed softly. "Yeah, we've seen it countless times. She was almost in the regionals. I know I'm biased because I'm her mother but Chloe really did have talent."

"I know she did — does," Seren said, meeting Charlotte's eye, "She transferred those moves into her work at S.H.I.E.L.D. She is exceptionally talented." Charlotte nodded. Seren picked up another portrait of Chloe's on the bed-stand. Chloe stood with a few other cheerleaders Seren assumed were old friends. "She'll get to have choices again. We'll make sure of it."

In the end, that's what this was all about. Whether or not Chloe spoke to Seren, she would make sure that Chloe had a chance at her old life…if she wanted it.

~0~

It was late in the evening when Chloe returned home. She was more tired tonight than when she came home from multiple tests. But, she knew why. It wasn't tiredness. It was wariness. It was endless wariness of what was to come.

"You did it?" Bucky's sudden presence no longer startled Chloe. Most of the time, she just expected him to suddenly appear in the same room as her, other times the Animinds warned her of him.

Chloe dropped her bag on the floor without a care that it had spilled some of her belongings, amongst them her cellphone. "Yeah, subtle of course," she said, moving towards Bucky. "I texted my friend I told you about. She'll be waiting for us at the dock tomorrow."

"And she can be trusted?" Bucky asked despite knowing that he wouldn't fully trust anyone that wasn't himself or Chloe.

To get across the ocean, Chloe had assured him that her friend, who worked for the C.I.A., would be able to get them a safe passage without being detected by the authorities. Bucky had no problem trusting Chloe — she'd proven herself long ago — but he was wary of anyone else, especially strangers working for the government. It was a natural response that Chloe acknowledged and therefore swore to him that her friend was a good woman.

"Yeah, Citlalli is about the only one I can trust, beside Seren," Chloe nodded, letting out a long breath. "Citlalli is going to be at the docks tomorrow at the time we arranged. She's tall, light skinned, dark hair...she's good, I swear. She's, uh, well connected…"

Bucky gave a small nod. He watched Chloe stand in her spot, eyes gradually falling low. "Are you sure you want to do this?" He asked her. "Running away isn't easy and much less if you have friends here."

Chloe shrugged. "Seren's been taking care of me ever since she found me. She's always devoted herself to S.H.I.E.L.D. and me and that's not fair. She has someone else in her life now and she deserves to be happy. I got myself into this problem. I can figure it out on my own."

"Well, that's not exactly what I meant—" Bucky started when Chloe jumped on the chance to show him the location where they would be meeting her secret friend. She clearly wasn't open to hearing anything contradicting her and, if he was being honest, Bucky wasn't interested in starting any argument with her.

He had his own problems to deal with.

"So you know where it is?" Chloe asked him towards the end. For all the Winter Soldier training he had, when it came to cell phones, he could use a lesson or two more.

"Yeah," Bucky muttered.

"Good," Chloe tossed her phone on the coffee table, knowing full well she would be leaving it behind the following morning. "So, um, I'll go finish packing and...get some sleep, if I can."

Bucky nodded at her. He would try doing the last bit but he wasn't holding his breath for a miracle.

Chloe met his look for a minute or so — neither really held a timer for when these things happened — and exhaled a breath. It was natural to be afraid of what she was doing, she just hoped she could calm herself when the time came tomorrow.

~ 0 ~

Seren had fought tooth and nail against Tony when she returned that evening from Malibu. Steve had watched the phenomenal argument from the side, knowing exactly who would win in the end — he thought it would be much more amusing to see Tony Stark figure that out for himself. Seren Soul was an adamant woman and she always got what she wanted, especially when it came to her best friend.

"She's not going to answer you," Tony warned after sending Seren the address of Chloe's apartment. "I tried going once and she left me on the other side."

Seren knew what she was getting into by going to Chloe's apartment unannounced, she'd played it out in her head during her flight home. "I don't care if she doesn't answer, I just have to tell her things."

Tony washed his hands of the situation and left Seren to do what she wanted.

