#thought i'd draw you something while i'm feeling inspired

[pneumaticshift]

why is your hal so hot... it should have been me not bruce /j

He can't help it, he was born this way

[averlym]

pleaaase may i have 28 and 29 aramour angst ✨ i crave it

28: “Move out of my way before I make you.” // 29: “You deserve better.” (prompt list here)

click for better quality!

[creatingblackcharacters]

CBC Black History Month Challenge!

It would make me fulfilled to know that 1) we've actually been listening to what I teach here, and 2) that we care about and celebrate the presence of Black characters, Black creators, and Black fans! So, in honor of Black History Month (US), here is my challenge to you- and yes, everyone can participate!

Part #1:

Create something!

If you're an artist, you can draw a Black character (Fan, OC, Black Edit). Writers, write a blurb! If you make GIFs, make a GIFset; if you crochet, I'm sure there's somebody Black that crochets worth honoring! You're creators- get creative!

Here's the thing: I want these pieces to be happy. Happy, joyful, triumphant, powerful, victorious, loving... SOMETHING POSITIVE!

Find quotes of famous Black people to use as inspiration, if you'd like (no, they don't have to be American. Black people exist worldwide!) That'd be really nice, even!

Part #2:

Tag your friends!

There is an unfortunate social fear of sharing things relating to Blackness on this site. At least for a little while, I'd like to see some boldness, some bravery. We all deserve to be appreciated out loud. It doesn't have to be much- just a "hey, this was fun, I'm tagging such and such if they want to participate!" No pressure, but no need to coddle, either.

Keep in mind, none of this has to be complex, but it DOES have to take some active thought! You could draw a lovingly done 5th grade stick figure, and I'd value it far more than a Michelangelo-level racist piece. I want you to take what you've learned here into consideration as you craft your work. Take the time to respect your creation! Recognize how you put so much thought into this, and how it feels to have created something with such care (and then note how frustrating it would be to see something done with no effort at all!)

Just tag the page for me to see it; I'm excited to see what we come up with!

[comicaurora]

Hey, sorry if you’ve been asked this before, but I have ADHD and I’ve been following your comic for years and just now have started to write my own comic (partially because you really inspired me). But I’m really struggling with staying on the project even when it’s boring and getting myself to work on it in the first place. Do you have any tips on how to keep your brain invested or just to make yourself do the work at all?

I have excellent news, I literally just figured out something really important about this.

So when you're an ADHD kiddo or otherwise have difficulty staying on task in a structured environment where Task is the Priority, the main way people try to MAKE you stay on task is by removing your access to anything that is not The Task. No phone, no TV, no doodling, no going outside, etc. In practice, this just makes us miserable because it takes the boredom that's always simmering around a 2 or 3 and cranks it all the way up to 11. In the same way that you would have difficulty staying on task if you were in physical pain, this crushing existential monotony makes it very difficult to work. The work might get done simply because you have no other options, but it will not be done quickly or well, and it will take a while to recover from how much it hurt.

What I realized earlier this week is I caught myself doing this to myself. I had 42 pages of background colors to do, and I thought to myself "this sounds really tedious, but I suppose I have nothing better I can do." And I realized what I'd just thought, and got very alarmed.

Because back when I was an ADHD kiddo imprisoned by school scheduling and a million little factors that keep children immobile and restrained, I couldn't stop thinking about how big and exciting the world was, and how much I wanted to be anywhere but here. When I was feeling really crushed in I'd pick a random spot on the maps on my wall and just imagine being there instead of my bedroom. This was the impetus behind almost all of my creative energy. I've said it before - anything is a prison if you can't leave, and being in a prison makes it easy to imagine how amazing things could be outside of it. Aurora's initial worldbuilding was forged in the crucible of fifth grade misery. My enthusiasm for art and my creative drive are inextricable from my sense of wonder and yearning for excitement in the real world. Not escapism, but appreciation. Wonders unimaginable are out there, and I gain just as much joy seeking them out as I do conjuring them up in my head and sharing them with all of you.

So now that I'm a grown-up with actual freedom in every way I've been able to get, the idea that I was staying on task by making myself believe the world was small and not worth seeing was extremely alarming. It could keep me on task for an afternoon, but at the cost of slowly extinguishing the thing that made me want to make art in the first place - the hunger to experience and draw inspiration from all the myriad complexities in the world.

So what I've been doing is I've been purposefully and intentionally taking excursions whenever I catch myself thinking "I could take a break but it wouldn't be worth it, it's the same outdoors as always, I'll be uncomfy and unproductive and tired." Because that is never true. Every time I've put down the stylus and gone out, I've been renewed in one way or another, and when I come back to comfort fully recharged I get a lot of shit done. Because it is easier to work on anything if you remember why you wanted to make it in the first place, and it is self-defeating misery to just lock yourself in with it and tell yourself you're a bad person if you can't get it done.

I honestly don't know how widely applicable this is. I have worse wanderlust than anyone I know, so for me this has always been modeled as imprisonment vs freedom. I've also been extremely lucky to find myself in a profession that lets me set my own pace on literally everything I do. But I genuinely believe that when it comes to making art with ADHD, you need to give yourself freedom to move laterally, not just in the direction of obvious forward progress. We don't think linearly in any other part of our lives - art is no different.

[7squidgy7]

✧.*100 follower celebration type thing*.✧

So, to celebrate 100 followers on tumblr, I decided to draw some fanart for people. This community is so sweet. Every one of these artists has inspired me in some way.

I'm really sorry for those I haven't made art for. I may make a part 2 one day for those I missed. Who knows.

This was a really nice way to try out different art styles while mixing them with my own.

Apologies for all the link later on. Want to explain the creative process a bit for those interested cause I put way too much effort into it to not mention.

Close ups below cut:

@donutfloats

Your arts so cute and soft, I love it. You have a great way of just expressing love through your art.

I was inspired by 2 of your pieces for this, the main one being the 3rd image for this post. The lambs dress is so pretty, I just knew I wanted to draw it flowy and dancing, and the second image I used is this post for the rendering style.

✧.*-----------------------------------------------------------------------*.✧

@aniimoni

I really like your artstyle. The monochrome colours are delightful, as with the way you do lineart. while making this, I was thinking this is the perfect style to meld with mine.

I was inspired a lot by the axe and hammer drawings in this post. As a hammer lover, I decided to combine the 2 together.

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@teruuu

Something about your style is mischevios. Your rendering and lineart are just wonderful as well. You have a very distinctive style that matches mine quite well, i think.

I feel compulsion of the flesh Lamb and Narinder would give each other kisses on the hand but take a bite at the same time. They freaky like that. Based my rendering around this post and the previous draw you character here, I did. These are fun designs to draw.

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@poopylumpkins

I really like your vampire au something about it really spoke to me as a afab non-binary.

Lamb deserves to wear their own clothes and something about narinder helping with their makeup convinces me he'll help out.

if you're curious, i colour picked the background and shading from this post

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@olrinarts

This was a really fun style to draw. Something about how you draw these 2 is delightful. Love yuri narinder's eyes in particular.

Rock god yuri. What more can I say these are really good designs. Showed them to my friend, and they loved them.

Decided to have them dueting, while Narinder can't sing lamb can always pick up that role.

Used this post for the background and shading colours, and this is a kinda basis for the pose.

✧.*-----------------------------------------------------------------------*.✧

@redcrowncafe

Really love you fic and art. I like to see the fic brought to reality through all the comics and art, which has a very pleasing look to the eye.

I have never struggled so much with an art style, fun challenge, but very different to my own.

Wanted to draw their Halloween costumes from this post. Lambert would definitely get too into the vampire costume and bite Nari at some point probably.

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@joffyworld

Just wanna say thank you so much for the reblogs and kind words. It gives me a lot of confidence in my work and is a genuine brightness in my day.

