#I guess it works by cartoon logic in my head

[astronnova]

trying to figure out how i would wanna draw both of them inbtwn working on shtuff

ramblings under the cut

ok *cracks knuckles* excuse my design ramblings

vlad & danny are such interesting parallels to me esp if u wanna play more into the horror aspect of the show. vlad to me is the kind of horror vampires bring, they're attractive and alluring with large spiked gothic mansions as they suck you dry before you even register what happened.

danny is more like... small town radioactive horror? to me? does that make sense??? the horror of feeling, of knowing something is wrong with one of your classmates in your small, middle of bumfuck nowhere town. you know something is up, but he's still here walking around like always.

unfortunately my style is basically rip off anime LMFAO and i've never been good at communicating horror (falls to my knees and cries) but phantom could be so creepy and eerie. a seemingly teen boy in a hazmat suit, with a gas mask and/or goggles, wandering the streets at night, floating over streetlamps and making them and traffic lights buzz on and off. also electric core danny. he died to electrocution his ass is electric i do not Care what the show says, frost core danny can eat my ass🖕 (sorry to the frost danny likers. i do have an idea for the frost core thou)

my friend gave me the idea of making vlad snake-like too to match danny as a badger, snakes and badgers are natural enemies and all that. plus i didnt realize until after i drew it but vlad's hair and cape give him the silhouette around the head of a cobra! so i gave vlad cobra stripes on his ghost tail

i really like the idea of vlad kind of representing what danny could be. he represents the allure of power and letting go of your humanity i guess. he's petty, selfish, and has definitely murdered a couple people just because he felt like it. i know there are bones in the walls of his manor i just Know it. which i feel could be a fun way to rethink danny's first interaction with plasmius proper, maybe danny figures out who some wisconsin serial killer is with the added bonus of finding bones and rotting clothes in the walls of the basement because. ghost powers. and only another ghost could hide a body that way. ya feel me? its cool. kinda just rambling atp

i played around with giving danny a full face gas mask but i didnt like them too much. the goggles im on the fence about, i wanted them to be the same round goofy goggles maddie and jack wear but it takes away from the potential creep factor i feel... or maybe i just dont know how to draw it creepy (yet). he doesn't need the gas mask as a ghost but it would help hide his face i think. thats one thing, im watching eps with some friends who arent really into the show like i am and they keep asking how tf does no one know its danny and i just have to gently put my hand on their shoulder and tell them its cartoon logic. but for this! i feel like danny's face would be harder to see, like he's usually engaged in combat and when he's not he still has that gas mask and goggles combo, and its not like his hair looks the same like it does in canon.

ok crazy people ramblings OVER

[bananaactivity]

Im not finished with Carlos fully but he looks good enough for right now ( he’s 22 in this picture here)

I changed Carlos and Evie up, so now Evie is a vain witch like her mother who is fashionable but she doesn’t sew her own stuff. ( which is for the better cse wtf was that ugly ass dress she made for Mal in D2???)

Carlos considers himself to be a very expensive person and can be pretty big germaphobe. He hates getting anything on his clothes and he refuses to wear the school uniforms at Auradon Uni because they’re ugly. He wears lots of black white grey and red, with gold accents usually. He does theme around dog associated items like gold bone cutlets, paw print lapel chains, and a tennis ball brooch. He often wears red gloves and his favorite shoes are his collection of red bottom dress shoes. He likes hiding red on the interlining of his clothes too, such as his jackets and hats and vests.

A lot of his own person style is derived from 1990s London fashion ( as the artist that means I get my references from the 1996 101 Dalmatians live action movie, the styling of Cruela in that movie is ICONIC AND IMACULATE, and I MUST reference her for Carlos.

PURRRR

Of course he wears REAL animal print. And he’s not a weak touch me not prick like some think. He’s still tech savvy and does Anyalitics and specs for the core four. He also loves GUNS 😄. Think of him like a sharp shooter who stays in the back of turf wars and snipes people. The isle doesn’t have many marks men ( they all really like swords for some reason) so he’s pretty dangerous. He builds his own weapons too.

His passion started out as a way for him to collect his own furs but Harry gets him most of what he needs plus he always needs Carlos to redo his wardrobe ( he gets… messy… after a couple days work) Carlos hates that Harry ruins his creations so fast but he pays him well and gifts him rare fabrics and samples from Auradon.

Because Carlos has no magic Mal always underestimates him. She sees him as only a stylist and ranged weapon specialist. Even tho she acknowledges him for his wit and tech skills she still doesn’t listen to him. Sometimes he wishes he could stay with Harry but then he’d have to do more work up front. Harry understood what Carlos was capable of and respected him a lot. What Harry doesn’t understand is that not everybody likes to be covered head to toe in hot sticky blood 24/7. Harry had also promised him a suite on his boat that nobody else was allowed to occupy, but even if Harry’s crew feared HARRY they wouldn’t mind having an attitude with CARLOS for preferential treatment, even if it is what he deserves 🙄

Harry and Carlos’s relationship is the definition of there are two wolves inside you. Carlos smokes and drinks but he’s more of a Marlboro and Merlot type of guy and Harry’s a Rum and Cigar kinda lad. ( I’m using cartoon logic and say that those habits are purely aesthetic based of iconography from the original Disney moves, Cruella smokes and Capt. Hook smokes two cigars at once)

Carols isn’t really scared of dogs anymore but when he arrives at Auradon he “befriends” his roommate Chad ( now an animal lover like his mother) who has pet rats and a entourage of wild animals constantly in their dorm, and threatens to shoot and skin them all every single day to make a new line of coats ( when Chad rebuttals that his rats are too small to make coats, Carlos says they’d make the perfect fuzzy gloves 💀) He also uses Chad as a living mannequin for his designs. They have a goofy relationship with each other, Carlos does make Chad do all the dirty work of skinning and draining the animals he hunts but despite how traumatic that is Carlos is a fun sweet guy so it’s okay 💀💀💀.

Jay is jelly of Carlos due to his closeness with Harry. ( I guess the way to Jays heart and respect is by holding him at sword point and threatening to gut him and hang him by those very guts over shark infested waters and watch them nibble away at him 💀)

Next I’ll find up Carlos and do some fit designs then I’ll redesign Jay and tell that gutting story 😛

[ccraccz]

How about a request where the reader is a security guard at the movie setting where the boys were filming and instead of arresting the boys for trespassing they decide ro help them with shooting and offering the boys props.

BREAK IN RECORD

Characters: Hearsteel boys x GN!Reader

Implied male reader (reader can be seen as fit and not very bulky. They are taller than ezreal but shorter than k'sante and Sett. It says cleavage once, mostly because i have a slight obsession with man boobs, sorry not sorry) the characters are color coded, Alune is bold white (Looks like this)

You had been standing around, walking back and forth, sitting, crouching, counting tiles, all the sorts to keep you entertained in this job. Your partner had gone to the bathroom an hour ago, and you've begun thinking that he'd sunk into the toilet, but he's probably either sleeping or he ditched you.

