#also ricardo was so hard to design ;-;

[thecatkennel]

canto 5 cats! unlike most of the others, they get the luxury of having most of their clothing as part of their designs.

[purple-iris]

can you draw nyo quebec?

Yea I can! I had never thought of a design for him so I also made it up as I went along (don't think too hard if you notice he looks like another Montrealer that's often on my blog these days) but here he is!

I've named him the obvious, Jean-Baptiste, after Québec's national day, but like the other Jean-Baptiste I know he goes by J-B

The French on the page says:

"Deck hockey every Tuesday"

"Goes on hikes at least once every two weeks"

"Great fan of Ricardo" (he's a famous Quebec tv chef google his recipes)

"Still watches 1 gars, 1 fille" (an old sitcom with Guy A. Lepage and Sylvie Léonard)

That's it! Enjoy!

[autistic-sidestep]

OH ALSO FOR THE SHIP BINGO. Sura and Mortum because i KNOW that's brewing in your brain rn and I want to hear more about them 👀👀

suramortum!!!!!1 fuck it took me 5 months to answer this anyways throws this under the cut (it gets slowly more incoherent towards the end because i am very tired)

so suramortum. i hadnt considered them as a thing when i first played but gradually through codediving and exploring more of mortum's route i really liked the new dimensions it showed of sidestep + how multifaceted the good doctor was. I’ve been fiddling a lot with sura + made it more ruthless + calculated, therefore nudging itself further away from ricardo/heroic persona, and mortum represents a lot more present/future thinking whereas ric’s looking back at the past.

to me i think sura did earnestly first fall for mortum all the way back in rebirth at the cape scene:

You watch the image of the armor rotating in the air as Dr. Mortum adds a variety of capes to the sleek image. There's a look of almost childish joy on her face that makes it hard not to smile in return. "I didn't know you were so fond of capes," you tease. "I'm not." There's a pause, and a sheepish shrug. "Alright, maybe I am. It adds a sense of style that I feel most people these days lack."

someone else who also enjoys design and knows there's power in appearances and genuinely just being able to collaborate with a fellow artist was really nice for sura

Besides the t4t they’re both lonely people starved/desperate for connection and that juxtaposition w/ the fronts they maintain to keep themselves safe, and mortum's route really hits the heart of sura’s issues. eg at the gala:

"It's an interesting feeling, isn't it?" Dr. Mortum looks around the crowd for a moment before returning ${mhis} gaze to you. "To look back and realize how much you've changed. How far you've come." "I suppose." You snort a little in amusement. For a moment, you can see your younger self, standing in a party not unlike this one, feeling completely overwhelmed for very different reasons. "Never thought I'd end up like this." "For people like us, the first time stepping out of line means stepping into our own. I recognized a kindred spirit in you from our first meeting." You turn to look at the good doctor, frowning a little as you try to decide how you are supposed to handle this conversation. $!{mhe} has turned out to be more perceptive than you bargained for.

  #I'm curious about what ${mhe} thinks of me, so I will let ${mhim} continue leading the conversation.     "Really? What kind of a kindred spirit is that?" You smile a little coyly, pushing back your nervous twitch about being investigated like this.     "Someone who is in the process of reinventing themselves." $!{mhe} rubs ${mhis} chin a little, looking you over. "Into what, I'm not sure."     "Isn't that true for everybody, though?"     "Sadly, no. Most people are satisfied with what life has given them. They might whine and complain, but they will make no attempt to change their circumstances."     "But I am?"     "Are you telling me that I'm wrong?" Dr. Mortum looks honestly puzzled, as if nobody had ever dared to do that before.     "Not exactly…." You drag out the pause a little too long. "Just that I'm uncomfortable with being scrutinized this closely."     "I'm not your enemy, ${title}." $!{mhe} smiles a little as ${mhe} looks into your eyes. "Quite the opposite, in fact."

the transtalk during the lovers scene route (which i am always at least a little irritated that sura can’t reach naturally because being intersex and trans are mutually exclusive so i edit the savefile just for that) and the (good) reveal scene really cemented junomortum/suramortum for me though.

Sura’s always masking and acting and lying because it’s an ingrained habit from the Farm and a defense mechanism (and we also can’t forget those identity issues). mortum is one of the few people that's perceptive enough (and that's allowed) to see through some of sura's facades (partly because there's none of the baggage of knowing what sura Used to be like the way it is with chen and ortega)

trans lovers talk:

"I'm sorry," you say [...] "I didn't mean to touch a nerve." "You didn't." She pats you on the back, pulling you a little closer. "Some people…they do. There's this morbid curiosity I can't stand. Like I'm a slab of meat they are trying to find fault with. But you, ma cherie, you…" This time she looks you straight in the eye. "I what?" You are the one turning away your gaze this time. "I get the feeling you understand." "Maybe I do." You can't hide your sigh because you do. Not in a way you can explain to her, but you do. "I wasn't sure at first. You look rather…comfortable with yourself for…" She doesn't say it out loud, but you know what she implies. Juno comes across as so confident, it must be hard for someone else to imagine how much of a mess you are. "I'm good at keeping up appearances," you say, and it's not even much of a lie. Layer the masks thick enough, and they become armor. <- sura's motto right here

"You are," Dr. Mortum admits, but she keeps looking at you with the faintest of frowns. "A little too much for your own good, I think." "No, I like being inscrutable." You slide from her grip, giving her a pat on her shoulder. "Roll over. You're looking at me too much." "Even to me, ma cherie?" But she follows your command, rolling over on her stomach. "Do you still need to hide who you really are around here?" "Yes." You slide on top of her, starting to massage her shoulders. A little rougher than you need to, but she deserves it. "You don't have to," she gently suggests. "I don't judge." "That's what everybody says." You lean into your hands, finding a particularly tense muscle. "Right before they judge you." "I can understand your paranoia, but…" "If you do, then drop this subject, and I'll think about it." That's a lie, but she doesn't need to know that. Your mask is the only thing keeping you safe, no matter how much she claims she would understand. Agh. How did you end up getting caught in another anxiety loop brought on by your own damnable curiosity?

i just. [clenches fist]

also the post-confession stuff! since sura gets stuck in juno (puppetcrash + puppetstuck) i love that mortum even as justifiably upset as she is still cares enough to rescue puppetstuck sura after they'd assumed all bridges between them had been burned (outside scar w/ a lot of self loathing and a self-destructive streak whoops). it's so messy and complicated and i just love them being able to pick through the mess and slowly progress forward (with a lot of apologies, effort and reconcilliation on sura's part). they're not good people but they can still find solace in eachother.

(i think sura's probably headed for a bad ending but mortum might be able to change the trajectory with a bit of luck)

also mortum's audhd and sura's autism ! neurodivergent couple :3 i love that mortum's always checking for consent and how much she cares.

also!!! mortum and sura being the hottest villain powercouple on the west coast is very hot. im thinking about coordinated costumes for annual halloween villain galas and just massively ruthless competence. they can cover eachothers blindspots since mortum's the tech person and sura's got the contacts and the charisma as argos.

sura's down just. horrendously bad for the good doctor. i've likened them to an aloof/hissy housecat with everyone else but a very affectionate lapcat with Only mortum. i'm picturing all kinds of silly domesticity in the lab. in a good end au sura gets its cat back from elena's place and the three live together :'3

[azoosepted]

my thoughts on canto v characters (because i said so)

YEAH, IM FEELING A BIT BORED SO HERE ARE MY THOUGHTS. enjoy my insane ramblings about characters introduced in Canto V (excluding unnamed ones of course. Sorry random club guest, even though your outfit induced neuron activation to my theatre kid brain, you’re not getting on this list.)

!! Spoilers for Canto V of Limbus Company !!

Smee: I’m gonna be real. She’s… okay. I don’t really care much about her though, and Canto V doesn’t really give much information about her for me to care about. Smee just exists to be nearly harpooned by Ishmael.

Pilot: AUUAUAUAUAUAUUAUAGH THE BOYE THE BOYE PILOT IS SUCH A BOYE I LOVE HIM. Honestly so thankful to the LCCB Team Leader for sacrificing their life for Pilot’s. He looks so squeezable. Love him.

Rim: OBJECTHEAD GANG OBJECTHEAD GANG OBJECTHEAD GANG his design goes so goddamn hard. And he’s from the League, which is interesting to me. Most characters from the Sinner’s pasts so far are either affiliated with Team Red (N. Corp) like Gubo, Hermann, Jia Huan, Kromer (to an extent) and Sonya (also to a certain extent) OR they’re affiliated with Team Blue (Demian’s group) like Demian and now Rim. Demian’s little gang is very intriguing to me and I need more of it. Anyways Rim is funky and I like it.

Ricardo: THIS MAN. I JUST. I JUST CANNOT WITH THIS MAN. HIS ENERGY IS JUST FUCKING IMMACULATE. IMAGINE GOING AFTER A COMPANY BECAUSE SOMEONE WHO WORKED THERE STOLE YOUR HAIR SALON COUPONS. The way he was so DRAMATIC about it killed me too. And. And the KITTY STICKERS. OH MY GOD THE KITTY STICKERS. what a guy that Big Brother of the Middle is

The Indigo Elder: grandpa. hes cool. I gotta agree with a friend that the hana association really did him dirty with his title though. You’ve got these epic names like The Black Silence, The Blue Reverberation, The Red Gaze… and then there’s just. Indigo Elder. It’s him, the terrifying Indigo Old Guy. Still the honorary grandpa though.

