#lilianna flores

[londonhalcyon]

Another year later (two years after the initial prompt, oops), I finally finished the last of the Magizoology-specific one shots I had been planning, prompted by @dumpsterhipster and @a-more-delicious-happiness. Here is Part 2 of "In Hot Water," which picks up immediately where Part 1 left off.

As a bonus, here's two photos I took in the Green Swamp, the setting I based this whole ficlet on. Enjoy!

Left: sundew; Right: longleaf pine savanna

* * * *

In Hot Water - Part 2 (Lily)

We realized the sun was going down when the tree trunks adopted a gold halo, their bark darkening against the light. Taking that as a sign to go, I stood up to find the knees of my jeans wet from the damp ground—and that I had been kneeling on a patch of sundew. Tanner’s ribbing at my “involuntary plant-slaughter” (“They’re not dead!” I protested. “Just a little…flatter.”) only increased when I clumsily step-hopped back to the trail to avoid trampling several tiny red-mouthed Venus flytraps. I wasn’t completely successful. 

“You know,” he teased, “it’s generally a good idea not to step on the rare plants.”

I tripped over the air while I tried to hop away from another flytrap. “Maybe if the rare plants weren’t everywhere, I wouldn’t step on them.”

“Aaand this is why we stay on the trail.”

“You took me off the trail! Oh, shut up,” I added when he laughed. 

A red-headed woodpecker flitted overhead, followed by a second one soon after, their black and white wings a sharp contrast against the green and gold savanna. They flap-bounded from slender trunk to slender trunk, pausing for no more than a few seconds at a time before continuing on. Foraging for insects? Or on their way home for the evening?

Distracted, I had to catch myself before I could stumble off the narrow path again. Long grass brushed my fingertips. There were so many little things to look at my brain felt split multiple ways. For once, it wasn’t a bad feeling. I could linger in this quiet plant world for ages—let the softly buzzing spring air wash over me with all its earthiness and gentle humidity.

Tanner halted, an unintelligible burble preceding any coherent words. He pointed towards a thicker patch of brush thirty or so meters in front of us. 

I squinted, expecting another weird salamander or rare plant. “What?”

“I thought I saw a bobcat.”

I immediately refocused. “You’re sure?”

“Tan, furry, big. Could’ve been a coyote. Didn’t move like one though.”

We shut our mouths by unspoken agreement, not moving a muscle as we watched the brush patch. I had never seen a bobcat before, or a coyote, both being North American natives, and a little thrill ran through me at the thought. If there was any way to elevate an already awesome trip even more…

The brush rustled. Tanner had been right—tan fur moved amongst the tangled grass. Slunk, more accurately. The creature’s smooth, near-soundless steps were distinctly cat-like. When he had said “big,” though, I had assumed he had meant big as in relative to a squirrel. Not genuinely big. The cat must have stood a full meter tall at the shoulders, if not taller. Weren’t bobcats this far south supposed to be small? Because of the heat or something?

Those were strong shoulders too, rippling with muscle. As the creature prowled out of the grass, its long tail swished along the ground. 

“That’s not…” Tanner breathed. Not a bobcat. The lack of that particular feature was literally in the name. But there were no other big cats in the region, magical or otherwise. True to Magizoologist form, I had looked up the local large fauna before my flight. The only remaining possibility lived hours to the west, in the mountains. There was no way it could—

Six tawny legs padded out of the grass. Tanner averted his gaze with a restrained curse. A right genius, I stared dead into the wampus cat’s golden eyes. 

The mountain cracked around me. Cracked and then crumbled. Colossal yellow beasts with iron teeth tore through the trees, toppling great pines as easily as twigs. I ran and the earth gave chase. The mud came alive, clinging to my paws, rushing up along my belly, weighing on my pelt. Down the mountain we swept, heavy mud and heavy fur. A deer lay swollen and stiff on the creek bank, the water’s sheen sickeningly acrid on the tongue. 

Miles and days, rain and thirst, heat and hunger. Blinding lights roared in the dark, screaming their rage through an oily scar in the earth. They blasted their heat over my pelt, a warning left in mangled corpses tasting of bitter smoke. In the home that no longer was, thunder shook the mountain’s heart. When I looked back, there was no mountain at all. Only a gaping stone wound baring blunt teeth to a hazy sky. 

