#really like how the first doodle came out too :D

[apavlovs]

6b pencil brush my beloved

[tyquu]

Ah I remember my question now!! Since Ezra is a growing boy, how does that impact his prosthetic use? I'm assuming they can't just go get him refitted like normal... do they help him resize? Do they build new parts? Or help him find some?

Hiii!! :D) So I doodled out my thoughts as I pondered this question but my handwriting is ass so… I’m also gonna write a little summary too!

Ezra's first Prosthetic was given to him by the same people who performed the amputation on his leg in the first place. Some concerned Lothali citizens who couldn't bare to watch him hop around on his severely infected leg any longer. 12 year old Ezra was pretty pissed about it though (understandably). It didn't help that his first prosthetic was old as balls and awful to walk on.

Thankfully, using bits n bobs he'd collected out on the streets, Ezra was able to tighten the loose hinges at the joints and modify the top to fit better. Alas, he ended up loosing this leg after bopping Kallus over the head with it pretty early on into joining the spectres.

Hera set him up with a pair of crutches and then devoted herself to finding him a replacement. She was determined to find something that was better than his last prosthetic and thought she'd struck gold when she figured out Vizago had one sitting in storage. She haggled hard but eventually managed to pocket the rarity, and delivered it back to Ezra. Sabine helped modify it fit to properly, and to Ezra's delight he discovered that the hinges on this leg were motion activated, and could pack an even better punch (or kick) than his previous one.

Ezra hadn't really manage to curb his habit of using his leg as a weapon on occasion, and during such an incident ended up losing leg 2 (much to Hera's despair). Thankfully, Sabine had helped Ezra do enough maintenance on his last two legs that she was confident she could fix up some similar prototypes using her engineering skills. The spectres all contributed to a scrap box that would be used to build replacement legs whenever Ezra ended up losing or outgrowing one. All of them were very dedicated to scouting out parts for him and happy to help with maintenance.

At some point the rebellion had gotten large enough to start having a more organised healthcare system, and Ezra was offered a spot on the surgery waitlist for cybernetics. Ezra was initially hesitant, however, post the incident on Malachor he eventually agreed.

The cybernetic, although not the most advanced for it's time, is connected to his nerves giving him full mobility over the prosthetic. However, it came with it's own new quirks that took some getting used to. Detaching and Reattaching the cybernetic takes between 2-5 minutes to do, and often requires tools to help, rendering it no longer an option as a spontaneous mid battle weapon. As a result there was no longer need for him to cut holes in the left leg of his trousers either.

Ezra doesn't sleep with the cybernetic (same as one wouldn't with a prosthetic) cause it would be hella uncomfortable. On lazy days, he often goes without it, opting to use crutches around base instead. The cybernetic is waterproof, however, in both snow and sand it can sometimes become clogged and stiff, and may need extra maintenance after the mission is complete. The ghost crew is always willing to help pitch in with their engineering expertise (mainly Hera, Sabine and Chopper) or spare part gathering.

Anywho,,, yeah. I hope that sort of answers that question?? I'm not 100% familiar with how prosthetics and cybernetics work in the Star Wars universe so forgive me if some of this info doesn't check out. ( also if u see a spelling mistake,,, no u don't)

[aleeyenn]

TALK POST FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FOREVER!!! hi guys!!!

art has been So hard for the past few months… like way harder than ever… the only art i do is for school at this point :[ i barely even doodle!!! it makes me really sad……. i think a lot of it has to do with my mental state. keeping it reaaall i’m currently in one of the worst emotional points in my life and have been for a while but Ugh!.. it’s gonna be okay in the end… aside from that i think it’s also art class that’s made it all so hard …

for those who don’t know, i’ve been in special art schools since 6th grade, like, schools you have to audition to be in… it’s been great!!! i love(d) meeting likeminded people and being able to relate to each other in a bunch of different ways!! i’ve made SO many friends and so many good memories!!! i’m now in my senior year of high school, half way through… it’s the final stretch for realsies! and i’m reflecting on how the art programs have made me feel about art….

there are SO many benefits that came with the programs minus meeting new people… my art wouldn’t be at the point it is at now without the lessons and expertise and critiques i’ve received from my teachers. i’m grateful i was even accepted into those classes in the first place!!!!!

the main gripe i have with everything tho is how CRAZY it kills your creative flow and enjoyment for art in general… i don’t necessarily blame my teachers, they’re just doing what they’re taught! but i feel like what they’re teaching is wrong in lots of ways…

they put mindsets on students that just… don’t make sense? “art block isn’t real! just draw!” art block isnt just not being able to draw… “every piece you make should be better than your last!” you shouldn’t have to constantly try to one-up yourself!

it’s just all these standards left and right that you have to meet to “be successful” and for your art to be “good”. all of my art classmates and even from the grades below me agree that it’s certainly not the best!!! i can see why everything is the way it is, it’s for improvement and building skill, but i think it’s more damaging than helpful…

i’m SO nitpicky about my art. it’s hard for me to feel proud of things anymore because there’s Always something wrong with what i’m doing… and the way you have to compare yourself and your creations to other people as a grade to begin with is UGH! it’s just teaching students to be SO hard on themselves when art is literally just creating something!!!

the way your art looks shouldn’t determine your value, success, or even worth. art should be FUN!!! it’s a visual extension of yourself. it’s meant to be created with any intention in mind… it’s a reflection of YOU. it’s YOUR unique touch… it shouldn’t have to fit in any criteria!!! you should do what makes you happy!!!

art school can be a blessing but also such a buzzkill… i enjoyed it a lot but it also broke a part of me and it’s really unfortunate… i hope one day i will be able to reverse all those mindsets and relearn my love for drawing. i miss it so so so much…

my lesson to you guys is to not stop… do what makes YOU happy. don’t do things just to look good to others, try to impress YOURSELF. or don’t! just create! because your art is YOU. treat it nicely and don’t ever lose it!!! you can do ANYTHING! you can MAKE anything! if you really think about it, everything’s possible!!!

i think i would word everything better if i was on a stage with a microphone… i think i missed a lot of points too but i hope you all can get the gist of my perspective…

all i know is that i’m not going to be doing any professional art stuff in the future… it suits me better as a hobby!!! i want to be a nurse instead!

no more art school ranting… despite my poor mental health right now, things haven’t been all that bad!!! i hang out with my friends a lot and that’s made everything so much better! i love my friends!!! i love playing games with them and talking with them and going places with them SOOO MUCH!i also have a super amazing partner now too!!!!! they’re the best partner i could ever ask for!!! fun fact, over summer they watched bfdi to get closer with me when we went back to school ISNT THAT SO SWEET AAHHH also our nails are currently painted fireafy colors!!! we are matching!!! so cute… i appreciate them indulging me whenever they can HEHEHEHEEE

anyways i think i’m done talking now…. i’ve said my piece! i haven’t been active for a while So this is catch up time!!! ok bye!!! do something that makes you happy today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! or tonight!!!!!!!! or afternoon!!!!!!!!!!

[coquexari]

Is it alright if you talk/ramble about your god designs?? :3 I’d love to learn about your thought process about them!!! :D

HI, YES, WILL DO :D!!! Okay, so, fun little thing, athena wont be here because I WILL be redesigning her, but not too much, just to basically match with Zeus a little more [favorite child moment.] For the most part, I basically try to put the branches that stem from the concepts of what they're a god of, like god of thunder and god of the seas, with both Zeus and Poseidon having elements of their environment. With Zeus' cloud hair and fluff, and his thunder like marbling on his skin, and Poseidon's water arms and fish features [the fins and black scales] Zeus' design wasnt as simple to think about as I thought, for the most part I kind of just dont put that much thought into it and think about it AS I go, I try to implement the leaves in other ways like his horns, and the MAIN thought in designing zeus is how much of a drama queen that he was that he'd want to make himself look more different than everyone else, my thoughts are pretty scrambled because i don't exactly know how to explain my thoughts in a linear pattern so im sorry if it cant be understood, basically just had idea after idea WHILE i was making him, his hair basically turns into his tail in the same design that Hermes has, just fluffier, AND his chest is charred/marbled with lightning coming from the center because power is where his heart lies. I wanted him to EMBODY, cockiness, king of gods energy, while also thinking it'd be funny that other than aphrodite he's the one with the most skin shown..just because. Poseidon's design was in similar existence with Zeus, but where Zeus was as big and puffy as his clouds, I wanted poseidon to be as sleek as water, his hair had to be waves that melded into the seas whenever he was in his element, and when he wasnt, his hair would flow to the floor giving the look you usually see in water breathing from demon slayer [image below] His hair flows in the same sense, while keeping its form for the most part.

