Paul Rovia Appreciation Week

Belated contribution to Paul Rovia Appreciation Week 2019 by @drcloyd + @abigailht + @fullm3tal-bucky from Walker Stalker Cruise 2019 — featuring Tom Payne 🥰 @paulroviappreciationweek

So I wanted to start by thanking everyone who participated and promoted the first Paul Rovia Appreciation Week. If I’m honest, I didn’t expect such a good turnout to this. At the time that I planned this, he’d just died, and everyone was kind of down. But you all brought huge meaning to “he’s ours now.” All the works we received during this week were amazing and for that, I wanted to thank you from the bottom of my heart and let you know what Paul Rovia Appreciation Week 2020 will happen. Don’t stop creating! You’re all amazing!

I can’t wait to see what next year will bring us. 

Please note as long as you post your works under the “Paul Rovia Appreciation Week 2019,” your posts will still be reblogged until the end of March 2019, so any late submissions are welcome. Even if you haven’t posted yet, you’ll still be added to the 2019 Contributors list as long as it’s posted by the March 31st deadline. If I missed reblogging your post, please notify me ASAP through private messages with a link to your post!

I decided to post this just because one it’s a fixed it and two it shows the sibling relationship between these two. Just like the other one it was a quick one so sorry if its horrid. side note: I don’t have siblings and this is from seeing interactions of friends with siblings.

This is still ongoing. Hard to believe it started out as just a one-off (now Chapter One) I`ve been posting a chapter a day ever since and haven`t missed one day. There will be 112 chapters in all. Sorry about it for being so long, but that`s the story I wanted to tell.

(Link below)

FEB 24th - APPRECIATION

DAY #7 OF PAUL ROVIA APPRECIATION WEEK 2019

I honestly wasn’t sure what to put for this moment. What does appreciating Paul Rovia look like? Giving him a storyline and relationships is 90% of the AUs I’m trying out, so…I guess appreciating what good things we saw in the show is important.

And one of my favorite moments is from Paul’s first episode in season 7, comforting Maggie and standing up to Gregory and generally showing his colors as someone that cared more about others - their care and comfort - than himself. Paul Rovia was completely and utterly selfless.

So, here’s to the last day of Paul Rovia Appreciation Week. It’s definitely not the last time I’ll be sending love and appreciation his way but I hope the Paul “Jesus” Rovia fandom has enjoyed and continues to grow into a legacy for Paul and who he becomes because of fans.

#HE’S OURS NOW

FIXING THE EPISODE

EVERYTHING  CAN  CHANGE  IN  THE  FLASH  OF  A  SECOND. A  swing  of  an  arm  and  then  NOTHING.  The  darkness  overtakes  him  and  he  can  hear  voices  calling  out  for  him.  Vaguely  hear  the  distinct  guttural  scream  that  sounds  like  Aaron.  Then  everything  is  DARK.  There  are  no  memories  of  the  pain  from  his  chest  that  will  consume  him  later.  No  recollection  of  hitting  the  dirt.  

When  he  comes  to  it’s  from  the  searing  pain  of  the  pressure  being  placed  against  his  shoulder and chest. It  radiates  through  him  and  instantly  knows  he  is  injured  but  the  pain  is  so  great  he  can’t  place  the  origin  of  it.  His  screams  ring  out   as  he  tries  to  wiggle  away  from  whatever  is  causing it.  There’s  a  breathless  “I’m  sorry, Paul, I’m  sorry,”  said  by  the  man  he’s  grown  so  fond  of  which  makes  him  stop.   Now  he’s  afraid.  Afraid  for  them both  because  he’s  not  sure  what  happened  or  how  this  will  play  out. A  hand  grips  fabric  of  the  sleeve  in  front  of  him  and  tearful  eyes  gaze  up.  “I  don’t  want  to  die,  Aaron.”   but  he’s  not  long  before  losing  consciousness  again.

