#thanks for encouraging me to experiment as an artist with your works

[wis-art]

Hi everyone, i was asked by Nader @abdalsalam1990 to draw my character asking you to donate, please help out Nader and his family, he is just 17, he should not be forced to be asking artists and anybody who listens to do charity work for him, he should be having fun enjoying his childhood and studying, which is impossible now due to the genocide happening to him and his people.

We have talked extensively and the pictures, videos and experiences he has shared with me are haunting but his unending kindness and good heart is not broken. Please, help out if you can, and if you cannot share this and encourage others to share. Thank you so much and i hope for the best.

Reblogs are appreciated, and free palestine.

[chuwenjie]

Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse comes out later today so I wanted to write a post reflecting on my journey and experience working on this movie. So many people have supported me through this and I am so thankful to each and every one of you!

Text version of this post under the cut:

Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse comes out tonight. It feels really weird to be typing that out right now. I worked on the movie as a visdev artist for the last 2.5 years, from 2020 to 2023. Long post incoming.

There are a lot of reasons why I'd consider this film to be one of the most ambitious animated films to ever be made. As artists, we were asked to push ourselves far beyond our comfort zones and do things that had never been done before in animation.

Every time we reached a point where most people would say "this must possibly be as creative and weird as it gets," our entire team of artists and animators would smash right through the ceiling. The driving direction for the visuals of the film was to push the limits of every single frame; to challenge audience expectations and make something truly original.

The best thing about this film was that there wasn't a single boring day working on this movie. The hardest thing about this film was also that there wasn't a single boring day working on this movie.

There were times while working on this where the imposter syndrome hit me hard. This was my first big movie, and what a hell of a first movie to get thrust into.

I came in only a few years out of school with absolutely no idea what the hell I was doing. I constantly feared that someone had made a mistake in bringing me onto this film, and I was going to let everyone down. There was a solid chunk of those 2.5 years where I wasn't sure if animation was the right path for me.

If there's anything I could tell my past self it would be this: there are so many people who love you and believe in you. There will be a time when you get to stand on the other side of it, look back on everything and see how far you came.

I'm still working on self-acceptance every day (it will be a lifelong struggle, I'm sure), but I'm glad I didn't give up on myself. I'm proud of myself and my contributions to this film, and I'm certain that this movie will continue to change and shape the animation landscape just as the first one did. That's truly a special feeling to have been a part of. I am so incredibly grateful to every single person who helped me along this journey.

Here come the thanks:

To the ENTIRE visdev & art crew- it's been an honor getting to work alongside each and every one of you. My jaw is literally still on the floor from seeing your incredible talent day after day.

I want to thank Tiffany and Felicia especially for being there for me through tough times- I admire and respect you both so much as artists, and even better than that, my life is greatly enriched for being able to call you my friends.

Thank you Patrick and Dean for taking chances on me, teaching me so much about art and what I'm capable of, and encouraging me along the way. To Aymeric, your art is one of the reasons I initially became interested in animation and you have been one of the kindest & most empathetic mentors I could ever have asked for.

I want to thank my wonderful parents for believing in me always and raising me into the person I am today: everything I do in life is to make you proud. To my brother Andrew who is perpetually awake at 3 AM when I need someone to talk to- thank you for always picking up the phone and making me laugh.

And finally to my partner Luke for making me grilled cheeses on all of the difficult days, for never getting sick of me even when all I would ever talk about was work, and for patiently and steadfastly loving me throughout this entire thing. I don't think I could've done it without you.

Starting tomorrow I will begin posting and sharing some of the art I made for this movie; I'm looking forward to sharing some of my personal favorites with you. I hope each and every one of you enjoys Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse when it hits theaters later today!

[otdiaftg]

Thank you

Dear AFTG Fandom, Friends, and Family:

To say that it has been a tremendous honor would be an understatement. I am immeasurably proud of what this account has become and it’s due to every single one of you. Your passion for this account was the driving force at the end and I can’t thank this fandom enough for being a rock in the storm of all of this.

I began this account as both a love letter to a story that has consumed me since I was first introduced to it, but it was also created to prove that I could sustain something for this long and this intensely immersive. During this past year alone I have been dealt hands that were not always the best, but this account kept me above water, even through the many sleepless nights. It energized and empowered me through all of your retweets/re-blogs, likes, and comments.

I also want to highlight and thank all 40 artists that gave me permission to share their incredible work. The scenes came alive due to their immense talent and exceptional hard work. Every artist was kind and considerate, incredibly understanding and just as invested in this project as I was. I truly can’t thank them enough for their trust and support.

Thanks also need to be delivered to my wife and best friend who, without their constant push and patience, none of this would have happened. They were my first followers, my biggest fans, and were Abandoned so many times during the course of this and yet encouraged me to keep going. Maybe now we’ll finally have time to play all those games we’ve downloaded over the last year :).

I also want to thank Nora for…. so many things. For the creation of this story, for the encouragement when this account became so big YOU even saw it, and for becoming a dear friend in the process. You’ve been an inspiration throughout this in more ways than I can say.

And finally, I want to once again, thank all of YOU. The followers, the commenters, the re-posters, the veteran fans, the new fans, the obsessed fans, and the casual ones. Fandom can be such an intrinsic and beautiful thing. Pulling people together and bringing a life to these characters through our own individual experiences. We are all our own Foxes in a way, tied together with the understanding that second chances are immeasurable and the family we make are the best ones of all.

You gave this account a shot. And for that I am eternally grateful.

you were amazing.

🦊 🧡- Kelysium

[stormz369]

☕💖 Can I Get Your Number? ☕💖 Ch 25

Jason Todd x (f)Chubby!Reader

written with a female reader in mind, first person pov, no use of Y/N, will probably get NSFW later, let me know if there's anything else I should tag this with!

warnings/labels: it's time for a training montage! minor injury, guns briefly mentioned wc: 2.1k

Chapter Selection

“I can’t believe we’re doing this…” Jason grumbled softly, starting his bike.

“I told you; you don’t have to come if you don’t want to. Bruce said he'd send a car for me.” I wrapped my arms around his waist, gently squeezing.

“Absolutely not. If you’re joining Thursday training sessions, I’m going with you.” We flew down the street, Jason’s voice continuing in the speaker in my helmet; “I just don’t understand why you want to do this at all…”

“Training with more people will give me a more well-rounded experience. And while you are a very good teacher, you’re also my boyfriend. Somehow I feel like Bruce will be a harsher critic of my abilities.”

“And that’s a good thing??” He took a sharp turn toward the wealthy side of town.

“When we’re talking about possible life and death situations, yes. And I don’t really want you to have to be harsh with me, so why don’t we make that Bruce’s responsibility, since that relationship is already tense anyway?”

Jason sighed softly, gently squeezing my hands. “... I guess. … He can be a … tough teacher though. If he’s too hard on you, you don’t have to take it.”

“I know, baby. And he knows I’m not looking to be added to the patrol schedule, so I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Jason grumbled more, but continued driving to Wayne Manor. We parked in a large garage, and he led me to an elevator. After pressing several buttons we were headed down to the Batcave, where the entire Wayne family met us.

Damian spied us first, walking over. “Sister?”

“Hey kiddo! You gonna help train me?” I grinned, holding my hand out to him. He hesitantly squeezed my hand once, dropping it quickly.

“... I thought Father was attempting to make a joke when he said you were joining our training sessions…” he frowned deeply.

“Nope, no joke. … Is that a problem?” I raised an eyebrow.

“... I suppose not. … You will spar with me.” He gestured for me to follow him toward some mats.

Jason cried after us; “hey! Be gentle, demon brat. She's still new to this stuff.”

“I am not a fool, Todd. I am not expecting her to be a black belt.” Damian nodded; “stretches first.”

I took a seat and pulled my shoes off before stepping onto the mat, doing our usual pre-workout stretches. Eventually Bruce came over, watching us with vague interest on his face. “Alright, let's see what we have to work with.”

I nodded, and Damian and I put on some padding. We bowed to each other, and began. He started out slowly, letting me get in the flow of things. The others watched, periodically calling out instructions and encouragements. After a while I caught a glimpse of Jason in the corner of my eye, chewing on his lip, and Damian took that moment to sweep my leg out from under me.

“Oof!” I grunted softly as I landed on my back, blinking a bit.

“Don't get distracted. Your opponent will use that moment to their advantage.”

I nodded, accepting Damian's offered hand to get back up. “Go again?”

