#also bear with me as im trying stuff out and trying to do shapes

[crow-quet]

Squirrelmoonlight children if you may please

tysm for the request!!! :D i had a lot of fun w/ these little guys!!!

(transparent background b/c my brain was not braining for bg colors /lh)

[signanothername]

hhhhhhh i love your art so much man it's just so rrrrrrrrg words can even describe it 💥💥💥

butt like like genuinely how do you figure out poses and shit that fit who you draw so well likeee

idk me personally i just struggle with that stuff, yk always stuck with the -looking front on with hands in pockets- or the dreaded -peace sign with hand in pocket- fjdjdj

sorry for the yap sesh butttt any advice would be like so cool

also the way you portray killer and nm is like godly just 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

HDHDHHDHD THANK YOU <333333

And oooh that’s a very valid struggle, cause the thing is, I used to struggle a lot with posing characters in a way that actually satisfied me, going for the stiff front look a lot dhdhhdhdh

But the thing is with art, is that it isn’t just lines on a page y’know? At least, I stopped treating my art as such, every time i draw an artwork i want the artwork to tell who sees it something, I treat every artwork as a story in of itself

Ok imma generally give you what I learned from my art journey so far, i’m gonna start with a more general advice and then get to how I choose poses for certain characters, and imma try to explain the best I can but I can be really bad with wording things so bear with me

Art can be difficult cause different art concepts are interconnected with each other, so sometimes you need to think of so many things just to be able to do something as simple as posing a character

Before we start tho, here are 2 tips:

-everything you know about anatomy? Throw it out the window, no i’m not joking I’m being completely serious

The reason many artists suffer with making dynamic poses is cause they think too much about anatomy, they think the anatomy should look correct and perfect, and no, anatomy is the biggest reason the pose you draw is going to be stiff, you need to forget “correct” anatomy if you want your poses to feel alive and dynamic

- practice gesture/figure art, IM ON MY KNEES I BEG YOU, cause it teaches you to let go of perfect anatomy and actually learn how to draw figures in motion (which is extremely important for fluid and dynamic poses!)

———

With that in mind, here are a few things i keep in mind when posing a character:

1- line of action

You hear these three damn words a lot yet no matter how much you research them you can never find a good explanation for what they mean (me after i researched this bullshit so much shbdhdhhs)

But simply put, think of the action line as the spine in a human, the more you bend it outta shape the more dynamic the pose is going to be

And it’s genuinely so important cause it can make a very simple pose such as a character standing doing nothing much more dynamic when you put line of action in mind

Even a very slight bend in the line can make the pose more natural/dynamic, because an action line dictates the movement of a character

So if you want to avoid a stiff pose? Avoid a straight action line (you gotta make that action line Queer af💅✨✨✨✨)

But here’s a mind fuckery, the tricky thing with action lines is that it’s better if you keep them in mind but not consciously think of them if that makes sense

You gotta understand them and implement them and practice them, but when you draw a character posing a certain way, thinking too much of the action line can actually make it difficult to maintain and in turn, makes your art stiff af too

Like you got to internalize this concept and to keep it in your subconscious rather than actually consciously think about it when you draw your artworks

Ok Anó, how the fuck do i do that? Start with practicing them consciously by actually drawing the action line and then the pose in art studies, and then level yourself up by practicing them by drawing characters posing a certain way WITHOUT putting an action line first, i’m sorry to say there’s no way around it, there are no short cuts

Here’s a helpful visual guide/summary of what i mean by the paragraph above cause words suck

(but sooner or later, what you learned gets burned into your muscle memory, and your hand would start doing all the work without you consciously thinking about it, then congrats!! Action lines are now part of your subconscious)

Ok but does that mean straight lines are bad/should never be used?? NO

I can never emphasize how important straight lines can be

One thing that’s beautiful in art is that there’s no such thing as “bad” or “wrong”, art is subjective, and something that’s perceived as “wrong” by one artist, can be right/ something implemented in another artist’s artstyle that makes it unique

In fact, straight action lines can be great to use depending on what you wish people to take/understand from your art (a simple example: a turn around reference sheet for a character tends to use straight lines, cause in a reference sheet you focus on clarity, and drawing with queer lines can cause that clarity to be thrown out the window)

But I especially love to use straight Action lines with Killer, I sometimes make him stiff as a fucking rock and it’s completely intentional on my part, cause i love to use stiff poses to enhance the uncomfortable/unnatural atmosphere Killer gives, or to further emphasize an already uncomfortable situation

So to summarize, if you wish your poses be more natural/dynamic and to avoid stiff poses, use queer Action lines, but straight lines are also great to use depending on what you want people to understand from your art

———

2- perspective (camera angle)

Variety is key!

What is the perspective you want to focus on? I know this seems like it doesn’t have anything to do with posing a character, but it does, (remember, art concepts are interconnected!) cause the perspective you decide to draw from can also influence the pose you decide to draw or vice versa, and help you make the pose more dynamic

Hell sometimes, perspective can do the poses justice even if they’re literally the most boring stiff poses you’ve ever drawn chchchhcch

Like are you going to draw the character from an upper perspective? Lower? Fish-eye? Third person? First person?

Is the perspective tilted? Is it normal?

What is the perspective you want and why did you choose it? What are you trying to tell the people who see your art?

Here are a few tips when it comes to perspective:

-More dynamic perspectives (upper/lower) are good for artworks that have tension in them, or have some sort of stakes going on (fights, horror, uncomfortable situations)

That of course doesn’t mean they can’t be used to simply make your artwork look cool :D

-choosing how many vanishing points there are (one,two or three points perspective) can also make your art tell a different story depending on the situation you’ve chosen them for

-and most importantly, when you draw a pose, foreshortening is going to happen to the body depending on the perspective!!

But my point is, I make sure i draw in variety, sometimes I draw the character from upper, lower, tilted or even a mix of all of them, all to enhance my poses to look more dynamic/natural

Ok Anó, got it, but what if I don’t care to include a crazy perspective and i want to draw in a normal perspective? Then how do i make my poses more dynamic?

That brings me to my next 2 points

———

3- camera shots

Same as perspective, there has to be variety!

Your art doesn’t always have to be full body, try to draw different shots, draw a headshot, draw closeup shots draw half bodies

If you go for different shots then you’ll be forced to think of different poses to fit such shots :D

———

4-bodies are like little toys, break them

One thing you can do to bring more variety to your poses is to have different body parts facing different directions, not all limbs have to face the same direction >:)

Generally the characters don’t have to face front! Try to mix it up and draw from the side or back

———

5-emotional weight and a story to tell

And this is where i’ll bring my point about treating my art as a story back

A really good way to actually put variety in your poses is to treat any sort of artwork/sketch you make as a story you’re trying to tell

Before you draw a character posing a certain way ask yourself, why is this character posing this way? What are/were they doing before that pose? Are they alone or are they reacting to something/someone?

Is there a point to them posing this way? (It’s ok if there’s no actual point to it! But the poses still would need to tell a story regardless)

Cause if you’re posing them reacting to another character (off screen for example), you pose them in a way that makes sense for their emotions of the other character right? (So if the character has negative feelings towards the other one then it makes more sense to draw them in a defensive stance or a fight or flight pose)

If you’re drawing them all alone then what are they doing alone, are they doing something important or is it their off time? If it’s their off time what are they doing for their off time? Do they like to spend it reading a book for example? What are they reading? Is it a horror novel that makes them scared? If yes then how do they deal with fear? Do they throw the book across the room or do they hide under a blanket?

Cause a pose also holds emotional weight, it shows you what emotions the character is exhibiting, it’s not just the expression of the character that tells you about their emotions, it’s their body language, and body language can be translated through poses

Let’s say they’re doing a peace sign pose for example, why are they doing it? Are they taking a picture with someone they love or are they doing it to annoy someone? Hell maybe they’re being forced to do it, and so they do it half heartedly maybe?

Get what I’m trying to say?

———

And now with all of the above in mind, time to get to the most important thing and the main point of this post

How do I choose poses for certain characters?

6- personality

who am I sketching? Cause each character is unique and each character is gonna act a certain way other characters won’t, and depending on the situation, the poses change too

Understand the character and how they act, try to analyze them and take in their quirks and behaviors, and before you draw a pose for them actually ask yourself, would this character EVER do this pose?

Like you say you fall in the peace sign trap right? Now think about a peace sign pose, but with Nightmare… it doesn’t make sense right? Cause the pose is an absolute striking contrast to Nightmare’s personality, like Nightmare would never do a peace sign till the day he dies, hell i’m sure if he’s forced to choose between death and doing a peace sign he’d choose death (it’s a lot more mercifull than the humiliation he’d feel making a peace sign hcchchch)

See what I’m getting at?

For example, I draw Nightmare with his hands behind his back a lot, but you won’t see me do the same with other characters often, not cause other characters would never put their hands behind their backs, but because it’s a quirk in Nightmare’s character, Nightmare TENDS to do that a lot, he acts so formal and royal like, and so i draw him do it a lot

But here’s the thing, if i draw other characters having their hands behind their backs like i do with Nightmare, i do it in a way that makes sense for them! An example is how i draw Nightmare and Dream with their hands behind their backs :D

But I also keep in mind Nightmare’s character, so whenever I pose him a certain way, I ask myself “would Nightmare actually stand/sit/lie down like that?” If the answer is yes, then I continue, if not then i change it to fit Nightmare

To further explain, I tend to think Nightmare is defensive in nature, so you’d see that I also pose him in a way that reflects that, with his hands crossed in front of his chest for example or generally his hands close to his body, sometimes hunched in on himself, I also think Nightmare is egotistical and self centric, but most importantly, he sees himself as an elegant King, and so I draw him crossing his legs or generally have him sit in such a formal manner or a hand on hip kinda pose etc

So when you draw a pose ask yourself if it fits the personality, mindset, and pattern of behavior for said character!

