#he designs one for donnie just because i did that for my friends when i was little and donnie gets Really invested in it and starts comming

[qoldenskies]

untapped potential in mikey being so into art. we should give him a fursona

[theyhavetakenovermylife]

Turtles x tattoo artist!reader

Got this idea after I read a Leo x tattoo artist on Wattpad. It was super cute, but as a tattooed person that has started tattooing my friends, I have to tell my fellow ff writers something that will make your tattoo ff more realistic. DON’T EVER REUSE NEEDLES!!!! WEAR GLOVES!!!!! ALSO WHEN YOU PUT ON A STENCIL!!!!!!! Hopefully I saved some turtles from an infected tattoo.

Enjoy!💙❤️💜🧡

Warnings: Needles, pain, tattooing, some of the turtles being cheeky, spelling.

—-----------------------------------------------

Leonardo:

As your last client of the day went out the door with their newest tattoo, you breathed a sigh of relief. The last few ones have been though. Unable to sit still, with a need to look at the tattoo several times while you were working on it, almost causing you to go outside of the lines. Not what you needed. But all the thought of irritation and frustration washed away, when you remembered; your boyfriend was coming to get a tattoo.

Last night, Leonardo had asked you if you would do a tattoo on him. You had obviously said yes, excited to finally tattoo your boyfriend. Leo was by far heavily tattooed, but he did sport a few on his arms, all symbolizing his brothers.

As you locked the front door, flipped the open sign to close and pulled the curtains, you could hear the back door that led to the alley, open and close. It was Leo. You rushed to the back door with a happy skip, and greeted your green boyfriend with a big smile. You wrapped your arms around his neck, and brought his face down to yours for a kiss.

“Hey”, you smiled.

“Hey”, he smiled back before giving you another kiss.

You brought him with you back into the main area of the shop, asking him what he wanted to get tattooed. He pulled a folded piece of paper from his pockets and gave it to you. You unfolded it.

A katana. Simple black lines with minor shadowing. You were pretty sure that Leo had drawn this himself.

“Of course”, you chuckled, looking at the paper in your hand. “Where do you want it?”

“Right here”. Leo pointed to the side of his left forearm.

“That could actually be really good”, you said, studying his arm. Leo’s arm was nothing new for you. They had been wrapped around you so many times, that you knew them as well as the back of your own hand. But on the rarest occasions, had you thought about tattoo placements on his arm.

“I think we should size it up. Around… this big”. You measured out his arm, with one finger marking out just above his wrist and just below his elbow.

“Is that because you as a tattoo artist know it would look better, or is it because you as my girlfriend want an excuse to keep tattooing me for as long as possible?”, Leo asked with a smile.

“A little bit of both, I would say”.

“In that case, I think we should do it”.

To say that you were happy was an understatement. All your earlier tiredness and frustration flew out the window, as you went to your desk so you could draw the stencil. Leo followed you, and watched you intently while you drew over the stencil paper, tracing the outlines of his design.

“That’s not how Raph did it”, Leo said with a small chuckled, remembering the time he and his brothers did each other's tattoos, with a tattoo machine Donnie had made.

“How did Raph do it?”, you asked, smiling at the thought of what Leo had told you. Young turtle brothers sitting in the shared bedroom of their old lair, long after Master Splinter had gone to bed, tattooing each other like the young rebellious teenagers they once were.

“He drew it directly on me with a marker”.

“Doesn’t sound very sanetray”, you laughed. “Especially not in a sewer”.

“Nope. That is why I’m going to you from now on”, Leo said as he reached down to kiss your forehead.

With Leo’s stencil finished, you went to work preparing your station one last time that evening. You put on your gloves, wrapped the station in film, prepared the cream, poured the black ink, got your new needles and wrapped your machine for a better grip.

Leo watched you with those eyes that always made you blush, while you disinfected his arm, applied the transfer jell, and then placed the stencil. When you moved back and told Leo to look in the mirror, he didn’t move. Instead he just stared at you with those eyes and that little smile.

“I trust you. It looks good”.

Fighting your flustered face and biting down your lip, you moved Leo into the seat, before stretching his arm and moving it to an angle, so it would be easy for you. With that you started your machine and began doing his lines.

Leo - with his high pain tolerance - didn’t move a muscle, but instead just stared at you as you worked. You could feel his strong gaze on you, trying your hardest to focus on his tattoo in front of you.

You continued working in silence, with nothing but the sound of your tattoo machine being heard. Silence wasn’t new for you and Leo, nor did it make you uncomfortable. The two of you would often enjoy each other’s presence in silence, each doing your own thing, simply finding comfort in being near each other. Like him meditating or sharpening his katana, while you were drawing or reading. Just like right now. Leo admiring you while you were working.

After two hours of tense work on Leo’s arm, you finally finished. With a last whip over his arm, you wrapped it up, making sure it would be protected during the first stages of healing.

“So, what do you think?”, you asked Leo as he assessed the katana on his arm with warm eyes.

“It’s amazing”, he said, smiling bright. “You’re amazing, you know that, right?”

“You might have told me a few times”, you said as you started cleaning up.

Leo stood up from his seat and walked to you, before wrapping both arms around you, bringing his face down to yours.

“I love you, my amazing little tattoo”, he said, before letting your lips meet in a sweet kiss. And with that you knew, you would definitely tattoo Leo again.

Raphael:

Under normal circumstances, you would have said no to be doing a tattoo in the sewers. No way that wouldn’t get infected and heal probably. It was a tail made for disaster. But when your brute of a boyfriend asked you as nicely as he did, and promised you cuddles and a foot rub, there was no way you could say no. Especially not when he made those big teddy bear eyes that only you got to see. You just had to say yes.

So there you were in Raphael’s room, in the sewers deep below New York City, setting up a small tattoo station on his nightstand. Raphael stood right behind you fiddling with a football in his hands, watching you unpack your stuff with curiosity. Yes, he did have a tattoo, but one that was made with a machine Donnie had but together, not a real machine. So to see a real one in front of him for the first time, had his attention peaked.

“So”, you asked, checking the battery for your machine. “What were you thinking of?”

“A samurai”, Raph said with a small smile, as he spun the football in his hands.

“You and those damn samurais”, you chuckled and laid out your paper and stencil paper. “I thought that this time around you would like a ninja”.

“Maybe one day, on the other leg”, Raph said with a smug smile. “If this one goes right”.

“Well okay smart guy”, you laughed turning towards him. “Where on your leg do you want it”.

“I was thinking here”. Raphael laid the football on the ground before going to the outside of his right calf, measuring out from his knee to ankle.

“Do you want it to take up the whole side?”

“Of course”, Raph smiled. “It has to match”. He pointed towards the samurai on his shoulder.

“Just as black?”

“You know me baby”, he said, giving you that smug smile.

You bit back a smile, trying to fight back the blush that was creeping up your face. Damn Raphael and his smooth comments.

“Okay, I’ll do a sketch and you tell me what you think about it. If you like it, we can get tattooing”.

“Sounds like one of the best plans I’ve heard in a long time”, Raph said, still smiling like that smug fucker he is. But damn you loved that man.

As you got drawing on the sketch, Raph would walk in and out of his room, grabbing drinks and food from the kitchen, before returning. Every once in a while he would get up from his bed, just to give you a kiss on the cheek, wrap his arms around you, and look at how far you’ve gotten.

Raph loved your finished sketch, stating something along the lines of; “so far, so good”, just to annoy you.

With Raphael laying on his bed, with pants rolled up and wrapped around his knee and slightly turned to the side, you placed the stencil on the side of his muscular side calf. You had to admit, you were proud of your work so far. The artwork flowed with the curve, sway and size of Raph’s calf, showing it off.

As you started the machine and dipped the needle in the ink cup, Raphael got comfortable with his hands behind his back, still with his smug smile plastered on his face.

“Are you ready?”, you asked as you placed your other hand on his leg to spread the skin.

“Born ready”.

And with that statement from your boyfriend, you started working on the lines in his tattoo.

Raphael’s tattoo was big and detailed, which meant a lot of work. But not even 15 minutes into the tattoo, you saw Raph shifting and grimes for a split second, before pressing his eyes shut. Your tough boyfriend was breaking character.

“You okay there, Raphie?”, you asked with a sly smile, dipping the needle in the ink once more before going back in.

“Yup, I’m okay. More than okay actually”, he said, still with his eyes pressed shut.

“I hope so, because you know, the closer I get to your foot and the closer I get to your knee, the more it’ll hurt”.

“Ah fuck”.

“And that’s just the line work. I’ll have to go in afterwards and do filling and shadowing”.

“H- how long do you think all that will take?” Raph’s eyes now open, looking at you with a slight fear in his eyes.

“Well, with a tattoo this size and this detailed, easily four hours”.

“So only three more hours?”

“Raph, baby, we’ve only been going for 15 minutes”.

Raphael groaned loudly, grabbing onto the pillow behind his head. “Fuck me”.

“Later baby”, you laughed. “It won’t be a good idea while you have an open tattoo”.

Raph sighed. “(Y/N), I love you, but sometimes you’re annoying as fuck”.

“I love you too Raphie, and if it helps anything, I too find you annoying sometimes”, you smiled sweetly at him, causing Raph to bite back a smile, the same way he made you do not too long ago.

“And just so you know”, you continued while wiping ink away from Raph’s leg. “You still owe me cuddles and a foot rub afterwards' '.

Raphael exhaled loudly, face scrunching up as the needle went back over his skin. “I really didn’t think this through, did I?”

“Nope, not at all”.

Nevertheless, after four hours and many loud exclamations from Raphael that could be heard all throughout the lair, your boyfriend had gotten himself a new big tattoo. And if you had to be honest, it was pretty hot, and not just because you were the one that made it.

Donatello:

When Donatello had asked for you to tattoo him, you were kind of shocked to say the least. Your sweet, tech nerdy, genius of a boyfriend, who did not have a single tattoo on his beautiful green body, wanted you to tattoo him. You had to blink and ask him to repeat his request.

But Donatello was serious. He wanted a tattoo. He even offered to give you space in his lab, so you could set up a propper station, and that was an offer you just couldn’t refuse.

You had unpacked your station in Donnie’s lab, currently drawing the design Donnie had given you onto transfer paper, while he was taking a closer look at your tattoo machine.

“It’s very different from the one I made”, Donnie noticed, turning it in his three fingered hands. 

“How did you guys even do it back then?”, you asked, eyes still on the drawing.

“Well, I made the machine, and the guys had several designs”, he said, thinking back to the old days in the old lair with a smile. “We all got a turn tattooing Leo”.

You chuckled, finding the thought amusing. Stupid and reckless, but amusing nonetheless.

“Where did you get ink from?”

“A pen. Many pens actually”. He placed your machine on the table, before taking a seat next to you, resting his chin lightly on your shoulder, looking at your hand working. “We broke open the pens and poured it into a solo cup”.

“That is really not sanitary”, you laughed, leaning your head to the side, so your temple was pressed against Donnie’s forehead.

“No, it really isn’t”, he laughed, nuzzling his face closer to yours.

“Now Donnie”, you said, nodding towards the drawing in front of you. It was a design of a turtle, somewhat like the one Leo and Mikey shared, but with its own intricate design around it. “What is the meaning behind this, and why do you want it?”

“Well, it is a turtle, so much is obvious”, Donnie said, causing you to nudge him slightly. “And well, it just felt like it was about time. I just finally want a tattoo. And me being the lucky guy that I am, have a tattoo artist as a girlfriend, so it just seemed obvious”.

“Well, that is enough reasoning for me”.

You finished the stencil and put on gloves, getting ready to prep Donnie’s skin with disinfectants.

“The shoulder is one of the easiest places”, you told him, as you smoothed the paper over his shoulder. “Many people experience that the shoulder hurts way less than any other places”.

“Did yours hurt?”, Donnie asked, nodding towards the tattoo on your shoulder. He had looked at it so many times, often wondering how you felt while getting it. It was probably one of the main reasons why he hadn’t gotten a tattoo yet; the fear of it hurting. Especially after he saw the way Mikey and Raph reacted to their tattoos back then.

“Not at all”, you said, peeling the paper back from his skin, leaving back purple lines for you to follow. “I almost fell asleep during mine. Now, take a look in the mirror and tell me what you think”.

Donnie went to the mirror and took a look at his shoulder, before turning to you with a smile.

“It looks great”, he said.

“Then sit down good sir, and let me get started on you”, you said, opening a new needle with your gloved hands.

Donnie sat down like you told him to, and watched as you got the needle ready. You turned on the machine, dipping it into the ink cup while it hummed. You placed your other hand on Donnie’s shoulder, spreading his green scaly skin.

