#i apparently cannot use pastel colors

[aterfish]

I am obsessed with this turtle-man 😳

sketch under cut

[steelthroat]

My friend told me i should actually try to write that musical i dreamed a few weeks ago...

So anyway it goes like this:

"Tonight i had a weird dream

So we had to do a musical/theater thingy but no one and i repeat NO ONE was able to organize for the rehearsals and stuff so we arrived to the day of the spectacle where i barely even knew the plot of the play and I was super irritated because i had been calling everyone (even the production) for days almost begging them to please organize something

But no

Literally we did anything but that. At some point i was helping a guy build a catapult, another time we were using tnt for something and another we were visiting a weird musum of illusions in an abandoned town.

The day before the play i was at my other house and my relatives were asking me about the play and i said "i will do my thing and improvise because the show must go on" And then there was a big bat that settled on my shoulder and i played a bit with him.

So day of the play

This apparently was a parody, I was supposed to be the bride of the (now) deceased Dracula (or some other famous vampire idk) and i was supposed to sing all of this in a bigass fancy cathedral Now.

Do not ask me how and why we were doing a parodistic play about vampires in a church. I cannot answer

But i have to say, the aesthetic was fucking cool and I had a long black dress that really sold the vampire widow part to the audience

But still tyere were no lyrics for me to sing and i just had the music to follow so i said "fuck it" and I invented them on the spot

Now.

I know how to sing, i have done so for years, wven been in a choir I know how to improvise, i have acted before I know how to come up with rhymes etc

But still this was too much even for me

But I do have to say the two songs i made up on the spot were actually great, if I remember the lyrics it would be awesome

The first one was a very dramatic love song about how i had become the vampire's bride and how much our love burned and how his death had hurt etc etc

Very dramatic, very "never enough" from the greatest-showman

The other one was me being a hater towards my deceased husband and the gist of it was "you bastard, you made me fall in love with you, turned me into your bridge, a vampire, you made me lose my humanity and everything I loved to be with you and you have the audacity to die for a stupid reason???? HOW DARE YOU?"

And then i made him resurrect out of spite through some kind of ritual and i berated him in front of everyone But we didn't divorce although Dracula was now my bitch

instead of I his

So yeah

I do remember being super happy after the first dramatic song and then whispering to my mum "hey just so you know, I'm making it up on the spot"

And then everyone complimented me for my performance but although i was happy for what i had done I was still prerty bitter because it could have been avoided if anyone but me (and the guy who played Dracula, he had very few lines but he had done his best) had actually cared about the play so i didn't feel liek stopping by to celebrate really

Now, since he was the only one who cared and dressed in character, I want to praise the dracula dude because he gave his damn best about his performance

When he first emerged from the bell tower, it was cool af In the flashbacks, he was very convincing, and when he was acting all apologetic and pathetic towards me, it was hilarious.

So kudos to him. Dude had like 5 lines in all the play and still put his whole heart into it.

Also a scene that still haunts me is when during the first dramatic song I was in scene with another character but I had the cool vampire dress [I was in character] and the person next to me was wearing a pastel colored hoodie and blue jeans.

And my thoughts while I was singing my heart out to this character, telling them my story were along the lines of "I am gonna fucking kill them" as they stared at me blankly not knowing how to answer to my lines."

[ell-arts]

Hello ! Time for some Speculative Biology because my mind can't rest !

Ey... have you noticed that each and every Pac-baby looks the same ? Check this out: same roundness, same eyebrows, same noses, same colors. They all start out from somewhere with a base color (pink, orange-ish and blue-ish. Primary colors, that's smart)

I know it might just be lazy copy-pasting of characters but lets take it the other way:

Pacster as a baby looked exactly the same, except he was just as yellow as his parents.

Apparently, as they grow older, they get more defined facial, physical features and colors to match their personality (and probably gender too).

Everyone looks so much more different from each other as grown-ups, either it be in size, color or shape.

Although have you noticed that Pacster himself,, didn't change that much as he grew ? That he doesn't even look like his parents at his age ?

Following that logic, it means that in their universe: Pacster has a baby face. He's just a big baby-faced boy and everyone has to see it.

Words cannot express how much my brain can't deal with this theory

Fam, you've tickled my brain at 1AM in the morning and now I can't go back to sleep-

YES.

YES I LOVE THIS.

I actually never thought of it that way before!

Baby Pac really is the only individualistic baby we've ever seen, and any other babies do look like copy-pasted alternatives of him (which most likely is because they needed to be used for extra stock characters, as you've mentioned). We've seen very few characters as babies, except for a select few. One of them is little Cyli, but she was a child rather than a baby at that stage. Because of so few canon sources, we can speculate a lot on Pacworlder biology and try to fill in the gaps. What fun 👀

I also really love the idea of babies being born as a light/pastel version of the colour they will grow into as an adult. We see most baby Pacworlder as those light shades of colours you mentioned, so I think it could be plausible. Yes ofc baby Pac was the exact same tone as he is now, but let's chalk it up to him being a Yellow One lol.

In fact, yellow IS one of the primary colours...

Maybe the reason he was full-on yellow as a baby is that Pacworlders with pure red, yellow, and blue lineages are always born as bright tones rather than lighter tones, and thus they stay that colour tone throughout their lives instead of going from light to vivid. Just some extra theory-food to chew on 👀

As a bonus, if we compare a baby Pacworlder to a child Pacworlder, it's clear that the eyes and eyebrows are more-or-less the same shape, being that the period between babyhood and childhood is brief and so changes will start becoming apparent, but not always obvious. By the time a Pacworlder reaches the 5-10 age range, their hair, nose shape, and similar features start coming in, whereas certain facial features still look baby-like.

And if we use these two as examples of Pacworlders gaining their distinct features as they grow...

Yup. It's settled.

Pac has Baby Face Syndrome. And I love it.

Now I wanna squish his face even more.

[simlicious]

Personal update 😃

I have not done a personal update for quite some time, so here it is! Today, I dreamed that it was suddenly the 1st of December and I had nothing prepared for my advent calendar yet and was feeling in over my head and thinking "Do I really want to do this again?!" Maybe my brain telling me to actually prepare patterns ahead of time this year and to start early? 🤔 I'll keep that in the back of my mind. I actually finally got Sims 4 running (let's see how long until the next patch breaks everything, maybe I have a few days left). I only want to play with tons of mods, which break all the time and are a pain to update, so I only do that procedure once or twice a year. When I actually get to play, I really like to immerse myself for a while until it is all over again. The funny thing is that I actually have fun playing because so many aspects are new to me (having fun in TS4 is almost unheard of, but apparently it can really happen 😆). Building and CAS are so much fun too! I'm not exactly a gameplay blog and not sure how many of you want to see TS4 on here anyway, so I doubt there will be many pics. I get super frustrated whenever I try to make sims in TS3 CAS, I guess I do not have some of y'all skills or the right CC at times (or do not know how to use it properly). In Sims 4, everything can be solved with a few skin overlays and I feel the weird head shape proportion thing that is so off in Sims 3 does not apply there, which makes everything easier. I do miss patterns though 🥲 I have been pretty preoccupied with other hobbies lately, I've been on a serious style rediscovery with my best friend, we discovered this style system called the Style Key and it is all about giving yourself permission to try out new things and your personal needs when choosing styles, which is really refreshing to all the systems that tell you "you cannot wear that with your body type!" So I've been trying things I did not actually dare to wear, like cute/playful outfits in pastel shades. I may wear the styles now that teenage me was too shy to wear and it feels great! I do not care anymore what other people may think about it. I recently discovered those colorful chunky plastic rings which surprisingly look good on me. I always felt like I could never really make jewelry work on me, and tried the tiniest minimalist pieces because everything felt "too much", but I have never tried the other extreme, the big chunky stuff because I told myself "that could never work". Turns out that trying out stuff instead of limiting myself feels really great and yields surprising results! And I feel more confident too because my outfits are fun and make me happy, and I am more relaxed if I feel happy too. In the Style Key system, I think I'm a Ruby (left-down quadrant) and I think the archetype "Spicy Girl Next Door" fits pretty nicely for me. The biggest takeaway for me is the realization that outfits have to "feel right" for me, not for anybody else and I do not dress to please anyone, but to help me feel good in my own skin and take into account my comfort needs and feelings on that day when I choose what to wear. The Style Key is not a system that tells you exactly what to wear, but it helps you figure out what you need your style to do for you and go from there. It's a bit daunting to get into because it is really so different from other systems and includes rather abstract theory/unusual concepts that are not really that intuitive, but the videos on the youtube channel really help to explain those concepts.