———

With all that being said, while it’s amazing to be able to do a variety of poses, I think it’s also important to keep in mind that art is supposed to be fun, take your time trying to learn, don’t overwork or frustrate yourself with learning new things, and it’s completely fine to not do poses that have meaning sometimes (do that peace sign to your heart’s content <333) it took me 10 whole years to get where i am today, and compared to many other artists my own progress is extremely slow, and it used to bother me cause I treated art like there was some sort of deadline above my head and that I should learn things in a timely manner (which is absolute bullshit), my point is, take your time with learning poses, even if it takes you years, the important thing is that you will get there eventually <33333

———

Finally, here is one art resource for poses that i think is really good/useful

Keep on creating and hope my endless ramble helps a lil chchchchchch <33333

[lovelyrotter]

okay but i actually kinda wanna know ur take on stridercest being canon compliant O_O <- autism stare

oh hey i am also hitting you with the autism stare. ill try to get my thoughts down in a way that makes sense to more than just me hahaha

bear in mind that im an epilogue lover and i think Meat/Candy are really valuable pieces that further all of the characters and are also hard canon in the sense that we're looking at just 2 post-game universe outcomes out of an uncountable number (the book in the picnic basket representing post-canon fanfic). i think the characters actions in the epilogues make sense and are satisfying to me. yes even jane (i love alpha jane and i will not do her the disservice of 'cleaning her up' w/o showing her work for it. thats not how you depict a character who grew up with fascist programming). i could totally go on a whole tangent about this specifically but thats another post lol we'd be here forever and its also not stridercest

but okay. canon stridercest. under the cut cause it got kinda long

basically it has to do with the cherubs and how their relationships and mating rituals are pretty obviously incestuous leaning even though cherubs dont have the human concept of Siblings or blood family. the cherub who predominates will search across paradox space to mate with another cherub who closely resembles the cherub they predominated which is like textbook Freudian sexuality. theres a lot of Freud and Jungian stuff in HS imo even if im kinda [wobbly hand gesture] at the validity of these theories applied to real life and real people. but theyre super fun tools and lenses to use in fiction and i mean. gestures at all of dave

so the incest aliens cherubs. the whole reason why im talkin about them is bc Caliborn is so incredibly interested and invested in the Striders in particular. caliborn as both Lord English and Lil Cal shapes earth NOT OVERTLY but more so embeds himself in earth society, but again, the Striders lives in particular. dave is full of incest jokes. hes even apparently got a list of his friends arranged in order of how likely theyd incest-elope with each other (thank you epilogues for this amazing factoid). he seems to think about it often enough to, yknow, Do That. have a good solid think about that and construct an organized list about it. bearing in mind dave makes jokes about stuff thats a) bothering him, or b) generally camping out in his brain. hes not even really aware of it most of the time (as we see in one of the openbounds where hes all 'why am i thinking about puppets???' after seeing dirk for the first time in that dream bubble. he is thinking nonstop about dirk at that point and going off his only frame of reference for ANY dirk, which is his bro. his bro who was most likely deeply warped by Lil Cal)

sorry for the long blocky paragraph lol. but now onto the next thing

Caliborn as Lil Cal is the centerpiece in the beta strider apartment. dave cant escape him and beta dirk grew up with him. what the fuck do you do when youre childhood comfort item is also the most evil creature across all of paradox space? if youre a dirk you try to fight it. but how long can you keep fighting something like that. its safe to say that bro was affected by Caliborns particular brand of perversion and sfw kink. i dont think i have to say how insidious abusive and toxic he is about those things. and looking at the truth of beta bro (16yo alpha dirk) you can start to see just how warped beta bro became. beta bro is a false dirk (still a very Real dirk but not the Truth of dirk. beta bro has been toxified and made infinitely worse by an absolute evil influence over decades of life. in 80s fuckin texas. presumably in the system. anyone would be fucked up after that)

so for this analysis/theory im stating beta bro as a false persona. using jungian terms he is apha dirk's shadow

both dave and dirk live with a fake, carefully manicured version of their bros. they live with personas (or shadows of their guardians on the walls. hello platos allegory of the cave). they dont actually know e/o and they dont until the striunion

alpha dirk especially grows up embedded in the Public Persona Of Dave Strider 400 years post mortem and completely alone with unlimited internet access. hes a self admitted expert on his bro and we dont get to see a lot if any of his early childhood but i can hazard a guess at how much he clung to that persona of his bro. he fuckin idolizes dave. he LOVES dave. right off the bat he is in some kind of love with dave and i think if you try to argue against that then thats you slippin. i think youre a fool and have to reread homestuck because i wholeheartedly believe the striders loving eachother is part of the win state

once again this is speculation cause we get barely anything about alpha dave, but from what we already know about him im guessing this bro-persona is

achingly effortlessly cool

oozing masculinity (toxic or not, not really interested in categorizing that although toxic coolboy masculinity IS something the striders contend with & is an important facet in their lives)

a skilled fighter

a dedicated moviegoer (hes a director need i say more. this one is probably the only genuine thing about his on-screen persona)

and now lets look at jake. someone whos grown up on pretty much nothing but movies, whos doubtlessly been influenced by hollywood and its idea of gritty 'main character' masculinity through that, and who also clings to more old-school ideas of manliness (think victorian/edwardian era gentlemanly-but-loves-a-good-scrum kinda manly. moustache twirly with a monocle kinda manly. basically everything that grandpa harley is)

but okay lets look at what jake wants to be. lets take a look at his teenager persona

achingly effortlessly cool (his own 'hollywood star' kind of cool also def influenced by his favourite characters like lara croft who is indeed achingly cool. you see him succeed in inhabiting this hollywood star persona on earth c)

oozing masculinity (the old school manly mans-man kind)

a skilled fighter (two pistoles always. harder to aim cause you cant use a free hand to make up for kickback. that takes skill)

a dedicated moviegoer (again one of the only genuine parts about his persona. his questionable-to-wretched tastes aside. but bearing in mind that the SBaHJ movies are intentionally bad which is what makes them loop around to good. such is the nature of intentionally 'bad' art. jake fuckin lives in this perpetual bad-good art loop. okay enough with the art tangent keep focused man cmon)

because dirk has obviously way more contact with jake i dont doubt he sees through jakes own (admittedly way more flimsy) coolboy persona but the point still stands i think. different flavours but the same kinda guy. dirk has a type and i dont think its a stretch to say that hes looking for aspects of the bro-persona he grew up looking at in other boys, much like the winning cherub looking for the one they lost in the cherub theyll mate with

also wtf is with dirks obvious boner for dave chasing him across paradox space to decapitate him huh?? the last few sentences in Meat are about that very thing. he wants to fuc fight dave sooo bad. haha remember how the cherubic mating ritual is one of the most violent and long running spectacles in paradox space? i sure do

[grandlinedreams]

hi is it possible to request a good old (modern) coffee shop au with a little twist of law being a barista and reader being a regular customer….. like how he would ask them out in this situation and stuff like that

also i sure hope youre not tired of writing for the same character over and over again but damn you capture laws personality so well im jealous lmao

OH BLESS i love me a good coffeeshop au, they're always so cute :(( and i'm absolutely not tired of writing for Law, that man rattles around in my brain on the daily ㅡ I hope that this is to your liking!!

[Heads up!: coffeeshop!au, Shachi and Penguin being the worlds silliest guys, law is a little oblivious, fluff!]

"Oh look, it's your favorite customer."

Law doesn't like the sly look on Penguin's face, the grin that promises trouble even as Law turns at the chime of the little cluster of bells above the cafe door.

"Hey, [Name]!" Shachi greets you, and Law doesn't like the look on his face either.

"Hey guys," you say as you approach, fluffy white samoyed pressing into your side, tail swaying gently. "Hope you don't mind me bringing Bepo in."

"Nah," Shachi produces a treat from beneath the counter near the service case, kept tucked away for the occasional four legged visitors like Bepo. "You know we love him."

"Some of us love more than just Bepo," Penguin intones and Law's eyes flick to him and narrow in warning, but his coworker only grins.

"Okay..." Your tone is polite despite the confusion on your face, and you refocus on Law. "Could I get my regular, please?"

A small smile tugs at Law's lips, expression softening. "Sure."

There's snickering from behind him that makes him want to chuck the tip jar at the duo, but he resists in favor of waving off the little folded bundle of cash that you try to hand him. "On the house."

"Really?" Your head tilts. "Odd, wasn't it like that last time?" Law flinches, but you're still smiling, and he watches you drop the money into the tip jar. "I feel bad if I don't give something."

You pull away from the counter before he can protest, Bepo padding alongside you as you take your usual seat at the tiny couch tucked in the corner.

"Dude," Penguin intones from behind him, clapping him on the shoulder. "You are so whipped."

ㅡ

Law has watched you come in to the Polar cafe nearly every day for the last two months. It's hard not to develop a sense of camaraderie when you see someone that often, and despite his best efforts, he has to admit that it's shifted into a want for something more romantic towards you. The problem is, of course, that he has no idea how you feel.

Penguin and Shachi, having witnessed this go on for the last two months, are of the opinion that he's worried about nothing and that his feelings are mutual.

"Law, they come to this cafe every day and ask for you. They said you make the best latte."

"There's also like six other cafes closer than this one and they come here. Pretty sure they like you too."

Law still worries. He's gotten used to your company, enjoys it ㅡ he doesn't want to ruin what the two of you have if he's misreading things.

"When's my turn to get cute little foam animals in my stuff," Penguin whines as he watches Law do his best to shape little white ears into the foam.

"Gotta find someone who likes you, dude." Shachi dodges the halfhearted swipe from Penguin.

"There are plenty of people who like me."

"Online doesn't countㅡ"

"Shut up, both of you." Law cuts in, banter making it hard to focus on getting the eyes shaped right. Both men peer at the cup.

