#i think it's the most accurate hair color i've found for me

[katerinaaqu]

Damn right!!!! That movie is fucking perfection!!!!

"one of the least offensively wrong adaptations I've seen" Dude you phrased it PERFECTLY! Hahahaha! I mean yeah objectively speaking the 1997 version was not accurate to the Odyssey but not tremendously inaccurate either. There are some things I would change there (for example the sadness of Odysseus in Ogygia. The movie made Calypso telling him he is free to go when he is partying with her maidens?!?!?!!? Hahaha that part had me both laugh and cry!). Hahaha Ogugia was shot close to Kapaddocia I think which is why they used that environment as base. I didn't mind it much, found the choice of "divine island" interesting but yeah I wonder since they DID make some shootings to the water park in Malta and Gozo Isle has a place that is literally called "Calypso's cave" makes me wonder why they didn't also shoot Ogygia on one of the possible locations but okay. It was arguably the most aesthetically pleasing Odyssey and they brought some of the Mycenean aesthetic which I immensely appreciated the colors were bright and beautiful and they made the Greeks with long hair and dedicated themselves to the project and I really liked the scene of the murder of the suitors and the bow bending and all.

Oh 1968 version is THE Odyssey Adaptation to me! No other ever went nearly as close to its greatness! And it was made in 1960s! I wonder what would Rossi do if he had the capabilities of the 1990s?! He made arguably THE BEST Polyphemus scenes for once, is the ONLY version that ACTUALLY starts with Telemachy and follows the actual book. Now is it 100% accuratre? No. Would I change some stuff in there? Yes. But it remains the closest and most faithful adaptation to the Odyssey and the dude definitely knew how to direct! I am just saying!

Do you know any good-ish/ok adaptations of the myths ?

Absolutely! I would say the TOP adaptation is mentioned to my post about Iphigenia (1977)

This is simply PERFECTION! The only thing missing is the clothing of the mycenaean kings and even that arguably could be said it was partially achieved given the feeling of tough situation they were in. The cast was exclusively greek so you can see what Greeks actually look like in various shapes or forms so to speak, the scenario was perfectly reflecting the ancient play, the modernizing was also done perfectly;

Basically you have the insertion of common modern Greek phrases, expressions and even the fact that the soldiers chanted in the same rhythm you would hear Greeks chant in election periods or in a football match shows exactly how AMAZING that adaptation was! It was simply GREEK you know what I mean? And it shows how modernizing is not jeopardizing with the plot! And also it was shot ON LOCATION! Sure one doesn't have modern day effects to recreate the past but allow the viewer to see how the locations look if one wants to visit for example the Lion Gate in Mycenae

Likewise the rest of the movies such as "Trojan Women" were amazingly shot.

Next is RAI mini series L'Odyssea (1968)

It is the ONLY ONE that did Homer some justice! Not only did it follow the book almost with religious precision in many parts (minus some liberties here and there and even then the liberties were taken either because of budget (for example placing the Laestrygonians before Polyphemus because they couldn't make 12 ships and find so many people for one scene on Polyphemus Island or that they avoided Skylla and Charybdis unfortunately but probably for the same reason) or for storytelling. For example instead or having a discus match at Scheria they had a sword fight which basically NAILED Odysseus's character and how war affected him

The casting was amazingly respectful to the area as well given that they hired mostly Balkan or Italian actors to play the characters so they would be as ethnically respectful as possible (and the Lotus Eaters were actually PROPERLY REPRESENTED given that Lotus Eaters land is supposed to be at north Africa) and come on the amazing IRENE PAPAS is simply PERFECT as Penelope in every way and down to the tee on how Homer describes Penelope in the Odyssey and Bekim Fehmiou was the best Odysseus we could have. Also undoubtedly the best Polyphemus scene ever!

The 1997 version is also extremely good visually with also casting that respects the myth and the area. It is not accurate to the plot entirely but many of the changes are not at least hurting the plot and the way they actually shot the film with bright colors to their clothing and all and even the long hair was amazing

Another movie that is worth watching is The Clash of Titans (1980s) which from what I remember was an amazing attempt to recreate a myth in a different context.

Now if you want something different there is also a series of 1970s from a Russian animation studio that transfered the myths in short stories with great respect to the original material. They do take liberties of course but still very faithful and aesthetically pleasing. See for example the myth of Theseus and Minotaur:

So these are some that I have on top of my head. Right now

[ecstarry]

me & reg

use this picrew to make yourself and your current blorbo, then tag some mutuals ----- thank you for the lovely tag @pretentiouswreckingball

np tags: open tag!! + @bloodbruise @velanavis @sixlane @v7lgar @star4daisy

@del-stars @moon-seas @doomedtokill @luckydandelion1

@lavenderhaze @itsjaywalkers @static-radio-ao3

@loonsloon @alter-ego-xxx @futurequibblerjournalist @orchideous-nox

[were--ralph]

how do you approach designing characters? was wondering since i fucking love your characters and wonder what your thought process is

It depends! usually what happens is I find something randomly while scrolling that i like and build off of that. In other cases I scroll through my character design insp folder and pick up on things I like.

for example with Kaisain:

I always pick a color I want to focus on first, which for him was green. If you notice, most of my OC's have one main color besides brown that I picked to focus on. I also LOVE asymmetrical designs and in the past ive overdesigned characters so i wanted to keep it simple.

Then looking through my character inspo folder, I found these:

the first one is obvious where i pulled the inspo from. I've always liked more skull-like head designs and it was new for me.

this one i thought about asymmetrical horns and remembered that guy from Spyro because im pretty sure the spyro remake had just come out recently. I also think he was the general inspiration for Kai?

and this one i really liked the huge scales on his neck and wanted to replicate that on the shoulders. The chest part I originally was going to take entirely and have something through his chest but realized it'd be a pain to draw everytime, so i just put a large scar originally.

From there once i put the giant scales on his shoulders i thought they looked like large leaves so i went with a forest theme and made the horns wood, which then clashed with the skull so i made that wood also. and with the scar, i thought about the wood parts and made some roots come from it.

Other miscellaneous things:

I love things floating over my characters heads for some reason, and thus the orb

originally a moon, i made the horns freeze over near it to show a temperature drop

i added water between the horns sort of like rivers

i later added white spots to the horns to pull from the white wood horns on the sides

the clothes were just a combination of fantasy outfits i like

the fur/hair reminds me of clouds

When it comes to making refsheets I always try to keep them loose and kind of simple because they're mostly just there for people to get an idea of what i want. A good example of what i mean is the first image where i told the artist they basically had free reign just follow the refsheet as closely as they need and simplify it if they need to.

I also try to only use flat colors because it makes it more accurate later on when other artists are picking colors from it. in Kai's case specifically, i used gradients because.....i just wanted to try it lol.

but yeah if you have specific characters you want to ask about, absolutely go for it i love talking about stuff like this

[wrengrif]

It's Thought Time again

So I've been rolling over this in various posts and reblogs, and I'm finally going to pin down my thoughts and write them here. Some might call this my 'Aziraphale Defense Post', but that's not accurate.

This is my William James take - meaning, everyone's reality is different due to perspective. What is true to me is not going to be true to you, 100% of the time. However, there is a facet of truth in everything we do believe, because we wholeheartedly believe it. That gives us a rainbow of truths from one opinion, each in their own radiant color.

So here's what I believe to be true. 6000 years ago, Heaven and Hell, on two completely different missions, sent the angel and the demon they found the most annoying to Earth. Not the weakest, not the most problematic (not yet anyways), but the ones they all collectively rolled their eyes at. Crowley was too flash. Aziraphale was too soft.

So God plopped Aziraphale in Eden, told him to protect the humans and not let them eat the apple tree that was sitting right there in front of them. Didn't tell him to put up a fence, or wave the flaming sword at them.

Satan booted Crowley upwards and told him to vaguely, 'start some trouble'. Vaguest of orders, no real direction in them. Crowley could have just thrown rocks at Adam and Eve and it would have counted.

We all know what happened from there. However, instead of Heaven and Hell going, 'Okay we're going to really pin down these orders now, sending more troops, let's get humanity really going' ... they basically left Aziraphale and Crowley alone in the office for 6000 years. Oh, the head offices occasionally pop up. Threaten, in their own unique ways. Mostly though, Crowley and Aziraphale were the only immortal beings on a planet filled with human mayflies.

Human mayflies that nine times out of ten would just set fire to themselves, or show greater compassion than either one of them had ever known.

Crowley and Aziraphale were all alone, except for each other. Even among humans, who they clearly understood more than their superiors -- you had to know they both stuck out. Yeah, think on that. Crowley couldn't have been the only one outcast, with his red hair and his yellow eyes. Aziraphale has the most white-blonde, curly hair in existence. Tag along with blue eyes and fair skin and come on. So at the beginning, they only ever really had each other for safe company. As they moved towards Europe, it got easier to fit in but even then you know people were still giving them the side-eye.

They were both transitory - following where-ever a mission went. Probably a home for maybe ten or so years, but then they'd have to move on again. We talk a lot about how Crowley didn't have a physical home until the creation of the bookshop.

That means neither did Aziraphale.

So what happened? They became home to one another. A touchstone in the centuries that passed. Aziraphale never rejected being approached by Crowley, despite being a demon, and Crowley never held Heaven's stupid missions again Aziraphale, so they kept coming together. Over and over again. Think of Rome. Aziraphale is so happy to see Crowley, and it's only been a few decades. Crowley's mood improves the longer the conversation goes on, letting down his defenses, relaxing enough to smirk.

The Arrangement, thought of by Crowley, agreed to by Aziraphale, despite the dangers they both knew they would face, because at least it meant they could see each other without having to make an excuse or just 'happen to be in the area'. Now they could meet up at theatres or in graveyards. They had to be careful - they always, always had to be careful - or the other one could be hurt.

It is the worst thing that can happen to either one of them, if the other one is hurt, or worse, killed. Remember Aziraphale's face in the graveyard, that look of sheer horror when he realizes Hell has taken Crowley.

Remember Crowley yelling as he runs into a burning bookshop.

The bookshop and the Bentley are theirs, but they can lose those and still go on, as long as they have each other. Maybe it is co-dependent, but honestly who else can they depend on, if not each other? That's why I believe Aziraphale begged Crowley to come with him to Heaven, not because he wanted Crowley to be an angel, but because Crowley would be safe - Aziraphale's Home would be Safe. That's why he says, 'Nothing lasts forever'. No Thing.

Crowley is not a Thing, to Aziraphale. Crowley is Aziraphale's Person. His safe place, and he's Crowley's. They both know it. It's why Aziraphale never wants to run away because he knows he's not fighting for a place called home, he's fighting for Crowley. It's why Crowley walks away and always comes back - not because he's weak but because he knows that being with Aziraphale is what matters. It's what makes life worth living.

