Just realized you can't really read anything, ops.
Random sketches and drawings collected over the month (+ new ship drop, I guess (it never gets better posting about ships, it's still 100% embarrassing lol))
+ Messy sketches of some of my moots' OCs because OCs rock.
I hope I keep doing them justice! @brucemarlin @urlseals ❤️
I love this song (Ouidad - Casa) so much and as I was listening to it on repeat this little thing happened.
I need them to get married when they're older (if they want ofc)🥹
Little context under the cut:
Little Bjorn is on vacation with his parents in Casablanca, Morocco.
While they're wandering around the market stalls, all of a sudden, another little kid with a riot of curls and the cutest tooth-gaped smile Bjorn has ever seen jumps out from behind one of the stalls and shoves a pink rose in his face.
Confused and mildly worried that it might be some kind of scam (his parents warned him about accepting apparent "gifts" from strangers in touristy areas), Bjorn is initially hesitant to take the flower. However, the strangely courteous kid places it back into his hands with an even bigger grin.
"Take it, it's yours now."
"But I... I have no money."
"So? It's a gift."
"A gift?"
Bjorn is even more perplexed as he finally brings the rose to his face to examine it. The other child is getting closer, about to say something, when a loud shout makes him whip around to see what Bjorn concludes must be this child's mother beckoning him to their stall.
Turning around to face Bjorn again, Zack —the name the woman has shouted— beaming with joy takes the Qatari's little hand and shakes it politely, before pivoting on his heels and running back in the direction he supposedly came from.
"Bye, green eyes! Mwah!"
Zack yells over his shoulder blowing him a kiss before disappearing behind a multitude of colorful Moroccan rugs.
Puzzled, Bjorn stands there for a few seconds before scurrying back to his parents. Upon seeing the rose safely clutched in his fingers, they bombard Bjorn with a thousand questions to which he genuinely doesn't have a single answer.
"Who gave you that?"
"Another kid."
"Why would he give you a rose? Did he try to sell it to you?"
His mother takes the flower out of his hands and Bjorn's heart sinks a little fearing that she might throw it away or spoil it.
"I don't know... no, he said it was a gift."
"A gift? Are you sure he didn't rob you?"
"Rob me? But you didn't give me any money, mother."
Upon hearing his son's watertight reasoning the woman visibly relaxes, only to put her hands on her hips and scold the child cowering in front of her.
"What did I tell you about accepting gifts from strangers, Bilal?"
"I'm sorry, mother. It won't happen again, I promise."
"That better be true."
Bjorn doesn't run into that strange kid again, but when it's time to go back home he makes sure to press the rose he gave him between the pages of his favorite book, bringing that little piece of Morocco back with him.
A "DESERT LION" NAMES ANALYSIS + name meanings related hcs PT.2
DISCLAIMER: if any of the information reported here is wrong or even just partially incorrect/imprecise, feel free to let me know; as my main sources for this analysis were Wikipedia and baby names sites (lol).
Mansur (Messer is apparently a surname and Messa doesn't even exist(?)) is a male Arabic name that means "He who is victorious".
Jassim is an Arabic name/surname. (Couldn't find the meaning.)
Headcanons:
Succeeding in his set goals and dreams is a very essential part of his life. He puts great importance on winning and is generally very competitive. He has a hard time forming long-lasting friendships due to this side of his personality.
His parents, unlike Nasser's, tend to encourage him to be less focused on beating others and more on doing things he actually enjoys for himself. His relationship with his teammate is a conflicted one.
On one hand, Nasser is a pleasant guy to be around, always ready to assist or to share a few jokes with. On the other one though, Messer can't really bring himself to relate to his struggles. He doesn't understand how someone could resent parents whose only wish is for you to be your best version; for you to be ambitious and successful.
He didn't bond with anyone in particular, but he tends to spend most of the time with Far, who happens to be his roommate.
Zack Abdullah <English Wiki> (Zack Abdulla <alternative dub names>):
Zakariya 'Zack' Abdullah
Zack is sometimes a given name, but more often it's a short form of the Biblical name Zechariah (in this case probably of the Arabic form, Zakariya) and its meaning is "God/YHWH has remebered".
Abdullah is an Arabic Muslim given name/surname which means "servant of Allah".
