#the room when I got the first sketch of my commission

[just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi]

@albino-whumpee

🤍

[daughterofcain-67]

𝒞𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝒟𝒾𝓈𝓉𝓇𝒶𝒸𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃: 𝓅𝓉 1

(Dean Winchester x Artist/Bartender!Female Reader)

(𝓅𝒶𝓇𝓉 2) (𝓅𝒶𝓇𝓉 3)

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: You’re an artist that fell in love with a mysterious boy right before college. Then he left without any way to contact him. Decades later you’re an artist/bartender and you’re surprised to see who comes walking through the door.

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: none that I can think of.

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: I have no idea who actually did the cover art for The Prince of Thorns, King of Thorns and Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence, the comic illustrations of the Maximum Ride series by James Patterson, or Cinder by Marissa Meyer. But I loved the artwork for the cover art and illustrations, so they deserve all the credit for their creativity. ((The artwork and references to the books is just to use to build Y/N’s portfolio, I do not own any of the artworks.))

It wasn’t easy being an artist. And it didn’t help that you seemed to be a starving artist at that. Everything seemed to have been done already. You supposed that your creative mind wasn’t as unique as you originally thought it would be.

You had countless sketchbooks in your home, just on one of your many bookshelves, purely dedicated to the sketchbooks you’ve had over the years. You’ve been sketching and drawing for as long as you can remember. You picked up on using water color and oil pastels sometime in high school when you were being experimental with your styles. But over the years you found that your luck expanding on your career was sort of a fifty fifty shot.

When someone hadn’t commissioned you to paint a wall of theirs, or if you weren’t working on a cover for some author - which was also another rare opportunity - You spent your time working at a bar in Wisconsin. It was some way to make some money after all, plus you did get to meet some pretty interesting people.

As for tonight, it was just another Thursday night for you and you were on your break. With that being said, you had your sketchbook out and you were sketching yet again.

Lately, in your personal sketchbook, you would draw the familiar face of a man you used to know. One that probably didn’t even remember your name, but you’d always remember his. You’d always remember his beautiful eyes that reminded you of the green forest, or the way his smile would light up any room he’d step into. You could remember the smell of his leather jacket, or the way that unusual pendant looked a little too good around his neck. You could still remember the sound of his laugh, or the flirtatious little tone and his mischievous smirk. He was a man you knew you could never forget, even after all these years.

“Drawing that mystery man of yours again, Y/N?” A work friend of yours named Danielle asked.

You glanced up at her while she adjusted her glasses and sat in front of you, “He’s no mystery.. just a memory.”

“You know, if you really can’t forget about him then maybe you should look for him.” She suggested and you shook your head.

“That’s not possible. Even when we first met during the summer before my freshman year of college, he was always traveling around with his father. It was a part of his career. And if anything, the guy’s still going it. They always traveled around the country.” You explained and Danielle pouted a little.

“You mean you can’t even track down what business it was? Not even by phone number or anything? Some company they ran.” She said and you rubbed the back of your neck.

“Did he even tell you what kind of business he was a part of?” You shook your head.

“No… he was really secretive and he always told me he didn’t want to freak me out. A part of me wonders if he didn’t trust me. Then after like two weeks together he ghosted me.” You admitted.

“And you’re still obsessing over him? Come on, you’ve really got to let it go. If he was that much of a douche to ghost you and if he didn’t even leave you a way to contact him, then you have got to move on.” Danielle told you and you knew deep down she was right.

You looked down at the picture again of your ‘mystery man’ as Danielle liked to call him. Just as you were about to put the pencil to your paper once more, Danielle’s hand got in the way and she dragged the book across the table and rotated it so she could take a look at your work.

“Okay, this guy can’t actually be real. No one is that attractive.” She said with a chuckle before she looked up at you once more.

“So what did you say his name was again?” She asked as she handed you the sketchbook again.

“Dean… Dean Winchester.”

“Dean… Not a bad name I guess. Better than like Brad or something.” She laughed.

“Any chance that he’s a reader? Maybe he’s seen your cover art on some books.” You shook your head.

“No, he’s not much of a reader. His brother is a reader though so.. maybe? Although who knows if Sam would read any of the books I’ve done the artwork for.” You shrugged, unsure if Sam read any fantasy novels or science fiction.

“His brother’s name is Sam? That’s a little anticlimactic isn’t it? Is it short for something?”

“I don’t think it’s anticlimactic. Simplistic. And no, I don’t think it’s short for anything, but I never really asked Dean about it. Never met Sam.”

“Hey! Y/N! Danielle! Y’all can’t leave me by myself, I just got here!” A second voice said and that was your other friend, Callie. She had a bit of a southern twang in her voice that was definitely different compared to your other coworkers.

You and Danielle both laughed and you got up from your seat. You closed your sketchbook and went back to the back of the bar to put your sketchbook in your backpack. Then you began to resume your shift. The sooner the night was over with, the sooner you could go home and maybe check your emails and see if anyone has reached out to you for any projects.

The next several hours went by and it was closing time at the bar. You walked out of the bar with the two coworkers.

“Have you two heard the news yet about the Nelson’s wife?” Callie asked and you glanced over at her, brow arched upward.

“No. I didn’t even know something happened.” You said.

“Well apparently when Mr. Nelson came home last night, his door was opened up and there were some kind of freaky claw marks on the door. When the boss went inside he saw that his wife’s guts were literally outside of her body. But you wanna know the weird thing of it all?”

“There’s a weird part? Just when I thought things couldn’t get any better!” You asked.

“Ha ha, very funny.” Callie replied, not finding your sarcasm amusing at the moment.

“The weirdest part was that her heart was missing. No weapon was found, no evidence of some kind of fur if it really was an animal attack. The police have searched the place top to bottom to find any clues or evidence of an animal attack. But honestly I’m surprised the bar was even opened tonight.” Callie continued.

“That explains why I hadn’t seen the boss tonight. He must be going through a lot. I couldn’t imagine losing my boyfriend in such a horrific way… and to actually see his wife like that? I can’t imagine.” Danielle said and you frowned a little.

As difficult as it was to learn about the loss of your boss’ wife, you didn’t think that your boss would be missing that much. The Mrs. didn’t exactly have a great reputation after all. She was a bit of the town harlot to put it lightly. It was common knowledge that she had been cheating on her husband for the past three years with several men.

“How is Mr. Nelson taking it?” You asked.

“Well as far as I know he’s been at the sheriff’s office all day for an interrogation. You know how it is, always suspecting the spouse first. I don’t know if he’s actually had the time to really mourn.” Callie replied.

“Well… surely it’s just some freakish accident. It couldn’t possibly happen again. The same animal wouldn’t strike the same town twice, right?” You said.

“I wouldn’t think so.” Callie said.

“Well just incase that animal is still around… make sure you get home safe! Why don’t we create a group text now just to make sure we all get home okay.” Danielle suggested.

“Honestly… that doesn’t sound like a bad idea.” You said and pulled out your phone.

Once the three of you were on the group chat, you split off into your different vehicles to go home. You made it to your apartment and shut the door behind you. You tossed your bag on the couch before you plopped on the furniture, then you reached for the remote and turned on the television.

There wasn’t anything good on TV so you changed the channel to Boomerang and watched some cartoons. They were playing the old episodes of Scooby-Doo and you smiled to yourself. You hadn’t watched this show in years and you felt nostalgic watching it. Then your mind wandered off to the old days. You started to think about the summer with Dean.

You shook your head, deciding that Danielle was right and you really should forget about Dean. It’s been years and you never saw Dean again after the best two weeks of your life. It wasn’t worth thinking about. So you grabbed your computer and checked some emails to see if anyone’s reached out.

Evidently there was an email for some author named Marissa Meyer. She was emailing you to compliment your illustrations for James Patterson’s Maximum Ride comics and for the cover art of some other books. Honestly you were surprised. She was writing to see if you’d be willing to do some cover art for one of her books. She emailed you the plot of whatever story this would be and she said the title she planned was Cinder. It seemed to be an interesting plot so you started typing out the response, letting the author know you’d be willing to make the cover art and that you just needed a deadline for it.

Shortly after you sent the email, you started looking at some inspiration photos on Google and Pinterest and that was when your phone started ringing. When you glanced down, you saw that it was a group call with Danielle and Callie. You smiled and you answered the phone before you lifted the phone to your ear.

“Hello?” You answered.

“Oh good, you answered!” Danielle exclaimed on the other line and you chuckled.

“Don’t worry, no animals have broken in to attack me yet.” You clarified and Callie laughed.

“See, I told you there was nothing for you to worry about. She’s probably getting ready to draw something and you broke her concentration.” Callie said and you hummed a little.

“Haven’t started just yet. Though about water coloring though.” You admitted since it had been a while since you’d used that medium.

“Well next time send a text! That was the whole reason why we made the group chat, remember?” Danielle continued and you grinned.

“Sorry for worrying you. I’m alright, and I’m glad both of you are alright too.” You insisted.

“Are both of you working tomorrow night?” You asked.

“I know I am.” Danielle replied with a little bit of an exasperated sigh.

“I’m not. I’ve got the rest of the week off.” Callie spoke up.

“The whole week? So we’ll see you when, Monday?” You asked.

“Yep. Needed a little me time and what perfect time would that be than having the weekend all to yourself?” She said.

“What about Dylan?” Danielle asked, referring to Callie’s boyfriend.

“He said he was… busy with something.” Callie said.

“You know, Danielle, you and Chris may like this one restaurant on South drive.” Callie said, talking about Danielle’s boyfriend and you felt like the odd one out, not having gone on a date in about three years.

“I’ll let the two of you talk about your boyfriends and your little date ideas.” You said and you were about to hang up before the both of them started talking to you to not hang up.

“Woah woah woah! Why don’t we get you hooked up with someone?” Callie asked.

“Yeah, that would be fun! I mean it’s been a while so what’s the harm in it? We can take you to the bar after work this Saturday night.”

You arched a brow before you looked at your bag that still had the sketchbook with the pictures of Dean in it. You supposed maybe going out this weekend maybe help you get over the memory. Dean was more of a phantom of that summer anyway.

“I suppose that could work. I get off at six. I can get home and get ready by seven or something.” You replied.

“Oh good! Maybe on break tomorrow you and I can go looking for some cute dresses for you to wear!” You cringed at Danielle’s words and you used your free hand to rub the back of your neck.

“Great.” You muttered with nervous laughter.

“Hang on, guys. I have to go. Dylan is calling me.” Callie groaned with some sort of annoyance in her tone and you wondered if everything was alright. However before you asked, she hung up.

“Wonder if she’s alright.” You said since Danielle was on the other line.

“Honestly I think she and Dylan have been in a bit of a rough patch recently. I wouldn’t be surprised if they break up by the end of the month.” She sighed.

“Rough patch? What’s been going on?”

“Well from what Callie’s ranted about, Dylan is developing some trust issues ever since she told him she didn’t want to live together.”

“What? They’ve only been dating for like a month and he wanted to move in?”

“Something like that…”

“Well you’re being awfully gracious for giving them the end of the month to end things. I’ll give them a week and a half if that.” You chuckled.

“You never know. Anyway, it’s getting late. See you tomorrow?” Danielle said.

“I’ll be there.”

