#sometimes you have to see the whole picture

[angelltheninth]

Through the Eyes of an Artist

Pairing: Rafayel x Fem!Reader

Tags: nsfw, smut, orgasm encouragement, being watched, toy use, clit stimulation, giving instructions, masturbation, body cum shot

Ko-Fi | Rules | Fandoms and Characters | Commissions

Word count: 0.7k

A/N: I'm an artist too, I would do the same.

What an honor to be Rafayel's new model. You were all he could paint lately, his only inspiration. You were fine with that, you got to pose for him, wear all kinds of outfits, sometimes no outfits, you got to spend time with him, hours upon hours as he finished his painting. He would let you choose the frame of for the picture too.

Usually there was to be as little movement from you as possible. This time was very different. Having items with you was also something that happened often. On you, not in you, not riding something.

And what's more he still refused to tell you what his subject was.

"Spread your legs more. I need to see it clearly. I know it might be more difficult to ride but I promise to give you a long, rewarding massage after." Rafayel instructed you from behind the canvas, his eyes were the only visible part of him until you did as he suggested. Your legs spread wider on either side of the smooth, purple dildo, the tip catching your clit every time you rolled down. "That's it. Keep your face forward, don't hide from me."

You bit your lower lip as he looked at you intensely, taking in every part of you. Your parted lips, flushed cheeks, your nipples stiff peaks on your breasts, your hips rolling and clit puffy for him to see.

"You still haven't told me why you... want me to do this. Aren't I supposed to be still?" Although if he were to have you sitting on the dildo for hours it might have been worse.

"Not for this. I want to capture pure lust, pleasure, bliss. And you, your face when you have an orgasm, your body tense with pleasure, there's no better subject." He waxed poetically about this but as much as you wanted to believe him part of you thought this was just an excuse to watch you fuck yourself. A clever excuse, you'll give him that much.

You felt so exposed to him. It wasn't the nudity, you've had sex before, a lot when one of his paintings would win an award, but you never did things like this in front of him. It made you vulnerable.

"Hands at your sides. Or your breasts. I need to see." He instructed again and hummed as your hands grabbed your breasts, teasing your nipples with your thumbs. "Good girl. Keep going until you finish."

It wasn't only that you finished once, but four times by the time he set the pen down.

He was quiet the whole time, focused on his craft, but you knew your moans and your whimpers had an effect on him. From how he was sitting his bulge was very visible to you.

"It's still missing something." Rafayel sighed and leaned forward, cock stirring in his pants. He looked down at it, then to you, whose body was shaking from your last orgasm, a puddle beneath you, your leg and thigh muscles burning and pussy swollen from riding the toy. "Of course. The personal touch."

You heard him shifting behind the canvas, the distinct and familiar sounds of his belt and zipper. He walked over to you, his cock fisted in his hand and stopped just out of your reach. "You want my mouth?" Your pussy clenched around the toy again and you hissed, so sensitive around it.

"No. Keep doing what you're doing. You're almost done." He wasn't referring to the painting, but also to you. Rafayel's eyes roamed your naked body. "I'll paint you." Not with a paintbrush but with his cum. Rafayel moaned your name over and over, rubbing his cock and shooting thick, long ropes of cum across your chest, face and stomach too.

Unable to hold back your tongue dipped down to lick the tip, your lips kissing it once, a loud moan silenced against it as you came for the fifth time.

"Yes! Yes, like that, hold still now!" He didn't bother to put his dick back into his pants he quickly grabbed his brush and got to putting the paint to canvas, capturing you in that one perfect moment of pleasure. No one would see this painting, no one but the two of you.

[nonightingalesinberkelysquare]

WARNING FOR GOOD OMENS SPOILERS!!!!

FURTHER SLIGHT SPOILER WARNING FOR THE FOLLOWING BOOKS: The Bone Clock by David Mitchell, You Only Call When You're In Trouble by Stephen Mcauley, and Bibliomaniac by Robin Ince.

