#went ham on the lines for texturing

[merlinityart]

Artfight attack #3: Monsoon for @grimsprout (same username on artfight)!

[littleeyesofpallas]

SUEZOU[スエゾー] ...i swear i used to know some kind of trivia about what Suezo meant but now I can't for the life of me remember it...

MELONBO[メロンボ]the MELON part is obvious but I'm not exactly sure what the -BO bit is meant to scan as... Just a goofy sounding little suffix? Monster Rancher does seem to do that not infrequently.. MELON BALL[メロンボール]? MELON BOY[メロンボーイ]? MELON-BOU[坊] like "Melon Monk" in reference to a monk's bald head? Who knows... If it wasn't clear the scale pattern it gets from its Dino/Zuum subtype is supposed to look like the pattern of a Japanese musk melon.

IWAZOU[イワゾー] from IWA[岩]: "Boulder/rock" and SUEZO. (I do appreciate that the new LINE monster farm mobile game made the rocky texture more apparent than the original games, where it was just kinda gray and veiny)

TSUNOMARU[ツノマル] from TSUNO[角]: "Horn" and -MARU[丸] which is both a common namifying suffix for boys' names, and can literally mean "round." Incidentally the phrase Tsunomaru[角丸] is also a term referring to "rounded corners" like in graphic design. (Oddly MR2 opted to remove the horn, although it got put back later.)

PINKY[ピンキー] nothing complicated here name-wise. (It had kind of unique design in MR1, but they took its little ear/wing/fin thingies. Then when they brought it back it had the awful lipstick and like homer simpson/sonic the hedgehog muzzle. I miss when the Suezos had unique eye textures.)

MUSHI-ME[ムシメ] from MUSHI[虫]: "bug" and ME[目]: "eye" (oddly japanese doesn't seem to have a phrased similar to the english, "bug-eyed" so that's not a play on that, just literal.)

EYES-BEE[アイズビー] skipping ahead a bit, just so we can have worm and /beaclon together. It's just EYES and BEE from Beaclon, but itself from BEETLE.

SUKEZOU[スケゾー] from SUKERO[透ける]: "see through/transparent" and SUEZO. (MR4 and on opted out of the horrifying teeth version and just made it more obviously a jell texture; i like that they added the core but im suprised they didnt just make it the eyeball itself.)

GAMBA[ガンバ] from GANBA[頑張]: "effort/endurance/struggle" the root of things like gambatte[頑張って] and gambaru[頑張る] and gambare[頑張れ] meaning variously things like "keep going"/"persist"/"don't give up"/"try hard" etc... (There is an older anime called GAMBA-no-Bouken[ガンバの冒険]: "Gamba's Adventure" starring a little mouse, so kind of adjacent to Ham's lost hamster theme?) (also boy the suezo family really kinda suffers from oversimplifying their gimmicks as the games wen on huh? The original had its neat little nubbin ears sorta halfway between the original suezo's head fins (which never came back) and Hare's ears, but the MR2 design went full caveman with it, just being a hairy suezo. But MR4 and on went super literal with the fusion and just slapped rabbit ears on it.)

ORION[オリオン] like the constellation. Funny enough the actual mythological hunter Orion doesn't seem to factor into the choice of constellation this one is named after, just a link to the broader stary theme. (Kinda shocking this one never made a come back. It was one of the cooler suezo combos)

AKA-ME[アカメ] from AKA[赤]:"red" and ME[目]" "eye"

NORIZOU[ノリゾー] is this supposed to be a reference to the color and texture of NORI[海苔]: "seaweed"? Generally that's considered either green or black, but there are some that are definitely a kind of reddish purple tint.

PLUMLER[プラムラー] so my instinct was the assume the PURA-[プラ] was from PLANT[プラント] but it looks like it might be from PLUM[プラム] after all... my main hangup was that the coloration is not recognizably like a plum at all, but the LINE special skin makes it very obvious. Which retroactively seems to suggest that it's supposed to have been like an unripe plum this whole time???? That seems a weirdly obtuse way to go about that

AESTHETICIAN[エステシャン] or possibly the french ESTHÉTICIEN since in English it'd probably be more commonly referred to as "Beautician." Anyway it's a term for a skincare professional.

WAKUSEI[ワクセイ] from WAKUSEI[惑星]; "planet"

ANKOU[アンコウ] from ANKOU[鮟鱇] japanese name for the "monkfish"/"goosefish"/"seadevil" all different types of angler fish

KINZOU[キンゾー] from KIN[金]: "Gold" and SUEZO

GINZOU[ギンゾー] from GIN[銀]: "Silver" and SUEZO

BRONZEZOU[ブロンズゾー] BRONZE SUEZO

BETAPIN[ベタピン] apparently a japanese golfing term for a ball that lands on the green and close enough to the hole that it's more or less a guaranteed sink on the next putt.

Sueki Suezou[すえきすえぞー] Seems to be a play on SUEKI[末生]: "End (of) Life" having the same SU-E syllables as SUEZO, which seems like it would suggest SUEZO also means SUE-[末-]: "End..." something, but I can't make a guess as to what.

USAZOU[ウサゾー]from USAGI[兎]: "Rabbit" and SUEZO

FUKAZOU[フカゾー] from FUKA[鱶]: "(large) shark" and SUEZO

MONZOU[モンゾー] MONKEY SUEZO

TANUZOU[タヌゾー] presumably TANUKI[狸] and SUEZO but it's drawn almost more like a racoon?? The problem is it's impossible to tell because apart from the tail the most distinguishing feature is the difference in their little face markings over the eyes, which you can't see with only one eye...

SUECHIYO[スエチヨ] I have no idea what this one is... It seems to be similarly themed to Ghost's Chonmage, with the exaggerated makeup, topknot, and folding fan; I feel like it's a type of staged comedy performance that I've definitely seen before, but I don't know how to pinpoint a name for it

AKAMARU[アカマル] from AKA[赤]:"red" and -MARU[丸] the namefying suffix, that can also be read as "round" in reference to Suezo's head shape.

EBIZOU[エビゾー] from EBI[海老]: "shrimp/prawn" and SEUZO. a fun play on Arrowhead's shellfish and Suezo having a bodyshape like a shrimp

TSUKAREME[ツカレメ]from TSUKAREME[疲れ目]: "eyestrain"

TAKO-NO-ME[タコノメ] from the TAKO[蛸]:"octopus" in Takopii, and -no-me[の目] alltogether reading as "Eye of octopus." (shame it's a GBA exclusive so it doesnt actually have a unique design, it would be really cool to have a suezo with an octopus pupil)

HAJIKE-DAMA[ハジケダマ] from HAJIKERU[弾ける]: "to burst(open)/to pop" or "to bounce" and TAMA[玉]: 'ball"

METAL-SUE[メタルスエ] METAL SUEZO

AKU-DAMA[アクダマ] from AKU[悪]: "evil" and TAMA[玉]: 'ball"

BROWN-EYE[ブラウンアイ]

GIRIMEKHALA[ギリメカラ] a mythic figure in buddhist lore; a monstrous elephant that marches in the demon Mara's army of evil. I've seen it depicted as blue and with one eye, despite the fact that I don't know if that's accurate to its religious origins or just a popculture thing. Anyway it seems like this is meant as a play on the way Suezo's headon view makes its tail look like it could be an elephant trunk. Kinda misses the effect when it doesnt have an elephant's iconic ears...

JYAGAN-JI[ジャガンジ] JYAGAN[邪眼]: "evil eye" and I assume JII[ジー] the sound effect used in manga for silently staring or glaring.

NEKO-ME[ネコメ] from NEKOME[猫目]: "cat eye"

CHERRY[チェリー]

LUNA-BALL[ルナボール]

NIGHT-VISION[ナイトビジョン]

EARTH-EYE[アースアイ]

ZANZOU[ザンゾー] ZAN and SUEZO

TORI-ME[トリメ] TORI[鳥]: "bird" and ME[目]: "eye"

YAKYUU-KOZOU[ヤキューコゾウ] from YAKYUU[野球]: "baseball" and KOZOU[小僧]: "youngster/kid/boy"

SUE-SEIJIN[スエセイジン] SUEZO SEIJIN[星人] which ends up reading like, "Suezo-Planet Person"/"Person (from) Planet-Suezo"

TOROZOU[トロゾー]

SHIROZOU[シロゾー] from SHIRO[白]: "white" and SUEZO

MOCHIMARU[モチマル] MOCCHI and -MARU[丸] the namefying suffix, that can also be read as "round" in reference to Suezo's head shape.

MIMIZOU[ミミゾー] from MIMI[耳]: "Ear(s)" and SUEZO

TENTENZOU[テンテンゾー] I assume from TENSHI[天使]: "angel" lit."heaven+messenger"

HELMZOU[ヘルムゾー] supposedly a Suezo/Durahan in the 1MillionMan Monster Farm app, it doesn't appear in any English language records of the English language My Monster Rancher version though...

And added in LINE Monster Farm the mobile game for the first time,

HIGANBANA[ヒガンバナ] a Suezo/Phonexi. Japanese name for the red spiderlily, HIGANBANA[彼岸花] lit. "(the)other-shore flower" references the River Sanzu, that divides the world of the living and the dead, "the other shore" being the land of the dead.

[loopyarts]

Me and fellow artist/ my homie :3 @sangerie did a fun art collab together where we each did the line-art for a piece for the other to colour in.

On the left side is Sangerie line-art and my colouring and cough I also did the background as well, I went a little ham on it ha ha 😅 god painting all those kitchen tiles took forever to do. When I was colouring the piece, my goal was to do a nice warm evening vibe to the piece overall. Ps can you tell who’s in the background :3

On the right side is my line-art and Sangerie lovely colouring and I love how much texture and lighting they put into the piece :3 and the starry night sky background they did as well gives it such a magical and cozy to the piece overall.

[lucislovebug]

The Sun

This morning it was much more dry, thankfully. The sun was rising, the muted yellow shade covering the sky, stratus clouds filling empty space across the horizon. Awake early as ever, Josuke was in his bathroom, combing his hair over his eyes and then up in his regular do-up.     Today he decided to try something new. He went through his mom’s makeup bag, grabbing a thin black stick and a dark powder. He looked to himself in the mirror, leaning forward and pulling the skin at the bottom of his eye. 

“Okay.. Like Robert Smith. Or David Bowie.. Or Prince. Or.. One of those guys. Easy.” He mumbled, slowly lining his waterline with the eyeliner, and then smoking it out with the powder, rubbing his eyes. He liked the look, but his mother could never find out. He put his mother’s makeup back in her bag, finding a red lipstick and clear, jelly-like substance inside of a small plastic pot. 