Hermes! well, he kinda just came to me while I was doodling him, ngl I had to pull out google to figure out what hermes looked like the first time to get more than one idea, and decided that it'd be fun to make him more of a mysterious trickster of a mailman that is alot more threatening than he's let on, giving him a more 'biblically accurate angel' look with all the eyes came from the idea of him being a messenger and being able to go anywhere as quickly as he does, you'd never really know when he was or wasn't watching. I thought I'd just implement that more into his design, ALSO incorporate some spirity ghostly things mostly on his cape, just to make his role of guiding souls a bit more shown :3 APHRODITEEE Was simple, but a really fun thought, as the goddess of beauty and allat I wanted her to basically be as customizable as possible, marbling vitiligo with white hair, a canvas capable of change. She's able to mold herself as whoever you want her to be, and whoever she wants herself to be, but her main look is a dull pink with marbling vitiligo and hair so white you'd get blinded looking at her, I also added a bit to the dove look with her hair, making it look and flow like feathers whenever she moves.

Basically, again, all of my ideas usually stem from the concepts and branches of their titles, and my want to just make them all silly and pretty, i havent designed others yet but I hope this answers it! :D!

[riinkun-art-stuff]

Howdy ho! I'm very excited to finally be able to share this illustration I worked on as part of this year's @bumblebybigbang for @tahnex's lovely and super fun fic (with no pain attached whatsoever), "Of Dragons and Panthers," which you can read here! As soon as I read the original notes on it this scene captured me so much I had to do something dramatic for it. It's been such a pleasure watching the whole collab come together, tysm for having me!

First time joining an event like this, and I'd love to again if the opportunity comes around hehe. Still a few postings to go on this one, the pieces before us this year have knocked it out of the park and I'm super excited to see the rest once they come around!

Made a few process cuts just for fun, which I left under the cut!

I did do a few sketches roughly before I started out, especially based on other parts of the chapter, but this particular composition was so fixed in my mind that I ended up just sticking with it. In retrospect, I would've loved to go back and do some more thorough exploration for it. Here are a few of the sketches I managed to fish back up:

I also was thinking of trying a few other doodles/another big piece, but ended up not really having the time between other obligations :')

And the sketch I finally settled on:

Inking was SUCH a fun process on this piece in particular. I'm a huge fan of how dragon!Yang's mane turned out, especially, and all the detailing on the head and around Blake's fur and such. Feel like I'm really satisfied w the particular way the line weight variations came out, and it's where the piece shines the most imo.

Panther!Blake, too. Oh gosh. I feel like it took me a lot of reworking to get her structure to a point where she felt very leopard-like, rather than any other type of big cat- especially around the head.

Colours were such a challenging part. There was a big feeling I had for that glow coming off dragon!Yang in the middle of the heavy rain- I love seeing that sort of effect in real life so that's something I'm really hoping to work to capture better as I practice. Trying to get dragon!Yang's slight iridescence in there and to balance out the lighting on panther!Blake's fur each took a long time, too- I'm only a pinch sad that a good chunk of it is covered by other lighting effects XD

Blake's rosettes were SO fun. Augguhugg.

In terms of backgrounds. HOO boy I was going through a strange patch in life while working on the background and final polish for this piece, which is why (at least I feel like) it looks kinda rushed. I have been practicing natural landscapes and doing some observational studies but still struggling to get those rock shapes quite right, which I think is a big make or break point of something like this. I did really enjoy toying around with inking on the foliage and foreground layers of the ground, though! And in the end, lighting and effects ended up masking a lot of the big weak spots :D

I think natural effects like smoke/steam, and rain, are big things that I got to practice more of in this piece, but also really would like to get better at in future. Esp since I feel like it's been a great opportunity to mess around with different colours and brushes that I use way less, which I'm always grateful for w painting. I think just layering the rain on its own ended up being about 10 odd layers?

I think the only other thing I would have loved to improve is to just help the piece feel more Bumbleby™ in the final look. I think I like the cool colours of the lighting for this particular outcome, but I also would have probably tried to have made things much clearer (ahem at the very least switch to yellow/purple) in the long run in terms of representation and resemblance. Ik that at least for me it is fairly easy to associate the two characters with dragons and panthers since I'm more familiar w the fandom lingo around these two, but esp for outsiders I feel like it's probably not great at conveying who they are, and why they are potentially in this situation.

I'd also love to try and find a shading style that still has a painterly quality but compliments the inking a bit better, rather than overpowering it.

I think that, on the whole, I am pretty satisfied with the piece and had a great time working with Tahnex on the whole collab! And I've also has a fun time reading his work and notes in return, and thank you so much for being so so patient with me even as my updates were slow n rocky at points :'D

That's about all I got, have a great day y'all! Still a few big bang postings to go, so very excited for those once they come around!

[xxspirit]

Heyo! Do you by chance have a reference sheet for Camellia?

(I’m gathering some ref sheets for Zel)

Hi! So yes- I have this one…

Buuuut yknow looking back it’s really old and I have kinda changed up his design a bit- and it’s insanely long for a reference “sheet”-

So I made ANOTHERONE :D

And since I also need to give more of his lore, that will be below 👇 (And also responding to other asks I’ve gotten that relates to this)

1) So first off Swap was the one who was really wanted a child. He asked Dream about it, and Dream agreed.

2) Buut they didn’t reallly know how to-( I realized most of these guys are made accidentally lol ), but before going to ask for help they still tried to do it on their own.

3) They took a little bit of their magic, barely enough to affect them, literally pushed these two magical flames together and boom it made a green little flame!1!

4) and that’s literally all it was(for a while), just a green flame, didn’t have a face or anything and it seemed rather small. They left it to grow for about a month and it did grow a bit, developing into an imperfect soul. This soul was relatively smaller than the average monster’s soul, and a tiny part of it was chipped off. They didn’t worry too much, thinking it was still growing, but this was the stopping point for this soul, it didn’t grow anymore and showed no signs that this soul would be able to develop its own body.

5) Now both of them a bit worried, they went to Ink for help cause like who else would they go to- Ink doesn’t really know exactly how to make these guys either, but they all tried to think of ideas of what was the problem and how to fix it.

6) Ink came up with an idea to create a body for the soul to control and Swap and Dream agreed with his idea.

7) The idea worked and the end Swap and Dream got their baby!!!

here are silly doodles to help explain-

And regarding these asks I’ve had- for a while—

I took so long because I didn’t know myself- I never really considered what he was like as a baby, but to answer these asks, Yes- for a short while he was a little light-flame thingy technically, but it was a bit different. Since Camellia really doesn’t have his own body, when he was just this little ball of magic he didn’t have a face or anything, it was literally just a ball of magic, then later this magic grew into a soul rather than a soulless being.

And then once he did get this body, it just somehow magically grows with him IDK-I didn’t know how to make this part really work-out so it’s just magic and imagination at this point x(

So yes- he was both technically a litol ball and a skele

Here is a rough doodle of his growth:

[chainera-deactivated]

My Thoughts on Vercury + Doodles

To be honest, my relationship with this pairing is literally a love-hate one.

When I first heard about it, I’m not going to lie, I was super turned off. This was during SolarBall’s early episodes, where Mercury was shown constantly being bullied by Venus and I could not imagine being paired with my bully if I was in a similar situation. There was no chemistry between them, and even if there was, it wouldn’t be healthy. Especially during the whole Venus’ name arc, where Mercury constantly mocked him and got an asteroid to the face. Personally, the ship made no sense to me and sounded downright toxic. But of course, the more recent episodes came out. The atmosphere (even though there’s no atmosphere in space lol) between Mercury and Venus seemed… more neutral than hostile or tense. This is mostly because Mercury started to stand up for himself. Two scenes of note is the moment where Mercury laughed at Venus’ comment during the Rocky Planets episode and when Mercury snapped at Venus during the ‘Solar System by Size’ arc. What’s interesting is that after Mercury yells at him, Venus looked regretful, which was definitely new. Mercury didn’t shout at him about the consequences of him siding with the Sun or anything like that either, he simply said that he was fine with Venus hating him ‘for the sake of everyone else’. After that, Venus didn’t immediately change his mind but did try to explain his side of things, which was also new. As of right now I still don’t see anything happening between them, but I definitely do see the appeal in the ship and the potential for it to eventually happen.