"Is that Bepo?"

"Looks more like a polar bear."

"Shut up."

He sets the cup down on the tray carefully before he snatches a napkin and a marker, bent over his work to keep the pair of troublemakers from seeing.

They watch him pick up the order and the napkin, and Penguin turns towards Shachi. "Five bucks says he's asking them out."

"No way, he's a chicken."

ㅡ

"Here you go," Law says, announcing his presence before he sets down the cup and you turn from where you'd been cooing over Bepo, eyes flicking to the cup.

"Oh," you say, "is that Bepo?" Law nods, nervous ㅡ and then you beam. "It's so cute, I almost don't want to drink it."

The real Bepo yawns beside you, watching Law with dark, round eyes before pillowing his head on your lap. He watched you reach for the napkin and his heart leaps ad he moves to leave.

"Excuse me," you call and he stills, turning on his heel to face you once more. Your expression is amused as you hold up the napkin that he'd carefully written his number on, along with the question he's been wanting to ask you for weeks. "Gonna ask me out and then run away before I answer? Seems pretty rude."

"Depends on your answer," he responds, and you laugh.

"I thought it'd have been obvious that I like you, Law." Your eyes gleam. "You're the only one who makes my drink and I come here to see you."

"Oh," Law says, and though Penguin and Shachi were right, he's not about to admit that. "So..."

"What time do you get off? We can talk about that date."

A smirk tugs at his lips. "I get off in five minutes."

You beam. "Perfect."

(A week later when Law finally tells Penguin and Shachi that he's leaving early for his second date with you, Penguin gleefully ends up five dollars richer.)

[the-bonfires-ember]

ive been thinking about that thing people say about mental illness. yknow, 'its not a part of your personality' 'dont make it your identity' etc

but when you have a personality disorder, that doesnt really make sense anymore.

which makes my feelings on cluster b pride flags a little conflicted. coz, sure, it is fundamentally a part of your personality and certainly shapes your identity, but something about pride flags has always been off to me. perhaps especially as a person with aspd.

now, sure, on the one hand i get it. theres something appealing about having that kind of validation that you arent alone, especially when you are constantly masking and shifting who you are to fit the situation best.

we might have antisocial personality disorder but we are still, at our core, social creatures. we still desire community, we're just also afraid of it.

so yeah, a banner of community and others 'like us' seems fair enough, right?

BUT

theres still something... off to me about it. what it was, exactly, only came to me after a discussion with my partner about DID and PluralKit - yeah i know, im diving into plural drama now, lfg i guess

they showed me an infographic about the process of DID recovery which showed the progression from very disconnected and separated identities to a more blended 'final fusion' (a term they take issue with but thats a different story). i said that PluralKit must be confusing for people on the later ends of the spectrum they were showing me because, at that point, how do you tell who is blending with who? when the lines are blurry, how do you know who to tag yourself as? it seemed like an inhibitor to recovery if you were constantly cutting yourselves off from each other. (this is not me saying anything one way or the other about plurals and recovery in DID or whatever the fuck else, im just using this as an example. stfu i dont care about your opinions on any of this so dont waste your breath)

i think my feelings on aspd flags is somewhat similar. coz i mean, they are pride flags, right? and i think if you are taking pride in being aspd then you are far more likely to lean into your symptoms, and i think thats a slippery slope to go down and has just a very 'anti-recovery' vibe, if you know what i mean.

with that all said, i also very much think that if you dont want to recover, you dont have to. i dont think you can force anyone to recover and i dont think you should even try to. recovery is fucking shit and its hard and if you arent ready for it, you are just going to hurt whoever you are trying to make recover.

but i also think that you can have that opinion, whilst also being a voice for recovery, and be against 'anti-recovery' thinking.

because look, like it or not aspd is a fucking disorder. and at some point that becomes unhelpful or it wouldnt be a disorder. symptoms of aspd are debilitating and pretending otherwise that helps nobody. especially with all the 'all pwASPD are evil' scum out there.

so yes, i think the pride flags are... unhelpful at best and harmful at worst. but what about the other stuff? the creatures alla tbh creature and the plushiedreadful rabbit? (i think both of those designs suck btw but thats not the point)

idk those feel like they are in a different category. theres not really a sense of pride in those, more a sense of comfort. again, community, but also a sort of softness(??) that the pride flag things seem to miss - especially when they are like 'vampire aspd' or 'evil aspd' or any of the other bullshit things ive seen out there. i guess they are also just way more 'mental illness' coded than pride flags are.

pride flags have always been a 'we're here and theres nothing wrong with us' kind of thing. but the creatures and the bears are more lighthearted and sort of making fun of the conditions a little bit. highlighting symptoms and coping mechanisms. just look at the imocreature - specifically the worm one which is my favourite - and the way its able to be so pathetic looking and cute. its not meant to be cool or badass or whatever else, its just a lil guy that gets sad without supply.

which, yknow, relatable.

[infernothechaosgod]

I haven't seen your oc's yet! Who are they, do they have reffs? 👀 How many do you have?

RAAAAAAAGH MY OCS MY BELOVED BELOVED PRECIOUS LITTLE GEMS

yeah I have a few there and there, plan on making more sometime

first we have pallea whom I desperatley need to draw more since shes one of my faves and she gonna stick around the most, Im gonna be honest prepare to see more of her, she's a bit of a trickster, always trying to get on everyones nerves and only geniuenly succeding on mickey, they have a bit going on between them and like I said I need to post more abt my girl TOT

pallea my beloved, also just throwing it out there, I did NOT name her after pellea the dish I did not even know that existed before making her I remember I was naming her the same way I name alot of my ocs when they dont have irl names and I just took two words and smashed them together, I also wanted a character to have word PAL in the name for puns, I didn NOT name her after the food TOT

then we have my another very beloved oc RAMONA LOSALL

when it comes to her I accualy don't wanna post too much abt her bc shes exclusive for a project I am not even NEAR touching anytime soon simply to not work on whole 4 big projects at the same time like that would just straight up kill me lmao, but she beasictly starts out as a femme fatale untill it turns out shes as good of a detective as mickey and the two of them get into some cases together

designing her was really fun and I am SO proud of how she turned out, I've been meaning to draw more characters in the rubberhose style that fits in with mickey and others that does have more unique features since I am one of the very few people who accualy do mind the same face on every mouse character that isnt just a big snout, shes got much much smaller and in head ears, her eyes are highlighted and big also her pupils are square and my fav her snout is in a diff shape its curved up and goes more thin as it ends that is that one design i am SO proud of omg

also fun fact, she accualy started out as a redesign of ingrid from old mickey comics but writing just kept going and going and redesign was redesigning

then we have "elenor"e exe.24 who guess what were just calling elenore, I don't have that much drawings of her and I NEED to redesign her...again bc I dont like how her body turned out as in its not rubberhose enough imo

ofc my art doesnt do full on noodle hands and thin arms and legs and stuff but it never went on the level where I was like "hm looks like my normal human build" untill it came to drawing her, the issue with the rubberhose style is that you will have just awful time while trying to design a curvy character , anyways shes a robot and I can see that you can see that shes inspired by mimi the pin up girl like shes in the photo i can see that you see but ye just like ramona she started out as a redesign of an already existing character in this case mimi and things got out of hand again, she's apart of the "neon city" and works in the entertainer industry [while activley fucking up the entire system when no ones looking]

then we have amelia who's in something im accualy working on right now so im not gonna tell you much abt her character and will more focus on her design

shes a weasel! her design was my attempt at using shape language more in my art witch i think you can obviously see since shes beasicly a one giant triangle with soft outsides, I tried my best to give her light colors that don't melt together too much and Hopefuly succeded TOT

but I can tell you she would either instantly choke sylvester shyster to death or would sing him lullabies to bed and theres no inbetween

ignore my minor highlighting mistake

making this post made me realize I have no drawing of the bear workers outside of this witch makes me heartbroken im so sorry, but long story short there construction workers who ended up working for sylvester while hoping someone litellary anyone else is willing to hire them so they can leave that weird rat man alone and behind them

[thats just one of them but theres arounf 6 and there all diffrent types of bears I just have the bear one down like I said I need to draw more of them omg]

I have few more but I just don't have their drawing on my laptop and also there not as important as the ones above and I don't have as much to say abt them since there still in baking stage

Exept Riots/roxane shes still being baked despite having a design for like few months by now, I don't have much to say abt her exept the fact im also proud of her design I just like it alot and wanna show off despite bad quality

but THANK YOU SM FOR THE ASK OH MY GOD I'VE NEVER BEEN ASKED ABOUT MY OCS BEFORE AAHHHH THIS MAKES ME SO HAPPY!!!! <3<3<3<3<3<3

[madschiavelique]

HELLO!

It is I, 🌧️ anon :)

So, I noticed that crown of ink has not continued (which is perfectly okay, don't worry), but also that you are now into baldurs gate?! Omg this is so exciting, who is your favorite character? :0

I'm assuming it's Astarion based on your posts, but I *need* to get this idea out of my brain please I must share it. So Halsin is an elf druid right? and he has a bear wild shape form right? WELL. Imagine he has a halfway form, like just the ears, tail, and claws of a bear, but he still has to sleep through the winter, so he's hibernating, and the reader is still sleeping next to him at night but they go out and hunt and explore and stuff during the day, and after a few days of this, one morning comes and Halsin won't. let. go. And the reader is giggling and trying to get him to stop cuddling them so that they can go do stuff, but Halsin, still not awake, is just mumbling that "they're warm" and "they need to stay with him, please?" and the reader just folds and sleepy morning snuggling and shenanigans ensue.

