Writing this current scene is helping me cope with my cat not feeling well. Having a cat character based on him and one on my younger cat is immortalizing them.
Liz gets her first kitty in this. Plus, I get to write a flashback sequence where she gets Doug on her side to convince Dale to keep him 😺
I just realized…Dale was barefoot for so many years as a kid/teen and after he started living with his dad he could finally afford normal clothes and shoes. I imagine Doug giving Dale these boots that he still barely takes off. I know it's pretty obvious that so many people didn’t takes Dale seriously (which makes sense) but.. he's been through trauma and while living with his dad that probably didn't pay so much attention to him(and just gave him everything except what Dale actually needed). And now Dale himself is telling Dev how important his business and money is, as well as his love for boots.
More kid!dale and doug because i love them. Also can i say i love this outfit i gave to kid!dale, he is just so cute. And his his shoes, i wanted to put the dimmadome colors on him somehow since they do look good on him, but not on his outfit so his shoes were the next best option.
And i do like how i made this background, i wish it couldv'e made it more complex and make it look more of a park, but i didn't want to take focus away from doug and dale.
Sneak Peek for Chapter 32 of The Godparent's Bride (The Finale of Act II: The Secret Lovers Arc)
Warning: Mentions of gun violence and body image. Reader Discretion is advised.
Godkid and godparent both laughed at the thought of Doug threatening the little punk with his gun. Before Peri could call for the deceased former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome, Dev did it for him, “Papaw! Can you come in here?! I need you!”
The sound of cowboy boot spurs clicking on the hardwood floor graced their ears before the swirling vortex of balls of white and gold lights emerged. They gave way for the ghostly Doug to appear. Concern for his grandson etched his pale transparent face, “Devin? What’s wrong? What do ya need me for?”
He looked up from his tablet, “Peri wants to talk to you.”
Doug blinked his glowing blue eyes, “You don’t have ta talk for him, Devin. Mr. Periwinkle is a grown man.”
“I know but he’s nervous.”
Before he could ask what his granddaughter’s fairy boyfriend was nervous about, Peri finally spoke, thinking of something to break the ice between him and the old man, “Um, Doug, I’m curious about something.”
“About what? Ask away.”
“Um,” he paused, “Did you ever ask for Diane’s father’s blessing for her hand in marriage?”
Doug smiled from beneath his white mustache as he took a seat beside Peri on the periwinkle couch, feeling excitement bubble up inside him. Does Peri’s question mean, what it’s implying what it probably means? Trying to maintain his self control to keep his inner thoughts at bay, he said, “I did.”
Wanting to include his grandson into this conversation, he continued, “I remember it like it was yesterday.”
Peri, with Dev shifting his attention away from his game, both listened intently, “Devin, would you like for me to tell ya the story of how I got your great-grand Papaw George’s blessing for your Mamaw’s hand in marriage?”
Dev nodded, turning off his tablet, “Yeah. Did you have to talk business with him?”
Peri listened intently as Doug chuckled, “Surprisingly, no. Even though the Masterson Family was and are still very wealthy business savvy people, George was a simple man. Brilliant, the most shrewd and cunning businessman I had ever met, but when it came to family, he put that aside.”
Curious, Peri asked, “So this George Masterson, what did he deal in?”
Thinking about his dearly departed father-in-law, Doug smiled, “Like me, real estate. He was my mentor and a dear friend of mine. He taught me everything he knew and passed his wisdom onto me. I was the son he never had.”
“Is that how you met Mamaw? Did Great-Papaw introduce you to her?”
At Dev’s question, the former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome chuckled, shaking his head, “No. Diane and I met in Vegas at The Sands Hotel and Casino in their famed Copa Room. Frank Sinatra was performin’ that night.” his ghostly blue eyes shimmered, feeling as if he were young again and being brought back in time, experiencing that moment once more, “I heard of her before we met but I didn’t know what she looked like until I introduced myself to her. All I knew of her was that she was the famed young fashion designer, Diane Marie Masterson.”
Doug sighed dreamily, “When I first laid my eyes upon Diane, it was like….like I found a missing piece of my soul. Diane felt it too.” he chuckled, “Of course she heard about me. At the time, I was startin’ to make a name for myself as my real estate empire was beginning to take off. When I introduced myself to her, she made me laugh stating, “Oh, I know who you are. You’re the young real estate mogul who’s taking the country by storm. Doug Dimmadome, right?”
