#I don't know if it's actually bright enough for that but my colors aren't proper on my monitor

[teaspoonofdragons]

Sometime way back in like, July or something I think, I had a dream that I was looking for a Puyo Puyo anime on some streaming service but nothing came up when I initially looked it up but what DID come up was Guardians of the Galaxy for some reason so I let that play in the background while I kept looking and at some point Rocket turned to look at me through the screen and went “You seriously still haven’t found that thing yet? Y’know I’m willing to bet the reason we came up as a suggestion is ‘cause that Schezo guy n’ Groot both got that thing going on” to which the camera panned over to Groot who proceeded to open up. a lot of eyes. Just, everywhere, all over him. anyways I changed my mind and watched Gravity Falls the rest of the dream. I can’t get over the implication that 1. Rocket Raccoon vaguely knows Schezo (or at least knows of him) and 2. Schezo has more than one set of eyes I think of that last one especially a lot

[boringkate]

whats the secret of good self butt photography how do i capture there glory and not throw out my back

1) Get something to hold your phone. Dollarama (if you're canadian) has these like $4 goose neck phone clip things that you can clip onto a chair or whatever and are pretty great, but if you can spare a little more money (and you expect to use it enough to justify it) then get a proper tripod (I use a couple 60 inch amazon basics tripods, but it seems like they've gotten more expensive and other brands are probably no worse) and pair it with a screw on phone tripod mount (aliexpress has them for a couple dollars and you can even get rotating ones that'll let you film in portrait mode).

2) Use a free auto clicker app (I'm on android, but I assume ios has them too) to automatically tap the button to take a photo every 4 or 5 seconds. You're gonna end up with a lot of wasted photos where you're just getting into position, but that's fine (just delete em). I wildly prefer this over using a bluetooth remote because it keeps your hands free and something about not needing to choose to snap the photo makes it easier (the time passes faster and you'll end up with more usable pics which is dope even if you just want one good one because the way to take a good pic is to take a lot of bad ones untill you get lucky).

3) Set up a way for you to see what the camera sees. You could plug your phone into a monitor or tv using an hdmi adapter or use a free screen streaming app to watch your phone's screen on a laptop.

4) Use the camera on the back. It's always higher quality. The selfie camera is only for when you don't wanna deal with those first three steps.

5) Natural light is your BFF. Take your pics while the sun is out and your curtains are open.

6) Filter your pics. I use an app called MIX (specifically an old build of it bc they changed some stuff like their payment model for the batch image filtering feature) (which is definitely on both Android and iOS), but I imagine there are a ton of others that do all the same stuff. I loath smoothing for face pics, but it can be alright for butt pics. Noise can further obscure stubble. You're probably gonna wanna raise the temperature and maybe even the tint (people look unwell when their skin is more blue or green than it should be). Lowering the contrast can be nice too. Beyond that it can be fun to just experement and see what looks nice.

That's my process anyways. You do you. I know a lot of hotties are more into the pink blue lighting thing for example (you can get colored bulbs at the dollar store and stick em on a couple cheap thrift shop lamps) and I could especially see that being appealing if you aren't getting much natural light (pls don't just be taking nudes at night under the harsh light of your apartment's one shitty ceiling lamp lol).

Bonus protip: If you are using a lamp or lamps or softboxes and you want extra brightness then you can get E27 lamp bulb splitters online for a couple dollars that'll let you plug multiple bulbs into a single lamp.

Bonus bonus protip: Keep an eye out for selfie sticks with a screw on the base. I use a gimbal extension rod with a 1/4 inch screw paired with a hinge (and had previously been using a selfie stick with a screw on the bottom which was cheaper although it eventually broke) and screw it in between my tripod and my phone clip so that I can get my phone hovering over my bed (without the instability that comes from actually putting your tripod on your bed). It's very optional, but it does rule.

[delurkr]

More Little Hope models 🤩

This post has been in my drafts for a long time lol but HariboStixx on deviantart posted a bunch of extracted LH models! I come bearing some pics and commentary but go look at the rest of them because there's quite a few.

YOUNG VINCE MY BELOVED. I love him and his corduroy coat. You can get a hint of the western style seams on the front, and now I see that's a denim jacket under the coat instead of a shirt. I LOVE. Unfortunately his pants and shoes are just the ones from his funeral outfit (which is clearly a duplicate of Anthony's funeral outfit, a true fashion faux pas) so unfortunately that doesn't say what he was "really" wearing.