So, in uncomfortable shoes and the mandatory clothing you're made to wear, you fiddle around with whatever you can that is not your phone or watch. Your phone, sadly, had died, and your watch kept the time for your sanity, so if you started to tweet with it, you wouldn't be able to keep track of time and that'd be horrible for you.

Though, your thought process was placed on pause when you heard some masculine voices and the padding of a pup walking around.

"This is a bad idea."

"Yeah, but it's gonna be great for this music video! We just have to check if there's any security around"

"I'd think it would be best to ask if we can use this place for recording.."

"But that's not funnnnn"

"It's logical so we don't get charged for breaking into a place we shouldn't be in!"

They sounded quite far away from you

'This would be fun,' you thought, thinking of ideas to entertain yourself in this boring setting.

You could totally scare them while they're recording or something. While thinking, you forgot that you were out in the open, though still in the dark.

Their dog, a cute Rottweiler, waltzed right up and leaned on your legs, getting his short fur drilled into the fibers of your uniform pants, not that you cared. You looked up from the dog to see a green haired boy, looking around as if lost.

"Ernest?! Ernest, where are you? We need you for this scene!"

He wasn't lost then. He just wanted to look for the dog.

Sadly, even though you wanted to have some fun and joke around with them, you couldn't. First, you didn't want to stress out the pup in your arms, and second, you were extremely tired.

You sighed and crouched down to the level of the dog, petting him before slotting one of your arms under his chest and the other around his hips before lifting him. You had expected him to wiggle around on your arms, but he surprisingly didn't, Ernest seemed to be very tame, or well trained, you guessed.

You walked out of the shadows, dog in arms, and walked towards the male from behind. You were quite a bit taller than him, his head most likely being around your shoulder or cleaveage.

"You looking for this pup?"

You asked, knowing that he forsure was looking for the dog in your arms. You just didn't know how you could approach him other than asking him something like that. Why did you ask that again?

The green haired boy jumped up higher than a cartoon cat and let out this ear piercing screech that your work partner most likely heard (from wherever he is). He teleported three times, once farther away from you, once behind you, and once in front of you with a shy smile.

You noticed that he really had one of the cutest smiles and wait. He can teleport?

You blinked once. Twice. Three times.

"You can teleport??" "WHERE THE HELL DID YOU COME FROM???"

"I asked you a question first?!"

"You're the one who scared me!!!"

"OH my fuckin- whatever. Not the weirdest thing I've seen. Anyways, are you looking for this dog?"

He looked at your arms, the dog he'd been srarching for was litterally asleep and just dangling from your strong arms. He blinked and chuckled before nodding.

"Ezreal!"

A rainbow of voices (see what I did there?) echoed down the hall with a few loud and quick thuds from behind you, making you turn around and the dog to wake up.

Placing down the pup, you grimaced at the need to explain to the group of men and lady because she's also running with them. This made you nervous.

This is not one of the reasons you wanted this job. Whatever.

---------------------timeskip---------------------

"We deeply apologize for breaking in and disturbing you,"

"We're really sorry, we will leave in a few, we just need to put the things we used to record away."

"There's no need to apologize. You guys didn't seem to know, and it's all completely understandable. Since you guys are done with recording, and I'm just about to leave to go home, I'll help out in picking things up!"

While speaking to the two, who introduced themselves as Yone and Alune, you watched as the boys played around with Ernest or sat around watching (Aphelios, Alune told you when she saw you looking at him. You really were just entraced by his hair color). They seemed like sibling to each other.

"There's no need to do that. We're the ones intruding in the space we're we shouldn't be"

"Nah, it's fine. I'm probably going to quit this job either way. My co-worker ditched me, and I don't get paid enough. Not only that, the boss is just rude in general."

"Whatever you say, but we wouldn't want to bother you with such.."

"Like I said, it's fine! Also, I would rather do something like this than walk around for 7 hours."

Walking away, Yone following you, and Alune telling the boys to start getting ready to move to the next location that Sett had planned out for all of them.

You helped Yone carry some of the heavy stuff before K'sante, with a gentle and kind smile, took it from both of your hands, like the strong man he is. Yone, kindly asked you if you would carefully carry some of the recording equipment and mics, and with a soft smile, you took some of the equipment and followed behind Aphelios outside the building where he shows you were their truck is.

They were parked behind your, now totaled, car. You were shocked and almost dropped the easily breakable equipment in your hands because of the sight.

Aphelios was no different. When he heard you gasp, he turned towards you and turned to see what you were looking at. From your eyes and body language, he could tell that the car that was in front of theirs was yours.

He grabbed the objects from your hands and placed them on the floor near the car before standing in disbelief. When they got here, Sett had parked well enough, that car was not fucked up when they arrived.

Just what happened?

Ezreal, Sett, and Alune were close behind, and they saw you both just standing there. Curious, they looked at each other before walking over to ask. Their reactions were exactly the same. They froze in place.

They knew who did it though.

Kayn and K'sante were next, but they didn't react as bad as the group did. Yone exited right after him, empty-handed and ready to go, but he really didn't expect to see the whole group looking as if they were ghosts.

That is before he saw the cause of such reactions.

"...KAYN!!"

That rage filled call-out shock all of you out of your stupor and made Aphelios crouch down, pick up the cameras and mics from the ground, and run towards their truck. Everyone, minus Alune, else did the same, minus Kayn and yourself.

After the long, loud, and embarrassing scolding that Kayn got from Yone, he was sent to the back of their truck, where he would hold the objects.

Yone apologized again and again and again, asking you how much you'd like to repay or buy a new car. Anything.

But you weren't as mad as you thought you'd be. Maybe it was because you were still on shock, or it was because you were bored of the car, or maybe it needed repairing. You don't know, but you just shrugged his offers off.

"Please, we have to repay this mess one way or another? How can we help? Don't you need a ride back home? I bet you're tired from work. Are you sure?"

"Actually.... Yone..."

"Yes?"

"I'd like to work with you guys"

That took Yone off guard. You must have gone insane! Your car, right in front of you, is completely destroyed, and here you're asking to work with them? After one person of their group literally just killed your source of transportation???

"You... want to work with us?? Like a dancer or singer? Or like an assistant manager??"

"I wouldn't mind either or actually. Though I would think being an assistant manager would be best"

Yone shakes his head in disbelief. You've truly gone insane. He sighs before reaching out his hand forwards, you instantly taking it in yours and shaking it.

"Welcome to Heartsteel [Name], we'll talk more about joining tomorrow"

"Also, Yone, I'll take you up on that ride"

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

Note!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA OH MY LORD THIS WAS SO FUN TO WRITE LMAO!!!

So so sorry it took so long! School just started again so I have to get used to the rhythm of school days again.

I decided to write this in a different format because I wanted to try something new. Not only that, I tried to add a bit of everyone, but I really wasn't able to 😰😰.

