#The Cowboy and the Harlequin

[ambrial-blog]

The Thought of Losing you  Part 2:

"Blitz, look at me" Striker  begins his eyes sharpening as his mate flinched away from him. "Here it comes" Blitzo thought. "We've  come along way since the harvest moon festival,  the make-shift shower in the barn after get 'in good and dirty in the mud.  Those long strolls late at night, underneath the starlit skies of Wrath.  Sitting on roof, watching the skies for shooting stars.  You curled up within my arm, your head rest' in on my chest. The sound of ya purring in my ear. Those long rides on Bombproof through the fields and across the countryside my arms wrapped around you waist. "Did the Harvest Moon Festival mean anything to ya, sugar-cube?. " I have no regrets, darlin that was the most fun I've had in years. And as soon as I'm done here with  this assignment  well be packing our bags and I'll be able to give ya a proper anniversary  gift  the time"

"Anniversary!  how long have we be dating?" Blitzo wonders. "Let those vermin of your squirm, and figure things out for themselves, since they're  so involved within their own insignificant  lives they don't even have the decency to check up on ya sugar" "What if, I was too late!, I could've lost  the only person holding me together"  "I would've been here sooner if I had only looked  at my phone. What happened last night?. Asks Striker, his tail slithering around Blitzo's legs his arms wrapping around Blitzo's waist. pulling him close.

Blitzo couldn't look at him, he looked everywhere but at Striker. Then he spoke, his voice cracking. "I ran into Verosika and Fizz last night. He swallows thickly unsure what the lone Cowboy was thinking. but the patient eyes begged him to continue.

" It was Moxie and Millie's one year anniversary  so I decided to follow them into the House of Ausmodeous. That's where,  and when shit hit the fan. We were singled out, and I just couldn't-  Blitzo's voice cracks. "Fizz-" "Vero- My exes.   "You weren't alone,  were you?" Striker broke in.  "You took Stolas, instead of me invited him on the premise of a date, that ditsy blue-blood doesn't even know does he?" "Are you getting what you want from him?" A tinge of jealous laced the cowboy voice. "I just want to be a part of something!"  Blitzo cuts in, "Striker I'm tired, everyone leaves me,  why haven't you?.  I'm nothing! everything I do backfires!- I can't even die right. Blitzo laughs hollowly.  "And I'm not even sure if I even want to keep doing this" Blitzo reveals.  Striker's mouth ran dry as he was cut off guard. "Its not working out, I wont be able to help  anybody without Stolas's book, I might've just killed IMP- "You've said  it perfectly, cowboy why run a business that is rigid against you"  

"Finally seeing things my way are ya? Bout time you open your eyes sugar-cube"  But what was that about dying right?. questions the Outlaw taken off-guard. "What does it matter?" Blitzo snarls under his breath attempting to burn another picture in the fireplace.  Striker snatches them out of Blitzo's hand before throwing his partner on the floor and straddling his waist pinning him to the ground. Blitzo fought to get free.

"I'll tell ya something Blitzy,  I didn't come back here, so that you could tear yourself down" snarls Striker.  "I know your hurtin, I can see it in your eyes, but quit tearing apart my mate,  you mean more to me then this job. But I refuse to walk-away, you mean somethin to me" "What do I mean to you Blitzy?" What you have with Stolas isn't real"

[deankarolina]

Tagged by @sapphicscience <3 to post my top 9 albums of 2023, thank you char!!!

Mitski - The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We // Bakar - Halo // Yaeji - With a Hammer // Paramore - This is Why // CMAT - Crazymad, for Me // Chappell Roan - The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess // Tinashe - BB/ANG3L // McKinley Dixon - Beloved! Paradise! Jazz​!​? // Sleep Token - Take Me Back to Eden

[marthettau]

cowboy harlequin adoptable yeeeaaahh

i'll try to post some of my adopts here why not

BID HERE

[danielleurbansblog]

Review: Rodeo Christmas at Evergreen Ranch

Synopsis: Gold Valley’s rodeo champion is facing the toughest challenge of his life—a Christmas wedding! Legendary bull rider Jake Daniels has only one plan this Christmas—to ignore the pain the season always brings. Until his best friend, Callie Carson, shows up on his ranch with a marriage proposal. Jake has lived so close to the edge it’s a miracle he’s still alive—he knows all about risk.…

[mariannedonley]

Year Progressing Fast

And March? It’s a good month for me. The third Shelter of Secrets story for Harlequin Romantic Suspense was just published: UNDERCOVER COWBOY DEFENDER. Two more books coming this year too.

It’s March already. Yes, the year is progressing fast. And it’s a bit different from the way it’s been for the past couple of years. I’m actually attending more meetings in person now—including a meeting of the local Sisters in Crime chapter yesterday. Some meetings are still on Zoom, though. And although I will be attending a couple of writing conferences, I won’t be going to as many as I used…

[dizzy-n-busy]

★ SAINT ★

Al and Seth run into problems, SugarBoo won't allow it.

{cw: homophobia, social anxiety, biblical-esque titles(?) and me calling SugarBoo both Sugar and Boo}

• • • ★ • • •

Seth shrugged on his coat, being careful to not reap the baker's stitch-work as he did.

Waiting by the door with fidgeting hands, Seth had wondered over and over and over again about why the couple housing him had asked him to tag along on a grocery trip.

Technically, Sugar had told him why.

" I'm runnin' low on supplies, and I don't want you here alone. "

I don't want you here alone.

The brunet rolls his lips together, knowing the implications behind their worry; his bruise - though having stopped it's swelling - still stung and his body still ached.

Seth sighed harshly through his nose, bunching up his brows and leaning his side to the door with crossed arms, wallowing.