Passerby seems to be wearing a suit under that coat. And btw only recently did I come across a playthrough bright enough to notice that his coat has a belt that's undone and dangling at the sides. I really want to know about him and what he was doing on that night 😂 Also his pants are a good 20 years out of date but we love him in spite of it (or maybe because of it).

About time we get a full view of Wyman lol. Lookit all those snazzy buttons 😁 (They must catch on things all the time.)

Is Taylor's watchband red in the game? I don't think so but if it is it's a nice nod to Tanya's red bracelet.

David was executed because he's been flaunting his collarbones in public. Tsk tsk, David. Cloth hose though instead of the other guys' knitted ones, fun detail.

Joseph's top layer thing looks like it was a pretty fancy garment at one point. There's a lot of (faded?) detailing down the front and around the armholes, which would have to be done by hand and that's a lot of effort for something a farmer will be bumming around in. And something was ripped out of the armholes (which shows better in the game), maybe sleeves that wore out before the rest of the garment and didn't get replaced. I don't know much about clothing in this era but anyway it's such a deliberate design choice. I love Joseph's outfit and I wish the devs would post his model so we can get closeups of the proper textures on it.

I need help. Is Abraham's outfit actually blue in the game? Obviously some of the colors aren't accurately represented here but other extracts I've seen of his model are blue. It just kind of looks brown in the game to me.

DENNIS DENNIS DENNIS

Anne with red hair again. Honestly the more I look at it in-game with enough brightness it looks like a shade of red there too. I'm slowly starting to consider that Anne's hair may be red enough to be related to the fact that they adopted a red-haired kid 🤔

Lastly, vehicles. Words cannot express. How much I LOVE the Clarke's station wagon. Just, them, in that car. (Imagine road trips.) Anyway I finally have a clear enough view of it so... yes, I tried to find a real-world make, and, just like Vince's car, I don't think it exists. The lights and grills are never comparable, but ignoring the structure the vibe works for a good chunk of the 1960s, which means I get to imagine at least some of the Clarke kids learning to drive in it 😊

[honeybeekao]

It feels surreal, light peaking in through the blinds like melting wax on each surface it manages to touch. Everything fortunate enough to escape the sunbeam lay shrouded in shadow and as did Sena Izumi.

He tilts his head ever so slightly, focusing his eyes to gaze through a slip where light shines through, it's a little too bright, and he leans closer. Icarus.

Because past these blinds there's another shadow, and when he isn't just peering from afar but clearly looking out the window he catches a silhouette further away. Flowing fabric moves in the wind. When his eyes adjust, they move and— the girl he's danced with countless times on a hundred stages reveals her face. Another person runs up to her—identity obvious who could mistake the cherry red hair—Suou Tsukasa passes her something that glints in the caramel sun.

Lifting it above her head, ah, a crown it is.

Izumi gives up in observing. What reason does he have to spy?

Plenty, he actually can't stop glancing back and he tells himself it's the warmth of the outside. In reality, there's just something too admirable to ignore.

Since when did i pay attention to others.

Blinking through time, there's a spin and Izumi can tell they're talking to eachother. Tsukasa waves their arms around at some point and this gets the two to be barreling laughter. From the perspective of a darkened room—he needed a break from every form of noise—he wonders if it's even okay to admire.

Would it be a lie to say she was beautiful? When he knows he reigns superior here and could never give up that title?

Or is it a crack in the system. The curated conglomerate of wires in his chest that tell him you're the most gorgeous to walk this Earth — was that a lie?

He shuts his eyes for a few seconds, and when they open again he's startled at Tsukasa pointing directly at him.

Then his phone's going off and the caller ID Naru 💄 is so visible in bold. He ducks away from the window and brings it to his ear as the line begins.

"Izumi-chan~? You said you didn't wanna be outside today." Her voice is like the ringing of wind chimes. It welcomes him, but does not calm his mind.

"I don't—" Izumi begins but can't seem to continue. Because how can he say I think that crown suits you and–

"Spying out the window isn't much different though," he hears Tsukasa say.

