#do you mind if i resize them a little

[wolfies-toys]

it is finally time to post my backpack pattern! i've been meaning to do this for a while! so if you'd like to try sew your own plush backpack i've drawn up a basic pattern i've been using that should be easy to edit to suit whatever shape you'd like. Please note i'm a newby at making patterns that are readable to others so apologies if it's a little messy. This pattern is intended for personal use only, i would love to see what people make if you do give it a go! Pattern and basic walkthrough images will be under the cut!

here is the basic pattern! it's very simple and i've written some rough instructions onto the pieces themselves as well. note that the side darts on the front of the bag can be completely ignored if you like. it just adds some extra shaping but isnt strictly necessary.

if you want to resize it should be relatively straightforward to, just adjust overall shape and size to your liking, i would recommend printing out the pattern and seeing how it sizes to your plush of choice, this pattern makes a backpack the size of what twig the bright orange fox is wearing in the photo, it is quite wideset, and will fit most bears but will be a little wide for something like a medium bashful jellycat. for something like a medium bashful i would suggest reducing the size overall of the main bag and keeping the bag strap length mostly the same. please note you will loose some length in the overall bag chamber once the flap is added. the most important things to keep in mind when resizing is width and bag strap length.

first you will want to cut out all your pattern pieces, first starting with the straps, fold in half and sew along the long edge, then turn the resulting tube through.

once your bag strap is turned through position the strap flat down on the sewing machine and sew along both edges to help it sit flat, you can iron the strap beforehand too if it's giving you a bit of trouble staying in position. that should leave you with two flat backpack straps! if you dont want to go to this trouble to make the straps, you can also just use some ribbon or elastic and skip this step

next you will want to sew on the little bit of velcro to the lining of the bag flap. and then to the corresponding front of the bag both while they are not sewn to anything else so it will hide the stitches.

then if you have cut the darts sew closed the darts on both the outer front and lining front. if you havent added the darts you can just skip this step.

you then want to sew together the bag flap lining and outside piece, making sure you sew inside out and then turn through.

pin or clip your main bag chamber lining together, i've found if using cotton you will loose a little length on the back piece if you sewed the darts, once sewn you can just cut the excess off.

next sew the outer back and front together, leaving little gaps at the lower corners for the bag straps to be sewn in place, then poke them evenly through the holes and sew them in place.

Turn through the main outer bag chamber, place the lining inside, and fold the edges of the front together, sew the front edge closed, leaving the back open for now

next you place the open end of the flap in between the lining and outer back of the bag and fold the edges of the lining and outer back together with the flap in the center, pin in place but dont sew it up just yet.

once that is positioned you can bring the bag straps up to the fold and place them inbetween the flap and the outer back, and make sure they arent twisted. then you can sew it together.

you should then have a finished plushie backpack that you can decorate with mini pins, bead keychains or just keep plain, and fill with lots of treasures from your plushies travels!

[folkbreeze]

hiya! I did check if you had a resource page but couldn't find one (sorry if I missed it!) I was wondering what re/gshade preset your using? Also how did you make your weather/task templates for gameplay like here (post/736165530204028928/completed-task-swim-for-1-hour-in-wakabas) I wouldn't even know where to start in photoshop lol Thank you!

hello, hello!! I don't have a resource page yet so don't worry! l'm using a personal, sorry.

how i make my templates under the cuts (reminder that english is not my first language and that i have photoshop in spanish so i don't know the actual name of things in english)

we'll be creating the simple one from here:

Now, for the templates, it depends on what i want to do, but i usually try to keep them simple, so I use mainly 2 photoshop tools: as you can see here, the weather template I made has (1) a rectangle layer, (2) an image and (3) text layers.

keeping this in mind, let's create a thing (a bank notification) together so I can show you the steps I follow:

(0) Create a new file

There's no size I ALWAYS use, but i usually choose a bigger size since i can always resize it down later when I use it (if it's too small and you have to resize it to be bigger, it might end up looking pixelated). You can also open one of your screenies in the size you usually edit them, and deciding how big your template has to be.

(0.1)

I recommend creating a group (using the little folder icon) where you will drop all the layers of the template so you can move it around and all that

(1) Shapes

This is the first thing I always do for this type of templates, just create a base shape that will contain all the other stuff on top. In this case i created a rectangle with rounded corners.

you can use those circles in the corners to round them or make them pointy. If you press alt while doing it, you can round corners individually.

I added a parallel shadow so it integrates better with the whole screenie, but that's a personal preference.

(2) Now, if you want to have icons/images/etc. I recommend creating another shape (in another color, just so you can see it), and positioning it where you want your image to go.

Now you want to transform that shape to an intelligent object (right click the layer and click that option). This way, if you double click the layer image, it will open in another tab: you can add your image/icon there, click save, and when you go back to the other tab, it will be there. Much easier to edit it! An intelligent object layer will look like this:

(2) Text is literally what MAKES most of templates. When you're creating templates, i recommend looking for inspo AND getting fitting fonts for it. Let's say I want to create a netflix template: i'd do a quick google search to find what fonts does netflix use. Sometimes fonts are not free, but try looking for similar ones.

I'm using manrope for this one because it's simple and easy to read, but when i'm doing this kind of phone notifications i also use fonts that are usually called something UI.

Now you only have to move things around until you like it. Then save it as a .psd so you can edit it and use it whenever you want and that's it!

(4) This is how it looks like

you can now edit it as you want, lower the base rectangle opacity, add more shadow, change the colors...

From this simple thing, i created another version using... you guessed it: another shape, another icon and another text layer. Here you can see the final templates being used in a screenie:

Honestly, don't let the big amount of tools and options photoshop scare you! As you can see, you don't need much to create something like this

Hope this was helpful enough! Let me know if you have questions 🧡

[lex-hj0519]

you let him starve

A little follow up to "what do you think we'd do, let them starve?": Sirius plans. Remus interrupts. A conversation is had.

It was some time later that Harry drifted off to sleep on the floor of the attic, leaning heavily against Sirius. While Harry slept, Sirius planned. He didn’t care if Dumbledore didn’t agree; he would kidnap Harry off the train platform next summer if he had to.

Harry had to return to Privet Drive once a year to keep the protective enchantment there alive. If he didn’t, then they would break and there would be no way to replace them. They would only have to hide out for a few days before the enchantment was gone for good and Dumbledore could no longer argue that it was the safest place for Harry to live.

Sirius didn’t want to have to take his kid on the run, even for only a few days, but he would do it if he had to. He made a promise to care for Harry like his own, and it was time to throw caution in the wind and fulfill his promise to the fullest.

The door to the attic creaked open. “Sirius?” Remus called.

When he spotted Sirius and Harry on the floor, Remus's expression twisted into an odd combination of relief and irritation. “What are you two doing up here? The other kids went to bed over an hour ago and Molly’s going mad with worry over Harry’s empty bed.”

“He was upset,” Sirius explained shortly.

Sirius pulled his wand out of his robes and waved it over Harry, then slowly got to his feet. Even with the lightweight charm he had cast, standing up with an armful of teenaged boy was awkward.

“Upset about what?” Remus asked.

“Never you mind,” Sirius said brusquely as he remembered just who had sent Harry fleeing to the attic. “Don’t pretend you actually care about him.”

Remus gaped at him. “Of course, I care, Sirius,” he sputtered.

Sirius shushed him as Harry stirred in his arms, then pushed past him and headed for the door. If they were going to have this conversation, it wouldn’t be it front of Harry. Sirius ignored Remus, who followed them down the stairs, and set Harry on his bed.

A quick search of Harry’s messily packed trunk turned up only the same oversized, worn-out clothes he’d been wearing all summer. Remus had insisted one night that Harry must be wearing them because he didn’t want to get his good clothes dirty while cleaning, but Sirius knew the truth: Harry didn’t have good clothes. The only things in his trunk worth wearing were his school robes and a small collection of knitted jumpers.

Sirius summoned a set of his own pajamas, biting back a smirk when Remus leapt to the side to avoid the clothing that came flying down the stairs and through the doorway. A quick resizing spell shrunk them down to Harry’s size, and a switching spell replaced Harry’s holey jeans and worn-out t-shirt with them.

Then Sirius tucked his boy into bed for the first time in fourteen years. After Harry curled up under the covers without even waking, Sirius bent down and brushed his forehead with a gentle kiss.

“Good night, Harry,” he whispered before he slipped out of the room and shut the door quietly behind him.

Remus was waiting for him in the hallway, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

“What do you want, Remus?” Sirius asked tiredly. “It’s late.”

He didn’t want to have this conversation now. The conversation they had both avoided for over a year now. The “why weren’t you there for Harry?” conversation.

“I think we need to talk, don’t you?” Remus asked.

“Fine. Let’s go, then.”

Sirius led the way down to the kitchen. While Remus sat down, Sirius opened the cupboards forcibly, thumped two goblets down on the table, and added a generous pour of Firewhiskey to each one. Remus frowned, but took the goblet that Sirius shoved in his direction.  

They both stared at each other for a moment, waiting to see who would speak first. Remus was the one who broke.

“I care about Harry,” he said earnestly.

Sirius leaned back in his chair and regarded Remus thoughtfully. “You believe you care about him,” he said slowly. “You want to care about him. But you do a piss-poor job of showing it. Did you try to check on him when he was growing up?”

Remus bristled. “I’m a werewolf.”

“That doesn’t answer my question. Did you even once try to check on him?” Sirius repeated.

“What could I have done?” Remus asked defensively. “I’m a werewolf, Sirius. No one wants a werewolf on their doorstep, least of all Lily’s sister.”

“You’re a wizard, Remus.” Sirius retorted. “You know how to cast a Disillusionment Charm. You could have checked on Harry with the muggles none the wiser.”

“Dumbledore said he was safe and well cared for.” Remus protested, but he shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he said it.

Remus may not have known it then, but he had to know it now, Sirius thought. All you had to do was look at Harry. And Remus had taught him for a year.

“You cannot look at that kid and tell me that you believe he was well cared for,” Sirius snapped.

He had been trying to keep his cool, but the excuses and lies were enough to bring his temper back to the forefront.

“His parents died, and what did you and the Order and the rest of the wizarding world do? You all sat back and let him starve.”

“I - .” Remus started to speak and then stopped. He shook his head, regret written all over his face. “It doesn’t matter what I say. I can’t go back and change the past.”

That was as close to admitting guilt as Remus was going to go, Sirius suspected. He didn’t respond.

When the silence between them had grown uncomfortably long, Remus rubbed a hand down his face. “Where do we go from here, then?”

Sirius knocked back his Firewhiskey.

“That kid doesn’t need another adult who’s going to waltz in and out of his life whenever it suits his fancy,” he said sharply. “He needs adults in his life who he can rely on, always. You’re either in or you’re out, Remus. Make your choice.”

Without waiting for Remus to reply, Sirius shoved back his chair and strode out of the kitchen.