He applied a light layer of lipstick only on the inside of his lips, blending it out with the vaseline in the pot. He wondered how his friends would see it, if they would like it. He didn’t really care, he was more worried about what random people would say in the hallways, since it wasn’t very normal for men to put any effort in their looks. He was made fun of enough for his hair. He stared at himself, poking and prodding at his skin and contemplating whether it was worth it. He always took good care of his appearance, borrowing his mother’s creams and soaps to keep acne and poor skin texture away. He even plucked his eyebrows, he wanted to look his best all of the time.  

Ever since he was a kid, he would mess around with his mom’s more “girly,” things. Painting his nails messily as a toddler, the majority of the polish landing on the kitchen floor, attempting to copy RuPaul’s look when his mother was at work, complimenting old lady’s clothing at the grocery store. He was a very artistic person, his favorite canvas being his own body. It was hard to express himself in his world, where it was almost unsafe for him to show up to school or walk around with his preferred look. It was also impossible to find a girl when he looked more beautiful than they did. 

He shrugged to himself in the mirror, cleaning up his bathroom and walking down to his kitchen, chopping up some fruit for his lunch, and for breakfast he had a simple meal, a wrap with avocado, lettuce, and ham. Not forgetting about Y/N’s gift, he took her drink and cookie out, microwaving the cookie and wrapping it in a paper towel to keep its warmth. He grabbed his bag, leaving his home and walking over to hers. 

On his walk, he wondered how she would react to his minor change of appearance for the day. He felt that she would like it, she was such a warm and kind woman, someone that made him feel like he was getting a hug every time he was acknowledged by her. He wondered if she had changed anything either, or if she wished to but was too afraid of what people would think. Then he remembered it wasn’t that deep, and how could someone so loved feel afraid to express themselves?  

Knocking on her door, he waited for it to open. He rubbed his eyes, forgetting about the eyeliner. Sighing as he saw the black streak on his hand, he wiped it off and tried to fix his face using one of her house’s windows as a mirror. As the door opened, he extended his hands, the right one cold from the drink, the left one warm from the cookie. 

“Good morning!” He said, shockingly cheerful, something he didn’t expect from himself. “I got you a cookie, I don’t know what you like to drink, I hope this is okay.” He said, a bit more bashful, like the Josuke Y/N knew.  

“Good morning, Josuke.” She said with a soft smile, one that made his heart turn into a melting mess. “The drink is fine, thank you very much.” She continued, taking the food and drink from his hands, gasping as she felt his freezing knuckles, taking his hand into hers. 

“You’re so cold!” She said with a small pout, holding onto his hand tight, trying to warm him up. She held the drink and cookie in one of her hands, walking with his hand in hers as she left her doorway and shut her door.  

His cheeks were flushed, though he held her hand back just as tight. “Yeah, the can’s pretty cold.” He said softly, leaning into her, careful to stay subtle. 

“Should we walk to class together today? My first period is business, you could meet me there and we can walk to history.” She said as she swung their hands back and forth, letting go once he was warm again. 

“Sure, what’s the room number?” He asked back, sad that she let go, though she could never know. 

“Ummm... 1230. It’s the hallway next to the gym, the fourth door on the right.” She said back, looking to his face. “Are you wearing makeup?” She asked with a curious smile, looking a bit closer. 

“Oh, yeah.. Does it look weird?” He asked shyly, his hands going up to wipe off the makeup. 

“No! I think it’s really cool! It’s like.. Robert Smith!” She piped up, grabbing one of his wrists and pulling it away from his face. 

“Oh, good. I hoped so.” He said quietly, not knowing what else to add. 

The walk to school was a nice and calm way to start off the morning. It was always a nice day when he got to look at her. She was so sweet and free of judgement. He wondered how he would ever come to terms with only being her friend when she was his dream girl. He sighed dreamily, slowly holding onto her hand once more, his pinky holding hers. 

“So I don’t stumble into you anymore.” He mumbled out his excuse, looking to his shoes. 

“So you don’t stumble into me anymore.” She echoed, letting him hold onto her finger with a grin, eating the cookie he got for her. 

The two stayed quiet, aside from Josuke’s occasional bumps, which made them both smile and give a light chuckle. With each gaze, he memorized how her hair moved with her steps, how her clothes wrinkled and shifted with her movements, and how her finger would squeeze around his every few minutes, something he was sure she didn’t notice. Three months of his silent pining and begging finally came to an end, he finally had her, even if he was wrapped around her finger. 

“I see the sun in your eyes.” He mumbled, though he wasn’t looking at her. 

“Really? Like a reflection?” She asked back, looking to him, where she was greeted with his strong, clenched jaw. 

“Sure. Yeah, like a reflection.” He said airly, tilting his head down to look at her, a sweet, love-struck smile on his face.  

It was nothing like a reflection. It was the brightness. It was how her beautiful eyes lit up a room. Not even a room. They were outside, and she still made it brighter. She was his sun. He used to feel like the moon, always behind her. He now felt as if he were Mercury.  

She made him feel warm.  

[charlilil]

Hey there, hope your week is going well! I adored your work for the 2023 D20 Zine Jam, the composition and typography is meticulously done. May I ask what brushes/tools you did for the black and white rendering? All good if you dont have time to go through them, have a good day!

Thank you sm!! Hope your week is going well as well! And omg literally no problem. I hope this is everything I used.

I use procreate and these are all true grit texture supply brushes. I have bought a few of their brush packs but honestly I think all of these are from the free sampler pack that they have. I used the photocopied tech pen for all the lines cause i really wanted the zine to look like a classic photocopied print out zine, and i really like how it changes it’s look depending on the stabilization.

This was the rough plan that i was following for lines so once i got past that i kinda just went ham with textures?? I was trying to be messy with it so I’m not exactly sure where i used what, but it was definitely a mix of those shaders and dots. When it comes to lettering, for most of it I used a font as a base to make sure I was writing straight enough and then lettered everything by hand over that. With the cursive-esque stuff I just did my best free handing it. Oh and omg so many layers set to the difference blend mode.

I hope this answers your question, but if there’s anything else feel free to ask!!

[voraciousvore]

The Half-Blood Giant (27/51)

Chapter 27: Meat

Hunter was ensnared by a conflicting tangle of emotions that he couldn’t even begin to parse. His resentment towards humans and his bitterness over being punished were overshadowed by the fact that he had almost killed someone. He was remorseful, but also confused. Hector should have been furious at him for nearly drowning him in the fountain when he couldn’t swim, but he had only shown clemency. Hunter failed to understand his behavior, especially when he had been so quick to defend his girlfriend in a hot-headed, obstinate confrontation. Above all, he was corroded with guilt, not just because of Hector but because of how he treated that tiny human girl. He knew he had acted unfairly and impulsively. She didn’t deserve to be the target of his wrath. She was innocent; she couldn’t help being human, any more than he could. 

His emotions were further complicated by his hunger. He woke up ravenous, and as he passed by the human dorm, he imagined ripping off the roof and stuffing fistfuls of humans in his mouth. He wondered what they would feel like if he swallowed them alive, fighting for their lives as they were forced down his throat into his belly—probably amazing. He had to physically stop himself from bending over to seize a biker as she pedaled past his shoe. He needed to eat. 

Since Hunter was on edge from being around other people, and his senses were further sharpened by his hunger-fueled predatory instincts, he was hyper-aware of his surroundings. He observed that he was getting hostile stares from other giants, and the humans were even more wary and skittish around him than before. He realized word must’ve spread of his misdeed in class yesterday, when he snatched up his smaller classmate.  

At least everybody was avoiding him, especially the humans. He got in line for breakfast and made a mountain of pancakes, biscuits, and ham on his tray. When he went to go sit down at his usual spot, he was immensely annoyed to find another student in his seat. He slapped his tray down on the table and glared at the comparatively scrawny giant. 

“This is my table. Get out of my seat and go somewhere else!” he snarled. The other student looked up at him, glanced over his burly, broad arms, and turned white. He hastily grabbed up his things in a rush and hustled off to another table, muttering an apology.

Hunter sat down with a smirk on his face and started to eat. Finally, he got relief for his famished belly. He wolfed down his whole breakfast with gusto, focused entirely on the taste and texture. He supposed the cafeteria food wasn’t that bad. At minimum, his mind was taken off of eating humans, or the stares of the students around him. Hunter didn’t feel like he belonged here; this place was all wrong. 

He finished his meal and stood up to put away his tray and go to class. As he sauntered through the cafeteria, he noticed giant students staring at him, whispering to their classmates nearby. He volleyed back a searing glare to anybody who looked his way, and their eyes dropped away with discomfort. Hunter sneered. He hated being the center of attention, but he did enjoy putting losers in their place.  

He had to sit near the humans again. Hunter was satisfied to see them tremble under his frigid gaze. The teacher glowered at him and he smirked back. His hatred and arrogance were beginning to overwhelm his guilt. He really didn’t do anything wrong, after all. For some reason, he was reminded of his grandpa’s war stories about slaughtering human soldiers, and he felt vindicated. He was right. They should fear him. 

The bell rang, and Hunter went to his next class. This time, he sat near the humans on purpose, just to watch them squirm. His breakfast digested quickly, as he was still a growing boy of exceptional stature, and he was already getting hungry again as he inhaled the intoxicating scent of his prey. As his mind wandered, and he tried to justify his violent behavior to himself, he spied a small human man scurrying into the classroom. He was clearly an adult, too old to be a student. He called one of the human students away with him and left. Hunter thought this was odd, but didn’t think much of it. 

As his belly processed its contents and emptied, Hunter counted down the minutes until lunchtime. The class was dragging on forever. The human student that had left class, a diminutive nerdy boy with glasses, returned, looking nervous for some reason. He climbed the stairs to the human desks and surveyed them, as if lost. Hunter observed him through his peripheral vision curiously, cupping his chin in his hand. 

“Is there… a human student named Hunter here?” the boy asked timidly. Hunter’s eyebrows shot up. The other humans looked at each other blankly. 

Hunter leaned over the humans. “That’s me.” A shudder ran through all of them, especially the kid who uttered his name, and all their terrified little faces turned up in his direction. 

For a moment, the boy was at a loss, until he finally managed to squeak out, “B-b-but Mr. Pablo is meeting with only the human students, not giants…” 

Hunter sighed. “Come with me, pipsqueak.” Without warning, he scooped up the tiny teenager in his palm and stood up. His classmate yelped out of shock but didn’t dare to make another sound as Hunter trudged outside the class. “Now, what’s this about?” 