Either way!!! I truly hope you enjoy this little goofy thing. Thank you so much for requesting lovely anon!! 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡

[mall0w-rambles]

rambling AGAIN about mm!/tottmnt donnie (ep 10)

ok finally got to rewatch ep 10. definitely not a perfect episode now that i think about it, but i still like it. @lordchinnychin asked for my thoughts (tysm i appreciate it btw) so here we goooo

TOTTMNT EP 10 SPOILER ONWARDS‼️

at the start of the ep, donnie is already a little dismissive of wingnut's paranoia and doesn't take it too seriously. but donnie doesn't go too far. in fact, even at this point, he visibly wants to comfort wingnut. offering her food, giving suggestions, but he's definitely not directly talking to her about the problem just yet.

during the scene where they were surrounded by the alligator, wingnut started to panic even worse. however, donnie's responses were a bit harsher, which you can't fully blame him since he was starting to get stressed out.

also idk where to insert this, but i lowkey love the aussie jokes lol. and i kinda love that donnie still makes them even when they're literally surrounded by a wild animal. humor is one of his coping mechanisms, i guess.

at some point, both of them reach their limits to the point that wingnut even says that she would rather be a unmutated bat again. that statement seems to really hit donnie, possibly because he probably has the same thought too sometimes. i wouldn't be surprised if all the turtles had that insecurity at some point.

so that statement finally made donnie stop for a moment and just talk to wingnut head-on. he finally starts by acknowledging her feelings first. and i really like that he straight up admits he's not good when it comes to feelings. but when that isn't working out, donnie tries a different approach and tries to connect with wingnut through their shared interests.

honestly, the references already feel outdated, but i really do like the idea of the scene. sure, donnie isn't the best at connecting with feelings, but i really love that he still makes an effort to connect with her through his own donnie way; in a way that both of them understand and share because of their bond.

the moment they got surrounded by the alligator again, donnie tries a different approach to get through "demutated leatherhead." specifically, he does what he thinks his brothers would do in his position. but, erm, that doesn't work out. honestly, yeah it's very dumb for donnie to try to talk to a literal alligator lol. but the scene also pretty much signifies that donnie trying to act and think like someone else isn't the best answer.

also very interesting that the first time we see donnie visibly really REALLY panic in this episode is when he fell into the water and almost drowned. throughout the episode, he's been taking things pretty well, especially for a teenager. and he isn't even the older one between him and wingnut! but it's him who had to take charge. sometimes, he's probably the anchor for his brothers too.

of course in this children's cartoon, they solve the problem by working together and being yourself. the end hooray 🎉

but something that really really bothers me is whenever donnie mentions throughout the episode that he's "left-brained." So who's gonna tell him that being more left or right brained is just a myth? lol. it's been debunked years ago that your brain doesn't have a part that's more dominant.

but even with the inaccuracy, maybe that's intentional? cause i can't just believe it that a smart person like donnie wouldn't know the truth lol.

maybe donnie saying he's left brained more so pertains to the fact that he doesn't believe that he's also more right brained and more empathetic than he realizes. maybe because he's been labeled as the smart one for so long that he isn't exactly comfortable with that position. it's because of the label that it makes him think that he SHOULD ONLY be logical. what if he's purposefully limiting himself? when, in reality, he's a lot more emotional than he realizes. he just happens to be a bit more emotionally intelligent than his brothers. but i guess one of them just has to step up.

man, being the youngest (i think) but also the most mature might be the thing that fucks up the way he views himself. they assume donnie is the smart one, so they expect him to be the smart one all the time for every situation. and that takes quite a toll on donnie, so he tries to convince himself that he is only logical. my god, let this boy breathe!! i'm sure the others don't intentionally pressure donnie of course, but it still affects him nonetheless.

ok, so if ever tottmnt ever gets another season, i would love for a donnie episode where he starts to feel more confident about himself. not just confident about his smarts alone, but also his interests. i'm just realizing this as i write this, but they didn't mention donnie's interests that much in the show compared to the movie. well, i wanna hear about them again!! i wanna see him have fun and be happy!! i want donnie to realize he's not just the smart one, or that his worth is based on his intelligence, strength, or anything else. donnie is awesome for simply being donnie, and that's completely enough.

[storiesbyjes2g]

3.130 Whoop that trick

At dawn, Sophia got up to pee, so I pulled myself out of bed to make breakfast because I knew she'd be hungry and head for the kitchen next. I felt like trying my French toast recipe again, as I hadn't perfected it yet. Cooking for Sophia had proven to be even more frustrating than cooking for Dad, because nearly everything contained dairy in some form. Scouring the internet every day for something new to try had gotten really old, so I started buying plant-based milk for my sanity. I think she appreciated it too because sometimes the temptation to eat dairy was so strong she gave in, damning the discomfort of bubble guts. How anyone could live life without cheese, I didn't know.

"Mmmmm, that smells so good," Sophia cooed.

"Thanks. I think I got it right this time."

The plant-based milk worked well for most things, but I needed to make adjustments to my custard. In my initial trials, either the bread came out too soggy, or it developed an eggy crust while it cooked. Everything looked perfect this time, so I hoped to remember what I did for next time.

"Okay, so hear me out," she started.

I had no idea what she was about to suggest, but I knew it would involve her not resting at home.

"It's Night Out on the Town tonight! We should go."

"Is that a good idea? You're due literally at any moment now."

"Okay, yeah, but this might be our last night as a child-free couple! We should spend some time together before we have to start scheduling it."

I wanted to come up with an irrefutable rebuttal, but I had none. Her logic was sound, as always. She'd been cooped up inside a lot lately, anyway. It wouldn't hurt to leave the house for a little while. It's not like we were going jogging around the lake or anything.

"Okay. But we're going to stay in town. There's a nice restaurant in Anchorpoint Wharf I've been wanting to take you to."

She clapped and did a little happy jig in her chair. I loved that woman.

Kooper and Rosie were getting old. Their coats turned gray, they slept a lot, and they walked a little slower. None of that seemed to stop them from running around the house like a pair of puppies, though. Rosie still demanded that Kooper play with her and dashed around the house and yard like she was training for a marathon. I loved that their age didn't stop them from having a good time. I was playing with Kooper when I realized something that stopped me dead in my tracks.

"Oh my Watcher," I shouted.

Sophia was behind me, asking what was the matter. I didn't mean to startle her, but it just occurred to me that Alessia might have her babies today!

"We need to get to Mama's house!"

She started to ask why, but I had already dialed Dad's number to see if he would come. Once she overheard my end of the conversation, she went upstairs immediately and got dressed. Dad said he was already on his way and would meet us there.

When we arrived, Mama wasted no time checking up on Sophia and loving on her youngest grandchild. She hammered her with a bunch of questions, like if she was getting enough rest and if she had experienced early contractions. All moms were lay doctors, I guess. Just as I had begun to think it was nice to have the whole family together again, loud forbidden words and angry screams rang out from upstairs, followed by rapid stomps heading in our direction.

"I'M GOING TO MURDER HIM," Alessia yelled.

