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Jubalii

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Major Overhaul

2 min read
Hey everyone: 

It's been a long time, hasn't it? It seems like it's been a lot longer than it really has; I haven't checked my deviantART in ages, much less actually posted anything to it. 

I took the time today to go through everything I'd ever posted. It was really a big trip down memory lane; 2013 JuJu was way more immature than 2018 JuJu. It was a little cringe-inducing, to be honest! I ended up deleting a good 90% of deviations, along with all of my journal posts. It seemed like the right thing to do, since that was a past me that I don't really... know anymore. I've grown and changed a lot since those old days. A lot of projects have been forgotten; I'm just not interested in the same things that I was back then. That time holds a fond place in my heart, but that's not me anymore. 

I still want to use my deviantART, though. I do want to use it as a place to meet and network with other writers/artists that share the same interests that I do. I want to keep some of the friends I made on this site. I want to use it to my advantage for as long as I can. But, I also want to have a better focus on the things that I post here. My old posts were sporadic, random stuff that didn't make a lot of sense. Maybe back then I knew what I meant, but now... no clue, haha. 

I plan to post more stuff to my deviantART to replace the stuff that I deleted in the future: both fandom works and original fiction. Heading into the winter and future 2019, I plan on hopefully updating at least once a week! Keep your fingers crossed for me, and hope for the best! 

Later! 
-JuJu 
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Hey everyone! This is a small story for the contest on Looji's page (SMALL CHARACTER CONTEST).

I really like the pic, and this story was the first that popped into my head. It's their first meeting. They don't have names, so I kept it simple. 
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                At first, it had only been a passing glance as he surfaced from the lake. He’d been fighting off the birds that wanted to eat the lake’s fish; the birds were relentless in their efforts, but then again, so was he. He’d broken the calm surface of the water, shaking his fist at the latest in a long line of obstinate kingfishers, and saw something that hadn’t been there the last time he’d come out of the cool waters. No, not something… someone.  

                She was poised, serene and beautiful, on the very edge of his lake. He could see the tips of her roots in the eroding soil near the embankment that led into the forest. He fought the urge to swim over for a closer look, dipping back down into the water until only the tips of his hair and his eyes were visible. His webbed ears twitched as he listened for any sound coming from her, but to his surprise she hadn’t even noticed him. She was looking over him, towards the far banks of the other side.

                He took advantage of the moment, his eyes roving over her as he tried to figure out who and what she was. He’d heard rumors of Treepeople, but he’d always imagined them to be ugly, gnarled things like real trees were. To his astonishment, this young maiden was lithe and graceful. It reminded him more of the plants that grew on the bottom of his lake, waving eternally in a noiseless, unfelt wind as the rocking waters soothed their leaves. Even the bark where her legs would have been was smooth and even. He felt the urge to touch again, and finally dove down to his home, determined to put her out of his mind.

                However, he couldn’t help but come back to the surface the next day, though birds were scarce. She was still there, gazing longingly at the other side. He turned as well, wondering just what it was that she was looking at. Ah, the flowers. There were always those flowers on the south side of the lake, but he’d never paid much attention to them before. What were terrain flowers to a merman, who had scores of underwater blooms at his disposal? But perhaps to a Treeperson, those flowers were as beautiful as a fully-developed water lily was to him.

                They waved on the spring breeze, long, thin stalks barely supporting the unfurled pink petals of the flower. Clumps of them grew together until it was impossible to tell one bunch from the next, the entire field nodding its head in time with the gusts of warm southern air. Bees and butterflies danced in the air above it, which was perfumed with pollen and the sweet nectar of honey’s precursor. Why does she not go over there? He thought in confusion, looking back at her. The longing etched on her face was almost pitiful, twisting her pretty features. As he watched, she gave a heartfelt sigh and rubbed one of her arms, head tilted as she followed a butterfly’s path with her eyes.

