#they're not perfect because i drew over them myself

[ryuusei-boi]

Inazuma Eleven GO Ending 2 - "Kanari Junjou"

Taken from TODOS LOS ENDINGS del ANIME de INAZUMA ELEVEN 4K by Angelico

[ccaramel-llow]

Can I request tadc reader where they're very sweet and nonchalant with people even when they're mean to them?

TADC! Cast x reader

Warnings ; Cussing, Bullying, Jax, Not proof read, Obsessive behavior, Death threats, Holding hands before marriage? smh.

Genre ; Fluff + Romance

Pairings ; Queenie/Reader, Kinger/Reader, Kaufmo/reader, Pomni/Reader, Ragatha/Reader, Zooble/Reader, Caine/Reader, Jax/Reader

Queenie

, The competitive x The sweetheart.

, She's overprotective of you and cusses out anyone who's rude to you.

, Beautiful scary guard dog x The kind sweetheart, Literally punches anyone if they made you cry

, She never does it in front of others although, She makes sure your distracted because she doesn't wanna lose you.

, Gets flustered as you boost up her ego if you complimented her when she finished one of caine's bullshitty challenges

, Always gives you a kiss on the forehead and tells you how proud she is of you and how much she loves you after finishing a challenge.

, She likes to hear you rant about stuff you like and nods her head whenever you make a statement

, She adores hugs, Hug her pretty pretty please :3

, Tries to teach you how to defend yourself but fails, And when she does that literally just makes her pull out a resting bitch face.

, She know's when something's up with you. So if your showing any signs of negative behavior, She tries to comfort you by telling you how strong you are.

" You're trying Lovely, But I'm afraid you're also failing. But that's okay, You're perfect to me in all ways possible. Now may i please have a hug from you my dearest? "

Kinger

, He literally glares at anyone who makes fun of you, He feel's bad for your well being and tries to defend you but fails.

, Drags you to his impenetrable fortress just for him to distract you from negative thoughts when your sad, He distracts you by playing with your hair as he asks you what kind of stuff you like while cuddling

, Hold's your hand when Jax bullies you and when Jax is gone he attempts to try and comfort you.

, He doesn't understand why you're so nice. He always thinks you would get mad and start lashing out but you never do. You just reply with a soft, Kind compliment.

, Stares at you with lovey dovey eyes every time you're near him. He compliments you when you're next to him. He fiddles with his hands while looking at you too.

, Shy loser x Over sweet loser

, Death glare's at anyone who attempts to make fun of you until they go off, He's always pissed when someones mean to you and starts ranting on how you dont deserve such bull shitty treatment.

" (Name), You gotta learn how to fend for yourself!- Yeah you're right actually i suck at fending for myself too. BUT STILL!- You need to actually fight for yourself!... I give up never mind lets just go." drags you to his impenetrable fortress

Kaufmo

, Literally says an offensive joke about anyone who bullies you and then it starts a cat fight.

, He asks if your alright all the time after being yelled at, Bullied, Etc.

, Smooches your hand while cuddling in his room to comfort you if you say no.

, He paints you!! He gets flustered when you ask why he drew you. He uses "B-because you're super kind!" As an excuse with a wobbly smile because he knows he sucks shit at lying.

, When he found an exit, He got so excited because he could show you and you'd be so proud of him!! And you were. And you didn't even take it as a joke.

, He loves how you genuinely love his humor, Even if it's dark.

, Definitely doesn't dream about you both getting married.

, Whenever you laugh he starts to get sweaty and nervous, Because your laugh sounds so genuine that it truly makes him happy, It makes him even more in-love with you.

" Wait.... You... Love my humor? R-really? Uhm.... Of course i'll say more jokes!! F-for you!!"

Pomni

, She's so confused. But she finds you so beautiful.

, Why are you so kind? Are you even real? Are you perhaps an angel sent from heaven to guide her?

, She always freaks out around you and blushes a shit ton.

, Glares at anyone who disrespects you and harsh-fully insults them to the point where the bully bawls their eyes out.

, Asks if you're okay after being insulted and holds your hands as she tells you how great and sweet you are if you say you aren't to reassure you that you're an amazing person.

, She likes to bring you with her while she tries to find a way out the circus, You being her all-time favorite person.

, She drop kicks jax and runs away with you if jax tries to bully you.

, She nods at every statement you say, Not really caring about how stupid your idea is but following it anyways because she's so happy that she gets to be near you.

" (Name), (name)!! Would you like to uh.. Uh!-... COMPLete-! this challenge with me?"

Ragatha

, She's just like you! You're just like her!! You two are basically soulmates sent from heaven.

, Though, She gets mad often and you genuinely are a nonchalant person who's usually calm all the time.

, She defends you from jax and glares at anyone who dares to harshly pick on you.

, Drags you away from the toxic person and asks you whats on you're mind today to distract you from negative thoughts.

, Likes to smooch your cheek after you finish a challenge, Ranting about how proud she is of you.

, Ragatha tends to be passive aggressive when people are being rude to you, For example she says a comment that sounds nice but is extremely offensive to the victims ears.

, Likes to take you to her room so she can braid your hair.

Zooble

, This Ambiguous fuck attacks ANYBODY who messes wit you.

, They comfort you by ranting angrily at you by saying how pretty, Handsome, Sweet and cool you are.

, Will try to teach you how to fend for yourself. But then fails.

, They like to receive attention from you, For example compliments, Praise, Or hugs.

, Cheer's you on when you do something not giving a dog's ass about what others think of it.

, Shit talks the person who talked smack about you.

, Get's in trouble daily for you.

, They like to drag you to their room so they can rant about stuff as they slowly get flustered on how you look and listen to them so intently.

, They also get nervous around you, Pretending that you dont exist and usually pretends to cough to cover up a compliment, When you ask what they said they just said they coughed.

, Likes to rant about you while your listening.

" (Name), You let that little- you know what...? Come on sweetie were gonna do some defensive training. "

Jax

, He literally teases you alot.

, Bullies you but he knows when he goes too far so he stops.

, Bullies the person who talked bullshit about you as if he wanted them dead, because he does.

, Will say death threats to the person who bullied you. Not including himself.

. Can And will throw a fight just because someone criticized you.

, Calls you "Sugar" because of how sweet you are. And also calls you his saint for personal reasons.

, he likes to ask you for a lot of stuff, But plot twist, He asks for kisses, Praise, Etc.

"Hey toots, Mind kissing me right here?~"

Caine

, Bitch was confused on why you were so calmed when you first arrived, But soon later developed feelings for you after the first 2 year's you stayed.

, He honestly was surprised you lasted this long but then remembers he shouldn't because Hoo Hah exists.

, Is VERY chatty when your around him. He likes to rant about stuff while you're just there listening to him speak gibberish.

, Glares at anybody who shit talks you and sends them to the cellar with a sheer look of dissapointment.

, SPIN HUGS WHEN YOU FINISH A CHALLENGE AND YOU WERENT FEELING GOOD ABOUT YOURSELF. HE PRAISES YOU SO MUCH. RAHH.

, When your sad he takes you to your room and your both just cuddling while your sleeping and under big fat soft blankets and he plays with your hair.

" How dare you criticize my dearest you li-"

Likes + Reblogs are appreciated.

i spent 2 hours on this bitch smh

[inks-lil-quiet-corner]

Self-Made Soulmates

(based on / inspired by Achilles Come Down by @biscaanii! i am. very normal about this fic and The Odyssey in general. so, so normal i promise.)

(rambles under cut!! also cw gore / tw gore (i drew a thing based on a certain chapter in acd) and warning for spoilers on all of the current fics in the odyssey (except for the fic with the scrapped ideas))

. . . . .

so i lied i'm actually incredibly Not Normal about this fic series. it has made its home in my brain and will now never leave.

i originally decided to read it cuz i had just finished the anime and wanted some fanfics to sink my teeth into, and the moment i saw this fic and the Time Travel tag, my fate was sealed.

i instantly fell in love with the story it was creating and may have gotten a little too attached to the story's interpretation of the characters. my favorite jjk character before reading this fic series was yuuji, but the moment i read the first fic gojo immediately skyrocketed to the top of my list, along with the other two members of the trio.

and speaking of gojo...

i thought of this meme when i read the chapters where the brain bashing incident happens and immediately had to draw it lmao. please disregard the horribleness and inconsistencies of it i can't animate or do anatomy stuff for shit lol. this is also my first time drawing anything remotely bloody. i just wanted to have fun with it so here we are 🎉

here's the image of gojo with the ibuprofen text lol

anyway back to rambling-

i think the series did a really good job with tackling satoru's mental health issues throughout the story. he felt alive, as did all of the other characters with their own issues and emotions and love. this fic also made me really like suguru as a character a ton more since i was more so indifferent about him before reading this fic; same with shoko. i also like yaga a lot more now which i wasn't expecting honestly cuz he's probably one of the characters i cared for the least at first lol. and i wanna give haibara and nanami a hug. and ohhh my god the children were perfect i love them so much i want to squish them. and kenjaku was also really well written! i liked the lore thrown in about their constant search for knowledge in the most extremely non-ethical ways.

