#a warmer palette for a change

[iztea]

See Ya'!

[thatbennybee]

ChordStriker!Poppy

Speaking of ChordStriker, I did some Rock!Poppy sketches to plan out her ref. Not entirely sure about the colors but she was too cute not to share!!

Rock Concert Outfit!!

She always has bat wings (Rock Troll HC), but she makes them a bigger for concerts! (Their wings can grow or retract similar to the way their hair can!!)

Tattoos and a closeup of her eyes! Aren't they pretty? 🩷💕

---

I know people are pretty curious about my au so hopefully I can finish that comic teaser poster and give you guys an official synopsis and overview!! :]

[readwritealldayallnight]

Yours, Mine, Ours

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley x Reader

wc: 1.5k words

warnings/tags: fluff

“So did the other two actually say no or did you just never invite them?”

“‘Course I invited them, you asked me to, so I did.” Simon replies with ease, keeping his eyes fixed on the road ahead of him. “They’re smart lads, lovie, they knew to say no all by themselves.”

You shake your head at him in disbelief but the smile that’s been plastered across your face ever since the two of you pulled out of your flat’s parking doesn’t budge. Simon’s been driving for a few hours now, and as stressful of an experience as that is alone, you’re too excited to mind the long journey in the car.

Simon is on leave for the next two weeks, something about Price having to attend a funeral following a death in the family, and deciding that everyone on the force was due for a bit of time off. Seeing as the Captain was going to be preoccupied during his time off duty, he had asked if Simon wouldn’t mind checking in on his house for him, making sure things were alright. He’d even offered for the two of you to stay in the guest room for the duration of their leave.

Simon had explained how Price knew that the two of you were living in a small flat in London, and apparently his home was in a beautiful, forested, isolated area which meant he had essentially no neighbours, something he also knew would appeal to Simon. He offered for the two of you to stretch your legs out there at enjoy the property, including the privacy that came with it.

Wanting to be polite, you’d told Simon he should extend the invitation to Soap and Gaz, thinking they might enjoy a nice, quiet stay-cation as well at their Captain’s place away from it all. It would appear your lover had different ideas in mind however. Though you couldn’t blame him entirely, the thought of having the cozy cabin all to yourselves was certainly more appealing.

Every which way you look outside the car, your vision is filled by endless blurry trees as you zoom by, the colours of the leaves having finally changed into the warmer, more vibrant colour palette that came along with the autumn chill. If the drive up to his property was any indication of how beautiful the area really was, then you were in for quite the treat.

Entranced by the beauty of the landscape in comparison to the city lights you’ve grown so used to, you fail to notice the glances Simon keeps sneaking your way, the smallest of satisfied smiles seemingly permanently etched upon his face beneath his balaclava. He was grateful that after explaining the situation and Price’s generous offer to you, you had been too excited to ask many questions, instead getting a jump start on packing a duffel bag or two.

You were one of the most intelligent, clever, curious people he’d ever known, and it was normally quite difficult to get anything by you. He was therefore feeling rightfully proud of himself as he drove you nearer and nearer to the home you believed belonged to his Captain. In actuality, there was no funeral for Price to attend, the sergeants had certainly not been invited along on your getaway, and the home you’d be staying in wasn’t Price’s.

It was yours.

Yours, and Simon’s.

The two of you had been living in that shoebox of a flat he’d considered as ‘satisfactory’ when he was only staying there as a bachelor, for far too long. As ideal as the location might have been, there simply just wasn’t enough space for two people to live together, even considering Simon’s absences for work and that fact that when he was home, you two were essentially always on top of one another anyways.

You’d both been searching for a new flat for what felt like ages now, none of the places you visited feeling like the right fit. Simon would be weary about a certain neighborhood, you’d be concerned with the lack of any balcony or outdoor space, he’d ignore the price tag that felt your eyes bulging, and you’d shake your head as you walked through doorways that had him needing to duck down.

Little did you know, Simon had been doing his own house hunting, outside of the city. You had told Simon you were fine with staying in London, understanding that it’s convenient to have everything near by. But Simon didn’t want to give you just ‘fine’. He wanted to give you a home. The home he intends to spend the rest of his life with you in, plans on carrying you over the threshold in your wedding dress, hopes to carry sleeping newborns in their car seats through the door.

For months now, Simon has subtlety been learning more about what that home looked like to you. He’d look over your shoulder as you scrolled through Pinterest, casually asking if you could show him your boards, you know just for fun, and paid very close attention when you showed him the one named ‘future house’. On his phone, he had a list a mile long in his notes app, from secretly writing down every comment you made while watching your home reno shows. He’ll casually ask you what you think of the houses you drive by, jotting down your answers in his mind, remembering likes and dislikes.

He believes that like you, it’s the people filling the home that matter more than the structure itself, as proven by the way you continue to put up with his minuscule flat. He knows you mean it when you say you’re alright with another flat. But he has the money goddammit, he has the means to do this for you, and when the listing came up for a home in what you’d revealed as being your ideal area to settle down in one day, the house resembling the amalgamation of everything he believed you’d described as being your perfect place, he knew he had to put an offer in.

And if there ever was anything about the house you didn’t like or wanted to change, he’d gladly do it for you, no questions asked. You want to paint the bedroom? Just tell him what colour you want. You want to change the railing on the wrap around porch? He’s on his way to the hardware store already. You need him to dig a stump out of the backyard to make room for your garden? Sit back and enjoy the show lovie, he’s on it. And when the time comes to build a crib? Well he may as well baby proof the whole house while he’s at it too.

He’s pictured your reaction a thousand times over in his mind. He imagines you’ll maybe give a small gasp when he turns the corner of the long driveway and you first see the cozy, two-storey home, surrounded by never-ending foliage of red, orange, and yellow leaves, the time of year perfect for appreciating autumn in the UK, as well as the privacy the tall trees grant you. He thinks the first thing you’ll comment on will likely be the windows, an item high on your priority list he knew to adhere to.

He imagines you kicking off your boots as you step through the door, pace quickening to explore every room, spinning in the kitchen as you joke about how jealous you are of Price. He pictures you groaning with envy when you spot your dream master bathroom, insisting to Simon that since you’d been tasked with checking in on the home you may as well see every room, right? He plans to explain away the obvious sparseness of the home as the Captain not having lived here long, as being very non-materialistic after all his years in service.

He’ll continue to play along for as long as he can, part of him knowing that you know him well enough that you’re likely to catch onto his deception at some point. However he hopes that before you start rummaging through kitchen cabinets and find them empty, too empty even for an absentee captain of a homeowner, that you’ll mention something along the lines of wishing you could stay here longer. That’s when he plans to slip a key into the palm of your hand, revealing that you might be able to stay longer than you believe.

The small piece of metal that’ll unlock the rest of your lives together, sits heavy in his pocket, in contrast to the light feeling in his heart when his hand reaches across the dashboard to grab a hold of yours, knowing that the content, lovesick smile you offer him is likely stretched across his face as well, staring right back at you.

Though you’re unaware that Simon is currently driving towards your home, and not away from it, you’re gently stroking the scarred skin across his hand, feeling as though your home is sitting right next to you, holding your hand and your heart at the same time.

[doctorsiren]

Okay, doodle request:

Reigen meeting Serizawa before Claw got to him. Maybe helping him start leaving his room?

I had a lot of fun with this one. I wanted it to parallel the scene of Serizawa meeting Suzuki, and so pages 6-8 are directly referenced from the manga (just in a flipped format so it reads left to right like the rest of the pages) and I also referenced some shots from the anime (like the final panel of page 10). For the dialogue in those middle pages, I referenced lines from the unofficial English translation of the manga, the official English translation of the manga, and the anime. (I was picking and choosing which lines I liked better). I also had fun with the colouring, which is something I love to do in comics especially. It starts out with Reigen in a muted, paler, desaturated palette with no highlights. But when he meets Mrs. Serizawa (I gave the name “Azumi” because it means something along the lines of “safe home/harbour”), she’s much more warmer and saturated and she has highlights. Once she starts explaining her son’s situation, that’s when Reigen has the variation of colour as well as the introduction of some small highlights. Then, the colour palette changes in every panel after that point. Serizawa is done with a grayscale palette, with the only colour on him being the bright light of the TV screen (reflecting video games as his only joy and his escape from reality). As Reigen talks to him, Reigen slowly start to lose some of that variety and saturation (AKA hope) he got from Mrs. Serizawa until he goes grayscale as well when he thinks that Serizawa might know he’s a fraud. He decides to switch up his approach and actually open up, which is what causes the variations in colour to return. Serizawa stops being grayscale in the panel where Reigen reveals that he too is lonely. (He’s a gray-blue palette, but it’s not true grayscale). The next page is in bright colours as Reigen opens up and doesn’t lie, which causes Serizawa to have bright colour as well, since now there is light and hope. In the page after that, Serizawa’s colour fades until he is grayscale again because it’s him not believing fully and still having doubts, while Reigen maintains that bright colour. (Also silly Falsettos reference on that page). I have Reigen’s colours shift from yellow until he reaches pink which is the colour I just have assigned as His Colour (since his tie is pink). Serizawa gains colour again and he shifts from that muted dark blue to finally orange (which is his colour) as he finally accepts Reigen’s help. The light from the TV is no longer coloured, and is just white, because Serizawa now has a new source of colour in his life (that being a real friend.) It ends with them being in their normal palettes at a normal happy saturation, contrasting the muted colours of the start of the comic. With the umbrella, I still wanted to include it and give it a role in the story, but in a different way from how Suzuki used it. While Suzuki used it to directly manipulate and control Serizawa, Reigen used it as a way to open up a choice for Serizawa to either let Reigen stay or make him leave. He asks Serizawa if he can sit and stay for a while since it’s raining outside and he didn’t bring an umbrella, despite clearly having done so. And then I ended the comic with a shot of the umbrella to emphasize that point.

