#ringworm

Okay so like. I just. Urgh.

One thing that's really interesting about ringworm is the contradiction between them. Jane Prentiss is, of course, all about organic matter and obsession. Nikola Orsinov is all flippant, plastic, and performance. They are completely opposite in many ways.

So why ship them? What do they have in common?

Well, for one, the loss of humanity. The beauty in monstrosity. That is a shared theme.

But also, their differences make for SUCH an interesting dynamic.

I mean, think about it. Jane Prentiss, obsessive to the point of consuming others, so raw and organic, is of course one to fall DEEPLY in love. The YEARNING with this one. Beautiful

Contrastingly, Nikola Orsinov is playful and enjoys a show, but almost shallow in ways, she has no interest in something as *organic* as love. But, well, she loves a good source of entertainment, and as a performer, what better than an adoring fan?

And of course, Jane is so INTERESTING really, a fascinating creature who is so certain of her nonhumanity while still being so human in her behaviors. Intriguing, really, and those worms ARE quite cute, and of course she can't deny a fan of her work.

For Jane, Nikola is lovable for a couple of reasons. It's said (or at least implied, I cannot recall) that Nikola wears people's faces. That sounds like a lot of very consumable flesh for her worms. Getting to freshly consume her lover again and again and again... truly what better fate is there? What better love? What better way to show her beloved how wonderful she is than to consume her again each day?

Of course, Nikola being plastic and only in it for the entertainment and attention adds a whole new layer. She can never fully be consumed in the way Jane desires, physically or emotionally. But Jane keeps getting tastes of it, each time getting to consume new flesh, getting a smidge of attention and praise, only to be left far more consumed than her lover will ever be. She's always left wanting more. And more. And more. Never truly satisfied, but obsessed. Maybe her worms try to gnaw at Nikola's plastic, never succeeding, but maybe over many years there begin to be a few gnawed-in dents, evidence of her love, even if it'a not consumption in the way she desires. Maybe she tries to win over Nikola's heart, to be more to her than just a fun plaything.

But she will never succeed. And really, in the end, they are both happiest this way. Nikola gets an endlessly adoring fan and source of entertainment, who she need only give the slightest affection to be fawned over, and Jane gets a lover she can endlessly consume.

anyways I drew them again