#but if you want there can be lol

[frozenjokes]

If I Thought About It A Little Longer, I Probably Wouldn’t Have Thrown Glitter In A Known Supervillain’s Face, However, I Did And It Felt Great And I Will Do It Again

“Cub, I just want you to know that you have nothing to worry about. I’ve got this under control.” Scar said to him over the phone, a little too much strength behind the words, overcompensating for his own concern.

“I’m not worried.”

“Everything is going to be fine, alright? Nothing bad is going to happen and Grian will come home safe and sound, I promise. You can count on me! I’ll make sure of it!”

A harsh breath left Cub’s nose. “I know. I’m not-“

“I have to go now! I’m leaving right away! I just wanted to call you so you heard the news from me first. He’s going to be okay, Cub. Really, you don’t have to fret.”

“Yeah. Bye, Scar.”

“Bye, Cub! I will see you in an hour or two with Grian in hand, and you can hold me to that! The Goat will have to get through me if he wants to harm a hair on Grian’s lovely little head, and even without my legs I’m no pushover! Not to mention that Grian’s pretty tough himself; with the two of us fighting together, The Goat won’t stand a chance! I promise you he’ll be right home, safe, sane and- and unharmed! The Goat promised not to hurt him, not as long as I was the only man who showed. Which I will be. You have nothing to worry-“

At this point Cub just hung up, rolling his eyes as he flipped back to Scar’s texts and pulled up the ransom note plus attached photos. Probably the most staged pictures he’d ever seen, really, not that he was the person meant to be fooled here. That man was already on his way to The Goat’s mansion-fortress or whatever it was, likely walking into some sort of trap. Had Scar even looked at the pictures? Cub had looked at them. A normal amount of times of course. They were baffling, nothing more, nothing less.

There were a lot to start, and in half of them Grian was making the exact face he always made when he was trying not to smile or laugh, and while his eyes were obscured by the mask in the pictures, Cub could imagine just as clearly how they would have crinkled at the edges, shining in a stark betrayal of his true feelings. But even not knowing Grian as well as Cub did, the contents were too ridiculous to be real, The Goat and ‘CuteGuy’ posing like they were in a movie, vaguely threatening in a distinctly suggestive way, not subtle in the slightest. The Goat looked nearly the same in every image, which is to say, a bit bored, but even he put on a bit of a face sometimes, like he probably wouldn’t have let this go on for so long if he hadn’t been enjoying it.

There were no heroes or villains without a performance, not really. They all loved a show.

The Goat was always holding Grian in one way or another, sometimes close, nearly face to face with Grian’s head in the crook of The Goat’s neck, his face cupped in a clawed hand (again, not subtle), or just holding Grian by the ankle, the other swooning in the most performative look of not-even-distress Cub had ever seen on his face. Cub wasn’t so sure that pose in particular didn’t hurt. Grian didn’t weigh very much, no, but that feels excessive. Did Grian like to be carried and held like that? Would he want Cub to do that, or did he just want to take fun pictures? Christ, he wouldn’t be able to keep up with this. Scar was bad enough.

For the record, these pictures made Cub feel nothing at all, however, it seemed like Scar would be getting himself into trouble, and who knows what Grian was getting up to unsupervised without him- that was no good, no no. Wasn’t The Goat’s house public information anyway? Did he have a gate? Well.

That line of thought left him at The Goat’s doorstep, probably a very stupid thing, but Cub never spent much time considering his every whim, not caring to think over whether or not whatever he was about to do was actually a good idea because usually the answer was no, and then he’d be stressing instead of having a good time. No need to worry about consequences that hadn’t happened to him yet.

This taxi was, quite frankly, a frivolous waste of money, but buses were slow and Grian had a crazy job now so Cub didn’t feel too bad about it. There was in fact a gate, but it must have already been opened for HotGuy, so Cub didn’t end up having to use the bolt cutters he brought (unfortunate). Anyone within a mile’s radius could probably hear Scar’s scandalized yell from inside, so Cub felt vindicated in his decision to follow him here. Clearly HotGuy needed the help! The front door wasn’t even closed, the action apparently taking place just inside.

Scar’s chair had been left behind in the doorway, the hero letting arrows fly from a place on the ground instead, one chinking against the right knee of his apparent assailant; ah, Cub got it. Scar’s legs seemed to have gained a mind of their own, shrugging off the arrow with only a slight limp to regain their balance before continuing in their sprint across the hall toward the grounded hero.

“Have you been hit there before, HotGuy?” The Goat’s booming sneer echoed through the hall, though Cub couldn’t quite locate the source of the sound, “Is that how they stop you nowadays, jamming your joints until you stop trailing after villains like a whiny dog? Is that why your knees click and pop every time they bend? I’d be careful, you wouldn’t want to damage them beyond repair.”

“I’m sure you’re very amused with yourself!” Scar shot back, though he also didn’t seem to know where to look. Another arrow bounced uselessly off the legs, still barreling down the hall.

“My knees also make all sorts of horrible noises, so I’m not sure how big of a deal that is,” Cub mumbled, wondering if maybe he should have waited before speaking up when Scar screamed, losing his balance and falling backwards.

“Cub!?” Scar yelped, but Cub heard Grian’s voice over the speaker as well, the two of them yelling in tandem. Oh! Good! With a little more confidence, Cub stepped inside, hoping to get a better look.

