#i always wanna draw boots with fun designs but i always take too long drawing something

[strawbie-doodle]

oh yeehaw?

𓃓 the lyrics in the background are from Turn to Hate by Orville Peck

[sunnylolli]

when you have an idea in your head of something you want to draw, how do you get your compositions, movements, colors and poses so perfect?? I struggle so much with visualising my thoughts how I see them in my head (often have to look up references, sometimes even "trace" lightly over an existing pose)😔

First of all, tracing was how I learned anatomy, because I taught myself the motion in my hand and it helped me visualise the appoximate lengths of limbs and such! So as long as you're not copying other people's artwork, I'm gonna tell you TO TRACE TO YOUR HEART'S CONTENT, BABES! No shame in tracing!

Second of all, hmmm

When I have an idea for something to draw, I usually zero in on what it is about the drawing that makes me feel like biting my hand and kicking my feet, and that's usually the facial expression of the character I wanna draw.

And generally, every single piece of art I've ever done, both big pieces and small pieces, always start with the face and develope outwards? So I always draw what I'm most excited to draw first, and then expand it, as I visualise the story behind the scene I'm drawing.

Which is to say:

1) I always start by drawing the face/head of a character whose facial expression is e.g. intense, sad, happy, excited, horrified, etc.

2) I begin to imagine scenarios and contexts where that expression would be appropriate or would fit in.

3) I begin to draw the character's body according to the scenario I have rolling in my head.

4) The background added depends, then, entirely on what the story in my head has become.

As for references: I rarely use them, and when I do, it's to make sure I've gotten a proportion right or if I'm struggling with an angle, how to make it look more authentic!

I feel like looking at references too much makes it harder for me to imagine poses on my own and makes drawing too rigid? It makes it feel less like I'm having fun with trying new things and makes it more like I'm doing homework?

I usually look at moodboards on pinterest to inspire an idea for designs, if I have a vague concept of a background in mind but can't hash out the details, so I use references for that, too!

I've never drawn a background first and then later put a character in it, though. The background happens after I've already drawn my characters, because those are what makes me crawl on my walls and rip my hair out in the first place.

And when I've drawn my characters in the pose and angle I want them in, it's easier for me to imagine what the "camera angle" would see in the environment surrounding the character?

As for coloring and such: The reason I could never do speedpaints is because I draw exceptionally slowly. I sit with a single detail for hours, because I'm vibe checking if it feels right. And even in speedpaint, I can assure you, you'd begin to get frustrated with how long I'm tinkering with filters, color theory, etc.

"Is this color right for the shadows, if the light source is blue?" "Euh, no, fuck color theory, the shadow looks much better when it's gray."

So I suppose, when I sit down to draw something, I usually don't have a finished product in mind at all? I usually visualise an emotion and then take it from there with my numerous playlists to boot?

And then tinker with it forever until I'm done with it or until I get bored and start drawing something else and then I never finish anything and that's also why I never post, because all the art I have drawn and not posted is...

It's all half-told stories, hahah

[andguesswhat]

> I wish I could draw ;)

Another #chalamoa shot, in which there's an elf called Timothée. Yes, it's silly and I can't believe I put so much time into this but I hope someone likes it anyway :)

An Elf to Unwrap

*

"Fuck!"

Timothée curses and swears as he climbs down the chimney, there's fucking soot everywhere and it's fucking filthy! Who the hell uses fucking fireplaces anymore? People invented heaters, but are apparently too stupid to use them. Great.

Well, if there are going to be stains on his clothes that cannot be washed out, he cannot guarantee anything! And he's going to send Zendaya to hell for giving him this job!

He leaps to the ground and crawls out of the chimney into the house where he will be working this year, and takes a look around.

It looks nice. A bit of a wild mix of kitschy Christmas decorations among nice, artsy indigenous stuff, lots of faux furs on a big sofa, a huge TV, a guitar collection, a fancy bar.

Everything looks huge and expensive. Timothée likes expensive. Most of all, he likes quality with a flamboyant twist.

He's strolling around the room, chewing his gum, blowing the occasional bubble, and sliding his fingers over the furniture when he realizes his hands are dirty from climbing that chimney. So he saunters behind the bar to look for a towel or something to wipe his hands with, when suddenly he is standing in the doorway.

Niiiice, is Timothée's first thought. Damn nice. He's tall, really tall, and big, wearing pink sweat pants and a pink tank top that reveals looots of muscles. And he is barefoot. Hot. With his long hair and beard he kinda looks like a younger knockoff of Santa Claus. But hot.

"Um, who are you? And what are you doing in my house?" The guy asks in an amused, dark, raspy voice that immediately sends hot vibes straight through Timothée's body.  He doesn’t seem to be alarmed at all about Timothée being there, which is good. Well, with all these muscles you probably don’t need to be afraid of anything, above all not of someone like him, Timothée. But Timothée is nevertheless quite glad that the guy is relaxed because you never know.

Showing up out of nowhere at a stranger's house isn't always a good start.

Okay, one time it was kind of hot, when this one guy, a good looking cop, grabbed him and bent him over the table.... they had some really nice sex after that.

But yeah, most of the time there was shouting or a gun being pointed at him or the dogs being let loose on him before he could explain who he was.

So here he was apparently having an encounter with a relaxed species. And damn good looking to boot. Timothée grins. Fantastic!

"I'm Timothée," he finally replies, leaning on the bar and chewing his gum a few times before continuing. "And I'm here because your friends ordered me."

The guy raises his eyebrows questioningly, "Ordered? What friends?"

Timothée pulls his phone out of his pocket and looks at the order. "To Jason, from Oscar and Josh. So you won't be so alone on Christmas Eve.... Have fun!" Ah yes, Jason was his name. Jason Momoa.

Jason still looks at him questioningly. "So just to be clear: My friends Josh and Oscar ordered me a guy who glued on pointy ears to make him look like a-"

"They're real," Timothée interrupts him.

"What?"

"My ears. They're real, not glued on. Wanna have a look?"

He steps out from behind the bar.

"Wow," Jason laughs appreciatively, "what are you wearing?"

And Timothée grins proudly.

He designed it himself. It's a black two-piece, shirt and pants, made entirely of a sheer fabric with elf elements on it. The green ruffles over the wrists, a red belt around the waist, and yes, a collar around the neck, but a fancy one, red, green and white striped socks pulled a bit over the black, loose, see-through pants and a pair of black Converse with red and green glitter on them.

Even if Jason didn't mean it like that, Timothée has always wished to be asked this red carpet question about who he is wearing, so he says "Chalamet. I'm wearing Chala-"

"Chala-what?"

"Chalamet. It's a super talented designer from where I come from."

"This just keeps getting better and better," Jason laughs, dark and sexy but also warm, and drops wide-legged onto the couch, crossing one foot over his knee. "So where do you come from?"

Timothée almost rolls his eyes. Because who doesn’t know that? But he answers patiently, "North Pole. We live at the North Pole."

"We?" Jason has to follow up.

"We elves. I'm an elf, you know, Santa's little helpers ...?"

"An elf....", Jason raises his eyebrows again, this time in complete disbelief but still quite amused. "So did you bring me presents?" He looks around.

"Not really."

"But you're one of those fellows making toys and stuff, wrapping them up, putting them under the tree?"

"Yes, but how boring is that, right? The same thing every year!” Timothée chews his gum. “I did not feel like doing that anymore."

Jason scratches his beard, "So you don't wrap presents anymore?"

Timothée shakes his head.

"I started a company. There was this one time… A guy caught me putting presents under his tree...” as Timothée is thinking about it he involuntarily has to grin cheekily, “Well, let's just say I found out what some people really want for Christmas."

"World peace?" Jasons asks dryly.

Timothée chuckles - he really likes this guy.

"No, he wanted an elf, “ he explains. “And that’s when I had this idea, that’s when me and my friend Zendaya started this company. So if you want an elf for Christmas... or as in your case, friends think you want one, you can get one. Zendaya does all the office stuff - "

"Wait, wait, wait” Jason interrupts him, “What do you mean,´you can get an elf´?”

Timothée sighs. Isn’t that obvious? "Well, an elf will visit you on Christmas Eve and you can have fun together. We’re still pretty exclusive though. 12 elves for the whole world, that's not - "

"Sorry, but I'm still at the part with the ‘fun’? You’re not talking about playing cards together, right?”

“No, not necessarily.”

“So you mean people want to fuck an elf, and you're some kind of elf whore?"

Timothée blinks and scratches his head. It wasn't like he'd never heard that before. Jason didn’t mean to sound disparaging and he isn't offended by it. But it just isn’t exactly how he sees it.

So he decides to set things straight.

He walks over to Jason…

Sees how he’s looking at him and liking what he sees.

Yeah, Jason wants to fuck him. That was for sure.

Which is good because if Jason didn't feel that way, Timothée would probably be quite intimidated by the sheer size of this guy.

But now he knows how to do this.

When he stands before Jason, looking down at him sitting there leaned back, he bites his bottom lip and slowly and seductively sits down on his lap.

God, this is so good, the tension, the excitement…

Knowing that he wants him.

Seeing the way he looks at him…

Timothée’s whole body is tingling.

He shifts around a bit so that he can feel Jason’s hard-on pressing against his abdomen.

God, yes, of course everything is huge on this guy.

They are both enjoying this.

Feeling the other but not yet doing anything. Enjoying the thrill about what is about come.

But Timothée needs to get things straight first.

So he licks his lips, leans forward, rubbing slightly against Jason’s hard-on, and says,

“What would you say if you had to wait one… fucking... year to have some good… proper… sex? Would you call yourself a whore then?”

Jason squints his eyes; Timothée can see that he feels really bad now for calling him that. Good.

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs, “I didn’t mean it like that… I just didn’t know how to name what you are doing…”

But now comes the best part: Timothée leans forward again, breathing into Jason’s ear…

“Well, I prefer the word slut. Because I like it really… slutty.”

And he grins triumphantly when the hard cock under him twitches against his ass.

Humans are so easy.

Jason clears his throat before he asks softly, “But just to get it right: you do this all voluntarily, right? You don’t have to when you don’t want to, do you? You don’t have to do that just because some dork wishes that?”

And this, without a doubt is making Timothée feel things that he's never felt before. Because how fucking cute is this? That this big hot guy worries about him.

“Well, only those who were well-behaved get presents, right?” he answers. “But yeah, Zendaya checks the guys, if they are creepy or something. And she knows what I like…or what the others like.”

“What do you like?” Jason asks curiously.

Timothée shrugs his shoulders. "Nice guys, sexy guys, big guys…" He wriggles again on Jason's hard-on until a little moan escapes Jason's mouth and grins contently.

“So you’re really a real elf?” Jason asks hoarsely, straightening up a bit, so that they get even closer, feeling each other’s presence, and lays his hands on Timothée's thighs.

“Yeah…”

“And what makes an elf an elf?” Jason grins at him and his hands start caressing his thighs.

“You mean things like we glow when we come and spurt a rainbow? Or that I can come as often as I want to and when you swallow my cum you can make a wish? Things like that?” Timothée asks teasingly.

Jason's grin is now just inches from his lips. "I’m not sure I can believe you."

"How about you find out?" Timothée whispers.

Jason lets his hands slide around Timothée’s hips and it feels so good to have these big hands there, Timothée’s whole body wants to be touched by these hands.

“Your name was Timothée, right?” Jason asks and his hands slide over Timothée’s lower back. “Can I call you Timmy? I like Timmy.”

“As you wish,” Timothée answers out of his habit to please but Jason immediately raises an eyebrow in rebuke, obviously not approving of this habit. So Timothée dutifully answers, “Yeah, Timmy is okay.”

“And you are already of age, right?”

Again out of habit Timothée says “As you wish” but this time Jason’s rebuking eyebrow is even higher. So again Timothée answers dutifully “Yes, I am.” While in the back of his head he thinks that this is fucking cute that Jason asks, that he cares.

Still he can’t resist to add in a seductive voice, ”So you can do with me whatever you like.”

“Good,” Jason stands up abruptly so that Timothée slips from his lap and Jason takes his hand and drags him along. “Then off to my torture chamber.”

Timothée laughs out loud because he likes Jason’s sense of humour. But when he sees Jason’s deadly serious and stern face, his heart slips for a moment. This was a joke, right? What if Zendaya had overlooked something…?

But then Jason bursts out laughing and says "Sorry, I always wanted to be an actor.”

Timothée rolls his eyes but lets out a big relieved sigh. “Asshole,” he murmurs quietly, altough he has to admit that he might already have fallen in love a little bit. With this guy with those adorable laugh lines around his eyes. And his sexy voice. And these fucking hot muscles. And who could blame him after one fucking year with nothing but boring or stupid elves around him.

In the bedroom Timothée sees that no, it is not a torture chamber. There’s a circular bed with black and dark purple satin bed linen but he doesn’t have time to look closer for more because Jason is softly guiding him to the wall, pressing him against the wall with his abdomen, rubbing their hard-ons together and this time it’s Timothée who has to let out a little moan. It feels just too fucking good.

And just as Timothée thinks that now they are finally going to kiss, that now the teasing was enough, Jason takes a step back and just looks at him… Admiring him.

Timothée likes that. Being looked at, being admired, being wanted. But when Jason says “You’re one hell of a beautiful elf,” Timothée blushes because words like that make him shy nevertheless. He is just about to step impatiently from one foot to the other when Jason finally approaches him again and whispers, "Well, let's see what makes an elf an elf, shall we?!” A soft hand is in his hair and then finally Jason’s big soft lips are on his.

Timothée involuntarily has to sigh because fuck yes, it had been so fucking long.

He kisses Jason right back, and because he can’t take any teasing any longer, he grabs Jason’s face, deepens the kiss until he finally invades the other man's mouth with his tongue and the kissing battle begins.

Soon his body burns from Jason's rough kissing, the beard scratches his delicate skin but Timothée doesn’t care. He wants to do this forever, just wet and hungry kisses. But the need of wanting more is persistently there when Jason rubs his thumb over Timothée’s nipples through the fabric, making them hard, the fabric giving it an extra nice friction. It gets worse when Jason lowers his head a bit and just fucking sucks his nipples through his shirt. First the left one, then the right one, until the fabric is soaking wet. God! This feels just so fucking good! Timothée bites his lip, his hands are in Jason’s hair, and he is just enjoying the feeling, but this is nothing compared to the feeling when Jason goes down on him, his mouth covering his clothed cock, sucking on it until it’s wet.

He’s turned around then and when Jason groans at what he is seeing, Timothée has to smile to himself because yes, of course he’s wearing a thong so that his ass can be seen nicely visible through the see-through fabric and he’s glad that Jason seems to like it.

Jason cups his ass, kneads it and wobbles it, and when – bam – he even hits it softly, Timothée has to gasp at this electrifying sensation this is giving him.

“God, tell this Chalama that he did an excellent job,” Jason murmurs before Timothée feels a soft bite on his ass and has to moan again.

“I will,” he pants when – God!– he has to gasp out even louder because Jason is pulling his cheeks apart and pushing his tongue deep into his ass despite his pants and this restraint teasing is nearly killing him.

“God, you’re so sexy.” Jason is murmuring when he’s coming up again, pressing his hard-on against Timothée’s ass.

He turns Timothée around again to kiss him and when he undresses him, Timothée thinks it’s fucking adorable that Jason is extra cautious with his clothes, careful not to tear anything.

Timothée lays down naked on the bed then, elbows propped up, giving Jason a good look at everything and Jason is soon feeling him up, his big hands glide over his legs, his cock, until he is over him, kissing him deeply and pressing his abdomen against his hard-on, rubbing it.

And  then the action begins, the lube is ready, Jason’s big fingers spread him, while he’s sucking on Timothée’s cock, his tongue teasing it, his mouth swallowing it deep, and Timothée can’t do anything but moan.

When Jason enters him with his cock, Timothée holds his breath. Jason is huge but he had spread him thoroughly and when Jason is finally all the way in and begins to fuck him, Timothée wants just that and nothing else. Jason penetrates him, takes him, wild and hot, making his body first tremble, then quiver, then explode.

They do it in every possible position and Timothée loves that, because he loves being bent, his legs stretched, feeling Jason’s strength and Jason is fucking him, hitting his sweet spot, over and over again, letting him moan and groan unrestrained.

Soon Jason finds out what was right about him being an elf because Timothée comes hard on the satin, he comes hard on Jason and he comes hard on himself while Jason is fucking him through his orgasms, one after the other, he himself staying hard as a rock.

And everything is just so fucking good.

The only downside is that even if Timothée is able to come multiple times doesn’t mean he can’t get exhausted or sore.

So Jason takes him under the shower to relax, giving him a nice massage with a sponge, caressing every part of his body before he goes down on him again. He sucks his cock devotedly and when Timothée comes into Jason’s hot and wet mouth, his legs are already shaking from exhaustion.

The trembling gets even worse when he is back on the bed, flat down on his stomach and Jason is licking his entrance. His whole body is shivering, the soreness making each contact even more sensitive. Jason’s hands try to soothe him, but it is just too much. He claws his fingers into the sheets and groans, when he feels his cock hardening again. Every nerve of his body screams, the ecstasy runs to the tips of his hair, and his already hard cock just needs a little friction against the sheets under him to - Fuuuck! - come one last time.

He is turning around, gasping for air, his eyes seeing stars, a buzzing in his ears…

God! That was fucking-

There isn’t even a word to describe it.

Jason’s soft hands are caressing his trembling body while his lips kiss his damp skin when Timothée realizes that Jason didn’t come yet.

Timothée wants to suck Jason’s cock but he doesn’t know if he can manage it because he is so exhausted.

He props himself up on an elbow and breathes, “You wanna come on me?”

Jason looks at him mindfully, “You sure?”

“Yeah, sure…” Timothée reassures him and is once more touched by Jason’s caring nature.

He waits for Jason to sit on him, then opens his mouth and sticks out his tongue, waiting for Jason’s to come on his face.

It’s an incredible hot sight to see this massive hot guy jerking himself off, rubbing his cock and grunting.

It looks fucking amazing to see those muscles tense. A last groan and Jason’s body spasms and Timothée feels cum on his tongue and on his cheek.

And this time he’s not surprised when Jason instantly wipes his cum from his face, muttering a soft “Sorry” and gives him tender kisses to apologize.

Timothée just grins because he knows now that this big hot guy is somehow a big sweet, caring bear.

When they sink down exhausted on the sheets, Jason pulls Timothée with his back to him and embraces his body with his strong arms. Somehow possessive. Somehow affectionate. And Timothée likes this mixture immensely.

Why can’t it be like this forever?

Why can’t he stay here with Jason?

Timothée holds Jason’s big hands in his and is playing with them when he hears Jason say, “You know that you are not a slut, right?”

“Yeah…”

He knows he doesn’t sound convincing. He just has heard it all before. All those stupid elves gossiping behind his back. Yes, he has Zendaya and Tom as friends but he just doesn’t belong there. He hates it there. He always feels so fucking trapped there.

Jason’s kisses on his shoulder are soft and tender.

God, how he wishes he could stay here forever…

He feels so exhausted and so protected that he is almost drifting to sleep when he hears Jason murmur, “You don't happen to work for the Easter Bunny too, do you?"

*

When he wakes in the night, he gets up, grabs his mobile and heads for the living room to get something to drink. He sits down on the couch, a fur wrapped around his body and pulls up his legs.

Woah, Zendaya has left around 10 messages.

<<Oh my god! OH MY GOD! OH. MY. GOD!

I can’t believe you’re leaving me alone here!!!

But I’m so happy for you!!!

So he is nice???

I know I am very good at my job. No need to thank me ;)

YES, you do!!!

Kidding.

Tell me everything!!

I’m so curious! Aaahhh!

Can’t believe you are going!!

I hope we at least get a farewell party or something?>>

Timothée frowns. What was she talking about? What had happened?

Then he sees that he got an email from the Department of Santa Claus Incorp.

<<Dear Timothée,

Christmas is the feast of love and we act accordingly.

Our radar has shown that you and a human have developed deep feelings for one another.

As you are an elf and have no chance to stay in contact with him, we hereby set you free.

If you agree to the terms of utmost secrecy about the Santa Claus Incorp., you can live like a human being.

All arrangements and documents will be compiled in the next few days.

On behalf of Santa Claus>>

What the fuck??

Timothée sits just there and laughs out loud when he hears Jason’s voice.

“There you are.”

Jason is standing in the doorway with bed hair and sleepy eyes. “Don’t scare me like that! I thought you were already gone without saying goodbye!”

“Sorry,” Timothée grins at him. And he finds that he is unable to stop.

He can stay here!

“So what are you grinning about?” Jason sits down beside Timothée, resting his hand on his knee and sliding his thumb over it.

“I can stay.”

“You what?”

“I can stay.”

“How?”

“I don’t know.”

“Really? How?”

Timothée laughs and shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t know. But I got a letter, look!” he shows the email to Jason.

“God…” Jason takes a deep breath. “This is…”

Then suddenly Timothée gets scared for a second, “You do want me to stay, don’t you?”

“Hell yes!” Jason roars, takes Timothee's face in his big hands and gives him a big kiss on his lips.

Timothée lets out a relived sigh.

God...!

Finally free!

He can’t stop grinning.

“So what about your ears?” Jason scratches his beard. “Can you keep them?”

“I don’t know!” Timothée once again says and laughs.

And with that, we exit Jason's house and leave the two of them excitedly chatting on the couch, treating them to a wonderful Christmas.

Have yourself a merry, merry Christmas :)

*

…………(¯`O´¯)

…………./ | \ .

…………..♫.

………, • '♥ ' • ,

……. '• ♫♫♫•'

….. ' *, • '♫ ' • ,* '

….' * • ♫♥♫• * '

… * , • Merry' • , * '

…* ' •♫♫♥♫♫ • ' * '

' ' • Christmas . • ' ' '

' ' • ♫♫♫♥♫♫♫• * ' '

…………..x♥x

………….. .♥

[let-them-read-fics]

Home For The Holidays

Pairing: Lisa x Fem!Reader

Word Count: ~ 3,335

Warnings / Misc. -- Potentially Lethal Fluff, Crying, Holiday Themed

Disclaimer: This writing is a work of fiction, and no disrespect is meant for those mentioned herein.

A/N: Hey everybody! This idea came to me out of nowhere, but it’s definitely gotten me into the holiday spirit. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

“Babe, have you seen my beanie?” Your question rings throughout the air, carrying across the apartment in search of Lisa. Just as you get your earrings put in, her reply comes through: “Mhm, it’s in here.” Before setting off to grab it, you take a long look at yourself in the mirror: the nervousness that you’re harboring is decently masked for the moment, but you pray that your composure doesn’t slip in the next few hours -- after all, that would surely spoil the fun that you have in store for Lisa.

“Aha!” You declare, sliding the material onto your head. She stifles a chuckle, which prompts you to look at her. When you do, all of the air in your lungs swiftly leaves your body; she looks absolutely stunning. She chose a simple outfit, consisting of a regular pair of jeans and a cozy sweater, but she makes it look designer. 

“I’m convinced that you can make any and everything look good.” You tell her earnestly, once some of your thought processing skills have returned to you. With a roll of her eyes, she engulfs you in a hug; her perfume washes over you, and you fall into her embrace. 

“I love you.”

Even after hearing those words from her as many times as you have, they still managed to send your heart wild. You hide your face in her neck, loving the cute squeal she lets out as you pick her up and twirl her around.