If I had just -

" What'er you poutin' about, cowboy? You in time-out or somethin'? "

Seth jolts at the familiar voice.

Practically snapping his head to look at the pastel punk heading his way, throwing his jacket on and fixing it to sit properly on his broad shoulders.

Alphonse had a brow raised and sassy pout dressed on his lips - Seth scoffed at his playful demeanor, rolling his eyes and pushing off the woodwork to look at him head on. " I am not in time-out, just waiting for your slow self ta giddyap. "

" Don't start with the pissing contest boys, " Boo rounds the corner from the master bedroom, bundled up in a - clearly stolen - hoodie, " we've got places to be. "

They breeze past an incredulously faced Alphonse and towards Seth, who stiffens when they reach around him and grab their keys; turning their gaze to him with soft, lidded eyes.

" So, giddyap. "

~

Seth was practically glued to the couple - Boo, who pushed the cart and Alphonse, who touched every little thing that caught his eye - feeling skittish about being out in such a crowded area.

His eyes bounce between heads, waiting to see ones that set of the alarms. An impending tar pours over his heart; heavy, unrelenting and painfully difficult to ignore.

" Seth. "

Brown eyes find blue ones.

" You okay? Boo kept callin' you but you were kinda...zonin' out. " Alphonse tilts his pastel head at the shorter and Seth realizes that they're in the frozen isle - or maybe the trembling he was suddenly experiencing was from anxiety knawing at his bones.

Seth can't find his voice quick enough, gesturing with his hands as he fumbles over his words; feeling eyes bore at the back of his head.

" I - uhm - yeah! I-I'm fine, why wouldn't I be fine? " The brunet glances at the products chilling behind glass doors, " so, ice cream? "

Seth's relieved when Sugar follows along, shifting their weight to show him what was inside the rows, " how do you feel about sharing some neapolitan? "

" Harlequin. " Al says in a quiet pout to himself, Boo seems to hear him despite it. " You really like that name for it now, aye sweet thing? "

Seth chuckles - relaxing - as Alphonse leans his head on top of theirs, mumbling a small confirmation and gazing beady eyed at the tri-colored tub. Seth sees Sugar still waiting for his response with patient eyes, " I don't mind, never really ate it before. "

Sugar nods and grabs the ice cream, shutting the door and making Al cling onto them, giving them a quick back hug and cheek kiss before pulling away.

" We're almost done, just need some new piping tubes. " Boo pulls out their phone after placing the ice cream in the half-full cart, " don't say anything about that, Al. "

Seth looks at the male next to him; the tall fever dream slouches and pouts again, muttering a small 'I'm not that predictable' under his breath.

Boo starts pushing the cart away and the boys start following; Seth sighs discreetly and shoves his hands in his jeans pockets, wondering if the older citizens remember him.

Remember his unsaintly tendencies.

Seth feels something tug at his wrist; he panics instinctively. Eyes tearing to the connection and seeing a hand encompassing it; his eyes lead him up the arm to -

Alphonse?

His dyed head was turned away from him but Seth could see the tips of his ears turn pink. The male's grip was featherlight and gently coaxing him to keep walking.

Seth slides his hand out his pocket and their hands fall interlocked; naturally and out of instinct.

The brunet's head blanks as he continues walking forward - nevermind his ears and face burning hot - he can't even feel people in the isle start staring.

Time flies quickly after Al's display of comfort and soon the trio is stationed at the cashier, placing everything on the moving rack.

" D'you two want any candies while we're here? " Boo asked thumbing through their bills, Alphonse jumped up instantly and nodded, excited.

Seth admired the male who scanned through the limited array of brightly colored sweets; a smile slipping onto his face fondly, softly squeezing his hand when the pastel punk crouched to see them more properly.

The southern male turns his attention to Sugar as Al hops up with a small package, he wanted to ask if they would like anything but -

The sentence dies on his tongue as the deadpanned stare Sugar's giving him - no, not him but behind him.

Seth takes a peek and sees an older woman looking away uncomfortably. She catches his eyes for a second and it's blatant that she's...unapproving of him and the blue eyed candy addict next to him.

Thwack!

All three jump at the noise, the older woman more so. Seth looks at what made the noise and sees a divider being white-knuckled in Boo's hand.

" There you go, " Boo spits, eyes dark even under the florescent lights, " you can stop staring now. "

The woman doesn't get a word out before Sugar speaks again; a little quieter and more softly, " can you two start baggin' the stuff? "

Seth and Alphonse nod, walking to end of the register with their hands still connected; forcing the woman and Sugar to stand closer. Boo gave the woman a nasty look when they paid.

~

The trio make it outside the grocery store, the sky halfway to dusk and glimmering faintly with stars. All holding a variety of bags on their arms while they walk to the car.

Seth had to let go of Alphonse for this but he still reminisced about what happened.

That behavior wasn't anything new to him, but the fact that somebody actually said something about it was...odd?

Unfamiliar? Unnatural?

Seth can't quite put his finger on it, he just knew that it made him feel weird - not a bad weird, but 'this is something new' weird - he kinda liked it.

Big brown eyes glance at the leading figure, Sugar already fast approaching the car. A warm feeling almost brings Seth to his knees when he looks at them.

He'd never felt comfortable in this town - he always felt antagonized; evil, wrong.

Never in his life did he think he'd ever be seen as human or worth protecting. Not since his mama left him here; she was his sole protector.

His saint in this hell hole.

But now, he - and his soul bound partner - had another haven.

Another saint amongst the evil.

• • • ★ • • •

[celestiall0tus]

Looks like, most of the core members don't wear mask anymore (apart from Death noire, Pom pom & Outlaw) which makes me wonder why they do that.