Starbuck: yeah he exists i guess

Ahab: FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU FUCK YOU you are so WELL WRITTEN AND DESPICABLE you fucking . BITCH (also stop making queequeg take hits for you in that one fight you piece of—)

Queequeg: I’m gonna be real. Ishmael should share. gueegdhfjfhjdjdjd butch harpooner lesbian… Queequeg is so cool i love her. The scene where she and Ishmael reunite made me smile uncontrollably. Ishmael is literally about to KILL her until Queequeg takes off the mask and i just. oh my god. i cant describe it i love both ishmael and queequeg so much. I can say with 100% honesty that Queequeg’s death made me sob uncontrollably. I just… god. Love her.

Pip: NOOOOOOO LITTLE SAILOR BOY DONT GO INTO CAPITALISM NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Stubb: lmao who

and that’s pretty much it. thats all the characters i can remember. god i love canto v its my favorite chapter so far. PM, keep up the good work. Keep cooking.

[ohtobeleah]

Concept for ToE, Jake and amalia do a day trip the kiddos somewhere? 👀

Terms of Endermeant // Jake Seresin

It’s when You & Bradley and the three Kiddos do a massive family trip to Australia for Christmas to spend it with Amilias Family.

Jake and Amilia do three months in the US and three months in Aus. Sometimes it’s longer. But whatever the timeframe they go together and together always.

When Jakes in Australia he’s posted up in Townsville—which means Amilia works in Townsville too. They buy a house that’s not too big but also not to small and rent it privately to one of Jake’s new squadron buddies. Gucci – The guy was quite drunk in a bar one night, met a girl and subsequently vomited….in her designer purse. Apparently it was Gucci.

When Amilia and Jake are back in the states, Amilia works with Penny. Everyone loves when Amilias in town because the Hard Deck becomes this weird hybrid between American Naval Culture and this crackhead bush back Aussie pub. The new thing when the bell is rung for inappropriate behaviour is a shoey……An Amilia specialty she.

But enough about that—because Jake and Amilia invite the Bradshaws on a little holiday get away. And involved with that is unlimited babysitting. It’s needless to say that Aunty Amilia spoils Odette, Riley and Nicky with absolutely everything and anything she can. Her and Jake never have kids of their own so your children are subsequently the closest thing they have.

So—while you and Bradley are out exploring the coastal town that is Port Macquarie, Amilia and Jake happily pack the Bradshaw kids up into the car and head out to Ricardo’s Tomatoes where the kids could roam free and pick strawberries till there little heart’s content.

Now I’d say this particular adventure is around the time Odette is nine. Which makes Riley five and Nicky just over one. Amilia has little Nick strapped to her chest, Riley’s holding onto her hand while he guides her through the rows of strawberry plants that are propagated in what looks to be white plumbing pipes.

Jake and Odette however—well, they’re running around the strawberry patch trying to fill up their respective buckets with as many strawberries as they possibly could. They had a bet going, who could fill they’re bucket the most.

“I have more!” Dots laughs as she comes racing around the corner, Jake had confiscated her scissors so she’d just resorted to ripping the ripe red berries off the vines.

“There’s no way kid!” Jake races past at the speed of light trying to fill is bucket up with bigger more plump strawberries. He knows that come weigh in it’s not about the amount of delicious berries in the bucket but the weight of said fruit. “You’ve got no chance.”

“I’m telling mum on you!” Amilias laugj fills the undercover strawberry field as she knelt down the help Riley cut some fruit from the plant. “Child neglect is a real thing—“

“I’m not neglecting you I’m teaching you a valuable lesson!” Amilia can’t even see her husband, she can just hear him shouting across the strawberry patch at his niece.

“What’s that lesson hun?” Amilia had to ask, she was just intrigued.

“That I’m better at picking strawberries than that little pipsqueak—“

“Name calling is a form of bullying!” Dot shouts out from across the rows of strawberries. She’s picking everything strawberry she sees. “I’m telling mum you’re bullying me! She’ll never let you see me again, is that what you want? Huh uncle Jake?”

“Your mother left you willingly in my care, and trust me honey she ain’t coming back in a hurry to collect your not winning this strawberry picking challenge ass—“

Odette does pick the most strawberries that day, and it’s at lunch in the little cafe that she eats as many as she possibly can. Nicky is sleeping in his pram peacefully as Amilia slowly rocks it with her food.

“You let you win that l, didn’t you?” Amilia asks her husband softly as she watched Jake peruse through all the different kinds of jams and chutneys for sale. Handmade and locally grown. From tomato to apricot. He shakes his head in defeat with near deflated shoulders.

“Nah fuck that kid I was gonna demolish her.” He grumbled. “Don’t tell her though but I didn’t have the heart in the end and at the weigh in I took some out of my bucket and put it in Riley’s.” Amilia couldn’t have been more in love if she tried.

This could have been Jake and Amilia. The family life with three kids. But it wasn’t and it was never going to be. That was just a fact of life they’d accepted. They weren’t meant to be parents and that was okay.

They were the coolest Aunty and Uncle around though.

[sahaias]

Soy Luna eps 51-60 thoughts

Ramiro's personality is honestly what I would've written for Matteo instead of how they've written Matteo. He has the "overconfident guy with a soft side" personality done much better and less frustrating. I don't exactly like him with Yam, but as a character, I do. I guess he's helped by not being a fuckboy who's treated like he could have any girl he wants, unlike Matteo. It's also telling he's friends with all of the other guys, but Matteo is only friends with Gaston.

Delfina and Pedro is something that works better than Delfina and Gaston, but Pedro looking 26+ (and also similar to Tomas lol) makes it hard for me to support him with Delfina who at oldest comes off as like 18. Simon and Nico I have an easier time buying as people who graduated school not that long ago, so them being with the group doesn't feel as weird for me

Daniela being horrible is awful, because honestly, her and Simon could've been cute together. Also, her eyes are really pretty and I was distracted by them a lot in the scenes she was in

Ambar's smug face whenever she has a plan/believes her plan is successful is hilarious to me at this point lol

Tamara's ex reminds me of dudes who are like "where's my hug" to random female acquaintances

Mora and Ricardo developing interest in each other is honestly something I find pretty realistic. A lot of feminine artsy women are into video games despite what people on the internet think. Plus she's a fashion designer, so it makes sense she'd connect with him over the character designs for his game. And she's clearly someone who wouldn't be an uncomfortable presence in Nina's life, so I'll root for them to get together

Still processing the Luna and Simon kiss, but AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[writingkitten]

Ok I have a lot of piercings and tattoos. Boys opinions?

Oh shit oh shit okay I too have tattoos and (a few) piercings so let’s gooooooooo

Ricardo: loves them. He loves a tough baddie covered in ink, especially in more… risqué places, ya feel? He’s a little less enthusiastic about piercings (he’d love your piercings because they are a part of you but in general eh) he is however VERY enthusiastic about nipple piercings, especially when he can see them through your shirt

Otto: could spend hours staring at every line of ink on your body, buys you piercings when he’s out if he sees them and they remind him of you, will go with you to get your next piercing BUT is kinda squeamish with certain areas (yes he shoved like fifty needles into his spine but he didn’t have to watch it happen)

Doc Ock: he’d get tattoos with you, and he’d get super turned on watching you get pierced (so he’d learn to do it himself so he could give you piercings) likes to nibble and pull certain piercings (ears, nipples, lips, labia if ya got that downstairs)

Robert: loves tattoos, iffy on piercings (he loves surprise piercings aka the kind that he can’t see until you’re naked in front of him it just makes you seem even more naughty) kinda wants to get your name tattooed over his heart tbh

Harding: loves tattoos, loves piercings (yes he’s very formal but he also lives in Portland I mean come on there’s plenty of that flavor of eye candy for him to enjoy) he makes sure your piercings and tattoos are kept clean and don’t get infected, also does research on the best places to get piercings that increase sensitivity because sex

Manuel: wow oh my god listen I have a thing about men of god punishing me so I’m immediately thinking he’d love piercings because he’d attach (lightweight) chains to them and have them stretched just enough that the threat of pain from movement is present (he’d be VERY careful because this can be VERY dangerous!!!!!) also loves tattoos, especially some of the more regal ones (deep blood crimson colored tattoos??? InstaHard.