"I'M GOING TO FIND HIM AND PUNCH IN HIS PRETTY FACE!! AND THEN I'M GOING TO CUT OFF HIS-"

"Whoa, Less," I said. "What in the world happened?"

Her face was as red as a strawberry, and her eyebrows scowled, just like an angry cartoon character. The lasers shooting from her eyes made me want to stay out of her way, but I needed to know what and who upset her so.

"JACE happened!! He's a PUNK!! Ol' llama-faced liar!!! I'M GONNA KILL HIM!"

"What did he do, Less?"

"He went back to his ex! IN MT. KOMOREBI!! And he married her!! He f#@$ing MARRIED her!!! HE SAID HE LOVED ME!! Ever since we found out it was triplets he's been weird!! HE IS DEAD TO ME!!!"

Mama had previously gone to the kitchen, no doubt to be near Dad when she noticed him taking out the trash, leaving only me to diffuse the situation. Alessia's anger was palpable, like an electric current coursing through the room. I had never seen her like that before, and it both scared and fueled me. I tried balling my fists and breathing extra slow and deep to keep myself from going off, but thoughts of confronting that piece of shit and laying hands on him stirred a fire inside me. There was no kind, gentle way to deal with this, and if I ever saw that cowplant turd in the street, it would be on sight! Nobody betrayed my sister and got away with it. I should have known something was up when he bailed at the baby shower. I saw him when we arrived, but after that, he was nowhere to be found. How could he weasel his way into my sister's fortified heart, knock her up, and leave her with THREE babies??? Did he really think running away to the mountain would absolve him of fatherhood? Like, did he not know child support was a thing? And he had THREE to support?? What an idiot! COWARD!! I hoped his wife had a real job because I knew Alessia would try to milk him dry. He'll be sorry he even met her! The sheer audacity of it all made my blood boil.

I was concerned about my niece and nephews and finally got Less to sit down. She didn't exactly calm down, because how could she? But she and I had a great time plotting and scheming against ol' Jace, planning what we'd do to him the next time we saw him. True, that wasn't healthy either, but it sure was fun. Revenge wasn't really Sophia's style, and she remained quiet. She also didn't have a sibling she would take up for at any moment, so she didn't understand why I acted like that and occasionally tried to talk sense into us.

But just like when she was a kid, Less found it hard to sit still and be calm, so she jumped up and paced the room, fuming like a teakettle. Even though he would eventually find out, I hoped Dad was still outside during Alessia's initial rant. Her situation was way too close to home, and I feared it might trigger him, especially being in Mama's house with all of us. But like I said, he would eventually find out. He and Mama came out from wherever they were, asking what all the yelling was about. I guess Mama had enough of Less' pregnant mood swings to come find out immediately. Less filled them in, and I saw a quiet rage growing within my dad. He looked just like how I felt. Maybe we could take another family trip to Mt. Komorebi and murder him together, heh.

I saw Mama eyeing me, as if to silently ask what we should do as the expert on all things mind, body, and soul. But I had no answers for her. My mind was set on destroying Jace, and my body was ready for it. I felt that in my soul, ha!

"I think we all need a dip in the pool," she said. "That should relax these tense mommies, right buddy?"

I sensed both sincerity and sarcasm in her tone, as she seemed disappointed that I provoked instead of diffusing the situation. Either way, she was right. Less definitely needed to calm down, but the rest of us did too, so we got changed and hopped into the pool.

[bluegekk0]

Any tips on how to draw PK's head and horns? I've not been able to figure out a good, consistent way of doing it myself yet.

well, for starters, i significantly simplified their shape. if you compare fpk to canon pk, his design is much rounder, and his horns are considerably shorter. it's mostly a stylistic choice (though the roundness of the horns can be explained in the au), but it makes them much easier to draw + they help to give him a more streamlined look, which fits fpk's lizard aesthetic, although i think it would work with different interpretations as well

this is generally how i approach his headshape. very round and salamander like, with a subtle snout, especially visible from the side. of course, this can vary as i'm very inconsistent when i draw, but this is more or less what i try to go for

his head is very round from the top, and the neck meets the lower jaw at an angle, which allows him to lay his head flat on the ground and gives it a more elongated appearance than what you'd see in a more "human" like neck position

like i said, the horns are probably the biggest deviation from his canon appearance. if you've been following me for a while, you'll notice that i gradually made them shorter and rounder with time, and this is because, well, it's significantly less headache inducing to work with. plus i really like the spade like shape, i think it flows very nicely. when i draw the crown, i start with a dome like shape with lines that are angled towards a singular point, and then just add details + more pronounced tips. if you want a more canon-like look, you can always make them more "wavy" even if you decide to shorten them

different perspectives is something i still struggle with, but i think the design choices i went with make it a little easier. the dome-like shape for the crown becomes a kind of cylinder, and the longer and flatter head also helps with figuring out how he'd look from the bottom (once again, toothless from how to train your dragon comes to the rescue)

the thing that i still haven't figured out is the side horns. i make sure they're visible no matter the angle, but what would they actually look like? i'm afraid this is one of the things that will remain in the "cartoon logic" territory, but i've seen various different interpretations similar to these, so perhaps you'll figure something out. all i know is that, if there's a ridge or a line of spikes on his head, they end somewhere on the lower jaw (they don't go around his entire head). i guess the closest to what i do when i paint would be the smooth ridge, and if i had to choose one option, it would probably be this one. but in most of my art i simply just pretend it's not there haha

i hope this is somewhat helpful. i don't know how to do tutorials and i suck at explaining, but perhaps you'll find some inspiration in these. i tried to sketch out what a more "human like" appearance could look like, with a shorter and flatter face, but it just looks goofy no matter what. sorry haha

[lastoneout]

@dittolicous I'm slapping these tags into a new post bcs it made me realize I might be weird and wanted to know of anyone else is weird in the same way.

Because like my fear of heights only seems to manifest on man-made structures? Before my disabilities got bad enough that I couldn't hike I used to climb up on top of really tall stuff all the time, like I would hang out on the Devil's Bridge in Sedona and not feel even a little bit scared, but like climbing up say the stairs to go down a water slide is enough to make me shake and have to not look down/get too close to the railing at the edge. The idea of going to the top of a skyscraper—and I mean like just the top floor inside, not like an observation deck or anything—makes my hands sweat(did you know they SWAY in the wind?????) but I've hung out right at the very edge of the Grand Canyon several times and I've never felt more at peace.

The only man-made structures that don't bother me are roller coasters(kinda), airplanes, and weirdly some playground equipment? Roller coasters are only fine if we stay moving tho, if the thing broke when we were really high up and we had to get rescued I would be a complete mess, but like, as long as we stay moving I love them. Carnival rides are a mixed bag, I enjoy going on ferris wheels but they do scare the shit out of me, and I just won't get on most other rides that go super high up in the air. Airplanes are okay because I understand the science behind it?? It makes sense(and when you take off you can feel the air catch the plane) so I just don't get scared, though if I was in like a skydiving plane that's open I would probably freak out. The logic behind playground equipment is a mystery to me, maybe bcs it's literally made for climbing?? No clue.