"I just thought I'd say hi.. Make sure you aren't a statue in there~"

The statement feels like ice water in his arms and the resounding silence save for the wind's now-and-then greetings matches the shadows of squiggles. He is a statue, arm occupying position for a proper phone call but other than that his eyes are stuck on the floor.

She was beautiful—aqua dress and a silver crown that reflects the solar system's heart in excess. And Izumi wonders if this is what beauty is supposed to look like.

Has he ever admired himself the same way, no, it doesn't feel like it.

Narukami Arashi was beautiful, something he finally settles on.

"The color aqua suits you," he tests his voice and finds success, "not many can pull it off you know."

"Wow! A real compliment.." Arashi's surprise is evident, "what's the catch?"

He fights the sick urge to say there is never a catch with you — "your crown is too reflective."

"It's supposed to be, but I guess you aaare in a night land as of now."

Tsukasa giggles and Izumi thinks he can hear them mutter 'ironic for someone who enjoys glitter'.

"What's my color?"

The question comes out of nowhere and he isn't sure how it got on his tongue or how he managed to get it out.

The color of beauty.

"Blue of course!"

Right, he'd known she would say that.

Maybe he could be aqua too. If he tried hard enough.

[the-not-so-silent-back-up]

Until Full Moon

-1 -2 -3

Werewolf!(f)reader x Jaskier

note: I was Kinda busy and I was not as motivated as I was when I started writting this. But now I finally finished chapter 3. And the biggest Thank you for @ramenyul 🥰for being an absolute angel, my beta reader and helping me out in general cause as some of you may know english isn't my first launguage.

description: Since a few month you are a werewolf, and you mostly hide in the woods because you know how dangerous you can become when it’s time. One day you meet Jaskier and Geralt. Unfortunately the witcher recently got the job to get rid of a werewolf. And that’s when it all begins

Chapter -3-

The heat from the fire is slowly fading away, but the warmth spreading from Jaskier sitting next to you isn't. You sat there in silence. Jaskier still held your hand and drew circles on the back of it or intertwined your fingers in a different way. He looked down to your hands and you looked at him. You still wonder what he thought when he asked his Witcher friend to help you, he must be insane. There can't be another answer, who would help a werewolf?

"Are you tired?" He asked out of nowhere.

"A bit actually, but I don't know where to sleep."

He let go of your hand and you already missed it, this can't have a good end.

"You can sleep with me. Uhm, next to me in the tent if you want. There is enough space for you."

He blushed a bit and so did you.

"Oh that's nice. Thank you Jaskier.”

"No need to thank me for that Y/N, this is what every gentleman would do.” You looked doubtedly at him, but he didn’t notice. He already put a big blanket next to his bedroll.

You crawled after him into the tent and the blanket is surprisingly soft.

"Do you like it? If not, we can switch." Jaskier whispered.

"Jaskier, this is really luxurious next to the places I slept in the last few weeks.” You answered quietly, but you aren't sure if Geralt is actually asleep or if he is pretending to be. But that didn’t really matter.

"Goodnight, Y/N.”

You can't remember when the last time was that someone wished you a good night.

"Goodnight, Jaskier.”

You closed your eyes and tried to stop thinking about today's events, but your mind just couldn’t stop telling you that this can't be true, this must be a dream or it’s some kind of a fucked up trap.

You rolled over to find a better position to help you fall asleep better, but it didn’t help. The shocked look of the men after you told them what you are flashed before your eyes, the look after Jaskier accidentally burnt you with his rings came up every time you actually thought that you were able to fall asleep.

You turned onto your back and stared at the fabric ceiling of the tent and you started wondering how many werewolves got killed - even if the Witcher knew that there was some way to help them become human again.

You felt a hand searching for yours. You turned over to Jaskier. He had his eyes still closed but he smiled a bit, "Shh.”

As soon as he held your hand again he stroked it a bit, and you were finally able to fall asleep.

The sun shone through the entrance of the tent and hit your eyes. You woke up alone, you looked all around but no one was around. The sun is already shining so bright, you must have slept pretty well tonight. Crawling into the tent was a lot easier than crawling out.

"Good morning, sleepyhead."

"Good morning, Jaskier." you yawned.

"I am making breakfast. Any special wishes?"

"No, no. I am good but thanks a lot." You stretch yourself to wake up your sleepy body.