The teenager fumbled with his glasses, panicking in Hunter’s palm. “Y-y-you must be m-m-mistaken, the h-human counselor is only s-s-seeing humans…” He was stuttering and shaking so bad as to be almost indiscernible. 

Hunter huffed again. “I am part human,” he confessed. The kid froze up with shock. Hunter leaned in, bringing his classmate dangerously close to his colossal lips and teeth. “You better not tell anyone, or else I’ll eat you. Understand?” The human, speechless, nodded frantically. 

“Good.” Hunter paused. “Where am I supposed to go?” The boy pointed down the hallway. He was unable to hold his arm steady. 

“The door down the hall on the right, with a hole cut out of the bottom corner,” he quavered. 

Hunter nodded curtly and hesitated, fixating on the helpless creature in the palm of his hand. For an ugly moment, he considered popping the student inside his mouth and swallowing him. He’d be the perfect little snack to tide him over until lunch, and he smelled tasty, almost like a hot dog. The boy’s eyes filled with moisture behind his glasses and he let out a soft whine of fear, as if he knew what the giant was thinking. Hunter sucked down the saliva in his mouth and mercifully allowed the boy to go, lowering his hand to the floor. The boy scampered out of his hand and back to the safety of the classroom as fast as his legs would propel him. Hunter felt a small stab of anxiety as he contemplated what he almost did. He didn’t want to dwell on it. 

He headed over to the human counselor’s office. Pedro, from within, felt the ground vibrate with his approaching footsteps but had no idea what was coming. He assumed Hunter was a human like the others. He thought whatever giant was clomping by would keep going, but the seismic rumbles stopped outside his door, the huge shoes casting shadows through the crack under the door. Pedro stiffened as he was stifled by the sinister, gloomy aura emanating from the other side.  

The giant teenager didn’t bother to knock and thrust the door open. Pedro’s heart jumped into his throat and a heavy blanket of ominous dread settled over him. Though he’d never laid eyes on this giant before, he knew right away who he was. He’d heard his exact description more than once from the scared humans whom the giant had bullied. All his features, from his dull reddish hair to his green eyes to his intimidating musculature, matched perfectly. Why was he here now? He couldn’t possibly have good intentions; Pedro’s pulse spiked as his heart began to hammer against his ribcage. He was defenseless if the giant had a hostile objective in mind. 

Hunter scrunched his nose with distaste. “A broom closet? Really?” He squinted down at the diminutive desk and chairs by his feet. “Pathetic.” 

Pedro turned white as a sheet but tried to remain outwardly calm. “Can I help you with something?” 

“You summoned me, or so I thought,” Hunter replied, his eyes narrowing with barely withheld belligerence. “I’m Hunter.” 

“Oh, there must have been a mistake. I’m only meeting with humans,” Pedro explained shakily. 

Hunter huffed loudly, thoroughly irritated with this same talking point being parroted to him over and over. “I am human,” he insisted with exasperation. “Well, half-human. To my great misfortune.” His voice seethed with vile spite. 

Pedro’s jaw dropped. “No, that can’t be possible...” he murmured. “How...?” 

Hunter flashed him a rancorous look for his impertinence before shaking his head. “My father is a giant, but my mother is a human. Don’t ask how, I don’t even want to know myself. I already know too much about the weird intimate stuff they do right in front of me. Gross.” Pedro thought it wise not to inquire further on this point. Hunter stepped into the closet and shut the door. His bulk filled most of the space. Pedro normally felt his office was too spacious, but now he was suddenly overwhelmed with claustrophobic anxiety. Hunter labored to lower himself into a sitting position in the cramped space. He ended up folding his legs in such a way that his enormous shoes fenced in Pedro’s desk on either side. He leaned over the desk, engulfing Pedro with his shadow, surrounding the small man with his gargantuan mass. 

Pedro started to pant with alarm as he realized he was hemmed in on all sides, like a cornered little mouse in the paws of a cat. Hunter could do whatever he wanted to him, and he wouldn’t be able to escape. Hunter bled off a malevolent aura that suffocated Pedro and weighed him down with a crushing force. He couldn’t move and struggled to even breathe. 

“Well?” Hunter boomed, snapping him out of his stupor. 

Pedro fumbled to recover and unglue his tongue. “Uh, yes, so...” He swallowed the lump in his throat with some effort. “I’m just here to address any concerns you might have, or if you need someone to talk to about your experiences...” 

Hunter scratched his chin and glowered. “Yeah, actually. I have a lot of complaints about this crappy excuse for a school.” He shifted his position in the tight closet with discomfort. His back was starting to ache from straining forward. Without asking for permission, he plucked Pedro out of his seat and lifted him up so he could talk to him while lounging against the wall instead. Pedro squealed and flailed as he dangled high off the ground in front of Hunter’s face. Hunter sneered, enjoying the man’s reaction. His belly audibly grumbled, making Pedro shiver at the baleful rumbling. The giant’s face grew serious. He was distracted with the human’s strong, appetizing scent permeating the space. 

“First off, the food here sucks,” Hunter proclaimed, spurned to the topic by his empty stomach. “I can never get enough to eat because it’s not very filling, and I’m always so damn hungry. Plus, it doesn’t help that I’m surrounded by humans that smell so tasty all the time.” He blinked and bit his lip, realizing he had let slip too much. Pedro gaped at him in horror at the implication of his words. Hunter’s stomach growled again, like the vocalizations of a famished beast. The giant imagined curling his tongue around the human, scooping him into his mouth and toying with him, swallowing him whole with a satisfying flex of his throat. He licked the saliva off his lips. 

“That’s another thing. Too many stupid humans at this school,” Hunter complained, trying to move on to another topic. “I hate humans. Worthless little creatures.” By this point, Pedro was too scared to argue or point out Hunter’s hypocrisy. His mind had gone completely blank with terror. All he could comprehend was the enormity of the giant all around him, how small and helpless he was pinched in the giant’s fingers, and the gurgling of the deadly void within that massive body that clamored for him to get inside. 

“And I hate everybody at this school. Everybody keeps staring at me like I’m some sort of freak.” An unexpected sharp pain contorted his features. “I guess because I am.” He shook it off and scowled. “I just want to be left alone. I don’t want to be here anymore. Or anywhere. I don’t belong anywhere. I hate everything. I hate myself!” His voice rose as he became more impassioned. Pedro wished he could say something, but his jaws were cemented together with tension. Hunter’s uncontrolled wrath, when he was held prisoner in the giant’s hand, terrified him. He flinched as Hunter’s huge stomach gurgled noisily again below him. Hunter stopped his tirade and stared at the human intensely. Hungrily. 

“I wonder what humans taste like,” he said softly to himself. He was sorely tempted. He was just so hungry. Hunter wasn’t done with his impossible growth spurts, but he didn’t have his father here to cook for him all the time. The human’s scent was all around him, so tantalizing, his flesh beckoning. His mouth watered as his lips and teeth parted in anticipation. Pedro turned deathly pale at the sight of the dripping darkness within as Hunter drew him in closer. 

Just then, the bell sounded off to signal the beginning of lunch. Hunter stopped. The sound had returned him to his senses. He gulped and set Pedro back down in his chair. “I need to go,” he muttered, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. He struggled to stand back up and rushed out the door, shutting it behind him, the vibrations nearly knocking Pedro out of his seat. 

Pedro sat at his desk in a stunned silence, unable to move. As the unsettling interaction sank in, he trembled uncontrollably and hugged his arms tightly around his body, as if trying to defend himself. That student had awakened in him a primitive, animalistic fear that he’d never experienced before with such raw potency. In that moment, he hadn’t felt like a person, with thoughts and feelings and a soul; he had the self-awareness to realize that, to the hungry giant, he was nothing more than a living piece of meat. 

Chapter 28

Chapter 1

[tryingtolearnartsob]

okay all I have to say today was super insane???? wtf…..

—uhhhh so from yesterday, i just thought after a while id continue drawing…….. and you know i looked at my prev art stuff and saw how I’ve been drawing srda… especially her eyes and i just wanted to try that again…. also since i saw I used to draw in that water brush i thought why don’t I try again you know… and yknow. the first srda was…….fine……. but not really a fan ITS ONLY WHEN I TEIED COLOUR!!!! THAT WOW….. IT REALLY GOT<3 I think i did try colour in this brush before but i didn’t intially like it PROPERLY BECAUSE I DIDNT FULLY DO SOMETHJH IN IT!!!! anyways this was the start of something<3 i went ham ahahah. like the second srda wasn’t the best either (man i need to work on my face angles) but MY GOSH the third srda is fave 💞💞💞 (seriously i want to forever draw like her like this!!!!!) (it’s so perfect…..her hair…. expression just. Yes) I also didn’t want to go out of prac with figures so i just drew in a redraw of panel and pleasantly surprised at how she came out….? hehe…. <3 I did realise I see figure small lmaoo…. I wanted her face to be bigger but oh well and of course as soon as as I be drawing her I get the urge to draw the two… srda + chou… I wanted a lil peck idea… and man it was kind of hard to get profile and also wondering how to draw her from side profile and to keep the chubbiness…. but yeshhhhh it was a good prac. speaking of the eyes, i meant like before i used to had in some lower eyelash or whatever and it looked so nice i gotta had to add it back in also lmaooo the side profile one i was drawing (the peck) got a lot skewed since i wasn’t really putting in a lot of effort anyways and lol her eye turned out really big than i wanted it to be…. anyways yeah.

—anyways after that… I wanted to draw more 🦋 and uhhhhhh this one wasn’t really going well… I botched up her face and tried to fix it anyway cuz of that im really meh over also lol I tried to make her arm do diff lol… or smth since I just keep the arms straight in bust shots… I really need to practice bust shots lol… btw heh the blue background was a homage to my old drawings… I always tended to just add a blue background (if you can’t tell, it’s my go to colour for a lot of things) (honestly my fav colour at this point but I wouldn’t really say fav… it’s like a Homebase fav. that n pink/purples I like to really draw in…) (once I discovered drawing in purple I was a goner ahahaha)

—anyways of course I had to see how 🌸 looked in this brush…..! wait… didn’t I do juv first…? man this is why I liked to do a write up on thoughts as I do it but I was lazy… I have terrible memory lmao. anyways right I did do juv to see her and then skkr… idk if I liked the juv so when I tried to compare her to the normal procreate pencil brush I use… I actually liked that better than the pencil brush lmaooooo. also did other juv in diff brushes just to comapeee… and just to draw her lol… I do like her in more textured brushes….