Images continued to flash, a cacophony of senses—noises, colors, scents, tastes, aches. Pain, sharp as a coyote’s maw snapped around my leg. Elation, rich as blood filled my mouth. Terror, cold as bark splintered in a burst meant for my heart. Satisfaction, soft as I stretched between the sunshine on my belly and the grass on my back. With each powerful step, each numbered breath, I was fiercely, agonizingly alive. How fragile it all was, a flame to be snuffed out with the slightest exhalation, a heart that could beat so hard it stopped. 

How fragile it all was before the two awkward creatures beneath the pines, their pelts smooth and colorful like bird feathers. Loud, clumsy creatures, too pathetic to hunt for themselves. Real birds fled in their crashing wake. The rodents stayed underground, knowing better than to poke their heads up to get trampled. Dangerous, untrustworthy creatures, smelling of acrid oil and bitter smoke. The prey would not return until long after they were gone. 

Golden eyes flared in shadows cast by dying light. Leave, clumsy pests. Shoo. 

The connection broke like an elastic band stretched too far—severed with a horrendous snap. I gasped with the shock of remembering I had lungs to breathe. My feet scrambled over the ground, not fully underneath me. Tanner’s arms were hooked under my armpits from behind, his hands twisted to grip my shoulders as I found my footing. A tawny blur slunk off into the bushes. 

“I’m okay!” I exclaimed. “I’m okay!”

Tanner kept a hand on my shoulder even after I stood upright. “What’s your name?”

“Lilianna Flores. But it didn’t—”

“Where are we right now? What’s today’s date?”

I shook him off, my head buzzing. “Did you see that?”

“Did I see what the hypnotism cat had to say?” he said, bemused. “No, I was a little distracted by all this.” He waved his hands at me. 

“Not hypnotism. Legilimency. Really really strong Legilimency. I saw us and…and…” I trailed off, at a loss. I could taste the blood in my mouth, still warm. Had that been before or after the end of the world?

“Did it tell you why it’s three hundred miles outside of its home range?”

A gaping stone wound, the heart of a mountain carved out. “Er, I don’t think it has a home range anymore.”

“That’s…not good.” Tanner rubbed his brow. “I’ll send a report to the Wildlife Commission when we get in. It shouldn’t be here.”

“Yeah.” Leave, clumsy pests. “Yeah, that’s probably for the best.”

“Are you good to Apparate? I’d rather not get caught in the dark with a wampus cat on the loose.”

“Right.” I offered him my arm. With a crack, we squeezed through time and space to reappear on a sandy roadside, the slender pines at our backs. A flock of sparrows flushed out over a small pond, whistling their alarm calls. I stared at the empty road, weirdly out of place after so long in the savanna. Back to the real world, I supposed. 

Once we were safely buckled in Tanner’s truck, he started laughing, bracing himself against the steering wheel as full guffaws rose from his belly. “Why is it that every time I go into the field with you, something weird happens?”

I grinned. “I have a way with cats.”

“And dragons. And who knows what else.”

“Remind me to show you the Creature Reserve if you’re ever across the pond.”

“I’ll be sure to take you up on that.”

He turned the key in the ignition, then flicked the headlights on as the engine shuddered to life. Blinding lights roaring in the dark. 

“Does it ever feel like a wasted effort?” I asked abruptly. “What we do? Because sometimes I feel like we’re just documenting the apocalypse.”

He snorted. “Every day. It’s exhausting. Though I don’t know about wasted. It would be a whole lot worse if we didn’t try, right?”

“I guess that’s right.”

“Besides, who else gets to see a boiling salamander and a six-legged cat in one day? Don’t tell me you’re getting tired of it already?”

“No,” I chuckled. “No, you’re right. Forget I said anything.”

The truck pulled out onto the road as golden hour began to fade. Amidst the aftertaste of oil and smoke, sunshine lingered in the grass. 

[a-more-delicious-happiness]

@londonhalcyon if Merula and Lily were in the DC universe? (Granted not nearly enough green and silver).

Frankly, it's all I see 🥰

[kansascityhappenings]

Community holds walk as it mourns KCK mass shooting victims, calling for end to gun violence

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Hundreds of community members came together Monday night to show their support for the families of the victims of Sunday’s shooting at a KCK bar.

Police shut down Central Avenue from 13th to 10th streets, as some 200 people marched down Central holding lit candles and calling for an end to gun violence, while also paying respect to the four men who were shot and killed.

Lilianna Dillanuva was childhood friends with Everado Meza, one of the victims.

“He was such a good guy with a caring heart, always with a big smile and great laugh he had,” she said.

She was among the grieving family and friends, community leaders and people – just wanting to show their support – who attended the vigil.