Dean rubbed the back of his head as he walked down the stairs. Then he tied the strap of his robe around his waist as he made his way into the library just to see Sam reading a book. Not much of a surprise there. But this time it didn’t seem like it was a research book in his hands.

“Whatcha got there?” Dean asked, hearing his brother hum in response.

“It’s a fantasy series by Mark Lawrence. I’m reading the second one called King of Thorns.” Sam spoke.

“I didn’t exactly take you to be a fantasy ready. Always thought of you as more of a realist.” Dean admitted as he sat down across from his brother before he moved the laptop across the table. Then Dean opened it up so he could see if there was any new cases that sounded like his and Sam’s thing.

“Charlie recommended the book to me. Said that it was pretty good. Like it’s not Lord of the Rings good or Harry Potter good, but she thought it was worth the read nonetheless.” Sam said.

Dean hummed as he looked over at the book again and he caught a glimpse of the front cover, “Cover art’s pretty good.”

“Yeah… Charlie said the artist has done quite a little bit. She’d done the cover art of this trilogy and the illustrations for some sort of comic series based off some YA science fiction books. I think her name is.. oh hang on I think her name might be in the book.” Sam said as he flipped to the back.

“Oh here it is. Cover artist, Y/N L/N.”

Dean’s gaze shot from the book in Sam’s hand to Sam right after he read the name. That was a name he hadn’t heard in years. Felt like centuries really.

“Let me see that. I want to get a better look at the cover.” Dean said and Sam put his bookmark between the pages and handed the book to him.

As Dean looked at the cover, he admired the work. He suddenly began to recall that summer when he was a couple decades younger. Still fresh and when John was still around. He remembered meeting this beautiful girl in Wisconsin. You, in fact.

That was the best two weeks of his entire life. He remembered how great of an artist you were, how much he loved looking through the sketchbooks you showed him. He remembered you telling him way back when that you wanted to be an artist. Seems like you’ve come quite a ways if you’ve done some illustrations and some book covers.

“Has this artist done anything else?” Dean asked curiously.

“Since when were you interested in art?” Sam asked with a smirk as he leaned in, his arms folded in front of him on the table. Then the look of realization went across his face.

“Wait… Y/N. Isn’t that the girl from-“

“Wisconsin? Yeah.” Dean said and he chuckled.

“Honestly the best summer I’ve ever had.” Dean admitted.

“Why didn’t you ever go back to visit her? Is she a hunter? Maybe she could help us on some hunt sometime.” Sam said, trying to be encouraging but Dean shook his head a little.

“No, she wasn’t a hunter. In fact she was far from it. When I met her, she hadn’t even started college yet. Just graduated high school. She had no idea of the darkness in the world that we deal with and well… I wanted to spare her from it.” He said.

“Sounds like you had it bad. Dad wondered why it took you two weeks to end the case. He said it was awful long for you.” Sam smirked.

“Honestly, yeah. I did. if I wasn’t a hunter, I might have stayed. Maybe even go to summer school or work as a mechanic there to make a living just to stick around while she was on her campus. She was a sweet girl but I knew if I stayed, monsters would come and I didn’t want her exposed to that kind of shit just because I stayed around. I finished the case in a week but I stayed the extra week before I had to decide to move on.” Dean continued.

“Do you ever regret it?” Sam asked.

“Honestly, I don’t think she would even remember me.” Dean replied and handed the book to Sam yet again. Sam took it and set it down on the table beside him.

“I think she’d remember… anyway, as far as I know she’s just illustrated for that series and the covers for this series.” Sam said but he pulled out his phone to search your name.

“Here’s something… She’s painted some walls in the local elementary school building as well as a pediatrician’s office. But honestly I think that’s the only commissions she’s had. Other than that, based off her social media she’s just working in a bar.”

“A bartender? A girl of her talent should be working for some comic company. Maybe even character designing for some animation studio.” Dean said with a bit of surprise.

“Well, sometimes people aren’t always that lucky in life. But I agree with you, she is good.” Sam sighed as he closed out his phone before putting it back in his pocket. Then he turned his attention back to Dean who was looking back at the computer screen in front of him.

“Find anything worth while?” He asked his older brother.

“Well speaking of Wisconsin…. Turns out some bar owner’s wife was found dead. Police are calling it an animal attack but there wasn’t any evidence of an animal left behind. Then again there wasn’t exactly any evidence of humans either because apparently, intestines were outside the poor woman’s body and her heart was missing.” He said.

“So… werewolf maybe?” Sam suggested.

“That’s my first thought. We might as well head that way and check it out for ourselves.” Dean said and Sam nodded before Dean decided to get up so he could take a shower and get dressed before going on the hunt.

When Dean made it into his room, he decided that’s before he’d get dressed he’d look for something.

Honestly he wasn’t even sure if he still had this amongst his memorabilia. He didn’t exactly carry ugh outside of his pictures of his parents, Bobby and Sam and himself when they were younger. But when Dean opened up the auto man at the end of his bed and started looking through old pictures and papers, he moved his father’s journal to the side and then he found a black folder.

Dean let out a breath of relief as he pulled the black folder out and he sat down on the bed. The field was made of paper and it was a bit worn with the years of being moved around since they went from motel to motel a lot. Then Dean opened up the folder and he was pleasantly surprised to find that what he was looking for was still inside.

Inside of the folder there was a sheet of sketch paper with a drawing of both you and him on it. It was an old picture, Dean’s hair was longer and he didn’t quite have bags under his yees from the years of losing sleep because of a hunt. Then there was you, and you were even more gorgeous in person. Your talented hand didn’t give you justice on paper.

In the picture, you were wrapped up in his arms while the two of you sat down on a blanket in the grass. Both of you had a peaceful expression as you looked out at the lake. Dean could still remember the way you felt in his arms, remembering the moment you had drawn in the picture. It was the second to the last night that he spent in Wisconsin.

Dean smiled at the memory, knowing that even after so many years you still had a piece of his heart. But then reality started to get to him and he wondered if you had been married after college graduation. Did you have a family of your own? Dean calculated and by this time you had to be in your mid thirties like he was, right? Most people were arrived by then if they were lucky, and any man would be lucky to have someone so special like you.

Honestly Dean couldn’t help but wonder if maybe you still thought about him once in a while. Maybe late at night when you were watching a movie drinking some wine and drawing one of those covers Sam showed him, he wondered if you thought about him.

Dean put the picture back into the folder and placed it on the night table beside his bed before he grabbed his bag and some clothes to pack up. Then he got his other pair of jeans and a shirt to wear before he headed off to the shower.

Two days had gone by and that was the night you were supposed to go out with Danielle and Callie to some sort of club or whatever. Honestly you weren’t sure if dancing was your thing. You weren’t in your twenties anymore after all but when you were texting Danielle about it all she told you was that it was something to put you out there, give you something fun to look forward to this weekend.

At the moment you weren’t really focused on your little outing that night. You were a little more concerned about the fact that you hadn’t heard from Callie in the last couple of days.

It wasn’t like Callie. She typically texted you and Danielle at least once daily whether she texted some sort of joke or sent a picture of some silly picture first thing in the morning before going about her day and living her life on her days off. But it had been two days and you found it odd that she hadn’t sent any memes, jokes, or even talked about going out that night.

When the door opened you happened to glance up and you saw Danielle running in with a frantic expression across her features. When Danielle made eye contact with you, you realized she was rushing over to the bar to meet you.

“Y/N, have you heard from Callie lately? I saw her boyfriend this morning and he was out at some diner and he acted like he was just fine while he was sitting beside some girl.” She rambled, catching you off guard with how fast she was talking.

“What? No I haven’t, wait he was with another girl?” You asked.

“Yeah and you wanna know what else? I heard Nelson was visited by two guys in suits. I think the FBI is looking into it. Maybe they caught a glimpse of something with Nelson’s wife and they’re looking into it.”

“But the cops already talked to Nelson. That was the whole point of him not stopping by the bar at all like two days ago. Why would the FBI need to talk to him again? Poor guy’s already been through enough.” You said.

“Well, honestly I don’t think Nelson minds. I bet he’s a little glad he doesn’t have to deal with the constant heartbreak of his wife bumping ugliest with different men every other night.”

“Oh come on, that’s a little bit of an exaggeration.” You tried to give the former Mrs. Nelson the benefit of the doubt.

“Would you really be surprised if it was that often though?” Danielle smirked, you rolled your eyes a little before you started putting some of the clean glasses away to prepare for customers.

“Do you think the FBI will come here to see if we know anything? You know the manager’s out of town this week. What do we tell them if they happen to come in?” Danielle asked, starting to get a little worried, not much to your surprise.

“Danielle, breathe. If they come in and you spot them, just send them to me. I’ve got it covered. Not that they’ll ask anything we have any knowledge about anyway.” You said and Danielle took a deep breath before exhaling and nodding.

“I’m still worried about Callie.” She said.

“Well think about it… if you and your boyfriend broke up, are you going to want to spend a lot of time on your phone for the first couple of days? Or are you going to want to sleep and isolate for a while before you start making public appearances again.” You reasoned.

“I don’t know…”

“I’ll tell you what. After we clock out tonight, we can go over to Callie’s house and check up on her and make sure she’s alright.” You insisted.

“Okay… yeah that sounds like a plan.”

“Now… why don’t you go ahead and clock in and we can get the show on the road. They may not even come at all, and Callie will more than definitely be alright.” You insisted and Danielle nodded.

With that being said the two of you got to work. You were busily serving different customers at the bar with different drinks. Some you were used to making but apparently there were some visitors and they wanted something fancy. Two preppy looking guys had just walked through the door and made themselves comfortable at the bar. They looked like they were the country club type of guys.

“Hey, Miss! Can I get a Boulevardier cocktail over here?” One of them said. He had waved ginger hair and he was wearing a blue golf shirt.

“Yeah and I’ll have Vieux Carre cocktail, Darlin.” The other said. He was blond, hair parted to the side and he wore an orange golf shirt with white stripes.

These people must’ve had the worst taste in clothing, and an even worse taste in drinks. You couldn’t even try and pronounce these things and you weren’t even sure if you had the right ingredients for these stupid sounding drinks.

“Sure. I’ll get right on that for you fellas.” You replied and went to the back to get the glasses. Then you pulled out the phone to see what the heck those drinks were. Luckily for you, you had some similar ingredients, but you weren’t working in a fancy bar so you had some pretty basic drinks, they’ll just have to deal with generic.

You grabbed what you needed and started to make the drinks and you thought you heard Danielle’s voice followed by two gruff sounding voices. Yay, more customers.

You were too focused on making the drinks but that was when Danielle started walking towards the bar with the two men she was talking to.

“Y/N? I’ve got a couple of agents that would like to speak with you.” Danielle called.

When you glanced over you saw a familiar green pair of eyes, the ones that you’ve drawn numerous times. They’ve changed though, like they’ve seen so much more. But seeing Dean there… it was like everything in your world stopped and you accidentally dropped the glasses you needed.

The sound of the glass shattering on the floor snapped you out of it.

You immediately started looking for a broom but Danielle started rushing over to help you, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it for you. What did these guys order?”

“Thank you… Some cocktails with fancy names. I’ll send you the recipes.” You said as you wiped your hands on the apron.

“You okay? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.” She said and you nodded a little.

“Yeah, I’m okay… I’ll tell you later.” You told her, not wanting to be wrong if your suspicions are correct.

