#attack of the flayer
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Okay, change of plans.
Despite my best laid plans, my intentions to produce that Hellboy comic through October are turning out to be more unrealistic than they were before I moved. Unforeseen circumstances are going to reduce the amount of free time I have in the near future (thanks, Ian), and I straight up overestimated how quickly I’d be able to draw each page. Which happens a lot.
See, there’s kind of a bigger problem here. I routinely find myself getting excited about making a comic project, writing it all out, and then burning out repeatedly as I draw it. For the longest time, I thought that was just what it took to draw that many cool pictures on one page. It wasn’t until I started living with a friend from college that I realized there was a problem. Or, he realized it first. He’s astonishingly good at clocking me through my stubborn bullshit lol. He said that maybe I constantly burn out because I’m using 100% of my artistic capacity 100% of the time. Which sounds ideal on paper. I’m making the very best art that I can. But it’s completely unsustainable because, uh… I’m a human with limits, as I constantly forget. And comics take a lot of stamina.
Because I don’t understand comics. I read comics all the time growing up, but I didn’t draw like them. I learned to draw from making fine art pieces in school. I drew with realism and life drawing as the core of my practice because that’s what my dad had been taught back when he aspired to be an animator at Disney, and that’s what he taught me. The only thing that ever impressed art teachers and classmates was how accurately I could draw a face or a vase or a landscape. So I did that as well as I could.
Now, I should be clear here. Realism absolutely has a place in comics. Some of the most beautiful and intelligent pieces of work I’ve ever read had clear roots in realism. Life drawing is a sensible basis for any kind of representational art, in my opinion. Sequential art that’s just a series of fully-rendered paintings astound and enchant me.
It’s just that I think that level of detail and accuracy just isn’t right for me. Partly because my writing style is also super extra. I have big spiraling ideas that take a lot of time and pages to execute. My writing is actually just now reaching a point where I can whittle it down to reasonable finished scripts that I can draw with (which might be why I never realized this art problem before). And sooner or later, my brain wanders off onto something else. So being stuck with these big projects that are so exhausting to execute leads to a kaleidoscopic labyrinth of “break” projects that are supposed to be easier. They never are. Because my brain doesn’t know how to do “easier”. Like anything, I think “easier” will take practice. Study.
My plan, therefore, is to study an easier style to keep in my toolbox. Something fun and shape-based that lets me lean on the forms of abstraction and simplification that I already use in my current dominant style. Mostly, I’m looking at Scott Campbell (lead art director of Psychonauts 1) right now. And I’m gonna try working with some brushes that won’t leave me agonizing over line weight. If this works, it might give me more time to think about color dynamics, lighting, staging, and expression (since you guys seem to love that so much in TMA Encore; I love it too).
What does this mean for Hellboy and Encore, then? I think the best thing to do for Hellboy is post the pages I finished before I moved and release the remaining script in text form through October. It’s not as good as having the whole thing drawn, but I think having initial pages will at least help readers visualize the rest. (And I’d really like people to be able to experience the whole thing because I feel like it’s some of the best writing I’ve ever done.) Then, starting in November, I want to get Encore wrapped up. This will take the form of a kind of… hybrid media presentation. Encore has no complete script, but I can write a dramatic summary of what happens chapter by chapter, accompanied by drawn panels and sequences of important moments. Like a picture book. That kinda fits the dark academia vibe.
Following that, I’m going to use that Psychonauts fanfic I mentioned months ago as a study tool. I have a whole side blog for that (link), but I might crosspost them here when the time comes. And from there, hopefully, I’ll have a sustainable work ethic and can start on my own original projects. With videos. And patreon!
It’s a big weird shift all of a sudden, I know. This may just be another art blog on tumblr, but it’s important for me to try to be consistent and accountable when I make projects. And if I can’t do that, I at least want to be transparent. (Who knows–talking about this might help someone else who’s struggling, too.) I have kind of a rare opportunity in my life to sit and focus on art right now, and I don’t know when another will come again, if ever. So I want to use the limited time I have to improve and position myself for success (and wellness) going forward.
I hope you understand. But I have a feeling you will. You guys are real nice. :)
Thanks for reading.
