Sometimes I look at this gremlin

and I'm like

"How. How do people find you endearing?? You're just a pest."

Finally managed to sketch Aryll for my BotW AU.

Let’s hope my style stays consistent enough for the icons now.

{closed plotted starter for @stoplickingthingsweird​ as Lil Turles} {icon art by @feujenny​ // @saiyanandproud​}

“Nion?” Dr. Kantalo softly called out the name of the female scientist she was looking for while slowly entering the chamber where elite warriors were growing in nursing pods. She’s been looking for Nion for awhile now, and was hoping that one of the voices she was hearing in this room belonged to her. 

Soon enough, the Xenobiologist found out that Nion was indeed here, but she wasn’t happy with what she saw. She was speaking in hushed but harsh tone with a low-class Saiyan boy. A familiar looking low-class Saiyan boy. It’s been some time since she assisted Nion in her genetic experiment with him, and his skin has darkened compared to how it was when she last saw him, but the unique way the spikes of his hair formed into what looked like horns made this boy stand out from other similar-looking low level Saiyans to Dr. Kantalo’s eyes. It had to be Turles. Not wanting to interrupt them, she quietly stood by and observed with a look of concern and discomfort.  

Little RP-related vent (not aimed at anyone I follow on this blog, so no worries mutuals, it's fine, you're good).

I try to be as precise as I can when I write. I may not have the best aesthetics, but I keep my writing clean, readable and all. I keep my muse's page up-to-date, with all the information needed. When setting up a thread, I make sure it's clear to my mutual where it's set, when, why and all, and I always do my best to leave my part of the story with an opening the mutual can latch onto to keep the writing going. Whenever there's something I am unsure with, I make sure to politely reach to the other person to make sure I didn't misunderstand anything, or to explain and work out any perplexity.

And then. Then there's people with overcomplicated aesthethics, talking about their muse at lenght, in the smallest, most insignificant detail (which is great, don't get me wrong), but when it's their turn to pay attention to the mutual's muse? They completely go over it. I give them a 'bait' for their reply, with my character asking them something, they leave me with nothing in theirs, no curiosity towards my muse, nothing they can interact on. I prepare a setting, it gets ignored, and when I clarify it they reply "ok lol it's ok I probably wasn't pay attention to what I wrote". Excuse me?! You're writing with another person. You must pay attention to what you write!

I'm all for being proud of one's own muse: it's great, and when the passion comes through, it can easily look inviting and drag other people in, to interact and write together. But seriously, in a RP community, a muse is nothing without interactions to work on it and develop it, to bring out its potential. Just gushing about it with no access to them feels empty to people who are there to write with you. Role-playing is a mutual action. And when all the care, respect and attention I try to pour in it is unreciprocated, it gets easily disappointing and no wonder I feel like dropping a thread on the spot.

Sorry, again, it was just a moment of venting. Maybe it's because I feel particularly inspired to write these days. Anyways, you people here are good, so don't worry, and thanks for all the fun you offer me.

So, I found this article on an Italian website for DB fans about Nappa's lack of hair.

Let me state ahead that my favourite headcanon about Nappa's hair is that he got it ripped by Raditz and Vegeta when they were little gremlins, after he found himself having to raise them because their planet was destroyed.

However, this is an interesting read, so I thought of sharing it here (translated for yours truly):

If the tail is the pivotal element of Saiyan iconography, the raven hair with which Toriyama has characterized them since their first appearance in Dragon Ball takes on an equally important significance. It is precisely this foundational canon of the warrior race that a character like Nappa came to break, by the will of the same mangaka.

[...] at the beginning of Z, which is the context historically limited to Nappa's action, the members of the warrior species were still at a stage of deep immaturity. Moreover, Toriyama, precisely to indicate the acquisition of evolutionary processes, both of Vegeta and the rest of his counterparts, has associated with the removal of this (fundamental) iconographic element the path of maturation of the heroes, since the tail represented the link to the hidden weaknesses of their spirit. However, among all the members of the race, the only "immature" Saiyan (precisely because he possesses the tail) who was not characterized by the same scalp that acts as a signal for the warriors' evolutions, can be identified in the figure of Nappa: a decidedly singular phenomenon, on which the author has shed light in not too remote times.