So I'm sure a lot of the fandom have seen the pictures posted by a very lucky fan who saw the production of good omens happening out in Scotland today!!

However what I'm not seeing people talk about is a hidden gem in the reblogs.

SOMEONE HAD MANAGED TO GET A PICTURE OF THE BOOKS IN THE WINDOW!!!

Naturally, I had to go and do my research to see if these books give us any clues or serve any other purposes other than decorative purposes

AND LET ME TELL YOU

These are the the books visible in the window:

I'll go through them one by one

(Please bear in mind, I haven't read any of these books personally!! The only information I have on them are the little bits I found online in a very rushed attempt at research!!!)

Okay firstly

"The Bone Clocks" by David Mitchell

Now, this is the one that I struggled to make sense of the most out of the three.

The story appears to follow a runaway teenage girl who is a "lightning rod for psychic phenomena." These visions are said to reorder reality and send her into a real life nightmare.

However,

It also states that there is a boy who eventually crosses paths with her and who's story "comes together in moments of grace and extraordinary wonder"

As I said, I've never read these books and the only link I could begin to make with this is the idea of a "supernatural being meets another supernatural being and what they can do when they're together defies anyone's wildest dreams" story, similar to what we have seen and could see in GO3.

The next book is where it gets FARRRR more interesting (in my opinion)

NOW

THE TITLE? INTERESTING ASF.

IS AZIRAPHALE IN TROUBLE? OR EVEN CROWLEY?

The quotes are literally taken from the amazon listing itself, but I'll just point out the bits that stuck out to me personally.

☆ "is it ever okay to stop caring for others and start living for yourself?"

And I'm skipping a HUUUUGE chunk of the story here so apologies

☆ "Tom does what he's always done - answers the call."

☆ "Thus begins a journey that will change everyone's life and demonstrate the beauty or dysfunction (or both?) of the ties that bind families together and sometimes strangle them."

THAT LAST QUOTE REALLY STICKS OUT TO ME. Personally, I'd say that could possibly relate to the heaven and hell divides?

But furthermore, we were told prior to the whole NG situation that Aziraphale and Crowley aren't talking.. so could that mean that as soon as they begin speaking once again, they have the power to leave heaven and hell behind? Perhaps stop the divides?

And last, but certainly not least

Now, keep in mind that this particular book is nonfiction and appears to be written from the authors own point of view as he aims to visit 100 bookshops in 100 days.

This has a relatively short description from what I can see right now so I'll put it in here

"Bibliomaniac takes the reader on a journey across Britain as Robin explores his lifelong love of bookshops and books - and also tries to find out just why he can never have enough of them.

It is the story of an addiction and a romance, and also of an occasional points failure."

This one interested me SO much because it SCREAMS Aziraphale character development sort of thing? You know?

I really struggled to find any spoilers for this one whatsoever but one website did mention the author's love for vintage books, which he only ever reads as and when, as opposed to focusing on just one book.

I just thought this was SO SO SOOOOO interesting, and if anybody has any differing thoughts/interpretations or has even read the books, the comment section is a safe space to do so!!! All theories/suggestions are welcomed (any hate WILL be blocked, don't test me).

OR MAYBE THIS ALL MEANS NOTHING AND IM JUST CLOWNING FAR TOO HARD?!??!??!

[meganegatari]

LYSSSSSS!!!!!! oh you genius. ima start this all off by saying this is my favorite lyss work to date…you absolutely NAILED IT. the weaving of plot, the banter and dialogue, and ellie????? peak characterization, you really don't see skill like this every day. tbh sometimes it pains me you aren't able to see just how good at writing you really are, but oh well. guess i'll have to make it my life's mission to convince you! you'll believe me when i'm done, i'm sure of it :)

first of all the photo you chose— elliesgalaxy is genuinely not human methinks, how tf do you make a pixel look like that. i want to eat her.

she lingered outside, shifting her weight like she was debating whether to knock. but since this had become clockwork, you were already pulling the door open, and she shuffled inside uttering a, “don't make a big deal out of it.”