[tellodona]

silly little om request if you don’t mind

om brothers with an mc who tends to overheat/gets sensory issues from clothes so they just tend to walk around in their underwear, usually they’d do it in their room but this time they weren’t bothered enough to put anything on so they just like walked into the living room or something

can be male mc can be gender neutral up to you

and happy new year btw _(┐「ε:)_

i don't mind at all ! and happy new years to you as well !

the brothers with an mc who has heat sensory issues

heads up: gn!mc, slightly suggestive in asmo's (expected, really)

lucifer

he's busy as he usually is in his study, naturally, but he'd of course stand up and leave for a while to do something. maybe get something to eat or drink or make sure half of the house hasn't burnt down to the ground yet

as he exits, he passes by the living room and nods to himself when he peeks in that it's still in shape, the fire still crackling in the fireplace, you in your underwear, the couches are still there-

wait

mc, why are you in your underwear???????

he does a double take, blinks like three times

oh diavolo, you are in your underwear

he doesn't even think much how it would affect him, he's more or less concerned about you since it was a colder weather today

"mc, why aren't you wearing any clothes?"

he would confront you with the most confused face ever, but there was still a frown

be glad he was the one who found you and you're in the house of lamentation, because if lesser demons-

oh, you have sensory issues

he stops himself from talking for a while

after a minute, he nods in understanding

humans do have a different body construction, after all

but he can't just have you walking around the house in your underwear and ushers you to go back to your room

as soon as you wake up in the morning, you'd find the house a little colder, your uniform loosely fitted, and a message in the group chat about installing air conditioning

mammon

he just got home from his modeling gig in majolish, and they gave him a few bags as samples from his photoshoot

he is totally going to show them to his favorite human!

bags in hand, he trudges to your room with a wide grin

a few steps away, the door suddenly opens and you walk out

he was about to greet you when he looks down

oh his face is red

"MC!!!!!!!! YOU DUMB HUMAN!!!!!!!!"

as if he was running for his life, he dashes to you and pushes you back in your room and closes the door behind him

it was like his whole body was boiling from embarrassment

"wear something, for devil's sake!"

he has the back of his hand on his eyes, and is looking away, his face red

the both of you are just standing still

he isn't looking at you at all

"are ya done or what?????"

he hasn't heard you move

you carefully explain to him why you're just in your underwear

oh

he gulps, then he feels the bags from majolish beside his feet

he kicks them towards you

"check them if they're comfortable... o- of course! you'll owe the GREAT mammon for this one!"

they were absolutely comfortable, i'm imagining mammon naturally taller than you as a demon, so the clothes are a little bigger than you

if you thank him, he'll go "obviously, this is something your f- first man should do! thank me a ton!" and he still haven't looked you in the eye

tomorrow, he brings you to a tailor to resize your rad uniform

he'll always bring a mini fan everywhere you both go

leviathan

this man hasn't left his room in weeks probably

it's time for the super secret mission!

mission: get food from the kitchen without being seen!

he tiptoes out of his room, closes his door as quietly as possible and-

slams right into you

the both of you fall to the ground, him right on top of you

o. m. D! is this that trope where the mc and the love interest bump into each other and have a romantic look into each other-

"i- i- i- i'm so sorry, mc! i didn't-"

he looks down and realizes

he SCREECHES

jumps right off of you, like, this man at least jumps five feet in the air as he does so

maybe because they're used to it, the brothers didn't even think of checking in on him

this man is crying

and is also a blushing mess

he keeps repeating sorry over and over that you had to shake his shoulders to get him to listen to you

you explain in simple details about why you're in your underwear and make sure he's getting everything into his head

he stops for a moment, and nods slowly

he understands how you feel, he himself has his own sensory issues too, and a little surprised his friend is the same way

"s- still... i'm sorry, mc..."

after he got his food and drinks, he spent the whole night researching and sewing

you wake up to a pile of clothes on your desk

satan

is in the library reading god knows what

he's very into whatever he's reading, but he hears light foot steps entering the library

knowing it's you, he greets you before looking up at you

he errors

he slams his book right onto his face, you could see the tips of his ears tinged red

"m- mc... why aren't you wearing anything?" you could barely hear his muffled voice

you mention why

he still hasn't put the book down

"i- i see..."

he slowly stands up, book still in his face, and walks out of the library (he trips like three times), once he's out, he puts away the book and dashes to his room

he spends the whole day studying

when you were finished doing whatever you needed to do in the library, the atmosphere felt a little colder

your phone pinged with a notification in the group chat with "we'll be experiencing human world winter for a while" "what"

asmodeus

was actually looking for you

you're not in your room, you're not in his room, you're not in the library-

just where are you, mc?!

he passes by the music room and sees a lone figure inside, in their underwear

? huh

what's a lesser demon half-naked doing in their-

oh, it's you

...

IT'S YOU

"mc, what are you doing here? i've been looking all over for you!"

he whines as he goes to you, but wears a sly smile and a cute blush on his face

"why are you in your underwear, hm?"

he leans closer, but is in a comfortable distance still in case you might pull away

you explain to him about it

his mouth goes o and nods in understanding

"is that so, mc? you should've told me!"

he practically drags you to his room and looks through his stacks and stacks of oils, lotions, literally anything

you're now holding five bottles of cold-feeling lotion, three stacks of clothing, hair pins, hair clips and hair ties

"hm... i think those are too little..." they're too much

just tell him if you ran out, mc! he'll personally scavenge the entire devildom for every stock!

before you know it, majolish is advertising oversized clothes

beelzebub

he just got home from his morning jog, sweat all over him

he's so hungry... maybe sneaking in a bite before breakfast wouldn't hurt...

he sees you in the kitchen wearing nothing but your underwear

oh, and you're also sweaty

his cheeks tint red a little, as he looks away, embarrassed

he clears his throat, "oh, uhm... did you also work out, mc?"

maybe

you'll explain to him while you hand him a sandwich

he munches on the sandwich, before nodding slowly

"oh... is it like food overcooking?"

...?????

nobody knows the answer to that, chat

you just nodded and went about your day

from then on, you start to notice beel always offering you a bottle of water every time you see each other

he also brings a cup of ice cream with him and somehow it doesn't melt and he only ate like a spoon of it before giving it to you

belphegor

he can't sleep peacefully

so he snuck out when beel was snoring, and went to the planetarium

he sees you sitting on the pile of comforter and pillows he set up and he grinned

oh, he's definitely going to sleep-

where are your clothes.

he physically stops, mouth open

you only turn to see he's there when he drops his favorite pillow on the ground

he's malfunctioning

"mc... where the hell are you clothes??"

his cheeks are bright red

doesn't even look away because of the shock

you explain it to him as much as possible because he looks like he's about to drop dead

"oh... huh."

he hesitantly sits down beside you

"so... what do you do about it? just walk around butt-naked?"

you end up talking about it the whole night until he just falls asleep on your lap

you wake up to find him missing, but a fan is by your body

this was so fun to write !

[nonsensical-pixels]

exactly what it says on the tin title! after watching @skittlesplays manually resize hundreds of recolor files on stream (and trying to do it myself...), i decided that the only solution when it comes to editing textures for ts2 was... photoshop! here are 9 photoshop actions geared towards 4t2 conversions, but hey, maybe you could use them for other stuff too 💖

i made these for personal use and have been using them on and off for the last few months, so i suppose you could say they've been sufficiently tested... the actions included aren't final though, i might go back and add a few more as my areas of expertise expand 😅 more info and instructions under the cut, long post warning! 👇🏽

DOWNLOAD: SFS | MF 📄

if you encounter any issues with these actions, please do reach out to me and i'll try my best to help! or if you'd like to add on to them, edit them, etc. in any way, please feel free to 😀

How to Install These Actions

open up photoshop and click on the big 'play' button in the corner. that's the actions tab. then click on the little down arrow and 4 lines in the corner of that subwindow.

select 'load actions' from the list, and navigate to wherever you've installed my .atn file! then that's it, you've got them installed, easy-peasy.

How to Use These Actions (1 at a Time)

open up the texture that you want to edit in photoshop; for this example i'm using a dress i'm 4t2'ing from the throwback fit kit. now it's time to decide which action you're gonna use to make this texture compatible with ts2!

as the texture is 1024 x 2048, i'm gonna use the 'texture clothing: 1024x2048 to 1024x1024' action to downsize it.

ta-da! now it's a reasonable size!

How to Use These Actions (Dozens at a Time)

now for what this set was really made for: editing a ton of textures at a time! just go to file -> automate -> batch...

and navigate to the textures you'd like to batch-edit. here's a few things you should probably keep in mind: - checking 'include all subfolders' will edit ALL the textures from that filepath onwards. - if you set your destination as 'save and close' as pictured, all your files will be autosaved after the action has been run. - so if you don't want to live on the edge, like me, and are afraid of running the wrong action, just open up one of the files you're batch-editing and check which action should be run on it before you do the other files.

and behold! all of my textures have been cut down, and a bunch of my time saved 😎

Examples of Stuff Each Action Can Be Used For

in case you were curious! the first two actions, i mainly use for objects. a lot of ts4 cc creators have their texture sizes set to 2048x2048 or even more, which is way more than (my) ts2 can normally handle. i mean, that much for a candle? geez! so these two actions are used to cut down those textures and not kill your graphics cards.

these are for cas stuff, like clothing, hairs, and accessories. alpha creators tend to have larger texture sizes, but ea's are almost always a cool 1024x2048. just make sure you check before you run the actions!

trim is... i honestly can't remember the last time i used trim, just... if you need it, it's there

the last two actions are for floors and walls! floors are set to autosave as .bmp; walls are up to you. the texture sizes are made to match homecrafter's.

and... that's about it! lol. i know this isn't normally what i post, but i figured that since a lot more people are getting into 4t2 converting recently, these actions might help y'all.

have a great day, have a fun time simming, and keep being awesome guys 😘

[shuploc]

Your speed paints are really educational and fun to watch. Specifically the way you resize and move things around frequently has helped me make the way I do my digital drawings way less stiff!

I'm so glad to hear that! Frankly, I cannot help but feel a little embarrassed whenever I upload the timelapse for a piece I clearly struggled with, which is what you see when I keep resizing and moving stuff around. Normally none of you get to see that part of the process.

Personally though, I've always found it so refreshing and reassuring, seeing a lot of the artists I look up to struggle with their work too (not that I'm making fun or them or anything, of course). It just shows that all these incredible drawings weren't always so great, but the artist kept trying till they were. So if I can give someone else that same feeling of reassurance, then I don't mind making a fool of myself from time to time 😅

But once again, I'm so glad to hear that, and thank you so much for wanting to reach out and let me know too! I wish you the very best of luck with your work ❤️

[joycew-art]

Someone asked what my process was to make the Rickbot comic, so I thought I'd make a separate post to show it. The process was kinda all over the place and spread over many months from December 2022 up till June 2023, so I'll try my best to make it understandable. And if you have any questions feel free to ask them!

The idea

So it all started with the idea of; What if Rickbot came back? And then the idea immediately made me think of two things;

How would Rickbot react?

Why is he brought back?

Which ended up with these two scenarios in my mind;

A. Rickbot awakens and he's not happy B. Rick tells the reason he's activated again

These were the very first scenes that started it all.

So then the question became, how do I go from point A to point B?

I would take moments from the show as reference for how they would act in these scenarios. And I'd take inspiration from manga and other comics of how I wanted the dialogue to flow and what the comic layouts would look like. In this case I knew a lot of dialogue would be involved cause these guys talk a lot! But I also didn't want the panels to feel too crowded and rushed so I limited myself to the amount of dialogue per panel.

Right now I'm writing it down like it was very planned, but for me this was often a very subconscious thing I did. I just thought up scenarios while I was taking walks or daydreaming in the shower etc. And sometimes these very specific moments would pop up that I would write down or draw out later.

I would make mini thumbnails of how I wanted the pages to go and write the dialogue next to it. At this point I'm mainly thinking of what I want characters to say and how I want the story to flow. Sometimes I make multiple versions of the same scenario to see how it flows better.

At times I even only write down dialogue and then make the thumbnails for them later. I have a tiny a6 sketchbook for little thumbnails and ideas like this. These were often moments were I didn't know where I wanted to take the comic yet, so I would separate the two to keep it more organized for myself.

As you might have noticed, not everything is the same in the final comic. I always fine-tune or change stuff up as I go. Sometimes things don't flow as well as I thought they did or some dialogue feels awkward or unnecessary.

Sketching

Once all the pages were planned and I have a good idea of how the story would go I opened a new Clip Studio Paint file and used the comic feature to set that up.

I would then copy the thumbnails I made in the page files and exported a thumbnail draft of the whole comic and 'read' through it to see how it flowed.

After I was satisfied I finally started sketching the pages.

Most of the pages stayed the same from the thumbnail, aside from some poses or expressions here and there. But I would also change up stuff I wasn't satisfied with.

For example, initially the Prime panel looked like the left one, but I didn't like how the pose flowed with the text balloons. There was a lot of empty space as well. So I decided to redo it to the one on the right.

Even now for the final version I'm thinking of resizing Rick a bit more. These kind of changes just happen throughout the process.

