#and putting in a lot of effort to do that. The end section takes place after she's in Chaldea and he haunts her in a dream of sorts

[dmitriyuriev]

Danzou based on a scene from a fanfic I love. (link here- It's only in Japanese)

I highly recommend it if you're able to read it, it does a wonderful job exploring the relationship between Limbo and Danzou and has a lot of good imagery. This scene is after Limbo places the self-destruction device in her womb... which he gouged out of a living girl along with other parts. Danzou wakes up draped in a kosode decorated with the auspicious symbol of flower-eating birds, in contrast to the curses in her body.

この小説がとてもおすすめ！小説にある人形修復のエロティシズムも美しくて恐ろしいイメージもリンボと段蔵の関係も何もかもが大好き。ぜひ、読んでみてください！

[asleepygremlin]

I was looking at my old posts and realized I accidentally put in misinformation

In this old post I claimed that Kieran’s Japanese name, suguri, which is the Japanese name for currants, meant “hope and forgiveness” but apparently that was just the title of a blog post with no mention of currant symbolism whatsoever

Lesson learned: Always fact check your stuff

So to try and fix this, I actually searched up the proper symbolism of currants and found a flower language site with a page on currants with symbolism so that’s better than the last post that had basically nothing

Even with all I said in mind, you should do your own research instead of believing everything you see on the internet like idiot old me and please fact check me if I got anything wrong

The site is in Japanese so you have to use google translate to read the page. According to the symbolism section, it says “あなたの不機嫌が私を苦しめる” and “私はあなたを喜ばせる” which is translated as “your grumpiness makes me suffer” and “I make you happy” but considering it’s google translate, I decided to crackhead translate it myself using wiktionary because I wanted to make sure myself and I basically got the same sentences as the google translated ones and roughly got “your unhappiness makes me worry” and “I want to make you happy.” Which means that google translate was actually right and I did ALL of this for nothing _(:3」z)_ well I’m glad I went to seek out the answer and google translate doesn’t take tone into account so someone could phrase it more correctly than my crackhead translation

Here’s how this relates to Kieran

So if, and only if, this is accurate and actually true, this explains and foreshadows a lot of the scarlet and violet dlc. The first sentence of “your unhappiness makes me worry” is literally what happens near the end of the teal mask and all of the indigo disk, Kieran constantly comparing himself to others and the player especially and causing both Carmine and hopefully the player to worry about him. The second sentence “I want to make you happy” is even more explicit with the blueberry academy cast, Carmine, and the player wanting to know what is up with him and how to make him happy again.

Below is the toil of my efforts if you’re curious

(I was going to link the wiktionary pages to each kanji but it didn’t let me so here’s wiktionary if you want to do extra research but you have to either copy paste the kanji itself or use a Japanese keyboard to find the exact results)

I’d also like to put here that kanji has multiple meanings and isn’t always read as they are the sentences provided so this isn’t necessarily a kanji lesson.

First let’s take “あなたの不機嫌が私を苦しめる” in which the Hepburn romanji is “anata no fukigen ga watashi o kurushimeru.”

Anyone can probably recognizes watashi/私 and anata/あなた which are the Japanese personal pronouns for I/me and you respectively if we simplify it

The hiragana no/の is generally used as a particle to indicate possession. ex: watashi no kaban/私のかばん would translate to “my bag”

The kanji fu/不 according to wiktionary is commonly used as a prefix for un-, non-, in-. Basically it’s a negative prefix like the in- in insecure. Or it can be used to describe something as bad

ki/機 means a lot of things depending on the kanji paired with it which leads into the next kanji, gen/嫌 means disagreeable or unpleasant by itself however when both are combined, it reads as kigen/機嫌 which translate into mood or feeling and other kanji is usually meant to be placed in front of it

This makes the phrase fukigen/不機嫌 which if translated literally, it means bad mood. And according to its wiktionary page, can mean unhappy or despondent.

For brief explanation, Japanese uses particles to refer to things instead of word order like English which pop up a bit in the sentences

ga/が is used for multiple things but the most relevant meaning when looking at the full sentence is that its being used to refer to the subject of a sentence

That makes what we currently translated so far, anata no fukigen ga/あなたの不機嫌が could be read as “your bad mood”, “your unhappiness” or something similar

Finally onto the second half, watashi o kurushimeru/私を苦しめる. I already explained 私 so I’ll move onto o/を which can be read as wo and is usually used to indicate an object of a sentence.

The last part of the sentence is kuru/苦 which by itself means bitter taste, pain, suffering, and other synonyms. When combined with the hiragana, it means to cause worry or to cause one to suffer on its wiktionary page. Which means the second part roughly translates to cause me to suffer or worry.

That means that the full sentence, “あなたの不機嫌が私を苦しめる” means roughly “your unhappiness makes me worry” or something along those lines.

Onto the next sentence. “私はあなたを喜ばせる” has the romanji of “watashi wa anata o yorokobaseru.” I already explained Japanese pronouns and particle を/o so I’ll briefly go over wa/は which is usually read as ha. は when read as wa in this sentence, is the particle referring to the subject or topic so the subject is I/me and the object is you

Finally onto yorokobaseru. 喜/yoroko by itself is an affix meaning joy or to be pleased. And now we run into Japanese being weird, I couldn’t find what baseru meant until I realized that one spelling of yoroko was yorokobashii/喜ばしい so I searched up seru/せる by itself and it’s a suffix that is often conjugated which explains the structure. The definition that makes the most sense in context is the one “to make”. So that makes the final sentence roughly “I want to make you happy” or along a similar phrasing.

Conclusion: Dear god this was longer than I thought. I got way too lost in the sauce trying to brute force learning Japanese but I hope you enjoyed it i guess? I wanted to make up my blunder but ended up info dumping but this is tumblr so maybe it fits idk

[palenutbasement]

(all scenes are depicted as platonic)

So every Inktober I try to do something more challenging, and this year I thought I would make a short comic/fanfic. I think I got the idea for this one a year ago but I was already wrapped up with another Inktober. Eventually I solidified the idea by making my own prompt list some time ago.

This comic is split into three parts with 10 days focusing on each of them, 30 in total, everything is compiled here. I wanted to post them after October in case I wanted to change anything.

This first part takes place in the summit.

The comic is basically all improvised, that means no planning for the composition, plot, or sketching any drawings. The most planning I did was write a few scripts ahead of time within the month to save me some time but most of them would be changed last minute anyways.

As for the plot, I won't go too deep into it because I don't want to talk too much, so you'll just find commentary on the making of the comic and stuff.

This first part is a little gimmick-y compared to the next two, with new elements appearing almost every day. It’s because I relied a lot on the prompts (dog, milk, etc.) to keep things happening, eventually I move further away from them.

What is surprising to me is how much the art changes as the days go by especially within the span of one month. I did refine a few things to keep it more consistent but this is nearly indistinguishable from the original drawings.

I should also mention that my favourite aspect of this project was adding references to the game and subtle details (if you can find it all, awesome!!) This may have been done quickly but I like to have those things and put at least a bit of effort into the dialogue.

Part 2

Eventually I figured that drawing the same setting for 30 days straight would drive me insane, hence why this comic is split like it is. I’m glad I did because it makes the story a little more interesting, seeing the characters have different attitudes in different places and whatnot.

This one takes place in the cave directly after pt 1. Admittedly I do better drawing outdoor settings, it's what I'm used to, but the cave wasn't so bad to figure out.

I remember these two days I was streaming drawing the comic to my friends, so I kinda zoned out while we were talking lol

One of the prompts was about napping, so I made Dwarf sleep. I believe I was tired that day too and it was therapeutic to draw and include that. Also they look cute, I think.

18 & 19 have some of my favourite drawings in the comic. The campfire lighting is what we'd get if I had a bit more energy each day, and I like the perspective in the first panel of 19.

I find this last section interesting, because of all the 30 days, it’s the only one in Dwarf’s POV. I felt like it was fitting to do something like that at the time.

Part 3

Since we were approaching Halloween, I wanted to have a special part for it. It’s related to the other two parts but it takes place some time after. I’m really sorry it’s out of season, if it were up to me I would have had this post out earlier (thank my midterms for the delay)

Out of all the other parts this one is my favourite. Maybe because it’s more recent I’m inclined to think that way but it has some of my fave moments that I've written here.

Other than that I don't have much commentary for this part. More thoughts at the end!

I was caught up everyday atp, but I didn’t have much spare time to prepare for the ending (I wrote it the morning of that day). I think this is a decent conclusion though.

I intend on coming back to this story, maybe next year to make a continuation but we'll see what happens. There are definitely things that I want to come back to someday.

Thank you for making it this far btw. It's been an eventful month for me beyond this (Untitled) comic, but there wasn't a single aspect of this that I didn't enjoy doing. It's a silly project and I care about it.

Also, I'm not going to neglect the 31st of October! That day will get an illustration, where I will pick my favourite panel and redraw it. I want to take my time with this one so it's not out yet, but hopefully I can finish by Christmas.

[johaerys-writes]

Ok just a general writing question: how do you EVER manage to finish your works? I’ve been writing fics and books for a few years and I’ve only every managed to finish one and I felt like the quality just…decayed. Like your works stay invigorating throughout the whole thing and you like,,,,actually finish them. Idk what I’m even saying I’m like 8 days sleep deprived. Anyway,,,,

Okay first of all I'm sorry you're sleep deprived, my sleep schedule has been all over the place lately and I know that feeling like that is NOT conducive to writing or being creative or anything at all lolol.... and thanks for your question, I'm not sure I have a concrete answer to your problems but I'll do my best.

I don't think I'm the best at finishing works honestly lol, especially longer works.... I have a few longer fics that are either on hiatus or abandoned and they haunt me to this day, but as you already know writing is hard work and finishing a story is even harder, so I've sort of accepted that I won't be putting the effort into finishing them any time soon. So I guess a part of writing a longer work is sometimes needing to accept that not all stories are going to work, not all stories need to be finished, or they might actually need a long time of being away from them in order to be finished. There's absolutely nothing wrong with shelving a fic you're no longer interested in or that doesn't really work for whatever reason.