Jaskier was fully concentrated on cooking breakfast, so you could finally get a proper look at him without him noticing. He was tall, much taller than you. His eyes are so blue it should be forbidden, a soft blue like the color of the sky after a storm. He wore a loose grey shirt, you wondered if it used to be white one day. He rolled up the sleeves so you can see his forearms and you just could guess that he is stronger than he seemed to be. He picked you up easily after the accident happened.

His hands must be very talented in different ways. First of all, he's a bard and his instrument of choice is the lute - that thing has so many strings. Secondly, how fast he took care of your burning wound last night. His friend is a Witcher and he probably has to face much worse injuries often. While you looked at his hands work, you noticed something. His rings: they were all gone.

He must have noticed your look.

"Oh yeah I took them off for safety. I don't want an accident like last night to repeat." There was silence for a moment. It seemed like such a small gesture but it was actually so much more.

"Y/N, I know I said I would help you search for your bag but we shouldn't leave the tent with all of our stuff alone. So I would suggest while I make us a delicious breakfast you go into the forest and look for your bag. If that's alright for you."

You laughed "Of course it is alright. I just wanted to ask you if I could search for my bag,” you lied. "It wasn't so far away from here so I guess I will be back soon. By the way, this smells amazing." you pointed at the pot over the open fire.

As you walked towards the forest you wondered why you just lied to Jaskier. You could have just stayed there with him. This man radiated safety like no one else you've ever met. But maybe that's the reason you lied to him, you feel too safe with him. And you need some time to think without someone distracting you.

As soon as you walked into the forest, the air around you got a bit colder. A few more meters into the forest and you found that one bush you collapsed under last night as you turned back.

You started to question your eyesight because your bag was just a few steps away from said bush. All the food was gone, but you weren't looking for that. Luckily the one thing you were looking for was still there. A dagger that was in your family for ages.

Your parents gave it to you one month before they both died. You wore this dagger with pride on your belt. It is precious and people often ask if it's for sale, but it's also deadly sharp. Often a single glance of the blade is enough to end the conversation.

There were also a few extra clothes that still looked fine. You packed anything where it belonged and head back towards the meadow. Thankfully, you were able to find your own footsteps in the grass so you didn’t need to worry that you would get lost again.

As soon as you saw Jaskier your mind couldn't think of something else. He was so nice, and you still didn’t understand why he asked Geralt to lift the curse. He doesn’t know you but somehow he still understands you in a special way, he sees you and not the monster you become once a month.

“Hey- whoa, what is that?” Jaskier looked really surprised “on your belt?”

“Oh that! That is our family dagger. It's been gifted to the daughters since ages, because one of my ancestors was tired that only the sons got practical stuff so she made this dagger for our defense but with all these beautiful engravings and gemstones.” You were so excited because no one ever asked you that. But as soon as you remember who gave it to you the excitement fades away and the sadness came back to your face.

“Y/N, is everything alright?” And again he is taking care of you.

“Yes it’s just...“ you haven’t said it for so long, it was stuck in your throat. You feel the tears filling your eyes, you try to blink them away so Jaskier didn’t notice.

“Can I see?” You handed him the dagger without saying another word. Thank the gods now that he is distracted by your dagger you can wipe away the tears and take a deep breath.

“My Mother gave it to me. She died a few months before I got turned - and my Father, he couldn’t live without her.” You weren’t able to look at Jaskier but you knew he looked at you. He hands you back your dagger.

“It’s really beautiful, but also dangerous.” You can’t read the look Jaskier has in his sky blue eyes. “Just like you.”

You blushed and smiled so hard that you could barely say thank you.

He smiled, too.“ Now, let’s eat before it gets cold.”

[inkandpen22]

Cuppa Tea, Cuppa Tea

Request: The first request is that the reader kinda is yawning a bit, but "oh, it's fine, I'm just studying a bit harder" but they're either lying and doing a bunch of work deep into the night (maybe translating old books or something) or it's insomnia, or actually studying til 4:00am or something (lots of "ors" I'm so sorry) and of course spike finds out and is like "I'm supposed to be the nocturnal one??" And I had a brief thought of somehow the reader being tricked to drink sleepy time tea or something that will make them sleep as much as they need, but idk if that would be weird 🤔 but anyway, I hope that made sense ^^;

Pairing: Spike x gender neutral reader 

Warnings: swearing 

Word Count: 1.3k 

Summary: Y/N is at Spike’s studying for a chemistry exam when Spike starts to worry for them. 