Does Hawkmoth will have upgrade suit? bcs his OG one is really looks like a failed version of Roman sionis Blackmask (batman villain) lol

Since magic conceals their identities, It's more aesthetic and the fact most know who each other are by this point or hide their civilian forms in other ways. For example:

Gallic Chick's hair grows out and changes color.

Porcelet's hair grows out

Harlequin's whole design is a farcry from what he'd wear as a civilian at this point in the story (unless he's going to a concert)

Bloody Bug just doesn't care.

Pom Pom is just adorable and I didn't want to touch it

Outlaw will be getting her own redesign in time once it's revealed just what's really been going on. For now, her's really just boils to that cowboy aesthetic

Death Noire is more for intimidation than anything

Adrien is more or less influenced by the others, namely Porcelet and Bloody Bug

In regards to Hawkmoth, no. Oh, no. See, this season is when Hawkmoth sorta meets his end. The end result of season 3 is meant to be this:

I would much rather he keep his design in favor of building up Nathalie/Mayura. Especially with there being only a select few akumas during this season because of a certain reason.

[painting-warhammer]

Lelith Hesperax in the style of Sylvanas Windrunner (Warcraft)

To date, my greatest failure painting. Commentary under cut.

The Lessons Learned

#1: Don't Base Your Model Right Away

While the nook where the skeleton lies isn't what people will pay attention to, it still needs to be covered up by paint. The way the model is tilted too made painting her left leg absolute hell, in addition to the glyphs beneath it.

#2: Citadel Paints Are Not The Best

I had twelve-year-old brain and thought gold would be much cooler than her silvery-white accents. And as if that weren't bad enough, I decided to get the Citadel version. Which by all accounts, is the worst one you can get.

Mentally, I was in a position that I wanted everything to be as "official" as possible. To get everything from Citadel meant I had to be doing something right, almost as if I could get "customer support" if my figure looks like shit.

Now that's not to say Citadel doesn't make good paint as a whole. Most of my paints are still from there. But as time went on, I branched out to some Vallejo, Stuart Semple, and Green Stuff World. More than that, there are "formulas" for mixing paints.

I would eventually get a really good gold that I'll post a sample of when I do my main army reveal, but so as not to bogart the secret, I'll drop it here.

#3: Get Rid Of Sprues, But Learn To Love Battle Damage

I didn't think much of sprues initially. What's the big deal? I was too afraid of accidentally shaving off detail. Moreover, if you look at the Vriska post (specifically the shoes) you'll notice something is missing.

Yep, that little jewel.

I was cutting this outside and really struggling to get that little nub free when my clip blazed through and sent it flying. I had been working outside, and it went right into the tall grass where I suspect it remains to this day.

While I definitely freaked out, my best friend had friends into gunpla and mini painting that told me about "Battle Damage", which is the affectionate way of describing the chips and dents and errors you made painting. It is representative of all the violent campaigns your figure has been in and it makes them more unique. In the end I was okay with it, as honestly it would have made Vriska look dumb if she had some cowboy spur on one foot.

You know what can't be explained by battle damage, though? The giant horn of leftover sprue extending Venom Snake-style out of Sylvesperax's ponytail.

#4: You're Going To Have To Paint Everything, Especially The Parts You Don't Like

So in my last post, I said that I kinda didn't dig the Harlequins all that much--at least, not enough to commit to them. But I had a good idea for all the parts involved.

To this day, the Drukhari are my favorite faction. I saw them as the fun kind of michievous and devious, although I'm quite aware they are a lot, lot worse than that. Sylvanas Windrunner is also one of my favorite characters, and so I thought I would be okay with painting up a whole army of devious space-pirate Sylvanii.

Here was the reality: The only ladies are the harpies, Lelith Hesperax, the Succubus, and less than half of any given Wyches unit.

On first glance, that's not too bad. But then I realized that they had individual guns I'd have to paint. Spears. Swords. Knives. Utility belts. Some were less important than others, if they were in scabbards. But things like swords held aloft, I couldn't get around.

With Sylvanas, I panicked because while she does have a sword (in some cutscenes) it was just a basic, boring silver thing. I thought I knew better and tried to remake the Twin Blades of Azzinoth from Illidan.

When they looked as bad as they did, I pretty much called it quits then and there.

The guns would be their own beast; with Vriska Solitaire, I at least could just make the Warhammer of Vrillyhoo to reference, but I didn't know what to do for a sudden army of all this. I was suddenly adrift because I was relying a bit much on source material and beginning to mix the things that shouldn't be. Illidan looks good holding the twinglaives, his color palette reflects that. Sylvanas does not.

It made me realize that this wouldn't be the first or last time I encountered this problem, so I decided to spend more time thinking about who my main faction would be (especially since I did and do still have some Drukhari Boxes of Shame™ in my cupboard already, and I didn't want to go deeper before it was too late.) For the time being, I would just paint what I wanted to paint and when I came up with something that I could commit to (which I would!) then I would commit to that army.

This is to ultimately say that if there is something you consistently dread doing, and it's less of a skill issue and more something like "but I don't even have any idea how to make this interesting," then don't hesitate to shop around until you find something you like.

#5: Understand How To Catch The Eye

The last brief point I'll mention is knowing how color contrast also means you should catch your viewer's eye.

You want it on the figure. The only thing I could day I did right is that Sylvesperax is very dark so you could argue she is stealthy and fast, and nothing but a blurry shadow on the orange Martian surface I placed her on. But that's a complete and total cope, lol. And I fucked up the glyphs again: I wanted a yellow glow to a reddish background, but the flow messed up and it stood out too much.

