#oc: paw de deux

[thedragonchilde]

A little project I've been working on for ages: all my Cats OCs, with their respective three words, and a pose that reflects their preferred dance style and/or personality.

($25 if you want something like this for yours, hit me up)

[the-cat-at-the-theatre-door]

If you're still taking OC pride rambles, most of my OCs are either queer or undecided (ask about Paw-de-Deux's imaginary polycule, or Aida's "life goals or wife goals" crush on Demeter), but in particular Jabberjam is an eccentric costumer who is both a tom and a queen, thank you very much. They'll gladly enable romance in the tribe, and are very into cuddles, but get hives at the idea of mating themselves. Sex is more fun and performative, at least if you judge by their show which can be described as "if Tugger was a drag persona".

Always! The invitation is never closed.

Jabberjam sounds like an absolutely *blast* of a time - matchmaker extraordinaire, aro-ace spectrum royalty tbh

I am super interested in Paw-de-Deux's "Imaginary polycule" and Aida's crush on Demeter! Those sound super intriguing.

[jelliclekay]

Tell us more about your OCs relationship. Artemis and Lorenzo are cute

They are super cute, I love and think about them so much

I've been thinking about their pas de deux as of late. My hc for the pas de deux is it goes one of two ways, either a young couple in the tribe offer to do it and it's planned, or the Everlasting Cat will draw two cats together and the dance happens on instinct.

The latter is how it goes for Artemis and Lorenzo. Both cats are pining for the other, but for their own reasons, they refuse to confess feelings. Their pas de deux is like a nudge from the Everlasting Cat that they are meant to be together. When the Ball happens and the two realize they are the cats chosen for this moment, their dance is similar to the Platoria one. It's so sweet, hesitant, but also SO passionate.

Every time Lorenzo gets to touch Artemis, it almost feels like a privilege. Like he can't believe he's able to be this close to the cat he's loved for so long, let alone able to touch and hold them in his arms as they do their dance. And Artemis is just thinking the entire time how strong Lorenzo is, how easily he is able to lift them up with his strong paws and how they've dreamed of this moment for SO LONG and it's finally happening and ugh they are so sweet and perfect for each other I adore them

[soh-da-meatball]

Aida & Paw-De-Deux

For the very talented @thedragonchilde!! The moment I saw their wonderful OC's I knew I had to draw them o(*^＠^*)o I picked Aida and Paw-De-Deux because I am a sucker for very cool siblings being and looking very cool hehehe

Thank you so much to @storyweaverofgondor for organizing the Jellicle Community Event!! It was so much fun to create and see everyone's gifts 🥰

[theimpossiblescheme]

Back Among the Cages

I’m back to shed some more love on my Cats OCs, and this time I’ve brought a friend along!  @thedragonchilde (the artist of that beautiful sketch) and I have talked about my Ulysses and her Aida sharing a sort of uncle-niece relationship, so here’s a little glimpse of them!  Trigger warning up front for mentions of animal cruelty--again, nothing explicit, but it is present.  I hope everyone enjoys!

“I can’t believe that—that—joke on felinity would sink so low…”  Even from her corner of the healers’ den, tending the stocks of lavender and catmint for Jenyanydots and Hathor while they were away, Aida could make out Ulysses’ voice.  He sounded tired and exasperated, which wasn’t unusual for him, but there was a note in it this time that concerned her.  A tense, almost angry note.  Who could he be talking about…?

“I can, sadly.”  That was Munkustrap’s voice.  He sounded much the same, but there was a tinge of bitter sadness in his words that made it abundantly clear who he and Ulysses meant. “He’s been… obsessed with the idea of some kind of—of magical heir for some time.  Someone to take over his crime empire.  And if none of his mates will give him one… he’ll find one someplace else.”

“Yeah, but kitten mills?”  That was an unusually disgusted Tugger, but the chill that ran down Aida’s back prevented her from recognizing him right away.  “That’s… on a whole new level for him.”

“He’ll end up killing them before he gets any magic out of them.”  Alonzo this time.  “You know what those places are like, Munk—”

“I know,” Munkustrap snapped wearily, and Aida reached the entrance of the den to see all the toms around him instantly fall silent.  Tugger fluffed his mane in an attempt to save face, and Ulysses fussed with the hem of his vest while their lead Protector regathered his thoughts. “But we’re not letting him get away with this.  From now on, we don’t let any of Macavity’s henchcats out of our sight. If any of you see one, and you get the slightest whiff that they’re heading for the mills, you come and get me, and we will follow them there.  And we will not rest until every kitten there is safe with a new home.  Am I understood?”

