#this got long sorry!! but either way there are a few gems in here (emphasis on few) and the others were just bland to me

[petekaos]

gmmtv 2022 thoughts;

disclaimer: honestly overall i was more disappointed with this line-up than the one from last year. i think that’s probably my own fault because i don’t have an attachment to any gmmtv actors (apart from maybe mek and victor) so i don’t really anticipate or check out shows solely depending on the actors in them. sorry about that! scroll to the end for a tl;dr on what shows i’m anticipating the most (hint: it’s like only four LMAO).

the three gentlebros: this looks kind of cute! i don’t think i’ll be watching it but i don’t hate it on sight. the cast is pretty interesting and i know a lot of people will be tuning into this because of tay and gun, but i’m not a huge fan of either of them to check the show out solely because they’re in it. i really do like sibling and family relationships though so we’ll see!

u.m.g.: girl idk if i’m stupid but i have literally no clue what it’s about LMAO but i do see my girl namtan so maybe i’ll like this one! the plot seems pretty wild and out there though so that intrigues me! i might watch this one hehe i really appreciate gmmtv branching out with new plots.

star and sky / star in my mind / sky in your heart: IS THAT JOONG? good job to this trailer for starting off with basketball because that reeled me in but it lost me after that. it seems like a walmart atots and honestly i’m so bitter about this one because mek is in it and i really want to watch it for him but it seems so bland and boring ... even though i really wanted mek in more lead roles! i really really think mek has potential and that he deserves more lead roles in series but this just seemed really flat to me and i don’t want to put myself through it. he looks so cute though ... i’m mad.

home school: ripoff gifted my beloved <3 honestly this might be one of the only ones i’ll check out because i miss the gifted and this plot seems incredibly similar. i think it has a lot of potential and the trailer seemed cool! i really appreciate gmmtv branching out with their plots.

cupid’s last wish: at first i was like “awww earthmix” and then i was like “help earthmix??” idk what this is but i hate body swap plots so deeply that i probably won’t check this out. not to shade futs but “from the production team of fish upon the sky” is enough for me to click off LMAO!

oops! mr superstar hit on me: why do we always get age gap romances ... jane looks so cute and good in this but the dude is not giving me a good vibe. sorry jane my girl </3

my dear donovan: this trailer made me laugh out loud HELP the moaning in the beginning? again i don’t care much for the male leads in this but namtan’s character looks so damn cute and i would love to see her interactions with kids as a teacher that i might watch this for the hell of it honestly!

the warp effect: um ... good for new i guess? idk what i just watched but there are lesbians in this so if i end up watching it then it will be for them. super interesting cast especially with fah, who i really adore, so this is one of the shows where the plot is meh but the acting will be good.

the eclipse: again it looks something similar to the gifted or home school! i know some friends are excited about this one because of the cast but personally the trailer didn’t fully grip me. we’ll see, maybe i’ll be feeling more sympathetic by the time the second one rolls out!

good old days: the rollercoaster of emotions i had watching this trailer is indescribable. the cast is truly fucking insane like did somebody roll a die and then pick based on that? like you’ve got fah, aye, tay, namtan, bright, win, thanaerng, pat, prim, and then KRIST? seriously? like... anyway i think this is an interesting concept but i’m curious as to how they’re gonna pull all of this off with so many well-loved actors. i might watch this for tay and aye’s characters because they seem so cute!

never let me go: this shit was BEYOND intense. maybe the only bl from gmmtv i’ll consider checking out next year because the plot seems so interesting! i really like mafia/bodyguard shows so maybe this will appeal to me. 

10 years ticket: okay i haven’t seen ANYONE talking about this which makes me scared but i think this is my most anticipated one apart from home school so far like ... it gives me SO MANY ‘a gift to whom you hate’ vibes and the sibling relationships in this are insane? the cast seems solid and it seems to be a very emotionally intense show, which i’m excited to see pulled off! i really like this one omg!!

you fight and i love: ... no words literally. the way i predicted a boxing show and i thought mek and victor would be in it seeing as victor is a professional boxer and mek has a boxing gym and i was right but victor is delegated to a minor role whereas mek is nowhere to be seen... and i would forgive this if it had a good storyline! but it doesn’t! another age gap romance! and love is so cute too like damn ... and i just wish victor had a bigger role because he seems so darn cute in this series and there are so many different routes they could have taken and by GOD would it be so hard to give me mekvic </3 anyway.

midnight series: very strong cast! all three segments looked very interesting and remind me a lot of 3 will be free. i think this is an interesting route for gmmtv to take and it’s directed by my two fave directors p’aof and p’jojo so i’ll definitely check this one out!

vice versa: gmm said we’re gonna give the audience what they don’t want. body swap plots. too many guys in this one and not enough plot sorry </3

p.s i hate you: YES FINALLY!!! A FEMALE-LED CAST! wow this looks so dramatic and over-the-top and so insane but the sisterhood in this is amazing. i’m really excited for this, so many wonderful leading ladies and their characters seem so interesting too. hope they band against all the men <3 hope this actually focuses on the women and doesn’t make it about the men bc the men in this one seem super meh.

my school president: couldn’t even watch the whole trailer it was boring and i’m yawning sorry!

devil sister: again, i didn’t really get much of an idea of the plot in this one. it seems fine but also mediocre; not particularly something i’d consider watching. 

you are my favorite: LITERALLY DYING LAUGHING LMAOOO what is this random ass pairing? krist and MIKE? mike i’m so damn sorry you’ve got to be in this with that guy... and mike seems so cute too! not enough for me to like this: plot is weird krist is weird pairing is weird ... again they should have just done a mekvic series god bless. one of these days it WILL happen.

astrophile: mai is so sweet in this but the plot is so bland and seriously, a love triangle between her, off, and bright? girl i’m so sorry LMAO!

my precious: has this nostalgic feel to it that i really like! the cast seems cute and i might check this out if i don’t have anything else to do.

tl;dr: gmmtv is producing a lot of shows with different and more out-there plots this year, which i really appreciate! however, on the whole it was pretty underwhelming for me. the only shows i really am looking forward to are 10 years ticket, the midnight series, home school, and p.s i hate you! u.m.g and my precious also seem cute but are lower on my radar. the only bl i think is worth checking out is never let me go, but apart from that ... hm, the plots didn’t draw me in all that much. disappointing lack of women but we’ve come to expect that from gmmtv!

[utilitycaster]

Wizard Breakdown Tracker, #135

Each week I think “man it would have been cool if I had thought of this idea, in which I make jokes about how stressed out the wizard NPCs are, during, you know, the Vergesson heist or something when we were interacting with more than one wizard NPC instead of during a dungeon crawl with only one wizard NPC, emphasis on crawl” but you know what, I persevere, because where else am I going to put song parodies about the death of Vess Derogna that are literally only funny to me? Twitter?

Anyway while I am personally team Jester, in that the faster Lucien is simultaneously disintegrated, run through in the chest with both a vestige and a holy avenger, shot through the heart (and Veth’s to blame), beheaded with a hand axe, banished, punched in the face, and sent into a black hole the better, the party has other plans. Thanks to the long rest though it has been about 12 hours, plus the 4-ish from last week, so I guess we’ll check in with a few of our other wizard friends as well.

As a reminder Caleb Widogast is a PC and thus excluded from this list.

Currently sidelined

Presumably having a good day: Pumat Sol (blissfully unaware of all of this); Allura Vyesoren (saint-like patience and a wealth of experience with disaster adventuring parties; at least this one has a cleric at more than 0.33 FTE, a wizard, and some lesbians), Ludinus Da’leth (this miserable pile of power plays wakes up every morning and is like Isn’t it Grand to be head of the evil wizard council and no one realizes I probably destroyed the first non-drow elven civilization on the continent to arise after the calamity! Fetch me more pastries!).

No idea but here’s hoping he found the cat portion of ScryTube: Oremid Hass

Lady DeRogna, taken off the scene, sorry that your murder happened while off-screen.

Trent Ikithon: I’ve established that I think the only real things that can damage Trent emotionally are Caleb paying too much attention to him so as to destroy his standing within the empire, or else Caleb ignoring him. Honestly if Trent would not continue to torture students and spread propaganda if left unchecked I think he could be slowly murdered solely through Caleb expressing apathy. So despite the amulets of nondetection I like to imagine that somehow, somewhere, Trent felt Caleb reaffirm to Essek that his top priority is still stopping the city from returning, not Trent, and it necrotized just a little bit more of his liver.

Conclusion: 7/10. I went to the OG evil mageocracy and no one knew who you were.

Essek Thelyss: Well on the one hand he’s still flirting but on the other imagine spending a literal century being like “what if we’re wrong about how we approach the fundamental basis for our society” and he just got proved right. I have to imagine he’s got that kind of stress where suddenly everything becomes dead calm and also this explains why he unnecessarily cast a 3rd level spell, which he knows could in theory cause him to lose all his hair, to impress a boy. I didn’t even get into the conversations he had with Caleb, the bad dreams and eyeballs, Fjord teasing him, Yasha being like “ALRIGHT ALREADY”, the horrible Aeorian creatures, the fact that robots might be back(?) or his ongoing terror that the Assembly is after him!

Conclusion: 8/10 but he’s like, kind of having a good time. Essek is in all ways but physical in a Hawaiian shirt right now drinking a Mai Tai and going Nothing Matters; I presume he will have a full breakdown following the boss battle and honestly he deserves it.

Astrid Beck: Others have already established the parallels between Essek and Astrid but honestly I want to highlight it because really, on the one hand we have Essek, whose world is crashing around him because he was right all along and is in terrible immediate danger but surrounded by friends, and on the other we have Astrid, whose world is crashing around her because she was wrong all along and she’s probably not in immediate danger but Eadwulf is the only person she can trust and we don’t know all the details about that either.

Conclusion: 8/10 but in the bad way, not Essek’s kind of fun way.

Wulfpupy:

Conclusion: 3/10. You know that tiktok with the blonde woman with glasses who has a lot of highlighter on her nose who talks about how sometimes if you have guy friends they will say something deeply fucked up and you’ll be like “oh my god do we unpack this right now” and then you look over at them and the only thing in their mind are the lyrics to Kokomo? That’s Wulf. He will activate the second Caleb comes back in town or Astrid actually falls apart but until then he is on Island Time.

Yussa Errenis: I wonder if there’s a small part of Yussa that is part of the city’s awareness and, moreover, can see what Beau and Caleb at least are doing, and he’s like “I’m so simultaneously proud and impatient, also we live in a world that does not have IV fluids so like, hopefully my body still exists in some kind of functioning state when I am rescued” (note: did I google “how were coma patients kept alive in olden times” for this? Perhaps.) Anyway if he is aware he’s also just like, watching all this like “I WILL GET YOU SO MUCH PAPER OH MY GOD CAN YOU JUST KISS THE OTHER WIZARD SAVE ME FROM THE EVIL HIVEMIND CITY.”

Conclusion: I mean still infinity/10, he is still trapped in the city of madness and also if he does have a small part of his mind that is sane and able to observe the material plane he also is aware that Trent and the Volstruckers broke into his tower.

Known Gem Wizard Hotsauce Lutefisk: I know, I know, weird that I brought him up. However consider: Yussa’s wizard tower now contains two wizards in suspended animation, their consciousnesses trapped in eldritch astral sea-related spaces. This is incredibly funny to me. We’re in a real Old Lady who swallowed a fly scenario except it’s centuries-old wizards getting sucked into traps because of their own hubris. The reason why mageocracies no longer exist isn’t the lack of magical knowledge or even because power corrupts absolutely, it’s because literally just put some lightly fried forbidden knowledge under a box with a stick propping it up, add your parody of Long-Term Nuclear Waste Warnings above it, and a wizard will be like “that sign won’t stop me because I CAN read and what’s more I’m better at reading than you are!” And then they get trapped in a box.

Conclusion: what is a breakdown tracker to a man whose mind has been stuck in a gem for, from his perspective, at minimum about 35 years?

[fanfictiondreamscape]

Average? Darling...

Request: Hi! I saw requests were open so I was wondering if you’d be ok with doing Headcanons with Undertaker and Sebastian with a s/o who doesn’t really think their pretty? Like they don’t think their ugly or anything, just mundane and average so they just think people are being nice and don’t really mean it when they’re told they look pretty? (Sorry this is long, I wanted to make sure I made sense) thanky and I hope you’re doing well amidst the chaos going on! 

Title: Average? Darling... 

Genre: fluff, mayyyybe a little bit angsty (yay insecurities!) (emphasis on mayyyybe)

Pairing: Undertaker/Sebastian Michaelis x Fem!reader (separate) 

Notes: This made me so happy to see. Literally. Anon, thank you for requesting this! 

That said, I totally understand this idea and outlook, and I still struggle with thinking of myself in a way that isn’t seen as absolutely hideous or terribly average. I can only escape that through cosplay, and I absolutely hate taking almost an hour or two putting on makeup just to feel drop-dead gorgeous for thirty minutes. 

Anyway, you can ignore that little tirade if you want! I tried to make it as realistic as possible (from my experience), so I hope it lives up to what you like. Otherwise, thank you for saying that - I hope you’re doing well, too! (It didn’t come out trippy this time, yES-)

It is also a female reader default, so I apologize if that isn’t what you expected. It seemed to flow better for me personally, so I just rolled with it. 

Below the cut! 

Undertaker

surprisingly, out of these two, i find the undertaker would be more inept here

because while both him and sebastian are not human and can barely understand certain human emotions,

one has had more basic observation and interest than the other

that ‘other’ being undertaker

from what i can remember, i can only assume that he would have focused his attention towards his over-the-top plans to screw with the reapers, demons, and angels

but that’s not the whole point right now

to cover how your relationship happened, you would have had to know him for a while

and he probably would have only come to realize that he had feelings for you after he got to know you

so to sum that up: your personality is sexy to him.

that was the first thing that he was attracted to, but your appearance?

that was a bonus

so when you stop and say that you aren’t anywhere near as beautiful as people say, he just tries to get you to admit that you are wrong within a few minutes

“i’m really not as beautiful as they claim, undertaker.”

“dear, that is not a funny ‘joke’.”

“i’m not joking, darling, i’m nowhere near as beautiful as people claim i am.”

he jumps into a tirade

i don’t make the rules, okay? he just does.

and it involves many, many, many instances of your beauty.

your eyes? 

they glitter and almost glow in the shadows and light in the most attractive manner.

your hair (or lack thereof)?

simply gorgeous, simply shining - quite beautiful

your figure?

quite fitting for the time, and quite a sight to see when walking.

to him, you are what an angel looks like, and you have the personality of one as well

a total package, if he must say so

but that is about where he would stop.

it doesn’t last long, but it does hold meaning and he refuses to let you believe anything else

but he may only step in and say something when it gets to be too much for you.

those times when your insecurities get the better of you?

he’s already on it, coffin open and ready for you to cuddle with him as he makes grand statements of your beauty

“your beauty truly reaches across centuries, across millenia - a quite haunting beauty if i may say so myself.”

“your eyes perfectly match your complexion, almost glowing against your countenance.”

“and darling, your figure...if i may, i must say that it is truly gorgeous...truly supple. it fits your clothing very well.”