“I love you, jagi. So much.” Her eyes find yours, and the moment is perfect.

~~~~~~~

“Keep them closed! We’re almost there.” 

“You’ve been saying that for the past 5 minutes.”

“Just trust me!” You laugh at her impatience, keeping your grip on her thighs steady as you make your way towards the restaurant. She lets her head lay beside yours, resting it on one of her arms that’re wrapped around your shoulders. In any other circumstance, she would’ve been whining more by now; this time, however, she didn’t mind waiting a little longer, considering she was comfortable and content, currently receiving a piggy back ride from you. In competition with the frigid air rushing around, your bodies work to keep each other warm. 

After a little more walking, you finally reach your destination. 

“Reservation, please?” The hostess requests upon your entrance.

“L/N.” 

You gently set Lisa down, back on her feet again, and tell her to open her eyes. The expression that takes over her features is priceless, and you pat yourself on the back for having the foresight to book a table here so far in advance. The holidays always made it difficult to get in anywhere in the city without a reservation, and this restaurant is no exception -- in fact, it’s one of the hardest to get into. After hearing about the reviews, the two of you had been dying to try it out.

“Right this way, ladies.” The hostess says, and you fall in line behind her. Lisa links her arm with yours, and she begins ranting about all the different foods she wants to try.

~~~~~~~

The view from your table is unbelievable; seated next to a row of large windows, you can see the entire city before you, throngs of people walking about, enjoying their night out. You take a minute to think of all the possible things they could be doing, what routes they’re going down, each of them having a unique and beautiful story playing out in front of you. 

Against your palm, the surface of the window chills your skin. Once you remove your hand, you see the imprint of it on the glass; a reminder that you had been there. 

Lisa notices this, and leans towards the window; at first, you were confused, but soon your heart melts at her actions.

She releases a breath against it, the warm air prepping the surface for her artwork; her finger -- the very one that you’re wrapped around -- draws a heart, complete with your initials and hers inside of it.

“You’re the cutest,” she gushes, looking over your features. You can feel how dopey you look, completely in love and in awe by her. You can’t blame yourself, though. 

Her hand finds its way to yours on the table, just as it always does, and you bring it to your lips. She grins at the feeling of your lips pressed against her knuckle, and her heart skips a beat. Both of you are completely whipped for each other, and you wouldn’t have it any other way.

~~~~~~~

Stuffed and satisfied with the special anniversary meal you just consumed, you and Lisa make your way out of the restaurant. Next up on the agenda for tonight: ice skating.

~~~~~~~

Waves of fresh snowflakes flurry around the two of you, seemingly in a tango with the breeze that’s drifting by; two lovers rediscovering one another. Her hand is warm within your own, the mittens on your skin keeping the harsh temperatures at bay. 

The gentle scraping of your skates can be heard against the ice, little patterns trailing behind in your wake. Yellow and white lights are strewn across the sides of the rink, offering a dazzlingly cozy aura, and you take them in. They remind you of the stars in the night sky, shining brightly, a certain unique twinkle held within each and every one of them. 

Lisa gives your hand a squeeze, her silent way of requesting your attention. 

“Yes, my love?”

A light blush rises to her cheeks as she begins speaking; you’re amazed that she still reacts to your pet names like that, just as she had when you first started dating. It’s adorable, and you can’t get enough of it.

“Let’s grab some hot cocoa, I’m getting a little cold.”

“Alright, last one there has to clean the litter box tonight!” The last part of the sentence leaves your lips in a rush, an attempt to stall her and give yourself a bit of a head start.

“Uh! Hey!” Her shocked exclamation quickly fades as you dash away from her, set on getting to the stand first. 

~~~~~~~

Now armed with your warm beverages, the two of you skate over to the bench positioned directly outside of the rink. Conveniently, the seat is equipped with a heater, and Lisa pulls you in tight.

“Mmm, it’s good.” You tell her, taking another sip. She had spent the trip over here pouting at her defeat.

The two of you carried on with light conversation, reveling in the feeling of having each other so close. The city’s atmosphere was always different around this time of year, the holidays adding an extra charm to everything, no matter what it was. You would be content with doing absolutely nothing, so long as you had Lisa by your side -- and she felt the same way about you. Perhaps that’s why your relationship was so strong; genuine love and understanding ran true in every aspect, and you could never seem to get enough of each other. You still felt the same as you did at the beginning: the happiness upon waking up next to her, that excited blush when she told you she loved you, that familiar rush of desire from your passionate nights spent together -- all of it. She’s everything you’ve ever wanted and more, and you feel beyond blessed to have the privilege of calling her yours. 

The night had been perfect so far; memories being made that would surely last a lifetime. The thoughts raced in your mind, swirling around just like the snow had before. They were only stopped by the feeling of her soft lips pressing against your cheek in a sweet kiss.

“Thank you for tonight. I’m so happy.” She leans her forehead against yours, and you brush her nose with your own.

“Of course. There’s no one I’d rather do this with.” 

Her eyes are shining with affection, and you nearly get lost in them. Before you can, you stop yourself; your plans for this special night are long from over.

“How about we walk around a bit? I saw more trees and light designs on the way here and I wanna check them out.” She happily agrees, and the two of you change back into your boots before returning the skates. You slip an arm around her shoulders as you begin your journey, and she settles against your side.

You had remembered correctly -- after a short walk, you find the hub of activity from before; a whole block of the city is filled with different vendors and booths, a wide array of services offered. The area is a holiday bazaar, groups of merry people roaming about, lighting up at the different things to do. 

Trees line the square, decorated beautifully with various lights and ornaments, their toppers reaching high up into the sky. The moment is too perfect to let slip by, so you retrieve the camera from your bag to capture it all. Lisa cuddles in close to you, smiling widely as you turn the device around to take a selfie of the two of you. 

One mini-photoshoot later, you begin your exploration of the square. Quickly, you discover what the places have to offer: some hold arts and crafts, others have face painting, snacks, and even eggnog chugging contests. You grimace at that last one, seeing a group of what appears to be frat boys stumbling around nearby.

Upon spotting a special booth in the distance, you’re quick to remember your reason for suggesting coming here in the first place: Lisa’s next surprise. You do well in acting cool and calmly bringing her attention to the area, being careful not to blow your cover. It doesn’t take much convincing to have her trailing along after you, her hand snuggly tucked into yours.

The booth in question sticks out among the others, a bit out of place in what it offers: for $5, you get the opportunity to knock the city mascot into a dunk tank. The money goes to charity, and everyone has fun in the process. Win-win, right?

The second that you approach the counter, your heart begins racing feverishly -- the plan is coming together. “Just the $5 option, thank you.” You request, and the clerk hands you the balls: $5 gets you 5 opportunities to dunk the mascot into the chilly water below. As you walk over to the tank, you’re afraid that Lisa can see your nervousness; she’s always been able to read you well. 

Luckily for you, though, you know just what to do to throw her off your tracks: you pull her in, guiding her lips to your own in a tender kiss. She places her hand overtop of yours, against her cheek, and her fingers lace with yours. She sighs against you, and you smile. Mission accomplished. Before things can get too heated, you pull away, setting the weapons of choice into her hands. “Good luck,” you whisper into her ear, a chill running down her spine at the lowness of your voice.

~~~~~~~

After 3 misses in a row, she’s beginning to get discouraged. 

“Ahh, this is rigged!” 

As you open your mouth to reply, your phone begins to ring. Right on time. You suppress the smile playing on your lips -- a task much easier said than done -- and tell her that you’ll be right back. 

You pretend to answer your phone as you return to the counter, making eye contact with the clerk. 

“Are they ready yet?” 

“Almost. They’ll be right out.” He smiles back at you, happy to see something like this about to go down. The holidays truly are a magical time of the year.

The moment is interrupted by Lisa’s father walking out of the back room and into your line of sight. “How do I look?” He asks no one in particular, and receives a whistle from his wife, who is also making her way out of the room.

You beam at them, so excited to be with them again. “Those suits look great on you guys.” You tell them, fanning yourself to add to the comical effect. They don the same outfits as the mascot sitting in the tank. 

“Alright, so does everyone remember what to do?” You ask, eyes darting between them.

“Once she dunks him, we run out and celebrate.” Lisa’s mom looks to you, waiting for your reassurance of the plan.

“Exactly. Any questions?”

“No, but hurry her up. This outfit is itchy.” You can’t help but chuckle at her father’s words; now, a little weight lifted off of your chest, you make your way back to Lisa.

“There you are! Who was that?” As much as you hate lying to her, you think it’s safe to bet that you’ll easily be forgiven. 

“Just someone from work, lame business stuff.” 

She accepts your answer right away, and turns the topic back to her mission. With you by her side once again, she resumes her efforts.

After an eternity of careful deliberation and tense preparation, Lisa chucks the next ball through the air; a loud whoosh sound follows behind it, and you hold your breath. 

Time seems to move in slow motion; the ball collides with the target, sending confetti into the air and retracting the seat beneath the mascot. Soon he’s submerged in water, everyone in close proximity to the booth now cheering loudly. Lisa turns to you, her arms above her head in triumph, a winning smile on her lips. You lift her up in celebration, and smile against her as you nuzzle your face in the crook of her neck. 

With a quick peek over her shoulder, you spot the two “mascots” approaching; you swiftly set her down and attempt to contain your excitement. 

Her mother taps her on the shoulder, grabbing her attention. She offers her daughter a balloon -- the customary prize for winning -- and claps when she takes it. Her father gives her a thumbs up and a pat on the head. 

As she turns her attention to you, shooting you a look of confusion, her mother stands behind her and removes the mascot head. The subsequent smirk that you don lets Lisa know that something is up, and she spins around once again.

Upon seeing her mother’s face, she drops to the ground, quickly becoming a mess of tears and emotions. The situation is only heightened when her father removes his mask as well, bending down to wrap his wife and daughter up in a long-overdue embrace. 

The sight before you has you in tears within an instant; opportunities like this are rare for Lisa, and you feel honored to be the reason for this little reunion. You release a silent thank you to your past self for having the foresight -- yet again -- to squirrel away some money. Something back then had told you you’d need it, and you were beyond thrilled that you had trusted your gut.

Perhaps it was your imagination, but you could’ve sworn that everything shined a little brighter now. The snow sparkled in some majestic way, and the city lights worked together to create a beautiful picture, contrasting with the dark mountains that resided in the distance. Nothing could compete with the view in front of you, though; especially when Lisa raised a hand in your direction, calling you over to their little huddle. 

The four of you held each other tightly, simultaneously sobbing and wiping away each other’s tears. No one spoke for a while; everyone was too emotional and content with the happy silence to do so. 

Besides, what could she say to you? Lisa knew automatically that you had been the one to arrange all of this and raise the money to get them a flight out. What could she possibly say to repay that? You’re her world, and she’s so happy to have you in her life. People like you are rare, and she cherishes you more with each day you spend together.

None of you really kept track of how much time had passed, but you had made your way into one of the enclosed tents, seeking shelter from the cold and dying to fill each other in on all that's happened since your last visit. 

You watch them in awe, loving the way that they light up when they talk to each other. It warms your heart, the way they're all holding hands and looking at each other with so much love. It’s easy to see that this is just what they needed; you can practically see their worries being lifted and cast away.

With one last swig of your drink, you begin to mentally prepare yourself for your final surprise.

In one motion, you accidentally drop your phone into the floor, and crouch down to retrieve it. Lisa gives you a quick look but soon does a double take when she sees you still on the floor, now down on one knee, a small box in your hand. 

You’re sure her eyes are about to pop out of her head.

As you clear your throat and swallow your nerves, you glance up at her parents; they’re already looking to you, proud expressions written plainly on their faces. That silent gesture alone is encouragement enough, and it prompts you to begin.

“Lisa…” Wow. One word in and your voice is already failing you. Your eyes shyly scan up to hers, only to find her recently dried cheeks now covered in tears once again. Her hand is clasped over her mouth in an attempt to stifle her cries.

“I knew from the moment we met that I wanted to marry you someday, and I can’t think of a better way to ask than this. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone, and I’m so glad we get to share this day with your parents. I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to properly thank them for making you, but I’ll spend my life trying, as long as you’ll have me. So, whaddya say?” 

Lisa has always made it clear how much she loves you; despite knowing that, you can’t help but feel nervous as you wait for her answer. Her head is swimming with just about every different emotion imaginable right now, and she’s doing all she can to hold in her tears long enough to respond to you.

“I love you so much. Let’s get married, Y/N.” 

A loud whoop leaves your mouth upon her reply, the sound echoing around the space.

You surge forward, eagerly pressing your lips against hers, and she cheerfully takes you into her arms. Once the ring is on her finger, you walk around to the other side of the table and embrace her parents. Having their approval and support means the absolute world to you, and you take a minute to think about how perfect everything turned out.

Now, once again cuddled into Lisa’s side, one of your hands playing with the ends of her hair, you look up into her eyes.

“How did I get so lucky?” She asks, looking down at you, utterly overjoyed with what went down tonight. 

“It was written in the stars, baby.”

Lisa’s heart swells at your words, and she pulls you in impossibly closer. Wanting to give the two of you some private time to celebrate, her parents leave the table and go to order some food from across the tent.

Now alone, her lips find yours again, and they take their sweet time in showing you all of the things she didn’t know how to verbalize to you. She peppers kisses across your face; starting with your cheeks, then your nose, and finally, your forehead. You let out a squeal as she grips your waist, her fingers gently toying with the fabric of your sweater. 

Sitting there, in the arms of the love of your life, you’ve never felt more content. What a night, you think to yourself, smiling at her parents once more.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Thanks for reading!

[redeadepression]

Never Be | John Marston Fic | Arthur’s POV

~~

I’ve decided to make this a small series. John’s inner monologue of all his failures (set in my Modern AU) and interactions with his friends and family/their reactions to his situation. This one is different because it’s written from Arthur’s POV! Let me know if you want to hear John’s!

Jumbled timeline because I write what I feel like lately. This is the earliest story in the series so far.

~~

Characters: Arthur Morgan, John Marston. Hosea Matthews, Dutch Van der Linde Setting: My Modern AU  Words: 2849 Tags: Angst, Family, Adoption, Modern AU, Teen John No Trigger warnings Summery: Arthur returns home to visit his parents and receives some disturbing news.

~~

The scratching sound of Arthur’s hand-brake was always a concern to him. But even at the age of twenty-eight he was still struggling to have enough money to take the concern too seriously.

Instead, he ignored it as he always did. Making sure to let it click at least three times and silently praying that his car would not roll back down the drive once he left it.

He sat back in his chair for a moment. Letting his head fall back against the rest and sighing deeply as he prepared himself for the next few hours.

He loved his parents deeply. He would be forever grateful for the way they took him in. Not just as a Foster family but for adopting him officially as well.

But hell, they were exhausting sometimes. Dutch more so than Hosea. Always wanting to talk shop and try and convince Arthur to go another way in life. Stop trying to get his art out there and take on a trade instead.

Hosea was more supportive of his life choices. But the way he fussed over Arthur’s eating and the way he lived was its own form of exhausting. Always having to assure the older man that his apartment was clean and he had eaten three meals in a day.

Instant ramen was a meal. He didn’t care how hard others argued against that.

He missed being a carefree teen like John was at the moment. Not having to worry about mundane things like bills and whether or not his car would break down on the way to work for the third time in a week.

Steeling himself against the wave of questions as to why it had been so long since he visited, he pushed open his door and exited the vehicle.

Locking his car and checking to make sure his wallet was in his back pocket. He turned, jogging up the front steps and knocking on the screen door. It rattled under his knuckles, wobbling in its frame. Arthur had always mused just how easy it would be to push it off it’s hinges and walk inside. He was always on their asses to lock the wooden door as well but they refused. The screen let in the cool breeze and stopped them from having to pay for air conditioning.

Not that the cool breeze ever did anything to alleviate how sweltering their house was in summer.

Air conditioning was something Arthur had looked forward to the most when he left home. Turning it on and letting it run 24/7.

Until he’d gotten his first power bill.

“$600 a year is a bit steep for power isn’t it?” He’d asked Hosea bitterly.

Hosea had laughed heartily at his son’s naivety.

“Electric bills are not yearly son.” He’d corrected. “Every three months.”

“Every three months?” Arthur had asked incredulously, the other man smiling to himself knowingly.

“Not so fun being an adult now is it?” He’d chuckled simply.

Arthur still bristled at the memory. They could have warned him.

Although he knew deep down there was no way he would have listened anyway.

Arthur drummed his fingers absently against his thigh as he waited to be let inside. Frowning when no one came to the door and flicking through his keys to look for his old one.

He let himself inside, closing and relocking the door behind him as he yelled out that he had entered.

He checked the time on his watch as he walked down the hallway and turned into the living room. They did say lunch was at 2pm. He was only fifteen minutes early.

No one was in the kitchen.

Placing his hands on his hips, he looked around the room, clicking his tongue as he decided they must still be on their way home.

“Alright.” He whispered under his breath, leaving the living room and continuing on down the hallway towards his old room. He had wanted to grab some of his book he’d left here years before anyway.

As he sidled down the hallway he stopped in his tracks, movement catching his eye as he backtracked a few steps and peered into John’s bedroom through the open door.

“Hey?” He asked in surprise, realising the teen was home.

John startled at Arthur’s voice. Turning to stare at the older man, equally surprised from his place atop his bed.

“Hey.” He said back croakily, arms crossed across his chest moving to rest by his side as he pushed himself up into a sitting position.

He had been staring despondently at the ceiling. Arthur wondered if he hadn’t heard him or if he was ignoring him purposefully.

“I called out.” Arthur stated simply, shrugging as he moved into the room without invitation and slumped himself down into John’s desk chair.

“Thought you were Dutch.” John said wearily, head hanging low as he sat on the edge of his bed and refused to make eye contact with the older man.

Arthur frowned, something about the teen seeming off. He was never the most enthusiastic teenager but he usually made a little more of an effort to engage with Arthur than he was at the moment. Despite his emo phase ending a few years earlier he seemed withdrawn and sullen.

Arthur took in the younger’s pale appearance. Dark circles underlining his youthful eyes and discolouration mottling his cheeks and brow.

He seemed ill or at the very least, extremely tired.

Arthur knew he had been working hard at his trade lately. He’d earned himself an apprenticeship in some form of construction work. Hosea had been fuzzy on the details. Even hazier on whether or not John actually enjoyed or wanted the job.

Deep down Arthur felt perhaps John had just bowed to the pressure of setting himself up in life that his parents had always instilled on them. He had to choose something to get them off his back.

He felt bad for the kid. He didn’t really have any ambitions. None that he ever liked to talk about anyway.

“You alright?” Arthur asked earnestly, leaning down to try and catch John’s eye as the other nodded softly.

“Yeah.” He lied, unable to truly force the deceit.

Arthur heard the statement for what it was, pursing his lips as he rested his forearms on his knees and leaned closer to the younger man.

“Wanna talk about it?” He asked, already knowing what the answer would be as John shook his head.

Arthur inhaled deeply, sitting back in his chair and wincing as he leaned forwards again to pull his wallet from his back pocket. Placing that and his keys on the desk next to him before pausing and returning for his wallet. Slipping a 20 out of it and placing it between a stack of books.

He was broke as shit but he always had money for little John. The boy never asked anyone for a Goddamn cent and Arthur knew firsthand how cruel teenage life could be growing up with no cash. Although his parents had been generous with him, they were still less than wealthy compared to a lot of other kids in Arthur’s class.

Arthur turned back to John, clasping his hands together in between his knees and thinking on something to say to try and get the kid to talk to him. He had been feeling bad for not visiting as often lately. He wondered subconsciously if John was annoyed about that. Feeling neglected.

He had been meaning to drop by. Especially as John closed in on his eighteenth birthday. Only a week away now. Arthur had wanted to have a quick chat with him about drinking responsibly.

Although he knew of course the kid would never listen to him as he had not listened in the past. He wanted him to know he could always call if he needed him. That Arthur would be his designated driver no questions asked if he needed it.

Hosea had offered that to him just shy of his own eighteenth birthday. That and adoption papers. Arthur had never been so happy in his life.

“Your birthday’s coming up.” Arthur said after another moment of silence. “Eighteen, that’s exciting.” He baited, waiting for the other to perk up at the mention. What kind of teen wasn’t excited about hitting adulthood and all the disappointing realities that came along with it?

John’s hands tightened against his mattress, frown deepening at the mention of his birthday as Arthur watched on in confusion.

“Uh…” Arthur began, unsure what exactly had upset the kid. “Not excited then?” He asked, regretting his choice of words as he caught sight of John’s eyes watering. The younger’s hand shot to his face, wiping at the wetness before it could fall. Turning his face away from Arthur and trying his hardest to hide his tears and compose himself. “John?” Arthur said softly, feeling guilt well in his chest for causing such a strong reaction in the teen. It had been a long time since he’d seen him cry.

“Don’t.” John choked, shaking his head as he silently begged the older man to leave it alone. “Just, don’t.” He repeated, voice thick with emotion as Arthur watched on sadly.

“Arthur!” Hosea called suddenly, excited voice echoing down the hall as they both heard the old screen door rattle. Arthur turned away from John, looking out the doorway as the scrape of boots on the front mat and footsteps on the floorboards could be heard. The clunking steps drawing closer as the older couple returned home. “You’re early!” Dutch chided as the footsteps took a turn and Arthur knew without having to look that they had walked through the living room and into the kitchen.

“Fifteen minutes!” He shouted back. “Ya’ll haven’t even started cooking yet.” He complained half-heartedly before turning back to John and frowning once more. The younger was wiping at his face frantically, looking panicked as he tried to usher Arthur from the room.

The older man nodded, grabbing for his wallet and keys before leaving John’s room and closing the door behind him. He stood in the hallway for a minute, reflecting on the strangeness of John’s behaviour before heading back towards the living room.

He supposed he would not have wanted them to see him crying at that age either. He still had trouble crying in front of his romantic partner, let alone his parents. He would feel like a right fool if they caught him in that state.

Arthur’s parents looked up to greet him as he entered the living room, walking through and towards the kitchen bench as they both fluffed around putting groceries away.

“And here’s one we prepared earlier.” Hosea joked as he lifted a large bag of KFC into view and dumped it onto the bench in front of Arthur. The younger man laughed. He hadn’t been sure what he was expecting but it certainly wasn’t take away food. Not that he was complaining. But he sure did miss a home cooked meal.

He didn’t let the irony fly over his head at that fact. He had complained many times as a teen that he wanted fast food instead of the roast that had been prepared. Now he would kill for a juicy roast instead of the same greasy burger over and over again.

Arthur watched as the older couple shuffled around the small kitchen, gathering the plates and utensils they would need to eat.

He took the plates as they were handed to him, moving the short walk to the dining room table and placing them down in their respective places.

He moved back towards the bench and took handful of cutlery from Hosea.

“Hey?” Arthur asked softly, grabbing the older man’s attention as he leant against the counter and chewed over his words. “Everything alright with John?” He asked after a moment, keeping his voice low as he was aware the kid could enter the room any minute.

“Is he here?” Hosea asked in surprise, making Arthur frown.

“Yeah.” Arthur replied simply. Taking a moment to let Hosea speak again before adding. “In his room.”

“Oh.” Hosea said softly, un-bagging the food and passing the items to Dutch to place onto plates. Arthur waited for one of them to speak again. Feeling impatient as they continued to ready lunch rather than answering his question.

“Is he alright?” Arthur asked again, a little firmer as Dutch finally turned his attention to the younger and Hosea ignored him, walking past with platefuls of food.

“He’ll be fine.” Dutch assured, picking up his own plates and walking towards the table as Arthur followed suspiciously.

