Updates in Growing Harmony

Some years ago, someone offered me a pearl of wisdom that I've carried with me ever since. Unfortunately, I don't know who exactly it was that passed it along to me, but it went something like this:

In our lives, we're always juggling a variety of responsibilities.

There are matters of work, of friends, and family. There are dreams and goals we strive for, and passions we crave. There are pets, bills, and mundane responsibilities, through to concerns for the health and well-being of both yourself and those you love.

Human as we are, we can only juggle so many of these responsibilities at once, and as we grow, we must learn to differentiate which are made of rubber, and that we can let falter and bounce, and which are like fragile glass that we ought to focus on, because they are at risk of cracking wide and shattering if they chance to drop.

At the time, the metaphor seemed a bit convoluted to me, the ultimate multitasker. I wanted to keep everything in play at all times, but truth to be told, it can get to be exhausting, especially when certain things truly do and should require more attention than others.

Health and family are two of these things that I've tried to make sure I maintain a steady focus on, as well as making sure that I make time for the wonderful people in my life, rather than giving away time to people who are prone to unnecessary or self-inflicted drama or insist on pulling others down. Life is too short to get caught up in those sorts of things, and you only have so many hours in the day, so I've founds it's important to make them count.

Health Stuff

Part of my way of doing this is to make sure that I'm doing what I can to stay healthy and make changes to improve things in that regard. This has meant a better diet overall (including more juicing), and trying to make sure my sleep schedule is a bit more regular (and earlier). I can safely say that both of these changes have made a lot of positive impact overall, and I'm eager to keep on trucking, and see how far I can take things. Health truly is important to me, so it's been sort of refreshing giving it the attention it deserves in recent years. :)  I can't recommend highly enough that others consider prioritizing it as well.

My Iced Tea Maker, Juicer, and Infuser

Moving

The last few weeks (and even the upcoming ones) really seem like there's too much to cram in at once!

Between my usual work and my full-time job, I also spent a sizable amount of time hunting for a larger place to live, which for anyone that's done a lot of moving, knows it's a job all unto itself. ;) A sizable reason for the lack of updates from me was actually because I felt that I needed to make sure that I was able to secure a great new place to live, and thankfully by the time I'm writing this, all the boxes have been moved and it's time to start unpacking! While it will still be a little while yet until things are all unpacked and sorted out, it's nice to feel like things are starting to settle into a pleasant routine once again, with some great new beats along the way (such as the addition of a lawn and the beginnings of a garden all my own!).

Conventions and Festivals

A couple months ago I had the pleasure of again attending Lightning in a Bottle, followed-up by San Diego Comic Con the following week! These two events couldn't be more different than one another, but both felt really good on the soul, not to mention Monsterpalooza some weeks before!

Monsterpalooza... please never change.

Lightning in a Bottle

For those of you unfamiliar with Lightning in a Bottle, it's sort of a mix of a music festival, art and performance festival, and a bunch of sort of healthy-living "hippie" stuff mixed in. It's a fantastic festival, and it has a really wholesome and approachable vibe to it. You can listen to music, dance, learn about healthy living, buy handmade clothing, eat exotic and ultra-healthy natural foods, listen to lectures, or even just lay out in a big tarp and just.. be. I get an incredible amount of peace from attending this event, so I was really thrilled to be able to make time for it this year and just breathe in all the good vibes from it.

So very peaceful and enlightening!

Giant Connect 4, thrumming beats, and huge sprinklers to dance around in? Don't mind if I do!

Relaxing and letting my mind drift on a downright GORGEOUS day.

San Diego Comic Con

San Diego Comic Con the following week was a very different beast.  It remains one of my favorite conventions, and the sheer variety of things to do, panels to see, and folks to geek out with is just awesome. Movies, books, comics, games, TV, cards, collectables, art: it's all here in all sorts of wonderful and inspiring forms, and the panels were just a rush of passion and inspiration. I left the con inspired and touched by just how awesome my group of friends is, but unfortunately I also left the con with a push to find a new place to live, so my creativity has sort of been treading water for the last two months or so waiting to be unleashed. It's not forgotten in the least, it's just nestled in a corner waiting for its chance to get back out.

