Rewrites and Planning

Whelp, for those of you who don't follow me on DeviantArt (actually, its more like, for the people who accidentally found this blog and you're still reading) my old laptop died. Ah, yes, Butters kicked the bucket...so to speak. The motherboard fried again and well, I haven't decided whether to spend the money to fix it or just leave it as is... Still, Butters (the laptop) has been resurrected before (3 times... my laptop was indeed a zombie) so who knows? Anyway, I have a new laptop... just haven't named it yet. Yes, I am one of those weirdos that feels the need to name important inanimate objects and by important I mean my car, laptop and iPod. Just so you know, I haven't named the toaster or my ceiling fan...that's edging into Megavolt insanity and...well, I'm just not going there.

Anyway, I'm currently rewriting the 3rd part to Crossfire, 4th has actually been coming along much smoother, though since I guess that's where the whole 'Why did Marty leave?' question will be answered. Actually, I'm hoping that the reasoning fits and is believable. I know that I've only done two flashbacks, but hopefully, the nature of LP and Marty's relationship in both those shows through-- the whole they're best friends who are attracted to each other thing... I need to find time to draw up some mini-comics of little Marty and LP. Ah, childhood sweethearts.

Lastly, since I've got all of Crossfire mapped out as well as Waking Up in Vegas and Army of Duckness and DWD/Tangled crossover (and since those three focus more on the Mallards), I figured I should plan out the other stories for Launchpad and Marty. The next one is where Quiverwing Duck would be brought in and technically, focuses on the whole juggling a new relationship as well as work. I also have another story floating around my head that would be a touch more dramatic but would help to explain why Marty runs away from her own wedding three times in a row. The whole Infinite Darkwings arc (and really just that part of it, not the Paddywhack thing...) as well as Darkwarrior kinda inspired me to create another Darkwing, though he'd be extremely dark (I'm giving him the name Deathwing Duck) so I'm not sure how well he'd go over. Anyway, the idea would be to have one universe where like Darkwarrior's, DW's gone into the whole dictatorship type deal. Except, instead of standing idly by, Parker has taken a stand against him. The triplets would be around as well as LP. I haven't worked out all the details just yet, but I do know that Morgana and Gosalyn would have died and Marty too. It's an AU, obviously, but one that I really want to do since I've always been a fan of exploring the multiverse.

Oh and since I've been RPing with Parker and fleshing him out more, I have a story planned out for him called "The Devil Went Down to St. Canard". The boy plays a violin and half his family tree deals with the supernatural ; it was bound to happen... also it doesn't help that rodeo recently passed through and I went to see Zac Brown Band and guess what song they opened with? So yeah, totally have to crank that one out.
 

Another Artsy Post

I probably won't post these to DA until waaaay down the road, but I felt like sharing. Plus I'm like crazy nervous right now! We're having a meeting with the realtor today and hopefully, by the end, we'll have a house!! :D

I blame my aunt and uncle for this (She's about 4 months pregnant right now! :D) But, yeah, had me thinking about how Marty would be a wreck during her pregnancy. 

This was for Crossfire... although, considering that after I sketched this I started sketching out their kids, well...
Anyway, it's from one of the later chapters. It's totally not what you think.

Ducklings! Well, here are the triplets Olive Contessa, Molly Dee and Rebecca Birdie. Olive's and Becky's middle names are from their grandmothers and Molly's is from Drake... I'll explain in the story when they're born. But for now just imagine LP coming out of the delivery room and shouting 'Drake's a girl! Drake's a girl!' 

They grow up so fast. Here are the triplets again and in the same order (totally unintentional by the way). 

Flashback inspired :) 

Another Crossfire illustration for the FOWL party scene. I even added in Feathers in the background. And ignored the cut off part. I have to draw that better.

I gotta finish the background, but I just felt like drawing cupcakes. It was bound to happen. I work in a bakery, after all.

RP-inspired. The first RP I played ending up putting Marty in a tough spot having to choose between Agent Ianto Jones (who belongs to Hellhoundess on DA) and Launchpad. To be honest, Ianto is probably the only OC I can see Marty hooking up with. He's just so charming and adorable.

REED! Summer doesn't get enough love.

The Music- The Negaverse

So, I'm taking a small break from Crossfire (and by small I mean like the couple minutes it'll take for me to write this out, lol) Usually, my breaks consist of hanging out on Villain's Scheme...but not really having much fun there since Shelley's comp went out of commission a couple days ago. I mean, I am having fun playing as QD, but I was really getting into the Zombieland thread we started. I think I might pull Wade, Reed and Marty's profiles off... I'm not sure yet. Eh, then again, I'm just feeling a little insecure because of what happened this week at the bakery. The store was broken into twice; both times, the robber didn't find anything, but he caused a lot of damage since the genius decided to break in through the roof. The second time he busted a pipe in the women's restroom and flooded the store. Good on ya, mate.

Anyway, enough of that! I've been gathering up music and this time for The Negaverse. Well, the happy (or unhappy) citizens, anyway.

1. Pray for You- Jaron and The Long Road to Love: Nega-Morgana

Every time I hear this song, I immediately see Nega-Morgana (or at least, my take on her, anyway) sitting in a church and...well, praying for Negaduck. However, don't let the title fool you. The line that sealed the deal for me was "I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the head like I'd like to."

2. Dog Days Are Over- Florence+The Machine: Nega-Gosalyn

I've been listening to this song for a few days now. At first, I was convinced that it was a happy song...but after really listening to the lyrics, it reminds me of the opening scene from Inglorious Bastards where Shoshanna is running from the Nazi soldiers. Well, I know Nega-Gos doesn't have to worry about Nazis (well, maybe. It's the Negaverse, after all) but I think that this song fits her. "She hid behind corners and hid under beds. She killed it with kisses and from it she fled" and "Leave behind all your love and your loving behind. You can't carry it with you if want to survive" are the lines that really struck me as relating to her.