Hosea placed his food down in the middle of the table. Turning to face Dutch with his arms across his chest and a sour face.

“Go on.” He snapped as Dutch approached. “Tell him.”

Arthur looked between them with furrowed brows as Dutch let out a long sigh. He had rarely seen them fight in his time with them and if they did it was usually Dutch that held a grudge.

Arthur felt something unsettling turn his stomach as he watched Dutch place his own plates down on the table.

He turned to Arthur, shrugging.

“We’ve decided not to adopt John.” He explained, shaking his head if he was talking about keeping a puppy or a kitten and not a human child.

Arthur felt his mouth open in shock as he looked between the two of them in disbelief.

“What?” He asked softly, eyes lingering on Hosea as he waited for the other man to argue.

“Dutch feels…” Hosea began, stopping himself quickly and correcting his words. “We feel…” He began again. “That it’s not in our best interest to take on another child permanently.” He explained eloquently as Arthur scoffed at the excuse.

He had always assumed that John would be adopted just as he had. As soon as the agency had confirmed that they had no plans to send him elsewhere, he had become a permanent fixture in their lives. Or Arthur’s life at least. He had let himself actually get to know the kid.

He loved him like a real brother. He had always thought that one day they would really be brothers, tied together by their parents.

“What about John’s best interest?” He asked flatly. Shock stopping him from expressing himself properly as he waited for a better answer than ‘it’s not in our best interests’.

That was a load of bullshit. There was something else going on and it made Arthur feel uneasy.

“We don’t have time to get into it now Arthur.” Dutch said gently, holding a hand out in front of him to signal that Arthur needed to drop the subject. The younger man glared at him, jaw clenched as he held back a rebuttal.

His parents were good people and he trusted them to make good decision for himself and the other children.

Well, John.

John had not been the last child they’d taken in. He was just the only one that didn’t have parents to go back to.

He was alone in this world, just like Arthur. John didn’t have any family and the family he did have before they passed had left him with nothing. Which is why Arthur had always assumed Dutch and Hosea would take him in too.

Give the poor kid the family he so desperately craved.

He knew deep down that they must have a good reason for what they were doing to John. But in that moment, he was blinded by a simmering rage as he remembered the boy’s tears earlier and how hard that kid had fought his whole life to feel accepted by anyone, especially their family.

Arthur turned his attention to Hosea once more, their eyes locking as Arthur registered a deep sadness in the older man. Stood a few steps behind Dutch, the older man shook his head slowly, telling Arthur to let it go before this situation turned ugly.

Arthur swallowed audibly, licking at his lips and turning to look at the dining room table full of food.

He felt sick to his stomach. His appetite gone.

“Have you told him?” He asked after a long moment, sucking on his teeth as he waited for an answer. The silence in the room deafening as the seconds ticked on without a reply.

“Not yet.” Dutch answered eventually. The scrape of a chair breaking the tension in the air as the older man pulled it out from under the table and slumped down into it.

Hosea followed suit, gesturing for Arthur to do the same.

He did as instructed, walking around the table and pulling out the chair from his favourite spot. Slinking down into it and looking to his right at the empty place he had set for John.

He supposed that they were all aware the kid would not be joining them.

“Well, he knows.” Arthur replied, venom in his tone as he snatched at the bucket of chicken in front of him and pulled it closer.