He nodded, and we went again, and again, and again. Every time, I ended up on my back, and he had another note for me. “Don't watch my face, watch my shoulders.” “If you aren't willing to hurt me, you will never win.” “Follow through, or none of this will matter.” “Focus on your footing; you're off balance.” “Breath with your attacks.”

Eventually, Jason stepped forward. “That's enough, take five.”

I nodded, letting him help me up, and bowed to Damian again. “Thanks for training me, Damian.”

He nodded, smiling a little, and bowed back. “You're not entirely hopeless, considering you're a civilian. If you take this seriously, you'll be a proper martial artist in no time.”

I grinned, nodding, and Jason led me to the side, getting me some water. “How do you feel?”

“I feel fine, baby! Damian is an excellent sparring partner.”

He frowned a bit, massaging my shoulders. “I dunno, some of those throws were unnecessarily rough…”

“Jace, do you think the next mugger I run into is going to be more gentle with me than that?”

He sighed, kissing my neck. “... No. … I just don't like watching you get knocked around.”

“I know, you're so protective of me~ it's sweet, but we gotta power through this part so I can get good.”

He sighed, holding me close. We watched the others pair up for more intensive sparring practices, and Bruce came over. “You did well out there. I want you to work on your balance for a while, Jason can walk you through that. And you should do at least an hour a day of simple exercises; stretching, strength training, and balance training.”

I nodded. “Got it. Thanks Bruce…”

He nodded, pointing out the equipment he recommended I use today, and went back to observing the others. Jason eventually led me over to the equipment, and we started working on my balance.

After weeks of gym days with Jason and BatFam training sessions, I really expected to see myself slimming down a bit. But when I looked in the mirror, I was still soft and curvy. My arm and leg muscles were more pronounced, and I was certain my core muscles were getting stronger too, but my tummy was still round and squishy. It didn't bother me, and Jason seemed rather pleased to not be losing my softness; he tended to nuzzle against my chest and stomach at night, like a big cuddly teddy bear.

Seeing my training progress wasn't making him any less protective either; every time I stepped onto the mat with one of his siblings I could hear him growling at them. It didn't deter Damian, or the girls, but Dick and Tim were particularly hesitant to give me a proper training session. They mostly stuck to helping me with warm ups, and shouting suggestions from the sidelines.

All of the bats were master martial artists, but each had their own preferred fighting styles. Damian taught me to fake out my opponent, and had a proclivity for taking out the leg. Stephanie preferred to mix up her fighting style, keeping her opponents off guard. Cass taught me to anticipate an opponent's moves, watching for the slightest movements that might tell me how to take them down. When Dick and I sparred, he mostly stuck to the basics, not wanting to risk injuring me in front of Jason. Tim mostly helped me work on my blocks and defensive strategy. Bruce stuck to observing and instructing, never actually entering the ring with me. And with the lot of them training me in various martial arts, Jason turned our gym days into gym-and-range days; we would do some stretches and basic core-building, and then we went to the shooting range to work on my aim.

One day before training, Damian had me kneel. Once I was on my knees, he held out a yellow sash with little black bats on it, saying something in a language I didn't know.

I took it, smiling softly; “what's this?”

“Your yellow bat-belt. You've leveled up in your training. Put it on.”

I grinned, nodding, and tied it around my waist; “yes, Sensei.”

Damian smiled at that, nodding once. Once he was happy with how the belt was tied, he led me to the mats for our sparring session. Tim snorted softly, watching from the side.

“What's with the belt? You know the mish-mash of martial arts she's learning wouldn't count at a proper school, right?”

Damian glowered at him; “she has leveled up in the School of the Bat. That is what matters here.”

“Well how come the rest of us don't get bat-belts then?” Tim smirked a bit; “you gotta make them for everyone, Damian!”

“You would not like a physical indicator of what level I deem you to be at, Drake.” Damian smirked at his indignant noises, and turned to me. We bowed and started our sparring session.

In our fourth spar of the day, I landed my first ever hit. One second Damian was in front of me, fists up, and the next he was sprawled out on the floor in front of me, looking up at me in shock.

“Oh my god, Damian! Are you ok??” I fell to my knees next to him as he sat up slowly.

“... I'm fine. … Well done, sister.” He smirked a bit; “now do it again.”

I could hear the smirk in Jason's voice as he called out; “way to go, babe! Kick the demon brat's ass!”

“Language.” Bruce frowned at him, and I helped Damian up.

“Sorry, B. Let's try that again,” he cleared his throat, putting on the most happy-go-lucky voice he could manage; “holy guacamole, bat-babe! Gee golly, can ya do it again, pretty girl?” 

Dick wrinkled his nose, groaning softly. “Dear god, I forgot you used to talk like that. Never do that again.”

“Agreed.” I laughed softly, sticking my tongue out at him; “that was horrible!”

He chuckled, winking at me. Damian frowned, snapping at us; “Enough! No flirting during training! Sister, let's go again.”

My head was ringing. Hands grabbed me, and I was carefully brought into a seated position. I blinked slowly, touching the back of my head gently. No blood. That was good…

“-idn't mean to! Fuck!”

“Well you did! So back off, Grayson!” Damian spoke sharply next to me. His small hands held the sides of my face, making me look at him; “... No dilation, that's good.”

I blinked slowly, frowning. “Wha- … what happened?”

Jason held me against his chest, frowning deeply. “You don't remember, baby?”

I started to shake my head, but the pounding in my head put a stop to that. “Ohhh fuck … ow…”

“Shit …” Dick whined softly from somewhere behind Damian. “Shit, I … I'm so sorry! I swear, I didn't mean to!”

“Dick, just shut up.” Jason growled, holding me closer. He carefully lifted me, holding me against his chest as he carried me toward a long bench.

“She's probably got a concussion. Don't let her sleep.” Tim frowned, bringing an ice pack.

Jason took it, carefully pressing it to my head. “Yeah, no shit…”

“What happened?”

“Dick threw you off the mat.” Jason growled softly, holding me close. “You're done for the day. Time to rest.”

“Ugh… ok. … Rest sounds good…” I frowned, closing my eyes.

Dick hesitantly mumbled my name; “I'm so sorry!”

“It's all good, Dick. I'm not dying.” I groaned softly, leaning against Jason.

Jay growled softly. “It's not all good. I told you to be careful. I told you not to hurt her!”

I shushed him softly, leaning in more. “No yelling…”

He sighed softly, kissing my forehead. “Sorry, baby girl…”

Bruce checked my eyes, frowning a bit. “... Nothing else she can do today. Take her home, have her take a few days off.”

Jay grunted his agreement and the next thing I knew, I was in his arms again, being carried to the elevator. Damian ran after us, bringing my bag along. I smiled softly, reaching down to stroke his hair. “Thanks, kiddo…”

He leaned in to my touch for a second before pulling back; “I'll come over tomorrow after school to check on you.”

“Sounds good. Thanks, Damian.” He smiled a little at that, setting my bag in the car. Jason got me situated, making sure I was buckled, before getting in and driving me home.

“Fucking Dick…” he grumbled softly.

“Relax, baby. It's just a minor concussion. I'll be fine tomorrow.” I smiled softly, watching the scenery.

“Should never have happened…’’

“It was an accident, they happen. Don't be too harsh with him.” 

He sighed, resting a hand on my knee. “... This ok?”

I smiled softly and nodded, turning toward him; “Yeah, that's ok.”

He smiled a little and gently stroked my knee with his thumb; “when we get in, you're gonna rest on the couch. I'll get you some water, and aspirin, and I'll make something light for dinner.”

“Ok. Thanks, Jay~” I sighed softly, closing my eyes for a second.

“Don't sleep, now. You gotta stay awake for a while.”

“Ok, I'll stay awake.” I slowly opened my eyes, blinking a bit. “... So bright though…”

Jason pulled a pair of sunglasses out of his center console and passed them to me. I grinned, kissing his hand, and put them on. “Much better. … Takin' such good care'a me…”

He chuckled softly. “Anything you need, doll. Always.”

Next ->

Divider by: @saradika-graphics

Taglist (open): @jawdropforkpop @krys0210 @snowy-violet @superthoughts @wordsfromshona @mystic60 @iwannabealocalcryptid @morstuavitamea-a @frosty--giants @arisa191 @prized-jules @phoenix666stuff @dinonuggysandhuggus @anuttellaa @whore-of-many-hot-men @cottage-worm @v1ckycheesue @roastyyytoastyyy @sarakmec @thestarcatcher7297 @stupidlyunhinged

[hd-fan-fair]

H/D MUGGLE FAIR 2024 MASTERLIST & REVEALS!

