#a very difficult ask to select just 5

[mysteryshoptls]

Azul Ashengrotto Shared Lines

Tutorial: You mustn't lurk in such a place, it's rude. Shall I show you the way?

Level Up 1 / Buddy Level Up: Well, well... How splendid.

Level Up 2: What do you think of my remarkable progress?

Level Up 3: I'm just getting started. Heh heh heh.

Level Max: Ah, yes, I can feel power surging through my whole body... I do hope we can continue this beneficial business arrangement.

Vignette Level Up: Someone with a soft touch like you would only be taken advantage of in a school such as this, don't you think? If you ever find yourself drawing the short straw, you should consult me. I promise you won't regret it.

Spell Level Up: I would like to be able to effectively use the magic I've cultivated. I hate wasting talent, after all.

Friendship Level Up: Thanks to your efforts, I was able to spend quite the worthwhile time here. …If it pleases you, do not hesitate to invite me back.

Friendship Level Max: I dislike being in debt to anyone. Next time, I shall play host to you. I’ve already scheduled it. I cannot wait to see your surprised look.

Uncapped: More... I want more power. Did you think this would be enough to satisfy someone like me?

Groovification: I feel wonderful today. If there is something you desire, this may be the best time to ask.

Lesson Select 1: Do you find your classes tiresome? It may help to think of it as a game in which you earn points from the professor.

Lesson Select 2: I am perfectly prepared to take any class. Choose what you wish.

Lesson Select 3: Do I have any tips for today's quiz? ...I could tell you, for a price.

Lesson Start: Let's do our best.

Lesson Finish: Have you grasped my competence a little better?

Battle Start: What an unfortunate soul.

Battle Won: Well, well, that was a great success, wasn’t it?

Trouble 1: Of course, it was simply justifiable self-defense. You see that, don’t you?

Trouble 2: That was a waste of my time, I’m still in need of improvement.

GIFT CALENDAR 2023: “How will you be spending the day?” As always, I will be awaiting everyone’s visit to the Mostro Lounge. On a cold day such as this, we usually receive orders for dishes that are more common in the winter season. I’m sure today will be a rather busy day.

Birthday Login Message 1: I’m honored that you remembered my birthday. However, it is unfortunate but I do not accept one-sided gifts… If you absolutely must, then please order today’s special dish from the Mostro Lounge. …I will join you as well.

Birthday Login Message 2: Thank you for your heartfelt birthday greetings. How kind of you to go out of your way to come to our humble dormitory. As my thanks, why don’t I invite you to my party? I’m afraid it’s reservation only, so please, I will need you to sign this document. ……You absolutely have no sense of mistrust, do you? Next time, I shall have to prepare a proper contract.

Birthday Login Message 3: Is there anything I would like for my birthday…? Of course, there is. As many things as would fill an endless ocean. However, there is no need for you to gift me anything. Whatever it is that I may want, I will acquire by my own hand! Nothing is as costly as a free gift, after all. Well, I shall at least accept your kind thoughts. Thank you.

Birthday Login Message 4: Oh, have you come to request something of me? It would be my pleasure! Please, tell me what it is you’d like. No matter how difficult the task, once it is entrusted to me… Eh? You’d like to prepare a birthday card for me? …Heh, I think you’ll find that person a difficult one to please. But very well, may I ask what message you’d like on the card?

Birthday Login Message 5: [Yuu]-san. Have you, by chance, come to celebrate my birthday? Good timing, I had just hit a roadblock with what I was doing, so I welcome the change of pace. You’re curious what this is? Well, it’s a new board game. The other day, I only just barely lost to Idia-san, you see. I absolutely must figure out a winning play before our next bout…! Oh, are you intrigued by this board game as well? Perfect, how does a friendly match sound, as I work through possible strategies?

Requested by Anonymous.

[yooniesim]

hello and happy new year! ceci, do you happen to have or could you please make a tutorial on creating teeth if it's not a big hassle? i wanted to make a very particulat teeth shape for my sim, but apparently i do something wrong because the result morphs the whole face in a weird way

gurl the "happy new year" is beating my ass rn, not this exposing the state of my inbox...... 😭😭😭

but ok more seriously, I'll get on with the tutorial 😳

Step 1

first, we're going to use s4studio to create our package. we're going to clone the EA teeth to use as our base.

open s4studio and select "create 3D mesh" under "CAS"

click the blue "CAS" button

Step 2

select "Face" from the Part Type dropdown menu. this will make only the teeth files show up.

we're interested in both "yuTeeth" and "yuTeeth_Snaggle", but select yuTeeth first! (you can hover over each picture to see the names too)

click next, and save your package file as whatever you want.

Step 3

zoom in close to the model with mouse wheel until you can see the teeth, to make sure everything is correct, then go to the "meshes" tab on the right side

export your mesh and save it where you can find it.

note: if you've never used s4s or blender before, make sure your blender location is set up correctly in the s4s settings. otherwise, the sims4studio tools won't show up in blender & we won't be able to edit our cut numbers later.

Step 4

now that we have our mesh, we need to edit it in blender. I'm currently using version 4.2. the controls are different in different versions, so feel free to ask me about it if you're using another version and something isn't working right.

open your mesh in blender. press the N key to get rid of the side panel and Numpad 5 to make the view better/less disorienting. you can zoom in and out with the mouse wheel, and move around by holding the mouse wheel and moving the mouse.

look to the right panel where "rig" is listed. click the arrow to expand the list so you can see all parts of the rig.

click the eye symbols next to "head" and "head_2" to make them invisible so you can easily see the teeth!

Step 5

there are many ways of editing teeth, of course, but what i'm going to show you is basically how to frankenmesh them. this is a good way of creating subtle variety in MM style, without it being overly difficult! we're going to combine the regular and snaggle teeth as an example.

go from object mode to edit mode by clicking the menu at the bottom and selecting "edit mode"

afterwards, click the symbol on the bottom right to toggle "x-ray" so you can see all your vertices when editing.

Step 6

left click in the gray space to deselect all. there will be no orange left anywhere on the mesh.

then, hover over the top teeth and press the "L" key over a vertice (the small black dots) to start selecting the top half only. you should only have to select a couple vertices until everything on the top half is highlighted orange. you can change your view by holding down the mouse wheel and moving the mouse.

Step 7

now, press "X" key to bring up the delete menu.

click "vertices" to delete the parts of the mesh we've highlighted. only the bottom half of the teeth will be left behind. if there's any floating parts left over, highlight those with L and delete them the same way.

Now, repeat Steps 1-3 with "yuTeeth_Snaggle". when you have that mesh exported and saved where you can find it, continue to the next step.

Step 8

go back into object mode. you must be in object mode to append meshes.

go to file -> append to bring up another window

double click your snaggle mesh you just exported

double click "object"

double click "s4studio_mesh_1"

click "append" (if the window didn't close already) and the snaggle mesh will be added to your current mesh!

Step 9

you will see several new mesh parts in the list on the right. right click over "bone_bone_shape.001" and click delete to remove it, since it's just a duplicate.

do the same thing with "rig.001" to delete it as well

select the mesh part you just appended- which is "s4studio_mesh_1.001" to select it and go back to object mode (you can also rename it now by double clicking it if you want)

Step 10

repeat what we did in Steps 6-7 to remove the bottom teeth of the snaggle mesh. you may need to be more careful since these teeth are less straight & overlap more. take your time, and if you make a mistake, you can press CTRL+ Z to undo. you can also click the eye icon next to our first mesh part to hide it so you can see better.

when you're done deleting, unhide the first mesh part to see how it looks together. you now have the top teeth from yuTeethSnaggle and the bottom teeth from yuTeeth on the same mesh! you can mix and match many teeth parts this way.

I decided to rename my mesh parts to top & bottom to keep them organized. you can click the eye symbols to hide either one and see how each part looks. when you're ready, select the top teeth mesh part and return to edit mode.

Step 11

some of EA's meshes have very few polys, so they can be hard to edit, especially if you want to move individual teeth. but, teeth are so small that they don't need/shouldn't have too high of a poly count. having every single tooth be super detailed is overkill, so it's a good idea to only increase polys in the specific areas you want to edit. for this example, i'm going to mainly focus on the front teeth.

select the front teeth by right clicking + dragging over the area you want to select, and it will highlight orange.

go to "edge -> subdivide" to increase the polys in the selected area only, which will give you more to work with. DO NOT SUBDIVIDE TOO MUCH! once should be plenty for this.

Step 12

now for the fun part- actually editing the teeth to be unique! you don't have to do this if you only want to mix & match EA parts, but it's neat to toy around with, even if you just do tiny edits. there's a variety of ways to do this, and I like to do a mixture, but for this example I'm going to use proportional editing.

click the circle button to turn on proportional editing

left click any vertice you'd like to edit

press the G key (move tool) and scroll the mouse wheel forward until the gray circle appears on your screen. this circle represents the influence of editing- the bigger the circle, the wider range of vertices will be moved around that point. the smaller the circle, the smaller/more detailed the change.

move the vertices around by moving your mouse. you'll see right away how it moves. play around with it by using a combination of scrolling the wheel back and forth and moving the mouse.

left click to confirm/stop moving the vertices. you can undo using CTRL + Z if you need to. keep repeating this step by selecting vertices, pressing G, and moving them around how you want. you can also use proportional editing with the S key (scale tool) to make areas bigger or smaller. in blender 4.2, you can also click the tools on the top left side of the window if you want to mostly use your mouse, but I usually use the keyboard.

when you're done editing your mesh and you're ready to test it out, save your file before moving to the next step. keep a copy to the side so you have something to come back to later if you want to change anything!