Which is what makes the Final Fifteen so heartbreaking because they are both saying the same thing, but they're on different wavelengths. Yet, Yet ... as time has passed and I've been able to look at the Final Fifteen with some space, I see that it's not as hopeless as it seems.

Because Crowley came back. Because Aziraphale looks ready to do what he has to do. I don't think it'll be violence, because they've never solved their problems with violence and I don't think they'll start now. I just know that They're Not Talking is not going to last as long as we think, and that anger and betrayal is not going to be the first thing on their minds when they finally see one another again.

Probably going to be that kiss, though.

This why I could never say I can't forgive Aziraphale for his actions, because he did what he had to do to keep his home, his Crowley safe. I know Crowley knows that, too. How is that all going to shape up - how they're going to find themselves in balance again?

Well. I guess we'll have to wait, and see.

[sapphic-agent]

Let's Talk About the Switched at Birth Theory

If you told me I would be making an Ever After High Theory in 2024 I would have never believed you. But I recently came across a theory from like 2022 that poses the possibility of Apple and Raven being switched at birth. At first I thought there wasn't a chance it held water, but the more I looked into it the more I was sent down a rabbit hole.

(I know this is a hated theory please don't kill me)

The original theory was made by _fairytale_vibes_ on YouTube. Here's a link to the most updated version of the theory, watch it if you haven't already:

I went into this video thinking that it wouldn't lead anywhere, but OP does make a lot of very good points. So with her theory in the back of my head, I decided to dive into the book series to see if I could find anything to support or disprove it.

(I'll be editing as I read the books and rewatch the show, so at the time of posting it I've only completely finished The Storybook of Legends. So whatever I say here may not be 100% accurate compared to the rest of the series. I'll update and revise as I continue reading, but please tell me if whatever I've said is wrong)

1. Appearances

This may be the most important part of the theory as it's been the focal point of the original video. So let's dive into it from the book's descriptions.

Raven: "...long black hair with purple highlights, dark eyebrows, strong nose and chin."

The Evil Queen: Dark hair, deep purple eyes

Snow White: "...black hair was curled under her golden crown. Her skin was still white as snow, her lips red as blood."

Apple: Pale, blond, red lips

One thing I definitely noticed was that multiple times, the book goes out of its way to compare Raven's looks to her mother's. Raven herself calls it out multiple times. However, it actually seemed to be the opposite with Apple. While her features- other than her hair- are said to fit what Snow White is supposed to be, there aren't many comparisons made to her mother herself.

In fact, I think the only time she's actually directly compared to her mother is when she looks at her destiny during Legacy Day. "She looked so much like her mother, only blond." Even here, there aren't many details about it, not like there are Raven's.

(This whole montage is interesting, I'll talk about it more later)

One of the theory's linchpins is that The Evil Queen in her youth seemed to have platinum blond hair. In the Dragon Games special, she is animated as a teen with what looks like whitish hair. And in the graphic novel The Class of Classics, her hair does look platinum blond (and is described as being such by her roommate and best friend, the Cheshire Cat).

Apple's blond hair is an anomaly. There's never been a Snow White with blond hair, as the story is clear about it being ebony. It's brought up multiple times in the book and is a point of insecurity for Apple. The Evil Queen also having blond hair is an... Interesting connection for them to have. As in, they share the one trait that separates Apple from the Snow White lineage.

One thing that actually threw me off, however, is that the Evil Queen actually had green eyes in her youth. And you can actually see hints of green in the purple of her eyes if you look at her show model. Raven's eyes are purely purple and Apple's are blue. The EQ having green eyes seemed so left field to me.

The theory implies that the purple highlights in Raven's hair and the purple coloring in the EQ's hair comes from their magic, if we extend that to their eyes it does actually start to make more sense. Raven's powers could develop quicker/stronger than her mother's, which could have caused the purple coloring to affect her eye color quicker than it did the EQ's. It's very possible that Raven was born with green eyes and they changed the stronger her magic got.

But then what about Apple's eyes? One thing I found odd even watching Dragon Games for the first time is the very obvious difference in the shade of Apple and Snow's eyes. They're both blue, but Apple's are a lot lighter while SW's seem to be darker. It's like the show went out of their way to show even more distinction between them.

You know who also has blue eyes? The Good King.

Well, according to his Wiki page. I actually didn't make note if his eye color was mentioned in SBOL (and I can't because I had to return the loan). This fact may not be true, since Raven's non-existent brother Michael is still on there (seriously why hasn't anyone removed him).

But still, if the Good King does have blue eyes, that could be another physical connection Apple has to Raven's family.

2. Parallels

One thing I was surprised the theory never mentioned was the Two Sisters fairytale.

If you don't know, the Two Sisters is the tale about an "ugly" sister and a "beautiful" sister. The ugly sister is kind so butterflies float around her head while the beautiful sister is mean so she only attracts flies. The beautiful sister wants to get rid of her flies so she has the ugly sister lower her into a well. Then she makes the ugly sister go into the well too, and she almost drowns. But she escapes with the help of her butterflies. The ugly sister turns beautiful and the beautiful sister turns ugly. The flies that circled the beautiful sister returned and chased her into the forest and she was never heard from again.

This story is important because Raven found out that the sisters who were supposed to have this story- Bella Sister and Brutta Sister- never signed and instead ran away.

Why am I bringing it up? Well, in SBOL after Raven reads the story, the next time Apple is given a POV, we get a flashback of her almost drowning in a well as a child.

This is very clearly an attempt to draw a parallel between Apple and Raven and Bella and Brutta. But if it was just that Raven decided to reject her fate like Bella, it doesn't say much. Brutta didn't want Bella to suffer a villain's fate as much as Bella didn't want to try to drown her, while Apple wants to embrace destiny fully even if it means confining Raven to a life she doesn't want.

To me, this is trying to tell us something else. That maybe we should be looking at Apple and Raven's relationship differently.

3. Attitude and Personality

A somewhat surprising detail that I noticed is that Apple acts a lot like the Evil Queen, especially in how she treats Raven.

"Apple smiled. She could play the damsel-in-distress like a cow could jump over a moon. The male species couldn’t resist wanting to help her."

"...but the guilt passed as quickly as a butterfly. Looking out for Raven was in Raven’s best interest."

"It’s not wrong for people to see in you your true nature." (To Raven)

"Sometimes she couldn’t think of anything comforting to say. It was a small weakness she was determined to mend."

"Raven’s Coat of Infinite Darkness should have hidden her from anyone who didn’t know she was already there. Apple was very smart."

"Take your hands off me at once, or I swear by wishing wells, seven-league boots, silver wands, and all marvelous things that you will regret it!” (To Goblins)

This is NOT me saying that Apple is evil like the EQ. But more that she can be manipulative, overbearing, and commanding similarly to the EQ. Apple is a lot nicer and has more of a conscience, but she isn't afraid of crossing boundaries to get what she wants (or rather, to do what she thinks is right). She lacks natural empathy a lot of the time (which isn't a bad thing), and it's something she's desperately trying to fix about herself. She's also said to be very intelligent.

(I also want to mention her behavior during the Topsy Turvy spell. I know the spell was said to make the people cursed act the opposite of how they usually would, but as OP points out, Apple really went far with it. She wasn't a mean girl, she was downright evil. OP assumed this could be her true nature. I... Half disagree. I think it's way more that Apple makes a point to make sure she's as nice and helpful as possible, hiding her true feelings so that she's the perfect Snow White. I think the topsy turvy spell made it so that she didn't do that. In other words, it got rid of her inhibitions. Instead of making sure she doesn't say and do awful things, she no longer holds anything back for the sake of being good which is why she's so much worse than the other students)

But like with appearances, there isn't much connecting Raven to Snow White. Sure, Raven is kind. She shows concern for others and likes to help people. She tries to be nice even when she's treated horribly. But nothing about this is specifically Snow White.

In fact, she seems to drive animals away. Her singing causes thorns to ensnare her and Apple. Only ogres obey and listen to her (though they did adhere to Apple). She's also sarcastic and dry. In this regard, there isn't a lot about her that matches up with Snow White.

(If we're being completely fair, Snow White also never had as many defining traits as the Evil Queen, even in the original Grimm Fairytale. So attempting to mirror her in Apple or Raven might have been a struggle for the writers)

4. Symbolism

You know what threw me off? The fact that Apple's animal companion was a snow fox.

It seemed like such an odd choice when I read it. Like, why a fox of all things? But then I looked into actual symbolism for snow foxes.

Overall Symbolism: Adaptability, Resourcefulness, & Intelligence

Christian Symbolism: Purity & Humility

Native American Symbolism: Resilience & Determination

Eastern Symbolism: Cleverness & Cunning

I actually thought it was really interesting that all of these traits seem to fit Apple. She's resilient, clever, determined, and resourceful. But she's also supposed to stand for purity and humility too. Almost like there are two sides of Apple: how she actually is and what she pushes herself to be because of expectations.

(This actually comes up a lot in the book. Apple's good deeds come from a place of needing to set a good example and live up to the Snow White legacy. She separates what she actually thinks and feels from what she's supposed to perceive as right and wrong)

Raven having a dragon is definitely less unexpected. However, there's decent symbolism with her too. In Eastern traditions, dragons stand for supernatural power, wisdom, strength, and hidden knowledge. These are all things that definitely fit Raven. If we're looking at this in comparison to the Snow White destiny, the wisdom and power could be alluding to her eventually becoming Queen.

5. My Thoughts

Do I think Raven and Apple were switched at birth? No. Primarily because I can't think of a valid reason for it happening. OP suggests the Evil Queen switched Apple and Raven's powers, forcing Snow White to switch out their babies. But this reason is convoluted at best.

For one, the Evil Queen seems to care for Raven as much as she's able. Raven herself states that the EQ loves her in her own way. She wants to bond with Raven, wants Raven by her side as she tries to take over the world. I can't see her being like this towards someone she knows is Snow's daughter.

I also can't think of why she would do this. She's all too eager to continue her legacy through Raven. Why would she change Apple's fate that way if she was her actual heir?

No, my theory is that Raven and Apple are sisters, both daughters of the Evil Queen.

(I'm so sorry Rapple shippers)

I know, that's possibly more outrageous than the switched at birth theory. But my mind couldn't stop circling back to this. Apple shares so many traits with the Evil Queen, but Raven doesn't share as many with Snow White. The Two Sisters parallels were too heavy to ignore.

Why and how would this happen? I think that when the Evil Queen had them, Apple was born without powers. Since the EQ values power over everything (other than beauty) she decided Apple was worthless. But instead of getting rid of Apple, she gave her to Snow and Charming (who couldn't have kids) either anonymously as a cruel twist of fate or some sort of deal was made between them.

That or her having twins sent Grimm and Snow into panic mode since she was already on her magical rampage. So they made a plan to take one of the babies to avoid something similar happening in the future. Snow agreed to raise her as her own as the next Snow White to combat whatever "natural evil" she was born with.