i found it funny that bits of canon, the lore, and the timeline were all essentially thrown out the window at times lol. not in a bad way!!! especially cuz it made the story flow a lot better and i'm also a big fan of rewriting canon to suit your whims if it makes for a good or better story.

the first fic in the series is probably my favorite? cuz i feel like the big story plot points are the heaviest in it and it got me hooked the fastest, but the kids in the other two make it a hard contest cuz i really like the familial fluff and these fics are actually the first time i've ever willingly read something like it. and i thought the plot stuff in between was really well organized and i was living for the murders that happened it was great lmao.

and also the 2nd and 3rd fics actually made me tolerate children more lol. i know they're not always sunshine and rainbows when it comes to behavior and taking care of them, but the fics made me remember the nice parts about them so that was really appreciative. i wanna give the fushiguro siblings and the twins a hug so baddd. and i remember screaming when they got their last names changed in the 3rd fic it was so fucking cute!!!! stsg family my beloved.

it took me... *checks calendar* 11 days? to read the entirety of the current fics in the series. i started reading it around dec 11th, finished it on dec 22nd, and it has not left my brain since. i'm probably gonna reread it at some point also when i'm able to reclaim some free time because i'm a little bit extremely obsessed with it.

i think the last fic to have impacted me this badly was like. over year ago i think. i go about my day and then randomly think to myself "i miss acd stsg family :(" completely unprompted. they just. pop into my head. i need more content or i will explode. but i do understand that it's on a bit of a hiatus so i'm just gonna reread what there is lol. and also maybe draw more if i get the motivation or remember to do so cuz i usually forget.

i will now throw in some of the screenshots i took while reading the series cuz i wanna show some of the bits that made me laugh lol

to those that read all the way up to this point- thank you for sitting through all of this lmao. i will now go back into my hermit cave -w-

[sciderman]

it feels quite poetic to read about how you prefer writing the blog over drawing it. you put so much effort into the art, and you've built your entire career around art, but it feels like your passion lies on the side of literature. i'm kind of going through the reverse, where i'm pursuing a higher education in writing but have recently wondered if i should've done animation instead because i love it so damn much.

i dunno. life is weird.

heh! it is a funny old world - i mean, i've always loved writing, and i actually have been writing long before i got into drawing. i used to write short stories as a kid. like a little freak. what kid is into writing. but i was. but the only person who was ever interested to read my stories was my dad. you know, if a kid hands a page of words at you what are you gonna do with it. my dad thought i was awesome, though. i think he was extra proud because he's a writer too. thought his little one was following in his footsteps. i fancied myself a little novelist. but you know. it was hard to get people to want to read my stories.

there was another kid that was good at drawing that got all the attention. and i said. "well. i could do that." and so then i started drawing. i started making comics, really. i took my stories and drew them out, and suddenly people got interested in my stories.

everyone is so alice-coded. you know.

i made comics. i rarely drew without there being a story and dialogue attached to it. i filled sketchbooks upon sketchbooks with comics. it wasn't really art for art's sake - it wasn't because i wanted to get good at drawing - not really, it was a vessel for my jokes and for my stories. so no matter how crude the illustrations were, it was fine as long as i got the joke or story across. i think you might notice that with my comics still - they're not very polished and i don't labour a lot of time over the art, i don't really care to render everything perfect - i like things loose and quick and imperfect. i'm not very precious. as long as it gets the story across.

so it's funny, really - i started drawing because i wanted to spotlight my writing and get people to read it. i just have to spoon feed it to people, is all. sweeten the deal with pretty pictures. then people will read. so i never left writing. never, never. it was kind of always at the heart of everything i did. i guess i pursued animation because it was a marriage of a lot of things i was interested in. writing, storytelling, drawing - and acting. i was a stupid little theatre kid. and to be a good animator, or any kind of visual storyteller, i think - you need to be a good actor. and you need a good sense of humor. if you don't have those things, you'll be a rotten animator, i think.

i think i'm still in the place where writing was my first love, and i enjoy it the most - but, still in the place where - when there aren't pictures attached, you don't get people's attention. and i love attention.

for a time i really thought i should quit animation and pursue a career in screenplay writing - but, i don't... really know how to go about it. and i'd definitely miss art. i really really love things like character design and visual development and visual storytelling far too much to restrict myself to writing exclusively. but - i don't know, in my free time, when i'm not on the clock, well - writing is more laid back, and more relaxing. less taxing. so i enjoy doing it more. in my free time.

(it may also be because writing isn't a huge part of my day job, so it feels more like an escape. that's why i don't really animate at all when i'm not getting paid for it. i don't do animation for fun. i have fun doing it, sure, but i won't do it unless i'm cutting a check from it. because i don't have the energy for it otherwise. if i'm not making money, i want to do something relaxing, that doesn't feel like work. and that's writing.)

[atalossofwords]

YOU TASTE THE SILVER - IvanTill WIP (Part 5&6)

And we have two more POVs on this one! I was posting just one at a time to give myself a buffer to posting on AO3, but I wrote more than I expected haha.

That's right! The first chapter is now up on ao3 on this link. Please come by and leave some kudos!!

part one - part two - part three - part four

Things move on smoothly for Till. He's used to his new apartment, his set-up is pinterest-worthy if Hyuna has anything to say about it, and he's even opened his PO box again, warning his fans to only send letters and small packages, since he really enjoyed reading what everyone had to say.

(He's actually working on a collage of sorts, decking out one wall of his office with the letters. He always feels warm, looking at them. Kirby sent a really cute letter full of mongmong stickers, Bonbon's kid drew a really cute crayon rendition of his dad peering at his phone while vacuuming, and Jaewoon sent about 5 different drawings he treasures greatly.)

Leaving his PO box open, however, also means Navi has been sending a never-ending stream of little gifts. Almost none of them come with letters, or if they do, they're brief and printed from a computer. Apparently, since Till only comments on the contents of the gifts if he happens to wear them on-stream and said viewer comments on it, Navi decided that's the perfect excuse to spoil Till without making him lose his composure on-stream.

So far, Till has gotten; a new sweater, a varied collection of rings, a bundle of cellphone charms after he commented the string he looped through the case to hold his phone in case it falls frayed away.

Apparently, Navi also managed to walk around the "small package" limitation by sending gift cards for several stores. Till had no idea furniture stores even did gift cards.

He felt… sort of warm. If it was just an old man looking to spend his money or lure Till in, they'd probably insist on more diamonds or expensive stuff, right? Or insist Till comment on the gifts live, if it was some sort of sasaeng looking for attention.

Navi never did any of those things. After the diamonds, the gifts were never something Till would consider super expansive, unless you counted the frequency of them. The rings were silver, but none had jewels, the phone charms looked like something Till himself could get online, except the tags on them showed they were bought in Taiwan. The gift cards were weirder, but nothing more expensive than what Navi would donate over the course of one or two streams.

That is, until this latest gift.

Till stares at it, feeling the bottom of his stomach give out. He's in his kitchen, back from a supermarket run after he picked his latest batch of letters. He was going to read them while he ate lunch, but he feels 0 interest in his food right now.

He's holding two tickets for Mizi's concert, in the VIP section. One of those that comes attached to a meet-and-greet.

Clipped to them in an inconspicuous pink paperclip is a note.

I don't know if you got tickets for yourself, but I won these and will be out of the country at the time. I hope you can enjoy them with someone else. If the staff needs any information about the VIP status, here's my number. (xx) xxx-xxx. - Navi.

It is a handwritten note, written with a black pen in a hurry, so much so Till has to squint to make some of it out. The handwriting looks like someone who's not used to writing, with lots of places where the pen left marks as it hovered over the page without gliding, except the signature, which looks practed and neat.

Till has no idea what to do about this.

He calls Hyuna.

"Hi, I'm live." She answers, and he swears. He forgot to account for her streaming hours. He must sound agitated enough it worries her, because there's the sound of a few buttons being pressed, probably muting herself. "Till?"

He takes a deep breath.

"Sorry, I can call later." He says, putting the tickets down carefully and taking his lunch to the sink. He won't finish it.

"It's fine, what happened?"

"Navi sent in another gift." He can practically feel her rolling her eyes equal parts exasperated and relieved.

"Till, if you called me to fawn over your potential sugar daddy–"

"It's two tickets to Mizi's concert, VIP, with a meet-and-greet. And a number to contact if there's problems getting in." He says quickly, interrupting her. He runs one hand through his hair, starting to get stressed. Is this a trick? Is Navi going to be waiting on the seat besides these, corner Till in the show? No, they wouldn't send two tickets if this was the case.

"Holy shit." Hyuna says, entirely surprised. He makes a little agreeable noise. "Holy shit, Till, these aren't just expensive, they're like, hard to get. Did you message them yet?"

Till shakes his head, then realizes she can't see it. "No, I didn't call or message. Should I?" On the other side of the line Hyuna makes a tsk sound.