Sorry for the long and probably unnecessary explanation. I just really love explaining my intentions and symbolisms in my art. Yeah I just had a good time over the last few days doing this :) I thought it was an interesting idea and I couldn’t think of a way to reflect it better than in a comic (which was also partially inspired by this wonderful Ageswap AU comic made by @fend13th about Reigen helping Serizawa)

[remxedmoon]

HAPPY (kinda late oops) BIRTHDAY MIWA!!!!!!!! ignore the other two LOOK AT HER!!!! IT’S MIRABELLE MSUNDAY!!!!

greyscale versions + my very normal color ramblings below!

ok full disclosure i already had this post drafted before realizing that mira’s birthday was coming up. i kinda debated just posting the mira doodles on their own but!!! i want to talk about my craft/general color headcanons still. and the mira art is part of that!! so be warned. also, this is going to reference my post about my craft headcanons a lot so like. read that if you so desire.

i personally think that mira’s healing craft is some form of creative craft, since the game describes her holding her palms up when she uses it (iirc anyways). this doesn’t really have an effect on anything, but it’s why i decided to color it yellow!

(also i ended up making mira’s scissors craft a lot more orange than i initially planned but that’s ok!!! i think both of her crafts would be pretty Orange. just thought i’d mention that since it’s a bit different from my first post)

i already explained sif’s craft in my last post so now i get to talk about the change god!!!!!! this is like. probably the most out there in terms of my color headcanons? but i have a reason for that. since the change god is, well, a deity, i thought it would be fitting for their design to match the colors of the 3 craft types (red, blue, and yellow)! this was a little hard to work around given that i also try to give my vaugarde designs warmer color palettes, but i think it worked out!

i also gave them a few slightly different palettes, since i think it’ll make sense for the change god’s colors to be variable. they never look the same, so why would their palette look the same? + i’m indecisive and liked all of these palettes lol

sorry for the ramble! i really like talking about character design and i’m not. very succinct. thanks for reading all this (if you did, perfectly fine if you didn’t!), here’s the greyscale versions as promised!!!

[die-auster]

Some "if Yue is alive and went travelling with the Gaang" designs

With a ton of text about cultural inspiration.

The main book 2 look

I wanted to show cultural differences between the tribes, so Yue's look is sort of Mongolian. There were Mongolian-styled hats in the Northern tribe, and Yue's dress under the coat looked like a Mongolian deel (thanks @atlaculture for all these posts about clothes and everything else!), so it's not much against the canon information.

So she's wearing a deel again with a second layer - there are chinese actors on photos as far as I know; I hope it's okay. One-shoulder silhouette refers to later Aang's clothes because Yue is still kind of a spiritual person (she wasn't a fighter, so I want her to have some other useful talent – not a bender or healer like Katara or a non-bender warrior like Suki). Violet, pink and white were originally her colors, no changes here. Three blue characters would be too much for a group of five, and total white is not practical at all. I like to think that violet color shows high rank in the Avatar universe; in the original series it was only worn by princess Yue, Kanna, the chief Hakoda's mother, and by king Bumi.

Yue's boots here are mongolian gutals/gutuls (the collage is already big, but I used them again for one of Book 3-looks).

Her hair become simpler – just two braids and a hairpiece, to match her previous decorated hairdo. I guess if she's travelling with the Gaang she's not that much of a Moon Spirit anymore (maybe she returned the part of the moon spirit that saved her and was healed other way?), so I decided to forego the moon-referring part. Also it will be easier to do by herself since she has no servants now... The headdress I took from modern Mongolian dancers; the front part is crescent-moon-shaped.

The Ba Sing Se dress

I fell in love with this Ao Dai dress, it's simple, long and elegant. But... it's mostly Vietnamese… and I'm afraid that it's modern and not historically accurate. Also it does not really go together with other Ba Sing Se dresses :( because I did not want to just copy-paste some background look. But there is at least one dress with a tail, thigh high slits and a standing collar on the dress underneath, so... I guess my choice is not that bad? The tail makes her look more royal. The fan is the same which Toph and Katara had. For the palette I chose Yue's white color with EK greens and warm yellow/ochre to match Katara and Toph. The hairdo is copied from the series; I chose one with the tassel on the right, to refer the NWT/Korean accessories.

The Fire Nation disguise

A confession – I don't like FN clothes. I wasn't sure if I would be able to do it properly, so I almost copied that attire (left one) – asymmetry, as a Thai touch, which again matches Aang's Invasion Buddhist-like clothes. The palette keeps Yue's signature white, with some pink of a warmer shade, as they wear it in the Fire Nation. And the "royal" long skirt, 'cause she's still not a fighter. The look is simplified so I could not keep zigzag ornament on her longyi skirt, therefore I moved it onto the top part.

I used Thai dancers jewelry and... flip flops? idk how they are called in Southeast Asia (don't like Sokka and Katara's FN shoes at all, why the design is so complicated?).

For covering her hair I used a turban, inspired by Myanmar turbans; a white one, so if some hair will show, it won't be too noticeable. Also Yue could still be easily recognised on screen/page by her white head. The long end of the fabric on her right resembles burmese hairstyle silhouette.

The Invasion-and-till-finale look

For her dress I used a deel (again); the sleeveless jacket is an hommage to her original design and has some Korean vibes, like Toph's Ba Sing Se dress (at least I hope so). Katara and Sokka's season 1 looks have Korean influence, so I guess it's okay. Gutals are from her Book 2 main look. I have a soft spot for them.

My favorite thing is her hair :)))) It's a mix of Inuit/Mongolian braids and a hairpiece, also from the Book 2 look. This time there will be more braids. Two on the front – I wanted to keep them from her original hairdo, but now they are braided together (I saw this on the Alaskan Inuit/Eskimo women photos). On the back there are five, inspired by a Mongolian hairdo for young unmarried girls, who wore multiple braids. I decided to make five, because Alaskian Inuit language uses this amount for counting and with two front braids it'll make seven, which is a lucky Mongolian number. And in theory a limited number should be easier to animate.

The post-canon noble look

After the final battle I thought Yue will come back to Agna Qel'a and become a more active political figure. I chose a white kuspuk (blue color is still for Katara and Sokka), showing that she is ready to lead her tribe after this journey, not the passive perfect princess she was before. "She is associated in canon with the masculine yang of the yin and yang and the moon which, in most Inuit and Eskimo cultures, is considered masculine as well. While white kuspuks are associated with men and specifically family patriarchs, a feminine kuspuk in white makes plenty of sense for Yue's character" – @mostly-mundane-atla helped me a lot with the cultural meaning of the clothes (I am so grateful!). Also it's an hommage to her total-white Moon Spirit look. And I changed her hair again to Greenland updo with two tied braids on the front – more complicated than the simple braids she wore during the journey. It looks formal.

NWT is less Inuit-inspired and has a strong Mongolian touch (to make them look more "modern"? dunno) but I guess the formal wear for the spiritual princess could refer to older traditions. Which should be the same with SWT, 'cause SWT was originally a part of NWT – or so I heard. For example, Kuruk, the NWT Avatar who lived about 400 years ago, has nothing Mongolian in his look.

All the looks are simplified to match the style of the original cartoon. I know there should be more details and embroidery, but my goal here was to draw something (at least theoretically) applicable for animation. And no Hahn's betrothal necklace of course.

Also I want to mention here other great Yue designs, since they are the inspiration behind the overall idea of the post – the moon looks and "Yue joins the Gaang" outfits by amazingly talented @chiptrillino.

P.S.: an important note

This is my first attempt ever to design outfits that could fit the world of A:tLA. I am not Asian or ingenious, not an expert in their cultures or costume history at all, not a professional character designer. I am just a fan who tried to create designs with respect to real cultures and people. Nothing here was supposed to be offensive in any way. If something still is – please inform me so I could fix it as soon as possible.

I hope, as a fan, I have the right to draw fanarts looking for an inspiration in the cultures that inspired the original cartoon.

If you see mistakes in my post, be it in drawings or a text, also feel free to tell me. I will deeply appreciate it.

[jccatstudios]

Six of Crows Character Design Notes

Character design notes for my most recent character lineup for The Crows! I did this last time for the super old ones I did right after I read the series, so these new ones are much closer to how I imagine them. There probably will be a good amount of rehashing from the old notes, but I hope you enjoy these nonetheless!

Kaz and Inej

Closest in color scheme due to how close they are at the start of the series, though there is a difference between the purples. Kaz's purple accents are light and muted (similar to the color of Kruge). Inej's tunic is more indigo, shifting away from the warmer purple she wore at the Menagerie. After she realizes her dream in the incinerator shaft, I imagine her theme color changing to dark blue, then dark teal by the end of the series.