He laughed again, “It made my heart race when she said so genuinely, “I had no idea you were this handsome in person.”” Doug brightly smiled, feeling so giddy as if he were a young man again, “Diane always had a thing for men like me. Manly cowboys who she saw as big teddy bears. She called me her “Dougie Bear”.”
Peri and Dev listened as the old man continued to reminisce, gushing, “I said yes and asked if I could join her and her friends at her table.” His blue eyes twinkled with what he said next, “Being the gentleman I am, I knew it was the right thing to do. Keep that in mind, Devin. It’s wise to ask for a lady’s permission to enter her personal space. Ya know what the meanin’ of the word ‘consent’ is?”
Dev just smiled and nodded, “Yeah, it means you have to ask for someone’s permission to do something with them or to them. It applies to everything in life, not just love and romance, right?”
Doug nodded, “That’s right, Devin. I’m proud of you for gettin’ that concept down at your age. You’re just a chip off the old block. You take after me even though you look like your Daddy. It’s no wonder why Miss Hazel loves ya so much.”
Dev beamed with pride for his grandfather’s words. That means he’s upholding his promise of always being a gentleman. That means that Hazel will want to be his girlfriend if he keeps it up. Still feeling so giddy, Dev listened as Doug continued on, “We talked to each other for what seemed like all night. We became inseparable from that point on.” he sighed, a dreamy expression formed on his pale ghostly face, “We started datin’ not long after.”
“So did you ask Mamaw out or did she ask you out?”
“I asked her out, Devin. I asked her if she would be interested in me treatin’ her to a hearty steak dinner. Imagine my delight when she said yes.”
His blue eyes started to mist, “I felt my heart race from that. I love a woman with a healthy appetite. It was so refreshin’ to see. Your Mamaw knew the importance of eatin’ good. The other women I dated before her were too worried about their figures, but Diane, no, she ate whatever she wanted with no fears of what it did to her figure. I remember she said that eatin’ good gave her the energy to run her fashion empire. Plus, it helped her maintain her gorgeous goddess-like figure. Diane, my Diamond Cowgirl was the picture of female perfection, even in her old age. Hell, she only got better and better with age. Plastic surgery would have destroyed her beauty. It made me thankful that she never chose to go under the knife. Diane felt so comfortable in her skin. Eating, aging and pregnancy never destroyed her confidence. Your Great Grand-Mamaw, Franny and your Great Grand-Papaw, George raised her to love herself.”
“How long did you two date for?” Peri asked, interested and enjoyed hearing the elder Dimmadome just gush about his wife. Hearing Doug refer to Diane as a goddess and the picture of female perfection, it made the fairy’s heart skip a beat. He said the same things to Liz the first night they were intimate.
Guess he might take after the Doug Dimmadome, the former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome in that aspect. Though, they’re not even related by blood. He’s a human, a dead human and he himself is a fairy. Peri softly chuckled to himself, he didn’t think he would be able to relate to another Dimmadome but here he was. Dev and Liz, sure but he didn’t think he’d have many things in common with Doug.
I think I may be the only person who's humanized Doug Dimmadome. I've written a few emotional scenes for him XD Poor Doug. He's so broken from realizing that he's a total shithead for being partially responsible for how fucked up Dale is (and losing his wife). The other person who fucked up Dale being Vicky but she sucks anyway. Just like the rest of the Dimmadomes, suffer Doug, you suffer for my amusement XD
Man, this is the most emotional Dev scene thus far. This chapter and the one after this one are going to be very emotional ones. When writing emotional scenes, it's always good to take frequent breaks.
Sneak Peek for Chapter 27 of The Godparent's Bride
Warning: References to generational and childhood trauma. Reader Discretion is advised.
Hearing his favorite Taylor Swift album begin to play, Dev tore his eyes away from Liz’s locked bedroom door, holding Baby Poet in his arms walking out to the living room, “Good morning, Papaw.”
In a swirl of gold and white lights, the ghostly old man appeared to greet his grandson, “Mornin’ Devin. Sleep well?”
The boy nodded, “Yeah. I was completely out of it as soon as my head hit my pillow.”
Doug eyed Dev’s kitten. He still felt awkward with being around the cats. Due to having trauma of being bit and scratched at by various animals, including cats as a child, Doug had such an immense hatred for them as a result. His father, David Desmond Dimmadome was no help. He always told him to walk it off, be a man, and get over it.
Seeing how his ghostly grandfather looked uncomfortable, Dev then spoke, breaking Doug out of his thoughts, “Papaw, Poet won’t hurt you. Want to try to pet her?”
