#he will be a little inconsistent for a while because i am drawing each frame by hand from scratch each time lol.

[buwheal]

Question for Spamton:

Do you enjoy painting? If so, what do you like to paint?

[overlyimmersed]

Happy Birthday Helbram!

Helbram is my favorite character. I love him to hell and back, so I'm not super pleased with myself that I couldn't get a drawing done on time for him, I am working on it though! The best I can do this moment is an analysis post. So here's an in-depth-to-the-best-of-my-ability wing analysis!

Here's another post I've made talking about Helbram in regards to how his sanity effects his movements in battle -> 💖 And here's another wing analysis post, this one for Gloxinia -> 🦋 And one that's really not in-depth for Harlequin -> 👑

As an author's note, I am not an avid reader. Never have been. So, my primary source for any and all information I use - especially visual/design information - comes from the anime. Secondary sources include the Grand Cross mobile game and, of course, character wikis.

This is actually rather important to note in this particular case because there is a stark difference between the manga and the anime in how Helbram's wings are designed. It's also noteworthy to mention that the manga is actually inconsistent with how many wings Helbram has. Some frames have 4, some only have 2. So even if I knew the manga better, I'd still use the anime exclusively here simply because it's actually consistent about his design.

As far as I can tell, Helbram's wings are typical in position and spacing. They're in the middle of his upper back, and the bases of the lower set are right below the upper set. The lower set appear to be slightly more inward, closer to the spine, on his Grand Cross model, but that still falls within what should normal since the lower set is smaller. What's actually noteworthy about Helbram's wings are their resting position and their actual appearance.

Helbram appears to have moth-like wings.

They way the rest in a downward position, they base color and the fact that they're not transparent* are all reminiscent of a moth rather then a butterfly, dragonfly, or bee like most other fairies.

*Note that the opacity here is assumed rather than proven, as in the anime and in the grand cross models no one's wings are actually see-through. Though the models in other 3D media, like the Grudge of Edinburgh movie, do show most fairies having transparent wings. But of course Helbram isn't in that movie, so this can only be an assumption based on the base color and the general moth-ish-ness of the design.

The primary color is actually a very pale green, though it looks off white compared to the blue bands on the lower portion of each wing.

The Hex code for the primary color is E5EBE0 and is described by colorhexa.com as "light greyish green," and colorxs.com gives it the name "Acropolis." The lighter of the two bands is 89D7D3, which colorhexa.com describes as "slightly desaturated cyan." colorxs.com calls it Blue Green Pastel*. And yes, the asterisk is part of the name, I don't know why. The darker band is 4196A9, described by colorhexa.com as "dark moderate cyan" and called Blue (Munsell)* by colorxs.com.

So the bands are cyan rather than blue.

Helbram also moves him wings in an up-and-down kind of motion when he moves them at all, rather than the in-and-out, fluttery, motion that other fairies typically have.

This was...actually really hard to conclude with any degree of certainty XD. What I had to do was watch previews of his skills in Grand Cross, specifically using the AR feature it has for some reason, so I could get this weird angle on his model while it was moving...it was a nightmare.

So Helbram has both the most typical and the most unusual wings of the ones I've analyzed so far. I wish I had more to say, really, but since their size and position are so...exactly how they should be, all I can really pick apart is the appearance. I think they're lovely! :) I do really like his wings.

And now, just to fluff this out a little :p I'm going to add every drawing of Helbram to date! Plus an outfit I designed but haven't actually drawn him in yet.

[madelynhimegami]

And if it's not too much trouble, I'll just go ahead and re-post my Amitie essay here!

In my Arle propaganda post from last round, I said said that Arle wasn't the living embodiment of friendship because that was another Puyo Puyo character.

I also said that her characterization was inconsistant when Compile was passing the cast around different writers that didn't really share notes with each other. One writer in particular tended to portray Arle as clumsy, cheery, innocent, and full of self-doubt.

It's easy to get the impression that when Sega took over the series, they looked at this and thought, "This is a good character, but it's not Arle." So when they kicked off their own setting, they decided to make their new heroine be like that from the get-go.

That heroine is Amitie. Her dream is to be a wonderful sorceress. And I love her to pieces.

Personality-wise, Amitie's most prominant feature by leaps and bounds is her cheerfulness. She's a bright ball of sunshine that lights up the room wherever she goes. She greets everyone with a smile and boundless, infectuous energy and a heart the size of Mercury. Her boundless enthusiasm means that, no matter how much she struggles, she never gets down for very long. She'll just try again! And she will try to be your friend, frame one.

She does struggle a lot, though. While never made explicit for numerous reasons, it's pretty clear Amitie suffers from ADHD. She has a hard time with studying and focusing in class. She's flighty, gets easily confused, and sometimes draws strange conclusions. For instance, when she's told of an impending disaster in the book Sig's Secret:

Or in Fever 2, when she comes face-to-face with her demon-possessed classmate:

(For reference, the little purple thing coming from the book is Klug's disembodied soul. As you can see, he's depicted with the same kind of glasses currently on his body.)

(Also worth noting is, Amitie, despite initially not wanting to deal with Klug's nonsense in this game, ends up being the only one in their grade that actually wants to save him from his arrogance.)

She's also clumsy and accident-prone. Here's Another excerpt from the Sig's Secret book, where she and her friends are learning how to bake cakes:

And this extends to her magic, as well. Admittedly, I don't know if the following comics are considered canon, but they are largely in character. Note that both comics are read top to bottom:

As a result, despite her bubbly demeanor, she has low self-esteem. She blames herself for when things go wrong in Sig's Secret. In another novel, Everyone's Dreams Coming True?!, she's heartbroken when Arle and Ringo respond dismissively to how she describes her of a "wonderful sorceress," and concludes that they don't believe in her. Then in the next chapter, she has an anxiety attack over the thought that her friends might reject her idea for solving the current dilema, just like they seemingly rejected her greatest ambition.

And then there was that time where Amitie almost lost her soul to a doll that preyed on her insecurities.

Living Doll: "No, Amitie. I understand." Amitie: "Huh?" Living Doll: "You are trying so hard. You are such a good child. I can tell." Amitie: "Huh… You think so!?" Living Doll: "You try so hard, yet that Raffina and Klug treat you horribly. How could they say such awful things to you?" Amitie: "Huh? W-Wait, um, um, like, yeah, those two can be a bit blunt and mean, but they're really not bad people!" Living Doll: "But I would never say such awful things to you." […] Living Doll: "Oh, oh… I am so sorry. But, you see, that is just how much I care about you, my friend. I never would say anything bad about you. I understand how you feel so well. I am your only real friend, you know." Amitie: "My… real friend?" Living Doll: "Yes… Ahahaha. So let's stay together forever and ever…ahahahaha…" Amitie: "…Yeah… you're right… you're my… friend…" […] Living Doll: "Amitie… Amitie… How are you feeling? Have you calmed down now?" Amitie: "Yeah… I can't really focus, but… I'm okay… Thank you for worrying about me." Living Doll: "Of course I worry. I am your true friend, after all… ahaha…" Amitie: "You're right… You're my only…"

Wacky happy fun puzzle game series, everybody!

(Amitie also blames herself for what she does when being manipulated. Just to drive the point home)

And yes, Klug bullied her a lot. Raffina did too. The former describes her grades as "garbage" to her face, and the latter christens her their class's "Princess of the Perpetual F."

(not to diverge too much from the actual topic, but I think the reason Raffina considers Amitie to be her rival is that to her, Amitie represents succeeding through natural talent. Raffina believes in grit and hard work. She has next to no magic ability, while Amitie overflows with it. Raffina feels she has to prove that overcoming anything is possible if you try hard enough)

But Amitie cherishes the friends she has— Sig, Arle, Ringo, Lidelle, and yes, even Klug and Raffina.

And they cherish her too, even if some of them struggle to admit it.

Even the Puyo Tetris games show the effects of her infectuous friendship! In both games, Amitie sees the most beligerent, rude, and melodramatic member of the SS Tetra, concludes that she's silently suffering by how utterly lonely she feels (correctly, I might add), and immediately latches onto Ess to give her as much support as possible.

Because Amitie is more perceptive than she gives herself credit for. Even if she's not always able to follow the details, she's pretty good at figuring things out. She understood Ess's loneliness. She eventually learns how to read past Sig's lack of expression. Amitie even gets Satan to admit that he's fully aware Arle's not into him.