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Lou really shows up to pirate islands and chooses to make the worst possible decisions
#neverafter#neverafter spoilers#dimension 20#d20#attack a mind flayer!#spring a trap!#we love to see it#throw away that nat 20 to commit to the bit lmao#counterspelling posts
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If spawn adventurer Astarion met a non Tav Seraphina after the events of BG3 - New Beginnings AU
#new beginnings AU#i imagine tav could be anybody really so seraphina could just be existing as an adventurer instead of being taken by mind flayers#i have my other tav diantha so they could just both be existing but whoever becomes tav is like separate timelines! :D#astarion's ending is his spawn hero/adventurer one so he just ends up meeting seraphina out there!! ;DD#something something he helps her after bandits attack details details they become a duo and start falling for eachother >:D#an excuse to be make the whole 'i love you in every universe'#tav#astarion x tav#tav x astarion#baldurs gate astarion#bg3 astarion#astarion#bg3 tav#bg3 oc#bg3#baldurs gate tav#baldur's gate oc#baldur's gate 3#baldur's gate iii#art#digital art#artists on tumblr#illustration#drawing#my art#fanart#oc#original character#video games#seraphina
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the stobin bathroom scene is literally sacred to me and the scoops troop dynamic is <3 I complain endlessly about how the soviet storyline was implemented but the character side of things is perfect to me...adding in yet another character is so not fun for me bc they are not adding anything particularly interesting usually just sexual tension with Steve and it's usually undermining the dynamics I do care about..ppl should consider adding Eddie to like . j/ncy s3 scenes instead
GODS SAME like... fighting russians under the mall is so incredibly stupid but i love the scoops troop scenes and dynamics SO MUCH. and yeah like whenever people add another character they always want them to get captured with steve and robin (or instead of robin which like i said in my tags.... n o).
like ig there are ways you could add another person if you keep them with erica and dustin (ive done it twice for specific aus that arent published yet) but like not only does it fuck with the stobin dynamic if you have the extra person captured with stobin, but also.... each of them have a door what are you expecting a third person to do?? it makes more sense for if there is a third teen/adult for them to stay and "protect" the kids anyway like you dont need to give them torture trauma too.
its funny bc i really do love the like, actual mall aspects of eddie working at a music store and becoming friends with them/flirting with steve, but i dont need him to then join the scoops troop when the upside down shit comes knocking. i swear people love to use eddie to screw up the stobin dynamic. (another pet peeve is every s3 au where for some reason? robin and eddie are already best friends? and like gang up on steve? like just bc they're queer does not automatically mean they are going to be bffs. its pretty significant to robins character that she also seems to be kind of a loner just like steve.)
and honestly YEAH theres literally three other plotlines going on that you can add characters like eddie or others too? have them get chased and traumatized thru the hospital. have them trying to corral five 14 year olds while they try to capture and then escape a possessed billy hargrove. i think it would be very funny to throw someone in with the jopper group and have them have to fifth wheel jopper and the murray/alexei duos.
hell, make up a hellfire member who has been flayed and that eddie is trying to figure out why theyre acting so weird, and have him follow them to starcourt or st! like some of those people just fucking walked away in the middle of convos during that one scene dfifjgsdigs there are so many fun things people could do to add characters to the group and yall wanna mess with the scoops troop dynamic?