"You understand why I'm doing this, right lovey?" Seren had turned to Steve when it was just them in the lab.

It was then that Steve finally made a noise—he leaned off the table with a sigh. "I'd do the same if it was Bucky," he confessed. He'd go wherever Bucky was if he knew the location, even if Bucky didn't answer the door either.

Seren felt a bit of relief hearing Steve's support. She wasn't expecting anything from Chloe. Seren only felt that she had to visit Chloe and tell her what she felt regarding their situation, as well as to bring Chloe's things from Malibu. It was only right.

That same night, Seren grabbed what she'd taken from Chloe's childhood home and headed for Chloe's apartment. She carried the big box in her hands even when Steve offered to take it. He was accompanying her, though he understood it was better to wait downstairs. This was something between Seren and Chloe.

So, Seren trudged along the hallway of Chloe's apartment building until she came to the designated door. She set the box down and raised a hand to knock. Admittedly, it took her a while to gather the necessary courage to knock and even then it hadn't been as strong a knock as she would've liked.

Nobody answered the first time.

Don't be surprised, she wouldn't answer the door for anyone, Seren reminded herself. She knocked again.

On the other side, Bucky stood quiet as a mouse. He'd of course heard the first knock and honestly waited for Chloe to poke her head out of her room to see who it was. She must have actually fallen asleep tonight.

By the third knock, Bucky figured it couldn't have been an enemy. Those aren't the kind of people who would go knocking around. Still, it left very few ideas of who it could be.

Stark, he thought of first. He took the lightest steps towards the door and peeked slightly through the peephole. He couldn't afford the other person catching him so it was a quick peek. It was all he needed—gingers were incredibly easy to spot. And this woman was very orange.

Seren Soul. Bucky remembered the woman from the battle. This was the woman Chloe admired and loved to death. Can't hurt her. Bucky sighed. He couldn't drive her away either without showing his face.

"Chloe?" He suddenly heard. Seren was speaking, thankfully quietly. He heard her sigh. "I know you won't answer me but I also know you might be listening."

'Not completely wrong,' Bucky thought.

"Chloe, I know you think that you hurt me and that I can't forgive you for that but that's not true," Seren said. She leaned the side of her body against the door. "You're my best friend and beyond that, you're like my sister. You might as well be my sister. I love you, Chloe. I can't imagine what you must be feeling but I want to be here for you." Seren looked down at the box beside her and decided to sit down.

On the other side, Bucky heard the movement and assumed what Seren was doing. He was too trained not to know.

Seren made herself as comfortable as she could on the floor, leaning against the door. "I visited your home," she started again, simply going with the presumption that Chloe would be listening, "Your childhood home and I met your Mom. She was really nice, and very worried. She misses you a lot, Chloe, and she loves you. She doesn't quite understand what happened to you but I tried to explain it as best as possible. Chloe, she wants you to come home. Your bedroom...you should've seen it. It's exactly like you left it when you ran away. All your cheerleader stuff is still there, your college pamphlets—it's all still there. Your entire life is still there.

It was hard to imagine Chloe Winters as anything else besides a pawn of Hydra's, but Seren Soul was painting a really good picture of it.

Up until today, Bucky had no idea that Chloe's mother was still alive. He didn't know her family was still alive at all. Chloe made it distinctly clear that she wasn't going to talk about her family. She had made it less clear what the status of her family was. 'They're gone' had been the only thing Chloe said in regards to her family. Granted he shouldn't have just assumed they were dead but given their less than cheerful lives, he went with what seemed about right.

Now here was Seren unknowingly presenting Chloe's life to him and there was a part of him that was getting louder and louder saying 'listen!'.

Chloe was a cheerleader before. She was planning on attending college. She had a life before any of this.

"I brought back some of your stuff from home," Seren went on. She dug out a canary yellow wool sweater with an insignia on the left side. "Your mother was very adamant that I bring you this yellow sweater. It was your favorite, apparently. You got it on a family trip and you always wore it around the house. Said it —" Seren laughed —, "made you feel pretty. As if you really needed it." She put the sweater down and went through the box again, this time picking out a portrait. She opened it from the back and pulled out the picture. "I brought a lot of other stuff too."