But let's say you absolutely, 100% want to finish a fic but you keep running into obstacles? I think first of all you need to recognise why you're having trouble finishing stuff. If you take long breaks between writing sessions and you end up losing interest or forgetting where you were going with something, then maybe you need to be more consistent with finding time regularly, even 15mins, to write (a little goes a long way). If you are someone who starts a fic without an outline and then ends up getting stuck halfway through, then maybe you could try deciding the important story beats ahead of time so that you know where you're going. If you're someone who plans too much and ends up getting bored, you could try leaving room for more for discovery during writing, like leaving certain sections largely unplanned so that you can figure it out on the spot. So I think it's important to identify what exactly is your problem with finishing fics, and try to find a writing process that works for you.

You mentioned that in the one fic you finished, the quality decayed as you kept going. That's definitely a problem that a lot, if not all, writers have encountered at some point. It has definitely happened to me, and I know that I have that thought at least once during any kind of fic I've written lol. When you start a story you're excited for that new idea, you want to explore it, it's all very invigorating. As you keep going, that enthusiasm dampens usually because you have to think about cohesion and connecting the dots and making the plot work and laying the foundations for later things to come etc etc and other kinda not so exciting things like that lol so I think it's normal to lose a little bit of steam midway. As for the quality of the writing getting worse, it's also part of it because as you reach certain points in the story that need to be more "technical" it feels little bit more forced and not as fun as it was at the beginning.

But I feel like a) quality is subjective, especially when it comes to your own writing, and something that reads kind of mid to you might just be perfectly okay for the reader, and b) you just need to keep going!! Push past that feeling, ignore it, go to that friend who always encourages you with your writing and whine about it. Don't let all those "my writing sucks and is horrible" thoughts get to you, every writer I know has had them at some point, so do your best to ignore them and keep going. Your story will have flaws no matter what you do, and if finishing your fic is your goal, a flawed story that's finished is better than a great one that isn't.

One thing that's always stuck with me is something a friend told me a long time ago, which is that if you're looking for perfection you're never going to be happy with what you put out, but if you say "this chapter/fic isn't 100% how I want it to be, but it's 80% or 70% okay, so we're good to go" then that takes a lot of the pressure off you to make things "perfect". Leave some room for yourself and your stories to be just okay sometimes instead of great, I feel like it makes a lot of difference.

And most importantly, remember to have fun with it! Writing is supposed to be fun, so don't be too hard on yourself for not finishing longer fics, sometimes banging out a short one shot and posting it is the way to go.

Hope this helped!

[softer-ua]

I think Hori did a great job showing that societal changes can happen, the world has gotten better before and it can again, but that change isn’t always linear or noticeable in the moment unless you actively choose to see it and be grateful for it

Because the fight for change takes everyone consciously doing their part as well as creating systemic changes

It will be full of loss, big and small, in the end it may not even feel like much has changed and the accomplishments don’t always measure up to amount of grief accrued

because it’s the next generation and the generations after that really get anything from our efforts

Think of society as the field where we plant ourselves, and think of the oligarchs(rich fucks in charge) of the past who stole the people’s harvests, limited what was allowed to grow, and forced overworking the land to the point of poisoning crops

They do the same now stealing the fruits of our creativity passions and dogged work ethic, they limit where we can direct those efforts so we only grow in ways that benefit them, and they demand we drive ourselves to burnout and all creativity must equal profit

You see the land and your people dying, so you work yourself to the bone to turn the inhospitable over farmed land into something farmable again and you do your best everyday to inspire others to join the cause

In the beginning crop yields are still small and people are barely surviving off the rations, so much work for so little, but you beg they remember that what they grew is heartier than the failed crop last year, the effort wasn’t in vain

You have to work with a lot of shitty people, and they don’t all get less shitty, and those that do can’t undo the harm they caused. But over all less harm is being perpetrated, pieces of the cycle have been broken off giving room for something better to grow.

This is the cycle for a few years, only small sections of land have seen change and it’s a delicate balance because it could easily be over farmed and collapse again, it feels hopeless at times but a dedicated few keep inspiring others to keep going

Then a decade goes by, nights of going to bed hungry become a distant memory for the children, even while you go to bed haunted by the memory of those who didn’t survive the winter.

Some ghosts are leave a lighter touch, it’s unfair their bodies gave out but they find rest in knowing the world is changing and you held their hand the whole way.

The worst ghosts are from those whose soul fled long before the wasting took them, the ones who festered in fear/anger/resentment/isolation . Those whose suffering made them cruel and leaked rot on to the lives of others.

They claw at your nerves, demanding the unanswerable, why? Why didn’t change come sooner, why wasn’t this all prevented, why them, why not you?

Could you have given more of yourself to save them? They were hurting others, all your empathy couldn’t change that, so you hurt them and all our empathy doesn’t change that either.

B&W thinking, or nuanced gray. Both have their place, but neither replaces grief, you can’t intellectualize away a hit nerve.

Pain demands to be felt, but the future demands your present and to get through everything you closed that door and put so many locks on it

It feels like it was a life time ago, it was such a different versions of you, the one who closed the door doesn’t seem to be here anymore and what if you can’t recognize what’s left of the you that’s been locked up for so long.

There’s ghosts on both sides, how many are malevolent? All the benevolent ghosts bid adieu, so what if that old you has soured and become the most malevolent of all?

It’s been rotting behind the door with all your unresolved fears, bloated with your insecurities, everything about yourself that you didn’t believe could survive and yet it’s still there, but you have changed so completely so is it really still there?

Pain demands to be felt, the future demands that you are present, you must make space for the past, the past doesn’t exist, you can’t move forward holding on to all this, the future is NOW

You let some of the ghosts go, some don’t let you go. Some we wish we could have kept

Sometimes building the future means you never get to reconcile all of your past, sometimes closer is just time passed

You can never be the same again, some doors stay locked, you take whatever closure you can get, and you stay grateful for whatever the future brings

You serve the children hardier meals, they grow up strong enough to keep tilling the land with the knowledge you gave them about what greed does to the land and how we hope to prevent it.

And sometimes, every so often through your life, you get to greet a day that is so different from the world you were born into that you can feel lives being saved just because they were born in a world you held create

What’s more, sometimes, sometimes you do get everything you ever wanted, and you get to share that future with the people you loved through all of it

[goldensunset]

@the--plant in response to your tags on my khux post. 'is this game free?' i guess you could say that. it's something even more fun! it's

✨ defunct ✨

yeah uh. the app ended its service back in 2021 shortly after the ending to its story was released. what's left of it is basically a dress-up game and a theater mode (aka you can still create your own character and then watch all the story cutscenes with them in it). but even that recently was taken away from us! a few months ago it was quietly and unceremoniously removed from the app store! a lot of people still have the app (holding on for nostalgia's sake, i guess. nothing is playable and it's not like the cutscene movies aren't on youtube) so as long as we don't delete it we can keep it but like no new downloads... 😔

that said. IF you have an interest in khux. if you would like to jump down into this weird delightful rabbit hole with all us other insane people. we can make that happen! there are two particular options i’d recommend:

firstly! the cutscene ‘movie’ from everglow. yes it is like 5 and a half hours long it’s a whole game story of course. you don’t have to watch it in one sitting or anything lol. this is a pretty cut-and-dry compilation of every story relevant cutscene in the game, in the official order they were released in. (this being kingdom hearts, there’s some in-between stuff where the player goes and visits disney worlds. unfortunately almost none of it has any bearing on the actual plot or characterization in this particular game… so this uploader has opted to cut it out. but it is important to know at least that it all exists.) this vid below is what i would consider the most authentic experience!

option two is the fandub movie! see these mobile games don’t have voice acting, which turns some people off of taking an interest in them. but this here is an incredible fan-made project that took auditions for each character, cast voice actors, collected their dubbed dialogue, and neatly edited and mixed the video all together. it took a ton of time and effort to put together and it came out incredibly well!

that said, i personally wouldn’t recommend it for a first time experience (unless you really, really can’t bear to do a lot of reading without voice acting). see, damo279 did things a little differently. a lot of cutscenes in this story weren’t released in chronological order- which is sometimes narratively appropriate, of course, but in other places it gets confusing. he rearranged some of these scenes to try to make the story a little more coherent. which imo mostly was fine, but it very much does change the audience’s experience (such as with the whole entire strelitzia thing. originally that entire section was a flashback and we didn’t know she existed until she was already long dead). he also kind of like ‘added’ a few scenes of his own with narration by one of the characters to summarize the disney world stuff. mostly at the beginning of the game bc the plot starts slow and then picks up the pace exponentially. but like if you don’t care about authenticity though that’s fine lol

the other thing is that like there is also a fully animated fully voiced movie featuring the foretellers (the masked cult leader furries lol) that exists as supplemental background material. chronologically that stuff all goes first, but it would be a reeeeeally really terrible boring weird introduction to the story imho. it’s better to just come back to that afterwards if you’re curious. and see the fandub project mixes the movie and the game together in chronological order to tell a full story. again- it’s great if you’re an existing rabid fan! i love it! but probably weird if you’re a new fan tbh. unless you’re very open minded and patient. in any case here’s part 1 of it! part 2 should be easy enough to find off of this video

and with that said. if you decide to check khux out PLEASE keep talking to me and asking questions! i know it’s a lot. there are even questions that we existing fans don’t yet have the answers to so like don’t feel bad if you don’t understand something! that’s part of the fun… this series is ongoing… hehe

[aconstantmonologue]

I just saw Wild Robot in theaters and I am absolutely enamored by every aspect of it.

[YAP SESSION WITH SPOILERS AHEAD]

There were so many beautiful lessons and themes in the whole film that it’s hard to just pick out and label them because doing so would disservice the film in its entirety.