From a settings standpoint- the potential is obvious. We don’t know what happened to cause Venus to pick on Mercury so much, we don’t know what their past was like, and with the answers to those questions revealed, Mercury and Venus might reconcile. Venus clearly has a lot of problems with his conditions as being called ‘a literal hell’ by the Earthlings, and Mercury also has his own insecurities and issues with the Sun. Mercury is already learning how to deal with these things, but Venus hasn’t quite figured it out yet. I’m quite interested on how Venus will be developed and how Mercury will play a role in this. I don’t think Venus downright despises Mercury, and vice versa, but they do have a ton of shit to sort out which may lead to a hopefully happy ending. Now, from a character standpoint there’s also a ton of potential. Venus and Mercury are kind of opposites, and yknow the saying… opposites attract. It would be really sweet if Mercury could calm Venus down when he was getting too ticked off, and Venus could treat Mercury nicely in his own way. Their personalities contrast really well. I didn’t like Vercury before because I felt if it actually happened Mercury would just allow Venus to treat him like crap, but now I feel like Mercury would know how to set proper boundaries and they would be equals. In a healthy relationship, there shouldn’t be a power imbalance, so with Mercury’s character development and Venus’ potential to change and be kinder (though not necessarily gentler) power imbalance shouldn’t be a problem. Another aspect is the fact that Venus and Mercury are both quite lonely. Earth and Mars are extremely close friends (or more haha), and while Mercury does have the Sun, he’s kind of forced to walk on eggshells in that relationship. They’re also neighbor planets, so there’s that. In all, I definitely agree with the concept of Vercury, but if it should happen, it should be after Venus and Mercury at least began to try and sort everything out. Here’s some (a bit spicy) doodles as a reward for listening to my rant again :D

As always, I’m open to other people’s opinions- especially on a topic as complex as this one. I just ask that you be respectful. Thank you.

[avo-gal]

I came up with this au ages ago and just randomly remember it loll.

The doodles are all super messy and unfinished lol😅

Explanation of this au>>

So if u have been following me for a while u prob know abt my villain au (or as I usually call it the au where Varigo take over Corona). This is the same au just from Nurus pov. Bc I was thinking abt this au again and what happens with Yong and Nuru. In this post I'm gonna be explaining all the lore for this au so u might wanna get comfy lol.

First let's start with Nuru bc that's what these drawings are Abt. (Quick tw for trypophobia)

In this au Nuru goes searching for a way to stop the meteor shower that destroys her kingdom in doing so she finds a stone which can restart time so every night she goes onto her balcony and restarts the day (like miss peregrines home for peculiar children) but this stone does have a limit. If she goes too far back in time it becomes excruciatingly painful and could kill her bc... (Drumroll) The stone is slowly corrupting and killing her body! Yay :D if she uses the stone for too long it will completely corrupt her body and kill her. Her dying would look like a mix between Luz's dying scene and this scene in a junji ito book. The magic would basically rot her insides and burn out through her skin :p

As long as she doesn't overuse her powers she shouldn't die for at least 45 ish years. U can already see corruption in her hair and eyes tho. Nuru desperately wants to find another way to save her kingdom but if she leaves for too long the meteor shower will destroy the kingdom and she doesn't want to burden another with the powers of the stone. So that's why she allies with Corona to find another solution. Koto has now become a very powerful kingdom due to Nuru's powers and has many allies (I will talk more Abt that later). Nuru and Varian are pretty similar in this au (I'll also talk abt that more a bit later) but Nuru tends to be more sure Abt her decisions and is less out of it than Varian. Nuru is also very possessive almost? And doesn't like criticism. Like REALLY doesn't like criticism (do with that info as u please) Also the song in the first drawing is queen of hearts by flailing idiot.

Amber

I'm doing amber next bc I don't have as much to say Abt her. Amber finds out that she has more family (Varian) and sets out to find him. When she does find him Varian is very skeptical of her. At first Amber tried to see the good side of Varian but inevitably can't deny he's insane. But she ends up finding out his sob story and decides to help (she's big on family in this au). Varian still isn't rlly sure what to think abt her but hey free labour so who cares.

One day whilst Koto and Corona are having some kinda transaction or whatever Nuru just kinda sees Amber and is like. That one. I want that. Varian is kinda like alr I don't rlly care Abt her. And they essentially have an arranged marriage but they learn to love each other (and honestly have the healthiest relationship in this au).

Yong/allies

I didn't have a huge amount planned for Yong at first but here's what I'm thinking. In this au Bayangor is a very poor Kingdom. One day whilst Nuru was searching for a way to save her kingdom she visits Bayangor and comes across an incredibly smart kid. She invites him to join her journey and promises that if she finds a way to stop the meteors his family can live in her castle bc he doesn't deserve to live in the streets. Basically after that Nuru practically adopts Yong lol and Bayangor becomes a close allie to Koto a big reason for that being despite how poor and small the kingdom is it does actually have some pretty good fuel resources. But no other kingdoms ever try to become allies because of how dead Bayangor looks.

I was gonna talk abt Varigo and Nuru and Varians similarities as well but idk if Tumblr has a word limit bc that will prob be triple how much is written here and this already super long😅 so I'll do it in the next post I have so much more to say but I'll put it all in the next post!!

Anyways u r so amazing for sitting through all that!!! <33 here's some snax <333

🍣🍝🍰🍨🥞🌮🍕🍟🌭🧁

[purefandomonium]

The Lingering Ghost

(Title pending because titles are hard)

Alright even though it's late and I'm tired, I'm really excited to share this! So I'll be posting it here first before I give it one final edit and post it to AO3. I posted some snippets before but here's the entire thing.

I've been wanting to do some kind of horror story w/Initial D for ages and this is the result. It's more angst and bittersweet than true horror, but I still had a ton of fun working on it. It's a little under 5k btw so give yourself some time to hunker down if you do decide to check it out. Also formatting should be ok but I also just copied/pasted it so it's possible something got jumbled somewhere.

Summary: It wasn't uncommon in the world of street racing. People crashed all the time. Curses were shouted, cars fixed up, wallets run dry. Eyes too, sometimes. Stories of crashes were spoken about as often as songs were sung. Usually, though, the stories came from the drivers themselves. They weren't supposed to be told in hushed tones as a warning to other racers who thought themselves too good to wreck. They weren't supposed to end so badly. They sure as hell weren't supposed to happen on Akina.

Iketani slumped against a nearby pump, in part due to the day's heat but mostly from the weight of his gloomy mood. Its surface was covered in dust with a bit of grime, and he internally sighed at the thought of having to wash it and all the others before his shift ended. He drew bored little patterns across the filth. "Man… I haven't felt like hitting the pass at all this past week." The frowning stick man he completed seemed to share his miserable demeanor.

"Same here," Kenji sighed from beside his friend. He kicked a small pebble and watched it ping off a nearby sign. "I don't know what it is but something about the whole thing just has me on edge. I can't stand the thought of being anywhere close to the mountain right now."

"Yeah… Me three." Even Itsuki's usual energy couldn't overcome the heavy air around them as he, too, leaned against one of the pumps in despair. Despite being far from it, Mount Akina's presence seemed to loom right over his shoulder. He felt threatened by his own sanctuary; the ultimate betrayal from what he considered an old friend. It hurt in a way he couldn't describe.

"Wonder how he's holding up." Iketani nodded to Takumi who was finishing with a customer. "Not having a choice in the deliveries and all that. It's gotta be hard on the guy." It would certainly be hell for him, and he'd only driven out there once since it all went down. He couldn't imagine having to be out there every night. Alone. At the mercy of whatever strange force was holding their mountain hostage.

Kenji hummed and shoved his hands into his pockets. "I dunno, he seems the same as always. It's hard to tell if it even bothers him or if he's just spaced out as usual." Takumi was a strange one. Hard to read and even harder to get a reaction out of. He looked normal but there was no telling what inner turmoil he may be hiding, if any.