It could be why Grimm is so invested in Apple and Raven specifically. He's trying to make sure Apple stays good and Raven turns evil so that the Snow White story can play out smoothly and things can stay balanced within the Realms.

Now if we wanna step away from secret baby theories (which I totally get), another possibility is that Raven and Apple's destinies were swapped. Which I also think is very likely.

OP points out in Thronecoming when Raven calls Apple selfish for wanting her to sign, Apple retorts that she wants to keep everyone safe. She then hands Raven an apple and tells her that she's the one being selfish. She's directly mirroring what the Evil Queen does, like their roles have been swapped.

She also adds that when Raven is transported into Snow White's story later in the episode, the old woman is basically shouting that this is her destiny as she hands her the apple. None of the other girls are being pushed as strongly. Sure, we can look at this as just her destiny in general, but it could be indicating that she will take the role of Snow White.

We saw in Dragon Games that Apple easily became jealous of Raven for how liked she was becoming. Which is similar to why the Evil Queen hates Snow White. If the show hadn't gotten cancelled, this could have been her slow descent towards evil while Raven was coming into being good.

(And to be honest, this can still happen with the twin theory. Every Snow White story is different. A jealous sister can fit into the story as well as a jealous stepmother)

Now before anyone says that Apple and Raven saw their destinies... No they didn't. They saw their fates from a fake Storybook of Legends. A fake put there by the Evil Queen, mind you.

Raven's fate was depicted as her being even more evil than her mother. It would be so like the EQ to curse the fake book to depict her daughter's fate as overly villainous. As for Apple, it could have also been cursed to act out as the original book would for anyone who proclaimed themselves the child of whatever fairytale character. So her saying that she's the daughter of Snow White showed her the typical fate of the next Snow White.

(I mentioned earlier that Apple is only said to look like Snow White during her glimpse into the future at Legacy Day. This actually plays into the fate she sees being false. It's showing her what she wants to see, and that's being able to live up to her mother)

Yes Raven signed the true book in Wonderland. But all that did was give her the EQ's full powers. Powers which were part of the reason Apple became jealous in the first place. We never saw Raven's actual destiny from that book.

So no, I don't think Apple and Raven were switched at birth. But I do think OP's observations do leave a lot to be analyzed. I know a lot of people will say that this being canon ruins the story, but I honestly don't think so. Raven and Apple can still decide their destinies. It doesn't matter who their parents are or aren't, what matters is what choices they make. The main theme of Ever After High is choice. If Apple ever did turn towards evil, Raven would be right there trying to pull her back.

They choose their destinies. They decide their fates no matter what happens

[ddwcaph-game]

The F6E Parents as Sims!

Sooo this is what I've been busy with the past week. 😅

I've wanted to do this for a while now, both to recover from the update, and to get a better idea of what I want their character art to look like.

I used some height/fitness mods, but I tried to use as few CC as possible (mostly because it's annoying trying to hunt for the perfect ones). Some of the colors/styles aren't accurate of course, but I'm happy with the results for the most part. If anyone's interested, I might upload all the families to the gallery later (I need to remove the spoilery elements), along with links to the CCs.

Nestor and Mary

I gotta be honest, I was kinda lazy when I made the photo of Mary in Chapter 4, so this is a more accurate image of what Mary looks like in that photo (just imagine her with much longer hair). I mostly picked that outfit for Nestor because it has a lil chicken on it (it's the closest I can get to The NeStore logo), but it seems appropriate for his work anyway.

Josephine and Mariano

I didn't want to make Josy and Mario elders, but I honestly think they look better that way, hehe. They're wearing their everyday outfit since I'm still not sure what they're wearing during Rosie's party. Although... I might actually change Mario from bald to semi-bald like he is here.

Danica and Ma'am Bianes

Okay, Ma'am Bianes isn't Lily's police-mom, but I don't really have a clear idea on what Rickie looks like yet. 😅 Both of their outfits here are pretty close to their respective appearances so far, but just imagine that Dani's arm tattoo is WAY more elaborate.

Stephanie and JM Sr.

I found an outfit that's totally accurate to Tita Steph's current description in the story, but it made me remember that she's a feng shui expert and I think red suits her more than plain black in this case. I'll see if I can find a cane mod/cc for her later.

You don't really meet JM's dad in the story, but here he is anyway, hehe. He's much more grumpy looking in the close up.

Yaya Connie and Kuya Popoy

Not much to say here, but I like how both of them turned out since I didn't have a clear idea of what they both looked like before this. I wasn't planning on giving Connie short hair, but I think it fits her a lot. Just make the trim and ribbon in her outfit black and it's perfect.

Julie and Robert

Out of everyone, I think I'm satisfied with Julie and Robert the most. I can't find a good LT uniform-looking outfit for Robert without CC, so here he is with Julie's favorite shawl instead. Well, it doesn't have any patterns, but even with CC it's annoying to look for scarves/shawls separate from the outfits that aren't tightly wrapped around the neck.

***

Maggie and MC's Dad aren't here for obvious reasons, but I might make Maggie's original version later.

Anyway, I made the characters in IAC too! You can find the post here. Major spoiler warning, of course.

If you're curious, I showed F6E here too a while back, but that one's old and outdated. I kinda want to make them as teens/young adults now though.

[freyyzu]

FIVE

a kiss for every part of you i adore. the problem is, i adore every part of you.

a/n; i'm struggling so bad with the wedding fanfic. my best friend is just watching me descend into insanity rewriting the prologue for the fourth time. i just needed to make something short and cute to fix that o(╥﹏╥)o mild (??? bland???) nsfw on number 3. i've never written nsfw before, please go easy on me. post step 4.

update after finishing; this was not as short as i intended it to be.

5. EYES.

Black and white were considered Baxter's staple colors. From his clothes, to his phone case, to his car, you could list countless more items off the top of your head that all shared those monotone hues.

Really, it'd be easier to list the items he owned that weren't greyscale.

In particular, one comes to mind—two, to be more precise. Would saying he owned them be correct? You assume so. They were a part of his person, after all.

A dark brown—they shine as bright as embers from a fire burning too hot. If you stared at them long enough you would burn, but that was a risk you were willing to take. Anything, if it meant being able to get lost within them for even a moment longer.

"Good morning," you whisper, sweeping your hand across his bangs. The strands of hair fall back into place defiantly over his eyes, much to your dismay.

They're not in their signature side-swept look; they never are in the mornings. Locks of ashy grey stick out from all corners. It splays over the pillow in some sort of abstract art, a few of the longer pieces jutting outwards to tickle your cheek.

Baxter groans, rubbing at his eyes, though only one manages to beat the morning bleariness in order to look at you. Even through the dim glow of sunlight that sneaks through the cracks of the curtains, it shines.

"Good morning," he mumbles, barely audible and coherent.

You chuckle at the sound of his voice. He might be awake now, but he wasn't quite awake just yet. The clock had yet to even strike nine.

Once more, you reach up to his hair. Instead of sweeping away his bangs, this time you push it up past his forehead.

He hums at the feeling of your hand on his skin and smiles, opting to close the one eye he'd manage to pry open before.

Such a baby, you idly think before leaning forward to press your lips onto his eyelid. His hand on your waist tightens at the contact, and you move to give the other the same treatment.

This time, both pools of endless brown open to gaze directly at you. His smile grows wider by the second, and you think that maybe, just maybe, you've found a new, sure-fire method to waking him up.

4. EARS.

There's a quirk you've noticed about Baxter that you hadn't realized before.

No, that's not exactly right. You've noticed it. The problem is it just hadn't happen enough for your suspicions to be confirmed.

You recall seeing it once. The most notable occasion being the day of Jude and Scott's wedding; when the two of you had finally reunited, made your amends, and cleared the air of five years worth of regrets.

He was so happy then his cheeks flushed a vibrant shade of coral pink all the way to the tips of his ears. And as he couldn't believe what he was hearing, his ears had twitched. It reminded you much of a kitten.

For a long while, you wondered if you'd ever see that again, and by some form of pure luck, today you did.

It was still early in the morning, or at least what Baxter would consider early. Even though he didn't need to go to the office today for work, he still had some business to take care of. The sounds of his fingers tapping against the keys of his laptop were the only noise to break through the silence of your shared apartment for the last half an hour.

In the meantime, you busied yourself in the kitchen to make breakfast (brunch is more accurate), having that morning free of any other duties.

"Baxter, breakfast is ready," you call, setting the last plate on the table.

The tapping continues.

You huff amusedly. It was one of those days again—where he got too caught up with his work and blocked out all other distractions. Usually you'd let him finish and bring the occasional cup of coffee or tea and snacks to get him through the load, but having a proper meal to start the day was important.

Cleaning your hands on a towel you amble your way over behind him on the couch, catching a peek of some e-mail exchanges. That wasn't what you were here for, though.

Wrapping your arms loosely around his neck you lean in and manage to push yourself forward enough to peck his ear.

The action apparently catches him completely off-guard, and you feel him straighten in your hold, face going completely red—it continues to travel up past his cheeks. You barely have enough time to catch the tweak of his ears before he shoots up a hand to cover the one you kissed and spins around to face you, eyes wide.

"Ah—" You raise both of your arms up in surrender, suppressing a giggle at his flustered reaction. "I'm sorry. I called you for breakfast, but you were too concentrated on your laptop to hear me."

"Oh," he breathes. At least he didn't seem angry.

Far from it.

You offer him an apologetic smile anyways. "Shall we eat?"

"Yeah," he answers, a little too quickly. His eyes dart away from yours to close his laptop. You get the feeling he didn't need to look away to do that, but just wanted an excuse not meet your eyes right now. "Let's eat."

3. NECK.

Its a cool night this evening in SoCal, but you felt as if you were sitting right next to an open flame.

Lithe arms wrap around your bare waist, pulling you in close. Without the restrictive fabric of clothing separating you from each other, you could feel Baxter's heartbeat more distinctly than ever.

It's steady, if not a little fast.

The gentle motions of your fingers massaging his scalp help it from becoming erratic, but you can feel the spike every time you tug on his hair—feel the way his breath hitches against your exposed shoulders as you pull a little harder the next time. And again on the next, and the time after that.

Lips that you're used to tracing with your own press open-mouth kisses against the side of your neck, and you tilt your head to give him more access.

"Baxter," his name leaves your mouth as a breathless whisper. You can barely stifle the moan that threatens to escape as his fingers tighten their hold on you.

When your grip on his hair tightens, you hear his groan right beside your ear. Unlike you, he doesn't try to suppress it—you're not sure if you're thankful for that or not.

When he begins to press his thigh deeper between your legs you can't restrain your voice anymore.

"Baxter," you say inbetween gulps of air. Your hands move from his head to his shoulders, gently pushing him back to lean against the couch. "Wait."

"Is there something wrong?" His eyebrows crease in worry.