-Roz: From the very start I felt such a strong connection to her. She never really ‘fits in’ anywhere, and faces isolation from those she wants so desperately to form a connection with. It takes her awhile to adapt and understand things outside of her ‘program’, and even then it’s a learning curve for her, change is difficult to process and understand. But eventually she gets to a point where she’s stuck at a crossroads, she still isn’t quite synchronous with the community around her, but they’ve begun to understand and accept her, and she knows that she would be out of place if she returned to her maker. Her love and care for Brightbill and Fink are difficult for her to express verbally, but she expresses through her actions, eventually getting the vocabulary she needs and yearned for. She took her programming, and used it to create a life she truly wanted, not just a husk of a being.

-Brightbill: I saw this film with my dad and my stepmom. My stepmom raised me, she is just Mom for me, but there was a moment where I didn’t understand why I never really got to spend time with my biological mother, and I held a lot of animosity surrounding that for a long time. Eventually I grew to understand that she wasn’t to blame, the situation was out of her control, she simply adjusted her sails to save me, becoming my Mom without hesitation even if it was difficult as first. She was the Roz to my Brightbill, and sacrificed so much of her time to learn and adapt to raise me, and now she has to watch me grow up and live a life of my own.

-Fink: I wasn’t expecting to like him as much as I did, I feel like fox characters tend to fall into a very specific mold and seem flat and under developed. But seeing his growth through the film was lovely. They made it clear that it wasn’t an instantaneous change. He went through lapses where he would self isolate his honest thoughts again, not even sharing them with Roz. But as he spends more time with Roz and Brightbill, he starts to grasp the fact that there are people who WILL care about him with no strings attached. And that he is allowed to get close to others and love them without the fear of it being transactional.

Disability Representation: I was not expecting this at all, and it may not have even been entirely intentional, but elements of this story spoke a truth that rang into my bones as a disabled person. When Roz loses a foot she adapts her surroundings to suit her needs so she can still navigate while training Brightbill to fly. Paddler even makes her a prosthesis to replace the section of the leg she lost. The isolation all three face from their peers for being different and out of place hit so close to home. Being isolated from others because you were “too odd” is something my family and I, and so many other neurodivergent people have experienced, and sometimes you start to lose hope on finding a community that will accept you, until you find them in the most unexpected places.

Going off of that, Brightbill being significantly smaller than the other geese and the criticism he faces for something out of his control was written so well. There are people who will write you, and your capabilities, off without question once they realize that you are disabled and ‘not normal’. He has to do considerably more work and put in more effort to be seen in an equal standing as his able bodied peers. That’s why I think the lesson he learns (along the lines) of “you can do anything I can do, even if it has to look different to fit you” was so important. Disabled people CAN and SHOULD be given the same respect and consideration as able bodied people, and the end result should be the object of value- not the accommodation it took to get there.

I have so many more thoughts but I will contain myself, I do want to see it again sometime soon though :]

[verdicloud]

hello everyone!! happy feburary and welcome to my “jellicle ball appreciation posts” series where i discuss my favourite part of the whole musical! specifically about the 1998 version because, oh boy, my love for this recording of a 10 minute dance break knows no bounds. refer to this video for the names of the different sections of the jellicle ball aaaand let’s begin!!!

jellicle ball appreciation posts :

perfect timing

anyone who’s danced before knows that doing all those moves, especially for more fast paced dances, takes exceptional strength and control to execute them well. in order to have that control, and of course because moving your limbs and getting from one place to another takes time, you sometimes have to sacrifice one extra second to perform the last move before moving on to the next one. for example, watch bombalurina after “arabesque” as she’s getting into place for “warsaw (ecstasy)”. unlike most others, she raises her arms a little late because she has to run into position from the back. although it’s a pretty minor issue, when this happens your performance can appear delayed and you often end up rushing the following move.

so one of the most satisfying things for me to watch as an ex-dancer (besides straight up satisfying dancing which we will talk about in the future) is someone hitting their mark on a dance move perfectly or even a little early. one example of this is, during “slow paws” jemima’s arm movements are completely in time with the music, and she raises her arms perfectly on cue during “arabesque”.

but absolutely nothing scratches this itch more than watching tumblebrutus, or fergus logan, dance. seriously, who gave this man the right to be THAT graceful???? i cannot even express how euphoric it is to watch him during the jellicle ball and i sometimes open the film just to watch him. i genuinely love the “boys ballet” section so much because of him and fergus logan has become one of my favourite dancers in the show, or ever, if not my favourite. and for the same reason (but not the only one) tumblebrutus is also one of my top favourite cats.

when tumble and misto stand up and do their windmill thing during “spikey”, fergus is completely focused on dancing. you can see it on his face. as a result, tumble is eager and ready to do the next move, and it shows because he hits the mark perfectly and my gosh, i hope you guys know how much i wish i could absorb that moment into my soul. and the way he “windmills” is just like, he swings his arms so freely and effortlessly and elegantly and so in time with the music, it’s just so pleasing to watch. compared to jacob brent, who’s more focused on staying in character, which i absolutely don’t blame him for since he has a very important role, but as a result he ends up windmilling a little bit late and rushes the next one. mistoffelees’ dancing has more of his flavour and spark, but tumblebrutus’s movements are just so freaking refined and graceful and everything, and i highly doubt this will be the last time i talk about fergus logan in these posts.

as much as i love these “perfect timing” moments though, i also happen to care a lot about the moments like i mentioned in the first paragraph, because there’s something beautiful about seeing the humanity behind a piece of art, especially in the case of dance and professional dancers. it shows that no matter how fantastical this world is or how impressive the cats’ feats are, these are still actors, human beings, and they make mistakes on stage sometimes too and that’s ok. it just shows how much effort is needed to pull this off and put on a successful show. cats the musical is one of the only pieces of media that i know of, where it can break the immersion in a serious manner (or even unintentionally) and have it make the experience even more magical.

part 2~~

[sizebrained]

New Year, New You, New York, Part 1

I very much had the image in my mind of Hazel being in charge of Ben's hands building legos so enjoy...

CW: None again, oh god it's becoming all fluff...

*** Ben's brow was scrunched up from concentration. His tongue was sticking out of his mouth just slightly and he was holding his breath. It happened whenever he focused. "Left please...And stop!" Hazel directed. Ben exhaled and it made Hazel's hair go wild for a moment.

She was standing on top of what looked like a wall for now, but it would disappear under the roof line as they got the next several pages of instructions done. "Thank you..." Hazel said pulling with both arms to make Ben's fingers move just a little more.

She patted a fingernail several times so he would drop the piece into place. His grip loosened and it fell where she wanted it. Hazel then stomped it into place. She exhaled and wiped her brow with the back of her forearm.

Ben's hand had silently uncurled and slipped behind Hazel while she was stomping. It was like he was spotting her in case she lost her balance on the narrow wall, but she never did.

She stretched out an arm and put her hand against Ben's enormous hand to rest. At less than 4 inches tall, it was many times her size in every dimension.

She'd been away from humans for so long before Ben and Sam, the softness of his hand just now still caught her off guard.

She smiled up at him. She was enjoying this far more Ben.

The fact that Hazel was enjoying this made it worth it for Ben. He smiled back down at her.

Suddenly his hand lowered causing her to stumble before he swept it forward. His palm cupped slightly with Hazel in it as he lifted her up off the set.

For Christmas, Sam had gotten Ben a 4,000 piece lego set of the Big Ben Clock Tower. Ben thought it was a very unfunny joke, but Hazel thought it was amazing. She couldn't wait to have a more manageable sized version of the real thing from London. They had saved it for the next big storm as a distraction. Hazel had insisted that that Ben stop locking himself away with his headphones every time one came along.

Ben was doing amazingly well compared to their first storm together. He had hardly noticed the flashes of lightning and pounding rain.

It was because he had many things on his mind other than the weather for once.

The first thing on Ben's mind was this monstrous lego set. It was 4,000 pieces in 27 bags. His whole kitchen countertop was covered in them. It was going to be a lot more effort than Ben realized.

Ben hadn't played with legos in a long time. They were a lot smaller than he remembered. Some of the pieces seemed impossibly tiny to him.

Hazel pointed out the obvious when he said this as he started assembling them and struggled. They did look preposterously small in his gigantic hands.

Although Hazel thought everything ended up looking small with Ben.

She watched him from the countertop in silence. He was trying to fit two large delicate sections together and it seemed like he was having quite a time of it. With a plastic snap both sections exploded in a rain of tiny pieces all over.

Ben looked crestfallen and Hazel had to stop herself from giggling at him.

"I guess you do not know your own strength sometimes?" Hazel asked up, crossing her arms and smirking while her tail swished behind her. Ben nodded and sighed.

They started over with Hazel in charge. She was using Ben like a piece of multipurpose construction equipment. She directed his huge hands to pick up and move pieces into place like he was a living crane.

She was having almost as much fun ordering him around like this as she was seeing the tower coming into shape with each new section. She enjoyed how gentle and delicate he could be despite his hugeness, with the right guidance.

As she found herself now swept off her feet in his cupped hand, she was reminded of how easily he could take control. He'd be terrifying if she didn't trust him completely. Even with that trust, he was a little scary at times.

She could extend her arms over her head and stretch as far as she could and not even cover half of his palm. She tried it and her tail curled up around her waist as she did.

She was so insignificantly small compared to him. She'd find her tiny body filled up with a kind of awe. Quite often. Like this moment being so casully lifted up.

He could easily crush her right now if he felt like it. He could really do anything. Instead he had let her push, pull, and direct his fingers for hours without the slightest protest.

Since that first night they met, when he'd saved her, and every night since...he had been nothing but gentle with her. His green eyes, the color and size of a countryside hill in the spring, got closer and closer to her. She saw nothing but kindness in them. But for some time now there was something more in his gaze whenever he looked at her. He was staring at her unblinking.

