Captain-Kiryu

So, as some may have noticed, I've been doing some gallery managing/organizing/updating. One of my main goals was making sure things have tags-- another was to implement a more thorough naming system for major projects. It's still a work in progress and will take me a bit since I've got like hundreds of deviations in the FoG folders alone to rename.

So a rough guide:

most deviations belonging to a specific project will have a specific header for the title

ex. FoG: Spring Squill 5/6

My major projects are:

- FoG (Aodh and John's original story)

- FoG Uni AU (Aodh and John's university AU)

- FoG Mermaid AU (Where John is a "mermaid" and Aodh is human)

- FoG Mermaid AU #2 (Where both Aodh and John are sea slugs)

- FoG Dark AU (Some dumb edgy versions of Aodh and John)

- FoG T4T AU (Where John becomes Jane lol)

- FoG BB AU (Bloodborne themed mini project/homage lol)

- Mute Flowers (Sean's story/illustrations)

- IF (Old Characters that were more like imaginary friends back in the day)

- TAJ: (of TAJ or for TAJ probably in one of my TAJ sketchbooks)

Other labels I use for indicating art made for other people

G: (for gifts)

AT: (for art trades)

C: (for commissions)

I have been tagged again by JafanAdis to publish 10 facts about my oc, John O’Connor. Here are the rules:

1. Post the following rules.

2. Post 10 facts about your oc.

3. Tag 3-8 people and be sure to include their avatars and the oc of theirs you want them to use.

Participation is not mandatory. If anyone I tag doesn’t want to do this-- feel free to ignore it.

With all that said, here are my facts on John. [I’m gonna go with the original John from my FOG story

https://www.deviantart.com/captain-kiryu/gallery/76647173/the-friend-of-granuile

I specify because I have several AUs with John] I might also tack on a few extra facts because I love him and like talking about him lol. TW/CW: violence, domestic abuse, addiction, alcoholism, sexual content

1- John lost his mother at a young age and has a poor relationship with his father

Unlike Aodh, John did not grow up in a particularly happy or healthy family home. His father, Bill O’Connor, has always been a controlling, ill-tempered man, with low self-esteem who criticizes others constantly. Bill often drank too much and gambled frequently. He tended to have trouble holding down a job and would take out his frustration on his wife and son. In his best moments Bill is charming and funny and even affectionate. But he’s capricious and his mood changes quickly. John’s mother [who I have yet to name] was soft-spoken and kind and tried hard to please and take care of others. She was a bit plain so she did not get a lot of attention from her parents or peers. So Bill’s somewhat obsessive tendencies made her feel special in the beginning. Even after they were married and he would lose his temper easily and even occasionally hit her, she loved him and wanted to please him.

John’s mother was so happy when he was born. She loved him dearly and doted on him. He takes after her in a lot of ways, personality wise. And he has her coloring. Bill however thought John was too sensitive and weak for a boy. He would berate John for his interests and yell at him when he cried which was a frequent occurrence. John’s mother did her best to shield John from the worst of Bill’s temper and violence. When John was young, he– like his mother– loved his father and tried to be what Bill wanted in a son. John was anxious to please his father and be accepted by him and tried his best to not make him angry.

When John was around 9 years old, his mother fell ill and soon passed away. John was devastated. And mostly left on his own to grieve. Bill mostly ignored John for a long time after his wife died. He grieved her heavily, and his drinking got worse. By the time John meets Aodh, he hardly speaks to his father.

2- John really enjoys spending time with Aodh’s family

Aodh’s family takes a quick liking to John and welcomes him into their home. He finds the warm, bustling family atmosphere overwhelming at first, but he feels happy and safe there.

3- John used to be in the Imperial Guard

When John was 17 years old, he joined the Guard– naively wanting to do good, protect people and “preserve the peace”. He also thought it would be the sort of job his father would be proud of. He thought if he could do well and make good rank that his father would respect him as a man and be proud of him. John did relatively well at his job. He works hard and is eager to please, so he followed orders quite precisely. John struggled to fit in with his fellow guardsmen. Even though he tried to be friendly and helpful, his peers often looked down on him and talked about him behind his back. Before even meeting Aodh, John did start to feel disillusioned with the Guard and how little he felt like he was able to help locals in need.