Two sets of curious eyes soon landed on the youngest Speed Star. Itsuki met them both and shrugged in response, not quite as easily excited by the attention as he used to be. "I couldn't tell you what he's thinking," he replied as he shifted his gaze to the approaching Takumi. There was only one way to find out. Standing straight and adding some energy into his voice, he called out, "Hey, man, how you holding up?"

Takumi stopped in his tracks and noted the three sets of eyes fixated on him. He couldn't quite pin it, but they seemed… concerned? "Fine, I guess," came his reply. "It's pretty hot out though." He blinked in confusion as the three idiots he called friends simultaneously groaned. OK, so that was the wrong answer. What was the concern for then if not his health?

"Dude, that's not what Itsuki meant," Iketani sighed, rolling his eyes. Pushing himself up straight and smudging his little dust doodles, he continued, "We're wondering how you feel about the crash on Akina."

A sharp jolt shot through his spine, but he reigned it in before his body could respond to it. His voice was steadier than he felt. "Oh. Well, I feel awful about it, obviously. It's sad." He leaned back as Itsuki shoved himself into his personal space.

"Yeah but… what about all the, y'know…" He glanced around like there were people eavesdropping. Lowering his voice to a whisper despite the lack of paparazzi, he spit out, "The stories?"

"What, about a vengeful ghost or whatever?" He nudged Itsuki away and kept his expression neutral.

"A lot of the guys have been talking about some weird stuff going on since it happened," Iketani supplied. "I thought they were just being paranoid but the one time I went out there…" He shivered despite the oppresive summer heat. Already, goosebumps were dotting his arms at the mere memory. "I can't really describe it, but I got the worst feeling of dread. Like I wasn't supposed to be there and needed to leave immediately." He huffed out a bittersweet laugh. "Imagine that. Chased off my own turf by some invisible force." He absently rubbed at his arms, still feeling a lingering chill.

Takumi mulled the story over in his mind with a quiet hum. He'd been running the deliveries like usual and while there had been an odd sense of something, nothing had ever come from it. He was pretty sure what he'd been feeling the past several days had been nothing more than discomfort at the whole situation.

Not that they needed to know that.

Keeping his voice in its usual deadpan, he said, "Sorry to disappoint you guys, but I haven't noticed anything. Driving on Akina has been the same as always." Same corners, same speed, same road. Nothing had changed. Nothing except for one unfortunate spot.

"Bah! That ghost probably doesn't want anything to do with a boring person like you anyway," Itsuki shouted, forgetting about the imaginary spies from just moments ago.

"Or maybe," Takumi began, flicking his best friend on the forehead, "there is no ghost and you guys are just being weird."

"Normally, I'd agree with you, Takumi," Kenji said as he crossed his arms. "But this is…" He glanced in the direction of Akina and grimaced before turning away from the distant titan. "I don't know, something really does seem off out there. The other Speed Stars all have some wild stories. Don't you think it's strange that so many people are agreeing on this?"

"Yeah, I guess so." He shrugged and went to head inside to cool off for a minute, ignoring their combined chagrin at his nonchalance. He could really use some water and a nap right now. It was unfortunate that he'd be allowed only one of those things.

***

Having finished the deliveries, his run down the mountain was no different than the countless other times he'd raced home. It was the same as always, just like he'd told the others earlier. The familiar road blurred beneath the Eight–Six, headlights the only things cutting through the darkness of Akina. There was only one thing that stood out amongst the shadows, revealed by the Trueno's yellow-white glare.

The words of his friends echoed through his mind as he slowed to a stop and stared at the only remaining signs of wreckage. The engine's soft purring did nothing to soothe the sudden wave of emotion that hit him, so much stronger than it had ever been before.

The guardrail was still twisted and deformed—far worse than when Iketani had wiped out—and its silver sheen was marred with scrapes and oil. Caution tape fluttered about, a pitiful barrier between life on the road and death on the side of the mountain. Fragments of plastic and glass twinkled like they were stars embedded in the earth. The emergency workers had missed a fair bit of debris, or perhaps they would get the rest of it once the guardrail was replaced.

Somehow, even though he hadn't been present to witness it, he could hear the jarring sound of the impact, of metal shrieking and plastic crunching. The sharp echo of breaking glass rang in his ears as his imagination played out the scene against his will. In his mind's eye, he watched the car hit the guardrail and shatter into thousands of tiny pieces. The headlights were first to erupt in an explosion of glass. The front end crumpled as the windshield formed a network of cracks before giving way and sending shrapnel into the cabin. The force that bent the guardrail into its horrid shape would no doubt have been enough to cause the interior of the car to shrink. If it somehow wasn't, well, the jagged cliff face would take care of that.

With a gasp, Takumi blinked the terrible vision out of his mind before it could show him what the driver must have felt like.

The driver who had been declared as unsalvageable as the car was. Loaded up and taken away in something better than a weathered tow truck, but loaded up and taken regardless. It was no wonder the guys were so shaken up by the whole thing. Truth be told, he wasn't entirely unbothered by it either. Every time the gruesome scene flickered past his headlights he felt the cold grip of dread squeeze his insides. He hated that feeling.

It wasn't like he could avoid driving on Akina though. The deliveries weren't gonna run themselves, and they'd sooner do exactly that before his dad would bother.

Really, he wasn't sure what about it was getting to him. The road had been scrubbed of oil and the tiny fragments of a broken vehicle were the only things left behind. Well, them and the destroyed guardrail, of course. He'd been spared the worst of the details—not counting the ones his mind unhelpfully supplied whenever he least expected. Aside from the grim melancholy of his friends, there was nothing tying him to this depressing turn of events. Some people liked to race on dark mountain roads, bad things were always possible, and there was nothing to be done about either.

Despite the fatigue gnawing at him and willing him to get home and sleep as much as he could before school, Takumi found himself stepping out of the Eight–Six. Without its refuge he was left at the mercy of the chilling breeze. There was nothing he could have done, nor could do, that would make any of this better. Yet he felt compelled to do something anyway. Perhaps it was because it happened on Akina. He continued to deny he was a street racer, but he did consider this his mountain. In a way. He'd been driving it for years, no one knew it better than him. So far anyone who tried to prove they could drive it better than him ended up losing.

He sucked in a heavy breath as it hit him. Was that it? Was this feeling… some kind of guilt? Whoever it was that crashed hadn't been local. That was the first thing he learned about all this. The second had been that they weren't the most experienced racer. Any further detail than that—like who they raced with or even who they were—was a mystery to him and probably for the better. He wouldn't know what to do with that information anyway. Send his regards? No.

He sighed and stepped closer to the mangled sheet metal, hand hovering over it. The Eight–Six murmured behind him, the only sound in the quiet static. He stood there for several—seconds? Minutes?—before mustering up the courage to rest his hand on the railing's cold surface, at the last spot before it became a misshapen mess. He sniffled and couldn't tell if it was from the cold or something else.

"I'm sorry," he breathed into the silence. His fingers tightened against the guardrail as he stood there wondering what in the hell he was doing. He'd driven past this same spot every night for the past week and never felt compelled to do… whatever this was. Still, he was already out here. Might as well commit.

"I, uh, I know that saying sorry doesn't really change anything but…" Dammit. What was he trying to do here? Apologize to someone who was already dead? Whose death had nothing to do with him? He sniffled again and realized the weather wasn't the culprit. It was the middle of summer. It should only be slightly below stifling right now. Yet out here, silhouetted by the warm glow of the Eight–Six, his skin felt cold and prickly. Goosebumps. Maybe there was some truth behind Iketani's ghost story after all.

Takumi let his hand fall from the guardrail and turned back the panda Trueno, the stark white of its paint the only other thing standing out against Akina's darkness. There was no whispering of leaves in the wind, no insects making their grating calls, nothing but empty silence punctuated by the still-idling engine. The goosebumps returned full-force as he froze in place.

Standing beside the red glow of the Eight–Six's taillights was a lone figure. It looked to be about his height—the same age too, by assumption—and that was all he could make out. The shadows clung to them like a cloak.

Takumi swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat as he stared at the entity. "Hello?" He was met with silence. The shadowy mass remained motionless, seeming to stare right through him. Without thinking about the risks of turning away, he craned his neck to glance at the site of the wreck once more. Noting a lack of changes, he swiveled his gaze back to the eerie figure who still hadn't moved.

