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Big Corp Inc comic (page 14)

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Great work! It looks awesome! 👏

Big Corp Inc comic (page 16)

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Grounded 2!!!!

I for one I'm very excited for it! I remember joining the early access for the first one. I'm definingly gonna get it when the new one comes out.

These are some of my thoughts on the trailer.

Our poor babies look so traumatized! And hurt, tired and a bit feral lets be honest. Poor Willow! She looks so scared! 😭

Also good to know it took Dr. Tully some time to un raisin lol. Also very funny the news reporter calls him a deranged scientist, he might have earned that one XD.

LOOK HOW THEY'VE GROWN!!!!!!!!!!!! 😭🥹

Aw he gets a full head of hair 😂

Honestly theres allot in this trailer! I'm excited for it!

Trailer link here for those that haven't seen it yet.

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Strangers in the Storm ch. 8.

Hollow Crouched beside the giant hand, and with all her strength, and ignoring the pain coming form her side, she lifted.

Cupped under the unconscious humans hand was a male borrower.

The male borrower was curled around the source of the crying.

A smaller borrower.......a child.

The man looked off....too still.

If Hollow ignored the rise and fall of the giant belly below them and just focus on the borrower man, she saw no breath from him.

First Chapter:

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May 19 'Deadly' Toxin

<< >> it just, makes sense that some venoms and toxins can be used for medicine. and it might be like donating blood to some mers, more so if it's ethical and they get to pick were the proceeds go to.

In this case, and older Lily puts most of it to the 'hatchery' for orphaned pups. [not that they would be orphans long, not with Slayer around to adopt them all].

Borrowed Doom mer AU stollen and borrowed with love from @horseyneigh2002

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“I still don’t know how my venom can help humans.” the young mer said as she shifted on the well padded gurney. Her tail twitched as she looked up at the humans she knew very well now, safe humans. She leaned into a warm touch on her shoulder, Lily not minding at all as Vega rubbed his knuckles into a spot that was hard for her to reach. 

“It’s not full strength that’s used.” Dr Richardson assured as she cleaned the two spines on the teen’s back. Marveling not for the first time that Lily was growing so much. Already an impressive ten feet with her full tail and fin.

Being adopted by a megalodon mer was proving oddly good for the smaller mers. Elana wondered if the wide range of die, and so much of the glowing kelp that was in the nursing grounds Slayer had made. The woman continued after being sure those two spines were cleaned and drying. “Your venom, Lily, isn’t deadly to humans lie it is to things in the water, it can paralyze, but if processed right, and mixed with other things. The venom in your spines, help make medicine for the nearby hospital.”

Lily considered that, then looked at Vega, unspoken asking for some help.

“Do you remember the trip we take, to get your tail x-rayed now and then?” Vega asked as the man smiled, “To the place with the human pups getting treated for their sickness?”

Lily brightened, remembering that big place. She did not mind the trips, and it seemed to make the now smaller human pups so happy when she was there and visited too. “The big place we went to before the… MPA set up the nearby clinic?”

“Yes, that’s a children’s hospital, a place for human pups to go and get better like the pups your father finds and brings.” Vega nodded, explaining as he helped the snorter woman to get the container over the end of a spine to help line it up. “Part of that place they study things to help both the pups, and other humans all over. You’re venom helps to make a few things. One of the important things is that it might help with recovery after surgery.”

“Oh,” Lily considered that, arms folded and peering at the lab around them. “It helps… I like that. The tide pools still get the… funds right?”

“Yes,” Vega nodded, smiling as the container filled, he held it at an angle as Dr Richardson was checking that the compression that triggered the injection was causing no pain. “Our Mer Protection facility gets nearly the fill funds, and some of it goes into the account Warren uses to order the goodies and food you like.”

“Ooooh, this makes more sense.”

“Did you not know where you got the money?” Elana asked amused, watching the teen shrug her shoulders.

“I thought Warren made it with the art,” Lily said honestly, flicking just the end of her tail fin before flexing it. She looked back over a shoulder, seeing that the two small jar-containers were full and the spines in her dorsal fin were being cleaned again. It did not hurt at all, and Lily did not feel like her spines were empty. Once sure it was done, Lily rolled onto her side and gave a soft sound of a squeak. Almost the same demanding pup tone she used to do when smaller. Then purred as the humans laughed but surrendered the frozen treat bowl. Balls of fruit and juice and a few pieces of inland meat bits.

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May 18 Nudibranch:

more late and out of order mermay! lol Can see this being on it's own standalone, not just doom mer au. I like the idea of freshwater mers are pretty much in a different world then the salt water ones. the open sea would be such an instinctual 'NOPE' to them. (maybe some in like, the grate lakes are a little different?)