4- When he was in the Guard, John’s superior officer, Charles, took an interest in him

John admired Charles when he was in the Guard. Charles is stern, but charismatic, intelligent, and decisive. He is a bit like Bill, but more calculating and controlled. And John unconsciously viewed him as a sort of father-substitute. John worked hard to please Charles. Charles enjoyed this. Unbeknownst to John, Charles’s feelings were not like that of a loving father, but were a darker, obsessive desire to possess and control him. Charles was particularly angry about John’s disappearance (when Aodh had kidnapped him) and he wanted his favorite underling back.

5- John’s favorite color is green

He likes most colors. But green is his favorite because it makes him feel calm and reminds him of nature. John liked spending a lot of time outside as a kid and he loved the color, smell, and feel of grass.

6- John is bisexual and had a few romantic relationships before Aodh

Even though John’s peers tend to criticize and look down on him, others tend to find him desirable and attractive. He has had two girlfriends, one when he was 13 yrs old and another when he was 17 yrs old. Both of them confessed to him first and asked him out. His second girlfriend was the first person John ever had sex with. But they broke up when he joined the Guard. When he was in the Guard John was able to make one friend. He was the first close friend John had. So when that friend told John he had feelings for him, John accepted it. They would “fool around” in secret, while this friend also made homophobic jokes around other guardsmen. It made John uncomfortable, but he didn’t want to lose his only friend. After falling for Aodh, when John thought about these past relationships, he wondered if he ever had romantic feelings for them at all or if he just sort of accepted them automatically because he was happy someone wanted to be with him.

He’s also a verse/switch but he tends to default to “topping”/taking the lead because he really enjoys pleasing/pleasuring his partners. He’s very attentive and observant in bed. Before being with Aodh, John struggled somewhat with the vulnerability of not taking the lead– he is somewhat self-conscious of his body and is a little scared that he won’t be able to stop activities he doesn’t want if he’s not in control.

7- John is autistic and ADHD

Like Aodh, John isn’t diagnosed. But he is autistic as well and also ADHD. He’s always been indiscriminately friendly and chatty. To many of John’s peers, his personality and mannerisms come across as effeminate and most people look down on him for it. While quite a few people find him attractive, they quickly become resentful and jealous when he doesn’t notice their flirting and he continues being nice and friendly to everyone. John tends to struggle with boundaries and he can hyperfixate on people and be clingy without realizing it. Additionally, John can also be quick tempered and is highly sensitive to unfairness. He has a hard time not popping off to people he doesn’t like and can be really stubborn. As a result John struggles with feelings of rejection and not belonging.

John also has issues with temperature regulation and his body runs hot– so he often wears less/ thinner clothes than others around him even when it gets cold. As stims he tends to click his tongue and bounce slightly when standing or bounce his legs when sitting. He tends to walk on the balls of his feet, but can also be quite clumsy. He quite likes reading and will sometimes hyperfocus and read for hours on end, sometimes making him late to obligations/appointments or causing him to forget to eat or sleep. He’ll read plays or novels and his favorite genres are romance and adventures.

8- John is a deserter

Originally John didn’t leave the Guard voluntarily-- he was kidnapped by Aodh after he caught them sneaking around the Guard’s docks. But over time John realized the rebels did a lot more to look after the local townsfolk and help people than the Guard ever did. As his disillusionment with the Guard grew, so did his attachment and affection for Aodh. Eventually he decided that he would never go back-- he wanted to stay with Aodh and the rebellion.

9- John is more ambivert than extrovert

Despite being friendly and outgoing, John does need quite a bit of alone time to recharge. He doesn’t find being around Aodh tiring though. Oftentimes he likes just being in the same room as them while they each do different activities.