“Yes, Munkustrap,” the other three toms chorused.  And Aida suddenly found herself wishing she was standing with them.  Were there new kitten mills in London?  Or was Macavity searching around the same mill she and Paw de Deux had narrowly escaped from?  Had he already… Cat in Heaviside, those poor kittens… already starving and cold and now having to follow the Hidden Paw everywhere he went…

From what felt like a long way away, Munkustrap nodded.  “All right, patrol is dissolved… thank you all.  It… means a great deal.”  Patting Tugger and Alonzo on the shoulders as he passed, he trudged off toward his den, and the remaining three toms shifted their postures.  As she ventured closer, Aida could hear them briefly discussing who was taking what shift on morning patrol before Tugger and Alonzo also turned in for the night, gently joking that their respective mates would miss them. Ulysses waved them off for the night and settled onto the stairs in front of the great tire, taking off his monocle and restlessly polishing it against his shoulder.

It’s okay, Aida… it’s just Ulysses, he likes you, he’ll listen to you…  Dropping the sprig of aloe she was holding, she gathered her courage and walked up to him, waiting for him to notice her where she stood.  “Um… Ulysses?”

The older tom replaced his monocle and blinked owlishly at her for a moment.  “Oh—my dear girl, I thought you were asleep!  It’s far too late for any of you little ones to be up, now let’s be off with you…”  He started to stand and reach toward her paw.

But she wouldn’t be deterred.  “I heard something about kitten mills,” she said as bluntly as she could, even as another chill shot through her fur saying the words out loud.  “And that Macavity’s looking for them… what’s going on?”

Ulysses sighed, shaking his head.  “Alonzo heard it earlier from a source on the street.”  He patted the edge of the step he sat on, and Aida settled next to him at his feet.  “An old sewer tom, of all cats—he’s done a couple of jobs for Macavity, and he likes to keep abreast of the rest of his operations.  Alonzo brought him back to tell the rest of us… it’s ghastly.” He sounded very much like he wanted to say a different, much stronger word, but couldn’t in the presence of a kitten. “Just when I think he can’t sink any lower, he finds a way.”

Aida wanted to answer, to say something halfway intelligent… for a moment she was back there.  Her and Deux, among the cages… among the cold and the creaking metal and the shouting humans and the constant smell of feline waste and wet straw… she wrapped her arms around herself as a new thought clattered into the pit of her stomach like a ball of lead.  “I guess if Skimble hadn’t found us,” she said quietly, “Deux and I could have ended up with Macavity.”

“What do you mean?”

“We were… actually from one of those mills.  I managed to get us out, but we didn’t really have any other… any other place to stay.” In truth, the place had been busted by human police, and she and Deux had scattered during the ensuing chaos. But she liked to believe she had been brave and clever, that she had been a good sister and done everything she could to help her brother without help from anyone before Skimble.  “So we were on the streets for a long time.  And eventually we ended up at the train station, and that’s where Skimble found us.”  That part was completely true, at least.

Above her, Ulysses’ face had softened into a look of quiet horror and pity, and she almost couldn’t look at him… it was too much, what he was feeling and what she was feeling at the same time.  “Oh, my dear… Aida, I’m so sorry.  I had no idea… oh, you poor things…”

“And I kept thinking,” she continued, another sudden thought striking her, “we were the lucky ones. My brother and I got out… but I never found out what happened to all those other kittens.  Did they… did they die there?  Did they escape?  Did they find new homes?  I never knew.”  She swallowed heavily.  “And I thought… if I could have taken someone else with me… if I could have saved someone besides me and Deux…”

“It was never your responsibility, Aida, dear.”  Ulysses’ paw came to rest on her shoulder, and she closed her own paw over it, grateful for its warmth in spite of herself. “You were just a kitten, and you were thinking of yourself and your brother—nobody would have blamed you.”

“Yeah, but I’m… I’m not a little kitten anymore.  I’ll be of age soon, and… I can do something about it, finally—I can actually help cats who need it.  And I know I’m not that much of a fighter, but I still wanna do what I can.”  If you don’t ask now, you never will…  She looked up, forcing herself to make eye contact with the older tom.  “I want to ask if… if I can go with you guys.”

For a moment, he looked completely dumbfounded.  “You want to go back—?”

