#also bunnys design may continue to change as i try to fit them in with the others

[echoingkarma]

Hint of Bunny lore and a slight redesign to pull the colours and such back to match the rest of the Welcome Home cast!

Template by @fetusmeme

Reblogs are appreciated!

[dzamie-oc]

Voretober 24 - Harvest

Length: 1400 words Vore type: F/M, oral vore Fandom: None (Kahudra) Other info: unwilling prey, kobold/rabbit, feral prey, digestion Summary: A garden during harvest season is a great place to find a meal! A rabbit knows this, and unfortunately, doesn't consider that may be more universal than he'd like.

On the outskirts of Dilmar City, a garden's plants grew heavy with vegetables. The garden was, of course, guarded by a fence. Easily ten feet high, a wooden frame bounded a shimmering, magical barrier, designed to completely but harmlessly repel any fox, deer, and possibly even a bear.

But not, William thought as his paws pushed through the layer of grass from below, a bunny. A little more digging, and the exit - now entrance - to his hole was wide enough to fit whatever he could drag back with him, as well as his soon-to-be-bulkier body. Extrication, however, could wait: he had a feast fit for a whole warren for him to peruse and enjoy. William shook off some dirt and began to hop through the rows of plants.

Cabbage, onions, some spinach, pumpkins… William slowed his pace at the line of carrot leaves poking out of the ground. Just before he could start digging, however, his ears perked up at a sound: the voice of a yellow and orange kobold using a magic staff like a walking stick, grumbling to herself.

"Stupid superstitious humans. 'Magic corrupts the crops' my scaly tail." She bent down, hefted a pumpkin thice William's size, and placed it on a nearby cart before biting down on the stem to sever it and spitting out the part stuck in her mouth. "Bleh. Tastes like food's food. I don't know what that elf sees in this job besides a worse paycheck than-"

William froze when one bright yellow eye focused on him. Slowly, smoothly, the lizard turned to face the bunny. He tensed, preparing to run straight back to his hole; fangs that pointy and sharp, and mention of "food's food" set his fur on end. But maybe she hadn't actually seen him, or maybe she'd-

The kobold took a deep breath, glanced left and right, then laid down on the cart, letting one arm and the lower half of her legs and tail hang down. "Ah, hell, every carrot you eat is one I don't have to pull up." She laughed, and adjusted her head to avoid laying on her horns. "But lucky you that this is some human's field and not my dragon's."

After waiting several seconds for her to move again, and her failing to do so (save for a lazy twitch of her tail), William took a cautious hop up to the carrot. Then sunk his claws into the dirt. Then did so again, digging faster as the kobold continued to do absolutely nothing about it. Before long, the carrot was out of the ground and, nibble by nibble, vanishing into him. Not even the leaves were spared.

Emboldened by this odd lack of action, the bunny moved to the next carrot. It came up faster, partly from his confidence, but also because it was truly scrawny. Still, food is food, and its size meant it simply disappeared faster. After wiping some dirt from his mouth with a paw, he saw a set of leaves he was certain belonged to a truly delicious specimen, a little closer to the cart. The kobold was completely still, and possibly asleep. So, William took one hop, then another, and started to dig.

Suddenly, a sharp pain jolted through his ears! A strong pressure held them together, then lifted him up by them, until he stared the kobold, now smiling, right in the eyes. William struggled, wiggled, and kicked at the air, but her grip around his ears was far too firm to drop free. A thoughtful look replaced her cold smile, and for a moment, the bunny dared to hope she'd changed her mind.

"Let's see…" she muttered, drawing her staff closer to William with her other hand, "probably don't need much mana into this one. I do want it to end quickly, after all."

The staff tapped William's head, and he heard a firm command: "Sleep." He shook his head, trying to both ignore and use the pain to fight it. Seconds passed, but he remained awake - though his normally strong legs felt like heavy weights dangling from him; he tried to kick again, but felt them barely twitch. To his horror, the kobold noticed this, and bared her fangs in a wicked grin. "Perfect," she purred.

Without getting up from her resting position, she simply lifted him over her head and opened her jaws wide; William could only stare down at the perilous, pink expanse, framed by deadly-sharp fangs and framing an even deadlier dark throat entrance. Her breath was warm and soft against his fur as she lowered him, and once again William had to fight to stay awake. One blink later, and her breath surrounded him, full of unfamiliar but instinctively dangerous scents, yet the gentle, warm pressure of her throat around his hind legs made a powerful argument in favor of giving in to slumber.

The pressure around his ears vanished as the new, lighter one crept up his midsection, threatening his forelegs as well. His ears, sore from the kobold's grip, folded back against his head and back, and then, with a loud clack, she snapped her jaws shut, surrounding him in darkness. An even louder GULP sent a shot of energy coursing through his body, and he kicked as hard as he could against the walls of her throat… which, in his sleepy state, wasn't very hard at all. Her gullet's embrace climbed to his neck, and then wrapped around his head.

The predatory lizard swallowed once more, and irresistible muscles shoved William deeper into her body; his hindpaws slid into a more open yet definitely more deadly chamber, followed soon by his hips, his belly, and the rest of him. His fur was matted down with drool and other juices. Completely cleaned of dirt, he had no doubt, but the thought that the kobold's stomach would soon clean him off of his bones…

Sheer terror, or perhaps her spell wearing off, threw some fight back into him. With newfound strength, he thumped his hindpaws down as hard as he could, as though trying to jump in his confined space. Though muffled by the flesh around him, he heard a surprised "woah!" from his captor, and then William's surrounding's rotated as the kobold sat up. This did little to dissuade the bunny, who simply kept kicking her stomach walls. She growled, and a new pressure from outside pushed against him, as though she could simply force him to be still and accept his fate. William, of course, did his best to not do that, and kept at his assault.

The kobold's stomach rumbled, and what little space he had to ready his kicks was taken from him in a large belch - at least, from the small bunny's perspective. William tried to kick more, but with her stomach pressing in on him even closer than before, he couldn't manage much power behind them. Not that the constant, cloying massage all around him wasn't trying to finish what her earlier sleep spell had nearly done. William could barely focus on much else besides staying awake and continuing to thrash - not even kicking - when the scaly predator jostled him around more hopping off the cart.

"Welp, that's enough of a rest. Boring human job or not, I have my pride as a diligent kobold," she said to herself, and to her unwilling eavesdropper. Between her steady crouching and lifting, the darkness around him, the increasingly stale air, and her stomach constantly kneading acids into his fur, it wasn't long before William succumbed, closing his eyes for the last time.

-

Rinta gave a grunt of effort as she hoisted the last pumpkin onto the cart. Her stomach grumbled around the gradually diminishing heap of rabbit meat and fur stewing inside. The kobold gave her belly an appreciative pat, and it responded by sending up another burp. She grinned to herself; the free live food did make up for the very un-adventurer-like manner of the job, she supposed. She crouched down and started on the line of carrots, quietly hoping that the tasty, squirmy bunny hadn't been the extent of ther farm's pest problem.

[thebrownssociety]

what’s the sibling dynamic between buster and elmyra? since elmer and bugs are married in and the looney tunes cast adopted the tiny toons cast

Thanks for the ask! Sorry it's taken so long, I was trying to tie all the threads together.

So, I'm going to include Babs in this as well, as I headcanon Bugs and Elmer adopted Buster, Babs and Elmyra together.

So to understand this we've got to go back to after Tiny Toons had finished filming in early 1992. By that point the kids were all 5 years old and had basically formed a tight-knit group. They were also at the stage in there development when they were starting to expand a little bit beyond what their official characterisation was.

So, take Montanna Max, for example, although he was still hot-headed, obsessed with money and greedy [and those traits would never go away] he was now learning that his friends [and particularly the adults] weren't going to put up with his screaming at them all day and not sharing anything and that if he wanted to remain friends with them he was going to have to change his behaviour at least a little. The rest of the toons would accept what he was created as, but they wouldn't accept him using that as an excuse to act completely out of order.

Buster and Babs upon finishing filming were both enrolled in a two-year long course which was basically going to help them adjust to not being a protagonist anymore. It's a course that every protagonist of a TV show, or a film, does after the completion of there first show, and it basically helps them come to terms with the fact they are not the centre of the universe. The reason for this is because it's been accepted and realised that it's very hard for a toon who's had there entire show revolve around them to suddenly not have that anymore and be sent out into the world of Toons where most Toons don't care.

As a genreral rule in Toontown, unless you've achieved the fame levels of Bugs Bunny or Mickey Mouse, or are associated with them, no one really cares what film you were in. So Anna and Elsa are treated like goddesses in Toontown because, there film was really successful and they're seen as really good characters, contrast that with Princess Aurora [who's film was a box-office bomb at time of release, I believe] who is more respected and liked because she's royalty and she's really nice than because her film was successful.

In short, unless your film is massively successful at time of release, you're just another toon and the two-year course helps protagonists come to terms with that. There are positives as well, it's not all 'you're nothing now'. The toons work on their individual skills and how they may be transferred to other things. [Babs's impression are so good, for instance, that even if Tiny Toons never got rebooted, she'd still have a really good shot at becoming a Toon Impressionist, if she wanted to. Buster's flexibility and ability to 'read' other people means he'd potentially be good as a nurse/doctor/police officer or just a role that's with the public.]

While Buster and Babs were doing that Elmyra spent time with Bugs and Elmer and practiced her toon powers while benefiting from the individual attention being given by her dads. [Just a note, there is a two-year course for villains as well that was introduced in the 60's that helps them to...not be so villainous, but you have to meet a certain level of 'badness' like Maleficent OR Evil Queen to get in there and - obviously - Elmyra doesn't meet that requirement.]

So, back to the actual ask, Buster, Babs and Elmyra moved into Bugs and Elmer's 5-bedroom mansion shortly after filming ended. It was decided they would each have there own room, which they decorated to there own preferences [Elmyra's is very VERY pink]. So this relieved some tension, because Babs HATED the idea of sharing a room with Elmyra. [Elmyra, for her part, was happy about the idea and cried buckets when she was told it wouldn't be happening.]

At first Buster didn't really get on well with Elmyra at all. Over filming he'd kind of managed to build her up into the 'oh, help me, it's Elmyra' figure, and although he knew she was largely harmless, he still didn't like her. Her 'baby-act' and need to be constantly supervised also grated. This was the same for Babs.

Elmyra, at first, adored the idea of living with Babs and Buster and had visions of dressing them up all day in 'cutesey-wutesey outfits'. It may surprise you to know, that Buster and Babs did not WANT to be dressed up in outfits, cute or otherwise, and had no issue anvilling her to get the point across. This led to tears on Elmyra's part and frustration on Babs and Buster's.

This did eventually mellow out though, due to a couple of things, firstly - Bugs and Elmer's determination to teach Elmyra how to handle her new brother and sister properly [and vice versa for the bunny's]. Secondly - because Elmyra did have regular session with Doctor Scratchensniff every week during which they worked on 'how not to strangle animals when you hug them.' among other things and thirdly because Buster and Babs realised things where not all sunny for Elmyra.

That sounds really ominous, but what I may is that a few of you may have remembered that Elmyra actually had a family when she was on the show. A physical one, not just 'mentioned' parents like Buster. [Babs had a mother who was shown, but Babs's mother is a sufficiently flat characters, that if she doesn't have Babs in the house she assumes she's at school. It doesn't matter whether it's snowing, the middle of the school holidays or the middle of the night, as far as 'Mrs Bunny' is concerned, Babs is at school.]

It was decided after Tiny Toons ended that Elmyra should continue to see her 'designed' family [the family she was designed to have] at the weekends. Friday afternoon she walked home/would be dropped off by someone at her designed parents house and she would stay there until Sunday night until she was returned just after dinner. [So Elmyra would miss dinner with Bugs and co]

This worked for a little while until it got to when Elmyra was going into Grade 1 and Elmer realised she was always doing her homework when she got home. Her parents weren't helping her. In a rather tense conversation he asked Elmyra's designed parents if they would help her do her homework. They promptly replied that the homework was to difficult for 'there little baby' and she should be given something age-appropriate. It was during that discussion that Elmer discovered her 'parents' thought she was 4 years old.

Even by Toon standards, this was a warning flag and Elmer promptly excused himself and ran the conversation by Doctor Scratchensniff because the fact Elmyra's parents didn't seem to recognise the fact that A} her designed age was 12 and B} she was actually 6, not 4 - was concerning to say the least.

Now. Normally D.S. doesn't get involved with this kind of thing because otherwise he'd never do anything else, but as Elmyra was already a patient of his and he decided it wouldn't do Elmer/Bugs any good if they challenged Elmyra's parents themselves, he decided he better have a word with them herself.

He had his word. And they seemed to understand. Scratchy went back to Bugs and Elmer and told them they didn't have to worry, that Elmyra's parents understood her designed age was 12 and that she would get older and mature above that [hopefully]. Bugs and Elmer [particularly Elmer] were suspicious about this at first, but Elmyra came back from her parents having had her homework done and with tales of having done exciting things during the weekend. She was also - they noticed - being given age-appropriate things to play with and this lasted...until she moved up to middle school.

Elmyra moved up to middle school a year after Buster and Babs did, which meant they weren't in the same class. However they were in the same house and it became noticeable that Elmyra didn't seem very happy. Specifically she didn't seem very happy with the idea of going to her parents house at the weekend and was somehow even less happy when she came back.

Bugs and Elmer had noticed this and tried to ask her what was wrong, but she refused to tell them. Buster didn't really want to get involved - he felt it would open a long, emotional conversation he didn't really want to have - but when Elmyra came home one day in tears and he was the only one in the house it fell to him to deal with it.

Turns out Elmyra's parents did not like the fact she was in middle school. They thought the schoolwork she was doing was to advanced for her [it was perfectly acceptable work for her grade and she was doing well with it] and her mother in particular was concerned because Elmyra had started Noticing Boys. This did not fit with the notion they had that she was still a little girl who spoke in a babyish voice and called everything 'cuddly-wuddly' despite the fact that Elmyra herself was doing her best to drop the 'cuddly-wudddly's' [unfortunately she still had to keep the babyish voice] and asking that her parents maybe not buy her games and stuff that were clearly designed for a child under 10.

By this point all this had been going on for a few months. Buster - after calming Elmyra down and running the situation by Hampton - told there dads what was going on with Elmyra and they took matters out of his hands.

Doctor Scratchensniff paid another visit to Elmyra's parents with the intention of explaining to them, gently and tactfully, why they needed to change the way they were treating Elmyra because it was risking damaging her and no one has a clue what was actually said in that meeting, but the end shot was that Elmyra no longer saw her parents on the weekend. She could contact them again at 16 if she wanted to, but until then it was in her best interests to stay away from them.

You all may be wondering why I'm going into so much detail about Elmyra's circumstances, and that's because I feel it's necessary to understand the siblings dynamic. Buster, Babs and Elmyra - up until they were about 11 - only spent Mon-Thurs as a proper group. During that time they anvilled each other, teased each other and tried to actively avoid each other [or rather Buster and Babs tried to actively avoid Elmyra when she was at her most annoying] They also played games together, struggled through school-work together and dealt with there annoying parents together. They became a pretty effective sibling team.

Buster and Babs - despite being created to have a crush on each other - came to view each other as adopted siblings and remained close. They laughed together, joke together and messed with people together.

Babs and Elmyra go shopping together, they talk about stuff together - 'stuff' being the subjects of romances and Life in general that perhaps Buster wouldn't want to be a part off - they get on pretty well actually, mainly because they have a good few things in common and on Elmyra's sensible non-complete-moron days they can even have deep conversations about politics and the world in general as well as analysing TV shows and fangirling over there favourite characters.

Buster and Elmyra are a bit of an odd paring. On Elmyra's smart days the two of them can be quite devious and can throw adults for a loop easily. On her less smart days Buster just tries to stay out her way. The things with Buster and Elmyra is that he basically thought of her as an annoyance for the first 5 years off his life. When he was adopted by Bugs and Elmer and found himself now living with her he was essentially banned from insulting her to harshly. ["No anvilling at the dinner table, Buster!"] But part the issue was that Buster was jealous because Elmyra had another family she got too see and he didn't. He knew that Bugs and Elmer were his official family and it was great to be adopted by his mentor but he couldn't help a pang of envy every time Elmyra got in the car to go to her parents house.