—and then!!!!! 🌸 I had to get her in…. And im really liking it….? the first one was skewed as obvs… im bad at trying to get her hair right lmaooooo…. but then I wanted to do a redraw of manga from gaiden just to see and cuz I wanna get her more right and I do really like it….? def one of the best skkr I’ve drawn….. but hmmm at the same time it’s not really the type of skkr I want to draw I guess… but I’ve been thinking I wanted to draw that type of skkr but I guess I realised I don’t …. anyways these came out well and did make me very happy in realising that i can draw her in a way that I do like…. :’ I guess major thing that helped was the eyes since I looked at prev art that I drew with srda i realised that I didn’t used to draw the eyes in one line go… and makes sense since when I’d try to draw eyes in one ago… it didn’t really look good… also what’s so hard about skkr was her damn pupils… it’s hard to draw pupils as dots without it looking scary after all or super off but I think im getting hang of it now… it helps to have a good brush too…

—I wasn’t going to draw anymore and take a break but I guess I am just on a roll this morning lmao …. the urge to draw is Real… anyways so since I was playing homage to some of my old drawings I THOUGHT I HAD TO DRAW SOME ⏳!!!! since SEEIOUSLY!!!! I drew like a bunch of him in Feb I think.. 2022 let me check.. no it was in 2024!!!! seriously I think it was the most I drew a character in a freakin day… got obessed with his design and needed to draw him and now kinda sad that I got over that…!!!!! but seriously!!!!! drawing him was what made me discover some of my fav brushes ever…..!!!!! and since it’s his bday month i had to draw him in…. i really was liking the diff colour drawing for each character so i wanted to get that in too…

—and hello????? why is that one so good…???? I’m seriously shocked!!! I don’t really like the first one I drew like lol why his face look like that lmaooo but second one….?! since I had especially just scribbled in his clothes…?! I think it’s cuz the face was so fun to draw in… and I made it more intense than the anime screencap I ref’ing… in comparison the third I drew was so disappointing lmaoooo. it didn’t even turn out to look like him… but I do think it looked more like him before I ended up trying to shade in some colour… also this red colour is super fun to colour him in…….

—anyways I decided to colour in that one…. and hey….?! it’s coming to look really nicely….?! what the…?! I tried to add some shading too but intially didn’t like it and remembered from that colouring session like days ago… that this artist used some diff colouring for the shading like teal/green and I went with green to see how it’d work and tried to make sure it was darker than the skin so it’d be shading but I think it’s when I used the multiply layer and lowered the opacity that it went YOOOOO. I’m really liking it!!!! the colours look super fun together…. im not completely satisfied with it… maybe if i darkened the overall picture… hey wait let me try that now… (20.10) yeah………No. even when I changed the blue to be green multiply. nah didn’t work

—-anyways that ⏳ drawing REALLY MOTIVATED ME… To Want to draw a proper piece for him but honestly I had like no ideas and then remembered I could borrowse through stuff to get ideas but I haven’t…. Really…. I don’t think my browsing was the best and it’s still on my mind but oh well. I do hope I draw something since it seems like a waist not to…

—I did get around to doing daily figure pracs….! this session kinda sucked though lmaoooooo. like I didn’t really have a general idea of what I really wanted and it was kinda boring… I worked on shoulders since I figured it’s something I needed to work on and did some hands (which uhhhh I think I need to study back hands properly urgh…..) and I was kinda basically all of the place and lol I attempted doing figure prac in that water brush and uh yeah. Didn’t like. Anyways wasn’t feeling it really after filling this page so I didn’t…. But I do like with some of the arm prac I tried to add on face later and that was kinda fun even if portions was sometimes skewed… since it got to doing poses that I don’t usually do if I start with torso and stuff

—this is making me wanna do an exercise where I draw the hand first….. hmmmm. that would be fun and I do want to get a gist of how things are portioned to each other and work in relation so I can jump around in my drawing and draw things from different places and ahahah anyways this session making me realise how weak I am honestly in just everything in knowledge and stuff and I think it’s best to practice the bones and urgh the leg especially since while I have a gist. a lot of my figure drawings feel like guess work which I don’t is working that much for me

—-after this!!!! I did so much video !!!!! watching!!!! found this good in depth anatomy stuff too… that I just watchedddddd. a lot. and I think honestly I just want to watch a lot of anatomy videos to just see and get more in depth and then more closely study the bones in a general way so I have more awareness of them and then try to apply knowledge in my figure pracs….

—-one thing I have to say it’s a shame!!!! I didn’t draw ssk today!!!!!!!!!!!’ :/ I wanna draw him but also I really can’t be bothered right now………. Hopefully before day ends (now:20.22) I will get to doodle him and get some idea for a ⏳ drawing….. I do have some ideas but it gets in other characters and honestly can’t be bothered trying to learn how to draw his sibs too… for a drawing but I make it make it an idea for me to draw hmmm. anyways yeah. I think I will just go into more videos right now and just. get myself immersed in everything….!!!!!

—ah well I didn’t do anyhhhbg else today but I was getting more immersed in trying to study poses/figures and I think I got an exercise that will help… I really want to learn how to get angles right and the relation of pelvis n ribcage so I think it’s good to study poses and try to get how the pelvis would look like in that angle and help using 3D model of a pelvis that I can move around… cuz I really need to study tilt and shit… want to get more in depth study of knowledge so that all left is the drawing part…. Ah well didn’t explain this well but who cares

[skunkes]

ok, adding 2 other paper brands

Gave the Baohong academy cold press paper a full example chance, lining is ok, i think this is about the same effect you get from lining on Arches cold press. As you can see around the eyes, even using colored pencils with a very light touch makes them evident.

This is hahnemühle 100% cotton cold press watercolor sketchbook, the one mentioned at the end of previous post. If and when colored pencil mark is visible, it adds to the texture instead of distracting. I added colored pencil to the granulating spot on the head, and the neck. This is Obvious due to texture but not annoyingly so. But i also added colored pencil, lightly, to the legs and tummy spot. And u can only barely tell! I guess it could be argued that the charm of watercolor is lost when adding too much colored pencil... and i do agree, but i went ham on some areas (face and neck) just to see if that smoother coverage was possible... id hope to balance them in actual application

Im leaning toward arches hot press or hahnemühle for if i make things for others... i have a hot press pad to go through so ill probably see about brute forcing (and learning!) through that one first instead of spending needlessly.

I forgot to add that these experiments were for watercolor + colored pencil only, cause of course theyre all suitable for watercolor only. This sea smunker was done in all watercolor, including the lines, and its pretty smooth

i just really like and lean toward the inclusion of colored pencil so i rly wanna figure that out too!

watercolor paper experimenting with doodles

Id like to start incorporating watercolor into trad gifts and comms I send to others... but theres a difference in how different watercolor paper take watercolor vs how they take colored pencil, and I like to incorporate both...

Ive drawn cupid smunkers (named such because of the paint color name) on 4 paper types I have (but only showing 3), to try and figure it out. Specifically chose this paint color because its very granulating, and i wanted to see how colored pencil goes over it.

Arches cold press....is very good for laying paint. But not very good for colored pencil at all. I usually incorporate colored pencil into the colored areas, but I didn't dare do so, knowing it would just look as rough as the lineart here does. (This is the laziest cupid smunker i drew LOL i like the chaotic effect that came from doing it quickly) Perhaps this would be ok if im able to master watercolor, so i only incorporate colored pencil in the form of lineart, but right now I really like and almost Need to blend the 2.

canson mixed media paper takes the paint ok-ly. I heart hard watercolor edge! The colored pencil for the lines is Ok, I Suppose, but the texture is far too evident when adding colored pencil to the colored areas....one would have to cover the entire area with it (seen here) because it looks too off and obviously out of place if you just want to add colored pencil to one area....

Arches hot press....i was too scared to play with the granulation here because this paper scares me. This one is arguably the best of the 3 shown but i get Scared to put the paint down because i fight for my life with hot press, and bizarrely enough colored pencil feels strange here too...where cold press grips and doesnt let go, hot press has me struggling to keep line direction and a fine point. You can also see in the arms that adding the colored pencil to a full area still looks....off...! I guess im going to have to keep experimenting.

The paper example im NOT showing is baohong academy. The smunker came out too ugly LMAO. I LOOOOOOVE how paint looks on it. Incredibly bad for colored pencil though, even just for lines, same as arches. Would be better for ink-and-washes but as of right now i am not really an ink-and-watercolor kind of guy

-----

This is the paper from my watercolor sketchbook which is also good-bad but my favorite overall, compromise wise. It handles paint ok-ly, kinda like hot press, but it takes my colored pencils well. It still looks "rough" but its an equal roughness that blends into each other texture wise, while still accepting colored pencil without much fight.

(For example, the top on the jinx stoat is paint only, but the texture matches the areas that have more colored pencil. Cat has limited colored pencil but the texture is all around the same, and the sea smunker here actually only has colored pencil for outlines in various areas, but still has texture, which is usually what makes watercolor paper struggle with colored pencil. You can also see the texture in the watercolor swatch squares, which are completely untouched by pencil. I hope this makes sense)

Maybe i just need to get loose sheets of this paper... Even if it does also piss me off in several ways LMFAO its the only one that really lets me balance both....