“Who the fuck is that.” The Goat spoke again over the speaker, but his voice was drowned out by Scar’s screech as his legs closed the rest of the distance, beginning a cartoonishly vicious assault against their former body. Scar dropped his bow, lunging to grapple them and stop himself from being kicked, but they thrashed violently in his arms, hero and machine rolling across the floor of the massive lobby. Well it seemed like Scar had that covered!

Cub wandered past him, curiosity pulling him forward. This place was massive, but also intricately beautiful, far nicer than Cub had expected from such an industrial looking exterior. And themed! Goats, of course. The walls were decorated in monochrome carvings and murals that seemed to tell some sort of story; maybe an account of The Goat’s species history? Cub didn’t know very much about centaurs(?)… The Goat was German, wasn’t he? Maybe the focus of the artistry was on mythology; plenty of humanoid creatures had vast religious histories from a more ancient time, and these carvings definitely looked like they were depicting divine figures. Cub never would have guessed someone like The Goat had an interest in this stuff, but in all fairness, Cub didn’t know very much beyond surface level information.

“Cub. Cub. CUB!” After some time of ignoring Grian over the speaker, Cub turned around, looking and still failing to find the source of the noise. Scar was still flailing on the ground with his legs, but Cub paid him little mind.

“What.” he replied somewhat blandly, Grian groaning in response.

The Goat cut in instead, predictably not too happy sounding, “Remove yourself from the premises. This is not a building for the traipsing around of civilians. When you get lost, perish, and start to smell, I do not wish to clean your body from the rafters.”

“I appreciate your concern, but I don’t think I’d even be able to get up that high.”

“Cub!” Someone, probably Grian, battered the mic, pushing to be heard, “I’m not- I’m fine, okay? I’m not being held against my will or anything, this was just a setup for HotGuy.”

“WHAT?” Scar’s scandalized cry echoed through the hall, and Cub heard The Goat’s grainy chuckle through the speaker as the foot of Scar’s prosthetic pushed against his face.

Cub shrugged, “If you couldn’t tell Grian was in on this before you came, I’m afraid that’s on you, man.”

“You-“ but Scar was distracted by a violent thrashing of his legs, rolling over them in an attempt to make them still. Cub started to continue his walking in the other direction, but was stopped when Grian called his name again, distress filling every letter.

“Why are you here then?” Fair question. Not that Cub had thought too much about it before coming. Ah right, the pictures. The pictures that made him feel no way at all.

“I guess I just wanted to see you.” Silence over the intercom, the only sound being Scar’s grunts and shuffling from behind him. “Now that I’m here though, I kinda want to keep looking at these walls. Did you see them? How far do all the carvings and things go? Did you ask about them, I’m curious. These must have taken years to construct, I wonder how many artists worked on them.”

“I- I didn’t-“ Grian stuttered before a soft thump came through over the speaker, presumably his head hitting a desk, “That’s.. so stupid.”

“The foyer is not a museum,” The Goat growled, though that didn’t stop Cub from walking onward. “The novelty of this event is gone. I am tired of you all. Get out of my house.” Grian mumbled something that Cub didn’t catch over the sounds of shuffling, but Doc only snorted, “Fine. I’ll escort you then.”

Scar groaned from somewhere behind him, heaving the now-limp prosthetics off of him with a soft clatter. “Cub!”

Cub didn’t acknowledge him with much more than a grunt, still walking as he looked at the displayed art, but Scar was not one to be ignored, hands slapping against the marble floors as he made his way to Cub’s side, locking his arms around his legs.

“You’re not going anywhere mister! You’re going to answer to me! You knew this was a trap? I mean- obviously it was a trap, but you knew it was staged and you didn’t say a word!”

Cub huffed a laugh, struggling a little around Scar’s grip. As much as Scar didn’t look very threatening where he stood now, Cub was still relatively certain Scar could fold him without effort, so no point in resisting. “Couldn’t have warned you if I tried. You don’t listen.”

“I listen! I’m a great listener!” Scar squeezed his legs in his passion, nearly knocking Cub over.

“I told you I wasn’t worried.”

“You were just saying that.”

“You were worried.”

“I was worried!”

“I was not. Did you look at the pictures?”

“Of course I did! Grian was greatly distressed! Did you look at the pictures? The Goat was holding him by the ankle!”

Cub snorted, pulling his phone from his pocket and holding it for Scar to see. (The pictures may or may not have already been pulled up when he unlocked his phone, but that was neither here nor there). “You don’t see anything wrong with this photo.”

“I-“ Scar screwed up his face, unsuccessfully trying to hide his embarrassment, “The Goat is holding him there! Pushing him against his neck I- Look at the distress!”

“Grian is smiling.”

“He is not smiling!”

“He is literally smiling in this picture. You can see the corner of his mouth.”

“He-“ Scar squinted, removing an arm from Cub’s legs to take his phone closer, “Well clearly he’s nervous. People smile when they’re nervous, Cub! Happens all the time!”

“I do that sometimes.”

“No you don’t.”

Cub rolled his eyes with a short laugh, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Everyone gets nervous around celebrities! I bet your heart was just pumping during our first few encounters! And you weren’t smiling!” Scar swooned against his legs, clearly not going to come to any other conclusion here. As if meeting a celebrity is more nerve wracking than customer service.

“You do not listen. When I don’t listen it’s on purpose. When you don’t listen you don’t even know you’re not listening.”