I also still work on some Python projects, but they're still a long way off from amounting to anything. But it's where I can use my problem-solving skills and just tinker around. I just really need something to bite my teeth into every now and then and that is perfect for it. 😊

[afternoonblues]

people you'd like to get to know better game

heyy @smolhours thank you so much for the tag! hope you've been well? always nice to see you on my dashboard.

last song: tere bin by atif aslam (I MISS THIS MAN singing nowadays and his voice. the nostalgia though....is off the roof bc tell me why bollyword don't make music like this anymore)

favorite color: monochromatic, pastels & all shades of blue (forgive me but i cannot for the life of me choose a single colour as a favourite)

sweet/savory/spicy: i'm desi, specifically bengali indian so you CANNOT expect me not to say spicy. (although bengalis are quite known all around the world for the magic they do with their sweets, i'm not a really sweet person. although i do have some favs like rosomalai, chanar jilepi, motichur [not the laddu, this one is square-shaped], patishaptah & of course, the classics - warm chanar rosogolla & misti doi.)

currently watching: yesterday i finished utakoi & it was overall a pretty good show. i liked most of the female characters tbh more than their male counterparts. currently, i'm not really planning on binge watching anything although i'm watching the recent episodes of ghosts season 3 (the us version) once in a while. it's a fun show to watch to make my mood better. (i know many people prefer the og uk version but well, i tried to watch that & i absolutely hated the colour grading and idk couldn't vibe with the characters, sorry!!)

relationship status: single

current obsession: just like @smolhours (i wish i could catch your name, please tell me only if you want though, a nickname will be good too), i'm too very much obsessed with raven of the inner palace, what a wonderful show and what a masterpiece LN series. my honest wish is that i hope it gets the crown it deserves. i cannot believe i've read some people say that the writing is 'shallow'...how preposterous. i had to roll my eyes so bad at such comments but regardless, i want more and more people to discover this series (crossed fingered & praying for a second season!!!)

last google: "is eyedrops poison" because i saw on twt that a woman killed another woman while in prison with eyedrops. imagine how baffled i was when i learnt that apparently, eyedrops, if consumed (by mistake) can be toxic to us. the ingrediant that does the poisoning is tetrahydrozoline. it makes our blood level toxic (?) i guess. now, i use eye drops everyday because my eyes gets dry pretty often. it sort of an allergy thingy (plus hereditary issue) so yeah....need to REAL careful from now on.

(not gonna tag anyone specific, anyone can feel free to do this!)

[spirit-praise-and-beauty]

1, 11, 19 and 21 for the ask game!

YIPPEEEE

1 - Art programs you have but don’t use?

I mooch off my mother’s Adobe account, so I have photoshop… but never actually use it for art. I also have Gimp and MS Paint, but never open them, I’m wayyy too used to Firealpaca LMAO

11 - Do you listen to anything while drawing? If so, what?

Oh god. Okay. My music taste is ALWAYS shifting, so this answer is complicated. Sometimes I put my liked list on shuffle because it’s just easier than picking. Sometimes I put the five songs I’m obsessed with at any given time on repeat. Sometimes it’s the Danganronpa OST (refer to my username!). Lately it’s been a lot of System of a Down, specifically ATWA.

Usually, however, if I’m drawing someone else’s character, I ask if they have a playlist for that character, or if they associate any particular genre with them! Music usually gets me in a certain mood, and then I channel that mood into the personality and expression of what I draw. I can’t draw something light and pastel if I have metal music blasting.

It also gets difficult sometimes because I have bad misophonia. Most stuff that’s super soft or calm I cannot listen to or I want to blast holes in drywall like a guy named Kyle on too much Monster, so by that point I just put on the tamer stuff of my liked list.

19 - Favorite inanimate objects to draw?

One I love that many artists apparently can’t relate to is guitars specifically. I love bass and electric guitars because they have incredibly fun shapes and can be decked out with a lot of stickers if your character’s particularly cool. Acoustic guitars aren’t AS fun for me, but I still get a lot of enjoyment out of the shapes!

21 - Art styles nothing like your own but you like anyways?

This one’s a tough one for me to answer. I’ve never been particularly fond of hyperrealism, and my style borders an interesting edge between anime and Western cartoon (interestingly, someone has compared it to Boondocks before, where it’s a more Western cartoon style with heavy anime influence).

I will say the ones that stick out to me are pretty much any lineless or painterly styles that still manage a sharp, contrast-y look. Things that use a lot of saturated colors and excellent lighting work incredibly for me! I also will admit, I’m kind of a sucker for the “generic” anime style used for most vtube models. I watch a lot of Live2D showcases in my spare time.

(Also gonna take the time to plug my buddy @5tar-boy’s work because that style is NOTHING like my own, but their work with colors and designs is CAPTIVATING.)

Thank you for the ask!!

[noramoons]

GET TO KNOW ME TAG GAME!

tysm for tagging me and thinking of me @end-hyphen and @petrichor-han ! i am late to the game as always 🤡 bc i did let this marinate in my drafts for a week for absolutely no reason but !! this was fun hehe i loved reading yalls too <33

this is also super long so answers under the cut!

BIRTHDAY

october 17

FAVORITE COLOR

dark blues and pastels

DO YOU HAVE PETS?

one cat! he is staring up at me from across the room as i write this lmao

HOW TALL ARE YOU?

5’5 (165 cm)!

HOW MANY PAIRS OF SHOES DO YOU OWN?

i think between 10-12 but there’s only 5 pairs i wear regularly. literally wear the exact same loafers to work every single day 👍

FAVORITE SONG?

literally changes every day lmao but rn it’s probably between good life by wayv, back down by p1harmony, or avalanche by walk the moon

FAVORITE MOVIE?

everything everywhere all at once OR kiki’s delivery service OR scream (1996) LMAO i love watching all different kinds of movies but horror has rlly been my fave over the past year or so <3

WHO WOULD BE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER?

lee seokmin OR someone who makes me laugh, is patient, kind, caring, and a good listener. someone who i don’t feel like i have to put on a performance for and who i can be myself around. and who understands all my little interests! like tv and movies and kpop hehe

DO YOU WANT CHILDREN?

absolutely not! LMAO the cat is enough <3

HAVE YOU GOTTEN IN TROUBLE WITH THE LAW?

i’ll copy genie’s answer and just say i was a very stupid teenager who thankfully never actually went to the police station BUT i try to be a smarter adult now bc of it HAHA

WHAT COLOR SOCKS ARE YOU WEARING?

blue and white striped!

FAVORITE TYPE OF MUSIC?

i rlly do listen to just about anything but since this IS a kpop blog i’ll say kpop. honorable mentions include 70s dad rock, alt/indie rock, anime osts, and classical (study playlist my beloved)

HOW MANY PILLOWS DO YOU SLEEP WITH?

two! one for my head and one beside me lmao

WHAT POSITION DO YOU SLEEP IN?

on my side usually. or curled up in a ball since my room is always freezing cold ahaha

WHAT DON’T YOU LIKE WHEN YOU’RE SLEEPING?

when i can see light coming under my door from another room in the hallway…drives me absolutely bonkers i need complete darkness to be able to sleep or i cannot 💀

WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR BREAKFAST?

if i have time to eat i usually just make cereal! sometimes my work brings in bagels and cream cheese too which is always a treat <3

HAVE YOU EVER TRIED ARCHERY?

yes! HAHA my parents tried literally any and every sport/activity they could get me in as a kid bc surely i had to be good at ONE, right? (answer: no 💀) i was decent but definitely not a sharpshooter by any means lmao. i do still have my bow and arrows and the target we used to practice with (and this is also why the reader in frw&d shoots w a bow n arrow — since it’s the only ‘weapon’ i have any real experience with for writing 🤭)

FAVORITE FRUIT?

strawberries, kiwi, and mango!

ARE YOU A GOOD LIAR?

absolutely not lmao i have tried for many years but apparently i just look incredibly obvious when i try to lie 😐

WHAT’S YOUR PERSONALITY TYPE?

enfj!

INNIE OR OUTIE?

literally what does this mean. my bellybutton??? do i like going outside????

LEFT OR RIGHT HANDED?

right-handed!

FAVORITE FOOD?

poppyseed chicken! OOO or i had lemon bars the other day and they were absolutely 🔥

FAVORITE FOREIGN FOOD?

omg there’s a thai restaurant literally 2 seconds away from my house that is SO damn good. i’d eat there every day if i could LMAO

AM I CLEAN OR MESSY?

i think i’m very selectively clean bahaha like my bathroom has to be nice and organized or i’ll lose my mind but my room is always in some state of disaster

MOST USED PHRASE?

do i have one?? idek actually 💀

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR YOU TO GET READY?

i don’t put in a ton of effort for work these days LMAO so like 10 minutes probably?? if i’m going out for dinner or something else w other ppl tho between 20-30 minutes

DO YOU TALK TO YOURSELF?

100% HAHA this is the best way to get fic ideas and also sometimes i think i’m funny y’know 😻

DO YOU SING TO YOURSELF?

every time i get in my car it’s a concert babey !!

ARE YOU A GOOD SINGER?

absolutely not HAHA but that’s why it’s fun to just jam in the car or in my room <3

BIGGEST FEAR?

drowning, caves, letting ppl down

ARE YOU A GOSSIP?

🍵🍵🍵 bring me the tea PLS i think a healthy dose of gossip is good for you actually

DO YOU LIKE LONG OR SHORT HAIR?

on me i think i prefer short (even though it’s growing out again rn). long hair for literally everyone else though HAHA

FAVORITE SCHOOL SUBJECT?

any english or writing courses and history!!