The backgrounds

I knew the comic would only take place in the garage, so to save myself a lot of time I decided to make it in 3d.

First I decided to sketch out the four walls of the garage as planes;

Then I imported those in Blender. I did some simple 3d modeling to get the basic shapes for the counters and the cabinet et voila! 3d sketch version of the garage!

I know this is a very watered down explanation, but trying to explain how I did it would take a whole new tutorial. And there are many other ones out there that explain it much better than I could. I was lucky that I already have some Blender experience cause of past works I've done for school and stuff.

But if you got the time to delve into it I would recommend it! For this here you only need to know the basics. Also Blender is free to download :)

This has saved me a lotttt of time drawing the same backgrounds over and over again!

Cover

Lastly I did the cover. That one has also gone through multiple versions. I had a vague idea of what I wanted, but I wasn't happy with the execution so I redrew that one as well.

So that's the whole process so far. I do I wanna continue the comic once I got the energy to work on it again. Gonna do some test pages first to see what kind of rendering I wanna go for. Not sure if'll be in black and white, color or a combo...we'll see.

I hope this helps! And if you have any questions don't be afraid to ask them.

[kradeelav]

so one of the technical bits i challenged myself with this gunter/corrin doujin was to:

(a) figure out an efficient process for professional multi-page artistic works in linux/true OSS programs - from ideation all the way to printer hand-off.

and

(b) a process that fit well with my brain and kept me from spinning my wheels endlessly redoing pages. it's a common problem with longer projects (aka why you see reboots of webcomics all the time, and also why i haven't been able to get "what greater sin" out for three years cuz i sucked at this lol).

why the focus on process though?

after mastering a certian degree of technical proficiency. it's what separates the hobbyist artists from the pros. not to toot my horn, but i'm quite good at project management process at work, and about two years ago it dawned on me to take some of that learned knowledge and actually apply it here if only to save eyestrain/wrist-strain time.

work lazier smarter, not harder etc.

before i get into the process outline, there's two programs that are doing the heavy lifting since i gave them a trial run with the last anthology and they worked great in tandem. (both cost no money and are available on all major OS's btw)

krita, my main drawing program. sketching/inking/speech bubbles/coloring/vector stuff can all be done here.

libreoffice writer - basically microsoft word for linux. i use it for arranging multiple pages, reordering, and exporting as .pdf to give to the printer (while amazing at rendering, krita can't export as pdf or show multi-pages)

so!

process wise, it occurred to me not too long ago that i needed to consolidate my multi-page creative projects into 3 major gates.

thumbnail sketches

proof of concept layout

"last 10" final

thumbnail sketches

thumbnails are a common concept in comics, but they're great for print front/back matter too. thumbnails ain't here to look pretty, their sole purpose to get the idea from your noggin to on the page.

here's a completely unaltered spread from my journal with a ton of thumbs and notes for this doujin.

so what's the kind of stuff i think about with thumbs?

how panels in a comic fit together with the major emotional beats + line of action. does the eye follow the pages naturally? do you "feel" the emotional impact?

does the compositions work with each other? negative/positive space, weight on top or bottom or diagonally, etc. do the pages feel claustrophobic or too empty? do they breathe?

decorative framing elements that reflect the tone you want + how they generally lead the eye across the page

random notes about overall tone or potential future pages

etcetc

at this point i import that digitally, and start drawing a proper sketch off of it.

fast forward from that sketch to:

"proof of concept" layout

i'm calling this proof of concept instead of a draft as they serve different purposes. a draft is a half-finished work you can just screenshot and show to anyone for feedback (like comms). proof of concept here is showing a certian level of completeness across draft pages to measure consistency.

lack of consistency is the mind killer killer of comics.

proof of concept is specifically meant to nip the 'fizzled out halfway' issues in the bud. it's to show you how cool it looks altogether already, but also shed a light on problem areas that are potentially popping up on the earlier side, so there's less time wasted.

this is a little premature in the process for a proof of concept screenshot, but you get the idea here in a later strip, shown here as screenshots imported into libreoffice writer:

another reason that made libreoffice writer essential is the accurate 2-page spread view. between that, being able to resize the page to whatever you need, and the very easy pdf exporter (with customizable compression), i don't know if i could do this kind of project here.

now, backing up - what kinds of consistency are we checking for here?

does the inking/coloring style change noticeably in a jarring way?

is there one comic strip that the pacing/paneling sucks in comparison to the others? or feels awkwardly added in tone and perhaps better saved for a different project?

is there one panel within a sequential series that's torturing you? what's the best way to throw it out and redo it even faster?

do the front/back matter support the meat of the inside in a clever, on-tone way?

did you accidentally change the font halfway through after you liked your new shiny toy? which one works better?

etc

keep in mind we're not just checking the consistency in one strip, it's for the book as a whole.

and then lastly,

"the last ten" final

"the last ten" is a mental concept i've used for the last ten years for single comic pages. it's especially tempting to noodle over endlessly making one comic page perfect, when you could have done ten reasonably good ones in the same time, and so i made this my last step making IC pages.

once when you approach a level of reasonably done, but kinda hate the page and are procrastinating on getting it out, stop, rest your eyes overnight, and list the last ten minor things you'd change.

once when you've changed those? out the door it goes.

i'm gonna switch to a different project but here's a good example of a "last ten" stage applied to illustrations when i did fallen!gunter's FEH mockups.

looks pretty complete, right? WRONG :D

i can't remember the exact last ten i used, but it was something like:

too much of one specific glowy purple on both, i wanted more contrast with the red glow + "water" texture

needed more effects on the first image to better match FEH's aesthetic

change Leigh's credits after they got a chance to see it and give the thumbs up

knee/shin on left looks unfinished painting wise, clean up

missing chest plate silver decorations on left, clean up

etc

this is the last hail mary check to hack your brain into being satisfied with the page. you've had your say, onwards to the next one.

now, you can also have an additional 'last ten' for the project as a whole. but it's especially critical for comic pages to help keep the momentum/tempo/pace going.

anyway!

we'll see how all of this actually works in practice depending on how fast i can get this doujin out. :)

[rohirric-hunter]

A Blade for a Life

Look at my 6.3k word oneshot, boy

So I had half of this written and was "basically done" so I sat down to "finish it real quick" and that got out of hand fast. But the half that was already written was mostly written years ago. It all started out as an exercise to figure out how Hathellang interacted with law enforcement in Bree and let me tell you. It absolutely did not do that.

Anyway. Hathellang's POV

~*~*~*~

“You there! Thief!”

You do not recall stealing anything yet today, but the owner of the voice, a stocky, angry-looking Dwarf, is definitely speaking to you. Nonetheless, you indicate yourself and say, “Are you talking to me, sir?”

“Yes!” he growls. “You haven’t seen a sword about, have you? One of mine was stolen this morning.”

You feel a sinking sensation in your stomach. You have not stolen a sword, but it is no mystery why he might suspect you of it. You offer him a disarming smile, at the same time stepping back to put some distance between you. “I’m sorry, but I haven’t,” you say.

“Then you didn’t steal it?” he asks, and you flinch. Chief Watcher Grimbriar is just on the other side of the little roadside cabin that serves as a guard-post along the Greenway north out of Bree-town, and while a glance tells you that he has not yet tuned into this conversation – he is seated on the top step, bending over a sheaf of papers and occasionally marking a map that sits beside him with a piece of charcoal – if the Dwarf maintains this line of questioning he certainly will.

“You can’t make an accusation like that one without evidence,” you say, a little sharply.

“Then that wasn’t you loitering about my shop all this morning?” he asks.

“Your shop?” you repeat. “I don’t know where your shop is. And why would I want to steal a sword? Helena won’t stop making them, even though nobody buys them.” This is not strictly true: Helena is new to swordmaking and most of her attempts so far have not been of high enough quality to be sold. But you are mostly talking to buy time, as you run over your morning in your mind. It had been long and slow; you had arrived in town as the sun rose and gone about gathering work – tailoring work, that is – orders and clothing to be refitted and resized and mending for those too busy to manage it themselves, or wealthy enough to hire the service. This had been done in an hour, but somewhat later in the morning you had had an obligation for the other sort of work you do, and so to pass the time you had purchased a stuffed cabbage from Darin Whitflor and brought it to the Stone Quarter to eat, perched on the jutting foundation of a house just down the street from where several Dwarves share a prolific little smithy. Now you recognize this individual as Lofar Ironband, a craftsman well-known for his quality steel, and the owner of the Dwarf-smithy. You had indeed spent several hours loitering near his shop once you had finished your breakfast, making a start on some of the simpler work in your bag and then catnapping, for the house was built inexpertly, and the foundation offers quite a wide ledge, and the sun had warmed it delightfully.

“It was me,” you say. There is no use in denying it. “But if I was looking for an opening to steal something, I shouldn’t have done it so brazenly. Anyway –” you raise your arms to the side and turn in a quick circle, showing that you are carrying nothing but your work bag “-- do I look like I’ve got a sword on me?”

“No,” Lofar admits, “but you could have done away with it already. Resold it to one of your Man-smiths, maybe? They’re always jealous of Dwarf-craft. Well, I want it back.”

“I don’t have it,” you say bluntly.

Lofar begins to turn, and as you follow his line of movement you realize with a start that Chief Watcher Grimbriar has taken an interest, though he is not looking your way yet. His hand has stilled, and he holds himself with the air of someone who is listening to a conversation that he is not part of.

“Wait!” you say quickly. “I didn’t steal it and I don’t have it, but what do you want? To not get the guards involved, I mean.”

Lofar eyes you suspiciously. “If you didn’t take it, then what’s the harm? If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear.”

“Except two nights in the city jail while they investigate!” you exclaim. “I can’t spend time in jail. I’ve got work to do. There’s another babe come in that’s not been weaned, that’s two now! and two wet nurses that have got to be paid for, not to mention food and clothes for twenty-one, with the winter coming on and all.” You nervously bite at your lower lip. “I’ll ask around, see if I can find out who took your sword.”

Lofar frowns, but he turns to face you, crossing his arms in a manner that brooks no nonsense. “I suppose I know your name and where you live,” he says. “It’s not as if you’re going to skip town in the night.” You could, of course, but you don’t feel that information is likely to be helpful in this circumstance. “I would rather have the sword back than anything. Bring it back and I won’t ask where you got it or who stole it.”

As you shoulder your work bag and turn back toward Bree, you reflect that you will certainly be asking who stole it. There are many people about who, unlike you, have ample reason to steal a sword, and enough of these are not people you particularly trust with one, especially a stolen one. If nothing else, you have a bone to pick with the thief on your own account.

You have no better lead to follow than Lofar’s own suspicion that it was one of the smiths of Bree. You doubt very much that any of them took the sword; you have always known them to be honest, though their rivalry with the local Dwarf-smiths is widely known. Perhaps one of the less experienced young pickpockets who hang about the Mud Gate might have considered it a worthwhile risk, but you very much doubt it. Everyone knows that the best money is in jewelry and coins and other small objects that can be quickly pilfered and easily hidden. And if it was a commissioned burglary, a client paying a thief to take the sword, such arrangements go through Albra Lowbanks, and she will tell you nothing, as sure as the sun rises and sets. Nor will you ask, for she keeps your secrets as well.

The smiths, of course, are patently offended at your questions, and with no better ideas you return to the Stone Quarter to look over the smithy there, but you see nothing out of place. The Dwarves there have seen nothing, save one, who eyes you thoughtfully and asks if you weren’t there earlier in the day. His voice carries no suspicion, and it seems that you will find nothing here, before he mentions almost offhandedly that he has seen more Men here today than in the past week.

“Your lot don’t come down here too often,” he says, wiping his hands on his apron, “meaning no disrespect. But it was you and that other fellow today, and the last one before that was a Ranger. We don’t –”

You cut him off, rather rudely, but this is the first lead you’ve dared entertain. “Who was it?” you ask.

“The one they call Strider, I think,” the Dwarf says. “What do you want to be knowing that for?”

“I apologize,” you say. “Not the Ranger, the other man who was here today.”