Harold: he loves “tasteful” tattoos and piercings (he loves all tattoos and piercings but he pretends he only enjoys elegant ones to keep up appearances)

Arden: this is my answer (also wants you to give him a stick n poke)

Dick: *see Arden* (minus the stick n poke)

Armand: okay don’t take this weird but he’d act like a tired father who doesn’t understand his young adult child and their fashion sense (but that’s only at first, after awhile he starts sending you pretty tattoo designs and cool jewelry and buys you some when he finds something he wants to see you in)

Hank: “oh? we got a bad little slut, huh? think you’re tough with all that shit? see if you can handle what I’m about to throw at ya” (aka slimy politician is turned on)

Diego: obsessed with curating your looks, especially when nude (the jewelry and the tats have to accentuate one another)

Horvath: okay so it’s unofficially officially canon that horvath has tattoos because we all say so, so obviously he loves tattoos but he ALSO loves piercings!! Another big fan of nipple piercings specifically

Big Boss (I didn’t watch the whole movie but I watched several of his parts and oof fuck me satan cowboy): dude he dresses in all black I’d be willing to bet he has some tattoos and one nipple pierced, he’s gonna be OBSESSED with a hottie like you covered in ink and metal

Chandler: similar to Big Boss (although I don’t think he wears his nipple piercing all the time, only once in awhile) so again OBSESSED probably even more so than Big Boss he gives me more “fuck tattoos and piercings make me hard” vibes

Frank: strikes me as more traditional, so maybe not a huge fan, but it’s definitely not a dealbreaker

Edelweiss: boi has both nipples pierced, his frenulum pierced, his belly button pierced… doesn’t have any tattoos because he’s too afraid of the ink (???) but he loves tattoos on others

Andres: similar to Manuel, would pay for your tattoos and piercings like the trope of men paying for women’s nails

Dunlop: he likes traditional tattoos and piercings, but, like Frank, it’s not a dealbreaker

Boris: he’d be immediately enamored but you because you’re the first person he’s seen with tattoos and piercings in real life and he wants trace all of the art on your skin and feel the cool metal against his fingertips he’s just so fascinated by you

All Molina Characters: they love you and that means they love every part of you, just because I say some might be less enthused than others doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t LOVE your tattoos and piercings!!! You are happy and have full autonomy and feel confident enough to sport the look you love and that’s all that matters to them

[cigarettesandinevitablebetrayal]

Hey hi for the character design ask—

Motion for Rashad, hair for Remus, stillness for Seongwon, for Mateo, change for Corinthian, and favorite for Cassian? :)

Oh! You forgot Mateo. Let me know what the question was and I'll answer it!

motion: How does your OC move? How does their clothing help or hinder their range of motion? Are they flexible, coordinated, clumsy?

Rashad used to be incredibly coordinated and, for lack of better word, slinky in the way they moved. Very acrobatic and a bit like a striker.

In their fall during the HBI, they suffered a basilar skull fracture that has since given them no end of trouble. On of the aftereffects is a persistent inner ear problem that affects their balance. They've gotten much clumsier since and walk with a cane to help mitigate the issues. Luckily, the Heartbreak armor also helps with it, bringing them back to near peak form.

hair: How does your OC wear their hair? Does it have some kind of meaning?

Remus keeps his hair pretty much unstyled and layered down to just above his shoulders. He loves his natural curls, even with the frizz, and so he tries not to do to much with it aside from keep it nicely conditioned.

Before he transitioned, it was just a little bit longer. He did cut it very short a little after he came out, but decided he hated wearing it short and grew it back out. He thinks having it short doesn't flatter his face. And it made him look too young.

stillness: How does your OC act while still? Are they fidgety? Do they have any common gestures or tics? Does their clothing affect how they hold themselves while at rest?

Aside from Corin, Seongwon is perhaps my most still Sidestep. She doesn't fidget a lot. Quite the opposite. She can stay still without issue for hours. But she does glance around a lot. Always looking around, watching her surroundings, ready to move, should she need to.

Her clothes don't really affect how she hold herself. If anything, it obfuscates how she's holding herself most times. Hard to see the tension in her shoulders underneath a large military field jacket.

change: Has your OC ever drastically changed their appearance? Significant haircuts, big tattoos, complete wardrobe swap, etc? Why? How do they feel about the change?

Well, there's obviously his transition, but I think I'll focus more on how much he changed between his Sidestep and Simulacrum eras, because that change feels more impactful.

So, in his Sidestep days, Corin actually looked a lot like Herald does now. Blonde curls just a couple shades lighter and green eyes after the Void altercation, but very similar. After the HBI, Corin kept his hair much shorter, grows his beard, and dresses less flashy. He's mostly ambivalent about the changes. The hair and clothes are more for comfort and ease of life. The beard was a little treat for himself. A sign of reclaiming autonomy.

He did really hate when his eyes never went back from green to blue. It wasn't so much that he was attached to the color they were before, but more that the new one felt like another scar he can't escape. And Julia always said she liked the color before. Now, when she mentions it, it feels like a consolation. He's grown used to it over the years.

favorite: Does your OC have a favorite article of clothing or accessory? What is it? What's the meaning behind it? Do they wear it all the time or do they wear it sparingly to keep it safe?

Honestly, I don't think Cassian has a favorite article of clothing. The closest thing might be his snake bite piercings. He feels they were the first thing that really distanced himself from the persona of Ricardo's Girl. Made him look like dainty and soft. A sharper edge.

Going forward, if he ever gets a clean escape from the mess he's in at the end of Retri, a lot of Daniel's clothes are going to become his favorites.They're about the same size, so Cass is going to "borrow" all sorts of things.

Find more OC Design Questions here!

[corigarabatos]

Explaining my Gorillaz birthday illustrations

💙 23rd May, 2-D's Birthday🎂

Every fan knows that the first to have a birthday is 2-D and being the first is the one who defines the theme of the other birthday illustrations of the others, so I decided that my inspiration would be the albums whose story focuses on a member of the band plus the added bonus of using photographs of models whose aesthetic or theme of said portrait you can associate with each member.

🖼 Reference photo:

Boys Undone | Metal Magazine A fashion story by Sophie Mayanne & Lee Trigg for metalmagazine.eu

I saw the photograph and immediately thought of 2-D: perhaps it was the way the young man picks his nose with his finger (something Stu would do or has done at some point), the innocence his face conveys, or how the model looks somewhat misaligned. Whatever it was, this was the photograph that was used as a reference.

💽 Phase and Album: Phase 5, The Now Now (2018)

The Now Now (2018)

The Now Now was the band's fifth album and the story of which focused more on 2-D, taking the position as the leader of the band while Murdoc is in jail, the latter being replaced by Ace, a member of the Gangrene Gang in the mythical cartoon 'The Powerpuff Girls' by Craig McCracken.

It was more than obvious the album and the "style" of art that he would use for it. Something that I really liked about this phase is that the vast majority of the art used a curious color palette: blues and pinks in neon tones that were combined with a monochrome style in the characters (mostly black and white).

I did my best to replicate, completely failing in blue (the background is more aquamarine 😅) but I mostly respected the characteristic color palette of that phase. Doing this job reminded me a bit of the old jobs I used to do during my years as students in Visual Arts. Perhaps the only thing that I don't quite like is the hand whose size is much larger than the face and the effect of the fur on the jacket being what I like the most about my illustration.

🧡 3rd June, Russel's Birthday🎂

The most underrated member not only by fans but also by the creators themselves. I feel somewhat sorry for Russel since from the first 3 phases he had a setback from which he has currently not been able to get out of there 😔.

He's the one who draws the least (mostly for fear that the Social Justice Warriors will come and throw me a bard), but when I do, he's the one who I enjoy doing it the most. Maybe it's 'cause his design is a challenge for me and takes me out of my comfort zone, the final result of my illustrations where he is the protagonist makes me end up with a smile on my face 😊.

🖼 Reference photo:

People - Photos A model is backstage at the Ricardo Seco fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Spring 2014 at Eyebeam Studio on September 8, 2013 in New York City.

Maybe when I think of Russell I don't picture him smoking since it's more common to see that in 2-D and Murdoc. But the few times Jamie draws him smoking is with a cigar, more elegant compared to his other two companions. The decision of said photo wasn't only 'cause the model is Afro-descendant but 'cause I wanted to challenge me by painting the smoke of the cigarette. Perhaps the model's clothing was another reason for him to wear this photograph: it's too laid back style as is Russell's personality.

💽 Phase and Album: Phase 1, Gorillaz (2001)

Gorillaz (2001)

The first album, Gorillaz and clearly the first phase is (mostly) focused on Russell and his ability to see and be possessed by ghosts, especially the ghost Del Tha Ghost Rapper.

It's the phase whose art style screams 2000's: it has that rebellious street style that is identifiable with people who like skateboarding, punk rock, rap or hip hop or street vibes.

I confess that it was hard for me to transfer to the illustration and more in the fact of the color palette, so I decided to guide myself by the cover of the eponymous album: a green military tone filter. Unfortunately, by combining that ocher color with the burnt sienna of the shirt and giving it an olive green "wash", it gives more of an air to the color palette of the Plastic Beach sketches (it's too warm and that's why it gives me those vibes ). I doubt that adding the earring to his ear would save the concept, maybe I should have looked for another reference photograph... despite that, I really like it and I consider the smoke I painted acceptable.

💚 6th June, Murdoc's Birthday🎂

Oh, Murdoc. This bastard whose birthday is 3 days after Russell and whose proximity drives me crazy 'cause he's usually my least favorite illustration. The relationship I've with this character is easily described in this image:

And I could skip his illustration, BUT that wouldn't be fair so I tried to summon my will to draw him.