I often see Kaz in a red tie, but he had to wear something different for my design since him and Van Eck would basically be in the same outfit. His black shirt is also meant to distinguish him from the real merchant class.

Coin added to Kaz's pose to refer to his magician and thief personas (and a callback to his backstory)

Their vests symbolize their morality. Kaz's is asymmetrical ("crooked and wrong...") while Inej's evenly goes down the center (more balanced and true to herself).

Jesper and Wylan

They're meant to contrast each other, since they don't exactly see eye-to-eye at the start, but their similarities are important. Both have patterned elements, brown leather boots, and freckles. My favorite differences: vibrant vs muted, gold vs silver, open vs closed poses

Jesper has freckles just because I feel like they suit him but also as a visual connection to Jordie. :)

Wylan is holding a Victorian fire grenade! They were actually used for extinguishing fires back then, but I can imagine Wylan replacing the ingredients to do the exact opposite.

I used to draw Jesper in a longcoat just because that look from the show is so iconic, but I changed it to something more cropped. The shorter coat makes him look taller and differentiates his silhouette from Kaz's.

Wylan's black vest is meant to hint at his merch family ties.

Nina and Matthias

Another couple who clashes through color palette! Nina's Heartrender red vs Matthias's northern blue. They also differ in leather color (black vs brown).

Matthias was a bit harder to design since he's not wearing clothes that he'd pick out himself. These are whatever Kerch dockworker clothes the gang could find for him, but I feel like they suit him enough to convey his personality.

Nina's necklace pendant is teardrop shaped (The Queen of Mourning).

Nina is wearing makeup and nail polish. From my limited research on Victorian culture, this was seen as improper, but I think that fits Nina's boldness all the better. I don't try to make any of my designs authentically Dutch Victorian (It's a fantasy series after all! Why not make semi-anachronistic designs that value personality over accuracy?), but it is fun to think about how these characters would be interpreted with that lens.

[bastart13]

How did you go about redesigning the clothes in you remaster?

Ooh great question! I'll go into more detail below, but the gist is that I broke down each character into their vibes and general aesthetic and tried fitting it to my design biases.

I tend towards more grounded designs than the original JRPG-inspired armour and clothes, so I referenced a lot of medieval fashion for the setting. You'll usually see me covering bared skin in battle outfits or toning down extra details I struggle to draw

Then, using those references, I'd try to thumbnail basic shapes and colours to figure out which works best

(More specific character notes below)

For some characters like Iseul, I didn't feel much need to change his outfit so I mostly toned down the detail to suit my style. I shifted the colour scheme to something warmer and removed the fur and extra armour to serve his image as animal-loving and battle-avoidant. This serves as great contrast to his timeskip outfit where he then commits to being both a warrior and a prince, with more ornamentation and practical armour

I designed Helena and Alain as contrasts. They have very similar themes and designs, so I decided to smooth Alain down into the picture-perfect metal knight while Helena's wilder and asymmetric. I referenced more realistic armour for Alain but overall I wanted to keep his clothes similar.

For Helena, my design style is more practical and thematically I want to avoid Helena baring skin and vulnerability so I extended her corset into more of a chest armour and covered her other thigh. To add to her duality of magic and metal, I gave one arm armour and bared the other to show off magical scars.

August and Altea's designs are where I start to venture off into more vibes-based outfits. August is humble and traditional, a knight with proud loyalty to his Lord and family, so I gave him medieval colours to represent both on his tabard. The armour is still there, but it's less focus on metal and more on "cheaper" materials to serve as a contrast to his timeskip where he becomes a proper knight in shining armour. For that reason, I took away the cape and other unnecessary decoration.

Then Altea is flashy, wealthy, and bright. I kept the focus on light armour, with scalemail as the only obvious protection. I've mentioned before but I took inspiration from south east asian fashion (mostly cambodia and malaysia) as a grounded but ornate basis for her magical girl theme. Here the colour scheme and fabrics are what mostly connects it to the original

Similarly, Lennox is where vibes rule and the overal aesthetic changes quite a bit. He's often described with "choir boy" hair, so I wanted to combine choir robes with ornate priestly outfits to sell him as a vain cult-leader. I kept the symmetry, long coat, and lack of obvious armour, but I wanted him to look less modern and stick with less structured outfits.

One thing specific to the generals, is that I wanted to give them more of a variety to colour palettes to sell that while they're working together, they're not exactly happy about it. While they all have a focus of blue and silver to keep them cohesive, they each have a motif: Alain - silver, Helena - pale blue, Jinhai - brown, Lennox - dark blue, Magnus - turquoise

[technically-a-kiwi]

Okay NOW I'm done with those designs

In the end I barely changed C Pep's colors lol, I scrapted the green fade 'cause it wasn't harmonious with the rest of the palette and went with a dark colder blue instead, I also made the fade on his skin less pronounced. I think the bluer colors make the overal palette more balanced and simple than before

Also I made C Noise's purple warmer/more pinkish, the old purple was too cold for my liking.

And yeah that's it for now guys, now if you excuse me I'm gonna go to sleep 'cause figuring out those colors really worn me out believe it or not

[calamarikitty]

Hazbin Hotel Redesigns - Part One!

brainworms told me to hyperfixate on hazbin hotel and i did. so here are some redesigns! i'm planning on doing all of the cast, starting with the big (little) guy of hell himself, charlie, and vaggie! next is going to be the hotel staff (niffty, alastor, and husk)! individual pngs and redesign notes under cut

Lucifer Morningstar - He/him, trans man, bisexual he has goat hooves, horns, and ears, as well as a little goatee:-) his tail is a lions, since lions symbolize jesus, royalty, and also are a little nod to pride.

he doesn't keep his wings after he falls from heaven. i know he has his wings in the og show, but i never understood why. he lost his wings in the fall and still has feather growth, but they turn into these weird malformed lumps of flesh and feather instead of actual wings. they're quite itchy and uncomfortable for him.

longer hair, for fun! as well as lots of apple motifs. he has little lines coming from his lips like a ventriloquist doll or puppet. i've seen it in a lot of charlie and lucifer redesigns and i think it's super cool.

he wears pretty fancy clothes but doesn't go overboard with it, as he doesn't particularly like his royal status.

he has a special interest in toy making and is specifically hyperfixated on rubber ducks! he's able to use toy making as a creative outlet to distract himself.

no shoes cuz he has sensory issues and shoes made for hooves don't seem comfortable!!!

still wears his wedding ring even though there hasn't been any sign of lilith for years

Charlotte 'Charlie' Morningstar - She/her, cis woman, bisexual she also has goat hooves and ears, but unlike her father, she has horns more reminiscent of a ram's, much like her mother's horns. her tail is more of a classic imp shape, since she is a hellborn demon and not a fallen angel like her father.

the bottom of her pigtails are meant to resemble angel wings! she's a little piece of heaven in hell:-)

i didn't change her outfit too much, but i did want to add things to it to make it stand out more. she has gold details like her dad, as well as a bowtie with an eye detail to nod to biblically accurate angels.

she has the ventriloquist mouth like her dad! in general, she also looks more like her dad than her mom.

Vaggie - She/her, intersex, lesbian SHE DESERVED A MORE PURPLEY COLOR PALETTE!! purple is definitely her color.

i changed her body type a lot in this redesign, i think it makes more sense for her to be buffer, because of her history.

she's not a moth demon, but disguises as one to blend in, since most sinners have animal motifs.

fur collar and fur leg warmers because i think they're really fun. i also think she's most definitely a pencil skirt + combat boots girl.

i actually do kind of like the X on her hair in her og design, but i wanted to make it look less?? plastered on?? since in her og design i genuinely can't tell if it's meant to be part of her hair or not.

she has a big bow like her og design, but it's meant to be reminiscent of moth antenna. it also adds to her biblical angel silhouette! another eye detail on her chest, like charlie, to nod to angels. this nod is particularly relevant considering her past!

[thedustyleaves]

Sorry if you’ve answered this before, but I really love how your illustrations have such a cohesive color palette, how do you pick your colors to have a certain theme without looking monochromatic?

(In your breakdown on the saloon/western BP illustration, you mentioned that the overall color was reddish brown so you added blue to the main group to set them apart. But like how did you decide on which reddish brown colors to use for the flats?)

Thank you!! Your art is really expressive and the colors always work so well in the illustration. I’m always in awe of your pics

That’s an excellent question! My drawings actually start out pretty monochromatic because I tend to put most of my effort into the lighting and shading part to help differentiate where I want people to look.

For all of my pieces, I want my characters to be in focus. So no matter what, I always have to keep their main colors in mind and make sure their outfits and the background don’t clash with them (Kain’s red hair tends to be a problem, pft).

For my flats, I generally work with two main colors that tend to contrast each other and then I mix a lot of neutrals around them. (Sometimes the main colors are in the light and shading itself, but I’ll just focus on the flats!).

Sometimes, I will change the hue of their colors. So while Kain has bright orange hair, I will dull it down if it overwhelms the piece or doesn’t fit with the tone - like I did for the cowboy drawing - but never so much that it no longer looks like him.