#stobin#scoops troop#platonic stobin#stregoniconiconii#ive added chrissy and barb in scoops troop out of like necessity in aus before bc barb goes thru the vents in the age swap au#but sticks with dustin and erica in when stobin gets captured#and then in cheerleader steve au chrissy is part of scoops troop#but her plot hinges on her being with dustin and erica when they break stobin out lol#its where alll her trauma comes from#conversely in my steve/tommy/carol au carol is a candy striper at the hospital during the flayer attack#and tommy gets essentially kidnapped dustin & steve style by el and max early on in their billy investigation#sorry not to ramble in my own tags but i put wayyy too much thought into my aus to be like how do i get folks involved in s3 WITHOUT FUCKIN#UP STOBIN#asks#fandom wank#i wanna tag this steddie for my organizational purposes but if i put this in the tag someone is gonna be mad at me arent they lol#also sorry if there are a bunch of typos im on my laptop but dont have my contacts in rn
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this is such old news to think about
but I am once again kind of mad that our choices for how do deal with the netherbrain amount to 1) siding with our manipulator-at-large (who secretly wants to dominate the brain for himself and has a unique bad ending), 2) save the gith equivalent of space jesus who wants to kill the brain and revive space colonization once the civil war between his people has ended, 3) side with the emperor but become a mind flayer (or let Karlach become a mind flayer) so that he doesn’t have a chance to use the Netherstones against you, and 4) let Gale go ka-blammy in the game’s most tragic sacrifice twist ever, which could potentially leave Orpheus alive as not a mindflayer if you play your cards right (but can also include having an Orpheus mind flayer, the Emperor still on your side, or you/Karlach as a mind flayer because you made that choice for some other, secret third reason)
like objectively speaking the “morally best” ending is to side with Orpheus and then kill both the Emperor on the brain and honor-kill Orpheus after he’s destroyed the brain, leaving you without your manipulator and leaving the gith empire to figure out a new way to move forward and leaving all your friends tentacle free with their souls intact
but they all kinda suck. I used to wish for a way to convince the Emperor and Orpheus to get along and work together for the Good of All but now idk, maybe it’s more interesting that all your options suck and you’re forced to figure out what is Least Bad for Your Specific Case
#there are inconsistencies in the way the ending handles stuff too#like how Orpheus is about to turn into a mind flayer#or how the emperor just yeets if you attack him or free Orpheus without talking to him#some other stuff#anyways#just thoughts#bg3#baldur's gate 3#bg3 spoilers
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haters want his sopping wet feral kitten found splashing in a puddle hot final girl swag soooooooo bad it's embarrassing at this point tbh
#hiii hehe srry . but it's not my fault that every will scene is worthy of being shared. as if it's my fault tht he's my son boy allowed :/#pausing my work to show you pictures of my boy like parents of newborns insist on doing#idc what anyone says i think it fucks severely every time he touches his neck n makes his eyes super wide n turns around all slow !!!!!!!#like YESSSSSS KING TURN AROUND ALL SLOW N CREEPY N PAUSE FOR DRAMATIC EFFECT WHILE GIVING THE PPL THAT LOVE U#A FUCKING HEART ATTACK BC U WON'T SPIT IT OUT ALREADY 😍🤩😍🤩😍🤩#the way tht he really stood up to Survey the area. ok sir#was u gonna throw hands with the mind flayer or .#mine#will
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This post by @thatgirlwithasquid made me think, if Billy is in pain when the Mind Flayer is in pain... does it go both ways? If Billy is in pain, does the MF feel it?
The scene where Billy’s drinking bleach, I personally think he was trying to kill the thing inside him.
Freedom at any cost, even his own life.
It makes no sense otherwise, for the MF to force him to drink it. Why kill the host when you’re still occupying their body? That just defeats the whole purpose of possessing Billy.
Also:
The creature likes it cold.
via @local-redhead-bookworm: I wonder if a small part of him was like “oh this bastard doesn’t like the heat? Even more reason for me to go to work.”
#some thoughts#billy hargrove#the mind flayer#flayed billy#just saying#the mf never forced will to drink bleach#also can't stop thinking about the fact that billy was alone and that made him the ideal target... no one was going to try and save him#but on the other hand... if Vecna wanted to keep an eye on El then#there were closer options#which again goes back to billy being a victim of circumstance#billy put up a hell of a fight considering he didn't see his attacker AND he had no idea what the hell was going on#he didn't come quietly#he never stopped fighting#'you have my body and im going to make you regret every second of it'#he had enough of being taken control of#the idea of billy still finding a way to get a hold of the wheel and taking the MF for a ride of pain#legend behavior tbh
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the ONE thing that is genuinely insane to me about bg3 is like. okay. in the opening cinematic. mind flayers AND red dragons have a superhero/supervillain fight. OVER THE CITY OF BALDUR'S GATE. either one if those on its own seems incredibly newsworthy. like, people were zapped away on the streets. buildings were destroyed. presumably, this has happened multiple times by the time the game occurs, given the number of people bearing tadpoles/the timeline of the absolute's appearance/assuming astarion was abducted at night and not in the broad daylight of the opening cinematic. AND SOMEHOW IT'S JUST NEVER ADDRESSED FOR THE WHOLE REST OF THE GAME
#bg3 posting#LIKE IS THIS A GOTHAM SITUATION?? DO THEY JUST GET ATTACKED BY ALIENS EVERY 3 WEEKS SO THEY'RE USED TO IT???#WHY IS NO ONE IN BALDUR'S GATE TALKING ABOUT THE MIND FLAYER INVASION.....