🖼 Reference photo:

Peter DeVito on Twitter “My grandma turns 85 on Monday so we shot this fun birthday concept. *I also got some photos of her without the hats but I’m still working on them and we’re tryna shoot a few more birthday concepts so keep an eye out for those:)”

Murdoc is a decrepit old man, isn't he? So under that logic I had to use a reference from an older person. It wasn't easy since there is usually a lot of photography of young models or people in their 30s and/or 40s. It was a somewhat complicated search 'cause I couldn't find a photograph of a model that screamed Murdoc F. Niccals and, to be honest, I was resigning... UNTIL I found the right one.

The moment I found the reference PHOTOGRAPH I knew it was something Murdc could do: wear various colorful birthday hats and use a birthday candle as a cigarette allegorying that as each birthday passes, our existence will slowly consume away (that or I'm just seeing things where I'm not). And yes, my idea was also to add the hand that is holding said birthday candle, as a way of following a pattern (two illustrations showing only the face and two showing one of his hands) and that this will "complement" with that of 2-D 'cause you already know: they have an insane dependent relationship that they have for each other (and by relationship I not only reduce it to a romantic one, as certain fans usually do 🙄, but also having a relationship can be work, friendship or relative).

💽 Phase and Album: Phase 3, Plastic Beach (2010)

Plastic Beach (2010)

I confess that phase 3, that is, the Plastic Beach album is my favorite of all and I dare say that it is THE BEST.

Personally, it's the one that I enjoy the most, both 'cause of the story behind the virtual band and the real one. What it aimed to be and that due to various obstacles we only obtained 15% of what was planned (maybe less) , in addition to the load of the socio-environmental message that the album pointed to and the ART of the different covers it had (DUDE! They had a scale model of the island for the cover and some visuals). The truth is that I feel that it is a super complete album and different from what they did in the past and what they do now, it was the album that defined the before and after of Gorillaz music.

And I could make a testament to why it's a TOO good album, but I'd better leave you these two videos where the music on the album is deepened and analyzed (they're in Spanish, but I think you can activate the 'Automatic translation' option in the subtitles)

It's quite curious how this phase has an extremely warm color palette both in its official arts, album cover and sketches when almost the vast majority of the musical themes border on the depressive or with shades of desolation , perhaps it is Murdoc openly expressing how he feels about the possibility of being alone or dying alone ('cause according to the lore of the band, all the songs are written by him) seasoned with the guilt he feels about the accident that caused the "death" of Noddle in 'El Mañana'.

Ocher yellows, reddish or purple tones, and green are those colors that are repeated, therefore, that was the color palette that I used for my illustration. My intention was to make it look like the sketches that Jamie did during those years and trying to respect that essence of being a watercolor (in fact, all the illustrations are painted with watercolor).

❤ 31st October, Noodle's Birthday🎂

And last but not least, we have our beloved Noodle 🥰. Since she is the last to have her birthday, my rest time is extensive and I can think much better about what I should do, however it's also usually somewhat problematic 'cause I trust myself and (generally) I usually do her illustration the day before or the day of his birthday 😅, but it ends up being the one I like the most of the four.

🖼 Reference photo:

@lyiee on Instagram Bạn có biết tại sao khi nhìn ảnh này tim bạn bị đập nhanh không? Oi bạn ơi tại vì bạn kochoido đấy bạn ạ 🌚

With Noodle it's always easier to get a reference image or photograph.

I had already selected the photograph for months and I chose her not only 'cause the model is of Asian descent but 'cause from phase 2, Noodle shows an interest in fashion (something that continues to be maintained) and the use of a helmet is super characteristic of her that she could not let it go.

💽 Phase and Album: Phase 2, Demon Days (2005)

Demon Days (2005)

Demon Days it's Noodle's album, it's the album that makes possible the return of the band and initiates this stage of experimentation and it's the favorite of all G-fandom.

It is darker, more raw... so much so that it is reflected a lot in the art.

Color palette with such dark tones, overly saturated shadows and the characters are no longer so geometric, but look uncomfortably more detailed. They look gloomy and dirty and go with the gothic and emo vibe of those years.

But did I respect that essence? The truth is that I think not 'cause I only base myself on the color that Noodle presents on the album cover: green. And although that color is often seen in some official art from that phase, it's not as... colorful as the one in my illustration.

Her watercolor has more of a Phase 1 inspired vibe and even though it has black shadows, they aren't saturated enough as they should be. Still my favorite illustration of the four.

And so I end this post 😬. I hope you liked reading it and I appreciate the gesture 'cause I don't usually share the reason for my illustrations very much. I'll probably do it another time.

Do you like my art? Please, follow me on 🥰 :

Facebook

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[hydrangeawise]

It's been a week of work, but here is another screeching post about El Cazador de la Bruja because I finally have the energy & time to watch it again the way it's supposed to be watched (with a buddy so that you can yell at each other in the chat during the episode)!

EP22 was something, alright! We got Ellis lovingly looking at a flute that suspiciously looked like the one kid Nadie had in Ellis', uh I don't know what it was exactly when she went through the door and into the corn field so maybe, vision(?). And Camera Guy has been acting more off than ever which apparently is because Glasses Guy remote controls him via his bracelet. Which is honestly kind of weird because now I'm asking myself which of his actions were his own and which were the one's Glasses Guy made him do. Maybe it's hard to tell because they do seem to enable each other's creepiness after all!

I can't quite believe that Ricardo got injured by a puma, mostly because I think he'd be experienced and skilled enough to avoid that (and to avoid worrying Lirio!), but it doesn't really matter because the puma coincidentally* fled in the way Nadie and Ellis were pointed. What a coincidence*! And then the scene at the ruins happened, and man, I kind of get the feeling that Glasses Guy is some sort of religious fanatic with the way he recited whatever text it was that Ellis also said during her witch experience (and didn't her voice sound quite uncanny when she did it, like getting possessed or something even though Blue-eyes said something about her soul being released**). I do want to highlight quite clearly and loudly how much I enjoyed Ellis blasting Camera Guy to wherever he landed! Excellent use of the power! Let me also say quite clearly that I'M SO FUCKING WORRIED FOR NADIE! I'M SO FUCKING WORRIED FOR BOTH OF THE GIRLS! Especially with the preview!! None of this looks like a fun time is about to be had by everyone! I'm also so worried that Blue-eyes noted that Glasses Guy made his move because - how much influence and power does that guy have?! How does it work?! (Also, Melissa probably knew that he wasn't exactly the best person around and still stayed with him so I feel kind of eh about her, but she didn't deserve to be left behind like that!) Oh, and with the design on Glasses Guy's gun, it's pretty much confirmed that he was the one who killed the doctor, right? At least I'm pretty sure that the marking on the gun is what we've seen in Ellis' flashbacks of the scene.

*I'm pretty sure it's not a coincidence. The question rather seem to be: who made it happen and how and why?

**I do have hmmm not exactly questions, but I wonder if this whole thing about "release of the soul" is relevant in connection to Ellis being an artificial witch. I mean, I don't think (or at least I don't remember) that she's supposed to be soulless due to her artificial creation, but hmm. Hmm. I guess I'll see!

[wrenhavenriver]

The GLOO gun was tough because it was foam that turned into a hardened substance, so it needed to both be this thing that could suppress movement on the AI that was fluid, but then also could turn into a hard walkable surface, but also could be shattered and destroyed and removed out of the game. And it was just this kind of compounding, any one of these things would be difficult enough, but let’s combine five of them. And yet, the thing is - and what helps the producers not lose our minds when things like this land in our lap - is that the GLOO gun ultimately became one of the coolest things in Prey. And we can’t deny it worked out in the end, even if we all pulled out a lot of our hair trying to get it there. Because of the devotion that we have to simulation and the Play Your Own Way mentality, it leads to a lot of extra work, for one thing, that’s never intended, and sometimes because we’ve put something in the game and it seems like a really cool idea and production’s all on board with it - “Yeah, that seems like a really great idea!” - but then it spawns something else that is also an incredibly cool idea but that we hadn’t even considered trying to find time in the schedule to support. But we all want it! [laughing] And so there’s a lot of shell game shuffling around that goes on in production at Arkane. I think because that is so inherent in our DNA and how we make our games, we tend to do impossible things. The joke I had leading into this game with Ricardo and Harvey was, like, okay, for the next game, let’s just choose one impossible thing we’re going to do, instead of five [laughing] like we did last time.

Susan Kath, How Arkane Studios Designed Prey - Noclip Documentary

[papermoonloveslucy]

ROUGH ROAD TO TOP

August 16, 1953

(1)

One of the more famous CBS-TV shows is “I Love Lucy.” 

Its two chief characters - Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz - have had a rocky road to their present status as one of the top comedy teams in the country. 

At the end of Lucille's first year in dramatic school she was told by her teachers that she was wasting her time and money, that she would never become an actress. She was fired from all four of her first jobs as a chorus girl. Later, as a model, she almost lost her life in an automobile accident and was told she would never walk again. 