A/N: sorry for the delay!!! This was so easy to write because honestly it’s relatable. Enjoy X

Masterlist

The words on the page start to blend and nothing makes sense anymore. No matter how hard I try, I can't seem to process the words I'm staring at here. I have to pass this chemistry exam. I'm not even a chem major, stupid general education classes. I hear Spike move about behind me while his Passions episode comes to an end. Being one of the token full-fledge humans in the Scooby Gang means I'm sometimes dropped off at Spike's for safekeeping. Lately, there's a water demon terrorizing Sunnydale, so I've been instructed to come straight here after classes. Yet, Spike insists on meeting me right after the lecture. He went about finding out my course schedule so he can be thereafter my last class. Since I finish when the sun is still out, he has to use the tunnels on campus. He's the definition of smothering.

"Y/N, you need to go to bed," he advises, appearing beside the crypt I'm set upon.

My notes and textbook are laid perfectly on the crypt to study.

"Five more minutes," I yawn.

The candlelight is starting to radiate enough heat to feel it. They've been going all afternoon and well into the evening. Its light is starting to burn my eyes.

"You said that twenty minutes ago," Spike sighs, kneeling next to me.

"Oh bet, I thought it was only ten," I check my watch for the time.

Spike huffs in annoyance and snatches my textbook away.

"Hey!" I reach for the pages, but he moves it away.

"I'm so supposed to be the nocturnal one! Not you!" He reminds me with a fuss.

"Ever heard of insomnia?" I sass.

"It's not healthy," he preaches, setting my textbook down.

"Nor is being undead. That's a little pot calling the kettle black," I shrug while I reopen my book to the proper page.

"The more tired you get the more annoying you are," he grumbles, tossing his head back dramatically with a sigh.

"Dope," I nod with narrowed eyes.

"I hate you," Spike growls.

"Love to hear it," I mutter subconsciously as I continue reading.

"Ugh, oh my g-"

Absentmindedly, I read the chapter on proper chemical mixing. I can't even read the periodic table, how am I supposed to remember all of this?  

I start to sing a familiar tune under my breath without much thought. "Oh say can you see by the dawn's-"

"Stop!" Suddenly, Spike's hand is covering my mouth. "Stop while you're ahead!"

"I was just getting started." My voice is muffled by his hand.

Spike slips his hand around and brings up the other to make me stare into his eyes.

"You're getting delusional!" He accuses.

"What's life without a little bad trip? Adds some spice," I dismiss carelessly.

"You're psychotic," he determines

"Says the serial killer," I shrug.

"You're! Losing! It!" He emphasizes.

"You! Eat! People!" I fire back mockingly.

"I need to so I can exist. You don't need to study to exist," he takes my textbook away again and strolls away.

"I need to so I can get a good job," I reason.

"Industrial America is overrated," he declares monotonously.

"You're also an old English man," I grumble.

"Yeah, so I know a few things," he smirks proudly.

"You never took school seriously?" I climb down from the crypt to fetch my book from him.

"Well... I went if that's what you mean. I had a rather expensive education," Spike describes vaguely.

I reach for my textbook and take it back civilly. "A White, upper-middle-class, during the Victorian Era, given a well-to-do private education? Well, color me shocked!"

"I can hardly stand you when you get in this mood. You need sleep," he rolls his eyes annoyedly.

"I hardly tolerate you every moment of every day. I need coffee," I correct.

"I will kill you," he threatens as per usual.

"Oh yes, bring me the sweet release," I grumble as I head back to my spot.

"You sicken me, you know that?" Spike questions sarcastically.

"Glad to hear it," I laugh humorlessly.

"Normally, people aren't so keen on being threatened," he reminds.

"Fair enough, granted I'm not 'normal,'" I form quotation marks with my fingers.

"Clearly," he mumbles.

"'Clearly,'" I mock his voice. "You even sound old!"

"I'm only one hundred and twenty-six!" He states, yet again, this week.

"Oh my goodness! You're right! My bad! You're practically a new spring chicken! Now get out there young one, and seize the day!" I tease.