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bg3 zarina had her full family but lost all of them to mind flayers before but survived in faerun and then settled in baldur's gate for decades if not a full century and a half, but then got snatched by the same mind flayers and she really felt like it was her fate (as much as she hates that word) to be killed by them but then... she didnt. she survived again. so that's one of the companion quests tav's gonna encounter and i'm thinking about more possibilities.
#❄ ― OUT OF CHARACTER. ╱ fun time’s passing by like river’s flow.#i'd say zarina was in the astral plane when he father passed away so she lived with her mother and brothers for a bit#before mind flayers attacked and her mother told them how to escape from astral plane#so their mother died to let the children escape#she and victor and aleksey traveled together in all different ways to get to faerun but#they got caught but only zarina was abl eot survive and lost her brothers to illithids#so she is about to use those tadpoles but not dive too deeply into them if she can use that power to overwhelm others? sure#but yeah im thinking about THE LORE behind zarina#idk how correct it is because idk dnd lore (and i should ask) but also yolo
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I know I’m like two years late to this, but it’s really interesting rewatching the bg3 cinematics again after playing the early access. I only now noticed there are unconscious/dead illithids in the nautiloid and I wonder if there’s different factions of them at play on that ship. not that I know a single thing about their lore. but I’m about to go on a google search
#bg3#bg3 spoilers#nothing important#I'm also idly wondering why do those absolute novices attack you when you say you're from that crashed ship#since you both seem to be on the side of the mind flayers#hence - different factions. probably. maybe?#we will see ig#those dead illithids may be just there bc the gith are hunting them maybe#but then there doesn't seem to be any physical proof of combat on the ship which is why I don't think it's their work#we'll live and see#I'll also do another playthrough this time trying for the goblin side#bc I think there's a whole bit I didn't get to see in the goblin camp
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so what if the reason the upside down is stuck on nov 6 1983, aka the day will went missing, is because thats when the mind flayer made connection to will
#idk if this makes sense#im rewatching s4 and they are talking about how vecna made psychic connection to the victims#and thats how they ripped open a gate. obv the mind flayer didnt do that because joyce would have noticed a gate in her backyard#but i think thats part of or maybe all of the connection to will. maybe they are connected because the mind flayer was a part of the attack#will byers
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also can I get some second opinions from yall abt the flashback scene with henry and the mind flayer how did yall interpret that
cuz i thought it implied that henry was like. controlling the mind flayer. like hes the true hivemind leader. but im not entirely clear. Showing the scene of billy being like ”we’ve been making a gate” made me think maybe he(Henry) and the mindflayer were just working together? him drawing it as a kid and then it taking that form could maybe be him controlling it to make it look like his drawing but it could also just be him having that psychic connection since an early age and having visions of it like other characters have? idk i would like others’ thoughts on the matter
#Stranger things#stranger things spoilers#my other argument for my thought is that when Henry sees a demogorgon before making contact with the flayer it doesn’t attack him.#Like it’s peaceful
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Millie Bobby Brown and Sadie Sink in "Stranger Things"(2016-) Chapter Seven: The Bite
S3E7
Larry Kline puts on a 4th July Carnival for the residents of Hawkins. During the fireworks, El and her friends are under attack from the Mind Flayer in Hopper's cabin, and El gets wounded in the leg. They escape in Nancy's car. Meanwhile Dustin and Erica drive the drugged Steve and Robin away in a cart, trying to escape the Russian soldiers. They return to the Starcourt Mall and hide in a movie theater showing "Back to the Future". Hopper, Joyce, Murray and Alexei drive to the Carnival to rescue the children. Alexei demonstrates how to destroy the machine opening The Gate.