“Remember, you can always tell me if you need a break or if you're getting uncomfortable. Keep your breathing calm and level, and it will save you from a lot of unnecessary stress. And with that in mind, are you ready?”

Donnie nodded with a small smile. “I’m ready”.

You let the needle brace Donatello’s skin, watching for any reaction by your boyfriend, showing any discomfort.

“Okay, that is not as bad as I thought it would be”, he said, turning his head slightly to look at the needle.

“It’s rarely that bad”, you told him, wiping the first line. “Trust me. I still get surprised every time I get tattooed”.

Donnie chuckled, imagining the scene of you in a tattoo shop.

As time went on, and as you were half way through the tattoo, you noticed the first signs of discomfort from your boyfriend.

“Okay, I can feel it now”, he said, grimacing slightly. “It is not bad, but it’s more. I’m not sure how else to describe it”.

“Don’t worry. We’re halfway done”, you said, dipping the needle in the ink cup. “But I will recommend that you take it easy afterwards and get a good night's sleep”.

“I will if you stay and keep me company”.

“Well, you don’t have to ask me twice”, you said, wiping the tattoo down one more time.

It didn’t take long before you finished the tattoo, smearing cream over it before wrapping it up. Donatello seemed slightly shocked by it.

“Are you done already?”, he asked, looking at his new tattoo under the plastic wrap.

“Yeah, it was not a super complicated tattoo”, you laughed, as you started to clean up after yourself. “And you’re really easy to tattoo. That only made it quicker”.

“Well in that case”, he said and stood up, before wrapping his arms around from behind. “Would you like to start that good night’s sleep a little earlier?”

“There’s nothing I’d rather do”, you said, pulling your tall boyfriend down to you for a sweet kiss.

Michelangelo:

Bless your boyfriend and his kind, sweet, beautiful, helpful heart. What he wouldn’t do for you? Nothing. He would do everything and even more if you asked for it, also if you didn’t ask for it. And that was the nature of Mikey. Showing his love for you in spontaneous and caring ways, that not even you had expected. Such as volunteering for you to practice your tattooing, after hearing you talk about how much you wanted to practice.

And that was what led up to you and Mikey sitting on your couch, talking about the best place for you to tattoo him.

“I don’t know, baby”, you said, pressing your fingers against Mikey’s upper stomach. “I’ve never tattooed a plastron before”.

“Don’t worry Angelcakes, it will be fine”, Mikey said with a bright smile. “It will just be right here”, he said, gliding his finger over the top of his stomach, to outline the placement.

“But can a needle even get through that?”, you asked, pressing a little firmer against his plastron. You knew how firm Mikey’s plastron was. You had found yourself being pressed against it so many times, that you had familiarized yourself quite well with it at this point. But the thought of poking a needle through it had never crossed your mind.

“I don’t know. Maybe? There’s truly only one way to find out”.

“But baby, what if I break your plastron instead?”

“It’ll heal. Have you already forgotten this beautiful body as mutagen running in it? I can heal in no time!”

“But”, you said in thought. “Aren’t your shell and plastron also bulletproof?”

“But Angelcakes!”, Mikey pouted. “It could be so sick with a tattoo like that! I would look so good!”

“But you already look good Mikey”, you giggled.

“I know but still”.

You sighed. It was no use trying to argue with him about it. It would take either your needle or his plastron cracking slightly before he would drop the topping, so therefore you finally agreed with your silly turtle of a boyfriend.

“Yes!” Mikey fist pumped the air before giving you a quick kiss. “I knew you couldn’t resist the thought of me with a stomach tattoo!”

You laughed, shaking your head, before going to your room to find your supplies. Mikey already had a very clear idea of what he wanted. He wanted he and his brothers’ birth year of 1999 tattooed over his plastron, in good old gothic lettering. It actually relieved you that he hadn’t chosen anything more detailed. You just wanted to practice, not rival his name sake.

It didn’t take long before you had finished the stencil and placed it on your boyfriend, before telling him to go look at it in the mirror. You couldn’t help but smile, as Mikey started posing in front of the mirror. The 1999 on his plastron, still dark purple from the stencil ink.

“Yup! I like it! Lets go!”, Mikey said, jumping back towards you with a big smile. “I’m ready!”

“You cute goofball”, you laughed, guiding him towards your couch. “Come and lay down”.

Michelangelo did as you told him, and laid down on his shell, with his hands comfortably behind his head, watching with a smile as you sat yourself down. That smile could easily make butterflies erupt in your stomach, and it did so in that very moment, right as you dipped your needle in the ink.

To your surprise, the needle glided over Mikey’s plastron easily. It was almost easier than on real skin, and closer to the fake skin you usually would practice on. You didn’t even had to spread the surface with your other hand. Mikey seemed to enjoy himself.

“Do you feel anything?”, you asked, wiping the tattoo. It stayed pretty well.

“I can feel it, but it doesn’t hurt. It’s a little strange to be honest”.

“Strange or not, I still think you're cute”.

Mikey smiled, hinting at you to come closer. You removed the needle from his plastron and leaned closer to his face, before being met by him in a sweet kiss. You giggled before returning to his plastron to continue his tattoo.

“I am the luckiest man and turtle in this world”, Mikey then said. “I have the hottest girlfriend there is, and she makes some pretty awesome tattoos. I’ll say I got the best of both worlds”.

You giggled, shaking your head one more time, feeling a blush grow on your face. What did you do to deserve this guy?

With Mikey not feeling any pain from his tattoo, and the fact that you didn’t have to spread anything or do much, it didn’t take long before Mikey’s plastron tattoo was finished. You were throwing the used needle out in the kitchen trash can, when suddenly a question popped into your head.

“How long does it take for your plastron to heal?”

“Not long”, Mikey answered, drinking casually from a Capri Sun by your side, poking slightly at the new numbers on his front. “I think it will be healed by tomorrow”.

“So you don’t need any aftercare at all?”, you asked, pulling his hand away from his tattoo.

“Depends”, he started, placing the Capri Sun on the counter, before wrapping his arms around you, nuzzling his face closer to yours. “What kind of aftercare are we talking about?”

“Dork”, you laughed.

“Hey, don’t deny what we both know will happen”, he said, getting ever closer to your lips.

“When your tattoo is healed, Mikey”.

“Oh well, would you look at that”, Mikey said, pointing towards his plastron. “I’m already healing”.

After that night, Mikey would definitely be asking for more tattoos from you.

—-------------------------------------------------

I need another tattoo soon…

[fungalittleweirdo]

Yandere Rise Donatello Designer "Catch Stitch" AU

okay, hear me out.

let me give context for this concept idea first (you could skip the next paragraph if you don't care, i'm just weird, i promise i start discussing the concept right after this next paragraph trust me)

i am a huge fan of this one designer in new york, bella pietro, her work is amazing. i was able to attend her bridal line debut fashion show in person this past sunday and got to speak with her very briefly. she's very lovely, relatable, super down to earth, and humble. she is also one of the influences for my own jewellery line, but this isn't the point i'm making, i'm going insanely off topic. i thought about what it would be like being a clothes designer in nyc.

donatello is the founder and ceo (at least, that's canonically what i'm led to believe) of Genius Built Technologies. it's also canon he designs Genius Built Apparel. i initially had this idea and shared it on discord a while back based around donnie being a member of a discord server with other designers. these designers usually joined said server for creativity, support, sharing each others' work, and giving critiques when wanted.

imagine you, an up-and-coming designer, join this server to gain more reach. while donnie was bored looking at others' designs and critiquing them harshly when asked to, he admired your work and advocated for you so that you could gain more popularity. the two of you accepted each other's friend requests and started talking in dms. he admired your work and thought it was cute how you were slowly rising in the industry, but you needed the right connections to actually get things going. you started getting seamstresses and a manager, but that took your time away from donnie.

donnie might have found out you lived in new york, that was when he suggested a meet-up for a collaboration. he was excited when you said yes, and a GB Apparel x For You line was in the works for when the two of you started discussing potential pieces. your crew got a little upset when you put all your attention on the collaborative project, especially your manager, and they thought it was a bad idea. you thought about listening to them and backing away to work on the collab line in the future. donnie... didn't really like that.

he loved spending time with you, as hard as it was for him to admit it. he adored the way you drew your designs, the face you made when you focused and shrimped over your tablet to get the details just right. he told you to adjust your posture, and you did it with a stretch, you ran your fingers through your hair he so badly wanted to run his fingers through instead. donnie hated the thought of having that taken away from him. once you told him you wanted to file away the collaborative project for another time, he managed to manipulate and gaslight convince you into believing your manager has the wrong idea, because his own brand was well known and high quality.

you hesitantly agreed with him and your crew began getting a distaste for you when you arrived late to meetings, made decisions with poor judgement, and delayed your own projects in favour of working with donatello instead. what you didn't know is that donnie anonymously emailed them all to quit their jobs with you because you were practically not working with them anymore. your crew moved on to work with other local designers. you didn't think much of it, you were aware people in this business would come and go, they would find other people to work for and it's no big deal, because you could sew your designs yourself.

besides, donatello had been a big help, he lent you his sewing machines that literally sewed by themselves. your own fall line had been presented on a runway at a moderately sized venue, a team curated by donatello organised it as if he were your manager. everyone on the server the two of you met on barely showed their support at first, until you got incoming praises and compliments from everyone after donatello's worship of you was sent in the runway channel. you were unaware to the fact that donatello threatened everyone with their careers if they didn't support you.

everyone seemed beginning to dislike you, your fans acknowledged that it didn't seem to be you at fault because your head was still held up high, staying positive and thanking anyone who bothered to take a look at your collection. donatello was working behind the scenes to isolate you as much as possible. he didn't want anyone taking you away from him because you were his precious fashion genius, your ideas complement his. that's why GB Apparel x For You is going to rock the fashion world, he had thought, deep in his delusions of spending more time with you. one look at you and it had his heart beating out of his chest.

your workspace in his apartment was a mess, fabrics everywhere, sketchbooks and a couple tablets (courtesy of Genius Built Technologies) with plenty of space for designs and you sat on the floor with your hair a mess and new glasses (those were courtesy from donatello himself) on your face after staring at the screens for so long. the softshell simply watched you work, enamoured and savouring the way you find his apartment more comfortable to work in because yours is already so cluttered.

donatello was so proud to see the results of your collaboration, he kissed the top of your head and held you close. you've had affectionate friends before, but you had only intimately known donnie for a few months. sure, he was one of the turtles that saved new york years ago, not to mention his brand even climbed up the ranks for a place in paris fashion week alongside balenciaga and valentino... so you knew him... but you didn't ask for this. you used to have more friends, lovely colleagues. whatever happened to that ?

of course, once the collab line debuted in the spring you went back to work, you designed a men's fall line you thought would grab people's attention. it certainly snatched donatello's, when he called you frequently and realised you were parting from him to work on your own, it pissed him off. he wanted to know what you were hiding. you hesitantly let him in on a day when you were being interviewed by april for press, dressed up for photography and not for him. you're only for him, no one should see you except when you're beside him. he lashed out at you in front of april, upset that you weren't telling him your plans since the GB Apparel x For You collaboration, and april took notes of the drama. not for press purposes at all, but to tell his brothers.

you didn't see donatello for a while after that, to which you were glad. you felt a weight finally slipped off your shoulders as you rebuilt your community. people didn't know that donatello was the one at fault for your darkest moments. you rebuilt your community over the course of a year, making new connections and finally making it into new york fashion week all by your own efforts, not by donatello's.

it was when he showed up at your door everything went downhill again. he pushed his way back into your life, asking for a spring GB Apparel x For You line even though he already started on his own designs, incorporating style that you would add due to how well he already knew you. over the year he had been gone, he watched how you grew and connected with other people in the soho fashion scene. the thought made his skin crawl. it irked him to know you were out and about, perhaps having dinner with your new manager, or spending hours at a time with your new seamstresses after you threw out the sewing machines he so lovingly gifted to you.

all he wanted was to share his world with you, have you live in lavish luxury like you deserve. you said no. you already had ideas for your spring line which would be presented in london along with new york, you didn't have time to collaborate with him. donnie threw another tantrum in your apartment, this time feeling a lot more destructive. he threw your decorations everywhere, then held up some of your supplies to set them on fire. it scared you into submission, telling him yes, putting off your own projects to move into his apartment and get to working with him on the next collab line.

things were different this time. donatello was a lot more clingy, literally working alongside you as the two of you designed the thirty-piece collection, he made gentle suggestions and leaned in close, added and subtracted things on what you already drew. the two of you had ordered takeout sometimes and he would be the only one allowed to receive the food. you felt trapped. there was nothing you could do about it, just accept your fate.

you disappeared off the tabloids, no one knew where you went, not even april. donnie kept you away for his eyes only, wrapping his arms around you at every chance he got, nuzzling into your neck from behind as you tried to break through the parental locks donatello placed on your tablets. that won't work, darling, he said, a smirk on his face you could feel against your skin. it made you sick, your stomach churning at the thought that you might stay in your captor's arms forever.