Heather is a freshwater goby mer, orphaned from an accident, and adoped by the MPA and a salt water mer that stays near [slayer xD and Valen]. cute little girl that can't hear, but really good with feeling vibrations...

scans and xrays I imagine would be making sure she's growing right, and rare chance to see baby mer growing up. she gets to go on adventures, and all sorts of goodies and toys from the gift store

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18 Nudibranch:

A field trip was something exciting, so much so as the little pup was aware it had to be arranged. Heather was the one able to pick where to go, it had to be close to the doctor's place. And she was showed a bunch of thing leading up to the time, and picked what looked fun.

The little mer pup picked an aquarium, and it was adorably confusing. Heather had to sign up to her caretaker why. The place was for all the salt water fishes! Heather was a freshwater mer, she could not be in salt water more then playing a little in tide pools, and would never make it into deeper waters, let alone all over the world.

Heather wanted to know what was out there, but also really did not want to spend a lot of time in the bad water, to her. It was bad enough when she dared to go visit the seawater pups in the nursery pools. But after getting all the scans and xrays, Heather was in an odd rolling chair that supported her tail. Her favorite stary weighted blanket was put over top. 

The little mer pup was fascinated, Heather looking back and forth, and as it was pretty quiet, she sat up. Daring to come out from under her blanket to look up at a large, curved tank, watching the jellyfish circling. Her caretaker paused and moved the modified wheelchair closer. Letting Heather get a better look.

Fred waited, dropping into a kneel beside the chair and waiting for her to look over.

‘What that?’ Heather signed slowly with her hands, pointing up at the arch. Watching with rapt attention as the Jellyfish were explained, the little mer pup was not quite able to read human words well yet, but using signs she knew, and no rush, her caretaker explained what the things were. 

The next few hours were like that, with no real time restraint on them, each exhibit and tank were examined and explained. Heather could take her time seeing what was inside the too big, and scary to her sea from somewhere safe. Once or twice Fred would pick the pup up, holding the little girl up to the smaller, top tanks to see what was inside. 

There were two armed guards from the Mer Protection Agency that stayed near. Not to mention the undercover ones, and the aquarium security that were keeping a close eye on everything that day. Heather was being kept very safe, more so when exposed as a mer. 

Heather was, thankful, mostly oblivious to everything. Just too excited and fascinated with what was around her. She was completely absorbed when they entered a dim area, most lights coming from the tanks that had real and fake corals and seaweed- some tanks with grass?! But also all the colors and shapes of a kind of creatures she had never seen.

The freshwater pup wanted to get close to one bigger tank, Heather’s still soft claws hooked on the edge of the display. Leaning forward and her eyes widened, staring at the living lace that moved around. Brightly colored, no pattern of movement like with fish, and most of the things were small. The living lace would fit in her hands, or on a finger!

They did not look tasty like some fish had- but were just so… ‘Pretty. Pretty.’

Fred looked over and grinned at seeing Heather signing. 

“Is she okay?” a staff member that had been in the area asked.

“Oh, she’s just fine,” Fred was still grinning, turning back to answer in sign to the mer pup. “It’s the nudibranchs, she says, that they don’t look tasty, but are really pretty. And small like her.”

“Small?” the younger man echoed, the pup seemed to be a good four feet long when he got a glimpse of her. Not that much different from other kids.

“She lives near the coast,” Fred explained, “And has a big saltwater mer that stays near as a foster dad. So she’s been getting used to being the smallest of the other mers. Heather is the only freshwater one there.”

“Ohh,” the young man had not seen saltwater mers up close, just pictures and even then could understand feeling small. They could range from ten feet long to twenty, not including the open or deep water beings. The young man perked up, and smiled as he glanced at the guards, “Does the kiddo like reds and blues? We have a few special exhibits. With the nudibranchs in this hall, one is a crystal dancer, they’re a little bigger, but are fluttery like those ones, and have blue edges.”

Heather seemed to very belatedly realize there was a new person, and pulled her weighted blanket up to half hide under. Watching with what might be the largest brown eyes the new human had ever seen, reflecting the lights. He could understand so well why she was protected, someone if not trying to kidnap could harass the baby girl. 

He discovered that by showing all of the different nudibranchs to the pup, he was seeing someone getting a new favorite animal in real time. So much so, that when Heather was aloud to pick out what she wanted from the gift store. Both for herself, and for bring home presents, all she picked out was stuffies, stickers, pictures of nudibranchs.

A picture was sent back to the aquarium that showed the little goby mer fast asleep, hugging the almost too big ‘crystal dancer’ plush on the car ride back home to the MPA nursery faculty.

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May 11 Invasive Species…ish: version 2

>.> <.< Writing Lily as a kiddo is always fun, more so with DoomDad Slayer. more so with them as mers heheheh

This version of mer au Slayer is shamelessly stollen with massive amounts of love from @horseyneigh2002 He really loves his new adopted pup, but omg he keeps forgetting the chaos pups can get into without corralling them.... those poor fishermen were not expected the day to go sideways.