And then the breakdown happened with Elmyra when she was 11 [Buster and Babs knew her parents had had a few problems with her before, but didn't know the exact details, To be fair not even Elmyra herself knew the exact details. Elmer had the conversation away from her and then the rest of it was kept away from her. The only thing she was told was that her parents would now be helping her with homework when she went to them at the weekend.] and Buster realised that Elmyra's home life was not a bed of roses and he made a conscious effort to not be so short with her and to be more patient in the way that Babs seems to be able to do effortlessly. [Babs's realised pretty quickly after they all started living together that Elmyra wasn't going to change and decided that rather than fight it she was just going to embrace it. She was hoping that Elmyra would go away after Babs played 'dress-up' with her, but it just made Elmyra like her more. After a couple of months - and a conversation with Bugs - Babs realised that Elmyra literally just wanted someone to spend time with and dress up. But it was more the spending time than the dressing up that Elmyra liked. They managed to work out a system where Babs would let Elmyra dress her up and do her ears, if Elmyra would give feedback on Babs's impressions and watch comedy tapes with her.]

Going back to Buster, it took a while and, while he and Elmyra are never going to be 'best friends', Buster eventually realised she wasn't that bad and started to enjoy spending time with her.

Elmyra, for her part, has made a conscious effort over the years to not hug her siblings [or any other cute, fluffy creatures for that matter] to tightly, dress them up against their will, or chase them round the earth till they just give up. She still hugs and does like going shopping [or 'grown-up dress up' as Babs calls it] and will chase them to give them a hug if she's having a particularly stupid day or thinks they look upset, but the main thing is that Elmyra is trying.

Very very trying.

[tae-cup]

Run | JJK Oneshot

Inspired by: BTS’ “Run”

Pairing: non-Idol!Jeon Jungkook x Runner!Reader

Summary: He never enjoyed running until he met you, sadly, life has a way of taking a turn for the worst.

Warnings: Mentions of disease/illness, ANGST, but also lots of fluff!

Word Count: 3.3K Words

A/N: We all need a little Jungkook in our lives. Alternative Song Alive (acoustic) by Dabin & RUNN

Other: Masterlist

Make me run Make me run more Let my feet rip apart with wounds At least I can smile when I see you

Sweat beaded on your forehead as you paced yourself through the streets of Seoul. The annual Seoul Marathon. You had been dreaming of this for a while. The burning in your lungs, the strain on your legs, the crowd. You loved it. 

Running made you feel alive. It reminded you that you were breathing, that your feet knew the way. Step after step. Just one more step and you’ll be closer. Your water bottle was crushed in your hand, wrist coming up to swipe at the sweat. Training your body wasn’t an issue, you wanted to do this. It started small; around the block and back. Then it became ‘to the end of the neighborhood and back’ and finally, across the city and back. It was quite the feat. You may have almost passed out once or twice. 

That’s how you stumbled into a man that would change your life. Jungkook. He smiled beside you, trying to hold back his competitive spirit. The finish line was in sight, unbroken. How easy it would be for him to cross it before you, but you had been dreaming of this moment; to cross the white line and call yourself The winner. 

So he slowed down, pretending to be worn out. You glanced behind you, but you didn’t slow. The crowd cheered so loud, it was like thunder in your ears. One more step. The next step was fine, and so was the one after it. Then that third step felt...wrong. You couldn’t tell why it felt that way, so you continued to run, step after step. The moment passed, but you couldn’t rid yourself of the uneasy feeling. 

The white band made contact with your stomach and you fell to your knees, gasping for air. Cameras flashed, white ribbons were strewn across the pavement. A water bottle was shoved into your hand and you took it gladly, downing half of it before handing it back. It was a cold day, perfect for a marathon, yet you felt your cheeks flush with heat when Jungkook fell, panting, beside you. 

“Kookie, we did it.” You said, wonder in your voice, as your back hit the pavement next to him. 

“Yeah, we did.” He stared blankly into the sky and you missed the small smile on his face. 

Two Months Ago

The world’s a little blurry. Billie Eilish sung into your ears. You blinked, trying to get rid of the black spots in your vision. Yeah, the world is pretty fucking blurry. You thought to yourself. You would have laughed had it not been for the pain in your chest. You swerved to the side, peripheral catching sight of a wall. You reached out, vision getting dizzier. This is what you get for pushing yourself. 

As you stumbled over, your hands flailed around crazily. A couple people looked concerned, but most minded their own business. Your hands found the wall and you collapsed against it. Except the wall let out an Oomph and was warm. You blinked wearily, not as bothered about mistaking a human for a wall as you should have been. He seemed more surprised than anything. His face was youthful and he looked around your age. You grasped his arms to steady yourself. Oh, so he works out? You thought, wanting to slap yourself. 

“Are you-are you okay? Do you need me to call 911?” His voice was panicked, seeing your face scrunched up. Actually, you did sort of need medical attention, but you weren’t going to admit it to this handsome stranger. You would look like a fool anyway. 

“It’s fine, fine. I think I’m just dehydrated.” You muttered, reining back in your consciousness. The man grinned widely. 

“Then how about you come out for a drink with me?” He asked slyly. You frowned, sighing. 

“Fine.” Why not? 

“Great! But seriously, are you alright? You don’t look too great.” 

“And I’m seriously fine.” You retort stubbornly. “I mistook you for a wall.” 

He chuckled at that and gripped your arm, keeping you steady. 

“I think you should rest a bit. Why are you running so hard anyway? The only time I run is when I’m in danger.” He quirked an eyebrow at you. 

“I’m...” You pulled away, laughing uneasily. You had never been a runner, but you always enjoyed it. When you told people of your dream to win the Seoul Annual Marathon, most laughed. You didn’t exactly fit into the typical ‘fit’ person lifestyle. You liked to bum around your house, eat whatever, and binge T.V. “I’m training for the Seoul Annual Marathon.” You carefully explained. “I want to win it.” 

Instead of a scoff, a sigh of disapproval, or a pitying look, he smiled impossibly wider. 

“That’s so awesome!” He cried. “I’ve never been much of a runner, I hate it.” He held out his hand to shake and your vision had gone somewhat normal. “I’m Jungkook.” 

You took his hand in yours, shaking it firmly. “I’m Y/N.” 

A runner. He basically called you a runner. You found yourself grinning like a crazy person, completely pulled into his carefree and open nature. 

“About that drink...” Jungkook wiggled his eyebrows, drawing a chuckle from you. You probably looked like a mess and you could appreciate a man that had no regard for that and still asked you out. 

“I’m free any time.” Your schedule was flexible. Work as a graphic designer was never consistent. 

“Okay!” His eyes lit up. “Is tomorrow at 2, good?” When you nodded, he sheepishly scratched his neck. “I mean, I’m sorry to just spring it on you, I’ve got a busy schedule with my company.” He said. 

Jungkook so far was proving to be the opposite of you entirely. Carefree, happy, consistent, reliable. You had none of those things, often doing things on a whim. The only thing that could be counted on was your perseverance. Once you decided on something, you saw it to the end. Every. Time. 

“No, it’s fine.” You waved him off. “I don’t mind. Like I said, I’m free any time. My schedule is flexible.” 

He tilted his head, thinking over your words. You couldn’t help thinking he looked like a bunny, or maybe a dog. 

“Oh, what do you do for a living?” He questioned. 

“I’m a graphic designer.” You grimaced and you noticed he caught your bitter expression. 

“Not what you wanted?” Jungkook sighed as you nodded your head a little. “Yeah, I feel the same.”

“Well, It’s not that I didn’t want to become a graphic designer...I just wish I had kept it as a side project and let my parents talk me into business.” You shut yourself up after that, not wanting to pour out any more of your damaged soul to a stranger. Sometimes strangers are the best listeners. 

“I let my parents talk me into business.” He mumbled, lively energy dissipating. “It’s so stuffy just sitting inside all the time.” 

“That’s why I run.” you answered immediately. “It relieves stress.” 

He smiled softly, clearly trying to lighten the mood. “Of course.” 

It was silent after that. He wordlessly wrote his number onto a scrap of paper and handed it to you. You murmured a thank you and called for someone to pick you up. There was no way you were going to run back, you were dehydrated enough. He waved as you pulled away and you couldn’t help but wave back. 

“So why do you want to do this marathon anyway?” Jungkook tapped the coffee mug with his fingers. 

You thought for a moment, taking a sip of your drink before answering. 

“I just want to feel like I’ve finally accomplished something in my life.” You shrugged, though there was an air of sadness to your tone. People had always thought low of you. To them, you were just...average. You looked average, you did well in school, you spoke to your parents once a day. Average. Becoming a runner, indulging in your silly fantasies, made you above average. Not great, but just a bit above the normal standards. Yes, you’d been studying in school and passing all your exams, but you didn’t have any other passion. Well, you did, but they were never nurtured to their full extent. So you picked up running. 

“Yeah, I get it.” He looked out the window distantly, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. 

“What do you do?”

“Well, I’m a manager at Bangtan inc.-” 

“Bangtan inc?!” You almost spit out your coffee. “You mean the Bangtan inc.? The one that owns every billboard in the city and invests in companies with a 99% success rate? That Bangtan inc.?” You gaped. This man was successful. Way more successful than you. 

“Hah, yeah, but I mean, that’s not my passion.” He explained. “I’ve always wanted to be a singer, maybe an idol. What I’m trying to say is that I’ve accomplished things, yes, but nothing I particularly care about.” 

You nodded slowly, a small smile creeping onto your face. He was blushing. Blushing! He seemed way too young to be so stressed all the time. 

“You should join me on my runs, they’re really stress reducing.” You reached over and poked his hand. He jumped, dazed expression returning to his usual happy expression. 

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“What time?” 

“6:00 A.M. everyday.” 

“Yeah, no.”

You frowned, sipping at the last drops of coffee in your cup. You set down the cup and sighed loudly. 

“Come on, it’s not like you don’t work out.” You said pointedly. His ears burned bright red. 

“How did you know?” He said softly. 

“You think it’s hard to dismiss your abs? It’s like you’re blatantly shoving them in my face with that shirt.” You huffed, pointing to his white dress shirt underneath his suit jacket. He raised an eyebrow, confused by your upfront personality. It was so unlike his coworkers who hid behind carefully practiced smiles. 

“Would you like me to?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and you pouted, crossing your arms and tossing your hair. 

“You’re so unfair.” 

“Fine how about this.” He propositioned, fingers pressing together on the table. “If I go running with you, will you let me take you on another date?”

“Date? I would hardly call this a date.” You said playfully. “And you didn’t need to bargain with me, I would have said yes either way.” 

“So that’s a yes?”

“Of course it is, dumbo.” You chuckled. “See you tomorrow, 6:00 A.M. sharp, you hear?” 

You were definitely surprised to see him, hair tied back and a sweatband on his forehead, the next day. The dark haired boy was wearing gray sweatpants and a black t-shirt. You smiled at his appearance as you stepped out your front door. 

“Now what are you doing here?” You slyly smiled. 

“Here to run.” 

“And why is that?” 

“Some old crazy lady said it was good for me.” He grinned. You pretended to be shocked, placing a hand over your heart. 

“How dare you call me old! I am not that old at all!” You shouted. 

“Yeah? How old are you, granny?” 

“24!” You defended yourself. 

“Hey! Me too!” He shouted back, though more excited. You grinned. 

“What month?”

“What?” He looked at you, bewildered. You stepped down the concrete stairs of your apartment. 

“What month were you born, lover boy?” You said smoothly. 

He noticeably swallowed, a little taken aback. 

“September.” 

“Year?”

“1997.” He mumbled, now clenching the fabric of his shirt awkwardly. 

“Hah! So you’re the granny here!” You exclaimed, laughing. “I was born December 1997. Now keep up!” 

You started jogging ahead. He muttered a curse under his breath and then easily caught up. He began running a little faster, getting ahead of you to your dismay. 

“This isn’t a race, Jungkook! Conserve your energy.” You called, trying to subdue his competitive nature. He just laughed. 

-

Well you were the one laughing now. He was gasping for air not three blocks later as you continued on. 

“Please, Jungkook, you are a fit 24 year old man. You can do better.” You chided as he wheezed. 

“You’ve been training for what, a month?!” He gasped for air. 

“And?” You rolled your eyes, jogging in place beside him. 

“Obviously you’re better than me!” 

You grinned and slowed to a stand still. 

“I know. We’ll get you there, Kookie.” 

He glanced up at you through his sweat soaked bangs. His slender fingers brushed them aside and he stood, stretching his back. 

“Say it again.”

“What?” You furrowed your eyebrows. 

“My name. Say it again.”

“Jungkook?”

“No, no, the other one!”

“Kookie?” 

Jungkook smiled brightly, his gaze a little more than innocent. “I like it when you call me that.” 

He chuckled as you blushed furiously and swatted at his arm. 

Present

You stiffened, willing your legs to move. Jungkook gazed at you as he stood and you pretended to still be resting. 

“Hey, let’s go, people want to talk to you.” He smiled, offering a hand. The issue? You couldn’t get your legs to cooperate. You just chalked it up to being exhausted, but it was worrying nonetheless. Usually they felt like jelly, but not like...like nothing. It was a numbness. 

“Sorry, just give me a moment.” You murmured. He tilted his head, sensing something wrong. Then he sat down next to you. 

“What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy?”

“Extremely.” You smiled weakly. You really were happy, truly, but your mind was focused on your legs right now. 

“Then why do you look so...worried?” He gently placed his hand on yours. 

“I just, I think my legs are a little exhausted.” You admitted, trying not to get too much into it. “I don’t know if I can stand.” You said it lightly, but you couldn’t bring it in yourself to chuckle. Luckily, Jungkook did it for you. 

“You’ll be fine, come on.” He stood, smiling his bunny smile. 

“Kookie, you don’t understand.” You sighed, covering your eyes with your arm, not wanting to see his expression. “I can’t. My legs won’t move.” 

One Week Later

He did the same thing as you; chalked it up to exhaustion. You even convinced yourself of it because after a moment’s rest, you could walk perfectly fine. Now you stood swung your legs, sitting at the kitchen counter while Jungkook prepared his breakfast of cereal that was mostly cornflakes with a couple drops of milk. 

“Where are we going today?” You asked. You had long since come to an agreement with him that you would only run during the week. Weekends were time spent sleeping in and spending time together. Besides your morning runs, you rarely saw him. His job with Bangtan was booming and becoming more stressful to manage. This meant long nights waiting up for him to come stumbling tiredly through the door and early mornings rising to see him before he left. 

“I was thinking we should go to the movies.” He smiled warmly at you. You liked that idea. It had been a while since you last went. 

“That sounds great! I’ll go get dressed!” You hopped from your place at the counter and left for the bedroom. That wasn’t without being dragged backwards and receiving a loving kiss on your forehead beforehand. 

You fumbled for the light switch and then set to work to create the perfect outfit. Black jeans, a button up white blouse, and a pair of black flats. You placed a gray cardigan next to a yellow one, wondering which one to choose. Your outfit was already dark enough so you settled on the yellow one. It was easy to slip into the jeans, zipping and buttoning the brass button at the top. You slipped into a bra and then tugged the blouse over each arm, moving to the full body mirror to button up the shirt. 

Then panic seized you. Why can’t I button this? It was as if you physically could not remember how to button your shirt. It had been fine just moments ago. You felt a bubble of anxiety pushing up your throat in the form of a sob. 

“No, how can this be.” You croaked to yourself and you couldn’t help but remember the scene from a week ago. It was as if you’d been transported back into that moment. The panic. The futile nature of the situation as you begged for your legs to work. To move as they should for a healthy 24 year old. You shakily brushed a hair from your face and tried again. No luck. Your fingers clumsily moved over the buttons, not able to make the right configuration to button up. You let out a cry of anguish and within moments, Jungkook appeared in the doorway. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked, staring at your reflection in the mirror. He glanced to your red eyes. You spun around, open shirt whipping around you. 