EXTROVERT OR INTROVERT?

extrovert!

WHAT MAKES YOU NERVOUS?

having to drive long distances and making phonecalls 😧

WHO WAS YOUR FIRST REAL CRUSH?

one of those mfs from newsies (1992) most likely LMAO or nick from walk the moon 🫶

HOW MANY PIERCINGS?

just two on my earlobes for now! not going to do anything else until i figure out if i can get more with my job HAHA

HOW MANY TATTOOS?

none </3 i wanna get the homunculus tattoo from fmab SO BAD

HOW FAST CAN YOU RUN?

if i’m running i’m either on the treadmill or being chased so. probably not that fast

WHAT COLOR IS YOUR HAIR?

brown. rlly want to get skunk hair with blonde underneath but once again……need to see if my job will allow it lmfao

WHAT COLOR ARE YOUR EYES?

blue!

WHAT MAKES YOU ANGRY?

many things but today it’s the governor of my state and ppl who are rude to service workers

DO YOU LIKE YOUR NAME?

yes! i picked out beck a long time ago bc i liked the androgyny of it and i still rlly like it <33

DO YOU WANT A BOY OR A GIRL AS A CHILD?

no kids babey!! my cat is a boy though and he’s enough

WHAT ARE YOUR STRENGTHS?

i’m resourceful, creative, and i don’t give up on things that are important to me.

WHAT ARE YOUR WEAKNESSES?

why is this a job interview i can’t shut up once i start talking and have a hard time being able to tell when i need to stop. also mega perfectionist and tend to overanalyze every other conversation i have lmao

WHAT’S THE COLOR OF YOUR BEDSPREAD?

white with purple flowers!

WHAT’S THE COLOR OF YOUR ROOM?

it’s this purplish grey (which doesn’t sound super appealing but i promise it’s a very calming color LOL i painted it over the summer) and i have brown wood floors.

tagging: @seung-scrittore @decembermoonskz @sulfurcosmos @lotus-dly @lixesque @txtkids and anyone who would like to or hasn’t already done this! as always, no pressure on the tags — these are just for fun and nothing serious 🤍

[faintedincoils]

I've read a lot of tweets, Tumblr posts, and think pieces about AI generated art here lately. People have raised all sorts of interesting points but I haven't really seen anyone talk about how AI generated art can open up the world for people with aphantasia.

So here's the thing. I know what cats look like. I know what green and purple look like. I know what polka dots look like. My aphantasia is total in that I cannot picture any of these things in my mind--no, not even colors. And I certainly cannot picture a green cat with purple polka dots.

Statistically speaking, the vast majority of the people reading this can picture things in their mind. Which means that even if you've never seen a depiction of a green cat with purple polka dots, you can probably see it in your head, right? But me? I've never seen a green cat with purple polka dots. I tried googling the phrase just to see what would happen, and at least in the first couple of pages of results, I couldn't actually find a picture of a green cat with purple polka dots. And like I said, I can't picture it myself. So if I want to know what it would look like, up until now my options would pretty much have been to either grab a coloring book and make it happen, or get someone else to create an artistic representation for me. If I don't do either of those things, I'm just never going to know what this hypothetical cat would look like.

But if I can ever get added to the waitlist for Dall-E 2 or a similar program, I could change that. I could even specify that I want to see a realistic cat. Or say that I want a pastel green cat with dark purple polka dots. And an AI art program could show me that.

And I can do that with pretty much anything. And I'm not exaggerating when I say that when I think about that, I start crying.

When I was a little kid I used to daydream about someone one day creating some sort of a machine that could give you pictures inside your brain. I could never figure out why not only was there not such a thing, but nobody besides me seem to have even thought of it. People had all sorts of wild ideas about contraptions they could make, but being able to see things in your mind was an important enough to anyone else to make it happen?

I was in my mid thirties when I found out the reason why. What I have dreamed of my entire life is apparently a built-in feature for pretty much everyone else in the world. Which means no one is ever going to make a machine that will let me see things in my head. I'm just out of luck, and I've been trying really hard to get myself to accept that.

So with the sudden boom of AI generated art over the past few months, lots of people see a threat or a controversy.

All I can see is possibility and hope and wonder. All I can see is my eternal dream coming into existence, or at least as close as it's ever going to happen.

I'm crying now just typing all of this up. And it hasn't even become a reality for me yet, because I don't have access to any of the programs good enough to create representations of what I ask that don't trigger the uncanny valley for me. But in the next year or two maybe I can. I don't even care how much I have to pay for it. I've been waiting for this chance my whole entire life.

So I'm sure that people have really good reasons to protest or worry about AI generated art. But I am honestly so scared that those protests are going to shut it down before I ever even have my chance with it.

Sorry, I know this is a long post. And who knows if anyone will even read it. But I've been thinking about this an awful lot lately, and I just wanted to put it out there in the world.

[morgana-ren]

Chapter I

Silco is a very important man with a very peculiar problem: An unruly, delinquent daughter jeopardizing his aspirations with her impulsive recklessness and constantly at odds with his supporters and employees because of it. Between building his budding empire, running his (less than) reputable business, and maintaining the careful balance of his power structure, he can't seem to be able to connect with her the way he feels a father should. The solution could lie in the most unexpected of places-- a mouthy underling far closer to his daughter's age than his own-- but might end up causing a very different type of problem for him-- one that puts him into some very compromising positions.

AO3 mirror: https://archiveofourown.org/works/39586455/chapters/99093885

“And what would you know about having a daughter?”

Silco sits rigid in the leather chair, his back straight and stiff and markedly regal– a perfect vision of the unwavering authority of a king. One sharp blue eye regards you coldly, his other mutilated with corruption and burning with all the orange intensity of a collapsing star.  His imposing nature is only slightly stifled by the array of trinkets scattered across his desk, littered with childlike drawings in pastel colors. A reminder that, no matter how dangerous and tyrannical he may be, he is also a father– one who loves his beloved daughter deeply.

Still, he exudes an air of impatience. His voice is daring– mocking almost. Less a question and more of a demand. There’s a slight edge to it, as if he cannot fathom how someone so beneath him could dare to interject on his personal matters. Calling out your unmitigated gall with one little sentence and a carefully composed tone.

And technically, he’s right. You’re only in this room because you were one of the few people left alive– and that’s it . A glorified memo. Printed text given human form and constantly reminded of the inconvenience your voice causes. You are solely here to report what you’ve seen and leave and get out of his hair like a good grunt should. Speaking out of turn about anything else requires a certain level of audacity that borders on the clinically insane, especially given your present company.

Yet, even knowing this truth, the words had still left the safety of your tongue and teeth before you had the full chance to contemplate the consequence of the action.

“Not much, I guess. I don’t have kids.” You shrug out of sheer anxiety, trying to dismiss the blatant chill in his demeanor and not take it too personally. One doesn’t become king of the underworld by skirting the point. Besides, it’s too late to shut your mouth now. Might as well follow through with your initial thoughts on the matter, especially since it does technically pertain to the matter at hand. “But I am one– A daughter, that is. Not a kid, obviously.”

Despite your clumsy manner of speech, the sentiment seems to give him pause. His lips thin into a purse, forehead furrowing as his brows knit momentarily, running what you’ve said through his mind. He seemingly digests your words before leaning back in his chair, apparently finding them worthy of considering. He entwines his fingers together in a way that just screams ‘I am a ruthless business man and you have my attention. Use it wisely.’

“Very well. What would you suggest then?”

Hells. You really should have thought through what you were planning to say before you said it. All you can do now is word-vomit out the point and hope it comes across as semi-coherent. Silco has an unruly daughter causing him problems. You were an unruly daughter that liked to cause problems at one point.

You’re trying to be helpful here. Honest.

“You can’t force it like this, for starters,” You shift uncomfortably in your chair, trying to think of a sure-fire way to get across the point in a way that doesn’t make it seem like you’re criticizing him right out of the gate. “Girls– Look, we like our privacy, and having our dads burst into our space hissing and yelling at any given time– or all the time– can really start to breed some negative feelings. Jinx seems like an assertive girl. If she’s hiding from you, she probably doesn’t want to be found. You need to give her time to think things over and reflect on her own. She knows you’re upset.”

He hums quietly, mulling it over for a moment. He doesn’t look angry, which is all you can ask for, really.

“Is that all then?”

“Praise.”

He quirks a dark, narrow brow in your direction. It doesn’t help that he’s so effortlessly intimidating.

“Everything she’s doing, she’s doing for you. She might not necessarily be going about it the right way, but it’s clear she wants to impress you and she’s working her ass off to do it. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, boss. Honestly. Positive reinforcement. Praise the things she’s doing correctly rather than admonishing the ones she’s not—Or at least more often. Being yelled at and scolded constantly really isn’t helpful after a certain degree. It’s just demeaning.”

“A curious observation.” He nods, looking at the ceiling for a moment before returning his gaze right back on you. “And do you speak on behalf of all daughters when you suggest this or is it a more—“ You swear a ghost of a grin plays on his mouth, but perhaps you imagine it. Silco doesn’t smile, and he most certainly doesn’t smile at you. “—personal preference?”