                His brow knitted as he thought. Perhaps she couldn’t move? But then, how did she get to his bank? He tapped his chin with his knuckles. He hated to bother her, but… it was his lake, and he needed to make sure that she wasn’t going to disrupt the ecosystem in any way. At the very least, he needed to introduce himself and see how long she was planning on staying, right? His mind made up, he swam towards her, intent on getting to her before he changed his mind.

                He broke the surface silently, still evading her notice. He wasn’t sure if calling out to her might startle her, so he opted for gently brushing his fingers against her trunk. If it satisfied his own curiosity in the process, so be it. The touch worked; she looked down at him, jolted out of her reverie by the foreign touch of something warm and wet. He smiled gently, but she only looked uncomfortable and wrung her hands together in a distracted way.

                “Hullo,” he spoke up, clearing his throat. It had been a long time since he’d spoken to anyone, other than communicating silently with the fish in his lake. “I… I noticed you here yesterday, and I was wondering if you were planning on sticking around for a while.” She looked even more uncomfortable, eyes averted as a soft blush played over her cheeks. “Why, whatever’s the matter?” he asked, bewildered by the expression.

                “I’m sorry,” she blurted out. Her voice was as graceful as her looks, gentle and soft. “I didn’t mean to intrude upon—that is, if I had known this lake was inhabited, I’d have—I’m sorry,” she finished again, biting her lip.

                “There’s nothing to be sorry for,” he assured her. “I’m happy to see a new face around here. I just… wondered where you’d come from, is all. Did you walk here?” She gave her head the smallest of shakes, the strands of her hair rubbing together with a sound of trembling leaves.

                “No, I—I can’t walk. My roots,” she murmured, and he watched in awe as two of them came up from the ground, wiggling tentatively. “A kind gentleman carried me here after promising to show me the flowers. There’s no way around the lake, though,” she sighed sadly. He realized, all at once, what the problem was. It was true—the lake was fed by two broad rivers, and the nearest bridge was over a day’s journey away on foot. Perhaps her kind gentleman hadn’t known about the bridge, so he’d sat her down here instead.

                “There’s no way,” he echoed, for her sake. It would do her no good to know about the bridge, if she couldn’t walk to it. “So is has been the flowers that you were watching.” She nodded.

                “Yes. They’re so beautiful. I wish—” Her voice trailed off, eyes swimming with tears and yearning. “I would love to stand there, surrounded by flowers and hearing the bees, letting the butterflies land on my shoulders. It would be a paradise.”

                “Well,” he said musingly, tapping his knuckles now on the bank. “I’m strong. Maybe I can carry you across the lake?” The girl paled, cheeks losing color as he spoke.

                “No, I beg you!” she pleaded. “I’m frightened of the water. I cannot swim, not with my roots. I… appreciate the offer, though.” They both sat in silence, until he rose and snapped his fingers deftly.

                “Hold on!” he ordered, before backflipping into a dive. He swam across the lake as fast as he could, disrupting a school of fish as they lazily rode the currents. Surfacing at the southern end, he leaned as far out of the water as he dared (a beached merman was no laughing matter). His fingers managed to snag the petals of a flower and he worked his hand down to the base of the stem before plucking it. Holding his prize and giving a triumphant laugh, he swam more slowly back across the lake, not wanting the flower to get wet. “Here!” he said when he reached her, holding up the flower with a friendly smile. “If I can’t bring you to Paradise, I’ll bring a bit of the Paradise to you.” She took it hesitantly, turning it over in her hands with an expression akin to awe.

                “It’s beautiful,” she said at last. “But it will wilt.”

                “Then I’ll bring you another,” he promised. “For as long as you want them.” For the first time, her lips curved up into a small smile, and he was certain that any trouble that went into fetching her flowers in the future would be well worth the effort. 




:star: Say Hello to my new watchers :star:

:icondrsunnybun::iconkisshus-wife::iconiloveoranges12:

Thankies!
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Major Overhaul by Jubalii, journal

Story: A Bit of Paradise (Small Character Contest) by Jubalii, journal