(that last one was a lil bit sensual but hey - it was bound to happen at some point in this)

but every one of these times was very short. 

eventually, though, his words started to make sense.

through those short little sessions, they worked somewhat.

i’d like to say that they worked almost immediately

but that is a blatant lie

again, this is undertaker

subtly only matters to him when it is a part of a scheme he has. 

so that immediately negates any hint of it becoming extremely common, as that depends on how often you vocalize your thoughts on people’s compliments

but otherwise, they work a little bit. 

in a weird way

(again, undertaker.)

but he tries, so make sure that he knows he has made you feel a little better

don’t lie, but don’t hesitate to tell him what you thought of his perspective

he covers it in his own little way, and you both don’t mind it too much. :)

Sebastian Michaelis

okay so

sebastian found you to be meager at first

but that was because you were shielded by a shadow and he only caught a glimpse of your outfit

when he caught you in full light though?

gorgeous.

he had held a distaste to angels, but you were one that he doubted he could stay away from

and because ciel had gotten tired of watching his butler fawn over you as you two worked together, he straight up demanded that he talk to you

and a butler can’t deny his master’s orders, can he?

from there, he grew to love you more

and though he will admit that he fell in love with your appearance at first, your personality was even more beautiful than you

so you can imagine his surprise when you told him that you were only average 

he had caught you looking at yourself in the reflection in the glass of a window, and he became intrigued

was this simply a human thing? 

possibly a female quirk, though he may have chalked it up to feminine mannerisms

but when you spotted him and he questioned your actions teasingly, you gave him the answer to his question.

“darling, may i ask why you are gazing at yourself?”

*shock* 

“um, well - when you or someone else tells me i’m pretty, i don’t believe it.”

for once, pure and unadulterated shock presented itself on his visage

“dear, i must inquire why.”

“well, i’m not...’gorgeous’ as you claim. i’m simply average, nothing more.”

he had decided then and there to treat you as the sparkling darling that he knows and loves 

“well, darling, i beg to differ.”

you and him then sat down and just talked.

unlike undertaker, who i feel would try to make his s/o feel gorgeous from the get-go

sebastian would be the type to get the point across over time

he’s observed humans for centuries, so he has the least amount of understanding 

human insecurities cannot be mended within minutes, but rather longer

so he did the best that he could to make you feel better about your beauty

after all, he appreciates art in it’s finest form

and you fit into that category

so after reassuring you that you are just as gorgeous as others see you to be

(”your eyes are the most beautiful (e/c) i’ve ever seen.”)

(”your skin is quite glowing, much like you yourself do.”)

(”your body, too, darling - it’s to die for. just perfect.”)

he makes it a goal that you become completely aware of your beautiful

someone just complimented you and you reluctantly accepted it?

“darling, i promise you that you are gorgeous.”

another person just told you your beauty measures to that of madam red? 

(don’t blame me, blame google - i tried to find more information, but this is set in the 1880s, not the 1890s, so gibson girls were barely there and were not yet considered the peak of beauty at the time. and after that mess, i went to see what characters were ranked highest and madam red was the highest ranked female on that list, at 14 i think, as the rest were male. due to that, and the fact that she is a doctor that must be fairly well known, she would be known and ogled - cuz lets face it, she is sinister, but she is also gorgeous.) 

(sorry about that, let’s continue)

“they aren’t incorrect, my dear. you do truly glow, much like she does, but your’s is more bright.”

anyone compliments your figure when doing measurements and you tell him?

“as i have said, your figure is truly fair and quite admirable.”

sometimes, even when you were resting at either your’s or ciel’s manor, sebastian would make sure to remind you of your higher beauty

before you were to go to bed?

“dear, sleep well. i would say that you may want your beauty sleep, but you don’t need it when you’re already gorgeous.”

reviewing papers?

“your eyes, my darling - quite beautiful. they truly do sparkle.”

simply reading and resting?

“a beautiful brain and a beautiful appearance - my, my, you really are a gem to view, my love.” 

you blushed every time, but the more he did what he did and said what he said

you slowly came to realize that you truly are as beautiful as others say you are.

and though you are aware that there are others out there that may be more beautiful

you now know that your beauty is much more prominent than that of the common female

and your realization made sebastian all the more giddy 

(well, as giddy as he could get - remember, demon!)

(and again, that little rant earlier, i-)

[warfstachenby]

Here’s my gift for @the-pan-anon for the Visitation Day Gift Event! Big preesh to @yancy-support-group for creating and running the event! The request was for a Yancy/Illinois fic and the prompt was “angst”! (although this part isn’t that angsty sorry!)

There’s a second part to expect in the next few days, so sorry I didn’t complete all of it in time! Hope you enjoy it anyway!

Title: Such a Perfect Place to Start (chapter 1) Pairing: Yancy/Illinois Words: 1727 Content warnings: fighting (brief), blood (mentioned)

“And a one! And a two! And a one, two, three!”

Yancy sat down next to Heapass. In front of them Bam Bam and Sparkles were rehearsing a new musical number. Bam Bam threw his arms up and over his head and jumped to the left. Letting his right hand fall to grab his top hat, he tossed his cane to Sparkles with his left. It clattered to the ground.

Bam Bam’s jaw clenched. “It’s no good, Yance, we just can’t nail this.”

“Hey, hey.” Yancy said. “Youse just need more practice. Things like this take time. Don’t either of youse get worked up over it.”

“Looked alright to me.” For once, Yancy was glad Heapass opened his mouth. He wasn’t usually known for his compliments.

“See! A few more days and youse’ll nail it.”

“A few more days!” Sparkles agreed eagerly, jazz hands for emphasis.

“A few more days.” Bam Bam paused, letting a small, relaxed smile creep onto his face. “Thanks for sticking with us.”

Laughing sheepishly, Yancy brushed it off. “Aw, no! Youse don’t gotta thank me!”

Suddenly there was a voice from the other side of the yard. “No, there really has been a mistake, my friend. I didn’t steal that box!”

Yancy’s head snapped to face the voice. A man was slowly sauntering next to the guard. He was new, obviously, and held himself in a way that exuded confidence. He was dressed in the standard prison uniform but was wearing a brown hat that Yancy assumed was from the outside. Something about him seemed bigger than life. He flashed the guard the kind of smile you only see in movies. The guard just rolled his eyes and walked off.

Yancy stalked towards him. “Wanna get out, do ya? Why? Here ain’t good enough?”

“No, of course not.” The stranger smiled that smile again. “But I’m afraid there really has been some confusion. I shouldn’t be here.” He paused. “But I’m adaptable.” He smiled and threw Yancy a wink. “I’m sure I’ll make the most of my time here.” Another winning smile as he shifted his weight to his other leg and held out his hand. “I’m Illinois, by the way.”

Yancy shook the offered hand as a little shiver ran down his spine. “Yeah, uh…” He could hear Heapass laughing behind him. “I guess we’ll just have to convince youse to stay, huh?”

The stranger laughed. “You can try, but I’m afraid I’m married to my job. There isn’t a thing you could say or do to keep me here. I doubt you’d understand. I know a fellow adventurer when I see one, and I just don’t think I see it in you.”

There wasn’t any bite behind it. It was casual and dismissive. But for a split second, Yancy saw red.

“Oh, so it’s like that, is it? You’re just like my dad! Always judging, always dismissin’ me!” His fist connected with Illinois jaw before he had even thought the action through. Smacked the suave look right off his face.

Recoiling slightly, Illinois clutched his face and steeled himself again. He was too cool, too casual. He was leaving himself wide open for Yancy to take another hit. Was he just not going to fight? It pissed Yancy off, he didn’t need some stranger to coddle him in a fight! He threw another punch.

Illinois dodged. And then, all too quick, Yancy’s legs were out from underneath him and he was hitting the ground.

That was effortless. Other than the red mark that would blossom into a bruise on Illinois’ face, he didn’t have a hair out of place.

Illinois held his hand out again. Out of the corner of his eye, Yancy could see the gang rushing over to help him up, probably also try to land some hits of their own on Illinois. He took the hand and let Illinois pull him up.

“You’re courageous, friend, I’ll give you that. But you’re too rash, a little diamond in the rough, maybe. A little bit of polish and you’d be an excellent partner.” He smiled. “I’ll be seeing you around.” And then he threw a final wink at Yancy before sauntering through the crowd to leave. All Yancy could do was stand there and watch.

 There was something off about the following days, Yancy felt. Or maybe there was just something off with him. Whatever it was, he noticed it.

He and Illinois hadn’t spoken since their not-quite-fight, but they’d seen each other at meals and in the yard, and Illinois would smile at Yancy and Yancy would try his best to return it, despite how weird he was feeling.

Illinois had been exploring the penitentiary. He’d tested the ground in every room and knocked on every wall. He had also been talking to all the other guys and even sat with Tiny in comfortable silence. Everyone liked Illinois. Yancy tried to clear his head of whatever he’d been feeling the last few days that was holding him back and walked over.

“I’m not much of a drinker but this really is as good as your reputation suggests!” Illinois finished the last of his hooch wine, before noticing Yancy hovering in the doorway. “Ah, hello again!”

“Hey.” The realisation that he didn’t know what he should say hit him like a bucketful of ice water. “Look, I… I wanted to apologise, I…”

Illinois waved him off and smiled. “Don’t stress over it,” he said gently. “What’s done is done.” Standing, he thanked Hank for the wine and his company. “What do you say? Let’s get to know each other.” Yancy nodded and followed as Illinois led him back to his room. It was pretty empty of any personal effects.

Illinois sat on his bed. After a few seconds of watching Yancy stand there awkwardly, he patted the bed beside him. “You can sit, you know. What are you afraid of? Falling in love?” He joked – or, at least, Yancy was pretty sure it was a joke. He sat down.

“Sorry I hit ya, by the way,” He sighed. “Something youse said just rubbed me the wrong way.”

Illinois waved him off. “It’s forgiven,” he said, smiling warmly at him. “Everyone I’ve talked to has said this place is basically their home. It’s nice but I never stay in the same place long.”

“Why?” Yancy rubbed his chin in thought. “What’s even out there for youse? You don’t have any pictures in here of any family.”

“What isn’t out there?” Illinois grinned. “The thrill of adventure, things so lost they’ve never once been found, companionship, danger, excitement!” He winked. “The chance to fall in love!”

None of those were for Yancy, not that he wanted to say it out loud.

“Adventure, huh?” Yancy paused. “So how youse end up in here? Doesn’t seem like you’re the type to steal anything or kill anyone.”

“Well, I really didn’t lie that it was all a big misunderstanding.” He got up and reached under the bed. “Often I find things other people have stolen, or things that were lost and hidden, and I return them to where they belong.” He pulled out an ornate brass-coloured box with a blue gem on it. “I found this beauty a little while ago and wanted to return it to its home. It led me to the penitentiary and the guards caught me. I’m cool as a cucumber under the pressure of poison dart traps, but even I find it hard to leisurely escape five guards. Anyway, apparently, this had been stolen from a museum and it was all over the news. No one believed that I hadn’t stolen it.”

Yancy smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry that happened. Everyone who ends up here has done something it’ll take us a long time to make up for, but the years ain’t so bad ‘cause we all have each other. Youse didn’t deserve to end up here, but I hope you know you’re one of the gang anyway.”

“Thanks,” Illinois smiled to himself, still turning the box over in his hands. He noticed Yancy staring. “You can take a look if you want.”

Yancy took it from his outstretched hand and ran his fingers over the metalwork. “How old do you think it is?”

“Centuries, at least. Millenia, maybe.” Illinois looked almost wistful. “I think it might be the oldest and most important artefact I’ve ever found.” He preened. “And clearly I’ve risked my life to find and return hundreds.”

“Why do youse think it’s so important? What’s in it?”

Illinois laughed. “I haven’t the slightest idea.” He took it from Yancy and pulled on the lid. “I haven’t been able to get it open.” He handed it back to Yancy, who held it up to his face, searching for a hidden mechanism. “It’s a strange idea but I like to think it’s oddly Schrodinger-esque. That until we open it, there could be anything inside.”

Yancy paused to take the moment in. It’d been a long time since he’d ever had a moment in his life that could only be described as peaceful. Then he noticed something. “Does the box feel weird at all to youse?” He chewed his lip trying to find the words. “Like, it’s not vibrating… but if I focus on it, it kinda feels like it is, you know?”

“Yeah, I felt that too. Also got the strangest sense of déjà vu when I first touched it.” He closed his eyes in thought. “It was like somewhere in the corner of my mind I could remember a partner I’ve never met before. And something’s telling me if I chased that déjà vu I might be able know what’s in there.” He opened them again and smiled straight at Yancy. “Nothing about that makes sense, but I’ve been to stranger places and seen stranger things happen.” Suddenly, his brow furrowed in concern. “The box has really unsettled you, huh? Stop biting your lip, you’re making it bleed.” And then when Yancy released it from between his teeth, Illinois leaned over and wiped the blood away before Yancy could flinch away. He smiled at Yancy again.

His smile made something jerk deep inside Yancy’s chest. He returned it best he could, and in the back of his mind he thought of a beautiful bird trapped in a cage.

-

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! The next chapter should be up in the next few days, once again I’m so sorry for the wait!

[shelbyshoe]

Fairies After Dark

Chapter 1

Natsu, a Horde vampire, desires nothing more than to find his father and leave his brother behind. Lucy, an immortal Valkyrie, just needs to get this Horde bounty off her head. Doesn’t help the assassin after her is a gorgeous vampire with cherry pink hair.

Rated: M (sexual content, violence, and harsh language)

Words: 6713

Chapter 2, Chapter 3

FF.net link here.

NALU set in the Immortals After Dark universe by Kresley Cole. I highly recommend the book series. Check out the wiki for more information. Not required to understand the story, but recommended as the universe is fantastic. Hope you enjoy!

Let’s see, if I move my dinner to next Wednesday, and push sewing day for my man skin quilt to Thursday, then I’m all booked. Sorry to disappoint you. 

-Lucy Heartfilia (AKA Lucy the Celestial Valkyrie)

You know, I love what you've done to the place. I miss the viscera hanging from the ceiling though. 

-Natsu Dragneel (AKA Natsu the Salamander)

The woman in Natsu's arms ground her sex against him, her heart slammed to the beat of the music. He fed in the shadows of the club and didn't look forward to the effect of the alcohol she consumed. No need for him to seduce this woman. She took one look at his perfect form, frozen with immortality at the age of twenty-two, and pursued him mercilessly. She pushed back her mane of dark black hair and slid a hand to the hem of her small tight dress, lifting it for him. He felt no pleasure in her arousal. With his immortality came the cease of his heartbeat and the loss of lust. To this day, he cursed himself for saving himself for his bride, an unknown woman who would one day blood him and bring his heart slamming to life in his frigid chest. He leaned into the woman and ran his lips against her jaw sliding down to her neck. When he tasted her skin, as tempting as Hades’ pomegranate, she moaned against his lips. Natsu opened his mouth, his fangs sharpened like tiny blades. He teased a nick in her flesh— blood beading to the surface. From the small contact, she went boneless in his arms. Her head lulled to the side to allow him better access, and her eyes slid shut. As he sank his fangs into her, she writhed against him. He would be spinning after this. When he had his fill, he licked away the last drops of blood and lay her on one of the V.I.P. couches in the corner. Her chest rose and fell in slumber. He would not drink her to the quick, never could, as doing so caused maddening bloodlust.

Natsu stumbled through the crowd. His head was light from the alcohol and the rush of taking from the flesh of a human. Unlike the Forebearer vampires, who rejected the act, he found the experience wonderful and closest to sex he could have in his current state. The music was too loud for his sensitive ears as he ambled toward an exit. The surrounding mortals, oblivious to what he was, couldn't sense the other immortals that found themselves lost in the throes of passion and music alongside them. A few other vampires took women into dark corners. He nodded toward a rage demon he knew on his way out. To his benefit, in his thousands of years of life, he collected many allies in the Lore and just as many enemies. Loreans, immortals, lived among mortals and remained hidden in fear of the Gods' wrath if exposed. 

The bouncer eyed him on his way out of the club. Natsu, accustomed to this look from the man, flashed him his thousand-watt smile. A few humans in line followed him with their eyes. They raked their gazes across his body. Their breath lifted into the air with the cold so enamored they did not notice air never left his lips. He veered toward an alley to trace away from the bustle of the city. His body blinked out of existence and he found himself in the mountains of Fiore, his home.