“People in general, really.”

“Is that so? I have found that firm discipline yields the best results.”

“Maybe in certain situations, but it’s different with kids and their parents– not that I’m questioning you or anything. It’s just– well, when I was her age, it only made me more rebellious and likely to act out when my dad whipped out the proverbial rod all the time.”

“A trait not fully ironed out with passing years, I see.”

You flush slightly, hoping the mix of poor lighting and smoke conceals the blush of humiliation blooming in your cheeks. If he notices, he says nothing, but keeps his eyes on you, looking at you like he’s only truly seeing you for the first time. Fairly, this makes you squirm all the more. He’d never even spoken to you before and now you have his full and undivided attention on a rather personal matter.

“Spare the rod, spoil the child.” He eventually speaks again when you don’t respond to his jest, sighing as he reaches forward to take a cigar between his slender fingers. “Still, I will admit my present methods have been… ineffective. You seem knowledgeable and insightful. Perhaps you do have a point and I have simply been too hard on her.”

That’s huge from a man like Silco. It's especially huge that he would admit this to a low-level worker in his employ when he could have just as easily told you to fuck off and taken your advice quietly and without any admission on his part. It shouldn’t make you this happy– it’s almost embarrassing, really, reacting this way to his praise. You’ve got to swallow down the slight victorious squeal and instinctive grin that tugs at your lips.

“I guess just give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, You can go ahead and punish me for giving piss-poor advice.”

It’s meant as a joke to ease your own personal tension, but he maintains a perfectly straight face as he places the cigar between his lips and flicks the lighter, his good eye glowing ominously with the reflection of the flame.

“Oh, I shall .”

Oh. You think you will be keeping your mouth shut next time you’re around him. And forever, while you’re at it. Silco’s idea of punishment isn’t really something you’d like to become intimate with.

And then, without skipping a beat, he waves you off without a second glance.

“That will be all. Return to your duties. I’ll have you brought to me again, should you be needed.”

He whirls his chair back towards the window and away from you, concealing him from your vision, impressing the finality of the conversation. A thin trail of smoke swirls up from the cigar, and if you look carefully enough, you can see the burning yellow core in the window– and his equally intense attention still fixed on you in the reflection.

“Umm— Yeah, sure– Of course. Um–” You scramble out of the chair, narrowly avoiding tripping over your own two feet as you stand and smooth out the wrinkles in your clothing. Rather than leaving, as you probably should, you open your big mouth one last time. “Good luck with it, Mr. Silco. I hope– I hope you and Jinx can reconcile. She seems like a good girl, and you– you’re a good dad for caring the way you do. Better than most.”

God, why did you say that? Why the fuck did you just say that?

“A good girl, hmm?”

You could swear he repeats the words lowly through a whisper, and the pin-point prickle in your cheeks nearly has you throwing up from mortification at yourself. Just the way he says it, you—

You’re not going to think about that right now. Absolutely not.

Your hands are on the doorknob and you’re throwing yourself through the door before you can make a bigger ass of yourself in front of the king of the underground.

You only hope he forgets your name and face and everything about you after this.

[lemongingerart]

So, I wasn't planning any of this, but while working on all the scenes of them fighting I needed something cute and I FINALLY TOOK THE LEAP AND DID SOMETHING IN MY OHUHU SKETCHBOOK!!! It only took me a year!

Gah, I was so scared to draw something in it, and I honestly didn't know which subject to take. But hey, I guess this was the most obvious choice 🙃? Drawing on A4 is so frightening too after working on A5 for so long, I guess that's why there are 2 smaller drawings on this page 😂 (I'm not really proud of the line art quality either, it's more 'stylised' and I can't handle that yet... but I love them so I cannot help myself)

Have some arc 5 Miko and Hux! There are few things you might notice that are wrong at first sight, but they are on purpose! All part of the storyline 🙄😏 I adore these 2 (3) idiots.

I don't like Miko's face in the first one, drawing a big goofy grin is apparently not as easy as I thought it would be, mweh 😑 I am also very excited because most of the alcohol markers I have used are from the Ohuhu pastel set I got for my birthday and I LOVE them! They're not really pastels, but they bring so much more vibrancy into my regular pallet I was obsessed with finishing these 2 drawings! (Everyone who knows something about coloring is probably thinking "WHAT? There's 80% grey on this!" 😂 But the greys were a challenge too! )

I am not a regular user of my Ohuhu's, so I added a page with some experiments I did with different materials. It's probably basic knowledge for someone who already uses the markers for a while, but maybe it's useful for someone?

WIP's, different views etc under the break!

[lesbianrobin]

hello em i have a request. can u please rate mr harrington's looks/outfits i just feel like u have the best takes and i'd LOVE to know how you'd rank his choices 👀

this is the single greatest ask i’ve ever received. i will be ranking the outfits, not steve’s moral alignment or actions in each scene. in order of appearance:

The Introduction

4/10

hair is tragic

steve copied this entire fit from a mannequin in the ralph lauren polo outlet store

would honestly be a 0/10 except for the obvious valiant effort being put forth by his lower half to resist the sexless curse of khaki pants. the devil (st costuming department) works hard but by god steve harrington (joe keery’s body) works harder

nice brown watch that certainly came from a department store

also gains points for being next to nancy’s anemic librarian fit, thus looking better by comparison

The Rich Bitch

8/10

thank god he ditched the khakis

hair looks much less demonic

it’s a simple look but the sweatshirt rides up when he shotguns the beer

he also gets wet

solid 8 for sluttiness alone

The Whore

10/10

wet

please note that his chest is waxed. keep this in mind.

The Heterosexual

2/10

hair looks like he dipped his head in glue

bold choice with the grey pants. unfortunately that choice was wrong

matching outfits with your comphet girlfriend isn’t as cute as you think it is stevie

you only get points because despite that ungodly pastel stripe pattern the polo’s decently fitted and makes your arm look kinda nice

The Dickhead

3/10

glue head pt. 2

at least the stripes aren’t pastel this time

The Cuck

6/10

hair slightly less glue-y

yet another striped polo is peeking out unfortunately

but! it’s green and green looks good on him

finally wearing jeans like a normal fucking human instead of weird slacks

pivotal moment in steve’s fashion evolution from preppy male model to sexy morally upright king

his morals are stored in the denim

The Final Girl

9/10

an outfit with a character arc to rival steve’s own

pretty fucking good hair if i do say so myself!!

it’s fluffy!

that shit looks like if you touched it it’d be soft... no glue here!

finally not copying from the goddamn l.l. bean catalog

iconic green slut sweatshirt? check! jacket and nikes? check! fucked-up gorgeous face and baseball bat full of rusty nails? check, baby!

looks good on its own OR with some blood on top

overall a very solid look

The Darling Little Drummer Boy

7/10

babe no... please don’t go back to the khakis... they won’t treat you like jeans do...

not quite glue head but not his best

apparently steve owns a single green sweatshirt, a thousand striped polos, and one very precious christmas sweater

almost makes up for prep-related khaki crimes by being really fucking cute

The Simp

8/10

glue head is DEAD

further evidence that steve harrington’s entire closet is just striped polos

this is his fifth unique striped polo

most of these points are for the sunglasses and the hair

actually all of these points are for the sunglasses and the hair

he’s finally let go of the fucking pastels thank jesus

and you can’t see it but he did wear jeans with this fit i just forgot to make sure they were pictured and it’s 4:15 am so i don’t feel like going back to remake this collage

cannot tell if this is a lighter blue version of the jacket he wore three times in s1 or if it IS the jacket he wore three times in s1 and the color grading is just that different

either way he loves jackets and i think that’s very sexy of him

The Intellectual

9/10

i’ve been waiting for this one... turn it up!

literally invented vests

excellent hair

loses a point for unfortunately introducing steve’s SIXTH unique striped fucking polo

i can’t see the collar but i know it’s there i know you’re wearing another fucking polo steve you can’t hide from me

can’t decide if he looks gay or just really preppy but either way he’s got some repression going on

still a very solid look

The Oh No Oh God It Hurts I’m Looking Away I Can’t Watch This

10/10

yes that middle picture is absolutely to show off the texture of his blazer and not at all me making sure that if i have to see his heartbroken little face then you all do too

anyways i Know that blazer cost at least $100 like i Know that shit’s expensive

excellent gorgeous soft-looking hair that someone ought to run their hands through but only people who haven’t dated him for a year while pining after someone else

emotional devastation... but make it unbelievably fucking sexy

stevie baby i know you’re a colorful guy but please wear more black

The Meathead Jock

9/10

aw christ whatever happened to standards?

introduction of the blue nikes <3

god his hair looked fucking good here

could have gained that final point by using tube socks with blue and GREEN stripes to tie together the shoes and the gym uniform :/

shorts could be shorter but are an altogether appropriate and enjoyable length

fun sweatstain to customize the look <3

The (is there a word for victim of bullying?) Serious Athlete

8/10

the yellow stripe was more fun

still cute though

The Sudsy Boy

11/10

wet

suds indicate that he’s washing his hair, presumably with faberge organics. is this why he’s being bullied?