“Why can’t we just have peace. This neighborhood is peaceful,” she said.

“When one hurts, all of us hurt,” said Reginald Jones, who lives nearby. “I want them to know it’s not one nationality, it’s all of us. Caucasian, blacks, Hispanics, everybody should come together and support one another.”

The Central Avenue Betterment Association (CABA) organized the walk to honor the four victims and to also send a message that the shooting does not define their neighborhood.

“The reality is that we have been working hard to better the security and safety of our community and it’s not one person’s job. It’s everybody’s,” said Edgar Galicia, president of CABA.

Unified Government commissioner Brian McKiernan echoed Galicia’s message.

“Let me tell you what I know about this neighborhood,” McKiernan told the crowd. “This is a good neighborhood that is full of good people who work hard every single day of their lives to make life better for themselves, their families and the community.”

Jorge Flores used to be a police officer. He championed his community to work with law enforcement so they can arrest the second suspect, Hugo Villanueva Morales, who remained on the run as of Monday night.

“This is not a time for them to be afraid,” Flores said. This is a time for our community to really come together and work together in order to bring justice not only for the family but the entire community

It was a night filled with neighbors calling for an end to gun violence while also lending a shoulder to the grieving families of those lost.

“It’s very important for them to feel part of the community,” Galicia said.

from FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports https://fox4kc.com/2019/10/07/community-holds-walk-as-it-mourns-kck-mass-shooting-victims-calling-for-end-to-gun-violence/

from Kansas City Happenings https://kansascityhappenings.wordpress.com/2019/10/08/community-holds-walk-as-it-mourns-kck-mass-shooting-victims-calling-for-end-to-gun-violence/

[londonhalcyon]

Oh my god. Look at my girls! Look at them!

Dude, you’re so awesome.

The Mad Witch. Ch. 28 "Compromises"

Small drawing of one of my favourite scenes from @londonhalcyon latest chapters of The Mad Witch!

Literally loving the story SO much!

[korpusstudio]

By Alvaro Flores @alvaroflorestattooer finished sleeve for Lilianna. (at Korpus Tattoo)

[londonhalcyon]

Tiny Chapter 43 progress snip.

* * * *

“Is Conall coming?”

“I asked him not to,” Penny said.

“Everything all right?”

“We’re fine. It just seems safer not to risk a big event like this, now that we don’t know what will happen.” She paused. “Does that make sense, or am I crazy?”

“No. No, you’re right. Tonight’s a risk.”

“I’m happy for Bill and Fleur. I truly am. They’ve been planning this forever. Everyone needs a bit of fun right now. Then why don’t I…?”

“You’re not excited either.”

She looked distressed. “I really feel crazy.”

Penny not being excited about a wedding was crazy. She was a party planning fiend. A self-made socialite, if there was such a thing. She thrived on events like these. But we weren’t exactly living in normal times.

“You can join Merula and me in the introvert corner,” I offered.

It was a deliberate provocation. If Penny was actually Penny, she would brush me off with the declaration that she wasn’t that crazy. Didn’t I know she had a social butterfly reputation to uphold? But instead she looked more distressed.

“Can we talk?” she asked.

“Are we not?”

“You know what I mean.”

So it was like that then. I pulled back a dining table chair for her. Only after she was situated and not giving the impression of wanting to take flight did I take the opposite seat.

[londonhalcyon]

And it’s pride month! We’ve done the “Who initiates the first kiss?” poll. Now how about

[londonhalcyon]

More slow going progress from Chapter 42. Here’s some familiar faces—and the calm before the storm.

* * * *

I had made the call I had promised Mason the week before, to no avail. Getting, or getting around, the right paperwork on such short notice, particularly for an island country with a valid reason to dislike uninvited critters, would have risked drawing too much attention from Magical Customs—and by extension the Ministry. Attention by the government—any government was the very last thing Mason needed, as I relayed to him over the Cauldron’s rarely used telephone. He had been surprisingly chipper about it. Not to worry, he’d told me. He had a better idea. One of his sisters had shouted for him in the background before he could explain what he meant.

Now Mason was two oceans away, and I had a bowtruckle in my tea. Needless to say, I had figured it out.

“I told you not to let him swing from the light,” Kathy scolded as she vanished the spilled tea from my robes.

Sam accepted the waterlogged Samuel from my hands. “He was on my shoulder two seconds ago!”

I had no comment; I was laughing too hard.