Going at this a second time, I think what I would do is try to make her brighter, i.e. less shade paint, and the ground duller; an ugly orangeish-brown clay like in Minecraft. Also, smaller detail brushes I would get in the future would be a godsend. In addition to her overly shaded blue form, you might see her eyes seem stylistically darkened when in fact, they were supposed to be red and I could never get the shader out.

So, big bummer with this one, and a step down from the Vriska Solitaire, but definitely a bigger learning experience. And a humbling moment, where I realized just how many mistakes I could make in one sitting. But no worries: the next one would have even more mistakes, and I would be a lot better at coping with them and I'd definitely start to develop more as a painter thanks to it. See you next time on that post!

[ambrial-blog]

OVER THERE! THERE HE IS!” Mildred cries out.  “Hurry up Mox! and throw him a line to reel him in!, B needs our help!  Shouts Millie at the helm.  HANG IN THERE SIR! screams Moxie.  “What in the nine hells is tailing him!  Is that a ship! yells Moxie. Scurrying to the side of the ship he tosses out a spool of rope into the tides.  “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!”  growls Loona  “that’s the snake bastard’s ship! that’s Striker at the helm! Loona barks as she peers through a telescope. “What the fuck does he want with my dad!” snarls the Berserker. As she watches  Blitzo swim for his life. a red hand shoots out from the foaming water grasping onto the spiel of rope hanging from the ship, Blitzo hoists himself out from the churning tides and aboard IMP. 

The red-skinned devil heaves a mouthful of water onto the deck as Moxie wraps a towel around his shoulders. “Get us out of here Mills” says Moxie. “We got him.  Blitzo’s eyes flicker with a hellish rage as Bombproof sinks further into the horizon.  “You’ve been missing for awhile sir, are you okay?” asks Moxie.  “Never better Mox, and you know my name, use it.” replies the imp.  “Now what did I miss, tell me we have a job to do?”   “Its Stolas sir, the princely vagrant wants to speak to you, he says he wants you as an esscort if your available?.  “The further away from wrath we get , the better I feel”  “What does he want sir?”  “Fuck if I know Mox” Blitzo lies. whatever it is, its not going to be me”  Blitzo answers. “But I’m going to walk around naked if you don’t get me a pair of dry clothes” Blitzo threatens. his eyes narrowing on his first mate and best friend.  “Yes sir. Moxie answers scurrying to find something for his captain to wear while Loona handed Blitzo a steaming mug of coffee.  “Loony you found your daddy!” he exclaimed.  “That better be the fever talking” Loona growls. but was happy to have her captain and father back aboard IMP. 

[e350tb]

Gravity Falls/Doctor Who - Mabel Vs The Toymaker

Mabel stood in front of the small toy store in the Gravity Falls Mall, her face set in an uncharacteristic determined frown.

It wasn’t really that much to look at. It was a faux-retro structure, the facade make of dyed red teak, with a black sign above it that read ‘The Toyroom Toys and Gifts.’ There were puppets and dolls displayed in the window next to the big wooden door, each of them painted and dressed in bright colourful costumes - clowns, jesters, harlequins, all garish in tone.

Soos swallowed as they approached the shop, gazing at the window. He looked closely at a doll with brown skin and messy hair, wearing a purple-and-white clown suit with a big red nose.

“You sure they’re here, dood?” he asked.

“The mysterious toy store that appeared overnight?” replied Mabel. “Of course Dipper would’ve come here. He couldn’t pass up a mystery like that!”

“Oh, okay.” Soos tugged on his collar. “But shouldn’t we get Stan and Ford before we go in?”

“I left a note on the table,” replied Mabel. “If anything awful happens to us, they’ll come to the rescue!”

“Oh.” Soos gulped. “Good.”

Mabel pushed open the door and stepped inside.

The store was dark, eerily lit by old electric lights that left long shadows over the creaking wooden floorboards. There were rows and rows of toys on shelves to the left and right, hidden by the darkness, but the middle of the shop was clear like a gangway, leading to the black oak counter. Behind this were more puppets, hung on hooks liked hanged men, and a few dusty old board games on small shelves below. There was nobody at the counter, but an old bell stood by the equally ancient-looking cash register.

Mabel and Soos walked to the counter, the floors squeaking and groaning under their weight. Without hesitation, Mabel began pressing the button on the bell – the dinging echoed.

“Heh, guess nobody’s home,” said Soos. “We should–”

He turned around.

“Wilkommen to mein shop.”

Soos jumped and screamed. A man had appeared behind him – he wore a cowboy’s outfit, a clearly plastic badge on his white buttoned shirt and a big black hat framing his forehead. He seemed an older gentlemen, grey-haired and somewhat weathered, but the wide smile seemed almost childish. Were it not for the strange glimmer in his blue eyes, he’d almost seem like an ordinary, if eccentric, shopkeeper.

“Oh! Sorry dude, you crept up on me!” Soos rubbed the back of his head. “Uh, we’re just here to…”

“Cut the act!” snapped Mabel, pointing accusingly at the shopkeeper. “Where’s Dipper? What did you do to him?”

The man’s brows shot up.

“Dipper?” He rubbed his chin. “Do we have ein Dipper? Let me think…”

He walked behind the counter, kneeling down to look beneath it.

“I think I saw the Dipper,” he said. “Would he have been with the red-haired girl? Green flannel, freckles?”

“Yeah,” replied Mabel, crossing her arms. “Where are they?”

“Let me see… that would be filed under das ‘Pine Tree,” mused the man. “Und das ice bag…”

Mabel smacked her hands on the counter.

“Where are they?” she demanded again.

“Now really, there’s a lot under here,” replied the shopkeeper. “I need a little time to… aha!”