I wasn't sure what to draw you, so I thought I'd just show you a pic of my new one who waits figurine, that arrived recently. Its a little weird, I think an earlier design but cool none the less.

✧.*-----------------------------------------------------------------------*.✧

[bugstung]

I love your disabled Adrien! I'd love to hear more about him, if you have the time!

Thank you!

I'm still currently figuring out his injury but I can tell you about the other things I got so far

So first of all I want to explore Adrien's relationship with others way more as I thought it was lacking in the show. I want Adrien and Nino to feel closer; the two got to know each others when they were paired to make a power point together and went at Nino's house to work. Nino wasn't the type to try to befriend Adrien day one beacuse of his status, and Adrien liked that. Adrien didn't get to play much video games growing up, and Nino gets to "nerdify" him a little

I also want Adrien and Rose to bond. I made that Rose had Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and uses mobility aids as well. They get to know each others as both of them are exempted from sports a,d so they hang out during those hours at the foyer. Rose is quite infantilized, and people tend to pity her way more than they do for Adrien because she's not popular (while for Adrien kids usually see as him being "brave" and all that). She doesn't try to hide her disabilities, she's pretty open to talk about it and customizes her mobility aids to fit her aesthetic. Adrien on the other side doesn't like to draw attention to his disabilities and will most of the time let comments on it slide. (something that will change overtime)

I got really inspired by skip and loafers so Marinette and Adrien personalities and relationship will be somewhat similar to Mitsumi and Shima. I want them to become friends and not have the awkward show typical Marinette stuff.

I also want a "crush switch" to happen later on. Marinette will try to move on when she realizes she cannot make Adrien's mask slip, and slowly fall for Chat Noir (I need to develop the super hero side of things more because so far I'm way more interested in slice of life lmao), and Adrien realizes his love for Ladybug was more of an admiration, and falls for Marinette

Also while Adrien is completly human, Felix is still a sentimonster. Haven't fully figured him out but there will be an interesting dynamic to explore there. Kagami is also getting a serious rewrite because I just do not like her lore. Same for Lila. Adrien will get to bond more with Luka as well. I've not thought too much about the other characters yet though.

Gabriel is more down to earth, and does genuinely care for Adrien (in still a very fucked up way). He sheltered him because of the accident and still dictates a lot of his life. Some change may happen to Adrien's mom lore since he's not a sentimonster but idk exactly what yet

Anyway if you have questions don't hesitate to ask! I still got a lot to figure out and asking stuff will also help me to think lol

[cj-the-random-artist]

Hi!! First, I wanted to say that your AU is one of my favorites and has inspired me, so thank you so much for sharing it <3

About the sketch requests... I'd like to know what it would be like if Narinder chose an outfit for the Lamb and vice versa (it doesn't have to be anything very detailed)

Hello hello!!! I'm so glad you like my AU, that makes me incredibly happy and I really appreciate that so much :D

For the sketch... I'll admit I spent a ton of time thinking about this. And it took a while for me to figure out what I wanted to do for this one, but here are the outfits I landed on:

(Don't look too closely at the eyes I'm still debating if they look good or not lmfao)

For Lambert's outfit... I think Narinder would want them to be comfortable first and foremost, but also kind of in some ways... like resemble his old death god robes. In my mind, he gave up those robes partly to renounce his old self, but also because he felt it wasn't befitting of him to be wearing such robes when he had lost his crown. Secretly, he wants Lambert to feel as though they are allowed to embrace their title as the god of death, and I think perhaps, if he was deciding what they would wear, he would want them to dress in something suitable of their title. That said, the cut is also quite different, and they're also wearing some cool flowy pants under there. I think Lambert would potentially actually like this outfit, but would struggle to feel good about wearing it largely because they don't feel comfortable with their title or position, but they would probably still like wearing it from time to time.

For Narinder's outfit, this is kind of what I envision Lambert picking for him. It's mostly just supposed to be similar to his earlier robes, particularly with the shirt he's wearing, but I also see Lambert wanting him to have a more like... overtly ceremonial robe kind of thing?? He's kind of already in semi-ceremonial robes anyways but I kind of think that was a matter of compromise?? I'll get more into those reasons in the rest of this paragraph. But I do think that if Narinder was to be given this outfit, he would wear it in this more like casual off-the-shoulder way, specifically because he doesn't want to be perceived as overly important anymore. Like he does love being Lambert's right hand and partner, and he loves the little bit of status and respect that goes along with that, but he also isn't super interested in being like, an Important Religious Figure among the cultists, so if he's handed Important Religious Robes he's gonna wear them casually even if it means wearing them like... that. But Lambert's not gonna argue, he'll wear what they picked for him however he wants lol

I hope this works for the request!! I rotated this idea for like. Hours and hours before coming up with anything that was actually good or interesting, because I'd never really thought about this before?? So this was very very interesting to sketch and I had a great time drawing this :D

[dorkus-mcdingus]

A Familiar Voice: A Lilia Short Story

BIG OL FREAKING DISCLAIMER!

This bit of fanfiction is based on the "Crowley is Raverne" theory (which has neither been confirmed or denied) which I both DESPISE TO MY CORE and adore so much.

So I thought, if that theory is true, what would be going through Lilia's head seeing a somewhat familiar face during orientation?

Admittedly, the final scene with Crowley, I was inspired by Prince Kallisto's drawing and oof the amount of inspiration it gave me when I saw Maleanor's painting get slashed! After all, if a portrait has a mouth, why can't it talk?

Enjoy the story and the little moments of Lilia being a wholesome dad :3

A new year meant new students coming in, packing the mirror chamber like sardines while the Headmaster gives the most boring yet somehow self-serving speech imaginable.

The seniors were trying their damndest to stay awake but getting a good look at the new blood, their hearts began to palpitate rapidly as in the sea of cloaked boys, only one had horns poking through his hood.

"Dude, we got a code red." One third year student whispered

"Shut up! The headmage is gonna hear us!" Replied a second year in a hushed tone.

"I'm serious, look in the crowd of freshmen!"

When the boy turned to the crowd, it was like his blood froze into ice in his veins.

"You're kidding...! You mean to tell me that's..."

The third year nodded, just as terrified as ever.

"Malleus Draconia... I feel so bad for everyone in Diasomnia right now..."

"How do you know he's gonna end up there? The Dark Mirror hasn't even gotten to him."

"Uh! Hello?! 5th most powerful mage in Twisted Wonderland AND the fact that he's a fae from Briar Valley?! No duh he's going to get sorted into Diasomnia!

Another second year boy tapped on their shoulders.

"I heard a lot of things about the fae from that place. They're not as forgiving compared to here. I mean, mom and dad already hammered in before I came here to always be polite to the fairies but I'd rather avoid Malleus like the plague unless I wanna get cursed. Just looking at him gives me the chills..."

Curious, Malleus looked over at the whispering boys but the trio panicked as they hid their mouths behind their hands to muffle a gasp.

"Malleus," Lilia whispered. "Pay attention because they're going to call you up soon."

"Understood." He sighed.

Those etiquette lessons had to be drilled into his head despite how bored he was hearing the headmage go on and ON about how generous and kind he was but once Lilia got a good look at the man... Something told him that he's seen him before. It was hard to tell behind the mask he wore, but even he was left staring.

"Cater Diamond!" Called the masked man.

The ginger haired boy with a black diamond painted on his cheek stood in front of the mirror as the mirror said with a booming voice,

"State your name."

"Name's Cater Diamond~!" He replied with his overly jovial tone.

"Cater Diamond, the nature of your soul is... HEARTSLABYUL!"

Lilia may have been short in stature but his red doll-like eyes couldn't pry away from the Headmaster. He definitely didn't register as a dinural fae from his appearance, but where had he seen that man before?! Was it during his travels?! Just... WHERE?!

Malleus in turn gave Lilia a light tap on his shoulder.

"Are you fairing well, Lilia?" He whispered.

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but I feel like I've seen the headmage before. Though, drat! I don't remember where?"