You shake your head with an unsteady laugh and use this time to catch your breath. "No, nothing's wrong. It's— it felt nice, really nice. I was just wondering if I could...?"

Your hands begin to roam again, finding their new homes against the nape of his neck and the flush of his cheeks. The end of your sentence doesn't hear the light of day, but Baxter knows exactly what you're trying to ask when your eyes dart to the mole decorating his neck.

"Oh?" He raises an eyebrow, frown morphing into a smirk. Even with his face bright red he would never miss a chance to tease you. Typical Baxter. "Please." He pulls you in by the shoulders until you can feel his breath once more against the lobe of your ear. His voice sends shivers down your spine. "Be my guest."

And so you oblige, pressing feather-light kisses first on his shoulder before trailing further up to his adam's apple and giving it the same treatment. You can feel it bob as he takes a large breath of air, followed by a pleased sigh. His fingers find purchase tangled in your hair, and you're acutely aware of how the roles have been reversed.

Finally, you make it to the area where his mole resides. Your hands follow your lips, one curling around his neck again to twirl strands of grey inbetween its fingers while the other traced the curve of his spine. He shudders beneath your touch.

In contrast to the gentle grazes you've given him thus far, your lips this time, nuzzle against his most sensitive spot with open mouth kisses, biting hard enough for a mark to form, but not to hurt.

"Mmn—!" he moans. His thigh jolts at the unexpected sensation, once more making contact between your legs. His hand pulls at your hair reactively, and you understand then, why he likes it so much.

"Payback for teasing me." You back away, thoroughly admiring your work, drinking in the sight of him beneath you.

Cheeks and ears flushed red, hair in disarray, a cheeky grin that for sure spelt your doom, and a faint rim of crimson that accentuates his already eye-catching mole.

Thinking back on it, you're sure this mole was the only reason you recognized him that summer of 2016. With his growth-spurt and new look, and not to mention you only having the chance to meet once beforehand, you're not sure if you would've been able to tell who he was otherwise. Not that you had to, he recognized you first.

Mindlessly, your thumb brushes against the bloom that darkens with every second passed. It doesn't hurt, you're sure of it, but Baxter appreciates the gesture all the same. Though, apparently not enough to let you linger.

Familiar fingers dip underneath your shorts, rubbing wide archs against your thighs. "Shall we continue?"

Ah, right.

You had a long night ahead of you.

2. LIPS.

"If you're feeling up for it we could take a stroll down the shore after dinner. The beach is usually empty by that time, and I'd love nothing more than to soak in the sights of a beautiful evening with you." He adds after a pause, "If you're alright with that, of course."

"I'd love to, Baxter," you answer instantly, batting away any of his worries.

For how confident your boyfriend made himself out to be to the public, you knew he still had a new dilemmas to sort through that takes time. Making sure you were happy and not feeling insecure about his choices being one of them.

"Really?" His expression lights right back up at your quick response, lips curving up into a genuinely pleased smile. "That's wonderful. I'll have to remember to bring a towel so we can dry our feet once we get back to the car. It wouldn't do well for us to drag sand back into the apartment."

Cove Holden would vehemently disagree with that statement if he were around to hear it, and you were almost inclined to bring it up yourself—being a person of the sea and whatnot.

But you don't.

The only thing on your mind is how you love hearing him so happy, love listening to the sound of his voice as he animatedly talks about even the most mundane things. You love the way the corners of his lips quirk up into a shy smile every time you compliment him and you love the way they stretch into a knowing-grin whenever he finds something new to tease you about—the way he makes it up to you with a kiss that always lasts longer than intended, and the way he says sorry without meaning an ounce of it.

Before long, those idle listings that you're so fond of hearing him talk about no longer register.

Without much thought, your hands are reaching out to cup his cheeks. Your thumb tenderly traces the outline of his jaw. No words were needed to tell him exactly what you were thinking. You were already staring at him as if you were holding the entire world in your hands.

"I'm going to kiss you now," you warn.

He chuckles amusedly, his own hand coming up to map the outline of your bottom lip, as if trying to commit the shape to memory. "What are you waiting for then?"

Nothing, really.

You waste no time leaning in, your lips fitting like puzzle pieces that were carved just to lock with each other.

It starts out slow, wanting, as if afraid you would scare one another off if you went for something more. Eventually, thoses brief pecks spiral out of your reach into something more, it's no longer a want but a need.

Despite you taking initiative, Baxter takes the lead, pulling you closer until you're practically stradling him. Your hands have moved from his cheeks to his neck, securing your place on his lap.

When you finally pull away, you're both gasping for air, eyes lidded and lungs breathless. Had your need for oxygen not won out you would have been content to kiss him all day.

Something about the look in his eyes tells you he thought the same.

1. HANDS.

One, two, three.

One, two, three.

Spin, pull, and—dip.

The music player clicks, and the sounds of string instruments abruptly stops. The silence that follows signals the end of another song.

"You did amazing." Baxter doesn't hesitate to compliment you as soon as the dance ends. He pulls you up into a standing position, but makes no effort to let go of your clasped hands.

Even if there was no reason to hold you anymore, that didn't mean anything. You were his partner—in more ways than one—so unless you wished for him to let you go, he wasn't planning on doing so any time soon.

"It's because I have such an amazing teacher leading me," you quip back.

He narrows his eyes, smiling widely. "I don't think I can call myself your teacher anymore. At this point you've far outgrown my lessons, don't you think?"

"Not at all. There's always more to learn from a former professional. Maybe you're just holding back on me."

If it was a compliment battle you wanted, it was a compliment battle you were going to get. For the next however long, the two of you spend your downtime exchanging complimentary remarks inbetween gulps of water.

The whole time, Baxter doesn't once let go of your hand, even if it meant awkwardly untwisting the cap of his bottle between his legs. He got it eventually.

"I'm so glad my misfortune brings you joy," he jokes, setting the container down by his side.

"I offered to help," you remind him. "You're the one who denied it."

"It was a battle of pride." He pouts at you, and for a second you almost thought he was serious.

Rolling your eyes, you laugh at his childish attitude. No matter how profession he tries to make himself out to be, you knew better. Underneath all those stiff suits and fancy words he was—as Xavier once described—squishy.

You hold on tighter to his hand; they were squishy too. Or maybe soft would be a more apt description.

"Is something on your mind?" he asks, no doubt curious about the sudden pressure.

You hum, lifting your arm up until the limb was right in front of your—and his—face. Your fingers wriggle out of Baxter's grasp before entertwining with his own. He lets you do it, gladly. Your palms are both clammy from holding each other for so long, but neither of you seem to mind.

And then, as if you had done this a million times before, you bring his hand to your lips in gentle kiss, and there it remains.

The same hand that had been offered to you all those years ago at the Summer Soiree was the same hand that you're holding now.

The one that holds you close in the early mornings and refuses to let go. The one that tucks your hair behind your ear and rubs delicate circles along every part of your body. The one that cradles your cheek with so much warmth you fear that one day you're going to heat up and burn into ash all at the same time.

"I was thinking about how much I love you. All of you." Your lips brush against his skin with every word, as if hoping to physically convey the full brunt of your emotions through that one simple gesture.

"Oh."

In the time you've spent dating Baxter, there were very few instances in which you were able to catch him off-guard. This just so happen to be one of those moments.

He's at a loss for words.

Unfortunately, you don't get the opportunity to bask in it for long, and soon enough, with the same care as you gave him, Baxter kisses the back of your hand. His lips glide down to your pinkie before giving it the same treatment, and then doing the same for your other four fingers, giving them each the individual attention they deserve.

Finally, he switches his grasp to your wrist and presses one final kiss to the inside of your palm.

It tickles.

"It's funny, we were thinking of the same thing." He catches your eye, features glimmering with affection. "About how I love you. All of you."

[mimisempai]

I wasn't expecting you 2/5

Chapter Summary - Radiant

Meeting the new barista who works at Nina's, Aziraphale realizes that the Whickber Street gossip was far from accurate. The newcomer is absolutely gorgeous, and Aziraphale forgets all his resolutions about relationships in the face of beautiful golden eyes.

Notes

Aziraphale POV of their first meeting

On Ao3

Rating G -  1702 words

Chap 1 - Chap 2 - Chap 3 - Chap 4 - Chap 5

"Well? How would it look if you were gone for a month!"

Aziraphale had just brought the last box of books into the shop and set it on the floor before turning to Muriel, who had just entered.

He rubbed his hands together and replied, "I must say this trip has been quite satisfying," he looked at the various boxes around him and added, "But it also means a lot of work for the days ahead."

Muriel came in and, after putting their things in a corner, replied, rolling up their sleeves, "But you're not doing it alone, so you'll be fine."

They winked at him and grabbed the first box in front of them before heading to the back of the store.

Aziraphale watched them walk away, thinking that his young friend and now colleague was a godsend. They had a cheerful disposition, despite what life had thrown at them, and Aziraphale found them to be the ideal working partner.

They worked in harmony most of the morning, and after emptying a third box, Aziraphale said to Muriel, "I'm going over to Maggie's to bring her the records I've collected, and on the way back I'm going to stop at the coffee shop! Do you want anything?"

Muriel replied loudly from the back of the store, "A hot chocolate!"

Aziraphale put on his jacket and was about to leave the bookstore when Muriel, who had come up beside him, said, "By the way, Aziraphale, I heard that Nina finally found someone to work with her, and that he lives upstairs from the coffee shop. I haven't met him yet, but everyone else says he's great. Maybe you'll get to meet him."

Aziraphale chuckled, knowing what that meant to his nosy friend, and replied, "Don't worry, I'll tell you all about it when I get back."

"I'm counting on it."

The bookseller chuckled again, for it was so funny how Muriel had quickly learned that gossip was a religion on Whickber Street.

He then left the shop and walked up the street towards Maggie's. However, he hadn't taken ten steps when he was stopped by Mr. Brown, who waved his arms as he approached at a brisk pace. The bookseller braced himself for the first wave of fresh gossip.

"Ah, Aziraphale, you're back!"

The carpet seller leaned toward him and said in a low voice, "There's a newcomer at Nina's. He's quite friendly, but that hair color and those eyes, it's still a bit fishy. You'd better watch out."

Aziraphale smirked and pointed to himself, "If we were to judge people by their appearance on this street, we'd never end." 

Then he showed the records in his hands and added, "Sorry, I'm expected. Have a nice day."

Then, without another thought for the other man, he walked the last few feet to Maggie's shop and entered. Maggie wasn't expecting him, but the excuse had been perfect to cut short the carpet seller's incessant, idle chatter. 

Maggie came over to him, her usual broad smile on her lips, and exclaimed with bright eyes, "Aziraphale, what a pleasure to have you back!" she pointed to the records in the bookseller's hands and continued, "I see you've got some things for me!"

Aziraphale placed the records he'd brought on the counter and watched in amusement as Maggie raved about each one. Then she put them aside in a neat pile and leaned against the counter, saying to him with a conspiratorial expression, "I'm sure you already know that Nina has a new employee."