And like, I watch a lot of videos of people climbing cellphone towers and skyscrapers specifically bcs they scare me SO much that it works to get rid of my anxiety if I'm freaking out about something. All of my problems seem so small because at least I'm not on top of one of those fucking things. But I do actually really like watching The Walk, idk it makes me scared so bad but I love it.

The only natural structure that scares me is trees. Idk what it is about trees, especially bcs I do like climbing them, but I usually struggle to get down without help.

This also made me remember I used to have vhs tapes with episodes of the Madeline cartoon and in one episode she and her friend get stuck at the top of the Eiffel Tower and despite the fact that I have actually BEEN TO PARIS and WENT UP TO THE TOP OF THAT VERY STRUCTURE and it didn't bother me so much, that episode made me so scared I couldn't watch it. Like wtf is that about??

I've also always wanted to be able to fly or be a witch like in Kiki's Delivery Service. Idk how my brain would react to that tho since it's impossible, but I assume it would land in the "it makes sense so it doesn't bother me" category.

So yeah idk man-made structures are bad and scary because I guess I just don't trust humans to make sturdy things that won't fall down(aside from airplanes and playground equipment bcs those make sense)?? But mountains and cliffs and stuff have been there for like millions of years so I trust that they will stay under my feet and thus I don't get scared by them at all.

And like I know it's weird that I'm like this because my fiancé is ALSO scared of heights(which I find hilarious because he's 6'3" and when he picks me up so my head is level with his it makes me scared because "the ground is too far away") but he doesn't like going up on top of anything. Airplanes, rollercoasters that go upside down, tall buildings, mountains and other rock structures, it ALL triggers his phobia. He won't even let me open the window shade when we fly together, it's that bad. Idk why I'm not like that.

Anyway @ anyone else who's scared of heights:

[onepiece-oc-archives]

what's something you would not recommend when writing one piece ocs?

Hi, thanks for your question!

At first I thought it was a duplicate of the question I answered here but then I looked a little closer. So: In this post, I'll be focusing on the actual writing of OCs, as in fanfic stuff. If you're still in the creating phase, go here for my tips on what to avoid for that.

Alright, writing! My favourite activity on the world earth - I could literally write for entire weeks straight if I wasn't bound by the limits of my human body and mind lol

This list is probably going to be even shorter than the one for OC creation because I'm not about to mess with other people's writing style. Do what feels right for you. You should always be writing for yourself first and foremost because writing should be fun! That being said, there's one One Piece-specific tip I have for you:

Don't translate everything you see in the anime and/or manga directly into your writing. It won't work. Animation/manga and written stories are two very different mediums. I think the best way to explain this would be to look at the changes made between the animanga and the live action:

Changes had to be made because certain things just don't translate well into a live-action format.

For example, most characters don't yell out their attacks in the live action, because it comes off as very silly outside of the animanga format. They're real people after all. The characters who still shout out their attacks are either very silly (i.e. Luffy and Buggy) or... well... Sanji. He's very serious about it. I saw someone theorize once that shouting your finisher attacks is probably a pirate thing and Zeff taught Sanji that - so of course he'd take it seriously because he respects Zeff and takes his word as truth because Zeff used to be a pirate and he should know. Anyways, other example:

Sanji's heart eyes. We're sticking with my boy Sanji, simply because he works really well for tackling changes made to the live action made for genre/format/medium reasons. Why? Because Sanji, in the animanga, is a character who's very reliant on physical comedy. Don't know what I mean, maybe because you're an OPLA only fan (in which case: Welcome, glad to have you here <3)? Here, I'll show you:

That's animanga Sanji. Full-on heart eyes goof and noodle arms. As you can probably guess, this wouldn't work in a live action format. So, we went from literal heart eyes...

... to figurative heart eyes. Still very much head over heels for the ladies, still a hopeless romantic, still an idiot, but not so much of an idiot that it comes across as over-the-top and wildly unnatural.

I would highly recommend that you do something similar for writing One Piece fics, including OC fics. If you want to keep the over-the-top, physical comedy, cartoon logic elements from the animanga for your fic, I won't stop you. I've just noticed that, in my opinion, it's hard to pull off, because describing the absolute tomfoolery of the animanga can be very difficult, and I'm personally not too much of a fan of it. It works in specific situations (caught-up animanga fans might know what I'm hinting at), but I personally prefer my fics to feel more natural - like OPLA. Still silly, but silly in a way that works for a live action and/or written format. That might also have to do with my writing style as a whole, so, like I said, keep the animanga elements if you want or tone them down if you like.

One thing I love to do though is to drop hints to animanga tropes and elements without implimenting them fully. Best example? Sanji's heart eyes. Because look at him! Figurative heart eyes are a thing. Use metaphors and figures of speech, figurative words that imply something cartoony but don't have to be. It's really fun! I really don't know how to explain it better, but I hope you know what I mean.

So, now that I've talked about general things and canon characters and whatnot: What does that mean for OCs specifically?

Maybe try to make a rough separation between their drawn form and their written form - or between their animanga and live action version. This works especially well if you can draw (even just a little bit) but it's also just plain fun to think about without drawing anything. Think about what gags and animanga tropes your OC could have in that format and think about how those things translate to a live action or written format. Do they translate seamlessly? Do they have to be cut because they don't work at all? Would they be changed? Experiment with what works for your own writing style. How does your OC interact with your interpretation of canon characters? Generally: Throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks. The only way to start writing is to start writing and to try out what works for you and what doesn't.

And in case you don't know where you want to start with writing or want to try a few things out: Take a scene in canon that your OC would be participating in and write down your version of it. See what changes, try out the dynamics, get a feel for what works and what doesn't...

So yeah, I hope this helped! This feels pretty disorganized (I'm so sorry) but I hope I got my point across.

Hope you're having a lovely day!

[ilovebeingaturtle]

i am gonna share a headcanon abt the whole fourth wall situation in 87 that is kind of off the walls so feel free to ignore this if you wanna.

so like... the 87 turtles and main cast are constantly breaking/referencing the fourth wall, right? so in my head it is a controlling force in some way? like the fourth wall is this weird entity that kind of controls the outcomes of stuff and i guess makes the cartoonishly absurd stuff happen. because their universe's logic hinges on the fact that people are watching, and the fact that the turtles are aware of it they kind of use the narrative to their advantage? you never really see super dire consequences to the things that happen, like major injuries and stuff. they can have buildings dropped on them and be fine. so like. once an episode is over and nobody is watching... i imagine the laws work completely differently, more akin to the real world, and those consequences sort of happen off screen. but because we cant see it... we dont know. also in a weird way the main cast has kind of god like influence over their world because of their awareness and constant disruption of the forth wall?!?! this cartoon drives me bonkers.

Oooooo yes I love this

[unsafe-chikku]

Speaking of WoW, I feel like reminiscing on how I got into it and how it it plays into how fucking transgender I have always been.