“Oh, him,” the Dwarf says. “I don’t rightly know. Young-looking fellow; taller than you, but then most Men are. Red hair. I used to see him at the Man-forge by West-gate quite a lot, but he’s been scarce in the past month.” You crease your brow in thought, and he crosses his arms over his chest defensively. “Well? Just because Dwarf work is better doesn’t mean your lot’s never come up with a trick or two. I’m allowed to learn wherever I please, if you please!”

“I agree!” you say, raising your hands defensively. “And thank you! That’s what I needed to know.”

You quickly take your leave of the Dwarf and turn northward, walking at a brisk pace. You do not recognize the description, but a smithy-worker who has been absent for a month can only be one of the new workers at Thornley’s Work Site. Nearly a month ago Thornley had brought on a great many new workers, in response to the increased brigand activity in recent months. None of them are fighters, as far as you know, but you can certainly imagine why they might want a sword, out in the Bree-fields without even a fence around the site. There is a reason Helena has recently taken an interest in making them.

You have little interest in encountering Lofar again on your way to the work site, so you leave town through the North-gate and skirt along the ridge east of the Greenway. This allows you to avoid Lofar and Grimbriar both, and you are congratulating yourself on your cleverness when you stumble across the body.

The wind is in the south, or you should have smelled the blood and avoided it. As it is, however, you step out from among some dense bushes onto a trail that leads down into a shaded hollow, and there you discover what remains of someone who seems to have fallen afoul of the boars that live in the hollow. There is not much left to identify the man, but as you approach you notice the hilt of a sword lying on the bloody ground where he must have dropped it. The blade is snapped off and nowhere to be found, but the hilt is brand-new and shows no signs of wear, and the detailing is distinctly Dwarven.

You consider, briefly, taking the hilt back to Lofar and washing your hands of the whole business, but the poor sap deserves a burial, if nothing else, and the body cannot be left here. Thornley’s Work Site is close, anyway, so you continue on, twirling the hilt idly in your hands as you walk.

When you arrive at the work site, you ask the first Man you see for the foreman. He raises his arm and opens his mouth to answer, and then he catches sight of the hilt held loosely in your right hand and goes deathly pale. He appears terrified, as if the presence of the hilt spells terrible news, and you can’t but conclude that there are more layers to this mystery than you thought. “What do you know about this?” you ask quickly.

“Nothing!” he says, even more quickly, if that is possible. “Please go away! I – I have work to do. Foreman Rosethorn is over there.”

This Man matches the description the Dwarf at the smithy gave you. “Now look here,” you say, sternly but not unkindly. “I’m not going to rat you out. But I very nearly got pinned for this, and I don’t imagine Master Ironband is going to be too pleased at its condition when I return it.”

The man wavers for a moment, and then says, “Fine, I stole it, but I had a good reason! I wasn’t trying to pin anyone. It was for my family! Nate said he would hurt them if I didn’t make a sword for his captain, Blake. But I didn’t have the iron to forge one, so I took the Dwarf’s! Please, you must understand, it was to save my family! Please don’t tell the constable!”

“Who are Nate and Blake?” you ask. “For that matter, who are you?”

“Who are – why, didn’t you take the hilt from Nate?” he asks.

“If I did, then he’s dead,” you say. “Ran afoul of the boars in the hollow across the Greenway.”

“And good riddance to him,” the man says. “I’m Kenton Thistleway. Nate is, or was, a brigand. He said he was going to test the sword against the workers on the silo across the way. But this is terrible! What if Blake comes looking for his sword? I won’t have one to give him, and they’ll hurt my family!”

That seems likely to you. The Hackberry House has thus far escaped the particular notice of the brigands as they robbed and drove off most everyone around because orphans and abandoned children make for good recruits. Lady Hackberry’s do not, because she raises her children right and sees to it that they are loved and want for nothing she can provide, but you have never felt particularly inclined to share this information with any of the people slipping you shadowy notes promising adventure and freedom and wealth, and even less so in recent years, when the letters changed to offer power and fulfillment. You offer a bounty in sweet honey-cakes to any of the younger children who bring you such a letter, for once you have destroyed it they have no in with the brigands. More than one of them are taking advantage of this arrangement, but it is a small price to pay to keep them out of such mischief. All children, in your opinion, ought to know a few basic swindles anyhow.

You are unsure how much longer this arrangement will keep the household safe, however. It was mainly the Blackwold who recruited locally, and the past several days have brought dark rumors with them. They are outlandish, and you believe less than half of them, but all agree that the Blackwolds are no longer a power to be reckoned with in Bree-land. You are sorry, for you had several friends who had run off to sleep in the woods and live off the land and be their own masters, back when that was all the Blackwolds did. More urgently, the power among the various local gangs is out of balance, and you do not know who will fill the vacuum or what they will do. You fear it will be one of the new lots, composed mainly of strangers from the south, and before long they will come to your home and threaten your family, just as they are doing to Kenton Thistleway.

The Man in question looks deeply uncomfortable, and a little constipated. “Do you think,” he asks slowly, “that Lofar would make another sword? If you asked him and explained the situation, that it’s to save my family?”

“I’ll ask him,” you say. “And if he says no, I might be able to get you a near-endless supply of swords that snap off just above the hilt.”

~*~*~*~

“Another blade?” Lofar exclaims, when you have explained the situation to him. “Another blade? I’m already behind on other work, and now I’ll have to forge a new sword to fill the order this one was for. ‘Time is precious, don’t give it away for nothing,’ my father used to say…” He pauses, brow furrowed in thought. “Actually lost my father to brigands a few years back. Wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

“Bah!” he says, sounding annoyed, though it is not directed at you. “Give me that hilt. I must be getting soft. I’ll help that Kenton Thistleway, but with two conditions. First one is that if that brigand don’t come around looking for the sword, I get it back. Second, Thistleway gives me a hand and does some of the simpler work I’ve got piling up.” He fiddles with the straps on a workbag much like yours and produces a bellows. “These need new leather. Take them back to Thistleway and tell him I’ll send two or three more projects later today. If he fixes them all and I’m happy with his work, I’ll call it even on the cost of the two swords.”

You take the bellows under your arm – they are too big to fit into your work bag – and once again turn north up the Greenway. Once you have delivered Lofar’s message and bellows, you think, you will turn for home; you have much still to do this day, and you are hungry. The sun is well past its zenith now. You wonder if there are any honey cakes at the house, and if Gareth will have your hide if you take them.

Kenton Thistleway is nervously pacing when you return. You explain Lofar’s offer to him and he takes the bellows almost eagerly. He examines them carefully, and then nods in satisfaction. “I can repair this in an afternoon,” he says, “but I’ll need some leather to replace the worn patches.”

This whole affair is really no longer your business, but you hate to leave a task unfinished, so you quickly volunteer, “I can get you some.” Kenton ought at least to have a sword to bargain with, you think, before you can quite call this done.

He looks at you like you hung the stars, and you excuse yourself quickly and rather awkwardly. The Hackberry House is a short walk away, half an hour, perhaps, or less if you are willing to take a shortcut across Eric Dogwood’s fields. The outer fields lie fallow, as Eric and his wife Eltrys are too old to work so far from their home, and their son Horace had run off before the spring planting. Some of the children at the Hackberry House sometimes set aside time over the summer to assist them, especially Helena, and Léonys when she was not busy, but none of you had the time or resources to plant and maintain entire fields. If the harvest is not good, the Dogwoods may lose their farm – that is, if brigands and worse do not drive them off of it first.

The Hackberry House is larger than most other houses in the Bree-fields, except perhaps the Thornleys’. It boasts two stories and three outbuildings on a sizeable parcel of land: Lady Hackberry had inherited a comfortable fortune in land, livestock, and money from her father, though the latter is spread quite thin in recent years, with more children than she is really able to house about, and the brigands driving up the prices of whatever goods they don’t manage to steal.

The land is surrounded by a hedge, perhaps waist-high to you, which serves to keep some six cows, three sheep, and a dozen or so chickens contained. The only gate opens to the east, but you approach from the north and jump the hedge quite easily. Lady Hackberry has told you not to do this many times, but from here it is a clear shot to the tanning shed, where Léonys lays out and cures leather from her hunting trips. The place reeks, but you are more than used to it, and you slip in and begin browsing the drying racks, where finished leathers hang, ready to be sorted. After a few moments you find something suitable for bellows and reach up to undo the clamps that keep it on the rack.

“Hathellang?”

You turn with a start to see the form of Lady Hackberry framed in the doorway. “Oh! Lady Hackberry,” you say. “You startled me.”

“I didn’t mean to,” she says. “Will you be home for dinner?"

"I hope so," you say. "I just have a quick errand to run and then I'll be heading home for the day." You pull the leather down and walk towards the door, taking her hands in yours and squeezing them affectionately.

She smiles fondly. "Don't forget, you promised Anna you would help her at the forge this afternoon."

"I won't," you say. "I couldn't if I tried. She's spoken of little else since last night."

Lady Hackberry leans forward and presses an affectionate kiss to your forehead, and the two of you step out into the late morning sunlight.

~*~*~*~

You don't think you could have been gone for more than half an hour, but when you return to Thornley’s Work Site, Kenton Thistleway has abandoned all pretense of getting work done. Indeed, everyone has. He is sitting on the ground beside his forge, head in his hands, with some unfinished nails scattered on the ground about. The other workers are clustered in little groups, speaking quietly together or casting pitying looks toward Kenton. The foreman looks very displeased with the whole situation, but has made no move to encourage anyone to return to work.

Kenton looks up as you approach, and speaks before you can ask what happened. “Oh, it’s terrible! Blake, the brigand-captain who wanted the sword, came and told me he knew Nate was dead and that he knew I had something to do with it! I tried to tell him I didn’t, that I would have another sword for him soon, but he wouldn’t listen.” The man pauses and takes several steadying breaths. “He said he’s taken my daughter, Maribell! If I don’t give him another sword, and soon, he’ll kill her!”

This affair is really no longer your business, a voice in your mind says, but it’s a quiet one, and you brush it aside. “Get ahold of yourself,” you say. “We’ll get the man a sword, then. Where is he?”

“The brigand-camp in the Bree-fields, up to the west,” Kenton says. “Blake’s in charge there.”

You swing the rolled-up leather down from your shoulder where you were carrying it and drop it unceremoniously on the ground at Kenton’s feet. “Well, there’s that,” you say. “I’ll go get the sword from Mr. Ironband and take it to Blake.”

“Please hurry,” he says. You don’t respond, instead turning away and making for the Greenway at a light jog.

You are sweaty and out of breath by the time you reach the cabin guard-post, where Lofar Ironband still stands, talking to Chief Watcher Grimbriar. It seems to be a discussion of some importance, as both of them are consulting pieces of parchment and making notes on them in charcoal, but it doesn’t interest you. “Have you -- have you finished -- Thistleway’s sword yet?” you ask, gasping for breath and supporting yourself on your knees.

Lofar looks at you as if you had asked him if he had managed to lay an egg. “Do you know how long it takes to make a sword?” he asks.

“No,” you say. “Listen, Blake came back and told Thistleway that he has his daughter Maribell up at the brigand camp west of the Everclear Lakes, and he’ll kill her if he doesn’t have a sword and soon.”

The Dwarf’s face softens. “This is bad,” he says. “No, I don’t have a sword. I have a few in progress and I sent word to my assistants to finish one as soon as may be, but I don’t have it yet. I know these types of fellows. they won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. They’ll kill that girl! You’ll have to mount a rescue.”

You turn and look expectantly at Chief Watcher Grimbriar.

“No,” he says. “Brigand’s Watch? They have a fortification built up there, and can see for miles around. They see a guard anywhere nearby and they’ll kill the girl without a second thought, and do who knows what else. I don’t have the men for a full assault.”

“So you’re just going to leave her?” you ask.

Grimbriar looks at you long and hard, and at length he says, “You’re the one who broke into the Briarstones’ estate last month, I know it. Slipped right past their dogs, somehow.”