His room was just how he left it. A mountain of mess spread out across the room. Clothes littered the floor, tomes of dragons from Lore and collections of maps stacked beneath the castle window, and small trinkets of gems and stones littered along a shelf. His cluttered desk pressed against the stone wall. Maps and journals spread across the surface and more collected trinkets. Anything he could get his hands on to find his father he kept in his room. Last known locations sprawled across the pinboard behind his desk. The paper clippings never showed his name, but always held his signature, Igneel the King of Fire. His space was a haven away from prying eyes. The curtains closed, but he could see the overcast sky hiding the moon. He slid them open to reveal the town below. Fiore, an immortal hub and trading port, bustled beneath his window's gaze.

"I knew I sensed you." Natsu whipped his head toward the door. Gajeel leaned against the frame with a look of disgust.

"Knock, won't you?" Natsu said.

"Why? Jerkin in here, Salamander? Hiding your bride in all this shit?" Gajeel enjoyed using Natsu's age-old name and gestured toward the piles of books and treasures he collected over the years.

"I wish. If you wanted to watch, you just had to ask." He gave a smile that forced the man to cringe.

"Gross. I just came to tell you Sting needs you downstairs."

"What does the heir want now?" Gajeel shrugged, his lean muscles tensed. He didn't hate Gajeel, but he didn't like him either. An enemy vampire turned ally was unpredictable. However, when it came to their hatred for Sting, they got along. Sting's father, Weisslogia the Cruel, killed in battle had led to Sting's current place as the ruler of their sect of Horde vampires. Rumors say Sting assassinated the ancient Vampire himself for the seat, and one day he could seize the throne of all the Horde.

"Fuck if I know." Gajeel straightened in the doorway. He stood much taller than Natsu and madness simmered just behind his eyes. Natsu knew the man in front of him drank to the quick more times than he originally let on. Sometimes, Natsu saw his gaze wander and his eyes glass over in a red haze with an intruding memory of one of his victims. Some vampires collected them with the taste of blood from the flesh. Only when they killed during the act did the thirst begin, and one's mind lost, their eyes burning bright red. Natsu didn't drink from mortals often, but he needed to let off some steam somehow. When Gajeel's claws appeared more entertaining than their conversation, he walked out to the hall, and Natsu followed. The castle halls, his home since the disappearance of his father, loomed in the still darkness. When a Forebearer found him centuries ago, a vampire named Gray, he had wandered the globe in search of Igneel. It took little time for them to argue about everything. Natsu sought nothing more than to be free and forbearing the flesh was not a part of freedom. Gray had urged him to join for protection, and he agreed safety was important in the Lore. The Horde, the next best thing, suited him fine in that regard.

The throne room changed since Sting's father's death. The usual adornment of corpses and blood, that drained through the floor, replaced by books and classy goblets of blood mead.

"Your heinie-ness," Natsu said with an exaggerated bow. Sting scowled from over the book he read. He heard Gajeel snigger from behind him. Sting closed the book with a snap. His claws lengthened across the book's leather.

"I've asked you both not to use that name." Sting's red eyes bore into Gajeel.

"What do you need?" Natsu asked.

"I have been informed tonight that one of ours was slain in your jurisdiction." Fuck. Natsu shrugged. 

"I wasn't aware anyone was sent into my area."

"Maybe, if you weren't whoring around, you would have sensed them," Sting said. His voice continuously business and cold. Natsu didn't know how old Sting was, but the heir liked to act ancient. The older a vampire, the stronger they were. Natsu suspected Sting was younger than he let on. Natsu never asked or hung it over his head, but he could have taken the throne. Sting and his father had not been blood-related after all, and Natsu's strength far surpassed Sting's. However, he found himself far too focused on locating Igneel to take on such a tiresome responsibility.

"You know, I love what you've done to the place. I miss the viscera hanging from the ceiling though," Natsu said pointing toward the chandelier that now hung in its place.

"Don't change the subject." Sting gripped the throne until the metal armrests folded like paper beneath his palms. If Natsu possessed a heartbeat, it would have pounded from the waves of power Sting gave off.

"Who kicked the bucket?" Natsu made sure to keep his face unexpressive. Sting visibly cooled, though his eyes still burned with bloodlust.

"The Minstrel."

"That ancient? Who had the power to bring him down?" Rufus Lore, also known as the Minstrel Who Sings to the Red Moon, was one of the oldest Horde vampires blessed with memory manipulation. Taking on an old bloodlust vampire would have been quite the undertaking.

"I don't know, but I need you to find out." Who would slay such an old and powerful male?

"Fine, I assume you want me to kill them. They can't be too strong. Rufus was always a little wooo if you know what I mean." Natsu twirled a finger around his temple for emphasis. the Minstrel's eyes were bright red from the memories accumulated over a long-life and lost lucidity from what he saw. Rumor had it, he couldn't tell the difference between his memories and theirs. His memory manipulation said to get him through the worst of it. Sting sneered at Natsu's gesture. Probably, hit a sore spot with all the bloodlust the man currently felt.

"I'll be going then." Natsu turned to the exit.

"Before you go, Natsu," Sting said, a smug expression on his lips. "Your brother wants to see you." Natsu's body tensed at the reminder of his brother's existence. The current king of the Horde, just as ruthless and crazed as any other bloodlust vampire, had a few centuries over Natsu. Sting knew his name but referred to him as Natsu's brother to piss him off. Zeref, the vampire known as the Black Wizard, killed the previous king of the Horde. Rightfully killing the king or wiping out the lineage obtained you the seat on the Horde throne. Beside him stood Rogue, Sting's best friend. Natsu loathed him too and didn't know how he got along with Sting so well— they were opposites. Natsu left the castle doors to slam behind him. Sounds drifted up from the town below. He could feel the breeze over his skin, but he could not breathe in the crisp air.

"Fuck that guy," Gajeel said behind him leaning against the closed doors.

"What do you want?" Natsu found himself in a touchy mood.

"To see if you need help with this killer. I'm suspicious."

"Why? Everyone hates vampires in the Lore." It was true that vampires were on everyone's hit list, but other Loreans steered away from ancients like the Minstrel.

"There is no current war or reason to pursue someone so powerful. It just smells fishy to me."

"Then go look into it yourself. I have to go." Natsu did not look forward to his talk with his brother.

"Ain't gotta be a dick about it." Gajeel shrugged and traced away. Natsu followed suit and traced to the Horde castle on their vampiric plane. He stood inside a familiar sitting room. Natsu hated everything about the black castle, the expensive furniture, and the old world feel. A soft fire lit the fireplace and two cups of blood mead sat on a small table beside facing chairs. He sensed another presence in the room.

"Why am I not surprised you knew I'd come to this room?" What little time he stayed in his brother's care he spent in this room pondering over Igneel's disappearance.

"Hello, Natsu." Zeref ambled to a chair before the fireplace and took one of the cups in hand. His red eyes glowing in the darkness, black hair tousled, his skin was gaunt, and his eyes rimmed with lost sleep. Zeref always wore older regal clothing that made him look expensive, but they now looked wrinkled and worn. Natsu stood firmly and crossed his arms.

"What do you want?" He didn't want to stay any longer than he had to.

"Come, sit with me, brother." Natsu winced at the familiar tone in his voice.

"Don't pretend you know me." Zeref never desired a relationship before his adoptive father's disappearance. Natsu didn't know he had a brother until he froze in his immortality. Zeref peered over the side of the large chair and gave him a sharp look.

"Humor me." He placed a lot of power into the command. As much as Natsu wanted to fight him on it, he knew he couldn't leave until he did as Zeref said. He peered at the fireplace. Zeref had either been stupid or confident that Natsu wouldn't use the fire against him. Most vampires had gifts, and Natsu was no different. The fire manipulation gave him his age-old name, Salamander. He sank into the chair across from him.

"You look like shit," Natsu said. Zeref gave him a sharp look before the vampire drained his cup.

"Always lovely to speak to you, little brother." This time, Natsu held his tongue over the mention of their relation. Zeref stared into Natsu's eyes in the unnerving way a cat stares down a fish. "I've looked better."

"Something keeping you up at daylight?" Natsu didn't want to come here and fight with him, no matter how weak he was. The power had always rippled off Zeref like no other he knew. He hated to admit it, but he was grateful Zeref appeared to want to fix their relationship as siblings. Fighting him would prove to be a challenge— one that he would one day take on.

"Isn't there always something that keeps a king from sleep?" He grinned at Natsu shifting his empty cup from one hand to another. His eyes pulled away to stare into the flames. "You don't drink." Natsu's cup of blood mead sat untouched between them.

"I don't drink from a cup I didn't pour."

"Smart, but I have no reason to poison you."

"What do you want, Zeref?" The flames flickered across his red eyes, his focus on something that wasn't Natsu. "Zeref?"

"One day you will know the things that keep me awake," Zeref said. Part of Natsu wanted the man before him dead and reveled in his weakened state, but part of him remained interested in the things that plagued him. Zeref's eyes came back into focus, his face stern "But for now, I heard there was a killing in your jurisdiction."

"Always to remind me of my failures."

"That's not my intention. I wanted to warn you about something." It was the first time Natsu could see Zeref's genuine concern for his wellbeing.

"About the killing?"

"Our oracle has lost sight of you. I worry about you, brother. It is the Accession after all." The Accession happened every five hundred years, a checks-and-balances system for immortals, so killing and mating were soon to ensue. This time, Zeref looked up at Natsu with the furrowed brow of a troubled sibling. "Whoever has killed Rufus the Minstrel may be the very death of you." 

♡♡♡

"Damn Cana to hell," Lucy said between gritted teeth.

"If you keep wiggling, I'll be making these worse," Levy said. With steady hands, she cleaned the gaping wound on Lucy's arm. Lucy arrived at the witch's coven that evening with blood running down her arm, chest, and a smile on her face. Her mood soon soured with the news of the bounty on her head. No one kills an ancient Horde vampire and escapes without consequence.

"Now, I'll have the whole Horde after me."

"Don't you want to kill them all anyway?" Levy cleaned the last of the blood around the wound. Because of her immortality, the cut already began to close.

"Yes, but not all at once!" Lucy could hear the other witches gathered downstairs. Levy had invited her best friend in, threw the bottle of blue nail polish over her shoulder to Juvia, who caught it without taking her eyes off Friday the 13th playing on the TV in the living room, and grabbed the first aid. Lucy's intrusion, not the first time and not the last.

"Why did Cana want you to kill the Minstrel?" Levy wrapped the last bandage around Lucy's arm and packed up the first aid.

"She won a bunch of money in some bet and said she'd pay me for the kill." Levy rolled her eyes but smirked.

"Who would let kooky Cana, the All-knowing soothsayer, in on a bet?"

"Erza didn't want to leave anyone out." Reliving the moment Cana won, and Erza's face transforming into pure regret, amused Lucy.

"Of course, she didn't. Well, did you at least get the money from Cana?"

"Turns out she wasn't entirely lucid when she told me she'd pay for the kill. She couldn't even remember winning the money. I brought her his fangs and everything." Lucy sighed leaning her head back on one of the coven's many beanbag chairs in Levy's room. The room itself plain with few personal effects. When the witch wasn't going back to her bedroom, finding comfort in the upstairs study, the coven told her to just move her stuff there. Levy stood with the first aid in her arms. Lucy pulled a small plastic bag, with fangs inside, out of her pocket and held them up to her friend. "You can have them. Maybe, decorate this abandoned room with them, Levy the Bookworm."

"Levy the All-powerful you mean!" Lucy was grateful for the Valkyrie's alliance with the witches. She often found herself in the cheerful purple Victorian house. The smell of herbs drifted through the house, up to the stairs that wound through the heart, and to the study at the topmost room. The lively coven was calming to Lucy. She didn't hate living with her sisters in Val Hall, but she appreciated the break from the drama and screaming Valkyrie. "Do you want a warding spell?" Levy asked over her shoulder dipping into the small bathroom across the hall. Lucy groaned and struggled to stand from the beanbag chair. She no longer felt the sting of her wounds, sure they already healed, and would remove the bandages later.

"No, I can't go running behind a warding spell. If my sisters thought I was hiding from the Horde, they would chew me out for the rest of eternity." The Valkyrie were all related as sisters or half-sisters, sharing two of their three parents. If it wasn't for the ancient living Book of Lore, no one would believe they came from three parents. When a maiden warrior cries out for courage, the gods Freya and Woden heed her call and strike her with lightning, saving her. They preserve her courage in the form of a daughter, an immortal Valkyrie. Lucy could not dishonor her mother's courage by hiding behind a magical barrier.

Lucy shoved the fangs into her pocket and leaned against the bathroom door. Levy placed the first aid kit back in its rightful place underneath the sink and rummaged through a container of nail polish. She pulled out a purple color and held it up to the light. "I should let you get back," Lucy said. Levy ambled passed her to the hall and waited for her friend to follow.

"You're not staying? It's a horror movie night!"

"Nah, I'm going to take these bad boys to Erol's and see if anyone has a bounty out for this chump." Lucy patted her pocket where the fangs sat like lead. Levy shrugged and padded down the stairs toward the living area. The sounds of conversation and high-pitched orchestral death music came to a crescendo as they went.

"Don't go upstairs, you dummy!" one witch said followed by a resounding groan from all the women.

"Juvia doesn't think that was clever." The screams of said dummy were no more, and the music was quiet.

"You're always welcome here, Lu," Levy said and turned to the rest of the coven. Lucy waved to everyone and left.

Lucy hadn’t been to Erol’s in a long time. The bar nestled in the party district, the same place she had killed the Minstrel. Loreans from all over came to loosen up and make business deals. She heard the bar before she saw it. The neon sign flickered, and the door swung open. A pair of male shapeshifters stomped out laughing, their eyes glowing bright green in the night. They eyed her when she came into view. All Loreans were beautiful— came with the immortal territory. These shapeshifters were no exception.

"Be careful, little fey," one said, his voice low and attractive. She would normally chat them up, but tonight she was on a mission. "There's a demoness in there with quite the attitude." She waved over her shoulder at the warning. Most mistook Valkyries for fey because of their pointed ears. Lucy didn't correct them, as her problems were bigger than a couple of shapeshifters mistaking her for a fey. She pushed through the door and found a group of Lykae at a table near the entrance. One of them she knew and waved her over.

"What are you doing here, Lucy?" Laxus asked. For a moment, as he drank in the sight of her, his usual gray eyes shifted to the bright blue of the Lykae clan.

"Looking for a bounty to claim." She nodded a greeting toward the rest of the table to be polite. "Know of a Minstrel?"

"That ancient vamp? Looking to take him on?" Laxus' grin widened. "Need any help with that?"

"No need," she said and removed the plastic bag from her pocket. "I already took him out." One of the Lykae whistled low.

"Damn, Valkyrie, out for revenge?" one of them asked.

"No, why?"

"Only someone out for revenge would look to get the entire Horde after them for one measly bounty." Lucy internally kicked herself for the same reason and would outwardly kick Cana when she saw her again.

"I was promised money, but my client bowed out."

"I don't blame them," Laxus said eyeing the fangs, "Good luck finding anyone who gets involved with a Horde target." Lucy shrugged and slid the fangs back into her pocket.

"This is the Lore, Laxus. I'm sure someone out there is crazy enough to have a bounty out for the leech." Laxus nodded and tipped a beer glass up to his lips.

"Always welcome to spend some time with us Lykae." His eyes flashed an icy blue. The look was quite the compliment, but she never felt that way toward Laxus, and he never pushed for her interest since she wasn't his mate. The muscular Scots rounded the table with their flashing eyes and wolfish grins. If she was a Lykae's mate, she wouldn't be very upset. Didn't hurt that rumors said they had the highest stamina in the Lore with whispers of mind-blowing sex.

"Thank you, Laxus. I'll have to stop by the Lykae compound one of these days." Lucy was thankful again for the Valkyrie's many alliances and waved at the table on her way to the bar.