"I'm going to make you a cup of tea," Spike declares, heading over to his make-shift kitchen. In reality, it's an electric kettle he plugs into an extension cord that's connected to somewhere outside.

"Coffee," I request, returning to my reading.

"Tea! You don't need any more coffee," he ridicules.

"You're depressing," I insult under my breath.

After a short time, Spike returns with a mug. I've managed to get through the last paragraph I've been struggling with.

"Here," he hands the white porcelain object to me.

The warmth of the mug contrasts the cold of my hands.

"What kind," I ask as I go to sip it.

"Green," he nods.

"Oo, so you are giving me caffeine," I wiggle my brows right as the liquid hits my lips.

"Only to shut you up," he sighs.

"Always the charmer," I wink.

After a moment of consideration and pondering, I can determine that this is good tea. Spike stands around waiting for my approval.

"This is nice, what brand is it?" I go in for another sip.

"An old one my mother used to use, been around for a while," he stammers.

"Lovely, thank you."

I compliment and he grumbles some response. ______________________ The sound of a distant lawnmower wakes me up in a jolt. I gasp for air, having been so deeply asleep that I hardly felt alive. I must've been more exhausted than I originally comprehended. My blurry vision adjusts to my surroundings and I'm tucked into a bed, but not my own. No, I know this bed. I've seen it before. The bright red sheets are hard to forget. Spike.

"What the-" I scream, "Spike!"

The bleach blonde vampy appears from behind a pillar across the room.

"Yes, Pet?" He says slyly, as though it's just any other morning.

"You asshole!" I curse at him as I hurry to get up.

"Feel refreshed?" He smirks.

"Did you drug me?" I come to the realization as I stand up that I don't remember falling asleep or getting into Spike's bed.

"Eh, somewhat," he explains vaguely. "I gave you camomile tea and maybe crushed up some melatonin in it."

My jaw drops, "you're insane!"

"Knocked you out like a bloody babe," he snickers, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"What time is it?!" I shake my wrist to my watch.

"Noon," Spike answers before I have the chance to check.

My eyes go wide as the harsh reality that I'm late to my class sinks in.

"Shit! Shit!" I rush to gather my things. "Fuck me! I have my test in thirty minutes!"

Spike strolls about casually around me, not giving two shits.

"You'll be fine," he assures calmly. "The sleep will help."

"It better!" I growl at the vamp.

"I'll pick you up after your class. We'll get coffee," he suggests with a smug expression.

"You don't drink coffee," I glare as I pack up my backpack.

"Damn straight, but you do. My treat," he offers.

"Oh, so kind!" I remark sarcastically as I struggle to slip my arms through my backpack and get my shoes on at the same time.

"Have fun!" He waves as I head to the door. "Good luck!"

"Fuck you!" I bid farewell as I slam the tomb door behind me.

"Coffee!" He shouts from inside as I stroll away. "Four o'clock! I'll pick you up!"

"Okay! Fine! Fine!" I yell in agreement, despite everything that just happened.

God, I hate to love him. 

__________________________

Masterlist

Tags: @mx-pibbles​

[bestfrownsforever]

Heartache Arcade

Sorry for not having a proper cover again...hopefully these will do.

Also 1. my friend CLG is my co-editor now! Per's a master at finding grammar mistakes even I miss (ex. if you want the re-edited Dawn of a New Era then it's on Amino) so per'll be helping me from now on!

And 2. I'm hoping to keep a consistent schedule so expect a new Best Frowns Forever story every Tueaday! Starting with this story...

After having some brief fun as a Frown Lord, Puppycorn already hit a massive roadblock.

"Anyone else think this job doesn't make a whole lot of sense?" he asked while meeting with his co-workers around his bedroom table, "I mean yeah, it's fun to hurt people and stuff, but if we're so good at our jobs, then won't everyone be too scared to go outside anymore? Or maybe they'll leave the kingdom!? And if they do, should we want them to because it'd be bad if they did!? What should we DO!?!?"

Unikitty wrapped an arm around him from across the table. "Calm down, little bro," she assured him, "They're not going anywhere when the rest of the world sucks too."

"The solution's easy," Grandmaster Frown added, "Try luring them in with something fun and cutesy and make them almost want to suffer!"