Ben brought his cupped hand up and held her just in front of his face at a comfortable distance. She felt the light breeze made by his exhales through his nose this close.

"Did you want to rest at all?" Ben asked overly concerned about her as always. She felt her face flushing under his attention and concern. She stopped stretching, sat up, and brought her bent legs to her chest. She rested her chin on her knees and took him in.

She felt something in the pit of her stomach as she did.

It had gotten worse lately. Hazel's tail swished a few times behind her against Ben's palm before she answered.

"No darling bo..." She stopped herself from saying boy and continued. "The storm is still going. I would like to finish. It will be a lovely reminder of England to have around..." Hazel finished and scooted forward in Ben's palm towards the edge. She extended her legs, dangling them over the side.

Ben nodded. He looked out his windows at the rain just as another flash of lightning filled the sky making it daylight for a passing second.

Another moment of heavy silence passed between them. It wasn't awkward at all. They were so comfortable with one another. But something was left unsaid and Hazel could tell. She wouldn't pry because she knew it could take him some time to share.

The thing that was really keeping Ben's mind off the storm, besides all the lego pieces, was in his shirt pocket. Even though it'd been a while since Christmas, he still had one present for her.

His reluctance came from the unavoidable reality that his present would force him to take some form of transportation.

He didn't like the storm outside, but it seemed manageable. It was something that seemed impossible before Hazel came into his life.

But the idea of getting into any kind of vehicle still seemed too hard. Instead of telling her, Ben lowered her slowly back down and they kept building.

They had been at it for hours, quiet other than Hazel's instructions. Ben's attention was fully captured by watching her lithe body moving around the forming set with ease. They were nearly done and it really did look like the tower that gave Ben his nickname. Ben had stopped for snacks several times. He was eating out of nervousness not hunger. He felt the gift burning a hole in his shirt pocket. Nearly done, Hazel was putting the minute hand onto the clock face and oblivious to Ben's internal struggle. She was standing on Ben's flat palm while he kept it close enough to the tower for her to reach. "Um..." Ben said way too loudly.

Hazel doubled over holding the minute hand against her stomach as she did from the sheer power of his normal voice. He usually was so good with his volume around her. It caught her off guard as she felt it shake her whole body.

She looked up at him in dismay and surprise. He looked back at her in embarrassed horror at the same time. "Sorry...sorry..." Ben whispered softer as Hazel stood up panting. He continued at the same lower, whispered volume as his apology. "It's just...I have another present for you, well Christmas present. Well it was supposed to be a Christmas present, but then I didn't buy it. Then I saw it was ending soon so it's technically a Christmas present it's just super late. But I haven't given it to you yet because it's...well. I don't...we can't walk there so I don't know if, but I really want to because I think you..." Ben stuttered and started exasperated. Hazel stared up at him trying to follow but she was still a little stunned from his voice moments before. Her one ear was ringing. "A present?" Hazel asked while dropping the lego minute hand from her grip to use like a walking stick. She rested her weight on it while rubbing her ringing ear. Ben stopped rambling and pulled a slip of paper out of his shirt pocket. He held it up for Hazel so she could read it.

"Ben...this is...a ticket for Camelot. On Broadway?!" Hazel read excited. Her hand covered her mouth in shock. "I saw that there is a revival so...I thought. You had told me about it before." Ben stopped there. He didn't want to mention Mary and make her upset.

"So I got the best seats...well seat I could...and I don't know if it's the best but I don't think anyone will be mad there shouldn't be anyone behind me at least to get annoyed by me blocking the stage or anything...it's just." Ben stopped pulling his lips in against his teeth. "It is too far to walk..." Hazel realized immediately and looked up at him again from the ticket. She smiled resigned that it was too much to ask of him. "Ben it is such a thoughtful gift but really we do not..." Hazel started before he interrupted. "I don't think we should fly because of the security lines and stuff... What if they see you? I thought maybe we could just ask Sam to drive..." Ben said thinking of how his sister drove. "Well maybe not Sam..." Ben sighed and set down the ticket.

"Ben we..." Hazel blurted out before Ben lifted his hand up even closer to his face. She was close enough to reach out and touch his nose. "No! I want to do this with you...I need to do this. It's been over a year now. I can't think of anything else...well anyone else I'd want to..." Ben was faltering.

Hazel stepped forward and grabbed both sides of Ben's nose. She kissed it hard. Ben almost pulled his face back in shock but stopped himself. He wasn't sure what to do. He stayed still for what seemed like an hour just barely able to feel her touch. He could just make out that it was a kiss. Hazel's lips lifted off his skin and she laid the front of her body against his nose in a hug.

"Thank you," she sighed happily, "I would not want to see it with anyone else either. How about a train? They are far larger, slower, and safer even here in America are they not?"

Ben stayed still while Hazel stayed pressed against his face.

He whispered softer than before, "A train sounds...well not good but doable maybe." *** End Part 1

[fab-bladesmith]

A Schlachtschwert, early XVIth century.

Spring steel blade of flat hexagonal section for most its length, mild steel fittings with hollow brass ball finials on the cross. Leather over thread over wooden core for the grip, and leather over wood for the sleeve (more about that below). This is a tentative reconstruction of what a "proper" Landsknecht Greatsword could look like, such a they appear on period artwork, be it paintings like the Siege of Alesia by Melchior Feselen (1533) or the Battle of Pavia kept at the Royal Armouries (or the tapestries depicting that same battle, now at the Museo Capodimonte, made after sketches by Bernard van Orley), the Victory of Charlemagne over the Avars near Regensburg by Albrecht Altdorfer (1518), or the many drawings, prints and woodcuts by artists such as Reinhart von Solms, Jörg Breu, the great Hans Burgkmair, Niklas Stör, Hans Holbein (both Elder and Younger), Virgil Solis, Hans Sebald Beham, the legendary Urs Graf, Daniel Hopfer, Erhard Schön, Hans Schäufelein and others...All of them combined to give this result.

Such swords would be seen not only in the hands of a Doppelsoldner, but also carried by your Feldwaybel or an Edelman. And it would be called a Schlachtschwert in the very captions of the illustrations I mentioned earlier (see Erhard Schön). *Not* a "two-handed Katzbalger", though the cross obviously echoes the S/8-shaped guard of the latter. We clear on that ? Good.

Very few of such swords are kept in museums out there, with a lot of them leaving me dubious regarding their authenticity. The one in Berlin seems to me to be the most genuine of all, and it is on its proportions that I based this piece, though the Berlin sword shows a fancy, diamond-pattern decoration on the quillions very much recalling the Katzbalger kept in the Museum of London. Most if not all period illustration do not show such fancy details on the crossguards though ; they are actually rather plain, without even the ribbing/threading/filework you can find on Katzbalger crosses. Hence I kept this one rather plain, with a square cross section with rounded corners, and some light filework at the center. I also bent the quillions into an offset 8-shape rather than a symmetrical one, to be more consistant with the earlier examples visible in period artwork.

The main questioning was that sleeve at the base of the blade, present on a lot of the period artwork; its obvious function was to provide a spot on which to put the other hand - as can be deduced from Marozzo's teachings for fighting against polearms - but the main issue was how was it made/what was it made of. Elaborating on my previous experience and studies of such things on later Schlachtschwerter, I went for a basic construction of leather glued/stitched over a wood core made of two flat slabs, and force-slid down the blade. There is more than enough friction to keep it well in place, but it is still possible to take it off albeit with some effort. The end of the leather is cut according to period artwork, and flares out to accommodate the mouth of a scabbard if needed. A simple decoration of plain lines on one side, and checkered on the other makes it also consistant with the artwork.

It is 139 cm long, the blade is 1083 mm long, 45 mm wide with a thickness of about 7 mm at its base, tapering down to 3.4 mm near the point. The span of the crossguard is about 21 cm, though from one ball end to the other there's about 73 cm of steel. Weight is 2547 grams, point of balance 13.5 cm from the cross.

Twenty-eight hundred EuroUnits and it's yours.

[wiltkingart]

Do you have any advice on how 2 not overwork a drawing? Over-detailing my art (to the detriment of the final result) is a big weakness of mine, and ive been working on it lately, but simplifying my art is way harder than I thought itd be. I keep getting stuck in a mentality that less detail = less effort, even though all my struggling should prove that isnt true lol. & I almost always like my simpler drawings better, even though that makes me feel kinda lazy…as long as it’s fun tho, right? [1/2]

I’m asking here bc one of the things I adore about your work is how confident and striking your paintings feel. I really admire the way colors and shape language interact in your art…I always want to keep looking to see what I can find hidden in the details, but they don’t take away from the main focus of the image. How do you manage to strike that balance? [2/2] (sorry for the long question lol)

honestly this is still something i struggle with at times! but some things that have helped me are:

- identifying which parts i tend to overwork the most. for me thats faces so i have made it a conscious habit to render faces last. that way i can match my level of face rendering to the rest of the piece.

- working on all parts of the painting at once. some artists are able to work on a painting from section to section. this is not me, regardless of detail level. jumping around all over the place keeps me from focusing too hard on one section above others. i even take this one step further by working on 2+ paintings simultaneously but there is something wrong with me for this one i'll admit.

- staying zoomed out for as long i can. this goes in hand with the previous point but when you're zoomed out its easier to lay down the biggest/primary color blocks without the temptation to detail. once the main color blocks are nicely balanced its easier to pick out a few points of interest to add spots of detail to, and restrain myself to them. (easier said than done! but i try!)

- getting comfortable with backtracking / deleting overworked sections and layers. this might seem scary but this has saved my ass more times than you might think. i always save a version of my drawings before i merge everything / start rending so i can always copy over earlier sections if needed.