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[version 2] May 11 Invasive Species…ish

The small mer pup popped up half out of nowhere, but in all honestly she was as surprised as them. Or, almost as surprised as the fishermen who all froze. The camera on the boat for insurance and their own silly antics on occasion catching the whole thing.

Pulling up one of the newest, and largest traps after a string of not having much of a catch… and finding a little mer pup inside looking confused. Yet not panicking as she sneezed water to clear, and switched to breathing air.

“Hi!” the girl said with a chirping sound, from inside the trap as if it was perfectly normal to just sit inside one. Not seeming to be stressed as the trap was hurriedly brought on board and the group of three exclaimed startled sounds. She blinked up at them, flicking her tail fin to keep from being pinched by a crab. There were scattered shells around in the trap and the pup held some crab legs in her hands.

“What are you doing in there?” a bearded, broad shouldered fisherman asked as he helped unlatched a side of the trap. “How did you get in there, baby?”

“Eatting!” the girl said innocently, the small mermaid did not resist being helped out, as if used to humans. She held up a handful of broken shells to show her prize. Looking up at the big man, eyes wide at the dark and white beard as he settled her on top of a crate. 

Checking her tail, feathery fins and arms for any scrapes, but only a few older ones were on her, “I see that, did you get into any other traps?”

The little gold and black striped girl shook her head, puzzled. “No? It’s only that one where I was left.”

“Left?” The big man glanced over at the area they had left the trap, not far from shore, a shallower area that sometimes in the lowest tides. “Is your pod fishing? Out hunting?”

“My daddy!” The girl chipped, grasping her tail fin with her free hand. “He said, I stay here, I get to hunt. And stay by the storm den- but the rangers in the land side of pod- they said THESE-”

The pup was rambling, so very excited to see new people that seemed nice she was skipping words a bit. Holding the crab legs up to show the fisherman, “Ranger said these are bad crabs for reefs and humans- but not for me! I can eat all I want! I’m GOOD at hunting crabs now!”

Rangers…

The man thought of the Mer Protection Agency that was local in the area, they had active rangers with the pods around. And thus the pups too, so this little girl was learning what… were invasive crabs and eating them?

That… was honestly smart. 

“Are your fins okay baby?” The man asked as the crabs were checked and sorted in the trap. There were a decent amount and his little mermaid pup seemed to have thin fins. “You didn’t catch them in the trap did you? Or was… how did you get inside?”

“I’m fine mister!” The girl fanned out her damp fins to show, sitting up on the crate and munching happily on what was left of the crab legs. Breaking the shells to eat, “I opened the lid.”

“Lid?” one of the others asked, hesitating a moment and then laughed. The pup and trap were not hurt, “You know, she did a really good job at not hurting the trap.”

“Traps not mine,” the girl chipped happily, then held up the last crab leg, “But this is!”

“It is!” the bearded man laughed, “Do you know when your pod is coming back, baby? You want to jump off the boat?”

The gold and black pup looked up, judging the sky, then looking around the water and at a spot. She made a face, “It's still high tide… daddy is coming back at low tide. Can… can I stay out of the water?”

“Low tied…” Another voice, the pup looking over at where the captain had leaned out the door to the warm cabin. “That’s more then a few hours, you sure you want to stay with us baby girl? We’ll be pulling up traps and setting them all day.”

The girl wiggled, exited at that as she held up her last crab leg. “Can I have the bad for human crabs?”

There was a long awkward pause, and then the pup blinked as there was laughter. She was welcome to stay for a few hours with them, and Lily, the pup, was soon helped into a spot that was warmer and sitting up. The fishermen used some extra life vests to make her a seat, and a blanket was up over the girl to help her against the wind. She seemed pretty thin compared to other bigger mers, and the heat was something Lily was enjoying. Even having a visit inside the cabin with the captain.

Lily seemed absolutely ‘starving,’ or just like human kids was a near bottomless pit. More than happy to crunch into crabs of the invasive species there were pulled out of the traps.  Putting the scraps in an offered bucket, being very neat despite the crab massacre.

The young mer was absolutely full of questions, fascinated at all the things inside the boat. Lily listened to all the explanations of equipment, asking more questions until she understood. Delighted to learn all about the semi new things. She knew a good amount about boats, happy to tell what she learned with the Rangers and Coast Guard. 

The camera did catch at least two naps, solid twenty minutes between pulling traps up. The pup dosed with a nice full belly and held the hand of one of the fishermen. Who looked like he was dying of cute, once realizing mer pups squeaked in their sleep. 

It was a few hours later the boat was back in the spot they had found the pup. A spot was found and anchored off the slowly revealed islet as the tide drew back, the engines shut off. It was afternoon, and the crew had decided to wait a little while, having their meal on the back deck.

The pup was delighted, and Lily had finally finished off her last crab and a little bait fish. Lily had been very helpful biting a few bait fish open for the traps. Now she was nice and warm under a blanket and a jacket. Sniffing the sandwich closer to her, but was not too interested in it other then a nibble on a taste of cheese. 