Their silent staring contest went on for another uncomfortable few moments before Takumi worked up the nerve to try speaking to them again. He took a couple of steps closer and when nothing happened, he spoke up. "Are you… the one who died here?" He winced. Of all the things to say to a potential ghost, the first thing out his mouth was questioning if they were dead? Brilliant. It would be a miracle if he survived this encounter.

That unnerving silence still hung in the air as what Takumi assumed was their head dipped down once in a simple nod.

His lips formed a silent 'oh' as though the answer weren't already obvious. As his mind processed what to say next, he blinked once only to stumble back in shock at its sudden proximity. He lost his footing and landed on the dusty pavement as the ghost loomed before him, mere steps away. Even with the headlights shining against its back, it remained shrouded in pure darkness. The shadows of its body seemed to swallow the light whole, a hungry abyss. The air around it was still and icy, like that of a frozen lake. Aside from its humanoid figure there was nothing else separating it from the dark night around them.

In the back of his mind, he wondered if dying meant erasing who you were somehow. He shoved the thought away before he could really question it. Lying vulnerable in the dirt before a potentially angry spirit was a bit more important than a mortality crisis.

His own shadow began to pool in wisps around him and a bolt of panic made his stomach drop and his heart lurch. The smokey tendrils tickled his skin like electrified feathers as they danced along his arms and hands. His throat was tight and he didn't know if it was the spirit's doing or his own primal fear. He remained rigid, helpless to the supernatural force before him.

Before the tears that had been welling up could start running, the shadows that were lapping at his hands and legs slithered away to the ghost. They flowed and swayed around its feet with wild movements, like a writhing octopus.

Takumi blinked back the wetness and realized the misty darkness was shaping itself into words. Slowly, as if it took great effort, a sentence was formed.

Why are you here?

He didn't know the answer to that question. How could he answer that question? As the sheer panic he'd been feeling dissipated—gradually, because this was still an unknowable entity before him—Takumi felt his shoulders lifting in a half-hearted shrug.

The ghost tilted its head, clearly just as lost and confused about all this as Takumi.

He found his words after a long, uncomfortable silence. "I, uh, I guess I'm here because I feel really bad about what happened." And he really, truly did. The thought that this could have been him in his early days of deliveries hadn't escaped him. "Uh… Lots of people feel terrible about what happened." The shadows twisted before him once more.

Why? It's not your fault.

Now that it was clear the dead racer meant no harm, Takumi slowly stood and dusted himself off to stall for time to process. His eyes locked onto the ghost once he felt his heart rate return to normal. The abyss that was its face seemed to swirl and twist like a smoky whirlpool, and he found himself almost entranced before snapping to his senses after too many moments. His gaze then drifted to the crash site beside them, illuminated by the Eight-Six. "I know it's not my fault. But still." He turned back to the ghost, careful not to get lost in the inky blackness once more. He found focusing on the harsh lights of the car to be good at preventing that.

"I've been driving here for years. My dad owns a tofu shop and I run the deliveries to the hotel." He scratched the back of his head as something like fondness bubbled up. It was strange. "I kind of consider Akina my second home, so something like this happening has me shaken up."

I see. I appreciate your honesty.

What an odd thing to say. Then it clicked. His eyes widened. "Wait. Have you tried talking to people before?" It would line up with all the creepy stories his friends and the other racers were talking about. Some of them had mentioned that it seemed like the 'Dead Racer of Akina', or whatever they were calling it now, had tried to communicate with them.

Most of the people I wanted to talk to ran from me, the shadows spelled. Their movement was becoming sluggish now; it took longer and longer for them to form words. I tried to catch up to them but they were too fast. I never was a very good racer.

The ghost's 'shoulders' bounced like it was laughing. Then it stilled again.

I thought I could use the practice, but now I can't even form my car.

I think it's getting harder for me to stay here, but I don't want to go.

It's not fair.

Takumi's heart clenched. He wasn't sure if there was an afterlife, and he wasn't keen on finding out anytime soon. He could relate to the ghost's fear and anger about being left behind and doomed to an uncertain future more than he cared to admit.

I was able to talk to a couple people like this, the shadows offered to the silence. But they were more interested in the gruesome details of my death than anything else.

It made me angry.

Now it all made sense. The ghostly car chases, the heavy feeling of dread, the anger the mountain seemed to radiate to anyone who dared drive it. All except for Takumi. It was weird how he was spared from all of that.

I know who you are.

A sound of surprise escaped his throat. Was his mind being read? Before he could question it, the shadows had already shaped the answer.

I came out here that night because I was hoping to race you.

I didn't expect to win. But I didn't think I'd lose my life either.

The guilt boiled over and before he could stop them, the words were pouring out of his mouth. "I'm so sorry! I know I didn't ask you to come out here but I didn't want this to ever happen. I never wanted to be famous like this. I just wanted to get home as fast as possible to sleep! I-"

It's OK.

The words presented themselves right in front of his face, cutting off his rambling. Takumi felt the warmth sliding down his cheeks despite his best efforts to hold back the tears. There was something strangely comforting in the ghost's words even though they were never spoken. It was as though the shadows emitted more emotion than a voice ever could.

Speaking of shadows, he noticed the way the Eight-Six's light seemed to cut through them now. The darkness was no longer absorbing the light. It seemed whatever hold the dead racer had on this reality was slipping.

The ghost sensed this as well, as it stated, I know there's a lot you want to say but I don't have time.

All he could manage was a pathetic nod as he wiped away tears.

I don't know what happens now but I have a favor to ask you.

Will you race me?

Takumi's jaw nearly fell open. "After… everything… you still want to race me?"

It's the only reason I came out to Akina after all.

'Please allow me a proper sendoff,' was unspoken. Takumi didn't know who this person's family was but he could only hope they gave them a formal goodbye. It was obvious now that none of the racers on Akina had bothered to pay any respects; they were either too scared or too callous. Who would he be to deny their final request?

I don't expect to win, the shadows revealed, mistaking Takumi's hesitance as something other than realization. I just want to do the thing I died trying to do.

"…OK." Nothing more needed to be said. He'd give the ghost what it wanted, make it home in time to catch some sleep, and lay awake all night hoping the dead racer finally found peace.

Takumi's legs carried him past the ghost to the Eight-Six, mind alight with too many thoughts once more. He fell into the seat, the suspension creaking in response. As he shut the door, he looked up to where the phantom shadow had been standing only to find it gone. A glance in his rearview revealed a semi-solid mass of car behind him. A… 3000GT, Iketani had told him shortly after the accident. It wasn't the blinding white it had been pre-crash; it was comprised of total darkness just like its owner.

There were no lights on it but the red glow of his brakes confirmed it was there. He didn't need to be told to give it his all. Anything less would be downright disrespectful. Putting it into gear, the Eight-Six crawled away from the side of the road and began gaining speed. The ghostly car behind him lit up once more in his rearview as he hit the first corner, only to vanish into darkness again as he barreled away.

Three corners was all it took for him to no longer feel the presence behind him. He didn't know if it was because of the gap he'd made or if they'd finally lost their hold on the world of the living. It didn't matter. At least they'd gotten their final wish.

Takumi drove home feeling oddly lighter.

***

"It's so weird," Iketani said to a wide-eyed Itsuki. "I finally worked up the nerve to confront this ghostly pressure keeping me away from Akina, and it's just… gone. Like it was never even there." It had been just over a week and it was still all he could think about. After all that time being afraid, he'd gone out the previous night and had a completely normal drive.

"Maybe you guys were buying into that ghost stuff a little too much," came Yuichi as he exited the station with the intent to scold them for standing around.

"You don't understand, boss," Iketani argued as he whirled around. "I felt it! I couldn't make up that feeling if I wanted to."

He let out a disbelieving hum. "Not even if you were listening to a bunch of hogwash that got you all worked up before you even set foot out there?"

The leader of the Speed Stars deflated. "I know what I felt when I went out there a few days ago," he mumbled as he crossed his arms.

"I believe you," Itsuki said. He hadn't been out there at all since the crash due to the stories he'd been told, but that didn't change the fact he believed every single one. He didn't need to be out there to sense the creepy pressure warning him to stay away.

Iketani sighed. "Yeah, nothing screams believable like you of all people having my back."

The younger balked. "Hey I'm trying to help you, man!"