With the cowboy drawing as an example, if I strip it down to my flats, it instantly becomes very dull and monochromatic. I really enjoy working with these colors because they’re easy on the eyes (or my eyes specifically) and I can see the difference in subtle hues a lot better than if they were very high in contrast. I like working with subtleties when I want background characters to become a single unit but still be separated as individual people.

When I picked the colors for the background, I wanted to separate the characters from the walls. Therefore, I kept the walls red and gold, and the characters brown - they’re still within the same warm-colored family, but they’re far enough away from each other that they don’t become one with each other. I also like to not have clothes from different characters blend together, so overlapping colours can't be the same. I made one coat lighter than the other, the glove warmer than the dark jacket, and so on.

(their coats are also in the same realm as the green/gold colour of the details for the curtains and the frames on the walls)

For the paintings I actually chose to put a bit of blue and green in to help create some interest for the main characters and keep your eyes around that area, as it matches the blue they’re wearing, just a whole lot darker. It also makes them pop just enough so they look interesting against the wall, but not enough to overshadow the main characters

I know, because of the way I work with layers, that when I add my overlays, I automatically brighten and saturate the colors a lot. It’s a lot easier for me to saturate something “dull” and move it into all kinds of hues than saturating something already high in contrast and then trying to force it into a new color theme.

But because of this, I usually have to go back and change the colors I work with constantly while the overlays are on. Since the overlays don’t know what sort of materials they’re laying on top of, everything gets lighter and washed out, so dark skin tones, hair, and clothes have to be corrected one by one afterward. If I were to remove the overlays after I corrected it to make it feel like a dark blue outfit on Raki, it’s basically just a black void now; but with the overlay, it’s a dark blue outfit. Before that, he simple blended in with the background too much and he didn’t feel like he was a part of the group either. 

I always try to put down colors how I imagine they’re going to look like, unaffected by light, but I’m also naturally drawn toward more earthy and warm tones, so all of my color choices will tend to lean that way.

Here’s another example of main colours vs. neutrals; the main colours are red and green/turquoise, with dark browns and greys to encapsulate them, and gold for accents or to make certain things pop (the chair, Dakon’s dark coat, etc.).

I never want them all to wear the exact same color, but I want them to feel connected and be in the same 'colour family,' so Dakon and Kain have nearly the same dark red/brown, and Christie and Raki have nearly the same 'bright'/red.

The blacks and browns, I’ve kept warm as well, so they stay within that realm of red. I also make sure that none of them are too close to Kain’s hair since he’s in the middle of the piece, and I want your eyes to be drawn toward the middle, and his orange hair helps with that.

The paintings I basically do not care too much about, as long as each individual painting has a single dominating colour. I mute them down with a darker overlay and ensure they don’t have strong shadows and light, so they get pushed to the background, so despite being a bunch of different colours, each painting feels like a solid color and they’re still cast in the same light as the rest of the piece, so they feel like they belong in the same room.

I try to help move the eye around the piece as well, so I keep the big painting sort of in the same realm of red and brown as the main characters, because it’s so big it shouldn’t dominate with a new color and force interest toward it. The blue/purple ones melt in with the background as they’re close to the turquoise background, but without disappearing, the yellow ones work sort of like the gold accents and blend in with the frames, and the green paintings at the top give the illusion of a monochrome fade, so everything gets more eerie and green as the image goes up - there’s also a subtle green fade that affects the gold accents from the top down, to enhance that effect.

This is just a few examples, if there are any pieces in particular you were thinking of, and it’s neither of these, just let me know, and I can break those down as well!

Thank you for the question; I hope I answered it somewhat, and thank you for the kind words! <3

[city--lites]

Sunrises vs. Sunsets

Pairing: Levi Ackerman x Male Reader

Summary: Levi finds a soft golden boy who melts his cold ego

Word Count: 4.4K

Third Person POV

Hurried steps harmonized with quick pants from a little boy in the underground. The slap of rain hitting the stone floor made the boy bring his arm up and wipe furiously to clear his vision. His features are a contrast to the underground settings. It’s dark, but the boy is a complete palette of the sun.

The boy looked back to the vendor, smirking when he saw her shouts get swallowed in the crowd.

Turning around, a tan haired teen bumped into his shoulder, causing the boy to slip and fall flat onto the sharp rocky road. He coughed, letting out ruptured gasps as his chest was pounded against the ground. The boy lifted his head feeling a warmer liquid fall down his face. He whimpered, watching the apples he stole roll off and get crushed under the crowd’s feet.

The boy brought his leg up to stand, coughing while doing so. He staggered his way to the roofed plaza, slumping in an alley as he slowed his rough breathing out.

A rat squeaked, running past his feet and to the end of the alley, causing the boy to stop and stare as it dodged the crushing stomps of the crowd. The boy’s right eye had blood dripping from it and small cuts scattered across his face.

“Excuse me!” a scruffy voice echoed.

The little boy made a noise and glanced at both ends of the alley.

“Over here” the scruffy voice bellowed.

The boy turned around and saw him wave. He sat upright, digging his hand into his pocket for a shattered piece of broken glass from a wine bottle. “…Hello..” the little boy croaked slowly.

The man let out a breathy chuckle “Hi.. I uh.. I bumped into you earlier.”

The little boy glared at the teen with a “stern” face. “Here” the teen reached out his hand and the little boy let out a grunt, whipping the shard of glass in front of him. The man stopped his movement, staring at the kid for a few seconds before opening his hand. Inside was a big red apple.

TIMESKIP (about 7 years later)

“Yo! Erwin!” a much older version of the tanned haired teen called out. Erwin, a blonde with bushy eyebrows, hummed as he scratched his pen on papers.

“There’s another teen in the underground, just like Levi”.

The sun peeked through the window of Erwin’s office as he looked up towards Miche from his seat.

“Details?” Miche nodded.

“He’s 14 years old, over 400 complaints from citizens of the underground about robbery and theft, and escaped from patrols a number of times. Speedy one eh?” Erwin nodded at Miche.

“Alright let’s go.”

Miche walked out of Erwin’s office, Erwin following soon after. As they walked past the halls, the morning sun filtering through the windows, Levi stepped out of his room and looked at them.

“Where are you going?” Levi asked. Miche looked over at Erwin with a raised eyebrow, a “You tell him” look

Erwin huffed in annoyance “We’re visiting the underground. We won’t take long” Levi broke eye contact with him and walked back into his room without another word. Erwin looked over at Miche and continued walking.

They walked to the equipment room, grabbing ODM gear and changing into the scout’s uniform. A few clicks were heard until the sound of a blade whooshing through the air took Erwin’s attention. He glanced at Miche, who was swinging the sword in his hand with a small smirk.

“Ready?” Miche said as he sheathed his sword and turned to Erwin. Erwin nodded, the sunlight towering over both of them.

In the underground, a teen with sunny features was eating an apple through the alleys. The gloomy sky being a forever natural backdrop for the citizens. The sun looking teen tossed the apple up, then tilted his head up towards the “sky” and opened his mouth, catching the apple in it and biting off a chunk. He let out a muffled laugh.

“Juicy!”

He fiddled the bitten apple in his hand, getting a good grip on it, and threw it up again to do the same trick when a blade came flying above him. It rang through the alley and stabbed the apple, making the apple kabob pierce through the wooden walls.

The boy’s face was still facing the “sky”, his mouth open from surprise. He made a confused noise and pulled his head down to look in front of him when all of a sudden a strong passionate aura waved behind him.

The boy lunged forward quickly, only to get pulled back from a strong grip on the collar of his shirt. He gagged, choking noises echoing through the alley. The boy growled, lifting his right leg and kicking the person behind him.

When he heard the man wince, he immediately lunged again and started running, dodging the packed crowd like he was water. The boy looked behind him, only to see an empty alley until he heard the faint sounds of gear whirring from above.

He continued to run but glanced up to see wire stretched above him, then a figure flying. The boy gasped in realization that the scouts were here. He tsked, turning a sharp corner and into an open area of the underground, where ODM gear wasn’t all that useful.

The boy furiously turned to look at his right, then left, then right again. He whimpered softly, turning to his right as he heard the sound of whirring gears. A confused frown came on his face since no one was there, only for an arm to reach in from behind with a sword held up to his neck.

The boy's breathing hitched, he gasped audibly.

Reader pov My eyes widened and my fingers found themselves digging through my pocket for something sharp, only for a commanding voice to stun me.

“Don’t try anything. I’m not here to hurt you, only offer an opportunity.” I nodded slowly, watching the figure from the alley in front of me walk out, a man with tan hair. He looks like someone I knew.

“What is your name?” I swallowed, my eyes shaking and darting around as some people stopped to stare.

“(M/N)..” I whispered.

“Would you like to enroll in the Scouts, (M/N)?” I didn’t bother to turn around, staring off as I thought about my decision. So there were two scouts after me.. The tan hair guy went into the alley while the commanding guy behind me circled around.

“Can I leave?.. if.. if I don’t like it?”

“You won’t.”

It was the day after I was taken out of the underground and into the Scouts Regiment Camp. I woke up on a really comfy bed with warmth sprawled across my body. I smiled in my sleep, then opened my eyes as I experienced the unusual warm feeling.

