So I started this new class called Narrative Illustration. This class focuses on character design and story. Which is great cause that is what I am looking into right now. We have to create an id and logo and a story to go along with it. My story is Toadz. I will give a synopsis below. I am super excited for this class. So lets get started.
Toadz
Be Your Own Witch
Amongst the sunny branches of the tallest tree of the dread forest sits Armide staring up at the clouds, she lazily picks out shapes of frogs and toads in the sky delaying her return to home. Back at home her mother, Maeva, kept putting on the pressure of choosing her alignment, or witch type, so that Armide would be an acceptable witch. Which, she was not. That is acceptable; she was actually described as an awkward witch. Her potions were potent but pink and her outfit was horrid but classy. She wasn’t your typical warty witch but neither a seductress type witch either. She was different. Each day her mother would try to entice her with entrails or potions to see what would peek her interest. Armide in turn shows her mother her own trick of transforming people to frogs, (which her mother just laughs at). Finally, Maeva gives up and sends Armide on an errand to go see her aunt, the fortune teller, to find out what Armide should be.
With her pet star toad, Renjii, in hand; Armide starts down the crooked road, which leads out of the dread forest to the local town where her aunt has a firm grip over the gullible peasants. She says hello to the werewolf as he tries to entice a young girl wearing a red coat with some flowers and continues on her way. At the run down village, in a hut lives the fortune teller witch, a perfect example of a true witch: crusty as her shack (nothing like Armide). The seer gives a crooked smile and gives a great act and show before she commands her glass ball to tell her the future. Armide doesn’t show much interest and the old witch disappointedly tells her that she must travel the four corners of the land Fée, meet with the great witches of the past and gain the advice from them. What type of answer is that ‘ask someone else’, annoyances? Armide decides instead of just asking for advice she will attempt to become each of their apprentices and learn to be a witch like them.
Finding these great witches of the past isn’t that hard, you just go to the most unpleasant location you can locate and at the heart is the witch. The problem is the peasants in between. One scenario she was confronted by a malicious group of peasants that were really after a man-made monster named franksten or something, but they were perfectly willing to change goals and go after Armide. This didn’t help Armide’s mood, they burned her broom and she was forced to curse the land with flies. Bwahaha, more food for the frogs!
She finally arrives at a candy cottage in the center of a confusingly twisted forest. The old witch was willing to listen to her plight and showed her the simplest ways to create glorious candies and goodies that Armide burns quite gracefully. Disgusted by Armide’s hopelessness and angered by the waste of good treats,(that and the smoke scared off some passing children) the old witch attempts to throw Armide into a pot of water to boil and eat her. But Renjii leaps into the face of the old witch and in the confusion and thrashing about the old witch tripes into the pot and gets boiled herself.
Armide leaves in a hurry and scoots past another passing fly infested group of peasants armed to the teeth with stakes and mumbling about vampires. She turns them into a bunch of toads for good measure. She soon arrives at a giant garden, with every plant one can dream of and a giant wall that surrounded everything, at the center was a sun tanned witch, Dame Gothel, gardening amongst some cabbage. The witch listens for a moment and says she can stay because the best witch is one that can garden. Armide lasts about a day when everything she touches starts to die or something goes wrong. With half her garden destroyed Gothel drags Armide to a tower and attempts to lock her in. But Renjii climbs on the nearest and only broom in the tower and Armide gets the hint and steals it in and flies to safety leaving Gothel alone and trapped in her own tower forced to watch as her garden is stripped bare by an expecting father.
This pattern continues with every witch Armide encounters. She accidentally breaks all the mirrors in a kingdom and trying to say sorry she makes an apple pie for the witch, I guess she was allergic. The snow queen’s palace is not flame resistant apparently and melts; that witch is lost in the river made from that large chunk of ice. (Note to self: do not make bon fires to call forth evil spirits in a palace of Ice.) Armide even tried to ask the Sea Witch but a passing fisherman snags her and she is put out on market before she can do anything to help.
“Well, that didn’t work very well,” Armide heads home trying to figure out her next move, but as she is on her way she is followed by angry peasants, literally hundreds of them are hunting after her. She loses most of them in the forest but she meets more problems as she gets home. Maeva is there waiting, she screams at Armide, and proceeds to curse her when other witches arrive. More witches don’t mean anything good, Armide is to be destroyed for the fact that she has defeated their great witch leaders. ‘Not only did you defame our great Witches but you continue to use that bizarre frog-curse on people.’ Screeched her mother. To make matters worse the lost peasants start showing up yelling for respite and vengeance.
In the calamity of shouts and cursing, Armide hears a soft croak coming from her toad. At least Renjii still loves me. Truly, Armide has always loved frogs too, they have always accepted her. That is probably the reason she created the spell of turning people into frogs. Her Spell! She looks around at the angry peasants and infuriated witches, and with a smile she waves her hand and in a flash and a thousand pops; she is surrounded by thousands of frogs. Her smile turns to laughter as she realizes she is the most powerful witch in the land. She is her own type of witch.