“I want to help those kittens.”  Saying it out loud felt… good, in a way.  It gave her purpose, made her believe it might work.  And it made sense, after so long taking care of Deux and Jupiter… she could care for these kittens, too.  She was good at that.  “I want to—to pay it forward somehow.  Because if I got out, then they deserve that, too.”

“It’s going to be very dangerous,” Ulysses protested, his voice mild, but his gaze deadly serious. “And even aside from Macavity’s gang, I don’t want you to be reminded of your time in one of those places.”  His grip on her shoulder tightened slightly. “Are you absolutely sure this is what you want?”

“I’m sure.”  Aida nodded firmly, more to reassure herself than Ulysses.  “I’ve actually been thinking about this for a while… if I can be some kind of go-between for you and the mill kittens, I’d be happy to do it.”

“…All right, then.” Still looking a bit unsure, Ulysses withdrew his paw and fluttered it uncertainly against his other palm.  “We’ll—we’ll both talk to Munkustrap in the morning and get his thoughts.  But for right now, please go home and get some sleep… and think on it a little while longer.”

“I really don’t have to think on it,” she replied, a bit of impatience in her voice that she immediately regretted.  She knew that Ulysses was just worried about her, like he worried about everyone, and a part of her was so grateful for that.  But the last thing she needed was to doubt her own resolve.  Not now, not when it was something so important.  “I know what I want to do… but I will.  I promise.”  And she managed a very small smile, one that actually stayed put for longer than she thought it would.

“All right, fair enough,” Ulysses replied, raising a paw in surrender.  “Just… humor me, my dear.  And let me walk and you and Deux home for the night.”  He extended an arm to her, and Aida looped her own around it, both getting to their feet.  She wondered if she shouldn’t feel more scared, as scared as everyone had sounded during the meeting.  Maybe it was just the adrenaline and subsequent relief of finally saying it out loud.  Maybe it would all change in the morning.  But she still refused to change her mind—she had to be strong, for all those kittens she hadn’t even met yet.  For the other Protectors, who would be counting on her… for her family.

I’ll make you guys proud, I promise, she mused, leaning her head on Ulysses’ shoulder as they walked.

[thedragonchilde]

Sometimes you have to be mom.

Just a little sketch of Aida singing to her brother.

[thedragonchilde]

Updated refs for my kiddos, this time with Shucks in the group!

[thedragonchilde]

Some other old sketches I inked and colored:

-Sky (bi aceflux androgyne), Jo (lesbian), and May (pan grayromantic) at Pride

-Glory isn't even pretending anymore that her correspondence with Waver isn't romantic. (Well. Not to herself, anyway. Whether she's told him, or vice versa, is a different story.)

-Deux's milkshake brings all the cats to the yard?

[thedragonchilde]

Shake my hand in character, OC edition!

Aida: *points at herself questioningly, looks between their face and hand a couple times, gingerly brings hand to her face and nuzzles*

Deux: *starts to point to his good ear, notices hand, shakes vigorously with both paws*

Jessy: *grabs hand, tries to take person with her*

Jabber: *high five!!*

Shucks: *why so formal? gestures for a hug*

[thedragonchilde]

So once upon a time I was asked an interesting question about my OCs: what brings each of them to the Jellicle Ball?

The twins are eager to be counted as part of the group, and this seems the most official way; they're also about right to be coming of age. (Aida, ever the storyteller, would one day like to help present the choices, and Deux likes that he's more or less on even ground with any other cat there for a night.)

I was going to say Jessy tags along with a parent, but then I thought, especially if we're comparing the once-a-year timeline to cat lifespans, this could be her official introduction/presentation to the tribe. She's the only one I have an idea for as far as having a song about her, so. I haven't attempted lyrics yet, but the idea would be her appellation as the 'lucky' cat, all the crazy troubles she gets into and gets out of without a scratch.

Jabber just wants to meet Old Deuteronomy. The stories they've heard about him are starting to make them doubt whether he actually exists. They're also involved with the festivities by way of being a costume maker.

I take back the comment about Jessy being the only one with a song concept; I've mentioned Uncle Shucks telling stories about the understanding he had with the other barn pest control, the owls and snakes and the old ratting terrier, and the fights they've had against foxes and vultures. So that's what he's there for, to reminisce to the young'uns and help defend the tribe and maybe do a little hoedown.

On a related note, their performance styles!