"No, don't call or message it. Let me finish the stream normally, and then we can look into it, okay? You said two tickets right? If you decide to go, take me or Isaac, and it should be alright." Till hums his agreement, and lets Hyuna go to finish her stream. It's a good plan, Hyuna can and has punched guys who harassed her, and Isaac is built like a brick house, no way a weirdo is getting close to him with Isaac there.

Dewey is probably a bad idea, he's more likely to punch first and ask questions never.

Till sighs, puts the tickets back on the envelope and goes take a bath, hoping it'll help him relax and maybe bring back his appetite.

Ivan is taking a water break from rehearsals when his phone chimes with a notification from an unknown number.

He immediately feels dread, did his number get leaked? He sits up, putting his water bottle down and opening the message.

Unknown [ 3:24PM ] Is this Navi?

Ivan blinks at the message, not understanding it for a long second. And then he is hit with the memories of staying up at night some days ago, reviewing the footage from the day's shoot and going over the script time and time again, because his performance was horrible and the whole scene had to be scrapped and he was so frustrated, and…

And Sua sent a message asking if he'd meet her for Mandated Lunch Time before Mizi's concert next month, and he remembered he couldn't make it since he'd be shooting that day, and he thought.

Till likes Mizi. Ivan has Mizi tickets.

He doesn't even remember what he wrote on the damn letter, oh god, did he sign with his name? Plaster his address on it??

This is fine. Ivan is fine. He asks one of the fight coordinators for five minutes and heads into the bathroom.

You [ 3:25PM ] Yes, who is it?

Better to see what they know before saying anything incriminating.

Unknow [ 3:25PM ] This is Till. Did you really send me Mizi tickets? How did you even get them?

Okay. Deep breaths, Ivan. You can do it. Say this is Navi, you really sent the tickets and that it's no big deal, and you got them… How did you get them? You can't say your real name, and saying you bought them for Till would sound weird, these really are expansive.

Ivan takes a deep breath, and sits on the toilet's lid, crossing his legs to rest his elbows on his knees.

You [ 3:26PM ] Hyung, you always said you liked them, and I happened across these as a job perk. I'll be out of the country, so it was no problem to give them to you.

Unknow [ 3:26PM ] A job perk? Even if that's true, they can't have been cheap. I've already told you, there's no need to keep wasting money on me.

You [ 3:27PM ] It's not wasting money, hyung. I really enjoy your lives, and it makes me happy knowing you're enjoying yourself. I work in the industry, so I know some people who are much less talented than you with a lot more opportunities. I just wanted to give you something to enjoy.

Ivan's fingers are flying over the keyboard before he's even conscious of it, indignation flaring up in his chest. Till works so much, he produces and sings and plays the guitar and drums, he writes his own lyrics, he's so incredibly talented and it makes Ivan furious to know he doesn't see it.

Ivan's been in the spotlight since he was a child acting on toy commercials, met even more people when he and Sua acted together as the twins of a famous singer on a period drama, and there's so many of these so-called "idols" that have a pretty voice and body and nothing else to give. So many actors bank on their looks and have 0 dedication to the craft. It makes Ivan livid.

You [ 3:27PM ] Hyung is so hard-working, and I really wish you'd see it. Your music deserves to be sold on albums and people should praise you so much more for how good your lyrics are. The people I work with don't put half the effort Hyung does, and they get to go to shows and afterparties all the time. I just want to let Hyung see his Idol and have a good time, since I won't use the tickets anyway. Is that bad?

Ivan is… breathing hard. He's somehow lost his cool. He watches as the three dots appear and disappear, and decides to get up. He exits the stall, splashes some water on his face, combs his hair back. Does a breathing exercise his mother taught him and Sua when his father and Sua's mom were fighting, and looks back at his phone.

Unknow [ 3:28PM ] Thank you. I'll enjoy the show.

Unknow [ 3:29PM ] Can I still message this number after it?

Ivan lets out an entirely undignified squeal, and almost does a little victory dance, all previous frustration wipes clean. Till wants to keep talking! Till isn't rejecting him!! Ivan has Till's phone number!!

You [ 3:29PM ] Yes! Hyung can message me whenever <3 I'll do my best to answer!

Unknow [ 3:30PM ] Great. I'll let you know how the show goes, then.

Ivan may be getting ready for a heart attack at the tender age of 22, but he's never regretted anything, in his life, ever.

part seven

[littlemissneverseen]

Okay, so some time ago I wrote a solinh fanfic in french, and I thought I'd translate (and completely rewrite it) for the free day of @solinhweek.

(Please keep in mind I am not a native English speaker. I apologize in advance for any sentence worded weirdly or anything that doesn't seem right in English. It is also a bit purple-prosy and kinda cringe, so keep away if you don't like that.)

Anyways, here you go!

Falling rain - A solinh fanfiction

Pairing: Solinh (Sophie Foster x Linh Song) Genre: Angst Word count (Prologue & Chapter 1): Content warnings: Mentions of war, death, ... (let me know if I should add anything) Other: Established relationship, happens after canon events (they're both in their twenties)

Prologue "Good night," I whisper, without really believing it. But she deserves to hear those words, to see that she's safe. As safe as she can be, at least. Because I know that behind her closed eyelids and soft smile, behind her angelic face, the worst demons are tormenting her. War never left us. Not really. The memories always remain, hiding in the shadows, waiting for a good time to come back and haunt us. They're there when I end up in tears, remembering those I have lost and hating myself for surviving, for not having fought harder so they could be by my side. They're there when I wake up in the middle of the night scared not to find another person by my side. Scared that they took her too. They're there when I see a shadow in the calm of the night or reflections in the sunlight, a reminder of the electric glow of force fields. And I wonder if it will all start again. War beat me up, tortured me. And its grip never relaxed. They already took so much and can't wait to rip everything away from me again. I try to forget. But I see them everywhere. In a strand of blonde hair. The glow of a flame. A stretching shadow. In her eyes, filled with regrets and sorrows I know I will never be able to make her forget. In her tired and pale face. War never left us. Not really. The demons just managed to bury themselves deep within us. They make us regret, doubt. Why should I deserve to be happy if others cannot even be anymore? Sometimes, I let myself forget, for just a few moments. But panic always comes creeping back A call to order, a reminder of the haunting. It never ceases to whisper into my ear, it's breath on my neck. Everything is your fault. You could have saved them. You failed. And nothing you cherish will escape my claws. And often, I want to believe it.

Chapter 1 In the room's darkness, a figure carefully got up from the bed where she had been lying and turned on a light, casting a soft light onto the room and revealing photos ornating its walls. She approached a window and opened it with a slow and careful gesture. For a few instants, the young woman gazed outside, enjoying the silence of the night before leaning over the window sill to breathe in the soft scent the rain had left behind. The light raindrops were still falling, losing themselves in strands of Linh's hair, leaving her hair gorged with water and sticking to her face. Silently, she moved away from the window, closing it gently. She left the room, pausing only to replace the bed sheets over her sleeping partner. At that moment, the bed seemed like an island lost in the middle of a storm, like a shelter where you could curl up, keep warm, and ignore the raging storm outside. She drew a shaky breath, she needed to get out. "Sleep well," she murmured on her way out. She would have liked to say so much more. She would have liked to whisper all the words she never dared to speak. She would have liked to confide, to finally open up. She could have. She did nothing of it. Linh liked to think of herself as a flower, waiting for the perfect moment to bloom. But each passing day felt like another in an endless winter, spring seeming further and further away, the warmth of the sun's beam slipping further away from her grasp. So she stepped away, regretting everything she hadn't been able to say, every word that had stayed thought, every scream that had stayed whisper. She delicately closed the door y, adding another wall between her and Sophie. Another hurdle to overcome. An ocean between two worlds. She almost wished to make a sound, to wake Sophie from her slumber. Maybe then she'd finally confess her truth. Maybe then she'd share her sorrows and pain. Perhaps then she'd finally blossom. On her tiptoes, Linh descended the stairs, shivering at the contact with the cold tiled floor, which seemed like frozen blades sinking into her skin. She shook her head to get rid of the morbid image. It was only the floor. Only the cold, cold floor. She walked out, naked feet against damp grass. There, she felt the raindrops against her skin. The soft breeze of the wind. She turned, expecting to see some sort of danger, a monster from her worst nightmares. She saw nothing. It was only a breeze. Only the cold of the night. Only herself, in the menacing darkness, too familiar to be a true friend. But she was never really alone.

---

Please let me know if you liked it, I haven't written much in English and would appreciate the feedback.

If I don't change my mind and decide I hate this fic, I should upload the rest soon.

[c0y0t3b0n3z]

DREW VALENTINES DAY ART OF ME AND MY (Soon to be) PARTNERS SONAS RAAAAGHHHH

Words cannot describe how much I love them. They're literally my soulmate and I say that with 100% confidence for the first time in my life. I wish on every 11:11, every eyelash, every dandelion that we'll be together for life and beyond that. I love the person I am when I'm around him, I love every way I've changed because of them and everything they've taught me to love about myself. I could stare at them for hours and never get bored, they're perfect in my eyes and I'd pick him over anyone any day. I can't wait till I can wake up next to her every morning and finally hold them in my arms💗

[ozwuv]

I love your art! So, I was wondering if you have any drawing tips you could give?