[cimmerian1275]

Sooooo, Oiraon's hmmm, theyre a pretty cool fantasy/made up species of evolved/mutant bird (Almost a gryphon/dragon but not quite!) that i am so totally not obsessed with uhuh yep!

Im not gonna info dump about them since thatll take forever but you can find out more about them here at the Oiraon Website

So, i think i have an obsession with tmnt? mmmh? yeahhhh, combine that with my love of birds and art and uh oh what did i accidentally create jdfhdjfhdjfhs

I wasnt originally gonna turn the gang into Oiraon's, but i was messing around with ideas and stuff when i realized my rottmnt obsession definitely influenced the design i was making (im not talking about this one, but another design i cant share quite just yet :P) when i realized that, heeeyyy i essentially accidentally just turned *insert name here* into an Oiraon xD

SO... after realizing how cool and fun of an idea it would be to turn Raph, Donnie, Leo and Mikey into an Oiraon i couldnt stop myself <3

Here we have: Mikey as an Oiraon!

Essentially, i challenged myself to get the "vibe" of whoever i was turning into an Oiraon come across in the design! Without yk, using their original names n stuff while adding my own personal flair.

I felt like an absolute genius borrowing the shell patterns and using those on his wings/neck i am 100% biased imo it looks AWESOME. This one is by far my second favourite (Leo's Oiraon is my fav, cant reveal him yet but youll agree with me when i do >:))

Theyre all getting different names that have a loose definition or meaning (because its FUN!! and feels weird if i keep the og name) SOOO, the name "Anatolius" is Greek for "sunrise" and "from the east". I feel like that fits them really nicely, PLUS its got so much nickname potential!!! My best friend nicknamed them Ant and i cant stop chuckling each time i remember xD

In Oiraon society theres lots of professions many can fill in and for this guy, OBVIOUSLY, i decided to make him an artisan because DUH!? Ofc he would be!!! And as a sign of being an artisan, they need a poncho <3

Ant works with paints, dyes, and fabrics. I imagine hes perfected a business of dying/painting feathers (Tzaoul' is's wings are his number 1 canvas) and makes absolutely beautiful desert scarves/shawls.

(fyi idk how to design apparel) i guesstimated whatever looked nice and ended up with this design that i kinda wish was real because id love to wear smth like it myself.

This is 1/4 of em, currently as of right now ive finished 3/4 and im only struggling on designing Raph's Oiraon interpretation (red is so hard for me to incorporate into a design??? wheeze)

[vintagenetwork]

All I've Ever Desired: Resurfaced Memories

2012!Leo x Fashion Model Reader

A/N: Hi tumblr! Okay, please bare with me because I'm a little new to this place, but I've been DYING to write this ongoing series. Hope you enjoy! :)

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

You were a fashion model, he was a crime-fighting leader in blue. You and Leo shared a long past as friends back in highschool, hoping to grow even closer than ever. You were going abroad to Italy to pursue the dream of becoming a fashion designer, then return back to NYC just like you planned. Until one day you got separated from the family after the Krang took over New York, leaving the turtles to run to April’s farm house while you were nowhere to be found. Three years have passed, and an upcoming fashion show is taking place in the city. As advertisements covered the streets, Leo would've never believed the girl who stole his heart and disappeared would be starring the front covers.

Word count: 2.2k

Warnings: Angst, use of Y/N

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

The sound of laughter rang through the cool night air, I watched my brothers sit in a circle as April walked toward them with a box of pizza in hand. We just had to celebrate another mission, I wasn’t too fond of being so out in the open though, especially with how loud Mikey was talking and the recent discovery last night. It was one thing to deal with the Krang, but now them working alongside the Footclan? Could’ve fooled me. “Always on the lookout, aren’t you, Blue?” Her voice chirped from behind. I could already see the smile painted on her face as her footsteps grew closer. “Someone’s gotta keep watch,” I muttered in response, leaning back against a wall. She sighed as she swung her legs over the edge of the rooftop. “You know I was against us coming back up here. We’re supposed to lay low, especially now that the Footclan is teaming up with the Krang.” “You worry too much, you know that?” She tilted her head back toward me, that smug smile still on her face. That damn smug smile. “I mean, there’s nothing wrong with that, but, if you keep this up you’re gonna start like, shedding your shell from stress-!” “Turtles don’t shed.” She huffed a laugh as she shook her head.

“Yes, they do. And what I’m trying to say is that you need to relax, Leo,” I watched her swing her legs back onto the rooftop, dusting her pants off before walking toward me.  “You and the gang deserve a break-! Besides, how many more times are you gonna get moments like this?” Our direction turned toward Mikey belching in Raph’s face, a visible vein throbbing on his forehead as he clenched his fists.

However, before I could make my way over to break up an upcoming fight, the sudden warmth that enveloped my hand caused me to freeze. 

“You’re an amazing older brother and leader,” Y/N continued, her fingers slipping in between mine. “They all look up to you, and they know they can depend on you. Even Raph. We’ll be ready when the Krang and Footclan come down our path. But for now, you need to take one shell of a break.” I felt my eyes roll to the back of my head at that last sentence, her laughter at the ridiculous pun cracking me a smile. 

“You’re gonna tell me all of that then ruin the moment for a stupid pun? Guess you can call me shell-shocked.” Now her eyes were rolling back as she tried to hide her smile.

“Hey-! If you guys still want your slice, you better hurry up before Mr. No-Manners downs it in the next three seconds!” Raph called out, headlocking Mikey to the ground as he chanted ‘uncle’ endlessly. Casey filmed the whole showcase, cackling like a witch as Donnie poked Raph with the end of his staff in hope to calm things down (things did not calm down). The two of us exchanged a small smile before walking back to join the rest of the group, my hand still clasping hers before we released hold. For a split second, it felt as if she didn’t want to let go just yet.

I didn’t either.

⇷^⇸

“Thanks for getting pizza this time, April,” You sighed, plopping next to her orange-haired friend in exhaustion. “I know how packed that stupid pizza parlor can get.” “No worries, I get my pay back when one of these four scare the hell outta those delivery guys on their little vespas,” She laughed in response, sliding the box toward you. “Speaking of vespas… are you gonna… you know?” You froze mid-bite at April, choking on the dough, tomato sauce, and cheese as the boys turned their attention to your coughing fit.

“I, uhm, I was hoping to… tell them a little later,” You squeaked in response. The sound of your nails digging into the styrofoam plate caused Donnie to raise a non-existent eyebrow, his brown eyes meeting Leo’s confused look.

“Is there something you wanna tell us, Y/N?” You jumped at Donnie’s question as you lifted your gaze from the plate. Now your look met everyone’s stares, including April’s supportive one. 

“Nope! Well… Not uh, really relevant until later this year,” You replied, biting the inside of your cheek.

“Oooooo! What’s happening later this year?” Mikey teased as he laid flat on his plastron. “You getting married~?” “WHAT?!” You and Leo screeched, Leo’s voice however, was much more high-pitched. As Leo looked away from the eyes on him, you scrambled to get your words together. “I am NOT getting married, Mikey. Let me make that clear to EVERYONE.” “So, if you aren’t getting married,” Casey started, freezing mid sentence at your glare.

“Then what’s happening ‘later this year?’” Raph finished, resting his arm on his knee. Now the spotlight turned back to you, silence along with the faint car honks leaving you to respond. You dug your fingers into your pants, trying to spill the words like a can of beans. This really was one shell of a situation. Heh, Leo would’ve loved that…Leo…

“April, Casey, and…uh, turtles,” You started, taking in a deep breath. Another few moments of silence passed as you felt your throat slowly starting to close up. But, you knew you had to get this over with, the weight will probably kill you at this point if you don't tell the truth. 

“I’m gonna be moving abroad for school in three months. I’ll be in Italy for college to become a designer. Fashion designer specifically.” As you paused for a moment, you saw the shocked faces of your friends before you. April gave your hand a gentle squeeze to continue.

“I… don’t know when I’ll be back specifically,” You dropped your head, staring at the leftover pizza crust. By now, Mikey would’ve snatched and stuffed it in his mouth, but from the sudden change in atmosphere, you understand why it’s still sitting on the plate. “And I would turn down the offer to go to school here-” “Then why won’t you?!” Casey blurred out as he sat up straight. “NYU is only, what,  a couple of blocks away? Wouldn’t it be cheaper to stay here and take whatever fashion class they had? You’ll probably be saving an arm and a leg flying over there AND renting a dorm-!” Even though none of them showed it, the brothers agreed in silence as they looked back at you for a response. “She’s going to Italy because she got a full scholarship, dingus,” April glared at his interruption. “If she could stay here she obviously would. But, it’s her life and her choices to make, not ours… even though… I wish I could convince you outta this somehow.” With a light hearted chuckle, April released your hand as she stood up, clenching her fists.

“I wasn’t planning on telling you guys yet, especially with everything going on but… I’m a little glad I got it done and over with. Probably would’ve hurt more if I told you later on anyways.” Your heart ached at the turtles’ stares, especially Leo’s. Just looking at his eyes spoke millions of words, his lips slightly agape as you looked away. But two words specifically rang in your head after reading his plea:

 Don’t go.

“WE’LL MISS YOUUUUUUUU~!” Mikey cried as he wrapped his arms around your neck, full on wailing into your shoulder. You chuckled softly as you patted the back of his shell trying to soothe the youngest brother. You were gonna miss the sewer murals you’ve worked on together…

“Hey hey, calm down, Mikey! It’s not like I’m leaving tomorrow!” You tried to brush it off, gently prying Mikey off you to look into his eyes. “We still have another good three months together, and you already know damn well we're gonna make the best of it.” “So you’ll finally try my homemade pizza-bite cereal and grand algae slushies?!” “Don’t push your luck.” “Worth a shot.”

“This was really unexpected, Y/N…” Donnie rubbed the back of his neck as he stood up. “B-but of course, we’ll wish the best for you in Italy! The architecture and landmarks there are astounding, especially with the history behind them. Uh, promise to send us photo cards?” “I promise I’m gonna call you guys everyday, Don,” You grinned as you offered a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder. “Maybe you can give me a history lesson about the country, or show me tips on how to survive over there.” Donnie’s sad expression wavered at your response, his smile growing as he patted the back of your hand.

“Hey, think about the positives-!” Raph said, resting his elbow on top of Mikey’s head. “She’ll be heading off to pursue her dreams and we finally have more room in the lair! No more listening to hair dryers early in the morning or her screwing up our missions somehow.” The group, especially Leo, all turned to glare at the him as he let out a chuckle. You did the same though, shaking your head as you laughed to yourself.

“Oh, I’m so gonna miss you, big guy,” You sighed, wrapping your arms around his neck. “I’ll make sure I’ll make Mikey find the best possible ways to annoy you in my honor…” Raph scoffed as he placed his hands on his sides, feeling the weight of your chin on his shoulder. “Promise me you’ll always take good care of the family…alright?” Within the silence, you smiled to yourself as you felt a hand gently pat your lower back in response.

“Three months away, so right when we graduate you’re kissing April and I goodbye?” Casey questioned as he leaned on his hockey stick. “Guess it’s back to good ol’ Red and I. Why’s it always the chicks that gotta leave?” Casey was immediately met with scolding from April, playfully smacking his head while he cowered and tried to shield himself.

You pulled your gaze away from April’s parenting instincts to turn to Leo, who just happened to be staring back at you. Stepping away from the group’s loud antics, you and the turtle stood infront of each other as the once melodic mood turned melancholic. 

“I was planning to tell you first, by the way,” You broke the silence, holding onto yourself as you tried to keep your composition. “Leo, please trust me when I searched for so many different ways to try and come to this outcome. And… Now the more I think of it, the more I’m starting to regret i-”You were cut off mid sentence, however, as a pair of hands held yours ever so gently. You remained quiet once Leo gave you a serious yet soft look. 

“Y/N, I don’t want you to be reluctant about your goals because of  us,” Leo started, his thumb softly brushing back and forth against the back of your hand. “Getting a scholarship is amazing, and I’m genuinely proud of you. You’ve made your choices and you have your dreams, so hurry up and chase them. Then, come back to us, alright?”