"Will you two quite goofing around and get back to work? Takumi's the only one who's got any semblance of sense right now, and that's saying something." The latter was spoken quietly so as not to catch his attention, though it wouldn't have mattered.

Takumi was lost in thought yet again, though this time it wasn't one of his usual dilemmas. He was distracted by what it meant to become a ghost and what sort of afterlife there was, if any. He couldn't get it out of his head. For all he knew, the ghost of that racer had faded into oblivion. That thought bothered him the most but he just couldn't shake it from his head.

It was fortunate he had a boisterous Itsuki to do it for him.

"What's got you all spaced out now?" he asked as he latched an arm across Takumi's shoulders. "You've been dazed a lot lately, you don't have a secret girlfriend, do you?" He gave his cheek a good pinch.

"Ow! Cut it out! That's not it at all." He managed to pry his friend's hand off his face and weasel out from his grip with an annoyed scowl.

"Are you OK, Takumi?" Iketani questioned as he shooed Itsuki aside. "You're not still upset about the accident, are you?"

It wasn't often his senior could get a good read on him, but when he did it never ceased to take him by surprise. He struggled to get his bearings. "I mean… It's just kind of messed up, you know?" Even moreso, now that he knew the real reason of the crash.

"Hey, I hear ya." He rested a hand stop the teen's shoulder and squeezed. "It's always terrible to hear about someone crashing. It's even worse when it leads to a death."

The three fell silent as the heavy truth settled over them. Even Yuichi took a moment to grieve the deadly stories he'd been privy to over the years.

Moment over, he continued, "Look, all we can do is try to be safe. Us Speed Stars take great pride in sanctioning races and making sure there's little to no risk. All the other teams worth their salt do the same. The sad truth is there will always be people who bite off more than they can chew." Hell, he'd nearly done the exact same thing not too long ago. It was a constant reminder to be more aware of his limits.

Itsuki, not wanting to be left out and hating the melancholy look Takumi wore, butt in with, "It's not your fault, Takumi. You didn't make them crash. I know we've been going on about ghosts and stuff, but Iketani was just out there last night and said it's fine now."

Takumi wanted the words to soothe him, but they did the exact opposite. None of them knew—nor would they ever know, if he could help it—that the whole thing was his fault. What a twisted way of fate. If he hadn't been so famous, if he weren't so skilled, if he had been the one to crash five years ago-

No. No going down that road. He couldn't control what other people thought of him. He couldn't stop people form wanting to become street racers. He certainly couldn't stop anyone from making a fatal mistake behind the wheel. The very person who'd died assured him he wasn't to blame. It would be disrespectful for him to ignore that fact in favor of self-loathing.

…This was going to eat at him for a very long time.

Yeah so I thought about giving 'the ghost' more of an identity but decided not to. Partially due to laziness but also because I like how mysterious it is. They're dead. They're just a mass of shadows so does the identity really matter anymore? They clearly aren't themselves anymore and I was trying to capture that but I'm not sure how well it turned out. I still had a ton of fun with this. It took me a long while to get it complete. I thought about adding a scene w/Bunta after Takumi returns home later than normal but decided not to. It was so freaking hard to write Takumi and I don't know how well I handled his personality or the hidden things I was trying to carry across. There was no way I was gonna attempt to write Bunta lol. Anyway. Thoughts are always appreciated. If you see any weird typos or something doesn't make sense, please tell me. I probably won't post this to AO3 for a little while longer because there's some stuff I'm still considering.

[lakesparkles]

hii!!! would you be willing to do a little doodle of your nega ramona and gideon interacting? understandable if you don't take requests I'm just in LOVE with your design of her and your au in general!!! feel free to also use this ask to elaborate about the au more instead because id love to hear that too :D

Hi!! :D

Honestly, I wasn't going to draw this request today (I'm afraid I'm drawing Gideon too much lately lmao sorry, he just can't leave my mind). But I got some pretty weird comments on this AU of mine that made me kinda sad... so I kept rereading this ask to cheer me up and I'm very thankful you like her and this AU!! It really means a lot in this moment!

Now, the important part, yes, I take requests and I love this one:

Just a few things make Gideon feel uneasy. She's one of them. Not because he thinks she might be a ghost, but because she looks too similar to Ramona.

And more about the AU:

I would like to say I finally started writing a fanfiction about it and I'm close to finish the first chapter ^^

It'll be seven chapters long and it'll be hard to write ngl, I never wrote something like this before, usually my fics are cute ship things.

I can share the first scene:

Ramona and Gideon - I . . . She decides to leave one last time Or

Ramona remembers the seven reasons that made her fall in love with Gideon

She had that same fantasy every day. As she walked down the halls, running her fingers along the wall, she imagined herself entering her own room. It was satisfying, somehow. She could perfectly see herself opening her wardrobe, taking out the few things that really interested her, putting everything in her bag and simply walking away. In that fantasy, of course, she always smiled. She even laughed. That kind of hysterical and cathartic laughter only present in films. She wanted to imagine how Gideon would react: how long would it be before he realized she wasn't there anymore? Two weeks? And when would he realize that this wasn't just another one of her "famous tantrums"? Two months? Two years? Part of her was almost excited at the prospect of making him furious with such an accomplishment. It would be his turn to take endless turns through the halls, finally using his brain to try to understand what had gone so wrong between them. Maybe he would find out years later. Or perhaps that doubt would eat away at him for decades to come, the bitterness of her image never leaving his mind. And part of her… thought that wasn't realistic. She knew Gideon well enough to know that he would never even consider any mistake on his part, with a mixture of confusion that never ended well when it came to him. Or worst. He wouldn't even care about her lack of presence in that house. Therefore, Ramona released her fingers from the wall, slowly slowing down her steps until she stopped altogether. Then the fantasy ended. Every single time.

[absolutelyzoned]

while im still john procrastinating heres uhh really REALLYshitty doodle of my helldivers oc that i have also been Not working on WHY DOES the image blur. we ball itsokay im gonna ramble under the cut because i really like him.

NO first names we die like helldivers if you will. hes called hawkins and is THE #1 super earth propaganda guy. they love him. dudes like blonde hair blue eyes conventionally attractive shit. pretty good soldier too. charming bastard who absolutely knows everyone loves him and takes advantage of that. after a while of being a helldiver and realizing how much it all sucks, he came to the conclusions that. a) everyone is expendable and will die sooner rather than later. b) cadets are Very easy to manipulate. c) it really sucks to watch people die and be aware that its your fault. and d) literally all of the propaganda is bullshit. but who cares, yknow!! hes famous!!!! the people love him!!! so he doesn't do anything about the fucked up situation that super earths gotten literally every helldiver into and just acts like everyone's gonna be fine. because at the end of the day, he'll be fine. because of his well-known status, typically he takes charge of easier missions, just to help newer recruits and shit. which boosts morale!! hooray!!! on missions he lowkey tries to be as patient and helpful as possible, which is only kind of a facade. he actually cares about the people, but he knows they're going to die when he's not with them anymore. so hes detached, yknow. do you understand. its complicated. its Very easy for him to move on from things for that exact reason. ohh boy there's so much stuff i could go on about. i love him dearly.

so. on a higher stakes mission hes doing his thing yknow fighting for democracy and some idiot loser cadet is doing the same but much worse and gets cornered by a bile spewer. and because hawkins is such a great guy he shields the cadet from the bile.with his body. and that shit melts through him man. im talkin cape, armor, bros fucking spine. but the cadets fine :)) just a little traumatized but we ball. fuck them though this is about hawkins. hes carried to extraction or something that part lowkey doesn't matter. what does though is the fact he literally cannot do shit anymore. so super earths like oh nooo! our favorite guy! lets just completely replace his spine and try out some automaton technology and shit!!! so hes got a metal spine now isn't that fucking sick!? super earth kinda half-asses the explanation they give hawkins too like they don't even give him the full rundown of what they did to him. but he can fight for democracy again so that's all that matters!

i could absolutely go further in depth cause that is Not all of it but ohhyghh boy this is long. i really like him sorry guys. you should send asks btw. about him. also btw if you've read all of this i WILL make out with you

[sysig]

Caughtcha, gotcha, not letting go ♥ (Patreon)

[chibishortdeath]

I’m ranting a little about my own comic planning and writing about the Castlevania games :)!!!