- cold turkey removing details from the equation for a while. i did this more from necessity than choice, because i was struggling with my health a few years back and had zero energy to sink into art for long hours. but looking on the bright side it helped me realize what details are/aren't necessary and how to build my features from big -> small. this progression of my patho art shows pretty well how i introduced details back into my work over time.

but yeah! sometimes i do still find myself creeping a little too close to overwork territory for comfort, even with all these safeguards in place. in that case i have to accept that not every piece i put out will be my 'best' and that perfection has no place in art. that's not the point of it!

simplifying forms isn't easy, the same way abstract art isn't lazy. but with all things it can be learned with enough practice. and if you decide at the end of it all that you still like drawing a lot details, it might be a matter of readjusting how / where you implement them. best of luck <3

[nosebleedsturn]

thirty-three ; heartbeat

"sacrificed my innocence too young, i'm numb, kiss the pink back in my lips, my love... want me, save me, make my heart beat again." - nessa barrett

january 1st, 2025, 2:00 am

vega renee veloz

"what are we doing here vega?"

somehow, i convinced matt to drive all the way down to hollywood, where the graffitti art is, and where we got stuck. "i like to come here when i'm having a bad day, and i've been having a lot of bad days recently. i wanted you to know why we got stuck out here. it's cause i was having a bad day." i sighed, staring at the window to the alleyway. "you were having a bad day so you drove to hollywood and sat in an alleyway?"

"no matt, it's what's in the alleyway." i whined. "what the fuck is in the alleyway? is there a club back there or something? cause i'm not letting you go in there-"

"no, no, it's not another club. but once you find out, you can't say anything to anyone else." i made him promise. "i don't know vega."

"matt please, i promise once you go back there, you'll like it."

"and you're not gonna try and kill me?" matt jokes and i giggle. "if anything, it'd be the other way around." matt's eye's roll, but he unlocks the car, letting the both of us out. i step out slowly. i was basically sober now, i had drank a lot of water, and ate the whole sandwich. matt and i walked down the dark alleyway, and then it opened up to my second home. there was a speaker in the corner, playing wu-tang clan super lowly, the couch was empty, so i dragged matt over to it. he kept his eyes searching around the walls. a couple people were painting, some just smoking and having a good time. "what the hell is this place?"

"it's like... a hide out spot for artists who like graffiti. back in the days, they were cracking down on graffiti artists, locking them up and shit. the owner of the shop out in front, his daughter got caught in the crossfire one day and he's been keeping this place a hide out ever since. he's a nice guy." matt's eye's wondered all over the art on the walls. "are any of these yours? i didn't even know you did graffiti art?"

"uh no, they're not mine. i do graffiti art sometimes, but all my stuff got painted over. at the end of the month, the owner comes around back and wipes everything clean. we have to pay for our sections, and anyone who doesn't listen, gets fined or reported to the police."

matt's eye'd widened as i explained the story in full detail, at least as much detail as my jumbled brain could give him. "i didn't know you liked art."

"i love art."

"when did you start doing art?" i sucked in a deep breath, thinking back to that time in my life when i had no idea who i was, what i wanted. "it was shortly after daniel was thrown into jail. i was at therapy when she suggested i try finding something that interested me, give me something to look forward to and put all my efforts into. i needed something extracurricular to help get me financial aid for colleges, i was so behind in school.... and then i realized i like art, and then came this." i explained shortly, too exhausted to tell him every single detail of that night. matt hummed softly in response. "is that why your hands are always stained different colors? i just thought you helped mal dye clothes or hair or something."

i didn't think he noticed, i mean half the time, i hardly ever noticed it on myself, it was like second nature to me. "yeah, you caught me red handed." i show him my hands, funnily enough there had been a few paint splatters of red dusting my hands lightly. "but if your don't have any art here, then where did that come from?" matt asked, taking my hand into his for further inspection.

"i paint my bedroom."

matt's jaw drops in shock. "your bedroom? isn't there a ton of bad chemicals in spray paint?"

"i have a mask, i open my window, i use fans. i've learned how to do it safely. my whole carpet is stained. i have to pay for it to be fixed when we move out."

"if you move out." matt reminded softly. "yeah if." i sighed, staring ahead at the couple sitting across from us, sharing a joint. they looked so close, content with one another. it made me wonder if matt and i could ever be like that. maybe minus the joint, i know he doesn't care for smoking. "you know i wasn't joking right. if shit comes down to it, and you guys are seriously struggling, nick, chris, and i will help you."

"i know, and i thank you for that, but malerie and i are adults now and we need to figure this shit out on our own. even if it splits us up, even if it takes us away from you-and nick and chris of course." i cleared my throat, running my tongue over my bottom lip. is it hot out here or is it just me? or maybe it's matt. "just know that the offer still stands. and if you guys do have to leave, we'll help in any way we can."

"thank you matt, seriously, thanks." it's like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. like this immense pressure to keep everything under control has slowly been relinquished. "you wanna go back to my place and see some real art?" i asked jokingly. matt and i looked at each other, and he bounced up from the couch, holding his hand out for me to take. "yeah, it's getting late anyway. princesses need to go to bed at some point."

"speak for yourself," i scoffed. "i'm like batman, gotta stay up protecting gotham city." i dragged matt back to his van. "fine, this princess has a flight tomorrow morning and needs his beauty sleep."

"if you wanna end the night we can, unless you wanna come back to my place." i suggested and matt's eyebrow's raised. "vega, maybe that's not-"

"no!" i shrieked, pausing beside the passenger door. "we're not having sex!" i whisper shouted, the thought sent a shiver down my spine. "my art is in my bedroom, i told you that, remember?" i poked his forehead a few times. "right-right i-i remember now." i chuckled, opening the passenger door. "silly boy."

"i still can't believe we have the same bedroom." matt said as i threw the door open. "welcome to my humble abode, again." matt's eye's were wide in shock. the amount of colorful details seemed to pop out the more i took it in, as if i were seeing it for the first time too. "this is fucking amazing vega, like holy shit. the last time i was here, i just dropped you off, i didn't even see this other shit..." matt said in admiration, wondering around my room and tinkering with my trinkets and running his hand along the coats of paint decorating my bedroom walls. i held up my led remote, turning the lights on so they were purple, messing around with the other lights in my bedroom to finish off the entire look. i forgot he's been in here before. i probably would have remembered if i wasn't drunk that time too. "i cannot believe i've lived in my house for like almost three years now, and you've barely been here a year, and your room is better off than mine." i plopped down on my bed. "if the walls weren't covered with shit, and the led lights weren't in here, my bedrooms rather empty." all i owned was a cheap facebook market place vanity and dresser, and then my bed. "i didn't know you skate?" matt held up the broken board peaking out from my closet. "oh yeah... i forgot i owned that. i used to skate around before we got malerie's car."

"what happened to mal's car anyway?"

"the towing company took it, only gave us 500 dollars to buy it from us, but i mean, it was half of the rent, so can't complain much." matt sighed and set the broken board back down. "i'm even thinking of selling my range rover. i need something smaller if it's just gonna be mal and i, i don't need a big ass car anymore."

"what? but the range rover is so you? it fits all of us!"

"well there really isn't an 'all of us' anymore. plus, we all fit in the van and if we're like friends now, then... well you know." i mumbled, picking at the hole in my baggy jeans. "we're friends?" matt sat down on the bed next to me. i glanced up at him, biting down on my bottom lip nervously, and nodded. "yes, like serious friends, real friends. 

"maybe even best friends?"

there it is again, that same electric charge from earlier. it's making my heartbeat irregular, which is funny, because i didn't even know it did that anymore. "matt." my chest up and down, neither of us have looked away in far too long. i don't know what it is, if i'm nervous, scared, excited, tired. but i want him and i think i need him. "vega." matt leans in, and so do i. i can feel his breathe fanning against my face. he smells like mint. toothpaste. did he get all cute for me, or did i interrupt his sleep schedule?

my eyes flicker back and forth between his lips. malerie said i'd come to regret it in the morning? or maybe she said everything from now on would go so smoothly we'd both forget that we ever hated each other. well, pretended to hate one another. before matt could get any closer, i push him back, and he resituates himself on my bed against the head board. i climb into his lap, setting myself down harshly. matt's head falls back and a huff of air escape's from between his lips. i've never had a guy react to me like this. with daniel, it was all about him. i never even got to be on the top, it was all about daniel dominating me, forcing me into submission. but this, this is about me and matt. not just matt, and i think i really like that.

i leaned down, grabbing a fistful of matt's hair in my hand, bringing him back to look at me. we sit there for a very long time, just breathing each other in, staring at each other's lips and eye's. his hands roam all over my body, my ass, my hips, my thighs. "vega." matt moans out and i almost lose all composure. "can i please kiss you?" i nodded without a second thought but matt shook his head no. "i need to hear you say it."

"please matt, please kiss me." i begged. matt shoots up to a sitting position, his hands gripping tightly onto my hips, dragging them back and forth across his lap, his lips pressed against mine so tightly, it's so filled with so much emotion, i can't even think. every thought in my head is filtered with matt.

i wonder if he's going to regret this in the morning, is this where our friendship is reborn, are we friends, do friends kiss like this? will i regret this in the morning, what am i even doing right now?

i enjoy it, ever second. i drink him in slowly. the taste of his plush lips against mine. his eye's closed shut, our heavy breathing mixing into each other's. my blood is pumping through my veins so fast, so loud i can hear it. makes me wonder if matt can hear the same thing, is he going as crazy as i am?

matt's lips rip away from mine, and he presses rough kisses to my neck. i tilt my head to the left, giving him more room to kiss, and suck, and bite and do whatever he pleases because for once, i've given someone the permission to, and i love it, and i'm feeling good. matt's hands move from my waist to my back, pulling me closer to him so our chests are flush against each other. my hips don't stop moving, i think i'd rather die than stop whatever this is. i'm moaning such bad words it'd make a sailor blush. my neck is going to be covered in bruises tomorrow. fuck.

"matt, please." i begged out a whine, my head rolls backward, before leaning to the right side, and it's on the left side of my neck where matt finds my sweet spot. the spot that actually has me close to being checked into a mental hospital. i didn't even know it existed. daniel never kissed me like this. "what do you want vega?"