#stranger things#Chapter Seven: The Bite#S3E7#Millie Bobby Brown#Sadie Sink#4th of July Carnival#Russians#Mind Flayer#bite#infection#attack#supernatural#drama#fantasy#horror#teens#80s#retro#scifi#just watched#tv series#tv show
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Portrait spamming
Recent discovery. If you click on the portraits of the characters like crazy, they will react to it. And the developers had a lot of fun coding these reactions xD
Tav / Dark Urge
normal
- I'm awake! Mostly.
- I'm starting to get a headache.
- Must be the tadpole.
- Quit knocking around in there!
- A thousand needlepricks in my rotten skull.
combat
-Ahhhhhhhh! Okay, I feel better.
- I have an itch in the worst place.
- Is being a mind flayer so bad?
- Just waiting to venture forth here.
- I'm maiming as fast as I can!
stealth
- What's that ticking?
- Is it me? Am I ticking?
- Bomb in my head about to go off. Great.
- Ah, well. I had a good run.
Astarion
normal
- Why do beautiful people taste better? It hardly seems fair on the ugly - they have such wonderful personalities.
- Ugh. Strahd wouldn't put up with this shit.
- More like Drizzt Don't'Urden - no. No that's not funny.
- Villains! Dissemble no more, I admit the deed! Tear up the floor - here, here! It is the beating of his hideous hea- oh, no, that's his brain. Where did I leave that heart?
combat:
- I'm trying to focus on murder.
- *Humming.*
- I shot a svirfneblin in Menzoberranzan just to watch him die.
- I should've been a drow. They have such stylish armour.
stealth
- Shhh. Just think sneaky thoughts.
- Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP.
- Be very, very quiet - I'm hunting idiots.
- I've got a brand new torture chamber, so come and play with me.
Karlach
normal
- NOTE TO ACTOR/DIRECTOR: Blow a raspberry at the player.
- Don't. Poke. The Karlach.
- Who am I?
- My eye!
combat
- Eyes on the prize - we need to win this!
- Not every soldier should've made it out of training.
- Eyes on victory, tummy on dinner.
- I ought to just burn this whole thing down.
stealth
- My back can't take much more of this.
- Not now, I'm being a sneak!
- I'm getting too old for this nonsense.
- I'm not built to crouch.
Gale
normal
- I hope Halaster takes good care of Tara while I'm away.
- Sembian wine; Cormyrian boar; Waterdhavian conversation. It's the little things you miss while on the road.
- Oh, what a tangled Weave we web!
- All the world's my stage and you're just a player in it.
combat
- Just go for the Magic Missile and fire away. Never fails.
- Don't make me go all Edwin Odesseiron on you.
- Get. Out. Of. My. Head.
- I really wish I could cast a Hold spell on you.
stealth
- You made me hide, don't make me come seek you.
- Gods, it's like trying to sleep with a mosquito in the room.
- A little privacy please.
- Stop it - that tickles.
Wyll
normal
- Could do for a brew.
- Where there's a 'Wyll', there's a 'y'.
- Ever get the sense that someone's watching?
- So two halflings walk under a bar...
combat
- Can't hear myself think!
- Wear your scars proudly.
- As my father once told me: 'Can we get on with it?'
- I find moderation is key.
stealth
- Bad time for an itch.
- Could do for a brew.
- So two halflings walk under a bar...
- Shush. No, really. Shush.
Lae'zel
normal
- Must everyone be so exhausting?
- Weapons high. Standards higher.
- Is perfection too much to ask?
- Pride is a virtue.
combat
- I will know my queen!
- There is no right or wrong, only truth.
- What is the point, if not victory?
- You are right to fear me.
stealth
- Hush already.
- There is no wisdom in madness.
- Is perfection too much to ask?
- There is but one way. Vlaakith.
Shadowheart
all modes
- I wonder how I'll feel when I remember everything.
- Strange. I've had more freedom this past while than my whole life...
- Have to keep focused. Can't afford to get attached - to anyone.
- If I succeed, maybe I'll be allowed a pet... ugh, stop being silly.
Halsin / his voice is currently bugged :(
normal
- What I would not give for a chunk of fresh honeycomb...
- Such attention... I never realised I was so popular.
- Are you feeling lonely, perhaps?
- Unwise, perhaps, to poke a bear this much...
сombat
- Battle is afoot - you can poke me once we are safe.