Scar pursed his lips, looking very much like the minuscule amount of self awareness he held was waging a vicious war with his overwhelming desire to talk over everyone all of the time. “I get excited.”

“So if you miss something, it’s your fault.”

“I could be persuaded.”

“That’s annoying, Scar.”

“Ah! No!” Cub rolled his eyes as Scar fell against his legs, so he gently pushed the other away with his foot. Scar flopped to the ground, mortally wounded.

“Go on. Get yourself back to your chair.”

“Cub.”

“What?”

“I don’t have any legs.”

Cub snorted despite himself, “No, you don’t. Do you want me to bring you your chair?”

“I mean, that’s one way to solve my problem.”

“If you want someone to carry you then you can wait for Grian.”

Scar laughed, splaying out completely on the floor. “As great of an idea as that is, I have words to say to him, and I feel like saying those words in his arms would lessen the effect. Chair would be helpful though. Don’t touch the legs, they might still be dangerous.”

Cub nodded, meandering over to Scar’s chair, wheeling it back over (not without some difficulty due to the knives, which, he supposed was the intention), and holding it still as Scar dragged himself back into it. Despite the energy in his voice, he was clearly tired, arms shaking in a way that made Cub feel a little bad he hadn’t tried to help further, though, given his own abysmally weak arms and little motivation to do anything about it, he probably would have ended up damaging Scar’s chair. Either way, Scar didn’t look like he minded, going on to collect his discarded bow and legs with some trouble (he couldn’t exactly lean over to get them, could he). Despite Scar’s warning, Cub did end up helping him out with those. He wanted a better look at what The Goat had done to his prosthetics, but alas, Scar took them back far too quickly.

Speaking of the devil, it wasn’t too long before he and Scar could hear The Goat’s hooves booming down the hall, the clicks of Grian’s talons on the marble equally audible. Cub found himself eager to meet them, walking back through the foyer despite Scar’s protest, though he had no idea what to do with himself when the two of them actually came into view, The Goat and CuteGuy, not..

Well, CuteGuy hadn’t been exactly the man Cub had wanted to see. Not that Cub should have been expecting anyone else.

“Why is your pest still here,” The Goat grunted, bumping Grian’s side with one of his massive legs only to be swatted away by Grian’s wing.

“He was just waiting for me, you can cool it,” Grian huffed, and Cub felt at least a little vindicated, “I know you don’t have any friends, but they miss you when you’re held for ransom. Don’t they?” Grian smiled, something teasing, but the light, silly kind, the kind that doesn’t make you feel bad, the kind that says ‘I’m happy to see you too.’ The kind that makes your heart beat a little faster. Cub wished he could see Grian’s eyes.

“I did,” he said, a little quietly, but that seemed to have some sort of effect on Grian, wings folding in on his back in a shier motion.

“I was in on it, Cub, I’m fine.”

“Hey! Yeah! What was that about anyway!” Scar cut in and he continued to yap on, but Cub wasn’t listening, choosing to approach Grian instead, taking his hand in a brief hello, then turning his attention to The Goat who towered over both of them. He wasn’t paying very much attention to Cub, focus aligned more on Scar, a crease of amusement playing across his brow. Cub’s thoughts wandered to the pictures; they’d be everywhere, wouldn’t they? They weren’t public yet as far as Cub knew, but they would be soon. This would be a big story.

Cub was not a jealous man. (And that’s all he had to say on the matter.)

A small part of him tuned back in when Grian spoke, “Hey, The Goat wouldn’t feel the need to be so petty toward you if you just thanked him for making your prosthetics all those years ago.”

“CuteGuy-“ The Goat hissed, only to be cut off entirely by Scar’s startled cry.

“WHAT?”

Cub stopped paying attention. Really, it was safe to say he wasn’t thinking at all. His hand was in his pocket.

“CUBGUY!”

In a spectacular show of surprise and fear, The Goat bleated, the instinctive noise turning into more of a yelp as his eyes were assaulted with a fistful of glitter. Cub caught Grian’s look of utter horror before Scar yelled in tandem, almost louder than The Goat’s own distress. Cub smirked.

“Time to go!” Grian shrieked, grabbing Cub’s hand and booking it toward the front gate, entirely leaving Scar behind, the other hero releasing a frightening gasp before Cub heard the squeak of his wheels on a harsh turn. Though Cub seemed to have a harder time keeping up than Scar did, the other shooting past both of them once he gained enough momentum, but The Goat’s strangled, furious yell behind them threw Cub’s ass into gear, running faster than he had in his entire life. Perhaps now was the time for regret, but the consequences were not yet severe enough to go that far.

The Goat did not follow them. Still, the three of them ran like they were being chased until Cub physically couldn’t continue, stopping, then stumbling forward when Grian continued to pull on his arm.

“Cub-“ Grian hissed, and Scar stopped immediately, swiveling his chair around so quickly it nearly tipped over. His eyes were still so wide and frightened- Cub bet Grian’s were too; oh boy, he was getting far more out of this than he had anticipated. He still couldn’t breathe though, so there was that. Forcibly, he sat down.

“I’ll call a cab.” Scar said, voice strained to the breaking point. Yeah. That would be better.