"It could've been someone you encountered on your travels, but from the looks of it, he might be one of us. Though, I do wonder, why wear a mask?"

"Indeed. There's no doubt about it that he's a fae like us but still... Urgh... Dash it all! My memory's not serving me well in my age."

Soon enough, the headmage called.

"Malleus Draconia!"

A loud surge of whispers roared throughout the chamber as some boys looked on in shock and horror, while some were rendered flabbergasted at the sight of the crowned prince in front of them. He maintained a perfect posture, a calm demeanor, but admittedly, the whispers cut him deep like daggers made from cold-forged iron.

"Why's he even here when he's already in the top five?!"

"I feel like I should apologize just for looking at him!"

"He's so powerful it's so suffocating!"

"His appearance alone is enough to give anyone nightmares."

"Rest in peace to the current Housewarden of Diasomnia. You're doomed!"

One student (a lion beastman in particular) remained quiet but shot a disdainful glare at the young dragon. As if the man needed another reminder that he'll always be second best and the fact that the boy is the crowned prince of his country too!

But as soon as Malleus stepped up to the mirror, the mirror commanded,

"State your name."

"My name is Malleus Draconia."

"Malleus, the nature of your soul is... DIASOMNIA!"

One given the magestone for his pen, he made his way back to his seat beside Lilia.

Though, with one good look at the boy, the old bat fae could tell that the whispers were troubling the young dragon. It may have been against what those old bastards in the Senate would've wanted, but he wrapped the boy's hand in his and gently rubbed the back of it with his thumb.

"Don't let it get to you, Malleus." He said gently. "As sad as it is, humans often fear what they don't know but once they get to know you, they'll be dazzled for sure."

"You don't need to treat me like I'm still forty, Lilia." Malleus replied trying to keep a straight face. "After all, Grandmother thought it would be good for me that I try to get to know these children of man better. Although, I don't know if four years will be enough."

"You won't know unless you try my boy." Lilia giggled. "Besides, if you're going to try and maintain peace with them, why not start young? It won't be all bad though. Silver and Sebek will be joining us over the next two years we're here."

"Silver will be a welcome presence, but I worry about Sebek when he does arrive."

"He still has much of the world to see and has much to learn just like you and Silver. You three are growing children and an environment like this will be beneficial to you. True, it may not be traveling but it can help you sample the different cultures they come from."

Malleus gave the old bat a small smile.

"You make a fair point. This could help them too just as much as me. By the way, were you able to figure out where you've seen the Headmage?"

Lilia heaved a slight sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Alas, I have not and it's bothering me!"

As the list of names whittled down, with the Headmage yelling such names as,

"Rook Hunt!"

And as a huge shock to everyone,

"Vil Schoenheit!"

Lilia couldn't help but comment saying he's seen a couple of his movies while out traveling. He really had grown so much compared to his days as a child actor but even then he was born to be a celebrity. For a human, one could say he embodied elegance.

As Crowley went down the list once more, he called,

"Idia Shroud!"

The timid boy with blue hair that acted like fire, Malleus at one point had heard of them through his old texts in the family's ancient library. They were born to a family with a bloodline curse of burning intense amounts of blot but as time passed and the family began dedicating their studies to blot research, it soon grew into the facility known as STYX.

He looked at Idia as he tried pulling his hood to hide his face while a cute little humanoid robot floated beside him as he urged his big brother to keep walking.

"Heh, a big Shroud and a little Shroud. How adorable."

"Ooh, knowing who that boy is related to, I know he's going to grow up to do great things."

"State your name." Said the mirror.

"I-Idia Shroud!"

"Idia, the nature of your soul is... IGNIHYDE!"

"No surprises there." Lilia whispered. "The Shrouds for many years have always had a knack for technomancy and engineering."

Further and further down the list the headmage went and boy was it getting long and boring! Yet still, Lilia couldn't take his eyes off of him.

Everything about him from the feathers, to the talon rings, just something seemed so eerily familiar but the more he got a good look at the plague doctor mask he wore, it was like someone quickly erased his memory before he found out too much.

Almost like... A childhood friend he knew once upon a time before he went missing. Not even to this day has it been confirmed that he passed.

He could recall a time when they snuck out of the castle, this cheeky little princess saw a bird trapped in a human's net and she wanted to give him a fright.

"Into a boy." She commanded.

The moment the raven began transforming into a human, his yellow eyes stared back at the princess once he threw the net off of him and he said to her,

"What have you done to my beautiful self?!"

"Would you rather be mauled by that human's dog?"

"No."

"I thought so."

All the while, Lilia was sent into a giggling fit.

But the merriment wasn't to last. Lilia was left all alone for so many years, ridiculed by the Senate, and with their son to look after. Something about those those yellow eyes hiding behind the mask just made it so familiar to him.

Soon enough,

"Lilia Vanrouge!"

Of course, he heard the whispers just like Malleus with the other boys saying,

"A girl? Since when did NRC go co-ed?"

"Gotta admit, she is pretty cute."

"Kufufu. Those boys don't know what they're in for." Lilia giggled quietly to himself.

But for some strange reason, the Headmaster couldn't help but get a good look at the small old man. He kept a straight face but even though he kept people at an arm's length, never revealing his face to anyone, the older boys could tell that the headmage was acting slightly off.

"State your name." Said the mirror.

"Lilia Vanrouge."

Hearing the boys' shocked expressions upon noticing the sound of his deep voice made it so hard for the little bat fae not to keel over from laughing.

"Lilia, the nature of your soul is... DIASOMNIA!"

No surprises there. Well, at least it'll make looking after Malleus easier. Still, although Lilia gave the headmage a sweet and charming smile, but behind the mask, Crowley was actively trying to play it cool.

With the ceremony coming to a close, before he made his way back to his office, Crewel stopped him for a minute asking where he was heading off to especially since Sam was so kind as to throw them a party to start off the new school year.

"I just need to take care of a few important documents, Professor Crewel. I'll be right back."

A ghost from the past he tried so DESPERATELY to forget and the boy he was with... It was like his days of old regrets were coming back to haunt him once more. Behind a pair of black curtains, hung a portrait of a woman with long jet-black hair and chartreuse eyes. Like the royal she was, she was fully decked out in the finest of jewels and silver resting on her shoulders as well as acting as a tiara hanging around her horns. However, the one curious thing about her portrait compared to the paintings around the school, hers had her mouth slashed.

The old headmaster held his head in his hands the more he looked at her. Even in death she still found a way to haunt him after so many years of trying to bury his past.

[artists-who-rarely-draws]

PLEASE MAKE A MCD ZANE X READER🙏🏾🙏🏾you make the best zane x reader’s and i cant find anything 😭😭😭

(No pressure or anything 😊)

Awwww how sweet!!!!! Thank you!!! I've made 1 :D lmfao

Hope this is what you wanted! you didn't give me a specific prompt so- I just ...winged it. lol. Also credit to @writing-for-whoever-listens i used one of their prompts here for inspiration ^^.

Warnings: Zane mcd in general we love it but he IS a major red flag, Talk of death? Zane isn't threatening the reader or anything though hes just goth in every timeline, Reader has at least some base fear of Zane (fair) But your love and affection for him is real as well....So Unhealthy relationship dynamic should also go here... or does that just count under the Zane warning lmfao

You haven't been able to find your husband this evening. You were hoping he would spare a moment to have some tea with you before going off, to do sevens knows what where you won't see him till bed.

His position keeps him busy; you understand that you were made more than aware of it when you agreed to this engagement. But sometimes the cold isolation of the O'khasis Palace just...seeps into your bones and you find yourself desperately searching out the only semblance of warmth afforded to you. And normally, your quite successful at it, if he's not in meetings he's traditionally in his study or throne room.