MY BABYYYYYYY. stop…no STAHPPP. i would not mind at all patching her up, my babyyyyyy she is so cute. the shuffling, the awkwardness and the silly internal battle— UGH LOVE IT. with your writing, i've noticed you are an expert in the ‘show don't tell’ idea, and i'm quite jelly!! you're a master of subtleties wherever they go,and i'm always in awe of how you paint such a vivid picture.

she'd been through hell and back.

what if i sob so hard i flood the earth huh…what are you gonna do. i just want to kidnap her and keep her safe in my basement so nothing could ever hurt her, and i'm the crazy one?

your lips pressed into a thin line, but you didn't protest further. you knew how much patrol meant to her— how she needed it. how ellie seemed to rely on it to feel like she provided something useful to jackson.

AGAIN WITH THE SUBTEXT HOW DO YOU DO THATTTTT i am going to cast a spell and steal all your talent…jk i would never do that it's all yours. but omg :( jackson is baby's home…thinking of the game's storyline and when they first got to jackson, this draws up such nostalgia. in between games one and two, i really do wonder how ellie adjusted, but before we go too far off topic i must continue to gush!

also i love love love your use of “said” when mentioning her burn, maybe i'm looking a bit too deep now, but it gives off almost a little suspicion..almost. can always count on you to be two steps ahead of all of us.

and your dialogue!!! i tell you this all the time but it's seriously so so good, i can hear the banter so perfectly in my head, TEACH ME YOUR WAYSSSSSS

i did also mention i love your use of “pitchy lilt” such a poetic description but it's so illustrative and clever!!

[...] made your stomach do something stupid.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. ok normal calm zen and chill but real!!! her dorkiness istg…there's nothing better than that. like yes she makes me weak in the knees yes i want to kiss her till she's dizzy WELL, YES!

you'd both insist, later, it was simply the sting of the antiseptic anyway, as if she hadn't weathered worse injuries before.

i. need. to. calm. down. the bloody tension????? are you trying to kill me in cold blood is this what this is. i am such a sucker for almost a slow burn like this, both of them not sure, but the subconscious never lies. GOD

“i think you're helping me all the time ‘cause you've got a soft spot for me.”

YES! YES! BINGO!! YOU'D BE CORRECT!! RIGHT ON!! WONDERHOYYYYYYY BOOM SHAKALAKA YES GAWDDDD okay my heart. it's gonna fuckin explode. i will charge you for murder lyss, this isn't funny.

the whole next chunk has me literally biting my firstbecayuse first of all how dare you, secondly, this is the most perfect thing i've ever read, thirdly, the characterization is honest to god so out of this world unreal, you make me fall in love with ellie more and more, with each post. truly, no one does it like you.

".....a kiss.”

insert feral monkey noises. insert squirting noises. insert blowing up the entire world noises. insert killing myself with a gun noises. ok i have no words. wtf are you doing i will be brought to tears because of this fucken pixel its so unfair…

this fic. this fic is everything to me, you don't understand. it makes me wanna laugh it makes me wanna cry it makes me want to scream into the void— you write ellie so true to life it makes me SICK! ILL! in the best way though, always the best way. my dramatic little baby, ugh. i'd give anything in the world to kiss her until we're both suffocating, but i suppose i have to deal with something close because that isn't an option, and that's gotta be to tell you how much i adore your writing every chance i get. 💚

becoming ellie williams' personal nurse was absolutely not part of your grand plan. in fact, being ellie williams’ anything hadn’t crossed your mind until an unexpected run-in left you the only one available to patch her up after a rough patrol. you’d spoken fewer than ten times before that, but after that night, ellie unilaterally decided you were the only person allowed to help her when she got injured. you didn’t fuss as much as maria, or dina, or anyone else—and that was enough for her. or at least, that’s what she claimed. it certainly didn’t hurt that you were cute.