[thedisneychef]

Biergarten Nudel Gratin Recipe: German Mac and Cheese

I’ve been obsessed with carbs lately!  Blame it on the diet or my training for the Wine and Dine Half, but I feel like if I were left to my own devices, I’d snack on pasta all day. When I went looking for a pasta recipe, I found this one from Biergarten which made me so happy… Being second generation from Germany and having been to Germany several times, I realized I was also craving some German style food. Since my reservation at Biergarten is still about 75 days away, I thought this was perfect. Now, when I was making this,I had the strangest feeling that I’ve made this recipe before, but I looked and looked and didn’t see that I had… So if I’ve posted it and it’s a repeat I apologize… At least it’s amazing enough to warrant a double-post! More Delicious Recipes You Will Love: - Mickey Waffles Recipe – Disney Parks - Ohana Bread Pudding with Banana-Caramel Sauce - Orange Beef – Polynesian Resort This is super easy to put together (a refreshing change after my birthday recipe…) and it’s incredibly kid-friendly.  Honestly, most home cooks probably have a similar recipe stowed away in their back pocket for fast, delicious family dinners. If not, they should and this is the one to choose! My only feedback on this recipe is that the quality of the cheese can make-or-break this dish. I wished after I’d had the first bite that I’d invested in nicer cheese than the generic store brand… Nicer cheese would have made this dish absolutely sing! For the caravores out there, you can add bacon or very small diced ham for an extra little something and I bet it would taste fabulous. Really, this serves as an excellent base for something more complex with meats and different cheeses, or it can be served as-is for a ridiculously hearty meal. The great thing was this was an amazing reminder of both my time in Germany and the dinner we had at Biergarten. The fact it could be served in this huge, family-style casserole dish reminded me of lining up in front of the buffet at Biergarten and trying to restrain myself, but it also reminded me of the very traditional dining we enjoyed all through Germany. So many of their meals are food-focused family time (we had meals that lasted for hours… Most of them lasted hours, actually…) and it’s not at all difficult to imagine that this easy-to-make dish that serves an army and tastes good warm or cold would be on the table. Cheesy without being too cheesy, crunchy like chips on the top and sides from that delicious cheese and macaroni “crust,” but soft and ooey gooey in the middle… I’m excited for leftovers and for Biergarten all over again. Conclusion In conclusion, the Biergarten's Nudel Gratin Recipe, also known as German Mac and Cheese, is a delicious and comforting dish that is sure to satisfy any craving for cheesy goodness. Drawing from our firsthand experience, we can attest that this recipe is easy to follow and uses simple ingredients that can be found at most grocery stores. The combination of pasta, cheese, and breadcrumbs creates a satisfying texture and a rich, creamy flavor that is perfect for a cozy night in or as a side dish for a larger meal. Plus, the addition of smoked ham and onions add a unique German twist to this classic dish. Overall, the Biergarten's Nudel Gratin Recipe is a must-try for anyone who loves mac and cheese or is looking for a new twist on a classic comfort food. In addition to the delicious food and recipes, Disney World is also known for its unique dining experiences, such as character dining and themed restaurants. Whether you want to have breakfast with Mickey Mouse, dine in a replica of a sci-fi drive-in theater at Hollywood Studios, or enjoy a meal with an ocean view at the Coral Reef Restaurant in Epcot, there's something for everyone. And with the help of Recipes Today and the How to Make category, you can even recreate some of these magical dining experiences in your own home. So why not start planning your next Disney-inspired meal or dining experience today? Read the full article

[dataglitch]

omg! thank you for answering the previous question about your sketches. to add on to that, how would your next step even look like? coming from a rough sketch to something quite detailed?

honestly if you have a time lapse to share, thatd be great.

thank you for your artwork!!! THEYRE AMAZING.

Here's a time lapse of one of my Roddy images:

I'm gonna explain it a bit here so you know which steps do what:

Sketch: just a quick reference, nothing too fancy.

Lineart: create the lineart. I like to use a good mix of thin/bold lines.

Base: select background > invert > fill to a layer below your lines. This is just a base, you can choose whichever color you want, doesn't matter since all the top layers will just clip through.

Flats w/ gradient: color your flats, choose 'clipping group' so they clip to your base. With this I also like to use different gradients per color(reds with orange/yellow with purple/etc), so play around and see what works!

Shadows: as my previous tutorial, I use a light purple and light tan color > set layer to multiply, create your shadows. I also like to use a light blue color for extra shading.

Background: create your background, pretty self explanatory.

Color Lines: color your lines depending on the flats, I play around with shades usually.

BG Atmosphere: I added the sand effects so the cape would 'disappear' into the background.

Hard highlights: I wanted hard sunlight to hit the subject, so I used yellow and blue(mainly white) and set it to 'luminosity', and went ham. I usually used a textured brush when drawing it.

Front effects: added the dust in the front and other atmosphere effects.

PS Edits: the usual color balance/levels/blur/sharpen/channels.

Last Lighting: added biolights, eyes, and last armor lighting.

That's pretty much the usual process to most my images, so hopefully this paints a better picture :D

[romanticsims]

hi love! i legit just found your page yet i'm absolutely BLOWN AWAY by your edits, oh my gosh :O i love the gif you posted about your editing process and i was wondering if you'd be willing to post the different pictures in it side by side so i could more easily see the process? if that's too tedious that's totally okay and i completely understand :) thank you for reading dear, have a great day!! <3 (the post i'm talking about is post/683152127057641473)

Hello anon!

Thank you so much for the kind words! I’m so happy you like my edits and are interested in the process (truly my favorite thing to talk about)

I’m gonna number each part of the process, I tend to save a picture after I think I made significant enough changes and then continue so idk how organized this will be but I’ll happily upload a progress video of another edit if you or others are interested! Also for reference, I edit mostly in Procreate

1. Picture one is the render fresh from Blender! I immediately notice clipping issues I wanna fix and elements from the Sims that didn’t translate well into blender (like her nose and lip presets)

2. This shot is after I brought it into Photoshop and used my basic actions (topaz clean, smart sharpen, and camera raw filter). This is also where I separate the subject from the background for easy editing, and blur the background (I usually use tilt and field blur, I also added motion to this one since she’s in a bustling city)

3. I’m in Procreate now and use the start (and early motivation and excitement) to get the fixing work done. Smoothing the harsh lines of the clipping with the smudge tool and parts of her face that don’t look right with Liquify

4. The fun parts begin and I get started on drawing the hair (I also smudge the hair underneath to blend better with the hair I draw on) and begin pulling colors from her skin and drawing on top of them with a noise brush for texture. I made some adjustments to the background and the lighting as well since I was focusing on the skin and wanted the lighting just right

5. This was when the skin got FUN because I added the blushing and started really going ham on the cheek bones and her freckles. Fixed her features some more with liquify and really made sure the hair blended with the background as I drew a lot of it in myself. (At this point in the process I was both so in love with her and so fucking tired I knew I should stop before I went too far lol)

6. And then the final adjustments were made! I use Curves at the start, then I move on to using a Gradient Map to adjust contrast, and my favorite parts are using blurs and Ambient Occlusion to really make everything blend seamlessly. I love adding fog to my shots, it blends the subject with the background and really adds a more natural touch to the setting. I color the fog to match the mood, in this case a very desaturated blue. Final touch is sharpening the image and adding noise for that real picture effect I love. (Both the background and the subject get different levels of noise as well)

I don’t know for sure but I believe the time it took to finish her took about 5 hours total, and I hope this gives some insight into what I do! I’d be happy to answer any more editing questions, it’s truly my favorite part! Thank you again for reaching out and I hope you have the best day too! You definitely made mine ☺️

[clowneryandshenanegans]

alright here’s some I rly like and some I came up with :)

• Noirs first language was French after his parents were French immigrants, his mother taught him French before they died and then he learnt English (I came up with this one for a fic and did like 3 hours of research total)

• Miles has tried “spice training” Gwen so her white ass can handle spicy food

• Peter B is trans and he and MJ had Mayday through IVF

• They all have a Minecraft server with about 12 texture packs

• they have movie nights where one gets to pick the movie with a very loose set of rules: during one of these sessions a horror movie was picked and noir had a plate of pizza rolls thrown at his head after asking if anyone wanted anything while he was up, since his voice was very similar to the killer

• All of them HATE peppermint

• Hobie constantly uses the phrase “I don’t believe in concepts” and is the only one allowed to use it since he made the watch replica

• the watch has a ton of random features including but not limited to changing the wearers color to disguising features that especially stand out. (Usually used for spiders like noir and hobie, in case they need to do something stealth related or hide their color pallets/background popups when in other universes)

• Pavitr still calls miles “new guy”

• Peni and Margo went on a “ruining the hqs tech” spree after Gwen was sent back and recruited them. Miguel was pissed off and LYLA thought it was funny

• They’ve set up a “bitties protocol” on noirs watch that takes photos of his chest when fighting and sends them to the teens group chat. (Context: noir has a more muscular chest from Nazi-punching which led to nice tits jokes and thus the bitties protocol) Peni and Margo made the program, and LYLA was in on it and fully on board. Miguel was not. He was not happy when he found it. He was also not happy when learning it was originally used on him.

• Miguel and Ben Rielly are together and have adopted Lego Spider-man as their son and Spider-cat as their cat

• Spider Hatsune-Miku once did a show for the society, after which Gwen dragged Hobie to go talk to her and Spider-miku immediately pulled the “hatsune miku does NOT talk to British people!” line on him.

• as peni got older she looked more and more like her comic design, currently it’s about halfway

• all of them have had to replace doorknobs due to the enhanced strength the day they got it. Pavitr got chewed out by his Maya Auntie after.

• language differences are INSANE and so is the group Spotify playlist

• Pav and Peter are transmasc, Gwen is transfem, and Hobie is genderfluid

• noir and ham are aroace

• Margo somehow managed to get Miguel to pay all the spiders after a year

• most of them got super bendy so hide and seek game is peak

• floor (and walls and ceiling) is lave is PEAK

• all of them have fangs. This includes the horse.

• miles and Gwen have decided that they’re even after she went through his sketchbook and opened his figure and he ripped part of her hair out and have agreed no more of that (they both still feel bad about respective actions but won’t let the other apologize anymore)

I have a lot, if you couldn’t tell lmao

yeah this was just an opportunity to share them all so yippee :D

Guys reblog this post and give me your absolute favorite Spider-Verse headcanon(s).

It can be of any character (OR multiple characters). It could be silly, sad, stupid, hell it could make literally NO sense. Idc just GIMME SOME I WANNA HEAR EM!’ 🔥🗣️

[bitegore]

11, 33, and 55 for the spotify thing

11 - A Salesman's Guide to Non-Existence by Thank You Scientist

this song makes me lose my mind. the lyrics absolutely make me insane. it's great. "go on, i've given up on you, do what you will" at high tempo. every time i listen to it i sit here gnashing my teeth and then write depressing fanfiction about transformers. it's so good. plus the sounds are like. they are so many sounds. every three lines there's a different sound despite the overarching consistent melody and stuff. i love when music never stays the same.

and the KEY CHANGE in the CHORUS it makes me INSANE!!! it's so good! it goes from down to up but it's not!!! it's not happy it's so bitter!!! and i eat it the fuck UP

33 - Machinehead by Bush

I looked this song back up this year for nostalgia reasons, because my parents both used to like it and I couldn't remember how it went. It's, like, it's fine. It's a pretty good song. Not terribly standout but it's not bad.