steve brings his faberge organics shampoo and conditioner and his farrah fawcett spray to school with him whenever he has basketball practice

steve either has shampoo, conditioner, and hairspray in his backpack at all times, or he has a separate gym bag that’s mostly haircare products

just need to make sure we all know that

excellent freckle showcase

his chest is still waxed. please, i beg, keep this in mind

one of his strongest looks

The Babysitter

10/10

his most versatile look to date

a different jacket than the one(s) he’s worn before but it still has the same kind of collar. steve found a jacket he liked and bought it in at least three colors

the whole thing fits So fucking nicely! shirt, jacket, jeans... baby boy is TAILORED

return of the white nikes with the red check indicate that they are his fashion nikes, while the blue nikes with the white check are his sport nikes. interesting.

this fit lasts like 48 hours and steve simply looks sexier as time goes on which is a testament to its quality as well as his inherent power

every new accessory elevates his appearance. roses, nail bat, rubber gloves, blood, sweat, band-aids, bandana, goggles... each element complements the look in its own way!

an overall win

The Chauffeur

8/10

we can’t really see the whole fit but he’s not wearing a striped polo so i’m calling it a win regardless of what’s on his bottom half

cannot give him a 10/10 though because he might be wearing khakis

red is such a nice color on him when it’s not just from his blood

i lied when i said he should wear more black he should wear more colors

that plain sweater absolutely cost $85 or more

hair looks very nice and soft

excellent look!

The Sailor Man

9/10

very precious

absolutely the best hair i’ve ever seen

baby boy got highlights for his hot girl summer!

bright colors make his very red lips pop

shorts could be shorter

love the little accents! especially the white pockets and belt

excellent color coordination on steve’s part with the blue sneakers (notably different than his s2 blue basketball nikes) and the red bruising/blood

i hope you remembered that steve’s chest was waxed. as you can see his chest is now unwaxed. some change between s2 and s3 drove this decision, presumably either his breakup with nancy or the fact that he no longer showers in front of other guys at school. up to your interpretation

shock blanket at the very end is a nice touch so we don’t forget he’s traumatized

The Drowned Rat/The Man Overboard

10/10

wet

shorts could be shorter

the decision to purchase and wear a hoodless raincoat is absolutely ridiculous and stupid

however it is also very steve harrington and i value self-expression

The Chick Magnet/The Flaming Homosexual

100/10

what can i even say about this fit?

the absolute best pants he’s worn thus far. amazing fit, excellent classic wash. i say this as a former american eagle outfitters associate and the winner of my freshman year dorm’s “best at folding jeans” award

manages to make blue jeans with a half-blue denim vest work effortlessly

bold primary colors make him stand out without being too gaudy

excellent pairing of t-shirt with simple stripes and vest with simple color blocking to create a complex yet cohesive and flattering look

simple brown belt gives the look a put-together yet down-to-earth vibe

hair has only gotten better

still wearing that same brown watch that he’s had since the introduction

this man looks like he waxes his chest

this is steve in his final form

thank you for your time

[jinxviolets]

Gif Maker Appreciation Tag

Rules: Answer the first half of the questions with gifsets of your own, then answer the second half by tagging gif makers you love!

i was tagged by the incredibly talented @jackarthurdavenport, @jamesbuckybarns, & @benoitblanc thank you all so much for thinking of me 🥺

LINK A GIFSET…

Link a gifset you’re really proud of: this tfatws sam wilson + legacy set! i worked SO hard on it and though there are things i would change if i were to remake it, overall i’m pleased with the way it came out.

Link a gifset where you tried something new: this sharon carter graphic was my first real foray into blending/typography and my first Actual Graphic, and though it was a HUGE pain, i’m proud of it

Link a gifset that features your favorite character or celebrity: this ca: tws gifset is one of only 2 gifsets i’ve made so far with steve rogers in them smh i need to gif him more

Link a gifset that you want more people to see: can i just relink my sam legacy one again because i busted my ass on that and a shitpost set i made about bucky and steve being bad liars has literally 6x as many notes dlfkjsldkfjs

Link a gifset that you had fun making: this tfatws rainbow set was my first attempt at rainbow gifs and i actually really enjoyed tweaking the colors!!

Link a gifset that you created as part of a meme, challenge, or series: i made this mad max: fury road set as part of a get to know me meme!

Link a gifset of yours that makes you smile: the aforementioned shitpost bc i love the fact that bucky and steve apparently cannot lie to their friends 😂 also having people laugh in the tags makes me feel nice

TAG SOMEONE WHO…

Tag someone who inspired you to start making gifs: oh gosh. literally my entire dashboard. but i think i first saw @anya-chalotra & @inejz-ghafa creating these absolutely stunning masterpieces and i was like you know what? someday, i want to be able to do that too (i know y’all don’t know me but everything you create is SO STUNNING)

Tag someone who makes great vibrant gifs: sae @rambeaus always has such gorgeous coloring!!! i love all her gifs <3 also phe @niinazenik omG her colors are SO vivid and beautiful!

Tag someone who makes great pale/pastel gifs: jamie @wespers makes gorgeous pale gifs!!! i wish i knew how to color like that ugh

Tag someone who gifs for a fandom you love: this is most of my blogroll omg but let’s go with tfatws bc i have a lot of wonderful mutuals and friends i’ve seen creating for the show: @mandah-lorian @steveroger @trashcora @timothyolyphant @snyderzack @jamesbuckybarns @buckeybarns @buckybarne @bosemanchadwick @magnusedom @ewanmcgregors @pescopadral @sambuckyws @victoriaspedretti @anthonyymackie @favreaus @darksber @wandamaximoffs @di-n @dykejaskiers @emcgregor @foxmudler @luke-skywalkerr @kurtsrussell @biwilson @chris-evans @romanovrogers @steve-rogers 

Tag someone who uses text/typography really well in their gifsets: okay so lately i have been drooling over everything @merlinsprat makes like jeez alex how do you DO THAT

Tag someone who motivates you to step up your game: soph @luke-patterson is the reason i even know how to make gifs dlfksf (bless u for your tutorials) and her creations are STUN NING!!! every time i see a new set i’m like. alright. if i can make something HALF this good i’ll be pleased with myself

Tag someone who you have taken inspiration from: not so much in the sense of direct inspiration but being inspired BY someone, for sure elle @jackarthurdavenport because i am in awe of everything she makes and hope to reach that level someday!!

Tag gif makers who you admire and appreciate! (Put as many people here as you want!): are you READY FOR THIS bc i LOVE gifmakers and i am SO lucky to follow/know so many incredible and talented people: @roseapothecary @boozerman @rainbowrogers @samthwilson @ohtwilight @bladesrunner @bartonclinton @carolmaria @magsbane @cavilhenry @wintersoeldiers @anyataylorjoy @cinderllas @jamesbvck @mazykeen @margetrobbie @jessiemeili @amirwilson @inejsalina @vibraniumbuckys @tennant @renserizawa  @anakin-skywalker @hoeberynmartell @kazrbrekkers @leonhartannie @anthonyhopkinz @jessie-meili @sunoficarus @dindja-rin @hawkaye @hunterschafer @robintunney @javier-pena @mandalores @jessiemei-li @ewan-mcgregor @andthwip @keanurevees @kenobismullet @middlearths + the 3 amazing people who tagged me, and of course lots of people i am not mutuals with 💛 i’m so lucky to share a tumblr space with all you amazing creators and i’m so sorry if i missed anyone!!!

[i-like-plan-m]

I was thinking more about tatted lwj and your response and the tattoos are lwj’s way to feel more freedom outside of the rules and values that his family keeps. He gets to express himself and break the rules without it actually affecting his relationships with his family since his family isn’t ever going to see him shirtless or naked. Like you said it’s like a secret little rebellion!

He starts off with a small simple bunny in his ankle and it slowly spirals out of control as he ends up getting addicted to getting tattoos and soon he has a whole sleeve and tattoos curling around his sides and spreading across his chest and down his back.

He also has one that starts at his waist and spreads down his hip and below his jeans and wwx just wants to know how far down does it exactly go?

ok, loving these prompts, they’re making words work for me tonight and also they’ve all been fantastic prompts so thank you!! 

[Posted to Ao3] 

“So,” Wei Ying said, and promptly flushed to the roots of his hair when it came out as a squeak. He cleared his throat and tried again. “You have… tattoos.”

“I do,” Lan Zhan agreed, apparently unbothered by Wei Ying’s dumbfounded stare.

Really, this was too much. How could he be expected to function, knowing Lan Zhan had tattoos, like the delinquent Lan Qiren always accused Wei Ying of being.

Of course, there was nothing delinquent about these tattoos. No, these were lovely, graceful sweeps of color, a blooming vine curling its way down Lan Zhan’s spine, wrapping around his hip and disappearing beneath the waistband of his pants.

Wei Ying wanted to follow it with his mouth.

“When…?” he trailed off helplessly. They’d been friends for years, ever since high school, after an admittedly rough start wherein Wei Ying had done everything in his power to get Lan Zhan’s attention and Lan Zhan had been infuriated at the mere sight of him.