If you didn't already, you now know someone who is one of those
"crazies" that gets up in the crazy morning hours for exclusive panels.
This is the line for Hall H about 8 hours in.

Here be dragons!

This photo... sort of defines that which is Comic Con.

Such sweet loot!

Of Writing and Art ... and Monarchs

If you hadn't already guessed, the last two months haven't been very productive for me in a creative sense. I could talk your ear off about all the boxes I packed and art supplies I've sorted-out and how I've been able to turn the dead shambles of a lawn lush to the point that we had 12 monarch caterpillars munching on some fresh milkweed, but in terms of art and writing... not so much.  I've worked on a few things under NDA I can't yet show here, but as far as my own stuff, I hope to get rolling on that in short order.  Where writing is concerned: there's been a bit of that to be sure, but I have a certain story point I'm still trying to work my way through, so even that's been delayed a bit (not having a computer hooked-up for about two weeks didn't help though, I tell you what).

I counted 12 caterpillars in all at one point!

 

So beautiful!

I'm also trying to figure out what I want to tackle next artistically. I have about a dozen "unfinished" or "WIP" pieces I want to finish eventually, but I also have some ideas for some new things, so we'll have to see!

In the meantime, here's a minor update on my gryphon model from late June (oh how time flies!):

Me at dinnertime - "Man, I can't wait to get home and do some writing."

Me at midnight - ".....well, that wasn't writing."

It's coming along, but it's tricky making those front paws look something between avian, feline, and dexterous/human. I'm still trying to figure out how much of each is mixed in there.

I'm still not altogether sure what I want to do about the wings and all those feathers. Talk about intimidating!

It was also a treat to see this huge older piece of mine all masterpiece-framed above my mother's piano. It brings back a lot of memories for me, and was one of my more "unique" self-portraits.

40 x 30 inches (which is HUGE for me).

Dream Spirit - Old Art - Completed on February 3, 2006 [More Info]

In Conclusion

That said, I hope you're all doing well, and I look forward to getting back in the groove with these updates. :)

Of Hummingbirds and Memories: The Art and Legacy of Caroline Muchmore

I actually had another blog planned for this week, but after doing some thinking, I realize that writing all this out and sharing it with you all is infinitely much more important to me.

"The Lightbearer" - Completed on July 7th, 2012

I lost a few people that were dear to me last year or so in succession, and one of them was a fellow artist, and nature and bird enthusiast named Caroline Muchmore, who passed away from Cystic Fibrosis last July. She was 26 years young.

We all have people that touch our lives and leave a lasting impression, and Caroline was certainly one of those people for me. She was dear friend and inspiration to me, and was actually the first person I told about the surreal hummingbird experience I had shortly before my maternal grandmother's passing.

The Hummingbird Experience

My mother and I are incredibly close, and this closeness carried over into our longstanding love for my maternal grandmother. My grandmother and I share the same birthday, and truly she and I were in so many ways cut from the same stone. Over the years, her health began to fail her, but her spirit stayed strong, and even up to her last month with us, a simple tune or familiar melody could send her “booping,” singing, and smiling as she stood with her walker. Her smile and love could light up a room.

A Photo of My Maternal Grandmother, Gertrude Taylor

As my grandmother’s health worsened, I went from visiting with she and my mother on an almost-weekly basis to staying with them at length and using up every drop of my stored vacation time to support them. To this day, I would not have done it differently, and my time could not have been better spent.

In any case, on the days leading up to her passing, I, as many people in my position probably have done, continued to look for signs that would tell us how much time she had left. To reassure my mother and I and let us know it was okay, much as we spent countless hours at her bed-side talking with her, reassuring her, reading books to her, singing to her, listening to music with her, we still were not sure how much longer she would be with us. At one point, she had a burst of incredible clarity and alertness that she’d seemed to save up for me that I will keep with me the rest of my life, and which utterly, truly made me believe that even if those close to passing seem unresponsive, they can still hear us, but I digress.