3. Maneater- Nelly Furtado/ Maneater-Hall and Oates :Nega-Marty

Either song really works for her. She's nothing like her Normalverse counterpart: she's just cold, greedy and calculating. She has no problem using anyone so long as she benefits from it.

4. Lay Me Down-Dirty Heads: Nega-Launchpad and Nega-Marty

It's the whole Bonnie and Clyde story in song form.

That's all I have for specific songs. The rest are most of the tracks off the Zombieland soundtrack and a few Evanescence songs (Lies and Away from Me, specifically). I haven't really found any songs that make me think specifically of Negaduck unless he were placed in some situation. In which case, it's really more for mood than an actual theme. Although, when I write for or draw him, I find that metal or Marylin Manson usually helps. 

Dog Days

I'm hooked on Florence + The Machine today, particularly Dog Days Are Over which has officially been added to my Crossfire soundtrack. Also, I'm not in a great mood, but that song just makes me want to dance...or run in a meadow...or just spin around and around and around...

Anyway, my bad mood was brought on by...well, the fact that I did it again. Every time I think I have a chapter just right and get brave enough to put it up, I go back and read it, then realize it sucks. Okay, maybe not that far with the last chapter I did. To tell the truth, I actually think I did alright. It was suppose to be uncomfortable and tense because Marty and LP haven't seen each other in 12 years and they did not part on good terms (I'd explain, but...nah, I'm not gonna spoil it.) So it wasn't that. I think I cut it off at the wrong spot. I really do. But my goal is to fix it tonight and have it back up by tomorrow...or Friday. Hopefully.

It's just funny, I guess, that I have the entire story mapped out and I know exactly what I want to happen and how it'll end...which I'm actually dreading putting up because what few readers I do have probably won't like it XD And it has nothing to do with pairing them and making it believable because I think it is and a few other people agree. It's getting it in type that's difficult! Plus it's the second chapter and I'm in the middle of wrapping up exposition before getting to the big conflict in the story-FOWL. Those chapters I want to write...actually, three has been fun too...then again, the idea of  LP chasing down Marty's car on a little girl's bike is just amusing to me.

Now, I got to get back to writing and drawing and working in general. The RP I'm currently in sort has me creating the McQuack Triplets teen designs to go along with all the Parker and Trixie fluff I've been doodling, lol. No word on the house yet, but I've got my fingers crossed and I'm getting more hours at work which means bigger paycheck!

Huh, y'know, with all that plus the DW annual being out today, I don't even get why I was in a bad mood anymore.

Life is like a hurricane

...here in Duckburg!

Okay, I'll stop. ('sides, you know you already have the song stuck in your head... You're welcome.) In case you can't tell, I'm feeling pretty peppy and hyper today and that's because I am about 98% done with the second Crossfire chapter! And I managed to do that while working on that damn research paper over Designer babies, too... although, all that research started giving me ideas for a totally different fic...plus I need to see Gattaca now...

Ahem, sorry for that stream of consciousness. Anyway, I'm just making little tweaks here and there to the chapter and should have it up by Wednesday. Lol, I got a bit angsty again at the end (I totally hate when that happens) so I got fix that. And then I'll be ready to start chapter 3. So excited since that's when the real action starts up and everyone's favorite FOWL agents show up. Writing dialog for Steelbeak is gonna be a killer though.

In non-fan related stuff, I think our house hunting days are over! We're in the process of putting an offer down on a cute little house in a really quiet neighborhood and hopefully, if all goes well, we'll be moving soon. Bonus, I'll finally have internet at home again!!

Of Fics, RPGs and Classwork

So I'm six pages into re-writing chapter 2 of Crossfire. Like I mentioned before, this chapter is pretty heavy simply because this is where Marty and LP are reunited and some past conflicts come up. Seriously, I'm debating on whether or not to just lay out what happened plain and simple or if I should hold off until later on when the next very emotionally heavy situation comes up and really let them hash it out then while worry whether Steelbeak or Feathers is going to catch on to the fact that they're undercover. I've gotten a couple of good reviews so far on chapter one, so that really helps. Its like a motivator to finish it faster... really, I'd be sitting on this for a while if I thought I was the only one enjoying it 'cause I could really just go through the story in my head.

As far as RPing goes... well, I actually started doing that last week. Oh, it is so, so much fun! I've had to sort of create a alternate Marty and Parker to play, but it's like crazy having to come up with stuff to keep the story going. Oh and now that I'm RPing as Quiverwing Duck, I love him even more. He was going to show up in another fic of mine, but he just jumped from supporting cast to main. He needs a comic. Really, he does.

Lastly, class. Ugh, class. We're in our final three weeks of class and the pressure is really on. Working on three movie posters for one class, that damned research paper and math homework. It's been a pretty bad term grade wise...

Anyway, had a poll on DA and the movie posters I'll be parodying are:
Back to the Future
Take Me Home Tonight
Zombieland
and I'm gonna toss in Mean Girls... because I had an idea and I'm sticking to it ;)

My Umbrella-ella-ella...

Darn it, Glee! I avoided that show for nearly a year and now I'm addicted to like half the songs.

Sigh. Well, I had to scrap the Valentine's comic. 10 page research papers, logo projects and my several jobs just don't give me enough time to do... anything. Plus, I'm house-hunting and filling out FHA forms and...blech, just so much. But, that doesn't mean I've given up on doing something for Valentines, art-wise. Plus, kinda go hand in hand with gift-art for some people which I'm happy to do. Seriously, I didn't know how great it was to get gift art till last year and now I'm just sort of addicted to drawing it for other people. Probably shouldn't do that so often just 'cause I'll probably never be commissioned again, but oh well.