Hiii thank you so much for the kind words, I am really glad you like it!!! :’3

As far as tips, this is kind of a broad question that I think it varies widely in terms of how you want your art to look. Personally, my main priorities are fluidity and character interaction, so that’s what I focus on even though it means I don’t really draw elaborate backgrounds and such. I’m sure I could become better at other things if I tried, but I’m not a professional nor am I trying to be, so I just focus on what’s fun to me.

Putting the rest of this under a cut bc it's gonna be long

As for actual advice, I have three big rules which I think have helped me continue to enjoy drawing as long as I have, which is the most important thing to me. I started drawing as soon as I could hold a pencil, and it's been my main outlet for good and bad times throughout my whole life (I am 26 now). Other people liking what I draw is a treat, but as long as I have fun, that’s ultimately what matters to me. That said, please keep in mind I am speaking solely for myself here since everyone draws for different reasons and in different ways.

The first thing is avoiding perfectionism at all costs when drawing, because it sucks the fun out of the process and ruins the visual fluidity in whatever I’m working on. An example of this is that I don’t like to go back and revise lines I’ve already placed, because the more I try to polish them, the stiffer they look. Even in digital art I try to roll with mistakes instead of erasing, or just completely undo the line I placed and try again. 

The other thing is something I actually picked up from dog training which is arguably my biggest passion in life. There’s a common saying amongst dog trainers: No “one more time” — which essentially means that when find yourself thinking “one more time,” you need switch gears immediately and do something else because you have hit your frustration threshold and every attempt from then on will be frustrating & counterproductive for both you and the dog. 

This applies to pretty much every aspect of life for me, but it made a huuuge difference when I started to consider it within the context of drawing. If I just stop whatever I’m frustrated with and go back to it later, 99% of the time I can pinpoint exactly what bothered me and how I could have fixed it. I’m typically not the type to work on something over various sittings, so even if I don’t finish the picture I was working on after coming back to it, being able to pinpoint what went wrong about it is a lesson I can apply to whatever I work on next.

The third rule ties into the last one, which is just not pushing myself. If I’m not having fun with a drawing anymore, I’m not going to force it. If it’s not coming out the way I want it to, I’m not gonna push it. Any time I've pushed through frustration to finish something, I wound up disliking how it came out. This isn’t really realistic for someone who is a professional (or aiming to be), but for me who just likes drawing anime characters for fun, it’s perfect. Because of this, I haven’t dealt with constant art blocks like I used to. I definitely still have them, but they're usually brief and not distressing to me. I feel like I’ve kind of stagnated the past several years, but at the end of the day I have a blast when I draw and that’s all that matters to me!

There's a common sentiment that everybody hates/is embarrassed of the things they drew in the past or even right after finishing and/or posting them. But it doesn't have to be like that, and imo it shouldn't. I think that just means there are some things about one's process and mindset that need to be reflected on.

Hopefully that helps somewhat, but YMMV if your priorities are more in the vein of constant improvement and/or being a professional :] I know this was kind of an abstract response, so if anyone has specific questions feel free to ask lol

[pokidot]

MANDELA — eight

wc: 1,724

It's been a day that the presentation came around, and you had no thought in your head about the consequences anymore. You hadn't even seen the circumference of news breaking out, and you checked The Cyptid Dailies a lot.

Even when you know you should be finding some peace before your trip, you didn't find interest in kicking a brick wall with your shoe in hopes that it would be fragile enough to break.

You began collecting the fragments of information you had, and with your close precision, started piecing them together on the huge corkboard you left empty until now.

Photographs and sketches you either found from Google images or drew out of pure memory adorned the board. You'd like to think they were capturing haunting visages and elusive forms, but you knew that artistic vision included more than 10 minutes of drawing scribbles up until it looks kind of like something unordinary.

While drawing your hands away, your lips curved into a smile. The effervescent delight said probably too much stimulus until you blinked and looked over at the small sound of a hissing whisper reverberating into your thoughts, and to the rest of the room.

You watched as mist almost flew dangerously close to your face, thank to the fan blowing in the room.

"Protip: if you're in a sticky situation and you don't have mace?" Venti lifted a can of setting spray high above his head, firm and unwavering. "Use this right here. It's practically mustard gas. I don't know what Shining Idol Barbara was cooking when she made this—she put Chemical X in it!"

Xiao placed the cards in his hands down, previously entertaining a game of 'Go-fish' with Aether. "And you know this because...?"

"You CANNOT inhale this if you want to be sent to the pearly gates." Venti shook it for emphasis. "It is expensive for a reason, it is NOT just setting spray. It is hair spray, bug killer, and floor cleaner. It's a 4-in-one, and she knew what she was doing when she did it too."

"Talk about sugar, spice, and everything nice." Kazuha sighed.

You didn't know if it was the sense of relief knowing that you partially succeeded, but you kind of forgot that you were now being accompanied by...the entirety of Teyvat University's chess club.

You were a little confused at the sudden notions; they all seemed to have their own motives as to why they're there. You weren't complaining at all. “Wait, really? She makes product now?” You blinked, your expression mildly impressed as you took the can from his hands, reading the label. “Huh…thought she was on hiatus.”

“If I was as rich as her, I’d forget I was in the shackles of being a juggling clown for people's entertainment too.” Only silence followed with the rest of Heizou's words, and he looked at the rest of them. "What?"

“You bite your words. Being a juggling clown is hard work.” Aether chimed in with defense, before his shoulders slacked. “Not…saying she is a juggling clown, of course, but even if she was...it would be a very high paying ca—(Y/N) what are you working on?”

“Right. I need to make a list before this actually starts," You rose your voice happily, suddenly bathed in an area of instant intrigue, "Not everything needs to be entirely perfect...but all the information we need is for when we actually tell this thing to fuck off, or I will instantly kill myself."

Venti whistled lowly. "Self destructive too," He smiled. "Just my type...just my type."

"Get help. Now." Xiao murmured in response to him, gritting his teeth. "There's no use making two trips if we're going to be there to investigate. We don't even have a lead on what it is yet."

"Au contraire, mon frère!"

"Don't...call me that." Xiao watched with furrowed eyebrows as you shuffled to your bag to take it out, the sounds of flurrying, crumpling loose pages in your bag as you dug deeper.

"God, they're like a real Benoit Blanc." Venti's practically had heart eyes.

He looked at the rest of the group there, staring keenly at you to add to your discovery and sighed through his nostrils. "This was more fun than going to a chess tournament?"

"I'm sorry, did you want us to say no? I'm tired of being demolished by the Kamisatos. I'm convinced they go to those just to one day see us dissolve into cinder and ashes." Aether asked in this suspended moment, Xiao letting out a small grunt at him.

"That's because you get your tricks off Tiktok." Kazuha chuckled.

"Feast your eyes!" You grasped the newspaper in your hands firmly, lifting it aloft as if hoisting a sacred artifact.

The five of them hovered over it to read, "PROJECT MORI IN DEVELOPMENT COMING 2017! MORI GROVE RD CONNECTING TO FREEWAY ON TEYVAT."

"Mori Grove is less than thirty minutes away from us if we use the path that connects the freeway. But! To bring so much equipment with us would mean that it'll take us longer to setup. And...who knows if the alleged 'clone' will show up? It's either we take longer when they're already gone, or we wait with a bunch of cameras for nothing."

"The only thing that I can think of that actually 'shapeshifts' into what you're talking about is a nematode." Xiao said. "I promise you the world's mysteries don't extend that far."

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. That's why you've gotta open your miiiind." You said, scrunching your hands up near your head to make exploding sounds while making the motions (to which Venti playfully followed along).

"Stop that." Xiao interrupted abruptly.

You put your hands down to continue, "And—!" As you were about to go on, your voice trailed off. All eyes turned towards the newcomer who entered the clubroom.

You turned your head towards Kuni, your smile instantly became radiant. "You're here! Come, sit, sit!" You rushed towards one of the free chairs, motioning to it's wooden fashion.

Though it wasn't reciprocated, he looked at your blossoming joy expressed through the curvature of your lips. His dull eyes remained devoid to mask his unease, looking away to the rest of his friends.

"What are these idiots doing here?" He seemed at a general discontent that this club was even a thing, but he was nothing but punctual to a meeting.

"It's so nice to see you too, Zu." Heizou pulled his lips together. "So nice."

"You thought we were joking about going?" Kazuha was so delighted you could possibly see chrysanthemums and blossoms around him. "I haven't had this much fun ever since we went fishing."

"Don't even remind me," The teetering stability of Kuni's voice turned from a smooth neutral to a tension. "I'm still pissed Xiao knocked the biggest fish I caught out of my hands before I could take a picture with it."

"You were trying to slap me in the face with it's tail. Don't be mad at me that your ego got in the way of your picture."

"I don't care if my ego was crushing your larynx the way I want to do to you right now. Ya' neva' go against the family, kid. Neva'." Kuni pointed in the direction of him, a small Italian accent laced in his tone.

"...Why are you talking like that?" Venti snickered.