On the morning before my grandmother’s passing, my mother and I took a quick break to have some breakfast while someone from hospice watched over my grandmother in her room at home. The last few days had been utterly stormy, rainy, and miserable, and it was my mother that pointed out that the storm had broken and it was warm and clear outside. She suggested we step outside into the garden for a quick breather, and I agreed that the fresh air could do us some good.

When we stepped out, however, my mother motioned for me to be still, and pointed to a hummingbird some five feet away or so that was behaving quite peculiarly. Now, in Southern California hummingbirds aren’t exceptionally rare, but they also aren’t very common in that area, and there really weren’t any flowers around, so it was strange it was there to begin with.

The hummingbird was hovering an inch or two from the ground, and it was moving back and forth in odd patterns that seemed to form a line along the screen door inside which my grandmother was resting. It would pause, fly along it, come near to my mom and I, then go back, over and over, sometimes coming within inches of us, and we watched on with awe.

This went on for over four breathtaking minutes.

Had I not thought to record some of it on my iPhone (which I realized midway through was in my hand), I wouldn’t have believed it. But it went on and on. The little hummingbird hovering, then zooming just over the grass, parallel to the screen door, then over or around my mom and I, higher-up and eye-level, and then back again.

It was an incredibly surreal experience.

I have shown the video I took to a number of avid bird-watching friends including Caroline, and none of them could explain it either. It just… was. And I’m sure there are a lot of possible explanations out there: might it have been my grandfather in spirit? An angel? Simply a sign meant only for my mother and I? I know in some Native American mythologies they are symbols of resurrection or messengers of the dead, but I don’t pretend to know what it was or how it came to be there, other than to know it was powerful. And even as my uncle unknowingly hollered to us from inside and the hummingbird flew off, I just knew it was going to be okay. That my grandmother was going to be okay, and my mother and I were going to be okay.

Hummingbird Memory Mug

A couple weeks after my grandmother’s passing, my mother and I went to a pottery-painting studio called Color Me Mine to relax from everything (including all the funeral arrangements) and paint some ceramics together. It was the first time we’d done this in probably 15+ years. But I already knew what I wanted to paint.

"Hummingbird Memory Mug" - Completed on April 1st, 2012

I ended up later giving this mug to my mother for Mother’s Day, and though it didn't turn out quite as I intended, it really means a lot to me. I tried to paint the colors similar to how I remembered them, and opted to also put the blades of around the bottom to try and recapture the moment I’ll forever have in my mind, and heart.

Memories of Caroline

In some ways, this is one of the hardest things I've ever had to write, simply for the fact that I want so desperately to share Caroline’s legacy with the world, but attempting to do so feels like an incredibly intimidating prospect. It's impossible to capture someone adequately in a few paragraphs and choice words, but I'll try my best.

The Late Caroline Muchmore's DA ID Photo

This piece was done as a gift to me by the late Caroline Muchmore on April 27, 2004, and on this evening, I want to help keep her legacy alive by telling you a bit about her impact on me and sharing some of her art and beautiful galleries with you.

"Heart of the Redtail" - by Caroline Muchmore - Completed on April 27th, 2004

So much of what we do touches others. Whether it is through our words, art, smiles, or kind gestures -- the possibility and potential is all there, but it's up to each of us to rise to the occasion and try to realize it in our own lives. I had the pleasure of knowing Caroline for around fifteen years, and it was amazing growing beside her as an artist. When some people would implore for me to draw the latest popular trends and tropes, she was one of those people who continued to encourage and inspire me to draw and create pieces that meant something to me. And her work inspired me SO much too.