I let out a small gasp, opening my eyes then quickly shutting them at the bling of the sun. I stood up from my bed, walking to my window and pulling the blinds to the side, allowing the sunlight to seep into my room.

I smiled, face wrinkling and eyes glimmering with hope.

THE FEMALE TITAN ARC (10-15 years later) third pov.

It was 10pm, all the recruits had been sent to bed but (M/N) was up in Erwin’s study, accompanying him as he did paper work. Since (M/N) has joined the Scouts he’s gotten closer to Miche, Erwin, and Levi, even if it was bumpy the first few years.

Levi walked past Erwin’s office on the way back to his own, his face its usual scowl as he silently made his way through the halls. He knew that (M/N) was with Erwin, seeing as he usually was at this time of night when the cadets were asleep. Levi had never understood why everyone was so fond of the sun boy. All he did was make jokes. It was tiring, he thought.

He stopped at the door of the office, the voices of Erwin and (M/N) drifting into the hallway. They both sounded casual, the sound of the pen scratching against paper being heard every lull moment. Levi didn’t even bother knocking, just opening the door and walking in. If he had less respect for Erwin, he wouldn’t have even done that much. (M/N) was sitting in a backwards chair left of Erwin’s desk.

He turned around swiftly as a grin popped on his face. “Levi!” The black haired man raised an eyebrow at the cheerful tone.

“Yeah, yeah. Calm it.”

He muttered gruffly, taking the seat across from Erwin. (M/N) let out a melodic hum and rested his arms on the back of the chair that he’s sitting on, then laid his head on there smiling up at the two with a playful glint in his eyes.

As much as Levi grumbled about (M/N), the sun boy had a sort of effect that made people give in to his requests. Or maybe Levi was just experiencing a new feeling.

Levi shot Erwin a glare before looking back at (M/N). (M/N) lit up as Levi looked up at him.

“Why aren’t you in bed Levi?”

“I could ask you the same thing” The stoic male shot back.

He couldn’t understand how the sun boy had so much energy, especially this late at night. (M/N) cocked his head towards Erwin “I’m here so bushy isn’t alone”

Erwin let out a light chuckle, not looking up from the paperwork on his desk. He was as busy as ever, complaints from citizens, forces, etc.

(M/N) peered over to Erwin’s desk “You almost done?” Erwin hummed in response, shuffling a couple more papers before putting everything in a pile to be sorted.

He ran a hand through his hair with a tired sigh, desperately looking like a need for a break. “I’m done for the night.” He exhaled.

A frown emerged on the warm boy’s face when he noticed Erwin’s stressed state. (M/N) stood up abruptly “Stay here, I’ll make some tea for us.”

The two men watched as (M/N) stood. Levi started to get up, but Erwin gripped his shoulder and shook his head.

As soon as the sun boy left the room, Erwin turned to Levi with a sly smirk on his face. “What?” Levi snapped, narrowing his eyes at Erwin.

The Commander let out a deep chuckle, leaning back in his own chair and crossing his arms with an amused glint in his blue eyes.

“You’re so whipped, you know that? Erwin said, a knowing look in his eye as he watched the usual stoic man turn almost flustered.

“Shut it.” Erwin chuckled again, not bothered by the crude response at all. He’s known Levi too long and too well to take his insults seriously.

“You’re always going on about how needy (M/N) is, but you’re the one giving into his every request.” Levi shot the Commander a glare, but secretly knew he was right.

He couldn’t lie to himself, as much as he tried to deny it. The sun boy had the Captain wrapped around his finger, whether he liked to admit it or not. “Only because he won’t leave you alone until you give in…” He grumbled.

Levi paused and let out a sigh “You’re insane, I don’t enjoy him. I’m just doing it so he’ll shut up” Erwin leaned forwards in his chair, resting his arms on the desk for support. He had been close with Levi for so long that he knew exactly when the Captain was lying. “If you really didn’t like it, you’d have no issues saying no. Levi hated how right the Commander was. He hated that Erwin could read him so easily. He looked away, hiding his face “I hate you”

Speak of the devil, (M/N) bumped into the door, opening it up while holding a tray of tea cups with the pot.

“No hating” He softly said, walking up to Erwin and presenting the tray to him as Erwin grabbed a cup.

(M/N) then turned to Levi “I made your favorite Levi.”

As soon as he spoke, Levi grabbed the cup furiously and brought it up to his face, covering up. It was obvious he was secretly touched. Erwin sipped his tea as he watched the interaction between the two.

Levi held his tea cup, not drinking for a while, too concerned with trying to stop his racing heart. (M/N) was too sweet and bright for his own good, he constantly left the Captain in a flustered mess.

Even after all this time, his heart still pounded against his chest. The feeling was replaced almost immediately by a flurry of butterflies when (M/N) sat down, their legs accidentally touching.

The Commander was tempted to comment but was interrupted by a yawn from the sun boy. “Go to bed, Sunny.” Levi muttered almost immediately, a scowl on his face but his eyes had a different story.

(M/N) had semi-circles forming under his warm eyes and Levi knew if he stayed up much longer, he’d be a wreck in the morning. (M/N) glanced up at Levi with dazed eyes and a soft tired pout, sparing a look over to Erwin.

Erwin chuckled softly “I agree with Levi. Get rest.”

(M/N) let out an assent hum, grabbing the tea tray and putting the tea cups on it. As he reached the door (M/N) looked back.

“Goodnight Levi.’ he said softly, then closed the door.

“You too Commander!!”

It was the morning after (M/N) decided to stay up past midnight. His shifts as Captain meant early training for his cadets, since they should expect to face anything at any time. Currently the sun has yet to rise as (M/N) stood in front of his group, watching them chat amongst themselves.

“Attend!” (M/N) yelled with serious determination, conflicting with his warm features.

The cadets scrambled to their spots, standing tall and strong.

“Good morning soldiers!!” (M/N) howled with a grin.

“Good morning (M/N) sir!!” the soldiers yelled back.

(M/N) turned around to face the rising sun, smiling as it slowly glimmered from behind the hill.

“Give me 80 pushups!!”

From the back of the training field, Levi was leaning against the nearest wall with his arms crossed, watching the small male run the recruits through their warm ups and training routines. It was a miracle they even had the energy to do it, seeing as the sun was barely awake itself. He couldn’t keep his eyes off the shorter man, taking in every detail. The way he was so authoritative while also staying happy and positive was almost captivating to the Captain. It annoyed him that he was watching so intently, but he couldn’t help it.

I walked around them as they did their pushups, oblivious to Levi’s presence.

“Come on! You’re the anchor for the soldiers as they ride to the battlefield! You’re strong! You’ll pull them back and we persevere through it!”

(M/N) was so energetic, it almost seemed like it was impossible that he had been tired and half asleep just a few hours ago. It was both impressive and a little frightening, seeing how well the man could push the others forward and make them work harder.

(M/N) grinned right as the sun peeked over the horizon. Looking at it, he smiled and turned back around.

“That’s what you get when you preserve.” He scanned his team as they were panting on the floor, some even smiling as the warm sun bathed them.

Unbeknownst to the shorter male, Levi had been watching the whole time, and the Captain had to admit that seeing (M/N) so lively and passionate was almost… beautiful. (M/N) was the epitome of golden retriever energy, and Levi didn’t know how the man was still standing and so awake after being so tired just hours ago.

Levi’s mind began to drift towards the night before, and the small male’s exhausted state. He had been adorable with his messy hair and heavy eyes, and the Captain’s heart had fluttered at the sight. He mentally scolded himself for thinking such thoughts, trying to shake them off. For some reason, the thoughts of the tired male and how soft he had looked just the night before, never left Levi’s mind.

After the training session had ended, the recruits had all gone to wash up for breakfast. Levi didn’t have any more duties for a while, which allowed him to have some free time

Levi sat and stewed for a moment, debating on whether to go through with it or to just stay where he was. After a few minutes, he caved and pushed himself up from his chair. He left the room and began walking down the halls, his mind almost blank except from the one thing he was focused on.

Despite his mind being basically empty, Levi’s heart was racing. It was beating so hard that he thought it was going to jump out of his chest. He really shouldn’t be doing this, it was a stupid idea. But for some reason, he couldn’t stop himself as he finally reached (M’N)’s room, his hands almost shaking as he lifted one to knock.

He knocked firmly on the door, waiting for the other male to answer. The Captain could faintly hear footsteps approaching the door from the other side, and every step made his heart beat even harder. He tried to get a hold of himself, but nothing worked.

(M/N) opened the door to see Levi, his face lighting up as he grinned “Levi!”

Seeing the smaller male’s bright smile immediately made Levi’s heart skip a beat. He couldn’t help it, the other male’s happy face always got him flustered. The Captain tried to force his usual scowl on his face, not wanting to show his reactions.

He opened his mouth to speak, but found that words failed him.

Levi shifted on his feet slightly, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jacket to hide the fact that they were shaking.

“Can I come in?”

The Captain tried to keep his usual nonchalant and cold tone, but a hint of nervousness snuck its way into his voice.