Cutting this here because it will likely be long!

So—

I have a bit of progress on the CoD Trevor and Julia comic! I haven’t gotten to Julia yet, but I’m drawing the conversation Trevor has with Isaac while being stabbed just to set up everything, warm up, and figure out how I want to be drawing panels and poses and such. I’m sharing the WIP for now mostly cause I drew a couple head angles I’m usually pretty terrible at and they came out nice :3. Idk, I need to finish more of it until I figure out whether or not I’m digitizing and coloring it. Either way I’ve dedicated a handful of pages to it.

Anyway— in this comic my main goal is to show how Julia managed to save Trevor because 1. It’s not shown in game and 2. God damn she must be a good healer to have saved him at all ∑(ﾟДﾟ). Where Trevor gets stabbed is not a great spot to get stabbed in (I’ll probably make a separate post ranting about that lol), so I’m just very curious as to how I’m going to depict her saving him from the castle and then actually doing the doctoring/magic part. It’s genuinely such a shame that this doesn’t get a cutscene of its own because I really want to see these two interact with each other and in general just more of Julia.

So anyway that one I can’t talk about too much more or else I’ll be spoiling all of it X,,,,D.

In other writing and comic idea news though— I think I’ve figured out the route I’m going with when writing Selena :3. It kinda came to me while I was playing Chronicles recently and also through a conversation with my sister about it! So I have some good ideas of how characters will be written now, I just have to think about outlining all of the sections better and writing out scripts for it and then I’ll be good to go ahead on the whole CV1-CV2 comic X3!

Well, as long as uh art block and stress and general life will allow it 💀.

Other things I have ideas for are a lot of random character interactions, very headcanon-y stuff, and the two with mainly OCs, though these will probably be either random shorts for now or will be on the back burner for other projects. The 1950s movie set story in particular though has a lot more ideas for as of right now, including new side characters and such… tbh I almost want to make this an RPG Maker fangame project, but I don’t have the skills for that quite yet.

And uh that’s kinda just the whole update! It’s a bit shorter than I expected so here’s some doodles :3

First is just practice of drawing Selena in general, second is designs of Simon and Selena as kids, approximately like 12-13 ish. Okie bye!

[storieslolfun]

Arms

Hobie was strong. Miles knew that. Heck, everyone knew that!

He was able to catch cars flying towards him at high speeds with ease, he was able to lift a hand full of civilians across an entire town if he wanted too!

Spider-man is strong, obviously, I mean Miles is able to catch flying metal while he swings around in battle, and Pav- Omg, Pav is insanely buff. Miles genuinely thought he was on steroids for a minute when he first met him, that’s how buff he is.

But something about Hobie is… different?

That sounds cliche, Miles knows, but it’s true. For some reason, Miles couldn’t get Hobie’s strong arms out of his head!

The way his hand practically wraps around Miles’ entire waist, how heavy but comforting his arm feels when it’s looped around Miles’ neck and onto his shoulder.

Needless to say, Miles was obsessed. When he would doodle Hobie in his notebook, he’d prioritize the defined muscles on his arms. He’d even spent time drawing those magnetic arms around a human-like figure.

Miles was never going to admit how he was going to draw himself in place of the figure, but decided against it since someone could easily just open his notebook and find out that Miles has definitely been dreaming about Hobie and his arms.

Miles was aware he liked Hobie, he was aware he was Bi, (After some help from Pav and Gwen to figure it out and make him feel comfortable with the label) but Damn. He really was down bad this time.

So you can imagine the horror when Miles came home from a mission, only to find Hobie in his room with those rough hands on his open notebook.

Imma make a part two later on, it’s late for me rn and I have barely slept all week-

(Link to Pt.2 will be here once posted :D)

[3ugene]

helllloooo it's mika here super excited to bring you ki yujin eugene!! i havent managed to scraggle up a bio or plots page just yet (thx to my timeliness i see) but i have a mini stats page up here and some waaaaaay too long info under the cut abt this 28 year old prim painter turned runaway tattoo artist living in apt #2b ^_^ v v excited to get to know everyone and their muses so please like this and i'll hit up your dms!!

𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙: her childhood memories are clouded entirely by nannies, a subsisting feeling of boredom and the cold marble tiles of her house. having two famous artists as parents (mom a sculptor and dad an ex-90s-idol turned ceo of an idol company) meant they were never really in the house nor did they spare her a glance until ...

it became noticeable to them that eugene shared their proclivity for the arts. suddenly, her scribbles were forced to have structure and introspection behind them (which sucked to say the least when her doodles were meant to be for fun)

she was subsequently shoved into every arts class possible

entered into a bunch of national and international art competitions from the age of 5-18 (came first-third every time 👍👍) but always felt restricted since every artwork of hers that the public saw and were submitted to competitions (think light watercolours, flowers, nature) were carefully picked by her parents and she never felt that it was really a representation of her

got super burned out at 18 from all these competitions so she applied to snu undergrad for fine arts and got in!! (🎉🎉🎉)

incredibly formative years for her and her work -- she met a bunch of people who thought like her and felt that she could be herself for the first time, experimenting with different styles, mediums, etc

inspired her art a LOT n she grew to develop her own style that she still carries forward to this day (main style is a ukiyo-e inspired watercolour paintings mixed with gothic/horror ideas ie imagine a softer takato yamamoto)

after snu she told her parents she was doing a masters in fine art at yonsei when in reality she was just jetting off between jpn and kr and interning at multiple tattoo studios LOL

after "finishing" the year, she held a bunch of exhibitions and galleries. her parents got super excited because they thought she was finally taking art seriously ...

and then they found out what she had been doing for the last year. insert ugly screaming plates smashing argument where years of resentment and bottled up feelings came to the surface!!

ended up with her getting cut off and kicked out of the family aged 22, and now they pretend like she never existed. she still hasn't unpacked how she feels about it/how traumatic it was. will she? find out never :^)

luckily she had made quite a lot of money from her exhibitions (all part of the plan👍) and used that to fund her next actions which were a) move out into a studio apartment and b) guesting at even more tattoo studios

eventually formed a loyal client base who followed her when she opened up her own tattoo studio 캔버스 (canvas) in hongdae around three/two years ago!! 15% student discount just make sure to book in advance :D

moved into gyeogang street lofts a couple of years ago because it was cheaper but also for convenience purposes (closer to studio and she also needs her morning coffee before doing anything)

sort of here there everywhere and nowhere all at once

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙨𝙚: notable aesthetics include early morning cigarettes, the sound of pen scratching against paper, ink on your fingertips, late night drives, biting your bottom lip until it bleeds, headphones constantly pulled over ears, piles of sketchbooks haphazardly stacked, wine stained lips, half-finished journals and mood boards

not the most likeable person. reserved, has a short temper, pessimistic, blunt and doesn't tend to talk much (attributed to the fact that she didn't really have friends her age until she was 19). the little that she does say can come across as snarky until you realise that's just how she talks, but she is trying to do her best to remedy that and initiate conversations first since she realises it's not the best trait of hers. her 2025 resolution was to be more approachable but she's spoken to approximately two people that weren't her clients so far, and one of them was a barista at brewed awakenings

important to note that her abrasiveness never stems from actual ill-wish or anger, she's just unware of how to explain her feelings or communicate very effectively. many of her harsh corners are rounded if you look close enough

loves loves loves her work, however, and any discussion about art or tattooing means her eyes will immediately start shining

𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙘𝙠-𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙩𝙨: sry lack of organisation means i dont have a plots page set up yet but throwing some ideas out so regulars at canvas (she loves u and the only way she can show it is giving u strawberry mogu mogu before every session); first time tattoo-getters (she also loves u); friends from university; fellow artists; childhood friends that she heavily relies on and has seen her at her best and worst; ex-bestfs; fwbs; fwbs getting messier by the second; exes; exes with lingering feelings; situationships; gamer friends; a "muse" for her; someone who's willing to be her practice canvas; someone guesting/interning at canvas; someone who simply doesn't like her and vice versa; found brother/sister; someone she keeps snapping at because you keep catching her on a bad day she's so sorry she promises she's not a bitc-

[katyawriteswhump]

the freak in the penthouse part 5.2

E-rated (for sexual content), accidental millionaire eddie/sex-worker steve. CW: contains references to past abuse

On tumblr: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3.1 Part 3.2 Part 4.1 Part 4.2 Part 5.1 or search #thefreakinthepenthouse :)

On AO3

5.2 We can get buzzed up here!

Eddie lit himself a joint, because his hands were shaking, and returned to sweating over ideas. The chambermaid came and went, and then yet another knock had him jumping out of his skin.