Step 13

now we're going to prepare our mesh to be game-ready. some of the most important aspects of that is ensuring a) the mesh part is correctly named and b) the "cut" number is correct. if these things are off, the game won't know how to read it, and we'll get odd bugs like missing heads or our mesh just not showing up at all. we currently have two mesh parts and teeth only need one, so we'll fix that first.

first, go to object mode and select both mesh parts by holding shift and clicking each one.

press CTRL + J to join them together into one part.

Step 14

another thing we need to do is remove doubles so our mesh doesn't look weird or have any odd shadows in-game. in blender 4, it's "merge by distance", but in earlier versions it's just "remove doubles". you should do this when you're done editing, because it'll be difficult to edit after this step. I always do it after I merge all my mesh parts & am about to import for testing. I also double check the cut numbers after this to be sure they're right.

rename your combined mesh part to "s4studio_mesh_1" and ensure the cut number is 0.

go to edit mode and select all by pressing the A key

go to mesh -> clean up -> merge by distance

unhide the "head" and "head_2" parts of the rig you hid in Step 4

save your mesh as a new file name so you don't overwrite your working mesh, in case you want to go back and change something

Step 15

go back into your package in s4studio and import your new mesh

if you like how it looks & are done editing, select LODs 1, 2, and 3 in the dropdown menu and import your mesh there too. these are normally different meshes, but since EA based teeth are so insanely low poly, there isn't much point making individual LODs for them. but it's not that difficult to make them if you want to- if anyone wants a quick tutorial for that, let me know!

Step 16

you can stop here if you want- the teeth will take on the texture of your defaults if you used the yuTeeth package as a base. however, since we've used the Snaggle teeth on top, I think an adjusted texture might look better. I always use the textures by @ice-creamforbreakfast for my teeth, so head over there and grab their defaults if you haven't already! then grab the "uneven teeth" package file and open it in s4s.

export the texture from the uneven teeth package file as dds

go back to your package file and import it! (and don't forget to credit ice-cream if you post your teeth publicly ;3)

Step 17

lastly, go to categories tab and scroll to the bottom. if you want your teeth to be enabled for random sims, check the box

if you want the teeth to be considered a certain type (like buck teeth), change the miscellaneous to that type. if it doesn't matter or you're not sure, just keep it as TeethStraight.

Finally, save your package and you're done! :)

[abbyfmc]

Yandere Emperor! x Opera Artist! Reader Headcanons:

Warning: This section is a continuation of the previous one, so you have to read the other one to understand this one.

Topics to talk about: Mention of kidnapping, abuse, murder, obsessive and yandere behavior, manipulation, and anything involving yandere behavior. Also, as I said before, I am NOT describing any Asian emperor in particular, so I have created my own; Not to mention that I have used the Chinese imperial harem system as a base, as well as the forbidden city itself. I will name (Y/n)'s children, so I warn you that I am not describing any prince or princess in particular.

Enjoy it!

1. Yan Li knew that because of having such fast promotions the concubines were mostly jealous of you, so to prevent any attacks, he kept an eye on every corner you went to.

2. He also watched over the princes and princesses he had with you, who were the following:

-The third prince, Li Chen (your first child). -The sixth prince, Li Song (your second child). -The eighth prince, Yong Li (your third child). -The ninth prince, Li Yon'er (your fourth child). -The tenth princess, Yan'rong (your fifth child). -The fifteenth princess, Hua Li (your sixth child).

3. Your children also suffered from palace intrigues, so you had to protect each one of them tooth and nail. Yan Li saw this and decided to severely punish any concubine or consort who dares to harm you or your children.

4. To protect (and harass) you, Yan Li selected a specific group of servants for your palace, among them is the one who became your "right hand", a servant in charge of cleaning, named Yuhou.

5. Zhou, meanwhile, was devastated to learn that you were kidnapped by Yan Li in a golden cage, so he tried to enter the palace and enlist in the imperial army, which he succeeded after a few years. If he can't rescue you, he would at least watch over you from the shadows.

6. One day, when you were in the middle of your third pregnancy, you were walking with your maids when they saw each other. One of your maids, Lili (yes, your old friend), noticed this. He was shocked to see you not only dressed as one of Yan Li's consorts (at that time you were still a consort), but he felt her heart break at the sight of you pregnant. You felt like running towards each other, but you loved your children too much to challenge Yan Li like this.

7. --He… forced you?-- Zhou asked after remaining silent in surprise. You could only nod at that moment.

8. --Yes, isn't it obvious?-- You answered and left, being very devastated just like him, not knowing that Yan Li himself was watching them, angry and jealous.

9. Yan Li made sure you would never see your loved one again, taking him out of the forbidden city on super difficult military missions, basically sending him to die multiple times on purpose.

10. You suspected that Yan Li would find out sooner or later, so you purposely avoided meeting or talking about Zhou, no matter how sad it made you. You didn't even mention it to your children.

11. The few times Zhou was in the forbidden city, Yan Li tried to set traps for you to see how far you would go or whether you would be unfaithful to him, and the best thing you did in hoste traps was… stay in your palace and quietly go on with your life. , which Yan Li did not expect.

12. Yan Li has never hurt you physically, rather he threatened or manipulated you, followed by controlling how long you could sing and dance (like when you did before) or not, which discouraged you a lot. He only allowed you to do it for him.

13. I forgot to say that Lili entered the Mese Palace after you were kidnapped, but Yan Li wanted to make sure that she didn't help you escape, so he sent her first to work in the laundry house, the embroidery department, the flower department and gardening and finally in the workhouse where Lili had some acquaintances, both good and bad, and endured a lot of work and humiliation.

14. Each time Yan Li locked you more and more to himself, with the excuse that it was to take care of you, but he only wanted to control you.

15. Yan Li even had every gift that came to you or your children checked. He also appreciated any gift you gave him.

16. You watched your eldest children grow up, marry, and leave your palace for their own princely mansions, one after one. Li Chen was the first of all of them.

17. After you gave birth to Hua Li, you were unable to have children again, but Yan Li didn't care about this and still forced you to stay with him every night he could, now threatening to harm Zhou if you didn't comply with his whims. and you gave yourself to him.

18. Yan Li forced you to spend time with him, and not only at night but also visiting you in your palace, taking walks with him (sometimes with the Empress Dowager as extra company) and even accompanying him on trips and festivals.

19. Speaking of the Empress Dowager, she quite likes you and Yan Li is glad that you get along with her since… well, she's his mother. She is the only person who forgives you for spending a lot of time with her aside from your children and harem problems; He likes that you get along with the highest ranking woman in the empire.

20. Yan Li really likes your son, Li Chen, so much so that he secretly made him his heir to the throne; so neither you nor Li Chen himself knows.

21. In the event that any of your children or one of his consorts helped you escape, Yan Li would banish them from the forbidden city and condemn you to house arrest.

22. During festivals, he would control even who can talk and who can't talk to you. Among the people who can't even get close to you would be your beloved Zhou.

23. A drunk minister once insulted you, and as a result, Yan Li burned his tongue.

24. Yan Li is the one who had all your crowns made to your liking, demonstrating the deep love (or rather, obsession) he had for you.

25. Sometimes during the nights you were forced to give him back massages after a stressful day, and on other nights he would do this with you.

26. The servants even had to be careful not to bump into you, because depending on Yan Li's mood… he may simply punish them, or kill them.

27. As time went by, you became a grandmother thanks to your prince's children, but you couldn't always see your grandchildren since Yan Li liked to keep you prisoner in the forbidden city.

28. Every time Yan Li goes to bathe in his own private hot spring lake, he forces you to bathe with him, even if you don't want to. Likewise, if he knows that you are bathing alone in said waters, he will bathe with you even if you don't want to and he will make you be close to him.

29. He makes sure that every birthday of yours is fantastic.

30. Every time he got sick, he asked you to take care of him. Conversely, every time you got sick he took care of you and by doing so I mean not only getting you the best medicines, but also watching over everything that your maids or the imperial doctor do.

31. The Empress Dowager became ill over the years due to old age, and when she died, you were very sad since she was somehow the closest thing to a mother to you. Your princesses also mourned her a lot, not to mention Yan Li himself. Due to the close relationship Yan Li had with his mother, he was devastated and declared three years of mourning; It was the only time you felt truly sorry for him.

32. Yan Li has given the order that if something happens in the palace or during a trip, they must save you and your children first, since he does not want to see you hurt, injured or in the worst case scenario… dead. That is a nightmare and a terror that has haunted him day after day since he met you, which is why he believes that he is protecting you but in reality he manipulates you, locks you up and isolates you from the world.