But after what feels like an eternity of searching identical hallways. Shadows stretch, and your eyes grow heavy. Bitter disappointment turns to dull resignment. Another day, Another morrow perhaps. But for now, you walk through the opulent stone walls of the castle to your and Zanes bedchambers. Pushing open Heavy intricately carved wooden doors you immediately notice something off. All the candles and the fireplace is lit, something that shouldn't happen for a while longer either by your hands or the servants should you not.

But what's more than that, the Balcony doors are open. Cool night air filling the room and looking out the balcony is the very man you've been searching for. Still in his full priestly attire... at least as far as you could tell from behind, hair lightly swaying in the wind. Its.. strange, He has never been in the room before you... or seemingly chosen to contemplate here rather than his study.

"Zane? Darling?" You call softly entering the room and closing the door behind you not wanting to catch him off guard you slowly approach.

"Ah good it's you Lamb" he mummers softly moving his her just enough to gaze at you over his shoulder, "I'd hate to have to disturb the peace of tonight with a servant to dull to knock" The threat is obvious and sends a suppressed chill down your spine, despite the chill as always you are drawn to his side as if pulled by unseen ropes connecting you.

"What are you doing out here?"

"I'm planning out our deaths." his voice is smooth and calm, Unchanged in the face of words that make your very bones cold a million thoughts rushing through you so fast you feel dizzy.

"Pa-Pardon?" You Balk eyes widened. But he just chuckles as if the reaction amuses him. His Mask is off...you hadn't noticed it on your side table, but you do notice the smile gracing his freckled face, a warm hand in your own bringing you down to earth again, He raises your hand to his face and lightly presses his lips to your knuckles.

"Theres no need to be frightened lamb, I wouldn't lead you astray. I'm merely...contemplating on what is to be when one of us passes" he explains breath warming your knuckles with every word. He lets your arm rest, hand to your side but it's still engulfed in his own "... I find the idea of us being apart in such a way... distasteful." Your heart... warms at that, in a strange way... he's always shown his care strangely.

"Neither of us are meeting our end Darling" You gently squeeze his hand "There is no need to dwell on such a macabre topic... Did something happen to draw you to this?" you ask carefully... is he distraught? Or is this just his need for crushing control in all aspects... does both of your passing really fall into that?

You worry you've angered him... said the wrong thing when no words are spoken for agonizingly long seconds. Eyes as cold as the most frozen lakes simply bore into your own.

"I suppose you're right." He hums simply, Thumb brushing over your knuckles. "Come along let's get you to sleep my sweet lamb." He coos tone sickly sweet "Its late."

"Ah- are you retiring as well?" You can't hold back the surprise and... excitement stirring within you, Zane rarely joined you in bed before you've already fallen asleep. Getting to wind down and fall asleep alongside him makes your very skin warm and buzz, the excitement for warmth and intimacy with another being rushing through you.

"I will be" he nods stopping to drop you at your privacy screen, so you can change into sleeping attire before heading towards his own. "I'd like to spend the rest of the night with my Lover."

[violetsastrocytes]

unhinged regulus (my fave)

hey hello i thought i'd quickly talk about regulus in my lotss fic... i feel like people are gonna have problems with him—so here's some musings/ramblings etc!

so i really enjoy the idea of exploring human nature, and to me this means a flawed character. in lotss regulus is not a good person. there's good in him, sure, but on the whole he's morally corrupt and has a detrimental fuck-it-we-ball attitude. he relishes in destruction and indulges in his volatility. like he persuaded sirius to literally bind them together with a potentially fatal and 100% illegal spell at ten fucking years old, because he was like whelp. i'm gonna miss you when you go to highschool. and he's manipulative as shit, because sirius was like oh yeah, horcruxes, solid plan, and then does it.

regulus joins the army, yes to protect sirius, yes so sirius doesn't have to, but he would've joined anyway. he LOVES the power it gives him. he finds murdering fun. genuinely fun. he likes to tease his victims, he likes to draw their death out, he thinks it's hilarious when they cry and beg. and sure, okay, these are unambiuously bad people, veela traffickers etc, reg doesn't feel this way when he's on the battlefield and it's basically soldiers just like him. but still, it does take a certain character to not only carry out, but relish in murder.

i took a lot of inspiration for his and General Riddle's relationship from Silko and Jinx (from Arcane). i thought that dynamic was the best ever, like here are two hurt, damaged, chaotic and morally deranged people. they enable each other, they care for each other (genuinely). i'm obsessed with Arcane so think about it way too much, but Silko's last words to Jinx "you're perfect" make me wanna scream. because to him she is. that's what a daughter is to a father—a true father. flawed and tainted and morally ugly, blood all over her hands—but she is still his daughter, he forgives her, he loves her. despite, because of, regardless.

anyway my whole point with this ramble—i feel like lots of marauders fics ive read ultimately try and either validate, justify or redeem a character's unjust actions or corrupt nature. that's totally valid obviously, but that's not what i've done in lotss. regulus never regrets his behaviour, even when it ends up costing him someone he really, really loves. even then he continues to do it, he continues to enjoy it. he never has any big revelation and goes fuck. i messed up.

and general riddle—we've seen him manipulate, coerce and trap nagini. so we're against him. but then we see him from regulus' pov—who admires and trusts him—and he seems like a nice guy. so then we're like okay, is he a dick or is he nice? but isn't everyone both sides of that coin?

i really tried to show that while, on the whole, he's an upstanding leader, fighting for good causes (and is non-discriminative: there's a vast and inclusive representation of genders and races in the death eater army, something which is notably absent from the ministry-affiliated order and bmaf) even then riddle's hungry for more power. he wants to experiment and test the limits of his magic. my whole moral of the story thing with lotss is that power corrupts. there is NO GOOD SIDE. i'll say it again: no one wins in war.

like that line in hotd, where alicent says wtf are we even fighting for anymore? and rhaenyra is like lol idk. i was reading about the vietnam war recently: america and australia sent all those men in, then realised they were being fucking decimated and were like, oh fuck, and pulled them out again. thousands dead. literally for fucking what. anyway, all that to say: i'm not trying to use a character (regulus) who is generally well-liked by the fandom in order to try and justify or advocate for violence. his behaviour is just me experimenting with another way trauma can play out, like don't forget the circumstances of his birth, or the fact that he had to watch sirius being abused. sirius' magic was tested by orion to the point where he almost died multiple times. it effected sirius one way, it effected regulus another.

anyway! it's a story loves, not meant to be serious xo as i said before, take it all with a pinch of salt. and if you happen to watch arcane, tell me so we can try about it together!

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA if I put my own sketches into AI to give myself references?

I've been doing digital art for the past few years, just as a hobby, and while I'm fairly confident in my skills I feel like I have a lot to improve on with drawing living things. People, especially; I always end up feeling like something about it looks terribly off, no matter how good it looks. I've been improving, but it still really bothers me, especially since I can usually tell something's wrong with my rough sketches but can't point it out or fix it.

A few days ago, I had the thought of putting my rough sketches into an AI art program, particularly when trying to draw something I couldn't get a good reference pose for, and using the results to assist in improving my sketches. After all, while I have difficulty finding the problems in my own sketches, AI art (particularly of people) has much more obvious flaws. I'm good at recognizing the issues with it and how it could be fixed. So presumably, I could combine the AI output and my own sketch to get a better idea of what I actually want to draw.

The problem is, though... well, it's AI. I probably don't have to explain why that's got me concerned. I really hate how these programs are just stealing other people's art, and even if I'm using my sketch for a reference, it's not going to stop doing that. I don't want to support these programs, and I know some people can (understandably) get upset if you even consider doing so. Besides, I could just... get good. On the other hand, I'd be strictly using this to improve my skill and get inspiration- pretty much the only thing I could ever approve of using AI for in its current state- and I wouldn't even be making money off of it. But still, would using it in this way be an asshole move, considering how scummy AI is?

What are these acronyms?

[captainclickycat]

So while we're on the subject, here are some other thoughts.