Revolution Factor 

It was a revolution in Cuba and a mishap in World War II which were fateful turns in Arnaz’ trip to stardom. The Cuban revolution destroyed his family’s wealth, drove them to the United States. World War II got him a broken kneecap in basic training, and since he had been a professional entertainer, he was placed in limited service and assigned to entertain hospitalized G.I.s'. 

Columbia Pictures gave Lucille a contract as a stock player, and, convinced that her luck finally had turned, she sent for mother, grandfather, and sister to join her in California. But, the morning after she wired her family, the studio decided to dissolve its stock company. When the family arrived, Lucille was working as an extra at Paramount.

Bit parts and extra roles in a number of pictures kept Lucille busy, but not prosperous, until she was cast in ’"Roberta.” RKO officials, impressed by her work, gave her a contract. When not busy before the cameras, she was a mainstay of the studio's Little Theater. (2)

Offered Stage Lead 

Her performance in the second lead in “The Girl from Paris" (3) drew Broadway's attention to Miss Ball and she was offered a lead in the musical "Hey Diddle Diddle.” After satisfying her yen to perform on the Great White Way (4), she returned to Hollywood for "Stage Door” and “Too Many Girls.” In the latter picture, she was costarred with Desi Arnaz. They were married Nov. 30 1940 in Greenwich, Conn.

Back from her honeymoon, Lucille walked into her first really big break a role in "The Big Street,” based on a story by Damon Runyon (5). Overnight it made her a star. 

Her first assignment at M.G.M. in 1942 was the title role in the Technicolor production "Du Barry Was a Lady” (6). Stellar roles followed in "Best Foot Forward” and "Meet the People" (7). After completing "Easy to Wed” with Van Johnson (8), she headed for New York to be with her husband, then out of the army and on his way to success in the orchestra business. 

Starred on Tour

Shortly after completing "Her Husband’s Affairs,” (9) Miss Ball went on tour as star of Elmer Rice's play "Dream Girl” (10) then worked with Sonny Tufts and Victor Mature in "Interference” for R.K.O. (11)

Lucille, Desi, arid their year-old daughter Lucy Desiree, live at Desilu, their five-acre ranch at Chatsworth, Calif. They raise cattle, chickens, dogs, and cats and dabble in farming. Enthusiastic fishermen they spend a lot of time on their boat.

Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha was born in Santiago, Cuba, son of the mayor. Desi’s mother, Dolores de Acha, was considered among the 10 most beautiful women In Latin America. 

Three ranches totaling 100,000 acres, a palatial home in the city, a private island in Santiago Bay, speedboats, a fleet of motor cars, and a racing stable were all at the command of the youthful Desi during the pre-revolutionary days. His father, after eight years as mayor of Santiago, was made a member of the Cuban congress In 1932. 

On Aug. 12, 1933, came the revolution. Congress was dissolved. Its members jailed. The Arnaz property was confiscated, the homes burned to the ground. In 24 hours everything was gone except $500 Desi's mother had hidden. Desi and mother fled to Miami, devoted the next six months to efforts to free Papa Arnaz.  from prison. They were finally reunited in Florida.

For Desi, life in these United States for several years was hard but interesting: he worked at truck driving, train yard checking, taxi driving, bookkeeping, and, of all things, bird cage cleaning. Desi’s father managed to launch an importing business. It went broke when a shipment of fruit spoiled in transit.

Show business at this point finally caught up with Desi. His first job was playing guitar and singing with a seven-piece rhumba band at Miami’s Roney-Plaza Hotel (12). Xavier Cugat (13) spotted him, was impressed with this Cuban boy who was to be dubbed "The Tempo” by critics of modem music. After a year as featured vocalist with the Cugat band, Desi organized his own group of musicians and moved into the swank La Conga Café in Miami (14). 

George Abbott's Broadway hit "Too Many Girls” (15) was Desi’s next step up the ladder, in 1939. He played a Cuban football player, one of the leads, and played tropical drums. RKO bought the film rights and signed Desi to play his stage role. When the shooting was over Desi married the leading lady, Lucille Ball.

He spent from Feb. 1943 to Nov. 1945 in the Army, after which he toured the nation with his band playing theaters, dances, night clubs. He hasn’t been without a band since. In 1948, Desi made the Columbia film "Holiday in Havana.” (16)

He made a vaudeville tour with Lucille Ball and that convinced them they’d do well as a husband-and-wife team on television. The tour inspired the CBS-TV show “I Love Lucy,” which has been highly rated since it started. (17)

Desi Arnaz’s personality is as vibrant as the music he makes. He is friendly, direct in manner, has flashing dark brown eyes and brown hair. He’s an avid fisherman, rides and swims expertly: his tennis is the envy of his San Fernando Valley neighbors, Sue and Alan Ladd, Francis Lederer, Jackie Oakie, and the Andrews Sisters. (18) A good cook, he specializes in such tempting dishes as Ginger Beef and Bouillabaisse.

#    #    #

FOOTNOTES FROM THE FUTURE

(1) The photo is from “Be a Pal” (ILL S1;E2) aired on October 22, 1951, nearly two years earlier.  There’s one thing missing from this file photo: Vivian Vance. The success of the show was its foursome, not threesome! If you look closely you can see the hands of the other poker players, Richard Reeves (Hank, left) and Tony Michaels (Charlie, right).

(2) Lucille did several plays at the RKO Little Theatre under the direction of Lela Rogers (above), Ginger’s mom.  When Lucille later bought RKO, she dubbed it the Desilu Playhouse, a training ground for new young performers, often hand selected by Ball herself. 

(3) “That Girl from Paris” (not “The” as the article states) was Lucille’s 33rd film. The light-hearted musical romance earned an Oscar nomination for Sound Recording. It was released on the first day of 1937. 

(4) Lucille was indeed cast in the Broadway-bound comedy (it was not a musical, however) “Hey Diddle Diddle!” It opened in Princeton, New Jersey, the first of several out-of-town stops on the way to Broadway.  What Lucille’s publicity omits is that the show never got further than Washington DC due to the serious illness of its leading man, Conway Tearle. So Lucy’s Broadway debut would have to wait - until 1960!

(5) “The Big Street” opened on September 4, 1942. It was based on a Damon Runyan short story about a night club singer (Lucille) embittered by an accident that left her in a wheelchair and her romance with a naïve admirer (Henry Fonda) named Pinks. Lucy later said it was her favorite of the many films she made.  It was her 55th film. 

(6) “Du Barry Was A Lady” premiered in August 1943. It was Lucille’s  57th film, but her first for MGM.  She nabbed the role from her friend Ethel Merman, who had done the Cole Porter musical comedy on Broadway.  It was filmed in color, and was the film that earned her the nickname “Technicolor Tessie” because of her bright orange hair - a color she committed to from then on, despite her roots!  This is the film that introduced Lucy to the song “Friendship”, which she would also sing on “I Love Lucy.” 

(7) In the musical comedy “Best Foot Forward” (1943) Lucille Ball played herself.  It was her 58th film. “Meet The People” (1944) was a romantic comedy for MGM, Ball’s 60th film. 

(8) In 1946 she released her 63rd film, “Easy To Wed” co-starring Van Johnson and Esther Williams. Lucille and Van had appeared together in “Too Many Girls” and he would appear on Lucy’s television shows. 

(9) “Her Husband’s Affairs” (1947) was a romantic farce with Lucy teamed with Franchot Tone. It was her 69th film. 

(10) Back to the stage, Lucille accepted the leading role in a revival tour of “Dream Girl” a fantasy comedy by Elmer Rice. Once again, the play launched in Princeton, but this time Broadway was not the goal. It had already played the Great White Way two years earlier. The play toured the country at select cities, landing Lucille back in California in late 1947. In one SoCal gig she was appearing simultaneously with Desi and his band just a few blocks away.  No doubt this was by design. 

(11) RKO’s “Interference” was re-named “Easy Living” (1949) and dealt with the world of professional sports, namely football. It co-starred Victor Mature and Sonny Tufts. It was Ball’s 71st film. 

(12) The luxurious Roney Plaza Hotel in Miami Beach was located on the corner of Collins Avenue and 23rd Street. It opened in 1925 and was demolished in 1968. The resort attracted a who's who that included Hollywood stars and even the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. The hotel's Bamboo Room & Restaurant was the place to be seen on the Beach for decades.

(13) Xaviar Cugat (1900-1990) was a Spanish musician and bandleader who spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba. A trained violinist and arranger, he was a leading figure in the spread of Latin music. In New York City he was the leader of the resident orchestra at the Waldorf–Astoria before and after World War II.  He was a mentor and friend to Desi Arnaz, who kept his name before the public by making him a rival of Ricky Ricardo on “I Love Lucy” where his name became a punchline. In reality, Desi was grateful to Cugat, not jealous of him! 

“I learned a lot from Xavier Cugat” ~ Desi Arnaz

(14) La Conga Café was located in New York City, not Miami, although the article may be referring to a different, lesser known establishment where Desi Arnaz performed.  He became a regular headliner at La Conga, even issuing a record titled “La Conga” in 1939. 