Both witches were notably calmer than they had been at the funeral, as was Robin, who was present for my second visit. Kathy and his new guardian had apparently arranged for him to visit weekly, partially so Robin could see his aunt more often, mostly so he and Sam wouldn’t be alone over the summer. I was relieved. So was Kathy.

At one point, when Sam and Robin had gone out to pick up groceries for dinner, Kathy said about his guardian, “He’s not a bad chap, but I think he’s in over his head. He came across a bit too eager when I offered to let Robin stay over.”

“At least he’s trying?” I said.

“He is. He calls sometimes, to ask for advice. I can relate, if I’m honest.” She was perched on the kitchen counter, a fresh cup of (bowtruckle-less) tea in hand. She watched the steam rise, fogging up the edges of her glasses. “Better me than an Auror, I suppose. But I’m starting to worry.”

“For Robin?”

“For all of them.” She set her cup down. “I quit my job at the pub. The Muggles there don’t need a witch among them. We’ll be all right,” she added, before I could say what I was thinking. “We can pull from the rainy day fund for a while. It’s safer for everyone this way.”

Familiar words. “If you need anything…”

“We’ll be all right,” she repeated.

I leaned back against the counter. The flat was a little smaller than the Cauldron’s, and messier. Dishes crowded the sink, the water quite turbid. A pile of mail sat on a side table by the sofa, opened but not dealt with. I crossed my ankles; crumbs scattered around my feet.

Star-shaped paper lanterns had been strung along the walls, their feeble glow struggling to make up for the room’s single window. Non-magical, by the looks of them. There was a telly by the sofa too, a haphazard stack of tapes by its side, which was a rarity in any wizard home. Not counting Muggle-borns, it wasn’t often I came across a witch or wizard who could comfortably set foot in both worlds. Even I struggled with it more than I cared to admit. These days, it was only getting worse.

“You look tired,” I said. Again.

Kathy grimaced. “Ministry business. Mr. Thicknesse…the way he’s been acting lately… Well, I’m not sure I should say.”

“Everything all right?”

“No, but it’s not like it’s not all right either. Or not not? It’s fine.”

Also familiar words. “I can bring you more potions,” I offered. “Or Rosmerta’s cooking.”

“Ha! I might just take you up on that.”

Sam and Robin stampeded into the kitchen with the groceries a short time later, just as I was getting ready to leave—to their dismay.

“You’re still going to stay in Hogsmeade, right?” Robin asked. “You’ll be there when we return to school?”

“For as long as I can,” I said.

Sam looked startled. “What?”

“I’m not planning on going anywhere,” I amended. Not yet.

Kathy became unusually interested in her near empty teacup. I hadn’t said those last two words aloud, but it didn’t matter.

I twisted the silver ring around my finger. Some things were better left unsaid.

[londonhalcyon]

Writing has not been happening the past few weeks (the non-academic kind at least), so here’s an unedited snippet of Chapter 42 to tide you guys over. Enjoy the little sneak peek.

* * * *

On the afternoon of the 27th, Penny came with me to prep the thestrals. I hadn’t asked her to. She had volunteered, even after I had told her how long the flight would be. Each further attempt to deter her earned me a glare, but I still had to try one last time as we walked into the forest.

“We don’t both have to fly,” I said. “I can have Tenebrous follow me. We can meet you and Kingsley there.”

“It’ll be faster if I take him,” Penny said tersely.

“By a few minutes, maybe. It’s a two-hour flight, bareback. It’s not going to be fun.”

“I want to help. But since it’s obvious you don’t want me there—”

“I never said that.”

“Then stop arguing with me. I’m coming with you. That’s final.”

“I just don’t want you to put yourself under any unnecessary stress,” I said. She was afraid of heights for Merlin’s sake.

Penny tapped a finger to her chin. “Hmm, where have I heard that before?”

I rolled my eyes. “Point taken.”

We stopped a few meters into the trees, near where I had first taken the trio hunting for potion ingredients. A flat, grassy field stretched out at our backs. The perfect takeoff point.

Bringing my fingers to my lips, I gave a loud three-note whistle. The bushes rustled, and Nyx promptly trotted out of the shadows, her identifying scar visible on her flank. A younger male thestral trotted after her. Good, Hagrid had already sent them our way.

I levitated two dead birds out of my bag, which I flicked towards them. Each thestral caught the offering in its beak-like mouth with a disturbing crunch.

“Are you afraid I’ll freeze?” Penny asked. “When it matters, I mean.”