33. He admired how you managed the imperial harem and all the internal servant departments with an iron fist, even if he didn't tell you directly.

34. The only excuse Yan Li accepts for you not wanting to sleep with him is if you or one of your children is sick.

35. The only visits Yan Li allowed to you were from your eldest children, either alone or with their wives and children. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but Yan Li noticed the pressure your parents were putting on you, so he sent his guards to "talk nice" to them, and from then on they stopped bothering you.

36. Yan Li saw you meeting Zhou secretly, which made him angry, so that night he threatened you that if you didn't say goodbye, he would kill him in a cruel and painful way. The next day she made you say goodbye to your loved one and then took him out of the forbidden city so that one of his guards would cut his neck, killing him quickly and throwing him into a mass grave. Needless to say, you really hated Yan Li again after that.

37. As the years went by, Yan Li became sicker and sicker, mostly from stress, which you took advantage of to start getting revenge on him, poisoning him.

38. His health deteriorated more and more, until on his final day, when he was dying, you dismissed all his servants from his main hall and then confessed to him. Yan Li was very angry and felt very betrayed, but he could do nothing but listen until he died at the hands of the person he loved so much.

39. During Yan Li's funeral, you pretended to cry, not knowing that your real happy days began from that moment. Yan Li's trusted eunuch read the emperor's will, which stated that Li Chen would be the new emperor, and you would be the empress dowager. Long story short, your son ascended the throne, reshaped your living conditions, and the other consorts became "widow consorts." You no longer had to worry about anything, you would just live in peace from now on, taking care of your daughters until they grow up.

40. However, Yan Li was waiting for you in the other world. He has told you years before he died that even if he passes away first, he will be waiting for you in the next life where he will find you and make you his again.

-Fin. So, what do you think about this part two?

[gurugirl]

The Forbidden (Completed Series)

stepbrother!harry - in which Harry and you meet six months before your parents are married and there’s immediate sexual tension that neither of you have the power to resist but things are tricky and quite messy

Mint Chocolate Chip (Completed Series)

in which the attractive older man that frequents the ice cream shop you work at has been making dark plans for you and when he finally gets you where he wants you, you’re easier to break than he imagined - dark!Harry content

The Con Artist (Completed Series)

detective!harry x criminal!reader

You're a wanted criminal and when Harry Styles, the detective on the case, finally catches up to you he finds it difficult to resist your charms.

Forgive Me, Father (Completed Series)

soft dom priest!harry x subby!reader

Harry is a priest with a dark secret but he's got a big heart and he's looking for someone special to share it with. When Y/n confesses her sins, he thinks she might just be the one.

The Arrangement (Completed Series)

sugardaddy dom!harry x subby!reader

Based on this request - Harry's wife proposes that he find a mistress to meet his needs in the bedroom as she is no longer willing. His wife has 2 rules: The first is that he finds a professional, and the second is that no feelings are to be involved. But both of those rules are thrown out the window when he meets Y/n.

A Good Boy (Completed Series)

stepson!harry x stepmom!reader (both adults)

Harry's got the hots for his young stepmom and she's pretty fond of him too.But they're both trying really hard to be good.Loosely based on this ask.

A Balancing Act (Completed Series)

this fic is commissioned by @cinnamonone (thank you!! xoxo): Y/n is a successful artist with a good head on her shoulders and Harry is a famous popstar in therapy. Navigating a relationship with someone as famous and adored as Harry isn't an easy task but Harry is desperate to make it work once and for all. famous!harry x plus size!reader

Just For Tonight (Completed Series)

this fic is anon commissioned (thank you!! xoxo): Harry spots an angel in the crowd and he can't keep his eyes off of her. And, as if by some cosmic pull, he can't help but ask her backstage. But it's only going to be just for tonight. Or is it? famous!harry x reader

The Unicorn (Completed Series)

Based on this & this. 3 part very mini-series. You nanny for the Styles, but Harry and his wife would like to offer you another position. Everyone gets more than they bargained for. dad!harry x nanny!reader

Can We Start Over ? (Completed Series)

this 5 part series is commissioned by @justfattiethings (thank you!! xoxo): From the first day you and Harry meet, your relationship is beyond complicated. A one night stand leads to hurt feelings and then a job opportunity that you simply can't pass up is offered. But can you handle working for a man like him? enemies to lovers

Ex-Boyfriend's Dad!Harry (completed)

Harry's your ex-boyfriend's hot dad. But it gets more complicated than just that. Harry's your ex-boyfriend's hot dad. But it gets more complicated than just that.

It's Good to Be King | mean king!harry

Harry, a handsome, but ill-mannered new king, bound by tradition, must select a queen, and against all expectations, he chooses Y/n, a street beggar. Now, Y/n finds herself caught between the gilded cage of royalty and the cold, harsh simplicity of her past, navigating a court shocked by her presence and a king who revels in the scandal of it all.

[jakeyp]

Hey guys!! Here's a tutorial on how to create those little animated doodles for your gifs so that you don't have to look for the exact overlay you want for hours 👍 This tutorial was requested by @fabines :) It's a long process but it's not too difficult, you just need to know the very basics of gif making! The steps are below the cut :)

1.

First we're going to have our gif ready, and make sure you know how many frames it is!! It should preferrably be an even number! (or a divisible number)

2.

Now we're going to make another gif, which will be the lil animated doodle. Go to file > new or press ctrl+n. Create a new document that's going to be 300x300 px, and we'll make the background black:

3.

Now we're going to use a brush to paint the doodle! We're gonna set the size to 4px-7px depending on how thick you want it to be (here i used a 4px brush) and the hardness to 100%, and we're going to trace our doodle on a new layer:

It does not have to be perfect!! It took me a while to get that crown and it looks half assed 😭 if you can use something other than your mouse like a tablet or something i definitely recommend you do it :)

Now we're going to click on "Create Video Timeline":

Now the bottom of our workspace is gonna look like this:

We're going to click on those three little boxes on the bottom left to convert to frame animation:

And there's that! Now for the slightly tricky part.

4.

We're going to set the layer where we drew the doodle to 40% opacity:

And on a new layer, we're going to trace the same doodle:

As you can see it doesn't look the same and it's because it doesnt have to be, that's how we're going to make it look animated!

We're going to repeat that process a few times! What i do to not get confused is that for examples when i'm going to draw layer 3 i first make layer 2 invisble, and then for layer 4 i also make layer 3 invisible and so on

My gif here:

is 40 frames, which means i can make 8 different variations of my doodle and duplicate each 4 times. This is why it's important that you know how many frames your gif is! And it's even much easier if it's an even number.

But what are we going to do to make it look animated? Well, it's all about using the timeline! First, make sure that the frame delay is set to the same as your base gif. I usually set it to 0,05:

Now our first layer can go back to 100% opacity, since we're going to use it too:

So this is what we have so far:

Only layer 1 is visible. So what we're gonna do is click this little plus icon:

It duplicates our frame. And on our layer section we're going to make layer 1 invisible and instead make layer 2 visible, and you'll notice that now our first two frames correspond to our first two layers:

And we're going to do the same thing for each layer! Add a new frame, make layer a invisible, make layer b visible, and so on! Here's what my crown looks like after doing this process with my 8 layers:

As you can see it's too fast, so that's why i'm going to duplicate each frame 4 times, so each variation has 5 frames on the timeline, and that's how we're going to get the same amount of frames as our base gif:

So once we have our animated doodle it's very easy from here! We're going to click on the bottom left again to convert our frame animation to a video timeline:

And we're going to select all of our layers (ctrl+alt+a in windows or just go to select > all layers) and convert them to a smart object (right click > convert to smart object):

So we're going to select our doodle and copy + paste it on top of your base gif, and we're going to set it to lighten or screen, whichever you prefer:

So now we place our doodle where we want it, make it whatever size we want, rotate it... and we're freaking done!

I hope at least half of this made sense akdhsk if you have any questions feel free to send an ask! 💙

[vitaminseetarot]

PAC: Random Messages You May Need 🌈🎆⛅

Sup, y'all. I'm finally back for another pick a card reading. I really apologize if folks have not heard from me over the past month, I meant to get this reading (among other things) out a while ago. I have not been able to touch tarot for the past few weeks. Life has been… topsy turvy, to say the least. Heh heh. [sweating profusely]

I meant to have another game out and to have paid readings available by now--that is still part of the plan. What was meant for June will be in July. So this blog might go from 0 to 100 mph real soon, to move along with plans as intended!

I was loosely inspired by the Baker pride flag from 1978 for this group selection. These piles are pretty nondescript: each one contains a random message that may resonate with you. Pick based on whichever color of the Prism Oracle speaks to you most, and feel free to choose more than one. Take only what resonates.