You felt water appear at your lash line, you thought you were gonna break down right then and there from the sweet words the turtle had to say. Quickly, you two hugged each other as tight as possible, faces burying into each others’ shoulders as you refused to let go. You were going to miss goofing off with Mikey, learning from Donnie, pissing off Raph, hanging out with Casey and April… but most of all you were going to miss your leader in blue.

“I’ll be back here before you guys know it,” You smiled, reluctantly pulling away from his grip. “Besides, three months to hang around with you guys? That’s more than enough time to have a Space Heroes marathon, no?” You could feel Leo’s smile  as he chuckled to himself, the two of you walking side by side back toward the group.

“More than enough time…” He repeated to himself. Maybe for once, life would treat him and his brothers right. They’ll get rid of any dangers lurking within the city, he’ll become a true leader, and he’ll spend as much time with his friends before they all go their separate ways.

.

.

.

But life isn’t always fair; it never was, in fact.

Krang everywhere. The skies were rolling with gray, not a pinch of sunlight shining down on the chaotic streets of NYC. The screams and wails of citizens grew louder as droids destroyed anything and everything in its path. One thing led to another, from April accidentally bringing a droid to the lair, to Leo and Splinter getting separated from the group, everything felt like a blur.

The gang was crowded in April’s apartment. Everyone was arguing on how to get out of the city, where to go and how to get there. It was quickly interrupted when a turtle in a blue mask flew through the window, shattered glass flying everywhere. Hearts dropped the moment he came crashing down onto the floor.

Leo swore he could’ve heard the desperate cries of his name as his vision faded in and out of view. Why couldn’t he move? Why couldn’t he get up and tell everyone that he’s okay and they had to find Master Splinter? 

Why couldn’t he be strong?

The last thing Leo remembered was his brothers laying him down in the back of a van, the engine humming as doors slammed shut. Then he heard a scream, punches flying and struggle depicted. The weight of his brothers on the car was lifted followed by more faint screaming and yelling. Some were of anguish, others were in anger and frustration. Their voices kept on repeating a name… your name.

Again, everything was a blur. After waking up after who knows how long, Raph explained to him about how they escaped to April’s old farmhouse and everything that happened… almost everything.

“As we were getting into the van, some special force group…” Donnie started, lowering his head toward the ground. “They saw us, and assumed we were the bad guys… or, something like that.” “She charged toward them as they started shooting at the van,” Raph sounded tired, he looked just as tired physically. “They didn’t aim at her, thankfully. But… they took her.” Leo nearly collapsed forward before April and Mikey helped him settle on the sofa, feeling more dizzy than ever. You’ve been taken? You’ve been in danger this whole time and here he was, unable to even stand up for more than five minutes. Fear overcame him, not only for Master Splinter or his family, but for you too. 

The moment they returned to New York, successfully defeating the Krang and reuniting with Master Splinter, everyone searched top to bottom. April broke into your apartment, but the paint on the walls crumbling off and trash scattered across the floor showed that no one has been here for a long time. Donnie tried calling your phone, your T-phone, emailing, even trying to get in contact with your parents to get word that you’re okay somehow. Defeat never felt heavier.

Everyone was drained, but the person taking it the hardest was Leo. Calling your phone just to listen to your voice on the voicemail, or dropping by your old apartment to collect anything special lying around. The night he found a picture of you on your vanity, he decided that was the last thing to grab before avoiding that building for the rest of his life. Now that beautiful photo of you was placed on the shelf in the dojo, resting next to the family portrait of Master Splinter and his first family. 

Eventually, time passed and life went by, yet things seemingly never changed within the family. Other than April and Casey starting a relationship together and his brothers still being the goofballs, you were nothing more than a memory. Crime in New York had dropped tremendously thanks to the gang, and for once, they could all finally live without any problems.

One night, however, everything would change. As the brothers got ready to cut their nightly patrol short due to an incoming storm, the four turtles hopped down a nearby fire escape. Leo watched Mikey step on the cold metal plate, but something distracted him, leading him to gasp wide and sway back and forth. “DUDES-!” Mikey yelled, catching his balance with the railing. “That billboard! Right over there! IS that-?!”

His brothers’ attention turned where he was pointing, focusing on a newly installed billboard in the distance. It was for one of those super fancy fashion brands, the bright gold font was almost eyestraining. It featured the title, “Bellezza Per Sempre’’ and a girl wearing a feather boa and black dress, smiling wide with her eyes shut. Leo froze in his tracks as he looked at the girl. No. It couldn’t be. 

His brothers called out his name as he leaped toward the billboard, but he ignored them. His focus was only on one thing as he grew closer and closer. Sliding across the rooftop adjacent to the advertisement, Leo ignored his burning lungs and shaky hands, he couldn’t believe it. It really was…

“Y/N…” Was all he managed to utter before the rain started falling from the night sky.

[caram3lla]

I just couldnt merge the two series so I made separate ones. To be fair, I haven’t really read 4koa so my opinion may be misguided but whatever (and I also haven’t watched 7ds in a while also, so…) PLEASE hear me out anyway😭🙏

I don’t have much to say about favorite character, I’m literally in love with Howzer and I’ve never loved a character as much as him. for Chion, he’s just an asshole and that’s enough for me. He has a lot of potential as a character and I’m really excited for him in the series, I would not be his friend IRL though because he would literally be the worst person to be around. And you know what, everyone can hate him but I will always appreciate him😚💖Gilthunder, Diane and Donny are runner ups for fav character!

To be honest, I don’t TOTALLY dislike Ban but…idk. I don’t like him very much, but not only for the very obvious Elaine related reasons. Something he did at the beginning of 7ds kinda stuck with me, when he tried to kill Meliodas to get Elaine back. I guess it’s supposed to be, like, heartbreaking that he wants his woman back so bad he’d kill his best friend???? Mid battle???? Like girl this is not about you rn😭 Idk if my friend tried to kill me to get her boyfriend back, I think I’d have to kill her idk that’s just me😭 and I’m really sorry to the Ban fans because I know he’s a good character and I get that he becomes a better friend later, that scene just stuck with me though

I feel like this might not be a super unpopular opinion but I didn’t really like Escanor at first. Ig I just didn’t really care about him. I like his night time self, he’s very sweet and dorky. The thing I like about SUPER confident and cocky characters is them getting taken down a notch, which he was, twice, so it’s fine. For Tristan, I’m so sorry but I really didn’t care for him at all😭 Before I read most of the scenes with him in it, I thought he was SOOOO bland and boring. Like, he was just nice, and loved, and that’s it. He seems like a character that thinks everything is his fault, which isnt a problem with him or his character, I just don’t really like characters like that. I like that he looks more like Elizabeth, I think that’s nice. Anyway I like him now and I think he’s more complex than I thought before!

I dislike Guinevere for the obvious reasons that everyone hates her for so I don’t have much to say😭I guess to cover the least favorite ship category, I don’t like her and Lancelot together and that one scene was super weird. I like her design tbh, she’s super cute, but yeah…

I honestly don’t dislike Veronica, I just like her design more than her herself😭She’s super caring and sweet, and loyal, just very abrasive sometimes. When she interacts with people and her family especially, you can tell that she really cares, even if she’s kinda mean. Anyway I love da bob and her dress, it’s very cute😌 on the flip side, I like Tioreh herself WAY more than her design. I honestly cannot pin down what I don’t like about her design, I just really really don’t like it😭 I’m sorryyyyyy

For the fav ships, I don’t have too much explaining to do (I’m gonna keep saying that and I’m lying every single time). For Gilthunder x Howzer, I just really love the friends to lovers trope. Although a One-sided! Howzer x Gilthunder is probably more realistic. Anyway I love their friendship as it is :) To be honest I never liked rivals to lovers until this Chion x Donny phase I have going on right now, I have no explanation for this I just think they’re cute.

Elizabeth is super sweet, and honestly I don’t mind her voice, she is such a caring friend. Jade is just like, the most normal character I think ever so I would be his friends irl, probably😭

I would NOT be friends with Gowther, I feel like he would expose me so often, and like, one of my biggest fears is that someone is reading my mind, so he’s literally my nightmare, and I don’t wanna know him😭

Anyway I’m done yapping now, thank you for reading this if your at this point lol

[creehd]

SURPRISE!! its me again, ive moved into your walls.

Now... *flips through notes* You said Shredder is a Yakuza boss, which is just a delectable choice, and i shant ever get over it--

--BUUUUUT because hes Yakuza, does that mean hes...covered in tattoos? 👁👁

I meeean, i can kinda see some tattoos in the reference you drew for him, but i think we might need a shirtless reference, fOR SCIENTIFIC REASONS OF COURSEEEEE, absolutely no other reason.

I definitely dont wanna just see that buff man shirtless hahah nooooo *heavy breathing*

BUT ON A NOT SIMPING NOTE--

What is the Turtle's living situation like??? Is it still in the sewers? Do Casey and April visit them there? How different is their home in the AU compared to the modern depictions? I cant imagine sewers in the 20's were to much different than sewers now, but im still very curious :]

Sorry for the never ending questions skajsksks

YES shredder does have tattoos! Alot of em are traditional Japanese dragon design ones, I will map out what his chest and back tats look like don't you worry-

AS FOR THE SEWER QUESTION IM GLAD YOU ASKEDDD I made the entire turtle lair in the sims bc of this ask SO here we are,

The entrance to the sewers is pretty basic, shoot off to 6 open rooms,

Splinters room!! He's a pretty solitary guy so he has a place for meditation and a cozy lil chair he falls asleep in constantly.

Here's the rec room/kitchen, Lotta areas for food making and eating, and a piano Mikey plays every now and again for everyone! They also have a dinky little TV set donnie managed to snag. (Infront the couch)

The dojo!! Pretty basic, this is where the boys do their training!

The bathroom/storage! Very rustic and stolen and or built by Donatello. Lotta extra stuff splinter brought over from japan and misc living stuff for the family.

Now for the boys rooms!!!

Leo and Donatello share a room, leo keeps model trains and tons of books donnie can't house on his side, he's also got several Japanese tapestries to keep in touch with his heritage. He also has alot of art deco posters, he enjoys the colors and movement of them. He also keeps track of scout badges he's collected, because while be can't BE a boyscout, he loves the idea of scouting and following that code of values.

Donnies side is much more technical. He tinkers and builds things while listening to the radio, he'll turn it on for both him and Leo while they do respective activities. He also has Japanese tapestries, mostly because when the boys were small splinter got them each their own, and he never took it down. He's got tons of books and maps, and more physics leaning posters.

On the other side of the sewer, Raphel and Mikey share a room, in the middle they have a Foosball table they both enjoy from time to time, but on raphs side, he's got a punching bag (go figure) and a stereo radio phonograph, along with a chest of his things, his favorite stuffed toy, some art deco posters and a painting Mikey made him, along with a portrait of Casey, and a cow skull. He's taken the tapestry splinter gave him down. Says it clashes with the rest.

And last but not least! Mikey has the brightest part of the sewer, he enjoys plants, and taking care of them, he says they add life to the home. Along with several paintings he's done and art deco posters he enjoys! He's got a desk for Journaling and an easel for his portraits. He's also got his Japanese tapestry hung, it gives him inspiration.

All and all, not too different from their modern counterparts! I tried to make my little diorama art project as time period accurate as I could, for the sims yknow, but I think I did a pretty good job expressing my vision (although there was a sewer grate I COULD NOT find for the life of me so I just pretended don't look at it too hard)

April and casey visit on occasion, after all the portrait of Casey was painted by mikey!! Raph just felt... sentimental about keeping it. April visits less, due to grime, but she cares about her friends and can look past it after a good shower.

AND DONT YOU WORRY- I'll make a shredder tattoo masterpost, he's not covered head to toe, but he's pretty well inked up..

I had fun working on this alot tho!! Never apologize ur giving me an excuse to post about my brain worms

Questions or suggestions??? ASK BOX IS OPENNNNN ASK ME ABOUT MY 20S AU

[obsidiancreates]

Out Of The Shadows and Into The Neon (Part 12)

“For the last time, Mikey, I’m not putting a cottage cheese monster in our comic!” Raph pulls the paper away from his little brother. 

“But Raaaaaph!”

“No! It’s totally lame!”

“Not as lame as a big bug!”

“Hey, bugs are dangerous! Remember what your dad said about how the totally-unknown-evil-scientist-guy used mosquitos to make mutants!”

“That’s different!”

“IS NOT!”

“IS TOO!”

“YOU-!” Raph growls, and then closes his eyes. Mikey blinks, and scoots away as Raph times his breathing to calm down. He opens his eyes again and calmly says, “You’re just saying it’s different because you’re mad I’m not putting in the monster.”

