You're making me the dust of ye old Tumblr blog for this lol. This is all in reference to Artie's ref sheet btw.
Look at your girl, all grown up! I like the design of her plastron a lot, especially that elegant swirl on the upper chest. She’s angular like her father, but there is a hint of softness to her. Good choice of mask color too, it's a bright, vibrant almost fuchsia pink that compliments her father's blue.
I also like that her gear reflects Leo's pre-ninpo design, like her leg brace thingies. She's got his fanny pack too, which I'm willing to bet has a first aid kit in it. I can imagine Leo fussing over her having enough medical supplies on hand, because what if she gets hurt? Her father won't always be around to protect her, but having the kit means he'll always be there to patch her up.
What made you decide to give her a kunai as a weapon? Is it because it is a bladed weapon, but different from that of her father's/ uncles? A kunai is pretty versatile since it's both a dagger and a projectile. I wonder what her nimpo will be, and how she can use her kunai with it.
Kid-Artie and her little bunny ear hat are too cute. I wonder where she got that fashion statement from, especially with that blue hair tie…. hmm…
Ok, I'm done brain-rotting. This fic is sugary sweet and your art is just as wonderful. Keep on doing the thing!
This fic has revived both my AO3 and Tumblr accounts so I totally get it! I think the last time I was on Tumblr was in 2018 or so? That seems so long ago now!
I had a lot of fun designing Artie's future aesthetics. I was originally going to go with light pink for her mask but the more I got to know her character the more I realized she was far too extroverted for a more subtle color.
I decided on the kunai as her weapon early on when I was first playing around with ideas for her ninpo. Her ninpo has since changed as I've continued to develop the story and mess around with new elements, but the kunai just felt right for her. One thing I will say about future Artie is she is a huge history nerd and wants to know everything about (both) her dad's cultures.
I love the angst this fandom creates but I wanted something that was purely sweet too which is where all this came from. The sequel will be more hurt/comfort than just straight comfort, especially the early chapters, but still a lot of fluff in the future. I don't want to give too much away just yet, but I can say it will take about 3 years after the events of Solo Missions, so we will have a chance to see more of her personality. I'm also working on a 5+1 fic that may be even sweeter than Solo Missions so there is that to balance it out too!