Blue  eyes  shoot  open  once  more  when  the  pain  comes  back.  Paul  quickly  realizes  that  Aaron  keeps  pressing  his  wound  to  make  sure  he  stays  away.  This  time  he’s  in  more  of  a  panic  and  he  realizes  he’s  still  under  the  cover  of  night.  Aaron  is  there,  and  Paul can  hear  his  voice  but  it’s  muffled  and  his vision  is  failing  him, which  only  makes  the  fear  worsen.  The  tears  begin  to  fall  and  he  can  only  mutter  a  ‘I  don’t  want  to  die,”  once more in  a  breathless, raspy, and desperate tone  before  the  lights  go  out  on  him  again.

He’s  tired.  So  tired  and  it  takes  everything  in  him  to  not  let  it  overtake  him.  Aaron  is  there  urging  him  to  stay  awake  but  his  will  is  gone.  His  grip  on  the  fabric  of  Aaron’s  sleeve  loosens  and  everything  goes  dark  just  as  soon  as   it’s  mentioned  that  they  are  arriving  at  Hilltop.

This  time  when  he  awakes,  time  has  stood  still.  No  clear  passage  of  time  can  be  made  upon  opening  those  blue  eyes  of  his.  Only  that  he’s  calmer  than  he  was  before.  The  familiar  smell  of  the  Hilltop  infirmary  is  what  keeps  from  panicking.  An  ache  sends  courses  shock waves  through  his  body  from  his  shoulder.  What  he  recalls  doesn’t  make  sense ,  but  he’s  alive  and  that  is  all  that  truly  matters.  

Voices  are  mumbling   not  far  from  him  as  he  slowly  begins  to  blink.  The  light  of  the  room  burns  his  eyes  so  he  keeps  them  shut  only  opening  them  slightly  and  gradually.  The  voice  are  those  he recognizes, but  they  are  frustrated  and  panicked. They  recount  the  moment  they  arrived  at  Hilltop  just  beyond  the  gates.  His  heart  stopped.  For  how  long?  

Chest  heaves  up  and  down  slowly  as  he  takes  in  what  they  have  said.  At  one  point  he  DIED.  But  yet  he’s still  here.  The  more  he  listens  the  more  he  realizes  how.  Aaron  began  CPR  on  him  the  minute  he  stopped  breathing.  After  so  long  the rest  of  those  around  him  began  pleading  with  him  to  let   Paul  go.  That  he  was  just  GONE. Not  Aaron.  He  never  gave  up and  their  tale  is  of  him  screaming  back  at  them  about  how  they  are HOME and  how  Siddiq  can  SAVE  him.  

At  one  point  they  tried  to pry  him  from  Paul’s  body  but  he  actually  began  swinging  at  them  all  while  still  yelling.  His  family.  All to  save  HIM.  Recalling  the  screaming  from  the  moment  it  all  began  to  finding  out  to  what  lengths  Aaron  went  through  to  save  his  life. It  all  is  just  an  overwhelming  set  of  circumstances  that  he’s  not  sure  how  to  handle  or  grasp. Either  way  he’s  grateful more  than  he  can  ever  possibly  express.  He’s  alive  all  thanks  to  Aaron.

Now  though  as  time  passes.  His  arm  has  limited  mobility  that  he’s  been  informed  of  as  a  stab  wound.  Paul  is  luckily  to  be  alive  for  whatever  its  worth. There’s  always  a  dull  pain  and  he’s  trying  to  work  it  out  through  therapy,  but  he’s  not  sure  he’ll  ever  be  the  same.  What  bothers  him  most  is  being  basically  on  house  arrest.  He’s  annoyed  and  cranky  at  having  to  stay  within  the  walls  of  Hilltop  but  he  knows  its  necessary  to  continue  the  process  of  healing.  

Uh so I wrote this in, like, an hour this morning and I think it’s not really good but with a small bit of encouragement I decide I’d post it as I NEVER post anything I write. If this is horrid I’m sorry.

FEB 23rd - FUTURE

DAY #6 OF PAUL ROVIA APPRECIATION WEEK 2019

HOLY CRAP I MANAGED TO GET THIS OUT TODAY.

I’ve been editing. this. too. damn. long. -_-

Also, @neekanoo, you did this. All your fucking fault and I love you.

This turned out a little more Daryl-centric than I originally planned? But that’s what you get when you’re trying to find a voice where everything’s underdeveloped! Still, this is my happy ending AU for Paul, inspired by this post and it’s perfect, heart wrenching truth that Paul Rovia deserved a happy life with family and a home and a place to put his goddamn books, okay?