He stood up, his hands cupped together.

“Now, you is looking for the Dipper, ja?” he said. “Und the Wendy?”

“Yeah!” snapped Mabel. “Where are they?”

“Uh… dood,” Soos put a hand on Mabel’s shoulder. “We never told him Wendy’s name.”

“Here ist das Dipper…” The man placed a small object on the counter. “...und das Wendy.” He placed another next to it.

Mabel took up the objects with trembling hands. One was a wooden figurine teenage boy, wearing a vest, orange shirt and shorts, and clad in a familiar blue and white hat, smiling fairly neutrally up at her. The other was a teenage girl with long red hair, a trapper hat, a green flannel shirt and jeans, again with an easy smile. Their features were printed on the front and back of the flat figures, with the sides an unpainted wood colour. They were like little figures from an old wooden train set.

“What did you do to them?!” Mabel exclaimed, horrified.

“Ah, you see, little Dipper wanted to see what the ‘mystery’ of this little shop was,” replied the man, “so he dragged his little girlfriend here to snoop around, see what they could see. Und that’s when they found me, and all of my toys, and Dipper, he was so confident, he wanted me to let them go. So I told him I would play a game with him. If he won, I’d give him all my toys. But if I won…”

He grinned, and Mabel noticed he seemed to have far too many teeth. A single golden tooth shimmered in the left side of his mouth.

“Ah, but I did win,” he continued. “And now we both have what we wanted, ja? Dipper und Wendy get to know the mystery of the toy shop, forever und ever, and I get some more new toys to have fun with.”

“But why?” asked Mabel. “Why make them this? Who are you?”

The man took the wooden Dipper and Wendy out of Mabel’s hands, placing them on the table.

“I am the Toymaker,” he replied, his accent slipping from a faux German to a deep British.

“Yeah, kinda guess that, dood,” said Soos, looking around. “I mean I guess it’s a hobby.”

“Soos!”

“What? You gotta hand it to him, there’s some pretty neat stuff in here,” Soos shrugged.

Mabel narrowed her eyes.

“Yeah, sorry, I deserve that.” Soos looked at his feet.

Mabel turned back to the Toymaker, reaching for the wooden figures.

“Ah-ah-ah!” the Toymaker raised his hand. “You cannot be having my toys. That is theft! Scandalous!”

“They’re not yours!” shouted Mabel.

“But they are,” replied the Toymaker. “I won them, fair und square! If you want them back, you must be winning the game yourself.”

Mabel and Soos exchanged glances.

“Soos,” she said, “go tell Grunkle Stan what’s happening.”

“On it!” Soos saluted and headed for the door. He reached it, pushed on it - and slammed into it as it failed to move.

“Aw man, I always do that…”

He tried pulling, but to no avail.

“Ah, I’m sorry,” said the Toymaker. “No leaving until the game is complete.”

Mabel furrowed her brow.

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll play your game. I mean, I don’t really have a choice…”

The Toymaker leaned in.

“Well then,” he said, and the store shifted around them. Suddenly, the counter was a table, and Mabel was swept onto a chair across from the Toymaker. She heard a yelp, and Soos was pushed into place next to them.

The Toymaker narrowed his eyes.

“What shall we play?”

He leaned back, producing a deck of cards which he began to shuffle.

“I have been busy since I found your brother, you know,” he said, his accent becoming British again. “Your town has been an interesting little distraction from my… current game. So much more colourful than that joyless Doctor…”

He flipped through the cards impossibly quickly.

“I beat the Time Baby in a game of snap,” he said, “and made him into so many marbles. I trapped the unicorns in slide-puzzles, and exiled the Shapeshifter to the Baltic Avenue space - though I prefer Coventry Street myself. I made Blendin Blandin my Joker card…”

He held up the Joker, revealing a picture of the time traveller on the front. He tossed it away contemptuously.

“Bill Cipher played for his freedom,” he continued. “He lost. I made him a talking board.”

“Bill?” Mabel’s eyes widened. “But how?”

“I still wait for the main game,” said the Toymaker, ignoring Mabel’s response. “The final contest against the Doctor. But I do enjoy a few extra games on the side.”

“Who’s the Doctor?” asked Soos.

“I don’t get it,” said Mabel. “Dipper and Wendy only disappeared last night. How’d you get the time to play against all those other people?”

“You really think I would be so boring as to obey the rules of linear time?” sniffed the Toymaker.

Mabel stared at the Dipper and Wendy figures.

“So they could’ve actually been here for…”

“We have spoken enough!” The Toymaker’s German accent briefly returned. “Now… what shall we play, Mabel Pines?”

“How do we know you won’t cheat?” asked Mabel.

The Toymaker’s eyes widened.

“Never!” he exclaimed. “Outrageous! For shame! I must abide by the rules of the game! To do otherwise would be unthinkable!”

Mabel and Soos exchanged glances.

“Go fish,” declared Mabel. “We’ll play that.”

“Sehr gut!” The German accent was back again as he dealt the cards - seven for him, seven for Mabel. He shuffled the cards again and placed them face down in the middle. “Most matches win?”

“You’re on.”

The Toymaker leaned in.

“By all means,” he said. “You first.”

Mabel looked down at her hand - ten of spades, queen of hearts, eight of hearts, seven of diamonds, ace of diamonds, seven of clubs and nine of clubs. She swallowed.

“Do you have any sevens?” she asked.

The Toymaker pulled a single card from his deck and handed it over - the seven of diamonds. Soos began to lean over to see his hand - he slapped him away.

“Okay… do you have any tens?”

The Toymaker smirked.

“Go fish.”