that's how you found yourself falling into a routine—ellie 'just happening' to show up at your door, flashing those worn green eyes and grumbling about how "it's not that bad" to garner enough pity until you inevitably caved and fixed her up, sparing her yet another lecture from maria.

tonight was no different. she lingered outside, shifting her weight like she was debating whether to knock. but since this had become clockwork, you were already pulling the door open, and she shuffled inside uttering a, “don’t make a big deal out of it.”

you sighed, already moving to nab your ever-growing stash of first-aid supplies as she dropped into your desk chair. ellie had tried to clean herself up beforehand, but it was fruitless—her green jacket, the one now being hastily shrugged off, had been covering the worst of it. a deep gash on her arm, the lingering traces of a nosebleed, fresh cuts along her cheek. she’d been through hell and back.

"ellie," your voice carried a warning as you approached, reaching out to cautiously inspect her wounded arm. "this isn't just some scrape." ellie exhaled sharply through her nose, taking the accosting while settling in the chair she'd visited many times already. "it's nothing. i don't want maria finding out and pulling me off patrols."

your lips pressed into a thin line, but you didn't protest further. you knew how much patrol meant to her—how she needed it. how ellie seemed to rely on it to feel like she provided something useful to jackson. so instead, you got to work, gently cleaning the cuts along her forearm. ellie winced as the antiseptic hit raw skin, her fingers twitching against her thigh. unfortunately, the cut had grazed her tatted arm. you made a valiant effort to be delicate enough to mend the cut without disturbing the tattoo—luckily, it had missed the chemical burn ellie said she'd gotten on that arm years ago.

"oh, stop whining," you chided over her complaints. "shouldn't you be used to the pain by now? little masochist. and what's with you aiming for this poor arm so much? you've got two to work with, you know.” ellie scoffed at your chastizing, biting the inside of her cheek as her expression shifted to annoyance but not full offense. "right, lemme plan my injuries better next time."

you dabbed at a shallow abrasion beneath her cheekbone. ellie's eyes flickered up, trying to capture yours, but you wouldn't budge from the injury. she bit her crimson-stained lip, like she was weighing her next words wisely. "you keep patching me up, though. makes me wonder... i mean, i dunno..." ellie stilted her delivery, partly out of nerves, partly to grab your attention. "maybe you like seein' me all banged up," her tone took on a pitchy lilt as she kept peeking up at you.

the way she said it—less of a tease, a tad second-guessing, trying to dare a reaction out of you—made your stomach do something stupid.

"a better patient would stop causing such a distraction," you shot back, deliberately avoiding her gaze while keeping with the 'strict nurse' facade. you couldn't suppress a hint of a smirk though, briefly wiping your mouth to try and shield the small break over her nervous attempt at flirting. you just hated how right she was—no one was forcing you to do this, to put up with her maddening stubbornness and save her hide time and time again. all ellie had to do was bat those ridiculously pretty greens, and your defenses crumbled.

ellie huffed, pleased with your accidental admission but now more determined to coax more from you. she shifted slightly—and that's when you felt it. the light press of her fingers against the dip of your waist, like she had just meant to steady herself but forgot to pull away. her fingers curled slightly into the fabric of your shirt, sending a shiver up your spine. you said nothing, pretending not to notice. maybe she hadn't even meant to. you'd both insist, later, it was simply the sting of the antiseptic anyway, as if she hadn't weathered worse injuries before. neither of you moved.

ellie couldn't disguise her beaming when your strict charade allowed the gesture. she swallowed, like she was trying to decide whether to try her luck. her fingers tapped your side, hesitant.

“i think you're helping me all the time 'cause you've got a soft spot for me."

your breath hitched, warmth creeping up your neck, but you weren't about to let her win that easily. with a little head shake, you willfully regained your composure and lightly patted ellie's uninjured cheek before schooling your expression. "hush. you're being disorderly. i can't fix you up with all this blabbering."

ellie let out an exaggerated hiss, scrunching her eyes shut dramatically. your stomach clenched in brief panic, helper mode reigniting—until you realized she was full of shit, twisting her head like she'd been mortally wounded when, in reality, you had barely touched her.