You nibbled on your bottom lip softly before letting it go and you walked over to the two federal agents.

Dean was straightening up his tie uncomfortably. All these years later and he still hated these damned monkey suits but then he felt Sam nudge his arm and when Dean looked up, he could feel his breath taken away.

No, it couldn’t be you could it?

You looked so beautiful, time seemed to have done wonders for you and Dean almost found it hard to breathe at the sight of you.

Of all the towns this case had to take place in, it just had to be the one you lived in. Have you heard anything about the case? You didn’t know about all the ugliness out there yet, did you?

“My friend said you wanted to speak with me? How can I help you?”

God your voice brought back so many memories, but Dean couldn’t dwell on them. Besides, you probably forgot about him so what was the point? Still… it was eating at his mind.

“Um… yeah… Agent Peart, could you get us a couple of drinks and maybe talk to one of the other bartenders?” Dean said.

Sam looked over and raised a brow skeptically. Dean was lucky Sam didn’t really question it and the younger Winchester walked off, giving Dean the time to be alone with you.

“So Ms… L/N, right?” Dean asked, almost hesitant.

But he watched the corner of your lips turn upward into a smile, “Yes, Agent Winchester.”

Dean couldn’t help but smile at the fact that you did remember him after all.

“I wasn’t sure if you’d recall…”

“Dean, it may have been a few years since that summer but I’m not old enough for dementia.” You joked.

Dean couldn’t help but laugh a little and the two of you found a place to sit at the bar table. It’s been so long since he’s been this close to you and it felt just like it did before.

“So how’ve you been? How’s your father and the business?” You asked, Dean remembered that he never told you the exact truth. You had a lot to catch up on he supposed.

“Dad um… well he passed several years ago. About five years after that summer, actually.” Dean said and he watched the way you began to frown.

“I’m sorry to hear that… I remember how you used to talk about him and how close you were.” You told him and he gave a bittersweet smile.

“Things well.. they changed in the five years after. A lot did actually. But my brother and I actually take care of the family business.” He told you and you lifted a brow.

“If you’re an agent now, how do you have the time for a traveling business?” You asked and he felt his palms get clammy, knowing that might be a difficult thing to answer.

“Um… well… Agents like me and Peart aren’t always in one place, so I still travel a lot anyway and when I’m off duty I handle the business as much as I can.” He tried to explain in the most believable way possible.

“You never did tell me what kind of business your dad started. I was always so curious.” You said and Dean wished he could tell you the truth.

“Actually… I need to ask you a few questions. I’m sort of on a case and I don’t really have a whole lot of time to catch up this time around.” He admitted softly.

Dean felt his heart sank at the way your shoulders seemed to slump a little before you looked down at your glass of brandy. He wished he could spend as much time with you as possible, but he couldn’t afford to lose anymore people. People have already lost their lives because of him and he couldn’t afford to do that to you too. He couldn’t handle it.

“What is it you want to know, Agent?”

The switch to the professionalism in your tone pierced Dean through the heart. Maybe he should have asked Sam to keep him some company after all, but from the looks of it he was busy interviewing someone else and writing notes down like the nerd he was.

“The owner… did you have many interactions with his wife?” He asked and he watched you shake your head.

“No. Too busy working. Plus she seldom came here anyway. She was more of a promiscuous woman than anything else. Nelson knew that better than anyone else.” You sighed.

“Nelson.. do you think he’d ever want to take revenge on his wife or pay someone to do it?” Dean asked, making this seem like routine questions - in a way they were still important for a hunter’s case. Who knows, maybe Nelson could he the werewolf he was looking for.

“And risk losing the bar because he’s in jail? No. He was hurt by his wife’s actions, yeah. But for a while they tried to work on it, but then they separated for a month. After that they started living together again before the affairs started up again. And from the looks of it he didn’t have the time to deal with his adulterous wife if she wasn’t willing to change. But there were rumors of a divorce.”

“Do you think Nelson had any enemies? Someone that wanted to get to him through the Mrs?” Dean asked.

“Look, Dean. I don’t keep tabs on my boss and his wife. I don’t care about that kind of thing. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have customers to serve and you have a murder to solve. Don’t let me keep you.” You said and abruptly stood up and walked away to get back to work.

Dean rubbed his face before pinching the bridge of his nose, “Well that looks like it was a disaster.”

Dean heard the sound of his brother’s voice and he rolled his eyes a little before he got up.

“Let’s get out of here and compare notes…”

“You okay, Man?”

“I’m fine, Sam. Let’s just go.” Dean stated and he pushed his chair in before they walked out of the door after putting some cash on the table top for the drinks.

Once the two of them got into the car, Dean started the Impala and when he was pulling out he started to drive to the hotel, then Sam started to talk again.

“So why were you so in a rush to leave? What the hell happened back there?” Sam asked, causing Dean to grimace a little but he knew his brother wouldn’t let it go until he knew what was going on.

“You remember the girl we were talking about? The cover artist?” He said and Sam nodded.

“Wait, that was Y/N? Why don’t we go back? You two can catch up! It’s just a werewolf case, a milk run. I can handle this and give you time with her.” Sam said; and as much as Dean appreciated the willingness, he knew his chances were probably gone.

“Oh no… what did you do?” Sam asked when Dean went quiet.

“Why is it always something that I did?” Dean asked and Sam scoffed.

“Because, Dean. As smooth as you are with women you’ll never see again, you always screw up with the ones that matter and you let them go. Why are you trying to let this one go?”

“Because I can’t have what happened to Jo and Lisa happen to her. Even though Jo was a hunter, she still got killed! Lisa didn’t have experience with hunting, never wanted anything to do with it, and she just got in trouble just by knowing me.” Dean said sternly, beginning to speed because he wasn’t exactly focused on the road.

“Dean! Slow down! We aren’t on a roller coaster!”

Dean heard his brother’s panicky voice and he eased on the gas and tried to focus on what he was doing and eventually they made it to the hotel. Luckily there weren’t any cops on the road so he didn’t get pulled over or anything on the way. But he turned off the car and Sam cleared his throat a little.

“Sam, I don’t want advice on this one. It’s better to just let this one go.”

“Dean, come on. I know for a fact you still have that picture she drew for you. And you said it yourself, that was the best summer of your life! You deserve to experience that kind of happiness again. Especially since things seem to be so calm right now. No angelic wars, no apocalypses, things are quiet and you deserve a break.”

Dean was still quiet.

“And you still aren’t going to tell me what down at the bar, are you?”

With a grunt, Dean stepped out of the car and started making his way up the stairs to get to their designated room.

Tag List:

@deans-spinster-witch @roseblue373 @nancymcl @jackles010378 @hobby27 @chriszgirl92 @lyarr24 @wirdbeimaufhebengebunden @blackcherrywhiskey @prettyinplaid94 @globetrotter28 @suckitands33

[yyokkki]

Asking to Sketch Them

HEARTSLABYUL

Riddle Rosehearts

Honestly a bit shocked you’d ask him

But he’s had practice from posing for family portraits, so he isn’t too nervous

Until you say you want the backdrop to be Heartslabyul’s garden

It doesn’t break any rules… but that doesn’t mean someone else won’t break any rules

He doesn’t collar people as often as he used to, but he still makes it a point to lecture rulebreakers on the importance of said rule

So imagine the strain on his face when Ace walks by with a vase full of roses and it’s Wednesday.

In the end Ace sits beside you while Riddle gives a long lecture, keeping the rest of his body perfectly still so it doesn’t interfere with your work

You are sweating in fear. 6/10 a good model but it’s hard to draw when your model is half yelling at the dude sitting right next to you

Trey Clover

Might hesitate to say yes because he’s a busy guy,,

I mean they have tea parties like everyday and he’s always in charge of sweets-

You say he can go about his business and that you’re going to capture him in his natural habitat then he agrees

Raises an eyebrow cuz you make it sound like you’re on national geographic but ok

Anyways you’re drawing him while he’s baking and damnnn those biceps pop when he’s whisking

Secretly, however, he’s been holding back for a while now/

When you’re least expecting it he comes closer to you… and bam whipped cream on the side of your face

Devolves into flour tossing and chaos

6/10 you got whipped cream on your sketchbook and it was half finished but it was a fun memory

Cater Diamond

“OMS YAY of course ;DD”

Internally screaming because his makeup isn’t that good today and why him I mean there are better looking people in nrc and maybe he can get his clone to do it instead-

Overthinker fr

He’s a bit stiff at first, trying to only show his good side and checking his camera constantly to see if his smile looks good

If you’re close and you start talking to him about something he’s passionate about while you’re sketching he’ll loosen up a bit and his pose becomes a lot more natural

Eventually forgets you’re even drawing him and now it’s just him showing his true colours

Takes a pic of your finished sketch along with the both of you and posts it on magicam #muse #artistbestie

8/10 the sketch turned out well and you had a nice chat 

Deuce Spade

Has never been asked this question in his life

Boy is so stiff and awkward pls baby

He smiles like Oga from Beelzebub at first

Pls pls pls get this boy to do something else while you’re drawing him to get him to relax

Might be studying across the table from you while having a nice chat

Forgets you’re drawing him eventually pt.2

Tbh moves around a lot especially if a senior enters the room cuz he makes it a point to turn around and greet them while standing up

Is a bit surprised when you say you’re done because shit I forgot and I moved so much im sorry-

Also takes a picture of the sketch

Texts his mom the pic “I made a really good friend who’s great at drawing :D”

Will ask if you can draw a portrait of him and his mom together when you get the chance (will pay for it he just doesn’t know about the concept of commissions TT)

4/10 he’s so precious but not the best model tbh id still ask him again idc

Ace Trappola

Little shit (affectionate)

Not hard to make him agree but boy will he give you shit for it “my face is just that handsome ig” “you want me to get nude?” someone kiss him and make him shut up

At first he’s making a bunch of dumb faces and exaggerated poses and once he determines that you’re sufficiently annoyed he starts actually posing normally

Might get up halfway through and start stretching or laying down cuz he got tired though

Depending on how late he slept the night before and if you’re keeping quiet so he doesn’t get the chance to tease you, he might fall asleep

His sleeping face is cute so it works out for you ehe

When you’re done he acts all non chalant and smug about it but inside he’s sooo happy damn tsundere

Asks if he can draw you next and draws a potato with three dots on it <3

2/10 its only easy when he falls asleep but he’s cute so ill give him 1 extra point

-----

Heartslabyul | Savanaclaw | Octavinelle | Scarabia | Pomefiore | Ignihyde | Diasomnia

Graphic design is not my passion dear lord i really need to read a guide on how to format tumblr posts TT

Also first time writing omg depending on my mood next part will either be out tomorrow or next month see yall

[starwarsmum]

A new fic? Me? Must be Wednesday 😅 this is based off a prompt for @apileofashandember about Marinette meeting the batfam through Penny ❤️

The rating on this is Mature because it gets a little spicy further down the line! You have been warned 😘

Chapter 1: A Liar Ruins a Website

Marinette sat alone in her room, hands scrunched in her hair as she muffled her screams into her bed. Her laptop sat innocently on her pillow, new comments popping up every few minutes on her now ruined website. 