Kuni shook his head to himself, mentally regretting his actions before looking at you, turning his body. "Don't get too gung-ho about your trip. I think you should reconsider it."

"Ohh, here we go again." You crossed your arms against your chest. "What excuse are you going to come up with now?"

"Not so much of an excuse this time, (Y/N)." Kuni held his phone up to your face. "The pathway to Mori Grove is closed, and the town is considering blocking off access to leave at all."

Your face dropped, eyes scanning the article as your face turned slightly grim. "What."

"Oh no...do you have a backup plan, (Y/N)?" Kazuha asked you, but you didn't know how to even process a response to anybody at the moment.

"...No...I don't have a backup plan." Your eyes glazed with a mixture of disbelief and bewilderment, but though you were previously vibrant and bustling, there may as well have been fire in your eyes. "Because this isn't going to happen. Oh HELL no!"

Kuni couldn't help but scoff. "You're going to go against the national guard? I don't think you're going to get far-"

"There could be a nuclear bomb up my ASS RIGHT NOW, I'M CATCHING THIS SHAPESHIFTER IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!" You pointed at your best friend to interrupt him, looking at him with unwavering refusal as you grabbed your bag and your laptop. "Meeting over! Get the cars ready at 6AM."

"H-Hey, isn't that a little bit too early for a hunt..?" Aether called out towards you, but before you made a stormy exit, you quickly turned around towards the blond with a squint.

"Six. A. M." And with that, you disappeared from view, and all the six could hear was the faint and tiny footsteps get tinier.

"...Okay, cool. Another sleep paralysis demon to look forward to," Aether thought mildly.

The vacuum left by your absence served as a reminder, the air was so still Heizou broke the silence first, "How does having a nuclear bomb up your ass even correlate to catching..."

"Keep it moving. Don't listen to anything they say." Kuni shook his head, checking the watch on his arm. "It is getting late."

"You heard them! 6AM!" Venti clapped his hands loudly, "They obviously have something they're planning, and we got through a 2 hour dissertation of them hurling out cryptid safety procedures. Bedtime."

Kuni raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry? Who made you co-leader?"

"I did, and if you were as smart as you think you were, you'd be fighting me right now." Venti stuck his tongue out. "No? Thought not."

And naturally, Kuni did want to argue with him, but he kept his mouth shut. He took a sharp breath in, eyes fixated on him until he looked back at the door to see something he swore was peeking from the corner of it. It was now gone.

There was nothing there, and the idea of him being delusional made him slightly annoyed. "Okay. We're leaving, now. Turn the lights off."

prev | masterlist | next

NOTES || filler. don't ask me how long the forum page took me...anyway i'm excited for next chapter ROOOADDD TRIIIIPPPP

TAGLIST: @wisteriarain @akagism2 @murderisokayforme @aeongiies @d4y-dr3am3r @truck-kuns-gf @3lysiaa @ayoitsmarie33 @crucnhice @natsuscrustyscarf @dreamsofminnie @astreaa-express @goj0h @cicibao @xirthia @kylexzz @dollpoetwriting @dreamingkace @strawbxrrytiger

[sparksbynightfall]

C1 - Episode 1 : After Hours

Stars, stars everywhere ... as far as the eye can see.

I was lying on the grass under what looked like an endless night sky, and everywhere I turned, there was nothing but stars. Although my dreams had taken a different turn ... this time, I welcomed the change of pace and just enjoyed it for what it was. The grass beneath me felt soft and comforting, like a warm blanket.

I decided to get up, not knowing what else to do but stare. Maybe I could find something else if I went elsewhere. Surely, I thought to myself, there’s more than the sky here considering what I’ve been through in my previous dreams. 

I started to walk through the grassy field, not sure where it would take me but anything’s better than sitting around. Even though I appreciated how peaceful this dream was, I still wanted to wake up eventually. Only the sounds of my feet grazing against the grass and the occasional heartbeats. It was starting to creep me out a little …

After what seemed like a long walk around, I finally saw something that wasn’t grass. It was a beacon … or what I thought was one as it stood still. There was no wind to stir it, but despite its stillness, I ran towards it, eager to discover what it was.

That’s when I saw her, a Cresselia, an actual Cresselia was there, just standing by the grass with what looked like fireflies dancing around her. I was seeing multi-colored fireflies which was pretty mesmerizing. 

As I drew closer, more details of her form became visible. She wasn't responding as I came face to face with her though. She stood as stiff as a statue, her eyes closed as if she was peacefully sleeping while standing up.

Some of the fireflies seemed to notice me as a few of them appeared around me, dancing around with their tiny wings. I was about to sit down when I felt someone shift. 

The Cresselia opened her eyes, most of the glow that was covering her before disappeared revealing what she really looked like. The details were a bit blurry but I can still see what she was. 

She wore a white dress, not too long but it made her look almost like an angel. There was a pink gem attached to her chest which looked ... broken? At least that's what I thought I saw as it looked like it was broken from the inside yet there was still a pink glow coming out of it. 

Her wings didn't look like the ones typical for a Cresselia as it roughly looked like a Vivillion's wings made of glass. They seemed as if they could break easily at the slightest touch.

"Protect her... for me..." the Cresselia spoke, her voice fragile and fading, the light in her chest formed a large hole, slowly melting into the colors of the night sky. Her voice was fading away like she was being pulled back. "Bring ... her back ..." 

I didn't know why but I had the instinct to reach out, stretching out my paw towards her. I didn't even realize that my legs were making me go to her. I could only call out as she was literally fading into the night. 

"Hey, are you okay-"

Suddenly, everything went silent. The stars above seemed to multiply, the grassy ground beneath me turning into a swirl of more stars, some crashing into each other forming bigger stars. My outstretched paw met only empty air as the grass disappeared, leaving me floating in the sea of stars.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So ... who exactly is the First Star?" 

Class is finally over and it's the start of the weekend for most of us at Sinnoh High. It would be a perfect time to relax after a long week but apparently, Lucia had other plans because of the whole Star Guardian thing. She left a not-so-subtle note on my locker as I was about to head out of the campus.

Favonius, my Shaymin companion, and I were walking down towards the Jubilife TV station when I asked a question to him. It's been something that's been weighing on my mind for a while.

"Ah yes, the First Star! The one who started it all!" I can tell he was pretty excited when I asked that. I guess they're someone who's pretty important. 

"A long time ago, back when the world was dark … there was a spark of light. Fearing that she would never be seen, she glowed as brightly as she could. Eventually, more like her would join in, slowly filling the once dark sky with them …

... as the first star who appeared all those eons ago, she was determined to make sure all of the other stars would shine for all eternity. So she took out some of her own light and scattered it across the universe. That's where the Star Guardians come in … each and every one of them holds a small piece of the First Star's light." 

There was a short pause from Favonius before turning to look at me. "And that's pretty much all I know. It's the same old story that's been passed around."

I have to admit, I was touched by the story. Now I was even more curious after hearing the First Star. Who knew it would be this important? I wonder if there's more Guardians out there … 

We reached the rooftop of the TV station where Lucia and her Azelf companion Mai had been waiting. The rooftop doubled as a popular hangout spot, offering a panoramic view of the city. It was one of the tallest buildings around, and if you ask me, I'm still not used to being in high places. Nevertheless, it's pretty cool that they let people use this rooftop as a place to hang out.

"Hey, you've arrived! Sorry for the short notice there. This was the only time I was available." Lucia was in her usual cheery self with Mai silently waving at us.

"It's cool, but are you really sure this is the best place? It's way high up off the ground..." I did voice my concern, eyeing the rooftop with a bit of unease. I hadn't imagined my first training session as a Star Guardian would take place on such a high perch, but Lucia had insisted we start right after Friday class. So much for a relaxing evening, I guess. 

Lucia shrugged, with her aura of confidence as always. "It'll be fine, trust me! That reminds me that I should teach you Cosmic Flight next time. Flying's much better than walking if you ask me. Just have to do it one step at a time!"

Despite Lucia's reassurances, my stomach fluttered nervously. Flying? That sounded both breathtaking and terrifying at the same time. I hoped Lucia knew what she was doing.

"Wouldn't it be better for us to do this at the park? Usually, there's only a few people at this time," I suggested to her, eyeing the rooftop's edge.

"The folks at the park wouldn't be too happy having a stray star destroying the place now, would they? I don't want anyone finding out too soon." Lucia made a hushing motion when she said that. 

"Right right I forgot to tell you that … best if we lay low for the meantime. We wouldn't want to attract a bad crowd." Favonius added, before jumping over to a nearby bench. "Speaking of laying low … I'll get some shuteye while you do your thing. Cafè work is tiring I tell you." 

Just like that, Favonius was now curled up and took a nap. It's a good thing he got a job at the local cafè that way he'd have something to do while I was away at school. 

We both transformed into our Guardian forms, and I have to admit, I'm still getting used to it. The sensation of starlight enveloping me was strange yet oddly comforting, like being wrapped in a gentle, cosmic embrace. My clothes dissolved into shimmering particles, replaced by an outfit that materialized from whatever light was nearby.