Here’s a small selection of some of her art which spans way back to 2002. You can find her galleries on DeviantART and the Yerf Archives. I've also uploaded about eighty pieces of her art to this Google+ Gallery to make sure they have yet another location to reside for posterity, and aren't lost to the sometimes fickle winds of the internet.

  

 

  

   

 

In addition to supporting me and giving me heartfelt and much-needed advice during some incredibly hard times (such as when my grandmother was approaching her time to pass on), she was an authentic person during her own rough times, and she weathered the storms with grace and strength, and kept her humor all the while. 

"The Birth of Hummingbirds" - by Caroline Muchmore - 2008 

While Caroline and I never played World of Warcraft together on the same server or guild, I'd frequently hear stories of her exploits in Azeroth. Even after her identical sister, Grace (also a WoW player), passed away in October of 2010 from the same disease, Caroline enjoyed stepping foot back into Azeroth on as regular a basis as her hospital visits and internet connection could support. Like so many people out there with disabilities, WoW was a place where she could find relief. Though she eventually had to give up raiding due to the onset of the later stages of the disease, she continued to enjoy playing the game when she could, chatting with friends and trying for achievements and mounts such as the Raven Lord and Timeless Proto-Drake up to the very end (she managed to get both). Despite being in and out of the hospital, her awesome guild-mates also helped her finish her legendary weapon questline: Dragonwrath, Tarecgosa's Rest.

Caroline on her Raven Lord Mount

I am so incredibly thankful for the time we had, even if it didn't feel like nearly long enough. While it brings sadness to think that I won't get to babble with her more in this life, or see new art updates from her, but I am also so, so happy that she can finally breathe easy. I think after one-too-many episodes of Star Trek I always thought there might be some blessed cure to save she and her sister from Cystic Fibrosis at the last minute. But that was simply not to be.

The Lightbearer

When I found out Caroline's health had started to fail her at last, I began work on this piece, but only completed it after her passing. As such, it was a strangely haunting sort of mourning and art therapy for me. As is the case with most art, the scan of this piece truly does not do this piece justice, especially since there are a lot of iridescent inks mixed in there that make parts of it truly shimmer.

"The Lightbearer" - Wip _ ACEO Sketch - June 30th, 2012

"The Lightbearer" - WIP - Linework - July 2nd, 2012

"The Lightbearer" - WIP - First Paint - July 6th, 2012

I completed this piece on July 7th of 2012. It is a small ACEO-sized (2.5 x 3.5 inches) gift for the late Caroline Muchmore and her husband.

"The Lightbearer" - Completed on July 7th, 2012

Our Living Legacy

But like anyone else, living or dead: Caroline’s legacy doesn't really end there.

Her passing actually made me rethink and reevaluate quite a lot in my own life. While it makes me very sad that I will never again be treated to see new art done by her hand, in a way, part of her legacy and art lives on through everyone she touched. While I can't point to how deep that influence lays between some of her art and my own, I know it's there, and in a way when I do certain things in my art (ornate, jeweled birds high among them), I'd like to think that, in a way, it perpetuates some of this unique vision and artistry, and that whoever sees her art might be similarly touched. So in a way: her legacy lives on with all of us. And by proxy, everything we create and the people we inspire, well, in a way we live on through them too.

So, what will your legacy be?


Fly free with your sister, Caroline. And thank you, for everything.


If you feel so inclined, please share this blog and consider becoming an organ donor, or donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to help the many other "Carolines" and "Graces" out there.

[Short Story] The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Edition

For further information on the art and story seen here, please refer to this in-depth blog entry.

This is a standalone short story and is not intended to take place in the same world as my main series.

The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Edition

"The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Update" - Originally Created on September 12, 2006
Revisited on June 22, 2013

"The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Update" - Originally Created on September 12, 2006
Revisited on June 22, 2013

I realized when I did this that I couldn't really get the story across between the two
 because of the massive difference in scale between the dragon and the Princess,
but hopefully the magic in the tower hints that something magical is taking place. :)

"The Princess and the Dragon" - By K. LeCrone 

Short Story Written on October 1, 2005

Revisited on June 22, 2013

Long ago, there lived a Princess, whose love to one of the castle guards was such legend that it was whispered about by both the royalty as well as the peasant-folk. While war loomed, however, the two knew they could never wed, but each worked as they might to bring an end to the fighting: he with his sword, and she, with her wise words which she shared with the king, and all who would listen.