End.

~~~~~

Poor John. :(  If you’ve read my other works you guys can probably see where this is heading. 

I got my electric bill today.. Also had KFC for dinner because I couldn’t stop thinking about chicken after writing this. 

Please let me know if you read this and liked it! I love hearing from my awesome readers! Let me know if you want more backstory and what you’re hoping to see in future stories! ❤

[evanaaml]

The Road in Winter - Pokeshipping Week

The road they traveled on cut across a snowy hill, encompassed by woods beyond it, Most of the trees were bare, save for the snow that clutched to the branches. The evergreens that fought against the cold weighed heavy from the frost attached to their limbs, but still held strong. As they walked, the crunch of the snow beneath their feet echoed; the rest of the world fell silent. 

Misty looked around, the scenery drawing her in. She thought herself in a snow globe; the flakes falling in large clusters that clung to whatever it touched. There was no wind, and the air was cold but bearable with the garments she was wearing. She looked up, letting the snow fall on her bare skin. She smiled as she opened her mouth, catching some flakes on her tongue. Cold, refreshing, and wanting for more. 

“Enjoying ourselves, are we?”

Misty looked over to Ash on her right, then smiled and looked back up. 

“I am”, she replied. 

“Well, at least you’re honest”, Ash responded. 

“We don’t get to see snow a lot traveling, I wanna soak it all in while I can”, Misty explained. Ash couldn’t fault her for that.

Kanto didn’t get much snow, and Johto was no different. That they got this much snow while home, before Christmas, was, well, a miracle. 

Perhaps it was this reason, and this reason alone, Ash thought, that Misty didn't mind the cold weather.

Misty stopped walking, prompting Ash to do the same. He looked at her, expecting a response. Instead, he was met with silence. Thinking something was wrong, he looked around, wondering if they might have gone the wrong way. Misty raised a finger in the air, knowing Ash would say something, and stopping him before he did. 

“Listen...”, Misty said quietly.

And so he did.

The crunching ceased when they stopped walking, and a new noise replaced it; it was that of the falling snow. The landscape before them was untouched, clean, fresh. Ash breathed in, and even the air felt different. There was a purity in the world around them, Ash couldn’t put it into words, but knew what it felt like. As if his body and soul were cleansed of impurities just by being there.

What a feeling it was, he thought, to just feel the surroundings. Through his travels, he was very often focused on the destination, and not the journey. He rarely stopped to appreciate the world around him. Not that he didn't love it when he did; and he loved the outdoors to be sure. But with his mind always on his next badge, his next battle, his next shot at realizing his dream, it wasn't rare for the scenery to be a backdrop and nothing more.

This was when having her with him, to remind him to stop and listen, was a blessing.

He looked at Misty, who kept her eyes on the woods around them. Her coat, hat, and boots were speckled with flakes of white. She held her mitted hands out, allowing the snow to cling to them. Misty inspected each flake, seeing the intricate designs in each before they could melt away. 

He thought to himself that he should take her down this way another time, perhaps with friends, or their Pokemon. But as way led on to way, he doubted that they would return here again. He closed his eyes and looked up, just feeling the snow cling to his face. The cold didn’t sting, but was instead rather welcoming.

“It’s like a painting. There are no trails in the snow, no imperfections, nothing is disturbed. It’s almost too perfect”, Misty said, keeping her eyes on the scenery before her. 

“It is”, Ash replied, not looking down from the sky. Misty turned to him and saw what he was doing.  

Like herself, the snow was scattered about on Ash’s garments. His hands were in his pockets, and he just seemed to soak everything in. Misty couldn’t help but smile. He seemed so serene, a rare sight for someone who was always active and busy. 

Misty loved to see it.

She felt a heat on her face, which caused it to sting slightly from the snow that melted immediately on contact. She shook her head. 

“S-So, should we be going?”, Misty asked. Ash took one deep breath in, looked over to her, and nodded. 

“Yeah”, he replied. The snow stuck to his eyebrows and lashes, prompting a giggle from Misty. 

Now that burn was felt on Ash’s face. 

The two continued on their way, the crunching commencing once again. Ash kept mind to look for ice on the path, knowing that the weather could make it likely. But as they walked, he found that the road beneath the snow was solid and devoid of anything slick.

Before long, the hill made way to a fork. The two stopped as they looked down both paths. 

“I forgot about this part. The map said that the woods here are protected for the Pokemon, so they made the path go around it. Both ways lead back to town, it doesn’t matter which way we go”, Misty explained. 

“Well, I wouldn’t say that”, Ash said. Misty looked to the raven-haired boy. 

“What do you mean?”, Misty asked. She wondered if he knew something she didn’t, which would be a welcome surprise, she’d admit. 

“I think this way is the scenic route”, Ash explained, pointing to their left. Misty looked down the path. A sheet of snow covered the road entirely. The trees on either side of them remained undisturbed; no Pokemon resting in them from protection from the cold or snow. The path went up a small hill before bending from sight. 

Misty then looked to their right. The path appeared the same, except that there was no hill to cross. The trees were equally blanketed as the ground around it in the fallen snow. She knew that both paths were about the same distance, and the other way looked just as wanted for wear. 

“What makes you say that? Have you been here before?”, Misty asked. 

“Nope, never”, Ash answered. He took a few steps towards the path to the left. He looked down it, as if imagining what was to come. “...just a gut feeling I have”. 

“And your gut has never led us astray before, has it?”, Misty asked with a smirk. 

“Hehe”, Ash chuckled, putting his hand behind his head in embarrassment. Misty stared at the boy before her, and felt that burning sensation on her face once more. However, this time she recognized the feeling, and made no attempts to hide it. The woods around them were lovely, dark, and deep; she doubted Ash would see the shades of red across her cheeks. 

“So, you think this way will be more fun?”, Misty asked, motioning her head towards the path. Ash shrugged. 

“Depends on what you think fun is, I just feel like it’s the road less taken, and I like the idea of being different”, Ash explained. Misty shook her head with a knowing smile.

Ash liked to do things his own way. He felt that following exactly what many other trainers did wouldn't allow him to learn anything on his own. While this made for some...difficult times, Misty knew that it was also for the best. Not just in the care and compassion he put into his training, his Pokemon, and his family. But it also let him find a new way to do things, and more times than not, those new things led to amazing adventures.

“That’s an...interesting logic to have. And we all know you’re nothing if not different”, Misty said with an innocent giggle. Regardless, she stepped ahead of Ash. “But, I’m fine with that. I trust you. Either way, we should get going; we don’t want to miss our gift exchange with everyone”.

She began walking down the path, only hearing the crunching of the snow. But noticing that the crunch seemed lonely, she stopped and turned around, seeing that Ash was not following her. Instead, he was rummaging through his traveler’s sack. She stood there quizically, until Ash pulled something out, swung his bag back to where it was, and ran towards her. 

“Well, I guess now is the best time for this, all things considered”, Ash said upon reaching her. He held in his hands a long cloth. He looked Misty in the eyes, then slowly wrapped the cloth gently over her shoulders and around her neck. 

Misty held up one end of the cloth when he was finished. It was a scarf, and felt warm to the touch. Hidden from the elements in Ash’s bag, it was dry, soft, and smelled of something like pine and earth that made her heart flutter. Although dark, she could still make out faint patterns in the stitch work. They seemed familiar to her, but her mind was elsewhere, and she couldn’t place it. 

“I know this isn’t the most practical gift for you, but once I saw the design, I couldn’t turn it down”, Ash explained. The darkness that Misty was thankful for but moments before, was now helping Ash for the same reasons.

Now knowing that the patterns were important, Misty took herself away from the scents and focused on the sight of the gift. The scarf was pink, with streaks of yellow and red dots in symmetry. She knew she had seen the design before, it was there in her mind's eye, but she couldn’t quite place-

wait...

“...Ash...is this?”, Misty asked. Ash smiled. 

“It’s made from the same person that made your handkerchief. I didn't know that it was unique craftsmanship. I saw that they had a shop online, and I ordered it for you. Now...well, we both have something to match”, Ash said sheepishly. 

The added warmth of the scarf made her face feel like it was being beaten by the sun’s rays. The Butterfrees in her stomach wanted to take flight, and she could hardly contain them, nor did she really want to.

“I know it's cheesy, I honestly thought of a million other things to give you, and a lot of them were lavish. But...I don't know, something about this just sorta felt right. Not sure how to explain it really...Anyway, I hope that, i-it’s a good Christmas gift for y-”

“It’s perfect”. 

Misty found herself cutting him off before he could finish, or even before she knew what she was saying. How unlike her to let her mouth move before her brain could think.

Ash took a moment to register her quick response, before smiling. There was silence between them for a bit. Snow speckled the landscape further, and themselves as well. The two of them, in the middle of the woods, did not feel the cold that engulfed them. Rather, they felt warm; the type of warmth one would feel in an embrace with another.

Ash stepped just passed Misty, further down the road, before turning back and grabbing her hand. Perhaps it was the peace and quiet of the world around them that made him feel this confidence, or perhaps it was her and nothing else, but he was glad to have spent this time with her and just her. The road before them begged to be taken, and there was no one else he’d rather take this journey with than her. 

“Let’s go soak all of this in...together”, Ash said, softer than even he expected. Misty found it hard to breath, if but for a moment, before finding inside of her a feeling of desire. A desire to step forward.

With him.

She smiled, taking his hand in hers and nodded. 

“Yes”, she replied. The two moved forward, walking almost in unison as they looked at the path before them. The road was untouched for now, but soon would be marked with two pairs of footprints, bound for a single destination. 

Whether by chance or by choice, they stayed hand-in-hand.

[tangerinegod]

hi tange ❤️❤️❤️ I hope this is ok to ask but as an art student was there ever any issues w/ submitting fanart since uv said u did naruto stuff at school? I only have experience w high school art class and the mortification of showing people my fanwork was too much for me so I just did original art I was less passionate about to show teachers etc 😖 but I dont look back on that art as kindly as I do my old fanart either yknow ?

hi!! oh my gosh if u or anyone ever had qs about art school please ask! i'm always down to answer to help unveil the mystery of it and also to help out haha, putting a tldr upfront and long post under read more

tldr: on the offchance ur school does allow it go for it cus no one will care, but i highly suggest taking the opportunity to explore original IPs instead because it's hard to do outside of an education environment, esp if ur normally into fanart (like me)

ok heres the long reply: its gonna be based all lot off of ur schools rules! to be honest a lot of my work was original, the only classes i submitted fanart for were my digital animation class bc i 1. was at the point where i didnt give a fuck LOL and 2. the professor did not check in with us before we started so we could do whatever.... and the other class was for character design because it was a fanart assignment 0: most other times i acually did strive to do original work and focused mainly on three different IPs i have.

i did dress up as naruto on multiple occasions tho because the opportunity popped up! probably like 5 times lol

i think something (and this is based on school) that you will discover is that professors genuinely do not care how outragous your content is! if anything if it's super whack then it's more entertaining and ull have more fun w it. i animated the nyan neko sugar girl rabies bite and my teacher didnt bat an eye and also made an oc in chara design whos biggest trait was being obsessed w how good she looked and having the BIGGEST tits and ass as a part of her character and my teacher was like 'yeah but this boot is uneven? watch the curve on her bra, etc'. i even used her in some of my bg paintings later haha. so i would say more than making fanart just feel out the vibe of ur school, it's honestly a REALLY good time to explore original work because once ur out u can make whatever you want, or do original work for ur assignments and fanart for fun? which is what i tried to do! when ur in you get feedback from other students and teachers which is something that becomes a lot harder post graduation, so learning how to build up strong original stories is great and you'll come out with lovable characters that r dear to u! but also some/most? schools don't allow fanart, mine normally didn't except for that animation class n i'm sure it's only cus he didnt recognize the source material haha..

also people really will not care if it is allowed because EVERYONE else at art school also draws for fun and is going because they want to. like no one is forced to go into art school and normally have to fight their way in. people at my school KNEW me as the naruto person who loved sasuke lol like i got coined the title of hokage for like the second half of my time there.. so do not fear! if ur talking and making connections with ur fellow peers (which u should really try to do) then eventually youll be talking about similar interests and sharing social medias anyways and unless ur drawing like. REALLY weird/yikes stuff it's fine! one of my best friends is making a living off of explicit furry nsfw rn lol

hopefully this helps i think i tried to answer like 20 questions instead of just 1 but i think fanart is a good segway into just type of content to make for school! also try to avoid putting fanart in your portfolio if you can, or keep it in a separate section. I keep my nice quality fanart in mine but specifically labelled in a section called fanart so people can look at my original work because that's where its All My Brain, which ppl wanna see if that makes sense. Fanart is something where someone would look to see how you executed a piece just for draftsmanships sake but ig another reason to not do a lot of fanart is you won't come out with as many portfolio pieces you can use confidently? some recruiters dont care and some do so its best to just be safe

[sanchoyo]

Looks like you’re gonna have to gush some more cuz I meant in general uwu🌸

🌺😌🤟 Always happy to! Okay here’s just some General bnha Thoughts ™ Mostly Lov centric. You asked for them, and you said GUSH about them, so here’s. A Lot! :)

This isn’t a lov one but it’s really funny so I thought I’d put it out there:

-when bnha was first gaining traction on tumblr, it was all art of Tsuyu. I have no idea why. People were talking about the funky frog lesbian superhero anime. Maybe it was just the people I was following, maybe it was a general trend, but I LOVED her design!!! my fav color and frogs r super cute!!! And I already loved superhero media, so I was like. I’ll watch it. For Her. SO. FROPPY IS THE REASON I WATCHED/READ BNHA. I went in thinking she was the protag and I was sooo confused when Izuku was... tbh I still think it’d be more interesting if she was lmaooo aus where? ...seriously if anyone has good aus where this is the case send them LOL

-I don’t actually feel that bad abt what Shigaraki’s doing. I still feel bad for him. I’m this post. yes im an apologist. its not my fault hes sexy and has been running around shirtless. hes a lesbian icon like thor is. I want to touch his hair. hes never done anything wrong in his life. he could kill all might, deku, bakugo, whatever, I’d still be sayin this. I don’t feel bad for gt. like. was anyone genuinely attached to him? lmao

-well u know how spinner’s quirk is just sticking to things? We haven’t seen him use it in canon except like, (1) time iirc?? I think this is probably bc he’s embarrassed about it even in front of the league... I loooove the idea that he gets more comfortable with it around them :”) and also how shigaraki. um. does that falling asleep thing while standing up with his eyes open, canonly? (which I still love lmfao) Imagine someone in the league walking in a dark room, turning on the light n just seeing. Spinner upside down, stuck to the ceiling asleep bc heat rises and its Warmer Up There. (cold blooded thing like tsuyu?? come ON give him a big fuzzy coat and scarf...) and Shigaraki in the center of the room, slouched but still standing, eyes open and motionless. Theyre both sleeping. Whomever sees it just...slowly walks out. LMAO

-Toga roller derby au. No deep thoughts I just think she’d be good at it. 

-Toga 100% is a social butterfly and could befriend anyone if they didn’t just judge the fact she was trying to stab them smh :/ (ok but seriously anytime I see cute friendships with her n the other kids im like :) aw. I feel like her and Camie...would be good friends. Camie feels chill enough to be like ‘ok whatever thats totally fine I forgive you!!’ LMAO we love airheads here)

-HOW DID TOGA GET SO GOOD AT FIGHTING? We know she’s been on the run since middle school or so, but good enough to pin Deku down after he’s been formally trained at a ~hero school~ for a while? (she pinned him TWICE I think, once when his arms were messed up, but, the other time as Camie, so? AND THEN WAS ONE OF THE 100 PEOPLE TO GO THRU TO THE 2ND ROUND OF THAT? even tho she didn’t bc she had to leave) good enough to beat Aizawa in a fight and stab him? A professional hero and teacher for YEARS? Is that seriously just street training??? Can people acknowledge how amazing her combat skills and reflexes are??? More Toga appreciation when?? Also her backstory??? SO subversive and incredible, hate when people reduce her to just a ~typical anime yandere~ :/

-Tomura doing stuff with his hands/fingers to train his quirk!!! And to learn to be careful with it!! obv I’m a Big Fan of him playing piano to do this and video games are prob the canon answer, but like, guitar or any stringed instrument that requires Hands would work too. Or knitting/sewing? EMBROIDERING? ??? Please, let me give you the mental image of him knitting aggressively while mentally scheming, watching a twitch streamer or smth too while doing it. (Doing stuff with your hands is a great way to let your mind come up with creative stuff, that’s how I come up with writing/drawing ideas 70% of the time)

-Tomura actually PREFERS cutesty, relaxing games. I mean, he does fighting and bloody stuff irl, games are a way to relax...he’ll play shooters and gta type games with The Lads, but. on his own?? animal crossing. pokemon. kirby games. mario. zelda. BIG ZELDA FAN (not saying this bc I, personally, am biased, but,) slime rancher, stardew valley, funny simulator games... he really enjoys those :”) God forbid he has a kid bc they’re 100% getting named after a viddy game character unless someone can talk him out of it LOL. Toga and Tomura are that animal crossing /doom meme where she’d be asking for doom and him asking for animal crossing :”)

-Bits and pieces of Before are kinda stuck in Kurogiri’s brain, but like. mostly useless stuff the doctor didn’t care about removing. Like, types of clouds. So Tomura kinda picks up on stuff like that. He can just look at clouds and tell you what type they are because Kurogiri used to take him up to high places in the city and point them out to calm Tomura down from a panic attack when he was younger. He can tell you if the sky looks like it’ll rain with a 80% accuracy rate too. 

-Kurogiri left food out for kitties in the alley beside the bar. They weren’t allowed in for Health Reasons (it IS a bar with sanitation standards!!) And Tomura really wouldn’t stop it or encourage it either way so long as Kurogiri did his job, but occasionally would stand outside with Kurogiri and just watch the kitties from a distance. If any approached he’d go back in (lowkey afraid he’d hurt them by touching them :( ) They kinda kept that between them tho, bc they both Know AFO is a big bag of dicks and no fun

-people have pointed out how similar aizawa and tomura look. this was 100% the intention. tomura has a hatecrush on him. THIS IS SO FUNNY AND HORRIBLY AWKWARD FOR KUROGIRI LMAO

-Sako??? Mr. Dramatic?? Opera fan. Drama kid. Like, obviously, but. Really. He is. I feel like he can speak a dozen languages. I also feel like he used to be an overachiever but got too ambitious. He was def some kind of leader at one point of a diff Group or something that fell apart. I LOVE how creative he is with his quirk and the magician theme??? incredible. I don’t show him enough love but I Love Clowns :o)

-I don’t care what their canon heights are. Spinner and Dabi? short kings. My height hcs are (tallest to shortest) Kurogiri, Twice, Sako (who also has heels on his boots and a tall hat, keep in mind), Tomura, Magne (Tomura and Magne are about the same height imo) Toga, Spinner, Dabi. LISTEN. Dabi has short energy. Sorry. it’s true tho

-This is a semi-popular hc I think bc I KNOW I’ve seen it before, but Dabi having Terrible Vision and needing glasses is so so good. (seriously, with burns THAT close to his eyeballs, how could he not?) 

-he tries to be a tough loner coolguy. you’d think he’d smoke, but I hc his ‘weak constitution’ comes with weak lungs (esp from years of a flame quirk?? inhaling smoke over so much time is SO bad for you, most people who die in fires actually die of smoke inhalation...) so he’s got like, an inhaler, can’t smoke, actually gets carsick, needs glasses, overuses quirk to save friends constantly, likes napping, a little awkward and rude. Tomura put him in charge of the vanguard so he’s smart, and good with strategies too, like a nerd. this is the Dabi I wanna see, not the popular fandom version of him tbh also step on hawks one more time sir :”)

-I wish all the lov fics weren’t?? villain!deku like I said earlier, but also, chatfics? I have nothing against them but most of them are just a bombardment of Memes with NO PLOT!!! Listen. text/chatfics CAN have plot and be an interesting way to tell a story. I almost want to write one just to show what I mean...

I know I’ve said I like spinaraki and blackmagic, but I am a multishipper, so a few ships I don’t talk about that I like that involve the lov in some way:

-toga/any of the 1A girls??? or Camie??? super interesting. ALSO in the radio drama, bakugo’s voice actor said Toga was his favorite girl??? so?? bakugo/toga ?? I WANT TO SEE IT. but specifically my fav dynamic with her is when someone ELSE is the one to like her first, it’s what she deserves.

-Kurogiri/aizawa/mic?? any variety of that is also 👌🏻 I also kinda wanna see kurogiri/all might bc. Dads. COME ON. they bond over ‘well, I raised him, and you want to have a part in his life now?? ok. earn it. prove it. I’ll screen you first’ or something LMAO they’re both genuinely concerned for the boy, and SOOO biased. let them bond.

-WAIT WHERE IS THE MIC/COMPRESS CONTENT. THEYRE BOTH DRAMATIC. ENEMIES TO LOVERS?? HELLO??? SOMEONE?? ANYONE. rarepair hours

-giran/twice is cute. like he was hyping him up so much and so ready to go save him...

-dabi/magne where is the content. when. why not everywhere??? I’ve also seen magne/compress which was cute!! or twice/magne? they’re the big sibs of the lov...

-dabi/spinner?? come ON dabi could get over his learned biases and spend time with him and they could hold hands. I want them to.

-dabihawks. Obviously bc the Drama. yes even still, don’t @ me. (also, shigahawks, seen some REAL interesting fics with it tbh) or spinahawks?? adding hawks to a ship is like adding extra chili powder. makes it SPICY dramatic)

-nine/tomura don’t @ me once again. both kinda afo’s playthings, nine obviously was the test for tomura’s new upgrades...they both love their friends...That Scene in the Flower field </3 hmmm tragicships are fun.

-tomura/mirko. more enemies to lovers. big fan of her and bunnies. remember when he wore bunny ears in bnha smash. (ok its crack but. CUTE.) 

-I’ve also seen shiganatsu and shigafuyu and I’m like. these are cute, but also Dabi’s reaction always makes me cry laugh. so good.

-MOST EVERYONE IN THE LOV IS LGBTQA+!!! heres my personal headcanons:

Toga: pan or bi (CANON BASICALLY)

Magne: transwoman (CANON BABEY) bi, leans towards men. (her crush on dabi in bnha smash... uwu content where)

Shuichi: gets sooooo flustered canonly, I think he’d go for the first person Who Hit On Him (I can see him being the target of those mean pranks where someone says ‘my friend likes you!!’ and the friend is like ‘eww!!’ :(((( ) he’s super hesitant for romance, lots of repressed stuff. gay but takes sooo long to realize it bc he thinks most women are conventionally pretty Aesthethically, feels obligated to Like Them, but has bad self esteem so never goes after them, then only likes (1) guy so hes like?? is this allowed?? is this allowed???? (HES LIKE. IN LOVE WITH SHIGARAKI)

Dabi: bi but rly hasn’t ever gotten to date anyone, so he’s actually more reserved about it and while he’ll tease, he absolutely is absent and kinda oblivious (again, I KNOWWWW bnha smash isnt canon, but. my god. when magne is hitting on him and he Just Doesnt Understand.) also hes ace

Tomura: doesn’t care. (just prob says ‘its whatever’) trans/nonbinary (i’M NOT PROJECTING, BUT. :’/) probably goes with like, the label queer if any but doesn’t care much for labels

Kurogiri: bi??? kind of??? I say kind of bc well, I hc U Know Whom as bi, I feel like thatd carry over but he’d be really avoidant to date anyone bc hes gotta Watch His Kid u know? this is gonna sound surprising but I think he’d be the type to be like ‘ok we can have a one night stand/fling BUT it cant get personal bc I have a Job to Do for my Son so don’t get up in your feelings’ and act a little coldly at first or very ..not personable... depending on who it was he’d prob turn around eventually, esp if that person valued his feelings/job :”)

Sako: that mans Not Straight. I hc him as gay and also trans :3c

Twice: Bi and HAS dated prob more than anyone else in the league imo, super comfortable with his sexuality and supportive of everyone else’s :)

ok that’s about all I can think of atm, come back in 5 minutes and my brain will refill with lov headcanons :3 thank you for asking!!

[vapcrwaves]

━♡ guess the 24 YEAR OLD JULY baby just arrived to dallyeog! it makes sense, because AOKI IMOJEN is just as BLAZING as the month of JULY. wait, why do they remind me of HIRAI MOMO? beyond that, they seemed SELF-RELIANT & BUOYANT upon first glance. i heard someone say they’re sort of INSURGENT & RECKLESS though. i hope they get acquainted here in COMPLEX # 3 / APARTMENT # 2 / FLOOR # 2 ; they seem to have a lot going on with HER job as TATTOO ARTIST / BASSIST. 

bonjour , y’all !! my name’s jade ( she/her , twenty-one , gmt+8 ) !! and i’m super excited to meet and write with everyone !! this is my spunky kid , imojen , and i hope you’ll come to enjoy her as much as i did writing everything about her :D if you wanna plot , do not fret because i’ll be dropping in everyone’s IMs hehe , but if you prefer to plot over at discord , don’t hesitate to tell me !! <3 

*   𝖕𝖗𝖔𝖑𝖔𝖌𝖚𝖊   ╱  ʙᴀꜱɪᴄꜱ   .

name  :  aoki imojen  nicknames  :  yoki , jen . age  :  twenty - four . birthday  :  july 27 , 1996 . zodiac  :  leo sun , aquarius moon , sagittarius rising . place of birth  :  tokyo , japan . currently living  :  seoul , south korea . occupation  :  tattoo artist , bassist . pronouns  :  she / her . orientation  :  bisexual biromantic . ethnicity  :  japanese .  spoken languages  :   japanese , korean , english .  character insp.  :  kat stratford from 10 things i hate about you , bridget vreeland from sisterhood of traveling pants , effy stonem from skins uk , young carol rhodes from gossip girl tv series , rhonda smith , mia’s backstory from if i stay . label  /  tropes  :  hoyden , icarian , insurgent , reveller , the rebellious spirit . pinterest  :  here .  aesthetics  :   scared of commitment , but has 7 tattoos. a habit of endlessly lighting a lighter. platform boots to boost your height. but then again, sneakers for comfort while running from the cops. forgetting to discard empty cigarette packets from your bomber jacket. spilling your fifth espresso onto your drawings and designs , maybe it’s time to sleep. a frightening look on your face which millennials like to call a resting bitch face. the heat ruining your collection of leather jackets. finding comfort in your friends who seem to understand your mood swings. having a pet cat who’s as feisty as you. spontaneous adventures live inside your head and your friends fall victim to those ideas. liking the rays of the sun more than the moon despite being a night owl. oversleeps anyway. trimming your bangs yourself because you couldn’t be bothered to go to the salon. overcooking your sunny side up eggs. sleeping to forget problems. drinking to forget problems. epitome of a ride or die. 

*  𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖘𝖙 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗    ╱  ᴘᴀꜱᴛ   .

aoki imojen was born to understand what it was to live a life with no structure. her father was part of a rising band in the 90s, toured all over small venues in japan that they slowly rose to a known local name, and imojen has seen all the chaos unfold from backstage in the arms of her mom. however, slowly transitioning into the year of 2000s, the economy was still struggling from the lost decade and the income from touring never sufficed for a growing family. imojen’s father was forced to leave the music scene with the help of her mother’s influence: “it’s time to be serious”; and work multiple jobs in order to fully provide for his first child and the another growing one inside his wife’s womb. 

growing up, imojen’s no stranger to music and her father loved to introduce rock music and bands to imojen’s upbringing. she adored b’z and the gazette, and it leaves no doubt that imojen’s father had been her greatest influence in life. as she grew older, not only did they share identical music preferences and influences, but imojen’s learned to play various instruments— the bass being her favorite. imojen’s also stemmed from that infamous reckless behavior his father’s known for back in the day, and when the teenage years came, so did the impetuous reputation begin. 