“I have had many sessions,” Lan Zhan said, and tugged a long sleeved shirt over his head. Wei Ying wanted to whine when the riot of color vanished from his sight, hidden beneath a blue sweater that he used to like, because it was soft and fitted and highlighted Lan Zhan’s extraordinary shoulder to waist ratio.

He did not like the stupid sweater anymore, Wei Ying thought grumpily. Now he knew it had been an accomplice, hiding Lan Zhan’s tattoos from him.

The audacity, he thought indignantly, fully aware that he was being irrational and not caring even a little. Fuck that sweater.

“Why’d you get them?” He asked when he finally remembered how talking worked. Mostly he was just grateful he hadn’t said, “Take it back off right this instant.” or, “Can I touch?”

Lan Zhan paused in the process of making tea— when had he gone into the kitchen? Wei Ying wondered in a daze— and glanced over at him.

“The first was a gentian flower, for my mother. I was eighteen. And… angry.”

Because he’d never been given the time and space to grieve, Wei Ying knew. They’d talked about it before, the restricting rules of Lan Zhan’s childhood. The way he’d been told how to feel, how to act, told to forget about his mother because she wasn’t coming back.

Wei Ying nodded to show he was listening, and took a step closer. Lan Zhan, busy running long fingers gently over his wrist, didn’t seem to notice. “The permanence of a tattoo appealed to me. Once I had it, no one could take it from me.”

No one could take her from me, Wei Ying heard.

“And then?” He asked softly, climbing onto one of the barstools to watch Lan Zhan move around the kitchen with a steady competence that Wei Ying watched with quiet interest disguised as attentiveness.

To his surprise, Lan Zhan’s ears flushed red. Wei Ying perked up, gleeful as always when Lan Zhan got embarrassed around him, the most shameless person on the planet, at least according to Jiang Cheng.

Because Lan Zhan was too good for him, he gave Wei Ying an honest (if reluctant) answer. “A rabbit on my ankle.”

“Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying gasped, delighted. “A bunny? You got a bunny tattoo?”

“I like rabbits,” Lan Zhan said mutinously.

“What next, what next?!”

“…Another rabbit, so the first wouldn’t be alone,” Lan Zhan admitted, ears positively on fire now.

He was so cute Wei Ying wanted to die. He settled for covering his face with his hands until he could control his expression again.

There was no way he could take more of this, so Wei Ying asked instead, “Does your family know?”

“My brother,” Lan Zhan said, and slid his left sleeve up to show the lovely blue flower decorating his wrist. “I showed him this after I had it done and he…”

Uh oh. “Was he mad?” Surely not; Lan Xichen’s only care in the world was for his little brother to be happy.

“No. He cried, a little, and then we spent the whole night talking about our mother. He remembers more than I do. He had many stories to tell me that were… different than what I’d been told growing up.”

“So he liked it? What about the rest?”

“Hm,” Lan Zhan hummed in agreement. “He got a matching one, on his hip. So he could hide it easily.”

Wei Ying leaned over the countertop, propping his chin on his hands and grinning at Lan Zhan. “What else do you have hidden under that sweater?” He asked, and then wondered what the hell was wrong with him. “I mean tattoos,” he added hastily.

Lan Zhan, though, just raised an eyebrow and leaned back against the kitchen island. “It would be easier to show you.”

Wei Ying’s brain promptly stalled out.

Lan Zhan sipped his tea and waited patiently.

“Show me?” He managed through a throat that was suddenly very dry. Lan Zhan made a low noise of acknowledgment. “Like… take your shirt off again?”

“It would be difficult otherwise,” Lan Zhan said, and the amused note in his voice made Wei Ying straighten, indignant. Lan Zhan was fucking with him. With him, Wei Ying.

Since when had his sense of humor included teasing Wei Ying? Well, he’d show Lan Zhan!

“Okay,” he said, so confident and assured it could be nothing but a lie. But Lan Zhan didn’t call him out on it, just raised a brow. Set aside his tea, and…

And took off his shirt. Slowly. Revealing an inch of skin at a time, soft pastel colors blurred into Lan Zhan’s stupid flawless skin, splashes of color that seemed so bright all of a sudden, the gravity of the room shifting to orbit around Lan Zhan.

Wei Ying’s breath caught. He hoped it wasn’t audible.

“You cannot see much from over there,” Lan Zhan observed. His arms were sculpted from years of handstands, the rest of his body lean and muscled from a religious running and swimming routine.

“No,” Wei Ying agreed faintly. He slid off his stool, encouraged when his knees didn’t give out, weak as they felt. He inched his way around the counter, eyes glued to the play of ink across muscle every time Lan Zhan shifted in place, every time he took a measured breath.

Wei Ying swallowed hard. Halted just within arm’s reach, and found himself unable to look Lan Zhan in the eye. The asshole had called his bluff, Wei Ying realized with some disbelief. He was having a hard time being annoyed about it, because… well, it got him within touching distance of his half-naked best friend.

His half-naked best friend who had miles of warm skin inked with soft colors and hopeful, blooming flowers. Little creatures— more bunnies, a small dragon with intricate blue scales, hints of claw and tooth and fang— were shrouded within a veritable garden lovingly carved into Lan Zhan’s body.

So many secrets hidden within. It felt like a metaphor for Lan Zhan, the little things Wei Ying had worked so hard to learn, to coax out of him, to wait patiently for Lan Zhan to come to him, all carefully wreathed in protective vines and a canopy of petals.

He reached out, unable to help himself. Lan Zhan stood very, very still as Wei Ying’s palm settled over his heart, measuring the beloved drum of his heartbeat. It was ceaseless. Reliable. As unwavering as everything else about Lan Zhan, someone so dependable and trustworthy that Wei Ying had lost some of his own sharp edges as a result.

He’d learned what it meant to have faith in someone, a conviction that was unshakeable and everlasting, and somewhere along the way he’d slipped right into love.

Lan Zhan’s hand came up to wrap gently around his wrist. Not to remove it, just to hold. “You’re quiet.”

“Your tattoos are giving me an existential crisis, Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying admitted.

Lan Zhan frowned, looking uncertain for the first time this evening. “Is that bad?”

“No.” His voice was hoarse. He cleared it, fingers tracing the lines of the ink, following the path as each shape faded into the next so seamlessly they appeared to be one.

Lan Zhan’s abdomen flexed in response to Wei Ying’s soft, trailing touch as it drifted down. And down. And down. He sucked in a breath, watching Wei Ying with so much intensity it burned.

“How far down does it go?” Wei Ying asked, tugging lightly on the edge of Lan Zhan’s pants.

“Find out for yourself,” Lan Zhan said. Wei Ying looked up, shocked, and bit his lip uncertainly. It was the tipping point; Lan Zhan surged forward, his giant hands coming up to cup Wei Ying’s face, to hold him still as he kissed Wei Ying until they were both breathless and dizzy with it.

“Lan Zhan?” Wei Ying asked, too dazed to feel embarrassed by the way he was clinging to Lan Zhan to remain upright.

“You wanted to find out how far they go?” Lan Zhan asked against his mouth. Wei Ying made a helpless sound in response. “Mark your words,” Lan Zhan said, low and heated, and hauled him towards the bedroom.

Wei Ying was beginning to suspect he had been outplayed at his own game, but just then Lan Zhan dragged his mouth over the sensitive tendons of Wei Ying’s neck and suddenly he had more interesting things to occupy him.

He’d deal with everything else and all that it entailed later.

Much later.

[sheafrotherdon]

I posted 419 times in 2021

94 posts created (22%)

325 posts reblogged (78%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 3.5 posts.

I added 866 tags in 2021

#joe x nicky - 194 posts

#the old guard - 146 posts

#yusuf al kaysani - 132 posts

#nicolo di genova - 117 posts

#tog - 110 posts

#andromache the scythian - 44 posts

#nile freeman - 42 posts

#kaysanova - 28 posts

#luca marinelli - 27 posts

#immortal husbands - 26 posts

Longest Tag: 93 characters

#i cannot imagine how cranky i would be to learn i'm immortal and have pms in rapid succession

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

Sometimes I think about the fact that Joe and Nicky have been together for nine hundred years, and yet still reach for each other when they go to sleep.  A person could be forgiven for wanting some space on the bed after nine hundred years, but no, they curl up together, Joe with his arm tucked around Nicky, Nicky snugged with his back against Joe’s chest, and they sleep touching each other because nine hundred years is apparently not enough time to grow tired of being physically close. It’s not just that they love each other deeply, it’s that they still demonstrate it in their most vulnerable moments, trusting each other, wanting the other there, reaching for each other. jqshlfh I cannot.

467 notes • Posted 2021-11-15 16:27:55 GMT

#4

Joe comes back to the safe house with food and wine, and a large bag that he sets down beside Nile before he starts unpacking the groceries.

“What’s this?” Nile asks.

“We’ll be here a while,” Joe offers. “Thought you could use a distraction.”

