Ironically fitting to Ulysses' birthday, I got home and fell asleep for hours! It was the best sleep of my life, I was so comfy you guys 😭 I love my bed.
ANYWAYS I said I would post Uly's birthday art once I was home, so im gonna do it now that I'm home and awake!
Here is the simple sketch I always do of their canon designs :)
I lowkey feel like I'm getting better at drawing with the tablet, because these birthday drawings keep getting more detailed. I was super tired yesterday, and yet this came out strangely cute! I dont hate it at all!
And now, the moment you've been waiting for, his polaroid!
As you may or may not know, I made an Age Chart that helped me figure out their ages in 2026 (in my AU), so I make polaroid-inspired pictures of what I think they would look like in their 2026 birthday!
This one I have a very strong love-hate relationship with. Mostly because Ulysses just DOESNT LOOK LIKE HIMSELF. Like he looks changed. Which, admitedly is the point. What I do in these drawings is age them up (Hes 19 in canon, and here he turns 21), I guess it just feels a bit creepy to see him not look like normal.
I THINK. It's the hairstyle change. Similar to Mark's birthday, Uly's hair was done by Diana for this picture :333 The braid is so fancy, I love it.
Read below for me yapping about the context of the picture (trying to justify the hairstyle, because I havent spent months thinking about him to just keep quiet, ok? ok).
This picture happens like 9 months after my fanfic where he gets hospitalized, and, ok.
(( I have a headcanon that whenever he's going through a stressfull time in his life he ditches his usual angled buzz cut for a full-head buzz cut.
It has to do with the backstory of the hairstyle, which is basically that his parents never ever took him to the barber, so his hair was long and matted and uncomfortable for years. At some point (when he's like 15) the, kid just looses it and shaves his head impulsively, leading his parents to completely freak out about it (calling him insane as if its not their fault that he was so uncomfortable and untrusting of them. Sigh.)
Once everything settles, he starts shaving only the side of his head the way we see it in canon, and is loyal to this cut until everything happens (the fanfic) in July of 2025. ))
I also dont think he would be very picky about his strangely specific hairstyle while being hospitalized and unable to walk (😭).
So after coming back from the hospital, I think maybe Diana would offer to help him take care of his hair as it grows out again, because at the end of the day, self-care and spending quality with people you love helps deal with depression in the long run.
So yes, Diana, from then on washes and treats his hair so it grows out healthily. Because the thing about Ulysses (I think this is even visible in his canon design) is that he has really thick hair. And I imagine it grows rather quickly. His inmune system genetics may be fucked, but those hair genetics are incredible, trust me you guys. And I just know Diana: The Ultimate Cosmetologist would love his thick hair and its potential pls trust me on this.
So, naturally, for his birthday they would do a specially cute yet practical hairstyle. I. I love them you guys. so much. ow.
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