Pile 1 - Strength (Red) Pile 2 - Happiness (Orange) Pile 3 - Illumination (Yellow) Pile 4 - Movement (Green) Pile 5 - Flow (Turquoise) Pile 6 - Trust (Blue) Pile 7 - Intuition (Violet) Pile 8 - Love (Pink)

Pile 1 - Strength (Red)

10 of Swords, Insight

You've been asked by the universe to put up with a lot, especially recently. You're reaching a finish line of a very long and brutal marathon. There have been too many times where you questioned whether or not to throw in the towel. If you have, you may also have questioned whether or not it was the correct choice. Sometimes, things don't work out, and it's better to move on. It can be difficult to hold everything up when one thing after another seems to fall apart at the seams, but either way you're being reminded of the light at the end of this long and turbulent tunnel.

Collect yourself, pick up what pieces you can. Time has shifted everything, but the essentials still stand. Gather the wisdom you have learned from this ordeal. There is still beauty to be found in the decay, glittering gems in the rough.

Maybe you don't want to get stronger. Healing may feel like a better option than grinding for difficult experience points. Give yourself the rest and repair you need. Let go of only that which is keeping you from starting again, but you don't need to throw the baby out with the bathwater. You've gained so much wisdom and strength, this trial wasn't without gain. Treasure it and begin anew.

Pile 2 - Happiness (Orange)

2 of Swords, Clarity

Whatever answers you seek are coming to you. Or perhaps they've already arrived; open your eyes and see for yourself. You may be wondering which path will satisfy you more. The process of reconciling this could take forever unless you lean on your gut here. This can't be decided based on intellect alone, for you could get stuck mulling it over for days. Imagining all the different possible outcomes could be taxing for your brain, so narrow it down. Eliminate the weakest links and home in on what excites you. It should feel like an "aha, yes!"

If you cannot see the answer right away, go within to the realm of imagination. Feel your way through. Visualize not just with sight but with yearning. Does the light of the sun make you feel hopeful? Does the cool rain make you feel relaxed? Would an art class expand your capacity to imagine many things, or would taking a science class?

The X mark in 2 of Swords is like a railroad crossing sign. Redirect that train of thought into brighter and more positive avenues of expression. Say "what if" as if you can't wait for something to happen. "What if I saw a shooting star tonight? What if my cute neighbor asked me out?" Let the future shine its beacon for you. It will all make sense in due time.

Pile 3 - Illumination (Yellow)

Ace of Cups, Reconciliation

Have you been staying up way too late trying to figure everything out? Please give yourself a brain curfew: no problem solving or saving the day after 10 pm! I'm getting that you may tend to ruminate on the same strong emotions. For some I'm getting that there is a crush here. There's inconsistent text messaging. I know it's easy to get too nervous about their reply, but try to wait until at least the next day to hear back. They may need time to formulate their words right. They may not even see your message straight away. Take it all in stride and sleep on it; if they want to reach out to you, then they eventually will.

For others in this pile, you may be going through a rough patch with another person right now and could be wondering how things will pan out. Give them time to respond, they could still be processing it. Stay on the more positive end of things with the idea that things will work themselves out. I feel like if you can manage this in a relaxed and non hurried way, the knot will untangle easily. The coffee in the Ace of Cups is very hot, so give it a chance to cool.

There is opportunity in your near future to make up for something that went awry due to a miscommunication error. You may get a chance to make up for a test, appointment, or an interview. You will receive grace for any mishaps. Remember that tomorrow won't necessarily be the same as today, so cherish both the good you have now along with the good that soon awaits you.

Pile 4 - Movement (Green)

IX Hermit, Devotion

Looks like things are progressing faster than you even thought they would. You may be blinking your eyes in partial disbelief: could this ball really be rolling? Indeed, thanks to your efforts, goals are being met and results are more evident by the day. You eschewed a lot of distractions to make this work, so give yourself a pat on the back for the level of commitment you put into it. Some of you in this pile may have just graduated, if so then congratulations! But try not to get too comfortable with your laurels, for you have a long road ahead of you in whatever you do next. This one completion is the start of many.

Does that thrill you? If so, wonderful! On the other hand, some of you may be feeling uncertain about continuing. You may be reviewing your options to see if this really is worth pursuing. Something that requires a lot of dedication and focus on it to the exclusion of all else… yeah, I can see how that can get tiring after a long time. There are folks who can get their Master's right after their Bachelor's, or have another child right after the first, but people can also happily move on to what feels more right for them instead.

It's okay to stop and assess your tracks if necessary. Taking time off is not the same as quitting. It's not losing motivation, it's recovering it. This is your passion and your discipline, not anyone else's. If you need to give other parts of your life more room to breathe, then do so with the confidence that your great work will wait for you.

Pile 5 - Flow (Turquoise)

4 of Wands, Hospitality

Have you been stuck with something for a while? There's a strong sense of a blockage that is being eroded away over time. This process can be sped up by allowing the ice to thaw a little more. "Break the ice." You may be wanting to open up and spend more quality time with other people but don't know how. Or you could be faced with meeting new people and being nervous about interacting with them. Even more so if they're roommates. A few people in this pile could be moving or have just moved. This is a chance to ease up and get to know new people.

This blockage could be a result of the past and of anxiety. The sound of a turning doorknob just jumpscared me as I typed the last sentence. You may benefit from learning about social anxiety and how to manage it. It's not an overnight job for you to fix this, though, but to just be aware of it and not allow it to get in the way of positive change in your life.

If you're struggling to figure out how to deal with meeting new people, I would suggest looking up videos or how-tos on social interaction, especially if a certain etiquette is required for an event. Learn about conversation starters and fun things you could do together like hosting a game night. Practice makes perfect, and over time the blockage will melt into the stream.

Pile 6 - Trust (Blue)

3 of Swords, Conversion

You have a very soft and tender outlook on life, which makes it all the more painful when reality doesn't conform to such a compassionate vision. It doesn't always try to respond to vulnerability in appropriate ways. Much of the time, this isn't from natural events as much as it stems from the ways in which people can treat one another cruelly. You've had some toxic people in your life who have put you through the wringer and attempted to squeeze every ounce of kindness they could from you. Making light of this pain to them only resulted in further deflection and antagonism on their part. The only outcome was to salvage whatever you could and pray for the best.

It is not your job to change their closed minded perspectives. They're on their own, here. Do not concern yourself with their messy inner world and lose any more of your energy. Also, do not attempt to regain what energy has been lost through bargaining either, as much as it hurts to press onward without looking back. You will recover, but you have to move on first and prioritize what you deeply care about most (you included).

There will come a time when your heart will be healed so you can see the brighter side of human connection again. All the beauty that your gentle soul is seeking is still there, shrouded by layers of protective petals that will one day bloom again and your life will truly flourish. For now, this is a time to give yourself all the comfort you can.

Pile 7 - Intuition (Violet)

XII Hanged Man, Spring

I get the feeling that you've been waiting quite a while for some good results to come in. This could either be from something that you started back in the spring, or are waiting to see results which may come around springtime. It is a season of flowers, so you may be waiting for this thing to blossom--that is, to be fully presentable to the public in some way. To have something to show for the time you put in. Like "hey, this is what I've been working on, this came from the seeds I planted." It could be growing in a direction unlike what you're used to, leaving you wondering how it could succeed in such unusual and burdensome conditions.

Lean on your inner guidance when it comes to the right timing. I don't believe that you're currently in a space where you need to push so hard for the best results. You can let things move at their own pace. Over tending to anything can end up in just as much trouble as neglect. There's only so much you can do before you have to let the flower do the growing and blooming for itself.

It's not always easy to sit in the place of uncertainty with the idea that doing more will provide more. But sometimes less is more. What you're creating is coming to fruition and may even turn out better than you expected. Trust in both the knowledge you've earned over time from learning lessons, as well as your natural intuition, to help you decide when it's time to take action.

Pile 8 - Love (Pink)

7 of Swords, Gossip

Let your heart lead the way here, not your worries over what others will think. Sure, you may end up with some people talking about you, but opportunities will keep passing by if you wait for everyone else to catch up to you. Leaning too much on everyone else's perspectives will only distort the vision you have for your own life journey. We all have unique journeys to go on, but unconditional kindness remains at the center of the Love card, the one thing that brings us together. Following life from a heart centered place may result in having others glance over and whisper, but that shouldn't distract you.

There is a rather delicate message here about dealing with friendships, colleagues, or possibly even family. You may have a tricky situation between several other people right now who have beef not with you but with each other. They may be coming to you to air their grievances and ask for advice.

If you care about both of these people, then it's best to approach this issue as diplomatically and impartially as possible and avoid feeding into the conflict. What would an enlightened mindset do in this situation? How would you want the other person to behave if they were in your shoes? Come from a place of pure compassion. They may choose to make amends or not, it's up to them. If their butting heads is bringing you down, it's always okay to step back and take a break. You are not responsible for what's going on in their heart, only your own, so protect yours well.

This reading has not been evaluated by the FDA to diagnose, prevent, treat, or cure any disease or infection. Please ask your physician before going online.