When the war grew closer, the brave Knight was called out more frequently to defend their homeland, but for each time he answered the call of his countrymen, he was away for longer and longer periods of time. Regardless of what dangers awaited him, each time before he left he would gently kiss his lady on the hand and tell her how he loved her. He would speak certainly of how he would always return, and that she would always and forever be the one he returned to. "That is a promise I swear to, Milady," he'd say. And every evening, as the light began to fade, the Princess would climb to the highest tower in the castle, and look out: just hoping to get a glance of her knight riding home. It was there, high above the rest of the world that she would softly sing a tune the two of their heart's shared, as if it might perchance call him home if he couldn't find his way.

Days turned to weeks, turned to months, and she would pray for his safety, and hope for the day when the two of them could be reunited once more. Without fail, every evening she made her way up the spiraling stairs to the highest tower of the castle and sang out her wishes to the far horizon for her brave knight.

One day, however, a sinking feeling set upon her heart, and though she knew not why, she was certain ill-fortune had come to her knight. Not a moonturn later, she saw a rider-less horse slowly approach the castle, and she knew for sure there would be no happy ending to their story.

She wept, as a mother for the loss of her child, and though many consoled her with well-intentioned words, none of their words could soothe the hollow ache she felt deep within.

Daylight faded and the vibrant colors of dusk transpired to night and yet she stayed awake against her will. But as the first stars of the evening peered into the night sky, she crept once more to the tallest tower of the castle, as if she might yet find peace there that she lacked in her heart.

Her tear-filled face looked out over the eerily-still horizon. Though she knew there would be no brave figure crossing the grassy plains to return to her, she began to softly sing the tune she'd carried so often for her Knight. She closed her eyes and let the music fill her. Her heart poured into every syllable, and though her voice cracked and faltered, she would not let the melody be contained within her breast until the final phrase had passed through her soft lips and carried into the waiting darkness. Only then did silence again greet her.

But then, without explanation, a warm breeze caught her face and somehow bid her to look skyward. Heaven itself opened up and turned before her, pouring out light and a peculiar sense of otherworldly peace unlike anything she'd ever seen or felt before. As it did, a strange, ancient music seemed to play on the wind in tune to the rhythm of her beating heart. Like a dream, the heavens began to shimmer and move as if they were churned to live. And, like a ghost, they took shape before her eyes. A massive dragon's face and form manifested before her and floated effortlessly, watching her. Its huge, flowing mane moved gently with the wind, and its iridescent scales twinkled lightly. In one smooth movement, it wrapped its strong tail around the castle, and calmly looked down to the Princess, and smiled.

"Dear Lady, I've traveled through the lands of the living and the dead to find you again. Your song called to me, and even after a cruel sword felled my body, the song shook me and awakened who I truly am. I have the soul of a dragon, of the noble race that loves deeply and protects truly. And as in my last life, I pledge to you in this one: I will keep you safe from harm and always be with you. And when old age comes to you after so many more great deeds on this Earth, I will be here still, and on that day you will join me in the clouds, for you have the soul of a noble dragon as well."

The Princess looked up at the dragon, and through a tear-stained face she smiled, and believed.

Revisiting "The Princess and the Dragon"

The Creative Time Machine

One of the constants I've learned over the years is that there are always new ideas to chase and old projects to revisit or continue. This is true for both my art and writing. I have projects that I consider complete, and plenty of others which remain in my own mind to have some degree of imperfection to them.