Thank you I just needed to get that out! Hope you've been having a great summer :3

~🌧️ anon

ANON FIRST OF ALL HI BELOVED HRU AND ALSO OMFG IM KISSING UR BRAIN BECAUSE I HAVE THE EXACT SAME FUCKING CONCEPT/IDEA AAAAAAAAAAAA

okay so indeed a crown of ink is not continued BUT who knows whenever inspo might strike again for these idiots in love hehe!

and YES i absolutely adore astarion but honestly i love most characters of the game!! if i had to go in order of the one i romanced/would romance if it were possible you can find (kinda in order of preferences from best to least wanted) astarion, halsin, karlach, haarlep/raphael, and a bit of gale and shadowheart!

NOW THO ONTO THE THOUGHT U HAD

the halfway form has been running in my fucking mind okay ? especially because when you get down to business once you romanced halsussy the fact that there was a bear form you could do the dirty with bugged me and made me so fucking uncomfy ? AND LIKE i have this very vivid image (that i will DEFINITELY DRAW) of that halfway form halsin letting the instincts grow and shit not (i am going feral about it can you tell ?)

i ADORE this lil idea you have about him in hibernation like that is SO SWEET

i could definitely see him getting more reluctant to let you go off his grasp by the DAY. he is supposed to be the (teddy)bear yet he has turned to be the one that needs one - and in that very case, it is you.

What do you mean you have to get out to get some food ? there's enough remaining portions for you to stay a bit longer in here, right ? it's all cold in here without you, even his fur won't be enough (it will be enough, he's just whiny that you're getting away)

the weather outside is so icy that you might even catch a cold, which will let halsin have you all by himself in his arms will prevent you from going out any more so that your symptoms don't get worse :ccc

he'd definitely spoon you, his arm under your neck bended so that he can keep you in a hook as his hand is placed on your shoulder, the other one grabbing your waist to have you pressed against him as he nuzzles his face in the crook of your neck and sighs in content from how good this feels : just you close to him, completely safe and in nature.

ARGH i love this this is absolutely adorable anon i LOVE IT!!!! please if u have any more thoughts on the bg3 gang TELL MEEEE

[angel-eyes05]

bite the hand (chapter 8)

PREVIOUS CHAPTER

pairing: spider-woman!oc x miguel o’hara 

summary: lorena's whole world was taken away from her in the blink of an eye, after she accidentally broke a canon event. lucky for her though, she was able to find a portal watch in her dimension and used it to get out before she glitched out of existence. unfortunately though, running from dimension to dimension, she's been named as an anomaly by the spider society. now, she's constantly on the run from them, their leader in particular. when she eventually gets caught though, she's recruited onto a mission to catch another anomaly who might be from her past. to her dismay though, her partner on this mission is her very captor. will she be able to stop arguing with him for long enough to get the job done?

info: enemies to lovers, maybe a slow burn depending on chapter count, oc is 24 and miguel is 27, both oc and miguel are super sad lmao, they're also both super violent so, they also hate each other what a slay, in regards to my oc you can read her character sheet right here

warnings: there might be spoilers for atsv in this so watch the movie before reading this, i made up some weird rules for miguel's suit and idk if theyre entirely accurate to canon so just go with it, tension lol, cursing, drinking

word count: 3.4k

notes: i gotta start repeating the banners at the top cause i ran out LMAO. also, expect less frequent uploads cause 1) i kinda have low motivation rn and 2) im pretty busy rn (going out, vacations, and doing job applications). writing also gets a little draining for me after a while and i gotta put me first😔✊ ill keep uploading though dw i just gotta do it at my own speed to make sure i dont drop the series cause if i try to push stuff out too fast, im gonna end up dropping it so just bear with me lol. also i didn't proofread this before posting cause its 3:30 when im dropping this, and im so tired lmao

-----------------

It was the sun that slithered into the room through the cracks in the blinds that woke her up. Lorena preferred that to the normal wakeup call from a nightmare, or the sounds of honking cars next to her on the street. The way the bed had molded itself to her shape made it impossible for her to move. Almost like it was trapping her in its comfort. Even if the mattress was old, the fact that this had been her first time sleeping in an actual bed, and not a bench, sidewalk, or cot, in months was enough to provide her ease. 

She turned to face the other side of the bed, surprised when no one was in sight. Miguel was probably in the bathroom or something. She was more focused on a different fact: this had been the first sleep in weeks without a nightmare.

Huh. Weird.

She sat up in bed, noticing she was still in her robe from the bathroom. She rubbed the drowsiness off her face as the click of the door lock called her attention. Letting in a stream of early sunlight with him, Miguel walked through the door, pitch black sunglasses covering his eyes, a box in one hand, and a cup tray in the other. “Figured you’d be hungry when you woke up,” he said once he noticed she was awake. He softly kicked the door closed behind him, setting the tray on the desk near the door and the box on the bed. 

Pulled by curiosity, she moved her hands towards the box and opened it to see what was inside. Her mouth immediately started watering when she opened it to see assorted treats such as conchas, bigotes, and mantecadas. “I was in the mood,” Miguel said, pulling the drinks out of the tray. “I didn’t know how much cream or sugar you liked so I just got you black cause that's what I get,” he said, handing the hot cup of coffee to her. 

The smell of the pastries mixed with the coffee was enough to make her want to cry. It reminded of the smells of her aunt’s kitchen in the morning. The bitterness of the coffee stung at her throat, but it was overshadowed by the comfort it brought her. She picked up one of the bigotes, and had to hold back her tears of joy when she took a bite. “Gracias por todo,” she said, mouth full of food and covered in sugar. Miguel smiled at the sight of her. “De nada, cariño,” he said sweetly, taking one of the conchas for himself. 

As he walked away with his food, towards the bathroom, Lorena noticed something about him. “Where’d you get the clothes?” she asked, mouth still filled with food. He was now wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a plain white t-shirt. “It’s part of my suit,” he responded, fixing his hair in the bathroom mirror. “¿Cómo?” He sighed. “Remember what I said about the whole nanotech thing last night?” “Yeah, what about it?” Suddenly, the shirt and sweatpants shifted into his blue and red suit just before her eyes. “Woah…” she exclaimed in awe. “I can change its appearance as long as the outfit is downloaded to my suit’s database.” “Oh,” Lorena expressed, even if she still didn’t fully understand what he was talking about. 

“Why’d you get to be born in the crazy, futuristic dimension with all the fancy tech,” she complained to herself, just loud enough for Miguel to hear. “Why, do you want one?” he asked, in between a small chuckle. “I mean it would be nice to wear something other than a tight spandex suit for once,” Lorena joked, getting an actual laugh out of Miguel for once. Lorena blushed and smiled at his reaction. “Well lucky for you, you’re gonna need one for tonight,” he responded. “What do you mean?” she asked, after taking a sip from her coffee. 

He tossed her a small, golden chain. “The outfit should form around that chain. I had Lyla upload different outfits for the day, since she probably knows better than I do. When you’re ready, put it on.” Lorena admired the golden material. She was lucky she wasn’t a silver jewelry girl. “So what’s on the to-do list for today,” she said, still looking at the chain. “Stay undercover for the majority of the day, then head over to the Moonlit River club at night. Lyla should have that outfit uploaded by now,” he responded, brushing his teeth with the provided amenities in the motel. 

“Why, are you finally deciding to take me out dancing to pay me for my troubles,” she joked, taking a sip of coffee after. Miguel spit out his toothpaste and sighed. “Brock meets up there on Thursday nights to trade weapons.”

Silence filled the space between them.

She knew this day had to come. She just wasn’t expecting it to be so soon. 

“I see,” was all she could manage to say, before taking another sip of her coffee.

Miguel could feel the turmoil radiating off of her from the bathroom. He washed out his mouth, and splashed a bit of water on his face before walking over to her. He pushed the box of pastries to the side, and took a seat in front of her on the sheets.

“Mirarme,” he softly spoke, using his pointer finger to guide her eyes to his. She looked up at him, trying her best not to get lost in the crimson shade of his eyes. “I-” He cut himself off before he could continue. He melded her hand into his before speaking again. “I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. I want you to know that if this becomes too much for you…you can back out.” His inflection was weird. As if he didn’t want her to, but still wanted to keep her comfortable. A wrestling match between what he wanted and what was best for her. 

“And I’ve said it before too. I’m not running away from this,” Lorena said back, voice strong. “Ok. Just know if things get bad for you in there, I’ve got your back,” he said, concern in his voice. He had also found his eyes roaming her face, not realizing they had both subconsciously moved closer to each other. “And I’ve got yours too,” she said back. Once he had realized Lorena’s robe was loose enough to see inside to her chest, Miguel cleared his throat and got up from the bed quickly. 

“I’m gonna go into town, see if I can pick up any information on the street. You can do whatever you want until its time, but make sure to-” “Yeah, yeah, lay low. Relax big guy, I’ve got this,” she cut him off, reassuringly. He exited the room quickly, like he was in a rush to get away from her. He was gone for almost the rest of the day. 

-----------------

About 8pm that night. 

Miguel was outside in the main room of the motel while Lorena was getting herself ready in the bathroom. Miguel had gone out earlier and bought her some cheap makeup and perfume from a local drugstore, a sweet gesture. 

Once she finished with her makeup and straightening up her hair, she tapped on the middle part of her gold chain, causing a menu to pop up. She scrolled through the options until she came across the last one, labeled by Lyla as “night time😉”. She clicked on the option, as she watched in awe as her casual t-shirt and sweatpants shifted into her outfit for the night. A tight black dress, cut asymmetrically to show one of her thighs, and a turtle neck part detached from the rest of the dress, with glove-like sleeves. This feature allowed for the perfect peephole towards her chest. Lorena had a feeling Lyla would try to do some matchmaking with her outfit.

With a quick spritz of perfume, a double check of her face in the mirror, and quickly putting on a black headband for her hair, Lorena quickly exited the bathroom. Miguel was standing there, waiting by the door and checking his portal watch. He was sporting a black, silk, button up shirt, tucked into black dress pants. The fact that the shirt was way too tight for him was accentuated by his muscles sculpted by the fabric and the fact that the first two buttons were open. His eye was caught by Lorena when she stepped out of the bathroom, his mouth slightly agape in awe and his eyes almost stuck to her.