What an incredible fair we had this year! Events like this don’t come together on their own, so the mods would like to take a moment to express our gratitude:

♥ To our amazing authors and artists: Thank you for joining us for the 2024 fair! Your incredible talent and creativity are what made the event so special. This fair wouldn’t have been possible without you.

♥ To our readers and viewers: Thank you for taking the time to enjoy, comment, and show love to the works. Every single kudo and comment meant so much, and we’re so grateful for your support.

♥ To everyone who participated in the Fair Cup: You were fantastic! Your enthusiasm, dedication to reading, commenting, and rooting for your team made the experience so much fun.

♥ To those who shared their favorite stories and artworks through recommendations: We deeply appreciate your efforts to highlight amazing creations!

♥ To all the beta readers and cheerleaders who supported our participants: You’re incredible, and your encouragement made a big difference.

Let’s all give ourselves a well-deserved round of applause! And now, it’s time for the reveals!

With love, phoenixacid & sassy_cissa

Art 1. Elizah123 drew Drawn Together (Digital Art, Teen) 2. Digthewriter drew Smart Meets Snark (Digital Art, General) 3. RatKingPoe drew Tangled Tension Twister (Digital Art, Teen) 4. ItsPhantasmagoria drew To the Faire! (Digital Art, General) 5. petitanzu drew From Dusk til Dawn (Digital Art, General) 6. Black_cat16 drew Surprises in The Elevator (Digital Art, General) 7. digthewriter drew Breakthrough The Barriers (Digital Art, General) Art & Fic 8. Jaykray drew and wrote At a Glance (3k, Digital Art, General) 9. Rainjuly drew and wrote Starry, Silver Anchor (19k, Digital Art, Mature) 10. Squibnation10 drew and wrote Our Dream (18k, Digital Art, Mature) 11. Its-the-allure wrote Come As You Are (35k, Digital Art, Explicit)

Fic 12. xErised wrote Meet Me At Midnight (16k, Explicit) 13. Sita_Z wrote Five Times Draco Malfoy Used Muggle Things Incorrectly (and One Time He Didn’t) (9k, Teen) 14. DayDreamingFoxglove wrote Eating Away (3k, Explicit) 15. harDeehar wrote But Don't Miss (15k, Explicit) 16. skotini wrote In the Fight for Someone's Heart, the Best Armour is Armani (14k, Mature) 17. annanotherthing wrote Of All The Things You Could Be (Convenient Has Never Been One Of Them) (10k, Explicit) 18. slantindicular wrote Spellbound (23k, Mature) 19. Gnarf wrote Draco Malfoy is everywhere and Harry needs a break (3k, Mature) 20. Romaine wrote What Doesn't Happen in Venice Stays In ... (13k, Explicit) 21. meandminniemcg wrote My Father Won't Hear about This (5k, Teen) 22. Kaymardsa wrote Change the Ending (54k, Explicit) 23. DodgerKedavra wrote Each According to Its Kind (10k, Explicit) 24. Fool_Of_Took wrote (sex) Toys are a Guy's Best Friend (4k, Explicit) 25. luminae wrote taken for another spin (3k, General) 26. rei382 wrote Invaluable (33k, Explicit) 27. BelladonnaLee wrote Angelfish in the Bottle (29k, Teen) 28. maraudersaffair wrote Hurt Him and You Die (21k, Explicit) 29. bahkeks wrote Living Without (9k, Explicit) 30. DrWhoIsGinnyHolmes wrote Losing Count (4k, Explicit) 31. bluedahlia912 wrote Of All the Cities in All the World (11k, General) 32. Trishjames wrote Netflix and Chills (20k, Explicit) 33. Tigersilver wrote Third Wheel (17k, Teen) 34. sassy_cissa wrote There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact. (34k, Explicit)

Podfic 35. Aulophobia read To have a Home (14 hours 45 minutes, Explicit) 36. Cailynwrites read A Game of Two Halves (2.5 Hours, Mature) in chronological order

[the-sera]

I grew up in the kind of household where children's bedroom doors are locked from the outside. And it was definitely a huge source of inspiration of terror when I worked on horror games.

You see I used to claw at the bottom of my door and peel off the white paint on it, I did that when I was hungry but I was not being fed. And there is a visceral relation in horror games between the room you are scared to enter and the room you try to leave.

And while my role around P.T. was insignificant considering its short lived existence, I always appreciated the work my peers did with the bathroom in this experience. The knocks on the door, the horrific cries coming from it, a jumpscare closing it shut, roaches coming from it. But once you are inside of it, the sentiment of security takes a moment to build, a flashlight is found, an unborn in the sink. Gradually, it is the knock from the outside that begins to scare you. The familiar corridor outside becomes the scary place where danger is.

I think some people often forget just how intertwined with trauma Silent Hill is as a franchise, and that specific one was no exception. And I think that is the scariest thing in the world and why the franchise lives on after such a long run. Monsters and animatronics may spook you, but there is nothing quite as frightening as starving while locked within your own bedroom as a child, while your mother stands outside hearing your pleas.

Creativity tends to come from the best and the worst of our lived experiences, and that's why diversity of experiences is important to make great pieces of art. I think people are afraid of using the darkest and hardest part of their lives as a reference, I think there is an underlying fear of giving it power or significance in the present. A fear to resurrect a terror now gone, or perhaps reanimate grief over a ghost from the past. But I think that fear may be worse than the outcome and I encourage people to make art even if you're not an artist. It doesn't need to be good at all, it will hold meaning regardless, and it can't be meaningless.

I'll end this posted by adding a small note that I am currently facing a terminal health condition. If you wish to help, this is the link, thank you. Link is below the cut ❤

[strawberryblue-blog]

I was thinking what the barca boys would be like with a y/n that draws beautifully ✏🙃

Perfect drawing

—FC Barcelona.

summary: request

warnings: none. cute, soft.

#SEXYNOTE: I hope you like it xx 🎀 Thank you for the request, sorry for the delay 💝 (write to me if you wanted other players, i chose these because they are usually the most requested)

Pedri Gonzalez.

Pedro could stay for hours watching how you draw in your notebook. He silently admires every stroke, every line that gives life to your creation. When you raise your head with that nervous smile, he will give you a smile of pride and admiration.

His heart beats a little faster as he sees how talented you are. He is speechless for a moment, but then he gives you a hug full of pride and tells you how amazing your talent is.

He feels really lucky to have a girlfriend as talented and creative as you, he is thrilled with your strengths and passions.

Ferran Torres.

When he discovers that his girlfriend draws beautifully, he feels a mixture of awe and admiration. He's amazed at the skill and talent you have for putting her ideas on paper. So he will brag all about you, your drawings, your colors, your joy, your talent.

He experiences a sense of pride realizing that he is with someone so creative and talented. Moreover, you feel lucky to be able to share moments of creativity and artistic expression together.

It's like discovering a fascinating new aspect of the person you love, and it fills him with excitement to know that he has someone so special by your side.

Pablo Gavi.

Upon discovering that his girlfriend draws beautifully, he feel a surge of surprise followed by a deep sense of admiration even though he feels a little jealous of your talent (in a healthy way).

He marvels at the dexterity with which you handle the pencil or brush and is amazed at the beauty of your creations. A sense of pride comes over him when he realizes that he is with someone as talented as you.

Moreover, he is thrilled at the idea of being able to share moments of creativity together and to support you in your passion for art.

Joao Felix.

Upon learning that his girlfriend draws, he experiences a combination of surprise, admiration and pride. He is pleasantly surprised to discover this hidden talent you possess and how you can unfold before the beauty and detail of your drawings.

He feel a deep sense of pride at the realization that he is with someone so creative and skilled.

He will support you no matter what, he will be proud to be your muse, to take you to your classes and that you find a way to heal your thoughts with art. It fills him with joy to be able to see your sketches and that you always have a different vision of art.

Fermin Lopez.

When he discovered that his girlfriend draws beautifully, he was completely amazed by your talent and ability to capture your creativity on paper. The way you combine colors, techniques, ideas, was so magical for him.

He is thrilled at the idea of being able to share moments of creativity and to support you in your greatest passion, just as you support him with football.

He feels really lucky to have someone so creative and be a part of the process you're in. How any proud boyfriend would post your drawings on his social media, encourage you to submit your work to galleries and love every single one of your portraits.