I could keep going, but honestly? If you're not convinced by now, I'm not sure what else I can tell you. Also I'm almost at the limit.

Amitie is a friend to everyone. She's done everything for her friends, even saved their lives from calamities, because she cares so very much. She's gonna be a wonderful sorceress when she grows up~

(and there's the limit)

Favorite Sega Character: Loser's Bracket Round 4

This poll got too heated last time. Cruel language and blotting got involved, so I'll give it a fresh start

Please don't let it get that bad again.

[neverdoingmuch]

Wait cql lawyer/law school AU

i got you my pal dont worry!!

law school, im gonna be honest and say i know like nothing about law or law school so pls ignore any inconsistencies or inaccuracies

lwj goes to law school and he is definitely the top student in his class. they’ve been there for like a month and everyone already knows he’s gonna be the best

his one and only competition is this dude called wei wuxian but lwj isn’t particularly worried about him

so far they’re still in the stage of the course where they do the fun things to sucker people into doing the class for the semester so there’s been some practise debates and arguments and stuff in their tutorial classes

wei wuxian has that Charisma and like yeah all of his arguments are perfect but also he has an amazing smile and people are like yes i can trust him 

(he’s definitely the sort to be like hm, the easy way to argue this case would be to quote some laws and use precedence to justify this but that’s boring)

lwj is also good at that sort of stuff because his arguments are perfect and everything is so perfectly researched that there should be no ground at all for someone to lodge a counterargument

(wei wuxian manages somehow and it makes lwj so mad)

but that’s whatever lwj thinks,, a lot of people join law thinking it’s gonna be like the tv shows and books and then get completely blindsided when it comes to the rote learning part or like the actual laws 

and for all of wwx’s confidence, lwj hasn’t actually seen wwx so much as touch the textbook/s and he always studies in the law library so he knows that wwx has probably never even been there bc he hasn’t seen him even once (why’s he looking? bc he needs to see which books wwx uses to study,, bc there has to be something going on there,, obviously)

then they do their first like proper written assignment and lwj and wwx tie for the highest scores and now lwj has a Rival and he refuses to lose to someone who thinks that putting a ‘-us’ sound at the end of a word makes it latin (did wwx say habeas corpus and then point at a soft drink and go  sprite-us can-us,,, maybe,,,,)

anyway! lwj and wwx are kinda rivals for the top spot and it’s one of those situations where one test lwj wins by a point but then the next test wwx gets full marks and they just keep exchanging the top spot in class

and this whole time wwx is like The Worst to have in class. he’s always interrupting to ask questions or just straight up not listening and spends the class doodling pictures of rabbits (they’re cute but wwx is terrible and he’s not allowed to make cute drawings)

so after a few months the most horrible thing happens.... they get put together in a project and lwj is like ugh. internally of course but his face is also saying ugh

the first time wwx and lwj get together to work on the project, lwj is prepared with a proper list of tasks to do all nicely split up between the two of them and a schedule for when they should get certain parts done by. 

needless to say, lwj does not expect wwx to be ready, but wwx is definitely on top of things

he rocks up and is like yeah let’s do this, this and this and have them done by this time - basically proposing to do everything that lwj has already written down

and lwj is pleasantly surprised and is like hm maybe i misjudged wwx and decides to like re-evaluate his opinion on him

in doing so he realises that when he’d never seen wwx studying, it wasn’t an exaggeration at all. he’s never seen wwx so much as touch a textbook or spend more than a minute on a laptop doing something that wasn’t minesweeper or solitaire

but wwx is also making all of their deadlines and even adds extra information and resources to their document that could be useful elsewhere and sometimes he shows up to their study sessions and he looks absolutely exhausted

eventually lwj manages to get the truth out and wwx is just like yeah it’s easier to get worse grades than a genius but if you both study and you still get lower grades, it’s not easy,, for jc or for me

so wwx usually studies at night when his brother is asleep and lwj is like that’s bad, you can’t keep that up and just when wwx is about to go off at him lwj is like you can come study at my place

and thus begins the wonderful time where everything is alright and lwj falls in love with wwx

they work really well together and wwx is strangely considerate and nice? when he finds out lwj likes rabbits, he goes out and buys bunny post-it notes for lwj and starts to always bring him a doodle of bunnies every time he comes over. he always gets his work done on time, early even, and his work is always so brilliant and every time wwx smiles at him, lwj feels warm inside etc etc

for a long while lwj is like yes (: this is friendship (: bc he’s never had a crush before but then on the day they submit their project wwx is like hey,, the two of us make a great team,, we should always work together,, now and next year and even when we graduate,, i want to help the innocent people who need our help and i think i’d like it a lot if you joined me and lwj has his oh moment

they get a perfect score on the project of course and even after it finishes, wwx keeps coming over to lwj’s place to study or just hang out and lwj is just falling more and more for wwx each day

they’re best friends now and everyone gets used to seeing them work together on projects and then turn around to try and decimate each other when they’re working one on one and lwj thinks that he might just be the happiest he’s ever been

but then one day wwx doesn’t show up to class. it shouldn’t be strange but wwx has never missed class even once and he ends up hearing from lxc who heard from jgy that wwx was caught sabotaging some other student’s work (the other student was jzxun, who had a fondness for playing devil’s advocate and other than wwx once telling him that his argument was shit, wwx never spoke to him or seemed to know who he was but lwj is a bit too angry to remember that)

he manages to find wwx outside of his dorms as he’s moving out and he’s just like why did you do that? and wwx is like oh y’know,, bc he’s not really sure what’s happening himself,, one second he was at the top of his class and the next he was being brought before a board and being told that he was being expelled but he’s not going to tell lwj that bc lwj would definitely try and stand up for him and then they’d both get expelled

but lwj is furious and just spits out well if our dreams meant so little to you then maybe it’s a good thing you failed now,, bc his mother was a lawyer who took all these little jobs that helped people who actually needed the help and lwj was looking forward to doing that with wwx and he doesn’t even seem to care that now they can’t do that 

wwx flinches and then smiles at him and just cheerily says, that’s me and leaves. he doesn’t look back and lwj doesn’t chase after him.

lwj doesn’t see him again for years (you can do 13 or 5 or however long you feel like)

lwj is a fully licensed lawyer and he’s working for the family company and he spends half of his time working on cases and uses the rest of his time to do like outreach programs where he goes and visits schools and runs sessions on what it’s like to be a lawyer, how to apply, and to provide assistance to any students who decide to study law at uni

and then at one of these programs he meets this kid, wen yuan, who is ridiculously bright and enthusiastic and has a smile that seems oddly familiar

at the end of the second session he comes up to lwj and is like mr. lan, is your name lan wangji? and lwj just says yes, expecting the kid to be a fan of one of his cases or something but then wen yuan is like oh wow! i thought i recognised you from my dad’s photo!

and lwj isn’t expecting much but he asks what the photo looks like and wen yuan pulls out this photo from his pocket and lwj immediately recognises it,, it’s the only photo he has of him and wwx

your father is wei ying? lwj asks him and wen yuan is like yes, hesitates, and then asks, would you like to see him?

and that’s how lwj finds himself following wen yuan to some dinky little office that has a plaque outside that reads wen and wei

(wen ning is the nicest and sweetest person ever and lots of people underestimate him but then he’s an absolute monster on court. he gets up and completely decimates the opponent and then at the end is like (: it was so nice to meet you!! i am baby!! and all that,, you know our boy)

anyway they walk in and wwx turns to greet wen yuan but then he sees lwj and is like woah! you! and he’s not sure whether to hide or go and hug lwj so he just gives him a fist bump,, like a bro,, and immediately wants to shrivel up and die

anyway they get the reunion stuff out of the way, swelling music, tender wrist holding, lots of staring, lwj silently declaring his wholehearted love for wwx and refusing to believe rumours about him again even though he doesn’t actually know what happened, you know how it goes

from wwx’s side of things,, after he got kicked out he went to some small uni. good in its own right but not known for their law program and ended up specialising in family law

the first case he ever won was for the wens to have the right to keep custody of a-yuan and the first case wen ning ever won was to let wwx adopt a-yuan bc i’m soft like that

so wwx has just been kinda vibing,, being a single dad, living with the wens and helping to make that difference he always promised he would

now this isn’t gonna be some au where lwj goes oh my! i must give up my high salary job and work with wwx! bc lwj has been doing good stuff at his current job and for all of his family’s stuffiness, they run a fair and just company 

but! he does end up helping wwx when wwx gets a letter with a bunch of information about the jins and how they’re actually super corrupt and evil (big surprise,,) and how wwx was maybe definitely framed bc he was doing some casual work on the side and stumbled across some bad shit on the jins back in uni

lwj ends up being the one to take the case officially but wwx is definitely the guy leading it and so lwj ends up spending most of his time at the wen-wei office

lwj definitely bonds with wen yuan, who also wants to go into law, and writes him recommendation letters and helps him edit his applications and stuff