Baby Poet looked at Doug, blinking her blue eyes as did the ghost. He never pet Tangerine while he was alive, being afraid that he may bite him. Now, with him being dead, he figured, why not give it a go? He reached his pale transparent hand out, shaking. Even with him being dead, he was still nervous. Could he feel pain as a ghost?
There was only one way to find out. Gently petting Baby Poet’s soft long black fur, he was met with an unexpected result. The cat actually purred. Huh. Okay then. Maybe this one is the good one. He’ll try with his sweet Lizzie’s cats later as both Pepper and Tangerine were still curled up, sleeping on her periwinkle couch.
Dev brightly smiled, “See? She’s not bad. Poet likes you, Papaw.”
“Well, Dimma-damn. She does…..huh…what is….what is…she doin’?”
Baby Poet then tried to play with Doug’s chubby fingers by trying to wrap her tiny paws around them, attempting to give him love nips. She just went through them. Doug sighed with relief. That answers his question. He can’t feel pain as a ghost. Still, he wanted to know what she was doing.
Maybe she wasn’t so good after all. Dev laughed a bit, “You triggered her playful spirit. Poet likes you, Papaw. She’s just trying to play with you. Cats do that, especially kittens. They’re natural hunters.”
Pulling his pale transparent hand away, he had to learn more about this. Dev obviously knew what he was talking about, “Hm. Tell me more, Devin. You seem you know a great deal about kitty cats.”
Following him to the kitchen, his grandson began to beam with happiness. His Papaw actually wanted to hear him talk about something he likes. Dale never did. He always told him to go away as he said he didn’t have time to listen to Dev blab about childish nonsense. At least Liz and Peri let him do it.
“Well, like I said, cats are natural hunters. They’re predators. It’s in their nature. They hunt, kill, eat, and sleep. It’s their regular day.” he placed Poet on the floor and grabbed a step stool, climbing up onto it to reach the cupboard that contained the cats’ food including his baby’s kitten food.
Dev grabbed a can and popped the top open. Hearing that and picking up on the scent, Pepper and Tangerine woke up and scurried over to the kitchen. It’s time for breakfast for them too. At least they didn’t have to meow at their Mommy’s door for their food today. Their favorite little boy will while he’s feeding the little gremlin.
Hearing the meows of the two older cats, Doug turned around, “Devin, we have company.”
Dev snickered, “They’re just hungry, Papaw.”
Baby Poet continued to meow for her food as her young cat dad grabbed a can of elderly cat food for Tangerine and regular for Pepper, “Liz and Peri are still asleep so that means I have to chip in and feed them. Once they hear the can opening or get a whiff of kibble or meat, it’s game over. You feed all of them, not just one.”
“Why is that?”
He smiled, so happy Papaw wanted to hear more, “It’s because cats have an awesome sense of smell. They can smell better than humans, even dogs. Their noses are very sensitive, they can pick up on scents we can’t.”
“Dimma-damn.” Doug learned something new. He never knew about that. He just assumed it was just dogs not cats.
Dev laughed at his grandfather’s reaction. He always thought it was funny when he swore. Though, it was funnier when his uptight godparent did it. Putting the cats’ food into their separate bowls, all tilted for their gut health, he hopped off the step stool to feed Poet first.
Tangerine and Pepper tried to chase after him to get her food, “No! Pepper, Tangerine, this is for babies, not adult cats. Go away. Papaw, can you help me?”
Doug wasn’t sure how to but he can try, “Hey, shoo! You heard him! Go! Don’t take baby kitty cat’s food, it’s not yours!”
Tangerine and Pepper stopped in their tracks at the ghostly old man’s booming voice. They didn’t like it when their Mommy and Daddy yelled at them but hearing this ghost’s shouting at them was scarier. Dev snorted with laughter a little, “Nice one, Papaw. Okay, while they’re still catatonic, can you help me again?”
“Um, sure Devin. What do ya want me to do?”
“Take Tangerine’s food and I’ll take Pepper’s. Tangerine eats in that corner and Pepper eats in that one.”
Not really understanding why they just couldn’t eat the same food together, Doug picked up the tilted bowl that was Tangerine’s with his name on it, “Come on, Tangie. Come, it’s chow time.”
The elderly orange cat remembered him. Even though Doug is a ghost, he still smelled the same. While that old human man was still among the living, Tangerine liked him. His kitty brain could never comprehend why he seemed awkward around him. Tangerine never liked Dale though. That man always scared him. He followed Doug while his younger grey adoptive brother followed Dev to their respective corners.