The dress that appeared on me was elegant but not too fancy, with hues of bright pink and mint green weaving together in intricate designs. It fit snugly but comfortably as if it had been tailored just for me. Whoever granted us these powers seemed to know exactly what we needed, down to the smallest detail. 

I gripped my staff as it appeared before me, I felt its weight and how solid it was in my hands. The staff was simple yet beautiful, it reminded me of those scepters that queens always had with them. The tip of the staff was an elegantly designed crescent moon put right in the middle of a bright pink heart. Beside me, Lucia stood with her bracelets adorned with lavender gems that matched the accents on her Guardian attire, somehow she looked even more confident like that. 

"Looking great! Alright, let's get this started. I've got some basic moves we can try out," Lucia said with an encouraging smile, her tone was reassuring and I could tell she was very excited about this.

I never really considered myself a fighter. That was more Cipher's thing. Pokemon moves are already challenging enough, but Starlit Moves were on a different level. Stars aren't the easiest thing to control and I had been warned of the potential dangers if you're not careful.

The rooftop was bathed in the warm glow of the late afternoon sun, casting long shadows as Lucia and I faced each other. I adjusted my grip on the staff, feeling its weight in my hands. 

"Ready?" Lucia's voice rang through the quiet air, her tone daring and motivating at the same time.

I nodded, swallowing my nerves. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Lucia grinned, her bracelets shimmering just as she was about to enter combat. "Good. Let's begin."

With that, we launched into our training session. Despite my anxiety, I managed to use Stellar Swift, summoning 3 bright pinks with a flick of my staff and flinging them at Lucia . Lucia, positioned opposite to me, raised her arms, her bracelets showing arcs of lavender energy that crackled through the air as she effortlessly deflected my attack.

With each exchange, I focused on deflecting Lucia's attacks with my staff, feeling myself strain a bit. Her techniques were as accurate as it was powerful, each burst of energy challenging me to think and react fast. The rooftop echoed with the sound of our movements.

It was a small victory when I managed to deflect a powerful Astral Sphere from Lucia, the energy scattering into the now orange sky. Despite how extreme the training was, it felt nice to see progress, even if it was just a few techniques learned in this last minute session. The hours had passed by, each moment filled with new challenges and a few surprises, it felt like an entire day had passed by despite only training for a few short hours.

"Looks like we're making progress! Stellar Swift is really easy to master once you get the hang of it, but we might need to work on the rest," Lucia remarked with a smile, turning back into her usual form. Mai, still lost in her thoughts, stared up at the sky before Lucia nudged her gently. "Anything to add, Mai?"

"Hmm? Oh! Uhh ... you did great!" Mai replied absentmindedly, a small smile spreading across her face. 

I wonder what she was thinking about. That might just be something I'll know when she talks about it ...

Favonius was fast asleep while all of this was going on. He must have been a heavy sleeper as he didn't seem to stir a bit. 

"I guess we can call it a day. It's getting pretty late and I have things to do back home." Lucia did a little stretching and dusted herself off. "We can continue some other time. For now, just enjoy the weekend."  

"Yeah, I-" 

I reached for my staff as I was replying, however, I clumsily grabbed it the wrong way, causing a burst of stray starlight to shoot unexpectedly toward Lucia. She barely had time to react before it struck her arm, and she gasped in surprise.

"Oh no ... I'm so sorry ... are you hurt?" I quickly ran to her with my staff in tow. Thoughts were running through my head as Mai also had a look of deep concern. 

"Ack! Hey, it's alright ... No harm done ..." Lucia managed a small, strained laugh despite clutching her arm and struggling to stand. "It's just a Stellar Focus Blast..."

I instinctively held her arm, thinking of something I could do to fix this. I needed to help somehow even when Lucia wasn't bothered by what happened. As soon as I touched her with the tip of my paw, I felt a warm glow.

Wait, this is ... this seems familiar ... could it be ...?

An orange light began to glow, looking like a tiny campfire. It stayed there for a bit before Gracidea petals danced around it and vanished as suddenly as they appeared. I stared at Lucia's arm for a moment and noticed that the scratch had healed completely as if it had never even been there. 

When I looked back at Lucia, I saw her staring at her arm in disbelief before she looked up at me. I could hear Mai breathing a sigh of relief as she realized what had happened. 

"This is ... incredible! A healer isn't easy to come by. Looks like we got one more lesson after all." Lucia stood up though she didn't transform this time which was her go-to when we started our training earlier. She was still determined from before as she gave Mai another light nudge.  "Mai? Hit me with your best Dazzling Gleam if you will!" 

"What!?!" Both me and Mai gave each other a look of disbelief. Of course, Mai had to know what she was up to when she decided that out of nowhere. "Lucia, do you hear yourself? You've just been hit earlier with an attack ..." 

There was a pause for a bit before Lucia gave her confident smile. "I did say I was going to find new guardians whatever it takes. This is our chance to prove we still have it in us! I’ll be fine, Mai. You know that, right?" Mai nodded her head with a little bit of hesitation, readying an attack. 

Lucia turned back to me as I got up. "Ready yourself, Elle. Just keep your paw where it is, alright?" I hesitantly held out my paw towards her and just nodded. I was also as hesitant as Mai and was hoping Lucia knew exactly what she was doing with this. 

With that Mai unleashed her attack, and a bright pink beam of stardust shot out into Lucia's direction. I concentrated hard as the orange glow started back up again, covering her as she stood there. Despite the attack being directed at her, she didn’t even flinch. 

There was silence for a bit before Lucia finally spoke up. She managed to tough it out but I noticed a few scratches here and there. She smiled back at me again and let out a tired sigh. 

"Well, that was pretty close. It's a good thing you were there to heal me up, Elle. Great work today!" Mai had to heal her up back to full before giving me a thumbs up. As reckless as Lucia was, she had her ways of training me from the looks of it. "I think I'll have to really call it a day here. Keep up the good work, Elle. I mean it when I say you did great. See you at our next training session"

"Well ... it's nothing really. I mean, I still have a lot to learn after all." I let out a nervous laugh as I picked up Favonius, who was still sleeping by the bench. A bummer that he missed whatever happened here but oh well, I can always tell him when he wakes up. 

"Thanks for today, Lucia … Mai. I guess I have something to work on." I smiled back and gave them a wave goodbye.

"It's part of the job after all. Come on Mai … guess we also gotta keep going. See you next time, Elle." Lucia smiled before turning the other way with Mai hovering behind her. Mai gave me a wink before they both flew off. 

[ Mod's Note: Woooo finally done with this after a while! Might be a bit rusty with my writing skills but hey hope you can get a good read out of this!]

[bonefall]

Could you tell us some about Cinderpelt? Has her tale changed at all?

Ok so like I'm sketching right now, and I had drawn Cinderpelt a while back but I sent myself on a like, perfectionist spiral and now I Can't Get Anything Done Until This Is Perfect

I really don't like my old Cinderpelt design, so much that I had not shared it (in fact there's an ask here from a few months ago I drew this for)

[ID: Cinderpelt, as a gray-and-cream cat with blue scars over one eye and her back leg]

I think the art is cute, but the design doesn't feel like Cinderpelt. Worse is that I really want to make sure she has some kind of trait in common with her three siblings... but I can't figure it out.

I even did a couple thumbnail doodles for Bracken and Thorn,

My thought process was, they are tabbies, but it's also a point in Better Bones that their grandmother is Speckletail! Speckletail and her bulldozer, you know? So I thought it would be a neat idea to have a sort of 'robot' or 'armor' vibe going on. Giving them spots AND stripes, as if they're rivets on a garter.

But then I was like, "Ok but who are their ancestors again?" And that's what set me off on the ThunderClan Family Tree Spiral.

So anyway yeah, I have a few asks here about the Frostfour, and the reason I have not gotten to any of them is because Brain.

[curseyou]

okay before i force myself into hyperfixating on work for the next 8 hrs, i wanted to word vomit little arcane au things for my ocs

savannah clark  ⸻  grew up in a wealthy family in piltover. hyper aware of the rift between piltover and the undercity and does what she can. she's a therapist in her canon ( or working towards that ), so let's play a game called arcane characters get therapy and she still does that in arcane.

sal larossa   ⸻  he grew up in the undercity, and is exceptionally jaded about everything there. not on his behalf, but on his siblings behalf as he essentially raised them. i'll probably have two variants for him, one in which he's a firelight and one where he's part of one of the gangs/works for a chem-baron. or maybe silco.

audrey ren massey   ⸻  audrey is a talented performer at a very young age, and grew up in a working class family in piltover. but by the time she is about 13 she is their primary earner. so when she is injured during a performance her family loses everything. they end up moving to zaun where she still lives now.

carina petras   ⸻  lives in zaun, but is sponsored by a kiramman-esqe family in piltover to study at a school. she's studies an old faith. and she lives ... in very much a religious cult. this cult worships the arcane and has been trying to access the power of it. they use runes and items touched by the arcane in attempt to bind them to people (children) to turn them into weapons. it's essentially torture, super fun stuff. carina is one of those people, and because of some latent mage genes it actually works. she is then utilized as a way to get people to join the cult, and she has really drunk the kool-aid. she thinks there will come a day that she's meant to do something great. there are likely rumors about her out there, but the extent of her abilities and what she can do is kept secret because they want to protect her ( and themselves ). she is exceptionally over powered because in her canon she is essentially a demigod. she essentially has energy manipulation abilities that manifests as light. she doesn't know the extent of her power. she's naive, and very very sheltered so probably easy to manipulate. have fun.

danny reese ⸻  literally an idiot. he's from piltover and he left. he lives in zaun. he performs in a bar and bartends for cash. he's genuinely happy with it too, and he's an embarrassment. farewell.

drew reese ⸻  he's a doctor, and also danny's brother, so he's in piltover. a very successful surgeon, who specializes in pediatrics. he's very nice and charming. willing to do anything for those he loves. some verses he'll be married to his wife tessa. because they're perfect. but also some he won't be because shipping is fun. anyways i love him. he likely volunteers his time to help kids/families in zaun with some outreach for medical care.