“Make a website, Jagged said, it'll get your name out there, he said,” she complained to Tikki. The tiny god wisely said nothing, but settled itself into her hair. “How did that liar even find out about it? No, don't answer that,” she added when Tikki took a breath. “If I don't take my website down now, my name will be ruined, and I will never design professionally again.”

One short internet search later, and her heart broke as she changed the code to an out of service message. She would have to email the half a dozen clients that she had secured in the past month or so, and contact Jagged and Penny to let them know. It wasn't fair, she had worked so hard on making her website cute and fun. And now all of that hard work was ruined.

She sighed and opened up her group chat with Jagged and Penny, looking back at the good luck messages she had received from them about the website. It made her miss the early days of her commissions, when Jagged had asked her to make a pair of sunglasses and an album cover.

Nette: hey, just to let you know, I had to take the site down. someone said I stole their work and I got a bunch of hate

Auntie P: what?! who dares? I'm sorry Nette, that's awful

Uncle J: that's not rock n roll! is it that girl you told us about? Leela? Layla? 

Nette: probably, not that I can prove it

Marinette sighed, rubbing her eyes. She fired off the emails to her clients, hoping to get ahead for the night. She had finished her homework, but she still had an hour or two before she crashed for the night so she was hoping to get at least one of the designs finalised.

She got lost in the designing process, fresh pages becoming covered in sketches and annotations. She surfaced from her work after Tikki reminded her that she had school the next morning, so she readied herself for bed. When she checked her messages again before she went to sleep, she saw a new one flashing on the group chat.

Aunt P: if you need a hand rebranding, creating a new website, just let us know. we're proud of you for being so mature with this and we'll help you succeed

Nette: thanks both, I may take you up on that. I just need a couple of days to get over this setback and we'll sort it

It was after a fitful night's sleep that Marinette awoke, late as usual, and ran through her morning rituals. She shoved her hair into a bun, dragged on a semi-respectable outfit and grabbed a croissant on her way through the bakery. Now that she was in lycée, she had to travel further in the mornings. Fortunately, with the motorcycle she had finally passed the test to drive, she didn't need to rely on public transport to get there.

“Girl, are you okay?” Alya raced up to her as she pulled into the lycée car park, throwing her arms around Marinette. “Lila told us your website went down last night, right when she was about to submit a request! What happened?”

“Someone started a rumour that I stole my designs and it meant a bunch of people started trashing the site,” Marinette said, trying to keep her voice even. She couldn't help stressing the first word, as she knew who was likely behind it, but she regretted it when Alya sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Not again, Marinette! I know it's been hard for you since you and Adrien didn't work out, and now it looks like he and Lila are going to start dating, but you need to stop with the jealousy! I love you, girl, but you get so into your head about him.”

“Alya, I didn't even say anything!” Marinette protested, weariness settling back onto her like an old, heavy blanket. “Look, whatever, it's not important right now. We're going to be late to class if we don't hustle.”

“I know you, Mari, you always think it was Lila!” Alya sounded exasperated, and it wasn't like Marinette could refute it. They walked along the hallway to their lockers, nodding at their friends as they passed. “And I get it, really, you can't help how you feel, but like I've told you before, you have to look at things objectively to get to the truth!”

Marinette bit her tongue, not wanting to point out that Alya’s blind insistence that Lila would never do such a thing was just as subjective as her believing that she had. She deliberately changed the topic to something else, ignoring the disapproving look her best friend shot her.

When they entered their classroom, Marinette greeted her other friends, sliding easily into her seat. She had chosen to sit at the back of the class so that nobody could say she had to give up her seat to someone else, reducing the upset it caused when Lila started spinning tales. She was fortunate that Lila had been placed in a different class in the previous years, but in her last year of lycée, her luck had finally run out.

“Oh my gosh, Marinette, I heard about your website!” Came the liar's high pitched faux-concerned voice. It grated on her that she would have to play nice with Lila once again, as Lila got her jabs in at Marinette. “It's so scary that someone would start a rumour about your work ethic, with so little evidence! Adrien and I were talking about it last night, he's always saying how you're still such a good friend to him.”

“Yeah, well, actually there's no evidence of me stealing designs because it's one hundred percent untrue,” Marinette said blandly, staring Lila down. She ignored the distressed noises the other girl started to make and waved a hand. “It doesn't matter, I have a few commissions to get through, but then I should take a break from designing to focus on the BAC anyway…”

Everyone around her told her it was such a shame that she wouldn't be able to take on new commissions for a while and she nodded glumly. She had no intention of stopping designing, of course, but this would hopefully give her some breathing room whilst she got herself set up again - anonymously this time. 

Which sadly meant that Max was no longer an option for making a new website. As much as she loved her friends, they really didn't look too hard at Lila's fantastic stories, which meant they would blithely tell the witch when Marinette set up again. This way, she would make a name for herself separately, and claim the brand in a few years once it was fully legitimised.

The lessons that day felt like they dragged on forever, Marinette just wanting to go home and make some progress on her commissions. She had learned to keep her sketchbooks at home - she didn't want to lose her work to people like 14-year-old Chloe - so she focused on trying to get a headstart on her homework whenever she had a free minute.

“Marinette! We were just talking about our Christmas plans, girl, weren't you making a bunch of designs for the local nativity play?” Alya beckoned her over and Marinette hid the grimace that threatened to cross her face. “Wow, that's so cool! Did you volunteer or something?”

“Not really, they saw some of my work and offered me a reasonable price for their main costumes for the play,” Marinette answered, wary of where the conversation would go next. She had stopped doing freebies for her friends, which had upset them until she had explained that she wanted to go to university in America and needed to spend all of her time on paid commissions. 

“Oh, it's so nice for you that you're comfortable taking pay from such an underfunded space, Marinette!” Lila put in, sounding sweet as per usual, but with all of the underhandedness that Marinette was accustomed to. “I was just telling Rose that I'm planning on volunteering my time at a soup kitchen throughout the Christmas period. My friends, Damian and Tim, their family funds a few different charities both here and abroad. Do you think Adrien will be able to help out too?”

“You should probably check with his aunt,” she replied flatly, refusing to be baited into an argument about whether she should be doing the costumes for free. “I need to go and eat, excuse me.” She pushed away from the table, feeling drained again and resolutely ignoring the conversation that picked up about Lila's ‘friends’. Marinette was sure that whoever Lila was claiming to know this time had no clue who she was and she wasn't going to get stuck in that mess.

She toyed with her phone before deciding that she absolutely needed a new website and that Penny's friend was likely her best bet. So she crafted her message, begging Penny to put her in touch with her computer whiz before slogging through her homework and lunch.

_ _ _

Marinette sat nervously at her desk later that evening, waiting for the video call Penny had promised her. They had decided a three-way call was the best way to introduce them both, but as the other two were in America, it was later than Marinette would have liked for a video call.

Tikki was sitting quietly on her shoulder as she sketched anxiously. She knew that whoever Penny was introducing her to would be nice enough, but she was always unsure of meeting new people. She added a few details to her work, and jumped when the laptop began ringing. She hastily accepted the call, twisting in her chair and tapping her fingers.

“Hi, Nette,” came Penny's bright voice. “And hey Babs, thanks for coming on the call to help. Marinette, this is Barbara, an old student of sorts. I worked with her back when I was an aide at Gotham U, she was studying library science with a minor in computer sciences. Babs, this is Marinette, Jagged's personal designer. She's done a ton of his more recent album artwork and designed all of his stage outfits for the last 2 years. She's also our honorary niece.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Marinette!” The woman was leaning towards her screen, scrutinising the teenager. Marinette eyed her as well, seeing a whole mane of red hair and glasses above a broad smile. “Penny mentioned you needed some help with a website, though she didn't mention you were so accomplished already.”

“Ah, yes, I had some recent trouble with my own website and I don't have enough technical know-how to create something secure. I'm planning to go anonymous, to prevent the same thing happening again, but I have no idea where to start,” Marinette explained, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. 

“And how do you plan to get clients if you have no base to start from?” Babs was beginning to type furiously, a gleam in her eyes. “Don't get me wrong, I'm sure your work is wonderful, but if you don't have any endorsements, isn't it really hard to break onto the fashion scene?”

“Oh, well I thought I'd have Jagged do the introduction, if that's okay, Pen? Because I'm under 18, I didn't tell anyone except my maman that I was working with Jagged and she promised to keep it to herself. I figured that way I can sort commissions and won't have a problem with getting new clients.”

“Wicked idea, M!” Came Jagged's voice from off screen, making her giggle. “Babs, let us know when you have her site up and running and I'll rep it on my socials. Rock n roll, girls!”

So they worked out the logistics moving forward, Marinette trading contact info with Barbara and promising one evening a week to go over the website details. It was everything Marinette had hoped for when Penny had offered to connect her with a friend. When the call finally ended, it was closer to midnight in Paris and she was relieved that it was a weekend the following day.

“That went well, Marinette,” Tikki squeaked at her, floating around head height as the girl got herself ready for bed. Marinette agreed before collapsing into bed with a groan. It didn't take long for her to pass out, a slight smile on her face.

[theragsagainstthemachine]

Yes, it matters.

One pleasure I get-and maybe this goes for every artist- is the “ah” moment I get when someone first looks at a piece they commission from me.

These moments happen at a convention where I’m face to face with the audience. They range from unmitigated joy to discernment from people trying to calculate the resale value.

So clearly it’s the joy we’re after.

(side-note: I really don’t care if someone wants to resell any of my pieces. I assume they eventually go to someone who wants it proudly displayed. Just have the common decency to appreciate it with a smile when you do receive it.)

When I mail out a piece, there’s always the anxiety that something will go wrong with the mail, despite my best efforts. So when I get a response that it got there safely, there’s relief. Sometimes I even get a “wow, it looks so much better in real life.”

That makes me smile.

The “I’m sure you get this all the time,” can be true but it never gets old. Between the beginning of starting a piece and the hundreds of calculations you think through (no, it’s not all muscle memory) to the final “ah” moments, that’s what gives me verification.

That’s why I do it.

And then, there’s something absolutely beautiful:

“Hi Rags,

Alan Neal in Canada writing, with a long overdue final THANK YOU for the incredible "Black Canary and radio" sketch... the one that got lost by the airline before you got to Ottawa!... but did arrive in the mail.

I know I told you how much I loved it, but I really did want to write to say how great it is to have your work up on the wall in our house. Maybe you get sick of people telling you how great your work is, but I figure it can't hurt to tell you again. :) I have been so swamped with family stuff that just having a moment to write seems so hard to come by.

Anyway...

My wife said "I think it's time to showcase the Canaries in the living room", and so we have hung them all up, and just love the way they look.

I know so often you must do these works and send them off into the world and not know what they mean to people. So I just wanted to say they mean a lot. The joy they bring and the discussions they launch, the details that people mention to me, the way they provide both escape and happiness, allow someone to be both nostalgic and present.

Everyone who comes over is instantly drawn to yours. You did such a beautiful job conveying the joy of Dinah listening to music, and it once again showcases your skill with expressions and movement. It's just stunning.

I also think the framer did a great job (I went with harvest gold as the matte because it was the "it" colour of 1973 :))

So I just wanted to send you a thanks and show you what it looks like, surrounded by many who we've now lost... George Perez, Neal Adams, Dick Giordano, Ramona Fradon... as well as Kat Hudson, Mike Grell, Jamal Igle, Gisele Lagace, and a lovely piece where Gail Simone did the "script" and Tom Fowler did the art. Someday I'll track down Jose-Luis Garcia Lopez and Phil Jimenez :) The living room "gallery" of Black Canaries and radios is below. :)

Sorry that this is a long blathering note, but putting up all the art has just reminded me of how special it is, and how lucky I am, so wanted to say thanks, and hope all is well.