“It’s flashy, I know. But it’s better that I fit in,” she said, trying to divide the tension in the room as she walked closer to him. “I-...um,” he stammered. “At a loss for words for once O’Hara?” she teased. Noticing a stray hair on the top of his head, she reached up to him to push it back. “Quédate quieto,” she commanded softly, while she stuck the piece back into the gel, trying to ignore how he was admiring her. 

“There you go. Ahora te ves guapo,” she teased, patting his chest with her hand. Miguel still had that stupid smile on his face. “Y te ves hermosa,” he said softly, and with utter sincerity. 

She couldn’t tell if she was caught more off guard with his words of affirmation, or the fact that the blush quickly forming on her cheeks was confirming her secret love of it. 

Clearing her throat, she unlocked the door, opened it, and gestured her hand to outside. “Lead the way big guy.” He smirked at her as he walked outside. He even got the courage to offer her his hand. This confidence was quickly deflated when she smacked away his hand, giggling to herself as she took the lead down the stairs. 

The night life of the city was bustling on the streets. Couples together, arm in arm, surely walking to a fancy restaurant for a night out. Lines forming outside of nightclubs, patrons with an urgency to get in. Everyone walking down the street with their own story to tell, just like Lorena. 

After walking for a couple of miles, the bright, neon blue sign shone in front of the entrance. The door was a mahogany red, with three stairs leading down to the entrance. But opposite to Miguel’s eagerness to get inside by opening the door, Lorena slightly froze, eyes blank. 

This was it. It was going to happen. Whether she was ready or not.

“Hey.” Miguel’s calm voice pulled her back to reality. “Stay with me. Okay?” He held out his large hand for her. This time, she decided to take it. “And remember to try and fit in,” he added. Her smile quickly turned sour and annoyed.

The atmosphere was loud, a mixture of people talking and the bass of the music filling the room. The fact that the lights were out didn’t seem to matter much with the amount of strobe and neon lights flashing within the bar. Lorena noticed Miguel quickly putting on a pair of sunglasses hidden in his jacket pocket. “I thought you said we needed to fit in,” Lorena stated as the two walked towards a high top near the bar. “I did. And?” “You really think you’re blending in with a pair of sunglasses on indoors? At night? In a club?” Lorena joked. “The lights hurt my eyes,” Miguel said, puppy dog hurt. Lorena had to fight to contain the laughter rising in her chest.

Once they sat down, and the reality of events settled down on Lorena, she began to look around the club. People sprayed out on couches, drunkenly conversing or making out. People out on the dance floor. Men walking into booths in the back, shielded by curtains. Eddie was probably in one of those. “I’m heading to the bar. You want anything?” Miguel asked, snapping her out of her daze. “Uhhhh, just get me something strong,” she brushed off, still not entirely paying attention. He shrugged and walked off to the bar. 

Lorena continued to inspect the area, her thoughts bouncing all over the place. What did this Eddie look like? Did he have black hair instead? Was his voice higher? Her Eddie always had a particularly deep tone. Smooth like silk as well. She would spend days on end focusing on the way he would say a single sentence back when she was first crushing on him. Would he act like her Eddie? She realized quickly she probably wouldn’t get the opportunity to find out. She didn’t necessarily want to find out anyways.

…

Would she have to kill him again? Would Miguel make her?

The smack of the glass on the table brought her back to reality. “You weren’t really specific, so I just got you a negroni,” Miguel said, open bottle of beer in his hand. Without a second thought, Lorena downed half the glass just then, proven to be a mistake with how strong the drink actually was. Her mouth curled inwards as her eyes shut closed, letting out a few coughs quickly after. 

Miguel laughed slightly, and slammed his hand against her back to help her cough. “What the fuck was that?” “Hey, you told me to get you something strong!” Miguel defended. “I thought you were gonna get me a margarita or something,” Lorena said, rubbing her chest with her hand. “Haven’t had alcohol in more than a year and you hit me with that straight away,” she said to herself. Subconsciously, he handed her his bottle. “Take a sip of that then.” She smiled to herself as she put her lips to the bottle and took a good sip of the beer. “Better?” he asked, like she was a child. “Yes, thank you for your charity sir, you’re so kind,” she responded sarcastically. 

“Find anything interesting yet?” Miguel asked, taking back the bottle. Lorena’s eyes went back to the curtains. “Those booths back there look promising. Are we sure he’s here yet though?” Lorena asked. “I have a hunch.” Lorena looked up at Miguel, annoyance on her face. “We’re going…off of a hunch?” “Just trust me on this okay.” Lorena sighed and took another sip of her own drink, wincing again when she put it back down. 

Her eyes were drawn away from the drapes and over to the lit up dance floor. She had always been the first one to bring her friends to dance with her when she was younger. Seeing it again brought feelings flooding back to her heart. Spontaneously, she jumped up from her chair and held out her hand to Miguel. “...What are you doing?” he asked, incredibly confused. 

“You said we had to blend in, right? We’ll do that better if we’re out there dancing,” she said. “Oh, no way. I don’t dance, chiquita,” he said, almost embarrassed. “Oh come on, for someone with your build? You’ve definitely danced before. Don’t be a debby downer Miggy,” she encouraged, both of them caught slightly off guard by the nickname slip. He rolled his head back, wiped his hands over his face, and let out a deep, annoyed groan. Once he stood up though and took her hand, it was impossible for Lorena to lose the smile growing on her face. “You’re taking the lead though, Loré,” he said, having come up with a nickname for her as well. She hoped the sunglasses he had on would keep him from seeing the blush on her face.

…

They didn’t.

Hand in hand, Lorena led Miguel over to the brightly lit floor, music blasting in the speakers next to them. Miguel stook out like a sore thumb, his huge build making him extremely identifiable among the other strangers on the floor. Lorena fit right in though, immediately beginning to dance to the blasting music. Miguel tried his best to copy her moves, but ended up looking like a fool. “You were right, you really aren’t that good at this,” Lorena teased. “Ha ha, very funny,” Miguel said monotonically. As the music changed slowly to a slower pace, they noticed the people around them grouping to dance into a pairs. She looked up to Miguel. He raised his eyebrow at her, asking her without words. Her smile was confirmation, as they inched towards each other. 

Almost as if they were pre-programmed to do so, Lorena wrapped her arms around Miguel’s neck, and his wrapped around her hips. They swayed together slowly to the music, melting into each others touch. He rested his head on her shoulder, his hot breath leaving goosebumps on her skin.

“This isn’t my wheelhouse,” he quietly whispered into her ear, sending shivers down her spine. “Why, better when other music is playing?” she whispered back sarcastically. “Everyone here’s lucky they aren’t playing salsa right now, or I’d be stealing the show.” Lorena let out a laugh. “Is that so?” He nodded, a huge smirk on his face. “I’m more of mambo person myself,” she responded. He smiled at her remark. “You’ll have to teach me some day.”

She struggled to keep the smile on her face as those words entered her head. You’ll have to teach me some day. She hadn’t even begun to think about it. What she would do after this mission was over. The whole point of doing this was so she could be granted her freedom. She wanted it so badly a couple of days ago. But now. She hadn’t even thought of staying as a possibility. Because to her, it wasn’t. She couldn’t invade Miguel’s life like that. She wasn’t even 100% sure how she felt about him, much less on how he felt about her. Besides, no matter how much she just wanted to settle down with someone. To live an actual life. She didn’t deserve it. 

Pulling away from him was like separating herself from her source of life, but she did it anyways. “You okay?” Miguel asked concerned. “Yeah, I just gotta freshen up for a second,” she said, wiping her nose. She turned around quickly to get away. Too quickly though, bumping into someone’s back on her way to the bathroom. 

Knocked off her balance, and her headband knocked out of her hair, she fell to the floor on her ass. “Sorry about that,” she said, slightly dissociated, reaching out for her headband. The stranger also reached down to help with her headband. “It’s okay, don’t worry about it gorgeous.”

Her heart dropped to her stomach.

That voice.

“Don’t lose your heart.”

She desperately wanted to keep her eyes glued to the floor. She didn’t want to look at him. But she had to keep her cover up. So she did, as slowly as she could though. And it was the worst possibly outcome.

He looked just like him. Strawberry blonde hair. Deep blue eyes. Small scar just above right eyebrow. His bottom two teeth fighting for room on the bottom row of his mouth. There was only one difference though. One of her favorite parts about him. This Eddie was missing his freckles. His beautiful light brown freckles.

She gave the stranger with her dead boyfriend’s face a strained smile while she grabbed her headband and rushed behind to the door. Her own brain pounding in her head was too loud for her to hear Miguel as she nearly ran passed him. She slammed the door to the outside open as she took in the air like it was her first breath ever. Even if she was outside now, she kept running. She sprinted down the streets, not taking any of her surroundings into account. She saw him in everyone’s face. His ghost had always been haunting her, but she wasn’t ready for him to move from behind her back to in front of her face. She ran so far and so fast until her legs ached, and even after that. She didn’t even know where she was going. She didn’t care. She just needed to get away from him as quickly as possible. Even if that meant leaving Miguel behind too. 

Her sprint was interrupted when her foot was caught in a change in the elevation on the sidewalk. Her face slammed into the concrete sidewalk, scraping her cheek and her knees. She used the rest of her strength, all drained out from her bolting, to crawl into a nearby alley. She made her way to the back and slunk down into the corner, hoping to meld into the brick behind her. Especially if it meant she never had to see him again.