"you're impossible," you muttered, smacking her good arm lightly in playful retaliation. "your life is in my hands. don't forget that." ellie leaned forward just enough to close the space between you, her voice dropping. "yeah, yeah, and every time i show up like this, i'm choosing to put my trust in you."

she wavered briefly, then added, softer still—only brave enough to say it now because she was already committed to the bit—"and that’s also why you won’t look at me."

you froze, and the second you met her gaze, it was over—long lashes framing those round green eyes, a smattering of freckles, some loose auburn strands that had escaped her barely-held-together bun sticking to her skin from the leftover sweat of patrol. with scraped skin and blood-streaked face, ellie was a proper mess—and yet, here you were, fighting every aching urge screaming at you to throw yourself on top of her.

you swallowed hard. the unassuming, bashful, loserish ellie was nowhere to be found. replaced by an ellie probably still riding the adrenaline of her close call with a horde of infected earlier, caring a little less about the consequences of her words and even further fueled by your easily cracked stoicism.

ellie seized your defeated, flustered silence to keep going. "also, as my nurse, i'm surprised you don't know the best cure for any injury."

you inhaled to brace for whatever nonsense was about to come out of her mouth. "oh, yeah? what's that?"

".....a kiss."

a drawn-out groan escaped you. "jesus," you muttered, cheeks burning. but fine—just this once. you weren't giving in completely, but you leaned in, pressing a fleeting peck to the tip of her nose.

the way ellie's face immediately split into a stupidly giddy grin was almost worth it. almost. her whole expression flushed a rosy pink, too.

"oh, on the nose? that barely counts," ellie teased, her voice dipping into something softer, more expectant. definitely hoping she hadn’t pushed her luck too much.

"deal with it, williams," you murmured, but your mind was already betraying you.

despite your best efforts, you couldn’t stop yourself from wondering what it would be like if you really gave in. if you disregarded all medical safety and climbed into her lap and kissed her senseless, letting your hands explore each other in desperation and recklessly savoring the taste of metallic red left on her soft lips.

snapping yourself from that less-than-holy thought, you deflected under the guise of needing to retrieve more supplies for another small cut you had overlooked.

when you came back, ellie was still watching you, something unreadable in her expression. you hesitated for a moment, then finally gave her a little glimmer of hope to cling to.

"tell you what," you started. "don't be an idiot—which i know is hard for you—and let everything heal," you let the jab sit for a second to build suspense, "and i’ll grant you the other half of that kiss."

ellie's smile widened triumphantly, though her posture was beginning to laze as exhaustion from the day's chaos caught up with her.

"anything for the nurse."

"yeah, yeah. now hold still so i can finish fixing you up."

and, for once, ellie williams actually listened. pic creds @/elliesgalaxy

[crunchyheartbeat]

Sheepherder Simon (pt.2)

TW: None

Sorry this one feels a little rushed but I haven’t posted in a good while so I’m trying to get back into the flow of it.

A few months have passed since you found Simon laying out on your lawn, broken and twisted with his sheep stuck to his hip.

You helped him repair himself, making sure his wounds were clean every night, applying ointments, and laying out dry bedsheets on the couch.

When You allowed Simon to stay that one night you would not have guessed it would turn into this. Making two plates of food every night, buying his favorite bourbon to stack in the cabinet, or washing his laundry while he tends to the animals.

You know in your gut it’s wrong, to be looking at him the way you do, to compare him to the man you lost, but sometimes you put all of that under lock and key, especially when he has his eyes on you when the night sets low and the only sound is the humming of your voice.

You swear the look in his eyes is of a man that has found a golden treasure. He doesn’t talk as much as he did the day you found him, but when he does it’s so gentle. He comes up to you and hooks his finger onto yours to make sure he has your attention, because he truly wouldn’t want anyone else’s.