"Oh come on," Hawkodile objected, "Something big pops up in the kingdom out of nowhere with us openly running it? They'll know it's a trap."

"Unless they're so desperate for a break that they'll take anything that looks happy and shiny," Dr. Fox suggested, "And Master Pain was the king of cringe before Frown's birthday."

"Hey!"

"I'm saying that as a compliment! You probably still like all that kiddie junk the citizens miss anyway, so why are you complaining about no ideas?"

Unikitty flew over to her brother. "I think she's trying to say that instead of using the things you like to try being cool, you can use them to actually prove your coolness as a Frown Lord!"

"Okay," Puppycorn considered, "But I already did accident-prone skateboards and roller skates...and that spiky ballpit."

"You mean I did them and you STOLE MY CREDIT!?" Dr. Fox reminded him before Brock pushed her away.

"Okay, someone needs a timeout...and if it helps, I've had the idea for a haunted arcade for a while now. But you're not wrong about the whole obvious trap thing, so from one gamer to another; how would you make it work?"

Puppycorn thought long and hard about the possibility until it hit him like his past self running into a brick wall.

"WAIT, I've been thinking into this job too hard! Grandmaster Frown did all this to be himself again, right? So maybe instead of haunted, the games can just be really hard to beat!?"

Everyone seemed interested except for the pouting Dr. Fox.

"But if they manage to win those games, wouldn't that be the best feeling ever?"

Puppycorn hummed until he lit up again like the lightbulb popping out of his head.

"They'll only get a few tickets and we'll make the prizes super expensive!!"

"Good enough."

Grandmaster Frown rose. "Then let's get to work, people! These games will need some Frown Lord-flare, and they sure aren't gonna make themselves!"

Puppycorn and Brock were the first to follow him to Dr. Fox's lab, dedicate many long days to porting the most difficult games they could find, and even more to making their own until after countless attempts at giving up, Puppycorn finally saw all his hard work pay off and open for business.

No one saw exactly when the new building appeared in the middle of town. It was just another rainy afternoon with nothing going on until people looked at their windows to see a massive, pale gray block of an exterior with a burgandy arching roof and neon colors everywhere from behind the windows. A tall sign next to it read "Heartache Arcade" with "& Casino" under it in smaller letters, both in some of the same bright neon colors.

Most closeby citizens came to the conclusion that their tyrants set it up, but some of them approached the arcade anyway, as if to say "How are they gonna break us this time?"

When they stepped in, they were greeted by giant rooms with arcade machines, gambling tables, and brighter lights everywhere, with a large prize counter and shelves for toys and other kinds of trinkets in one corner. They couldn't believe how everything seemed so...innocent.

They split up, each walking over to a different game or observing more of the retrospective dream around them, while Frown and Puppycorn spied on them from behind an "Employees Only" door.

"C'mon..." Puppycorn whispered, "Just play the games already!"

"Give 'em a bit more time," Grandmaster Frown replied, "They'll rip themselves in half before you know it."

Puppycorn turned to the nearest citizen, Theodore, stepping up to a slot machine, which hated having them there, but the others convinced him that gambling would make things all the more entertaining to watch.

"Supreme Slots, huh?" Theodore wondered before shrugging, "Well, guess it's worth a shot."

Puppycorn wasn't too surprised when Theodore bet the little money he had and won on his first try, only to get too cocky and lose it all too fast. Grandmaster Frown had a good laugh while Puppycorn looked the other way to spot Bim-Bom wrapping a hand around the joystick for the game he was most proud of; Furious Fetch.

Bim-Bom seemed happy at first, but just when Puppycorn worried even more, she got a a little confused as to what she was playing. Did she get to the lava pits yet?, he thought, Or the bugs? She's gotta know how hard running and jumping is by now though, right?

Then he heard the Game Over music.

"What!? There's no more lives!?"

Finally, a good reaction. Puppycorn was already holding back laughs and wagging his tail watching Bim-Bom pull out another token to play again. And then another. And another until she almost reached the end of the first level.

"WAIT, jumping on them doesn't kill them either!? What gives!?"

"That's the point!" Puppycorn snickered. She clearly wanted to give up but pulled out another out coin anyway. Maybe even keep going until she didn't have any left. But as if his silent prayers were answered, Bim-Bom slipped the token into the slot and lost almost as soon as the level started that time. Screaming, she stormed off to try something else as Puppycorn lost it.