“Hmm,” Nile offers, because distractions around here tend to come in the form of hand-to-hand combat and some memorable afternoons spent wielding a sword.  She pulls the bag into her lap and pulls out the first thing she can reach—a box of colored pencils, the good kind, in two-dozen different hues.  She fishes in the bag again, finds sketchbooks and watercolor paper, oil paints and pastels and a brand-new pencil sharpener. There are brushes and a palette, a knife and cakes of pigment, and a handful of eight-by-eight canvases.

“There are bigger ones in the car,” Joe says.

Nile doesn’t know what to say. There’s a small fortune in art supplies in front of her, and she’s still a little hazy on where their money comes from in the first place. She skates her fingertips over the watercolors, settles on, “This is all for me?”

Joe smiles. “Yep.”

“But this is . . .”

Joe hitches a shoulder. “No expectation. You don’t have to use any of it. But if want to, well . . . I think you have pretty much everything.”

Nile flattens her hand over a sketchbook and cautiously returns his smile. “Okay,” she says.

“Okay,” Joe says back.

*

Nile starts out small, taking one pencil and a sketchbook out to the terrace and sketching the forms of sculptures she remembers, figures coaxed to life from marble and bronze. When she tires of memory, she doodles caricatures at the edges of the page, and then sketches out the view in front of her, the sweep of the garden and the valley beyond. She experiments with color, with watercolors and then pastels, and she keeps things to herself, at least for a while. Joe has nine hundred years of practice under his belt, and she’s seen his art—she feels like a rank beginner when she compares what they produce.

But the way her paintings turns out keeps bothering her—something’s not quite right, and so she seeks Joe out, asks for his critique, and he sits them both down at the kitchen table with glasses of wine, and gets her talking about her technique.  He suggests a few things, adds a pencil line or two to her landscape and transforms how she sees what’s on the page, and from that moment on she shares everything she does.  Joe works beside her sometimes, and she’s blunt when he gets the shading wrong, and he tells her of the artists he’s met—the famous and the forgotten—and she soaks up every word.

One unremarkable Tuesday, a package tied in brown paper, wrapped with string shows up on the kitchen table.  Nile’s name is on it, written in Andy’s hand.  Nile unwraps it while Nicky busies himself with brewing espresso, and finds a thick book on North African art, full of photographs and reproductions with history leaping from every page.

“Oh my god,” Nile says, lifting the book to her fact to smell the new pages.

Nicky sets a cup in front of her, says, “It is not always grief,” and Nile nods with a smile, sits down and begins to read.

509 notes • Posted 2021-06-04 13:10:40 GMT

#3

Nile moves on autopilot through everything circumstance throws at her, right up until the she wakes up in a single bed in a house in Germany where they plan to lie low.  She blinks at the unfamiliar light flooding in through the window.  They arrived after dark; she barely remembers any of it thanks to the disorientation of travel and the exhaustion of being alive. She can’t hear anyone else; she can’t smell coffee; she has no idea what time it is and for a white-hot moment wonders if she’s been left behind.  But reason makes an appeal and she swallows her panic, lifts her chin and pushes back her shoulders before she gets up to find out where she is.

The doors to the other bedrooms are open, and she catches a glimpse of Andy, fully-clothed and face down on a bed, and across the hall a lump she supposes is Nicky and Joe huddled beneath the covers. She keeps going, pads down the stairs and through the hall, ends up in the kitchen.  She stares at the back door before she unlocks it; pulls it open and steps outside. There’s a garden, a rough stone wall, trees and fields and nothing that looks like anything familiar. 

Grief rises up inside her so fast she doubles over, and when the first wave recedes and she can pull in a breath she sits down hard, right in the dirt.

Nile balls up her hands into fists and presses them against her mouth.  Every person she won’t ever see again, every place she can’t return to for a hundred years or more runs through her mind.  She thinks she might scream, or yell, or wail—something inarticulate and pained, rising straight from her heart—and she rocks back and forth as she fights, tooth and nail, to shove it all down. It’s impossible, all of it, that anyone, anything should ask this of her, should turn her from who she was into—what does she even call herself now?

And then Andy sits down beside her, smelling of stale sweat and antiseptic.  She says nothing, but reaches into the pocket of her jacket and pulls out a French chocolate bar, tears it open, and offers Nile half.

Nile isn’t sure that if she takes it she won’t shatter; that she can hold it all together without her hands against her face. But she reaches out anyway, says thank you and is shocked at how hoarse she sounds.

Andy nods and half smiles, and Nile feels her understanding slam into her like some kind of solace, like waking up a second time, like a concussive wave.

542 notes • Posted 2021-06-05 21:07:49 GMT

#2

594 notes • Posted 2021-05-18 01:36:50 GMT

#1

I was studying a map of the Mediterranean yesterday evening when it suddenly struck me so hard that Malta is right between Italy and Tunisia. It represents the meeting point between the two - no wonder the boys think of it fondly.

And then I realized that in the lab, while Nicky is being tortured and Joe is (I think) dead, Nicky’s thinking of home.  He wants to go home.  He wants to take Joe with him.  He wants to escape not just in body but in being - to go somewhere safe that is about the two of them and simply be.

And the idea of Nicky lying there thinking “I want to go home,” is just so deeply human and vulnerable . . . and now I am emotionally compromised for all time.

647 notes • Posted 2021-05-22 10:31:56 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[stanknotstark]

Astral Pt. 4 (Loki x Reader)

Sorry to skip so many years between 2 and 3 but I’m trying to push this story towards where I know what I’m trying to write all these have mostly been played by ear! I apologize ^^

You’re 17 and a half when you next see Loki. You had been practicing your magic, nearly religiously, every day after finding out you could wield it. Especially using it when both your parents were at work. On a random day, where you had particularly missed the God, you visited him. 

Closing your eyes then opening them, you found yourself sitting in front of the fireplace. No Loki in sight. So you pulled one of the books Loki had left on runes and their significance when Loki strides into the room, a look of concern on his face. Immediately you ask what’s wrong, book forgotten.

“I believe-” Loki stopped and stood near you, “I believe you may have attracted unwanted attention. Have you been practicing magic outside of here?” Loki asked, his eyebrows raised in question. 

Swallowing, you considered lying however you knew of Loki’s title, God of Lies,  so you banished the thought. You had promised the God that you would try to only practice magic here but the excitement had gotten to you and then you figured no one would look at you. You weren’t anything special on Earth, no one ever seemed to give you a second glance, so you figured it would be safe. You thought you had been careful.

You were wrong, apparently. 

Looking at Loki with a pitiful look on your face you started to say sorry but Loki cut you off with the swipe of his hand. Watching him, you swallowed the lump that formed in your throat. Loki wouldn’t hurt you, didn’t mean you wouldn’t be scared of him while he was angry. 

Loki took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, a frown on his face. So he was definitely pissed....Loki then opened his eyes and wiped the frown off his face to something more neutral. 

“No matter, what’s done is done.”

Slowly nodding, you realized your body had gone really tense so you allowed yourself to relax. Loki wasn’t going to yell at you, this time. 

“How do you know?” 

“Remember when I told you of Heimdal? I told him to keep an eye on you, just check in every once in awhile to make sure you stayed safe. This past week he has caught some people watching you from afar.” 

You frowned. Now that he mentioned something you could recall seeing a black Buick passing your street every once in awhile. When you came to and from your house, before and after school. Usually the man inside the car was dressed casually like a normal pedestrian. Once you had seen a man with sunglasses and a pressed suit though. 

“I do know there have been multiple men that have been watching me, now that you say something.” You looked at the floor, trying to hide your panic. “Should I be scared of them?” You whispered. 

Loki sat next to you and ran his hand up and down your back for comfort. 

“I cannot say, I would be lying if I told you everything is going to be ok.” 

You swallowed, closed your eyes, and focused on Loki’s hand while going through the breathing exercises he had practiced with you to prevent hyperventilating. After a few minutes you calmed and looked at Loki at your side. He tilted his head in question. 

“If they attack I think I can handle them,” You felt yourself become more confident, “My parents let me take some krav maga-” At Loki’s confused look you said, “A type of military fighting style. Not to mention your practice too.”

“And...” Pulling your hand up you let your magic flow around your arm. It had taken a few weeks to finally see a color come up, Loki had said it was natural seeing how it was his magic focused through your body. In the end the color came up as a pastel purple. Every day you used the magic the purple turned a shade darker. “I have your magic, I’ll be ok.” You finished, letting your magic, that had been weaving around your arm, dissipate. 

Loki dropped his hand from your back and grabbed your hands instead. 

“If you get attacked, come here as soon as you’re safe, I can protect you through here if I know you’re in danger but I can’t stay here all the time. I only get a notice if you come in here.” 

You nodded, enjoying Loki holding your hand. 

Too soon, Loki let go of your hand and stood, as did you. 

“I must go, I have something to attend but please, do not hesitate to come to me if you need help at any point in time. Please.” 

You gave him a closed mouth smile and nodded. He was concerned, which made your stomach feel weird. Maybe you ate something bad today? 

“Farewell, your highness.” 

“Farewell, y/n.” 

Pt. 3/Pt.4/?