Mikey crosses his arms and looks away. “I think it’s cool.”

“... Fine. But you gotta draw him!”

Mikey lights up. “Alright!”

Leo passes a page with a messy drawing of a New York street to Donnie, who starts sketching a vehicle (a sort of modified van) racing down the road. Their styles clash- Leo’s, while still being the uncoordinated style of a child, bears a striking resemblance to traditional Japanese painting styles. Donnie’s, however, shows that he clearly draws for Blueprints more often than he does for Fun. When he finishes up the sketch he passes the page to Raph who, with a skill that’s extremely impressive for a 10-year-old, adds in two figures in the little windshield and two crouched on top of the van. Finally Raph passes the page to Mikey, who gleefully and not-quite-as-skillfully adds in his monster.

“This can be a dream,” Leo says, watching Mikey work a white crayon down to naught but a nub. “And then we– I mean, they, can… um…”

“Fight alien robots?” Mikey looks at Leo with wide, watery eyes, clasping his hands together. “I had a dream we fought alien robots! Just like our dads!”

“Hey, I dreamt that too.” Donnie looks down and starts sketching. “And they all talked funny.”

“Talked stupid.” Raph leans over Donnie’s shoulder. “Lemme add the brain thing in the middle.”

“What about ninjas?” Leo looks through the papers, and holds up a drawing he did before they all agreed to make One Big Comic together. “Robot ninjas!” 

Mikey gasps, eyes sparkling. “How about both?!”

“No way they can fight both!” Donnie looks at the one finished page, the four small totally-not-self-insert figures facing off against the cottage cheese monster. “That’s way too many bad guys!”

“Nuh-uh!” Mikey springs up and does a backflip, landing in a defensive stance. “They can totally do it!”

“The numbers are totally against them!” Donnie chews on the end of his pencil. “... Unless… we give them friends?”

Raph smirks. “You just wanna add your imaginary friend in.”

“Well she was in my dream about the alien robots anyway!”

“How about we can all add one friend for them in?” Leo flips the page with the robot ninja over and starts drawing. “I’m going to give them a wise sensei.”

“Fine. Then, I’m giving the coolest possible human friend ever.” Raph starts his own design. “If Auntie Cass and Uncle Casey were one person!”

“Then I’m adding in Leatherhead!” Mikey gets to work, the drawing coming easily, as he’s drawn the character dozens of times before.

Donnie just sticks his tongue out as he draws a red-haired human girl. 

Mikey laughs and kicks his feet in the air. “This comic is gonna be awesome!”

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draxum sits, stewing, as Angelo delicately places the last band-aid on his forehead. Angelo chuckles and taps the cartoon unicorn on it for good luck, then slides away.

“Maybe next time you will call instead of dropping into our sewers unannounced,” Splints says with barely-hidden amusement.

“Maybe next time you will not leave four rocket-powered skateboards blasting around your sewers!” Draxum snips back.

“Hey! Enough fighting for the day. Raphie’s taking a nap.” Raphie is, indeed, taking a nap on his giant beanbag, his mask turned backwards to cover his eyes. He has truly become A Dad.

“It would also have been nice to know my grandson is grounded from our chemistry lessons before I made my way here.” Draxum glares at Donald, ignoring Raphie’s demand for peace.

“Of course, let me just install a ‘Grounded Alert’ on your phone so you know every time he is unable to make it!” Donald says, tossing his arms up and rolling his eyes. He pauses, and holds his hand out. “I did mean that, actually, let me install that while you’re here.”

Draxum hands over his phone, and Donald gets to work. “I think it’s ridiculous you grounded your boys for being warriors.”

“For doing everything we told them not to,” Leon says, rubbing his eyes. “You know, no offense Barry, but I hate when you weigh in on our parenting decisions. … On second thought, full offense.”

Draxum shrugs, pursing his lips. Unbothered. “Perhaps I’d have less to say if you agreed on sending them to my school.”

“For the last time, it’s not happening! We dealt with enough weird mystic lunchroom situations when April went to school there!”

“I have it under control! Joseph is a fine young meat-man now!”

“Not! Happening!”

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Okay, now draw my character going like, h-wahhhhhh!” Mikey demonstrates with several flips, landing with a chop. “And then, HYAH!” He pretends to whip his ‘chuck chains around Raph’s legs and pull. 

“I’m adding one or the other, not both!”

“Then add the flips! Nothing beats backflips.”

Donnie pauses coloring in the graffiti on the buildings. “Why do I feel like we’ve had this conversation before?”

Mikey shrugs. “Because… backflips are awesome?”

Leo passes Donnie another finished background page. “I get that a lot too. Feeling like we talked about or did something before.”

“Done something,” Donnie absently corrects. “It’s called Deja Vu. … Maybe it comes from whatever our Ninpos will be?”

“Wait, you think we’ll get those?” Raph passes his page to Mikey so Mikey can add the bad guys. “But we aren’t, you know. Blood.”

“But we are Hamato, aren’t we?” Donnie takes the time to draw in his added character, the human girl. He’s calling her Red. He adds yellow waves of power around her. “And it’s a spiritual thing. Not really a DNA thing.”

“How do you know?” Mikey licks a lollipop and uses it as ‘glue’ to stick the new page to the rest of them.

“... I guess I don’t.” Donnie sits up, putting his hands on his head. “I don’t! Guys… I’ve never looked at our DNA!”

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“They are warriors!”

“They’re kids!” Angelo puts his hands on his hips and uses his powers to rise above Draxum and glare down at him. 

“They’re their father’s sons,” Draxum argues back. “Carrying on a great legacy of battle and triumph, from all sides of their creations! … Except the turtle part, I guess.”

Raphie sits up, twists his mask back around normally. “They’re not ‘their father’s sons’ in terms of power, Barry! We did what we did because you designed us to be weapons! They weren’t made for that!”

“We don’t know what they were made for!” Draxum pulls a stone out of his apron, and it levitates up and breaks apart. It shows a strand of DNA, unlike any DNA elsewhere in the world. “A decade has gone by and we still have yet to even begin to discover what substance created them! Perhaps this drive for battle is something natural, ingrained, and repressing it will only harm them!”

Donald smacks the stone onto the ground, much to Draxum’s shock and appall. “Or perhaps you are just as stuck in your, warring warrior scientist past, as we all worried you’d be!”

“It’s hard not to harken back to it when it seems to continue being relevant!”

“ENOUGH!” Splinter jumps up, breaking the eyelines of his family’s intense stares. All eyes follow him back down to the floor as he lands on his butt and hops onto his feet. “Draxum! If you want more time with your grandsons, just say so.”

Leon laughs. “Okay Pops, cute theory but– huh?”

Draxum stands, sagging with his eyes watering and lip quivering. He quickly wipes his eyes with a mystic vine. “They are trying to become warriors and I haven’t been a part of it yet. Even if I was… on the wrong side of things, as your four grew into your potentials, I was still there to see it happen.”

“But… Donnie has weekly lessons with you.” Donald checks the calendar in his wristpad. 

“That is one grandson of four, and it is not battle.”

Angelo blinks, and lowers back to the ground. “Guys… he’s right. And maybe not just about him.” Angelo looks around. “When was the last time we shook things up? Had any one-on-one time with the boys who weren’t our own sons?”

Everyone considers– and slowly grows horrified to realize it’s all been Group Activities or Sons Only time for years now.

“No wonder they’re acting out!” Raphie hits his fist into his palm. “Remember what all those parenting books said? Enrichment, and wide social circles! We need to spend more time with our nephews doin’ stuff we don’t do as dads!” He side-eyes Draxum. “And, grandpas too, I guess.”

Draxum grins. Not without an edge to it. “Perhaps I could borrow the boys for a lesson on the basics of mystic weaponry?”

“Aw, Barry. It’s sweet that you care.” Angelo wraps an arm around Draxum’s shoulders– and then tightens it, smiling with dead eyes. “But if you take our boys near any armories, a visit from Dr. Delicate Touch will seem like a reprieve from pain.”

Draxum swallows as Angelo slips away. “Maybe just a visit to the Hidden City’s best sights, then. … The ones that are willing to welcome me.”

“And we can all plan something with our nephews.” Raphie looks around. “Like uh… Angelo can take Raph wall-painting!”

“And… Leon can take Mikey out for some basketball!” Angelo tosses a ball to his brother.

Leon watches it and smoothly transitions into a dribble. “And maybe Donald can take Leo out to an Observatory!”

“And Raph can take Donnie out to… hmm.” Donald pauses, a robotic arm scratching his head while he thinks. 

“I can take Donnie out for some wrestling or something!” Raphie scoops Donald up and gives him a gentle noogie. 

Draxum raises an eyebrow. “Are these not activities you can do as fathers as well as uncles?”

“I mean… we sort of stay in our lanes.” Leon tosses the basketball from hand to hand. “We’ve all got our thing.”

“Doesn’t sound so well-rounded to me,” Draxum mumbles.

“Barry? Again, no hay comentarios sobre cómo los criamos. Got it?”

“Not even slightly.”

“He means shut your mouth on our parenting skills. They’re for us to agonize over and question if we’re doing right, not you.” Raphie pulls out his phone and starts scrolling. “Maybe there’s some kinda scientist wrestler I can take Donnie to see!”

“And I know the perfect building for Raph to decorate with me!”

“I am so busting out my signed basketball to play with Mikey!”

“I bet I could take control of the observatory telescope to show Leo WHATEVER HE WANTS TO SEE IN SPACE!”

Splinter reaches up and pats Draxum on the calf. “Perhaps your visits are not all bad after all.”

Draxum frowns.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The four boys all stare down at the drawing.

“I dunno why I drew it.” Mikey sniffles. “Or why it’s so…”

Raph pulls Leo close as Leo’s breathing picks up. “Erase it, Mikey!”

“It doesn’t look like the stories they told us,” Donnie whispers. “But… it does?”

Raph covers Leo’s wide, unfocused eyes. “I said get rid of it!”

Mikey rolls up the drawing and fumbles around for something to destroy it with– finding a mystic nightlight candle. He taps it to light it up, and puts the paper over it.

The smoke only makes the twisting in their guts worse as Leo lets out a sob.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The whole living room goes quiet. 

Silent.

No-one even breathes.

And then, again.

A soft, muffled sob.

All four fathers and both grandfathers burst into Mikey’s room.

The thin layer of smoke clears away almost instantly with the door open, but the mood does not. Raph is holding Leo protectively, pressing his older brother into his plastron. Mikey is wiping his eyes, shoving all his gray crayons and markers and colored pencils into a box to never be used again. Donnie is leaning over Raph and Leo, rubbing Leo’s back– and for some reason, his leg.

“What happened?” Leon goes to pick Leo up, but Raph won’t let go. So he picks both of them up at once.

“I didn’t mean it!” Mikey cries, hiccuping. “I-I was just drawing villains and-and I drew– I drew–”

“It didn’t look like the stories we heard but it-it was.” Donnie is still reaching up, putting pressure on Leo’s leg. He blinks, looking at his hand, and then takes it away with a confused expression. 

“What stories? Has Auntie Cass been telling you scary stories again?” Raphie rubs both Leo’s and Raph’s shells, and they both start to relax. Leo raches up and pulls his dad into an almost choking hug.

Draxum takes in the abandoned gray crayons, the sniffling faces, and the reluctance to say the name. He bends down and picks up the comic, flipping through. His face falls with each page. “... Perhaps… you four were right about them being too young, to be warriors yet.”

“What?” Donald grabs the comic and flips through himself. He stops on one page, the green leaching out of his skin and leaving him almost gray. “Oh.”

“What?! What is–! … Oh, no.” Angelo looks at Mikey, and gets down to the ground to scoop his son and cradle him. “Hey. You guys know you have nothing to fear, right? We beat the big bads.”

Leo’s grip on Leon tightens. “I don’t want him to get you,” Leo whispers.

Leon’s eyes go wide, pupils shrinking. “Leo… he’s gone. We’ve talked about this, he’s gone. For good.”

Leo’s grip doesn’t relax. Leon feels tears on his neck as Leo pulls himself closer and starts to shake.

“Leon.” Raphie looks pale as Donald hops up the comic and points. “I don’t think it’s just about–”

“He got Pop-Pop,” Leo whispers. “He got Pop-Pop and he got me and I-I couldn’t protect anyone and–”

“It’s just a nightmare, Lee.” Leon pushes the comic away without looking at it– he can’t afford to right now. “It’s just a nightmare.”

“I can’t do it, I can’t save everyone–”

“I’ll save everyone.” Raph hugs his brother with a fierce growl. “I’ll save you and Donnie and Mikey and everyone else! Because we’re a team!”