imojen and her mother aren’t exactly as close as she was with her father. in fact, their relationship was a toe out of the civil line. it got worse when imojen started to focus on the band she created with friends instead of school and late night practices turned to never returning home for a few days and having the audacity to blatantly lie when asked where she was when asked. it’s hard not to blame her mother when she assumed things for the worst. imojen’s gone quite defiant especially when she discovered that her and her father’s relationship had began to run askew. imojen blames her mother’s interference with her father’s music career as much as her father did, she loved him so much that she was completely blindsided to always take his side. and when the divorce papers came and went, imojen chose her father as she always would. 

her father got a job as a musician locally and eventually overseas, however, money didn’t come by so fast and easy initially. instead of going to university, imojen invested in learning the arts in tattoo design and worked as a tattoo artist to help with the bills. the pair finally thought to settle in korea when imojen’s father got a permanent job. and at this time, imojen has decided to try pursue a career as a musician as well, hoping that the thrill in her early band days are still well stored in her system. 

*  𝖘𝖊𝖈𝖔𝖓𝖉 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗    ╱  ᴘʀᴇꜱᴇɴᴛ   .

imojen can never be satisfied of living in the same area for so long, or at least under the roof with the watchful eye of her father. work’s payed well and imojen decided to move out and get an apartment of her own. hence, she found dallyeog, parties almost every single day, drags everyone into spontaneous adventures, comes home terribly drunk and wakes up with a huge hangover—well, still pretty normal. aside from the norm, imojen working at the tattoo parlor and taking gigs at bars as a bassist, imojen’s investing in writing music as well. she hopes one day to finally finish at least one song she’s been procrastinating for far too long and convince her father to make them a rock duo instead, but a band of her own would fantastic too.  

*  𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖗𝖉 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗    ╱  ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀ   .

imojen looks quite mean at first glance, and it doesn’t help that she’s indifferent towards anyone who isn’t part of already her friend. she doesn’t hate, hate is such a strong word, she simply doesn’t have the attention span for people that don’t interest her or she doesn’t know fully well to enjoy a conversation with.

honestly has the gina linetti energy “how was i supposed to know there’d be consequences for my actions” as she literally does anything she wants before her brain can even weigh the pros and cons to it.

imojen enjoys taking risks despite the relaxed attitude and seemingly nonchalant view in life. it might be a surprise to learn that she’s quite ambitious, but underneath, she does aim for the highs (both meanings) in life, except there isn’t exactly a time frame for those and would much rather pursue them steadily. 

everyone can depend on imojen to have a good time, or if someone needed a friend to vent to, she can surprisingly be all ears, but never follow her words of advice. she does mean well, it’s just that she doesn’t know what she’s saying half the time and is quite reckless,, like ask her to pick between two choices and she’ll advice you to take the riskier one bc “it’s fun don’t be a prude”.

she is more sympathetic than she let on. imojen’s not very vocal especially with her emotions and on what she exactly feels about other people’s situation. serious conversations? catch her yeet away from those. they render her uncomfortable, most especially if it is about her. however, seeing her friends gloomy doesn’t sit right with her that she does anything to make them crack a smile. 

believes that people should be left to roam free and that authority is useless and ruins the fun— hence why she’d always be caught defying them. yes, she uses her brain, but acts more towards intuition and what she felt like doing that day. so yes, she might loves setting her life on the line.

*   𝖋𝖔𝖚𝖗𝖙𝖍 𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗   ╱  ᴡᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ ᴄᴏɴɴᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴꜱ .

plastic hearts   ╱   someone whom imojen shares a passion for music with. the both of you are like peas in a pod as you both are in the same wavelengths as each other. they may not have the same types of music, but open enough to share a plethora of music playlists.

angels like you   ╱   the typical bad-good influence trope wherein imojen’s reckless behavior and liberated thoughts on legalities have gotten your muse in various dangerous but fun adventures. on a flip, your muse may be the reason why imojen’s woken up at 8 in the morning, bright, well, and not hungover.

prisoner   ╱   an angsty and toxic relationship that imojen could not get enough of. everyone sees this partnership (romantic or platonic) of destructive nature, both of you may or may not know, but regardless it can never be broke off no matter how hard both try. 

gimme what i want   ╱   the typical fwb relationship, we can add spice to it, but on the base that’s the idea. 

night crawling   ╱   imojen’s ride or die, the person she would instantly run to for an adventure, midnight strolls, alcohol escapades, and vandalism. but as things you both do burst into haywire, you’re both aren’t afraid to be open to each other too and spill secrets or bodies hidden in the closet. 

midnight sky   ╱   perhaps a new acquaintance?? friend?? that doesn’t exactly have a first good impression of imojen?? maybe vomited on your muse the first time they met, or jen was really mean for no reason under the influence of alcohol?? she’s chaotic so perhaps it wasn’t a good first meeting. 

bad karma   ╱   imojen hasn’t been exactly an angel all her life, and perhaps karma has run around to bite her in her ass. your muse might’ve been somebody who hurt imojen; either a terrible break up or severing trust, let’s explore :D 

golden g string    ╱   a band :D maybe nothing too serious, just a group of pals playing and making music together :D  or maybe the group's been playing gigs for awhile now and wants to head into the big leagues :D

honestly im so down with anything so !!!!!!

[let-me-make-you-proud]

Tangled: The Series Q&A with Kait.

This is a recapitulation from today’s (September 14, 2019) Questions and Answers session with Kait on the Tangled Discord Server.

Q: Which Disney princesses outside of Tangled the series can you see Varian being friends with? Nonfranchise ones included.

A: I think Belle is the first one who comes to mind!! She’s super studious and goes against the grain…not to mention her father is an inventor who’s a little off-base! 🙂 I think he’d be super comfortable experimenting with Belle and her dad and reading awesome stories! (Maybe even sharing the Tales of Flynn Rider with her! …Assuming she hasn’t read it! Haha. ) He could also eat ham sandwiches with Anna. Sorry. Second thought. Lol!!

Q: So Kait, as a storyboard artist on the show what kind of little details, quirks or creative touches did you or any other artists put into Varian scenes you or others storyboarded?

A: Ha!! Any acting scene with Varian I had…I pretty much based off of Anna Lencioni (my best friend/ another board artist on the show.) Anna makes these very specific expressions and she gestures to herself a lot and closes her eyes and creases her brows and says things like “A-huh! Actually…” or “Um!!” Before making a point and it’s always reminded me of him.

She kept a “flynnolium” prop from Halloween with green goo in a vial in her cubicle at work so long it grew mold. She said she was studying it. She found scrap metal in her boot one day. She has a basement lab for her experiments and crafts. She befriended two raccoons at her last apartment. She is the most accident-prone person with freckles I’ve ever met…she’s pretty much him.

Jeremy Jordan’s reads give you so much to work with…and I love that character so much I feel a natural sort of understanding of how he might say something or do something…but Anna would always do these specifically Anna things that I had to use for Varian.

Q: Do you have any specific advice for aspiring storyboard artists or people who aspire to work in animation?

A: Gestural drawings help you learn to draw fast…which is a very important part of storyboarding. I would say storyboarding‘ s biggest requirements are clarity and speed. Lots of productions have different requirements in terms of what they look for from story artists. Tangled‘s leadership cared a lot about drawing skill, animation, layout, etc. because it more strongly informed the animation studio to have those things. The show I’m working on now (Monsters at Work) is a 3D show…so for our production, the emphasis is more on story and speed. We pitch ideas more than we pitch drawings…so clarity is important and acting is too, but we’re far less precious about tying down drawings and animating since we shift into the 3D production pipeline after story. The boards are still very important…but the more technical aspects are a *little* less so. The focus is just more on story and character and what the board artists can bring to their scenes.

So I’d say just practice drawing…maybe try and give someone a prompt or ask a friend for one. Choose a theme! Maybe vampires? What’s the worst thing that could happen to a vampire? What’s the best thing? What’s the funniest thing? What if they were also an alien? Or fused with a werewolf? Or chained to one? What would happen? Giving yourself a starting point for an idea will inspire you to explore all the possibilities for humor, drama, etc. in that idea. If you’re struggling to give yourself a prompt, try looking online…or maybe choosing a song you like or a passage from a book for inspiration.

There’s also this really fun thing you can do to study cinematography and shot composition called a “three tone” exercise. Basically…put on your favorite (live action) film, grab a sketchbook, grab a black and grey marker, and use the white of the page for your third tone. What you wanna do is (as you’re watching or while pausing) sketch a small thumbnail using only three grey tones of what you see on the screen. Draw the shot- where the characters are, try and duplicate the lighting…it teaches you a lot! 🙂 (Phew!)

Q: Do you have any fun non-spoiler head canons about Varian?

A: I think his favorite dessert is apple pie and I think he bakes recreationally very often! He’s probably a good cook. (Though he may have one or two minor accidents……a burnt thing here and there. Minor oil splatters….haha!!)

Q: What’ve been your favorite episodes, both to storyboard and in general? Of course, no specifics if it’s S3

A: Haha! Well…What The Hair and Queen for A Day have special places in my heart because they were such big moments for my favorite character…(Varian, haha.) But I’d say the episodes I had the most fun boarding are all in season 3!!! Which is exciting! I have to start compiling some work to post! 🙂 I think the episode I had the most fun with is one you guys will really enjoy.

Q: Will we get some interesting surprises (In Season 3)?

A: Without any spoilers- absolutely!! The show is always full of those.

Q: So We’ve heard many fans express why they love Varian as a charcter before, I’d love to know what drew you and Anna to Varian as well and why you guys personally found him to be a great character.

A: When Shane Prigmore originally pitched the character to me, he was much younger. He was like 11 or so, I think? Maybe 12? He’s still pretty young…but what Shane said was that he wanted him to go from this wide-eyed kid to this dark, angry person whose bangs fell over those wide, bright eyes…just full of rage. That idea was super interesting to me…it just hit on something in character development that I felt like I’d never exactly seen before? He was so young and it was such an interesting idea to me to make a child the villain and to give that child a strong reason to be angry? It felt like it was taking this child very seriously, which I appreciate. It felt very real and very dark.

The thing that threw me through a loop but also evolved my fascination with the character was Jeremy Jordan’s casting. I listened to a lot of the auditions they had for various actors and I had seen a ton of Shane’s concept art of the character…a lot of them were VERY different than what we have now. One version Ricky Roxburgh (writer) contributed to had Varian cast as an adult in the story. But when I heard Jeremy I felt like I totally understood who Varian really was.

He was a well-intentioned disaster with unchecked emotions. That. Is me! Haha!! I see myself in his imperfections, his emotionality in spite of his creative and often intellectual thinking. He wants to ascend to these levels he may not be ready to ascend to…he feels this need to prove himself and seek validation. I don’t know, I guess I relate to that! And I’m just a sucker for good guys gone bad. The other half of this, of course, is that he’s very charming and cute and super reminds me of my best friend, Anna Lencioni.

Q: Which character do you most like seeing interacting with Varian?

A: It’s a little spoilery for me to reveal that……..but I think you guys are gonna know when it happens! Haha!

I can’t wait to post THOSE boards

That’s actually right out of the episode I think I liked boarding the most, haha.

Q: If there was one prop (furniture, object, the like) from the Tangled series that could be made real and you could keep, what would it be..?

A: I think it’d have to be those little alchemy orbs that Varian throws? They just suddenly clean the whole castle hallway somehow and like…could use me some of that. He also has the one that removes stains from tablecloths, so. I’m sloppy. That’d be a big help. Haha!

Also his staff is pretty cool 😉, I boarded/created that staff…David Lee (prop designer) did its final design…haha

Q: I have a question about a scene in season 1. When Varian got back the first part of the scroll he mentioned that it took him a while to translate it. Has he really been able to read it or has it been a bluff?

A: Varian can indeed translate what’s on the scroll. 😉

Q: Do you have any networking advice for those trying to get into the animation industry?

A: Post your work!! Make it easily accessible, tag it well, just show what you’ve got online! Upload boards, animatics, drawings, etc. Creating an online presence can really help put your name out there. Apply for internships, jobs. I know it’s hard to network because a lot of industry professionals don’t have time to answer specific questions or give portfolio reviews…so it’s sort of important to take some initiative on that and be self-motivated.

For me, I studied the portfolios of Disney feature story artists, CalArts students, etc. and tried to structure the presentation of my work based on that. Also, it helped me get a sense of what pieces of work would best showcase where I was trying to go and what I was trying to do. I’d ask yourself those questions as you develop a portfolio and artistic voice online! 🙂

My first feature job after a trainee program in New York at Blue Sky happened because Doug Sweetland (Pixar animator, feature director, awesome dude) found my work online and liked it. He just reached out based on that!

Shane Prigmore actually reached out to me for Tangled similarly.

Q: Besides Varian, do you have a favorite character that you’ve boarded?

A: I always love Eugene. He’s the second character I think I’m most like. His acting was really fun to play with and I felt like I could push his expressions a lot because he’s so funny. I loved boarding Lance too (I boarded a lot of Lance in S3!!) but MAN was he hard to draw, haha! His face shape is just really hard to draw at certain angles.

Q: With Varian cosplay that is going on, what Disney character would you like to see Varian dress up as next?

A: Jack Skellington! Halloween is afoot. Jack is another well-intentioned disaster. Guess I have a type!

Q: What’s Varian’s opinion on raccoons, are they his favourite animal?

A: I imagine it’s because Ruddiger is always finding interesting things in the trash and giving them to Varian to use in his experiments. Also, they’re fat and cute.

Q: There’s a bit of an argument going on over how many freckles Varian has. Can you confirm how many he has?

A: Ha!!! Yes…one second… 14!!

Q: How big do you think Corona is? Like Vatican City small or Arendelle big?

A: You know, with the wall and all, it actually feels a little on the smaller side to me? I’m sure there’s a little bit of discrepancy between the movie’s version of Corona and our version…but based on where we went within Corona on the show, I’d say it feels on the smaller side.

Q: Are there any non-spoiler Varian scenes or moments that didn’t make the cut that you can share?

A: MAN. Yes. There is one scene that changed after I rolled off the episode and I’m very sad about it. I’ll post it after the episode airs! There was also a line of Varian’s that I boarded to a specific read from Jeremy Jordan and that read was not chosen in editorial later so…I’ll post that one too, haha!

Q: What is your favourite song from the first two seasons so far?

A: All my favorite songs are in season threeeeee…hahahaha!! I think Let Me Make You Proud or the Buddy Song are my favorites. Buddy Song still gets stuck in my head now and then.

Q: What do you think Varian would order at a drive-thru? Specifically at chipotle 😂

A: Chipotle isn’t a drive thru!! Hahaha He’d get the kid’s quesadilla from chipotle. I think Varian is a fries/chips kind of person…something to snack on while he works! He probably also likes milkshakes.

Q: (Continuation from the question above) Chocolate or vanilla?

A: He’d revolutionize by combining them both. FOR SCIENCE!

Q: What is, in your opinion, the most challenging part of varian’s design to draw?

A: His goggles, hahaha. Or just his…hair in general.

Well it’s funny too because when you board these guys, you get used to doing a shorthand for them and then when you go to draw them FOR REAL you realize how complicated that actually is and how wrong your shorthand actually was? Hahahaha

Q: is Varian ticklish at all?

A: I feel like Varian, Eugene, and Lance are all equally ticklish. To the point of absurdity. Cass would fight it as long as she could…but when it finally got to her, she’d laugh uncontrollably. Rapunzel, she’s the TICKLER.

Q: What do you think Varian opinion and belief on magic is now that he’s seen it with his own eyes?

A: I imagine that he certainly believes in it now and no longer underestimates its powers…but I imagine he’s ultimately more comfortable staying in his own lane and working with worldly properties!

Q: If Varian would have been able to meet Demanitus…how would their conversation had looked like?

A: I feel like Varian would have had a TON of questions about his legendary device and whether or not he truly traveled dimensions.

Q: Did Varian have any other friends in old Corona before he met rapunzel?

A: Probably not many…he’s a bit of a hermit. I think Ruddiger is his best friend……. It’s sad but I also think that’s kind of why it hurt so bad when Rapunzel wasn’t able to help him. Also why he was SO excited to have Rapunzel, Cass, and Eugene come visit.

I think the village looked at Varian as a little unstable or worrisome. I’m sure everyone knew he was very nice…but they were likely very unnerved by his inventions.

Q: Do you think Varian ever tried to synthesise gold or the elixir of life like a real alchemist?

A: I’ve wondered that myself!! I think his alchemy has proven to be more about other people…helping others, making people proud. Maybe if someone he cared about was in need.

Q: If you were to meet Varian in real life, what would you say to him?

A: What elixir did you make to get THAT kind of volume? His hair’s so POOFY! Honestly, I’d probably just give him a hug.

Q: How much does Varian know or remember about his mom?

A: I’d say about as much as the photo of her on the wall.

Q: Is there spoiler about his hair streak? Or is it just by design?

A: It’s totally by design. I think it’s safe to assume it’s probably the result of some lab accident!

Q: In what ways is Jeremy Jordan like Varian?

A: I don’t know Jeremy Jordan personally, haha! But I think a lot of these inflections he adds to Varian sort of off the cuff probably come very naturally to him. I know he often wants to do his own pass at the musical arrangement Alan Menken writes…like he’ll want to do something a little different, in his own way, and it will change the song completely!! In an awesome way. That’s a little Varian-esque. In the “Let Me Make You Proud” reprise…Alan Menken had sung that “they are going to pay…they…will…pay” all in a low, downward tone. Jeremy wanted to scream it and make it powerful and angry and loud when he said “PAY” and you could just hear the spite in his voice for the “they will pay.” Genius!

Q: What was the most shocking moment/revelation of the series to you (minus anything season 3)?

A: It’s hard to say because I knew most of what was going to happen long, long ago. I think one of the things that made me go “oh dang!” was something Tom Canfield boarded. It’s that part in Destinies Collide where Lance slices the entire statue down the middle with a sword. What a BAMF!

Q: What were your thoughts on the early concept of Varian having an apple orchard and being a farm kid instead of a young alchemist?

A: He still kinda has those things! Quirin is a farmer as well as the village leader and there are apples on their little farm estate! 🙂 I think that makes Varian very unassuming as a mad little scientist. I’m sure that’s how (Ruddiger and Varian) met! Remember, he used his purple tacky goo stuff to catch raccoons so they wouldn’t eat the crops! And Ruddiger’s favorite snack is apples. 😉

Q: What is his official height and weight?

A: Smol.

Q: How did you guys come up with Varian’s name? And was there any other name suggestions for him before the name ‘Varian’ was chosen?

A: I’m not sure who came up with that name, actually! I’m sure it has something to do with the meaning of the word “variant” which means something that varies, changes in form.

Q: What’s his last name?

A: His last name!! I have NO idea and it bothers me!!! A Disney magazine referred to Varian, Ruddiger, and Quirin as “The Ruddiger Family” and I still haven’t stopped laughing about that.

Q: What sad Disney movie moments would make him cry?

A: Oof. Lion King.

Q: What musicals do think Varian would enjoy?

A: Little Shop of Horrors! I think he’d see himself in Seymour! Or Wicked…you know, that villain arc.

Q: How did Arianna and Fred meet?

A: I actually don’t know off the top of my head!

Q: Would Varian enjoy rollercoasters?

A: I think he’d enjoy how they’re MADE and then scream his head off while riding one, throw up his cotton candy and corndog, and go play carnival games instead. Then get mad that they’re rigged.

Q: So what comes next for you now that the series is almost over? Any big plans?

A: Well the series wrapped for production a while ago! I’ve been on another show for almost a year now! 🙂 I’m working on the new Disney+ show Monsters at Work as a director! It’s an awesome, awesome show…totally next-level…I’m shocked that I’m getting to be apart of something like this. It’s a direct sequel to the movie that serves as an office comedy (a la The Office, Parks and Rec) and has so many characters that fit immediately into the Monsters Inc world. Monsters Inc is my favorite Pixar movie…so I literally come to work and leave work on the same high! It’s an awesome, awesome show with a great crew! 🙂 It’s also just really exciting to be apart of the first original animated property for D+!

Q: How would you compare working as a director to working as a storyboard artist?

A: It’s hard work, just as hard, but in a different way! For me personally, I’m a little easily fatigued by drawing? I get a little creatively frustrated because my thoughts move quicker than my hand. Or because I don’t always feel like I can execute in a drawing what I’m thinking in the way that I want? Part of that is just being an artist…and it’s not ALL the time that I feel that way…but I think I have a certain stamina for drawing that I found challenging to increase.

Directing is just different! It has a lot more to do with managing a team, communication, coordinating, listening, speaking up, problem-solving, being very aware of story as it applies to ALL parts of a production. I don’t draw as often anymore. You have to consider a lot more…more people, more constraints, more difficulties, more opinions, more solutions…it’s just MORE. And you also still have to draw! 🙂 It’s very busy work, but it’s AMAZING and I love it. I feel like I’m contributing to animated storytelling a lot more in this role, actually. I love working with people, I love workshopping, and I love helping! I’m also just spoiled to be working with some great people right now. It’s a blast.

Q: Are any Tangled: The Series crew joining you on that show?

A: Yes!! Tom Caufield and Wendy Sullivan were on it for a minute, but they’ve both moved on to Dreamworks recently! James Suhr (board artist), Isabelle Gedigk (season 3 board artist), Naomi Hicks and Casey Coffey (revisionists), David Lee (props), Ricky Roxburgh (writer), and I are all working together again! It’s awesome.

Q: Does Varian, deep down, blame himself for the amber?

A: I believe he does.

Q: How do you deal with artist’s block?

A: I try to think about the intention behind what I’m doing. Why is the scene I’m working on very important to the story? If it feels unimportant or boring, how can I make it interesting? What can I do on my end to make it more inspiring or fun without going too far off the rails and still serving the scene’s purpose?

If it’s not work-related, I try and start with some fan art or something familiar for me to draw. I have a lot of scribbly Varians in the margins of a lot of my sketch documents. I use him as a warm-up a lot. It helps build my confidence to draw something familiar/ that I think I can draw pretty well.

Q: What’s the hardest scene you’ve ever had to board?

A: Oh God. ANYTHING with action. I’m not an action gal. Lots of stuff in S3. I was board partners with Wendy Sullivan and ended up getting a lot of action to board even though she’s WAY better at it than me!! It was an interesting challenge…but it was very, very challenging. Ben (Co-EP) was a great mentor to me in the scene I did for the mid season. He was very patient with me, despite my shortcomings as an action board artist, haha. I enjoy boarding for comedy much more.

Kait: Anyways, I should probably head off now! Thank you guys so much for all the questions!!!! You’re awesome! I hope you’re all super excited for S3! It’s a great one.

[seenashwrite]

Some Dean

Word Count: 4K Category: One-shot, On-The-Hunt, Humor, Creature Feature, Behind-the-scenes Canon-Compliant, Teamwork, Friendship… and, to hell with it: Fluff Rating: Teen & Up Character(s): Dean, Sam, Cas Warnings: None Anti-Warning: There’s no images or links to anything creeptastic below the cut, those of you with squicks/phobias need not worry, I’m not that big of an a-hole Author’s Note(s): *This is a re-post minus tags & links in an effort to get it to show in searches*; if you’ve no knowledge of the children’s story “Charlotte’s Web”, this may not be for you; more post-story Overall Summary: Sometimes good things come in small, albeit eight-legged, packages.

Dean had always liked spiders.

Well, “like” may’ve been overstating; Dean had always held an appreciation for spiders. They weren’t nasty like rats or sneaky like snakes, with spiders you knew where you stood: in his experience, anything supernatural aside, you leave them alone, they’ll leave you alone. Plus, they were badass - spiders packed a lot of intimidation into a small package, could be killing machines when they wanted to be, and mostly he appreciated that they were efficient and effective when it came to dealing with the annoying bugs that occasionally popped up. He did live in a basement, after all; the world’s tiniest were not deterred by any amount of warding or weaponry.

So when he’d notice small, barely-there wisps of webs in far corners or between the bottom of a bookshelf and the wall, stretching from the carved wood to the sticky bricks, he’d leave the homemade traps be for a week or two if they were empty, and sure enough, they’d have captured some crawlers next time he made a run-through with the vacuum. It was an amicable relationship - Dean never saw the spiders, just their handiwork, and the webs seldom popped up in the same space twice. Plus, they seemed to know the kitchen was a no-fly… spider… zone, so all was well.

And then came Charlotte.

Charlotte - as Dean had eventually started calling the garden spider, much to Sam’s dismay - did not have any regard for the out-of-sight, you-don’t-get-the-boot arrangement, nor did she have any regard for giving Dean his space. The day they met, he’d sauntered into the garage, popped the Impala’s trunk, tossed in a bag and a shotgun, yelled at Sam to hurry up, then went to reach for the driver’s side handle, caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and froze. And he wasn’t the only one.

The web was thick at the edges and delicate in the middle, stretching from the side mirror to the handle, upon which Charlotte perched, her crafting put on hold. She wasn’t terribly small, but not remotely large; she would’ve easily fit on the pad of his thumb. And she was clearly of the brave - or stupid, perhaps - sort, because she didn’t immediately scurry off. She took in the sight of the giant creature before her - technically, there was eight of him, what with her four pairs of eyes and all - and she opted to see what would happen.

What happened was that Dean turned, grabbed a shop rag, and began cursing under his breath as he whipped the web into nothingness; by the time he stopped, Charlotte had skittered to places unknown.

Dean tossed the rag away, gave the handle a good eyeballing before he grabbed it, opening the door and saying in a low voice through grit teeth, “Not. The. Car.”

“What not the car?” asked Sam, bounding up the garage steps.

“Nothing,” Dean replied.

This nothing continued for six weeks.

Charlotte was a determined artist, it seemed, not to mention a fast one. She spun webs of all sizes and shapes, covering the license plate in quilt-panel squares, weaving long, ropy trails around and between the wipers, and at one point obscured the back window in a lacy pattern that Castiel noted looked like a fine guipure. She liked to travel, too, as more than once the brothers would exit a given roadside motel room to find Charlotte had been busy during the night, Sam’s personal favorite being when she’d decorated a hubcap in a complex Fibonacci design, though he’d never have let on to Dean.

On the initial occasions following such a discovery, if Dean happened to spot her, he would scold her with a sharp “NO!”, walk in her direction briskly, and she’d retreat, slipping into the trunk or under the hood, but it wasn’t long before she’d stay put, even edge closer, cutting the distance between them, eventually so bold as to crawl onto the roof of the Impala, watching as he dismantled her webs.