All the best, sir!”

Alan

[poopwons]

Thinking about Artist!Jean being just the SWEETEST boyfriend when his girl isn’t feeling herself. 😭😭

Modern Au, Fluff, fem reader, No use of y/n, this is purely self indulgent, and my first ever fic I’m actually posting, sorry if it’s bad writing 💀

TW: anxious thoughts, insecurities, reader doesn’t feel good enough, I think that’s all??

————————————————————————

You come into the apartment in a huff, putting your things down and going to the fridge to get some water.

“Hey,” Jean starts, as he walks into the kitchen from his studio down the hall, before he stops and takes in your expression. “What’s wrong?”

“Just had a bad day,” you say, not really wanting to go into all of it, all your insecurities and the anxiety you’ve dealt with throughout today.

None of your clothes fit the way you wanted them to, making you feel like nothing you put on looked even remotely good. You were sporting an acne break out from stress? Hormones? Who fucking knows, but it’s annoying. The fact that in every window you walked by today, you saw your reflection and just felt…not pretty enough. And you do all of the things your therapist recommends when you’re feeling low like this, you’ve been working out, eating right, trying to drink more water. Not to mention the affirmations you had scribbled on your mirror in the bathroom. But some days, the irrational side of your brain wins out. Today you could not see past any of the things you don’t like about yourself. You weren’t able to view the whole picture and instead focused on the small flaws. Even going to lunch with your friends was discouraging, watching them all sport smiles and feel confident in themselves. It seemed effortless for them. And nothing ever felt effortless for you. You felt like you had to work so hard to even feel some semblance of the confidence your friends exude daily.

“What happened?” Jean asks, coming around the counter, wrapping his big arms around you pressing a kiss to the top of your head before moving down to your lips. “Do I need to beat somebody up?”

“Not unless you wanna beat up your own girlfriend.”

“Mm. That kind of bad day, huh?” He says softly, tilting your head to look at him before he kisses you again.

Jean knows about your struggles, you’ve been together for a while now, so it would have been impossible for him not to notice. He tries to do the most for you when it gets like this. He knows you can’t help it, that it tends to come in waves. You’ve been stressed at work lately and that usually bleeds into your anxiety.

“Come here, Pretty.” He says, pulling you by your hand to lead you to the couch, sitting you down and getting the blanket off the back to wrap it around you. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.” He turns to go back to his studio, but not before turning on your usual comfort show for you.

He comes back into the living room and sits down with you, sketchbook and pencil in hand.

“You don’t have to work out here.. I know you have a deadline.” You say softly from your spot on the couch, not wanting to distract him from his work just because you had a bad day.

“I got that piece done already, this is something different. It’s not work, so I’m gonna sit with you. Besides, I haven’t seen you all day.” He says leaning over to press another quick kiss to your lips, before leaning with his back on the arm of the couch, knees up with his sketch book pressed to them.

It’s pretty normal for Jean to draw in his free time when he’s not working on commissions for clients. It’s his chance to work on stuff he actually likes and lets him get more creative without the constraints of a clients wishes. You turn your attention back to the show, finding comfort in this cute little routine you two have. The warmth of his body next to yours while he scribbles on his page, the faint sound of the pencil scratching the paper, when the two of you get time like this everything else in the world kind of drowns out.

While half your brain is still going on and on about the ways you’re not good enough and ways you could improve, you try to focus on the show, trying to ignore all those other thoughts. You laugh at a part you’ve seen probably a hundred times, but you still find it just as funny as the first time. You glance over at Jean who’s smiling down at his paper, his eyes flitting between the tv and the paper. He doesn’t normally show you his free time stuff until it’s finished, so you don’t bother asking him what he’s working on, knowing that you’ll find out eventually.

The two of you sit like that for a couple hours, just enjoying being in each others company, chatting idly about the show and some stuff the two of you have going on over the weekend. After a few more moments, Jean shifts again, sitting closer to you, his sketch book splayed open to the page he was working on as he puts his arm around you. When you finally glance down at it, a look of surprise spreads across your face.

“Is that..me?” You ask softly, taking the book in your hands to examine the drawing further.

Jean simply nods, offering you a small mumble of affirmation with a little grin on his lips. As you look over the paper you see how he’s drawn you, plush lips turned up into a wide grin, you’re laughing. Your eyes are bright and you look..happy, your hair is in beautiful waves, no frizz in sight. There’s another small drawing in the corner of the page, it looks like he’s just drawn your eyes alone, shining and bright. It hits you then that when he lifted his head up from the page earlier, he hadn’t been watching the tv, he’d been looking at you.

Taking the book you look at the front cover and realize that this isn’t his usual sketch book. You flip to the front of the book and go through the pages, as you flip through it you have to fight back the tears that well in your eyes. Every page, is filled with you, sketches, drawings, some with color some without. Some pages are just studies of your features where he was trying to get your smile right, or your eyes. Some of them are full body drawings, and you recognize your own clothes, days when you’d send him selfies of your outfits with a big happy smile.

You look over at him with a soft smile, “what is this?”

He leans over and presses a kiss to your temple. “It’s you, baby. Whenever I’m having an art block or can’t think of what I want to draw, I just..draw you.”

“You drew me so pretty..”

“You are pretty. More than pretty.” He says, leaning into you to press another kiss to your temple, resting his head against yours. “Most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I thought about it when you came home and said you felt bad, that I wished you could see yourself the way I do. I thought, maybe I should just show you.”

You continue flipping through the pages, they aren’t all happy drawings. Some of them are clearly from some times when you weren’t feeling your best, but even in the ones where you have a sad expression, or tears in your eyes, he still drew you beautifully. Even when you felt your worst he still thought you were beautiful.

“Thank you…for this.” You say softly, turning towards him to softly kiss his lips, setting the sketchbook down on the table and pulling yourself into his lap to wrap your arms around him.

“Just drawing what I see, nothing else.” He murmurs as he buries his face into your neck, pressing a kiss there before holding you tightly.

————————————————————————

✨I want this man so bad, that is all.✨

Thanks for reading!! 🥰🥰🥰🥰

[rosesnink]

Threads of Gold

Author's Notes

A few days ago, I commissioned Thia @oh-so-youre-a-nerd from their Your Characters comms this beautiful piece of Mr. Sinclaire and Marianna, and the moment I saw the sketch, I knew I had to bring it to life.

I am aware that I said I'd stop writing Marianna here, but she's too amazing to just quit writing her here and the brainrot's stronger, lol.

English isn't my first language, so please forgive any typos/grammar mistakes I may make.

To read more of Ernest and Marianna's journey, click here!

Check out my masterlist for more!

Summary: Ernest and Marianna share a cozy and intimate moment

Word Count: 644

Category: Fluff

Rating: G

Book: Desire and Decorum

March, 1812

It was late night, and Ernest Sinclaire found himself in Marianna’s house once again. He had duties in London, and if he had endured them, it was to see her once the moon was out. After a passionate session, they got decent and Marianna prepared some tea before the man went back to his townhouse.

“What am I to you, sir?”

Ernest looked up, blinking, rather confused and drowsy. “Sorry?”

“I asked you what do I mean to you.”

“I… haven’t thought about it deeply. But… I know that I like being with you, and not just because of…” his ears flushed pink, but he carried on “but more than that. I like talking to you, listening to what you have to say…”

Marianna bit her lip “I feel the same. I can’t explain it, but… there’s something about you that keeps drawing me back to you.”

They both stood in silence, the theme on the conversation weighing heavily on them. It was clear that they were more than lovers, yet they weren’t in love with one another. Not at least on his part. It’d be more complicated for her than him. He wasn’t the first man of his station to marry someone like him. Indeed, the second wife of his ancestor, Walter Sinclaire, had married a woman of the night’s daughter who sold oranges for a living, and theirs had been a beautiful and tempestuous relationship that had led to the century-old tale of the duelling pistol hanging in Ledford Park.

He could see that she did not wish marriage. The way she shifted and acted when the word came out in her presence wasn’t difficult to miss for someone like him. He was used to lurk somewhere and observe and read the room, an underrated societal skill few used, desperate to shine in the scene. Many failed miserably, and it was quite pitiful to watch.

But somehow, Marianna always stole the spotlight. Despite being eleven years his elder, she looked like she was his age, maybe younger. Her fair skin shone brightly on the fireplace’s shadows, her golden locks now down and messy. The thin nightgown carved her perfectly plump figure, sign of years of work, children perhaps as well. He suddenly remembered his travels to Italy, and seeing the statues of Aphrodite and being mesmerised by the detail of the naked female body. It came to him that the same proportions had been given to Marianna: beautiful hip dips, her body being plump and soft like a pillow. Her face was earth-shatteringly striking: light blue like the Pacific Ocean, plump cheeks and mildly full lips with the perfect shape that drove him mad every time he kissed them. Her neck was elegant, and her collarbones had this effect on him that he couldn’t describe. She was too beautiful to work there, enduring blithering idiots and blind drunks who sought refuge from their wives. She was a work of art, and he wished he was blessed with the gift of art. He’d gladly paint her. The image sent heart flutters to his chest.

Getting close as she gathered her thoughts, he stroked her hair, smelling the jasmine and the hint of rosewater on it. Marianna softened at his touch, not daring to turn around and face the question in both their minds.

Playing with her hair, he created threads of golden hair, the colour of the sun, and set aside some stray hairs to kiss the nape of the neck “I may not have the word for it yet, but you mean more to me than the English language’s adjectives can provide. Know that. Always.”

Embracing, they observed how the sun slowly rose, and Ernest hoped that, whatever happened between one another, memories like these would prevail in both their memories.

[crystallinestars]

Happy Birthday, Kaveh!

Kaveh birthday scenario because I love this man a ridiculous amount. Happy Birthday to one of my favorite Genshin boys!!!

Once again, this is self indulgent and also not proofread, so excuse any spelling/grammar errors.

Contains: Modern AU. Pure fluff and lots of physical affection

Once the clock struck twelve, you carefully lit up the candles on the red velvet cake you had made a couple days prior and lifted the tray to carry it to Kaveh’s office.

Cracking open the door, you spot him sitting hunched over his desk, blueprints and drawing tools scattered haphazardly all around him. A lone lamp lights up the room in a dim, yellow glow, casting long shadows on the walls.

Kaveh scratches his head with a groan, mussing up his pretty hairstyle as he discards another blueprint aside.

Deciding to intervene before the architect loses himself in another sketch for the next few hours, you clear your throat to get his attention.

Kaveh lifts his head and looks in your direction, carmine eyes zeroing in on the cake in your hands.

“Y/N?”

“Happy Birthday, Kaveh!” you say with a smile and present your handmade cake to him. It was a simply but tastefully decorated cake, with the words ‘Happy Birthday Kaveh!’ written in red icing and topped with fresh fruit. Several small candles were arranged in a circle, their flames flickering softly.

Kaveh’s eyes widen in surprise.

“Birthday…?” Kaveh blinked and glanced at the clock. “Oh. Oh! I completely forgot!” he chuckled and shook his head.