“Well --” you say, “you can’t prove that.” You are actually quite proud of the feat, and don’t often get the chance to brag about it. Lady Hackberry feels it’s an inappropriate topic of conversation for mealtimes.

“Unfortunately, no,” the Chief Watcher agrees. “But I know it’s true. And if anyone can make it into Brigand’s Watch undetected, it’s the man who got past six bloodhounds without getting caught. What do you say?”

“I’m a tailor, Grimbriar,” you say. “I don’t adventure.” You know that he knows this is not true, but it’s only good form for him to keep up the ruse when he doesn’t have any evidence.

“So you’re just going to leave her?” he says.

~*~*~*~

The brigands have left one approach to their camp unwatched, and that’s the northern side, where the land rises up into a cluster of foothills around Starmere Lake, nestled beneath the Wildwood to the north and the Brandywood to the west. It is no small wonder; the land is wild here, too rocky for farming and too overrun for grazing. A few hunters come here occasionally, or so you have heard, but not many. It is far from Bree-town and Léonys has told you that it’s more trouble than it’s worth to haul a kill back from these woods, not with the Chetwood so near the town.

They’ve erected a palisade around their camp, but it’s a rush job, just a lot of logs driven into the ground and lashed together with rope. They’ve felled a great many trees to the south-east for this, which serves the double purpose of clearing the land between them and the town, and the farms and homesteads between. It doesn’t seem much like the other brigand camps you’ve seen -- the Blackwolds had watchmen, but their main camps were always nestled in comfortable ruins. This feels like they expect an attack of some sort, and it puts you on edge.

Not so on edge that you aren’t able to approach the palisade undetected. You hear voices on the other side, slurring with alcohol, but after a moment they pass on. You test the logs -- they’re placed sturdily enough -- and then quickly pull yourself up by the rope lashing the tops of them together, swing a leg between the sharpened points of the logs, and then throw yourself the rest of the way over, landing in a roll on the ground. You scramble to your feet immediately and duck behind a nearby tent, tucking your cloak close around you and hoping that to the casual observer you will look like just another bundle or blanket scattered around the sleeping area. But no one seems to have noticed your intrusion, and after a few moments you stand and quickly glance about.

You see no sign of any captives, but people typically keep things they don’t want to be stolen inward, rather than outward, and you imagine the same applies to prisoners they don’t want to escape. There is a gap in the palisade nearby, and from the outside you had seen a smaller compound here, tucked between two steep spurs of rock in the cliff behind. You quickly walk toward it, hoping anyone who sees you will assume you are simply one of their own, and slip inside.

There is a cage built on wheels inside the little area, and inside it you see a young woman sitting with her knees drawn up to her chest. She looks up as you approach, but does not speak at once.

“I’m here to help,” you say as you examine the lock. It’s a simple two-pin lock like thousands of others you could pick with your eyes closed, but the workmanship is odd -- shoddy. The metal is not formed well and it seems to you that someone tried to cool it too fast, and perhaps also form it when it was not hot enough. No smith in Bree-land that you know of would put their name to such work. You wonder where it came from.

“I filched the key a while ago,” the girl, Maribell, says, sitting up and reaching into her pocket. “I was too scared to use it, though. There are so many of them.”

From her voice, you think she’s about Helena’s age. She hands you a key that is somewhat better made than the lock, but still not good. “All right,” you say. You unlock the cage door, but even as Maribell slips out, you hear a sound to your right.

The cage is not the only structure in the little inner palisade. There is also a tent, larger than the ones outside and with blankets and furs covering the floor inside, and from this tent a man has emerged. He is holding an ugly rowan club, little more than a broken branch that someone has tied some rags around for a handle, and he looks angry.

“That’s Blake!” Maribell hisses, and you see why Thistleway was so intimidated by him.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he snaps. “You’d better have a sword for me, boy.”

“You know,” you grumble, stepping forward to face Blake, “if I had a silver for every time someone asked me if I had a sword today, I would have two. It’s not very many, but it’s odd that it happened twice, seeing as how I’m very clearly not carrying a sword.”

Blake charges, raising the club high. You stoop to the ground, catch a handful of dust, dry grass, wood shavings, and small pebbles, and then straighten up and throw the lot directly into his face. He stops short, dropping the club, and clutches at his eyes with both hands. Almost in the same movement you step forward, snatch a dagger from his belt with your other hand, and drive it upwards, into his abdomen.

You turn away from Blake before he hits the ground. “Quick, over the palisade,” you say, pointing at a stack of crates behind the cage. Maribell nods and climbs the crates, gingerly pulls herself to the top of the palisade, and then slips over it. You follow as quickly as you may. Even as you stand up, you hear a shout from inside the palisade behind you, and you take Maribell’s hand and the two of you begin to run.

~*~*~*~

Thornley’s Work Site is probably the nearest safe place, or safer, at any rate. The two of you hurry north for some distance before turning west to pass the Everclear Lakes on the north. You are both exhausted, but you don’t stop running until you reach the work site. Work has not resumed in the past few hours, and murmurs and then cheers arise as the two of you approach. You slow to a halt, leaning against the foundation of the building in progress to catch your breath, but at the sight of her father Maribell seems to gain a second win and she runs ahead and throws herself into his arms.

Kenton Thistleway catches his daughter and pulls her close, holding her tight. Someone offers you a waterskin and you accept it gratefully. You aren’t used to so much running after a heist; usually there is a hiding spot much closer that you can retreat to until everything blows over. And you dearly hope this blows over. Hopefully none of the brigands got a good look at your face -- else this might lead to dire consequences for you and your family. The Hackberry House is not too far from Brigand’s Watch.

You aren’t sure how long it is before Kenton approaches you, Maribell just behind him. He clasps your hand in his and there are unshed tears in his eyes. “Bless you,” he says. “You’ve returned my daughter safe to me! I cannot thank you enough!”

“How about some more water?” you ask, trying to lighten the mood. Really, you would rather not think about what might have happened to Maribell, for a number of reasons.

“Get the man some water!” Kenton shouts to no one in particular, and although you know he has no real authority here, someone passes up another waterskin, which he presses into your hands. “You’ve done so much for me,” he says. His expression darkens. “What about Blake?” he asks.

“Blake is dead,” Maribell quickly says. “He --” she looks at you and you realize with a start that you have not introduced yourself to her.

“Hathellang,” you say.

“Hathellang killed him,” Maribell says. “And good riddance to him.”

The foreman pushes through the workers and scowls at Kenton. “Thistleway,” he says, “take your daughter and go home. Take the rest of the day off. And next time you’re getting blackmailed, don’t just come in and not say anything about it. Tusks o’ fury!”

Kenton gathers his tools and he and Maribell head south along the Greenway. It is not the quickest way back to the Hackberry House, but you opt to walk with them. There is safety in numbers, and you would rather see them safe at least as far as the guard’s cabin, since you’ve apparently decided to make this affair your business.

When you arrive at the cabin, Lofar is still there. He looks up as your little party approaches with a broad smile. “Excellent!” he calls. “Glad no harm came to the lass.”

“Thank you, sir,” Kenton says. “I’m so sorry for stealing your sword. Thank you for being so understanding.”

“Don’t thank me,” Lofar says gruffly. “I sent you some work to do. What about it?”

“I haven’t finished it,” Kenton said. “I’ve barely started. I haven’t been able to focus much today. But here’s what I have.” He pauses to swing his workbag from his shoulder and draw out what you recognize as a set of old bellows-leather, marked to be used as a template for a replacement.

“Well, I can see you know what you’re doing,” Lofar says. “What’s all this?”

“The leather was cut wrong at the ends,” Kenton says. “It was putting too much strain here and here when they were used. They still worked, but that’s why they were wearing out so fast. I’ve added an extra measure at each end and I’ll reinforce these stress points when I replace it, so they’ll last longer before it needs replaced again.”

You think you see a spark of respect in Lofar’s eye, but he just nods and says, “Very good, very good. That’s good sense, that. Almost as sharp as a Dwarf-smith, this one. You can expect more work from me in the future, Thistleway.”

“Thank you,” Kenton says. You think he recognizes the high praise for what it is, coming from Lofar Ironband.

“I’ll be off, then,” you say.

“Not so fast,” Lofar says.

You scowl. “I have work to do too, Ironband,” you say. “Don’t tell me you want me to find another sword for you.”

“No,” Lofar says. “Actually, this is for you, seeing as how Thistleway doesn’t need it anymore.” He holds out a long, suspiciously sword-shaped bundle wrapped in cloth. “My assistant just brought it to me not an hour ago.”

You stare at it for a long moment. “Sir,” you say at length. “What am I going to do with a sword?”

Lofar scowls. “Consider it compensation for the fact that I accused you of a crime you didn’t commit and then tried to get you arrested,” he says.

“All right,” you say, taking the weapon. “Thank you, I suppose.”

“You’re welcome,” he says. “Just don’t actually be stealing anything from my shop.”

You look pointedly at Chief Watcher Grimbriar, who is standing behind Lofar with smugness and frustration warring on his face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Ironband,” you say.

“Bah!” Grimbriar says. “Get out of here, Hackberry.”

You consider a parting barb, but think better of it, and instead you hurry ahead, down the lane that leads to the North-gate. More work to be done; you have to get rid of this sword. You have no use for a sword. But at least it should fetch a good price, if not at the market then among the Man-smiths near the West-gate. After you have dealt with this, you promise yourself, you will be headed directly home and you will not go out again today.

As you pass the Windview Estate and near the Sandheaver home, you stop short. You would recognize the bright green and red jacket up ahead anywhere -- but Léonys cannot be here. She’s on a hunt, in the north-eastern Chetwood, up away past Archet. You break into a jog, and call her name, but she does not hear you, and she turns and walks towards the West-gate, and when you round the corner and look after her she is gone.

You turn back to where Lily Sandheaver is standing outside her house. “Was that Léonys?” you ask breathlessly.

“Yes, it was,” she says. “Why do you ask?”

“What’s she doing here?” you ask.

“Nothing, anymore!” Lily says, and chuckles at her own joke. “She just bought some traveling rations from me, and firewood from Pasco Underhill up the hill. Said something about going into the Old Forest and not wanting to risk cutting wood there.”

You stare at Lily in disbelief for a moment. “The Old Forest?” you ask incredulously. “Whatever would she want in there?”

“Well I don’t know,” Lily says. “And what’s more, she said she was going by way of the Barrow-downs! It’s quicker, she said. Seemed in a terrible great hurry.”

What could Léonys possibly be thinking? You glance down the road to the West-gate, and then drop your eyes to the bundle in your hands. Well, perhaps you have a use for a sword after all.

“I’d like to buy some travel rations as well,” you say.

“Of course,” Lily says, and she collects a small bundle from the crate she keeps on her porch to sell to workers and travelers leaving town who have forgotten their lunches. “Forty-eight coppers, please.”

You count out the money, and bundle the meal into your pocket, then unwrap the sword. It’s a nice thing, sturdy and well-made, Dwarven designs worked into the hilt and pommel and running up one side of the otherwise unadorned sheath. You undo your belt and slide the scabbard loops over it, settling the weapon on your left hip, and then with a nod at Lily you turn and leave Bree behind, following Léonys out the West-gate, towards the Barrow-downs.

[beaker1636]

Permanent Mark - Nicholas Ruffilo Smut

AN: This kinda spilled out, I'm really glad though because something finally broke my slump... so I hope ya'll enjoy!!

You let out a soft sigh as you stand outside the tattoo shop, hyping yourself up for this as you have never gotten a tattoo this large before.  You have wanted to get your owl tattoo for awhile now, and when you saw Nicholas’ work you knew you wanted him to do it, his style something that you enjoyed. 

Maybe that’s your problem though. One, he is the bassist of one of your favorite bands and you are going to have to sit and act like you aren’t a weird fangirl.  Two, the two of you haven’t met in person, you have had to communicate over email and messages because of his tour, so your first time meeting and talking to him his hands are going to be all over your thighs. And three, you find him attractive, very attractive so him having his hands on you is going to be a slight distraction for you.