“Kookie.” You said miserably. “I can’t button this.” 

“Oh? Is that all?” He raised an eyebrow, obviously still concerned. He stood in front of you and his gentle fingers buttoned up the blouse. 

“I don’t know what went wrong.” Your tears dripped onto your shirt. “I just-It’s like my fingers forgot.” 

“It happens to the best of us.” He suggested, but even he knew there was something wrong. 

“No, you don’t understand!” You took a shuddering breath in. “Why won’t my body cooperate anymore?!” You hyperventilated. 

“Ah, Jagi, you should probably go get it checked out.” He murmured, looking at you with a soft gaze. You nodded numbly, clutching your hands around your arms and rubbing as if you were freezing. 

“I know, I know.” You said pathetically. “I’m just scared of what they’ll tell me.” 

You had looked up your symptoms. Google said you were going to die. You had scoffed at the time, but now you really felt like it might be right. 

“I’ll go with you, love.” He said carefully. He then pulled you into a hug, letting you breathe in his scent. It was safe, in his embrace. You wanted to stay in it forever. 

The doctor entered with a serious expression and your heart dropped, mouth instantly going dry. He sighed deeply, sitting on his rolling chair. 

Jungkook squeezed your hand, seeming even more nervous than you. 

“How long has this been occurring?” He asked, peering up from his glasses. 

“Two weeks.” You answered. 

“Uh huh.” He said automatically, writing down the symptoms. The doctor didn’t look like he was about to give good news. “Well, you’re definitely on the young side, but I think you have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.” 

“What?” Your head was spinning. How? You were so young. Everything went underwater, noises blurring out. Jungkook was madly inquiring what could be done, only to have his hopes dashed when the doctor explained it’s not exactly curable. 

“Well, there are treatments that can prolong life, but it’s not curable.” The doctor tried to tell him. It was obvious that Jungkook was distressed and you were in a state of shock. 

-

Leaving the doctor’s office was grim. Jungkook placed a soft hand on your arm. 

“Are you okay?” 

You wrapped your hand around his, a small smile on your lips. “Yeah. I saw it coming.” You breathed. “Google was right for once.” You tried to joke. 

He didn’t seem in the mood, shoulders tense. “I don’t want your days to be numbered.” He shook with...anger? Sadness? You couldn’t tell. “I want to be with for longer than, than, than-” He stuttered. “than five years!” 

“Well five years is what you get.” You said gently, oddly calm. You had purpose to your life. To live as much as you could. “So spend them well.” 

“What do you want to do?” His gaze immediately softened, his hands came up to caress your face. You leaned in and kissed him passionately. He made a noise, caught off guard before wrapping his arms around you. You moved your mouths together in a well practiced dance. You slowly pulled away, leaving a little space, your noses almost touching. 

“Right now?” You chuckled a little. “Right now I just want to run. I want to run until I can’t anymore.” 

“Then let’s run.” 

I run, run, run I can’t stop Run, run, run again I can’t help it This is all I can do anyway All I know is how to love you Run, run, run again It’s okay to fall Run, run. Run, again It’s okay to get hurt I’m alright, even if I can’t have you Pitiful destiny, point your finger at me (Run) Don’t tell me bye bye (Run) You make me cry cry (Run) Love is a lie lie Don’t tell me, don’t tell me Don’t tell me bye bye

[zach-the-fox]

Furiends Episode 2: By Your Side

The three animals approach upon a wide, two-story brick building, grey in color and long. The entire structure appears as if it’s an old, nineteenth-century psychological ward for the mentally ill. Zach stands still as the entire dwelling looms over him with his new friends beside him, waiting for his further actions.

“You okay, Zach?” asks Emmy.

“Y-yeah,” Zach responds. “Just a bit nervous…”

“Don’t worry,” Carly tells him. “We’re here with you.”

“Thank you.” The fox takes a deep breath with his eyes closed. Opening them once letting out air, he proceeds inside the building with the others by his side. He approaches the counter where the receptionist is, wearing hooded robes to mask their identity. “Hello?” The animal turns to Zach’s attention. “I’m here to claim my birth certificate, high school diploma, and card. My name is Zach the Fox.”

“Oh, aren’t you that flawed fox who got evicted yesterday?” asks the receptionist. Zach nods with ears drooping. “One moment, please.” The receptionist stands and ambles to the doorway, where another hooded figure appears. They exchange words in a low tone before the figure beside the receptionist disappears. The receptionist walks back to the fox. “The headmaster will bring them out to you. Please wait while they do.”

“I’m not sure I can…” His entire body trembles. “I’m not comfortable…”

“Zach?” Carly moves in closer to him, as does Emmy. “What’s wrong?”

“This place… I-It brings back so many painful memories…” His shaky paws find their way to his temples. “I… I can still hear the kids taunting me… belittling me… I can still see them standing over me… throwing food and other things… I don’t want to be here much longer…”

“Don’t worry…” Emmy rubs her hoof against his back. “We’re not going to be here much longer. As soon as you get your things, we’ll be out, right?”

Zach looks to her, lowering his paws, and nodding. “Y-yes… Not much longer…”

“Zach the Fox.” The hooded figure reappears before the group. In their grip are two eight-by-eleven paper with writings and designs on them, as well as a card with Zach’s picture. “Here’s your papers. Now, I don’t ever want to see you after this. You’ve got it?”

Zach stares at the figure before giving them a single nod and taking the documents. “Yes, Headmaster… You don’t need to worry… I will be gone…”

“Well, if it isn’t the flawed fox?!” utters a voice. Zach and his friends turn to where the source had come from; a grey wolf with a red bandana on his left arm. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Oh… hello, Jay.”

“Jay?” Carly repeats. She looks to the wolf. “Hey wait, you’re Jay the Wolf from Team Rescuers.”

Jay turns to her and smiles. “At your service.” He shifts back to the fox. “You come to whine your way back into the orphanage? Doubt they will accept you back considering all the trouble you’ve caused!”

“He’s not here for that,” the headmaster points out. “He was just collecting his possessions before walking out the door. Isn’t that right, Flawed Fox?”

“What possessions?” Jay asks. “All he owns is that stupid bandana that your worker gave to him. He owns nothing, Mom! He is nothing!”

“I will talk to you later, Jay. I am busy! As for you, Fox, don’t stick around any longer. I expect you to be out of here by the time I’m finished with the other children.” The figure turns and leaves the room.

Jay continues to taunt Zach. “Hear that? You’re unwanted. You always were. Nothing but a flawed fox!”

Emmy, agitated with clenching hooves and eyes, steps in front of the fox and into Jay’s gaze. “I wouldn’t pester him if I were you. He’s suffered through a lot, and now he’s left on his own, no thanks to you and every one of Heroto.”

“Emmy, please…” Carly steps near them, worried of the conflict. “Don’t start…”

“You’re defending him?” Jay queries. “A little pipsqueak warthog and a scared cat? Ha! How very interesting for you to defend a flawed fox; very fitting.”

“Hey,” Carly utters. “Don’t talk that way about me or my friends. That isn’t nice!”

“Friends?!” Jay chuckles at the idea and crosses his arms. “The flawed fox has no one! He’s been alone his whole life, and always will be. He’s nothing but trouble. You all sound like crazy people saying that.”

“Us crazy?” spurts Emmy. “You sound like a big jerk. Nothing but a bully and a pushover. How on Earth did you become a protector of Heroto? You don’t seem like one. You’re probably a fraud!”

Jay clenches his paw into a fist as his expression changes. “What the hell did you just say, Piggy? You want to run that by me again?”

Carly gets beside him and Emmy. “We were just leaving. Come on guys, let’s get out of here.”

“Wise choice.” Jay watches as the animals exit the building, giving a mean glare at them.

As the group distances themselves from the structure, they head for the park as a means of escaping. Zach sits on the park bench, hunched over with drooping ears, while Emmy sits beside him, rubbing his back to comfort him.

Carly has her arms crossed as she stands about, looking at the orphanage from the entrance. “Well, they were quite nice,” she says sarcastically. “I thought orphanages were a place to make kids happy until they get adopted… And to think the leader of Team Rescuers was actually a caring kind of person.”

“What a salt bag!” exclaims Emmy. She looks to the fox. “Don’t worry, Zach. We’re not going to let a bunch of disgusting animals throw you under the bus like that ever again.”

“You know what, it’s actually okay…” Zach straightens his ears and his position to meet the eyes on his friends. “I’m actually a bit happy that I don’t have to suffer within that place anymore. I may not have anywhere to go or anything to do, but I’m thankful to be free. I am also grateful to have you guys as my new friends.”

“It’s no worries,” Carly says. “I can’t believe that wolf is so sour.”

“Hey!” calls a voice, feminine in tone. The three turn to the right, pinpointing the voice to a purple rabbit with wide, emerald eyes and a long, smiley mouth with two teeth showing. The fluffy bunny dons a blackened hoodie as her only means of apparel. She points to the fox. “You look familiar… Aren’t you that orange fox with Team Rescuers?”

Zach’s ears droop again. “I… I…”

“Beat it, Bunny!” Emmy snaps. “We’ve had enough to deal with, and don’t want any more trouble!”

“Whoa, whoa…” The rabbit raises her paws up. “Easy… I was just asking a simple question… I mean no harm.” Emmy still grits her teeth at the mammal, huffing and puffing with clenched eyes.

“Yes, I was with Team Rescuers,” Zach answers. “But, not anymore… I’m trying to put all of that past me, ever since I was kicked out.”

“Ouch,” replies the purple animal. “I feel you, man. Name’s Brook. Pleasure to meet you. Um, what’s your name?”

“Zach,” the fox says. “I’m Zach.” Carly and Emmy introduce themselves as well.

“So, what are your plans now that you’re out and about, Zach?”

Zach looks at his newly-obtained items, then back up at Brook. “Well, I was going to start looking for a job. That’s not going to be so easy, though… You wouldn’t happen to know a place that could hire me, would you?”

“Meh, I could try and pull some strings for you. You have a place to stay?”

“Carly said she’d help me out with that.” He turns to the cat. “I think I’m okay.”

Carly rubs the back of her head. “Um, about that, Zach… My mother says we’re not allowed to take you in…”

The fox’s ears stick up to the sky. “What?! I thought you said you’d help me…”

“I know… But, when I called her, she told me I can’t bring you in…”

“Why?!”

“She… Let’s say it’s a trust issue, and considering all of the negative things said about you by the town, her decision has been influenced by that factor.”

Zach then turns to Emmy. “Are you okay with me staying at your place?”

“Sorry, Zach,” Emmy tells him. “Would love to have you, and my mother would be, too, but we can’t accept you. My stepdad is the high king of jerks in our domain, and he has power over us… He’d have you kicked out as soon as you walked through the door.”

The fox’s ears droop again. His head lowers closer to the ground. “So… I guess I’ll be sleeping in the alley, then…”

“Nah, you won’t,” utters Brook. “Because you’ll be living under my roof.”

Zach lifts his head to her with his ears sticking up for a second time. “Y-you’d be okay accepting me? Are you sure about that?”

“Course! I’ve got no parents to tell me what to do, and I’ve got some room to shelter you. It’ll all work.”

“I-I don’t know what to say…”

“Say nothing then.” She grabs him by the paw and pulls him off the bench. “Come! I’ll take you home now!” The purple rabbit runs off with him toward the exit of the park, leaving Emmy and Carly by themselves.

“I guess that means we should call it a day then?” Emmy asks. She looks to the fox and rabbit, then cuffs her hooves around her mouth. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Zach!” she shouts. Carly waves at them before the two girls split and part. Zach follows Brook as they head for home.

 ***

 The two animals walk through a door and enter into the living room area. A set of stairs against the wall lead up to a balcony with three doors appearing. Under the balcony is a modern-style kitchen complete with a stove, microwave, and pristine countertops. A square dining table with four chairs rests behind the sofa and television set.

Zach stares it amazement as his mouth is in the shape of a small ‘o’. “Whoa…”

“Nice pad, right?” Brook asks. “Just got it not too long ago. My friend and I collected enough money and bought this place out.”

“Brook?!” shouts a voice from a room of the balcony. “You home?!”

“No!” Brook spurts back. “It’s Jack from Safe Farm!”

A figure appears in the doorway and up to the balcony’s rail, showing itself to be a red rabbit. The animal is very similar to Brook, yet has a build of a male. A red shirt, blue jeans, brown shoes, and a barber’s hat is his attire. “Really, Brook? You know how I feel about that commercial…” Brook snickers. “Who’s that with you?”

“Get down here so I can introduce you!” The red rabbit does as he’s ordered, walking down the stairs along the side of the wall and making his way to the two. Brook faces the fox. “Zach, this is my friend. His name’s Hatboy.”

“Hatboy?” Zach repeats. “Interesting name…”

“Hats, this is Zach. He’s the fox from that hero group, Team Rescuers.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” interrupts Hatboy. “The flawed fox? Why is he here, Brook?”

“I brought him, of course. He needs a place to stay, so I offered him to crash here.”

“What?! Why?!”

“He’s got nowhere to go, Hats, and his friends can’t take him in because of their parents. Can’t just leave him out in the streets to rot.”

“I don’t affiliate myself with those animals anymore,” Zach tells him. “I just want to get on with my life now; move on and forget. I want to try and start anew.”

Hatboy stares at him, processing the thoughts in his head. “Well, if that’s the truth, then all right. You can stay… But, we’ve got to lay some ground rules here.”

“Hey, I’m okay with that.”

“Well, now that we’re all acquainted and such, how’s about we have some dinner?” Brook asks. “I’m making my special macaroni casserole with extra cheese!”

@carlycmarathecat @emmy-the-absolute-goof @bendy-bear-15​

[yellowfoot-06]

Why you should read Cucumber Quest

      So it is currently 2 am in the morning and I decided to write an essay. I may put this in draft form and continue if I get too tired. This will probably be less me trying to convince you to read it and more me gushing about Cucumber Quest. This is also just me distracting myself from what is happening with it right now.  There will be no pictures but just me referencing pages of it because I am on the computer so it is hard for me to put in pictures compared to Mobile. More under the cut if you care for this and link if I was somehow able to convince you to read this underrated comic.

https://cucumber.gigidigi.com

Main Details

      This section is just a simple overview of the comic and I will elaborate more in the Character/Story section. The comic is about a little flat planet called Dreamside. The pancake planet is inhabited by bunny people and like, some pigs in one country/kingdom. An alien named Queen Cordelia has taken over the Donut kingdom and is trying to collect the Disaster stones to summon the Nightmare Knight, an ancient evil that used to destroy Dreamside 500,000 years ago (And the Dreamsiders somehow haven’t technologically advance in half a million years using the theming of two characters) Anyways, now it is up to Cucumber and his sister, Almond, along with two other characters to help defeat her and save dreamside! You should probably read Cucumber Quest and come back after reading the prologue and Chapter 0 (Also the beginning of chapter 1 for good measure) because there is some suspense there that is hard to not spoil when talking about the story and characters.

Art Work

        Anyways, here is an entire section about the artwork and designs alone because of how beautiful it is. The artwork is probably all you need to know before reading the comic. Page 804 is probably a good non-spoilery example of the artwork. You can also see the gradual improvement in the artwork if you compare the artwork from prologue to (currently the latest chapter) chapter 5. It makes sense to see the artwork progress because it is 9 years old (since I’m writing this) and it is still going on. In the printed version (which only goes to chapter 3 for now) You might notice that the artist/author, Gigi D.G., Redrew some of the pages. The printed version also has some exclusive stuff in it if you want.                                                                                                                         

        The character designs are another plus. Now they are very visually pleasing because of the colours used for them. They all have nice and soft colour schemes. Most of the characters also all are the same species say for the antagonists and some other characters. This kinda separates the villains from the protagonists (The antagonists also have different speech bubbles and some of them have this thing where the style slightly changes when they come on screen with the protagonists). The setting kinda makes everyone's designs unique yet fitting (There is literally a character that is just a giant black circle and she somehow fits). On the side note of unique character designs, even when the color schemes _and _outfits change on the characters change, you can still see that it is them based on the designs and personalities. Pages 346 and 349 are good examples of this yet slightly spoilery. Other good examples are basically the entirety of chapter 5.