- Perhaps try attacking the enemy?
- Admirable stamina, yet terrible priorities.
- You are insistent, are you not?
stealth
- Most consider it unwise to poke a bear.
- My, you are eager, are you not?
- Please. I am trying to be stealthy.
- Calm yourself. There is plenty of me to go around.
Jaheira
normal
- Oh, calm down. I'm happy to see you too.
- I would poke you back, but I fear that's what you want.
- My, such strong wrists.
- Well you certainly have the 'omnipresent' part down, don't you?
- Please go poke the ranger instead.
combat
- You have my attention - now do something with it.
- What? What do you want!?
- Do you know, I begin to wish they had never brought me back.
- Yes, yes, have your fun. It isn't you they're trying to kill.
stealth
- Dry those sweaty palms and let us try this again, shall we?
- Argh, my knees! Oh. It was a twig.
- Would that I could hide from you, too.
- Careful, or I will take your toy away from you.
Minsc
normal
- ARGH! My EYE, Boo! They went for my EYE!
- Know that if you poke Boo, no higher dimension will keep you safe!
- Heehee. Heeheeheehee.
- Well, Boo? How do you want to do this?
сombat
- Are you perchance a squeaky wheel in need of a kick?
- I am armed! Armoured! And entirely sick of your foolishness.
- I begin to grow annoyed. It is well for you that Boo does not let me learn the bad words!
- Ignore them, Boo. Let them gaze deep into their own abyss, and wonder just what it is they are trying to achieve.
stealth
- A little to the left? But not so hard you make me giggle.
- Boo...? Are you dancing down there, or...?
- Hush! I am surprising Boo for his birthday! He is... uh... eh... how old do hamsters get...?
- I am the night. A pity, then, that it is so bright out.
Minthara
all modes
- You had my attention, now you have my fury.
- Phlar Lolth ssinssrickla.
- Your suffering will be spectacular.
- Stop, or die.
#baldur's gate 3#bg3#astarion#karlach#gale#wyll#lae'zel#shadowheart#halsin#jaheira#minsc#minthara#funny stuff#bg3 datamine
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Getting byler crumbs from the video game. #deprived
#my post#in the mall one where u have to save will the monsters color is purple which is most suceptible to yellows attacks#which is mikes color#also mike asks will if hes ok and is like dont worry will when thr mind flayer comes we’ll be ready#helpppp#im reaching the lamest ive ever been i think
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Magic Hands
Synopsis: Astarion teaches you how to use a dagger in battle. The sweaty training calls for a bath in the nearby river afterward and you can’t help but admire the vampire rogue in the pale moonlight, surrounded by the glistening water surface. He seems… tense. Perhaps you can repay him by giving him a gentle massage?
A/N: Why did this take me so long to write, oh my gods! :D
Words: 2038
Warnings: smut, mentions of sexual trauma
Your battle cry echoed across the entire campsite when you plunged your blade forward. Lae’zel’s makeshift mind flayer dummy was rendered with holes at this point, oozing hey from several rips in the old fabric she had used to craft it.
The impact had you sway to one side and you shifted your weight, your left arm flailing about clumsily.
“Good. Now try that again without losing your balance.”
You grunted, shooting him an angry glance. He had his sleeves rolled up, and his arms crossed before his chest. It was almost distracting. Almost.
You had been at it for hours. Granted, it had been your idea—if you were going to survive this involuntary adventure, you might as well learn how to defend yourself. You were surprised you’d even made it this far. And, since attacking from the shadows was much more your cup of tea than storming headfirst into battle like Wyll or Lae’zel, you’d kindly asked Astarion to help you out.
He was a tough and strict teacher, you had to give him that. But you were making quick progress too. Before today, you hadn’t even been able to hold a dagger properly.
You withdrew your weapon and returned to your original position.
“Ah-ah-ah. No, darling. What did we just learn?” His teasing voice went down like butter. That was even more distracting.
Astarion pointed at your left foot. You shifted in the dirt, creating a grovelling noise.
“There we go. Now try again.”
You did as you were told, lunging at the dummy once more. Astarion tutted at you when you lost your balance yet again.
“Hey, don’t tut me!”
“I see where the problem lies now. Go on. Get back in position.”