Whatever rich person and/or superhero contact Scar had, it was damn fast, a taxi arriving only a couple minutes after the call. The driver seemed to know Scar, helping him into the passenger seat and fitting his wheelchair into the back nearly as quickly as Cub and Grian could climb into the backseat. Scar told the driver Cub and Grian’s home address, and Cub was briefly amused that Scar had it memorized, but he didn’t get a chance to linger before Scar whipped around, every muscle tensed.

“Why. Why. Why did you do that. Cub. Why did you do that. Cub. Cub. I need you to come closer so I can Shake You. Why did you do that?”

Cub looked at Grian, but he looked just as stressed. Cub shrugged. One of Scar’s eyes twitched under the mask.

“That’s not an answer.”

“I just wanted to.”

Scar stared. Cub stared back. Scar put his head in his hands. Similarly, Grian let his head fall limp against the seat with a grunt. Well! This was a good time to change the subject

“I’m glad we’re all here, actually. I think you two have a couple things to work out and you’re not doing a very good job of talking on your own. I’m not looking for a forgiveness party or anything, I just think we should all say what we have to say. I’ll go first. I want us all to be friends.”

“Wait a minute, Cub-“ Grian started sharply, but Scar cut him off with a wail.

“I want to be friends!”

“Great. Continue.” Cub spoke before Grian could, and Scar didn’t have to be fast, loud enough to drown the both of them out.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you, er- CuteGuy- I didn’t want to! I didn’t know what to do when you met Micah and I just wanted to make it better and I wanted you to feel safe, but we also got along so well and you were goofy and fun and you liked me, but you didn’t like HotGuy and I didn’t want to lose that, I just wanted you to- I don’t know! I wanted you to know I wasn’t bad. I don’t want to be bad. But I was selfish and I took it way too far- I just didn’t know how to tell you without hurting you.”

Grian sighed harshly, “You want Cub. I’m in your way.”

“Maybe- I mean, you weren’t the easiest person to get along with, but if that was ever true, it isn’t anymore. I don’t see it that way. I like you, CuteGuy. You. I really liked getting to know you personally, I just hated that you couldn’t know me. That the me I wanted you to see was just- impossible. I want to be friends. I want to get to know you better, and I would be happy to do so as partners, and I’m not just saying that. We don’t have to be perfect friends first to go on a date, we can do whatever we want. And if you want to make out with Cub or whatever, I don’t care! I’d just like to know about it. We don’t have to throw labels around if you don’t want to.”

“For the record, I also don’t care,” Cub waved a lazy hand. Grian frowned. Cub once again wished he could see his eyes, hand inching toward Grian’s side, but he stopped himself. Not with a stranger around. “It’s not a trap, Grian. You don’t have to commit to anything. And if you want to commit and change your mind, that’s okay too. God knows I don’t know exactly what I want.”

Grian hunched his shoulders, and Cub could see the places where his feathers were puffing out under the cover. “I don’t. Know.” He turned a fiery gaze toward Scar, “I like you. But you suck. And I can’t just. Get over it.”

“You don’t have to have anything to do with me at the start. If you want.”

Cub shrugged. “I don’t know if I want that. Not just a complete shut out I mean. That would be awkward. I’d feel bad.”

“I need to get out of this car.” The sound of Grian’s winded voice tightened Cub’s chest, but Grian was already grasping at the car door, feeling for the handle in an unfamiliar place.

“Grian, wait- we don’t have to talk about this anymore. You can stay.”

“I need to go back to work.”

“Pull over.” Scar spoke before Cub could, more somber, quiet. The driver did as he was told. Grian did not say goodbye. Cub wasn’t even sure if he touched the curb before shooting off into the sky.

The car was silent for a long while after that. The apartment was painfully far away. This wasn’t.. This wasn’t what he wanted. He just wanted this to work.

“I just want this to work.”

Scar turned around, features soft. Sympathetic. “It might not. Either way.. I don’t know. We’ll figure it out.” He sighed, turning back to face the road. “We’ll figure it out.”

[dr11ft]

chicana miku 🤎

[switchthedragon]

Fuck it

If this post gets 30k notes I'll ask to go see a therapist.

[krysmcscience]

I have some questions about karaoke night, Alex Hirsch. Very Important Questions. Which I will happily scream at a poor hapless baby triangle who can have no answers for me, and possibly also does not have object permanence yet.

Follow-up that is I guess suggestive, but let's be real here, Bill's a fucking triangle:

Dude slipped right into his birthday suit, lmao

this is so stupid :D

Anyway, I don't care what anyone says, this brilliant individual knows what's up - Bill is absolutely way more of a monsterfucker than Ford could or ever will be, full stop.

[minjimunji]

Circe’s island ✨🐹

[verflares]

(click for higher quality!) draconified link concept ive been chipping away at this past week ..... here's my funny little compendium concept for him:

"A heroic spirit has taken the form of this bestial dragon. Unlike it's kin, this creature exhibits an extremely aggressive disposition. It appears highly territorial, and will relentlessly chase down those who disturb its skywide patrols - of which it seems to be endlessly searching for either a long-time vassal or foe. Unfortunately, it seems the spirit within has long since forgotten exactly who it was looking for…"

[lilybug-02]

Pain is a great motivator…

Part 26 || First || Previous || Next

—Full Series—

Meanwhile Toriel:

(Loud noises don't wake her up usually.)

Artist note: I’m so proud of this :))) I know it’s a lot of dialogue and reading, but dialogue is grueling work for me. I’m glad with the art and for the amount of pages I made in such a relatively short time span -w- page 5 was super fun to work on. A lot of blood, sweat, and hours here... :) The backgrounds were a big bore tbh, but I finished them! Yippie!