Mabel picked up another card - the nine of spades. The Toymaker studied his cards.

“You know, your brother challenged me to a game of logic,” he said. “Chess. Do you have any eights?”

Mabel swallowed, handing over her eight of hearts.

“Chess?” she quizzed.

“Ja,” the Toymaker nodded. “Nearly won too. Just made one tiny wrong move… but sometimes that’s all it takes.”

He smirked.

“Show me your Queens.”

Mabel handed over the queen of hearts.

“Aw man, dood, I can’t watch…” Soos covered his eyes.

“It’s always the ones that be thinking they are the cleverest,” sneered the Toymaker. “I would like to play your Großonkel Ford after we’ve finished here. Fours?”

Mabel shook her head. “Go fish.”

The Toymaker shrugged, drawing a card.

“It is always fun to play against the hubristic,” he said.

“Got any aces?” demanded Mabel.

The Toymaker smirked again. “Go fish.”

Mabel drew once more - the Jack of clubs.

“Ford would clean you up,” she snorted.

“No, I think I would be doing the cleaning,” he replied. “He is, as they say, too clever by half. Like the poor Dipper. Got any nines?”

With a shaking hand, Mabel handed over her two nines.

“Wunderbar,” said the Toymaker. “And any fives?”

“Go fish, jerk,” spat Mabel.

“Ooh, bad sportsmanship.” The toymaker shook his head as he drew a card. “But I am right, no? Sooner or later he was always going to end up in a fight he couldn’t win.”

“Jacks?” asked Mabel, trying not to take the bait.

“You must be going fishing!” The Toymaker clapped his hands together.

Mabel gritted her teeth, drawing the king of diamonds. The Toymaker grinned unpleasantly.

“Sevens?”

Mabel gulped - she had three, nearly a match. Still, she reluctantly handed them over.

“And poor Wendy,” he continued. “She tried to fight me when he lost – can you believe that? So uncivilised. Threes?”

“Go fish.”

“But what can you expect from her kind?” asked the Toymaker, drawing the card. “So headstrong. So foolish. If she wanted so badly to stay with her Dipper, I could only oblige.”

“Got any fours?”

“Go und fish!”

Mabel drew a card - the ace of hearts.

“So many possibilities for matches,” said the Toymaker, looking at his hand. “Any nines?”

“Go fish.”

The Toymaker shrugged, drawing a card.

“Jacks?” asked Mabel.

The Toymaker handed over a card - the Jack of hearts.

“How about you give me my sevens back?” she demanded.

The Toymaker smiled wryly and did so.

“How ‘bout any tens?”

“Go fish.”

She drew a three of hearts.

It continued like this for a few more turns. The Toymaker quickly seized the three but had to go fish asking for twos. Mabel claimed the three of clubs from him but lost out asking for fours - she ‘fished’ a four of diamonds, ironically enough. The Toymaker took Mabel’s aces, but went fishing when she had no fives. Mabel asked for Jacks and got nothing, fishing a ten of hearts.

The Toymaker smirked.

“Your sevens, fraulein.”

Mabel handed them over with a shaking hand, and the Toymaker laid them out in front of him, along with a single seven of spades from his hand.

“Ein point for me.”

“Uh, when we get turned into toys and stuff,” said Soos, “can I be a teddy bear? Feels like that’d hurt less.”

“Soos!” exclaimed Mabel.

“Any tens?”

Mabel swallowed as she handed them over.

“Just sayin’,” Soos shrugged.

“How about twos?”

“Go fish,” grunted Mabel.

She looked at her hand as the Toymaker did so.

“Any nines?” she asked.

The Toymaker handed over the nines of clubs, spades and hearts.

“You would be making good playing cards, I think,” he said.

“Shut up,” said Mabel. “Threes?”

“Go und fish.”

She drew the five of spades…

“Any Kings?”

…and handed over the King of Diamonds. She had no sixes, though, so the Toymaker drew.

On the game went. Mabel got two eights, spades and hearts, but the Toymaker had no fours, so she drew a four of clubs. The Toymaker asks for eights but got none. Mabel took three twos from him, missing only the two of spades, and reclaimed the nines, but he had no threes, so she drew. The Toymaker requested aces but got nothing.

“Any fives?”

The Toymaker handed over three cards. She gathered them with her five of spades and slapped them on the table in front of her.

“Read ‘em and weep, sucker!” she snapped. “One to me! Now show me a three!”

“Nein, go fish.”

Mabel slapped her forehead and drew. As she did so, her eyes widened, and she gathered the new jack with her three other jacks and put them in front of her.

“Two to me.”

“Ja, ja, very good,” the Toymaker said dismissively. “Your nines.”

Mabel shook her head as she handed over her three nines.

“Und your aces?”

“Go fish,” snorted Mabel.

The Toymaker drew.

“Show me your fours.”

“Nein, go fish.”

She drew an eight of diamonds, and immediately had to hand it over as the Toymaker asked for eights. She had no Kings, so he drew again.

On it went. Mabel asked for tens and got nothing, but drew the ten of clubs anyway. The Toymaker took back the nines and unsuccessfully tried for eights. Mabel took back the Kings but had no luck on threes. She drew a queen of diamonds that the Toymaker promptly took, along with her twos. These he drew in front of him - another set. He had no luck on nines, and Mabel took the queens back. He’d no threes so she drew again - eight of clubs.

The Toymaker took her tens. He had no luck on aces, but drew the nine of diamonds and made another match. Mabels took his aces, but drew when he had no kings. He took her fours, and then looked at her over the cards.

“Shall we up the ante?” he asked. “One turn each from now on. We keep going until we have no cards.”

Mabel scratched her chin.