Aida specializes in modern dance, though she hasn't ever dared to do it for an audience yet. Her voice is a sweet alto, honed from years of singing stories and lullabies for her brother.

Paw-de-Deux, as his name implies, is mostly a partnered dancer (as he only has hearing in one ear, it's easier for him to dance if he can pick up cues from a partner), with particular fondness for pasodoble and other energetic ballroom dances. Likewise, he's likelier to sing in tandem with someone else rather than solo, which helps him keep his clear tenor at a reasonable volume.

Jessifer Jules is a bouncy plus-size ballerina thank you, and she can even kind of do pointe work! Her bright soprano hasn't quite matched her mother's, but she's getting there.

Jabberjam is pretty eclectic in their style, though they think they're being sexy and that informs the moves. They're a solid alto/tenor belt, but can pull out an achy rockstar falsetto when the mood calls for it.

Shuckleford definitely leans into swing/boogie-woogie, and will gladly lift and throw any partner of any gender. I'm also thisclose to his hypothetical title song involving the tribe line/square dancing at some point, because he's a damn barn cat okay. He's definitely a warm, cheerful baritone.

[thedragonchilde]

So like a year and a half ago I sketched these scenes of my OC Deux socializing, and last night I decided to update them:

Big bear hug from @your-missing-period 's Damus!

Gossiping in sign with @voltsart 's Tolstoy!

Exposing his sister's crush on George :x

[thedragonchilde]

Another round of expression challenges!

-a very flattering angry Kayneth

-Glory is an angel

-Aida and Deux, best siblings

-is my girl Rosana waxing poetic about pretty girls or the hero's journey, vote now on your phones

-Trick Deck has a Plan

-Rider Don Quixote is the coolest

-Jerrie and Teazer in their natural state

-read all about it, Gotham socialite Steven Smith finally loses his shit

-Glory with her natural hair, trying to be sexy

-starstruck Aida

[thedragonchilde]

Introducing a couple of stowaways to the tribe

[thedragonchilde]

I've been tossing some OC work into the tags willy-nilly without giving much info, so thanks to the wave of others' OCs, I'm gonna go ahead and do that so my stuff is less confusing. Click the names for more comprehensive character profiles, and the tags for other posts! :)

Aida; wistful, observant, self-conscious; Turkish Angora; modern dancer; alto. Brought to the tribe by Skimbleshanks after stowing away. Spent her kittenhood raising her brother and now kind of has no clue how to make friends. Secretly has a flair for acting and storytelling, and in fact finds herself more at ease while performing than while trying to socialize normally. Is quite charmed by George.

Paw-de-Deux; clever, easygoing, affectionate; Turkish Angora; ballroom dancer; tenor. Brought to the tribe by Skimbleshanks after stowing away. Deaf in one ear; tends to be loud so he can hear himself. Is quite excited to barrel into socialization and not having to be taken care of by his twin sister all the time. Interested in Plato... and Exotica... and Tantomile... and Alonzo and Cassandra...

Jessifer Jules; daring, inquisitive, optimistic; torbie; ballerina; mezzo/soprano. Daughter of Jennyanydots and Bustopher Jones. Known as "The Lucky Kitten" for her many scrapes that she shouldn't have gotten out of so easily. Is probably giving her mother gray fur. Not super interested in romance for herself yet, but will gladly orchestrate "Parent Trap"-style hookups for others.

Jabberjam; excitable, distractible, messy; generic long-haired moggie; eclectic dancer; alto/tenor belt. Tried to be the tribe's Freddie Mercury and ended up being its Weird Al instead. Wants to go to the ball just to see if Old Deuteronomy actually exists, because the stories told about him don't exactly sound real. I'll be honest here, they're basically a jokey self-insert. (And, being a self-insert, I'm gonna say "actually pretty aro, but looks to Tugger and Mungojerrie as style icons".)

[thedragonchilde]

Backstory reveal time: Aida and Deux came from a kitten mill, escaped when it got busted, and eventually wound up as stowaways on a train in hopes of a new start - and, boy, did Skimbleshanks give them one.

[thedragonchilde]

Oh crap, is this a thing now? I thought it was just some of us screwing around on discord, but I hop on here and it seems to be a thing now. So have Aida, Deux, Jessy and Jabber, cat and human picrew edition. (Cat Jessy is very much "an attempt was made". To an extent, so were the human twins. Cat twins are great though; I'm especially proud of how close I was able to get Aida.)