Aside from that, I posted the first part of Crossfire to both DeviantArt and Fanfiction.Net. I'm working on the second part now, which is also getting the total rewrite treatment, just like the first chapter. So far, I haven't heard much about it, but eh, can't be helped, I guess. I liked writing it, so I guess that's all the matters :)

Feeling Artsy

So, today's a sketch day. I uploaded a few of these to dA, but not all. I really need to find a day to color...

A week or so ago, GreyofPTA and I were having a back and forth about who would beat who in a drinking contest between Marty and his OC Inflatabelle. (Seriously, Belle would slaughter Marty... but she's too stubborn to just give up.)

I have an odd obsession of drawing LP in nice button up shirts and ties...

Concept sketches for a one-shot. Honestly, I think LP would have been like a running back in high school (not really a QB, but maybe).

Just some comic practice and a rough layout for the Valentine's Day comic.

Under Construction

So, I think I mentioned this earlier, but I'm completely revising the first part of Crossfire. The old drafts are still up here if you feel like reading them. After the whole Marty-OC/Canon pairing panic attack, I received a lot of insightful advice from fellow artists and writers on Deviant Art as well as found a really well written characterization entry on the Weblog Chronicles over Launchpad.

In my opinion, the entry over Launchpad said it best. It's like there's two Launchpads-the one from Ducktales and then the one from Darkwing Duck- and one plays a more active role than the other. I think that's why I've had so much difficulty writing for him specifically. My instincts are to write him with a little more brains than he seems to have in the television show, but that won't work. Still, I want him to be more active in the series I'm writing. When I started writing out notes and script ideas, I formatted it in such way that the main cast rotate narrator duty, the main cast being Drake, LP and Gosalyn. I admit the idea is something I picked up from Scrubs, but I thought it would work... until I got to the LP-centric storyline. I had a difficult time writing his dialog and then, having him carry the story by himself seemed to make it worst. Not that I think he couldn't carry a story alone. I simply couldn't figure out how to write it at the time. So I've more or less re-worked that into the fanfictions and comics I'm working on now. I know he's an easy going person, generally accepting, not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, yet I always seem to want to give the big lug a little more depth than is necessary for his character. Oh well, I'll get it one of these days.

Anyhow, other than that, I have sketches to put up here, but they'll probably have to wait till tomorrow. I've been playing around with the idea of doing a quick Valentine's Day comic, but I'm not sure yet. I have a rough idea of what would happen and it only be something like 3 pages, I think...then again, I always go over board so who knows? I do know that it would be called Single Awareness Day, but its not as cynical as the name suggests.

Character Profiles- Ten Things...More or Less

So, this has been going around DeviantArt again. I'll probably post a couple about Sophie, Jane, Anna...eh, actually, I have a couple different OCs. Although, most are simple background characters when it comes to Darkwing Duck, specifically. But they're important to the spin-off I have been working on that focuses on SHUSH and its agents (well, on and off again. Its more like The Office/Scrubs/IT Crowd, but more on that waaay later.Yay for my worst kept secret ever! XD)

**Note- A couple details have changed.

Marty
1. Marty's actual name is Martina McNair, but she goes by Marty McFly professionally. Because of this, anyone who hasn't met her in person thinks she's a man. She actually does this on purpose. Not just because she thinks its hilarious to see everyone's reaction, but also because during her time in basic training, she found her fellow recruits had a tendency to treat her differently since she was a girl.

2. Her all time favorite movie just happens to be Back to the Future...in case, you couldn't tell. When she is recruited to SHUSH as an agent, she spends much of her free time trying to convince Dr. Bellum to redesign her time machine so that instead of a golf cart, it would be a DeLorean.

3. Her mother died while giving birth to her so her father raised her alone. Despite that sad fact, Marty's childhood was actually very happy. If she ever craved or needed a mother figure, she would simply walk down the road to the McQuack's house and steal LP's and Loopy's mother's attention for a few hours.

4. She was a late bloomer. Until she hit fifteen, Launchpad always figured she was boy since she insisted on dressing and acting like one. For that reason, when she gathered up the courage to kiss him on his thirteenth birthday, LP freaked out and had trouble speaking to her for nearly six months.

5. She's a runaway bride. She freaked out during her first try to marry Launchpad and stole Drake's car in order to get away. Launchpad found her five hours after the ceremony at a Waffle House. The second time, she slept through her wedding. The third, Morgana and Drake stood guard outside her room and then dragged her down the aisle.

6. She formally met Darkwing when he had to hire a temporary pilot to replace Launchpad after he actually injured himself in a crash.

7. She loves pulling pranks and sometimes goes to elaborate lengths to pull them off. Launchpad is usually her target.

8. She curses. A lot.

9. She hates taking pictures. If she has to, she will spend as much time as she thinks she needs to look pretty and try out different poses. The only time she doesn't do this is for photobooth pictures since she believes the purpose of those is to make the craziest faces as possible.

10. At one point, she decided she didn't want to be pilot in highschool (this nearly killed her father who had already invested in rebuilding an old bi-plane for her) and tried to be a cheerleader instead. It didn't work out, but she does know a few flips and kicks now. She'll also do the splits at anytime just prove she can.

Parker
1. His full name is Parker Aiden Mallard. The decision to name him this was a compromise between Drake and Monoculo (with some *ahem* not-so-gentle help from Morgana.)