"i need you." i breathed deeply into the air. matt placed gentle kisses trailing from the spot just under my ear, right where my jaw started down to the low sweetheart neckline where my boobs were pushed up toward. i hold onto matt's shoulders, digging my nails into his broad shoulders for some sort of restraint. if he keeps kissing me, he won't be leaving my bed again.

matt sits up, pushing me off his lap so he's kneeling above me, and then slides off the bed. i think for a moment, we're doing this, but he walks towards the bedroom door. "you're drunk vega, and i can't do this to you." i sit up on my elbows, watching as matt leaves, slamming the door making me flinch back in surprise.

i'm still trying to catch my breath and i don't know what to do again. matt's never walked away from me, it's always been me walking away from him.

i gave everything to daniel, and just when i think i can trust matt enough to have my heart, he's running away from me? with some bullshit excuse too, 'he can't do this to me?' what the fuck? i mean, what the fuck?

"fuck you matt!"

i slump back on the bed. it's like i was just brought back to life. like a part of me was awakened and he's walking away from it? away from me? i thought he wanted me. i thought he was going to save me.

N O S E B L E E D S

woah that was a tough read huh... happy summer time though!

[typenull]

I may have to split my BW sprites comms into 2 categories: simple idle loop animations, and more expensive complex ones...

Pokemon sprites work on a rule with their animations, where there's 2 sections that make up a sprite; one simple idle loop/sprite, and then extra animations at the end for movement. This is true all the way from pokemon crystal where the sprites were first implemented, all the way up to pokemon Black and White.

We'll call these "idle" and "action" animation states. Sneasel serves as a good example, since it's action is the same in both generations:

The 'idle' in crystal is the blinking / mouth open, and the 'action' is the swipe. In BW, most idles are simple bobbing. Not all sprite in BW have idles and actions as simple as this, though. For example, a lot of Pokemon that fly in the air have only one animation loop of it's wing's flapping, since the puppet animation for it is so complex and requires frame-by-frame assistance.

When I first started trying to replicate Black and White's animation style, I started by simply making sprites that consisted of only idle animations. This was to get the feel for the puppet animation in general. As a result, the animation process is fairly quick and simple. The idles got more complex, but they still were only a single defined animation, and didn't require me to manually edit individual assets on a frame basis on multiple different loops.

However, as i've done more and more, i've tried to work on my ability to implement these "action" states as well. And as I've done that, they've gotten more complex, too.

(Rotclaw's is bigger because it wasn't animated for a scene!)

It may not look like a lot of difference, but it takes the length of the gif itself from one 14 frame loop to over twice the length, and requires considerably more effort. Here's the frame difference between one simple and one complex idle loop, and a few with both animation states:

I haven't changed my prices to accommodate this yet, as it's been a slow process of building up my ability to do them in the first place... However, they take a lot more time and effort than just doing the first loop, so after my queue is complete I'll put out a poll on some prices I consider. (Not as a final decision, but just to help me make my own verdict!)

Thanks for listening to my post that was supposed to be about my commissions but turned into like a little over 50% awwtism...

[starswallowingsea]

It takes 10 chapters before we really see Renga with his mask down completely (we've had a few instances of it especially in a07 where he mentions eating frozen gyoza and then proceeding to tell Yachiyo tissues are okay to eat because they're sweet?? Okay buddy) and he's by himself getting frustrated with the rose bush because he can't tend to it properly. His relationship with his recently deceased grandmother also isn't helping, he's got this perception of her that she didn't like him (and we'll find out later why exactly he didn't quite feel like he fit in with the Nishizono family) and it's feeding into just everything else in his life right now.

And I mean, he isn't entirely wrong that she was shaking her head at some of his choices but Renga was struggling just making it through high school. By his own admission, the only class he didn't struggle with was physical education and we can assume that there's probably a lot of other underlying issues as to why he couldn't do well in other classes (didn't learn to read when he should have, felt isolated and didn't want to ask for help from others, again pushing people away thinking he still needs to do everything for himself). Being a celebrity model requires a lot less effort on his part if he can hire a manger to do the reading for him and explain things to him, thus keeping his faults to a minimum.

Then the butler comes out and they end up discussing the tiny golden bloom but quickly move on to the rose Shuunin gave to Renga when he was standing in the rain a few days prior. He has a lot of struggles that mirror Nagi in trying to find happiness and approval in people that don't really exist in his life anymore (for Renga that's his newly deceased grandmother and for Nagi it's the mother that abandoned him at the laundromat). But despite that, the family butler noticed that Renga seemed to have something (finally?) that he treasured, something that was precious to him and wanted to do something to show Renga that he, and by extension Renga's father, care for him and want to be closer to him.

Especially since Papa Nishizono also seems to be really bad at expressing himself and communicating with his son, the butler picking up the slack to try and say something but the gap is still there while both of them don't talk about their feelings (though this gets a really nice resolution at the end of the main story... ah I'm excited to reread that section).

Following up on the school thread, Renga also doesn't appear to have been particularly popular in high school, or at least didn't develop any meaningful relationships and having someone he can actually call a friend (even if we, the reader, can see through that charade put up by said "friend") is important for him. His father is clearly excited that Renga is getting out and talking to people, finding his place in the world and letting people in. He's going to have to do a lot more work to really open up and make more friends through HAMA tours but it's a good start (and also I think Renga will end up as the number one guy pushing HAMA Tours found family stuff, he really loves everyone there, including Liguang to an extent, but that'll be a post for another time...). And looking at the end & by extension going back to the scene where he and Ten go to the izakaya in the first place, we can see the Nishizono family is struggling financially (along with his comment towards his grandmother about doing his celebrity work for the good of the family, trying to bring money in so they can like. Stay in their house, as well as the tissue comment earlier) and how he grew up on the streets, having to ration every yen and find deals to make it stretch.

And at the end of his section of this chapter, we have this. Renga wants to be loved and to make the people he loves happy. Obviously he's our little dogboy about it sometimes but he is still willing to put the work into trying, even if he's really bad at showing it sometimes. This was supposed to be a short post but oops. Anyway I might do more of these as I keep re-reading Sun will R1ze because it was fun dissecting things now that we know a little more about him and everyone else.

[chatty-moogle]

Final Fantasy XIV Sidequest Guide: Heavensward Edition

When looking up which of FFXIV's many many sidequests were worth doing, I found that most of the lists were heavily focused on the rewards rather than whether the sidequest itself was interesting or added to the overall game experience. So I decided to make a guide myself :)

The sidequests listed here are selected based on their story, or their contribution to the worldbuilding or lore. CTRL+F for the relevant location (e.g. "Coerthas Western Highlands", or "Falcon's Nest"), take a look at the blurbs to see whether they appeal to you, and have fun!

This section is for the Heavensward sidequests, since that's where I started this whole project~ Click below for details!

Note: unlike A Realm Reborn, each settlement will have sidequest chains with a bit more effort put into them, as flagged by the quest pop-up notice having a cutscene screenshot (similar to the more significant MSQs). If you want to get a feel for a place but don’t have the time or inclination to do a lot of sidequests, I’d recommend doing those ones first – though note that they can definitely get quite long! I’ll refer to these as “flagged” below, for clarity.

Ishgard

Like previous cities, Ishgard has a number of sidequests to flesh out the city and get newcomers exploring. Here are some of the better (or at least more informative) ones.

(Foundation – The Forgotten Knight) Gibrillont ~ “Drinking the Pain Away” (Lvl 50) – a story which highlights the extent of Ishgard’s religious dogma, particularly the disastrous effects an accusation of heresy can have on a household

(The Pillars – Fortemps Manor) Torsefers ~ “Dinner for Four” (Lvl 50) – a delivery run on behalf of House Fortemps to the three other High Houses of Ishgard; highlights the connections and rivalries between the Houses

(The Pillars – The Jeweled Crozier) Mathye ~ “Landing a Stable Job” (Lvl 50) – leads you to the Lightfeather Proving Grounds, and gives some context to the culture around chocobos in Ishgard. Not terribly exciting

(Foundation – Aetheryte Plaza) Fury-fearing Elezen ~ “Remembering Ishgard” (Lvl 50) – a tour of some of the locations in Ishgard; outlines lore behind the statues gracing Saint Reinette’s Forum and Saint Valeroyant’s Forum. Not very exciting, but lore-lovers might want to check it out.

(The Pillars – The Jeweled Crozier) Mathye ~ “Landing a Stable Job” (Lvl 56) – leads you to the Scholasticate, and demands a rare bit of simple puzzle-solving

Coerthas Western Highlands

There aren’t a huge amount of sidequests here compared to the other regions, and the pace of them unlocking is not too overwhelming. If you want to give the main story just to give a bit more flavour and context, I’d recommend doing the five already-unlocked sidequests in Falcon’s Nest (+ The Anvil) before progressing with MSQ “At the End of Our Hope” near the end of the Artoirel questline.