Two seconds later, Bucky saw a picture slide under the door. He waited until it was completely on his side before pulling it up. He knew Seren would assume it was Chloe.

"Your mother said it was the last picture your family took together," Seren said.

Bucky immediately spotted Chloe in the center of the picture. She was younger, no doubt the teenager that would soon run away. She was surrounded by two brothers — they appeared older than Chloe. Chloe looked a lot like her mother but she had her father's eyes.

"It was at Santa Monica," Seren kept going, "One of your brother's birthdays."

Sure enough, the Winters family stood on a pier with the ocean in the back. Chloe and one of her brothers held onto ice cream cones. They were all grinning and...very much happy. For a second, Bucky thought he saw something like that in his head but with his own family.

"Chloe, your mother wrote you a letter," Seren announced, startling Bucky. He'd been getting lost in his thoughts...and something else he couldn't quite figure out yet. "I haven't opened it of course, but after visiting her and talking I can pretty much guess what she wrote." In a matter of seconds, she was sliding the envelope under the door.

Bucky gingerly picked it up from the floor and studied the slanted writing on the front.

For Chloe

From, Momma

"She figured you wouldn't want to open it so she insisted that I let you know how much she misses you," Seren said, "Chloe, you know that my life with my parents wasn't all that great. You led, honestly, such a perfect life and I get that having a way to return to that kind of life can also be scary after everything you have been through… but it doesn't have to be exactly like it was before. Doing this surgery can give you the best of both worlds. On the one hand, you'll finally be able to control your powers and who knows, you might turn out to be one of the best heroes this world has ever seen. And on the other hand, you'll be able to see your family again. Your parents love you so much and I'm sure your brothers miss their baby sister too. It's all there waiting for you, and I'll be here right beside you no matter what you decide to do. It's kind of like what Steve said he and Bucky used to say to each other. I'm with you 'til the end of the line."

I'm with you 'til the end of the line. That damn line kept going over in Bucky's head, even without Seren's help. Ever since Steve said that to him on the Helicarrier, Bucky kept thinking about how familiar it was. It was really familiar, like it was something he had once said all the time.

And now here was this woman, Seren Soul who, by Chloe's account, was the most moral, loyal woman she had ever met, saying the same thing to her best friend. Sisters.

Seren decided she had said everything she needed to. "Chloe, I'm leaving the box outside your door. Please look through it. Your mother personally packed it for you." Seren pulled herself up, not bothering to look at the door. "Give me a call or a message, please. I don't have anything to forgive you for. What HYDRA did was horrible but you still have a chance and a pretty good one too to pick the pieces and live your life. I'm sorry for what I did to you. You know that I would rather die than hurt you. I just…I knew that you wouldn't want to hurt people. Still, I'm sorry about everything."

It was the last thing Bucky heard before Seren left. He waited an appropriate time to step outside and even then he did a quick study of the hallway to make sure Seren wasn't hiding anywhere. She kept her word and was long gone.

Bucky picked up the box and brought it inside. He saw the sweater before anything else. It was draped over the box. He gently picked it up, careful not to dirty it as he left it hanging on the couch. He ignored the voice in his head telling him to mind Chloe's privacy but it didn't deter him in the least. He was determined, what for, he wasn't sure yet.

He found a series of pictures with Chloe and her family, a bunch with what he assumed were her old friends. Chloe grinned in each picture. She looked like she was such a cheery girl, nothing like the woman Bucky had gotten to know these past days. He saw medals belonging to gymnastics and remembered briefly that Chloe had mentioned she was thinking about college admissions through gymnastics scholarships. And by the looks of several college stuff (potential scouts), it seemed like she had a good chance at getting in.

HYDRA had taken someone with a bright future and turned her into a puppet. They broke this girl.

And she's going to run away with you. Bucky looked inside the box then at the letter Chloe's mother sent her. They're all still alive.