10- John’s story heavily involves romance but is supposed to be broader

John has way more main-character energy than Aodh, in my opinion. And I base that primarily on the fact that he changes more over the course of the story and the story is mostly about his changes. It’s supposed to include themes of dealing with trauma, community solidarity, anti-colonialism, and found family. I’m just a garbage writer and tend to draw waaaay more of the sappy bits with John and Aodh more than literally anything else QAQ If you want to create impactful, well crafted stories that communicate effectively and appealingly to an audience– don’t be like me.

11- John is agnostic, not Christian

A distinct part of John’s character design is the simple cross he almost always wears around his neck. This is a memento from his late mother who was Catholic. John himself is not particularly religious. He is willing to believe there may be higher powers or other such mystical beings, but he doesn’t believe in any specific religion or religious teachings.

12- John’s Face Models/ Design Tidbits

Like Aodh, John’s original look came from an old doodle of mine. But when I started drawing him more I drew inspiration/reference for his features. For face models I mostly used: Geheichou, John Whaite, and Andrew Smyth. Additionally, for John’s design I wanted him to have lots of freckles, slight uneven tanning of his regularly exposed skin, a fair amount of soft body hair, and bright, lively eyes. He’s also decently tall compared to most other characters besides Aodh and Jack.

Well that concludes my oc facts. This being my second time ‘round and sort of out of people to tag I am just going to leave this open for anyone to do for whatever oc they want if they are interested. Have Fun^^

*Update: While I was working on another one of these for John I ended up tacking on a couple extra facts and decided that I would like to include similar ones for Aodh*

I have been tagged by @JafanAdis to publish 10 facts about my oc, Aodh. I haven’t done one of these sort of things in ages so this was fun and nostalgic. Here are the rules:

1. Post the following rules.

2. Post 10 facts about your oc.

3. Tag 3-8 people and be sure to include their avatars and the oc of theirs you want them to use.

Participation is not mandatory. If anyone I tag doesn’t want to do this-- feel free to ignore it.

With all that said, here are my facts on Aodh. [I’m gonna go with the original Aodh from my FOG story

https://www.deviantart.com/captain-kiryu/gallery/76647173/the-friend-of-granuile

I specify because I have several AUs with Aodh]

1- Their full name is Aodh Maher, which is pronounced like “Hugh Mar”

“Aodh” means “fire” and “Maher” means “kindly”, “fine”, and “majestic”. When Aodh was very young they didn’t have a name, their parents died in an accident, leaving Aodh orphaned with no clear memories of them. Before they were taken in by Eabha, they lived on the street and were able to get by mostly by charity by locals. In particular one surly old baker would always feed street kids like Aodh and threaten bullies with his cane. He was cranky and harsh, but kind. When he learned they were an orphan he introduced them to Eabha. He would complain when they still came by to visit him almost every day, but was actually fond of them. When Eabha insisted they needed a name, she recommended they try to pick one for themself. So they named themself Aodh, after the old baker and took on Eabha’s last name, Maher.

2- Aodh doesn’t really have a favorite color

They like some colors more than others. They like reds, greens, purples and yellows. But whether they think a specific color looks good is usually dependent on the context and combinations of colors. Their least favorite color is probably blue. During the story they think more about the color brown and how soft and comforting it can feel. If Aodh were to pick a color they think best represents “love”, they would pick black.

3- Aodh is non-binary

Ever since they were young Aodh didn’t feel like a girl or a boy. When they asked Eabha about it she merely told them that was ok and that it was normal. So they just kinda grew into it. Outside of Aodh’s family, people tend to just refer to them as whatever gender that person presumes/prefers. Aodh doesn’t bother correcting strangers. They will correct people they interact with more regularly once or twice. But past that they’ll simply give up. Aodh tries not to take negative things, including consistent misgendering, personally. But as a result, they don’t take positive things personally either. So they don’t feel attached to people easily. Aodh knows who they are. They don’t feel the need to get others to acknowledge them. But they are also aware of the wall the lack of understanding and acceptance puts between them and others.