I found Neil Gaiman's online presence - and the more overzealous members of his fanbase - annoying. And please stay with me here, I promise this isn't me trying to be smug or claim I "knew all along" or anything. There's a huge gulf between finding someone a bit annoying and thinking that their behaviour online is less than stellar occasionally and suspecting them of being a sexual predator. I don't think there could have been any way of me "knowing all along" without reading everything in the worst possible faith, which I'm not willing to do and which I maintain is not a good or helpful approach in general. And to people who genuinely looked up to him and felt completely blindsided by the news, I'm really sorry. It wasn't your fault and I hope you can do something kind for yourself today.

Anyway, back to the subject at hand. I didn't like the way he handled criticism of his work, a lot of the time. I don't think creators are obligated to personally listen to and address every negative opinion of their work, or explain every individual aspect of it that someone disliked. But I felt like a lot of his responses to feedback tended to lean into and encourage praise, while being a little disingenuous and sometimes belittling towards criticism. (And really, why feel the need to respond to everything when you could just ignore it?)

I didn't like the way he always felt the need to weigh in on fandom debates or throw out "word of god" explanations for this or that thing, including when nobody even asked. (Want to know who inspired the "I don't care what the author said" comment in my bio? Take a guess.) Especially when some of them felt engineered to paint him and his work in the best possible light.

Again, I'm not drawing attention to all this in an attempt to claim any one thing was a blatant red flag or must have been down to some sinister motivation. That's not the point I'm trying to make.

But it is one of the reasons that I was always deeply uncomfortable by the culture of hero-worship and "touch not god's anointed" that always seemed to exist around him. Like regardless of whether or not you thought this or that criticism against him was warranted, the way people would treat him like some kind of messiah who deserved nothing but praise and lose their absolute shit whenever anyone said anything remotely negative about him was absurd. Nobody deserves that, regardless of what they've done.

But at the same time... you know, I liked his work. Not just "I liked the stuff he co-wrote with someone else" or "I liked the films and TV shows he worked on with a whole bunch of other people." I liked the books he wrote by himself. They had some parts worth criticising, sure, what doesn't. But overall I thought they were well-written and funny and thought-provoking and I enjoyed myself when I was reading them. Neverwhere is the first book I had a crack at re-reading in a different language, which should tell you how much I liked it. And I didn't even dislike everything he posted on the internet. I thought some comments were pretty funny and/or insightful. I even reblogged the odd post.

And I wasn't all that vocal about any negative feelings I had towards him, because... well, frankly because a lot of the negative feelings I'd seen expressed by other people about him tended to look like "he's the devil incarnate, his work sucks, he's the worst person alive and he secretly hates every marginalised group and people should feel ashamed for sincerely liking his stuff."

And I didn't agree with that either! I didn't want to be roped in with those people. I didn't feel comfortable around them, any more than I felt comfortable around the Neil Gaiman Defense Squad, Working Tirelessly Day And Night To Aggressively Stamp Out Any Criticism Of Our Lord And Saviour.

And honestly I'm not entirely sure what kind of broader point I'm trying to articulate here, or whether I'm just working through stuff in my head. But I will say that this kind of polarising, zero-sum-game approach to criticism is... bad. It's just bad. It makes it so people are reluctant to put forward any kind of nuanced stance, for fear that they'll end up getting pigeonholed into one oversimplified category or another, or it ends up pushing people towards one extreme stance or another out of sheer frustration or contrariness. And it makes it incredibly difficult to have any kind of actually productive debate when it comes to criticising media, or criticising creators. Inevitably people's hackles are going to be up whichever side they lean towards more, and a lot of people with valuable input will inevitably end up going "yeah, I can see how that's a good point, but also the last person who brought this topic up with me deemed it appropriate to send me a barrage of messages telling me to kill myself about it, so forgive me if I'm not interested in engaging any further."

Obviously a culture of hero worship inevitably makes it a lot easier for predators to operate, and I have no doubt that being inundated with messages about how wonderful you are and how everyone who's criticising you is in the wrong must make it a lot easier to rationalise your actions. But I feel like this tendency to paint everything in terms of "are they a pure uwu blameless smol bean angel OR the devil incarnate" is incredibly unhelpful regardless of what side you come down on. The "devil incarnate" crowd can be part of the problem too.

[twstedpometea]

1 year later: Ugigiugi review and thoughts

Hello Everyone.

It's finally been a year since the PDF was released. I decided to do a retrospective post on Ugigiugi, the history of her tracing, and share my personal thoughts now that some time has passed.

Feel free to read below!

First off, I wanted to publicly address the fact that I noticed the new "findings" in the tag. I have collected those for annotations.

As I've stated before in one of my older posts, this whole situation was the first time I'd seen or dealt with a serial tracer like Ugigiugi. Counting her last post day, she had been tracing for 5 years. Given all these things, I decided to reflect a bit on the Ugigiugi situation and things are a year later.

At that time it appeared that Ugigiugi was mostly a tracer/self-insert Mary-sue type of artist. Given her lack of crediting and stealing from others, it was pretty apparent that she was a lazy and passionless person masquerading as an artist and had zero shame in taking the efforts from others for herself.

While there is still plenty of art that has yet to be sourced, it can kinda assumed if Ugigiugi saw it, she stole it, regardless of the source. This is pretty evident when you look at the located sources which spanned from small-time fan artists and to published works, including online media or comics she's read in her own time. And let's not forget the audacity of her tracing over other people's original characters, and comics, or stealing from lgbtq+ ships.

Pharaoh’s Concubine by Misha/Youshi

Ennead by Mojito

Now, generally, it's alright to feel "inspired" by other people's fan art/comics/stories/etc. That's normal. And I certainly can't police what people will end up liking in their media.

But blatantly stealing others shows no passion and demonstrates you have very little respect for your fellow art peers. As I've said in my previous post on Tracing/Copying/Referencing while tracing is one way to "learn" how to draw art, it is not something you should heavily rely on as it can quickly become a crutch. If you're not pulling any useful information from it and just trace without a second thought, you will become dependent on it for everything and never truly learn how to draw without that crutch.

Every artist needs to study the fundamentals to learn how to break the rules. Every artist needs to learn how to use resources properly, be transparent if they borrow from others, and give credit where credit is due. Every artist has to gain confidence so they can create and self-motivate to improve.

Ugigiugi had NONE of these qualities because at the end of the day she did not care about being an artist.

She wanted attention and praise and did not care how she got it.

Looking back on the fallout and how Ugigiugi handled it when people tried to correct her or called her out, I can't consider her a creator in any capacity. Given that most of her pieces are in the genre of Mary-sue/self-inserting, this was really just her putting the spotlight on herself and that's the bottom line.

Now I'll be frank: I don't care for self-inserting. But that is a personal preference. However, I understand it is a thing people do within fandom spaces for fun, and if that's what you like? More power to you.

But if you have to steal from other artists to do that? From fellow fans or even from people who probably spent years developing their skills and putting art online to advertise their artwork or comics? You are just a leech, no different from the "AI artists" plugging prompts into generators to spit out terrible soulless art, scrapped from the honest efforts of thousands before them. And how can you call yourself an artist when you take from everyone else but having nothing to show for yourself?

Finally, for my last point, I'll share my thoughts on Ugigiugi's last known post and her "apology" before she deleted her Tumblr since not everyone got to see her response/rant when the callouts first began to circulate. I'm also leaving her DA post here for reference.

Someone had asked me if there was any actual proof Ugigiugi ever apologized anywhere before she nuked her social media. No, she never did apologize. You can even see in her Tumblr "apology" that she doesn't admit to what she did before going off on a rant. As of this year? She still has never apologized for all the tracing or stealing and for not crediting her free resources.

That being said a lot of what Ugi said at the end of her apologies always bugged me. I'll zoom in on these parts of her posts.