Aziraphal simply said, "I just met our dear carpet seller."

Maggie chuckled and replied, "I can already imagine what he told you.

"He seemed quite disturbed by the newcomer's hair and eyes."

Maggie rolled her eyes and muttered, "What an idiot. Don't listen to him. Nina is very happy with her new barista and you know how difficult she can be. As for me, I've only met him twice and he's made a good impression on me as well. He seemed a little surprised by the reception he received, I hear he's traveled a lot and it hasn't always been easy for him. Anyway, since your next stop is probably the coffee shop, you'll see for yourself. And who knows..."

She raised her eyebrows suggestively and Aziraphale exclaimed, "Maggie!"

She shrugged and replied, "What? You never know. If you hadn't pushed me to offer Nina some music for her coffee shop, I never would have had the courage to talk to her, so who knows, maybe you'll find your happiness in the coffee shop, too."

Aziraphale shook his head and smiled, amused by his friend's flowery romanticism. He'd long since given up hoping for anything in the way of a love life. Those who didn't find him weird just wanted a one-night stand and weren't interested in knowing more about him, and Aziraphale was no longer inclined to such empty relationships.

Leaving these dark thoughts aside, he chatted with Maggie for a while before heading to the Give Me Coffee or Give Me Death.

Luckily, he didn't meet anyone and didn't have to hear any more about the new addition to the coffee shop. Anyway, a few more meters and he'd see for himself.

As soon as he stepped through the door, Nina greeted him and called out, "Aziraphale! You're back!"

Smiling at the cafe owner's enthusiasm, he replied softly, "Good morning, Nina."

His gaze was immediately drawn to the man next to Nina, who turned to him. If the carpet seller had been at his side, Aziraphale would have asked him if he was crazy. Whether it was the hair or the eyes of Nina's new employee, he was absolutely gorgeous. 

Aziraphale had never seen anything like him. The barista had medium-length red hair tied loosely around his neck and amber eyes, and the only words that came to the bookseller's mind were "warm" and "luminous".

Nina pulled him out of his thoughts.

“Good timing, it's Crowley who'll be taking your order.”

She nudged Crowley with her shoulder, took the dishtowel from his hand and added, “There's no better way to learn the ropes.”

Aziraphale mentally thanked her before noticing the slightly surprised expression that quickly crossed the new barista's face and held out his hand with a smile, "Hello, I'm Aziraphale, the owner of the bookshop across the street. Welcome."

The other man shook his hand and replied, "Crowley, new barista. Nice to meet you."

It was then that Aziraphale realized there was something Mr. Brown and Maggie had forgotten to tell him about the newcomer.

How could they forget to tell him about his smile?

Radiant.

The barista snapped him out of his reverie.

"What can I get you?"

Aziraphale replied immediately, "Two Eccles cakes and a hot chocolate."

"Very well, I'll serve them right away."

Aziraphale followed him with his eyes, thinking the back looked as delicious as the front, when Nina said, "Oh, a hot chocolate? Am I to understand that Muriel is here too?"

"Yes."

Aziraphale saw Nina lean toward Crowley and she said in his ear with a mocking expression, "Muriel is his assistant at the bookshop, if they weren't there he wouldn't be selling anything and the shop would be open at all hours.”

Aziraphale, offended and embarrassed, exclaimed, "Nina!"

As Crowley placed his order on the counter, Aziraphale leaned over and said rather loudly, "Don't pay any attention to what Nina says. I don't want you to think I'm lazy."

Crowley replied, another gorgeous smile on his lips, "I never rely on hearsay to form an opinion about people, so I'll wait until I get to know you better to form my own opinion."

Then he winked at him, and Aziraphale suddenly forgot all his resolutions about relationships and replied almost immediately, “So am I, which is why I look forward to the opportunity to learn more about you.”

At that moment something passed between them, fleeting, but Aziraphale was sure it was there and saw that the other man had sensed it too, but they didn't have time to dwell on it because Nina told them, "Well, that will be possible sooner than you think, my friends."

He saw that the barista looked as confused as he was as Nina continued, "I suggest we all meet tonight at the Dirty Donkey. It will be an opportunity for Crowley to get to know the shopkeepers of Whickber Street better and for us to celebrate Aziraphale's return."

Aziraphale, who hated being the center of attention, exclaimed, "But I've only been gone a week!"

Nina replied, "Aziraphale, you know that any reason is a good reason to have a drink together. So you'll both be joining us?"

Aziraphale saw the other man nod as he replied, " will be there. However, I believe Muriel is spending the evening with their partner, Eric."

Then he turned to Crowley, basking for a split second in the beauty of the barista's golden eyes, and added softly, "See you tonight, Crowley."

"See you tonight. Have a nice day until then."

Aziraphale nodded and headed for the front door with his order. He thought he could feel the barista's eyes following him and had to stop himself from turning to look at him one last time.

When he entered the bookshop and saw that Muriel wasn't in the main room, he went to the back room where he heard them humming. As he passed through the door, they turned to him and immediately grabbed the hot chocolate greedily before asking, "So, how is he?"

But Aziraphale, suddenly transfixed, looked at the wall behind Muriel and said, "Same color as his eyes."

"What?"

Aziraphale pulled himself together and replied, "He's... interesting."

"Is that all?"

"He's rather pleasing to the eye."

"Aaaaand?"

"Nothing."

He saw from Muriel's expression that he was absolutely transparent, but they were too tactful to say anything and knew when to stop. 

They just nodded, and the discussion turned to the books Aziraphale had brought back.

But as they chatted happily over the Eccles cakes, Aziraphale's thoughts couldn't help but drift to the handsome barista with the golden eyes, and he told himself that evening couldn't come soon enough.

_________

Still not beta'd

Still not my native language

Still hoping you'll enjoy this story  🥰

Still thanking you for bearing with me 😝

Ineffable Husbands masterlist : here

[maniculum]

Bestiaryposting Results: Almlaeni

Here are the results for this week's bestiaryposting; as always, anyone who doesn't know what that's about can see all previous posts here: https://maniculum.tumblr.com/bestiaryposting.

This one, I think, really illustrated to me how differently one perceives these entries when one knows what animal is being described. There was a particular detail in this week's entry that I thought was an absolute dead giveaway as to the identity of the animal, but most of the commentary I've seen from the artists indicates that they didn't see it as obvious, which was a relief -- I think the harder it is to guess, the more fun this whole thing is. (Yes, you're not supposed to try and guess it at all, but on the more obvious ones like the Gligglae I see a lot of comments along the lines of "I'm pretty sure I know what this is", so there are indicators whether people know.) It probably helps that it was a longer entry, so there's a lot going on. I just think it's worth noting because of the conversation recently going around regarding what's obvious to the author vs. what's obvious to the reader.

The entry we're working from can be found here:

Art is below the cut in roughly chronological order.

@silverhart-makes-art (link to post here) started with the thought that an example of an animal with strong jaws is an ant. But given the description of manes and fur, this is probably a mammal, so we get an "ant-lion" that they describe as looking "like he should be an alien pet in a sci-fi movie or game", which I think is spot-on. Good design for a weird alien pet. I really like the execution of the "ant's head but mammalian" concept, and the coloring of the mane looks really cool. Some more detail on design decisions can be found in the linked post.

@sweetlyfez (link to post here) does note that she thinks she knows what this animal is -- but, in the spirit of the thing, intentionally avoided drawing that -- so we'll have to see how identifiable it is at the end of this post. She's also provided her own alt text, thanks for that. I find this design really charming -- the blend of porcine and feline makes for a good silhouette in my opinion, the pose looks cool, and the rainbow mane is quite pretty. I particularly like that the tuft of hair the entry says is a love charm is drawn to resemble a heart.

@cheapsweets (link to post here) has drawn a rather frightening-looking beast, here shown nipping its own paw after accidentally stepping on a twig. (They also provided alt text, thank you.) There's a lot of interesting design choices here -- explained in some detail in the linked post, check that out. We can see a stocky, muscular head and chest, showing that this animal has the strength in its jaws and chest mentioned by the entry, paired with kangaroo-like legs and tail to give it the leaping capabilities mentioned. Also, this picture shows an Ethiopian Almlaeni in summer, which is why it is bald except for a bit of fur on its mane and tail. The shining eyes, I think, are what really gives this animal an unsettling appearance.

Cheapsweets also would like to note that they're "on the lookout for some good resources for animal anatomy and musculature", so if anyone has any suggestions, please send those their way!

@pomrania (link to post here) has given us this creature that is very much A Mammal but it's hard to pin down anything more specific than that -- it makes me think of the sort of old engravings that archaeologists just kind of give up on categorizing as specific animals and end up just calling them something like "the [culture/location] Beast". It's kind of feline, kind of equine, and it has what Pomrania (accurately) characterizes as a greyhound-like build. This impression is aided by the pose and the line work -- I don't know, there's just something about it that makes me think "this should be on the wall of an old tomb somewhere." I like the vibe, is what I'm saying. Very good beast.

@coolest-capybara (link to post here) has selected a couple of the elements in the description that stand out and taken them to their most dramatic interpretation. The Almlaeni can jump in such a way that it seems to fly, and it can live on the wind -- what if it has bat-like wings it can glide on? (Someone else noted "live on the wind" as possibly suggesting flight depending on how you interpret the ambiguity of the phrase, but discarded the idea; here we're running with it.) The result is quite a fearsome beast; that face is downright scary. We can also see here sensory organs adapted to hunting at night, and strength concentrated in the front of its body (which probably helps with those wings). And of course the stylization is excellent as always -- the linework is very convincingly medieval and I swear I've seen illuminations with that exact style of starry background. The linked post describes the design decisions in a bit more detail. (Also thank you for providing your own alt text.)

@strixcattus (link to post here) put this up after I drafted the rest of this post, and from the text of their post I think they guessed the nature of the animal, so take all references to it being more difficult to identify than I thought with a grain of salt. They also describe it as "a little freak (affectionate)" which is definitely an accurate description of the creature they've drawn. I really like the combination of different types of animal you can see here. The pose comes from a pretty reasonable interpretation of a couple points in the original entry: they can leap really well, but most of their strength is in the front half of their body. Therefore, obviously, they must use their front legs to jump and to propel themselves for rapid motion. Excellent direction to take that, I think. As usual, I strongly recommend clicking that above link and seeing the details Strixcattus writes up for their beasts.

And now, the Aberdeen Bestiary version.

As you can probably gather from this image, this week's animal is the wolf. And I think it's an interesting peek into the medieval imagination to see how fierce that wolf looks. The shaggy fur, the fangs, the eyes -- it's striking. That looks like a fairy-tale illustrator decided to draw the Big Bad Wolf in such a way as to frighten children. All the best wishes to our heroic little dog up there.