“Really?” he asked one morning after the latest wipe-down, bending slightly so they were eye-to-eyes.

She calmly extended one leg to the side, held it out til he got the hint, turning his head, following what he’d presumed was a point, and sure enough, he’d missed some cottony puffs that were still stuck on a tail light.

Looking back at her, he said - begrudgingly -  "Thanks.“

Dean had dealt with stranger things.

"One day I’m expecting to come out and see ‘terrific’ in a web,” Sam commented during a return trip from the latest hunt.

“What?” Dean asked.

“You know - the kid’s book. Charlotte’s Web. You read it to me when we were little. About the farm, and saving Wilbur the would-be bacon?”

“Charlotte’s anti-bacon?”

“No, I don’t think— it was— it— she was just pro-pig.”

It was after this conversation that Dean took to calling their frequent tag-a-long Charlotte. To be specific, it was after he’d brought a BLT with him into the garage while working on the car, and she’d happily investigated a bit of bacon that had escaped his plate. A point to the pro-bacon column, he thought.

Dean informed her that he was fine with her hanging around, he was even fine with her fancy webwork, but she needed to cool it when it came to the car, explaining with lots of gesturing to make sure the message got across, just in case. He’d looked it up. Spiders did not have ears.

He’d also looked up things on spider life spans, and arachnid health in general. Sam found him in the library one evening doing just that, frowning at his laptop screen as he scanned. Castiel was nearby, returning some books to their places on the shelves.

“What is he doing?” Sam asked in a hushed voice, and Castiel opened his mouth to respond, but Dean spoke, diverting their attention.

“Did Charlotte look pale to you earlier?”

Now Sam frowned. “Dean… what?”

“I mean, she’s light brown, but she looked a little yellow earlier,” Dean explained, scrolling further down a page, but then closing the window with a huff and turning in his seat to face Sam. “Can’t find anything.” A pause; a thought. “Hey, I should put out a devil’s trap drawing for her, maybe a new pattern’ll perk her up.”

Sam was, in a word, startled. “Do you think of her as a pet?”

“Why do you care?”

“Oh, I dunno - because a spider is stalking us, and you’ve named it, and you talk to it, and—-”

“What, you got a thing about spiders to go with your thing about clowns, even though your imaginary friend was a clown?” Another pause. “Come to think of it, that explains a lot.”

“Sully’s not a clown, and no, I do not have arachnophobia, what I do have is a worry that - if it is a female - it may lay a bunch of eggs, then we’ll have an infestation. Is that what you want? Bunch of spider babies in your Baby?”

Dean rolled his eyes. “She’s not gonna do that.”

Sam narrowed his eyes. “Did she pinky swear?”

“Would you like me to have a look at her?” asked Castiel, and the concern in his voice was less for Charlotte and more for Dean, and less in the sympathetic way and more in the tiptoeing around someone who’s slipped into psychosis way.

Sam crossed his arms. “Taking it outside hasn’t worked, neither has trying to leave it wherever we’ve been hunting - this is getting ridiculous, will you just kill it, already?!”

Dean stood, walked over to him, defiant. “We not been doing enough killing for you lately?”

“It’s just a spider, Dean!”

“I know that! Maybe I just don’t wanna be scraping moist spider guts off my boot.”

“Does this spider communicate with you?” Castiel asked, the concern still floating under his words.

He was ignored.

“It’s not your pet, it’s a tiny insect - you don’t even know if it could be poisonous!” Sam exclaimed.

“Not an insect, genius, and Charlotte would never bite us—-”

“What is wrong with you?!”

“Have either of you considered the possibility that this is no ordinary spider?” Castiel suggested.

“Gee, thanks, Cas - no, hadn’t noticed that this is weird,” Dean shot back with a look.

“So you get that this is weird?” Sam checked.

“Our life is weird, what’s some more? And at least this is fun weird, is that so bad?” Dean replied, and the touch of melancholy in his voice caused both Sam and Castiel to stay quiet for a few moments.

The silence was broken by the ring of Dean’s phone - a case awaited them.

And, of course, Charlotte.

Dean looked up from the map as Sam came back into their motel room, six pack in one hand, phone in the other, kicking the door shut as he spoke.

“Jane called. She says a container ship from the UK was bringing in illegal cargo, for some rich people who wanted exotic animals for canned hunts—”

“Douche move.”

“—and apparently when they went to unload, the crates were all busted up. The hold was covered with what was left of the bodies of the animals. All except for one. Three guesses.”

“Big bad bacon?”

“Yup. And she thinks we’re looking at… ah….” Sam trailed off and chuckled.

“Yeah?”

“A cryptid. It’s called The Beast of Dean, a.k.a. the Moose Pig.”

“Why do I think that somewhere, somehow, whatever’s left of Crowley just got a chub.”

They were in a rural area of Virginia, not too far from Portsmouth, and had been for a week, tracking what sounded like a rabid boar, but there was enough of a bump-in-the-night bend to the word on the street that they’d been confident it fell in their wheelhouse. Now that they had confirmation, after a night of research and weapon prep, they were ready to knock out the most recent mission and get back home. The Dean-Moose was large, and it was anything but subtle. The hunt should be an easy one, wouldn’t take long, nothing to it.

Well. One thing. One sort-of big thing. Even though it was also a small thing. Sam’s pro-pig storybook spider and their companion, they’d come to find, had more in common than just a name.

.

STOP

.

There, stretched across the Impala’s grill the next morning, was an undeniable message, and given Dean’s jaw-dropped state, it prompted Sam to speak on his behalf.

“Um, Charlotte? Listen, I don’t know if you… you seem nice, and… really smart, but… look, this thing isn’t like that pig in the book.”

“Because she’s read the book,” Dean said sarcastically, breaking out of his stupor and stomping over to the car, sharp eyes looking for the sassy spider; no joy. “Hey, guess what?” he said loudly. “I’m gonna drive so fast that by the time I do stop, your web’s gonna get shredded, how do you like that? I told you my car was OFF LIMITS!”

With one last glare at the web, Dean got into the car, and Sam followed suit. They put on the radio and chatted about anything but spiders and pigs for the better part of an hour as they bumped along the winding back roads. And after parking at the edge of the woods where the most recent sighting of the beastly hog had occurred, they opened the trunk to find another message, one that unfurled neatly, springing open as the lid of the weapons compartment lifted.

.

REALLY! STOP, STUPID.

.

Punctuation, and all.

“You know…” Dean began, but trailed off with a shake of his head, snatching up the shotgun and pocketing a handful of the shells with the special filling he and Sam had cooked up the night prior.

Sam removed the freshly-etched-with-symbols machete. Dean slammed the trunk shut. Charlotte did not emerge.

As they walked deeper and deeper into the woods, Sam spoke in a quiet voice.

“When we get back, I’m calling Cas. This is out of control, Dean. The spider’s obviously somebody - or something - dicking around with us. Maybe that’s been the plan, keeping us from killing this thing.”

Dean didn’t look at him, rather kept scanning their surroundings as he responded. “Maybe. She… it… came around before that ship got here. But, yeah. Maybe something’s up.”

Sam reflexively sighed in relief, and at that moment Dean stopped, extended his arm to stop Sam’s progress, as well.

“Shhh. Listen.”

The growl was only audible for a moment before the foliage began to stir.

The hunt, it turned out, did not last long. The defeated brothers wearily tossed their dented weapons into the backseat and practically fell into the front. Dean immediately turned off the radio - the chanting of Duran Duran’s “Wild Boys” had come screaming through the speakers.

“It does kinda sound like they’re saying 'wild boars’,” Sam noted.

“Shut up.”

After they’d returned to the motel and showered, cleaned up their scratches and cuts, swapped torn clothing for intact, Sam went back to researching, while Dean went out to the Impala, damp washcloths in hand, and opened the trunk. It was barely even six o'clock, and there was still enough sunlight that he could see every trace of the webbing was gone. But he wanted to check that his little - former - friend hadn’t done anything else.

She had.

Sitting in the driver’s set, Dean’s eye was drawn to the thin, nearly opaque message across the radio, anchored by the knobs and an ejected tape.

.

BAD JOB

.

Dean swiped it away without a word, uttering a small groan and clutching his bruised ribs as he climbed out. He took a few steps, but then pivoted. He opened the door again and leaned in, voice tense as he spoke.

“Tell you what, how’s about I bring you some toothpicks and you join in tomorrow, help us out, get in a few stabs? Be useful, show us how it’s done?”

Dean fell asleep wondering if he’d completely lost his mind.

.

THIS IS DUMB .

Sam ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes - he’d been out the door first, so the newest message, covering the entirety of the hood, immediately made him brace himself for what was coming next.

But, surprisingly, Dean kept his temper in check; he merely set down his bag, returned to the room for a towel, and briskly wiped down the hood.

“Ready?” he asked Sam, forcing a smile that was likely more unsettling than intended.

Sam kept quiet, answering with a thumbs-up.

Their Everything’s Fine! charade was short-lived.

As with the prior morning, Charlotte had chosen to reinforce her message, wrapping the steering wheel so thickly it was barely visible, and her stance on their mission came through loud and clear.

.

THIS IS ACTUALLY DUMB .

Sam thought the choice of having the final “dumb” in bold italic for emphasis was a nice touch. And he noted the copious amount of webbing wound around the gear shift with raised eyebrows. And he gulped when he spotted more strands of said webbing emerging from the ignition. He cut his eyes over to Dean and, upon seeing his expression, took a step back.

This time, Charlotte did not hide. She’d positioned herself on the dashboard, right near the puffed-up wheel, standing with what could be described as quite the petulant posture. And much like the day the spider and the hunter had met, Dean froze.

Charlotte held her ground.

Dean’s nostrils flared.

Charlotte crossed her front legs as if they were arms.

Dean’s jaw clenched.

Charlotte tapped a back leg, as if to say Well get on with it.

Dean was still unmoved, and so Sam said, “You know, when you freeze like that, it’s really not as intimidating as you might—-”

“CHARLOTTE!” Dean bellowed.

She turned and sashayed to the glove box, crawling inside without the first indication she felt in any danger whatsoever.

Thankfully, the motel was just shy of a mile from from a modest gas station-diner combo. Sam talked Dean into a breakfast - with extra bacon, a thumb of the nose to both the beast and its defender. After they easily convinced the owner to loan them his truck, explaining their car’s fuel gauge was apparently broken, buying a can of gas for show, they promised they’d have it returned to him by morning.

As they drove back to grab their gear, Dean asked, “You hear from Cas?”

Sam nodded. “Reception’s crap, though - I can only hear parts of his voicemail. He found something about Charlotte, at least, I think. But he didn’t sound upset, like she was dangerous.”

“Let’s just roast the pig and get the hell outta here.”

“I’m sorry she’s not… you know, fun-weird anymore,” Sam said.

Dean lowered his foot, gunning the engine. “Yeah, well. Story of my life,” he muttered.

The truck was returned way before morning, this encounter with their newest foe having gone as well as the first. Then they found that Charlotte had removed all the web from the Impala, though the door to the motel room held some snark:

.

NICE HEAD

.

Dean barely glanced at it - possibly a little hard to do with the near swollen-shut, a breath away from blackened eye - and didn’t even bother to clean it off. There was no message from Charlotte the next morning. Dean did bother to wonder if she was gone.

The sound of the tree cracking sent both of them diving behind a small knoll, gasping for breath, cringing as it crashed down just where they’d been not seconds earlier.

“I’m empty,” Dean said, returning his gun to his waistband. “You?”

“About ten minutes ago,” Sam answered.

The beast’s growls now turned into a piercing scream, a most furious howl, angry it couldn’t find them. They heard it turning up earth with its tusks, sending rocks flying, then ramming its head into yet another tree, the trunk buckling under the strain. Dean had managed to send a bullet into its snout, likely preventing it from sniffing them out, if the occasional gurgling snorts were any indication. Sam had earned himself a minor goring to his calf, but otherwise they were intact.

“Think you can run?” Dean asked, gesturing to the bandanna-wrapped wound.

Sam nodded. “Yeah, I think so. That the plan? Just make a run for it?”

“You got any better ideas?”

“On three?”

“One… two…. three!”

They dodged trees, though the beast didn’t bother, taking out the smaller ones along the way, picking up speed with every moment that passed, while the brothers were losing speed at the same time.

Dean noticed a large branch in their path up ahead and started to veer off from Sam, pointing to it and yelling, “Keep going! I’ll try to knock Porky out!”

“No!” Sam yelled back, grimacing each time his leg made contact with the ground. “It’ll kill—- HUUUURMMPPHH!”

Sam went down, Dean not far behind, something tripping both of them, causing them to fall with such force that whatever air they had left in their lungs got knocked out. Disoriented, they raised their heads only to immediately duck them, covering up with their arms, as the beast was still plowing ahead. Its hooves hit the ground in between them, tossing dirt everywhere, its speed too far gone for it to stop on a dime. They expected to soon hear it reversing course, so Sam opened his eyes, trying to spot a place to hide, Dean doing the same, trying to spot the branch.

Instead, the sound of the most meek squeal one could imagine reached their ears, prompting Dean and Sam to turn their gazes directly ahead.

They were at the bottom of a small incline, and they watched as the boar’s head rolled their way, their heads slowly turning as they observed it leisurely passing by. It came to a sudden stop against something near their feet. They shared a look, moving in sync onto their knees.

“Uh, Dean?” Sam said.

Dean looked up from inspecting the severed head to find Sam with his hand extended, pushing under something that Dean couldn’t make out, but a shift in position and a tilt of his head allowed him to see the bright moonlight glint off the surprisingly thick, iridescent rope running across Sam’s fingers.

Another look, another in sync movement as they stood, then tentatively walked forward til they reached the body. This time, Dean spotted it right away when he crouched, the finely-wound strands that were stretched between two trees, at just the perfect height to relieve a squatty hog monster of its head. He flicked it with a finger, as one would a string on a guitar, and it was just as taut.

“She clotheslined it,” Sam said, awestruck. “She tripped us so we wouldn’t… That could’ve clipped us at the knees. She… she…”

Dean looked up at Sam, and a slow smile spread across his face. "She’s awesome!”

Sam shifted his weight off of his bad leg, and grinned. “Think she’s any good with stitches?”

How Charlotte managed to spin their salvation in such little time, they’d never know, and they also had no idea how she beat them back to the car, but the evidence was there, across the driver’s side window. .

SOME PIG .

They laughed, Dean saying, “You ain’t lying.”

But before he could say anything else, Charlotte crawled out from under the handle. She scurried up her web, and as they watched, she whipped the “P” into a “D”; the “I” went “E” in a few short passes; the “G” was partially dismantled, then spun into an “A”; and in mere seconds, there appeared an “N”. .

SOME DEAN .

After a quick hop from its tip, a slide to the outside of one of the long connecting end pieces, and a drop of a new line of silk, their eyes followed her as she leapt, letting the momentum swing her clean up onto the roof. And then - Sam would swear to it, many times over the coming years - she curtsied.

“Thanks,” Dean said softly. “You, too.” With that, he opened the back door, gestured for her to climb inside.

Which, she did.

“Yes… yes… that’s very kind of you.”

Dean, Sam, and Castiel were standing outside the bunker, the former waiting patiently - and occasionally impatiently - as the latter had a conversation with Charlotte.

Castiel looked to them. “She says she likes my tie. The material meets her standards.”

Dean’s expression was completely flat, causing Sam to snicker.

“There any reason you didn’t tell us you could’ve been talking to her this whole time?” Dean demanded.

Castiel shrugged. “You didn’t ask.”

It turned out that Castiel’s message had been to inform them that Charlotte was indeed a most special spider, more so than what they’d already divined. She was an emissary, an information-gatherer, a spy of sorts, though not a nefarious one. And because she herself was quite the accomplished hunter, she chose to spend time with other hunters whenever her journeys brought her to them.

And now, it was time for Charlotte to start her next journey.

Castiel was nodding his head as Charlotte, who was on his collar, near his ear, told him one last thing. “She’d like you to know that Sam was correct - she does need to prepare to lay her eggs, though she would not have done so in the car,” Castiel related.

Dean shot Sam a smug look.

“And she says she’ll name them Dean.”

Dean blinked. “All of them?”

“Yes.”

“How many we talking?”

A pause as Charlotte answered, and Castiel replied, “Anywhere from fifty to sixty.”

“That’s… a lot,” Dean said, because he didn’t know what else to say.

“Not really,” Sam commented.

Another look from Dean - actually, he cycled through several.

“Fine. So maybe I did some research, too,” Sam admitted.

“It’s time for her to go,” Castiel announced. ��She says she’s enjoyed your company immensely. And she apologizes for the web you’ve yet to find. It seems she was in a cranky mood that evening.”

“That’s okay. Tell her it’s okay,” Dean said, walking closer. “Tell her that, um… it’s been great knowing her. Don’t be a stranger. All that.”

Castiel smiled. “She knows.” He raised his hand to his shoulder, and Charlotte climbed onto it. “I’m going to give her a boost,” he explained, and then to Charlotte he said, “Please do give Mr. Anansi the Winchester brothers’ warmest regards.”

They watched as Charlotte prepped a silk balloon, and after a gentle wave of Castiel’s hand, off she flew.  

“It would be… cheesy of me to comment it is angelic, their flight, wouldn’t it?” Castiel asked.

“Yes,” Dean and Sam answered in unison.

They began to walk back inside.

“What was that at the end? About Anansi?” asked Sam.

“Networking,” Castiel replied.

“I wouldn’t worry about us ever having to tangle with him,” Dean said. “I mean, not with Charlotte on our side. She’ll talk us up. She’s a talker.”

“Plus, there’ll be all the Deans,” Sam added.

“Yup. Exactly. We are cool with the spider kingdom,” said Dean, and with great confidence.

Dean was incorrect on this point, as he and Sam would later learn, during a case involving a young lady by the name of Muffet.

But that’s another story.

Want more stories? My Master Post is linked in my profile, and it tells you about getting on the Tag List, too! If for whatever reason it gives you trouble, don’t hesitate to send an Ask and I’ll link you.

Re-blogs and feedback are fuel for a writer’s soul - please do let me know if you enjoyed. 😘

Author’s Note #2 - The Jane mentioned is a character from my story Supernatural: Revelation, which you can find linked on the master post -or- just go straight to AO3, same author name SeeNashWrite 😁

Author’s Note #3 -  This also included a prompt which had languished in drafts - albeit with the note “Anansi” from the get-go, thankyouverymuch! - which was from the cringeworthy submissions:

You can find all the #Nash300 Follower Celebration Master List of Madness stories (wherein I asked followers to send me prompts consisting of three words to make me cringe) via the Master Post.

Author’s Note #4: The beast of Dean mentioned is actually a thing, give it a google! And so is Anansi, check that out, too. If you don’t get the Muffet reference, well, I can’t help you with that. 😉

[shock777archive]

Shock777′s Teen Titan universe (fan-prediction), had the animated show from 2003 had more seasons after season 5.

Honestly I wish I had time to draw/write out the Teen titans / bbrae ideas I have. I have the cutest ideas and no time to sit down and devote myself to a comic or even a fan fic anymore. :’(  I love the Teen titans/bbrae fandom so so much! There’s so much good content out there and i love sharing that content and absorbing what others have made! But again, everyone does Teen Titans/BBRAE DIFFERENT. everyone has their own headcanons on how things should go, fan characters, next gen ocs, and their own thoughts on the titans as a whole. 

I love seeing the personal ways others develop the two and their relationship. But at the end of the day, I have my own headcanons and ideas and I so badly want to share them with the world. But...no time, energy, and lack of motivation plagues me. 

But Anyway... Because I cannot devote my time to a comic or fanfic at this time, I’m going to just blabber about what I imagine in my own canon universe for the titans. 

*Note that not all of these ideas have been fleshed out. i constantly go back and re-imagine different scenarios. I have a general blueprint of how things would go, a skeleton with main events and a short timeline of sorts. but subplots, fillers, and some major details are lacking. I’ve had to invent characters/villains, but I haven’t given them much thought as of now.

 I have spent a LOT of time on this, and would love input and comments, reblogs and shares. :) I’ve been keeping this in my drafts as I progress my ideas further...so this is almost like a masterpost or something lol XD; 

Anyway, keep reading if you wanna know how i imagine the fate of the titans and bbrae’s canonization had the original 2000′s cartoon show had more seasons to work with. 

 After Season 5/ Trouble in Tokyo ends. 

There are some key things and headcanons that I have to mention before rolling any further. 

Raven is free from Trigon after the events of Season 4. She no longer has him inside of her, persuading her and influencing her. 

Star/Rob is canon. After the events of Trouble in Tokyo, the couple begin a healthy dating relationship that is full of sweetness and life. 

Kid Flash and Jinx are a thing, but their relationship is somewhat superficial at first. 

Terra is alive, but either chooses to forget her past life, or literally cannot remember her sacrifice or the titans. She has cut ties to the titans permanently.

There are remnants of Trigon remaining around the world, deep underground, and many cults that worship him exist. There is possibility of him being reformed/regenerated, however he needs a new host as Raven is no longer his host. 

The Titans have a huge following around the globe majorly in part due to Titans East and the ending of Season 5 episode “Titans Together”.

Slade is alive once more, waiting to rise up against the titans again. He has to rebuild his empire again from scratch and this will take him quite some time to do. He still may be looking for an apprentice. 

I know there are other questions/plots/things I haven’t thought about such as titans east, certain villains, and other things you all may be curious about. 

Literally just ask me what i think happened to someone/some event and re-jog my memory so I can spend time to think about said things. :) It’s been a loooooong time since 2006. XD 

The Time Skip. 

In my own headcanon/universe that takes place after the original animated 2000′s cartoon show,

there is a time skip of sorts

. a time skip of 2-3 years later where the Titans are slightly older, all over the age of 18. 

Robin- 19 Starfire-18 Cyborg-19 (the oldest of the group) Raven-18 and a half, nearly 19  Beastboy-18 (just barely turned 18). 

They all still live in the Titans Tower in Jump city, and evil still very much exists. After this timeskip, the titans would have different outfits and appearances. I’ll do my best to show them how i imagine them now: 

Starfire:

About the same height as she was before the time skip. slightly bigger breasts but still on the smaller side. She wears shorts and her hair is longer and thicker. her bangs are parted to one side instead of down the middle. 

Robin: 

Transitioning into Nightwing. His hair is based off of his disguise in “trouble in tokyo.” He is growing out his hair and becoming more fulfilled with his life now that Starfire is with him romantically. He is about as tall as Starfire now, and will probably grow taller than her soon. 

Cyborg: 

(lol he basically looks the same because he is made of mechanical parts...oops! ) He is more cool-headed and loves to tease the other titans especially rob and star, about romantic things and about growing of age. 

Raven: 

Her hair has started to grow out...she no longer trims it. It is a little past shoulder length now. Her breasts have grown bigger, she is about a C cup. she wears long gloves now, and matching boots. she mostly keeps her hood off unless she is going into battle. she is now officially the shortest teen titan. 

Beastboy: 

He has the most radical change out of all the others. He matures nicely, losing the fat on his face and growing lean muscle. He grows taller, not quite as tall as robin, but taller than Raven at this point. He still has plenty of growing to do, however. His hair is now fashioned forward into a fohawk, and he is more emotionally stable. 

All of these drawings are just prototypes and can be subject to change, however I am pretty set on beastboy and Raven’s designs. ^^; they also were sketched relatively quickly so forgive the crappiness lol 

Starfire and Robin’s relationship

Starfire and Robin have been dating ever since their time in Tokyo. Starfire affirms Robin and helps him overcome his past demons. She calms him, and soothes him, and now he is less likely to freak out or obsess over villain happenings. The two are close to getting engaged at this point. They sometimes spend the night in each other’s rooms, though nothing too sexual happens. 

Cyborg likes to tease them whenever they go for dates, and he especially loves to poke fun of Robin. It is all in good fun, and mostly gives the others a good laugh. 

Sometimes their relationship can be obnoxious as starfire sometimes cannot control her urges to kiss robin at random or perform pda though robin has talked to her about it before. She is getting better though, having been dating him for about 2 years now. 

Beastboy sometimes is jealous/envious of Robin. Even though he is happy for his teammates, he wishes he could fall in love and start his own romantic ventures. Raven couldn’t care less about romance for the time being, and is rather on the outside when it comes to seeing others in relationships. 

Beastboy and his thoughts on Terra 

After the ending of Season 5, episode “Things Change”, he comes to accept that he has work to do with the Titans and he stops pursuing Terra altogether. It takes him a long time to get over her, and even after the timeskip sometimes he thinks of her and gets depressed. He really feels like he lost something...He feels like no one will ever come to accept him or like him the way Terra did. He is at war with his hormones, always trying to flirt with civilian girls and seek approval in places he shouldn’t. In the end though, he is painfully single and is bogged down with feelings of loneliness. Beastboy acts tough, confident in himself and silly around the team, but sometimes, he just needs to brood in his room. 

I always believed that had a season 6 ever was produced, beastboy and raven would have gotten together. Why did season 5 end on beastboy cutting ties with Terra, unless he was going to be set up with someone else? I always believed that last episode foreshadowed him moving on. Now that he has cut himself off from Terra and accepted her choice, i felt that it would have been an easy transition into bbrae becoming canon. 

BBRAE. a general timeline...lots of parts are missing. 

Firstly, Raven has always had a soft spot for Beastboy. It’s been shown time and time again in the 5 seasons of the original show. I want to state that i believe since Trigon is away from Raven now, she has become free in some sense, with her emotions. She still has to control herself from emoting too too much, but she is less vulnerable to exploding things with her powers come any sort of emotional distress. 

My bbrae fan-theory has a general format i usually stick to but the details of it are somewhat blurry. 

Things I MUST have in my bbrae timeline: 

There must be an obligatory moment where Raven figures out she is in love with beastboy. There is a pivotal moment after the time skip, in which it clicks for her that her friendship with him is more than just friendship. It starts off slowly..them growing together. Raven is definitely the one who falls for beastboy FIRST. I like to think of a few of these scenarios to happen in a 6th season that brings raven and beastboy closer (kind of in chronological order) : 

An episode dedicated to Raven figuring out Beastboy’s dark past with his parents and his fight with Sakutia disease. Whether it’s because he fights a bad guy from his past, becomes ill, or Raven steps into his mind. There are many ways for this kind of an episode to happen. I feel like once Raven learns that beastboy has his own skeletons in his closet, she becomes more sympathetic and nice towards him. It’s after an episode like this where she starts to call him Gar for the first time on special occasions. 

An episode surrounding beastboy and Raven on a mission together, similar to when Raven had to go on her own to take care of Melvin, Timmy and Teether (episode “Hide and Seek”). A mission in which they are placed together and alone while the others are on other missions. I haven’t thought of what kind of mission it could be and how long it would last. I play around with the idea that raven and beastboy are chosen to be together based on their abilities so the mission would incorporate that. During this mission they are together alone and things could happen to bring Raven closer to him. Things like :