“What’s your dad’s name?” the bearded man asked, not minding that they might get home late. It was definitely not every day one got to sit and talk with a mer of any kind. 

“He likes John! But peoples call him a lot of things!” the pup giggled, Lily smiled as she grasped her tail fin, she was no bigger than say, a 10 year old human but for her tail. 

“Where does he hunt?” The captain asked, looking around, noticing a dark shadow in the water. Offering a slice if watermelon from his lunch with the pup. 

“In the deep-DEEP dark!” Lily chirped happily, paused and then added, “I'm not allowed to go that deep. It's really, reeeeaaally cold… and scary. There's monsters past all the big bones.” 

“It sounds scary,” the bearded man agreed, leaning back on the rail beside the back of the cabin where the girl was. 

Lily nodded, agreeing, “I don’t like going that deep, to the bones. But it’s kinda pretty in the glowing spots in the bone place!”

“What is the bone place?” one of the youngest of the fishermen asked, puzzled.

It was the captain that spoke up, not minding opening a water bottle for Lily to investigate and sip. As if this was not the first time he had a mer pup on his boat for a while or day. “It’s one of the underwater graveyards, for whales, big mers, and the deep sea monsters.”

Two snorted, but both the bearded man and the captain seemed calm. And then the girl piped up, “Daddy drags the monsters up and eats them in the bone place, so there’s a lot of big bones!”

The captain hesitated a moment and asked, “Lily, do you know what kind of mer your daddy is?”

“Big-big!” the girl promptly cheered, tossing her arms up and out, then scrambled to not drop the water bottle and get another drink. “Big… my new dad is a biiiig shark! He’s a reef guardian!”

“Huh,” one of the other fishermen tilted his head, “Hey Cap, wasn’t there up north a big levia-”

The ship shuttered and moved, everyone but the sitting pup scrambled to keep balance as something massive rose out of the water beside the boat. Just as massive hands were wrapping around the ship. Claws bigger than the men scraping over the metal, but not puncturing the hull, and the head of the great beast…

He was and was no human, too big- big enough to eat even ‘normal’ bigger mers. Jaws that parted to bare rows of triangular shark teeth and pale, cold looking maw- the air vibrating with a growl.

“Daddy!” Lily’s little voice piped up with delight. The only one on the fishing boat that was unbothered, the little mermaid pup tossing her arms up, and impossibly seemed so pleased and proud. “I got all the crabs!”

The giant, leviathan merman paused, blinked, solid black eyes shifting to show green. He stopped gaping and tilted his head, taking a second look at the boat that had his adopted little pup. The ship was lowered back into the water and he frowned. At first having thought someone else was trying to kidnap his defenceless pup, now he was able to focus and see how Lily was just giving a spot. She was very ful, but not in a cage, not anything but happy.

No restraints, no scents of stress or blood from his pup. Fresh fear from the humans, understandably, he almost ripped their ship apart.

He gave a slow, questioning rumble of sound, studying the humans. No weapons, frozen in fear of him, but no move to hold his pup hostage or… he sniffed.

Fish were there, but not a fish hunting boat? It smelled odd.

“I had fun!” Lily responded, as if understanding the deep vibrating tones. “They told me all about… crab-boats! And I got to eat all the bad for human crabs- and I helped bite some bait fish in the traps! And I got to try a watermelon and this-”

The excited pup held up her bottom of fresh water. 

The gigantic megladon arched a dark eyebrow, he huffed and rumbled another sound.

Lily gave a nervous giggle, fiddling with her finds. “I was sitting in a crab trap… it got up on the boat. That’s how I got on, daddy.”

A long sigh came from the leviathan mer as he released the boat fully and sat back. No longer looming but hunching over the ship, still massive as he sat back in the shallows for him. Water lapped around his armored hide middle, one hand lifting above the boat and crew to… he pinched at the bridge of his nose, just above the wide scar there. Visible better with some distance. 

The captain suddenly recognized the expression of complete exasperation from the giant as notably green eyes looked at his ship. At the comparatively tiny mermaid pup. Not just any exasperation, but that one type of long suffering parents the world over. Staring at their child and clearly wondering how they were alive, or where the brain cell that had been seen earlier had gone.

Leaning over, the giant leviathan mer reached for the boat again, this time not trying to scare the flinching humans. His claws were surprisingly gentle at getting the pup out of her blanket and wrapping around, supporting her little fram with fingers. Lifting her off the fishing boat, and snorted at the protesting squeaks. 

He grumble-growled a sound.

Lily pouted back, “but…but it was fun? Not strangers anymore? We’re not in the bad place, so the humans are safe?”

Pup cradled in one hand, the megalodon Slayer proved to not be immune to a facepalm with his free hand. Then lifted the pup higher to sniff her, give a grooming lick to get the smell of the boat off her. Then moved the pup to be held like the world’s tiniest kitten to use his hands and arms to pull himself back into deeper water. Lily was pouting, looking at her new friends and waved as her giant father moved them away. 