“Wouldn’t that be messing with the rules?” she asked.

“Not,” replied the Toymaker, “if they are house rules.”

Mabel nodded.

“Fine,” she said.

She looked at her cards.

“Eights?”

The Toymaker handed over three - another set!

“Sixes?” he asked.

Mabel handed over her six, and the Toymaker made another set.

“Aw dood…” Soos clutched his head, sweating.

“Threes.”

“Go fish.”

Mabel drew a card - three of diamonds.

“Fours?”

Mabel swallowed. “Go fish.”

He drew a card.

“Kings?”

“Go fish.”

She drew the four of spades.

“Tens?”

“Go fish.”

He drew as she looked at her cards, sweating.

She inhaled deeply.

“Aces?”

He handed over two cards, and Mabel made another set.

“Fours?” he asked again.

Mabel handed over hers - he made a set once more. She looked at her cards - three threes, three queens, three kings.

“Q-queens?” she stammered.

“Go und fish.”

She drew with trembling hand, and produced the king of spades. She laid them out - one more match.

“We are tied!” exclaimed the Toymaker. “With three suits left in play. Oh, I am so excited! Now… your threes.”

Mabel swallowed, handing them over.

“Now,” exclaimed the Toymaker. “The gamble! I have six cards, you have three. To complete the set, one of us must draw. Will it be you?”

Mabel looked down at the deck - there were a paltry few cards left. She took a deep breath and channelled her inner Grunkle Stan.

“Got any queens?” she asked, knowing full-well he didn’t.

He gestured to the cards, and she drew.

She looked down at the Three of Spades in her hand.

“Your turn.”

“Hmm…” the Toymaker scratched his chin. “If I correctly guess what you have, I can take it, and you lose. But if I don’t… a roll of the dice. A pure gamble.”

He leaned in, studying Mabel closely.

“Do you have any… tens?”

Mabel let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.

“Go fish.”

He did so.

“Ten of diamonds,” he said, “a set.”

He laid them in front of him.

“Got any threes?” demanded Mabel.

He handed three over, and she too made a set.

“No cards,” said the Toymaker. “I have no choice but to draw… and we both know I’ll get…”

He drew the card.

“Got any queens?” asked Mabel.

“The Queen of Spades,” nodded the Toymaker. “The last remaining card.”

He handed it over, and Mabel laid her remaining cards in front of her.

“Seven points,” said Mabel. “You’ve only got six. I win.”

The Toymaker nodded, impressed.

“A bold gamble at the end,” he said. “You would put so much on the line to save your brother. It… puzzles me.”

Mabel leaned over the table.

“Give them back,” she snarled. “Now.”

The Toymaker adjusted his hat.

“Well why didn’t y’all just say so?” he asked in an exaggerated cowboy accent. “One Dipper n’ one Wendy comin’ right up!”

He clapped his hands together.

“O’ course,” he continued, “you never specified in what condition you’d get ‘em, sooo…”

“Wait, what?” exclaimed Mabel.

“Aw dood! He tricked us with genie logic!” blurted Soos.

“No, I want them back as people!” shouted Mabel. “You hear me? As peo–”

“Guten tag, fraulein! Danke for playing!”

Mabel felt herself being sucked backwards, flying through the air towards the door - which seemed a lot farther away then it had been when she entered. With a mighty crash, she slammed through the door, skidding along the cold, marble floors of the mall and coming to a stop in front of a bench. Soos flew out after her, flying across the mall and into a garbage can on the other side.

“Mabel!”

Mabel looked up, rubbing her head. Grunkle Stan was leaning over her, clutching her shoulders.

“What happened?!” he exclaimed. “What did that shyster do to you? I’m gonna give him a piece o’...”

“That might not be possible, Stanley.”

Ford was looking back towards the store front - the toy shop was gone, replaced with a close shutter and a ‘new store opening soon’ banner. He shook his head, turning back to Mabel.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “Where’s Dipper and Wendy?”

Mabel felt something hard in her hand - she opened it, and the little figures that were her brother and friend sat on her palm, as inanimate as any object.

“Ford,” said Stan, his voice dangerously calm. “We’re gonna find this jerk, right?”

Ford shook his head.

“I don’t know, Stan,” he replied. “The Celestial Toymaker might only be found if he wants to be found. It’s possible he’s tracking an, uh, mutual acquaintance, but if anything that man’s even more difficult to find.”

“But we can turn them back, right?” Mabel asked.

Ford put a hand on her shoulder.

“I don’t know,” he replied. “But I will try, I promise.”

“And if we can’t?” demanded Stan.

Ford took a deep breath.

“Then we track him,” he said. “And if we can’t track him… we wait.”

Mabel looked down at the small figures, wondering what they must be feeling right now. She blinked some tears out of her eyes and held them close to her heart, hoping they could at least feel the beat.

“I’ll fix this, guys,” she whispered. “I promise.”

Dipper and Wendy didn’t reply.

[mycherrycola]

in the mood to post works in progress today so here I'll introduce you to my Harlequin and Death characters (not just because I realized there is nothing in the tag I made for them LOL)

they started as a doodle inspired by similar paintings by Konstantin Somov but now I draw them in so many situations they've taken on a life on their own. The underlying theme every time is that The Harlequin taunts Death with his foolish actions, yet Death can never seem to get a chance to take his soul away. Chaos ensues :D

first pic is one of their many meetings, second is alternate outfits for the Harlequin, third is Harlequin urging Death to drink (ignore my google translate Italian lol), and the last time I drew them was in a cowboy au type thing xD

[danielleurbansblog]

Review: Christmas in Painted Pony Creek

Synopsis: Get cozy with this heartwarming holiday story!  Can a Christmas miracle mend her broken heart? Tessa Stafford will do anything for her daughter, Isabel…even stay on the run to protect Isabel from her narcissistic grandmother. But when her car breaks down in Painted Pony Creek, Tessa gets caught up in the warm embrace of the town and feels safe enough to build a home—and a life—for…

[scarefox]

NO... no! They are not making ANOTHER The Crow remake in fucking 2024!!