(M/N) nodded, grabbing a towel to start drying my hair

“What are you doing here? I thought it’s still training hours”

He stepped into the room as (M/N) allowed him in, his eyes immediately drifting to the smaller male's damp hair

“I don’t have any duties for a while.” He said with a shrug,

(M/N) nodded with a smile, my dirty blonde hair shining in the sunlight.

“Why do you always push yourself to do so much?” Levi asked as he walked further into (M/N)’s room.

my brows furrowed but I relaxed them quickly, glancing to my side “you can’t be talking Levi..”

Levi knew (M/N) was right, he did push himself a lot, however (M/N) was worse. He would push himself even on the days when he had the heaviest eye bags, when he had to drag his legs to move around, when the second he touched his bed he would knock out.

“Yeah, I know.” Levi paused. “But you’re worse than I am,” Levi snarked back.

(M/N) let out a sigh and turned his head away from Levi, rubbing his wet hair with his towel to break the awkward tension he had created. The sun started to dim. Levi expected the sun boy to argue back, surprised he didn’t. Deep inside Levi he wanted (M/N) to argue as that was one of his traits he appealed towards, but he knew (M/N) had to accept the fact that he had overworked himself too far. The black haired male could see that (M/N) was uncomfortable with the conversation and his eyes hardened.

“(M/N)” Levi said with a stoic expression

(M/N) turned his head with a quiet hum, his eyes cast down as he twiddled the towel into his damp hair, lost in thought.

“Do you trust me?”

This seemed to catch (M/N)’s attention as his warm toffee eyes looked into Levi’s. The last light of the sun giving his eyes a glossy look. His hand fell off the towel and he let it fall onto his shoulder.

“Yeah, of course,” (M/N) replied with an eager nod.

Levi’s eyes danced across his face, thinking about his next actions. His jaw clenched softly, opening his mouth then closing it a couple seconds later. The sun finally set, the moon’s light making an appearance through the hallway corridors. Levi felt a surge flow through him and he opened his mouth to speak again.

“Close your eyes. Keep them closed” Levi ordered sternly but with some solace.

(M/N) nodded obediently and squeezed his eyes shut, it was obvious on his face the confusion he was feeling but kept his eyes closed to keep the promise. Levi took a step towards (M/N) and slowly reached a hand out. His heart pounded louder than the stomps of titans, he took a deep breath and gently placed his cold yet comforting fingertips on (M/N)’s cheek.

(M/N)’s skin was as soft as he’d imagined causing Levi’s breath to hitch. (M/N) tensed for a second, then stopped, finding comfort in the contrast of cool skin against his warmth.

Levi’s eyes dragged along his sharp jawline, the slope of his nose, and the softness of his cheeks. His hand slowly slid over to (M/N)’s jaw, cupping it softly. His thumb gazed at his ear and his wet hair as (M/N) made a light noise.

The Captain’s mind was moving a mile a minute, but he kept his touch gentle and began to run his thumb over the small male’s bottom lip. (M/N)’s breath quickened and his arms jolted up, gripping onto Levi’s arm with a prominent force.

“Levi..?” (M/N) whispered.

Levi tensed, thinking that he would push him away but when he heard him call his name he calmed.

“It’s me… you can trust me, remember?” Levi whispered back, his voice slightly strained to keep his voice and hands from shaking

Levi knew that one wrong move and (M/N) would snap but Levi has gone too far to back off now. He gently ran his thumb over his lip again and leaned closer. His lips rested onto his for a comfortable moment. Levi kept it slow, turning his head and pushing his head closer to his. (M/N)’s whole body tensed, taking a couple seconds for the situation to register into his brain. He relaxed then started to kiss back.

The Captain continued the kiss, keeping it soft and slow. His thumb caressed the boy’s warm cheek lovingly. A warm feeling creeped up inside his body as he felt (M/N)’s hand move up to rest on the Captain’s arm. The feeling of their touch felt like heaven to both of them.

Levi broke the kiss, his lips hovering millimeters from (M/N)’s, keeping his hands in place.

“You can open your eyes” Levi mumbled with a slight shakiness in his voice.

(M/N) slowly opened his eyes, his eyelashes batting softly. His cheeks burned up and his eyes dilated.

Levi met (M/N)’s gaze, his breath getting caught in his throat for a moment at how the man looked. His cheeks were hotter than before, they turned pink as well. It was a look that Levi found himself fighting the urge to kiss him again.

Their hearts were beating fast, both of them staring deeply into each other's eyes.

“Are you okay?” Levi’s voice was soft, despite his shaky hands and pounding heart.

(M/N)’s breathing was shaky and he turned his head away from Levi’s stare, breaking Levi’s hand off his cheek which was deep red illuminated by the moonlight.

“I.. i’m okay” (M/N)’s voice was louder than a whisper yet softer than a pillow. It was obvious he was still regulating after the kiss.

Levi made a noise, a muffled laugh that he tried to hold in. (M/N) turned and raised his head to look back into his gaze which made the Captain’s heart squeeze.

“Are you mad?” Levi asked.

The thought that the man in front of him would be a man felt like a knife lodged into his chest. He wasn’t sure if he could handle seeing him after he said yes.

(M/N)’s chest tightened but he shook his head, causing a sense of relief to wash over Levi.

“Just surprised.. I guess” (M/N) muttered.

Levi gazed at (M/N) with covetous eyes, the string of comfort keeping them intertwined. Moonlight bathed into the room, drowning (M/N) and Levi in it. (M/N)’s eyes shone with love and hope. He then cupped the side of Levi’s face, rubbing his cheek before moving his hand up and gripping onto Levi’s hair. Levi grunted lightly as (M/N)’s lips smashed against his, he pulled on Levi’s hair, making his lips overlap Levi’s. They stumbled onto the bed, their lips still connected with (M/N) beneath Levi and his hand tangled in the Captain’s hair.

(M/N) turned his head away from Levi with a heavy gasp and disheveled look. Blushed face and tousled hair, his breath warm against Levi’s face.

“I like you (M/N),” Levi muttered, his lips grazing onto (M/N)’s cheek.

“I like you too, Levi”

Levi hummed wrapped an arm around (M/N)’s waist, then scooching them up the bed. (M/N) spooned Levi with his nose dug into Levi’s hair. They fell asleep with the moonlight as their blanket, together in each other's arms.

[whomstsnek]

father of the year!!!

in order: goblin, tabaxi (caracal), lizardfolk (gold dust day gecko), fire genasi, human, bugbear, brownie

I really like to use goblins as an excuse to draw really angular, exaggerated facial features :3 generally speaking I draw goblins like that, with protruded chins and brow ridges and real long noses and ears. I will say I struggled exaggerating nose in particular across every character's goblin designs, what I ended up doing is mentally assigning like. a point of articulation or something? or like a slider? At the very tip of the nose and just sort of. dragged it down following the path of the bridge if that makes sense. Arguably the most consistent feature between goblins (and other goblinoids) is the lil bump in the ear, a small detail that means the world to me <3

Gricko's tabaxi design is another fun case of Silliness :) idk what prompted me to draw him as a caracal but the SECOND I did it solidified the design for me, he's just so silly to me lol and I really liked the vibes. Not a lot else happening there.

For his lizardfolk design, Gricko is the character I had the clearest vision for, specifically in that I wanted him to be a gecko. I just though it was funny lol and I WAS RIGHT!! Anyways I ended up going with this specific gecko because as I was looking up reference, the color palette SCREAMED Gricko to me and I couldn't resist.

I don't have a lot to say about his human design lol, I did kind of de-exaggerate some of his features to fit better on a human face. His hair obviously didn't change a lot between his canon design and his human design, although in retrospect perhaps I should have made it a little warmer in tone bc I think it looks weird when not paired with his greenish skin tone but oh well lol

[skaiylus]

Home - Nanami Kento x gn reader

My first time writing for jjk 🥺. I wrote this since it's been one year since I've moved! Also Nanami has been on my brain a lot I love him so much🥺

Home - A building. The place where one lives permanently. A place of residence.

Kento Nanami had always lived a life ruled by precision.Before becoming a jujutsu sorcerer, he was a salaryman, whose world was ruled by the ticking of the clock and the endless grind of work that seemed to stretch far beyond the typical nine-to-five. The demands of office life had been unrelenting, and overtime became a bitter companion—a curse, really—one that clung to him like a shadow, draining the life out of each day. To him, home was nothing more than a structure—a place to sleep, to eat, to exist until the next day of work demanded him.

The shift from salaryman to sorcerer didn’t change his hatred for overtime. The battles with curses were different yet still demanded long hours.His new life as a sorcerer involved the same exhaustion, accompanied with a heightened sense of danger and responsibility. The only difference was that now, his office was the world of curses, and his battles were far more dangerous than a jammed printer and unsent emails.

Each evening, after a gruelling day of sorcery, Nanami would leave his mission - uniform dishevelled and his expression weary. The streets of Tokyo were a blur as he made his way to his apartment—a small space that offered little comfort beyond its four walls. He would enter, set down his gear, and let out a sigh that echoed through the empty rooms - a familiar silence that he treasured (after dealing with Gojo’s constant yapping the whole day)

Nanami would usually eat a simple dinner that he prepared in advance despite his advanced palette, sometimes instant noodles were the only thing he could muster up the energy to prepare.He would then collapse onto his bed- his sleep was a brief escape from the endless cycle of battles and overtime. Even in his dreams, he couldn’t escape the looming responsibilities that awaited him. The next morning, the alarm would blare, and the cycle would begin again.