"Lucy!" a sweet and boisterous voice called from a table close to the bar. A small silver-haired woman waved her over. Beside her sat a large muscular man and a smaller woman with short silver hair. All of them looked to be related. She guessed they were demons, as the man's horns wrapped around the sides of his head like all the other demons she knew. Horns were a show of power and extremely sensitive to the touch.

"Do I know—"

"Erza asked us to find you here. I'm Mira, this is my sister Lisanna, and brother Elfman." Lucy took the chair that Mira slid out for her.

"How do you know Erza?"

"We go way back. She told me not to tell you, but she wanted me to help you with some leech."

"Of course, she did." Erza was one of the eldest and like a mother to everyone, except Cana. Not surprising that she looked after Lucy.

"No need, I already killed him." She tossed the fangs on the table. She tired of them burning a hole in her pocket. Lisanna's face morphed into disgust.

"Did you have to pull his fangs out?" she asked. Lucy allowed herself to grin with pride.

"How else was I supposed to have proof of my kill?" Most of the sisters kept proof of their kills like trophies. Erza's collection remained the largest. Her row of fangs longer than her assortment of armor. Lisanna's eyes widened in surprise, and Mira laughed.

"I like you, Valkyrie. Erza was right, you are a troublemaker. She knew you would be able to kill him. She wanted me to help you with the bounty."

"Why would you do that?"

"I'd like to do business in the future," she said eyeing her brother, who shrank under her gaze. "If our family requires a little muscle, we'd like help from the Valkyrie."

"Sure, what are the terms—" A large demon bumped into a tiny barmaid and sent her to the floor. The demon spared her not a glance and sat at the bar ordering demon brew. Elfman tensed and Lisanna rose from the table to help the barmaid clean the mess. Mira rolled her eyes at her brother and opened her mouth to speak to the demon at the bar.

"Are you going to say you're sorry?" Elfman asked. His voice was loud but shaky and unpracticed. His eyes glinted in malicious inky black.

"What did you say?"

"You just rammed into her. You should apologize." Elfman stood to confront him. Mira's mouth hung open and her eyes widened. Lucy believed this was an uncommon behavior.

"Don't worry about it," the barmaid said to Lisanna, "I'm just an inferi. I'm used to it."

"That's ridiculous. Of course, I'll help you," Lisanna said. The barmaid's light brown hair fell in her face. Other than the rags she wore, she appeared pretty and buxom. Lucy felt bad for her. Inferi were sorceri who had their root power stolen from them and rendered them a slave to the sorcery who took it from them. The owner of this inferi was nowhere in sight. Lucy had only encountered a few sorceri in her life. This woman must be telling the truth. Sorceri wore armor and masks, and this inferi didn't even have any jewelry on. Most of them were masters of poisons and kept them hidden inside their jewelry and armor. The sorceri took these from her to keep her helpless. The idea sickened Lucy. Whoever owned this one, treated them poorly.

Another crash resounded in the bar. Elfman shoved the demon and demanded an apology for the barmaid, who was shrinking by the second trying in vain to cease Lisanna's help. Both demon's horns straightened preparing to fight. Lucy didn't wish to get in the middle of a demon fight and scooted away.

"You will do as he says," Mira said with a death grip on the demon's wrist. He gritted his teeth, his brow furrowed in pain. His silence earned him another squeeze to which he grunted. Mira moved quick enough for Lucy not to have noticed when she left the table. "Now," she ordered. The demon glared up at Elfman and eyed the inferi on the ground.

"I'm— ugh, go fuck yourself demoness." This was the wrong answer. Mira grasped his wrist and threw him on his back. The wooden floor splintered beneath him. Her appearance changed, her hair wild and untamed, her eyes darkened to pitch black, and her outfit skintight and more suited for one of the Death Demon clan. With each kill, they would become stronger, and Mira appeared ready to bathe in the blood of her enemies with acquired strength. The shapeshifters were right, a demoness raged inside. The demon on the floor mumbled something unintelligible into the wooden and passed out. Mira morphed back to the shapely and kind woman Lucy first met. Lisanna, undisturbed by the commotion, took everything from the barmaid and carried it high above her head all on one hand toward the bar. When she gazed up at her brother, she patted him on the shoulder with a grin.

"Congrats, brother," she said and disappeared behind the bar. Elfman's eyes too had turned pitch-black, but Lucy did not sense rage when he stared down at the inferi on the floor.

"Well would you look at that," Mira said tossing her head back to laugh at the sight. "We'll talk later, Lucy. I'll be sending you the bounty money." She grabbed the fangs from the table and slipped them into her dress. She turned all her attention to the barmaid on the floor and helped her up. "What's your name?" she asked the woman.

"Evergreen."

Lucy said goodbye to the siblings and happily made her way out of the bar. She hoped the sorceri who claimed Evergreen's powers had a written will, as the demon siblings were going to rip them limb from limb.

The fangs out of her pocket, Lucy felt free to do whatever she wanted. She strolled toward a night club she heard about a few times from other Loreans looking for a party. Dancing sounded like an effective way to relax, yet something else drew her that she couldn't place.

♡♡♡

Natsu traced to the familiar alleyway and leaned against the cool brick wall. The Minstrel's killer could be anywhere by now, but he just wanted to lose himself in a soft throat. The beat from the club muffled where he stood. As soon as the bouncer saw Natsu, the man glared in his direction.

"Aw come on, Charlie—"

"It's Brad."

"Okay, Ben. Listen, you want to let me in." Natsu grinned up at the mortal. Every word dripped with power as he stared him down. Whatever the man saw in Natsu's face made him move to the side for him to enter. "Thanks, Bryan." He patted the bouncer on the shoulder and sauntered through the club doors. The sounds and sensations bombarded him as soon as he entered, but one presence stood out. He couldn't make out what direction it was coming from, but it was intoxicating. Their heartbeat like a pounding drum in his ears, a calm in the storm of people. Natsu circled toward the bar, scanning the crowd on the dance floor. Immortals packed in everywhere inside the club. The live DJ bobbed his head to the bass.

"We have to talk." The deep voice slid beside him at the bar.

"Not interested, Gray." Natsu didn’t need to look beside him to know who spoke. The vampire’s presence irritated him as much as his voice. The heartbeat from before grew louder and just as quickly vanished from his earshot.

"There's still time, Natsu. You're not filled with bloodlust yet." Gray stood stiff as a board with discomfort beneath the red hue of the bar light. He wore a white coat with fur around the hood. Gray's eyes trained around him. Observant ass.

"I'll pass." Gray never showed his face in Natsu's jurisdiction. This night just kept getting worse. "I have some business to attend to right now."

"Surely, you are around bloodlust vampires. You know how they have lost their minds, and you still plan to take from the flesh?"

"Look, I already told you I want nothing to do with the Forebearers. I want my freedom."

"Do you have that now?" Natsu, on edge before, wanted to cause some violence. The building would look wonderful covered in his flames. The fire rose in his throat with the image. Gray wasn't off base. There was no freedom in this world and even the Horde had rules. Associating himself with Zeref enraged him, but he needed protection and his brother proved useful.

"What if I told you I have a lead on your father?" Natsu's eyes snapped to Gray.

"How do you know—"

"Just come with me. Join us and I can help you," Gray said, "Or would you rather take orders from your brother?" Natsu grabbed the man's collar in his heated grip and pushed him against the bar. When Natsu flashed the bartender a glare, the human backed off from the ruckus.

"Looking into me?"

"Of course." Gray's serene expression pissed Natsu off the most. The bastard was cocky, knew he could take him, and had information on his lineage.

"Why do you want me so badly?"

"It's the accession, Natsu. We need everyone we can get." Natsu's grip loosened.

"I'm on no one's side." The presence and loud heartbeat, that intrigued him before, slammed loud in his ears. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of golden hair. He twisted to look for them.

"What is it?" Gray raised a brow.

"This conversation is over," Natsu said, body screaming to leave and find the owner of the sound. Gray eyed him curiously but didn't try to stop him. Natsu pushed club-goers out of the way. The presence brought him to the back of the building, and like a man possessed he followed. An intoxicated woman grabbed him and attempted to pull him toward the dance floor. On a normal night, he would have guided her to a dark corner, but he couldn't get the presence out of his head. The flash of gold hair piqued his curiosity. With his acute hearing, he heard the back-door slam shut behind someone taking the heartbeat with them. He all but shoved the woman off him and elbowed his way toward the door. The rush of outside air whipped his cherry hair into his eyes. He slid a hand through to tame the strands. The door opened to a back alley. A woman made her way toward the street, her long blonde hair brushed from side to side against her ample bottom. Her heart sang in his ears.

"Hey, wait," Natsu said. She stopped and turned her head to eye him— and eye him she did. Her caramel gaze raked his body, and unlike the humans from before, it left him with a shiver down his spine. He stood a little taller under her inspection.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Who are you?"

"Interesting pick-up line," she said raising a brow. The mystery woman smiled forcing him to grin back. She tilted her head a little more. A long braid at the front of her hair fell over her shoulder and revealed a pointed ear. He could only assume she was fey, a ruthless race known as master archers, but she lacked a bow. He spotted a curled-up whip and a strange set of golden keys snug against her shapely hip. She was a mystery that intrigued him.

"Meeting someone?" He imagined her meeting with a man and felt his body tense with the possibility.

"What's it to you?" She turned to fully face him. He cursed softly at her figure. Her hips met a slim waist and ample breasts that nearly spilled out of her top.

"Hoping to be the one you meet," he said. She crossed her arms and tapped her chin with a slender finger tipped with a tiny painted claw.

"Let's see, if I move my dinner to next Wednesday," she said running her finger across an invisible list, "and push sewing day for my man skin quilt to Thursday, then I'm all booked. Sorry to disappoint you." His cheeks ached from how much he smiled at her. Her wit so far, the most attractive thing about her.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"You first."

"I'm Natsu Dragneel." He closed the gap between them.

"And what are you Dragneel?" She eyed him again at closer proximity. Natsu straightened with her appraisal, for whatever reason he wished to impress her.

"Ah-ah, I answered your question. Now, answer mine."

"Lucy Heartfilia." Her name was just as beautiful as she was. From so close, her heart sped up in his ears. Lucy was enthralling.

"What do you think I am?"

"Ah-ah," she said stepping toward him, "I answered your question."

"Guess." His voice was a command and came out lower than he expected. She raised a brow in response.

"Okay, I'll bite. Either a demon or a leech." She pointed toward his mouth; her eyes locked on his lips. "You have fangs." Be still his heart, she was witty and observant.

"Whatever you want me to be as long as I can take you out." He wanted to do more than just take Lucy out on a date. He imagined taking her throat in his castle room, her heart pounding as loudly as her moans in his ears. "Could take you anywhere you want to go. I've traveled the world."

"Tricky. Demons and vampires can trace."

"I feel like you enjoy challenges as much as I do. Tell me what you think I am, and I'll confirm or deny." A sly grin spread across her lips and she leaned in closer. She eyed him again, taking longer over his exposed arms and shoulders.

"Demon," she said with a hopeful note. He crossed his arms over his chest in an "x" and made a buzzer sound with a smile.

"Incorrect." All at once her eyes widened, and she took a few steps back.

"I better be going." Natsu dropped his arms in his confusion. While most Loreans weren't fond of vampires, they tolerated the ones without the red haze of bloodlust. Natsu's, he knew, were clear. This one wasn't a fan, as she called vampires "leeches."

"Why in a hurry?" Even though her body was beginning to turn away from him, her eyes still darted to his mouth. She turned toward the street. "Wait, did I do something wrong?" he asked. Natsu couldn't stop his hand from darting out to take her arm gently. Her skin like the comfort of fire against his as he took his first breath after centuries without the need. The air chilled his unpracticed lungs. His long-dormant heart spurred to life. The feeling nothing that he could remember from his childhood with a heartbeat. He pulled her towards him. A breath escaped her in a rush, and he took in the scent of her arousal— better than he ever dreamed. Her breaths labored with the rise and fall of her breasts and her chest flushed under his gaze. After all this time he had found her, like a gift from the gods themselves, his bride.

[yasuda-yoshiya]

Sorry I haven’t been around here much lately! The last few weeks (/months, really) have been rough for me, but I’m feeling a bit better at least for now. For now I’ll just drop some overdue thoughts here on some of the things I’ve been watching since I finished Utena:

Princess Tutu

I found Tutu to be a really sweet and charming show with a ton of heart, but I'm also sad to say that I don't think watching it straight after Utena did it any favours for me. Utena portrayed the same kinds of themes around breaking out of predefined narratives in a way that personally hit home for me a lot harder, so Tutu ended up feeling a bit like a watered down version of the same ideas to me... Which is a shame because I do still think it's a really cool show with a lot to like about it! It's visually and aesthetically gorgeous, I adore its whole cosy meta-fairytale atmosphere and the ballet theme and the whole general feel of the show a lot - it just didn't end up leaving that much of a lasting impression on me in the end. I may well come back and revisit it some day, because I feel like I'd probably get more out of it coming in with a clearer idea of what to expect and without Utena's shadow unfairly hanging over it.

For the characters, I loved Ahiru and Fakir! They were both so endearingly earnest and I really liked the respective directions they ended up taking both of their character arcs and their relationship (Fakir passionately rewriting the story to be about Ahiru's bravery and courage at the end made me cry so hard! That's like, the exact kind of individual heartfelt expression of love that hits straight to my heart when it comes to fictional couples, waaaah...)

Mytho and Rue were a bit harder to connect with for me; I felt like I couldn't really get invested in Rue's feelings for Mytho for the most of the show since the backstory around them wasn't revealed until the very end. (I did like Ahiru and Rue's relationship quite a bit, though! That sort of feeling of the narrative artificially pushing them into being enemies when they really could have helped each other as friends was well done.) On Mytho's end I just never clicked at all with the whole raven blood subplot that seemed to dominate his character in the second season, unfortunately. I couldn't make it meaningfully connect for me, even though I had quite liked him as a character in the first half of the series (even in just my generic "hnng cute boys struggling with the idea of having feelings" way). I'd be interested to see on a rewatch whether those two would work better for me having a better idea of where their trajectory was going from the start, since I felt like I didn't really "get" what they were going for with their relationship or how I was supposed to be reading them until the very end (I'm slow okay).

Steven Universe

What an absolutely lovely series! I've been wanting to check this out for a long time, and I'm glad I finally got the chance because it really is excellent. I totally fell in love with the whole Crystal Gem family, and the balance between them all having their own personal issues to deal with while still being able to draw love and support from each other was done really well. I really loved the handling of Steven's PoV in the first couple of the series especially for how they handled his growth around coming to understand that his parental figures are really flawed people who have a lot of baggage to deal with, but also without framing their personal problems or their relationships with each other as being at all within either his power or responsibility to "fix". Instead, his moments of growth are more about more consciously registering the burdens they're under and making those little gestures to ease them wherever he can, like consciously showing appreciation for their parenting efforts with the test, or giving Amethyst more time to vent things out with her friend when she's stressed out instead of asking her to take him home right away. Likewise, on the gems' end, we really get the sense that e.g. Pearl's love for Steven is real and valuable and "saves" her in a very real sense, but also that it's not going to ever fully erase her depression or her grief over losing the life she had with Rose before and that that's okay.

I would say as the show went on, it felt like it lost some of the grounded and occasionally harsh nature that originally drew me to it - the first couple of seasons felt like they had a sort of constant legitimate tension in the background with the gems trying hard to keep things together in a hard situation in a way that still obviously had its cracks in it, and a sort of acknowledgment that "maybe not everything will be okay, but there's still a lot of good in the world and in our relationships that's worth living for", which I appreciated. Whereas I felt like they moved a bit more towards unambiguously positive resolutions as the show went on, with a bit less of that willingness to leave things "unresolved". (Of course the show still has a lot of those moments, like the reveal of Rose's past in particular, but even then I wished that the fallout from the reveal and its lasting impact on the gems was given more time and weight than it was.) That feeling culminated for me in the finale of series 5 and the way the plot with the diamonds was resolved, where it felt like the show pretty much parted ways with reality entirely and fully embraced a kind of ideal fantasy positivity.