4- Aodh is adopted and grew up in a tavern

As explained above, Aodh was adopted by Eabha and Tadhg when they were a kid. Aodh was not the first kid she adopted, nor the last. Eabha and Tadhg had a few kids together, but adopted even more. Aodh has three older siblings, an oldest sister and two older brothers, Andrew and Oliver, who are twins. Aodh also has several younger siblings, including Siobhan. Aodh is generally awkward with kids but they get along well with their siblings because they are used to them. Siobhan is Aodh’s favorite, but they are also relatively close with Andrew and Oliver. Aodh doesn’t tend to confide in them but they are able to feel relaxed and playful with them. Growing up in this environment, Aodh learned about running a small business, dealing with people, and cooking from their adoptive parents.

5- Aodh avoids eating animals when they can help it

They aren’t an “animal lover” per se, but they prefer not to kill animals for food when there are other options. They don’t think it’s very efficient and they don’t want to hurt animals outside of necessity. As a result, Aodh is particularly good at making bread and vegetable dishes.

6- Aodh is a criminal

Aside from working in their parents’ tavern, Aodh works with a rebel group that works against the imperial-colonialist authority of a foreign country that subjugates Aodh’s homeland. The rebels have been known to scuffle with the Imperial Guard, interfere with and intercept their communications, and even steal their supplies (which is sometimes just stealing back resources the Guard takes from locals). Aodh has been a particular thorn in the Guard’s side by providing broader intel to the rebels through Aodh’s contacts from Eabha and fellow merchants. Additionally, Aodh’s cousin [who I have yet to draw much/formally introduce] travels widely and has taught Aodh various techniques for fighting and self defense that Aodh has passed on to the rebels as well. As a result Aodh is wanted for multiple crimes “against the crown” by the Guard-- but they don’t even actually know what Aodh looks like.

7- Aodh is an extremely private person

Aodh is generally distrusting and reserved with people. They’re comfortable around their family, but they even struggle opening up to them sometimes. Aside from their family, they spend most of their time with the other rebels. But Aodh avoids sharing personal details with them. None of the rebels (besides John) even know Aodh is related to Eabha. Most people don’t notice or care how little they know about Aodh. Brody and Jack have though, and it sort of bothers them.

8- Aodh is autistic

Aodh’s story is set before autism was well known or studied. So Aodh doesn’t have any sort of diagnosis or even an awareness of the concept of neurotypes. They just know that they’re a little different from others. They are courteous but blunt. They have no respect for arbitrary social hierarchies and are highly sensitive to unfairness. They often also struggle with certain social niceties and signals. At times they struggle with sensory overwhelm which can cause them to compulsively hide away until they can re-regulate their system. All of this causes people who don’t know Aodh well to perceive them as rude and cold. Aodh is aware of this and in an effort to make others more comfortable, they will excise themselves when they don’t think they can be useful or helpful. As a result Aodh is quite lonely.

9- Aodh’s story is largely a romance

If someone were to tell Aodh that they’re a fictional character, they would probably think that person was a weirdo and brush them off. If someone were to tell Aodh they were a character in a romance story they would probably laugh in their face. Aodh doesn’t think anyone would have much interest in them at all much less romantic. However, John was not the first character to fancy Aodh. Brody, who doesn’t generally like men, finds Aodh dependable and reasonably attractive. She thinks Aodh could make a good partner but finds them difficult to get any closer to than a friend. Additionally, Jack found Aodh very attractive, but cold and rude when he first met them. But over time he developed a nagging crush on them. John was the only person to actually bother communicating his feelings to Aodh in a straightforward way they would understand.

10- Aodh tends to sing or hum to themselves

They often don’t notice when they start doing it. But when they’re very focused on something or when they’re alone they will often softly sing or hum to themselves. It’s usually old sea shanties or love songs that patrons of Eabha’s tavern would sing together. It’s just sort of automatic/unconscious to start a lot of the time. Aodh can’t sing once they realize other people can hear them though. They hate any sort of performing.

11- Aodh is atheist

It's not something Aodh talks about with others because of the overwhelmingly prevalent culture of Christianity mixed with Pagan traditions in their hometown. But Aodh has never felt an inkling of spirituality or sense of higher power. And they don't reason that it makes a lot of physical sense. So they just don't believe in it. However, they find religion interesting and useful to help individuals stave off existential dread. But they also criticize when religious authority is used to justify wrongful actions that hurt others.