In a 2008 interview that resurfaced online these days, indeed, Toriyama discussed this peculiarity of the Saiyan, arguing that Nappa was not born bald, but that the absence of hair was a sign of the warrior's determination, who deliberately shaved himself, in order to affirm, in more or less grotesque terms, the moral integrity that distinguishes him. After all, Nappa, from the moment he was introduced into the narrative - but also the moment we consider his historical background - has always played the role of a subordinate, as if he could not move away from the shadow of a potentially unreachable warrior like Vegeta. And despite the Saiyan belonged, like the prince, to the elite warrior class, it is true that every move, action, or perhaps even thought, was aimed at meeting the needs of his "commander", almost as if the Saiyan could not express, in the presence of his companion/mentor, his own subjectivity.

Thus, to be able to distinguish himself from Vegeta and the rest of his counterparts, Nappa decided to deliberately "break" an unwritten rule of the manga: the only tool, in his eyes - and those of Toriyama - that allowed the warrior to set a boundary between himself and the remaining members of the race he belongs to. And it is not a coincidence[...] that the battle he gives life to against the Namekian [Piccolo] is charged, in this sense, with a symbolic value as well: as it triggers the "educational" path of the opponent (who absorbs Nappa's deadly beam to protect Gohan) almost to demonstrate the singularity of a character who is certainly "collateral" and peripheral; but still worthy of being collectively recognized as a true Saiyan.

Yo everyone! Sorry for the absence, I was pretty busy between a trip overseas, Christmas vacations and personal projects. I’ll get back to replies, thank you for your patience!

Hey everypeeps,

Apologies for going a bit silent. I have tons of IRL complicated stuff to figure out (housing, travelling etc) and it kinda drains my mental energies. This being said, please know that I will still reply to threads I have started! I am just less casually around these days. :P

So yeah -- Not dead! Hit me up if you need, I’ll reply!

Because of a stupid friend who wanted to hang out with me and omitted that he had symptoms, I gotta self-isolate again. Fingers crossed it’ll be ok as we were in the open air and both wearing masks, but still... It’s exhausting. 

Anyways, any distractions are welcome over these days, so feel even more free to hit me up if you wish.

Sorry for the lack of activity everyone. Fever is back, I feel very tired, and cough is getting a bit heavy. I am doing my best to relax so I can heal quickly. Still alive!

So, I finally healed. 

It’s been a pretty tough month, locked in my room during self-isolation with symptoms (not too bad, but annoying) and worries of all sort (very bad, very annoying), hence my silence here. I took a break because I really was in no mental state to catch up with RP or anything else, it was quite emotionally draining.

Now I still have some leftover consequences, such as getting tired very easily, but overall I’m fine and negative and I got rid of that frigging virus, which is the most important part.

Thanks to everyone who reached out over these days to send nice words <3 I will slowly get back in the gears!

Me: I shouldn't think so much about making a storyboard. It takes a lot of time, I am distracted enough already and I don't even know where to start from.

Also me: *thinks very hard about making a storyboard*

‘Sup people.

Apologies for the long hiatus. I had to go through a second self-isolation during the month of July (nothing health-related, just bureaucratic reasons) and I enjoyed some sea during August. The prolonged isolation of the second quarantine really made my mood (and creativity) drop, hence the silence. I am back, although inspiration needs to charge a bit, so I can’t foresee how active I’ll be around here -- but I’ll do my best!

Sometimes I find myself realising that while Mariko descends from Goku, she has the same bratty attitude of kid Trunks.

Hmmm.

I don’t think Mariko has many clothes. And the ones she has, I believe they are pretty... Bland? She doesn’t have a defined look, as she never went shopping on her own. She just has a few things she finds comfortable and practical. But if asked about her style... She wouldn’t be able to answer that!

I just wanted to thank everyone who’s out there keeping up with their threads with me over these days. It’s helping a lot during quite an intense time here, with the whole pandemia situation. This post might be quite intense too. I am aware many of you had enough about the whole coronavirus thing, so I’ll put the rest under ‘keep reading’ to avoid any trigger.