Bucky gripped the edges of the box until the side that his metal hand was gripping tore a piece. He checked the time on the clock.

It was midnight.

~0~

When Seren met with Steve downstairs, he didn't bother asking her how it went. He saw the deep disappointment in Seren's face. Even though they both knew the chances of Chloe answering the door were slim, Seren still held onto the tiniest of hopes that maybe Chloe maybe would answer the door.

Clearly, it didn't happen.

Seren retreated into Steve's arms and let him hug her as tightly as possible.

"She'll come around," Steve murmured against Seren's head. He pressed a kiss over her hair. "You did what you could, now it's up to her."

Seren knew he was right but it didn't make it any less hard. She didn't make any protest when Steve suggested they go home, in this case it being Stark's Tower.

~0~

Chloe woke up earlier than what she and Bucky had agreed upon. Not wanting to disturb him in case he managed to sleep, Chloe worked slowly around her room. She packed what she needed and only what she needed. She had already made sure to leave behind anything technological like her phone and laptop. Once it was time, she left her room and headed for the living room. She expected Bucky to be waiting for her, at the very least watching the window like a hawk for anything suspicious.

"Bucky?" She called around when she felt things were too quiet. She spotted a cardboard box on top of the coffee table with a familiar sweater she hadn't seen in ages.

Her heart hammered.

"Bucky!?" She started calling more urgently. She dropped her bag and hurried up to the box to see for herself. She pulled out the sweater and immediately knew it was hers. More than that, the stuff inside the box was also hers. It was all hers.

Her college collages, her cheerleader uniform, the pictures she had in her old bedroom. It was all hers! How could it be!?

"Bucky!?" She exclaimed again, desperately waiting to hear a noise in return, at least the scruff of his heavy boots or something. "Bucky, c'mon!" She soon spotted an envelope with her name on it. That was her mother's handwriting. She would recognize it anywhere.

Beside it was another paper, this one torn and the handwriting was unfamiliar. Chloe scrambled for the second paper.

Winters, your best friend stopped by with the box. She visited your family and met your mother. She was adamant that you go through the box. I did. Hydra messed me up beyond belief and I have nothing to go back to but that's not your case. You still have a family, you have that friend of yours willing to stick by your side. You still have a chance to repair what Hydra did to you. Take the opportunity and trust that Stark. One of us should get to take back the years we lost and I think you deserve to be the one.

Your ally.

Not signing it with his name was a smart move indeed. Chloe held the paper in her hands tightly to the point that her knuckles went pale white. Her eyes blurred as the tears overwhelmed them.

He was gone.

Bucky had taken off without her.

[palettepainter]

CLEO LOOKS ADORABLE!! ❤️

It’s so nice to see a cat rottmnt oc that doesn’t feel like a recoloured version of mishacakes oc! (If you don’t know her she has a rise oc named Tomiko and I’ve seen a lot of rottmnt OC’s that are cats that look way too like theirs, namely the hairstyle)

Can I ask what Cleo’s friendship is like with the other brothers and do you think you’d ever draw her interacting with them? Or April and Cassandra? 

I think I know the artist you're on about. I won't include an image of the oc I think you're on about incase the artist isn't okay with reposts but is the OC you're on about the cat one with the pink/cream/black colour palette? And they're shipped with Leo (if this makes no sense then sorry clearly I'm going on about a different person!)

I'd been a fan of Rottmnt and following some Rise artists long before I started posting for it, so there's a chance I might have seen their stuff, but I don't really remember tumblr names all that well, I just remember art styles or characters!

As for Cleo's friendship with the other turtles I do have some lil short dialogue bits that I wanna draw out eventually, but since I'm still working on how I want to draw the turtles in my style I don't know WHEN exactly I'll get round to posting it. But she gets along well with all of them basically!