“Dad.” Donnie pulls on Donald’s battleshell. “I-I think Leo is having a panic attack.”

“He– right, he– um, everyone clear out.” Donald picks Donnie up. “Let’s leave Leo to calm down. Uncle Raphie and Uncle Leon have this handled.”

“I’m sorry Leo,” Mikey whimpers as Angelo carries him out. “I promise I’ll never draw The Shredder again.”

[luminescent-lumi]

TMNT: Gene Splice

Okayyy remaking my TMNT au!! The same story as before, just different designs and a more relevant name! More info about each character after the cut! Some was written in the previous post, but I definitely added more!!

Plot

The Kraang meant to create an army to destroy the human race. This experiment is intended to be long term of over several generations, to create generations of perfectly modified soldiers. They captured several humans and mutated them to create these soldiers.

Tang Shen and Splinter were originally human. Tang Shen is mutated into a box turtle, while Splinter turns to a rat.

The turtles were created from a splice of Tang Shen's DNA and DNA from four separate fathers. The samples were genetically modified to accommodate the difference in species. The Kraang were basically trying to create as many variables as possible, and were creating as many variations of mutants as possible. Additionally, the turtles were created asexually in a lab.

Splinter was aiming to find a way out for awhile, and rushes through his plan once he overhears from the guards that they plan to kill Raphael. Due to the rush, he's unable to find proper lodgings (bro was hoping to like build a cabin in the woods or something) but it's winter, and he needs to hide. So, he escapes into the sewers. It's the safest option under short notice.

During the escape, Tang Shen and their sister Miwa are believed to be killed.

Michelangelo

Mikey is the oldest brother at 19, a couple months older than Leonardo, and is the leader. This has influenced how Splinter taught the team, and adjusts his teaching methods to Mikey's insistence. One prime example is Mikey insists you can meditate while laying down instead of the traditional cross legged. Essentially, Mikey has made it apparent he only puts effort into things that entertain him, so not only does he ensure training is entertaining for him, Mikey and Splinter try to adjust things to each of the brother's preference. It drives Splinter crazy, but Mikey loves it.

On that note, Mikey has ADHD.

Mikey took Tang Shen's personality. It's more so her cheerfulness and sense of humour.

Leonardo

Leonardo is the second oldest at 19 years old, a couple of months younger than Mikey.

They have dissociative identity disorder, it developed during their time in the labs. Leo is the host of his system, and Venus is a caretaker alter. When they were younger and fresh out of the labs, Venus primarily fronted. There have been other alters that have come and hidden. Leo is unsure if he is the core personality, as he's unsure when exactly he gained consciousness because his memory is spotty, or if the core personality had hidden. Currently, Leo fronts a majority of the time.

Leo takes after Splinter. Meticulous, detail oriented, and strong willed. I'm thinking Leo's personality is pretty similar to Bayverse.

Venus does not necessarily take after Tang Shen, but how they remember Tang Shen. Venus is patient, kind, and soft spoken.

Splinter and Leo are so close that Splinter unintentionally does not consider them their child, they act more similarly to friends/siblings. It's the idea that the first children grow up with their parents, while the youngest are grown by their parents.

Donatello

Donatello is the third oldest, at 17 years old.

Edgy middle child syndrome. This is mostly due to Donnie being jealous of Mikey and Leo, as they have memories of Tang Shen and Donnie has basically forgotten her.

Has said "you're not my dad" a couple times to Splinter before he grew out of it.

His family know he's a tech geek, but due to how distant he is, they don't know he's a genius with a photographic memory. Instead of the usual "Donnie what do we do" it's always "Donnie how tf did you do that bro."

Donnie puts this huge wall between him and his brothers. Once they meet April, he noticeably becomes close to her and it makes his brothers a bit jealous because how did this girl become so close with their edgy brother who barely says a word a day to them??

His honest to God genuine personality is similar to the 03 Donnie. At least, when speaking to April. Around his family he barely speaks, with April he's a soft spoken yet professional yapper, sarcastic and really considerate.

Wears his mask as a scarf instead, shows he's the only one out of his brothers who doesn't necessarily care about being a ninja. He prefers science, and rejects his family and Splinter's teachings.

Raphael

The youngest at 16 years old.

Was deemed a failure in the labs due to a congenital arm (an arm defect, it was too short). His arm was amputated, and there were heavy tests to determine if the costs of getting a prosthetic was worth it.

The lab owners deemed it a waste to continue with Raph, so they decide to terminate him. Splinter escapes before this happens.

Several years after the escape they found a prosthetic for Raph. Donnie, unknowing to his brothers, altered and upgraded it.

Since the labs, the family has unknowingly treated Raph like glass. So, essentially, most his life. This is the primary source of his anger issues. He hates being babied.

Raph participates in an underground fight ring, and also fights crime under the vigilante name Nightwatcher to release pent off steam. Because his family doesn't want to upset him, they don't pry too much so they don't flare his temper, so it's easy for Raph to do things without them noticing, he's forever doing sketchy things.

April

Currently 21 years old.

University student majoring in cognitive science with a minor in criminology. April plans on doing her masters in criminology but is unsure, because she has a passion for criminology, but feels pressured to pursue science like her dad, who's a scientist.

April wants to be a criminal profiler in the future.

April's in her fourth and last year of university, and currently doing a co-op opportunity at TCRI under Baxter Stockman.

Runs a popular true crime blog she's had since her early teens. She meets the turtles while they're chasing a case, and she manages to catch Leo off guard. April isn't even scared, more so excited that she can get an inside scoop from Leo about the "New York Vigilante's." The only reason Leo doesn't hide or try to run is because of how confused he is at the fact that she's so excited to see him. April definitely treats him like a fictional superhero despite being face to face.

April's personality is a mix of Rise April and 03 April, the same ambition and emotional intelligence as 03, but the same feral energy and sense of humour as Rise.

She attaches yellow brass knuckles to her belt looks with velcro, and 100% can use them well. Is not a damsel in distress.

Started kickboxing when she started university four years for self defence. Has continued and gotten pretty good.

Is pretty interested in botany. Not that she isn't good with plants, but between her school, co-op, and amateur journalism, her plants often end up dead due to her hectic schedule getting in-between caring for them.

[thatpunkmaximoff]

Story: 5 out of 5 Smut: 4 out of 5

So originally, I was gonna rate this four stars, but after a few chapters I was fully invested. A “why choose”, fake dating, friends to lovers? Yeah, I knew this was gonna be a rollercoaster. And boy, I was NOT disappointed.

There’s the ex-rugby player who says the infamous “don’t fall in love with me” line, the sweet “boy next door” who’s secretly been in love with her for YEARS, and then the ex-teacher who’s ten years older than her. It shouldn’t work and for a few chapters everyone’s worst fears come to pass, but this foursome pulls themselves together to talk everything out.

Faking with Benefits is filled with humor, spice, and DRAMA! Seriously, don’t let the cover fool you. The spice is.. well, you’ll see.

* Wow. I totally don’t blame Layla’s date for bailing. lol. Too strong, girl. Too strong for a first date.

* Hottie Zach to the rescue 😍

* Zach and his pet names are kinda swoon-worthy, ngl.

* Lol she’s drunk and hitting on her old teacher. Nice.

* Oohhh. I was wondering why “sweet” Josh seemed kind of dick-ish to Layla when she drunkenly stated she’d pay them for relationship advice. He loves her.

* Aww. Luke doesn’t wanna fake date his ex-student. I like that he has boundaries, but I’m excited for those to vanish. He should totally take Layla on as his date to the wedding his ex keeps inviting him to 😂

* Goddamn. She’s so bad at dating 😬

* Oh la la. Layla’s got a sharing kink 😏

* Those kisses… 🥵 wtf haha. 6/10.

* Luke is starting to hurt MY feelings lol.

* Oh wow. Josh really went in while Zack and Layla were kissing. He found her weakness and totally doesn’t know 😂

* Oohhh. She bold now. She wants both of them to fuck her for practice 👀 Luke is gonna fly off the fuckin handle if he walks out and sees them.

* Goddamn. Josh CAN EAT 🤭

* And Zack… that dude really took her to pound town. Along with Josh. Those two would ruin me.

* Oh no. Finding out Zack had an ex who died when they were eighteen is so sad 😭

* C’mon, Luke. Just make a move, for fuck’s sake!

* Ugh. Luke and Layla’s outing was going so good! And then Donny, an ex-something, had to go and ruin it. Fuck that dude.

* I want Josh and Layla together so bad! And with Zack and Luke, but Josh! Oh my goodness.

* Luke finally snapped! Thank god haha.

* Goddamn. Luke is very… dominant. I did not expect this 😏

* “Okay, babe. I don’t know how strong the human head is, and I don’t think it matters. There’s no weight capacity. Just sit on his face, and if he dies, he dies.” // “Damn straight. Bury him alive. Lucky guy.”

* Ayyyy. She’s at the ex-wife’s wedding with the ex-husband. Be petty!!

* She has to move to America if everything with this collaboration works out? 😬 None of the boys are happy. They all caught feelings but no one wants to fess up.

* Fuckkkk. She leaves in a week. Just reluctantly says they’ll end their experiment before she has to leave and Zack is not happy. The one who didn’t want her to fall in love with him doesn’t want her to leave. Damn.

* Goddammit, Zack.

* Well this wedding reception is an absolute shit show. Josh desperately wants to tell Layla he loves her, Zack is intending to break things off, and Luke’s es-wife is telling him that Layla is a whore. wtf.

* Wow. Luke and Zack fucked up. Poor Josh. How’s that gonna go for him?

* The fucking drama. I can’t. My heart hurts.

* Well I’m happy they came to their senses, but fuck. Zack and Luke were kind of harsh. Zack especially. I don’t want her to give in and forgive, but I know she will.

* Oh wow. She lost the collaboration with the designer in New York because of the podcast. This sucks.

* So after crying and groveling, all is well!

* And now she’s taking them has her dates to the high school reunion. Oh fuck 😂

* Damn. Drama at the high school reunion. I totally saw that coming.

* Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. They GOT MARRIED!

[readingtoinfinity]

DNF Roundup

I have a hard time lettings things go. Forming habits comes easily to me, and I tend to be loyal to a fault. But life is too short to let unhappy habits calcify into sullen recitations, so I'm going to be a little more critical of the titles I follow month-to-month. Granted, I haven't removed all that many, but I figured it would be better to make one big post of titles I've decided to stop following, for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it's just time.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #30

Don't give me any of that "not my Spider-Man" bullshit, that's not the reason I'm dropping it. Miles Morales is Spider-Man, same as Jace Fox is Batman. Fuck off. And it's not even that Cody Ziglar is writing this one and I'm having the same issues as the current Deadpool run, because I'm really not.

Ultimately, I feel like the stories Miles is taking part in are drawing him further and further away from where Spider-Men thrive, which is fighting street crime and having interpersonal drama. Something happened to Miles during Blood Hunt that could have driven a great deal of drama, and did among his friends and allies, but it's lost focus among vibranium armor, the gods Anansi and Bast, and whatever the hell is happening during the Pools of Blood event. I was enjoying what was happening with Shift adapting to Miles' life and being human, but it's a smaller part of the book.

I will also say this book is bolstered by having a Black writer, something that took a surprisingly long time hey Marvel?!

Power Girl (2023) #18

On the whole, the direction Power Girl comics have taken isn't something I'm against. The slice-of-life superhero story is a cornerstone of our beloved medium, and we borrow a lot from it when we write superheroes. But there's something a little too "settled" in Power Girl stories, like the stakes don't have too much weight and people are just generally nice and supportive of one another. I got bored; I know my friend really loves it, so it's probably just my taste.

Crossover (2020)

You know how there's that one story, that has a really cool central idea but ultimately doesn't deliver in a satisfying way? Crossover is NOT that kind of book.

The idea of fictional characters coming to life is nothing new, and it'll keep happening so long as we have fiction. But rarely has a book really delved deep into what makes comic books starkly different from reality, and how they would adapt to our world, without narrative, rules or status quo, that also loves what comics are and can be. The colors alone are some of the more thought-out areas of this book.

It's also a book with a deeply engrossing cast of characters in a world of political strife and movements, and this book benefits from having a large number of characters from different fictions to show off (either with full faces, or copyright-safe parodies) to demonstrate multiple reactions to coming alive. Negan is someone I have no connection to from The Walking Dead, but his arc of learning how he was designed and why he was made that way was one of the stand-out moments in a stand-out story. And issue #13 ends on one hell of a cliff-hanging realization.

That's also the last issue.