(15) Speaking of 1939 New York, Desi appeared in his only Broadway show in 1939, Rogers and Hart’s “Too Many Girls.”  When the film rights were purchased by RKO, Desi was hired by director George Abbott to recreate his role. It was while filming this movie that he met Lucille Ball. 

(16) “Holiday in Havana” was a Columbia picture released in October 1949.  The film is about a Cuban hotel busboy (Arnaz) who dreams of becoming a composer.  His love interest was not Lucy, but Mary Hatcher. 

(17) The Tour incorporated some of the same routines seen in the “I Love Lucy” pilot as well as early episodes of the series, most notably the “Cuban Pete / Sally Sweet” duet.  The tour culminated at the Roxy in New York City, where Desi was playing when he married Lucille in 1940. 

(18) Before moving to their Beverly Hills mansion, Lucy and Desi lived on a ranch in Chatsworth in San Fernando Valley. They dubbed their ranch home Desilu.  About their neighbors: 

Alan Ladd (1913-64) was a chorus boy when Lucille was an Earl Carroll showgirl in Murder at the Vanities (1934). He was married to Sue Carol (1906-82) from 1942 until his death. Carol’s name was mentioned on “I Love Lucy” in “The Fashion Show” when Lucy selects the same Don Loper original that Carol has chosen to wear in the fashion show. She does not appear on screen. 

Francis Lederer (1899-2000) was a Hungarian-born actor. In 1960 he did an episode of Desilu’s “The Untouchables”. From 1941 until his death he was married to Marion Irvine. 

Jackie Oakie (1903-78) did four films with Lucille Ball between 1934 and 1938, including both “Annabell” movies. 

The Andrews Sisters were the pre-eliminant close-harmony girl group of their time. The consisted of Patty, Maxine, and LaVerne. They were mentioned on “I Love Lucy” in “Be a Pal” in the same scene that the photo at the top of the article came from. In 1969, Patty Andrews guest-starred as herself on “Here’s Lucy”.  Lucy and Lucie played the other two Andrews sisters. 

[emerald-echeveria-plant]

The Bonnet Crew Looks & a few more facts about them

(I wanted to make this because I felt like it and wanted to give y'all a better visual how the crew looks like since I can't draw :3)

Stede Bonnet

Bonnet would look like something horrific. So I went with a Wendigo! I thought about making him look like Flint's species but not anymore because I wanted him to be more scary looking.

The reason being because I like tropes where the character looks horrific but has a heart of gold. ((If this man wasn't good I could guarantee that he'd be the most feared pirate in the eitherium.))

- Bonnet was once apart of the military as a soldier. He served for three years and retired after nearly dying from a bomb exploding next to him.

- He had an ex-wife by the name of Mary Allenby. Their marriage was arranged to them by their parents. Bonnet would never admit it but he LOATHED her. Mary was a spoiled woman who would constantly complain and belittle Bonnet about everything. He just bought them a lovely mansion? It should've been a castle, Mary would say. He'd get her lovely gowns and clothing? She'd say she liked none of them but would wear them to tolerate his incompetence. No matter what, Mary was never satisfied. Bonnet would hide his hatred of her in order to save face. He's very happy now that he's no longer with her.

- A bit of NSFW but Bonnet never slept with his ex-wife. He found her so unlikeable that he couldn't even bang her.

- His ship is called the "Revenge"

- Bonnet was always confused about his sexuality. He had an attraction for men ever since he was a teenager but ignored his feelings because his parents had pretty negative views towards anyone that wasn't straight. Now that he's out of their grip, he's thought about exploring himself but doesn't know how to.

Ironbeard

Of course we're sticking with the original design because the original is ✨flawless ✨

Islay Lee

Islay is a heloderma which in other words is a gila monster.

They're adorable and fiesty little creatures:33 like Islay herself.

Leonid Gorbachev

Leonid is an ursid who's more buff than he is thicc in comparison to the rest of his species. He has a burn mark on his face from an unknown incident. His left hand is replaced with a mechanical one also from an unknown incident that he refuses to share.

Unfortunately I can't find an image so here's Ricardo.

Jayda & Jayden Solace

The first thing that came to my mind when picturing these two was those twins from the shinning xD which is actually one of the inspirations for them!

The solace twins look very similar. So similar in fact, its like someone was looking at their own reflection in a mirror. Sometimes it's hard to tell them apart until you realize one of them is a boy. They have hazel brown hair briaded into a fishtail, teal blue colored eyes, and often wear the same clothing.

- whenever the twins make a prediction, they're very metaphorical and symbolic when it comes to telling the future. They never just say "oh theres gonna be trouble ahead for us." And more like "The crows are flying around us like vultures on an animal carcass. Their getting closer and we must prepare for the pecking." Crows can represent bad luck.

- not a fact but I like to think that the twins see the future because of Davy Jones meddling with them. He's like "lol tell one of that they're gonna slip on a banana peel but be subtle about it"

- their favorite thing to do is stare at each other for long periods of times.

Fleance Bal

Honestly idk how he'd look. All I know is, Fleance would have puffy pink hair tied into a ponytail. His robotic body looks like a combination of feminine and masculine parts. Like broad hips and broad shoulders. Maybe his whole body is also pink?

Cletus Callaway

You know the typical ginger haired, green eyed southern man that will stab you if you insult his sweet tea. He's also heavily built since he's worked on a farm for almost his whole life.

Octavia Oshima

Octavia is a blue ringed octopus and if you known anything about them is that they're highly poisonous.

- Octavia is often discriminated against because of her poisonous genes.

- She'd often wear gloves to make sure she didn't leave anything she touched infected.

- she likes to conduct experiments in order to find more cures for diseases and sicknesses. She even uses a few of the other crewmates to be apart of her experiments.

- Octavia wrote in journals about her adventures and the crewmates on board. She filled up at least eleven journals with her writings.

Noëmie Von Marrietta

Noëmie is a canid and from the treasure planet lore, female canids look like cats. Noëmie is a dark grey fluffy canid. She's much smaller in comparison to the rest of the crewmates. She's the exact same height as Baozhai which should tell you that they're short.

- Noëmie enjoys singing when no one's around. Unfortunately because of her talent at singing beautifully, the others would sneakily listen to her.

Archie Mulligan

A cute and cuddly little red panda for the mischievous Archie Mulligan❤️❤️

I originally wanted to go with a raccoon but went with a red panda instead.

Archie uses his cuteness to steal from people.

((Sometimes I like to call red pandas - fancy raccoons xD))

[from-red-string]

Instinct

I'm so nervous for posting this for Day 3, I worry if anyone would read about Ana and Mora since they're not even secundary characters, they are just extras not in my heart but in the show, and this made it harder to write it. Anyway, it's here and I hope you like it.

Shout out to @sapphire374 for easing my worries and beta reading it 💛

Find all fics for Soy Luna Ficweek 2021, here

Day 3

Prompt: “Is this the second time we’ve both gotten stuck in the same elevator?”

Summary: The first time Ana and Mora got stuck in the elevator was when they stopped talking, a week later when it happens again: is it the time to rebound? or something more?

Warning: unfortunately it's not canon. Tino and Cato don't exist, they have never seen them, no one knows them in this fic

Genre: angst

Pairing: Ana and Mora a.k.a the lesbian moms

---

Another silent morning in the apartment, a rare situation for Nina. From what she could remember, there has never been a quiet day home ever since they moved in. Mora's sewing machine, some random song playing as background noise, or just Buenos Aires' downtown being crowded and busy. Although she appreciated the silence, it's odd, the girl is not used to it anymore.

Now both her mom and auntie didn't exchange a word, Mora has been working on arranging some photoshoots, she woke up for lunchtime and only came back late at night, while Ana left early for her meetings then arrived at 4 pm. Seems like they had it all planned out just so they didn't have to face each other. 

Nina didn't know what happened between them but hoped it would go away soon.

Well, unexpectedly it got different from other days from the beginning. When Nina left her room, Mora was awake and making herself breakfast. The girl checked the clock again, still at 7 am.

"Good morning, cariño" Mora smiled at her while Nina approached to sit on the chair.

"Morning." She reached for the bread slowly, hesitant. Her instincts told her to move carefully. "I thought I'd only see you later." Mora laughed but it was too stiff.

"I have to drive 3 hours to check for some special fabrics I'm looking for." The redhead tried to show excitement, however, such a rush manner showed her nervousness. Nina knew it wasn't about the fabrics. As soon as the clicks sound of Ana's heels started, Mora stands up. "I really need to go. Bye, darling." And left through the door carrying her purse, phone, and keys.

"Good luck there." Nina greets her and takes Mora's plate away immediately. She'd rather not step into whatever happened. Ana comes from her room in a rush and Nina wide her eyes when her mom gets to the front door. "Mom, you can't leave without eating."

"I'm late already. Sorry, cariño. I'll be back early. Bye… Hold the door, please!" Ana fleed before Nina could react. The girl opens the door to check on them but they were already gone. 

The silence from home followed them into the elevator. None dared to look up from their phones. Mora started to tap her foot impatiently when she noticed the elevator was slow today. 

"Can you stop?" Ana asked, staring at her screen.