But I don't think that's necessarily a totally bad thing, either - it's still a very genuine and heartfelt kind of positivity that can be hard to find in narratives as unapologetically queer as SU is (especially in media targeted at young kids!) and I'm sure a lot of people really need that gap filled in their lives, so I can't really bring myself to resent it overall. The characters remain as endearing and lovable as ever, the show still made me smile from beginning to end, and all in all I have nothing but great appreciation for all the important ground it's willing to tread as a kids' show touching on a lot of extremely relevant contemporary issues in a positive and responsible way. It honestly makes me feel really happy and hopeful to think of kids getting to grow up with a show like this! So while I might personally have ended up resonating more with the show if they'd taken a different direction, I feel like I still have a lot of respect and understanding for the route they did end up taking, too, and I'm glad to have experienced it.

Mob Psycho 100

I thought this was a very cool and interesting show! As "deconstructing shounen tropes" series go, I feel like this one successfully hits a unique sort of sweetspot for me in the way that, rather than brutally tearing apart shounen conventions out from the roots (which is also something I can enjoy a lot when it's done well!), it's instead focusing on taking a lot of the genuinely positive ideas that draw people to shounen - the ability to overcome adversity through personal growth and "the power of bonds/friendship", positivity in the face of despair, and so on - and re-examining them through a more grounded context that asks "Okay, but what does that actually look like in the real world?" Because, you know, it definitely DOESN'T look like people with magical god-given superpowers blasting through everything that challenges them with the sheer force of their specialness and their pre-assigned role as the "main character", right?

So I was really impressed by Mob as a series for not only being so thorough about deconstructing that (to the point that the voice encouraging Mob to use his powers more and be a super special hero is an outright "devil on the hero's shoulder" kind of character!), but also for going that extra step to examining what real positive growth actually DOES look like. I felt like the series did a remarkably insightful job overall (especially in the second series) of sort of gently but firmly differentiating "real growth" from "shounen growth" in that sense. I really loved those little touches like the Emi episode, where the viewer is effectively led to expect a moral about how "people will like you more if you act more genuine and be yourself!" - but then the show very deliberately switches gears to the idea that trying to be more genuine is already worthwhile in and of itself, just because you're living in the world with a more conscious awareness of what's important to you and standing up for the things you care about, and how that authentic way of living can inspire other people and have a positive impact on them too.

And similarly, I absolutely love Mob and Reigen's weird, messy, problematic relationship being the emotional centrepiece of the series, because it's the exact opposite of the kind of friendship you'd expect to be centred in a "POWER OF BONDS!!" themed show, but that's also why it just... really really works! It's such a humble and near-accidental and flawed and limited connection, and I love that Reigen is also allowed to impact Mob in negative ways and have selfish motivations and be unambiguously portrayed as a genuinely pathetic and terrible person and a bad influence on him too, and that the show doesn't remotely shy away from that - and yet somehow it still absolutely shines through that both of them would be worse off without each other, that the "power of their bond" really has changed them both for the better as people. Not through any incredible magic connection, but just through those little moments where they save each other through things like Reigen telling Mob "It's okay to run away", or Mob telling Reigen "You're a good guy".

Because the show is so upfront about the limitations of their "bond", it really does make the emphasis on its positive impact and how fortunate the two of them are to have been influenced by each other really work and have value, I think - because it comes across as that kind of approachable, recognisable "miracle" that really can and does happen in people's daily lives. It doesn’t claim to be a perfect friendship, or to have the capability to fix all their individual problems just by existing, but it does still come across loud and clear that they’ve been a genuinely positive force in each other’s lives. I definitely came away from it with a greater appreciation for those little chance encounters and humble relationships that have helped me and shaped me as a person! On the whole, I'm sure the show isn't for everyone, but I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys shounen as a genre at all, because I feel that it really works as a remarkably critical and self-aware yet loving celebration of the spirit behind those kinds of stories.

[dazzlingphoenix]

Dragons of Lockra: Shards of Dawn Light

Chapter 2: Alliances, Tensions, And a Touch of Madness

The queen kept her sharp gaze on her daughter, as if saying "I still haven't forgiven you for breakfast".

"Not now Veneasha," Ruby finally spoke, turning her head back to the other dragons. "I'm working with this squadron to investigate the Rain-Thorn border. Wait outside." The sorry face of Fergjin peeked around the queen then back at the table in between them. The princess sighed and stayed by the entrance, waiting for her turn to speak.

As her mother discussed her ideas, Veneasha decided to look at the other dragons. There was Ruby, of course, the oldest and largest dragon in the room. Fergjin was across from her, and he brandished a new necklace with letters etched into it. He sat straighter and much more tense, his face trying to stay serious as he spoke.

Ruby must've appointed him Squad Captain. Veneasha realized. Two Rain Fliers and two other Dawn Feathers accompanied Fergjin and Ruby. Their words started to go in one ear and out the other, boring the princess to no end. A tug at her tail made her turn around.

A young Rain Flier dragonet was playing with Veneasha's tail, picking it up and plopping it back down as well as running her talons over the feathers. The dragonet looked to be barely 5 years old.

"Hello there," The princess smiled, getting the attention of the small rain dragon.

"Hi!" She chirped, waving a webbed hand. "What's your name?"

"I'm Veneasha." The heir said politely.

"That name makes no sense." The young dragon said blatantly, making the princess's smile faulter. "It's not even a word!"

"Names don't have to be words," Veneasha explained. "Like my sister, Vara. What's your name?" The little dragon smiled, her thin sharp teeth shining like snow.

"My name is Angelfin! Like the fish!" She giggled, flapping her wings excitedly as she coughed slightly. Her enthusiasm was infectious, making the princess laugh as well.

"It's nice to meet you Angelfin." Veneasha held her hand out for her to shake. Angelfin tilted her hand then held her hand out as well. She didn't shake Veneasha's hand, but just held it out like the princess had. The princess chuckled and grabbed Angelfin's hand, shook it, then set it back down.

"What's a dragonet like you doing here in the Dawn Feather tribe?" Veneasha asked her.

"Oh," Angelfin said. "Auntie Fogbank brought me with her and uncle Oyster to the super secret important meeting they're having in there! Can you believe it? They're talking with Ruby! The QUEEN of the DAWN FEATHERS!! Oooh they're so lucky!"

That's what you think. The princess thought bitterly.

“Well, what would you rather be,” Veneasha asked. "An old queen that's stuck in her castle all day, or a totally cool and free princess?" That made the dragonet think, tapping a talon on her chin.

Her attention was averted to the other dragons as one raised his voice.

"Why not just attack them already?!" The Rain Flier asked, slamming his talons on the table. Judging by there being only two rain dragons, Veneasha guessed that that was Oyster.

"Angelfin," The princess said slowly. "Can you go pick me some flowers?"

"Oh yes! I can do that!" Angelfin happily trotted over to the grass, sometimes flapping her wings when she got too excited. Veneasha turned her attention back to the shouting dragon, who seemed to have gotten angrier.

 "They're clearly a threat!" Oyster argued. "Why haven't we just wiped them out entirely already?!"

All of the dragons gasped, including Veneasha. The queen towered over the dragon, glaring down at him.

How could a dragon just say that?! She asked herself in horror. Especially to a queen!

"Oyster," Ruby growled. "You know very well that is against the Honor Law."

"To Blackmoon with the Honor Law!" Oyster snarled, making everyone flinch. Except for Ruby.

"Oyster, breaking the Honor Law would revoke Queen Ruby of her throne!" The female Rain Flier, who Veneasha guessed was Fogbank, argued. "Plus, we don't know if King Briar even knows about these dragons taking our water! It's not worth going to war over!" Oyster didn't seem to be listening, getting angrier and angrier.

"What would you rather happen Fogbank," The male asked loudly. "No threat, or being wiped out by an entire tribe of venomous assassins?!"

"That's ENOUGH!" Ruby roared, making the entire room silence. "Guards, restrain this dragon and send him to the prison at once!"

"WHAT?!" Oyster screeched as Fergjin and the other dragons, including Fogbank, started to grab him. Veneasha stared at the fray, wanting to leap in there and help, but knew her mother would ground her for a millenia. One of the Dawn Feathers managed to pin Oyster with his stomach on the ground, putting all of his weight on the furious Rain Flier.

“I’LL KILL ALL OF YOU!” Oyster started to scream, thrashing underneath the guard like a fish under the talons of a dragon.

“I am so sorry your majesty,” Fogbank bowed to her. “He is never like this, I promise! He must've gotten ill. I’ll take him back to my queen if you wish.”

“I guess that’s easier than transporting him back to my prisons and trying to explain it to Aurora.” Ruby admitted in a sigh, losing her usually professional grammar. “I’ll have a Sapphire Squadron escort you to make sure he stays harmless.” Fogbank gave another bow to the queen as the guards placed wing clamps and a muzzle on the raging dragon.

“What are you still doing here Veneasha?” Ruby asked her, turning her attention back to her daughter. “I thought I told you to wait outside.”

“Well it’s hard to stay outside when there’s exciting things happening on the inside.” Veneasha argued, standing her ground. Her mother glowered down at her and turned back to the maddened restrained dragon.

“Mother,” Veneasha said, following her inside. “There’s a dragonet outside, the niece of Oyster and Fogbank.”

“So?” The queen huffed.

“I don’t think it’d be good if she saw her own uncle being dragged away by dawn dragons.” She explained, putting an emphasis on 'dawn dragons'.

"I think it's best if she gets sent home either before or after the transportation of Oyster." Veneasha saw her mother ponder, oblivious to the scene behind her that consisted of Fergjin and Fogbank trying to drag said mad dragon away from the barracks.

“Fine,” Ruby sighed after thinking. “You can take the dragonet home now. I’ll give you two a half hours headstart.”

“Me?” Veneasha asked, blinking in surprise.

“Yes,” Her mother said with a dismissive wave of a hand. “If you are so concerned about her then you can take her home to her tribe.” The princess glanced outside at the dragonet. Her pale blue scales gleamed in the now strong sunlight as she gathered handfuls of mountain flowers.

I have to get Fergjin to Gamehna though..! Veneasha thought to herself. She looked back at her mother to speak but found she was already talking with one of the Sapphire Squad members. She sighed and trotted back outside.

“Angelfin?” Veneasha called out to her. The young dragonet looked up from the grass and smiled, running over on three feet with one raised in the air, clutching flowers.

“I got the flowers Veneasha!” Angelfin smiled, flapping her wings again. The princess giggled and grabbed the small flowers.

“Angelfin,” The heir started, mixing a few of the flowers in with her feathers. “Do you want to hear something cool?”

“Always!” She said loudly, making the young dragon cough. After a few seconds later she looked back up and smiled.

“Well,” Veneasha knelt down a bit and started to whisper. “The queen just gave us a special mission!” Angelfin’s eyes widened, her jaw dropping open slightly. The princess giggled quietly and continued. “She wants you to show me your home so I can tell her all about it!”

“REALLY?” Angelfin asked loudly, coughing again afterwards. “That’s SO COOL!” She said while still coughing.

She sounds sick.. The little dragon kept coughing, slowly getting it under control after a few more seconds. The cough sounded bad, but if her parents let her leave the heir was sure it shouldn't be contagious.

"Just show me the way!" Veneasha said to Angelfin, spreading her green and purple wings. The rain dragon nodded and spread her wings as well. Instead of starting to fly, she jumped and hovered over to the princess, landing on her back.

"I can't fly that long," Angelfin explained before she could ask. "And so uncle Oyster usually carries me!" 

"Okay.." Veneasha mumbled, righting herself. "You're going to have to tell me where to go once we get there though, alright?"

"Alright!" The dragonet laughed, flapping her wings. The princess started to run, beginning her flight, then jumped into the air and flew. Angelfin started to laugh excitedly, making Veneasha smile.

They flew up and over the rocky hills that made up the Dawn Feather tribe outskirts. Soon only trees were below them, their broad leaves creating waves of emerald that rivaled the gem itself.

"You're WAY faster than uncle!" Angelfin shouted happily, a cough escaping her lungs. Veneasha laughed and sped up, soaring quicker as the dragonet clung to her underbelly tighter.

A few minutes later the sun started to reflect into the princess's eyes from the horizon. Neonripple Lake was almost within view. The vast freshwater body took ten minutes to fly across from the Dawn border. Veneasha, deciding to make some fun out of it, swooped down to the surface of the water. She tilted her body, one of her wings dipping into the water and spraying Angelfin, whom of which laughed.

The spray from the lake beaded into drops of water on the princess's scales, which actually felt good considering the heat beating down on her scales from the sky above. Veneasha dipped her head down and swallowed a gulp of water as she flew over the vast body of water.

"There's the palace!" Angelfin cried happily, pointing with her wings. Veneasha looked ahead, her eyes widening. A tall and winding castle gleamed before them, its cream color resembling the beautiful spheres it's named after. Dens made of hardened mud and leaves dotted the edge of the grand tribe, looking like ants in front of the castle.

They arrived at the Palace of Pearls.

Flying closer Veneasha could see the details etched into the towers. Gold and silver metal plates spiraled upwards, making the structure shine even more than it already was. Intricate blue and green mosaics of their first ruler King Brine and the other heroes wrapped around the curves of the castle. Veneasha even saw Queen Disyun, but with a green snout.

Weird.

"That way Veneasha!" Angelfin giggled, pointing to the entrance to the palace. The princess slowly glided down and to the entrance, shocking the guardsdragons as she trotted over. She let the dragonet slide off her back as she walked.

"Princess," One asked. "What brings you to the Rain Flier tribe?"

"Wait," Angelfin looked up at her. "You're a PRINCESS?"

"Guilty!" Veneasha laughed, smiling at her. Angelfin went slack jawed in awe for a few moments as the dawn dragon spoke. "I'm here to drop off Angelfin. Her aunt and uncle, Fogbank and Oyster, will be here in about half an hours time with the Sapphire Squadron."

"OH MY BLACKMOON," Angelfin suddenly shouted. "I GET TO SHOW A PRINCESS MY HOME!" She coughed hoarsely but the sparkle never left her orange and yellow eyes. The dragonet grabbed Veneasha by the talon and started to drag her inside the palace. "Come on!" She cheered.

"We'll tell you when the squadron arrives." The guard told Veneasha with an understanding smile. She mouthed the words "thank you" before following Angelfin into the palace.

She was used to sticking out, being a princess and all. But here, where most dragon wore scales of blue, green, and purple, Veneasha stood out like a sore talon. Rain dragons would gasp, stop, and bow to her. That she was used to. What she was not expecting was every single dragon bowing to her. In the Dawn tribe, everyone knew Veneasha and treated her almost like any other dragon. Here, she was treated like actual royalty.

Angelfin lead the princess through long carpeted corridors, the pale yellow-orange of the pearl walls weren't as blinding as Veneasha's box of jewelry, but it was definitely a close second right next to the sun itself. Dark wooden doors made heavy contrast against the near white.

"Over here!" Angelfin ran ahead of Veneasha and around a corner. The princess followed her, eventually arriving at a room labeled "Guardsdragon Cyclone" in smooth dragon scratch. The dragonet bounced inside, letting Veneasha slowly saunter inside.

The room was large, much larger than many flats dens in the Dawn tribe. Since she was in the palace, Veneasha had to guess Angelfin's family was upper class. That, and the fact that Fogbank and Oyster were covered in gold and pearls.

A large window gazed out to the lake, letting the sun's rays beam inside and light the room up with it's golden warmth. Splashing made Veneasha turn her attention to a small waterfall against a wall in which Angelfin was playing in. She giggled and looked around the room some more.

Scrolls and books in cubbies were neatly stacked on shelves against the walls, each labeled with a different subject. A large bed was tucked away in a corner, a nightstand with several books standing next to it. Turning around, there was a hallway that looked like it lead to two other rooms.

