It was a hot night, with a dry wind you would’ve found irritating on any other night. But, being backed up against an alley wall seemed to successfully take your mind off the weather. Your aggressor was still in the shadows, their mouth and nose covered by a surgical mask. Still, their eyes bore into you, their stare intense enough to make your collision with the brick wall come as a surprise. Your hands go to your jacket’s pocket, reflexively looking for something to fiddle with.
“Where do you think you’re going, baby?” Their voice was muffled, but striking when paired with the night’s silence. You recognized that voice immediately, it matched the one that had been haunting you for months. The one that would drone about their day like you were their lover, despite the fact that you never answered. The one that complained about your closest friends. The one that wished they could ‘kiss you goodnight’ whenever you laid down to sleep. You admirer, your tormentor, your stalker. Your mentor’s voice played over in your head. You were prepared for this.
You inhale, fist closing around the small, silver money clip in your pocket. “Street smarts!”
“What the fuck?” They barely have time to speak before the silver object flies over their shoulder, successfully taking their attention away from you. With all your strength, you kick them in the shin, running away as a string of curses escapes their lips.
I did the being edgy and self-deprecating thing, it gets old. I wanna be soft and lovely and easily impressed. I wanna appreciate all the little things that make me happy the same way I’ve dwelled on every single thing that upsets me.
“Your name’s Libertus. You fight for whoever wants you.”
i am beyond honoured to have been part of @littlefoolery‘s 10th anniversary event as the illustrator for Libertus Rubedo! Alex and Jayd have been creating the most wonderful magic for a full decade now, and I consider myself blessed to be able to witness it, let alone be part of it. (no joke, every time i work with them i feel like i’m fully part of a sports anime about TEAMWORK and SELF-IMPROVEMENT.)
please check out the story this is based on – it is a fantasy adventure/romance inspired by video game summon monsters, serialised for free online; Alex’s words and Jayd’s artworks combine to be an inspiration and an absolute treat. also take the time to explore the rest of the anniversary event gallery, every single illustration in there is better than mine and it will be the best thing you’ll see today.
thank you for 10 little years; here’s to 10 more!
[alt: a digital painting of two figures in a dark, smoky town. a fair man with a mighty cloud of blond hair, a unicorn horn, and a fastidious expression stands nervously next to a much taller, steadfast-looking red-skinned japanese ogre with a club slung over one broad shoulder and a patient look on his face. below them, the ground shatters and two more figures are reflected: the same ogre, now in a more monstrous form and dressed in battle regalia, with an armoured unicorn poised behind him as his steed. the unicorn has the same horn and dramatic froth of blond hair as the fair man from above.]
It really is sad how frequently warning signs of larger problems in kids are not just dismissed but praised and encouraged because they’re convenient. Those people-pleaser kids with no confidence thrive in a really rigid school setting and then the second they get out they’re lost and have no idea what to do, because there is incentive not to build them up and make them more independent. It’s easier not to.
No one knows how to express when they need something or what it is because they’re rewarded for being quiet and convenient as children. It gets ingrained that neglecting yourself makes other people happy.
Some children genuinely do have quieter dispositions but for the most part, kids are noisy. Something I see all the time at work is that noise is indicative of comfort. Often when kids first come here they’re silent, like won’t even cry for days. And then they get used to it and feel more relaxed and they start to talk, and laugh, and get loud. After a while they yell when they play and cry just as loud, and they’re not worried about it.
We treat healthy behavior as an annoyance and encourage fearful coping behaviors and then somehow still wonder why there’s all this dysfunction when it has literally been trained into us and we continue to train it into children.
While trying to take down an evil plot by the Drow kingdom, the players had befriended a good Drow sorceress. While playing around in a tavern, the Bard discovered that she had an obsession with blood that she tried to hide.
Bard: I want to seduce her.
DM: Okay, what do you do?
Bard: I slap my hand on the table, draw my dagger, and do the knife game song.
Fighter: I like where this is going.
DM: Oh no… roll a dexterity check.
Bard: oh please roll low…. YES I GOT AN 8!
DM: You manage to cut all your fingers by the end of the song.