I was 16, I had just finished playing my favorite and first video game ever, Skyrim, and had gotten to be a dragon-like-person and most importantly a werewolf…

Ok m, wait, Some important backstory: I was always emotional maturation and critical thinking wise a few years behind my peers. Probably my ADHD. I was mentally like 12 to 13. So my idea of what was actually good/bad design and media and tastes were at that age.

I was and had always been obsessed with the idea of transforming into something besides myself- especially something huge and scary that was loud and angry and tore shit up.

Like, The Incredible Hulk and werewolves were my number one favorite thing (along with Star Wars bc I wanted cool powers and Star Trek to a lesser degree bc for I really resonated with Spock) since I had been like 8 and my dad showed me the 1970s Hulk tv show with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. I had even sought out and watched the entire 90s cartoon Hulk series AND made a facebook fan group for the 1970s series.

I was always frustrated though bc as I watched the 90s cartoon, I discovered She-Hulk, and she wasn’t what I wanted at all.

I was a girl (or so I thought) and she was a girl, so if I got to be a Hulk I’d be like her—but little me saw she was smaller. She was talking and logical and pretty.

She broke what she had to to defeat bad guys.

Her anger was useful and attractive and fun.

It wasn’t my anger. My anger was burning and huge and messy and inconvenient.

So with that disappointment in my mind at 16, I had been pleased to be a werewolf in Skyrim but felt like it wasn’t good that I looked like a Boy werewolf. I had no boobs. Nothing to differentiate me!

I had always had a vague feeling of like…I would somehow get in trouble, if I ever played male avatars or characters in games where I could choose who to be. I had to obviously be a girl no matter what. It made me almost panicked if I couldn’t be.

I mean…I guess It never occurred to me to think about what I specifically would really want.

And even if you asked I probably would have told you that of course I always choose girls, I’m a girl! See how good at being a girl I am!! I’m getting a good grade in girl.

I’d panic if people mistook me as a boy as a kid when I got my hair cut short- it felt like something bad would happen that I couldn’t put into words. I had to be so obviously a girl. There was no choice.

Anyways, I see a gif of a werewolf in WoW. A verydistinctly girl werewolf who is tough and scary. I save up and beg for money and get the base game, and immediately choose to be this.

It’s a werewolf. But still…distinctly girl. Which is what I am. I’m such a girl you guys!!! Look I chose to be the girl werewolf with eyeshadow. Woaw

Anywho, I was pleased that in the story the girl feral werewolves were just as fierce and scary as well and I wandered around Azeroth severely badly armored and no idea how to actually play. Just enjoyed that there was a fantasy world that I could be in. :)

Eventually as I got an understanding of the game and frontal lobe grew a little. I realized that my avatar was incredibly ugly, just dog shit. I transmorged armor to hide her eyes which helped.

Eventually I switched to a girl panda monk, I soon lost interest as I had to work in my free time gathering fabrics to craft to get gold to pay the irl subscription. My guild was fun at least in that time period but I dropped after another year, about a couple months into college. Never picked it up again.

Anyways, it’s funny how despite lacking any way of knowing anything about being trans (besides a single commercial for a Murray like show interviewing a trans man in bad faith that stuck in my head for the rest of my life) I was so extremely transgender. Along with being a very frustrated kid with purposefully undiagnosed ADHD.

After figuring out I was trans almost a decade later, I skyrocketed through a lot of maturation I’d been stunted through, and now I’m a cool wizard guy.

[owmylasagna-blog]

c, e, f, g, i, k, s!!!!

Oh my god wowowow let’s do this!

Just a heads up: tw for discussing abuse for question K.

C: What member do you identify with most?

Trick question i relate to all the Eds for different reasons!! But for real I guess in the dynamic of the three together I am absolutely Ed.

E: If you wrote a sequel to [insert fic], what would it be about?

Hmmm I don’t know! I feel like my fics are all little separate contained packages. Maybe not so much sequels but snippets from the same general timeline. I don’t want to spoil how LMS ends but of course I have ideas about the events following its conclusion.

F: Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you've written and explain why you're proud of it.

Okay here is another because I’m bad at picking favorites… from Ch 4 of LMS.

Clapping her hands together, the enthused employee responded, “My goodness! Isn’t that funny! Three friends with the same name. Why, you could write a story book about something like that.”

“Eh, probably more like a TV show,” Eddy replied, running a hand through his hair to make sure it wasn’t out of place from Ed’s ruffling.

“What would it be about?” The woman inquired.

Eddy placed Sparky’s name tag over his right thumb, flicked it until it flipped a few times, and snatched it midair on the descent.

“Beats me. It’s kind of a weak premise. Sounds like it needs a plot.”

I enjoyed the irony of the characters in-universe not being aware they are characters from a kids cartoon. It’s just fun for me to play with that, and prod at the common criticism that the show didn’t have a plot lol. It had a plot but it was often simple. The imagery of Eddy flipping the tag was meant to allude to the main plot driver for most of the show: getting quarters for jaw breakers.

Lol I also appreciated you shouting out the Eddy line from this bit of dialogue from The Ed Must Go On. I also felt proud of myself for getting Eddy’s stubborn-as-an-ass voice right haha and I can’t resist writing Edd and Eddy bickering:

Eddy just leaned back, crossing his arms.

“You know. It’s your way or the highway.”

“Well I can’t help that you were pulling the fabric too taut. Your seam is going to be cockled.”

“Maybe I like my seams cockled.”

G: Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order?

I guess more the latter. I often get specific dialogue or scenes in my head and work a plot around that. Sometimes if there are multiple scenes I’ll cobble them together in an order that makes some logical sense. With a more complicated multi chapter fic I have general outlines of events, locations, timelines too that I’m working with.

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)?

Honestly my answer to F this time around reminded me I’m such a sucker for 4th wall breaks and references back to events from the show. I integrate them a lot, hopefully not entirely overdoing it (I’m definitely overdoing it). Um also big fan of physical comedy - how could I not be, eene is the best with slapstick!

K: What's the angstiest idea you've ever come up with?

Oh jeez… it’s a fair question but I’m so cringe. In my old fic Ready I heavily insinuate that Eddy was physically and sexually abused by his bro.

S: Any fandom tropes you can't resist?

I’m not sure! Forgive me, my brain in jamming. I’m thinking of more like headcanons, not necessarily tropes? Like having them be stoners in high school.

[th3-royalty]

Xiao My Beloved

Part 3 (Woo y'all waited a while for this one now at the very least I have some clue on what I would like to do for this story)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3 You're here

Okay ok okay, time to cool down not like I just met the love of my life or anything, nope not at all. Except yes! I just did! He was the one and only adeptus XIAO, the sole yaksha, conqueror of demons, protector of Liyue!! Ugh my heart hurts welp time to focus can’t just go off into fantasy land (even if I technically am in a fantasy land how does that work actually…) not the point. I need to figure out a to-do list of things since I am now stranded here and can’t rely on Aether’s kindness forever. 

