here comes the muse with a steel chair

Ombre de Lumiére my beloved

Mild TW for panic attack

Participated in this years @sthbigbang !

Did two pieces for @nia-s-randomness fic Escaping eviction

Beta @clonescubed

Fellow artists:

@gummi-suga x

Going back to my roots of drawing portraits. All the Alicialings have been assembled! And Maelle :P

All the portraits are separate under the cut, plus a bonus thing careful spoiler

Happy anniversary to a game that's captivated many of us.

I'm still in the process of figuring digital art out. This moment felt like a perfect thing to redraw. A small milestone i can share with the world, of how far I've come for now. Still learning.

I've had two different people like one of the versions more then the other, so yall get both. The og is under the cut for comparison. It's not a one to one thing but eh creative liberties.

To a game that's been living rent-free in my head. May the next ten years be just as chaotic fun. Cheers

(Separate pics under cut)

It seems spring is fully in season, with the cherry blossoms gently swaying in the breeze. You take a deep breath and close your eyes, letting the gentle rustle of the leaves envelop you. Feeling the wind tousle your hair; it's a nice day. You recline on the bench you're sitting on. It would be so easy to fall asleep, just taking in the moment. Instead, you put on your earphones, start a song, and begin to speak.

"Hey. I don't know if you can hear me. It's uhm it's been a while. I would ask how you've been, but heh we both know the answer to that question. I wanted to say thank you again. I know, I know I keep repeating that, but "a shaky smile", I will say it as often as I can."

You open your eyes to look at the sky, the music drones on, a melancholy track.

"I'm still doing rather well. I try to make the most of this gift you gave me. Are you proud? I hope you are. Well, as promised, I will now tell you aaaaall that happened last year"

And so, you begin. You talk and talk for hours, enjoying the good weather as you lose yourself in memories. Before you even know it, you have said all you wanted. Now, you sit in companionable silence. Music still going, as you share this moment with yourself.

The sky begins to streak orange from the setting sun. "Seems like I need to get going. Just wait, the next time we meet up, I will tell you even more."

You lift your right hand and point to the sky, "until we meet again!"

And if for just a moment you feel a presence recline against your back…well that is just for you to know.

….I can't wait….

A Smile isn't just an expression of happiness. It is also a mask, a weapon to wield when hiding how you truly feel. A well-placed one can strike terror in the hearts of your enemies. Share warmth, even if you would rather throw up, be a beacon of hope.

The shadows were quickly learning to fear the Smile of the red eyes. Fleeing in terror when noticing it. (The small ones at least, the stronger ones will learn it in time)

Many in school would call her a warm and bubbly presence. A true busybody, seeming to always have a Smile for anyone who needs it. Running around from club to club, helping out wherever she is needed. From the student council to the volleyball team to the sewing club, while somehow still maintaining high grades in her year.

Her friends would call her bright and hardworking, if not a bit mischievous. Showing compassion even to the most questionable individual. She lends you an ear in moments of doubt, provides a strong shoulder to rely on, and supports you all while with a Smile. Still, she isn't afraid to call you out when you're being a dumbass.

Her team would call her a force to be reckoned with, having a Smile on her face all while slaying the most nightmare-inducing manifestations of humanity's unconscious. A great leader, reliable, and getting along with everyone.

"Hey ko-tan, what you got there?" "Oh hi, Junpei!" Kotone looked up from a blue pack of cards she was shuffling. "I got these tarot cards from a friend. He's been teaching me how to do readings, and I thought I could do some fortune-telling for the girls' sleepover this weekend." "Oho! I didn't know you were interested in that kind of stuff!" "Well, there are many things you don't know about me," she winked. "But this mostly came about after getting my Persona and finding out that everything seems to respond to the major arcana. I wanted to do a test reading - wanna watch?" "Yeah, sure, why not." Kotone begins to spread out the cards, two rows with six cards each, the first was death. "So Death isn't literally Death but endings and new beginnings," Kotone explained. The next card was flipped, it was also death. "Uhm, next… Death again, and again, and again," she continued, revealing each to be the same card. "That's… ominous…" "Dude, I think you got pranked," Junpei said. "If I didn't know Theo better, I would agree," Kotone replied. Junpei grabbed the stack. "Are they really all the same? Just the same one??" "Wait, no, there are two different," Kotone said, pulling them out. "The fool and… the world?" "Hm, what is it?" "Well, it looks similar to the world, even down to the number, but there is something off about it," Kotone observed. "Dude, the whole pack is off! So what do they mean?" "Well, the Fool is the first card and means the beginning of a journey, innocence, and a free spirit. The World is the last and represents completion, integration, and accomplishments." Shivering, Junpei said, "You should watch your back, man. That is a lot of bad juju." "I will give it back when I see Theo again. But it does give me a fun idea for a prank. Mind helping a girl out?" "What do you have in mind?" "Okay, so…"

Kotone didn't think about any of this when she confronted the shadow head-on. She was fuelled by nothing but primal rage.

How dare it. 

H o w. D a r e. I t.

Swing

Swing

The naginata descends again and again. Not stopping, for it must pay.

A glimmer of white light in her periphery caught her attention just in time to avoid the shadow's retaliation. Shifting her persona, she answers in kind before jumping back in.

The group had been making steady progress in Tartarus that night. Going at it cautiously, being still only three in number, but more confident than when they had started exploring the first few times. The shadow had completely blindsided them, and before they knew it, Yukari was down for the count.

Red blood oozed from her head. Kotone's eyes clouded over. Her surroundings began to smell like burning flesh.

Red so red like the water under the moon gushing from wounds she couldn't feel her parent's prone figures vacant eyes staring back slowly consumed by fire

It would pay...

It would pay, it would pay, IT WOULD PAY!!

Again and again, don't let up rush it, don't let it near her.

M a k e. S u r e. T h e r e. I s. N o t h i n g. L e f t. O f. I t.

Like an angel of death, she descended on it until the shadow faded into nothingness.