[silentcryracha]

❍ ‗ Making art with Hyunjin ‗ ❍

Pairing : Hyunjin x f reader

Summary : chapter four of a cute standalone miniseries. It's what it says in the title

Genre/ Warnings : scenario/imagine/headcanon, drabble, fluff, suggestive but no smut, unserious but helpful Hyunjin, it's cute idk

Word count : 635 words

A/n : none

ps: There could be grammar errors. Do NOT repost on other socials. Leave feedback if you feel like it, otherwise enjoy! ♡︎

masterlist

series masterpost

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Hyunjin loves art, yes, but he loves you more. Don't even try to not make things about you if you're around because you'll be unsuccessful.

"Okay mr. Picasso draw an apple for me"

Five minutes later he'd be handing you the sketchbook, a pencil sketch picturing YOU holding an apple.

"This is ridiculous" you whisper, lowkey speechless. Hyunjin would pout, looking genuinely sad for a moment.

"You don't like it?" and of course you'd throw yourself at him covering him with kisses and praises all over his face.

He's just extra talented and in love! It's not his fault!

He'd be so happy to either learn from you or teach you, if you asked. Like oh my gosh imagine if he had an actual artist as a partner? He'd be so in awe and interested in each and every step of the process.

He would a hundred percent ask you to teach him, whatever the technique. He'd just be so excited to spend time with you regardless <3

Same thing if the roles were reversed and he was the teacher! He'd be very honored if asked him to teach you, probably because even though he's crazy good he wouldn't consider himself a professional artist.

You'd just end you having so much fun together. I feel like Hyunjin would shower you with praises and encouragement.

"That looks so good already, baby."

"It's...missing an arm and hair"

And he'd just respond "It's his business not yours" in the cutest most unserious tone.

"Hyune, come here a sec" you call out and whatever he was doing, he'd walk over.

"I don't think the sketch is bad but something is off. Is it the colors?" he listens, giving you a sweet kiss on the head, then focusing on the painting.

"I think the purple is a bit bright, try adding some black. I know you usually shouldn't but I don't think it's a drop is gonna hurt." he answers softly, picking up the acrylic and then mixing.

He picks up the brush and skillfully covers up the previous color, smiling to himself in satisfaction afterwards.

"See? Now the palette is more balanced." he gives you another kiss because, well yes.

"Yes it does! Colors do make such a difference. Thank you, honey"

It doesn't always need to be a learning experience though! Sometimes you just want to have a laugh or make a mess and then then make out covered in paint like it's not that serious.

It would happen specifically when someone got stressed working on a piece, and maybe it just sucked and wanted to throw it away, so might as well transform it into a whole abstract piece and get a laugh out of it. Mood lifted!

You and Hyunjin were just chilling, sitting together on the couch late at night, a whole storm outside. He turns to you, saying:

"Do you want to play a game?" you look up at him.

"Okay, Jigsaw. What were you thinking?"

He stands up, walking around the living room to pick up two sketchbooks, some pencils and spare pastels. Then comes back to hand you one.

"We pick something in the room -in our line of view- to draw, then we each have three chances to guess it right." you bite your lip, smiling.

"Okay. And what if we don't guess right?" he shrugs, a smirk struggling not to appear on his plump lips.

"Then one piece of clothing, of choice, comes off." he replies, "Each. time." you pout, feigning innocence.

"But...it's quite cold. Will we not be cold?"

"Well then let's hope we lose fast, so we can warm each other up." he winks and you giggle like an idiot, because of course that's where he was going.

"Bet"

And the rest is history <3

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

[elysiansparadise]

Hi Hi! I love your blog! The way you write speaks to me so well ✨ Any chance you could do some more 11th house planets specifically Neptune and Uranus? I noticed they're both not there and I have an 11th house stellium 🙈 totally okay if you're busy but would love your opinions on it 🩷 much love

Hello love, thank you so much for loving my blog! I have already posted that Uranus placement analysis, here it is.

Neptune in the 11th house

These natives are very intuitive and empathetic in their social relationships of all kinds, deeply feeling the emotions and needs of their friends or members of any group to which they belong, often offering emotional support and understanding. It is because of this that their friends tend to see them as reliable and empathetic advisors. They may have deep spiritual connections with their friends, they may even feel karmic bonds or predestined relationships quite often. These people have a strong sense of friendship, enormous devotion and respect for those who give them this title. It is likely that at some point in their life they will make the mistake of trusting someone they shouldn't, and may feel that they took advantage of their trust. They seek deep and meaningful connections with their friends and groups, since they do not settle for superficial relationships and seek to share transformative and meaningful experiences. These people have the ease to solve issues of other people, however, they may struggle with handling their own. Many times their friends can see them as people who have supported and guided them on a path towards a better mindset or life in general, since these natives not only will seek to encourage, support and make their friends feel accepted and loved just as they are, but they will make them see in themselves someone capable of achieving big things by making them turn their dreams in something tangible and real.

These natives stand out for being idea machines, with this placement their creativity increases by mixing it with originality, giving them the ability to create amazing things. They dream big and really love to fantasize about the future, they can even spend a lot of time daydreaming. It is very likely that they have artistic interests and hobbies and, in addition to that, enormous talent regarding them. They choose to experiment, try new ways of doing things and above all, not have a scheme or demand too much of themselves. Here we find people who hate tension in any form, choosing to prefer environments where they feel tranquility and peace from doing the things they like most. They reject unnecessary conflict and will easily walk away from anything that brings chaos and discomfort into their lives. These natives dream of a better world, some may decide to have a job in which they help others or contribute positively to society, many others have the way of thinking that, although they cannot completely change the world, they can contribute even a little, and they will do it without hesitation.

These people have a knack for inspiring others, an effect that can lead them to attract people who admire them either for a trait or talent. It is very likely that people place high expectations on them or idealize them in some way. They value working for a cause and a purpose, they will never be in a job for which they do not feel that passion and dedication. Many of them, despite being great friends, may prefer to take refuge from issues or problems by isolating themselves. They are those types of people who try to be reliable for others but hardly feel that there are people who are reliable for them. They may enjoy spending a lot of time on social networks or doing their hobbies, losing track of time. They may be able to earn money through jobs or projects that involve humanitarian, spiritual, charitable causes, creative or artistic activities. These natives have no difficulty working as a team and will always seek to help and support other members. They are very sensitive to the energies of others and can easily feel the vibrations of the environments they are in, so it is normal that after a while socializing they need a moment alone to recharge their batteries.

-> Go back to the masterlist

[xylax]

Gamedev vs life

Hi I wanted to thank fans/players for patience regarding markings. I am grateful beyond belief how basically entire playerbase was so nice about it all. I got so touched, because I was so scared to disappoint you all. Thank you so much. <3

I am working hard to make up for the delay, I am very sorry it came to that point, I am very ashamed I underestimated amount of work vs manpower, and encouraged to start the encounters before everything was ready, thinking "Of course it's gonna be ready". But it's not 2018 anymore. It's not 1400 files per stage, it's ~3000, totalling 18.000 files for Jaglions... Plus - lot of things happened. Almost entire staff team got sick or experienced very difficult life news that impacted progress. However, I will talk about my situation, as this is my blog.

This month, I have finally been diagnosed with osteoarthritis. It's been an issue for years, but in last 2 years it significally affected quality of my life - this was final drop in sea of needs to get an extra lion files artist in late 2023.

In June this year I suffered a joint inflammation that made me unable to walk. My fingers bend sideways, are stiff and painful. I did receive a steroid treatment but it was not enough to affect the knee, however my fingers feel a bit better, which is nice for drawing! I also received prescription for a painkiller that works better with joints - which is a nice change from just ketoprofen I've been taking. I have more appointments set to see what treatments I can get.

I have to address that it has been affecting my work, and with this, how players experience the game I work on. It is unfair that it affects the enjoyment of the game, and we want to do everything to remedy this.

An artist who already has been with us for years just received a new contract to help us with lion files, and we are looking into getting another decor artist (we're reviewing the portfolio right now!), making us potentially get 3 new artists this year alone. I hope this will help with improving quality and tempo of the game growth. I think Wolvden gets a lot more diversity in artists and a lot less stages/files currently, so it's not an issue yet - however I hope the way we work on Lioden which is always so time-consuming will also positively impact Wolvden in future, as it grows.