Grunting once more, you obeyed. What you were not prepared for, however, was that he would step right behind you and place his hands on your stomach and waist. You sucked in a deep breath, tensing up.
“Keep tension here. You’ll want to make sure that lovely core of yours keeps you on your feet.”
Memories from your night in the woods came flooding back, sending you down a spiral of pleasure and arousal. You cleared your throat.
“Okay. I got it. I think.”
The sensation of loss was nearly overwhelming when he let go again. You could have sworn you saw him smirk from the corner of your eye.
You got into position again, took a deep breath, and… struck.
“Good girl.” You would have dropped the dagger had it not been lodged deeply within the mindflayer dummy. “Again.”
Again. Again and again and again until Astarion was certain you got the hang of it. Your arms were burning by the time he clapped and finally let you off the hook for the day.
“Be honest, you’re enjoying this a little.”
The vampire smirked. “More than just a little, darling.”
Heat crept up your cheeks, forcing you to bite your lower lip. “Whatever. I should get washed.”
“Hmm, so should I.”
You offered him a smile. Making your way toward the lake, you walked past Lae’zel who was sharpening her sword, Karlach who was dancing to a song only audible to her, and Gale practicing little magic tricks. Wyll and Halsin were with Shadowheart, talking and drinking by the fireplace.
You sighed. It could have been peaceful if it wasn’t for the imminent threat of a tadpole turning you all into thralls.
Once you reached the shore, there was no hesitation in your movements. You stripped off your clothes, knowing the bushes would hide you from unwanted eyes. As for Astarion… well… there was nothing he hadn’t seen before.
The vampire followed suit though you did notice that he avoided your gaze as he undressed. You couldn’t help but watch him regardless as he waded into the water until he was submerged hip-deep.
“You look really fine in the moonlight, you know that?” you said, joining him swiftly.
“Of course I do, I’m a vampire, darling.” He swam closer to you, allowing you to wrap your entire body around him. Astarion’s hands found your behind, squeezing gently.
“That’s not what I meant,” you whispered. His lips were cold when you met them with yours, a playful kiss soon turning into a passionate display of affection.
By the time you finally broke apart panting, Astarion rolled his shoulders with a groan.
“Is everything alright? You seem even tenser than me.”
“Oh well, it can’t be helped. Must be the weight of being a hero on my shoulders,” he spat with dismay. Oh yeah… he’d made it clear his interest in saving the refugees was ridiculously small. You had your theories on that… yet there was no way in the hells Astarion was a terrible person but rather… a person terrible things had happened to. The scars on his back spoke for themselves.
“I could help with that if you want,” you said before you could stop yourself.
“Help? How?”
“This is gonna sound silly but I used to work as a massage therapist for a few years, back in Baldur’s Gate, I mean. I have magic hands. I know a lot of techniques to relieve back pain and back tension…” You trailed off, studying his reaction.
“Magic hands?”
Astarion narrowed his eyes at you and somehow, you knew exactly what was going on in his mind. Relieving a different kind of tension at your celebration with the Tieflings was one thing… having someone work his back and stroke every inch of exposed skin with skilled hands, right over the scars that had brought him so much torment… that was another.
“You want to… well… I…”
“If you want to?”
“Well… I suppose…”
You tilted your head. He wanted to accept, you could tell. But was that… concern glistening in his red eyes?
“You know, I’m, uh… I’m not offering this to have sex with you again. I mean… I really, really enjoyed myself, Astarion but… I honestly feel like that’s the reason you’re being wary, isn’t it? Along with me, um… touching your scars.”
His lips parted.
“I just want to help. And only if you’ll let me.”
“Alright… fine.”
You nodded, the tension you didn’t realise had been building up inside of you leaving your body.
“Then come find me in my tent later.”
You left him some privacy after your swim, returning to your makeshift home to find anything you could use as a massage oil. You settled for an ointment in the end, one that Halsin usually used to treat wounds. It would do. You could hardly use a bottle of grease after all.
You were rather certain Astarion waited until the others were asleep on purpose. When he parted the fabric of your makeshift door and crouched down a little to come inside, you patted your bedroll and smiled at him.