2024, @VitaminseeTarot ™

[houseofsnarry]

HP Rec Fest 2024 - Day 26: A fic under 5k

A year ago we lost a much beloved member of our fandom community. My co-mod for this tumblr and the HOS Discord group, and founder of @hprecfest, the unforgettable Scarlet, aka givereadersahug (tumblr) / emeraldlove (AO3).

Today's theme for HP Rec Fest 2024 is for fics under 5k, and I thought it was a perfect way to celebrate her memory.

Scarlet loved writing short-form works, and there wasn't anything she couldn't write a drabble/microfic about. She left us with hundreds to enjoy, across many ships and many fandoms. It was a very difficult choice picking just a few of them from huge selection. Accidentally, they've all ended up being her G-rated fics, but she also wrote an impressive and delicious number of works from all ratings.

In memory of Scarlet, this is 5 fics under 5k (for Scarlet did always like it when the numbers had some theme), from the irreplicable emeraldlove:

💚Microwaving Potions💚 Summary: Harry suggests brewing potions via microwave. 300 words | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | Rating: General Audiences Link

💚Wrapped Around His Fingers💚 Summary: "We're a package deal, Severus," said Harry, when he showed up to their first date with Teddy in tow. 300 words | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | Rating: General Audiences Link

💚The Christmas Presents💚 Summary: The various Christmas presents Severus gave Teddy over the years. 450 words | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | Rating: General Audiences Link

💚The Prince and the Bezoar💚 Summary: "I need to do what?" asked Severus, lips curling in disgust. "Pass the Sleeping Beauty test," said Harry, who was enjoying the spectacle a bit too much if you ask for Severus's opinion. 500 words | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | Rating: General Audiences Link

💚Invisible String💚 Summary: The first time Harry saw Snape's black eyes — him truly acknowledging Snape's existence beyond him being his mean professor — it was the night after Harry killed Professor Quirrell. He was dreaming, and in his dreams, he was screaming.

Harry dreams of Severus over the years. 3,728 words | Harry Potter/Severus Snape | Rating: General Audiences Link

[chronotopes]

do u have any good perfume advice for some1 who rlly likes scents for an autism reason but also is masc???

ooh thank you for the fun question :) ! i don't know if you mean advice as in recommendations or advice as in advice finding a scent, and i also don't know how deep into the perfume iceberg you are (i personally am not very deep! so i am not the best person to offer expertise!) but i will try to offer both.

for figuring out what scents you like, it helps a lot if you live in a major city and have an independently owned perfume store near you like ministry of scent in san francisco or merz apothecary in chicago, or individual brand-owned stores like a le labo or a diptyque, it's really fun to visit and try different scent profiles in person! if the only things near you are a department store or a sephora it might be harder unless you really like generic masc department store perfume, which i assume you might not jive with super well because if it was that easy then you would probably not be asking me for advice on tumblr. but it might still be useful either way to stop in and try a few profiles, like leathers and woods. also important addendum that I find the vast majority of masc and fem department store scents wildly grating and thus don’t know them well, so it could be there’s good ones I don’t know. If there’s a sephora in the area there’s a few masc replica fragrances that are ok, especially for getting a sense of what scent profiles you enjoy on yourself.

from there – or if you have an idea of what you like already, or if you have already tried everywhere – you might just want to go wild and order some spray samples based on notes! ministry of scent and many other perfume retailers let you purchase samples at $5/2 ml sample, which is definitely steep but a lot more affordable (and fun!) then buying something without smelling it first. these sites let you filter by notes, so if youre interested in woods or marine scents or heavy amber fragrances then you can click around those and just use vibes/lists of notes/sometimes reviews, though obviously those are super subjective to pick a few that intrigue you and try them out.

i don't buy or test perfume enough that my taste is like super refined or interesting, so apologies if i recommend stuff to look at that is super basic. but – with the understanding that heavy/vanillic/amber fragrances are underrepresented here because they give me Big Headache – some of my favorite masc adjacent scents include the following:

kosciusko by blocki (bergamot, tobacco, fir, cedar)

every storm a serenade by imaginary authors (eucalyptus, vetiver, ambergris)

heartbreak silverado by good dearest unhappy* (peppercorn, hay, leather)

regime de fleurs rock river melody (ivy, galbanum, patchouli)

liis bo (tobacco, pine, guaiac wood, vanilla) (really stretching the definition of 'masc' here but definitely gender neutral in a way that reads as masc to some, worth trying if you like warm woods or sweeter scents)

*this one is indie and might be difficult to purchase as an individual sample! but it is one of my favorites

if you wanna message back with more details about what scents you like or a clarification on what kind of advice you were looking for (sorry if this was unhelpful!) feel free!!! i hope you find some epic masc scents out there

p.s. would not recommend scentbird (selection lowkey sucks) or perfumetok (mostly cringe and fail, with a few notable exceptions.)

[violetsandshrikes]

how do you help so many different kinds of people? i have noticed you know about lots of different things and meet lots of different people. i want to do that but i cant figure out how? /gen

A little bit of background is probably needed:

I have had people ask me this before, and honestly I had a little bit of a cheat code. While my life has been filled with a lot of trauma and bad shit, I was raised by a mother from an incredibly leftie family who walked the talk when it came to values and doing the work.

She had a lot of ideas imparted on us from a young age: social and community responsibility, ideas of collectivism, eduction. Even as a poor, trapped young mother, she was believed that many people behaved badly based on ignorance outside their very limited bubble, and that when life became difficult economically or socially, people would immediately point fingers at groups they knew little about or saw as distinctively different in order to have a blameable target.

From about 4-5, outside typical schoolwork, my mother also taught us about the world. This included different conflicts and genocides (which may sound horrific to some people, but basic information and explanation was given, and then it got more in depth with age), different countries and cultures (often she would randomly select a country from a world map, and we would spend a set amount of time learning everything we could about the place, culture, people, etc), different religions (I attended many different types of religious institutes at least once, and my mother often found people willing to talk about their belief system with us), volunteering, etc.

I have definitely had a head start and a lot more guidance than many people, which I am incredibly grateful for. It can also make it difficult to advise though.

Realistically:

Honestly, the two best things you can do if you don’t know where to start are: listen and learn. Find any local group, start participating and volunteering. Listen to the stories of people there. Ask questions. Expose yourself to all sorts of different ideas and opinions.

In the last year, I’ve started doing a little throwback to my childhood. I have a schoolbook, and I choose random topics, and spend a few hours every week learning basic things about it. Choose a country, choose a place, a time in history, a religion, a culture, a people. You don’t have to be a scholar. You just have to expand your horizons.

As you get involved with more things, you will begin to narrow down your core values. This is good: you can’t do everything at once. I would say roughly 2-3 core issues or topics you care about is good (this doesn’t mean that you don’t care about things happening outside it - it just means you don’t spread yourself thin). There’s different things people make their focus: LGBTQ+ issues, BIPOC issues, environmental issues, homelessness, disability, refugee issues, etc. Your core focus will be the ones you feel most passionate about, which is good, because it means you will put in genuine work and care, and you will lower the risk of burning out fast and being of help to no one, including yourself.

You also have to get comfortable with the fact you will never be perfect. You will never be up to date with every idea and practice. There is always something you will need to learn or unlearn. Becoming rigid about being correct all the time will make you more of a menace than a help to any reputable movement or group. You might feel uncomfortable when you realise the gap or misunderstanding you had - that’s normal. Be open to learning and expanding your understanding of things vs burying your head in the stand stubbornly. I say things and then months later I realise that actually, I don’t agree with that anymore, or my understanding has deepened, or changed, or pivoted. This tends to make people feel very bad or uncomfortable, but you have to get to the stage where again, you acknowledge that that’s normal.

[home-fire]

Mini Statue Resources

I've spent a lot of time looking for miniature statues of the gods to use in my travel altars, and in my search learned that mini statues-- especially anything under 3"-- are very hard to find. A lot of people have also seemed interested in the Hestia mini I have, and asked where I got her. So I thought I would share some resources I've found for very small statues and advice for finding them yourself. I hope they'll be helpful!

Sellers I've Found

3DvoPrinting (etsy)

They have a nice selection of 3D of prints of classical sculptures, including a lot of less "popular" statues. They come between 3-5" tall, priced around $12-18. I just put in an order for a custom size (1.5-2") of the Hermes and Asclepius figures, and they offer custom larger sizes as well.

3DorisArt (etsy)

They have a large collection of prints, but my interest was in the 4" line, which range from $17 to $28. I contacted them about getting smaller prints of these and they said that was doable. I haven't ordered from them yet but hope to get a custom size Dionysus soon.

MurphicIndustries (etsy)

This is where I got my mini Hestia! They have this whole set available, and also sell figures individually. They come in 32mm, 48mm, 54mm and individual figures start at $4-5.

twogreenthumbs.com

They sell mini garden supplies, and have a section with mini garden decor, including a lot of classical statues (I think these would probably have a spike under the base that you'd need to remove). Most of them are between 2.5 and 3.5" tall and $7-8 each. They also have a lot of mini pedestals and urns as well.