I have many feelings on this subject and this little comic contains only a portion of them.

Forgive the shitty quality of this. My inking pens have dried out and I have to order another set, therefore the pens I was working with were some shitty permanent markers and boy, does it show.

Anywho.

I apologize for the lateness and hope everyone has a great couple of days left in the week of Paul Rovia Appreciation!

FEB 22nd - PRIDE

DAY #5 OF PAUL ROVIA APPRECIATION WEEK 2019

I drew Paul Rovia fighting Beta in the scene he fucking died because f*ck you.

This…was a hard one to pin down and make myself draw. Not because it was about Pride - I’ve already done a picture of Jesus and Daryl in Pridewear (inserting promo of old, even crappier art here: http://bringmecoffeeandroses.tumblr.com/post/180703241047/more-comic-pieces-coming-together-on-the-plus) - but because I don’t want to talk about about a lot of negative stuff this week and gay rights/representation and The Walking Dead don’t really mesh well. In fact, I’d say talking about Paul Rovia and gay rights is automatically bringing up a flaw in representation. The thing is…that’s a big deal in terms of what Paul’s sexuality means to me personally.

I’ll go ahead and FYI it up here: I’m a queer woman, not a gay man. I in no way want to make a joke or fetish of gay men - that’s never my intent nor do I speak in a way that encourages others to do so. (I hope?) But being LGBTQIIA+ is a commonality that often leads to three things: never being cast as a lead, rarely being noticed, and dying at a ratio that leaves quite a few of us going, “Is this real life?…Literally?”

So, at a time where there were two lesbian and gay couples on this show and this guy showed up?

I was f*cking exhilarated, man.

See, i knew him. Or, rather, I knew who he was supposed to be: that was Paul Monroe. That was Jesus. He was the ninja-kicking badass from Hilltop that Rick sends on reconnaissance missions and throws back grenades and hands Negan’s ass to him. And, what a f*cking bonus, he was gay. Paul had already been in a relationship with Alex - who, will wonders never cease - is still alive to this day, though not terribly relevant and he was going to be (I honestly don’t remember how close this was back then?) in a relationship with comic!Aaron. This character was a signal that great things were ahead and, more importantly to me, a gay character was going to be spotlighted and do incredible things while being gay.

I may have had my hopes up.  

Needless to say, when season 8 had ended and not only where both halves of those two couples were dead, TV!Paul had none of these epic comic scenes, and was so quietly LGBT+ that there are still people that have no idea he was even gay…I was pretty disappointed.

Nevermind that the Whisperer TV storyline was likely coming and Paul Monroe was a feature, if not key player in those proceedings. Nevermind that dying was more likely for him than ever seeing that storyline come to pass. 

Paul Rovia was pretty incredible and meant a lot to me not just in what he was supposed to be but what he was. He was a loyal friend, a great fighter, a compassionate explorer with stories to tell. He had a strength and kindness and the fact that Tom Payne could show these things through rapidly deteriorating writing shows a massive amount of talent (and, oddly enough, an ability to be a good ally to the LGBTQIIA+ community).

I wish I had a happier note to end this on. This is supposed to be a Pride segment, where we talk about Paul and his sexuality being representation for us all. But he died and, for TWD, what does that represent? When you have eight lesbian and gay characters (so far, nothing else to represent, apparently) and all but three of them are dead, mostly underdeveloped, what does that mean? When we’re under represented and killed off at the first sign of development, I guess it’s an understatement to say….nothing good.

I’ll leave you with this: Paul Rovia belongs to us now and I urge you all to create and develop and never forget him in whatever ways you can. His backstory, his future, who he fights and who he loves – it’s ours now. He’s ours now.

And I, for one, ain’t giving him back.

I love you all and hope you have an awesome, Paul Rovia-inspired week.

#HE’S OURS NOW

I’ll be honest, I hate how small my pieces end up on Tumblr because it just crunches up the detail out of my work. Just. so. smallllllll.

So, here’s a larger version of the panels from the last page of my anniversary post in segments. Cause it was really fucking bugging me.

Day 4!