12- Aodh's face models/ design tidbits

Aodh's original design is based off a rather old doodle I did several years ago and when I started developing them into a more fleshed out character I used about three main face-models to sort of nail down a mixture of features: Lucy Lui, Hugh Dancy, and Ezra Miller (I know Ezra is garbage, and my use of their cheekbones/jawlines is not me condoning any of their bullshit) Things in particular I purposely added to Aodh's designs was dark moles that mark their face and body, wild hair, and tired black eyes with no shine. I also wanted Aodh to stand out and be sort of unusually beautiful-- which I guess is just my excuse for using attractive celebrity face models for them lol.

That concludes my oc facts. It was a bit harder than I thought to come up with 10 facts to share lol. So I now tag:

JafanAdis with Chatan (feel free to ignore if you don't appreciate tag-backs)

RogueDraws with Pagliaccio

@Spaztastyck with Azurik

I don’t really have many friends/mutuals who are active on DA anymore sorry for the tiny amount of tags -3- But anyone I didn’t tag who thinks it looks fun should go ahead and make their own post to share facts about their ocs! Spread the oc love!

Just jotting down the things I'm working on/will want to start soon as far as drawing projects/pieces. No guarantees that I'll actually finish things in the order I've numbered them lol. The first like 4 project ideas should be relatively accurate for timing though, because they're already pretty far along.

1. "Aftercare"- FoG Uni AU [follow-up to "Carnations"]

- finished and posted

2. "The Hunter's Dream"- FoG Bloodborne AU

- finished and posted

3. "Pancakes"- FoG Uni AU [follow-up to "Aftercare"]

- lined, needs shaded

4. "Questions" Redraw- FoG

- storyboarded, started sketching

5. "Halloween Carnival"- FoG Uni AU

- currently story boarding

6. "Stains" Revised- FoG Uni AU

- needs scripted/revisions

7. "Research" [working title]- FoG Uni AU

- scripted

8. "Cooking Lessons" Revised- FoG

- scripted

9. "Sparring"- FoG [will probably incorporate and revise "Flawed"]

- needs scripted

10. "Nosy" Revised- FoG

- scripted, started storyboarding

11 "Fever" and "Pessimistic" Revised- FoG Uni Au

- scripted, started storyboarding

12. "Overgrown" - FoG

- scripted

13. "Reject" and "Loner"- Revised FoG

- currently sketching

14. "Together"- Revised FoG Uni AU

- currently sketching

15. "Shameless"[might retitle] Revised- FoG

- needs scripted

16. OC-Training Tasks

#1- Guess Who: finished and posted

#2- Profile: finished and posted

#3- Wardrobe: finished and posted

#4- Wish: finished and posted

#5- Personal Life: currently thumbnailing and sketching

#6- Enjoyment: thumbnailed

#7- Fear: thumbnailed

#8- Anger: thumbnailed

#9- Prom: not started

#10- Photoshoot: not started

As stated previously: I kind of wanted to make a little collection for my own reference of my fav Friend of Granuile pages I've drawn so I can get a better understanding of what poses, pov, facial proportions, values, etc. I think have been the most successful/I like most so I can try to implement them more consistently. I started the Uni AU about a full sketchbook after the original Friend of Granuile Story. So by that time the style I was drawing in was already beginning to shift. Particularly the way I was drawing Aodh and John's faces-- Idk if its because the story got more sappy or what but their faces--which were occasionally too long-- began to get rounder with bigger eyes and softer textured hair. But like the pendulum "style" often is, I think their proportions have become a little more balanced lately. But I sort of miss the sharpness some of the older drawings had-- partially, as I've mentioned before-- I think they often looked more dynamic. Additionally I think a lot of my older drawings of them have better values. I constantly feel that these drawings will have a few things I want-- good values, composition, expressions, proportions, etc but I struggle to get them all at once lol.