“I watched you stare down a werewolf last year,” I said. “You know it’s not that. I’m going to worry no matter what.”

“Tough luck, love.” But she said it with a smile.

I gave an exaggerated sigh. “I know.”

She lightly elbowed me. “Do we have everything we need?”

“I think so. Here, one second…”

I handed her half the gear in my bag: gloves, flight goggles, and a full face balaclava. No hoods. Certain things like “peripheral vision” and “not being mistaken for a Death Eater” seemed important.

I donned the same items myself, pulling the balaclava over my head until only my eyes and the bridge of my nose were exposed—then only the bridge of my nose after I added the goggles. We looked like we were on our way to rob a store, but anonymity was key. Plus, it was going to be frigid and dry in the air at that altitude, and I had no interest in going blind if my contacts dried out in the next two hours.

Penny held out her arms. “How do I look?”

Unrecognizable, if I hadn’t been close enough to see her eyes through her goggles. With her face covered and her hair completely tucked away, it would be impossible to tell who she was at a distance.

“Gray,” I said.

“How boring.”

“Like a shadow,” I amended.

“Better.”

We wore dark gray dueling robes, which were form-fitting enough that they wouldn’t get in the way, but just fluttery enough to make a more difficult target. The idea was that, in moments when there was at least a little light, the gray would blend in with the shadows better than pitch black. That was perhaps the paranoia talking by this point, especially when we had Disillusionment Charms at our disposal, but overkill was better than the alternative.

It would be fine. With luck, everything would go according to plan, and we wouldn’t even have to fight. The Death Eaters wouldn’t realize we had moved the date until it was too late, and by then, everyone would already be safe at the Burrow.

I tangled my hands in Nyx’s mane to hold them steady. I ignored the distant roaring in my ears. “Ready?”

Penny grabbed hold of Tenebrous. “Mind giving me a leg up?”

I gave her a boost. In the next minute, we were both on our thestrals, ready at the edge of the field.

[londonhalcyon]

Chapter Update

Happy belated Valentine's Day! I survived faculty reviews, so oh boy do I have a treat for you: two new chapters.

Okay, so the second of those two chapters is only like 400 words, but they are 400 words that have been sitting in my drive since March 2021, so they are extra special words to me.

So without further ado, here they are:

Chapter 40: La casa de las Flores

Chapter 41: Small Eternity

And obligatory chapter preview below.

* * * *

Chapter 40: La casa de las Flores

“I want you to meet my parents.”

Merula, to her credit, could have taken this request a lot worse. She didn’t react right away. She remained where she lay on my bed, petting the cat that was purring on her chest. Slowly, eyes on the starry ceiling, her fingers fell still. Pip chirped. 

“Sorry, come again?” she said. “‘Cause it sounded like you just asked me something completely mad.”

I rolled onto my side. “My birthday is next week.”

“Right.”

“My parents want to have me over for dinner. I told them yes.”

“Following you so far.”

“I want you to come with me.”

“And that’s where you lose me.”

I exhaled heavily. “Jacob’s preparing to move my parents to a safe house. Depending how our little operation goes, this may be the last time I get to see them for who knows how long. I don’t want to waste it.”

“I’m not stopping you.”

“I want you there too. It’s my birthday. I want to be around all my closest family for my birthday.” Almost all. 

She was quiet for a moment. Pip headbutted her chin until Merula resumed petting her. “Do they know about us?”

I said, “I’ll tell them ahead of time.”

This statement obviously did not fill her with confidence. Warily, she asked, “And do they know, er, how we were? In school.”

“I didn’t exactly keep it from them, yes.” I had kept a lot of secrets from my parents while I was in school—still did—but, compared to curses and cults, a childhood bully had been mundane enough to not be one of them. “They know you’ve changed. They won’t judge—not based on anything you did a decade ago.”

“You talk about me with them?”

“Not often. I don’t go telling them every detail of your life or anything. They get curious about any of my friends.”

She took a measured breath: one long inhale, one long exhale. Pip resumed purring on her chest. “You said they’re okay?”

“They’re okay,” I assured her. “If they hate you, it won’t be because you’re gay.”

“Thanks,” she said dryly. “How reassuring.”

I cosied up to her to plant a kiss on her temple—then down on her cheek—then lower on her jaw. She angled her head to meet my lips, tangling her fingers in my hair as she did. Teasing, I caught her lower lip gently between my teeth, sliding a hand down her thigh towards—

“Mrrroooowww!”

