dedicating this to all my tma mutuals past and present
[ID: a digital drawing of jon holding a steaming cup of tea. jon looks tired, with a pensive expression on his face. he is a british-pakistani person with medium brown skin, close-cropped salt and pepper hair and a thick beard. he is wearing damaged red glasses, green nail polish, green plaid pyjama pants and a white shirt with the slogan “DO NOT BE AFRAID” in red bold letters. his skin is littered with small circular scars with larger scars running around his throat and one arm and his entire right hand. the cup he is holding has a floral pattern on it. end ID.]
I’m aware it’s a very personal feeling but sometimes it feels like nowadays you either Like Jon and Think he is a Good Person (and therefore Basira is Wrong and We Don’t Like Her) or we are not cool with Jon and what he did was irredeemable and he is always on thin ice (and therefore Basira was Right and We Adore her in Every Way)
so anyway
Basira forgetting to go back to the precinct in season 2 because she’s in the middle of a conversation with Jon about Vampires and Whether they’re Real or Not and Jon is making her listen to Trevor’s first statement and they’re being All Dark Humour about it and then Tim interrupts them and winks and tells them it’s five pm ‘and Martin’s starting to worry neither of you are going to make it out before the sun goes down’ and he grins suggestively and Jon gets red in the face and Basira pulls A FaceTM and Jon stammers his way into saying goodbye and Basira just. flees.
Basira giving her jacket to Jon after she saved him from Daisy, fingers taping nervously on her steering wheel, glancing at traumatized, determined Jon, all scarred and pale, and trying very hard to justify to herself what Daisy had almost done; thinking of Jon in her nightmares, and not knowing whether she hopes Daisy was wrong, or herself.
Jon apologizing to Basira after she gets stuck in the institute, and Basira being very ‘not your actual fault’ matter-of-fact about it, and asking him about those powers of his; Jon being a bit startled and taken aback but trying to explain. Basira going “okay, so what does that mean?” and Jon saying tiredly “I don’t know. Yet.” and he looks exhausted and still so human, and Basira’s nightmares are gone and she hears about Jon from Martin all the time, so she relaxes a bit and goes: “so i read this book –” and Jon blinks and says “oh?” and they get nerdy together again.
Basira who lost Daisy; who seems Melanie getting angrier and angrier every day, humming music; who sees Martin fading slowly in the background; Basira who’s got nobody left to be partners with. and sees a tower to defend, and only herself to trust.
Basira who looks at Jon, and he looks tired and sad and emotional, and dangerous. And she cares, but she can’t trust him. That doesn’t work like that anymore. She saw Jon’s closest friend walk out on him. She sees Jon with Breekon, as well. And she sees Jon who manages to do all the things she couldn’t do. Helping Melanie get better. Saving Daisy. But he does it using scary powers. (and the both of them, they’re different from the ones Basira had gotten to know; mean Melanie and rough Daisy; they’re both trying to be softer, and here is Basira, who gets tougher and tougher, because if they’re all gentle now, there needs to be someone who hardens.)
Jon who, despite all, is comfortable with Basira but in his most monstrous ways; because he knows – and maybe she does, too – that she’s touched by the same thing he is, even if it’s lighter for now. Jon who has seen Basira not blinking at Breekon, and at Melanie’s surgery, and who doesn’t ask for her trust anymore but wants to make himself useful, and isn’t that what they’ve always shared, knowledge? Who feels comfortable enough that he grabs a statement in front of her, and knows she’ll go with it. (or maybe who wants her to see; look, look what i can do.)
(Jon and Basira, who don’t know what the black sun will do to Jon; who knows it could be fatal. Jon who says “let me” and basira who says “okay”)
Basira who’s extra angry because 1. she didn’t see it in Jon, even with her guard’s up. 2. who let it happens once, willingly, and doesn’t know with the fact that there were others. 3. who clings to Daisy’s different, Daisy’s changed. 4. who is helpless about it, apart telling Jon to stop, apart looking for external causes with him, because if it’s not Jon, then she can fix it still, she can justify to herself caring for Jon still.
Basira gets too harsh, and Jon’s genuinely taken aback towards it. it’s not just that Basira doesn’t trust Jon anymore; it’s that Jon doesn’t trust Basira either, not anymore, not instinctively.