Here's the thing. You can have all the dreams in the world you like. Does creating art help you escape from the troubles of the real world? By all means that stuff is normal. To create art and express things is also fine.

But what isn't normal or acceptable Ugigiugi's lack of responsibility.

You can't build things with stuff that isn't yours to begin with. What story or world is there to share if you're just stealing the building blocks from others with no regard for people's works or boundaries? How can you create or inspire anyone when all you have to offer is a poorly reproduced copy. Can you even call it a hobby when you're not even going to put in the minimum effort? I don't think so.

Yes, Ugigiugi's can have issues with the doxing/political hubbub but at the end of it all, she is in a mess entirely of her own making. If she hadn't traced and just sourced things properly, I don't think people would have gone after her for all the stuff she had stolen (problematic media/opinions aside obviously). Taking accountability is always a sign of maturity.

And that is probably the biggest reason I can't give Ugiugigi a pass. She is not some misguided young artist just starting out. She is an adult. And not just any adult but one in the educational field too. It is appalling and little disturbing that an educator is engaging in such selfish behavior. And in her own words she knows these things and people have corrected her. But instead of taking accountability, she chooses to double down even harder and get mad at everyone for "bullying" her. She acts like a victim and makes excuses right up until the bitter end. And even now, despite a year of silence, I suspect her stance hasn't changed.

But this post is already growing quite long and rather then continue to beat this dead horse, I would rather finish this entry to talk about what people should avoid.

Even a year later after the PDF was published there's still stuff being sourced from her traced works and we have no idea if Ugiugigi is continuing to lurk or continuing to steal but keep it offline to avoid another public fallout.

Whatever the case may be I would like to leave a final thought both to encourage people to not do what she did and also address and of her lingering supporters who might stumble across this:

There are some out there who feel that what Ugiugigi did was not that bad since "everyone traces". But these people are wrong.

When you take something that doesn't belong to you, that is stealing. And when people discover you have been stealing they get upset for far more than just the theft. They get angry because that person is a LIAR. That is a betrayal of trust from an artist they believed was acting in good faith. If said artist can just rip off other people's work or resources without even so much as a token acknowledgement of where their inspiration came from, it calls their entire body of work into question.

And when people discover you have lack integrity, they no longer trust you. And once you lose that trust it can be impossible to gain that back. That is why they leave, block that artist, and refuse to engage further because if they can steal from others, what is to stop them from stealing from you?

Ugiugigi's downfall is ultimately from her own egotism, a misguided belief that she deserved praise while giving negative effort. And while there are still many like her out there, there is at least one less parasite to deal with.

[steddieunderdogfics]

This week’s writer spotlight feature is:  @alwaysurvalentine! alwaysurvalentine has 11 fics in the Stranger Things fandom on AO3 and all of them are in the Steddie tag!

@dame-zoom-a-lot recommends the following works by @alwaysurvalentine:

bad days were meant to be shared

three strikes and you're out!

aquariums and sweethearts

"If I had to put an image to their fics… I'd say a warm blanket and a piece of cake.

Their slices of life fics get cooked with so much care and thought. A lot of them are my go-to when I'm feeling kind of off or lonely. They approach conflict with so much empathy and realism. No one's just shitty out of the blue with zero reason, and characters talk things out in a way that feels like how real people would talk. There's rarely clear villains or clean-cut forever happy-ending type resolutions in real life, and their fics shine at showing the beauty of that." -- @dame-zoom-a-lot

Below the cut, @alwaysurvalentine answered some questions about their writing process and some of their recommended work!

Why do you write Steddie?

Honestly, I just really vibe with both of them as characters. It’s easy to draw some of my own parallels with how Eddie sees the world and Steve’s fall from grace within my personal life - so it’s nice to play around with characters who I can understand. Plus I love taking the “protectors” from the narrative and forcing them to allow others to care for them.

What’s your favorite trope to READ?

I’m a sucker for any type of soulmate au, the ones with soulmarks are my guilty pleasures. Just something about knowing there’s someone out there destined to care about you makes me feel all warm and fuzzy

What’s your favorite trope to WRITE?

Anything slice of life or found family - I just love getting to give characters all the love and care they deserve. Especially when canon has put them through the ringer!!

What’s your favorite Steddie fic?

With no cross to bear (these words just come out) by hitlikehammers https://archiveofourown.org/works/45052120/chapters/113340064 I come back to this fic again and again. Love their Eddie POV and all of the reactions from the party feel authentic and I just love a fic that really shows how much everyone cares about Steve (even if he doesn’t see it).

Is there a trope you’re excited to explore in a future work but haven’t yet?

I’ve had a big idea about a possession type fic starring Eddie. It’s gonna be a big project though so it may be workshopped and shelved for another time while I work on some other stuff!

What is your writing process like?

Music is my biggest inspiration and I listen to Spotify all of the time (my spotify wrapped is about to be WILD), but usually I’ll get a spark of an idea from a song, scribble down a quick interaction I can see, and then once I get home it’s getting it all out on a doc. It usually takes me a few days to a week for me to get a fic where I want it, especially when the characters take things into their own hands for the narrative (I’m looking at Eddie and Robin here)

Do you have any writing quirks?

I actually write everything in red text until I decide I like the section. I have so many documents that have different colored text based on how I feel about it. Black means it’s ready to be proofread/don’t change, purple or blue for things I want to rewrite, and then red for what I’ve gotten down but isn’t edited/reviewed yet. Besides that I also go in thinking I’m going to keep it short and sweet and then I blink and we’re 2k in - but it’s been fun nonetheless!

Do you prefer posting when you’ve finished writing or on a schedule?

If I’m doing a prompt challenge usually it’s as soon as I’m done (totally not because I finish the day of…totally not that) but other than that I have a personal schedule to have certain things done by, otherwise I’ll nitpick forever.

Which fic are you most proud of?

Three Strikes and You’re Out! It was super fun to play around with connecting baseball terms to DnD in a way that still made sense and wasn’t just a block of info text.

How did you get the idea for aquariums and sweethearts?

It was actually a little followup I did for another fic, where Eddie visited the aquarium with Uncle Wayne but wasn’t able to get the souvenir he wanted. And I wanted Steve to kinda complete that circle, plus I wanted them to have a moment where they could kinda be kids again.

When writing aquariums and sweethearts, what was something you didn’t expect?

I honestly didn’t expect it to be so long, I was just going to write a tiny follow up but got carried away with my own aquarium memories and research so I just kept wanting to add more and more

What inspired three strikes and you're out!?

I feel like I’ve seen a lot of fics where Steve meets Eddie halfway with his interests and I wanted to see the opposite. Like it’s one thing for Eddie to concede that being a jock isn’t so bad, but it’s another for him to go out and learn about a sport/something that doesn’t interest him at all, ya know?

What was your favorite part to write from three strikes and you're out!?

Oooh! Such a hard question, for me it’s a tie between the conversation Eddie has with Lucas and his conversation with Uncle Wayne. I just liked putting Eddie in a situation where he was the one learning, instead of being the one in charge/control.

How do/did you feel writing bad days were meant to be shared?

It was a little hard starting out, I knew a couple things I wanted to happen but besides that I really went in kinda blind. Once I got into the groove though, it felt like it just wrote itself. Steve knew what he was feeling and just guided me along.

What was the most difficult part of writing bad days were meant to be shared?

So fun fact, I actually wrote the first draft completely from Eddie's point of view. I was trying to find his voice (still feel like I’m working on this but progress is progress) but it just wasn’t flowing right and Dame-Zoom-A-Lot actually helped beta for me. They’re the one who suggested the point of view switch and it worked so well!!

Do you have a favorite scene and/or line from any of your fics?