Falcon’s Nest

Sigan’s questline (flagged); starts with Auriaune ~ “Stolen Goods” (Lvl 50) – the first quest isn’t all that interesting, but the questline overall deals with how there used to be a village at Falcon’s Nest before the Calamity struck, and how that is being dealt with now

(Not in Falcon’s Nest) Bohemondas “Homesick” (Lvl 51) – a story about a father and son who lived at Falcon’s Nest before the Calamity, and who have rather different viewpoints on its current state. Note that the questgiver is not based in Falcon’s Nest, but in Ishgard, specifically Foundation (X:9.5, Y:10.3)

The Convictory

Saintrelmaux’s questline (flagged); starts with Dominiac ~ “The Secret to Success” (Lvl 51) – this questline does give a bit of insight into life at the Convictory, as well as into Ishgardian high society. But more than anything it’s just a nice story about someone who, in learning more about dragons to hunt them, learns more about himself

Bonifoix ~ “Remember the Fallen” (Lvl 56) – about the sole survivor of a dragon-hunting expedition; a rare illustration of the dangers faced by the Convictors

Margyt and Ayleth’s questline (flagged); starts with Margyt ~ “Unknown Ultimatum” (Lvl 56) – initially a tale of revenge, but it doesn’t go the way you’d expect; this questline also touches upon into the otherwise-unexplored internal politicking and hierarchies at the Convictory. Honestly, I’m not sure whether to recommend this questline as it seems to undermine the ending of Saintrelmaux’s questline, and some plot points are frustratingly gendered (one of the characters is a female dragon-hunter unhappy about not being given opportunities by her male boss, but the story ends with her becoming his loyal subordinate, accepting that it’s better for her to be in a supporting position)

Other

(Located at Falcon’s Nest) Ingaret ~ “Grandfather’s Belongings” (Lvl 50) – gives a little more insight into pre-Calamity Camp Riversmeet area

(Located at the Anvil) Ysaudore ~ “Dances with Wolves” (Lvl 50) – pairs well with “Protecting What’s Important”, as it gives the Ishgardian view of Camp Riversmeet. Note that the questgiver is based at the Anvil (X:26.5, Y:27.9)

(Located at the Convictory) Wealdtheow ~ “For All the Nights to Come” (Lvl 51) – apart from being a must-play due to its completion being necessary to unlock flying in the region, this quest also contains the surprisingly elaborate backstory behind the Dusk Vigil, a tale which leans into the vicious politics of Ishgard

(Located at Falcon’s Nest) Well-mannered Widow ~ “Flower Mill” (Lvl 51) – explains the story behind Gorgagne Mills

(Located at Falcon’s Nest) Troubled Elezen ~ “The Old Man and the Lake” (Lvl 56) – about a man trying to persuade his uncle to move to Falcon’s Nest, away from his house in the middle of nowhere. Best when paired with “When the Ice Melts” (see below), which gives the other’s point of view

(Located at Oakum Landing) Emont ~ “When the Ice Melts” (Lvl 56) – a little vignette about the uncle of “The Old Man and the Lake”, who continues to live out by the frozen lake even after the Calamity. Note that the questgiver is based at Oakum Landing (X:36.4, Y:9.9)

The Dravanian Forelands

There’s a huge amount of sidequests in this area that unlock quite close together (nearly fifty, double that of the Coerthas Western Highlands)! As such, I would definitely recommend doing the minimum to unlock flying (i.e. collecting all the Aether Currents) in the region and maaaybe doing the flagged quest chains before proceeding with the other sidequests. In general, I found the Loth ast Vath and Anyx Trine sidequests more interesting than those at Tailfeather, as the former give you insight into the Vath and the dragons while the latter will feel quite familiar to anyone who’s done the Botanist or Carpenter job quests, or sidequests in the Shroud. If you’re picky, I’d say that the Anyx Trine sidequests are the most worth doing – many of them are cute and give more emotional weight to Ysayle’s position.

Tailfeather

Q’yantaa’s questline (flagged); starts with Loupard ~ “I Wanna Be the Hunter” (Lvl 52) – a tale of a young Miqo'te starting out as a chocobo hunter, and her trials in finding a suitable hunting buddy. One of the weaker flagged quest chain stories IMO, but the very first quest “I Wanna be the Hunter” is worth doing for the insight into the life of a chocobo hunter

Marcechamp ~ “Some Bad News” (Lvl 52) (Aether Current) – gives a little context on how the camps in the Chocobo Forest connect together and Tailfeather’s role as the central hub in the region

(Not in Tailfeather) Guanaret ~ “Why Does the Caged Bird Sing” (Lvl 52) – insight into a chocobo hunter’s everyday life, and one of the key tenets of chocobo hunting. Note that the questgiver is not based in Tailfeather, but at one of the camps (X:39.5, Y:21.7)

Remaclon ~ “What Remaclon Saw” (Lvl 52) – gives a bit of context to the ruins in the Chocobo Forest, and the typical Ishgardian perspective on it. Gives more flavour to the main story if you do this before MSQ “Mourn in Passing”, as it contrasts with Ysayle’s explanation

Hervoix’s questline (flagged); starts with Hervoix ~ “Getting a Legtrap Up” (Lvl 57) – following on from the tale of eager young hunter Q’yantaa is that of a wannabe hunter who shirks his duties, bristling at the menial tasks that his mentor gives him. (This is also a good illustration of what residents of Tailfeather busy themselves with, outside actual chocobo-hunting.) Eventually dovetails nicely with Q’yantaa’s story

Loth ast Vath

(Not in Loth ast Vath) Nonmind Drone ~ “Awakened” (Lvl 53) – a good illustration of how the Vath differ from the earlier beast tribes, in that Vath are not simply “the one good tribe” of that species but rather those of that species who separate from a larger whole. Shows Loth ast Vath’s importance as a sanctuary for nonmind Gnath. Note that for obvious reasons the questgiver is not based in Loth ast Vath, but at the Gnath Stronghold (X:31.8, Y:38.6)

Astute Vath ~ “Advanced Vathematics” (Lvl 53) – following on from “Awakened”, this sidequest illustrates how the line between Vath and Gnath is much more blurred compared to other beast tribes

Vath Storyteller ~ “The Naming of Vath” (Lvl 50) (unlocks Vath Beast Tribe Quests) – similar to “Awakened”, this quest deals with a newly-turned Vath developing a sense of identity, but is a bit more fleshed out and elaborates a bit on the interaction between Gnath, Vath, and the chocobo hunters. Results in a visual change to Loth ast Vath, which is cool! Note that it only unlocks after getting to a certain point in the main story (MSQ Lvl 53).

The Hungerer and Cibleroit’s quests; starting with “Low-hanging Fruit” and “To Each His Own” (both Lvl 52) – a few simple sidequests which do a good job illustrating the difference between Vath and Gnath. Also, the two of them are cute <3

Anyx Trine

Kal Myhk’s questline (flagged); starting with Gullinkambi ~ “When Mother Calls” (Lvl 53) – as a story about the WoL becoming friends with a young dragon, this would already be cute enough, but it’s also a good illustration of the how human-dragon relations were in the past and how they have been soured by the Dragonsong War. Definitely recommended for those who want to add a little more emotional context to the main story, as this gives players an opportunity to really understand where Ysayle is coming from in terms of dragons and humans being able to live in harmony

Toh Y Thrah’s questline; starts with “How to Feed Your Dragon” (Lvl 53) – you help a baby dragon try out some delicacies. The first two sidequests aren’t too exciting, though they do tell you what dragons like to eat if you’re interested, but the third and last one (“A Taste of the Peculiar”) is surprisingly sweet

Ess Khas ~ “A Lesson in Humility” (Lvl 53) (Aether Current) and “Back in the Game” (Lvl 53) – a cute set of sidequests about an old dragon trying to teach his sons humility

Indomitable Wyvern ~ “Blunders in Dragonsitting” (Lvl 53) – a cute story about a dragon looking out for his younger brother (also a dragon)

Sea of Clouds

I personally didn’t find the sidequests in the Sea of Clouds all that interesting; in particular, they don’t flesh out Camp Cloudtop or the Rosehouse beyond what can be gleaned from MSQ dialogue or talking to the NPCs. The Zundu’s sidequests generally weren’t as interesting as the ones for non-human questgivers in the Dravanian Forelands, either.

The Rosehouse

Gildon’s questline (flagged); starts with Gildon ~ “Bargaining Chip” (Lvl 50) – about a man eager to motivate the decidedly unmotivated troops posted to the quiet Camp Cloudtop and Rosehouse, but whose passion is mistaken for foolishness (sometimes correctly). One of the weaker flagged questlines in Heavensward, but the humorously hostile dynamic between Gildon and Camp Cloudtop provisioner Fabrellet is one of the more fleshed out amongst the expansion’s town NPCs

(Not in Sea of Clouds) Hyur on Hard Times ~ “Looking to the Future” (Lvl 51) – somewhat unexpectedly, minor NPC Marielle has a bit of a backstory. Note that the questgiver is based in Ishgard’s Foundation (X:12.5, Y:10.9)

(Not in Sea of Clouds) House Haillenarte Knight ~ “Honoring the Past” (Lvl 56) – goes a bit into some history regarding House Haillenarte, including Laniatte of the Rosehouse’s background. Note that the questgiver is based in Ishgard’s Pillars (X:11.5, Y:10.9)

Ok’Zundu

Gunu Vanu’s questline (flagged); starts with Guna Vanu ~ “Flying the Nest” (Lvl 57) – an amusing tale of a Zundu far past the threshold of adulthood who, due to his laziness, has failed the coming-of-age trial eight times… and counting. Better to leave for when you’ve unlocked flying in the region

Sonu Vanu~ “On Wings of Vanu” (Lvl 57) – a no-combat quest which encourages flying about the area; gives context to the woven orb-like objects you may have seen hanging from some of the islands. Requires flying

(Not in Ok’Zundu) Zundu Intelligencer ~ “For Your Spies Only” (Lvl 57) – a glimpse into the Zundu’s espionage network, which is a fancy way of referring to the scout who monitor the Vundu up close. Note that the questgiver is not based at Ok’Zundu, but at (X:23.0, Y:19.8). Requires flying

Hinu Vali ~ “Returning What’s Ours” (Lvl 57) – gives some context on the tense history between the Zundu and Vundu

Aanu Vanu ~ “Winds of Ill Omen” (Lvl 57) – some lore titbits regarding Vundu totems, and the totems’ significance to the Zundu. IIRC flying is required

Churning Mists

The sidequest unlocks were paced a bit strangely here; the initial round that unlocks when you’re in the area for MSQ reasons is (relatively) manageable in number, though on the whole not that interesting. However, if you for some reason decide to return after a certain point in the MSQ, then you’ll find a ton of sidequests waiting for you… and even more, after you’ve completed that round. Many of the later sidequests are actually part of separate quest-chains, so if you plan on completing most of them, I’d definitely recommend pacing yourself and unlocking flying first.