[the-missann]

I don't think I've shared this with anyone besides a friend I don't really talk to anymore; and while I feel extremely nervous sharing them, I'll think I'll ease that by expressing the fact that I'm not an artist. I have been self teaching myself how to draw for years, so if this looks kind of bad, that's why.

Anyways, I obviously like it enough to share, so I am very proud of my work regardless.

That aside, I wanted to detail this story before sharing everything I did for it (I guess this'll be a short series about everything I drew for it).

A Fourth Dimension Reality is a series of books I'm writing about two inter-dimensional kids trying to find out what dimension they're actually apart of. Along the way, they meet other people who are integral to their goal. Each of these characters will be introduced as I go along.

Now, as for the real world logic, I wrote this story after me and that friend were talking about how some shows that are suppose to be comedy/satire lost that along the way.

So, I was determined to make a story where that stays intact even in the finale. Essentially, this is a long shit post that needs to be stopped, but it's still going well into five books with a unfinished total of 100k and seven books officially planned.

Each book ranges from 23k-30k and no book is any longer... yet

So, anyways, here's the actual cover of the first book (I have two more made).

Later on though I ended up drawing something goofy where all the characters find a dimension that does space tours. That was my excuse as to why they don't have shoes (because you don't want to get the dimension dirty do you?)

But this is everyone and presents their personalities pretty well. I'll showcase them separately over the next few days.

For now, this is perfect showcase of this story:

“So this means no one can hear me scream!” Cassie used all of her breath in that howl. Larson groaned and went to hit her, but she moved out of the way and spun slowly in the air. “I can dodge you better out here.” She mocked.

With a growl, Larson said, “this isn’t some kind of joke. We need to do what Jax said.”

“Yeah, yeah whatever.” She dismissed his comment. “We’ll get there eventually, let’s just have a little fun!”

Larson just stared at Cassie as she continued to spin around happily.

He was brought back to reality when he felt his phone vibrate. “Oh, I forgot,” he answered it swiftly, “you can hear me right?”

Back on Earth, Jax could clearly hear them through the phone. “I’m surprised that it even works! I really didn't think it would.” He said with amazement present in his voice.

“Yeah, doubt me, why don’t you.” Jax laughed at Larson’s remark. “But I’ll try a video call now.”

“Alright.”

Larson was about to press the button when he saw Cassie still spinning around in front of him; he sighed and turned on the video call. Once it came up, he saw a smile grow to Jax’s face.

“So it does work, great.” Jax paused. “Cassie!” He called out.

“Yeah?” She said while turning to look in their direction.

“The video call works.” Jax announced.

“Okay!” She began to slow her spinning down.

Cassie took out her own phone and called Jax once more. She put it on the video call and stuffed the phone inside of her bag. She zipped it closed and turned to Larson.

“Okay, I can see him, so that means we’re good! I’m screen recording so you guys can do whatever you have to.”

“You don’t have to tell me that,” Larson said.

Cassie huffed. “Stop being so mean. Anyways, we will Jax!” Cassie confirmed.

“Good luck you two!”

With their method of documentation set, they started putting their plan into action. Larson slowly moved over to Cassie.

“Stop acting like a kid and let’s get to work.” He snapped at her.

“You’re so boring. We’re in space dude! We can breathe without astronaut helmets, why not live a little, Lars?”

“Maybe on our next trip.” Larson went ahead and turned back once he was a small distance away from her.

From his jacket pocket, he pulled out the rope he brought. Needing to be as air resistant as possible, he couldn’t carry a bag with him, instead he just already tied the rope around himself and stuffed the other end into his jacket pocket. He pulled out the other end and threw it to Cassie for her to grab. Cassie caught it and was now being pulled by Larson.

Once she was in front of him, Cassie pulled him. Their motions created a way for them to move about in space with the most amount of ease. After a few minutes of their maneuvering, Cassie let out a sigh.

“See, this is all business,” Cassie said with a pout.

“Yeah, yeah. Looking like a bitch doesn’t help you.”

“At least you used the right word, but I wasn’t trying to give you puppy dog eyes.”

They remained pulling each other in a still silence. This was maintained until they could finally see Pluto. Cassie giggled as she stared at it.

“Oh it’s so cute!” She paused. “Do you really think anyone will be there?”

“I don’t know, but if we do find someone it would be better to stick together.”

“I wonder if it’s like a superman thing.” Cassie started to talk about something else. “Like we’re stronger because we were on Earth for so long.”

Larson scoffed. “If anything, being on earth made us weaker.”

“See, I don’t think like that,” Cassie began, “I really feel like we’re stronger because we’ve been exposed to different mindsets and then we’re going to learn this one. So by default, we’ll be smarter!”

“Always on the bright side huh?”

Cassie giggled.

Also, fun fact: I'm so bad at spelling I kept writing Dimension as Dimention and I still don't really know if I'm spelling it right😃

They kept pulling each other until they were caught into the gravitational pull of Pluto and were able to land...

Next post

[pine-niidles]

2024 July Monthly Update - Artfight

Another July gone by, another Artfight draws to a close. This month's update post will be primary looking at what I've made for Artfight, but first some personal updates:

I mentioned in my last post I was dealing with wrist pain but it was getting better. It got worse. The last few weeks of July I spent not moving my hands as much as I possibly could because both hands were feeling so bad. Luckily I managed to figure out the cause (I bought myself a wheeled bag to take stain off my back when grocery shopping, turns out wheeled bag + cobblestone streets = wrist destroying vibrations) and once I eliminated it my wrists started actually healing. They're feeling much better now, not fully healed but well on the way :) I'm just glad art wasn't the cause. With any luck this'll be the last monthly update this year with a 'personal circumstances' blurb at the start and I can get fully back to just making and talking about art ✨

Artfight

This year was my 8th year participating, which is kind of wild to think about. My first year was Sun vs Moon, on team moon and I drew 34 total art pieces. I don't think I've ever beat the number but I certainly got close this year having drawn 30 attacks!

I didn't have a specific plan going into artfight this year, I usually don't other than maybe a list of people I'd like to draw for. I treat artfight as a super low pressure way to experiment and draw fun designs. Not every piece comes out exactly how I want it but that's part of the fun and every year at least one artfight drawing makes it's way to my fav art that year. 

At the end of June I'd just made a template for doing these chibi icons and I was having so much fun with them I started off artfight doing a bunch of them for attacks:

I think they turned out super cute but they look a little awkward side by side due to the different dimensions of each one. I've yet to find a good way to display batches of them 😔

The first bigger drawing I did was of a character I found in my bookmarks and I love how it turned out:

It was the perfect piece to break the last shackles of my artblock away and drawing it felt smooth as butter. I didn't really do anything similar the rest of the month but there's several points on how I lined and colored this one that I'm keeping in mind to experiment more with in the future. 

After the first piece I was feeling in a more environmental mood and freehanded these two attacks featuring characters in funky landscapes.

My wrists were still feeling pretty iffy at this point so the lines for both of these were a very loose first pass over a rough sketch but to be honest I don't think anyone would notice unless I pointed it out. 

I really thought I'd do more in this style but 🤷‍♂️ it ended up not happening. Maybe I'll do something with some ocs soon

The last three attacks I got out before my wrists got too bad to draw I did all in the same day

These two characters were exactly my type & I love to draw chibis on some kind of environmental base or prop so I wanted to do something with that this artfight as well. I think they turned out pretty cute!

Another one with a base, this time more like a character standee that I love to give dnd characters. Physical character models moving around on a map is one of my favorite tactile experiences of tabletop games.

The last one I did before I had to take a couple week pause - I wanted to experiment around with linework specifically and while there's a lot I like about this drawing there's several things I had to rush or simplify because of my wrists and overall it didn't end up being the strongest piece. Ah well, that's how it sometimes.

The day after I did these I went grochery shopping again and then my wrists really gave out. I didn't draw anything for artfight from the 12th until the 29th when my hands were finally starting to feel good enough to try and do just a few last drawings before the end.