"What rooms are down there?" Veneasha asked Angelfin. The dragonet stopped her playing and looked over.

"Oh! Those are mine and Zarshaul's bedrooms!" She explained cheerfully. "But auntie and uncle moved in with us, and so auntie sleeps in my room and uncle sleeps in Zarshaul's room!"

"And I'm still trying to sleep!" An annoyed voice groaned from one of the rooms.

"Zarshaul," Angelfin giggled. "It's past midday! You should get your lazy tail out here!" More tired groans and mumbles made their way to the two dragons, muffled by the thick walls. A door swung open and a groggy rain dragon walked out. Once he saw Veneasha he froze.

"..Angelfin?" He asked.

"Yeah?" She responded, trying to suppress her giggles.

"Am I still dreaming or is one of the Dawn Feather tribe heirs to the throne in our living room?"

"You're not dreaming pal." Veneasha chuckled, giving a small head bow. "Princess Veneasha, here to drop off your… sister?"

"Yeah, she's my sister.." Zarshaul said quietly, still dumbfounded. "Wait, where's Fogbank and Oyster?" He asked quickly.

"Oh," The princess gave an awkward look. "Well.. They were talking with my mother- Queen Ruby- about.. some things that were happening with your tribe."

"You mean the water?" Angelfin asked innocently.

"Yeah, the water," Veneasha nodded. "Anyways. Your uncle got a little upset about something and started to yell, and so.. how do I put this?" The princess started to think.

"Oyster, getting upset about something?" Zarshaul interrupted with a huffed laugh. "That's hard to believe. The guy's a pacifist, he wouldn't even raise his voice at a Thorn Runner assassin."

"Yeah! He's really nice!" Angelfin nodded, agreeing with her brother. "He even lets me stay up past my bedtime to look at the lake sometimes!"

"Really?" Veneasha asked, slightly surprised. "Because when I saw him, he was… the exact opposite of nice."

"What's the opposite of nice to you, princess?" The rain dragon asked snarkily. "Not complimenting your tribe? Not saying 'Your Majesty' after every sentence?"

"No," The princess said in a lower voice. "I mean he was threatening to break the Honor Law and to kill my mother." Instead of a shocked reaction like she expected, Zarshaul just laughed. Angelfin seemed upset, but her brother clearly wasn't.

"What kind of snake tale are you weaving here?" He asked haughtily. "Oyster would never do that!"

The loud roars of dragons averted the three's attention outside. They quickly trotted over to the window to see what was going on. Veneasha winced when she saw the siblings' reactions. Although he was muzzled, she could clearly hear the threats he was shouting at those who carried him over.

 The Sapphire Squadron had arrived with Oyster.

[groundramon]

I’m bored and I cant focus on my drawing so...

Since I’ve been ratting on Teen Titans all week even tho I insist I like the show (I SWEAR TO GOD I DO...I was off-put at first but? its okay, its hard for shows to immediately hook me), I think it’s only fair to list some of my major problems with some of my all-time favorite shows and some other shows that are currently on that aren’t really my favorite, but I still think are objectively decent and arguably pretty damn good.

I’m not gonna go in order from best to worst but here we go: (keep reading tag because this is going to get really fucking long and ik i dont usually do this with my rants but i feel like i should this time, idk im inconsistent this is a personal blog sorry)

Steven Universe: - I sometimes feel bad critiquing SU because it’s not too far into its run.  I love the show, some of the moments and even full episodes are legitimately mesmerizing, but it...has quite a few problems, yeah.

- The one I bitch the most about is the pacing.  Steven Universe tries to combine serialized storytelling, which is telling an overarching story over the course of several episodes (IE Avatar: The Last Airbender, most anime, ect), and episodic storytelling, which is telling several smaller stories that each fit in one episode with little to nothing connecting them besides the characters (IE SpongeBob, We Bare Bears, most cartoons honestly).  But emphasis on “tries”; Steven Universe, unfortunately, is not very good at blending these two styles.  Steven Universe ridgedly adheres to the idea of having a season that is half filler/”townie” episodes and half “cool alien”/plot-related stuff - and this is something that’s been confirmed, by the way.  So while this was fine in the first season (where the only true overarching plot-related episodes that weren’t just worldbuilding were at the end of the season) and the second season (where the plot episodes can be summed up all-together as “they catch and befriend Peridot and learn, not stop, the Cluster”), it isn’t in the later seasons.  Season 3 has the following plot points: the Cluster is defeated, Malachite is found and defeated and defused, Lapis joins the Crystal Gems, more homeworld gems (rubies) find earth, Jasper is corrupted and bubbled, its revealed that Rose Quartz shattered (killed) someone, and Steven gets lost in space because of a plan gone wrong with the Rubies (and he’s rescued in the last episode).  That is a paragraph worth of plot points.  And, being generous (IE including plot-forwarding episodes that feel more like filler than actual plot, like the baseball episode) that is 13 twelve-minute episodes worth of content.  All of those plot points are addressed in 2.6 hours time.  That is not long enough to visit all those episodes.  And there are a few more I didnt count that /are/ related to the aliens, but Bismuth and Centipeetle currently irrelevant and weren’t related to the plot points I listed so I didnt mention them.

- I’m also still waiting somewhat impatiently for resolution on certain character arcs.  Pearl’s behavior hasn’t been properly addressed for a while and I’m really hoping they dont wimp out of addressing what a piece of shit she can be sometimes.  Like, I love Pearl, but get the fuck outta hear with your Pearl stanning shit.  She’s unintentionally awful and I lvoe her for it.  I’m more patient about Bismuth but.......crewniverse, im starting to get a little impatient with her too.  Bring her back.  You should’ve brought her back in the next episode, because her friends shouldn’t have left her bubbled, but whatever.  It’s fine.  I’m fine.  (I’m not fine).

- Also, Lapis’s character arc.  Wasn’t properly addressed.  One episode she was saying she deserved to be with Jasper and the next she seems fine.  One episode she hates Peridot and two episodes (well several episodes, but two episodes as far as they appear) later they’re buddy-buddy with one another.  I get that there was probably a time gap where they developed closer with one another, but fuck, I would’ve liked to see that instead of Future Boy Zoltron but okay :) (and i dont even hate future boy zoltron, its just one of the few “meh” episodes I bothered to remember the name of)

- SPEAKING OF UNPROPERLY ADDRESSED CHARACTER ARCS I swear to god Crewniverse, if Amethyst was being sincere when she said she didn’t have self esteem issues anymore, I dont think I can call this one of my favorite shows anymore.  Where.  Where did she find the resolve to get over her self esteem issues.  The last time we saw her talk about them was when she broke down in Sardonyx’s room, but, she was speaking through Smoky Quartz (btw, where the fuck has Smoky been? I literally forgot about her because its been so long...).  But still, even if she WAS speaking through a fusion, before then she displayed the same self-destructive mindsets and she was never given the resolve to better herself.  All she did was wallow in her own pity with Steven (which? relatable, but not constructive).  Show us her getting the resolve to better herself.  Show her positively reinforcing herself.  Have her whisper “you can do this, Amy,” under her breath right before she kick’s a bad guy’s ass.  Have her high-five herself, have her cheer for herself, have her be sincerely proud and acknowledging her accomplishments.  Because that’s how you fix self esteem issues and kids should be taught that by someone other than a therapist or the internet.

- Just because a lot of these issues could be fixed with time doesn’t change where they are at this moment.  The past pacing issues might not ruin the show for me depending on the direction they go in, but I feel like they’re going to continuously make the same mistakes over and over - and with the intense direction this show is going now, the idea of having five filler/townie episodes in a row while Lars is in space is terrifying because of how awful that pacing is.  I do not care about Onion, please go back to Lars.  But even if they fix it and the rest of the series is near-spotless, what’s done is done, you cant fix the rushed pacing of the past seasons’ stories and the dumb filler that padded out the seasons in the wrong areas.

- Also, another problem with combining episodic and serialized storytelling is that SU’s story gets WAY too serialized for an episodic show.  There’s so much going on that you can’t just sit down and watch a random episode of the show and start watching the show from there, which is a huge problem when you have episodes like Onion Gang and Future Boy Zoltron that take up 30% of the episodes and offer literally nothing to the story and honestly arent usually even that great as far as episodic stories go.  You cannot have 30% of your serialized show be 100% filler.  That’s bad writing.  And SU is in denial of the fact that it’s too serialized to be episodic.

Gravity Falls: - I generally cite Gravity Falls as one of the best combiners of the traditional episodic and serialized styles.  It’s what Steven Universe dreams of being; it becomes serialized when it counts (the final half of the last season), but up until then, it’s episodic with just a few clues/reoccuring things sprinkled throughout.  However, this show is far, far from flawless.

- Some of the episodic shows, and I mean a lot of the episodic shows, have a tendency to feel rather generic.  Ah yes, a girl whose obsessed with boys and boybands.  Okay.  Seen that.  A nerdy, whimpy boy who has a crush on a cooler older girl.  Again, seen that.  I’m not saying that’s all there is to Mable and Dipper; clearly not.  But a lot of their traits encompass many different stereotypes, and while the characters themselves aren’t bad, the situations they find themselves in aren’t always the most original.  Sometimes I feel like Gravity Falls is a PG-rated Scooby Doo meets Disney Sitcom.  Which is okay if you like Scooby Doo and Disney Sitcoms, but it doesn’t always make for the most eloquent storytelling.  Which is fine for a kids show, but less fine for one of the cartoons heralded as a harbinger of the current cartoon renaissance (then again, I’m not into hardly any of the other harbingers of the “current cartoon renaissance” and I’d argue that we aren’t in a renaissance at all; we’re just finally, finally getting some decent cartoons after the awfulness that was the late 2000s)

- I’m gonna say it; we should’ve learned more about Ford’s adventures in the other dimension.  It’s possible some of the non-animation related materials (namely books) have information about his travels, but as it stands, I havent got a clue what happened to him during those years.  And I want to know.  I should know.  Its a glaring plot hole in all honesty, because we should know what happened to him and how it affected him.  Or maybe im overreacting idk.

Voltron: Legendary Defender: - Hoo boy, where do I even start with VLD

- VLD seems like a show that wants to be character-driven but somehow refuses to.  It wants you to be emotionally attached to the characters, but either it does that and does nothing with it, or it doesn’t even bother to do that.  The only characters whose struggles I care about are Pidge, Shiro, Allura, and only as of season 3, Keith.  Allura I was kinda on the fence about until season 3 but thankfully, if season 3 did one thing right, it was Keith and Allura (and yes I know people are complaining abt Allura’s treatment but I like watching my faves suffer).  That leaves two paladins - and Coran, but I’ll give him a pass because literally the only show that’s done a comedy relief right is ATLA so I’m not expecting him to be superbly well-developed - that I dont give a shit about.

- Lets start with Hunk.  GOD I want to love Hunk so much.  So FUCKING much.  But every time a new season comes out, I feel more and more disappointed.  This show is so obsessed with melding him down to “the fat kid who eats a lot and makes a lot of dumb jokes” and it’s....so disappointing, because there’s so much potential here for something more.  In the first episode of the series, we see Hunk display cowardice (which isn’t an uncommon trait for a fat stereotype) and a prowess for engineering.  Yes he’s a bit of a fat stereotype, but you know what?  I dont care if a fat character is cowardly, makes bad puns, likes to eat, throws up a lot, all that jazz.  I care that they’re more than that.  I hate the idea that a character having a stereotypical trait (assuming its not straight-up a caricature) makes them automatically stereotypical.  Sorry buddy but smart asian people exist.  Preppy blondes exist.  And food-loving fat people exist (hi! i know that last one is true because I am one).  But they’re so obsessed with ignoring Hunk’s other traits - his love of cooking and his engineering skills.  I dont even remember if he used his engineering skills in season 2 and I know he only used it once in season 3.  He didnt even cook in season 3.  And I think the most telling thing in this show is how the show described Hunk’s relationship with Shiro.  As Keith was expressing grief over loosing essentially his big brother figure, Lance thought back to when he viewed Shiro as a legend and a hero, Pidge reminisced about how her father and brother used to praise the guy, and Hunk?  Hunk basically said “uhhhhhh he taught me to pilot my lion.....that counts right.”  Because Hunk has no relationship with Shiro.  Because Hunk has no relationship with any character.  He doesn’t even have that much of a relationship with Lance, and the two seemed to be best friends - or at least friends - prior to the formation of team Voltron.  At best, Hunk is friends with Lance and Pidge.  But all Hunk has done with Keith is make bad jokes while Keith acted all loner-y, and Hunk hasn’t even interacted with Allura and Shiro.

- Now, speaking of Lance, lets talk about him.  While Hunk gets points from me because he’s a sweetheart who deserves better, Lance is a flirter whose too high on his own horse and makes even worse jokes than Hunk does.  Considering Lance is the one we follow in the first episode, I would’ve expected him to be the most centric member of the team.  But first off, fuck me for projecting anime stereotypes/tropes onto a western cartoon (even though voltron was originally an anime kinda but shhh), but secondly he actually is...the most forgettable of all the Paladins.  Yeah I said it.  I legitimately dont like Lance at this point.  Yeah, I said that too.  I basically cant remember anything about him besides the fact that he flirts and jokes around a lot and that Klance is inescapable (like, not that its inevitable that you’ll ship it, but you’ll never escape the fandom for it).  He’s Sokka with all the charm, intelligence, and depth taken out of him, and also bi but that’s the only improvement.  Seriously, what...draws you all to Lance?  I dont want to judge, but he’s just....so stereotypical.  So boring to me, despite being the most lively paladin.  And the development cockteasing.  Oh, the development cockteasing.  I cant tell you how many times I’ve gotten my hopes up specifically because of something the show said about Lance/Lance seeming to be insecure about something, only for them to immediately shoot it down and replace it with more bad jokes or...nothing at all.  Because did Lance even do anything in season 3?  He pilots Red now, he had a funny bit with Blue during the “breakup”, he comforted Keith, Keith comforted him, uhhhh ??? did he even have a line in episode 7??  I feel like there might’ve been episodes where he literally had no speaking parts.  The only good things I can say about Lance so far are: 1. sometimes hes really fucking funny, and 2. it looks like they COULD be building up to something.  But if they’re just cockteasing me all the way through, I’m disowning dreamworks entirely.

- The tone of the show? also shouldn’t vary as much as it does.  The tone of a show varying is fine, but it shouldn’t vary in the way it does in Voltron prior season 3 (I’ll get to what I mean by that in a second).  In season 1 and season 2, the heavy moments of the show were almost entirely carried by Shiro; there was something for Pidge and something for Keith, but even then, Shiro got involved or was there for the entire time.  Shiro, by merely existing, brings the tone of this show down to something almost too serious for a kid’s show (emphasis on almost).  During the light-hearted parts, he just has to keep his mouth shut, because the only time he’s done anything funny (besides ironically funny like with his new outfit and haircut) was when he was yelling at Sven.  Yelling should not be your only source of humor.  But the rest of the show?  Was pretty goofy, yeah it took itself seriously sometimes but it also knew how to have fun.  Which is fine, a show should be able to have fun sometimes.  But that means all parts of the show, including Shiro.  Shiro is physically incapable of having fun and that’s kind of sad.  Season 3 was better about this though; nothing in season 3 felt fun and goofy, like at all, besides Lance taking selfies with girls in the first episode, and that was just one scene.  So I mean, they didn’t fix their problem, but the tone didn’t vary as much.  And I’m not saying the tone shouldn’t vary.  No, it should; you shouldn’t have all serious moments or all goofy moments.  Have some fun, but also take yourself seriously sometimes.  The problem is that parts of the show can’t take themselves seriously (Lance, Hunk) and other parts of the show can’t take a joke (Shiro, Zarkon/any villain too but they get a pass since they’re villains).