You finally decide to walk in, making your way towards the front desk to check in, Nicholas greeting you with a smile.

“I was wondering when you would finally walk in, that nervous about this?” He asks, teasing you lightly, trying to help you relax.

“No, not that nervous, just excited.  I have wanted this tattoo for awhile, and based on your sketches I know it’ll be awesome,” you respond, hoping that you don’t come across like a weird fangirl or anything.

“I can understand that, I actually already stenciled up the one that you said you liked if you are ready to come back,” he asks, starting to lead you back towards his chair, still with a soft smile on his face, wanting you to feel comfortable.

You follow behind, waiting for him to show you the stencil and size. 

“I know we talked about it and that it’s a thigh piece, if we need to resize it once we see how it looks that is no big deal,” he says, showing you.  

“I-yeah, let me just take my jeans off…. Shit that sounded bad, I wore shorts under them to make it easier on you, I didn’t mean it in a weird way,” you ramble, now blushing bright red as you move to slip your jeans down.

“I figured, why don’t you hop up in the chair and I’ll apply it, we can then figure out if we like the size and placement yeah,” he says, motioning for you to take a seat, which you do, still blushing at how awkward you made things.  Not realizing that he didn’t mind what you said, he was more focused on slipping his gloves on and applying the first stencil.

You watch him as his hands now touch your thigh, applying it for you.  When it’s on he gives you a chance to look in the mirror, seeing what you think of the placement and the size.

“What do you think? I think we should go a little bigger but it’s your decision,” he says, glancing at you as you look at it.

You look at it for a moment, trying to decide what you think before you nod in agreement. “Yeah, I think you’re right, it would look better if we made it bigger. Hopefully it’s not too much work to change it up.”

“Nope, we will wipe this one off and then I will go resize it quickly,” he responds, taking a wet paper towel and wiping the stencil off my skin before going back behind the desk and doing a couple things, coming back with a larger one.

When he returns and gently places the larger stencil on you he looks up at you to see what you are thinking. “I think it looks much better like this, what do you think y/n?” he asks, waiting for you to decide if you like it.

“That looks much better, I like it,” you respond, a big smile on your face as the reality of you finally getting this tattoo you’ve wanted for so long is finally hitting you.

“Awesome, I will get started with the outlines.  Did you decide what colors you wanted me to use or do you want me to surprise you?” He asks, getting all his materials ready before you hear the machine turn on, your anxiety spiking.

“I don’t know, I was thinking that galaxy-like colors would be cool.  Like blues and purples, but if you have a different idea I am open to it honestly.  You’re the artist here, not me, so you probably have more idea of what would look good.” You say softly, trying not to jump when you feel him start his first line.

“I was hoping you would say that, I wanted to use those colors honestly.  I think they’d look great on your skin tone.  So, let’s get started, enjoy the next few hours we have together.  If you need a break or anything let me know okay?” He asks, making sure that you meet his eyes for a moment, to catch how serious he is before he looks down to get started.

“Of course, I can’t wait to see how it comes out,” you say excitedly, watching him get started.  There is something so mesmerizing, watching him while he is so focused, while his eyes are so focused on what he does as his hands run along your skin.  

The buzzing is a little annoying, but it is nothing you aren’t used to, having gotten a couple tattoos in the past.

As he works he can tell that you are watching him, that you enjoy watching him as he works.  He’s not sure exactly why, but it’s flattering.  Once he gets a little more in the zone he decides to try and talk to you, wanting to get to know you a little better but also to break the silence.

“So, is this your first tattoo you’ve gotten?” He asks you, continuing to drag the needle across your skin as he does the outlines, sneaking a couple looks at your face here or there as he goes to gauge your reactions, making sure that you aren’t too uncomfortable.

“No, I have a rather large one on the back of my shoulder that I had done awhile ago when I was in college and then a set of song lyrics that was added to it.  It’s just not visible when I am in a shirt, I also have a magnifying glass on my bicep but you can’t really see it with the long sleeves I’m in.  This one is one I have wanted and sat on for a while though honestly.” you admit, feeling a little shy while you say it.

“No wonder you are taking this so well, I was just thinking you are handling it well for someone’s first, so that makes more sense now.  You chose a good spot though, it shouldn’t hurt too bad for you.  What is the one on your back?” He asks.

The two of you spend the next few hours talking, a little flirting, and getting to know each other.  Him laughing when he hits a spot where you grimace, not expecting you to lose your composure.  You laugh when he tells you something funny that has happened in the shop, or on tour.  The two of you honestly hit it off really well, despite the fact that you’re hurting you are almost disappointed when a few hours later he is wrapping it up and it is done.  You absolutely love how it came out though, his talent and his attention to the details that you wanted to stand out made it come out absolutely beautifully. 

When you make your way up front to pay and leave, you feel pretty bitter sweet, not waiting to walk away from him but absolutely loving how it came out.  You don’t realize that he feels the same way, that something about you is different than other clients and he doesn’t quite want to let you leave either.

You sign the slip of paper you need to pay with your card before sliding it back to him, thinking nothing of it when he slides business card back to you… until you realize that there is a phone number written on the back of it when you get inside your car and go to set it in your purse.  You can’t believe that he gave you his phone number, and wrote text me next to it.  You realize that you aren’t the only one who felt something between the two of you.

When you make your way back to your house you decide to send him a text, just saying thank you for the tattoo, that you absolutely loved it and can’t wait for it to heal. 

A week later

The two of you have consistently been talking for about a week now, getting to know each other as you do so… and maybe flirting with each other quite a bit.  You still a little mind blown that this man who you find so attractive seems to be into you.

You got another message from him, this one asking you to come hang out, watch a movie at his place.  That led to where you are now, on his couch while a movie plays, both of you laughing with it while his arm is around you, feeling close to one another.

“Hey, how’s the owl healing?” He asks you, his eyes meeting yours as you both smile at each other, enjoying how you are looking at one another.

“It is looking great, I know it’s not fully there yet but I love it.  You did a great job,” You say honestly, wondering if he actually cares or is just worried you aren’t taking care of it, letting it ruin itself.

“I’m curious about the one you said is on your back, you never showed me a picture or anything, can I see it?” He asks you softly, his hand rubbing your arm softly where it is wrapped around you.

“Yeah, I’ll have to take my top shirt off though, but I do have a tank top on so it’s not that weird.” You say softly, feeling shy as you let him see this other part of you, one that honestly you love but with him being an artist himself you are worried about what he would think.  

You sit up and slip your t-shirt off, turning your back towards him so that he can see it.  His hands gently brushing your hair to the side as he looks, gently tracing his fingers down the dragon, sending shivers down your spine with how gentle his touch is.  

“I don’t know why I didn’t expect a dragon and flowers but I didn’t.  What does the line ‘Heaven wasn’t too far away’ with the dates mean?” He asks you, his fingers still gently tracing along your skin as he watches it closely.

“The dates are when my dad died, that’s actually why I got a dragon too, because he had a dragon on his arm so it’s all a tribute for him.  When I was little he sang Heaven by warrant to me so it just made sense,” you admit softly, a little uncomfortable talking about what is a sore subject, unsure why you are comfortable telling him.

“Well it’s beautiful, really,” he says just as softly, before moving and placing a soft kiss on your skin there.

You stiffen for a moment, caught off guard by the kiss, him also wondering why the hell he just did that as he feels your body tense for a moment.

When you turn towards him, your eyes meeting his something changed.  Next thing you know the two of you are kissing, his tongue quickly finding yours as the two of you give in, no longer holding back your desire from the other one.  His hands settle on your hips as you eventually move, straddling his lap as he holds you tightly against him, one of your hands settling in his hair.  The more intense the kiss gets the more you shift in his lap, able to feel his growing erection underneath you, which just fuels you even more.

His lips eventually pull away from yours only to settle on your neck, leaving teasing kisses along the length of it until they settle underneath your ear, nipping lightly at your earlobe.

“Please tell me you want this as much as I do right now,” he asks softly, practically begging you for permission to keep going.

“Yes, I want this,” you admit softly, letting out a gasp when his lips settle below your ear again, now nipping, kissing and sucking harder, determined to leave at least one mark along your skin if you will let him.  Leave you with a reminder that he was there, that he made you feel this way.  

When he’s finally satisfied with how it looks he pulls away with a smirk.  Moving to slip his own shirt off before reaching for the bottom of your tank top, waiting for you to nod before he slides it off of you as well. 

He moves you off his lap, urging you to lay back on the couch which you gladly do, wanting to feel him over the top of you as his lips lock on yours again, much more urgency in his actions this time as one of his hands trails slowly up your stomach.  Making its way teasingly between your breasts before moving to lightly palm one of them over the top of your bra, slowly his fingers dip under the cup as they find your nipple, playfully rubbing it between his fingers before lightly pulling on it.

At this point his other hand reaches behind your back, unclasping it and sliding it off of you before he shifts his attention to your other breast.  His fingers still playing with the one while he pulls his lips away from yours, settling on your other one as he slowly trails his tongue around it, feeling it harden in his mouth as he continues to tease you with his tongue, sucking on it while his fingers are on your other one still.  He hears your soft moan which encourages him to continue, knowing that you are enjoying his teasing touches on them, knowing that he is making you want this as much as he does based on how you are shifting your hips up to meet his, making both of you gasp as you make contact.

One of your arms wraps itself around his back, lightly running your nails along his skin there as he continues, it starting to turn him on more than he thought it would as he continues his touches, his lips now trailing down your torso as he moves.  Stopping just above the waistband of your leggings that you have on.  

You glance down, looking at him as he slowly moves to dip his finger teasingly just under the waistband of them and your panties, watching as you squirm from his touches.  He can tell that he is getting you worked up, and is enjoying the fact that he is.  His eyes meeting yours, his desire obvious inside of them.

“Can I?” He asks you gently, waiting for your okay before he tries to remove them from your body.  

When you nod he doesn’t hesitate, he slowly slides them both down your legs at the same time, quickly settling himself between your thighs as his hands teasingly trail over the bare one.  He also takes a moment to admire his work, it really is healing beautifully and he thinks it looks incredibly sexy on you, that you let him decorate your skin for life.

He moves back up, his lips settling on yours again while his fingers teasingly slide through your folds, collecting your wetness on one of his fingertips before bringing it back up to use as lube while he lightly circles your clit.   Watching as you instantly stiffen slightly, enjoying his touch while letting out a quiet sigh, enjoying how his hands are on you.  

He pulls his lips away with a smirk, glancing at you as he mumbles something about how wet you are.  Honestly, you didn’t completely catch what he says, you are so overstimulated and enjoying his touch so much that you can’t focus on his words.  Nicholas is able to tell, his eyes meeting yours with an amused smile as he continues, moving his finger slowly against your clit, wanting you to grow desperate, crave more from him.

When you are squirming underneath him, whimpering, he decides that he may have teased you enough and quickly slips a finger inside of you, another joining right away when he realizes just how wet you actually are.  Pumping them inside of you while angling up to hit that spongy spot, wanting to get you there quickly because he is struggling to hold it together at this point, wants to be inside of you desperately at this point.  Watching you arch your back against the touch, bucking your hips up to meet his touch, all while whimpering and moaning, it's turning him on more than anything has before.  You are total putty under his hands and he is enjoying it, a cocky smirk on his face as he watches you slowly fall apart.

“You want more, want me to make you come?” He asks you, voice deep and laced with lust.

“Please, I, I am so close Nicholas,” you whine, meeting his eyes with your own while he watches you closely, enjoying your reactions.

“Hmm, I think you can do better than that,” He says again, slowing his movements with his fingers down to prove his point.

“Fuck, Please, I feel so good, I, I want to come nicholas, want to feel even better,” You whimper out, unashamed to be begging at this point, past the point of no return.

He doesn’t say anything, just picking up the pace and using the pads of his other fingers to rub against your clit, pulling you closer and closer.  He doesn’t stop this time when you are at the edge again, instead he tells you to come, demands you to, which somehow makes you let go.