“I figured you lost track of time again, which is why I’m here to be the first one to celebrate your birthday with you, and to get you to take a break,” you say with a wry smile.

The blond stood up and made his way over to you, looking sheepish.

“You’re right. I got so lost in my work that I completely lost track of time. I just can’t get the design for this commission right,” he sighed and followed after you towards the kitchen.

“Take a break. Maybe you’ll get better results with a fresher mind,” you coax him to sit on the couch.

Kaveh complies, and his eyes light up when you place the cake in front of him on the coffee table.

“Why don’t you make a wish and blow out the candles? Maybe it will come true.” Smiling, you take a seat next to him.

Kaveh chuckles but does as you say, and closes his eyes to make a wish before blowing out the candles.

“Happy Birthday!” you say again and clap. “Do you want to have some cake now or later?”

“Now, actually. I’m pretty hungry, and I think the boost of sugar will help me get those sketches done,” Kaveh replies.

You take a knife and cut a slice of the red velvet cake before plating it and sliding it over to him. Kaveh gratefully accepts the slice and digs in.

“Mmm, this is so good! Did you make this?”

“Yeah. I made it while you were away for a business meeting with a client. It took a lot of work to keep it a secret,” you say and break off a small piece of his slice, spearing it on a fork. You hold the fork up to Kaveh’s mouth, indicating you want to feed him.

Kaveh blushes and shoots you a look. “I can feed myself, you know.”

“I know. I just want to pamper you on your special day,” you smile at him.

Kaveh is unable to resist your adorable smile, so he caves in and lets you feed him the cake. He grumbles a bit and looks flustered, but ultimately can’t deny that having you feed him warmed his heart. Your care and affection were just what he needed after a grueling day of work.

After feeding him the slice of cake, you clean up the plate and bring over a gift bag that you had prepared earlier for this specific occasion.

“I got some gifts for you, as well. Would you like to open them now?”

Kaveh glances at the bag in your hand curiously.

“You got me gifts too? You didn’t have to, really. But thank you.” He takes the bag from your hands. He lowers his hand into it and fishes out a rectangular object wrapped in red and gold wrapping paper.

“What’s this?” he asks. The architect carefully unwraps the gift, revealing a prettily decorated scrapbook. His fingers trace over the intricate golden patterns hand-drawn on the front cover that remind him of the patterns on the protractor he uses when drawing his architectural designs. The front cover was also decorated with red, green, and gold gems as well as turquoise feathers that matched the earrings and feather he usually wore.

“Did you make this?” he asks in awe.

“Ah, yeah. I had some help from your friends in making it. I know my artistic skills pale in comparison to yours, but I still hope you like it,” you chuckle, feeling nervous about whether he likes the design of the scrapbook or not. You spent a lot of time trying to make it look nice, and you hoped it was satisfactory for your artistic boyfriend’s tastes.

“Don’t worry, it looks beautiful. I love it,” Kaveh grins and eases your concerns.

He carefully opens the book and feels his breath hitch. Inside are photos of him and the people he loves framed by colorful paper flowers, ribbons, and multicolored gems. Every page he flips to has a photo of himself or someone he’s close with, captioned with what the photo is depicting and when it was taken.

There’s a photo of Kaveh grinning cheerfully while raising a glass of wine as if celebrating something. Kaveh remembers that this was taken when he was celebrating moving out of Alhaitham’s house because he found a place to live in together with you.

Another photo was of Cyno doing another one of his dramatic poses while holding some TCG cards, engaged in a TCG battle against Kaveh. One photo was taken when he and Faruzan were tinkering on a gadget for a contest, and he smiles as the image reminds him of how he and his professor won first place because of their invention. Some photos on the following page were of Tighnari teaching Collei about botany, and Alhaitham reading in the library, seemingly not noticing his picture being taken, or pretending not to.

There were many photos of him and his friends in the scrapbook, ranging from pretty to silly, but each and every one made Kaveh smile at the happy memories they conjured up.

Flipping towards the end of the book, Kaveh found pictures of you and him together. There was one taken by Collei while the two of you were slow dancing at the tavern, and another you took as a selfie where you had suddenly kissed his cheek, effectively capturing his surprised face. He swore you looked ethereal in every one of the photos, and his heart raced as he remembered each of the romantic moments shared between you captured on these photographs.

“Y/N… this is the most wonderful gift I’ve ever received. Thank you, I love this so much. I promise I’ll treasure it for the rest of my life,” he said as he pressed the book to his heart, indicating he truly did cherish your gift.

You smile, pleased that he liked the scrapbook you spent at least two months working on.

“I’m glad you like it. There’s one more gift for you in bag.”

As if just remembering about the bag, Kaveh sets the scrapbook aside before taking out the second gift. It was a clear glass jar topped with a cork and a golden ribbon. Inside it seemed to be multicolored paper slips that filled the whole jar to the brim in a pretty pastel rainbow. You feel your heart rate grow faster as nerves set in. You put your whole heart into this gift, and you really hoped Kaveh would like it.

Kaveh inspects the content of the jar, noticing that the paper slips were folded into small squares, and guesses that they must contain some kind of message or drawing. He uncorks the jar and takes out a random slip before unfolding it. Inside it was a neatly written message:

You have the prettiest smile I’ve ever seen. It never fails to brighten up my day and make my heart skip a beat for you.

Kaveh blinks in surprise, not quite sure what to think of the message, but it undoubtedly filled him with happiness. He fished out another slip and opened it.

I love how creative you are. Your mind comes up with so many unique and wonderful ideas, and you have the determination and talent to turn them into reality. I admire you for that. All your creations are so beautiful— just like you.

Kaveh felt his eyes water as he read the message but blinked away the tears. He realized that these messages were your heartfelt thoughts and feelings about him, and it made his breath hitch. Swallowing thickly, he took a deep breath before opening another colored paper.

I love you with my whole heart, and I will never stop loving you. I will be there for you through all the good and bad times, I promise.

You hear Kaveh sniffle and notice his shoulders shake as he tried to control his overwhelming emotions. This gift touched his heart deeply, and he felt so loved and appreciated that he didn’t know what to do with himself.

“Y/N…” he croaks out, and you gently wrap him up in an embrace.

“Thank you. I love you. I love you so much,” he whispered as he returned the hug and buried his face in your shoulder.

“I love you too, Kaveh. I always will,” you whisper back just as softly and kiss his temple. Kaveh tightens his arms around you and exhales a shuddering breath. After a few moments he pulls away and wipes at his reddened eyes, but he otherwise looks composed.

“Sorry for this. I just… I’ve never felt so loved before. This gift… it means more to me than you will ever know,” he says softly, a tender yet sad look in his eye as he glances down at the jar.

“I’m glad you like it. I wrote down all my thoughts and feelings about you on those slips with the intention of having you look at a few of them whenever you feel down. I know you go through a lot of struggles, so I wanted to give you something that would hopefully cheer you up. Even if you feel like the world is against you, know that I will always be there for you,” you say with a smile.

“Truly, I can’t thank you enough. Your gifts are so thoughtful and touching. I promise to treasure them forever. And if I thought I loved you before, I now admit that you somehow managed to make me fall for you all over again,” Kaveh says and pulls you into another hug before giving you a kiss and resting his forehead against yours.

You giggle and smile at him warmly. “Good. I’m glad I still have that effect on you,” you tease, causing both of you to laugh.

The architect presses his lips to your face, peppering kisses to your cheeks, nose, and forehead, saying words of thanks and love before taking a moment to just hold you in his arms.

You smile, feeling your heart grow warm from his affections, and let yourself relax in his embrace. You hold him tightly in return, basking in his warmth and pleasant scent.

“Happy Birthday, Kaveh. I hope all your wishes come true,” you say quietly.

Kaveh lets out a soft hum and kisses your temple before resting his cheek on the top of your head. He has many wishes. Dealing with his debt, wanting to see his parents again and have a whole family, for art and artists to be given the due importance and respect that they deserve… the list goes on.

However, one of his wishes did come true. It was right here in his arms, giving him all the love and comfort he desperately needed. The guiding light in this dark world that saved him in more ways than he can recount.

It was you, his darling love.

[arenabreadandbiscuits]

hiya! I think for Radiostatic, some old timey hang outs between them would be really cool to see if you're up for it. :)

I'm generally curious how you think their fallout went, if you'd like to express your opinion on that.

HEY I'm not finished with this yet but so far I have three sketches I was doing with your prompt in mind hehe ✨✨✨ thank you for giving me the ideas as well anon!! Imma draw like one more pic after these sketches of the fallout because I definitely have ideas in mind.

So here's the scenarios:

Alastor got in a fight over Vox considering his friend is smaller and weaker and Alastor doesn't like when Vox is being picked on. He couldn't help himself, got to beating peoples asses and now Vox is scolding him but while also dealing with Alastor's wounds.

Second sketch is then walking home today after a drinking night. They gotta keep a hold to each other to not fall. (Though imagine they do collapse into a heap and just giggle and laugh because of it)

Third is them cuddling. Alastor is definitely big smooth with most cases but sometimes he's open for little spoon too. They have the pillow for protection juuust in case.

What you guys think? Hehehe I really like the one where they are holding on to each other but imma see if I can fix and finish lineart today.

FOLLOW ME ON TWITCH SO CATCH ME DRAWING IN THE ACT! I WANNA GROW THAT PLATFORM OF MINE! <333 (@ ashes_artsprout)

Let's draw and write together!

(asksbox (for radiostatic, adamsapple mostly but you can ask about other ships as well, I don't mind.) and commissions to help support me through my healing journey are open :3)

The Fallout:

As much as I love bringing Val into it, I also like believing they fell out before Valentino was even in the picture for real. I also think that maybe it was a love confession gone wrong but we've heard it where Vox confessed and Alastor was the one to freak out but have you ever heard the song IFHY?? It's not to say that they hated each other at this point but imagine this

Alastor actually builds a codependency with Vox, like Vox is unique..Vox can be fragile, the feeling of being his friend probably started to blend into genuine care for Vox and Alastor was actually the one to confess first.

It took a lot of energy too, building the confidence but wanting Vox kind of pulled some obsession out of Alastor and in a way that Alastor probably wanted him to himself, forever but Vox wanted to run off so bad and make it big in Hell like he's always talked about and it caused conflict and confusion between the two of them because Alastor sucked at truly expressing those feelings of his.

How in reality while he doesn't feel these emotions often, he's felt them with Vox so that must mean he should keep Vox close. To himself.

Vox notices the slight shifting of Alastor's mood here and there but they probably got in an argument really and big feelings came out during said arguments. Like Alastor admitting those feelings to Vox but in a way that made him angrier, after all he never asked to feel anything or even ..fall in love with his only and best friend.

Vox would probably fall silent, stunned at the words because it's just so... unexpected? Surprising? He isn't sure himself. I can see Alastor panting with ragged breath as Vox looks at him in shock but I can also see him running away the second those words leave his mouth and he leaves like a tornado, running things in his rush.

It left Vox to think in a messy room. That somehow and someway, these emotions were going to strain them, especially if Alastor wanted to talk about it while refusing to do so at the same time..

Lol, just a thought but one I think about often enough.