“Bye!” Lily called before being plunged underwater, leaving a more then shocked crew to watch as it seemed to take forever for the Slayer of all mers and leviathans to leave and dive back into the seawater. Caring his little adopted pup. 

He was almost back to the storm den, making up his mind to find a well hidden and secure nursery grounds for his pup.

It hit him all at once, without warning that he had been called daddy.

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This was apart of a monthly challenge that was themed around mermaids which worked great cause it was also mermay. I just forgot to post it in may XD.

I'm adding more lore to my mermaid story "Friends out of Water"

This is Curtis he’s a whale shark/angler fish mer. He acts as a guardian of the mer colony. (One of many ) Melody and Ana are there for reference. In this they are not shrunk they are normal human sized. They are human sized not tiny! Curtis is just a giant of a mer. Curtis never goes on land if he did he would resemble a giant Cyclops from myths. He’s showing off his muscles to his tiny friends.

bonus: Details on Melody and Ana before procreate pixilated them:

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I did a thing! I made a avatar/drawing version of myself. The tiny writer that I am. If I ever got something published I'd do something like this again. So I'd have a cartoon/avatar of myself instead of those author pics on the about page, or something like it.

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I have this headcanon for in darkness and it’s a funny one. I can just imagine Sage holding a sharp object (a sewing needle because of her size) and giving either Jace or McKenzie a heart attack lmao

Ahhahaha, yesssssss! Given her size, she's always giving those two scares! It's a very cute headcanon and spot on!!!

Dang I need to write more about them XD

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when you get half eaten by a hostile creature cause you’ve gotta save your stupid clients 🙄

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Cigarette

This takes place soon after the events of my story Boarding School for Giants. I wanted to write Mr. Henderson being a father to Eren, so have some parental g/t ig.

Word Count: 3k

CW: Smoking

Eren needed a cigarette, badly.

Yeah, she had quit months ago, sure. But it wasn’t by choice. She’d been forced to quit, when she’d been forcibly uprooted from her normal life to live among the giants. She couldn’t buy (or shoplift) cigarettes anymore, and after a certain unpleasant experience with a giant juvenile delinquent, she wasn’t too keen on bumming one off of any of her peers. Not to mention the challenge of smoking a cigarette bigger and thicker around than her entire body.

Her new adoptive father was a very kind man, but he just couldn’t understand. Joey, being the goody-goody two-shoes that he was, didn’t understand either. They kept telling her smoking was bad, would mess up her lungs, blah blah blah. They never smoked, so they didn’t get it.

They couldn’t possibly comprehend all the stress she’d encountered from such dramatic life changes. Yes, life had gotten much better since she’d been adopted by Mr. Henderson, and Joey was a wonderful, loyal, protective boyfriend, but Eren was still reeling from tremendous emotional whiplash. She was not adjusting to her new life as well as she hoped. She felt ground down, like an overused pencil. She still felt nervous and unsafe when Joey or Mr. Henderson wasn’t around. As much as she loved them, she had days when she seriously doubted her choice to stay. She knew even just one cigarette would help ease her suffering, even if the effect was temporary. She had cravings.

She felt like garbage when she woke up that particular morning. All she wanted to do was lay in bed and cry and blow puffs of smoke at the ceiling. Normally, she was able to rouse herself with the knowledge that her beloved Joey would be waiting for her at school, but today she just couldn’t do it. She silenced her alarm and rolled on her side.

A few minutes later, she felt earthquakes through the floor that vibrated the walls of her miniature bedroom. Her giant father was awake. Eren’s stomach did a small flip. He wouldn’t be happy about her refusing to go to school. She wasn’t sure how he would react to her disobedience; she had yet to be on the receiving end of his wrath as a disciplinarian.

“Eren? Are you up?” his deep, rich voice boomed. Eren froze. His footsteps stopped, and she could picture him in her mind’s eye checking the floor cautiously around his feet. He was always so mindful, even when he was groggy in the morning before his morning coffee.

“Eren?” he repeated. The tremendous thuds of an unfathomable mass approached. Eren sucked in a sharp breath. Just how angry would he get, if she defied him? She felt wrong, fearing him, when she knew him to be so kind and gentle—but she couldn’t help it. Her heart was pounding and she grew hot with sweat. Suddenly, she felt very queasy.

The lid to her tiny bedroom opened up, and the enormous, warm face of her new dad filled the sky above. He looked tired, with bags under his eyes and the faintest shadow of a beard along his unshaved chin. She didn’t detect any anger in those comforting coffee-colored irises, only sympathy and concern. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I… I feel sick,” she squeaked. It wasn’t entirely a lie.

He frowned and gingerly touched the tip of his finger to her forehead. “Hmm… you are a little warm,” he observed.

Eren stifled a fake cough that she hoped sounded convincing. “I probably shouldn’t go to school,” she muttered through her palm.