"Oh, good morning. Now you can see me." Mora smirked, still avoiding Ana's face, kept tapping her shoe.

"More like I can hear you. Always so noisy."

"Can you? It didn't seem like that last week." The snark got the fashion designer, she provoked back looking at Ana and waiting for a reaction but she got nothing. "Back to ignoring me. Hope Mario has a better shot talking to you than I do." The lack of response from the lawyer building up her annoyance. "Even though we live together and have been friends for a lifetime. You rather believe in him than..."

"Give me a reason," Ana said, losing her temper. The elevator stops, slowing down. "I need a plea." Walking side to side in this shiny box they were failing to realize they were trapped in.

"My instincts are not a good one. I don't trust him." Mora decided to watch her friend through the reflection, pretending to fix her hair in the mirror.

"Of course not." Ana laughed at her. "Do you think I can defend a case based on your feelings? A judge would accept it, declare him guilt for you." Her voice was cold, but the rage -boiling inside was still audible.

"You're not a judge, Ana." Turning around she steps in Ana's way, staring at her. "Ain't a case but your life." Each word was another step forward, the lawyer's back hit the wall, but she wouldn't give up on a debate, her index finger touched Mora's shoulder.

"That's exactly the problem." This time the designer was the one walking backward. "My life is never good enough for you. I can't even decide on Nina's life without you around." Mora's jaw dropped and she stuttered, with a non-comprehensible sound coming from her mouth. "Not even a boyfriend." That's the moment Ana breaks, lowering her head and resting on Mora's shoulder while the other was glued on the wall, still recovering from shook, nevertheless, she wrapped her arms around her friend's body. 

"I… I'm sorry, I didn't… mean to make you feel less..." trying to find words at that moment was completely useless, not even in her wildest dreams she would have imagined she made Ana doubt herself. Her friend's knees seemed to give up and her body weighted, they sank to the floor while Ana let out all she needed to. It's been ages since the lawyer opened herself like this, they were best friends, Mora knew Ana has been holding up for who knows how long, well if that's even considered opening up. 

All the signs Mora neglected before came down on her. Ana has been distant for months, she pushed Mora away, anytime they were alone and approached each other, Ana would step away like her skin burned from the contact.

Mora kept Ana pressed against her body until the very last tear she had, waiting for her to calm down. Once Ana's sobs were more spaced, she raised her head displaying her red cheeks, Mara's heart stings with this scene, her hands capture Ana's face moving toward her until their forehead touches.

"I'm sorry, I..." Shutting her eyes, unable to face the tears that still shine on her lover's face. Guilty fell hard on her shoulders. Ana fought to be an independent woman who could support her daughter without her ex's money, Mora watched how much she struggled to get there, yet the main person who helped her in all her lows is also the same who stuck her nose in all her matters, Mora was both a guardian and a butcher. Now that she has to take a good on her actions, Mora told Nina she should follow her heart and go after Gastón if that's her desire, while Ana, Nina's mother, had explicit disagreed about this idea. She should've considered that maybe she wasn't helping Ana see another point of view but making it harder to care for her own daughter.

There was an even worse thought haunting her, she told Nina to go because she feared Gastón would repeat her story, going to another country and losing the love of her life, forever wondering what would have happened if she stayed. That thought scared her, she denied it to herself but it had lived in her mind for so long.

When Mora went to Germany, she made her choice, decided to go on an adventure instead of staying with Ana. She was young, by the time believed they would still be the same through distance, their relationship wouldn't change, but that's not what happened. It came out to be harder than she thought, they never revealed themselves as a couple, it was so natural for them to be together like that, the sneaking out, sleepovers, kisses, and loving moments were part of their friends, they didn't feel the need to label that. Once distance came into the scene, it got complicated, both noticing how much they missed each other, although not willing to give up on their paths, not labeling their friendship made it easier to move on, no one but them knew what went on inside those walls, they just had to keep going. They never stopped talking completely, they called each other every other week updating about their lives, never talking about their relationship, how they missed each other's touch.

When Mora visited Argentina, she learned about Ana and Ricardo's relationship, they were dating, that's when what was between them seemed to be forgotten by Ana. Mora was happy for her friend, of course, but they never left her mind.

Nothing happened while Ana's married, Mora's life went on. Both of them supported each other, and were always around. Nina's birth was emotional just like all the previous months Mora spent by Ana's side. They never regretted the choice that took them to that day.

Then suddenly came the divorce, not long after Ana needed a place to stay with Nina, Mora's house was always open for them, so they started to live together. 

The intimacy level acquired from sharing the same place made them go back to their old ways. Little by little, their old friendship came back to the same mold from when they were young. Sometimes they kissed after drinking some wine, sneaked to each other’s bed after Nina went to bed, or just cooked together and held hands during dinner. Plus, small touches in public, taking care of Nina, going to the supermarket. Small domestic daily moments that made them feel comfortable. 

Mora finally had it in her hands, everything she imagines. Then, Ana backed away, slipping through her fingers. None of them said a word about it, the unspoken words lost in the silence.

"I'm sorry," She repeated, opening her eyes again, Ana shook her head, scaring Mora. "Ana..." She had to admit it, she knows it wasn't right to push her own experience on Nina.

"You were right." When Ana said that, More dropped her hands confused. Ana leaned back against the wall, now sitting by Mora's side and looking to the elevator's door. "Thiago is a liar." Mora was even more lost. Who the hell is Thiago? "He is married." Ah, he is the boyfriend. It wasn't that deep for Mora, nothing personal, she just felt it in her that guy shouldn't be trusted. She felt a little proud and bit her bottom lip to prevent herself from smiling. Ana looked at her frustrated. "You're annoying, I can see you smiling. Yes, you told me, whatever." Watching Ana complain was the same as seeing an old picture, Ana was still the girl from school days behind the successful lawyer and tough mom facade.

"Ana," She waited for Ana to look at her. "It was an instinct." 

"Shut up!" The answer didn't surprise Mora, but the small that followed it did. Ana closed her eyes and faced the ceiling, the smile glued on her face. "It's not that I don't want you in my life, you were always there for me." She faced Mora again. "But when it comes to Nina, don't disagree with how I raise my kid. She's a teen, just wants echo to confirm her ideas, they don't know the consequences."

"Nina is really responsible, you should give her more credit." Mora couldn't stop the words from coming out. When Ana narrowed her eyes, she raised her hands in defeat. "She had an amazing mom to teach her." Added with a wink making Ana laugh, she approached her face to Mora. The designer became extremely aware of the short space between them, a few inches to no distance at all.

"She's 17." They exchange looks. Too meaningful, too painful. That's the same age they separated.

"Why didn't you go?" It came out as a whisper, due to the almost non-existent distance Ana could hear perfectly, Mora should've stopped herself. That was a forbidden question. Ana immediately pulled away, looked at the elevator's screen.

They weren't working.

She picked up her phone to look at the hours, then looked at her watch. 20 minutes since she left the apartment since she left to her next meeting, she doesn't have to worry about it for the next 40 minutes. 

"Why are you up so early?" Ana questioned only now noticing how weird this scene was. 

"It's time to look for fabrics." Mora answered, snapping out of her thoughts. 

"You'll drive for 3 hours again? You should've scheduled it for later, you don't drive well when you're sleepy, it's early for you." Her worries were real, Mora wasn't awake before 10 am at least. Listening to her made Mora feel a little warmer and a wide smile appeared without her consent. "How can you drive? You didn't even notice we were stuck in here." Mora really didn't notice.

"Is this the second time we’ve both gotten stuck in the same elevator?” Mora joked that both of them laughed. "One time for the present, two times for the past." 

"Yeah, this time is fixing what the first time did." Ana reached for Mora's hand, intertwining their fingers. Mora caught her breath. A voice came from the speaker above the floor screen.

"We're sorry for the inconvenience. The elevator will be moving in a few minutes." Ana recognized the janitor's voice. Mora was stuck looking at Ana.

"We'll be free soon." Ana stood up, keeping their hands locked, then noticed Mora's eyes on her face. "Is there something on my face?" She turned to the mirror. Her mask was ruined, her cheeks were reddened and glistened from the tears, hair fell from the elegant ponytail she caged them earlier, her lipstick was smugged. She was a mess, but in Mora's eyes, she was beautiful. "I'll need to go home and fix myself." Noted annoyed.

"No, I can do it." Mora raised from the floor, got her make up from the purse to work with it. Ana decided to let Mora paint her as she desired, feeling a bit nervous but she wanted to show Mora she trusted her. Ana knows Mora is feeling bad for today's argument already and she saw every wince of pain that flashed in her dark eyes every time Ana rejected her touch.

Mora focused on making Ana's make up, trying to tone down her ideas for Ana's face and making something that would make her comfortable and pretty. It worked well until it was time to work on her mouth, Mora decided on a lip tint, in this case for her own sanity, lipstick would demand too much time working on a painting she wanted to ruin, too tempting. Her hand started shaking, Ana noticed it too but before the suggestion of doing it herself came out, Mora put the lip tint in her pocket.