55 - Son Of A Serpent by Thank You Scientist

SPEAKING OF SONGS THAT HAVE LYRICS THAT MAKE ME INSANE. I actually should have this one higher on this list but I started listening to it on my youtube playlist first and so its been split across platforms but this song absolutely makes me lose my fucking mind.

like okay so on the face of it the lyrics are really depressing its like "i ruin everything and fuck it all up and i am making my own life miserable and how much more can i lose" but its?? its NOT like. its absolutely a "nowhere to go but up" anthem but it's not fucking shlocky or whatever.

like this shit

But I'm sure there's a place To bury the old me and start anew Tired of the things I put me through How much can I lose?

this shit HITS

and fucking . THESE TWO played against each other, these verses!!! i lose my mind!!!

so this is the first verse

Crash and burn Witness to the nightmare Tables turn It's a shake up You better know just what it's worth So many times, you were complacent Weakness starts to show

Constantly breaking Feel like letting, feel like letting go

AND THIS IS THE SECOND VERSE!!! LOOK!!!! LOOK!!!!!!!

Crash and learn Be prepared for consequence Tables turn Just make it up, make it up as you go As you go Don't care if it burns You just go

[points, gestures, points again] SEE? see what i mean??? im insane about it

and that doesnt even touch on like. the SONG. the MUSIC. its so GOOD these people do such interesting things with key changes midsong and it makes me absolutely nuts. i go absolutely ham for it.. i cant get enough. and so much just happens in their songs like they have so much flavor. so much texture. it's fantastic

[just-jammin]

I’ve seen you draw amazing fire many times, and I wanted to ask how do you draw fire?

ooooooh it’s tutorial time again, eh?

aight, this is a Sai tutorial, so if you use another program, uh idk it might be the same :/

anyway!

first, i just drew the outline for the fire. the lines should be sharp, yet flexibly flowing at the same time. idk how else to describe them—

then i filled it in with the flat colors! this time i opted for a yellow-orange color (and orange for the outline), but fire can be any color you like if it’s magical!

now for the glow. i added a new layer, set its blending mode to Luminosity, and just went ham on the Airbrush to make it glowy. since the airbrush i used is textured, i then Blurred the light-colored Airbrush stuff to make it seem more natural.

(i also made the bg gray in the process so that the glow can be seen easily)

to make it look more like fire, i added another Normal layer and did the same, except i mostly put the Airbrush (now in a darker color) inside the flame.

normally i’d be done at this point, but i thought, ‘why don’t i do more?’

so i added yet another Normal layer and repeated the process one more time, with a lighter color inside the darker Airbrush layer.

annnnnd i’m done!

i also did another tutorial on this, but that one’s outdated by now—

[apparitionism]

Why

I want to wish a very happy Gift Exchange Day to @mysensitiveside ​ ! This gift, a short and sweet AU, will keep on giving for a while, in that I wasn’t able to fling the whole thing across the finish line for you today. (No surprise, I’m sure, given my posting pace over the past... um... some time.) A second part will appear sooner rather than later, however, and I hope that the whole thing will be to your liking. Thanks of course go to @kla1991 for the organization of the whole  @bering-and-wells-exchange extravaganza... and I do just want to say that, as for my own reasons (reasons as such being quite relevant to this story), I still love Myka and Helena, and everybody in this bar, very much.

Why

“Why are you here?” Myka Bering asked of the dog she discovered in the hallway, gazing up at her, when she opened the door of her apartment one Saturday morning.

The dog blinked.

“Aren’t you Sam’s dog?”

The dog blinked again.

Things happen for a reason.

Myka had always been sure of that. So much so that it had shaped her idea of heaven: surely, the experience of paradise was nothing more, less, or other than finally being in possession of all the reasons.

When she was small, her “WHY?” refrain hadn’t distinguished her from her peers, but while most other children eventually gave up the incessant repetitions of that question, she never did. She discovered early on, however, that knowing whom to ask made an enormous difference in the quality of the answers she received: her mother’s exasperated “Because” was endlessly frustrating, as was her father’s equally unsatisfying “It’s magic.”

Which was why she became a research chemist, her choice of career happening for just that reason: it was always going to be a science of some sort, for the “why” questions—which she tended to ask internally now—had answers, if she put enough effort into finding them.

So it struck her as strange, that morning, to find herself asking “why” of a neighbor’s dog, out loud. The quality of any answer she got wasn’t likely to be high.

She had never seen the dog this dirty before. He... was it a he? maybe? she thought she’d heard “boy” at some point... had always seemed a little disheveled, his coat fluffed but lopsided, like he always slept on it wrong and nobody bothered with a comb. But never like this. Never with actual dirt.

She picked up the dog—he weighed less than she expected; she hadn’t realized how much of him was fur—and with some trepidation went to knock on Sam’s door.

No answer.

Myka took the dog back to her apartment. “Are you hungry?” she asked him. He blinked.

She had no idea what dogs ate, other than dog food, and she had no dog food.

She discovered that dogs ate several slices of cheese, a ham sandwich, a peanut butter sandwich, and a corn tortilla. Then dogs took a nap, no doubt exhausted from all the eating.

After numerous fruitless attempts at Sam’s door throughout the day, Myka called Mr. Nielsen, the super. “Sam moved out,” she was told. “Couple weeks ago. No forwarding address.”

“But I have his dog.”

“That’s nice of you,” Mr. Nielsen said.

“You don’t understand. I didn’t intend to have his dog.”

“Then maybe it isn’t nice. It’s not my problem either way.” He hung up.

Myka hadn’t liked Sam. He had asked her out, and she had said no, because he made her nervous. Anyone asking her out made her nervous, but this felt... different. She sensed she’d been right to turn him down, for he got visibly offended, in a way that made her even more nervous, such that she avoided him as much as possible afterward. He didn’t seem like a good person. But to move away and leave his dog behind?

She considered taking the dog to the animal shelter. What was she going to do with a dog? “What am I going to do with a dog?” she asked the dog in question. He blinked.

“I guess it’s you and me, dog,” she said after that Saturday turned into a weekend, the weekend into a week, one week into two.

And he looked at her as if to ask not “why?” but “what took you so long?”

She bought a leash. A bed. Actual dog food. So many products. “I’ve never shopped this much for myself,” she told him. She couldn’t decipher his blink in response to that information. Was it “But of course you should buy more for me” or “You should buy more for yourself”?

As it happened, he was a responsibility in ways she had not expected to enjoy. She had to leave work at midday, every day, to go home and walk him. She had that thing to do, and she did it. Her lab neighbor Abigail teased her about the dog being just an excuse to escape the lab, an excuse who probably didn’t even exist. “He’s real,” Myka protested. “I even had to come up with a name for him.”

Abigail laughed. “Sure you did.”

“Leukotriene.”

Pause. “Okay, now I’m convinced. Mostly. But I still want photo evidence.”

It hadn’t occurred to Myka to take a picture of the newly named Leukotriene, but she did so that night. She included a ruler in the photo for scale, lest Abigail mistake him for a Pomeranian, which was the breed—as far as Myka could tell, given her limited dog knowledge—he most resembled. The next day, “That’s him,” she said.

“Your dog.”

“I guess so.”

“He’s really... pretty.”

At home that night, she told him, “Abigail thinks you’re pretty.” He did the blink. “Yes,” she affirmed, “I do too.”

She shortened his name to “Leuko.” He didn’t seem to hate it. Then again, he wasn’t very vocal, positively or negatively.

She took him on walks, increasingly long ones, on the winding trails of the city’s largest park. She had never been a walker, but Leuko was... well, no: he was a trotter. A delighted, peppy trotter. Myka tried to match his bright energy, but she didn’t ever feel the same shine. It made her unaccountably happy, though, to see him that happy.

When she bathed him, he suffered it (no bright energy there), but she had a sense that he knew how impressive he looked when he was clean. His fluffy tan coat expanded into even greater glossy magnificence, an invitation to sink fingers in, and it rewarded the venture.

The best part, though, was when she would sit on the sofa, reading a journal or, less frequently, a novel, and he would lie against her, sighing as she rested her hand against his soft, warm body.

It was easy to forget that Sam had ever existed. Easy to sink into the belief that she and Leuko had always been a team. That this new texture of her life—this sneaky, responsibility-laden velvet—was a reality that had simply been held in abeyance until the right time. And now was that time.

One Saturday, as they walked in a nearly empty park, enjoying an early cold snap, Myka heard from a great distance an exclamation: “Monty!” She wouldn’t have thought anything of it, but suddenly her leash hand was empty, and Leuko was tearing across an open field, toward a solitary female figure, barking, making noise like he’d finally learned, or just remembered, that he had a voice.

Myka took off after him, drawing near at the moment he leapt—yes, leapt—into the woman’s arms.

She was striking, with dark eyes that rhymed with Leuko’s... in fact, she rhymed entirely with him, with his beauty. She looked up from him to Myka, those dark eyes widening, seemingly shocked to find another person present. “This is my dog,” she said, a little halting, as if she were trying the words out. Or as if she were coaxing them back into her mouth from far away.

Myka’s breath seized. “No,” she said, forcing the word out. “He’s my dog.”

“He is not. He’s mine. You can see it.”

Myka could see it. It drove ice in her heart to see it, to see him so ecstatic to see someone else, but it was there to be seen. It was there to be heard, too: Myka would never, she was sure, forget that declarative bark.

“He was lost for so long. How did you come to have him?” the woman asked, and Myka, trying to hide that heart-ice, explained about Sam. The woman said, shortly and with pain, “So that’s what happened.” She didn’t offer anything more, and while Myka wasn’t the most sensitive of souls, she could tell that this was not the sort of thing a stranger could ask any question about, not why or wherefore or anything at all.

A stranger. She was a stranger to both of them now, this woman and her dog, a stranger in their way, on the path in front of them—on a path she never should have been on in the first place. And if there was one thing Myka knew how to do, it was get out of the way.

She tried, mightily, to tell herself that that was what she should do: just step away. Let them carry on down the path. You didn’t have a dog before, and you were fine.

Leuko—Monty—looked at her from his perch in the woman’s arms. He blinked.

In response to that, Myka found herself babbling, “Can I... I mean, would you maybe let me... walk him sometime? Because he and I. I mean, or maybe just me. I. I’ll miss... it all.”

“I’m disinclined to let him out of my sight,” the woman said, with seeming care.

Myka didn’t have to ask why. “I don’t mean alone,” she said. “Just to see him.”

The woman looked at the dog in her arms. Did he blink? Whatever he showed her, it was enough. “All right,” she said. “Next week?” At Myka’s nod, she continued, “I should introduce myself. I’m Helena Wells.”

Myka understood even that was a matter of trust. “I’m Myka Bering,” she said, “and let me give you my number so you—”

“I’d rather not,” Helena Wells said, with the same care.