Thank you again for your patience with me, DMs with support and stern feedback - I appreciate everything, always. I want this game to be so much fun and to always be pleasure to look at.

Also, fuck genAI, as always. o7

[this-is-z-art-blog]

Introducing: Jewfirmative Action

Hello lovely phandom! Starting today, August 4th 2024, I'm launching a standing offer that if you make something that nods at Sam Manson's Jewishness, I'll make you a simple drawing or sketch request.

Sam and her family are canonically Jewish in Danny Phantom! I think a lot of us forget this, or maybe never realized in the first place, and I want to encourage us to recognize and celebrate this aspect of her character more. It can be anything as in depth as the whole family celebrating a holiday together or as simple as giving Sam a Star of David necklace.

There is no minimum requirement beyond 'clearly present', any good faith effort is welcome!

All mediums and experience levels welcome! Digital or traditional art, writing or fabric crafts, sticker or multimedia projects! Member of the phandom for years or your very first piece, lifelong artist or a newcomer!

This is not a commission, it is something I am doing for free, so I am not guaranteeing speed (it took me a few months to finish all the prizes for last year's Eight Ecto Nights, but I did finish!), and reserve the right to refuse things and talk over what idea you'd like instead

I am not seeking things out in the wild, if you'd like me to make something, you have to reach out to me!

You of course do not NEED to participate in this project to create Jewish Sam content; I'm not an arbiter of if you've done it or not. It's just really, really lovely to see folks including and celebrating her Jewishness, so I'd like to recognize when folks try, and to say thank you (check out my tag for shouting out folks' Jewish Sam work here)

As always, if you have a question about respectfully including Sam's Judaism in your work, I am here to help! I love talking about this kind of thing and know research can be daunting, so feel free to come and chat

[e-dubbc11]

🎃 Happy Birthday Month 500 Follower Celebration! 👻

The Sweetest Pain Series…

"That pumpkin is bigger than me!"

(I adore how his family helps him heal from his childhood trauma & he gets to experience all of the family fun with his wife & babies 🥰)

Thank you for your patience, my dear friend! I know how much you love this series and this was such a fun one to picture in my head. So thank you for your support, your asks and for being one of my sweetest friends. It means so much to me ♥️♥️♥️ I hope you like what I did here 🥰

Hey, Pumpkin

Photos are not mine. They are courtesy of Pinterest/Google.

Pairing: Tattoo Artist Billy Russo x Wife F! Reader; supporting cast Frank Castle and family plus Anna Raven and Dylan William.

Warnings: Couple of swear words, fluffy bunnies and unicorns.

Word Count: 1.4K

Summary: The Russo and Castle family have a fun time at the pumpkin patch. Anna Raven bites off a little more than she can chew 🎃🧡

A/N: Part of The Sweetest Pain Series. Still working through these asks. I will get through them all, I promise!

As always, thank you for reading!  I appreciate it so much and comments, reblogs are welcome and encouraged. Don’t be shy to tell me your favorite part. 💕💕💕

The cooler weather was finally here. All of the leaves on the trees had changed from summer green to vibrant shades of yellow, red, and orange. There was a chill in the air with a slight breeze as you all walked toward the entrance to the pumpkin patch.

Little Raven stopped to read the “rules” of the pumpkin patch to herself, then turned to you and said, “If you drop the pumpkins, it hurts them, Mommy!”

Your babies were at such a fun age.

Anna Raven was six, Dylan was two, and about to turn three on Halloween. Before Anna could even participate, you and Billy would take her to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins for you and him to carve into Jack O’ Lanterns. But now that Anna was older and had a baby brother chasing after her, she was old enough where she could pick out her own pumpkin.

Dylan was still a little too young for the corn maze but it was perfect for Lisa, Junior, and Little Raven plus she got to hang out with her “Uncle Frankie” and chase him and her father through the maze. You and Maria hung back and walked Dylan around to look at the scarecrows, and delightful cornhusks that were scattered around the area.

They had small farm animals like goats, baby cows, and miniature horses for the little ones to feed and pet, a couple of crawl mazes for the younger kids, and of course the whole reason you were all there in the first place, pumpkins as far as the eye could see.

The scent of cinnamon and cider wafted through the air as you sat and enjoyed hot apple cider and donuts, while waiting for the others to return from their time in the corn maze. You were anxious to see who would emerge victorious because Billy and Frank would compete to see who could get out of the maze first.

Little Dylan handed you the paper that his donut was wrapped in.

“More peeeease!” He said.

You and Maria chuckled.

Dylan’s head of wild dark brown hair had been tousled by the wind and his onyx colored eyes looked up at you, silently pleading for another donut. His cheeks were flushed and his chubby little hands were folded together at the possibility you might say yes.

“No more, baby boy. You’ve had enough sugar. We have to save some for your sister and the others. Wanna go play in the corn pit?” You asked.

“Go play!” Dylan exclaimed.

You chatted with Maria while Dylan crawled through the giant pit filled with corn kernels. Frank popped out of the corn maze first with Junior right behind him, followed by Billy, Lisa, and Little Raven.

“I think you cheated, Frankie.” Said Billy with a wide smile.

“Oh here we go…no I didn’t cheat, Bill.” Frank said, rolling his eyes.

Junior’s lips curled into an excited smile.

“I wouldn’t let him cheat, Uncle Billy!” Junior replied.

Frank turned to Anna.

“You have fun, Little Raven?” He asked.

Anna vigorously nodded.

“Can we go look for pumpkins now, please?” Anna asked politely.

Billy leaned over, placed his hands on his knees so he was eye level with his daughter and with a Cheshire cat smile, replied, “Lead the way, little miss.”

Walking through a sea of orange, the kids darted in all directions to look for the perfect pumpkin. Dylan followed his big sister wherever she went as she checked each pumpkin she looked at for bruises, rot spots, and dents.

Sometimes you’d catch her talking to Dylan, helping him, or correcting his behavior if wasn’t cooperating.

“You gotta pick up the pumpkins with two hands, Dylan.” She said.

You interlocked your arm with Billy’s and as you pushed yourself up onto your toes, you whispered gently into his ear.

“She’s such a good big sister, isn’t she?” You said, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Billy smiled watching the kids, turned to you and replied, “Yes she is, sweet girl.”

His beard tickled your chin when he leaned in and delicately kissed your lips. Billy cupped your cheeks, his hands were chilled and his lips were slightly dry from the cool autumn air but his kisses warmed you all the way down to your toes. His lips tasted like cinnamon and sugar from the warm cider and donuts as a low whimper escaped your lips and you had to remember where you were.

“You taste so sweet, handsome. We should probably keep up with the kids though.” You said as your lips tipped up into a sly smile.

Billy replied, “You started it, baby. Besides, you know Lisa and Junior never let the kids get too far away from them.”

He reached for your hand and brought it up to his lips. Tenderly holding your fingertips, Billy kissed the rose tattoo on your hand which still made you blush every time, and gave you butterflies in your stomach.

He still only had eyes for you and always charming the pants right off of you although you never needed too much convincing.

“Alright move it, soldier. We still have pumpkins to find.” You said.

Slowly but surely, each of the kids picked out the pumpkin that they wanted, even baby Dylan found one that was just his size. Little Raven, on the other hand, was having a problem finding the “perfect” pumpkin.

“I wonder where she gets that from?” You said to your perfectionist husband.

Billy glared at you and replied, “Don’t act like you’re innocent in all this, sweet girl. You have perfectionist tendencies too, ya know.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You said with a playful scoff.

“Yeah, surrrrrre you don’t, my little firecracker.” Billy said, gently slapping you on the ass.

Suddenly, you heard Anna let out a squeal of excitement.

Sarcastically, you said to everyone, “I THINK she found something she likes.”

When you all finally caught up to Little Raven, you saw her standing next to a pumpkin that was literally almost the same size as she is.

Lisa looked at her Uncle Billy and said, “You’re gonna need a bigger wheelbarrow, Uncle Billy.”

Frank’s jaw dropped.

“Holy shit.” Said Frank.

“Shit.” Dylan repeated.

“That’s a bad word, Uncle Frankie!” Said Anna.

Frank shrugged and narrowed his eyes, “Why is it always when I say it, they repeat it?! Little Raven used to do the same thing, now Dylan?!”

Everyone laughed at Frank while Anna playfully scolded him for using bad words and you all got a closer look at Anna’s perfect pumpkin.

“That pumpkin is bigger than me!” Billy said to Anna, trying to be funny.