(and one day wen yuan is like leaving you was the hardest thing dad ever did and i dont think you appreciated how much he cared about you. he really did think that he annoyed you ‘til the end and lwj is like no! he didn’t! and wen yuan is like yeah i know but you gotta tell him and lwj really does mean to but the time is never right or something like that but also wen yuan is all but calling lwj dad at this point)

anyway they end up going to court, side by side, working as a team just as they promised to do and just as they finish their final day on the case, ended with the jury ruling jgy guilty and wwx’s reputation all but saved, wwx turns around and flings himself at lwj

is he crying? is he laughing? a bit of both tbh but wwx ends up confessing right then and there, still on record and everything (is that how that works??? idk! let’s say it does)

and what can lwj do but make out with him?

did a news crew come in to film the results of this massive court case just to end up with five minutes of wangxian kissing?? maybe! but when it played on tv it meant wwx and lwj didnt have to actually tell anyone they got together

(and does lwj eventually pop the question using wwx’s bad latinification? yes and wwx is too busy laughing to accept at first but he does and they end up being the worst possible tutors for wen yuan as he goes through law school bc they keep being all gross and lovey-dovey and acting like law school is the most romantic place in the world)

[sebthesnipe]

A Very Patton Christmas

Other works by me (AO3)

Tumblr Master Post

To @gilby-the-geek-girl for being the best friend a person could ask for. For without whom my writing would be riddled with errors and inconsistency, and whose gift of friendship has been the greatest thing to happen to me in a very long time. While I know you’ve read this (cuz you beta for me like the boss bitch you are) I still hope that you know that it was written with love for you. (I really don’t have time to write for anyone else XP) One day I hope you’ll have a friend at least half as good as you are (because we both no I ain’t it XP) I hope your Hanukkah wasn’t a miserable one and that you Christmas is the highlight of your 2020 (because we both know there isn’t much competition).  Prompt: Explain why Patton’s Sweater this year is so damn ugly.

Patton shifted under the mountainous pile of blankets atop him. It was early, or rather… late? He hadn’t really slept. How could he?! His favorite day of the year was here! Well, it would be.

He shifted again, this time wiggling towards where he thought one of the blankets ended and poked his head out to look at his frog shaped Wisoee alarm clock. Its dim light smiled at him reading 3:37 AM.

He held back a squeal as he ducked back into this warm cave of comforters. He couldn’t watch the clock.

A watched pot never boils,he reminded himself.

He went over the day’s schedule in his head:

Logan would already be awake and emerge at precisely 4:00 AM, as he always did. Today though, was the only day out of the year the Logan broke his (otherwise) usual routine.

Logan would skip his usual jog, replacing his gray sweats for the pajamas Patton had bought him for his birthday (a blue plaid pair of pants and a grey tee  with the text ‘Wash your hands. Wear a mask. Vote.’ printed on the front) At which point, he would make his way to the kitchen where he would start a pot of coffee for himself, Virgil, and Janus.

That would be where Patton, came in!

Patton would already be in the kitchen to start his homemade hot chocolate for himself, Roman, and Remus (With Logan’s help of course. He didn’t want another incident like the baking fiasco from a few months ago).

By the time they finished, Roman would be up, no doubt singing everyone into wakefulness. Then it would be time for hot cocoa and presents!

Patton got them all Christmas sweaters just like he did every year! He loved picking them out for each of his friends and watching them all spread out in the living room, all snug and cozy to watch their usual Christmas movie marathon!

They always let Patton pick the first movie, but there were so many good ones he usually couldn’t choose! Logan would probably chime in with the Nutcracker, not because he was a fan but because it was the only Christmas movie Roman and Remus agreed on, making  it the popular choice.

Then it would be Logan’s actual turn. He usually chose The Polar Express. Patton was pretty sure he only chose it because there were really only two Christmas movies based on books and Janus always chose A Christmas Carol. That and because Patton really liked it!

Then came Janus and finally Virgil, who was Jewish and didn’t have personal stock in Christmas, but participated for the others (which was another reason he was Patton’s favorite ,not that he’d ever admit it). Virgil always wanted to watch Die Hard, but knew Patton didn’t care for the violence much, so he usually settled for Rudolf, which warmed the fatherly figure’s heart to no end (Which was probably why Patton had bought him the collector’s edition box set of the movie). During the previous year’s viewing of the movie Virgil and Logan ended up in a discussion regarding how the song Rudolf the Rednosed Reindeer was (according to Virgil) one of the only times a big corporation did what was right. Patton usually tried to follow this kind of discussion, but he usually got lost when Logan started in about percentages and underpaid artists. It just really hurt his little heart to know so many talented people out there were struggling.

The movies, as a matter of fact, were why Patton chose the sweaters he did for them this year! Each of his friends would be gifted a sweater to mirror each of their favorite Christmas movies! (Die Hard being the exception of course!)

After all that, the group would settle in for-

The alarm clock croaked loudly, signaling the arrival of 3:45 AM.

Patton’s previous thoughts evaporated into excitement as he attempted scramble from the mass of comforters, reaching to shut off the alarm.

His leg tangled in one of the large downeys and he hit the ground with a heavy thud. He paid no mind to his bruised ribs as he wrestled himself from its grasp, smacking the flashing frog to silence it.

A moment later he threw open his door, intent for the stairs.

He never made it though. At least, not at first…

Something was off.

He paused in the hallway, skin prickling at the coolness of the air.

He had only made it a few feet when he noticed it.

Roman’s door was ajar, the dark shadows of his messy room an indication of his absence…

Remus’ too. Though it was only slightly. Patton noticed the smell more than the sight.

Was everyone up before him?

He moved towards Virgil’s room, giving a soft knock before shouldering open the door.

“Hey, Kiddo. You up?” He whispered softly before noticing the unmade empty bed.

“And what would you know?!” the ‘kiddo’-in-question’s voice came in a harsh snap, drifting up from the living room.

“Keep your voice down!” Janus’ own snapped back, matching Virgil’s volume though the tone was a mock attempt at a whisper in his tone.

Patton inched closer, concern playing on his features as he flattened himself against the wall at the top of the stairs. He certainly didn’t want to intrude on his friends’ conversation, but there was obviously something was wrong.

“Bite me, snake boy!” Virgil snapped in return, though his voice was lowered.

“Don’t tempt me,” Janus hissed.

“Wait! Let me get the camera! Pics or it didn’t happen!” Remus’ voice came in a giddy giggle. “Okay, make sure you draw blood.”

“Gross,” Virgil huffed, heat gone.

“As much as I hate to admit it, Stormcloud, I think Ser Lies-a-lot is right,” Roman sighed softly. 

“You can’t be serious!” Virgil grumbled. 

“I believe he is,” Logan’s calm voice interrupted. “Statistically speaking, twenty three percent of christmas gifts in America in a given year are unwanted but kept.”

“That’s reassuring,” Virgil growled. 

“I wasn’t finished,” Logan retorted. “Given that statistic, along with the fact that individuals are more likely to gift items they like themselves, and factoring in the number of gifts we’ve received over the years. That paired with the fact that it was commissioned from an independent artist, supporting their work directly: I would say that there is a ninety-two point six five present chance that Patton will find the gift quite adequate.”

“Did you really just do all that in your head?” Janus asked curiously. 

“Actually, no,” Logan admitted. “I calculated the odds when the idea was brought up months ago, as I do with each of your christmas gifts.”

“Is that why I got socks last year?” Remus chirped. 

“Yes, well… I found that the other options would cause unease with the others,” Logan clarified.

“Boring!” 

“Don’t worry Remus, he didn’t get you a dissection kit this year to make up for it,” Janus commented sarcastically.