"Cut it out!" Grandmaster Frown ordered, covering a hand over Puppycorn's mouth, "The evil laughing can wait, just don't blow this for us."

Puppycorn nodded, prompting his boss let go. They continued to look around, realizing more and more citizens were getting frustrated over what they were playing. And switching to other games or slots didn't help, it only strengthened the chorus of the most mixed reactions they'd ever heard in their lives.

"These games SUCK!"

"This was all the money I haaaaaaad!!"

"I can do this, I just need ONE more coin...anyone got some?"

"At least this isn't the other stuff we've had to put up with, calm down guys!"

"Are you nuts!? This is WAY WORSE!"

Puppycorn was too proud of himself to keep the door open. He shut it to chant and dance without a care until Grandmaster Frown laid a hand where his shoulder would be.

"Huh?"

"Not bad, Pain. Consider this your first

independent accomplishment."

"Really!? Aweso-"

They jumped at the sound of a sudden crash from the back room.

"Yeah," Frown ordered, "now take care of this place before the ragequitters can."

Puppycorn proudly nodded and saluted. "I'll do my best, boss sir!"

[astrxlis-archive]

HIIII it is me again penpal 🍰 anon~ I just came back to see if ever you have replied hahahaha

So first of all for your question, i do not wish to worry you but of course i don't want to lie to people as well so... All i could answer you is that these past few days or weeks i have actual trouble sleeping well;; things aren't quite good really since even if i try to bring my self to work nothing happens or whenever i try to use my laptop to work i do feel dizzy(so no work done) or if i try to sleep i cant;;; was actually desperate to have a therapist and proper meds at this point however my parents are really busy and could only take one step at a time. Still! With your encouraging words, i am emotionally feeling good and comforted knowing that there are people who cares <3

Anyways moving on from the rambling,

(and i hope it is clear enough for you but please don't worry much for me! I'd feel bad that your worries would be there for nothing hahaha)

I could also agree about worrying about the character personality studies </3 was thinking on how am i gonna write the usual or popular characters that people are fond of yet i am not fond of them xD and i think you like xiao given that you wrote a very heart fluttering drabble about him, i gotta be honest yet also feel bad to break it to you— when i tried to analyze xiao, i literally have no idea ahahaha + he isn't one of my favorites so i'm in great trouble;; 🍰 anon is having trouble configuring on how i would possibly write him even being a xiao kinnie themself;;;;

Still, how are you doing over there?? I have also noticed your change of theme~ from dark night to a bright fireworks festival— it surely surprised me. I thought i got lost in another blog yet when i saw your header(?), "Wanderer | exile" i knew i'm in the right place~ I'm also happy to know that you're taking care of yourself too !! That's really great knowing that fox anon who cares a lot for others also cares for theirself <3

I'm also surprised you became an anon of penpal @/elychee too xD it was kinda cute of you to be adopted as an anon with me too,, i find it quite funny actually★

Like always, take care fox anon!<33 thanks a lot for being one of the reasons why my day is complete hehe (just saying,,)

hello hello!! welcome back! 😊

i’m not going to ask you to share more that what you’re willing to, but know that if you ever need to talk about something, my ask and dms are open, alright? also, if you wear glasses, it could be the reason why you feel dizzy when dealing with computers, too. but yes, take it one step at a time, things will work out! 💕💕

dude, i think about that a lot lol i think i’m going to start out with characters i relate to in some way and work my way out to characters i’m unsure. there’s also @/witch-hazels-musings character guide which helps a lot. what guided me when writing that piece was the fact that xiao is described as gentle. and i think it’s safe to assume that, besides being sweet, you are gentle too, since you’re a xiao kinnie? :3c

oh, did you like the new theme? 👀 👀 i’m still unsure about it myself, but i figured a change of colors would be nice heheh. i’m also drowning in late assignments but getting through them little by little. other than that i’m okay! thank you for asking 🥰

you were the one who inspired me to reach out, actually! so thank you for that, you gave me the courage! also i’m giving you your own tag, if you don’t mind? let me know if you'd like to be called something else!!

stay safe, 🍰!! 💕💕