Not overmuch trust. “I can bring you what I bought for him,” Myka said, and maybe it was a flail to show that Helena Wells did not need to doubt her intentions. “If you want.”

“Thank you, but I still have all his things. Always holding out hope.” She said that with a quirk of her lip that Myka envied. Hope—what was it?

But of course Helena Wells had held out hope. Even after Myka’s own short time with Leuko—Monty—she would have done the same thing. Had he suddenly been gone, had she not known why.

The next Saturday morning, Myka spent some time pondering a very strange question: what do you wear to walk your ex-dog with someone who probably wants to forget that you exist?

The relief Myka felt when Helena and Leuko—Monty—appeared... it nearly felled her. There he is, she thought, and he’s all right. Not that she had expected anything different, but it was a relief. After a week she had not understood as a ratcheting up of anxiety, she at last felt relief.

They walked, side by side, Leuko—no, Monty—leading the way, shining even more brightly than Myka had known he could. “I didn’t intend to have your dog,” Myka started. “I didn’t mean to keep him... I mean, to keep him from you. The super can testify to the timeline, and I—”

“It’s all right,” Helena said. “I see that.”

“But I’m trying to tell you why this happened.”

“It doesn’t matter why. He’s here, and I told you, it’s all right.”

“Of course it matters! You’d care if I did try to steal him.”

“But you didn’t,” Helena said, and her words were gentle. “You cared for him. You didn’t have to.”

That left Myka strangely perplexed, because now, in retrospect, what else could have happened? “Of course I did.”

And Leuko—no, Monty—looked up at her, and he did the blink, and Myka knew what it meant: “Of course you did.”

Meeting, walking. They fell into a regular Saturday-walk schedule. As the weeks progressed, Myka’s anxiety gave way to, made room for, anticipation. Leuko—Monty—never barked when he saw Myka, but he did pull on the leash as she approached and gave her a nuzzle when she knelt to greet him.

“Why did you name him Monty?” Myka asked, one Saturday.

That made Helena smile. “I didn’t. His breeder did.”

“His breeder?”

“He’s a Mittelspitz.”

“He’s... a medium? A medium spitz?” Well, that explained his looking like a Pomeranian.

“Precisely.”

Myka felt dim. “But what does that have to do with being called Monty?”

“Nothing, as far as I know. The breeder named his litter after the stars of A Place in the Sun; he’s Montgomery Clift. His sister is Shelley Winters, and his brother is Elizabeth Taylor.”

“His brother? Why?” Myka really did try to limit the asking of that question out loud, but this seemed extra-justified.

“He’s even more beautiful than Monty.”

Did Monty the Mittelspitz turn his head and harrumph at such blasphemy? Myka surely was imagining that. He must have just seen a squirrel. “Poor Shelley Winters, though,” Myka said.

Helena laughed... and Myka felt that she should name that laugh “Elizabeth Taylor” as well. Helena said, “No, no, she’s pretty too. A remarkably lovely litter, and in fact Shelley was the only one who was show quality. If beauty were all it took, Liz would have ruled the circuit.” Another harrumph. “Don’t pout, darling,” Helena said to the dog, then to Myka, “Why did you name him Leuko?”

“After a peptide,” Myka admitted. “Well, a group of peptides.”

“A peptide.”

That was an implicit “why,” and Myka was strangely comforted. “I’m a chemist,” she said.

“A chemist.” Helena furrowed her brow. “How funny that I didn’t know that. How have we not got around to professions?”

Myka wanted to say, “Because when we get close to anything about our real lives, one or both of us backs away.” They still had no contact outside the park, and even as they shared and deepened this strange long-walk familiarity, Myka did not know where the line was. Had it shifted? If not, would it ever? She tried, very cautiously, “I don’t know. Will you... will you tell me yours?”

“I teach writing.”

For some reason, Myka couldn’t hold back her next question, even though it was not justified: “Why?”

“I have knowledge and expertise to impart. Due to having studied writing. And having made a living in the past as a writer myself.”

“That’s a good reason,” Myka said, and she thought, That’s more than you’ve said about yourself in weeks of walks. Was something different about this day?

“Thank you. Though I may not need your imprimatur, I’m pleased to have it.”

Was she... teasing? “I like good reasons,” Myka tried to explain.

“Good reasons. Recognizing them is not inapplicable to the craft of writing.” Helena said this with a funny little bow of her head.

Myka’s facial capillaries flooded with blood.

She knew why, but she hid the answer in her heart, for she remembered all too well Helena’s desolate “So that’s what happened.”

On one of their earlier walks, they had run into Abigail. “How’s little Leukotriene?” she asked. “Or I guess he’s not so little. That’s weird; I thought he was a Pom.”

Myka resisted the impulse to remind her of the ruler in the photo.

The next day, “Who’s your girlfriend?” Abigail asked.

It was the first time Myka really registered that she had continued her habit of going home in the middle of the day. To no purpose at all, she went home, stood in her kitchen, ate a sandwich that no one else wanted any of, and then went back to the lab. It was not a responsibility anymore, and it did nothing for her. She resolved to stop.

“Not my girlfriend,” Myka said, but she was appalled at herself: for a rash moment, she had wanted to let Abigail believe otherwise.

“Walking your dog with her?”

“Not my dog.” On that point, of course, Myka wished she could let herself believe otherwise.

“Pretty sure the dog matched that picture you showed me.”

“He’s her dog.”

“You were trying to pass your girlfriend’s dog off as yours?”

“She’s not my girlfriend. And he was my dog... for a minute.”

Walking in the park every week was not a responsibility. It was a reward.

And as Myka enjoyed her reward, each week, she studied Helena’s face, listened to her words. She tried to tell herself she was merely continuing to assess Helena’s relationship with Leuko. No: Monty. And she was doing that... but she was doing so much more.

How much could Myka continue to hide in her heart? And for how long?

As if in answer, the Saturday following their “professions” discussion, Helena (and Leuko—no, Monty) failed to appear. Myka, desolate at the absence of them both, walked by herself. It was terrible.

The park was empty of them the following week as well. Still, Myka walked, taking the isolation as her punishment for having misunderstood lines and crossing them, for having been so foolish as to let any part of her secret heart show on her face.

The aftermath of that second lonely walk left Myka restless, anxious. Should she try to find Helena and ask her why she had so abruptly decided against... whatever they were doing? Could she then beg her to reconsider walking a dog together to no purpose? “I’ll stop wanting anything more than that,” Myka thought to tell her. “I promise.”

But of course trying to find her was out of the question; if Helena didn’t want even to walk with Myka, she surely didn’t want to be stalked by her.

So Myka did the only thing she could do: the next Saturday, she returned again to the park. And she hoped.

TBC

[underthewingsofthblackeagle]

“Panorama Helsinki / Finland - Dom und Parlamentsplatz“ by  tap5a  

“We only do this for Fergus!” is a short Outlander Fan Fiction story and my contribution to the Outlander Prompt Exchange (Prompt 3: Fake Relationship AU: Jamie Fraser wants to formally adopt his foster son Fergus, but his application will probably not be approved… unless he is married and/or in a committed relationship. Enter one Claire Elizabeth Beauchamp (Randall?) to this story) @outlanderpromptexchange

Chapter 6: Absence. The state of not being physically present (2)

           When Claire turned around, she looked into the face of Mrs. Curtius.

           "Claire, I understand that you are queasy about this task. I know how much Mr. Fraser loves his son and ... now you have the responsibility for Fergus. It's not easy. But I assure you, we will support you in everything."

           The housekeeper gently put her arms around Claire and huged her.

           When they had disengaged from each other again, Claire replied:

           "You're right. It's like he put a 100-carat-diamond in my arm and said, 'Take good care of it!" However, this little diamond is very much alive and not always controllable ..."

           Mrs. Curtius smiled.

           "That's very much to the point. Believe me, the last time I had to watch him, I didn't breathe a sigh of relief either until Mr. Fraser came back."

           The two women looked at each other for a moment, smiling. Then Mrs. Curtius continued:

           "Will you come with me to the kitchen? I have to prepare breakfast for the security people, and if you'd like, you can join me for a cup of coffee?"

“Kitchen” by shadowfirearts

           Claire nodded and followed the housekeeper. She had been living in the house for a few months, but until now she had never had a chance to talk to the housekeeper in a quiet and detailed way. Shortly thereafter, she sat on one of the raised counter stools at the kitchen counter in front of a steaming cup of coffee, watching Mrs. Curtius prepare huge portions of scrambled eggs and fried ham in large cast-iron pans. It looked as if the housekeeper had never done anything else, so easy seemed her work. She was a joy to watch and Claire suddenly wished she had similar skills. She followed the individual steps with interest, noting also how easy it seemed for the housekeeper to carry on a conversation on the side.

           Claire had already emptied her second cup of coffee when, at 6:40 am, the alarm on her smartphone reminded her that she had to wake Fergus in twenty minutes. She thanked Mrs. Curtius, then set the dining room table for Fergus and herself.

           The day went almost exactly as she had expected. After breakfast, she took Fergus to school, accompanied by two bodyguards. Afterwards, she lay down again to catch up on some lost sleep. Around noon, she picked up the boy from school, again accompanied by two bodyguards.

           At lunch with Fergus, she watched him closely. But the little curly-haired boy was bright and chipper as ever. After a short break, they set about doing his homework together. An hour later, Claire noticed his concentration waning. She suggested they take a nap now. When they got to Fraser's apartment, she showed the boy that she had set up in the guest room for herself and that if he woke up during the night, he would find her there.

           "Where's Papa today?" asked Fergus, to Claire's surprise.

           "Today and tomorrow your Papa is in Iceland. He should have arrived by now, he may even be in his first meeting. But we'll find out when he calls us tonight."

“Island - Green Rush” by KarinKarin

           "Are you taking a nap too, Claire?"

           "No, or I won't be able to sleep tonight. I'm going to sit here in the living room and read some more. And when I wake you up, we can play a game together."

           "What kind of game?"

           "It's a surprise."

           Fergus gave her a slightly annoyed look and rolled his eyes.

           "Ooch Claire!"

           "No way! There are two surprises today. But not until there's time."

           A little reluctantly, Fergus crawled into his bed. Claire handed him the little beige bear that Jamie had purchased at a Swedish furniture store and brought back for the boy from his last business trip. Clearly, "Stuffy" had become Fergus's favorite stuffed animal. Claire closed the window blinds. Then she stroked Fergus's hair once more.