Little to your knowledge, Simon can see the struggle that you hide when when your longing for him. It’s like a battle being fought that he doesn't have the info for. He can feel your heart beat quicken when he bends down close to you to pick up something, or when he purposely takes his shirt off in the living room after work, claiming that “A man that works hard should be allowed to walk around shirtless in any home”.

He knows that he needs to do something that could have you seeing him for him, not a man that use to be there.

You watch your hands as you set the mason jars inside the pot of water, when you can feel his presence close to you. His chest pressed to your back and his hand slowly grazing your thigh.

“Y/n” he crumbles out, making sure to keep his voice low and steady.

“You have been here to long y/n” you can hear him take a deep breath, debating on what chosen words he should say next.

“Your soul, your body, your mind is glued to this place, this house that no longer served you any purpose. I see the pictures you have turned around on the walls, the cups you don’t touch in the cabinet, the looks you give me. It’s time to let go y/n, let me take you. Let me have you as one. Let me take you back home with me”.

You feel your hands start to tremble and your breath quicken, how could you leave all of this behind. This has been your life for years, being married and trying for children while tending to a farm. How could you leave the place you very much built your whole life around, but when it come to looking in Simon’s eyes, the desperation he has and the creases in the his forehead, you wonder if maybe there was something holding on to him too.

Feeling his hands grab your waist and his face nuzzle against your check you let yourself wonder for a second, a life on a different farm. That maybe this was your chance to have what you wanted and try to start living for yourself again, with the help of him, instead of living in this shell that has the scent of another.

Maybe it’s time to let go and allow yourself to be loved.

I hope you enjoyed!! I also love this gif lol.

[shefightslikeagirl]

Stages Through the Ages

An Asylum History Post by @shefightslikeagirl

Fun title, huh?

For this month's hit of nostalgia, I thought it might be fun to take a look at EA's different stage setups. If you're a theater nerd like me, you'll probably enjoy this.

"We would spend an hour or two before every show setting up the stage. It was like setting up for company to arrive in every city we went to and it was very personal. Most of the stage props were handmade by Em and then in later years 2009-2011 we would all spend a week at her place hand making every single prop and stage feature (the original massive handmade clock)."

— Veronica Varlow, 2025

As always, if you notice I'm wrong about something, missing information, or need some more context, hit up the askbox.

2001 - 2006: Rock n' Roll

Throughout the Enchant Era and in the very earliest days of the Opheliac Era, EA was backed by a "traditional" band with the standard concert set up. She had microphones, instruments, and other equipment onstage; that was it. Her aesthetic focus was on her costumes, not the band.

It wasn't until the first Opheliac show that her new band, The Bloody Crumpets, had costumes of their own. Stage dressings did start popping up around this time, but they were sparse, and that trend would continue for a time.

(surprise appearance by Inkydust in the red shirt!)

2007: Shadows on the Wall

The true beginning of the Opheliac Touring Era (a terrible name that I will never use again) was in 2007 at Germany's Wave Gotik Treffen.

Again, we're not seeing a lot on the stage. Some ribbons, some gorgeous costumes, some "suicidal girls"... But not much else.

However, as the Summer Festival Tour continued, things started to come together.

Tollwood, June 2007

We see Suffer, some ribbons, and some balloons at Tollwood Festival, which followed a month after WGT. And then: Teapots! Canes! Red Pointe Shoes! More props, more set dressings.

Underworld, Camden, 2007

Frankfurt, 2007

Amphi Festival, 2007

But things really kicked off at the end of 2007, when EA's first headlined tour began: The Asylum Tour.

The stage design EA and I crafted together at my house within a few days before the start of each tour. It was really fun to paint and decorate tea sets, dolls and realizing the big shadow screens! 

— Vecona, 2019

Fittingly, this is when the Asylum started taking shape. The original stage design was an EA-Vecona collab, and later on a lot of the Bloody Crumpets would come to help craft props, scenic, and costumes.