Get some clothes that actually fit -do I need to have multiple sets or does cartoon logic work here? better not ask and just look-

Meet with Zhongli -wait should that be first??- figure out my situation and try to get some answers though I doubt he has any

Find a job, probably something relatively easy like clerical work, I can do that. Probably not joining the adventurer's guild. I can't stand being outdoors for too long and don’t know how to fight.

Make some friends! Good options would be Yun Jin, Xiangling, Hu Tao, and Xinyan; approach Xiangling or Hu Tao first, most likely to introduce me to the others.

Make XIAO FALL MADLY IN LOVE  maybe leave that one out for now:

For now that list should work oh wait Aethers calling me. “Hey why’d you slow down” “Oh just got a bit too into my thoughts, sorry about that.” “No worries we’re here by the way”. Wow I didn’t even notice did we really walk that far I thought we would have to camp, guess video game logic saves the day again. 

“Hey you hungry?”Aether questions “I know a place to grab a bite”, “Yeah I haven’t really eaten anything since I got here so that’d be nice” sweet if this works he may introduce me to Xiangling then I make friends in Liyue number 1. 

“Come on you two slowpokes Paimon is starving” we both rush forward, rushing past the Milleth guarding Liyue’s gates. After catching up with Paimon we start walking over to what I can only assume is Wanmin Restaurant. As we walk I take this time to look around, Liyue is just as gorgeous in person as it is in the game. I see beautiful buildings with intricate wooden designs, silk flowers and glaze lilies blooming. The sun is setting over the horizon across the sea as you can hear people chattering and the crashing of waves. The Crux seems to be docked. Beidou must be here to see Ninnuang, maybe we will meet Kazuha.  …oh we’re here

“Wanmin restaurant Paimon thinks it may be the best restaurant in Liyue!” “Maybe that hurts Paimon after all we’ve been through” Xiangling walks out of the front door there’s an actual indoor seating area, huh that’s new. “ Hello Aether, Paimon, and oh who is this?” Xiangling asks curiously. “ Hi, I’m (y/n) pleased to meet you” “Oh a new face it’s nice to meet you two”. Aether responds saying “ Ya they're new to Liyue so I decided to show them around” smooth Aether. “OH I’d love to introduce you to some new foods! Have you ever tried Liyuen cuisine?” “No I haven’t” I politely respond to Xiangling, I don’t think Chinese food counts. “Well then obviously you have to! Since you're here and all, sit down, I'll whip up something real quick for you” Xiangling rushes to the kitchen. 

After a while we finished eating “Wow that was delicious thank you Xiangling” I smiled up at her, “oh it was no trouble at all anything for a new friend! A friend of the traveler’s is a friend of mine”Xiangling quickly responds back. “I think we should head home now thanks for the meal Xiangling,” Aether says. “Anytime come back soon okay!” We wave goodbye to Xiangling as we start walking away. 

“So where are you planning to go, Aether?” I obviously know it’s the teapot but I can’t let him know that. “Oh we have a place to stay since we travel all the time, here take this talisman you’ll need it to get it.” After stating that we are all immediately transported to the teapot. It’s so beautiful inside, I gasp just taking in the wonder of it all. “Sorry for the suddenness of it. Anyway, we can stay here for the night and then meet up with a friend of mine who may have some knowledge on your situation. There’s a bedroom right over there you can stay in for the night.” I’m pretty tired so I’m gonna head to bed good night (y/n).” “Goodnight Aether, goodnight Paimon.” I start walking over to the room thinking about everything that happened today, I don’t think this is ever how I would have thought my first day in Teyvat would go. Welp time to sleep.

(A/N sorry for the lack of Xiao in this chapter I really just wanted to set up the next part, so this is really just filler, it's going somewhere I swear)

Taglist: @swivy123, (If you wish to be added to my taglist lemme know!)

[fairytalesandfandoms]

Well, this has been a bit of a... what I'm calling Big Thoughts Summer, which I guess could be categorised as 'a few significant realisations that could be more conducive to more self-acceptance in certain areas' if you wanted to focus on that angle, but 'Big Thoughts' is shorter and also more reflective of what they actually feel like in my head

Things included thus far in Big Thoughts (mostly concentrated on social media/the internet and my reactions to it):

The whole Nicolas Cage thing and associated 'I am cringe but I am free'

Special interests do make a difference in my head (source: me waking up and not having The Discouraging Ennui, which let me tell you was certainly a pleasant surprise after what, 8 years? And now it feels actually more possible)

would my life really be that horrible and unsatisfying if I don't obsess over 'curating' every aspect of it (this was one that I came across when packing up to move, as I was getting stressed because all the advice I saw was to have a big declutter before packing but I simply did not have time)

and on that note, the emphasis on always getting rid of stuff before you organise what's left. Like, I get the logic behind this, but at the same time one of the major things about unpacking was that I didn't know where things were any more. I still can't find my matches for the candles. But I was like 'I can't organise until I've decluttered! All the books and videos say so!' and then 'BUT I NEED TO ORGANISE wait a minute. Why CAN'T I organise things first if I need to?' Still working on it but I've changed my current focus.

what am I even doing with Goodreads/Storygraph. Can't I just read things and not automatically keep a public record of my reading that I'm inevitably going to worry about people judging

also conflicted about keeping a TBR list. I didn't have a proper one until 2012 when I had Goodreads. My dilemma is that I want to remember which books I was interested in (as well as their publication details) but it's also taken a lot of spontaneity/serendipity out of looking for books as well as giving me a whole new to-do list that can be MASSIVE because when it comes to media my eyes are bigger than my stomach. Similar issue with the giant film and TV Spreadsheet of Doom.

my friends have started a writing group and: writing??? is actually fun??? It gives you a feeling of those 'putting down the train tracks just ahead of you while the train is at top speed' cartoons, but in a positive way? 2014 NaNoWriMo me is like 'sounds fake but okay'

cool as in 'exclusive, implying a hierarchy of taste' is OUT. Cool as in 'what someone thinks is fun and/or interesting' is IN (and yes I know that out/in framing implies the former, but I was trying to get my point across in a memorable, understandable way).

I love to look at people's collection rooms. I can't remember how I got to 'man makes fake video store in his basement' on Pinterest, but I noticed that even though such things might not be the 'aesthetic' I think is most beautiful I still liked them a lot? I also came across pictures of Guillermo del Toro's 'Bleak House' where he stores his horror stuff, and honestly goals (maybe not the horror aspect so much, but in the way it's decorated and arranged.)

[mutantenfisch]

Got tagged by @katistrophe in this. I'm not gonna tag anyone though because it's past 1 am and i gotta sleep but i wanted to do this before i forget it ^^; Are you named after anyone? Aye, the library of Alexandria, so in a way Alexander the Great I guess? And also Arthur the Angel, a cartoon character my mum likes a lot.

Do you have kids? I guess my almost 9 years old cat whom i helped bottlefeed since he was a week old doesn't count? I would love to raise a child but getting one in the usual way is out of the question for me and I'd need a partner either way.