“What?!” Roman spat as Remus gasped excitedly. 

“I’m not even sure how you know that,” Logan sighed, probably straightening his glasses like he usually did when something annoyed him. “And I’m not sure I care to know.”

“We’re getting side tracked. He’ll be up any minute,” Virgil interrupted once more. “The fact is, it’s one of the ugliest things I’ve ever seen and it’s too late not to give it to him.”

“I like it!” Remus argued.

“See!” Virgil huffed, using Remus’ opinion as evidence to the validity of his statement. 

“Ugh, maybe he has a point Teach,” Roman agreed. “I could put together a card for us to sign instead?”

“No, it’s too late for that, beside I am certain this is all an overstated concern.” Logan countered.

“Perhaps, a vote wouldn’t be appropriate?” Janus offered. 

“I agree, all in favor of giving Patton the gift we already agreed upon?” Logan asked. 

There was silence as Patton assumed a few of the boys raised their hands. 

“All opposed?” He continued.

“Remus you can’t vote twice!” Roman snapped. 

“You’re no fun!” Remus whined. “I’ll stick with J-anus then!”

“Please, continue to call me that. I just love it,” Janus deadpanned. 

“The ayes have it then,” Logan decided. 

“What eyes?” Remus chirped excitedly, but no one paid him any mind. 

“Roman, if you would be so kind as to finish wrapping the gift, I have a pot of coffee to finish,” Logan dismissed.

“I have some extra ribbon in my room. Want to help, Stormcloud?” Roman asked, making Patton tense as they headed his way. 

He didn’t wait for V to answer as Patton hurried back to his room and closed the door softly behind him. 

He really shouldn’t have eavesdropped. 

Guilt filled him as he leaned against the frame, processing everything that had been said. 

The group had never agreed on a gift for Patton. Usually Logan and Roman were the only two to get him anything and they just included the others’ names on the presents (not that Patton ever called them out on it. Why would he?). Patton didn’t mind of course, he knew they had trouble buying for him.

Logan usually got him a new hoodie or something practical like a flamingo pen, or oven mitts (though those usually only lasted about a week before Patton caught them on fire or melted them!). Roman always made him something, like the card he had mentioned, and just had the others sign it. Patton didn’t mind of course, he loved everything they gave him. It was the thought that warmed him! Even the fact that Remus refrained from his usual off the wall habits to try and make Patton more comfortable meant the world to him.

The fact that the group was so torn over his opinion broke his heart. How could they think that? What had he done to put that doubt in their mind? He had to do better! Whatever it was, he would show he loved it more than anything they had ever gotten him before.

His brows furrowed in determination. 

This would be their year!

He took a moment to gather himself before plastering on a smile and throwing open the door once more, running straight into a surprised Logan. 

Logan gave a small grunt as Patton bumped him, the mug of hot cocoa sloshing over and onto his hand. 

“Oh goodness!” Patton gasped in shock, “I’m so sorry Lo’! Are you alright?” The smaller man hurriedly took the mug from his friend’s hand and set it on the small table next to the door, frantically searching for something to clean up the mess. 

“I’m fine, Patton,” Logan reassured, producing a blue handkerchief from his pant pocket and wiping the warm liquid off his hand. Leave it to Logan to have his handkerchief with him despite wearing pajamas. “I made sure the liquid was at an acceptable temperature for this exact reason.”

“Oh! I hope I didn’t ruin your new PJs!” Patton cried, already pushing Logan’s arms up to examine the flannel. 

There wasn’t a stain to be found. Logan arched a brow as he waited for Patton to satisfy his need for the inspection before sighing. 

“Truly, Patton, I’m fine. Are you?” Logan asked, his neutral expression turning to one of concern. 

“What?” Patton hummed, glancing up to meet the taller man’s eyes. “Of course! I wasn’t the one holding the cup!” 

“I wasn’t referring to the cocoa,” Logan pointed out, lowering his arms. “It’s 4:17. It isn’t like you to be so unpunctual on Christmas day.” 

“Oh…” Patton whispered, lowering his gaze in shame. Should he tell him? It wasn’t right to keep secrets. Would he be upset if he found out Patton had been eavesdropping? No… Today was their day… He wouldn’t do anything to upset them. “No. I’m fine!” Patton reassured, suddenly as chipper as ever as he offered out a smile. 

Logan eyed him suspiciously, but seemed to wearily accept the answer. 

“Well, I thought your traditional cup of cocoa would help if anything were amiss,” Logan nodded towards the cup, bringing Patton’s attention to it once more. 

Logan had made it without him? 

Patton could feel the mask around his heart start to crack a little as his stomach sank. He supposed it made sense that Logan wouldn’t really need him to make it… Still, that was Patton and Logan’s Christmas tradition… It hurt that he had been left out of it. 

“Aw! Thank you Logan!” Patton forced out in his preening voice as if nothing was wrong. 

This was their day, not his. 

“That’s so sweet!” He added, collecting the mug and taking a small sip. Somehow it didn’t taste as good as it usually did. 

“You’re very welcome, Patton,” Logan replied with a small tilt of his lips. 

His crooked smile also seemed to soften his features; Patton loved that about him. It made his sudden disappointment worth it. 

“I know we usually have a schedule for the holiday, but…” Logan paused as if he were nervous. What an odd look for the scholar. “Well, the others requested a change in plans.”

Patton’s heart sank. What kind of change? Did they not like the way they usually celebrated Christmas? Why hadn’t they told him? Was his idea of Christmas really so one sided? How had he not noticed this before? Was that why Logan was so nervous?

No… It didn’t matter. This was their day, not his.

“What kind of change, kiddo? I’m sure whatever it is will be great! It’s Christmas after all!” Patton responded, despite the way his stomach knotted. 

“Well,” Logan began, stepping aside. “Perhaps it would be best if they explained it.”

Patton hesitated before nodding taking the lead as they walked down the hall. What if they didn’t want to do hot cocoa and movies any more? What if they didn’t want to celebrate Christmas at all?! Was that why they came together for a gift? To appease Patton? They were all getting older and it wasn’t as if they had children. Maybe they felt like Christmas wasn’t for adults…

That was ridiculous, Patton knew that. But still…

He headed down the stairs, a smile still glued to his lips as he caught sight of Remus and Janus whispering over a small box. 

“I told you, it's for you!” Janus hissed at the mustached man next to him, fending him off the plain white box in his hands. 

“I helped pick them out! I should be allowed first dib-” Remus cut himself off as Janus elbowed him in the ribs pulling his attention up to Patton, just as he took the last step on the landing. 

“I didn’t lick them, I swear!” Remus called out, smiling broadly in his stained Oscar the Grouch onesie. “Okay maybe a few.”

Janus rolled his eyes, dressed in his usual suit and hat, not bothering with a comment. 

“Good Morning, Patton, slept horribly I hope?” Janus asked pleasantly. 

“Hey, kiddos. You’re up early,” Patton offered, feeling more uneasy than ever; something that must have shown because at that moment Logan leaned down to whisper in the smaller man’s ear. 

“Are you sure you are alright Patton?” he asked softly. “If you’re not feeling well then perhaps you should rest. I’m sure we can put this off unti-”

“Hola, Padre!” Roman’s voice came,  cutting off Logan’s words. 

Patton glanced up at the two figures standing at the top of the stairs. Roman, straight backed, hands behind him as he stood tall in his prince pajamas; Virgil behind him, using him to practically hide his small form, dressed in his Jack Skeleton onesie. 

“Roman, Virgil! You’re up already! This is a surprise!” Patton feigned excitement.

“Definitely a Christmas miracle,” Janus sighed. 

No one paid the comment any mind as Roman hurried down the stairs. Grin wide.

“Well this is a special day, Padre!” Roman explained as Virgil followed after, rolling his eyes. 

“Bah-Humbug,” the black and white clad man grumbled in response. Though it may have been Patton’s imagination, but Virgil's eyeshadow looked a few shades lighter than usual. 

“Feliz Navidad Patton! Merry Christmas!”Roman sang, producing the present from behind his back and offering it out. 

Patton’s heart skipped a beat, hesitating as he glanced around the room at each of his friends. They all looked so nervous… Even Janus. 

His attention went back to the gift being presented. It was a decent sized package with rainbow wrapping paper, black and white striped ribbon, and a green and blue bow that sat just above a small yellow tag that read ‘To: Janus From: Patton’.

