Returning to No Applause, Only More of the Same

Chapter 62, Siblingship in Paint

Five minutes later and George was dressed up in a gaudy, dark blue thing that honestly might not have looked too bad on a handsome man. It really wasnt the kind of clothing that Kreig could appreciate on an aesthetic level. What were the little shiny buttons for? Why did he have a glittery top-hat? What tailor would stoop to this level?

Its not too modern, but, I assure you, I was the most popular guy at the prom, George said in all confidence, pulling out a cloth rose from Somewhere. Kreig really wasnt about to question any of this.

Someone else wasnt about to let his statement go unchallenged. -Really? Most popular? George, Ive got a photo of you that might prove otherwise, Sam teased, poking her head out of her room. She hadnt gone to bed. What a liar. Though, really, Ive gotta ask. Whatd you bring out your one suit for? Found a prom date after all these years?

-Hey, shut it! He doesnt need to know that! George shouted back, crossing his arms sternly. Besides, Ive got nothing better to wear. A man must always present his best side while having his portrait painted.

That got her attention. Oh? Is that-, is this-? Her face went through about five different expressions, beginning with pleasant surprise and ending with childish upset. Hey, how come I wasnt invited? I bet I could look fifteen times better on a canvas than he ever could!

Kreig stared at her strangely. Join us if youd like.

He didnt see why this was even a question. Fitting two people on a single canvas was as easy as a single one, although it did increase the time itd take him to complete it. As long as she wouldnt mind this, she could easily join. No issue there. In that sense, the only thing keeping him from getting straight to painting was Sam herself. After all, she just sort of stood there. Eyes slightly wide.

Is that an invitation? she asked. Kreig nodded. Of course it was an invitation, what else would it be? Oho? Really now? A competitive grin flashed across her face. Very well then! Watch me beat George out of the park as easily as a fly flies!

With that declaration of battle, she rushed back into her room. Going by her cackle and general demeanour, it was clear she was trying to out-dress her brother. Going by Kreigs lacking knowledge of these kinds of things, this might take a while. And so, after taking a peek at his brother and getting a sympathetic nod in turn, they went over to the living room. Together, they decided pretty quickly how theyd do this. Namely, George and Sam would sit on the couch while Kreig painted them, making sure not to get any paint on the carpet, even though Kreig assured George that he had cleaning skills that could clean such stains. George didnt trust him on that. A dirty carpet was a dirty carpet.

The star arrives! Sam shouted from down the hall.

Both Kreig and George peeked down the hall, getting a glance at just who they were looking at. She was remarkably well-dressed. With how unappealing George was dressed, it almost seemed like a miracle. She wore this ankle-length, frilly thing that shouldnt have complimented a hard woman like her in the least. Light yellow, poofy Somehow, despite it all, the colour didnt clash with neither her eyes nor her hair. It fit. Somehow.

Stunned, are you? Heh, I used to be really into dressmaking as a teen, so Ive always got one on hand! she said with a proud grin, just as George let out a deep sigh.

Since Kreig was already standing by his canvas and George was already sitting on the couch, it was just a matter of waving her over. She made a sound like a startled hamster and darted over to the couch, never missing her chance to do a little pirouette or movement to let her dress fly with the wind. When she finally planted herself on the couch, sporting a gleeful, lop-sided grin, Kreig was anxious to get started.

It was time. He had both his siblings sitting in front of him, George on the left and Sam on the right. George in that odd suit, legs crossed and hands resting freely on his lap. Sam in her proud dress, cupping her head in her right hand, still smiling.

Hed better get to it.

Since he didnt want to be a bother and force them to sit awake for too long, he painted quicker than usual, but with no less detail and care. Every brushstroke, every blotch of colour he added with care and momentum, placing it where it had to be for the express purpose of it being there. He transplanted reality into fiction, taking what there was, his brother and his sister, and transforming them into art.

And when that was done, when all the bases were covered, he moved on. His siblings were starting to get tired, but he did not. He had to hurry.

With all the care in the world, taking all the time to fully study every piece of his siblings features, from the faint freckles speckling Sams tanned face if you looked close enough, to the slight hunch to Georges back. He saw it, and he painted it. That night, he studied his siblings closer than he ever had. That night, he truly felt like an artist. A poet of the canvas, an author of the real. He placed emotion and life in their lives, animated them into existence, made them feel like humans.

And then He was done. It seemed. The painting was right there, starring his brother and sister as they were. As they felt in reality.

But something felt missing. Some little part of them, something he hadnt expressed.

...Yes, that was it. He had painted them as they felt. As they looked. Not how they were.

Adding this to an already finished painting felt like an impossible, daunting task.

But he did it. He saw his siblings, where they sat, and he saw their humanity. Something he had thought he himself had lost. Compassion, patience, loyalty. He believed he only had one of these. But here, in them, he saw all three. He saw it, and he put it on his brush, and he put it on the canvas. He took their virtues and placed it into the painting. He took their humanity and made it visible.

And there There it was.

His greatest work.

Artistry reached Rank V

Artistry (V)

Rank V: Evoke opinion

Rank IV: Evoke emotion

Rank III: Greater anatomy, perspective, shading

Rank II: Greater colour and design

Rank I: Stable hands, smoother lines