Mr. Henderson brushed locks of messy black hair out of her face. “Alright,” he murmured. A slight furrow emerged between his brows. “I still need to go to work. Will you be okay here on your own?”

“Yes, I’ll be okay,” Eren coughed again. Mr. Henderson softened as he gazed down at her, the corner of his mouth turning up in a soothing smile.

“You can always call me if you need me,” he assured her. He lingered before pulling away, not wanting to overwhelm her with a pat or hug in her fragile state. He closed the top of her room gently and padded away.

Eren felt a flush of shame, not only for her lie but for her irrational fear. After all this time, she shouldn’t be scared of friendly giants anymore. Yet, her heart felt as if it had been turned inside out. She knew it was wrong to lie to him, especially when he trusted her unconditionally. She reasoned it was his fault for being such a sucker, to fall for her obvious fib.

She listened as he moved about the house, becoming more distant as he prepared for his day. She was amazed that such a gargantuan man could move so softly. Though she detected the tremors of his feet, she could tell he was making every effort to mute his movements for her sake. He returned later with a homemade lunch for her and placed it by her bed. She had to smile at the sloppiness of the human-sized sandwich, which must’ve been rather difficult to piece together with his oversized fingers.

“Is there anything else you need?” he asked.

“I should be fine,” Eren answered with a dramatic faux scratch in her throat. “I’ll just be sleeping anyway. Say hi to Joey for me.”

“Of course. I hope you feel better soon,” the giant said, patting her delicately on the head. “Remember to call me if you need anything. Anything at all. I’m here for you.”

Eren nodded solemnly. Mr. Henderson smiled down at her before closing the ceiling again and striding off. Eren waited until she heard the gigantic front door slam and the thundering of his footsteps faded. Once she was sure he was gone, she sprang out of bed and got dressed.

She had a plan—a risky plan—but Eren was no coward. She was going to go into town to get a cigarette. She wasn’t sure how, but she’d figure it out. She grabbed her backpack and threw in her lunch, water, and supplies she thought she might need. She hesitated as she reached for her smartwatch.

It would be sensible to bring it, in case of emergency. She could call her father if she was in danger. However, it also tracked her location and sent it to Mr. Henderson, for obvious safety reasons. He’d find out that she left the house, lied about being sick, and skipped school. She’d be in huge trouble, and he wouldn’t trust her anymore. She could turn off location share, but then he’d get worried and come looking for her.

She hopped from one foot to another, indecisive. Ultimately she decided to leave it. She’d be cautious; nothing bad would happen. She wasn’t that unlucky, right? Swallowing down the lump in her throat, she rolled her bike to the human-sized door and stepped outside.

Mr. Henderson had installed for her a wooden ramp that led down to the sidewalk. She mounted her bike and pedaled off. Her heart lifted as she swooped along the wide path, jumping the cracks in the pavement with practiced expertise. Despite how nervous she was about disobeying her dad and venturing out, she couldn’t help but get a thrill out of it too. The day was too fresh and sunny to be wasted in gloom.

The streets were ridiculously huge, miles and miles long that seemed to stretch into vast infinity, but Eren was able to make steady progress on her bike. She darted past towering giants with furious speed, hoping that nobody would question why a tiny teenager was out during school hours. Fortunately, none of the giant people above her seemed to notice or care about her presence.

Her journey brought her to a neighboring street lined with brick buildings and old-fashioned shops. Eren dodged the colossal passersby as she drank in the scenery, thinking hard about her next move. A cop car rolled around a corner and she ducked into a flowery shrub, panting fast. The cloying scent of mammoth flowers tickled her nose. A fat mustachioed cop got out and lumbered in her direction, towards the bakery. Eren struggled to hold in a sneeze until he went inside. Once the coast was clear, she kicked the dirt off her shoes and kept going.

She was so overwhelmed with all the giant people and incredible sights around her, that she almost forgot her original purpose. She was reminded as she stopped underneath an enormous metal bench alongside a trash pail and an overflowing ashtray. Cigarette butts, smashed and soiled, were scattered on the pavement under the bench.

Eren looked at the remains sadly. Was she really this desperate? Among the stubs, behind the trash can, she discovered a cigarette with a singed end that was mostly unused, broken in half and abandoned. She scooped out a hearty amount of tobacco shreds and stuffed them in her bag, keeping a wary eye out for any wandering gazes from the oblivious behemoths clomping around her.

A stab of anxiety and guilt hit her as she sped off on her bike again. Eren was a rebel by nature, but somehow this time breaking the rules felt very wrong, as if she had personally betrayed Mr. Henderson and Joey. The cop car was still parked at the curb, so she gave the bakery a wide berth as she raced past, ready to dive into the flowers at the first sign of trouble.

She felt compelled to go straight home, even though she still had plenty of time left before her father would be home from work. She was shaking by the time she reached the house. The distress from her troubled thoughts, along with the heavy burden of merely existing, was breaking her. A cigarette would calm her down, she just knew it.