2. He's not very fussy. In fact, he's usually laidback with a few exceptions.

3. The McQuack triplets would be one of those exceptions. When Olive, Molly and Rebecca around, Parker tends to hide in the cupboards, closets and on one occassion, the roof. It isn't that he dislikes them, just that they're overwhelming all at once. He also dislikes the fact that he's constantly surrounded by girls. Launchpad can sympathize.

4. He constantly loses control of his magic and Drake tends to get the most abuse because of it, much like his mother. Unlike his mother, Parker has a tendency to turn his father into different animals rather than pudding and the like.

5. He'd rather be out on patrol with his sister and father than go to school, not because he doesn't like school, but because he's afraid of what the other kids might think of him. He inherited his father's small stature and constantly has to assure people that he's old enough to attend school.

6. On his first day of kindergarten, he accidentally turned his teacher into an emu. His teacher did not appreciate it.

7. His grandfather, Monoculo, is constantly badgering his mother, Morgana to change his name and send him to the Eldritch Academy so that he be taught how to use his magic properly.

8. Parker tends to inadvertantly insult Gizmoduck by comparing him to Darkwing or telling him that he talks funny. Drake is very happy about this, by the way.

9. He knows how to play the violin quite well.

10. He and his negaverse twin have switched spots before. They both realized they liked their respective families better.

11. He actually likes his grandfather Monoculo and enjoys learning magic from him. He doesn't enjoy his father and grandfater constantly bickering, though.

Jane Doppler aka Hurricane Jane
1. Jane was born with the ability to control the weather; however, she is not a witch. Not in the same sense as Morgana, anyway. Both of her parents are completely normal and there was never any record of any of her grandparents or other relations having that ability.

2. She's Canadian.

3. Her super-villain alias was inspired by a song with the same name. When she managed to drag herself out of the bay and back onto land, it was the first thing she heard. At the time, she didn't know where it was coming from and thought she was going insane (which she eventually did, anyway). It turned out some surfers who saw the storm as a perfect opportunity to catch some waves had left their radio on the beach with that song blaring.

4. She considered joining the Fearsome Five at one point. She decided against it, stating "that was just too much testosterone for her and that clingy clown freaked her out".

5. Needless to say, she's not a huge fan of QuackerJack. She has no problem with clowns. She just doesn't want to be around for when he finally snaps.

6. She is not a blonde. She wears a styled Anna Savannah wig with her Hurricane Jane outfit which hides her short, brown hair.

7. She prefers to be alone. At one point, she had entertained the idea of finding "The One" and settling down until the reporter she was dating used the footage of her supposed "death" to secure a position as anchor at the news station they worked at.

8. On occasion, she'll wear headphones when she's committing a crime. This is because she has noticed that it seems to piss off Darkwing when she yanks out an ear bud and asks him to repeat his entrance.

Annabelle Fitzpatrick aka Anna Savannah
1. She is the only daughter of a mob boss simply known as The Judge.

2. Anna became a tween idol when she was only twelve. At the time, she loved it and felt like she was a good role model for the little girls who looked up to her. As she grew older, she realized just how much she hated the lack of privacy and being tugged on by fans and watched from bushes. She's tried to give up her celebrity life several times now.

3. She has several acquaintances, but the only person she refers to as a friend is a boy named Justin who works at a grocery store in her hometown.

4. Her father calls her Ellie rather than Anna or Belle. This is because her mother is also named Annabelle and  also goes by Anna.

5. She dislikes her sleazy manager, a well-groom rooster with a prosthetic beak. (Foreshadowing, ftw!)

6. Several little girls have disappeared at her concerts during her world-wide Farewell Tour.

7. She receives an enormous amount of threatening letters from someone calling themselves 'ND'. At first, she was very frightened of these letter but now thinks its hilarious to send ND signed memorabilia in response to his death threats. As far as she knows, he is not amused.

8. She dislikes the cutesy pop stuff her manager forces her to sing. If she were to continue her singing career, she'd like to do smaller, intimate venues and move away from mainstream music all together.

9. While the media portrays her as a diva, she's very down to Earth having had reality smack her in the face a few times.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Well, I'm sitting in English class right now learning the proper way to write a research paper. In other words, I'm trying to stay awake.

Anyway, in between my notes and assignments (and because my English professor has taken away my sketch book) I decided to try writing again. The following, while not really spoiling anything from Crossfire, is set after that story or would be set after it if I decide to continue with it. I'm not really sure right now since I haven't finished Crossfire. I really need to buckle down and stick to one project at a time rather than jump around. Either way, I wanted to get a better feel for writing Marty in a narrative format instead of script. Same with DW and LP. Hopefully, I'm getting better at it.

I don't even have a titled for this...

Marty yawned and stretched her arms above her head as she leaned back in her desk chair, silently running through an on-going mental To-Do list. A clock hanging above her cubicle slowly ticked away, interrupting her thoughts. She spared a bored glance at the clock before her eyes flicked up to stare at the ceiling. Her handiwork was still hanging from there--several sharp pencils stuck in the miniscule cracks of the tiles--and she allowed herself a small, satisfied grin. No, it wouldn’t hurt anyone. It would hardly annoy anyone. Gryzlikoff had dealt with her for close to six years now and pencils embedded into the ceiling would only elicit a simple eye roll and heavy sigh from the old bear. It made her feel better, though.

“Hey, Marty, a couple of us are heading over to that karaoke bar down on Main and 87^th. Wanna join us?”

Marty blinked, lowering her gaze to the beagle peeking over the cubicle wall on her right. Without hesitation, she replied ‘Sure’ and told him she’d meet the rest of them in the lobby. As the younger agent disappeared, she dropped her feet from the corner of the desk and stood up. Stacking her case files in a neat pile, she pushed them to an empty corner of the desk before turning to retrieve her coat from where it hung on the corner of cubicle wall. The rattling of a fallen picture frame caused her to glance over her shoulder just as a pair of oddly dressed mallards walked past her.