As the years roll by, it’s ever-more easy to become critical of them, to look back at old writing and cringe at its juvenile flaws, just as I sometimes page through old art and can see a wide range of inadequacies that seem blatant to my eye. This evolution is to be expected, certainly, but sometimes I find it difficult to appreciate some of my older work because the flaws seem to become more apparent to me with time, much like crackling bone set out in the sun to bake over the years and be exposed to the elements.

Amid trying to push my own art and writing forward, I still maintain a drive to selectively go back and “improve” certain old pieces. I don’t necessarily believe it’s always a good use of my time, and in many cases I've found that in trying to “rework” or “update” a truly ancient piece, I actually ends up losing something precious that was there to begin with.  But every now and then, I keep returning to an old piece and am tempted to try to draw out and improve whatever is innately nestled within.

This is one such piece, except in this rare case, it’s both art and writing intertwined.

"The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Update" - Revisited on June 22, 2013

Curious Metrics

Over the years, I've posted over 300 pieces of art on DeviantART alone, and aside from the pieces which won Daily Deviations, the one piece that has consistently attracted the most engagement from viewers is a piece of art and writing I did way back in 2005. It's extremely touching to me that so many people have enjoyed it, but it actually has a much deeper story.

The History of the Princess and the Dragon

Many years ago, way back in 2005, I sketched a lot of dragons. Saying a lot is probably putting it lightly, but it was a phase I’ll admit that was brought upon by the desire to combine two things I really adored: oriental dragons, and kudu horns. They were everywhere, nestled in sketchbooks and hidden along the ruled edges of my college notes. It was never the same dragon twice, and none were really “characters,” per say, they were simply fun experiments with design. In September, this fella popped up in my sketchbook at a mere 4 by 5 inches:

"Oriental Kudu Dragon Sketch" - Completed on September 20, 2005

And while not intentionally a homage, I recalled that a few years earlier in January 2003 (which for anyone reading this entry, is over ten years ago: yikes!), I realized I’d doodled a dragon in a strikingly similar pose:

"The Light of the Dance - Sketch" - Completed on January 1, 2003

"The Light of the Dance" - Completed on January 9, 2003

During that era, I didn't do much in the way of digital art, and that’s putting it lightly. Nearly all of my art from that period was traditional art, and the vast majority of that was photographed (poorly) rather than scanned. So when Emily Coleman hosted a contest to design our “dream sculpture” in 2005 my entry was a mish-mashing in Photoshop, certainly, but my intent behind the piece actually meant quite a lot to me, and what I wanted to do was to create a sense of scale between the dragon and the added castle and figure below.

"The Princess and the Dragon" - Completed on October 1, 2005

This tiny castle has faked perspective, with an emphasis on "fake."

I realize that figure really isn't to scale... >_>

Months later, my dear friend Jason actually commissioned Emily to create a sculpture based off of my art. It’s the first time someone had ever done something like this for me, and to see my 2D concept turned into a sculpture was just… incredible. It was like seeing a sketch come to life, and I just adore it!

"The Princess and the Dragon" by Emily Coleman - Completed in December 2005

"The Princess and the Dragon" by Emily Coleman - Completed in December 2005

Then, in 2006, I decided that I would try to digitally paint the original 2D art I'd submitted for the contest. I really had no idea what I was doing at the time, and I’d never really hunkered down on a piece in Photoshop before, but I gave it my best shot, and at the time I was generally really pleased with how it turned out.

"The Princess and the Dragon" - Completed on September 12, 2006

Over the years, I've had some nitpicks about it, and decided that this morning I’d take a couple hours and fix a few things on both the art and short story that had always bugged me so that I could share them with all of you.  I opted not to change either very much, because I didn't want to stray too far from the original versions. The story is intended to be a standalone piece.