The sun hovered at high noon, the hot rays beaming off the bright white pavement with blinding sharpness. Eren didn’t want to wait any longer, her cravings waxing to an unbearable degree. She abandoned her bike on the sidewalk, hastily retreated to the cool shade under the porch, and collected some dry leaves to insulate her bottom from the damp sediment.

She tore up a scrap of paper and rolled herself a crude joint with jittery fingers. Fishing a lighter out of her bag, she fired up the end and took a deep drag. The first hit made her cough roughly, the harsh effect only worsened by the lack of a filter. She allowed herself a moment to recover before inhaling a second puff, savoring the rush of nicotine straight into her lungs.

She closed her eyes and let the soothing effect calm her nerves. The smoke tasted and smelled so good, enough for her to space out and forget her woes, if only for a short while. The effect was apparently also enough for her to not notice the rapid approach of giant footfalls, until a massive thud on the porch above her head made her yelp in surprise and nearly drop her smoke.

Eren didn’t react fast enough as, to her horror, a giant body blocked out the sunlight and the face of her dad filled the open space above as he leaned down into a crouch. “Eren?” he questioned, spotting her among the dead leaves. “Are you… smoking?” His eyebrows turned down and his mouth pinched into a stern frown.

Eren panicked. She’d angered him. She’d angered a giant, a man big enough to squash her like a bug, and now… who knew what he would do? Her birth mother would’ve definitely chewed her out and slapped her, but if he did the same, she’d end up as nothing more than a jelly stain on his palm. She couldn’t fight him. She had to either defend herself or run.

Her mind racing with raw alarm, she screamed at the top of her lungs, “So what if I am? Y-y-y-you think I’m going to stop just because you said so?! You can’t control me! It’s my life, I can do whatever I want! So… so there!” Her voice crept into a piercing pitch as she strained her vocal cords.

“Why are you yelling like that? Come out so we can talk about this,” Mr. Henderson replied, his brows twitching with bafflement. He never raised his voice, keeping it steady and calm, yet the volume was still louder than hers due to his sheer size.

“NO!” Eren screeched back. “You can’t make me!”

Mr. Henderson sighed. “Come now, Eren… be reasonable. Give me the cigarette…” His hand, larger than the bed she slept on, materialized before her, his fingers curling over her head like the branches of a tree.

Eren experienced a flood of instinctive terror. She tried to bolt, but she was cornered, walled in by gargantuan planks of wood. She cried out in fear and balled herself into a fetal position. Her father instantly retracted his hand as if stung, his face reappearing in its place.

“Oh no… Eren… I didn’t mean to…” The hurt in his tone was palpable as he recognized the unintended consequences of his simple movement. Eren started to cry, overwhelmed. It was all too much. She was so stressed and scared and now she was likely to be punished in some horrible way that she couldn’t even imagine.

Mr. Henderson hesitated, unsure how to proceed. Eren sobbed, face in hands, her tiny body shivering. She couldn’t face him, knowing that he was sure to distrust and hate her now, just like her mother. She waited what felt like an eternity for him to do his worst. She bristled as the soft pads of his immense fingertips gently pressed into her. His fingers curled beneath her as he scooped her carefully into his hands and lifted her up.

She cringed in agony—expecting him to yell, to get angry, to hurt her, or outright crush her between his fingers in a savage pinch. Instead, he enveloped her in a paternal embrace, cupping his hands to his chest. Eren opened her eyes and blinked with confusion.

“Eren… are you okay?” he asked softly.

“W-what?” Eren sat up, squinting at his angled face looming above her.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to upset you like that.”

“Aren’t you angry at me?” she whimpered.

“I’ll admit, I’m disappointed with your behavior. But no, I’m not angry.”

A fresh batch of tears welled up in her eyes. “I thought… I thought you’d be really mad at me, and start screaming at me like my mom used to do. She’d get mad, and hit me, and then she stopped loving me…”

“Oh, no, Eren! I would never do anything like that!” Mr. Henderson protested, offended that she would even suggest such a thing. “And I’m your father now. My love is unconditional. I would never abandon you.”

Eren collapsed against the wall of his chest, allowing her tears to flow freely. She realized, all at once, how wrong she had been. She was safe; he would never hurt her. She was loved and cared for; she was home.

“You need to understand, I only have your best interests at heart,” he explained. “When I tell you to go to school, or not to smoke—it’s for your benefit. I want you to flourish, to be healthy and happy, to have a positive future. It’s my responsibility to you, to take care of you and ensure you learn to make good decisions for yourself.”

“I know,” Eren admitted as she wiped her face on his shirt. “It’s just so hard! I feel so burned out and stressed.”

“I know things have been very difficult for you,” her father acknowledged.

“And the cigarettes… I know they’re bad for my health, but they make me feel better,” Eren continued. “You won’t get it unless you’ve smoked before.”