- Also we REALLY should know all of the Paladins’ backstories by now, ESPECIALLY Keith’s.  I know his is a mystery, but we need to know what he knows or else we cant get invested in the mystery.  If we dont have the same facts as the characters, we dont know where to start or what to expect.  We should’ve also seen flashbacks to Lance and Hunk’s families - ESPECIALLY Lance’s, since he seemed to care so much about them, but welp now that’s gone :).  We should’ve also seen more flashbacks to Pidge’s family but at least she’s trying to find them.  Nobody else gives a shit about their families and I just.  Aaaaaaaaaa this show infuriates me sometimes.

Avatar: The Last Airbender: - There’s nothing wrong with ATLA, move the fuck along

- I’M JOKING IM JOKING SWEATS okay but it’s no surprise I like ATLA and think its near flawless.  But still, it’s near-flawless, not flawless.

- If you cant stand a little kiddish cheese, you wont be able to stand ATLA.  ATLA takes itself super seriously for something on Nickelodeon, especially something on Nickelodeon in the mid-to-late 2000s (god I wish I watched this show as a kid, my standards would’ve been so much higher and i would’ve known what animation could actually do if you tried) but it’s still written for kids.  Which is fine!  I actually prefer things written for children over things written for adults.  But if you can’t handle something with content that’s clearly written for children, ATLA isn’t for you.

- Ozai fucking sucks.  There’s no other way to put it, his character fucking sucks.  He’s meant to be the embodiment of pure evil, he’s not meant to be sympathetic like Zuko, but for fuck’s sake, we needed his backstory.  And no, The Search doesn’t count; love that comic book, but that’s not enough backstory on Ozai (unless I’ve forgotten an important scene in the comic, idk its been a while).  Azula isn’t a sympathetic villain but we see her reasons and backstory.  Give us something like that for Ozai.  Show us a character that was emotionally neglected and then grew up in a society where killing and genocide were encouraged and praised.  THATS the backstory for Ozai I want.  I want to know where he came from to fuel my hatred for him, to see him as a real person but not as someone who should’ve done what he did, and I want to hate him BECAUSE he feels like a character.  Right now he just feels like the embodiment of evil and that doesn’t make for a good, truly intimidating villain.  A truly intimidating villain is one that you understand and can possibly relate to.  Not...whatever the hell Ozai is.

- Katara and Aang’s romance plot fucking sucks.  I am ace/aro and cannot write romance for shit nor tell when characters have chemistry, but I can still tell this.  It’s not...forced?  It’s not...rushed?  But it’s unnecessary and poorly written and it’s just puppy love and honestly if it was real live I couldnt see their relationship lasting.  Also the idea of seeing someone as a brother and then dating them later is verrrry .... poorly worded to say the least bUT ANYWAYS NEXT BULLET POINT

- Toph and Suki could’ve been developed more.  Like, they were okayly developed, they were great characters, but idk.  Toph didn’t grip me nearly as much as Sokka, Aang, and Katara and I feel kind of bad about it, but thinking about how much development the others got compared to her, it’s not really surprising.  I also am not the hugest fan of rude characters anymore, but I digress.  Also Suki.  Suki had like, little to no development.  I want Suki to be part of Team Avatar.  Can we do that

- General Zhao also fucking sucks.  He’s so generic that the first few times I watched the show, I forgot he was even a significant reoccuring villain.

- Sokka could’ve also been more developed but they could’ve all been more developed honestly?  You can always add to perfection.  I shouldnt complain about Sokka tho, he was finely developed and I love my nonbending son

The Legend of Korra: - Uhhhh the first season’s ending?  0/10 bad, rushed, not good.  I wanted to see Korra deal with the loss of her other elements.  I wanted to see her cope with that.  But no, because Nickelodeon kept screwing over LOK, they had to rush it because otherwise it wouldn’t have been a happy ending for the series if they potentially had to end it after one season.  Fuck Nickelodeon :) but I’m still going to critique LOK for it even if it is Nickelodeon’s fault.

- Bolin and Mako were horribly underdeveloped.  Especially Bolin.  It’s so sad how underdeveloped “Team Avatar” was in this series compared to the last series.  I feel bad complaining about Toph, Suki, and ESPECIALLY Sokka in comparison to LOK.  The only one even comparably as bad is Suki, but she got half a season to be developed and these two got an entire series.  We got some of their backstory and then...that was it, besides the love triangle that Bolin was barely part of.  I guess they were kinda irrelevant for season 2 and season 4, but they had no reason to be missing in the later half of season 4, plus they had season 1 and season 3, so....  God, poor Bolin.  It would’ve been nice to see a nice (fat) comic relief guy like him get the same treatment as Sokka, but whatever....its fine.......ill just sit here patiently waiting for my good representation coughs.  Also all Mako did was do the love triangle and I Do Not Like Him for it.  Keith is a better Mako than Mako ever was because Keith dont need no love triangle and also he already has more development

- Asami also should’ve been more developed, but it looks like there’s potential for more development in the comics so thats good.  From the series alone though, she was pretty flat; better than Bolin and Mako for sure, better than Suki from the original series, but not nearly as good as Toph or the others.  At least she did have some development and a likeable personality that’s relatively original.

- I hate saying this but...Korrasami should’ve been more developed.  I wouldn’t like, take points off of a rating for this point because I mean it was the first lesbian/gay representation in a kids cartoon (from my understanding) and Nick might not’ve even known they were sneaking in something romantic at the end, not to mention they completely subverted the love triangle plot so it actually gains back favor in that way and its great.  Also, I mean, they had that buy-curious joke lmao.  And I’m pretty sure its expanded upon more in the comic; there wasn’t really room to expand upon it in the show because it was just starting.  But they probably could’ve done better than that.  It was still okay though and also, the subverting of the love triangle trope is the greatest thing ever and i long for the day that I can do that plot twist in one of my shows lmao.

- The Villains could’ve been more developed.  Besides Ammon (who is FUCKING AWESOME and you can FIGHT ME) they all had the same problem as Ozai; we dont have many reasons to see them as human or relatable and it makes it hard to hate them as much as we should.  I mean, they do show /some/ human qualities which I appreciate, but I dont entirely understand their motivations half the time and I want to know how they came to view the world the way they do.  But at least unlike Ozai, they do feel somewhat human.  (Except maybe Unaloq, I didnt like Unaloq very much)

And that’s like half of what I could say about each of those shows, and those are just some of my favorite shows I watch.  Dont ask me to go off on like, AOT or something, because I’ll be writing for another three hours lmao (actually feel free to because i wanna INSULT this PIECE OF GARBAGE ANIME that looks rlly pretty but otherwise IS BAD AND IDK WHY I WATCH IT lmao [idk if im joking or sincere sorry])  No show is flawless so I’m going to insult whichever flaws I see.  Fight me.

[definitelyameatbag]

The Comic Adventure

“We’ll be back soon, guys!”, yelled Steven, as he along with Amethyst and Peridot all waved them goodbye before disappearing into the cornfield.

“Alright! Stay safe!”, yelled Lapis back to him, before turning to Connie beside her, “They’ll be alright, won’t they?”

“Of course he would! Unless Homeworld’s hiding an army in that corn!”, Connie chimed, the thought making them both slightly more uneasy than they wished, “And even then, he has Amethyst to look after him. And Peridot too, I guess.”

Lapis snorted, “Yeah, she probably bite anything that tried to get near him. Anyway, should we...?”, pointing into the barn.

“Oh, yeah!”, the two went inside, Pumpkin following them, and Connie rummaging in her backpack. “So, you’ve read every book I left you last time?”

“Yep!”, Lapis grinned with no small amount of pride, looking down at the stack of children’s books Connie was using to help her learn to read, “It was tricky at first, but I really think I’m getting the hang of it.”

“Well, that calls for a reward, then!”, Connie declared, before pulling out a few thin magazine-like books with an angelic call, before immediately getting embarrassed and blushing, “Well, they’re called comic books, and they’re a bit wordier than the books you were reading, but way cooler! Dad collected them and he gave them to me, Mom thinks he threw them away!”

Lapis took the first one on top of the stack Connie pulled out. “‘The League of the...Mighty Atom?’”, she read the title, then looking down at the central image, a woman in a ridiculously colourful outfit holding an army tank above her head, black-uniformed soldiers either trying to shoot at her or running away in fear. “What’s the problem with her?”

“Oh, that’s Commander Cobolt.”, explained Connie, “She was experimented on by these super evil people called the Eternal Legion, but she used the superhuman strength she was given to escape and started to fight evil.”, she blushed again, rubbing her arm, “A lot of these characters have abilities that no real human has, except Steven I guess, but most of them I suppose are pretty tame for you gems.”

Lapis looked at her, “What, ‘abilities’? Like, controlling water? Or metal? Or predicting the future? None of you can do those?”

Connie shrugged, amused at the thought, “We make do, I guess. But in these stories, some people are much more like gems, and they use those abilities to either try to take over the world or to fight for good.”

Lapis stared at the cover in her hands, “I guess they’ve a bit like gems, but...”

Connie felt a shudder, a horrid feeling sank into her stomach that she had brought up bad memories.

“...I was always told to ‘Do Your Job’, not ‘Fight Evil’. I was made to carve out planets, and I wasn’t supposed to think too hard about it.”

A long moment of silence passes between them. Connie finally broke it. “I’m sorry, Lapis, we don’t need to--”

“Nono, it’s alright. Here...”, Lapis sat down on the ground, Pumpkin instinctively jumping into her legs, “How many do you have?”

Connie sat down with her, looking into her backpack again, “Well, enough to do us for a few hours, I think.”

Lapis smiled, “Well, you never know, I might like it.”

---

“Lapis! Connie!”, called Steven, the three of them approaching the barn, “We’re back! Are you there?!”

“That’s weird.”, Peridot stated, “Not even Pumpkin’s coming out.” She yelled at the top of her voice, “HEY LAPIS, ARE YOU OKAY?!”

Amethyst laughed, “Maybe she was bored to death by Connie bringing her some encyclopedia.”

Peridot huffed disapprovingly at Amethyst, “Amethyst, that was rude.” She looked over to the tent, “Maybe they’re listening to--”

Just as she turned back to the barn entrance, she felt a hard, wet splash hit her on the face, knocking her back slightly and causing Steven and Amethyst to jump on the spot. “Wha-what was that?!”

The three heard two voices come from the barn door, two laughs that were doing their best to be hearty and deep cackles.

Steven was the first to react, “Lapis? Connie?”

The two had emerged from behind the door, both with looks of amused scorn on their faces as they continued laughing. Lapis was wearing an eyepatch and a long, flowing dark blue coat over her dress, while Connie wore a blue office jacket and beret, holding a fully loaded water gun. Lapis spoke, “FOOLS! You think yourselves worthy of approaching the lair of Dur Aquatic?!”

“Psst, Lapis!”, whispered Connie, breaking character, “It’s ‘Doctor’. ‘Doctor Aquatic’.”

“Doctor Aquatic!”, boomed Lapis, “Famed marine biologist who, despising the polluting industrial world and mutated by a nuclear submarine accident, now plots global domination in the fortress you dare to come near!”

Amethyst burst out laughing, holding her belly as she took a few steps, “Oh, Lapis, you’re a ri--”

“Walk no farther, scum!”, interrupted Lapis, holding out an arm in a halt gesture, “Your presence offends me, you stand upon a planet I intend to conquer! Weirdtask!”, she turned to Connie, “Eliminate her!”

“Yes, Ma’am!”, Connie nodded, pointing her gun at Amethyst and pulling the trigger, releasing a pressurised stream of water that landed right at Amethyst’s feet, forming a small muddy puddle in the dirt.

“Umm...”, sounded Lapis, before returning to character, “Walk slightly farther, scum!”

“Arf! Arf!”, barked Pumpkin, bursting out of the door behind them wearing a blue ribbon with eyeholes cut out of it, as they stampeded towards Amethyst and jumped at her, knocking her to the ground and licking her face.

“Yes, Henchman!”, cried Lapis, “Attack! Attack!”

“Steven!”, Amethyst yelled, inbetween giggles, “Lapis has gone nuts! Get this thing off me!”

“Alright, I’m coming!”, shouted Steven, taking a few steps before Connie lunged forward to intercept him, him raising his hands at the sight of the water guns barrel. “Connie, what are you doing?!”

“We’re saving the planet! By conquering it, Do-gooder!”, she answered, her finger hitting the trigger no sooner than Steven had his shield out to deflect the stream, before she began to chase the boy after he rolled backwards out of her range.

Peridot took in the sight before her, Connie chasing Steven, Amethyst pinned to the ground by Pumpkins affections, and Lapis cackling and posing dramatically. She sighed, seeing the task of saving Amethyst came down to her.. “Alright, Pumpkin, come to Mommy. You’re being a naughty--”

“Halt!”, Lapis interrupted, Peridot seeing she was holding a small orb of water in her left hand, the right directly pointing at her in another dramatic pose. “I am not yet done with you, my little green friend!”

“Lapis, what are yo--” was all Peridot could get out before ducking her head down to dodge the orb of water as Lapis threw it at her. “Yipe! Have you gone mad?!”

“Only mad with power!, shouted Lapis, as she charged another shot.

Peridot dipped and dived in approaching Amethyst and Pumpkin, fast-moving bucketfuls of water skimming past her head. She grabbed Pumpkin, lifting them off and chucking them away while trying to take as much care as she could while under fire. Or under water, she inwardly observed, in a moment of punmaking that made her worried if whatever sickness that had gotten hold of Lapis had infected her too. “Get up, Amethyst!”

“Alright, alright!”, struggled Amethyst as she got to her feet. “But where do we go, Lapis won’t stop!”

Peridot rubbed her chin, looking around her for shelter. She turned to Steven, approaching them again in the circuit Connie was pursuing him on, “Steven! Head to the tent!”

The three groups together and sprinted away, Lapis and Connie only easing on the fire as Steven projected his shield behind him, dissipating it as they slipping into the tent.

“Ma’am, the trespassers have been run out, the lair is secure.”, Connie cocked her gun with satisfaction.

“Excellent work, Weirdtask! Henchman!”, Lapis called to Pumpkin, who dutifully jumped into her arms for her to pet. “That’s right, fools, ran away! Soon all shall learn to cower in the shadow of DOCTOR AQUATIC!”

---

Steven peered out of the tent, only daring to slip an eye through the opening. He saw Lapis and Connie still cackling in victory. Pulling back in to avoid being seen, he turned back to Peridot and Amethyst.

“OK, I think they won’t touch us for now. Maybe.”, Steven uneasily assured them.

“What was that all about?!”, yelled Peridot, pointing to the door flap of the tent, slightly bouncing from her sitting position on the layers of cloths and cushions that made up the tents floor, “Have they descended into complete madness?!”

“I don’t know, P.”, shrugged Amethyst, “I get a little freaky every few hundred years. Never wanted to, what was it, ‘conquer the world’? Nah, not like that.” Amethyst fell backwards onto a cushion, stretching out as she stared at the tent ceiling.

“Well, I don’t like it!”, Peridot huffed, crossing her arms, “Lapis wouldn’t hurt an insect, and now here she is throwing water at people! Especially me! Me!”, she repeated, tapping on her chest in emphasis.

Amethyst raised a hand, “She did nearly steal the Ocean. And she did say she went mad with power.”

“Hey, hey, hold on.”, entered Steven, “Let’s not get carried away.”

Turning around, Steven approached the open flap of the tent, peeling it away just slightly to see outside.

“Ha ha ha! Oh Lapis, you were amazing!”, shouting Connie, jumping up and down in front of Connie, making Lapis giggle in turn.

“Are you sure? I thought I might’ve been laying it on a little thick once or twice.”

Connie shook her head, taking a step toward Lapis, “No, you were perfect! Absolutely perfect! You were straight out of a comic!”

Lapis blushed, squeezing Pumpkin tighter in her arms.