Headcanons:
Zack grew up in a large family: his mom, his dad, three sisters, and four brothers (including himself).
Zack's family originally hails from Casablanca, Morocco, but they relocated to Qatar in search of better job opportunities. With some financial assistance from Zack's grandparents and some personal sacrifices, they were able to secure stable employment at a local camel farm. Zack's father, who had experience working with dromedaries in Morocco, found the job to be a perfect fit.
Despite their efforts, they still fall under the lower middle-class category by Qatari standards*. As a result, Zack and his siblings had to start working from a young age to support the family.
Growing up among the animals, Zack spent his free time playing football and caring for them. He greatly admires his father and shares a strong bond with his mother and siblings.
Zack is extremely outgoing, friendly, and open-minded as a result of interacting with people from all walks of life. He easily makes friends and is generally well-liked. However, he often feels the need to hide his feelings of inadequacy behind a facade of happiness and laughs, because most of his friends come from well-off families with high social status, and hanging out is a constant reminder of his own financial limits and racial status.
His closest friends are Bjorn, Majidi, and Djamel. He gets along also with Sulai and Adel, with whom he has more of a love-hate relationship. (Adel once referred to him as impossible to ignore and to this day Zack wonders if it was meant to be a compliment or not.)
*(North African Expats are considered to be racially inferior to Gulf Arabs; with them only coming second to Westerners in the class system, even though they're primarily Muslim and from neighboring regions. The apparent reasons for this are a widespread sentiment of anti-blackness and a general dislike for Africans, more specifically sub-Saharan, immigrants).
Technically speaking Majidi is an Iranian surname; the Arabic name equivalent would be spelled as Majid. It means "noble", "glorious", and "magnificent".
Ismail is an Arabic given name/middle name/surname and patronymic, that literally translates to "heard by God". It's also the name of Ibrahim(Abraham)'s son.
Headcanons:
He's a very self-assured little guy, as the only male sibling to four sisters he grew up spoiled and pampered.
Scaring(courting?) girls with the little animals he catches in the desert is his biggest hobby and simultaneously his sisters' biggest pet peeve. They tried everything in their power to stop the ever-increasing toll of his victims but to no avail.
"Why can't you impress girls like a normal person, Majidi?"
Fun fact: the moment he catches a fever his chaotic personality is gone, replaced by the meekest and quietest boy you have ever seen.
His mom knows it sounds bad out loud, but sometimes she wishes he'd get sick more often. It's just so nice to have a little quiet with five teenage children around from time to time.
He considers Zack, Rajab, Nasser, and Bjorn his best friends on the team. He doesn't really get along with Hassan, and even if he'd rather die than admit it, it's most likely due to a tiny, small, minuscule flicker of envy that burns in his gut whenever his teammate effortlessly charms the girls he tried to court(scare?) before.
Talal is an Arabic given name and surname that means "admirable" and "nice".
Hamad or Hamda is an Arabic given name and surname, meaning "to praise" or "one who praises", "much praising".
Headcanons:
Talal is too nice for his own good, always praising others and being kind even when people are not in return.
He's also a little bit of a chatterbox, never really stopping talking, but thank god he has an array of aunties who are more than willing to listen to his latest gossip. They're the ones who instilled in him the dream of entering the Middle East's best TV station.
He'd love to work for Al Jazeera since it's one of two main TV stations in his country and it's also pretty popular on an international level.
He bonded quickly with Sulai and Seiyd. Little Rajab is too nice not to like him and Adel's maternal uncle is one of the managing directors of Al Jazeera, so better to have him as a friend rather than as an enemy, right?
Hassan Ahmed <English Wiki> (Hasan Ahmed/Hassan Amed <alternative dub names>):
Hassan Ahmed
Hassan (also Hasan) is an Arabic given name that means "handsome" or "good", or "benefactor". As a surname, instead, Hassan may be Arabic, Irish, Scottish, or Jewish.
Ahmed which is the variant of the name/surname Ahmad, means "Highly Praised”.
Headcanons:
He is widely regarded as extremely handsome.