Your back arching as you throw your head back with a loud moan, your climax hitting you harder than you expected, feeling so sensitive and overwhelmed by everything as your body relaxes back against the couch again, slumping against it as you come back down with a heaving chest while he watches you.  While your eyes were closed he had lost his pants and underwear, slipped a condom on and is watching you, stroking his cock as he admires just how beautiful you look like this. Waiting for you to settle back down and be ready to take him.

When your eyes open and land on him stroking himself he figures that you are ready, settling himself between your thighs as he leans down to give you another kiss, slowly thrusting himself inside you for the first time while the two of you kiss.  When you adjust to the stretch a bit more he lets go, his hips rocking to meet yours a bit more, working himself into you while he admires you.  Watches how your breasts move as he thrusts into you, enjoying the sight of your chest heaving as he works you back up again, the sight of you alone is honestly almost orgasmic, he loves how responsive and sensitive you are.

He grabs one of your hands, moving it between your thighs to rub your clit, wanting to feel you come on his cock before he finishes.  You do, starting to rub it as he thrusts harder into you, your other hand moving to play with one of your nipples, craving that extra stimulation as you find yourself hurdling closer to the edge, the pressure building again.

“Please, I’m close, need you to finish again,” he whispers into your ear, practically begging you to let another orgasm go for him.  The feeling of him inside of you, your fingers on your clit, pared with his words is enough, throwing you over the edge abruptly as your second orgasm hits you, stronger than the last.

The moan you let out and the feeling of you tightening around his cock is enough to pull him over the edge with you, coming undone with a few more thrusts to ride it out, his head landing on your chest when he pulls out and collapses on top of you.  Both of you laying there, basking in the afterglow of the moment you just shared.  Both of your chests heaving as you come down together, one of your hands now moving so that you can play with his damp hair, earning you a soft groan from him.  

Neither one of you wants to break this silence, both of you enjoying the moment but he eventually decides he should probably deal with the condom and slowly lifts himself off of you, leaving you another soft kiss before moving to take it off and throw it away before making his way back over to you.

“If you want we can maybe move this to my bed, restart the movie because we missed most of it and cuddle up for the night… and have an actual date tomorrow night,” he asks, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

You can’t help but giggle, before agreeing with him that it sounds wonderful, letting him slip his shirt that he had on over your head before you follow him to his room. Restarting the movie so that you both could actually watch it this time while sharing some sweet kisses, smiles, and cuddles.  

“You know, I really want to make a joke about you leaving a permanent mark on me now, that yours is going to last longer than any others I’ve had before because of the tattoo but maybe that’s a bit too cheesy,” you say with a giggle, his head resting on your chest again as you play with his hair.  Both of you have discovered that you like this, that it is relaxing for both of you.

“Yeah, with your garbage sense of humor I was waiting for it,” he teases, lightly tickling your side to make you laugh again.  You retaliate by attempting to tickle him back, leading to a full out tickling war as you miss a good chunk of the movie yet again.

“Maybe one day we’ll actually finish the movie,” he says with a laugh.  Giving up and turning it off, neither of you seem to care or notice as you both continue to laugh, talk and enjoy the night before falling asleep.

[deus-and-the-machina]

MCYT Yuri week - Day 4, transgendered

ngl I didn't know what I was going to do for this one until a few days ago plus DAY TWO OF BEING SICK WOOHOO so it's once again short but sweet. Support on ao3 and all of that, I have longer works planned for the last three days that I'm excited to share!

go check out @mcyt-yuri-week and all the cool stuff people are making!

Joel glanced at herself in the mirror. It felt…good. Seeing herself shirtless with an impressively padded and stuffed bra made the Queen of Mezalea stand up just a little taller. But when she caught a glimpse of what was behind her… “Not gonna lie babe, I don’t think those’ll fit me.” 

Lizzie was taking out several dresses from her wardrobe, tossing them onto the bed. “Nonsense, we can always get them resized!”

Contrary to her own insisting, Joel was not, in fact, seven or eight feet tall. She was a very modest, not unimpressive mind you, five foot six. Or 67 inches if you were correct about it. 

And her gorgeous fish wife was only, oh, ten feet tall or so. 

After picking out a final piece of clothing, she swept them up in her arms and marched proudly over to her. “I wasn’t that much smaller than you when I wore these last, I thought about throwing them out but eh, sentimental attachment and all. And look! They had a use after all.” She reached around Joel to draw one of the dresses against her body. It was a bit short at the ankle, but the material was stretchy and comfortable.

Joel could’ve done this with plenty of tailors in her own empire, and indeed she’d still have to get properly fitted after this, but she’d do anything to be able to spend more time with her wife.

“Or if you don’t like that one, here’s a skirt instead.” Lizzie pulled the dress away and threw a new article of clothing at her. “And here’s a blouse, another skirt, two more dresses, and–oh of course! Shoes!”

“Okay, your shoes definitely won’t fit me.” With a wave of her hand, Lizzie shooed her off and went rummaging through her closet once more.

“Jewelry?”

“Of course,” Joel puffed her chest up. “What would royalty be without our glorious shinies?”

“Normal people, probably.” They had a good laugh at that. 

“Awwwww,” as she exited her dresser, Lizzie seemed to be suddenly overcome with affection. “I’m so glad you asked me to do this!” She wrapped her arms around Joel’s middle and tucked Joel’s head under hers, making the Mezalean queen her human pillow. 

Every now and again, Joel was reminded of just how amazing it was to have a giant fish wife as she picked her up and spun her around. “Yes, It’s amAZING–whoa!”

She set Joel down with a giggle. Sighing, she turned towards the mirror and put her hands on her hips.

“Alright, let’s get serious. Dress me up, dear!”

[adornedwithlight]

Hello sweet beans! Since my last tutorials have been yeeted into oblivion with deactivating my previous blog @/benkeibear I figured I repost them onto here!

💫 gradient line divider tutorial 💫

This tutorial uses my simple line divider tutorial as a base. Please familiarize yourself with it first since this is just additional steps!

I use various apps and sites for gradients. The apps I mainly use Canva or Gradient+ occasionally I use GradientDaze (for when I don't have specific colors in mind)

As websites I can recommend browsing through uiGradients or Webkima if you'd like animated gradients.

I'm a little oldschool and don't use photoshop but there's plenty tutorials on how to animate gradients there on YouTube!

Starting with Canva:

1. You first open your divider template. Mine is as in the previous tutorial the simple 1000x40.

2. Next you will click on the color button and choose a color like the little arrow shows

3. Then you select "Gradient" and Canva will give you a second color option. You can change both colors here or add many more if you'd like more colors. Here you can also choose what kind of gradient you want

Just play around here and continue to resize the images you saved as explained in the previous tutorial via ezgif or any other way you found for yourself.

Next we have Gradient+

This app is built pretty simple and there's not much to explain. You choose your two colors by tapping on the colored circle at the"Color A" and "Color B" and continue further down to navigate where color A starts and color B ends.

For the classic gradient you use the settings as above.

The app also offers radial and angular gradients so you can just play around with what you like!

Make the gradient big by tapping the expansion arrows and take a screenshot - then you may resize your divider.

The last app is GradientDaze

Again, a very simple app but this time you can't enter hex codes. Instead you can move 2 circles around on a little color card and find pretty gradients you like

If you found two colors you like, you can click on the little + and then on "info" to see the color names and hex codes. In the menu after clicking + you also have the option to save the gradient

Once saved you can resize your dividers.

Onto the web pages.

At uiGradients you can browse through popular gradients users have made. Once you find one you like you can use the hex codes to make a gradient divider for example in Canva or you take a screenshot and resize it.

Using Webkima for animated dividers is a little inconvenient because you need to record your screen and make a gif out of if (you can do this at ezgif where you can immediately resize your animated gradient)

On Webkima you can choose up to three colors, the direction and speed at which the colors move. Personally I haven't used this yet except for a few custom dividers since it takes quite some time for one divider.

(Left: uiGradients / Right: Webkima)

Using these apps / sites is optional and I'm sure there's plenty other options out there but these are the ones I personally use and find easy to navigate, especially canva since you can do all this in the free version.

If you have any questions or something doesn't work as you thought it would please don't hesitate to reach out - I'm always happy to help!

[shoto-brainrot]

Shoto Todoroki as a Dad

Part 1

Headcanon, Fluff

❄️ He is unbelievably kind and gentle - he'll listen to everything they have to say and take any concerns they have, big or small, into consideration. He puts a lot of stock into their emotional well-being and will often ask you if the kids are happy and if he's doing enough

(don't touch me, I'm in tears just thinking about it)

>and you'll reassure him that he's doing a great job, but he'll keep asking nonetheless

❄️ He would be so gentle with them. It's been that way since the first time he held them in the hospital.Shoto is endlessly responsible and mindful of every movement He makes sure to be precise and careful with anything, from bottle feeding to giving them shoulder rides. He isn't the type to toss the kids high in the air but he'll definitely make ice slides

😭 He tends to run his fingers lightly through their hair and is fond of forehead and temple kisses. He is always nuzzling them, inhaling their scent and will have the softest smile while doing so

❄️ Keeping the kids warm or cool enough is always his MO. Every ounce of control he has goes into warming them up after playing in the snow or cooling them down when they have a fever. if they take after him, he'll prioritize teaching them temperature control (every day, honestly. It's very important to him).

❄️ Oh boy, he actually frets over them when they're sick. While he hardly ever gets sick, their raspy, little coughs and abnormal temperature will cause him quite a bit of anxiety. And rationally he knows they'll be fine. He's well-trained and knowledgeable, but sometimes you just can rationalize feelings away.

> He'll be at a loss for what to do at first, but he'll watch you tend to them and learn. He'll take night shift for administering medicine (he's so precise with the dosage and timing - down to the second, I swear) and use his quirk to keep them comfortable.

>I can see him being the type to take off work, even if they're not that sick, simply because he wants to spend the time with them

>you know the soup is gonna be the perfect temperature, right?

❄️ He always insists on carrying them to bed when they fall asleep on the couch or in the car. He has a small smile when he does this and it melts your heart every time.

❄️ he would be supportive and encouraging in any and all interests/hobbies they have. he wants them to choose their own path in life and if they're dedicated to a sport or instrument, he will provide everything they need. He'll make an effort to attend any special events involving those things (recitals, matches, shows). If he can't make it, he'll explain to them and promise to make it up to them after + follows through.

❄️ He would try very hard not to shower the kids with material possessions but would often fail (especially around the holidays). Part of it has to do with how he doesn't have a strong conceptualization of the cost of things. But he also just wants to get whatever the kids ask for, the moment they ask for it. You often have to explain that it will spoil them. And he gets it, really he does - but when your little one looks up at him with the same eyes as yours and asks for something their heart desires, it's theirs. Shoto is weak for them, and while the kids try not to take advantage (they really are considerate), their wish really is his command

❄️ Speaking of material possessions, he has a habit of adorning his daughter and wife with jewelry. It's a habit he developed from dating you and it's the one habit he cannot break.

Maybe it has something to do with how elegant you look in them or how his little princess reacts when he presents them, but he can't help himself and at this point, he's stopped trying. Every time he travels, he always comes back with a bracelet or some other bauble. At any rate, he makes sure they're iced out 💎

> maybe it has something to do with his ice lol

> He has good taste too ;m; the pieces are never too gaudy and rarely needs resizing (he's excellent about proportions 🤷)

> for his son, he will often get matching jewelry for them both. Think of a cute little wristwatch that matches Shoto's.

> He might consider getting them necklaces that are protective. Shoto doesn't really believe in those things but when it comes to his kids, having a star or Buddha charm isn't out of the realm of possibility. Especially since it's customary for babies

> He would 100% get his daughter an actual gem encrusted tiara without batting an eye. He would also confused at your reaction.

"It is a princess themed party, isn't it?"

❄️ Oh gosh, he would play with them for hours. He never got a chance to play as a kid and is endlessly fascinated with their toys. He'll spend hours building Legos, attending tea parties, and racing little remote cars. While the kids do try to control themselves when it comes to asking for things, it's actually Shoto who indulges them. It just makes sense, there's 7 sets in the collection therefore he has to get them all.

