Hellooo~ thought I'd drop by and visit my little work of art!
I pick up Scarf (oil on canvas, Saphi, 2024) and give her a good look over.
Oh what an excellent additions! A new little friend and a handy speech bubble. Hehe, how are you finding this little holiday?
I turn to hang up my coat and spot Rebecca in a little bit of a soggy state on the floor
Rebecca darling, what happened?!
I hurry over and whirl my coat around her, and begin helping her up and over to a comfy sofa in front of Scarf, rubbing your arms and shoulders to soothe and warm and dry her.
I wasn't gone for long darling, is everything ok?
🎨 Ah! I-it’s you! I… uh… what happened… I don’t… really remember… There was a kitsune, a-and then another kitsune, or, or was I a kitsune? I spilled some paint… um… I-I don’t know… O-oh, Scarf is talking…
🧣💬 “A kitsune showed up and turned Rebecca into a kitsune. Rebecca looked like she was freaking out a bit and then she fell. I couldn’t see her when she was on the ground, but a human came in, one I didn’t recognize, and went over to where she was. When they stood back up a few seconds later, they were a kitsune too. And now Rebecca’s a human, though I don’t know when that happened. There was a long period where she was out of my line of sight…
🎨 S-somehow that human turned into a kitsune… I was already a human by then, I think… but I’m not sure how that’s possible… shivers…
Mmm kitsune are tricksy things-
I dab at splotches of paint still on your cheeks, luscious fur growing and then waning on my hand as the paint runs off my skin, failing to gain purchase
Thank you for explaining Scarf, darling, you're a gem.
I kneel down in front of Scarf, pulling out a small bottle of varnish and a brush, tending the parts of her canvas that have dulled in the light a little. Rebecca's stuttering and tone hang on my heart a little
Are you ok, Rebecca?
🎨 I think I’m fine now, th-thank you… She blinks in confusion at the ephemeral changes cropping up briefly wherever the paint touches you… Surely that can’t be right, can it? Her vision’s still a bit blurry, so that’s probably all it is…
Scarf is lovely… Her friend too… I don’t know how you did that, but… it’s the most beautiful painting technique I think I’ve ever seen…
Could such a technique… exist inside me, too…?
I smile with a gentle but knowing warmth.
It is excellent, isn't it; turning cuties like Scarf into a work of art?
I bring Rebecca's hand in mine and onto my lap
It can absolutely exist inside you, and it appear in any form, not just painting. The heart of this magic is your intent.
I give Rebecca's hand a caring squeeze
I turned Scarf into a painting, not because I could, or because I wanted to exert control over her. I did it because I wanted to care for her and make her feel a bit special. Right now she's held in place by what feels like the softest and safetest hug all over, a weighted blanket without all the heat that just gets trapped underneath.
I give her hand one more squeeze
So with you, my intent is to give you a small taste, a bit of an experience so you can see how this magic can flourish in the right way.
I nod at Rebecca, a quick gesture to look down at our hands. My fingers had long ceased interlocking with Rebecca's as her hand was now that of a soft ragdoll's. A plush mitten with embroidered lines denoting her fingers.