Steven smiled, and crawled back in, “Guys, I think they’re just playing. Maybe Connie has shown her a few comics.”

Peridot squinted, “‘Comics’?”

“Oh yeah!”, declared Amethyst, “Yeah, that makes sense. I thought Lapis reminded me of something.”

“You collect comic books, Amethyst?”, asked Steven.

“Ehh, used to.”, shrugged Amethyst, “Got sick of them before we met Greg. Man, they went bad in the Nineties.”

“Can someone please explain to me what these ‘comics’ are?”, Peridot said, annoyed, putting ‘comics’ in finger quotes.

“They’re like...”, Steven started, “They’re stories, but full of pictures, and they’re about, like, superpowered people, and some of them are good and some are bad and they fight to protect people or to, like, rule the world, and stuff.”

“Hmmm.”, Peridot grumbled, only partially satisfied. “And you hypothesise Lapis and Connie are partaking in some...comic themed performance meepmorp?”

“Uhhh...”, Steven looked to the side, “Yeah.”

Peridot’s look of suspicion, after a moment of retaining itself, blew apart to form a face of pure enthusiasm, “Then we shall endeavour to join them in this! What do we need?”

Steven rubbed his chin, “Well, we need some costumes, I think. I’m not sure if we--”

“I’m way ahead of ya.”, interrupted Amethyst, before burst into a purple light as she shapeshifted a new set of something, what looked like a purple leotard with a cat paw symbol on her belly, with a small mask around her eyes and a set of sat ears on her head, “Whatdayathink? Puma Girl!”, she boomed, striking a pose even in her sitting position.

“That’s cheating, not all of us can shapeshift!”, complained Peridot, “And what are you supposed to be?!”

Amethyst dived to a pounding stance, lowering her voice into a gravel, “Lost to the mountains at an early age, I was taken in by a Puma mother. Raised on the values of strength, stealth and solitude, I came back to civilisation to fight injustice wherever it was.”

It her answer did not appear to be adequate for Peridot.

“It’s alright, Peridot.”, Steven butted in, “We’ll work on some costumes with what we have, and I’ll explain it to you.”

---

An hour passed, and at last the three heroes felt ready to leave the safety of the tent.

“Are you sure this plan is going to work, Steven?”, asked Peridot, scratching her arms in nervousness.

Steven reassured her, “I’m certain. OK, Amethyst, you first. Remember, they could have a trap out there.”

“Sure, bub.”, agreed Amethyst, before she dived forward, out of the tent, performing a roll before entering a combat stance. “Alright, Aquatic, show yourse--”

She was halted in her attack by the sight of Pumpkin, still with a mask, chasing a butterfly in circles.

Amethyst heard a few stifles of laughter from a distance, turning to see Lapis and Connie sitting on the ‘balcony’ on the front of the barn. Breaking out of their giggles, Lapis grabbed Connie by the  arms and formed her wings, bringing them both down to the ground.

“So, you’ve come crawling back? Have you decided to join my army of evil?”, greeted Lapis, getting back into character.

Amethyst turned her body to fully face the two. “No way, Jose! We’re gonna stop you! And then we’re gonna kick your butt!”

“Ha!”, snorted Lapis, “You’re brave, foolishly brave, for you are alone and we are many. And the last I heard...”, Lapis formed a water orb, “Kitties don’t like BATHS!”

The jet of water approaching Amethyst's face was nearly as fast as the manhole cover that was lifted from its place leaning against the barn wall and was spinning towards her, and even if she knew the reason why it still made her flinch a whole lot more than the water did. Thankfully, however, it halted in the air right in front of her, in time to completely block the water, the jet splashing harmlessly on the side facing away from her.

Both Connie and Lapis were stunned, jointly stammering, “Wah?!”

“That’s right, clods!”, Peridot burst out of the tent, sporting a green cape and a large ‘G’ made of turquoise tape stuck to her belly, striking a pose, one that Steven had told her was ‘heroic’, beside Amethyst as she made the cover hover to her side. “Your troublemaking days are over!”

Connie had a look of concern, but Lapis took a step forward. “Hmm, a duo of do-gooders, then? Well, no matter, it is still three against--”, turning to try to spot Pumpkin, Lapis was dismayed to find them rolled over on the ground, taking a nap. Three distinct ‘awws’ were heard, causing Lapis to to turn back to Connie, finding a henchman incapacitated by the cute sight, and gave her a glare to return back to form. At last, she continued her gaze on the heroes. “Regardless, this battle will be over quickly, for though our numbers are equal--”

“No they’re not!” came a third voice from the tent, before Steven, in a white bedsheet fashioned into a short toga, jumped out, holding a bow and a set of arrows with suction cups. “Time to give it up, Dr. Aquatic, you’re facing the combined power of...”, Steven struck a pose, “Cupid’s Arrow!”

Amethyst put up her hands to make a clawing pose, “Puma Girl!”

At last, Peridot pushed a fist into the air, seeming to be punching the air, “And the Green Magnet!”

Another ‘aww’ came from beside Lapis, “Steven, you look so adorable!”, exclaimed Connie, causing Steven to blush and fidget on the spot.

Lapis barked, “Silence, Weirdtask! Destroy them!”

“Yes, Ma’am!”, Connie snapped back to attention, aiming down her sights at Peridot, only to be interrupted by the need to dodge an arrow coming from Steven’s way, diving to the side.

“Fools!”, shouted Lapis, swiping to the heros to send a wide stream of water towards them in an arc, “Retreat into the fortress!”

Steven, Peridot and Amethyst were all pushed back by the stream, but Peridot was the first to react, spotting a line of tinsel draped over a tree branch nearby. “Oh, no you don’t!”

Using her powers, Peridot made the tinsel pull itself off of the tree and fly towards the villain, it catching and wrapping around Connie’s ankles, flipping and raising her off the ground, immobilised. “Oh, ow!”

“Sorry, Connie!”, shouted Peridot, still manipulating the tinsel to pull her away from the barn door, which Lapis was just about running through. “You two, go get Lapis!”

Nodding in agreement, Steven and Amethyst ran in pursuit of Lapis, stopping in their sprint just before entering the barn. Amethyst turned to Steven, “You sure you can do this?”

“I’m sure, I just have to get close.”

Sliding in through the door, Steven and Amethyst found Lapis climbing the last rung of steps up the ladder to the second floor, turning around to greet them. “You’ve taken my henchman, but you won’t take me!”

Amethyst shook her fist, “Can it, you drip!”

Lapis snarled, “Ahhh! Away!”, and she began forming orbs of water, causing Steven and Amethyst to split in preparation for the throws. She chose Amethyst as her target, hurling the orbs down at her. Against her expectation, Amethyst did not try to duck out of the way, instead raising her hands to block the worst of the throws with her wrists and knuckles. She maintained a zig-zag advance, until she made a large jump up to the second floor.

“Stay back!”, screamed Lapis, drawing in some water from the aquarium to form shields, only for Amethyst to punch through them as quickly as she can form them.

“Enough”, Lapis boomed, gathering up the water just as Amethyst came within 20 feet of her, wrapping the formed ring around Amethyst into a cocoon.

“Oof! Let me go!”, Amethyst struggled, fighting against the tight hold of the water, but Lapis maintained her advantage, even having enough space to indulge in a laugh.

She stopped laughing once she heard the voice behind her.

“Put her down, Aquatic.”

Lapis barely had time to turn around before she saw Steven begin his sprint directly towards her. She had water, but it was all expended on holding Amethyst. She tried to look over to the aquarium, but it was too far awa--

All thought halted as she felt the blow to her chest as Steven ran into her, grabbing onto her and sending her down to the floor. She lost grip on her water as her head banged against the floor, and she nearly started to struggle as she regained her wits, but then she realised something.

Looking down at her tackler, Lapis saw that she wasn’t being tackled. She was being hugged.

“Dr. Aquatic.”, Steven began, looking up at her, his eyes seeming to get bigger. “I know that people haven’t been nice to you, and have done bad things to you, and you’ve been made to feel like you’re a bad person that can only hurt others, but I wanted you to know that are guys out there who think you’re sweet and amazing and one of the goodest people that they know. Well, at least I think you are.”

Lapis noticed that she had gone numb in shock, but she couldn’t help but feel the smile growing on her face, her cheeks flushing their dark blue, her jaw trembling. “Steven...”, was all she could manage, before giving in and wrapping her arms around the little boy on top of her, squeezing him tight.

“You three ok up there?!”, shouted Peridot from the ground floor, Lapis able to see her standing with Connie. She and Steven also looked up to see Amethyst getting on her feet, running a hand through her soaked hair.

“Yeah!”, answered Steven, “We’re doing great!”

Steven nuzzled up under Lapis’s chin, and she hugged him even tighter.

[doodlewash]

Hello, my name is Brenda Jiral and I am originally from Rochester, Michigan. I currently live in Hamilton, Michigan with my husband and two of my three children. I have been drawn to art for as long as I can remember. I see beauty in things that most people would simply pass over or dismiss.

Sunlight Breaking Through

Sunny Day

Like the way bright sunshine creates the most beautiful shadows; full of color and life. Or the multitude of color shifts that are in the human eye or a flower. I am frequently mesmerized by the dazzling light that bounces off a lake in the morning sun, and the range of colors in every rock and weed under the water’s surface.

Enchanted

I have been “making art” since I was a child, so, it was a natural progression for me to become an artist. I believe it’s what I was created to do. I studied fine art at college, but after three years, I decided to put higher education “on hold” in order to pursue my other dream: motherhood. I got married, had three beautiful children, and devoted my life to my family. The only creative outlet during those years were the many craft projects I would do with my children.

Dogwood Leaves

Once they were all in school, I was finally in a position to dust off my dreams of creating art and see what I could do with it. After taking the few watercolor painting classes that were available at our local art center, I was left to my own devices. So, from then on, I became self-taught. I poured over every book and video I could get my hands on at the local library, and watched every You-tube tutorial I could find. And I experimented: A LOT!

Sunlit Shore

My father was also an artist, and one of the things he said all of the time is that “art is 10% talent and 90% work” -Alfred M. Ponte.  That doesn’t dismiss natural, God-given talent, but rather, it puts the emphasis on what you DO with that talent. You can either sit on it and do nothing with it, or you can work your tail off to develop it and share it with the world. I’ve chosen the latter, I worked hard, and now I enjoy teaching others what I’ve learned. “Your talent is God’s gift to you; what you do with it is your gift back to God.” -Leo Buscaglia.

Pomegranate

For the past two and a half decades, I have lived with chronic pain and illness. To say that it’s been hard would be a gross understatement. I don’t share this often, because most people really don’t know what to do with that information. And honestly, I’ve been judged harshly all too often.

And I don’t share it to get attention or because I feel sorry for myself. I share it in hopes that if there is someone else out there, struggling with health issues, my story would give them hope. That maybe there’s a purpose for this struggle and something good can come out of it.

Resilience Sketch

Resilience

I don’t have one of those inspiring, miracle stories. I will most likely be in pain and ill for the rest of my life. And I have come to terms with that. This story is more about how art has helped me through some of the darkest days of my life.  Art has been a blessing in so many ways. I am so very grateful for the gift it is in my life! There have been days that, because of the pain or the endlessness of it all, I felt really down.

And rather than dwelling on that and allowing it to get out of control, I would go downstairs to my studio in an effort to take my mind off of the pain. At first, it can be like pushing a rope. I may not “feel” inspired or excited about what I’m doing, but I choose to do it because I know I need it. I may be just doing a little sketching in my journal or pushing some paint around on a scrap of watercolor paper, or whatever.

Trees & Hills

But at some point, I realize I no longer feel down. Don’t get me wrong, the pain is still there, but my heart feels a little lighter and I am excited about what I’m doing. And that’s when the paint has begun to work its magic on me. I feel joy and peace and alive again! And that’s when I remember: I’m going to be ok.

In spite of the health issues, I still try to teach a few classes or workshops per year. It’s not nearly as much as I would like to be doing, because I love to teach, but for now it will be enough. Maybe someday, I will enjoy better health and be able to do all of the things I want to do with my art, but for now, my life is full.

My Process And How I Got Here

When I was in high school, my art teacher expected a sketchbook full of drawings every term. How I dreaded that deadline! I really didn’t like to draw. I know that sounds crazy, since I am so passionate about All-things-ART. But I really didn’t like to “waste time” in my sketchbook. (That’s the way I felt about it then).

I wanted to do the serious art, not sketch! How silly I was back then; I cringe when I think about how much energy I spent avoiding my sketchbook. I’d wait until the day or two before the deadline and just throw it all together, giving only the bare minimum in order to get the grade.

Kohlrabi

Fast-forward to my early days learning to paint in watercolor. I would get so frustrated with my attempts to draw something in order to then paint it. All I wanted to do was paint, but my efforts showed my lack of drawing ability. I was reminded of my art teacher’s insistence on mastering the basics, and realized that I had failed to build a foundation before I started to “build the house”.

So, I went back. I began the discipline of forcing myself to draw at every opportunity. After all, I had a lot of time to make up! I put a sketchbook in my kitchen, so I could draw during breakfast and lunch and one downstairs, in my studio. I also put one in my car to draw while waiting for my kids to finish sports practice or orthodontist appointments. Eventually, I began to love to draw. I began to see the wisdom of building a foundation of this basic skill. Now, I don’t go anywhere without my sketchbook or watercolor journal.  I travel with it and record memories and I draw, draw, draw.

Driftwood

Pink Geraniums

My creative process varies on the project I am working on at the time. If I am looking for a new painting idea, I will often go to my sketchbooks and “mine” them for inspiration. I will also pour over the thousands of photos I have taken over the years for just the right image that speaks to me. I also keep a running list of painting ideas, and sometimes I fear that there won’t be enough time to do them all.

Like I said earlier, a lot of my paintings begin in my sketchbook or watercolor journal. Some of my favorite ways of drawing is contour drawing, blind contour drawing or continuous line drawing. I am drawn to this technique because there is a decisiveness and character to the line that otherwise wouldn’t be there. Rather than a sketchy line, which is hesitant and unsure, the contour line that I employ feels confidant and sure. And rather than going for a photographically realistic look, or an architecturally accurate line, this line expresses more of the freedom I’m after and attracted to in nature. It feels more organic and personal to me.

Single Tree

Continuous Line Drawing

Over the years, I have tried many different brands of paint and watercolor paper and I have no plans on settling on any one kind. I’m all about experimenting and exploring. In fact, I don’t consider myself a traditional watercolor “purist”, but rather, an experimental, mixed media artist, because I will never stop experimenting with new mediums and techniques. That’s what excites me the most about art: that I will be learning until the day I die!

Mossy Tree

Mossy Stump

When it comes to watercolors, I mainly use Daniel Smith and Winsor & Newton paints. And for paper, I love Arches cold press and Winsor & Newton brand. In addition to those, one of my favorite discoveries a few years ago is mineral paper. I am so in love with this surface! It’s smooth and so receptive to watercolor and ink line drawing. I have found two brands so far: Yasutomo Mineral paper, which comes in only two sizes, and Terraskin Stone paper. (This one is a little more difficult to find, but what a gem!)

I also love to use Caran D’Ache Neocolor II water-soluble wax pastels, Derwent Inktense Blocks and watercolor pencils and a variety of water-soluble ink pens. And I can’t leave out my trusty fountain pen that I use for a lot of my drawings in my watercolor journals!

Yellowstone

In closing, I would like to thank Charlie at Doodlewash for allowing me to share my story and my love of art with others. And thank you, fellow-art explorer, for taking the time to read my story.

Benda Jiral Website Facebook Doodlewash

GUEST ARTIST: "How Art Helps Me Through the Difficult Days" by Brenda Jiral - #doodlewash #WorldWatercolorGroup #watercolor #watercolour #art Hello, my name is Brenda Jiral and I am originally from Rochester, Michigan. I currently live in Hamilton, Michigan with my husband and two of my three children.