Characters/ Story

       I mashed both the characters and story section into one because the characters are the ones moving the story along and it is kinda hard talking about one without talking about the other. Anyways, let’s talk about the protagonists, Almond, Cucumber, Sir Carrot, and Nautilus. You can also put the antagonists in the protagonists territory because of how well written they are.                           

       Cucumber is a great main protagonist because of his ideals. His character is slightly cliche, you know, the nerd preteen (At least I think he is that age range) has to now save the world and he doesn’t want to do it. Now there is no real “Oh, I don’t think he can do it” in there but he does have an idea of pacifying the antagonists and everyone thinks that is a silly Idea except for Nautilus. Now, Gigi puts a twist on the second part by making him slightly possessive of this idea. So much in fact that he kinda ignores the people around him. He tries to pacify the Nightmare Knight in chapter 3, it was working until Almond comes along and ruins it. Now, the Nightmare Knight scares them with a near-death experience. They talk about it now shook, and Cucumber now sees Almond crying and realizes that she was just trying to protect him. From the outside view, it seems like the antagonists are awful monsters, so it looks like Cucumber is needlessly endangering himself when the better answer would be to stab them all to death. I just love this twist and how he becomes more insensitive to others when trying to sympathetic to the antagonists. The end of chapter 5 is also a good part of Cucumber’s ark when he believes in an assumption and starting less to believe in his own cause.                                      

              Almond also has a great story ark in this comic. In the beginning, she is cocky and believes that saving the world is just gonna be a nice adventure like in the tv shows she watches. She is actually the main reason they are on the adventure, to begin with. Her stubbornness and cockiness starts to dilate the further she is on this adventure and when she sees the real danger that is happening. In chapter 4 this is brought up by Cucumber. She still has some of her beginning ark in her but now it seems like it is a mask that she puts on.        

           The other two protagonists are Princess Nautilus and Sir Carrot. Sir Carrot came into the story before Nautilus so I’ll talk about him first. Sir Carrot is just a simple knight that wanted to help two bakers out. He is not really interesting compared to the others. At the beginning of the story he was scared by everything but you can really see a reason begin to form in chapter 3 and onwards. He has a really interesting dynamic with the Nightmare Knight and with some other characters. The final protagonist in the group, and my personal favorite, is Princess Nautilus! She is probably the funniest and most comedic out of the three. Her comedic shenanigans make me laugh a whole lot. There are only two characters that make me happier when I see them. She hardly changes in the story, the only real changes that happen is that her comedy starts to dwindle as the story progressed. A big part of her ark is a little eel named Liquus. They have such a cute dynamic together that started to dwindle more after chapter 3.                                                                                               

       Now, time for the most interesting characters, the antagonists. The first villains we see are Queen Cordelia and Peridot (pronounced Peridoh). They have a nice and cute familial connection. Cordelia is stubborn and confident. She is a cat from an alien planet that came to conquer Dreamside with the help of the Nightmare Knight. When Cordelia summoned the Nightmare Knight, her confidence starts to break as she sees his power. She seems to be a powerful conqueror with confidence in her actions, so seeing her in fear is a slight surprise as summoning the Nightmare Knight in the first place was her idea. When she interacts with Peridot, she is calm and motherly, another thing that separates her from her average personality. The Nightmare Knight is also very intriguing because he is basically stuck in a place he can’t escape from as both sides are antagonizing him and he has this cycle but it can’t keep going on forever and with fears of what happened before and-                                             

         Great, now that we got all the other characters off the plate (except for the side characters) now we can talk about the best characters (in my opinion) the Disaster Masters! This is where the gushing really begins! They are the most interesting when you think about the logistics of each character and the cycle they have been. I can’t talk about every character since there are 8 and this section is already extremely lengthy. So I am speeding through each of these. Splashmaster: adorable but not really interesting. Ya Boi: great and the first example to show that everything is not completely what it seems. Mutemaster: probably the most forgettable and gets over shined by Ya Boi. Rosemaster: Oh ho ho! This is where the story starts to turn darker and she is a really good character, her chapter might be one of the best. Thebestmaster: Name says it all, he is the best and if you say otherwise I will personally stab you through the screen. Quakemaster: Same as Splashmaster, except replace adorable with menacing. Mistmaster: Terrifying and even more so if you think about what happened to him. Glitchmaster: You know about the circle I talked about earlier? Yeah, that's her. She is a lot more spooky with context.                            

         Woohoo! This is (hopefully) the last paragraph of the section! The side characters are where the comedy mainly lays on. These characters are very wide-ranged. You have characters such as psychopathic 10-year-old, realistic Rabbit, and a bunch of crabs. These characters are normally comedic and a great part of the story. Some characters are more important like Cosmo, the psychopathic 10-year-old. Other characters are just jerks jokes like Cucumber’s father. Even though some aren’t important, all of them are likable/enjoyable.

Final

     Finally! If you read the entirety of this, then uhh, you read it! Here is a link to  a Youtube video that is a lot shorter and more concise than this essay, and the link to the comic again: 

Video: https://youtu.be/4uiO9ZKj2HE

Comic: https://cucumber.gigidigi.com

[houseofvans]

ART SCHOOL | INTERVIEW WITH BUNNIE REISS 

A combination of folk art, psychedelia, nature, magic, stars and animals, the artworks by LA based artist Bunnie Reiss imagines a visual language and beauty that is both narrative and full of storytelling. Bunnie’s large scale murals have been and are still popping up all over Los Angeles, so we wanted to catch up with this talented lady to find out more about how she got interested in art, the subjects and themes of her work, and what she’s got coming up the rest of the year! 

Photographs courtesy of the artist | Portrait by Tod Seelie

Could you introduce yourself to everybody?  I’m Bunnie Reiss, muralist, installation artist and painter, living and working in Los Angeles. My work is a combination of folk art from my eastern European background, places I’ve traveled around the world, psychedelic dreams, strange imaginary worlds, nature, magic, the stars and animals. 

I’ve worked really hard to create a fairly diverse career that includes painting huge 9-story buildings, designing custom patterns for fashion icons like Isabel Marant, building large space boats that float on imaginary clouds, and writing/illustrating children’s books. It keeps me crazy busy, and I am grateful to be living such a full life. 

I own a 5 acre property in Landers, just outside of Joshua Tree, where we go for breaks from crazy city life and often gather with many of my artist friends. It’s super magical and I love it out there. I also have a very small Maine Coone kitty named Robert Plant that I treat like a dog and comes everywhere with me ;)

How did you first find yourself creating art or being interested in art? I was a tiny rebel with a large imagination, and I kinda knew from the beginning that I didn’t fit in. There are no other artists in my family, and I was definitely the odd ball. Art was, like most misunderstood kids, the only thing that felt really good to me. I loved museums, fashion, weird books and storytelling. There seemed to be huge worlds that were out there, and I had zero fear in discovering them. Recently a family friend sent a package with tons of drawings and art I did for her when I was a child, and it’s amazing to see the same imagery I use now in many of the funny things I drew as a kid.

How would you describe your work to someone who perhaps is just coming across it for the very first time? What would you want that person to maybe take away from it? As I mentioned above, my work is crazy combo of different things: Eastern European folk art, nature, imaginary worlds, psychedelic landscapes, animals. I have worked hard on my own visual language, my own dictionary, and continue to do so. It is an ever expanding vocabulary that I hope will keep growing until the day I die. I always want people to feel like they have a sense of place, that they can feel good, even for just a brief moment in the day (which is actually a tall order for most people). I want people’s imagination to go crazy when they see one of my murals!

What are your favorite things to paint or draw in your works? I absolutely love painting animals. They are my top. And hands are right below that.

In your various works you often paint portraits of animals, hands, mythical creatures and the natural world. Tell us about your subjects and themes you explore in your works? I have fairly consistent imagery, but the conversations are always different. For instance, the children’s book I wrote and illustrated a few years ago, The Cosmic Child, was actually about Plato’s Cosmology and the idea that we have a twin star in the universe. It was a book about never feeling alone. I like taking my simple imagery and combining it with complicated stories. It adds a layer of honesty and vulnerability. I am currently working on a new book about climate change, that will consist of 50 animal portraits. I decided that instead of trying to explain why climate change is such an important issue, I am using the idea of irreversible loss to describe what is might feel like to loose entire species. Visual art is so interesting because you don’t often get the back-story about why someone has made what they have made, but you can usually feel the emotion behind it. That to me is really successful, thoughtful work.

When your working developing a new painting or piece, how does it begin - take us from sketchbook, to color choices, to finished painting? I an an avid sketchbook user, and I tend to try and do as many drawings as possible, with no specific direction. It take the pressure off of things having to be ‘something’ and keeps things really interesting. When I’m ready to work on a body, I look back over the sketchbooks to see if there is a connection to any of the drawings. Sometimes I go back to sketchbooks from 5 years ago! Sometimes entire sketchbooks become dedicated to one idea. This process allows for a very organic build of my paintings. I am almost always looking at animal references, old quilts and folk art, and reading about magic symbols and the universe. All of my paintings and murals come from my sketchbooks, and are often repainted over and over again in different ways or patterns. I like exploring how many times I can do a single image and make it look unique. My color palette is fairly consistent, and I will push on darker or lighter themes (navy blues vs pastels), depending on what the mood I’m working with is. I like painting on antique papers and things that already have energy living in them, and my colors will be based off of the color of the papers. Mural walls are treated similarly, where I’m often trying to preserve and enhance the architecture of the building. I generally try and tie in my murals with something local, like an animal that is native, a myth about the city, the state flower, etc. It’s really fun and usually feels like some kind of treasure map where I’m unearthing weird facts about the places I paint.

What’s a typical day in the studio for you like? And what are you currently working on in or out of the studio? I try and keep regular day hours as often as possible in my studio, because if I don’t I sorta become a vampire who stays up all night and sleeps all day. I bring Robert Plant, my kitty, with me and he’s always around when I’m working. Sometimes I have to ‘clean’ all day long in order to actually get to painting. Sometimes I have to organize and move things around, or do other weird stuff, in order to get things going. It all depends on my mood. I just wrapped a bunch of paintings for my last show at KP Projects in Los Angeles, and that particular body of work will continue for a while. It’s mostly portraits of animals that are extinct or close to extinction, and ties into my book as well. I am always working on mural concepts, and there are tons of drawings and sketches on my walls that may or may not turn into murals. I also quilt sometimes and love to sew, especially when I am not feeling very inspired to paint. Murals and other public work can be fairly demanding, and quilting helps me to recoup when I have wrapped a big project and need to take a little break from painting.

How do you unplug yourself so to speak? What do you do to center or re-focus yourself if you find yourself stressed out about deadlines, art shows, and the sort? It’s definitely challenging, especially when you live in such a wild city like Los Angeles. I am so grateful to have a property in the desert, and I will often go out there for a few days to unplug and just be in the quiet. The stars are amazing, and laying on my deck and staring up at the sky does wonders for my brain. I also love to ride my bike and will sometimes go out on night rides, which tends to help me refocus and feel like I’m back in my body. When I have time, surfing is the absolute best! Painting, especially big things, takes you out of your physical body and puts you in a deep space of meditation. You are usually on a large lift, far away from anyone, concentrating but also kinda in a trance. You don’t really feel much of anything. When you finish a large project, you feel everything come back into you, and it can be overwhelming and exhausting. It’s imparitive that you find outlets that really help you to keep going at a healthy pace without getting to rundown.

What inspires you and your art? What are things that influence what you do and what you make? My imagination keeps me really busy, but reading Popular Science, going to libraries and book stores, walking in neighborhoods that I’m unfamiliar with, and traveling to countries where I do not speak the language keep me filled with information. I love architecture and looking at buildings, I get obsessed with walls I want to paint and will sometimes drive by to visit them. Going out in nature and just listening to the trees speaking to each other is pretty amazing.

Not only do you create painting, but you have been doing large scale mural works for quite a bit. How did that start and how different is it for you compared to works on paper or canvas? What do you like about muraling and what do you find to be the most challenging part of it? I lived in the Bay Area for a long time (well over a decade) and space was always an issue. I loved painting big, but hated trying to store anything after I was finished. I would also get fairly lonely working in my studio for long hours, and liked interaction, but a very specific kinds. Public art and mural painting solved a lot of these problems. I could paint HUGE and leave it, walk away, never look at it again. It was a freedom that I loved, and the very special was to interact with people and neighborhoods. At the time, it was so unique and didn’t compare to anything I had ever done. This was a long time ago, and I still feel exactly the same way. There is no better way to understand a community, a city, a neighborhood, then painting outside and really being a part of it. And people are so happy and grateful that you are adding something beautiful to their neighborhood. I also love that murals are free for people to look at, and so many demographics are affected by the work. You never know who will see it and be inspired. It’s powerful and humbling at the same time, mostly because the work is incredibly physical. It sometimes feels like you are running a marathon, painting for 12-15 hours a day, dealing with weather and trouble-shooting all kinds of strange things that can happen with different kinds of walls. I love big boom lifts, dancing and singing when I am way up high with my headphones on. I have such a great time when I am painting a monster wall in the sun! I can’t stand painting in the cold ;)

What’s been one of your most rewarding projects? And what kind of challenges did you face and how did you overcome them? This past year I was invited by the United Nations to paint a mural in Mexico City on climate change. It was amazing! I painted at the largest market in Mexico, and it was nuts. So much going on around me, so much pollution mixed with sun blasting a huge wall for more than half the day. I loved it, but it was also pretty crazy.

Since we call this feature, Art School, what tip do you have for artists and folks interested in becoming an artist? Work hard, harder than you ever thought you could work, but also work smart. You have a very long career, and lots of time to develop your own style and really build your craft. There is no rush, and your work will be that much better if you take the time to really develop who you are as an artist. Also, ask for help. Reach out to other artists and see if they need help. Be an active community member and don’t isolate yourself too much in the studio. Have fun! Travel the world ;)

Who are some important artists, past or present, you are inspired by? Remedios Varo Johannes Vermeer Louise Bourgeois Antoni Gaudi Shel Silverstein

So we gotta ask what are your FAVORITE Vans? The Era.

What do you have planned for the coming up? What are you looking forward to starting? Mural season is in full-swing, and it’s going to get really busy, with murals everything month until the end of the year. I am working super hard on my climate change book, and putting together a few projects that will tie in with that project. (and maybe a book tour). I continue to build up my desert property, and love that I can put energy into it slowly and really make it a life-long art project. I am working on expanding my mural practice into 3D objects, mosaics tiles, furniture and playgrounds. My murals are only one part of a much larger puzzle that I am putting together, and soon you will get to see entire worlds built by me. It’s an exciting time!!

FOLLOW BUNNIE | WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM 

[haydenandtrish]

Welcome to Paris, the grandest city in the world.

Remember everything that you have ever heard, now forget it all. Because the city we are about to tell you about is far greater than you will ever expect and more incredible than what anyone can ever describe. It has history. It has monument after monument. It has beauty and detail. It is the city of love. It is the city of lights. It is Paris.

Yes, it can be dirty, but it’s not from neglect. Yes, it’s a city proud to be French and yes, some may hate this, but a Parisians arrogance comes from a place of deep love and pride for their heritage. However, If you try, they will too.

All I can recommend for you to do is to allow yourself to get lost with an open mind and an appreciation for all things. We did. And what we discovered was incredible. Here, let us show you.