Despite Patton’s dread and apprehension, he couldn’t help but smile at the packaging. They had even come together on the wrapping. It was very sweet. 

He glanced up at Roman who nodded eagerly, indicating that Patton was welcome to it. 

“You guys! You didn’t have to do all this!” He whispered in awe, voice cracking as tears began filling his eyes.

No matter what happened, Patton was awed by the fact that the boys went to so much trouble for him. They had come together for him. It didn’t matter if they were too old for Christmas!

He tugged at the ribbon, finding it firmly in place, before turning it over and trying again. After flipping it once more he heard Logan give a small chuckle. 

“May I?” his soft calm voice came. Patton nodded, handing over the package to Logan and wiping away a tear he felt rolling down his cheek. 

Logan’s nimble fingers loosened the bow and the surrounding ribbon, careful not to ruin them (he knew Patton loved to keep them and hang them above his mirror to admire later). Logan set the ribbon aside before handing the package back to the smaller man.

“Thank you,” Patton murmured weakly, gently tearing the wrapping to slide the sleek white box from inside. 

“This is worse than waiting for a magnet you swallowed to come out the other end!” Remus chimed in excitedly. 

“Ugh! Does he really have to be here?!” Roman whined, causing Patton’s grin to turn genuine.

The momentary distraction had him feeling a bit better as he slid a nail under the lid of the box, breaking the tape there and pulling open the lid. 

Wrapped loosely in a thin tissue paper lay a DVD copy of The Shop Around the Corner, a mug that, when you sip it, makes the drinker look like the bottom half of their face belongs to a puppy, and some kind of knitted fabric.

“Ah! You guys!!!” Patton squealed, tears beginning to fall as he collected the mug and movie, setting them aside and pulling out the sweater to get a better look at it. 

The light blue knitted midsection was covered in what, he assumed, was supposed to be some kind of icing pattern? Or perhaps whipped cream? Lace? He wasn’t sure. There was also a brown bow tie that was maybe supposed to be chocolate? Down the center was a line of pink chocolate chip cookie buttons. The bright pink sleeves had much of the same design though instead of pink cookies they were light blue.

It may have been the ugliest excuse of a sweater Patton had ever seen.

Silence fell in the rooms everyone waited for Patton’s reaction. 

“We know it’s not as good as the ones you get us,” Virgil chimed in nervously. “But we thought that maybe you’d like one of your own?” 

“The mug, of course, is so you won’t have to make so many trips for more cocoa,” Logan added with a soft smile. “I thought the others would like to help us make the rest after you change, of course. If you’d like.”

“The rest?” Patton asked, breath hitching as the tears threatened to fall. “You mean… You didn’t make it without me?” He sniffled.

“What?” Logan blinked in surprise. “Of course not, Patton. Making hot chocolate for everyone is a tradition I enjoy spending with you. I would never-”

“Well, it's just… you brought the mug up… So, I thought…” Patton let his voice fade as he watched understanding flash over Logan’s features.

“I was worried there might be something wrong. I thought waking you with your own mug would be a nice surprise.” Logan explained. “I apologize if I gave the wrong impression, Patton. I only made the one mug. I know you find a great deal of happiness in our customary time in the kitchen. I would not want to take that from you.”

“But…” Patton murmured, eyes shifting to the others. “Everyone’s already awake… And you were all together… I don’t want to impose on-”

“¡Espera! ¡Espéra! ¡Espéra!” Roman interrupted, looking both surprised and concerned. “I did not wake up far before my beauty rest was done to hear this slander especially from Mr. Spirit of Christmas, himself! Patton, with you there is no Christmas.”

“Roman is right, Patton,” Virgil shrugged, shrinking a bit lower into his hood. “I certainly wouldn’t be celebrating and we definitely wouldn’t have come together to get you the gifts. 

“I know Shop Around the Corner isn’t usually on our Christmas Merry Marathon list, but you never really get to pick a movie and I know it’s your favorite,” Roman pitched in. “At least, that's what Janus claims.”

“I totally didn’t check your browsing history,” Janus shrugged.

“And I edited the email to the artist!” Remus added proudly.

“That… explains a lot,” Logan whispered under his breath softly.

“We also didn’t bring you cookies from that bakery you hate.” Janus stated, setting the box he had been holding down on the small table next to him. 

Patton was silent throughout the exchange, burying his face into the soft fabric as he began to shake silently with his sobs. 

“I told you he wouldn’t like it!” Virgil cried desperately.

“No!” Patton responded, voice breaking. “I love it! I love all of it!” He dropped his hands just enough to rush forward, wrapping both Virgil and Roman into a great big hug. “Thank you so much! It’s perfect!” 

Roman gave a boisterous laugh, returning the hug as Virgil couldn’t help but smile; both grunting as Remus piled atop them. 

Logan approached, resting a hand on Patton’s shoulders in reassurance. 

“Well, this is certainly a disgusting sight,” Janus sighed, though he was grinning as well. 

“I love you guys so much!” Patton laughed, the weight on his heart lifting to the point of forgetfulness. How could he have ever thought these men didn’t need him or wouldn’t want to spend Christmas with him. They were his family!

“Is it just me or is this oddly arousing?” Remus purred.

“Ugh!” Roman and Virgil both scoffed at once, shoving the rank smelling man away from them. 

“Why do you have to ruin everything?!” Roman growled, dragging his brother away.

Patton didn’t mind the outburst, however, far too busy hurrying up the stairs to change so they could get their Best Christmas EVER underway…

The End...

[veryvincible]

Hello, you mentioned Howard was physically abusive towards Tony but I don’t remember any physical abuse panels ... the one that comes close to it is probably Howard forcing alcohol to young Tony. I also can’t recall Maria being abused .. she was pretty spoiled and annoying during Gillens flashbacks lol. Of course I could be wrong because I didn’t read all of Howard or Maria comic appearances and I’m certainly NOT defending Howard.

He was a piece of shit but I think his abuse was mostly psychological and emotional which are horrible and are harder to spot and overcome. Which is why I agree with you about how Tony views his dad and has those mixed feelings about Howard. He shrugs it like “he tried his best” or “it was tough love” and I think that’s because he can’t fully recognise the abuse because it wasn’t your typical “abuse” aka physical ... there are no bruises. Anyway this my lengthy unsolicited 2 cents .. sorry 😩

Also.. Maria was awful too and was okay with using Tony as a decoy. She’s not a good mom. I dislike how much the fandom sympathise with her lol I hope you don’t mind me <3

Whew. Okay.

I’m putting a disclaimer here to say that this is a little rough to talk about for me, and as such, this may not be the most eloquent thing I’ve ever put together. So, with that in mind, here’s my response:

First of all, I think it’s important to remember that physical abuse doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and that it’s most often preceded by psychological and emotional abuse. While I’ll concede that victims of psychological and emotional abuse exclusively can fall into imposter syndrome much more easily as a result of a lack of physical evidence, that doesn’t necessarily mean that physical evidence of abuse will lead to someone legitimizing their experiences. Physical evidence can play a huge role in whether or not other people will believe you when you tell them what’s going on, but when it comes to actually being a victim of abuse, physical evidence isn’t actually too strong an indicator of anything. When you’ve already spent so much time justifying emotional and psychological abuse for your abuser, it’s not a huge leap to then go on to justify the physical abuse, whether you do it by invalidating your own self worth or validating the mental state your abuser is in that’s causing them to hurt you. So, Tony could still realistically be physically abused and have the mindset of, “Maybe I overreacted!” or “Maybe they tried their best and their best was shitty, but I can understand that there’s more nuance to it.” Tough love, especially, is a significant justification for victims of physical abuse, especially men.

Secondly, I think your take is perfectly valid. I think your hatred for and anger toward Maria is understandable. A lot of people need that kind of content; they themselves find catharsis through righteous anger, and when you need to feel that, you need to feel that. Letting yourself go through the motions and feel what you weren’t allowed to feel when you were under the shitty circumstances is huge for health and emotional wellbeing. That being said, it’s also incredibly important to remember that other people- other victims of abuse, specifically- find catharsis through other means.