Little Raven put both hands on her hips, looked at her father, and replied, “Daddyyyyyy.”

“Well, it’s bigger than Dylan, that’s for sure.” You said. “That’s the pumpkin you want, Anna?”

“You guys are gonna have pumpkin seeds for the whole winter.” Said Frank with a devilish smirk.

As you glanced over at Billy, he had such a big smile on his face, he was just excited that his little girl was so excited which made you so happy. Billy turned to look at you, so you asked, “What do ya think, baby? That thing is massive.”

“I have an idea, my love.” Said Billy, and he kissed you on the forehead.

Billy called out to Little Raven, “Anna, if we get that pumpkin, do we all get to help you carve it?”

Anna flashed her father’s perfect smile right back at him and replied, “That’s why I want it, Daddy. I want you, Mommy, and Dylan to help make it into a Jack O’ Lantern! Plus, we’ll have the biggest one on the street, all the kids will wanna see it on Halloween!”

Her words melted your heart, the excitement in her big brown eyes and in her voice was so pure and sweet. Children really can find joy in the smallest things, and Little Raven wanting the rest of her family to enjoy it with her was something you’ll never ever forget.

“Well we have to get it now.” You said. “She came up with that answer on the fly? She’s inherited your powers of persuasion, Mr. Russo.”

Billy’s lips curled into a sly smile.

“Ya know it still drives me crazy when you call me that, sweet girl.” Said Billy, kissing you on the forehead.

“Can you two stop flirting with each other long enough to help me lift this thing?! Get over here, Bill!” Frank grumbled.

“Ah, come on Frankie, you can do it.” Billy said, trying to hold in his laughter.

“BILL!!” Shouted Frank.

“Alright, alright. I’m comin’.” Billy said with a smirk.

Anna Raven definitely had the biggest Jack O’ Lantern on the street that year…and you all had the best time carving it.

Tag List: @wheresthesunshinesblog @idaoftheburningmind @rafaelakelley @snowkestrel @music-indie-tv @kayhi808 @munsonownsmyass @gijos @fictional-hooman @k-marzolf @nutmeg17 @vaguekayla @rosaleenablack @danzer8705 @fireeyes-on-teller-dixon-grimes @aoi-targaryen @mysteriouslydeafeningwerewolf @rachlovesactors @qu1etwolf @sweetserendipity65

Others that might enjoy: @itwasthereaminuteago @fluffyprettykitty @ittybxttykxttytxtty @jvanilly @imagine-a-fictional-boyfriend @mrsbillyrusso @colereads

If you’d like to be added (or removed from) my tag list(s) for the ever so handsome Billy Russo, just let me know and thank you again for reading! 💕💕💕 If I tagged you but you didn’t want to be, just let me know and I’ll never do it again.

[malacandrax]

Hello hello!! Just wanted to say that I really love seeing your traditional drawings, they're so charming 🥺 It's pretty rare to see trad. art on here compared to digital, which is a little sad.. there's just something about the personality it has!

Do you find that the post engagement they receive is less than your digital works? Personally I've had this experience but I'm not sure if it's different for other artists 😯 It's discouraged me a lot from posting since I don't regularly have enough time to sit down and make a digital piece vs drawing in my sketchbook 😓

On a related note, is there a pen you'd recommend for sketching/doodling? All the pen drawings in your sketchbook posts are so pretty 🫶

Thank you so much! That means a lot honestly. Seeing other peoples sketches is one of my favourite things, you're right, it's generally less perfect but I think it has more charm because of that. I feel like *personally* I actually often favour traditional stuff over digital when I see it online- I have a big collection of digital sketchbooks and fav'd youtube flipthroughs.

HOWEVER yeah I think we are in the minority. To be completely honest on itch.io I've actually only made 4 sketchbook sales*, I assume there's a market out there but I ain't hitting it haha! I do have a good chunk of patrons that comment and like my sketches, which is wonderful, and I often get sweet tags on the doodles I share here- but you're right that engagement is lower. I'd encourage you do just do it for yourself, though! There's nothing like having a big stack of art in real life. Maybe that's a privileged position for me to have, at the moment I don't need to worry about engagement on my sfw art, but also it's a shame to not do something you enjoy because of numbers. (I would recommend using a scanner if you want to catch more peoples eyes. Mines crap but it's way better than photos were.)

Pen wise I am a picky bitch, I like things that don't require pressure, make a uniformish line, and ink that flows easy- so I prefer gel pen styles or fountain pens. My most recent fav were some lyreco retract gel 0.7's my partner randomly brought home from work lol, but I lost the black one and replaced it with a uniball signo 0.7 [UM-120*], honestly they're just regular gel pens though, I generally try them out in a shop and pick ones that don't blob or scratch.

My fountain pen is a pilot kakuno, which atm has that blue grey ink in (sailor 224) and I really love it. (also I put it into a water brush pen) I've also used carbon platinum for a good waterproof ink.

Good luck with your sketchbook endeavours, and thank you again!

*there are...at least two types of uniball signo, and the other one with a soft grip is bad imo.

**thank you to those sweethearts who bought the sketchbook!

[idontknowreallywhy]

Resurface 31 - Review

Happy Birthday Virgil 💚 I didn’t get you a present but I finally got you and your brother back on the path to Best Brodom. Just, um, bear in mind it’s just the start of the journey and maybe don’t read the last paragraph until tomorrow?

I hope this is ok, I have agonised because this chapter contains Virg headcanon that is dear to me and I just hope I did it (and his inner voice) justice. It’s probably too long but… well… here it is. Thanks to @sofasurf and @astranite for the encouragement / chivvying / poking with stick to just get this done and out there.

Story so far

They had to start somewhere… literally at the top is as good a place as any, right?

💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚

“You’ve dyed it! You’ve dyed your hair!”

Scott blushed and his hand returned to his forehead, as if to hide the evidence.

“Uh, yeah… thought I might give it a go…” he cleared his throat awkwardly “I couldn’t find exactly the right colour it was kind of hard to tell on the website… who knew there were so many types of brown, huh?” He paused and grabbed a dishcloth to rub irritably at the gel residue on his fingers before glancing over at his brother. “I mean, obviously YOU would.”

Virgil narrowed his eyes. Scott wasn’t kidding, the former greys were a much redder shade of brown than the rest and on close inspection looked a little… odd… but he wasn’t about to make his brother even more self-conscious by pointing it out. He picked up his coffee with both hands and took a long sip to buy himself some time to work out what to say.

“You don’t approve?” The chuckle was more than a little forced.

“You don’t need my approval, Scott. I’m just… surprised, I guess? You’d always swore you’d never dye it. Didn’t you say you’d earned every last one of them and had nothing to be ashamed of?”

His brother snatched up his own coffee and feigned a sudden interest in the view from the window.

“Is no big deal… you were bothered by it so I just sorted it out.”

“I was bothered by it?”

“Uh, yeah. When… the other day when you were really… err…” Scott cleared his throat “… upset, you said so and I figured maybe you were worried I was getting old or… or maybe I was looking too much like… uh, well…”

“I complained… about your hair?” Virgil was baffled. The silver streaks were the subject of much banter in the Tracy household but for a long while had been a part of who Scott was. While in theory Virgil might have said almost anything in his state of confusion, he had still been himself even while his perception of the world around him had been faulty. He just couldn’t imagine being negative about a feature he’d always felt rather affectionately for.

“Well, not in so many words but…”

“Can you remember my exact words?” Virgil knew full well that if Scott had been worrying about this enough to break his avowed hair dye abstention he’d have gone over what had been said again and again and again. And then probably again just for good measure. Sure enough, the response was immediate:

“You said you didn’t want me to be grey. And then you literally begged me not to go grey. So I decided not to. It’s not a big deal.”

Virgil closed his eyes.

Ah.

Sometimes it would be handy to see the world in the simpler, more solid way other people did, as if everything was a hollow photograph existing in straightforward three-dimensional space. He’d never choose to live life without the full range of his sensory experiences and feelings overlaid in glorious technicolour… but he learned very quickly other people, even artists, did not see the same and thus he tended to avoid any accidental references to it.

Obviously he was less careful when he was out of his mind.

He suppressed the sigh and took a measured breath.

Virgil opened his eyes to see his brother had already drained his coffee and was almost vibrating with the effort of maintaining his fake casual stance leaning on the kitchen island. He’d have expected pacing by now except that this was his big brother’s way of showing that not only did he want to hear his brother out, he wanted to reassure Virgil he was, definitely, listening.

