To Paint a Picture (Open)

[Blythe]

"Need me to stand in the same position?" Liyah asked, "or should I shift?" Blythe looked up from her work. Shift? Now that was an interesting choice of words, and then it hit her, her elongated teeth, her hair, how she obviously wasn't another konti woman, surely she was a Kelvic, why else would she use the word 'shift?'

Blythe smiled up at her. "No, you can even sit for a bit if you'd like, I'm just going to add in some last minute details." Blythe looked back down at her work, she added a few soft brush-strokes to make the skin look more even, a few more to her hair, to make it seem more elegant, a few more to the sea to add to its ferocity. Licking her lips now that she was dry, Blythe held the vase as far away from her face as she could. She wanted to get a good look. It was ok, the sand didn't really look like sand, it kind of looked like brown barf to her, but she wasn't sure of how to fix it. She'd never drawn sand before. She also, for the life of her, couldn't get Liyah's skin color just right, but it wasn't a big deal, was it? I mean, the person she drew still looked like a person, right?

Blythe brought the vase in again, blowing on it lightly to help the paint dry. She looked over at Liyah, "I don't know, it just doesn't seem... complete... you mind shifting to me again, so I can add a little more? It shouldn't be too long now that I got the background done and everything."

[Aaliyah]

Blythe brought the vase in again, blowing on it lightly to help the paint dry. She looked over at Liyah, "I don't know, it just doesn't seem... complete... you mind shifting to me again, so I can add a little more? It shouldn't be too long now that I got the background done and everything."

"Oh, ok," Liyah said, as she got back up, she had been sitting before, waiting for Blythe to finish up on whatever it was that she was doing. When she got up she turned away from Blythe for a moment, quickly peeled off her clothing, and then shifted.

Within seconds, she had gone from being seemingly human to her animal form, a red fox. She was now 75 cm, and 8 kg. Her fur was bright red, with a golden ripple along her lower back. She turned to face Blythe, swishing her tail back and forth a little bit. But not wildly, she wasn't a true dog. She licked her lips. Her tongue coming out so much, that it was able to touch the tip of her slightly wet, black nose. Her whiskers twitching in the wind. It smelled of the sea here.

[Blythe]

"Oh, ok," Liyah said, as she got back up, she had been sitting before. When she got up she turned away from Blythe for a moment, quickly peeled off her clothing, and then shifted. Within seconds, she had gone from being seemingly human to her animal form, a red fox.

Blythe wasn't too startled when she saw her do this. She already had the impression that the girl might be a kelvic, the only thing that surprised her was her animal form: a red fox. Ok, maybe not the red part, the girl's hair made her think red, but certainly the fact that she was a fox. For whatever reason, she seemed more cat-like in her human form to Blythe than fox-like, if that makes any sense at all.

Immediately, Blythe knew, that she wanted to draw this fox next to the human form. So, she set off to work, mixing reds and yellows until she created a shade that she felt may just begin to give the kelvic's pelt some justice in its depiction upon her older sister's clay vase. She started with the girl's tail, which no matter how hard she tried, always looked a little scruffier than in real life. The body came out a little thin, as did the legs, and the snout, perhaps a little too long, but to her it looked ok.

When she was finished, she got up, placing the drying vase in the sand. She rinsed her brushes in the water, and just for good measure, hoping that Liyah could still understand her, Blythe called over her shoulder, "I'm done if you want to shift back. Thank you so much for being patient with me." When she had finished cleaning her brushes, Blythe picked up her finished vase, gingerly, admiring her work. "Not half bad," she said, before whispering, "thank you for inspiring me," and when she looked back over to where Liyah had been before, posing for her, she found...

[Aaliyah]

Liyah stood, the wind blowing her fur in all directions. She hoped it wouldn't make it too frizzy, she thought, worrying a little about her appearance. It must be the inner human female she hoped she didn't possess, she thought. She tried not to move, but she found it even harder in this form, her being lighter, than when in her human form. Her tail seemed to swish lightly, back and forth, no matter how hard she tried to contain it. Her whiskers seemed to be pressed against her face, her eyes watered in the wind.