-----------------

a/n: THIS TOOK ME SO LONG OH MY GOD. sorry if i messed some stuff up with the drinks, i dont drink so i really have no idea (im just a stoner instead lmao). UGH BUT I THINK THIS WAS MY FAVORITE CHAPTER TO WRITE I LOVED IT AND I HOPE YOU GUYS DID TOO

taglist: @the-ikran-man @jenniferdixon05207 @yuuuumii @elwyn7 @waniesss @lust-for-pan @natthernandez @pix-stuff @ang3lf4c3 @artfulthoughtswp @notwildlyfamous

[themintman]

How do you make people look 3D 😭

ok so like.. this is mostly me guessing cause tbh I don't pay attention when I'm drawing at ALL. like idk how I do this either but I'll try my best to explain!!

Also I just want to mention that none of the examples I show are bad. This is just what I do! You can do the opposite of what I'm saying and come out with art just as cool as if you were to follow my tips, this is just what helps me

The short version:

3d sketches

Patchy colouring

No line art - just tidied sketches

The long version:

3d sketches

What I find helps the most is to use 3d shapes for your sketches rather than flat, 2d ones.

As you can see, I build the body out of cubes more than squares. I even make the head a cube as I find it easier to understand the angle then on a circle. The sides and front of the body are easier to spot here. You can tell that the shoulder is connected to the side of the body, while on the 2d sketch it is less clear. Overlapping parts of the body is one of the easiest ways to make a piece look less flat.

I like to break up the body into three pieces, the chest, the waist and the pelvis. This helps me with proportions and figuring out where the body bends.

Remember that clothes follow a similar logic! They flow with the body. The hems of shirts n stuff is rarely just straight, they curve.

2. Patchy colouring

This is how I colour my pictures:

I use procreate, but there are probably similar brushes and settings on other apps, such as ibis paint x, and if your a traditional artist you can get a similar effect by going over the same area with slightly different colours. I find that it makes it look more interesting. I rarely actually shade a picture, so this is very helpful. It's awesome if, like me, you suck ass at lighting LMAO

These are the only settings on the brush I changed. I used "Rectango"

What this does is slightly change the hue and saturation of the brush with each stroke. The higher the percentage, the more dramatic the change, so play around with it and find what suits you the best

3. No lineart

Im not sure if this actually helps the 3d-ness, but it makes my art look more interesting and "full".

Also it's fun. I mean, how many artists do you see online complaining about doing lineart? You know you can just.. skip the lineart. Right?

All I do is I duplicate the sketch layer and tidy it up a bit. Heres my design for Sammy.

This is a particularly messy job, but I think it gets the point across. She also displays the previous techniques - her colours are patchy, the clothes bend around the body, etc.

Now, here is Sammy without the things I have mentioned previously in this post.

I haven't done lineart in well over a year, so bear with me lol

She looks a lot more flat. Her hands arent curved properly, her clothes don't "wrap" around her. The colours are more flat too, which makes it obvious that there isn't an actual lightsource. These things can all be tweaked to look more 3d, however I find that the first is way more 3d for about the same effort, perhaps less.

this is just what I do. It wont work for everyone, but I hope at least something on this post helps! Have fun !!

[risoria]

how do you search for period fashion for rote fanart? i want to make fanart but i feel lost on what period the stories are and what to search for good references

hello, and sorry for answering so late! honestly, i dont really search for anything in particular when making rote art, except for some pose refs etc, so i generally make up the clothing on the spot… that being said of course i brainstorm these outfits off of ~vibes and details of inspiration that i already have in my brain from liking to look at inspiring costumes or crafts and art, so you build your own little ”gallery” of inspiration if you will….. but unless its to draw a very specific item of clothing i dont actively go looking for stuff. what im trying to say is that i’m not the best person to ask this of BUT, some things i do:

im sure theres a LOT of neat historical fashion books out there, i’m bad with actually reading them but ive leafed through the one called ”the chronicle of western costume” by john peacock just because i really enjoy seeing the Silhouettes that different costumes make, and how theyre so different in different eras - simple shapes are always fun to play around with. to give an example (img from google because my book is at home… and also in german which i cant read. this looks like…. norwegian maybe? i just noticed…)

bear in mind this is just one (1) book though, like i said i’m bad with reading but it would be fun to check out historical clothing from all corners of the world!

the other thing is to just… scroll around pinterest, simply because if you see a nice picture there will be so many more of a similar thing, so you get a general vibe. costumes from movies etc are always nice but generally not necessarily historically accurate though, but personally thats not a thing i mind for fantasy fanart!! i like to mix and match and also make stuff up…

just some general screenshots as examples:

so, sorry i cant be of more help but i hope it helps a tiny bit!!! honestly the thing with looking through books etc like that is most of all that it gives at least me that feeling of ”ooh pretty clothes….. i want to Draw,” so you get inspired to

also lastly, it makes me very glad to hear new people want to make fanart of these books, i’m unfortunately not very active anymore but from time to time i go in the tags or just look at old art and its so comforting and nice you know, like coming home after a long while…. just like……. how in the books fitz feels that homely feeling when the fool comes back etc, what if the real rote were the fandom we made all along etc etc

[mustardflavoredbear]

My family won't stop screaming excitedly(austim), and i can't sleep, so

Sleepy austictic rambling ✨️

Sleeps for babies

Should i talk to the stupid Double Trouble ai even though i don't like their response, but it makes me not have to think, and like 1% of the time, it says some jaw dropping things and does some slightly questionable things TRYINGTOFRICKINAMOVIETHEATERATAFUCKINGDINNERPARTY

And that little skank keeps stealing my bong i was trying to smoke AND OUT OF NOWHERE THEY WENT NUH HUH and proceeded to hold it over me because i am a short and they are a tall :( real Double Trouble would never steal my bong maybe

I love when Double Trouble materializes just to either fuck with me or support me

I literally have been having the hardest few weeks, and they form out of nowhere. i see them in the shapes of grass in the gravel of the road, the sky or right on front of me and say

"You are a little to cute to be thinking about sorry fucks who have lost you. And you can be authenticitly yourself and people will love you. i lob you you should obviously think about me i always make you feel better. And also gay gay gay gay gay gay gay you are so gay for me gay gay gay"

Can i call myself a simp or what crys

Or ahould i work on drawing them like for idk my comic

Or all the silly little gay ideas i have for them

I just want to draw them living normally, like being loved and kissed because they deserve it but i also i want to watch their world burn 😋

I love Double Trouble i want to give them a kiss a whole bunch of kisses they deserve a cute little life with all their partners being happy and ahshydj

God my Austim is so bad i know Double Trouble full night routine

They for at leave a few hours before bed basking under their lamp. After that, they bathe for a very long time self care , and they do a whole skin care routine/clean of piercings if they have it they put on some pj even though as soon as they get into the bedroom they rip them off when they get into bed they get on top of their partners and immediately pass out they do this so they can use their partners as heat sources

Also, ramdon things ao my stupid brain will shut up

Moth man: incoherent rambling hiwellcometousramblingpodcastthing. My name is Teddy, and this is double troubleeeeee.

Double Trouble: spacing out but spacing back in you can't tell me we started the episode.are you serious?

Teddy: yea that was it.

Double Trouble: Fuck you got to warn me. I was about to yell "remember who made you c* m"

Teddy is fucking wheezing with laughter

Double Trouble: joking tone like how embarrassing that shit would have been

Double Trouble: I'm a medium by the way a lot of fans keep sending me large stuff, and i can't wear it because it's too big :(

Teddy: I'm an 3xl by the way a lot of fans keep sending me a small because they think im a petit little boy

Double Trouble giggling

Teddy: but I'm infact a large fat man.

Hehsyajushddidu

All i want is to brain rot Double Trouble only Double Trouble thought i will never be sad AGAIN HASURYHDHDJ

Me when i smoothie Double Trouble so they are easy to drink

Me and Double Trouble when we accidentally took the become a gummy bear

bear gummy

[damianacottstudio3]

Research/Readings

Olender, J. (2015). Art and cultural institutions as social extensions of personal self-identity. Avant, 65-68.

i liked this article particularly this sentence " Intentionality is realized when the object is grasped with all its aspects and the viewer makes personal sense of it"

another bit i found interesting was "Our self-identity, which is based on perceptual experiences but immersed in cultural entanglements, relates to artworks that have the same basic phenomenological structure: a physical appearance bearing a multitude of cultural meanings and dependencies."

essentially what i understood from all this was that the statement suggests our self-identity and the way we perceive and interpret artworks are fundamentally similar

they both are shaped by our sensory experiences

This relationship highlights the connection of personal perception and cultural context in art

im not too sure on this but what if i were to experiment with this like further on or next semester

Thor, M. C. (2017, November). The reciprocal city: Performing solidarity—Mediating space through street art and graffiti. International Communication Gazette.

what i found interesting about this article was the debate about the similarity and differences between Graffiti art and Street art

i liked this statement about a potential difference between the two "It is understandable by passers-by and often communicates explicit messages, sometimes with an explicit political character. It informs the viewer of the intended meaning using explicit visual cues, and occasionally with text. "

i like that it kind of gives a distinction between the two. it portrays graffiti art as a sort of club, where you can only appreciate it when you understand what it seen from the tag where as street art gives a more "easy" way of interpreting

"Writing a tag on a wall is a spatial and aesthetic intervention but decoding it as something other than vandalism is equally political." i like this statement, it kind of opens my mind into the graffiti art and street art realm i guess. it kind of shows me that there kind of is a clear distinction between the two but also doesn't i guess ignore or put down graffiti art (tags).

