OS   ♡ No, no, you’re drawing them all WRONG!

OS   ♡ Here. I’ve done this with eyeliner pen, so it shouldn’t be too -

Before you can swipe the pencil, he maneuvers it out of your reach.

CE   I was under the impression that I was the artist here.

CE   Hands off.

OS   ♡ Artists LOVE criticism! Especially with big-name clients!

CE   When were you ever my client?

OS   ♡ Since… uh…

OS   ♡ I’m a big-name person in general!

CE   Stop being so entitled.

CE   If you have notes, then you can just speak them.

As much as you weave around him, he doesn’t budge. So you huff and sit back down, your arms crossed.

OS   ♡ Fine.

OS   ♡ You want proof? Here!

You pull out your smartphone and show him the proper reference images from the original show. Saved and secured in your photo gallery, of course.

OS   ♡ Their eyes are wrong.

OS   ♡ See? They have the big lines right here, and big eyelashes, too.

OS   ♡ The details in the eyes are really important!

OS   ♡ Not only for THIS character. It's how the whole show looks!

CE   The show's art style?

OS   ♡ Yeah!

OS   ♡ So, I'm just saying...

OS   ♡ It's, like, more accurate this way.

He studies the phone. Then, after a thoughtful moment, he wearily gazes off into the distance.

CE   Much too flowery.

You nearly throw the phone at him.

OS   ♡ TOO FLOWERY?!

OS   ♡ There is LITERALLY no such thing!

OS   ♡ IT'S BEAUTIFUL!!!

CE   It has its merits.

CE   That doesn't mean I'm going to indulge in the same... ideas.

OS   ♡ A good tribute piece understands the strength of its perspiration!

CE   (sniff) Do you mean 'inspiration'?

CE   And 'strength' is subjective.

CE   It's an attribute, certainly. A creative choice.

CE   But that doesn’t mean I have to mimic them.

CE   That goes against what I'm trying to do.

Ciel puts down his pencil and angles the sketchbook towards you with both hands.

CE   The point of the piece isn’t to draw attention to the eyes.

CE   People naturally look that way, anyway.

CE   It’s about their bodies. How they’re interacting with each other.

CE   If I put too much detail in the eyes, it’s as if...

CE   I'm distributing the focus improperly.

OS   ♡ Huh?

OS   ♡ I don't... but eyes are important!

CE   The eyes are just a small piece of the whole picture.

CE   So, by making them relatively plain, the line of action follows the body instead.

CE   Doesn’t it flow more realistically this way?

CE   Anatomy and posing are more interesting in making up the whole, anyway.

You squint. You can admit that his grasp on the human form is much, much better than anything you can hope to achieve. The embrace almost looks as if the characters are melting into one form. It keeps your gaze captivated and moving around the page.

But still.

OS   ♡ …can you at least add a little eyeliner?

CE   ...

Ciel goes over the characters’ upper eyelid exactly once, thickening it with a hair of graphite.

OS   ♡ See? I can give good advice.

CE   Oswald.

OS   ♡ Yeah?

CE   You’re pretty shallow.

Your jaw drops.

OS   ♡ What?! I’m not!

CE   You are.

OS   ♡ I’m not!!

CE   It's almost impressive how ridiculous your standards are.

OS   ♡ I have very REASONABLE wants!!!

CE   You can justify it to yourself all you want.

CE   You say you care about romance, relationships, and interpersonal feelings,

CE   But you can't enjoy it unless it's between idealized beauties.

CE   People presented with looks above all else.

CE   That’s the most shallow you can get.

OS   ♡ Wow.

OS   ♡ That is SO untrue.

OS   ♡ First off - I think ugly people deserve love, too.

You give him a meaningful pat on the shoulder. His frown doesn’t budge.

OS   ♡ Second! So what if I care that they look good?

OS   ♡ Don't act like you don't draw with the same goal in mind.

CE   My definition of 'beauty' is much more broad.

OS   ♡ But you're STILL drawing based off of your type!

OS   ♡ Like those weird statue girls you make.

CE   They're not weird.

CE   I'm just trying to grasp the anatomy.

OS   ♡ Oh yeah. I know you'd LOVE to get your hands on them.

CE   N-no I wouldn't.

They are weird, if only because they're always wearing something he made, making them more like mannequins than scultpures. Nudity is nothing to be embarassed of, you've told him. You'd actually appreciate the artistic value if there was more of it. Unfortunately, he gets flustered whenever the subject comes up.

CE   Do you even have another argument after this?

OS   ♡ 'Course I do.

OS   ♡ Fourth - wait, was it four? How many have I said?

CE   Half a meaningful point, so far.

OS   ♡ Fourth! It’s part of what makes them a match.

OS   ♡ It’s the aes... asthe...

OS   ♡ It’s the chemistry of looking good together!

OS   ♡ Making matches, relationship stuff... this is an art, too.

CE   Right.

CE   Where is your gallery, then?

OS   ♡ Look around! Who’s the cutest couple here?

He takes in his surroundings.

CE   By process of elimination… us?

OS   ♡ Of course, it’s… wait, you - what? Huh?

He gestures at the empty classroom. You take an end of your cape and hit him on the head with it.

OS   ♡ Not LITERALLY look right now, Snow-for-brains.

OS   ♡ I meant, think about an awesome couple in our grade. You can do that, right?

OS   ♡ You have SOME idea on the romantic goings-on at this school, right?

CE   …

OS   ♡ Seriously? Not at all?

CE   You're the only person I know who cares about these things.

CE   I think that makes you the outlier.

OS   ♡ Ugh. You’re impossible!!

You clutch your chest and dramatically splay out onto the desk. Luckily, your outfit makes the landing a soft one. Ciel watches you, then flips over a page and starts doodling. You wiggle around for a bit in faux-distress before sighing.

OS   ♡ You’re lucky, you know.

OS   ♡ Not everyone gets to know my deep, dark, twisted secret.

CE   That you’re shallow?

OS   ♡ No.

CE   That you can't count?

OS   ♡ No!!

OS   ♡ That I’m really, REALLY into this show!

OS   ♡ Especially those two… I LIVE for those two.

CE   Really? I don't see how this is different from what you openly enjoy.

OS   ♡ You wouldn't. You have the social skills of a mothball.

CE   (sniff) I'm social.

OS   ♡ Point is, I'm doing you an honor.

OS   ♡ So, you should be, like, grateful and stuff.

OS   ♡ Since I’m willing to hang out with you and talk about this.

OS   ♡ Or whatever.

Ciel doesn’t speak. He just picks up his sketchbook and tilts it towards you again.

He's never seen your eyes. Few people have, and your opaque sunglasses make sure of that. What he's drawn isn't close to what they look like. They don't have their wonderfully long eyelashes or their delightful shine. They're honestly quite plain.

For some reason, that doesn't bother you.