As the gloomy months passed something began to change - a faint light, that was almost unnoticeable at first, began to flicker in the Nanami’s life. It wasn’t the glaring glow of his computer screen or the cold fluorescence of the office; it was something softer, warmer - something comforting. At first, he didn’t understand what was happening -he continued his routine mechanically,precisely as always.

His once silent apartment began to fill with the sound of quiet laughter, the scent of home-cooked meals, and the warmth of another presence. You had entered his life by chance—a friend of a friend who had become something much more unlike anyone Nanami had ever known. You were patient, understanding, with kindness that seeped into the very walls of his apartment, transforming it from a mere building into a place of comfort, of belonging.

Nanami found himself longing to leave missions earlier each day. The weight of overtime, which had once been so suffocating, seemed to lift as thoughts of you filled his mind. The days that once stretched endlessly now had a purpose beyond the grind of work. For the first time in years, Nanami felt the pull of something more significant than his job—he felt the pull of home. When Nanami would finally step through the door each evening, he was greeted not by the cold emptiness that had once awaited him but by the warmth of your smile. You would have dinner ready, and sit together and talk as the outside world faded into insignificance. Your presence filled the apartment with life, with a joy that Nanami had never known he was missing.

One evening, as Nanami sat on the couch with you nestled beside him, he realised something that brought a rare smile to his face. He had always thought of home as just a place—a structure to retreat to after the weariness of work but you had changed that and made him understand what home truly was.

Home was no longer just four walls and a roof; it was where his heart found rest, where the burdens of the day melted away in the warmth of your embrace. Home was where he found peace, where he was reminded that life was more than just the hours spent fighting curses.Nanami looked at you, your head resting on his shoulder, and felt a deep sense of gratitude. He had spent so long believing that his life was defined by the endless cycle of work and overtime, but you had shown him that there was something more you had become his new “home”—a place of comfort, love, and peace.

From that day on, Nanami no longer dreaded the end of his workday. He knew that no matter how difficult his battles became, no matter how many hours he spent working, there was something waiting for him at the end of each day that made it all worthwhile. There was a light in his life that no amount of overtime could extinguish—a light that guided him home, where you would be waiting, ready to welcome him with open arms.

Taglist [click here to join <3]

@buzzyboi79 @0lissa0 @nishikina @bakugosgorl @bakugosbratx @aomi04 @dabis0bitch @bakubabeyy @keisurou @hannas16 @namjoonswifeyy @neko-loogi @stormcloudsbrewing @nymphoheretic @gently-folded-paper-cranes @shoutascoffeepot @slutfor-fictionalmen @dreamcastgirl99

[fruitmins]

For You | yoongi

➭ summary: in which Yoongi is the son of a big business man and is now the CEO of the million dollar company so naturally he grew up distant and stern. But suddenly, his attitude changes when he meets you, a local kind hearted stripper that catches his curiosity. He finds himself lost in your smile and warm spirit, despite him being the opposite. But he’s willing to let down his walls for you..

➭genre: oneshot, strangers to lovers, stripper reader, slowburn-ish, fluff

➭warnings: mentions of alcohol, mentions of violence & blood, tsundere-ish tbh, didnt check the spelling, yoongi is stalker-ish but that’s ok, daddy issues

➭note: don’t ask me why this takes place in winter💀 senior year of high school + writers block + I’m lazy. i like half of this and i hate half of this. omg yoongi going to the military I’m gonna cry & throw a fit

Yoongi put his cold hands in his pockets, small snowflakes falling from the sky as he stepped out of the dirty and vulgar parking lot. He ignored all of the horny thugs who were making out with hookers outside as he headed to the dimly lit building.

SEASAW

The word was lit on top of the building and for some unknown reason, Yoongi had been drawn to it for weeks. He knew there were better clubs than this one, and he’d most likely be seen and on some headline by the time he stepped in the door but tonight, he didn’t care.

His mind went back to the fight he had with his dad on the phone as he stepped through the door, some terribly made whiskey in mind.

A breeze washed over him as the door closed with a loud thud, it was at least a little warmer than the cold air outside. Yoongi glanced around taking in the symphony of multicolored lights illuminated the air, casting a vibrant palette across the dance floor. The room throbbed with an infectious energy, resonating with the beat of the music that reverberated through every corner.

Soon, his eyes found the bar, a couple of nicely dressed men sat at the stools. Without another thought, Yoongi strutted to a seat, leaving an empty space to separate himself and another man.

“Whiskey.” He said in a deep raspy voice despite how the woman working was already in the middle of making another drink.

“Yoongi!” A older sounding man suddenly called out of him, making his head turn to the man on the stool next to him. He recognized the man as one of his dad’s friend.

Perfect. He scoffed to himself, hoping his drink would came faster.

“Now what are you doing in a bar like this?” The man asked with a scratchy laugh, hitting his shoulder.

Yoongi tried to let out a small chuckle that ends up sounding dry. “Same as you.” He spoke, turning back to the bar when he hears the bartender loudly slam his drink on the counter.

He goes to take a large swig as the old man continues to chat and laugh with him, his reeking odor hitting his face as he turns to look back at him.

Behind the old man, Yoongi notices the dance floor. Bodies moved in sync with the rhythm, twisting and gyrating, surrendering themselves to the intoxicating melodies. But one soul figure seemed to catch everyone’s attention on stage.

Slowly, he started to tune out the annoying old man the more closely he watched. But unlike the other men in the bar, he watched with curiosity rather than lust. Your movements were elegant and graceful, your tight crop top and glittery skirt making every sway of your body seen.

Your hands played in your hair and caressed your body as your body moved, painting a mysterious story about you with help of the music. Your eyes closed and a bright warm smile on your face as if no one else was there.

Despite dancing in a shabby club probably to make ends meet, you were dancing as if this was your long time dream.

“Her?” The old man’s itchy voice suddenly came back to him, pointing to you on the stage. “That’s Y/N. She’s kinda a favorite here.” He said and this made Yoongi even more intrigued.

“Has she worked here long?” Yoongi asked glancing back at the old man as he nodded. “Almost a full year.” He said and everyone clapped and whistled as you suddenly came down from the stage with a warm smile.

Yoongi just hummed before quickly finishing his drink before paying the bartender and leaving, deciding to dismiss the thought of talking to you.

But at weird hours of the day Yoongi would think about you, so every time he happened to pass the club he went in and watched you perform.

This happened for weeks. He never said a word to you, he never went further than the bar. Until one day when you had stepped off the stage, looking cheerful as usual, only to be met with two men meeting you half way.

Yoongi watched, his blood starting to boil as the man surrounded you, complimenting you and touching your hair. It didn’t take them long before they got more physical, grabbing your arm to stop you from walking away as they started to trail closer to you so that their body touched yours.

Yoongi can see the panic and fear settle in your face before his vision was blocked by the taller men.

Without thinking, Yoongi practically sprung up from the stool, furious as he made his way over to where the men had circled you.

“Move.” He said, his voice deep and hoarse as the two men slowly turned around to face Yoongi.

“Mind your business, hot shot.” One man spoke, obviously trying to spook Yoongi which only wanted to make him laugh.

“I’m not going to waste my breath telling you again.” Yoongi said simply, remaining calm as he watched the two turn irritated.

“You wanna get jumped punk?” The man said, raising his voice as he stepped closer to Yoongi.

Instantly and without warning, Yoongi’s right arm swung in the air. His already clenched knuckles that were in his coat pocket suddenly flew out and connected to the guys face, all of his pent up angry unleashing.

Before anyone can react, he punched him a second time, this one making him stumble to the ground with a yell of pain.

The other man quickly backed away with his hands in the air, “I don’t even know that guy.” The man claimed before quickly rushing off.

Yoongi looked up from the ground where the other man was laid, his nose now bleeding heavily as Yoongi stepped over the body, ignoring his groans when he did so.

“You alright?” Yoongi spoke, his expression softening as he meets your eyes. His eyes glazed around your face as he inspected you, trying not to get lost in your gorgeous and unique features as he looked for any sign that they had touched you.

“I’m fine.” You muttered back, out of breath from shock as you looked at the man on the group and then up at him with wide eyes.

“Thank you.” You say with a polite bow, taking a moment to collect yourself before a small smile appears on your face.

“What?” Yoongi asked, curious on why you were suddenly smiling and chuckling despite everything.

“Well, I was wondering when you were going to come talk to me.” You say with a teasing smile only making Yoongi more confused. As if reading his expression you chuckle. “You think I haven’t noticed you always coming in here and watching me?”

Yoongi bit the inside of his cheek, shrugging lightly as he looked away. “I don’t care if you noticed or not.” He spoke in a defensive tone, harsher than intended. He saw the smile on your face drop slightly in disappointment and he bit the inside of his cheek harder out of frustration. He didn’t want to be responsible for a frown on your face when you always wore a smile.

Wordlessly, Yoongi took out his wallet, taking out three hundred dollar bills and holding his hand out for her to take.

Your eyes widen in shock, chuckling nervously as you shake your head, denying it. “Why..?” You start to question, getting a little suspicious.