At least, that's what he learned from Midoriya and his meticulously curated All-Might collection

>The playhouse has to be fully furnished and functional - why not hire someone to build it for them?

❄️ He forgets to not spoil them and you sort of try to remind him, but you don't really have the heart to curb him finally getting to experience the joys of childhood

❄️ And the kids do a wonderful job of teaching him. He genuinely enjoys playtime and learning hopscotch, ball games and jumprope for the first time. The kids might tease him a bit but he'll laugh (maybe even blush a little) + cite how thankful he is that they're so patient with their old man

And he looks so happy, it makes your heart 💓 every time

❄️ He was overwhelmed by amusement parks, zoos, movies, etc at first. He never got to enjoy places like that growing up and feels as though he is too old for them. But having kids, oh.... He finally allowed himself to truly experience them. It was almost miraculous to see how expressive he got. He loved seeing them go on the Merry-Go-Round and scooping them up to play arcade games. His smile when he would run with the kids with kites 🪁or bubble hoops 🫧 ... -sigh-

> OOO imagine him swinging the hammer and watching it ding the bell or sharp shooting targets with ease but sucking it up with basketball throws and ring tosses 😆

> Oh and he is so grateful that you plan all of these outings, he kisses you so deeply at the end of the day, whispering how happy it made him

❄️ He always makes time for his family. He is all about work-life balance and is firm in certain dates where he is not available under any circumstances - AFO levels of danger aside. It's almost never a problem as he makes sure to complete his work to the point where they don't need him around those dates but on the off chance they he has to, he often makes up for it as soon as possible.

❄️ I truly think him healing his inner child will happen through experiencing fatherhood. He's going to feel at peace and settled, I just know it.

❄️ I am of the opinion that he might slip up and say some things that aren't exactly age appropriate to the kids. He explains things to them as though they are old enough to understand much to your horror at times. He'll follow your lead though. I think he'll pay close attention to how you speak to the children and model the same behavior. If he isn't sure about something, he'll consult you. You'll explain.

"Maybe we should wait to explain to the them the finer nuances of xyz 😅."

❄️ Listen, I don't think Shoto would understand why the kids would have to believe in things like Santa Claus or the Toot Fairy, but will go along with it if you insist. He isn't sure how normal households are run and will hesitantly accept it because wants them to have a normal childhood. But that doesn't stop him from worrying about 'lying to them' or 'shattering their illusions.' I'm sure you guys will come to something 🙂

That's all for now! Let me know if you guys want a part 2

[thiskryptonite]

If you click HERE you’ll find 28 gifs of the superior brother (fight me) Nick Jonas from his role in Love Again. He is white but reportedly has Cherokee ancestry, though I don’t know if this has ever been confirmed or not. Please keep this in mind and cast him accordingly. All gifs were made by me and are 268 x 160. You are welcome to resize these/edit for personal use, but do not redistribute or claim them as your own. Content warning: kissing and a slutty little tank top+gold chain combo

Happy RP’ing!

[rosenfey]

Hello!

I am in awe of your edits and gifs !!! :0

I wanted to try making my own, but I have no idea where to start tbh - do you have any pointers or advice for a good tutorial? Or what programs you use?

I am especially interested in making gifs for bg3, aha.

Hi there, first of all thank you so much! I'd be happy to help, so I made a little tutorial that basically depicts my process. Full disclosure, this is the way I make gifs, so it may differ from how other creators make them. :3 I use Photoshop CC 2018, but the process should be similar in different versions as well.

Things to keep in mind:

gif sizes: when making gifs you should make sure their size is no larger than 10 MB (as of currently), since otherwise tumblr will not be able to post them. the best way to lower gif size is to lower the amount of included frames. you can simply delete them in the Timeline window.

gif dimensions: to avoid tumblr resizing your gifs and turning them into a blurry mess, keep their width 540px when posted one above other, or 268px if you want to post two gifs side by side. the height doesn't matter as long as you keep the width as mentioned above

psds and recolors: I use extensive recoloring on my gifs which includes filters like color balance, selective color, gradient fill, hue/saturation, curves and more. many creators offer their own psds as a free download so you can use them for your gifs but these will usually require some manual adjustments as your giffed scenes could have a different lighting situation going on. this tutorial is focused more on the actual "making" of a gif, but I would be happy to make another one that would be more about the actual coloring I make :3

With that being said, let's go! Read on for the full tutorial.

First, you need to know how to actually make a gif. For recording purposes, I use the GeForce experience app since I have an Nvidia GPU, but there are many other programs online that you can use to record footage of your games. Basically, we want to make a short video that we will then turn into a gif in PS.

Once you have a suitable footage, open up PS and go to File → Import → Video Frames to Layers...

You will see a window like this. It's possible your recorded footage would be longer than the accepted file size of a gif, so you should choose which parts of the video you want to include (you can see them as two little arrows under my video here). Once everything is in order, hit OK.

Now it's time to resize the gif, I usually use 540x250 for my scenery gifsets, but as I said, it's the width that matters. Since I am planning to post this gif on its own, I chose 540.

Now it's editing time for me, but you can choose to do this after you sharpen the gif, which will be depicted later. I love pastel pink colors so I used selective color / color balance here to make it more pink, and several levels / curves layers to up the brightness more and make it look more pastel and "washed out", but this all comes down to personal preference naturally!

Sharpening a gif is optional, but it makes it look much more crisp, so I highly recommend it! First, you want to go to your Timeline (if missing, you can re-enable it through Window → Timeline), click the menu icon, and Select all Frames. Now we need to do the same for our layers (you can do this by selecting the first layer, holding shift down and clicking the very last layer).

After you have both your Layers and Frames selected, go back to Timeline, click the menu button again and choose Conver to Video Timeline.

Now go to Filters → Convert to Smart Filters. You can ignore the pop-up message or choose to click the prompt to never display it again. After that go back to Filter → Sharpen → Smart Sharpen.

You can see the settings I use here. Hit OK and ur done!

Now we want to save the gif. Go to Export → Save for Web (Legacy). In earlier versions of PS it might be simply listed as Save for Web. It may take the gif a few seconds to load, depending on the size. In the pop-up window, make sure your looping options are set to Forever.

And with that you are done! If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask me. :3

Unsharpened version:

And sharpened:

[triplesnet]

a gifmaking tutorial would actually be super appreciated :)

Okay, this is gonna get long and it might not be great but I will do my best to make it understandable.

Put under a read more cause we're not forcing anyone to look at all this.

We're gonna make this gif:

First of all you'll need 3 software programs downloaded.

4k downloader (to download videos)

Gomplayer (to get the frames from the videos)

Photoshop (I pay for it but there are other ways)

Some things to keep in mind

better quality video = better quality gifs

if you want videos in 4k you have to download them in MKV format as MP4s can't be 4k.

gifs can only contain 256 colours so gifs with a lot of different colours might get grainy.

if you use low quality videos or upscaled videos they sometimes have duplicate frames which will make the animations look weird, but you can easily remove those extra frames.

tumblr only accepts gifs under 10mb in size so all gifs have to be less than that (photos less than 20mb)

you can put up to 30 gifs/images in one post

ok here we go

Step 1: Download video

Step 2: Get the frames from the video

You will play the video using Gomplayer

Find the part you want to GIF

Press CTRL + G to bring up this menu

I haven't experimented much with there setting but you'll want to choose the place you want your frames to end up so you can find them later

4. Have the Capture all frames box checked (unless it's 60fps then do 0.03). You can capture up to 999 frames in one go.

5. Press "burst capture" and it will start getting the frames (video has to be playing) it will look like this.

6. Great you have your frames.

Step 3. Making a GIF

Open Photoshop

Load Files Into Stack

This will open the folders on your computer so navigate to where you put your frames and select the frames you want by clicking on the first and holding shift while clicking on the last.

3. Wait for PS to load the frames

4. Once it's all loaded the first thing you'll do is crop it. Press 'C' on your keyboard. There are a couple presets you can use or you can 'clear' that and crop however you wish.

I always crop out at least a little of the top and bottom cause there can be dark lines there.

5. Resize: for optimal quality on tumblr there are three sizes to keep in mind.

For sets like this with 3 gifs next to each other the width should be 177p, height does not matter.

For sets like this with 2 gifs next to each other the width should be 268p

And for a set like we're doing today with just 1 gif it's 540p

You'll want to memorise these numbers for future use.

177p, 268p or 540p will be the width of your gifs.

To open the resize menu you press CTRL + ALT + i

Change the width to in this case 540p (p as in pixels)

It will auto match the height to keep the same proportions.

Click OK and wait until it's done.

6. Make sure you have the 'timeline' window up at the bottom of your photoshop

7. Click 'create frame animation' (button might say video timeline but change that by pressing that little arrow next to it)

8. Press the button with three lines in the top right of the 'timeline' window and press 'make frames from layers'

9. The frames will have loaded in in reverse order so open the same menu and click 'reverse frames'

Step 4. Blurring the logo/text (optional)

Since we have a logo in there I will want to blur it but you might not have one or you don't care if there's a logo or text in your gifs.

First we have to make the gif into a smart object.

Select all layers by pressing CTRL + ALT + A

Convert into a 'video timeline' by pressing the button in the bottom left of the timeline window

3. Right click on your layers and click on 'convert to smart object'

4. Press Z to switch to the zoom and zoom in on your logo/text.

5. Press L to switch to the lasso tool and select your logo/text

there should now be a line where you selected.

6. Open 'Gaussian Blur'

7. Click OK

Now we have to get our GIF back to the frame timeline.

8. Click 'flatten frame into clips' using the timeline menu

9. Press 'delete' once to remove the smart object

10. Convert back to frame animation

11. Make frames from layers

No need to reverse this time. But now your logo/text is blurred, as long as it doesn't move but that's a topic for another day.

Step 5: Sharpening

If you didn't have something to blur let's go over smart objects again.

Select all layers by pressing CTRL + ALT + A

Convert into a 'video timeline' by pressing the button in the bottom left of the timeline window

3. Right click on your layers and click on 'convert to smart object'

5. Camera Raw Filter (Optional)

I use this for base editing of colours and the overall clearness of GIFs, it's not made for that tho it sometimes gets buggy. Works best on photos.

Press CTRL + SHIFT + A to open this.

It's best to do as little as possible in here as it can bug out.

I mostly mess with the effects, light and detail settings in here, don't touch the sharpening though cause we will use smart sharpen for that.

6. Smart Shapening

Most people have a sharpening action they use, including me. But you can also do it manually. You can find my actions in here.

To do it manually and make your own settings. This is how you open smart sharpen.

If you use my sharpening action remember it can be a bit much sometimes, in that case hide the second layer

Use an action or mess around to find a sharpening setting that looks good on your gif, usually don't need much.

Now we have to get our GIF back to the frame timeline.

7. Click 'flatten frame into clips' using the timeline menu (I'm low on images to use check the blur section for images)

It might take a minute since it has to process the new settings.

8. Press 'delete' once to remove the smart object

9. Convert back to frame animation

10. Make frames from layers

11. Select all your frames to set the framerate

You can click on any frame for this. Click 'other' and set it to 0,06.

12. Press CTRL + SHIFT + ALT + S to open 'Save for Web'

these are my save settings.

Click save and name and place it wherever you want it saved.

Congrats you've made a gif.

Step 6: Colouring

Now we have a problem cause there's already 30 images in this post.

For colouring I have a psd I use and adjust to the individual set. It's in my google drive you can find it here along with my actions.

If you're making several gifs from one video you'll want to adjust to the first and then copy that over to keep things matching.

We can go more in depth on this but that would have to be a different post since I can't put more images in this one.

Step 7: Watermark (optional)

A lot of GIF makers have watermarks these days as there's a lot of people who repost GIFs without credit. Make your own so people know the GIFs are yours even when posted elsewhere.

Step 8: Post

Post your hard work on your tumblr, use a bunch of tags so people have a higher chance of seeing it.

I hope this post was understandable and clear, let me know if you have any questions and if you want a proper colouring post.