One idea I had was Leo uses a lazer pointer on her, since Leo is the prankster of the family. When Leo isn't making cat related jabs or puns at her they get along well, though sometimes Cleo can get a bit tired of his shenanigans. She tends to get the most worried when he tries to do tricks on his board of anything portal related, big worrier in that department. Leo probably likes to milk the attention cuz he's Leo but otherwise they get along! Donnie and her tend to bicker the most, but in a casual sort of way? Like Cleo nit picks at him for trying to get better sleep when he gets all moody and grumpy from staying up so late but it's from a place of genuine care, and Donnie half heartedly nit picks at her for all the sugar she eats. I hc Donnie has a tender tummy and can't handle sickeningly sweet things (like hot chocolate fudge cake), whereas Cleo is a glutton for sweet stuff. Again though, it's out of a place of care but he'd never admit it, he'll bring Cleo flavourless juice if she has a stomach ache at the lair all the while calmly reminding her she is, in fact, a dumdum for getting sick in the first place (when Donnie makes himself sick from too many all nighters working Cleo does the same thing)

And she loves Mikey, adores him! Mikey is of course and will always be the baby of the family, and since Cleo has little siblings too she pretty much instantly grew fond of Mikey in a caring sisterly way. Doesn't stress about his safety quite as much as Raph does, tries to help Raph relax a bit when it comes to Mikey doing missions on his own. She's kind of confused by Dr. Feelings since...well, being a big sister, Cleo is used to being the listener rather then the talker.

Also loves his cooking and his art, she's told Mikey she wants to try story telling but wouldn't show him until probably after the events of hte movie

[colormepurplex2]

Heyyy, I'm new to your blog and I really enjoyed reading golden cufflinks. The writing, plot and sotyline was amazing! I noticed there were some things mentioned regarding oc's past relationships and stuff but it wasn't elaborated much, and I would really like to know what she had gone through. Also, the relationship of Hayun and jungkook lasted for more than 5 years and he was in LOVE love with her (even though she wasnt his true mate), so how can just a single day make his feelings for her vanish, I mean, I genuinely want to know what he went through and how he dealt with all that, even though he was okay with the cheating, but still. Isn't 5 years a lot to forgive and forget? Also, I really want to know the major differences in the relationship dynamics between him and hayun, and him and oc! Like is he treating her the same way as he was treating hayun?

I'm sorry if my questions sound stupid! I'm just very interested to know haha.

Hi, Anon!

Welcome! Happy to have you in my little world 💜 These are all absolutely wonderful questions, but admittedly, the answers aren't included in the story because of a few factors, lol! This story was supposed to be just a short >5k drabble, but clearly, that didn't quite work out. However, I did try to make it as short as possible while still staying true to my writing style and needs as a creative. And in that, there are a few things that were incorporated organically into the story but didn't necessarily get their whole spotlight moment—

Some explanations below that contain spoilers!

—such as the comment about past relationships for the FMC and how she felt the keen sting of her own experience with betrayal with Hayun's confession and reluctance to want to tell Jungkook about it.

Because this was a commission piece written specifically for someone, I tried to keep things like this ambiguous enough that they could potentially incorporate their own idea as to what it might mean/what's alluded to happening in the FMC's past. So, I guess, technically, there is no actual experience that I had in mind when writing it. The phrasing just felt organic to the character, and it helped me bridge that emotional gap between the characters. It also gave me an outlet to introduce the possibility of an imperfect relationship between Hayun and JK (since it would inevitably end soon anyway) to soften the blow in a sense?

The situation with Jungkook and Hayun's relationship lasting for so long is a bit more A/B/O-centric, I think. At least, that's how I intended it. That's one of the reasons I love writing A/B/O so much. It's very open, and the lore can be almost anything the writer wants it to be—endless possibilities, truly. So, when I was trying to come up with a clever way to incorporate part of the commission prompt I received: "JK was drawn to the bff because she smelled like FMC for some reason." I knew I needed to focus on scents, but figuring out how Hayun smelled like the FMC without it being weird or simply explained as 'magic', I needed to establish how my lore would be for the true mates and what would happen when someone found theirs. So, essentially, Jungkook's 'hindbrain' or the thing that makes him an Alpha is so viscerally focused on the fact his (real) true mate has been found, that everything else is inconsequential and practically nonexistent. And because there is so little information known about true mates and how their dynamics work, Jungkook was able to fall in love with Hayun and believe she was his true mate because he didn't know any better. The draw he felt to the scent of the FMC in the bracelet Hayun was wearing, to him, was all the indicator he needed because there was nothing else to tell him differently—until he met the FMC, that is. This made it not exactly easy for him to fall out of love with Hayun, but more so that his love for Hayun couldn't exist once that instant acknowledgement of his actual true mate happened. He could (and does) still care for her, but he didn't have the capacity any longer to care about her cheating (even though he knew he should).