I really don't blame Donny Cates for going on hiatus; writing comics is hard work, and people deserve to rest. But it does mean leaving this behind for a time, and I'm sad to see it be left on the shelf. But for me, I'm going to stop waiting for updates, and whenever it comes back I'll jump right back in.

Doctor Aphra and Star Wars: Doctor Aphra

I don't know if Kieron Gillen knew what he was doing when he created Doctor Chelli Aphra. He was already in the middle of a phenomenal Darth Vader comic from 2016, and then he created this firecracker of a character.

Aphra feels like the promise of Han Solo realized. She's a scoundrel in just about every sense, having a terrible personal life, non-existent code of ethics and a small-enough pocketbook to take on some rather stupid risks, but at her center is an archeologist hunting for the next big truth, and a lover who can't stay still long enough to settle down. It just so happens that the things she keeps rushing towards tend to have... let's say much wider consequences than she was expecting.

Both runs are fantastic, some of the best Star Wars I've read. It's no surprise that Kieron Gillen wrote the first one, but it's also a small surprise that Alyssa Wong wrote the second, and they are rapidly becoming one of my trusted modern writers with their insistence of quality. I think even on their own they can be pretty fun, although the context of Darth Vader (2016) can certainly help.

Ultimately, this DNF is me accepting the last run ended a year ago. There's been no word of a future series, and although Aphra has popped up here and there, we're not getting a new series soon. I would love to revisit this absolute bastard of a girlboss, but I'll just have to wait and see.

Sonic the Hedgehog: Fang the Hunter

I'm a big Sonic fan, more of the lore than the actual games, but I've played those here and there, too. And I love some of the wider cast of characters that don't often get a chance to shine that are brought to the forefront for this miniseries, who face off against a foe that also doesn't get too much attention. It's a little delight to watch these little vagrants have their own adventure.

The series ended awhile ago, on a minor cliffhanger directing the readers to go play Sonic Superstars. I've no interest in that game, but if you do this would be an excellent companion piece to the game.

And thus is my to-be-read list slightly reduced. If you see more titles crop up here, you will understand why. Ta-ta!

[novastar-creations]

Usagi

Some stuff about Usagi in my AU! (Feel free to ask me more, this is just kinda random stuff from my notes)

Mastapost

- His home dimension is the Prison Dimension (see this post for more info)

- His parents died shortly after he was born, and he lived with his Aunt until he was around 10?? (Side note, it really bugged me his aunt never got named, so she’s called Rin now :D)

- After Rin died, he was trained by Mifune

- When the Krang left, he and his friends (Mariko and Kenichi) started to hatch a plan to escape because they figured the Krang would open a larger portal for the Technodrome

- When they inevitably did, the three started running to escape, but Kenichi got injured and in the end, Usagi was the only one who got through.

- He got a very quick introduction to gravity, and an even quicker one to dislocating his shoulder

- He went through right as Donnie was piloting the Krang ship back through and made the spur of the moment decision to jump to a nearby car

- That car was Shinigami’s. Yes Shini is in this AU. (you can’t stop me! I NEED MY WITCH CHARACTERS!)

- He briefly stays with Shini, but Faustian bargains his way into the battle nexus under the alias White Rabbit (nice going dumbass)

- He gets rescued by Shini, who recruited Gentry and (accidentally) Sunita to help

- He now works at Hueso’s with Sunita and lives in witch town with Gentry!

- Leosagi EVENTUALLY becomes a thing, but I’ve recently realised how much I like writing slow burn so… sorry?

Possible design ideas (tbh these were just the sketches I liked the most so I formatted them like a ref sheet)

Right: Hueso’s uniform

Middle: Current clothes

Left (fullbody): Prison Dimension Clothes

Bust: closeup of his head (prison dimension style)

Personality stuff and character details under the cut!!

A lot of his personality is based off the samurai rabbit series fyi (I hyper focused on this AU so much I watched it)

- Undiagnosed ADHD iykyk

- He gets a cloaking brooch from Gentry after they become friends (still need to draw that design lol)

- He sleeps with plushies (but only two) - one is from Leo and the other is from Sunita

- The one from Sunita is a giant one of himself she got him as a joke (battle nexus merch wahoo)

- He’s really caring and a little naive, but if you betray him, he. Will. Hate. You.

- Desperately needs a hug but doesn't know it and refuses to ask for one

- Doesn’t usually feel strong emotions, but when he does, he FEELS.

- Gets teleportation sickness, much to Leo’s dismay

- He doesn’t have any innate mystic ability, as he’s neither a Yokai, mutant or witch, and Mariko drained the kast of his mana while they were trying to heal Kenichi.

- Has chronic nightmares

- Gets a motorbike liscense at some point

- ADORES Gentry’s chickens (she has chickens by the way)

- Really likes Frozen and knows the lyrics to Let It Go by heart

- This kind of led him down the pipeline of musicals - bonds with Donnie over this

- Can’t make the voices go away

- Has really bad road rage after he gets his motorbike liscense

- Crashed a lawn mower into Gentry’s fence, making them have to keep the chickens down the side of the house

- Can walk in massive high heels

- So smart, but so, so dumb

- Is still learning to say no

- Roommates with Gentry - couch surfed between the hidden city and Shinigami

- Sometimes goes into musical mode and hums under his breath or sings in the shower

- Uses two in one shampoo and conditioner

- Hasn’t stopped being kinda pissy since he his aunt died.

- Likes thrifting, but only on his own

- Associates ninjas with the monsters created by the Krang - that’s what the people at the labour camp called the transformed people.

Some Leosagi stuff now ig?

- Remember the plushies? The one from Leo is a stuffed bear that he won Usagi at a carnival in the hidden city.

- Leo made him chose a surname and he literally just googled “famous samurai” so now he’s Usagi Miyomoto (his first choice was Usagi Hamato but Leo interpreted that as a proposal and freaked a little)

- He fiddles with Leo’s mask a lot because it reminds him of Rin’s bandanna

- Only realised how touch starved he was after he started dating Leo

- Fell in love with 80s music and media after Leo introduced him to it (not as big a fan of Jupiter Jim and Lou Jitsu, but still watches them)

- Mikey said that if Usagi didn’t “treat Leo right,” he’d beat the shit out of him and use his rabbit pelt as a floor mat, so Usagi’s a little scared of him

- Leo calls Usagi ‘Yuichi’ (which means kind one)

[caspersscareschool]

imagine im sending all the emojis under Character Specific - i love when u talk about the versions of the turtles that exist in ur mind, theyre canon to me (has never watched the show or any movie)

you are the realest one out there I'm so serious. under cut because that's a lot of questions

first of all: she/her leo, he/it raph, he/him donnie, any/all mikey but mostly he/him unless the situation calls for it

🥊 Does Raph have anger issues? If so, how does Raph deal with his anger?

i guess you could say that it does, but its issues have more to do with the guilt and fear associated with feeling or expressing anger on any level. he relies a lot on leo's constant emotional support

🧶 Does Raph knit?

no, but yoshi sews. raph's hobbies include raising butterflies and stag beetles, planting herbs and then forgetting to water them and crying when they die a week later, basketball, and lacrosse (but only with leo). he also has a hamster named daisy whom he would kill himself for without a moment's hesitation

🗣️ Is your Leo the leader? Has he always been?

...there's not really a "leader" since that's not how families work in real life, but she's generally the dubious voice of reason and the one who carries everybody's water bottles and medications and whathaveyou. she resents this position a little but doesn't have the self awareness to confront it

🔥 Is Leo accident prone? Especially in the kitchen?

no ❤️ she's not good at cooking because she is too afraid of failure to put any effort towards building skills that don't come naturally to her, so if it was her job to cook dinner she'd just dump a bunch of hot sauce and tuna and jelly and cheese and gravy in a pot and go heheheyhehheehhehehe Soup👍

🔬 Is Donnie only interested in Tech?

I'm not entirely clear on what this question means. he has other interests outside stem, but in my verse his focus is much more on computer science and mechanical engineering than any other field of science, so he kind of doesn't gaf about biology or anything organic or "squishy." if that was the question. other interests include grindcore music, transformers, my little pony (the toys), swimming, gambling, arguing on forums, sculpting, 3d animation, girls, and other things.

🤖 Does your Donnie have a robot child?

Grins really huge.

🎨 Is Mikey the artist of the family?

yes but he's best at cartoons and graffiti and abstract designs. he also makes his own music (mostly experimental hip-hop). donnie is a far better representational artist, but he doesn't consider his work "art" since he doesn't have mikey's imagination or eye for color and he pays mikey disgusting amounts of dubiously-sourced money to draw his pngtuber rantsona. mikey in turn spends this money on fancy cheese

😈 Is Mikey a little shit?

what more is there to say. Yes

🐀 Was Splinter a human or an animal before he was mutated?

human. but don't worry about it

🧑‍🍼 How does Splinter raise the boys?

Jesus. i really don't know how to get into this without copy/pasting 3 pages of backstory from my notes doc. he did his best that's all i can say

💏 Does/Did Splinter have a significant other?

he had a weird bisexual thing. which is different. i can't disclose more at this time

🎤 Is April a reporter?

april is a first-year undergrad majoring in journalism and minoring in environmental science. she interns at her college newspaper, and lately has been going to dangerous lengths to uncover her "big break" so they'll let her do more than edit the crossword

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Is April considered a sibling?

she's like. okay. april is an integral part of their family, AND. she's also really not a surrogate/adopted/found sister in a literal sense. yoshi isn't her dad, and her relationship with the turtles is quite distinct from their relationship with each other as siblings, but it's still just as important, because she's family. like, found family outside of any traditional nuclear family roles. she's their best friend and they're her home away from home

🏒 Does Casey play hockey?

casey is such a minor character in my verse right now that it's actually kind of hysterical that they'd be on this list. they used to play, yeah.

🦸 Is Casey a vigilante?

they are a serial murderer.

[geese-ball]

I still dont know who you are, I only know that I'm still lonely chap 1

ao3 chap 2

The Technodrome changed Donnie, both physically and mentally, and to ease their families worries, they decide to ask their father (Baron Draxum) to mutate them a service dog, much the same way that he made them. Shenanigans ensue.

Ever since Donatello was torn out of The Technodrome, they've been different. They blink less, they move weird (as if their body is alien to them, as if they were used to being something much bigger). They used to have to be working constantly, disliking having nothing to do, wheras now they can just sit. for hours upon hours upon hours. Its like they know something. Like The Technodrome showed them things no mortal mind should ever see.

Of course this could all be chalked up to the mental and physical trauma they underwent that night, but Donnie's family knows better. They've seen how donnie responds to trauma, and this is different.

It affected them physically, too. Because The Technodrome's tentacles were attached to Donnies spinal chord, when they were ripped apart, it was damaged. And now Donnie's legs were... less reliable than before. They still worked, just not very well, and they struggled to support themself enough to stand, nevermind walk or do anything else they used to.

Of course, Donnie being Donnie, they just carried on as usual, using their tech arms instead of their legs, and building themself a very cool high tech (weaponised) wheelchair suited specifically for their needs.

But with their family and friends worrying so much about their well-being, they decided to do something to put their minds at ease; they were going to get a service dog!

But not just any service dog, they were getting one custom mutated by their father, Baron Draxum. Well, if they can get him to agree to it.

Thankfully, they had the wonderful Michaelangelo on their side, and who can say no to that face?

Today, Donnie was at Draxum's to finish work on the lab, which had been going on for almost a year at this point and they ere both very relieved that it was finally almost over. So when they were finished, Donnie decided to ask before they could overthink it and back out.

"Father?" they stopped long enough to know that he was listening, "I have a request," At this, Draxum tried to say something, but was quickly cut off, "And before i state my request, please remember that you tried to kill slash kidnap us multiple times and threw my twin off of a roof."

Donnie had never been good at reading people, but they couldve sworn they saw Draxum look guilty for a split second.

"I require a service dog. But I dont typically care for canines as they are far too needy and touchy and whiny and syliva-y. Therefore I am going to request you mutate one for my specific needs. Also just an FYI, Mikey also wants this and will be really really sad if you say no (two reallys)." They wheeled back and forth lightly, just to do something with their hands in the deafening silence that seemed to last simultaneously an eternity and no time at all.

"Alright."

"what?"

"I said alright, would tou like to start working on the design now, or schedule a better time?" Donnie blinked. This should not have been that easy.

"Um, yeah, now is– now's fine", Donnie confirmed, their monotonus voice and blank face hiding the words' stunning effect.

Draxum nodded and started to walk towards his newly fixed lab, expecting Don to follow. Which, after a split second, the shock wore off, and they did.

After working with Draxum for a while, Dee discovered that they could customise a lot more than they had previously thought.