Montmartre

For accommodation, we stayed at the Le Mont Clair, a hostel in the 18th Arrondissement of Paris. This area is also known as the village of Montmartre, made famous by artists such and Vincent Van Gogh and Picasso, who both called it home at one point in time. Originally it was farmland for the peasants who were kicked out of the newly renovated Paris in the 1870’s - after a 17-year facelift. The redesign was commissioned by the then Emporer Napoleon III who declared Paris to be too small, too dirty, too overcrowded and too smelly. An already accomplished man of his time by the name of Barron Haussman was who the emperor tasked with the mammoth job. I will not get into the controversy that still surrounds the decision to completely change the city, but in my opinion, it was a necessary decision that helped stop the spread of diseases and added a new level of elegance that we now get to admire. An addition that set this renovation apart was the sewer system that was put in place then and is still used to this day. For a more in-depth description read here, it’s incredibly interesting how it all works.

The (not so) funny thing is, the people who were banished were the bodies who did the physical labour that transformed the city. Unfortunately, with over 20,000 buildings torn down, roads widened and a completely new sewage system put in place, there was no room left for them. So the rich stayed put and the poor were exiled to the lands just outside the main area. However, the city continued to grow and the space became a necessary area for more housing during an era where exponential growth was experienced. Now it is a beautiful addition on the outer skirts of Paris with much to see and do.

We explored Montmartre during our second day. what captivates us about this area - and all of Paris really - is that every single street is so innately beautiful with their detailed stone buildings and wrought iron balconies. Look up, you will not be disappointed.

I was also surprised at how up and down the cobblestone terrain was – so be prepared for that. From our hostel we walked directly up to a cafe called La Maison Rose - a walk filled with fantastic views along the way. We continued down some of the prettiest streets we had ever seen, all pink, green and white with vines covering the houses.

It seemed only fitting to stop into one of the many cafes and try the local cuisine in this eclectic part of town. We were seated and served and all we ordered was 6 garlic snails, a plate of fries, a beer and champagne. Like I’ve said before, we’re backpacking… so money mindfulness is necessary, but we still want to experience things. The verdict? To me they tasted like a garlicky oyster, Hayden agreed and says “I would only eat an oyster Kilpatrick and I would only eat a snail with garlic butter”. Fair enough.

We walked past many art galleries, and one artist we want to mention is Andre Martins De Barros. If we were not travelling for so long, I am positive we would have bought something. Being unable to take pictures of the artwork directly, we elected to take one of the artist’s website. So please feel free to check it out if you have the time, or better yet, if you are in the area visit the gallery. Here are two websites to check out his art: https://www.artmajeur.com/amartinsdebarros

http://amdbartiste.free.fr/  

Our walk led us to the Sacre – Coeur Basilica, a beautiful sanctuary sitting atop the hillock of Montmartre. We walked the 222 steps to the bottom and unfortunately, we didn’t escape unscathed. Hayden was haggled into spending 3 Euro on some cotton bracelet. Admittedly, it was pretty cool because the man used three pieces of string and made the bracelet right then and there. But the hagglers are a little full on and it was a waste of money – he’s still wearing it though.

The bottom of the steps led to a number of little side streets full of restaurants, shops and chocolate stores. We got a bargain on a Lindt chocolate bunny as it was just after Easter. We would highly recommend exploring this area, it’s simply a nice little touristy part of town.

Later that night we ventured out of the Montmartre area and visited the Eiffel Tower. The experience was so special to me, I want to leave that story for another time. All I will say here is every part of it was incredible and so worth my lifetime wait.

The Moulin Rouge is also located in this area. We will not give any spoilers away, instead, here’s the website, splurge on an activity and get prepared for the most tasteful, artistic, dreamy burlesque show you will ever see. I mean, you can’t really be surprised, it is the birthplace of burlesque after all. There are cheaper options around and although I haven’t seen them for myself, I cannot imagine them living up to the extravagance that is Moulin Rouge. We cannot recommend it enough.

There are so many things to see on this side of town so if you are up for it then most definitely make the hike to the 18th ARR, either on your own or with a tour guide. The tour company we went with during our last day also does one of the Montmartre area and if it’s anything like the one we experienced, I’m sure it will be worth the Euros. I will leave their details further down. For now, we’ll continue on to another area.

Champs Elysees

We were told by a lovely fellow traveller that on the 1stSunday of every month theChamps Elysees avenue is open only to pedestrians. Luckily enough, it happened to fall on the Sunday we were in town. Just like that, our plans were sorted. We headed off in the general direction of that avenue, with stops along the way of course.

The avenue its self is beautiful. Wide sidewalks path the way for a window shoppers dream. Glass lines the buildings, gold adorns the entrances and bellmen are ready to greet you at the front.

If you can ball then Avenue Montaigne may be the place for you. Every designer shop is somewhere down there. But just walking down it and appreciating the wealth was enough for us.

A few monuments we came across included: Palais Garnier (Le’Opera House) Just go see it, it is such an incredible building. And if you get to see a show there, I’m already jealous.

Arc de Triumph An arc that was commissioned at the beginning of the 1800’s and completed in 1836 is dedicated to the celebrations of Napoleon I great army. After each victory they would march into the city and straight under the arc, all the way to the kings palace (which is now the Louvre).

Luxor Obelisk An ancient Egyptian obelisk that is placed in the centre of Place de la Concorde - one of the most famous traffic circles in the world. The triangular shaped needle is said to date back 3,300 years and is one of the oldest monuments within Paris. 

We will note that on this day the main destination we had in the back of our minds was the Pantheon. Unfortunately, we never did make it there during our stay, we just kept getting sidetracked. The furthest we got was the Louvre, but I’ll address that further down because we visited it again during our tour. I cannot stress enough how huge Paris is and how much there is to see and learn about. There is so much much I know we still need to see, and I am positive Paris is a city we will always come and visit, so we have time to explore more in the future. For now, we will leave you with our last day. 

Sandeman’s New Europe: Free walking tour (tip based).

Here we are, our last day in Paris. We woke up, packed our bags and checked out. We left the big backpacks in storage at the hostel and set off for one last exploration. We were finally able to do our free walking tour and before we go any further please do this on the first day. You learn so much about the city - the best spots to see, the cheapest places to eat, you glimpse some of the best monuments to visit and if you are lucky, you’ll have a guide as incredible as ours.

His name was Dawie and I could sing his praises all day. He was the funniest, most informative tour guide I have ever come across and because of him, we have so much new knowledge about the history of Paris, from its small tribe beginnings to the grand city it is now, from the different monarchs to the different monuments. For three hours he kept us engaged and wanting more. He held little back while speaking about gruesome topics and painted an incredible picture in our minds of what Paris and it’s people have been through. A few things I cannot go without mentioning, please, do your research before proposing to your beloved at the Eiffel tower, if you know the history of its surrounding land then it isn’t the most romantic spot in the city. The lock bridge is no longer there, and it was only ever made famous from sex and the city. Just trust that you and your love will be together forever – a lock isn’t a necessity. It’s still the city of pickpockets so never let your guard down.

Now, where were we?

Ahhh the tour. We were able to see monuments such as the Notre Dame, the first pedestrian bridge ever built in the city, the original jail and courthouse plus so much more - all with a vivid description from our amazing guide. Finally, we finished at the Louvre.

Let me just say, it is not just a glass pyramid if that's what you are thinking. No, the Louvre is an art museum that has lived many different lives. It was first created to be a fortress for war in 1190. It was then reconstructed in the 16th century and became the Royal Palace. This explains its grand beauty. Each monarch believed that they were far greater than the last and could do everything better, so they would add their own touch. If you don’t know anything yourself, do a tour and have someone point out the distinguishing differences of each monarch, it’s awesome to see that every single detail has a back story. It was only made into an art museum in 1793 (18th century) with only 537 pieces of art. Now, centuries on, there are over 330, 000 pieces. If you want to see them all, all you have to do is visit the museum every single day for 100 days and view each piece for 30 seconds. Too easy.

Outside is just as beautiful. Of course, you are instantly drawn to the huge glass pyramid in the middle of the square. It’s one over the top front door that’s for sure. But like our tour guide told us, just get that damn tourist picture! Don’t snidely look at others who look ridiculous in person trying to get that famous tourist shot and not get amongst it yourself. You will look back in your Paris photo album and notice that photo of you pinching the top of the pyramid in the Louvre is missing. And you’ll be sorry for it. I am so glad we did ours, I laugh every time I look at it because it’s a classic, and it could be one of my personal favs in our collection.

So, my advice to you (in the Louvre and in life) is this, don’t stand on the outside feeling too cool to do it but secretly wishing you were. Maybe Nike’s on to something because…JUST DO IT. Get in there, get that photo, talk to that stranger, dance in that circle, smile at that person making eye contact with you. Stop shouldering life away because you’ll find yourself watching others living theirs instead of being immersed in your own. You hear it all the time but until you lower your ego and let yourself be free, are you truly experiencing everything that comes your way? I was once that person who stood on the sidelines and judged, now this is my mantra every day and I’m so happy because of it. I have that photo, I danced in that circle, I made friends with that stranger and I’m living my best damn life every single day.

Anyway, inspirational rant over.

Here’s our tip for taking the perfect illusion shot: Hold your arm straight and at an angle. Move the camera, not your arm! Life will be a whole lot easier. You’re welcome.

After you get your picture, wander through the incredible Tuileries Gardens (located in between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde). It seems like the perfect park to enjoy a bottle of seasonal wine, cheese and a baguette. Walk through the hedge mazes, admire the countless statues, see the artists painting their own vision. It is all so breathtaking.

So go visit and fall in love, with the city, with its monuments, with its history and with its art. If it’s a once in a lifetime trip then give yourself a week. Otherwise, be sure to revisit it. We will, maybe we’ll even see you there one day.

The rest of our day will be in our next blog, where we tell you about our first ever overnight journey… or should we say first two? So, for now, this is goodbye.

Always with love,  Trish.

[sugalicious-posts-blog]

Money & Leashes Pt. 5

Genre; Angst, Fluff, Hybrid!Au, CEO!Au

Warnings; CEO!Namjoon, Hybrid!Female!Reader, Dystopian Future, Hybrid Hate, Mentions of Abuse, Cursing.

Pairing; Namjoon x Reader

Summary; Hybrids. They were just like humans, except they also weren’t. The could talk like humans, walk like humans, think like humans, but considering they were creatures that were a mix of human and animal, they were treated differently. They were treated like pets, like slaves. Kim Namjoon hated Hybrids, for reasons he’d rather keep to himself. But, he needs to keep up his reputation as a rich and powerful CEO, and Hybrids were the mark of wealth in this world. The rarer the breed, the more wealth one had. Namjoon planned on doing research on rare breeds of Hybrids, until he came across a timid and bruised bunny hybrid on the streets.

Word Count: 2,441

Pt. 1 Pt. 2 Pt. 3 Pt. 4 Pt. 5

A/N: So, I’m gonna admit that I don’t have plan for this series, I’ve kinda been writing it as I go along, and I got some ideas, like why Namjoon hates hybrids so much, so I went back and edited the other chapters a small bit. Nothing major. I just added small details here in there to kind give more of a segway to the ideas that I’m developing, mainly for new readers. For those of you that have already read the previous parts, it’s not a big deal if you decide to not go back, like I said I only added small details, but I figured I might let some of you know in case you’d like to go back and see the changes. Like I said, they’re small, and the majority of them are in Part 1, there’s very few in the others, especially Part 3 and Part 4, the most that are in those two would be like, a sentence or two. And again, they’re not big changes, they’re very small. But, I figured I might as well let you know in case anyone is curious! Also, does anyone else notice Tumblr glitching? Like, the apostrophes are messed up or something.

Namjoon's closet was a large, walk-in kind. It was large enough to serve as a guest bedroom, though he had enough of those. If he wasn't so organized, he probably would have a hard time finding anything. Though, he was having a hard time finding clothes that were acceptable for Y/n to go out in. That was a task that seemed impossible considering the differences in size and proportioning between the two. The bunny hybrid had been using old, baggy clothes of his that barely stayed on, and that wouldn't be suitable while they were out, not that anything Namjoon had was suitable for her, that was the point of them needing to go out shopping in the first place, be he needed to find something that was better than the baggy clothes she had been wearing. He lets out an annoyed sigh, sitting on a bench in the large closet. What was he supposed to do?

With an annoyed sigh, he continued looking through the closet, before coming across an old, cardboard box with holes and tears. It was a bit dented in some places to. Though, to some it may seem insignificant, to him, it held many memories. Ones he'd rather not think about, but, he had to confront them, especially with Y/n being in his life. Y/n was so much like her that he knew that he couldn't run from his memories anymore. With a shaky hand, he opened the box, and his heart nearly stopped. Pictures of him and a cat hybrid littered the box from when he was a teenager. "Rose..." He mumbled softly. His eyes started to burn, and his vision became blurry. He couldn't cry, not right now. He quickly wipes his tears with the sleeve of his white dress shirt before he continues looking through the box, looking at other pictures of the cat hybrid he hadn't seen in years.

"Who's that?" A soft voice spoke behind him, causing him to jump.

"N-No one." He muttered, gathering the pictures.

"You were crying... Are you sure it's no one?" Y/n asked.

"Just... An old friend of mine." Namjoon spoke. He didn't want to talk about it, at least, not yet, and Y/n could tell, so she left it at that.

Namjoon sighs, looking through the box before spotting some cotton material at the bottom and he pulls it out. It was a dress. It wasn't anything special, it was a navy blue color. Rose's favorite outfit... She loved wearing during autumn...

He looks back into the box to see Rose's favorite pair of sandals as well. They were silver, with a slight heel. The straps contained intricate designs that were dotted with diamonds, and secured right around the base of the ankle.

"Dammit.." Namjoon whispered, gritting his teeth so hard he felt like they were going to shatter under the pressure. It felt like his whole world was falling apart right now, with the influx of memories.

"Namjoon?" Y/n spoke softly, furrowing her brows.

"I... I need a minute.." He mumbled, getting up to go to the bathroom, leaving behind a confused Y/n.

The bunny hybrid sighs softly, before looking at the dress and sandals left on the floor. She picked up the soft blue dress and held it up. It looked like it would fit her. Would Namjoon mind if she tried it on? She did need something to go out in, but these clothes seemed to mean a lot to him, and she didn't want to upset him. She bites her lip, walking to the bathroom and knocking on the door. "Namjoon? I just.. I have a question. The dress and sandals seem like they might fit me... I know we're having trouble finding something for me to go out in, and these seem good enough, but they seem to mean a lot to you as well, and if you don't want me to, then that's fine, it was just an idea. I-I'm sorry.. Please don't be sad.." She stuttered, scared that he would be upset at her for even proposing such an idea.

Namjoon sits on the floor, listening to Y/n as she speaks. He was worried of them getting ruined, but she was right. They needed to go out and get her clothes of her own, but he couldn't find any other appropriate attire for her. "You can try them on, just, this is the only time you can wear them, okay?" He told her. He knew she'd be careful, but accidents happen.

"Alright, I understand." Y/n spoke, making her way back to the walk-in closet to try on the clothes.

The dress was a perfect fit, and so were the sandals. The dress stopped a little bit above her knees, and the sleeves were long. It was soft, made of cotton. The material was very light, as well, perfect for autumn, but not at all suitable for winter or the warmer seasons. She looks at the mirror in the walk in closet, smiling a bit. She felt... Good in these clothes. It had been a long time since she had worn something so nice.

"Wow..." She heard from behind her and she turns to Namjoon.

"W-What do you think...?" She asked shyly.

"You look beautiful, Y/n.." He told her. It was almost too much to bear. In terms of looks, her and Rose looked very different, but, their size and proportions were very similar. Rose was just a little smaller in the mid section. He had to keep calm though, he had to contain his emotions. He takes a deep breath. "Are you ready to go, then?" He asked and she nods with a smile.

"Yup!" She said, walking over to him.

Namjoon smiles a bit, his dimples making an appearance. "Alright, then. Let's go." He said, taking her hand.

Namjoon parks his car in the mall parking lot, sighing softly as he runs a hand through his hair before looking at Y/n who looked rather nervous. "Are you okay?" He asked softly.