“Eddie?”

Steve! It was only 2pm.

Turned out he’d got a day off. He was through the doors unbuttoning his shirt, before Eddie remembered his notes all over the floor:

“What’s this?” asked Steve.

Eddie was about to invoke the ‘Don’t-poke-the-grizzly’ rule, when Steve—already on his knees exploring—picked up Eddie’s single completed sketch.

“You gotta be kidding,” said Steve. “Is this me?”

“Uuuuh, it’s a fae warlock.”

“Wearing hot-pants?”

“It’s for this goddamn video game I co-created.” Eddie looped a strand of hair around a finger and peeked from behind it, blushing. “You might’ve inspired me, Honey.”

Steve snapped his gaping mouth shut, returning his attention to the sketch. “I dig the pointy ears. And the tail. That could be fun, huh? Seriously, tho’—did you have to give me such a crappy hair day?”

It’s you after a long night of debauched sex. I worship that messed-up look.

“Sorry?” offered Eddie.

Steve stuck out his tongue. “A game, huh? So that’s how you hit the big time. Is this dude a goodie or a baddie?”

Honestly, Eddie hadn’t even figured where his fae warlock fitted in, if at all. His face was still burning, so he muttered: “Chaotic neutral, Sugar.”

After that, the grizzly was pretty much lying on its back asking for belly rubs. So Eddie kneeled down beside Steve and came clean about how he needed fresh ideas but was totally blocked creatively. Apart from doodling fantasy versions of Steve, that was. Fortunately, real life Steve turned out to be a mighty fine listener.

“Help me wrap my thick skull around this,” said Steve, when Eddie’s sob story dried up. “The first game was inspired by your geek-game fantasy world. Your good guys fight goblins and super-powerful evil mages and dragons and shit.”

“And liches,” added Eddie. He never got why people forgot the liches. “I didn’t rip it all straight out of D and D. I’ve pulled a Tolkein too–you know, stole ideas from mythology and olde worlde history and shit.”

“Riiiight,” said Steve. “Like, it’s kinda obvious how you get a new twist. Why don’t you set the second game in the real world.”

“Steve, it’s not sci-fi. It’s a total fantasy game.”

“So what? All this hooey would be waaaay scarier if it bled into the real world. Then your heroes would have to power up with magic juju to protect their friends, younger siblings, and grannies and shit, and… Okay, it’s total garbage. I’ll shut up.”

“You put yourself down too much.” Eddie didn’t hate the idea… and Jesus, his hands were shaking worse than ever now. He totally needed Steve out of that unbuttoned shirt, which slipped deliciously off one shoulder.  “Look, I’ll talk to Dustin and Suzie about it. They’re my co-creators, the brainy ones.”

Steve’s delighted grin tugged a small smile from Eddie. He jumped up, and Eddie scrambled after. 

Steve said, “Hey, why don’t we go out for a drink or something?”

Eddie’s arms, which he’d looped around Steve, grew rigid. “We can get buzzed up here.”

“Yeah, but… I dunno, it’ll be like a date or something.”

A knee-jerk silent scream of horror ripped Eddie’s nerves ragged: “It’s your day off. Go knock yourself out, Babe. I ain’t coming.”

“If you wanna be alone, say so.” Steve wriggled free and backed away. “Or if you don’t want to be seen around with me… Screw it, please yourself.” 

He turned to leave. Eddie literally sprinted around him, blocking his path. “Look, it’s me, not you. I’m a freak, okay? I’m not a fan of the big, bad world right now. I don’t really wanna—”

“You don’t have to explain, man.” Steve wearily pushed his gelled hair from his eyes.

Eddie tented his hands in prayer. “I do. I owe you that. Listen, I believe I’ve got a teeny touch of agoraphobia.”

“Huh?”

“Fear of the great outdoors? Crowded places?”

“Oh.” Steve’s eyes stretched wide. “That sucks.”

“I really, really don’t want you to go. Please, Steve, stay? We can hang out, eat trash—”

“—have sex?” Steve rolled his eyes, faintly snickered. “All right. If the routine ain’t broke, why fix it.”

Eddie’s relief nearly set his knees sagging. In truth, he was genuinely gagging for Steve to stay because Steve wanted to. He chickened out of saying it, though. Instead, he snickered too, steadying his nerve and his shakes by firmly grasping Steve’s butt:

“If you let me indulge a freakshow kink, I got an extra two-hundred bucks for ya.”

…

Eddie leaned forward to whisper his ‘freakshow kink’ into Steve’s ear. Steve bit his lip to the point of pain.

He prayed he wasn’t going to have to remind Eddie about his no breath-play rule. He figured he could be flexible on a few welts and bruises—perhaps because hurting Steve seemed such an unlikely thing for Eddie to ask for. Then he remembered the smashed pillar that first night…

“I wanna play with your ass, Stevie,” whispered Eddie. Huh? That’s not exactly a newsflash. “I got a little something I wanna fill you up inside with.”

“Bring it on.” Steve grabbed a handful of Eddie’s hair, and dived into a kiss, working it mechanically.

Butt plugs. Steve had used them in the past himself, as another way to loosen himself up before impatient clients. He’d stopped, because it always gave nasty-ass bastards nasty-ass ideas: “So you’re that kinda dirty little slut, are you?”

He’d had some real evil shit shoved inside him—metal dildos, ones with weird nodules. Some douchebag Brit aristocrat once nearly did him permanent damage with some great truncheon that felt thick as his arm.

Eddie broke the kiss first. Steve plastered on a very professional smile to disguise how his stomach flipped: “Love it, Eds. But, uh, nothing that stretches me too bad, okay?”

“What?” Eddie actually squeaked. “Shit, I should’ve been plain. You ain’t getting nothing bigger than my tongue inside you.”

“You wanna eat me out?” Steve wrinkled his nose. “I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before— you do realise you’re the one paying?”

“My treat, darlin’, literally—you’re gonna taste so sweet.” He leaned to husk in Steve’s ear again. “I ordered waffles for breakfast. Saved the whole jug of maple syrup.”

“It’s gonna get sticky.”

“I sure hope so, Stevie.”

Steve sprawled belly down on Eddie’s bed, while Eddie trickled lukewarm syrup up his thighs and across his butt. He moaned, splayed his legs, focussing on the smooth drag of the silk covers against his dick. Trouble was, for some reason, he’d still got slight jitters. Heck, he’d had nightmare experiences with hot wax as well as butt plugs.

He glanced back.

Eddie… It was Eddie. Eddie was… one of the nicest guys he’d ever known. Eddie’s eyes were always kind, and…

“All right, Stevie?” 

“Hell, yeah.” He thrust ass up, angling his knees inward so the cheeks split wide.

Eddie began to lick, leisurely stroking up Steve’s syrup-smeared thighs, setting Steve squirming. 

“Mmmmm, mmmmm, Honey-pie.” Eddie sounded so stupidly delighted, he shunted Steve’s bad experiences into the darkest corners of his memory. “You likey?”

“I fucking love it.”

Eddie dabbed teasingly close to the back of Steve’s balls, then lathed back up toward Steve’s hole. He genuinely slurped at the syrup, and the stuttering suction sent each of Steve’s raw nerve-endings wild. By the time Eddie tongued lightly around Steve’s rim, Steve gasped, whimpered—too much sensation, all of it driving him nuts. His dick was as dripping as his maple-drenched ass.

“Can I go deeper?” asked Eddie, voice muffled, breath scorching.

“Jesus, pleeease.” Steve was now begging for real. Screw that, demanding: “Eat me out already!”

...

6.1 on tumblr

Chapter 6 on AO3 tumblr link coming soon!

I've added a hashtag #thefreakinthepenthouse for ease of finding the earlier parts. I can also tag if anybody is interested... please let me know.

Thank you for reading. Likes reblogs and comments much appreciated and will feed the bunnies🐰💕🐰💕🐰💕🐰💕

On tumblr: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3.1 Part 3.2 Part 4.1 Part 4.2 Part 5.1

On AO3 All my ST stuff on AO3