I also like the interestingly-symbolic depiction of the sheepfold: it kind of looks like our sleeping shepherd keeps his flock in a TARDIS. And, of course, look at that lovely Stylized Tree in the background.

So yeah, it was the bit about them sneaking up on sheepfolds that I thought made it Too Obvious that the Almlaeni was a wolf. Glad that didn't turn out to be as much of a tip-off as I thought.

As for the Ethiopian wolves mentioned: damned if I know what they were thinking of. Jackals and African wild dogs can be pretty colorful, so there might be something there, but I wouldn't describe them as having manes. My best guess is that the original animal being described was a black-backed jackal, but it's hard to be sure what, if anything, the grain of truth is here. (There is an animal we call the "Ethiopian wolf", but it looks more like a coyote than anything, so I'm not seeing the "colorful mane" thing.)

The thing about this is that medieval authors were very much ignorant of that part of the world. "Ethiopia" to them was much like "India" -- to the modern ear, those are countries we're aware of with a defined location, and we can go read about them if we want. To medieval Europeans, both were just kind of vague geographical blobs: they knew these places existed because they heard about them from classical sources and/or from trading partners, but there was virtually no direct contact or reliable information. These were distant and mysterious lands to them, and as a result they were willing to believe just about anything regarding what those places were like. (Also, if you see "Ethiopia" in a medieval text, don't necessarily think the region we now call by that name -- it tends to just be an umbrella term for "sub-Saharan Africa".) So, leaping maned wolves? May or may not be based on anything real, and if it was, it's been Telephoned to death by this point.

[itsgonnagetinspiringsoon]

ok so i know i've literally never posted abt sanders sides before on this blog (i haven't been keeping up for a few years) but i've been tumbling down a waterslide lined with my old hyperfixations for the last few hours and ended up creating D&D au character designs for the core four sides using heroforge. images and descriptions under the cut if you're interested ❤ bonus points if you can guess what classes they are (this is EXTREMELY self-indulgent so pls forgive the ranting abt them, they're very important to me ok)

First up we have Roman! my beloved. one of my first questions when starting his design was how can i make him look as cunty as possible? the answer: heeled boots and winged eyeliner (It's a little tricky to see but he's got gold metallic eyeliner). I ADORE Roman's colour pallet so i kept it as close to accurate as i could, making white the base colour and accentuating it with the gold armor and the dramatic red shoulder cape as my stand-in for his sash. he's wielding a katana OF COURSE how could he not be. he's slaying ⚔ 🐉 and slaying 💅💋

moving on:

Patton. my baby, my honey, my ragtime gal. i decided to make his hair a little longer than roman's bc i thought it made him look softer and more approachable. it was UNBELIEVABLY hard to find something that sort of replaced his cardigan without looking too chunky but i did like this kind of loose tattered mantle, so i went with that. kept the sky blue shirt and gray cardigan/shawl, but gave him more greyish blue pants so they didn't blend into the shirt too much. glasses are round instead of square bc again i thought they made him look friendlier than the square ones. freckles bc i personally think freckles are very cute and patton is very cute so he got freckles. no shoes he's travelling the realms like the gods intended. the dad vibes are strong i want him to give me a hug 🥺

next up:

logan is quite possibly my favourite side so i really wanted to get his design right. the MOST important thing was giving him his iconic necktie, which ended up being pretty much the same color as his canon design. i couldn't give the tie specifically a pattern, so i made his vest stripy like his tie is in the show and i think it looks really good. his glasses are the more classic nerd ones which is perfect for him and i gave him black eyeliner bc i thought it made him look more serious. i added the coat for more of a d&d look (it doesn't make sense to traverse planes wearing a vest and tie) i think it gives him an extra bit of style that i love.

and last but not least:

the Anxious BoiTM himself (i've only had him for five minutes seven years but if anything happened to him etc etc). virgil's was one of the easiest designs aesthetically and hardest mechanically (you'll never guess what class he is guys i took some BIG swings). I knew i wanted him in black and purple (obviously) and i knew i wanted to give him the iconic purple hair dye and eyeshadow. i almost said screw the genre and put him in a zippered hoodie but i do think that a cloak and cowl would suit him very well (good for hiding in) and i found a combo that looked equally cosy and spooky. a bow is good for attacking long range and keeping out of danger (appropriate for anxiety, i thought) and the mask looks intimidating but actually helps him with sensory overload (with the cowl and mask on he's basically in a mini sensory deprivation bubble). an eyebrow ring bc he's edgy idk why honestly i thought it looked cool.

So that's basically it! As i said before if you can guess their respective classes i'll give you a cookie (🍪). since i can't draw, heroforge is usually my go-to for character creation and i have to recommend it (i think i talk abt this site a lot but 🤷‍♀️) it's so helpful for non-artist types like myself.

I hope you enjoyed! please leave comments if you liked they feed me (if you didn't like it, please just move on and don't let me know, i'm doing this for fun and i don't want any negativity please ❤) @thatsthat24 hope you like 🥰

[doctor-badadvice]

This man has not updated his wardrobe since 1947

There's already a few posts discussing outfits and symbolism and while I found them very interesting, I'm a person of strong opinions now writing two characters with chess related names. So here's my two cents (or should I say, nickels) about Bishop's appearance throughout the 2003 show and what tells us about the specific moment of his life that's being portrayed. The focus will be mainly on the palette, but also on whatever influences are behind the designs.

So let's get started!

1815 — Battle of New Orleans

Here's the first disclaimer. I know next to nothing about US history past what little school required me to learn and generically speaking, I've never been interested in the nuances of how people come together to kill each other. History classes were far more interesting to me when we talked about society and culture. So take what I'll say with a grain of salt. My military expertise here is a couple Wikipedia pages.

As far as Bishop's uniform goes, I have no idea what's going on. I read that uniforms were supposedly mainly blue with whatever color corresponded to what the unit's duty was, with the exception of musicians who had their colors swapped. If that's true, Bishop here could have been a musician having a not so great day at work. But the field medics later in the flashback are wearing the same color so it's probably just a choice to keep the color palette consistent.

Other than that, the belt would suggest he had some kind of rank. Though I don't think they were trying to be accurate past the bare minimum. I'm not going to guess what Bishop was up to in his mortal days.

Also, a special mention goes to Bishop's facial hair. He must have been popular in his time.

1870 — Creation of EPF

This is where colors start being relevant but first, another disclaimer. I appreciate the work wiki editors do, but it would be nice to have sources to whatever's stated on a given page, especially if you're providing estimated dates. I can't say I disagree, but it'd be nice to know where the information comes from.

So the wiki says that Bishop was supposedly born in 1776. It means that at the time of EPF's foundation he was nearing his hundredth birthday. No wonder he's dressing in all black. The average life expectancy at the time was about 40 years old. It's very possible Bishop had already outlived most, if not everyone he knew and it's probably something one would struggle to come to terms with.

Design wise, turtlenecks were nothing new at the time. Medieval knights wore garments in a similar shape under their armors well before the 15th century. And yes, I guess that's more of a coat than the average tactical turtleneck, but it still gives him a hitman, or even hunter vibe which is more or less what he was up to at the time.

1947 Roswell. New Mexico/present times

I can finally explain the title now. But first, let’s take a step back!

Bishop’s default outfit is the secret agent outfit™ we’re all well accustomed to. Specifically, I think the closest he takes inspiration from is Agent Smith from the Matrix movies (as I previously mentioned here). Guy in a black suit with shades, apparently impeccable self control and a distinctive way of talking that compels you to listen to him.

There’s so much to say about motivations and themes these two share, but let's focus on the aesthetic side.

These two fools are men in black. Yes, like the movies. The whole trope originates from some old conspiracy theories about the US government hiding aliens. These theories date all the way back to 1947 from some guy named Harold Dahl claiming a man in a dark suit told him not to tell anyone about some UFO sightings. Various fellow ufologists made similar claims over the years, making it a staple of their general paranoia.

Because of the second flashback, it’s possible that Bishop himself was one of these men in black, if not the one the rumors started from. It's a funny thought and I feel like Bishop would also find it amusing to watch people lose their minds about his fashion choices for decades.

Color wise, white has been added to the mix. It’s been a while now since the creation of EPF and Bishop has found some kind of balance in his life. He’s still dead set in his hatred for aliens and clearly enjoys inflicting pain on creatures he sees as undeserving of basic human decency, but he now has some purpose other than looking at the sky for something to shoot down. He leads an elite task force with men and funding devoted to developing a proper defense of the planet. He’s a foe not to be underestimated and a formidable fighter who can and will take on multiple opponents. But he’s also a very scared man who doesn’t wish what happened to him on anyone.

I often praise the show because Bishop can survive getting impaled but he still remains human. He will react with sheer violence to aggression and reform his ways when shown kindness. He will happily stick his hands in turtle soup for some DNA, but also be the best man at his friend's wedding and even attempt dressing up for the occasion despite having been deprived of normal human interactions for more than a century.

(I know it's a little cluttered in this point but I can't just leave out Casual Friday Bishop)

Design wise, I like just how an otherwise elegant attire works during the fight scenes and this detail specifically.

This man’s power is stored in the leggy.

Interlude

So this pic above is me right now.

For context, I usually consider the episodes of the staged alien invasion to the outbreak as part of the same arc. The entire situation is absolutely absurd from Bishop dragging the president into his fanfiction in response to budget cuts, to Baxter's bodily misadventures, to Bishop making a deal with a random ghost over the phone while New York is turning into yet another Umbrella Corp mishap.

But anyways we're here to judge this man's fashion taste and we have two outfits to talk about.

First off, a special mention goes to the catsuit and this pose specifically.

The sass is off the charts.

Though I find this one kind of depressing. There isn't a lot to read in it either other than Baxter grabbing the most generic tactical turtleneck for the sake of keeping Bishop from walking around bare chested (and the scene before this pic clearly shows Bishop isn't afraid to show some titty). But seeing him in all black right after moving to a new body kinda points out that Agent Bishop, leader of the EPF, is kinda on par with a piece of military equipment (and the president probably sees him as much to an extent). He's the mold for an army of supersoldiers for crying out loud.

But he switches back to the usual suit afterwards and what matters here is the supersuit.

S3 onward

Imagine being an alien, member of the starfleet of your planet and senior officer of the invading force tasked with taking over Earth. You have trained hard, wargamed the whole operation a bunch of times and concluded that it will be piss easy to conquer this underdeveloped planet.

You reach the surface, get into formation and then this nerd rolls up.

The best way to describe this suit is "hostile". It's hostile to the animators and to whoever has to stare at this eyesore before Bishop shoots at them.

And I love it. There's nothing quite like a black and red suit of armor with various cybernetics and lights to say that you mean business. It goes very well with how the stakes just start steadily rising from this point of the show onwards and seeing as the suit was ready during the staged invasion, we know that Bishop never really planned to retire after unleashing his army of clones.