“For the inconvenience, and all the dances I’ve watched without tipping.” Yoongi states with a serious expression, trying to cover up any other intentions he might of had.

“You just have that much on you at all times? That’s risky.” You respond, still hesitant to take the money. Yoongi lets a smile crack at the irony, “I’ve been watching you for weeks and that’s what your worried about?” He asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Do you want a favor in return or something?” You ask him, still skeptical as Yoongi rolls his eyes. “I guess we’ll never know if you don’t take the money.”

With a sigh, he watches as you slowly take the money out of his hands and put it in your pocket. “Thank you.” You mumble as he turns around and heads for the door. “Wait!” You call for him in confusion, putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him as he turns around slightly.

“What’s the favor?” You ask in confusion but Yoongi just looks at you before continuing to walk out without a word.

It doesn’t take Yoongi long to wonder back into the club days after that. Despite the weird exchange it only made him want to get to know you more. But something in him grew colder when he walked in the club only to see you not onstage. Usually around this time you had already started and had a small crowd of men watching you.

“Whiskey.” He ordered in a lower tone as he sat down, tapping impatiently on the counter as he waited. “This was stupid.” He mumbled to himself, ashamed of how he had gotten caught up with this stripper and was just about ready to leave it all behind.

“Min Yoongi! You’re back!” He heard your familiar voice right next to him, causing his head to turn to the side in confusion.

“What are you doing here?” He asked his finger slowly stopping as he looked at you, sat next him in the bar.

“Aren’t you going to ask how I know your name?” You reply instead, wiggling your eyebrows playfully. “I assumed you already knew.” Yoongi spoke calmly, lightly shrugging even.

“Cocky much?” You reply, jokingly rolling your eyes with a smile. “How did you find out, if not the internet?” Yoongi asked curiously, as the bartender slams his whiskey on the counter.

“Well when the son and CEO of a million dollar company starts to take notice to the best employee in the club, word gets around.” You reply with a slight grin and Yoongi can’t help but chuckle a little.

“Cocky much?” He echos your words as he sips on his whiskey and this only widens your grin further. Yoongi stares into your smile, feeling a weight being lifted off his shoulders when he realizes it’s been a while since he actually genuinely smiled for once.

When he finishes his drink he takes out his wallet and pays for the bad alcohol before taking out another three hundred and handing it to you, not waiting for you to take it this time.

“This has to be your way of flirting with me.” You mumble in disbelief as you stare at the bills before reluctantly shoving it in your skirt.

Yoongi scoffed, shaking his head in disagreement. “I don’t have time to flirt.” He mumbled firmly while looking at his empty glass.

“You have time to come here.” You differed causing him to bite the inside of his cheek, standing up and dusting himself off. “Wait that didn’t mean leave!” You state quickly getting up with him and Yoongi can’t help but glance at the sudden look of displeasure and sadness on your face as your hand brushes against his as you attempt to stop him.

“I..actually like having you here. You make me feel safe.” You mumble sheepishly as Yoongi stood there, completely frozen as he took in your words. How had he, of all people, made you feel safe? In a run down place like this?

“Then your standers are low.” He said in a low voice, a hint of playfulness in his tone as you look back up at him, snickering at his comment.

“You say that, but under that frown and sharp eyes is a warm hearted gentleman.” You speak causing him to look away from you, not wanting to take your words seriously. He didn’t want to show any signs of vulnerability, he’d never be ready for anything heavy.

“You don’t believe me?” You challenged him, seeing his silence and he heard the heard an underlying tone in your voice when you asked. “If I asked you to walk me to my car, you’d hundred percent do it.”

Yoongi scoffed and rolled his eyes at you, but quickly knew not to didn’t deny it. “See! You would.” You grinned at his sour expression, knowing you were right.

“Whatever, do you want to be walked to your car or not?” He asked trying to dismiss the fact all together. He had never seen himself in a situation like this, feeling embarrassed and maybe bubbly.

You laughed at the question but nodded, grabbing your nearby coat that was filled with stains as you attempted to squeeze your shoulders in the coat.

Yoongi rolled his eyes, walking in front of you as he leaded the two of you out of the door and to your car. Yoongi sighed as he looked at the state of it, effortlessly taking out his wallet and starting to count some bills.

“If you’re going to give me more money don’t bother.” You quickly said as the two of you made it to your car, stepping in front to him and holding onto his hand so he would stop rummaging through his wallet.

“I don’t need it, I’m fine!” You tried to convince him and he simply raised an eyebrow at you, before going back to counting, taking out a couple hundreds as he did so.

“Then consider it flirting.” He mumbled in a flat tone, taking out five hundreds and getting ready to hand it to you.

As he looked back up from his wallet he felt something soft touch the corner of his lips, eyes widening in shock when he realizes how close you were to him and before he could stop it, you had planted a gentle kiss on the corner of his lips.

Your lips lingered on his skin for a couple seconds before finally pulling away from him, taking a step back.

“Come back tomorrow, okay?” You say with a warm smile, practically glowing in front of him as you spoke to him in a soft low tone.

Silently, Yoongi watched you chuckle at his reaction before getting into your car and slowly driving off, his heart thumping as he watched your car drive off onto the road.

He slowly started to move again when your car was far away enough that it was out of view, as if snapping him out of a trance.

Yoongi could feel himself getting lighter, warmer. He could feel his muscles relax as he took his hands out of his coat pocket.

[multifamdomfan]

In Strokes and Silence

Aziraphale x Crowley artist AU

Aziraphale stood in the center of his cluttered studio, brush held limply in his hand as he stared at the blank canvas like it had personally offended him. Afternoon sunlight filtered through gauzy curtains, painting golden stripes across the wooden floor. Half-finished portraits and abstract attempts leaned against every available wall, and a plate of untouched biscuits sat beside a steaming cup of tea.

He sighed dramatically, placing a hand to his chest as if burdened by the weight of creation itself.

"I simply cannot do this," he muttered. "The exhibition is in two weeks and I’ve nothing. Nothing!"

Crowley, lounging in the window seat in his signature black jeans and boots (despite the warm weather), raised a single brow behind his sunglasses. “What’s it this time? Muse died? Colors betrayed you? Paint revolted?”

Aziraphale waved a hand, dramatic as ever. “Don’t be flippant, dear. I need a subject. Something—someone—to paint. All great art has a focal point, and I can’t very well submit a blank canvas and call it ‘Existentialism in Stillness.’”

Crowley grinned, pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head. “I mean, someone probably has done that already. But fine, I’ll bite. Why not ask one of your art society snobs to pose?”

“They’re all terribly boring,” Aziraphale huffed. “All stiff collars and polite smiles. No soul in them.”

A beat.

Crowley tilted his head, then slowly stood, stretching out like a lazy cat. “What about me, then?”

Aziraphale blinked. “You?”

“Yeah. You always say I’m ‘interesting.’ 'Too angular for my own good,' remember that one?” He smirked. “I’ll sit for your silly little portrait, angel.”

Aziraphale opened his mouth to object, but no protest came out. Crowley was... well, he was certainly striking. Pale skin, sharp cheekbones, wild hair like a tangle of flame, and eyes that—when he wasn’t hiding them—glowed with something far too complicated to name.

“…All right,” he said softly. “But you’ll have to sit very still.”

Crowley gave a mock bow. “Your wish is my command.”

---

The next few afternoons were quieter than usual.

Crowley sat in the big armchair Aziraphale had dragged into position, one leg draped lazily over the other, hands resting just so. Aziraphale, at first flustered and overly fussy with lighting and angles, quickly lost himself in the comfort of routine. Sketch, paint, adjust. Glance up, down, then up again.

He kept looking too long.

It was ridiculous, really. They’d known each other for years. Bantered across café tables, wandered museums side-by-side, argued over literature and music and the best kind of marmalade. But now, with Crowley sitting still, quiet, eyes occasionally softening when he thought Aziraphale wasn't looking—

Something changed.

And Crowley noticed it too.

One afternoon, Aziraphale stepped back to assess the canvas, and Crowley broke the silence.

“You’re being careful.”

Aziraphale blinked. “Am I?”

Crowley shrugged. “You’re painting me like I’m... precious. Like I’ll disappear if you mess it up.”

Aziraphale’s breath caught. His palette tilted slightly in his grip. “Well,” he said, quieter now, “perhaps I’m afraid that if I look at you too long, you’ll realize how much I enjoy it.”

Silence.

Crowley tilted his head. “Is that so?”

Aziraphale didn’t answer. Not with words.

Instead, he stepped closer. The brush trembled in his hand, then fell to the floor unnoticed. Crowley met his gaze, for once unguarded, and the distance between them—so many years of friendship, longing, deflection—finally shrank to nothing.

He kissed him.

Slow and unsure at first, then deeper, warmer, as if all the paint in the world had suddenly bloomed inside Aziraphale’s chest.

---

The painting was finished a few days later.

At the exhibition, it was the centerpiece: Crowley, caught in a moment of impossible stillness, sunlight tangled in his hair, eyes full of secrets, affection bleeding from every brushstroke.

A small brass plaque beneath it read: "The One Who Stayed."

No one asked who the artist loved.

They didn’t need to.

---