Edensart (etsy)

They sell dollhouse minis, including 1:12 scale prints of marble statues, including some classical ones. They're extremely small and so lower detail, and run around $6.60

BigManSmallWorld (etsy)

They specialize in very fancy and detailed art pieces for dollhouses, and their minis are already painted and decorated. Most of their mini statues are $30+

Advice for finding stuff on your own:

Although there are a lot of resources out there for finding smaller statues, I've found getting anything under 5" very difficult and under 3" almost impossible. For 3D prints if you can't find something in the size you want, I'd suggest finding one you like in a similar size and asking about getting it printed smaller for you.

I've had the most luck looking for mini-garden, dollhouse, and gaming miniatures. Searching by height is generally useless, but including scale can be helpful.

A lot of places have the statues misnamed (the Hermes statue I ordered, for example, is listed as Apollo) or aren't identified at all, so looking for generic terms like "marble statue" "god" "goddess" "classical" etc can be helpful if the right name isn't bringing anything up.

There are also a lot of Etsy sellers that specialize in dollhouse minis that have one or 2 little statues (esp. the more popular ones like Apollo Belvidere, Venus de Milo etc.) I've only included ones here that have a decent selection of them, but there are certainly options for little statues on Etsy beyond what I've shared.

The only statue of Aphrodite/Venus anyone wants to make replicas of is the Venus de Milo, so good luck to you if you're looking for literally any other representation they are on in a million. (I've included 3 here so...)

There are also some old school gaming minis that are Greek myth-themed, such as Foundry's series, but old school minis tend to be overall much more expensive, less detailed, and generally less aesthetically pleasing.

[starwarsmum]

Day 6 of Arrow April: Tattoo on Your Shoulder

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

@maribat-calendar-events

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64338052/chapters/165634147

Marinette started seeing Roy almost everywhere, which was insane. She was pretty sure she had never seen him before the night in the casino but now that she had committed to not sleeping with him, she saw him all the time. Sometimes she saw him at a grocery shop in her neighbourhood, or in the botanical gardens that Ivy sponsored, or even once at the corner of her street! 

Maybe if she just…no, she wasn't going to risk alienating Tim just because Roy made her a little hot under the collar. It didn't help that most of the time she saw him, his flirting game was on point, leaving her feeling like mush and stammering like an idiot. The asshole knew what he was doing, too, because he was constantly smirking by the end of every interaction. 

But today she was heading for the fabric section of an art store and she was ninety eight percent certain he wouldn't be in there. She really only needed to go because Jagged and his friend Dinah had contracted her to make their tour outfits and she needed to pick out the main colours. 

“Oof,” came a small voice when she had finally selected the right one. She had turned to ask for the appropriate length of the fabric and collided with someone even smaller than her. 

“Oh, I'm so sorry!” She said, setting aside the bolt of fabric and dropping to help the person. It was a young girl, between the ages of four and five, and Marinette felt awful for knocking her down. The girl allowed her to pull her back to her feet and check her for injuries.” 

“That's okay! Hey, can you help me find a fabric for a party dress? My daddy says we're going to try and make my dress for my grandma's party,” she said, talking almost too quickly for Marinette to keep up. 

“What kind of party dress?” 

As the girl launched into a description, Marinette glanced around trying to find the adult responsible for her. It was difficult, the store was split so that it was impossible to see the other parts from where they were. 

“What are you buying?” The girl asked at the end of her long rant, hands reaching for the heavy bolt. 

“Oh, I'm making an outfit for someone,” she said with a smile and a wink. “It's top secret so I can't tell you much, but I bet it's not going to be as cool as your dress.” 

“Did someone draw on your shoulder?” Marinette was startled when the girl pointed at her left shoulder blade, only realising then that her top had shifted during her search and some of the delicate paw prints that decorated her back and shoulder were visible. 

“Oh, yeah, it's, um, it's a tattoo, actually,” she said, smile dimming slightly. “I got it for a friend that I miss. Do you like it?” 

The girl squealed and almost pulled her over in her enthusiasm to see more of the tattoo. As it was, her top felt like it was going to fall off, so she worked on making sure she didn't flash anything she didn't want everyone to see. 

“Lian?”

“Over here, Daddy!” The girl, Lian, shrieked happily, turning to inspect different bolts of fabric. Marinette glanced up and felt her eyes go wide when Roy appeared around the corner. He seemed equally surprised to see her, his mouth dropping open just a little. His eyes landed on the exposed shoulder and he reddened slightly. 

“Daddy, the lady was just telling me that she's making a dress too! Or- what did you call it? An ah-fit?” 

“Outfit, yeah,” Marinette said, blushing at his scrutiny. “Um, nice to see you again.” 

“You know her, Daddy? Why didn't you tell me?” Lian sounded upset, or at the very least annoyed. Then she turned to Marinette without waiting for an answer from Roy. “If you know Daddy, that means we can be friends! I'm Lian.” 

“Hi Lian, I'm Marinette. You can call me Nette if that's easier for you though,” she said. She was startled again when Lian gave her a hug before touching her shoulder again. 

“I like your name. Do you want to come and have dinner with us when we finish shopping? Daddy said he was gonna make special s’ghetti. It has magic in it,” she stage whispered, putting a finger to her lips. 

“Oh, I wouldn't want to impose,” she said immediately, glancing at Roy. She also wasn't sure she could handle one on one time with Roy and his…daughter? She'd called him her dad, right? 

“It's no bother,” Roy assured her. “But Marinette might be busy and that's okay too. We did interrupt her shopping trip.” 

“I do have a commission to do, but I'm still in the sketching stage. If you don't mind me doing some drawing while your Dad is cooking, I don't mind coming over for dinner,” Marinette said, laughing when Lian squealed and almost bowled her over in her excitement. “We can drop my stuff off at my apartment first and pick up my supplies.” 

When they arrived at her apartment complex, Roy kept Lian outside while she raced around to grab her things. She briefly considered changing into something slightly more flattering than her loose sweater and leggings combo but decided against it. It wasn't like she was going there for Roy, she was going to spend time with Lian. 

Meanwhile, Roy was absolutely out of his element. He had fully expected that Marinette was going to take the out he had offered her. He had no way of knowing just how weak Marinette was to the kitten eyes kids always wielded against her, so he was beyond surprised that she had agreed to come over for dinner. 

Finding her chatting with Lian in the art store had solidified that protective feeling that he had tried to squash when he had talked to her in the kitchen of Wayne Manor. And though he was trying to respect her wishes to be casual acquaintances, seeing her in her comfy clothes was doing something to that resolve. 

“Sorry, I just had to find a bag to put it all in,” she said breathlessly, re-emerging from the building. Lian cheered and immediately latched onto Marinette's hand, chattering away about how she wanted to show her the designs for her new dress. 

The domestic, caring way she interacted with Lian continued all the way through dinner and up to bedtime. The pair had sketched peacefully together, Marinette showing how she was working out her designs and adding notes, and Lian babbling excitedly about her own pictures. 

At bedtime, she somehow managed to wheedle a story out of Marinette, and a promise to show her the outfits when they were finished. Marinette took it all in stride, kind but fairly firm with following any rules Roy stated outright. He expected her to run away as soon as Lian's bedroom door was shut but she accepted his offer of coffee and settled onto the sofa while he made the drinks. 

“Thanks, for humouring her,” he said as he handed her the mug of coffee. 

“Oh, that was nothing,” she said, waving her free hand and smiling. “She's a great kid, you must be so proud of her.” 

“I am, but you should be prepared for her to ask for you to come for dinner constantly from this point forward. Especially because you don't live very far away, I wouldn't be surprised if she made you move in,” he whispered in a conspiratorial voice, leaning in. That was friendly, right? And she was blushing because…okay, he didn't have an answer for that, but there was a platonic reason for it. 

“Too bad my lease has another few months on it,” she giggled, looking down at her mug. They lapsed into a charged silence, Roy leaning back a little but not as far away from her as he had been before. The shoulder of her sweater had fallen to the side again, exposing the tattoo Lian had complimented earlier. 

“I like the ink,” he murmured, tracing the outline of a paw print with his finger. She stiffened slightly and he drew back, uncomfortably aware that he was definitely treading into flirting territory. But friends could flirt, Dick flirted with everything that moved. It didn't have to mean anything. 

“Thanks, I got it to commemorate a friend,” she said softly, shoulders hunching in a little. At Roy's sympathetic, questioning look she elaborated. “My friend, Adrien. He was a teacher here in Gotham, before- until he died last year.” 

“I'm so sorry,” Roy said, voice equally soft. He knew what it was like to lose someone you loved and it was clear that Marinette had loved this Adrien. “Do you…I'm happy to listen, if you wanted to talk about it.” 

“There's not much to say,” she said sadly, sounding a little hopeless. “He was doing what he always did, teaching and protecting the kids in his care. If he'd been back in France, or even in England where his cousin lives, it wouldn't have happened. Stricter gun laws,” she said at his quizzical look. “But it did, and he's gone. I actually only came to Gotham because I never made it over here to visit when he was- before.” 

Rather than say anything, Roy wrapped an arm around her shoulder. She leaned against him and he felt that protective urge rise again, almost suffocating him. She'd been through so much. 