Moghome

Mogleo’s questline (flagged); starts with Mogleo ~ “A Pebble for Your Thoughts” (Lvl 54) – a cute little tale about a young moogle who dreams of joining the Pomsguard, and his adventures in helping other moogles across the Churning Mists

Mogomo ~ “Nut Job” (Lvl 54) – gives a little insight into life at Moghome; you get to pick kupo nuts!

Pomguard questline (flagged); starts with Mogloo ~ “Protecting the Pom” (Lvl 55) – follows Mogkul, second-in-command of the Pomguard, and his attempts to protect Zenith along with his fellow moogle soldiers. Outlines the arrangement between the moogles and Hraesvelgr, but isn’t particularly interesting as a story. I’m also not keen about how the sole female member of the Pomguard is portrayed as weak and easily-frightened compared to her male peers, especially when there are so few female moogles in the first place

(Not in Moghome) Maenne’s questline (flagged); starts with Unflinching Temple Knight ~ “Into the Mists” (Lvl 56) – a very by-the-numbers look at the work of the dragoon scouting party; basically, you do the entire squad’s work for them. I’d largely skip the story if you do this quest chain (it’s necessary for unlocking the moogle dailies), but the last quest “Laying the First Brick” puts a nice cap on the moogles’ attempts to preserve the ruins in the Churning Mists. Requires flying. Note that the questgiver is posted outside House Fortemps’ manor in Ishgard (X:11.4, Y:11.0)

Twelveswood moogle questline (flagged); starts with House Fortemps Knight ~ “Moogles in the Sky” (Lvl 59) – a story about some Twelveswood moogles who want to visit Moghome. This quest chain is a must-play for anyone interested in moogle lore, as it goes into the cultural differences between the Twelveswood and Moghome residents, as well as their shared ancestral history! But be prepared to spend a lot of time flying all over the Sea of Clouds – it’s to the point where those not interested in moogles may want to give this one a miss. Requires flying. Note that the questgiver is posted outside House Fortemps’ manor in Ishgard (X:11.4, Y:11.0)

Other

(The Monsterie) Mercurial Moogle’s questline; starts with Mercurial Moogle ~ “I Won't Leaf You Behind” (Lvl 55) – a set of three quests about a moogle trying to find herbs to help his sick friend; apart from being heartwarming, it also offers some insight into moogle medicine. Requires flying IIRC. Note that the questgiver is based in the Monsterie (X:34.1, Y:16.0)

(Tharl Oom Khash) Tharl Oom Khash questline; starts with Malingering Moogle ~ “Unwanted Attention” (Lvl 55) – a set of four quests about the moogle research expedition working at the ruins of Tharl Oom Khash (note that the first quest seems very unrelated). There is a lot of flying up and down trying to find the quest objectives, which can be annoying, so I’d mainly recommend this questline to those who are particularly interested in the ruins dotting the region, or in dragon culture. Requires flying. Note that the questgiver is based near Tharl Oom Khash ((X:17.4, Y:11.2)

The Dravanian Hinterlands & Idyllshire

Most of the sidequests in this region actually originate in Idyllshire rather than out in the field, but note that like the Dravanian Hinterlands themselves, the sidequests are unlocked in two phases – first, those that mainly concern the Eastern Hinterlands, and second, those involving the Western Hinterlands. Clearing all the sidequests is not too overwhelming if you do them as they come up (i.e. finish the first set before unlocking the Answering Quarter), but it’s probably quite painful to clear all at once post-Heavensward. Personally, I found that the first set of quests were generally better at fleshing out Idyllshire, but the real stars of the show are the three flagged questlines – two linked ones from Idyllshire, and the one at Matoya’s Cave – definitely focus on these if you can’t be bothered with the rest!

Idyllshire

Slowfix’s questline (flagged); starts with Slowfix ~ “The Pick of the Bunch” (Lvl 58) – about Slowfix’s leaderly struggles in setting up the administrative systems required to run a city; a classic tale of idealism versus practicality. Only this time, the story takes a rather more corporate bent – it’s definitely recommended if you feel strongly about policies and procedures (whether that feeling is positive or negative!). The questgiver is at X:7.0, Y:6.0

Midnight Dew ~ “Community Service” (Lvl 58) – gives a sense of everyday life at and the community of Idyllshire. The questgiver is at X:5.5, Y:6.6

Loudjox ~ “A New Leaf” (Lvl 58) – touches upon what kinds of things goblins trade, including filling for their masks. The questgiver is at X:7.1, Y:7.2

Halfsix ~ “Ebb and Aetherflow” (Lvl 58) – illustrates how recycled Sharlayan technology is crucial to keep Idyllshire running. The questgiver is at X:7.5, Y:6.7

Holepix ~ “The Vangob Job” (Lvl 58) – shows how Sharlayan technology can be reverse-engineered and recycled in less than peaceful ways. The questgiver is at X:7.5, Y:6.7

Notched Bone & Dedean’s questline (flagged); starts with Midnight Dew ~ “The New Arrivals” (Lvl 58) – a thematic continuation of Slowfix’s story, this quest chain explores the ideals behind Idyllshire from a different perspective. It follows two new arrivals who – thanks to bad experiences in Ul’dah – are suspicious of everyone and everything

Other

(Matoya’s Cave) Saro Roggo’s questline (flagged); starts with Saro Roggo ~ “Saro Roggo's Common Life” (Lvl 59) – if you are going to play one quest chain in Heavensward, make it this one. About a self-doubting enchanted frog who fears for his place among Matoya’s familiars, this questline delivers a simple but affecting story, fun (if very simple) riddles to solve instead of the usual “fetch this, kill that” objectives, and gives players a little more insight into the into the excellent Matoya (whose screentime is all too brief!). Flying recommended

Azys Lla

Yes, the final dungeon area has a bunch of sidequests while you wait for the duty to pop (though that’s no longer relevant thanks to NPC support). Unfortunately, said sidequests don’t do much to flesh out the area beyond what you can already learn – or infer – from the MSQ dialogue; there’s only one which might be of interest to lore-lovers. If you’re intent on doing the sidequests regardless, I’d highly recommend progressing with the MSQ first anyway as you’ll unlock all the necessary Aether Currents for flying by doing so.

(Gamma Quadrant) Auditing Node ~ “A Crude Facsimile” (Lvl 59) – touches upon the link between Allag and Garlean technology. The questgiver is based in the Gamma Quadrant (X:29.8, Y:37.6)

[underdark-dreams]

Thank you for the delicious food~ just Rolan x Dammon this time?

I’m giggling and smooshing them together like barbie dolls 🖤

Dammon x Rolan Headcanons

SFW:

The contrasts between the way these two men carry themselves is so funny

Rolan: a little arrogant, self-important, very concerned with appearances

Dammon: earnest, friendly, no pretenses at all

As they walk, Dammon drapes his arm around Rolan's shoulders. Pulls him in to place a soft kiss on Rolan's cheek

Rolan would normally disapprove of the public affection but has no will to resist most things Dammon does

Is it possible for his face to go redder? Because it does. He slides his arm around Dammon's waist without saying anything 

Sometimes when they're side by side, the ends of their tails twine together a few times. It's like Tief hand-holding

Most can't stand the intense heat inside Dammon's workshop for long, so he's grateful every day that he fell for another Tiefling

Rolan leans back against the wall with a book, making an effort to read but mostly appreciating the view of his handsome smith with a little smirk

Dammon's flattered and a bit amused by it. But he makes sure to put on a good show for him--lots of sweaty muscles flexing and a few suggestive grunts 

The first time Rolan brings him to the Tower, Dammon is a little in awe of the magic and knowledge in this place and the fact that Rolan is the keeper of all of it. Just how powerful is his boyfriend?

Rolan eagerly takes his hand to lead him to one little section in particular. It's full of books on magical craftsmanship and enchanted metals

Deep down his wizard is always thinking of others. Dammon grabs the front of his robes to pull him in for a kiss

When Dammon's icy blue eyes look at him with That Look, Rolan feels like he might burst into flames

As soon as they find out, you just know Cal and Lia are poking fun at the relationship. "Dammon you know you're like...way out of his league right, you could do a lot better"

In reality they adore Dammon. They notice how well he treats Rolan & they're happy to finally see their brother smiling after all he's been through

Sometimes his siblings get a little too chummy. It makes Rolan jealous to get Dammon's attention back for himself

It's like when you bring your new boyfriend home and your family acts like they want to adopt him. Rolan grabs Dammon by the shoulders and steers him toward his room. "Piss off, he's mine"

NSFW:

Gentle as he is, Dammon definitely leads most of the intimacy

He's not shy about expressing his feelings verbally or physically (as long as the time is right of course)

He's an absolute natural at all of it: kissing, cuddling, sex

Rolan tends to overthink all these things at first, so when Dammon guides him up against the wall to cover his mouth with kisses, it's honestly a blessing and a relief

Dammon adores using his mouth and hands on him—giving makes him horny. But he also loves watching Rolan lose some of that self-assured control. The man needs to learn how to relax

And it's hard to resist a little teasing. Dammon slides his mouth off him right in the middle of things to lazily kiss along his inner thighs instead. "Fuck, you're not fair," Rolan pants

Rolan acts like a bratty bottom sometimes but when it comes down to it he is so whipped and so, so in love

When Dammon's taking him from on top with his strong arms braced on either side, Rolan feels like there might be actual hearts in his eyes. He would do anything to make Dammon happy

When Rolan gets the chance to take the lead, he can almost always take Dammon's breath away with how passionate and intense he gets

During cuddles Rolan is little spoon almost always. But now and then Dammon falls asleep with limbs half-draped over him and his head resting on Rolan's chest

Rolan rubs Dammon's shoulders with his dexterous hands, quickly finding each knot and easing it. It's no wonder considering the long hours his lover spends at work in his forge every day

Dammon sighs deeply against him, savoring the feeling of being a little pampered for once