Left unattended, Pip yowled in complaint. I rolled over, cackling into my pillow, while Merula exclaimed, “All right! All right! Blimey, don’t get your tail in a knot, princess.”

“We have a chaperone,” I said.

“It’s a completely chaste relationship,” Merula told my cat. “Hands above the waist at all times, no sex before marriage, I bring her home before curfew, that sort of thing. I swear it on my mother’s wand. We’re as innocent as school girls…who occasionally, lightly, snog.”

“You’re so full of it.”

Pip didn’t care. She had twisted onto her back, purring up a storm now that she had Merula’s attention again. Merula asked, “How do you sleep?”

“Wait until she starts running around the room in the wee hours.”

“Fun.” She booped Pip’s nose. Pip lightly batted her hand. Merula sighed dramatically. “So your parents, huh?”

“Yep.”

She groaned, also dramatically. “Fine, I’ll do it.”

I kissed her cheek. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah…”

[londonhalcyon]

Essentially Rosa in Chapter 40

Rosa: It is not your responsibility to try to fix Merula, understand?

Lily: Mum!

Rosa: I’m going to make it mine instead.

Lily:

Lily: What

[londonhalcyon]

Haven’t drawn in years, but lately I’ve been wanting to give digital art a try. Soo ofc I had to try drawing Merula and Lily giving each other the comfort they desperately need. Hope you like it :)

Congrats on 24k hits, you deserve it!!

ps:I know life can get hectic, but pls make sure you take care of yourself <3

LOOK AT THEM!!

They’re gorgeous. This is so sweet and tender.

Thank you so much!!

[londonhalcyon]

For the prompt: something very adhd with Lily? I saw in the tags that you mentioned her having it.

This prompt has been sitting in my inbox for two years, and I keep waiting for inspiration to strike and it never does. I think that might be for a few reasons.

I can’t find the original post, but I think at one point I half-joked about Lily having undiagnosed ADHD. Half a joke because I didn’t intentionally write her with it, but all my immediate family and friends, myself included, are some flavor of neurodivergent, which tends to slip through in my writing. With some characters this is more intentional than others, but never in a “you have this condition so you must embody these symptoms” kind of way. I just kind of write them as…them.

I wrote Lily as someone who is always in motion. Her brain is always going at a million miles a minute, and she’s always fidgeting with things—gripping her necklace, shredding an orange peel, picking at the grass, etc. She is also absolutely the kind of person who would forget where something is the second it leaves her sight (but she can summon objects, so that’s kind of a nonissue) and who would cover her desk in sticky note reminders. I didn’t intentionally have a diagnosis in mind when I wrote her like this.

ADHD can affect different people in different ways, with some people being affected by certain aspects of it more than others. I don’t think I could deliberately write a “very ADHD” scene without falling back on stereotypes to meet a checklist of symptoms. Did I accidentally give Lily some of my own ADHD traits? Sure. Would she get diagnosed with it if tested? Maybe, maybe not. She’s Lily, and to see Lily being Lily… *gestures vaguely at The Mad Witch*

[londonhalcyon]

this is massively overdue BUT is the reason i asked abt younger lily :3c i hope u like it!

[submission by @lostgaytestsubject]

[londonhalcyon]

*head to toe in a butler get-up*

Your fanart, your majesty

Merry Christmas <3

I hope you had a wonderful year, cause you absolutely deserve it. Don't overwhelm yourself, because you are amazing and deserve a break. Wishing you good fortune for 2024 <3

OOOOHHHH LOOK AT HER!!!

It's the dress! You drew the dress! It's gorgeous!

Merry belated Christmas!

[londonhalcyon]

I’ve been stuck in a week-long intensive course for eight hours each day, so while no writing has been happening, here’s a thought exercise for you:

If you could pick a musical motif or theme for a character—mine, your own, someone else’s—what would it be?

For Lily, I imagine something along the lines of “Southampton” from her playlist. Something with melancholy strings but also with a more whimsical sounding wind instrument woven in there.

In contrast, for a character like Ros, I imagine a more Southern Gothic vibe, like Coyote Kid’s “Trigger Finger.” Something for a deep brass section and either an electric guitar or a bass.

On a related note (pun intended), some HPHM characters already have their own themes. Jacob’s theme is that sad violin song that plays every time something tragic happens (*cough*Rowan*cough*). Merula’s theme, which I think plays sometime close to the beginning of the game, involves a lot of pompous, angry brass. I have those songs saved on a hard drive somewhere. I’ll have to remember to share them when I get a chance.