-Raven and Beastboy getting caught in a storm together and are forced to take shelter  -Raven witnessing Beastboy being good with people/children/the elderly and it makes her smile  -Raven and Beastboy forced to share a room/bed for the night (I realllyyyyy like this trope tbh ;A;) Beastboy could be accidentally cuddling Raven in his sleep and Raven could wake up to it. That, or Raven wakes up earlier than beastboy and notices him sleeping and she stares at his handsome, serene face and remarks, “...you know...I’ve never seen him look this...peaceful.” THERE ARE MANY THINGS THAT COULD HAPPEN WITH THIS KIND OF TROPE AND I CAN’T SETTLE ON JUST ONE IDEA asdjkfhalkjsdfhaf -Good teamwork and sense of flow with each other when fighting bad guys. I need at least one good fight sequence of the two of them kicking ass and beastboy asking for a high-five afterwards from Raven xD  -Raven and Beastboy getting ready to leave their mission having completed it, and Beastboy says something along the lines of, “I’m actually glad I was paired with you of all people Raven. Had it been anyone else, I might have ended up failing my mission.” 

An episode where Raven is in danger, and Beastboy Transforms into the Beast to save her, getting nearly mortally wounded in the process. This would be the definitive episode, where Raven comes to realize her feelings for beastboy. I imagine that Beastboy and Raven have an argument earlier in the episode, where Raven walks away from it feeling like he doesn’t like her and still thinks she’s creepy. But the argument ends up being a misunderstanding on Raven’s part, and Beastboy was actually meaning something as a nice gesture. After she realizes Beastboy’s sacrifice, she visits him in the infirmary as he recovers. He is out of it for several hours and she feels awful about their argument, having nearly lost him. When he comes to, Raven asks him “why?...why did u go so far..for me? I thought you didn’t like me...” Beastboy would then reply with a heartfelt compliment to raven, and it would be revealed that the argument was a misunderstanding. Beastboy would smile and shrug off his wounds. He would say a heartfelt/emotional one liner, (don’t know what it is yet) but the moment he says it raven’s heart lights up and she feels love for the first time. she would inner monologue, “what...what is this? what’s...happening to me?” it would zoom in on beastboy’s smile and she would have a surge of all the memories of them up to that point, overflowing her until she nearly falls backward. Beastboy would ask her if she was ok, as she stumbles a little... and raven would say that she was fine and glad hes doing better...she would leave the room calm and cool , leaving beastboy none the wiser. The episode would end on that, but it would be the start to their relationship. 

There would be other episodes and sillier lighthearted stuff surrounding the other characters. but in every other episode there would be cute bbrae moments every now and then sprinkled in. moments like: 

-Beastboy shirtless in the training room, Raven oogling him on accident when trying to locate another team member.  -An ending scene on an episode where the titans all look at the sunset, and raven looks over at beastboy, shining in the light. his handsome features would shine through, and she would blush and avert her eyes. he wouldn’t notice her gaze, of course.  -A moment where beastboy flirts with raven jokingly, but Raven just stays silent, confusing beastboy who was accepting a snide remark in return  -Raven having a nightmare about beastboy dying or getting hurt, and she goes to check on him in the middle of the night. He would be sleeping in his new queen size bed (i have a headcanon that he gets rid of his bunk beds sometime during the timeskip) and Raven would smile at his peaceful face.  -Beastboy catching raven as she falls during a fight, Raven blushing and pushing away from him immediately  -A moment in which Beastboy flirts with some civilian girls who laugh at him and reject him, and he moves on, without noticing raven was watching the whole time. She then explodes the girls’ drinks they were carrying in a form of rage and jealousy XD 

I have many other ideas too for random moments. But now back to the main skeleton: 

An episode in which Beastboy is upset because he sees Terra passing by on the street. He is reminded of his status as a single man, and sees love and romance everywhere he goes. he cannot escape it, coming home to star and rob shenanigans and cyborg is too busy teasing them that beastboy seeks solace with Raven. He admits how he felt about terra and how he feels lonely. Raven tries to keep her sadness and jealousy under wraps, and confides in beastboy that she feels alone too. beastboy assumed she was like not into romance or anything like that, to which raven replies with a blush and a comment like, “I’m a human too you know.” Beastboy would feel better after talking with her, and would end the episode by telling Raven that if she ever felt lonely, they could hang out sometime. raven would smile and say, “i said i was lonely, not desperate.” BB would roll his eyes and leave her room, smiling and saying that the offer was on the table still. 

This episode would be the one that makes beastboy fall for Raven. I have no idea how it would start, but beastboy would invite Raven to go hang out with him. Raven would begrudgingly agree, and would be dragged into a friendly outing with her crush. Beastboy would ask raven to hold onto him as they rode his moped (sometime acquired between the timeskip), and raven would blush. they would wear civilian clothes during this outing. They would see a movie, and go to the bookstore. As Raven became comfortable being around beastboy, they even go to an arcade and raven starts getting into the videogames and kicking beastboys butt at his favorite games. Raven becomes so relaxed that she lets her guard down, and at one moment beastboy would make a joke about something silly, and raven would giggle and laugh out loud. Immediately, raven would realize what she had done and cover her mouth with her hands and blush. Beastboy meanwhile, just gasps and stares at her with big eyes. “did...did you just....laugh at one of my jokes?!” Raven would turn around and blush madly, saying nothing. Beastboy would then cock an eyebrow and smile the biggest smile he ever had. “After all tHESE YEARS! you think I’m funny!” Raven would blush and reply, “....one funny joke out of millions doesn’t make you funny beastboy.” Beastboy then steps back and notices something..he notices how she isn’t meeting his eyes with the regular cold, jeering glare but how she is really flustered and her eyes look soft..he sees the pink blush on her cheeks and realizes that he is correct... that she really DID think he was funny all those years...He also begins to suspect that in that moment, raven was actually...into him. Beastboy blushes deeply and starts stuttering, but then a few teenage civilians would walk by and interrupt the moment. “Hey it’s beastboy and Raven! cool! C-can we have a picture with you guys?! wow i can’t believe the teen titans are here!” The teens would snap a photo with the two blushing titans, and then start walking away. As they walk away, raven and beastboy overhear one of the girls state, “Wow they’re so cute! I never knew those two were a thing!” Raven and beastboy would blush furiously and beastboy would yell, “W-We’re JUST FRIENDS!” back at the civilians who are out of earshot. When he turns to raven, she looks beyond mortified. Beastboy’s ears droop as he feels like she is embarrassed to be with him. meanwhile raven is feeling the same, thinking that beastboy would never date a creep like her. They ride home on the moped in silence. As they return, raven thanks beastboy for the outing. he stutters and thanks her too. there is an awkward silence. “So, uh....” Beastboy would start, but raven would turn, say “goodnight.” and then leave the room. 

An episode in which Beastboy fights Adonis again. Adonis threatens to hurt Raven and the other titans, but Raven doesn’t know that when beastboy and Adonis stand off, its about her. the team is separated from the fight. Beastboy ends up kicking adonis’s ass, but is beaten up pretty badly. by the time raven and the other titans get to beastboy, he collapses into starfire’s arms who catches him from falling. before he loses consciousness, he sees raven and smiles at her with a swollen black eye and beat up face. “Raven...good...y-you’re safe...now...” he passes out at that point, leaving the team to stare at raven and raven just as confused as everyone else. 

An episode in which Raven finally admits her feelings for beastboy to herself.  this episode would delve into her psyche again and feature her emotions again. she would be losing control of her powers, similar to the episode “Fear itself.” because she is denying her love for beastboy. she doesn’t want to pursue it in fear that he wont like her and fear of hurting him. When danger raises its head, beastboy is in trouble and is unable to be rescued by the rest of the team. They try, but no one is strong enough to overcome the villain without raven’s help. But raven is not able to use her powers because she is denying passion within her. Seeing Beastboy being held by a shocking device, each time the titans get close, the villain shocks beastboy and makes him scream in pain and agony. Raven finally cannot stand it, and her powers activate again. However, she isnt channeling all of her emotions together like in the episode “nevermore.” She is leaving passion out. Raven finds that she isn’t strong enough to defeat the foe, and finally gives in and accepts her passion for beastboy. As soon as passion enters the equation, raven becomes at least 10% more powerful than before. her love for beastboy fuels her, and gives her the extra edge to defeat the villain.  beastboy is rescued by Raven who frantically takes the shocks off of his ankles and wrists. He starts to thank her, but is interrupted by her hugging him tightly, still fueled by her love for him. beastboy blushes and is shocked. raven holds him for a second, tenderly and closely. the episode ends there. 

And I still have many more episode ideas that I’m currently working on. The skeleton would continue with one more final episode where beastboy and raven would finally confess to one another. I dont know what would force the confession, and i have no clue if either beastboy would confess first or raven would. Maybe people can give me ideas? :) I just have so many ideas of how it would all go. i lean more towards raven confessing first. because beastboy is so patient with her. 

So the very very basic outline for bbrae canonization would be: 

- Raven falls for beastboy first, Raven gets closer to beastboy, beastboy falls for raven, raven admits to herself that she loves him, either beastboy or raven confess their love to the other, they begin dating. 

Once Beastboy and Raven are a couple 

I have a headcanon that Raven would want their relationship to be a secret for a while. although they have confessed their attraction to one another, their romance is slow at first and is kept secret from the rest of the team. Beastboy is patient with raven, and accepts the fact that she isnt ready to go public with their love. The couple would give knowing glances to one another throughout the day, sometimes spend the night in each others rooms, send late night text messages, and secretly pine for one another while the other teammates are none the wiser. 

I also have a headcanon that they dont share a first kiss for a while yet. beastboy is very hormonal and wants raven badly, but he is very patient and wants her to initiate it because he doesnt want to make her uncomfortable. Eventually it would happen, raven initiating it of course. she would probably kiss him quickly on the cheek, but beastboy would be so shocked and overcome by love that he would turn her face back to him, look her in the eyes, and they gently would both come closer and lock lips for the first time. 

Starfire would eventually become the first one to know of the pair’s relationship shortly after robin proposed to her. i havent settled on how she would find out, but it would happen and their secret relationship would finally be announced to the rest of the team. at star and robs wedding, raven accidentally catches the bouquet, to star’s delight. 

After beastboy and raven become a thing, raven almost exclusively calls beastboy “gar” or “garfield.” 

As beastboy and raven grow older, beastboy changes his name to Changeling around the same time Robin becomes nightwing. 

Another Time Skip

There would be another time skip near the end of the Teen Titans series, foreshadowing a spin off series about the teen titans next gen (lol i steal too many ideas from kishimoto-sensei lolololol) There are a few things that would happen. 

Starfire and Robin become parents in their early 20′s. It’s after Starfire announces her pregnancy that bb and rae get married. 

(*the rest of the series is based off of my original comic about beastboy and raven’s married life and the birth of their first child. If you want to read that comic, please go here.  ) 

Beastboy and Raven would have a child two years after starfire and robin have their daughter. 

Kid flash and Jinx would have a child too around the same time. Cyborg would adopt a child. 

About a year and a half after their first child is born, beastboy and raven would have a second child. 

The series would end, showing yet another time skip where their kids are now living in the tower, grown up into their teens themselves. the next generation would begin. 

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

So...yeah. lol obviously i have to work out this narrative, but that’s generally how I see bbrae becoming a thing. I know there are other things i glossed over. such as slade and other characters. but i mainly only hypothesize about my ship becoming canon tbh lolololol. 

I have designs for the next gen kids, 

And i’m currently working on more designs and a plot for the next gen series. lol 

but you get NO SPOILERS for the next gen ! >:C 

Let’s just say that old enemies return, family bonds are tested, and the old titans and the next gen titans have to work together to defeat the ultimate evil. 

Anyway, thanks sooooooo much for reading all of this! ;A; 

If you read all of this, congratulations you are now one of my favorite people ;W; 

Please send me questions, suggestions, critiques, and please like and reblog...I would love your input! :3 This is just my version of how bbrae should be done. i love reading fanfics and other’s stories. let’s all share in the glory of bbrae shipping and hope for a season six one day xDDDDD 

But yeah. Thank you. :) And I am out! xoxoxo 

-Alex, Dec 2018- 

(may edit later with updated thoughts, ideas and timelines.) 

[callsignbaphomet]

For the ABC OC Ask, randomly selected: C # 1-5, D # 1-5, F # 1-5, G # 1-5, I # 1-5, M # 1-5. It's a lot of questions, take your time & feel free to answer as few or as many as you want. :)

Ooh, no worries, I looooove lots of questions. Also sorry, wasn’t ignoring this. I’m a scatter brain with no sense of time management. Since a lot of these are repeated I’ll skip over them since they’ll be in the previous post. Also I’ll give the answer to whichever OC I think best fits the question.

C: Comfort1. how do they sit in a chair?Angelus sits horribly in any chair especially if he finds it uncomfortable since he’ll be twisting and turning every which way until he finds a comfortable enough position.

3. what is their ideal comfort day?For Jelani it’s a quiet day where his phone doesn’t ring and he can get up at whatever hour he wants though even if he tried he can’t really sleep past 8:30 and he can spend the rest of the day in the art room reading while his husband is drawing.

4. what is their major comfort food? why?For Angelus it’s totally steamed dumplings. Just had one shitty day once and was taken out to eat but he wasn’t feeling up to eating much but nibbled on a few and loved them instantly so from that moment on every time he sees steamed dumplings it’s like instant serotonin.

5. who is the best at comforting them when down?Abigail? LokeLoke? JelaniJelani? LokeAngelus? GingerGinger? AngelusTrevor? LokeTre? TrevorLatoya? Abigail

D: Decoration2. how would they decorate their child’s room?So Fae is actually a graphic designer and in her spare time an interior designer so when she head her first baby, Leah, she went overboard with the latest trends but made it cute and neutral since she wanted it to be a surprise. Now with the triplets she wanted to know their gender for sure given the fact that she was dealing with triplets. Again went with the latest trends turned cute but she stuck to neutral designs anyway.

3. how do they decorate their own room?Ginger and Abigail have a bit of a gothic theme to their whole apartment but their room is especially heavily themed. The rest of the place is subtle but not their room. We’re talking Victorian goth, black silk sheets, dim lighting, dark reds and deep purples and lots of black.

4. what type of clothes and accessories do they wear?Okay so for a while now I’ve been sketching and writing Angelus as a cross dresser and idk I think it fits him well plus he’s super into cute things. Any kind of skirts though he heavily prefers short and really short skirts, especially loves heeled boots, thigh high socks, baggy sweaters or any cute tops really. He mostly sticks to soft and pastel colors. Men’s clothes he’ll go with darker colors.

Accessories? He’s really into bows, flowers and really subtle bracelets, necklaces and earrings. No, he isn’t trans, he’s very cis. He just likes to cross dress and no, he isn’t doing it as a way to mock trans people he just really likes how he looks and feels while wearing women’s and girl’s clothes.5. do they like makeup/nail/beauty trends?Going with Angelus again, yeah he loves that stuff especially makeup. He’s gathered a pretty big collection of it over time gotten dozens of nail polish of all kinds of colors, and has a ton of makeup. He’d wear acrylic nails but 1) he’s super clumsy and 2) I’m not so sure it’s a good idea for a werewolf to do that.

F: Fun1. what do they do for fun?Most of them just really enjoy getting together, ordering a few large pizzas or just buying a bunch of tacos and bring a bunch of beer and soda and spend a few hours playing video games. Bringing their own consoles to have more people playing and if they feel silly enough probably stream it for friends who couldn’t come over to watch. If they don’t feel like going to one apartment they stay in their own and meet up online on whatever game they wanna play at the moment.3. who would they have the most fun with?Honestly a lot of them have known each other for literal centuries and have grown close and sometimes intimate so really they all just have a lot of fun together.4. can they have fun while conforming to rules?They can but Loke and Jelani are constantly holding the group back from making any idiot mistakes. Unless it’s to defend one of them they’re pretty chill when out.5. do they go out a lot?Not that often really. With the job sometimes they’re out for weeks and even months and when they finally have some down time they’re too tired to do much of anything else. They do go out though but just not when they’re on call.

G: Gorgeous1. what is their most attractive external feature?Jelani? Everything!2. what is the most attractive part of their personality?Abigail’s ability to always be encouraging and her bubbly personality just triples that.3. what benefits come with being their friend?Jelani: spoils friends and family every chance he gets, is always just one text or call away no matter if it’s an emergency or for fun, and is faithful to the end. 5. what parts of others do they envy?So out of all Angelus has the lowest self-esteem and he just thinks the worst of himself. He wishes he was as good a person as Loke is or as talented as Ginger or as confident as Jelani. Not just personality wise, he genuinely believes he’s some ugly monster that needs to be hidden (was raised to believe that and unfortunately stuck). He just wishes he wasn’t him on bad days but he’s been working on all of that and has done really well to the point where he doesn’t feel that way about himself all the time.

I: In-the-closet1. what is their sexuality?Angelus: gayJelani: pansexualAbigail: lesbianLoke: bisexual (demisexual)Latoya: pansexualTrevor: pansexual (aromentic)Ginger: bisexualAlly: ace/aroSanaa: queerIngvarr: bisexualJørgen: queerMason: gayTre: straightLeah: bisexualAnette: lesbian2. have they ever questioned their sexuality?Well, shit a bunch of them have at one point or another. Some took a little to settle their feelings while some took long years to realize certain things about themselves.3. have they ever questioned their gender?Asher did for long years though he wasn’t sure of what was actually happening and why he was so confused over a lot of things. Wasn’t until much later that he finally figured himself out.4. would/was their family be okay with them being LGBT?Angelus’s abusers, if they ever found out, would just use it as another reason to hate him even more though I won’t really touch up on that. They’re just incredibly hateful and abusive people.

M: Maternal1. would they want a daughter or a son?Loke wouldn’t care especially considering that they may end up being trans. He just wants one or two at the most.2. how many children do they want?Angelus wants none. He doesn’t hate kids or anything like that, he’s pretty good with them, really soft spoken and patient with kids. When Jela babysits his cousins he goes with him and helps out especially since it’s a teenager and three 7 year-olds. He’s just scared to death that he’ll end up abandoning them like his parents abandoned him (when I mean I abandoned I mean sold him) or worse that he’ll be like his abusers and he wouldn’t want any child to go through what he went through. Luckily his husband doesn’t want kids either.

As for Jax they’re Angelus and Jelani’s hypothetical child. Just something I wanted to have fun with. A Maker and a werewolf end up making a demigod hellhound btw!. Would this change in the future? Hell if I know, man. Maybe, maybe not.4. what would they name a son? what would they name a daughter?Trevor eventually ends up becoming a single father, accidentally but nonetheless he was super happy about it and will be a pretty great dad. He ends up having a son which he named Damien and had it been a girl he woulda named her Rosemary. If it wasn’t obvious Trevor is a huge horror nerd.5. would they adopt?Ginger and Abigail have talked about it a lot and since neither can have a kid (vampires in my setting can’t procreate, they’re very undead) they’ve decided to adopt but not yet. Not till they feel like they can be fully prepared.

[therichonnewritingnetwork]

Aren’t you a little to old to be trick-or-treating?

written by: nwfanmega

read more of @nwfan‘s works at FFN

“Andre Anthony!” Michonne shouted, stumbling on the slick hardwood floor as she chased the wet, naked toddler down the long hallway. “Get back here now!”

He turned back to look at her, gleeful eyes grounding her in place as his mischievous grin tugged at her heart. The two years since Mike’s passing had been the most brutal, numbing of her– their entire lives. Over a year of waking to her own tears soaking the blankets shrouding her underfed, sleep-deprived body had morphed into months of mornings being roused by cheerful laughter emanating from her rambunctious baby boy.

Today was Halloween and her energetic imp had tickled her awake as if it were Christmas morning. His infectious excitement carried them through the day as they carved lopsided pumpkins, filled a comically enormous bowl with assorted treats, and meticulously decorated their front porch with spiderwebs and skeletons.

All the activity made a bath necessary and after the end of Andre’s tub-time, he’d insisted on retrieving the clawed gloves Auntie Sasha had expertly fashioned to accompany his costume. Seeing the bright smile on his face warmed her from the inside out, making it impossible for Michonne to willfully tap down his enthusiasm.

After all, this had been Mike’s favorite holiday too. The elaborate couples’ costumes he would sweet-naturedly charm her into wearing had created distinct memories she could hold close for the rest of her life. Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Samson and Delilah. She was always his strong, resilient warrior.

It had been forever since she’d felt like his fearless fighter. The return of his illness had dropped her into depths of despair from which salvation seemed unreachable. But she had this tender-hearted boy to raise, who they’d agreed was the very best parts of both of them.

“Sorry Mommy,” he pouted, dropping his head as he bounced from one foot to the other. “Just wanna make sure I put it on ‘fore trick treaters come.”

He stepped on the tips of his toes, reaching over to the console in the foyer to grab the box holding the gloves for his costume.

“Ok baby,” she gently said, smiling as she dropped to her knees and opened the towel in her hands.

He ran back, jumping into her arms as she peppered his baby-soft face with kisses until he squirmed to be released.

“Ready for treat trick Mommy?” he asked, cupping her face with his little hands.

She nodded, wrapping the towel around his still damp body before lifting him up and carrying him to his room.

…

As soon as she dropped him at his door, he scurried to his dresser, opening the lowest drawer and pulling out his favorite T’Challa underwear. He slipped them on, then turned to his mother, waiting expectantly for her to help him put on the rest of his outfit.

Michonne opened his closet door, pulling out the garment bag carrying the costume Sasha had painstakingly made for her favorite nephew. Unzipping it, she pulled it out and turned to gauge Andre’s reaction.

She closed her eyes as tears slipped past her lids. If she could have bottled his expression and saved it forever, she would have. Silently, he clasped his hand over his mouth as he stared at the meticulously crafted creation.

He held his arms up as she helped him slip his little legs into the bottom half of the suit, before gliding it up his torso and spinning him around to zip the back.

“Wow!” she exclaimed, stepping back and spinning him towards the mirror. “You’re Black Panther.”

She watched Andre’s eyes widened, his little eyebrows rising so high she could easily count the creases on his forehead.

“I am, Mommy,” he whispered, tilting his head to look up at her with awe-filled eyes.

…

“Remember, I answer the door,” Michonne began, looking down at an eager Andre while adjusting her gold collar. “But you get to hand out the candy.”

Andre nodded solemnly, laser-focused on the overflowing bowl next to the front door. He’d insisted on matching outfits, having spent what turned out to be a very long week vacillating between Shuri and Okoye, finally deciding his fierce mother was Okoye; ready to battle evil by the Black Panther’s side.

Michonne glanced at the hallway mirror, taking in the red faux-leather breastplate Sasha had painstakingly drafted, cut out, and hand-delivered with explicit instructions on how to sew everything together. Sasha’s design sensibilities hadn’t rubbed off on her, but the hours spent in high school sewing her best friend’s artistic creations had. So while fairly adept at following the directions, she couldn’t have put together such an ensemble without Sasha’s inventive flare – and latent OCD – driving the endeavor.

The bell rang, startling her and drawing a loud giggle from Andre.

“It’s showtime!” Michonne exclaimed, squeezing his hand as she walked to the door.

Andre anxiously hopped up and down as she reached over his head and opened the front door. She tried to swiftly absorb the scene in front of her, shifting between one partially masked pair of crystal blue eyes to another, observing what could only be father and son.

“Trick or Treat!” the young boy enthusiastically chirped.

“Mommy!” Andre exclaimed, squeezing around her legs to stand in front of the visitors. “He’s Black Panther too! I told you there’d be another one!”

Michonne laughed as Andre made his way over to the little boy who’d been partly obscured by his father, but now stood proudly in front. As the boys admired each other’s outfits, Michonne turned her attention to the father, who slowly lifted the glass panel of his Iron Man helmet to reveal a tangle of damp curls plastered to his forehead.

“Boy, didn’t take into account how hot this thing was gonna be,” he announced, sweeping the curls from his forehead. “I’m Rick and that’s Carl. I believe we’re neighbors. Just moved up the street.”

“Nice to meet you,” Michonne smiled, leaning out of the doorway to take his outstretched hand. “I’m Michonne and my Black Panther is Andre.”

“Did a fine job with that,” he quietly said, conspiratorially leaning in and closing the space between them. “Pretty sure Carl’s gonna be talkin’ ‘bout it for weeks. I got his online, but yours… Wow. Both of yours are awfully impressive.”

His eyes quickly scanned her body, before making their way back up to her eyes.

“No, no, no” she giggled, shaking her head and gesturing between herself and Andre. “All of this is the work of a very good, very talented friend. I probably would’ve been knee-deep in the sales bin at Walmart.”

“Sounds like a good friend.”

“She is,” Michonne quietly replied.

“Don’t tell me you’re all decked out and only handing out candy,” Rick exclaimed, turning to watch the boys showing of their best moves on the porch.

“Andre was really excited about his costume. Less so about going out. I guess we’re homebodies… Plus, I’m pretty sure he thinks there’s gonna be a lot left at the end of the night. He turns three in December and doesn’t remember last year when the neighborhood cleared us out by 8pm.”

“I know how that is,” Rick said, nodding slowly. “Carl turned seven in June and still talks about how we didn’t get out early enough last year, leading to his ‘diminished haul.’ Not even sure where he got that from, to tell the truth. Had to promise this year we’d head out as soon as the sun set.”

“Andre’s started remembering stuff like this,” Michonne said wistfully, eyes dropping to her shiny patent leather boots. “Figured this would be a good year to start doing it up.”

“Loved that age,” Rick said, noting the caution in her eyes as she brought them back up to meet his. “Wish I coulda’ kept Carl there a bit longer…”

“Well, you seem to be doing just fine,” Michonne noted, watching Andre show Carl how the claws were attached to his gloves.

Rick turned to look at the boys.

“Wasn’t really sure Black Panther was, you know, appropriate for Carl. But it is his favorite character…”

“It’s appropriate for any kid who loves the character.”

The air stilled between them as they quietly gazed at each other. Something about the twinkle in Rick’s eyes calmed her in a way she hadn’t felt in a long time. She didn’t quite know what to make of it.

“Carl loves the comics, but I’m terrible with stuff like that. Can’t keep the characters straight to save my life. I only picked Iron Man ‘cause that’s the one I usually remember. I’m a disappointment to my seven year old.”

“Then lucky for you, Carl now has neighbors well-versed in all things Marvel. He’ll never have to suffer in silence again.”

“Wanna go trick-or-treating with us?” he asked, laughing at her teasing dig.

She was fun. He could get used to this.

“Aren’t you a little too old to be trick-or-treating?” she smirked, pointing at the plastic pumpkin in his hand.

He grinned, eyes falling to the ground, before rising and getting lost, once again, in her dazzling smile. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had registered in his consciousness like this. Maybe this was the fresh start he needed too. He looked over at Carl, bending down so Andre could whisper into his ear.