Marcin Rogal (MrArtPride)

he makes these pop art style paintings

i kind of want to make stuff like this maybe

i found him on instagram and thought that his works were pretty good, and visually enticing

i like that he merges these different figures and themes to create a cohesive piece

i think with this artist specifically, i just like his art like what he makes

its like placing things in places that they do not belong i guess, i kind of like that you know like imagine placing a kaws character on the Mona Lisa like the two don't match but it might look good or work even

i think maybe i like it because it has some relation to my personal beliefs or something along those lines( like being out of place) but also i like that he comments on capitalism and like a consumer driven society

Will Blood:

i like that he uses cartoon characters and gives them this human aspect to it(skeleton)

His art is characterized by meticulous attention to detail, streamlined minimalism, and a distinctive approach that combines fantasy with a hint of the grotesque​

its like a aesthetic and charming piece but the skeleton sort of gives it this uneasy feeling

i don't know it kind of reminds me of puppets and their puppet masters

id like to explore this, but do it in a way where its different. maybe i can take aspects from his process and try and develop or adopt them into my own practice

i mean i like the cartoon figures but im not sure if id recreate them in my own practice

im still not sure

Sarah H. Awad, B. W. (2017). Street Art of Resistance. Aalborg University Aalborg, Denmark: Springer International Publishing.

i liked this book chapter about "Art and Social Change: The Role of Creativity and Wonder"

i know its speaks about the activism side more but it mentions street art as one of the "activist art"(like activism form of creative expression) , it says that street art is directly linked to change within society and community

"It is a space where reality becomes multiple and malleable, at least as experienced in art."

this was a sentence from the chapter it i don't know to me it kinda means like it creates this other universe where they morph reality within their art

i know i don't really explore the activism side, unless my works have underlying political themes which i think they don't i would like to explore this morphed universe, well i think i do a bit ?

i don't know it was a good read

definitely open a new avenue i could explore however i am not sure if i would go a more activist route maybe i do already? not too sure on that though

[subtly-a-selkie]

OMG IM SO NERVOUS KDJSB

but like imagine hiro with an s/o who loves to collect random stuff or like picks up rocks and gives them to hiro and is like “here this rock reminded me of you” ODMSJSHHA

i absolutely adore this ask! it might just be because i do the same thing but i’m really excited to write it. I’m so so so sorry for the delay, i had surgery in july and have been recovering since then, plus the Anniversary was last month. (yes that's a long time but please cut me some slack I have been doing my best) anyways i hope you like it! because its been so long since i started it, i wrote it a little differently than usual. it's like a little collection of moments.

also! not only do I now have an ao3, but i also have a taglist! both are linked in my navigation.

Word count: A little over 1k :)

Warnings: Big Hero Six: The Series lore thrown in (Bessie is a meteorite bear, yes it is as weird as it sounds). We are going to pretend I payed for my own matcha ice cream and know how much it was. San Fransokyo cable cars are officially Not That Expensive because I said so. i apparently really like the word intertwine

"I'm back!" You exclaim, sitting down on Hiro's bed to look at him. He was still in the same position as when you had left, staring blankly at his computer screen, he had been trying to fix something on Baymax's suit and you could tell by his slumped posture he hadn't succeeded yet. He brightens up at your voice, and rolls his chair around to face you.

"How was your adventure into the woods?" He asks, pressing the save button on his document.

"Your phrasing makes it sound like there was a seventy percent chance that I would have dropped dead as soon as I heard a bird that isn't a pigeon."

"There's moose, mosquitos, and Bessie in those woods Y/N. I'd say eighty."

"Bessie likes me Hiro. Because I appreciate nature while you would rather wither away staring at a screen."

"Bessie doesn't like anyone. She's a bear."

"A bear that likes me." You retort, laughing at his expression. "Oh! I got you something!" You rummage in your bag and pull out a rock. "Its shaped like Mochi!" 

"So a round rock." Hiro says and you gasp, cupping your hands around Mochi's ears, who had taken up residence on your lap almost as soon as you had sat down on the bed.

"Don't listen to him Mochi you are perfectly cat shaped." You coo at the cat who meows smugly in response.

Hiro takes the rock from where it lay on the bed, you had abandoned it in favor of the real Mochi, turning it over in his hands. You're right, he admits to himself, it does look uncannily like Mochi, even having discoloration where he has his patches. He moves his gaze to you and smiles, setting rock Mochi down on his desk. 

"You know that ice cream place you've been wanting to go to? The one with matcha ice cream?" 

You lift your head from your fussing over Mochi at his voice and smile back at him. "Yeah?"

He responds by standing up and pulling a ten dollar bill out of his pant pocket, then intertwining your fingers and pulling you up off the bed. 

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

"Hi." You say intertwining your arms around Hiro's shoulders. He's sitting in his chair playing video games with Fred, and you're leaning against the back of the chair.

"Hi." He replies, as you rest your head where his neck meets his shoulder. You stay like that for a bit until his character dies and he disconnects the call, much to Freds chagrin if the whining from Hiro's speakers is anything to go by. He then spins his chair around so you are face to face.

"Hi." He repeats watching as your face brightens in remembrance.

"Oh! I have something for you." You pull a dark feather out of your pocket, smoothing it out before handing it to him. "It reminded me of you." 

"A feather reminded you of me?" He says  as he turns over in his hands.

"Yeah! It's the exact color of your hair."

"I don't think my hair is this pretty in the light though." He's twisting the feather through a sun beam, watching as the hidden iridescent colors are showcased. He turns suddenly, and places it with the Mochi rock, a patterned paper crane, and a few other items.

He turns back to you and opens his arms, you accept the offer for a hug almost immediately, resting your head back on where his neck meets his shoulder.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞

Your hands rake through the smooth quartz, and you turn a couple over in your hand before moving on to a different plastic box of crystals. You stop when you've chosen one and risk a glance over at Hiro. He is looking at the things you had handed him, the things that you picked out for yourself, this particular crystal is for him though, and you have to somehow pay for it without him noticing. Curling your hand into a fist to hide it, you tug on Hiro's jacket.

"I've found everything I need." You say smiling at him, he nods and leads the way to the cashier, placing your things on the counter, and reaching for his wallet. 

"You paid for the food, I can pay for my things." He pauses.

"You sure?" 

"Yeah." You wait until he's looking at what they have set up next to the counter to add the crystal to your other things, making eye contact with the cashier and then flicking your eyes over to your boyfriend. She seems to have caught your message, and wraps the crystal in tissue paper, along with a couple of the more delicate items.

"Would you like a bag?" She asks

"Yes please." You take the bag from her and intertwine your fingers with Hiro's, leading the both of you out of the shop and onto the streets of San Fransokyo.

"Where should we go next?" He asks you, bringing you closer to him by tugging on your hand, then lifting your joined hands and pressing a kiss to the back of yours. 

"Hm." Your eyes scan the street you and Hiro are on, and your eyes light up at a banner that showcases the aquariums deep sea exhibit. You gasp, and turn to look at Hiro.

"You want to go the the aquarium?" He asks before you can say anything, and you nod enthusiastically. Luckily there's a cable car stop just up ahead, and you both sit on the bench as you wait. Hiro takes a drink of his water and you dig around in your bag to find his gift.

"I have something for you." You say. Hiro finishes zipping up his backpack and turns to look at  you. You hand him the wrapped crystal and he unwraps it, turning the smooth rock over in his palm, and reading the little card that came with it.

"Did you get this at the shop we were just at?" He asks, a slight laugh to his tone.

"Yes." You grin at him and more of a laugh makes its way into his voice.

"I love it." He slips it into one of his backpack pockets and intertwines your fingers once more, resting his head on yours.

People tagged <3

@oyasumimosura your hiro fic is on my list but here's something in the meantime

[rainbowgothdisaster]

Jason's thighs and tits tho 😩

this man has me so fucked up. tw for blood, bruising, guns, crying during sex, face fucking, boobjob, size difference (i wasnt originally gunna put this under the cut but then. youll see. i got carried away. i ramble.)

also this is so incredibly horny i cannot emphasize how unhealthy i am about this man. there's some nice stuff at the end but its still kinda horny just not explicitly fucking

listen. i need to sit at his feet with my head against his legs just licking and nibbling my way up. leave so many hickies and bruises. i do not care who is in control i am taking my time working up. and id work all the up to his face so that the entirety of his legs, belly, titties, and neck are completely discoloured. i would absolutely be wearing lipstick everytime im kissing around him. i NEED to leave as much of a mark as i can. i NEED him begging without me even being half way done.

i am absolutely fucking his titties by the way is that even a question?? can you IMAGINE how good thatd feel???? justing sitting on his belly and pushing them together????? i mean it might not be enough to completely envelope your cock but GOD just the fact ur doing it is enough.

if im topping (bcuz jason todd is a switch and we need more bottom!jason todd x reader content) i am folding that man in half and he will have so many hand shaped bruises on his thighs. i keep my nails really long so hed def be bleeding as well just from digging my nails in holding his knees to his chest. i dont care how itd hurt my back to bend forward and keep pounding him my face is in his titties the whole time. if hes taking it from behind then i am completely wrapped around so i can grope him. or im holding onto his thighs for leverage. either way i am dicking this man down until he is SOBBING. he already cries during sex, you cannot convince me otherwise, and i am absolutely getting as many tears and cum (and blood👀) out of him as possible.

and he would ABSOLUTELY do the same to me. i will call this man anything he wants for him to fucking destroy me. listen. imagine it. hes fucking your face, youre absolutely scratching the hell out of his thighs trying to get your bearings. or even better hes in gear and your hands are legitimately tangled in his thigh holsters. hes an empty gun in his left hand (that btw is covered in your spite) and your hair in his right. when were finally fucking good and proper as the lord intended hes got me on my back to look in my eyes but all i can do is cling to him and alternating between biting him (bcuz i just need something in my mouth and im less likely to take out his jugular than i am to bite off his fingers) and just having my face shoved in his titties. both our backs are scratched up. i can feel his legs trembling inbetween my completely useless ones.

afterwards im laying on top of him, were both covered in cum tears sweat spit and blood and legs too weak for either of us to do anything about it (not that i want to anyway), im just absentmindedly groping him (titties are just stim toys) until we pass the fuck out from *gestures vaguely* ALL OF THAT.