As far as the dynamic of his relationship with Hayun vs. the FMC, it is going to be different in the respect that the FMC is his true mate. He loved Hayun and he cared for her deeply, but unbeknownst to him, there was and would have always been something missing. They could have and potentially would have eventually realized their incompatibility. Jungkook would have started to question his belief in true mates or just how perfect true mates supposedly are. The relationship with the FMC is still so new, but for this lore, true mates are on the same basis as soulmates. They are irrevocably perfect for one another in all ways. So, it's not that he ever treated Hayun poorly, but it could pale in comparison to how he will automatically and naturally treat the FMC.

I hope this at least somewhat answers your questions! I tend to ramble and can be long-winded at times lol 😅

[valdekboy]

CARNIVAL AU - VALDI

THIS AU BELONGS TO @sm-baby. So, I made Carnival! version of my oc.

I know he doesn't exactly look as good and fancy as other characters from this AU, but still i think he fits well enough.

There are a lot of thing i want to write about him so if you want to read it all then go ahead.

About Valdi

His Engine is like a heart, if it stops he'll die. His only hope would be that one of his friends finds him and would kickstart his heart. Still that doesn't stop Valdi from tinkering with it. He likes to swap out few parts here and there to change his look (also some parts change how his engine behaves).

Even though he's nice, he can get violent if provoked.

He considers all other AIs as friends (even though he's scared of certain trio)

He LOVES good music. Sometimes he just wanders outside arena, searching for some lost cassettes, hoping to find some good tunes. If you want to have a listen then here you go (sorry i tried embedding spotify playlists but that didn't work so these are links to them): - CHILL MIX - GARAGE MIX - MAIN EVENT #1 - MAIN EVENT #2 - MAIN EVENT #3 - PERSONAL

His Playground "THE ARENA" It's giant arena that has 3 main segments:

Garage/Workshop - it's a big space with all the tools you need to fix up your vehicle. On floor above you will find Valdis personal workshop. That's the place from which he controls entire arena, lightning, music and some other things. It's best to not go there without his permission.

Museum - Valdi is very sentimental so after you win he won't just scrap your car, he'll fix it up a bit and leave it in the museum for everyone to see.

Lounge - A quite big room with luxury finish, big wooden bar and giant reinforced window, so anyone can grab a drink, sit back and enjoy the show. When you want to rest you can take the lift and relax in one of 8 rooms. Big bedroom with everything you need to relax (walls are soundproof and window can be closed with mechanical shutters)

Outside of arena you'll find an endless junkyard full of abandoned classic cars,trucks, bikes boats or even trains, if it has engine, you can find it here. Just remember to STAY AWAY FROM THE GRAVEYARD (especially if you hear anything).

HOW THE GAME WORKS

When you first enter, you will have to wait for Valdi so he can take you for a tour around the Junkyard so you can pick your car.

Then you have time to prepare your vehicle for the events. Ask Valdi if you need anything.

When the time comes, you will have to drive into the arena and await further instructions.

There will be 3 events, each one harder than the one before: EVENT #1 - Regular race around the track, you can ram, bash and spin out other contestants. Only rule is to never drive in reverse. There's also other variant called Trailer Race where you have a caravan or trailer attached to your car that you have to protect. EVENT #2 - Figure 8. Same as regular race but with one (or more) cross-sections where you can collide with others. EVENT #3 - Good old Demolition Derby. Crash, smash and bash your rivals and try to be last one alive.