He was lost in thought when she set down her mug. His own mug had been discarded when he'd leaned in to comfort her, sitting on top of a pile of paper - probably junk mail. He really should tidy up if he was going to have company more often, he thought absently.

He wasn't sure how it happened. He hadn't been planning on kissing her at all, not when she had made it clear she wanted to be friends and nothing more. But between the slightly darker room, their closeness, and the heavy conversation, the room seemed to melt away around them and all he could see was her. 

His fingers ghosted along her chin and jaw, his head angling to press their lips together gently. She didn't hesitate to return the kiss, hands coming up to fist in his hair. Just like the last time they kissed, she was bold and unreserved, her tongue teasing his lips open with light touches. 

He got lost in exploring her mouth, hands roaming to trace the outline of her waist. She gave a gasp that he used to deepen the kiss when he rotated and pulled her across his lap. He groaned when she pressed against him, the hand he had resting on her hip sliding down her leg only to travel back up again. 

He had enough presence of mind to keep half an ear out for Lian, not wanting her to see him getting carried away. Which was why he actually heard a key turning in the lock of his front door. 

He broke away from Marinette, breathing heavily. He pressed a finger to her lips and took a moment to try and calm himself down before Jason actually came into the apartment. He was the only one with a key that wouldn't have messaged before coming over and Roy wanted to throttle him.

“Yo, Roy, got anything to eat? Ooh, nice, spaghetti.” 

Marinette scampered off of Roy's lap, beet red and stammered a goodbye before bolting out of the apartment. She managed to grab her things before she left and Jason didn't have time to do more than raise his eyebrows at her before the door shut behind her. 

“Huh, I didn't realise you changed your mind about tapping that,” Jason said after a long pause. Roy groaned and ignored him, realising he hadn't even remembered to trade numbers with her.

Part 7

[us-being-us2]

AAC Struggles

I just wrote my AAC device company to see what support they can give me, but I thought I'd take my struggles to the community for advice, too. I struggle to be concise and to organize my thoughts, to bear with me.

I have Level 2 Autism (I find diagnostic levels helpful, it's okay if they're not for you, and I'll never use them for anyone else unless asked to by the person with the diagnosis. I also support self-diagnosis/-identification), and expressive-receptive communication disorder, and self-diagnosed selective mutism. I consider myself an unreliable communicator. I am a part-time AAC user, but I want to use it to support myself more than I currently do; I often just don't communicate in situations where I have needs or thoughts. I was able to get AAC after not having support due to childhood circumstances that don't reflect on my support needs about 5 years ago, but I'm really struggling to make it work for me. I struggle to build sentences from individual words. I also struggle to respond in real-time, and people aren't very patient. I have a big struggle with phone calls with a captioning service; I get constantly hung up on because of the computer voice and my response speed. I've been laboriously typing out/scripting what I want to say in appointments in my AAC as whole paragraphs and just playing those paragraphs in appointments so far, or just continuing to have support staff speak for me because I'm too slow on AAC to do things like the check-in process and people yell at me for not talking. And typing everything out as paragraphs ahead-of-time only works for appointments and severely limits how much I can react to what happens in the moment or even make simple, real-time requests. I used to write out what I wanted to say at appointments and just hand it to the doctor before I had AAC. Surely, there should be a way to make AAC help me do things like chat with my friends or ask for things from my aide. I can talk some. But it's very difficult, not possible most of the time, and leads to some pretty volatile meltdowns from overload. I also have some trouble understanding speech, which is a while different question.

Open to any advice.

Oh, I also keep breaking my wheelchair AAC mounts because I'm not a very good driver. I'll tag wheelchair users, too, in case there's a better mount option than what's pictured.

Also, my AAC is Lingraphica.

[turtlevariabilis]

Ok, this post is going to be somewhat long because I want to vent about a topic and ask for advice. I've noticed that in this community, there are many neurodivergent people, perhaps because Rise Donnie was confirmed to be on the autism spectrum, and Rise Mikey was confirmed to have ADHD (which wouldn't surprise me at all if it were the same in any version of TMNT).

Well, the thing is that BEFORE discovering Rise Donnie in early 2023, I had already spent a year with a strong suspicion that I might be on the autism spectrum due to something very specific that I discovered about myself (this is something I normally don't share with anyone, but since I'm anonymous here, I don't mind talking about it).

Back then, I discovered that I had ARFID (an eating disorder in which your diet is extremely selective). It’s something I’ve struggled with since I was a baby, from the first food I ever tried. I won’t go into detail about this part, which has always been very difficult in my life, but when I found out that what I was suffering from had a name… it meant that I wasn't the only one in the world 🥺 I'm 26 years old, so I've been suffering from this since 1998, and I found out that it was only given a name in 2013, and I only learned about it in 2022!

There wasn't much information, but I definitely discovered something about this disorder that disturbed me greatly.

Most people with ARFID (though not all) are on the autism spectrum. And something clicked in my mind. Because I've always felt different, I've always had social difficulties. When I was in college, around 2011, before Asperger's was included within the autism spectrum, I had already researched it and concluded, with doubts, that it wasn't my case. I didn’t have a good memory, nor was I very intelligent—I got good grades in school because I worked hard and was interested 🥺 (when I was in elementary school, they suspected I might be dyslexic, another diagnosis that was never pursued because it eventually "got better"). I also ruled it out because they say people on the spectrum are very routine-oriented and organized, and I considered myself the opposite.

But in 2022, I started searching for a lot more information (yes, somewhat obsessively—I even read books on the topic). And in 2023, I discovered rottmnt and Rise Donnie, which intensified my search for answers about myself...

The thing is, recently, I've been reflecting on 2019, the year I hit rock bottom mentally (and irresponsibly, I never went to a psychiatrist). I thought it was depression that I'd been dragging on for years... but what if it was something else? The way I tried to push myself forward was completely opposite to what is recommended for people with depression... and what if it was autistic burnout? Depression and autistic burnout share symptoms but require opposite treatments! (Talking about non-medical treatments, of course).

I made a list some of my autistic traits, things I've been gathering, and I'm sharing them here:

1. ARFID: I'm extremely selective with my food, and I have been for as long as I can remember.

2. People have told me that I "seem like I'm from another planet."

3. I've been told that I don't know how to comfort people (not in a bad way, just as an observation).

4. Before I turned 15, I barely spoke at all outside of the house. But I knew how to communicate in other ways... If I needed to complain about something to a teacher, I would write a note on paper and hand it to them. If I wanted to play with other kids, I could easily join in without saying anything.

5. I discovered this recently: when people talk about their problems, I tend to propose solutions instead of simply understanding what they're feeling.

6. I also discovered this recently: I don't understand what's happening with my emotions until they accumulate and I break down in tears.

7. I’m not comfortable with physical contact. Even as a baby, I wouldn’t go into the arms of strangers. And people, even family and friends, naturally ask me if they can hug me before they do... and of course, if they ask, I'll say yes!

8. The few times I listen to music, it’s rare and always on loop (just one song on repeat, and I have to force myself to stop after a while because I don’t have a natural limit).

9. My obsessions, like TMNT (though I've had others at different times in my life).

10. The simple fact that, at 26 years old, I’ve never had a boyfriend, and I’ve never kissed anyone, despite imagining it many times.

11. The times I’ve gone out to party late at night, I would end up crying when I got home, even if I had a “good” time. Now I understand it’s because I was exhausted.

12. I’ve always described having a switch in my mind that allows me to disconnect from my surroundings if the noises are too much (so they don’t bother me). Even though my mom told me that once, when I was little, she took me to see fireworks, and I apparently had a meltdown and covered my ears because of the noise, this never happened again, and I wouldn't say noise is an issue for me.

13. I NEVER, and I mean NEVER, make eye contact unless the other person isn’t looking directly at me. The thing is, I never realized this could be bothersome to some people. No one ever told me I had to look into people’s eyes, so I just never do it!

14. Crowds are definitely what bothers me the most. I think I could lose my sense of reality if I stayed in one for too long.

15. I need instructions to be given to me step by step, exactly as they need to be done; I also have difficulty understanding some jokes, double meanings, and I take things quite literally. For example, when we studied metaphors in school, I never understood them, and that’s because we never talked about them at home, haha.

And I could go on with many more specific things and anecdotes!

And why, if it seems like I never really did the famous masking, did no one ever suggest that I should seek a diagnosis?

What happened is that the more I researched the topic, not only did I recognize my own autistic traits (though I wouldn’t say I’m autistic without an official diagnosis), but I also realized that my parents and sisters fit well within the neurodivergent spectrum too. This created a mutual understanding between us, and we didn’t see any flaws in each other. I think I grew up in a very safe environment 🫶🏻 and was somewhat sheltered from the outside world.

As I mentioned, I don’t know if I’m on the spectrum or if I have other neurodivergences, but after what could have been depression or autistic burnout, and all the introspection I’ve done in recent years, I’ve realized that yes, I’m different, I’m "odd" in many ways, and I need to accept myself as I am. I’ve even forgiven myself for not eating as I should. While it would be good to work on it a bit, I don't need to feel guilty about it, and as long as I’m healthy, there shouldn’t be a problem.

