While discussing with  tmp999, I told him about an early piece I've done. He was intrigued. Having toyed with the idea of uploading it long before that, I said to myself "Why not?".

The piece was made around 2009, showcasing the initial relationship between Mirage and my then nameless OC Asael out of my fanfiction, both of them together in a sketch for the first time, hence the title.

After drawing this, I knew that changes had to be made for future works:
-Asael was about done from the get-go. A bit of tweaking in the snout, haircut and an outfit fit for a slave and he was good to go. I drew the traditional Egyptian garb to further cement his likeness to Anubian jackals. Back then I didn't know how to draw those under-arm muscles, so I just winged it. They still give me trouble today. Given that Asael generally has his arms and chest uncovered, drawing him has helped me improve in male anatomy.

-Mirage was done using all the puny pics I could find from the show as reference. We all know her art style was inconsistent in some of her episodes. It happens, even in anime. This is the drawing that convinced me to develop my design for Mirage:
a) while there are people with waists that narrow, I decided to give her a more realistic body to make her less big-headed; hence the wider hips and buttocks.
b) a slightly reworked face, combining some of her more sleeker variations and toning down the cheekbones and that Disney feline jawline a tad.
c) give her crown a proper cobra.


I kinda miss the accidental bluish hue that my other scanner gives.