“…LP, this is the last time I’m going to say this. STOP volunteering us to test out Dr. Bellum’s inventions!”

Marty crossed her cubicle, righting the frame carefully. Her gaze lingered on the smiling faces in the faded photograph before she released a quiet sigh. She turned the frame away from her. Her chest tightened under that innocent gaze and as she shut her eyes, she could see a pair of dark eyes filled with confusion and hurt as she whispered goodbye and climbed into the passenger side of her father’s truck.

“Aw, c’mon, DW. It’s not that bad.”

She felt a chill run between her shoulder blades as every muscle in her body tightened. There was a sense of someone standing just a few feet behind her. He—she was assuming—had paused. Maybe he peeked in. Then again, he would have seen her standing there and said something…

“Not that bad? I can’t see a thing! It was bad enough being blind once!”

Or maybe not. She frowned. Not even the right duck..dammit..

“She said it was tempora—Wall!”

“Wha—Oof!”

Her eyes darted to the left, towards the voices, but the two had already passed up her desk. Her shoulders fell and she fought back the frown tugging the corners of her mouth down. She shouldn’t be disappointed.

But she was.

* * * * *

“What were you expecting?”

Marty lifted her eyes briefly to regard the she-duck sitting on the bench across from her. She shrugged. “I don’t know. A simple ‘Hello, Marty. How are you?’ would have sufficed.”

The bar was quiet tonight which was never good for a karaoke bar. Music played in the background, but failed to entice any of the patrons to step on stage and sing along. The occasional clink of glasses being placed on countertops and stools scraping against the bare concrete floor echoed through the room rather than laughter and pleasant conversation. Instead, it seemed that the sparse crowd had taken to hiding in booths, ordering drinks and drowning in self-pity. Or that’s what Marty was doing, at least, as she lifted her half-empty beer bottle to her bill, tilted her head back and gulped down the bitter contents like water.

“It’s not like I was waiting for the guy to rush in, sweep the crap off my desk and--”

“Marty,” her friend scolded. Marty dropped the bottle on the tabletop with an unceremonious clatter.

She blinked. “Summer.”

Summer rolled her eyes and sighed. “Sweetie, you have to stop this. It’s not healthy,” she stated calmly as she reached over and patted Marty’s hand. “Trust me. I’m a doctor. I have seen what these kinds of binges can do to your liver. It’s not pretty.”

Marty’s eyes narrowed and she slipped her hand back and away from Summer. “I’ve only had one,” she muttered.

“Really?” Summer’s eyes drifted to the far end of the table. “Because I counted six over there.”

Marty frowned. “Well, I’ve only had one bottle of this brand in particular,” she replied curtly and lifted her hand, signaling to the bartender to keep the drinks coming.

“No!” Summer grabbed her wrist and yanked her hand back down. “No more, Marty.”

“Y’know, Wade already drank himself into a stupor,” she snapped. “Look at him!”

Both women ducked under the table to see their co-worker curled up and sleeping. Summer exhaled loudly as a mix of disappointment and disgust flitted across her features. She muttered the word “Idiot” breathily and sat up. Marty followed suit, giving the doctor a smug grin and motioning to the bartender. “I win.”

Summer scoffed as she placed her elbow on the table and leaned her chin into her open palm. “Whatever. I’m sure Launchpad digs beer bellies,” she murmured. “That’s just so sexy, y’know.”

Marty’s grin slipped away and she lowered her hand. “Summer, could we just not talk about him anymore?” she asked quietly, staring down at the table top and focusing on the glare from the dim lights hanging around the bar.

“Martina, what exactly is going on with you two?” she asked quietly.

Her eyes flicked up to meet Summer’s gaze. She prayed it was dark enough in the bar that she couldn’t see the tears of frustration threatening to spill down her face. “Nothing. Nothing’s going on,” she replied unevenly, lowering her eyes again. “That’s the problem.”

Summer’s expression softened as she sighed. “Sweetie--” Marty stood up suddenly, stuffing her hands into her pockets as she stalked past the doctor and towards the back of the building. “Where are you going?”

Her eyes drifted over to glance at her friend and shrugged. “It’s a karaoke bar. Where do you think I’m going?”

* * * * *

Stakeouts were usually boring. Before he had met Darkwing Duck, the life of a superhero just seemed like it would always be exciting and fraught with danger. And it was…just not all the time. Launchpad had come to realize that most nights were relatively quiet unless the police scanners in either the Thunderquack or the Ratcatcher picked up something. Even then, most of the crimes reported were simple cases of criminal mischief. At times, they could count on some grand destructive display by one of the less stable criminals in the city. But mostly, nothing happened and that was fine by him. Quiet nights meant they were doing their job right. He released an inaudible sigh as he leaned against the wobbly metal railing of a fire escape. Tonight, he could have used the distraction to keep him awake.

He yawned and leaned forward, pressing his forehead against cold, damp metal. Maybe DW was right. Maybe he was trying to do too much at once and spreading himself thin. True, no one had forced him to sign on as a full time employee of SHUSH, but he figured that way it would be easier for him to continue participating in the I.M. project. Plus, Darkwing really couldn’t stop him from volunteering if he was getting paid to volunteer. Or at least, Launchpad didn’t think he would.