When was the last time you cried? Yesterday :') I was listening to one of my playlists and got hit in the feels very hard.

What sports do you play/have you played? I don't know if you would call karate playing? I was actually quite good at it and even got my first brown belt. Then i no longer had time for the dojo because uni and work sucked the life out of me. I now go hiking whenever i can and once i finally get my top surgery, i will hit the swimming pool again.

Do you use sarcasm? No. It usually flies over my head as well because i take it seriously and then people get upset because i get upset about not finding their remarks funny or witty, but hurtful instead.

What is the first thing you notice about people? Depends. Do they wear clothes that catch my attention? Then it's that. Do they have nice hair? Then it's that. Do they have any other physical feature that catches my eye? You got your answer. Sometimes though, it's the voice i notice first. And all this is only for noticing things about people i physically interact with. On the internet it's different of course.

What’s your eye colour? I think in English it's called hazel blue. It's like a bit of every colour eyes can have, but blue and grey are most prominent with a bit of green and light brown around the pupils.

Scary movies or happy endings? Happy endings, as long as they feel logical and not too forced.

Any talents? Organising train trips and cooking dinner for 2 people out of 'I have nothing in the fridge :('

Where were you born? In the city hospital most people in my area and my immediate family got born at.

What are your hobbies? Too many to list. Whatever sparks joy at the moment. Mostly in the crafty and creative fields though. I like having something to show off or use or eat that i made myself.

Do you have any pets? Aforementioned cat, a betta fish, a bunch of snails and far more shrimps than i am able to count.

How tall are you? Not even 160 cm.

Favourite subject in school: ooof that really depended on the teacher and particular topic. But all in all a tie between biology, history, German and English.

Dream job: Herding sheep on an island and making cheese out of their milk and stuff out of their wool. I just like animals and the outdoors more than most people. Even though my current job is not bad. I just can't do it full-time so it would support me on its own.

[scramble-crossing]

yo tell us about the self sihp oc. no cringe man. i'll tell you about my oc if you do

The specifics will have to be pried out of my cold dead hands unfortunately because I am embarrassed 😔 but! I'll share a little bit about them :]

[Picrew here]

Their name is Fable! I tested out my online name with them (he/she/they btw)

They're a philosopher who tends to stick a bit too rigidly to reason, even when they're constantly put in scenarios that defy common logic. Introspective and a bit antisocial, she's friendly enough, but somewhat adverse to teamwork, prefering to take matters into her own hands rather than stress the people around her. She has a bad habit of running away when things get tough, a strategic retreat, she says, but everyone can see right through it.

After his death, he won his Reaper's Game (maybe with a little extra help...) and chose to join the Reapers after discovering that an old friend had become one. This friend had taken to it like a natural, but Fable...not so much. Trying to earn enough points to stay alive was a constant uphill battle.

He fights using sigils, Fullmetal Alchemist style. He carries around an empty book and rips out pages when he wants to fight, the attack varying depending on what he draws. He's a massive glass canon and hits quick, but goes down even quicker. He has to play it smart to keep from getting erased.

They're a Union leader! They're the president, spokesman, head of public relations, director of the treasury, you get the point, of the cheesily-named organization: R.E.A.P.E.R (Reapers Educating and Assisting Players and Empowering Reapers). Their ultimate goal is to create as ethical a Reaper's Game as possible, for both Players and Reapers alike. It's uh...(glances at Shinjuku) not going great.

Her noise form is a little gecko :] She uses elaborate illusions to make herself look much, much larger than she actually is, hiding her cantus' "true" body in the mouth of a massive, frilled-neck dragon.

She spends the entirety of NEO playing super sleuth trying to sniff out what the Shinjuku gang are up to, nearly getting sniped in the process. She never notices. She's like a cartoon character bumbling through a construction site. Uzuki is NOT giving her hazard pay for this.

He's good friends with Kariya. Good enough that he's he one other member of R.E.A.P.E.R, although he doesn't do much besides bring coffee to their little two-person "committee meetings" and put up with him asking if he's ever going to call his fucking wife already.

She is divorced <3 no I am not saying to who but it's uh. Probably not hard to guess.

I might do something with them in the future because I like their story, but for now I'm recycling them for another project where I needed a character to fill a certain roll and they work quite well. I really did try to make a simple self-insert/sona, but she kind of took on a life of her own and is now just a totally separate oc. Oh well ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'll talk about them more in the future I just have to get over the inherit shame in their origin story lol

Now

[queervegancryptid]

This bullshit is probably 80% of the reason why no one thought to mention the possibility of me being on the spectrum until I was like 23 and in grad school. I was never formally diagnosed, per se, but I mean... Once it was brought up as a possibility, it seemed obvious.

It's just that, when it comes to things like autism and other conditions related to how the brain works, the world isn't set up for accommodating them, and diagnosing them can be delayed because of how adaptive humans can be in a given environment. But maybe half the reason I developed eating disorders, for example, was because I was working so hard to control my reactions to my environment. Trying to shove myself into a box and just do what other people did, what seemed expected of me. That's how I learned: I mimicked other people because I figured that's just what people do. It's kinda like how, before I realized I was trans, I tried to imitate girls and women around me, thinking that's just how everyone feels. That probably stopped me from coming to terms with and accepting my authentic self in general. But I digress.

I developed the tendency to mimic others because of some traumatic shit that happened to me that actually directly relates to my emotional life when I was about 10. Without saying too much, I learned that the way I expressed my emotions was Bad, and that sent me on a decade-plus-long journey starting with trying to figure out how to not get "caught," being Bad, which meant I needed to learn how to pretend to be normal. I mean, once again, this was the logic of my 10-year-old brain: I'm getting punished for crying and needing help, so the only way to be safe is to stop doing those things and stop making trouble for others. They act like I should have no problem doing that, so I don't know why it's so hard, but I guess I have to make it work.

I don't know, is that a thing? Other autistic folks, did you get like, scarred for life because people didn't want to deal with you being a child with intense emotional reactions to a world that seemed to be oriented in such a way that everything was uncomfortable for you? I responded by shutting out others from seeing me express any emotion at all, positive or otherwise, as much as I could. That went on for years and definitely contributed to my developing anorexia and bulimia, but I wouldn't fully understand that relationship until relatively recently. My dad told me that he thinks I was born a genius and still am one, and I don't know about all that, but he said he felt like my IQ decreased over time, and I just wanted to explode when he gave me a timeline along which he perceived that to have happened. I didn't get less intelligent; I learned that I couldn't safely be myself and lost virtually all confidence in myself, which basically meant I worked harder and longer than others to make sure I got a project right, and I felt I had to do that on every single project, every assignment, every test. I ran myself into the ground that way and am now disabled. I don't spend a lot of time being angry, but once in a while, I gotta admit, this whole situation makes me furious.

Sometimes a diagnosis isn't particularly useful. Sometimes, it hits you over the head like a big, cartoon mallet as if to say, "Of course you're autistic, look at yourself, you dumb slut."