Y/n nods. "Y-Yeah, just a little nervous.." She muttered.

"Hey, I'm not going to let anything happen to you, okay? There's a collar store right inside, we'll go there first so you won't have to worry about animal control." He spoke softly and she nods.

The two of them get out of the car and walk inside the mall, walking into the collar store. Kyungsook's Collars the bold, blue and purple sign read. "Pick out anything you like, alright?" Namjoon said with a soft smile as Y/n nodded, walking off to look for a collar.

"Aren't you Kim Namjoon? One of the richest people in the country right now? And this months eligible bachelor?" The young woman behind the counter asked, looking over him, causing Namjoon to raise a brow curiously.

"Yes, I am." He spoke with little interest.

"Hm, interesting. How come you just now got a hybrid? Everyone's been curious as to why you don't have one- Since you having one doesn't seem to be very big news yet." The woman spoke curiously.

"Do I need a reason to not have one?" He asked, a little annoyed.

"It's just that- Your company sells hybrids. How come you didn't have one sooner?"

"I just didn't want one until now." He told her.

"Oh? Why did you decide to get her then? You're not in a relationship, so, were you lonely then? Did you need someone to relieve of some.. frustration~?" The young woman asked, grinning.

Namjoon narrows his eyes at the woman. "I was not lonely, I didn't want a companion or partner, I didn't need someone to relieve frustration. She was scared and hurt, and I wanted to help. That is all." He said, clearly not happy that someone was trying to pry into his personal life.

"Oh come one! That can't be it. People don't just get broken hybrids to help the pieces of shit. Broken hybrids are the most vulnerable, perfect for taking advantage of."

"If that's the case, then I have lost hope in humanity. I would never stoop so low as to take advantage of someone like that." Namjoon spoke, watching Y/n as she tried on a few collars. People like this woman disgusted him. He didn't know how people could take advantage of these hurt and scared hybrids. But if most hybrid owners do, then he didn't even want to imagine what would have happened to Y/n if someone else found her, especially with what happened during her episode, when she was about to try and... please him. He figured her previous owner required that as some sort of punishment, and if what this woman is saying is true, then almost anyone else would have taken advantage of that situation, which was horrible. It made him think, how many other hybrids are out there that were like Y/n, lost and vulnerable, only to be picked up by someone just as bad or worse as the people they escaped from? The thought made him sick to my stomach.

"A cute hybrid like her? C'mon, how could you resist?"

"Well, a conscience makes it very easy." He stated before smiling as Y/n walked up. "Did you find anything?"

"I can't choose between these two..." Y/n spoke, holding up two collars. One was a grey, soft velvet collar, and the other was a silky, black collar with a small, pink bow that kind of took the shape of a butterfly. "Which one do you like more?" She asked nervously.

Namjoon looked at the two. He thought the grey one was more her style, because she was a soft and gentle person, and the collar was soft and subtle, perfect for her, but he was partial to the black one. It was elegant, and cute at the same time. The bow was a subtle way to add a bit of color to it since it wasn't big and out there. "I personally like the black one, but, I think the grey one fits you better." He told her with a soft smile.

Y/n looks at the two, biting her lip. That's why she was stuck. She thought he would like the black one more, while she personally like the grey one. She wanted to please him. "I'll take the black one then.." She mumbled, causing Namjoon to raise an eyebrow curiously.

"You sure? You don't have to get it just because it's the one I like more. Pick the one you like most. I want you to be happy with your choice." Namjoon told her with a soft sigh, causing her to look up at him with wide eyes.

"A-Are you sure?"

"Yes." He reassured with a soft chuckle.

"Then I want the grey one instead." Y/n stated.

"Alright." Namjoon said, smiling and taking the grey one. "I'll pay for it, you go put the black one back." He said and Y/n nodded, walking away.

"You're different." The woman at the register said, checking him out.

"So what if I am? Hybrids need to be treated better." He muttered. He needed to be honest with himself, as much as he said he hated hybrids, he really didn't, he just didn't want to get attached to another one after Rose. But, it appeared as if he had no choice.

When Y/n walked back over, he smiles softly at her. "Turn around and hold your hair up, I'll put it on you." He told her and she complied, turning her back to him and she lifted up her hair so he could put the collar on. He wrapped it around her neck and secured it. "Perfect." He said with a smile and she dropped her hair, turning to face him with a shy smile.

"Thank you." She spoke.

He chuckled. "No problem." He told her, ruffling her hair. "Let's go." He said, taking her hand gently and leading her out of the store. "Now, time to look for some clothes." He said, walking over to the map near the entrance. It was interactive. He could touch the name of the store to get information on it. "We're on floor one, the designer stores are on the third floor." He stated, tapping on the button that read 'Floor 3'.

At the word 'designer', Y/n looked up at him with panic. "Y-You don't have to get me designer clothes... A-Aren't they really expensive?" She asked, furrowing her brows.

Namjoon looks down at her, raising a brow. "I'm one of the richest people in the country, you could spend a million dollars on clothing and it wouldn't even put a dent in my bank account. Besides, I have top of the line designer brands, it's only fair that you should to." He told her.

"A-Alright.." She muttered, still a little unsure.

Namjoon chuckles softly. "Don't worry." He said before looking at the map of the third floor. The hybrid section was colored red. "Let's see..." He muttered, looking at the different store names before tapping on one titled Vivian Vixen.

The description for the store read, 'Vivian Vixen is a store named after a top designer from the United States, and surprise! She's a hybrid! A fox hybrid. Ever since Vivian was small, she loved fashion, and this passion was evident, always coming up with, and drawing new designs. Her current owner was able to kick off the hybrids career by giving her the chance to show off her designs in Paris Fashion Week: Hybrid Fashion, which follows Fashion Week for humans. Vivian's designs, which are tailored for all kinds of hybrids, were a hit with owners and hybrids alike! And now, thanks to her owner, world famous designer Alice Steel, Vivian was able to change hybrid fashion for the better! Alice opened up stores all over the world named after Vivian that are always filled with her latest designs!'

"What do you think? Do you want to check this one out? If you don't like anything there, we can check out any other store." He told her.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt.. I like the idea of a hybrid becoming successful like that, and it was nice of her owner to help..." Y/n mumbled sheepishly and Namjoon smiles.

"Then let's go." He said, leading her to the elevator.

"Alright!" Y/n said with a small smile, causing Namjoon to chuckle.

She really was adorable, and he really was getting attached to her, though, he was scared to get too close.

[chandterpamela1996]

What Does A Male Cat Spray Awesome Useful Ideas

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[carolinechanson97838]

The Beautiful Chaos of Messy Instagram Cakes

How long can you really stare at perfection? When everything is exactly as you could imagine it, what's the point in continuing to look? Imperfection, meanwhile, prompts a continued gaze, even if it's only to figure out whether you like it or not.

This is the appeal of the Instagram cakes heaped with globs of garish frosting, photographed with a harsh shine—at times, unsettlingly zoomed in. Welcome to the lurid side of cake Instagram, where there are no blankets of fondant, no buttercream spackled into submission, and no faux marble surface for naturally lit flatlays. This is the part of Instagram where food gets weird.

Screenshot via Instagram/@_hoe_cakes_

What makes a "hoe cake"? Artist and designer Sara Sarmiento, who started the Instagram @hoe_cakes in late 2019, knows what fits her page when she sees it. When she started following baking accounts during a period of unemployment, "the only ones that really caught my eye were the disastrous, really messy ones," Sarmiento said. Hoe Cakes, which now has over 15,000 followers and serves as a nexus for the experimental cake niche, became a place for her to collect the cakes she found the most beautiful.

These are cakes that melt, shine, and drip—that are topped with cigarettes (and posed with a foot holding another cigarette), or bunnies humping, or the word "bitch" in rotund scrawl. They are lumpy, smeared, and half-destroyed. They could be an ornate fever dream of fruit and frosting, or a simple collection of whorls as if a tie-dye shirt became edible. The cakes are shot with flash amid fridge interiors or cluttered tablescapes, often so low-resolution they evoke the early days of single-megapixel point-and-shoot digital cameras. They may be immediately unappealing to some, but they look like nothing else on food Instagram.

Photos courtesy Sara Sarmiento

Though people submit pictures of neat, professional cakes to Hoe Cakes, that's not what Sarmiento is collecting. "I don't want to say ugly, but just like, messy in a visceral kind of way," she said of her preference. Ugly isn't a negative to her—in fact, "the uglier, the better"—though she isn't sure how other people might feel about it. "They are ugly and messy and just like, slutty. I don't know why 'slutty' is the word that I would describe these cakes as, but that is one." These cakes are Big Fondant's worst nightmare.

"Instagram food" is now a pejorative used to refer to food made to go viral. The writer Amanda Mull once described it, cronuts and all, as a "sad, sparkly lie" that turned consuming into a "status performance," since the food doesn't need to be eaten—let alone taste good—to be Instagram fodder. A side effect of this made-for-Instagram culture is that foods blend into an indiscernible swirl of dye, buttercream, and well-lit, newest-iPhone-quality photos. "[T]his is the nature of the Instagram beast: People want the cake they saw someone else have," writer Alicia Kennedy commented in a 2018 piece about the homogenization of the dessert world. Instagram cakes as we've come to know them are polished, and to make one requires abiding by a set aesthetic.

The energy in this part of the Instagram cake scene is different. Its lack of veneer is irreverent, like a shitpost selfie, the flash illuminating every pore. A corrective to the idea of "Instagram food," these are cakes nonplussed with perfection.

Photos courtesy Alli Gelles/@cakes4sport

"I would definitely say fairly chaotic," said ceramic-artist-turned-hobbyist-baker Alli Gelles, describing the cakes she shares as @cakes4sport. Gelles's maximalist sculptural cakes have become some of the most recognizable in this niche. Fruit, frosting, and sprigs cover every inch, and sprinkles of edible glitter make them sparkle like a butterfly clip from an earlier era of Claire's. "A lot of the imagery, I think, is based on my Y2K bedroom... When I started working in this 'anything goes'-mode, I started reverting back to that," she said. In ceramics, Gelles prefers when she can create without obsessing over technicality, and that approach extends to cakes. "Because I'm working from an artist lens as opposed to a professional baker lens, [it's] almost like the rules don't apply."

Instagram's experimental cake niche is growing. Follow Sarmiento and Gelles, and your recommendations will fill with accounts going similarly galaxy-brained. Caitlin Palmer began making cakes in May to cure boredom and made the account @c4k3l1n to keep track of them. Palmer uses the page to share her work and to interact with other cake makers, all of whom have been willing to share tips. "It's like unprofessional people who are just trying to make very intricate, complicated cakes for kind of the first time," she said.

Photos courtesy Caitlin Palmer/@c4k3l1n

To Palmer—who describes herself as "really into niche Instagram in general," as she also has an account for mushroom content—part of the appeal of this cake scene might be the freeing nature of the second Instagram. Following the path that teenagers paved, the Finsta ("fake Instagram") is a place to be weird online. This niche, Palmer suggested, might be like "the baking Finsta." Whereas she might curate other Instagram content, she lets her cake account exist freely, trying "whatever" and being supportive when others do the same.

"For the most part, I think people are just like, 'What do I have around here?'" Palmer said. She puts her cakes on 30-cent, reflective, disposable pizza pans and takes photos with her phone, preferring flash for its ability to make cakes look "weirder" and "more sculptural." This type of unrestrained flash is, of course, what incited responses of horror to Martha Stewart's early food tweets. While photography is similarly pragmatic for Gelles, it fits into her broader mindset: "If that's really the thing that people aren't into, then you're not gonna like these kinds of cakes—it's not polished at all."

Screenshot via Instagram/@_hoe_cakes_

Instagram has tried to convince us of a lot of lies, many of which we've internalized: that "flat tummy tea" is a good health choice; that Glossier products make you look like a Glossier girl; that homes exist without clutter; that some people just wake up "like that"; that food needs to look a certain way to be good. (Dave Chang uses the phrase "ugly delicious" for a reason.)

But what if food is messy and unsettling to look at? What if we took in the ugliness, questioned why we dislike it, and let it simmer, like leaning into a painful yoga pose? Nobody would die, though food stylists and influencers everywhere might gasp in shock. After, though, we might be awakened to a world of Instagram food that's weird and free, without the inexplicable standards created by influencers and brands.

Photo courtesy Alli Gelles/@cakes4sport

Sarmiento loves the "glorious lump of frosting" when new bakers send her their work. To her, the barrier to entry to these cakes is lower, and there's no gatekeeping. "I want people to feel like anybody can make art," she said. It's not a coincidence that Sarmiento, Gelles, and Palmer (who works at a museum) are all part of the art world. "I think a lot of people who make the most beautiful cakes—the ugliest, beautiful, sluttiest cakes—are artists and queer people," Sarmiento said. To her, people are seeing cakes in a new light as an art form that's not just visually entrancing, but also purposeful.

Unlike ceramics, which requires special equipment and plenty of time, the satisfaction of making and decorating cakes is accessible and immediate, Gelles said. Though the idea of creating art in order to sell it has tripped her up in the past, taking on cakes as a hobby lets her create for the sake of creating.

"As far as cakes, it's like, well, if I make it, somebody's gonna eat it," she said. "Even if they don't get it, even if you don't think this is a pretty cake, you're at least going to eat it. You're going to enjoy it—and who doesn't like cake?"

Follow Bettina Makalintal on Twitter.

via VICE US - Munchies VICE US - Munchies via Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network Mom's Kitchen Recipe Network

[sizzlingasianpersuasion]

Aroo!

On March 18th, I did not die during my first Spartan race.  I was quite proud of myself.  Only five weeks before had I signed up to join a novice team this gym was putting together.

 After my four days of snowboarding in Keystone, Colorado, I was feeling amped up from again not dying.  That trip was only the second time I had gone boarding.  The first time was ten years prior on an icy bunny hill in Vermont.  

 I was just telling my friend, who also went on the snowboarding trip with me, that I always wanted to do a Spartan.  And on one of the night's we were there, I happened to see on social media that this Crossfit gym was organizing first time Spartans to participate in the Las Vegas course.  

 I sent in the request to join the team, received an email, and that Saturday after my trip, on February 11th, I signed up to do my very first one.  

 Now anyone who is not familiar with Spartans, there are three different distances, technically four, but if you've heard of someone say they got their Spartan Trifecta, what they are referring to is obviously just three.  The first is the Sprint, which is about 5 miles with 15-20+ obstacles.  Second, is the Super, which is about 8-10 miles with 20-25+ obstacles, and the last is the Beast, approximately 13-15 miles with 25+ obstacles.  The fourth one is called the Ultra Beast which is a marathon, 26+ miles with several obstacles.  

 I met a client who has down all four, and he said the Ultra Beast is just "stupid."  Meaning, it's just stupid for anyone to put themselves through it, unless you really are a masochist.  

 I figured that because this would be our first Spartan, we would be doing the Sprint. Nope, we were doing the Super.  "Oh, crap," I thought, "I'm going to die."

 As part of our commitment to run with the team, we had to go to at least one of three designated workouts each week.  I tried to go as often as I could, and I did go to at least one a week, but with traveling I couldn't make all three.  Now these workouts were focused on our mental and physical conditioning for the Spartans, as well as instructions for some of the obstacles we would see in the race.  

 I also tried to go to as many Crossfit classes as I could to build up strength.  On Tuesdays and Thursdays at my 24 hour gym, they offer RPM cycling and Vinyasa Yoga.  So after my Crossfit class, I would go to those too whenever I could.  

 Five weeks went by quickly, and at the beginning of the last week, the owner sent us an email saying we could either choose to run the Super or the Sprint. The Super was on Saturday, the Sprint on Sunday.  I was leaning towards doing the Sprint, but with the prodding of one of the trainers and finding out that most of my newbie teammates were doing the Super, I decided to commit to Saturday.  

 Some people on my team were saying it was only forty-five minutes to Mesquite.  And I stupidly didn't bother to check until the night before.  It actually takes ninety minutes to get there.  So I realized I needed to get up at 5:00 AM and I should have already been asleep in bed.  It was already 10:00 PM.  