That wasn’t to say he didn’t see the added benefit of working alongside Marty now. Something had changed during those couple of days they had spent together recovering Dr. Bellum’s plans and the flight suit prototype from F.O.W.L. He just wished he knew exactly what had changed. Was she waiting for him to make some sort of grand gesture now? Would that freak her out if he did? A thoughtful frown spread across his bill. The more and more he considered all the things he could do to let her know how he felt, the more and more he wondered if any one of those things would send her running again. He lifted his head slightly as the grate beneath him rattled slightly. A soft thud caused his eyes to dart to the left just as Darkwing stepped out of the shadows.

The shorter drake sighed, mirroring Launchpad’s pose against the rail. “I hate these slow nights.”

“Tell me about it,” the pilot muttered.

At this, Darkwing shot his sidekick a sidelong glance before allowing his eyes to drift forward again. “So,” he began. “Has Agent McFly walked out yet?”

“Nope, she’s still in there…” His words trailed off as his brow shot up in surprise. Then, he winced, bumping his fist against his forehead while he mentally scolded himself. He turned to look at Darkwing, taking in the knowing grin on the masked mallard’s bill. Busted.

“You like her.”

“Tch, no,” Launchpad replied with a weak chuckle. “…Er, maybe. I don’t know.”

Darkwing shook his head. “LP, why don’t you just go down there and ask her out already?” he suggested before adding, “That way I can get back to doing what I do best—defending the city from--”

“Bushroot!”

“Well, if you want to be specific,” DW replied huffily. “Sure, let’s go with Bushroot.”

Launchpad shook his head rapidly, grabbing the shorter duck’s shoulders and twisted him around so that he could see the rooftop of the building beside them. Beyond the concrete barrier that surrounded the rooftop, vines whipped about wildly in a chaotic dance. As they watched, one of the thicker vines shot out towards them and slammed down on the fire escape causing the structure to rock dangerously.

LP clung to the railing, feeling the contents of his stomach lurch upwards with every jerk of the fire escape. He forgot that often the rule ‘Wait an hour after you eat’ applied to patrolling the city as well as swimming especially when half of the nut jobs they encountered had the ability to turn a slow night into a twisted rollercoaster ride in a matter of seconds. He squeezed his eyes shut, listening to the metal screech and squeal, feeling bits of brick and dirt rain down him. Beside him, Darkwing lost his grip on the railing and stumbled backwards, hitting the wall hard before ending up sprawled across the floor on his stomach. With a loud groan, he pushed himself up and swiped the back of his sleeve across the end of bill, wiping away a few stray droplets of blood.

“Is it just me or are these guys getting more and more—ack!—violent?” Launchpad rasped unevenly, tightening his grip.

Darkwing managed to grab the railing again and pulled himself up. He didn’t answer Launchpad’s question. He had no time as another vine barreled towards them and with a great sweeping arc, sending the masked mallard flying over the rail and across the street. At the same moment, Launchpad released the rail, scrambling forward in an effort to grab Darkwing’s cape when the vine swept back and slammed into him. He collided with the unyielding wall, his head snapping back to smack the bricks. Pain shot through his ringing skull, dulling his senses enough that he didn’t feel the vine twist around his ankles until it yanked him forward and up into the air.

* * * * *

Drake could count the number of times he had an out of body experience on one hand. The first happened when he was sixteen and the football team got a bit carried away while dunking his head in a toilet in the boy’s bathroom on the second floor of St. Canard High School. The second, he had been wrestling with Taurus Bulba atop the St. Canard Tower when it exploded. The third he had found himself flying into a brick wall with no helmet.

It was different than having his life flash before his eyes. That happened frequently and it was always the same- flashes of familiar faces and then an eerie, but calming warmth as the memory of the day he adopted Gosalyn entered his mind. It was strange, yet he didn’t seem to mind the idea of dying with what was one of the happiest moments in his adult life so far. But as he flew through the air, Drake was suddenly aware of two things: 1) He could see himself and 2) He was referring to himself as Drake rather than Darkwing.

He winced loudly as he watched his body sail across the street, hit the ground and slide before coming to a stop at the entrance of the bar Launchpad had been staring at earlier. “Ouch,” he hissed before floating down to the limp figure. Judging from the sound of the impact, he already knew it would be a few hours before he’d wake up. He hovered around his body for a moment, taking note of the various bumps and bruises and nicks and cuts before he saw the way his arm was awkwardly bent. He frowned. It was just his luck that he’d be the one flung two hundred feet and end up with his arm broken. Had it been Launchpad, he would have had the same crash landing and would have been on his feet in no time…

Wait. Where was LP?

He whipped around. His eyes tracing over the flight path his body had taken. The fire escape was now leaning against the next building over, bent and smashed much like his arm. Dangling high above it, he could see Launchpad hanging by his ankles high above the street and trying his best to get loose from a monstrous vine, but to no avail. Drake opened his mouth to yell only to remember his vocal chords were useless at that point. No one could hear him. No one could see him. Instead, Drake Mallard could only float helplessly as his sidekick—his best friend—disappeared over the rooftops...

The Music- Morgana and Drake

Well, it's Monday and I figured I'd do another music list. This time, I decided to use my OTP's track list :)

I've always held the firm belief that Morgana and Drake are like Ross and Rachael or Dr.Cox and Jordan. They're just meant to be. You can't separate them (at least, not for me anyway) and I've only really seen one fan character that I think would be a perfect match for DW. Even I started off with a fan character that I thought would be good pairing for Drake and I ended up turning her into just a gal pal (Actually, it worked out way better that way XD).