It adds that extra bit of cyberpunk that I like to see and it shows that Bishop never truly gives up on anything since we have actually seen this design before.

Bishop was so proud of his Slayer he just stuck with him in spirit.

Couple that with a new coat to take off for extra dramatic effect and— maybe the president was right about not trusting him with unlimited budget.

2105 — New York apparently

Another century has passed and Bishop is still alive and kicking. Well, he doesn't kick as much anymore as it would be unbecoming if the beloved president of the Pan-Galactic Alliance were to go around kicking alien butt.

Jokes aside, you can disagree with Bishop's portrayal in Fast Forward, but they were still trying to do something meaningful with him. The idea of the turtles having to work with him when they were trying to kill each other just the other day is surprisingly deep for a season that felt the need to have the most unfunny robobutler ever.

They were clearly attempting a chess joke switching the palette to white with black streaks. Bishop has completely turned his life around and it even shows in the way he presents himself. It's nice to see just how much he managed to accomplish as well, even though it would have been very interesting to see him have a gradual change of mind, rather than selling us the concept through timeskip magic.

Does the design still hold up then?

Well, Bishop is clearly making an effort to look the least intimidating. He is fairly more patient when others don't immediately do as he says, even asking for help rather than blackmailing, and is still commendably dedicated to his job. He still asserts dominance by showing leggy (seriously, Mr President, that slit doesn't have to go this hard) and he's still deep down, at all times, ready to throw hands.

That's Bishop alright and it's no coincidence that he starts running around shooting aliens the second Baxter shows up in his life again. I'm not much of a fan of his new armor though. I think they were going for a futuristic design but it's the blandest they could think of. It reminds me of Obi-Wan Kenobi's armor in The Clone Wars but it just kinda comes out of nowhere. It would have been cooler if his tunic turned into a set of armor kinda like what the turtles got.

In any case, if you really want to see reformed Bishop really shine, you should check out @adenthemage / @violetvulpini 's art. You will not be disappointed.

[cedar-sunshine]

writer intro!

making a real one this time! I'll probably pin this one haha

Me!

My name is Sunny, I use he/they pronouns primarily, and I'm a queer writer. I'm 15, AuDHD, and a little chronically in pain. If you're reading this, tell me to drink water and stop doom scrolling so I can actually write like I want to, please

What I write!

I mostly write fantasy, although it very much ranges from urban to high and all the in betweens. My main WIP, Star, is technically not fantasy, but it IS apocalyptic, which is my second favorite genre. Technically, everything I write has an element of romance or is a romance, but the romance is never the forefront of the plot and is rarely only romantic (aroace romance writer time).

My current WIPs are

Star, a post-apocalyptic queer romance starring Mental Health Boy and Mental Health Boy #2. It's atmospheric and deals with a lot of Things. I like it a lot! It's my main WIP and I have the most done in it, the cast includes Tristan and Orion. I've described it as grumpy x sunshine vs cult and that's still accurate. It's my longest running piece and if u follow me for it I PROMISE I won't abandon it. I haven't done it for years anyways

Science fiction Australia situation! 100 criminals get (consentually) sent to a superhabitable planet to prepare it for a human colony, the trip should take 150 years but something goes wrong and they end up making an emergency landing (read: aimed crash) on a smaller habitable planet leaving only 9 alive of the original 100. And humanity's already forgotten about them after nearly 120 years, so... found family queer bullshit, I think a majority of the characters aren't fully human including 1 squid person with bright colors, weird eyes, transparent skin and very strange hair, 1 robot made of pieces of magnetic metal so small they're basically magnetic fluid, 1 Guy with synthetic parts and a cool tail, 1 mildly mad scientist-esque dude that can only be described as if a person was a seal with maned wolf hardware, lots of microplants around a natural frame who is a hacker and diplomat, a mix between a fossa/civet type thing and a human, and a Guy with cool ears and a non-human genetic disease. Only two people bit don't worry they're cool too (autistic mechanic who likes engineering more than people and space pirate emo boy with a lot of grief and anger at the System, plus some symbiotic friends). Most likely includes a polycule because I can't choose who should be dating who (if you have an opinion, look for my poll a while ago)

[tobyisave]

ask dump #3!

rch

Yes and no! Holetta Baby is a character song for a story I wrote in high school with some friends I've since fallen out of touch with --- because of that (esp. since some of the characters were based on ourselves), and because it's frankly bizarre, I don't know if I'll ever share too much about it.

All you really need to know is that it's from the perspective of a man whose wife flew away as he gradually realizes that she's never coming back. IIRC she was just fleeing for a while because their love was forbidden, hence "Loving you's so good I fear it's wrong." In reality, she got trapped on an island somewhere and he was too heartbroken to consider the possibility that she might need rescuing.

Thank you!!! I really can't overstate how happy I am that Townsend resonates with other people who have intrusive thoughts. It's something I still have trouble talking about but she's been a good outlet for that. Also quite happy that the angst is hitting right ehehe

art

Honestly no, I have so much trouble with that too OTL. Occasionally I use the warp tool on a sketch to help put an interesting line of action before I actually do lineart? I recently started experimenting with drawing in fisheye perspective too, and that definitely shakes things up.

Thank you so much!!

I almost always draw in Procreate (with an iPad + apple pen). I have 2 sets of favorite brushes on there - these are what I usually use:

6B Pencil (found in the "sketching" category). I use this for EVERYTHING from lines to rendering.

Studio Pen ("inking")

Medium Hard Airbrush aka the most generic brush on earth

Inka ("inking")

Spectra ("painting") - annoying because it can alter colors by pressure though

Then I have this set I call 'ink kit' which I use when I want to change things up without actually switching mediums lol

Blackburn ("drawing") - Really thick brush that makes me think a little harder about lines. I also have a duplicate modified to make it a little smoother and smaller & I switch between those two when doing lineart on these pieces

Gesinski Ink ("inking") - one of those pens that's flat so it's really thin or wide depending on the angle

Oil Paint ("painting")

Watercolor ("painting") -- just for coloring stuff in when it doesn't have to be precise

Also these niche uses:

Driven Snow ("elements") for freckles

Nikko Rull ("painting") for skin texture

adamandi

It was just a fairly thick curling iron (curled upwards all over my head) and then a lot of hairspray. If I remember correctly, the first night it was done by our costume designer Hahnji Jang (@/hahnjij on insta!) and then I did it myself the rest of the nights. It was definitely their idea at least - my hair is naturally pretty flat and up til then I assumed Vincent's would be too, lol.

No idea where the bag (or really any of it) is from, sorry. I really liked walking around in his swooshy jacket, and I ended up buying it afterwards. As far as normal people clothes I would actually wear, I really really liked his pants, which I was unfortunately not able to keep.

There actually exists in my mind a completely different "biblically accurate Vincent," which is the Vincent I had been picturing all the way up until the actual performances. I always pictured him with long black hair and freckles, and I considered drawing on freckles for the show because of that.

[somebodysthoughtdaughter]

Vivi-Design EAH Fancast 2.0 (Pt. 1)

So a couple of months ago I made this: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/711008760788877312/eah-fancast-part-1

I fancasted @vivi-designs EAH and I'm pretty sure it was my most viewed post. Anyways I've decided to do a little recast of my fancast. Some of them haven't changed but I tried to make it more accurate to Vivi-Design's EAH and I also tried to fancast more actors as the characters so this recast has a little more knowledge than the other. Anyways, enough talking here's my new fancast.

Part 2: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/735638317217021952/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt2

Part 3: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/739329240523227137/eah-recast-pt3

Part 4: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/739542620483747840/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt4

Part 5: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/739611898471923712/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt5

Morgan Lily as Apple White

She's still a curvier Apple White but I just made her a little younger. I also think Morgan Lily matches the pinterest Vivi-Design's made of Apple White more than my original one.

Abigale Corrigan as Raven Queen

If you haven't watched Harlan Coben's Shelter you def should, it's a great show (so sad it got cancelled). Anyways I think Ema is alot like Raven Queen, like a lot like Raven Queen. Also Abigale Corrigan has that emo vibe that Vivi's Raven has and I'm glad I found a FC that fits that.

Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Briar Beauty

Keeping Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Briar Beauty because I love her and I truly think she'd be a perfect Briar Beauty. I was trying to find someone with brown hair but I don't really think it matters that much and I truly think that if Maitreyi Ramakrishnan was Briar Beauty it'd be 👨‍🍳 💋

Jada Jones as Faybelle Thorne

According to the Google Slides, vivi's Faybelle is Blasian and so is Jada Jones. This picture of her really gave me Faybelle vibes and although she has black hair idc. I feel like this is a good FC for Vivi's Faybelle especially.

Willow Allen as Ashlynn Ella

I really do wish there was more Inuit celebrities in the industry but I stumbled across Willow Allen and I think she's honestly a beautiful Ashlynn Ella. I do like Anna Lambe as Ashlynn Ella aswell but I decided to use her again in Ever After High for another character. Anyways I think Willow Allen would be a great Ashlynn Ella.

Laya DeLeon Hayes as Farrah Goodfairy

I don’t think I can recast her. Everytime I think of Farrah I think of Laya

Tyler DiChiara as Hunter Huntsman

I know him from Gotham Knights (I know it got a lot of hate but it was actually so good) and when watching it I kept thinking how he'd definitely make a good hunter. Bonus point because's he's actually trans and Vivi's hunter is aswell. #TransHunterHuntsman

I've decided to keep my fancast of the Charmings the same. (Sorry the pictures are so small, they looked bigger before posting) So

Leo.wz = Daring

Lance Lim = Dexter

Minnie Mills = Darling

I think this fancast is probably my favorite ones. Even though they don't play the characters as there is no live-action EAH I think that if these people were to play them they'd be amazing. Although Minnie Mills doesn't have the same hair color as Darling, she could lowkey just wear a wig and it'd be fine to me but it's not that big of a deal because it's not like Daring's whole character is the color of her hair.

Briana Roy as Madeline Hatter

At first my recast was going to be Malia Baker but then I found her and I was like "This is my new Maddie Fancast" I still think Malia could play a good Maddie but something about this actor screams Maddie to me. She doesn’t look a lot like the one of Vivi's Pinterest but I totally think she could.

[iolaussharpe-24]

Hypothetically speaking... if I could improve my Wednesday doll, or make another Jenna Ortega character (I'm thinking maybe Astrid Deetz or Tara Carpenter or something.) how could I do it?

Like with everything, I have thoughts.

One thing I've been thinking a lot about is the face sculpt. Yes, even after I went nuts looking for the one I eventually got and am currently using. I saw another sculpt that I really liked, and through that I found another one.

Here's the lineup:

My Froggy Stuff made a Wednesday with this Barbie, Fashionista 188. She cut, dyed, and styled the hair, colored the eyes, darkened the eyeshadow, and added freckles for the likeness and I'm pretty sure I've seen other people use this same doll to do custom Wednesdays.