Throughout his life, he has benefited from an inherent advantage due to his looks (pretty privilege), receiving praise for even the most minor accomplishments. As an only child to a wealthy family, his birth was considered miraculous due to his mother's health-related issues. Consequently, he has been showered with affection and has developed an inflated sense of self-worth, perpetually reinforced by those around him.
He's kind of a narcissist, so he doesn't let people get too close if not solely on a superficial level.
The closest thing he has to a genuine friendship is with Adel; it's a relationship primarily based on mutual teasing and banter (which, according to Zack, borders on flirting 98% of the time, however, both parties disagree.).
Khalfan is primarily a male given name of Swahili origin that means "successor"
Jibril (also Djibril) is an Arabic variant of the name Gabriel (the archangel), therefore meaning "God is my strength", and a common Arabic given name and surname.
Headcanons:
Khalfan can be described as a greatly resilient person, always reluctant to give up what he believes is important.
He comes from a family of artists: his grandad was a famous painter and his daughter, Khalfan's mother, inherited his great talent.
He was not exactly gifted with the same artistic abilities, but he knows a great deal about many art forms and is well aware of their historical and social significance.
He aspires to work in art-related fields and is supported in this dream by his family, particularly his proud grandfather who is moved by his grandson's passion for preserving artworks.
His closest buddies are Musa and Yusuf. He enjoys the latter just a smidge more due to their shared love for tradition and Qatari/Arab culture.
Rajab is an Arabic given name that corresponds to the seventh month of the Islamic calendar which is known as Rajab.
Ismail (see Majid Ismail).
Headcanons:
His parents are very religious, hence, his upbringing was very religion-oriented.
They don't support his passion for writing, especially because some of the social issues he's keen on featuring in his novel stem from exasperated and distorted religious beliefs, and his parents find it very hard to critique such things.
Furthermore, due to his youthful appearance, individuals in his environment such as teachers and family friends tend to dismiss his ideas, believing him to be too young to comprehend the depth of his convictions. Consequently, Rajab frequently feels mocked and ridiculed for his beliefs, leading to a significant struggle with not being taken seriously.
He finds Majid funny and he also gets along well with Zack and Talal. He looks up to Adel and Nasser because he deems the first to be very intelligent and mature for his age and the latter to be reliable and confident.
There are two different names that are transliterated as 'Adel' and which one it is depends on the pronunciation:
1.) Adel [ˈɑːdəl] (Germanic given name of ancient European origins, evolved from north-western languages; meaning "noble" "nobility" "elite".)
2.) Adil [ˈʕaːdɪl, ˈʕæːdel] (often transliterated as Adel, is a variation itself of the name Adel; an Arabic male name (common in the Muslim world) that originates from the word "Adl", meaning "fairness" and "justice".)
Siddiq/Siddique is an Islamic term and is given as an honorific title. It means "truthful" and it denotes a descendance from someone named Siddique.
Headcanons:
As his name suggests, Adel has a strong sense of justice paired with (sometimes brutal) honesty.
Even though he comes from a horrendously rich and privileged family, social injustices have always been acknowledged in his family as his father and mother are both very intellectual and intelligent people.
For him, it's important to use the privilege he was born with to fight against inequality and ensure that everyone has equal opportunities in life, and this topic will often come up in his movie productions.
His closest friends are Sulai (best friend) and Hassan. Zack is the equivalent of a human mosquito, but he's passable (when he shuts up). He also respects Rajab a lot for his desire to write about their country's social issues and wishes to be less intimidating in his younger eyes.
I also wanted to mention Adel's self-esteem.
Although he's very confident and capable of standing up for himself, he struggles with his physical appearance. Ever since he was a child, he realized that his darker skin and facial features did not conform to the standard of beauty in his country (I like to think he has Somali ancestry somewhere in his family, perhaps his father's grandad?). (Edit: His father is of Somali descent through Adel's paternal grandmother who is fully Somali).
Other children had lighter skin, straighter hair, and less full lips, which made him feel different. Additionally, when he started playing football at a national level, he experienced subtle racism from his own people. Despite fitting in and looking rather Qatari, he didn't feel equally accepted by the Qatari public, making him feel like he didn't fully belong.
That explains his attachment to wearing oversized and dark sunglasses as they somewhat mask his ethnic features and give him an advantage when controlling emotions.
In other words, they help him feel less self-conscious.
