Chapter 2 page 14 took me two weeks to make. In part because I started a new job that consumes a lot of time and energy and in part because I had a horrible bout of depression. I have bipolar II and it happens. I recently had a med change that messed things up pretty bad and I’m still recovering from it.
I include themes of mental health in the comic, although it’s going to take a while to get there. Drexel has PTSD including some depression that leads to suicidal ideation. I don’t depict it, but he mentions he has thoughts of not wanting to live. He also has panic attacks.
Mira falls into the Sad Clown trope. Things at home were bad so she’s just plucky comic relief to cope. She’s very slow to reveal her backstory so I’m going to leave it sort of vague for now.
I’m really happy with how Drexel’s eye turned out. He’s thinking of burning Resultum so I added fire to his eye. It took 2 or 3 layers.
His eyelashes? I had to draw those bastards at least three times. Why is his sad eye always his left? I don’t know.
Drexel explains later more of his intents and reasoning for casing the spell that destroyed Resultum. He also deals with a lot of guilt for it. Resolving that guilt and other traumas is the main theme of the story.
Mira knows more than she’s letting on. How does she know so much about Drexel? I can’t tell you until chapter 3.
Remember from “In which Drexel meets Mira” that Mira doesn’t want to work for royalty. She’s not antagonizing him. She’s being a little too frank in asking for his reasoning of living alone in a small town that doesn’t pay well and gives him dirty looks.
She gets a little cocky when she asks if he would work for a nobleman if they were to hire Drexel. Drexel has no desire to play politics anymore. He’s reasoned that if one dog bites, they all bite. I sort of alluded to a young Drexel in a panel, but it could be anyone, right?
The last page was tricky but sort of fun. Mira asks Drexel if he would ever hurt her. She gets these moments of asking questions in a round about way and appears sad for a moment, but Drexel never pushes. Mira reveals her past much later and Drexel pokes at it in the meantime.
I have Drexel sort of change the subject for a few reasons. First, he doesn’t want to offend her. He’s afraid to ask. Second, he’s lived alone for 20 years, he has no idea how to approach it. He recognizes it’s a tricky subject and avoids it.
There’s a Christmas page? I suppose so…
Drexel’s humility and secrecy towards his abilities reappears. He’s very indifferent about it. Sure I have all this power, but what good am I going to do?