          "Sleep now. You still have a lot of growing to do. That's sometimes exhausting and you need time to rest every now and then. I'll wake you up later and after tea we'll play. I promise."

          Quietly she closed the door of Fergus' room. When she reached the hallway, she stood indecisive for a moment. Then she checked the door to the stairs again. It was locked. Good, she wouldn't have to worry about that anymore. Claire decided to take a little tour of the rooms on Fraser's floor. To the right of Fergus' room was the library, which also served as Fraser's study. From Fergu's room and from the library, one could access a narrow balcony on the south side of the house. But this balcony was very rarely used. A window also led out to the garden from the side of the room used as a library.

“Library” by moritz320

          Claire closed the door behind her. On the left side of the hallway now followed the door to the stairs and then an open space  - open to the hallway with a window facing the west side of the house. She stopped for a moment and looked at it. I wonder what it was for? What reason had there been for not providing another room here? She took a few steps to the window. From there she could look down to the street in front of the house. Once again she looked around. What sense this free space should have, she did not understand, but she took it upon herself to ask Jamie about it. On the right side now followed Fraser's private living room, which was also called the 'fireplace room'. She passed it and reached the door to the guest room on the left, where she had made herself comfortable for the time of Fraser's absence.           Then she stood in front of Fraser's bedroom. She looked for the matching key on the key ring he had given her, opened the door and turned on the light. What Claire saw next amazed her. While most of the rest of the house was modern and decorated in bright colors, she now had the impression of having entered a museum. The focal point of the room was a four-poster bed made of dark wood. The bed was the size of a marriage bed and clearly came from another century. She estimated that it dated from the beginning or middle of the 18th century. Two antique chairs stood in front of a large window whose view led out into the garden. To the right, Claire spotted a table with a mirror that was clearly the forerunner of what was called a 'dressing table' in the present time. On the opposite wall was a narrow, tall chest of drawers, richly carved. At the foot of the bed had been placed a chest whose iron fittings indicated that it was much older than any of the other pieces of furniture. Claire ran her hands over the wood and over the hardware. From its shape and texture, the chest appeared to be at least one hundred years older than everything elese in this room. All of the furnishings were crafted of dark wood. The only other color in the room was blue. This was the color of the wallpaper, as well as the bedding. As Claire looked more closely at the wallpaper, she realized that it only gave the impression of being as old as the furniture. A layman would certainly not have noticed the difference, but Claire had spent too much time at her Uncle Lambert's side, and as the niece of the noted Oxford historian, she noticed the difference immediately. This wallpaper was a very accurate reproduction of a wall painting that was at least two to three centuries old. But why did a man of Fraser's age have wallpaper made that showed such a wall painting? Was he desperate for wallpaper that matched the antique furniture in his bedroom? And why had he furnished his bedroom with furniture of this type in the first place? Slowly, she walked around the large bed until she came to a stop in front of the nightstand on the side where Fraser was obviously sleeping. Next to a bedside lamp, which was of more recent date but also in antique style, was a book. On the dark blue cover was written in white letters "The Complete Poems of John Donne." Without thinking further, she reached for the book and was about to open it. Then she saw that there was a bookmark sticking out of the top of the book. She opened the book at that point and read:

That Time and Absence proves Rather helps than hurts to loves

ABSENCE, hear thou my protestation            

   Against thy strength,            

   Distance and length:            

Do what thou canst for alteration,        

   For hearts of truest mettle          

   Absence doth join and Time doth settle.    

Who loves a mistress of such quality,            

   His mind hath found            

   Affection's ground    

Beyond time, place, and all mortality.  

   To hearts that cannot vary  

   Absence is present, Time doth tarry.          

My senses want their outward motion            

   Which now within    

   Reason doth win,      

Redoubled by her secret notion:        

   Like rich men that take pleasure    

   In hiding more than handling treasure.        

By Absence this good means I gain,  

   That I can catch her              

   Where none can watch her,            

In some close corner of my brain:      

   There I embrace and kiss her,        

   And so enjoy her and none miss her.

 That Time and Absence proves

Rather helps than hurts to loves

ABSENCE, hear thou my protestation            

   Against thy strength,            

   Distance and length:            

Do what thou canst for alteration,        

   For hearts of truest mettle          

   Absence doth join and Time doth settle.    

Who loves a mistress of such quality,            

   His mind hath found            

   Affection's ground    

Beyond time, place, and all mortality.  

   To hearts that cannot vary  

   Absence is present, Time doth tarry.          

My senses want their outward motion            

   Which now within    

   Reason doth win,      

Redoubled by her secret notion:        

   Like rich men that take pleasure    

   In hiding more than handling treasure.        

By Absence this good means I gain,  

   That I can catch her              

   Where none can watch her,            

In some close corner of my brain:      

   There I embrace and kiss her,        

   And so enjoy her and none miss her.

           In the second paragraph, all the lines had been underlined with a pencil. Once again, she quietly read the entire poem. It was not unfamiliar to her. Her uncle had owned a complete edition of John Donne's works. But it did surprise her a little to find such a book on James Fraser's bedside table. And why had he underlined that verse? Was there a woman in Fraser's life after all? Claire took a deep breath, then closed the book and put it back the way she had found it. Once again she looked over the bed. Then she carefully stroked the covers and looked around. A door contrary to the bed led from Fraser's bedroom into his bathroom. Claire looked through the open door, but did not enter. This room too, was held in blue and withe. She left the room, locking the door behind her.

           When it was time for tea and she went to wake Fergus, she found the boy playing in his bed.

           "Do I get my surprise now?" asked Fergus firmly.

           "Now first there's cocoa for you, tea me, and fresh sandwiches for both of us."

           "Oh yes!"

           A moment later, when hunger and thirst were satisfied, Claire removed a box from a burlap bag.

“A game of Settlers of Catan” by Yonghokim - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77327301

           "What's this?"

           "It's a game, it's called 'The Settlers of Catan' and there are many versions of it. This is the edition that fits your age and look what this is on the box."

           "It's a parrot. He's wearing a pirate tricorn and he's got a map in his claws."

           "You did a good job of recognizing that," Claire praised the bright boy.

           "Yes, I know parrots from the zoo. In Dresden. I've been there with Papa. The zoo is huuuuuuge!"

           Fergus stretched his little arms as far apart as he could - to make it clear to Claire that the zoo was really ‘huuuuge’.

           Claire nodded with a smile. Then she unpacked the game and explained the rules to Fergus.

           After 40 minutes, they had finished the first round of the game.

           "Well, shall we play another round?"

           "Do we have that much time? When is Papa going to call?"

           "Yes, we still have quite a bit of time. Your Papa can't call until after dinner, and before that there's another surprise for you."

           "Another surprise?"

           "Yes, but not until after dinner."

           Fergus rolled his eyes while Claire rearranged the game pieces.

           When they finished the second round as well, Claire let the boy play with his train set some more while she went into the kitchen to help Mrs. Curtius set the dinner table.

           After dinner and a shower afterwards, Claire took Fergus to his room.

           "Do I get my second surprise now?"

           "Yes, you little rascal, but you'll have to move aside to get it."

           Fergus made room and Claire sat down next to him on the bed. Together they sat leaning against the wall of the room when Claire pulled out her tablet and asked:

           "Do you know 'The Show with the Mouse,' Fergus?"

           "No, what is it?"

           "The mouse is a cartoon character and there are shows with the mouse for kids on TV."

           "No, I haven't seen that yet. Papa doesn't like me to watch too much TV. Are we going to watch a show like that now?"

“Children and The Mouse at the WDR broadcasting studio” at the launch of the first podcast episode -  Von Superbass - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84390983 Source: Von Superbass - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84390983

           "No, but the mouse also has a podcast for some time, a kind of radio show, and that's where the mouse tells goodnight stories."

           "Oh really?"

           "Yes, and tonight and every night as long as your Papa is on his business trip, we'll listen to one of those good night stories."

           "Aren't you going to read to me from our book?"

           "No, we'll do that when your Papa gets back. Otherwise he'll miss so much, won't he?"

           Fergus nodded in agreement, then asked:

           "What story are we going to hear tonight?"

           Claire tapped on her tablet and the page 'Goodnight with the Mouse' came up. She pointed to it and read aloud:

           "Today we're going to listen to a program about trees - with forest workers at work, a tree in the rainforest, and, of course, the mouse. Are you ready?"

           Fergus nodded and Claire pressed the button.

             The last chords of the podcast's closing music had just faded away when that familiar sound announcing an incoming video call was heard.

           "Papa! It's Papa for sure!" exclaimed Fergus excitedly.

           Claire opened the app and moments later Jamie appeared on the screen. He too smiled when he saw Fergus and Claire. Fergus waved enthusiastically and Jamie waved back.

           "How are you, Papa," Fergus asked.

           "I'm fine and how are you?"

           A stream of information immediately poured out of Fergus' mouth, starting with today's experiences at school, to the new game he had tried with Claire, to of course listening to 'The Show with the Mouse' together, from which he had learned many new things about trees.

           Jamie followed his son's report with great interest. He wanted to ask something, but before he could, he was bombarded with questions by the boy. Witty, but at the same time careful and descriptive, Fraser tried to answer his son's questions.

           Twenty minutes later they said goodbye to each other and Fraser promised, if he had the chance, to call again the next evening.

           Claire wrapped Fergus in his bedclothes, stroked his hair, and gave him a light kiss on the forehead.

           "Sleep well, Fergus. If anything is, you know I'll either be in your father's living room or the guest room. There's a bottle of water next to your bed and I'll leave that little string of lights on."

           "Hmmm."

           "Good; I'll see you in the morning then."

           Claire turned to go.

           "See you in the morning. ... Claire?"

           "Yes, Fergus?"

           "Thank you for the nice day."

           Once again, Claire walked back. Smiling, she looked at the child and stroked his head once more.

           "I was happy to do that for you."

           Then she left, closing the door behind her. She stood listening for a moment longer, but all remained quiet in Fergus' room. Claire looked down the hall, considering for a moment how to spend the rest of the evening. Then she made the decision to sit and read in Fraser's living room for a while longer. When she entered the room, it was still warm, although there were only embers glowing in the fireplace. Claire glanced at the small round side table that stood near the small seating area in front of the fireplace and held a selection of Fraser's whiskeys. It was tempting to help herself to it, and Fraser wouldn't have minded, she knew. But the responsibility she bore for Fraser's son held her back. Claire had just sat down in one of the armchairs in front of the fireplace when the tablet she was still holding reported the arrival of another skype call. She opened the app, and to her surprise, Jamie appeared on the screen.