"I forgot the hair. Lips are the grand finale." As soon as Mora had to reach her hand for Ana's she noticed that was a terrible idea. While Mora pulled the lawyer's hair free, Ana shivered at the quick contact of her hand against Ana's scalp. Memories from other moments those same fingers touched that place rushed back to her mind, her eyes closing to better appreciate the feeling. Mora saw this reaction and rested her hand on Ana's neck, watching the reaction until she couldn't help but lean in and close the gap between them, crashing her lips on hers quickly. The kiss was chaste, as fast it came, it ended. 

Seeming to Ana as if her imagination had created the feeling because when she eyed Mora, the lip tint was back and she was ready to place it. But the beam on Mora's lip couldn't be denied. It happened, an instinct told Ana it did.

[blondekasp]

Soft domestic reddie: I LOVE the idea of them having a cat AND a dog. I love them as parents too, but i do think canon wise if they had had a happy ending they prob wouldn’t become parents of humans. They would be the best uncles tho.

Domestic reddie 2: eddie thought richie would be a mess in the kitchen and he would be the designated cook, but turns out bc Eddie grew up with all his health scares he cooks bland af and richie is actually amazing at making fancy GOOD food. This infuriates eddie a little bit sjjdjd

Domestic reddie 3 bc i just remembered: eddie gets them matching gucci shoes AND outfits and the Internet is amazed by how pretty richie can be when he doesn’t go out looking like hot garbage shdhdh

aw yay i’m a fan of this too!! i also prefer the idea that they adopt pets rather than having children, i think that works better in general with the vibe of canon than them having kids does, by the time they get to be together they’re forty years old and slightly worn out by life, so wanting to care for something together but not feeling equipped to do so with kids, they’d definitely opt for pets

a cat and a dog is great for them!! i feel like the cat and dog would get along really well (and maybe even reflect richie and eddie’s personalities like they do in @caliceal’s ricardo/eggie au because that’s so sweet and funny) and richie and eddie would have the best of both worlds when taking care of them

they go to the park so that their dog can run around and get it’s energy out, so eddie runs around with the dog on the grass, playing fetch and frisbee with him while richie watches from one of the park benches, their cat (who’s only a kitten at this time) laying on his lap, sleeping

(i think it’s probably out of the ordinary to put them in these roles rather than the other way around but my reasoning is that eddie loves to run, he didn’t really get to often as a child so running around with their dog is a lot of fun for him. also i headcanon richie as having to use crutches permanently after their return to derry because of that nasty fall he had when he came out of the deadlights—he definitely should’ve had some sort of severe injury there, so he needs to give his legs a rest every so often and is content to watch eddie getting his energy out with the dog because he gets to see eddie so happy.)

then in the evening when they’re back home richie and eddie curl up on the sofa together, the kitten sits in eddie’s lap and the dog jumps all over richie, licking his face and trying to get a hug from him, which of course richie gives many of

i like to think that they have a pitbull dog, she’s very friendly and i think that after pennywise they’d want to feel really safe and protected and they know their dog will protect them if they’re ever threatened

onto cooking, i think you’re right! eddie’s still very apprehensive of many foods and ingredients that make cooking great, because for nearly four decades he was conditioned into fearing them so much, he’s working on it with his therapist

it does make his cooking a little bland, and honestly i’m not sure eddie would even be a good cook regardless, no one taught him how to cook so the food usually comes out with one problem or another but!! richie eats it anyway to make eddie happy because he looks so proud that he managed to make something

eventually eddie decides that richie should be the designated cook because he makes dinner for them one night and wow it’s so much better than eddie’s, he’s surprisingly talented in cooking

richie promises eddie that he’ll teach him more about cooking once eddie feels comfortable using more ingredients and isn’t as worried about allergies, and then they can make dinner together

and omg yeS eddie buying clothes for richie so they can match!! i’ve talked before about richie buying eddie hawaiian shirts so that they can match, and i think eddie would definitely do the same thing because he wants to let richie in on this thing that he loves so much and of course richie’s delighted

as i’ve said before richie often looks like he got dressed in the dark, he’s pretty neat in general like he’s clean and his hair is normally nice even if it looks messy it’s just that his clothing style makes him look like a closet full of different clothes threw up on him or something

it does work for him though in a way it wouldn’t with anyone else

buT he really likes the stuff eddie buys for him to wear too!! eddie buys him a lot of designer clothes from brands he likes and makes sure he gets things that are still pretty close to richie’s style so that he feels comfortable in what he’s wearing

(when eddie dresses him up in gucci he likes to call himself eddie’s barbie doll 😭😭)

people are pretty shocked when articles and pictures come out of the two just going about their day, shopping, walking in the park etc and suddenly richie looks like thought actually went into his outfit—it’s not hard to guess that the outfit was eddie’s doing

people love it!! they think richie looks great in this style just as much as his other and it’s so cute to see him matching with his partner

i also like the idea of eddie braiding richie’s hair (long hair richie rights!!) and painting his nails or something because he wants to show richie how much he loves him in any way he can, he’s good at this kind of thing and wants to share what makes him happy with richie!! it’s not so easy since his left arm is a prosthetic but richie is patient and loves seeing eddie so concentrated and if it takes a while it’s not a problem because they enjoy spending time together even if it’s just while doing something simple

they love each other very much and both think the other is really handsome no what matter they wear :))

[mcnuggyy]

hi i'm applying to art center, it's my dream school. Your link to black at accd helped me take off the rose tinted glasses & understand its reputation doesnt mean it's perfect. I still want to go though...Do you have any tips for how to be a successful student at accd? i know its been a while since u were there, but any scrap of info would be appreciated....

sure thing!!! This might be a bit harder to do during a pandemic but it can still be done through voice chat and discord and stuff! A big thing that really helped me that I wish I had done earlier when I first started was finding some friends I can work with, vent about the same professors too, etc. They’ll be going through the same hardships you will be and that bond is stronger than anything, god the intense work and projects you and your classmates will have to do, it can be hard to go through it alone. So even if you can find someone just to sit silently with while you work, quiet encouragement. It’s a great support system that helped me immensely. Like a study group but with art!

Art school is expensive, TOO expensive imo, so even when a profesor says “BUY THIS SPECIFIC BRAND OR ELSE” still try and find cheaper solutions! Lots of students sell old supplies, I’ve even given my supplies away for free to lower classmates! cause for a lot of classes you will really only end up using those supplies just for that one class and never again, so might as well recycle them and give them to someone else instead of keeping them in your garage forever! (Again this will depend on the pandemic situation but we would have fliers and stuff for people selling their supplies! People would even sell art tablets for 100$ or less!! Great resource!)

Don’t be afraid to ask upper term students questions! We are all going through it, and have had to deal with a lot of crazy professors and projects and shit, so don’t be afraid to reach out! They are full of good tips, advice, resources, etc. And just like Black at ACCD, they won’t be afraid to tell you who to watch out for which I think is super important when it comes to choosing classes. Most people are really kind, we just look tired from the lack of sleep 😔

Talk to people outside of your track/major too!! (NETWORKING!!!) this goes hand in hand with the first tip. The biggest thing that helped me, specifically for the future, is the friends I made, that’s how I got my first few jobs! Because unfortunately In the industry it IS very much about who you know. As for talking with other majors!! You never know when you might need a photographer or graphic designer or they might need an illustrator or character artist!! Like it’s great to be able to say “I know someone” and they can do the same for you! It’s great to build those healthy work relationships and also just meet and hang out with other creatives with unique perspectives! Good for your art AND good for actually getting a job in the future 👌

(this also includes networking with some professors, a lot of them have industry experience they can provide! some are willing to look at ur portfolio and even share your portfolio with recruiters!!!) 

Setting up a good work schedule is super important cause the amount of homework you will get is pretty much impossible to do at most times, then again I speed run college, I took no breaks and finished in 2 years because of poverty. I do NOT recommend this because o suffered from constant burn out, depression, stress, isolation, etc. So make sure your work schedule includes time to eat, sleep, chill out, ya know good mental health stuff!

Might be good to get a therapist. Art center WILL increase your mental health issues drastically. Everyone I know suffered from stress, anxiety, lack of sleep, etc. and are still feeling affects from Art Center to this day. So it might be good to prepare yourself for this, because it does get really bad for a lot of students unfortunately...

As always my inbox and DM’s are always open! If you end up getting a specific professor, or someone you know I might have had to deal with I’m more than happy to talk about my experiences with them! A lot of them have had the same assignments for yearssss. I was in the entertainment track specifically so I had professors like Will Weston, Jeff Smith, Rey Bustos, Gayle Donahue, Bob Kato, Adam Dix, Peter Han, Richard Keyes, Steve Turk, Paul Rogers, Aaron Smith, Mike Humphries, Ricardo Delgado, etc. (some of these u might be familiar with from the BlackatACCD account so yeah I had to deal with a lot of them :/ ) but I was fortunate enough to take some cool queer classes too, and those were some of the few minority professors in the school, they were the best honestly, I recommend taking a class with Rocio Carlos or Gary Kornblau for sure if you get a chance, they are a breathe of fresh air on campus. 

Hope this helps!! sorry for the long post jaja <3