But thankfully, in this form, with her long fur coat, she felt a little warmer standing on the beach, looking out at the sea as Blythe painted her. At least this way, it seemed, the wind couldn't seep all the way into her skin. Even though the sun was in the sky, it didn't seem to provide much warmth, so instead, Liyah chose to pretend that it did- silently convincing herself, in her mind, that it was helping her stay warm, as the konti woman painted, willing her to finish quickly, so she could change back and find shelter for the night, it was sure to be even colder soon, especially as soon as the sun started setting. But then again, could Blythe even work without the light of the sun?

Eventually, Blythe got up and and washed her brushes in the water. Maybe, she's done she thought, as she shifted back into her human form and threw her clothes back on, it was freezing out. She shivered and jumped up and down trying to stay warm.

[Blythe]

That Liyah was back in her human form. She smiled sweetly at her. "Thanks, again, for posing for me," she said, as she put her supplies back in her bag and slung it over her shoulder. The strap of her bag felt cold, and her bag felt heavier than she remembered, she bent and picked up her finished vase, hoping that her sisters would like it. "What do you think?" she asked Liyah as she started walking up the beach, in the direction of home. She turned back to her, "we can walk together if you'd like." Then she turned back in the direction she was walking, and continued along her way.

[Aaliyah]

"Thanks, again, for posing for me," Blythe said. "Don't mention it, I pose for pretty pictures all the time," Liyah joked. Blythe picked up the vase and asked Liyah what she thought. Liyah scrunched up her face as if concentrating. "It's... it's... quite the likeness," she began, thinking that her tail looked scruffy and her body too thin. Her hair not the right color, nor the color of her skin. Blythe didn't seem to be listening though.

Blythe picked up her bag, and turned to her, "we can walk together if you'd like." Liyah ran up next to her, kicking up clods of sand, excited. "Ok, sounds good." She smiled over at Blythe, wondering if the girl was going to talk to her, or whether or not she'd have to fill up empty space. "That all you do then," she gestured towards the vase Blythe was holding in her hands, "paint?"

[Blythe]

"That all you do then," Liyah gestured towards the vase Blythe was holding in her hands, "paint?" Blythe laughed. "Oh goodness no, I live with my rather large, family, and write poetry," she told Liyah.

Just before Blythe admitted, "although, sometimes, I want to do something more. Explore the world a little. See new things. Painting and poetry can be monotonous at times."

Blythe walked along, the vase drying in her hands. They'd be at her family's home soon. There, they would more than likely part ways, and rarely, if ever, cross paths again.

[Aaliyah]

"Oh goodness no, I live with my rather large, family, and write poetry," Blythe told Liyah.

"Oh," she replied simply, not really having had a large family, or really a family at all.

"Although, sometimes, I want to do something more. Explore the world a little. See new things. Painting and poetry can be monotonous at times," Blythe continued, Liyah nodded.

Deciding that she didn't want to keep walking with the konti woman, she waved good-bye to her before they reached the konti's house. The sun was high in the sky. "Nice meeting you," she called behind her as she went left, and Blythe went another way.

[Alice]

Blythe

Experience: 2 Observation, 4 Painting, 3 Conversation
Lores: Looking For Inspiration, Changing One’s Mind, Meeting a Kelvic, Noticing One’s Mistakes, Experiencing Kelvic Shifting, Painting Outside

Comments

Nice little thread. I liked how you emphasized that Blythe is still a beginner with the paintbrush, mentioning her mistakes and awkward color mixtures. I didn’t know what else to award though. Your writing style is short and precise which isn’t a bad thing but doesn’t allow for many lores. Also, the climate on Konti Isle isn’t that cold in Fall and only drops a bit in Winter, so I didn’t add that lore you requested. If you feel I missed something, please talk to me!