He grabbed Scott’s hand which was discharging some of the discomfort via quiet but incessant tapping on the work-surface and interlaced their fingers. The relentless movement continued more softly and for a moment Virgil allowed himself time to notice the vibrations travelling through his knuckles and up his arm and for his mind to quietly acknowledge the subtle shift in rhythm from need-to-explode to need-to-connect. He mirrored it back and Scott squeezed his fingers in response.

“Let’s walk for a bit?”

Virgil knew it was the right call even before the relief flooded Scott’s face and he made a beeline for the door.

They made their way down on to the deck and then up the stone staircase via the roundhouse and took the path towards the caldera.

“I didn’t mean your hair, Scooter.”

“You didn’t?”

“No, I don’t think so. I reckon I can explain but you’ll need to give me a minute and try not to be too… literal about it?”

“I can do that.”

“Right.” The path narrowed and demanded single file. Virgil gestured for Scott to lead the way and smiled wryly to himself as the steep incline accentuated the slight height difference between them to the extent that his current view of his brother was very much the waist region. Nevertheless, he could see from the slightly uneven movement of his hips that the leggier man was moderating his stride so as not to get too far ahead to hear.

Ha, he was so familiar with his brother’s body language he could even read his…

“So…?”

Oops.

“Sorry, got lost in my own head there.”

“It’s not a problem.” Scott’s hurried response betrayed his even-worse-than-usual anxiety for a brother and Virgil really needed to fix that asap. But first he needed to sort out the immediate confusion.

“Ok… you know I see a lot more things in colour than most people do?”

“Two makes forest green noise and One makes gold and light blue.” Scott immediately confirmed and Virgil experienced a little rush of warmth at the thought his big brother had felt the detail important enough to commit to memory.

“Yeah! Yeah, that’s the kind of thing. Well it isn’t just sound it’s… everything? Smell, taste, heat… and err… kind of… mood? Not exactly mood… um... The way people are? Their personalities, almost?” Virgil faltered a little, desperately searching for better words to form a neat box around the web of overlapping sensations in his head, but it felt much like the time he’d tried to explain to Alan why magenta made his teeth fizz. Some things just… were. Maybe if he tried to tie it to something easier to pin down:

“Ok, maybe the best way I can explain is - you know it was me that picked the colours of the birds? Well, One, Two and Four anyway…”

“I didn’t!” Scott was evidently curious “I never thought to wonder who did.”

“Well, it was me. Mostly. Well a bit. Brains was going to have them all in silver and I suggested that some form of colour coding might be a plan, for easier recognition compared with other organisations’ ships and machinery and bright colours are a more friendly sight for scared rescuees, you know?” Virgil paused to use his breath to navigate a particularly steep part of the track. Scott, possibly misinterpreting the pause for uncertainty sent encouragement over his shoulder: “Makes sense to me. Our public face needs to be unthreatening.”

“Yeah, exactly and in that time just after the… um, well it needed to be clear they weren’t military ships…” there was a grunt of agreement from in front. “It took a while to decide which would be which colour. For Three Dad picked red because in little Allie’s mind rockets were always red and it was his way of reaching out to the little guy I guess. But it’s not right really, Alan is light blues and bright purple. And of course One should have been primarily Cerulean to contrast with the Maya Blue but he wanted silver to represent speed and so… we had to compromise on her design but I did win with Four because he thought she should be orange, like a life buoy, you know? But I said no - Gordon’s bird couldn’t possibly be anything other than sunshine yellow. John picked his own so I didn’t get involved there but…”

“Virg, you’re losing me a little. Alan is… blue and purple?”

“Light blue. Bright purple. When he’s cheerful, yes. He gets steely blue when he’s angry same as you.”

“So we all have a colour?”

“Yeah. Well, a palette of them. Kind of. It’s… I’m sorry it’s the best way I have of describing the presence you have. Words can be a bit limiting sometimes.”

“Maybe you should try painting it?” Scott‘s voice lifted a little and he was looking at him intently. “I’d like to see us the way you do.”

They had finally reached the top of the volcano and stood together admiring the view to the east. A vigorous breeze, sharpened by the bright metallic tang of salt, dried the moisture from Virgil’s lips and he pressed them together with a doubtful hum.

“I’ve tried before and it didn’t really…” the glimmer of eagerness dulled and Virgil hurriedly sought to breathe life back into it “but I guess I could give it another go?”

His big brother smiled and lit up again for a moment before the cloud crossed back over his face and his eyes dropped from Virgil’s.

“And I’m… grey, then?”

“No! Not usually! You’ve always been blue, like the sky… there are so many shades of it, with hints of yellow or gold…”

“There’s a but coming, I can feel it.”

Virgil grabbed Scott’s hand again as if to reassure himself his brother wouldn’t float away before he managed to express this.

“Sometimes it’s like you fade a little.”

“I fade?”

“You try to be a lot of things, Scotty and it’s admirable, it really is, and you do it so well but sometimes I worry there isn’t enough of you left to be you.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you. You’re blue when you laugh at your own jokes, or smotherhen us and make a leaning tower of pancake… when you beat Gordy at his own prank game or act all melodramatic when you’re smuggling in the sweets Grandma doesn’t approve of. When someone says pie and your eyes gleam and when you randomly recite Shakespeare inaccurately and out of context or run up the stairs for no reason and surprise hug Allie… those times you’re a rainbow of blues. In the field when you’re problem solving at the speed of light and oh! That time you flew Shadow just for fun you came back shining so brightly…”

Yet again at the mention of Shadow, Scott had startled but recovered quickly and deflected:

“My Shakespeare is always in context.”

“Sure it is, Scott. And it’s very YOU.”

A flicker of resolve hardened his brother’s expression and Virgil was suddenly terrified as to how his clumsy explanation could have been interpreted by someone who was already chronically shackled to the ‘brave face’ impulse…

“But Scott, listen to me, this is important.”

He waited until his brother dropped his eyes from the horizon and met his own.

“I’m not saying it’s just when you are happy, you know? When you’re worried or angry or even sick or even… no, especially when you let yourself be vulnerable for one damn second, you’re you then too.”

“Then…” Scott sagged a little and an edge of indigo desperation coloured his voice “I don’t understand what the grey thing is meant to mean!”

“The grey thing… I guess it’s how my brain interprets the way I sometimes miss you when you are right in front of me. When you get hidden by everything else you think you are supposed to be. You lead so naturally, you do it without even trying but sometimes… sometimes you put on that damn grey baldric and it smothers you.”

“But the baldric is silver. My baldric is silver to match One!”

“It used to be blue though. Blue to match you.”

“Oh. And that’s what is bothering you?”

“No! No, I’m not saying the baldric needs to change. You can have salmon pink or zebra stripes if you like - that’s what I meant about not being too literal about this. I just… I wish you wouldn’t feel like you had to act like someone else. Just… be you, you know?”

A slight squeeze of the hand said message received but Virgil knew it might take a while to process. An unspoken agreement saw them taking the shallower broader path down towards the shore.

“Please don’t say that thing about the baldrics to Gordon, you know he’ll come up with something hideous.”

“He really would. It’d be burnt orange with pink polka dots within minutes.”

“I can just see it now.” Scott facepalmed melodramatically then ran his fingers into his hairline.

“So you weren’t worrying about the hair?”

“No, Scott. I don’t have any problem with your hair. I’m sorry I confused you. I just want you to be happy and be yourself. That’s literally all I would have meant by it.”

“I’m trying, Virgil, I really am.”

“I know. I’m proud of you.”

He really had been trying. Scott’s attempts to reconcile his past and present and figure out who he was again had actually been a source of real joy to Virgil. It had been so long coming.

Years of encouraging, nagging… in all honesty borderline-harassing his big brother to break out of his self-imposed exile from life, to take the opportunities to enjoy himself when they came… and finally, FINALLY there had been some movement. Previously there were deleted emails, invitation cards hidden in drawers… if it wasn’t for Penny’s sake or for the good of the business, Scott didn’t see it as worthwhile. But this time, Scott had pinned the gilded rectangle of card to the noticeboard with a hurried circle around the date and a carefully inked question mark.

It was bitterly ironic that after all that time… even after actually standing over Scott with folded arms and while he messaged his friend to RSVP in the positive… when he’d nearly actually succeeded in nudging his brother into the light somehow as a result Virgil himself had run headlong into the dark. A cold, slimy tendril of fear crept into his heart and asked who on earth Virgil thought he would be if Scott didn’t need him anymore…

He shook it off because it was ridiculous.