I started off simple with some blocky chibis with saturated lineart. I'd played with colorful lines in the past but I never ended up liking because having all the lineart be one bright color always felt too much and too distracting. However, earlier this month I saw this gorgeous attack by ebelcities which made my realize the extremely pointless arbitrary restriction I'd been putting on myself: you don't need to have ALL the lineart be a bright saturated color, of course you don't! How trivial! And yet this was a huge breakthrough. I have to thank ebelcities for having such beautiful art 🥰 Seeing her work is always sooo inspiring. 

I still didn't want to push my hands too much so my next attack was done mostly using the lasso tool, with a few textures added on top. This attack received the least attention on social media out of all of them but personally I'm pretty proud of it 🤍

In the last two days my hands were feeling MUCH better and I took advantage of that to try and reach my initial goal I had at the start of the month - 30 attacks to fill up a whole page on my all attacks section with attacks from this year. 

​I had 7 left to do - and I did it!

I wanted to keep them simple both of the sake of my hands (drinking game for this post - take a shot anytime I mentioned my wrists) and to actually finish 7 drawings in 2 days. But I also didn't want to just give people rough sketches, especially since most of these were revenges for some really lovely art I'd gotten. So I came up with the idea of A) a border template and B) using tones!

I've been really into dot tones recently but I've not really been using them as is the traditional method - it was a bit of a challenge doing them in these! Picking tones, getting a range of values, matching textures, getting the size of the dots right... so many decisions to make. I'll have to keep experimenting with them, maybe for some actual comics in the future :)

And that's it for this year's artfight. We'll be hearing the results soon but even before hearing them I think seafoam has probably lost haha, we've been lagging behind all month and I had a feeling this would happen when I saw the team numbers but I still love seafoam regardless <3 I'm looking forward to seeing what the teams will be next year!

[a-moth-to-the-light]

Current Top 10 Bleachers Songs

Though I can't exactly say I grew up with Bleachers--I was 14 when I first heard of them--I feel like I did. Maybe it's because I actually did grow up with Bruce Springsteen, and didn't someone once call Bleachers a glorified Springsteen tribute band? I couldn't find the original reference, but I love Bleachers almost as much as Springsteen (who's only my favorite artist ever--sorry, Alba Reche, you're a close second I promise!!!), so I can't say that label is a bad thing. The Springsteen energy happening in their music is FANTASTIC, with some interesting electronic influences to spice things up! They released a new album last Friday, so it's time to do a top-10-so-far before I find any new favorites :)

1. Wild Heart

This is for all the kids who lived off the Love, Simon soundtrack in eighth grade, who huddled in their room and listened to "Wild Heart" over and over and over again and tried to work up the courage to ask their parents to take them to see the movie... but what if they guess? What if they figure out I'm gay? I'll just watch the trailers over and over again, listen to the soundtrack on repeat... Look, I like so much about "Wild Heart", especially the echo-y vocal effects and the way the chorus crashes in and the grumbling bass and the outro, but really this is my favorite Bleachers song as a salute to my past self. I'm sorry. And thank you. And I'm so proud of you.

2. How Dare You Want More

This song is layers and layers and layers, it's all the chaos and glee of a really great party, and I feel tipsy by the time that sax solo hits.

3. Hate That You Know Me

I thought this one was pretty weird for a longggg time, but it got me eventually. The production here is emptier than what I was used to from their first album, but over time, it started to feel less empty and more immediate to me, like I could just be hearing a couple of people giving the performance of their lives across the street. Speaking of which, shoutout to the backup vocalist who does those riffs--they bring out the best in this song's rhythm. Also, these might be my favorite Bleachers lyrics. They're fantastically fun to sing, without losing any meaning to the sonic whimsy!

4. Don't Take The Money

This is my comfort scream-it-all-out song--it has the perfect blend of genuine humor and equally genuine agony that I love so much in my favorite Taylor Swift songs. Experiencing the mortifying ordeal of being known? Singing, "I SAW YOUR FACE AND HANDS / COVERED IN SUN AND THEN / I THINK I UNDERSTAND / ... OH I UNDERSTAND" is the most effective cure I know.

5. I'm Ready to Move On / Wild Heart -- w/ Yoko Ono

Okay, sure, this is kind of just "Wild Heart" again. But I think it deserves its own spot, since it really does have its own thing going on. I'm not as much of an experimental production lover as I want to be--though I respect attempts to expand the range of sounds we think of as 'music', I still have a hard time actually enjoying the more out-there electronic stuff. But I'll listen to this one any day, weird buzzing noises included, because Yoko Ono's melody instantly cheers me up, and I find myself singing it constantly. Snow is falling! All the time! Snow is smiling! All the time! I'm ready! I'm ready! I'm ready! To move on!

6. I Wanna Get Better (cw: sui)

This one is... intense. I think that's what I love most about Bleachers, though, is that you get all this emotion wrapped up in these ridiculously catchy rock anthems. There's so much feeling that's fighting to get out of these songs, and so much in my heart that's fighting to get out when I listen--but then I can free it by singing along. These are songs that want to be sung along to, that invite your shared experience of things that are too heavy to carry alone. Hell, maybe that's what drew me to Bleachers, specifically, out of all the artists on the Love, Simon soundtrack. Because their music felt like coming out, even before I actually did; it gave me an escape, to a place where I felt like my secret, my big terrifying secret, had already been shared. Even for just a few minutes, I could get that weight of things unspoken off my shoulders. And suicidal ideation is hard to talk about, too. And I didn't talk about it for a long time--not for years after coming out. But I had this song to process it with, and for that I'm eternally grateful <3

7. Like A River Runs

Okay, this spot could belong to a whole bunch of songs on the Strange Desire album, but I'll go with this one, which was my most-listened song on Spotify Wrapped 2020. I don't think I've ever been able to relate to this song--I'm lucky to never have experienced the death of a close friend, or of a family member I knew well--but the production always manages to capture me instantly. I guess this song gives us another good explanation of why I feel like I grew up with Bleachers: their music sounds like how my growing up felt--this overwhelming rush of reckless joy in the present, combined with intense fits of yearning for the past.

8. Everybody Lost Somebody

COME ON MOTHERFUCKER YOU SURVIVED YOU'VE GOTTA GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK !!!!!

9. 91

I never really know what to do with this song, honestly--it's not let-it-all-out fun, like I usually expect from Bleachers. Rather, it's mysterious and reserved... but that makes it uniquely captivating, too. Its lyrics have beautifully executed time skips, and I love that string instruments are made central to the arrangement, rather than left to a low-volume layer in the chorus.

10. Rollercoaster -- w/ Charli XCX

I mean, Bleachers has some of the best hooks out there, and Charli XCX has a voice that makes any chorus a punch to the gut. A dream collaboration, for sure, and I wouldn't be surprised if this is my most-listened Bleachers song ever!

Honorable Mentions: Reckless Love, You're Still a Mystery, All My Heroes, 45, Big Life, Don't Go Dark, Anti-Hero (Taylor Swift feat. Bleachers)

[shinpredicts]

Hey boo! How's life been for you? Welcome back! 💖✨💕

My questions:

1: What will my partner dislike about me? I'd love to know this because...I'd like to know what traits/habits that I'd need to change/work on in order to become a better lover.

2: What do they find attractive about me? Of course I'd want to know this lol. Who wouldn't? Both personality and physically wise I'd like to know what drew them to me and caught their attention in the first place.

3: What do I need to work on when it comes to my love life/relationships? I'm not perfect. I'm quite aware of this and I know that I have certain characteristics that might not be ideal to everyone (controlling, clingy, obsessive) and similarly to my answer for #2, I'd like to know what traits I need to work on in order to improve myself.

Thank you for this game love. Have a good day!💫💕

Hi! It's been alright. You? Thanks for the welcome!

Answers to your questions:

There's potential for you to have more than 1 relationship in this life, so I'm just going to pick one person that has the strongest chance of being in relationship with you.

They'll dislike your messiness. They are quite the organized person, a bit of a neat freak so their standards for organization/cleanliness are very high. They'll dislike how you procrastinate and often promise to do things but end up not following through with the promises (mostly for career/education related stuff). They will also dislike some of your friends. They also won't like some of your family members. They will find it hard to communicate with you when you are mad like you just shut down.

They will like your hair, your style, and your attitude. They like that you stand up for yourself and have this "fighter" in you. They like your voice and eyes. They also like your humor.

In terms of your relationship struggles, they'd probably be related to control/jealousy/suspicion. You can get jealous pretty easily and you have a tendency of wanting to control/dominate the other person. You can mean well like wanting them to be better but that can sometimes become too much for the other person and they can feel pressured or suffocated. You also struggle with feeling like your partner may be cheating on you or may not care about you so much like you need quite a bit of attention and you want them to prioritize you in life. That can make it difficult for your partner as they will feel like it's hard to satisfy you and they honestly might not have time to be there for you when you need them to be (esp if they are very career oriented). You will also feel like in relationships you would want your partner to do well in their career yet you also want them to focus on you too, but you know it's difficult for people to balance career and love at the same time. People who are very career focused will tend to choose their job's obligations over love, like possibly not responding to your messages for days because they're honestly just too busy with work and don't think your messages are urgent.