1. Love at First Sight - Kylie Minogue
2. Every Other Time- LFO
3. Hold Me Now - The Thompson Twins
4. Linger - The Cranberries
5. Stolen - Dashboard Confessional
6. Hot N Cold - Katy Perry
7. Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand
8. Valentino - Diane Birch
9. Sweet Darlin' - She & Him
10. You Make My Dreams- Hall and Oates
11. Borderline - Madonna
12. Crazy for You - Madonna
13. Wicked Game - Chris Issack or Three Days Grace cover
14. I Want You to Want Me - Cheap Trick

I think their staple list is a little shorter than the one I did for Marty and LP. I can say that I tend to associate more music that debuted in the 80's with Morgana and Darkwing whereas Marty and Launchpad its more 90's. And there's plenty of songs from 2000 and forward mixed in there as well.

Don't Panic

Ah, Coldplay. I find it ironic that I'm listening to that song in particular and still panicking. Why?

Uh, only because between  taping my notes back together and chasing my baby sister and brother around the house, this realization (or rather, this fear) struck me : Would Launchpad really fall for a girl like Marty? Do I even do his character any justice in my writing? What the hell am I doing?

I'm about four chapters into Crossfire right now. I was planning on posting the first one today on DeviantArt and FF.Net. But after reading it again last night, there's no way. I mean, I did go back and switch a lot of things and tried to change the tone a bit. The first go round, I know I made him angsty. Instead, I wanted it to be more...the only way I can explain it is that for whatever reason, some random memory is triggered and it just kinda throws you off kilter a little. So I tried to change that.

But then there's his reunion with Marty which is supposed to be this extremely tense and uncomfortable moment. And then I think....would he hold a grudge? Not even a grudge, but the way Marty left the first time basically leaves LP feeling just a little abandoned. I mean, they've known each other since pre-school, best friends and as they got older, they were too afraid to end their friendship so that they could try dating each other. Does it even make sense for him to feel angry when he sees her?

Then there's just Marty in general. I mean, yes, she's pretty and a pilot. She's also a SHUSH agent, can drink most of her co-workers under the table and has a mean right hook. She's low maintenance for the most part, kind of a tomboy...Holy crap, she's Gracie Hart. (No, wait, that's not a bad thing. Actually, Miss Congeniality was a big inspiration in creating Marty.) Still,  would Launchpad fall for someone like that? Or would they just be friends? I mean, I like them as a couple. But I'm biased, of course.

I don't know. As it is, I still think I screw up Morgana and Drake horribly too. In Crossfire, they're more of the comic relief simply because I always felt they played off of each other really well. Then again, the last time I wrote anything with those two, I felt like I had completely butchered both of them too...

Ugh...darn self-doubt :(

Iron Mallard

My first week of class is officially over and things are actually looking up now. Then again, it probably helps that I'm practically on the floor right now. The schedule I'm on is draining me big time. I know it's pretty bad when I'm actually jealous of some of the characters I'm writing about, haha. Last night, I attempted to get back on track with Crossfire since I had no homework and a little time before I completely crashed. What did I end up writing?

A scene in which LP gets to just sleep. A lot more happens than just that, but I decided it was time to get to bed when I started going into detail about pillows and warm blankets, totally mundane and non relevant to the story.

But since I'm on Crossfire and feeling a bit more creative than last week, I wanted to throw out some plot stuff :)

So, in all the summaries I've written pertaining to that story, I don't think I've ever mentioned what the mission was that brought Marty and LP back together. Well, for a while now, I've been toying with the idea of superheroes. That should come to no surprise, though. Before I got back into the DWD fandom, I had created Backdraft and Nova and their various nemesis. When I started thinking of DW again, I had already made up my mind that Gosalyn would become Quiverwing eventually, Parker would take over his father's post as DW when he was old enough (really, its just an implied thing. I don't have any idea if I'd take my AU that far into the future yet.). I have a storyline written down somewhere in which Morgana becomes sort of a Hellboy type figure, in the sense that she's recruited by SHUSH as head of their Paranormal Research and Defense Division.

Well, after watching a couple LP-centric episodes from both Ducktales and DWD (as well as both Iron Man movies...oh, Robert Downey Jr., why must I love everything you appear in?) I had come up with the Iron Mallard project. I knew eventually that sometime during my AU, I was going to have LP take up this alter-ego. I just hadn't figured out how until I started writing Crossfire.

So the Iron Mallard project is basically Sara Bellum's latest attempt at a Nobel with some help from the DIA's head scientist, Gyro Gearloose (hence the reason behind the joined forces of both agencies in the story). It is a flight suit, but unlike the movie/comic, it was built for military use. The way I figured is that the two agencies started the project in secrecy during the time Quackwerks took over. I mean, Gizmoduck is out of commission, Darkwing is lying low. If stuff hit the fan, who was going to take care of it? (Of course, the comic already answered that XD ) Naturally, after a few years of working on it and perfecting it, FOWL swoops in and steals the plans and prototype. And that's where Marty and Launchpad come in.

I know LP's personality isn't even close to Tony Stark's. Actually, I think Darkwing is a bit closer (minus the womanizer bit. They both have huge egos and a knack with gadgets, though.) But Launchpad and a flight suit? C'mon, that is so obvious. Plus, he's shown plenty of times in both shows wanting to be the hero. Water Way to Go's plot banked on that ambition. I also think that just like Tony Stark goes public with his persona, LP would ultimately do the same given some time. Of course, he would have SHUSH to back him up (And hopefully, Drake and he would have both learned their lesson about being listed in the phone book or being obscenely obvious about what is being dropped off at the dry cleaners...XD). I have a few sketches of what the suit is supposed to look like, but for the most part it's very similar to the original Iron Man design. I definitely did not want to go in the same direction as Gizmoduck whom I always considered more of a Robocop parody than Iron Man.

So that's about it for now. Things are slow at work again, so who knows? I might be able to post another character profile or song list today as well :)

The Breakdown

Well, its finally happened. My creative drive has stalled...