Not to mention selfish.

“Scott, I’m sor….” he began but his brother had not been party to the developing inner monologue and was still some way behind him, despite leading the way off the rocky track on to the beach.

“So I can get rid of this?” He gesticulated irritably at his own forehead

“YES, Scooter.”

“Thank heaven, I hate it. Will it wash out?”

“Eventually. I have to top mine up every few washes.”

“Yours literally obliterates light particles though.”

The affectionate shoulder nudge was brief but it heralded a return of the easy natural proximity he’d missed so badly. His brother was back by his side and Virgil realised with a shock that breathing was suddenly effortless again.

There were other things they needed to discuss, difficult things he knew were coming and no doubt even more difficult things he was still as yet unaware of. But for a few moments, Virgil was more than happy to enjoy the respite of their well-rehearsed haircare banter:

“That’s not the dye it’s the secret ingredient. I told you, quit the super shiny addiction…

“SUPREME shiny…”

“Pfft, you know it’s the same formula, you’re just paying for the fancier packaging.”

“Not true, it’s a far higher quality product.”

Virgil poked his brother in the side of the head “And yet by some miracle, chemically identical.” He made a show of wiping the tip of his finger off on Scott’s shirt while meeting the faux-glare dead on. His brother’s eyebrows said outraged, the sparkle in the blue said bring-it-on. “Ditch the dark side Scotty, leave the slimy stuff to the teenagers and join team pomade. More natural, less greasy. Best tip Dad ever gave me.”

His brother’s flinch was fleeting but sent a shockwave through the narrow pocket of air between the two of them. Scott’s eyes slipped from his, the pocket widened and the warmth suddenly drained out of the sun.

💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙💚💙

[dailyrothko]

i really loved your comparison between art (especially abstract art) and wine the other day. i've mentally drawn parallels between the two myself, but more often i find myself comparing art and both jazz and classical music as i am a musician trained in both types ("trained" in this case meaning i went to many schools for it, and have a long string of teachers i can thank for making me the creative i am today).

in a lot of ways, i have found that people like to appear knowledgeable about the two types of music rather than enjoying them for the sake of experiencing textures in sound we likely don't encounter regularly in everyday life. i keep asking myself if it's because these are two types of music americans associate with leisure and education—and therefore with money and status—and find themselves intimidated to admit they're either simply uninterested in the form (reasonable!) or to say they don't fully understand what they like about something they've heard but enjoy it no less.

this is a very long-winded way of asking: do you have any thoughts on best practices to encourage people to a) think less about how their reflections on art will come across to other people around them and to b) indulge in the parts of their journey with art where they're still getting to know what they're looking for when they come to a new piece of art?

(i'm currently struggling with not sounding preachy when i try to explain to young students that i want them to not let their wonder reflex just happen without acknowledgment; i want them to hold that feeling and turn it over, and gently prod at it to see all its angles)

I don't know anything about teaching. I didn't go to college and I don't have any formal education really to speak of to illuminate the experience you're having. The teachers I liked best gave me something challenging to do and I liked it because they had enough faith in me to expect a level of understanding. I don't know if that works on everybody but I do think some people are just waiting to be challenged by something they can't entirely ignore. However it would be a lot of diagnostic work.

I think I might play a class music without telling them who it is, particularly if you can find some things with interesting back stories that people couldn't guess. it might help sever this idea that there's some kind of hierarchical quality about music.

People are always talking about technique these days in endless YouTube videos and on social but those are for other musicians generally. As you must know there is a kind of "great guitar player" who nobody can stand to listen to except other guitar players. And this is for the most natural reason in the world, that people are attracted to self expression, the courage of it and the sensuality and the ideas that come out of the sincerity that great artists have.

But that doesn't mean we interpret the same way as the artist. If you look at Tarkovsky using cinematography composed like Russian paintings in his movies, most of those allusions are lost on viewers because they don't know the original art, but his intention was not to be clever, it was to put film in the same bedrock where classic painting and music reside in even if the message was delivered subliminally.

When Kierkegaard wrote about Don Giovanni he certainly didn't have a record player to listen to it over and over again and write rhapsodically about minute details. Here is a great thinker expressing his love for music but concluding that he felt if he understood Mozart completely he would not understand Mozart at all.

People love to divide music in the sense of technique to call one thing superior to another but if you take technique in a larger sense we all know that it means something more than some kind of clinical mastery. In the way that Ezra Pound thought about it, if you find subject matter that's worthy, you will then develop the technique to express it.

I mentioned these examples because they were things that I just thought of randomly that speak to taking the arts out of some kind of social hierarchy and trying to bring them back to the importance of how the individual feels.

I think it's possible that the more you can disconnect the art from some outdated looming academic monolith, the better chance you have of getting people not to worry about how acceptable their opinion is.

In art sometimes I mention Bill Traylor whom I like very much, but there's absolutely nothing technical, pretentious or aspirational about him. His art works from his own personality and energy without some prodigious ability to create likenesses.

On a slightly different level you can also explain some musical concepts by talking about Bud Powell and Monk. Monk has far leas conventional technique but Bud Powell would be the first person to tell you that Monk was superior because of his mind. Or as Rothko said "all art is the portrait of an idea."

Maybe it would also be instructive to parallel a few sophisticated examples in popular music with some not very sophisticated classical or jazz music. It doesn't always go one way.

Anyway I'm sorry I can't be more help, it's kind of a social puzzle. Maybe even splitting people into smaller groups would offer a smaller audience and therefore less pressure to impress. Or do some thing where people offer their opinions anonymously and after they're all heard you can ask us somebody wants react to those without the burden of being confrontational.

Or just tell them what Townes Van Zandt said: "There's two kinds of music, the blues and Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah."

Sorry I couldn't be more help

[switch-witch-erin]

This is gonna be my last post regarding the conflict with Ticklethentopple. Though it’s more of a rant than an actual post, I can’t help myself, I’m so fucking angry

YOU REAP WHAT YOU SOW, BRO

You said some truly shitty things towards an entire community of people and blame ME for reacting?? For real??

Personally, I don’t believe a word of what you said in the post, but I have no proof, so I’m going to assume you’re telling the truth. Though you could’ve turned the notifications/asks off a lot sooner or temporarily deleted the app lol.

What you’re going through sounds like hell, but it has nothing to do with the conflict. YOU’RE THE ONE WHO STARTED IT ALL. You started blaming people left and right, including some of my friends, my favourite artists and people whom I look up to in the community. And now you’re trying to invoke pity for something completely unrelated to what happened? For real? You and your suckup encouraged people to block Tasay and me, publicly claiming that we’re groomers. I have a feeling that if someone called you a groomer and urged people to cancel YOU, you’d be at the very least displeased with it :)

“I said some fucked up things and blamed innocent people for a terrible crime they didn’t do, but I was going through difficult times, why are you mad at me 🥺”

Was I supposed to ignore getting called a pedo? “Something we disagree on”. Yeah, I do disagree with you calling me a groomer, yes. Do you really not understand how serious this accusation is? Yet you act as if you accidentally stepped on my foot in a queue, and I’m making a big fuss over it.

Once again, I literally said that I don’t approve of the bullying. I didn’t ask people to send you threats and what not, I asked for entirely the opposite. You only have yourself to blame for the stunt you pulled. All I did was expose it.

“yOu ArE a HoRrIbLe PeRsOn”

At least I’m not a groomer anymore, that’s a nice change of pace, thank you

You can work your ass through whatever you want, it’s not an excuse to be an asshole. You’re fucking 30 years old, take some responsibility for once. SURPRISE — YOU’RE THE ONE TO BLAME FOR YOUR WORDS.

If before all of that I tried to explain myself, to make peace and to establish at least some sort of mutual understanding, now I’m just so fucking pissed. I don’t see any point in talking to a fucking infantile brick wall. Peace out, you pathetic joke ✌🏻

And to everyone who’s been monitoring the situation — please, don’t send me any more asks about the conflict with Ticklethentopple, and don’t send me screenshots of their posts, I’m fed up with them, I don’t want it to be on my blog. Feel free to DM, but I might be too tired to respond. Right now I want to concentrate on tickling-related stuff as it gives me distraction and dopamine to get back on my feet. I’m already working on the promised posts about overall liking tickling experience and prevention of minors getting groomed. In other words, I want to concentrate on stuff that’s important to me and not waste my time