Shortly after Battle of Amphipolis, I illustrated another #Xena Virtual Season  ep by the same author: Truth or Dare, which explored Gabrielle’s younger days. I changed my style & added color this time. This scene shows a 12 year old Gab meeting a traveling bard, Thea, in her 30s who encourages Gab to believe in herself & her dreams.

My task was to portray a bard who exuded confidence & fearless independence, qualities that Gab herself would demonstrate in #Xena’s pilot ep. I don’t remember if I based Thea on an actress, or just tried to summon those qualities & that’s what I ended up with. She’s described as blond, but red-gold hair seemed right. To me, this looks more like an animation cell, than a comic book panel.