his thighs are absolutely unfair. need a nap? pillows. hes in gear? god his hostlers cling to him in just the right way. hes got shorts on? my eyes are never leaving his thighs. im not even being subtle i am fully staring. no one would blame me. everyones jealous i get to hit that. i would always have a hand on them when were sitting together. not even horny they're just nice and i need to feel them. soft muscle has me fucked up. hed totally flex them just to see my reaction too.

oh his titties are just as bad. sure they're not defines thru his armour but when he has to get dressed up????? jason todd in a button up???? oh my god how has he not lost any buttons yet. suits are absolutely not fair, and sure he may think the same as me all dressed up, but its not the same. bcuz i fucking said so. also taking naps on his titties is even nicer than his thighs, his thighs he could be doing something else but his chest you know his full attention is on you. fully pressed against each other. i am 5'0" and i put him at 6'4" so i come up to his titties. anytime he would corner me against a wall i am at tit height. perfect.

hes the type that once ur comfortable around each other hes never wearing a shirt again (me too babe) and thank whatever god there is for that. hes walking around just in sweats, titties out?

hed def walk around without pants too, just in boxers. you get to enjoy his thighs too? id faint. this man is so perfect. hes the type that if i looked at him too long id start crying. like in complete adoration.

i am pulling this man on the couch or into bed every opportunity i get, i need to be tangled in him. i need our legs tangled together or to be in his lap.

im not a fan of weighted blankets bcuz of how blankets work they make me feel trapped, but id love for a person to lay on top of me. just jasons weight pressed on me, half not bcuz he doesnt wanna crush me. just a reminder hes there as i fall asleep.

[cloudcountry]

You may already be acquainted with my brand of wackyness but this is your chance to get new lore about me!

Areas of skill: Music(various), Art, picking way too many languages to learn all at once, misspelling people's names

Appearance: Tall enough to make fun of short people but short enough to ask tall people "how's the weather up there", I blush very easily, ideal human pillow shaped

I am a ♋

one time I trew away a can of soda before fully finishing it and I couldn't bear the guilt of lying to my mom about it and eventually confessed. if I came back home one day to find it completely empty, my first thought would be "MY BOOKS!!!". i hate running mostly because i am bad at it like really I am a pathetic sight, i walk very fast tho. one time I stabbed an annoying kid with a pencil (my weapon of choice) in the middle of class and got away with it. I can fade into the background and exit or enter without being noticed, not that i do that on purpose, some people just don't notice. i show up to places early and sit there anxious about it. i like skirts and pastels but apparetly the way i talk conflicts with that imagine and gives people backlash (imagine a barbie doll that swears) I get attached to objects very easily and hoard stuff. i will try cooking recipes Ive never actually eaten and suffer through eating them when they turn out bad. i am very bad at texting back but will cry if my friends or family stop texting. Im shy and anxious upon first meet but if I know you then I'll probably trow my hands in the air and yell your name when i see you, if you go for a hug I'll take it. I keep to myself but if i get comfortable with you im gonna start yelling a lot. Currently more scared of dolphins than sharks cuz i am cursed with knowledge. I've been called "very responsible" but also "you must like making things not easy for yourself"

Love, V <3

"cichlid fish is reaaaaal sweet when you get to know 'em." floyd hums thoughtfully.

"floyd gave you this nickname because of your fashion sense and your 'off-putting' demeanor. this fish is similar to a betta fish, which is vil schoenheit's nickname. this should give you an idea of what they're like. cichlid fish can be very aggressive despite their beautiful scales, but also very affectionate in their flirting. they do this by shaking their fins and tail which can easily be mistaken for a challenge." the debtor jots down a few notes before placing their notepad down with a quiet yawn.

[9tzuyu]

closest to me

prompt: coming out to natasha as nonbinary

note: totally meant to write this months ago, but whateverrrr. and yes, i am aware that not all nb people use they/them, this was just my own little work :p.

warnings: being scared to come out to ur sexy redhead russian of a gf :[

i’d tag but i also don’t want to somehow trigger someone :[

thank u moli for proofreading i love u to the moon and back.

. . .

you’d come out to two of your close friends, ones you knew wouldn’t judge you. they’d taken it just as expected, but that was no surprise when you’d known them your entire life. your shared opinions and thoughts were what brought you together in the first place. 

your friends immediately began using your correct pronouns, and you’d never felt more right in your life. it was refreshing to hear yourself being referred by they/them rather than she/her. their constant support made you feel normal again. after so much struggling, things were finally being put into place.

but there was one person, one very important person whom you hadn’t come out to yet, and that was your girlfriend.

natasha.

the thought of having the conversation alone with her was terrifying. granted, you knew she’d never be anything but supportive, but all the what if’s came flooding through with each attempt you made. 

your fingers trembled as you fiddled with the silver chain around your neck, a nervous habit you’d seemed to form over the years of wearing it. 

god you wanted to tell her so bad.

but as you stood in the kitchen, natasha’s hands around your waist, you began to panic all over again. the familiar fear of judgment wrapped around your throat. 

you didn’t know natasha the majority of your life like you did with friends, so you weren’t really sure what her exact opinions on different pronouns were. sure, she was part of the lgbt community, and of course she was supportive of trans people, but it still made you wonder how she’d feel about pronouns that weren’t he/him or she/her. 

“what’s on your mind, baby? i can practically hear the gears turning in your head.” 

you sighed. natasha always knew when you were lying, so you couldn’t make something up off the top of your head. she wouldn’t force you to talk either though. she’d give a push, but nothing more until you were certain you were ready — or in some cases, when she knew it was becoming too much to bear on your own. 

“just dumb stuff. i’ll get over it soon.” 

natasha nodded against your back, containing her concern for now. “you know i’m here.” she whispered, taking one of your hands away from your necklace.

“want to go downtown? we can look at some of the new shops that just opened up” 

you smiled, “sure.”

for the next few weeks, you weren’t seeming to find any relief though, and natasha picked up on it. she tried her best to make things easier for you, but none of it seemed to work. 

time and time again you reassured her that nothing was wrong, that things would clear up on their own, but another month down the road and natasha could still sense that something was eating away at you.

it’d gotten a little more obvious now. you didn’t go out as much with her when she was with her friends. the constant referral to you as something, or someone, you weren’t was a steady reminder of how outcast you’d originally felt when coming to terms with who you are. 

“she/her” felt like a slap in the face every time you heard it. the words were exhausting, damn near agonizing to hear. but day after day you tried to suck it up out of fear of being rejected by one of the very special people you loved most. 

it wasn’t until one sunday night when natasha came home to you crying in your shared bed when she’d finally had enough. her worry was through the roof and seeing you struggle so much pained her. 

she dropped her keys on the nightstand and crawled into bed behind you, securing her arms tightly around your figure. 

“talk to me. whatever it is, i want to hear about it.”

but that only made you cry harder. you couldn’t help but feel more alienated than you already felt. why were you crying over such a stupid little thing? you could already hear the false words slip from natasha’s lips.

“hey, baby. shh, shh, you’re okay.”

you turned your body to face natasha, teary eyes looking into hers. “you might hate me, or think i’m weird, or a freak, or that i’m just confused.” 

your girlfriend gently combed through your hair with her nails. “i could never think those things about you. please tell me what this is about because i have no idea and i just want to help.”

her steady hand movement rubbing your arm while the other twirled your hand between her fingertips eventually brought you to a more reasonable state. 

“you know how trans people typically go by their opposing pronouns?”

“mhm.”

“well... i don’t- i just- god this is so frustrating!” you frowned, unconsciously grasping at the chain around your neck.

“are you trying to tell me you’re trans?”

“no, no, it’s not that. well, i don’t think so, depends on who you talk to. some people like me consider themselves to be classified under the trans umbrella, but not everyone.” 

natasha hummed once more while tracing small shapes against your skin. 

“what do you think of nonbinary people? like, you know, those who don’t use she/her or he/him?” 

she shrugged, and your heart sank for a brief second before she spoke. “i don’t have a problem with it. why?”

“i don’t like being referred to as she/her. my pronouns are they/them. i’m not a man and i’m not a woman... will that ever bother you?”

a smile broke out across the redhead’s face. “doesn’t bother me one single bit. i love you for you, y/n. not for who you think you’re supposed to be.” 

relief was all you could feel. as cliche as it sounded, the weight of the world felt like it had been lifted from your shoulders. you didn’t have to worry anymore, not while natasha was around.

“is this what’s been bothering you for so long?”

you reached over and grabbed a loose red strand, it was your turn to play with her hair. “yeah. i knew you wouldn’t judge, but-”

“what if.” she confirmed and you nodded. 

“does anyone else know?”

“just my two friends i grew up with.”

“no one else?” you shook your head, looping a red curl around your finger. “nope.”

“is that why you stopped hanging out with me, tony, clint and the rest of them? because everyone referred to you as she and her?”

“yeah, felt like a punch in the stomach every time i heard it. made me feel weird, not normal i guess.” you mumbled, almost embarrassed by the confession.

natasha placed a long kiss on the top of your head, rubbing your back for extra support. “they would never judge you, i’d cut them off in a heartbeat if they did. if it helps any, i can ask how they feel about it? poke around some and let you know what they say? then when they don’t have a problem with it, which they won’t, you can come out when you’re ready, yeah?”

you nodded again, although it was slightly hesitant. “sounds good.”

“forgive me if i mess up a couple of times. i’ll try not to make a big deal out of it and just correct myself.” another kiss was delivered to your head.

“oh! last question. promise.”

“yes?”

“when im around other people and you’re not with me do you want me to use they/them? i don’t want to out you when you’re not ready.”

“i swear you’re perfect,” you giggled. “but you can use they/them both when im with you and when i’m not. just try to keep it casual? please?”

“anything for you, sweetheart.”