The Princess and the Dragon Revisited

"The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Update" - Revisited on June 22, 2013

"The Princess and the Dragon - 2013 Update - Close- Up" - Revisited on June 22, 2013

I realized when I did this that I couldn't really get the story across between the two
 because of the massive difference in scale between the dragon and the Princess,
but hopefully the magic in the tower hints that something magical is taking place. :)

"The Princess and the Dragon" - By K. LeCrone 

Short Story Written on October 1, 2005

Revisited on June 22, 2013

Long ago, there lived a Princess, whose love to one of the castle guards was such legend that it was whispered about by both the royalty as well as the peasant-folk. While war loomed, however, the two knew they could never wed, but each worked as they might to bring an end to the fighting: he with his sword, and she, with her wise words which she shared with the king, and all who would listen.

When the war grew closer, the brave Knight was called out more frequently to defend their homeland, but for each time he answered the call of his countrymen, he was away for longer and longer periods of time. Regardless of what dangers awaited him, each time before he left he would gently kiss his lady on the hand and tell her how he loved her. He would speak certainly of how he would always return, and that she would always and forever been the one he returned to. "That is a promise I swear to, Milady," he'd say. And every evening, as the light began to fade, the Princess would climb to the highest tower in the castle, and look out: just hoping to get a glance of her knight riding home. It was there, high above the rest of the world that she would softly sing a tune the two of their heart's shared, as if it might perchance call him home if he couldn't find his way.

Days turned to weeks, turned to months, and she would pray for his safety, and hope for the day when the two of them could be reunited once more. Without fail, every evening she made her way up the spiraling stairs to the highest tower of the castle and sang out her wishes to the far horizon for her brave knight.

One day, however, a sinking feeling set upon her heart, and though she knew not why, she was certain ill-fortune had come to her knight. Not a moonturn later, she saw a rider-less horse slowly approach the castle, and she knew for sure there would be no happy ending to their story.

She wept, as a mother for the loss of her child, and though many consoled her with well-intentioned words, none of their words could soothe the hollow ache she felt deep within.

Daylight faded and the vibrant colors of dusk transpired to night and yet she stayed awake against her will. But as the first stars of the evening peered into the night sky, she crept once more to the tallest tower of the castle, as if she might yet find peace there that she lacked in her heart.

Her tear-filled face looked out over the eerily-still horizon. Though she knew there would be no brave figure crossing the grassy plains to return to her, she began to softly sing the tune she'd carried so often for her Knight. She closed her eyes and let the music fill her. Her heart poured into every syllable, and though her voice cracked and faltered, she would not let the melody be contained within her breast until the final phrase had passed through her soft lips and carried into the waiting darkness. Only then did silence again greet her.

But then, without explanation, a warm breeze caught her face and somehow bid her to look skyward. Heaven itself opened up and turned before her, pouring out light and a peculiar sense of otherworldly peace unlike anything she'd ever seen or felt before. As it did, a strange, ancient music seemed to play on the wind in tune to the rhythm of her beating heart. Like a dream, the heavens began to shimmer and move as if they were churned to live. And, like a ghost, they took shape before her eyes. A massive dragon's face and form manifested before her and floated effortlessly, watching her. Its huge, flowing mane moved gently with the wind, and its iridescent scales twinkled lightly. In one smooth movement, it wrapped its strong tail around the castle, and calmly looked down to the Princess, and smiled.

"Dear Lady, I've traveled through the lands of the living and the dead to find you again. Your song called to me, and even after a cruel sword felled my body, the song shook me and awakened who I truly am. I have the soul of a dragon, of the noble race that loves deeply and protects truly. And as in my last life, I pledge to you in this one: I will keep you safe from harm and always be with you. And when old age comes to you after so many more great deeds on this Earth, I will be here still, and on that day you will join me in the clouds, for you have the soul of a noble dragon as well."

The Princess looked up at the dragon, and through a tear-stained face she smiled, and believed.

The Princess and the Dragon Ten Years Later

This has been a journey in more ways than one, but it feels great sharing this art and story with a new audience. If you're interested in looking at the 2006 version of the art or short story, they are available here on DeviantART. There are also a wealth of questions I answered in the comments there, if you're curious about the inspirations for it.

I hope you enjoyed both the art, story, and their history!