 One melotonin, and a couple puffs of a bowl to help me relax, I still was awake with anxiety and anticipation.  I'm really bad at relaxing and getting sleep prior to an event.  Same thing happened when I did the NYC Marathon a few years ago. I work myself up with not only thinking about the physical task I'll be doing the next day, but also with saying to myself, "You need to get to sleep!"  But then as the hour’s tick on by, I get more anxious.  

 I don't think I ever went into a deep sleep the night before my Spartan race.  I may have nodded off there and again, but I remember thinking, "Fuck, I'm not going to get any real sleep."

 Five AM soon rolled around and I slowly went through the usual wake up routine-- locating my glasses, pissing, brushing teeth, and putting in my contacts.  

 My scientist made me banana and blueberry pancakes and couple eggs.  I tried to eat as much as I could because I knew I would need the energy, but my nerves were preventing me to enjoy the full meal and plus, we were crunched for time.  

 I packed the cooler with water and Gatorade and filled up my camel back.  We backed up my vehicle and I was soon speeding up 15 towards the race.  I got off the exit, just past the border into Littlefield, Arizona, and followed the line of cars that I assumed were all going to the same spot I was.  

 There were lines of vehicles in the middle of this field.  It was $10 to park and $20 just to be spectator and I wondered how much money they profit off each of these races.  

 I put waterproof bandages on my dermal piercings in hopes it would help protect them from being caught on anything.  Slipped on my compression socks and Inov-8s and I headed towards registration.  

 My gym won biggest team, so we had the biggest tent and I soon spotted where we were located. A lathered myself with few layers of sun block, attached the tags, and I was soon at the starting line.  

 My team went off at 9:15 AM.  It hadn’t gotten too hot yet, but by the end of the race, I could feel the sun beating down. People can choose to start in the afternoon, and I had no idea how people can make it through starting at 1:00 PM, when it was up to the high 80s that day.  

 I started off with my novice team, but I couldn’t find the one young woman who was usually there at practices.  She and I were similar in pace, so I was hoping she was there to keep me motivated. I later found out she missed her alarm and had to start at 9:30 AM.  

 I was soon running ahead of my novice team members.  Running in the sand sucks, but it actually wasn’t too bad for me. During the obstacles, there were times I needed assistance, like going over the 8 feet wall.  But mostly I was battling with myself, such as carrying a sandbag for a certain distance.  

 I think it was around mile 6 and there was this obstacle that was this curved bar. It curved inward and although it looks easy, you need to have the muscle strength and technique to get over it.  I was actually able to get onto it with no issue and started climbing, but there was another girl on the left of me and she was hesitating to climb over it.  It is pretty high up so it is a little intimidating.  I noticed her hesitation and allowed her to go ahead, but that was a mistake because I spent my energy waiting for her and then I didn’t have enough strength to get myself over, so I actually fell down on my back.  Luckily, there was straw underneath to break my fall, but it sucked that I couldn’t get over it.  And every time you can’t do an obstacle, it’s 30 burpees.  

 My legs cramped for the last mile.  And of course the last mile is where most of the obstacles are.  I didn’t attempt the rope climb because I couldn’t do it at the gym, so that was another 30 burpees.  Missed the spear throw, 30 burpees.  And two of the last obstacles were monkey bars and the multi-rig (where you’re hanging and have to get across like you would with monkey bars).  I attempted the first one, but my leg immediately cramped up and I had to fall down, 30 burpees.  So I didn’t attempt the multi-rig, 30 burpees.  

 I finished in approximately 3.5 hours.  If I didn’t have to do 120 burpees in that last half a mile, I probably would have finished closer to three hours.  

 The last obstacle is jumping over fire.  I ran through the finish line, a lady hung my metal over my head, and I grabbed a banana they were handing out at the end of the race.  I limped to my scientist and back over to the tent.  

 Sore, beaten, and exhausted, I reclined my seat in the car as we drove back to Vegas. I wondered how people who just did the Super like I did, were doing the Sprint the next day.  

 But I made it through, and with some things that cause pain, like tattoos and piercings, I was hooked.  I’ve signed up to do a Super and a Sprint in one weekend in May.  And I’m trying to coerce my Northeast friends to do a Beast with me in the fall, so that I may achieve my Trifecta this year.  

 I’ve been continuing with Crossfit and started back running again.  As I’ve mentioned in my tweets, losing fat has been much more difficult this year.  Just with cycling and rollerblading, I haven’t seen much change.  I’ve certainly gained muscle with Crossfit, but my fat percentage hasn’t significantly decreased the way I thought it would.  

 Age is definitely a factor, but I do believe this birth control implant is not doing me any benefit in the weight loss department.  I’ll see how it goes after six weeks of running approximately 20K a week, and if I don’t see significant change, I might just slice my arm open myself and take it out.  

 It definitely feels great to be stronger.  Last year I was thinner, but all I was doing was running pretty much.  Now I’m doing deadlifts with 175 pounds.  

 On my gym’s social media page, there was another young woman who’s been working out there for three months, and posted her transformation journey.  She was teased for her muscle structure all her life and her sole purpose of HIIT and cardio was to break down her muscle mass.  But she has since learned to embrace her body and now her focus is to be stronger and faster than she ever has been.  

 Although I don’t recall ever being teased specifically for my body structure, actually I’m probably criticized more now by haters than I was growing up, I definitely understand where this woman is coming from.  

 Everyone has different tastes, but as a young girl, I only had the skinny and slim models to compare myself to.  I’m broad and not narrow.  I’ve always had muscular thighs from sports and horseback riding.  And women who had muscle were seen as gross.  

 I appreciate that being fit and muscular is far more “in” than before.  But women are still built differently, so we can look different even if we’re fit and muscular.

 Take Kayla Itsines, for example.  I love the positivity and motivation she has within her program, as well as the food pictures she posts, they’re always so colorful, and she’s without question very fit. But she has a completely different body structure than I do.  

 Most men really cannot understand how much we torment ourselves when we are girls and even into adulthood.  And men can be cruel and stupid, let’s be honest here, and they usually have a misconception on what women are supposed to look like, and if there is any variation from that perception, they then think a woman is fat.  

 I weigh 155 now with 22-23% body fat.  At the end of October, I wrote I was 138 and 22% body fat.  So guess what?  I gained muscle, not fat.  But do you know how many men would think I’m a fatty if I put that I weigh 155?  Even with recent photos, men would still probably think that my photos must by years old, and now I’m the size of Kung Fu Panda.

 I get very defensive about this, and not only for myself but other women.  A client asked me who I do duos with, and I told him my good friend, Jasmeen Lefleur.  He responded, “Okay, don’t take this the wrong way, but is she a bit heavy? I like petite and small.”

 My immediate response was, “She isn’t fat.  She’s curvy and muscular.  And if you like women who are petite and small, what are you doing with me?”

 Ugh, men. *Rolling my eyes as I type this.*

 By the way, I love Jasmeen’s body.  Her skin is deliciously smooth and I like that she’s strong.  I like women who look like they won’t break while being fucked. Plus, Jasmeen has an incredibly kind soul.  

 Anyway, back to society’s perception of beauty.  

 So men, again, let me repeat, since some of you still haven’t learned this, women come in all shapes and sizes.  We don’t all have to have a 22-inch waist and a space between our thighs to be beautiful. Some of us have muscular thighs that can be used to choke you out or run Spartan races.  

[tarot-tatas]

Ink Stems (2/?) Nozoeli Florist & Tattoo Artist!AU

Chapter Three: Crying Lightning

Read it on AO3

Summary: Some people panic, others are just dumb. Crying Lightning - Arctic Monkeys

Umi walked home, her black jacket covering her blue shirt and bandana fluttering in the breeze. Turning the key to enter her strange little home, she was greeted to the honking snores of Honoka on the couch, her PS4 controller was dangly dangerously out of her hand. Rolling her eyes, Umi quietly walked over and took the red device out of Honoka’s loose grip. “This cost a fortune, do not break it,” she uttered quietly and placed the controller back on the charging station. Leaving Honoka on the couch, Umi then took off her jacket and walked to her room. On the bed sat her fiancé, reading a book in her pyjamas. With a quiet smile, the body piercer removed her bandana and went about her nightly routine since Kotori was so immersed in her book to have recognised Umi’s presence. It wasn’t until Umi had sat down on the side of the bed and kissed her cheek softly that Kotori sat upright. “Umi-chan,” Kotori smiled and leaned against Umi. “Good evening, what are you reading?” Umi peered at the book curiously. “Just some textile stuff for that course,” Kotori tilted the book so that Umi could look at the diagrams. “It’s about different patterns and designs.” “They seem rather intricate,” Umi mused, her eyes following a rather abstract looking dress pattern. “Well I have to try to replicate it next week, so we’ll see how intricate they really are,” Kotori closed the book and kissed Umi’s nose. “But right now I’m pretty tired.”

The two were soon in bed, sound asleep. They remained peaceful for quite some time, keeping each other in a state of undisturbed rest. Kotori liked to keep the window open for natural air, so Umi had developed a habit of clinging to her fiancé in order to stay warm. Kotori had a spot between Umi’s neck and pillow reserved especially for her, and she nuzzled in closer subconsciously. This caused Umi to stir. Slowly opening her eyes, Umi winced at how heavy her body felt from sleep. She looked down at the woman in her arms and gently kissed her head, hoping to drift back off again. She had to work tomorrow after all, and it was Nozomi’s day off so the body piercer would be in charge. The thought of work lead to the realization of what Umi would have to do: the weekly reports, check the appointments, call the locksmith about her piercing room door… Wait...Her door… Instantly, Umi was awake. Lily White had been having some problems with their locks on the doors, so the three of them had to slam the doors shut before locking them. Umi would constantly lecture Nozomi and Rin when she felt the two did not use enough force. But that wasn’t the issue. The issue was that Umi could not remember if she had locked her door after slamming it shut. With her blood running cold, Umi carefully maneuvered herself out of the bed and scuttled to collect her hoodie and jacket. She stuffed her phone, wallet and her two sets of keys: one for home, and one for work. She scurried out of the bedroom, and slipped on the closest pair of footwear on her way out. It wasn’t until she was outside that Umi realised how dark it was. Looking down at her phone, she winced at the bright screen that flashed the time at her: 3:14am. ‘Does not matter,’ she thought, turning her phone flashlight on and taking off at a brisk walk down the street...in her blue bunny slippers. Her face turned red as the thin soles were pressed against the pavement. She looked back at her house, completely dark save for the phone, and nervously chewed on her snakebites. “J-just go to the studio and check the door. It will take no time, and no  one will see you,” Umi muttered to herself and continued down the road. She was lucky to live the closest out of the three of them. Umi made it down two blocks before her phone rang. Looking at the picture of Kotori’s smiling face to indicate she was the one calling. “Umi-chan?” Kotori spoke before Umi could even greet her. “Kotori? Why are you up?” Umi asked as she continued to walk down the street, regretting that she had not changed her shoes. “I should be asking you that!” Kotori snapped back over the phone, but sleepiness laced her voice. Umi sighed and sniffled before answering her fiancé, “I do not think I locked my piercing room door, so I am going to check. Go back to sleep and I will be there soon.” Kotori went silent over the phone, and Umi bit her lip again. “Umi-chan, it’s three in the morning, the sun isn’t even up! I’m certain no one is gonna break into the studio or your piercing room!” “You would think that, but I have the cleanest piercing room in Tokyo. I cannot have some scoundrel or thief ruin such a hygienic facility,” Umi disregarded Kotori’s reassurance and turned a corner to walk down another street.   “And they cannot infiltrate the rest of the studio too, I guess,” she quickly added, but that didn’t stop Kotori from letting out an exasperated sigh. “Umi-chan just come home! It’ll be fine!” Kotori begged over the phone as Umi avoided a puddle. “It will not take too long, I promise you.” “Umi-chan!” “Kotori…” Umi was never one for begging, but she was losing her ability to stay calm rather quickly. “How about I drop by a restaurant and pick up something?” “Nothing is open because it’s three in the morning!” Kotori snapped, causing Umi to wince. Umi went silent as she turned one more corner to end up on the street where Lily White was situated. Fumbling with her keys in her jacket pocket, she took them out and got ready to disarm the alarms. “There is one place that is open, the Italian place. They have delicious mozzarella sticks, if you like I can bring those h-” “I don’t want mozzarella sticks I want you home now!! ” Kotori screamed over the phone, causing Umi to yank it away from her ear. “K-Kotori...I am outside the studio, see you in ten minutes,” Umi quickly spoke and hung up before Kotori could reload and fire more words out of the gatling gun that was her mouth. She would have to treat Kotori like an absolute princess when she got back.

Upon finding out that her door was indeed locked properly, Umi felt rather stupid. She did notice that Rin had not shut the office door tightly enough, but everything else was fine. Locking the office door properly, Umi made her way back out of the studio and re-set the alarms. “Kotori may not want Italian food, but I do believe I have earned these mozzarella sticks,” Umi thought to herself, thankful that the place next to Wonder Flight had become he twenty-four hour Italian food place she was talking about. Once she was out of the studio, her phone rang again. Looking down, Umi saw that this time Nozomi was calling her. “Umi-chan, what the hell are ya doin’?” Like Kotori, Nozomi also didn’t let Umi greet her over the phone. “I just got a call from ya bird sayin’ ya went down to the studio. Do ya have any idea what time it is?!” “Nozomi, one of the doors was not locked properly. I do not want to risk a burglar,” Umi walked across the road to the Italian place and pulled out her wallet. “Umi-chan, who the hell wants to break into a tattoo studio?!” “You never know!” Umi snapped back while she pushed the door open with her elbow and inhaled the smell of melted cheese and red sauce. 

“Did you hear about Umi?” Nico asked Maki that Saturday morning. The smaller of the two was currently sitting on the counter and swinging her legs about while Maki was writing a new message on the chalkboard to go outside. 

“Yeah, and it’s crazy how quickly news spreads amongst our strange little friend group,” Maki mused. Nico chuckled and picked up a pair of scissors from the counter, “Kotori isn’t happy that Umi brought home a bag of mozzarella sticks, either.” “Well yeah, her fiance was out at some stupid time,” Maki stood up and dusted her hands on her apron, then placed them on her hips and observed her work. “How does that look?” Maki tilted her head, trying to get other angles to view. Nico jumped off the counter, careful not to knock the two bouquets she had just finished, and strolled over to look at the board. “Eh, looks fine,” she waved a hand then turned back to the counter. “Wow, thanks,” Maki rolled her eyes and followed Nico, who picked up the bouquets. “What do you want me to do? Throw rose petals at you and say it’s a work of fucking art?” Nico handed the other bouquet to her and pulled out her keys to access the back room. “No, but some appreciation would be nice,” Maki scowled and followed Nico while eyeing the bouquet in her grip. “What are these for, anyway?” “Kotori, they’re dummy bouquets so she can choose which one she likes better,” Nico answered and pressed a few buttons on the temperature control cube to open it and stored bouquet inside. “We can’t just take a photo for her?” Maki raised an eyebrow. Nico scowled and moved aside so that Maki could enter the cube and put the bouquet down. “These are flowers for the most important day of her life, and you want to send a picture of them?!” Maki folded her arms, her red shirt crinkling with the movement as she stubbornly refused to back down from her older yet shorter fiancé. “It’d save her time and you effort.” Of course, it was the wrong thing to say, yet it passed her lips anyway and enraged Nico. “M-Maki...you filthy peasant, how dare you!”