His coyness was adorable. While before his heart-breaking confession, every single word that had left his lips was a flirt, he was but a frightened young man now, intimidated by intimacy.
“Lie down, my love. And… Astarion?”
His red eyes met yours as he followed your request and removed his shirt, once again revealing those horrifying scars to you.
“You need to stop me if you’re feeling uncomfortable, alright?”
The vampire spawn smirked. “How could I possibly feel uncomfortable with your skilled hands dancing over my body, pet?”
“You know what I mean.” You grinned, relieved that his smarm was not lost on him.
“Of course.”
“Now lie down on your belly and close your eyes.”
Astarion sighed and did as he was told. You straddled him, trifling some of the oil on your hands and rubbing them together before eventually… placing your palms on his bare back.
Your fingers glided over the ridges of his scars, your thumbs digging into the muscles, looking for any tension. You found it all too quickly, working knot after knot out of his tormented back.
Soon enough, he relaxed. His sigh was so innocent you couldn’t help but lean forward and place a gentle kiss between his shoulder blades.
You pampered him for a while, making sure to massage each and every spot on his back. You did not fail to miss the faint moan when you asked him to turn over so you could work on the rest of his body. Gods, you were enjoying this even more than he was.
Astarion’s gaze was filled with repose and… hunger. And when your eyes travelled further down, your lips parted and you realised why.
He was hard.
“Do you… do you want me to stop?”
“Don’t… you… dare…” he muttered, eyes half-closed still.
You bit your lower lip, oily hands gliding over his chest. It wasn’t just him. You were as wet as the river you’d bathed in just a few hours back and now that you were aware just how much your sensual treatment affected him, the arousal was nearly unbearable.
Breathing heavily, you swallowed and paused.
“How about… I have an idea.”
He sat up a little, propping himself on his elbows. “Oh?”
His sly smirk caught you entirely off guard though you were unsure whether he was merely trying to hide his insecurity behind it. He’d told you he didn’t want you to think of him in terms of sex for now and you would respect that wish. There was no need for you to act on your own excitement even if it drove you insane. But if he let you… you wanted to make him feel good so badly that it almost caused you physical discomfort.
“I could… take care of… that,” you muttered, pointing at the growing bulge in his trousers.
Astarion raised his eyebrows, passion glistening in those red eyes.
“Let me pamper you. No sex. I might as well give you a… full body massage at this point. And if it gets too much, you stop me.”
“We… we could try.” He nodded, lying back down but keeping his eyes wide open as you opened his trousers with gentle movements and pulled his erection free.
Astarion flinched when your oily hand wrapped around his hardening length, fingertips teasing him tenderly.
“Okay?”
He nodded.
“I need you to tell me with words, my love.”
Astarion cleared his throat. “Okay. That feels… nice.”
One thing you realised very quickly was that he had never experienced anything like this before. Someone who wished for nothing more than to bring him pleasure, to make him feel good, without expecting anything in return. To give him back his sensuality where only he and his well-being mattered without his body being sexualised or objectified…
It must have been such a novel concept to him… biting your lower lip, you began to stroke him with firm yet tender touches, your thumb gliding over his slit and rubbing over his tip.
He squirmed, bucking his hips in response with a quiet moan. It was enough of a reaction to urge you on, your movements quickening and adapting to his rapid breathing.
You paused when he uttered your name with a start.
“No… no, don’t stop, my love… don’t you dare stop…”
So you kept going, driving him to the edge with hungry ferocity. Gods, he looked so delicious. So carefree and innocent all because of you…
“I… I… I will…”
Astarion thrust up into your hands, his eyes rolling to the back of his head. Pleasure flushed his entire face, his lips parting. He tensed up, his thighs shaking and his fingers clutching at the soft material of your bedroll. He came all over your hands and knuckles, ropes of seed clear evidence of his release. You helped him ride it out, squeezing every last drop from his pretty cock until he was spent and panting, his body relaxing again bit by bit.
“You look so beautiful when you come undone…” you whispered, wiping your hands on some rags you kept nearby.
He chuckled. “And you do have magic hands. I might have to ask you to do that again soon.”
You smiled, cuddling up to him with a smile. Neither of you bothered to get undressed completely. You were perfectly fine with falling asleep like this.
“Anytime, Astarion. Always.”
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