Usually, I don't like going into detail about my personal life. I use to type up rants on a daily basis, just horribly worded garbage about how unfair everything was and the various jerks in my life and I only stopped doing that last year when I switched Deviantart accounts. If anyone was coming off as a jerk, it was me and I hated that. So, I started new...but now... ugh, I just need someone to talk to, I guess.

I don't know. Currently, I'm sitting at my desk at work, staring at a blank sheet in my sketchbook and for the first time ever, I'm actually intimidated by it. It doesn't help that I'm actually belittling myself for the artwork I posted on Saturday and even considered taking it down. But that's not me. I don't draw and write for the attention; I do it because I'm passionate about it and because I'm good at it. So why is it bothering me so much that it seems nothing I do is good enough for everyone else?

So there's that. There's also the fact that my school is being difficult and scheduled my classes in such a way that I'm losing out on two whole days of work. I'm basically taking a $320 pay cut and I wasn't earning that much to begin with...

The whole irony in this stressful situation is that my personal stress reliever is art.

Except I can't draw.

And that stresses me out more.

Man, I hope this artistic block goes away soon... I can't stand to be like this. 

Character Profile- Sophia Irwinn

So I'm starting something new...again. I had a friend on Deviantart ask me about the back story on some of my OC's. Well, I get that question quite a bit and since school and work tend to interrupt my ability to write and draw out all their back stories, I figured putting them up here wouldn't hurt :)

(Please note that all the characters, concepts and stories do belong to me. I find out that someone else is running around with any of them, horrible things will happen...)

Any-way...

Name: Sophia Irwinn
Species: Platypus
Age: 16 (at the time of her first real appearance. She makes a brief cameo at age fourteen in Crossfire, but doesn't really get to talk or do anything)
Personality: Out-going, a little snarky, but bubbly, adventurous
Flaws: Argumentative, she enjoys playing Devil's Advocate and will get into heated arguments with Honker about everything, absentminded, tunnel-vision, speaks without thinking
Hobbies: photography
Alliance: Neutral, but leaning more towards good
Background: Sophia Irwinn is the third oldest and only girl in a family of twelve. She has two older brothers and six younger brothers. Her family moved from Brisbane, AU to St. Canard, Calisota when she was ten after her father purchased a Sugar and Spice Bakery (the same one that housed the cake-portal to the Negaverse, actually.) Her parents turn the small bakery into a rather successful sandwich shop within a year. For the first few years of her life in St. Canard, Sophie keeps to herself until she was caught up in the chaos during the Multiple Darkwing Crisis. Rather than run for her life as she should have, she slipped into a empty drug store, grabbed a disposal camera and began snapping pictures. It wasn't until her older brothers saved her from being crushed under Darkwarrior's tank that she stopped. Once the crisis was over and she developed the pictures (and her parents sold a few despite Sophie's protests), she began keeping tabs on superhero and villain sightings and sneaking out at night to take pictures. Her love for photography soon grew past just the action shots and she began studying it intensely throughout middle school and high school, even volunteering to take photos for the yearbook at any and all outside events. She meets Gosalyn during a soccer tournament she's taking pictures at. It isn't until high school that the two become good friends, though (due mostly to having all the same classes and homeroom together). Eventually, Gos and Sophie end up sharing an apartment during their time in college. During that time, Sophie discovers that Gosalyn is Quiverwing Quack (but never does put together that Drake Mallard is Darkwing.) To keep Sophie from flying off the handle and telling everyone her secret, Gosalyn agrees to let the girl tag along on some of her adventures and let her take photos.

The Music- Marty and Launchpad

So, my New Year's sucked. My dad made me cry during my shift at the bakery and so now every time one of our regulars stroll in, they throw me a pitying look and ask me how I am... it's embarrassing. I'd get into the whole story of why my father is antagonizing me, but its so lame. Plus, it's not even for something I did, rather it's because of my sister. Just know, she's 21 (about to be 22) and I am not her keeper.

Anyway, even with all that awkwardness (or maybe because of it) I'm finding myself losing my ability to draw again. Not good. I started last year off the same way, I refuse to kick off 2011 like that. But in the meantime, I figured I would focus my energy on Crossfire and everything that entails. And that led me to thinking about the songs I associate with couples.

So Marty and Launchpad:

Crossfire- Brandon Flowers
Under the Gun - The Killers
Careless Whisper - Tamia -or- Seether (The original George Michaels version works too, but I prefer either one of these covers over it).
It Takes Two- Rob Base and DJ EZ
Strawberry Wine- Deana Carter
Sweet and Wild- Dierks Bentley
Thinking of You - Katy Perry
Warning Sign - Coldplay
Anything You Can Do- Bernadette Peters and Tom Wompat
That Thing You Do - Fountains of Wayne
Johnny and June - Heidi Newfield
Maybe - Ingrid Michaelson
Hollaback Girl vs. Give it to Me- DJ Hero Mix
Complicated - Carolyn Dawn Johnson
The Kiss - Karmina
Lay Me Down- Dirty Heads (Technically, this is only for their Negaverse counterparts. If you listen to the lyrics, the story it tells is exactly how I imagine Nega-LP and Nega-Marty's tale to go...but bloodier.)

This list is bound to grow as I keep writing and drawing these two, but for sure, these are the ones that are permanent fixtures on any playlist I associate with them. They aren't the only couple I have a playlist for, but I'll save that for next time ;)

Oh and artwork today!

Some sketches for a meme I've been trying to complete for a while now. 

A very sketchy design for a huge project (Toon Prom) a fellow artist (Canti550) on Deviant Art is doing.

And last but not least, a commission I've been struggling to fix :[