Early Stage Sketches, from an eBay listing (left) and the EA Wikia (right)

Crafting photos, 2006 or 2007, Vecona

The shadowscreen that we all came to know and love debuted on December 5, 2007, in Essen, Germany.

This was the simplest version of the shadowscreen, which I'll refer to as "v1." It was a simple fabric scrim with a glitter border, easy to transport and set-up in different venues. Most of the pictures make it hard to see the border detail, but it shows up very well in video.

Vienna, 2007

Back to Essen! At this concert, Emilie's 1841 electric keyboard debuted with a lot more flair. It was covered in fabric, jewels, and props, becoming the icon it was always meant to be.

Essen, 2007 (this is the best angle and quality I can find)

Sometimes the whole thing liked to fall apart, but it was pretty, so we won't judge it.

The look of the keyboard varied slightly venue to venue, since the props were set "fresh" every time. The different fabrics appears to have been a sewn-together drape that attached at the top.

The Asylum Tour was very short, but was quickly followed by The Plague Tour and The Gate Tour. The vibe of her shows only advanced as time went on and I fully intended to continue talking about them here, but...

I've run out of images allowed per post. I suppose I'll have to continue this in a part 2! Drop a reply or a reblog to let me know what you think and if you'd like to see more of these!

[straycalamities]

sometimes i see people say (more commonly in regards to shipping bray but this isn't a bray-defense post, it's a very general gripe) that it's hard for them to picture brian's dynamic with characters because "he had like five scenes"

and that leads into my pet-peeve of people treating the brian and hoody situation as the same as tim and masky. regardless of if you subscribe to the Masky-Is-An-Alter theory or not, it's definitely not the same. if you even just look at it in the way that the operator clearly affected every single character differently. from alex-to tim-to brian-to jay-to jessica.

the thing is...hoody is still brian. there's a lot of traits of brian's you can still read in hoody's choices and behavior even if they've been warped in some cases or the intent is different in others. if you follow the strings back, you can get a clue, even through hoody, how brian thomas was himself

the operator didn't brainwash or change him to something he wasn't capable of being, a different person entirely. the operator doesn't work like that. the operator twists and pulls out or pushes back what's Already There. it messes with your perceptions and relies heavily on isolation and paranoia so you get the extreme cases with people who maybe didn't even have a lick of paranoia or trust-issues or problems making friends.

that's not even a theory. we literally see it happen over time in alex and jay.

that's not to say that who the operator makes them become is 100% them, like clearly there's interference there, but i am saying it's all based on existing traits, flaws, priorities, etc.

so hoody is still brian, he's just a very very wounded and broken version of brian pushed to limits he never dreamed he'd have to hit. to say brian only got 5 scenes is just incorrect. he was a major supporting character the entire time and even got an entire comic issue (that ALSO heavily reinforces my point in my opinion. that's why i didn't reference it. 1. to avoid spoilers but also 2. because you can find all the clues even in the youtube webseries. just like lots of other things about brian that 3.5 just makes obvious and spells out But The Clues Were Already There) (the same as alex. it's just alex never gets another name. he's alex the whole time so then we get the OPPOSITE problem of people assuming operatorified alex is how alex always was and that's not true either. you can, of course, still see aspects of himself in there, but it's the same thing. while it's based off pieces of him, he's still being coerced and pressured by an outside force <- clarifying so it doesn't come off like i'm villainizing alex as a person because i'm not. nothing's as easy as that in marble hornets and that's why i love it. but that also still can mean both alexs are alex. and both brian and hoody are brian. but brian also resists the influence so alex got Full Operator'd compared to brian)

[zae-heeyyy]

how are you making those arthur journal entries I wanna know 😭 they're so damn beautiful

🥲 THANK YOU ANON, and thank you for asking!

TLDR: I found the handwriting font on reddit and use procreate to make them! If you're interested in the whole process, see below!

I found Arthur's handwriting font on reddit before I stared writing the fics, and a journal entry seemed like a nice touch to add. Chiaroscuro was the first fic I published and the only one to have an AI sketch (whoops, didn't realize it was so frowned upon at the time).