[rainbowdelicartz]

I DID IT!! I FINALLY FINISHED THE REF SHEETS FOR ALL MY PIERROT STUDIO MG MASCOT SELF INSERTS!!!!!

And yes, I named and based her design after Dinah from Alice in Wonderland (the Disney animated version) to compliment Simba's name!

Dinah is a Love Fairy Cat who lived as a resident of the Lovely Dream until the point where Lovely Dream started needing help from Persia. She debuts alongside Bon Bon in the 32nd episode as she is supposed to be his caretaker and guardian during his time on Earth and when she meets Persia, she becomes her moral guide to keep Persia's thoughts and actions in check (AKA prevent Persia from having another jealous outburst that caused her to break her first wand in Episode 31)

She is very serene, level-headed, motherly, kind-hearted, loyal, and empathetic as she is very much someone who wears all their emotions and who they are as a whole on her sleeves since she just loves using those traits to help others with their morality and their problems related to having issues with honesty in their lives (aka telling the people they love how they actually feel). She also has minimal ice powers (creating icy breezes out of nowhere and able to conjure snowflakes and snow at will) along with her ability to fly

She and Simba got along from the moment the two met, despite the two having a different demeanor to the other. Dinah's calm and honest approach to life actually helps Simba with not being as grumpy all the time and gives him room to let loose with his personality, Simba does an amazing job being Dinah's advocate at times when she's being way too nice at certain situations

Once the series ends, Dinah decides to stay behind with Persia and Simba as she grows very attached to Earth and wants to start anew with Simba. When Persia is older (around 15-16), she gains back her powers, and Meso-Meso, Gera-Gera, Puri-Puri, and Bon Bon return to her side so she can join alongside Yumi, Mai (Magical Emi), Yuu (Creamy Mami), and Miho (Fancy Lala) to form The Majokko Club!

Things she likes consist of ladybugs, spring/summer (grew to love it over the cold of Lovely Dream), fish (esp trout and salmon), Valentine's Day, hearts, paper crafts, painting, flying, apples, cherries, raspberries, strawberries, sunflowers, roses, daisies, pine trees, cranberry apple tea, and star gazing

----------------------------------------------------------------

I really really hope you guys enjoy her and her design, I had a really fun time with it since her sketch is from last year lol!

Have fun yall!!

[ART COMMISSIONS ARE OPEN!!!]

[wusnus]

Guide for Doing Commissions

I've been seeing posts from artist who got scammed doing commissions so i thought I'd share my process from when I did them to avoid scams! Payment - Agree on pricing and payment process and confirm they understand before you draw anything. take a screenshot of this as well. Make sure there are no surprises for anyone with the payment process. - always always ALWAYS take at least 50% up front. This is to make sure they cant run off with any of the process without paying. I allowed for a refund if they did not like the sketch but once the sketch has been approved no refund is available. - never send the final before getting paid in full. I would send a lower quality watermarked version to show how it looks then would send the high quality un watermarked file after I'd received payment.

Customers - Friends! My first few were my friends and then when people saw what i did for them they would know to find me for similar stuff! People who love what you made for them will recommend you to others! - People who find your work on their own. Usually im inherently more suspicious of people who dont follow me or anyone who ive worked with. I will still treat them fairly but this can be a red flag so i put up my guard

Advertising - Have your prices and info easy to find! I kept mine in a pinned post and had a link to my website in my bio. If someone came to me and asked about stuff that I had listed in my website or post that's a huge red flag. Most serious commissioners will try to figure out if they can afford your prices before they express interest in commissioning you. - LIST THAT YOU MAY REFUSE ANY COMMISSION FOR ANY REASON this is to avoid conflict when refusing suspicious customers - You don't need a big "my commissions are open!" post. You can have one but unless you are already a big account this is unlikely to reach beyond people who are already interested in your work. something small like "_ commission slots open" is enough to inform your followers

Pricing this is less about avoiding scams and more about pricing your work properly - give yourself wiggle room for difficulty. In all my prices I would add something like "10-20$ more for very complicated designs - price for time and effort. I would set a base price anywhere from 5-50$ depending on the difficulty (ie. 5$ for icons and 50$ for animations) then add to it payment for my time. To get time i would time myself making that sort of work to get my usual work time in hours (excluding breaks and such) then i would multiply that by 6-10$ and add it to my base price to get my final price. So price is determined by b+ht=p where b is base price, h is hourly addition, and t is time in hours to finish the work. this also has the added benefit of forcing you to work within your usual time and not go overboard beyond what you are getting paid for! Red Flags heres some red flags ive seen for difficult customers and scams. - complains about other artists. if they seem to not be treating other artists well they wont treat you good either - hasn't checked your prices before contacting you. how can they plan to pay in full if they havent even looked at what they are getting into? - very newly created account. typically commissioners will have been following you or at least seeing your work before they reach out. a new account is a red flag - wants you to finish something another artist started. I will never touch another artists work unless they have spoken to me directly about it. I dont trust "please render this sketch i commissioned from someone else!". Final Tips - tell your customer how long it will take you to finish their commission (give yourself a week at minimum because sometimes life happens and you need wiggle room). - keep your customer up to date and ask questions! dont send high quality process picture but make sure they like how its going! -Small streamers and creators are some of the best customers I've had because they often will come for more later if they like what you made! super fun to work with especially because you get to see them show your work to their audience

[haysprite]

do you have any jeff hcs?

YES ! I love Jeff so much, he's my FAVORITE original survivor (Jill and Bill being my main favs), so I have PLENTY! He means a lot to me as a character as well, so I've put a lot of thought into him and his story alongside The Legion. Once again, a lot of these are my personal interpretation of Jeff's (and Legion's) stories, so just keep that in mind! I'm just grateful I have a good chunk of lore to work with here unlike Legion 🙏

• He didn’t have that many friends during high school, he mostly kept to himself and did his best in his classes. When he lived in Ormond, though, he did interact with Joey, Julie, and Susie a little bit, mainly Joey since they were in a lot of the same classes. He enjoyed talking to Joey every so often, who also tended to stop by the store he worked at to rent movies to watch with The Legion. I also feel like he barely knew Frank, who he immediately did not like all that much

• When not at work or school, he’d typically lock himself in his room and mess around on his guitar, which he picked up rather quickly, both learning songs he enjoyed as well as making his own

• Most of his art at first was just rough sketches and doodles of people (from either school or customers at the store he worked at) and objects he’d find laying around at first, though he started to experiment a lot with cartoonifying them and drawing random shit from his mind as well

• He had a LOT of fun working on the Legion’s mural, spending as long as he needed to make it as perfect as he could. He was super surprised that anybody would wanna commission him, but super grateful since it felt like a huge stepping stone for him

• He has a fascination with Norse mythology, and used to bury his nose in books when he was much younger. A lot of this shows up in his artwork, especially later in life when he started revisiting this interest of his

• Though he was grateful to not have to listen to his parents' constant fighting after moving away with his mom, he absolutely hated how lonely he felt, having nobody at school to confide in. Even when he’d focus on his art and music, he’d struggle to find as much joy in it as he used to, though he continued to work on them since he didn’t wanna give up on the main sources of happiness in his life

• When on the road with his bandmates, he felt nothing but free, having finally escaped the silent hell that was high school and embracing the exciting music filled life he knew he had ahead of him

• Whenever they were stopped to perform one of their shows, Jeff would find something or something to draw or paint to remember the area by, like a memento, so he’d always have that memory

• As rough as the fight he got into was, he didn’t necessarily regret it due to having helped somebody out instead of just standing by and watching them get hurt. The pain is still hard as hell on him some days, and he doesn’t particularly enjoy the scar he was left with, but he refuses to look back at his life with regret.

• Though he missed his band mates and being on the road, he absolutely loved going to art school. He made new friends and found his true passion in his artwork, finding the happiness he had been looking forward to for so long.

• He listens to a lot of heavy metal when he works on his art, finding that it gives him a lot of motivation and drive to keep creating, even when he’s a bit frustrated with his current project

• He LOVES his dog so damn much! He’s such a dog person, and always dreamed of having one, he just never had the opportunity to do so until he finally settled down. That dog was his best friend, and kept him company whenever he was working at home

• Losing his dad was pretty rough on him. He hadn’t seen him since he moved away from Ormond, and did have some regrets about not visiting him a lot. Finding that guitar meant a lot to him, and he found himself confiding in music a lot more than he had in a while

• He had heard something about the body found at the old lodge and the four teens going missing after he had moved, but he knew very little about it other than knowing Joey and the others were gone. He was a bit upset and confused by this, especially since he had known them, though he ended up forgetting about it after a while, only being reminded after he returned to Ormond

• He defo owns a motorcycle, which he loves riding around whenever he’s feeling overly stressed, the feeling of the cold wind as he rides around calming him down

• He designed a good majority of his tattoos, which he spent forever designing since he wanted them to be perfect before getting them permanently drawn onto him

• Absolutely HATES listening to people fight, since it reminds him a lot of his parents. He tends to freeze up before going into fight or flight mode when he hears or sees a fight break down

• Most of his wardrobe is made up of band shirts and jackets, a lot of which he collected throughout his time out on the road. They all mean something to him, cherishing each and every one, and he also loves how comfortable they are. Some of the shirts from his band were ones he even designed himself 

• Hates the idea of cutting his hair and shaving his beard, since he both loves the way they feel, and also feels like they’re what makes him *him*

• Autism :) His special interests are heavy metal, art, and Norse mythology (listen,,, he’s my fav original survivor, let me have this lmfao)

• He enjoys inspirational quotes a lot, and has a bunch taped around his room/house, just so that they’d be there whenever he needed to look at em

• He’s just a very chill guy to be around, and will always be there for anybody that needs him. He always has great words of wisdom to share, and gives great hugs as well

• He’s not much of a show off, but he absolutely loves talking about his art and the thought and meaning he’s put behind every piece of his

[assortedfruitsnacks212]

This is a post about art. But because art is my whole world, it's about so much more too.

Attached is a photo of a small stack of printer paper. It doesn't look like much at first, just a few scribbles with a mechanical pencil on cheap paper. At least one page has a coffee stain on it. Others have been erased so much that their texture's starting to fray - and that's saying something for printer paper.

For me, this stack of paper is the way home. I've been lost for a while, longer than I care to admit. I could always see the lights in the windows, no matter where I was, but I had no idea how to get there. So every time I looked, I'd smile sadly to myself and think, "I'll find my way someday." Then I'd duck my head and keep moving.

These messy sketches are me finally reclaiming my place in the world. It's scary as hell, but with each one I claw another hole in the wall that's kept me away.

Looking back, I'm not sure I can explain where the wall came from. All I know is it's been there in some form for many, many years. As a little girl, I was a breathless whirlwind of creativity. I'd take a small pile of printer paper just like this one, staple it together on the sides, then fill it with drawings and stories like a comic book. I had little concept of what I was "allowed" to make or what a "good" drawing is. My only goal was to keep going till I got bored.

Somewhere along the way, I absorbed ideas that weren't good for me. I forgot what art meant to me in the first place, how it was my vehicle for telling breathless, whirlwind stories. When I started working professionally in 2014, something even worse happened: I began to compare myself to other artists. That and a mounting wave of anxiety all but destroyed my ability to create. By the time the pandemic came around, I couldn't draw without my hand shaking. That little girl who used to go through stacks of printer paper, who still lived inside me longing to create, was so scared of failure that she couldn't hold her pencil steady.