[xxplastic-cubexx]

obligatory beach divorce doodling

bonus rough cover redraw of x-men #41 (1995) But Beach Divorce below cut

[trypo-p]

The gang's all here!

[pinacoladamatata]

my husband: are you alright?

me, staring at my old dragon age timeline spreadsheet and thinking about long Solas and Mythal have been alive and how it's so fucking long it doesn't even fit on the screen: ....yeah

(the purple line at the bottom is roughly how long solas was in uthanera. we have no idea when he was born. so could predate the timeline entirely. The bright Green and Red are roughly when Mythal had to be killed/the Veil created)

[fizzlewizard404]

the girls!!!

[greenglowinspooks]

Thinkin about a DCxDP where Danny’s helping ghosts find peace while he’s laying low in Gotham.

Like, he moved away from Amity for whatever reason. Maybe the reveal went badly, maybe he just couldn’t stand staying any longer. For whatever reason, he’s in Gotham, because the rent is cheap and he’s nowhere near the strangest thing there so no one looks at him twice.

However, this city is cursed. Like, cursed beyond cursed. It’s actively alive with how many curses there are, and the ghosts there are extremely unhappy about it.

(Of course, that’s not a problem for Danny. His ghost side filters out the toxic smog and the chemicals in the water, and his human side gives a resistance to the rank ecto and the hexes that are actively trying to devour him.)

He doesn’t really want to do anything about it, to be honest.

He’s sick of playing hero, considering how it went last time, and he’s busy working at Waffle House or Walmart or whatever other store doesn’t bother doing a background check (in Gotham, that’s probably all of them), and maybe trying to find a way to get highschool credits that don’t immediately disqualify him from every college in existence.

Still, the ghosts know he can hear them. They know, and they keep coming for help.

So, hey, why not? He definitely can’t put this as experience in any sort of job application, but he really doesn’t have much else to do.

So, he becomes errand boy for a bunch of ghosts.

Sometimes he’s finding objects that are important to them, sometimes he’s giving evidence they collected together of their murders to the police, sometimes he’s getting them the last meal they never had, sometimes he’s just spending time with them like they’re not dead.

The ghosts don’t always move on, but they’re always more at peace. Occasionally they pay him back in charms and blessings and the locations of valuables that he can keep or pawn for cash.

Eventually, a new ghost shows up.

She looks like a shadow, like all the ghosts of Gotham, but she seems stronger than usual. She asks him for a favor that those who came before him were never able to fulfill.

She asks him to find her engagement ring, and give it to her son.

Easy enough, he thinks. It’s a bit of a pain to buy the ring from the seedy pawn shop it’s in (he would usually just steal it, but he doesn’t want to implicate her kid in anything, which she seems grateful for), but everything’s going mostly alright.

Then, she tells him who her son is, and wow, no wonder no one’s helped her yet.

He’s Red Hood. The guy who is(/was) the crime lord in charge of crime alley. The title sounds a bit stupid to Danny, but he’s still a genuine threat to a living person.

Good thing he’s not one of those.

And so, the next time he sees Red Hood out and about, he goes right up to him. The man seems mostly unbothered, but Danny does notice how his hand slightly drifts towards one of his many weapons.

He tells Red Hood outright that he’s there on behalf of the man’s mother, then just holds out his hand with the ring inside, dropping it into Red Hood’s open palm.

Then he leaves, not waiting for a response.

—

Jason has a mystery on his hands, and he might just cash in some favors from Babs and Tim to figure it out.

He’s got to find the guy who gave him his mother’s ring, and find out everything he knows.

[batbabydamian]

Jorge Jimenez C2E2 2024 Commission!

[bacchuschucklefuck]

soon it'll be dawn again

transcript under the cut ⏬

page 01

Fig: no way? - you're still up?

Riz: Wh– yes?

Riz: Why'd I not be.

page 02

Fig: I me~~ean - that took.

Fig: whole day.

Riz: Yeah?

Fig: 'm beat.

Riz: you should sleep.

page 03

Fig: nah. my guy's still up

Fig: I wanna hang out.

page 04

Riz: That's really nice.

Fig: Hah! - Nobody ever expects an Archdevil rockstar to be nice.

Riz: … yeah. - 's just budget work tho. (the stuff I'm working on) - I've heard it's boring.

page 05

Fig: yeah, but you do it…

Riz: It keeps things going, right? - Nothing happens if nobody sits down and - does the thing.

Fig: That's right… - though. Yeah.

page 06

Fig: sometimes it's someone else who - doesn't want the same thing to happen.

Riz: … - mm.

page 07

Riz (off screen): …It took me a long time to get that not everyone likes doing what I do. - 's probably because you guys are so nice– - or. - kind.

Riz (off screen): to anyone too, not just. - the people you /love/.

page 08

Riz: that's not how it is elsewhere. - The world's– not. hostile. - but 's not like it's kind.

Riz: So I'm doing as much as I can now… 

page 09

Fig: Hey.

Riz: ?

Fig: Go dig some dirt with me.

page 10

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - oh you meant like - actual dirt. (not incriminating information)

Fig: o yea.

Fig: there's clay in the backyard soil. - sometimes when I'm sun deficient or something I go touch dirt for a bit.

page 11

Fig: here u go

page 12

Riz: uh

Fig: now we make a thing! - 'm pretty good at freehanding a bowl.