I, myself, am a victim of severe long-term abuse, and I have a complicated family set up wherein there’s a history of abuse on both sides. Some close friends of mine have been in similar positions, and they do lean on the side of acknowledging and working through pain via anger and frustration. Due to my nature, though, that’s not generally the frame of reference I use for my situation on a day-to-day basis. I will have periods of extreme anger, and these close friends of mine have periods of mellow understanding, but at our core, we’re different. Survivors exist on a spectrum.

This is one of the reasons why I love that we get different takes on Tony’s family and his interpretation of the abuse that he’s been through; this is a result of time and writer changes, of course, but the fact is, no matter where you are on the spectrum, it’s easy to relate to some mindset of 616 Tony’s, because... well, he (as a written, inconsistent character, as opposed to a cohesive “person”) has so many to choose from.

So, I understand why you dislike that fandom has a tendency to sympathize with her. I can empathize with the feeling of being “othered” from the fandom as a result of what content is most cathartic to consume for you, specifically when this content differs from the accepted “baseline” that fanon’s built.

I respect your opinion and your desire for a no-tolerance policy in the works you consume. I understand why you would feel that way, and I legitimately do hope that you’re able to find the corner of fandom that provides you with that content that you need. All I ask is that you have the same level of respect and understanding for people like me, who have had different responses to abuse and, as such, need different content in order to process what we’ve been through. Fanon, as it is, just happens to be kind of in between us; yes, it’s incredibly difficult to swallow sometimes, but it’s important that we be respectful of this, too.

As for canon evidence of both physical abuse and Maria being a victim of Howard’s abuse.

Like the many different interpretations we get of Tony and his response to abuse, there are also many different interpretations of Howard and Maria’s relationship, not only with each other but with their son as well. But here’s one of the earliest appearances of the family as a whole, in a funky flashback scene:

There’s a good amount of canon like this, especially surrounding this issue (Vol. 1, #285), but here’s the gist of it:

Maria’s pretty clearly used to being silenced and talked down to, to the point where we can assume she’s self-regulating to avoid an outburst on Howard’s part, that might result in emotional damage or worse.

Her timidity, however, changes when her son is at risk. So, in this early depiction of the family dynamics, Maria won’t advocate for herself as an autonomous woman, but she will actively use her body to shield her son from potential harm. It’s kind of the opposite of her using Tony as a decoy. Again, there are many interpretations of these family dynamics, but this is specifically one interpretation in early canon that people can (and often do) choose to draw from.

Needless to say, “No, Howard. You won’t lay a hand on him,” implies that Howard has a history of laying his hands on his son.

There’s really not much else I have to say about this.

So, to recap: Your feelings are perfectly understandable, and I’m not asking you to be less angry or hate Maria any less. Please, please, please seek out whatever content will feel best for you. Don’t feel obligated to abide by any one bit of canon just because it’s a fanon favorite. Your feelings on this subject matter. What you need for the sake of your mental health matters. Your anger is legitimate.

But that doesn’t erase that the majority of fanon has chosen an interpretation of the Stark family dynamic that’s different from what you or I might tend to go for. We’re both a little bit further down our respective ends of the spectrum, and fanon is more in the middle. It’s imperative to the healing of everyone who uses these comics and these characters to relate to and project on that we understand we all have different needs and different “ideals” for the content we consume.

So, please, be angry, but be respectful. You don’t have to be understanding toward these fictional characters, but be understanding toward the people who want to be understanding toward them, to some degree. And don’t let anyone on the opposite end of the spectrum tell you that you’re any less correct than they are. 

This was a long one and, like I said, it is difficult to properly articulate these thoughts in a way that feels like it’s welcoming and understanding toward everyone who might come across them, so I hope I did well here.

Thank you for your ask. I most definitely do not mind you.

[you-can-call-me-verge]

Delivery (Lonely Chapter 2)

I was asked anonymously to continue my first fic, here, Lonely. I'm a people pleaser and I am so flattered by anyone's who's supported me turning this into my first chaptered fic. 

Word Count: 2.1k

Summary: Ash was a great idea, but how do we get them to be more than an idea? 

Warnings: My terrible OC that I can't believe anybody wants to know more about (seriously thank y'all so much) 

It was dinner time, a few nights after Roman had presented Thomas with his imaginary friend. Nobody was saying anything, but they were all slowly giving up hope that the idea would work. As Logan had said a few days earlier, in theory Ash should've shown up soon after Thomas knew about them. And yet, there was no sign of them. Everyone was handling Thomas's growing loneliness differently. Virgil was shutting himself away from everyone, Patton on the other hand was feeling more clingy. Roman was sulking and Logan was trying desperately to explain why there was no sign of Ash.

"I have a theory!" Logan blurted out in the middle of the otherwise silent meal.

"It's hopeless, Logan. Give up." Virgil replied. He didn't sound cruel, more defeated than anything else.

"This one makes sense, I promise."

"Logan-"

"I think maybe because we're sides and Ash is not, maybe we take up different parts of the mindscape!"

"Logan?"

We're facets of Thomas's personality and Ash is an idea, doesn't it make sense that we'd be-"

"Logan!" Patton was yelling now, not trying to scare Logan, but to quiet him down. Logan looked behind him.

"Hello?"

It was like Roman's drawing had come to life. There Ash was, standing, real. Their chin length hair was dyed royal blue (oh Roman, never could resist royalty) over a slightly sloppy bleach job. They wore a red flannel which hung off their thin frame. Their face was round and a little rosy, with freckles and acne scars dotting their olive skin. They seemed to be a little shorter than Thomas, and they pushed back their bangs so they were off their face.

"I'm Ash. I'd like to meet all of you, but first I'd just like to know… where I am?" They spoke quietly and politely, looking like a deer in the headlights.

Patton immediately stepped in to answer the question and comfort them. "Hiya kiddo! Okay, this could be just a little difficult to grasp, so take your time, alright? You're in Thomas's mindscape. We're all parts of his personality, or as he's come to call them, 'sides.' I'm Patton, Thomas's morality. That's Virgil, Thomas's Anxiety. Logan is Thomas's logic, and that's-"

Roman was shellshocked. He stared unabashedly at Ash, but snapped out of it when it was his turn to be introduced, he cut Patton off, saying "I'm Prince Roman! Or just Roman- It's so amazing to meet you! I can't- I can't believe you're real! You're- you! I'm sorry, i'm definitely coming off as weird, it's just that I created you! I wrote you down and drew you and you're real- like Pinocchio!" Roman was going a mile a minute. "I thought it didn't work! I thought maybe I was too inconsistent or your character just didn't work but I was so wrong! I was so wrong-" He stopped when he felt Virgil's hand on his shoulder.

"You're overwhelming them," Virgil said simply.

"Right- of course. I created your personality, I should've realized you were shy, and an introduction like that would be too much. Are you okay?"

Ash was still standing, eyes wide and posture stiff. They tried to come off amiable and chill as they told the sides, "I'm fine, I guess. I'm just frazzled.” They paused, considering, before continuing, “It's like- one second I didn't exist and then the next I did, but like I still have a childhood, and like a life before now? It's really weird. And now I'm here with you, and I barely know all of your names or who you are, and you all look kinda the same, no offense, and it's just really weird."

"That's understandable. But I must say, when Virgil and Roman came into existence, they acted much different than you." Logan was thinking out loud. "You're handling this much better than they did. Of course, I can't speak for Patton, he was here before me. They were both very scared, and as I remember, I was terrified. I took days trying to figure out what was going on. You, however, seem to be comparatively fine."

Ash considered for a moment. "I was scared, but you all seem very nice. I can't quite say I’m feeling entirely unguarded just yet, but you seem… trustworthy. Not that I have a choice. The fog is kinda lifting, too."

Virgil stepped in, deciding to try being welcoming. "Well then, welcome to the club, Ash."

It had been about three days since Ash came into existence. Everything was going well. They got along great with just about everyone. They helped Patton with cooking, although they weren't very good at it. They did know what tasted good. They took time to draw with Roman (Roman regrets making them better at art than he is, but he would never admit that.) When they hung out with Virgil they seemed more resistant to the effects of his room. Additionally, they seemed to help calm him down a little. Logan enjoyed deep philosophical talks with them, seeming to be enthralled with the new point of view on life they had as a person, as opposed to a side.

However, Thomas had not yet called them up yet. The sides agreed that it was weird that he hadn't even tried to communicate with them or with Ash. Meanwhile, Thomas was growing lonelier and lonelier.

But three days of silence went by before he called up each of the sides by name, with no mention of Ash. After they'd all said hello to Thomas, he told them why he'd gathered them.