A favorite scene I’ve written has to be in aquariums and sweethearts when Eddie and the Mime gang up on Steve to poke fun at him, it just felt like something Eddie would play along with and enjoy.  These couple of lines from Three Strikes and You’re Out! Make me really happy, like sent my friends a dorky screenshot because I liked them so much: “Eddie’s world narrows to the smell of Steve’s cologne, something that smells like rain on freshly cut grass and a hint of vanilla. Just as soon as Steve leaned in, he leans away, the sun painting orange and pink highlights in his hair when he tilts his head grinning.”

Do you have any upcoming projects or fics you’d like to share/promote?

I’m working on a Steve Harrington ‘character study’ from Hopper’s point of view currently and might be starting on an Anastasia AU starring Chrissy as Anya and Robin as Dimitri - super stoked for both of these!

Outside of these questions, Is there anything YOU would like to add?

Endless thanks to my nominator!! I just started posting for Steddie this August and it’s been unreal. So thankful for all of my new friends and can’t wait to share some more of my little ideas and chat with other people about their art and stories! <3

Thank you to our author, @alwaysurvalentine, and our nominator, @dame-zoom-a-lot ! See more of alwaysurvalentine's works featured on our page throughout the day!

Writer’s Spotlight is every Wednesday! Want to nominate an author? You can nominate them here!

[pupculture]

Vampire×Human fic under the cut (both OCs)

Inspired by @vamprisms ♡ (this is just the first part)

Tags/Warnings: Vampires, bloodplay, dubcon (vampiric feeding), lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers vibes, morally gray characters, intense physical tension, and a dash of dark humor, lowkey snuff. Idek if this is dead dove don't eat, but it's really not that bad. Or I'm fucked up. Regardless, read at your own risk

No I did not edit it or reread it okay? And I wrote straight into Tumblr so no word count XD

Part Two

Look, we all lie on Tinder, right?

A few extra cms here, bit more cash there. So when I matched with Odette, I did NOT believe that she lived in a castle. Who even says that in 2025? Sure, her photos showed this sprawling gothic mansion with ivy-covered walls and actual turrets; but honestly I just thought,

Okay, she's just an eccentric goth babe who got a fancy photoshoot done.

Her description was charming but kept very vague- "Seeker of the sublime. Collector of captivating moments."- while normally I'd swipe left on someone who seems so... extra, something about her just pulled me in. Of course, it didn't hurt that she was drop-dead gorgeous, with a jawline sharp enough to cut me.

So when she messaged me (moments after the match popped up) with: "Would you care to join me for an evening you'll never forget?" I couldn't help but roll my eyes and laugh. I mean, who talks like that? But then I read it again-maybe twice-and felt a little flutter in my chest. It wasn't your standard wyd or hey beautiful, and honestly, I was intrigued. I joked back with, "Is this the part where I end up in a true crime podcast?" thinking that'd scare her off, but she replied almost instantly: "Only if it's a story worth telling." And just like that, I found myself saying yes to a first date at her castle

I swear I’m not desperate! But honestly, it had been a while. I’d just moved to this little backwoods town, and let’s just say I wasn’t pulling as well here as I did in the city. So, the next evening, I found myself on an embarrassingly long drive down a suspicious, winding road. When I finally arrived, I didn’t even need the GPS to tell me I’d reached my destination. Yes, it really was a castle. And it looked even more dramatic in person—perched on a hill and looking like something straight out of a book, complete with an unnecessarily long driveway, lined with ancient, gnarled trees. The taxi driver gave me a look as he dropped me off, like he wanted to ask if I was sure about this. But I waved him off with a confidence I absolutely did not feel, dropping the cash in his hand before stepping out.

The cold evening air bit at my cheeks as I climbed the stone steps to the massive front door, trying not to trip in my high-heeled boots. The door itself was shockingly heavy, the kind you’d probably need a medieval battering ram to break into. But before I could even knock, it swung open with an ominous creak.

And there she was. Odette stood framed in the doorway, bathed in the warm, flickering glow of what I could only describe as an alarming amount of candles.

She wore a dark, flowing dress that clung to her body just enough to leave me mildly breathless, and it swished faintly as she shifted her weight. Her hair fell in loose waves over her shoulders, and down to her waist. Her lips were curved into this small, almost lazy smile, like she already knew exactly how this night was going to go. “Olivia,” she said, her voice smooth and velvety, the kind that felt like it could wrap itself around you. “You made it.”

I blinked. "Uh, actually, it's Aria."

Her smile froze for half a second before it softened again, seamless, like she was back in control. "Aria," she repeated, drawing it out like she was tasting it. "Of course. Forgive me, my mind must've wandered."

Look, I probably should’ve backed out then and there, I know. But I had already done the whole drive, and she smoothed it out so quickly it barely even registered. I hardly gave the Olivia girl a second thought—and the third was dashed from my mind immediately as her arm circled around my waist and pulled me inside.

The door closed behind me with a low, echoing thud, and before I could properly take in the ridiculous grandeur of the place, Odette’s hand rested lightly on the small of my back. “Let me show you around,” she said, her voice smooth and elegant, like this was just another ordinary Tuesday for her.

We moved down a long, dimly lit hallway lined with portraits—men and women painted in that stern, old-fashioned style, all sharp cheekbones and hollow stares. “It’s been in my family for generations,” Odette said as we walked, her tone calm and measured, like she was reciting something she’d said a thousand times before. “I suppose it’s... unconventional by modern standards, but I find it grounding.”

“Grounding,” I echoed, glancing at a particularly grim-looking woman holding a falcon. “Yeah, nothing says down-to-earth like living in a haunted castle.”

She laughed—soft, low, and completely unexpected. For a second, her face flickered with something strange, like the sound had startled her as much as it had me. The corner of her mouth twitched slightly, and she recovered so quickly I almost thought I’d imagined it. “You’re... amusing,” she said, her voice smoothing back into its refined tone.

“Just making sure you’re not a sugar mommy who rents this place to impress her dates,” I said, shrugging like I hadn't actually been wondering that.

Her lips curved into another faint smile, but she didn’t laugh again. “No, nothing so transactional,” she murmured, her gaze flicking to mine, lingering just long enough to make my skin heat. “Come, there’s more to see.”

She guided me through the house with practiced ease, barely pausing to explain the rooms—an ornate dining hall, a cavernous library, a sitting room with an enormous fireplace that I’d bet hadn’t been lit in a century. Her hand remained at my back, gentle but insistent, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t interested in showing me the house so much as getting me somewhere specific.

Finally, she stopped in front of a tall, heavy door. “And this,” she said, her voice dipping lower, “is my favorite room.”

Odette didn't bother opening the door herself. Instead, she pushed me back against it, her body pressing into mine with just enough force to make it open under our combined weight. The movement startled me, but before I could say anything, her lips were on mine. Her kiss was firm, deliberate, her hands cupping my face as if to ensure there was no escape-not that I wanted one. My breath hitched, and for a moment, all I could think was,

Well, yeah, it's a castle, but to her, it's just her house. And let's be honest, showing up at someone's house on a first date definitely screams one-night-stand .

But then her hands dragged down to my hops and coherent thought dissolved into static. I heard the door clicked shut behind her, and she didn't give me a chance to steady myself. Her body pressed me further into the room, her kiss deepening, hands firm but not rough as they guided me right where she wanted me.

Her lips left mine just long enough for me to gasp in a breath, but before I could even gather my thoughts, she leaned in again, her mouth brushing along my jawline and down to my neck. Her movements were slow, deliberate, like she was savoring the moment, and the heat of her breath sent shivers skittering down my spine. I tried to focus, my hands gripping the fabric of her dress, but the way she pressed against me made it hard. "Not wasting any time, huh?" I managed to mumble, my voice shaky but light, trying to break the tension with a little humour. Odette pulled back just enough to meet my gaze, her dark eyes flickering with something unreadable. "Why wait?" she murmured, her voice low and intoxicating. "Time is such a... fleeting thing."

For some reason, the way she said it made my chest tighten and my pussy clench, but her lips were on mine again before I could process it. She kissed me harder this time, more insistent, like she was trying to erase the space between us entirely.