The coronavirus situation has taken a toll on me, and I am not proud of it. I thought I was braver and stronger, and instead I had a massive breakdown over the last 10 days. I cried of guilt, because my parents were locked down in Italy, both over 60 and alone, and I couldn’t be there with them, for them. I cried of fear, because where I was, the government was -- and still is -- heavily underestimating the situation. I cried of frustration, because my flatmate kept hanging around in pubs, restaurants, increasing the chances of contagion, and on top of that she wouldn’t allow me to stock some food. I am not talking about stock-piling here, I’m talking of allowing me the space to have a bag of frozen vegetables in the freezer, or to keep some long-life milk in the cupboard. She hoards most of the space in the house, and is completely unwilling to share it evenly. She knows it’s unfair, but she honestly does not care.

I wasn’t eating nor sleeping properly out of anxiety. I was crying all day, every day, from when I woke up to when I went to sleep. All those who know me would confirm it’s not normal -- I cry really rarely. Many people told me I wouldn’t have lasted long and properly in an emergency situation like this. A friend of mine, who is a psychologist too, said I was having what is defined as “acute stress disorder” and it wouldn’t have gotten better if I had stayed there. So, three days ago, I talked to my boss, explained the situation, asked if I was allowed to work from Italy in the next weeks -- months. My boss agreed, and I tool a flight back home for the next day. Hilariously my flatmate, who kept saying she was not worried about the virus, did the same one day after me.

It was surreal when I landed. The airport was empty, only 3 planes out. We had to queue as soon as we walked in and distance each other of a metre. There were vigilants with full green suits, masks and glasses checking out temperature  with a laser thermometre. Every passenger was wearing a mask and they asked us to lower them at the passport check. Everyone was shouting to keep distances, to go back to our houses as soon as we left the airport. When I met my dad at the exit he had a mask too. He didn't come to hug me like he usually does -- he couldn't, it was a safety measure. I bursted into tears when I read it in his eyes.

Now I am at home, self-isolating in my room for 14 days (this is day 3) despite my family insisting there is no need to -- but I’m not taking any further risk. I only speak to my parents through my door, they leave me food on a tray in the corridor and I take it, eat it, and put it back there for them to take it away. I only leave the room to use the bathroom -- a separate one from the one my parents use. I check and register my temperature three times a day: morning, late afternoon, and evening. I’m doing all I can to monitor myself and keep myself at distance. Once 14 days have passed, if I turn out to be fine, I’ll start going out groceries shopping for my family, so they don’t have to risk any exposure.

I am slightly better, but still not “well”. I think it’s impossible to be “well” over these days of panic. I still have some anxiety attacks, I am still torn by guilt. I believe I have been a selfish coward, that I have let down my Country and everyone else with this choice. It does not matter how many friends remind me that I had my solid reasons to do what I did -- anxiety doesn’t leave me. Not even if I tell myself that I probably wouldn’t have been “well” regardless of my choice -- leaving or staying would have equally wrecked my mind. But I always liked to believe I would have acted like a hero in dire situations, when clearly, it wasn’t like that. So, probably, I let myself down before everyone else.

For those of you living where the situation hasn’t fully hit yet, be strong. Whatever is your choice, your possibility on social-isolation, take all the precautions you can. Keep distance if possible -- at least two arms distance, use gloves if you touch money for your job, wash your hands. You don’t need hand sanitizer if you have soap and warm water. Be clean, be aware, but don’t stock-pile. Leave enough for the others, for those who truly need more, be it because they are a big family, or because they need to avoid crowded places at all costs due to a weak health. Stay home as much as you can -- I know the nice season makes it a real struggle, but if you don’t feed the virus chances to infect more people, it won’t spread. 

I know I am probably the last person here who has the right to give such recommendations, but I have seen far too many people -- in Italy and abroad -- ignoring all of this, failing to protect others, as well as themselves. But maybe because I feel like I also failed, I recommend all of this even more strongly.

Hopefully, it’ll be over in the next months. Hopefully they’ll find a cure soon. Until then, be careful, and try to not feed yourself to anxiety and panic like I did. Try to keep yourself distracted, try new hobbies, train your skills. 

I might not feel like a hero at the moment, but all of you who spend a bit of their time helping others (like me) to keep their mind uplifted, who take measures to protect each other, who are kind enough to not stock-pile goods because you think of the next person after you in the queue, you are a little bit heroes too.  

Sorry for the emotional spam.

Ok now XKit won’t make me cut threads.

Wtf tumblr.