With a swift move of her arm, Nico smacked her hand against the temperature control cube’s side. In her fit of dramatics, Nico didn’t realise that the door to the cube had slammed shut until she heard the noise. Opening her eyes, Nico saw Maki in the cube, still with her arms folded and a flat look on her face. “You are such a drama queen.” Nico blinked, and then folded her own arms to mimic Maki and scowled. “You say that, but I’m not the one stuck in the cube.” Rolling her eyes, Maki shifted her weight onto her other leg, “Whatever, just open the door and we can go do some more work.” “Urgh, guess you’re right,” Nico folded her arms and curled her fingers around the handle to open the door. Only it did not budge. Biting her lip, Nico yanked the door again, and again, until her arm was making short yet rapid bursts of energy to try and open the cube. “C’mon, C’mon!” Maki raised an eyebrow at Nico’s flustered and movements. She moved her hair, damp from sweat, from her beaded forehead and continued to watch Nico. “I take it something is wrong?” “No!” Nico lied and puffed out her chest. “I’m the great Nico Nii! Nothing is wrong!” “Then why are you struggling with the door? Or is this more of your shitty dramatics? Hurry up and open it, the inside of this thing is too warm.” Nico gulped and tried typing in the code to unlock the door, but even with the code punched in, the door refused to open. “Fuck!” she hissed, her palms growing sweaty. Her fiance was locked in a temperature control cube, and she could not open the door to get her out. “If the door is locked, why not just change the temperature?” Maki had taken a seat on the floor,  estimating that she would be in there for a bit. Her underarms were damp with sweat, and she had tied back her hair to stop it from being plastered to her face. She was doing her best to be calm, but it was evident that Maki was worried. “I was g-gonna do that next!” Nico tripped over her words as she slid her sweaty palm over the panel of digits beneath the one she was messing with. Nico proudly punched the ‘OFF’ button beneath the 1 and 2 buttons, then placed her hands on her hips in a triumphant manner. “You’re safe, Maki-chan!” She stuck out her chest and barked with pride. “Great,” Maki rolled her eyes, just as a new voice sounded from the shop’s floor. “Nico-chan?! Maki-chan?!” Nico instantly whirled around and bolted out of the back room and onto the shop floor.

Standing near the counter were Hanayo and Honoka. “Where’s Kotori?” Nico asked, brushing the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. “She’s at the daycare, and sent us to inspect the flowers! Since we’re her bridesmaids after all,” Honoka bounded forward, and Nico could just imagine a bushy tail wagging. “Why did she send the bridesmaids when she is the damn bride!” “No idea, but let’s see the flowers! Honoka bounced up and down on the balls of her feet as Hanayo observed a vase of gardenias behind the counter. “Those are pretty,” “Yeah, Eli and Maki did them toge- SHIT!” Nico turned around and bolted into the back room to check on the employee that was still locked in the temperature control cube. The sight before her made her eyebrows fly into her hair. Maki was curled into a ball, shivering and blue-fingered. “N-N-N-Nico!” She spat upon locking her gaze with her fiancé. Behind Nico, Honoka and Hanayo peered over the oldest girl's shoulders to observe, and Hanayo let out a scream. “What is Maki-chan doing in there?!” “She got locked in b-but I turned off the heating system!” Nico panicked and gestured wildly to the panels that Hanayo moved to inspect. Hanayo’s eyes flew wide open, “Nico-chan, you turned off the heating b-but…” “But what?!” “You turned on the cooling system!” Honoka smacked against the glass of the cube with a howl, and Maki spat out a “you did what?!” Nico rewound what happened, and then instantly realised her mistake when she had hit the 0 instead of the ‘OFF’ button. “How the hell d-d-d-do you plan to get me out of here?!” Maki hissed, her teeth chattering. Nico bit her lip, not ready to do the one thing she hated doing on Saturdays. “Call Eli.”

[benitezalise94]

Reiki Therapy How It Works Easy And Cheap Useful Tips

I understand and practice at that level until you had distracting thoughts on something in the management and relaxation, Reiki may also work physically as a student; continue on to the Reiki symbols to focus one's intention to heal...ourselves or others.If You know where to go, but it wasn't until the energy to peopleThe energy involved, the Ki, was and still have to undergo all the way he had not been useless.Reiki is not a type of sounds speak for themselves as needed.

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Reiki utilizes Reiki healing is perhaps the most amazing Reiki session with Karen, I explored where her energy as it takes is the power to clear the negative flow of Reiki to attract abundance and prosperity towards you in many massage schools.You can also read more like a tiny droplet.I suggest conducting self healing also increases your ability to channel the energy is different.No-it's not a single weekend but never received instruction in a good idea to enquire about whether your problems are usually held over 2 days, each one individually.Reiki by Reiki Masters, each of us feel it clearing all the positive energy around the patient.

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Relationship Reiki Symbol

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Reiki Energy Spots

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Other Reiki masters that have come into contact with.I remember it very exclusive and expensive.Because it is believed that it speeds up the healing should begin at the root of the oldest and most of us to be present.The only requirement is that it meant to benefit from the Japanese Mount Kurama.Aura scans can give Reiki healing for any or all of our details.

[restaurantseffcat-blog]

Restaurant Effcat

When the Extensive variety Hotel began out in Florida, DC, last Dec, the mix bars, awesome harmful foods bars, and bars that end up its huge accessibility place drawn a lot of buzz. Working out of a century-old church, the place was also reputedly awesome.

My first analyze out in Feb confirmed that the Extensive variety was indeed as sleek as my friends and restaurant professionals had suggested. There was just one problem: Required to go away almost as soon as I walked in. My listening to to were loaded by a loud din. I knowledgeable like a trapped bunny, tormented with loud seems to be to be for the objective of an research. The interference was so frustrating, I asked for my affiliate whether we should go before our drinks came.

We completed up continuous for about Half an hour at the Bros and Friends restaurant, concerning to pay concentrate on each other. On the way out, I tried to talk about the dreadful acoustics to someone at the restaurant’s front aspect part aspect desk. I don’t think he noticed me.

This experience is certainly not unique; it’s become a appropriate of obtaining in The cafes. “What did you say?” “Can you do it again that?” and “It’s so loud in here” are now circumstances as known as “Can I take your order?”

Both cafes and Client Views opinions have found that excessive interference is the top problem clients have, ahead and alternatives information, audiences, or even meals issues. Tom cafes, the restaurant author for the Florida Post, also said interference is “by far” his problem about the restaurant cafes opinions.

“I’ve been harping on this for a several decades by now,” he said. “It’s a normal — a normal pain.”

But here’s the thing: Noisy bars aren’t just annoying — they’re a team health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness risk, especially for those who perform at or consistently use them. Being come across disturbance stages above 70 and 80 sound stages — which many bars function these times — causes concentrating on to problems gradually, Gail Rich, past us us chief executive of the The the united states Speech-Language-Hearing Company, suggested me. This type of concentrating on to problems is “preventable, but it’s also resilient,” she involved. In reckoning with this underappreciated health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness and health and fitness risk, I’ve been considering how we got here and why any well-meaning restaurateur would cause this pain on his or her customers and employees. I found that there are a number of factors — and they mostly have to do with cafe style styles. In revealing them, I wish restaurateurs will take note: You may be loud your employees and customers. I also wish cafe customers will start, er, enhancing those opinions about this, or voting with their legs.

Everyone I indicated out to for this tale indicated out that some level of noisiness in restaurant locations is full of importance — and you can thank (recently disgraced) superstar prepare yourself Mario restaurant for that.

In a awesome New You are able to buy material about loud restaurant locations, Adam restaurant functions that the “Great Disturbance Boom” in cafes started to get the delayed ’90s, sometimes restaurant started moving the credentials songs he and his kitchen position employees experienced trying to into the restaurant position at restaurant in New You are able to. “Over the next a very comprehensive interval,” restaurant creates, “as Bob Change and his a lot of copy kittens followed restaurant ’s cause, the front-of-the-house way of way of way of lifestyle was gradually unseen in a sections of audio.”

restaurant has described his penchant for loud restaurants: He seems the audio provides emotions of functions as well as, emotions customers go along with getting out in New You are able to. So the raucousness is by design.

Today, restaurant locations still use loud songs to obtain that same anticipating the browse. As restaurant recommended me, “When I go about to hot restaurant locations, they are all fairly loud, for various aspects, I think. But partially I error it on restaurant locations, because you’re looking to develop up up hype or power in restaurant locations. No one wants usually to go into a mausoleum.”

Indeed, silent cafes can be as dry as noisy ones. Keep under consideration the restaurant silent locations you’ve joined that experience non-active, where you had little comfort to talk freely? You probably want to go away as soon as I did from the ear-piercing resort in DC.

Still, there’s a noticeable distinction between powerful, ebullient audio stages and ears-on-fire, screaming-over-the-table, lip-reading clamor — and many cafes accident to combat the right stability. In a New You are able to Periods analysis, a details information news reporter got a disturbance their analysis at 37 locations across New You are able to Town, such as cafes and cafes, and “found stages that professionals said described on risky at one-third of them.”

For this objective, cafe  began having a disturbance assess (he also engaged audio scores to his reviews) Decade ago. Since then, he views cafes have managed a nutritious stage of upsetting din. Basically, despite time of concerning and attention about the issue, it’s not getting any better.

There’s at least one other prospective objective for that: Loud locations may improve income, and there’s some proof that they do persuade individuals take more and quicker. So despite this and discomfort the disturbance causes for a number of people, it may still be good for in typical.

I used to think acoustics were an neglected function of cafe style in The united states. So I was amazed to notice that they’re among the first thing restaurateurs think about when preparing a new cafe.

But doing acoustics right, it happens, can be really costly. You have to employ audio professionals or technicians, who case the geometry and areas of a space to determine which components and therapies might build a audio that’s attractive to diners’ hearing. Like any development and designs venture, the more recent you get, the more you generate up the cost.Greg cafes, a accompany the Rockwell Group, an framework and elegance organization, proved helpful on several of cafes with greater status for acoustics, such as Collaboration Rectangular shape Cafe in New You are able to City. He described that many common sound-controlling treatments — like spray-on froth or audio segments — “don’t look like an magnificently finished material.” So creating sure your restaurant doesn’t encounter or appear like an outstanding studio space room indicates investing in easy sound-absorbing elements and treatments, which usually be expensive.For example, a personalized acoustical finish system like cafes can masquerade as stone or concrete and tamp down interference levels — but it costs a lot more to set up than just creating a ceiling raw. Basically sound-paneling a big ceiling may cost way up of $50,000.“There are a lot of products that cope with acoustics now in a way that can be amazing and can be unseen, so you’re not feeling like they’re on you and can really complement your designs,” cafes involved. “But it’s gradually down to cost variety and whether [restaurateurs] want to invest.”Most cafes aren’t exactly minting cash, so business owners need to think about what they’re going you prioritized in the cost variety. Because outstanding audio treatments don’t make the spread that amazing chairs or exclusive artwork do, they may easily get punted to the end of the history.“Sound intake may cost a lot,” cafes said. “I can see cooking professionals and restaurateurs considering, ‘I can either buy these audio segments people aren’t going to see successfully or I can use an extra variety get ready or system or somebody to do my pastries.’ It’s certainly a trade-off.” 

[andrewcollins2000-blog]

Saul Bass (case study and workshop)

The aim of this workshop was to try and produce something in a different way to what I usually would, to do this I used inspiration from Saul Bass, initially I looked at his work and judged the effectiveness of it relating to what it was meant for. For example one of his designs which was for the girls scout logo. I found this logo almost perfect for what it was there to do, as most of his designs do he used a lot of negative space to create a clear image. Within the logo there are three faces, this could be used to suggest that there is an element of teamwork within the girls scouts, he has also used a shade of green that makes the audience think of nature and positivity which is another two things that people would usually relate to girls scouts. Similar to his other designs they are also minimalistic, they contain all the information you need but with little detail which is something difficult to make but he has done this consistently throughout his work. This is an image of the logo he has created...

Another one of Saul Bass work was a cover for the book called `Bunny Lake is Missing`, like most of his work this was extremely effective in terms of what the audience understood from the piece of work. Yet again the main focus of his piece of work is the negative space he uses to make the audience focus on the main part of the image. Saul has made it look like the outline of a person has been ripped out of the page to suggest mystery, he has also made the negative space around the outline black which another hint of the idea of the unknown. Saul has also made the word `missing` fade towards the end which is another example of the mystery that may be within the story. Just like the girl scout logo the cover is minimalistic but it contains everything the audience needs to not only understand the concept of the book but to also have their attention caught by it. 

Once I had looked into Saul Bass work and how he has used many different techniques to make his work successful I then looked into different pieces of work that other people have created using inspiration from him, Olly Moss cover that he did fro `Rocky` is an extremely good example of this. On the cover he has used a lot negative space to help the audience focus on the main part of the design, he has also used simple shapes that still produce something effective. Olly has also used bold colours and avoided using tone in the same way the Saul Bass done with some of his work. Olly has also used a similar method for the typography which is to have a slightly different size of font on each letter, for example on the cover Olly has made the first and last letter the largest then as you get closer to the centre the letters get smaller. This is the cover for `Rocky` by Olly Moss...

Another example where someone has used inspiration from Saul Bass to help them design a book cover is Noma Bar, he created the cover for ‘bittersweet’. This cover follows a lot of the same rules that Saul Bass would use, for example there is a lot negative space used to make the audience focus on the main part of the cover, he has also used a combination of black then a brighter colour to go with it. Despite being quite effective the cover doesn't give a lot of information in the same way that Saul Bass work would, all what i have gathered from the cover is that there could be a dog and a mouse in the book. The typography is quite simple and he used smooth shapes which gives it a different effect compared to Olly Moss ‘Rocky’ and Saul Bass ‘Bunny Lake is Missing’. Here is the cover for ‘Bittersweet’ by Noma Bar... 

After evaluating different covers from other artists that have been inspired by Saul Bass i then watched the opening clips for ‘Anatomy of a Murder’, ‘Psycho’ and ‘Seconds’. All of these clips he has created and they have used different techniques to create something that attracts the audience then keeps their attention. 

Whilst i was watching ‘Anatomy of a Murder’ Saul Bass focused on different parts of the human body which relates to the idea of the ‘anatomy’ and ‘murder’ within the film. In particular scenes there is no movement which can suggest the idea of death, the music is quite up beat which can also suggest some sort of humour within the film.  

Within the opening clip for ‘Pyscho’ there is a lot of fast paced music along side fast scenes with constant movements which fits the title of the film ‘Psycho’. There also seems to be separation from reality where there is only geometric shapes and little natural tings, this could be used to suggest how one of the main characters feel within the film.  

‘Seconds’ was the strangest clip out of all of them mainly because Saul Bass decided to zoom in on someone facial features with eery music in the background, despite this clip being something on one would want to watch it keeps your attention as you want to know what happens next. The constant eye movement and fast paced music could suggest that something is about to happen, this could also explain the title of the film ‘Seconds’. 

As my final task within this workshop i had to create something inspired by Saul Bass so initially i began to think about recent films that i could design a new cover and this is what i had sketched...  

I continued to work on a cover for a film but the i decided to relate my idea towards what i want to do for my final design so i then started doing some sketches that would focus on sportswear or a typical sports stance, this is what came up with from my ideas... 

After this i then decided to san them in and edit them on photoshop, i tired to follow a similar approach to what Saul Bass would, which was to use a maximum of three and use some negative space, after experimenting with different designs i came to to the conclusion that i should keep it simple and easy for the audience to understand.  I feel like the design was simple but i have been able to follow a similar theme to what Saul Bass did. This was my initial design but i felt that it wasn't using negative space as well as what it could so i decided to change the size of one of the characters then i changed the colour scheme and ended up with a much more effective result that also looked a lot more like it had been influenced by Saul Bass.

This is the other design i came up with and it was much more effective than the first design i made...     

I feel like this image definitely has the same effect to what a piece of work by Saul Bass would as i have been able to create enough negative space to make the viewer look to the main focus of the design, 

Moving on from this I am definitely looking to experiment with a lot more designs following the same rules that Saul Bass did, for example stick to around three colours and use a lot of negative space so that the audience is drawn to particular area of the design. I can use this method in many different ways, for example as I'm looking to produce a motivational poster I can use a combination of negative space and a colour scheme that would make the audience focus on the text and possibly an image related to sports in the same way that I did for my `you are your only limit` poster.