Of course there was the obvious, like the base breed, and which senses to heighten, but they could also choose its colours and, to an extent, mystic abilities.

Their father assured them that it would come fully trained and ready for service. As much as they loathed to admit it, Donnie had long since given up on questioning mystics, so did not comment on this.

After a while of designing the dog, it started to feel more real, and Donnie progressively got more excited, which was incredibly unexpected, and they started to move more to het it out, wheeling in place and drumming their fingers on any available surface.

In a surprisingly short amount of time, Donnie had finished, and was to leave Draxum to work.

They had decided on a large husky base (purple obviously), with similar markings to Donnie, just lighter (and pinker) than her regular fur. She had A lot of eyes, solid bright green with regular dog-like pupils – though she had a third eyelid which aided in darkvision. With razor sharp teeth and claws to match Donnie's own. She can also change size at will, to fit in donnies pocket or carry them around.

Donnie placed their hands on their wheels, about to leave, as Draxun called them back once more. "Do you have a name in mind, or should I use a placeholder?"

Donnie took a second to reply, because it only takes a second for a dumb idea to latch onto their brain and refuse to let go. "Missile Launcher."

Their father took a second to process this. "Are you certian this is the name you would like to give it? You can wait."

But Donnie had decided, and would not be budging on this particular naming choice any time soon.

"Missile Launcher. That is her name, I will not be changing it.", donnie replied, giggling with anticipation, before quickly adding on, "Evil laugh."

The alchemist sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose before straightening up again, "Very well then, you can leave now, off you pop."

Donnie chuckled slightly at the wording, but quickly obliged. "Okay bye Dad! Thank you! I love you!" They quickly shouted back, mind too preoccupied with pure excitement and what to tell their siblings when they got home to process the words.

~~~~~

"Brethren." Donnie greets coolly as they enter the living room, "The reconstruction of father's lab is finished and also he agreed to make me a service dog. Probably because im the coolest, smartest, most favoriteist child, N.B.D." They announced, smoothly transferring themself onto their beanbag and pulling their phone out and waiting expectantly.

"OHMIGOSH DEE THIS IS HUGE!!!!", Mikey immediately jumped up and started jumping in place, and swaying side to side slightly.

"Right? I have named her Missile Launcher and she will be my colours and will be made to help me specifically. This is So Cool!" Donnie drops their phone and flaps their hands next to their chest.

"Dude this is incredible, and I am not usually one to encourage your rants, but... tell us everything" Leo settles behind his twin, wrapping his arms around their shoulders tightly and squeezing, proudly showing off his 'twin privileges' as he and Don had dubbed them years ago.

"Way to go Donna!" Raph held out a fist, which Donnie gleefully bumped.

"As much as i would adore to talk your metaphorical ears off right now, dearest siblings, I will wait for dinner as to not repeat myself." They explained with an uncharacteristic ammount of self restraint.

So the siblings sat and talked or in comfortable silence for a while until Mikey went to make dinner, insisting that he would do it himself when the others offered to help.

A little before dinner time, April burst through the entrance of the lair with her signature battle cry of "APRIL O'NEIL!!" and was only greeted by Raph, and she soon found out why when she heard Donnie's shout of "I swear to Pizza Supreme, Nardo if you touch my controller..."

Followed by Leo's "...boop." and a loud smacking sound not a second after. As soon as she walked into the living room and nade her presence known, however, the twins immediately ceased their petty slap fight to greet her and tell her how much they missed her. Donnie, of course, in a far less noticable way, though just as meaningful. "Hey guys! Mikey in the kitchen?" At that moment, they decided that they had left Mikey at peace long enough, and collectively decided to go and bother him.

"Ooh smells great!" April complimented the moment she was within Mikey's earshot.

"Hiya April! Thanks, Im almost done! Could you guys set the table for me please-and-thankyou!!"

And of course, they did as they were told, Leo on placemat duty, donnie grabbing the plates and bowls since they could reach easily, Raph getting silverware, and April sorting out drinks. Only it wasnt quite as functional as it should've been.

Though their dining room (modified kitchen island) was large enough to comfortably fit all of them, having to move around it was another thing. Donnie used their tech arms to lift themself above it, olacing the plates wherever Leo used his 'rad skillz' to throw the placemats, with Raph attempting to get around fast enough to keep up with the cutlery without knocking anything (or anyone) over. April had the easiest job, pouring drinks away from the chaos, and then, with her incredible wairessing skills she gained from working in a cafe one summer, carrying them all over at once and putting them in their correct positions.

Practically the moment they finished, Mikey announced that dinner was ready and Splinter came into the room. It took a while for everyone to get into their designated seats, and make sure food was portioned out correctly.

But when it was, they all ate, complimenting Mikey's incredible cookery the whole time. But Donnie had but one thing on their mind.

"'Pril, Papa," they got their attention, "You are aware that father and I finished work on his lab today, correct?" They nodded, "So he can finally start working on projects again. And as we discussed, i requested he mutate me a service dog. Well, surprisingly, he agreed, and will start work on her imminently." They didnt bother to hose the genuine grin that spread accross their face, displaying their large, pointy teeth in a strange show of happiness.

"Dee!" April reached across the small table and squeezed one of their hands in her own, nonverbally conveying her excitement for them, much in the same way Raph did. They squeezed back.

"Well done Purple, I am very proud of you." Hearing this not only from a parent-aged adult, but his dearest papa made Donnie's tail wag so hard it audibly hit Leo's thigh, and sent the entire family into a fit of laughter.

"So, you wanna tell us about her?" April prompted after the laughter died down.

"But of course, dear sister. As many of you know, I have decided to name her Missile Launcher – Missy for short – and she will be based on a large husky, with a dark violet coat and very similar markins to my own in a more magenta colour. She will have many bright green eyes with third eyelids to aid in dark vision. She will, of course, have very sharp teeth, and retractable claws. She can change size to aid in mobility slash balance, act as a weighted blanket or lap pad, and be carried around for easy transport. She will be fully trained because mystics and will act as a pet as well as a service animal. Any questions?"

It was pretty much unanimously agreed that Donnie had covered everything, so they began to pack up and clean.

"Well would you look at the time, I have to go pick up Shelldon & Jr. from Todd's! Guess I'll see you guys later!" Donnie exclaimed as they left the lair, much to the others' chagrin. But they really did have to!

chap 2

reblogs > likes

[justaturtleindisguise]

Questions for your tmnt au, if you’re alright with them, you totally don’t have to answer if you don’t want! I also love them so much, their designs are amazingly well done!

1. When did raph find out he was trans?

2. Who is raph talking to on his phone all the time, especially in that one doodle in the first post about the au where they’re texting hearts back and forth?

3. How are April, Casey, and Splinter in this au (if they’re in it) ?

4. Is there any sort of plot you have 👀?

Again don’t have to answer if you don’t want! I really admire your art and creative abilities!

*cracks knuckles*

1. When did raph find out he was trans? Pretty early in life, so much that Mikey and Leo don't remember ever calling Raph a sister. He still uses his birth name, Aka (Red in japanese), and chose Raphael when he was around 9 with his siblings.

2. Who is raph talking to on his phone all the time, especially in that one doodle in the first post about the au where they’re texting hearts back and forth? Raph is always texting April when she's not around because they're besties. But as for the heart messages, I'm planning to give Raph two love interests/crushes. One of them is Monalisa ('cuz I LOVE Ramona) and the other is an OC i'm still planning. I just really love the little red turtle finding love and being s softie hehee~

3. How are April, Casey, and Splinter in this au (if they’re in it) ?

April is a childhood friend of the turts like in Rise, but I'm still planning how they met. The only things I have right now is: she's a lesbian, she's some years older than the turtles, is Raph and Donnie's best bestie and she's brasilian because,, because i need to give them a reason to speak my language lmao-

Casey is more undercooked than April, cuz I want to do some Jonatello like in TMNT12 but I LOVE Rise Cassandra. I'll probally split Casey in a pair of siblings. I plan to make 'em latino because yes, love latinoamerica 'till I die.

Splinter already has some good backstory thought out for him, but I crave to redesign him. I tried drawing him twice, but he looks too much like a mix of Lou Jitsu and 12!Splinter and I wanted to give him a more,, monstruos look? I don't know if that's the right term, but I'm looking for a bigger "rattier" mutant look for him. He's a very affectionate and autistic dad that loves his turtle children very much.

4. Is there any sort of plot you have 👀? Yes I have! :] I'm kinda bad at writing and explaining my ideas, but I can try to give a tiny sumary- Splinter is the reincarnated soul of Hamato Yoshi mixed with one of his decents, that was being kept in a lab for some good years having her DNA used to make tests. He "possesed" his current body while the original soul basically died in the process of getting mutated after the lab where she was being kept exploded. Thanks to various injuries he remembers little to nothing about none of his lives besides fighting and few other stuff. He almost completely forgot how to speak english and spent good years only speaking japanese with the turtles, that until they met April. In the current time (?) they're in, he can remember his former names and has memory lapses here and there.

The turtles and Splints will have family mystics abilities like in Rise, but I'm still thinking of how to implement it without being a straight up copy Shreder is still in the corner not being thought about, just like Draxum, Karai, Big Mama, Usagi, the Mutanimals, etc. Not very sure if I'm going to use all of them too-

As for mystical weapons, wich is a concept i LOVE, the only explanation I have for how this kids got them is: They stole it.

Is very little stuff, but i'm happy to share it anyway :)

Thank u for ur kind words about my art, it really means a lot lot for me! <3 /gen

[lykaios2]

hi! This is the anon(Again, still new! Forgive me!) who asked for the bullied sister! This was really special to me, because it reminded me of me and my little brother who gets bullied for being autistic.

Anyways, if it’s not to much to ask, would you do more little autistic sibling? Thank you!!

pt2 of mm turtles with an autistic sibling! semi sequel to this one

as per usual I tried my best to not make this offensive at all because my (theoretical) autism is not very severe (or maybe it is idk I can't wrap my head around the fact that autism is a spectrum and whenever I see people who have more severe forms of autism I feel bad saying that I likely have it)

anyways enough about me, here you go! hope you enjoy ❤️

Leo:

-Leo really likes to be around you a lot to make sure you’re safe, because he knows that it can be very easy for things to go wrong when you’re on your own. He tries not to be a helicopter parent, but he’s just worried about your safety. He’s aware that you can be very sensitive to your environment. One time, he witnessed you have a breakdown from overstimulation, and he almost had one himself. He was so concerned about you, and he didn’t like seeing you in that state.

-He’s learned all of your triggers and everything that makes you uncomfortable, so he can avoid them all. He knows how to help you calm down if you’re about to have a breakdown or panic attack. He’s basically designated himself as your main caretaker.

Raph:

-After Raph finally started getting the therapy he swears he didn’t need, one of the things his therapist suggested to help with his anger issues was fidget toys. He didn’t really have any though, but he knew you did, so he asked if you could share some with him. At first, you told him no. You didn’t want to part with your fidget toy, what if he broke it or lost it, or worse? He understood your concern, and instead asked if you could help him get one, which was a lot easier for you to do.

-Now Raph always has one on him, and a few extra for you two to share as well. Of course, you still have your own that you keep to yourself, but you've warmed up to the idea of sharing some with Raph. There have been quite a few times where you’ve forgotten a fidget toy at home and Raph has had one ready for you, which has saved you a lot of trouble.

Mikey:

-Mikey is very sensitive towards your lack of speech. He knows you don’t like to talk a lot, but it makes no difference to him. It’s still a little confusing to him though, because to him, talking is one of the simplest ways of expressing your feelings. But to help communicate with you, he learned sign language so you could talk to him without having to actually speak. He doesn’t use it himself (he couldn’t get the hang of it with only three fingers) but he still learned so he could know what you’re trying to say with sign language.

-Sometimes you stay after school with Mikey to watch him do improv or perform in a play. You love watching the shows he does, and you think he performs amazingly, but every so often you get this feeling that you could never show and express emotions like he can. You ask him how he does it, and he says it comes naturally to him. He tells you that it’s okay to not know how to express yourself, and that emotions are complicated and often difficult to understand.

Donnie:

-As quiet as you might be, you could talk for hours on end about your interests. And guess what? Donnie will listen. Your time together is mainly spent sharing about your interests, shared or not. Donnie understands that your favorite shows or books or whatever are really important and special to you, and all you want is to share your love for them with someone else.

-Sometimes at school, he’ll introduce you to one of his friends that likes something you do as well. He does most of the talking in the beginning, but after a while you start to hold the conversation on your own. He often sits and listens to you talk, occasionally chiming in, but he’s mainly focused on being proud of you for talking with a new person.