I made mine with this Pink Passport Barbie. She's not perfect, you could argue that she's not even good, but I did what I could and I'm not posting a picture of her for discussion. Yall have heard my spiel.

However, I recently discovered the Claudette face mold and I really like it, but I don't see one with a skin tone that really matches what I'm going for. The closest I found was the black Holiday Barbie from 2016. The rest with this sculpt I found were either way too dark or way too pale.

I'm gonna start looking for this one (secondhand of course, cause that's how I get the majority of my dolls) but I won't know if she'll work or not until I see her in person. I got the BMR 1959 doll with this face recently, and that's when I noticed it kind of gave me the vibes I've been after even if my doll doesn't.

While looking at the Claudette sculpt, I discovered this one and... I love it. It's like a softer version of the other one, and I think that works really well. It's like the perfect middle ground between the two other sculpts on this post.

So much. But I don't know if she's the right pick either which kind of breaks my heart. This is Barbie Looks number 1 with the Lina face sculpt. The one that I think may be best out of all the ones with the sculpt that I've seen.

I love this sculpt a lot. She's so pretty and I've actually brought it up before because Barbie Looks 19 is one that I've been imagining as a Morticia for my dollhouse.

I think I'd like to use yarn to reroot one of these dolls if I could, because I think that would just be a nice texture and, if this hypothetical doll were going to just be an improved Wednesday, I think yarn fibers would result in really small braids. That's what I gathered from Hextian's Wednesday Addams video anyway.

(Roughly 12:27 if you want to skip straight to it.)

Another reason is that I think it would be easier to style. I've handled material like it before and it stood on end when I moved it before slowly falling flat much later. One of my biggest issues when trying to style doll hair, is that it slides out of whatever I'm trying to do with it before I can get anywhere near finished with it.

I've said before that I like Integrity Toys type bodies because I think that they have some more realistic details than most Barbie bodies while still being poseable (Barbie bodies with some of those details I'm talking about only have the five points.)

Most of those Integrity Toys type bodies are really tall though, and I'm trying to be accurate so... that wouldn't work. Best pick would be a petite Barbie body or maybe a Poppy Parker (but that's really not that small so the petite is preferable). Jenna is only about 5 '1 after all.

But, I want to point out that I love the hands that go with those bodies. They're so much more realistic than Barbie hands are. Even the basic ones. Another note to make is that I'd want to paint the nails. Probably black since so many of Jenna Ortega's movies and shows are really freaking dark. (Wednesday, You, X, Scream, The Babysitter: Killer Queen, etc.) Maybe red.

I'd want to do the lipstick too. Similar to the nails. Though, I will be the first to admit that she doesn't really wear a lot of bold lip colors. They usually look pretty natural.

So... what do you guys think?

[rmhashauthor]

i saw dragon and i immediately ran to your inbox 🏃‍♀️💨

anyways!! what part of TDPC are you the most proud of in terms of lore, and then in terms of dialogue? what makes these things stand out to you?

First I just wanna say that's super awesome of you to come all this way, thank you <3 I'm very new to blogging despite being older than the World Wide Web (seriously) and I appreciate any kind of prompt.

In terms of lore? I could go two ways with this - one way being species-centric and the other being the lore of the universe I'm slowly building around this story and its semi-counterpart STARFISH.

Species-wise, it was a lot of fun thinking about the Drass culture and how their environment influences the way they live. Their home planet is quite cold, so their clothes and food reflect the practical need to stay warm and protect themselves from the elements. I researched what people in Siberia and northern Russia ate, reading up on calorie-rich food like meat, bread, noodles and milk products. I read about Mongolian buuz - meat-filled steamed dumplings - and the diet of researchers in Antarctica. It makes sense that living in a cold climate requires lots of food, and a wealthy culture like the Drassian Empire would have some serious eats. Every culture has its tasty fried things and danger murder sticks.

I looked at SO MANY examples of Mongolian, Inuit and Siberian traditional clothing, reading about waterproof sealskin boots and wearing reindeer pelts with the fur side turned in. Then, once I thought I had a pretty good handle on outerwear I read up on styles from Korea and China, because like food a culture needs its own distinctive wearables. I've always loved looking at clothes from other cultures and I've built a Pinterest "lookbook" for TDPC. I mean, just LOOK at these colors, the fabrics, the luxury, the DRAMA:

Drass LOVE their clothes and jewelry, but the thing they care about most is their hair. Hair is a status thing for Drass - the longer it is, the higher you are socially. And it reflects another aspect of living in a cold climate: cold weather will suck all the moisture from hair, so someone with long hair spends most of their time inside where it's warm and to maintain long hair you need the time and resources to do it. Wealthier Drass can afford the oils and treatments to maintain long hair (like down to their knees long), so it became a visual cue for them to see who has more money.

The lore of the universe is still coming together - the books I'm writing for this "series" all take place in the same physical place, just at different times. I try to think of it like a historical fiction series, referencing real events from the past that you and I know, like the Voyager probes and the Challenger disaster. The older I get the more interest I have in history, and the more I learn about it the more I realize that the damn thing tends to repeat itself! So I take examples from history both ancient and recent, and I think about how I could translate something like, say, the Westward Expansion of the nineteenth century. and how that might look in space. I read a handful of books about ancient Chinese history - the An Lushan Rebellion was really interesting! - and definitely found inspiration in the Tang Dynasty.

I'm not trying to be historically accurate by any means, and I would expect an actual historian to rip me to shreds over this century's traditional footwear vs that era's specific view of socks with sandals, but getting neck-deep in all kinds of history that isn't so Western-centric is a GREAT source of inspiration and exposure to ideas from different times. I think it's worth hunting down books from outside the "major events" you were taught in school, especially those written by the people who lived it. I know it sounds like SO MUCH WORK just to write sci-fi romance, and you may be asking "Why do you do this to yourself, R M Hash? Why do you get SO DEEP into history and science and politics just to write books about banging aliens?" Well I'll tell you why!

Because I can. Because I studied literature and work as a technical administrator, so research is like 85% of my personality and 95% of my skill set. Because learning stuff distracts me from The Horrors and keeps me sharp in my old age. And because it's fun to leave my comfort zone and get into things like a toddler in a bag of Sharpies. And also because no one has really tried to stop me, so I figure why not? Why not write well-researched sci-fi romance and voluntarily drive myself insane with minutiae like the type of buttons some guy wore in the twelfth century because it came up in the year 2234? I have ADHD, I'm autistic, I have an internet connection and I have been formally trained in finding stuff on the internet - I'm gonna build myself a fun little miniverse and populate it with interesting, sexy people who sometimes have tails, claws or other exciting anatomy bits. In here, I am God.

Anyway... Dialogue!

Oh God, if you're still here then you are either reading the only thing you had saved to your phone when you got on the plane or you're REALLY interested. Thanks!

Dialogue is one of those things that I work VERY hard on to get right - I'm dealing with having to switch back and forth between different people when they're talking and when half of the conversation is being held by an alien, I have to get weird with it. One of my cardinal rules with dialogue is 'you can only say HALF of what you want to' and part of that is to help cut how long my sentences are and a good way to keep the story going. This is particularly important with TDPC because Fang and Valen are constantly fighting the urge to confess their feelings, so they keep it all bottled up and instead say things like:

“It means,” Valen rubbed his thumb over her wrist, “that you could travel without me, that you could come and go as you want. You'd have your own private Wardens to guard you, and you wouldn't be confined to the mountain or even Anun – you could go back to Federation space and even live there if that's what you'd prefer.” It hurt to say that, but it was true. With a sheepish smile he added, “Might be nice to get away from me once in a while, right?”

Fang hesitated before she answered. “Um... I guess so...” Her odd expression, lips pressed together as if she wanted to say something but couldn't, made him wonder.

“I'm just trying to plan ahead in case...” Valen looked down at her hand under his, noting how Fang hadn't tried to pull away and not really understanding why. “There's still a chance my father won't cancel the deed, and if we're going to be stuck together I want you to have some kind of escape route. Even if you're still connected to me it'll be in name only. You'd still be a Drassian and have the same protections, but you'd be as close to free as you can get as long as the deed is still intact.” And you'd have the mercy of not being stuck with me day in and day out.

What he REALLY wants to say is "I want to make this easy for you so that when I can set you free, you decide you like being with me more than you like the idea of taking off on your own". He's struggling with his feelings for Fang, but he can't say what he feels because he promised to give Fang her freedom. He's worried that if he tells her he loves her, she'll feel guilty for leaving (because obviously no woman would want to stay with little old him, right?) or she'll be disgusted by him (because he's short and ugly). Not only that, but he's afraid of their 'fake' relationship being exposed because if it is, then his plans to build a mixed colony with Drass and humans will be tanked. So it's REALLY important that he keeps his mouth shut, but he still has to reassure her that everything will be okay so she doesn't resent him. By saying only half of what Valen wants to say, I maintain the tension of the scene and the hope that some day Valen will get his chance to say what he REALLY feels. This comes up OFTEN and even right up to the very last chapter, because I'm terrible and I like to prolong the suffering:

Fang pulled back. It took a moment for the shock to register in her eyes. When it did, her mouth fell partway open with a soft gasp. “You want me to leave?”

“No,” Valen shook his head. “No, I don't want you to leave, but I have to let you leave i-if that's what you choose. I don't have the right to keep you any more, but I won't stop you now that you're free. You can take anything you want, even the house – I'll leave if you want the house, I know you've always wanted your own home – but if you go you can always come back. You'll always have a place here, on Baishin or on Anun, in this house...” He took one of her small, soft, pale hands and held it to the center of his chest, the other he held in his own as he kept her gaze. “Between my hearts.”

(he's saying "between my hearts" because Drass have two hearts - more lore!)

It's fun to push right up to the line with dialogue and get closer and closer to what needs to be said, but it's MORE fun to think of fun and exciting ways to drag out the plot and cause problems. I hate when people do this in real life, but when I have control over who says what, it's way more enjoyable to write and challenge myself to be as difficult as possible. I like being a pain in the ass on paper, and I get endless joy from making people yell at me on the internet for refusing to make imaginary people kiss. Giving everyone on Wattpad the narrative equivalent of blue balls brings me the satisfaction I am refusing to give them!

If you made it this far, holy shit. You should be studied, maybe. Just a couple of years ago I was wondering if anyone would be interested in my peculiar style of rambling, and here we are. I have two completed books, with several more on the way (god I hope so, this is too much fun and I've never had a captive audience before!) I started writing STARFISH out of boredom and spite because I was working as a data entry specialist, and now I'm talking to strangers about the aliens I created specifically so I could daydream about boning them. Strangers on the internet, no less! As someone who actually REMEMBERS the nineties, that feels borderline illegal. But if hemorrhaging words about my thoughts on what it's like to Netflix & Chill with aliens into the aether is wrong, I don't think I want to be right.