I felt like I was burning, caught between her intensity and the sheer audacity of it all. This woman lives in a castle, I thought hazily. She's got antique portraits and candelabras, and here I am letting her devour me like this is the most normal thing in the world.

Before I could catch my breath, her hands slid from my waist to the backs of my thighs, and in one fluid motion, she lifted me like I weighed nothing. My legs wrapped around her instinctively as she carried me a few steps into the room before dropping me unceremoniously on the bed. I couldn't contain my giggle at her inexplicable strength, but it quickly died as her hand wrapped slowly around my throat.

She leaned over me, her dark hair falling like a curtain around us. She kissed me again and my head swam.

I gasped as she released my neck, only to pepper it in kisses trailing down from my jaw to the hollow of my collarbone and lower still. Her hands slid along my sides, fingers splayed, as if she wanted to map out every inch of me- occasionaly digging her long nails into my skin.

My breath came faster, ragged, and my heart was pounding so hard I swore she could feel it beneath her touch. She paused for a moment, as if enjoying something only she could sense, and then she whispered, "Is this okay?" The question caught me off guard, but her voice was so soft, so low, that I couldn't bring myself to do anything but nod. She shook her head at me, tilted it to the side, not continuing

"Yes," I breathed, though the word felt heavy in my mouth, like it carried more weight than I realized.

She smiled again, differently now, all her teeth on display and wider than I thought possible.

She moved with that same deliberate control, almost as if she were unaffected. Her hands slipped under the hem of my dress, softly pinching at my flesh until they rested on my panties. A little huff escaped her before she simply tore them off me. Every nerve in my body felt alive, thrumming under her touch. I could feel myself dripping as she glanced at the red lace in her hand and threw it aside.

Another moment and her fingers were already deep inside me. I arched into her instinctively as I felt her nails scratch my pussy, a lovely painful ache and a hiss fell from my lips. Her weight pressed me down but as her thumb pressed into my clit I felt completely weightless.

My chest rose and fell rapidly and I knew I was blushing with the speed my orgasm was building. I realised my eyes were shut and tore them open just to notice her gaze was firmly on me. An almost predatory expression as I whimpered under her and clenched around her fingers. And again she smiled.

Only to pull her fingers from me. Lick them slowly as I squeezed my eyes and held back tears and fought not to beg this women I hardly knew.

Slowly, her eyes still locked on mine, she shifted down my body. I couldn't keep the pathetic, submissive grin off my face as she softly licked her way from my inner thighs to my pussy. I gasped as she softly bit at my clit, trying to pull my thighs together before she roughly pinned them to the bed.

"Please"-

I never beg but I couldn't help it. She gave me a soft smile and licked my pussy again.

When her teeth sank into my skin, it wasn't gentle. A sharp, sudden pain shot through me, and I gasped-but the gasp turned into something else, something I didn't entirely understand. Heat pooled low in my stomach, my body reacting in ways that didn't make sense, and I couldn't stop myself from letting out a shaky, involuntary moan.

She didn't stop. Her lips pressed harder, her tongue sweeping over the bite as I felt warmth trickle down my leg. My head spun, a mix of pain, pleasure, and confusion clouding every thought. Wait... am I bleeding? I thought hazily, but the idea barely took hold before her teeth were on me again, her hunger growing more urgent.

"Odette," I managed to choke out, my voice breathless and slurred. "You-uh-you should've-asked first..." But my protest was weak, barely audible, and the way her mouth moved against my skin sent a fresh wave of sensation crashing through me.

The room blurred at the edges as my body trembled, my senses caught in a spiral of sharp pain and something dangerously close to euphoria. I clutched the sheets again, a gasp slipping out as her lips moved again- this time to my neck. The last things I felt before my vision went dark was her mouth against my skin, the faint, wet sound of her feeding, and my own pulse pounding in my ears like a drum as my orgasm hit.

Part Two

[iztea]

Iztea I need your help💔💔 I'm genuinely trying to find my art style but I'm not very good at art in the first place, I'm a beginner and I just don't feel motivated to draw anymore because I'm not good at it,, can you pls link your tutorials so I can try to follow them the best I can..😓 I genuinely love your art and your a huge inspiration but I can't draw for shit. A lot of the tutorials on YouTube don't actually help me as much as they do for other people so I'm lowkey putting my faith in you to try and help me lmao, I just can't get the proportions of anything right, like I can't draw a body or head,, and when I trace things it just feels like cheating in art like ugghhjjnn,, can you help me😓☹️

If you struggle with proportions, then drawing over the reference photo (which you should totally have, btw) to get a feel for the distance between things is a great starting point. I also think you should have simplified anatomy references, as well as references from other artists. Basically, everything I mentioned here i don't want to repeat the same points

Tracing is not "cheating" if you're using it to learn. It can be very distasteful if it's used for finished art, where it is obviously meant to replace actual skill, or if it's traced from another artist. If you're using it to study and as a stepping stone to improve your skills, then it's totally fine and even encouraged (it's like doing assisted pull-ups at the gym). But you gotta to play it smart—tracing the actual outline without engaging in critical thought leads to ugly, mediocre, commercialized art that we don't want because we're cool based and always striving to improve ourselves

Okay anyways "But how exactly do I trace references in a smart way, iztea?" Well, like I said, you can lower the opacity of your reference photo and draw over it. Use the general shapes and volume of the body as your guide until you learn to draw without them. Don't follow the outline exactly—exaggerate or stylize the limbs to your liking. For example, I like drawing small wrists and long, slim necks because I think it looks more appealing. So whenever I'm using a reference, I (subconsciously most of the time) slim these body parts down, elongate the fingers, and so on. If you're still not sure what your style is, that's fine too. Use this exercise to find out what your hand naturally leans into

I'm not the cleanest sketcher, and it's been a while since I've done this sort of approach, so excuse the messiness but I wanted to show an example of how I'd tackle this technique. If you look closely, you'll see that I didn't exactly draw over the body parts, especially in the neck and arm area. I exaggerated the posture by adding more gestures—I made the shoulders rounder, the skull bigger, and the arms and neck longer and slimmer. I didn't focus on details like the face or fingers because that's not the point

The next important step after creating your guidelines is to redraw the lines from scratch on a separate layer, but this time without the reference. Set the reference aside and focus on copying your own guidelines. Afterward, compare the two drawings to check if your proportions are accurate. If they're off, take note of any recurring mistakes and correct them. For example, I have a tendency to draw the mouth too far down on the face, so it's something I am always aware of whenever I'm drawing. Other times, I draw the eyebrows too high from the eyes and so on. Another important thing to point out is that not all references are created equal—there are such things as bad or poor references. If the body’s silhouette looks like a blob or the limbs are heavily foreshortened, you'll find it much harder to draw so for practice, I recommend choosing poses that are fluid, clear, and expressive, with good lighting and features you can exaggerate. This will make it easier to understand the form and you'll have more fun in general I've provided a little comparison below. I'm not saying the 2nd pose is terrible and impossible to draw, it's obviously not, you can draw anything you want howeveerrr if you're just starting out, painting the 2nd one can be much more challenging due to it not being very clear in shape, value range, pose, gesture etc. So what I'm trying to say is to choose your poses wisely too

I don't remember doing any tutorials outside that hair one unless you consider my rambling sessions tutorials (i don't) but you can also scroll through the #ask iztea: art talk hashtag for whatever art-related question I might have answered I'm too lazy to link everything so YOU put the work and stalk my page

anyways yeah idk this is how i'd start.... so to summarize:

pull up references, from both real-life people, simplified anatomy sheets, and artists you like

draw over your reference photo and treat it as your training wheels

close the og reference, and use the newly traced, much more simplified outline as your new reference, and now draw the pose again, but "freehand" this time

compare the traced and the freehand version, take notice of your proportions and try to correct them

choose good, readable, easy to draw refs

never give up never what