Honestly, I’m not sure if it’s worth seeking a diagnosis or not. I wouldn’t know what to say, who to go to, or if they would take me seriously after all the self-discovery I’ve already done… I just don’t know. On one hand, I think I’d like to know, not just for myself but also for the people closest to me so they can understand me better… but at the same time, we’re all different, and we all have our quirks and deficiencies… so I’m not sure what to do with everything I’ve learned—whether to leave it as it is or to pursue it further in a professional way.

Tell me about yourselves—if any of you suspect or know that you’re neurodivergent, and what your thoughts are on the matter.

[esteemed-excellency]

3+4 for hiram? and 6 for your quiet deviless? :}

3. What was the first thing you decided on, the character's name, appearance, personality or their role in the story?

His personality came first, it basically self developed over the course of ten years, I just had to ask myself who would be the kind of person to make irl all the choices I jokingly made in game. His role in the story also self developed, but I planned a timeline selecting only a few plot points out of all the things I played over the years, and built an extensive backstory to better motivate his choices and personality. I designed the character only around 2018, and settled on the full name in January 2023 after procrastinating it for 5 years lol (longer answer here)

4. And reverse, which one of the four things did you struggle with the most?

The name! Naming characters is always super difficult for me so Hiram existed for a long time simply as Dr. Hhhhhhhh because that's my username, and his titile during the middle game was Professor. In the end I decided to look up a list of most common victorian names (all his names had to match with the 8 Hs of the username), and found Hiram and Howell. I did the same thing for the surnames and Hastings and Hargrave were perfect, so I decided he's the kind of person who pretentiously writes all his names, surnames and titles on every calling card.

(chat screenshots from january 2023, ft @that-giorgione and @that-fella-snipsnop)

6. What was the thought process behind their appearance? Did you go mostly for the aesthetic or are there other reasons they look the way they do? (for the Deviless)

I did design her mostly for aesthetic purposes: her game portrait is very cute, but after a while she became an integral part of my headcanons so I decided to develop her a bit more. I have two designs for her, an edwardian look, complete of Gibson Girl hairstyle, and the classic 20s look. Hiram met her in 1870 so for the first part of their story I always picture her with the edwardian look (which would've been anachronistical at the time).

I headcanon her wearing feminine clothing and pastel colours to contrast with Hiram's darker palette, or bright orange/yellow clothes to match her eyes, and because she's bees. Most of her personality is fake, like the majority of devils, but from the few interactions during the Intimate of Devils storyline she seems to enjoy at least a few human-ish things (like her terrible poetry lol), so it's fun to headcanon her as an alien in disguise who likes to appear human not only because it's easier to prey upon people, but also because she appreciates a certain kind of aesthetic, in her weird alien way.

The most important thing to me is that she's the embodiment of the ⓛωⓛ and ◉ω◉ emojis. Her pupils canonically expand like a cat's and they make her look a bit too intense all the time, which matches well with the way she speaks. Her love for makeup is the reasons why I like to draw her with big doe eyes, they also fit with her general 20's aesthetic.

As for the bug aspects, her orange earrings have a bee shape in them, and her edwardian version has a similar cameo necklace. Her bug mouth is inspired by insect mandibles, and sometimes I sprinkle more insect-like features in her design because it's fun to draw her with more alien traits!

[ballet-symphonie]

Hello, First your blog is amazing and I am happy that you are back as much as you have time! I wanted to ask if you have seen the NZ 7 grade Vaganova Academy exam class that is posted in Vaganova's youtube channel? If so or if you have time at some point to watch it, I would love to hear your opinion about it. Would be also interesting to hear if some dancer / student specially caught your attention and why? I wish you all the best rest of your season!

Hey Ale, have you watched the Vaganova Exam made by Nikolai Ziskaridse? If so, I would love to hear your thoughts about it! In my opinion his dancers are beautiful and modern, but not "Vaganova" anymore. They look way more athletic (not that this is a bad thing) and have other qualities like quick jumps and turns but lack precision in the extensions and the in-between-steps. Also there was no real Adagio, which was for me always the main part in a Vaganova-Exam. When I watch these girls, I can see them in Europe and the US, but not so much in Russia.

Do you think the other teachers will adapt to this style or might it be just this one class?

Two questions about the latest VBA exam, I'll bundle them together.

I honestly wasn't very impressed, but I haven't been impressed by Tsiskaridze's ventures as a pedagogue with boys. The girls are talented, especially the girl who is the 'point' of the pyramid section. They are all clearly strong and can get through some grueling and sometimes nonsensical combinations but they seem to lack the finish, extra stretch and generous epaulment. The precision and polish that Vaganova is so often championed for is just a little bit lacking, most notably in the shape and turnout of the passe, the super stretched lines and the plasticity of the spine. This exam looked less polished than the majority of others I have seen, there were numerous issues of musicality and just some moments of sloppiness that normally get ironed out.

I also think some of the little details were neglected in favor of flashy combinations and harder elements. In the coda combinations at the end, the much harder pirouettes sans pose are better executed than the simple stuff like the tour pique and saut de chat. There are also a lot of little things, girls not walking to their places with perfectly stretched feet, exists from the room looking a bit haphazard...you won't see this in Kovaleva's exams.

Now onto the structure. I felt like the combinations of the exam were poorly designed, confusing and without cohesion. It's hard for me to tell the goal of each combination. There are 4 or 5 pseudo adagio combinations but intermixed with some jumps here and there, and then there are the multiple mini pointe work ballets that just don't feel like exam material. Some parts of the exam are so overly choreographed with formations that it's difficult to really see the skills of all the girls. Especially at the end, certain girls are dancing much much more than others, the exam is about allowing the panel of judges to asses all of their skills and grade them....hard to do that when girls are offstage and not dancing all the combinations.

Yet the content is challenging for sure, consecutive grand degage, hops on pointe with double ronde, and all at a blistering pace, which is another big change. Gone are the luxurious and dreamy adagios that seem to go on for forever, executed with mindblowing control.

Seperately, there is a huge conglomeration of different port de bras, lots of more stylized arm positions that are associated with different ballets. Stylized port de bras has normally been reserved for character exams or for the acting exam, also the mix of so many different styles (Spanish, Hungarian, 'eastern') in the same combination at times feels strange and quite out of place? Like what is the point/benefit of that choice?

The music selection doesn't help either. Each piece of music combination kinda blends together, but it kinda feels messy and lost? And sometimes the movement seems choreographed over the music rather than to it. Where does one start and the next begin? And why is almost everything at such a quick pace? I wish there was more emphasis on finesse and detail, rather than speed, especially when they're still in school.

What is mostly absent, curiously, are the inclusions of famous passages from the classical heritage. I think I saw only two brief ones, and one at nearly double time. The most famous professors of VBA (Kovalava, Vaseileva, Udalenkova, etc) often interweave sections of variations or famous choreography seamlessly into the exams. Professionals will catch these references instantly, which I always thought was an excellent way of showing the students' level of preparedness for the stage.

TLDR: I haven't liked what I have seen from Tsiskaridze's past classes of boys, and I don't think the choices he made in structuring this exam are beneficial to the development of the girls.

[from-the-depths-if]

I absolutely adore the story so far! And I can’t wait to read more!

I was just wondering if theres a set age for the mc? And how the merfolk age, similar to human time or can a mermaid get super old like whales? (Or will that depends due to the selected pod?🐋)

Also how old are the RO’s then? I envision Llyr to be similar age to the mc (which I’ve headcanoned to be around 25-29 in what would be the human equivalent of age, and Nakia to be mid twenties), also unsure if you mentioner the heights of the RO’s but my heart melts at Tall Mc being flustered by shorter Llyr and Llyr just thinking “oh? Wait? Okay be smooth now, enthral them”and then just completely making a fool out of xirself and MC just completely swoons, “wow the way you just completely ate kelp while protecting me from that innocent manatee was really brave...I mean it wasn’t a real danger but you made me feel safe so…”🥹

Also, merfolk tattoos? 👀

Sorry for super long ask I just love the merfolk trope in stories so much!!

Hi I'm so glad you're enjoying so far!

1) No set age for MC, though I imagine mer live to about 200, regardless of pod. Adulthood is around 30 when most apprenticeships would finish (leadership being an outlier here) so 30s or older for MC and Llyr would be accurate. Nakia is late 20s.

2) That's such a sweet scenario - and Llyr is definitely a protector so accurate! Llyr is 5 foot 2 so most MCs would get to enjoy being flustered by a shorter Llyr (and then have friend Llyr assume xe's just imagining the reaction). Nakia is 5 foot 8 and unfortunately very difficult to fluster.

3) Mermaid tattoos! Will add an option for MC to decide if they have them in a later chapter (should've added tattoo artist as a role 😫) Llyr would 100% get matching tattoos with MC if they wanted them, Nakia would be too scared of the needle to get one.

Thank you so much for the ask!