Fig: I'll show u

page 13

Fig: just– yep, flatten that out as evenly as u can, then–! - actually ur nails'd be so good at cutting out the strip. [larger than usual space] wait. - wait. wait u can carve patterns with them! we HAVE to try

Riz: uh - What. do I carve?

Fig: anything!!!

page 14

Fig: and– yep just seal the inside uh. seam?

Fig: yep that works - okay time's up! all contestant hands up

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - okay - wh. what's next?

Fig: haha - watch this.

(sound effect text): FWOO—MP

page 15

Riz: WH– DON'T JUST DO THAT???

Fig: Now it's fired!

Riz: THAT WAS NOT SAFE

Fig: (actually it's just dry. if u add water rn it'll dissolve)

Fig: ok catch!

Riz: [blank speech bubble] - careful!!

Fig: dw no need haha

page 16

Riz (thought bubble): oh - it's warm…

Fig: now I want you to throw this.

page 17

Fig: u gotta do it - c'mon

page 18

Riz: wh– - It's like 3AM right now

Fig: oh it's not /fired/ fired it's not gonna make a loud noise

Riz: And then just? leave a pile out here?

Fig: pour water over it & it'll be gone I told u

Riz: but

page 19

Fig (off screen): RIz.

page 20

Fig: I've done all this before.

Fig: Can you trust that at least?

page 21

Riz: no, I– - I do. - I trust you.

page 23

Riz: okay what happens now

(sound effect text): glob

page 24

Fig: we do it again!

page 25

Riz: wh. [larger than usual space] What do you mean. (this clay's too wet also)

Fig: see! you're already learning

Fig: [blank speech bubble] - there are flows that are futile to fight. - The world changes.

Fig: Things change.

page 26

Fig: I've learned my lessons with "forevers". - But - as an artist

Fig: I can give you one thing: - You can always do it again.

page 27

Fig: most of everything depends on the rest of the world, - but this. - making new. - that's yours as long as you want it.

page 28

Fig: So?

page 29

Riz: Yeah. - Yeah! - let's make another one.

[krysmcscience]

It’s finally done, guys – five whole pages of Narilamb AU comic AND MORE be upon you! (If you have trouble reading any of the text, view the full-size! These pages are huge!)

Yeesh, this took forever. <:)

There’s probably a ton of inconsistencies and anatomy/perspective wonkeries, but this was mostly just comic practice, so Oh Hekkin Well, Lol <:D

(Yes, I am aware the Gateway’s door isn’t present in the Afterlife, and the actual way in is just a pentagram portal. Yes, I put the door in there anyway because Artistic License, i.e. it felt more impactful for there to be a prison door of sorts to walk through to freedom, rather than just a bland boring portal on the ground. 😠)

anyway, i hate backgrounds so much lmao

Alternate ending and a buttload of bonus art under the cut, followed by goofy AU rambles and headcanon stuff:

I’m calling it the Revival AU. It’s not all that creative a title, and someone else has probably used it already, but I am too lazy to really care, LOL

Alternate ending page, which you will Definitely need to view the full-size for, Whoopsie Daisy:

The alternate ending was actually the first ending I finished things off with, because I had a brief badbrain moment where I forgot the emotional beat I initially wanted the comic to end on, and I tend to write comedy, anyway. I later remembered and drew out the proper ending, but I preserved and finished this one, too, because it still makes me giggle.

They had to go back for the followers off-screen in the AU’s real ending. And by ‘they’ I mean just the Lamb, because they weren’t about to ask three newly freed cats to go back into what used to be their prison. The Lamb DID spend some time watching Narinder and the bois enjoying the outdoors first, though:

In other news, here’s the Lamb and me making fun of my anatomy-drawing ‘skills’:

Meanwhile, if you’re wondering why the Lamb is just a-okay with how things went down vis a vis Their Murder, this bonus comic should answer at least some of your questions:

Ah, yes, also this is how they get engaged outside of the alternate ending. Forgot to mention that bit. XD (I already refuse to believe that Narinder is capable of flirting normally, so why would his initial marriage proposal be any better???)

Oh, and before any of them get a chance to actually head back to the cult grounds, there is one potential problem:

And by ‘problem’ I mean something Narinder intends to ignore for At Minimum a thousand years. Cuz he’s a petty bitch like that. :D

what do you mean i drew the lamb too tall compared to the background? clearly they’re standing on top of baal and aym lmao, why else would you think those two aren’t in this one??? (aym and baal got way too excited about finally being outside, you see, and their silly modes are nothing to sneeze at)

And, speaking of heading back to the cult grounds, I’m sure y’all would love to know how the Lamb’s followers felt about the brand new change in management:

It all went better than expected. <:D Tiny ramble now, feel free to skip down to the next comic.

Before you ask, no, the Lamb does not have any actual powers anymore, other than the immortality Narinder definitely grants them. The Red Crown just thinks it’s funny to suggest otherwise, and Narinder does nothing to discourage this. Also, the Lamb and Narinder aren’t actually married here yet, but, uh. Pretty safe to say that particular ritual directly follows the events of this comic. XD

Given how quickly he mellows out in canon, Narinder probably chills out a lot in this AU once he’s in charge of the cult, too, if only because 1.) He’s finally free, and 2.) He’s equally smitten with and distracted by the Lamb. He’s definitely in charge at least 95% of the time, though, because the Lamb never actually wanted to be a cult leader and, now that their time as a vessel is done, they just want to be a normal(ish) sheep who’s wholly devoted to their hot new divine husband.