You cannot die inside your car if it's still running, no matter if you get hit multiple times, you start to bleed or you break something, as long as engine is running you just can't die while inside the car (blessing and curse at the same time)

In between each event you have time to fix up your car or just take a break and walk around the arena.

If you manage to win 2 out of 3 events, then you can leave Valdis game with a small prize (which is a toy replica of your car, handmade by Valdi himself :D)

Holy Moly, I know that's a lot to read. If you've gone this far then Thank You so much for your time and i hope you have a lovely day/night.

Also if you want to ask about anything, go ahead the ask box is open.

In the end i wanted to Thank sm-baby for creating amazing AU and inspiring me to create carnival version of Valdi. Looking at all of that above, i still can't believe I've made it. I even started drawing a short story, which is something unbelievable for me. So once again a BIG THANK YOU!

[bunny-bluue]

Name: Céline Lavigne

Died: Year 1990

Death By: Heart attack from being overworked and stressed

Sins: Adultery and murder

Occupation: Fashion Designer (Both in living and in Hell)

Nationality: French

Type: Sinner - Doe Demon

Hobbies: Sewing, drawing designs, fencing, decorating, playing violin,

Tailor Shop: Lavigne’s

Love Interest: Alastor

Ex-Husband: Adrien Roux

So I believe when Hazbin Hotel came out with the pilot, I made an oc that I didn’t exactly touch up on. On most of my art accounts, I posted a white fox demoness named Inari! Now essentially, she was my number one HH OC back then but now that the show is finally continuing on, I came up with another OC to sort of replace my old OC! Mesdames et Messieurs, I’d like you all to meet Madam Céline Lavigne!

Céline is a French doe demon who happens to be a fashion designer (both in the living realm and in Hell) with a tailor shop located near the Hazbin Hotel! When she was alive in 1990, Céline lived in France, Paris. She was married and was becoming a rising french clothing designer with a lot of promising ideas and creativity! But while her fame grew, her personal life became dimmer and barren to the point of becoming estranged with her husband. Her busy hours kept her away from him for long periods of time, the stress of working so many hours caused them to have many fights, and then the distance between them caused her husband to seek out other women to hold. And while their marriage was crumbling, Céline tried her hardest to keep it in tact because deep down she still loved her husband. But when she learned that he was sleeping with many women, she in her own rage, decides to even the score and have a one-night stand with a stranger she met at a bar. As she was committing the sin of adultery, her husband had caught her and her lover in the act. Enraged by her actions, Céline’s husband flew into a rage and killed her lover and tried to kill her as well, resulting her into defending herself and killing him by accidentally shoving him off a balcony from her 50 story building. Céline’s reputation had plummeted once the news about her husband’s and lover’s death was revealed. She was shunned and rejected from the fashion industry and once the stress and exhaustion became too much for her to handle, she had died from a severe heart attack, thus sending her damned soul into Hell.

Once Céline had realized that she was indeed in Hell, she started from scratch and rebuilt her fashion career by setting up a tailor shop near the Hazbin Hotel! Once she heard about what Charlie was trying to accomplish at the Hazbin Hotel, Céline took the opportunity to visit and requests to be redeemed. She offers her skills into making new outfits and decor designs for them in payment for her reedeming! Once she was promised redemption, she had to meet the entire staff to familiarize herself with and that includes the Radio Demon himself. Like everyone in Hell, Céline knew how risky and dangerous it was to be around Alastor. She feared him but was also respective enough to make sure she didn’t get on his bad side. Which she didn’t! If anything, it made the overlord direct his attention to her whenever she was present in the same room! He found it fascinating that such a harmless woman was in Hell and it was entertaining for him to figure out what she did to get there! She didn’t exactly trust to be around Alastor but the more she got to know him, the more relaxed she got which eventually led her to having fond feelings for him. But because of her previous marriage, Céline isn’t too confident about getting into a relationship, especially with someone like Alastor since she is planning on being redeemed. So she doesn’t act on her feelings and keeps to herself, being fine with being good friends with him.