As if the other 3 movies & weird series weren't already enough?? The original movie is one of my favs (+ the comics). That's why people showered me with all the other movies too, thinking I might be interested in them. Couldn't even finish movie 4 because it was so dumb. The second movie was still okayish. Can't remember the third. The series was kinda low budged fantasy crime drama version but had it's charm.

Seeing the trailer of the remake.... they could at least make it another part in the universe (different characters) and not a REMAKE (same characters redesigned). This new one looks more like a sci-fi Joker movie... They didn't even give Eric his long hair... my siblings in hell, he is/was literally in a rock band! That's part of his character!

Now to this face tattooed Suicide Squad Joker version of him... they really make this into this generic modern overused super-anti-hero version...... He looks like he's into gangster rap now and fresh out of jail.

Another thing that bothers me with ALL the parts that come after the original... the makeup choice is such a PERSONAL choice for Eric Draven. It is based on a harlequin mask he joked around with his fiancé. But every other following The Crow main character got this make up too which doesn't make sense!

At least it looks like they are trying to get closer to the comic version now with the remake. There is a skeleton cowboy in the comics that never made it into the movies. He explains the rules and connection with the crow. They seem to have that character now in the new movie... but he's not a skeleton in this movie either... just some dude. It would have been more compelling, if it was all different characters in the same universe, like they did with the other movies at least.

THE ONLY inspired by The Crow story I like is the book "The Crow: The Lazarus Heart" by Poppy Z. Brite. It's about a gay couple, where one of them got killed by a serial killer and the other (who was a SM photographer) got wrongfully sentenced to death for this crime on his boyfriend. He then gets resurrected by the crow and takes revenge and solves the crime. If they would make THAT book into a movie I would be so here for it. But people would freak out that they make The Crow woke now... even though that book is from 1998 (btw written by a transman as I found out now!)

[gascon-en-exil]

@glueblade said

I suppose you could get creative with body paint or something, or would that already be considered not-nude?

There was some body paint going on, but also just a lot of partial costumes.

Evidently it was one of those things where each individual was allowed to interpret the concept however they liked, with the general rule being that so long as the more entertaining body parts are exposed it still technically counts as nudism. My own date - using that term very loosely - went as a slutty Pikachu, with the ears and red paint for the cheeks and Pikachu socks, as an example. At various points in the evening I had on or in me a Finn the human from Adventure Time, some sort of half-bodysuit homage to Dune, at least two cowboys from the waist up, a sad harlequin, more than one man in a harness, a Caesar with a cloak and laurels but no toga, a devious groping angel, an astonishingly drunk twink in a top hat, and a priest and nun ("Mother Morecock," as he called himself) couple delivering spankings and dirty Bible verses to all interested parties. Those last two quite enjoyed my tales of flirting with actual priests, although I couldn't quite tell if they were even Catholic themselves.

[bone-evidence]

I don't know if I'll ever end up writing it, but I had the idea for a small town cowboy au with PruCan and GerAme, written in the style of a Harlequin novel. And the title of this inevitable cheese-fest?

Riding Bareback

[triviareads]

ARC Review of One Steamy Night & An Off-Limits Merger by Brenda Jackson; Naima Simone

One Steamy Night by Brenda Jackson:

Okay first let me say I really do appreciate cover model. I assume this is Jaxon Ravnel and the hot modern cowboy look is doing a lot.

Jaxon Ravnel announces his intention to marry Nadia Novak except, well, he barely knows her. It's such a Harlequin hero-coded thing to do, so I didn't question it. I was into it. For her part, Nadia is obviously not amused or eager, but she slowly allows him to "court" (yes this is the word Jaxon uses; his plan is a "very serious courtship") her. Since this book is mostly set in a small town, that means escorting her to local events. Eventually, Nadia decides she wants to sleep with him, BUT still has no intention of marrying which was pretty funny to me, especially when Jaxon found out. Ultimately there wasn't much conflict or anything major stopping them from getting together; it was really a matter of of time.

In terms of sex, there are two sex scenes, and they were pretty standard Harlequin fare, though I feel like they were on the tamer end of Harlequin Desire books.

An Off-Limits Merger by Naima Simone

I'd been looking forward to Tatum and Bran's book ever since I read Her Best Kept Secret, so I was excited to get into it. Tatum is still recovering from finding out her fiancé was cheating on her when she died, and taking the Greer Motorcycle account is her chance to prove that she can be taken seriously again. Enter Greer co-owner Bran Holleran. Listen, if there's one thing you can count on a Harlequin hero for, it's an immediate proposition moment— and Naima Simone makes sure her heroes pull it off with this perfect combination of sexy straightforwardness while still leaving room for refusal, and Bran did not disappoint, particularly because he didn't know he was hitting on his a potential investor's daughter lolol. I also really love when heroes are tragically contemplating their bit o'rough-ness and how they're not fit to put their dirty hands on the heroine (or something like that) and once again, Bran did not disappoint.

Naima is really good with melding emotional and sexual chemistry so we got two pretty damn hot sex scenes that were also about Tatum taking charge of the situation after feeling pigeonholed as a victim for so long. And Bran did go "use me" at some point which I always appreciate in a romance novel hero.

Overall, I would recommend this book for anyone seeking a diverse duo of romances!

Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.