Some followers do still have some valid concerns about these two being together, though, which I’m sure at least a few of you might share…

Unfortunately for any such concerns, the Lamb is a bonafide masochist in this AU. :D

They’re also 100% a sub, obviously

Anyone at all: Your relationship is problematic and potentially toxic

The Lamb: fuck yeah it is, it’s so hot~ OuO

Here’s just the last panel, made transparent for whatever nefarious purposes y’all might have for it:

Additional exchange Narinder and the Lamb have at some point, probably after the Lamb does a fatal whoopsie while out on a mission trip or in response to things getting a little too sadistic in the bedroom, ahaha:

Look, there is a very important distinction between life and death, and if you don’t understand that, then you’re probably not worthy of being the God of Death, anyway. (At least, according to Narinder, and ONLY Narinder.)

Last but not least, have these shittens:

~Such creative naming conventions I have utilized, lololol~ :D Anyway, there's a few deets on them in the rambles down below.

The rest is all ramble, so before I get to that, I’ll just say – likes and especially reblogs are very much appreciated!!! :D If you happen to really really REALLY like my stuff, meanwhile, I do have a link in my bio to my ko-fi page, where I’m accepting commissions and donations if you’re especially generous… ÓuÒ

Now, BE FREE IF YOU AIN’T DOWN FOR READING MY GOOFY RAMBLES

First ramble is re: Baal’s question of ‘Did it really work?’, since I didn’t feel like expanding on it in the comic proper, and it’s arguably pretty vague? He doesn’t ask because he doubts Narinder or his capabilities, exactly, but because neither Baal nor Aym have ever actually seen their god at full power before (he’s still technically not at full power here, either). It’s not expressly stated how soon the brothers were brought to Narinder after his imprisonment, but whether it was early on or after a length of time for Shamura to (somewhat) recover from his attack, he must have already been weakened, since I have no doubts that there was a huge battle that accompanied the Bishops working together to trap him. So, between that fight with all four of his siblings, sharing his power with a variety of vessels over time, and being chained immobile for a thousand years, he must have been severely weakened by the time he lent the Red Crown out to the Lamb, which would have only weakened him further.

I like to think this is how the Lamb is able to defeat him if they refuse to be sacrificed, despite how it took all four Bishops working together to subdue and chain Narinder in the first place.

All that aside, the three cats have been trapped in the Afterlife for so long that Baal also wanted verbal reassurance that they are all, indeed, actually able to leave it now – something that I headcanon isn’t possible without a significant amount of power (i.e. the Red Crown’s cooperation with its bearer/vessel).

(On a semi-related note, I don’t headcanon Aym and Baal as twins. I like sweetheart big bro Baal and snarky little goth bro Aym too much to have them be that close in age.)

Ah, teeny thing: If you noticed I switched up the art style for Narinder on the second page, that was intentional. It's sort of a visual indicator that there has been a Big Change for him - that being, how much power he has after sacrificing the Lamb. As for why I changed up his arms in the grass rollin' pic, I don't really subscribe to the notion that his arms are spooky bones because they're horrifically injured (beyond chain-chafing scars, that is), but rather just because he's the Bishop of Death, so he can change how normal-to-spooky they look at will. At some point I might doodle out how I imagine his appearance to range between least to most eldritch... 🤔

Next ramble, regarding Narinder’s feelings towards the Lamb...he was initially too focused on being freed from his imprisonment to form any real attachment to them. They were a tool for his use, first and foremost, but he did notice their intense devotion towards him. It was impossible not to notice, because the Lamb was always very happy to see him, even if it was because they died during a crusade (yet again). He wasn’t originally planning to revive them once he was freed, either, because he saw no real point to it – after all, they were already dead when they first met him, just as any other mortal would be when meeting him in the Afterlife, so death has very little real consequence in his eyes. But, once the chains were off, and it really sank in that he stood to lose the most devoted follower he’s ever had, he decided…why put their soul to rest for good or leave them stuck in the Afterlife when he could just as easily revive them again? And why not reward them for their hard work, anyway? Not only would it cost him nothing by comparison, but the future devotion that could come of it would surely make up for his (bare minimum) effort in reviving them.

He wasn’t expecting to get a full dose of that devotion and a smiling face so soon after killing them, though~ :3c (because the Lamb is a bonafide freak, and not-so-secretly into the fucked up power dynamics going on here, lol)

I should mention here that I am firmly of the belief that any non-god/vessel who crosses through the Gateway and into the Afterlife just straight up dies. So, Aym and Baal? Also straight up dead, from the second Shamura brought them through. Their souls were just never put to rest so that Narinder could have some company – if only according to Shamura. Narinder kept the two around mostly out of bewilderment, because honestly, who are these kittens, and what is Shamura’s game here, anyway??? They never even explained anything, they just tossed these kittens into the Afterlife and LEFT!!! At any rate, Aym and Baal being dead is how I explain why their souls apparently become lost in the void if they’re killed, along with the added complications required to revive the two because of it.