"Roman, I'm sorry but I don't think the imaginary friend thing is working."

The sides exchanged a panicked look.

"W-what do you mean?" Roman asked, face powder-white.

"I've been concentrating so hard for a week now, and nothing has changed. Ash still feels like a concept. I'm sorry, I just-"

"Oh! I know why it isn't working!" Patton said to him excitedly. "They already came into existence!" He called out, "Ash! Come on up here!"

Suddenly, Ash appeared in Patton's space. "Woah, what was that? Where am I?" They looked around excitedly. "Hey guys! You must be Thomas, I'm Ash." They walked over to his space and stuck out their hand for a handshake.

Thomas, eyes wide, shook Ash's hand. Words seemed to be lost on him as he looked at Ash. Patton noticed and asked playfully, "Cat got your tongue, kiddo?"

That effectively broke the ice, as Thomas said to them, "You're so cool! Oh my god- I love your hair! You look just like Roman's drawing too- you're so cool, oh my goodness... How did you get from Patton's space to mine? How long have you been real? Have you been making friends? Oh my gosh!"

Ash was evidently made hesitant from Thomas's reaction, but met it with nervous enthusiasm, saying "Thank you about my hair! Um- I guess I do look like Roman's drawing, and going from space to space just sorta happens, sorry for the lack of an answer... It's been about three days now, and yeah! All of these guys are super sweet and they've really been making me feel at home, too."

"That's so great! You guys, why didn't you tell me?"

"We kinda thought that you knew already," Virgil responded.

"Aw man, if I knew already I would've called you guys up!" He put his arm around Ash, who smiled and looked at him as he spoke. "Well gee, Ash, I'm just so glad to have you here with us. How've you been? What've you been doing?"

"I've just been with all of these guys. We've been doing our own thing, I guess."

"I've found they have a particularly interesting personality." The other sides could tell Logan was about to ramble. "I've rather enjoyed my philosophical talks and debates with them, and I do believe that if you consult them on issues in the same way you do with us, you'll get interesting and new perspectives."

"Logan says that I'm more reserved, but more belligerent than you." Ash interjected.

"Precisely. They come off as very shy but as they come out of their shell, I think they could help you get over your desire to be hospitable and to stand up for yourself."

"They're really fun, too!" Patton smiled. "They've been helping me out with cooking a lot. You really do like to try new things, huh?"

"Oh yeah, I've always wanted to cook! Well, I've only been real for three days-” they started to address Thomas, “but before then… I don't know how to explain it, I’m sorry."

Roman cut them off, smiling warmly. "I understand what you mean. I wrote your entire self, including your desire to cook." He laughed. "Virgil?"

"They're pretty cool, I guess." Virgil mumbled, clearly trying to keep up his aloof persona while still complimenting his new friend. Everyone was able to see through the mask, even Thomas could tell that Ash and Virgil were going to be close friends.

"Well, as long as I have all of you here with me, I may as well ask for your advice. I'm not filming today for a couple reasons, mostly I don't want to promise too much to our viewers with this dilemma. I've been thinking about making another song, but I'm afraid of the negative feedback I might get. I want to upload a song, but it feels too risky for me."

"Don't do it. It's too much effort, and everyone will hate it anyway."

"Now Virgil, we talked about being such a negative Nancy all the time."

"It's my job, Patton. Plus, it doesn't mean I'm not right."

"You should do it! Let your showmanship flourish, people will love it!"

"Roman could be right. Plus, I'm sure if you just engaged with those who are hateful towards you you'd uncover the underlying reason for it."

"Logan, while I'm so proud that you're agreeing with Princey and supporting Thomas, I can't say talking to the hateful people is the best idea."

“Why, Patton? I’m sure-”

"I still think it'll just be a huge failure."

"Virgil, it's highly unlikely that we won't get any positive reactions at all. Plus, Roman can help a lot with the writing and production of the song. Perhaps we should get some fresh eyes. Ash?"

Ash looked at Logan, surprised that he asked their opinion. "Oh. Well, I think, I guess... I guess we should just do what makes us happy! If anybody decides they don't like it, then it's not your problem or your fault. You can never please everybody, and even though Logan is right that there's an underlying reason for their hate, maybe it's better to do something for yourselves and to forget about other people for once."

"But our success is dependent on the opinions of other people!" Roman said as Virgil nodded along. "How are we supposed to just ignore it?"

"I can help when the time comes. Plus, your success really isn't entirely dependent on other people. One video that is poorly reviewed isn't going to make you come crashing down. Also, everybody loved your first song, and so many other people have been requesting a second. I think the pros outweigh the cons."

Logan was fascinated. "This is incredible! We wouldn't have come up with something like this on our own without you. At least, certainly not this fast. Roman, this is incredible. By creating them, you've created a way for us to see issues from a separate perspective." He adjusted his glasses, staring intently at Ash.

"That's... a little weird." They said, squirming under Logan's gaze.

"What is, sport?" Patton asked them.

"I don't know, being referred to as something that was created. I know that to you I'm only three days old, but to me... I've had an entire life and everything. I don't know, it's just weirdly... existential, I guess."

"Hmm. Well we wouldn't want to send you into some sort of existential crisis," Logan speculated.

"No kidding. Those suck, please come to me if you ever have one." Virgil added.

"I think it's better that we try to think of you as the person I created you as, rather than a concept." Roman supplied.

"Anything to keep you safe, champ," Patton said warmly.

After a brief, happy, silence, Thomas clapped his hands. "Alright! Ash, it's been so great getting to know you, and I can't wait to learn even more. I want to thank you for the feedback on the song." He went in and hugged Ash, who smiled and hugged him back.

"Same to you, man. I can't wait to see you again." They said, and sunk out with the rest of the sides.

[ualscout]

Captain’s Log: Roundabout the Block

We were told at the beginning that this project was a favorite project. I mean, telling a secret? Talking about ourselves? Seems like fun. Everyone likes to talk about themselves, and we know ourselves the most and best. 

… Thing is, I had no idea what secret to tell. I have a pretty interesting backstory. I’m a foreigner, I was raised in a cult and had to leave, I have an autistic little brother, I work with kids and the wilds or Midwest America, but a secret… 

I started compiling a list. Most of them looped back to “I’m desperately alone in this country and I don’t know to handle” or “I miss my friends at home” or “I wish the people I loved were closer” or “I’m stressed out” but… everyone’s gonna do something like that, right? We’re all stressed. We’re all tired. Most of us (foreign at least) are coping with being away from home. Naw, if I tell a secret, it’s gotta be something funny, something humanizing. This isn’t a chance to open up to the class, this is a chance to show how stupid I can be. This would not only be a Stupid Thing I Did, but a insight into who I am: A Joke. A Jest. A meme. 

I started designing how I wanted to present myself first. Even if I didn’t have a story yet, I had a main character. I spent a lot of time on it… it just never seemed to look like something I wanted to portray myself as. I tried to adhere to the goal of making a simple character, and I think I did okay with that. The body was easy to draw, but fluid and dynamic. 

At some point, I realized a secret I could tell. I almost got struck by lightning in my youth. It had lasting effects on my psyche later on. I realized if I set it to a song called “Roundabout” by Yes, it would show how it affected me the best. I have terrible fears of loud unexpected noise and being out in storms, and all that was impacted in one split second. A second I didn’t know was coming. “Roundabout” captured this feeling almost perfectly.

I designed the other character first, my dog. Then, while I was visiting home, I took sketches of where it happened and figured out where the characters would go. I kept the foreground open to allow for more movement and put more tall stuff in the back to make it more filled, but how far back it was staggered in distance. I had a lot of fun drawing my dog, Brooklyn. I’m not very good at drawing creatures, so finding a style was a challenge. I was kind of inspired by the body style of My Little Pony characters, but didn’t realize this until later on…

“Roundabout” happens in key parts. There’s three riffs, then a drop where the lightning would happen. Each step to that lightning, I aimed for recreating that memory for the viewer. Slowly, the background comes back to life. The clouds roll into the sky to the music. The rain drops slightly, but never really starts heavily, creating a fake sense of calm. Everything is focused on making sure the audience is waiting for something to happen, building tension alongside the song. 