Anyway, ✨the process✨ is pretty simple!

I use procreate on my iPad and start with a blank canvas. I imported the font into the app and just select it when I add the text. I try to stay consistent with the sizing and color, but I forget to check sometimes lol.

If I'm not being lazy, I try to smooth the writing out a bit by pushing the letters closer or pulling them further apart. I actually use the "nebula" brush for the smudges, and I googled a finger print/palm print and turned the opacity down for the ones that feature those.

On the occasion that I want an actual sketch, I usually trace a screenshot from the game. On a couple of them, Valor & Erudition, I cut pieces of the pictures from a downloaded file of his journal.

The only ones with sketches that I did mostly by hand are Boisterous (lots of tracing though) and Stelliferous (easy because it was only dots and lines lol.)

I wish I had the skill and talent to draw more of them (I'm slowly working on it). I'd make all of them have sketches if I had it in me haha but I'm glad to know someone notices these little things. Sometimes I wonder if I should even keep bothering with that part, but they bring me joy, so I'm happy to know you think they're beautiful. YOU'RE so damn beautiful, anon. Thank you again ❤️

[bread-wizards]

I actually think Dorian and Orym should fight more.

Remember when their slowly building tension over and entire episode (full of passive aggressive remarks and blame throwing) led to threats? And how after, Orym thanked Dorian for handing over the crown sadly because he knew Dorian would be mad at him? And Dorian couldn't even look at him because he was legitimately hurt, thinking Orym was disappointed in him for doing what he thought was right? That was peak.

The fact they went from that to their current closeness and trust is the best part of their entire dynamic. Their relationship was hard fought and still will be. They will fight for it because they respect and care for one another deeply, and their disagreements don't change that, only improve it.

[icewindandboringhorror]

Pages from trying to keep a little sketchbook-scrapbook type thing going for two weeks lol. I gave myself specific rules in hopes they might all end up more cohesive/consistent seeming, but alas, scribbly chaos reigns, it seems

[around-your-throat]

my ass is not getting into heaven with these pink haired pete wentz pictures on my computer dawg 🤣

[lychniis]

reader : you know, back in my world...my universe, we sent these disks out on one of our first space probes. they were called the golden records and they contained things about us. our culture, our music, our world, our people. even our history and biology. all of it spanning over ninety minutes. scientists...they stated that those records? they will last over a billion years. could you believe that? they'll last longer than human civilization, and possibly any civilization after that. and if some alien species did find it in the far off future, did manage to learn how to play it...they'd be reading the last memoirs of the human race. we'd be gone but that record? it would be there, and then you realize...that was our way of finding immortality. those songs, those photos, those greetings; that was us. that was all of us, who we were; the last credible proof of our existence to a people who might have never heard of us. and then you realize, with all that time it might take, with all vastness of the universe it might have to travel...we're just...so small compared to it all.

jing yuan : ...i love you but i think you need to sleep.

reader : sleep...huh it also makes you think about the workings of the human body-

jing yuan : *slaps hand over your mouth* no.

@hiraethsdesires @silentmoths @crystalflygeo @zhxngii @ofoceansandtombsanew

[mycological-mariner]

Love that not even a full week my partner watched The Terror they still cried genuine tears thinking about Jopson’s death to where it affected them so bad they’ve saved like a dozen pictures on their phone and now browses Etsy looking for a plushie because, I quote, “I just need a little Jopson. To hold.”

They want to watch it again this weekend

[swagglessmoth]

Ghost eyes doodles from an AU bc they've been rotting my brain

[omarfor-orchestra]

.

[brick-van-dyke]

TERFs 🤝 Zionists

Using the exact same talking points and rhetoric.

[articskele]

IF I HAD A NICKEL EVERYTIME I WANTED TO BE FRIENDS WITH A DUO OF CHARACTERS FROM A HORROR GAME, ONE BEING HUMANOID AND THE OTHER BEING A MONSTER WITH SHARP TEETH-