“Ah, well. I used to,” Mr. Henderson confessed.

“What? You?!”

“When I was a young man, yes. That was a long time ago. I smoked to control my… um… food cravings. But I made myself quit.” He smiled with a mild embarrassment at the remembrance.

“Food cravings?” Eren questioned, puzzled.

“Oh, you know… needed to watch my girlish figure,” he quipped with a chuckle. “But never mind that. I have much better self control now. And I’m here to support you. I’ll help you quit. We’ll get you some nicotine patches and gum. Okay?”

Eren nodded. “Okay.”

“And perhaps we can find some alternative ways to deal with all that stress, that are healthier and more productive. If you’d like, I’ll show you how to garden. That helps me relax and decompress, all the fresh air and the lovely flowers.”

“I guess.” Eren was skeptical—gardening sounded lame and boring—but she had to concede that spending some bonding time with her new father sounded… nice.

“I wanted to be considerate of your personal space, to allow you time to adjust to your new surroundings. But perhaps I was in error. It’s not good for you to hide in your room all the time and brood. We should do more fun things together, and go to interesting places.”

“Alright,” Eren agreed. Maybe he was right; what she was doing now to cope clearly wasn’t working. She preferred to hide away in her box, where she didn’t feel so small, where she didn’t have to perform or interact with anyone, but it also made her restless and depressed. She thought about her bike ride earlier, how exhilarating the experience had been despite her anxiety. She would feel less nervous, out in the giant world, with Mr. Henderson keeping watch over her.

Henderson raised a brow. “Joey can come with us too.”

Eren brightened. “Yes! Absolutely.”

“Sound good?”

“I’m… I’m willing to try.” Eren hugged his finger. She felt much better, being listened to and heard. She felt safe in the hands of her father, reassured that he wouldn’t flip out on her like her birth mom. She no longer felt so alone. As long as she had his support, she believed things would be okay… somehow.

“Thank you… Dad.”

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Sterling Household Special: Lila's Adventure

Hello everyone! This is part of the special I mentioned a while back. I started this twine around July of last year and have been working on it on and off. I finally finished it! Please check it out and let me know what you think! I enjoyed making this, I'll definitely be making more twines in the future. This one I kept basic, but I'm trying to learn all the ways to use twine. I was going to make one for each of the sterling Household characters, but these do take a long time for me to make, so I was going to wait and see how people liked this one.

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MM 09 — Listen to the Storm

When you're safely indoors, even the harshest storms can be a wonderful way to relax and let your mind wander.

Full resolution on my Deviantart.

Previous: Chasing Daylight | Next: Coming soon! | First: Dim

Sorry for the delay on this one. While I'm personally not a big fan of loud noises, especially sudden ones (outside of concerts of course), the sound of thunder is always either really relaxing or exciting to me. I figured Maple is the same way. Honestly, both Max and Maple are kind of self-inserts of different parts of me. Also, a new friend appears! I'm not sure how often he'll show up, but I like him.

This strip's namesake is...

I love Puppet. The majority of his songs are full of such aggressive positivity that they make me smile every time. I want to be able to live how he sings. This one is a bit different though, and I think it perfectly captures the feeling that its title portrays. Peace and excitement rolled into one.

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Strangers in the Storm chapter 7

It had taken every ounce of Hollow’s strength to climb up the side of the human. He was out cold. She knelt on the side of his neck. She could feel a steady pulse. He was alive for now.

Hollow looked around in confusion. The crying sound was louder, closer now. She tracked the sound to its source. To the space of the human’s cupped hand, over his belly. Hollow paled as realization struck her.

*No, it can’t be. *

Hollow stood up and made her way down the man’s chest to get a closer look.

Chapter 8

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Strangers in the Storm ch. 6

Text Transcript:

*I can’t stay here. * Hollow thought. *If I stay, I won’t make it. * As tempting as that thought was, she found she didn’t have it in herself to give up just yet.

Hollow lowered herself off the giant suitcase. She grimaced in pain as she landed on the frozen snow. She pressed one hand to her side, trying to keep the pain at bay. She looked around herself. She needed to find shelter. And then food and water. As much as Lady Luck was shining down on her, she had still lost her bag in the fall. She had nothing.

Hollow perked up. In the wreckage, under what seemed to be an overturned row of seating, lay a human. It looked like he was still breathing. He’d be a source of warmth at the very least. Hollow knew she had a decision to make. She could try to ask the human for help, as much as she hated that idea. She knew her chances of survival alone were slim. She had no idea where she was and how far away the colony was.

As she approached the hurt giant, she wondered if he would even wake up, and what use an injured human would be. She glanced around; she could hear faint crying. The crying sounded young, like a baby's cry. But it had to be far away, it was too faint. Perhaps there were other human survivors around. If it were a baby, there had to be an adult with it. Perhaps her luck was still holding strong.

chapter 7