Basira who’s faced with the fact that she isn’t the protector of anything or anybody; that when Jon is in danger, he calls Daisy first, before her.
Jon who gets frustrated of Basira’s double standards; who knows exactly how much Basira knew and didn’t do when Daisy was full Murderer.
and despite all of that, Jon and Basira who have “anti-lonely sessions” with Daisy; Jon and Basira who bicker about guns; Jon and Basira who talk over each other’s about bouts of knowledge. Basira who covers for him, so he can go find Martin.
anyway, Jon did wrong things, Basira did wrong things, I adore them both.
As an apology for the sad jontent I posted a few days ago here’s some happy jontent instead. Here he is! Hydrated, unscrunkled, flourishing (and with a few years of therapy under his belt).
[ Perhaps the itch has always been the real me, and it was the happy, smiling Jane who called herself a witch and drank wine in the park when it was sunny. Maybe it was her who was the maddened illusion that hides the sick squirming reality of what I am. ]
(…..guys she drank WINE in the PARK when it was SUNNY……)
i saw a post or two about the idea of Jon and Daisy getting a flat together and i thought that was genius so expect another comic or two about them as roommates
i recently reached 1000 followers on instagram (and there’s quite a bunch of you here too!) and in celebration of that i wanted to do a little dtiys challenge!!
RULES
🌱change/simplify/add to the design however you like! you can take as many creative liberties as you’d like!
🌱all mediums are welcome!
🌱tag me in your post! i’ll reblog it within a few days at most, if i don’t there’s a chance i haven’t seen it and you can send me a DM!
DEADLINE & PRIZE
🌱the challenge will end on the 31st of march. i will randomly pick a winner, who will get one free illustration from me!
the magnus archives is one art piece that i truly will never find anything close to. Other podcasts are lovely, horror novels and movies and games are delightful, but the magnus archives truly feels like a lone category of storytelling to me. Because we have so little to work with as listeners, right from the beginning, and the crucial information we need for context is so artfully and casually woven into the story. As a listener, you interpret things your own way like with any storytelling media, but this specific sort of podcast is one that leaves it truly up to you. For me, when i listen to magnus, i’m able to truly feel like i’m listening to something authentic- that IS a real person, he really IS an academic recording these statements, and perhaps that authenticity comes from how little the listener gets to work with. You get voices telling stories written by others, while the people behind those voices have their own story going on through what bits and pieces of their lives are caught on tape- all up to you to interpret. You aren’t fed dialogue or backstory, you arent handed context and answers. Instead, you must listen intently, remember what you’ve heard, and immerse yourself in the story to truly understand it to some extent. TMA requires you to listen, truly listen, and find yourself apart of the story as the listener. Anyways i’m delerious from fever and riding a medication cocktail high so y’know, covid things
yo i decided to do @call-of-the-ocean‘s dtiys challenge bc i love their art v much and it is very cool and good and also, the world always needs more daisy content
okay FIRST OFF it’s so so nice to see these two being nice to each other, and helping each other build a happier relationship with their selves & their histories, and SECOND OFF thank you s4 Daisy for being vulnerable and honest and fallible and showing Jon & the other archive folks that recovery is so hard but so worth it, and THIRD OFF jeez y'all can we just hang out and let our blorbos be cute together for a lil bit?? They’ve earned it.
This is @call-of-the-ocean’s Draw This In Your Style!! Their art is so so beautiful, and they’re the absolute sweetest person and they’re so creative and smort and helpful and I’m just a big ol fan <3 <3 <3
hey, i’m sure you know this already, but i am sobbing. laying on the floor crying quietly because this is SO BEAUTIFUL !!! they look so happy and content and CUTE and i love your designs for both of them so much, daisy with her shaved and grown out hair and the tattoos/doodles you added and jon’s lil head tilt and UGH. sobs
Excuse me, @call-of-the-ocean, but this drawing right here: single-handedly kicked me in the throat and stole all my money! /j
But, for reals, I had fun with the piece and once I saw my dears, Jon and Daisy, I knew I had to at least attempt to complete this DTIYS! It fought me many times but it worked out in the end. Your piece is amazing and I hope you like this contribution to your DTIYS! Thanks!
ohhhh your style is so nice!! they look adorable ;-; i love the little doodles like the sun and animal head wahhh thank you for joining <33