Tag list: @justfangirlthingies​ @emelieh99​ 

[mizunetzu]

hey mark uhhh suck my dick that’s the request

no HAHAHA but I’m sure Iida will do it innnn *drum roll*

——————

Iida x reader - Iida Tenya’s Imaginary Boyfriend (pt.2)

⚠️warnings - none

Pronouns - male, he/him

Part one can be found here! 

The true ending can be found here! (Pt.3)

——————

“Alright,” Kaitekina flipped open her sketchbook, setting it back down on the easel. “Who’s going to describe something to me?”

Everyone gestured at Iida.

“I apologize once more,” Iida scrunched up his fists in his lap. “I do not wish to-“

“C’mon, Iida!” Uraraka grasped onto the sleeve of Iida’s school blazer. “You’ve been sulking for a month about this ‘(L/n)-kun’ guy! You need some sort of comfort! Or better yet-closure!”

“I am completely fine! In fact, I see him every night, and that is enough for me! Now, I do not wish to be here, and I have nothing to describe!”

Everyone fell silent. Uraraka voice was barely above a whisper. “Every night..?”

Iida sat back down, bowing slightly in apology for yelling. He said nothing. Todoroki looked down, before looking at Iida.

“If you do this one thing, we’ll let you go and we’ll never speak about it again. Just this once and we’ll leave it at that.”

Iida thought for a moment. He absentmindedly picked at the metal frame of his watch with his thumb and forefinger. Just this once couldn’t hurt. How accurate can a drawing be?

“Fine.” Iida visibly relaxed. “Just this once.”

———

“So, are you describing a boy or a girl today?”

Kaitekina’s voice was smooth like butter. Her eyes, once a chocolate brown, delved pink, bright and demanding. It was probably a side effect to her quirk activating.

Iida’s lips turned up into the faintest of smiles. A sheepish one. “I’m describing my boyfriend...”

Uraraka and Midoryia choked back a shocked gasp, while Todoroki simply raised his eyebrows. Nonetheless, they gawked at Iida like he was crazy.

Kaitekina cooed. “D’aww...how long have you two been dating?”

“Almost 5 months now.” Iida seemed more calm than before. You could almost say he was happy finally talking about his baggage. He rubbed his thumb across the glass of his watch discreetly. Kaitekina looked away from her sketch to eye the dull red watch contained under Iida’s blazer.

“What’s that red thing you keep touching under your jacket? Is that a watch?”

Iida sat quiet for a moment, before pulling up his sleeve and raising his arm. There revealed a dirty, cheap red watch, cloudy but functional. He tugged at the strap, watching as it unraveled and tumbled down onto his lap.

“It was something my boyfriend wore everyday. He wore it everyday since the start of the school year. He said he’d always cherish it, so I’m...cherishing it for him.”

“This isn’t the original one he owned though, that one...disappeared. I bought this one to keep with me where ever I go.”

The woman hummed, taking note of something on a sticky note stuck to the edge of her easel. It was most likely details to add or emphasize in the portrait.

“Can you tell me like-the shape of his face?”

“Angelic.”

Iida didn’t say anything else after that. Kaitekina waited for him to go on.

“Oh-forgive me. Round face, and his hair was a (h/c)-ish shade. It was always kept rather short/long.”

“You keep saying ‘was’. Is he no longer with us?”

Iida narrowed his eyes. Uraraka, Midoryia, and Todoroki eagerly awaited his answer, not-so-subtly staring him down. “It’s...it’s difficult to explain. But in simpler terms, he isn’t here with me anymore. Or he never was. I cannot seem to tell anymore.”

Those last parts came out as a whisper. More like he was saying it to himself, rather than to the sketch artist infront of him.

“I’m...sorry.” Kaitekina stopped drawing for a second to offer her condolences. Iida shrugged.

“...I am too.”

“Um-can you describe his eyes for me?”

“It was a bright (e/c)-color.” Iida limply held up his arm, before letting it drop back down on his lap. “They were always kind of squinted, like he was always so carefree. It was one of the things I never understood about him. Beautiful, (e/c) eyes that would stare up at me like I was the world.”

She made a noise of acknowledgement, grabbing (h/c) and (e/c) pastels scattered across her desk. Scribbling down details with her hazey glowing eyes scanning the paper, she looked up again at Iida. “What about his smile-what did it look like when he was smiling?”

“I believe it was his default expression. His lips were on the thinner/thicker side, though he kept telling me he wanted them to be a bit thicker/thinner. And-they were always chapped. I always told him to put on chapstick.” Iida chuckled.

“If you had to choose one thing-and I know it’s hard, but what would you say you miss the most about him?”

Iida fell silent. He stared down at his fingers, halting temporarily. He opened his mouth numerous times to speak, but each time, no words came out.

“His ability to make me smile.”

He said nothing else. Kaitekina inhaled to speak, but let her mouth fall closed, focusing on her drawing once more.

“Can you tell me about him while I finish up?”

Iida nodded. Midoryia, Todoroki, and Uraraka turned towards him, waiting patiently. This was what they were waiting for.

Iida pushed his glasses up with his forefinger. “His name was (L/n)-kun. He went to our school, and actually sat next to me in class-but apparently no one...seemed to remember him. It’s like he disappeared. That, or my delusions delved to the point where I hallucinated a whole five-month relationship with a boy I see every night in my dreams. It’s made me look forward to going to bed. It’s the only thing I want to do these days.”

Iida thought for a moment, before continuing. “He was good friends with these 3 next to me. But they don’t seem to remember him either.”

“It’s alright, though. I’ve grown used to it. I’ll see him again tonight and I can live on with these memories alone.”

A heavy silence filled the small studio. Midoryia contemplated setting a hand on Iidas shoulder, but as he was about to, Kaitekina clasped her hands together.

“So, I believe I’m done. I hope I was able to capture at least a small part of this person you had such an amazing relationship with.” She picked up her sketchbook, walking around her desk towards the 4 kids seated on the couch. “Are you ready to see it?”

Part of Iida didn’t want to look at it. All of his logical beliefs told him people were giving this woman and her quirk too much credit. Besides, how could she possibly know what mountain of complexity (Y/n) held, and capture it into an unworthy piece of fine-tooth paper?

He nodded anyways. She flipped her book around, holding up the displayed page in the sunlight streaming through the window.

“This is what you described to me.”

There stood a charcoal sketch of a beautiful boy, smiling so gently and earnestly. His hand was resting again set his neck and shoulder, a dull red watch strapped tightly to his wrist. There were features Iida swore he never mentioned, like the crease near his left eye, or the dimple that lay just under his cheekbone.

What captured his attention most, was his eyes. It was only pastel, but it shone and demanded attention, even if his eyes were in his usual half-lidded stance. Bright, (e/c), gemstone eyes that Iida fell in love with. Honestly, he could gaze at this picture forever.

This was him. This was his (Y/n).

Uraraka gasped. “Ahhhh! Wow! It looks really good! Ne, is this accura...Iida? You alright..?” Midoryia and Todoroki tore their eyes off the illustration to check out what Uraraka was talking about.

Iida was staring, eyes slightly wide, at the drawing. He couldn’t take his eyes off of it; he didn’t want to. The drawing was more accurate than he’d like to admit. It was as if he was staring at (Y/n) himself.

He didn’t know tears were steaming down his face, until he felt small drops of water pelt down onto his lap. He removed his glasses shakily and wiped his eyes, doing his best not to take his eyes off the sketchbook.

“It’s-“ Iida’s voice cracked along with the seam of his heart. “It’s very accurate, you should be proud of the business you own, Miss.”

———

The stagnant air followed the UA students out of the building. Iida was stiffly walking straight ahead, doing his best not to look at the paper of (Y/n) folded in his pocket.

“Ne, Iida,” Iida hadn’t realized he was walking so far ahead until Uraraka had to jog up to him, followed by Midoryia and Todoroki. He hummed in acknowledgment.

“Do you feel better?”

There were two answers to this question. Yes and slowly but surely, yes. He was feeling better in the sense that he no longer had the urge to cry into his bedsheets, holding the piece of sketchbook paper firmly to his chest. He lost his dignity, and he found it again.

He was also feeling better in the sense that he finally got some sort of closure. Maybe this person isn’t real. And it’s ok. He has some sort of proof of his imaginary ‘friend’ that he can gaze at forever, instead of pitifully checking his wristwatch every 5 minutes, wishing it would go faster just so he wouldn’t accidentally forget how his face looked like.

It wasn’t healthy living day by day, waiting to fall asleep just so he could feel something again. A self imagined kiss on the cheek or just plain rest. He was willing to move on from that. It was time to start the ‘healing’ process. The drip finally stopped.

And he knew that if he got tired, if he was sad, or just needing some assistance, (Y/n) would be there waiting for him with open arms, welcoming him into his imaginary world again.

Though, he wasn’t sure if he really needed that right now.

He loosened the cheap red watch from his wrist, his head suddenly feeling empty and light.

“I’m feeling better. Thank you.”

——————

This is how this story really ends. Though, even I didn’t like it HAHAHA so I made a “true ending”. A sweeter ending without the bitter if u must LMAOO