The first part is sketching up the place it happened. I’m in animation, so I’m expected to be able to draw. When you want to show someone what something looks like but you don’t have a picture, you draw it, either physically or with word pictures. I designed the background, then did frame by frame to show how it came into existence. Then, once it does and the building note suddenly ends, it pops into color and becomes more real and tangible to the audience. Then, the color is lost when the clouds come in, showing the situation isn’t as it always is. It only changes when the sun gets blocked out, ‘cause it’s gotta be a little bit of a logical reason. It’s emotional and practical, okay? I wanted to do more with the color shift in the clouds, but whatever, it was a bit too late to change it when I thought of it /shrug. 

Next, the rain has to come in on the notes. I only animated one raindrop and it took me legit hours. I didn’t do heavy rain because it would lead the audience to the conclusion that it was rain/water related too soon. I wanted it to be implied, but not given away. Once the characters enter the scene, the audience should let the raindrops move to the back of their mind. I also didn’t do heavy rain because it was Too Hard To Animate. I tried, it sucked. 

Then, the characters enter the frame. Finally, a more tangible focus. Brooklyn enters the frame first, kind of ushering in my character. The two are supposed to be opposites in movement. Brooklyn is energetic and spirited, Scout is tired and lethargic. She barely moves at all. The moment seems so meaningless and non-dramatic, the key moment seems to be when Brooklyn shits, which of course got laughs… I didn’t mean for it to, but it did so, uh… Anyways, it’s just more juxtaposition between the music and the action, all while happening with instead of entirely against it. The moment is so mundane, when my character had to step back to get Brooklyn and the lightning strikes where she just stood, it should take the audience a moment to think over “wait what the FUCK just happened” because not only did the visual tone change (with a filter) but the musical tone finally gives the drop the audience has been waiting for. The foreshadowing of the music is shown best right before, like the first bit is only adding up 1/4th of the build, but really drags it along to make it heavier. Then the lead up before the drop is a warning, a “wait, whatever’s happening is about to happen” that’s more heavily juxtaposed with the same mundane movement as before- there’s no change in the movement, a tonal inconsistency. 

In conclusion...

THIS PROJECT WAS A MAJOR FUKKEN TECHNICAL NIGHTMARE. 

I swear to god, not one animation software would work on my iPad. I learned maybe three different softwares and had to keep switching between them. I’d animate something for hours then realize I couldn’t use it. It sucked! It was terrible! I did way more work than was shown. Work that will never see the light of day. I don’t want to go too much into detail but it SUCKED. 

I also did way too much action in the segment with Brooklyn. I colored and lined almost 50 frames but only used 25. I cut out a whole action in which he chases a squirrel around a tree, that was so much time lost…

… in all, I tried my best to keep it away from writing and more visual storytelling. I think I did an okay job. I tried to cut it down instead of monologging endlessly, even if I did overload myself with work still, but not as much as I could have. I also got laughs! I was funny! And I was also right about the majority of secrets. A lot of them weren’t necessarily dark, but they were more serious. The fact that I managed to get a big reaction and laughs after the audience watched so much serious material was a shock to me, it breaks the main rule of comedy. 

(And I’m not sure if Léo was mocking me when he asked if we could watch it again…)

[madelynhimegami]

In my Arle propaganda post from last round, I said said that Arle wasn't the living embodiment of friendship because that was another Puyo Puyo character.

I also said that her characterization was inconsistant when Compile was passing the cast around different writers that didn't really share notes with each other. One writer in particular tended to portray Arle as clumsy, cheery, innocent, and full of self-doubt.

It's easy to get the impression that when Sega took over the series, they looked at this and thought, "This is a good character, but it's not Arle." So when they kicked off their own setting, they decided to make their new heroine be like that from the get-go.

That heroine is Amitie. Her dream is to be a wonderful sorceress. And I love her to pieces.

Personality-wise, Amitie's most prominant feature by leaps and bounds is her cheerfulness. She's a bright ball of sunshine that lights up the room wherever she goes. She greets everyone with a smile and boundless, infectuous energy and a heart the size of Mercury. Her boundless enthusiasm means that, no matter how much she struggles, she never gets down for very long. She'll just try again! And she will try to be your friend, frame one.

She does struggle a lot, though. While never made explicit for numerous reasons, it's pretty clear Amitie suffers from ADHD. She has a hard time with studying and focusing in class. She's flighty, gets easily confused, and sometimes draws strange conclusions. For instance, when she's told of an impending disaster in the book Sig's Secret:

Or in Fever 2, when she comes face-to-face with her demon-possessed classmate:

(For reference, the little purple thing coming from the book is Klug's disembodied soul. As you can see, he's depicted with the same kind of glasses currently on his body.)

(Also worth noting is, Amitie, despite initially not wanting to deal with Klug's nonsense in this game, ends up being the only one in their grade that actually wants to save him from his arrogance.)

She's also clumsy and accident-prone. Here's Another excerpt from the Sig's Secret book, where she and her friends are learning how to bake cakes:

And this extends to her magic, as well. Admittedly, I don't know if the following comics are considered canon, but they are largely in character. Note that both comics are read top to bottom:

As a result, despite her bubbly demeanor, she has low self-esteem. She blames herself for when things go wrong in Sig's Secret. In another novel, Everyone's Dreams Coming True?!, she's heartbroken when Arle and Ringo respond dismissively to how she describes her image of a "wonderful sorceress," and concludes that they don't believe in her. Then in the next chapter, she has an anxiety attack over the thought that her friends might reject her idea for solving the current dilema, just like they seemingly rejected her greatest ambition.

And then there was that time where Amitie almost lost her soul to a doll that preyed on her insecurities.

Living Doll: "No, Amitie. I understand." Amitie: "Huh?" Living Doll: "You are trying so hard. You are such a good child. I can tell." Amitie: "Huh… You think so!?" Living Doll: "You try so hard, yet that Raffina and Klug treat you horribly. How could they say such awful things to you?" Amitie: "Huh? W-Wait, um, um, like, yeah, those two can be a bit blunt and mean, but they're really not bad people!" Living Doll: "But I would never say such awful things to you." [...] Living Doll: "Oh, oh... I am so sorry. But, you see, that is just how much I care about you, my friend. I never would say anything bad about you. I understand how you feel so well. I am your only real friend, you know." Amitie: "My... real friend?" Living Doll: "Yes... Ahahaha. So let's stay together forever and ever...ahahahaha..." Amitie: "...Yeah... you're right... you're my... friend..." [...] Living Doll: "Amitie... Amitie... How are you feeling? Have you calmed down now?" Amitie: "Yeah... I can't really focus, but... I'm okay... Thank you for worrying about me." Living Doll: "Of course I worry. I am your true friend, after all... ahaha..." Amitie: "You're right... You're my only..."

Wacky happy fun puzzle game series, everybody!

(Amitie also blames herself for what she does when being manipulated. Just to drive the point home)

And yes, Klug bullied her a lot. Raffina did too. The former describes her grades as "garbage" to her face, and the latter christens her their class's "Princess of the Perpetual F."

(not to diverge too much from the actual topic, but I think the reason Raffina considers Amitie to be her rival is that to her, Amitie represents succeeding through natural talent. Raffina believes in grit and hard work. She has next to no magic ability, while Amitie overflows with it. Raffina feels she has to prove that overcoming anything is possible if you try hard enough)

But Amitie cherishes the friends she has-- Sig, Arle, Ringo, Lidelle, and yes, even Klug and Raffina.

And they cherish her too, even if some of them struggle to admit it.

Even the Puyo Tetris games show the effects of her infectuous friendship! In both games, Amitie sees the most beligerent, rude, and melodramatic member of the SS Tetra, concludes that she's silently suffering by how utterly lonely she feels (correctly, I might add), and immediately latches onto Ess to give her as much support as possible.

Because Amitie is more perceptive than she gives herself credit for. Even if she's not always able to follow the details, she's pretty good at figuring things out. She understood Ess's loneliness. She eventually learns how to read past Sig's lack of expression. Amitie even gets Satan to admit that he's fully aware Arle's not into him.

I could keep going, but honestly? If you're not convinced by now, I'm not sure what else I can tell you. Also I'm almost at the image limit.

Amitie is a friend to everyone. She's done everything for her friends, even saved their lives from calamities, because she cares so very much. She's gonna be a wonderful sorceress when she grows up~

(and there's the image limit)

Favorite Sega Character: Losers Bracket Round 4