“Nah,” Rick replied, biting his bottom lip as he turned his full attention back to Michonne. “Never too old for a little bit’a fun.”

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[blightfics]

THE THIRD WHEEL CHAPTER 4: Wilting Away

Previous Chapter: In My Heart

Next Chapter: More Coming Soon!

Disclaimer:  This story is based from a lot of animes, such as Your Lie in April and Waiting in the Summer. All rights belong to their manga writers and anime adapters.

Author’s Note: If the “Keep reading” doesn’t work, go here for the full post. Since my brother’s drawing monitor is being borrowed by his friend, there won’t be any chapter artworks until some time around March. Italicized narration is told by one of the protagonists, Kyle Collins. And lastly, to pay respects to non-American sports fans, I’m going to call it “football”, not “soccer”.

Tags: @princessstellaris, @mechaspirit, @xo-endlessmayhem-xo, @i-miss-trr, @aquamarvel, @mysteli, @choicesyouplayandmore, @skyila, @brightpinkpeppercorn, @sceptilemasterr, @scgdoeswhat, @endlessly-searching-for-you, @choicessa​, @incorrect-your-lie-in-april

I stand in silence as I watch a girl run across the park, followed by the colors that once brightened my world. My life has returned to a black and white state. It all happened so quickly that I was left stunned for who knows how long.

It all started back when I asked Vivian to hang out with me yesterday...

Recommended Music:  Your Lie in April (YLiA)

Within the halls of Skylia High school, Kyle takes a deep breath and, with confidence, he asks the important question to Vivian.

Kyle: Would you like to go out on a date with me this weekend?

Those very words struck the redhead like Cupid’s arrow as she is left stunned.

Vivian: Wha... WHAT?!

Vivian shakes her head and composes herself.

Vivian: Date?! As in like a... a...

Kyle, realizing the situation, explains himself.

Kyle: Oh! No, I didn’t mean it romantically. I mean...

The boy glances away and rubs the back of his head.

Kyle: ...I was thinking... more of a Friends’ Day Out... Just the two of us.Or we could ask some other friends to come.

Vivian breathes a sigh of relief and giggles.

Vivian: You could’ve just said that earlier. 

Kyle chuckles shyly.

Kyle: Heh... well, Karen and Sam were planning on asking you to hang out with me instead.

Vivian: Either way, the answer is still “Yes”.

The brunet boy looks at the redhead with wide eyes.

Kyle: Really?

Vivian nods with a smile.

Vivian: Mhm. And also, let’s invite Karen, Sam and the others as well.

Kyle grins in excitement.

Kyle: Great! Tomorrow then, at 10 am, in Aryndelle Park.

Vivian: Sure thing.

Everything was set. Vivian said, “Yes”, and I was bursting with joy inside. I’ve never been this happy in such a long time.

The two friends wave goodbye at each other before going to their respective clubs. It is clear in their faces; they’re very excited for the next day.

Recommended Music: Summer Sunshine (YLiA)

Saturday comes and after breakfast and a shower, Kyle quickly goes through his closet to pick the clothes he is going to wear. Karen hangs around near his bedroom door, not looking at her brother to give him some privacy, and chuckles.

Karen: Man, someone’s pretty joyful today.

Kyle smiles.

Kyle: What can I say, Sis? I kinda like Vivian.

Karen sighs in happiness.

Karen: I’m glad.

Soon after, Kyle is all set. He is wearing a red flannel, with an obsidian t-shirt underneath that has a Brachydios design on it. He’s also wearing jeans, black & red shoes, and a key necklace from one of his favorite animes, Attack on Titan. He looks at the mirror as he fixes his hair.

This outfit has always been my favorite and signature. My flannel and t-shirt were given to me by my mom and dad, respectively. They’re gifts for me during my and Karen’s birthday. She got an Espeon jacket and an Absol t-shirt. Lucas, on the other hand, gave each of us a necklace; Eren’s key necklace from Attack on Titan for me and a Ladybug necklace from Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir for Karen. These gifts hold a special place in our hearts. They’re my favorite because I can feel my family’s warm and loving presence around me, even when I’m alone.

Kyle: How do I look?

Karen looks over at him and grins.

Karen: Perfect for her.

The boy makes eye contact with his sister through the mirror and grins back.

Kyle: Thanks.

The twins face each other.

Karen: All set?

Kyle: Yes!

Karen: Then let’s go.

Lucas picks the twins up and takes them to the park. As the two step out of the car, they are greeted by their friends in a gazebo.

Sam: Karen! Kyle! Over here!

Mark: Hey, you two!

Danny: We got some games here!

Elizabeth: And some food!

Ariya: Come on!

The twins grin at each other before turning to Lucas.

Kyle: See you in three hours, Lucas.

Karen: Later, Big Bro.

Lucas: You two, have fun now.

As Kyle and Karen close the car doors and rush to their friends, Lucas looks at them proudly.

Lucas: Are you seeing this, Mom and Dad? I hope you are.

Lucas smiles before driving off. The twins meet with their friends, who are sitting on two benches with a picnic table set up. Sam, Mark and Danny are seated on one bench while Elizabeth and Ariya are seated on the other.

Kyle: What are you guys playing?

Sam: Your favorite, buddy.

Kyle: Monster Hunter, of course.

Kyle pulls out his Nintendo Switch from his bag and boots it on. He sits with Ariya and joins the four-player squad formed by her, Sam and Mark.

Mark: What’s our quest?

Ariya: Bloodbath Diablos.

Kyle: You have enough permits?

Sam: I do.

These three great people are just the best teammates you can ask for. Our synced minds and teamwork is so great that we barely speak strategies at all in the middle of an intense battle. When one of us struggles, the rest just know what to do. The Bloodbath Diablos may be one of the most difficult Monsters in the game we’re playing, but we can handle it. It took some time but this is finally the first time that we beat it without one of us losing a life in the game.

In the game, the Bloodbath Diablos finally succumbs to its wounds and the words “Quest Clear” is shown on the screens of each of the gamers’ Switches. At the sight of those words, they cheer.

Kyle: Yes!

Ariya: Finally!

Mark: WOOHOO!! 

Sam: THERE IS A GOD!!

Kyle chuckles at Sam’s comment.

Kyle: Is that your catchphrase?

Sam: Shut up. I’m celebrating.

As the gamers share laughs and high-fives, Karen and Elizabeth are by the picnic table getting everything ready.

Karen: Make sure to prepare eight plates.

Elizabeth: How come? There’s only seven of us.

Karen: Oh, Vivian will be joining us.

Elizabeth heart sinks as she realizes that Kyle and Vivian might spend more time together. Her kind nature prevents her from causing any conflicts just to be with the boy she likes, so she just goes with it and nods at Karen.

After another quest, the gamers join the two girls. Just then, a voice calls out to them.

Voice: HEY, GUYS!!

They all turn to the source and spot Vivian running up to them. She was wearing  a white T shirt with a star design on it, blue jeans, a star pendant and black sandals. Kyle smiles at the sight of her and runs towards her. While the others smile at Kyle’s happiness, Elizabeth does not. Kyle and Vivian meet at the entrance of the gazebo.

Kyle: You’re here.

Vivian: Yeah. Sorry I’m late.

Vivian laughs and rubs the back of her head shyly. Kyle laughs with her.

Kyle: It’s alright. What matters is that you’re here.

That’s right. Time doesn’t matter. As long as she’s here, nothing matters but her.

The redhead blushes and joins the rest of the group with the brunet boy.

Karen: Hey, Vi!

Sam: Sup!

The rest of the group introduce themselves to Vivian, but as the redhead reaches Elizabeth, the latter just says “Hi” without even making eye contact or sharing a handshake. The black-haired girl continues preparing everyone’s picnic meal. Vivian is left stun but her attention is quickly grabbed by Kyle.

Kyle: Hey, Vivian. Check this out.

The girl approaches the boy as he happily shares what he is playing to her.

Vivian: Oh, Monster Hunter! I’ve seen this before.

Kyle: Really?

Vivian: Yeah, back when...

Recommended Music: Mother’s Dream (YLiA)

A painful memory suddenly flashes in Vivian’s mind as she immediately stops talking. Kyle tilts his head.

Kyle: Back when... what?

Vivian shakes her head and immediately goes to Karen and Elizabeth at the picnic table.

Vivian: I’m sorry...

Kyle: Vivian...

Karen waves at the group.

Karen: Hey, food’s ready!

The gamers, except for Kyle, excitedly rush to the table. The brunet boy just walks towards the table and quickly sits next to Vivian. The redhead is almost in the verge of tears as she tries to hide it from everyone, but Kyle takes notice.

Something must have happened to her before. She couldn’t have this kind of sudden breakdown. Someone from her past must’ve done something, related to the very game I play, that broke her.

Kyle places a hand on Vivian’s shoulder and whispers.

Kyle: I’m sorry. If you don’t want to talk about it, it’s alright. Whatever you’re going through, don’t let it break you. You release the pain, not hide it.

The redhead nods at the boy while wiping her would-be tears. Kyle gently wraps his arms around her as she leans her head on his shoulder. Nobody else seems to notice what the two are doing as they are too busy grabbing their meals. 

Recommended Music: Will You be Able to Forget? (YLiA)

As Vivian regains her smile, she thanks Kyle and the two eat with the rest of the group. Lots of laughs were shared. Everyone had a great time. 

Even Elizabeth tried her best to enjoy her time. She turns to Vivian beside her.

Elizabeth: Hey, Vi.

Vivian: Yes?

Elizabeth: I just wanna apologize for my behavior earlier. That was so unlike me.

Vivian smiles and pats Elizabeth on her shoulder.

Vivian: It’s alright. I don’t mean to offend you if there’s something I did.

Elizabeth: Oh no, you didn’t. There are some things that are just out of our control.

The redhead nods and the two shake each other’s hands with smiles.

Elizabeth: Nice to meet you, Vi.

Vivian: Nice to meet you, Elizabeth.

Elizabeth: Call me, Eli.

Vivian: Okay, Eli.

The two girls grin at each other before continuing their meal. Elizabeth finally manages to feel a lot better after having a nice chat with Vivian.

After the picnic, Ariya opens her bag and grabs a volleyball inside it.

Ariya: Hey, how about a match?

The sports boys quickly smile.

Mark: Yes!

Sam: I’m in!

Danny: Same!

Ariya then smirks.

Ariya: Let’s make this interesting; Boys VS Girls. Loser has to clean up the table and everything on it.

Kyle: Uhh.... I don’t think that’s a good idea. We’re all involved in this picnic. I think it would be the responsible thing to clean up our own me--

Everyone else: DEAL!

Kyle just sighs and facepalms.

Nitwits. I’m friends with a bunch of nitwits. But I admit, that I do love them all so much.

The group then heads to a nearby volleyball field and the teams go to their respective sides. Sam flips a coin to see who goes first. The coin lands on his palm.

Sam: Heads! Girls go first.

Ariya: Oof! Prepare to get rekt by my serve!

Recommended Music: Above (Haikyuu!!)

Ariya stands outside the border of the girl’s field and bounces the ball, preparing herself.

Mark: Bring it!

Danny: I don’t think it’s a good idea asking the volleyball expert here to “Bring it”...

Sam: .....Well shi--

Karen: LANGUAGE!

Ariya smirks as she tosses the ball upwards and starts sprinting. The ball begins to drop and the sports girl leaps before delivering a strong serve towards the boy’s field. The ball zooms towards Kyle, who barely reacts as he tries to receive it. But the ball just bounces off of his arms and out of the border.

Ariya: BOOM! SERVICE ACE!!

Elizabeth: Point for the Girls!

Vivian: Get Yeeted on!

Kyle huffs and yells at Ariya.

Kyle: That’s not fair! I’m the weakest link of the team just cuz I don’t do sports like you!

Ariya sticks her tongue out to the boys and the rest of them huff along with Kyle. Sam turns to his teammates with a grin on his face.

Sam: I got an idea.

The boys huddle up while Ariya retrieves the ball. She prepares for another serve and the boys just finished their planning.

Ariya: Get ready!

Kyle: Bring it!

Ariya chuckles before delivering another serve towards Kyle. This time, the brunet boy straightens his arms and receives the ball. However, the ball’s rebound trajectory is going towards the back of the court rather than towards the net. The girls celebrate.

Karen: Haha! Another point for us!

Kyle grins as the girls notice someone behind him. Their eyes widen.

Elizabeth: Wait, is that...?

Vivian: What’s Mark doing?!

Mark dashes behind Kyle and tries to catch up with the loose ball before it hits the ground. Meanwhile, Sam is running towards the net, preparing to leap for a spike.

Ariya: Crap! It’s their Back & Forth strategy!

Elizabeth: Their what?!

Karen: It’s one of Sam and Mark’s strategies. When Mark successfully blocks a ball from entering their goal, Sam quickly runs to the enemy goal. Then Mark, in return, quickly brings the ball to Sam by either a fast throw or a fast pass between their teammates. It’s a way for them to quickly counter attacks from their opponents!

Vivian: And they’re doing it here too?!

Sam: That’s right!

The girls turn to Sam who is already in the air, doing a spike form. Ariya and Karen runs to the net and jump up, in front of Sam, with an attempt to block his attack. But the blond boy smirks and looks to the side. All of the girls then look to where his sights are and see Danny, also in the air, preparing to spike.

Elizabeth: It’s a trap!

Danny grins as Mark does a quick long toss. The ball travels from the back of the court to the net, in front of Danny, in a matter of a few seconds. Danny swings his arm and spikes the ball as it lands... OUTSIDE the court accidentally. A point for the.... girls...?!

Everyone: .....

Ah, yes. Of course, this happens. Such an epic build up.... only to fall apart instantly. Like I said, lovable nitwits.

Sam: DANNY!!

Danny: Sorry! My hands were probably a bit greasy because of the picnic food!

Karen celebrates.

Karen: HAHA! SABOTAGE!! I knew the fried chicken has its uses!

Sam drops to his knees and shouts to the sky.

Sam: NOO!! GOD HAS FORSAKEN US!!!

Elizabeth: What is it with you and your fascination with God?!

Kyle, Karen and Vivian smile shyly.

Vivian: Must be a hardcore Christian?

Kyle: He’s not.

The friends share a few laughs before starting the next rally. Ariya takes the ball again and prepares to serve.

Ariya: Time for a third ace, girls!

Girls: Yeah!

Sam: Let’s try again and make it in this time!

Boys: Roger!

Ariya tosses the ball upwards and serves towards Kyle again. But this time, Kyle receives it more properly, as it arcs to the side instead of the back. Mark follows the ball while Sam and Danny rush to the net at both sides, getting ready to spike. However, the girls splits into pairs, with each pair getting ready to block the each boy. 

Karen: You’re not getting a point, Sam!

Sam grins.

Sam: That’s what you think!

Ariya turns to Elizabeth and Vivian, who are readying to block Danny.

Ariya: It’s going for Danny!

Elizabeth: Got it!

Vivian: Okay!

As Danny jumps, so does the girls but in the next few seconds, they don’t see the ball on him. Ariya notices this and freaks out.

Ariya: But then... where...?!

She widens her eyes as she spots Kyle running at the middle of the court and towards the net. Ariya quickly lands on the ground and tries to block Kyle. But this fails as Mark quickly tosses the ball to the top of the net where Kyle just taps it into the girl’s side. The ball hits the ground and it’s a point for the boys.

Boys: YEAH!!

The boys share high-fives and fist-bumps while they celebrate. The girls stare at them, dumbfounded, but immediately smile in amazement.

Ariya: Okay, I gotta admit; that was baiting in a WHOLE other level.

Karen: Nice job, little Bro!

Kyle: Thanks!

The game continued for a few minutes until it’s neck-and-neck with 23-24 in the girls’ favor. One more point and the boys will have to clean the picnic table.

Ariya: Come on, girls. One more point and we win!

Girls: Yeah!

Sam: Bring it back to them at all costs!

Boys: Roger!

Ariya tosses the ball but instead of doing a hard serve, she goes for a jump float serve. The boys are shocked by this as they witness the ball hovering in the air, making its way to their court slowly. Sam turns to Kyle.

Sam: Kyle, make the toss! We’ll spike it down.

Kyle: Got it!

Kyle observes the ball’s trajectory and intercepts its landing point. He raises his hands and quickly tosses the ball to the other boys who are already running up to jump. The girls scatter to try and block them. 

Ariya: Elizabeth, stay in the back, just in case they try something tricky.

Elizabeth: Roger!

As the girls leap at the same time as the boys, Kyle tosses the ball to Sam. Ariya is in front of the latter.

Ariya: I got you!

Sam: No, you don’t!

Sam goes for a hard swing, but at the last second, he taps the ball gently upwards.

Karen: It’s a feint!

The ball does a small arc above Ariya and quickly falls directly behind her. Elizabeth runs and dives to receive the ball but she is too late. The ball hits the ground as the girl skids on it. It’s a point for the boys and they celebrate.

Boys: YEAH!!

Ariya: Wait!

Recommended Music: Breakdown (Haikyuu!!)

The boys look and are stunned when they see Ariya, Karen and Vivian gathered around Elizabeth as she is clutching her knee. She apparently skinned it while trying to recover the ball. The boys quickly rush to help the girls.

Sam: Danny, there’s a first-aid kit in my bag!

Danny: Okay!

Danny rushes back to the gazebo and grabs the first-aid kit. He then crouches down in front of Elizabeth.

Danny: Alright, Eli. This is gonna sti--

Kyle: Danny, let me.

The first year looks at the brunet third year and nods. Kyle takes the kit and tends to Elizabeth’s wound.

Kyle: Don’t worry, Eli. I got you.

Elizabeth winces for a bit but since Kyle is tending to her, he feelings for him mitigate the pain. Soon after, Kyle gently places a bandage on the wound.

Kyle: There. Better?

Elizabeth weakly smiles and nods. Kyle smiles back at her while everyone else breathes out a sigh of relief.

Karen: That really shocked us.

Vivian: Glad you’re okay, Eli.

Mark: So.... is the game finished then?

Ariya: Yeah, I guess so. Kyle’s right. We have to handle our own responsibilities.

Kyle: Oh, so now you listen to me?!

Kyle glares at his friends and they all just chuckle at his annoyance.

Gosh, I love these nitwits. 

Ariya crouches near Elizabeth.

Ariya: Come on, I’ll carry you.

Elizabeth nods and is lifted on the sports girl’s back.

Elizabeth: Thanks, Ari.

Ariya: Not a prob, honey.

Elizabeth smiles and relaxes her head on Ariya’s shoulder. Soon after, everyone gathers back in the gazebo. Karen and Sam clean up the picnic table while Mark and Sam pack up the table itself. Ariya and Elizabeth have a fun conversation together. Lastly, Kyle and Vivian are in a flower garden next to the gazebo.

Kyle: So, what do you think of today?

Vivian: Despite Eli’s accident, it was great.

Vivian looks straight into Kyle’s brown eyes and smiles.

Vivian: Thanks, Kyle. I really needed this. I’ve never had this much fun in my life.

Kyle: You’re welcome, Vi.

The redhead giggles at the nickname the brunet boy gave to her. Kyle looks at her for a moment and is in deep thought.

I have to do it. I’m sure of it now. I’m going to confess to her.

Kyle: Vivian, listen...

Vivian: Yes, Kyle?

Kyle takes a deep breath before plucking a rose and presenting it to Vivian.

Kyle: I like you.

The redhead is taken back by those words. Another memory flashes into her mind; one that will always haunt her for the rest of her life. She quickly shakes her head.

Vivian: Kyle... I...

Kyle lowers his arm and concerns himself over Vivian’s sad expression.

Kyle: I’m sorry... was I rushing...?

Vivian: No, it’s not that... it’s just... I’m not ready for another relationship right now... not again...

Kyle: “Again”...?

Vivian turns away from Kyle.

Vivian: I’m sorry, Kyle... but this is not just for my sake.... it’s for yours as well....

The redhead quickly runs away from the brunet boy without even uttering goodbye to him. Kyle is left stunned as he witnesses Vivian and maybe his happiness running away from him.

And just like that. My heart and mind are in pieces. She is gone, and so are the wonderful colors that she brought with her to my life. I take a glance at the rose in my hand. Even though it still as beautiful as Vivian, in my eyes...

It’s wilting away...

–End of Chapter–

[radiojamming]

this is looooong overdue, but have ana’s first meeting with john! i know it took a long time just to get this one out, but i do have on planning another with more interaction between the two of them. they’re hella fun. >:3c

- - -

“It’s nothing personal,” Jacob says, left hand dangling over the the top of the steering wheel, right hand up beside him like he’s literally handing Ana the apology. “Just the Veterans Center really isn’t a place for--”

For kids, Ana thinks he’s going to say. She almost bristles, until she remembers that to him she is a kid. 

“--my niece,” he finishes, if not a bit lamely. His right hand slides back onto the steering wheel and he sighs,. “Anyway, John’s got a better set-up. Actual house n’ all.”

That’s the plan, at least. Ana’s overheard one of the telephone calls between her uncles, and she’s heard enough to know that John either doesn’t know who she is or doesn’t care. Judging from how Jacob talks about his youngest brother, she’d put her bets on the former. 

Either way, she sits with her hands splayed out on top of her thighs, watching the dreary gray peaks of the pines pass in blurs by her window. Rain comes in misty sheets off the Whitetails, and if Ana was the sort of person to believe in omens, she would think this isn’t a particularly good one. The warm air coming from the vents makes little patches of vapor on the window glass, so she occupies herself with tracing a little smiley face on it.

“So,” she says, dotting the eyes. “Any word on what Joseph wants done with me yet?”

Jacob hums a negative. He doesn’t sound particularly broken up about it. “He’ll come around,” he replies. 

It’s not really the answer she was hoping for, which suggests that there was something in particular she wanted in the first place. The reality is that Ana doesn’t know what she wants. It’s not like she came to Hope County with the expectation that she would just skip into her father’s waiting arms, to be scooped up like a small child and greeted with warmth and happiness. She’s known for a long time that there was always the possibility of their meeting going wrong. She just didn’t divine how wrong it could have been.

“Don’t think too much on it,” Jacob continues, drumming his fingers on the wheel as they pass by a twisted carcass of some... one? thing? It’s hard to tell by how rotten and mangled it is, so Ana just focuses on her vapor drawing, even as one corner of the mouth is dripping. “He’s probably holed up somewhere in the compound, praying or writing or whatever it is he does.”

Ana frowns, tracing a little thin line under the smiley face with her pinkie nail. “What if he decides to string me up? Make an example or whatever? Or take me out just to make his story legit?”

“He wouldn’t.”

It might be her imagination, but Jacob doesn’t sound entirely confident in his own answer.

- - -

Ana’s quickly getting the idea that her youngest uncle is eccentric, for lack of a better term. Dramatic might be more apt, judging by the general arrangement and choice of decor for his entire region. She gapes at the billboards of his face, at the massive Hollywood-esque YES standing out among the low mist in the foothills, and his ranch.

His whole ranch.

Ana’s adoptive family is fairly well off, although not enough to justify buying a mansion or having a yacht or anything like that. She’s always had enough to be comfortable and secure. Her uncle, on the other hand, clearly thinks that the more ostentatious, the better. The sheer amount of land is one thing, and when Jacob points out that he owns the entire peninsula cut out by the river, she almost balks. Then she sees the airstrip, the smaller YES on the road, and the house--

Jesus Christ, she can’t live here.

It appears from the sheets of rain like something out of a home and gardening magazine for people who consider a getaway cabin to be something that has at least five bedrooms and a pool. There’s a fucking hangar and a sleek black plane already out in the little turn-off that goes to the airstrip. The place is heavily fortified and patrolled by a massive guard presence, and Ana’s left to wonder if they’re only defending John and his property, or there’s more to this place.

John himself appears not long after Jacob’s turned the truck into a gravel driveway. He steps out into the rain, under a massive black umbrella, dressed in a simple black silk button-up with the sleeves rolled up to expose his tattoos. Jacob grunts at the sight of him before offering Ana a look that she supposes might be as close as he gets to sympathetic.

“Ah, one more thing about John before I turn you over to him. He’s... He’ll probably take some getting used to.”

Ana raises her eyebrows, and then looks at where John’s standing, waiting for them near the front door, looking for all the world like he’d rather be somewhere else. “Pretty brotherly of you to say,” she says, not really thinking before she does it. Fortunately, Jacob doesn’t see her wince.

He shrugs, opening his door. “Didn’t know him for most of either of our lives,” he says, and Ana doesn’t have to parse out the meaning, at least.

After getting out of the truck, Ana dutifully trails after Jacob with her rucksack thrown over her shoulder, not minding the mud already splattering up the backs of her legs. For the past few weeks, getting filthy is part of the status quo, and possibly something Jacob revels in. It’s only when John gives her this level, sort of judgey look that she realizes how different her uncles are going to be.

Jacob stands in front of his brother, not minding that he’s getting absolutely drenched. “John,” he says as a greeting.

“Brother,” John returns, although his eyes stay on Ana. “Do you mind telling me now why the Deputy has to be here?”

Well, Ana got that right. He doesn’t know. Awesome.

Jacob grunts again, crossing his arms over his chest. In the gray light, his scars and rashes just look like mottled dark wax stains rather than anything gory. “We might wanna go inside for this,” is all he says.

John appraises them both before sighing and turning around. “Fine,” he says. “But you’re both taking your boots off the second you get in the door.” - - - A large fire is already underway in the fireplace, crackling joyously and filling the whole room with the scent of seasoned pine. It’s almost festive, if it weren’t for the fact that John might be about thirty seconds from having to be peeled off his own vaulted ceilings. Fortunately, the fire is also a welcome distraction for Ana so that she doesn’t have to watch his reaction.

“Joseph-- He--” John tries, and these are just a few of his false starts. Out of the corner of her eye, Ana can see the white of his knuckles as he grips his coffee cup hard enough that she worries about him shattering it. Finally, he ekes out a, “You believe her?”

“Mhmm.”

“How?”

“She’s got documentation.”

Ana feels like she has to add her own voice here, seeing as how they’re talking about her like she’s not present. “It’s on Dutch’s Island right now,” she says.

“Oh, naturally,” John replies snidely, although some of the heat is gone due to what might be shock. “Conveniently out of sight on an island that no one wants to be caught dead on.” Then, he snaps his attention back to Jacob. “Have you seen it?”

Ana thinks Jacob might shake his head, because the next sound from John is one of perfect indignation. Then Jacob amends, “I still believe her.”

“Well, that’s fantastic for you. I’m glad that you’re so willing to believe a violent stranger that threatened the Project.”

By now, Jacob’s starting to sound a bit annoyed. “That’s part of the reason why I came with her. I saw Joseph’s reaction. I have no reason to believe she wasn’t telling the truth.”

“Other than the fact that she has nothing on hand to prove it otherwise?” Then, John sucks in a breath and lets it out slowly. Now, Ana faces him, watching the high color in his cheeks above the dark line of his beard, and a telltale pinch in his brow. “Joseph believes her?”

Beside her, Jacob shrugs and leans back on the sofa. “Wouldn’t know. He hasn’t said a word to me since then, and I’m thinking he hasn’t said anything to you or Faith, either.”

John’s silent a moment before he shakes his head. “He hasn’t,” he says.

Jacob nods like this is what he expected. “He left in a hurry. I figured he went back to the Compound to think this over or pray on it. Anyway, if you’re really doubtin’ it, why don’t you just pull some strings and get the records for yourself?” “Oh, absolutely, Jacob. Let me just carefully pull some strings from my highly isolated seat using our valuable and tenuous internet connection to find out if the Deputy--” Dehp-hyoo-tee, he says, like every syllable is individually sour. “--is my brother’s long lost child, because that makes perfect sense and is completely viable in the span of, oh, we’ll say the next half hour, hmm?”

Jacob retorts with an instantaneous, “Good idea. Get on that,” before getting up with his coffee cup and walking back to the kitchen, leaving Ana alone with her uncle who might be seething in his overstuffed recliner.

He’s glaring at her. She knows that. She can feel it even when she tries to distract herself again by watching one of the logs in the fireplace shiver and collapse into two glowing pieces, sending a plume of sparks up into the chimney. Immediately, Ana feels like she has to defend herself here, as if John is about to burst into some prosecution talk. 

Defend herself about what, though? ‘Oh, sorry that I’m your brother’s kid and apparently he lied to you about it? Sorry to inconvenience all of you by existing.’

She bristles before looking up at John, at his eyes that apparently are designed to make boreholes out of anything he stares at. 

“I can give you any information you’d need to look up my records,” she offers, trying to keep her voice as level and pleasant as she can. “Hospitals, clinics, schools, that kind of thing.”

He scoffs. He actually scoffs like some haughty socialite in an old movie. “Forgive me, Deputy, if I don’t immediately take to the idea that I might actually be related to you.”

“Forgiven,” Jacob says from behind her, coming around the side of the sofa to take his place back, now armed with a full cup of coffee. “Seeing as how I know you’d have no problem pulling those things up. You’ve done more with less.” Then, he completely relaxes, looking more at home in the living room than John does. “Besides, I think Ana’s gotta be pretty exhausted by now, and I remember telling you to set up a place for her to sleep, yeah?”

It’s John’s turn to bristle, but some of his ire seems to be shaken off. Finally, he sighs and jerks his head towards the staircase. “The guest bedroom is the first door. Bathroom attached, so feel free to...” He wrinkles his nose, looking her over. “Help yourself.”

Ana doesn’t have to be told twice, especially with the air of an oncoming talk between the brothers.

For the best, she thinks as she gets up. It’s been a damn long week.