So, with those deets in mind, and given a bit of time, if Narinder hadn’t chosen to revive the Lamb, and also hadn’t chosen to put their soul to rest, they still would have woken up at some point, despite being as straight up dead as Aym and Baal. Who, don’t worry, were also properly revived while Narinder was waiting for the Lamb to wake up. Because I am also firmly of the belief that, first, the dead cannot leave the Afterlife without the use of a ritual/relic (and can't stay in the living world for long regardless), and second, dead followers’ devotion isn’t anywhere near as potent as that of the living, given how much more the living stand to lose.

Final ramble, regarding the Lamb’s feelings towards Narinder, and why they’re so devoted to him…

Well, you don’t spend most of your life on the run with your steadily-dwindling herd, trying to evade the ongoing genocide of your species, without becoming a little fucked up in the head. Maybe a lot fucked up in the head. Life is suffering, so might as well have fun with it, right? Maybe start finding death and pain to be kind of hilarious, even a little bit hot, once everyone you know and love is dead and gone, leaving you all alone? And maybe after that, there’s something comforting in how, despite the cold, cruel uncertainties of life, at least you can always count on the inevitability of death, patiently waiting for you until your very last breath? Who knows. Either way, as soon as the Lamb was killed, and they learned that the literal God of Death was offering them a second chance at life and vengeance via effective immortality, they were 100% ride-or-die-devoted all at once. Turns out death is kinder than life – go figure. (Of course, it helps that Narinder is 100% their type.)

They weren’t put off by Narinder’s thinly-veiled sadism or manipulations, either – they’re not too different in those regards, albeit opting for vastly different methods. It’s a very ‘two sides of the same coin’ sort of deal. In order to stay alive once they were made the last of their kind, the Lamb had no qualms with using others to their advantage, and that did not change once they were revived and expected to run a cult. They didn’t care for the position of authority, though – being a sheep and all, they’re much more of a follower than a leader, and thus greatly appreciated Narinder’s need for control. With how they had to keep on their toes for so long, the Lamb was also pretty good at reading people by the time they died, so they could recognize that a lot of Narinder’s posturing was just that – posturing. Dude’s 95% bluster and only 5% bite. He could obviously be vicious when he wanted or needed to (the Bishops' injuries were clear proof of that), but underneath his outer layer of cruelty was a generous layer of tsundere, and underneath all THAT was a soft squishy middle sibling velcro cat in desperate need of attention and affection.

(Which, for the record, he Did Not feel comfortable getting from Aym and Baal – Narinder still has no idea why the fuck Shamura sent them to him, beyond acting as keepers at best or trying to sabotage his attempts to escape at worst. Which, he thought HE sabotaged in turn, by guiding the kittens into being his devoted disciples instead. He thought he was very clever for it. ‘I outsmarted Shamura!’ he thought, despite that there was never anything there to outsmart. ‘What do you mean, Shamura sent your kittens to me for company?’ he demands of Forneus later. It may or may not lead him to pull Shamura out of Purgatory just so he can shake them and scream about how they should have Fucking Explained that!!!)

But, getting back on track as to why the Lamb was so willing to be sacrificed, I cannot stress this enough – if you pay even a minimal amount of attention to what he’s saying, Narinder is REALLY NOT SUBTLE about his intentions. ‘Death is of little consequence.’ ‘Followers are for you to use to your advantage.’ ‘Sacrifice a follower to absorb more power.’ So, yeah, the Lamb knew exactly what would be expected of them once the other Bishops were dead. They knew Narinder would expect them to die for him one last time. But, after all, death is of little consequence (not to mention hot), so when the time came, they wanted to see him freed, even if it meant oblivion for them in the end.

He’d given them a second life, and the ability to avenge their kin, and they felt indebted to him for that – so, while they were still pretty glum about the possibility that they might not get to see him free of his chains, nothing beyond their devotion and debt to him mattered. They never wanted all the drama and expectations that came with the Red Crown’s power, anyway, so, better for Narinder to have it back so that he could deal with it. What he did with the Lamb afterward would be up to him, and seeing as he was their god, they’d accept his decision gladly.

Were they in love with him by that point? Oh, obsessively so, but only in the devotional sense – romance was nowhere on their mind nor radar. That is, until he unexpectedly revived them again, told them he still needed them, and then offered down his hand to help them up.

The Lamb fell HARD for him in that moment. :3c

And now, a tiny shitten ramble. Lu and Li are twins, because sheep tend to have those a lot, and are conceived not long after the Lamb and Narinder’s marriage ceremony. Lu is the minutes older one, but Li is much more mature. I have put no further thought into these two, other than that they are utter menaces, birthed by the Lamb, cling hard to both their parents but especially Narinder (who spoils them rotten), and they are both genderfluid, using whichever pronouns/names they feel like at any given time. They are also both intersex, same as the Lamb, who was initially infertile up until Something Something Vague Magic, which I have also put no further thought into ¯\_(シ)_/¯

oh, and before anyone tries to suggest i headcanon this AU’s lamb as trending more female due to them giving birth or whatever, no, no, a thousand times no, they might have a vag, but they've also got a dick, and even if it's not as big as they'd like, they still know how to use it

Finally, the very tentative name for the Lamb in this AU is Yazdi, which is really just another name for the Baluchi breed of sheep XD (Not that the Lamb is this specific breed, I just didn’t like any of the other sheep-related names I found, ahaha...)

THAT’S ALL FOR NOW (collapses into an exhausted pile of goopy limbs)

[soosoosoup]

treasure planet au, last of the batch (Poppy & Floyd)