So I walked away.

Since then, I've done everything *but* make art. Don't get me wrong, it hasn't been a waste of time - far from it. But inside me I still carried that little girl, and she was... sad. Sad that we didn't get to draw anymore. Sad that she had to wait for who knows how long. Maybe forever.

Over the past four months, life has conspired to put me in a room with that sad little girl. I've had no choice but to sit with her, observing her grief and confusion. Over time, I've gotten angry.

How did I let this happen? She used to be so beautifully happy, the kind of kid I would kill for. And I let the world tear her down.

Now I'm going back to my roots. I'm grabbing stacks of printer paper, without the staples this time, and drawing whatever inspires me. Some drawings aren't that great. When my little girl panics over it, I tell her, "It's ok. No one has to see this, and you're drawing on cheap paper anyway. Just turn the page over and try again."

And it's WORKING. My hand isn't shaking anymore. I'm even starting to look forward to drawing. My little girl is happy again, lying on her stomach on the carpet in the living room, illustrating her own private world in a homemade comic book.

The timing couldn't be better. As if the stakes needed to be *any* higher, I'm in a position now where I need to rely on my art again for an income, at least for a few weeks. It's definitely not what I would've chosen, but I've risen to the challenge, accepting commissions and slowly but surely fulfilling them.

I can't believe I'm here.

[dynamoe]

I wrote a Hipster Animals pilot script in 2011, but no one cared.

In 2013 with two co-writers/business partners (w/ way more clout), I rewrote it into an animated sitcom pitch called Busyburg. We had real meetings in depressing boardrooms of IFC, FX and Cartoon Network.

Adult Swim liked the idea enough to pay us to write a pilot script, which took three months. Then the head of the network changed and the new guy said "fuck this!" We got money to go away (a "kill fee").

After that, I came up with a different Hipster Animals show idea called Wild Wild Life (an animated sketch show) and started to pitch that, but then a publisher wanted a book instead of a show.

The business partners came back and said "Now that it's a book we can pitch again!" but I said nah, this idea feels tired. Hipsters don't really exist anymore. I wanna stop.

That's showbiz!

THE LONG VERSION of the STORY

(I checked with my writing collaborators on this project who said it was not tacky or pathetic to share failed pilots on social media, so I'm going for it)

It's been 10 years now so I can tell how Cartoon Network optioned Hipster Animals to make into an adult-audience animated show, the closest I've gotten to Hollywood success.

In 2013, Hipster Animals was just a slightly viral blog with a couple of year's worth of animal designs on it and good press. It wasn't making money off it; no ads or anything. I hadn't done anything with the designs, just a couple times a week I'd upload a new character.

Within the first year of posting I was already trying to get a narrative in it. I found scripts going back to 2011 and I think I sent a vague pitch for a show around to people I knew in New York but there was not much interest.I had no TV writing credits, just years of doing comedy in NY.  (My credits doing the Mad Men illustration & book were irrelevant to pitching.)

I asked my old bosses from Modern Humorist (who were in Hollywood and had worked on several animated shows already) what I should do with it. They had tons of credits and clout. They thought Hipster Animals was a sell-able idea and came in with me as writing partners. Through their contacts, they got a production company attached to help sell it and now the head of that production company was also pitching it. (If you go to a network with the idea AND a way to make the show already together it was that much more appealing for them.)

Our angle on the pitch highlighted the parallels to Richard Scarry's children's books (which had been made into children's cartoons)— a large cast of animal-people living in a community. Crack open What Do People Do All Day and you'll see the hipster ideal: a walkable city with no chain stores where animal-people work as independent craftsmen in local self-owned businesses  The title became BUSYBURG, after Scarry's Busytown + Williamsburg, Brooklyn, the ground-zero of American hipsterism (even though by then the hipsters had been priced out of Williamsburg and moved to Greenpoint.)

Calls were made. PDF packets with sample art were emailed. Eventually, real in-person meetings were booked. I was living in NY so I flew out for the week to go to FX and Cartoon Network and IFC and maybe other places I can't remember. We had at least three in-person pitches, but all the empty boardrooms we sat in looked the same so it was kind of a blur. (Streaming platforms only kind of existed and none were commissioning original shows at that point). I had pitched shows before in New York a little bit but this was the first time I ran the gamut of doing the same spiel at multiple locations, movie montage style.

Cartoon Network got back to us and wanted us to write a pilot script (and paid us money), which we did over the next 2-3 months. I have to say, writing a script with three people vs. writing it solo is a drag. Even when all parties were reasonable; it's just too many points of view and we're not in the same room so we can't even tell if the jokes were funny. Very hard way to work. Then the script had to be passed by our producer and then to Cartoon Network. We did multiple drafts for them.

Then there was a shakeup at Cartoon Network/Adult Swim where the CEO of one became the CEO of the other. I don't even understand what happened, but a new boss came in, said "what's this shit? get it outta here" and we were awarded a kill fee. That was the death of Hipster Animals: the Animated Series at Cartoon Network/Adult Swim.

On my own, I re-formatted the idea from an animated sitcom to an animated sketch show, now titled WILD WILD LIFE (after the Talking Heads song about blow). Then I learned from a producer you're never supposed to say "animated sketch show" in a pitch, but rather invoke the Simpson's episode 22 Short Films About Springfield.

I also learned that artistically competent character design is a huge NO in writer-driven adult-audience animation. Only children's animation can look good. Adult shows must look like Family Guy or they are perceived as too childish... that's why they all look the same.

After that I was contacted by Three Rivers Press about turning the blog into a book (Hipster Animals: A Field Guide) which was a whole other kettle of shit I won't get into.

Modern Humorist came back and said "Since there's a book now we'd be in a stronger position to pitch it again," but I said with all honesty, this idea feels really stale now.  Bojack Horseman had already premiered which felt too close to our "hook" of animal-people doing socially destructive adult things.

And that year they sold a sitcom pilot to CBS now on its third season so they're set for life.

[vampirevalentineblog]

November 10 2023

hii I'm back~

I finished up Sin City Anime this last weekend in Las Vegas. They moved venues from a no-casino resort on the east side of the strip to a casino/hotel on the west side. It went uhh about as I expected lol. Vending wise its pretty slow but I got some work done by bringing my laptop and even fit in an art trade! I do it because its cheap enough to still make profit and set my expectations low lol. Its still a small con in terms of things to do but they get some decent guests in from Japan. They'd rented out all of their conference space but unfortunately with the casino's layout it was extremely spread out getting to panel rooms. After staying there a few days the smoke in the casino was really getting to me in the bottom of my lungs ;_; The con areas themselves were fine in terms of smoke but there was no way to avoid the casino area to get to the con rooms. eughh just something to keep in mind -_-! i'll be back next year and they're moving to another space so hopefully they can improve.

the work i finished while in vegas: new sticker designs! they are both based on the jersey devil. the first being more of the traditional depiction; the second being more based on the lore. i'll have 50 to start with and see how they both do. i know what i prefer but we shall see how they are received... +_+

finally my art trade! no pics of my half cuz i forgor...but i got my girl vanilla <3 i drew Tima from Metropolis (2001) the anime one im actually so happy to have met an oldtaku there in the modern con scene lmfao she was another artist just doing commissions on shikishi boards &let me have some spares for our trade. i really want to get some now!

click for twitter link~~

I've always been really hesitant to ink my work as traditional inking is so unforgiving. I feel like I'm more of a painter but seeing her shikishis inked and colored i felt inspired! so i grabbed my old supplies and set some time aside foooor:

my Vanillas! look at how inconsistent i am <3 these are my favs color corrected and composited digitally. my first page i was using a bigger pen and i was not feeling them at all |||orz.

after these i feel better about potentially inking my commissions; i now know what works for me! i do a rough sketch with colored pencil, then quickly ink with a very fine pen (sakura micron 01). it keeps energy in the lines when you're not just tracing something, at least for me. the fineness of the pen makes the overall look more cohesive when i inevitably do corrections. i even busted out my ten year old copic ciaos and tried coloring some of these, but its a little pointless when she's just got a black and white color scheme LOL

so now i'm on the hunt for shikishis while i prep for kumroricon +_+ i want the mini daiso ones but i've never seen them in any of the ones around me ;_: how fun and weeby and 2007 would copic commissions at teh anime con be though...!

[gludgenbell]

Tell us about your your day! Did anything interesting happen?(answer by the end of the day)

04 12 2023;

I missed the bus for school so my sister dropped me and my brother off

My classes are biology, graphic design tech 2, participation in democracy and algebra 2-

So I started the day with biology and learned about the systems in the body; in depth

But it was a short day today so class was not an 95 minutes and I spent 6 minutes getting to my second period because it's at the back of the school

And all biology classes are at the front

I made my shirt yesterday for the shop my class is doing this Friday, and today was a crunch day

We finished more pre-orders, did keychains, more shirts, and stickers especially

I did some promotional video editing on the side

By lunch I was very hungry, was the first one in the cafeteria as usual and went to the wrong meetup spot (where my friends hang out)

Got a bit insecure that I'm always the last person to find out specific things even though I try to ask everyday, but it's whatever and we talked about a guy who didn't like women taking birth control

Because she'll piss it out and it'll end up in the tap water and then everyone will be drinking birth control

And we came to the conclusion that he just wants to be a dad so badly ✊️

Anyways

3rd period was fun, we're writing our own constitution and my friends and I are my teacher's prized group because we always make the projects fun

And now we're collaborating on a for fun storyline about a night school for Knights (because we had to design a school and we came up with: Knight of Bell; the Night School for Knights [18:00-00:00])

Anyways there's this chill guy Kjell who's always in my group and I'm just mentioning him because he's nice

Was late to my 4th, as always, today because I had to piss

Class went surprisingly well, I drew as per usual and worked on requests for my table mates because I mention commissions and they tell me no so a sketched easy request it is

Took the bus home and talked with another friend (she lives in my community) about the night school for Knights and the rival character

My sister picked me up from the bus stop, the dogs in tow, and we went around getting gummies and catching pokemon

I did some more writing for my story spirits of eden and then discussed with my mom possible shirt designs for our upcoming fundraiser (I'm going to Utah for our next next game maybe and since I'm already doing shirt work my parents think it'd be nice to use my art)

(In general also, if I want a shirt design my dad said he'd help me get what I need together)

Then I got nervous because all my art is sketchbook art and no real digital ones at the moment and I'd like to show actual art like everyone wants and I don't have much at the moment...

I asked my younger sister to help me with Mt laundry, then started a sketch of rukkadehvata (hope I spelt it right) and scheduled it for sometime saturday I think?

Around 7ish I started fixing my room; just putting my clothes away

All my siblings and both my parents were home so we gathered and decided to play fnaf 1 (we don't do this extremely often; it's always a treat when we get these nights together) and it was my turn at night 3

I didn't realize Freddy would move and my strategy did not account for him until I kept hearing his music and peeked at the stage

Only to find it

Completely empty

But I lived!

Freaking foxy jumped from phase 1 to 2 in under a second where I flipped the camera twice because I didn't get a good look the first time 😒😒😒

In between that I was playing sky with my wives, and the night will end with me in my room, drawing Rukka again

I did not call with one of my wives as I usually do; but all is well! Another time another time

I'll sleep in an hour