Sleeping Beauty (part 2)

The tale continues…

It’s late in the day when Jun finished sitting at his father’s bedside and was shooed out of the room by his other father.  Disinterested in dinner, he instead wandered the castle, surprised at how much he recalled from his early childhood. In all, not much has changed aside from a new tapestry or suit of armor or display of valuable artwork  or piece of furniture. The castle servants and guards waved and bowed whenever he ran across them, barely able to suppress their smiles at seeing their prince in the hallways once more.

Climbing a tower he remembered quite well because it housed one of his playrooms at the top, Jun passes through layers of dirt, dust, and cobwebs not found anywhere else in the castle.  One of the maids had mentioned before he’d walked through the door downstairs that it was no longer used, so they didn’t bother cleaning it more than once a year or so. She offered to round up a few other servants and some cleaning supplies to make it presentable, but he’d waved her off, promising it would be fine and he didn’t mind getting a little dirty.

Sleeping Beauty (Part 1)

Last year for Valentine’s Day I wrote stories from my characters to their significant others and this year I decided to write one again.  Coming on the heels of Christmas, this essentially means that I spent 3.5 straight months writing and drawing gift art, but the outcomes forth both holidays was worth it.  VDay 2019’s story is a retelling of a classic fairytale with my characters and Nezumi’s playing all the roles.  Due to length, I’ve split the post into two parts.

 

Angel Hunt and Streifen present:

Sleeping Beauty

[a retelling]

ooO~~~*OO*~~~Ooo

[Professor Sowerby sits by a large stone fireplace in the Castlekeep, a thick, leatherbound book with gilded edges open on his lap.  Snow flies in the night outside the cased window, and frost rims the glass panes in swooping swirls of white. Sprawled on a bed before the wizened dragon professor are Mitten, Ikiri, Captain Sassy Pants, and Lock.  Wrapped in an array of blankets, the children wait intently for the Professor, but the elder dragon doesn’t move.]

Ikiri: Professor?

Mitten: Hello?  Story?

Sassy:  [flings the blankets aside and scrambles up to her knees, peering at the Professor] He’s… asleep!

Ikiri:  Professor! Sir! [He reaches out toward the dragon.]

Professor Sowerby:  [startles awake]  Yes, yes, where were we?  Right: And they all lived happily ever after.

Mitten:  But you didn’t even start the story!

Professor Sowerby:  Well of course not, child.  I was just checking to make sure you were paying attention.  [Mitten frowns, but gathers up his plush star toy and hugs it to his chest.]  Yes, now… This story is a time-honored tale of the realms.  A story told and retold through the ages, but diminished nonetheless.  

Sassy: Is there treasure?

Mitten:  Sword fights?  Flying bears? Dragons?  No, better yet, stars? Are there oceans of stars?  

Sassy: Aren’t you a Dragon?  Why would you want to hear stories about them?

Mitten: Because Dragons are awesome! [Sticks out his tongue, and Sassy sticks her out right back at him.]

Ikiri:  Are there sorcerers?  Gods? Fey creatures?

Professor Sowerby:  Let us hear the story and we shall see what happens.  [He resettles the book on his lap and prepares to begin the story.]

Lock: Emilies?

Professor Sowerby: [turns his ancient gaze on the youngest child]  No.  There are absolutely no Emilies allowed in any stories.

Sassy, Mitten, and Ikiri:  Oooooohhhhhh…

Professor Sowerby:  But this story does have many things, so let us begin…

Monster (The Other Side)

From the 2018 Christmas collection…

The 5:15 p.m. express train rumbles along the elevated track just outside the fourth floor of the empty building on the edge of the city’s west side.  The rhythmic clatter of the wheels shake glass panes in their casings before it’s passed, speeding away toward the Styrsfordshire Hill station. The building is just one of many in such close proximity to the track, the general opinion of developers twenty years back holding that as these were commercial and not residential structures, whether the trains passed by twenty times a day or not had no bearing.  Of course, even if they planned to occupy these buildings, their offices would have been on the topmost floors, not down here amongst the worker bees, so what did it matter if one could reach out and touch the tracks?

The figure seated at the large room’s only table cares very little for how close the building sits to the train or the greed of those who wrung every square inch of space from this neighborhood.  The passing trains are something to be noted distractedly and then disregarded immediately, irrelevant to the purpose for occupying a building that’s currently in between tenants. Still, evidenced by the wide table that was likely once used for conferences and is now used for something wholly different, and the cot set up nearby, this building provides what is needed to the only one currently within its walls.

A (Not So) Silent Walk in the Woods

From the 2018 Christmas Collection..

What If? (Wedding Edition)

From the 2018 Christmas collection…

Angel Hunt | Streifen – Alternate Universe Unrelated

They say a wedding day is a joyous occasion, a joining of families to create one where there once was two.  It’s a celebration of love and all the romantic emotions that come with it. A day where a sacred vow is made, spoken before those one holds dear, a promise to cherish and honor the new spouse for the rest of days.  It’s a party on grand scale, with champagne and dancing and toasts aplenty. The day marks transition, passing from the shelter of family and childhood and creating something new, yet still descended from the old. Tradition is richly laid on, special rituals and words reserved for this unique event.  A wedding is elegant and polished, lux and dignified, ornate and exquisite.

Out of all those things a wedding could–and many argue should–be, that last bit is the only thing this one got right.

A Chance Meeting

From the 2018 Christmas collection…

Eden | Alternate Pathways

Rain falls in a steady drizzle just beyond the stone pillars of the breezeway, the slate tiled roof overhead connecting the east and west wings of the manor house.  A cool, stiff breeze gusts through the open area every so often, tugging at the small, bright new leaves on the trees and long hair and uniform livery of the solitary figure alike, a reminder that the spring is new and barely begun.  The straw broom wicks over the stone flooring, the dirt neatly collecting in a pile to the servant’s left, each motion made with a precision that belies the fabric that wraps around the man’s eyes. Not truly blind, but simply light sensitive, the blindfold is necessary, yet it’s also a convenient way to ensure that he’s generally dismissed by the other inhabitants of the manor, servant and noble alike.

Which of course is exactly in line with his plans.

Monthly Art Challenge : June

I’ve recently jumped in on a monthly art challenge.  One of my goals this year was to produce more art, so I’m excited to be part of a challenge that will ensure I produce at least one piece of art a month.  It may not be colored, but it will at least be inked.

There’s no set list of themes, but every month, one of those of us on the challenge pick a new theme.  June’s theme was “Oh Pepe,” and I chose Arch for the first idea that came to my mind, which of course was a rather famous Pepe: Pepe le Pew.  Who else but my shapeshifter to rock a cute skunk look?

HP AU Sketch Project

Right around New Year’s I began working on a project to draw several of Nezumi’s and my characters in the Hogwarts houses they would have been sorted into if they were in a Harry Potter AU story.  It took me until this month to finish because I’m a slow artist and because I drew lots of sketches that ended up getting tossed out for various reasons.  Eventually, however, I had to stop being so hypercritical of my artwork and go with what I had, otherwise the project would never get finished.  Most of the sketches I like quite a bit and am happy with, but with any project, there are some I don’t like quite as much.  Overall I’m really pleased with this project and am happy that I managed to stick with it until completion.

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Gryffindor

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Arch

Valentine’s Day Collection (part two)

Wrapping up the mini story collection from Valentine’s Day are stories from Sashi to Lan and Hyx and Vale to Nexus.

Valentine’s Day Collection (part one)

This year instead of normal valentines, I wrote a mini short story collection from my boys to their significant others.  These first two stories are from Arch to Roin and Zeph to Jun.